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HE   HISTOR 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY 


IN  THE  VERMONT  HISTORICAL  GAZETTEER: 


INCLUDING 


A  COUNTY   CHAPTER, 


AND   THE   LOCAL   HISTORIES   OF   THE   TOWNS  OF 


MONTPELIER  — CAPITAL  OF  THE  STATE, 

EAST  MONTPELIER, 

Barrc,  Berlin,  Cabot,  Calais,  Fayston,  Marshfield, 

Middlesex,  Moretown,  Northfield,  Plainfield, 

Roxbury,  Waitsfield,  Warren,  Waterbury, 

Woodbury  and  Worcester, 

BY  NATIVE  AND  RESIDENT  HISTORIANS. 


COLLATED  AND   PUBLISHED    BY 

ABBY   MARIA   HEMENWAY. 


MONTPELIER,  VT. : 

VERMONT   WATCHMAN   AND  STATE   JOURNAL   PRESS. 
1882. 


VHKMONT  HISTORICAL  GAZETTEEK.--Vol.  IV. 

[COPYRIGHT   SKCURED  TO   MISS   HEMENWAY   FOR   VOLS.    IV   AND   V.] 


SUBSCRIPXION    PRICEIS- 

Vol.  I,  II,  III,  IV.  to  (Mie  Older,  or  to  tlirou<;h  suhscrihcrs.  in  paper,  ?5  per  vol.  ;  in 
black  clotli,  S6:  in  halt"  Russia.  $7.  Volume  iv,  alone,  in  paper.  $C^;  in  I)lack  clotli, 
$7:  in  half  Russia,  58.  As  tiie  Publishers  have  back  numbers  tor  all  these  volumes 
over  tliose  to  throui^h  sul)scril)ers.  and  to  sell  this  volume  alone,  breaks  a  sett,  it  is 
not  the  advance  that  should  be  expected  for  a  volume  enriched  i)y  nearly  a  hundred 
more  portraits  and  en^ravint^s  than  any  previous  volume,  and  cannot  be  promised  at 
this  price  only  till  three  hundred  copies  may  be  sold.  Vols,  i,  11,  in,  $5  in  paper; 
clotii.  S6:  hal'f  iurkey,  $7,  any  vol.  or  vols. 

Washington  County  Volume,  paj^es  932,  $6  in  cloth,  $6.^0  in  half  Am.  morocco; 
$6.7 j  in  half  Russia,  ?7  in  all  leather.     Town  Nos.  50  cents  each. 

J'osta^e  will  be  prepaid  on  all  numbers  and  volumes,  in  jupcr.  and  particular  care 
given  to  the  mailing,'  where  the  subscrijjtion  is  sent  to  the  Tublisher,  with  the  least 
l^ossible  delay.  .Mail  orders  must  be  paid  in  advance;  express  orders,  not  prei)aid, 
C.  ().  D  .     rublishcr's  post-office,  .Montpelier,  Vt. 


Vols.  I,  II,  III,  IV,  ready  for  delivery. 

\'ol.  I. — The  first  si.\  \os.  :  Addison,  Bennington,  Caledonia,  and  a  i)art  of  Chit- 
tenden County,  including  the  County  Chapter.  Vermont  History  of  Lake  Champlain. 
IJolton  and  IJurlington,  is  ]jrinted  in  Numbers  ;  Addison,  i  ;  llennington,  2  ;  Caledonia, 
3  and  4;  and  5  and  6,  Chittenden  County — 50  cents  per  \uml)er.  The  balance  of 
Chittenden  and  Kssex  Counties  in  a  half  volume,  paper,  jjrice  i?'2.50 

Vol.  II. — The  towns  of  Franklin,  Grand  Isle,  Lamoille  and  Orange  Counties,  1200 
pp.  is  only  printed  in  whole  Volume. 

Vol.  III. — The  towns  of  Orleans  and  Rutland  Counties,  ])rinled  only  in  Volume. 

Vol.  IV. — State  Volume,  1,200  pages,  only  1,000  copies  printed,  one-half  of  which 
are  now  subscrif)ed  for. 

Hack  numl)ers  can  be  supplied  for  yet  a  time,  but  Vol.  I,  Nos.  3.  4,  5  and  6  are 
not  stereotyped,  and  no  comi)lete  vohmies  can  be  made  up  after  Nos.  not  stereotyi)ed 
are  all  exhausted,  the  work  being  too  expensive  to  reset.  Vols.  11  and  ill  are  stereo- 
tyi)ed  and  owned  by  another  jiarty,  but  it  would  not  pay  to  .rei)rint  short  of  several 
hundred  orders  in  advance,  which  no  one  would  be  likely  to  give  for  tiie  sake  of  a 
copy,  and  who  would  not  order  while  it  can  be  secured  by  subscription — so  large  a 
work  at  so  low  a  price  for  .so  small  an  edition,  and  there  would  be  little  encouragement 
to  i.ssue  Vols.  II  and  iii  when  \'ols.  i,  iv  and  v  arc  not  in  market.  Tliere  would  not 
now  be  a  copv  of  the  first  half  of  \'oi.  i  printed  in  numbers  left,  had  we  not  in  those 
old  days  of  cheap  printing  issued  an  edition  six  times  as  large  as  we  are  now  print- 
ing. Vol.  IV  is  not  stereotyped  ;  the  type  was  taken  down  as  fast  as  the  forms  were 
printed  for  the  small  edition  issued,  which  had  to  be  small,  the  cost  of  printing  i.ooo 
cojiies  being  two-thirds  over  any  State  aid  yet  provided,  and  there  are  no  reserve 
sheets,  except  a  small  number  for  the  County  V^olume,  none  for  the  .State  Volume.  At 
first  there  were  sheets  laid  by,  but  have  been  called  for  and  taken  for  town  Nos.  and 
the  County  Volume.  For  the  towns  who  wished  more  cojjies  of  their  own  history 
than  of  the  whole  work  a  part  of  the  edition  of  Vol.  iv  was  put  into  numbers  of  too 
pages,  of  which  not  over  20  copies  of  .Nos.-i  and  il  only  are  now  unsold  ;  but  of  towns 
since  pamijhleted.  alone  or  combined* \itli  other  towns,  there  jet  remain  for  sale, 
(June  7,  1882)  95  copies  and  no  morepfjL'sbot  complete  in  one  No.  with  Calais  less  I 
page  of  its  grand  list— the  new  Cat.ot  and  Calais  .No. 

92,  .NoKTiii-ii!;i.i),  comi)lete  in  one  pamphlet  of  100  images,  with  new  lithograi)h  por- 
trait, the  three  State  Houses  and  fifteen  other  portraits  and  engravings  printed  in  the 
letter-page.  Gov.  I'aine.  Rev.  John  (Gregory,  C,en.  Alonzo  Jackman,  Hon.  State  Sec. 
Nichols,  Judge  Carpenter,  etc. 

90.  J'l.AiNKir.i.i),  Ro.xiuuv  and  Favsto.n,  in  one  number. 

48,  Waitskiici.I),  Countv  Cmai'TKK,  1)AKRK  and  r.KKi.iN,  in  one  number. 

The  balance  of  the  edition  left  of  Vol.  i  and  \'oIs.  iv  and  v  are  owned  by  .Miss  Hcm- 
cnway  :  Vols.  11  and  iii  by  Samuel  L.  Farman  of  White  River  Junction.  All  papers 
for  publication  should  be  sent  to  Miss  Hemenway  onlj- ;  but  both  parties  at  present 
mutually  sell  the  whole  work.  Miss  Hemenway  buying  of  Mr.  Farman  \'ols.  i  and  11 
for  her  sub.scribers,  and  Mr.  Farman  of  Miss  Hemenway,  \'ols.  i,  iv  and  v,  .such  being 
the  arrangement //•(?  /<•///.     Agents  may  apply  to  either  party. 


i:^ 


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>L  WMmM^AX'MM^^  k.. 


TO  THE  IIONORAIVLE  I'AUJ.  DlLLlNdJlAM, 

I'KK-KMINKNTLY   TIIK   GOVKKNOR    OF    WASIIINOTON   COUNTY, 

Who  g:ivf  liis  order  for  one  luiiulred  copies  of  the  Hist()ry  of  Waterbury  ; 

his  portrait  to  the  work  ;  and  is  also  a  contril>iitor 

to  tliis  volume  : 

TO  HIS  SON— HON.  WM.  p.   DH.LINCillAM, 

SENATOR   OK   WASHINGTON   COUNTY,    187S,   1880, 
Who  has  variously  assisted  the  work  : 

To  Sylvanus  F.  Nye,  Ksq.,  the  Town  Historian  of  llerlin,  for  an  order  for  one 
hundred  copies  of  his  Town  History  : 

To  John  M.  Fisher,  Esq.,  Historian  of  Cabot,  for  an  order  for  two  hundred  and 
twenty-five  Numbers  of  Cabot: 

To  L.  A.  Kent,  Postmaster  at  Calais,  for  an  order  for  one  hundred  copies  of  Calais  : 

To  V.  V.  Vaughn,  Esq.,  the  Associate  Historian  of  Middlesex,  for  an  order  for 
one  hundred  and  twelve  copies  of  his  Town  History. 

To  JosEi'H  K.  Egerton,  Hon.  V.  I).  Bradford,  M.  I).,  Rev.  Frederick  W. 
liartlett,  Hon.  Heman  Carpenter,  for  an  order  for  one  hundred  copies  of  the  His- 
tory of  North  field  : 

To  Dudley  B.  Smith,  M.  D.,  Historian  of  Plainfield,  for  an  order  for  one  hun- 
dred copies  of  the  History  of  Plainfield  : 

To  E.  P.  lU'RNHAM,  merchant,  A.  N.  Tilden,  clerk  and  treas.,  Okkin  1'.  ()K(  I'TT, 
postmaster,  Zed.S.  Stanton,  Esq.,  and  Wilson  J.  Si.monds.  merchant,  of  Roxbury. 
for  an  order  for  one  hundred  copies  of  the  History  of  I<oxl)ury  : 

To  the  Honorable  Judge  Hastings.  W.  A.  Jones  and  Dea.  K.  A.  Kiske,  for  ob- 
taining from  the  town  of  Waitsfield,  at  their  March  meeting  in  1S81,  an  order  for  one 
hundred  and  fifty  copies  of  their  History  : 

Whose  ready  co-operation  has  been  very  valualjle  to  us  at  the  most  needy  time  ot 
a  work,  refiuiring  so  much  outlay  and  cost  while  it  is  i)assing  through  press  ;  to  all 
these,  and  our  other  most  worthy  and  indispensable  helpeis,  our  most  earnest  and 
cvencrally  faithful  Town  Historians  and  otherwise  extensive  Contributors: 

THIS    VOLUME,  THE    COUNTY   OF    THE    CAI'ITAL.    IS    Afl'Kia  I A1  I  \(.LY 


EHITOR   AND  PIIP.MSIHCR. 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

To  the  Donors  of  portraits  and  engravings,  who  have  amply  enriched  this  vohimc : 

To  Curtis  Wells,  Esq.,  at  Watcrl)ury,  for  the  portrait  of  Hon.  Wm.  Wells : 

To  tiie  Donors  of  Montpelier  Portraits,  p.  591,  592,  929: 

To  the  Donors  of  Northfickl  portraits,  ]).  930;  especially  to  Hon.  P.  D.  Bradford, 
M.  1).,  who  havins;  contrilnitcd  one  to  the  John  Gregory  History,  contributed  another 
specially  engraved  for  this  work  : 

To  the  citizens  of  Montixlier,  for  having  taken  already  300  copies  of  the  Montpelier 
Book,  from  this  work  ;  and  for  the  following  names  taken  in  advance  for  this  volume 
bv  Chas.  DeF.  Bancroft: 


K.  D.  Putnam.  Horace  W.  Smi 

James  S.  Peck,  Mrs.  C.  W.  Will 

Chas.  H.  Heath,  Fred  E.  Smith, 

John  n.  Thurston,  C.  F.  Fullerton, 

Charles  I3ewey,  Fred  W.  Bancni 

Edward  Dewcv,  Hiram  Carleton, 

Geo.  W.  Wing,  Fred  R.  Steven; 

L.  Bart  Cross,  Charles  E.  Woe 

P.  P:  Pitkin,  T.  I.  Deavitt. 


Horace  W.  Smith,      Homer  W.  Hcaton,    Marcus  Boutwell, 


Mrs.  C.  W.  Willard,   D.  W.  Dudley, 
Fred  E.  Smith,  Louis  P.  (lleas 


Chas.  D.  F.  Bancroft, 


FredW.  Bancroft,       Wm.  H.  Clark, 
Hiram  Carleton,  Mrs.  J.  L.  Lela 

Fred  R.  Stevens,        Oliver  Wheeloc 


Louis  P.  Glea.son,      W.  H.  Wakefield,  • 
Dr.  W.  D.  Rcid,        A.  D.  Marble, 


Lawrence  Preston, 


Mrs.  J.  L.  Leland,      Henry  Canning, 
Oliver  Wheelock,       John  P.  Soulcs, 


L.  Bart  Cross,  Charles  E.  Wood,      Charles  O.  Foster,      J.  A.  Locklin, 

P.  P:  Pitkin,  T.  J.  Deavitt,  Arthur  D.  Farwell,     D.  A.  (hiptil. 

Dr.  H.  C.  Brigham.  Charles  W.  Porter,     John  R.  Seaver,  Moses  Taylor. 

To  Tin-:  Arovi:  SuBscKiiiKKS.— This  subscription  was  opened  on  the  basis  that 
this  volume  would  run  600  to  700  images,  with  about  30  portraits.  It  was  without  the 
tull  con.scnt  ot  the  Publisher  that  any  price  was  fi.xed  until  the  number  of  pages  and 
plates  should  be  ascertained.  The  cost  of  the  work  has  been  increased  by  almost  one- 
half  more  images  than  promised,  by  every  day's  delav  in  press,  and  the  increase  of 
plates,  which  has  greatly  increased  the  difficulty  and  cost  of  binding.  But  for  con- 
sideration for  our  Agent,  who  has  spent  much 'time  in  the  matter,  we  would  not  take 
less  for  any  volume— we  ought  not  to— than  the  price  at  which  the  work  is  put  for 
^jeneral  sale.  See  page  11.  Our  present  bound  edition  is  not  so  large — but  100  copies— 
>ut  that  it  will  soon  sell,  all  the  towns  in  the  County  having  an  interest  in  this  volume. 
This  County  volume  costs  as  much  in  proportion,  without  binding,  as  we  sell  the  State 
volume  for.  Every  binding  added  is  so  much  loss  to  the  Publisher  on  this  edition. 
We  will  consent  (though  we  ought  not,  we  have  so  increased  the  interest  and  value  of 
the  work)  to  give  the  cloth  binding  as  an  e.xtra  to  the  subscribers,  and  for  other  bind- 
ings must  have  the  difference  between  them  and  a  cloth  binding,  and  the  list  may  be 
filled  viz.  :  in  cloth,  $5  ;  in  half  roan,  $5.50 ;  in  half  Russia,  $5.75  ;  in  full  leather,'  $6 ; 
and  any  .subscril)er  not  willing  to  accept  these  terms  we  will  excu.se  from  taking  the 
volume.     To  all  others,  the  price  on  page  11.     Mi.ss  HEMENWAY,  AV/.  and  Pub. 

A  COUNTY  VOLUME 

Will  be  published  for  Ajjoison  Cointv,  including  what  is  in  Vol.  i  of  this  work 
and  the  supi)lemcntary  history  of  the  County,  in  the  State  edition  ;  and  a  volume  also  for 
Bennington  Co.,  Calei)o\i..\,  CiiiTTKXDE.x  and  Essex— including  the  pa.st  and  the 
supplementary  history  in  the  State  Gazetteer,  in  one  volume,  tor  any  of  the  above- 
named  Counties,  provided  a  subscription  for  100  copies  be  filed  with  the  Publish- 
er, not  prepaid,  only  C.  O.  D.  on  delivery,  for  the  same,  bv  the  loth  of  March  next. 
We  find  tlie  people  of  Washington  County  manifesting  a  decided  interest  in  their  own 
County,  and  this  offer  is  made  to  provide  an  easy  way  for  the  Counties,  also,  of  our 
first  volume,  to  have  separate  County  volumes,  with  all  that  pertains  to  their  own 
County  hi.story,  in  one  County  volume,  which,  we  believe,  would  be  very  pleasing  to 
the  Counties ;  therefore,  as  our  back  numbers  are  not  man\-,  while  vet  in  time  to  be 
able  to  do  so,  we  have  made  the  proposed  edition,  and  guarantee  for,  but  100  copies, 
the  price  of  which  we  cannot  determine  till  we  know  how  large  a  supplement  will  be 
added  to  each  County,  but  it  shall  only  be  in  proportion  to  the  price  of  the  rest  of 
the  work. 

The  present  Publisher  of  Vol.  in,  of  this  work,  has  brought  it  out  shortly  since  in 
two  vols.,  one  for  Orleans  and  one  for  Rutland  County.  It  was  a  curious  oversight  of 
Mr.  Farman  in  leaA'ing  off  the  name  of  the  Historiographer  and  Editor  of  the  work 
from  the  title  page,  but  he  has  assured  us,  he  never  thought  of  it,  and  will  put  it  on 
to  the  ne.xt  edition,  and  we  presume  he  may  consent,  should  the  Counties  in  Vol.  11 
and  111  wish,  when  their  supplements  may  b'e  completed,  they  may  be  combined. 

Mis.s  Hemenway. 


"^  \K^ 


^S^' 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


WASHINGTON    COUNTY 


WASHINGTON    COUNTY  —  INTRO- 
DUCTORY CHAPTER. 

BY   G.    N.    BRIGHAM,    M.    D. 

Washington  County  was  incorporated 
Nov.  I,  1810,  by  act  of  the  Legislature,  and 
organized  Dec.  i,  181 1,  with  Montpelier 
as  the  shire  town,  taking  from  the  county 
of  Caledonia,  Montpelier,  Plainfield,  Cal- 
ais, and  Marshfield  ;  from  Orange,  Barre, 
Beflin,  and  Northfield ;  from  Chittenden, 
Stowe,  Waterbury,  Duxbury,  Fayston, 
Waitsfield,  Moretown,  Middlesex,  and 
Worcester,  and  was  called  Jefferson  Coun- 
ty until  1814,  when,  the  Federal  party 
coming  into  power,  it  was  changed  to 
Washington.  It  is  about  34  miles  from 
north  to  south,  and  31  from  east  to  west, 
between  lat.  44°  i'  and  44°  32',  and  long. 
4°  10',  east  from  Washington;  bounded 
N.  by  Lamoille  and  Caledonia  Counties ; 
E.  by  Caledonia  and  Orange  Counties ; 
S.  by  Orange  and  Addison  Counties,  and 
W.  by  Addison  and  Chittenden  Counties. 
There  has  been  added  to  it,  Roxbury  from 
Orange  County,  in  1820,  Elmore  from  Or- 
leans, in  1 82 1,  Warren  from  Addison,  in 
1829,  Woodbury  from  Caledonia,  in  1835, 
and  Cabot  from  Caledonia,  in  1855. 

On  the  organization  of  Lamoille  County, 
in  1836,  Stowe  and  Elmore  were  set  off  to 
that  County,  leaving  17  towns ;  by  the  di- 
vision of  Montpelier  into  Montpelier  and 
East  Montpelier,  and  the  addition  of 
Cabot,  the  County  again  had  its  19  towns. 
The  County  has  also  two  gores,  Goshen 
and  Harris',  east  of  Plainfield  and  Marsh- 
field.  Some  of  the  towns  on  the  west 
side,  upon  the  ridge  of  the  Green  Moun- 
tains, are  hilly  and  almost  inaccessible  even 


for  timber,  though  but  a  small  tract  can 
be  called  waste  land. 

The  surface  of  the  County  is  somewhat 
broken,  but  still  it  may  be  classed  one  of 
the  be^t  agricultural  counties  in  the  State. 
The  original  inhabitants  were  Abenaqui 
Indians,  a  fai^ily  of  the  Algonquin  tribe. 
From  their  language  comes  the  name  of  its 
principal  river,  which  is  said  to  mean  the 
land  of  leeks,  or  onions,  and  was  first 
written  Winoosque,  or,  as  some  insist, 
[Mr.  Trumbull,]  Winoos-ki,  two  words 
signifying  land  and  leek.  There  are  occa- 
sional relics  of  this  ancient  people  found 
within  this  County,  and  the  valley  of  the 
Winooski  was  the  great  highway  through 
which  they  made  their  incursions  upon  the 
inhabitants  on  the  Connecticut  rive:  in  its 
early  settlements,  and  through  which  they 
went  and  returned  in  that  nad  in  which 
Royalton  was  burned. 

In  the  State  Cabinet  is  a  stone  hatchet 
found  in  Waitsfield.  About  2  miles  beiow 
Montpelier  village,  on  what  was  once 
known  as  "  the  Collins  Farm,"'  now^  own- 
ed by  a  Mr.  Nelson,  40  rods  north  of  the 
railroad-track,  and  some  12  rods  east  of 
the  road  leading  by  Erastus  Camp's  saw- 
mill and  house,  is  found  what  is  evidently 
the  remains  of  an  Indian  mound.  It  is 
rectangular  in  form,  and  some  40  to  50 
feet  across.  It  has  at  present  an  elevation 
of  some  6  feet.  It  has  been  lowered  by 
the  present  owner  of  the  land  some  15 
inches,  and  a  Mr.  John  Agila  says  he  help- 
ed plow  and  scrape  it  down  many  years 
ago  at  least  5  feet.  Capt.  H.  Nelson  Tap- 
lin,  who  is  70  years  of  age,  saw,it  when  a 
boy  of  ten,  and  thinks  its  sides  had  an  an- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  M.A'V/.ZiNK 


gle  of  about  60  degrees.  Mr.  Nelson 
found  an  Indian  tomahawk,  a  spear-head, 
and  a  relic,  showing  considerable  mechan- 
ical skill,  which  we  are  unable  to  name, 
some  few  rods  south  of  the  mound,  while 
plowing  his  meadow.  The  mound  is  situ- 
ated at  the  opening  of  a  narrow,  glen-like 
passage  running  back  among  the  hills,  and 
.is  flanked  by  two  opposing  bluflfs,  the  one 
on  the  west  being  the  most  elevated.  It 
seems  to  have  been  set  in  a  natural  niche, 
admirably  chosen  for  its  picturesqueness 
and  beauty.  In  front  is  a  level  piece  of 
land  bordering  the  Winooski,  nearly  a  half- 
mile  wide,  and  li  mile  long.  The  soil  is 
light  and  loamy,  exceedingly  well  adapted 
to  the  growing  of  their  maize.  Traces  of 
Indian  pottery  have  also  been  found  on  the 
lands  here  described,  and  also  on  one  of 
the  lake-made  plateaus  ab^ve  the  village. 
An  Indian  arrow-head  has  been  found  on 
the  high  land  in  the  rear  of  the  mound ; 
and  some  4  miles  below,  opposite  to  where 
Mad  River  empties  into  Winooski,  on  the 
Farrar  meadow,  was  plowed  up  a  stone- 
gouge,  a  spear-head,  and  a  stone-axe,  all 
evidently  of  aboriginal  origin,  which  are 
deposited  in  the  cabinet  at  the  State  House. 
The  axe  is  of  horn  stone  of  the  best  qual- 
ity, with  a  fine  edge.  The  spear-heads 
are  made  of  chert,  a  species  of  flint,  but 
not  the  gun-flint ; — one  finely  preserved. 
Fracturing  stone  for  these  Indian  imple- 
ments is  said  to  be  an  art,  and  usually 
done  by  old  men  who  are  disabled  from 
hunting. 

See  page  196,  2d  Vol.  of  Champlain's 
History:  Upon  the  Champlain.  He  says 
"  I  saw  on  the  east  side  very  high  moun- 
tains," &c.  [See  also  Addison  for  the 
same.  Vol.  I.  this  work.]  There  is  no 
doubt  the  mountains  here  spoken  of  were 
Mansfield  and  CamePs  Hump,  and  the 
Winooski  the  waters  by  which  they  were 
able  to  go  close  to  the  mountains  in  their 
canoes. 

East  of  Montpelier,  i^  mile,  there  is  a 
large  block  of  limestone  which  was  obvi- 
ously shaped  by  human  hands,  and  so 
closely  resembles  the  Indian  monuments 
for  graves,  to  be  seen  in  the  illustrations, 
Ijy  Schoolcraft,  as  to  leave  little  doubt  that 


it  was  originally  erected  as  a  tombstone, 
or  other  memorial  of  some  great  aborig- 
inal event.  The  whole  valley  was  proba- 
bly at  one  time  here  and  there  studded 
with  wigwams,  and  by  hunting,  fishing,  and 
growing  of  the  maize,  for  many  generations, 
the  families  of  the  red  man  subsisted  here, 
making  a  part  of  that  traditional  glory  be- 
longing to  the  once  far-famed  and  powerful 
tribe  known  as  the  Algonquins.  Some  of 
the  tribe  of  St.  Francis  Indians,  a  family  of 
the  Algonquins,  have  lived  around  the  east- 
ern border,  or  within  the  limits  of  this 
County  until  their  families  were  extinct. 
Among  these  were  Capt.  John  and  Joe. 
Capt.  John  was  with  a  party  of  Indians  at- 
tached to  the  American  army  when  Bour- 
goyne  was  captured.  [See  Newbury,  Vol. 
II.]  Old  Joe  used  to  make  frequent  visits 
to  Montpelier,  stopping  for  a  few  days  with 
a  family  living  in  an  old  log  house,  a  little 
out  of  the  village  on  the  east  side  of  Wor- 
cester Branch.  There  he  used  to  run  bul- 
lets from  lead  ore  found  by  him  on  land  a 
little  west  of  what  is  now  called  Wright's 
Mills.  A  young  man  of  this  family  once 
went  in  company  with  Capt.  Joe  and  cut  a 
block  from  the  vein  of  very  pure  lead, 
which  was  afterwards  purchased  by  Hon. 
Daniel  Baldwin,  and  melted.  Mr.  Bald- 
win offered  a  considerable  sum  to  be  shown 
the  spot.  It  was  hunted  for,  but  the  lands 
in  the  mean  time  having  been  cleared,  the 
place  could  not  be  identified.  It  was  just 
out  of  Montpelier  village,  in  this  same  vi- 
cinity, that  a  novel  system  of  telegraphing 
was  invented  in  the  earliest  settlement  of 
the  County.  The  mother  of  a  family  of 
five  children,  fearing  they  would  get  lost 
in  going  after  the  cows  in  the  woods,  used 
to  send  the  oldest  forward,  enjoining  him 
not  to  go  beyond  the  call  of  the  next,  who 
would  follow,  and  so  of  the  rest,  until  all 
were  in  line,  she  herself  sending  forward 
word,  and  getting  answers  from  the  scour- 
ing party,  until  the  cows  were  brought  in. 
In  1760,  Samuel  Stevens  was  employed 
by  a  land-company  to  explore  the  middle 
and  eastern  portions  of  the  New  Hamp- 
shire grants,  and,  with  a  few  others,  began 
at  the  mouth  of  White  River  and  proceed- 
ed up  the  Connecticut  till  they  came  to 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


Newbury.  Then  finding  the  head  waters 
of  the  Winooski  river,  followed  it  down  to 
its  mouth  at  Lake  Champlain.  This  was 
three  years  before  the  survey  of  any  lands 
within  the  limits  of  the  County.  In  1763, 
a  party  interested  in  the  Wentworth 
Grants  came  to  Waterbury  and  began  run- 
ning the  boundaries  of  our  western  towns. 
In  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  War 
what  was  called  the  Hazen  road  was  cut 
through  from  Peacham  towards  Canada 
line,  which  ran  across  Cabot,  now  in  Wash- 
ington Co.  The  line  seems  to  have  been 
run  through  in  1774,  and  several  com- 
panies of  Col.  Bedel's  regiment  went  on 
snow-shoes  over  the  line  to  Canada,  in 
1 776.  Hazen  made  a  road  for  50  miles  above 
Peacham,  going  through  the  towns  of 
Cabot,  Walden,  Hardwick,  Greensboro, 
and  out  to  Lowell,  which  has  been  of  great 
service  to  the  inhabitants  since  in  north- 
eastern and  northern  Vermont. 

Under  the  charter  King  Charles  gave  to 
the  Duke  of  York,  the  State  of  New  York 
claimed  to  the  Conn.  River  and  north  to 
New  France.  The  old  Dutch  county  of 
Albany,  (sometimes  called  the  unlimited 
county  of  Albany)  included  by  this  claim, 
all  of  the  present  territory  of  Vermont. 
A  county  by  the  State  of  New  York  was 
constituted  in  1766  nearly  identical  to  the 
present  counties  of  Windham  and  Wind- 
sor, called  Cumberland,  and  in  March  1770, 
another  county  by  the  name  of  Gloucester, 
comprising  all  the  territory  north  of  Cum- 
berland Co.,  east  of  the  Green  Mountains, 
and  Kingsland,  now  Washington  in  Or- 
ange County  was  made  the  county  seat, 
and  the  first  proper  session  of  the  court 
held  at  Newbury.  By  old  maps  it  would 
appear  this  county  included  most,  if  not 
all  of  the  present  territory  of  Washington 
County.  A  part  of  the  townships  in  this 
county  had  been  previously  run  out  in  the 
interest  of  those  purchasing  patents  of 
Gov.  Benning  Wentworth.  Waterbury 
and  Duxbury  were  chartered  in  1763 ; 
Stowe,  Berlin,  Worcester,  Middlesex  and 
Moretown  about  the  same  time.  The 
more  eastern  towns  do  not  seem  to  have 
been  chartered  till  some  years  later,  and 
upon  the  maps  then  representing  Glouces- 


ter County  is  found  a  tract  by  the  name  of 
Kilby,  which  appears  to  have  embraced  the 
town  of  Montpelier  and  all,  or  portions  of 
some  of  the  eastern  towns,  which  at  one 
time  was  attempted  to  be  run  out  in  the 
interest  of  New  York  claimants.  In  the 
summer  of  1773,  we  find  that  a  Mr.  S.  Gale, 
with  a  number  of  men,  was  employed  in 
surveying  this  County  in  the  interests  of 
the  land  jobbers  of  New  York.  Ira  Allen 
with  three  men  started  from  the  block  fort 
on  Onion  River  in  pursuit  of  them.  He 
traversed  the  towns  of  Waterbury,  Mid- 
dlesex, and  on  up  to  the  fabulous  shire- 
town  of  Kingsland  in  Gloucester  County, 
and  down  on  the  east  side  of  the  moun- 
tains to  Moretown  (now  Bradford.)  Ob- 
taining information  of  the  surveyors  des- 
tination and  buying  spirits  and  provisions, 
they  went  again  in  pursuit;  discovered 
his  line  and  by  that  tracked  them  to  the 
north-east  corner  of  the  old  town  of  Mont- 
pelier. Probably  from  the  description  of 
the  ground  where  they  encamped  when  like 
to  be  overtaken,  they  were  on  the  Town- 
meadow  beyond  Lightning  Ridge.  They 
seem  to  have  made  a  precipitate  retreat  on 
the  approach  of  Allen's  party.  Allen 
reached  the  block  fort  in  16  days  from  the 
time  he  set  out.  We  do  not  learn  of  any 
later  attempts  on  the  part  of  the  Yorkers 
to  survey  lands  within  our  County  limits. 
New  York  finding  it  inconvenient  to  es- 
tablish jurisdiction  over  so  large  a  territory  . 
as  Albany,  where  for  a  long  time  all  writs 
of  ejectment,  executions,  &;c.,  issued  from 
and  were  made  returnable  to,  constituted, 
by  act  of  assembly  May  12,  1772,  a  new 
county  on  the  west  side  of  the  mountain 
by  the  name  of  Charlotte,  which  included 
all  the  old  territory  of  the  County  of  Al- 
bany on  the  west  side  of  the  mountain 
north  of  the  towns  of  Arlington  and  Sun- 
derland to  Canada  line.  Thus  did  the 
State  of  New  York  look  after  us  in  the  time 
of  our  earliest  settlements.  Whether  any 
part  of  Washington  County  had  it  then 
been  inhabited,  for  it  was  not  till  9  years 
later,  would  have  been  returnable  to  Char- 
lotte County  Court  at  Skeenesboro,  now 
Whitehall,  is  a  matter  of  dispute ;  as  it  is 
not  quite  certain  which  range  of  the  moun- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tains  was  followed.  By  the  line  made 
when  they  divided  the  State  into  two  coun- 
ties, one  east  and  one  west  of  the  moun- 
tains, the  west  towns  of  Washington 
County  would  have  been  so  returnable. 
But  the  jurisdiction  of  New  York,  with 
right  to  annul  conti'acts  for  land  obtained 
by  charter  from  the  kiiig's  governor,  was 
not  acceptable  to  the  settlers,  who  soon 
began  to  cast  about  for  some  way  to  carry 
on  municipal  regulations  more  in  harmony 
with  their  feelings. 

Gloucester  Co.  disajjpeared  at  the  first 
session  of  the  Vermont  Legislature,  1778. 
The  State  was  divided  into  two  counties  by 
the  range  of  the  Green  Mountains ;  that 
on  the  east  side  being  called  Cumberland  ; 
on  the  West  side  Bennington ;  and  Wash- 
ington Co.  was  divided  very  nearly 
in  the  center,  north  and  south.  This 
date  is  nearly  three  years  before  Thom- 
as Meade,  the  first  settler  of  the  County 
of  Washington,  made  his  pitch  in  the 
town  of  Middlesex.  We  were  only  two 
years  included  in  Bennington  Co.,  when 
by  the  formation  of  the  new  County  of 
Rutland  we  entered  therein,  and  so  re- 
mained during  the  existence  of  the  old 
Rutland  Co. — 4  years  and  8  months,  in 
which  time  Middlesex  and  Waterbury  began 
to  be  settled.  When  Addison  Co.  was 
formed,  we  entered  into  a  new  County  ex- 
istence with  old  Addison  Co.,  and  so 
•remained  with  Addison  two  years,  until 
Chittenden  Co.  was  formed,  for  which  a 
part  of  our  western  towns  were  taken,  and 
remained  with  this  County  many  years. 
By  the  act  at  Westminster  of  the  new 
Vermont,  constituting  Cumberland  County 
to  embrace  all  the  territory  east  of  the 
Green  Mountains,  the  east  part  of  the 
County  was  first  included  within  its  limits  ; 
afterward,  when  Orange  County  was  or- 
ganized it  was  therein  included,  and  some 
towns  were  retained  in  its  jurisdiction  until 
the  organization  of  Jefferson  County  in 
181 1.  The  settlers  travelled  by  marked 
trees,  carried  their  corn  on  their  backs, 
or  more  frequently  drove  an  ox,  with  a 
bag  of  grain  balanced  across  his  neck, 
(many  miles  distant,)  to  find  a  mill  to  get  it 
ground.     Women  and  children  often  went 


to  their  new  homes  on  rackets,  the  husband 
and  father  coming  in  the  year  before  and 
making  his  pitch,  clearing  two  or  three 
acres  of  land,  and  rolling  up  the  old  fash- 
ioned log  house.  Some  came  in,  it  is  true, 
in  stronger  force  and  with  more  means,  as 
Col.  Jacob  Davis,  of  Montpelier. 

Nearly  60  townships  had  been  granted 
by  Gov,  Wentworth  before  the  organiza- 
tion of  Vermont  in  1778,  and  several  of  our 
western  towns  were  among  the  N.  H. 
grants.  After  the  organization  of  the  State, 
the  Legislature  took  the  power  of  making 
grants  into  its  own  hands,  and  both  for 
the  revenue  and  encouraging  the  further 
settlement  of  the  State,  proceeded  rapidly 
to  dispose  of  its  lands.  The  process  of 
procuring  these  grants  seems  to  have  been 
very  simple,  and  followed  with  quick  dis- 
patch . 

A  company  of  resident  and  non-resident 
men  got  up  a  petition  to  the  Legislature 
for  the  charter  or  grant  of  a  township, 
specifying  the  locality.  The  appointment 
of  a  standing  committee  to  act  upon  such 
petition  followed,  and  if  the  committee's 
report  was  favorable,  which  was  usually 
the  case,  a  simple  resolution  for  making 
the  grant  was  passed.  Then  the  Gov- 
ernor, on  the  payment  of  the  required  fees, 
issued  the  charter.  Our  eastern  townships, 
not  having  been  laid  out  in  the  Benning- 
Wentworth  grants,  received  their  charters 
in  this  manner  from  the  Legislature  of 
Vermont,  and  were  run  out  mainly  by  James 
Whitelaw,  Surveyor-general  of  the  State. 
After  obtaining  a  charter,  a  proprietor''s 
meeting  was  called  by  a  justice  of  the 
peace  or  other  authorized  person,  in  the 
following  form  : 

' '  Whereas  application  hath  been  made  to 
me  by  more  than  one-sixteenth  part  of  the 

proprietors  of ,  in  this  State,  to  warn 

a  meeting  of  said  proprietors ;  these  are, 
therefore,  to  warn  the  proprietors  of  said 

Township  to  meet  at  the  house  of  — , 

Esq.,  Innholder,  in ,  on  (here  fol- 
lows the  day,  the  time  of  day  and  month) 
.to  act  on  the  following  articles,  to  wit :  i. 
To  choose  a  Moderator.  2.  A  Proprietors 
Clerk.  3.  A  Treasurer.  4.  To  see  what 
the  Proprietors  will  do  respecting  a  Di- 
vision of  said  Township,  and  to  transact 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


what  other  business   as  shall  be  thought 
necessary  when  met."     (Signed) 

Justice  Peace. 

In  laying  out  Caledonia  Co.  there  were 
run  two  gores  in  the  S.  W.  corner,  Goshen 
and  Harris,  which  have  been  set  to  this 
County  with  the  towns  set  off  from  that 
County  to  Washington  Co.  Goshen  Gore, 
bounded  N.  by  Marshfield  and  a  part  of  Har- 
ris Gore,  E.  by  Harris  Gore,  S.  by  Orange, 
and  W.  by  Plainfield,  contains  2,828  acres, 
mostly  covered  with  excellent  timber,  great- 
ly enhanced  in  value  by  the  Montpelier  and 
Wells  River  railroad.  Some  50  persons 
probably  are  residing  within  its  limits. 
Harris  Gore  contains  6,020  acres ;  runs  to 
appoint  on  the  N.,  bounded  W.  andN.  W. 
by  Goshen  Gore  and  Marshfield,  E.  by 
Groton,  and  S.  by  Orange.  It  was  granted 
Feb.  25,  1 78 1,  and  chartered  to  Edward 
Harris,  Oct.  30,  1801.  This  tract  of  land 
is  also  well-timbered  for  the  most  part, 
though  somewhat  mountainous  and  diffi- 
cult of  access.  In  1840  it  had  16  inhab- 
itants, and  has  received  but  very  few 
additions  since.  Gunner's  branch  rises  in 
this  gore,  passes  through  Goshen  Gore, 
and  unites  with  Stevens'  branch  in  Barre. 
The  area  of  the  gores,  added  to  the  several 
townships  gives  us,  nearly  as  can  be  as- 
certained, 396,233  acres,  a  large  proportion 
of  which  is  excellent  for  grazmg  and  most 
of  the  cereals,  and  the  balance  the  finest  of 
timber  lands,  except  the  little  crowning 
of  the  summits  of  difierent  spurs  of  the 
Green  Mountain  range.  Money  was  scarce, 
and  trade  was  carried  on  mostly  in  neat 
stock,  grain  and  salts  of  lye. 

Wood  ashes  were  a  long  time  legal 
tender  to  the  merchant,  who  sold  his  goods 
to  the  woodsman,  and  the  merchant  paid 
his  bills  at  Montreal  and  Boston  in  black 
salts.  The  common  price  of  wheat  was 
67  cents  per  bushel,  best  yoke  of  oxen  $40, 
best  cows  $25,  best  horses  $50,  and  salts 
of  lye  $4  to  $5  per  cwt. 

For  goods  which  the  laborers  paid  for  in 
these  articles  the  merchant  usually  ob- 
tained fifty  per  cent,  of  profit ;  among  them 
— price  current — rock-.salt,  $3  per  bushel, 
common  $2.50  ;  sugar,  brown  17  to  20  cents 
per  pound,  loaf  42  cents;  W.  I.  molasses 


$1.1 7  per  gallon  ;  green  tea  $2.00  per  pound  ; 
broadcleth  $S  to  $10  per  yard. 

And  still,  with  these  prices  for  imported 
necessaries,  and  the  low  price  of  their 
products,  the  settlers,  by  their  frugal  habits 
and  industry,  got  on  very  well  on  the  road 
to  competency. 

As  our  County  began  to  be  settled  im- 
mediately succeeding  the  heroic  epoch  of 
the  State,  the  military  system  was  an  im- 
portant feature  ot  its  early  history.  Every 
township  enrolled  all  of  its  able-bodied  men 
between  the  ages  of  18  and  45,  and  com- 
panies were  formed  with  commissioned  and 
non-commissioned  officers,  who  were  re- 
quired to  give  them  one  annual  drill  at 
least — in  the  month  of  June.  The  annual 
"June  training"  was  a  day  of  jollity  forpld 
and  young ;  a  regular  carnival  of  fun  and 
masquerade,  as  well  as  parade — a  display 
of  the  cocked  hat,  gorgeous  epaulette  and 
bright  cockade ;  day  of'salutes,  waking  up 
of  officers ;  which  wake  up  was  a  rousing 
volley  from  the  under  officers  and  privates, 
.sometimes  taking  the  door  off"  its  hinges, 
to  be  followed  with  a  treat,  marching  and 
countermarching,  drinking,  toasting  and 
sham  fights ;  a  day  opened  with  the  ob- 
streperous clamor  of  the  Sergeant's  call, 
and  followed  with  the  shriek  of  the  fife  and 
the  noise  of  the  drums.  The  roads  lead- 
ing out  of  the  village  where  this  annual 
inspection  and  drill  was  to  take  place  were 
filled  with  old  and  young,  on  foot  and 
horseback,  in  carriages  of  all  patterns,  from 
the  "  one-horse-shay  "  to  the  poor  apology 
of  a  kanuck  two-wheeled  turnout,  and  all 
crowding  on  in  the  grotesque  and  fun- 
seeking  tide,  to  enjoy  the  great  military 
frolic,  called  an  inspection  and  drill,  or,  in 
common  parlance,  June  training.  Yankee 
Doodle,  fizzle-pop-bang,  and  the  mock  cap- 
ture of  the  Red  Coats,  were  all  there.  June 
training  was  an  institution,  and  the  militia, 
so  stigmatizingly  called  the  "Old  Flood 
Wood,"  figured  very  conspicuously  in  the 
history  of  the  county  at  not  a  very  remote 
day.  This,  with  "Election  Day"  of  the 
old  style,  must  now  be  considered  as  fairly 
laid  on  the  shelf,  and  belong  only  to  his- 
tory. 

In   1805  a  turnpike  was  chartered  from 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAzfNE. 


Burlington  Court-House,  to  pass  on  or 
near  the  Winooski  to  the  north  end  of  Eli- 
jah Paine's  turnpike  in  Montpelier.  The 
Corporators  were  Daniel  Hurlburt,  Thad- 
deus  Tuttle,  Sahnon  Miller,  John  Johnson, 
Martin  Chittenden,  Jacob  Spafford,  Charles 
Bulkley  and  David  Wing,  jr.  ;  corporate 
title,  "The  Winooski  Turnpike  Compa- 
ny."' The  road  was  opened  to  the  public 
in  1808,  the  spring  before  the  first  session 
of  the  Assembly  in  the  new  State  House 
at  Montpelier.  Gov.  Martin  Chittenden 
rendered  such  aid  in  its  construction  and 
was  so  largely  interested  in  it,  it  was  at 
one  time  called  the  Chittenden  Turnpike. 
Later  the  stock  was  mostly,  or  all,  pur- 
chased by  Thomas  and  Hezekiah  Reed  of 
Montpelier,  who  were  its  owners  at  the 
time  it  was  bought  up  for  the  road-bed, 
where  it  could  be  thus  used,  of  the  Vt. 
Can.  R.  R.  This  old  road,  with  fine 
coaches  and  swift  -horses,  was  for  a  long 
time_  one  of  the  most  popular  thorough- 
fares in  New  England.  Particularly  when 
the  stage  lines  were  in  the  hands  of  Mah- 
lon  Cottrill,  the  road  was  patronized  large- 
ly at  home  and  from  abroad.  Its  toll- 
gates  and  numerous  taverns  along  the  line 
are  remembered  by  many :  land-marks 
gradually  lost  in  the  progress  of  the  cen- 
tury. 

This  turnpike  with  that  of  Gov.  Paine, 
running  south  from  Montpelier,  was  the 
through  line  of  the  country  from  the  Lake 
and  Canada  to  Boston,  over  which  passed 
an  immense  tonnage  and  very  brisk  lighter 
travel,  and  to  which  the  County  road  in 
the  northeast  part  of  the  County  was  quite 
a  tributary. 

In  1824  John  Ouincy  Adams  sent  a  top- 
ographical party  into  the  State,  to  make 
surveys  with  reference  to  the  construction 
of  canals.  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  a  mer- 
chant of  Montpelier,  received  the  appoint- 
ment on  the  commission,  and  consequently 
interested  himself  in  the  public  works  of 
the  State.  While  holding  this  appoint- 
ment, he  received  a  communication  from 
Elkanah  Watson,  that  it  was  better  to 
look  for  routes  of  railways  than  canals,  as 
it  was  prophecied  the  railroad  system 
would   soon   supersede    the   canal.      Mr. 


Baldwin  conceived  the  idea  of  a  rail  transit 
from  this  point  to  the  foot  of  navigation 
through  the  State,  over  much  of  the  route 
now  traversed  by  the  Ogdensburgh  and 
Vermont  Central  roads,  but  down  the 
Gulf  through  Williamstown,  instead  of 
over  the  summit  at  Roxbury  and  down  to 
White  River — proposing  to  connect  with 
the  Lowell  anil  Boston  road  then  being 
projected  toward  the  Conn.  River  valley. 
This  he  laid  before  the  merchants  of  Bos- 
ton as  early  as  182;^,  in  his  business  visits, 
and  in  meetings  later  held  for  devising 
better  communications  with  the  North  and 
West.  In  1832,  Boston  merchants  and 
others  interested,  held  a  meeting  to  con- 
sider the  feasibility  of  this  route,  at  whidi 
Mr.  Parish  of  Ogdensburgh  presided.  In 
1833,  a  charter  was  granted  by  the  Legis- 
lature for  a  road  by  rail  through  Central 
Vermont.  Governor  Paine  was  an  able 
manager  among  the  corporators  and  was 
instrumental  in  pushing  the  road  forward 
and  diverting  its  proposed  route  to  its 
present  line. 

The  railroad  changed  much  of  the  local 
and  all  the  through  travel  from  the  turn- 
pike to  the  rail. 

CONTEST  FOR  THE  STATE  HOUSE. 

The  first  contest  for  the  location  of  the 
State  House  was  in  1805.  In  1792,  Cale- 
edonia  County  was  incorporated,  but  it 
does  not  appear  that  the  county  was  fully 
organized  until  1796  or  '97,  when  David 
Wing,  Jr.,  was  elected  one  of  its  Judges. 
Mr.  Wing  was  a  resident  of  Montpelier, 
and,  so  far  as  we  know,  the  first  Judge 
upon  the  bench  elected  within  the  present 
limits  of  Washington  County.  Mr.  Wing 
was  Secretary  of  State  in  1803.  The 
County  of  Washington  was  incorporated 
in  1810,  and  Dec.  i,  181 1,  the  Legislature 
having  elected  in  October  the  Court  and 
County  officers — it  was  fully  organized. 
Ezra  Butler  was  chief  judge ;  Salva  Col- 
lins and  Bradford  Kinne,  associate  judges  ; 
John  Peck,  sheriff ;  Timothy  Merrill, 
State's  Attorney ;  and  David  Harrington, 
judge  of  probate :  George  Rich,  County 
clerk;  J.  Y.  Vail,  register  of  probate. 
The  Court  held  its  sessions  in  the  Council 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


Chamber  in  the  iirst  State  House,  until  the 
year  1818,  when  a  new  wooden  Court 
House  was  built  adjoining  the  State  House 
grounds,  that  was  used  until  1843,  when  a 
brick  building  was  erected,  which  was 
burned  down  during  the  November  term 
of  the  Court,  the  same  year.  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1844,  the  present  commodious  and 
elegant  brick  edifice  was  erected.  During 
the  October  session  of  the  Legislature  of 
1805,  holden  at  Danville,  an  act  was  pass- 
ed establishing  the  permanent  seat  of  the 
Legislature  at  Montpelier.  The  location 
of  this  place  so  near  the  geographical  cen- 
ter of  the  State,  no  doubt,  had  more  than 
anything  else  to  do  with  the  decision.  It 
will  be  remembered  the  old  line  between 
Bennington  and  Cumberland  Counties, 
made  by  the  first  legislative  body  of  the 
people,  was  only  about  a  mile  below  the 
village,  while  dividing  the  State  from 
north  to  south.  It  is  the  nearest  to  the  cen- 
ter of  any  proper  convening  point.  Still, 
in  this,  as  in  other  controversies,  Mont- 
pelier and  the  County  were  not  without 
their  able  managers  and  advocates.  Da- 
vid Wing,  a  man  of  great  affability  of  man- 
ners and  highly  respected  in  the  State,  was 
Secretary  of  State,  and  the  Hon.  Cyrus 
Ware,  a  profound  debater  and  a  great  wit, 
was  representative  of  the  town.  At  the 
next  sessions,  one  at  Middlebury  and  the 
other  at  Woodstock,  there  was  an  attempt 
to  effect  a  change  in  location,  but  neither 
proved  successful.  Thus  in  1807,  four 
years  before  its  organization,  Washington 
County  finds  the  Capital  of  the  State  with- 
in its  limits,  which  has  had  much  to  do  with 
its  history  and  prosperity  as  a  County. 
The  beginning  of  a  period  so  important  to 
the  County  deserves  something  more  im- 
portant than  a  passing  notice.  We  tran- 
scribe a  copy  of  the  legislative  action  : 

An  act  establishing  the  permanent  seat  of 
the  Legislature  in  Montpelier. 

Sec.  I. — It  is  hereby  enacted  by  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  State  of  Vermont, 
that  Elijah  Paine,  Ezra  Butler  and  James 
Whitelaw  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  ap- 
pointed a  committee  to  fix  upon  a  place  in 
the  town  of  Montpelier  for  the  erection  of 
buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  the 


Legislature  of  the  State,  and  to  prepare  a 
plan  for  such  buildings. 

Sec.  2. — And  it  is  hereby  further  en- 
acted :  that  if  the  town  of  Montpelier,  or 
other  individual  persons,  shall  before  the 
first  day  of  September,  which  will  be  A.  D. 
1808,  erect  such  buildings  on  the  place  des- 
ignated by  the  aforesaid  committee  for 
their  acceptance,  and  shall  comi)ensate  said 
committee  for  their  services,  and  also  con- 
vey to  the  State  of  Vermont  the  property 
of  said"  buildings  and  the  land  whereon 
they  shall  stand,  and  lodge  the  deed  of 
conveyance,  duly  executed,  in  the  Secretary 
of  State's  ofiice  ;  then  and  in  that  case  said 
buildings  shall  become  the  permanent  seat 
of  the  Legislature  for  holding  all  their  ses- 
sions. 

Sec.  3. — Provided  nevertheless,  and  it 
is  hereby  further  enacted  :  that  if  any  future 
Legislature  shall  cease  to  hold  their  ses- 
sions in  said  town  of  Montpelier,  those 
persons  that  shall  erect  said  building  and 
convey  the  property  of  the  same  and  of  the 
land  aforesaid,  shall  be  entitled  to  receive 
from  the  treasury  of  this  State  the  full 
value  of  the  same,  as  it  shall  be  then  fairly 
appraised. 

Passed  November  7,  1805. 
A  true  copy. 
Attest.   DAVID  WING,  Jun.,  Secretary. 

The  committee  appointed  by  the  Legis- 
lature located  the  buildings  of  the  new 
Capitol  on  grounds  a  little  S.  E.  of  where 
the  present  State  buildings  now  stand,  and 
the  Assembly  in  October,  1808,  there  met 
and  held  its  session,  since  which  time 
Montpelier  has  been  the  permanent  seat  of 
the  Legislature.  The  old  State  House  be- 
coming somewhat  dilapidated  and  insuffi- 
cient for  the  growth  of  the  State,  in  1832, 
the  Legislature  passed  a  second  act  to  es- 
tablish the  Capitol  at  Montpelier,  and 
pledging  the  erection  of  a  new  building, 
provided  Montpelier  would  pay  into  the 
Trea.sury  of  the  State  $15,000,  one-half 
within  one  year  and  the  other  half  in  two 
years  from  the  passage  of  the  act.  The 
proposition  was  accepted,  and  Lebbeus 
Egerton,  Supt.,  and  Ammi  B.  Young,  arch'- 
itect,  commenced  the  work  in  the  follow- 
ing spring.  A  spur  of  rock  was  blasted 
from  the  hill  in  rear  of  the  old  buildings 
to  a  level  desired,  and  making  room  for  a 
driveway — at  cost  of  $10,000,  but  giving  a 
foundation  of  solid  rock.  The  elegant 
granite  edifice,  with   its   capacious  dome, 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


massive  arch,  and  classical  columns,  so 
light,  so  unique,  might  almost  be  taken  as 
a  model  of  art.  Good  judges  have  doubted 
if"  its  equal  as  a  work  of  art  was  to  be 
found  anywhere  else  in  the  country.  It 
was  built  of  the  Barre  granite — cost  $132,- 
077,22.  Unfortunately  it  was  accidentally 
destroyed  by  fire  Jan.  6,  1857,  when  came 
the  memorable  contest.  A  special  session 
called  by  the  Governor,  met  in  the  old  Brick 
Church  in  Montpelier,  Feb.  1 8th  following, 
to  adopt  measures  for  rebuilding  or  remov- 
ing the  State  House.  For  parliamentary 
ability  and  adroitness  in  management,  as 
well  as  the  display  of  wit  and  eloquence, 
this  session  stands  the  rival  of  any  House 
of  Representatives  of  Vermont,  or  any 
other  State.  We  can  give  by  a  few  passa- 
ges from  the  records  a  faint,  and  but  a  faint 
idea  of  the  warmth,  tact,  wit  and  logic  in 
the  statement  of  arguments  which  moved 
in  this  controversy,  the  vacillating  tides  of 
feeling  and  opinion. 

Mr.  Bradley,  in  reply  to  the  idea  of  en- 
tertaining the  pecuniary  condition,  or  put- 
ting up  at  auction  the  State  House,  said, 
"I,  for  one,  do  not  feel  like  raising  a  rev- 
enue from  a  loan  of  our  institutions,  taking 
a  town  in  our  grasp,  as  I  would  take  half  a 
lemon,  squeezing  it  dry,  and  then  throw- 
ing away  the  rind  and  trying  another."  Re- 
plying to  Mr.  Stacy,  of  Burlington,  he 
goes  on  to  say,  "  the  able  representative 
of  that  town  has  told  us,  and  tnily,  no 
doubt,  of  their  wealth,  their  break-water, 
their  custom-house,  their  steamers  smok- 
ing in  from  all  directions,  their  railroads 
built  and  to  be  built,  their  monument  of 
the  glorious  Allen,  whose  dust  is  mingled 
with  the  earth  of  their  town ;  and  I  could 
not  help  regretting  that  the  Giver  of  all 
good  had  not  offered  them  one  more  boon 
— the  blessing  of  content." 

In  Mr.  Dorr's  concluding  remarks  he 
added,  "  the  capitol  was  located  at  Mont- 
pelier as  a  measure  of  peace.  It  was  to 
build  up  from  a  divided,  a  united  and 
homogeneous  people.  Fifty  years  of  peace 
have  been  the  product  of  this  act  of  wis- 
dom. I  am  for  going  down  to  no  Jerusa- 
lem on  the  East  or  the  West."  If  Mr. 
Dorr  was  the  Nestor  of  that  debate,  with 


every  quality  of  a  parliamentarian  and  ad- 
vocate, learning,  wit,  satire,  humor  and 
subtle  logic,  as  his  argument  everywhere 
shows,  still  the  satirist  and  wit  of  that 
very  remarkable  assemblage  of  men  was 
Moses  E.  Cheney,  of  Barnard.  Alluding  to 
a  remark  made  by  the  member  from  Georgia 
where  a  town  library  was  offered  as  a  rea- 
son for  removal,  Mr.  Cheney  ^ays  "Mr. 
Chairman,  why  don't  some  of  the  friends 
of  removal  say  that  the  Representatives 
and  Senators  might  pursue  a  brief  legisla- 
tive collegiate  course  of  study  at  the  Ver- 
mont University  during  their  sessions  ? 
Mr.  Chairman,  they  say  that  Esq.  Ed- 
munds, the  counsel  for  Burlington,  talked 
to  us  an  hour,  and  very  little  to  his  credit 
as  a  man  of  talents.  Sir,  do  people  ex- 
pect a  man  to  work  miracles  ?  Those  of  us 
who  were  Representatives  in  1855,  saw  too 
much  of  his  ability  to  be  made  now  to 
swallow  these  third  house  insinuations  that 
Mr.  Edmunds  isn't  much.  We  remember 
how  he  made  us  believe  gas  was  cheaper 
than  oil  to  light  the  State  House  with, 
when  the  contrary  was  the  truth,  and  I  am 
bold  to  say  he  would  have  made  us  believe 
that  Burlington  was  the  best  place  for  the 
Capitol  if  we  hadn't  known  all  about  it 
ourselves.  But,  Sir,  the  State  of  Vermont 
isn't  so  large  but  every  man  in  it  knows 
very  nearly  from  his  own  observation 
where  the  middle  is.  Gas,  Sir,  many  of 
us  know  little  about.  Mr.  Chairman,  the 
gentleman  from  Westford  is  much  con- 
cerned about  the  morals  of  Montpelier. 
He  says  the  fires  of  hell  are  here  !  Sir,  I 
had  heard  of  a  heaven  below,  and  of  a  hell 
upon  airth,  and  I  must  own  that  when  the 
gentleman  was  depicting  the  flames  which 
seemed  to  be  curling  around  us,  my  eye 
at  the  same  instant  catching  a  glance  at 
his  fiendish  look,  his  horrific  glare,  for  a 
moment  I  quailed,  and  inwardly  exclaimed, 
I  am  in  hell,  for  there  stands  Beelzebub. 
Mr.  Chairman,  during  last  Fall's  session, 
occupying  my  old  seat  No.  190,  which  has 
since  dissolved  in  smoke,  with  little  to  do 
but  to  gaze  at  the  costly  gas  chandelier, 
which  has  since  melted  with  fervent  heat, 
I  sometimes  amused  myself  with  reflec- 
tions upon  various  members  of  the  house  ; 


WASHINGTON  COUNfV. 


and,  Sir,  among  them  I  discovered  a  Dan- 
iel Webster,  a  John  C.  Calhoun,  a  Henry 
Clay  and  a  Patrick  Henry.  The  gentle- 
man from  Castleton,  (Mr.  Spencer,)  be- 
ing out  a  few  minutes  since,  I  had  almost 
hoped  he  would  remain  out  until  I  had 
paid  him  a  few  compliments  which  might 
appear  fulsome  in  his  presence.  But,  Sir, 
it  is  not  uncommon  here  in  Committee  of 
the  whole,  where  wide  debate  is  admissi- 
ble, for  gentlemen  to  go  very  wide  into 
praises  of  our  most  distinguished  mem- 
bers. Sir,  I  would  then  beg  leave  to  say 
that  the  gentleman  from  Castleton  is  my 
Daniel  Webster,  and  I  have  seen  new  and 
striking  resemblances  between  these  two 
men  during  the  present  session,  which  have 
confirmed  me  in  the  belief  of  their  simi- 
larity. For  instance,  it  was  said  by  Dr. 
Wheeler,  in  a  eulogy  pronounced  upon 
Mr.  Webster,  that  whenever  Webster  at- 
tempted to  argue  a  bad  cause  he  always 
broke  dowti ;  never  otherwise.  Well,  Sir, 
the  gentleman  from  Castleton  /a//s  in 
every  effort  he  makes  during  this  session. 
He  is  arguing  a  bad  cause,  and,  like  Web- 
ster, having  no  knack  at  it,  he  breaks 
down .  I  n  this  respect  we  see  how  exactly 
like  Webster  he  is.  Mr.  Webster  was  ac- 
cused in  his  latter  days  of  being  bought 
up.  But  it  was  not  true.  Well,  it  is  sur- 
mised by  some  that  the  gentleman  from 
Castleton  is  bought  up  ;  but  it  is  not  true. 
I  do  not  believe  a  word  of  it.  The  great 
Moses  Stuart — as  a  fearless,  good  man 
should  have  done — undertook  to  make  out 
that  Webster  acted  from  the  best  of  mo- 
tives ;  but  it  was  all  of  no  use.  There 
were  enough  who  pretended  they  knew 
Webster  had  long  been  closeted  with  Cal- 
houn. Mr  Webster  had  a  great  Moses  to 
expound  for  him,  but  it  didn't  do  any  good. 
Mr.  Spencer  has  a  little  Moses  to  apologize 
for  him,  but  I  fear  it  will  be  entirely  use- 
less." This  is  but  a  brief  synopsis  of  Mr. 
Cheney's  method  of  satire,  which  convuls- 
ed the  whole  assembly  for  an  hour.  Com- 
paring the  claims  of  Barnard,  as  contrast- 
ed with  some  other  towns  that  had  put  in 
the  plea  of  fine  prospects  and  healthy  lo- 
cations, Mr.  Cheney  goes  on  to  say  :  "  Is 
Barnard  a  whit  behind  any  in  these  re- 


spects ?  Why,  as  to  health,  the  people  of 
Barnard  seldom  think  of  dying,  and  the 
children  say  they  will  never  die .  Some  old 
men  have  lived  till  they  were  tired  all  out 
with  life,  and  ha%>e  died  on  purpose;  hav- 
ing told  their  old  yarns  over  until  the  taste 
was  all  out  of  them,  they  said  they  had  lived 
ever  so  far  beyond  all  the  promises,  and 
they  summed  up  by  declaring  they  'would 
not  live  alway,'  and  got  up  a  contrivance  for 
quitting  the  world  and  got  off  somehow." 
In  a  second  speech,  in  reply  to  some 
strictures  made  by  the  gentleman  from 
Westford  on  his  previous  speech,  he  gives 
this  inimitable  touch  of  satire:  "Sir, 
those  who  say  that  my  Webster  and  Hen- 
ry are  unworthy  the  names,  not  only  ad- 
mit that  my  Clay  and  Calhoun  are  good, 
but  that  my  devil  is  perfect."  The  speech 
of  Mr.  Cheney,  whose  profession  had  been 
that  of  a  singing-master,  may  well  take 
rank  with  the  wit  and  satire  of  Curran  and 
Sheridan.  He  is  a  genuine  native  speci- 
men, with  all  the  benefit  of  Barnard  hills. 
Mr.  Merrill,  the  member  from  Montpelier, 
a  descendant  of  the  Fassetts,  of  Benning- 
ton, distinguished  himself  as  a  pj^rliamen- 
tarian.  The  final  result  of  the  long,  keen 
contest  was  an  act  making  an  appropria- 
tion of  $40,000  for  re-building  the  State 
House  on  its  old  site  in  Montpelier. 

SPIRIT  OF  1812. 

A  second  war  was  opened  with  Eng- 
land. Party  spirit  in  politics  ran  high 
through  the  country.  Our  State  and  the 
Capital  had  its  share  in  the  excitement  at- 
tending these  contests.  The  Democrats 
thought  our  nation  to  have  been  injured 
and  grossly  insulted  by  Great  Britain,  and 
were  staunch  advocates  of  the  war,  the 
Federals,  believing  the  war  wholly  unnec- 
essary, as  bitterly  opposed  and  denounced 
it.  The  Democrats  in  ascendency  in  the 
State,  had  a  pretty  decided  majority  in  the 
County.  And  as  the  administration  was  ap- 
pealing to  the  country  to  be  sustained,  the 
friends  of  Mr.  Madison  thought  it  impor- 
tant some  demonstration  should  be  made 
at  the  Capital  of  the  State.  They  called 
a  war-meeting  at  the  State  House,  and  in- 
dustriously  circulated   the  notice.      This 


VERMO^f^  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


was  in  February,  and  the  inhabitants 
poured  in  from  the  surrounding  towns,  and 
the  neighboring  districts,  filling  the  high- 
ways with  footmen,  horsemen,  and  loads 
in  single  and  double  sleighs,  to  the  place 
appointed  for  the  meeting,  as  it  was  also 
understood  that  the  Federal  party  would 
be  there  to  prevent  the  passage  of  any 
resolutions  encouraging  Congress  to  a 
declaration  of  war.  When  the  house  had 
become  densely  packed,  one  of  the  com- 
mittee was  sent  to  call  on  Rev.  Chester 
Wright,  the  settled  minister  at  Montpelier, 
and  invite  him  to  open  the  meeting  with 
prayer.  He  shortly  returned,  and  inform- 
ed his  friends  that  on  account  of  conscien- 
tious scruples,  Mr.  Wright  declined  the 
invitation.  A  low  burst  of  indignation 
followed.  The  next  moment  were  heard 
calls  for  "Uncle  Ziba  !  Uncle  Ziba  !  !  " 
Instantly  a  committee  man  mounted  the 
platform,  and  cried  aloud,  "  Is  the  Rev. 
Ziba  Woodworth  present  ?  If  so,  he  is  re- 
spectfully invited  to  come  forward  and 
open  this  meeting  with  prayer."  Mr. 
Woodworth,  who  had  a  stitfleg,  occasion- 
ed from  wounds  received  at  Fort  Griswold, 
came  forward,  stumping  through  the  crowd 
to  the  platform.  Hastily  drawing  a  chair 
before  him,  he  dropped  down  upon  one 
knee,  and,  throwing  out  the  whole  of  the 
other  leg  with  a  jerk,  raised  his  sharp 
voice,  peculiarly  emotional,  in  the  invited 
invocation.  After  a  very  brief  address,  in 
the  manner  of  a  prayer,  he  entered  into  the 
political  spirit  of  the  meeting,  showering  a 
torrent  of  blessings  on  our  rulers  for  their 
wisdom,  patriotism  and  fearless  stand  in 
resisting  the  aggressions  of  British  tyranny  ; 
then  he  began  to  ask  God's  pity  on  the 
blindness  of  the  enemies  of  the  war,  and 
enemies  of  our  blessed  country,  and  His 
forgiveness  of  their  treasonable  dereliction 
of  patriotic  duty,  and  still  more  treason- 
able opposition  to  the  wise  measures  of 
our  God-appointed  rulers,  in  such  language 
as  involved  the  rebuke  of  a  scorching  sat- 
ire. At  this  stage  of  the  prayer.  Judge 
Ware,  a  prominent  war  Democrat  of  the 
town,  who  was  a  noted  wag  as  well  as  a 
hot  politician,  standing  by  the  platform 
and  within  reach  of  the  excited  speaker. 


reached  over,  and  sharply  punching  his  ex- 
tended leg,  in  a  low,  eager,  half-whispered 
tone,  exclaimed,  "  That  is  right !  give  it 
to  'em,  give  it  to  'em,  Uncle  Ziba!"  And 
it  is  said  that  he  did  give  it  to  'em  in  a 
manner  which  very  likely  never  had  a  par- 
allel in  the  shape  of  a  prayer.  The  Dem- 
ocrats opened  the  meeting  with  a  very 
zealous  speech  for  the  administration, 
which  was  often  interrupted  by  applause. 
Mr.  Baylies,  an  astute  lawyer  and  of  com- 
manding talents  as  a  speaker,  proceeded 
in  his  reply,  and,  having  to  his  own  satis- 
faction proved  the  fallacy  of  the  position 
of  his  rival,  commenced  a  general  attack 
upon  Mr.  Madison  and  his  advisers  at 
Washington.  He  had  not  proceeded  far, 
however,  when  old  Matthew  Wallace,  of 
Berlin,  a  tall,  resolute  man,  leaped  sud- 
denly to  his  feet,  and,  in  a  voice  which 
seemed  to  be  the  tocsin  of  war,  exclaimed, 
"  Can't  stand  that !  can't  stand  that,  Mr. 
Chairman  !  anything  in  reason,  but,  by 
heavens,  sir,"  his  eye  flashing  and  fist 
raised,  '*  I  sha'nt  sit  here  to  listen  to  out- 
right treason  !"  Mr.  Baylies,  before  he  got 
through,  was  hissed  and  coughed  down. 
Resolutions  supporting  the  administration 
were  read,  and  passed  with  a  tremendous 
acclamation. 

The  chairman  of  the  meeting  in  the  ear 
ly  part  of  the  day  was  Hon.  Ezra  Butler 
one  of  the  oldest  settlers  of  the  County, 
who  was  a  Democrat.  Finding  the  meet- 
ing likely  to  be  controlled  by  the  Federal 
party,  at  this  time  so  well  organized  into 
what  was  called  the  Washington  Societies, 
he  resigned,  and  the  Federals  elected  Hon. 
Charles  Bulkley,  a  most  bitter  opponent 
of  the  war.  But  when  the  convention  was 
thoroughly  represented  from  the  surround- 
ing towns  coming  in,  the  war  party  was 
found  to  be  in  such  majority  they  had  ev- 
erything their  own  way,  and  Esquire  Bulk- 
ley,  as  Chairman  of  the  convention,  saw 
his  name  signed  to  the  war  resolutions  so 
triumphantly  passed,  and  thus  was  made 
to  give  his  sanction  to  what  he  had  intend- 
ed, with  his  friends,  to  defeat.  The  war 
was  heartily  supported  by  a  large  majority 
of  the  County,  and  patriotic  volunteers 
were  not  wanting  to  defend  the  country's 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


honor.  When  the  news  of  Prevo-st's  army 
invading  the  State  reached  our  inhabit- 
ants, it  was  but  a  grand  rallying-cry  from 
the  Border,  which  was  responded  to  by 
almost  every  able-bodied  man  shouldering 
his  musket  and  marching  for  the  fi'ont. 
They  flocked  from  the  hills  and  the  glens, 
swarming  down  the  Winooski,  the  same 
patriotism  firing  them  that  characterized 
the  Green  Mountain  Boys  in  the  days  of 
Allen  and  Warner.  An  example  to  illus- 
trate may  be  given  in  the  person  of  Capt. 
Timothy  Hubbard,  who,  when  the  news 
of  the  invasion  of  Plattsburg,  N.  Y.,  by 
the  British,  reached  Montpelier,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1 8 14,  sallied  out  cane  in  hand  into 
the  streets,  summoning  a  drummer  and  a 
fifer  to  his  side,  one  of  them  being  a  hired 
man,  and  marching  the  streets  all  day 
beating  up  volunteers  to  start  forthwith  to 
the  scene  of  action.  And  such  were  his 
appeals,  and  such  the  heat  of  patriotism  in 
the  community,  that  before  night  nearly  or 
quite  two  thirds  of  the  male  population 
were  enlisted,  and  ready  to  march  on  the 
following  morning,  which  they  did,  they 
reaching  Plattsburg  in  season  to  take  place 
in  the  line  of  battle.  Capt.  Campbell,  of- 
ten known  as  "  old  Captain  Blue,"  from 
Waitsfield  and  vicinity,  summoned  with 
the  same  alacrity  the  war  spirits  of  Mad 
River.  Other  towns  with  equal  right  offer 
their  muster-rolls  to  vindicate  their  claim 
to  equal  honors. 

There  are  a  few  individuals  so  prominent 
in  the  affairs  of  the  State  and  nation,  born 
or  residing  more  or  less  in  this  County,  it 
seems  fitting  their  names  and  services 
should  be  noticed  here.  And  first  among 
these  stands  Gen.  Benjamin  Wait,  a  dis- 
tinguished revolutionary  veteran  and  asso- 
ciate of  Ethan  Allen  and  the  men  who 
made  the  heroic  epoch  of  Vermont. — 
[There  will  be  in  Waitsfield,  this  volume, 
a  notice  of  Gen.  Wait.] 

JOHN   CLOUD, 

a  long-time  resident  of  this  County,  was 
in  many  engagements  in  the  Revolution- 
ary War;  in  his  last  battle,  while  leading 
a  retreat  and  firing  back,  he  was  shot 
through  the  thigh,  which  had  to  be  ampu- 
tated. 


WILLIAM    PHEN, 

also  an  old  resident,  was  in  the  campaigns 
of  the  Duke  of  Wellington. 

[We  reserve  a  sketch  of  Col.  John  Tap- 
lin  for  Berlin,  and  notice  of  other  eminent 
men  here  introduced,  for  the  towns  to 
which  they  more  specially  belong. — Ed,] 

Conspicuously  identified  with  the  growth 
of  the  County  or  connected  with  its  inter- 
nal improvements  were 

JUDGE  ELIJAH  PAINE, 

living  on  the  borders  of  tlie  County  in 
Williamstown.  [See  vol.  II,  page  1150. 
Ed.]  and  his  .son, 

GOV.    CHARLES   PAINE, 

who  passed  most  of  his  life  in  the  County, 
a  man  of  exceeding  active,  practical  mind 
and  indomitable  will.  In  addition  to  run- 
ning a  large  manufacturing  establishment 
he  did  more  than  all  others  toward  secur- 
ing our  present  railroad  facilities. 

HORACE   HOLLISTER 

built  most  of  the  old  County  road,  going 
north  from  Montpelier  through  Calais. 

MAHLON   COTTRILL, 

the  long-time  popular  landlord  of  the  Pa- 
vilion, was  proprietor  of  several  lines  of 
stage  in  the  County,  and  at  one  time  was 
more  largely  connected  with  the  public 
travel  in  this  vicinity  than  any  other  per- 
son before  or  since.  One  of  his  lines  was 
over  the  great  thoroughfare  from  Boston 
to  Burlington  and  Montreal  via  Montpelier, 
with  coaches  drawn  by  from  four  to  six 
superb  horses,  and  the  finest  stage  equip- 
ments ever  known  in  New  England. 
Thompson  relates  a  wonderful  feat  of  a 
driver  by  the  name  of  Blaisdell,  performed 
on  this  road,  which  was  the  difficult  and 
dangerous  task  of  leaping  from  his  seat  on 
the  coach-box  on  to,  and  over  the  near 
wheel-horse  to  the  ground,  and  seizing  the 
pole  which  had  just  dropped  with  a  cant 
to  run  off  a  precipice  60  feet  deep,  the 
wheel  being  within  a  yard  of  the  edge,  and, 
holding  also  to  the  neck-yoke,  guidng  a 
heavy  load  of  passengers  safely  to  the  foot 
of  the  hill.  The  rock,  which  is  a  mile  and 
a  half  south  of  Waterbury  street,  on    the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Moretown  side  of  Winooski  river,  has  since 
been  known  as  BlaisdelPs  Rock. 

WILLIAM  UPHAM 

was  a  most  remarkable  advocate  before  a 
jury,  and  his  speeches  in  the  United  States 
Senate  were  very  highly  complimented  by 
Daniel  Webster. 

SAMUEL   PRENTISS, 

as  a  jurist,  said  Chancellor  Kent  in  speak- 
ing of  him,  "Judge  Story,  the  only  man  to 
be  thought  of  in  comparison,  is  certainly  a 
very  learned  and  able  man,  but  I  cannot  help 
regarding  Judge  Prentiss  as  the  best  jurist  in 
New  England."  He  was  also  held  in  high 
estimation  in  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States. 

PUBLIC   MORALS   AND    EDUCATION, 

a  very  active  interest  in,  sprang  up  in  the 
County  about  the  time  of  its  organization, 
the  leader  of  which  was  Rev.  Chester 
Wright ;  and  which  under  the  influence  of 
James  H.  Langdon  extended  also  to  trade. 
In  addition  to  a  new  impetus  in  the  com- 
mon district-schools,  sabbath-schools  were 
organized,  libraries  purchased  and  lyceums 
formed ;  the  effect  of  which  was  felt  in  all 
parts  of  the  County,  and  in  1858,  the 
Union  School  at  the  Capital  was  put  in 
operation,  which  has  really  revolutionized 
the  old  manner  of  teaching.  Hon.  Rod- 
erick Richardson  superintended  the  erec- 
tion of  the  building,  and  was  chairman  of 
the  committee-men.  The  example  was  fol- 
lowed by  other  towns.  Academies  and 
seminaries  made  their  appearance  ;  one  at 
Barre,  under  the  auspices  of  the  New  Eng- 
land Universalist  .societies,  and  one  at 
Montpelier,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Ver- 
mont Methodist  Conference,  and  one  at 
Waterbury,  under  the  management  of  the 
Baptist  denomination. 

The  County  has  also  been  very  creditably 
represented  in  the  number  and  character 
of  its  authors  and  publications,  as  well  as 
many  able  articles  from  its  pens  entering 
into  the  journalism  of  different  parts  of  the 
country. 

"The  Indian  Captive,"  by  Horace 
Steele,  was  published  in  Montpelier  in 
1812;  "Baylies  Index,"  in  3  vols.,  by 
Hon.  Nicholas  Baylies,  in  1814;  Judge 
Baylies  published  beside  a  book  on  Free- 


agency  in  1 82 1.  "The  Battle  of  Platts- 
burgh,"  a  poem  in  pamphlet,  by  Samuel 
Woodworth,  in  1815  ;  "  The  Gift,"  16  mo., 
a  small  poetic  book,  by  Miss  Sophia  Wat- 
rous,  of  Northfield,  published  at  Montpel- 
ier in  1840.  The  Rev.  F.  W.  Shelton, 
formerly  Rector  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  Montpelier,  has  published  at  different 
times  "  Salander  and  the  Dragon,"  "  The 
Rector  of  Bardolph,  "  Chrystaline,"  "  Up 
the  River,"  and  "  Peeps  from  a  Belfry," 
which  have  given  the  author  a  wide  and 
pleasant  reputation.  Here  was  also  the 
long-time  home — atMontpelier~of  Charles 
G.  Eastman,  one  of  the  few  American 
poets  complimented  with  notice  by  the 
Edinburgh  critics.  Here  was  published 
his  book,  some  200  pages,  of  very  fine 
lyrical  and  descriptive  verse. 

The  native  birdlike  melody  of  some  of 
Eastman^'s  songs  has  rarely  been  equalled 
in  our  country.  An  excellent  painter  of 
nature,  he  reflects  with  much  felicity  the 
living  features  of  the  rural  life  of  the  Green 
Mountain  land.  [A  full  notice  of  East- 
man and  his  poems  will  be  found  in  his 
native  Barnard,  Windsor  Co.] 

Daniel  P.  Thompson  held  the  most  pro- 
lific pen  of  any  man  born  or  ever  residing 
in  the  County,  the  novelist  of  Vermont, 
whose  books  have  run  through  fifty  edi- 
tions.    [For  full  notice  of,  see  Berlin.] 

There  have  also  been  published  in  Mont- 
pelier, The  Astronomical  Discourses  of 
Thomas  Chalmers  in  18 19,  Thomas  Cook's 
Universal  Letter-writer,  in  1816;  James 
Dean's  Vermont  Gazetteer,  in  1808  ;  Life  of 
Benjamin  Franklin,  in  1809;  Religious 
Courtship,  1814,  The  Accident,  or  Henry 
and  Julia,  by  Wm.  Perrin,  1815  ;  Peter  the 
Great,  1811  ;  Infantry  Exercise,  1820; 
Thompson's  Vermont  Gazetteer,  1824  and 
1840;  "A  Thanksgiving  Discourse,"  by 
John  Gridley,  wherein  was  given  a  con- 
densed history  of  Montpelier,  in  1843;  "A 
Geographical  Poem"  of  the  County,  by 
Ithamer  Smith,  some  years  ago;  "A  His- 
tory of  the  13th  Regiment,"  in  journal 
form,  by  Edwin  Palmer,  Esq.,  of  Water- 
bury,  in  1866;  in  1870,  "The  Harvest 
Moon  and  other  Poems,"  by  G.  N.  Brig- 
ham,  M.  D.     [See  Fayston.] 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


13 


Other  several  noted  authors  have  had  a 

temporary  residence  within  the  County. 
Samuel  Hopkins,  author  of  an  Ecclesiasti- 
cal History  in  relation  to  the  Seceders  and 
the  Puritans ;  John  S.  C.  Abbott,  and  the 
Hon.  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  a  long-time  res- 
ident at  Montpelier,  and  for  25  years  a 
member  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Ver- 
mont, and  nearly  10  years  its  Chief  Jus- 
tice, whose  more  recently  published  work, 
called  a  "  Practical  Treatise  on  the  Law  of 
Railways,"  has  become  a  standard  work, 
and  given  Mr.  Redfield,  at  home  and 
abroad,  rank  with  the  first  of  American 
and  English  jurists. 

The  County  has  sustained  within  the 
last  fifty  years  two,  and  much  of  the  time 
five,  weekly  journals,  which  have  been 
ably  conducted  for  wjiat  is  known  as  the 
country  newspaper,  the  "  Vermont  Watch- 
man,^'' the  "-Free  /V^.y.r,"  which  was  chang- 
ed to  the  "  Vermont  Patriot,''''  and  more 
recently  to  the  '■'■Argus  and  Patriot,''^  the 
''Voice  of  Freedom,''''  now  the  '■'■Green 
Mountain  Freeman,''''  the  "  Christian  Mes- 
senger,''^ and  the  "  Christian  Repository. ^^ 

CENSORS : 

Ezra  Butler,  1806 ;  J.  Y.  Vail,  1820  ;  Jos. 
Reed,  1834;  H.  C.  Reed,  1841  ;  H.  F. 
Janes,  i848;Wm.W.  Wells,  1855;  Jos, 
Prentiss,  1862;  Chas.  Reed,  1869;  T.  P. 
Redfield,  1869. 

PRESIDENTIAL   ELECTORS  : 

Ezra  Bntler  in  1804,  '20,  "28,  '32  ;  Dr. 
Edward  Lamb,  1836;  Jos.  Reed,  1840. 

UNITED   STATES   SENATORS : 

Samuel  Prentiss,  1831-42;  William  Up- 
ham,  1843-53;  Matt.  Carpenter,  Senator 
from  Wisconsin,  born  in  this  County. 

REPRESENTATIVES   TO   CONGRESS  : 

Ezra  Butler,  1813-15;  H.  F.  Janes, 
1835-37  ;  Paul  Dillingham,  1843-47  ;  L.  B. 
Peck,  1847-51;  E.  P.  Walton,  1857-63; 
C.  W.  Willard,  1869-73.  A  son  of  Judge 
Rice,  of  Waitsfield,  has  al.so  been  a  terri- 
torial Representative,  and  we  have  fur- 
nished District  Judge,  Samuel  Prenti.ss ; 
and  one  District  Clerk,  Edw.  H.  Prentiss; 
and  two  District  Attorneys,  Lucius  B.  Peck 
and  B.  F.  Fifield. 


S.  B.  Colby  received  the  appointment  of 
first  register  in  the  office  of  the  secretary 
of  the  treasury  under  Abraham  Lincoln. 

Ezra  Butler  was  Governor  from  1826  to 
'28;  Chas.  Paine  from  1841  to  '43 :  Paul 
Dillingham,  Lieut.  Governor  in  1862,  '3, 
'4,  and  Governor  in  1865  to  '67.  Gov.  Dil- 
lingham was  also  Lieut.  Governor  for  3 
years  preceding  his  election  to  the  chief 
magistracy. 

D.  M.  Camp  and  Geo.  N.  Dale  were 
long-time  residents  of  the  County ;  the 
former  being  Lieut.  Governor  from  1836  to 
"41,  and  the  other  being  the  present  in- 
cumbent of  that  office  (1869). 

The  office  of  State  treasurer  has  chiefly 
been  held  by  individuals  of  the  County 
since  the  location  of  the  State  House  here. 
H.  F.  Janes,  John  Spaulding,  E.  P.  Jew- 
ett,  Geo.  Howes,  H.  M.  Bates  and  John 
A.  Page  being  the  persons  receiving  at  dif- 
ferent times  the  election  to  that  office  to 
1869. 

The  office  of  Secretary  of  State  has  also 
been  held  by  County  residents :  David 
Wing,  Jr.,  Timothy  Merrill,  C.  L.  Knapp, 
F.  F.  Merrill,  D.  P.  Thompson,  C.  W. 
Willard,  Geo.  W.  Bailey,  Jr.,  and  Geo. 
Nichols.  Mr.  Nichols  also  was  chosen 
president  of  the  last  Constitutional  Con- 
vention. 

Major  Charles  H.  Joyce,  the  present 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
was  a  long  time  resident  of  this  County. 
Timothy  Merrill,  O.  H.  Smith,  F.  F.  Mer- 
rill, G.  R.  Thompson,  have  been  severally 
elected  to'  the  position  of  clerk  of  the 
House.  David  Wing,  Jr.,  of  Montpelier, 
was  assistant  judge  of  Caledonia  Co.  in 
1800,  and  first  judge  from  1803  to  1805  ; 
Chas.  Bulkley,  [judge  and  Ezra  Butler, 
see  Berlin  and  Waterbury]  ;  Cyrus  Ware 
of  Montpelier  was  chief  judge  of  Caledo- 
nia Co.  Court  in  1808.  The  judges  of 
Washington  County  Court  have  been  Ezra 
Butler  in  i8ii-'i2;  Chas.  Bulkley,  1813; 
Dennison  Smith,  1814;  Ezra  Butler,  1815 
to  '18,  when  Jno.  Peck  presided  for  one 
year;  Ezra  Butler  from  1819  to  '25.  Of 
the  judges  of  the  State  supreme  and  cir- 
cuit courts  Samuel  Prentiss,  Nicholas  Bay- 
lies, Lsaac  F.  Redfield,  Asahel  Peck,  and 


14 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Timothy  P.  Redfield,  are  or  have  been 
residents  of  this  County.  The  first  Rep- 
resentatives from  this  County  were  Sam'l 
Harris  from  Middlesex  and  Jacob  Davis 
from  Montpelier,  who  took  seats  in  the 
assembly  held  at  Bennington,  Jan.  lo, 
1791.  Ezra  Butler  was  Councillor  from 
1809  to  '13,  and  from  1815  to  '26;  Nich- 
olas Baylies  in  1814;  George  Worthing- 
ton  from  1826  to  '30  ;  Henry  F.  Janes  from 
1830  to  '35;  Milton  Brown,  1835. 

STATE   SENATORS. 

In  1836,  by  a  change  in  the  constitu- 
tion a  Senate  was  substituted  for  the  Coun- 
cil, to  which  we  sent  first  Arunah  Water- 
man and  Newell  Kinsman  two  years,  and 
after:  Jos.  A.  Curtis  and  Israel  Goodwin, 
1838,  '39;  O.  W.  Butler,  1840;  Nathan- 
iel Eaton,  1840,  '41  ;  Paul  Dillingham, 
1 84 1,  '42,  '61 ;  Wooster  Sprague,  '42,  '43  ; 
Jacob  Scott,  '43,  44 :  Roderick  Richard- 
son, '44,  '45;  O.  H.  Smith,  '45,  '46;  Mo- 
ses Robinson.  '46,  '47 ;  Nath'l  Bancroft, 
'47,  '48;  Wm.  Carpenter,  '48,  '49;  Asaph 
Town,  '49,  '50;  Leonard  Keith,  '50,  '51; 
C.  G.  Eastman,  '51,  ''52;  Royal  Wheeler, 
'52,  '53;  Jos.  Moody,  'S3,  '54;  Horace 
Ilollister  and  James  Green,  '54,  '55  ;  John 
Gregory  and  F.  A.  Wright,  '56-'7 ;  Jo- 
seph Poland  and  Enoch  Putnam,  ''58-'9  ; 
Calvin  Fullerton,  '60-1  ;  C.  W.  Willard, 
'60,  '61  ;  Roderick  Richardson,  Addison 
Peck  and  P.  D.  Bradford,  '62,  '63;  Chas. 
Reed,  '64,  '65,  '66;  Denslow  Upham,  '64, 
'65  ;  M.  P.  Wallace,  '64  ;  Wm.  W.  Henry, 
'65,  '66,  '67;  J.  H.  Orcutt,  '66,  "68;  Chas. 
Dewey,  '67,  '68,  '69;  C.  H.  Heath,  '68, 
'69,  '70  ;  J.  H.  Hastings,  '70  ;  Heman 
Carpenter,  '70,  '71,  '72,  '7;^]  Clark  King, 
'7-.  ^3^  *74»  '75  ;  Eliakim  P.  Walton,  '74, 
"75i  '76,  '77  ;  Ira  Richardson,  '76,  '77  ;  W. 
P.  Dillingham,  '78,  '79,  "So,  '81;  Albert 
Dwinell,  '78,  '79,  '80,  '81. 

WASHINGTON   COUNTV   RECORD    IN   THE 
REBELLION   OF    1861. 

If  in  men's  minds  were  doubt  whether 
there  were  those  who  could  uphold  the 
honor  of  their  sires  in  the  generation  of 
to-day,  the  illusion  dispelled  with  the  an- 
swer to  the  call  for  men  to  defend  the 
country's  flag  ;  yeoman  and  clerk  and  pro- 


fessional man,  with  the  sound  of  the  fife 
and  drum,  all  moving  on,  like  a  sudden 
blast  from  the  north  to  the  terrible  storm- 
ing of  the  ramparts  and  charge  of  the 
battle-field,  proved  more  than  words  can 
blazon  the  heroism  still  in  the  race — a  soul- 
working  principle  profound  in  the  Ver- 
monter,  which  needed  but  a  spark  to  fan 
it  into  a  blaze  of  patriotism.  War  meet- 
ings were  held,  union  leagues  formed,  lib- 
eral bounties  paid  to  men,  and  the  fam- 
ilies of  those  in  the  field  cared  for.  Our 
heroes  and  martyrs  did  well ;  where  shines 
the  lustre  of  so  glorious  an  epoch,  we  still 
feel  all  of  our  old  State  pride  when  we  look 
on  our  war-soiled  banners,  and  hear  re- 
cited the  later  deeds  of  our  sons.  Our 
dead  are  on  most  of  the  battle-fields  from 
Bull  Run  to  Apomattox  ;  individual  deeds 
they  have  achieved  which  will  not  sufter 
in  comparison  with  the  martial  prowess  of 
any  time.  Instance  our  old  Vt.  2d  de- 
tached as  a  reserve  to  the  26th  New  Jer- 
sey, ordered  to  carry  the  heights  of  Mary's 
Hill.  Our  Col.  Joyce,  who  had  won  the 
cognomen  of  Murat  in  the  regiment,  had 
the  command.  The  Jersey  boys,  meeting 
tornadoes  of  lead  and  iron  rained  from  the 
battlements  above,  surging  back,  "For- 
ward, Vermont  Brigade,"  cried  the  gallant 
Joyce,  and  our  gallant  2d  : 

'"Tlit'ii  came  oiirifiiHant  Second  up. 

And  passed  them  on  tlie  run;" 
"  Vermont  nilxlit  well  be  proud  that  clay 

For  every  martial  son.'' 


"St.  Mary's  Heights  were  won." 

Sergeant  Bennett,  a  soldier  of  intrepid 
daring,  was  the  first  to  mount  the  par- 
apets ;  as  he  sprang  over  the  breast-work, 
a  rebel  officer  met  him,  sabre  in  hand,  and 
aimed  a  blow,  he  dexterously  parried  with 
his  musket,  and  pressed  to  close  quarters 
by  several  soldiers  joining  the  officer, 
clubbed  his  musket  in  a  twinkling,  ex- 
claiming. "I'll  clean  you  out  of  here!" 
levelled  them  all  to  the  earth ;  the  next  in- 
stant tell,  pierced  by  a  dozen  bullets,  and 
expired  at  once. 

During  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness, 
after  forcing  the  rebels  from  strong  in- 
trenchments  and  capturing  and  holding 
them  a  half  mile  in  front  of  the  inain  line. 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


15 

18,  1864;  North  Anna,  Tolopotomy,  Be- 
thesda  Church.  I'ctersburgh  June  17,  and 
the  mine  July  30,  1864,  Weldon  Railroad, 
Poplar  Grove  Church,  Hatcher's  Run, 
Peter.sburgh  April  2,  1865. 

In  the  First  Regiment  Cavalry,  in  the 
battles  of  Mount  Jackson,  F"ort  Republic, 
Middletown,  Winchester  May  25,  1862, 
Surry  Court  House,  Culpepper  Court  House 
July  10,  '62,  Orange  Court  Hou.se,  Kel- 
ley's  Ford,  Waterloo  Bridge,  Bull  Run, 
Ashby's  Gap,  Broad  Run,  Greenwich, 
Hanover,  Huntersville,  Gettysburgh,  Mon- 
terey, Lightersville,  Hagerstown  July  6, 
1863,  Boonsboro,  Hagerstown  July  13, 
1863,  Falling  Waters,  Port  Conway  Aug. 
26,  "63  and  Sept.  i,  '63,  Culpepper  Court 
Hou.se  Sept.  13,  "63,  Somerville  Ford,  Ra- 
coon Ford,  Falmouth,  James  City,  Brandy 
Station,  Gainesville,  liuckland  Mills,  Mor- 
ton\s  Ford,  Mechanicsville,  Piping  Tree, 
Craig's  Church,  Spottsylvania,  Yellow  Tav- 
ern, Meadow  Bridge, HanoverCourt  House, 
Ashland,  Hawe's  Shop,  Bottom  Bridge, 
White  Oak  Swamp,  Malvern  Hill,  Ream's 
Station,  June  23,  Notta#ay  Court  House, 
Keysville,  Roanoke  Station,  Stony  Creek, 
June  28  and  29,  1864,  Ream's  Station,  June 
29,  '64,  Ridley's  Shop,  Winchester  Aug. 
17,  1864.  Summit  Point,  Charlestown, 
Kearneysville,  Opequan,  Front  Royal, 
Mooney's  Grade,  Milford,  Waynesboro 
Sept.  28,  '64,  Columbia  Furnace,  Tom's 
Brook,  Cedar  Creek  Oct.  13,  1864,  Cedar 
Creek  Oct.  19,  '64,  Middle  Road,  Middle 
and  Back  Road,  Lacy's  Springs,  Wayes- 
boro  Mar.  2,  1865,  Five  Forks,  Namozine 
Church,  Appomattox  Station  Apr.  8,  '65, 
and  Appomattox  Court  House  April  9, 
1865. 

Gen.  Wm.  Wells  enlisted  from  Water- 
bury. 

In  all  of  the  given  Regiments  the  County 
had  commissioned  officers  as  high  as  cap- 
tain. It  also  furnished  men  to  the  ist,  2d 
and  3d  Batteries  of  Light  Artillery.  Of 
commissioned  officers  there  have  been 
killed  in  battle  and  died  from  wounds, 
twelve  from  the  County:  Lieuts.  A.  M. 
Nevins,  of  More  town,  David  B.  Daven- 
port, of  Roxbury  ;  Major  Richard  B.  Cran- 


the  Vt.  2d  were  asked  if  they  could  hold 
their  position  until  supports  could  be 
brought  up.  '■'■  Send  Its  amiiuinition  and 
provisions  and  we  caA  hold  it  six  months 
if  you  want."  Besides  the  battle  of  Bull 
Run,  the  .second  regiment,  in  which  our 
County  had  two  companies,  was  in  the 
battles  of  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  15,  1862;  Wil- 
liamsburgh.  May  5  ;  Golding's  Farm,  June 
26;  Savage  Station,  June  29;  White  Oak 
Swamp,  June  30;  Malvern  Hill,  July  i  ; 
South  Mountain,  Sept.  14  ;  Antietam,  Sept. 
17;  Fredericksburgh,  Dec.  13;  Mayre's 
Heights,  May  3,  1863;  Sailor's  Heights, 
May  4;  P'redericksburgh,  June  5  ;  (iettys- 
burgh,  July  3  ;  Funckstown,  July  10  ;  Rap- 
pahannock, Nov.  7  ;  Wilderness,  May  5-6, 
1864;  Spottsylvania,  May  10,  12,  14  and 
18  ;  Cold  Harbor,  June  1-12  ;  Petersburgh, 
June  18  ;  Charlestown,  Aug.  21  ;  Opecjuan, 
Sept.  19;  Fisher's  Hill,  Sept.  21  ;  Mount 
Jackson,  Sept.  24;  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19; 
Petersburgh,  March  25,  1865 ;  Peters- 
burgh, April  2  ;  Sailor's  Run,  April  6,  and 
after  Bull  Run.  five  additional  regiments 
participated  in  these  battles,  to  which  al.so 
they  would  add  a  few  other  engagements, 
and  in  all  our  County  found  itself;  repre- 
sented in  the  6th  Regiment  by  two  com- 
panies. In  the  Seventh  Regiment,  at  the 
siege  of  Vicksburgh,  Baton  Rouge,  Gon- 
zales Station,  Spanish  Fort  and  Whistler. 
In  the  Eighth  Regiment  at  Cotton,  Bis- 
land.  Siege  of  Port  Hudson,  Winchester, 
Fisher's  Hill,  Cedar  Creek,  Newton.  In 
the  Ninth  Regiment,  at  Harper's  Ferry, 
Newport  Barracks,  Chapin's  Farm,  Fair 
Oaks.  In  the  Tenth  Regiment,  at  Orange 
Grove,  Wilderness,  Spottsylvania,  Tolo- 
potomy, Cold  Harbor,  Weldon  Railroad. 
Monocacy,  Winchester,  Fisher's  Hill,  Ce- 
dar Creek,  Petersburgh  Mar.  25  and  Apr. 
2,  1865,  and  Sailor's  Creek.  In  the  Eleventh 
Regiment,  at  Spottsylvania,  Cold  Harbor, 
Petersburgh  June  8,  '64,  Weldon  Rail- 
road, Washington,  Charlestown,  Opequan. 
Winchester,  Fisher's  Hill,  Cedar  Creek, 
Petersburgh,  Mar.  25,  27,  and  Apr.  2,  1865, 
and  in  the  Thirteenth  at  Gettysburgh, 
July  2  and  3,  1863  ;  Seventeenth  Regiment, 
at  the  battles  of  the  Wilderness,  May  6  to 
9,  1864;  Spottsylvania,  12  to  15  and  May 


i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


dall,  of  Berlin ;  of  wounds  received  at 
Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  i6,  1862,  David  B. 
Davenport,  of  Roxbiiry :  of  wounds  at 
Lee's  Mills,  April  16,  '62,  Major  Richard 
B.  Crandall  and  Lieut.  A.  J.  Davis,  of 
Berlin;  Captain  Luther  Ainsworth,  of 
Waitsfield;  Major  Edwin  Dillingham, 
Lieut.J.E.Henry,Capt.LucianD.  Thomp- 
son, of  Waterbury ;  Capt.  Edward  Hall 
and  Lieut.  A.  K.  Cooper,  of  Worcester; 
Lieut.  W.  E.  Martin,  of  Bane ;  Lieut. 
Ezra  Stetson,  of  Montpelier ;  Lieut.  Isaac 
G.Putnam,  of  East  Montpelier;  Lieut. 
Luther  B.  Scott  and  Adjutant  Abel  Mor- 
rill, of  Cabot.  [Of  whom  further  account 
will  be  ^iven  in  their  respective  towns  in 
this  volume.] 

Chas.  H.  Anson,  of  Montpelier,  was 
brevetted  Captain  for  gallantry  in  the  as- 
sault on  Petersburgh,  April  2,   1865. 

This  County  furnished  for  the  war  44 
captains,  5  adjutants,  7  quarter-masters,  10 
majors,  7  lieut.  colonels,  4  colonels  and  2 
generals. 

Grand  list  of  the  towns  in  the  County  ; 
town-bounties  p8id  and  number  of  men 
raised  by  each  town  : 


TOWNS. 


Men. 


Grand  List.       Bountj'. 


Barre 

Berlin 

Cabot 

Calais 

Duxbury 

E.   Montpelier, 

Fayston , 

Marshtield 

Middlesex 

Montpelier  . . . . 

Moretown 

Northfield 

Plainfield 

Roxbury 

Waitsfield 

Warren 

Waterbury 

Woodbury 

Worcester 


Total. 


161 

$7,375-17 

144 

4,674.26 

174 

4,177-52 

98 

4,500.85 

152 

2,145.68 

74 

5,292.36 

121 

1,221.32 

150 

2,636.56 

33^ 

3,229  20 

146 

11,972.79 

351 

2,954.80 

94 

8,002.20 

113 

2,250.34 

104 

2,227.10 

no 

3-267.84 

236 

2,560.20 

99 

7,729.22 

84 

1,965.59 

2965 

1,637.01 

79.519-95. 

36,500.64 
31,399-54 

6,376.22 

26,095.23 

9,940.00 

12,808.83 

16,840.25 

13,952.20 

20,882.42 

24,585.65 

19,830.00 
32,664.84 

15,598.52 

200.00 
10,671.17 

13.438.88 

23,766.26 
22.50 

5.245-95 


320,826.00 


Col.  Randall's  statement  of  the 

BATTLE   OF   GETTYSBURG  : 

"The  I2th,  13th,  14th,  15th,  and 


1 6th 


Vermont  Regiments  constituted  Stannard's 


Brigade,  and  were  attached  to  the  First  or 
Reynolds'  corps  at  the  battle  of  Getty.s- 
burg.      This  brigade  arrived  on  the  field 
at  about  4  o'clock  iif  the  afternoon  of  the 
first  day,  and  took  position  in  the  rear  of 
Cemetery    Hill,    in  the  rear  of  the  main 
line  of  battle,  where  they  remained  through 
the  night,  and  through  the  fore  part  of  the 
next  day.      At  about  noon  of  the  second 
day  the  fighting  in  our  front  and  to  our  left 
was  quite  animated.  Generals  Sickles  and 
Hancock   being   at   our  left.      At   about 
2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  I  was  ordered  to 
advance  my  regiment  to   the  front,  and 
somewhat  to  the  left,  and  took  a  position 
some  thirty  rods  in  advance  of  the  rest  ot 
our  brigade,  where  I  held  my  regiment  in 
column  by  divisions  at  rest  until  about  4 
or  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.      At  this 
time  the  battle  was  raging  at  our  left,  in 
front  of  Hancock's  corps,  with  much  vio- 
lence, and  many  stragglers  were  passing  to 
the  rear.     The  balance  of  Stannard's  brig- 
ade were  lying  in  their  original  position. 
At  about  this  time  an  officer  came  riding 
from  the  front  directly  towards  where  my 
regiment  lay,  very  fast.     As  he  approach- 
ed the  spot  he  halted,  and  asked  me  what 
regiment  that  was.     I  told  him  it  was  the 
13th  Vermont,  of  Stannard's  brigade.     He 
asked  where  Stannard  and  the  rest  of  the 
brigade  were.     I  pointed  out  the  brigade, 
some  30  rods  in  my  rear,  and  also  the 
spot  where  Stannard  and  his  staff  were,   a 
little  way  in  the  rear  of  the  brigade.     He 
then  said  to  me  will  your  regiment  fight  .'' 
I  told  him  they  were  comparatively  new 
troops,  but  that  I  thought  I  could  rely  on 
them.     He  then  said,  "  I  am  Gen.  Double- 
day,  and  now  command  the  first  corps." 
He  also  told  me  he  had  just  come  from 
Gen.  Hancock,  that  that  officer  was  hard 
pressed,  and  he  was  afraid  unless  he  had 
help  very  quick  he  would  lose  his  artillery, 
or  some  of  it.       He  ordered  me  to  take 
my  regiment,    or   what    I  had  of  it,  pro- 
ceed in  the  direction  from  which  he  came, 
and  report  to  Gen.  Hancock,  and  act  as  he 
directed,    but   before    I    started   he   said, 
"  Colonel,  introduce  me  to  your  regiment." 
I  turned  with  him  to  the  regiment,  and  said. 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


17 


'  Boys,  this  is  General  Doubleday,  our  corps 
commander."    He  then  said,  substantially, 
as  follows  :  "Men  of  Vermont !  the  troops 
from  your  State  have  thus  far  in  this  war 
earned  an  enviable  reputation.     I  under- 
stand that  you  are  comparatively  inexperi- 
enced in  battle,  but  you  are  about  to  be 
led  in  by  your  Colonel.     Much  will  be  ex- 
pected of  you,  and  I  hope  you  will  nobly 
uphold  the  honor  of  your  State.      To-day 
is  the  great  day  that  determines  whether 
Jeff.  Davis  or  Abraham   Lincoln  controls 
this  government.       You   will   now  follow 
your  Colonel."     I  then  led  them  in  the  di- 
rection indicated  by  him,  at  a  double  quick, 
and  before  reaching  the  crest  or  high  land 
in  our  front,  I  left  the  regiment  in  charge 
of    Major  J.    J,    Boynton   and    Adjutant 
James  S.  Peck,  and  rode  myself  forward 
to  find  Gen.  Hancock,  and  see  in  advance 
where  my  regiment  could  aid  him  most. 
As  I  came  on  top  of  the  high  ground  or 
crest    between   the    cemetery   and   Little 
Round  Top,  1  met  Gen. Hancock,  who  was 
vigorously  rallying   and   encouraging   his 
shattered  ranks,  many  of  whom  were  still 
fighting  valiantly,  to  hold  on  and  contest 
the  ground  inch  by  inch.      I  accosted  him 
and  told  him  my  regiment  was  close  at 
hand,  and  that  Gen.  Doubleday  ordered  me 
up  to  his  assistance.      He  appeared  much 
gratified,  and  said  to  me  that  the  rebels 
had  just  taken  a  battery  from  him.     He 
pointed  out  to  me  the  direction  in  which 
they  had  gone  with  it,  and  asked  me  if  I 
could  retake  it  ?    I  replied  to  him  that  I 
thought  I  could.     He  said,  "go in,  then." 
By  this  time  my  regiment  was  coming  up  ; 
I  took  charge  of  them,  and  put  them  in 
position  to  deploy  from  column  into  line 
of   battle  parallel  to  his    main  line,  and 
in   front   of    his   somewhat    disorganized 
troops.      Gen.   Hancock  sat  near  me  on 
his  horse,  and  watched  the  movement  nar- 
rowly.    I  gave  the  order  to  deploy,  and 
rode  in  front  of  my  companies  to  watch 
the  movement  and  see  that  each  company 
came  promptly  on  to  the  line.     This  was 
under  a  sharp  fire  from  the  enemy,  and  my 
men  were  falling  on  all  sides  by  this  time. 
As  I  saw  my  last  company  come  on  the  line, 

3 


I  inclined  towards  the  center  of  the  regi- 
ment and  gave  the  order  to  forward.    Just 
as  I  did  this  my  horse  was  shot  dead  un- 
der me,  and  fell,  catching  me  by  my  right 
foot  under  him.     The  regiment  for  a  mo- 
ment supposed  I  was  killed,  but  the  horse 
was  rolled  off  from  me  by  the  men  as  they 
came  up,  who  soon  saw  that  I   was  not 
hurt,  and  they  followed  me  as  I  went  on 
foot.'    At  this  moment   a  body  of   rebel 
troops,  probably  a  brigade,  was  deploying 
from  the  bushy  ground  to  our  left  directly 
in  front  of  us.     This  I  did  not  see  until  my 
horse  fell,  when  I  got  a  view  of  them  un- 
der the  smoke  and  dust,  as  it  was  lifted. 
About  that  time  we  got  a  volley  from  them. 
I  saw  the  situation  was  a  critical  one  for 
us,  and  that  promptness  was  our  chance ; 
and  I  gave  the  order  to  charge  upon  them, 
thinking  to  surprise  and  overpower  them 
before  they  reloaded.     My  men  responded 
to  the  call  most  admirably.      Before  the 
rebels  had  time  to  reload  or  put  themselves 
in  an  attitude  of  defence  we   were  upon 
them.     They  threw  down  their  arms  and 
laid  low,  and  we  passed  over  them  without 
much  opposition.     Here  we  witnessed  one 
of  many  acts  of  treachery  which  the  rebels 
exhibited  at  times.       As  we  passed  over 
them  as  they  lay  like  yarded  sheep,  a  rebel 
officer  rose  on  his  elbow  and  discharged 
his'  pistol  at  Major  Boynton,  the  charge 
just  brushing  the  Major's  ear-locks.     This 
piece  of  perfidy  was  instantly  avenged  by 
half  a  dozen  of  our  men  pinning  the  rebel 
to  the  earth  with   their   bayonets.      We 
passed  on,  and  in  about  30  rods  overtook 
the  detachment  of  rebel  troops  in  charge 
of  the  captured  guns,  four  in  number,  of 
the    U.    S.    Regular    Artillery.      Captain 
Lonergan,    of    Co.    A.    of  my   regiment, 
(Burlington)   and   myself  about   simulta- 
neously, I  think,    came  up  with  the  guns 
overtaken.       The   rebels    appeared    very 
much   surprised  to   see    us,    but   after   a 
flourish  or  two  of  sabres  and  a  little  em- 
phatic language  they  surrendered  all  the 
guns  to  us,  and  we  passed  them  to  thg 
rear.     All  this  time  I  think  Gen.  Hancock 
was  watching  our  movements,  and  when 
my  horse  fell  he  was  so  near  to  me  that 


i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


when  I  got  up  and  left  the  horse  I  heard 
him  direct  one  of  his  men  to  keep  guard 
over  my  saddle  and  straps  on  my  horse. 
When  afterward  I  came  back  the  guard, 
saddle,  and  straps,  were  gone,  but  I  after- 
wards found  my  saddle.  Our  men  from 
whom  the  guns  had  been  taken  followed 
them  up,  took  their  guns,  and  returned 
with  them  to  our  lines.  My  regiment  was 
now  within  about  50  rods,  as  I  should 
judge,  of  the  Emmetsburgh  road,  and  I 
determined  to  push  forward  and  gain  that 
road,  unless  I  met  with  formidable  resist- 
ance, as  I  did  not.  I  reached  the  road, 
my  right  resting  at  a  small  farm  house, 
which  I  suppose  is  called  the  Pe'er  Rogers 
house.  Here  we  halted,  and  I  directed 
Adjutant  Peck  to  go  back  and  apprise  Gen. 
Hancock  of  our  position,  and  get  his  or- 
ders. About  this  time  Capt.  Lonergan 
came  to  where  I  was,  much  excited,  and 
informed  me  that  the  house  above  men- 
tioned was  full  of  rebels.  I  immediately 
went  with  him  to  the  house,  and  sure 
enough  it  was.  I  ordered  them  to  throw 
out  their  arms  and  surrender,  which  they 
all  did  ;  there  were  eighty-three  of  them, 
including  officers.  While  this  was  going 
on,  the  rebel  sharp-shooters  and  skirmish- 
ers were  keeping  up  a  sharp  lire  at  my 
men,  which  they  were  returning,  and  at 
about  this  time  they  ran  out  two  twelve 
pound  brass  field  pieces  at  our  left  on  the 
line  of  the  road,  and  commenced  to  fire 
upon  us.  At  this  I  directed  the  attention 
of  two  of  my  companies  to  them.  They 
soon  cleared  the  pieces  of  horses  and  men, 
and  then  charged  upon  them,  capturing 
both  of  the  guns,  which  we  brought  oiT. 
Adjutant  Peck  having  returned  with  word 
from  Gen.  Hancock  to  keep  my  fianks  well 
protected,  and  return  when  I  had  done 
what  I  thought  I  could.  Seeing  no  more 
gatne  in  the  bush,  we  retired  to  the  Union 
lines,  amid  much  cheering  from  the  troops 
who  had  witnessed  to  some  extent  our  op- 
erations. I  have  seen  some  account  of 
this  affair  in  which  it  is  said  that  in  this 
movement  the  14th  regiment  led  the  ad- 
vance, followed  by  the  i6th,  and  that  af- 
terwards the  13th  regiment  came  up.  Now 
the  truth  is  the  13th  were  in  a  position  to 


be  first,  having  been  in  advance  of  the 
other  regiments,  and  did  lead.  They  were 
no  doubt  well  in  the  fight  before  even  Gen. 
Stannard  knew  of  the  movement,  as  I  took 
my  order  for  this  advance  from  Gen.  Dou- 
bleday,  who  had  then  not  seen  Gen.  Stan- 
nard. 

I  do  not  wish  to  detract  one  jot  from 
what  any  other  regiment  may  have  done  at 
this  or  any  other  battle,  but  must  not  al- 
low my  regiment  to  be  misrepresented, 
either  through  ignorance  or  design." 

F.  V.  Randall. 

The  brilliant  achievements  of  our  nine 
months'  men,  the  13th  regiment  under 
Colonel  Randall  at  the  battle  of  Gettys- 
burgh,  from  the  magnitude  and  impor- 
tance of  the  battle,  and  the  circumstance 
that  such  bravery  was  displayed  by  men 
for  the  first  time  under  fire,  deserves  some- 
thing of  detailed  account.  Our  statement 
of  the  part  taken  in  the  2d  day's  fight  is  in 
Col.  Randall's  own  language.  The  3d 
day's  part,  we  collect  from  published  ac- 
counts given  at  the  time,  from  both  rebel 
and  union  officers  and  correspondents  on 
the  field.     . 

In  the  third  and  last  day's  struggle  for 
the  victory  in  this  greatest  of  modern  bat- 
tles, our  Regiment  of  thirteen  months' 
men,  never  before  under  fire,  did  more 
than  honor  to  the  County  and  State — they 
proved  to  the  world  that  the  thinking  bay- 
onet is  immeasurably  superior  to  that  of 
any  other ;  that  an  educated  citizen  soldiery, 
fired  by  patriotism  and  a  sense  of  duty, 
would  stand  fire  of  an  enemy  equal  with  vet- 
eran corps,  provided  they  were  well  offi- 
cered, and  for  such  disapproved  the  need 
of  standing  armies. 

After  the  previous  day's  service,  illustri- 
ous in  the  annals  of  war,  as  a  dash  made 
by  inexperienced  troops,  they  joined  the 
2d  Vt.  Brigade  and  slept  upon  their  arms. 
Friday,  the  third  day  of  this  great  battle, 
a  simultaneous  cannonade  was  opened 
upon  our  right  and  left  at  daybreak — Long- 
street  commanding  the  batteries  firing 
upon  the  left  where  was  our  Brigade,  from 
an  advantageous  ridge  he  had  gained  in 
the  alternoon  of  the  previous  day.  Ewell 
commanded    the   right,    which   seems    to 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


19 


have  been  really  the  point  selected  for  the 
chief  attack  in  the  morning  upon  our  lines. 
The  cannonade  lasted  only  for  a  short 
time,  when  on  the  right  one  of  the  most 
obstinate  and  terrible  infantry  duels  took 
place  known  in  the  history  of  fire-arms. 
Says  an  eye-witness,  "for  six  hours — from 
5  till  II  o'clock — the  musketry  rolled  on 
those  hill-sides  in  one  incessant  crash. 
For  six  hours,  from  other  portions  of  our 
lines,  we  watched  the  white  smoke-clouds 
curling  up  through  the  tree-tops  and  won- 
dered what  the  issue  would  be.  At  11, 
Geary  had  driven  the  enemy  back  over  the 
breastwork  into  the  valley  below."  In  the 
left  centre,  before  Longstreet's  batteries, 
was  the  2d  Vermont  Brigade,  General 
Stannard  in  command,  in  which  was  our 
13th  Regiment  engaged  in  their  first  bat- 
tle— for  although  thej  had  made  such  a 
brilliant  dash  the  day  before,  it  could  hard- 
ly be  considered  of  the  nature  of  a  pitched 
battle,  and  had  not  proved  that  they  would 
stand  a  withering  fire  or  a  charge.  They 
were  in  General  Doubleday's  Division. 
Col.  Randall  tells  me  that  Gen.  Double- 
day  very  skeptically  inquired  "  Colonel, 
will  your  men  stand  fire?"  "  I  think  they 
will,"  Col.  Randall  replied.  We  will  in- 
troduce the  language  of  another  who  was 
present  on  the  field,  to  speak  for  our  13th 
Regiment.  "  The  troops  of  Gen.  Double- 
day's  Division  were  disposed  in  three  par- 
allel lines  of  battle.  There  were  two  rea- 
sons for  this  show  of  strength  :  first,  the 
comparatively  level  and  open  nature  of  he 
ground  at  that  point  invited  assault ;  sec- 
ond, our  Division  and  Corps  Generals  dis- 
trusted the  ability  of  the  nine  months 
troops  to  withstand  a  charge.  It  was 
owned  they  did  well  the  night  before, 
when  their  prompt  presence  apparently 
saved  the  day  in  that  part  of  the  field,  but 
it  was  known — and  it  was  about  all  that 
was  known  about  them  in  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac — that  they  were  nine  months  men, 
their  term  of  service  just  expiring,  and 
that  they  had  had  no  previous  experience 
under  fire.  They  were  expected  to  break 
at  the  first  earnest  onset  of  the  enemy,  and 
a  double  line  of  battle  was  placed  behind 
them, — quite  a  needless  precaution  it  was 


found."  Col.  Randall's  Regiment  of  nine 
months  men  was  advanced  a  little  forward 
and  to  the  left  of  the  main  line  of  the  2d 
Corps,  where  they  threw  up  a  few  rails  for 
protection,  and  lay  low,  the  brow  of  the 
hill  also  affording  a  slight  protection  from 
the  shells.  A  few  men  were  wounded 
here  in  the  short  morning  cannonade, 
which  was  followed  by  a  long  lull  in  the 
storm  of  battle  at  this  point,  meanwhile 
the  vortex  of  the  storm  clung  to  the  right, 
where  it  raged  till  1 1  o'clock,  as  we  have 
seen.  A  little  picket  skirmishing  was  all 
there  was  in  the  vicinity  of  our  13th  until 
the  grand  assault  was  heralded  by  the  al- 
most simultaneous  burst  of  150  guns  from 
the  enemy  in  front.  This  gave  a  little  op- 
portunity to  strengthen  the  breastwork  of 
rails,  wnich  was  done  some  two  or  three 
feet  with  rails  scattered  upon  the  ground, 
which  was  considerable  protection  to  the 
men  when  flat  upon  the  ground,  and 
proved  much  needed  before  night. 

The  silence  for  two  hours  had  been  al- 
most oppressive  along  the  whole  left,  al- 
though the  din  of  arms  roared  terribly 
enough  away  to  the  right.  At  ten  min- 
utes before  10  o'clock  the  signal  gun  was 
fired,  the  top  of  the  low  ridge  in  front  al- 
most instantly  opened  with  a  storm  of 
shell,  round  shot  and  spherical  case — even 
grape  thickening  the  angry  tempest.  All 
this  against  that  breastwork  of  rails,  the 
cannonade  ceased  on  the  rebel  side  soon 
after  3  o'clock,  the  last  two  hours  being 
rapid  firing  from  this  battery  of  150  guns, 
concentrated  from  every  angle  upon  our 
left  centre,  when  followed  the  grand  charge. 
It  was  not  thought  possible  by  the  rebel 
generals  that  there  could  be  any  Union 
line  left  to  resist  a  charge  after  such  a  can- 
nonade. Now  commenced  to  move  in 
close  compact  lines,  in  the  finest  of  order, 
17,000  of  the  picked  troops  of  the  Confed- 
eracy. On  they  came  at  common  time, 
closing  up  as  fast  as  our  cannon  opened  a 
gap  with  that  fearful  hurtle  of  iron  hail. 
The  assaulting  force  had  a  front  of  about 
1,000  yards  moving  in  double  column, 
with  supports  in  the  rear  extending  beyond 
either  flank  in  front.  The  advance  was 
across  a  broad  stretch  of  open  meadow, 


20 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


something  over  a  mile  in  length,  and  vary- 
ing from  a  half  mile  to  nearly  a  mile  in 
width  between  the  confronting  ridges, where 
thus  far  the  battle  had  raged. 

The  long  gray  confederate  lines,  pre- 
ceded by  their  skirmishers,  have  reached 
the  low  ground,  half  the  distance  between 
the  confronting  armies,  when  the  Vermont 
regiments  which  are  in  advance  of  the 
main  line  are  ordered  up  into  line  to  re- 
ceive the  enemy.  The  enemy's  right  at 
first  seemed  aiming  directly  upon  our  13th 
and  14th  regiments,  and  they  were  prepar- 
ing to  give  them  a  volley,  to  be  followed  by  a 
charge,  when  an  unexpected  movement  of 
the  enemy  offered  the  opportunity  of  a  bril- 
liant display  of  military  tactics  and  prowess, 
which  our  Colonels  and  commanding  offi- 
cers did  not  fail  to  take  advantage  of.  As 
the  13th  and  14th  rose  to  deliver  their  fire, 
the  rebel  force  in  front  changed  direction 
by  its  flank,  and  marched  to  the  north 
across  their  front  some  60  rods,  when  again 
fronting  it,  came  in  upon  the  line  of  the  2d 
Corps  to  the  right  of  these  regiments. 
Upon  the  commencement  of  this  move- 
ment, the  two  regiments  opened  fire  upon 
them  by  battalion,  and  continued  it  by  file 
at  about  60  rods  with  great  effect. 

At  the  time  the  rebel  charging  lines 
fronted  and  advanced,  after  this  side  move- 
ment, they  swung  partly  to  the  rear  and 
right,  where  they  seemed  to  become 
massed,  presenting  from  the  position  of 
the  Vermont  Brigade  a  column  massed  by 
regiments.  Thus  in  position  they,  with  a 
wild  yell,  heard  above  the  din  of  our  pla)'- 
ing  batteries,  came  in  on  the  charge.  The 
shock  of  the  charge  was  tmly  terrible,  and 
it  was  resisted  with  a  terrible  obstinacy. 
They  reach  our  lines,  and  the  rebel  Gen. 
Armistead  is  shot  down  with  a  hand  on 
one  of  our  guns.  They  even  pierce  the 
line  in  the  terrible  struggle,  but  the  op- 
portunity for  a  flanking  movement  is  dis- 
covered by  the  commanding  officers  of  the 
Vermont  Brigade,  a  movement  already 
participated  in  to  a  certain  extent  by  Col. 
Randall,  of  the  13th,  and  the  13th and  i6th 
were  ordered  out  upon  the  enemies'  fiank. 
Col.    Randall    already    well    under    way. 


They  marched  some  60  rods  parallel  to  the 
main  line,  then  changing  front,  their  line 
swung  out  at  nearly  right  angles  upon 
the  right  of  the  rebel  column,  still  res- 
olutely struggling  to  force  our  lines.  As 
we  have  said,  the  13th  led,  which  marched 
by  the  right  flank,  and  approathed  very 
close  upon  the  enemies'  flank,  when  they 
changed  front  forward  on  the  first  com- 
pany, under  a  scattering  fire  from  the  en- 
emies' flank.  There  was  but  an  instant  of 
time  before  a  rapid  fire  ran  down  the  line 
of  the  regiment,  at  scarcely  more  than  half 
pistol  range.  The  effect  was  instantaneous 
and  destructive  beyond  calculation.  The 
rebel  lines  withered  away  as  stubble  be- 
fore the  flame.  To  help  complete  the 
havoc  and  scoop  up  the  prisoners,  the  i6th 
were  soon  seen  taking  up  a  position  upon 
the  I3th's  left.  Some  15  rounds  were 
fired  by  Col.  Randall's  regiment  at  this 
short  range,  raking  the  enemy  through  and 
through  by  this  fire  upon  his  flank.  The 
1 6th  also  gave  him  about  half  as  many 
rounds,  everybullet  probably  taking  effect, 
and  many  passing  through  two  or  three 
rebel  bodies.  The  rebels  broke  and  fled 
in  all  directions,  the  larger  portion  of  their 
centre  and  right  dropping  their  arms  and 
rushing  into  our  lines,  surrendering  them- 
selves as  prisoners.  Such  was  the  result 
of  that  great  charge  made  by  the  flower  of 
Southern  chivalry  (and  braver  men  never 
went  to  death),  and  such  the  brilliant  rec- 
ord made  by  a  regiment  of  men  never 
under  fire  before — men  who  nine  months 
before  were  in  their  shops,  behind  their 
counters,  and  in  their  farmers'  suits,  en- 
gaged in  the  pursuits  of  peace.  And  Wash- 
ington County  has  the  honor  of  sending 
the  commanding  officer  of  this  regiment  as 
well  as  two  companies  in  it,  whose  singu- 
lar rare  fortune  it  was  to  have  such  an  op- 
portunity to  distinguish  themselves,  and 
whose  singularly  good  fortune  it  was  to  so 
brilliantly  fill  a  record  so  illustrious  by  im- 
proving its  opportunity.  The  loss  of  the 
13th  was  8  killed,  89  wounded,  and  26 
mi.ssing.  Men  need  not  "  doubt  if  the 
warp  of  gold  "  be  yet  in  the  stock  descended 
from  the  compatriots  of  Ethan  Allen. 
The    Richmond    Sentinel   savs   of    the 


WASHINGTON  COUNTY. 


flanking  attack,  "  As  Kemper's  Brigade 
moved  up  it  swung  around  to  the  left,  and 
was  exposed  to  the  front  and  flanking  fire 
of  the  Federals,  which  was  very  fatal." 
Another  account  in  the  same  paper  says  : 
"A  flanking  party  of  the  enemy,  marching  in 
column  'by  regiments,  was  thrown  out  from 
the  enemy's  left  on  our  extreme  right,  and 
by  an  enfilading  fire  forced  the  retirement 
of  our  troops."'  The  Richmond  Enquirer 
gives  a  similar  account,  to  which  we  may 
add  the  testimony  of  the  correspondent  of 
the  London  Times,  who  details  tlie  move- 
ments of  the  flanking  column  and  speaks 
of  Gen.  Longstreet's  order  sent  by  Major 
Latrobe  relating  thereto,  which  was  never 
received,  as  Latrobe'^s  horse  was  shot  un- 
der him,  all  making  the  issue  of  the  battle 
turn  on  this  point.  It  was  one  of  the  most 
memorable  battles  in  history,  equalling  the 
carnage  of  Waterloo  and  surpassing  all 
others  of  this  generation  until  we  come  to 
the  great  battles  in  the  campaign  of  the 
Franco-Prussian  war.  The  aggregate  cas- 
ualties of  the  armies  fell  not  much  short 
of  8,000  killed  and  35,500  wounded.  5000 
rebel  dead  were  buried  on  or  near  the 
field.  7,600  wounded  were  left  in  our 
hands,  and  13,621  prisoners  were  taken. 
It  is  not  a  little  singular  that  our  own 
County  seems  by  the  good  fortunes  of  the 
hour,  and  the  bravery  and  talent  shown  by 
its  men,  none  of  them  ever  under  fire  be- 
fore, except  their  Colonel,  to  have  supplied 
the  pivotal  points  on  two  days  of  this  great 
battle's  issue. 

Paul  Dillingham,  of  Waterbury,  filled 
the  office  of  Chief  Magistracy  of  the  State 
for  more  than  half  the  period  of  the  war. 
He  served  both  the  County  and  State  with 
signal  ability.  Earnest  in  suppressing  the 
rebellion,  he  was  prompt  to  act  in  filling 
the  several  quotas  called  for  by  the  Gov- 
ernment. Zealous  in  the  Union  cause,  by 
word  and  act,  he  encouraged  his  fellow 
citizens  to  withhold  no  sacrifice,  while  he 
also  gave  two  sons  to  the  country's  service, 
one  of  whom  remains  with  its  dead. 

NATURAL   HISTOKY. 

The  County  abounds  in  water-privileges 
and  numerous   cold   springs,    which   add 


greatly  to  the  value  of  its  lands  for  dairy- 
ing purposes,  as  well  as  its  excellent  quality 
of  grass.  The  W^inooski,  the  largest  riv- 
er in  the  State,  rises  in  the  towns  of  Wal- 
den  and  Peacham,  in  Caledonia  Co.,  its  two 
head  branches  uniting  in  Marshfield,  from 
whence  it  flows  through  the  whole  width 
of  this  County  and  thence  through  Chit- 
tenden Co.  into  Lake  Champlain.  It  drains 
an  area  of  about  1,000  square  miles.  Af- 
ter the  junction  of  the  two  head  branches 
in  Marshfield,  we  have  for  its  tributaries  : 
Kingsbury's  Branch,  coming  in  on  the 
west  side  of  Plainfield  Village,  Stevens' 
Branch,  coming  in  2  miles  above  Mont- 
pelier  village,  from  Barre,  the  Worcester 
Branch,  uniting  at  Montpelier  village.  Dog 
River  i  mile  below.  Mad  River  i  mile  be- 
low Middlesex  village,  and  Waterbury 
River,  2  miles  below  Waterbury  village. 
There  are  many  brooks  beside,  in  the 
County,  of  considerable  size  and  several 
ponds  of  varying  sizes.  Of  ponds,  the 
town  of  Woodbury  alone  has  no  less  than 
9,  and  the  water-power  of  the  County  is 
greatly  increased  by  its  ponds  which  are 
natural  reservoirs. 

The  geological  formation  of  the  County 
is  for  the  most  part  talcose  slate ;  mica, 
hornblend  and  limestone  are  found  in  con- 
siderable quantities ;  argillaceous  slate  in 
the  southern  towns,  felspar  and  quartz, 
with  mica,  in  the  eastern ;  steatite  and  iron 
ore  in  the  town  of  Warren.  Stalactite 
and  asbestos  have  also  been  found  in  smaller 
quantities  in  ditTerent  localities,  as  well  as 
gold. 

Camel's  Hump,  which  lies  upon  the 
western  border  of  the  County,  is  only  a  few 
feet  below  the  Chin,  the  highest  peak  in 
the  Green  Mountain  range,  a  bold  land- 
mark seen  in  nearly  all  parts  of  the  County. 
Bald  Mountain,  rising  from  the  spur  to  the 
east  of  Mad  River,  is  also  a  noticeable 
peak  nearly  in  the  corner  of  the  town  lines 
of  Waitsfield  and  Northfield.  A  spur  or 
range  broken  off"  from  the  Hog-Backs  in 
Middlesex,  at  what  is  called  the  "Nar- 
rows." The  Winooski  seems  to  have 
channeled  a  gateway  of  a  few  feet  in  width 
down  some  80  or  90  feet  in  the  rock,  leav- 
ing abrupt  and  precipitous  sides  crowned 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


with  overhanging  pines.  Before  this  cut 
there  must  have  been  a  lake  of  some  miles 
in  length,  extending  up  the  river  and  some 
of  its  tributaries  above.  The  Marshfield 
Falls  are  also  noticeable,  where  the  main 
branch  of  the  Winooski  is  said  to  fall  500 
feet  in  30  rods. 

Benjamin's  Falls,  near  the  outlet  of 
Berlin  Pond,  which  are  exceedingly  pic- 
turesque and  beautiful,  have  become  a 
place  of  frequent  resort. 

The  talc,  slate,  mica  and  limestone, 
mixed  and  pulverized,  are  the  best  and 
among  the  most  durable  of  soils.  The  in- 
tervale on  Dog,  Mad  and  Winooski  Rivers 
is  very  line,  though  in  much  of  the  length 
of  these  streams  the  valleys  are  narrow. 
Scarcely  inferior  to  the  meadow  lands 
along  the  rivers  are  many  ot  the  hill  farms. 
Pasturage  is  even  better  here,  and  the  hay 
of  better  quality,  if  falling  off  a  little  in 
quantity.  The  soil  is  excellent  also  for 
corn  and  oats  in  the  valleys,  and  besides 
well  adapted  to  wheat-growing  on  the  up- 
lands.   As  a  dairy  County  it  has  few  equals. 

In  1841,  there  was  a  severe  tornado  in 
the  towns  of  Fayston  and  Waitsfield.  It 
commenced  on  the  heights  of  the  land  in 
the  middle  of  the  town  of  Fayston,  and 
had  a  S.  E.  direction,  spending  its  force 
against  the  sides  of  a  mountain  in  the  town 
of  Waitsfield,  where  it  leveled  some  20  or 
30  acres  of  heavy  woodland  in  a  body.  As 
it  moved  down  from  the  highlands  into 
the  valley  of  Mill  Brook,  the  scene  of  the 
storm  was  said  by  those  who  observed 
from  the  hill  range  above  the  cloud,  to  be 
sublime  beyond  description.  One  rolling 
sea  of  fire  with  perpetual  thunders,  crashed 
and  roared  as  it  swept  through,  as  it 
seemed  almost  at  their  very  feet.  A  more 
general  tornado  visited  the  County  in  1866, 
which  had  a  N.  E.  cour.se,  doing  much 
damage  in  nearly  all  the  towns.  The  gust 
that  did  most  of  the  damage  did  not  last 
more  than  a  minute  or  a  minute  and  a  half, 
yet  barns  were  carried  from  their  found- 
ations, with  cattle,  horses,  and  all  to  be 
mixed  in  one  common  ruin ;  houses  were 
unroofed,  chimneys  blown  down,  wood- 
lands leveled,  and  all  movable  things  put 
in  motion.     Some  of  our  towns  had  forty 


or  fifty  barns  destroyed ;  one  or  two  val- 
uable horses  were  killed,  and  several  liead 
of  horned  cattle.  A  few  persons  were  se- 
riously injured,  though  we  do  not  know  of 
any  one  being  killed.  Some  of  the  barns 
were  among  the  very  best  in  the  County, 
valued  at  two  or  three  thousand  dollars. 
The  County  has  been  visited  by  a  number 
of  freshets  since  its  organization,  the  most 
notable  of  whicli  was  in  1830,  which  oc- 
casioned the  memorable  slide  upon  the 
eastern  slope  of  the  Green  Mountains,  and 
by  which  the  County  lost  most  of  its 
bridges  and  a  large  share  of  its  mills  ;  sev- 
eral lives  were  lost.  In  that  of  1869,  nearly 
as  destructive,  the  little  village  of  Plainfield 
suffered  to  the  amount  of  $20,000.  Half 
of  Montpelier  village  was  under  water,  sev- 
eral streets  in  Northfield,  and  there  was  a 
general  destruction  of  bridges  and  mills 
throughout  the  County;  also  railroad  trains 
were  delayed  for  days. 

Deer  and  the  black  bear  were  found  very 
plenty  in  the  first  of  the  settlement,  and 
occasionally  the  American  monsal,  or 
moose.  The  bear  stil]  contests  the  rights 
of  civilization,  rather  too  successfully  for 
our  sheep  pastures  at  times.  Fish,  also, 
particularly  that  favorite,  the  speckled  or 
brook  trout,  abounded  in  our  streams. 
This  county  is  no  doubt  among  the  best 
localities  of  the  world  for  trout  raising. 
The  spruce  partridge  and  wood-pigeon 
were  considerably  hunted  for  game  in 
former  times,  and  partridge  is  yet  sought 
by  the  sportsman  with  some  success.  The 
American  panther,  or  catamount,  which 
figured  in  our  first  coat  of  arms,  was  oc- 
casionally seen,  one  of  which  had  a  bloody 
fray  with  a  bear  just  out  the  precincts  of 
Montpelier  village,  near  the  sand-bottom 
bridge,  if  we  credit  the  story  of  Joel 
Frizzle,  an  old  trapper,  who  claims  to  have 
been  an  eye  witness,  and  wolves  were  quite 
numerous.  The  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin 
when  a  lad  was  chased  by  a  pack  while 
traveling  the  road  on  Dog  River  between 
Northfield  and  Montpelier  one  night  after 
dark,  and  only  saved  himself  by  the  dex- 
terity with  which  he  handled  a  fire-brand. 

The  cold  .season  of  1816,  I  have  been 
told  by  those  living  at  the  time,  the  snow 


BARRE. 


23 


fell  a  foot  deep  here  the  eighth  of  June. 
The  trees  full  in  leaf  looked  after  the  freeze 
as  if  a  fire  had  over-ran  the  woods.  Many 
were  broken  by  the  weight  of  the  snow, 
and  the  apple  crop  was  spoiled,  and  hardly 
enough  corn  raised  for  seed ;  but  the  ce- 
reals and  the  wheat  gave  abundant  har- 
vest, and  there  was  no  famine. 

Champlain,  on  the  Lake  that  took  his 
name,  saw  mountains  to  the  east  covered 
with  snow  the  4th  of  July,  1609.  Our 
winters  have  considerably  shortened  since 
the  settlement  of  the  country,  and  our 
snow-fall  and  rain-fall  no  doubt  dimin- 
ished. 

We  are  aware  of  our  incompleteness  in 
this  chapter.  We  have  invited  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Bar  and  cferks  of  the  County 
Court  to  add  whatever  may  be  of  interest 
in  that  direction,  receiving  some  encour- 
agement it  would  be  done.  The  social 
societies  of  the  County  are  so  much  of  the 
nature  of  those  already  given  by  others, 
we  have  not  thought  their  interest  with 
the  repetition,  desirable. 

Montpelier,  i86g. 


BARRE. 

BY   HON   CARLOS   CARPENTER. 

Barre  is  situated  in  the  S.  E.  part  of 
Washington  Co.,  lat,  44°  1 1',  long.  4°  31', 
bounded  N.  by  East  Montpt-lier  and  Plain- 
field,  E.  by  Orange,  S.  by  Williamstown 
and  Washington,  W.  by  Berlin,  contains 
19,900  acres,  and  was  chartered  Nov.  6, 
1780,  to  William  Williams  and  66  others 
by  the  name  of  Wildersburgh,  and  organ- 
ized under  that  name  Mar.  11,  1793:  Jo- 
seph Uwight,  first  town  clerk ;  Joseph 
Sherman,  Joseph  Dwight,  Nathan  Har- 
rington, selectmen  :  Jonas  Nichols,  treas- 
urer; Job  Adams,  constable;  Isaac  S. 
Thompson,  Apollos  Hale,  Elias  Cheney 
listers.  The  name  of  the  town  was  soon 
after  changed.  At  a  town  meeting  holden 
Sept.  3,  1793, 

Voted,  that  the  man  that  will  give  the 
most  towards  building  a  meeting-house  in 
said  town,  shall  name  the  town,  and  the 
town  will  petition  the  Legislature  for  that 
name.  The  name  of  the  town  vendued 
and  bid  off  by  Ezekiel  Dodge  Wheeler, 


for  62 _^  lawful  money,  he  being  the  high- 
est bidder,  and  .said  Wheeler  named  the 
town  Barre. 

At  the  same  meeting. 

Voted,  to  recommend  Lt.  Benj.  Walker 
to  serve  as  justice  of  peace. 

At  the  March  meeting  in  1794,  the  town 

Voted,  to  vendue  the  collectorship  to 
the  person  who  will  collect  the  taxes  for 
the  least  premium,  and  the  collectorship 
was  vendued  to  Joel  Shurtliff,  and  he  is  to 
give  the  town  three  pence,  three  farthings 
on  the  pound  for  the  privilege  of  collecting 
all  the  town  taxes. 

At  a  town  meeting  holden  June  23,  1794, 
the  town 

Voted,  to  choose  a  committee  of  three 
to  procure  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  liy 
vote,  chose  Benj.  Walker,  Esq.,  Apollos 
Hale  and  Samuel  D.  Cooke,  committee. 

The  town  at  an  early  day  evinced  a  de- 
sire to  look  after  the  moral,  .social  and 
religious  interests  of  the  people  that  should 
come  among  them  to  settle  on  the  lands, 
and  clear  them  up  to  make  a  thriving  com-" 
munity. 

The  settlement  was  commenced  about 
1788,  by  Samuel  Rogers  and  John  Golds- 
bury,  who  came  into  town  with  their  fam- 
ilies. Soon  after,  a  number  of  families 
came  in,  and  from  1790,  the  town  became 
rapidly  settled  by  emigrants  from  Massa- 
chusetts and  New  Hampshire.  It  was  first 
represented  in  the  General  Assembly  in 
1793,  by  Nathan  Harrington.  The  town 
lies  6  miles  easterly  from  Montpelier. 

The  Vt.  Cent.  R.  R.  extended  its  line 
to  Barre  in  1875.  The  first  passenger 
train  carried  students  and  those  attending 
Goddard  Seminary  Commencement  ex- 
ercises, July  I,  1875,  since  which  passen- 
ger and  freight  trains  have  run  regularly. 
L.  F.  Aldrich,  first  station  agent,  appointed 
in  August,  1875,  served  till  June  i,  1878; 
E.  K.  Williams,  from  June  i  to  July  8, 
1878;  and  M.  C.  Kinson,  appointed  July 
20,  1878,  is  present  station  agent. 

Thos.  W.  Bailey  has  been  passenger 
conductor  since  the  road  was  opened,  and 
Dexter  Moody  baggage-master ;  engineers, 
James  Bowers,  Robert  Gregg,  David  Dan- 
iels, and  present  engineer,  Albert  Cas- 
well.    The  cars  have  never  but  once  been 


24 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ofif  the  irons,  it  is  said,  on  this  line,  and 
no  serious  accident  has  yet  occurred.  The 
freight  business  at  Barre  depot  is  ranked 
about  the  fourth  on  the  Vt.  Central  lines. 
Barre  is  the  present  terminus  of  this  line 
(1881)  but  it  is  expected  it  will  soon  be 
e.xtended  to  Royal  ton,  Wind.sor  Co. 

Barre  has  two  flourishing  schools — the 
Academy  and  Seminary. 

BARRE   ACADEMY. 

BY  CHAS.   A.    SMITH,  OF  THE   BOARD  OF  TKUSTKKS. 

Barre  Academy  was  chartered  by  the 
Legislature  in  1849.  Of  the  first  board  of 
trustees,  chosen  by  the  corporators,  Hon. 
Newell  Kinsman  was  president,  and  Hon. 
Leonard  Keith,  secretary.  In  1853,  the 
board  was  increased  to  25  members,  who 
have  full  oversight  and  administration  of 
the  affairs  of  the  school.  The  present  of- 
ficers of  the  board  are  :  President,  Hon. 
Hiram  Carleton,  of  Montpelier  ;  Secretary, 
Chas.  A.  Smith ;  Barre  Prudential  Com- 
mittee, E.W.  Bisbee,  Esq.,  H.  O.Worthen, 
M.  D.,  Hon.  R.  E.  Patterson.  The  acad- 
emy building  was  erected  in  1852.  The 
school  opened  in  that  autumn,  with  J.  S. 
Spaulding,  A.  M.,  principal,  who  came 
from  Bakersfield,  Vt.,  where,  as  Prof.  Ben- 
edict, of  Burlington,  wrote  for  the  "  Free 
Press"  at  that  time,  he  had  "acquired  a 
high  reputation  by  his  superior  manage- 
ment of  Bakersfield  Academy."  Mr. 
Spaulding  continued  at  the  head  of  Barre 
Academy  until  his  death,  which  occurred 
suddenly  of  heart  disease,  Apr.  29,  1880, 
and  during  all  this  time  he  maintained  his 
reputation  as  one  of  the  ablest  and  most 
successful  teachers  of  the  State,  and  by  his 
persistent  and  self-denying  labors  made 
the  Academy  one  which,  for  excellent  dis- 
cipline and  thorough  practical  training, 
was  unsurpassed  by  any  school  in  the 
country.  Mr.  Spaulding's  influence  was 
also  felt  among  all  the  teachers  of  the 
State.  He  was  one  of  the  founders,  and 
for  many  years  the  president,  of  the  Ver- 
mont State  Teachers'  Association.  He 
was  keenly  alive  to  all  the  material  inter- 
ests of  the  community  in  which  he  resided, 
by  his  instruction  of  the  young  men,  by 
his  conversations  with  the  fathers,  and  by 


the  enthusiastic  labors  and  the  practical 
experiments  by  which  he  converted  the 
little  farm  on  which  he  lived  and  died 
from  a  barren  hillside  pasture  to  a  fertile 
field,  and  pleasant  grounds,  with  quiet 
walks  and  cooling  shades ;  he  did  much  to 
awaken  among  the  farmers  of  town  a  higher 
idea  of  their  calling,  and  to  stimulate  a 
taste  for  scientific  farming  in  its  truest 
sense.  He  was  chosen  a  delegate  to  the 
constitutional  convention  in  1870  ;  in  1876, 
elected  a  representative  to  the  legislature. 
The  degree  of  L.L.  D.  was  conferred  upon 
him  by  Middlebury  College  in  1868. 

Dr.  Spaulding  was  born  in  Tewksbury, 
Mass.,  and  while  a  child,  removed  with 
his  parents  to  Temple,  N.  H,,  where  he 
lived  until  he  entered  Dartmouth  College 
in  1837,  graduating  in  1841.  He  was  soon 
after  married  to  Miss  Mary  W.  Taylor, 
who  in  his  labors  was  a  most  interested 
and  efficient  co-worker,  and  who  now  sur- 
vives him.     They  had  no  children. 

The  school  has  since  the  death  of  Dr. 
Spaulding  been  under  the  charge  of  A.  N. 
Wheelock,  A.  M.,  a  graduate  of  the  insti- 
tution, class  'JT,,  and  of  the  U.  V.  M., 
class  '78,  and  under  his  able  management, 
promises  to  maintain  its  high  reputation 
among  the  educational  institutions  of  the 
State.  There  have  been  connected  with 
the  school  as  assistant  principals  since  its 
establishment  24  gentlemen :  Rev.  Sim- 
eon Gilbert,  editor  of  the  Advance,  Chi- 
cago, 111. ;  Rev.  A.  W.  Hazen,  of  Middle- 
town,  Ct. ;  I.  W.  Camp,  A.  M.,  Chicago, 
111. ;  Hon.  John  M.  Thatcher,  ex-Com 
missioner  of  Patents,  Chicago,  111. ;  Hon. 
Senaca  Hasleton,  Judge  of  Municipal 
Court,  Burlington,  Vt.,  and  others;  and 
about  30  ladies,  some  of  whom  have  been 
well  known  teachers  in  other  schools  of 
the  land,  have  been  employed  as  assist- 
ants. The  number  of  scholars  of  both 
sexes  who  have  completed  the  courses  of 
studies  prescribed  has  been  nearly  300, 
and  the  honorable  record  made  by  some  of 
these,  and  of  the  thousands  more  who 
have  been  for  a  longer  or  a  shorter  period 
connected  with  the  school,  afford  the  surest 
testimony  of  the  faithful  work  done  by  its 
teachers  in  the  past.     Names  of  a  few  old 


BARRE. 


25 


students  who  have  become  prominent  in 
the  localities  in  which  they  have  settled, 
and  in  the  calling  they  have  chosen.  Wal- 
worth Z.  Mitchell,  Esq.,  Superintendent  of 
Schools,  Memphis,  Tenn.  ;  Hon.  John  I. 
Gilbert,  Malone,  N.  Y. ;  Hon.  John  M. 
Thatcher,  Chicago,  111. ;  PercisA.  Thomp- 
son, teacher,  Goddard  Seminary,  Barre, 
Vt. ;  Rev.  Geo.  P.  Beard,  Principal  S.  N. 
School,  Shippenburgh,  Pa.  ;  Miss  Emily 
Cook,  teacher,  Chicago,  111.  ;  Hon.  Geo. 
L.  Godfrey,  Des  Moines,  Iowa ;  Hon.  Al- 
bert Clark,  St.  Albans,  Vt. ;  Rev.  J.  J. 
Lewis,  So.  Boston,  Ma.ss.  ;  Hon.  M.  B. 
Carpenter,  Denver,  Colorado  ;  Hon.  Senaca 
Hasleton,  Burlington,  Vt.  The  Academy 
has  always  been  under  the  control  of  those 
who  are  Congregationalists ;  still  there 
has  never  been  any  discrimination  with 
respect  to  the  advantages  of  the  school, 
and  there  is  nothing  in  the  rules  or  the 
discipline  of  the  school  which  distinguishes 
between  scholars  of  this  and  any  other  re- 
ligious belief.  The  corriculum  of  studies 
covers  a  course  of  4  years,  and  is  admirably 
adapted  to  fit  students  for  any  New  Eng- 
land college,  or  for  the  active  pursuit  of  a 
business  or  professional  life.  The  attend- 
ance for  the  school  year,  ending  June  16, 
1 88 1,  aggregated  175.  The  graduating  class 
numbered  9 — 5  gentlemen  and  4  ladies. 

THE  NATIONAL  BANK  OF  BARRE. 

CONTKIUUTED  BY   MR.  SMITH. 

It  was  chartered  and  organized  Jan.  li, 
1873,  by  the  removal  of  the  old  Chelsea 
Bank  to  this  place,  effected  through  the  in- 
fluence of  Hon.  B.  W.  Bartholomew,  of 
Washington,  Vt.,  and  Dr.  Braley,  of  Barre. 
Dr.  N.  W.  Braley  was  chosen  President  of 
the  tirst  board  of  directors,  and  William  G. 
Austin,  Cashier.  Mr.  Austin  died  of  ty- 
phoid fever  in  the  autumn  of  the  same 
year,  and  was  succeeded  byChas.  A.  King 
till  1877.    . 

On  the  night  of  the  5th  of  July,  1875, 
an  attempt  was  made  to  burglarize  the  bank 
by  compelling  the  Cashier  to  disclose  the 
combination  of  the  locks,  which  was  foiled 
by  a  chronometer  lock  that  had  been  placed 
upon  the  safe  only  a  few  days  previous. 

By  the  prompt  and  courageous  action  of 


Mr.  King,  who  was,  on  the  departure  of  the 
robbers  left  with  his  family,  bound  in  his 
house,  nearly  half  a  mile  from  the  village, 
but  who  soon  slipped  his  bonds,  and  alarm- 
ed the  officers  of  the  bank.  A  pursuit  was 
instituted,  which  resulted  in  the  capture  of 
one  of  the  burglars  near  Rumney,  N.  H.,  the 
next  day,  and  subsequently  two  others  of  the 
gang  were  arrested  iu'New  York  city.  One 
was  delivered  up  to  serve  out  an  unexpired 
term  at  Sing  Sing ;  one,  Geo.  Miles  with 
numerous  aliases,  was  brought  to  Mont- 
pelier,  tried  and  sentenced  to  15  years  in 
the  State  Prison.  The  one  first  arrested, 
called  Peter  Curley,  turned  state's  evi- 
dence, and  was  discharged. 

Mr.  King  resigned  his  position  as  cash- 
ier June  II,  1877,  and  was  .succeeded  by 
E.  D.  Blackwell,  who  resigned  Feb.  26, 
1 88 1,  to  become  cashier  of  the  National 
Bank  of  Montpelier,  ¥.  L.  Eaton  being 
chosen  to  succeed  him. 

There  have  been  chosen  1 1  directors  of 
the  bank  since  its  organization,  of  whom 
only  two  have  died  in  office  :  Hon.  Luther 
M.  Martin,  of  Williamstown,  died  in  1874, 
and  Dr.  Braley  in  1880.  The  capital  stock 
of  the  bank  was  at  its  organization  $200,- 
000,  but  by  a  vote  of  the  stockholders  in 
1880,  it  was  reduced  to  $100,000.  The 
board  of  directors  chosen  at  the  annual 
meeting  in  .1881,  were  L.  F.  Aldrich,  Jo- 
siah  Wood,  Willard  S.  Martin,  B.  W. 
Braley  and  J.  M.  Perry.  These  elected 
L.  F.  Aldrich,  president,  B.  W.  Braley, 
vice  president,  F.  L.  Eaton,  cashier. 

NORMAN    W.    BRALEY,    M.    D., 

The  first  President  of  the  National  Bank 
of  Barre,  was  born  in  Pomfret,  Vt.,  Aug. 
14,  1823,  and  was  graduated  at  the  Vt. 
Medical  College  at  Woodstock,  in  1844. 
He  soon  after  commenced  practice  in  Wash- 
ington, Vt.,  where  he  remained  a  few  years, 
and  moved  to  Chelsea,  where  he  lived  until 
he  came  to  Barre.  By  his  skill  and  suc- 
cess as  a  physician,  the  Doctor  in  the  25 
years  of  his  practice  gained  an  extensive 
and  a  lucrative  ride  and  a  reputation  which 
placed  him  in  the  first  rank  of  physicians  in 
the  State.  He  removed  to  Barre  in  1872, 
and  identified   himself    at  once  with   the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


business  interests  of  the  place,  using  his 
influence,  and  freely  contributing  of  his 
means  to  further  every  enterprise  which 
promised  to  promote  the  prosperity  of  the 
place.  He  died  Sept.  ii,  1880,  of  ap- 
oplexy. His  wife,  Mrs.  Armina  P.  (Ca- 
liff)  l^raley,  to  whom  he  was  married  Nov. 
16.  1852,  and  3  sons,  survive  him. 

GODDARD    SEMINARY. 

At  the  annual  session  of  the  Vt.  State 
Convention  of  Universalists  in  Montpelier, 
1863,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  ob- 
tain a  charter  for  a  state  denominational 
school  of  the  highest  grade  below  that  of 
college,  and  the  charter  was  obtained  of 
the  Legislature  the  same  fall,  under  title 
of  Green  Mountain  Central  Institute  ;  name 
changed  Nov.  1870,  to  Goddard  Seminary. 
The  charter  has  the  right  to  hold  per- 
sonal and  real  estate  to  the  amount  of 
$100,000.  The  charter  obtained,  Prof. 
Shipman,  now  of  Tufts  College,  took  the 
field  to  raise  money  till  Sept.  1864;  raised 
$15,000;  increased  afterwards  by  Rev.  J. 
J.  Lewis,  Rev.  5.  W.  Squire  and  others, 
to  about  $50,000,  and  $10,000  was  given 
■  by  the  late  Thomas  A.  Goddard,  of 
I>oston.  Fall  of  1864,  location  was  re- 
ferred to  committee  :  Rev.  A.  A.  Miner, 
D.  D.,  Boston,  Hon.  E.  Trask,  Spring- 
field, Mass.,  Rev.  G.  W.  Bailey,  Lebanon, 
N.  H.  Springfield,  So.  Woodstock,  Bethel, 
Northfield  and  East  Montpelier  competed 
for  the  institution.  It  is  said  through  in- 
fluence of  Judge  Tilden,  largely,  Barre  lo- 
cation won,  a  gh  acre  lot  of  land  on  an 
elevated  plain,  a  little  to  the  north  of 
Barre  village,  commanding  a  wide  and 
beautiful  prospect.  The  building  com- 
mittee was  Hon.  Heman  Carpenter,  L.  F. 
Aldrich,  Charles  Templeton  ;  T.  W.  Sil- 
loway,  of  Boston,  architect.  Judge  Car- 
penter was  a  devoted  friend  to  the  enter- 
prise, and  Messrs.  Aldrich  and  Templeton 
gave  the  greater  part  of  their  time  for  3 
yeans  without  remuneration.  The  building 
was  completed  in  about  4  years.  160  ft. 
length  ;  central  jDart,  52  ft.  sq.  ;  wings,  53^ 
ft.  length  by  43  width  ;  9  feet  back  from 
central  front;  foundation  bed,  coarse,  hard 
gravel;  walls,  split  granite,  laid  in  mortar 


upward  to  basement  windows ;  height,  5 
stories;  body  of  edifice,  hard-burnt  bricks, 
best  quality  ;  material  taken  out  of  the  hill 
on  which  the  building  stands ;  manufac- 
tured on  the  spot  at  cost  of  about  7,000 ; 
at  top  of  basement  story,  belt  9  inches 
w'dth,  of  hewn  granite,  with  fine  cut  work 
4  inches  deep  extending  completely  around 
the  building  ;  window-sills  and  edifice  trim- 
mings, all  of  granite;  over  central  part, 
two  towers,  extending  45  feet  above  the 
main  building;  but  the  charm  of  all,  is  the 
scenery  amid  which  it  is  located.  The 
sweep  of  view  is  remarkably  fine  the  site 
commands.  It  was  opened  for  instruction 
Feb.  1870,  L.  L.  Burington,  A.  M.,  first 
principal,  for  2^  years,  now  principal  of 
Dean  Academy,  Mass.  F.  M.  Harris  was 
the  second  principal,  li  years,  now  prin- 
cipal of  Somerville,  Mass.,  High  School. 
Henry  Priest,  the  third  and  present  prin- 
cipal, has  now  presided  over  the  institution 
7  years.  The  whole  number  of  students 
to  1881,  831  ;  graduates,  132;  average  at- 
tendance, 275.  Rev.  C.  H.  Eaton,  class 
of  '70,  first  class  of  Goddard  Seminary,  is 
pastor  of  the  Church  of  Divine  Paternity, 
in  place  of  the  late  E.  H.  Chapin,  New 
York. 

Both  the  Academy  and  Seminary  at 
Barre  have  always  been  open  to  the  edu- 
cation of  both  sexes,  and  have  always  main- 
tained an  honorable  and  high  position  in 
the  State  as  educational  institutions. 

The  Seminary  has  about  $80,000  in- 
vested in  school  property  ;  fund  of  $10,000 
just  completed — June,  1881.  Presentboard 
of  teachers  :  Henry  Priest,  principal,  a.s- 
sisted  by  Charles  C.  Bates,  A.  M.,  and  J. 
N.  Darling,  B.  Ph.,  in  fall  term;  Miss 
Flora  C.  Eaton,  preceptress  ;  Misses  P.  A. 
Thompson,  A.  J.  Watson,  S.  C.  Tilden, 
F.  A.  West,  F.  J.  Hopkins,  assistant  teach- 
ers'; W.  A.  Wheaton,  music-teacher ;  J.  M. 
Kent,  penmanship.  Number  of  trustees 
(1880)  30;  President,  Rev.  W.  R.  Ship- 
man,  A.  M.,  College  Hill,  Ma.ss. ;  Vice 
President,  N.  W.  Braley,  M.  D.  (deceased) 
Barre  ;  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  George 
Tilden,  Barre;  Hon.  Harvey  Tilden,  L.  F. 
Aldrich,  Henry  Priest,  Charles  Templeton, 
David  W.   Mower,  Esq.,  Miles  Morrison, 


BARRE. 


Esq.,  Rev.  W.  M.  Kimmell,  trustees  re- 
siding in  Barre,  other  trustees  residing  in 
the  County:  Rev.  J.  E.  Wright,  Hon. 
Chas.  H.  Heath,  Hon.  Clark  King,  A.  J. 
Hollister,  Esq.,  Montpelier ;  Hon.  Heman 
Carpenter,  John  Gregory,  Northtield  ;  I.  S. 
Dwinell,  Calais;  S.  D.  Hollister,  Marsh- 
lield.  Miss  Tilden,  teacher,  now  Mrs. 
Averill. 

The  soil  of  the  town  is  generally  very 
good,  producing  wheat,  rye,  oats,  corn 
and  potatoes  in  abundance ;  along  the 
streams  the  meadows  produce  good  crops 
of  hay.  There  is  an  abundante  of  sugar 
maple  on  the  lands  back  from  the  streams, 
from  which  a  large  amount  of  sugar  is 
yearly  made. 

LIST   OF   REPRESENTATIVES,  AND   THE 

YEARS  OF  REPRESENTATION. 
Nathan  Harrington,  1793;  Asaph  Sher- 
man, 1794,  "95,  '96;  Benjamin  Walker, 
1797,  '99;  Nathaniel  Killam,  1798;  James 
Fisk,  1800,  'i,  '2,  '3,  '4,  '9,  '10,  '15;  Lu- 
ther Holton,  1805  ;  Nathan  Carpenter,  1 806; 
John  Dodge,  1807,  1808;  Nathan  Stone, 
181 1  ;  Warren  Ellis,  i8i2,'i3,  '14,  '16,  '17, 
'20,  '22  ;  Phineas  Thompson,  1818,  "19, '27  ; 
Jacob  Scott,  1821  ;  Peter  Nichols,  1823, 
'26,  '28;  Denison  Smith,  1824,  '25,^29; 
Alvan  Carter,  1830,  '32,  '33  ;  Lucius  B. 
Peck,  1831  ;  John  Twing,  1834,  '35  ;  Jacob 
Scott,  Jr.,  1836,  '';^7,  '38;  Newell  Kins- 
man, 1839,  '4°  i  Leonard  Keith,  1841,  '42  ; 
David  D.  Wing,  1843,  '44 ;  Webber  Tilden, 
1845  ;  Obadiah  Wood,  1846;  George  W. 
Collamer,  1847,  '48  ;  Harvey  Tilden,  1849  i 
Warren  H.  Ellis,  1850;  Jesse  Scott,  1851, 
'52  ;  Denison  K.  Smith,  1853,  '57  ;  Joseph 
Sargent,  1854,  '55 ;  Joseph  C.  Parker, 
1856;  None,  1858,  '61,  '64;  Leonard  F. 
Aldrich,  1859,  '60;  Ira  Holden,  1862,  '63; 
Geo.  W.  Tilden,  1865,  '66;  Frank  Staf- 
ford, 1867;  Charles  O.  Reed,  1868;  Wil- 
liam E.  Whitcomb,  1869,  '70,  '71. 

LIST   OF   TOWN   CLERKS. 

Joseph  Dwight,  1793,  '94,  '95  ;  Gardner 
Wheeler,  1796,  '97;  Nathan  Carpenter, 
1798,  '99,  1800,  'i,  '2,  '3,  '4,  's,  '6;  Sher- 
man Minott,  1807,  '8,  '9,  '10;  Warren 
Ellis,  1811,  '12,  '13,  '14,  '15,  '16,  '17;  Jo- 
seph Ripley,  18 18  to  1840;  Alvan  Carter, 


1841  to  1862;  Albert  Johonnott,  1863; 
Clark  Holden,  1864;  Carlos  Carpenter, 
1865,  '66,  '67,  '68,  '69,  '70,  '71. 

LIST   OF    FIRST   COSNTABLES. 

Job  Adams,  1793.  '97;  Joel  Shurtliff, 
1794 ;  Samuel  Scott,  1795  ;  Isaac  S.  Thomp- 
son, 1796,  1812;  Apollos  Hale,  1798; 
James  Paddock,  1799,  1800,  'i,  10,  11, '13; 
Reuben  Carpenter,  1802,  1803;  Phineas 
Thompson,  1804;  Ezekiel  D.  Wheeler, 
1805;  Chapin  Keith,  1806,  '7,  '9;  Andrew 
Dewey,  1808;  Peter  Nichols,  1814,  '15, 
'16,  '17,  '18,  '19,  '23,  '24,  '25,  '26,  '27,  '28 ; 
Moses  Rood,  Jr.,  1820,  '21,  '22;  Lewis 
Peck,  1829;  Otis  Peck,  1830,  '31,  '32,  '33, 
'34'  '35  ;  Thomas  Town,  1836,  '37,  '38,  '39  ; 
Alvan  Drury,  1840,  '41,  '42,  '43,  '44,  '45, 
'47,  '48,  '49,  '50,  '51  ;  Joseph  C.  Parker, 
1852;  Silas  Town,  Jr.,  1853;  David  D. 
Wing,  1854,  '55,  '56;  Micah  French,  1857, 
■58,  '59;  N.  F.  Averill,  i860,  '61,  '62,  '63, 
'68,  '69,  '70,  '71  ;  A.  M.  Jackman,  1846, 
1865;  A.  A.  Nichols,  1864;  Ira  P.  Har- 
rington, 1866;  A.  J.  Smith,  1867. 

COL.    BENJAMIN   WALKER 

was  one  of  the  early  settlers  in  Barre.  He 
was  boi-n  in  Rehoboth,  Mass.,  1751,  was  a 
Lieutenant  in  the  Revolution,  was  at  the 
capture  of  Burgoyne,  and  commanded  a 
company  of  the  Massachusetts  line,  (his 
captain  being  sick) .  He  removed  to  Barre, 
Mar.  1793  ;  held  the  office  of  selectman  a 
number  of  years ;  was  a  Colonel  of  the 
militia ;  was  the  first  justice  of  the  peace ; 
represented  the  town  in  the  General  As- 
sembly, and  was  called  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  arbitrator  and  committee  to  settle 
matters  of  difference  between  his  towns- 
men and  the  towns  around  him  in  num- 
berless instances.  He  was  quite  infirm 
for  some  years  previous  to  his  death,  which 
occurred  at  Barre,  May,  1823. 

MAJOR   NATHAN   HARRINGTON 

was  the  sixth  settler  in  Barre.  He  came 
.from  Holden,  Ma.ss.,  about  the  year  1790, 
and  settled  on  the  East  hill  in  the  town  ; 
cleared  the  farm  on  which  his  grand-son, 
Ira  P.  Harrington,  now  resides;  was  one 
of  the  first  board  of  selectmen ;  was  the 
first  town  representative,  and  discharged 
the  duties  of  many  of  the  town  offices,  with 


28 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


great  promptness.  He  was  a  Mark  Antony 
man — He  "spoke  right  on,"  was  always 
kind  and  generous,  frank  and  honest.  He 
was  nearly  blind  some  years  before  his 
death,  which  occurred  at  Barre,  July  30, 
1828,  aged  71  years. 

HQN.    JAMES    FISK 

came  into  Barre  about  1796,  from  Green- 
wich, Mass. ;  was  elected  one  of  the  se- 
lectmen in  1799,  a  member  of  the  Legisla- 
ture in  1800,  and  represented  the  town  9 
years  ;  was  a  judge  of  the  County  Court  in 
1802;  was  10  years  a  Member  of  Congress  ; 
received  the  appointment  of  Governor  of 
the  Territory  of  Indiana,  which  he  de- 
clined ;  was  a  Senator  in  Congress  from 
18 1 7  to  18 19,  when  he  accepted  the  ap- 
pointment of  Collector  for  the  District  of 
Vermont,  and  subsequently  removed  to 
Swanton.  He  was  a  very  able  and  efificient 
legislator ;  could  express  his  views  upon 
almost  any  subject  without  previous  prep- 
aration. He  was  a  firm  friend  of  Mr. 
Madison,  and  frequently  counselled  with 
him  relative  to  the  subject  of  carrying  on 
the  War  of  18 12.  Judge  Fisk  was  a  Re- 
publican of  that  time,  and  a  live  Whig  in 
1840.     He  died  some  years  since. 

HON.    WARREN   ELLIS 

came  into  Barre  about  1803,  from  Clare- 
mont,  N.  H. ;  was  born  May  24,  1777.  He 
was  a  saddler  by  trade,  and  carried  on  the 
business  very  successfully.  He  gave  con- 
siderable attention  to  music,  was  a  good 
performer  on  the  violin,  taught  singing, 
and  was  one  of  the  best  vocalists  of  his 
day.  After  he  had  done  singing  in  public, 
he  took  great  delight  in  conversing  and  in- 
structing others  in  the  science  of  music. 
He  held  the  office  of  town  clerk  of  Barre  7 
years,  was  judge  of  the  County  Court  6 
years,  and  represented  the  town  7  years  in 
the  General  Assembly.  He  has  one  son, 
Warren  H.  Ellis,  Esq,,  who  resides  at 
Waukegan,  111. ;  is  clerk  of  the  County 
Court  for  that  county,  and  one  daughter, 
Mrs.  D.  H.  Sherman,  who  resides  in  the 
West.  He  died  at  Barre,  June  10,  1842, 
aged  65  years. 

DEACON   JONAS   NICHOLS 

was  one  of  the  first  settlers  in  Barre  ;  took 


up  the  lot  of  land  on  which  John  N.  Wilson 
now  resides  ;  cleared  it  up,  and  resided  on 
the  same  lot  until  his  death,  which  took 
place  Aug.  26,  1841,  aged  96  years. 

CAPT.    JOSEPH    WATSON 

settled  at  an  early  day  in  the  south-easterly 
part  of  the  town ;  carried  on  the  tanning 
and  shoemaker  business  a  number  of  years. 
He  became  involved  in  building  a  part  of 
the  Chelsea  turnpike  in  1808  ;  sold  out  and 
retired  from  business,  but  lived  to  the  age 
of  99  years.  His  death  occurred  June  7, 
1862. 

HON.    DENISON   SMITH 

came  into  Barre  about  1808,  from  Plain- 
field,  N.  H.,  and  established  himself  as  an 
attorney,  and  became  eminent  in  his  pro- 
fession. He  was  called  to  many  offices  of 
trust ;  was  6  years  State's  attorney,  3  years 
a  member  of  the  Legislature,  and  one  year 
judge  of  the  County  Court.  In  all  his 
business  relations,  he  was  ever  true  to 
every  trust;  was  genial,  kind  and  affable  ; 
never  urging  suitors  into  litigation.  His 
health  was  poor  for  some  years  previous  to 
his  death,  which  occurred  at  Barre,  Feb. 
8,  1836,  aged  51  years.     He  left  one  son, 

DENISON   K.    SMITH, 

who  was  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth  College  ; 
fitted  himself  for  the  practice  of  law,  re- 
sided in  Barre,  and  became  a  good  book 
lawyer.  He  represented  the  town  in  the 
Legislature  2  years,  and  was  State's  at- 
torney 2  years.  He  was  twice  married, 
but  was  without  wife  or  children  at  his 
death,  which  took  place  at  Barre,  Mar.  6, 
i860  ;  age  38  years. 

CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH  IN  BARRE. 

BY   KEY.   L.  TENNF.Y. 

The  Congregational  church  was  organ- 
ized Nov.  14,  1799,  consisting  of  12  mem- 
bers. The  council  called  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  church  was  made  up  of  Revs. 
Richard  Ransom,  of  Woodstock,  John 
Ransom,  of  Rochester,  Jonathan  Kinney, 
of  Plainfield,  and  James  Hobart,  of  Berlin, 
and  Deacon  William  Wood,  delegate  from 
Woodstock.  During  the  first  7  years  the 
church  had  no  settled  pastor.  February 
22,  1807,  the  Rev.  Aaron   Palmer  was  or- 


BARRE. 


29 


dained,  and  his  ministry  continued  until 
his  death,  Feb.  7,  1821. 

Rev.  Justus  W.  French  was  ordained 
over  this  church  May  23,  1822,  and  dis- 
missed Dec.  22,  183 1. 

Rev.  Joseph  Thatcherwas  installed  Jan. 
6,  1835,  '^'''fl  dismissed  Jan.  31,  1838. 

Rev.  James  W.  Wheelock  was  installed 
Sept.  17,  1838,  and  dismissed  Nov.  20, 
1839. 

Rev.  Andrew  Royce  was  installed  Feb. 
24,  1841,  and  dismissed  Sept.  18,  1856. 

Rev.  E.  Ervin  Carpenter  was  installed 
Dec.  22,  1857.  anddismi.s.sed  Mar.  6,  1867. 

Rev.  Leonard  Tenney  commenced 
preaching  for  this  people  in  Oct.,  1867,  and 
still  (1871)  continues  to  be  their  minister. 

The  first  meeting-house  was  raised  in 
the  fall  of  1804,  but  was  not  fully  finished 
until  1808.  The  church  and  society  con- 
tinued to  worship  there  until  1 841,  when 
the  present  brick  church  was  erected, 
which  has  since  been  very  tastefully  fitted 
up  inside,  by  frescoing  and  carpeting,  etc. 
It  has  a  fine  toned  bell  and  a  large  organ, 
and  the  attendance  has  always  been  quite 
large.  A  large  and  flourishing  Sabbath- 
school  has  been  kept  up  for  many  years 
past. 

The  Society  have  a  very  commodious 
parsonage.  Rev.  Mr.  Tenney'  resigned 
his  charge  May  i.  1881.  Under  his  min- 
istry the  church  was  prospered  ;  differences 
of  opinion  which  had  existed  between 
members  were  adjusted,  and  130  new 
members  added  to  their  number ;  a  debt 
that  had  been  incurred  was  paid,  and  the 
society  placed  on  a  sound  financial  basis. 
By  his  resignation,  which  he  was  moved  to 
tender  on  account  of  failing  health,  the 
church  lost  a  faithful  pastor  and  leader. 

The  Rev.  P.  McMillan,  a  graduate  of 
Union  Theological  Seminary,  is  at  pres- 
ent supplying  the  pulpit.  No.  of  member- 
ship in  1880,  171  ;   Sabbath-school,  256. 

METHQDISM    IN    BARRE. 
BY   KEV.    P  MKHKILL. 

The  first  Methodist  sermon  was  preached 
in  Barre  in  1796,  by  Rev.  Jesse  Lee,  the 
great  apostle  of  Methodism  in  New  Eng- 
land, in  the  house  of  Col.  Benj.  Walker. 


While  listening  to  the  sermon  of  Mr.  Lee 
at  this  meeting,  Mrs.  Catherine  Thomp- 
son, the  wife  of  Isaac  S.  Thompson,  re- 
ceived into  her  heart  the  precious  seed  of 
the  Gospel  sower,  and  the  following  day 
her  hu.sband,  listening  to  a  sermon  from 
Mr.  Lee,  gave  his  heart  to  the  Saviour. 
Others  soon  joined  them,  and  a  class  was 
formed  consisting  of  11  members.  Mrs. 
Thompson  died  in  this  same  Christian 
faith,  Apr.  13,  i860,  aged  93  years,  living 
all  this  while  within  one  mile  of  where  she 
heard  the  memorable  discourse  of  Mr. 
Lee.  In  the  year  1797,  Rev.  Ralph  Wil-^ 
liston  was  sent  to  Barre  as  preacher.  The 
church  since  that  time  has  been  blest  with 
good  and  efficient  preachers.  It  has  wit- 
nessed three  great  revivals,  in  1824,  '26 
and  '42,  under  the  labors  of  Revs.  A.  D. 
Merrill,  I.  Templeton,  Daniel  Kilborn, 
H.  W.  Wheelock,  N.  H.  Houghton  and 
J.  L.  Slason.  The  labors  of  other  min- 
isters have  been  crowned  with  abundant 
success.  The  church  now  numbers  165 
members  and  32  probationers,  and  is  on 
the  whole  in  a  prosperous  condition. 

The  first  church  was  erected  on  the 
common,  but  in  what  year  the  writer  is 
unable  to  learn.  [For  date  of  early  his- 
tory of  Methodism  in  Barre,  the  reader  is 
referred  to  the  history  of  Methodism  in 
Williamstown  in  the  supplement  volume 
of  this  work — Ed.]  It  was  subsequently 
removed  across  the  road  to  where  the 
Congregational  parsonage  now  stands.  In 
the  year  1837,  a  new  church  was  erected, 
and  3  years  since  it  was  refitted  and  re- 
paired at  an  expense  of  $8,000.  A  fine 
parsonage  is  located  opposite  the  church, 
which  is  furnished  with  the  heavy  furni- 
ture. This  is  considered  among  the  best 
appointments  in  the  Vermont  Conference. 
The  congregations  are  large  on  the  Sab- 
bath, the  Sabbath-school  is  in  a  prosper- 
ous condition,  and  the  social  meetings  are 
of  an  interesting  character.  During  its 
history  no  minister  who  has  served  it  has 
degenerated,  and  no  serious  church  trials 
have  been  experienced  by  its  members. 
The  oldest  member  connected  with  this 
church  now  living,  (1871)  is  Mrs.  Content 


3° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Patterson,  aged  94  years,  with  her  mental 
powers  all  vigorous.  She  has  always  en- 
joyed good  health — (deceased). 

THE  UNIVERSALIST   CHURCH. 

BY   KEV    F.   S.   BLISS. 

The  Universalist  Church  in  Barre  was 
organized  Oct.  27,  1796.  The  Town 
Records,  (vol.  i),  has  the  following  cer- 
tificate : 

These  may  certify  whom  it  may  concern, 
that  John  Goldsbury,  John  Goldsbury,  Jr., 
William  Goldsbury,  Thomas  Dodge,  Cal- 
vin Smith,  Bartholomew  French,  Thomas 
Ralph,  Amos  Conant,  Eliphalet  Dens- 
more,  George  Little,  Lemuel  Farwell,  Jon- 
athan Culver,  Sylvanus  Goldsbury,  Henry 
Gale,  Phineas  Richardson,  James  Bodwell, 
liave  formed  themselves  into  a  Religious 
Society,  professing  themselves  to  be  of 
the  Universalist  Denomination,  viz.:  Be- 
lieving in  universal  redemption  and  salva- 
tion by  the  merits  of  Jesus  Christ. 

William  Farwell,  Elder. 

This  organization  was  formed  16  years 
after  the  township  was  chartered,  and  3 
years  after  it  received  the  name  of  Barre. 

Although  Universalism  in  this  place  has 
pas.sed  through  various  fortunes,  it  has 
never  since  been  disorganized.  The  large 
and  influential  society  and  church  now  ex- 
isting here  are  the  outgrowth  of  this  ap- 
parently small  beginning. 

There  were  Universalists  among  the  first 
settlers  of  the  town.  John  Goldsbury, 
whose  name  stands  at  the  head  of  the  six- 
teen which  represent  the  original  society, 
was  one  who  began  "the  work  of  con- 
verting the  wilderness  into  farms.""  And 
most  of  these  men  are  known  to  have  been 
men  ot  intelligence,  enterprise  and  good 
moral  and  religious  character.  Some  of 
them  were  prominent  citizens  among  the 
earlier  settlers  of  the  town,  and  a  large 
part  of  them  are  still  represented  by  lead- 
ing families  in  the  community,  and  in  the 
Universalist  church. 

REV.    WILLIAM    FARWELL, 

whose  name  is  affixed  to  the  certificate  of 
organization  as  the  Elder  of  the  society, 
was  not  a  resident  of  Barre  at  the  time 
the  society  was  formed,  but  visited  this 
and  other  places  in  the  vicinity  from  time 
to  time.     He  moved  to  Barre  from  North 


Charlestown,  N.  H.,  sometime  in  1803  or 
"4.  But  there  is  little  doubt  he  labored 
considerably  with  the  society  before  he 
came  to  live  with  it.  Mr.  Farwell  was  the 
first  resident  Universahst  minister  in  Barre. 
He  did  not  preach  here  all  the  time,  but 
did  the  work  of  an  Evangelist  in  the  region 
round  about.  We  .have  no  means  of 
knowing  what  portion  of  the  time  he 
preached  in  Barre ;  but  we  know  i\e  often 
took  quite  extensive  missionary  tours  in 
the  State  and  into  other  States.  Probably 
he  did  not  regard  himself  at  any  time  as 
strictly  the.  pastor  of  the  society ;  but  he 
gave  it  much  of  his  labor,  and  contributed 
largely  to  its  establishment  and  growth. 
He  was  a  mau  of  fervent  piety,  and  greatly 
beloved,  not  only  in  his  own  church,  but 
by  all  who  knew  him.  He  died  at  the 
residence  of  his  son,  and  his  body  was  laid 
to  rest  in  the  rural  graveyard,  near  his  old 
home  in  the  south-east  part  of  the  town. 
Upon  the  stone  which  marks  his  grave  we 
read  this  just  tribute  : 

Rev.  William  Farwell,  died  Dec.  nth, 
1S23,  in  the  74th  year  of  his  age.  He  was 
a  preacher  of  God's  universal  love,  cheer- 
ful and  friendly  in  life,  faithful  in  his  la- 
bors, and  departed  in  hope  of  future  life 
and  immortality. 

In  1808,  the  Rev.  Paul  Dean  moved  to 
Barre,  and  became  pastor  of  the  society. 
He  labored  with  it  several  years  with  great 
success.  After  his  removal,  it  had  no  res- 
ident pastor  until  1821  ;  but  was  suppHed 
by  various  clergymen  a  portion  of  the  time. 

In  1821,  Rev.  John  E.  Palmer  was 
settled,  and  preached  here  statedly,  a  part 
of  the  time  for  15  years.  At  that  period 
in  the  history  of  our  church,  much  mis- 
sionary labor  was  demanded.  Our  preach- 
ers were  few,  and  not  many  of  them  were 
permitted  to  give  their  undivided  labors  to 
the  care  of  one  church.  Mr.  Palmer  was 
often  called  to  other  fields  of  labor,  and 
the  church  in  Barre  had  to  seek  frequent 
supplies  by  other  preachers.  Rev.  Thomas 
Browning  was  regularly  employed  a  quar- 
ter of  tiie  time  for  several  years,  thus  re- 
leasing Mr.  Palmer,  and  enabling  him  to 
comply  with  the  numerous  demands  for 
his  services.     Other  preachers  were  also 


BARRE. 


31 


frequently  employed,  under  the  ministry 
of  Mr.  Palmer  and  Mr.  Browning.  Against 
all  these  disadvantages,  the  church  stead- 
ily increased  in  numbers,  strength  and 
spiritual  life.  Fathers  Palmer  and  Brown- 
ing still  live,  (1871)  rejoicing  for  what  has 
been  done  by  their  instrun'.entality,  not 
only  in  Barre,  but  in  many  other  tields 
which  are  now  rich  with  harvests,  grown 
from  the  seed  which  they  sowed. 

In  1822,  the  society  built  a  substantial 
brick  church  at  South  Barre,  in  which  it 
worshipped  until  1852.  ^ 

Rev.  R.  S.  Sanborn  became  pastor  here 
in  May,  1844,  and  was  dismissed  by  his 
own  request  Oct.  i,  1848. 

Rev.  Joseph  Sargent  took  charge  in  the 
autumn  of  1849.  His  resignation  was  ac- 
cepted at  the  annual  meeting,  January  12, 
1857.  His  labors  contributed  largely  to  the 
growth  of  the  church.  By  his  untiring 
efforts  a  new  and  beautiful  church  was 
built  in  the  Lower  Village  in  1852.  The 
business  and  population  of  the  town  had 
largely  moved  to  this  village,  and  the  life 
of  the  church  seemed  to  be  waning. 

The  church  built  in  1852,  is  the  one  in 
which  the  congregation  now  worships.  It 
needs,  and  will  soon  receive,  extensive  re- 
pairs. Since  the  society  moved  to  its 
present  place  ot  worship,  its  growth  has 
been  constant  and  rapid.  There  are  now 
100  families  connected  with  the  society. 

The  church  was  re-organized  in  October, 
1859,  ^"<i  since,  136  persons  have  united 
with  it ;  present  membership,  118.  There 
is  connected  with  the  society  a  flourishing 
Sabbath-.school,  and  it  has  a  good  parson- 
age. The  society  has  a  small  fund  from 
which  it  derives  an  annual  income. 

The  present  pastor.  Rev.  F.  S.  Bliss, 
began  his  labors  Mar.  8,  1857,  and  has 
pieached  to  it  all  the  time  for  nearly  15 
years. 

GoDDARD  Seminary,  under  the  control 
of  the  Universalists  of  Vermont,  was  lo- 
cated in  this  town  in  1864,  and  is  in  in- 
timate connection  with  this  society.  It 
has  contributed  $25,000  within  6  years  for 
its  benefit.  In  the  meantime  it  has  done 
its  full  share  in  sustaining  the  various  en- 


terprises of  the  denomination.  It  has  con- 
tributed liberally  for  the  freedmen,  for  the 
circulation  of  the  Bible,  for  missionary 
work  and  other  benevolent  enterprises. 
And  it  now  develops  more  ability,  zeal 
and  liberality  than  ever  before.  In  num- 
bers, wealth,  intelligence,  moral  and  Chris- 
tian character,  it  is  thought  to  compare 
favorably  with  the  other  churches  in  town. 
Barre,  1871. 

Record  continued  to  188 1,  by  Rev.  W. 

M.   KiMMELL. 

Rev.  F.  S.  Bliss  resigned  his  pastorate 
of  15  years,  2  mos.  from  ill-health,  preach- 
ing his  last  sermon,  April  28,  1872. 

Rev  E.  J.  Chaffee  succeeded  Mr.  Bliss 
for  one  year ;  after  him  Rev.  Lester  War- 
ren 2  years.  Upon  his  departure  the  old 
church  edifice  was  enlarged  and  remod- 
eled at  a  cost  of  several  thousand  dollars. 
The  present  building  is  modern  in  style, 
commodious,  and  nicely  furnished.  In  the 
fall  of  1875,  the  Rev.  James  Vincent  be- 
came pastor  of  the  society,  remaining  until 
February,  1880,  and  followed  the  first  of 
the  next  month  by  myself.  There  are  120 
families  belonging  to  the  parish.  The 
Sunday  school  has  enrolled  180.  The 
Library  contains  501  volumes. 

W.    M    KiMMELL, 

Pastor  of  Utiiversalist  Society. 

PAPERS  CONTRIBUTED  FOR  BARRE. 

I',Y    STll.LMAN   WOOD,   KX-POSTM ASTKIi. 

For  a  while  after  the  first  settlers  came 
in  there  was  no  grist-mill  in  town,  and 
they  had  to  go  20  miles  or  more  to  Ran- 
dolph with  their  grists.  There  then  was 
no  road  through  the  gulf  as  at  present ; 
they  had  to  go  by  way  of  the  route  since 
known  as  the  old  Paine  Turnpike.  The 
first  roads  built  in  town  were  over  the  hills 
instead  of  around  them.  The  objectsoughl 
was  to  go  as  much  on  dry  ground  as  pos- 
sible. At  an  early  day  there  was  a  turn- 
pike road  chartered  and  built,  commencing 
at  the  checkered  store  in  Barre  and  ending 
at  Chelsea.  The  gate  to  this  pike  was  in 
the  town  of  Washington.  This  pike  was 
the  main  thoroughfare  south-east,  leading 
from  town  towards  Massachusetts,  and  an 
outlet  for  trafiic  to  and  from  Boston.     At 


32 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  later  date,  Ira  Day,  then  the  principal 
merchant  in  town,  obtained  a  charter  for  a 
turnpike  through  the  celebrated  gulf  in 
Williamstown.  This  was  found  to  be  a 
feasible  and  easily  built  road — was  owned 
and  built  principally  by  Mr.  Day — and 
found  to  be  a  source  of  profit,  taking  away 
a  large  part  of  the  travel  from  the  Chelsea 
route.  The  gulf  road  subsequently  be- 
came the  stage  route,  traversed  by  six  and 
eight  horse  coaches,  taking  the  travel  from 
Montpelier  and  towns  north,  from  Canada, 
even,  and  at  one  time  carrying  the  British 
mail,  which  came  then  by  the  way  of 
Boston,  a  British  soldier  accompanying 
each  mail  having  his  musket  always  in 
readiness  for  depredators. 

STAGE   COACHES   AND   OLD-TIME   TEAMS, 

before  the  advent  of  railroads,  were  a 
prominent  feature  in  the  business  of  Barre, 
and  were  owned  principally  by  Ira  Day  and 
Mahlon  Cottrill,  of  Montpelier.  When 
the  stage  horn  was  heard,  there  was  al- 
ways a  rush  for  news,  and  the  few  mo- 
ments the  stage  stopped,  spectators  were 
abundant. 

Barre  was  also  celebrated  for  its  six  and 
eight  horse  teams  which  carried  freight  to 
and  from  Boston,  for  Montpelier  mer- 
chants as  well  as  for  those  in  Barre.  Six 
or  eight  such  teams  were  always  on  the 
road,  and  the  regular  trips  were  made  once 
in  each  thr«e  weeks.  Among  the  foremost 
of  these  teamsters  was  Capt.  Wm.  Brad- 
ford. He  had  one  horse  who  went  loo 
trips  without  missing  a  single  trip,  going, 
of  course,  each  journey  for  6  years  without 
a  rest.  A  large  per  cent,  of  the  heavy 
freight  drawn  consisted  of  hogsheads  of 
new  rum,  to  supply  Montpelier  and  Barre. 
Some  say  as  much  as  one-half,  but  per- 
haps one  third  would  be  nearer  correct. 

STOCK   AND   FARMING. 

Barre  has  always  held  a  good  rank  in 
raising  good  horses,  some  spans  selling  as 
high  as  $i,ooo,  and  some  stock  horses 
selling  for  several  thousand.  As  a  farm- 
ing town,  Barre  ranks  among  the  best  in 
the  State. 

Formerly  sheep  and  wool-raising  was 
the   leading   interest,    but    of    late   years 


dairying  has  taken  the  lead.  Although 
there  are  no  large  dairies  in  town,  those  of 
from  lo  to  25  cows  are  numerous.  We 
have  one  creamery  where  excellent  butter 
is  made,  and  the  milk  is  used  after  skim- 
ming to  make  skim  cheese.  A  large 
amount  of  Western  grain  is  being  used  by 
dairymen ;  whether  to  profit  or  not,  is  a 
question  to  be  settled  by  longer  experi- 
ence. 

Grain  and  potatoes,  in  the  early  days  of 
the  settlers,  were  much  used  in  the  man- 
ufacture offwhisky,  but  of  late  years  it  has 
entirely  ceased.  Potato  starch  was  form- 
erly made  in  large  quantities,  potatoes 
selling  at  the  first  introduction  of  the  busi- 
ness from  16  to  14  cents  per  bushel,  de- 
livered at  the  factory. 

Wool-carding  and  cloth-dressing  was 
formerly  quite  an  extensive  business.  The 
first  carding  works  were  built  by  John 
Baker,  and  were  situated  on  the  site  now 
occupied  by  the  Fork  Co.  It  was  also 
early  introduced  by  Ira  Day,  near  South 
Barre. 

Once  on  a  time  Mr.  Day  and  his  fore- 
man were  in  his  mill  in  time  of  a  freshet. 
The  mill  was  in  much  danger  of  going  down 
stream.  It. soon  started,  Mr.  Day  and  his 
man  in  the  meantime  rushing  for  the  door, 
too  late  to  reach  dry  land,  sprang  upon 
some  timbers  floating  within  reach.  The 
timbers  were  sometimes  uppermost,  and 
then  the  men,  but  after  a  cool  and  dan- 
gerous ride,  both  were  happy  to  regain  solid 
ground,  wetter,  if  not  better,  men  than 
before. 

EARLY   POSTMASTERS. 

John  Baker  was  at  a  very  early  day  ap- 
pointed postmaster,  and  held  the  office 
many  years.  Afterwards  it  was  located  at 
South  Barre,  and  Walter  Chaffee  appointed 
P.  M.  Mr.  Chaffee  was  a  large,  fleshy 
man,  a  tailor  with  a  wooden  leg.  Each 
Sunday  he  would  come  to  church  at  the 
north  part  of  the  town,  with  the  week's 
mail  in  the  top  of  his  hat,  and  deliver  the 
same  at  noon  upon  the  meeting-house 
steps,  to  the  various  claimants.  Postage 
was  then  25  cents  for  each  letter  that  came 
over  400   miles ;  6  cents  and  one-fourth 


BARRE. 


33 


was  for  the  shortest  distance,  each  one 
paying  when  he  got  his  letter. 

Alvan  Carter  was  the  successor  of  Mr. 
Chaffee,  and  held  the  office  a  long  time. 
After  his  time  was  ended,  there  was  a  loud 
call  for  a  P.  O.  at  the  lower  village,  and 
warm  discussions  were  held  which  should 
be  Barre,  and  which  iV^r//^  or  ^w^//^Barre. 
But  the  people  in  the  north  part  of  the 
town  carried  their  point,  and  since  have 
largely  outstripped  their  southern  rival. 
It  is  now  the  main  business  centre. 
Since  the  office  has  been  at  the  north  vil- 
lage, the  respective  postmasters  have  been, 
James  Hale,  Frances  Hale,  E.  E.  French, 
G.  B.  Putnam,  Stillman  Wood,  and  Wm. 
A.  Perry,  the  present-occupant. 

THE   FIRST   MERCHANTS 

in  town  were  Silas  Willard,  who  built 
the  checked  store  in  the  lower  village.  Ira 
Day  was  located  at  South  Barre,  and  for 
many  years  the  leading  merchant  in  town. 
Each  year  he  bought  large  droves  of  beef 
cattle  in  this  and  the  surrounding  towns, 
for  the  Boston  market,  which  gave  him  an 
extensive  and  lucrative  business,  no  one 
knew  how  to  manage  better  than  himself. 
At  the  time  Gen.  Lafayette  made  the  tour 
of  New  England,  he  was  the  guest  of  Mr. 
Day,  who  furnished  a  splendid  coach  and 
six  beautiful  white  horses  for  transportation 
of  the  General  and  his  suite. 

Jack  Pollard  was  also  a  merchant  in 
those  early  days,  of  considerable  notoriety. 
He  was  famous  for  collecting  large  droves 
of  mules  which  were  raised  at  that  time, 
and  sent  south.  Of  late  years  the  busi- 
ness has  been  entirely  abandoned. 

Other  merchants  of  a  more  recent  date 
were  Harry  Tracy,  Daniel  Spring,  Center 
Lamb,  George  W.  Collamer,  John  & 
Charles  French,  I.  A.  Phillips,  H.  W. 
French,  and  several  others  since.  The 
present  merchants  are  Perry  &  Camp,  H. 
Z.  Mills,  John  Morrison,  L.  J.  Bolster, 
dry  goods ;  men's  furnishing  goods,  G.  P. 
Boyce ;  drugs  and  medicines,  Wm.  H. 
Gladding,  Chas.  A.  Smith;  flour  and  feed, 
H.  Webster,  R.  L.  Clark,  L.  M.  Averill, 
L.  J.  Bolster;  hardware  and  tin,  J.  M. 
Jackman,  G.  I.  Reynolds. 


Until  the  advent  of  railroads,  the  town 
was  well  supplied  with  hotels,  or  taverns, 
as  the  older  folks  called  them.  The  three 
principal  in  am  early  day  were,  one  at 
South  Barre,  owned  and  run  by  James 
Paddock,  one  at  the  Lower  village,  owned 
by  Apollos  Hale,  and  afterwards  by  James, 
his  son ;  also  one  at  Gospel  village,  so 
called,  h  mile  east  of  Lower  village. 
Judge  Keith,  the  proprietor,  was  one  of 
the  noted  men  in  town,  and  high  sheriiT 
of  the  County  for  several  years.  He  used 
to  relate  that  from  the  profits  of  his  office 
of  high  sheriff  he  built,  and  paid  for  build- 
ing, his  tavern  stand  in  one  year. 

Judge  Keith  was  a  man  of  much  influ- 
ence, and  held  many  and  important  offices. 
His  family  of  boys  were  intelligent  and  in- 
fluential, and  also  became  leading  men. 
The  late  Judge  Keith,  of  Montpelier,  was 
his  oldest  son. 

Subsequently  there  were  at  least  6  tav- 
erns in  town  at  one  time,  all  doing  an  ex- 
tensive business,  owing  to  the  large  amount 
of  travel  which  went  through  town,  but 
since  the  advent  of  the  railroad,  hotels  are 
at  a  great  discount. 

When  the  first  settlers  commenced  to 
clear  their  land  and  raise  wheat,  the  wild 
pigeons  came  in  great  abundance,  so  much 
so  as  to  be  quite  a  drawback,  and  it  re- 
quired great  care  and  skill  to  protec^  the 
crops  from  their  depredations.  They  might 
be  seen  at  all  hours  of  the  day  flying  from 
point  to  point  in  different  directions  all 
about  town.  Thousands  were  caught  by 
nets,  but  for  the  want  of  proper  markets, 
were  of  little  value,  except  what  could  be 
used  by  the  inhabitants,  and  at  some 
seasons  of  the  year  they  were  lean  and 
scarce  fit  for  the  table. 

Uncle  Brown  Dodge,  who  was  famous 
for  his  large  stories,  and  told  them  so  often 
he  supposed  them  to  be  true,  used  to  re- 
late that  once  when  he  had  sown  a  piece  of 
wheat,  he  saw  it  covered  with  pigeons, 
and  went  for  his  old  fusee,  and  fired  just  as 
the  pigeons  were  rising,  and  was  aware  of 
making  an  under-shot — "  Never  killed  a 
pigeon,  not  a  pigeon — but  mind  you,"  said 
he,  "  I  went  into  the  field  afterwards  and 
picked  up  two  bushels  of  legs." 


S 


34 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Mr.  Dodge  had  three  sons.  Two  of 
them  setded  on  excellent  farms,  and  be- 
came influential  and  wealthy,  and  the 
younger  one  went  with  his  family  as  Mis- 
sionary to  the  Cherokee  Indians.  He  had 
two  sons,  who  when  grown  to  man's  es- 
tate were  in  need  of  some  one  for  sooth- 
ing the  rough  passage  of  life.  Mr.  Dodge, 
the  father,  started  East,  came  to  Vermont, 
and  when  he  returned  was  accompanied  by 
two  handsome, young  ladies,  and  very  soon 
after  his  arrival  home,  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  his  sons  both  married  to  Vermont 
girls.  Leonard,  the  oldest  son,  became  a 
teacher ;  the  younger  son  built  and  run  a 
saw-mill.  He  was  a  brave  young  man,  to 
whom  the  Indians  took  an  offence,  and  one 
day,  while  standing  in  his  mill,  a  bullet 
from  an  Indian's  rifle  came  rushing  through 
his  heart. 

DOCT.    ROBERT   PADDOCK 

settled  in  town  about  1806,  and  spent  a 
long  life  in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
He  was  a  well-educated  and  energetic  man, 
successful  in  practice,  and  not  easily  turned 
from  his  own  way.  To  illustrate  :  He  was 
troubled  with  an  in-growing  nail  on  the 
great  toe  of  his  right  foot.  One  morning 
he  came  into  his  oflSce,  where  his  son  and 
another  student  were  studying,  bringing  in 
a  chisel  and  mallet.  Having  suitably  placed 
his  *liisel,  he  told  a  student  to  take  the 
mallet  and  strike.  He  at  first  refused,  but 
he  said  he  should  be  obeyed — I  tell  you  to 
strike.  The  toe  went  flying  across  the 
room,  and  the  remedy  was  successful. 

Doct.  Lyman  Paddock,  son  of  Doct. 
Robert,  who  succeeded  him  in  practice, 
spent  a  long  number  of  years  in  the  pro- 
fession. He  is  now  with  his  sister  in 
Illinois,  is  97  or  98  years  old,  with  a  fair 
prospect  of  living  to  be  a  hundred. 

DOCT.   VANSICKLIN 

was  another  of  our  early  and  noted  phy- 
sicians. He  was  a  man  of  decided  tal- 
ents, and  had  a  large  number  of  students, 
some  of  whom  became  men  of  talents. 
The  celebrated  Doct.  Socrates  Sherman, 
of  Ogdensburg,  N.  Y.,  was  one  of  his 
students,  and  a  Barre  boy,  the  son  of  Capt. 
Asaph  Sherman.  Time  does  not  permit 
us  to  mention  particularly  all  who  have 


practiced  in  town,  but  we  will  not  neglect 
to  speak  of 

DOCT.    WALTER   BURNHAM, 

who  removed  to  Lowell,  Mass.,  and  be- 
came celebrated  as  a  successful  surgeon. 

Later  came  Doct.  A.  B.  Carpenter  and 
Doct.  A.  E.  Bigelow,  now  our  oldest  prac- 
ticing physician.  Doct.  H.  O.  Worthen, 
'Doct.  J.  H.  Jackson,  Doct.  A.  E.  Field 
and  Doct.  B.  W.  Braley  are  our  present* 
physicians  in  the  allopathy  practice.  Doct. 
H.  E.  Packer  succeeds  the  late  Doct. 
C.  H.  Chamberlin  as  a  honicjeopathist. 

LAWYERS 

in  town  :  one  of  the  first  was  Judge  James 
Fisk;  another,  the  yon.  Dennison  Smith, 
of  both  of  whom,  see  notice  by  Mr.  Car- 
penter. 

Hon.  Lucius  B.  Peck,  a  partner  of 
Judge  Smith,  was  a  man  of  note  and  a 
representative  in  Congress. 

Newell  Kinsman  was  in  practice  for  a 
long  time,  associated  in  business  a  part  of 
the  time  with  E.  E.  French,  Esq.  C.  W. 
Upton,  D.  K.  Smith,  L.  C.  Wheelock, 
have  all  successfully  practiced  in  town. 

Our  present  lawyers  are  :  Wm.  A.  & 
O.  B.  Boyce,  E.  W.  Bisbee  and  G.  W. 
Bassett. 

SOIL   AND   game. 

There  is  no  land  in  town  so  broken  but 
what  each  lot  is  capable  of  becoming  a 
passable  farm  if  well  cultivated.  No 
broken  land  except  the  granite  hills,  which 
are  still  more  valuable  than  the  land  in 
general.  The  streams  were  formerly  well 
stocked  with  the  speckled  trout,  but  of 
late  years  they  have  become  exceeding 
scarce.  THe  first  settlers  found  wild  game 
quite  plenty,  but  bears  and  other  large 
game  found  too  many  sharp  hunters  to 
make  their  haunts  safe  places  to  dwell  in. 

Doct.  Robert  Paddock  kept  a  small  pack 
of  hounds,  and  no  music  was  sweeter  to 
his  ear  than  the  baying  of  his  dogs.  Gen- 
eral Blanchard  was  not  much  behind  the 
Doctor  in  his  love  of  the  same  kind  of 
music.  Occasionally  a  bear  was  captured  ; 
generally  by  a  regular  hunt,  when  every 
man  had  a  chance  to  show  skill,  as  well  as 
the  more  practiced  huntsman.    There  was 


BARRE. 


35 


one  killed  in  1844  or  '5,  and  but  one  since 
to  the  writer's  knowledge. 

Our  most  successful  hunter  was  Lemuel 
Richardson,  who  is  now  living  in  our 
midst,  and  is  81  years  old.  His  record  is 
as  follows :  Between  the  years  of  182 1 
and  1847,  he  killed  with  hound  and  gun 
714  foxes;  since  then  he  has  taken  in 
traps  675,  making  in  all  1,389  foxes.  He 
has  during  the  same  time  killed  of  other 
game  three  deer,  12  fishers,  five  otter  and 
sable,  coons,  muskrats  and  mink  too 
numerous  to  mention.  Mr.  R.  is  a  man 
to  be  relied  on,  and  the  above  statement 
may  be  taken  as  correct. 

BARRE   VILLAGE 

is  situated  nearly  in  the  centre  of  the  town. 
The  principal  stream  running  throuo;h  the 
village  is  called  Jail  Branch,  taking  its 
name  from  a  log  jail  once  built  on  its  bank. 
Coming  from  the  south  part  of  the  town  is 
a  stream  called  Stevens'  Branch,  and  unit- 
ing with  Jail  Branch  before  it  enters  the 
village.  On  this  stream  is  situated  a 
famous  water-privilege  called  Day's  mills, 
on  which  is  now  a  grist  and  saw-mill,  an 
extensive  door,  sash  and  blind  manufac- 
tory ;  on  the  same  stream  there  is  also 
Robinson's  sash  arid  blind  establishment 
and  granite  polishing  works,  and  on  the 
same  stream  before  it  enters  Jail  Branch  is 
located  Moorcroft  Flannel  Factory.  The 
first  water  occupied  on  Jail  Branch  is  by 
the  Stafford  &  Holden  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, for  the  purpose  of  manufacturing  all 
kinds  of  hay  and  manure  forks,  potato 
diggers,  etc.,  and  in  addition  to  the  water 
power  they  have  a  30  or  40  horse-power 
engine.  Next  on  the  stream  are  the  mills 
and  furnace  of  Smith,  Whitcomb  &  Cook. 
These  are  the  works  formerly  owned  by 
Joshua  Twing,  once  a  celebrated  mill 
builder. 

There  is  one  principal  street  running 
through  the  village,  called  Main  street, 
and  near  the  upper  end  of  the  village 
called  South  Main  street ;  Bridge  street 
crossing  the  Branch  and  connecting  with 
Brooklyn  street ;  also  with  Hoboken.  Elm 
street  leaves  Main  near  the  National  Bank, 
and  nins  north  ;  Merchant  street  is  another 


fine  street  running  north  ;  Seminary  street 
also  runs  north,  and  passes  the  Goddard 
Seminary.  Depot  Square  and  its  sur- 
roundings is  also  very  pleasant.  The  street 
leading  from  the  village  by  Barre  Academy 
is  a  very  gentle  rise,  leading  to  the  Cem- 
etery. 

Barre  Cemetery  justly  deserves,  and 
has  the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  best 
in  the  State.  It  is  partly  surrounded  by  a 
very  beautiful  cedar  hedge,  and  has  two 
fountains,  furnished  by  water  from  the 
neighboring  hills,  which  add  very  much  to 
its  beauty.  Many  fine  monuments  of 
goodly  variety  have  been  put  up,  the 
grounds  tastefully  laid  out,  and,  taking  it 
all  in  all,  we  are  happy  to  compare  it  with 
any  in  the  State. 

The  streets  of  Barre  are  well  lined  with 
shade  trees,  which  add  very  much  to  its 
attractions.  There  are  18  stores  in  town, 
and  our  post-office  has  been  made  a  sala- 
ried office,  and  does  a  very  fair  business. 

The  town  has  a  well  regulated  library, 
of  several  hundred  volumes,  which  are  con- 
siderably read,  but  the  newspapers  prob- 
ably take  nine-tenths  of  all  the  time 
devoted  to  reading.  Geo.  P.  Boyce  is  our 
librarian. 

"  Barre  Agricultural  Library. — 
First  officers,  J.  S.  Spaulding,  pres.  ;  S.  E. 
Bigelow,  vice-pres. ;  C.  Carpenter,  sec. ; 
Stillman  Wood,  treasurer  and  librarian." 
Among  the  things  that  were  :  sold  out. 

Barre  has  a  Job  Printing  Establishment 
run  by  Prentiss  C.  Dodge,  and  a  news- 
paper. 

The  first  newspaper  printed  in  town  was 
"  The  Barre  Times."  It  was  a  monthly 
sheet,  issued  during  the  year  1871,  spicy, 
of  a  literary  character,  and  published  by 
Stillman  Wood,  Esq. 

"  The  Barre  Herald,"  established  in 
1879,  by  E.  N.  Hyzer,  was  published 
about  9  months. 

"The  Barre  Enterprize," 
was  commenced  in  1880.     The  first  num- 
ber was  i.ssued  December  nth  of  the  past 
year.     It  was  conducted  till  April,   1881, 
by  Mr.   Lewis   P.    Thayer,  of  Randolph, 


36 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


when  W.  F.  Scott,  its  present  editor  and 
proprietor,  came  into  possession  of  the 
publication  and  issued  his  first  number  of 
the  paper,  April  i6,  1881. 

MANUFACTURES. 

Plows  and  castingfor  mill-irons  are  man- 
ufactured at  the  old  Twing  stand,  by 
Smith,  Whitcomb  &  Cook.  Their  plows 
are  becoming  a  great  favoritp  among  the 
farmers.  We  have  also  Stafford  &  Hol- 
den's  Fork  Factory,  Holden's  Factory — 
Dr.  McCroft,  proprietor :  Makers  of  Tin 
Ware:  J.  M.  Jackman,  Geo.  J  Reynolds. 
W.  C.  Durkee,  Coffins  &  Caskets :.  Shep- 
lee  &  Jones;  Harnesses,  C.  La  Paige,  M. 
B.  McCrillis.  Boots  &  Shoes,  J.  Porter, 
O.  D.  Shurtleff.  Sash,  Blinds  &  Doors, 
South,  J.  S.  Robinson,  Abel  Wood: 
Woolen  Goods,  William  Moorcroft — are 
our  minor  manufactures  :  See  W'altoii's 
Register,  1881  ;  our  chief  business  being 
the  Granite  Works,  a  notice  of  which  will 
appear  by  the  parties  tliemselves,  or  some 
representative  from  their  numbers. 

We.  have  a  very  efficient 

FIRE   COMPANY 

of  sixty  stalwart  young  men,  with  a  first- 
class  hand  engine,  that  took  the  first  prize 
at  a  trial  made  in  Burlington  a  few  years 
since. 

Barre  has  a  Lodge  of  Good  Templars  in 
successful  operation,  which  promises  to  be 
of  great  benefit  to  the  people. 

BARRE   CORNET   BAND, 

well  organized,  is  under  the  present  lead- 
ership of  Dr.  Clarence  B.  Putnam.  This 
Band  was  organized  several  years  before 
the  late  war,  and  was  at  that  time  one  of 
the  best  in  the  State.  Early  in  the  war 
they  volunteered  to  go  as  a  Band,  were  ac- 
cepted, and  served  during  the  war. 

They  did  not  all  return.  Some  were 
left  to  occupy  a  grave  in  the  Southern 
States.  G.  B.  Putnam,  who  resigned  the 
office  of  Postmaster  to  go  and  sei-ve  his 
country,  now  rests  in  an  unknown  grave. 
He  was  the  father  of  the  present  leader  of 
the  Band. 

Those  who  belonged  to,  and  went  as 
members,  were  H.  Warner  French,  leader ; 


A.  B.  Fisher,  P.  Parker  Page,  Geo.  Beck- 
ley,  Albert  Wood,  James  Averill,  John  W. 
Averill,  Geo.    Blanchard,  Wm.  Clark,  G. 

B.  Putnam,  Wm.  Olds.  With  some  few 
exceptions,  the  Band  has  been  in  prac- 
tice ever  since  the  war,  and  some  of  the 
veterans  still  occupy  prominent  places  in 
the  same. 

BARRE   BOYS   IN   THE  WEST. 

Barre  has  furnished  its  full  share  of 
young  men  who  have  gone  West  to  earn  a 
living,  and  build  up  the  land  of  their  adop- 
tion. Among  the  more  successful  we 
might  mention  Henry  Wood,  son  of  Still- 
man  Wood,  Esq.,  a  merchant.  He  has 
traveled  in  Europe  a  year ;  is  the  owner  of 
real  estate  in  Chicago  which  yields  a  good- 
ly income,  and  of  a  handsome  cottage  on 
Scituate  Beach,  in  Massachusetts,  a  sum- 
mer residence.  The  firm  of  Keith  Broth- 
ers, sons  of  Martin  Keith,  in  Chicago,  are 
also  Barre  boys,  carry  on  a  wholesale  trade 
in  the  millinery  line,  are  among  w'ealthy 
and  leading  firms  in  Chicago.  Clark  Ll^p- 
ton,  late  Mayor  of  Waukegan,  111.,  was  a 
Barre  boy,  and  a  lawyer  of  more  than  com- 
mon ability.  Five  sons  of  Micah  French 
are  in  the  West,  working  to  lay  up  a  for- 
tune. It  is  said  to  be  much  easier  to  get 
up  a  large  party  of  intelligent  Barre  boys 
in  Chicago  than  in  Barre  itself  at  the  pres- 
ent time. 

lon(;kvitv. 

Names  of  some  of  the  older  people  who 
have  died  in  town :  Abel  Camp,  aged 
92,  and  his  wife,  Abigail,  86;  Benjamin 
Wood,  86,  and  his  wife,  87  ;  Chapin  Keith, 
80,  and  his  wife,  86;  Mrs.  Sally  Willard, 
81;  Miss  Mary  Gale,  80;  Gould  Camp, 
92  ;  Robert  Parker,  83  ;  John  (joldsbury, 
90,  and  his  wife,  80;  John  Wheaton,  95; 
Mrs.  Benjamin  Wheaton,  80  ;^Luke  Olds, 
86 ;  Israel  Wood,  80 ;  Isaiah  Little,  84 ; 
Capt.  W^m.  Bradford,  86,  his  wife,  83; 
Anna  Bradford,  88  ;  Silas  Town,  88  ;  Reu- 
ben Nichols,  83  ;  Samuel  Cook.  94  ;  Dan- 
iel Kinney,  82  ;  Mrs.  Judith  Wood,  83  ; 
Polly  Cook,  81  ;  Alvah  Wood,  84,  his  wife, 
83  :  Otis  French,  89  ;  Jerra  Richardson, 
82 ;  Jerry  Batchelder,  83 ;  Mrs.  John 
Thompson,  S3;    Mrs.  Nancy  Barber,  84; 


BARRE. 


37 


James  Knowland,  85  ;  Mrs.  Dudley  Ster- 
ling, 92 ;  Thomas  Town,  84 ;  Jonathan 
Claflin,  84  ;  Joseph  Sterling ;  Plina  Whea- 
ton,  83. 

The  above  list  might  be  greatly  ex- 
tended if  time  now  permitted. 

June  27,  1 88 1. 

Names  of  people  now  living  in  town 
whose  ages  are  80  years  and  upwards — so 
far  as  we  can  learn  :  Lucy  Davis,  97  years 
old  ;^  Hetty  Willey,  93  ;  Eleanor  Needham, 
94;  Lucy  Wood,  95;  Delia  French,  86; 
Hannah  French,  85 ;  Louis  Dana,  85 ; 
Jonathan  Bancroft,  87  ;  Aaron  Ashley,  81  ; 
Freedom  Homes,  83;  Fisher  Homes,  81  ; 
Charlotte  Goldsbury,  81  ;  Sally  Gale,  86 ; 
Samuel  Burns,  87  ;  Nathaniel  Lawson,  82  ; 
Justus  Ketchum,  81  ;  Cynthia  Hooker,  82  ; 
Joseph  Norris,  81;  Peter  Nichols,  81; 
Mary  Noyes,  87;  Achsa  Richardson,  81  ; 
Lemuel  Richardson,  81  ;  Betsey  Water- 
man, 81  ;  Rodney  Bradford,  81  ;  Sarah 
Cox,  84;  Susan  Chamberlin,  84;  Mason 
Carpenter,  82  ;  Josiah  Beckett,  86 ;  Lucy 
Lawson,  83;  Otis  Durkee,  80;  Mrs.  Car- 
roll Smith,  86. 

GRANITE    LODGE   F.    &   A.    M. 

was  chartered  January  11,  1855,  to  John 
Twing,  Otis  Peck,  James  Hale,  Maynard 
French,  Adolphus  Thurston,  S.  W.  Davis, 
Martin  Keith  and  their  associates.  The 
first  three  principal  officers  installed  were 
Alva  Eastman,  W.  M.,  Martin  Keith,  S. 
W.,  Webber  Tilden,  J.  W.  ;  and  Clark 
Holden  was  the  first  Secretary  elected  by 
the  Lodge.  The  organization  has  been  in 
good  working  order  from  the  first,  and  its 
membership  steadily  increased  with  the 
growth  of  the  place,  being  now  125.  They 
have  a  pleasant  and  commodious  lodge- 
room  in  the  old  Tilden  Block.  The  lodge 
have  ever  given  ready  attention  to  the 
calls  of  charity,  caring  for  a  sick  and  needy 
brother,  and  distributing  to  the  wants  of  a 
brother's  widow  and  orphans.  Measures 
have  recently  been  taken  to  provide  a  bu- 
rial fund  m  the  benefits  of  which  the  fam- 
ily of  every  member  might  share.  Thir- 
teen masters  have  been  elected  by  the 
lodge  since  its  organization  ;  of  the.se  Geo. 
W.  Tilden  held  the  office  7  years,  and  to 


his  labors  the  Craft  owes  much  of  its  pros- 
perity. Past  Masters  :  Alva  Eastman, 
Martin  Keith,  Webber  Tilden,  Dr.  N.  W. 
Perry,  A.  A.  Owen,  Justin  H.  Blaisdell, 
Geo.  W.  Tilden,  Henry  D.  Bean,  Hial  O. 
Hatch,  Eli  Holden,  Henry  H.  Wetmore, 
Dr.  J.  Henry  Jackson. 

BARRE   LODGE, 

No.  929,  Knights  of  Honor,  was  in- 
stituted in  Barre,  March  4,  1878,  com- 
posed of  13  Charter  members:  George 
W.  Tilden,  J.  H.  Jackman,  M.  D.,  E.  D. 
Blackwell,  J.  M.  Perry,  O.  H.  Reed,  W. 
A.  Perry,  B.  W.  Braley,  M.  D.,  C.  A. 
Gale,  M.  D.,  E.  D.  Sabin,  Henry  Priest, 
F.  P.  Thurber,  J.  G.  Morrison,  L.  J. 
Mack,  and  the  officers  of  the  lodge  were, 
Henry  Priest,  Dictator;  E.  D.  Blackwell, 
V.  D.  ;  J.  G.  Morrison,  A.  D.  ;  B.  W. 
Braley,  G.  ;  W.  A.  Perry,  R.  ;  J.  M. 
Perry,  F.  R.  ;  O.  H.  Reed,  T.  ;  L.J. 
Mack,  G.  ;  F.  P.  Thurber,  S.  ;  J.  H. 
Jackson,  C.  ;    George  W.  Tilden,  P.  D. 

The  lodge  met  in  Masonic  Hall  until 
Feb.  I,  1879,  after  which  they  rented  and 
furnished  a  hall  in  Jackman's  block,  where 
they  still  remain.  Meeting  the  2d  and  4th 
Monday  evenings  of  each  month. 

The  lodge  has  been  always  in  a  flour- 
ishing condition  since  first  organized, 
there  being  an  average  addition  of  20 
members  each  year.  The  lodge  is  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  the 
State,  but  makes  reports  direct  to  the  Su- 
preme Lodge,  and  also  sends  all  money  for 
widows'  and  orphans'  benefit  fund  direct 
to  the  Supreme  treasurer,  the  Supreme 
lodge  only  having  power  to  pay  out  money 
on  death  benefits.  There  has  been  twelve 
assessments  for  the  year  ending  June  30, 
1881,  making  only  six  dollars  paid  for  each 
thousand  dollars  insurance.  When  the 
Order  was  smaller  and  also  in  the  time  of 
the  yellow  fever  south,  there  were  assess- 
ments amounting  to  eight  dollars  per  thou- 
sand. Three  deaths  have  occurred  in  the 
Order  in  Barre  Lodge  since  its  organiza- 
tion :  Frank  P.  Thurber  Dec.  3,  1879, 
Thomas  McGovern  Nov.  4,  1880,  and  C. 
H.  Chamberlin,  M.  D.,  Feb.  22,  1881. 
A  death  benefit  of  ($2,000)  two  thousand 


38 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


dollars  each  was  paid  to  their  families  very 
soon  after  the  death  of  these  members, 
and  was  of  great  benefit  to  the  families. 
The  lodge  now  consists  of  68  members 
and  is  constantly  increasing.  The  present 
officers  are  W.  C.  Nye,  D. ;  L.  W.  Scott, 
V.  D. ;  Lewis  Keith,  A.  D. ;  George  M. 
Goss,  R. ;  George  P.  Boyce,  F.  R. ;  B. 
W.  Braley,  T. ;  A.  C.  Reed,  C. ;  C.  A. 
Wheaton,  Guide ;  William  Clark,  Guar- 
dian;  W.  L.  Huntington,  S. ;  O.  H. 
Reed,  P.  D. 

Our  lodge  is  free  from  debt ;  the  hall 
nicely  and  tastefully  furnished.  A  new 
Prescott  organ  purchased  this  spring  stands 
in  the  hall,  and  we  have  a  surplus  of 
$200  in  the  treasury ;  our  best  citizens 
are  its  members,  and  we  predict  for  the 
Knights  of  Honor  in  this  place  a  green 
and  flourishing  old  age. 

TOWN   OFFICERS   FROM    1870   tO    1880. 

BY  C.  HOLDEN,  TOWN   CLERK. 

Representatives :  Wm.  E.  Whitcomb, 
1870;  Wm.  A.  Boyce,  1872;  Eli  Holden, 
1874;  Jacob  S.  Spaulding,  1876;  J.  Henry 
Jackson,  1878;  Henry  Priest,  1880. 

Town  Clerks  :  Carlos  Carpenter,  1871  ; 
Clark  Holden,  1872-1881,  present  Town 
Clerk. 

First  Selectmen:  W.  C.  White,  1871, 
'73^  '74'  'iS'i  Augustus  Claflin,  1872,  '79, 
'80,  '81  ;  Ira  P.  Harrington,  1876,  '77,  '78. 

Constables  :  N.  F.  Averill,  1871 ,  '72,  'jt,  ; 
G.  I.  Jackson,  1874,  '75,  '76;  Carlos  Car- 
penter, 1877;  L.  W.  Scott,  1878,  '79,  '80; 
Chas.  L.  Currier,  1881. 

FAPER  OF  E.  L.  SMITH,  DEALER  IN  BARRE 
GRANITE. 

In  regard  to  the  statement  of  the  "quar- 
ries "  of  Barre,  I  cannot  give  a  very  definite 
one  in  regard  to  any  but  of  the  one  in 
which  I  am  interested.  This  one,  known 
as  the  Smith  &  Kimball  Quarry,  is  located 
upon  the  farm  formerly  owned  by  the  late 
Edward  J.  Parker,  consists  of  nearly  3 
acres,  and  has  not  been  fully  developed  as 
yet.  It  was  opened  in  the  summer  of 
1879,  by  E.  J.  Parker,  but  not  worked  to 
any  extent  until  the  spring  of  1880,  since 
which  there  has  been  taken  away  from  the 
c^uarry  not  far  from  20,000  feet  of  working 


stock.  We  claim  that  this  granite  is  equal 
to  any  for  monumental  and  polished  work, 
and  so  far  has  been  quite  easy  to  quarry, 
laying  in  large  sheets  of  more  than  ordinary 
thickness,  being  covered  with  soil  to  the 
depth  of  4  feet  in  many  places,  and  the 
top  sheets  are  found  to  be  nearly  as  good 
and  clean  as  those  underneath,  which  is 
not  often  the  case. 

We  have  made  no  public  monuments, 
nor  furnished  stock  for  any  public  build- 
ings. We  ship  stock  in  the  rough  to  quite 
an  extent  to  Burlington,  Vt.,  Albany,  N. 
Y.,  Danville,  Pa.,  and  numerous  other 
points ;  am  now  furnishing  granite  for  a 
bank  building,  to  be  erected  in  Danville, 
Pa.,  to  the  amount  of  1500  cubic  feet ;  have 
a  contract  to  furnish  the  stock  for  a  large 
monument  to  be  erected  in  Boston,  Mass., 
which  will  take  nearly  1000  cubic  feet. 
One  piece  alone  is  to  be  9^  ft.  square  and 
2  ft.  thick ;  will  weigh  nearly  20  tons. 
If  we  had  facilities  for  handling  and  draw- 
ing, we  could  quarry  a  block  of  any  de- 
sired size.  We  employ  now  upon  an  average 
about  15  quarrymen,  and  the  number  of 
cutters  in  the  employ  of  Mr.  S.  Kimball, 
(works  are  located  at  Montpelier,  Vt.), 
and  Smith  &  Wells,  Barre,  Vt.,  must  num- 
ber at  least  30.  We  make  any  kind  of 
work  to  be  made  in  granite,  from  rough 
underpinning  to  a  nice  polished  monument ; 
value  of  stock  taken  from  quarry  at  least 
$10, coo;  amount  of  finished  work  made 
during  year  ending  June  ist,  1881,  by  E. 
L.  Smith  &  Smith  &  Wells  (Mr.  Wells  be- 
came a  partner  in  March,  1881),  about 
$12,000. 

I  consider  this  (granite)  business  es- 
tablished upon  a  sound  basis,  which  I 
think  will  increase  in  time  to  be  one  of  the 
largest  industries  of  our  State.  Barre 
granite  is  second  to  none,  and  when  once 
introduced  will  recommend  itself. 

There  are  at  present  8  quarries  opened, 
which  are  worked  to  quite  an  extent  in 
town,  namely  :  "  Cobble  Hill,"  owned  by 
E.  L.  Smith  &  P.  C.  Wheaton,  now  work- 
ed by  P.  C.  Wheaton.  This  is  of  a  rather 
light  gray,  and  is  probably  the  best  place 
in  Vermont  to  quarry  stone  for  under- 
pinning, being  quite  rifty,  so   that  it  can 


BARRE. 


39 


readily  be  split  in  pieces  8  in.  thick,  2  ft. 
wide  and  20  ft.  long.  It  is  strong,  and  is 
of  the  very  best  material  for  building  work, 
curbing,  etc.,  which  can  be  found. 

"  Harrington  Quarry,"  owned  and  work- 
ed by  Ira  P.  Harrington,  who  has  lopg 
been  in  the  granite  business,  upon  which 
he  is  now  doing  quite  an  amount  of  work 
in  filling  orders  for  rough  stock.  From 
these  two  quarries  came  the  stock  for  the 
State  House.  They  have  been  opened,  I 
should  judge,  some  50  or  60  years.  Mr.  E. 
Hewett  formerly  worked  the  Cobble  Hill 
Quarry,  and  upon  the  State  House  being 
rebuilt,  he  quarried  quite  an  amount  of 
blocks,  to  replace  those  injured  by  fire.  It 
was  near  here  that  Charles  Keith  lost  his 
life,  while  assisting  in  drawing  one  of  those 
large  blocks  of  granite  up  hill  where  they 
had  to  use  ropes  and  blocks,  a  block  giving 
away,  and  crushing  him  so  that  he  died 
soon  after.  This  is,  so  far  as  I  know,  the 
only  fatal  accident  which  has  taken  place 
in  the  town  in  connection^with  granite 
working,  but  numerous  have  been  the 
narrow  escapes  from  a  fatal  one  by  pre- 
mature explosion  of  blasts,  falling  of  der- 
ricks, etc.  These  two  are  the  only  old 
quarries  of  note  in  town,  and  while  they 
have  been  worked  long,  yet  consisting  as 
they  do  of  large  extent,  there  is  no  ex- 
haustion of  material,  but  on  the  contrary, 
plenty  of  it  and  easy  of  access. 

The  Carnes  Quarry,  at  East  Barre,  is 
worked  by  William  Carnes,  who  has  a 
shop,  and  finishes  up  his  stock  neatly. 

' '  The  Eastman  Quarry  "  has  been  opened 
some  4  or  5  years,  and  while  it  has  not 
been  worked  to  a  large  extent,  it  is  good 
stock,  and  may  prove  to  be  one  of  the  best 
in  town. 

Levi  Keith  has  a  quarry  opened  which  is 
called  fair  stock,  not  developed  to  any 
great  extent, 

Bigelow  Quarry,  upon  the  farm  of  John 
Bigelow,  was  opened  about  6  years  ago, 
and  is  now  worked  by  John  Collins.  There 
is  a  chance  for  quite  an  extensive  quarry, 
and  it  may  prove  to  be  one  of  the  princi- 
pal quarries  in  town,  though  the  grain  is 
not  quite  so  fine  and  dark  as  some. 

"  Mann  Quarry,"  owned  and  worked  by 


Geo.  Mann,  has  been  opened  some  3  years, 
is  of  the  best  grain  and  color,  but  as  yet 
the  stock  has  been  rather  hard  to  quarry  to 
advantage,  the  sheets  not  laying  so  free 
and  even  as  in  some  of  the  other  quarries. 

The  quarry  of  Messrs,  Wetmore  &  Morse 
is  one  of  the  best,  if  not  the  best  in  town 
and  has  been  worked  nearly  20  years  ;  was 
formerly  worked  by  J.  E.  Parker,  and  has 
been  owned  and  worked  by  Wetmore  & 
Morse  about  4  years.  This  is  good  stock, 
and  lays  in  large  sheets,  and  of  late  has 
been  more  extensively  worked  than  any 
quarry  in  town.  1  estimate  that  they  must 
have  taken  from  this  quarry  during  the  4 
years  at  least  45,000  ft.  of  working  stock 
and  to  appearance  there  is  none  the  less 
remaining.  E.  L.  Smith. 

Barre,  June  27,  1881. 

STATEMENT    OF   W.    G.    PARKER'S    QUARRY 
AND   WORKS, 

opened  Oct.  29,  1880,  began  carrying  on 
granite  business  Nov.  1,1873  ;  workmen  em- 
ployed from  three  to  six  ;  has  shipped  gran- 
ite monuments  to  Wisconsin,  Michigan, 
Ohio,  New  York  and  Massachusetts  :  also 
in  Vermont ;  amount  of  exports  varying 
from  $1,000  to  $2,000. 

PAPERS   FROM    CHAS.    A.    SMITH. 

THE  FIRST  GRANITE   SHOP  IN  BAUKE. 

J.  S.  Collins  came  to  Barre  in  1872,  and 
opened  a  shop  for  the  working  of  granite 
at  the  south  end  of  the  village,  where  he 
has  since  continued  the  business.  This 
was  the  first  shop  of  the  kind  opened  in 
the  village,  and  Mr.  C.  was  the  pioneer  of 
the  business  of  working  granite  for  mon- 
umental purposes  here.  He  at  present 
employs  five  cutters  at  his  shop  and  three 
men  on  the  quarry,  which  he  opened  in 
1876,  and  which  is  known  as  the  Bigelow 
Quarry.  Though  the  business  done  by 
Mr.  Collins  is  less  than  that  of  some  of  his 
competitors  in  town,  yet  the  excellence  of 
the  work  which  he  was  the  first  to  send 
out  drew  attention  to  the  value  of  Barre 
granite  for  monumental  uses,  and  led  to 
the  development  of  the  business,  and  as  a 
skillful  master  workman,  he  has  taught  the 
trade  to  a  large  number,  who  as  propri- 
etors, or  as  workmen,  ply  the  trade  in 
other  shops. 


40 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Wetmore  &  Morse  are  the  largest  deal- 
ers in  granite  in  town  ;  their  shops,  situa- 
ted on  the  west  of  the  R.  R.  near  the 
depot,  are  arranged  in  a  semi-circle  on 
either  side  of  the  branch  track  of  the  R.  R. 
with  a  derrick  so  located  as  to  raise  and 
move  stones  to  and  from  the  cars  and  to 
any  part  of  their  yards.  They  commenced 
business  in  1877,  in  a  small  shed  near 
their  present  location,  and  for  a  time  em- 
ployed but  one  workman  beside  Mr. 
Morse.  In  1880,  they  employed  for  a 
time  85  workmen.  They  have  turned  out 
handsome  specimens  of  monumental  work. 
The  largest  job  upon  which  they  have 
been  employed  was  the  cutting  for  the 
Bowman  Mausoleum  at  Cuttingsville — the 
receipts  for  this  job  being  between  fifteen 
and  sixteen  thousand  dollars.  They  own 
and  work  the  quarry  known  as  the  J.  E, 
Parker  Quarry,  and  on  this  employ  from 
ten  to  twenty  men. 

CARLETON   FAMJLY. 

Rev.  Hiram  Carleton,  born  in  Barre, 
July  18,  181 1  ;  graduated  at  Middlebury 
College  in  1833;  was  a  teacher  in  Shore- 
ham,  1833-34;  studied  at  Andover  Theo. 
Sem.  1834-37  ;  pastor  of  the  Cong'l  Church 
in  Stowe  in  1818.  He  has  published  an 
Analysis  of  the  24th  chapter  of  Matthew. 
— J'/erso/i's  Catalogue  of  Middlebury  Coll. 

Hiram  Carleton  was  the  seventh  son  of 
Jeremiah  and  Deborah  Carleton,  early  set- 
tlers in  this  town ;  his  father,  Jeremiah 
Carleton,  died  Sept.  3,  1844,  and  his 
mother  Mar.  18,  1843.  He  has  living  in 
town  at  this  time  (1881),  two  brothers, — 
Jeremiah  Carleton,  2d,  born  Aug.  16, 1799  ; 
David  Carleton,  born  Sept.  2,  1809.  The 
former,  Jeremiah  2d,  is  father  of  Rev. 
Marcus  M.  Carleton,  a  missionary  of  the 
Presbyterian  Board,  in  Umballah,  India; 
the  latter,  David,  is  father  of  Hiram  Carle- 
ton, Esq.,  now  of  Montpelier. 

There  were  10  children,  I  think,  in  the 
old  family.  The  Carletons  are  a  family  of 
more  than  average  ability  ;  with  some 
marked  peculiarities,  but  men  of  charac- 
ter. Rev.  Hiram  Carleton,  D.  D.,  is  now 
Rector  of  an  Episcopal  church  in  Wood's 
Hole,  Mass.    Rev.  Marcus  Carleton  of  Um- 


ballah married  Calista  Bradford,  daughter 
of  Rodney  Bradford  of  this  place.  Some 
ten  or  twelve  years  since  she  came  un- 
attended froln  India  via.  San  Francisco, 
arriving  here  in  the  spring  of  1869,  with  5 
children,  the  eldest  hardly  in  his  teens, 
the  youngest  a  mere  babe.  Her  two  eld- 
est boys  fitted  for  college  in  the  Academy 
here  ;  entered  Amherst  College,  (their 
father's  alma  mater, ~)  and  graduated  there  ; 
the  eldest  has  since  graduated  in  medicine 
from  the  College  of  Physicians  &  Surgeons 
in  N.  Y.  ;  is  with  his  mother  ;  his  sisters, 
now  grown  to  accomplished  young  ladies, 
are  soon  to  return  to  India ;  the  2d  son 
has  a  position  in  the  Public  Library  in 
New  York. 

WILLIAM   CLARK, 

son  of  Dea.  Francis  Clark,  Senior,  gradu- 
ated at  Dartmouth  about  1840;  and  at 
Andover  Theol.  Sem.  ;  was  engaged  for 
several  years  as  a  teacher  in  Ceorgia ;  for 
a  time  settled  over  the  Cong,  church  at 
Orford,  N.  H. ;  sub.sequently  went  under 
the  auspices  of  the  American  Board  of 
Foreign  Missions  to  Turkey  ;  was  after- 
wards located  at  Milan,  Italy,  both  as  U. 
S.  Consul  and  as  the  head  of  an  educa- 
tional institution;  some  time  about  1872, 
returned  to  America  and  purchased  a  home 
in  Newbury,  Vt.,  which  he  fitted  up  in  a 
handsome  manner,  then,  for  several  years, 
a  private  boarding  school  for  young  ladies, 
known  as  "  Montebello,"  was  kept  up  by 
his  wife,  (who  was  a  daughter  of  Nathan- 
iel Farrington,  ofWalden,  Vt.,)  and  their 
daughter  (an  only  child)  who  was  a  young 
lady  of  fine  accomplishments.  Mr.  Clark 
returned  to  Europe  about  1875  or  '76,  as 
the  representative  of  a  New  York  business 
house,  and  has  since  been  for  the  most  of 
the  time  in  Germany.  He  returned  a  year 
or  two  since  for  his  family,  who  returned 
with  him,  the  property  at  Newbury  being 
disposed  of.  Mr.  Clark  is  a  man  of  fine 
presence,  a  fine  scholar,  and  the  master  of 
several  languages. 

DR.    SOCRATES   SHERMAN, 

Native  of  Barre ;  a  skillful  physician ; 
Medical  Director  of  the  Department  of 
Virginia  during  the  war ;  Member  of  Con- 


BARRE. 


41 


gress  one  term,  and  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  postmaster  of  Ogdensburg ;  died  at 
the  latter  place  in  1873. 

WILLIAM   A.    DODGE, 

son  of  Dea.  Nathaniel  Dodge,  graduated 
at  Burlington  about  the  year  1844;  studied 
law  ;  has  removed  from  town. 

MILITARY   RECORD   OF   BARRE. 

From  the  account  of  Charles  A.  Smith 
in  The  Barre  Enterprise,  the  following, 
whose  graves  were  covered  with  flowers 
Decoration  day — last   month — were 

SOLDIERS  OF  THE    REVOLUTION  : 

Major  Wm.  Bradford,  Abel  Camp,  Gould 
Camp,  Lemuel  Clark,  in  Barre  Cemetery ; 
Warren  Ellis,  Nathan  Harrington,  Capt. 
Asaph  Sherman,  Nath'l  Sherman,  Adol- 
phus  Thurston,  in  Williston  Cemetery ;  and 
the  following 

SOLDIERS  IN  THE  WAR  OF    l8l2  : 

David  W.  Aldrich,  Sylvanus  Aldrich,  John 
Bancroft,  Wm.  Bassett,  William  Bradford, 
Jr.,  James  Britain,  Carver  Bates,  Simon 
Briggs,  Simon  Barber,  Joel  Bullock,  Sam- 
uel Cook,  Otis  French,  Bartholomew 
French,  Bart.  French,  Jr.,  David  French, 
John  Gale,  Israel  Gale,  John  Hillery,  Joel 
Holden,  Reuben  Lamb,  Robert  Parker, 
William  Robinson,  Danforth  Reed,  B.  C. 
Smith,  Silas  Town,  Thomas  Town,  John 
Wood,  John  Willson,  Thomas  Willson, 
Ellman  Waterman,  in  Barre  Cemetery; 
Joe  Adams,  Josiah  Allen,  Asa  Boutwell, 
Eli  Boutwell,  Asa  Blanchard,  Joseph 
Dodge,  Dan  Rowland,  Eli  Holden,  Davis 
Harrington,  Humphrey  Holt,  Amos  Jones, 
Robert  Morse,  James  Nichols,  Peter 
Nichols,  David  Richardson,  Baxter  Ster- 
ling, Joe  Sterling,  Asaph  Sherman,  Jona- 
than Sherman,  Benj.  Thompson,  foseph 
Thompson,  Marston  Watters  :  In  Mexi- 
can WAR  Charles  A.  Bigelow,  in  Williston 
Cemetery. 

BARRE   company   FOR   PLATTSBURGH. 
BY  STILLMAK  WOOD. 

The  Military  Company  of  Volunteers 
that  left  Barre  for  Burlington  for  the  battle 
of  Plattsburgh  consisted  of  117  men. 
This  number  took  almost  the  entire  set  of 
young  men  whose  ages  were  suitable  for 

6 


military  duty,  with  a  few  old  revolutionary 
soldiers  who  felt  they  would  like  to  have  a 
hand  in  one  more  battle  with  the  red  coats. 
The  farmer  left  his  farm,  the  mechanic  his 
shop,  and  the  merchant  his  store  to  join 
in  the  common  defence,  and  beat  back  an 
invading  foe.  When  the  news  came  that 
the  British  were  about  to  cross  the  river 
and  enter  Plattsburgh,  the  excitement  was 
intense ;  to  arms,  was  the  universal  re- 
sponse. Men  gathered  immediately  from 
all  parts  of  the  town,  and  formed  a  com- 
pany : 

Military  Roll  of  Barre  Company  of  Vol- 
unteers in  the  War  of  18 12. 
Officers  :  Warren  Ellis,  Capt. ;  Na- 
than Stone,  1st  lieut. ;  Armin  Rockwood, 
2d  Lieut. ;  Peter  Nichols,  Ensign ;  A. 
Sherman,  M.  Sherman,  B.  French,  C. 
Bancroft,  Sergeants.  Corporals  :  Moses 
Rood,  1st,  Samuel  Nichols,  3d,.  P. 
Thompson,  4th,  Wm.  Ripley,  2d.  Pri- 
vates: E.  B.  Gale,  Sam'l  Cook,  Daniel 
Parker,  John  M.  Willard,  Chs.  Robinson, 
Elijah  Robinson,  I.  L.  Robinson,  Je'k. 
Richards,  John  Farwell,  Silas  Spear,  Otis 
French,  Jona.  Markum,  Andrew  Davey, 
John  Richards,  Thomas  Mower,  Thomas 
Browning,  John  Howland,  Jona.  Sherman, 
Noah  Holt,  Oramel  Beckley,  Horace  Beck- 
ley,  Asa  Dodge,  Wm.  Arbuckle,  Saml. 
Mitchell,  Josiah  Allen,  A.  Bagley,  James 
Hale,  Enos  Town,  Jacob  Scott,  Comfort 
Smith,  Sylvanus  Goldsbury,  William 
Goldsbury,  Shubael  Smith,  Amos  Jones, 
Isaiah  Little,  Asa  Blanchard,  Henry 
Smith,  Ansel  Patterson,  B.  Ingraham, 
Aaron  Rood,  William  Bradford,  By- 
ron Potter,  Danforth  Reed,  Emery  Ful- 
ler, Willard  Keith,  J.  Penniman,  Nathan- 
iel Batchelder,  Isaac  Gale,  Jesse  .Mor- 
ris, Silas  Willard,  R.  R.  Keith,  Benjamin 
Burke,  Thomas  Town,  Ira  Day,  Geo.  S. 
Woodard,  Stephen  Freeman,  Gideon 
Downing,  Stephen  Carpenter,  Jonathan 
Smith,  Nathan  Stephens,  A.  West,  John 
Bancroft,  Amos  Holt,  M.  Brown  Dodge, 
R.  W.  Ketchum,  John  Thompson,  James 
Britain,  Orson  Smith,  Wm.  Howard,  Ben- 
jamin Richards,  D.  W.  Averill,  C.  Bates, 
Doane  Cook,  Richard  Smith,  Josiah  Bid- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


well,  Andrew  Conant,  Nath'I  Batchelder, 
Jr.,  Calvin  Howes,  Sherman  Watson, 
Thomas  Parker,  Peter  Johonnott,  Calvin 
Smith,  John  S.  Willard,  Joseph  Sterling, 
Ira  Ellis,  C.  Watson,  Samuel  Lawson, 
Cyrus  Barber,  Joseph  Glidden,  Seth  Beck- 
ett, John  Twing,  Parley  Batchelder,  Josiah 
Leonard,  M.  Bussell,  Wm.  Batchelder, 
Wm.  Bassett,  David  Sherburn,  Isaac  Sal- 
ter, Asa  Patridge,  S.  Rice,  Jr.,  J.  Nich- 
ols, J.  S.  Thompson,  Nehemiah  Boutwell, 
Lewis  Peck,  Joel  Holden,  Wm.  Chubb, 
David  Richardson,  Guy  C,  Nichols,  Jona. 
G.  Chaplin,  John  Gale,  and  Pliny  Whea- 
ton. 

The  company  went  mostly  on  foot,  and 
arrived  at  Burlington  on  Saturday.  The 
battle  of  Plattsburg  was  fought  on  Sunday, 
but  for  lack  of  transportation,  few,  if  any, 
of  the  company  had  a  hand  in  it,  and  on 
the  same  day  there  being  a  naval  battle  on 
the  lake,  in  which  the  British  foe  were 
beaten,  and  retreated  to  Canada,  there 
being  no  further  necessity  for  defence,  no 
foe  to  fight,  most  of  our  men  came  back 
without  crossing  the  lake.  Some,  how- 
ever, went  over,  and  some  enlisted  in  the 
regular  army. 

This  company  of  stalwart  young  men, 
after  returning  to  their  respective  homes 
and  occupations,  in  after  life  filled  many 
places  of  honor  and  trust  in  town,  and 
many  of  them  acquired  military  titles  by 
being  elected  to  office  in  the  respective 
companies  to  which  they  severally  be- 
longed in  the  State  militia.  In  those  days 
to  gain  the  title  of  captain  was  considered 
worthy  of  a  laudable  ambition,  and  gave  a 
man  notoriety  not  otherwise  easily  at- 
tained. But  that  company  of  strong  young 
men,  so  far  as  we  can  learn,  have  now  all, 
except  one,  passed  over  the  silent  river  to 
the  land  of  peace  beyond.  Our  neighbor 
Jonathan  Bancroft,  who  was  then  i6  years 
old,  went  as  teamster  and  carried  baggage 
for  the  company.  He  is  now  84,  and  is 
probably  the  only  man  now  living  who 
went  to  Burlington  at  that  time.  About 
one-half  of  these  men  have  descendants 
or  relatives  "now  living  in  town,  and  of  the 
rest,  their  families  have  become  extinct, 
or  removed  to  parts  far  distant  from  Barre. 


WAR    REPORT, 
KUOM  AUGUSTU.S   CLAFLIN, 

Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen  in  1S75, 
for  that  year. 
Whole  number  of  three  years  men  en- 
listed and  credited  to  the  town,  125;  one 
year  men,  21  ;  nine  months  men,  38; 
drafted  men  held  to  service,  17;  Total, 
201.  Of  the  17  drafted  men,  8  furnished 
substitutes,  8  paid  commutation  money, 
and  one  only  entered  the  service.  The  num- 
ber of  men  who  were  killed  or  died,  was 
2,2,\  the  number  wounded  and  living,  15; 
Albert  Gobar,  a  bounty  jumper  who  after- 
wards returned  under  the  Presidenfs  pro- 
clamation of  pardon,  is  the  only  deserter 
reported.  Bounties  were  paid  to  :  23  men 
Co.  B,  loth  Reg.,  raised  by  subscription, 
$575  ;  to  29  nine  months  men,  $25  each, 
by  subscription,  $700;  to  10  nine  months 
men,  $50  each,  $500 ;  to  28  three  years 
men,  $300 each,  $8,400  ;  to  14  three  months 
men,  $200  each,  $2,800 ;  to  Albert  and 
Alson  French,  twin  brothers,  one  of  whom 
was  drafted,  and  the  other  enlisted  to  be 
with  him,  $600;  to  C.  H.  Richard.son, 
who  re-enlisted,  $300  ;  to  19  i  year  men, 
$1 1,060,00  ;  to  2  men  mustered  at  Wind- 
sor, $1,225;  to  I  colored  recruit,  $400; 
to  9  navy  men,  $7,200;  to  Byron  Carlton, 
James  Powers,  C.  Woodward,  $1,524.50; 
to  those  who  went  in  2d  Reg.  Vt.  Vols., 
June,  1861,  by  subscrip.  $55.00;  total 
$35,340.85. 

The  total  expense  to  the  town  for  select- 
men's and  surgeons"  services  for  subsist- 
ence of  recruits  and  other  expenses  inci- 
dental to  raising  the  quota  of  troops  under 
different  calls,  is  given  at  $35,995.24; 
total  public  expense  $71,336-09.  Money 
was  paid  by  individuals  as  follows  :  amount 
paid  by  enrolled  men  who  furnished  sub- 
stitutes, $600 ;  amount  paid  by  drafted 
men  who  furnished  substitutes,  $2,600; 
amount  paid  by  drafted  men  as  commuta 
tion,  $2,400;  total  $5,600. 


On  the  page  of  fame 

Does  the  soldier's  valor  bloom 
Brighter  than  the  roses 

Cast  upon  his  tomb. 


BARRE. 


43 


SOLDIERS   OF   THE   WAR   OF    1861. 

BY   CIIAS.   A.   SMITH. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  men  furnished  by  the  town  under  the  different  calls 
for  troops,  including  those  who  were  drafted,  paid  commutation,  or  furnished  sub- 
stitutes : 

Reg.  Co.     Afii.ttered  in.        Discharged. 


jVames. 
Lemuel  A.  Abbott, 


Armory  Allen, 


Henry  L.  Averill, 
James  W.  Averill, 


John  W.  Averill, 
James  T.  Bacon, 
Dan  Barker, 

Davis  H.  Bates, 
Albert  G.  Bates, 
Peter  N.  Bates, 

Chauncey  W.  Beals, 
Orrin  Beckley,  Jr., 

Joel  Bill, 

John  Blanchard, 


Jiemarks. 

10  B    Sept.   I,  '62.    June  22,  '65.  Pro.   2     Lt.  Co.  D.  Jan.  26,   '63  ; 

1st  Lieut.  Co.  E.  Jan.  17,  '64 ; 
Capt.  Co.  G.  Dec.  19,  '64,  enlist, 
reg.  army  in  '65  ;   now  Capt. 

11  E    Dec.  II,  '63.   Aug.  25,  '65.  Trans,  to  Co.  V.  R.  C.  July  26,  '64, 

Co.  D.  June  24,  '64  ;    after  to 

Co.  A. 
C   L    Dec.     3,  '63.   Aug.    9,  '65.  Trans.  Co.  D.  Jan.  21,  '65. 
8  E    Dec.  15,  '63.  Wound,  at  Winch.  Va.  losing  part 

of  one  foot ;  in  hospital  till  close 

of  war. 

28,  '65.  Mustered  out. 

29,  '64.  Pro.  Corp.  pro.  sergt. 
Sick;    disch'd  Nov.  16,   '64;    died 

soon  at  home. 


Dec.  15,  '63.  Jan. 
June  20,  '61.  Jan. 
Sept.    I,  '62. 


Origin  A.  Blanchard,      2  D    Sept.  20,  '61. 


James  M.  Boyce,  10  B 

Charles  H.  Bassett,  11   E 

Albert  G.  Bates,  17  E 

George  L  Beckley,  8  A 

Charles  A.  Bigelow,  17  E 

George  W.  Blanchard,  13  I 


Albert  P.  Boutwell.  1 1  E 

Edwin  M.  Bowman,  C    L 

Clarence  A.  Brackett,  17  C 

Geo.  Badore,  13  I 

Frederick  J.  Barnes,  13  I 

Calvin  Bassett,  15  D 

Origin  Bates,  13  I 

Ira  B.  Bradford,  13  " 

Clark  Boutwell,  "    " 

Albert  J.  Burrill,  "    " 
J.  K.  Bancroft, 
Warren  Barnes, 
Kimbal  Blanchard, 

Iram  H.  Camp,  2  D 

David  G.  Carr,  6  F 

Byron  Carlton,  8  I 

Almon  Clark,  10 


Henry  L.  Clark,  10  B 

William  Clark,  "    " 

William  Cox,  6  F 
Humphrey  Campbell,  Bat.  3 

Allen  E.  Cutts,  9  E 

Frank  E.  Cutts,  "  E 

Nathan  J.  Camp,  15  D 


Feb.  18,  '62.  Discharged  June  30,  '62. 

Oct.   15,  '61.  Pro.  Corp.,  sergt.,  Dec.  28,  '63  ;  k'd 

Wilderness  May  5,  '64. 
Sept.    I, '62.   Jan.   22,   '64.  Discharged  on  sickness. 
June,  20,  '61.  Pro.    serg  ;    wounded  ;    missing  in 

battle  May  10,  '64. 
Oct.    20,  '61.  Discharged  April  22,  '63. 

Sept,    I,  '62.    Feb.  22,  '65.  Dishc'd  on  acct.  of  wounds  rec'd  in 

Aug.  '64. 
Pro.  Corp.,  serg.,  must,    out   Sept. 

20,  '64. 
Died  Oct.  6,  '63. 
Aug.  25,  '65.  Trans,  to  Co.  D.,  to  E.,  to  A. 
Mustered  out  May  20,  '65. 
Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.,  must,  out  July 
24,  '65.    Served  in  Band. 
'64.  Died  May  30,  '64. 

'62.    July     2,  '63.  Sergt ;   re-enlisted  Dec.  '63  in  8th 
Reg.;    serving   in   the  Band  ; 
must,  out  Jan.  28,  '65. 
'65.  Trans,  to  Co.  D.  to  E.  to  A. 
Trans,  to  Co.  D.  Jan.  21,  '65. 
Chosen  corp.  Pro.  s'gt.,  taken  pris. 


Sept.    I,  '62. 
Dec.  II,  '63. 

12,  '64. 

15. '63- 


Apr. 
Dec. 


Apr. 
Oct. 


Dec. 
Dec. 

Apr. 
Oct. 


'63.   Aug. 

'63.     ■ 
'64. 
62. 


Aug.  16,  '65. 
July  21,  '63. 


Oct.  4,  '62 


June  20,  '61. 
Oct.  15,  '61. 
Feb.  18,  '62. 


Sept.  I,  '62. 

Oct.  15,  '61. 
Aug.  20,  '64. 
Aug.  8,  '64. 
Aug.  17,  '64. 
Oct.  22,  '62. 


Aug. 

July 


5.  '63- 
II,  '63. 


Served  as  drummer. 

Drafted,  p'd  commutation. 
Procured  substitute. 


•64. 


June  22,  '65. 

June  15,  '65. 
June  13,  '65. 


Pro.  Corp.  must,  out  Ju.  29, 
Discharged  Jan.  21,  '62. 
Must,  out  Jan.  22,  '64,  re-en. 
As't.  Surg.  Com.  Aug.  11,  '62,  pro, 

sur.  cav.  Mar.  6,  '65  ;must.  out 

Aug.  9,  '65. 
Died,  Jan.  29,  '63. 

Missing  in  action.  May  5,  '64. 


Aug.  5,  '63.     Pro.  Corp.  Nov.  12,  '62. 


44 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names.  Reg.  Co.  Mustered  in. 

Mason  B.  Carpenter,    13  I  Oct.  4,  '62. 
Orvis  Carpenter,            "    '•  " 

David  G.  Carr,  "    "  " 

Albert  F.  Dodge,  10  B  Sept.  i,  '62. 


Leroy  Dodge, 
Lewis  H.  Dodge, 
Luther  C.  Dodge, 
Nelson  E.  Dodge, 

Wesley  Dodge, 

Jason  Drury, 

Andrew  J.  Dudley, 
Willis  P.  Durkee, 
Chas.  Davis, 
Alfred  Deuquet, 
Henry  M.  Dudley, 

John  M.  Durant, 
Moses  Duso, 
William  H.  Duval, 
Henry  A.  Dow, 
Alson  Downing, 
Chas,  F-Durrill, 
Edward  P.  Evans, 
Ira  H.  Evans, 

Perley  Farrar, 
Joseph  W.  Fisher, 
Erastus  D.  French, 
Orlando  French, 
Alfred  B.  Fisher, 
Albert  French, 
Henry  W.  French, 
Charles  G.  French, 
Alson  French, 
Henry  P.  Gale, 
Geo.  W.  Goodrich, 
John  Gabbaree, 
Albert  Gobar, 
Fred.  M.  Gale, 

Ira  L.  Gale, 
Israel  Gilmot, 
John  A.  Goldsbury, 
Nathan  Harrington, 
Chas.  E.  L.  Hills, 
Eli  Holden, 


2  D  Sept.  15.  '61. 

"  "  Apr.  12,  '62. 

"  'i  Apr.  12,  '62. 

C  C  Nov.  19,  '61. 

8  E  Feb.  18,  '62. 

2  D  Sept.  15,  '61. 

4  B  Sept.  20,  '61. 

8   I  Dec.  15,  '63. 

17  H  May  10,  '64. 

"    "  May  10,  '64. 

1 1    E  Dec.  It,  '63. 
II    E 

13   I  Oct.  4,  '62. 

10   B  Sept.  I,  '62. 


Discharged.  Remarks. 

July  21,  '63.    Pro.  Sergt.  Jan.  15,  '63. 


Mar.  21,  '64.  Re-en.  Apr.  5,  '64  ;  serv.  as  Capt.  in 

greg.  U.  S.;  Col.  Inft.;  Must. 

out  Dec.  5,  '65. 
Died  Oct.  28,  '64. 
Died  Sept.  i,  '62. 
Died  June  12,  '62. 
Pro.  Corp.  &  to  Sergt.;  died  in  An- 

dersonville  pris. 
Pro.  Corp.;  miss'd  in  a'ct.  June  23, 

'64 ;  died  in  Rebel  prison. 
Died  Sept.  25,  '63,  of  w'nds  rec'd  in 

action. 
Discharged  Jan.  2,  '63. 
Discharged  Apr.  23,  '63. 


D 
E 
C 
A 
E 
F 
iSD 
15  E 

ID   B 


Feb, 

Nov, 
Dec. 
May 
Dec. 
Sept. 
May 
Sept. 
2  D    June 


17  H 
17  H 
13  I 


May 
May 
Dec. 


18,  '62. 
10,  '61. 

15. '63- 
26,  '64. 

15.  '63- 
15,  '62. 
12,  '64. 
I,  '62. 
20,  '61. 

14,  '64. 
19,  '64. 

15.  '63- 


2  D  Sept.  20,  '61. 
8  E  Feb.  18,  '62. 
C   C    Nov.  19,  '61. 


Jan.  28,  '65. 
July  14,  '65. 


June  23,  '65. 
May  23,  '65. 
July  21,  '63. 


Oct.  31,  '62. 
Jan.  29,  '65. 
May  13,  '65. 
Jan.  29,  '65. 
Aug.  5,  '63. 
May  13,  '65. 

June  29,  '64. 


Jan.  29,  '65 


Sept.  20,  '64. 


Chos.   Corp.;   died  July   31,  '64,  of 
w'nds.  rec'd.  act'n.  Jun.  24  '64. 
Died  of  wounds,  July  31,  '64. 


Calvin  Holt,  10  B  Sept.   i,  '62.  June  22,  '65. 

HezekiahD.  Howland,i7    E  May  3,  '64. 

Orwell  J.  Hosford,  9    F  Aug.  19,  '64.  June  13,  '65. 

Bradley  D.  Hall,  15    D  Oct.  22, '62,  Aug.  5, '63. 

Geo.  F.  Harroun,  13    I  Oct.  4,  '62.  July  21,  '63. 

William  Henderson,  15    D  Oct.  22,  '62.  Aug.  5,  '63. 

William  W.  Holden,  13   I  Oct.  4,  '62.  July  21,  '63. 

Chas.  H.  Howard,  "     "             "                        " 

Robert  Humphrey,  "     "             "                        " 


Re-enlisted  Dec.  21,  '63. 
Drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 

Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  Nov.  25,  '64. 
Disch'd.  Dec.  22,  '63,  by  order  of 

War  Department. 
Killed  in  action  May  19,  '64. 

Died  Nov.  10,  '62. 

Served  in  Band. 

Served  in  Band. 
Served  as  Captain. 

Died,  Barre.  Mar.  23,  '64.    Disch'd. 

Died  July  3,  of  w'ds  reed,  in  action. 
Deserted  May  27,  1864. 
Served  in  Band.    Re-en.  Dec.  15, 
'63.     Disch'd  Jan.  29,  '66. 
Drafted.     Paid  commutation. 

Procured  substitute. 

Died  July  3,  1863. 

Only  one  from  Barre  ist  Vt.  Reg.  3 
mos.  men,  re-en.  Co.  C  Vt.  Cav. 
mus.  1st  Serg.  Nov.  19,  '61, 
l^ro.  2d  and  ist  Lt,  tak.  pris. 
in  action,  Sept.  25,  '63,  in  Lib- 
bey,  Danville,  Macon,  Colum- 
bia, escaped  Col.  prison,  reta- 
ken after  a  week,  mus.  out,  pa- 
roled pris.  March  15,  '65. 

Died  at  Salisbury,  N.  C. 

Must,  out  at  Cold  River.  Re-en- 
listed in  nth  Reg. 

Re-en.  Sept.  5,  '64,  ist  Vt.  Cav. 
Killed  Nov.    12,  '64,  in  Shen, 

Served  as  Corporal. 


BARRE. 


45 


Names, 
Nelson  E.  Heath, 
Henry  C.  Jones, 
Albert  Jones, 
Ezra  N.  Jones, 
Alexander  Jangraw, 
Nelson  Johnson, 
Clinton  Keith, 
Henry  Ketchum, 
William  Kirkland, 
Alonzo  G.  Lane, 
Samuel  Leger, 
Napoleon  Lafrenier, 
Stephen  Leazer, 
Heman  Lamphier, 
Marshal  B.  Lawrence, 
Geo.  W.  Lawson, 
John  McLaughlin, 
Horace  C.  Meaker, 
Francis  Miner, 
William  E.  Martin, 

Wm.  W.  McAlister, 
Daniel  Moses, 
Erastus  W.  Nichols, 
Azro  E.  Nichols, 
George  W.  Nichols, 
William  Olds, 
Charles  H.  Page, 
Alfred  S.  Parkhurst, 
\l.  N.  Parkhurst, 
Eugene  C.  Peck, 
George  W.  Perrin, 
George  W.  Phelps, 
J.  Parker  Page, 
George  B.  Putnam, 
Charles  Parkhurst, 


Reg.  Co.     Musiered  in.       Discharged. 


2  D  June  20,  '61. 
17  E  "Mar.  3,  '64. 
17  H  May  19,  '64. 

3  Aug.  19,  '64. 
13  I  Oct.  4,  '62. 
II  E  Dec.  II,  '63. 

13  H  Oct.  10,  '62. 

6  G  Apr.  12,  '62. 

2  D  Jan.  20,  '61. 
17  H  May  10,  '64. 

3  Aug.  18,  '64. 
15  D  Oct.  22,  '62. 
13  I  Oct.  4,  '62. 

C  C  Nov.  19,  '61. 

6  D  Apr.  12,  '62. 

3  K  July  16,  '61. 

17  E  Apr.  9,  '64. 


July  14,  '65. 

June  15,  '65. 
July  21,  '73. 
Jan.  24,  '65. 
Jan.  2,  '65. 
July  21,  "63. 
Nov.  24,  '62. 

July  14,  '65. 
June  15,  '65 

July  21,  '73. 

Nov.  18,  '64. 
May  28,  '64. 
Feb.   I,  '64. 


Remarks. 
Drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 
Pro.  Sergt.;  must,  out  June  2,  '64. 

In  batterv. 


Aug.  9,  '64.      June  15,  '65. 


C    C 

13  H 
8  D 
3  F 
10  B 
10  B 
3  K 
8  E 
1 
G 


9 
8 

8  G 

9  G 


Nov.  19,  '61. 
Aug.  24,  '64. 

23,  '62. 

15, '64. 

16,  '61. 
I,  '62. 
I,  '62. 

16,  '61. 

18,  '62. 

9,  '62. 
Dec.  15,  '63. 
Dec.  15,  '63. 
Aug.  15,  '64. 


Oct. 
Jan. 

July 

Sept. 
Sept. 

July 

Feb. 
July 


Lyman  D.  Parkhurst,      9  F    Aug.  23,  '64. 
Leander  Perry,  13  I      Aug.  4,   '62. 

Charles  H.  Perry,  13  I     Oct,  21,  '62. 


Heman  G.  Perry,  15  D    Oct.   22,  '62. 

Chas.  A.  Richardson,      2  D    Sept.  20,  '61. 


Lafayette  G.  Ripley,      10  B     Sept.    i,  '62. 


John  H.  Rublee, 
Hiram  Robinson, 
George  S.  Robinson, 
Joseph  Rose, 

Albert  Rogers, 
W.  F.  Richardson, 
William  H.  Riddall, 
Albert  Rogers, 
Seth  T.  Sargent, 
George  W.  Savory, 
Prentiss  S.  Scribner, 
Albert  Smith, 
William  Smith, 
Calvin  Stowe, 
Rufus  Streeter, 
Lemuel  D.  Strong, 


10  B 

II 

17  E  Apr.  12,  '64. 

17  H  May  19,  '64. 

9  G  Aug.   6,   '64. 

15  D  Oct.  22,  '62. 

13  I  Oct.  10,   '62. 

15  D  Oct.  22,  '62. 

10  B  Sept.    I,    62. 

C    C  Nov.  19,  '61. 

10  B  Sept.    I,  '62. 

2  D  June  20,  '61. 

8  I  Feb.  18,  '62. 
C    C 

10  B  Sept.  22,  '62. 

2  D  June  20,  '61. 


June  15,  '65. 
•July  21,  '64. 


Jan.   22,  '64. 


Jan.  22,  '64. 
June  13,  '65. 
July     7,  '65. 


Discharged  Mar.  7,  '62. 
Served  as  musician. 
In  battery. 
Discharged  Nov.  27,  '62. 

Procured  substitute. 


1st  Lieut.  ;  killed  near  Petersburgh, 

July  30,  '64. 
In  battery. 

Drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 
Died  Mar.  31,  1S63. 
Battery. 


Discharged  Feb.  28,  '63. 

Mustered  out  May  13,  '65. 
Discharged  Jan.  23,  '62. 


July   21,   '63 
July  21,  '63. 

Aug.    5,    '63. 


May  13,  '65. 
Aug.  5,  '63. 
July  21,  '63. 
Aug.    5,  '63. 

Nov.  18,  '64. 
June  22,  '65. 


Jan.    28,  65. 


Served  In  Band. 

Died  Nov.  27,  '64.  Served  in  Band. 

Trans,  to  Co.  G.,  4th  Vt.  Vol.  Jan. 

20,  '65. 
Trans,  to  Co.  G.,  5th  Vt.  January 

20,  '65. 
Re-enlist,  in  Co.  F.  9  Reg.  must,  in 

Jan.  6,  64  ;  report,  absent  and 

s'k  when  must,  out  June  13,  '63. 
Enlist,  in  Co.  F.  9  Reg.  Jan.  6.  '64  ; 

made  corp.  June  29,  '64  ;   serg. 

March  17,  '65  ;    i  serg.  June  9, 

'65,  trans,  to  Co.  B.  June  13,  '65. 

Re-enlist.  Jan.  3,  '64 ;   trans,  to  V. 

R.  C,  Apr.  26,  '65 ;    must,  out 

July  20,  '64. 
Trans,  to  V.  R.  C,   Feb.  21,  '65  ; 

must,  out  July  8,  '65. 
Must,  out  June  22,  '65. 

Elect,  capt. ;  must,  out  July  14,  '64. 
Killed  near  Petersburgh,  Va.,  July 
27,  '64. 


Mustered  out  June  22,  '65. 


Must,  in  corp  ;  disch'd  Nov.  i,  '62. 
Disch'd  for  sickness  ;  re-enlisted. 


Must,  in  corp.  pro.  sergt.  must,  out 
June  29,  '64. 


46 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 
Hiram  Smith,  Jr., 

Lewis  Sterling, 
Lathan  T.  Seaver, 
Charles  D.  Slack. 
Chas.  W.  Stoddard, 
William  D.  Sanborn, 
Charles  E.  Smith, 
George  D.  Taft, 
Joseph  B.  Thompson, 
Ozias  H.  Thompson, 

Eldon  A.  Tilden, 

Oel  M.  Town, 
Ira  H.  Tompkins, 
John  M.  Thatcher, 
Jude  Town, 
Samuel  C.  Vorse, 


Reg.  Co.     Mustered  in.        Discharged. 

II  E  Dec.   II,  '63. 

II  E  Dec.  II,  '63,   Jan.    16,    65. 

C    C  Aug.  23,  '64.   Jan    21,  '65. 

8  G  Aug.  15,  '64, 

3  Aug.  19,  '64. 

15  D  Oct.   22,  '62. 


Aug.    5.  '63 


3  K  July   16,  '61. 

9  I  July    9,    '62.    June  13,  '65. 

3  K  July    16,  '61.    July   11,  '65. 

2  D  Sept.  20,  '61. 

10  B  Sept.  I,  '62.     June  22,  '65. 

11  E  Dec.  II,  '65. 

13  I  Oct.  10,  '62.     July  21,  '63. 

C    C  Nov.  19,  '61. 


Nelson  W.  Wheelock,  10  B    Sept.  i,  '62. 


Preston  B.  Willey, 
Henrv  Wires, 
Albert  P.  Wood, 
Warren  F.  Wood, 
Wm.  W.  Woodbury, 

Chas.  H.  Willey, 
Harvey  Wille)', 
Chas.  C.  Varney, 
Geo.  E.  Varney, 
Stephen  G.  West, 
Horace  Woodard, 
James  Powers, 
Thomas  Henthon, 
James  Hooper, 
Chas.  E.  Woodward, 


2  D 
C    F 

13  I 
II  E 


June  20,  '61.    June  29,  '64. 

Dec.  15,  '63.    Jan.  28,  '65. 
Dec.  II,  '65.    Jan.  29,  '65. 


G    Jan.  2,  '64. 
G   Aug.  15,  '64. 
D  Oct"4,  62. 


June 
July  : 


13.  '65- 
o.  '63- 


8   G  Feb.  20,  '65. 

8  C  Jan.  6,  65. 

9  H  Jan.  5,  '65. 
10   3  Feb.  7,  65. 


June  28,  '65. 


Remarks. 
Lost  an  arm  and  leg  ;  disch'd  Sept. 
14,  '65. 


Died  March  15,  '65. 
Battery.     Died  Jan.  16,  '65. 

Drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 
Killed  in  action  May  5,  64. 
Made  corp.  July  15,  '64. 
1st  Serg.  re-enlist.  Dec.  i,  '63  ;  pro. 

2d  and  1st  Lieut.  Aug.  4,  '64. 
Pro.   2d  Lieut.  Nov.  20,  '63  ;  must. 

out  Jan.  29,  '64. 

Killed  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  '64. 
Served  as  Captain. 
Drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 
Re-enlisted  Dec.  28,  '63  ;  Pro.  Co. 

Q.  M.  Sergt. 
Died  December  3,  '63. 


Re-enlisted  must,  out  Oct.  10,  '62. 

Wounded  ;  trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  C. 

'65  ;  must  out  Aug  i,  '65. 
Died  Apr.  i,  '65. 

Served  as  Sergeant. 

Died  May  17,  '63. 
Drafted ;  paid  comt. 


Absent  sick  when  reg.  was    mus- 
tered out. 


Ale.x.  F.  E.  Ahlsstrom,  U.  S.  Navy  ;  Lemuel  Bean,  George  Dailey,  Harry  Johnson,  John 
Peterson,  Samuel  Thurber,  were  hired  of  brokers,  entered  the  navy,  and  no  record  of  their  ser- 
vice is  attainable.  Leonard  Bancroft,  Levi  J.  Bolster,  Geo.  I.  Reynolds,  drafted  ;  paid  com- 
mutation. 

In  addition  to  the  names  given  above  the  following  who  served  in  the  war  were  not  reck- 
oned in  the  quota  of  the  town:  Leonard  F.  Aldrich,  Quartermaster  13  Vt.;  Orvis  F.  Jack- 
man,  Co.  A,  7  Ohio,  lost  his  right  arm  at  Chancellorsville,  was  discharged,  and  afterwards 
served  in  Quartermaster  department  under  Gen.  Pitkin. 

Buried  in  Barre  Cemetery. — Stephen  G.  Albee,  James  T.  Bacon,  Albert  Bates,  Peter 
N.  Bates,  Dan.  Barker,  Rufus  Carver,  Henry  L.  Clark,  Orrin  B.  Dickey,  Orlan  French,  H. 
Warner  French,  Henry  Gale,  M.  B.  Lawrence,  James  J.  Nolan,  E.  W.  Nichols,  William  Olds, 
Rufus  Streeter,  Stephen  G.  West,  Wm.  Woodbury,  George  D.  Taft,  Wilber  Tilden. 

Buried  in  Wilson  Cemetery. — Horace  Bigelow,  Wesley  Dodge,  Zary  Dodge,  Heman 
Levy. 

Buried  in  Farwell  Cemetery. — L.  Richards,  Newell  Carlton,  C.  H.  Howard,  James 
L.  Dow. 

William  Howland  enlisted  for  the  town  of  East  Montpelier  into  the  17th  Reg.,  was  killed  in 
Battle  of  the  Wilderness  ;  was  a  brother  of  Hezekiah  D.,  who  died  in  Salisbury  Prison,  and 
the  son  of  Ezekial  Howland  of  this  place.  Charles  Carpenter  enlisted  ioT  Montpelier,  into 
Co.  C.  of  the  Cavalry. 


BARRE. 


47 


JUDGE   CHAPIN   KEITH    AND   FAMILY. 

BY  S.  WOOD. 

Judge  Keith  was  a  man  noted  for  energy 
and  perseverance,  and  whatever  enterprise 
he  undertook  was  generally  a  success.  He 
came  from  his  native  town,  Uxbridge, 
Mass.,  with  his  young  family,  the  young- 
est being  only  three  months  old,  Septem- 
ber, 1801,  and  settled  in  Barre.  He  was 
born  May  17,  1771,  and  was  married  to 
Elisabeth  Taft,  June  24,  1790.  She  was 
born  May  13,  1769.  They  had  four  chil- 
dren, all  boys. 

Hon.  Chapin  Keith  was  Judge  of  the 
probate  court  for  several  years,  and  after- 
wards high  sherift"  for  many  more  years. 
He  also  held  many  town  offices,  and  was 
much  interested  in  the  Chelsea  turnpike, 
on  which  his  tavern  was  located. 

When  he  first  arrived  from  Uxbridge 
with  his  young  family,  he  was  duly  warn- 
ed out  of  town,  lest  he  should  become  a 
charge  on  the  good  people  of  Barre.  It 
was  a  custom  of  the  time,  if  any  came  that 
it  was  doubtful  about.  But  he  never  fail- 
ed to  take  care  of  himself  and  his.  His 
wife  was  also  truly  a  helpmeet,  and  did 
her  full  share  in  getting  a  living  ;  as  land- 
lady she  excelled. 

Judge  Keith,  although  a  good  judge  of 
property  matters,  and  an  active  business 
man,  could  never  speak  in  public  except 
with  great  diffidence.  While  sheriff  it  be- 
came his  duty  to  proclaim  who  was  gov- 
ernor, and  after  the  votes  had  been  count- 
ed, he  finished  by  saying,  "  God  save  the 
King,''''  when  he  meant  to  have  said  "  the 
People."  He  used  to  relate  that  it  cost 
him  several  gallons  of  wine  to  mend  that 
mistake.  He  was  very  successful,  as  else- 
where said,  in  his  tavern-keeping. 

HON.    ROSWELL   KEITH, 

oldest  son  of  Judge  Chapin,  and  the  late 
Judge  Keith  of  Montpelier,  where  he  died 
Oct.  25,  1874;  was  born  in  Uxbridge,  Ms., 
Nov.  28,  1790,  and  was  at  his  death  in 
his  84th  year.  [For  a  more  full  descrip- 
tion see  History  of  Montpelier.] 

CALVIN  JAY   KEITH. 

FrojH  T/iompsoti's  History  of  Montpelier. 
A  son  of  the  Hon.  Chapin  Keith,  late  of 


Barre,  was  born  in  Uxbridge,  Mass.,  Apr. 
9,  1800,  and  before  he  was  a  year  old  came 
with  his  father's  family  to  Barre,  Vermont. 
At  the  age  of  sixteen,  having  shown  him- 
self a  good  and  industrious  scholar  in  the 
English  branches  taught  in  the  common 
school  of  his  home  village,  he  commenced 
fitting  for  college  at  Randolph  Academy, 
in  the  spring  of  18 16.  In  1818  he  entered 
Un.  College,  at  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  andin 
1822,  was  graduated  with  a  good  reputation 
for  scholarship  and  moral  character.  He 
then,  for  a  year  or  two,  taught  in  the  State 
of  Virginia  as  private  tutor  in  the  family 
of  a  wealthy  planter  ;  when  he  returned 
to  the  North,  and  commenced  the  study 
of  the  law  in  the  office  of  the  Hon.  Will- 
iam Upham  in  Montpelier.  Having  com- 
pleted the  usual  course  of  legal  studies,  he 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1826,  and  com- 
menced practice  in  this  village,  at  first 
alone,  and  afterwards,  for  three  or  four 
years  succeeding  1830,  in  company  with 
Mr.  Upham.  In  about  1837,  a  brother  of 
C.  W.  Storrs  of  Montpelier  died  in  St. 
Louis,  Missouri,  leaving  considerable 
property,  and  Mr.  Keith  was  employed  by 
the  relatives  of  the  deceased  to  go  to  St. 
Louis  and  gather  up  and  settle  the  estate. 
After  executing  this  commission  to  the 
advantage  of  all  concerned,  he  returned  to 
Montpelier,  not  however  to  resume  his 
profession,  but  to  accept  the  office  of 
Treasurer  in  the  Vermont  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Company,  which  was  tendered 
him  by  the  Directors.  But  after  accepta- 
bly executing  the  duties  of  this  office  a 
year  or  two,  he  resigned  the  post  to  accept 
another  commission  to  settle  an  estate  of 
a  deceased  Vermonter  in  the  South,  one 
of  the  brothers  Elkins,  from  Peacham,  Vt., 
who  had  been  in  business  as  cotton  brok- 
ers in  the  city  of  New  Orleans.  The  es- 
tate was  found  to  be  large,  and  its  affairs 
so  complicated  as. to  require  the  labor  and 
attention  of  years  to  bring  to  a  close.  For 
the  next  ten  or  twelve  years,  therefore, 
Mr.  Keith  took  up  his  residence  in  New 
Orleans,  and  remained  there  through  all 
but  the  hot  and  sickly  months  of  the  year, 
which  he  spent  mostly  in  Montpelier,  hav- 
ing generally  brought  with  him,  at  each 


48 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


annual  return,  such  sums  of  money  as  he 
had  been  able  to  collect  out  of  the  difter- 
ent  investments  of  the  estate,  for  division 
among  the  Elkins  heirs.  After  pursuing 
this  course  some  ten  years,  assiduously 
engaged  in  the  difficult,  and,  in  many  re- 
spects, dangerous  position,  he  succeeded 
in  bringing  the  affairs  of  the  estate  mainly 
to  a  close,  except  in  the  case  t)f  the  large 
quantity  of  Mexican  scrip  which  was  left 
on  hand,  and  which  was  considered  only 
of  chance  value.  He  agreed  on  a  division 
of  this  uncertain  property  between  the 
heirs  and  himself,  the  consideration  of- 
fered to  them  being  his  promise  to  make 
no  charge  for  any  future  services.  In  a 
year  or  two  after  this  bargain  the  general 
government  decided  to  redeem  this  Mex- 
ican scrip  ;  and  Mr.  Keith,  being  fortunate 
enough  by  means  of  arguments  made  po- 
tent by  some  of  the  existing  cabinet,  to 
get  his  claims  rather  promptly  allowed, 
realized  for  his  share  of  the  venture  the 
snug  sum  of  $35,000,  which,  with  his  pre- 
vious accumulations,  made  him  a  man  of 
fortune. 

The  year  1852  was  mostly  occupied  in 
making  the  tour  of  Europe,  and,  having 
returned  to  Montpelier  the  following  year, 
he  was  seized  with  what  was  supposed  to 
be  a  brain  fever,  which  terminated  fatally 
Sept.  23,  1853.  He  was  in  some  respects 
rather  a  peculiar  man — in  nothing  more 
so,  perhaps,  than  in  his  likes  and  dislikes, 
and  these  again  were  generally  as  pecul- 
iarly manifested.  The  former  might  al- 
ways be  known  by  his  open  commendation, 
and  the  latter  by  his  entire  silence  when 
the  names  of  the  objects  were  respectively 
mentioned.  This  seemed  to  grow  out  of 
his  constitutional  sensitiveness,  which  was 
often  affected  by  what  would  have  affected 
few  others,  which  he  could  not  help,  but 
which  his  natural  conscientiousness  en- 
abled him  so  to  correct  as  never  to  make 
the  matter  worse  by  detraction.  He  was 
most  constant  and'  faithful  to  those  who 
had  his  esteem  ;  while  to  those  who  had 
not,  he  manifested  only  a  negative  con- 
duct. But  with  his  few  peculiarities, 
Mr.  Keith  had  many  virtues.  He  was,  in 
all  his  deal,  one  of  the  most  strictly  honest 


men  in  the  world.  His  views  of  life,  so- 
ciety and  its  wants,  were  just  and  elevated, 
and  he  was  patriotic  and  liberal  in  con- 
tributing to  the  advancement  of  all  good 
public  objects.  His  character,  indeed, 
was  well  reflected  by  his  singular  will,  to 
which  we  alluded  in  a  description  of  our 
new  cemetery.  By  this  will  he  notices  a 
whole  score  of  such  as  have  gained  his  es- 
teem, by  bequests  of  valuable  keepsakes  or 
small  sums  of  money,  and  then  goes  on  to 
bequeath  handsome  sums  for  various  pub- 
lic objects,  among  which  was  $1000  for  a 
cemetery  for  Montpelier  village,  and  $500 
for  a  library  for  its  academy.  .And  thus 
he  has  identified  his  name  with  the  public 
interests  of  the  town  where  he  longest  re- 
sided, and  should  thus  be  remembered 
among  its  benefactors. 

Calvin  Jay  Keith  was  buried  in  the  fam- 
ily lot  of  Judge  Chapin  Keith,  in  Barre, 
but  a  monument  was  set  up  at  Montpelier 
by  his  administrator. 

Cheney  Keith,  the  fourth  son  of  Cha- 
pin Keith,  was  born  Jan.  1798.  He  mar- 
ried Judith  Wood,  who  is  still  living  and 
active,  July  '8 1 ,  though  but  a  few  days  of  80 
years  old.  Cheney  was  a  well-to-do  and 
industrious  man,  well  educated,  and  also  a 
leading  and  influential  man  in  town  bus- 
iness. He  died  Aug.  8,  1864,  in  his  67th 
year. 

Erasmus  Keith,  brother  of  Roswell, 
was  born  July  23,  1792;  died  Feb.  12, 
1813,  being  about  21  years  of  age. 

Leonard  Keith,  the  third  son  of  Judge 
Chapin,  was  born  July  15,  1795.  He  be- 
came one  of  the  leading  men  of  the  town. 
He  married  for  his  first  wife  Nancy  Choate, 
by  whom  he  had  several  children.  She 
dying,  he  married  for  his  second  wife  Su- 
san Cook,  who  is  still  living  July  '8 1 .  Leon- 
ard Keith  built  the  first  starch  factory 
in  town,  where  many  thousand  bushels  of 
potatoes  were  manufactvired  into  starch, 
yielding  a  large  income  to  the  manufac- 
terer,  and  a  ready  potato  maiket  to  all  the 
farmers  around.  He  died  Jan.  21,  1868, 
in  his  64th  year. 

JOSHUA   TWING. 
From  Obituary  in  Watchman  6^  Journal. 
Born  in  Wilbraham,  Mass. ;  for  40  years 


BARRE. 


49 


a  citizen  of  Barre ;  in  mill-building  long 
stood  without  a  known  rival.  His  ma- 
chine-shop and  mill-wrighting  establish- 
ment at  Barre  village  had  a  reputation  ex- 
tending far  beyond  the  town  and  county 
even.  It  is  the  boast  of  scores  of  mechan- 
ics that  they  learned  their  trade  of  Joshua 
Twing.  It  was  a  custom  with  him  to  en- 
courage poor  young  men  to  learn  a  trade, 
and  then,  with  a  good  character  and  dili- 
gent hand,  work  their  way  up  to  distinc- 
tion. He  first  learned  his  trade  as  an  ap- 
prentice to  a  machinist,  after  which  he 
was  emphatically  self-made  ;  and  the  mo- 
ment success  began  to  crown  his  labors 
lor  himself,  he  turned  to  his  straitened 
parents  and  provided  for  them.  In  this 
respect  his  example  was  like  that  of  Joseph 
to  his  father,  Jacob  ;  and  the  same  cup  of 
kindness  came  back  to  cheer  his  declining 
years,  from  the  hands  of  his  children. 
Strictly  honest  in  all  his  extensive  dealings, 
and  generous  to  a  fault,  the  memory  of 
him  embalmed  with  the  blessings  of  the 
poor,  he  still  left  an  ample  estate,  the  re- 
sult of  a  long  life  of  industry  and  personal 
prudence.  He  died  in  Montpelier,  at  the 
residence  of  his  son-in-law,  H.  S.  Loomis, 
in  his  82d  year,  and  labored  with  his  own 
hands  up  to  the  last  week  of  his  life.  He 
was  buried  in  Barre  Cemetery,  where  a 
fine  granite  monument  has  been  erected  to 
his  memory. 

SILAS   KETCHUM. 

From  the  Eulogy  delivered  before  the  Ne"v 

Hampshire  Antiquarian  Society, 

Jidy  20,   iSSo. 

BY  L.   W.   COGSWELL,  PKESIDENT. 

On  the  evening  of  the  19th  of  Nov.  1859, 
three  young  men  met  in  a  room  over  one 
of  the  stores  in  Hopkinton  village,  and 
formed  themselves  into  an  organization 
under  the  name  of  "The  Philomathic 
Club."  These  young  men  were  Silas 
Ketchum,  Darwin  C.  Blanchard  and  Geo. 
E.  Crowell.  The  number  of  this  club  was 
limited  to  seven.  It  was  made  a  part  of 
the  compact  "the  Club  should  never  cease 
except  by  unanimous  consent,  and  so  long 
as  two  of  its  members  lived."  The  orig- 
inal design  was  social  intercourse  and  lit- 
erary culture. 


A  private  collection  of  relics,  minerals 
and  natural  curiosities,  belonging  to  Mr. 
Ketchum,  was  in  May,  i860,  placed  in  a 
room  in  Mr.  CrowelPs  house,  fitted  for  the 
purpose,  and  dedicated  by  the  Club  Oct. 
13,  following,  in  which  room  the  Club 
met  till  Oct.  6,  1868.  Jan.  10,  '68,  the 
first  contribution  was  made  to  the  old  cab- 
inet. It  was  for  a  time  located  in  Hen- 
niker ;  May  8,  '72,  was  removed  to  Con- 
toocook.  From  this  beginning  has  come 
the  immense  number  of  articles  now  in 
the  possession  of  this  Society,  numbering 
more  than  35,000. 

Silas  Ketchum  was  chosen  Secretary  of 
the  Club,  Aug.  20,  1867,  which  office  he 
held  until  the  adoption  of  the  constitution 
of  the  New  Hampshire  Philomathic  and 
Antiquarian  Society,  Nov,  19,  1873. 

Silas  Ketchum,  son  of  Silas  and 
Cynthia  (Doty)  Ketchum,  was  born  in 
Barre,  Vt.,  Dec.  4,  1835,  His  grand- 
father was  Roger  West  Ketchum,  born  in 
Athol,  Mass.,  1770;  his  grand-mother  was 
Wealthy  Newcomb,  daughter  of  Bradford 
Newcomb,  and  grand-daughter  of  Silas 
Newcomb,  whose  mother  was  Jerusha 
Bradford,  daughter  of  Thomas  Bradford, 
and  great-grand-daughter  of  Major  Wm. 
Bradford,  son  of  William  Bradford,  who 
came  to  Plymouth  in  the  May  Flower,  and 
was  Governor  of  the  colony  36  years.  Mr. 
Ketchum  was  also  descended  from  Ed- 
ward Doty,  one  of  the  41  men  who  in  the 
cabin  of  the  May  Flower  affixed  their  names 
to  ^h^  first  constitidioft  of  governnioit  ever 
subscribed  to  by  a  whole  people. 

He  was  a  good  boy,  thoughtful  beyond 
his  years,  but  feeble  in  his  childhood,  un- 
able to  ever  complete  a  full  term  of  school 
till  after  twelve ;  fond  of  fishing  in  his 
youth,  but  as  he  grew  old,  turned  his 
leisure  moments  to  books.  In  1854,  his 
father  removed  from  Barre,  Vt.,  to  Hop- 
kinton, N.  H.,  and  Silas  learned  and  fol- 
lowed the  trade  of  a  shoemaker  till  1855. 
But  while  steadily  working  at  his  trade,  a 
more  and  more  increasing  desire  for  a 
knowledge  that  could  take  him  upward  out 
of  his  every-day  duties  pervaded  him,  and 
on  his  father's  death,  relying  upon  his  own 
abilities,  he  resolved  to  obtain  an  educa- 


50 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tion.  He  attended  Hopkinton  Academy 
several  terms,  teaching  after  his  second 
term  in  the  Academy,  in  Nelson  and  in 
Amherst ;  fitted  for  college  ;  did  not  enter 
on  account  of  severe  illness  ;  pursued  his 
studies  under  private  instructors,  and 
drawn  toward  the  ministry,  entered  Bangor 
Theo.  Sem.  in  i860;  Apr.  4,  i860;  mar- 
ried Georgia  C,  daughter  of  Elbridge 
Hardy,  Esq.,  of  Amherst,  N.  H.,  a  lady 
of  culture  and  devoted  companion  to  him 
until  his  death.  While  at  Bangor  he  sup- 
ported himself  and  wife  by  working  at  his 
trade  ;  pursued  a  full  course  of  study,  never 
missing  but  one  lecture  or  recitation  ;  grad- 
uating in  1863.  From  Dec.  ''63,  he  preach- 
ed to  the  Congregational  church  in  Wards- 
boro,  Vt.,  nearly  2  years ;  moved  to  Brat- 
tleboro,  to  become  associate  editor  with 
D.  L.  MilIiken,of  "  Tlie  Vermont  Record" 
and  Vermont  School  Journal.  Sept.  17, 
1867,  ordained  pastor  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church  at  Bristol,  N.  H.  ;  resigned 
in  1855,  on  account  of  ill-health  ;  officiated 
in  a  small  church  in  Maplewood,  Mass., 
till  Oct.  1876;  occupied  the  pulpit  of  the 
Congregational  church  at  Henniker  sev- 
eral months,  where  he  received  a  unani- 
mous and  earnest  call  to  become  its  pastor ; 
declined  to  accept  one  at  Poquonock,  Ct., 
July  16,  1877,  which  church  he  was  pastor 
of  at  his  death. 

During  the  whole  time  as  student  and 
preacher,  he  was  a  diligent  collector  of  any 
and  every  thing  of  a  rare  and  curious  na- 
ture. He  presented  to  the  New  Hamp- 
shire Historical  Society  512  volumes;  to 
the  New  Hampshire  Antiquarian  Society 
1200  volumes  and  3000  pamphlets ;  and  to 
the  American  Congregational  Association 
of  Boston,  352  volumes.  His  private  li- 
brary, at  the  time  of  his  death,  consisted 
of  2500  volumes,  comprising  many  works 
of  rare  merit.  Of  all  these  societies  he  was 
a  member,  and  also  of  several  others  :  The 
New  England  Historic  and  Genealogical 
Society  of  Boston,  the  Historical  Society 
of  New  York,  the  Prince  Society  of  Boston, 
and  the  Society  of  Antiquity  of  Worcester, 
Mass.,  and  others.  He  was  Grand  Chap- 
lain of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  F.  and  A. 
Masons  of  New  Hampshire  from  187 1  to 


1875,  and  was  many  years  an  honorary 
member  of  the  Orphans'  Home  A.ssociation. 
He  was  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the 
New  Hampshire  Antiquarian  Society  from 
1873  to  1875;  President  in  1876,  "t] ,  '78, 
and  was  for  many  years  connected  with 
the  press  as  correspondent,  essayist  and 
reviewer,  and  had  at  one  time  a  tempting 
offer  to  enter  the  employ  of  Harper  Broth- 
ers, of  New  York,  which  he  declined,  pre- 
ferring to  continue  his  work  as  a  minister 
of  the  gospel. 

His  first  public  address  was  delivered 
before  the  Lyceum  at  Warner,  N.  H.,  in 
the  autumn  of  1858  ;  his  subject  was  "  Philip 
at  Mount  Hope."  His  published  works 
are,  A  Farewell  Discourse,  Wardsboro, 
Vt.,  in  1865.  History  of  the  Philomathic 
Club,  in  1875.  Eulogy  on  Henry  Wilson, 
at  Maiden,  Mass.,  in  1876.  Diary  of  the 
Invasion  of  Canada  by  the  American  Army 
in  1775.  Special  Geography  of  New 
Hampshire  in  1877.  Paul  on  Mars  Hill, 
in  1879.  Historic  Masonry.  Original 
Sources  of  Historic  Knowledge,  in  1879. 
Address  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  New 
Hampshire  Antiquarian  Society,  July  15, 
1879.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  had  in 
course  of  preparation  histories  of  the 
Ketchum  and  Doty  families,  and  for  some 
time  had  been  at  work  upon  an  elaborate 
Dictionary  of  New  Hampshire  Biography, 
that  he  intended  should  be  the  crowning 
work  of  his  life,  and  upon  which  he  be- 
stowed most  marvelous  labor  and.  care. 
Over  1000  sketches  were  completed,  and 
material  for  1500  more  was  well  in  hand. 
Worn  down  with  such  incessant  toil,  and 
being  desirous  of  once  more  reaching  the 
town  which  had  so  long  been  his  home, 
he  left  the  scene  of  his  labors,  reached  the 
home  of  an  intimate  friend  at  Dorchester 
Highlands,  Mass.,  where  he  passed  peace- 
fully away  upon  Saturday  morning,  April 
24,  1880.  One  of  the  most  quiet,  un- 
assuming, unselfish  of  beings,  and  one  of 
the  most  industrious,  rarest  and  best  of 
men.  In  his  youth,  in  his  whole  life,  he 
was  genial,  gentlemanly ;  had  great  vigor 
of  mind,  fertility  of  resource,  and  a  most 
complete  thoroughness  of  execution  in  all 
he  did  ;  he  excelled  as  a  teacher,  and  as  a 


BARRE. 


51 


preacher  in  the  pulpit,  meeting  his  congre- 
gation with  something  fresh  and  original. 
He  was  pleasing.  His  short,  sharp,  crisp 
sentences  arrested  his  auditors  ;  they  could 
but  listen  till  the  last  word  was  spoken. 
Earnest  in  his  utterances,  dehberate  in  ar- 
gument, concise  in  his  statements,  with 
purity  of  diction  and  loftiness  of  thought, 
he  commanded  the  interest  of  his  congrega- 
tion, and  where  he  preached  for  any  length 
of  time  it  was  soon  doubled  and  trebled. 
Of  him  as  an  antiquarian  and  historian, 
his  collections  in  the  rooms  of  this  society, 
one  of  the  very  largest  of  its  kind  in  this 
country,  speaks  better 'words  of  commend- 
ation for  him  than  I  can  utter,  and  stands 
as  a  more  enduring  monument  than  words 
can  erect  in  honor  of  him. 

Of  his  domestic  relations  suffice  it  to 
say,  notwithstanding  the  immense  amount 
of  labor  performed  by  him,  his  home,  his 
family,  was  never  forgotten,  within  that 
sacred,  happy  circle  he  was  the  central 
light.  But  he  is  gone  from  us,  and  is  now 
transfigured  and  with  the  immortals.  He 
was  taken  in  the  prime  of  life,  with  so 
much  accomplished  and  so  much  left  un- 
done. 

(From  tlie  resohitious  passed  at  this  meeting  of 
the  N.  H   Antiq.  &  Hist   Society  ) 

"We  here  formally  declare,  and  cause  to 
be  recorded  for  posterity  to  learn,  that 
to  the  Rev.  Silas  Ketchum's  thought,  per- 
sonal labors,  generous  munificence,  and 
untiring  zeal,  this  New  Hampshire  Anti- 
quarian Society  is  indebted  more  than  to 
any  others,  not  only  for  its  existence,  but 
for  its  present  proportions  and  prosperity." 

"  We  recognize  that  New  Hampshire  as 
a  state  has  lost  one  of  her  richest  schol- 
ars, most  logical  thinkers,  and  most  accu- 
rate historians,  and  society  a  most  exem- 
plary Christian  man,  whose  daily  walk  was 
an  inspiration  to  holy  living.  " 

STAFFORD  & HOLDEN  MANUFACTURING  CO. 

From  a  very  interesting  description  in 
the  Argus  and  Patriot,  of  Nov.  13,  1877, 
with  present  statement  of  the  Company, 
June,  1881. 

"  The  foremost  industry  in  Barre  to-day 
( 1 877)  is  the  manufacture  of  forks  and  ice 
tools.  In  1861,  two  Brookfield  men,  Her- 
rick  and  Adams,  established  themselves  at 
the  mill-privilege  in  the  upper  part  of  Barre 


village  ;  run  four  fires  and  one  trip-ham- 
mer, and  turned  out  from  300  to  600  dozen 
per  year  of  round-tined  hay  and  manure- 
forks.  Frank  Safford  and  Loren  D.  Blanch- 
ard  bought  the  business  in  1864,  and 
Blanchard  sold  out  to  Clark  H olden.  The 
first  year's  business  of  this  new  firm  was 
1500  dozen  forks.  In  '68  they  added  the 
manufacture  of  ice-plows  and  tools.  From 
'68  to  'jy,  sold  some  years  250  to  300  ice- 
plows  with  the  ice-tools :  Among  other 
partners  and  stockholders  to  the  present, 
have  been  Luke  and  Ira  Trow,  Hial  O. 
Hatch  (foreman,)  L.  T.  Kinney  ;  in  March 
'76,  the  reorganization  as  a  stock  com- 
pany ;  Stafford  and  Holden  half  owners ; 
of  the  other  half  ten  other  citizens  of 
Barre  owners;  loss  of  some  $12,000  by 
Chicago  fire ;  totally  destroyed  by  fire 
March,  'jj  ;  rebuilt  same  year  ;  foundation 
and  flume  split  granite  ;  f5rge-room  40  by 
100  feet;  20  fires;  5  60-pound  trip  ham- 
mers and  ice-tool  machinery  ;  cost  about 
$6,000.  The  company  use  cast-steel  in  all 
their  manufactures,  made  especially  for 
them.  There  are  6  polishing  machines  for 
forks,  one  for  ferrule  and  one  for  wooden 
handles;  amount  of  work  about  15,000 
dozen  per  year  of  not  less  than  60  different 
patterns  ;  employ  about  50  workmen.  Ire- 
land and  Scotland  take  most  of  the  forks. 
They  go  to  Germany  and  South  America. 
Ice-tools  to  Germany  and  Japan." 

Statement  of  the  Company,  ]\xvi^,  1881  : 
"  17,000  dozen  forks  made  in  1880;  this 
year  about  the  same  ;  about  $3,000  worth 
of  new  machinery  put  in ;  is  now  one  of 
the  most  perfectly  equipped  shops  in  the 
country;  directors  :  Josiah  Wood,  B.  W. 
Braley,  Dexter  Trow,  E.  B.  Wood,  Hor- 
ace Fifield  ;  Clark  Holden,  superintendent 
and  treasurer  ;  Nat.  Whittier,  assistant. 

LIST   OF   PREACHERS 

,  OF  THE 

METHODIST   EPISCOPAL   CHURCH    OF   UARRE. 

1796,  Nicholas  Snethen ;  1797,  Ralph 
Williston  ;  1798 and '99,  Joseph  Crawford; 
1799,  Elijah  Chichester;  1800,  Timothy 
Dewey  ;  1801 ,  Truman  Bishop  and  Thomas 
Branch  ;  1802,  Solomon  Langdon  and  Paul 
Dustin ;  1803,  Samuel  Draper  and  Oliver 
Beale;  1804,  Oliver  Beale ;  1805,  Elijah 
Hedding  and  Daniel  Young;  1806,  Philip 
Munger  and  Jonathan  Cheney ;  1807,  Sam- 
uel Thompson  and  Eleazer  Wells ;  180S, 
Solomon  Sias  ;  1809,  Warren  Banister  and 
George  Gary;    1810,  Eleazer  Wells   and 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Squire  Streeter;  1811,  Nathaniel  W. 
Stearns  and  John  Jewett;  1812,  Ebenezer 
F.  Newell  and  Joseph  Dennett;  1813, 
David  Kilburn ;  1814,  David  Kilburn  and 
Jason  Walker;  181 5,  Joel  Steele;  1816, 
Joel  Steele  and  Thomas  C.  Pierce ;  1817 
and  '18,  Leonard  Frost;  1819,  Thomas  C. 
Pierce;  1820,  Squire  B.  Haskell  and  E. 
Dunham  ;  1821,  John  F.  Adams  and  Abra- 
ham Holway  ;  1822,  John  F.  Adams^  D. 
Leslie  and  Z.  Adams  ;  1823,  Samuel  Norris 
and  Hascall  Wheelock;  1824,  D.  Kilburn, 
H.  Wheelock  and  A.  H.  Houghton;  1825, 
J.  Lord,  D.  Leslie  and  Elihu  Scott;  1826, 

A.  D.  Merrill  and  J.  Templeton ;  1827,  J. 

B.  White,  E.  Jordan  and  R.  L.  Harvey ; 
1828,  Amasa  Buck  and  D.  Stickney ;  1829, 
J.  Templeton  and  J.  Nayson ;  1830,  J.  A. 
Scarritt  and  R.  H.  Deraing;  1831,  N.  W. 
Scott  and  R.  H.  Deming;  1832,  N.  W. 
Scott  and  George  F.  Crosby;  1833,  S.  H. 
Cutler  and  J.  Nayson  ;  1834,  N.  Howe  and 
Otis  F.  Curtis;  1835,  Geo.  Putnam  and  I. 
Wooster;  1836,  Elihu  Scott  and  D.  Wil- 
cox; 1837,  E.  J.  Scott  and  Moses  Lewis; 
1838,  N.  W.  Aspinwall;  1839,  N.  Culver; 
1840  and  '41,  J.  Currier;  1842  and  '43,  J. 
L.  Slauson;  1844  and '45,  A.  Webster; 
1846,  J.  W.  Perkins:  1847 and '48,  B.  Bed- 
ford ;  1849  and  '50,  C.  Fales  ;  185 1  and  '52, 
J.  S.  Dow;  1853,  E.  Copeland;  1854,  E. 
Robinson;  1855,  E.  Copeland;  1S56  and 
'57,  Isaac  McAnn  ;  1858,  A.  T.  Bullard  ; 
1859  and  '60,  J.  L.Roberts;  1861  and  '62, 
David  Packer  ;  1863  and  '64,  H.  K.  Cobb  ; 
1865,  J.  W.  Bemis;  1866  and  '67,  Lewis 
Hill;  1868,  Joshua  Gill;  1869,  Joseph  A. 
Sherburn ;  1870,  '71  and  '72,  Peter  Mer- 
rill; 1873,  J.  M.  PulTer,  (deceased  while 
pastor)  ;  1874,  Walter  Underwood;  1875, 
■76  and  ""JT,  W.  H.  Wight;  1878,  '79  and 
'80,  Harvey  Webster ;  1881,  J.  R.  Bartlett. 

The  above  list  of  preachers  received 
since  in  press  from  Rev.  Mr.  Bartlett  now 
at  Barre,  Editor  of  the  Christian  Messen- 
gcr,  author  of  the  interesting  pamphlet 
"  Methodism  in  Williamstown."  Rev. 
Mr.  Bartlett  has  taken  in  hand  a  complete 
history  of  the  Methodists  in  Barre  which 
will  be  in  pamphlet,  and  is  promised  to  the 
supplement  volume  of  this  work.       Ed. 


TELEGRAPH   OFFICE. 

The  completion  of  the  railroad  to  Barre 
being  accomplished  and  thoroughly  cele- 
brated, the  ne.xt  thing  in  connection  with 
the  railroad  looked  for,  was  the  telegraph 
at  the  village  depot,  which  was  duly  opened, 
sending  its  first  telegram,  Oct.  i,  1875. 

The  Barre  Fire  Company,  page  36,  took 
the  second  prize,  $200  at  the  trial  in  Bur- 
lington. 

Samuel  Goodell,  who  resides  at  Mas- 
sena,  N.  Y.,  and  who  frequently  writes  for 
the  newspapers — we  have  seen  his  verses 
in  iht  Ba?'re  Ejiierprise  of  late — was  "a 
Barre  boy,"  and  there  are  others  natives 
of  the  town,  both  among  the  living  and 
the  dead,  who  should  be  all  counted  back 
to  Barre  before  the  record  is  finally  closed 
for  the  first  hundred  years  of  her  history. 

Addenda:  Page  16.  The  number  of 
soldiers  credited  to  Barre  in  the  county 
table  is  incorrect.  See  selectmen's  report 
for  1865  ;  page  42. 

Page  24,  2d  col.,  not  I.  W.  but  I.  N. 
Camp;  page  25,  2d  col.,  comma  and  not 
period  after  bank,  and  next  after,  small,  not 
large  a,  one  connected  sentence.  Barre 
Academy,  same  page,  the  name  of  Miss 
Emily  Frett  should  have  been  added 
to  the  list  of  teachers,  a  neice  of  Mrs. 
Spaulding,  who  taught  several  years  in  this 
institution,  now  teacher  in  a  normal  school 
in  Platteville,  Wis. 

Goddard  Seminary,  page  26,  the  dates 
for,  was  taken  from  the  record  of  1880, 
since  which.  Dr.  Braley  has  died — see  no- 
tice page  25  ;  and  J.  M.  Haynes,  Esq.,  of 
St.  Albans,  is  present  vice  president.  The 
name,  also,  of  the  second  principal,  page 
25,  is  Hawes  and  not  Harris — F.  M. 
Hawes.  Page  48,  for  Susan  Cook,  read 
Mrs.  Susan  Town  Cook. 

We  must  also  ask  leniency  for  a  few 
typographical  errors  in  the  County  chapter. 
The  proof  sent  to  the  author  at  a  distance 
returned  too  late  for  corrections  in  place ; 
we  noted  them  for  insertion  here,  and  have 
made  the  mistake  to  lose  the  paper,  and  to 
send  the  proofs  with  them  to  another 
writer  ;  they  may  be  added  to  the  addenda 
at  close  of  the  County. 


BERLIN. 


53 


BERLIN. 


15Y    SYLVANUS    F.    NYE. 


Berlin  in  Washington  Co..  lat.  40° 
13/  long.  4°  25/  near  the  centre  of  the 
State,  bounded  N.  by  Middlesex,  Mont- 
pelier  and  part  of  East  Montpelier,  E.  by 
Barre  and  part  of  Williamstown,  S.  by 
Northfield  and  part  of  Williamstown,  and 
W.  by  Moretown,  was  chartered  June  8, 
1763,  wherein  it  was  declared  "and  is 
hereby  incorporated  into  a  township  by 
the  name  of  Berlin.''' — Book  of  Charters, 
page  473-474  :  70  equal  shares. 

The  first  settlement  was  commenced  in 
the  summer  of  1785,  by  Ebenezer  San- 
born from  Corinth,  on  what  was  afterwards 
known  as  the  "  Bradford  farm,"  about  half 
a  mile  from  the  mouth  of  Dog  river,  and 
Joseph  Thurber  from  N.  H.,  on  a  place 
near  the  mouth  of  the  same  river,  since 
known  as  the  "  Shepard  farm."  Sanborn 
and  Thurber  removed  the  next  year  to  the 
State  of  New  York.  In  17S6,  Moses 
Smith  moved  into  the  S.  E.  corner  of  the 
town,  and  in  1787,  Daniel  Morse  from  the 
town  of  Washington,  with  his  family  on 
to  the  place  left  by  Thurber,  and  Jacob 
Fowler  from  Corinth,  to  that  of  Sanborn, 
and  John  Lathrop  from  Bethel,  into  the 
S.  E.  part  of  the  town.  In  1788,  Daniel 
Morse  left,  and  his  place  was  occupied  by 
Hezekiah  Silloway  from  Corinth.  In 
1789,  eight  families  were  added,  making 
in  all  thirteen,  and  in  1790,  eight  more. 
The  first  town  meeting  was  warned  by 
John  Taplin,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and 
held  March  31,  1 791,  at  the  dwelling-house 
of  Aaron  Strong  ;  James  Sawyer,  modera- 
tor, David  Nye,  clerk,  Zacharilh  Perrin, 
Eleazer  Hubbard  and  James  Sawyer,  se- 
lectmen ;  Micajah  Ingham,  constable. 
The  first  roads  through  the  town  were 
"  the  old  Brookfield  road,"  entering  the 
town  from  the  south  and  passing  west  of 
the  Pond  to  Montpelier  and  the  "  Coos 
road  "  from  Connecticut  river  to  Burling- 
ton, which  passed  through  the  town  from 
Barre  village  to  the  first  named  road  at 
the  "  Bugbee  place."  The  first  school  in 
town  was  kept  in  a  log  school-house, 
standing   on     east  street    near   the    brick 


house  built  by  the  late  Dea.  David  Nye, 
by  Mrs.  Titcomb  in  the  summer  of  1794, 
and  by  the  wife  of  Dr.  Collins  in  1795. 

The  first  school  on  Dog  river  was  kept 
by  Dr.  Gershom  Heaton  in  the  winter  of 
1794-5,  in  a  log-house  near  the  residence 
of  the  late  Justus  Brown. 

The  first  saw-mill  was  built  by  Eleazer 
Hubbard  in  1 791,  on  the  upper  falls  of 
Pond  brook,  now  known  as  "  Benjamin's 
Falls,"  and  a  grist-mill  a  little  below  the 
saw-mill  one  year  later.  The  nearest  mill 
for  some  time  after  the  first  settlement  was 
at  Corinth,  more  than  28  miles  distant,  and 
not  patronized  by  our  settlers  to  a  great 
extent,  who  preferred  to  live  on  pound 
cake  ;  the  recipe  for  making  :  a  hole  burned 
in  the  top  of  a  large  stump ;  the  grain 
put  in,  pounded  to  such  fineness  as  the 
pounder  could  afford,  and  then  made  into 
bread. 

The  first  store  and  tavern  was  kept  by 
Jonas  Parker  in  the  house  afterwards  the 
residence  of  "  Israel  Dewey,  about  1800." 
The  next  was  opened  in  the  building  for- 
merly standing  south  of  the  above,  by 
Charles  Huntoon,  about  1806.  A  year  or 
two  after,  he  built  at  the  corner  opposite 
the  large  square  house  used  for  many  years 
as  a  tavern.  His  successors  in  the  mer- 
cantile business  were  Bemsley  Huntoon, 
Orrin  Carpenter  (in  18 16),  Bigelow  & 
Wheatley,  Andrew  Wheatley,  Farmer's 
and  Mechanics'  Interest  Co.,  Heaton  and 
Denney  who.  closed  out  the  business  soon 
after  1850,  since  which  time  there  has  been 
no  store  kept  in  the  town.  The  town  is 
diversified  by  hills  and  valleys.  Stevens' 
branch  crosses  the  N.  E.  corner.  A  little 
east  of  the  centre  lies  the  valley  of  the 
Pond  and  Pond  brook,  and  in  the  western 
part  the  valley  of  Dog  river.  The  eastern 
part  of  the  town  was  originally  covered 
with  a  dense  growth  of  hard  wood,  maple, 
beach,  birch,  elm,  etc.,  with  a  mixture  of 
spruce,  hemlock  and  basswood,  and  in  the 
swamps  cedar  and  ash.  On  the  mountain 
in  the  centre  upon  the  south  side  of  the 
town  there  is  a  quantity  of  butternut,  while 
west  of  Dog  river  there  is  a  larger  propor- 
tion of  spruce  and  hemlock.     The  soil  is 


54 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


well  adapted  to  the  growth  of  English 
grains  and  grasses,  and  in  favorable  loca- 
tions Indian  corn  is  cultivated  in  per- 
fection. 

The  first  marriage  of  parties  living  in 
town  was  Joshua  Swan  to  Miss  Collins,  in 

.     Tradition  says,  there  being  snow 

on  the  ground,  the  bride-elect  took  her 
seat  on  a  hand-sled,  and  the  gallant  bride- 
groom, with  one  or  two  to  assist,  drew  her 
to  Middlesex,  where  lived  the  nearest  jus- 
tice of  the  peace  (probably  Esq.  Putnam) 
where  the  twain  were  duly  made  one  flesh, 
when  the  bride  resumed  her  seat  upon  the 
sled,  and  returned  home  b)  the  way  she 
came,  on  the  same  day,  having  made  a 
bridal  tour  of  about  15  miles. 

The  first  births  in  town  were  Abigail  K., 
daughter  of  Jacob  and  Abigail  Black,  in 

1789,  who  became  the  wife  of  Ira  Andrews, 
and  died  in  1864,  and  Porter  Perrin,  Feb. 

1790,  who  died  May  17,  1871. 

The  first  deaths  were  in  1789,  an  infant 
child  of  John  Lathrop,  and  a  little  later, 
the  Widow  Collins,  aged  88  years. 

PHYSICIANS. 

Dr.  Ebenezer  Collins,  who  remained 
in  town  but  a  short  time. 

Dr.  Gershom  Heatox,  born  in  Swan- 
zey,  N.  H.,  1773  ;  removedatan  early  age 
to  Hanover,  N.  H. ;  graduated  at  the  med- 
ical department  in  Dartmouth  College 
about  1795,  and  came  about  the  same  time 
to  Berlin  ;  but  after  a  short  practice,  quit 
his  profession,  went  to  farming,  and  event- 
ually accumulated  a  handsome  property : 
died  Jan.  1850,  aged  "]"]  years. 

Dr.  Jacob  Miller,  a  native  of  Middle- 
boro,  Mass. ;  graduated  at  Dartmouth 
College  in  1804;  pursued  his  medical 
studies  with  Nathan  Smith,  M.  D.,  and 
attended  lectures  at  Dartmouth  Medical 
College.  His  name  is  not  found,  how- 
ever, in  the  list  of  graduates.  He  married 
Parthenia  Dewey, of  Hanover,  N.  H.,  Mar. 
10,  1808,  (born  in  Hanover, N.  H.,  Feb, 
13,  1781,  M.  2d,  Thomas  Beach,  of  Strat- 
ford, N.  H.,  where  she  died  21,  Feb.  1846), 
and  probably  settled  in  Berlin  about  this 
time.  He  was  regarded  as  a  physician  of 
uncommon  promise,  but  fell  a  victim  to 


the  spotted  fever  then  prevailing  as  an 
epidemic  through  the  State,  and  died  Jan. 
19,  18 13.  He  left  one  son,  Jedediah,  born 
in  Berlin,  Sept.  15,  1811  ;  graduated M.  D. 
at  Dartmouth  College  in  1839,  '^^'^^  <^'it;d  in 
New  York  city  a  few  years  since. 

DR.  JOHN  WINSLOW 

was  born  in  Pomfret,  Vt.,  Mar.  10,  1788; 
read  with  his  uncle.  Dr.  Joseph  Winslow, 
of  Windsor,  attending  lectures  at  Dart- 
mouth Medical  College,  and  practicing 
with  his  uncle  in  Windsor  2  years.  He 
settled  in  Berlin  after  the  death  of  Dr. 
Miller  in  1813.  Dr.  W.  held  a  good  rank 
with  the  practitioners  of  his  time,  being 
frequently  called  as  counsel,  and  having 
an  extensive  practice  in  Berlin  and  other 
towns  adjoining,  until  he  relinquished  prac- 
tice, soon  after  the  death  of  his  first  wife. 
He  was  respected  as  a  citizen  for  his  lib- 
erality in  whatever  contributed  to  the  pub- 
lic weal,  and  as  a  Christian  for  his  con- 
sistent lite  and  support  to  the  church  and 
its  institutions.  He  died  July  i,  1871, 
aged  83  years. 

Dr.  Winslow  was  married  ist  to  Sarah 
Bishop,  (born  in  Windsor,  Dec.  17,  1791  ; 
died  Apr.  7,  1835)  ;  2d,  toKeziahHeaton, 
(born  in  Hanover,  N.  H.,  1800)  :  children, 
a  daughter,  who  died  before  the  death  of 
his  first  wife,  and  a  son,  JohnF.  Winslow, 
who  now  resides  in  Berlin.  ' 

"  DR.    ORIX    SMITH, 

son  of  Christopher  Smith,  born  in  Marlow, 
N.  H.,  July  27,  1807,  at  an  early  age  re- 
moved with  his  parents  to  Williamstown, 
Vt. ;  when  nineteen,  studied  medicine  with 
Dr.  Z.  O.  Burnham,  of  Williamstown,  and 
in  1830,  received  the  degree  of  M.  D.  in 
the  University  of  Vermont.  He  com- 
menced practice  in  Berlin,  and  heartily  de- 
voted himself  to  his  profession.  Nov.  1830, 
he  was  married  to  Julia,  daughter  of  Abel 
Knapp,  Esq.  Of  7  children  by  this  mar- 
riage, one  son  and  daughter  only  are  now, 
(1873),  living,  in  Illinois. 

Dr.  Smith  repeatedly  held  town  offices ; 
in  1834,  '35,  ''2,'] ,  '49  was  town  represent- 
ative, and  after  a  successful  practice  of 
nearly  20  years  in  Berlin,  removed  to 
Montpelier,  and  in  1853,  became  profes.sor 


BERLIN. 


55 


of  obstetrics,  etc.,  in  the  University  of 
Vermont,  but  removed  to  Chicago  finally, 
where  he  held  a  high  position  as  a  phy- 
sician. He  died  in  Chicago,  Aug.  1867, 
aged  60  years. 

FIRST   SETTLERS. 

Jacob  Fowler  was  the  first  settler  who 
resided  here  permanently,  or  left  descend- 
ants in  town.  He  was  a  hunter,  and  had 
often  been  through  the  town  on  Winooski 
river  and  its  branches  during,  and  perhaps 
previous  to,  the  Revolutionary  War.  At 
tlie  time  of  the  burning  of  Royalton  in 
1780,  when  the  Indians  went  down  the 
Winooski,  he  was  up  Waterbury  river. 
On  returning  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  he 
came  on  the  trail,  and  followed  it  back  to 
Berlin  Pond.  Finding  indications  of  en- 
campments at  the  mouth  of  Dog  river,  and 
on  the  west  side  of  Berlin  Pond,  near  the 
neck,  he  supposed  they  had  been  to  New- 
bury or  Corinth  until  he  arrived  at  this 
place,  when  the  trail  bearing  to  the  south, 
he  concluded  they  had  come  from  another 
direction.  He  has  sometimes  been  ac- 
cused, but  probably  unjustly,  of  having 
been  a  Tory.  It  is  said  that  he  was  en- 
listed in  the  garrison  stationed  at  Corinth 
during  the  latter  part  of  the  Revolutionary 
War,  and  was  employed  by  Gen.  Wait, 
the  commander,  as  an  Indian  scout.  It  is 
related  of  him,  by  the  late  Hon.  D.  P. 
Thompson  : 

"  I  used  to  think,"  said  the  hunter,  "I 
had  as  much  wit  as  any  wild  varmint  that 
was  ever  scared  up  in  our  woods.  But  a 
sly  old  moose  once  completely  baifled  me 
in  trying  to  get  a  shot  at  him.  This  an- 
imal's usual  range  was  on  Irish  hill,  in  the 
vicinity  of  Berlin  Pond.  This  I  discovered 
by  finding  one  day,  as  I  was  coming  along 
the  margin  of  the  pond,  a  path  leading 
down  to  the  water,  which  I  knew,  by  the 
tracks  of  great  size,  and  of  different  de- 
grees of  freshness,  was  made  by  a  large 
moose  that  must  have  come  down  daily  to 
drink.  On  making  this  discovery  I  re- 
solved to  have  him.  But  after  trying  on 
three  different  days  to  get  a  shot  at  him,  I 
utterly  failed ;  for  either  by  the  keenness 
of  his  sight,  or  smell,  or  hearing,  he  al- 
ways took  the  alarm,  and  made  off  without 
allowing  me  more  than  a  mere  glimpse  of 
him.  As  I  was  turning  away  from  the 
last  attempt,  it  occurred  to  me  there  might 


be  other  ways  to  choke  a  dog  than  by  giv- 
ing him  bread  and  butter,  so  I  laid  a  plan 
my  moose  would  not  be  looking  for.  The 
next  day  I  shouldered  a  bear  trap  I  pos- 
sessed, weighing  nearly  forty  pounds,  with 
the  iron  teeth  more  than  an  inch  long, 
went  up  to  the  pond,  and  set  it  at  the 
water's  edge  in  the  path  where  he  came 
down  to  drink,  chained  it  securely  to  a 
sapling,  and  went  home.  The  next  day  I 
went  there  again,  and  as  I  drew  near  my 
trap,  I  saw  a  monstrous  moose  stand  over 
the  spot  where  I  had  set  it.  He  had  got  one 
fore-foot  into  it,  and  those  murderous  in- 
terlocking teeth  had  clenched  his  fetlock 
and  held  him  like  a  vice.  The  next  mo- 
ment I  put  a  bullet  through  his  heart,  and 
brought  him  to  the  ground,  when  cutting 
out  his  tongue,  lips,  and  the  best  part  of  a 
round,  I  went  home  not  a  little  proud  of 
the  exploit  of  outwitting  him  at  last. 

It  is  said  that  Fowler  spent  the  last  years 
of  his  life  in  Canada,  and  died  there  at  an 
advanced  age. 

HEZEKIAH    SILLOWAY 

came  to  Berlin  from  Corinth  in  1788,  and 
settled  on  the  "  Shepard  farm"  at  the 
mouth  of  Dog  river,  where  he  resided 
about  twenty  years,  when  he  sold  the  farm 
to  Mr.  Shepard,  and  removed  to  Mont- 
pelier,  where  he  lived  till  his  death,  at  the 
age  of  90  years.  He  had  been  a  Revolu- 
tionary soldier. 

HON.    SALVIN   COLLINS, 

-,  Mar.  6,  1768, 


born  in  Southboro,  — 
when  about  twenty-three,  came  to  Berlin, 
and  purchased  a  farm  adjoining  Zachariah 
Perrin  and  Jabez  Ellis,  to  this  day  known 
as  the  old  Collins  farm.  He  married  Re- 
becca Wilder,  of  Lancaster,  Mass.,  and 
had  5  children.  His  eldest  daughter  mar- 
ried Hon.  John  Spaulding,  of  Montpelier. 
After  14  or  15  years,  Mr.  Collins  sold  his 
farm  to  Zachariah  Perrin,  and  moved  to 
the  "Corners,"  then  containing  a  store, 
tavern  and  several  mechanics  shops.  In 
1805  and  '6  he  was  representative  of  the 
town;  in  18 11,  assistant  Judge  of  the  new 
Co.  of  Jefferson,  and  took  up  his  residence 
at  Montpelier  village.  In  18 12  he  re- 
ceived a  second  election  as  County  Judge, 
and  in  181 5,  was  elected  Judge  of  Probate 
of  Washington  Co.,  to  which  office  he  re- 
ceived five  successive  elections,  a  greater 
number  then  ever  was  received  in  this  dis- 
trict by  any  man  except  Judge  Loomis. 
For  the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life,  at 
least,  he  was  constantly  in  the  commission 
of  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace,  and  for 


56 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  greater  portion  of  the  time  did  a  large 
share  of  the  justice  business  of  the  village. 
He  was  one  of  the  earliest  and  most  ex- 
emplary members  of  the  Congregational 
church'  of  Berlin,  and  on  removing  to 
Montpelier,  united  himself  with  the  Con- 
gregational church  of  this  place,  of  which 
in  a  few  years  he  was  chosen  a  deacon,  and 
as  such  officiated  for  the  remainder  of  his 
life.  His  tii;st  wife  dying  in  1816,  he  mar- 
ried Mrs.  Lucy  Clark,  who  survived  him 
about  8  years.  Unobtrusive,  unassuming, 
quiet,  social  and  intelligent,  few  men  were 
better  calculated  to  make  friends  than 
Judge  Collins,  and  few  men  ever  had  more 
of  them.  His  abiding  integrity  was  never 
doubted  ;  while  the  offices  to  which  he  was 
time  and  again  elected  show  in  what  esti- 
mation his  intellectual  powers,  though  un- 
aided by  any  but  the  commonest  of  educa- 
tion, were  held  by  the  public.  He  died 
Nov.  9,  1831,  age  63;  an  extensive  circle 
of  relatives  and  the  public  as  mourners.- — 
[From  D.  P.  Thompson. 

JOHN    TAPLIN,    ESQ. 

John  Taplin,  who  though  by  common 
usage  entitled  to  the  military  appellation 
of  Major  and  the  civil  one  of  Honorable, 
was  yet  generally  known  by  the  unpretend- 
ing designation  of  Esquire  Taplin,  was 
born  in  Marlboro,  Mass.,  1748.  In  about 
1764,  he  removed  with  his  father,  Colonel 
John  Taplin,  to  Newbury,  Vt.,  and  soon 
after  to  Corinth,  of  which  town  his  father 
was  one  of  the  original  proprietors. 

His  father,  one  of  the  most  noted  men 
or  his  times,  had  been  a  colonel  in  the 
British  army  under  (ien.  Amherst,  and 
actively  engaged  with  Rogers,  Putnam, 
Stark  and  other  distinguished  American 
officers  in  reducing  the  fortresses  on  Lake 
Champlain  and  fighting  their  red  allies, 
then  prowling  through  the  entire  wilder- 
ness territory  of  Vermont.  And  young 
Taplin,  after  receiving  a  fair  common- 
school  education  for  his  years,  was,  from 
the  age  of  12  to  15  out  with  his  father,  in 
this  French  and  Indian  war,  being  gener- 
ally stationed  at  Crown  Point  and  Ticon- 
deroga.  Soon  after  his  removal  to  Ver- 
mont, Colonel  Taplin  was  appointed  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  New  York,  chief  judge 
of  the  court  of  what  was  then  called  Glou- 
cester County,  but  afterwards  Orange 
County  :  And  young  Taplin  then  desig- 
nated as  John  Taplin,  Junior,  was,  though 
then  but  barely  21,  appointed  high  sheriff 
of  the  same  court  and  county.  Kings- 
land,  now  Washington,  was  at  first  fixed 
upon  as  the  shire  town  of  this  new  county, 
and  the  new  court  was  once  actually 
opened  there,  though  the  town  was  then 
wholly  an  unbroken  wilderness.     We  have 


already,  while  treating  of  the  New  York 
grants  in  this  section,  alluded  to  the  sin- 
gular opening  of  a  court  in  the  woods  in 
this  place ;  but  as  the  record  of  this  curi- 
ous transaction,  which  has  but  recently 
come  to  light,  cannot  fail  to  be  regarded 
as  an  interesting  antiquarian  document, 
we  will  copy  it  entire. 

"  KiXGSLAND,  Gloucester  County,  ? 

Province  of  New  York,  May  29, 1770.  ^ 
"Court   met  for  the  first  time,  and  the 
ordinance  and  comitions  Being  Read. 

John  Taplin,  '^  Judges  being  appointed 

Samuel  Sleeper,     >  by  the  Government  of 

Thomas  Sumner,  j  New  York, 

were  present,  and  the  Courts  opened  as  is 
usual  in  other  Courts — Also  present 

James  Pennock,  ^ 

Abner  Fowler,     >  Justices  of  the  Quorum. 

John  Peters,        j 

John  Taplin,  Jr.,  Sheriff. 

"N.  B.  these  Courts  were  the  Courts  of 
Quarterly  sessions  and  the  Court  of  com- 
mon Plea  for  Said  County. 

"  Court  adjourned  to  the  last  Tuesday  in 
August  next  to  be  held  in  said  Kingsland. 
"Opened  accordingly,  and  appointed 
four  Constables,  Simeon  Stevens  for  New- 
bury, Jesse  McFarland  for  Moretown, 
Abner  Howard  for  Thetford,  and  Samuel 
Pennock  for  Strafford,  and  adjourned  to 
the  last  Tuesday  of  Nov.  "Nov.  27, 
Court  opened  at  Kingsland.  Called  over 
the  docket  of  8  cases  only,  put  over  and 
dismissed  them,  and  appointed  Ebenezer 
Green  constable  for  Thetford,  and  Samuel 
Pennock,  Ebenezer  Martin  and  Ebenezer 
Green  and  Samuel  Allen  Surveyors  for  the 
County,  and  adjourned  to  February  next 
last  Tuesday. 

Feb.  25,  }  Sett  out  from  Moretown   for 
1 77 1.      ^  Kings  Land,  travelled  untill 
Knight   there   Being   no    Road,    and  the 
Snow  very   depe,    we  travelled  on  Snow 
Shoes  or  Racats,  on  the  26th  we  travelled 
Some  ways,  and   Held    a    Council   when 
it  was   concluded  it   was    Best   to    open 
the  Court  as  we  Saw  No  Line  it  was  not 
whether   in   Kingsland  or   not.       But  we 
concluded   we  were  farr  in  the  woods  we 
did  not  expect  to  See  any  House  unless 
we  marched  three  miles  within  Kingsland 
and  no  one  lived  there  when  the  Court  was 
ordered  to  be  opened  on  the  spot,  present 
John  Taplin,  Judge 
Jolin  Peters    of  the  Quorum 
John  Taplin  Jr.,  Sheriff, 
all  Causes  Continued  or  adjourned  over 
to  Next  term  the  Court,  if  one,  adjourned 
over  until  the  last  Tuesday  in  May  Next 
at  which  time  it  was  opened  and  after  dis- 
posing of  one  case  of  bastardy,  adjourned 
to  August  next. 

"  John  Peters  Clerk." 


BERLIN. 


57 


Thus  ends  this  curious  specimen  of  ju- 
dicial records.  It  will  be  seen  at  the  first 
court  nothing  is  hinted  about  the  court 
being  held  in  the  woods  and  snows.  It 
was  probably  held  at  the  nearest  house  in 
Corinth,  and,  by  a  judicial  fiction,  treated 
as  a  court  at  Kingsland.  But  it  does 
not  appear  that  the  court  was  ever  called 
at  Kingsland  after  the  so-called  August 
Term,  1771,  having  the  next  term  met 
at  Newbury,  where  it  continued  to  hold 
sessions  till  the  breaking  out  of  the  Rev- 
olution. The  court  did  not,  however, 
give  up  the  idea  of  making  Kingsland  the 
seat  of  justice,  for  they  ordered  their  young 
Sheriff,  John  Taplin,  Jr.,  to  build  a  log 
jail  there,  which  he  promptly  executed, 
and  made  return  to  the  court  accordingly, 
though  it  is  believed  that  the  jail,  as  such, 
was  never  occupied.  This  singularly  orig- 
inated log-jail  was  situated  a  mile  or  two 
S.  E.  of  the  present  village  of  Washington, 
near  the  sources  of  the  brook  which,  run- 
ning northerly  into  Stevens'  Branch,  thence 
forward,  took  the  name  of  Jail  Branch. 
On  the  opening  of  the  Revolution,  Colonel 
Taplin  declining  to  take  sides  against  the 
King  who  had  distinguished  him,  retired 
during  the  war  into  Canada,  leaving  our 
John  TajDlin,  Jr.,  on  the  paternal  property 
in  Corinth,  where  he  resided  until  many 
years  after  Vermont  had  become  a  State, 
and  was  so  much  esteemed  by  his  fellow- 
townsmen  as  to  have  received  from  them 
at  least  two  elections  as  their  represent- 
ative in  the  legislature.  In  the  summer  of 
1787  he  removed  to  Berlin,  having  pur- 
chased that  excellent  farm  on  the  lower 
part  of  Dog  River,  since  known  as  the  old 
John  Hayden  place,  and  became  the  first 
representative  of  Berlin,  and  for  several 
years  the  first  officiating  justice  of  the 
peace  in  all  this  vicinity. 

At  the  age  of  twenty  he  married  Miss 
Catharine  Lovell,  daughter  of  Colonel  Ne- 
hemiah  Lovell,  of  Newbury,  who  was 
grand-son  of  the  celebrated  hero  of  the 
Lovell  Pond  Indian  battle.  His  first  wife 
dying  in  1794,  he  married  the  following 
year  Miss  Lydia  Gove,  of  Portsmouth. 
By  his  first  wife  he  had  12  children,  by 
his   last,  9 — twenty-one   in  all,  and  what 


is  still  more  remarkable,  they  all  except 
one,  which  was  accidentally  scalded,  caus- 
ing death  in  infancy,  lived  to  marry  and 
settle  down  in  life  as  the  heads  of  families, 
furnishing  an  instance  of  family  fruitful- 
ness  and  health  that  perhaps  never  had  a 
parallel  in  the  State.  Mr.  Taplin's  prac- 
tical knowledge  of  men  and  the  ordinary 
affairs  of  life  was,  from  his  varied  opportu- 
nities for  observation,  quite  extensive,  and 
his  natural  intellectual  capacities  were  at 
least  of  a  highly  respectable  order.  But 
probably  what  are  called  the  sentiments  or 
moral  affections  should  be  considered  as 
constituting  the  predominant  traits  of  his 
character.  At  all  events,  kindness  to  all,  an 
active  benevolence  and  charity  to  the  poor 
and  distressed,  were  very  conspicuous  el- 
ements of  his  nature,  and  his  house  and 
hands  were  ever  alike  open  to  relieve  the 
wants  of  those  who  might  solicit  his  hos- 
pitalities or  more  substantial  assistance. 
As  is  too  often  the  case,  the  sharp,  selfish 
world  failed  not  to  take  advantage.  The 
free  horse  was  at  length  almost  ridden  to 
death.  At  the  age  of  fifty  he  found  himself 
badly  involved  in  pecuniary  embarrass- 
ments, growing  out  of  his  general  system  of 
benevolence  in  a  good  degree,  though  main- 
ly out  of  his  acts  of  accommodation  in  be- 
coming bondsman  for  others.  These  so 
sadly  reduced  his  property  as  to  compel 
him  to  part  with  his  valuable  old  home- 
stead for  one  less  costly,  and  which  last  he 
was  also  induced  after  a  time,  from  grow- 
ing infirmities,  to  resign,  and  reside  with 
one  of  his  sons  in  the  village.  The  last 
years  of  his  life  were  thus  clouded,  but  he 
was  held  in  the  estimation  of  all  as  one  of 
the  most  amiable  and  best  of  men  and 
Christians,  and  as  one  of  the  most  useful 
citizens.  He  died  in  Montpelier,  Nov. 
1835,  aged  87,  his  memory  being  warmly 
cherished  by  all  who  remember  his  tall, 
comely  person,  the  mild  dignity  of  his  de- 
portment, and  never-varying  amenity  of 
manners  toward  all  classes  of  people. 

CAPT.   JAMES   HOBART. 

James  Hobart  came  to  Berlin  in  1787, 
from  Newbury,  Vt.,  settling  at  the  mouth 
of  Jones'  Brook.  He  had  formerly  lived  in 
Plymouth,  N.  H.,  where  his  son   (Rev.) 


58 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


James  was  born,  said  to  have  been  the 
first  male  child  born  in  that  town.  Al- 
though religiously  inclined,  careful  and 
particular  as  the  head  of  a  family,  he  never 
made  a  public  profession  of  religion  until 
at  about  the  age  of  91  years  he  joined  the 
1st  Cong,  church  of  Berlin.  About  100 
years  before  his  birth  one  of  his  ancestors. 
Rev.  Peter  Hobart,  a  Congregational  min- 
ister, came  to  this  country  from  England, 
and  was  a  minister  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  a 
great  many  years.  Capt.  Hobart  spent 
about  ID  years  of  the  last  of  his  life  with 
his  son  Rev.  J.,  working  at  the  cooper's 
trade  and  cutting  his  own  fire-wood.  He 
died  in  1834,  aged  95  years. 

ZACHARIAH  PERRIN 

came  with  his  family  from  Hebron,  Ct.,  in 
1789,  and  settled  in  the  east  part  of  the 
town,  on  the  farm  now  occupied  by  his 
grand-son,  J.  Newton  Perrin.  In  March, 
with  two  pairs  of  oxen  and  sled,  bringing 
wife  and  two  children  and  a  stock  of  pro- 
visions, he  came  by  the  Connecticut  and 
White  rivers  to  Brookfield,  which  was  then 
the  end  of  the  road.  The  remainder  of 
the  way  was  by  marked  trees,  and  snow 
3  to  4  feet  deep.  He  took  an  active  part 
in  the  organization  and  settlement  of  the 
town ;  was  a  friend  of  education,  and  a 
consistent  member  of  the  Congregational 
church,  for  the  support  of  which  he  gave 
liberally.  He  lived  to  raise  up  a  large 
family,  and  accumulate  a  large  property  as 
a  farmer,  and  died  May,  1838,  aged  88. 

ELEAZER  HUBBARD, 

a  native  of  Connecticut,  age  about  sixty, 
came  from  Glastenbury,  Ct.,  with  an  ox- 
team,  bringing  mill-stones  and  irons,  and 
purchased  the  lot  of  land  in  which  is  Ben- 
jamin's Falls,  on  Pond  brook,  at  the  head 
of  which  in  1790  or  '91  he  erected  the  first 
saw  and  grist-mills  in  town.  The  mills 
were  occupied  a  number  of  years  after  his 
death  in  18 19,  at  the  age  of  89  years,  but 
nothing  now  remains  of  them  but  the 
foundation  walls  and  one  granite  mill- 
stone. 

DAVID   NYE, 

son  of  Melatiah  Nye,  and  "grand-father  of 
the  writer  of  this  article,   came  to  Berlin 


from  Glastenbury,  Conn.,  with  his  wife, 
(Honor  Tryon),  and  two  children,  a  son 
and  a  daughter,  in  1790,  having  served  his 
country  several  years  in  the  Continental 
arniy  as  a  musician ;  was  in  the  battle  on 
Long  Island  in  1776.  When  the  town 
was  organized  in  1791,  he  was  elected  the 
first  town  clerk,  and  in  several  succeeding 
years  was  re-elected  to  the  same  office,  as 
well  as  other  important  offices.  A  few 
years  after  he  came  to  town,  Mr.  Nye 
united  with  the  Congregational  church,  of 
which  while  he  lived  he  was  an  active  and 
consistent  member,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  and  until  his  death,  he  was  an  acting 
deacon.  For  several  years  he  divided  his 
time  between  cultivating  his  farm,  and 
buying  and  driving  beef  cattle  to  the  Boston 
market.  When  the  temperance  leforma- 
tion  spread  over  the  land  previous  to  1830, 
he  was  one  of  the  first  in  this  town  to 
adopt  and  stand  upon  the  platform  of  total 
abstinence.  He  died  in  Sept.  1832,  at  72 
years  of  age. 

ELIJAH   NYE, 

brother  of  David  Nye,  removed  to  Berlin 
at  the  same  time,  and  settled  in  the  south- 
east part  of  the  town.  He  removed  to 
Montpelier.in  1825,  where  he  died  in  1852, 
at  the  age  of  84  years. 

SOLOMON   NYE, 

a  native  of  Glastenbury,  Ct.,  brother  of 
David  and  Elijah,  at  the  age  of  18  enlisted 
in  the  Continental  army,  and  served  as  a 
teamster.  He  came  to  Berlin  about  1808  ; 
was  a  farmer ;  died  in  1857,  aged  93  years. 

JOSHUA   BAILEY, 

a  native  of  Newbury,  Mass.,  came  from 
Newbury,  Vt.,  in  1790,  and  settled  on  the 
farm  afterwards  the  home  of  his  son.  Cyrus 
Bailey.     He  died  in  1804,  aged  53. 

CAPT.    JAMES    SAWYER, 

born  in  Haverhill,  Mass.,  in  1738,  was 
Captain  of  a  company  of  minute  men, 
1776.  At  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolu- 
tion he  owned  a  good  farm,  which  he  sold, 
was  paid  in  continental  currency,  and 
was  consequently  left  almost  penniless. 
After  living  in  various  places,  he  came  to 


BERLIN. 


59 


Berlin  with  his  son  in  1790,  and  died  in 
1 80 1,  aged  63  years. 

James,  son  of  Captain  James,  came  to 
Berlin  with  his  father  in  1790,  and  settled 
on  Dog  River,  where  he  was  successful  as 
a  farmer  and  lived  until  his  death,  in  1859, 
at  the  age  of  93 . 

JABEZ   ELLIS 

came  from  Gilead,  Ct.,  in  the  spring  of 
1789,  and  located  in  the  east  part  of  the 
town.  He  returned  for  a  wife  the  Decem- 
ber following ;  married  Hannah  Mack,  of 
Hebron,  Ct.,  whom  he  brought  on  with  a 
stock  of  provisions  upon  an  ox-sled,  com- 
ing up  the  west  side  of  the  mountains  to 
Essex,  and  up  the  Winooski  to  Montpel- 
ier.  He  also  brought  on  some  tea  for  sale 
to  the  settlers.  By  industry  and  perse- 
verance he  accumulated  a  handsome  prop- 
erty, and  gave  liberally  for  the  support  of 
the  institutions  of  religion.  He  represented 
the  town  in  the  Legislature  of  Vermont  in 
1815  and  '17,  and  died  in  1852,  aged  88. 

WILLIAM   FLAGG 

came  from  Holden,  Mass.,  in  1789,  and 
settled  on  a  farm  on  the  west  side  of  the 
pond.  He  died  in  1838,  at  84  years  of 
age.  Mr.  Flagg  enlisted  as  a  soldier  at 
the  breaking  out  of  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, was  in  the  Battle  of  Bunker  Hill 
and  of  Monmouth. 

JACOB   BLACK, 

a  native  of  Holden,  Mass.,  came  about  the 
same  time  as  Flagg,  and  settled  on  a  lot 
adjoining  him.  Mr.  Black  and  Mr.  Flagg 
appear  to  have  been  born  the  same  year 
and  lived  to  about  the  same  age.  Th^y 
probably  enlisted  at  about  the  .same  time 
in  the  service  of  the  country,  and  were  in 
nearly  the  s^me  battles,  beginning  with 
that  of  Bunker  Hill.  They  were  both  in 
the  battle  at  Monmouth  Court  House  under 
Washington,  3  years  later.  Mr.  Black, 
in  addition  to  clearing  and  cultivating  his 
farm,  worked  for  his  neighbors  as  occasion 
required  as  a  carpenter  and  joiner.  About 
1 8 18,  Mr.  Black  removed  to  Marshfield, 
where  he  died  in  1838,  age  84. 

Silas  Black,  son  of  Jacob,  born  in 
Holden,  was  12  years  old  when  his  father 


came  to  Berlin.  When  of  age  he  settled 
on  a  farm  adjoining  his  father.  Tending 
saw-mill  when  a  young  man,  seated  on  a 
log  to  keep  it  in  place,  while  the  saw  was 
cutting  through  it,  the  wind  blowing  his 
frock  before  the  saw,  the  saw  descending 
took  in  both  frock  and  leg,  inflicting  a  deep 
gash  below  the  knee,  and  a  second  stroke 
above  the  ankle-joint,  jerked  out  nearly  all 
the  sinews  in  this  part  of  the  leg,  severed 
by  the  first  cut  of  the  saw.  Again  Mr. 
Black  was  assisting  in  taking  down  a  barn- 
frame,  a  heavy  timber  fell  upon  one  of  his 
legs  near  his  body,  crushing  it  to  a  mass 
of  jelly,  and  breaking  the  bone  badly, 
after  which  he  always  limped  in  his  walk. 
He  died  in  1867,  aged  90. 

CAPT.    DANIEL   TAYLOR 

came  to  Berlin  in  March,  1793;  married 
Miss  Ruhamah  Ellis,  sister  of  Jabez  Ellis. 
He  was  a  soldier  of  the  Revolution,  and 
for  a  time  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  the 
British.  For  some  time  after  he  com- 
menced on  his  farm,  at  the  center  of  the 
town,  he  kept  a  tavern,  and  small  stock  of 
goods  and  groceries  for  sale.  He  was  a 
man  of  energy  and  decision.  When  the 
call  came  for  men  to  go  to  Plattsburg  to 
beat  back  the  British  army,  then  advanc- 
ing up  the  Lake,  Mr.  Taylor  mounted  his 
horse  at  dusk,  and  taking  his  trusty  fire- 
lock in  his  hand,  rode  to  Burlington  dur- 
ing the  night,  and  in  the  morning  crossed 
over  the  Lake  to  Plattsburg,  and  was  with 
the  detachment  sent  up  the  river  to  pre- 
vent the  enemy  from  crossing.  He  died  in 
1 83 1,  aged  74. 

CAPT.    JAMES   PERLEY, 

born  in  Methuen,  Mass.,  in  1760,  at  the 
age  of  16  years  enlisted  as  a  soldier  in  the 
war  of  the  Revolution  under  Gen.  Knox, 
and  served  3  years.  The  next  8  years  of 
his  life  he  spent  upon  the  ocean  as  cap- 
tain's mate,  visiting  different  places  in  both 
hemispheres.  He  came  here  in  1791,  and 
settled  on  a  farm  near  the  center  of  the 
town,  which  he  occupied  the  remainder  of 
his  life.  Capt.  Perley  and  his  son,  Sam- 
uel Perley,  were  both  at  the  Battle  of 
Plattsburg,  N.  Y.,  Sept.  11,  18 14.  He 
died  in  Berlin,  in  1850,  aged  90  years. 


6o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


STEPHEN  PEARSON, 

born  in  Rowley,  Mass.,  in  1756,  when  sev- 
enteen, enlisted  for  the  war.  At  the  Battle 
of  Bunker  Hill,  the  inspecting  officer  or- 
dered him  to  give  up  his  gun  to  a  larger 
man,  he  being  of  smaller  stature,  but  Pear- 
son, stepping  back,  presented  the  muzzle, 
saying,  "  You  must  take  it  this  way  if  at 
all,  I  am  going  into  the  fight.""  He  did  go, 
and  came  out  without  a  scratch.  He  came 
to  Berlin  in  1793  ;  was  a  respectable  farmer ; 
died  in  1842,  aged  82. 

JOEL   WARREN, 

born  in  Northboro,  Mass.,  Nov.  1772, 
came  in  1796,  and  purchased  a  lot  of  land 
a  little  west  of  the  center  of  the  town ; 
worked  one  year,  and  put  up  a  log-house, 
into  which  he  moved  the  next  year  with 
his  wife  ;  was  a  prosperous  farmer,  raised 
a  moderately  large  family  of  children,  and 
accumulated  a  handsome  fortune ;  repre- 
sented the  town  in  the  Legislature  in  18 19  ; 
died  in  April,  1849,  aged  •]•]  years. 

ABEL    KNAPP,    ESQ., 

and  wife  were  among  the  early  settlers ; 
resided  nearly  two  generations  upon  the 
farm  at  the  cross-roads  at  the  centre.  He 
was  town  clerk  except  one  year  of  Dr. 
Gershom  Heaton's  service,  from  1795  to 
1845 — 49  years,  and  was  justice  of  the 
peace  50  years ;  judge  of  probate  of  his 
county  1813,  '14 ;  member  of  the  constitu- 
tional convention  of  1836;  town  treasurer 
several  years ;  town  representative  14 
years,  1809 — 1823.  He  was  also  a  sur- 
veyor ;  kept  his  survey  notes,  and  helped 
settle  many  a  dispute  about  surveys.  He 
was  a  native  of  Rehoboth,  Mass. ;  mar- 
ried Miriam  Hawks  of  Charlemont,  Mass. ; 
children  5  sons,  4  daughters.  His  monu- 
ment bears  this  memorial  of  a  good  man  : 
"  His  record  is  on  high." — From  C.  L. 
Knapp,  Lowell,  Mass. 

MAJOR   SAMUEL   JONES 

settled  at  the  mouth  ot  Jones  brook,  which 
took  his  name,  upon  a  farm  James  Hobart 
had  lived  on  10  years.  He  was  an  ener- 
getic man,  accumulated  a  good  property 
and  raised  a  large  family.  He  died  in 
1859,  age  86. 


MAJOR   JOSIAH   BENJAMIN, 

son  of  William  Benjamin,  was  born  in 
Ashburnham,  Mass.,  June,  1769;  married 
Lucy  Banning  of  Conn.,  Oct.  10,  1791 ; 
came  to  Berlin  in  1793.  After  occupying 
and  clearing  up  several  farms  in  1800,  he 
finally  settled  on  the  farm  on  Stevens 
Branch,  now  occupied  by  his  son  Josiah 
Benjamin,  where  he  died  June,  1836,  aged 
67.  His  title  was  earned  in  the  State 
militia  at  a  time  when  it  meant  something. 

ELISHA   ANDREWS, 

Second  son  of  Elisha,  Jr.,  of  Eastbury, 
Conn.,  moved  to  Sandgate,  Vt.,  about 
1783,  or  '85.  He  built  a  hut  of  poles  with 
but  a  hand-sled  to  get  the  materials  togeth- 
er with  ;  roofed  his  little  residence  with 
boughs  ;  when  it  rained  he  and  his  wife 
covered  the  children  with  blankets ;  but 
after  a  short  time  he  removed  to  Manches- 
ter into  better  quarters,  and  from  there  to 
Berlin,  about  1796.  He  was  among  the 
first  settlers  here,  and  located  in  the  woods 
near  the  west  end  of  the  pond.  He  put 
up  a  log-house  into  which  he  used  to  draw 
with  a  horse  logs  for  the  back-log  of 
his  fire,  8  feet  in  length.  He  cleared  the 
land,  cultivated  the  soil,  reared  a  large 
family,  and  died  June  19.  1826,  aged  67. 

SAFFORD   CUMMINGS 

came  here  when  7  years  of  age,  from 
Ward,  (now  Auburn,)  Mass. ;  remained 
till  he  was  12;  walked  back  to  his  native 
town ;  stayed  a  number  of  years  and  re- 
turned to  Berlin  on  foot.  About  this  time, 
he  married  Mary  Stickney.  He  died  in 
1867,  age  87  years. 

COL.   JAMES    JOHNSON, 

a  native  of  Mass.,  came  here  in  1794,  and 
settled  on  Dog  river.  He  lived  on  his 
farm  till  his  death ;  accumulated  a  hand- 
some property  and  never  had  a  lawsuit. 
He  served  one  year  as  captain  in  the  war 
of  1812;  the  time  being  mostly  spent 
upon  our  northern  frontier.  The  title  of 
Colonel  was  honorably  earned  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  State.  Died  in  1861,  age,  88. 
Abraham  Townsend,  a  native  of  VVest- 
boro,  Mass.  A  soldier  in  the  revolutionary 
army  ;    was  in  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill ; 


BERLIN. 


6i 


came  here  about  1800,  was  a  farmer;  died 
in  1825,  aged  84. 

Abel  Sawyer  came  here  from  Hartland 
in  1788.  Entered  the  service  of  his  coun- 
try at  the  age  of  16,  as  a  blacksmith  ;  died 
in  1836,  aged  76. 

THE   DEWEYS. 

Simeon,  William,  Israel  and  Henry, 
brothers  (all  of  them  having  the  prefix  of 
uncle,  by  the  early  settlers  and  their  de- 
scendants generally,  the  two  first  however, 
being  sometimes  called  Capt.  Sim  and 
Capt.  Bill,  and  the  third  Leftenatit  Dewey 
in  consequence  of  honors  in  the  Vermont 
militia)  were  among  the  early  settlers. 
They  were  descendants  from  Thomas 
Dewey  who  was  an  early  settler  from  Mas- 
sachusetts Colony  and  "  came  to  Windsor, 
Ct.,  from  Mass.  in  1639  with  Mr.  Huit." 

Simeon  Dewey  was  born  in  Colchester, 
Ct.,  Aug.  20,  1770,  married  Prudence 
Yemans,  Feb.  27,  1794,  (born  in  Tolland, 
Ct.,  Mar.  29,  1772,  died  in  Berlin,  Apr.  i, 
1844,)  and  settled  the  same  year  on  Dog 
river.  He  removed  to  Montpelier  in  1825, 
where  he  was  deputy  jailer  8  years,  return- 
ing to  his  farm  in  Berlin  in  1833,  where  he 
remained  until  the  death  of  his  wife.  He 
died  in  Montpelier,  January  11,  1863, 
aged  92. 

William  Dewey,  born  in  Hanover,  N. 
H.,  Jan.  26,  1772.  He  settled  in  Berlin 
in  179s,  on  the  farm  below  his  brother 
Simeon's  ;  married  Abigail  Flagg,  22  Apr. 

1804,  (born  July  19,  1783,  died  July  28, 
1826).  He  died  Sept.  7,  1840;  he  was  a 
successful  farmer  and  useful  citizen. 

Israel  Dewey,  born  in  Hanover,  N.  H., 
Jan.  26,  1777,  settled  in  1801,  on  the  up- 
per farm  on  Dog  river,  and  removed  from 
thence  to  the  east  part  of  the  town  about 

1805,  and  from  thence  to  Lunenburgh,  Vt., 
in  1851,  where  he  died  July  21,  1862,  aged 
85  years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  Vt.  1820,  '21  and  '26;  postmas- 
ter in  Berlin  from  1825  to  1850,  and  em- 
ployed perhaps  more  than  any  other  man, 
with  one  exception  (Hon.  Abel  Knapp)  in 
town  offices,  as  a  magistrate,  and  in  the 
settlement  of  estates.  He  was  always 
ready  to  give  his  time   and  pecuniary  aid, 


beyond  his  real  abilities,  for  the  improve- 
ment of  our  common  schools  ;  the  welfare 
of  the  Congregational  church  with  which 
he  united  in  18 19,  and  other  measures  for 
the  good  of  the  community.  After  his 
removal  to  the  east  part  of  the  town,  he 
kept  a  tavern  several  years,  and  from  that 
business  and  the  custom  of  the  times,  ac- 
quired the  practice  of  the  daily  use  of 
ardent  spirits,  which  was  growing  to  be 
an  excessive  one,  when  in  1830,  he  relin- 
quished it  Entirely  and  was  ever  after  a 
consistent  and  ardent  supporter  of  the 
temperance  reform.  He  was  married  first 
to  Betsey  Baldwin,  Mar.  1801,  born  Dec. 
2,  1776,  died  Oct.  27,  1807 ;  second  to 
Nancy  Hovey,  i  Mar.  1809;  born  in  Han- 
over, N.  H.,  Dec.  24,  1786 ;  died  in  Lunen- 
burgh, Aug.  7,  1859. 

DEA.    FENNO    COMINGS, 

(son  of  Col.  Benjamin  and  Mary  Cooper 
Comings,)  was  born  in  Cornish,  N.  H., 
Mar.  21,  1787;  married  Rebecca  Smart, 
Nov.  22,  1810,  (daughter  of  Caleb  and 
Catharine  Black  Smart ;  born  in  Croydon, 
N.  H.,  July  26,  1788).  He  settled  here 
in  18 1 5,  as  a  tanner  and  currier,  which 
business  he  carried  on  until  his  death.  He 
was  a  man  doing  what  he  found  to  do  with 
his  might ;  a  member  and  officer  of  the 
Congregational  church — a  lover  of  order 
and  peace.  He  died,  Jan.  24,  1830,  his 
death  leaving  a  void  not  often  felt,  and 
being  regarded  as  an  irreparable  loss  to  the 
church  and  community.  His  widow  mar- 
ried Rev.  Jonathan  Kinney,  in  Jan.  1833, 
who  died,  May  7,  1838.  She  died  in  Ber- 
lin, Oct.  10,  1865. 

RUSSELL   STRONG, 

born  in  Bolton,  Ct.,  Aug.  29,  1785  ;  mar- 
ried Miss  Susanna  Webster,  a  native  of 
the  same  place,  (born  Oct.  10,  1787,  died 
Apr.  5,  1872,  aged  85  years)  ;  came  here 
Feb.,  1814,  and  purchased  40  acres  on  the 
upper  part  of  Dog  river  for  $200  dollars, 
and  a  few  years  afterwards  20  acres  more 
on  which  he  resided  until  his  death,  25, 
Feb.  1864,  in  his  79th  year. 

NATHANIEL   BOSWORTH, 

born  in  Rhode  Island  in  1753,  when  about 
21,  enlisted  and  served  in  the  Revolution- 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ary  war  4  or  5  years.  At  one  time  he  was 
a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  the  British,  and 
confined  in  a  prison  ship  on  the  Delaware 
river,  and  escaj^ed  as  follows :  One  night 
he  contrived  to  get  down  into  the  water  by 
the  side  of  the  ship  unobserved,  and  at- 
taching one  end  of  a  string  to  his  knap- 
sack, took  the  other  in  his  mouth  and  swam 
off;  the  knapsack  floating  behind  served  to 
keep  back  the  waves  which  would  other- 
wise have  broken  over  his  head,  and  as  he 
became  exhausted  might  ha\^  overcome 
him.  By  swimming,  near  as  he  could 
judge,  about  3  miles,  he  landed  and  es- 
caped. In  1780,  when  Royalton  was 
burned,  Mr.  Bosworth  was  stationed  at 
Corinth,  Vt.  After  a  short  residence  in 
Lebanon,  N.  H..  and  Chelsea,  Vt.,  he 
came  to  Berlin  in  1806,  and  settled  at  Berlin 
Corner.  He  was  a  blacksmith,  which  bus- 
iness he  followed  here.  He  died  in  1844, 
age,  91  years. 

Dea.  Jonathan  Bosworth,  son  of  Na- 
thaniel Bosworth,  born  in  Lebanon,  N.  H., 
in  1787,  followed  the  business  of  his  father, 
and  came  with  him  to  Berlin.  After  work- 
ing a  few  years  at  custom  work,  he  com- 
menced the  manufacture  of  edged-tools, 
particularly  scythes  and  axes,  having  a 
good  water-power,  with  trip  hammers  and 
other  machinery.  But  this  branch  of  the 
business  not  proving  successful,  in  about 
1830  he  added  .such  other  machinery  as 
was  deemed  necessary,  and  commenced  the 
manufacture  of  cast  steel  and  steel-plated 
hoes.  Each  of  his  four  sons  worked  in  the 
shop,  and  in  turn  became  partners  in  the 
business,  and  carried  it  on  to  success. 
Since  1870,  the  business  has  been  discon- 
tinued. Mr.  Bosworth  was  many  years  a 
member  of  the  Congregational  church  and 
one  of  its  deacons  until  within  a  few  years 
of  his  death  and  its  attending  feebleness, 
active  duties  were  left  to  younger  hands. 
Died  April,  1878,  aged  91  years. 

ASA    ANDREWS, 

third  son  of  Elijah  Andrews,  and  who  oc- 
cupied the  same  farm  as  his  father,  died 
Sept.  14,  1876,  aged  91.  Eor  about  20 
years  he  kept  40  cows  or  more,  and  mark- 
eted his   butter  and   cheese  in  Newbury- 


port,  Mass.,  where  he  went  with  his  own 
team  five  or  six  times  a  year,  until  a  few  of 
the  last  years  of  his  labor,  he  sent  his 
produce  by  rail.  He  represented  the  town 
in  the  Legislature  in  1847,  '48. 

JOSEPH   ARBUCKLE 

was  born  near  Glasgow,  Scotland,  and 
came  to  America  with  Gen.  Burgoyne's 
army  as  a  soldier,  and  was  with  the  army 
when  it  surrendered  to  Gen.  Gates  in  1777  ; 
after  which  he  came  to  Berlin,  and  settled 
on  a  farm  on  the  banks  of  the  Winooski 
river,  below  the  mouth  of  Dog  river.  He 
died  about  1841,  aged  84  years. 

PORTER   PERRIN, 

second  son  of  Zachariah  Perrin,  was  the 
first  male  child  born  in  town,  Feb.  i,  1790. 
He  married  Miss  Lucy  Kinney,  daughter 
of  Rev.  Jonathan  Kinney,  of  Plainfield, 
Vt.,  (born  in  Plainfield,  Oct.  7,  1796). 
Mr.  Perrin  probably  accumulated  more 
property  in  farming  than  any  other  man 
before  his  time,  in  that  business  exclusively, 
in  town,  a  greater  part  of  which  he  gave 
to  charitable  and  religious  purposes,  and  to 
his  large  family  of  children  during  his  life- 
time, and  the  balance,  which  was  ample 
for  the  purpose  intended,  to  his  widow 
during  her  lifetime.  All  his  dealings  with 
his  fellow-men  were  characterized  by  a 
strict  regard  for  justice.  He  was  a  worthy 
member  of  the  Congregational  church  for 
many  years  before  his  death.  May,  1871, 
aged  81  years. 

REV.    WM.    PERRIN, 

third  son  of  Zachariah  Perrin,  born  in 
Berlin,  in  1793;  graduated  at  Middlebury 
College  in  1813 ;  married  Fanny,  daughter 
of  Capt.  Daniel  Thompson,  in  1815; 
preached  in  New  York  State  i  year,  and 
near  Charleston,  S.  C,  2  or  three  years; 
health  failing,  came  North;  died  in  1824, 
at  the  age  of  31,  a  victim  to  the  immod- 
erate use  of  ardent  spirits.  His  attend- 
ing physician  prescribed  brandy  for  a  med- 
icine, the  use  of  which  created  an  ap- 
petite which  was  soon  beyond  his  control. 
Mr.  Perrin  was  an  eloquent  speaker  and 
poet".  [The  following  is  the  best  specimen 
of  his  verse  we  have  been  able  to  find  from 
his  pen — Ed.]  : 


BERLIN. 


^3 


FAREWELL. 


Say,  dparest  friend,  relute  me  why 
The  tear-drop  startles  from  thine  eyeV 
Does  tlie  farewell  whlcli  l)ids  us  part 
Tims  lill  with  sobs  tlilne  aeliiiiK  heart? 
'^tlult  .1  siKiial  to  thy  woe? 
Does  that  constrain  tliy  tears  to  flow? 
I'hen  cease,  my  friend,  forbear  to  weep; 
Hush  every  wakinjf  woe  to  sleep;— 
Hush  every  sish,  and  quick  I'll  tell 
The  better  meaninjc  of  "  farewell. " 
iTis  not  a  wisli  that  you  should  be 
Consigned  to  want  and  misery; 
Or  that  forloridy  you  sh»ulii  moan 
Like  cooing  dove  in  desert  lone; 
'Tis  wisli  that  plenty  may  afford 
Her  dainties  for  your  daily  board; 
That  calm  content  and  peace  retined 
May  be  companions  of  your  mind; 
In  line,  that  well  may  be  your  fare 
Till  I  again  your  pleasures  sliare. 

Wm.  Perkin. 

REV.    TRUMAN    PERRIN, 

fourth  son  of  Zachariah  Perrin,  born  in 
Berlin,  Apr.  28,  1796;  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  in  1817;  preached  in  va- 
riou.s  places  inVt.,N.  H.,  andN.  Y. ;  went 
to  Vincennes,  Ind.,  where  he  taught  in  an 
academy  and  preached  one  year  or  more  ; 
then  taught  and  preached  a  number  of 
years  in  Alabama  and  Georgia;  in  183 1, 
married  Miss  Pronecey  B.  Tyndall,  of 
Tuscaloosa,  Ala. ;  had  one  son  and  two 
daughters.  After  having  been  engaged  in 
business  as  a  merchant  a  few  years,  and 
accumulated  considerable  property,  he  was 
suddenly  deprived  of  most  of  it  by  the 
failure  of  several  Southern  banks.  Mr. 
Perrin  then,  in  1850,  came  North,  and 
spent  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  preach- 
ing in  various  places,  and  in  the  employ 
of  the  American  Tract  Society.  He  died 
in  Wa.shington,  Mass.,  Nov.  19,  1869, 
aged  73  years. 

GEO.    K.    PERRIN, 

third  son  of  Porter  Perrin,  born  in  Berlin, 
May  23,  1827,  graduated  at  Brown  Uni- 
versity, R.  I.,  and  at  the  Albany  Law 
School,  N.  Y.,  and  is  now  (1881)  a  prom- 
inent lawyer  in  Indianapolis,  Ind.,  prac- 
ticing in  the  state  and  United  States 
courts. 

HENRY   M.    PEHRIN, 

fourth  son  of  Porter  Perrin,  born  in  Bei-lin, 
June  23,  1829,  was  educated  at  Dart- 
mouth and  at  the  Albany  Law  School,  and 
is  a  lawyer  in  St.   Johns,   Mich.,  and  has 


been  in  his  adopted  state,  judge  of  pro- 
bate and  state  senator. 

PORTER    K.    PERRIN, 

fifth  son  of  Pointer  Perrin,  born  in  Berlin. 
Sept.  13,  1833,  graduated  at  the  Law 
School  in  Albany,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a  partner 
with  his  brother  H.  M.  in  St.  Johns,  Mich. 
He  is  judge  of  probate  ;  served  2  years  or 
more  in  the  war  of  the  secession,  and  was 
proinoted  to  the  office  of  major. 

WM.    B.    PERRIN, 

seventh  son  of  Porter  Pen-in,  born  in 
Berlin,  Jan.  19,  1839.  After  he  entered 
Dartmouth  College  he  served  3  months 
in  Gov.  Sprague's  Cavalry  ;  went  out  from 
Harper's  Ferry  with  his  company  in  the 
night  before  that  place  was  surrendered  to 
the  rebels ;  afterwards  served  about  two 
years  in  the  3d  Vt.  Light  Battery,  until 
the  close  of  the  war ;  when  mustered  out 
was  1st  lieutenant;  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  and  the  Law  School  at 
Albany,  N.  Y. ;  after  a  short  residence  in 
Burlington,  Iowa,  settled  in  Nashua,  Chick- 
asaw Co.  la.,  and  is  now  (1881)  doing  a 
successful  law  business. 

CHAUNCEV   L.    KNAPP, 

son  of  Abel  Knapp,  Esq.,  was  born  in 
Berlin,  Feb.  26,  1809;  at  the  age  of  14 
years  commenced  an  apprenticeship  of  7 
years  in  E.  P.  Walton's  printing  office  in 
Montpelier ;  was  reporter  for  the  Legisla- 
ture in  1833  :  for  some  years  a  co-proprie- 
tor and  editor  of  the  Voice  of  Freedo?n  and 
the  State  Journal  at  Montpelier ;  elected 
Secretary  of  State  in  1836-7-8  and  9 ;  re- 
moving to  Massachusetts  was  elected  Sec- 
retary of  the  Massachusetts  Senate  in  185 1, 
and  representative  to  the  34th,  re-elected 
to  the  35th  Congress  of  the  United  States  ; 
was  a  member  of  the  committee  on  terri- 
tories, and  is  now  one  of  the  proprietors 
of  the  American  Citiseti,  Lowell,  Mass. 

HON  JOSEPH   C.    KNAPP, 

son  of  Ebenezer  Knapp,  was  born  in  Ber- 
lin, Vt.,  27,  June,  1813;  now  residing  in 
Keosaugua,  Iowa,  was  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  that  section  of  country,  havino- 
left  his  native  town  and  State  when  a 
young  man.     Has  been  United  States  Dis- 


64 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


trict  attorney,  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court 
and  democratic  candidate  for  governor  in 
1 87 1,  and  it  is  said  by  one  who  lias  oppor- 
tunities of  knowing  that,  "  He  stands  at 
the  head  of  the  bar  in  this  (Van  Buren) 
county,  and  is  regarded  by  many  as  being 
the  leading  lawyer  of  Southern  Iowa." 

CHAUNCEY  NVE, 

son  of  David  Nye,  Jr.,  and  grandson  of 
David  Nye,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the 
town,  was  born  in  Berlin,  Apr.  4,  1828; 
graduated  at  Dartmouth  college  in  1856; 
after  teaching  several  years  in  Ohio  and 
f'eoria,  III.,  settled  in  Peoria,  and  is  a 
prominent  lawyer  (1881). 

REV.    GEO.    C.    MOORE,    JR., 

son  of  Dea.  George  C.  Moore,  born  in 
Berlin,  in  1825  ;  graduated  at  Dartmouth 
college.  Mr.  Moore  lived  a  number  of 
years  in  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa ;  went  to 
Texas  previous  to  the  war  of  the  rebel- 
lion ;  became  a  Presbyterian  minister  and 
preached  in  Goliad  and  Victoria,  Texas, 
where  he  died  in  Sept.,  1867,  aged  32  years. 

MRS.  PHEBE  HAZZARD, 

died  in  Berlin,  Oct.  14,  1S78,  aged  102 
years,  6  months.  Born  in  Mendon,  Mass., 
April,  1777;  married  Kidder  Gallup,  1798, 
who  died  3  years  after.  In  1802  she  came 
to  Craftsbury ;  in  181 6  married  Thomas 
Hazzard  in  Hardwick ;  came  to  Berlin  in 
1830,  where  she  lived  the  remainder  of  her 
life.  She  had  two  children  by  each  hus- 
band. She  and  her  husbands  were  col- 
ored people. 

CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH    IN   BERLIN. 

FROM  NOTES  BY  JAMES  HOBART,   JR. 

The  1st  Congregational  church  was  or- 
ganized here  Oct.  13,  1798,  consisting  of 
Aaron  Goff,  Simpson  Stewart  and  Wm. 
Flagg,  men  about  50  years  of  age.  Prob- 
ably this  was  the  2d  organization  of  any 
denomination  in  the  County ;  the  Cong, 
church  in  Waitsfield  was  organized  2  years 
before.  At  this  time  there  were  in  town 
85  families,  and  for  8  years  previous,  sev- 
eral missionaries  had  preached  on  the  Sab- 
bath and  lectured,  and  some  money  had 
been  raised  by  subscription  and  paid  for 
preaching.  Before  the  organization  of  the 
church  a  few  professors  of  religion  met  at 


the  house  of  Mr.  Flagg,  Oct.  11,  and 
agreed  to  ask  Rev.  E.  Lyman,  of  Brook- 
field,  to  embody  the  three  named  as  mem- 
bers. Oct.  13,  having  met  at  Mr  Stew- 
art's, Mr.  Lyman  preached  on  the  occa- 
sion, and  Mr.  Goff,  Mr.  Stewart  and  Mr. 
Flagg  presented  themselves,  to  whom  Mr. 
Lyman  read  for  their  public  assent  the 
confession  of  faith  and  church  covenant 
drawn  up  by  Mr.  Hobart,  which  they  pub- 
licly acknowledged,  and  were  pronounced 
by  Mr.  Lyman  a  church  of  Christ  regularly 
embodied  in  the  Congregational  order, 
and  the  church  then  proceeded  to  appoint 
Mr.  Lyman  their  moderator  for  this  meet- 
ing, and  voted  to  unite  with  the  people  of 
this  town  in  giving  Mr.  James  Hobart  a 
call  to  settle  over  them  in  the  work  of  the 
gospel  ministry,  and  that  his  ordination  be 
on  the  7th  of  Nov.  next ;  and  voted  sev- 
eral particulars  for  the  ordination  ;  and  the 
3  members  of  the  church  to  be  a  committee 
to  wait  on  the  council.  In  the  course  of 
12  years  44  members  were  added  to  Tlie 
church.  About  the  year  1800,  the  town 
selected  a  pleasant  and  sightly  spot  near 
the  center  of  the  town  for  a  meeting-house, 
and  in  1803  had  the  building,  which  was 
58  by  48  feet,  completed.  Elegant  and 
noble  in  appearance,  it  stood  open  for 
worship,  with  galleries  on  three  sides,  and 
having  a  finely  made  steeple  above  its 
belfry,  and  roof  painted.  The  edifice  was 
dedicated  Dec.  29,  1803;  the  sermon  by 
Mr.  Hobart:    Ps.  Ixxxiv,  i. 

In  1 8 ID  and  'ii  there  was  a  very  inter- 
esting revival  of  religion,  37  being  added 
to  the  church,  and  in  1811  the  church  pur- 
chased a  communion  set,  (they  having  be- 
fore this  at  a  communion  service  used  a 
pitcher  and  mugs.)  The  meeting-house 
was  the  property  of  the  town,  and  was 
used  for  town-meetings,  theatrical  per- 
formances, and  a  militia  drill,  when  con- 
venient, which  must  seem  contrary  to  the 
sacredness  of  a  house  of  divine  worship. 
In  1817,  19  were  added  to  the  church,  and 
in  1819,  44,  in  1827,  13,  in  1832,  30,  in 
1835,  49.  In  1868,  the  membership  was 
25  males,  54  females ;  24  of  the  79  being 
absent  members.  In  1838,  the  meeting- 
house was  burned,  before    which  a  new 


BERLIN. 


65 


Congregational  meeting-house  at  Berlin 
"Corner"  had  been  commenced,  which 
was  completed  and  dedicated  the  next 
year.  In  1829,  Rev.  Mr.  Lamb,  from 
Westfield,Vt.,  preached  here  a  few  months. 
In  1830,  Rev.  Mr.  Whiting,  from  Mass., 
preached  one  year.  In  1832,  Rev.  B. 
Baxter  supplied  one  year.  In  1833,  Rev. 
A.  Stuart,  of  Pittsfield,  preached  one  year. 
1834,  Rev.  S.  Hurlburt  was  employed 
about  one  year.  In  1836.  Rev.  Jonathan 
Kinney,  of  Plainfield,  supplied  one  year. 
In  1837,  Rev.  Austin  Hazen  was  installed, 
and  continued  pastor  until  his  death,  in 
1855.  From  1855  to  1861,  Rufus  Child 
was  acting  pastor.  Aug.  1863,  Rev.  W. 
R.  Joyslin  commenced  preaching  here, 
and  Feb.  2,  1864,  was  ordained  pastor; 
dismissed  in  1866.  In  1867,  Rev.  E.  I 
Carpenter,  formerly  of  Barre,  began,  and 
supjalied  until  Jan.  1870.  In  July,  1870, 
Rev.  E.  Seabury,  from  Falmouth,  com- 
menced as  a  supply. 

REV.    JAMES   HOBART. 

BY  JAMES   IIOBAUT,   Jll.,   OF  WOEgESTER. 

James  Hobart  was  born  in  Plymouth, 
N.  H.,  Aug.  2,  1766,  and  came  with  his 
father  to  Berlin  when  about  21  ;  was  con- 
verted about  2  years  after,  and  commenced 
preparing  for  college.  He  graduated  at 
Dartmouth  as  A.  B.  in  1794;  studied  with 
Rev.  Asa  Burton,  of  Thetford ;  in  the 
spring  of  1795,  was  approbated  to  preach, 
and  commenced  in  Chelsea,  Vt.,  as  a  can- 
didate. The  next  year  he  was  in  Ply- 
mouth, N.  H.,  and  in  1797  and  ''98  at 
Nottingham,  N.  H.,  where  he  had  a  call 
to  settle.  During  this  time  he  preached 
at  Berlin  about  2  months,  and  in  June, 
1798,  came  again  to  Berlin,  and  preached 
as  a  candidate  for  settlement,  the  people 
of  the  town  having  invited  him,  and  in 
August  the  town  gave  him  a  call  to  settle 
as  their  minister.  He  drew  up  a  confes- 
sion of  faith,  church  covenant,  and  arti- 
cles of  discipline,  and  had  several  confer- 
ences with  a  few  professors  of  religion, 
who  proposed  to  be  embodied  into  a  church 
which  was  organized  this  year.  [See  his- 
tory of  Congregational  church] .  The  Rev. 
Mr.  Burton,  of  Thetford,  preached  his  or- 


dination sermon  Nov.  7,  Rev.  Messrs. 
Edw.  Bourroughs,  Martin  Fuller,  Stephen 
Fuller,  E.  Lyman  and  D.  H.  Williston, 
with  their  delegates,  taking  part  in  the 
exercises.  He  continued  pastor  of  the 
church  till  May,  1829,  when  he  was  dis- 
'missed  by  a  mutual  council.  The  next  12 
years  he  labored  as  a  preacher  in  New 
Hampshire,  in  Plymouth,  Wentworth,  En- 
field, Alexandria,  Bridgewater  and  near 
Portsmouth.  The  last  20  years  of  his  life 
he  was  never  home,  preaching  most  of  the 
time  somewhere,  in  Worcester,  Berlin  and 
West  Berlin,  and  sometimes  assisting  in 
the  Sabbath  exercises,  and  in  the  very  last 
year  of  his  life,  his  96th,  he  was  able  to 
preach  a  pretty  well  connected  discourse, 
and  could  walk  6  or  8  miles  in  a  day. 

He  was  self-denying,  laborious  and  per- 
severing, having  quite  a  missionary  spirit. 
While  at  Berlin  his  usual  practice  was  to 
preach  a  third  discourse  on  the  Sabbath  in 
a  distant  part  of  the  town,  or  in  the  border 
of  a  .neighboring  town.  He  was  below 
the  ordinary  height,  standing  erect,  had  a 
great  memory,  clearness  of  mind,  good 
eyesight  and  a  strong,  distinct  voice,  speak- 
ing easy. 

He  was  strongly  attached  to  the  people 
of  Berlin,  and  after  his  dismissal,  as  he 
was  occasionally  at  home,  preached  quite 
a  number  of  funeral  sermons.  In  the  ser- 
vices on  the  Sabbath  he  used  written  dis- 
courses ;  by  the  request  of  his  people,  the 
third  discourse  was  extempore,  and  so  was 
his  preaching  after  his  dismissal.  It  was 
his  choice  to  preach  without  notes.  In 
1804,  he  was  married  to  Betsey,  daughter 
of  Zechariah  Perrin,  Esq.  They  had  a 
family  of  7  sons  and  5  daughters,  7  of 
whom  are  still  living  (1881).  Two  of  the 
daughters  were  wives  of  Congregational 
ministers.  Pamelia  P.  married  Rev.  Rufus 
Child,  minister  at  Gilmantown,  N.  'H., 
and  afterwards  a  few  years  at  Berlin.  Julia 
married  Rev.  P.  F.  Barnard,  minister  a 
few  years  in  Richmond,  Me.,  and  after- 
wards settled  minister  in  Williamstown, 
Vt.  Hannah,  youngest  daughter,  married 
Rev.  Geo.  Craven,  a  Methodist  minister 
of  Danville,  Vt.  Emeline  married  Doct. 
Evans,  of  Piermont,  N.    H.,   and   Mary, 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Hon.  Amary  Kinney,  of  Terre  Haute,  la., 
son  of  Rev.  J.  Kinney,  of  Plainfield.  One 
of  the  two  youngest  sons,  Timothy  Dwight, 
graduated  at  Dartmouth  College,  and  was 
about  going  to  Andover,  Mass.,  prepar- 
atory for  preaching,  when  he  died.  The 
youngest  of  the  family,  Isaac  Watts,  at  13 
years  of  age  joined  the  church  in  Berlin, 
and  at  20  had  nearly  fitted  for  college, 
when  he  died. 

REV.    AUSTIN   HAZEN. 

BY   REV.  WILLIAM  S.  HAZEN,  OF  NORTIIFIELD. 

Austin  Hazen,  son  of  Asa  Hazen,  was 
born  in  Hartford,  June,  1786,  about  2 
miles  from  Hanover,  N.  H.  His  moth- 
er's name  before  marriage  was  Susanna 
Tracy.  The  Hazen  family,  which  was 
large,  was  noted  for  its  piety  and  general 
intelligence,  and  as  being  among  the  first 
settlers  of  the  town.  Mr.  Hazen  was  grad- 
uated at  Dartmouth  College  in  1807,  and 
spent  the  next-year  in  Binghampton,  Pa., 
teaching ;  in  1808,  went  to  Washington,  Ct. 
commenced  the  study  of  theology  with  Dr. 
E.  Peters — date  of  his  license  to  preach 
not  known ;  was  preaching  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  .Washington  in  Dec.  1809; 
preached  in  St.  Albans  several  months. 
He  was  first  settled  over  the  church  in  the 
center  of  his  native  town,  being  ordained 
and  installed  in  May,  181 2;  dismissed  in 
1828;  Jan.  1829,  installed  pastor  in  the 
north  part  of  the  town;  dismissed  in  1837, 
and  soon  after  removed  to  Berlin.  He 
was  installed  here  Oct.  1837,  and  pastor 
till  his  death,  Dec.  25,  1854.  He  was  a 
diligent  student  of  the  Bible,  his  preach- 
ing eminently  biblical.  He  presented  the 
great  central  truths,  the  deep  things  of 
God,  with  great  simplicity  and  godly  sin- 
cerity. Though  his  speech  and  preach- 
ing was  not  with  enticing  words  of  man's 
wisdom ,  he  always  knew  his  people  as  it  is 
not  common  for  a  pastor  to  know  them, 
and  tried  to  lead  them  in  the  "green  pas- 
tures and  beside  the  still  waters  "  of  godly 
living  and  doing,  while  they  were  hardly 
conscious  how  much  they  were  indebted  to 
him.  During  the  7  years  of  his  labors  in 
N.  Hartford  the  admissions  to  the  church 
were  95,  and  when  he  left,  the  parish  was 


believed  to  be  without  a  parallel  in  the 
State  for  the  large  number  of  professing 
Christians  it  contained  in  proportion  to  its 
population. 

The  more  public  religious  enterprises 
also  received  from  him  a  most  hearty  sup- 
port. He  was  a  delegate  to  the  general 
convention  of  Vermont  in  1813,  and  it  is 
said  that  not  more  than  one  minister  in 
the  State  attended  so  many  meetings  of 
that  body  during  the  next  41  years.  No 
one  was  more  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
the  religious  history  of  the  State  during 
that  period. 

For  many  years  previous  to  his  death  he 
was  one  of  the  directors  of  the  Domestic 
Missionary,  Bible  and  Colonization  Soci- 
eties, and  in  all  places  to  which  duty  called 
him,  he  was  always  promptly  in  his  place, 
and  ready  at  all  times  to  perform  his  own 
part  with  intelligence  and  propriety.  But 
the  beauty  of  his  Christian  character  shone 
most  in  his  own  family  and  within  the 
circle  of  his  more  intimate  friends.  He 
rarely  spoke  to  his  children  on  the  subject 
of  religion,  yet  his  life  taught  them  un- 
mistakably their  duty,  and  the  excellency 
of  the  religion  which  he  was  anxious  they 
should  experience  in  their  own  hearts. 
His  exercises  at  family  worship  command- 
ed attention,  and  produced  impressions, 
breathing  forth  the  earnest,  desire  of  the 
heart  that  his  might  be  a  household  of 
faith.  Mr.  Hazen  was  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  Frances  Mary,  daughter  of  Hon. 
Israel  P.  Dana,  of  Danville,  left  two  chil- 
dren. Sophia  Dana,  who  was  educated  at 
Ipswich  and  the  Mt.  Holyoke  Female  Sem- 
inary, where  she  was  many  years  a  teacher, 
in  185 1,  became  connected  with  the  Nes- 
torian  Mission  of  the  A.  B.  C.  F.  M.  as 
the  wife  of  the  lamentied  Missionary  Stod- 
dard ;  is  now  the  wife  of  Dea.  Wm.  H. 
Stoddard,  of  Northampton,  Mass. 

Allen,  who  was  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  in  1842,  at  Andover  The- 
ological Seminary  in.  1845,  and  has  been 
connected  with  the  Marathi  Mission  of  the 
A.  B.  C.  F.  M.  in  Western  India  since 
1846. 

His  second  marriage  was  with  Lucia, 
daughter  of  Rev.  Azel  Washburn,  of  Roy- 


BERLIN. 


67 


alton.  She  had  7  children.  Austin,  who 
was  graduated  at  theVt.  Uv.  in  1855,  and 
at  Andover  Theological  Seminary  in  1859, 
is  now  (1881)  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church  at  [ericho  Center. 

Wm.  Skinner,  who  was  graduated  at 
theVt.  Uv.in  1858;  And.  Theo.  Sem.  in 
1863;  now  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church  in  Northfield. 

Lucia  Washburn,  who  died  in  1854,  in 
the  1 6th  year  of  her  age. 

AzEL  Washburn,  who  was  graduated  at 
Dartmouth  College  in  1863,  at  And.  Theo. 
Sem.  1868  ;  now  pastor  of  the  first  Congre- 
gational church  in  Middletown,  Ct. 

Frances  Mary,  who  was  graduated  at 
the  Mt.  Holyoke  Fern.  Sem.  in  1863,  and 
is  one  of  the  teachers  in  that  institution. 

Lucius  Randolph,  who  was  graduated 
at  Dartmouth  College  in  1870,  now  in 
business  in  Middletown,  Ct. 

Susan,  who  died  in  infancy,  1873. 

METHODIST   CHURCH. 
BY    MltS.  C.  F.  DKWET. 

Methodism  was  first  introduced  into 
Berlin  about  the  year  1830.  At  this  time 
Berlin  was  included  in  the  Brookfield  cir- 
cuit, then  in  the  N.  H.  Conference.  Elisha 
Scott  being  in  1831,  preacher  in  charge  of 
Brookfield,  Northfield  and  Berlin.  The 
early  history  of  the  church  previous  to 
1843,  is  not  as  full  as  may  be  desired,  ow- 
ing to  the  first  records  being  lost  or  de- 
stroyed. The  first  account  we  find  is  in 
1843;  J.  C.  Dow  being  then  Presiding 
-  Elder  of  Montpelier  District  and  John 
Perrin  preacher,  and  so  far  as  is  shown  by 
records,  the  first  minister  stationed  at  Ber- 
lin :  we  find  also  that  James  Currier,  Al- 
mon  Poor,  Eleazer  Loomis  and  Jacob 
Flanders  were  stewards,  and  Elisha  Covell, 
Moses  Strong,  and  D.  A.  P.  Nye  were 
class-leaders.  The  preacher  gave  an  ac- 
count of  the  united  feeling  among  the 
members  then  numbering  85,  and  the  Sun- 
day school  was  well  attended  and  prosper- 
ous. It  was  at  this  time  connected  with 
Barre  charge  and  so  continued  till  1856, 
having  considerable  spiritual  prosperity. 


In  1837,  the  society  built  a  chapel  a  lit- 
tle south  of  the  cemetery,  and  in  1844  it 
was  moved  to  its  present  location  near  the 
Congregational  church,  when  it  was  re- 
paired and  enlarged.  The  society  built  a 
parsonage  at  Berlin  Corner  in  1847  ;  cost 
$583.51.  In  West  Berlin  a  class  was 
formed  in  1832,  Isaac  Preston  and  David 
Dudley  being  among  the  members.  This 
class  held  their  church  relation  at  North- 
field  till  the  year  1855,  when  through  the 
labors  of  H.  K.  Cobb,  (then  preaching  at 
Berlin)  there  were  numerous  conversions 
in  West  Beilin.  In  Dec.  1856,  a  church 
was  organized  by  the  election  of  Amos 
Chase,  W.  D  Stone,  Asbury  Sanders  and 
Isaac  Preston  as  stewards. 

Preaching  was  supported  one-half  the 
time  in  connection — both  places  being 
supplied  by  J.  House  for  2  years,  A.  Hay- 
ward  and  J.  W.  Hale  each  one  year — until 
1 861,  when  It  was  voted  that  Berlin  and 
West  Berlin  be  separate  stations.  From 
that  time  until  1868,  the  church  at  Berlin 
Corner  was  supplied  by  Elisha  Brown,  lo- 
cal preacher,  but  from  various  causes, 
deaths  and  removals  being  the  principal, 
its  prosperity  declined.  In  1868,  it  sup- 
ported preaching  one-half  the  time  ;  A.  B. 
Hopkins  supplying  both  churches  for  that 
year ;  since  that  time  services  have  been 
held  only  occasionally  at  that  place. 

In  1857,  the  Methodists  of  West  Berlin 
united  with  the  Congregationalists  and 
Baptists  in  building  a  union  church  which 
they  occupied  a  part  of  each  year  until 
1870,  when  the  Methodists  concluded  to 
build  a  church  for  their  own  use.  The 
subject  was  first  agitated  in  April,  1870, 
and  about  $700  raised  ;  first  work,  grading 
and  laying  corner-stone,  done  May  5th  ; 
May  7th,  first  stick  of  timber  cut;  house 
completed  July  14th  ;  dedicated  July  15th, 
free  from  debt,  without  help  of  Confer- 
ence ;  dedication  sermon  by  Rev.  S.  Hol- 
man  from  Montpelier.  From  this  time 
one  Sabbath  service,  Sunday  school,  class 
and  prayer-meetings  have  been  regularly 
sustained  and  steady  spiritual  interest  man- 
ifested. Sabbath  school  numbered  74  in 
1878;  average  attendance  37;  books  in 
library  250. 


68 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


BERLIN  ROLL  OF   HONOR   FOR    1814. 

Natnes  of  men  thai  wait  to  Plattsburgh. 
Jacob  Flanders,  Zelotus  Scott,  Samuel 
Hubbard,  Stephen  Wright.  Mr.  Tiliston, 
Ensign,  Jeremiah  Culver,  Jeremiah  Good- 
hue, Josiah  Benjamin,  Ebenezer  Bailey. 
Samuel  Currier,  Abraham  Townsend  Cyrus 
Johnson,  Captain,  Roger  Buckley,  Ord. 
Sergt.,  James  Perley.  Capt.  Taylor,  Eliada 
Brown,  James  Smith,  Richard  Smith. 
Alanson  Wright.  John  Stewart,  ist  Lieut., 
E.  M.  Dole,  Samuel  Perley,  Moses  H. 
Sawyer,  Asa  Dodge. 

BERLIN  VOLUNTEERS  IN  THK  WAR  OF    1861 . 

Samuel  P.  Atwood,  Charles  Bailey,  Joel 
O.  Bailey,  William  R.  Bean,  Peter  Bres- 
sette,  Chester  Brown,  Eliphalet  E.  Bryant. 
Charles  N.  Cilley,  James  M.  D.  Cilley, 
Benjamin  F.  Clark.  Smith  Clark.  John  B. 
Crandall,  Richard  B.  Crandall,  Jessie  D. 
Cummings,  John  P.  Davenport,  Lorenzo 
Dow,  William  H.  Dow,  Wm.  S.  George, 
Charles  B.  Green,  Lucius  D.  Hadlock, 
Charles  Hanan,  Ira'L.  Hanan,  Charles  C. 
Hartwell,  Stillman  A.  Hatch,  George  S. 
Hayden,  Obadiah  W.  Hill,  John  F.  Huse, 
Henry  F.  Johnson,  Nathan  C.  Kibbey, 
Josiah  Lathrop.  George  Lawrence,  Leon- 
ard Lawrence,  William  LeRock,  Cornelius 
Nye,  John  F.  Phelps.  James  F.  Randall. 
Alfred  M.  Reed,  Andrew  J.  Reed,  Carlos 
H.  Rich.  Harlon  P.  Sargent,  Carlisle  Saun- 
ders, Joseph  Slattery,  Charles  Smith, 
Franklin  I.  Southwick,  Stephen  G.  Stew- 
art, Daniel  H.  Stickney,  Horace  M.  Stick- 
ney,  W^m.  O.  Stickney,  Edward  P.  Stone, 
Joshua  Wade.  John  Burke.  Jesse  Cayhue, 
Albert  Darling,  Andrew  J.  Davis,  Francis 
Emerson.  Bartholomew  Fenton,  Frederick 
Gale,  Calvin  W.  Greenleaf,  John  C.  Hack- 
ett,  Paschal  Hatch,  Simeon  Hatch,  Wil- 
bur E.  Henry,  William  O.  Horton,  Edso 
W.  Howden,  Charles  Jandreau.  Jeremiah 
Kelley,  Franklin  Labarron.  John  McCarty, 
Chas.  McGlatlin,  Francis  Minor,  Chas.  D. 
Naylor,  Chas.  W.  Nichols,  Wm.  B.  Perrin, 
George  Shattuck,  David  K.  Stone.  John 
W.  Taylor,  Henry  C.  Varnum,  Alfred 
Whitney,  Lucius  J.  Goodwin.  Aaron  Row- 
ell,  William  Yatta,  Samuel  W.  Andnis, 
Alson   H.    Braley,  Don  B.    Cilley,   Peter 


Gravelin,  Elijah  N.  Hadlock,  Hubbard  E. 
Hadlock.  Timothy  Hanbrooks,  Wm.  H. 
Hunt.  Edwin  Jone^,  A.  M.  Reed,  Frank 
Wheelock,  George  S.  Lawrence,  Barney 
McCarron.  John  W.  Parmenter,  Henry  E. 
Preston,  Hiram  W.  Scribner.  George  L. 
Wade,  Lewis  Bumblebee.  Lorenzo  Dow, 
Guy  M.  Reed,  Charles  B.  Graen.  Wm.  A. 
Phillips.  Carlos  H.  Rich,  Eli  M.  Robbins, 
Charles  Smith,  Jabez  Alexander.  John  H. 
Bartlett,  Jedediah  Carpenter,  Stephen  R. 
Colby,  Elbridge  G.  Fisk,  David  Rollins. 

VOLUNTEERS    FOR   NINE   MONTHS. 

Henry  R.  Austin,  George  C.  Bailey, 
Merrill  J.  Bailey,  Jerome  E.  Ballou.  Hora- 
tio G.  Beebe,  S.  Webster  Benjamin, 
Wm.  Blair,  Winslow  L.  Blanchard,  Don 

B.  Cilley,  Clark  D.  Cressey,  John  K.  Cross, 
Samuel  Crozier,  Abraham  Lezer,  Oliver 
Luciere,  David  A.  Marble,  Henry  A.  Miles, 
George  S.  Robinson,  Gardner  P.  Rowell, 
Reuben  Rowley,  George  Shattuck,  David 

C.  Silloway.  Joseph  B.  Silloway,  Rollin  D. 
Stewart,  Willis  P.  Stewart,  Arthur  W. 
Taylor,  Alfred  B.  Thompson,  William  W. 
Willey.  Drafted  and  served  his  time. 
Nelson  W.  Chase. 

The  remains  of  the  5  soldiers  mentioned 
below  repose  in  the  Cemetery  at  Berlin 
Corner : 

Major  Richard  B.  Crandall,  of 
Berlin,  was  killed  in  action  at  Cold  Har- 
bor, Va.,  June  7,  1864.  Richard  Bailey 
Crandall,  born  in  Berlin,  a  student  in 
Dartmouth  College  one  year,  when  he  en- 
listed in  the  6th  Regiment,  and  went  out 
under  Col.  Lord  as  Adjutant,  was  Captain 
of  Co.  K.  some  time.  Re-enlisted  and  was 
promoted  to  iMajor.  His  age  was  26  years 
7  months. 

Daniel  K.  Sticknev,  a  private  in  Co. 

D.  2d  Reg'mt,  was  a  prisoner  in  Libby 
prison  over  6  months  ;  from  effect  of  treat- 
ment received  while  there,  died  April  7, 
1863,  age  18  y'rs,  6  mos. 

George  Martin,  son  of  Ira  Andrews, 
a  vcJlunteer,  private  in  Co.  E.  17th  Reg'mt 
was  wounded  in  the  arm  which  was  ampu- 
tated, but  did  not  heal  and  caused  death 
in  Sloan  Hospital,  July,  1S64,  age  ig  years 
5  months. 


BERLIN. 


69 


Jesse  D.  Cummings  and  Cornelius 
Nye,  killed  in  action,  were  buried  on  the 
field. 

John  P.  Davenport  enlisted  early  in 
the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  and  becoming 
enfeebled  from  hardship  and  exposure,  was 
discharged,  came  home,  and  died  April, 
1863,  age  23. 

Tell  my  IVieiids  tlie  story 
Wlien  I  sleep  beneath  the  sod. 

That  I  died  to  save  my  country. 
All  from  love  for  It  and  God. 

HON.    D.    P.    THOMPSON. 

BY   D.  F.  WIIEATON,  OF  BAHUK. 

Daniel  Pierce  Thompson,  son  of  Daniel 
and  Rebeckah  Thompson,  was  born  in 
Charlestown,  Mass.,  Oct.  i,  1795,  and  em- 
igrated with  his  father  to  Berlin  in  1800; 
and  here  he  passed  his  boyhood  days,  on 
his  father's  farm,  following  the  routine  of  a 
farmer  boy's  life.  But  his  desire  was  for 
books,  the  fishing-rod  and  his  gun,  and  he 
left  the  farm  in  early  manhood,  without 
means,  but  determined  to  possess  an  ed- 
ucation, and  by  his  own  efforts  succeeded. 
He  pursued  his  studies  in  Randolph  and 
Danville,  this  State,  and  entered  Middle- 
bury  College  in  18 16;  graduated  in  1820; 
went  to  Virginia,  and  engaged  in  teaching 
several  years ;  studied  law  while  there ; 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  that  State,  and 
returning  to  Vermont,  commenced  to 
practice  at  Montpelier,  where  he  resided 
till  his  death.  He  married  Miss  Eunice 
Robinson  of  Troy,  Vt.,  had  5  children, 
three  of  whom  and  his  widow  are  still  liv- 
ing. He  engaged  in  his  profession  but  a 
short  time,  being  soon  chosen  the  Register 
of  Probate  for  Washington  County,  which 
office,  together  with  that  of  Clerk  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  he  held  for  sev- 
eral years,  and  then  was  appointed  Clerk 
of  the  County  and  Supreme  Courts,  and 
soon  after  was  chosen  Judge  of  Probate. 
He  was  elected  Secretary  of  State,  and 
held  the  office  until  1855.  He  was  editor 
of  "The  Green  Mountain  Freeman"  from 
1849  to  1856,  and  eminently  successful 
in  making  an  interesting  and  entertaining 
newspaper. 

In  politics,  originally  a  Democrat,  he 
early  ]:)ecame  identified  with  the  old  Lib- 


erty party,  and  after  that  party  was  dis- 
banded, became  a  supporter  of  the  Re- 
publican party.  It  was  not  as  a  public 
officer,  however,  but  as  a  writer,  that  his 
name  will  be  most  widely  known  and  cher- 
ished. He  was  the  only  popular  novelist 
Vermont  has  ever  produced.  During  his 
whole  life  he  devoted  much  time  to  the  in- 
cidents of  the  early  history  of  the  State. 
He  loved  to  embody  in  his  writings  such 
reminiscences  as  he  was  able  to  gather 
from  the  records  and  the  recollections  of 
old  men.  A  lover  of  stories  and  tradi- 
tions, it  was  his  habit  to  convene  with  the 
old  people,  and  listen  to  the  quaint  narra- 
tives they  loved  to  tell. 

A  devotee  of  the  piscatorial  art,  he 
would  take  jaunts  about  the  county  with 
his  fishing-rod,  and  was  familiar  with  every 
trout  brook  and  pond  for  miles  around, 
and  almost  rivalled  Izaak  Walton  of  old  in 
his  passion  for  fishing,  and  in  the  success 
that  attended  his  hook,  in  the  long  string 
of  trout  he  bore  home  in  triumph. 

Often  stopping  at  some  wayside  farm- 
house, he  would  spend  hours- with  some  of 
the  old  settlers,  garulous  of  the  early 
scenes  and  times  in  the  history  of  our 
State.  The  fame  of  many  of  the  founders 
of  the  State  is  greatly  indebted  to  his  pen 
and  the  industry  and  enthusiasm  with 
which  he  collected  and  placed  before  the 
people  incidents  that  otherwise  would  have 
been  forgotten  long  ago.  Besides  news- 
paper and  magazine  articles,  his  first  work 
was  "May  Martin,  or  The  Money  Dig- 
gers"; published  in  book  form  in  1835. 
It  was  written  in  successful  competition 
for  a  prize  offered  by  one  of  the  Boston 
journals.  In  1840,  "The  Green  Moun- 
tain Boys"  appeared — a  historical  tale, 
containing  some  of  the  chief  incidents  of 
the  history  of  the  State,  and  introducing 
the  leading  characters  of  that  period. 
Then  followed  "Locke  Amsden,  or  the 
School-master,"  written  with  a  view  to  the 
reformation  of  the  school  system  of  that 
time  ;  "  The  Rangers,  or  the  Tory's  Daugh- 
ter," published  in  185 1,  illustrative  of  the 
early  history  of  the  State,  and  gives  an 
interesting  account  of  the  Battle  of  Ben- 
nington, and  incidents  connected  with  the 


70 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


northern  campaign  of  1777.  In  1852,  he 
issued  "  Tales  of  the  Green  IV^ountains  " ; 
in  1857,  "  Gaut  Gurley,  or  the  Trappers 
of  the  Umbago  "  ;  in  i860,  "The  Doomed 
Chief,  or  Two  Hundred  Years  Ago " ; 
which  contains  an  interesting  account  of 
the  brave,  but  unfortunate.  King  Philip,  of 
Mount  Hope  ;  "  Centeola  "  and  a  History 
of  Montpelier  close  the  list  of  his  books. 

Most  of  his  works  have  passed  through 
numerous  editions ;  May  Martin  and  the 
Green  Mountain  Boys  as  many  as  fifty, 
and  have  been  re-published  in  England, 
and  some  of  his  scenes  have  been  dram- 
atized. His  prolific  pen  also  joroduced 
many  other  less  pretentious  stories  and  ar- 
ticles deservedly  popular.  His  novels, 
rich  in  historical  facts,  are  \yritten  in  a 
graphic,  natural  language  and  entertain- 
ing style,  and  he  has  done  much  to  fa- 
miliarize our  State  history. 

The  last  few  years  of  his  life  he  suffered 
ill  health  from  partial  strokes  of  paralysis, 
which  were  but  precursors  of  the  final  at- 
tack, which  proved  fatal  June  6,  1868.  By 
his  death  a  pen  rich  in  historic  incidents 
and  scenes  was  laid  aside  forever ;  but  his 
name  will  long  be  associated  with  the  his- 
tory of  our  State  through  his  works. 

He  was  frank  and  pleasant  in  his  deal- 
ings with  his  fellow-men ;  lenient  almost 
to  a  fault,  unpretending  in  dress,  and  genial 
as  a  friend  and  companion. 

THE    GREAT   WOLF    HUNT   ON   IRISH    HILL. 

BEULIN    IN  EAHLY   TIMES. 

The  way  the  settlers  met  and  overcame 
the  wild  animals  is  well  described  in  the 
following  story  by  the  late  Hon.  D.  P. 
Thompson,  and  printed  in  the  Montpelier 
ylrgus  and  Pat7-iot  in  1867,  of  "  The  Great 
Wolf  Hunt  on  Irish  Hill  in  Early  Time." 

One  Saturday  night,  about  dark,  in  the 
month  of  February,  1803,  a  smart  resolute 
boy,  who  was  then  eleven  years  old,  w'ho 
is  still  alive  and  one  of  the  most  honored 
citizens  of  Montpelier,  Hon.  Daniel  Bald- 
win, and  who  had  been  boarding  out  to 
attend  the  district  school  on  the  lower  part 
of  Dog  river,  started  on  foot  and  alone  to 
go  to  the  house  of  Israel  Dewey,  his  broth- 
er-in-law, three  or  four  miles  up  the  river, 
over  a  road  leading  mainly  tlirougb  a  dense 
forest,  to  his  destination  near  the  borders 


of  Northfield.  Not  anticipating  the' least 
difficulty  in  accomplishing  his  undertaking, 
he  pushed  confidently  forward  till  he 
reached  the  log-cabin  of  old  Mr.  Seth 
Johnson,  which  was  the  last  house  on  his 
way  before  entering  the  long  woods  sepa- 
rating the  lower  settlements  from  those  in 
the  vicinity  of  Northfield  Falls  whither  he 
was  bound.  As  he  came  up  Mr.  Johnson, 
who  was  in  the  yard,  on  learning  his  des- 
tination, ominously  shook  his  head,  and 
said,  "Daniel,  you  must  not  try  to  go 
through  the  long  woods  to  your  sister's  to- 
night, for  the  varmints  will  catch  you."  But 
the  boy  not  frightened  by  the  warning, 
was  for  going  on,  when  Mrs.  Johnson  came 
out  and  interposed  by  "  Now,  Seth  John- 
son, if  that  boy  will  go,  you  must  go  with 
him,  or  the  varmints  will  certainly  have 
him  ;  have  been  prowling  in  the  woods 
every  night  for  a  week."  Well,  I  would  go 
if  I  could  not  do  better  by  him,  but  I  can 
contrive  to  furnish  him  with  a  better  safe- 
guard than  my  company  will  afford,"  re- 
turned the  husband.  "  Daniel,  you  hold 
on  a  minute  and  I  will  show  you."  So, 
saying,  he  ran  into  the  house  and  brought 
the  firebrand  of  a  stout  sapling  club,  with 
one  end  well  on  fire,  and  putting  it  into 
the  boy's  hand,  said  to  him,  "  There,  take 
that  and  begin  now  to  swing  it  enough  to 
keep  it  alive,  and  if  the  savage  brutes  be- 
set you  on  your  way  swing  it  round  you 
like  fury  and  run  the  gauntlet,  and  I'll 
warrant  they  won't  dare  to  touch  you." 

The  boy  who  had  been  a  little  staggered 
by  what  he  had  heard,  now,  however,  as 
he  was  armed  with  the  efficacious  fire- 
brand, as  he  was  told  it  would  prove,  again 
went  fearlessly  forward.  But  the  events 
of  the  next  half  hour  were  destined  to 
change  his  feelings  of  confidence  into  those 
of  lively  apprehension,  for  he  had  not  gone 
more  than  half-a-mile  after  entering  the 
woods,  before  his  ears  were  greeted  by  a 
long  shrill  howl  rising  from  the  forest  a 
short  distance  to  his  left,  bringing  the  un- 
welcome conviction  to  his 'startled  mind  of 
the  near  vicinity  of  one  at  least  of  the  wild 
beasts  against  which  he  had  been  warned, 
the  terrible  wolf.  And  to  add  to  his  dis- 
may, the  howl  he  had  heard  was  almost 
instantly  answered  by  a  dozen  responsive 
howls  from  various  points  more  or  less 
distant,  on  the  wooded  sides  of  Irish  Hill, 
which  rose  immediately  from  Dog  river  on 
the  east ;  while  these  ominous  sounds, 
growing  louder  and  more  distinct  every 
moment,  very  plainly  indicated  a  very 
large  troop  of  these  savage  brutes  were 
rapidly  closing  in  on  his  path  with  a  pur- 
pose of  which  he  trembled  to  think.  Be- 
lieving it  would  be  as  dangerous  for  him 
to  retreat   as  advance,  he  cjuickened  his 


BERLIN. 


71 


walk  into  a  run,  and  commenced  swinging 
his  firebrand  as  he  went,  hoping  thus  to 
get  through  the  woods  before  the  gang 
would  beset  his  path.  But  he  soon  found 
that  neither  his  speed  nor  his  firebrand 
were  sufficient  to  ensure  him  against  the 
threatened  danger.  He  had  not  gone  an- 
other half-mile  before  a  fierce  and  hungry 
yinvl,  issuing  from  a  dark  flitting  figure  in 
the  road  a  few  steps  in  advance  brought 
him  to  a  stand.  He  recoiled  from  the 
frightful  cry  and  began  to  retreat,  but  his 
steps  were  quickly  arrested  by  another 
fierce  jK^;7i//,  apprising  him  that  the  enemy 
were  in  possession  of  the  road  behind  as 
well  as  before  him,  while  out  there  on  his 
left,  out  here  on  his  right  and  everywhere 
around,  rose  in  full  chorus  the  same  shrill, 
eager,  hungry  yowl;  yowl;  yowl  for  his 
blood.  Having  become  perfectly  desperate 
under  these  apiJRlling  surroundings,  which 
plainly  told  him  that  a  struggle  for  his  life 
was  now  at  hand,  he  made  a  wild  rush 
forward,  swinging  his  firebrand  around  him 
with  all  his  might,  and  uttering  a  fierce 
yell  at  every  bound  both  to  keep  up  his 
own  courage  and  frighten  away  the  wolves 
which  were  keeping  pace  with  him,  gallop- 
ing along  on  each  side  of  his  path,  or  leap- 
ing into  the  road  behind  and  before  him, 
besetting  him  so  closely  and  with  such 
boldness  and  determination,  that  it  often 
required  an  actual  contact  of  the  firebrand 
with  their  noses  to  make  them  yield  the 
way  for  his  advance.  And  thus  for  the 
next  half  mile  he  ran  the  fearful  gauntlet 
through  this  terrible  troop  of  infuriated 
brutes  till  almost  dead  with  fright  and 
exhaustion,  he  at  length  reached  the  home 
of  Israel  Dewey  his  brother-in-law,  with 
joy  and  gratitude  for  his  preservation  from 
a  terrible  death  which  no  words  could 
describe. 

This  event,  whifh  of  itself  was  suf- 
ficiently romantic  and  thrilling  to  deserve 
a  place  among  the  striking  incidents  of  the 
early  settlements,  was  the  more  note- 
worthy on  account  of  the  memorable  affair 
to  which  it  directly  and  almost  immediately 
led,  the  great  wolf  hunt  on  Irish  Hill  ia 
the  winter  of  1803. 

Up  to  that  time  it  was  not  known  with 
any  certainty  that  there  were  wolves  in 
this  section  of  the  country.  Several  set- 
tlers in  the  vicinity  of  the  extensive  moun- 
tain forest  called  Irish  Hill,  had  lost  sheep  ; 
whether  they  were  killed  by  bears,  cata- 
mounts, or  wolves  was  a  matter  of  conjec- 
ture ;  but  the  boy's  perilous  adventure 
which  spread  rapidly  among  the  nearest 
settlements  and  was  implicitly  believed  at 
once,  established  the  fact  in  the  minds 
of  all  that  there  was  really  a  gang  of 
wolves  in  the  vicinity,  and    Irish  Hill  was 


probably  their  chief  rendezvous.  The 
settlers  one  and  all  eagerly  expressed  their 
wish  to  join  in  a  hunt  for  the  extermina- 
tion of  the  destructive  animals. 

A  rally  was  made  on  the  following  Tues- 
day, but  not  extensive  enough  to  form  a 
ring  around  any  large  portion  of  the  for- 
est where  the  wolves  were  supposed  to  be 
lurking.  Having  assembled  at  Berlin 
meeting  house,  they,  however,  marched 
into  the  woods  and  shot  two  wolves,  when 
they  postponed  further  operations  till  the 
following  Saturday,  when  a  grand  hunt 
was  proposed  in  which  all  the  settlers  from 
the  adjoining  towns  within  20  miles  were  to 
be  invited  to  partictpate,  what  they  had  done 
being  considered  merely  a  reconnoisance. 
Early  Saturday  morning,  the  well-armed 
settlers,  having  ambitiously  responded  to 
the  call,  gathered  at  the  house  of  Abel 
Kpapp,  Esq.,  the  town  clerk,  living  very 
near  what  was  then  termed  Berlin  Center 
meeting-house. 

The  assembled  forces  numbering  400  or 
500  then  formed  themselves  into  two  equal 
divisions,  and  chose  leaders  or  captains 
for  each,  with  a  general  officer  to  remain 
at  the  starting  point  and  give  out  the  order 
or  signal  cries  to  be  passed  round  the 
ring  proposed  to  be  formed.  The  two 
captains  then  led  off"  their  respective  divis- 
ins,  one  to  the  south,  along  the  borders  of 
the  woods,  and  the  other  to  the  west  for  a 
short  distance  and  then  south,  each  leav- 
ing a  man  every  50  or  60  rods,  to  keep  his 
station  till  ordered  to  march  inward,  when 
the  ring  was  completed.  After  waiting 
two  hours  or  more  to  give  time  for  the 
divisions  to  station  their  men  so  as  to  form 
an  extended  ring  round  the  forest  proposed 
to  be  enclosed,  the  word  was  given  out  by 
the  general  officer,  "  Prepare  to  march.'''' 
This  was  uttered  in  a  loud  cry  at  the  start- 
ing point,  and  repeated  by  the  next  man 
left  stationed  to  the  south,  and  soon,  if  the 
ring  had  been  perfected  by  every  man, 
round  the  ring.  As  had  been  expected, 
the  sound  of  this  watchword  gradually 
grew  fainter  and  fainter  in  the  distance, 
and  then  ceased  to  be  heard  at  all.  Then 
followed  a  moment  of  anxious  waiting 
with  those  at  the  starting  point,  for  if  the 
watchword  was  not  soon  approaching  from 
the  west  it  would  show  the  ring  not  per- 
fected, and  all  success  in  enclosing  the 
reputed  wolves  a  hopeless  affair.  But  they 
had  not  long  to  wait.  In  a  short  time  a 
faint  sound  was  heard  on  the  west  side  of 
the  ring  which  grew  louder  and  louder 
till  it  reached  the  starting  point  in  full  tone. 
All  was  now  animation  and  expectancy  on 
this  part  of  the  ring,  and  almost  instantly 
the  next  watchword  ''  tnarch  "  rang  through 
the  forest,  and  eaeh  man,  as  he  repeated 


n 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


it,  advanced  rapidly  into  the  interior  of 
the  ring  a  quarter  of  a  mile  as  near  as  he 
could  judge,  and  then  commanded  the 
"halt"  as  agreed  at  the  outset.  This 
word  was  promptly  sent  onward  and  re- 
turned like  the  others,  when  another  com- 
mand to  march  was  uttered,  and  all  again 
advanced  towards  the  supposed  center  ot 
the  ring.  And  thus  rapidly  succeeded 
the  watchwords  march  and  halt,  till  the 
ring  was  so  nearly  closed  that  it  was  seen 
and  announced  that  there  were  enclosed 
several  wolves,  in  the  same,  which  ran  gal- 
loping round  the  centre,  as  if  looking  for 
a  chance  to  escape  through  the  ring,  now 
become  a  continuous  line  of  men.  But 
the  frightened  animals  could  find  no  out- 
lets, and  were  shot  down  with  every  at- 
tempt to  escape.  Two  wolves  and  a  fox 
or  two  were  killed  in  this  way,  but  by  this 
time  bullets  flew  so  thickly  across  the  ring 
that  it  was  seen  that  some  change  of  plan 
must  be  made,  else  as  many  men  as  wolves 
might  be  killed.  By  common  consent  at 
this  crisis  the  late  Thomas  Davis,  a  well- 
known  marksman  and  a  man  of  steady 
nerve  was  requested  to  go  inside  thering 
and  shoot  the  wolves.  This  he  did,  and  ac- 
complished all  that  was  expected  of  him. 
He  shot  Ave  wolves  and  endangered  no 
man.  The  whole  number  of  the  victims 
of  the  hunt  were  then  found  to  be  seven 
wolves  and  ten  foxes.  The  company  then 
took  otf  the  scalps  of  the  wolves  and  took 
up  their  line  of  march  for  the  house  of  the 
town  clerk,  where  bounties  for  the  slain 
wolves  were  to  be  allowed  and  of  the  avails 
some  disposition  made.  It  was  announced 
that  money  to  the  value  adequate  had  been 
advanced  sufficient  to  pay  for  a  supper  for 
the  whole  company.  These  arrangements 
were  soon  effected  and  while  the  supper 
was  being  cooked  a  keg  of  rum  was  opened 
and  distributed,  which  being  taken  in  their 
exhausted  condition,  on  empty  stomachs, 
thus  upset  a  large  number  who  were  never 
so  upset  before  that  it  was  said  that  Esquire 
Knapp's  haymow  that  night  lodged  a  larger 
number  of  disabled  men  than  were  ever 
before  or  since  collected  in  Washington 
County. 

Thus  was  ended  the  great  Wolf  Hunt 
on  Irish  Hill  in  1803,  which  was  the  means 
of  routing  every  wolf  from  this  region  ot 
Vermont,  and  from  that  time  to  the  pres- 
ent day  at  least  none  have  been  known-" 

D.   p.  T. 

MONTPFXIER,  July  12,  188 1. 
The  above  is  certified  to,  78  years  after 
by  the  actor  in  the  scene,  as  substantially 
true.  Daniel  Baldwin. 


BERLIN   POND   AND    BENJAMIN'S    FALLS. 

Upon  the  highlands  of  the  town  of  Ber- 
lin, at  a  distance  of  four  or  five  miles  from 
the  capital  of  the  State,  and  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  little  less  than  400  feet  above  the 
same,  lies  a  beautiful  body  of  water — 
Berlin  Pond  ;  about  2  miles  in  length,  nar- 
rowing into  a  width  of  50  feet  at  two- 
thirds  of  the  distance  from  the  head,  giv- 
ing the  wider  parts  the  designation  of  the 
ui^per  and  lower  pond.  The  water  is  clear 
and  soft,  and  when  unmoved,  reflects  the 
entire  margin  of  hill-sides,  farm  and  forest, 
while  the  sky  and  clouds  above  seem  to 
have  lazily  lain  down  upon  its  bosom  till 
well  might  these  be  called  Mirror  lakes. 
Berlin  pond,  or  ponds  h^ve  long  been  a 
resort  of  fishing  parties,  and  of  late,  a 
growing  taste  for  rural  scenes  and  camp- 
life,  induces  longer  stay,  and  during  the 
warmer  summer  months  it  is  not  uncom- 
mon now  for  families  from  neighboring 
towns  to  pitch  here  their  tents  and  set  up  a 
system  of  co-operative  housekeeping  that 
succeeds,  during  which  sojourn  religious 
services  are  held  on  Sundays  in  the  open 
air.  or,  if  rainy,  in  some  one  of  the  larger 
tents. 

If  always  "  a  thing  of  beauty,"  the  pond 
has  not  always  been  "  a  thing  of  joy."  At 
times  it  has  shown  a  greed  of  human  life, 
and  helped  to  fill  the  cup  of  sorrow — en- 
gulfing once  a  bright  and  promising  boy, 
the  only  son  of  parents  dwelling  on  its  bor- 
der, and  from  the  shadowy  forest  of  the 
eastern  shore  there  ortce  came  whisperings 
of  foul  treachery  and  homicide.  But  these 
events  were  of  the  past — never  to  be  re- 
peated, let  us  hope. 

The  village  of  the  town  is  situated  at 
the  lower  and  northern  extremity  of  the 
pond,  and  here  is  a  fall  with  a  good  water- 
power  which  has  long  been  utilized.  From 
this  outlet  the  stream  runs  in  a  circuitous 
route  some  over  a  mile,  falling  19  feet,  and 
furnishing  two  other  water-powers  on  its 
way,  thence  rushing  on  more  rapidly,  as 
if  tired  of  slow  work,  and  eager  for  frolic, 
seeks  the  woods  and  at  once  away  from 
observation  and  restraint,  its  wild  race  be- 
gins, and  in  less  than  300  feet  it  falls  in 
one  leap  after  another,  274  feet.     The  first 


BERLIN. 


73 


of  these  leaps  50  feet  in  an  angle  of  65  de- 
grees. The  second  about  6  rods  below, 
falling  30  feet  perpendicularly;  and  18 
I'ods  farther  on  is  the  third  falls  of  130  feet 
at  an  angle  of  30  degrees.  Thus  far  so 
completely  hidden  are  Benjamin's  Falls, 
known  by  the  name  of  the  owner  of  the 
land  through  which  the  stream  runs — that 
perhaps  most  people  in  their  vicinity  have 
never  seen  this  beautiful  freak  of  nature's. 
But  though  long  unknown  and  unvisited 
through  the  warm  season,  of  late,  parties 
one  or  more,  may  often  be  found  spending 
the  day  here.  Cool,  sheltered,  and  for  a 
wonder  is  not  damp,  nothing  can  be  more 
delightful  than  to  sit  under  the  trees  and 
watch  the  caprices  of  the  rushing,  roaring 
torrent.  The  maples  and  birches  crowd 
close  to  its  edge,  laving  their  roots  in  its 
waters  and  throwing  their  arms  out  over 
it,  the  tall  evergreens  stand  like  sentinels 
around,  and  soft  mosses  and  delicate  ferns 
cushion  and  fringe  its  banks  save  where 
the  sharp  rocks  jut  out  as  a  stronger  bul- 
wark of  protection.  A  party  at  one  time 
visiting  the  falls  after  a  long  and  heavy 
rain  beheld  in  a  nook  at  one  side  of  the 
perpendicular  fall,  which  the  excess  of 
water  had  completely  filled,  float  a  mass 
of  foam  in  the  form  of  the  lower  half  of  a 
perfect  cone,  4  or  5  feet  in  diameter,  of  the 
purest  white  at  the  base,  and  gradually 
gaining  color  until  crowned  by  the  amber 
of  the  daintiest  merschaum,  while  in  a 
broader,  but  shallower  pool  a  few  rods  be- 
low was  the  image  of  a  huge  ram,  tossing 
and  struggling  to  extricate  himself  from 
the  watery  element. 

Long  ago  this  wild  frolicsome  power  was 
seized  for  the  service  of  the  early  settlers. 
At  the  foot  of  the  first  fall  was  the  first  saw- 
mill, and  at  the  foot  of  the  second  the  first 
grist-mill  erected  in  the  county.  Whether 
the  ascent  to  the  mills  on  the  one  side  was 
too  steep,  or  the  descent  on  the  other  too 
difficult,  or  whether  it  came  to  be  thought 
of  mills  as  it  did  of  churches — better  to 
put  them  in  the  valleys  than  on  the  hill- 
top, we  may  not  now  know,  but  standing 
on  the  ground  and  seeing  left  only  the 
foundation  walls  and  the  millstone  lying 
in  the  stream  below,  one  questions  whether 


the  stream  itself  had  not  something  to  do 
in  their  abandonment,  this  turbulent,  wil- 
ful thing,  so  fascinating  in  its  beauty,  so 
destructive  in  its  power ;  now  abating 
somewhat  of  its  violence,  turning  aside 
here  and  there  into  little  nooks,  coquetting 
with  the  fallen  trunks  of  trees,  then  back 
again  over  the  smaller  rocks  in  its  bed, 
giving,  as  it  emerges  from  the  shelter  of 
the  woods,  a  tithe  of  its  i^ower  to  turn  the 
wheel  of  a  little  mill — thus  "  working  out 
its  highway  tax,"  and  then  after  one  short, 
sharp  and  final  plunge,  gracefully  yielding 
to  the  inevitable,  making  its  way  through 
the  fertile  meadows,  passes  quietly  into  the 
waters  of  the  Winooski. 

HENRY  LUTHER  STUART,  ESQ., 

died  Sept.  17,  1879,  ^t  Athens,  Ga.,  the 
day  being  his  64th  birthday.  He  was  born 
at  Berlin,  in  this  State,  and  after  studying 
medicine,  law  and  engineering,  he  went 
to  New  York  in  1843,  where  he  became 
known  in  connection  with  the  first  efforts 
to  lay  an  Atlantic  cable,  and  also  as  the 
designer  of  the  model  on  which  the  public 
schools  are  still  built.  He  was  also  the 
first  to  introduce  the  piano  into  these  insti- 
tutions. He  aided  in  founding  the  Five 
Points  Mission  in  1851,  and  was  later  in- 
strumental in  causing  the  establishment  of 
the  Normal  College.  He  was  an  old  friend 
of  Horace  Greeley.  He  devoted  his  whole 
life  to  the  public  service,  and  the  Woman's 
Hospital  of  New  York  State  and  the  Eclec- 
tic Medical  College  are,  in  a  measure,  in- 
debted to  him  for  their  foundation.  He 
was  also  much  interested  in  the  progress 
of  experiments  with  torpedoes  as  a  means 
of  coast  defence.  His  visit  to  Georgia  was 
undertaken  in  connection  with  the  honors 
lately  paid  there  to  Dr.  Long,  whose  name 
is  well  known  in  connection  with  the  his- 
tory of  am^sthetics.  His  death  was  caused 
by  paralysis. — Burlington  Free  Press. 

HON.    CHARLES   BULKLEY, 

a  native  of  Colchester,  Ct.,  came  to  Berlin 
previous  to  1800,  and  settled  near  the  red 
arch  bridge.  He  was  a  prominent  lawyer, 
his  office  being  in  Montpelier.  He  was 
Judge  of  Probate  for  Orange  County  Court 
in  1800  and  1801,  and  chief  judge  of  Wash- 


74 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ington  County  on  its  organization  in  1813, 
and  representative  for  Berlin  in  the  State 
Legislature  in  1818.  He  was  an  able  man, 
a  good  citizen  and  an  earnest  and  efficient 
member  of  the  Congregational  church  here 
in  its  early  days,  and  at  his  death  was  the 
oldest  member  of  the  bar  in  this  County. 
He  died  April,  1836,  age  72  years.  We 
were  late  in  finding  the  data  for  this  no- 
tice, or  it  would  have  appeared  among  the 
early  settlers  previously  noticed. 

George  Fowler,  an  old,  early  settler  of 
this  town,  used  to  hunt  with  Capt.  Joe, 
Indian. 

PUBLIC   MONEY  JUDICIOUSLY   EXPENDED. 

Previous  to  the  great  flood  in  Oct.  18 — , 
Berlin  street,  leading  east  from  the  red 
arch  bridge,  was  anything  but  a  pleasant 
place  to  live  in,  being  low,  and  in  spring 
a  complete  slough,  and  the  houses  old 
tumble-down  affairs.  The  water  having 
washed  out  part  of  the  street,  the  town  in- 
vested $1800  in  filling  and  grading  about 
h.  mile,  and  2  years  later,  nearly  as  much 
more.  The  improvement  seemed  catch- 
ing. The  inhabitants  took  the  idea,  and 
almost  every  house  is  newly  covered  ;  new 
ones  have  been  built,  a  new  street  laid  out 
with  additional  buildings,  and  now,  188 1, 
it  is  not  only  a  pleasant  place  in  which  to 
live,  but  one  of  the  pleasant  drives  near 
Montpelier. 

STEVENS   BRANCH. 

When  the  first  settlers  in  this  vicinity 
visited  the  lower  part  of  this  stream  they 
found  upon  its  banks  near  the  mouth  a 
hunters  cabin,  and  in  the  cabin  the  body 
of  a  man  far  gone  in  the  process  of  decay. 
He  had  evidently  died  alone  and  unat- 
tended. They  carefully  buried  the  body 
as  well  as  circumstances  would  admit.  It 
was  afterwards  ascertained  that  he  came 
from  Corinth,  and  his  name  was  Stevens. 
Hence,  the  name  "Stevens  Branch."  It 
is  said  that  on  account  of  disappointment 
in  a  love  affair  he  left  society  and  took  to 
the  forest. 

DOG   RIVER 

received   its   name   in   consequence   of  a 
hunter  by  the  name  of  Martin,  losing  his 


favorite  dog  in  the  following  manner :  He 
set  his  gun  at  night  near  his  camp  for  the 
purpose  of  shooting  a  bear.  During  the 
night  he  heard  the  report  of  the  gun,  and 
called  his  dog  to  ascertain  the  results, 
but  failing  to  find  him  he  waited  till  morn- 
ing, when  he  found  the  dog  was  the  victim. 
He  threw  the  dog  into  the  stream,  saying 
' '  this  stream  shall  be  called  Dog  River." 


CABOT. 

BY  JOHN   M.    FISHER. 

Cabot  is  situated  in  the  N.  E.  part  of 
Washington  Co.  ;  lat.  40°,  23';  long.  4°, 
42' ;  6  miles  square  ;  bounded  N.  by  Wal- 
den  and  Danville,  E.  by  Danville  and 
Peacham,  S.  by  Marshfield,  and  W.  by 
Woodbury,  and  lies  21  miles  easterly  from 
Montpelier.  It  was  granted  Nov.  6,  1780; 
chartered  by  Vermont  to  Jesse  Leven- 
worth  and  65  others,  Aug.  17,  1781  ;  but 
not  surveyed  and  lotted  till  1786.  The 
survey  was  made  by Cabot,  of  Con- 
necticut, and  James  Whitelaw.  Thomas 
Lyford,  whose  father  was  one  of  the  first 
settlers,  being  at  that  time  a  young  man, 
18  years  of  age,  worked  with  them  through 
the  survey.  In  the  extreme  west  part  of 
the  town  Mr.  Cabot  broke  the  glass  in  his 
compass,  and  was  obliged  to  go  through 
the  wilderness  to  the  nearest  house  about 
6  miles  away,  and  take  a  square  of  glass 
out  of  the  window  to  replace  it. 

The  names  of  the  grantees  were  not  en- 
tered upon  the  town  records,  and  it  can- 
not be  determined  with  certainty  who  of 
those  ever  settled  in  town.  By  what  we 
can  gather  from  the  original  plan  of  the 
town,  it  appears  very  few  of  them  ever 
made  this  town  their  home. 

The  township  was  lotted  by  James 
Whitelaw,  and  a  field-book  written  out  by 
him  September,  1786,  contains  the  num- 
ber of  each  lot  and  full  description  of  the 
same,  measurement,  etc.,  closing  each 
with  a  statement  of  what  in  his  judgment 
the  land  is  adapted  to,  whether  pasture  or 
general  farming.  There  were  12  lots  in 
each  division,  and  6  divisions,  making  72 
lots   in  town.     The  fir.st  meetino;   of  the 


CABOT. 


75 


proprietors  was  warned  by  Alexander  Har- 
vey, justice  of  the  peace, 

To  meet  at  the  house  of  Jonathan  Elkins, 
in  Peacham,  County  of  Orange,  on  the  2d 
Monday  in  June,  1786,  to  transact  the  fol- 
lowing business,  viz. :  ist,  to  choose  a 
moderator  to  govern  said  meeting ;  2d,  to 
choose  a  clerk  ;  3d,  to  agree  what  they  will 
do  respecting  the  settlers  in  said  town, 
and  to  see  what  encouragement  they  will 
give  to  settlers ;  4th,  to  lay  a  tax  to  de- 
fray the  expense  of  surveying  and  lotting 
said  town. 

o 

At  this  meeting,  Jonathan  Elkins  was 
chosen  moderator,  and  Jesse  Levenworth, 
clerk. 

Meetings  were  adjourned  from  time  to 
time.  November  3,  1786,  they  met  at  the 
house  of  Thomas  Chittenden,  in  Arling- 
ton, and  the  survey  being  completed  and 
presented  to  the  meeting,  it  was 

Voted  that  Giles  Chittenden  and  Tru- 
man Chittenden,  being  indifferent  per- 
sons, be  a  committee  to  draw  the  lots, 

which  being  done  by  them  in  the  presence 
of  the  meeting  as  the  law  directs,  was  as 
follows : 

k  Jesse  Levenworth,  lot  No.  5  ;  Jesse  Lev- 
enworth, 55;  Mark  Levenworth,  10;  Wil- 
liam Levenworth,  i  ;  Evans  Munson,  57  ; 
Isaac  Doolittle,  64;  Robert  Fairchild,  19; 
Ebenezer  Crafts,  14;  Timothy  Newel,  72; 
James  Lane,  66;  Elias  Townsend,  28; 
William  Holmes,  18;  Richard  Mansfield, 
70 ;  Nathan  Levenworth,  15  ;  Moses  Baker, 
20  ;  Jas.  Whitelaw,  7  ;  Philander  Harvey, 
65;  David  Bryant,  51;  Frederick  Leven- 
worth, 53;  Jonathan  Heath,  33;  Eames 
Johnson,  45  ;  Thomas  Lyford,  21 ;  Edmund 
Chapman,  50 ;  Benjamin  Webster,  40 ; 
David  Blanchard,  56 ;  Jonathan  Elkins, 
26;  Jonathan  Elkins,  Jr.,  42;  William 
Chamberlin,  60 ;  Ephraim  Foster,  44 ; 
Abel  Blanchard,  58 ;  Benjamin  Ambrose, 
34 ;  Minister,  62  ;  Minister,  63  ;  Grammar 
School,  69  ;  College,  3  ;  William  Douglas, 
49  ;  Asa  Douglas,  1 1  ;  John  Douglas,  22  ; 
Alson  Douglas,  68;  Beriah  Palmer,  17; 
Martha  Douglas,  13  ;  Ebenezer  Jones,  67  ; 
Jesse  Gardner,  41  ;  Mary  Andrus,  47 ; 
William  Douglas,  52 ;  Content  Douglas, 
46;  Asa  Douglas,  Jr.,  12  ;  Zebulon  Doug- 
las, 48;  Lyman  Hitchcock,  54;   Nathaniel 


Wales,  36 ;  Saphiah  Hitchcock,  2 ;  John 
Batchelder,  32;  Eliphalet  Richards,  29; 
Jonathan  Pettet,  30 ;  Matthew  Watson, 
38;  Ezekiel  Tiffany,  43;  Abel  Blanchard, 
39 ;  Peter  Blanchard,  27  ;  Reuben  Blanch- 
ard, 35;  Jason  Cross,  16;  Solomon  John- 
son, 9  ;  Robert  Hains,  61  ;  Samuel  Russell, 
23  ;  David  Waters,  6 ;  Thomas  Chittenden, 
Esq.,  4;  Paul  Spooner,  25;  Joseph  Fay, 
Esq.,  8;  Abigail  Gunn,  59;  Barnabas 
Morse,  24. 

Voted  that  there  be  a  tax  of  ten  shillings 
to  pay  the  expenses  of  lotting.  There  be- 
ing but  71  proprietors  and  72  lots,  it  was 

Voted  that  lot  No.  24  be  disposed  of,  as 
the  settlers  now  in  town  should  see  fit. 

Lots  No.  62  and  63  were  set  as  minister 
lots,  the  rent  to  go  for  the  support  of 
preaching  in  town;  No.  69,  grammar 
school,  the  rent  of  which  goes  to  Peacham 
Academy;  lots  71  and  72,  town  school; 
lot  No.  3,  college. 

The  town  was  named  by  Lyman  Hitch- 
cock, one  of  the  grantees,  in  honor  of  his 
bride-elect.  Miss  Cabot,  of  Connecticut,  a 
descendant  of  Sebastian  Cabot.  Mr.  Lev- 
enworth never  settled  or  lived  in  town,  but 
settled  and  built  the  mills  at  what  is  now 
known  as  West  Danville. 

In  1779,  Gen.  Hazen  cut  through  the 
wilderness,  and  made  a  passable  road  for 
50  miles  above  Peacham,  running  through 
the  north-eastern  part  of  Cabot,  over  what 
is  known  as  Cabot  Plain,  through  Walden 
and  Hardwick.  He  camped  for  a  few 
weeks  on  the  plain  about  J  of  a  mile  to 
the  south  of  the  residence  now  of  Springer. 
Here  they  expected  an  attack  from  the 
British  from  Canada,  who  were  sending  a 
portion  of  their  forces  down  on  the  east  side 
of  the  State,  instead  of  sending  them  all 
down  the  Lake,  upon  the  west  side.  A 
fortification  was  thrown  up  by  Hazen's 
soldiers.  The  ground  bears  the  name  of 
Fortification  Hill,  and  a  small  portion  of 
the  fortification  is  still  seen,  and  a  large 
rock  pointed  out  where  the  army  built  their 
camp-fires. 

Connected  with  Hazen's  army  was  a 
squad  called  Whitcbmb's  Range:  s,  among 
whom  was  Thomas  Lyford,  grandfather  of 
Thomas  Lyford  now  living  in  the  village 


76 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  Cabot.  Gen.  Hazen  expecting  an  at- 
tack from  the  enemy,  Whitcomb  and  Ly- 
ford  were  sent  to  the  north  as  spies.  Dur- 
ing the  long  scout  Whitcomb's  shoes  gave 
out,  and  he  threatened  to  shoot  the  first 
man  he  met  for  his.  After  several  days, 
cautiously  proceeding,  they  heard  a  dis- 
tant crackling  of  the  brush,  then  a  faint 
tramp  of  feet,  and  at  once  secreted  them- 
selves in  an  advantageous  position,  and 
waited.  In  a  short  time  a  scouting  party 
of  the  enemy  discovered  themselves,  Brit- 
ish and  Indians,  making  for  Gen.  Hazen''s 
quarters,  commanded  by  Gen.  Gordon. 
Our  scouts  felt  upon  their  action  for  a  few 
moments  hung  great  results  ;  not  only  their 
own  lives,  but  those  of  their  comrades 
and  Gen.  Hazen's  army.  The  enemy 
advanced.  Gen.  Gordon  in  front,  little 
thinking  what  is  concealed  in  the  thicket. 
Whitcomb  thinks  of  his  shoes  ;  tells  Lyford 
to  be  cool ;  takes  good  aim  ;  Gen.  Gordon 
falls  forward  ;  throws  his  arms  around  the 
neck  of  his  horse ;  the  horse,  frightened, 
turned  back  and  ran  into  camjD ;  the  Brit- 
ish general  lived  to  get  into  camp,  but  died 
very  soon  after.  Whitcomb  was  secreted 
under  a  bank  where  the  waters  in  a  little 
ravine  had  -washed  out  a  hole,  which  was 
covered  with  a  log.  Over  this  log,  he  said, 
a  number  of  Indians  ran  whooping,  brand- 
ishing their  tomahawks ;  that  he  could 
have  pulled  any  one  of  them  off  from  the 
log  as  they  passed  over  into  the  hole,  but 
he  thought  it  not  best.  Lyford  was  con- 
cealed near  him.  After  a  long  search,  the 
Indians  gave  up  they  could  not  find  the 
one  who  sent  the  bullet. 

As  soon  as  Whitcomb  and  Lyford  con- 
sidered it  safe  they  came  from  their  hiding 
places,  and  returned  to  the  camp  of  Gen. 
Hazen  with  the  news.  Whitcomb  did  not 
get  his  shoes,  but  they  had  accomplished 
all  and  more  than  they  set  out  for.  The 
enemy,  dismayed,  retreated  back  to  Can- 
ada, and  thus  ended  what  was  expected  to 
be  a  battle  or  skirmish  on  Cabot's  Plain. 
[See  account  of  Major  Whitcomb  and  this 
adventure  in  vol.  I  of  this  work,  page 
1067 — Ed.] 

Gen.  Hazen  finished  his  road  through  to 
the  town  of  Lowell,  and  then  returned  to 


the  south.  This  road  from  near  Joe's  pond, 
led  to  the  south  of  the  present  traveled 
road,  until  it  came  to  the  three  corners  of 
a  road  near  the  present  grave-yard  on  the 
plain  ;  here  it  struck  what  is  now  the  pres- 
ent traveled  road  and  continued  to  the 
north  line  of  the  town.  It  was  of  great 
benefit  to  the  first  settlers.  It  is  still  called 
the  Hazen  road. 

The  settlements  began  upon  the  high- 
est land,  in, town  which  has  been  known 
as  Cabot  Plain  for  the  last  40  years  ;  pre- 
vious to  that  as  Johnson's  Plain.  Colonel 
Thomas  Johnson  of  Newbury,  when  taken 
prisoner  with  Col.  Jonathan  Elkins  of 
Peacham,  by  the  British  in  1781,  and  car- 
ried to  Canada,  the  first  night  of  their 
march  camped  on  this  tract  of  land,  and 
when  he  returned  on  parole,  soon  after, 
and  from  that  time  until  late  in  the  present 
century  this  locality  was  called  Johnson's 
Plain.  It  lies  between  the  Connecticut 
and  Winooski  river,  and  commands  an 
extensive  and  beautiful  prospect,  the  out- 
lines of  which  are  formed  by  the  western 
range  of  the  Green  mountains  and  by  the 
White  mountains  in  N.  H. 

BENJAMIN   WEBSTER, 

of  Salisbury,  now  of  Franklin,  N.  H., 
uncle  of  renowned  Daniel  Webster,  en- 
couraged by  the  liberal  offers  of  the  pro- 
prietors, came  to  this  town  in  1783,  and 
made  the  first  opening  in  the  forest  for  a 
permanent  settlement.  The  first  clearing 
was  made  a  little  north  of  where  George 
Smith  now  lives,  on  the  line  of  the  Hazen 
road.  In  the  opening,  Mr.  Webster  built 
the  first  log  cabin.  Its  dimensions,  we  are 
not  told,  but  assured  it  was  sufficiently 
capacious  to  answer  for  a  house,  barn, 
shed,  and  all  necessary  out-buildings  ;  and 
that  this  tenement  completed,  he  returned 
for  his  family  and  moved  them  into  town 
March,  1783,  himself  driving  the  cow,  Mrs. 
Webster  traveling  on  snow-shoes,  and  the 
hired  man  with  Mrs.  Webster's  assistance, 
drawing  the  few  goods  they  brought  with 
them  on  a  hand-sled,  among  which  was  a 
wash-tub,  and  in  this  tub  their  little  daugh- 
ter two  years  of  age,  who  afterwards  be- 
came the   wife  of  Hanson  Rogers,   E.sq., 


CABOT. 


n 


and  after  raising  a  large  family  of  children, 
died  in  the  village  of  Cabot,  Sept.  28, 
1S68,  aged  88  yrs.  3  mos.,  14  days,  highly 
respected  by  all  who  knew  her.  On  their 
journey  from  Peacham  to  their  cabin,  the 
snow  was  4  feet  deep  upon  a  level ;  and 
upon  their  arrival  they  found  it  drifted  into 
their  cabin,  to  the  depth  of  a  foot  and  a 
half.  It  had  to  be  shoveled  out  before 
they  could  enter,  and  then  tliey  had  only 
the  bare  ground  for  a  floor.  After  getting 
settled  a  little,  Mr.  Webster  went  to  New- 
bury for  provisions.  While  he  was  away, 
the  sun  coming  out  warm,  Mrs.  Webster 
tapped  some  trees  and  made  40  pounds  of 
sugar.  It  is  said  she  could  chop  as  well 
as  a  man,  and  greatly  helped  her  husband 
in  clearing  up  his  farm. 

LIEUT.    JONATHAN   HEATH 

was  the  second  settler.  His  family  ar- 
rived the  first  of  any  settler's  family.  The 
Lieutenant  came  with  his  family  two  days 
before  Benjamin  Webster  came  with  his. 
He  built  his  cabin  on  the  line  of  the  Ha- 
zen  road  opposite  the  present  burying- 
ground  on  the  Plain. 

NATHANIEL   WEBSTER 

and  family  were  the  third  to  arrive.  He 
rolled  up  the  logs  for  his  cabin  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  Hazen  road  from  Benja- 
min Webster's. 

LIEUT.    THO*MAS   LYFORD 

who  was  with  Whitcomb  in  the  daring 
adventure  of  shooting  General  Gordon, 
was  the  fourth  settler.  He  located  on  the 
south  of  the  road,  near  the  three  corners, 
near  the  burying-ground,  in  what  is  now 
Eli  B.  Stone's  field. 

The  nearest  trading  point  at  first  was 
Newbury,  24  miles  distant,  where  they  had 
to  go  for  milling,  taking  their  grain  on  a 
hand-sled  in  winter,  or  at  other  times  on 
their  backs  through  the  mud.  After  about 
three  years,  there  was  a  mill  built  at 
Peacham,  and  they  went  there.  So  great 
was  the  hardship  to  procure  milling,  they 
often  resorted  to  battling  their  grain. 
They  had  no  neighbors  north  of  them,  and 
none  on  the  south  nearer  than  Peacham. 
It  was  some  two  or  three  years  before  any 
permanent   addition   was   made    to   their 


number.  About  1787,  six  families  were 
added  to  them,  namely,  Lyman  Hitchcock, 
David  Blanchard,  Jeremiah  McDaniels, 
John  Lyford,  James  Bruce,  Thomas  Batch- 
elder,  and  families,-  emigrants  from  New 
Hampshire,  who  settled  on  the  line  of  the 
Hazen  road  on  the  Plain. 

Up  to  this  time,  1788,  the  inhabitants 
had  lived  in  primitive  independence,  reg- 
ulating themselves  by  the  principles  of 
common  law.  The  following  appears  upon 
the  town  book  as  the  first  step  towards  a 
town  organization : 

Proceedings  of  the  town  of  Cabot.  At 
the  request  of  four  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
town  of  Cabot,  I  hereby  notify  the  freemen 
and  inhabitants  of  tlie  town  to  meet  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  Thomas  Lyford,  in  said 
Cabot,  on  the  last  Saturday  instant  March, 
ten  o'clock  before  noon,  then  and  there 
being  met  to  choose  ist,  a  moderator, 
clerk,  and  necessary  town  officers;  2d,  to 
see  if  they  will  raise  money  to  defray  the 
incidental  charges,  and  do  any  other  bu.s- 
iness  that  may  be  necessary. 

Walter  Brock, 
y It  slice  of  the  Peace. 

February  4th,  1788. 

The  number  of  voters  at  the  organiza- 
tion could  not  have  been  more  than- 10  or 
12.  The  records  of  their  meetings  show 
that  the  first  settlers  seemed  to  regard 
military  title  as  conferring  almost  perma- 
nent virtue  or  qualification  for  office,  as 
seen  by  the  following  choice  of  officers  : 

Capt.  Jesse  Levenworth,  moderator; 
Lieut..  Jonathan  Heath,  Lieut.  Thomas 
Lyford,  Lieut.  David  Blanchard,  select- 
men; Maj.  Lyman  Hitchcock,  town  treas- 
urer ;  Ensign  Jeremiah  McDaniels,  con- 
stable ;  Edmund  Chapman,  surveyor  of 
highways.  Ensign  Jeremiah  McDaniels 
was  chosen  collector  of  taxes.  One  pri- 
vate only  was  found  qualified  to  six  com- 
missioned ofilicers  for  promotion  in  civil 
ofiice.  The  foregoing  officers  were  all 
sworn  into  office  by  the  said  justice  of  the 
peace,  Walter  Brock. 

For  18  years  of  the  settlement  this  was 
tire  metropolis  of  the  town.  The  lot  upon 
Walden  line  was  owned  by  Nathaniel 
Webster.  His  house  stood  a  little  south 
of  where  the  road  leading  from  the  village 
to  Walden  depot  intersects  with  the  Hazen 


78 


VERlMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


road.  Next  south  was  Benjamin  Web- 
ster's, the  first  settler ;  then  came  Dr. 
Scott's,  Hanson  Rogers',  Mr.  Shephard's, 
and  other  houses  and  farms  for  about  a 
mile  on  the  line  of  the  Hazen  road. 

The  famous  "yellow  house  "  was  built 
by  Horace  and  Gershom  Beardsley,  two 
stirring  settlers  from  Massachusetts.  It 
was  the  first  framed  house  in  town,  and 
was  first  raised  in  the  pasture  now  owned 
by  Samuel  S.  Batchelder.  At  that  time  a 
new  County  was  formed  from  towns  set 
off  from  the  County  of  Orange,  and  there 
was  a  strong.prospect  that  this  town  would 
be  the  shire  town  of  the  new  county.  With 
this  expectation,  the  Beardsleys  cleared 
two  acres  of  land  in  this  pasture,  taking 
out  the  stumps  root  and  branch,  for  the 
site  of  the  county  buildings.  Their  hopes 
not  being  realized,  the  house  was  not  fin- 
ished on  this  spot,  and  after  standing  here 
about  2  years,  was  taken  down  and  re- 
moved to  the  Plain.  The  foundation  is 
seen  at  the  present  time  where  it  was  first 
raised.  The  timber  all  hard  wood,  and  the 
house  two  stories,  it  took  a  large  amount 
of  help  to  raise  it,  of  men  and  whisky.  All 
the  men  and  women  in  this  town,  Peacham 
and  Danville  were  invited  to  the  raising. 
Those  invited  giving  out  word  that  they 
would  drink  the  Beardsleys  dry  that  day, 
the  Beardsleys  prepared  themselves.  They 
furnished  a  barrel  of  first  proof  rum,  and  a 
second  barrel,  slightly  reduced.  It  was 
said  never  was  such  rum  seen  in  Cabot  be- 
fore or  after.  All  were  invited  to  take 
hold  and  help  themselves.  In  after  years 
the  old  settlers  enjoyed  rehearsing  the 
scenes  at  that  raising.  They  said  with  a 
great  many  of  them  it  lasted  two  days 

After  the  removal  of  the  house  to  the 
Plain  it  was  very  nicely  finished,  and  be- 
came the  "  Hub  "  of  the  town.  It  was  40 
feet  square  upon  the  ground,  with  a  large 
hall  in  the  ell,  used  for  all  kinds  of  gather- 
ings, and  had  a  long  shed  attached  run- 
ning to  the  barn.  As  all  the  travel  from 
the  north  going  to  the  Connecticut  river 
had  to  pass  over  Cabot  Plain,  it  was  a 
favorite  stopping-place  for  travelers,  and 
during  the  war  of  1812,  those  engaged  in 
smuggling  made  it  their  quarters. 


DOINGS   AND   VOTES   FROM    Vj 


TO    1806. 


At  the  first  March  meeting,  held  the  last 
Saturday  in  March,  1788,  but  two  votes 
were  taken,  one  for  schools  and  one  to 
raise  a  tax  on  each  poll  equal  to  two  days' 
work  for  building  and  repairing  roads. 

From  the  first  town  meeting  to  1840, 
each  town  officer,  from  town  clerk  to  high- 
way surveyor,  was  sworn  into  office.  In 
1789,  there  being  no  justice  of  the  peace 
in  town,  the  town  clerk  was  obliged  to  go 
to  Barnet,  where  he  received  the  oath  of 
office,  administered  by  Alexander  Harvey, 
Esq. 

When  the  town  was  fairly  organized,  at- 
tention was  next  given  to  the  protection 
of  property. 

Voted  to  build  a  pound  on  Shepard  Hill, 
that  swine  should  not  run  at  large  from 
the  loth  of  May  to  the  loth  of  October, 
unless  with  a  good  poke  on  his  neck  and 
a  ring  in  his  nose. 

The  first  vote  to  defray  town  expenses 
was  Mar.  25,  1779;  "To  raise  12  bushels 
of  wheat  to  defray  necessary  town  ex- 
pense, and  purchase  a  town  book  for  rec- 
ords," and  the  first  auditors  appointed, 
Lieut.  Thomas  Lyford,  Mr.  Thomas  Batch- 
elder,  Lieut.  Jonas  Watts,  to  examine  into 
accounts  of  town  officers,  and  report  at 
next  meeting.  The  town  book  cost  $2 ; 
wheat  was  75  cents  a  bushel.  There  were 
$7  left  on  the  12  bush,  voted  after  paying 
for  the  book,  for  the  "  necessary  town  ex- 
penses." 

March  meeting,  1790,  the  selectmen 
were  instructed  to  procure  a  piece  of  land 
for  a  burying-ground.  Six  years  after,  the 
first  burying-ground  was  laid  out. 

Mar.  21,  1 79 1,  20  bushels  of  wheat 
voted  to  pay  town  expenses  this  year. 

Voted  that  width  of  sleds  for  the  year 
ensuing  in  the  town  of  Cabot  shall  be  four 
feet  and  six  inches  from  outside  to  out- 
side, and  any  one  found  with  one  of  less 
dimensions  on  any  public  road  in  said  town 
shall  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  five  dollars  for 
every  such  offence. 

1793,  population  122;  new  school  dis- 
trict, No.  2,  formed;  first  full  list  of  town 
officers  elected :  Capt.  James  Moss,  mod- 
erator ;  Lyman  Hitchcock,  town  clerk ; 
Samuel    Danforth,     James    Moss,    David 


CABOT. 


79 


Blanchard,  selectmen;  Thomas  Lyford, 
town  treasurer ;  Thomas  Batchelder,  con- 
stable and  collector;  Ephraim  Marsh, 
grand  juryman  ;  James  Chapman,  Martin 
Durgin,  Thomas  Osgood,  surveyors  of 
highway  ;  Ezekiel  Gilman,  hog-ward  ;  Ed- 
ward Chapman,  fence-viewer ;  Jonathan 
Heath,  pound-keeper ;  Fifield  Lyford, 
sealer  of  weights  and  measures  ;  Thomas 
Lyford,  leather  sealer ;  listers,  selectmen, 
(see  list  of  town  officers) . 

To  this  time  no  steps  had  been  taken  to 
punish  violators  of  the  law  in  cas^  there 
should  be  any  that  should  require  more 
than  the  civil  law  would  give  them,  and  it 
was  voted  to  build  stocks,  (whipping  post) 
and  sign-post  on  the  Shepard  hill  near  the 
pound, — 15  bushels  of  wheat  was  voted 
for  town  expenses  or,  4s.  in  cash  in  lieu  of 
I  bushel  of  wheat,  and  5  bushels  of  wheat, 
to  purchase  standard  weights  and  measures 
for  the  town. 

Voted  that  Reuben  Kelzer  be  discharged 
from  his  fine  of  eleven  shillings  for  profane 
swearing,  and  breaking  the  peace. 

After  arrangements  had  been  made  for 
the  punishment  of  civil  and  criminal  of- 
fenders " : 

March,  1794, —  Voted  that  the  sum  of 
twenty-one  dollars  be  expended  in  the  pur- 
chase of  28  pounds  of  powder,  |  of  cwt.  of 
lead  and  six  dozen  flints  for  tlie  town  stock 
of  ammunition. 

Vdted  that  the  fines  that  have  been  or 
shall  be  laid  be  appropriated  to  the  use  of 
schools  the  present  year. 

A  good  use  to  devote  them  to. 
Previous  to  1795,  the  duty  of  listers  was 
performed  by  the  selectmen ;  at  March 
meeting,  1795,  the  first  board  were  elected  : 
Capt.  David  Blanchard,  Fifield  Lyford, 
Samuel  Warner. 

1796.  In  13  years,  the  settlement  had 
extended  to  the  south,  east  and  west.  The 
question  began  to  be  agitated  in  regard  to 
removing  the  seat  of  government  to  the 
geographical  center  of  the  town.  A  meet- 
ing of  the  inhabitants  was  called  at  the 
school-house  on  the  Hazen  road  to  take 
the  matter  into  consideration.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  course,  it  was  stoutly  opposed  by 
the  pioneers  of  the  town,  those  that  had 
borne  the  burden  and  heat  of  the  day,  saw 
by  this  move  their  glory  departing.      So 


long  had  the  business  of  the  town  been 
done  here,  that  they  had  come  (and  per- 
haps all  natural  enough)  to  consider  them- 
selves the  Mecca  of  the  town.  The  day 
of  the  meeting  came,  the  forces  well  mar- 
shalled on  both  sides,  but  those  in  favor 
of  a  change  were  too  strong  for  the  other 
side,  and  it  was  voted  that. 

Hereafter  all  meetings  for  doing  pub- 
lic business  shall  be  held  at  the  school- 
house  at  the  centre  of  the  town,  and  the 
public  property  all  except  the  pound 
(which  consisted  ot  the  stocks  and  whip- 
ping-post) should  be  removed  to  that 
place. 

It  is  said  this  was  a  hard  blow  to  those 
living  on  the  Plain  ;  but  we  cannot  learn 
as  they  threatened  to  secede.  In  1799, 
$22  was  voted  to  defray  town  expenses. 

The  patriotism  and  high  esteem  in  which 
the  Father  of  his  Country  was  held  may 
be  seen  by  the  following  record  : 

On  the  receipt  of  the  news  of  the 
death  of  Gen.  Washington  a  town  meet- 
ing was  called  to  meet  on  the  22d  day  of 
February,  1800,  to  see  what  the  town  will 
do  on  account  ol  Keeping  in  Remem- 
brance the  Life  and  Death  of  Gen.  Wash- 
ington. 

Voted  that  a  committee  of  three  be 
appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  assembly 
and  conduct  them  in  a  becoming  manner 
to  the  school-house  there  to  listen  to  an 
Oration  to  be  delivered  by  Lyman  Hitch- 
cock, Esq.  The  committee  appointed  were 
Joseph  Fisher,  Thomas  Osgood,  Joseph 
Huntoon. 

A  large  assembly  gathered,  and  after  the 
oration  Esq.  Horace  Beardsley  was  directed 
to  return  the  thanks  of  said  town  to  the 
speaker  for  delivering  so  good  an  oration 
to  the  people. 

1802,  the  town  began  to  look  towards 
retrenchment  of  expenses.  Before  elect- 
ing selectmen  it  was  voted  whoever  should 
be  elected  should  serve  free  of  charge  for 
their  services  ;  and  it  does  not  appear  that 
they  had  any  trouble  in  finding  men  to 
serve ;  doubtless  they  thought  the  honor 
paid.  At  the  same  meeting  the  first  tith- 
ing men  were  elected  :  John  Edgerton  and 
Gershom  Beardsley,  whose  duty  it  was  to 
see  that  the  Sabbath  was  not  desecrated 
by  persons  hunting,  fishing,  or  lounging 
about,  and  if  any  persons  there  found  so 


8o 


VERMONT  rilSTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


doing,  to  arrest  and  bring  them  before  a 
magistrate  to  be  fined.  Frequent  votes 
appear  after  upon  the  records  to  remit  the 
fines  of  those  that  had  been  fined  for  the 
violation  of  {he  Sabbath.  It  was  also 
their  duty  to  see  that  no  one  disturbed 
religious  meetings ;  if  the}'  did  to  take 
them  in  charge. 

There  were  some  who  were  not  pros- 
pered in  their  worldly  possessions,  and 
from  year  to  year  there  were  quite  lively 
times  in  warning  such  persons  out  of  town 
to  prevent  their  becoming  a  town  charge. 
The  first  order  was  given  by  the  selectmen 
Oct.  3,  1803,  for  James  Shepard  and  his 
wife  Sarah,  with  their  children,  to  depart 
said  town,  and  in  1807,  12  families  were 
warned  to  depart. 

[If  a  family  came  to  want  that  had  been 
duly  "warned  out,"  the  town  was  not 
obliged  to  assist  them ;  but  if  not,  the 
town  was  liable.  A  very  uncharitable 
record  to  put  down  for  all  our  early  towns  ; 
if  we  could  not  add,  it  was  usually  about 
as  serious  a  matter  as  appointing  a  hog 
ward,  to  which  office  every  man  in  town 
married  during  the  year,  even  the  minis- 
ter, was  a  candidate  for  at  next  March 
meeting.  The  old  settlers  were  fond  of 
practical  jokes,  and  received  them  very 
complacently.  I  have  seen  the  record 
where  the  warning  out  went  so  far  every 
family  in  town  was  warned  out. — Ed.] 

On  all  public  days  whisky  went  around 
freely,  and  officers  all  had  to  treat.  March 
meeting,  1806,  tradition  says  the  whisky 
was  kept  in  the  closet  of  the  school-house 
where  the  meeting  was  held,  which  was 
imbibed  so  frecjuently  by  candidates  and 
their  supporters,  some  of  them  got  so  they 
hardly  knew  which  way  to  vote.  About 
middle  way  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
meeting  it  was  "voted  that  the  door  lead- 
ing into  the  closet  be  shut  and  kept  so  for 
the  space  of  one-half  hour." 

The  first  surveyor  of  wood  and  lumber, 
Oliver  Walbridge,  was  elected  in  1S06, 
and  the  first  jurors,  petit  and  grand,  for 
County  Court,  were  drawn,  and  $20  voted 
this  year  for  town  expenses.  This  closes 
the  first  book  of  records — the  notes  and 
doings  that  appear  most  interesting.     The 


succeeding  records  are  about  like  those  of 
the  present  day,  with  the  exception  of 
many  more  alterations  in  school  districts, 
laying  out  of  roads  and  such  business  as 
was  incident  to  a  new  county. 

In  1802,  John  W.  Dana  came  to  the 
Plain,  and  opened  a  store  in  a  building  a 
little  south  of  the  yellow  house.  He  being 
a  man  of  ability,  brought  a  good  deal  of 
business  to  the  place.  In  a  few  years  he 
was  joined  by  John  Damon,  and  they  soon 
became  the  sole  owners,  or  nearly  so,  of 
all  that  region,  comprising  nearly  1000 
acres.  They  frequently  wintered  100  head 
of  cattle,  beside  a  large  amount  of  other 
stock,  at  the  yellow  house  barns. 

About  1 8 10,  business  began  to  draw  to 
the  lower  grounds,  localities  less  exposed 
to  the  cold  winds  of  winter,  and  in  1820, 
but  little  was  left  on  the  Plain  save  the  old 
yellow  house. 

During  the  war  of  1812,  those  engaged 
in  smuggling  made  this  old  house  their 
quarters.  One  mile  north  of  here  there  is 
a  small  body  of  water  called  .Smugglers' 
pond,  from  an  encounter  that  took  place 
between  a  custom  house  officer  and  some 
smugglers,  in  which  the  smugglers  threw 
the  officer  into  the  pond.  Another  time 
several  parties  from  this  town,  while  start- 
ing some  cattle  for  Canada,  were  jnter- 
cepted  by  a  custom  house  officer  by  the 
name  of  Young.  They  said  they  gave  him 
a  good  smart  threshing,  but  they  were  in- 
volved for  it  in  a  long  and  expensive  law- 
suit. 

As  time  moved  on,  one  building  after 
another  pertaining  to  the  old  yellow  house 
was  torn  down,  till  at  last,  in  1855,  the  old 
landmark  had  to  succumb,  and  share  the 
fate  which  sooner  or  later  aU  old  and  hon- 
ored structures  must.  And  now  upon 
those  broad  acres,  so  beautifully  spread 
out  on  the  upland  of  the  township,  where 
the  pioneers  endured  so  many  privations, 
and  reduced  the  heavy-timbered  forest  to 
the  fertile  farms  which  for  so  many  years 
teemed  with  business  and  thrift — along  the 
whole  street  nought  is  now  seen  but  the 
herds  quietly  feeding  and  an  occasional 
husbandman  tilling"  the  lonely  soil. 


CABOT. 


gi 


CABOT   VILLAGE. 

In  1788,  Lieut.  Thomas  Lyford,  the 
third  settler  in  town,  and  the  first  settler 
at  the  village,  bought  a  lot  of  land  of  Jesse 
Levenworth  and  Lyman  Hitchcock.  On 
this  land  the  village  of  Cabot  now  stands. 
The  Winooski  river  runs  through  the 
grounds.  Mr.  Lyford  was  a  mill-wright; 
there  was  no  saw-mill  within  ten  miles  ;  he 
decided  to  build  a  saw-mill  upon  his  lot 
upon  tlie  Winooski  river.  He  selected  the 
spot  where  John  Brown's  shop  now  stands. 
Here  the  first  blow  of  the  axe  fell  to  sub- 
due the  thick  wood  to  the  fair  vale,  in 
which  a  beautiful  and  pleasant  village  was 
to  grow.  At  that  time  this  spot  was  quite 
a  high  elevation  of  land,  and  until  within 
a  few  years  was  always  spoken  of  as  Saw- 
mill Hill.  The  timber  was  cut  and  framed 
upon  the  spot ;  the  irons  were  made  at 
Newbury,  and  drawn  on  a  hand-sled  to 
the  spot  the  winter  before.  The  mill  and 
dam  were  not  completed  and  got  to  run- 
ning till  the  spring  of  1789.  At  that  time 
this  was  regarded  an  extra  water-power 
and  a  very  smart  mill.  The  pond  covered 
then  all  of  what  is  now  the  meadow  to  the 
upper  end  of  the  street.  The  mill  had 
what  is  called  an  up-and-down  saw ;  a 
good,  smart  man  would  run  out  2000  ft.  of 
lumber  in  a  day. 

Lyford  and  his  son,  Thomas  Jr.,  next 
built  a  grist-mill,  where  the  grist-mill  now 
stands.  This  mill  had  but  one  run  of 
stone,  split  out  of  a  granite  stone  where 
Allen  Perry's  house  now  stands,  and  used 
for  the  steps  of  the  present  mill.  Thomas 
Lyford,  Jr.,  took  charge  of  the  mill.  He 
built  a  camp  on  the  rise  of  ground  before 
it,  and  stayed  there  from  Monday  morning 
till  Saturday  night,  when  he  returned  to 
his  father's  on  the  Plain.  The  mill  did 
the  grinding  for  this  town  and  the  towns 
for  10  or  12  miles  around.  About  1794, 
Lieut.  Lyford  built  the  first  house  in  the 
village,  where  Mrs.  Jos.  La»ce  now  lives. 
His  son,  Thomas  Jr.,  attended  to  the 
mills  and  commenced  clearing  up  the  land. 
For  the  next  12  years  but  little  addition 
was  made  to  the  new  neighborhood. 

The  second  house  was  built  by  Samuel 


Lee,  where  Enoch  Hoy't  and  his  son, 
George  Hoyt,  now  live  ;  the  third  by  Elias 
Hitchcock,  where  the  garden  of  Caleb 
Fisher  now  is.  John  W.  Dana,  on  the 
Plain,  bought  a  small  house  that  stood 
where  Mrs.  Haines'  house  now  does,  and 
fitted  it  up  for  a  store — the  first  mercantile 
business  here.  After  a  few  years,  George 
W.  Dana  built  quite  a  large  store.  It  was 
becoming  evident  that  this  was  to  be  the 
business  centre  of  the  town.  John  W. 
Dana,  a  keen-sighted  man,  came  from  the 
Plain  and  bought  nearly  all  the  land  now 
included  in  the  village.  By  selling  build- 
ing-lots to  the  farmers,  he  contributed 
largely  to  building  up  the  village.  In 
18 17,  a  distillery  was  put  up  where  Union 
Block  now  stands.  Marcus  O.  Fisher 
bought  the  site  and  put  in  a  tannery,  en- 
larged the  building,  using  part  for  a  cur- 
rying and  shoe-shop.  "The  old  red 
house  "  was  one  of  the  landmarks  of  the 
town  for  years.  In  1825,  he  built  a  larger 
tannery  where  the  bark  was  first  ground 
between  two  stones  by  horse-power.  A 
man  and  a  horse  could  grind  from  one-half 
to  a  cord  in  a  day.  This  stone  is  now  in 
the  yard  of  J.  M.  Fisher  as  an  old  town 
relic.  About  1840,  water-power  was  sub- 
stituted for  the  horse.  Mr.  Fisher  carried 
on  the  business  successfully  about  35 
years,  and  his  son,  Edwin  till  1868,  which 
ended  the  tanning  business  in  Cabot.  It 
was  sold  to  a  stock-company  who  erected 
the  handsome  union  block  for  stores, 
offices,  etc.,  on  the  site. 

The  next  business  started  was  wool- 
carding  and  cloth-dressing,  by  George 
Fielding,  who  built  a  shop  on  the  site  of 
the  present  carriage-shop  in  the  spring 
of  1833.  In  August,  the  highest  waters 
ever  known  on  this  river,  carried  away 
the  shop  before  finished.  He  rebuilt  in 
1834;  carried  on  cloth-dressing  for  a 
year  and  sold  to  Jason  Britt,  who  carried 
on  the  business  of  wool-carding  and  cloth- 
dressing  here  44  years  ;  building  on  the 
same  site  in  1855,  a  larger  and  better 
shop,  a  part  of  which  was  used  for  a 
carriage-shop  by  diiTerent  parties  till 
1874,  when  it  was  enlarged  and  an  exten- 
sive business  undertaken  by  A.  P.  Marshall 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  W.  W.  Buchanan,  known  as  the 
"Cabot  Carriage  Co.,"  which  run  3  or  4 
years  and  closed  up.  The  property  came 
into  the  hands  of  J.  A.  Farrington,  by 
whom  the  business  is  now  conducted  on  a 
smaller  and  more  sure  basis.  On  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  river,  William  Scales 
built,  in  1826,  a  blacksmith-shop  and  small 
foundry,  where  caldrons,  five-pail  kettles, 
cog-wheels  and  other  iron  castings  were 
made. 

Mr.  Scales  will  be  remembered  by  all 
who  ever  got  him  to  do  any  blacksmithing, 
as  a  very  nice  man,  but  not  one  of  the 
smoothest  of  workmen. 

In  1840,  a  starch  factory  was  built  be- 
low the  shops  on  the  river,  by  Israel 
•Cutting,  which  like  everything  else  in  his 
hands  proved  lucrative.  In  connection 
with  his  factory,  he  built  a  grist  and  a  saw- 
mill which  he  run  a  few  years. 

The  first  tavern  was  built  where  Mrs. 
Joseph  Lance's  house  stands,  small,  and 
one  story.  It  was  taken  down  in  1833, 
and  moved  over  the  river.  The  present 
hotel  stands  on  the  same  site.  Fisher 
was  landlord  4  years,  and  sold  to  Horace 
Bliss,  who  kept  it  10  years,  when  it  was 
known  as  a  first-class  house.  There  was 
much  heavy  teaming  on  the  road  from  the 
north  of  the  state  to  Burlington,  and  this 
was  a  favorite  stopping  place  for  all  team- 
sters, and  also  for  the  light  travel.  There 
are  those  now  living  who  speak  of  Mrs. 
Bliss,  the  genial  landlady,  who  always  did 
so  much  to  make  the  hotel  a  pleasant  rest- 
ing place  for  her  guests.  The  house  was 
kept  by  different  parties  with  little  change 
till  1875,  when  it  was  largely  repaired  by 
William  P.  Whittier,  who  kept  it  until  the 
death  of  his  wife,  April,  1881,  after  which 
he  sold  to  the  present  proprietor,  W.  W. 
Buchanan. 

April,  1822,  John  W.  Dana  deeded  to 
the  town  for  one  dollar  i  J  acre  for  a  com- 
mon, conditioned  to  be  kept  clear  from 
all  incumbrance  and  free  on  all  occasions 
to  the  public,  especially  for  military  pa- 
rading. 

There  are  people  now  living  in  the  vil- 
lage that  well  recollect  when  this  common 
was  a   frog-pond,  and    filled  with    fir  and 


alder  bushes,  and  was  so  muddy  through 
the  street,  ox-teams  were  stuck  in  the  mud 
before  where  Union  block  now  stands. 

Population  of  village,  June  i,  1881,  258; 
64  dwelling-houses  ;  2  stores  ;  i  millinery 
shop  ;  I  hotel ;  2  blacksmith  shops ;  i 
carriage  manufactory  ;  i  tin  shop  ;  i  har- 
ness shop  ;  I  cooper-shop  ;  i  grist-mill ;  i 
saw-mill ;   i  graded  school ;   2  churches. 

By  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  Nov.  19, 
1866,  the  village  was  incorporated.  The 
first  village  clerk,  W.  H.  Fletcher;  first 
board  of  trustees  :  John  M.  Fisher,  John 
Brown,  Theron  H.  Lance,  William  P. 
Whittier,  J.  P.  Lamson. 

The  village  has  a  good  fire  department 
well  equipped  with  engine,  etc.,  etc.  But 
few  fires  have  ever  occurred  in  the  village. 
The  most  destructive  was  Jan.  5,  1 881,  at 
which  time  the  fire  department  did  excel- 
lent service. 

THE   CENTER. 

This  place  is  the  geographical  centre  of 
the  town,  and  has  always  been  known  by 
the  name  of  the  Centre.  James  Morse, 
Esq.,  from  Barre,  Mass.,  made  the  first 
settlement  in  1789,  where  Henry  Hill's 
house  stands.  Esq.  Morse  built  his  first 
log-house.  He  was  moderator  of  the  first 
town  meeting,  first  justice  of  the  peace  ;  to 
him  nearly  all  the  business  of  this  office 
fell  for  quite  a  number  of  years. 

When  first  appointed,  knowing  he  would 
be  called  to  perform  the  marriage  cer- 
emony, he  wished  to  have  some  practice 
before  he  appeared  in  public.  He  took  his 
son  David  out,  and  told  him  to  stand  up 
by  the  side  of  a  stump,  and  he  would 
marry  him  to  it.  David  did  as  directed, 
and  the  Squire  commenced  and  went 
through,  David  assenting  that  he  would 
love,  cherish  and  protect  her.  The  Esquire 
closed  up  in  the  usual  form,  saying  that  he 
pronounced  them  husband  and  wife.  It 
is  said  David  would  not  marry  until  the 
stump  rotted"  down,  which  was  quite  late 
in  life.  The  Esquire  being  of  rather  nerv- 
ous temperament,  at  the  next  ceremony 
got  a  little  bewildered,  and  made  the 
groom  promise  to  foj'sake  her  and  cleave 
to  all  other  ivovien.     At  another  time,  it  is 


CABOT. 


83 


said,  he  forgot  the  ceremony,  and  was 
obliged  to  consult  his  notes. 

At  a  later  day  he  opened  the  first  hotel  in 
town,  in  a  small  log-house.  The  bar  was 
in  the  square  room,  and  a  bed  in  the  same 
room.  This  was  in  the  early  days  of  hotel 
keeping.  The  Escjuire  was  said  to  be  a 
man  in  whom  all  his  townsmen  had  the 
utmost  confidence ;  a  man  of  sound  judg- 
ment, and  his  advice  was  often  sought. 
He  held  all  the  offices  from  highway  sur- 
veyor to  representative. 

The  next  house  was  built  by  Oliver  Wal- 
bridge,  where  G.  Noyes  now  lives.  In  1790 
Major  Hitchcock,  Capt.  Jesse  Levenworth 
and  Asa  Douglas,  Esq.,  presented  the 
town  8  acres  of  land  for  public  use.  3 
years  after,  4.  acres  were  cleared  for  a 
common,  and  a  school-house  built  on  it, 
and  two  years  later  the  seat  of  government 
removed  from  the  Plain  to  this  place.  The 
principal  property  to  move  appears  to  have 
been  the  stocks  and  whipping-post,  which 
were  set  up  at  the  Corner,  where  the  road 
by  Henry  HilFs  intersects  with  the  Centre 
road.  They  were  never  used.  The  only 
person  ever  whipped  for  crime  in  town 
was  Ben.  Parker,  for  breaking  into  a  store 
that  stood  where  True  A.  Town's  house 
stands.  The  crime,  trial  and  punishment 
were  not  far  separated.  He  broke  into 
the  store  Tuesday  night,  was  tried  Wednes- 
day, and  whipped  Thursday,  opposite  the 
store  he  broke  into.  The  whip  was  of 
cord,  and  the  officer  said  he  did  not  whip 
very  hard,  only  wanted  to  show  him  what 
he  might  expect  if  he  persisted  in  his 
thieving  course. 

After  1796,  town-meetings  and  all  pub- 
lic gatherings  were  at  the  Centre.  The 
Fourth  of  July,  1820,  was  a  memorable 
day.  Two  companies  of  infantry,  one  of 
artillery  and  one  of  cavalry  assisted  in  the 
celebration.  Capt.  Crossman,  of  Peacham, 
was  the  president  of  the  day.  There  was 
an  oration,  and  bountiful  repast  furnished. 

There  was  a  store  opened  by  Luther 
Wheatley,  who  after  a  short  time  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Hector  McLean,  and  the  second 
pound  was  built  at  this  place,  which  was 
liberally  patronized  in  the  olden  time.  It 
was  once  broken  open  and  the  cattle  taken 


out,  which  disturbed  the  peace  and  dignity 
of  the  town.  It  was  expected  this  would 
be  a  village  of  considerable  size,  and  pros- 
perous farmers,  as  once  before  at  the  Plain, 
invested  in  village  lots,  and  here,  as  at 
the  Plain  before  them,  their  hopes  were 
disappointed,  and  already  this  place  where 
public  business  was  so  long  done  is  now 
desolate.  The  winds  sing  their  dirge 
around  where  the  store,  the  school -house 
and  the  sacred  edifice  once  stood,  and  not 
far  from  this  spot  those  who  were  once 
active  in  the  business  of  the  town  are 
quietly  resting  in  the  bosom  of  their 
mother  earth. 

EAST   HILL, 

often  called  Whittier  Hill,  from  its  first 
settler,  Lieut.  John  Whittier,  who  came 
here  in  1780,  and  commenced  clearing  up 
the  farm  now  owned  and  occlipied  by 
Frederick  Corliss.  He  built  his  first  cabin 
a  little  north  of  the  present  house,  near  the 
brook,  and  brought  his  wife  and  one  child 
to  the  Plain,  March,  1790,  with  an  ox 
team,  and  from  there  drew  his  effects  on  a 
hand-sled,  his  wife  walking  on  the  crust 
beside  him,  carrying  her  spinning-wheel. 
After  they  got  to  keeping  some  cows  and 
sheep,  one  evening  a  large  bear  came  into 
the  yard  where  they  were  milking,  and  took 
a  .sheep.  They  gave  chase,  and  the  bear 
dropped  the  sheep,  but  he  made  his  es- 
cape, and  the  sheep  was  killed. 

Lieut.  Whittier  raised  a  large  family. 
Several  of  the  boys  settled  on  farms  made 
from  the  old  farm.  Mrs.  Whittier  was  a 
descendant  from  Mrs.  Dustin  who  scalped 
the  Indians. 

WILLIAM   OSGOOD, 

from  Claremont,  N.  H.,  the  second  set- 
tler here,  bought  one  square  mile  west  of 
the  Centre  road,  opposite  Lieut.  Whittier, 
on  which  he  settled  his  six  sons.  Four  of 
them  came  in  March,  1791.  First,  they 
dug  out  sap-troughs  and  sugared,  and  then 
.slashed  15  acres  by  the  ist  of  June,  and 
returned  to  Claremont.  They  boarded  at 
Lieut.  Whittier's.  In  the  fall  Mr.  Osgood 
came  with  his  six  sons.  They  cleared  the 
slash,  and  built  a  log  house,  40  ft.  in 
length,  where  Solomon   W.  Osgood  now 


84 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


lives.  It  is  said  this  family  were  all  strong, 
broad-shouldered  men,  able  for  the  task 
before  them. 

DAVID  HAINES 

commenced  on  the  farm  south  of  George 
Gould's,  so  long  occupied  by  his  son  Wm. 
Haines,  in  1797.  When  he  came  to  town 
he  was  not  possessed  of  a  great  amount  of 
cash,  it  may  be  inferred  by  the  fact  he  was 
the  owner  of  two  pair  of  pants  and  two 
shirts,  and  he  swajiped  one  shirt  and  one 
pair  of  pants  for  a  hoe  and  axe  to  begin 
work  with. 

These  places  are  now  all  excellent  farms 
and  in  good  hands. 

LOWER   CABOT. 

Settlement  was  commenced  in  1799,  by 
Reuben  Atkins,  on  the  farm  now  of  W. 
S.  Atkins,  his  grand-son.  He  cleared  a 
spot,  and  built  his  log-house  on  the  site  of 
the  present  house.  The  first  spring  he 
made  sugar  in  the  door-yard.  In  1800,  he 
built  a  framed  barn,  now  standing,  in  good 
condition.  The  farm  has  always  been  in 
the  family,  owned  by  one  of  the  sons. 
MOSES  stone, 

from  New  Hampshire,  in  1797,  about  half 
a  mile  west  from  Wm.  Atkins,  cleared  the 
ground  and  built  a  saw-mill  where  the 
Haines  Factory  now  stands,  his  family 
meantime  living  in  a  shed  of  Lieut.  Whit- 
tier's,  on  Whittier  hill.  After  he  got  his 
mill  running,  he  built  his  house.  It  had  a 
large  stone  chimney.  His  wife  said  all 
the  way  she  could  see  any  sky  was  to  look 
up  through  that. 

Fish  in  the  river,  wild  game  in  the  thick 
surrounding  woods,  were  abundant.  Stone 
was  a  strong  man,  not  easily  frightened. 
One  evening  in  the  fall  he  had  been  up  to 
neighbor  Atkins'.  Returning,  he,  as  he 
thought,  met  a  man  who  had  on  a  white 
hat  and  blue  frock,  to  whom  he  said  "good 
evening."  The  man  made  no  answer.  He 
repeated  it,  but  no  reply.  Stonesaid,  "I'll 
know  who  you  are,''  and  grabbed  around 
him,  when  to  his  surprise  he  found  he  was 
out  of  the  path,  and  it  was  a  large  stump 
he  was  hugging. 

In  1 801,  Clement Coburn built  a  grist- 
mill where  True  A.  Town's  works  stand. 


In  1803,  he  sold  a  privilege  to  Joseph  Co- 
burn,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  to 
put  in  a  fulling-mill.  Cloth  being  then 
spun  and  wove  at  home,  this  was  needed. 
He  carried  on  the  business  some  years. 
Thomas  Coldwill  became  next  owner,  who 
soon  sold  to  Wm.  Ensign,  John  R.  Put- 
nam and  Horace  Haines,  who  moved  the 
shop  to  where  the  factory  stands,  and 
added  carding  works.  In  1835,  Alden 
Webster  bought  the  works,  adding  ma- 
chinery, a  spinning-jenny,  hand-looms,  re- 
garded a  wonderful  improvement.  He 
commenced  the  manufacture  of  full  cloth. 
In  1849,  he  sold  to  Horace  Haines,  who 
continued  the  business  with  his  son,  E.  G. 
Haines,  building  a  new  factory  in  1849, 
with  water-power  looms  and  modern  ma- 
chinery. Horace  Haines  and  two  sons  in 
the  business  have  died.  It  is  now  owned 
by  Ira  F.  Haines.  Quite  an  extensive 
business  has  been  done  sometimes  here. 

Carriage-making  has  been  at  different 
times  carried  on  to  some  extent. 

On  the  river  opposite  the  factory,  in 
1827,  Wm.  Fisher  put  in  a  tannery,  which 
he  run  till  1838,  when  he  removed  to  Al- 
bion, N.  Y.,  where  he  died  in  1851.  Tan- 
ning was  afterwards  carried  on  here  by  Q. 
Cook,  G.  W.  Cree  and  others. 

At  present  the  most  extensive  business 
done  in  this  village  is  by  True  A.  Town,  in 
the  lumber  business,  in  his  saw-mill,  and 
the  manufacturing  of  the  lumber  into  chair- 
stuff,  boot-crimps,  coffins,  caskets,  etc. 

The  first  store  in  the  place  was  started 
by  a  Mr.  Oaks,  on  the  spot  where  Town's 
house  stands.  The  mercantile  business 
has  been  carried  on  here  for  60  years,  by 
John  Edgerton,  Ketchum  and  others. 

HECTOR    MCLEAN 

opened  a  store  here  in  1825.  There  were 
in  the  village  at  this  time  but  9  houses  be- 
tween the  Perkins  bridge  and  Marshfield  vil- 
lage. Mr.  McLean  helped  very  much  toward 
building  up  the  place.  He  put  in  another 
dwelling-house  (for  hi  sfamily),  started  a 
potash,  blacksmith  shop,  and  other  indus- 
tries, and  in  1836,  opened  a  hotel,  where 
Nathaniel  Perry  lives,  kept  by  different 
persons  for  some  years. 


CABOT. 


85 


In  1870,  a  post-office  was  establisned 
here,  Cornelius  Smith  postmaster.  There 
are  at  present,  (July,  1881)  in  the  village  30 
dwelling-houses,  i  meeting-house,  i  store, 
I  blacksmith  shop,  a  woolen  factory,  a 
wheelwright  shop. 

Situated  in  the  valley  of  the  Winooski, 
although  at  an  early  day  it  is  said  that  one 
of  the  early  settlers  said  he  would  not  take 
the  Coburn  Meadow  as  a  gift,  it  has  some 
of  the  finest  farms  in  the  county. 

SOUTH    CABOT. 

The  first  beginning  here  was  made  by 
Parker  Hooker,  in  18 10.  He  built  a  saw- 
mill on  the  site  of  the  present  mill.  He 
lived  in  Peacham,  a  distance  of  4  miles 
through  the  woods,  with  no  road  or  guide 
but  marked  trees.  The  first  business  at 
his  mill  was  to  saw  the  boards  to  cover  a 
barn  for  himself  at  his  home  in  Peacham. 
He  snaked  his  boards  with  oxen  through 
the  woods,  a  stock  at  a  time.  He  soon 
cleared  two  acres,  near  the  present  resi- 
dence of  Mrs.  Alvisa  E.  Hooker,  and  built 
a  log-house.  This  mill  was  rebuilt  by 
Liberty  Hooker,  in  1839. 

In  a  few  years  the  house  now  occupied 
by  Lewis  Paquin,  was  built  by  Enoch  Blake. 
This  place  now  contains  13  dwelling- 
houses,  one  store,  a  post-office,  saw-mill, 
grist-mill,  blacksmith  shop  and  school- 
house  ;  also  a  large  shop  for  the  manufac- 
tory of  wagons,  etc.  There  was  formerly 
a  large  shop  in  which  wood  and  iron  work 
was  done,  which  was  burnedin  1876.  This 
place  was  formerly  known  as  Hookerville. 

EAST   CABOT. 

John  Heath,  son  of  Lieut.  Jonathan 
Heath,  the  second  settler  of  the  town,  in 
1817  commenced  in  this  locality,  on  the 
place  now  owned  by  Charles  Howe.  He 
cleared  a  few  acres.  His  team  to  draw  his 
logs  together,  to  go  to  mill  and  to  meeting 
was  one  stag.  He  made  salts, of  lye  and 
took  them  to  Danville  and  Peacham  for 
necessaries  for  his  family.  Very  soon 
after  William  Morse,  Leonard  Orcutt,  Ster- 
ling Heath,  and  several  others  commenced 
clearing  and  making  farms.  John  Clark 
opened  a  tavern  opposite  the  Molly  pond, 
which  in  after  years  was  known  as  the  Pond 


House,  and  George  Rogers,  Esq.,  made  a 
fine  farm  near  the  school-house,  now  occu- 
pied by  S.  R.  Moulton. 

The  road  from  Danville  four-corners 
to  Cabot  was  built  in  1829.  Esquire 
Orcutt  was  the  moving  spirit  in  the  enter- 
prise. It  was  first  used  as  a  winter  road, 
and  Lyman  Clark  drove  the  first  stage 
through  from  Danville  to  Cabot.  Previous 
to  this,  the  stage  and  all  the  travel  went 
over  the  Plain.  For  45  years  this  was  the 
leading  thoroughfare  from  Danville  to 
Montpelier,  over  which  a  great  amount  of 
heavy  teaming  was  done. 

While  Esq.  Orcutt  was  getting  this  road 
through,  a  petition  was  presented  to  the 
selectmen  to  lay  out  the  Molly  Brook  road. 
Esq.  Orcutt^s  head  was  too  long  for  the 
petitioners ;  he  accomplished  his  favorite 
scheme. 

The  Molly  Brook  road  occupies  quite  a 
prominent  place  in  the  road  history  of  the 
town.  Leading  from  East  Cabot  to  Marsh- 
field,  on  the  extreme  east  part  of  the  town, 
it  was  opposed  by  the  Centre  and  west 
part.  The  first  petition  for  it  in  1830,  was 
refused,  the  reason  set  up  for  the  laying  of 
the  road  was  to  avoid  the  hill  i^  mile  long 
on  leaving  Cabot  village ;  the  road  pro- 
posed being  in  two  counties.  The  next  step 
was  to  petition  the  Supreme  Court  for  a 
committee.  John  W.  Dana  was  elected 
an  agent  to  attend  court,  and  defend  on 
the  laart  of  the  town.  In  1845,  '^  petition 
was  presented  to  the  Legislature  for  a 
charter  for  a  turnpike,  and  it  went  on  in 
this  way,  petitions  first  to  the  selectmen, 
then  to  the  court,  each  one  being  opposed 
by  the  town,  for  45  years.  When  one  set 
of  men  died  out  another  took  their  places  ; 
in  1865,  the  road  was  finally  completed, 
and  is  now  one  of  the  leading  thorough- 
fares through  town. 

south-west  hill, 
with  commanding  view  of  the  Winooski 
valley,  and  excellent  soil,  is  one  of  the 
most  desirable  farming  sections  in  town. 
The  settlement  .was  commenced  here  by 
James  Butler,  1799,  on  the  farm  where 
John  M.  Stone  now  lives.  Mr.  Butler 
while  doing  his  chopping  boarded  at  Reu- 
ben Atkins\     Among  the  first  settlers  on 


86 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


this  hill  were  Nathaniel  Gibbs,  Asa  Co- 
burn,  Ezra  Bliss.  One  right,  320  acres  of 
this  hill,  is  lease  land. 

WEST   HILL. 

A  beautiful  table-land  in  the  west  part  of 
the  town,  surrounded  by  valleys  on  the 
east,  south  and  west,  has  a  charming  view 
of  the  country  beneath.  Enoch  Hoyt, 
known  as  Deacon  Enoch  in  later  years, 
being  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church, 
bought  of  Edmund  Gilman  320  acres,  the 
farm  now  owned  by  Orson  Kimball.  He 
commenced  clearing  in  the  field  back  of 
the  school-house  in  1797,  and  built  his 
cabin  a  little  north  of  where  Eastman  Hop- 
kins lives.  He  came  from  Epsom,  N.  H., 
to  the  Junction  (Cabot  Plain),  with  his 
effects,  and  from  there  got  them  over  on 
his  back,  probably.  Four  of  his  brothers, 
Ezra,  Asaph,  Benjamin  and  Samuel  came 
very  soon  and  settled  near  him.  They 
were  all  steady  men,  and  made  this  one  of 
the  best  farming  sections  in  town,  and 
some  of  them  after  their  pioneer  life  here, 
went  to  Wisconsin  and  started  anew. 

PETERSVILLE. 

The  first  clearing  was  begun  here  by 
Reuben  Atkins,  in  1825,  on  the  farm 
where  his  son  Henry  Atkins  now  lives. 
There  being  a  school-district  formed  here 
in  1858,  Peter  Lyford,  one  of  the  select- 
men, went  over  to  organize  the  district, 
since  which  the  locality  has  been  called 
Petersville.  It  has  4  dwelling-houses,  i 
school-house  and  a  saw-mill.  It  lies  on 
tlie  Molly  brook  road,  2  miles  from  Marsh- 
field  village. 

MARKET   ROAD, 

a  half  mile  east  of  Hazen  road,  was  built 
to  avoid  the  hard  hills.  Many  of  the  towns 
in  Northern  Vermont  took  their  produce 
to  market  on  this  road,  from  which  its 
name.  The  first  clearing  on  this  road  was 
begun  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Charles 
Oderkirk,  by  Samuel  Levett,  in  182 1. 

To  the  north  Jesse  Mason  soon  after 
began  and  cleared  up  the  farm  now  occu- 
pied by  his  son,  N.J.  Mason.  Mr.  Mason 
says  he  has  often  seen  as  many  as  60 
loaded  teams  pass  his  house  in  a  day,  but 


now  in  place  of  the  rattle  of  the  heavy 
wagons  is  heard  the  puffing  of  the  iron 
horse. 

FREIGHTING. 

Robert  Lance,  from  Chester,  N.  H.,  who 
came  here  about  18 10,  and  lived  where 
Hial  Morse  now  does,  did  the  first  team- 
ing to  Boston.  His  team  was  two  yoke  of 
oxen ;  freight,  salts,  whisky,  pork,  and  it 
took  from  4  to  6  weeks  to  make  the  round 
trip.  He  usually  made  two  trips  a  year. 
A  little  later,  Joseph  Burbank  began  to  go 
with  a  span  of  horses,  and  two  loads  a  year 
would  usually  supply  the  merchants  with 
goods.  Benjamin  Sperry  used  to  team. 
It  is  said  he  was  known  from  here  to 
Boston  by  the  name  of  Uncle  Ben  by 
everybody.  Hugh  Wilson  did  quite  a 
business  at  teaming.  In  the  winter  quite 
a  number  of  men  would  go  to  Portland, 
Me.,  with  their  red,  double  sleighs  and  two 
horses,  loaded  with  pork.  In  1838,  Allen 
Perry  began  to  run  a  6-horse  team  to 
Boston,  regular  trips,  the  round  trip  taking 
3  weeks.  The  freight  tariff  was  $20  per 
ton;  his  expenses,  about  $50  a  trip.  When 
he  came  in  with  his  big,  covered  wagon  it 
was  quite  an  event  for  the  place.  He  run 
his  team  till  1846,  when  the  railroad  got  so 
near  he  sold  his  team  and  went  to  farm- 
ing. The  P.  &  O.  railroad  is  5  miles  to 
the  north  of  us,  and  the  Montpelier  & 
Wells  River  the  same  distance  to  the  south. 

FIRST   THINGS. 

The  first  marriage  in  town  was  David 
Lyford  to  Judith  Heath,  July  23,  1795,  by 
James  Morse,  Esq ;  the  2d  was  Solomon 
W.  Osgood  to  Ruth  Marsh,  Jan.  3,  1800, 
by  Joseph  Fisher,  Esq.  The  first  child 
born  in  town  was  a  daughter,  to  Thomas 
Blanchard,  Oct.  3,  1787.  The  2d  was  a 
daughter  to  James  Blanchard,  born  Apr. 
I,  1788;  died  Apr.  14,  aged  14  days;  the 
second  death  in  town.  The  first  death  was 
that  of  Nathaniel  West,  killed  while  chop- 
ping in  the  woods  for  Benjamin  Webster, 
in  the  winter  of  1786.  He  was  crushed 
by  the  falling  of  a  large  birch  tree.  He 
was  carried  to  the  house,  but  lived  but  a 
few  minutes.  He  was  buried  in  what  is 
now  the  pasture  of  G.  W.  Webster.     The 


CABOT. 


87 


place  is  pointed  out  by  a  large  maple  tree. 
I  am  told  there  were  .six  or  seven  buried 
here,  but  the  graves  are  not  discernible. 
The  town  continued  to  bury  in  different 
places.  There  were  several  graves  in  the 
pasture  of  Lenie  J.  Walbridge. 

GRAVE-YARDS. 

In  1800,  the  town  purchased  an  acre  of 
land  at  the  Centre  for  a  burying-ground 
and  inclosed  it.  This  was  the  first  grave- 
yard in  town.  William  Osgood,  who  died 
Feb.  5,  1801,  was  thefirst  person  buriedin 
it.  There  are  92  graves  discernible  here. 
A  large  number  of  them  have  headstones 
that  were  dug  out  of  the  ledge  near  by  and 
lettered,  but  they  are  hardly  legible  now. 
No  burials  have  been  made  for  35  years. 
The  last  was  that  of  Lieut.  Fifield  Lyford 
in  1846.  'I'o  the  credit  of  the  town  it  has 
been  kept  inclosed  by  them,  and  tolerably 
clean,  as  also  all  of  the  other  numerous 
small  interment  inclosures  in  town,  where 
it  is  not  done  by  individuals. 

The  next  grave-yard  was  at  the  Lower 
Ville.  In  1 81 3,  ElihuCoburnandCol.  John 
Stone  donated  the  original  ground,  i  acre,  ^ 
each.  Joseph  Coburn  was  the  first  one 
buried  in  it.  From  time  to  time  it  has 
])een  enlarged.  It  has  now  about  329  in- 
habitants. It  is  a  beautiful  location,  about 
40  rods  from  the  Winooski,  whose  musical 
waters  as  they  pass  seemingly  a  little  more 
quiet  by  here,  you  may  imagine  chanting 
the  requiem  of  the  dead. 

In  1814,  a  burying  lot  was  opened  on  the 
farm  now  owned  by  Orson  Kimball,  just 
above  the  residence  of  E.  T.  Hopkins.  19 
graves  are  discernible. 

The  West  Hill  burying-ground,  a  gift 
from  David  Lyford  and  John  Edgerton,  was 
laid  out  in  1817.  Whentheywere  staking 
it  out  it  was  in  the  time  of  what  is  called 
by  the  old  people  the  great  sickness.  Mr. 
Edgerton  repeated  the  lines  : 

"  YeUiviiig  men  come  view  the  ground 
Where  you  must  shortly  lie." 

He  was  the  first  person  buried  there. 
The  graves  here  number  84.  ' 

East  Cabot  grave-yard  is  a  very  pretty 
plot  for  the  purpose,  donated  by  George 
Rogers,  Esq.,  for  that  part  of  the  town. 
38  persons  occupy  this  place. 


Cabot  Plain  grave-yard,  the  ground  for 
which  was  donated  by  Alpheus  Bartlett,  in 
1825.  The  first  one  buried  in  it  was  Al- 
vira  Covell.  The  interments  in  this  yard 
are  39. 

At  South  Cabot  the  grave-yard  was  do- 
nated by  Moses  Clark,  in  1834,  with  the 
express  understanding  it  was  to  be  kept 
well  fenced.  Thirty-five  have  been  in- 
terred here ;  the  first  a  child  of  Moses 
Clark.     It  is  now  entirely  abandoned. 

Cabot  Village  grave-yard,  h  acre  of  land, 
donated  by  John  W.  Dana, was  laid  out  in 
1820.  The  first  one  buried  in  it,  Eliza 
Dutton,  died  May  20,  1820,  age  22.  It 
has  been  enlarged  to  one  acre,  and  con- 
tainsabout2i7graves.  T.H.  Lanceopeneda 

NEW   CEMETERY 

adjoining  this  in  1865,  which  is  private 
property,  those  interring  herein  buying  fam- 
ily lots.  The  first  grave  here  is  that  of 
Joseph  Lance,  Oct.  12,  1865.  There  are 
86  persons  at  this  date  buried  here,  July 
5,  1 88 1,  and  there  are  some  very  hand- 
some monuments  of  marble  and  granite. 
The  town  have  built  a  tomb  in  the  yai'd 
for  public  use.  In  1854,  the  town  pur- 
chased for  $100  its  first  hearse. 

SCHOOLS 

were  established  as  soon  as  there  was  a 
sufficient  number  of  scholars  in  any  local- 
ity. The  first  log  school-house  stood  at 
the  foot  of  Shephard  Hill,  just  north  of 
where  the  road  near  Harvey  Smith's  inter- 
sects with  the  Hazen  road.  Wooden  pins 
were  driven  into  the  logs,  and  boards  laid 
on  them,  for  writing-desks ;  benches  were 
used  for  seats.  The  scholars  had  to  turn 
their  face  to  the  wall  to  wiite.  The  first 
school  was  taught  by  John  Gunn,  in  the 
summer  of  1792. 

At  the  first  town  meeting,  1798,  a  vote 
was  passed  raising  20  bushels  of  wheat  for 
the  support  of  a  town  school,  under  the 
direction  of  the  selectmen.  At  a  town 
meeting,  Mar.  9,  1789,  this  vote  was  re- 
scinded, as  no  school  had  been  kept  on  ac- 
count of  the  great  scarcity  of  wheat,  but  at 
the  same  meeting,  30  bushels  of  wheat 
was  voted  for  a  summer  and  winter  school 
of  3  months  each.     The  object  had  never 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


been  lost  sight  of.  Every  town  meeting 
voted  for  schools,  and  the  matter  was  de- 
ferred simply  from  the  hardshijj  of  the 
times.  A  town  meeting  was  called  ex- 
pressly in  Oct.  1789,  to  consider  the  sub- 
ject of  building  a  school-house,  and  a  tax 
of  $40  for  the  same  voted,  $35  to  be  paid 
in  wheat  and  $5  in  cash,  nails  or  glass.  3s. 
was  to  be  paid  per  day  for  a  man's  labor 
and  3  for  his  cattle,  he  finding  himself  and 
cattle  in  building  said  house. 

After  a  few  years,  a  school-house  was 
commenced  by  district  No.  i,  nearly  op- 
posite the  burying-ground ;  but  being  a 
bleak  spot,  was  removed  before  finished, 
down  into  the  corner  of  the  field  near  the 
Junction.  It  was  used  both  for  a  school 
and  a  town-house  for  a  number  of  years. 
The  school  now  numbered  as  high  as  50 
scholars.  Unruly  ones  were  regulated  by 
the  big  ferule,  and  if  this  was  not  suffi- 
cient, by  the  birch  toughened  in  the  hot 
embers,  applied  freely.  Sweetmeats  and 
delicacies  for  the  children's  dinners  were 
scarce.  They  carried  barley  cakes,  and 
roasted  their  potatoes  in  the  ashes  of  the 
huge  stone  fireplace. 

District  No.  2  was  a  large  territory.  The 
first  school-house  was  built  of  logs,  near 
where  the  old  pound  now  stands.  It  is 
said  the  winter  schools  numbered  as  high  as 
90  scholars.  After  a  few  years  this  house 
was  burned,  after  which  a  better  one  was 
built.  This  district  has  built  the  most 
school-houses  of  any  in  town.  It  now  has 
a  large  and  nice  one,  but  few  scholars. 

In  1800,  by  request  of  Moses  Stone,  it 
was  voted  to  form  No.  3.  The  Lower 
Cabot  district  and  other  new  districts  were 
formed  as  needed .  I n  1 80 1 ,  they  were  num- 
bered according  to  their  formation.  June 
10,  1801,  the  scholars  in  town  from  4years 
to  18  were  89,  and  in  1803,  149.  There 
are  now  14  districts.  All  support  school 
20  weeks  each  year,  and  most  of  them  31 
weeks.  We  have  no  academy,  but  our 
people  have  always  manifested  an  interest 
in  education,  not  only  in  the  district  schools, 
the  safeguards  of  our  civilization,  but  by 
liberal  patronage  of  the  academies  in  the 
adjoining  towns. 


THE   FACE   OF   THE   TOWNSHIP 

is  generally  broken  and  uneven,  the  soil 
adapted  to  all  the  grains,  roots  and  grasses 
of  this  latitude.  The  leading  interest  for 
the  first  50  years  was  raising  grain  and 
cattle  ;  at  present  it  is  dairy  and  sheep  hus- 
bandry. 

Joe's  Pond  is  the  largest  body  of  water. 
It  is  about  one-half  in  this  town.  It  re- 
ceived its  name  from  Capt.  Joe,  a  Nova 
Scotia  Indian.  He  was  in  the  revolution- 
ary war,  and  used  to  traverse  this  section 
at  an  early  day,  and  once  had  a  camp  on 
this  shore.  A  smaller  body  of  water  in 
the  east  part  of  the  town,  about  a  mile  in 
length  and  one-third  in  width,  was  named 
Molly's  Pond  for  the  Indian's  wife,  who 
travelled  with  him.  [For  the  further  inter- 
esting history  of  Capt.  Joe  and  family,  see 
Newbury,  vol.  II,  of  this  work.] 

Coit's  Pond,  in  the  N.  W.  part  of  the 
town,  was  named  when  the  town  was  sur- 
veyed, for  one  of  the  surveyors.  It  is  a 
small  sheet  of  water.  The  least  disturb- 
ance in  its  waters  roils  it.  It  often  goes  by 
the  name  of  Mud  Pond.  It  is  a  consider- 
able tributary  of  the  Winooski. 

West  Hill  Pond. — Previous  to  182O' 
the  bed  of  this  pond  was  "the  great 
meadow,"  of  good  service  to  the  early  set- 
tlers in  furnishing  grass  and  hay.  They 
would  cut  their  hay  here  in  the  summer 
and  stack  it,  and  draw  it  in  on  their  hand- 
sleds  in  the  winter  to  their  log  barns,  a 
distance  of  3  or  4  miles.  Avery  Atkins  in 
1820,  built  a  dam  across  the  lower  end  of 
the  meadow  and  flowed  it.  From  that 
time  it  has  been  the  West  Hill  Pond.  The 
water  comes  from  two  streams  in  Wood- 
bury. It  covers  60  acres,  and  makes  a 
very  fine  water-power.  It  was  used  for 
years  for  a  saw  and  grist-mill.  West  Hill 
brook,  which  empties  into  the  Winooski, 
takes  its  rise  in  the  N.  E.  part  of  the  town. 
It  is  fed  by  several  small  brooks ;  taking  a 
southerly  course,  enters  Marshfield.  Upon 
this  are  several  water  privileges,  some  of 
whi*ch  are  very  good,  and  are  turned  to 
good  account. 

Molly's  Brook,  its  source  Molly's  pond, 
takes  a  southerly  course,  and  enters  the 
Winooski  at  Marshfield.     On  this  stream 


CABOT. 


are  also  good  water  privileges,  that  are 
used. 

Our  Mineral  Springs  we  do  not  pro- 
pose to  discuss  largely  on,  as  we  have  but 
little  (and  we  might  as  well  say,  none  at 
all)  knowledge  of  their  analysis  or  the  won- 
derful healing  properties  they  contain. 
There  is  one  spring  a  half  mile  west  of  the 
village,  that  is  said  to  contain  some  excel- 
lent medicinal  properties,  and  years  ago 
was  quite  celebrated,  and  we  have  no  doubt 
if  plenty  of  money  had  been  put  into  the 
Winooski,  it  might  have  been  a  success. 
At  Lower  Cabot  there  are  two  mineral 
springs,  of  which  we  have  heard  of  their 
effecting  some  celebrated  cures.  They  are 
strongly  impregnated  with  sulphur,  and  we 
should  judge  would  be  first  rate  for  the 
itch — that  kind  which  no  district  school 
was  fairly  equipped  without  in  the  olden 
time. 

The  years  of  1780  and  '81  were  of  great 
severity,  on  account  of  deep  snows.  18 16 
is  spoken  of  by  those  now  living  as  being 
the  year  of  famine,  snow  falling  in  June  4 
or  5  inches  deep,  blowing  and  drifting  like 
winter ;  scarcely  any  corn  or  other  grain 
raised  in  town.  One  of  the  oldest  inhab- 
itants has  told  me  that  "a  barley  cake  was 
a  barley  cake  that  year."  The  next  year 
they  were  obliged  to  go  to  Barre  and  New- 
bury to  procure  seeds  for  planting. 

We  copy  from  an  article  in  regard  to 
first  settlers'  hardships  in  the  "  Cabot  Ad- 
vertiser, July  I,  1868: 

There  was  no  grist-mill,  and  all  the  grain 
had  to  be  carried  to  West  Danville  to  mill. 
There  was  no  road  but  sjiotted  trees,  and 
but  one  horse  in  town  to  do  the  milling 
with,  and  she  was  blind.  She  was  owned 
by  James  Morse,  Esq.  When  any  one 
hired  her  to  go  to  mill  with,  they  had  to 
carry  a  grist  for  Mr.  Morse  to  pay  for  the 
use  of  the  horse.  They  would  put  the 
grain  on  the  back  of  the  horse,  leading  her. 
All  would  go  well  until  they  came  to  a  log 
in  the  road,  when  the  horse  would  stumble 
over  it,  and  throw  the  grist  to  the  ground. 
With  patience  the  grist  would  be  reloaded 
and  started  on  the  trip,  only  to  have  the 
accident  repeated  from  time  to  time  during 
the  journey.  The  grist  ground,  they  would 
start  for  home,  and  meet  with  the  sanie 
luck  as  when  going,  and  arrive  at  their 
happy  homes  late  at  night. 


The  first  wagon  in  town  was  owned  by 
James  Morse,  and  was  a  dowry  to  his  wife 
from  some  of  her  friends  who  died  down 
country.  The  body  is  said  to  have  been 
about  6  feet  long,  bolted  tight  to  the  axle, 
and  was  thought  to  be  a  gay  vehicle. 

The  first  stove  in  town  was  owned  by 
Dea.  Jas.  Marsh.  It  was  a  long,  high 
stove,  and  took  wood  3  feet  long  ;  cost,  $80. 
This  caused  a  great  deal  of  talk  and  dis- 
cussion in  the  community  in  regard  to  the 
utility  of  its  use,  health  of  the  family,  etc. 

The  first  clock  in  town  was  owned  by 
John  W.  Dana.  It  was  a  tall-cased  brass 
clock. 

The  first  carpet  in  town  was  had  by  Mrs. 
John  W\  Dana,  and  came  to  her  in  the  di- 
vision of  her  mother's  things.  A  great 
many  of  the  people  had  never  seen  a  carpet 
when  this  came  to  town.  But  all  these 
hardships  were  borne  bravely,  with  the 
hope  of  better  days. 

OLD   TIME   DISTILLERIES. 

Hanson  Rogers,  Esq.,  a  stirring,  ener- 
getic citizen,  1809,  erected  the  first  dis- 
tillery in  town,. on  Cabot  Plain.  As  this 
was  on  nearly  the  highest  land  in  town, 
where  no  running  water  could  be  obtained, 
he  built  quite  a  distance  from  the  road,  by 
a  brook  in  the  pasture  now  owned  by  Mr. 
W.  S.  Atkins, paying  partly  in  blacksmith- 
ing — his  trade,  and  the  remainder  in 
whisky.  The  distillery  was  ready  for  the 
crop  of  1 8 10.  So  many  potatoes  were  now 
planted,  one  distillery  was  insufficient  for 
the  increasing  business.  A  desire  to  make 
money  appeared  to  pervade  the  people  of 
those  days  even  as  it  does  the  people  of 
these  days.  Judge  Dana,  the  merchant, 
built  another  distillery  nearly  opposite  the 
buildings  owned  by  Wm.  Adams.  There 
now  were  two  distilleries  within  a  half  mile 
of  each  other,  that  could  use  up  all  the  po- 
tatoes raised  in  the  immediate  vicinity. 
But  other  portions  of  the  town,  seeing  the 
ready  sale  and  good  price  for  potatoes, 
began  to  raise  them  more  largely,  which 
rendered  the  building  of  other  distilleries 
necessary.  In  18 16,  one  was  built  on  the 
farm  now  owned  by  W.  S.  Atkins.  Up  to 
this  time  the  product  of  these  distilleries, 
that  had  not  been  consumed  at  home,  had 
mainly  been  conveyed  by  teams  to  Boston 
and  Portland.  Now  a  new  avenue  was 
opened.     The  cloud  of  war  began  to  settle 


90 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


down  over  our  country,  and  soon  we  were 
involved  in  a  conflict  with  Great  Britain, 
and  Cabot  distillers,  only  about  40  miles 
from  the  Canada  line,  lost  no  time  in  find- 
ing a  market  in  that  country  for  the  product 
of  their  stills.  The  good,  orthodox  cit- 
izens of  this  place  seemed  cjuite  intent  on 
obeying  the  divine  injunction,  "  If  thine 
enemy  hunger,  feed  him  ;  if  he  t/iirst,  give 
him  drink.''''  This  command,  so  explicit 
in  its  terms,  the  towns  situated  near  the 
border  seemed  bound  to  carry  out ;  a  large 
number  of  cattle  were  driven  over,  and  no 
small  quantity  of  whisky  found  ready  sale 
among  the  British  soldiery.  It  proved 
a  lucrative  business  to  those  engaged  in 
it.  It  was  smuggling,  and  was  rather 
risky  business,  but  the  "commandment" 
was  plain  and  imperative,  and  must  be 
followed.  And  about  this  time  distilleries 
went  into  operation  rapidly.  One  was  put 
up  by  Deacon  Stone,  where  I.  F.  Haines' 
woolen  factory  is  now ;  one  by  Capt.  Sum- 
ner, on  the  farm  now  occupied  by  R.  B. 
Bruce  ;  one  on  the  farm  of  Chauncey  Paine  ; 
one  on  the  old  Cutting  farm ;  one  on  Dea. 
J.  L.  Adams'  farm,  where  Union  Block 
stands,  and  one  where  Hial  Morse  now 
lives;  so  that  12  distilleries  were  in 
full  blast  at  one  time  in  Cabot.  These 
made  whisky  very  plenty,  and  it  was  used 
in  all  the  different  callings  of  life.  Some 
even  thought  it  was  cheaper  than  corn  for 
common  living.  It  is  said  one  poor  man 
in  Plainfield  used  to  say  that  he  would  buy 
a  half  bushel  of  corn-meal,  and  carry  it 
home,  and  his  wife  would  make  it  all  up 
into  hasty  pudding,  and  the  children  would 
eat  it  all  up  and  go  to  bed  crying  with 
hunger.  But  let  him  buy  a  gallon  of 
whisky,  and  they  would  all  go  to  sleep  like 
kittens  by  the  fire ;  he  thought  whisky  the 
cheapest  diet. 

No  occasion  was  ever  perfect  without  it. 
If  a  neighbor  came  for  a  friendly  visit ;  if 
the  pastor  came  to  make  a  call,  or  to  join  a 
couple  in  the  holy  bonds  of  matrimony,  or 
perform  the  last  sad  rites  of  burying  the 
dead,  and  especially  when  a  child  was  born 
into  the  world,  the  whisky  and  flip  went 
around  merrily  ;  and  when  the  ladies  had  a 
quilting,  every  time  they  rolled  the  quilt 


all  must  take  a  little  toddy,  and  when  they 
had  rolled  it  about  four  times,  they  were 
ready  to  drop  work,  tell  stories  and  have  a 
jolly  time.  A  story  is  told  of  one  of  these 
good  old  ladies  who  at  the  conclusion  of  a 
quilting  put  on  her  bonnet,  one  of  those 
large,  old-fashioned  poke  bonnets,  then  in 
vogue,  and  got  it  on  wrong  side  before, 
covering  her  face  entirely,  and  was  in 
great  trouble  to  find  the  strings.  The 
good  old  lady  got  out  of  the  dilemma  by 
the  assistance  of  her  friends,  but  never 
could  tell  exactly  what  the  trouble  was. 

All  the  public  gatherings  were  held  at 
the  Plain,  and  the  occasion  which  usually 
attracted  the  largest  crowd  was  that  of 
June  training.  At  this  time  the  military 
officers  were  elected  for  the  following  year. 
At  one  of  these  elections  John  Dow,  who 
subsequently  became  a  prominent  minister 
of  the  Methodist  denomination,  was  elect- 
ed captain.  After  the  election,  Capt.  Dow, 
as  in  duty  bound,  ordered  the  treat,  and 
all  drank  to  repletion,  after  which  the  com- 
pany was  formed  for  drill  and  inspection, 
and  the  various  evolutions  gone  through 
with.  During  the  practice,  one  of  the 
brothers  of  the  newly-elected  captain,  who 
had  imbibed  somewhat  freely,  was  unable 
to  keep  time  with  the  music,  and  finally 
fell  flat  on  the  ground.  His  comrades 
helped  him  to  his  feet,  and  began  to  up- 
braid him  for  his  unseemly  conduct ;  with 
maudlin  wit  he  answered,  "  It  is  all  right ; 
the  Dows  to-day  are  rising  and  falling." 

About  18 1 5,  the  newly-set  orchards  com- 
menced bearing;  great  cjuantities  of  apples 
were  brought  into  market,  and  cider-mills 
were  built  in  different  parts  of  the  town, 
and  some  of  the  inhabitants  began  to  have 
cider  in  addition  to  whisky  for  a  beverage. 
The  first  cider-mill  was  built  by  Robert 
Lance,  nearly  opposite  the  residence  of 
Albert  Osgood,  in  1819. 

Cider  and  whisky  were  the  staple  com- 
modities of  the  time,  the  former  selling  for 
$3  per  barrel,  and  the  latter  from  67  to  75 
cents  per  gallon.  So  common  was  their 
use,  they  were  regarded  very  much  as 
"United  States"  currency  in  these  days. 

No  farmer  thought  of  beginning  a  winter 
with  less  than  1 2  or  15  barrels  of  cider  and 


CABOT. 


91 


one  or  two  barrels  of  whisky  in  the  cellar.. 
It  was  no  uncommon  thing  for  a  young 
man  to  hire  out  for  the  season  for  300  gal- 
lons of  whisky,  and  this  he  would  dispose 
of  for  stock,  store-pay,  or  anything  he 
could  get. 

About  1823,  the  farmers  began  to  think 
raising  so  many  potatoes  was  running  out 
their  farms,  and,  after  all,  not  so  profitable 
as  some  other  crops,  and  less  were  planted, 
and  the  number  of  distilleries  decreased, 
until  in  1832,  there  were  none  running  in 
town,  and  New  England  rum  was  used  by 
those  who  thought  they  must  have  some- 
thing stimulating,  and  sold  freely  at  all  the 
stores  and  hotels  in  town. 

About  1825,  the  temperance  question 
began  to  be  agitated  ;  people  commenced 
to  think  they  could  get  along  without  quite 
so  much  stimulant,  and  from  that  time  to 
the  present,  there  has  been  a  marked  dim- 
inution in  the  quantity  absorbed  in  town. 

The  writer  has  in  this  matter  endeavored 
to  state  facts  simply  and  fully,  but  does 
not  mean  to  be  understood  as  saying  that 
in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  liquors, 
Cabot  was  a  sinner  above  the  other  towns 
in  that  vicinity,  for  it  is  probably  a  fact 
that  for  its  number  of  inhabitants,  it  had 
fewer  distilleries  than  any  other  town  in 
this  section. 

POST-OFFICE. 

There  was  no  public  mail  service  in 
Cabot  till  1808.  The  only  newspaper 
taken  by  the  pioneer  settlers  was  the  North 
Star,  then  as  now  published  at  Danville, 
and  this  was  procured  by  each  subscriber 
taking  his  turn  in  sending  his  boy,  or  going 
himself  on  horseback  to  the  printing  office, 
and  bringing  the  papers  for  his  neighbor- 
hood in  saddle-bags.  What  he  could  not 
distribute  on  his  way  home  were  left  at  the 
grist-mill,  then  owned  and  run  by  Thomas 
Lyford,  on  the  same  site  where  the  mill 
now  stands,  and  by  him  were  distributed 
as  the  subscribers  came,  or  sent  to  the  mill 
for  them.  None  of  the  subscribers  of  that 
day  are  now  living,  but  their  children  tell 
me  that  the  receipt  of  the  paper  was 
deemed  a  matter  of  so  much  imjjortance 
that  all  the  family  gave  attention  while 
some  one  of  their  number,  by  the  light  of 


the  tallow  candle  or  the  fainter  flicker  of 
the  fireplace,  read  aloud  not  only  the  news 
but  the  entire  contents  of  the  paper. 

Letters  were  brought  by  travelers  passing 
through  the  town.  In  this  way  the  early 
settlers  received  their  mails  for  the  first  23 
years . 

The  first  regular  mail  service  through 
Cabot  was  begun  in  1808,  and  Henry 
Denny  was  the  first  carrier,  his  horseback 
route  extending  from  Montpelier  to  the 
Canada  line,  passing  through  Cabot,  Dan- 
ville, Lyndon,  Barton,  etc.,  and  his  re- 
turn was  made  by  way  of  Craftsbury  and 
Hardwick.  The  round  trip  occupied  about 
10  days.  About  the  year  1810,  he  com- 
menced to  bring  the  Vermont  Watc/unan, 
published  then  as  now  in  Montpelier,  and 
when  he  came  to  the  house  of  a  subscriber 
he  would  blow  his  tin  horn  lustily,  and  im- 
patiently await  the  coming  of  some  mem- 
ber of  the  family  to  receive  the  same. 

Mr.  Nickerson  Warner  vi^as  the  first 
postmaster  at  Cabot.  He  then  lived  on 
the  farm  now  owned  by  H.  W.  Powers,  on 
the  road  now  leading  to  Walden.  The 
post  road,  however,  left  the  present  road 
near  the  old  school-house,  at  the  lower 
village,  running  by  the  present  residence 
of  W.  S.  Atkins,  thence  by  the  centre  of 
the  town  near  the  old  pound,  and  by  the 
farm  now  owned  by  A.  F.  Sulham,  and  so 
on  by  Dexter  Reed's,  coming  out  at  A.  G. 
Dickenson's,  at  the  Plain,  and  then  to 
Danville  FourCorners.  Mr.  Warner  living 
so  far  from  the  post  road,  engaged  Lene 
Orcutt,  who  lived  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  A.  F.  Sulham,  to  keep  the  office. 

At  this  time  meetings  were  held  at  the 
Center  on  the  Sabbath,  and  what  mail  was 
not  distributed  during  the  week  he  brought 
to  church,  feeling  sure  to  see  there  all  in- 
habitants of  the  town.  The  office  re- 
mained at  this  place  for  6  years,  until  18 14, 
when  Jeremiah  Babcock  was  appointed 
postmaster.  He  then  lived  on  the  farm 
now  occupied  by  Harvey  Dow,  and  this 
being  but  a  short  distance  from  the  post 
road,  he  removed  the  office  to  his  house. 

Mr.  Cate  of  Marshfield,  now  became 
mail  carrier,  still  taking  it  on  horseback 
the  same  as  his  predecessor,  Mr.  Denny. 


92 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


In  1820,  Mr.  Babcock  resigned,  and  his 
son  Harvey  was  appointed  in  his  place. 
By  this  time  a  store  had  been  started  at 
what  is  now  known  as  Lower  Cabot,  and 
Mr.  Babcock  put  the  office  in  there.  Cap- 
tain Covel,  Senior,  was  the  next  to  carry 
the  mail,  which  service  he  performed  some 
8  or  10  years,  during  which  time  Mr.  Bab- 
cock resigned  and  left  town.  In  1827, 
Hector  McLean  was  appointed  postmaster, 
prior  to  which  time,  however.  Captain 
Covel  had  died,  and  Deacon  Adams  be- 
came mail-carrier. 

At  this  time  the  country  had  become 
more  thickly  settled,  and  the  road  so  passa- 
ble that  Deacon  A.  concluded  to  try  the 
experiment  of  a  stage,  and  he  was  the  first 
to  put  on  a  team  for  the  accommodation  of 
passengers.  His  rig  consisted  of  two 
horses  and  a  wagon  with  body  firmly  bolted 
to  the  axle,  so  that  passengers  in  riding 
over  the  rough  roads  and  poor  bridges  got 
the  full  spring  of  the  axle. 

Deacon  Adams  dying,  Deacon  Kellogg 
became  his  successor.  Of  him  it  was  re- 
lated that  he  was  a  great  smoker,  and 
having  straw  in  the  bottom  of  his  wagon, 
it  took  fire  from  his  pipe  and  came  near 
burning  up  his  whole  establishment.  So 
say  the  old  inhabitants. 

By  this  time  quite  a  settlement  had 
grown  up  at  what  is  now  known  as  the 
village  of  Cabot.  About  the  year  1834, 
George  Dana  was  appointed  postmaster, 
and  he  removed  the  office  to  that  village, 
where  it  has  since  been  kept,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  year.  This -year  was  when 
Jacob  Collamer  of  this  state  was  post- 
master-general, and  Salma  Tressell  of  the 
Lower  village  was  postmaster.  This  re- 
moval to  the  Lower  village,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  created  no  little  feeling,  which  re- 
sulted in  a  long  and  bitter  struggle  between 
the  two  villages  which  resulted  at  last  in 
the  appointment  of  Dr.  Doe  as  postmaster, 
when  the  office  was  again  returned  to  its 
former  quarters  in  the  store  of  Elijah  Perry 
at  the  village  of  Cabot.  It  has  since  re- 
mained in  that  village,  changing  hands 
from  time  to  time  as  the  postmasters  have 
died  or  moved  away,  or  the  administration 
changed. 


After  Deacon  Kellogg,  different  carriers 
transported  the  mails  for  short  terms  until 
about  1830,  when  Cottrill  and  Clark  be- 
came owners  of  the  route,  and  put  on  good 
horses  and  good  coaches  from  Montpelier 
to  Danville,  there  connecting  with  stages 
from  Canada  to  Boston,  also  to  Littleton 
and  the  White  Mountains,  going  from 
Montpelier  to  Danville  one  day  and  return- 
ing the  next.  This  was  continued  until 
i860,  when  a  daily  mail  was  obtained  from 
Montpelier  to  Cabot,  the  route  from  Cabot 
to  Danville  still  being  tri-weekly  until  1862, 
when  the  daily  service  was  continued 
through  to  Danville.  After  this  the  con- 
tractors were  so  numerous  and  changed  so 
often  that  it  is  impossible  to  enumerate 
them . 

The  mails  were  run  in  this  way  until  the 
spring  of  1872,  when  on  the  starting  of 
the  Portland  &  Ogdensburgh  railroad  the 
route  over  the  hill  to  Danville  was  discon- 
tinued, and  a  route  to  Walden  depot  was 
established.  Then  we  began  to  receive 
the  Boston  mail  at  7  o'clock,  p.  m..  and 
this  made  it  seem  as  if  we  were  brought 
into  the  heart  of  the  business  world. 

On  the  I2th  of  March,  1874,  the  service 
of  teams  from  Montpelier  to  Marshfield  was 
discontinued  and  the  mails  were  transferred 
to  the  cars  of  the  Montpelier  &  Wells 
River  railroad,  so  that  we  now  receive  our 
daily  mails  both  by  the  Portland  &  Ogdens- 
burgh and  the  Montpelier  &  Wells  River 
railroad  at  7  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

In  thus  briefly  reviewing  the  mail  ser- 
vice of  the  past  we  cannot  but  be  impressed 
with  the  progress  made  in  these  matters 
duriftg  the  past  56  years.  No  more  wait- 
ing until  late  at  night  for  the  arrival  and 
opening  of  the  mail,  which,  perhaps,  con- 
tains tidings  of  great  moment.  No  more 
shoveling  through  deep  drifts  of  snow  to 
render  passable  the  road  over  Danville  hill. 
In  place  of  these  we  hear  the  shrill  whistle 
from  the  engines  of  two  railroads,  and  our 
mail  is  brought  with  celerity,  certainty  and 
security  almost  to  our  very  door. 

In  1866,  Alonzo  F.  Sprague  was  ap- 
pointed postmaster,  since  which  he  has 
discharged  the  duties  of  the  office  to  the 
satisfaction  of  all.    We  think,  if  the  admin- 


CABOT. 


93 


istration  should  change,  they  could  hardly 
make  up  their  mind  to  remove  him. 

TELEGRAPH   SERVICE. 

In  1871,  the  Vermont  International  Tel- 
egraph Company  made  a  proposition  to 
the  town  if  they  would  give  them  $200  and 
set  the  poles,  they  would  run  their  wires 
from  the  P.  &  O.  R.  R.  line  to  the  village 
of  Cabot.  In  a  few  weeks  the  click  of  the 
telegraph  was  heard  in  Sprague  &  Wells' 
store.  Charles  B.  Putnam  was  appointed 
manager  of  the  office,  he  employing  an 
operator.  He  held  the  position  but  one 
year,  when  he  left  town,  and  Hiram  Wells 
was  appointed,  who  has  been  the  operator 
for  8  years. 

THE   CHURCHES    IN   CABOT. 

Dea.  Edward  Chapman,  the  third  set- 
tler, was  a  Baptist,  and  held  meetings 
nearly  every  Sabbath  in  town,  and  was  oc- 
casionally called  to  Danville  and  Peacham 
to  preach.  Cabot,  also,  was  visited  occa- 
sionally, by  Dr.  Crossman,  Baptist  mis- 
sionary from  Unity,  N.  H.,  and  by  Rev. 
Mr.  Ainsworth. 

In  March,  1797,  an  article  was  in  the 
warning  for  March  meeting  "  to  see  if 
the  town  would  provide  means  to  secure 
preaching  some  part  of  the  ensuing  year." 
It  was  passed  over  at  that  meeting,  but  at 
a  town  meeting  June  17,  1799,  there  was 
an  article  in  the  warning  to  see  if  it  was 
the  wish  of  the  town  to  settle  Rev.  Dr. 
Crossman  as  their  minister.  It  was  "  voted 
that  he  be  settled,  piovided  he  will  accept 
such  terms  as  a  majority  of  the  town  shall." 
"  Voted  a  committee  of  7  be  appointed  to 
wait  on  the  Rev.  Doctor  and  examine  his 
credentials  ;"  committee  :  Joseph  Blanch- 
ard,  John  Whittier,  Esq.,  Henry  Beards- 
ley,  Capt.  David  Blanchard,  Lyman  Hitch- 
cock, Thomas  Osgood,  Joseph  Huntoon, 
the  committee  to  report  the  same  afternoon. 
This  committee  reported  they  found  his 
credentials  satisfactory  ;  and  that  as  a 
majority  of  the  town  were  of  different  per- 
suasion from  the  Rev.  Dr.  Crossman,  Bap- 
tist, that  this  should  make  no  difference  in 
regard  to  their  church  privileges,  but  every 
person  holding  a  certificate  from  a  regular 
organized   church,  whether  they  believed 


in  sprinkling  or  plunging,  should  be  ad- 
mitted to  all  the  rights  of  church  member- 
ship, and  that  every  person  of  sober  life 
and  good  deportment,  who  wished  should 
be  admitted  a  member  of  the  church. 
They  also  reported  that  "  six  of  the  com- 
mittee were  for  giving  one  half  of  the  pub- 
lic right  and  for  buildings  on  the  same." 
In  every  town  there  was  one  right  set 
apart  to  be  given  to  the  first  settled  minis- 
ter ;  after  a  prolonged  discussion  it  was 
voted  not  to  accept  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee. 

It  appears  a  report  had  got  into  circula- 
tion that  Dr.  Crossman  was  under  censure 
in  the  church  in  Croydon,  N.  H.,  of  which 
he  was  a  member ;  and  for  this  reason  it 
was  voted  not  to  accept  the  report  of  the 
committee  ;  but  another  town  meeting  was 
called  for  Feb.  18,  1800,  to  give  Rev.  Mr. 
Crossman  an  opportunity  to  vindicate  him- 
self; which  by  papers  and  letters  he  did  to 
the  full  satisfaction  of  all  present,  and  by 
his  request  the  town  voted  to  give  him 
declaration  on  account  of  his  not  being 
under  censure  as  was  reported  in  this  town, 
that  his  character  should  not  suffer  any 
more  in  this  place.  With  this  ended  all 
efforts  to  settle  Dr.  Crossman. 

Several  town  meetings  were  called  to 
take  into  consideration  the  subject  of 
hiring  a  minister,  but  no  minister  was  ever 
hired  by  the  town. 

Aug.  15,  1801 ,  a  town  meeting  was  called 
to  complete  the  organization  of  a  religious 
society.  The  organization  was  completed 
and  a  vote  passed  that  this  society  be 
known  by  the  name  and  firm  of 

CONGREGATIONALISTS  in  the  TOWN  OF 
CABOT. 

Officers  elected  :  Thomas  Osgood,  clerk  ; 
Oliver  Walbridge,  treasurer ;  Joseph  Fish- 
er, Horace  Beardsley,  Thomas  Osgood, 
as.sessors  ;  Clement  Coburn,  John  Edger- 
ton,  Reuben  Atkins,  committee ;  Moses 
Stone,  collector. 

The  first  vote  of  the  society  was  to  in- 
struct Dr.  Beardsley  to  engage  the  services 
of  Rev.  Mr.  Joslin  a  certain  period  of  time, 
not  exceeding  4  months. 


94 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


A   BAPTIST   NOTIFICATION 

was  read  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of 
Cabot  of  the  Baptist  persuasion,  to  meet 
at  the  Centre  school  house,  May  12,  1803. 
At  this  meeting  the  following  officers  were 
elected :  Perley  Scott,  clerk ;  Fifield  Ly- 
ford,  treasurer;  John  N.  Gunn,  John 
Whittier,  John  Spiller,  assessors  ;  Enoch 
Hoyt,  collector  ;  Samuel  Kingston,  John 
Blanchard,  Thomas  Lyford,  committee. 

From  this  date  there  were  two  religious 
societies  in  town,  and  men  began  to  take 
sides,  and  there  are  a  large  number  of  cer- 
tificates upon  the  records,  showing  that  the 
signers  do  not  agree  with  the  other  society. 
One  man  evidently  meant  to  make  a  sure 
thing  of  it,  and  recorded  his  certificate  as 
not  agreeing  with  either  society. 

THE   CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH 

was  organized  at  the  old  Center  school- 
house,  Oct.  25,  1801,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ran- 
som, of  Rochester,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hal- 
lock,  missionary  from  Connecticut,  being 
present. 

Original  Members  :— Clement  Coburn, 
Gershom  Beardsley,  Stephen  Clark,  Oliver 
Walbridge,  Elias  Hitchcock,  Lene  Or- 
cutt,  Hepzebah  Osgood,  Ruth  Beardsley, 
Miriam  Clark,  Elizabeth  Walbridge,  Peggy 
Hitchcock,  Anna  Church,  Lucy  Osgood. 

Clement  Coburn,  who  had  been  deacon 
of  the  Congregational  church  in  Charles- 
ton, Mass. ,  was  first  deacon  and  moderator ; 
Evans  Beardsley  the  first  clerk  elected. 
For  the  first  22  years  they  had  no  settled 
minister.  They  furnished  themselves  when 
they  could  by  hiring,  which  was  seldom, 
and  missionaries  were  sometimes  sent  to 
them  from  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut. 
But  when  they  had  no  minister,  one  of  the 
deacons,  or  some  one  of  the  society,  read 
to  them  a  sermon  on  the  Sabbath.  They 
always  maintained  worship  on  the  Sab- 
bath, every  brother  considering  himself 
pledged  to  assist  as  called  upon.  For  the 
first  6  years  meetings  were  held  in  the 
Centre  school-house,  or  at  a  dwelling- 
house  near  the  Centre ;  often  in  Esquire 
Mercer's  barn  and  the  barn  of  Oliver  Wal- 
bridge. In  1804-5,  the  Cjuestion  of  build- 
ing a  meeting-house  was  agitated.     It  was 


raised  Sept.  25,  1806,  but  the  frame  stood 
in  an  unfinished  state  until  about  1810. 
The  pew-ground  was  sold  Dec.  12,  1809, 
payment  to  be  made  in  three  yearly  pay- 
ments, i  cash  ;  the  remainder  in  neat  stock 
or  materials  for  the  house.  Committee  for 
building  the  house,  Moses  Stone,  Joseph 
Smith,  Henry  Walbridge,  Eliphalet  Adams 
and  Luther  Wheatley. 

The  old  meeting-house  was  large  on  the 
ground ;  two  rows  of  windows  all  around, 
high  belfry  ;  within,  gallery  on  three  sides  ; 
16  pews  in  the  gallery ;  42  pews  below; 
would  seat  about  300.  The  struggle  to 
finish  it  was  hard.  All  parts  of  the  town 
assembled  to  worship  in  it  18  summers 
before  it  was  plastered.  In  the  winter 
meetings  were  held  in  dwelling-houses 
and  school-houses.  In  1817,  there  was  an 
especial  revival  and  in-gathering  of  41 
members,  although  without  any  settled 
minister. 

REV.  MOSES   INGALLS, 

the  first  pastor  and  first  settled  minister, 
was  ordained  and  installed  over  the  church, 
Oct.  27,  1823.  He  was  engaged  to  jDreach 
one-half  of  the  time  at  salary  of  $200,  5  of 
it  payable  in  cash,  |  in  produce  or  neat 
stock,  to  be  delivered  in  the  month  of > 
October.  He  was  dismissed  Apr.  20, 
1825.  The  next  two  years  the  church  was 
served  by  supplies.  Reverends  Wright, 
of  Montpelier,  Worcester,  of  Peacham, 
French,  of  Barre,  and  Hobart,  of  Berlin. 
During  this  time,  1826,  one  of  the  most 
powerful  revivals  took  place  that  the  town 
ever  witnessed,  of  which  Rev.  Levi  H. 
Stone,  then  a  young  man  then  and  after- 
wards pastor  of  the  church,  writes  : 

The  church  was  without  a  pastor,  but 
were  aided  now  and  then  a  Sabbath  by 
neighboring  ministers.  Late  in  autumn 
they  obtained  the  services  of  the  Rev.  Asa 
Lowe,  small  in  stature,  weak  in  voice,  an 
old  bachelor,  with  many  whims,  which 
might  be  expected  to  lessen  the  moral 
force  of  his  labors,  and  the  church  and  so- 
ciety were  in  serious  trouble  ;  most  posi- 
tively divided  over  the  question  of  finish- 
ing their  church  edifice  where  it  then  stood, 
on  the  geographicfal  center  of  the  town,  or 
to  remove  it  to  the  "  Upper  Branch." 
This  question  was  seemingly  disposed  of, 
by  a  vote  to  finish  where   it  then  stood, 


CABOT. 


95 


and  Ebenezer  Smith,  Esq.,  was  appointed 
to  raise  funds  and  complete  the  work. 
Living  some  3  miles  east  from  the  Center, 
on  the  Peacham  road,  it  was  natural  he 
should  oppose  the  removal  of  the  house. 
He  entered  upon  his  duties  with  zeal,  and 
rode  and  walked  night  and  day,  and  had 
nearly  raised  the  required  amount,  and 
partially,  if  not  quite,  completed  the  con- 
tract with  Asa  Edgerton,  a  meeting-house 
builder,  to  do  the  work,  when  an  opposi- 
tion movement  was  started,  and  prevailed, 
and  the  house  was  removed  to  the  village. 
This  transaction  was  by  a  large  number  of 
the  church  and  society  pronounced  un- 
manly and  unchristian,  and  resulted  in 
very  positive  alienation.  Some  went  to 
the  Methodist,  some  to  the  Freewill  Bap- 
tist, then  worshipping  on  the  West  Hill, 
and  others  remained  at  home. 

But  there  was  salt  in  that  church  which 
preserved  it  from  putrefaction.  Deacons 
Moses  Stone  and  Eliphalet'  Adams  cov- 
enanted (and  with  them  covenant  meant 
something)  to  sustain  a  weekly  meeting 
for  prayer  and  conference,  so  long  as  they 
could  say  wc.  Others  seeing  their  good 
works  and  spirit,  began  to  do  likewise,  and 
beyond  expectation,  tender  and  brotherly 
feeling  was  supplantingjealousy  and  anger, 
so  that  in  September  and  October  meet- 
ings were  full.  But  it  is  unquestionably 
true  that  a  thoughtful,  inquiring  state  of 
mind  was  first  manifest  in  the  Methodist 
meetings.  Their  social  meetings,  both  on 
the  Sabbath  and  week-day  evenings,  were 
held  in  the  house  of  Judge  Dana,  the 
abode  of  the  late  Joseph  Lance,  Esq.  The 
young  minister,  Ireson,  was  nearly  always 
present,  and  he  possessed  a  most  happy 
faculty  of  conducting  social  as  well  as 
Sabbath  meetings. 

As  early  as  Oct.  it  was  apparent  an  in- 
visible agency  was  moving  the  people. 
There  began  to  be  instances  of  "  the  new 
birth,"  and  where  least  expected,  but  it 
was  not  till  December  that  a  general  re- 
ligious feeling  prevailed,  and  persons  alien- 
ated and  bitter  began  to  seek  reconciliation 
in  tender,  prayerful  earnestness. 

The  first  "  watch-meeting"  ever  held  in 
Cabot  was  in  the  Methodist  church,  on  the 
evening  of  the  31st  of  Dec,  1825.  Mr. 
Norton,  living  on  the  "  Plain,"  an  aged, 
gentlemanly,  scholarly  man,  lately  from 
Massachusetts.  His  views  were  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  meeting  and  its  measures, 
which  he  expressed,  but  his  position  and 
remarks  were  so  met  as  only  to  increase 
the  interest.  A  sermon  from  Rev.  Mr. 
Ireson,  prayers,  confessions,  exhortations, 
and  singing  by  the  congregation,  filled  the 
time  to  a  late  hour,  when  it  was  proposed 
as  many  as  desired  an  especial  interest  in 


the  prayers  of  saints  should  come  to  the 
altar,  when,  as  a  cloud,  nearly  one  hun- 
dred went  forward,  filling  the  aisles  nearly 
to  the  doors,  among  whom  were  Henry  G. 
Perkins,  the  merchant,  and  his  wife,  Wm. 
Fisher  and  wife,  Wm.  Ensign,  Horace 
Haynes,  Clarissa  and  Ruth  Osgood,  Ruth 
and  Louisa  Coburn,  all  of  whom  are  now 
in  possession  of  the  then  promised  rest. 
That  year  gave  to  the  Congregational 
church  about  100  members,  and  the  Meth- 
odist received  probably  about  as  many, 
and  several  went  to  the  Baptist,  on  the 
West  Hill.  Toward  300  hopeful  conver- 
sions occurred  that  year  in  the  town  of 
Cabot,  and  the  laborers  were  mainly  the 
good  fathers  and  mothers  in  those  Israels. 
Home  talent,  with  God's  favor,  wrought 
wonders,  as  it  always  will. 

One  event  which  deepened  the  impres- 
sions of  the  people  generally,  I  may  not 
omit — the  death  of  Dea.  E.  Adams,  early 
in  the  year.  Cold  nights  found  him  upon 
his  knees,  pleading  for  the  lost.  He  lived 
to  rejoice  at  the  opening  of  the  work  and 
ingathering  of  some  of  the  sheaves,  when 
he  was  called  to  ascend  and  be  ready  upon 
the  celestial  plains  to  welcome  the  re- 
deemed from  his  own  town,  as  one  after 
another  should  slide  down  from  the  wings 
of  angels,  and  enter  into  that  "purchased 
rest." 

Among  the  young,  no  one  probably 
equaled,  in  labors  and  influence,  the  Rev. 
John  F.  Stone,  now  of  Montpelier.  He 
will  be  remembered  by  many  now  living, 
as  their  attention  shall  be  called  to  those 
days,  but  by  a  vastly  larger  number  who 
have  gone  over  the  River. 

But  a  wonderful  readiness  to  do  and 
bear,  characterized  both  old  and  young. 
The  evening  meetings  here  and  there,  in 
school-houses,  and  dwelling-houses  in  re- 
mote neighborhoods,  as  well  as  in  the 
more  central,  were  sure  to  be  fully  attend- 
ed. The  weather  made  but  little  differ- 
ence. "  Enduring  hardness,  as  good 
soldiers  of  Jesus  Christ,"  seemed  a  priv- 
ilege then  as  well  as  duty. 

Now,  while  these  reminiscences  cannot 
be  as  dear  to  strangers  as  to  those  among 
whom  they  transpired,  yet  they  may  afford 
some  thoughts  deserving  consideration. 

In  1824  the  meeting-house  was  taken 
down  and  moved  to  the  village,  where  the 
school-house  now  stands,  and  finished, 
and  for  those  days  was  a  very  fine  struc- 
ture. 

By  a  subscription  of  the  citizens  in  1839, 
a  bell  of  1 100  pounds,  cost,  $300,  was 
hung  in  the  belfry,  the  first  bell  in  town, 


96 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  said  to  have  been  one  of  the  finest 
toned  bells  in  the  country.  After  a  few- 
years  it  was  cracked;  was  recast  in  1848, 
and  again  hung  in  the  belfry. 

This  meeting-house  was  used  until  1849, 
when  it  was  torn  down,  and  the  house  now 
occupied  by  this  church  was  built.  Jan.  3, 
1827,  Rev.  Henry  Jones  was  ordained  and 
installed  pastor  of  the  church,  to  preach 
for  them  I  of  the  time,  at  a  salary  of  $225, 
one-half  payable  in  grain,  and  one-half  in 
money.  After  4  years^  labor  with  them  he 
was  dismissed  May  28,  1832.  To  1839 
they  had  no  settled  minister.  In  the  fall 
of  1839, 

REV.    LEVI    H.    STONE 

was  ordained  and  settled.  Mr.  Stone  was 
raised  in  this  town,  and  this  was  his  first 
pastorate.  Without  flattery  we  can  say, 
in  person  rather  tall  and  commanding, 
with  pleasant  voice  and  manner,  his  ser- 
mons were  well  planned,  delivery  good, 
and  whenever  he  spoke  he  commanded 
attention.  He  was  pastor  6  years,  and  the 
church  enjoyed  a  good  degree  of  prosper- 
ity. 

From  1846  to  '49,  again  there  was  no 
settled  minister,  but  Rev.  S.  N.  Robinson, 
a  very  scholarly  man  from  New  York,  was 
the  acting  pastor  for  a  large  share  of  the 
time. 

Nov.  I,  1849,  Rev.  Edward  Cleveland 
was  installed  as  pastor,  a  very  wide-awake, 
go-ahead  man,  who  believed  in  people 
wearing  out  instead  of  rusting  out. 

During  the  winter  of  1850  and  '51  a 
great  revival  occurred.  Mr.  C.  was  as- 
sisted by  Rev.  Mr.  Galliher,  an  evangelist 
from  Missouri ;  48  persons,  many  of  them 
heads  of  families,  and  in  some  instances 
whole  families,  were  added  to  the  church. 

Mr.  Cleveland  was  dismissed  Oct.  9, 
1853.  To  1859,  quite  a  portion  of  the 
time  Rev.  T.  G.  Hubbard  was  acting 
pastor.  In  the  autumn  of  1859,  Rev.  S.  F. 
Drew  was  installed,  and  remained  12  years. 
During  this  time,  although  there  was  no 
especial  revival,  there  was  a  goodly  num- 
ber of  additions  each  year,  and  the  church 
was  in  a  jDrosperous  condition.     Mr.  Drew 


removed  from  town  in  May,  1 871,  though 
not  dismissed  till  Nov.  1872. 

Rev.  B.  S.  Adams  was  the  supply  from 
Mr.  Drew's  removal  from  town  till  Nov. 
1872,  when  he  was  settled  as  pastor,  which 
office  he  now  fills,  July,  1881.  During  his 
ID  years  of  labor  the  church  has  continued 
in  a  good  working  condition.  They  have 
thoroughly  repaired  their  house,  and  made 
it  a  very  pleasant  place  of  worship,  and 
bought  a  fine  organ,  at  a  cost  of  $800. 

Since  1801  to  June  i,  1881,  whole  num- 
ber of  members,  537;  children  baptized, 
307.  The  records  show  during  its  first  15 
years  the  sacrament  and  ordinance  of  bap- 
tism was  administered  nearly  every  time 
by  Rev.  James  Hobart,  who  must  have 
been  a  father  to  this  church.  The  present 
number  of  members  is  126.  During  the 
80  years  of  the  existence  of  this  church,  it 
has  passed  through  many  trials,  and  at 
times  it  has  almost  looked  as  though  it 
would  go  to  destruction ;  but  it  was  an- 
chored to  a  sure  foundation,  and  all  must 
acknowledge  it  has  been  the  means  of 
doing  great  good  in  the  community. 

DEACONS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 

Moses  Stone  and  Eliphalet  Adams  were 
elected  about  1808  ;  each  served  the  church 
faithfully,  by  holding  meetings  in  different 
parts  of  the  town,  and  officiating  on  the 
Sabbath  when  the  church  was  without  a 
minister.  Deacon  Adams  died  in  the 
winter  of  1826,  aged  45  years.  Deacon 
Stone  went  to  the  grave  like  the  shock  of 
corn  fully  ripe,  at  77  years,  July  13,  1842. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  church,  June  11, 
1827,  James  Marsh,  Samson  Osgood  and 
Marcus  O.  Fisher  were  elected  to  the  office 
of  deacons,  and  Oct.  31,  1827,  at  a  meet- 
ing of  the  circular  conference  with  this 
church,  they  were  solemnly  consecrated 
to  the  office  of  deacon  by  prayer,  in  which 
the  Rev.  James  Hobart  led,  and  by  the 
laying  on  of  hands  of  Revs.  James  Hobart, 
Justin  W.  French  and  Henry  Jones.  The 
sermon  was  preached  by  Rev.  Mr.  French, 
and  charge  to  the  deacons  was  by  Rev.  Mr. 
Hobart. 

Joseph  Hoyt  was  elected  July  16,  1851, 
and  served  until  he  removed  to  Cameron, 


CABOT. 


57 


Mo.,  where  he  died  in  1870.  He  was  a 
valuable  member,  always  aiding  by  his 
presence  at  all  the  meetings,  and  assisting 
pecuniarily  to  the  fullest  extent  of  his 
ability.  When  he  removed  West  it  was 
not  only  a  great  loss  to  the  church  butalso 
to  the  town. 

May  6,  1865,  it  was  voted  to  elect  three 
additional  deacons.  N.  K.  Abbott,  Ed- 
ward G.  Haines  and  Edwin  Fisher  were 
elected  and  consecrated  Feb.  1866,  by 
prayer  and  laying  on  of  hands  by  the 
pastor,  Rev.  S.  F.  Drew  and  Rev.  Nathan 
Wheeler. 

Deacon  Haines  died  Jan.  28,  1867; 
taken  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness,  bright 
prospects  appearing  to  be  opening  before 
him.  All  had  the  utmost  confidence  in  his 
integrity.  To  him  the  church  looked  for  a 
strong  support  for  years  to  come,  but  at 
the  early  age  of  38  years,  the  brittle  silver 
thread  was  loosed,  and  the  golden  bowl 
broken. 

The  deacons  of  the  church  at  the  present 
time  are  N.  K.  Abbott,  J.  L.  Adams,  I. 
F.  Haines  and  M.  L.  Haines. 

SABBATH   SCHOOL. 

The  first  Sabbath  instruction  for  their 
children  among  the  early  settlers  upon  the 
Plain,  was  in  1804,  when  the  settlement 
was  still  sparse.  During  the  week,  the 
children  learned  portions  of  the  Assembly'' s 
catechism  which  the  Puritan  settlers 
brought  from  their  early  homes,  and  on 
the  Sabbath  day  when  they  had  no  preach- 
ing, the  good  mothers  would  gather  them 
together  at  some  one  of  their  houses,  and 
have  them  recite  their  lessons  learned  dur- 
ing the  week.  They  also  had  prayer  and 
religious  conversation,  all  of  which  served 
to  give  the  young  minds  a  start  in  the 
right  direction.  I  had  these  facts  from 
Mrs.  Nathaniel  Webster  more  than  20 
years  since. 

In  18 18,  the  Sabbath  school  connected 
with  the  Congregational  chuixh  was  organ- 
ized at  the  Lower  village  school-house  by 
Col.  Washburn  and  Esq.  Hale  from 
Greensboro.  They  met  at  half-past  four 
p.  M.,  and  were  continued  only  through  the 
summer  months. 


The  school  Jiumbered  from  30  to  40  pu- 
pils. It  is  said  young  ladies  walked  from 
Marshfield,  a  distance  of  4  or  5  miles,  to 
attend  this  school.  The  next  year  John 
Damon  started  a  Sabbath  school  on  the 
Plain,  holding  it  in  the  hall  of  the  yellow 
house,  where  he  then  lived. 

The  4th  of  July  these  schools  had  a  cel- 
ebration at  the  centre  of  the  town.  Some 
of  the  old  people  living  who  were  children 
then,  speak  of  it  now  as  one  of  the  most 
enjoyable  4th  of  July's  of  their  lives. 

Deacon  Moses  Stone  was  the  first  supt. 
This  school  has  never  lost  its  organization, 
and  has  always  been  well  sustained.  As 
years  moved  along,  Bible-classes  were  con- 
nected with  it,  and  now  old  and  young 
gather  together  for  the  study  of  the  Bible. 
Among  the  early  and  active  ones  in  the 
Sabbath  school  were  William  Fisher,  Rev. 
John  Stone,  John  R.  Putnam ;  and  of 
more  recent  dates,  the  supts.,  Mr.  Milton 
Fisher,  Joseph  Hoyt,  A.  P.  Perry  and 
many  more  we  might  mentioij  did  not  lim- 
ited space  forbid.  The  school  now  num- 
bers 120;  average  attendance  85  ;  library, 
very  good  ;   125  books. 

The  Sabbath  school  is  truly  said  to  be 
the  nursery  of  the  church. 

THE    FREEWILL   BAPTIST   CHURCH 

was  organized  in  1803.  at  the  house  of 
Lieut.  Thomas  Lyford,  the  ministers  of- 
ciating,  elders  Benjamin  Page  and  Aaron 
Buel  of  Strafford,  Vt. ;  first  members : 
Anthony  Perry  and   wife ;    David  Haines 

and   wife  ;  Spiller ;    Enoch     Hoyt 

and  wife  ;  Joseph  Hoyt  and  wife  ;  Ezra 
Hoyt  and  wife ;  Mr.  Bruce,  Benjamin 
Hoyt,  David  Lyford,  Samuel  Kingston, 
Abraham  Hinks  and  David  Blanchard ; 
deacons:  Enoch  Hoyt,  David  Blanchard 
and  Benjamin  Hoyt. 

The  town  records  show  that  Rev.  Ben- 
jamin Page  was  settled  as  pastor  the  same 
year  of  the  organization,  which  gave  him 
a  clear  title  to  the  minister-lot,  he  being 
the  first  settled  minister  in  town.  This  he 
received,  it  now  being  the  farm  of  George 
M.  Webster,  Esq.  It  was  then  in  a  state 
of  nature,  but  his  parishioners  at  once 
turned  out  and  cut  and  cleared  10  acres  for 
him,  and  built  a  barn  on  the  same.      But 


13 


98 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


it  is  said  he  did  not  remain  their  minister 
long  after  he  got  it  in  shape  to  sell. 

Meetings  were  held  at  the  houses  and 
in  the  barns  for  quite  a  number  of  years  ; 
and  they  used  often  the  Congregational 
meeting-house  at  the  Centre,  after  it  was 
in  shape  to  use. 

In  1829,  they  built  a  meeting-house  on 
the  west  hill  where  quite  a  large  number 
of  these  members  lived.  The  house  was 
of  more  modern  style  than  either  of  the 
other  meeting-houses,  being  but  one  story, 
gallery  across  one  end,  and  the  pulpit  only 
about  6  feet  from  the  floor.  It  had  no 
tower.  It  was  occupied  regularly  by  the 
church  for  about  20  years,  and  during  the 
time,  they  had  some  very  able  ministers, 
and  some  very  stirring  meetings. 

The  quarterly  meetings  are  spoken  of 
as  being  very  interesting  occasions  and 
largely  attended  ;  some  coming  15  or  20 
miles  to  attend  them. 

In  about  12  or  15  years,  the  church  be- 
gan to  suffer  heavily  by  deaths  and  remov- 
als, and  about  1850,  it  lost  its  organization. 
One  board  after  another  began  to  disap- 
pear from  the  old  house,  and  in  1875,  it 
went  over  to  the  majority. 

I  have  not  been  able  to  find  any  record 
of  this  church.  This  account  has  been 
obtained  from  the  "oldest  inhabitants  of 
this  and  adjoining  towns. 

THE  METHODIST  CHURCH  IN  CABOT. 

BY  HEV.  EOBEUT  SANDEK!<0N. 

The  first  family  that  moved  into  town 
became  afterward  identified  with  Method- 
ism. The  wife  of  Benj.  Webster  was  one 
of  the  members  of  the  first  class.  It  is 
stated  by  one  of  the  oldest  members  of  the 
church  that  her  mother  attended  a  quar- 
terly meeting  on  Cabot  Plain  about  1808. 
This  seems  to  be  the  first  commencement 
of  the  society,  although  the  first  class  was 
not  formed  until  about  181 1.  The  mem- 
bers of  the  first  class  were  :  Mrs.  Judge 
Dana,  Mrs.  Dr.  Scott,  Mrs.  B.  Webster, 
Mrs.  Hills,  Mrs.  N.  Webster,  Mrs.  Durgin 
and  Mrs.  Rogers.  The  first  men  to  join 
the  class,  some  short  time  afterwards, 
were  Judge  J.  W.  Dana,  Daniel  Smith  and 
Dr.  Scott.     There  may  have  been  others 


connected  with  the  class  at  that  time  ;  we 
have  only  been  able  to  find  the  above, 
and  have  no  doubt  they  were  the  original 
members.  The  first  Methodist  sermon 
preached  in  town  was  probably  by  Thomas 
Branch,  in  1807  or  '8.  One  of  the  oldest 
inhabitants  says  he  remembers  going  to 
meeting  when  quite  a  boy,  and  hearing 
the  first  Methodist  sermon  preached  in 
town.  Thomas  Branch  was  presiding 
elder  of  Vermont  district  about  this  time. 
The  first  circuit  preacher  was  Bro.  Stearns. 
The  first  presiding  elder  who  seemed  to 
have  had  anything  to  do  with  Cabot  as  a 
circuit,  was  Eleazer  Wells.  In  1814,  Lo- 
renzo Dow  preached  his  first  sermon  in 
Cabot,  in  the  old  Congregational  meeting- 
house at  the  Center  before  it  was  finished, 
using  the  work-bench  for  his  pulpit.  After 
announcing  his  text,  he  said  Jesus  Christ 
sat  down  and  taught  the  people ;  so  shall 
I,  and  sat  during  the  delivery  of  his  dis- 
course. There  seems  to  have  been  quite 
a  reformation  in  the  winter  of  the  year 
1816.  The  summer  following,  the  Meth- 
odists held  their  meetings  in  the  tannery, 
which  is  now  used  as  a  dwelling-house  by 
Widow  E.  Perry,  next  to  Sprague  &  Wells' 
block.  Up  to  this  date  they  had  held  their 
meetings  in  the  houses  and  barns,  chiefly 
at  Cabot  Plain,  the  quarterly  meetings 
being  held  in  the  Congregational  church  at 
the  Center.  The  first  camp-meeting  held 
in  town  was  in  1820,  in  the  grove  owned 
by  Daniel  Smith,  now  owned  by  A.  M. 
Foster,  where  over  80  tents  were  pitched. 
The  presiding  elder  was  John  Lin.sey,  who 
is  said  to  have  been  a  man  of  thunder. 
The  first  church  was  built  about  1822  or 
1823,  the  land  and  timber  being  furnished 
by  Judge  Dana,  who  had  connected  him- 
self with  the  poor  and  despised  Methodists, 
to  the  wonderment  of  the  community,  a 
man  of  his  standing  to  be  so  short-sighted 
as  to  connect  himself  with  such  fanatics. 
It  was  owing  to  his  influence  and  liberality 
the  church  was  built.  In  1825  and  '26  the 
great  reformation  took  place,  commencing 
with  the  watch-night  service  in  the  Meth- 
odist church.  Bro.  E.  Ireson  was  the 
preacher.  The  revival  spread  throughout 
the  town,  both  churches  taking  part  in  the 


CABOT. 


99 


work.  The  facts  up  to  this  date  we  have 
had  to  gather  as  we  could,  not  being  able  to 
find  any  previous  record.  Thos.  Ljford  has 
supplied  us  with  most  of  the  information, 
he  being  a  small  boy  then.  His  people 
afterwards  became  connected  with  the 
Methodists.  In  1828,  Cabot  circuit  con- 
tained Cabot,  Calais,  Woodbury,  Peacham, 
Walden,  Goshen  Gore  and  Marshfield, 
with  a  membership  of  312.  We  find  a 
record  of  the  first  quarterly  conference  : 

At  a  quarterly  meeting  conference,  held 
at  Cabot,  July  5,  1828,  William  Peck  was 
chosen  secretary.  Luke  Richardson  was 
appointed  recording  steward.  Licensed 
Pro.  Horace  A.  Warner  to  preach  in  a 
local  capacity.  Licensed  Bro.  G.  B.  Hous- 
ton as  anexhorter.  Licensed  Bro.  Samuel 
Stocker  as  a  local  preacher.  Licensed  Bro. 
William  Simons  as  an  exhorter.  Elected 
the  following  brethren  as  a  committee  of 
arrangement  for  the  year  ensuing.  Luke  B. 
Richardson,  Timothy  Haynes,  John  W. 
Dana,  voted  that  the  next  quarterly  con- 
ference be  held  at  Walden.  A  true  copy 
of  the  record.     Attest, 

L.  B.  Richardson, 

Reed.  Steward. 

The  preachers  in  charge  at  this  time 
were  N.  W.  Aspenwall  and  E.  J.  Scott. 
Below  is  the  estimate  of  their  salary  : 

Quarterage,  Bro.  Aspenwall  and  wife, 
and  one  child  under  seven  years. 

Quarterage.    Table    House  Fuel.  Traveliu;?   Total, 
expenses,  rent.  expenses. 

$216.00   $75   $20  $20    $13  $344.00 

E.  J.  Scott  and  wife, 

200.00        53-54  10        5  8     276.50 

Total  receipts, 

N.  W.  Aspenwall,  $123.34 
E.  J.  Scott,  71.84 

In  the  quarterly  report  for  January  3, 
1830,  we  find  the  following  resolution: 

Resolved,  that  Oliver  J.  Warner,  J.  W. 
Dana  and  William  Lance  be  a  committee 
to  purchase  a  suitable  piece  of  ground,  and 
build  thereon  a  parsonage  house  and  barns, 
provided  a  sufficient  amount  is  subscribed 
to  warrant  the  purchase  of  said  land,  and 
the  commencement  of  said  building. 

In  1830,  John  Courier  received  his  first 
license  to  preach,  and  was  recommended 
to  the  traveling  connection.  In  1832,  or 
2  years  after  their  appointment,  the  com- 
mittee bought  of  Joseph  Preston  one  acre 
of  land,  house  and  barns  thereon ;  cost, 
$20Q,  where  the  widows  Heath  and  Lyford 


now  have  houses.  The  society  put  itself 
on  record  on  the  side  of  liberty  and  tem- 
perance : 

Resolutions.  (2uarterly  meeting  held  at 
Cabot,  May  11,  1839. 

1st.  That  slavery  as  it  exists  in  the 
United  States  of  America  is  under  all  cir- 
cumstances a  sin  against  God,  contrary  to 
the  rights  of  our  fellow-men  enslaved. 

2d.  That  it  is  the  duty  of  every  Chris- 
tian philanthropist  and  republican  to  use 
all  lawful  means  for  the  peaceful  emanci- 
pation of  all  the  enslaved  of  our  land. 

3d.  That  we  claim  the  right  to  examine 
and  discuss  this  subject,  and  also  to  peti- 
tion Congress  for  the  immediate  abolish- 
ment of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

ON   TEMPERANCE. 

1st.  that  the  manufactory  and  vending 
of  intoxicating  drinks,  for  a  beverage,  is  an 
immorality. 

2d.  That  it  is  inconsistent  with  Christian 
principles  and  a  growth  in  grace  to  use  in- 
toxicating drinks  as  a  beverage. 

3d.  That  by  precept  and  example,  we 
discourage  the  use  of  all  intoxicating  drinks 
as  a  beverage.     . 

In  1848,  the  parsonage  lot  was  sold  to 
W.  B.  Cutting.  Henry  Russell,  Joseph 
Lance   and   John   Clark,    committee.     In 

185 1,  S.  Aldrich  was  the  preacher.  Quite 
a  reformation  took  place  ;  several  conver- 
sions ;  some  have  gone  to  receive  their  re- 
ward ;  others  are  among  our  leading  mem- 
bers to-day.  Removing  and  rebuilding 
the  church  was  commenced ;  completed  in 

1852,  by  Bro.  A.  L.  Cooper,  appointed  to 
the  charge  that  year. 

NOTICE   OF   THE   DEDICATION. 

Providence  permitting,  the  newly-repair- 
ed Methodist  meeting-house  at  Cabot  will 
be  dedicated  to  the  service  of  God  "on 
Tuesday,  December  14,  services  com- 
mencing at  II  o'clock  A.  M.  Sermon  by 
Rev.  J.  Currier.  Brethren  in  the  ministry 
and  others  in  the  vicinity  are  invited  to 
attend.  A.  L.  Cooper. 

December  2,  1852. 

Joseph  Lance  was  the  leading  man  in 
rebuilding  the  church.  To  his  public 
spirit  the  society  are  indebted  for  the  very 
nice  and  commodious  church  they  now 
own.  Building  committee  of  the  church  : 
Jos.  Lance,  Paul  Dean,  John  Clark.  The 
parsonage,  commenced,  1853,  Allen  Perry, 
Jerry  Atkins,  Rob.  Lance,  committee.    Jo- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


seph  Lance  gave  the  lot  for  the  parsonage, 
besides  his  share  in  the  building,  and  Mr. 
Perry  bore  the  whole  committee  burden. 
From  '53  to  '73  nothing  very  marked  oc- 
curred ;  the  church  just  holding  its  own 
and  sometimes  going  down  to  low-water 
mark,  with  the  exception  of  the  time. 
Bro.  King  labored  here.  During  the 
charge  of  Bro'.  W.  H.  Wight,  1872,  new 
interest  was  manifested.  In  his  third  quar- 
terly report  we  find  ' '  we  have  repaired  and 
beautified  our  church  ;  painted,  frescoed, 
carpeted  throughout ;  carpet  cost  $200, 
paid  by  subscription  ;  cliandelier  $50,  paid 
by  another  subscription,  raised  by  Harry 
Whittier,  a  lad  of  14  or  15  ;  finishing  and 
frescoing  to  be  paid  by  tax^on  the  pews. 
The  brethren  have  been  equally  ready  to 
share  in  the  responsibilities.  Among 
those  foremost  in  the  work  are  Bros.  Allen 
Perry,  Theron  H.  Lance,  William  S.  At- 
kins.    In  report,  Oct.  24,  1874: 

"  Our  people  have  been  surprised  with 
the  gift  of  a  fine  bell,  cost  between  $400 
and  $500,  from  Bro.  Paul  Dean,  and  Sister 
Jeremiah  Atkins.  The  church  desire  to 
record  here  their  appreciation  of  this  timely 
gift,  and  will  ever  pray  that  the  blessing 
of  God  may  rest  on  the  donors." 

In  the  same  report : 

"  We  have  nearly  finished  a  neat  vestry, 
cost  about  $500 ;  subscriptions  nearly 
pledged ;  we  shall  have  it  free  from  debt. 
We  wish  to  make  favorable  mention  of  the 
labors  of  Sister  Julia  Hopkins,  whose  un- 
tiring efforts  in  soliciting  subscription  for 
this  work  has  been  so  abundantly  blessed." 

John  Clark  died,  Feb.  17,  1874,  and  left 
to  the  society  $500,  the  interest  to  be  used 
for  Methodist  preaching  in  Cabot.  1875, 
Sister  Phebe  Rogers,  left  the  society  $200, 
for  the  same  purpose.  Bro.  Paul  Dean 
also  left  the  society  $500.  At  the  quar- 
terly conference,  Jan.  16,  1881,  the  follow- 
ing resolutions  were  passed : 

1st.  Whereas  God  in  his  all-wise  Prov- 
idence, has  removed  one  of  our  number, 
Bro.  Paul  Dean,  and  although  he  has  fallen 
in  a  good  old  age,  yet,  we  feel  the  loss  to 
us  none  the  less,  as  regards  the  church  he 
loved.  He  was  ever  hopeful,  firm  in  pur- 
pose, wise  in  council  and  liberal  in  .support. 
He  fully  adopted  these  beautiful  lines : 

For  lier  my  tears  shall  fall. 
For  lier  my  prayers  ascend. 


To  her  my  toil  and  care  be  given 
Till  toil  and  care  shall  end. 

2d.  We  deeply  feel  our  loss  in  the 
vacant  seat  in  our  church,  his  absence  in 
our  consultations,  and  his  kind,  cheerful 
and  helpful  words. 

3d.  That  we  highly  appreciate  his  lib- 
eral bequest  for  the  benefit  of  the  ministry 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and 
shall  ever  cherish  in  grateful  remembrance 
and  highly  appreciate  his  liberal  bequest 
for  the  benefit  of  the  ministry  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church  in  this  place.  Or- 
dered that  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be 
forwarded  to  Sister  Dean. 

By  order  of  the  Board  of  Stewards, 
Church  Tabor,  Presiding  Elder. 
C.  M.  Seabury,  Secretary. 

The  church  has  a  membership  of  102 
members  and  25  probationers.  Most  the 
probationers  have  joined  during  the  past 
year.  The  congregations  are  larger  than 
at  any  other  time  in  the  history  of  the 
church.  The  first  organization  of  the 
Sabbath  school  was  about  1820  or  '21. 
The  first  school  had  one  teacher  for  the 
whole  school — Benjamin  Derrel.  Some 
years  previous  to  this  they  had  made  it  a 
practice  of  teaching  the  children  from 
house  to  house.  Mrs.  Dr.  Scott  was,  no 
doubt,  the  first  one  in  town  to  be  engaged 
in  Sabbath  school  work,  though  it  was  not 
known  by  that  name.  The  school  has 
^ever  been  so  flourishing  as  to  day.  The 
largest  average  number  in  attendance  has 
been  reached  during  the  past  year.  The 
present  pastor  is  Robert  Sanderson  ;  Sab- 
bath school  superintendent,  William  S. 
Atkins,  who  has  held  the  ofiice  for  oyer 
15  years.  Stewards  of  the  church,  Allen 
Perry,  Alvah  Elmer,  William  S.  Atkins, 
D.  Reed,  M.  Seabury,  M.  J.  Stone,  S.  B. 
Blodgett,  Palmer  B.  Ehner;  organist, 
Harry  P.  Whittier ;  chorister,  Herman 
Osgood. 

The  following  pastors  have  been  sta- 
tioned here  since  1824: 

1825,  E.  Ireson ;  1826,  Sargent  and 
Barker;  1827,  Aspenwall  and  E.  J.  Scott; 
1828,  Foster  and  Peck;  1829,  Demming 
and  Page;  1830,  Cass  and  Manning ;  1831, 
Cutler  and  Rust;  1832,  Cutler  and  Noyes; 
1833,  Sweatland  and  Scott;  1834,  Kellogg 
and  Worcester ;  1835,  Brown  and  Smith; 
1836,  Wells  and   Hill;    1837,    Wells  and 


CABOT. 


Farnham;  1838,  L.  Austin;  1839,  C-  Lis- 
combe ;  1840,  James  Smith;  1841  and  '42, 
A.Gibson;  1843,  H.  Kendall ;  1844  and 
'45,  Z.  S.  Haines  ;  1846  and  '47,  P.  Frost ; 
1848,  Swichel;  1849,  W.  W.  Scott;  1850, 
S.  Aldrich;  185 1,  H.  T.  Jones;  1852  and 
'53,  A.  L.  Cooper;  1854  and '55,  D.  Packer; 
1856  and  '57,  D.  S.  Dexter;  1858  and  '59, 
P.  P.  Ray;  i860,  E.  Copeland ;  1861.  C. 
Fales  :  1862  and  '63,  F.  E.  King ;  1864  and 
'65,  A.  Hitchcock;  1866 and '67,  D.  Willis; 
1868  and  '69,  L.  Hill;  1870  and  >i,J.W. 
Bemis;  1872,  ""T}^  and  '"j\,  W.  H.  Wight; 
1875,  '76  and  ^T],  F.  H.  Roberts  ;  1878  and 
79,  H.  F.  Forrest;  1880  and  '81,  R.  San- 
derson. 

THE   ADVENT   CHURCH 

in  this  town  dates  from  1843,  when  a  long 
series  of  meetings  were  held  by  Elder  Ship- 
man.  Till  1858,  there  was  no  organiza- 
tion, but  meetings  were  held  in  different 
parts  of  the  town,  mainly  at  the  West  Hill 
and  at  Lower  Cabot,  where  the  church  was 
organized  Feb.  16,  1858;  40  members; 
Nathan  Wheeler  and  Erasmus  L.  Burnap, 
deacons,  and  M.  P.  Wallace,  scribe. 

Samuel  W.  Thurber  was  the  first  pastor, 
widely  known  in  this  vicinity  as  a  wide- 
awake preacher,  and  one  who  to  edify  his 
hearers,  did  not  spare  his  lungs.  He  was 
pastor  for  6  years,  since  which  the  church 
has  been  supplied  by  ministers  hired  from 
year  to  year,  among  whom  were  Rev.  H. 
Canfield,  Rev.  George  Child,  Rev.  Alonzo 
Hoyt  and  Rev.  Nathan  Wheeler.  Their 
meeting-house  was  built  in  1857,  mainly 
through  the  efforts  and  means  of  Dr.  M. 
P.  Wallace,  and  dedicated  January,  1858  ; 
sermon  by- Rev.  J.  V.  Himes,  of  Boston, 
who  continued  to  hold  meetings  for  the 
next  4  weeks.  He  was  a  pleasant  speaker, 
thoroughly  engaged  in  his  labor.  The 
house  was  crowded  at  nearly  every  meet- 
ing. The  other  churches  all  joined  in  the 
work,  and  a  deep  religious  interest  moved 
the  whole  town,  and  after  the  close  of  his 
labors,  meetings  were  held  at  different  lo- 
calities. It  was  called  the  most  general 
awakening  that  had  pervaded  the  town 
since  1826,  and  about  150  converts  were 
added  to  the  different  churches,  many  of 


whom  have  proved  strong  helps  to  the 
churches  to  which  they  belong.  For  the 
past  few  years  thisAphurch  has  suffered 
greatly  from  deaths  and  removals,  and  at 
present  they  have  preaching  but  one-half 
the  time. 

The  Sabbath-school  was  organized  be- 
fore the  church,  and  has  always  been  kept 
up  ;  the  largest  number  enrolled,  about  50. 
They  have  the  largest  library  of  any  Sab- 
bath-school in  town — 400  volumes,  and 
when  the  church  has  had  regular  preach- 
ing each  Sabbath,  there  has  been  a  good 
degree  of  interest  manifested  in  the  school. 

PHYSICIANS 

have  been,  and  are  now,  well  represented 
in  this  town  ;  men  who  have  stood  well  in 
their  profession. 

Dr.  Gershom  Beardsley  came  among 
the  very  early  settlers,  as  early  as  1790. 
The  physicians  have  been  in  the  order  of 
their  nalnes  :  Gershom  Beardsley,  Perley 
Scott,  Dyer  Bill,  Dr.  Haines,  Leonard 
Morgan,  Dr.  Pratt,  Z.  G.  Pangborn,  M.  P. 
Wallace,  D.  G.  Hubbard,  John  Doe,  Dan. 
Newcomb,  D.  M.  Goodwin,  S.  L.  Wiswall, 
J.  A.  Thompson,  Fred  Gale,  Dr.  Warren. 
Our  present  physicians  areDrs.  Wallace 
and  Wiswall,  Gale  and  Warren. 

Dr.  M.  P.  Wallace  graduated  at  Han- 
over Medical  College,  1842,  and  com- 
menced practice  in  this  town  in  1843 — he 
has  retired  from  general  practice,  but  is 
often  called  in  council. 

Dr.  S.  L.  Wiswall  graduated  at  Wood- 
stock Medical  School,  and  after  practicing 
in  the  towns  of  Wolcott  and  Hydepark, 
came  to  this  town  in  1862,  as  successor  to 
Dr.  Newcomb.  He  is  a  well-read  physi- 
cian, and  held  in  much  esteem  by  the  pro- 
fession. 

When  "Dr.  Bill"  was  the  only  prac- 
titioner in  town,  located  on  the  Plain,  a 
man  broke  his  thumb.  The  doctor  and  all 
the  neighbors  decided  that  amputation  was 
necessary.  The  Doctor  had  no  instru- 
ments, but  they  found  a  chisel  they  thought 
if  ground  up  to  an  edge  might  answer. 
The  chisel  was  ground,  the  man  laid  his 
hand   on   a   block,  the    Doctor   took   the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


chisel  and  hammer,  and  in  a  minute   the 
amputation  was  done. 

EPID^ICS. 

Probably  the  worst  years  of  sickness 
this  town  ever  saw  were  1813  and  '14, 
when  the  spotted  fever  raged  to  an  alarm- 
ing extent,  nearly  every  family  in  town 
having  more  or  less  sick  ones,  and  in  some 
portions  of  the  town  there  were  not  well 
ones  enough  to  care  for  the  sick.  Not  un- 
frequently,  a  person  would  die  with  none 
but  the  members  of  their  own  family  pres- 
ent. The  old  tomb-stones  show  a  great 
number  of  deaths  that  year. 

Deacon  Clement  Coburn  died  of  the 
spotted  fever.  He  was  one  of  the  pillars 
of  the  Congregational  church  in  his  town. 
He  lived  but  a  very  short  time  after  he  was 
taken.  No  one  taken  with  this  epidemic 
expected  to  live,  it  was  so  fatal  and  violent 
in  the  first  seizure  of  its  victims.  Says  the 
venerable  Rev.  Mr.  Stone,  of  Montpelier : 
Deacon  Stone  called  to  see  him  as  soon  as 
he  learned  he  was  sick,  to  minister  to  any 
want  and  to  pray  with  him.  When  he 
must  leave  that  afternoon.  Deacon  Stone 
was  much  affected  at  parting  with  Dea. 
Coburn ;  he  l:kad  been  a  good  and  fellow- 
laborer  by  his  side  in  the  house  of  worship, 
and  he  never  expected  to  see  him  alive 
again,  but  Dea.  Coburn,  in  the  midst  of 
his  sufferings,  bade  him  good-bye  very 
calmly,  triumphantly  adding : 

"  iMy  soul  shall  pray  Tor  Zioii  still. 
While  life  aiiU  breath  remains!  " 

These  were  his  last  words  to  Deacon 
Stone,  to  which  Dea.  Stone  often  after  al- 
luded when  speaking  of  Dea.  Coburn  or  of 
that  calamitous  period. 

No  other  epidemic  prevailed  till  1841, 
when  the  canker-rash,  in  its  most  malig- 
nant form,  carried  ofif  a  great  many  chil- 
dren. 1843  and  '44  are  remembered  as 
the  terrible  years  of  erysipelas.  The  toll- 
ing of  the  bell  saluted  the  ear,  and  the 
mournful  procession  greeted  the  eye,  al- 
most daily.  1862  and  '63  were  sad  years 
to  many  families,  from  the  ravages  of 
diphtheria. 

Native  Clergymen. — Congregational, 
John  F.  Stone,  Levi   H.   Stone,  James  P. 


Stone,  Harvey  M.  Stone,  alL brothers; 
William  Scales,  Ebenezer  Smith  ;  Chris- 
tians, Leonard  Wheeler,  Nathan  Wheeler, 
brothers ;  Methodists,  Zerah  Colburn, 
Augustin  Hopkins. 

Lawyers. — Theron  Howard,  J.  S.  Mar- 
ston,  Harlow  P.  Smith,  George  W.  Stone, 
John  McLean,  T.  P.  Fuller  and  J.  P.  Lam- 
son,  the  present  lawyer  of  the  town  ;  took 
his  academical  course  at  Johnson,  Vt. ; 
read  law  with  the  late  Hon.  Thomas  Gleed, 
of  Morris ville ;  came  to  this  town,  and 
commenced  practice  August,  i860,  during 
which  time  he  has  built  up  a  large  prac- 
tice, and  is  one  of  the  leading  attorneys  in 
this  section. 

College  Graduates. — Oscar  F.  Dana, 
William  Edgerton,  William  Scales,  Eleazer 
J.  Marsh,  Charles  C.  Webster,  Charles  F, 
Stone. 

local  literature. 

We  have  not  wasted  much  printer's  ink. 
I  find  but  two  Cabot  publications,  a  pamph- 
let by  Rev.  Henry  Jones,  in  1826,  that  is 
entitled  "An  Exposure  of  Free-Masonry," 
and  another  pamphlet,  written  by  Israel 
Cutting,  giving  an  account  of  a  law-suit 
between  himself  and  Orlando  Carter. 

A  large  number  of  newspapers  are  taken 
here,  and  local  items  are  well  contributed. 
Several  libraries  have  been  purchased  for 
the  town,  but  after  a  few  years  were  scat- 
tered, and  at  present  there  is  no  public  or 
circulating  library  in  town. 

MASONIC. 

gkep;n  mountain  lodge,  ciiaktehed  186). 

Charter  Members — A.  F.  Sprague,  B.  J. 
Lance,  G.  M.  Webster,  W.  W.  Lyford, 
Rufus  Adams,  John  M.  Fisher,  N.  B. 
Rogers,  William  H.  Fletcher,  G.  W.  Clark, 
Edwin  Fisher,  A.  M.  Ruggles,  E.  C. 
Smith. 

First  Officers  of  the  Lodge — Rufus  Ad- 
ams, W.  M.  ;  J.  M.  Fisher,  S.  W.  ;  A.  F. 
Sprague,  J.  W.  ;  B.  J.  Lance,  Treasurer; 
Edwin  Fisher,  Secretary  ;  W.  H.  Fletcher, 
S.  D. ;  Joseph  Dow,  J.  D. ;  G.  M.  Web- 
ster, Nathaniel  Perry,  Stewards;  N.  B. 
Rogers,  Tyler. 

Present  Officers— G.  E.  Forbes,  W.  M.  ; 
A.  E.  Dutton,  S.  W.  ;    N.  B.   Rogers,  J. 


CABOT. 


103 


W. ;  A.  T.  Durant,  Treasurer;  Hiram 
Wells,  Secretary ;  J.  G.  Pike,  S.  D. ;  C. 
C.  Eastman,  J.  D.  ;  W.  W.  Buchanan, 
George  Gould,  Stewards  ;  Charles  French, 
Chaplain;  T.  O.  Parker,  Marshall;  T.  H. 
Lance,  Tyler. 

Highest  membership  reached,   104. 

TOWN   CLERKS    1 788 — 1 88 1. 

Maj.  Lyman  Hitchcock,  first  town  clerk, 
held  the  office  from  1788  to  1795,  when  he 
removed  from  town ;  Dr.  Horace  Beards- 
ley,  1795  ;  Thomas  Osgood,  1796  to  1821, 
then  in  1823  to  1832,  with  the  exception 
of  1822,  when  Joseph  Fisher  held  the 
office,  an  unbroken  term  of  36  years,  when 
on  account  of  the  infirmities  of  age,  his 
son  Thomas  Osgood,  Jr.,  was  elected  in 
his  place  and  served  till  1858,  a  term  of 
26  years,  when  from  consumption,  he  had 
to  resign  and  soon  after  died,  and  Allen 
Perry  was  clerk  to  1874 ;  Lucas  Herrick  to 
1875  ;  Allen  Perry  re-elected  in  1875  !  has 
held  the  office  since,  making  6  town  clerks 
in  93  years.  The  records  were  kept  in  a 
clear,  plain  hand  and  are  all  remarkably 
well  preserved,  even  the  first  unbound  rec- 
ord, which  is  well  stitched  together  on  the 
back,  and  is  an  interesting  town  relic. 

SELECTMEN. 

Lieut.  Jonathan  Heath,  1788;  Lieut. 
Thomas  Lyford,  1788,  '91,  '92,  1843,  '44; 
David  Blanchard,  1788,  '89,  '90,  '94;  Ed- 
ward Chapman,  1789, '90;  Benjamin  Web- 
ster, 1790;  Samuel  Danforth,  1791,  '92 
'93;  Lyman  Hitchcock,  1791,  '92,  '93; 
Capt.  James  Morse,  1793,  '94;  Jacob  Gil- 
man,  1794;  Fifield  Lyford,  1795,  '96,  '98, 
1801  ;  Samuel  Warner,  1795, '96;  Joseph 
Fisher,  1797,  '98  '99,  1800,  '3,  '4,  '5,  '6,  '7, 
'8,  '10,  '11,  '12,  '13,  '14,  '15,  '16,  '17,  '18, 
'19,  '21, '22, '25,  '26,  '32^  '34;  JohnWhich- 
er,  1797;  Reuben  Atkins,  1799,  1800; 
Oliver  Walbridge,  1799,  1800,  'i  ;  Clement 
Coburn,  1801  ;  Perley  Scott,  1801,  '2,  '22, 
'23;  John  Edgerton,  1801  ;  Moses  Stone, 
1802,  '7;  Matthias  Stone,  1803,  '4,  '5,  '6, 
'9'  '32,  '33;  Enoch  Hoyt,  1803,  '4,  '5,  '50, 
'52,  'S3,  '54,  '68;  John  Damon,  1806,  '10, 
'II,  '12,  '13,  '15, '18,  '19, '20,  '39,  '40,  '49, 
'50,  '51  ;  John  W.  Dana,  1807,  '8,  '9,  '13, 
'16  to  '22,  '25  to  '32,  in  all   16  years  ;    Jo- 


seph Blanchard,  1808,^9;  Joseph  Coburn, 
1810;  Leonard  Orcutt,  1812,  '21  to  '31,  ''33 
to  ''27,  '43  to  '46,  18  years  in  all ;  John 
Stone,  1814, '16, '17;  David  Haines,  1815, 
'27,  '28,  '38  ;  Anthony  Perry,  1820;  Eben- 
ezer  Smith,  1823,  '39,  '41 ;  Nathan  Wheel- 
er, 1824;  Tristam  C.  Hoyt,  1829,  '31, 
'32;  Hugh  Wilson,  1830, '31, '42  ;  Caleb 
Fisher,  1832,  '41,  '42,  '43  to  '48,  '54,  62, 
'63,  II  years;  Jeremiah  Atkins,  1835,  '36, 
'40,^52,  '53;  William  Lance,  1835, '45; 
JohnA.  Adams,  1836,^37, '38  ;  Alpha  Web- 
ster, 1837,  '38,  '49;  Milton  Fisher,  1837, 
'59, '60;  Stephen  Hoyt,  1840,^58, '59  ;  Oli- 
ver C.  Warner,  1841  ;  Timothy  P.  Fuller, 
1842  ;  Daniel  Gould,  1846,  '47,  '53  ;  Jacob 
Way,  1846,  '47  '48  ;  M.  O.  Fisher,  1848,  '49, 
'52  ;  Jewett  Walbridge,  1848,  '56,  '57  ;  Jos. 
Lance,  1849;  Paul  Dean,  1850,  '51  ;  Geo. 
W.  Stone,  1851  ;  George  H.  Paige,  1854, 
'55;  M.  P.  Wallace,  1855,  '64,  ^66,  '67, 
'68,  '78,  '79,  '80;  Rufus  Adams,  1855; 
Allen  Perry,  1856,  '57;  John  Clark,  1858; 
Peter  Lyford,  1858;  Joseph  Hoyt,  i860, 
'61  ;  Robert  Lance,  i860;  S.  W.  Osgood, 
1861,  '63,  '65  ;  B.  F.  Scott,  1861,  '62,  '64; 
James  Atkins,  1862,  '63;  B.  W.  Marsh, 
1864;  John  H.  Damon,  1865  ;  N.  K.  Ab- 
bott, 1865;  C.  M.  Seabury,  1866;  Orson 
Kimball,  1866,  '69,  '70;  E.  D.Putnam, 
1867;  William  P.  Whittier,  1867,  '68,  '71, 
'74;  George  W.  Payne,  1869,  '70,  '72; 
Lucius  Herrick,  1870,  '71,  '72,  '75,  '76,  ^77, 
'78;  Roland  B.  Bruce,  1871  ;  N.  K.  Ab- 
bott, 1872,  '7;i;  E.  T.  Hopkins,  1873,  '74, 
76,  ^77  ;  C.  C.  Perry,  1873  ;  Roswell  Laird, 
1874,  '75,  '76,  '77;  S.  L.  Wiswall,  1878, 
'80 ;  George  L.  Paige,  1879  ;  George  Gould, 
1879,  '81;  Bemis  Pike,  1880;  Hiram 
Wells,  1881;  Charles  M.  Fisher,  i88r. 
In  1831,  five  selectmen  were  elected  and 
served. 

TOWN  TREASURERS. 

At  the  first  town  meeting  in  1788,  no 
treasurer  was  elected.  Major  Lyman  Hitch- 
cock, the  first  elected.  Mar.  9,  1789,  held 
the  office  to  Mar.  1792;  then  Lt.  Thomas 
Lyford  from  1782  to  '94 ;  Thomas  Osgood, 
1794  to  '95,  '97  to  1 82 1,  '22  to  '39 — 42 
years  ;  Jacob  Garland,  1795  to  '97  ;  Joseph 
Fisher,   1821  to    '22;   Marcus   O.    Fisher 


104 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


from  1839  to  '41  ;  Thomas  Osgood,  Jr., 
from  1841  to '48,  and  1850  to  '58;  Henry 
Russell,  from  1848  to  '50;  Allen  Perry, 
from  1858  to  '72,  from  ""jt,  to  '74;  John  A. 
Farrington,  from  1872  to  '73  ;  Milton  Fisher 
from  1874  to  the  present,  1S81. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

In  this  department  of  town  officers  the 
record  does  not  commence  until  1795. 
From  tradition  we  learn  Lieut.  Thomas 
Lyford  was  town  representative  in  1791, 
but  for  some  reason  did  not  attend  the 
Legislature.  Sept.  1792,  James  Morse, 
Esq.,  was  elected,  and  after  his  election, 
his  wife  spun  the  flax  and  made  the  cloth 
from  which  he  had  a  pair  of  new  "  trousers" 
to  wear  to  the  Legislature,  which  met  at 
Rutland,  Oct.  11.  The  day  before  he  was 
to  start,  he  killed  a  Iamb,  and  his  wife 
cooked  "  lunching"  to  last  him  through 
his  journey.  With  his  new  trousers  on, 
and  his  pack  on  his  shoulders,  he  made 
his  way  by  marked  trees  a  large  portion  of 
the  way  to  Rutland  and  back  on  foot.  The 
session  lasted  26  days.  It  is  said  he  was 
an  inveterate  smoker,  and  that  some  wag 
drew  his  picture  on  the  fence  with  his  pipe 
in  his  mouth  and  pack  on  his  back,  and 
over  it  in  large  letters,  "  Going  to  Rut- 
land ! "  It  being  put  on  with  red  chalk, 
remained  on  the  fence  for  a  number  of 
years. 

Sept.  1795,  the  inhabitants  were  notified 
to  bring  in  their  votes  at  the  school-house 
on  the  Hazen  road,  for  representative,  and 
also  for  governor,  lieut.  governor,  treasurer 
and  councillors. 

Samuel  Warner  was  elected  representa- 
tive, and  Thomas  Chittenden  had  18  votes 
for  governor ;  Isaac  Tichenor  had  5  ;  Paul 
Brigham  had  16  votes  for  lieut.  governor; 
Samuel  Mattocks  had  12  votes  for  treas- 
urer. Political  feeling  had  begun  to  spring 
up  in  town ;  5  persons  had  allied  them- 
selves with  the  Federal  party.  The  Leg- 
islature this  year  met  at  Windsor,  with  a 
session  of  20  days.  Samuel  Warner  was 
representative  in  1796,  '97  ;  Horace  Beards- 
ley,  1798-1800;  Joseph  Fisher,  1799-1801 
-'S-'9-'ii-''i2- 14;  John  W.  Dana,  1804- 
'7-'i8-'i9-'2o-'36;    Perley    Scott,     1806; 


John  Uamon,  1808,  '13;  David  Haines, 
i8is-''i6-'i7;  Enoch  Hoyt,  1821  ;  Jere- 
miah Babcock,  i822-''23- 24- 25-''26-'27- 
-'28-'29;  Anthony  Perry,  i829-'3o- 31  ; 
Nathan  Wheeler,  i832-''33-''34;  Oliver  A. 
Warner,  i835-'36;  Jeremiah  Atkins,  1837 
-'38  ;  Robert  Lance,  1839-40  ;  Alpha  Web- 
ster, 1841-42;  Salem  Goodenough,  1844; 
Allen  Perry,  1846-^47 ;  Thomas  Lyford, 
1848-49;  Daniel  Gould,  1850-51;  John 
McLean,  1.853-54;  Matthew  P.  Wallace, 
1855-56;  Benjamin  F.  Scott,  1857-58; 
Roswell  Farr,  1859-60;  Ouinton  Cook, 
1861-62  ;  Edwin  Fisher,  i863-''64 ;  Valorus 
W.  Hale,  i866-'68;  George  W.  Pame, 
i869;Theron  H.  Lance,  i87o-'72;  Na- 
thaniel K.  Abbott,  1874;  George  M.  Web- 
ster, 1876;  True  A.  Town,  1878;  George 
Gould,  1880. 

OVERSEERS   OF   THE   POOR. 

The  first  overseer  of  the  poor  elected 
was  Daniel  Smith,  in  1822;  in  '1824, 
"Voted  not  to  elect  an  overseer  of  the 
poor."  There  is  no  record  of  any  other 
election  till  1831,  when  John  Damon  was 
elected  to  s'd  office.  It  appears  from  the 
records  that  from  that  time  the  selectmen 
of  the  town  had  the  charge  of  the  poor 
until  1838,  when  Oliver  A.  Warner  was 
elected,  and  held  i  year.  Then  Ebenezer 
Smith  was  overseer  from  1839  to  '40;  Jer- 
emiah Atkins,  1840  to  '41  ;  Caleb  Fisher, 
'41  to  '42;  Marcus  O.  Fisher,  '42  to  '43; 
Erasmus  L.  Burnap,  '43  to  '44;  Jacob 
Way,  '44  to  '45  ;  Benjamin  F.  Scott,  '45  to 
'49  ;  selectmen,  '49  to  '50  ;  Milton  Fisher, 
'50  to  '56,  '60  to  '61 ,  '64  to  '65  ;  Jewett  Wal- 
bridge,  '56  to  '58 ;  George  Rogers,  '58  to 
'60 ;  Nathaniel  Coburn,  '61  to  '64;  Cor- 
nelius Smith,  '65  to  '66;  Anson  Coburn, 
'66  to  'Gj ;  Israel  Smith,  '67  to  '69;  Ros- 
well Laird,  '69  to  '70;  George  H.  Paige. 
'70  to  '72 ;  Thomas  Lyford,  '72  to  '73 ; 
Charles  M.  Fisher,  '73  to  '82.  Twenty-one 
persons  have  served  the  town  as  over- 
seers of  the  poor,  and  no  duty  devolves  on 
a  civilized  and  Christian  community  so 
sacred  and  imperative  as  the  proper  care 
and  support  of  those  who  cannot  take  care 
of  themselves. 


CABOT. 


105 


The  common  course  of  this  town  until 
1849  was  to  dispose  of  the  town's  poor  to 
those  who  would  agree  to  keep  them  for 
the  least  money,  and  by  this  means  tiiey 
too  often  fell  into  the  hands  of  unfit  per- 
sons, as  those  who  took  them  intended  to 
make  a  profit  out  of  it.  Awakened  to  a 
sense  of  the  impropriety,  not  to  say  the  in- 
humanity, of  such  a  course,  the  town  in 
1848  voted  to  elect  a  committee  to  pur- 
chase a  poor-farm  and  stock  for  it,  and  to 
use  so  much  of  the  surplus  fund  as  was 
necessary  for  such  a  purchase ;  Joseph 
Lance,  Jacob  Way,  Joseph  Hoyt,  were  the 
committee.  At  the  next  March  meeting 
the  committee  reported  they  had  pur- 
chased the  present  town  farm  for  $1310, 
stock,  tools,  etc.,  for  $637.89.  In  1855 
a  commodious  house  was  built.  The  town 
has  since  been  generally  fortunate  in  its 
agents  to  take  charge  of  the  farm.  It  is 
now  managed  by  John  Thomas  and  wife, 
who  spare  no  pains  for  the  comfort  of  the 
inmates.  As  a  general  thing  the  town  has 
been  very  fortunate,  too,  as  to  its  iiumber 
of  paupers ;  perhaps  as  much  so  as  any 
town  in  the  State.  We  have  at  present  6 
boarders  at  town  farm  ;  3  at  the  Insane 
Asylum  at  Brattleboro,  and  2  paupers  away 
from  the  farm. 

JUSTICES   OF   THE   PEACE. 

James  Morse,  the  first  justice  in  the 
town,  received  his  appointment  in  1792; 
Lyman  Hitchcock  was  the  next;  in  1795, 
Thomas  Osgood  ;  in  1796,  Samuel  Warner  ; 
and  from  this  time  the  number  increased, 
each  representative  thinking  he  must  ap- 
point a  good  share  of  his  constituents  until 
1823,  when  a  resolution  was  passed  by  the 
town  setting  forth  that  so  large  a  number 
tended  to  lessen  the  dignity  attachecf  to 
the  office,  and  as  a  consequence,  none  of 
them  would  fit  themselves  for  the  position 
as  they  should.  Therefore,  they  requested 
the  Legislature  not  to  appoint  more  than 
4  justices  for  the  town,  and  that  6  was 
enough  for  any  town.  For  a  few  years 
this  request  was  complied  with,  but  grad- 
ually we  began  to  return  to  the  old  custom, 
and  in  1840,  13  justices  were  appointed  by 
the  representative,  viz.  :  Leonard  Orcutt, 
Marcus  O.   Fisher,  Anthony  Perry,  John 


Damon,  Thomas  Osgood,  Jr.,  Alpha  Web- 
ster, Wm.  Hoit,  John  R.  Putnam,  Roswell 
Farr,  Jas.  M.  Harris,  Jerry  Atkins,  O.  A. 
Warner,  Joseph  Preston,  and  the  number 
some,  years  would  go  much  higher  than 
this,  even  as  high  as  25.  It  run  in  this 
way  until  1850,  when  the  number  was 
fixed  by  law  at  7  for  this  town,  when 
Thomas  Osgood,  Alpha  Webster,  M.  P. 
Wallace,  J.  R.  Putnam,  M.  O.  Fisher, 
Wm.  E.  Waldo,  John  A.  Adams,  were 
elected.  This  same  board  were  continued 
in  office  while  they  lived,  as  a  general 
thing.  When  there  was  a  vacancy,  a 
younger  man  was  elected  to  fill  the  place. 
M.  P.  Wallace  is  the  only  one  living  of 
the  first  board  elected  by  the  people.  The 
present  board,  1881,  are  M.  P.  Wallace, 
T.  H.  Lance,  J.  M.  Fisher,  N.  K.  Abbott, 
R.  B.  Bruce,  G.  W.  Paine,  Bemis  Pike. 

COUNTY   OFFICERS.  » 

Assistant  Judges  of  Caledonia  Cowity 
Court. — Hon.  John  W.  Dana;  Hon.  Mar- 
cus O.  Fisher,  1836  to  '39, 

High  Sheriff.— ]o&.  Preston,  1844,  '45. 

State  Senators. — Hon.  John  McLean, 
1849,  '5°;  Hon.  George  H.  Page,  1852  to 
'55  ;  Hon.  E.  D.  Putnam,  1858,  '59;  Hon. 
M.  P.  Wallace,  1864. 

State's  Attorney. — J.  P.  Lamson,  Esq., 
1866  to  '68. 

County  Commissioner. — J.  M.  Fisher, 
1875  to  ''T]. 

Population  by  Census. — 1791,  122; 
1800,  349;  1810,  886;  1820,  1032;  1830, 
1304;  1840,  1440;  1850,  1356;  i860,  1315; 
1870,  1279. 

3  suicides  in  town  ;  4  persons  drowned  ; 
no  murder. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Doloff  broke 
into  Dana's  store,  stole  a  gun,  a  bar  of 
iron  and  all  the  rum  he  could  drink  ;  got 
so  di-unk  he  could  not  get  away ;  he  was 
sent  to  prison  and  died  there. 

CABOT'S   bear   STORY. 

[From  a  sketch  of  the  olden  time  so 
choicely  written  we  would  be  better  pleased 
had  we  room  to  give  the  whole. — Ed.] 

Two  humble  log-cabins  in  the  heart  of 
the  great  wilderness  was  the  beginning  of 
the  town   of  Cabot;    for  miles   in   every 


14 


io6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


direction  there  were  no  signs  of  civiliza- 
tion ;  but  there  on  West  Hill,  where  David 
Lyford  and  his  neighbor  Blanchard  had 
builttheir  rude  dwellings.  Mr.  Blanchard"s 
family  was  himself,  his  wife  and  2  children, 
David  Lyford's,  himself  and  his  wife  Ju- 
dith. The  Lyford  and  Blanchard  cabins 
stood  not  more  than  30  rods  apart,  facing 
each  other,  on  opposite  sides  of  a  swamp, 
through  which  a  narrow  foot-path  led  from 
one  to  the  other.  At  the  end  of  each 
cabin,  partly  in  the  rear,  was  also  a  barn, 
built  of  logs. 

It  was  the  third  birth-day  of  this  settle- 
ment ;  each  had  cleared  away  several  acres 
from  around  his  buildings,  and  earned  suf- 
ficient for  the  subsistence  of  his  family. 
Both  had  been  fortunate  and  had  suffered 
no  losses  but  some  slight  damage  to  their 
crops  of  corn  by  the  bears.  The  men 
oft^n  saw  them  in  the  woods,  and  it  was 
no  uncommon  experience  for  the  two  to 
go  out  hunting  in  company,  and  return  in 
an  hour  with  a  dead  bear  slung  between 
them,  and  fresh  bear-tracks  would  be  seen 
every  morning  at  some  seasons  of  the  year 
about  the  house  and  barn.  But  our  men 
were  inured  to  peril  and  toil  by  early  train- 
ing ;  and  their  wives  were  not  a  whit  infe- 
rior to  them. 

One  drizzly  day  in  August,  just  after 
David  Lyford  and  his  wife  had  finished 
their  dinner  of  hasty-pudding  and  milk, 
Mrs.  Lyford  laid  her  wooden  spoon  back 
into  the  squash-shell  bowl,  and  said  : 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  this  after- 
noon, David  ?" 

"  I  was  thinking  of  going  to  work  in  the 
burnt  piece." 

"It's  too  wet  for  that;  why  not  break 
the  flax?  I  will  hatchel  it,  and  then  I  can 
go  on  with  my  spinning. 

"  Well,  perhaps  that  is  best.  These  old 
clothes  are  almost  gone,  and  I  must  have 
some  new  ones  ;"  and  David  rose  from  the 
table  and  went  out. 

His  wife  cleared  away  the  dishes,  and 
was  soon  ready.  It  was  last  year's  flax ; 
had  been  ' '  rotted  "  during  the  winter  and 
spring,  gathered  up,  tied  in  bundles  and 
laid  away  in  the  barn  till  David  could  find 
time  to  break  it. 


David  went  to  the  barn  to  "  unlumber" 
his  flax-break.     The  sun  came  out ;  so  he  ' 
carried  the  "  break  "  to  the  corner  of  the 
house,  and  brought  a  bundle  of  flax  from 
the  barn. 

The  "  break"  was  a  sort  of  wooden  mal- 
let, on  a  long  wooden  frame,  or  "  horse." 
The  long,  thin,  parallel  handles  of  the 
mallet  were  pivoted  into  the  end  of  the 
frame,  and  when  the  machine  was  at  rest, 
these  blade-like  "  handles"  lay  lapped  be- 
tween other  blades,  which  were  set  edge 
upward  firmly  along  the  top  of  the  frame. 
When  the  machine  was  at  work,  the  two 
sets  of  wooden  blades  played  upon  each 
other  with  every  lift  and  fall  of  the  mallet, 
very  much  like  the  opposite  edges  of  a 
pair  of  very  large  and  very  dull  shears. 
Every  stalk  of  flax  that  was  caught  be- 
tween, had  its  back  effectually  broken,  and 
was  rendered  very  limp  and  soft. 

Taking  a  wisp  of  flax  in  his  left  hand, 
the  farmer  thrust  it  into  the  break,  and 
with  his  right,  brought  down  the  mallet 
with  heavy  thumps.  By  the  time  his  wife 
had  brought  the  hatchel  from  neighbor 
Blanchard's,  David  had  cjuite  a  pile  of 
broken  flax.  David  fastened  the  hatchel 
on  a  stump,  within  a  few  feet  of  where  he 
was  at  work,  and  Judith,  seizing  a  quantity 
of  broken  flax,  laid  it  over  the  end  of  an 
upright  board,  and  with  a  long  wooden 
knife  ot  swingle,  beat  the  fibers,  to  clear 
away  the  greater  part  of  the  bark  and 
"  sliver,"  and  the  swingling  finished,  she 
began  to  hatchel  the  flax.  Holding  a  hand- 
ful firmly  by  one  end,  raising  and  striking 
the  other  end  down  on  the  long,  glittering 
teeth  of  the  hatchel,  drawing  the  flax 
towards  her,  to  comb  out  the  rest  of  the 
woody  particles,  leaving  only  the  soft, 
yellow-tinted  flax  ready  for  tlie  spinning- 
wheel. 

I  can  fancy  just  how  the  worthy  couple 
looked,  in  their  old-time  habiliments,  as 
they  stood  there  bare-headed,  in  front  of 
their  cottage  of  logs — he  plying  the  break 
with  steady  stroke ;  she  striking  the  flax 
down,  and  drawing  it  througli  the  long 
teeth  of  the  hatchel,  preparing  the  raw 
linen  for  the  wheel  and  loom.  Hour  after 
hour  they  continued  their  work,  as  cheer- 


CABOT. 


107 


fully  as  if  theirs  was  the  happiest  lot  in 
the  world.  Suddenly  David  spoke  out, 
"  Harlv  !  what  is  that  ? " 

"  I  did  not  hear  anything  ;  what  did  you 
think  you  heard  ?  " 

"  I  thought  I  heard  a  bear  right  here  in 
the  swamp,"  said  he,  pointing  down  the 
path  that  lead  to  Blanchard''s. 

"I  guess  not,"  replied  his  wife,  after 
they  had  listened  a  minute  or  two  and 
heard  nothing.  "I  don't  think  a  bear 
would  come  so  near  in  the  daytime." 
"Well,  perhaps  I  was  mistaken,"  replied 
David ;  and  the  two  went  on  with  their 
work. 

More  than  half  the  afternoon  was  gone 
when  they  finished  the  flax.  Mrs.  Lyford 
carried  it  into  the  house  and  laid  it  away 
until  she  could  spin  it,  and  leaving  the 
plank-door  of  the  house  wide  open  went 
out  where  David  was.  "  While  you  are 
putting  the  breaks  away,"  she  said,  "  I  will 
carry  the  hatchel  home ;"  and  started 
across  the  swamp,  singing  as  she  went. 

Mrs.  Lyrord  was  a  strjong,  and  very  ac- 
tive woman,  and  always  in  good  spirits. 
As  soon  as  she  returned  the  hatchel  she 
turned  back  through  the  swamp  home. 
The  swamp  was  really  a  bit  of  forest ; 
large  trees  and  the  bushes  on  either  side 
of  the  narrow  foot-path  were  very  thick. 
About  half  way  home,  passing  a  short 
bend  in  the  path,  she  found  herself  within 
arm's  length  of  a  cub-bear,  weighing  per- 
haps 15  or  20  pounds.  At  the  same  mo- 
ment, through  the  bushes,  she  caught  a 
glimpse  of  the  old  bear  and  another  cub 
not  3  rods  distant. 

Most  women  would  have  run,  but  the 
sight  of  a  bear,  or  even  two  bears,  more 
or  less,  had  no  such  effect  upon  Jndith 
Lyford.  Not  in  the  least  intimidated,  and 
obeying  a  kind  of  defiant  impulse,  she 
snatched  up  the  cub  by  the  hmd  legs  and 
run.  The  cub  squealed,  and  began  to 
scratch  and  bite  so  vigorously,  she  swung 
him  into  her  stout  tow  apron  ;  but  without 
stopping,  gathered  both  arms  around  him, 
and  kept  on  at  her  utmost  speed.  She 
heard  the  old  bear  crashing  through  the 
bushes  behind  her,  and  knew  unless  she 
dropped  the  cub,  she  would  have  to  run 


a  desperate  race,  but  had  no  intention 
of  giving  up  her  game.  The  same  impulse 
that  had  impelled  her  to  seize  the  cub,  im- 
pelled her  to  keep  it ;  and  keep  it  she  did. 
With  almost  superhuman  speed  she  dashed 
along  the  path,  conscious  the  furious  beast 
behind  was  gaining  on  her  every  leap. 
She  reached  the  house,  darting  through 
the  open  doorway,  flung  the  cub  from  her 
arms,  swung  the  plank  door  to,  and  drop- 
ped the  leverwood  bar  into  its  socket, 
none  too  soon.  Scarcely  was  the  bar  in 
place,  when  the  enraged  mother-bear  threw 
her  great  weight  against  the  door  outside. 
But  the  door  had  been  made  for  such  an 
emergency,- and  stood  as  a  rock  against  all 
the  brute's  efforts. 

The  cub,  as  soon  as  his  captor  dropped 
him,  darted  into  a  corner  of  the  room, 
where  he  kept  up  his  cries,  rendering  the 
old  bear  more  frantic  every  moment. 

David  had  just  put  away  his  flax-break, 
and  was  coming  out  of  the  barn,  when  his 
wife  approached  the  house,  running  her 
singular  race.  I  imagine  his  astonishment 
as  he  caught  a  glimpse  of  her  darting  in  at 
the  door,  with  a  fully-grown  bear  not  a 
rod  behind  her. 

Dropping  the  pitch-fork  in  his  hand,  he 
ran  to  the  window  behind  the  house. 
Quick  though  he  was,  Judith  was  there  be- 
fore him,  ready  to  pass  the  gun,  always 
loaded  for  instant  use.  A  moment  later 
David  was  at  the  front  corner  of  the  house. 
The  bear  was  so  frantic  to  break  through 
the  door  and  reach  her  cub,  she  did  not 
see  David  ;  one  well-directed  shot  laid  her 
dead.  The  whole  affair  was  over  in  scarcely 
five  minutes  between  Judith's  capture  of 
the  cub  and  David's  shot  that  killed  its 
dam  at  the  door. 

The  cub  in  the  house  soon  shared  the 
same  fate,  and  David  went  to  the  swamp 
to  find  the  other,  but  that  had  taken  alarm 
and  escaped. 

Mrs.  Lyford  lived  many  years  afterward 
in  the  same  neighborhood,  long  enough 
not  only  to  see  the  wilderness  disappear, 
but  to  raise  a  large  family  of  children,  to 
whom  she  often  related  her  droll  but  dan- 
gerous adventure.     The  above  particulars 


io8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


were  furnished  me  by  one  of  her  sons,  who 
still  lives  in  St.  Johnsbury. 

David  Lyford  lived  where  Daniel  Kim- 
ball now  lives,  and  Blanchard  where  Caleb 
Noyes  lives ;  the  swamp  spoken  of  is  the 
low  land  between  the  two  places.  Mrs. 
Lyford  was  the  mother  of  the  late  Mrs. 
Stephen  Hoyt. 

TEMPERANCE   SOCIETIES. 

The  first  temperance  societv  was  organ- 
ized in  1826,  through  the  efforts  of  Rev. 
Henry  Jones.  It  was  rather  conservative 
in  its  regulations  and  requirements  of  its 
members.  Perhaps  whisky  having  been 
used  so  long  as  a  common  beverage,  it  was 
thought  best  not  to  break  off  too  short  on 
the  start;  not  to  stop  too  sudden,  as  the 
reaction  might  be  hurtful. 

It  was  not  a  total  abstinence  society,  but 
simply  required  of  its  members  to  keep  an 
account  of  the  number  of  times  they  drank 
during  the  month,  and  report  at  the  next 
monthly  meeting.  This  society  kept  up 
its  organization  5  years. 

In  1 83 1  a  total  abstinence  society  was 
organized.  No  records  of  this  society  are 
to  be  found. 

In  1842,  Feb.  16,  a  society  was  formed 
at  Lower  Cabot,  of  which  a  record  was 
kept:  Benj.  F.  Scott,  president ;  James 
M.  Harris,  vice  president ;  John  McLean, 
secretary;  M.  P.  Wallace,  Eben  Smith, 
Jr.,  A.  T.  Gibson,  committee.  The  pledge 
was  iron  clad,  guarded  at  every  point,  and 
it  took  a  wide  scope,  and  persons  signed 
the  pledge  from  every  part  of  the  town. 
Meetings  were  held  in  nearly  every  school- 
house  in  town,  and  the  records  show  they 
were  very  interesting;  membership,  196; 
and  yet,  after  a  few  months  it  appears  to 
have  lost  somewhat  of  its  salt ;  towards 
the  last  record  the  secretary  closes  up  with 
the  doleful  exclamation,  "  Meeting  thinly 
attended.  Alas,  poor  Yorick!  alas!  Are 
the  people  all  drunk  ?  " 

Since  this  there  have  been  different  tem- 
perance organizations  in  town,  but  at 
present  the  work  is  prin'cipally  looked 
after  by  the  Good  Templars,  of  which  we 
have  a  full  history,  written  by  one  of  the 
members. 


THE   GOOD   templars'   LODGE 

was  organized  in  Cabot,  Aug.  1864,  with 
Rev.  S.  F.  Drew,  pastor  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church,  as  its  presiding  officer,  and 
19  charter  members  ;  first  officers  :  S.  F. 
Drew,  W.  C.  T. ;  Mrs.  Edwin  Fisher, 
W.  V.  T. ;  Wm.  Atkins,  W.  S.  ;  Miss 
Lucy  Ray,  W.  A.  S. ;  Wm.  Gould ;  W.  F. 
S. ;  Mrs.  O.  L.  Hoyt,  W.  A.  M.  ;  Moses. 
Haines,  W.  C. ;  Miss  Olive  Stone,  W.  I. 
G. ;  R.  A.  G^nn,  W.  O.  G. ;  Miss  Abbie 
Hoyt,  W.  R.  H.  S. ;  Miss  Levina  Gould, 
W.  L.  H.  S.;  O.  L.  Hoyt,  P.  W.  C. 
T. ;  William  Atkins,  L.  D.  The  other 
first  members  were  F.  G.  Hoyt,  Allen 
Walbridge,  N.  J.  Mason  and  George  Dow. 
The  first  3  meetings  were  held  at  the  vil- 
lage hall ;  the  next  6  with  Mrs.  Roxana 
Hoyt,  at  the  Lower  village ;  then  the  Ma- 
sonic hall  was  rented  2  years,  and  after, 
the  hall  of  Mr.  John  Brown  for  5  years, 
which  is  still  used. 

In  1866,  the  Lodge  chamber  was  hand- 
somely fitted  up,  and  furnished  with  a 
good  organ,  and  everything  spoke  a  deep 
interest  in  the  temperance  work.  Among 
those  who  early  interested  themselves  in 
this  work  were  the  families  of  Rev.  S.  F. 
Drew,  Wm.  Atkins,  Dea.  Hoyt,  Cornelius 
Smith,  Rev.  Alson  Scott,  Edwin  Fisher, 
B.  W.  Mansh,  O.  L.  Hoyt,  Geo.  Gould, 
Chester  Walker,  Wm.  Abbott,  J.  W.  Far- 
rington  and  wife.  Dr.  L.  S,  Wiswall,  Henry 
and  Isaac  Hills,  Dea.  Edward  Haines, 
Luke  and  Ira  Fisher,  Wm.  Fletcher,  Rev. 
P.  N.  Granger,  Mrs.  Allen  Perry,  Mrs. 
Enoch  Putnam,  Mrs.  Swan,  many  of 
the  members  of  the  families  of  Horace 
Haines,  Dea.  N.  K.  Abbott,  Daniel  Gould, 
Frederick  McDuffee,  etc.,  besides  many 
other  families  and  individuals  in  town  and 
in  the  surrounding  towns,  and  special 
mention  should  be  made  of  the  untiring 
zeal  of  Wm.  Gould,  who  went  out  from 
us;  entered  the  "legal  profession";  now 
resides  in  California  ;  for  his  name  not  only 
stands  high  among  the  members  of  the 
"  bar,"  but  he  has  done,  and  is  yet  doing, 
a  good  work  in  the  temperance  reform  in 
that  State.  His  wife  is  also  Right  Worthy 
Grand  Vice  Templar  of  the  world. 


CABOT. 


109 


Only  27  deaths  have  occurred  during 
these  17  years,  strengthening  the  old 
adage,  "cold  water  brings  health  as  well 
as  wealth." 

At  the  decease  of  Ira  Fisher,  he  left  the 
Lodge  $400,  the  interest  of  which  was  to 
be  used  by  them  as  long  as  they  held  their 
charter  ;  but  should  they  at  any  time  sur- 
render this,  the  fund  should  go  to  the 
Congregational  church  of  this  place,  of 
which  he  was  a  constant  attendant. 

The  old  members  went,  and  new  ones 
came  in  to  take  their  places.  None  of  the 
charter  members  are  left  now,  '81,  but  the 
Lodge  exists,  and  has  never  failed  to  hold 
its  meetings  regularly  every  week.  The 
present  olificers  are  :  Rev.  R.  Sanderson, 
W.  C.  T. ;  Mrs.  Hiram  Wells,  W.  V.  T. ; 
Miss  Sadie  Willie,  W.  S. ;  Miss  Mattie 
Haines,  W.  A.  S.  ;  Murtin  Wells,  W.  F. 
S.  ;  Miss  Minnie  Haines,  W.  T. ;  Hermon 
Rogers,  W.  M. ;  Miss  Belle  Paquin,  W. 
D.  M.;  Henry  Hills,  W.  C. ;  Miss  Etta 
Gerry,  W.  I.  G. ;  Wavie  Town,  W.  O.  G. 
Mrs.  Henry  Hills,  W.  R.  H.  S. ;  Mrs.  Wm. 
Buchanan,  W.  L.  H.  S. ;  Mrs.  P.  Gurney, 
P.  W.  C.  T. ;  Henry  Hills,  L.  D.  We 
know  much  good  is  being  done  by  this  or- 
ganization throughout  the  world,  and  we 
believe  otir  Lodge  has  done  its  part  in  the 
great  work. 

NATHANIEL    WEBSTER. 

Quite  a  lengthy  and  very  interesting 
genealogical  local  record  of  this  venerable 
pioneer  and  family  has  been  received  from 
Hon.  Charles  C.  Webster  of  Redwing, 
Minn.,  his  grandson,  and  a  former  resi- 
dent of  this  town,  which  we  regret  we 
have  not  space  to  publish  ;  but  will  make 
some  extract  from  it.  Mention  has  been 
made  of  Mr.  W.  in  the  former  part  of 
these  papers. 

He  was  born  1753,  in  ©Id  Chester,  N. 
H.  Served  several  years  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary army  and  was  a  pensioner  at  the 
time  of  his  death.  He  was  married  to 
Mehitable  Smith  of  Holderne.ss,  N.  H. 
At  the  close  of  the  war,  they  removed  to 
Newbury,  Vt.,  where  they  resided  a  few 
years,  and  in  1784,  came  to  the  Plain, 
where   his   father  had   purchased   quite  a 


tract  of  land,  and  began  as  before  stated. 
In  March,  he  made  preparation  for  his  50- 
mile  journey  into  the  wilderness.  It  took 
but  a  short  time — his  effects  were  few  ;  his 
vehicle  for  travel  a  hand-sled  ;  they  had  5 
children,  upon  the  back-end  of  this  sled  ; 
he  extemporized  a  cover  and  beneath  it  he 
placed  two  of  his  children  too  young  to 
travel  on  foot.  Abel,  a  lad  9  years  of  age, 
had  to  assist  his  father  in  propelling  the 
sled,  which  he  did  with  a  pointed  stick, 
pushing  behind,  while  Lydia,  a  little  girl, 
traveled  along  with  her  mother  on  foot, 
who  carried  her  youngest  child,  an  infant, 
in  her  arms.  In  this  way  did  the  young 
father  and  his  wife  pursue  their  way  to  the 
distant  forest  settlement.  They  arrived 
safely  and  found  shelter  under  the  roof  of 
Benjamin  Webster,  at  first,  who  had  set- 
tled here  a  year  previous.  Nathaniel  com- 
menced clearing  and  got  his  cabin  ready 
in  the  fall.  In  due  course  of  time,  7  chil- 
dren were  added  to  their  household,  mak- 
ing 12  in  all.  Alpha,  (the  father  of  Charles 
C.,)  was  the  youngest,  who  was  a  long 
time  a  resident  of  this  town,  and  removed 
to  Minneapolis,  Minn.,  in  1868,  to  reside 
near  his  children  who  had  settled  there. 
He  died  September,  1874,  aged  75  years. 
Mrs.  Vance,  who  formerly  lived  in  this 
town,  but  now  in  Boston,  aged  90 
years,  is  the  only  surviving  child  of  this 
large  family.  Nathaniel  Webster  always 
lived  on  the  same  farm  where  he  com- 
menced in  town.  He  died  in  1836,  aged 
83.  His  wife  survived  him  many  years, 
retaining  her  faculties  to  a  wonderful  de- 
gree. She  died  about  1858,  aged  99  years, 
and  from  her  the  year  before  her  death, 
the  writer  of  this  history  got  many  items 
which  have  been  of  great  benefit  in  com- 
piling the  history  of  the  town. 

LIEUT.    FIFIELD   LYFORD 

was  born  in  Exeter,  N.  H.,  1763.  At  the 
age  of  13  he  entered  the  army  of  the  Rev- 
olution as  a  servant  to  his  father,  Lieut. 
Thomas  Lyford,  and  served  with  him  one 
year  at  Ticonderoga.  He  left  his  father 
and  went  to  West  Point,  and  served  as  one 
of  the  life-guard  of  Gen.  Arnold  till  he 
proved  a  traitor  to  his  country,  and  after 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


that  he  remained  in  the  army  till  the  close 
of  the  Revolution.  While  with  Arnold, 
he  saw  him  beat  a  sick  soldier  over  the 
head  and  shoulders  with  his  cane  with  such 
severity  as  to  break  it.  Arnold  then  threw 
the  pieces  into  the  ditch.  Lyford  secured 
the  head  of  the  eane,  and  used  it  on  his  own 
staff  as  long  as  he  lived.  The  cane  is  now 
in  the  possession  of  his  daughter,  Celinda 
Lyford,  at  Lower  Cabot.  He  served  as  a 
lieutenant  in  the  war  of  1812  ;  was  honor- 
ably discharged,  and  received  a  pension 
during  his  life.  He  married  and  came  to 
this  town  in  1788,  and  settled  on  the  farm 
where  Wm.  Barr  now  lives,  and  built 
there  the  first  framed  barn  in  town ;  he 
died  in  this  town,  at  the  residence  of  his 
son-in-law,  T.  E.  Wilson,  April  18,  1846, 
aged  79  years. 

DR.    PARLEY   SCOTT, 

born  in  Worcester  County,  Mass.,  July, 
1765;  pursued  an  academical  course  at 
Leicester  Academy,  read  medicine  in  the 
same  town ;  married  Lydia  Day  about 
1790,  and  moved  to  Craftsbury  Common, 
where  he  commenced  the  practice  of  med- 
icine. He  came  to  Cabot  Plain  in  1794, 
and  in  1804,  to  the  village,  and  continued 
the  practice  of  his  profession.  8  children 
were  born  to  them  ;  but  one  of  this  large 
family  is  now  living,  George  W.  Scott, 
Esq.,  of  Montpelier.  Dr.  Scott  practiced 
his  profession  more  than  50  years  in  this 
and  adjoining  towns  successfully,  answer- 
ing all  calls  alike  to  rich  and  poor.  During 
all  his  long  practice  his  rides  were  on 
horse-back ;  but  he  was  never  too  much 
exhausted  to  answer  a  call.  He  died  in 
1850,  aged  84  years;  his  wife  died  before 
him,  aged  83. 

JOSEPH   FISHER,    ESQ., 

was  born  at  Dedham,  Mass.,  1767.  He 
was  a  lad  when  the  British  occupied 
Boston,  and  remembered  distinctly  the 
battle  of  Bunker  Hill.  When  he  arrived 
at  his  majority  he  came  to  Claremont, 
N.  IL,  and  married  Sarah  O.sgood,  and 
came  to  this  town  and  commenced  on  the 
farm  now  owned  and  occupied  by  his 
grand-son,  Luke  C.  Fisher.  He  built  his 
.  first  cabin  on  the  site  of  the  present  house. 


The  first  night  they  stayed  in  their  new 
residence  the  snow  blew  'down  the  large 
stone  chimney  so  that  in  the  morning  it 
was  6  inches  deep  between  their  bunk  and 
the  fireplace.  To  them  were  born  4  sons 
and  3  daughters,  all  of  whom,  but  one, 
lived  to  advanced  age,  and  two  of  whom 
now  survive — Caleb,  81  years  old  ;  Milton, 
74  years  old  ;  and  they  have  always  lived 
in  town,  enjoying  the  confidence  of  their 
townsmen,  as  the  numerous ,  offices  to 
which  they  have  been  called  to  fill  testify. 
Joseph  Fisher  was  a  public-spirited  man, 
and  held  many  offices,  as  will  be  seen  by 
the  tables  of  town  officers  in  this  pajjer. 
He  died  in  1853,  aged  87  years.  His  wife 
preceded  him  in  1839,  aged  70  years. 

ELIHU   COBURN, 

BY  HON.  JOSEPH   POLAND, 

was  born  at  Charlton,  Mass.,  1773;  .son 
of  Clement  Coburn  and  Dorothy  Ed- 
wards, of  Oxford,  Mass.  His  early  educa- 
tion was  confined  to  a  few  months'  attend- 
ance at  the  common  school,  but  his  nat- 
ural ability  enabled  him  in  a  great  measure 
to  surmount  the  defect,  and  become  a 
man  whose  judgment  and  practical  knowl- 
edge were  thoroughly  relied  upon  by  his 
townsmen. 

In  the  summer  of  1799,  he  came  on 
horseback  to  Vermont.  Passing  through 
the  forest,  he  reached  a  pretty  valley 
among  the  hills,  through  which  a  little 
stream  noiselessly  found'  its  way.  This 
spot  he  at  once  decided  upon  as  his  future 
home,  and  clearing  here  a  small  space,  he 
erected  a  frame  house,  one  of  the  first  in 
the  town.  He  remained  until  winter, 
when  he  returned  to  Massachusetts  for  his 
bride.  He  married  Abigail  Putnam,  daugh- 
ter of  Gideon  Putnam,  of  Sutton,  Mass., 
and  in  the  middle  of  January  the  newly- 
wedded  pair  found  their  way  through  the 
forest  by  marked  trees  to  the  spot  which 
v.'as  to  become  their  home  and  the  home 
of  their  descendants.  Six  miles  south  lived 
their  nearest  neighbor  in  that  direction, 
while  Deacon  Stone  had  erected  a  saw- 
mill and  log  cabin  at  what  is  now  known 
as  Lower  Cabot.     Mr.  C.   rapidly  cleared 


CABOT. 


Ill 


his  land,  and  converted  the  wilderness 
tract  around  him  into  verdant  meadows. 
Four  years  after  his  arrival  his  parents  fol- 
lowed him  to  Vermont,  and  a  few  years 
later  her  aged  father  and  mother  also  came 
to  them,  notwithstanding  their  former  ob- 
jections to  their  daughter's  leaving  them 
to  go  into  the  wilderness,  to  be  massacred 
by  Indians,  or  devoured  by  wild  beasts. 
Here  they  lived  until  one  by  one  the  aged 
parents  laid  down  the  burden  of  life,  their 
pathway  down  "  the  Valley"  smoothed  by 
the  loving  care  of  the  children  whom  they 
had  sought  in  their  wilderness  home. 
About  30  years  they  kept  a'public  house, 
known  far  and  wide  as  "  Farmer's  Tavern," 
and  most  of  the  town  business  was  trans- 
acted here. 

As  a  man  there  were  few  more  respected, 
or  indeed  beloved,  among  his  townsmen. 
He  was  noted  for  hospitality  and  great- 
hearted generosity,  and  whatever  project 
he  undertook,  was  pursued  until  accom- 
plished. He  was  an  excellent  friend,  hus- 
band and  father,  and  died  at  three-score 
and  ten,  regretted.  His  wife  survived 
him  about  6  years  ;  an  amiable  woman,  of 
great  energy  and  endurance,  It  was  a 
strange  coincidence,  both  died,  apparently 
in  perfect  health,  instantly,  and  without  a 
struggle.  Eight  children  were  born  to  them  : 
Harriet,  in  1801  ;  married  James  Atkins  in 
1823;  died  in  1827.  Ruth,  in  1803;  mar- 
ried Dr.  Dyer  Bill,  of  Albany,  Vt. ;  died 
in  1880;  left  5  sons.  Hiram,  in  1805; 
married  Ruth  Osgood,  who  died  a  few 
years  after.  He  still  lives  upon  the  old 
homestead.  Louisa,  1807  ;  married  Hon. 
Robert  Harvey,  of  Barnet ;  died  in  1867; 
4  children.  Lewis,  i8og;  died  in  1818. 
Frances  Caroline,  1812;  married  ist, 
James  K.  Harvey,  merchant,  of  Barnet. 
After  his  death,  she  married  Dr.  C.  B. 
Chandler,  then  of  Tunbridge,  but  after- 
wards of  Montpelier.  She  died  in  1874; 
a  daughter  survives  her.  Elihu  F.,  born 
in  1815,  resides  on  the  old  homestead; 
married,  1855,  Amelia  Walker,  of  Sher- 
brooke,  P.  O. ;  3  children  by  this  mar- 
riage;  by  a  later,  2  sons.  Abigail,  18 17, 
ma:ried  Maj.  Quinton  Cook,  of  Cabot. 
They  have  one  daughter  living. 


COL.    JOHN  STONE, 

born  at  Claremont,  N.  H.,  Jan.  15,  1775, 
came  to  Cabot  in  1797,  and  began  clear- 
ing up  a  farm  on  the  groimd  now  occupied 
by  the  Lower  Village  Cemetery ;  then  an 
unbroken  wood  from  Cabot  to  Marshfield. 
He  married  in  1803,  Betsey  Huntoon,  of 
Kingston,  N.  H.  To  them  were  born  7 
sons  and  3  daughters  ;  four  of  the  sons  are 
Congregational  ministers.  [See  list  of  na- 
tive ministers.]  In  the  military,  Col.  S. 
rose  from  a  private  to  Colonel  of  the  ist 
regiment,  3d  brigade  4th  division  of  the 
Vt.  militia  of  the  State,  and  was  said  to 
be  one  of  the  f3est  commanders  of  the  bri- 
gade. He  died  Feb.  20,  1856;  his  wife, 
Feb.  22.  Both  were  buried  in  the  same 
grave,  on  the  spot  where  he  first  com- 
menced clearing  their  farm. 

HON.    JOHN   W.    DANA. 

BY   IIO.V.   ().   F.   DANA. 

John  W.  Dana  was  born  at  Pomfret, 
Vt.,  1777,  and  son  of  John  W.  Dana  and 
Hannah,  daughter  of  Maj.  Gen.  Israel 
Putnam  of  Revolutionary  fame.  His  early 
education  was  a  few  weeks'  attendance  at 
the  common  school ;  but  his  social  stand- 
ing and  natural  parts  were  such  as  to  ena- 
ble him  to  obtain  in  marriage  the  accom- 
plished daughter  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Damon 
of  Woodstock.  The  newly  wedded  pair 
traveled  northward  in  the  spring  of  1802, 
on  horseback,  following  the  Hazen  road, 
hewn  through  the  forests  for  military  pur- 
poses, until  they  reached  a  wooded  sum- 
mit which  took  the  name  of  the  Plain. 
Here  a  small  settlement  was  gathered,  in- 
cluding the  doctor,  the  blacksmith  and  the 
trader.  Here  our  young  travelers  paused, 
charmed  with  the  location.  It  was  a  lovely 
spot  then,  just  a  few  acres  shorn  of  the 
heavy  trees  that  swept  like  the  waves  of 
a  broad  sea,  elsewhere,  for  miles  around, 
above  and  below.  Upon  the  shorn  spot 
the  sun  came  down,  the  heavy  mantle  of 
forest  sheltered  it  from  the  wind.  They 
had  not  found  a  place  on  their  journey 
they  liked  so  much,  and  here  they  deter- 
mined to  make  their  home — probably  for 
the  remainder  of  life.  Hopefully  and 
heartily  tliey  commenced  in  this  mountain 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


home.  For  a  time  all  went  satisfactorily. 
It  wa.s  all  well  at  first,  but  as  the  forests 
were  cut  away,  it  soon  became  manifest 
that  this  cool,  wind-swept  summit  must  be 
abandoned  as  a  winter  residence,  and  so 
reluctantly,  but  one  by  one,  the  little  com- 
munity dropped  down  into  the  security  of 
what  became  known  as  Cabot  Village. 

At  the  present  day  the  view  from  the 
abandoned  and  silent  Plain  is  very  im- 
pressive, and  one  of  exceeding  loveliness, 
commanding  as  it  does  both  the  White 
and  the  Green  Mountain  ranges.  It  is  safe 
to  say,  that  nowhere  in  all  New  England 
is  there  a  more  beautiful  panorama  spread 
before  the  enraptured  eye. 

The  spot  selected  by  Mr.  Dana  for  his 
next  residence  was  in  a  valley  sheltered 
from  winds  by  hills  and  forests  and  cooled 
by  a  rapid  mountain  torrent,  whose  waters, 
briefly  arrested,  spread  out  for  a  moment 
peacefully  before  his  door,  aud  then 
plunged  over  a  fall,  whose  ceaseless  mur- 
mur swayed  with  every  breeze. 

Here  he  passed  the  principal  years  of 
his  life.  He  had  a  cheerful  and  active 
temperament,  and  was  generous  of  himself 
in  endeavors  to  promote  the  public  welfare. 
Eighty  years  ago  Cabot  was  well  nigh  one 
continuous  wilderness.  The  first  adven- 
turous settlers  brought  little  more  than 
stout  hearts  and  a  sharp  axe.  Little  clear- 
ings were  to  be  made,  rude  houses  con- 
structed, roads  and  bridges  built,  and, 
withal,  the  church  and  the  school  must  be 
kept  going.  There  was  plenty  to  do  to 
keep  one  active,  enough  attainable  to  keep 
one  hopeful.  The  inhabitants  of  the  pres- 
ent day  can  scarcely  realize  what  an  intense 
community  of  interest  bound  together 
these  early  settlers,  and  how  they  worked 
together  and  gave  the  friendly  grasp  in 
mutual  encouragement.  It  fell  to  Mr. 
Dana's  part  to  become  in  some  measure 
the  medium  of  exchange  in  supplying  the 
wants  of  life.  He  made  long  and  tedious 
journeys  to  Boston,  to  bring  back  mer- 
chandise, and,  as  few  had  money,  he  re- 
ceived in  exchange  for  his  goods  whatever 
the  settlers  could  best  spare.  This  led, 
in  time,  and  as  matters  grew  more  pros- 
perous, to  the  collection  by  him  of  large  1 


herds  of  cattle  which  were  driven  to  mar- 
ket :  in  those  days  a  great  event.  He  con- 
tented himself  with  moderate  gains,  and 
though  his  opportunities  were  favorable  he 
he  did  not  seek  unduly  to  amass  wealth. 
These  frequent  journeyings,  and  his  keen 
interest  in  the  public  welfare,  kept  him 
abreast  of  the  times  and,  without  his  seek- 
ing it,  he  fell  naturally  into  the  position 
of  a  foremost  man.  His  advice  and  as- 
sistance were  frequently  sought  and  his 
counsels  were  respected.  He  loved  his 
townsmen  and  took  delight  in  their  grow- 
ing prosperity  and  advancement.  He 
donated  lands  to  beautify  the  village.  He 
loved  and  observed  nature  and  took  pleas- 
ure in  his  surroundings.  He  reflected 
much  upon  the  deep  mysteries  of  existence 
and  was  fond  of  rational  discourse  ;  but, 
if  this  was  in  a  degree  characteristic  of 
Mr.  Dana,  it  was  far  more  so  of  his  wife : 
a  lady  deeply  imbued  with  spiritual  aspi- 
rations and  an  abidiug  sense  of  the  beauty 
of  holiness.  While  her  husband  some- 
times allowed  himself  to  question  and 
speculate  upon  religious  dogmas,  she  had 
no  doubts  herself  and  was  impatient  of 
them  in  others.  She  held  herself  solemnly 
charged  with  the  mission  of  caring  for  the 
moral  interests  of  the  community,  and  no 
devotee  ever  addressed  herself  to  more 
constant  watchfulness  and  prayer.  Such 
as  they  were,  the  daily  life  and  influence  of 
this  couple  went  forth  into  the  little  com- 
munity ;  and  that  it  was  beneficent,  is  evi- 
denced by  a  tender  regard  for  their  memo- 
ries that  lingered  long  after  their  departure  ; 
a  notable  instance  was  that  manifested  by 
the  late  Joseph  Lance,  Esq.,  who,  though 
he  had  purchased  and  paid  for  their  home- 
stead, used  to  say  that  he  could  never 
divest  himself  of  the  feeling  that  it  must 
still  forever  belong  to  them — so  intensely 
had  the  subtle  influence  of  their  lives  pen- 
etrated it. 

In  1830,  the  stage  in  which  Mr.  Dana 
was  journeying  to  Boston  was  overturned 
and  rolled  60  feet  down  an  embankment. 
Two  of  his  ribs  were  broken,  and  he  was 
supposed  to  be  mortally  injured.  From 
this  shock,  he  never  fully  recovered,  and 
for  want  of  necessary  attention  his  affairs 


CABOT. 


113 


fell  into  some  confusion.  Some  of  his 
daughters  had  married  and  gone  to  Wis- 
consin. He  visited  them  in  1838:  and  in 
1839,  ^^^  removed  thither  with  his  whole 
family.  The  morning  in  which  he  finally 
left  his  old  home,  never  to  return,  was 
made  memorable  by  a  pleasant  incident. 
At  daybreak,  and  while  he  was  still  asleep, 
a  score  or  more  of  his  old  comrades, 
dressed  in  long,  tow  frocks,  silently  assem- 
bled in  the  village  hall,  and  sent  to  request 
his  presence.  This  touching  manifestation 
of  regard  sensibly  affected  him,  and  ended 
in  an  abundance  of  tears  as,  one  by  one, 
the  old  men  bade  each  other  an  eternal 
farewell . 

It  only  remains  to  be  said,  that  in  his 
new  home,  freed  from  care,  his  business 
affairs  adjusted,  he  lived  in  the  quiet  en- 
joyment of  the  companionship  of  his  wife 
and  children,  until,  in  1850,  he  bade  fare- 
well to  all.     His  wife  survived  until  1872. 

LEONARD  ORCUTT,  ESQ., 

born  at  Stafford,  Ct.,  1779,  came  with  his 
mother  to  Cabot  when  18  years  old.  He 
married  Sally  Spear  for  his  first  wife ;  for 
his  2d,  Polly  Bullock ;  by  his  first  wife  4 
children,  and  4  by  his  second  ;  3  of  the  last 
died  in  early  life  of  consumption.  Esquire 
Orcutt  held  many  offices  of  trust  in  the 
town,  among  which  was  the  office  of  justice 
of  the  peace  for  over  40  years.  For  along 
time  he  was  town  agent,  and  assisted  in  all 
town  law-suits,  and  when  a  witness,  the 
lawyers  never  made  but  one  effort  to  corner 
him.  In  the  trial  of  a  town  case  at  Dan- 
ville (County  Court)  he  was  a  witness. 
Hon.  Wm.  Mattocks  was  counsel  against 
the  town,  and  wished  to  prove  that  Esquire 
C.  was  deeply  interested  in  the  case  on  ac- 
count of  holding  town  office.  "Well, 
Esquire,"  said  Mattocks,  "you  have  held 
considerable  town  office  in  Cabot,  haven't 
you?"  "Yes-yes-I  have  some."  "Well, 
sir,  what  office  did  you  hold  the  year  this 
affair  took  place?"  The  Esquire  said, 
shutting  his  eyes  and  running  his  hands 
into  his  breeches  pockets  to  his  elbows, 
"Well,  if  I  recollect  right,  I  was  highway 
surveyor  that  year."  In  after  years  Mat- 
tocks frequently  related  this  case  with  a 
laugh,  and  said  he  was  perfectly  satisfied 


with  this  witness.  He  died  in  1855,  aged 
75,  highly  respected  by  all  the  community. 

DEACON  JAMES  MARSH 
came  here  from  Plymouth,  N.  H.,  in  1793, 
and  settled  on  a  farm  ^  mile  north  of  the 
Center.  In  18 —  he  married  Miriam  Wal- 
bridge ;  to  them  were  born  5  sons  and  4 
daughters.  He  was  for  many  years  a 
deacon  of  the  Congregational  church,  and 
accounted  by  all  who  knew  him,  what  is 
said  to  be  the  noblest  work  of  God — an 
honest  man.     He  died  1865,  aged  90  years. 

DEACON   MARCUS   O.    FISHER 

was  born  at  Cabot,  Nov.  24,  1796.  [For 
his  first  business,  see  village  of  Cabot.] 
He  was  married  to  Fanny  Hall,  June  13, 
1820,  at  Chester,  N.  H.,  and  came  directly 
to  Cabot  and  began  pioneer  life  in  what 
was  known  as  the  old  Red  House.  There 
were  but  4  houses  in  the  village  at  that 
time.  Deacon  Marcus  Fisher  and  his  wife 
were  actively  identified  with  the  entire 
growth  of  the  village.  They  had  4  chil- 
dren, 2  of  which  died  in  early  life,  and  2 
survive  their  parents.  The  Deacon  and 
his  wife  were  earnest,  consistent  Chris- 
tians. Their  house  was  ever  the  hospita- 
ble mansion,  to  which  were  welcomed  the 
missionary  and  minister,  and  all  who  were 
working  in  the  vineyard  of  their  Lord.  The 
Deacon  died  suddenly,  of  heart  disease, 
Sabbath  morning,  Apr.  9,  1865,  aged  68. 
His  wife  died  Sept.  14,  1870. 

JOSEPH   LANCE,  ESQ., 

born  in  Chester,  N.  H.,  1799,  came  to  this 
town  when  a  lad  with  his  father,  who  set- 
tled on  the  place  where  Hial  Morse  lives. 
In  1830,  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile 
business  in  Calais.  After  about  4  years  he 
sold  out,  and  engaged  in  farming  on  quite 
a  large  scale.  In  1833,  he  was  married  to 
Cynthia  M.  Tucker.  They  had  4  chil- 
dren, 3  of  whom  are  now  living.  In  1838, 
he  bought  the  entire  estate  of  Judge  Dana, 
and  about  1845  ''^  moved  to  this  town.  In 
his  early  life  he  dealt  extensively  in  cattle 
and  sheep  ;  was  successful  in  all  his  under- 
takings financially,  and  became  a  man  of 
wealth.  He  held  many  town  offices,  and 
was  an  excellent  manager  for  the  town. 
He  died  Oct.  12,  1865,  aged  66  years. 


15 


114 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


JOHN   DAMON,    ESQ., 

was  born  in  Martha's  Vineyard,  near  Bos- 
ton. When  6  years  of  age,  his  father, 
a  Congregational  minister,  removed  to 
Woodstock,  Vermont.  At  the  age  of  20, 
John  went  to  what  was  then  thought  to 
be  the  far  West,  the  state  of  Ohio.  He 
purchased  the  very  ground  to  settle  on 
upon  which  the  city  of  Cincinnati  now 
stands,  but  his  health  failing,  he  sold  his 
land  there  and  returned  to  Vermont,  and 
settled  in  this  town,  as  before  related.  He 
married  Nancy  Strong,  of  Pawlet ;  chil- 
dren, 4.  He  was  a  far-seeing  man,  and 
very  successful  in  his  financial  affairs.  He 
was  also  one  of  the  pioneers  in  the  Sab- 
bath-school work  in  the  Congregational 
church.     He  died  Apr.  19,  1864. 

ZEKAH    COLDUHN 

was  born  in  Cabot,  Sept.  i,  1804.  His 
father,  Abia  Colburn,  with  his  family,  came 
from  Hartford,  and  settled  on  the  farm 
now  owned  by  S.  S.  Batchelder,  about  3 
months  before  his  birth.  The  sixth  child, 
his  parents  in  straitened  circumstances, 
subject  to  such  hardships  as  fell  to  the  lot 
of  all  new  settlers  at  that  period,  there 
seemed  little  prospect  his  name  should  be 
distinguished,  or  ever  known  beyond  the 
circle  of  his  neighbors  and  kinsmen.  There 
was  nothing  remarkable,  too,  in  the  en- 
dowments of  his  father  or  mother ;  they 
were  plain  persons,  not  superior  to  others, 
and  in  regard  to  their  son,  it  is  said  they 
considered  him  to  be  the  most  backward 
of  any  of  their  children  ;  residing  at  a  con- 
siderable distance  from  school,  it  would  be 
unreasonable,  also,  to  infer  that  education 
did  much  for  preparing  him  for  that  dis- 
play of  early  strength,  correctness,  and 
rapidity  of  mind  in  figures,  which  was  so 
remarkable  to  all  who  saw  him,  and  was 
unaccountable  to  himself. 

Some  time  in  the  beginning  of  August, 
1 8 10,  when  about  one  month  under  6 
years  of  age,  at  home  while  his  father  was 
employed  at  a  joiner's  work-bench,  Zerah 
was  on  the  floor  playing  with  chips.  Sud- 
denly he  began  to  say  to  himself,  "  5  times 
7  are  35  "-"6  times  8  are  48,"  etc.  '  His 
father's  attention  being  arrested  by  hear- 


ing this  so  unexpected  in  a  child  so  young, 
and  who  had  hitherto  possessed  no  ad- 
vantages, except,  perhaps,  6  weeks' attend- 
ance at  the  district-school  that  summer, 
left  his  work,  and  began  to  examine  his 
boy  through  the  multiplication  table ;  he 
thought  it  possible  Zerah  had  learned  this 
from  other  boys  ;  but  finding  him  perfect 
in  the  table,  his  attention  was  more  deeply 
fixed,  and  he  asked  the  product  of  13  by 
97,  to  which  1 26 1  was  instantly  given  as 
the  answer.  It  was  not  long  before  one  of 
the  neighbors  calling  in,  was  informed  of 
the  singular  occurrence,  and  soon  it  be- 
came generally  known  through  the  town. 
Thus  the  story  originated,  which  within 
the  short  space  of  a  year  found  its  way  not 
only  through  the  United  States,  but  reached 
Europe  and  foreign  journals  of  literature 
both  in  England  and  France,  who  ex- 
pressed their  surprise.  In  1804,  the  earth 
was  not  belted  by  a  telegraph  ;  the  news 
had  to  take  the  slow  way-posts,  and  it 
must  have  been  regarded  a  wonderful 
matter  to  liave  had  so  wide  a  range  in  12 
months. 

In  a  short  time  the  annual  freeman's 
meeting  occurred  in  town,  to  which  Mr. 
Colburn  took  his  son,  and  exhibited  his 
wonderful  ability  in  figures  to  his  towns- 
men. 

Gentlemen  at  that  time  possessing  in- 
fluence and  standing  in  the  County  were 
desirous  that  some  course  might  be  adopt- 
ed with  the  boy  that  might  lead  to  a  full 
development  of  his  wonderful  calculating 
powers,  and  Mr.  Colburn,  encouraged, 
took  his  son  to  Danville,  which  was  then 
the  shire  town  of  Caledonia  County,  to  be 
present  at  the  session  of  court.  His  son 
was  very  generally  seen  and  questioned  by 
judges,  members  of  the  bar  and  others. 
The  Legislature  being  about  to  convene  at 
Montpelier,  he  was  advised  to  visit  that 
place  with  his  son,  which  he  did  in  Octo- 
ber. Here,  also,  many  witnessed  his  won- 
derful mathematical  powers.  Questions 
out  of  the  common  limits  of  arithmetic 
were  proposed  with  a  view  to  puzzle  him, 
but  they  all  were  answered  correctly.  For 
instance,  he  was  asked,  "Which  is  the 
most,  twice  five  and  twenty  or  twice  twenty- 


CABOT. 


IIS 


five?"  "Which  is  the  most,  six  dozen  or 
a  half  a  dozen  dozen?  "  The  question  was 
also  asked,  "  How  many  black  beans  would 
it  take  to  make  five  white  ones?"  He  at 
once  answered,  "  tive,  if  j-ou  skin  them," 
evincing  quickness  of  thought  as  well  as 
ability  to  combine  numbers.  After  a  few 
da}s  spent  in  Montpelier,  they  proceeded 
to  Burlington ;  but  the  State  of  Vermont 
did  not  seem  to  offer  sufficient  encourage- 
ment, and  Mr.  Colburn  was  advised  to  visit 
the  principal  cities  of  the  Union.  Return- 
ing to  Cabot,  and  spending  one  night  with 
his  family,  he  departed,  never  to  return. 
He  first  went  to  Hanover,  N.  H.,  where  he 
received  liberal  oifers  for  the  education  of 
his  boy ;  from  here  to  Boston,  where  he 
arrived  the  25th  of  Nov.  Here  the  public 
were  anxious  to  see  and  hear  for  them- 
selves. Questions  of  two  or  three  places 
of  figures  m  multiplication,  questions  in 
the  rule  of  three,  extractions  of  the  roots 
of  exact  squares  and  cubes  were  put,  and 
done  with  very  little  effort,  and  here  he 
also  received  offers  from  wealthy  men  to 
educate  his  son.  One  offer  was  to  raise 
$5000  l)y  voluntary  donations,  and  give 
the  father  $2500,  and  the  remaining  $2500 
to  be  used  in  Zerah's  education ;  but  to 
these  terms  Mr.  Colburn  did  not  feel  at 
liberty  to  accede.  The  rejection  of  all 
these  proposals  very  speedily  raised  a 
prejudice  against  him  in  Boston,  and  from 
Boston  he  went  to  New  York,  Philadelphia 
and  Washington  ;  but  not  receiving  the  en- 
couragement, pecuniarily,  that  he  was  in 
hopes  to  have  met  with,  he  next  decided 
to  go  to  England.  In  December,  181 1,  he 
wrote  to  his  wife  from  Washington  '.omake 
such  disposition  of  her  farm  and  children 
as  she  could,  and  accompany  him  over  the 
Atlantic.  In  this  she  showed  her  wisdom 
in  refusing  to  accede  to  his  request ;  but 
her  refusal  did  not  deter  him  from  the  de- 
sign. He  embarked  with  his  son  for 
Liverpool,  Apr.  3,  18 12,  and  arrived  in 
London,  May  24.  Here  Zerah  was  visited  by 
the  high  and  noble  of  the  city,  and  invited 
to  call  upon  the  crowned  heads.  His 
mathematical  powers  were  put  to  the  se- 
verest test,  and  he  was  able  to  answer  the 
most  difficult  questions  ;  but  during  all  this 


time  of  Zerah"'s  exhibition,  his  education 
was  neglected.  After  he  started  from 
Cabot  he  had  learned  to  read,  and  in 
London  to  write. 

Mr.  Colburn  tried  various  ways  to  raise 
money.  The  exhibition  of  his  son  did 
not  prove  very  remunerative.  He  was  ad- 
vised by  men  of  influence  and  means  to 
put  him  to  school,  they  generously  offering 
the  means  for  his  education.  After  about 
4  years  he  placed  Zerah  at  Westminster 
School,  London.  He  was  now  13  years 
of  age  ;  but  he  did  not  complete  his  studies 
heie.  He  was  taken  away  by  his  father, 
and  placed  in  a  school  in  Paris,  where  also 
he  remained  but  a  few  months.  His  father 
had  now  become  very  short  for  means. 
While  Zerah  was  at  school,  he  had  re- 
ceived liberal  gifts  of  money  for  his  sup- 
port ;  but  in  his  pinched  condition,  he 
knew  not  now  what  course  to  take.  After 
a  few  years,  however,  Zerah  was  engaged 
as  a  teacher  in  a  small  school  in  London. 
In  1822,  after  an  absence  of  10  years  from 
his  family,  Mr.  Colburn's  health  began  to 
fail,  and  Feb.  14,  1823,  he  died  of  con- 
sumption, far  from  home,  and  almost  des- 
titute of  the  common  comforts  of  life. 

As  soon  as  necessary  arrangements  could 
be  made  by  the  contributions  of  friends  to 
pay  the  passage  of  Zerah  to  America,  he 
sailed,  and  July  3,  1825,  arrived  safely  at 
his  home  in  Cabot,  having  been  absent  13 
years . 

After  remaining  a  few  months  in  town, 
he  connected  himself  with  the  Methodist 
church,  and  became  a  local  preacher,  and 
during  his  seven  years  of  ministry,  had  as 
many  different  appointments.  Jan.  13, 
1829,  he  married  Mary  Hoyt,  of  Hartford. 
Six  children  were  born  to  them,  5  daugh- 
ters and  a  son.  The  son  gave  his  life  for 
his  country  ;  was  killed  in  '  a  battle  near 
Washington,  Sept.  12,  1861.  Two  daugh- 
ters died  in  early  life. 

In  1834,  Mr.  Colburn  gave  up  preaching, 
on  account  of  poor  health.  ^He  accepted  a 
call  to  a  professorship  of  languages  in  the 
Military  College  at  Norwich,  which  he  held 
until  obliged  to  give  it  up  on  account  of 
failing  health.  He  died  of  consumption. 
Mar.   2,    1839,    '^"'^*  ^^''■^  buried  near  the 


ii6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


scene  of  his  last  labors,  at  Norwich,  aged 
34  years,  6  months. 

I  am  informed  by  his  daughter,  who  is 
now  living  at  Thetford,  to  whom  I  am  in- 
debted for  the  last  portion  of  this  sketch, 
that  he  did  not  retain  his  wonderful  math- 
ematical powers  after  he  became  educated 
and  entered  upon  the  ministry.  His  wife 
died  Mar.  i6,  1856,  aged  52.  Thus  lived 
and  died  one  of  the  most  wonderful  minds 
for  computation  that  the  world  ever  saw. 

HON.    JOHN    MCLEAN, 

born  at  Peacham,  Sept.  27,  1814,  com- 
menced his  business  life  in  Lower  Cabot. 
He  was  closely  identified  with  the  business 
interests  of  the  town,  and  his  death,  Feb. 
3,  1855,  without  a  moment's  warning,  cast 
a  deep  gloom  over  the  whole  community. 
The  following,  furnished  by  an  intimate 
friend,  is  no  overdrawn  picture  : 

Estimate  of  Mr.  McLean,  by  One  of  His 
Companions. 

John  McLean  would  have  been  a  mark- 
ed man  in  any  community.  In  Cabot,  at 
the  period  ofwhich  I  write,  he  was  specially 
distinguishable.  His  magnetism  and  innate 
force  were  something  wonderful.  He  was 
a  born  leader  of  men.  He  never  said 
"go,"  but  always  "  come,"  and  wherever 
he  went  he  compelled  a  following.  He 
found  Cabot  spell-bound,  as  it  were,  both 
in  politics  and  religion,  and  he  forced 
progress.  He  found  the  term  abolitionism 
a  by-word  and  a  reproach ;  and  when  he 
left  the  town,  it  was  inscribed  upon  her 
banners  as  a  word  of  honor.  He  de- 
manded full  toleration  in  religious  matters. 
He  stimulated  the  dull  to  exertion  in  the 
way  of  self-help  and  development.  He 
organized  new  industries,  and  waked  up 
the  dormant  energies  of  the  people.  He 
was  himself  constantly  developing  in  limit- 
less directions.  What  an  inward  pressure 
there  must  have  been  within  him,  what  a 
cry  for  room,  to  have  led  him  in  middle 
aee,  without  education,  almost  blind,  to 
the  audacious  resolve  of  becoming  a  man 
of  letters  and  a  member  of  the  bar.  But 
he  did  it,  and  was  already  retained  in  im- 
portant cases  when  his  summons  came. 
Departed  friend,  nothing  but  death  could 


arrest  the  career  to  which  his  spirit  aspired, 
and  whose  early  death  was  a  calamity. 
O.  F.  D.  (Oscar  F.  Dana.) 

Washington,  D.  C,  May,  1881. 

Mr.  McLean  was  married  to  Margaret 
McWallace,  Jan.  10,  1838. 

THOMAS   LVFORD 

was  born  in  this  town,-  1802,  and  resided 
here  the  most  of  his  life.  He  has  held 
many  offices  in  the  town,  and  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  writing  of  this  history,  he 
was  the  only  living  person  who  had  a  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  the  beginning  of  this 
town,  which  he  had  heard  from  his  father, 
and  being  a  man  of  very  strong  memory, 
he  had  retained  all  he  had  heard.  He  was 
much  pleased  with  having  the  history  of 
the  town  written  and  was  always  ready  to 
communicate  any  information  with  which 
he  was  possessed,  and  Thursday  eve,  June 
16,  he  gave  a  large  amount  of  information, 
and  never  after  that  was  he  able  to  com- 
municate. He  lingered  till  the  23d,  when 
he  was  relieved  by  death,  aged  79  years. 
On  the  Friday  following,  his  funeral  was 
attended  at  his  late  residence ;  he  was 
borne  by  his  neighbors  to  the  village  cem- 
etery, and  fciid  beside  his  wife,  who  passed 
on  years  before.  Since  his  decease,  his 
sister,  Mrs.  Jason  Britt,  has  contributed  a 
large  amount  of  information. 

MILITARY   RECORD   OF    CABOT. 

The  Revolutionary  struggle  just  closed 
and  perhaps  constant  apprehension  of  in- 
vasion from  Canada,  seems  to  have  im- 
bued our  fathers  with  a  thorough  military 
spirit ;  from  the  first  settlement  of  the 
town,  but  more  particularly  from  the  be- 
ginning of  the  present  century,  there  was 
organized  and  maintained  for  a  long  period 
of  time  one  uniformed  company,  besides 
the  standing  militia.  We  will  notice  each 
of  these  companies  and  give  a  list  of  the 
captains  as  far  as  we  have  been  able  to 
collect  statistics. 

The  first  we  have  been  able  to  gather  is 
that  in  1797,  when  every  able-bodied  man 
between  the  ages  of  18  and  45  was  obliged 
to  do  military  duty,  with  certain  excep- 
tions. The  first  captain  of  the  militia 
here  was  David  Blanchard,    who  held  his 


CABOT. 


117 


commission  until  1800,  when  Joseph 
Fislier  was  elected  by  the  company.  I 
find  an  order  from  him  to  Sergeant  John 
Stone  to  warn  all  the  men  hereinafter 
mentioned  to  appear  on  the  parade  at  the 
Centre  of  the  town,  June  7,  1800,  at  10 
o'clock  A.  M.,  complete  as  tlie  law  directs. 
This  notice  has  1 1  names  attached  after 
the  election  of  officers.  IMvates  must 
have  been  scarce.  No  record  of  any  of- 
ficers occur  after  this,  until  1808  ;  but  tra- 
dition tells  us  that  Moses  Stone  was  the 
next  captain.  In  1809,  27  soldiers'  names 
are  on  the  town  record :  Anthony  Perry, 
captain  ;  Solomon  W.  O.sgood,  ensign  ; 
18 10,  32  soldiers  enrolled:  Anthony  Perry, 
capt.  ;  John  Stone,  ist  lieut. ;  Joseph 
Stone,  ensign ;  Anthony  Perry  was  cap- 
tain until  1 81 7,  when  George  Sumner  was 
elected.  The  enrolled  militia  were  now 
52  men.  They  were  not  obliged  to  uni- 
form, but  they  were  furnished  with  a  gun, 
24  rounds  of  cartridge,  priming  wire  and 
brush,  and  three  flints. 

From  18 1 2  to  18 16,  the  military  spirit 
seems  to  have  run  at  a  very  high  pitch  ; 
our  country  having  come  to  the  point  when 
forbearance  ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  and 
having  declared  war  on  Great  Britain,  pat- 
riotism rekindled  in  all  those  who  but  a 
short  time  before  had  laid  aside  the  weap- 
ons of  war  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle. 
They  were  alive  all  through,  those  old  vet- 
erans, as  well  as  those  that  had  more  re- 
cently come  to  the  age  to  bear  arms,  and 
were  emulous  to  equal  the  old  warriors. 

The  regular  militia  of  the  town  was 
called  out  and  jDut  in  thorough  fighting 
order,  and  in  addition  to  this,  a  company 
of  minute  men  enlisted  in  this  town, 
Woodbury,  and  Calais,  and  Anthony 
Perry,  who  also  was  a  captain  of  the  regu- 
lar militia,  was  elected  captain,  and  Na- 
thaniel Perry,  lieut.  These  men  were  to 
be  ready  to  march  to  the  front  at  any  time 
they  were  called  by  their  captain.  P'or 
this  roll  I  have  made  diligent  search,  but 
have  not  been  able  to  find  it ;  the  last 
traces  I  got  of  it,  was  among  the  papers 
of  Reuben  Waters  of  Calais. 

The  battle  of  Plattsburg,  Sunday  Sept. 
II,  1814,  our  townsmen  had  been  expect- 


ing for  some  days.  The  cannon  was  dis- 
tinctly heard  all  day.  Captain  Perry  at 
once  dispatched  lieut.  Perry  to  Woodbury 
and  Calais,  and  his  other  officer  through 
Cabot  to  rally  the  men,  while  he  proceeded 
directly  to  Montpelier.  The  company 
here  at  once  rallied  and  camped  the  first 
night  near  Montpelier  Centre ;  but  on 
arrival  next  day  at  Montpelier,  to  their 
great  disappointment  learned  the  British- 
ers had  been  beaten.  They  were  dis- 
charged and  returned  to  their  homes, 
except  a  few  that  were  on  horseback  and 
wished  to  get  a  stronger  smell  of  powder, 
who  pushed  on  to  Burlington. 

John  Stone,  who  in  1800,  held  the  office 
of  Sergeant,  held  all  the  various  commis- 
sions in  the  military  rank  ;  1809,  was  com- 
missioned Col.  of  the  First  Regiment,  3d 
Brigade  4th  Division  of  the  Militia  of  the 
State.  A  petition  was  presented  to  him 
signed  by  John  Damon,  Ira  Atkins  and 
Horace  Warner  for  permission  to  enlist  a 
company  of  Light  Infantry  to  be  attached 
to  his  regiment.  The  petition  was  grant- 
ed ;  roll  of  the  men  enlisted  :  Ira  Atkins, 
Horace  Warner,  M.  O.  Fisher,  Benj.  B. 
Hoyt,  Zacheus  Lovell,  Avery  Atkins,  John 
Edgerton,  Abram  Hinks,  Thomas  Cald- 
well, Jabez  Page,  Jeremiah  Atkins,  John 
Hall,  David  Connor,  Jr.,  David  Bruce, 
Ebenezer  Sperry,  Hugh  Wilson,  Benjamin 
Sperry,  Samson  Osgood,  John  (ioodale, 
James  Blanchard,  Benjamin  Hoyt,  Caleb 
Fisher,  Anson  Coburn,  Benjamin  Durrill, 
Reuben  Atkins,  Samuel  Hall,  Parker 
Chase,  Jr.,  Stephen  Hoyt,  Luther  Swan, 
Benjamin  Preston,  Nathaniel  Gibbs,  Squier 
Boinin,  Joseph  Cate. 

The  company  mustered  34  men  ;  organ- 
ized Aug.  26,  18 19,  by  the  choice  of  the 
following  officers,  John  Damon  being  the 
first  petitioner,  was  elected  captain.  In  a 
neat  little  speech  in  which  he  thanked  the 
company  for  the  honor,  he  said,  owing  to 
bodily  infirmities  he  wished  to  be  excused. 
He  then  treated  the  company  well  to 
whisky  and  sugar,  and  wa*s  excused.  Ira 
Atkins  was  then  elected  captain  ;  Horace 
A.  Warner,  lieut.  ;  Avery  Atkins,  ensign ; 
M.  O.  Fisher,  ist  sergt.  ;  John  Goodale, 
2d   do. ;    Caleb  Fisher,    3d   do. ;    Parker 


ii8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Chase,  4th  do.  ;  Thomas  Caldwell,  ist 
Corp.  ;  Jabez  Page,  2d  do,  ;  Jeremiah  At- 
kins, 3d  do. ;  David  Bruce,  4th  do.  ;  Ben- 
jamin Hoit,  fifer;  Luther  Swan,  drummer  ; 
Stephen  Hoyt,  bass  drummer. 

The  uniform  adopted  was  black  hat, 
white  cockade,  red  parchment  with  star 
with'No.  of  company  and  regiment,  white 
feather  with  red  top,  white  cord  with  two 
large  tassels,  black  coat  with  red  facings, 
yellow  buttons,  black  pants  corded  with 
red,  white  vest,  white  neck  scarf,  yellow 
gloves,  canteen  and  cartridge-box,  with 
white  belt.  The  records  show  company 
drills  were  frequent;  Oct.  3,  1820,  they  at- 
tended the  regimental  muster  at  Peacham  ; 
Oct.  3,  1822,  mustered  at  Danville;  1824, 
Horace  Warner  was  elected  captain,  and 
in  1825,  Marcus  O.  Fisher,  captain. 

This  company  kept  up  its  organization 
7  years,  when  by  a  vote  of  the  company 
July,  1826,  it  was  transformed  into  an  artil- 
lery company,  and  a  cannon  and  all  the 
necessary  equipments  for  the  same  was 
bought  by  subscription  of  the  citizens  of 
the  town. 

Nearly  the  same  officers  were  elected 
that  were  in  command  in  the  infantry, 
Marcus  O.  Fisher,  being  the  first  captain, 
Ira  Atkins,  ist  lieut.,  Caleb  Fisher,  2d 
lieut.  The  uniform  with  some  slight 
changes  was  very  much  like  that  of  the 
infantry.  It  mustered  84  men,  and  was 
said  to  be  the  finest  looking  and  appearing 
company  in  the  regiment. 

List  of  Captains:  May  23,  1827,  Jer- 
emiah Atkins  was  elected  Capt. ;  1828, 
Caleb  Fisher  ;  1829,  William  Fisher  ;  1832, 
Levi  H.Stone;  1835,  RoswellFarr;  1836, 
Enoch  Hoyt;   1838,  John  Clark. 

This  completes  the  list.  It  was  a  fine 
company,  and  often  called  to  assist  in  cel- 
ebrations in  the  adjoining  towns.  And 
not  unfrequently  was  the  Fourth  enlivened 
by  the  old-fashioned  sham  fight,  in  which 
they  would  become  so  much  engaged  fre- 
quently, that  the  cannon  would  be  charged 
full  too  high  for  the  safety  of  the  glass  in 
surrounding  buildings,  and  those  standing 
by.  On  one  occasion  one  of  the  gunners, 
Mitchell  Whittier,  standing  near  the  wheel 


had  the  top  of  his  hat  torn  out.  This  was 
at  an  engagement  with  the  cavalry  at 
Marshfield.  On  another  occasion,  Capt. 
Levi  H.  Stone  had  his  face  filled  with 
powder  by  a  musket  being  carelessly  dis- 
charged. This  company  kept  up  its  organ- 
ization until  an  act  was  passed  by  the  Leg- 
islature disbanding  all  military  companies 
throughout  the  State  June  i,  1838,  when 
this  company  reluctantly  voted  to  dis- 
band, after  first  entering  upon  their  record 
that  the  act  of  the  Legislature  ought  to  be 
considered  a  lawless  act  in  very  deed. 

About  1842,  a  Light  Infantry  company 
was  organized  with  John  McLean  for  its 
first  captain.  Of  this  company  I  am  not 
able  to  find  any  record. 

During  the  organization  of  these  inde- 
pendent companies  all  persons  that  did 
not  belong  to  them,  obliged  to  do  military 
duty,  were  called  out  once  a  year  for  drill 
and  inspection.  They  received  the  name 
of  the  Flood-wood  Company.  The  train- 
ing of  this  company  ended  by  electing  a 
clerk  that  soon  moved  to  the  West,  and 
took  with  him  all  the  records  and  papers 
of  the  company,  the  members  of  the  com- 
pany bidding  him  God  speed. 

Many  funny  and  characteristic  anecdotes 
of  military  acts  and  deeds  are  related  by 
the  old  inhabitants  it  would  be  pleasant  to 
record,  but  our  space  forbids.  We  will 
only  mention  the  Sutton  Muster,  in  which 
the  Cabot  Artillery  and  Flood-wood  both 
joined,  taking  one  week  in  which  to  get 
through  it,  and  in  that  time  it  is  said  there 
was  a  good  many  of  them  that  did  not  get 
sober  enough  to  get  home. 

During  these  military  organizations  quite 
a  number  from  this  town  belonged  to  the 
Cavalry  in  the  late  war,  raised  in  the  towns 
of  Cabot,  Hardwick,  Danville  and  Peacham. 

WALTER    STONE, 

who  was  in  the  1st  Vt.  Cavalry,  Co.  D., 
taken  prisoner  March  4,  1863,  and  died  in 
Libby  Prison,  was  at  one  time  captain  of 
this  old  cavalry  company. 

The  last  military  organization  in  town 
was  in  1866.  After  the  close  of  the  War 
of  the  Rebellion  an  infantry  company  was 
organized,  with  W.    H.   Fletcher  for  cap- 


CABOT. 


119 


lain  ;  also  a  cavalry  company,  with  Hiram 
Perkins  for  captain.  These  companies 
were  both  finely  equipped  by  the  State, 
Init  never  did  any  great  military  service. 
They  were  disbanded  by  an  act  of  the 
Legislature,  1868. 

SOLDIERS   OF   THE   REVOLUTION 

who  settled  in  town  :  Lieut.  Thomas  Ly- 
ford,  Jonathan  Heath,  Starling  Heath, 
Tliomas  Osgood,  Samuel  Warner,  Na- 
thaniel Webster,  Fitield  Lyford,  Nathan 
Kdson,  Trueworthy  Durgin,  Lieut.  John 
Whittier,  Maj.  Lyman  Hitchcock,  Lieut. 
David  Blanchard,  Ensign  Jerry  McDaniels. 

SOLDIERS    OF    l8l2. 

Volunteers  from  this  town :  Luther 
Swan,  Simeon  Walker,  Leander  Corlis, 
Samuel  Button,  Ezra  Kennerson,  Peter 
L}ford,  Jesse  Webster,  David  Lyford, 
Royal  Gilbert. 

SOLDIERS   OF   THE   WAR   OF    1861. 

Demand  for  the  surrender  of  Fort  Sumter 
made  April  11,  1861,  promptly  refused  by 
Maj.  Anderson,  in  one  hour  hostilities  com- 


menced. The  President's  call  for  75,000 
men  was  received  in  this  town  by  the  jour- 
nals of  the  15th  of  April.  A  war  meeting 
was  at  once  called,  to  take  the  matter  into 
consideration.  Stirring  speeches  were 
made  by  several  citizens,  and  it  was  at 
once  voted  to  recruit  a  company,  and  offer 
their  services  to  the  Governor.  A  paper 
was  drawn  up,  and  volunteers  called  for, 
and  the  following  young  men  enrolled 
their  names  :    J.  P.  Lamson,  John  Derine, 

F.  L.  Drown,  H.  L.  Collins,  H.  M.  Paige, 

G.  W.  Wright,  E.  S.  Hoyt,  Nathaniel 
Perry,  Chas.  H.  Newton,  L.  B.  Scott,  S. 
H.  Bradish,  L.  S.  Gerry,  H.  Perkins, 
Horace  Carpenter,  Luke  A.  Davis,  C.  H. 
Goodale,  G.  P.  Hopkins,  E.  H.  Scott,  E. 
Gerry,  Lyman  Hopkins,  Fayette  Hopkins. 

The  services  of  these  volunteers  were  at 
once  tendered  to  the  Governor  by  Na- 
thaniel Perry  and  H.  M.  Paige.  The  first 
regiment  was  already  full,  but  a  large  por- 
tion of  them  enlisted  in  other  regiments 
as  soon  as  an  opportunity  offered,  as  the 
following:  roll  will  show  : 


Credited  pi 

Names. 
Aiken,  Hiram 
Aiiisworth,  Henry  A. 
Kascom,  William 
Bacdn,  William  W. 
Balaw,  Simeon 
15ala\v,  William 
Bailey,  Nathaniel 
Batchelder,  Ziba 
Blake,  Daniel 
Blodgett,  Stephen  B. 
]]arnett,  Geo.  W. 
Carpenter,  Amasa 
Cheever,  Moses  R. 
Clark,  William  H.  H 
Collins,  Hartwell  L. 

Desilets,  Carlos 
Uereen,  John 
Dow,  Harrison 
Dow,  Harvey  S. 
Thrown,  Frederick  L. 
Eastman,  Curtis  O. 
Fales,  John  W. 
Farr,  Jacob 
Fisk,  Frederick  W. 
Gerry,  Eli  P. 

Goodale,  Chauncey 
Goodwin,  David  M. 
Gray,  Joshua  C. 
Griftin,  Clarendon 


VOLUNTEERS  FOR  THREE  YEARS, 

■evimis  to  call  for  300,000   Voliniteers  of  Oct.   17,   1863. 


A(ie.       Enlistnient. 
36   July  12,  62. 
18  June  16,  62. 
45   Feb.  62. 

36  Feb.  10,  62. 

24      " 

21  Aug.  31,  61. 

21  July  3,  61. 
38  June  30,  62. 

18  Sept.  5,  61. 

22  Sept.  2,  61. 
20   Sept.  3,  61. 

19  " 

20  Feb.  28,  62. 
26  June  T,  61. 

19  June  12,  62. 
22  June  I,  61. 
41    Aug.  21,  61. 


Reg.  Co.  Remarks. 

10  A     Tr.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  April  17. 
9  I       Pro.  July  15,  64;  must,  out  June  13,  65. 
I   Bat. 
I   Bat. 

3  K      Dis.  Dec.  16,  62. 

3  K      Re-en.  Mar.  19,  64  ;  deserted  May  3,  64. 
H      Killed  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64. 
H      Died  Feb.   13,  62. 
H      Discharged  June  22,  63. 
K      Discharged  Dec.  19,  62. 
K      Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63;  tr.  to  Co.  E.  Feb.  25,  65. 
G      Must,  out  of  service  Sept.  30,  64. 
"    "       Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  tr.  to  Co.  F. 
"   "       Died  June  7,  62. 

3  G      Re-en.  Jan.  22,  64 ;  pro.  2  lieut.  Co.  E.  Aiis;. 
4,  64. 
Promoted  Corporal. 
Pro.  Sergeant  ;  dis.  Jan.  5,  63. 
Discharged  July  8,  62. 


34  June  I,  61. 

27  Aug.  S,  62. 

18  Sept.  30,  61. 

22  Mar.  22,  62. 

23  Sept.  3,  61. 
33  Aug.  30,  61. 

18  Sept.  4,  61. 

June,  61. 

21  Aug.  13,  62. 


9  I 

3  G 

4  G 
Cav  C 

3  G 
II 
6 
3 
4 
4 


3A 


S 
I 
Bat. 


Pro.  Sergt.;  discharged  June  5,  63. 

Sept.  27,  64 ;  dis.  June  29,  65. 

Must,  out  of  service,  Oct.  28,  64. 

Discharged  Oct.  31,  62. 

Reduced;  must,  out  Sept.  30,  64. 

Pro.  Cor.;  re-en.  Dec.   15,  63;  tr.  to  Co.  C. 

Feb.  25,  65. 
Must,  out  of  service  Sept.  30,  64. 
Pro.  surgeon  of  the  3d  reg. 
Must,  out  of  service  June  24,  65. 


120 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 
Hall,  Mark  P. 
Hall,  Merrill  K. 
Hatch,  Gonzalo  C. 
Hatch,  Jerome  B. 
Hatch,  Marshall  E. 
Heath,  Nathan  L. 
Heath,  Jeremiah  A. 
Hill,  Andrew 
Hill,  Lorenzo  D. 
Hitchcock,  Henry  C. 
Hooker,  Amos  O. 
Hooker,  Sanford  O. 
Hopkins,  William  J. 
Hoyt,  Alonzo  A. 
Hoyt,  Asa 
Hoyt,  Enoch  S. 
Hoyt,  Jonathan  P. 
Ingram,  John 
Kenerson,  Albert 
Kenerson,  William  T. 
Lyford,  James  M. 
Mack,  Asa  B. 
Marsh,  Henry  O. 
Marsh,  James  Jr. 
McCrillis,  Rufus 
McLean,  Samuel  E. 
Morrill,  Abel  K. 
Newton,  Charles  H. 

Oken,  John  E. 
Page,  Henry  M. 
Page,  Wallace  W. 


Paine,  Geo.  W. 

Perry,  Adolphus  B 

Perry,  Charles  II. 

Perry,  William  A.  t8  Apr.  20,  63. 

Putnam,  Chas.  B.  May  ii,  63. 

Rudd,  John  18  June,  26,  63. 


Rudd,  William 
Russell,  Hiram  L. 
Scott,  Erastus  H. 
Scott,  Luther  B. 
Smith,  Jarish  S. 
Stone,  Edward  G. 
Sumner,  Alonzo  L. 
Thompson,  Sam'l  H. 
Walbridge,  Don  C. 
West,  William  N. 

Wheeler,  John  Q.  A. 
Wilson,  Nathaniel  L. 
Wright,  Geo.  W. 

Writer,  Anson  S. 


Farr,  William  H. 

Hopkins,  Oliver  W. 
Hoyt,  Edwin  A. 
Kimball,  Isaac  N. 
Mason,  Henry  L. 
Trow,  Kendrick 


A(/e.       Enlistmenl 

Reg.  Co. 

22    Aug.  28,  61. 

4  G 

22    Aug.  31,  63. 

27  June  I,  61. 

3   " 

Cav  C 

27   June,  I,  61. 

3  C 

I   Bat 

22   May  7,  61. 

2  D 

I   Bat. 

18  July  25,  62. 

ti   I 

19  Jan.  31,  62. 

7  H 

21    June  9,  62. 

9  I 

28   May  29,  62. 

Cav  C 

41    Aug.  8,  62. 

II   I 

25  June  I,  61. 

3  ^ 

44  Aug.  10,  63. 

"  H 

Cav  C 

"    D 

19  Mar.  20,  62. 

4  H 

CavC 

33  Sept.  3,  61. 

4G 

18  Sept.  3,  61. 

"    " 

38  Aug.  12,  62. 

"    " 

I   Bat. 

32   Sept.  4,  61. 

4  H 

3  E 

22  Aug.  27,  61. 

4  G 

4  H 

Cav  C 

23  June  I,  61. 

3G 

25      " 

3  G 

.  21   Sept.  II,  61 

4  H 

21   Sept.  3,  61. 

4G 

II   L 


26  June  8,  63. 

II   L 

20  Aug.  6,  62. 

"    I 

Aug.  II,  62. 

3  G 

26  Sept.  4,  61. 

4  G 

18   Sept.  4,  61. 

4G 

26  Sept.  3,  61. 

22   Feb.  8,  62. 

7  H 

36  Aug.  20,  61. 

4  H 

23  June  29,  62. 

7   " 

24  Sept.  7,  61. 

4   " 

Cav  C 

22  July  10,  61. 

3K 

28  June  18,  61. 

3  G 

21   June  I,  61.         3  G 


Remarks. 
Pro.  Sergt.;  must,  out  Sept.  30,  64. 
Tr.  to  Co.  B.  Feb.  25,  65  ;  out  July  3,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  21  ;  tr.  to  Co.  I,  July  25,  64. 
Promoted  to  Lieut. 

Reduced  to  rank  Oct.  31,  62. 

Died  June  14,  62. 

Must,  from  service  June  24,  65. 
Pro.  Cor.  Feb.  18,  64 ;  re-en.  Feb.  20,  64. 
Pro.  Sergt.  Nov.  63  ;  died  Mar.  12,  64. 
Discharged  Oct.  22,  62. 

Must,  from  service  July  5,  65. 
Discharged  Feb.  19,  63. 


Dropped  Apr.  10,  63. 

Must,  out  of  service  Feb.  4,  61. 

Died  of  wounds  received  in  action  June  6,  64. 

Pro.  to  Cor.  Nov.  i,  63  ;  do.  Sen;  tr.  to  Co.  B, 

Re-en.  Dec.  12,  63 ;  tr.  to  Co.  E.  Feb.  25,  65. 

Pro.  Sergt.;  re-en.  Dec.  15,  65  ;  i  Lt.  Co.  E. 
Oct.  I,  64. 

Pro.  to  Major. 

Re-en.  Jan.  22,  64 ;  killed  at  Cold   Harbor, 

June  3,  64. 
Re-en.  Dec.  21,  63  ;   tr.  to  Co.  I  July  25,  64. 
Re-en.  Jan.  15,  63;  tr.  to  Co.  C.  Feb.  25,  65. 
Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June ''i  1864. 
Brigade  Band. 

Died  June  23,  64,  of  wounds  reed,  in  action 

May,  64. 
Died  May  6,  64. 

Must,  out  of  service  June  24,  65. 
Killed. 

Pro.  2d  Lt.  Co.  E.  Aug.  i,  62. 
Died  Nov.  9,  62. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  10,  64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  20,  64;  pro.  Cor.  Oct.  i,  64. 
Pro.  Cor.;  killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  65. 
Died  Nov.  27,  62. 
Pro.  Sergt.;  re-en.  Dec.  15,  63;  pris.  of  war 

since  June  23,  64. 

Di'-charged  Oct.  31,  62. 

Pro.  Sergt.;  re-en.  Dec.  32,  61  ;  died  May  11, 

64,  from  wounds  received  in  action. 
Re-en.    Dec.    21,    63;  died  July    15,   64,  of 

wounds  received  in  action. 


Volunteers  for  Three  Years. 


20  Dec.  7,  63. 
18  Sept.  I,  63. 


27   Nov.  10,  63. 
44  Sept.  23,  63. 


3G 


64.     Disch. 


Tr.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  May  23, 
Aug.  9,  1865. 
17  C      Must,  out  of  serv.  July  14,  1865. 
3  Bat. 
3  Bat.  Died. 

II  I       Died  Sept.  13,  1864. 
17  D      Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  Aug.  24,  1S64. 


Brickett,  Willard  P. 


Vohinteer  for  One  Year. 
Cav. 


CABOT. 


i2i 


Vohmteers   Re-enlisted. 


Names,  Arje.       Enlistment.  Reg.  Co. 

Bamett,  George  M.  22   Sept.  2,  61.        4  H 

Cheever,  Moses  R.  19  Sept.  3,  61,        4  G 

Collins,  Hartwell  L.  26  June  i,  61.         3  G 


Gerry,  Eli  P. 

Hatch,  Gonzalo  C. 
Hooker,  Amos  O. 
Hopkins,  Daniel  F. 
McLean,  Samuel  E. 
Page,  Wallace  W. 


33  Aug.  30,  61.      4  H 


27  June  I,  61. 
19  June  31,  62. 

32   Sept.  4,  61. 
23  June  I.  61. 


Paine,  George  W.  25  June  i,  61. 

Perry,  Adolphus  B.  Jr.,  21  Sept.  11,61. 
Wright,  George  W.  28  June  10,  61. 
Writer,  Anson  S.  21   June  i,  61. 


G 

H 

Bat. 

H 

G 

G 
H 
G 
G 


Kemarks. 
Re-en  Dec.  15, 1863,  tr.  to  Co.  E.  Feb.  25,  65. 
Re-en  Dec.  15,  1863,  tr.  to  Co.  F.  Feb.  25,  65. 
Re-en  Jan.  26,  1864,  pro.  to  2d  lieut.,  Co.  E. 

Aug.  4,  1864, 
Pro.  to  Corp.  ;    re-en  Dec.   15,  1863  ;    tr.  to 

Co.  C.  Feb.  25,  1865 
Re-en  Dec.  21,  63  ;    tr.  to  Co.  I.  July  25,  64. 
Pro.  Corp.  Feb.  18,  64  ;    re-en  Feb.  20,  64. 

Re-en  Dec.  15,  63  ;  tr.  to  Co.  E.  Feb.  25,  65. 
Re-en  Jan.  22,  1864  ;  killed  at  Cold  Harbor, 

June  3,  1864. 
Re-en  Dec.  21,  63  ;    tr.  to  Co.  I.  July  25,  64, 
Re-en  Dec.  15,  63;  tr.  to  Co.  C.  Feb.  25,  65, 
Pro.  sergt.  ;  re-en  Dec.  31,  63  ;  died  May  11. 
Re-en.  Dec.   21,  63.     Died  July   15,  64,  of 

wound  received  in  action. 


Hoyt,  Jonathan  P. 
McCauley,  Kenneth 

Two  men. 


Veteran  Reserve  Corps. 
44  Aug.  10,  63.       3  H     Tr.  from  Vet.  Res.  Corps  ;  tr.  to  Co.  K.  July 
25,  64. 

Miscellaneous  not  Credited  by  Name. 


Adams,  Chas.  S. 
Boyle,  Orvis  P. 
Corles,  Frederick 
Dow,  John  K. 
Fletcher,  William  H. 
Gibson,  Charles 
Houghton,  Charles  L. 
Johnson,  Silas  G. 
Kimball,  Isaac 
Maberny,  William 
Osgood,  Andrew  E. 
Perkins,  Eben  S. 
Perkins,  Hiram 
Shaw,  George  E. 
Wilson,  Joseph 
Wilson,  Freeman 

Clark,  Emery  H. 
Dow,  Harvey  S. 
Haines,  William  J. 
Hazen,  Jasper  J. 
Heath,  George  R. 
Perry,  Anthony 
Perry,  Jewett 
Smith,  Henry  D. 
Sprague,  Alonzo  F. 
Whittier,  Harrison 
Wood,  Hiram  T. 

Fisher,  Chas.  M. 
Smith,  Geo.  C. 

Hopkins,  Lyman  H. 
Howe,  Samuel  W. 
Knapp,  Francis  L. 
Swazey,  Parker 


Volunteers  for  Nine  Motiths. 
13  C 


Killed  at  Gettysburg. 


Furnished  under  Draft.     Paid  Connmitation. 


Procured  Substitutes. 


Entered  Service. 

6  A 
6  D 


32  July  29,  63.        2  I     Missing  in  action  May  5,  64. 


16 


122 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Total,  138.  Of  this  number  g  were 
killed  in  action,  18  died  from  disease,  5 
from  wounds  received  in  action ;  of  the 
number  that  returned,  many  of  them  con- 
tracted disease  from  which  they  have  since 
died,  or  are  now  suffering. 

The  town  paid  about  $9000  bounty,  and 
at  the  close  of  the  war,  to  the  credit  of  the 
town  be  it  said,  we  had  no  war  debt  upon 
us.  Taxes  were  levied,  and  promptly  paid 
when  money  was  plenty. 

After  the  close  of  the  war,  and  when 
those  who  had  gone  first  and  done  battle 
so  valiantly  for  their  country  had  returned 
to  their  peaceful  avocations  of  life,  the 
thoughts  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town 
were  turned  to  those  who  had  given  their 
lives  to  continue  the  life  of  our  nation,  and 
wishing  to  hand  down  their  names  in 
grateful  remembrance  to  generations  yet 
unborn,  an  article  was  inserted  in  the 
warning  for  March  meeting,  1873,  to  take 
into  consideration  the  subject  of  erecting  a 
monument  to  their  memory. 

At  this  meeting  a  committee  was  elected 
to  obtain  diagram  specimens  of  material, 
cost  of  the  same,  place  of  location,  and 
report  at  the  next  March  meeting;  J.  P. 
Lamson,  M.  P.  Wallace  and  Milton  Fisher, 
c5^.  Final  action  was  not  reached  until 
the  annual  meeting,  1875,  when  $1500 
was  voted  for  a  soldiers'  monument  on  the 
Common,  and  the  committee  before  ap- 
pointed were  instructed  to  purchase  and 
locate  the  same.  The  committee  con- 
tracted with  Mr.  Harrington,  of  Barre,  to 
erect  a  monument  of  Barre^  granite,  at  a 
cost  of  $1500,  on  the  highest  point  on  the 
Common,  in  front  of  the  Congregational 
church.  The  height  of  the  monument  is 
21  feet;  upon  the  die,  inscriptions: 

West  Side: 

to  the  memory  of  cabot  soldiers 
who  fell  in  the  great  re- 
bellion of  1861-1865. 
Dulcet  Desiinm  est.     Pro  patri  amor i I 
North  side.— Adjatant,  Abel  Morrill, 
Jr.;  2d  lieutenant,  Luther  B.  Scott;  Ser- 
geant, Sanford  O.  Hooker,  Eli  P.  Gerry, 
Samuel  H.  Thompson,  George  W.  Wright, 
Anson   S.  Writer;   privates,  Ziba  Batch- 


elder,  Nathaniel  Bailey,  William  H.  Clark, 
Carlos  Desoletts,  John  H.  Dow. 

East  Side. — Privates,  Wm.  G.  French, 
Jeremiah  A.  Heath,  Andrew  Hill,  James 
C.  Hill,  Enoch  S.  Hoit,  Isaac  Kimball, 
Albert  Kenerson,  Rufus  McCrillis,  Henry 
O.  Marsh,  Henry  S,  Mason,  Andrew  E. 
Osgood,  Wallace  Page. 

South  Side. — Privates,  Adolphus  B. 
Perry,  Charles  H.  Perry,  JewettW.  Perry, 
John  Rudd,  William  Rudd,  Erastus  H. 
Scott,  Parker  Swazey,  Don  C.  Walbridge, 
Jarvis  S.  Smith,  George  E.  Stone,  Ken- 
drick  Trow,  Edward  E.  Hall. 

This  monument  was  dedicated  to  the 
memory  of  these  deceased  soldiers  July 
4,  1876,  at  2  o'clock  p.  M.,  with  singingby 
the  choir,  prayer  by  Rev.  B.  S.  Adams, 
dedicatory  address  by  J.  P.  Lamson,  Esq., 
music  by  the  Montpelier  Band,  and  me- 
morial and  dedication  services  by  Brooks 
Post,  G.  A.  R.,  from  Montpelier.  From 
the  able  address  of  Mr.  Lamson  we  make 
the  following  brief  extract : 

We  meet  to-day  around  this  monument 
of  the  fallen  heroes  of  Cabot  to  join  in  the 
ceremonies  of  its  dedication.  By  the 
people  of  Cabot  this  structure  has  been 
reared  in  commemoration  of  those  noble 
men,  who,  when  rebellious  hands  were 
raised  against  their  country's  life,  bade  a 
last  farewell  to  kindred  and  home,  and 
went  forth  to  die  in  its  defence.  Their 
sacred  names  are  enshrined  in  our  mem- 
ories, and  engraved  on  the  tablets  of  our 
hearts ;  as  long  as  life  shall  last,  we,  of 
this  generation,  shall  cherish  the  recol- 
lections of  their  heroic  deeds  and  noble 
martyrdom  with  a  devotion  which  no  mon- 
ument can  kindle,  and  no  inscription  can 
keep  alive.  But  time  will  pass,  and  mem- 
ories and  traditions  shall  fail,  and  the 
tablet  of  fiesh  must  moulder  into  dust.  It 
is  fit,  therefore,  that  we  should  carve  on 
the  everlasting  granite  the  names  of  that 
noble  band,  that  our  children  and  our 
children's  children  may  learn  by  whose 
blood  our  country  was  baptized  into  new 
life,  and  the  bonds  of  its  union  were  ce- 
mented for  all  coming  time. 

Let  this  monument  stand,  then,  a  proud 
memorial  of  the  dead,  and  may  time  touch 
it  with  a  gentle  hand  as  it  bears  to  suc- 
ceeding generations  its  just  and  deserving 
record. 

At  this  time  I  am  oppressed  with  a  sense 
of  the  impropriety  of  uttering  words  on  this 
occasion.  If  silence  is  ever  golden,  it  must 


CABOT. 


123 


be  here  beside  this  monument,  which  bears 
the  names  of  thirty-six  men  whose  lives 
were  more  significant  than  speech,  and 
whose  death  was  a  poem,  the  music  of 
which  can  never  be  sung.  For  love  of 
country  they  accepted  death.  That  act 
resolved  all  doubts,  and  made  immortal 
their  patriotism  and  their  virtue. 

Fortunate  men  !  Your  country  lives  be- 
cause you  died  ;  your  fame  is  placed  where 
the  breath  of  calumny  can  never  reach  it; 
where  the  mistakes  of  a  weary  life  can 
never  dim  its  brightness.  Coming  gen- 
erations will  rise  up  to  call  you  blessed. 
So  unseltish,  so  little  looking  for  reward, 
so  trusting  for  the  final  good,  .so  venturing 
for  the  brotherhood  of  man  on  the  father- 
hood of  God.  And  it  was  for  this  senti- 
ment of  country,  and  nothing  else,  that 
these  whose  names  are  engraved  on  this 
monument  first  sprang  to  arms  and  offered 
themselves  as  martyrs.  "My  Country" 
and  the  "old  flag,"  how  these  thoughts 
quickened  the  elastic  step,  which  bore 
them  to  the  strife.  How  it  lingered  on 
dying  lips  when  the  bloody  fray  was  over, 
"Tell  her  I  die  for  my  country."  Softly 
would  we  touch  the  strings  that  vibrate 
only  to  plaintive  notes — husband,  father, 
brother,  son,  the  loved,  the  fondly  cher- 
ished. 

Nobly  did  they  fall,  and  in  a  righteous 
cause.  Their  country  called,  and  in  the 
great  cause  of  humanity  they  died.  And 
though  their  bones  lie  bleaching  on  a 
Southern  soil,  far  away  from  friends  and 
home,  yet  ever  fresh  will  be  their  mem- 
ories in  the  hearts  of  the  living  and  the 
loved.  And  their  records  will  remain  from 
everlasting  to  everlasting,  after  this  mon- 
ument dedicated  to  them  shall  have  crum- 
bled into  dust. 

To  you,  soldiers  of  this  town,  this  monu- 
ment IS  dedicated  ;  make  yourselves  worthy 
of  the  honor.  Your  past  is  at  least  secure. 
May  you  so  conduct  yourselves  in  the  con- 
flicts of  life  as  to  preserve  unfaded  those 
wreaths  of  glory,  which  your  deeds  have  so 
nobly  won. 

Let  gene  ratio  ru^fter  generation,  as  they 
pass  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave,  be  re- 
minded, as  they  look  on  this  enduring 
monument,  of  the  conflicts  which  inaug- 
urated the  birth  of  our  country,  of  the 
hardships  and  sacrifices  by  which  it  was 
pursued,  and  the  serious  part  they  may  be 
called  upon  to  perform  for  its  further  per- 
petuation. 

Let  it  stand,  then,  an  everlasting  me- 
morial and  teacher,  and  in  the  ceremonies 
of  this  day  let  us  invoke  Almighty  God  to 
hold  it  tenderly  in  the  hollow  of  his  hand, 
and  consecrate  it  with  his  continual  bless- 


I.IEUT.    COLONEL   KIMBALL. 


BY  J.  C.  JULIUS   LANGBIEN,  OF  NEW  YORK  CITY, 

Civil  yustice,  and  formerly  Drummer  of  "  A'." 

C.  (jlh,  N.    Y.   Vols.   I  Hawkins  Zouaves. 

Eliphalet  Addison  Kimball  was  born 
June  3,  1822,  in  Pembroke,  N.  H.  His 
mother  survived  his  birth  but  11  days. 
His  father,  soon  after  the  death  of  his  wife, 
removed  to  Cabot,  Vt.,  where  Addison's 
aunt  and  uncles  resided,  and  it  was  here 
he  and  she,  who  mourns  him  as  his  de- 
voted widow,  lived  in  childhood  together 
until  his  17th  year,  when  he  went  to  Con- 
cord, N.  H.,  learned  the  printer's  trade, 
returned  to  Vermont,  and  entered  the  oiifice 
of  the  Woodstock  Age,  Charles  G.  East- 
man editor  and  owner,  a  man  of  education 
and  accomplishments,  poet  and  politician. 
Young  Kimball  in  two  years  bought  the 
Age,  and  became  its' editor  and  publisher, 
Mr.  Eastman  purchasing  the  Vennojit Pat- 
riot, and  removing  to  Montpelier.  While 
editor  of  the  Age  the  war  with  Mexico  was 
agitated.  The  Age,  a  democratic  paper, 
took  strong  sides  with  the  government, 
then  under  democratic  control.  The  young 
editor  wrote  with  instinctive  force  and 
character,  and  his  editorials  attracted  at- 
tention. By  a  .sort  of  magnetism,  wh)  ,h 
he  even  then  possessed,  he  soon  gained 
influential  friends.  It  was  remarked  there 
was  no  other  young  man  24  years  of  age 
who  had  more  friends  among  the  demo- 
cratic leaders,  and  that  took  the  pride  and 
interest  in  him  they  did.  This  influence 
and  friendship  secured  him  a  captain's 
commission  from  President  Polk  in  the  9th 
N.  E.  reg.,-Col.  Ransom,  from  Wood- 
stock, commanding. 

He  gave  up  his  paper  and  post-office  to 
be  a  soldier — he  was  postmaster  at  Wood- 
stock, and  the  quartermaster  office ;  he 
had  been  appointed  by  Gov.  Slade,  of 
Vermont,  quartermaster  of  the  3d.  Div. 
of  the  Vt.  militia,  Feb.  i,  1840.  He  sailed 
for  Mexico,  May  27,  1847.  He  was  in  the 
first  engagements  at  Contreras  and  Churu- 
busco. 

For  his  brave  conduct  in  these  engage- 
ments he  received  a  brevet,  and  from  that 
time  was  mentioned  and  thanked  in  gen- 


124 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


eral  orders  in  nearly  every  engagement 
under  Gen.  Scott.  Col.  Ransom,  the 
commander  of  the  regiment,  loved  him  as 
his  son,  and  was  as  proud  of  him  as  one 
brave  man  can  be  of  another.  At  Chepul- 
tepec,  where  Ransom  fell,  young  Kimball 
with  the  Vermont  boys,  was  the  first  to 
reach  the  Mexican  flag  on  the  heights, 
which  he  tore  down  quick  as  a  flash,  and 
surmounted  with  the  stripes  and  stars. 

Owing  to  some   misunderstanding,  the 
credit  of  tliis  achievement   was  given  to 
Major  Seymour,  of  the  regiment,  whom  it 
made  so  famous  that  he  became  the  gov- 1 
ernor  of  Connecticut.  I 

After  the  fight,  he  was  given  a  picket 
body  of  men  to  open  communications  with 
the  city  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  to  bring  up  sup- 
plies and  recruits  for  the  army.  This  duty 
having  been  satisfactorily  performed,  he 
was  placed  in  command  of  the  vessel, 
taking  the  troops  home  to  Ft.  Adams, 
R.  I.  He  had  also  received  his  commis- 
sion as  brevet  major.  Aug.  20,  1847,  and 
his  welcome  home  was  an  ovation  from  the 
time  he  left  Fort  Adams  until  he  visited 
Cabot,  the  scene  of  his  childhood  days, 
where  the  oldest  and  most  respected  cit- 
ijfins,  headed  by  Captain  Perry,  a  soldier 
of  the  Vt.  Militia,  as  their  Grand  Marshal, 
paraded  and  marched  through  the  town  in 
his  honor,  and  in  the  evening  a  grand  ban- 
quet was  spread,  where  he  was  welcomed 
home  by  people  of  all  shades  of  political 
and  social  life. 

During  all  these  stirring  records  of  his 
life  there  was  one  who  watched  his  every 
movement,  and  shared  with  him  in  his 
triumph  and  glory,  and  2  years  later,  Nov. 
I,  1849,  Major  Kimball  was  married  at  the 
church  where  they  had  both  been  bap- 
tized, to  her  in  whose  heart  his  memory 
will  ever  be  green.  At  this  time  he  was 
the  Route  Agent  from  Wells  River  to 
Boston.  The  following  year  the  young 
couple  came  to  New  York  City,  where 
Major  Kimball  obtained  a  responsible  po- 
sition on  the  New  York  Herald.  He  re- 
mained on  the  Herald  \\xi\S\.  1853,  when  he 
was  appointed  by  President  Pierce  in  the 
New  York  Custom  House.     It  was  while 


there  employed  that  the  Southern  rebellion 
broke  out. 

Apr.  16.  1861,  Major  Kimball  wrote  to 
Gov.  Fairbanks,  of  Vermont,  offering  his 
services.  The  Governor  was  unable  to  give 
him  a  command.  He  next  offered  his  ser- 
vices to  the  9th  New  York  Vols.  (Haw- 
kins Zouaves)  and  was  elected.  This  reg- 
iment was  first  ordered  to  Riker's  Island, 
in  the  East  river.  While  here  the  news 
agents  of  New  York  City  presented  to 
iMajor  Kimball  an  elegant  sword,  and  his 
friends  of  the  Custom  House  a  beautiful 
pair  of  epaulettes.  The  march  of  the 
"Ninth"  down  Broadway  to  the  seat  of 
war  was  one  of  the  grandest  ovations  of 
the  kind  ever  witnessed  in  the  metropolis. 

The  Major,  b}-  his  soldierly  bearing, 
fame,  bravery  and  experience  in  the  Mex- 
ican War,  inspired  the  men  with  confi- 
dence, and  the  regiment  had  perfected 
itself  in  drill  and  discipline.  They  were 
looked  upon  with  pride  and  affection  by 
the  city  of  New  York.  June  5,  the  reg- 
iment left  New  York,  embarked  on  the 
"Marion "  and  "  George  Peabody  "  ;  June 
10,  it  covered  the  rear  of  our  retreating 
forces  at  Big  Bethel.  It  was  not  other- 
wise actively  engaged  with  the  enemy  in 
this  engagement.  Aug.  4,  '61,  Major  K. 
was  surprised  by  the  following  communi- 
cation : 

Camp  Butler,  Newport  News,  Va.,  \ 
August  4,  1 861.  \ 

Maj.  E.  A.  Kimball,  ^h  Reg.  N.  Y.  Vols: 

We,  the  undersigned  officers  of  the    ist 
Regiment  Vermont  Volunteer  Militia,  be- 
ing about  to  depart  to  our  native  State  to 
I  be  mustered  out  of  the  service  of  the  U.S. 
I  Government,  do  hereby  tender  to  you  our 
!  kindest  regards,  and  ho^e  ere  long  to  see 
'  vou   in     your    appropriate    position,    the 
Commander    of    a    Regiment    of    Green 
Mountain  Boys  of  such  men  as  you  have 
'  heretofore  led  to  victory  on  six  different 
i  battle-fields  in  support  of  the  honor  and 
flag  of  your  country,  and  we  ardently  de- 
!  sire  to  see  you  again  manfully  fighting  at 
'  the  head  of  a  regiment,  leading  to  victory, 
I  honor  and  glory,  the  citizen  soldiery  of 
I  vour  own  much-loved  State  of  Vermont. 

To  command  a  regiment  of  Green 
:  Mountain  Boys  was  an  ardent,  long-felt 
j  desire  of  Major  Kimball's.     He  was  one  of 


CABOT. 


125 


the  first  to  offer  his  services  to  Governor 
Fairbanks.  It  was  always  a  regret  that 
tinged  the  remainder  of  hisHfe  that  a  com- 
mand had  not  been  offered  him  from  that 
State,  for  he  felt  that  his  services  in  Mexico 
entitled  him  to  such  an  honor.  A  few 
days  after  the  battle  of  Roanoke  Island  he 
wrote  home  to  his  wife  : 

We  have  had  a  big  fight  and  a  splendid 
victory.  I  have  not  time  to  tell  you  the 
particulars,  except  that  I  charged  the  bat- 
tery at  the  head  of  my  New  York  boys. 
God  bless  them !  we  carried  it.  It  was 
fully  equal  to  anything  I  ever  saw  before. 
The  prisoners  say  they  fired  at  me  time 
and  time  again,  and  that  I  must  bear  a 
charmed  life.  They  did  fire  at  me  smartly. 
You  will  see  the  papers.  I  am  well  now, 
but  can't  go  through  many  more  as  I  did 
the  other.  /  wish  I  could  have  made  the 
same  charge  at  the  head  of  a  Vermont  Reg- 
iment, but  it  was  not  to  be  so. 

A  sore  spot  in  his  heart ;  he  loved  the 
Vermont  boys.  In  another  letter  to  his 
wife : 

You  may  rest  assured  if  we  have  a  chance, 
you  will  hear  a  good  account  of  us.  Our 
regiment  numbers  950  men,  and  next  to 
the  "old  Mexico  9th,"  is  the  best  I  ever 
saw. 

Feb.  8,  '62,  the  battle  of  Roanoke  Island, 
where  the  regiment  gained  its  first  fame, 
making  the  first  decisive,  successful  bay- 
onet charge  of  the  war.  The  battle  had 
been  raging  for  some  time  when  the  Third 
Brigade  was  sent  for,  ^nd  they  began  to 
advance,  the  "Ninth"  taking  the  lead. 
The  road  was  a  long,  narrow  causeway, 
flanked  by  marsh  and  ditches,  and  at  the 
head  a  three-gun  battery  had  a  range  of 
the  field.  The  left  wing  advanced,  led  by 
Kimball,  sword  in  hand,  cheering  on  his 
men.  "Now  is  the  time,  and  you  are  the 
men,"  cried  Gen.  Foster,  and  the  Zouaves 
rushed  forward,  with  their  peculiar  cry  of 
"  Zou  !  Zou  !  Zou!"  their  red  caps  and 
blue,  baggy  uniform  filling  the  narrow 
causeway,  the  intrepid  Kimball  leading 
them.  The  thunder  of  the  rebel  guns  was 
heard ;  quick  as  their  flash  every  man 
prostrates  himself  upon  his  face  ;  the  iron 
grape  and  cannister  speed  overhead,  and 
lodge  behind,  scattering  death  among  the 
other  troops.      The   Zouaves  mount  the 


parapet  upon  which  their  colors  are  plant- 
ed, and  before  the  rebel  gunners  have 
time  to  reload,  their  soldiers  are  flying  in 
terror  to  the  rear.  A  prisoner  after  the 
battle  said  :  "It  was  perfectly  frightful  to 
witness  the  mad  ■  career  in  which  the 
Zouaves  advanced  upon  a  work  which, 
until  that  moment,  every  one  in  it  had 
supposed  to  be  impregnable." 

From  report  of  General  Parke  to  General 
Burnside  : 

The  delay  in  the  progress  of  the  troops 
through  the  swamp  being  so  great,  it  was 
decided  to  change  the  course  of  the  9th 
N.  Y.  Regiment,  and  the  order  was  sent 
to  the  Colonel  to  turn  to  the  left,  and 
charge  the  battery  directly  up  the  road, 
and  the  regiment,  with  a  hearty  yell  and 
cheer,  struck  into  the  road,  and  made  for 
the  battery  on  the  run.  The  order  was 
given  to  charge  the  enemy  with  fixed  bay- 
onets. This  was  done  in  gallant  style. 
Major  Kimball  taking  the  lead.  The 
Major  was  very  conspicuous  during  the 
movement,  and  I  take  great  pleasure  in 
commending  him  to  your  favorable  notice. 

Col.  Hawkins  in  his  report: 

Upon  reaching  the  battle-ground,  I  was 
ordered  to  outflank  the  enemy  on  their  left, 
where  they  were  in  position  behind  an  in- 
trenchment,  mounting  three  guns.  After 
leading  the  Ninth  New  York  into  a  marsh, 
immediately  in  front  of  the  enemy's  work, 
amidst  a  heavy  fire  from  them  of  grape 
and  musketry,  the  order  was  given  to 
charge  the  regiment  with  fixed  bayonets. 
This  was  done  in  gallant  style.  Major 
Kimball  taki^ig  the  lead. 

A  friend  who  served  with  the  Major  in 
Mexico  writes  to  him  : 

My  Dear  Major: — Glory  to  God  in  the 
highest !  I  have  just  been  reading  an  ac- 
count of  your  gallant  charge  at  the  head  of 
your  boys  on  Roanoke  Island.  It  fairly 
made  the  tears  come  into  my  eyes  when  I 
read  of  my  old  commander's  offer  to  lead 
the  charge,  and  doing  it,  too,  as  no  one 
but  he  could  do  it.  I  would  give  ten  years 
of  my  life  to  have  been  by  your  side.  I 
glory  in  your  glory,  and  would  like  to 
shake  the  hand  of  every  boy  of  the  9th. 
God  bless  the  number !  The  glorious  news 
from  Roanoke  tells  me  that  you  have  been 
doing  to  the  flag  of  the  rebels  what  you 
did  to  the  Mexican  flag  in  '47.  I  am  not 
disappointed,  for  I  knew  that  you  would 
allow  no  one  to  get  nearer  the  enemy  than 
yourself. 

Shortly   after    this   battle,   Lieut.   Col. 


126 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Betts,  of  the  regiment,  resigned,  and  Maj. 
Kimball  was  promoted  to  Lieut.  Colonel, 
Feb.  14,  1862. 

At  the  battle  of  South  Mills,  N.  C, 
Ap.  9,  '61,  Col.  Kimball  displayed  the 
same  bravery,  riding  in  the  midst  of  the 
battle,  at  the  head  of  the  "  Ninth,"  or- 
dered to  charge  the  enemy.  This  battle, 
comparatively  unheard  of,  was  of  the  ut- 
most importance  to  the  country,  as  it  led 
to  the  evacuation  of  the  city  of  Norfolk. 
The  regiment  marched  46  miles  in  26 
hours,  in  addition  to  battle.  Col.  Kim- 
ball, writing  of  it  to  his  wife,  says  : 

We  have  had  a  terrible  fight,  the  hottest 
fire  I  was  ever  under.  My  horse  was  shot 
under  me.  We  lost  73  men  from  our  reg- 
iment.    I  escaped,  as  usual,  unhurt. 

At  South  Mountain,  September  14,  the 
"Ninth"  supported  Clark's  Battery  of 
Regulars,  the  prelude  to  "  Antietam." 
Major  Judevine  had  command  of  the  89th 
N.  Y.  The  enemy  made  several  fierce 
charges  upon  this  battery,  which  was  gal- 
lantly supported  by  the  "Ninth"  under 
its  gallant  Colonel.  After  crossing  Antie- 
tam Creek,  in  the  face  of  a  heavy  fire  by 
the  enemy's  sharp-shooters,  the  enemy 
took  position  under  the  brow  of  the  steep 
heights,  many  of  the  enemy's  shells  strik- 
ing in  front  of  them,  and  ricocheting  over 
their  heads  before  exploding,  while  others 
burst  in  the  ranks,  killing  and  wounding 
the  brave  boys.  Kimball  in  command, 
impatiently  waiting  the  order  to  advance, 
with  sword  in  hand,  stood  upon  the  brow 
of  the  hill,  the  perfect  picture  of  the  hero. 

The  long-expected  command  came,  the 
regiment  rashed  to  the  top  of  the  hill, 
their  leader  in  advance.  Storm  of  shot 
and  shell  greeted  them.  Zou-Zou-Zou ! 
their  war-cry  rang  wildly  above  the  bat- 
tle's din.  Outstripping  far  the  rest  of  their 
line  in  their  daring  charge,  on  they  swept. 
.  .  .  .  Men  falling  at  every  step  far  back 
as  could  be  seen,  the  track  of  the  regiment 
strewn  with  the  slain,  the  brave  Kimball  or- 
dered his  bugler,  Flocton,  by  his  side,  to 
blow  the  "  Assembly  of  the  Ninth."  It  was 
done  ;  the  regiment  rallied  ;  they  encounter 
a  stone  wall ;  with  a  wild  cheer  they  sur- 
mount it.     Here   a   terrific   bayonet  fight 


takes  place  ;  the  Zouaves  hold  their  own  ; 
re-inforcements  arrive  ;  the  enemy  retreat 
in  wild  confusion.  Kimball  writes  to  his 
beloved  wife : 

I  am  out  of  the  hardest-fought  battle  I 
was  ever  in,  and  probably  the  hardest 
fought  on  this  continent.  I  lost  221  out 
of  469  of  my  regiment  which  I  took  into 
action.  I  got  a  slight  bruise.  It  was  only 
by  the  mercy  of  Divine  Providence  that 
any  of  us  escaped.  We  have  fought  a 
great  battle,  and  won  a  great  victory,  but 

the   cost   has   been  immense 

I  had  my  horse  shot  under  me  by  a  shell 
explosion.     He  is  well,  however. 

For  his  meritorious  conduct  in  this 
battle.  Col.  Kimball  was  especially  men- 
tioned and  thanked  in  the  ofiicial  report  of 
Gen.  Cox,  commanding  the  9th  army 
corps. 

At  Fredericksburg,  under  General  Burn- 
side,  the  regiment  was  engaged.  Colonel 
Kimball  in  command.     He  writes  : 

Dear  Lite: — The  cannon  are  now  firing 
so  the  very  earth  quakes  ;  near  400  of  them 
in  action.  We  get  in  line  in  a  few  min- 
utes. God  knows  how  soon  the  line  may 
be  broken,  and  who  comes  out  of  to-day. 
To-day  will  undoubtedly  decide  the  fate  of 
our  nation,  and  if  I  fall,  God  knows  I  shall 
do  so  loving  my  country.  Already  has 
commenced  one  of  the  greatest  battles  of 
the  world.  My  horse  is  saddled  and  before 
my  tent,  and  we  shall  attempt  to  cross  the 
river  in  a  few  minutes.    God  bless  you  all ! 

Addison. 

But  with  all  his  dash  and  intrepidity, 
many  an  officer  and  soldier  in  the  ranks 
can  bear  witness  that  in  battle  he  was  cool 
and  collected  as  on  parade.  He  was  no 
holiday  soldier ;  he  dreaded  the  horrors  of 
a  battle-field,  but  personally  knew  no  fear; 
a  braver  man  and  truer  soldier  never  lived. 
He  was  a  patriot,  and  that  patriotism  was 
not  born  of  the  rebellion.  He  had  a  rev- 
erence for  the  old  flag.  He  was  often 
heard  to  say  :  It  is  the  proudest  flag  that 
floats,  and  his  right  arm  and  his  life  were 
always  ready  in  its  defence. 

He  fought  in  other  battles  as  heroically. 
When  Col.  Kimball  commanded,  he  al- 
ways led  his  men  into  the  battle  ;  and  yet 
how  reluctantly  we  come  to  that  fatal  night, 
Apr.  12,  1863.  On  that  night  the  reg- 
iment lost  its  father  and  the  nation  one  of 


CABOT. 


127 


its  most  gallant  and  heroic  defenders — the 
hero  of  sixteen  battles,  in  which  he  had 
been  the  "  bravest  of  the  brave,"  and  that 
not  by  the  sword,  nor  by  the  bayonet  of 
the  enemy  ;  the  regiment  could  have  borne 
that ;  but  he  was  mercilessly  shot  down  in 
cold  blood  by  an  officer  of  the  same  army, 
most  recreant  deed ! 

By  order  from  Gen.  Dix,  the  regiment 
in  command  of  Gen.  Peck,  left  Pittsmouth 
for  Suffolk  the  eve  of  the  12th,  marching 
the  distance  of  30  miles,  and  coming  in  at 
I  o'clock  at  night  the  13th.  The  troops 
were  ordered  to  be  under  arms  at  3  o'clock. 
Col.  Kimball  was  tired  and  worn  out,  but 
his  soldierly  instincts  would  not  let  him 
sleep  until,  an  attack  being  expected,  he 
had  made  inspection  of  the  ground.  While 
thus  engaged,  on  foot,  with  no  weapon  but 
his  sword,  he  encountered  a  body  of  horse- 
men, and  soldier  as  he  was,  on  his  own 
camp-ground,  he  immediately  ordered  a 
halt,  and  demanded  the  countersign,  plac- 
ing his  hand  at  the  same  time  upon  the 
hilt  of  his  sword,  as  if  in  the  act  of  draw- 
ing it.  The  body  of  horsemen  were  Brig- 
adier General  Michael  Corcoran,  who  was 
officer  of  the  day,  and  his  staff,  who,  with- 
out a  word  of  warning,  drew  a  pistol  from 
his  holster  and  fired,  the  ball  striking  the 
Colonel  in,  and  passing  through,  his  neck. 
Fool-hardy  and  terrible  blunder  !  The 
news  spread  through  camp  like  wild- 
fire. The  regiment  was  frantic.  They 
could  not  realize  at  first  the  lament- 
able, and  to  them  costly,  situation  of 
affairs.  He,  for  whom  they  all  thought  no 
bullet  was  ever  cast,  shot  down  in  cold 
blood.  Their  indignation  knew  no  bounds, 
and  they  demanded  immediate  court- 
martial,  and  refused  to  do  duty,  and  threat- 
ened dire  vengeance  unless  it  was  done.  It 
was  not  until  Gen.  Getty  promised  imme- 
diate investigation,  they  were  restrained. 
There  was  no  justification  for  the  act.  It 
was  entirely  dastardly.  Col.  Kimball  was 
alone,  without  his  fire-arms,  on  foot ;  Gen. 
Corcoran  was  accompanied  by  his  staff, 
himself  and  all  armed,  on  horseback.  He 
could  have  had  Kimball  arrested  by  one  of 
his  staff  officers  if  he  had  deemed  it  proper, 
but  Col.  Kimball  was  only  in  the  perform- 


ance of  a  duty  upon  his  own  ground.  The 
arrogant  and  hot  Corcoran  was  piqued  by 
having  the  countersign  demanded  of  him. 
Napoleon  was  stopped  by  a  sentinel. 
Washington  was  stopped  by  a  sentinel ; 
Frederick  the  Great.  Did  any  of  these 
great  commanders  shoot  their  sentinel? 
Would  it  not  have  been  more  manly,  more 
soldierly,  in  General  Corcoran  to  have 
either  given  or  demanded  the  countersign, 
than  thus  hastily  to  have  shot  that  brave 
man  and  officer  on  his  own  ground.  In 
any  other  country  it  would  have  been 
murder.  But  General  Corcoran  met  his 
deserts.  Not  long  afterwards,  while  out 
riding,  he  fell  from  his  horse  and  broke 
his  neck. 

The  body  was  embalmed,  and  under  an 
escort  detailed  from  the  regiment,  and  a 
committee  from  the  city  authorities,  was 
brought  to  New  York,  where  it  lay  in  state 
in  the  Governor's  rooms  at  the  City  Hall, 
and  thousands  of  people  viewed  the  re- 
mains, and  shed  tears  as  they  gazed  upon 
the  dead  soldier,  whose  bravery  in  battle 
was  upon  the  lips  of  all.  Never  was  the 
dead  admired  more  by  his  audience.  Of 
what  avail  to  him  so  ruthlessly  slain  ?  The 
flag  draped  his  coffin,  and  the  flag  was 
covered  with  the  most  beautiful  flowers ; 
depended  from  the  sweetest  flower-cluster, 
"We  mourn  our  loss."  The  sword,  belt 
and  cap  lay  among  the  flowers.  The  dog 
which  had  followed  its  master  through  all 
his  campaigns,  lay  crouched  beneath,  des- 
olate and  inconsolable,  faithful  and  true  to 
the  last. 

Six  war-worn  Zouaves  bore  the  coffin  to 
the  hearse ;  the  military  escort  presented 
arms  ;  a  salvo  of  21  gims  was  fired  from  a 
battery  in  the  park ;  Battalion  of  police, 
under  Capt.  Mills  ;  First  Regiment  N.  G.  S. 
N.  Y.  (Cavalry)  Lieut.  Col.  Minten,  com- 
manding ;  Sixty-ninth  Regiment,  Major 
Bagley,  commanding  ;  Seventy-first  Reg- 
iment, Col.  Trafford,  commanding  ;  with 
arms  reversed  ;  volunteer  officers  ;  with  the 
faithful  dog;  the  Col's,  horse,  led  by  his 
old,  orderly  Sergeant ;  hearse  drawn  by 
six  horses  drajDed  in  mourning,  flanked  by 
the  pall-bearers  and  Cols.  Roome,  Varain, 
Maidhoff,  Ward,  Mason,  Lieut.  Cols.  Grant 


128 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  Burke ;  widow  and  friends  in  car- 
riages ;  officers  of  the  ist  Division  N.  G.  S. 
N.  Y.  Detacliment  of  the  original  Hawkins 
Zouaves  ;  Detachment  of  the  Second  Bat- 
talion of  Hawkins  Zouaves  ;  the  Mayor  and 
Common  Council  in  carriages ;  citizens  in 
carriages  ;  upon  public  and  private  build- 
ings flags  at  half-mast ;  the  procession 
moved  to  Greenwood. 

The  regiment  placed  a  handsome  mon- 
ument over  his  grave.  Colonel  Kimball 
was  40  years  of  age,  10  mos.  The  Zouave 
Militia  Regiment,  formed  of  the  surviving 
members  of  the  regiment,  named  for  him 
their  first  Co.  in  1865:  "  E.  A.  Kimball 
Post  100."  A  large  and  handsome  paint- 
ing of  him  adorns  the  Post-room,  and 
every  May,  the  remnant  of  that  old  reg- 
iment go  down  to  Greenwood  to  decorate 
his  grave. 

♦  Nor  sliall  your  slory  be  forgot, 

Wliile  fame  her  record  keeps  ; 
Or  lioiior  points  tlie  hallowed  spot 
Wliere  valor  proudly  sleeps. 

historian's  note. 

THE  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  OF  THE  WRITEK. 

At  the  regular  March  meeting,  1 88 1 ,  the 
selectmen  were  instructed  to  agree  with 
some  one,  at  a  reasonable  compensation, 
to  write  the  history  of  Cabot.  Accordingly 
the  one  whose  name  stands  at  the  head  of 
this  paper  was  engaged  for  the  task.  To 
me  it  has  been  a  very  pleasant  undertaking, 
although  at  times  somewhat  discouraging, 
on  account  of  the  difficulty  in  gathering 
statistics  and  information  as  closely  as  I 
wished ;  but  I  have  discharged  the  duties 
to  the  best  of  my  ability,  with  what  I  had 
to  do  with,  and  I  hope  that  my  labors  have 
not  been  wholly  in  vain,  but  that  these 
pages  may  be  of  some  interest  to  those 
who  shall  read  them  now,  that  we  may 
see  something  of  the  sufferings  and  priva- 
tions that  the  first  settlers  endured  to  bring 
about  the  comforts  with  which  we  are  sur- 
rounded ;  and  when  another  century  shall 
have  passed,  and  the  historian  shall  take 
his  pen  to  record  its  history,  may  he  find 
as  many  noble  and  commendable  acts  in 
those  upon  the  stage  at  the  present  time  to 
record,  as  we  have  found  in  those  who 
have  preceded  us  in  the  past  one  hundred 
years. 


Those  who  have  most  kindly  assisted 
me  in  this  labor  are  not  only  worthy  of 
my  thanks,  but  the  unfeigned  gratitude  of 
the  whole  town,  and  the  Editor  who  has 
undertaken,  and  carried  so  near  to  com- 
pletion, the  noble  work  of  gathering  up  the 
history  of  each  town  in  the  State,  coming 
generations  should  rise  up  and  call  her 
blessed.  J.  M.  F. 

July,  1881. 


CALAIS. 

BY   JAMES  K.  TOBEY  AND.  EDWIN  E.  ROBINSON. 

Location  :  In  the  north-easterly  part  of 
Washington  Co. ;  bounded  northerly  by 
Woodbury,  easterly  by  Marshfield,  south- 
erly by  East  Montpelier,  westerly  by  Wor- 
cester. The  easterly  line  passes  its  entire 
length  along  the  summit  of  the  ridge,  di- 
viding the  valley  of  the  Winooski  in 
Marshfield  from  the  territory  drained  by 
Kingsbury  branch,  and  the  westerly  line 
about  half  a  mile  west  of,  and  nearly  pai- 
allel  with,  the  ridge  dividing  the  waters  of 
Kingsbury  branch  from  those  of  North 
branch  in  Worcester.  The  northerly  line 
crosses  the  southern  portion  of  two  quite 
large  ponds,  that  receive  the  streams, 
draining  the  southern  and  central  portions 
of  Woodbury  about  one-third  of  the  surface 
of  that  town. 

From  Sabin  pond,  the  most  easterly  of 
these,  Kingsbury  branch  flows  southerly, 
leaving  the  town  near  the  S.  E.  corner. 
Nelson  pond,  near  the  middle  of  the  north 
line,  discharges  its  waters  southerly  into 
Wheelock  pond,  the  largest  in  town,  and 
thence  by  the  Center  branch  southerly  and 
easterly  into  Kingsbury  branch,  some  2 
miles  from  the  S.  E.  corner  of  the  town. 
About  a  mile  from  the  west  line,  and  near 
its  middle,  is  Curtis  pond,  discharging  its 
waters  S.  E.  into  the  Center  branch. 
Near  the  center  bf  the  town,  and  a  mile 
and  a  half  farther  south,  this  branch  re- 
ceives the  waters  from  Bliss  pond,  in  the 
S.  W.  part  of  the  town.  All  the  pondsand 
streams  above  mentioned,  except  Center 
branch,  received  their  names  from  early 
settlers  in  their  vicinity.  Near  the  middle 
of  the  south  line  is  Sodom  pond,  discharg- 


CALMS. 


i29 


ing  its  waters  into  the  Winooski  near  East 
Montpelier  village.  Kingsbury  branch 
drains  about  four-fifths  of  the  surface  of 
the  town ;  of  the  remainder  about  two- 
thirds  is  drained  into  North  branch,  and 
the  rest  into  Sodom  pond. 

Among  our  highest  points  of  land  are 
Hersey  and  Robinson  hills,  in  the  western 
ridge  near  Worcester  line.  These  are 
cleared  to  their  summits,  excellent  j^asture, 
and  affording  fine  views  of  nearly  the  whole 
town,  and  eastward  to  the  eastern  range  of 
the  Green  Mountains,  with  an  occasional 
glimpse  of  the  White'Mountains  beyond, 
while  at  the  west  the  view  includes  nearly 
all  of  Worcester,  and  is  bounded  by  the 
mountains  in  the  western  part  of  that  town. 
The  surface  is  quite  broken,  but  there  is 
very  little  land  in  town  not  available  for 
farm  purposes.  The  soil  is  generally  a 
fertile  loam,  in  places  of  a  lighter  charac- 
ter, inclining  to  sand.  The  underlying 
rock  is  slate  and  limestone,  often  inter- 
mixed, and  furnishing  enough  small  stones 
in  the  surface  soil  to  constantly  remind  the 
ploughman  that,  having  put  his  hand  to 
the  plough,  he  should  not  look  back.  At 
the  same  time  the  soil  is  comparatively 
free  from  "cobble  stones"  and  boulders 
except  in  limited  localities. 

The  General  Assembly  of  the  State,  in 
se.ssion  at  Arlington,  October  21st,  1780, 

Resolved,  that  there  be,  and  we  Do 
hereby,  grant  unto  Colonel  Jacob  Davis, 
Mr.  Stephen  Fay  and  Company,  to  the 
Number  of  Sixty,  a  Township  of  Land  by 
the  Name  of  Calais,  Situated  in  this  State, 
Bounded  as  follows,  and  lying  East  of, 
and  adjoining  to,  Worcester,  and  north 
of  Montpelier,  Containing  Twenty-three 
Thousand  and  forty  acres,  and  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Council  are  hereby  Requested 
to  State  the  fees  for  Granting  Said  tract, 
and  Issue  a  Grant  under  such  Restrictions 
and  Regulations  as  they  shall  Judge  Proper. 
— Extract  from  the  Journals.  R.  Hopkins, 
clerk. 

The  same  day  in  Council  it  was 

Resolved,  that  the  fees  for  granting  the 
said  tract  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  set  at 
four  hundred  and  Eighty  Pounds  LawfuU 
Money  in  silver,  or  an  Equivalent  in  Con- 
tinental Currency,  to  be  Paid  by  the  said 
Jacob  Davis,  Stephen  Fay,  or  their  Attor- 
ney, on  the  Execution  of  the  Charter  of 


incorporation  on  or  before  the  first  Day  of 
January  Next. — Extract  from  the  minutes. 
Joseph  Fay,  Sec'y. 

One  month  after  the  grant  was  made, 
the  first  recorded  meeting  of  the  propri- 
etors was  held,  and  the  following  record 
made  : 

At  Public  Meeting  of  the  Proprietors  of 
the  Township  of  Calais,  at  the  house  of 
Mr.  Elisha  Thomson,  Inholder  in  Charlton, 
Mass.,  November  20th,  1780,  came  to  the 
following  votes,   [viz.]    [58  Present]  : 

istly.  Voted  and  Chose  Colo.  Jacob 
Davis,  Moderator. 

2dly.  Voted  and  Chose  Stephen  Fay, 
Proprietor's  Clerk. 

3dly.  Voted  that  Mr.  Stephen  Fay  to 
apply  to  the  Authority  of  the  State  of  Ver- 
mont for  the  Charter  of  incorporation  of 
s'd  Township,  and  for  Each  Proprietor  to 
pay  their  Money  to  him,  the  s'd  Fay,  the 
sum  of  Eight  Pounds  silver  money,  or 
Cont'l.  Currency  equivalent  thereto,  it 
being  in  full  for  Granting  fees  for  each 
Right  in  said  Township.  By  the  thirtieth 
day  of  December  Next  (or  be  excluded 
from  any  further  Right  or  Property  in 
Said  Township.) 

4thly.  for  the  Clerk  to  give  Notice  of 
the  above  article  by  Posting. 

5thly.  Voted  for  each  Proprietor  to 
Pay  their  Equal  Proportion  of  their  Agents 
time  and  expenses  to  obtain  the  grant  of 
said  Township  by  the  nth  Day  of  De- 
cember next,  and  for  the  Clerk  to  enter 
their  names,  or  cause  their  names  to  be 
entered,  in  the  Charter  of  said  Township. 

6thly.  Voted  to  adjourn  this  Meeting 
to  the  first  Wednesday  in  April  next,  at 
one  o'clock  afternoon,  to  this  place.  Errors 
Excepted.       Attest,         Ste'n.  Fay, 

Pro.  Clerk. 

There  is  no  record  of  the  adjourned 
meeting,  and  probably  none  was  held,  and 
the  proprietors  do  not  seem  to  have  met 
the  requirements  of  the  grant  in  regard  to 
payment  of  the  granting  fee,  as  shown : 

Arlington,  29th  of  Jan'y.  1781. 
Rec'd  of  Mr.  Stephen  Fay,  Two  Hun- 
dred and  Thirty-three  Pounds,  fourteen 
Shillings  and  three  Pence,  LawfuU  money. 
Towards  Granting  fees  of  the  Town  of 
Calais.     Rec'd. 

Pr.  Me,    Thomas  Chittenden, 
Committee. 

The  time  of  paying  the  balance  was  ex- 
tended to  March  following : 

Arlington,  loth  of  September,  1781. 

Rec'd  of  Stephen  Fay,  By  the  hand  of 
Noah  Chittenden,  three  Pounds,  thirteen 


17 


130 


VERMONT  HlSTORICALlMAGAZlNE. 


Shillings,  as  Part  of  the  Granting  fees  of 
the  Town  of  Calais.     Rec'd  by  me, 

Thomas  Chittenden. 

Boston,  28th  of  September,  1781. 
Rec'd  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  Two  Hun- 
dred and  forty- two  Pounds,  Twelve  Sliil- 
lings  and  Ninepence  in  full  of  the  Grant- 
ing fees  of  the  Town  of  Calais,  in  the  State 
of  Vermont,  within  mentioned. 

Pr.     Noah  Chittenden. 

Previous  to  the  payment  of  the  two  last 
mentioned  sums,  the  charter  was  issued : 

Unto  the  said  Jacob  Davis,  Stephen 
Fay,  and  to  the  several  persons  hereafter 
named,  their  associates  [viz]  :  Ephraim 
Starkweather,  Lemuel  KoHock, Noah  Good- 
man, Seth  Washburn,  Joseph  Dorr,  Justin 
Ely,  Abel  Goodell,  Shubal  Peck,  Nathan 
Tyler,  David  Wheelock,  Nehemiah  Stone, 
Nehemiah  Stone,  Jun'r.,  Phinehas  Slay- 
ton,  Phinehas  Slayton,  Jun'r.,  Daniel 
Bacon,  JunV.,  Henry  Fisk,  Jun'r.,  Peter 
Wheelock,  Sarah  Davis,  Ezra  Davis,  Dan- 
iel Steeter,  Eli  Jones,  Josiah  Town,  Peter 
Sleeman,  Salem  Town,  Samuel  Robinson, 
of  Charlton,  Ebenezer  White,  Jun'r.,  Eli 
Wheelock,  John  Mower,  David  Hammond, 
Elisha  Thomson,  Caleb  Ammidown,  Na- 
thaniel Wellington,  Peter  Taft,  William 
Ware,  David  Fisk,  David  Fay,  of  Charl- 
ton, Thomas  Foskett,  Marvin  Mower,  Jer- 
emiah Davis,  Job  Rutter,  Jonathan  Tucker, 
Richard  Coburn,  Jonathan  Rich,  Ebenezer 
Allen  [Clerk],  Abijah  Lamb,  Ebenezer 
Lamb,  Edward  Woolcott,  Lemuel  Ed- 
wards, Abner  Mellen,  JobMerrit,  William 
Comins,  Isaiah  Rider,  Samuel  Fay,  Elisha 
Town,  Oliver  Starkweather,  John  Stark- 
weather, Bezaleel  Mann  and  John  Morey. 

The  usual  reservation  of  iive  rights  for 
public  uses  follows  in  the  charter,  and  then 
the  boundaries.  And  that  the  same  be, 
and  hereby  is,  incorporated  into  a  town- 
ship by  the  name  of  Calais. 

The  charter  closes  with  the  following : 

Conditions  and  Reservations,  viz.  :  that 
each  Proprietor  in  the  Township  of  Calais, 
aforesaid,  his  Heirs  or  Assigns,  shall  Plant 
and  Cultivate  five  acres  of  land,  and  build 
an  house  at  least  eighteen  feet  square  on 
the  floor,  or  have  one  family  settled  on 
each  respective  Right  within  the  term  of 
three  years  next  after  the  circumstances  of 
the  War  will  admit  of  a  settlement  with 
safety,  on  Penalty  of  the  forfeiture  of  each 
respective  Right  of  land  in  said  Township 
not  so  improved  or  settled,  and  the  same 
to  revert  to  the  Freemen  of  this  State,  to 
be  by  their  Representatives  regranted  to 
such  Persons  as  shall  appear  to  settle  and 


cultivate  the  same.  That  all  Pine  Timber 
suitable  for  a  Navy  be  reserved  for  the  use 
and  Benefit  of  the  Freemen  of  this  State. 

In  Testimony  whereof  we  have  caused 
the  seal  of  this  State  to  be  affixed.  In 
Council  this  Fifteenth  Day  of  August, 
Anno  Domini,  one  Thousand  seven  Hun- 
dred and  Eighty-one,  In  the  5th  year  of 
the  Independence  oi  this,  and  Sixth  of  the 
United  States.         Thos.  Chittenden. 

Joseph  Fay,  Sec'y. 

As  to  the  name  given  this  town,  we  have 
no  positive  knowledge,  and  even  tradition 
is  silent,  but  it  seems  reasonable  to  sup- 
pose that  Colonel  Jacob  Davis  suggested 
the  name  of  Calais,  as  he  is  known  to  have 
done  of  Montpelier.  He  was  largely  in- 
terested in  these  two  proposed  towns,  the 
petitions  for  both  grants  were  probably 
made  at  the  same  time,  as  they  came  be- 
fore the  General  Assembly  together,  and 
as  the  leading,  active  spirit  in  the  enter- 
prise, it  was  but  natural  that  he  should 
suggest  the  names.  He  had  become  prej- 
udiced against  the  custom,  so  common 
among  the  settlers,  of  giving  the  name  of 
the  old  home  to  the  new,  and  wishing  to 
avoid  this  in  his  selection  of  names,  his  at- 
tention was  naturally  drawn  to  France, 
rather  than  England,  by  her  attitude 
toward  this  country  at  that  time,  and  per- 
haps, also  by  thought  of  a  prior  claim 
upon  Verd  Mont  through  her  daring  and 
gallant  son  Champlain.  And  so  it  came 
about  that  two  of  the  beautiful  old  cities 
of  France  had  namesakes  in  the  Green 
Mountain  wilderness. 

The  second  proprietors'  meeting  on 
record  was  held  at  the  house  of  Maj.  Salem 
Town,  in-holder  in  Charlton,  May  18,  1783, 
when  tlie  following  officers  were  elected : 

Col.  Jacob  Davis,  moderator ;  Stephen 
Fay,  Pr.  clerk ;  Dea.  Nehemiah  Stone, 
treasurer;  Maj.  Salem  Town,  Capt.  Sam'l 
Robinson,  Mr.  Peter  Taft,  assessors  ;  Capt. 
Peter  Sleeman,  collector ;  Col.  Jacob  Davis, 
Capt.  Peter  Sleeman,  Capt.  Sam'l  Robin- 
son, a  committee  to  lot  out  s'd  lands.  Ad- 
journed, to  meet  at  the  .same  place,  August 
20,  1783,  (when  there  was)  "granted  a 
Tax  of  three  silver  dollars  on  each  Right  of 
Land  (exclusive  of  the  Public  Rights)  to 
Defray  the  back  charges  that  have  arisen. 


CALAIS. 


131 


and  also  to  enable  the  Committee  to  Lott 
out  said  Township." 

This  was  the  first  tax  laid  upon  the  town 
of  Calais,  and  it  Vas  probably  immediately 
following  this  meeting  the  first  attempt  to 
survey  the  town  was  made. 

The  following  is  from  Hon.  Shubael 
Wheeler's  account  of  Calais,  published  in 
Thompson's  Gazetteer : 

In  the  summer  of  1783,  the  proprietors 
sent  a  committee,  consisting  of  Col.  Jacob 
Davis,  Capt.  Samuel  Robinson  and  others, 
to  survey  a  division  of  this  town  of  160 
acres  to  the  right.  "  A  Mr.  Brush,  from 
Bennington,  was  the  surveyor.  The  com- 
mittee and  surveyor  found  their  way  to 
Calais  with  their  necessary  stores,  and 
after  running  four  lines  on  the  north  side 
of  the  first  division,  they  abandoned  the 
survey.  Of  their  stores,  then  left,  was  a 
much-valued  keg,  containing  about  10 
gallons  of  good  W.  l.rum,  which  in  coun- 
cil, they  determined  should  be  buried, 
which  ceremony  was  said  to  have  been 
performed  with  much  solemnity,  and  a 
sturdy  maple,  towering  above  the  sur- 
rounding trees  on  the  westerly  side  of 
Long  (Curtis)  pond,  with  its  ancient  and 
honorable  scars,  still  marks  the  conse- 
crated spot." 

At  the  next  meeting  .of  the  proprietors, 
held  Dec.  25,  1783,  "  the  Committee  Re- 
ported by  Presenting  a  Plan  of  said  Town- 
ship, Part  of  the  first  Division  Lotts  sur- 
veyed as  said  Committe  saith." 

Sixty-four  of  these  first  division  lots, 
each  one-haif  mile  square,  are  included  in 
a  scjuare  of  4  miles  on  each  side.  It  is 
supposed  that  these  lots  were  intended  to 
have  been  in  the  center  of  the  town,  leav- 
ing an  undivided  space  one  mile  wide  on 
either  side  of  them,  but  by  .some  mistake, 
their  north-easterly  boundary  is  only  y] 
rods  from  the  town  line. 

At  the  s'd  meeting,  Dec.  1783,  this  first 
division  was  drawn  by  lot  to  the  several 
proprietors,  and  they  also  voted  and 
granted  a  tax  of  54^,  8s.  8d.  silver  money, 
assessed  on  the  rights  of  land,  exclusive  of 
public  rights. 

Apr.  26,  1784,  a  meeting  was  held,  and 
the  following  officers  elected  to  fill  vacan- 
cies occasioned  by  resignations : 

Major  Salem  Town,  treasurer;  Caleb 
Ammidown,  Esq.    and     Lieut.    Jonathan 


Tucker,  assessors;  after,  nothing  for  2 
years  seems  to  have  been  done  toward 
completing  the  survey  or  settling  the  town- 
ship. 

May  29,  1786,  a  meeting  held;  Capt. 
Samuel  Robinson  chosen  to  make  applica- 
tion to  a  justice  in  Vermont,  for  a  warrant 
to  call  a  proprietors'  meeting  agreeably  to 
the  laws  of  that  State,  at  the  house  ol  Maj. 
Calvin  Parkhurst,  in  Royalton,  August  15, 
following,  Aug.  I,  1786,  a  meeting  held; 
instructions  given  to  proprietors  who  should 
attend  the  meeting  at  Royalton.  The  de- 
sign seems  to  have  been  at  this  time  to 
bring  the  transactions  of  the  proprietors 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  Vermont,  by 
authorizing  the  surveying  party  about  to 
leave  for  this  State,  to  hold  meetings  here. 

Warrant  granted  by  the  Hon.  Moses 
Robinson,  published  in  the  Vert/ioitt  Ga- 
zette, June  26,  1786;  this  being  the  first 
meeting  held  in  Vermont,  we  will  give  the 
record  in  full : 

At  a  Proprietors'  Meeting,  held  at  Maj'r 
Calvin  Parkhurst's,  in  Royalton,  in  the 
State  of  Vermont,  on  Tuesday,  the  fifteenth 
Day  of  August,  1 786,  Proceeded  as  follow- 
eth  [viz.]  : 

istly.  Voted  and  chose  Capt.  Samuel 
Robinson,  Moderator. 

2dly.  Voted  and  chose  Mr.  Stephen 
Fay,  Pro.  Clerk. 

3dly.  Voted  and  chose  Mr.  Eben'r 
Waters,  Clerk  pro  tem  ;  Voted  and  chose 
Maj'r  Calvin  Parkhurst,  Collector. 

4thly.  Voted  and  chose  Dea'n  Nehe- 
miah  Stone,  Treasurer. 

5thly.  Voted  to  establish  the  former 
Votes  of  said  ProiDrietors  (except  such  as 
refer  to  the  sale  of  Lands  and  a  former  vote 
to  Raise  Twelve  Shillings  on  each  Propri- 
etor's Right,  to  Defray  Charges.) 

6thly.  Voted  that  the  Proprietors  com- 
plete the  Survey  of  the  first  Division  Lotts 
already  begun  in  said  Township ;  also  to 
lay  out  a  second  Division  of  Lotts  in  said 
Town  to  each  Proprietor. 

7thly.  Voted  and  chose  a  Committee  of 
five  for  the  above  Purpose. 

Sthly.  Voted  and  chose  Mr.  Eben'r 
Waters  their  Surveyor  and  one  of  the  Com- 
mittee, and  Capt.  Sam'l  Robinson,  Lieut. 
Jonathan  Tucker,  Mr.  Eben'r  Stone  and 
Mr.  Parla  Davis  for  their  Committee. 

gthly.  Voted  that  the  above  Committee 
be  Empowered  to  Draw  the  Second  Di- 
vision Lots  when  the  survey  of  the  same 
is  completed. 


132 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


lothly.  Voted  for  those  Proprietors  that 
have  advanced  Money  more  than  their  Pro- 
portion of  Taxes,  Interest  until  paid. 

iithly.  Voted  to  adjourn  this  Meeting 
to  Thursday,  Seventh  Day  of  September 
Next,  one  o'clock  P.  M.,  to  the  Grand 
Camp  in  Calais,  in  the  County  of  Addison, 
in  the  State  of  Vermont. 

After  the  above  meeting,  the  committee 
started  for  "  Grand  Camp."  I  again  copy 
from  Judge  Wheeler's  account : 

In  August,  1786,  Capt.  Samuel  Robin- 
son, E.  Waters,  J.  Tucker,  E.  Stone  and 
Gen.  Parley  Davis  came  from  Charlton  to 
complete  the  survey  of  the  first  division 
and  survey  another.  This  party,  after  ar- 
riving at  the  settlement  nearest  this  place, 
which  was  at  Middlesex,  laden  with  pro- 
vision, cooking  utensils,  blankets,  axes, 
surveying  instruments,  etc.,  passed  a  dis- 
tance of  13  or  14  miles  to  the  camp  erected 
by  the  party,  who  commenced  the  survey 
three  years  previous  ;  often  on  the  way  ex- 
pressing their  anxiety  to  arrive,  that  they 
might  regale  themselves  with  the  pure 
spirit  which  had  been  permitted  to  slumber 
three  years,  and  which  they  imagined  must 
be  much  improved  in  quality  by  its  long 
rest ;  but  judge  of  their  surprise,  astonish- 
ment and  chagrin  when  in  raising  the 
earth  they  discovered  the  hoops  liad  be- 
come rotten,  the  staves  parted,  and  the 
long-anticipated  beverage  had  escaped. 
Whatever  tears  were  shed,  or  groans  ut- 
tered, at  the  burial  of  the  keg,  they  were 
not  to  be  compared  with  the  bitter  agonies 
of  its  disinterment. 

The  party  must  have  soon  recovered 
from  their  disappointment,  and  proceeded 
to  their  work  with  a  will,  for  in  less  than  a 
month  from  the  meeting  at  Royalton,  they 
were  on  their  way  homeward,  with  the 
survey  of  the  first  and  second  divisions 
completed. 

The  following  record  was  made  of  the 
first  meeting  held  in  town  : 

Sept.  7th,  1786,  Grand  Camp  in  Calais, 
the  Proprietors  met  according  to  adjourn- 
ment. 

istly.  Voted  to  and  Drawed  the  Second 
Division  Lots  in  said  Calais. 

2dly.  Voted  to  adjourn  this  Meeting  to 
Wednesday,  the  thirteenth  Day  of  Sep- 
tember, this  Instant  Month,  at  eight  o'clock 
P.  M.,  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Seth  Putnam, 
in  Middlesex.  Eben'r  Waters, 

Clerk,  Pro  teni. 

The  two  next  meetings  were  held  by  the 
party  while  on  their  homeward  journey. 
From  the  reco'xl  of  the  first  of  these  : 


istly.  Voted  to  give  to  any  Person  that 
will  erect  a  Good  Grist-Mill  and  a  good 
Saw-Mill  within  Two  years  from  this  date, 
as  near  the  Middle  of  said  Township  of 
Calais  as  he  conveniently  can,  shall  have 
one  hundred  Spanish  Milled  Dollars  and 
one  hundred  acres  of  Land  in  said  Town- 
ship. 

2dly.  to  give  to  Mrs.  Dolley  Putnam, 
wife  of  Mr.  Seth  Putnam,  one  hundred 
acres  of  Land  in  said  Calais,  Provided  she 
shall  Move  into  said  Town  before  the  last 
Day  of  June  next,  and  continue  to  Live  in 
said  Town  of  Calais  Two  years  at  least. 

Adjourned,  to  meet  two  days  afterward 
at  the  house  of  Calvin  Parkhurst,  in  Roy- 
alton. 

The  following  record  shows  the  party  to 
have  been  early  risers ;  given  for  an  ex- 
ample : 

September  15th,  1786,  the  Proprietors 
met,  according  to  the  adjournment. 

istly.  Voted  and  chose  Lieut.  Jonathan 
Tucker,  Clerk,  Pro  tem. 

2dly.  Voted  to  adjourn  this  meeting 
until  to-morrow  Morning,  at  six  o'clock, 
to  this  Place. 

The  following  day  (Saturday)  was  spent 
in  adjusting  and  allowing  accounts  for  ser- 
vices and  money  advanced,  and  providing 
for  their  payment,  and  in  arranging  various 
other  matters  mostly  pertaining  to  the  fi- 
nances of  the  proprietary. 

The  Record  closes : 

I5thly.  voted  to  adjourn  this  meeting 
to  the  second  Tuesday  in  June  next,  at 
Nine  o'clock  A  M.,  to  this  Place. 

Attest,  JoNA.  Tucker, 

Clerk  Pro  tem. 

Previous  to  the  time  to  which  the  meet- 
ings in  Vermont  were  adjourned,  as  above, 
three  meetings  were  held  in  Charlton,  Jan. 
I,  1787,  at  the  house  of  Capt.  Samuel  Rob- 
inson, the  accounts  of  the  surveying  com- 
mittee under  consideration. 

Voted  to  leave  it  with  the  Committee's 
generosity  whether  to  abate  any  of  their 
Charges  or  not. 

Mar.  I,  1787,  Daniel  Streeter,  Caleb 
Ammidown,  Phinehas  Slayton,  Sam'l  Rob- 
inson and  Peter  Wheelock  chosen  a  com- 
mittee to  agree  with  Esquire  Kollock  (who 
had  drawn  the  lot  on  which  the  first  mill 
was  built  some  6  years  afterwards)  to  build 
mills  on  his  right,  or  dispose  of  it  to  some 
one  who  would  agree  to  build. 


CALAIS. 


133 


The  last  recorded  meeting  of  the  pro- 
prietors in  Massachusetts  was  May  21, 
1787,  at  the  house  of  Salem  Town,  in 
Charlton,  where  all  previous  meetings  not 
otherwise  noted  had  been  held.  Dea. 
Daniel  Streeter  was  chosen  agent  to  act 
for  the  proprietors,  under  instructions  at 
this  time  given  him,  at  the  meeting  to  be 
held  in  Middlesex  the  next  month. 

In  accordance  with  a  warrant  published 
in  the  Vermont  Gazette  of  May  21,  1787,  a 
meeting  was  held  the  15th  of  June  follow- 
ing, at  the  house  of  Seth  Putnam,  in  Mid- 
dlesex, when  Jacob  Davis,  Daniel  Streeter 
and  Peter  Wheelock  were  chosen  to  lay 
out  and  make  roads,  and  a  tax  of  12s.  per 
right  voted  for  that  purpose. 

At  a  meeting  held  at  the  house  of  Col. 
Davis,  in  Montpelier,  in  September  follow- 
ing, $1  per  right  was  added  to  the  road 
tax,  and  each  proprietor  was  to  have  the 
privilege  of  working  out  his  portion  of  the 
tax  at  5s.  per  day,  "  they  finding  their  own 
boarding." 

The  following  account  of  settlements 
begun  this  year  is  given  by  Judge  Wheeler  : 

The  settlement  was  commenced  in  the 
spring  of  1787,  by  Francis  West,  from 
Plymouth  Co.  Mass.,  who  begun  felling 
timber  in  a  lot  adjoining  Montpelier. 

The  first  permanent  settlers,  however, 
were  Abijah,  Asa  and  Peter  Wheelock, 
who  started  from  Charlton,  June  5,  1787, 
with  awagon,  two  yoke  of  oxen,  provisions, 
tools,  etc.,  and  arrived  at  Williamstown, 
within  21  miles  of  Calais,  the  19th. 

They  had  hitherto  found  the  roads  al- 
most impassable.  Here  they  were  obliged 
to  leave  their  wagon.  Taking  a  few  nec- 
essary articles  upon  a  sled,  they  proceeded 
towards  this  town,  cutting  their  way  and 
building  causeways  as  they  passed  along. 
After  a  journey  of  two  days,  and  encamp- 
ing two  nights  in  the  woods,  they  arrived 
at  Col.  Jacob  Davis'  log  hut,  in  Mont- 
pelier, where  they  left  their  oxen  to  graze 
upon  the  wild  grass,  leeks  and  shrubbery 
with  which  the  woods  abounded,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  Calais,  and  opened  a  resolute 
attack  upon  the  forest. 

They  returned  to  Charlton  in  October. 
Francis  West  also  left  town,  and  returned 
the  following  spring,  as  did  also  Abijah 
and  Peter  Wheelock,  accompanied  by 
Moses  Stone.  This  year  they  built  log 
houses,  the  Wheelocks  and  Stone  return- 
ing to  Massachusetts  to  spend  the  follow- 
ing winter,  and  West  to  Middlesex. 


In  this  year,  also.  Gen.  Parley  Davis, 
afterward  a  resident  of  Montpelier  Center, 
cut  and  put  up  two  or  three  stacks  of  hay 
upon  a  beaver  meadow  in  Montpelier, 
upon  a  lot  adjoining  Calais,  (now  known 
as  the  Nahum  Templeton  farm)  a  part  ot 
which  hay  was  drawn  to  Col.  Davis\  in 
Montpelier,  in  the  following  winter,  which 
served  partially  to  break  a  road  from  Mont- 
pelier to  Calais  line. 

In  1788,  two  proprietors'  meetings  were 
held,  one  June  3,  at  the  house  of  Col. 
Davis,  and  Sept.  30,  at  Peter  Wheelock's 
new  house,  in  Calais.  At  the  last  meeting 
Peter  Wheelock  was  chosen  proprietor's 
clerk,  and  the  meeting  adjourned  to  June 
2,  1 787,  at  the  same  place,  but  as  Wheelock 
had  not  returned  from  Charlton,  the  record 
simply  shows  an  adjournment  to  the  i6th 
of  June,  at  the  house  of  Col.  Davis,  in 
Montpelier,  when  Moses  Stone  was  chosen 
collector,  and  the  meeting  adjourned  to 
meet  Nov.  10,  at  his  house  in  Calais. 

In  1790,  four  proprietors'  meetings  were 
held  at  the  house  of  Peter  Wheelock.  At 
the  one  June  8,  1791,  Dea.  Daniel  Streeter, 
Samuel  Fay,  Peter  Wheelock,  Godard 
Wheelock,  Daniel  Bacon,  Moses  Stone, 
James  Jennings,  Abijah  Wheelock,  Shubel 
Short,  Jesse  Slayton,  Capt.  Samuel  Rob- 
inson, Ebenezer  Stone,  Parley  Davis,  Col. 
Jacob  Davis,  Moses  Harskell,  Francis 
West,  presented  accounts  for  work  done 
on  the  highways  in  town.  The  whole 
amount  allowed  was  72^. 

There  were  recorded  present  at  this 
meeting : 

James  Jennings,  Samuel  Twiss,  Shubel 
Short,  Asa  Wheelock,  Francis  West,  Ed- 
ward Tucker,  Abijah  Wheelock,  Moses 
Harskell,  Peter  Wheelock. 

June  6,  1792,  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  Abijah 
Wheelock  and  Peter  Wheelock  were  chosen 
a  committee  to  survey  the  undivided  lands, 
and  make  a  3d  division,  and  Col.  Davis 
and  Samuel  Twiss  were  given  the  privilege 
of  •'  pitching"  400  acres  of  the  undivided 
land,  provided  they  should  build  and  com- 
plete a  good  saw-mill  and  a  good  corn-mill 
within  a  year. 

From  record  of  a  meeting,  Oct.  2,  1793  : 

istly.  Voted  to  accept  of  the  Corn-Mill 
&  Saw-mill  built  in  Calais,  by  Col.  Jacob 


134 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Davis  and  Mr.   Sam'I  Twiss,   they  being 
done  according  to  agreement. 

Jan  21,  1794,  Joshua  Bliss  was  chosen 
pro  treasurer ;  at  a  meeting  held  Feb.  6, 
1794,  40  rights  were  represented  as  fol- 
lows : 

Jacob  Davis,  26;  James  Jennings,  i; 
Saml  Twiss,  5 ;  Sam'l  Fay,  3 ;  Jedediah 
Fay,  I  ;  Peter  Wheelock,  4. 

Voted  to  accept  the  survey  of  the  Third 
Division,  and  establish  the  Corners  as  the 
Committee  have  made  them. 

The  proprietors'  record  closes  with  a 
meeting  held  June  5,  1794,  when  the  third 
division  lots  were  drawn  to  the  several 
proprietors,  by  Kelso  Gray  and  Spaulding 
Fearce,  appointed  for  that  purpose,  and  in 
March  following  the  town  was  organized. 

The  first  families  settling  in  town  came 
in  the  spring  of  1789.  Judge  Wheeler  tells 
the  story  of  their  journey  as  follows  : 

In  February  or  March,  1789,  Francis 
West  moved  his  family  on  to  his  farm, 
where  he  lived  several  years.  Also,  in 
March  of  this  year,  Abijah  Wheelock,  with 
his  family,  Moses  Stone,  Samuel  Twiss. 
with  his  new  married  lady,  accompanied 
by  Gen.  Davis,  from  Charlton,  arrived  at 
Col.  Davis'  house,  in  Montpelier,  with  sev- 
eral teams.  His  house  was  a  mere  rude 
hut,  constructed  of  logs  20  feet  in  length, 
with  but  one  apartment,  a  back  built  at 
one  end  for  a  fire-place,  and  covered  with 
bark,  with  a  hole  left  in  the  roof  for  the 
smoke  to  escape ;  and  this  on  their  arrival 
they  found  to  be  preoccupied  by  several 
families,  emigrants  from  Peterboro,  N.  H., 
and  in  that  mansion  of  felicity  there  dwelt 
for  about  a  fortnight,  three  families  with 
children  in  each,  one  man  and  his  wife  re- 
cently married,  three  gentlemen  then  en- 
joying a  state  of  single  blessedness,  and  a 
young  lady  ;  and  among  the  happy  group 
were  some  of  the  first  settlers  of  Calais. 

On  the  13th  of  April,  racket-paths  having 
been  previously  broken,  Messrs  Wheelock, 
Twiss  and  Stone  prepared  hand-sleds, 
loaded  thereon  their  beds,  and  some  light 
articles  of  furniture,  and  accompanied  by 
Mrs.  Wheelock  and  Mrs.  Twiss,  and  Gen. 
Davis,  proceeded  to  this  town  over  snow  3 
feet  in  depth,  Mrs.  Wheelock  traveling  the 
whole  distance  on  foot,  and  carrying  in 
her  arms  an  infant  4  months  old,  while 
their  son,  about  2  years  of  age,  was  drawn 
upon  the  hand-sled.  Mrs.  Twiss,  the  re- 
cently married  lady,  also  performed  the 
same  journey  on  foot,  making  use  of  her 
broom  for  a  walking-cane. 

During  the  day,  the  snow  became  soft. 


and  in  crossing  a  marshy  piece  of  ground, 
Mrs.  Twiss  slumped  with  one  foot,  and 
sank  to  considerable  depth,  and  was  unable 
to  arise.  Gen.  Davis,  withal!  the  gallantry 
of  a  young  woodsman,  pawed  away  the 
snow  with  his  hands,  seized  her  below  the 
knee,  and  extricated  her.  This  incident 
was  a  source  of  no  small  merriment  to  the 
party  generally,  of  mortification  to  the 
amiable  sufferer,  and  gratification  to  Mrs. 
Wheelock,  who  felt  herself  secretly  piqued 
that  Mrs.  Twiss  did  not  offer  to  bear  her 
precious  burden  some  part  of  the  distance. 

They  arrived  in  safety  the  same  day, 
and  commenced  the  permanent  settlement 
of  the  town.  A  large  rock,  now  in  the 
orchard  on  the  farm  owned  by  J.  W.  E. 
Bliss,  once  formed  the  end  and  fire-place 
to  the  log  cabin  of  the  first  settlers  of 
Calais. 

In  1790,  James  Jennings  arrived  with  a 
family.  In  the  winter  of  1794,  Mr.  Jen- 
nings, being  upwards  of  60  years  of  age, 
lost  his  life  by  fatigue  and  frost,  while  on 
his  return  through  the  woods  from  Mont- 
pelier to  this  place.  There  was  not  at 
this  time  a  sufficient  number  of  men  to 
constitute  a  jury  of  inquest. 

The  first  settlers  lived  at  some  distance 
from  each  other,  and  it  was  not  uncommon 
for  a  woman  to  travel  several  miles  to  visit 
a  neighbor,  and  return  home  after  dark 
through  the  woods,  brandishing  a  fire- 
brand to  enable  her  to  discover  the  marked 
trees.  For  one  or  two  years  the  settlers 
brought  the  grain  for  their  families  and 
for  seed  from  Williamstown,  Brookfield  and 
Royalton,  a  distance  of  30  miles  or  more. 
After  they  began  to  raise  grain  in  town, 
they  had  to  carry  it  15  miles  to  mill.  This 
they  did  in  winter,  by  placing  several  bags 
of  grain  upon  the  neck  of  an  ox,  and 
driving  his  mate  before  him  to  beat  the 
path. 

Dates,  as  near  as  can  be  determined, 
when  some  of  the  first  settlers  moved  their 
families  into  town  :  Francis  West,  Abijah 
Wheelock  and  Samuel  Twiss  in  the  spring 
of  1789  ;  Peter  Wheelock  and  Moses  Has- 
kell in  the  fall  of  that  year  ;  James  Jennings 
in  1790  ;  Asa  Wheelock  and  David  Good- 
ale  in  1791  ;  Edward  Tucker  and  others  in 
1792,  and  in  1799,  considerable  additions 
were  made  to  the  settlement. 

On  Mar.  2,  1795,  David  Wing,  Jr.,  of 
Montpelier,  issued  a  warrant  notifying  the 
inhabitants  of  Calais  to  meet  at  the  house 
of  Peter  Wheelock,  on  the  23d  of  that 
month,  to  choose  all  necessary  town  officers 
and  transact  any  other  necessary  business. 


CALAIS. 


135 


At  this,  the  first  town  meeting,  the  offi- 
cers chosen  were :  Joshua  Bliss,  mod- 
erator ;  PeterWheelock,  town  clerk  ;  Joshua 
Bliss,  Edward  Tucker  and  Jonas  Comins, 
selectmen ;  Samuel  Fay,  treasurer ;  Jonas 
Comins,  collector  and  constable  ;  Jedediah 
Fay,  Abijah  Wheelock  and  Aaron  Bliss, 
listers  ;  Amos  Ginnings,  grand  juryman  ; 
Edward  Tucker,  Frederick  Bliss  and  God- 
dard  Wheelock,  surveyors  of  highways ; 
Amos  Ginnings,  sealer  of  leather;  Moses 
Haskell,  keeper  of  the  pound  ;  John  Grain, 
tithingman  ;  Aaron  Bliss,  JanTes  Ginnings, 
Samuel  Fay  and  Jennison  Wheelock,  hay 
wardens;  Asa  Wheelock,  Stephen  Fay  and 
Abraham  Howland,  fence  viewers ;  Jona- 
than Tucker,  sealer  of  weights  and  meas- 
ures. 

Voted  that  the  place  of  posting  and 
holding  freeman's,  and  other  town  meet- 
ings, be  at  the  house  of  Peter  Wheelock. 

In  September  following,  Peter  Wheelock 
was  chosen  to  the  General  Assembly.  Thos. 
Chittenden  received  8  votes  for  Governor, 
and  Isaac  Tichenor,  7  votes.  For  David 
Wing,  Jr.,  for  treasurer,  and  for  each  of 
the  councillors,  17  votes  were  cast. 

At  a  town-meeting  Sept.  5,  1797,  it  was 

Voted  that  the  Town  petition  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  the  State  at  their  next 
session  to  alter  the  name  of  this  town  from 
Calais  to  Mount  Vernon,  and  that  the  ex- 
pense of  such  alteration  be  paid  from  the 
town  treasury. 

In  the  same  year,  a  meeting  was  warned 
for  the  purpose  of  electing  a  Representa- 
tive to  Congress,  to  fill  a  vacancy  occasioned 
by  the  member-elect  refusing  to  serve. 
The  record  of  the  meeting  closes  as  fol- 
lows:  "No  votes  being  offered,  the 
meeting  was  dissolved." 

The  warning  for  the  town  meeting, 
March,  1800,  contains:  "6th.  To  see 
what  measures  the  Town  will  take  to  keep 
in  employ  Idle  and  Indolent  persons  who 
do  not  employ  themselves,"  but  at  the 
meeting  the  article  was  "  passed  over." 

In  1813,  what  funds  had  accumulated 
for  "  support  of  worship,"  nearly  $40  were 
given  to  Elder  Benjamin  Putnam,  and  in 
18 1 5,  the  amount  then  on  hand  was  voted 
to  Elder   Benjamin   Page.     At   this  time 


there  had  been  received  on  the  right 
granted  to  the  first  settled  minister,  $628.34. 
Of  this,  $284.80  had  been  appropriated 
for  town  expenses,  and  $100  for  support  of 
schools. 

In  March,  181 5,  the  committee  to  settle 
with  the  town  treasurer  found  that  38 
pounds  of  lead  had  been  lent  out  of  the 
town  stock  to  Samuel  Rich,  Esq. 

In  18 1 8,  it  was  voted  that  the  selectmen 
provide  a  house  for  the  poor,  and  that  the 
money  arising  from  lands  appropriated  to 
the  use  of  first-settled  ministers  be  used  for 
town  expenses.  In  1829,  that  town  officers 
be  allowed  $1  per  day. 

1827,  Caleb  Curtis  was  authorized  to  .sell 
the  town  military  stores,  and  in  1828,  the 
powder  on  hand  was  presented  to  the 
La  Fayette  Artillery  Co. 

In  1836,  Alonzo  Pearce,  Jesse  White 
and  Lovel  Kelton  were  chosen  a  committee 
to  locate  and  build  a  town-house  near  the 
center  of  the  town,  and  the  freeman's  meet- 
ing, held  Sept.  5,  1837,  was  called  at  the 
center  school-house,  and  adjourned  to  the 
new  town-house,  but  it  was  not  completed 
at  that  time,  and  the  first  meeting  warned 
there  was  in  March,  1839.  Previous  to 
this,  meetings  had  been  held : 

In  1795,  and  '6,  and  freeman's  meeting 
in  '97,  at  Peter  Wheelock's :  town  meet- 
ings, 1797,  1800,  '2  and  '4,  at  Asa  Whee- 
lock's ;  freeman's  meetings,  1798,  '9,  1800, 
and  town  meeting,  '99,  at  Abdiel  Bliss's  ; 
town  meetings,  1801  and '3,  and  freeman's 
meeting,  from  1801  to  1804,  at  Alpheus 
Bliss's  ;  all  meetings  from  1805  to  spring  of 
1808,  at  Isaac  Kendall's  ;  from  fall  of  1808 
to  1817,  at  Gideon  Wheelock's;  then  at^ 
Center  school-house  until  1839  ;  since  1868, 
at  the  vestry  of  the  Christian  church. 

TOWN   OFFICERS. 

CLERKS.-Peter  Wheelock,  1795  to  1801  ; 
Gideon  Hicks,  1802  to  9,  and  18 18  to  47 ; 
Gideon  Wheelock,  18 10  to  15 ;  Lemuel 
Perry,  18 16,  17;  Nelson  A.  Chase,  1848  to 
64 ;  Alonzo  Pearce,  1865  ;  Marcus  Ide,  1866 
to  75  ;  Samuel  O.  Robinson,  1876  to  81. 

[For  remainder  of  tables,  see  last  page.] 

ROADS. 

The  first  record  of  the  roads  in  town  was 
made  Mar.  4,  1799,  the  names  of  presen 


136 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MACa2INE. 


owners  or  occupants  being  in  parenthesis  ; 
Beginning  at  the  south  line  of  the  town  by 
Duncan  Young's  (Sodom),  Capt.  Abdiel 
BHss'  (A.  S.  Bliss),  Edward  Tucker's, 
(W.  H.  Kelton),  Peter  Wheelock's  (S.  S. 
Fuller's)  Jedediah  Fay's  (A.  C.  Guernsey), 
the  mills  (S.  O.  Robinson)  Gideon  Whee- 
lock's (J.  W.  Hall)  and  Levi  Wright's, 
(Otis  Rickord)  to  the  north  line  of  the 
town.  A  road  leaving  the  above  north  of 
Levi  Wright's,  by  Holden  Wilbur's  (J.  Q. 
Haskell)  to  Amos  Jennings'  (Mrs.  Balen- 
entine).  A  road  from  Edward  Tucker's 
by  Joshua  Bliss,  2d,  (J.  W.  E.  Bliss) 
David  Bliss  (A.  Sanders),  Rufus  Green's 
(Lewis  Wood),  Abijah  Wheelock's  (B. 
Wheeler),  Joel  Robinson's  (Harvey  Ains- 
worth),  Thomas  Hathaway  (C.  A.  Wat- 
son), to  Caleb  Curtis'  (A.  J.  Mower). 
From  the  N.  W.  corner  of  Abijah  Whee- 
lock's lot  (Kent's  Corner) ,  to  the  first-men- 
tioned road,  below  the  mills  (near  T.  C. 
Holt's).  From  near  Edward  Tucker's  by 
Winslow  Pope's  (south  of  A.  D.  Sparrow), 
to  Ethel  Steward's  (O.  A.  Wood). 

From  Peter  Wheelock's  by  his  saw-mill, 
(on  the  brook  north  of  Caleb  Bliss)  by 
Shubel  Shortt's  (T.  LeBarron)  and  David 
Fuller's  (A.  P.  Slayton)  toMontpelierline. 
From  Abdiel  Bliss'  by  James  Jennings', 
Isaac  Kendall's  (E.  L.  Burnap)  Abraham 
Howland's  (on  lot  east  of  Burnap's) ,  cross- 
ing the  East  branch,  and  by  Jennison 
Wheelock's  (AlfredWheelock's)  and  David 
Goodell's  (S.  Bancroft),  to  Asa  Wheelock's 
(Isaac  Stanton).  From  near  Isaac  Ken- 
dall's to  Samuel  White's  (Kelso  Gray). 
From  near  Isaac  Kendall's,  southerly  by 
^Simeon  Slayton's,  Jesse  Slayton's  (Jerra 
Slayton),  Oliver  Palmer's  (Luther  Con- 
verse),  Goddard  Wheelock's  (E.  Pray)  and 
Elnathan  Hathaway's  (L.  M.  Gate)  to 
Montpelier  line.  From  Oliver  Palmer's  to 
Gershom  Palmer's  (W.  P.  Slayton).  From 
the  south  line  of  the  town  by  Stephen 
Fay's  (Walter  Merritt)  Phinehas  Davis' 
(J.  P.  Carnes),  Joshua  Bliss'  (L.  Con- 
verse), Elijah  White's  (G.  Holmes),  Asa 
Wheelock's,  Samuel  Fay's  (Palmer  Paine), 
Amasa  Tucker's  (Henry  Wells)  Aaron 
Bliss'  (Elias  Smith),  Noah  Bliss'  (C.  H. 
French),    Jonathan     Tucker's,     (Marcus 


Waite),  Jonas  Comings'  (N.  W.  Bliss) 
and  Noah  C.  Clark's,  to  Marshfield  line. 
From  Jennison  Wheelock's  by  Asahel 
Pearce's  (W.  Lilley)  to  Aaron  Lamb's. 
From  Joshua  Lilley's  (L.  G.  Dwinell),  to 
Aaron  Bliss'. 

This  record  no  doubt  describes  all  the 
roads  in  town  at  that  time,  but  some  other 
settlements  had  been  made. 

Ebenezer  Goodenough  was  on  the  farm 
where  C.  B.  Marsh  now  lives;  John  Crane 
where  Zalmon  Pearce  lives ;  Moses  Has- 
kell had  been  ten  years  or  more  on  C.  S. 
Bennett's  farm  ;  at  about  the  date  of  this 
record,  Zoath  Tobey  began  on  C.  O. 
Adams'  farm ;  Elisha  Doan  on  the  lot 
north  of  Harvey  Ainsworth's ;  Frederic 
Bliss  owned  the  lot  where  G.  B.  W.  Bliss 
now  lives ;  Simon  Davis  the  land  where 
W.  C.  Bugbee  lives,  and  Solomon  Janes, 
Salem  Wheelock  and  Jonathan  Eddy  were 
residents,  but  their  location  at  that  time  is 
not  satisfactorily  determined. 

In  1810,  II,  all  the  roads  in  town  were 
surveyed,  and  the  record  shows  the  follow- 
ing roads  not  described  above  :  The  west 
county  road  was  surveyed  in  1808,  and  the 
road  from  it  to  Sodom  was  opened  pre- 
vious to  1810  ;  also  from  the  county  road  to 
Edward  Tucker's.  From  the  county  road 
near  Thomas  Hathaway's,  by  the  center  of 
the  town,  to  Aaron  Lamb's.  From  Marsh- 
field  line  westerly  by  Aaron  Bliss',  Zoath 
Tobey's  (Dr.  Asa  George)  Lilley's  Mills 
(Moscow),  Artemas  Foster's  (M.  C.  Ken- 
iston),  Phinehas  Goodenough's  (O.  W. 
White),  to  the  road  near  Amos  Jennings', 
(Mrs.  Balentine). 

From  Lilley's  Mills  by  Emerson's,  to 
Woodbury  line.  From  Woodbury  line  by 
E.  Goodenough's,  to  Jonathan  Tucker's. 
From  the  center  of  the  town,  through 
Pekin,  and  by  where  A.  N.  Chapin  and 
W.  C.  Bugbee  now  live,  to  John  R.  Dens- 
more's  (J.  P.  Carnes).  From  near  Oliver 
Palmer's,  southerly  by  Moses  Haskell,  to 
the  south  line  of  the  town. 

In  1809,  Reuben  D.  Waters  bought  the 
lot  on  which  Andrew  Haskell  lives,  and 
soon  after  a  road  was  laid  from  the  mills 
near  the  center  to  his  house,  and  in  18 14, 
this  road  was  extended  northerly  to  Wood- 


CALAIS. 


n7 


bury  line.  The  road  from  near  Harrison 
Bancroft's,  and  by  W.  V.  Peck's  to  the 
East  branch  was  surveyed  in  1814.  The 
center  county  road  in  18 15,  and  the  road 
from  Woodbury  line  to  Moscow  in  1821  ; 
from  Maple  Corner  to  Worcester  in  1825. 

The  first  action  of  the  town  in  regard  to 
schools,  was  in  March,  1796.  "Voted  to 
raise  two  pence  on  the  pound  on  the 
Grand  List  of  1796,  for  schools,"  and  the 
selectmen  divided  the  town  into  the  East 
and  West  school  districts. 

In  1798,  what  is  now  No.  4  and  the  east- 
erly half  of  No.  13,  was  made  the  South- 
east district,  what  is  now  No.  2  was  named 
the  East  district,  and  the  remainder  of  the 
former  East  district  was  styled  the  North- 
east district.  Ebenezer  Goodenough  was 
chosen  trustee  of  the  last-named  district, 
and  Oliver  Palmer  of  the  South-east. 

School  trustees  chosen  in  1800  were: 
Abijah  Wheelock,  West  district ;  Joshua 
Lilley,  east  district;  Doct.  Samuel  Dan- 
forth.  South-east  district ;  Noah  C.  Clark, 
North-east  district ;  scholars  in  West  dis- 
trict between  4  and  18,  96;  in  S.  E.  dis- 
trict, 27. 

In  1802,  the  North  and  Center  districts 
were  set  off;  trustees,  Abijah  Wheelock, 
West  district ;  Joshua  Lilley,  East  dis- 
trict ;  Oliver  Palmer,  South-east  district ; 
Jonas  Comins,  North-east  district;  Levi 
Wright,  Center  district. 

In  1805,  scholars  reported  between  4 
and  18  years  of  age,  207;  of  whom  100 
were  in  the  West  district,  and  the  next 
March  the  North-west  district  was  set  off; 
1808,  the  South-west  district  was  formed. 
In  1812,  the  town  voted  "  to  pay  the  school 
tax  for  the  year  ensuing  in  good  corn,  rye 
or  wheat."  This  is  the  first  year  that  we 
find  a  complete  record  of  the  families  in 
town  having  children  between  4  and  18 
years  of  age,  100  having  329  children;  16 
of  these,  i  each;  25,  2  each;  18,  3  each; 
14,  4  each ;  14,  5  each ;  10,  6  each  ;  Jason 
Marsh,  7  ;  Isaac  Wells  and  Frederic  Bliss, 
8  each. 

In  1 818,  the  South  district  was  estab- 
lished, and  in  1825  the  Blanchard  dis- 
trict, and  March,  1826,  the  districts  were 
numbered :     West  district,  No.  i  ;  East, 

18 


No.  2  ;  Center,  No.  3  ;  South-east,  No.  4  ; 
North-west,  No.  5;  North-east,  No.  6; 
South-west,  No.  7  ;  North,  No.  8  ;  South, 
No.  9;  Blanchard,  No.  10;  at  the  same 
time  Nos.  11  and  12  were  established; 
nearly  the  same  territory  as  now. 

In  1828,  Shubael  Wheeler,  Asa  George 
and  E.  C.  McLoud  were  chosen  a  com- 
mittee to  examine  teachers  and  visit  schools . 
In  1829,  district  No.  13  was  established; 
in  1832,  No.  14. 

THE   SLAYTON   FAMILY. 

[From  Genealogical  and  Biographical  Sketch  of  the 
Slaylon  Family,  1879.] 

Phineas  Slayton,  son  of  Thomas,  and 
grandson  of  Capt.  Thomas,  from  England, 
b.  in  Barre,  Mass.,  1736,  m.  Jane  Gray, 
1761.  He  was  an  officer  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary war,  and  a  magistrate  of  his  town  ; 
children,  Jesse,  Simeon,  Elijah,  Abigail, 
Eleanor,  Hannah,  Elisha ;  moved  to  Mont- 
pelier  about  1790,  settled  on  a  farm  near 
the  Calais  line.  He  was  called  by  his  de- 
scendants and  neighbors ' '  Long  Stocking," 
because  he  wore  short  velvet  breeches, 
with  long  stockings  and  silver  knee-buckles. 
His  quaint  old  English  style  of  dress  will 
be  remembered  by  many  of  the  older  res- 
idents of  Washington  County. 

Jesse  Slayton,  b.  Barre,  Mass.,  1764; 
m.  Betsy  Bucklin  ;  children,  Bucklin,  Jesse, 
Phineas,  Darius,  Lucy,  Betsy,  Eleanor, 
Mahala,  Aseanath.  He  moved  to  Calais 
about  1790,  and  built  a  house  and  cleared 
the  farm  where  Jerra  Slayton  now  lives. 
Many,  if  not  all,  of  the  children  were  born 
in  Brookiield,  and  moved  to  Vermont  with 
their  parents,  and  all  settled  in  Calais  or 
vicinity,  and  most  of  them  reared  large 
families  of  children.  Moving  into  the  set- 
tlement before  the  town  was  organized, 
their  father,  Jesse  Slayton,  was  one  of  the 
original  25  who  voted  on  the  organization 
of  the  town,  and  a  revolutionary  soldier. 

Bucklin  Slayton,  son  of  Jesse,  b.  in 
Brookfield,  Mass.,  1783;  moved  to  Calais 
with  his  father;  m.  1804,  Sally  Willis,  b. 
in  Hardwick,  Mass. ;  dau.  of  Edward  Willis 
and  Nancy  Fuller,  of  Bridge  water,  Mass., 
who  were  among  the  early  settlers  of 
Calais;    children,    Harriet,  Dulcenia    J., 


138 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Orrin  B.,  AroP.,  Sarah,  George  J.,  Fanny 
and  Hiram  K.  Slayton. 

He  was  a  master  carpenter,  and  planned 
and  set  out  many  of  the  frame  dwelling- 
houses  and  stores  of  Montpelierand  Calais. 
He  was  the  first  man,  according  to  common 
report,  who  set  out  buildings  by  square 
rule ;  previous  to  that  time  buildings  had 
been  built  by  scribe  rule.  Whether  he 
was  the  originator  of  the  square  rule  or 
not,  is  not  known  beyond  a  doubt  by  the 
writer ;  but  it  would  seem  there  were  few, 
if  any,  who  set  out  by  square  rule  at  that 
time,  for  in  1827  and  '29,  he  was  sent  for 
to  set  out  the  factories  at  Nashua,  N.  H., 
and  when  asked  how  long  a  building  he 
could  set  out,  he  said  if  they  would  fur- 
nish the  lumber,  he  could  set  out  a  build- 
ing that  would  reach  from  Nashua  to 
Boston.  In  the  war  of  1812-14,  Bucklin, 
Jesse,  Phineas  and  Darius  all  enlisted  in 
the  company  from  Calais  and  Montpelier, 
raised  and  commanded  by  Capt.  Gideon 
Wheelock,  to  meet  the  British  at  Pitts- 
burgh. 

Orrin  B.,  his  son,  m.  Dulcena  Andrews  ; 
children,  Joseph,  Austin  C.  Aro  P.  Jr., 
Rufus,  Amanda,  Amelia  and  Alfred. 

Austin  C.  Slayton,  son  of  Orrin  B., 
enlisted  in  the  3d  Vt.  Regt.,  and  served  4 
years  in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  in  the 
army  of  the  Potomac.  He  was  a  good 
soldier  and  in  a  great  many  battles.  His 
regiment  belonged  to  that  famous  Vermont 
brigade  called  the  "Old  Iron  Brigade," 
whose  valor  reflected  imperishable  honor 
on  the  State  which  furnished  the  men,  and 
on  the  nation  whose  life  they  fought  to 
maintain.     He  is  now  living  in  Chicago. 

RuFus  Slayton,  brother  of  Austin  C, 
enlisted  in  the  7th  Vt.  Regt.,  served  faith- 
fully, and  died  from  sickness,  occasioned 
by  his  service  in  the  army,  soon  after 
reaching  his  home.  Aro  and  Alfred  still 
live  in  Montpelier,  and  Joseph  in  Calais. 

Aro  p.  Slayton,  son  of  Bucklin,  en- 
listed in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  was 
elected  ist  lieut.  of  Co.  H.  13th  Regt.  V. 
Vols.  This  company  was  composed  largely 
of  citizens  of  Calais.  He  was  in  the  battle 
of  Gettysburg,  and  in  command  of  his 
company  through  that  battle,  and  was  pro- 


moted to  the  captaincy  of  that  company. 
He  represented  Elmore  in  the  Legislature. 
He  married  Lucy  White,  by  whom  he  had 
seven  children  :  Florence,  Katie,  Frank, 
Herbert,  Lucy,  Calvin  and  Orrin.  He  and 
his  family  now  live  in  Elmore. 

Geo.  J.,  bro.  of  Aro  P.,  m.  Fanny  An- 
drews ;  children,  Willis,  Marinda,  Cortez, 
Henry,  Fremont  and  Melvina.  He  and 
some  of  his  children  are  living  in  Morris- 
ville. 

Hon.  Hiram  K.  Slayton,  son  of  Buck- 
lin, b.  in  Calais,  1825,  m.  Eliza  A.  Mitch- 
ell, of  Manchester,  N.  H.,  1850;  have  one 
son,  Edward  M.  Slayton.  He  was  ed- 
ucated at  the  common  schools  and  Mont- 
pelier Academy,  taught  school  2  winters; 
at  18  years  entered  as  a  clerk  in  a  counting- 
room  on  India  street,  Boston,  for  three 
years ;  returned  to  Calais  and  opened  a 
country  variety  store  ;  also  bought  country 
produce ;  was  appointed  a  delegate  from 
Vermont  to  the  first  Republican  National 
Convention  at  Philadelphia,  in  1856,  and 
alternate  delegate  in  i860;  was  elected  a 
representative  from  his  native  town  in  1858 
and  "59;  moved  to  Manchester,  N.  H.,  in 
1863;  went  to  Cuba  in  the  fall  of  '63; 
thence  to  New  Orleans ;  wholesaled  dry 
goods  through  tl^e  winter ;  returned  to 
Manchester  the  spring  of  '64 ;  commenced 
and  built  up  a  large  wholesale  and  produce 
and  provision  business  ;  was  elected  from 
Ward  Three  a  representative  to  the  New 
Hampshire  Legislature  in  187 1  ;  re-elected 
in  '72  ;  spring  of  '73  he  gave  up  his  mer- 
cantile business  to  his  son,  visited  Eng- 
land, Scotland,  and  passed  the  summer  in 
Antwerp,  Brussels,  Cologne,  Berlin,  Dres- 
den, etc. ;  at  the  World's  Fair  in  Vienna, 
at  Augsburg,  Basle,  Paris,  etc. ;  in  1876, 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  constitutional 
convention  to  revise  and  amend  the  con- 
stitution of  the  State  ;  in  ^'j'] ,  a  senator  to 
represent  the  city  of  Manchester  in  the 
New  Hampshire  Senate  ;  re-elected  in  '78, 
and  he  is  more  widely  known  throughout 
the  country  for  his  efforts  in  favor  of  specie 
payments  and  able  financial  articles,  orig- 
inating the  maxim,  viz.:  "The  nation 
which  has  the  most  valuable  legal  tender 
dollar,    (other   things   being   equal),  will 


CALAIS. 


139 


outrun  in  wealth  and  prosperity  the  nation 
whose  dollar  buys  less,  as  sure  as  death 
follows  existence";  is  the  author  of  the 
resolutions  in  favor  of  specie  payments 
which  passed  the  New  Hampshire  and  Ver- 
mont Legislatures,  and  the  resolution 
passed  by  the  Vermont  Legislature  in  the 
fall  of  '78  in  relation  to  the  Bland  silver 
bill.  His  efforts  in  favor  of  resumption, 
an  honest  dollar  and  honest  payment  of 
debts  were  continuous  for  many  years. 
His  articles  on  finance  are  widely  copied 
by  the  public  press  of  the  country,  and 
their  soundness  is  endorsed  by  such  lead- 
ing financial  thinkers  and  writers  asAmasa 
Walker,  David  A.  Wells,  B.  F.  Nourse, 
Abram  S.  Hewitt,  Jas.  A.  Garfield  and 
others. 

Edward  M.  Slayton,  son  of  Hiram  R., 
b.  in  Calais,  185 1;  m.  Jennie  Hovey,  of 
Rockland,  Me.,  1874;  has  one  daughter, 
Olive  May ;  sons,  Hovey  Edward  and  H.  K. 
Slayton,  Jr.  ;  now  living  in  Manchester, 
N.  H.,  wholesale  produce  and  provision 
merchant. 

Darius  Slayton,  son  of  Jesse,  had  2 
sons,  Henry  and  Edson,  and  2  daughters. 
He  is  a  good  citizen,  and  still  lives  on  his 
old  homestead  farm  in  Calais.  His  son 
Edson  has  reared  a  large  family  of  chil- 
dren, and  is  a  respected  citizen  of  Wolcott. 

Otis  Slayton  married  a  daughter  of 
Wm.  Peck,  has  no  children,  and  lives  in 
Calais. 

SILAS   HATHAWAY   AND   FAMILY. 

Among  the  few  familiar  names  intimately 
connected  with  the  early  history  and  set- 
tlement of  Calais,  are  found  those  of  Silas 
Hathaway  and  his  sons,  Elnathan,  Thomas 
and  Asa.  Cotemporaries  of  the  Whee- 
locks,  the  Blisses,  Slaytons,  Fays  and 
Tuckers,  they  shared  their  full  measure  the 
hardships  incident  to  a  new  settlement. 

Silas  Hathaway,  son  of  Elnathan, 
(who  died  at  New  Bedford,  aged  90)  was 
born  in  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  July  3,  1742. 
Silas  married  Mary  Griffeth,  of  Rochester, 
Mass. ;  of  their  9  children,  all  born  at  New 
Bedford,  6  married  and  raised  families : 
Elnathan,  Esther,  Thomas,  Eleanor,  Asa, 
Sarah,  West,  in  order  of  age.  •  Mr,  Hath- 


away emigated  to  Calais  in  1796,  whither 
some  of  his  family  had  already  preceded 
him.  He  resided  for  many  years  on  the- 
farm  now  (1879)  owned  and  occupied  by 
Caleb  Bliss,  his  residence  being  near  the 
old  cemetery  on  that  farm.  He  died  June 
I,  1812. 

Elnathan,  son  of  Silas,  born  Feb.  3, 
1770,  came  to  Vermont  earlier  than  any 
others  of  his  family,  the  exact  date  un- 
known ;  but  certain  it  is  that  he  came  sev- 
eral years  prior  to  his  father's  coming.  He 
married  ist,  Rhoda  Tabor,  of  Mass. ;  2d, 
Esther  (Buel)  Bassett,  of  E.  Montpelier ; 
3d,  Jane  Burchard,  of  Starksboro ;  chil- 
dren by  1st  wife,  3 — but  one.  Alma,  grew 
up — by  2d  wife,  6;  three,  Rhoda,  Alden, 
Martha,  attained  majority. 

Elnathan  was  a  farmer  and  blacksmith, 
and  resided  on  the  farm  now  (1879)  of 
Lemuel  Cate.  He  was  for  many  years  a 
prominent  member  of  the  society  of 
Friends,  who  had  a  church  in  E.  Mont- 
pelier, and  were  quite  numerous  in  that 
and  neighboring  towns.  His  parents  re- 
sided with  him  in  their  decline  of  life.  He 
died  Jan.  1835.  Of  his  descendants,  none 
in  town.  His  daughter  Alma  m.  James 
Lebaron,  and  lived  many  years  in  Calais, 
but  removed  some  years  since  to  Mass., 
where  she  died,  Dec.  1872,  leaving  two 
daughters.  His  daughter  Rhoda  m.  Alonzo 
Redway,  and  lives  in  East  Montpelier. 
His  son,  Alden,  m.  Louisa,  dau.  of  Wil- 
liam Templeton,  of  E.  Montpelier,  where 
he  died  Jan.  1843,  age,  47. 

Esther,  dau.  of  Silas,  b.  Sept.  1771, 
m.  Smith  Stevens,  son  of  Prince  Stevens, 
of  E.  Montpelier,  and  lived  there  in  the 
decline  of  life  with  James  Bennett,  who  m. 
Rhoda  Stevens,  a  daughter.  But  two  of 
this  family  living,  Catherine  and  Smith 
Stevens,  Jr.,  of  E.  Montpelier. 

Thomas,  son  of  Silas,  born  Aug.  1773  ; 
m.  1st,  to  Susannah  Coombs,  of  Roches- 
ter, Mass.,  Jan.  1797;  2d,  toPhilanaPray, 
of  Calais,  (from  Oxford,  Mass.)  Sept.  1845. 
He  came  with  his  family  from  Rochester, 
Mass.,  to  Calais  in  1799,  locating  on  the 
farm  where  he  resided  till  his  death.  He 
first  came  to  Calais  in  March,  1794,  and 
cut  the.  first  tree  on  his  land  June  i,  1795. 


140 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


He  returned  to  Massachusetts  in  the  fall, 
and  came  back  in  the  spring,  for  several 
years  before  he  moved  his  family  on.  He 
had  lo  children  ;  8  married  :  Susan,  Caleb 
Coombs,  Loam,  Earl,  Sorton,  Almeda, 
Lora,  and  Philander ;  Loam,  Almeda  and 
Lora  only  survive.  Thomas  lived  in  de- 
cline of  life  upon  the  old  homestead  with 
his  son  Lorton,  dying  Apr.  1856.  Of  his 
children,  Susan,  b.  in  1800,  m.  Calvin 
Foster,  of  Moretown ;  died  there  July, 
1874;  no  descendants;  Caleb  Coombs,  b. 
1801,  m.  Polly  Ainsworth,  of  Calais.  He 
died  in  N.  Montpelier,  where  he  had  resided 
many  years,  Dec.  1878.  He  was  a  farmer  ; 
had  6  children.  The  widow  and  two 
daughters  alone  remain  of  his  family. 

Loam,  son  of  Thomas,  b.  1803,  a  farmer, 
m.  Catherine  H.,  daughter  of  Lyman  Dag- 
gett, a  farmer  of  Calais,  from  Charlton, 
Mass.  He  removed  to  Hardwick  in  1866  ; 
resides  at  the  South  Village ;  4  children  in 
this  family.  Lyman  Daggett,  the  oldest 
son,  is  a  lawyer  at  Hardwick ;  Fernando 
Cortez,  the  youngest,  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth in  1868;  was  principal  of  Valley 
Seminary,  N.  H.,  Hardwick  Academy, 
and  People's  Academy,  Morrisville.  He 
attained  a  high  reputation  as  a  teacher, 
but  broke  down  from  over-work,  dying 
July  6,  1873.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
State  Board  of  Education  at  his  death. 

Earl,  son  of  Thomas,  b.  1806,  m.  ist, 
to  Nancy,  daughter  <jf  Gaius  Allen,  of 
Calais,  (formerly  of  Maine)  ;  2d,  to  Sarah 
Ann  Stewart,  dau.  of  David  Stewart,  of 
Duxbury.  His  farm  was  near  his  father's 
old  homestead,  in  Calais.  He  died  Feb. 
1 861.  He  had  but  one  son,  Mahlon  S., 
with  whom  his  mother  resides.  He  was  b. 
1844,  m.  Stella  C.  Shedd,  of  Hardwick,  b. 
1851.  He  follows  the  same  occupation  as 
his  father,  varying  it  for  some  years  past 
by  school-teaching  for  a  portion  of  the 
year.  He  has  also  filled  positions  of  re- 
sponsibility and  trust  in  town  aiTairs  with 
much  acceptance. 

Lorton,  b.  Aug.  1808,  m.  Hannah  N., 
dau.  of  Jonathan  Hamblet,  of  Worcester, 
Vt. ;  he  resided  through  life  on  the  old 
homestead  of  his  father,  in  Calais  ;  died, 
1858.     His  children  were  Mary  Jqne  and 


Julia  Emma.  Mary  J.  m.  Carlos  Jacobs; 
resides  in  Calais.  Julia  E.  m.  Charles 
Watson ;  resides  upon  the  old  Hathaway 
homestead.  His  widow  m.  Jonas  G.  Orms- 
bee  ;  resides  at  North  Calais. 

Almeda,  dau.  of  Thomas,  b.  1810,  m. 
Martin  W.  Hamblet,  who  died  1869.  She 
resides  with  her  only  son  at  Middlesex. 
Lora,  son  of  Thomas,  b.  July,  1812,  m. 
Judith  Cilley,  of  Worcester ;  is  a  farmer  in 
Woodbury;  has  2  sons,  2  daughters. 

Philander,  son  of  Thomas,  b.  18 16,  m. 
Nancy  E.  Coats,  of  Windsor.  He  was  a 
mason  by  trade ;  died  in  Windsor,  1857; 
left  a  widow  and  two  children ;  all  reside 
in  Boston.  His  widow m.  John  C.  Hutch- 
inson, of  Windsor, 'a  blacksmith  and  gla- 
zier. 

Asa,  son  of  Silas,  b.  Dec.  1777,  came  to 
Calais  with  his  father  in  1796;  m.  Mary, 
dau.  of  John  Peck,  of  E.  Montpelier,  (from 
Royalston,  Mass.)  He  resided  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life  here  for  the  most  part 
on  farms  in  the  south  part  of  the  town, 
now  (1879)  occupied  by  E.  H.  Slayton 
and  H.  H.  McLoud,  where  he  died  in 
1830.  He  was  a  farmer  and  blacksmith  ; 
raised  7  children  ;  6  married  ;  5  are  living : 
Tilmus,  Elnathan,  Hiram,  Stillman,  and 
Asa  Peck. 

Tilmus,  b.  1805,  m.  Lois  K.,  dau.  of 
Enoch  Blake,  of  Cabot ;  resided  till  re- 
cently on  his  father's  old  farm ;  now  at 
E.  Cabot;  has  two  sons,  Asa  Sprague  and 
Clarence  Lockwood.  Asa  has  for  some 
years  past  been  engaged  in  mercantile  pur- 
suits in  Boston,  Ma.ss. 

Clarence  is  a  graduate  of  Norwich  Uni- 
versity, Northfield,  Vt. ;  studied  theology 
with  Rev.  Dr.  Hepworth,  then  of  Boston  ; 
visited  the  Argentine  Republic,  South 
America,  as  an  attachee  of  Prof.  Gould's 
scientific  expedition ;  after  his  return, 
studied  medicine,  and  established  himself 
in  practice  in  Boston,  where  he  now  re- 
sides. 

Elnathan,  son  of  Asa,  b.  1808,  m.  Dul- 
cenia,  dau.  of  Bucklin  Slayton,  of  Calais; 
is  a  farmer ;  resides  near  the  old  home- 
stead of  his  father. 

Hiram,  son  of  Asa,  b.  1811,  m.  ist, 
Ruth  H.  Johnson;  2d,  Esther  Ann  Pren- 


CALAIS. 


i4i 


tiss,  both  of  Moretown ;  children,  5  by  ist 
and  one  by  2d  man-iage,  of  whom  Chas. 
Johnson,  Edna  Ruth,  Asa  Peck  and  Frank 
Luce  are  now  living.  The  two  oldest  sons, 
married,  farmers,  :eside  near  their  father; 
the  youngest  with  ;  the  daughter  married 
Henry  A.  Slayton,  a  merchant  of  Morris- 
ville.  Hiram,  farmer,  resides  in  Moretown 
village  ;  has  long  been  a  prominent  citizen 
of  that  town,  and  leading  member  of  the 
Methodist  church. 

Stillman,  son  of  Asa,  b.  1813,  m.  Ca- 
lista  D.  Harrington,  of  Bennington ;  has 
resided  in  Boston,  Philadelphia,  Pt.  Kent, 
Bennington,  Wisconsin,  etc.  He  was  a 
photographer ;  now  a  farmer  in  Highland, 
Minn.  He  has  2  daughters,  i  son ;  all  of 
Minnesota. 

Asa  Peck,  son  of  Asa,  b.  1817,  m.  ist, 
Sarah  Carlton,  of  Dorchester,  Mass. ;  2d, 
Ann  Maria  Hilton,  dau.  of  John  Hilton, 
Esq.,  of  Lynn,  Mass. ;  residence,  Boston 
and  Lynn,  Mass. ;  a  wholesale  and  com- 
mission dealer  in  grain,  flour  and  pro- 
visions, senior  member  of  the  firm  of  Hath- 
away &  Woods,  24 Commerce  and  iii  So. 
Market  st.,  Boston.  He  went  to  Boston 
in  1836,  and  has  resided  there  ever  since, 
except  2  years  spent  at  Huntsville,  Ala. 
He  is  classed  financially  with  the  solid, 
and  is  certainly  among  the  heavy  men  of 
Boston. 

Lyman  Daggett,  son  of  David,  (an  of- 
ficer of  the  Revolutionary  war,  dying  in 
that  service  at  Oxford,  Mass.,  1777)  came 
as  a  member  of  his  uncle,  Peter  Wheelock's 
family,  with  them  to  Calais,  Sept.  1789,  at 
the  age  of  14.  He  was  a  farmer  ;  lived  before 
married  on  the  farm  now  of  his  grandson, 
Willard  C.  Bugbee,  son  of  Chester  Bug- 
bee,  with  whom  he  lived  in  the  decline  of 
life ;  where  he  died,  Apr.  1871.  He  m. 
Sarah  W.,  youngest  daughter  of  Silas 
Hathaway  ;  b.  Feb.  1785;  d.  Aug.  1872  ; 
children,  3  ;  2  attained  maturity  :  Cath- 
erine H.  who  m.  Loam  Hathaway  (noticed) , 
Clarissa  Amanda,  widow  of  the  late  Chester 
Bugbee,  of  Calais,  residing  with  her  son 
upon  the  old  homestead,  cleared  of  the 
primitive  forest  by  her  father.  Only  two 
bearing  the  family  name  are  now  (1881) 
counted  among  our  citizens  :     Elnathan, 


son  of  Asa,  and  Mahlon  S.,  son  of  Earl 
Hathaway,  the  former  standing  upon  the 
edge  of  the  dark  valley,  wearing  the  snows 
of  three  score  years  and  ten ;  the  latter, 
but  just  passed  the  threshold  of  active 
business  life.  Beside  these,  there  remain 
in  town  the  descendants  of  Lorton  Hath- 
away and  Chester  Bugbee,  who  can  claim 
direct  lineage  from  Silas  Hathaway. 

Charles  Dugar,  born  in  France,  came 
to  Nova  Scotia  with  his  father's  family, 
and  when  about  12  years  of  age,  to  Charl- 
ton, Mass. 

Gload,  son  of  Charles,  born  in  Charl- 
ton, 1775,  married  Sarah  Dunton,  of  Stur- 
bridge,  Mass.,  and  removed  to  Calais  in 
June,  1809.  He  settled  first  near  where 
Allen  Morse  now  lives,  then  where  John 
Sabin  now  is,  and  afterwards  on  land  now 
owned  by  his  son  Abner,  the  only  one  of 
his  1 1  children  now  living  in  this  vicinity. 

ABNER,'son  of  Gload,  was  born  1805,  in 
Charlton ;  when  about  5  years  old,  an  ac- 
cident rendered  him  totally  blind,  and  his 
career  has  been  remarkable  for  one  placed 
in  the  circumstances  he  was.  His  father 
was  poor,  and  he  was  early  thrown  upon 
his  own  resources,  but  natural  intelligence 
and  energy  have  in  great  measure  com- 
pensated for  his  loss  of  sight.  He  attend- 
ed school,  and  made  considerable  progress 
by  hearing  the  recitations  of  other  schol- 
ars, and  engaged  in  nearly  all  the  sports 
and  labors  of  boyhood,  taking  long  tramps 
in  the  woods  in  fishing  and  trapping. 

He  began  business  for  himself  by  ped- 
dling small  articles  from  house  to  house, 
and  when  about  21,  having  accumulated  a 
little  capital,  bought  a  farm,  and  married 
Hannah  Jacobs,  of  Montpelier.  Since 
that  time  he  has  made  farming  his  bus- 
iness, and  with  more  than  average  success. 
He  has  reared  a  family  of  6  children,  and 
given  them  as  good  advantages  as  are  en- 
joyed by  the  average  of  farmers'  families, 
and  now  owns  a  good  farm,  part  in  this 
town  and  part  in  Worcester.  He  per- 
forms nearly  all  kinds  of  farm  labor,  and 
upon  a  recent  visit,  was  found  going  about 
his  barns  caring  for  the  stock.  He  is  a 
good  judge  of  cattle,  even  distinguishing 


142 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


their  different  colors  by  some  unaccounted 
for  sense. 

Near  his  house  when  a  boy  was  a  saw- 
mill ;  this  he  clambered  over  until  he  be- 
came so  fa.niliar  with  it,  that  he  has  during 
the  leisure  hours  of  his  busy  life  made  two 
models  of  it,  complete  in  all  their  details. 

While  clearing  his  farm,  he  made  a  con- 
siderable business  of  burning  charcoal, 
and  one  winter  drew  900  bushels  to  Mont- 
pelier,  some  10  miles,  with  a  pair  of  two- 
years-old  steers. 

He  once  engaged  of  a  neighbor  one  of  a 
lot  of  young  pigs.  One  among  them  was 
of  slightly  better  form  than  the  others, 
and  this  the  neighbor  intended  to  keep 
himself.  But  when  Dugar  came,  he  could 
not  quite  refuse  a  blind  man  his  choice  ;  so 
Dugar  entered  the  pen,  and  after  careful 
examination,  came  out  with  the  identical 
pig  the  other  had  selected. 

PALMER   FAMILY. 

Oliver  Palmer  married,  Dec.  1786, 
Asenath  Barnes ;  removed  from  Wood- 
stock to  Calais  in  1796;  lived  some  20 
years  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Luther 
Converse,  and  returned  to  Woodstock. 
While  in  Calais,  he  held  the  offices  of  town 
treasurer,  selectman  and  lister.  His  chil- 
dren were  :  Orpha,  b.  1789,  m.  1808,  An- 
drew Nealey  ;  lived  some  years  on  the  farm 
now  owned  by  George  Chase  ;  Millie,  Har- 
riet, Alden,  1795,  a  mill-wright,  married, 
lived  in  Calais^  Montpelier  and  elsewhere  ; 
Walter,  b.  1805  ;  Laura,  18 10. 

Gersham  Palmer,  younger  brother  of 
Oliver,  married  Mercy  Bennett  in  Wood- 
stock, probably  about  the  time  of  his  re- 
moval to  Calais  in  1797  ;  lived  on  the  farm 
north  of'  his  brother  Oliver ;  was  prom- 
inent in  town  business  ;  moderator  in  town 
meeting  6  years,  selectman  8  years ;  lister 
2  years  ;  was  the  fourth  representative  from 
Calais;  served  7  years;  in  18 10,  judge  of 
probate  in  what  was  then  Caledonia  Co. ; 
2d  justice  in  town  ;  served  12  years,  and 
by  act  of  the  Legislature,  Nov.  i,  1810, 
was  made  one  of  a  committee  of  three  to 
locate  and  build  county  buildings  in  the 
new  County  of  Jefferson,  now  Washing- 
ton. 


He  died  Oct.  11,  aged  y]  years.  His 
children,  all  born  in  Calais,  were  Hannaii 
W.,  b.  1798,  m.  1827,  Alvah  Elmore,  lived 
on  the  Col.  Curtis  farm,  where  she  died, 
Aug.  1843;  Rispah,  b.  1800,  m.  in  Wood- 
stock, 1820,  Eben  Cox,  son  of  Daniel  and 
Celia  (Darling),  born  Jan.  i,  1796.  They 
came  to  Calais  in  1827,  and  began  on  the 
farm  where  he  died,  Nov.  1877.  Only  one 
of  their  family  of  9  daughters  resides  in 
Calais:  Aurelia  M.,  b.  Oct.  14,  1829,  m. 
Mar.  28,  1855,  Elbridge  H.  Stickney. 

Mercy,  dau.  of  Gersham,  wasb.  in  1802  ; 
Lucia  D.,  in  1803. 

Bennett,  son  of  Gersham,  b.  Nov.  lo, 
1805,  was  ordained  to  the  ministry  in  the 
Church  of  Christian  Brethren,  Calais,  Aug. 
29,  1830  ;  married  Valina  Snow,  of  Pomfret, 
and  went  to  New  Hampshire  to  live,  and 
while  there  was  a  member  of  tlie  N.  H. 
Legislature.  He  returned  to  Calais  in 
1845,  where  he  remained  till  his  death. 
May  12,  1 85 1.  Children  of  Bennett  and 
Valina  Palmer :  Lucia  Ellen  and  Sarah 
Snow,  b.  in  Washington,  N.  H.,  1835, 
'37;  Gersham  Bela,  b.  in  Marlow,  N.  H., 
1840 ;  Charles  Bennett,  b.  in  Springfield, 
N.  H.,  1844;  Redora  Valina,  b.  in  Calais, 
Aug.  26,  1847. 

Dulcenia,  dau.  of  Gersham,  was  born 
1808;  Fanny,  18 10;  Mercy,  Lucia,  Dul- 
cenia and  Fanny  are  married,  and  reside  in 
Woodstock. 

DAVID    GOODELL 

settled  on  what  is  now  known  as  the 
Smilie  Bancroft  farm,  about  1791.  He 
died  Feb.  i,  1808,  and  his  wife,  Martha, 
Aug.  29,  1809.  Their  children  :  Pamelia, 
b.  1787,  m.  Asaph  King;  Polly,  b.  1789, 
deceased  ;  John,  b,  1792  ;  Orange,  b.  1795, 
deceased  ;  Tamar,  b.  1801,  m.  Jason  Chase. 
John  Goodell,  son  of  David,  m.  1818, 
Lucy,  dau.  of  Elijah  White ;  settled  in 
Cabot;  in  1825,  returned  to  Calais,  where 
he  resided  until  his  death,  July,  i860; 
children,  Diana,  b.  1824,  m.  Alvin  Chapin  ; 
Matilda,  b.  1827,  m.  Alonzo  Taylor;  re- 
sides in  New  York  City;  Sidney,  b.  1830, 
m.  Elizabeth  Darling,  of  Meriden,  Mass.  ; 
resides  in  Milford,  Mass. ;  Lucy,  b.  1840, 
m.  1857,  Alonzo,  sonof  Shepherd  Wheeler  ; 
their  dau.  Flora,  born  Dec.  1862. 


CALAIS. 


U3 


BARNABAS    DOTV. 


Barnabas  Dotv,  Jr.,  b.  in  Rochester, 
Apr.  30,  1 77 1,  2d  son  of  Capt.  Barnabas, 
went  to  Montpelier  in  the  spring  of  1789, 
with  his  brother  Edmund,  where  they 
built,  under  tiie  direction  of  Col.  Larned 
Lamb,  the  first  framed-house  in  that  town, 
for  Col.  Jacob  Davis.  He  worked  as  a 
houseivright  there  each  summer,  returning 
to  R.  in  the  winter,  till  1792  ;  m.  in  Roch- 
ester, Mass.,  Jan.  19,  1793,  Thankful,  dau. 
of  David  and  Sarah  (Parker)  Wing,  b. 
July  2,  1769,  and  settled  in  Montpelier  the 
following  spring.  He  was  commissioned 
ensign  of  Washington  Artillery  by  Gov. 
Jonas  Galusha,  181 1,  and  captain  3  years 
later,  by  Gov.  Martin  Chittenden.  He 
rode  post  some  years  from  Montpelier  to 
Hardwick,  20  miles,  to  which  latter  place 
he  removed,  and  carried  on  the  business 
of  a  blacksmith,  saddler,  watchmaker  and 
merchant,  doing  most  of  the  magistrate's 
busine.ss  in  town;  was  postmaster  1821-5, 
until  having  buried  his  son,  Horatio  Gates, 
1827,  and  his  wife,  1 831,  he  went  to  live  in 
Georgeville,  C.  E.,  thenin  Irasburgh,  Vt., 
and  spent  the  last  16  years  of  his  life  in 
Calais,  where  he  died  Dec.  1864,  aged  93 ; 
was  buried  in  Hardwick.     [Philo  Club,  p. 

39]- 

Copy  of  a  letter  presented  Silas  Ketchum 
by  A.  S.  Bliss: 

Montpelier,  Mar.  30,  1814. 

To  Silas  Williams,  Esq.,  Maj.  Steven 
Pitkin,  Mr.  Elihu  Coburn,  Maj.  Joel 
Walker,  William  Mattocks,  Esq.,  Alpha 
Warner,  Esq.,  Elnathan  Strong,  Esq., 
Ralph  Parker,  Esq.,  Wm.  Baxter,  Esq. 
and  Wm.  Howe,  Esq  : 

Gentletiien: — The  bearer,  Mr.  Barnabas 
Doty,  a  man  of  integrity  and  faithfulness, 
has  undertaken  to  carry  the  mail  and  dis- 
tribute papers,  on  the  route  formerly  rode 
by  Mr.  Henry  Dewey,  and  from  our  ac- 
quaintance with  him,  we  are  persuaded  he 
will  give  as  good  and  as  general  satisfac- 
tion as  did  Mr.  Dewey.  As  he  is  a  stranger, 
your  influence  in  his  behalf  in  encouraging 
his  business,  may  be  of  considerable  ben- 
efit to  him.  Yours  with  much  respect, 
Walton  &  Goss. 

He  made  first  trip,  date  of  above  letter. 
The  route  book  also  presented  with  above 
letter,  shows  the  route  to  lay  from  Mont- 
pelier through  Calais,    Plainfield,    Marsh- 


field,  Cabot,  Peacham,  Danville,  Wal- 
den,  Hardwick,  Greensboro,  Glover,  Iras- 
burgh, Salem,  Derby  and  Dunkensbor- 
ough.     [Philo.  Club]. 

ELIJAH   WHITE 

came  from  Charlton,  Mass.,  to  Calais  in 
the  summer  of  1797,  and  began  chopping 
in  the  east  lot  now  owned  by  Lewis  Ban- 
croft, but  abandoned  it,  and  the  next  sum- 
mer began  on  the  lot  in  the  south-easterly 
part  of  the  town,  where  he  resided  until 
his  death,  1832.  In  Feb.  1797,  he  brought 
his  newly-married  wife,  Ruth  Needham,  to 
Calais.  She  died  about  1847;  children, 
all  born  in  Calais:  Lucy,  b.  1800,  m. 
John,  son  of  David-  Goodell ;  Adams,  b. 
1802;  Larnard,  1805;  Ruth,  1813,  m. 
1835,  Amasa  Hall;  settled  in  Marshfield. 

Adams,  m.  1825,  Alfreda  Bryant;  lived 
in  Calais  and  Woodbury;  died,  1873;  his 
wife  in  1877;  both  in  Woodbury;  chil- 
dren, Florilla,  Clarissa,  Elijah,  Ruth  and 
George.  Larnard  m.  1828,  Roxana,  dau. 
of  Nathan  Kelton ;  lived  in  the  S.  E.  part 
of  the  town;  deceased. 

FIRST   MEETING-HOUSE   SOCIETY. 

In  August,  1823,  a  call  was  issued, 
signed  by  Caleb  Curtis,  Medad  Wright  and 
Nathan  Bancroft,  asking  all  interested  in 
building  a  meeting-house  in  Calais,  to 
meet  at  the  house  of  Medad  Wright  on 
the  i8th  of  that  month. 

At  this  meeting,  the  above  society  was 
organized,  by-laws  adopted,  and  the  fol- 
lowing officers  elected :  Caleb  Curtis, 
moderator;  William  Dana,  clerk,  and 
Joshua  Bliss,  treasurer.  Caleb  Curtis, 
Isaac  Davis,  Alpheus  Bliss,  Medad  Wright 
and  Joel  Robinson,  committee  to  select  a 
plan  and  agree  with  Caleb  Bliss  for  land 
on  which  to  set  the  house. 

On  the  30th  of  the  same  month,  a  meet- 
ing was  held  and  the  committee  reported 
they  had  agreed  upon  a  building  lot  and 
drawn  a  plan  "40  by  42  feet,  40  pews  on 
the  lower  floor,  5  feet  by  6,  and  18  above 
of  the  same  bigness."  The  report  was 
accepted.  It  was  decided  to  put  up  the 
frame  the  ensuing  fall,  but  to  be  3  years 
completing  the  house  ;  also  "  that  payment 
for  pews  be  made  in  three  equal  instalments, 


144 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


payable  one-half  in  neat  cattle,  the  other 
moiety  in  grain,  the  first  payment  of  stock 
in  one  year  from  the  first  day  of  October 
next,,  and  the  grain  part  in  one  year  from 
January  next,  and  so  annually."  Chose 
Col.  Caleb  Curtis,  Dea.  Joshua  Bliss,  and 
Mr.  Joel  Robinson  a  committee  to  super- 
intend the  building  of  the  house,  and 
"  Capt.  Remember  Kent,  Capt.  Isaac  Da- 
vis and  Mr.  Joseph  Brown,  a  committee, 
to  examine  the  work  whether  it  be  well 
done." 

Following  the  record  of  the  above  meet- 
ing are  the  names  of  members  of  the 
society,  as  follows :  Caleb  Curtis,  Isaac 
Davis,  Alpheus  Bliss,  Joshua  Bliss,  2d., 
Medad  Wright,  William  Dana,  Vial  Allen, 
Pliny  Curtis,  Joel  Robinson,  Jabez  Mower, 
Linnus  Richards,  Isaac  Robinson,  William 
Robinson,  Welcome  Wheelock,  Oliver 
Sheple,  Benjamin  Page,  Gaius  Allen, 
Curtis  Mower,  Ira  Brown,  Joseph  Brown, 
Daniel  Harris,  Caleb  Bliss,  Remember 
Kent,  Shubael  Shortt,  Thomas  Hathaway, 
Ephraim  Pray,  John  Robinson,  Joshua 
Bliss,  3d.,  Joshua  Bliss,  4th,  Gload  Dugar, 
Dwight  Marsh,  Charles  Clark,  Amasa  Mc- 
Knight,  Hosea  Brown,  Weston  Wheeler, 
Mason  Wheeler,  Nathan  Bancroft,  Loam 
Hathaway,  James  Morse,  Ira  Kent,  Brad- 
ley Webber,  Abdiel  Kent,  Ezekiel  Kent, 
Hiram  Robinson,  J.  V.  R.  Kent,  Joshua 
M.  Dana,  Abdiel  Bliss,  Kendall  T.  Davis, 
Jesse  White,  Joseph  W.  E.  Bliss,  Samuel 
O.  Robinson,  Moses  Clark. 

Some  of  the  last  names  on  the  list  have 
become  owners  since  the  building  of  the 
house. 

The  frame  of  the  house  was  prepared 
and  raised  about  the  middle  of  October, 
1823,  under  the  direction  of  Lovell  Kelton, 
Esq.  As  first  framed  there  was  a  projec- 
tion in  front,  supporting  the  steeple,  but 
subsequently  the  corners  were  filled  out 
leaving  the  building  in  its  present  shape. 
During  the  two  next  summers,  1824  and  '5 
the  house  was  completed,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Mr.  Griffin  of  Hardwick,  Vt.  In 
Nov.,  1825,  a  meeting  was  held  and  the 
house  accepted,  at  a  cost  of  $2005,  and 
the  society  was  found  to  be  indebted  to 
the  building  committee  some  $460.     Prob- 


ably about  the  last  of  Nov.,  1825,  the 
hou.se  was  dedicated,  the  dedicatory  ser- 
mon by  Rev.  Mr.  Bartlett  of  Hartland. 
Six  religious  societies  were  represented  in 
the  ownership  of  the  house  and  its  use  was 
apportioned  among  them  according  to  the 
interest  owned  by  each.  The  first  appor- 
tionment on  record  is  that  for  1828  :  Bap- 
tists, 10  Sabbaths;  Universalists,  20; 
Congregationalists,  9 ;  Christians,  6 ;  Free 
Will  Baptists,  4;  Methodists  3,  and  there 
is  no  change  on  record,  of  this  division  of 
the  time,  until  1848,  when  it  was  Univer- 
salists, 32  ;  Congregationalists,  7  ;  Meth- 
odists, 5;  Baptists,  4;  Christians,  4. 
There  is  no  further  record.  There  was  no 
stove  in  the  house  until  1831,  though  used 
almost  every  Sabbath  summer  and  winter. 
William  Dana  was  clerk  of  the  society 
from  its  organization  until  1834.  Welcome 
Wheelock  from  1834  to  "65,  and  J.  V.  R. 
Kent  since.  The  house  has  been  little 
used  for  some  years  past,  but  the  pride  of 
the  present  generation  has  induced  them 
to  keep  in  repair  the  work  of  their  fathers, 
though  their  religious  zeal  has  not  been 
sufficient  to  use  it  for  the  purpose  for  which 
it  was  designed. 

THE   CHRISTIAN   DENOMINATION. 

BY  SILAS  WHKELOCK,   1870. 

The  first  Christian  church  was  organized 
in  Calais,  Dec.  2,  1810,  by  Elder  Reuben 
Dodge  and  Benjamin  Putnam.  There  is 
but  little  account  of  the  church  on  record 
till  1824.  Elder  Dodge  and  Elder  Putnam 
supplied  them  with  preaching  part  of  the 
time. 

In  October,  1824,  Elder  Edward  B. 
Rollins  and  Elder  Seth  Allen  re-organized 
the  church,  and  introduced  the  Rollins' 
discipline,  (so  called). 

Ezekiel  Burnham  was  chosen  Ruling 
Elder  or  Bishop  of  the  church.  Edward 
B.  Rollins  and  Seth  Allen  were  invited  to 
take  the  oversight  of  the  church.  The 
number  of  membei^s  at  this  time  was  about 
thirty. 

Previous  to  this  organization,  the  church 
had  no  written  creed  or  articles  of  faith  ; 
taking  the  Scriptures  as  their  rule  of  faith 
and  practice.     In    1835  or   1836,  the  Ver- 


CALAIS. 


145 


mont  Conference  laid  aside  the  Rollins 
discipline,  and  returned  to  their  former 
rule.  During  this  time  the  church  was 
supplied  by  a  number  of  ministers,  who 
occasionally  met  with  them  to  preach  the 
word.  Among  them  were  Jasper  Hazen, 
Elhanan  Winchester,  R.  Allen.  Among 
those  who  have  been  instrumental  in  build- 
ing up  the  church  are  the  following,  viz. : 
Elders  Benjamin  Page,  John  Capron,  Abra- 
ham Hartshorn,  Isaac  Petingal,  Leonard 
Wheeler,  Wm.  Sweet  and  —  Goolet,  etc. 
The  church  now  numbers  85  members. 
They  have  built  a  house  for  worship  near 
the  center  of  the  town,  and  are  supplied 
with  preaching  every  Sabbath. 

There  is  a  flourishing  Sabbath-school, 
and  a  good  interest  manifested  among 
both  scholars  and  people. 

This  church  is  now  associated  with  the 
Vermont  Western  Christiah  Conference. 
During  the  60  years  since  its  organization, 
there  have  been  a  number  of  revivals  of 
interest,  and  quite  a  number  of  young  men 
have  been  ordained  as  ministers  of  the 
Gospel. 

Previous  to  1824,  Jera  Haskell  and  Royal 
T.  Haskell  were  set  apart  for  the  work  of 
the  ministry,  and  were  eminently  success- 
ful in  building  up  the  denomination ;  also, 
Jared  L.  Green  and  Bennet  Palmer,  but 
at  exactly  what  tmie  they  were  ordained 
does  not  appear  to  be  known. 

After  a  few  years  Elder  Palmer  moved 
to  New  Hampshire  and  spent  several  years 
and  then  returned  to  this  town,  where  he 
died  May  12,  185 1. 

Elder  Green  labored  with  the  church  for 
many  years,  and  contributed  much  to  its 
prosperity  ;  then  moved  to  Bradford,  where 
he  resided  several  years,  preathing  a  part 
of  the  time  in  adjoining  towns,  and  then 
moved  to  New  Hampshire,  where  he  now 
resides,  but  still  remains  a  member  of  the 
Vermont  Eastern  Conference. 

Elders  Jera  and  Royal  Haskell  went  to 
Wisconsin,  where  Jera  soon  died,  and 
Royal  still  resides. 

Orrin  Davis,  son  of  Isaac  Davis,  one  of 
the  early  members  ot  the  church,  and  one 
who  did  much  for  the  prosperity  of  the 
church,  was  ordained  in  1850.     He  is  the 


pr-esent  pastor  of  the  church,  and  has  been 
since  i860. 

BY   REV.    ORRIN   DAVIS. 

The  church  in  18 10  was  organized  with 
about  50  members ;  there  was  a  monthly 
conference  established,  which  has  been 
maintained  until  the  present  time.  The 
ordinances  have  been  observed  all,  or 
nearly  all,  of  the  time  during  the  70  years 
of  its  existence,  and  it  has  sustained  preach- 
ing the  most  of  the  time  by  the  following 
ministers,  viz. :  Elders  B.  Putnam,  R. 
Dodge,  B.  Page,  E.  B.  Rollins,  J.  Cap- 
ron, I.  Petingal,  S.  Allen,  William  Has- 
kell, J.  Haskell,  J.  L.  Green,  B.  Palmer, 
L.  Wheeler,  A.  Hartshorn,  S.  Wheelock, 
J.  D.  Bailey  and  O.  Davis.  It  has  sus- 
tained constant  preaching  the  last  20  years  ; 
the  present  membership  about  80,  accord- 
ing to  the  records,  but  there  are  only  from 
50  to  60  resident  members.  The  church 
will  seat  about  300.  The  Sabbath-school 
has  for  some  years  past  numbered  from 
100  to  130. 

UNIVERSALIST   PARISH    IN   CALAIS. 
BY   UEV.  LESTER    WARREN,    1881. 

The  venerable  William  Farwell  first  pro- 
mulgated our  sentiments  in  Washington 
County;  Hon.  D.  P.  Thompson,  says  in 
his  History  of  Montpelier ,  Mr.  Farwell 
advocated  our  faith  in  a  debate  with  Rev. 
Chester  Wright, — the  grandfather  of  J. 
Edward.  This  public  discussion  was  held 
in  the  street  of  Montpelier,  under  the  first 
shade  trees  of  the  village  ;  a  multitude  of 
people  were  present  in  the  streets  to  hear 
this  debate,  and  we  doubt  not  some  of  the 
fathers  whose  names  here  follow  listened 
with  intense  interest  to  tliat  discussion, 
and  returned  to  organize  a  "parish"  in 
Calais,  just  60  years  ago  ;  dated  at  Calais, 
Dec.  14,  1820,  we  have  this  document: 

We,  the  subscribers,  inhabitants  of 
Calais  in  Washington  County,  do  hereby 
voluntarily  associate  and  agree  to  form  a 
society  by  the  name  of  The  Universalist 
Society  in  Calais  for  the  purpose  of  having 
meetings,  or  supporting  a  minister  to 
preach  with  us  according  to  the  "  first  sec- 
tion of  an  act  entitled  an  act  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  gospels,"  pas.sed  Oct.  26th,  A. 
D.  1798.  Subscribed  to  by  Gideon  Whee- 
lock, Sabin  Ainsworth,  Abijah  Wheelock, 


19 


t46 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Caleb  Curtis,  Backus  Pearce,  Levi  Wright, 
Medad  Wright,  William  Robinson,  Aaron 
Lamb,  Salem  Goodenough,  and  others 
called  a  meeting,  to  meet  at  the  dwelling- 
house  of  Gideon  Wheelock. 

The  record  states  this  first  meeting  was 
held  at  Gideon  Wheelock's  dwelling-house, 
in  Calais,  Feb.  21,  1821  ;  Levi  Wright, 
moderator,  of  •  said  meeting ;  Gideon 
Wheelock,  clerk.  A  constitution  and  by- 
laws were  adopted  at  this  meeting  to  gov- 
ern the  society  and  the  following  officers 
chosen :  Aaron  Lamb,  Caleb  Curtis,  Levi 
Wright  and  Medad  Wright,  prudential 
com.  The  4th  article  of  this  constitution 
reads : 

That  any  member  wishing  to  withdraw 
from  said  society,  it  shall  be  his  duty  to 
make  his  wishes  known  to  the  clerk,  in 
writing,  and  no  member  may  withdraw 
without  he  />ay  /i/s  tax,  or  subscription. 

January  6,  184^,  the  new  constitution 
and  some  articles  of  religious  belief  were 
adopted,  which  were  recorded  in  the  com- 
mencement of  the  "second  book  of  rec- 
ords." Not  all  who  have  acted  with  the 
society  have  have  had  their  names  on  the 
book  of  records,  but  I  find  the  names  of  25 
members  who  have  been  moderators  at 
annual  meetings  since  the  organization, 
viz:  Levi  Wright,  Jedediah  Fay,  Jonas 
Hall,  Nathan  Kelton,  Abijah  Wheelock, 
Medad  Wright,  Welcome  Wheelock,  Pliny 
Curtis,  William  Robinson,  Abdiel  Kent, 
J.  V.  R.  Kent,  John  Robinson,  Jesse 
White,  Samuel  O.  Robinson,  Richard  W. 
Toby,  Alonzo  Pearce,  Nathaniel  Eaton, 
Jacob  Eaton,  Moses  Sheldon,  Sylvester 
Eaton,  Lester  Warren,  E.  A.  Hathaway, 
Ira  S.  Dwinell,  Z.  G.  Pierce,  B.  P.  White. 

These  have  also  been  on  committees 
and  acted  as  officers  of  said  society  ;  some 
of  them  many  times.  The  clerks,  or  sec- 
retaries of  this  society  have  been  only  ten, 
serving  the  society  as  clerks  an  average  of 
6  years  each,  viz  :  Gideon  Wheelock,  Wil- 
liam Robinson,  John  Robinson,  Elon  Rob- 
inson, W.  Wheelock,  A.  Goodenough,  J. 
V.  R.  Kent,  James  K.  Toby,  Alonzo 
Pearce  and  Simeon  Webb. 

Welcome  Wheelock  was  society  clerk 
longer   than   any   other,   being  elected  in 


1840,  and  serving  until  the  time  of  his 
death  in  1865 — 25  years. 

In  the  year  1825,  or  when  Calais  Meet- 
ing-hou.se  was  dedicated,  the  Universalist 
families  in  this  town  were  able  to  own  and 
control  the  same  only  20  Sabbaths  in  the 
year ;  a  little  more  than  one-third ;  in 
1845,  their  share  was  32  Sabbaths.  Now, 
in  1880,  we  count  about  100  families,  but 
they  are  so  scattered  all  over  town,  it  is 
difficult  to  get  one-half  to  meet  at  any  one 
place,  and  meetings  are  held  in  different 
places.  The  past  year,  1879,  and  '80,  the 
Universalists  of  Calais  have  had  meetings 
of  their  order,  one  service  each  Sabbath 
in  East  Calais,  and  each  alternate  Sabbath 
in  the  west  part  of  the  town  :  al.so  evening 
service  in  S.  H.  Fosters  grove  in  North 
Calais.  To  lead  the  singing  in  their  meet- 
ings they  have  had  such  talent  as  afforded 
by  Pliny  Curtis,  Mr.  Wheelock,  E.  W. 
Ormsby,  Ira  A.  Morse,  J.  M.  Dana,  Sam- 
uel O.  Robinson  and  wife,  Abdiel  Kent,  I. 
R.  Kent,  L.  A.  Kent,  Murray  A..  Kent ; 
also  in  East  Calais,  Alonzo  Pearce,  A.  D. 
Pearce  ;  by  Amasa  Tucker  was  played  the 
bass  viol,  the  first  instrument  of  music  in 
our  meeting.  Mrs.  Dr.  Ideand  Mrs.  Bur- 
nap  have  also  been  very  efficient  leaders 
in  the  choirs  ;  Mrs.  Ide  in  the  west,  and 
Mrs.  Burnap  in  the  east  part  of  the 
town.  Those  who  have  played  the  organ, 
are  Mrs.  J.  C.  Brown,  Mrs.  Edwin  Burn- 
ham,  Miss  Josie  M.  Kent,  Alice  Pearce 
and   Ellen  Whitcher. 

About  50  Universalist  ministers  have 
preached  in  Calais  occasionally.  Those 
who  have  been  employed  by  the  society 
for  any  length  of  time  are  William  Far- 
well,  Paul  Dean,  John  E.  Palmer,  Thomas 
Browning,  Mr.  Amiers,  Lemuel  H.  Tabor, 
Lester  Warren,  Sylvester  C.  Eaton,  John 
Gregory,  George  F.  Flanders,  D.D.,  Geo. 
Severance,  J.  H.  Little,  J.  Edward  Wright, 
E.  A.  Goodenough,  S.  C.  Hayford,  and  at 
the  present  time  George  E.  Forbes,  (one 
service  each  Sabbath  in  the  east  part  of 
the  town.)  I  should  not  forget  to  mention 
that  the  ladies  of  the  society  have  done 
their  part  nobly.  They  solicited  the  sub- 
scription, and  hired  S.  A.  Parker  to  preach 
a  part  of  the  time  for  one  year,  about  20 


CALAIS. 


147 


years  ago.  The}'  have  also  been  active  in 
getting  the  reading  meetings  and  Sunday 
school  started,  which  have  been  the  main 
cause  of  the  present  effort  in  the  west  part 
of  Calais. 

Sunday  schools  which  were  first  started 
by  Mr.  Raikes  of  England,  100  years  ago, 
were  not  much  thought  of  here  when  Uni- 
versalist  meetings  commenced,  but  we  had 
a  small  school  in  1844,  mostly  Bible  class. 
In  1852,  a  school  was  commenced  with 
Sidney  H.  Foster,  superintendent,  and  N. 
A.  Chase,  librarian.  From  that  it  has 
continued,  in  the  west  part  of  the  town 
until  the  present  time.  Now,  the  superin- 
tendent is  J.  K.  Toby,  with  Mrs.  Carrie 
Robinson  assistant  superintendent;  and 
Mrs.  William  H.  Kelton  is  teacher  of  the 
juvenile  class ;  and,  with  prospects  bright 
for  future  usefulness,  the  Universalist  par- 
ish in  Calais  now  commences  to  have 
preaching  service  both  in  the  west,  and 
east,  every  Sabbath  the  ensuing  year 
(1881)  I  hope. 

SOLDIERS   OF    THE    REVOLUTION 

who  afterwards  became  residents  of  Calais  : 
John  Beattis,  who  deserted  from  the  Brit- 
ish ;  Seth  Doan,  Jonas  Comins,  Backus 
Gary,  Ebenezer  Goodenough,  Stephen 
Hall,  Moses  Haskell,  Francis  Lebarron, 
Job  Macomber,  John  Martin,  Shubael 
Shortt,  Jesse  Slayton,  Samuel  White,  Ed- 
mund Willis,  Duncan  Young,  deserted 
from  the  British,  David  Fuller,  Asa 
Wheelock,  Joshua  Bliss. 


Names. 
Ainsworth,  Geo.  W. 
Ainsworth,  Lavake 
Ainsworth,  Marcus 


Bailey,  Robert  M. 
Bancroft,  Horace  D. 
Barret^iGeorge  W. 
BatcheTcler,  Chas.  M. 

Benjamin,  Thos.  W. 
Bennett,  L.  Austin 
Blake,  Stephen  D. 

Bigelow,  George 


SOLDIERS   IN   THE 

Reg.      Co.       EnHHment. 

II        I       Dec    8  63 

do  "        3  63 

13     H       Aug  19  62 


II     I 

8      B 

II       I 

do 

Aug  15  64 
Dec  31  61 
Aug  15  64 
Dec     5  63 

do 
do 
do 

Dec  3  63 
July  21  62 
Dec     3  63 

6      B 

July  n  63 

Bliss,  Frederick  D.         ii       I       July  16  62 


SOLDIERS    IN   WAR   OF    l8l2. 

Danforth  Ainsworth,  Welcome  Ains- 
worth, Benjamin  Bancroft,  John  Goodell, 
David  Green,  Isaac  Hawkins,  Enoch  Kel- 
ton, Ansel  Lebarron,  Shubael  Lewis,  Azel 
Lyon,  Jason  Marsh,  28  months ;  Perry 
Marsh,  14  months;  D wight  Marsh,  28 
months;  John  Martin,  Jr.,  Jabez  Mower, 
Ephraim  Pray,  Isaac  Robinson,  Joel  Tuck- 
er, Josiah  White,  Daniel  Young. 

VOLUNTEERS  TO  PLATTSBURGH  SEPT.  1814. 

Vial  Allen,  Joshua  Bliss,  2d,  Joshua 
Bliss,  4th,  Ira  Brown,  Pliny  Curtis,  Elias 
Drake,  Samuel  Fuller,  Simeon  Guernsey, 
Bemis  Hamilton,  Thomas  Hathaway,  Par- 
don Janes,  Jabez  Mower,  Noah  Pearce, 
Joel  Robinson,  Cyrenus  Shortt,  Darius 
Slayton,  Jesse  Slayton,  Phineas  Slayton, 
Simeon  Slayton,  Edward  Tucker,  Reuben 
D.  Waters,  Hiram  Wells,  Schuyler  Wells, 
Josiah  White,  Gideon  Wheelock,  Jonathan 
Wheelock,  Levi  Wright,  Medad  Wright. 

SOLDIERS   IN    MEXICAN   WAR. 

James  M.  Ainsworth,  died  at  Jalapa, 
Mexico,  Feb.  29,  1848.  Dexter  S.  Good- 
ell, served  in  war  of  1861-5,  died  1878. 
Arlo  Thayer. 

Amasa  Tucker,  an  old  resident  and  a 
man  of  remarkable  memory,  has  aided 
largely  in  the  preparation  of  the  foregoing 
lists  of  soldiers,  and  they  are  perhaps  as 
near  correct  as  it  is  possible  to  make  them 
at  this  time. 

CIVIL  WAR,   1861-5. 

Remarks. 
Dis.  June  16,  65. 
Deserted  July  26,  64. 
Must,  out  July  21,  63  ;  re-enlist.  11  Reg.  Co. 

I.  Nov.  30,  63  ;  tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ; 

tr.  to  Co.  D.  ;  must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Missed  in  action  Oct.  19,  64. 
Killed  at  Port  Hudson,  June  14,  63. 
Must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Tv.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ;    tr.  to  Co.  D.  ; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  ;  disch.  June  13,  65. 
Died  February  19,  63. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ;  tr.  to  Co.  D  ;   pro. 

Corp.  July  12,  65  ;  must.' out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Drafted  ;    tr.  to  Co.  Co.  H.  Oct.  16,  64  ;    tr. 

to  V.  R.  C.  Nov.  22,  64  ;    must,  out  July 

15,  65. 
Corp. ;  pro.  sergt.   Dec.  26,  63  ;    red..  Sept. 

37,  64  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 


148 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Namei. 

Reg. 

Co. 

Enlistment. 

Bliss,  Zenas  H. 

9 

I 

June  24  62 

Brown,  James  W. 
Bruce,  Joel 
Burke,  Walter 
Burnham,  Melvin  V. 
Burnap,  Charles  H. 
Burnap,  Wyman  R. 

II 

4 
13 

9 
II 
d 

I 

G 
H 

I 
I 

July  26  62 
Sept    2  61 
Aug  19  62 
June  16  62 
July  17  62 
"     19  62 

Carr,  Lemuel  B. 
Carroll,  Henry  W. 
Clark,  Aurelian  M. 

II 

8 
4 

I 

I 

H 

Nov  30  63 
Feb   14  65 
Aug  30  64 

Clark,  Charles 
Clark,  Charles  M. 
Clark,  James  H. 
Clifford,  Isaac 
Church,  Isaiah  B. 
Colburn,  Charles  C. 
Colburn,  Curtis  C. 
Connor,  Dorman 
Dodge,  Oramel  S. 
Dudley,  Andrew  J. 

II        I 

istssF 
II       I 
13     H 

7 

13    c 

do 
13     H- 
II       I 

do 

Jan.     4  64 
Sept  II  61 
July  15  62 
Aug  19  62 
Feb     8  65 
Aug  29  62 
Aug  29  62 
Aug  19  62 
Dec     I  63 
July  15  62 

Eaton,  Arthur  G. 
Eaton,  Chase  H. 
Estes,  Charles  O. 
Fair,  Simon  C. 
Fair,  Shubel  B. 
Flynn,  John  D. 

9 
13 

2d 

II 

9 

I 
F 
H 
Bat 
I 
I 

June  26  62 
July   II   63 
Aug  19  62 
Nov  12  61 
July  21  62 
May  30  62 

Foster,  Edward  L. 

II 

I 

Aug    2  62 

Foster,  Sidney  H. 

II 

I 

July  22  62 

Gardner,  Horace 

13 

H 

Sept  22  62 

Goodell,  Dexter  S. 
Goodell,  Henry  M. 
Goodell,  John  A. 
Goodell,  Lee  Roy 
Goodell,  William  M. 

II 

d 
8 
II 

d 

I 

D 

E 

I 
0 

July  21  62 

"      15  62 

Feb   14  65 

Dec     5  63 

8  63 

Goodno,  Martin, 
Guernsey,  Geo.  H. 

II      I 

do 

Nov  30  63 
Aug  II  62 

Guernsey,  Oscar  W. 
Hale,  William  H. 
Hall,  Hiram  A. 

d< 
7 
9 

3 

A 
I 

"      15  64 
Feb    8  65 
June  24  62 

Hall,  Hiram  H. 
Hall,  Robert  H. 
Hammond,  John  F.  C 

3     H 
T  AC 
6      F 

June    I  61 
July  II  63 

Harding,  John  W. 
Hinkson,  Lyman 
Hobart,  Henry 

S      E 

13     H 

do 

Feb    9  65 
Aug  19  62 
Sept  12  62 

Hovey,  James  O. 
Jackson,  Orra  W. 

II 

D 
I 

May    7  61 
Dec     I  63 

Jackson,  Samuel 
Jennings,  Ira  E. 
Judd,  William 

II 

d 

2d 

I 
0 
Bat 

Dec     I  63 

4  63 

Nov  12  61 

Remarfcs. 
Pro.  sergt. ;  disch.  for  pro.  in  colored  troops 

August  19,  64. 
Pro.  Corp.  Sept.  27,  64  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Killed  at  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  62. 
Died  March  4,  63. 
Died  March  8,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Pro.  sergt.  Sept.  i,  64 ;    died  Sept.  21,  64,  of 

wounds  rec'd  in  action  Sept.  19,  6*4. 
Deserted  Nov.  2,  64. 
Died  June  19  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  E.  Feb.  25,  65  ;    must,  out  June 

19,  1865. 
Deserted  Oct.  22,  64. 
Discharged  Jan.  10,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Wagoner  ;    must,  out  July  21,  63. 
Not  accounted  for. 
Died  Jan.  26.  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Corp.  ;  must,  out  July  21,  63. 
Discharged  June  21,  65. 
Pro.  to  sergt.    Aug.   11,  63;    pro.  2d  lieut. 

Sept.  2,  64  ;    pro.   ist  lieut.  Dec.  2,  64  ; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Died  Nov.  9,  62. 

Drafted ;  \^xo.  corp.  ;  must,  out  May  13,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Sergeant  ;  died  July  23,  62. 
Pro.  Corp.  Dec. 26,  63  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Pro.  corp.  ;    serg.  Sept.   16,  64  ;    must,  out 

June  13,  65. 
Pro.  reg.  com.  sergt.   May  16,  63  ;    pro.   2d 

lieut.  Co.  I.  Dec.  28,  63  ;    pro.  ist  lieut. 

Sept.  2,  64;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
istse.igt;  pro.  2d  lieut.  July  II,  63  ;  ist  lieut. 

Dec.    28,  63 ;    hon.   disch.  for   disability 
Nov.  22,  64. 
Sergt.  ;  pro.  ist  sergt.  June  4,  63;  must,  out 

July  21,  63. 
Trans,  to  Inv.  Corps,  Feb.  15,  64. 
Disch.  Nov.  17,  62. 
Mustered  out  May  23,  65. 
Discharged. 
Tr.   to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ;    tr.  to  Co.  D.  ; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ;  disch.  July  21,  65. 
Pro.  corp.  Dec.  26,  63  ;    sergt.  Feb.  11,  65  ; 

must,  out  June  30,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 

"     Feb.  8.  66. 
Pro.  to  corp.  Nov.  27,  64  ;    must,  out  June 

13,  1S65. 
Discharged  Nov.  21,  62. 

Drafted ;    pro.  to  corp.  ;    tr.  to  Co.  A.  Oct. 

16,  64  ;    pro.  to  sergt.  Jan.  i,  65  ;    must. 

out  June  26,  65. 
Died  March  6,  65.  • 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Disch.  April  25,  63;    re-enlist.  11  reg.  Co.  I. 

Aug.  II,  64  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Re-enlfst.  Dec.  21,  63 ;  disch.  May  13,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65 ;    must,  out  June 

29,  1865. 
Died  August  8,  64. 
Died  Feb.  3,  64. 
Sergt.  ;  reduced  to  ranks  ;    re-enlist.  Jan.  2, 

64  ;  pro.  corp.  Sept.  i,  64  ;  sergt.  May  i, 

65  ;  must,  out  July  31,  65. 


CALAIS. 


149 


Names,  Reg.      Co. 

Kelton,  Edgar  A.  13      C 

Larock,  John,  6      G 

Lawson,  Truman,  11        I 

Leonard,  Joseph  W.  do 

Lilley,  Willard,  do 

Lincoln,  Eugene,  8      K 

Linsey,  Hubbard  6      B 

Major,  William  13     H 

Marshall,  Chas,  H.  11        I 

Marsh,  Frank  E.  do 

Marsh,  Henry  O.  4      G 

Marsh,  Wm,  H.  H.  do 

Martin,  James,  9       I 

Martin,  John  A.  11        I 

Martin,  John  W.  do 

Martin,  Silas  B.  do 

Martin,  William  E.  do 

McLoud,  Edward  T.  1 1 

McLoud,  Henry  IL  4      G 


McLoud,  Morrilla  G.       4      G 


McKnight,  Chas.  M. 
Merrill,  Isaac  A.  L. 
Mower,  Albion  J. 
Mower,  Marcus  M. 
Nelson,  Geo.  W. 

Newton,  Henry  H. 

Nourse,  Calvin 
Ormsbee,  Chas.  E. 

Ormsbee,  DeWitt  C. 

Ormsbee,  Geo.  W. 
Peck,  William  V. 
Persons,  Joseph  Jr. 

Pierce,  Alonzo  E. 


Pierce,  Lyman  J. 
Pierce,  Orion  A. 
Phillips,  Walter  A. 

Porter,  Freeman  J. 
Pray,  Rufus  M. 
Preston,  George 
Remick,  George 
Robinson,  Ed.  E. 

Robinson,  Joel  E. 

Robinson,  Robert  PL 
Rodney,  John 
Russell,  Franklin  W. 

Short,  Gilbert  L. 

Shaw,  Dexter  V. 
Slayton,  Rufus  H. 
Slayton,  Theodore  M. 


Enlistment. 
Aug  29  62 

Feb  22  65 
Dec  I  63 
Aug  13  62 
July  15  62 

Feb  20  65 
July  II   63 

Oct  3  62 
Dec  5  63 
Aug  1 1  62 
Sept  3  61 
do 

June  18  62 
Aug  II  62 
Aug  13  62 
July  25  62 
Aug  II  62 
Dec  3  63 
Sept    4  61 


do 


13 

(I 

H 

I 

Aug  19  62 
Julv  30  62 

9 
II 
6 

1 
I 
E 

June  30  62 
July  31  62 
July  II  63 

II 

I 

Nov  30  63 

13 

2 

H 

Aug  29  62 
June  17  61 

II 

I 

Dec  3  63 

6 

H 

Aug  14  6r 

13 
II 

H 

I 

Sept  23  62 
Dec  5  63 

3    .K       July  II  61 


8 
3 
13 

E 
K 
H 

Feb  14  65 
July  10  61 
Aug  19  62 

9 

8 

[  ss 

I 

K 
K 
A 
F 

June  4  62 
Julv  23  61 
Feb  II  65 
Sept  27  61 
Sept  II  61 

[3 

C 

Aug  29  62 

7 
6 

ti 

A 
F 
H 

Feb  8  65 
Sept  28  61 
Dec  I  63 

[I 

I 

Dec  2  63 

4 

:d  : 

>3 

H 

Bat 
H 

Feb  14  65 
Aug  27  64 
Aug  19  62 

Remarks. 
Corp.  ;    pro.  sergt.  Feb.  28,  63  ;    must,  ou 

July  21,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65  ;  disch.  July  i,  65. 
1st  lieut.  ;  resigned  Nov.  25,  62. 
Pro.  Corp.  Nov.  14,  62  ;    disch.  June  15,  65  ; 

wounded,  and  lost  an  arm  ;    full  pension. 
Mustered  out  June  28,  65. 
Drafted  ;   tr.  to  Co.  H.   Oct.  16,  64  ;  must. 

out  June  26,  65. 
Must,  out  July  21,  63. 
Must,  out  May  23,  65. 

Pro.  Cor.  Feb  n,  65  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Died  June  6,  64,  of  wounds  rec'd  in  action. 
Pro.  Cor.;  re-enlisted  Dec  15,  63;  died  July 

2,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 
Pro.  Cor.  July  15,  64;  must,  out  June  13,  65. 
Must,  out  June  24,  61;. 

Pro.  to  Cor.  Dec  26,  63.;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Must,  out  June  24,  65. 

do  do 

Died  Jan.  13,  64. 
Dis.  Feb.  18,63;  re-en.  11  Reg.  Co.  L  Dec. 

2,  63;  tr.  Co.  A.  June  24,  65 ;  tr.  Co.  D.; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Re-en- Dec.  63  ;  pro.  Cor.  Oct.  5,  64  to  Sergt. 

Dec.  3,  64  ;  tr.  to  Co.  F.  Feb  25,  65  ;  must. 

out  July  13,  65. 
Sergt ;  died  May  24,  63. 
Must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Capt.;  re'-igned  July  8,  63. 
Died  July  29,  63. 
Drafted;  tr.   to  Co.  K.  Oct.    16,64;  iriust. 

out  May  13,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.  June  24,  65 ;  tr.   to  Vet.   Res. 

Corps,  Nov.  25,  64. 
Must,  out  July,  21,  63. 
Re-en.  Dec.   21,  63  ;   pro.   Cor.;    must,  out 

July  15,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A.   June  24,  65;  tr.  to  Co.  D.; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  must,  out  June  26,  65. 
Capt.;  resigned  Jan.  25,  63. 
Tr.  to  Co.  A  June  24,  65  ;  tr.  to  Co.  D.;  pro. 

Cor.  June  27,  65  ;  must,  out  Aug.  25.  65. 
2d  Lt.;  pro.  ist  Lt.  Co.  A.  Sept.  22,62  ;  pro. 

Capt.   Co.   K.   May  8,  63  ;  hon.  dis.  Dec. 

14,  63,  for  disability. 
Must,  out  July  7,  65. 
Cor.  Dis.  Nov.  18,  62. 
1st  Sergt.;  Pro.  2d  Lt.  June  4,  63;  must,  out 

July  21,  63. 
Cor.;  died  Nov.  19,  62. 

Pro.  Sergt.;  re-en.  Dec.  31,  63;  dis.  May  27,  65. 
Must,  out  June  28,  65. 
Re-en.  Jan.  5,  64 ;  dis.  Feb.  21,  65. 
Pro.   Reg.   Qr.   M.   Sergt.   Jan.   18,   62 ;  dis. 

Sept.  12,  64. 
Must,  out  July  21,  63;  died  July  28,  63  of 

disease  contracted  in  army. 
Died  Jan.  14,  66. 
Dis.  June  24,  62. 
Tr.  to  Co.   B.  June  24,  65;  tr.   to  Co.  D.; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Tr.  to  Co.   A.  June  24,  65;  tr.   to  Co.  D,; 

must,  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Must,  out  July  13,  65. 
Died  July  31,  65. 
Must,  out  July  21,  6j. 


I50 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 

Reg. 

Co. 

Enlistment. 

Slayton,  Thos.  J.  2d. 

d 

0 

do 

Smith,  Amasa  T. 

3 

K 

July  II  61 

Smith,  Coridon  D. 

2d 

Bat 

Dec  13  61 

Soper,  George 

2 

D 

May    7  61 

Stockwell,  Albert  S. 

13 

C 

Aug  29  62 

Stone,  Judson  A. 

13 

H  ' 

Aug  19  62 

Stone,  Benjamin  H. 

4 

G 

Aug  26  61 

Stowe,  Lewis  A. 

K 

Feb  20  62 

Stowe,  William, 

2 

F 

May    7  61 

Sumner,  Alonzo  L. 

7 

H 

Feb    8  62 

Tewksbury,  Chas.  C.     i  ss    F       Sept  1 1  61 


Tice,  Fletcher  F. 
Tichout,  Alva  M. 
Walling,  Ransom 

Webber,  Silas 

Webber,  Timothy  C. 
Wells,  William  R. 

Wheeler,  Martin  E. 
Wheeler,  Zimri  B. 

Wheelock,  Jacob  E. 
Wheelock,  Russell 
White,  Chas.  R. 
White,  William  O. 

Whiting,  Amos  A. 

Whitten,  Curtis  B. 
Witham,  Aaron 


II     I 

do 
6      B 

July  15  62 
Aug  10  64 
July  1 1   63 

4     G 

Aug  29  61 

13     H 
II       I 

Sept  17  62 
Aug     I  62 

do 
do 

July  24  62 
do 

istCav  C  Sept  10  61 

13      H  Aug  19  62 

do  do 

13     H  do 

13     C  Aug  29  62 

II       I  Aug  30  64 

9       I  May  28  63 


There  were  15  re-enlistments  credited  to 
the  town,  as  follows  :  Marcus  Ainsworth, 
Henry  Hobart,  William  Judd,  William  H. 
H.  Marsh,  H.  H.  McLoud,  Alonzo  L. 
Sumner,  C.  C.  Tewksbury,  twice,  Silas 
Webber,  Amos  Whiting,  Wm.  O.  White, 
not  credited  by  name,  4. 

Thirty  men  were  drafted  July  11,  1863  ; 
Of  these  6  entered  the  service,  and  their 
names  appear  in  the  above  record,  and  are 
as  follows:  Geo.  Bigelow,  Chase  H. 
Eaton,  John  F.  C.  Hammond,  Hubbard 
Linsey,  Geo.  W.  Nelson  and  Ransom 
Walling. 

Twenty-four  paid  commutation,  as  fol- 
lows :  Eri  Batchelder,  Ira  D.  Cochran, 
Chandler  Coller,  Lemuel  P.  Goodgll,  Clark 
M.  Gray,  Geo.  H.  Gray,  Geo.  E.  Hall, 
Edwin  D.  Haskell,  John  Q.  Haskell,  W. 
V.  Herrick,  James  M.  Jacobs,  Ira  Jen- 
nings, Marcus  C.  Kenneston,  Allen  Morse, 
Azro  Nelson,  Geo.  S.  Newton,  William 
V.  Peck,  Orion  Pierce,  William  C.  Robin- 


Remarks. 
Sergt.;  died  Apr.  7,  63. 
1st  Lt.;  pro.   to  Capt.  Jan.  15,  Gt,;  resigned 

Feb.  13,  63. 
1st  Lt.;  dism.  July  30,  62. 
Died  Dec.  7,  61. 
Must,  out  July  21,  63. 

do  do 

Died  Feb.  5,  62. 
Dis.  Oct.  2,  62. 

Pro.  to  Cor.;  killed  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  20,  64  ;  pro.  to  Cor.  Oct.  i,  64  ; 

must,  out  Mar.  14,  66. 
Dis.  Oct.  4,  61  ;  re-en.   13  Reg.  Co.  C.  Aug. 

29,62;  pro.   to  Cor.  Jan.    12,63;  must. 

out  July  21,  63  ;  re-en.  1 1  Reg.  Co.  I,  Aug. 

30,  64  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Must,  out  June  24,  65. 

do  do 

Drafted  ;  tr.   to   H.   Oct.   16,  64 ;   must,   out 

June  26,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  killed  at  bat.  Wilderness 

May  5,  64. 
Must,  out  July  21,  63. 
Pro.  to  Artificer  Dec.  26, 63  ;  must,  out  June 

24,  65. 
Must,  out  May  13,  65. 
Cor.  Pro.  Sergt.  Mar,  4,  64  ;  must,  out  June 

24,  65. 
Dis.  Oct.  29,  62. 
Dis.  Apr.  18,  63. 
Sergt.;  dis.  Feb.  3,  63. 
Cor.;  dis.  July  21,  63 ;  re-en.  8  Reg.  Co.  E. 

Feb.  14,  65;  must,  out  June  28,  65. 
Dis.  July  21,  63;  re-en.  11  Reg.  Co.  I.  Aug, 

15,  64  ;  must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Must,  out  June  24,  65. 
Must,  out  June  13,  65. 

son,  Lewis  W.  Voodrey,  Henry  P.  Whee- 
lock, Jacob  E.  Wheelock,  Benjamin  P. 
White  and  Lewis  L.  Wood. 

SUMMARY. 

Enlisted  for  three  years,  96 ;  enlisted  for 
one  year,  23  ;  enlisted  for  nine  months,  27  ; 
drafted  and  entered  service,  6 ;  drafted  and 
paid  commutation,  24;  total,  176.  Entire 
quota  of  the  town,  173;  furnished  in  ex- 
cess of  quota,  3. 

Partial  list  of  natives  of  Calais  who  en- 
listed elsewhere  :  Horace  Bancroft,  Calvin 
Bliss,  Solomon  Dodge,  Gardner  Fay,  Wil- 
lard  Fay,  Geo.  W.  Foster,  Jr.,  James 
Hargin,  Charles  C.  McKnight,  Lorenzo 
Stowe,  Marcus  F.  Tucker,  Wm.  Arlo 
Tucker,  Calvin  White ;  in  Confederate 
service,  Jas.  M.  Bliss,  Melvin  Dwinell. 

SOLDIERS   WHO   DIED   IN   THE   WAR. 

Freeman  Porter,  Amasa  Smith,  George 
Lowell,  Charles  Fisher,  A.  G.  Eaton, 
Lyman   Pierce,     Lester    Clifford,   Austin 


CALAIS. 


ISI 


Bennett,  are  buried  in  East  Calais  cem- 
etery ;  T.  J.  Slayton,  in  Short  cemetery; 
Rufus  Slayton  in  South  cemetery  ;  Lorenzo 
Stowe,  Lewis  Stowe,  in  Center  cemetery ; 
Joel  Robinson,  Marcus  M.  Mower,  Ira  Jen- 
nings, Clark  C.  Colburn,  in  Robinson 
cemetery. 

BIOGRAPHICAL   PAPERS. 

FROM  MAUCUS  D.   (JILMAN,   LIHUAKIAN  OF  VT. 
HISTOlllCAL  SOCIKTY. 

John  Melvin  Gilman,  son  of  Dr.  John 
Gilman,  and  only  brother  of  Marcus  D. 
Gilman,  was  born  at  Calais,  Sept.  7,  1824. 
He  resided  on  the  farm  of  his  step-father, 
Hon.  Nathaniel  Eaton,  in  Calais,  until 
about  17  years  of  age.  He  was  educated 
at  the  common  schools  of  the  town  and  at 
the  Washington  County  Grammar  School 
at  Montpelier.  He  read  law  in  the  office 
of  Heaton  &  Reed,  at  Montpelier,  and 
commenced  practice  at  New  Lisbon,  Ohio, 
where  he  remained  until  1857,  when  he 
moved  to  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  where  he  has 
become  one  of  the  most  prominent  mem- 
bers of  the  legal  profession  in  the  state. 

While  residing  in  Ohio,  Mr.  Gilman  was 
electeil  to  the  State  Senate  from  Colum- 
biana County  in  1849-50.  He  has  been 
four  times  elected  to  the  Legislature  of 
Minnesota  from  St.  Paul,  "and  has  ren- 
dered the  state  valuable  service  in  that  ca- 
pacity." He  has  also  been  the  democratic 
candidate  for  Congress  and  other  offices  in 
St.  Paul ;  but  his  party  being  in  the  minor- 
ity, he  was  not  elected.  Mi;.  Gilman  be- 
ing a  good  speaker,  his  services  are  always 
in  demand  as  a  campaign  orator,  and  he 
generously  devotes  much  time  to  the  in- 
terests of  the  democratic  party. 

Mr.  Gilman  married  Anna  G.  Cornwell, 
atNew  Lisbon,  Ohio,  June  25,  1857;  they 
have  had  children  :  John  Cornwell,  born 
Jan.  23,  1859  ;  Marcus  Cornwell,  born  Oct. 
18,  i860;  Hays  Cornwell,  born  July  29, 
1862 ;  died  Aug.  12,  1863 ;  Jessie  Corn- 
well,  born  Nov.  14,  1864;  Kittie  Cornwell, 
born  Jan.  7,  1868;  all  born  at  St.  Paul. 
The  two  last-named  only  are  now  living. 
The  two  boys,  John  C.  and  Marcus  C, 
were  accidentally  drowned  by  the  upsetting 
of  their  boat  in  a  storm,  on  a  bayo  of  the 


Mississippi  river  near  St.  Paul,  while  out 
duck-shooting,  Apr.  28,  1877. 

ISRAEL   EDSON   DWINELL, 

of  East  Calais,  [See  Dwinell  family  in  East 
Calais  papers] ,  in  boyhood  was  the  school- 
mate and  most  intimate  friend  of  the 
writer.  He  resided  on  his  father's  farm 
until  about  18  years  of  age  and  was  ed- 
ucated at  the  common  schools  and  at  the 
University  of  Vermont,  where  he  was  grad- 
uated in  1843 ;  read  theology,  and  was 
graduated  at  the  Union  Theological  Sem- 
inary, New  York  City,  in  1848  ;  ordained 
colleague  pastor  with  Rev.  Brown  Em- 
erson, D.  D.,  over  the  Third  Congrega- 
tional church,  Salem,  Mass.,  Nov.  22, 
1849;  remained  until  his  removal  to  Sac- 
ramento, California,  in  July,  1863,  where 
he  became  pastor  of  the  First  (Congrega- 
tional) Church  of  Christ,  and  where  he 
still  remains,   (January,  1881.) 

Many  sermons  and  articles  by  Dr.  Dwin- 
ell have  been  published,  mostly  upon  the- 
ological matters.  We  give  a  list  of  his 
principal  published  writings  :  "  Claims  of 
Religion  on  the  State,"  in  New  Englander , 
Nov.  1854;  "Self-Development,  not  Ag- 
gression, the  true  Policy  of  our  Nation," 
New  Englander,  Nov.  1855  ;  "  Advance  in 
the  Type  of  Revealed  Religion,"  Bibliotheca 
Sacra,  April,  1857  ;  "Spiritualism  tested  by 
Christianity,"  New  Englander,  Nov.  1857  ; 
"  Baptism  a  Consecrating  Rite,"  Biblio- 
theca Sacra,  January,  1858;  "Union  of 
the  Divine  and  the  Human  in  the  Exter- 
nals of  Christianity,"  Bibliotheca  Sacra, 
July,  1859;  "Adaptation  of  Christianity 
to  Home  Missions,"  Congregational  Quar- 
terly, October,  1859;  "Hope  for  our 
Country,"  a  sermon  at  Salem,  Oct.  19, 
1862,  pp.  19;  "Historical  Sketch  of  the 
Pacific  Theological  Association,"  1867,  pp. 
28  ;  "  Relation  of  the  Acceptance  of  Super- 
natural Ideas  to  Institutions  of  Learning," 
being  an  oration  before  the  Associate 
Alumni  of  California,  Oakland,  1868,  pub- 
lished in  tne  minutes;  "The  Higher 
Reaches  of  the  Great  Continental  Railway  : 
A  Highway  for  our  God,"  a  sermon  at  Sac- 
ramento, May  9,  1869,  pp.  13;  "New  Era 
of    the    Spirit,"    Congregational   Review, 


152 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


March,  1870;  "Service  of  the  Suffering," 
a  sermon  at  Sacramento,  April  23,  1871, 
pp.  13;  "  Religion,  According  to  Carlyle," 
Congregational  Review,  Sept.  1871  ;  "Prot- 
estantism— Is  it  a  Failure,"  Christian 
Wor/d,  January,  1869;  "Memorial  Ser- 
mon "  at  Sacramento,  June  29,  1873  ;  "  Fel- 
lowship of  the  Churches,"  a  sermon  at 
the  National  Council  of  Congregational 
Churches  at  New  Haven,  in  October,  1874, 
published  in  the  Minutes. 

Besides  the  above,  many  sermons  and 
addresses  published  in  the  newspapers ; 
the  popular  way  of  publishing  discourses 
of  late.  Dr.  Dwinell  received  the  hon- 
orary degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  from 
the  University  of  Vermont  in  1864. 

REV.    C.    L.    GOODELL 

was  born  in  Calais,  Mar.  16,  1830.  He 
was  brought  up  on  a  farm,  attended  the 
common  schools,  and  fitted  for  college  at 
Morrisville  and  Bakersfield  academies ; 
graduated  at  the  University  of  Vermont  in 
1855  ;  at  Andover  Theo.  Sem.  1858  ;  was 
also  a  short  time  at  Union  Theo.  Sem. 
New  York  City  ;  was  settled  as  pastor  over 
the  Congregational  church  at  New  Britain, 
Conn.,  14  years  ;  then  moved  to  St.  Louis, 
Mo.,  where  he  still  remains  as  pastor  of  a 
church.  He  married  Emily  Fairbanks, 
daughter  of  ex-Governor  Erastus  Fair- 
banks, of  St.  Johnsbury,  in  1859  ;  they  have 
two  children, 

Mr.  Goodell  has  been  abroad  three 
times,  visiting  Egypt,  Palestine  and  the 
East,  in  1867.  His  publications  are  :  "An 
Oration  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  1849,  at 
Calais,  published  by  request  of  the  cit- 
izens "  ;  "A  Thanksgiving  Sermon  on  our 
National  Affairs,"  1863,  which  was  widely 
circulated;  "  Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Gov. 
Erastus  Fairbanks,"  in  the  Congregational 
Quarterly,  January,  1865  ;  "  Life  of  Rev. 
John  Smalley,  D.  D.,  of  Connecticut," 
1873;  "Life  of  Mrs.  Henry  C.  Stephens, 
of  New  York  City,"  published  in  a  vol- 
ume in  1869;  in  addition,  Mr.  Goodell 
writes  us,  he  has  had  of  late  years  some 
200  sermons  and  public  addresses  pub- 
lished in  the  daily  press  and  in  pamphlet 
form. 


COL.    CALEB   CURTIS, 

one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Calais,  was  a 
son  of  the  first  minister  of  Charlton,  Mass., 
Rev.  Caleb  Curtis,  and  his  wife.  Charity 
(Combs)  Curtis  ;  Col.  Curtis  was  born  in 
Charlton,  Mar.  12,  1770;  he  married  first, 
Polly,  daughter  of  Levi  Davis,  of  Charlton, 
who  was  a  brother  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis, 
one  of  the  principal  proprietors  of  the  town- 
ships of  Calais  and  Montpelier,  and  the 
first  settler  of  the  latter  town. 

Col.  Curtis  and  wife  moved  to  Calais 
before  1795,  and  settled  at  the  head  of 
Curtis  pond,  so  named  for  him,  where  he 
continued  to  reside  until  his  death,  Jan.  4, 
1836. 

He  opened  an  excellent  farm,  Vvhich  he 
industriously  cultivated,  and  was  one  of 
the  most  prominent  citizens,  having  been 
chosen  to  most  of  the  civil  and  military 
offices  of  the  town  and  vicinity.  He  was 
thrice  married,  and  brought  up  and  ed- 
ucated a  large  and  fine  family.  By  his 
first  wife,  who  died  Jan.  4,  1801,  aged  25 
years,  he  had : 

1st,  Pliny,  born  in  Calais,  Nov.  14,  1795, 
who  became  a  prominent  citizen  in  town, 
and  subsequently  moved  to  Columbus, 
Ohio,  where  he  died  in  Feb.  1853. 

2d,  Ruth,  born  in  Calais,  Jan.  11,  1799, 
and  died  in  Middlesex,  Vt.,  July  30,  1865  ; 
she  married  first,  John  Oilman,  M.  D., 
May  20,  1 8 19,  and  they  had  two  sons, 
Marcus  Davis,  the  writer  of  this,  and  John 
Melvin.  Dr,  Oilman  died  at  Calais,  Feb. 
10,  1825,  and  his  widow  married  Nathaniel 
Eaton,  of  Calais,  and  they  had  one  son, 
Caleb  Curtis,  born  at  Calais,  May  6,  1830 ; 
[For  whom  see  Eaton  Family  paper.] 

Col.  Curtis  married,  2d,  Miss  Anna, 
daughter  of  Samuel  Robinson,  who  settled 
in  Calais  from  Charlton ;  she  died  April 
27,  18 14,  aged  y]  \  from  this  marriage 
there  was,  ist,  Polly,  born  July  6,  1804; 
she  married  Ira  Kent,  of  Kent's  Corner, 
Calais,  where  she  resided  until  her  death, 
Jan.  24,  1881  ;  2d,  Stillman  H.,  born  Dec. 
20,  1808,  read  law,  and  settled  at  Plainfield, 
and  died  unmarried,  at  Calais,  in  March, 
1844;  3d,  Amanda  M.,  born  July  9,  1810, 
married  Lebeus  H.  Chase,  a  merchant  of 


CALAIS. 


iS3 


Plainfield,  where  she  died  March  23,  1837, 
no  children;  4th,  Minerva,  born  April  18, 
18 13,  married  Ezekiel  Kent,  brother  of 
Ira;  she  died  in  1871,  leaving  a  daughter 
Alice,  who  married  Col.  J.  O.  Livingston, 
a  lawyer  of  Montpelier,  where  they  now 
reside. 

Col.  Curtis  married  for  his  third  wife,  a 
widow  Daggett,  by  whom  he  had,  ist, 
Dauphna,  born  Aug.  13,  18 16,  who  mar- 
ried Rev.  L.  H.  Tabor,  a  Universalist 
minister;  she  died  at  East  Burke,  Vt., 
Jan.  II,  1880;  they  had  three  children. 

2d,  Laura  A.,  born  Aug.  28,  18 19,  mar- 
ried J.  V.  R.  Kent,  brother  to  Ira;  she 
died  at  Calais,  Aug.  31,  1851  ;  3d,  Fanny 
H.,  born  July  24,  1822,  and  married  Abdiel 
Kent,  another  brother  of  Ira ;  she  died 
Dec.  24,  1854,  leaving  two  sons  and  two 
daughters,  the  eldest  daughter,  Ella  F., 
married  Arthur  B.  Bacon,  and  they  reside 
in  Spencer,  Mass.,  and  have  two  children, 
Frederick  and  Laura. 

Murray  A.,  married  Ruth,  daughter  of 
Sidney  Bennett  and  wife,  Ruth  (Eaton)  ; 
they  have  a  son,  Dorman,  and  reside  at 
Kent's  Corner.  Van  R.,  married  Le- 
lia,  daughter  of  Capt.  Foster  of  Calais, 
and  reside  in  Spencer,  Mass.  Laura  Ann, 
a  young  lady,  finely  educated,  is  precep- 
tress of  the  High  and  Graded  School  in 
Spencer,  Mass. 

The  children  of  Col.  Caleb  Curtis  were 
nine,  two  sons  and  seven  daughters ;  and 
his  third  wife,  widow  Daggett,  added  to 
the  family  three  daughters  Lucy,  Catharine 
and  Mary,  by  her  first  husband,  and  the 
twelve  lived  together  in  affection,  love  and 
harmony. 

Pliny,  eldest  son  of  Col.  Curtis,  mar- 
ried Relief,  daughter  of  Darius  Boyden, 
one  of  the  early  settlers  of  East  Montpel- 
ier, (who  also  came  from  Charlton)  ;  they 
were  married  at  East  Montpelier,  Dec.  17, 
1 8 18,  and  settled  on  a  farm  where  Sidney 
Bennett  now  lives,  about  a  mile  south  of 
the  Curtis  homestead.  They  raised  a 
beautiful  family  of  eight  children,  all  born 
in  Calais ;  about  1840,  the  family  moved 
to  a  farm  near  Columbus,  Ohio  ;  his  wife 
Relief  died  at  Peoria,  111.,  Aug.  13,  1862, 
aged  65.     Their  children  were  : 


1st,  Nathaniel  Bancroft,  born  Sept.  11, 
1819;  married  Jane  Warren,  of  Warren- 
ville,  Dupage  County,  111.,  in  1853,  and 
they  have  two  daughters.  Nathaniel  went 
to  Columbus,  Ohio,  early  in  life,  and  was 
very  prosperous  in  mercantile  and  banking 
business  there  and  at  Peoria,  111.,  whither 
he  removed  in  185 1  ;  and  it  should  be  re- 
corded that  from  1840  until  his  death  in 
1872,  he  contributed  largely  to  the  support 
of  his  father''s  family,  and  especially  to  the 
thorough  education  of  the  younger  mem- 
bers. From  an  obituary  notice  of  Mr. 
Nathaniel  B.  Curtis,  from  a  Peoria  paper : 

Mr.  Curtis  came  to  Peoria  in  185 1  or  '52, 
from  Ohio,  and  established  here  the  first 
banking  house  in  the  city.  The  firm  was 
known  as  N.  B.  Curtis  &  Co.  ;  the  bank 
prospered  under  Mr.  Curtis's  able  manage- 
ment, and  upon  the  opening  of  the  First 
National  bank  he  was  made  cashier,  and 
was  a  director  up  to  within  about  10  months 
of  his  death,  when  his  brain  became  im- 
paired from  the  constant  strain  upon  it  and 
it  was  found  necessary  to  send  him  to 
Hartford,  Conn.,  where  he  died.  Mr. 
Curtis,  both  as  a  business  man  and  a  pri- 
vate gentleman,  was  much  loved  by  all 
who  knew  him. 

His  widow  died  at  Warrenville,  Aug.  26, 
1879;  01^6  of  the  daughters  is  married, 
and  the  other  resides  with  her  mother. 

2d,  Darius  Boyden,  born  Sept.  17,  1821  ; 
died  at  Calais,  November  7,  1844;  never 
married. 

3d,  Caroline  Amanda,  born  Sept.  23, 
1823  ;  married  Jonas  K.  Hall,  of  Calais,  in 
1846,  and  died  May  12,  1848 ;  no  children. 

4th,  Pliny,  Jr.,  born  March  29,  1826; 
was  in  business  with  his  brother  Nathaniel 
at  Peoria,  and  married  Miss  Cornelia  Bald- 
win of  that  place ;  she  died  about  1873  or 
'74,  leaving  four  children ;  Mr.  Curtis 
died  at  St.  Louis,  in  1880. 

5th,  Maria,  married  Dr.  E.  S.  Deming 
of  Calais,  in  1846 ;  he  died  leaving  2  sons, 
Sumner,  and  Henry  Halford,  grown  up  to 
manhood  ;  residing  with  their  mother  in 
Kansas. 

6th,  Lucinda,  married  Mr.  Sanger,  a 
prominent  lawyer  of  Peoria ;  died  very- 
soon  without  children.  Mr.  Sanger  mar- 
ried her  sister,  (7th)  Mary ;  he  died  soon 
after,  leaving  a  handsome  estate,  and  Mary 


154 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


married,  2d,  a  Mr.  Brayton,  of  Peoria,  and 
3d,  a  Mr.  Wilson  of  the  same  place ;  she 
died  in  1876,  leaving  two  sons,  Ezra  San- 
ger, by  her  first  husband,  and  Curtis  Bray- 
ton by  her  second ;  the  sons  reside  in 
Peoria. 

8th,  Levon,  died  at  17. 

Polly  Curtis,  b.  1804,  md.  Ira  Kent. 
(See  Kent  family  paper.) 

Colonel  Curtis  was  one  of  the  most 
active  and  influential  men  of  his  time  in 
the  west  part  of  the  town  ;  educational  fa- 
cilities were  early  and  liberally  provided, 
and  largely  through  his  influence  a  spa- 
cious and  handsome  church  edifice  was 
erected  south  of  Kent's  Corner,  which  is 
an  ornament  to  the  town  at  this  day ;  this 
was  erected  as  a  Union  meeting-house, 
but  the  Universalist  element  largely  pre- 
dominated in  that  part  of  the  town  at  the 
time  of  its  erection,  and  it  is  now  entirely 
owned  and  controlled  by  this  denomina- 
tion. The  descendants  of  Col.  Curtis, 
through  the  most  remote  branches,  are  of 
this  faith,  and  so  indeed  are  the  descend- 
ants of  the  principal  early  settlers  of  that 
part  of  the  town  ;  and  no  town  ever  did  or 
does  contain  a  more  intelligent,  moral,  in- 
dependent, liberal  community  than  is  pre- 
sented in  the  inhabitants  of  West  Calais, 
from  the  first  settlement  to  the  present 
time. 

CHARLES  CLARK,  M.  D., 

was  born  in  Montpelier,  Jan.  31,  1800; 
son  of  Nathaniel  and  Lucy  Perry  Clark  ;  his 
father,  Nathaniel  Clark,  died  in  1810. 
When  Charles  was  7  years  old,  his  left  leg 
was  amputated  by  Dr.  Nathan  Smith,  of 
Hanover,  N.  H.  When  21  years  of  age, 
he  commenced  the  practice  of  medicine 
with  Dr.  N.  C.  King,  in  North  Mont- 
pelier. In  1823,  he  moved  to  Calais,  and 
was  the  same  year  married  to  Clarissa 
Boyden,  daughter  of  Darius  Boyden,  of 
Montpelier.  He  remained  in  Calais  14 
years,  and  four  of  his  children  were  born 
here.  In  1837,  he  removed  to  Montpelier, 
purchasing  the  Boyden  homestead  of  his 
wife's  father,  where  he  remained  12  years, 
and  in  1849,  removed  to  Montpelier  vil- 
lage, for  the  better  education  of  his  chil- 


dren. 6  in  all ;  2  born  in  Montjjelier.     He 
died  June  21,  1874,  aged  74  years. 

FACE   OF   TOWNSHIP  ;    NAME. 

This  town  is  peculiarly  situated  in  some 
respects,  it  being  naturally  divided  by  two 
valleys,  with  high  hills  at  their  sides,  ex- 
tending northerly  and  southerly  ;  in  these 
valleys  are  the  two  principal  streams  of 
the  town,  and  they  join  in  the  south-easterly 
part  of  the  same,  forming  a  principal 
branch  of  Winooski  river.  The  east  and 
west  parts  of  the  town  are  thus  isolated  and 
independent  in  a  measure  of  each  other. 
Notwithstanding  the  hilly  and  uneven  char- 
acter of  the  town,  there  is  less  of  what  is 
denominated  waste  land,  than  in  any  town- 
ship within  our  knowledge. 

WHENCE   THE   NAME. 

Col.  Jacob  Davis,  a  proprietor  in  the 
grants  of  Montpelier  and  Calais,  selected 
the  name  of  Montpelier  for  that  township, 
as  uncommon  and  not  likely  to  be  dupli- 
cated ;  and  what  more  probable  than,  hav- 
ing selected  a  name  from  the  south  of 
France  for  the  more  southerly  township  in 
which  he  was  interested,  than  that  he 
should  have  selected  a  name  from  the 
north  of  France,  Calais,  for  the  northerly 
township.  This  we  think  is  a  solution  of 
the  question,  how  did  Calais  get  its  name? 
[See  remarks  of  Mr.  Tobey  to  same  eff"ect; 
—Ed.] 

The  early  settlers  of  Calais,  as  well  as  of 
Vermont  generally,  had  in  view  among 
other  objects  a  more  perfect  liberty,  free- 
dom and  independence,  and  to  escape  from 
the  injustice  of  a  taxation  for  the  support 
of  religions  in  which  they  did  not  believe, 
and  other  Puritan  oppressions  that  pre- 
vailed in  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut, 
from  whence  Vermont  was  mainly  settled. 

CALALS   ITEMS. 

We  find  the  following  in  the  Freevteii's 
Press,  the  first  democratic  newspaper  es- 
tablished in  Montpelier : 

Notice  Is  hereby  given  that  a  petition 
will  be  preferred  to  the  next  legislature  of 
Vermont  at  their  next  session  in  Mont- 
pelier, for  a  grant  for  a  turnpike  from  the 
river  LaMoile,  in  Hardwick,  to  Montpelier 
Village,  through  Woodbury,  Calais  and 
Montpelier.  Caleb  Curtis. 

Calais,  Aug.  15,  1810. 


CALAIS. 


155 


A  singular  explosion  occurred  in  the 
northerly  part  of  Calais  in  the  spring  of 
1826;  near  the  base  of  a  side  hill,  a  large 
quantity  of  earth  and  rock  was  thrown  out, 
leaving  a  cavity  12  feet  in  depth,  6  rods  in 
length  and  40  feet  wide.  Large  trees  were 
growing  on  the  spot,  which  were  removed 
with  such  force  as  to  cause  them  to  fall 
with  their  tops  up  the  hill,  although  while 
standing,  they  leaned  down  the  hill  nearly 
30  degrees  from  a  perpendicular. 

The  ground  was  frozen  to  the  depth  of 
nearly  2  feet ;  large  stones,  weighing  from 
300  to  400  pounds,  were  thrown  30  rods, 
and  one,  weighing  nearly  half  a  ton,  as 
judged,  was  thrown  8  rods ;  the  noise  of 
tlie  explosion  was  heard  at  a  considerable 
distance.  No  cause  was  ever  assigned, 
except  that  of  the  accumulation  of  water  in 
the  fissures  of  the  rocks  under  the  frozen 
surface  ;  but  this  seems  hardly  probable. 

THE   OILMAN   FAMILY   OF   CALAIS. 

rUOM  THE   MEMOKANDUM  OF   MAUCUS  D.   GILMAX, 
OF  MONTPELIEU. 

Jonathan  Oilman  was  born  at  Gilman- 
ton.  May  31,  1763;  lived  at  Gilmanton, 
N.  H.,  until  about  1794-5  ;  in  1796,  lived 
at  Vershire,  Vt.,  where  he  continued  until 
about  1817,  when  he  went  to  live  with  his 
son,  John,  at  East  Calais,  which  was  his 
home  until  his  death,  which  occurred  at 
Newburyport,  Mass.,  Dec.  5,  1824,  while 
he  was  on  a  visit  to  his  sons,  Daniel  and 
Jonathan,  at  that  place,  and  he  was  buried 
there.  He  married  Susannah  Dudley, 
(probably  at  Gilmanton)  Nov.  9,  1783. 
She  was  born  at  Exeter,  N.  H.,  1762,  and 
died  at  East  Calais,  Dec.  20,  1817;  and 
was  buried  on  the  East  Hill  in  Calais,  near 
the  Aaron  Lilley  place. 

Brothers  and  Sisters  of  Jonathan 
Oilman: — Phineas  lived  in  N.  H.;  Zeb- 
ulon  in  Chelsea,  Vt. ;  Joseph  lived  and 
died  in  Calais — his  son,  Lewis,  settled  in 
Hardwick ;  Edward,  John  and  Nicholas 
lived  in  Strafford  ;  Levi  and  Abigail,  sister, 
lived  in  N.  H. 

The  father  of  the  above  is  said  to  have 
kept  tavern  a  long  while  in  Gilmanton. 

Children  of  Jonathan  Oilman  and  wife, 
Susanna    Dudley:      Jacob,    b.    Feb.    24, 


1785,  and  had  children,  9  girls,  2  boys, 
settled  in  Rochester,  N.  Y. 

Thomas,  b.  Aug.  19,  1786,  m.  and  had 
3  daughters  and  one  son,  Leonard,  a  den- 
tist at  St.  Albans;  one  dau.  md.  and. died 
in  Underhill. 

Daniel,  b.  Oct.  13,  1787,  d.  in  Ohio ; 
had  sons  and  daughters. 

John  Taylor,  father  of  Marcus  D.,  b.  at 
Gilmanton,  N.  H.,  July  24,  1791. 

Susan,  b.  June  25,  1792,  m.  Dr.  Spear, 
of  Vershire  ;  both  died  there  ;  had  one  dau., 
also  deceased. 

Betsy,  b.  Mar.  6,  1794,  m.  Shadrach 
Weymouth,  of  Vershire,  and  died  there 
before  1820;  left  one  dau.  and  one  son; 
the  dau.  Roxy  Ann,  m.  Lyman  Cole,  an 
artist,  and  settled  in  Newburyport,  Mass. 
The  son,  Warren,  became  a  Methodist 
minister,  and  settled  at  West  Amesbury, 
Mass. 

Sarah,  b.*  at  Vershire,  Jan.  1776,  m. 
Jedediah  Hyde  in  18 12,  and  settled  on 
Grand  Isle ;  had  7  sons  and  4  daughters, 
who  mostly  settled  on  Grand  Isle  and  Isle 
LaMotte.   She  died  at  O.  I.,  Feb.  4,  1863. 

Roxy  Ann,  b.  at  Vershire,  Oct.  16,  1798, 
m.  Nathan  Bicknell,  Oct.  1825,  and  re- 
sides at  Underhill,  Vt.  ;  had  children: 
Anne  Eliza,  m.  to  Lucius  Mead,  lives  in 
Essex,  Vt. ;  Edna  and  Sidney,  twins ; 
Edna  not  m. ;  Sidney,  m.,  clerk  in  a 
clothing  store  at  Chicago ;  Roxy  Anne 
died  at  Burlington,  Aug.  29,  1877,  at  the 
residence  of  her  dau.  A.  E.  Mead. 

Abigail,  b.  at  Vershire,  Nov.  22,  1800, 
m.  1st,  Sewell  Spaulding,  and  settled  in 
Jericho ;  2d,  M.  Woodworth,  and  is  still 
living  in  Underhill ;  no  children. 

Dudley,  b.  at  Vershire,  1802,  went  to 
sea;  died  early  in  Cuba,  W.  1. ;  not  mar- 
ried. 

Jonathan,  b.  at  Vershire,  1806;  learned 
the  printer's  trade  at  Montpelier;  m.  and 
.settled  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  and  died  there  or 
at  Newburyport ;  3  children. 

JOHN   TAYLOR   OILMAN, 

born  at  Gilmanton,  N.  H.,  July  24,  1791, 
studied  medicine  at  Dartmouth  Medical 
College  in  18 14,  and  commenced  practice 
in  181 5  at  East  Calais.     He  married  Ruth, 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


daughter  of  Col.  Caleb  Curtis,  May,  1819; 
children:  Marcus  Davis,  John  Melvin, 
[See  Col.  Curtis'  paper,  by  Mr.  Gilm&li, 
before  these  papers.]  Dr.  Gilman  died 
at  East  Calais,  Feb.  10,  1825.  His  widow 
man-ied  Nath.  Eaton,  and  died  at  Middle- 
sex, 1865,  and  was  buried  in  Montpelier 
cemetery.  Dr.  John  Gilman  was  the  pi- 
oneer physician  of  East  Calais,  and  had  a 
large  field  of  practice  quite  to  himself  until 
Dr.  Chas.  Clark,  father  to  the  ex-Prof.  N. 
G.  Clark,  of  the  Vermont  University, 
moved  into  town,  who,  in  order  to  secure 
his  share  of  practice,  "reduced  fare,"  or 
put  down  the  price  for  his  professional  calls 
to  25  cents  a  visit.  Dr.  G.,  the  estab- 
lished physician,  growled  a  little,  but  not 
the  man  to  be  beaten  in  that  way,  down 
went  his  charges  to  25  cents  a  visit. 
Many  are  the  charges  we  find  on  his  old 
book,  all  at  25  cents  a  visit ;  occasionally 
made  up  to  35  cents  for  a  little  medicine 
sold  at  the  time.  He  maintained  his 
ground — succeeded — at  his  death  left  a 
handsome  property  for  the  day.  He  died* 
of  what  was  then  called  lung  fever ;  at  the 
present  day,  pneumonia.  He  had  an  at- 
tack, had  but  partially  recovered,  could 
not  be  deterred  from  visiting  patients  call- 
•  ing  for  him,  brought  on  a  relapse,  and  died 
in  a  few  days  after.  He  was  simply  a 
martyr  to  his  profession ;  age,  34  years. 

In  looking  over  a  package  of  old  family 
letters,  journals,  etc.,  we  find  Jonathan 
Gilman  was  found  dead  in  his  bed ;  died 
suddenly  of  apoplexy.  He  was  father  of 
Dr.  John,  and  grandfather  to  Marcus  D., 
our  historical  librarian.  Dr.  John  Gilman — 
as  he  wrote  his  name,  dropping  the  T. — 
kept  a  note-book  while  at  Dartmouth  Med- 
ical College,  in  which  is  given  the  synopsis 
of  every  lecture  he  heard  and  the  name  of 
the  professor  who  delivered  it.  From  a 
sheet  catalogue  of  the  Medical  College  for 
1814,  we  give  for  benefit  of  our  towns  who 
may  not  have  in  their  papers  the  record  of 
all  their  early  physicians,  the  Vermont 
names  therein : 

Barret,  Thomas  T.,  Springfield,  Vt. ; 
Bates,  Roswell,  Randolph ;  Brown,  Leon- 
ard, Peacham  ;  Campbell,  John,  Putney  ; 
*Chamberlin,    Mellen,   Peacham;  Elkins, 


Ephraim,  Peacham ;  *Finny,  Alfrid,  Lud- 
low ;  Fletcher,  John,  Williamstown ;  Gil- 
let,  Bezaleel.  Hartford  ;  Goodwin,  Jacob, 
Bradford;  Hatch,  Horace,  Norwich;  Haz- 
eltine,  Laban,  Wardsborough ;  Jennison, 
Charles,  Hartland ;  *  Leavett,  Harvey, 
Hartford  ;  Martin,  Lyman, Peacham  ;  *New- 
ton,  Enos  W.,  Hartford ;  Paddock,  Wil- 
liam, Barre  ;  Paddock,  Wm.  S.,  Pomfret; 
Page,  Alfrid,  Barnard ;  *Richardson,  John 
P.,  Woodstock;  Rogers,  Asher  A.,  Thet- 
ford ;  Stevens,  John,  Newbury ;  Tewks- 
bury,  Hartland ;  Tracey,  James  2d,  Hart- 
ford ;  Wait,  James,  Brandon  ;  Washburn, 
Hercules,  Randolph  ;  Wheeler,  John,  West 
Fairlee. 

Whole  number  of  students,  105  ;  Ver- 
mont representation  in  Dartmouth  Medical 
College,  1814,  as  above,  27. 

MARCUS   DAVIS   GILMAN 

was  born  at  Calais,  Jan.  28,  1820.  He  had 
the  misfortune  tolosehis  father — Dr.  John 
Gilman — at  5  years  of  age.  He  lived  with 
his  mother  and  step-father,  Mr.  Eaton,  on 
a  farm  in  Calais  until  15  years  of  age, 
when  he  went  into  Baldwin  &  Scott's  store 
at  Montpelier,  as  clerk,  until  21  years  of 
age  ;  then  was  in  business  as  merchant  at 
Northfield,  as  White,  Gilman  ^  Co.,  2 
years  ;  then  in  same  business  at  Montpel- 
ier 2  years,  as  Ellis,  Wilder  &-=  Co. 

Mr.  Gilman  married  Maria  Malleville 
daughter  of  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  of 
Montpelier,  May  10,  1843,  and  in  1845, 
moved  to  Chicago,  111.,  where  he  resided 
for  23  years,  or  until  1868  as  a  merchant; 
children :  John  Baldwin,  born  at  Chicago, 
July  5,  1847,  deceased;  Emily  Eliza,  born 
at  Chicago,  June  10,  1849,  married. 

Sarah  Alice,  born  at  Chicago,  March  21, 
1851,  died  at  Chicago,  March  19,  1853; 
Marcus  Edward,  born  at  Chicago,  June  26, 
1853,  died  at  Chicago,  Nov.  9,  1863. 

The  next  data  in  given  memorandum  : 
"At  this  time,  March,  1870,  we  are  re- 
siding (temporarily  it  may  be)  at  River- 
side, Auburndale,  Mass.  Removed  to 
Montpelier,  Oct.  1871."  He  now  resides 
at  Montpelier,  where  he  has  been  librarian 
of  the  State  Historical  Society  since  1874, 


*  Members  of  college. 


CALAIS. 


157 


and  is  corresponding  member  of  six  or 
seven  State  Historical  Societies,  &c.  Mr. 
Oilman  has  said  to  us  that  he  graduated  at 
the  Washington  County  Grammar  School 
at  the  age  of  15  years,  and  went  out  into 
the  world  for  himself.  In  business  he  ap- 
pears to  have  been  remarkably  successful, 
and  to  have  sensibly  retired,  that  he  may 
devote  himself  to  his  historical  tastes.  He 
has  a  very  large  correspondence  ;  his  his- 
torical offices  are  a  laborious  business  ;  no 
nominal  appointments,  only,  mere  compli- 
ments, in  his  hands,  as  we  may  judge  from 
the  weekly  file  of  letters  and  communica- 
tions on  his  table.  He  is  just  the  one  man 
in  the  State  best  situated  to  make  a  biblio- 
theca  for  Vermont,  and  he  is  doing  it, 
several  chapters  qf  which  have  been  al- 
ready published,  though  by  no  means  the 
most  or  the  best  part  of  it,  as  we  are  very 
well  prepared  to  say,  having  carefully 
looked  through  the  Mss.  so  far  as  finished 
up,  and  the  vast  amount  of  material  to  be 
worked  up,  and  we  shall  with  much  interest 
await  the  appearance  of  the  work  when  it 
may  be  published. 

JOHN   BALDWIN   OILMAN,  M.    D., 

son  of  Marcus  D.,  died  at  his  fathers,  in 
Montpelier,  May  18,  1873,  iii  his  26th 
year.  Naturally  cheerful,  born  to  a  home 
afiluent  with  pleasant  things,  fond  of  books 
in  his  early  years,  his  childhood  was  a 
happy  one.  At  12,  he  was  entered  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Fay's  excellent  school  for  boys, 
at  St.  Albans,  and  fitted  for  college  ;  was 
next  at  Lombard  University,  111.,  3  years  ; 
at  17  years,  entered  Harvard  for  a  full 
course ;  graduated  in  1868;  studied  med- 
icine, the  German,  French  and  Italian  lan- 
guages in  Germany  2  years;  Feb.  1870, 
returned  to  Boston,  and  continued  his 
studies  at  the  Boston  Medical  College. 
The  summer  following,  the  Franco-Prus- 
sian war  breaking  out,  the  opportunity  for 
surgical  experience  in  the  military  hospi- 
tals was  irresistible,  and  he  hastened  to 
recross  the  ocean.  On  arriving,  he  was 
appointed  by  the  German  authorities  to 
the  post  of  assistant  surgeon  in  the  Prus- 
sian service,  which  position  he  held  to  the 
end  of  the  war,  when,  retiring  from  tlie 


service,  he  was  complimented  by  the  Em- 
peror William  with  the  Decoration  of  the 
^ron  Cross,  the  first  instance,  so  far  as 
known,  that  an  American  surgeon  has  re- 
ceived the  honor.  Returning  to  Boston, 
he  completed  his  studies  there,  and  in  the 
fall  of  1871,  commenced  the  practice  of 
his  profession  in  Topeka,  Kansas,  where 
he  rapidly  acquired  an  extensive  practice. 
Late  in  the  fall  of  1872,  small  pox  ap- 
peared in  Topeka.  From  his  experience 
in  the  military  hospitals  of  Prussia,  he  felt 
himself  especially  fitted  to  deal  with  it, 
and  entered  upon  the  work  with  great  in- 
terest. His  treatment  was  the  German 
mode,  and  attended  with  remarkable  suc- 
cess, and  his  services  were  in  almost  con- 
stant requisition.  He  acted  not  only  as 
physician,  but  ministered  extensively  as 
nurse,  and  in  not  a  few  cases  as  sexton. 
In  this  last  office — burying  the  dead  at 
midnight — he  severely  suffered.  After  the 
epidemic  had  subsided,  he  was  stricken 
down  with  varioloid,  and  pneumonia,  be- 
fore he  was  recovered,  set  in.  He  re- 
turned to  his  father's,  in  Montpelier,  the 
last  part  of  April,  a  quick  consumption 
indelibly  fixed  upon  him,  which  made  rapid 
progress  till  in  the  midst  of  the  beautiful 
month  of  May,  in  the  quiet  of  the  village 
Sabbath,  his  young,  busy,  earth-life  went 
out.  Says  his  friend,  in  the  Boston  Globe 
of  May  20th  :  "  Dr.  Gilman  was  greatly 
beloved  by  his  associates  for  his  genial 
and  unselfish  disposition,  as  well  as  ad- 
mired for  his  brilliant  qualities  of  mind, 
and  his  numerous  friends  will  condole  with 
his  family  upon  a  loss  they  feel  personal 
to  them  as  to  his  own  kindred." 

Emily  E.,  the  only  surviving  child  of 
Marcus  D.  Gilman,  m.Apr.  13,  1868,  Rev. 
Henry  I.  Cushman,  born  inOrford,  N.  H., 
graduated  at  Dartmouth  College,  read  the- 
ology, and  is  now  pastor  of  the  first  Uni- 
versalist  church  in  Providence,  R.  I. 
Children,  Mary  Alice,  born,  Boston,  Apr. 
27,  1869;  died.  Providence,  R.  I.,  June 
18,  1877;  Ruth,  born,  Newton,  Mass., 
May  29,  1870  ;  Robert,  born,  Boston,  Sept. 
18,  1872;  Marcus  Gilman,  born,  Montpel- 
ier, July  25,  1875 ;  died  in  Providence, 
R.  I.,  July  18,  1877;  Earl  Baldwin,  born. 


158 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Providence,    R.    I.,    May    5,    1878;    died 
there,  May  25,  1878. — Ed. 

KENT    FAMILY. 

Ezekiel,  ist,  b.  June,  1744,  m.  Ruth 
Garey,  b.  Oct.,  1748,  lived  and  died  in 
Rehoboth,  Mass.  ;  d.  in  May  1842,  wife 
in  Dec.  1818;  11  children,  two  of  whom. 
Remember  and  Ezekiel,  settled  in  Calais. 

Remember,  ist,  son  of  Ezekiel  ist,  b. 
June  1 1,  1775  in  Rehoboth,  came  to  Calais 
in  1798;  m.  Rachel  dau.  of  Capt.  Abdiel 
Bliss  1799;  settled  at  what  has  since  been 
known  as  Kent's  Corner,  where  he  cleared 
a  large  farm  and  spent  the  rest  of  his  days. 
He  filled  various  town  offices ;  was  suc- 
cessively ensign,  lieutenant  and  captain  in 
the  militia,  his  first  commission  bearing 
date  1805.  He  died  May  13,  1855,  his 
wife  Nov.  2,  1843. 

Their  children  all  born  in  Calais,  were 
Remember  2d,  b.  June,  1799;  Rachel 
Bliss,  b.  Sept.  1800,  m.  Aaron  Tucker. 
Ira,  b.  April,  1803  ;  Abdiel,  b.  Nov.  1805  ; 
Georgie,  b.  Sept.  1808;  Ezekiel  2d,  b. 
May,  181 1  ;  John  V.  R.,  b.  Nov,  21,  1813  ; 
Samuel  N.,  b.  Nov.  1817;    d.  June  1835. 

Remember  2d,  m.  Jan.  1824,  Delia  dau. 
of  Edward  Tucker  ;  made  the  first  clearing 
on  the  farm  where  W.  G.  Kent  now  lives ; 
has  resided  most  of  his  days  in  Calais, 
working  some  portion  of  the  time  at  his 
trade  as  a  mill-wright.  His  wife  died 
April,  i860,  and  he  m.  Lucy  (White) 
widow  of  John  Goodell.  He  died  in  Calais 
Feb.  19,  1881.  His  children,  all  born  in 
Calais,  were  :  Azro,  b.  May,  1825;  Diana, 
b.  March,  1830,  m.  1854,  Enoch  H.  Vin- 
cent, b.  1820  in  Middlesex,  farmer ;  resides 
in  East  Montpelier;  children  Jane  K.,  m. 
William  J.  Somerville,  Fayston,  farmer; 
Ella  D  ;  Prentiss  J  ;  Jane,  deceased  at  18. 

Ira,  m.  Polly,  dau.  of  Col.  Caleb  Curtis. 
(See  Curtis  family) .  He  has  always  re- 
sided on  his  father's  old  farm  ;  was  consta- 
ble in  1838,  post-master  some  16  years; 
and  from  1837  to  '66,  he  and  his  brother 
Abdiel  were  in  partnership  under  the  firm 
name  of  I.  &  A.  Kent,  and  transacted  a 
considerable  mercantile  and  manufacturing 
business.  His  children  all  born  in  Calais  : 
Ira  Richardson,  b.  Sept.  3,  1833  ;  Amanda 


C,  b.  Jan.  2,  1838,  d.  Feb.  18,  1842; 
Rachel  Ann,  b.  April  26,  1839,  d.  May  28, 
1855;  Flora  Emogene,  b.  April  17,  1841, 
d.  Sept.  6,  1851  ;  LeRoy  Abdiel,  b.  Aug. 
25,  1843. 

Abdiel,  when  21  years  of  age  went  to 
Nashua,  N.  H.,  and  worked  on  the  foun- 
dation of  the  first  cotton  factory  built 
there ;  thence  to  Mass.  and  learned  the 
mason's  trade,  working  at  his  trade  sum- 
mers and  teaching  school  winters,  until 
about  1830,  he  bought  in  Calais  where  he 
now  lives,  and  began  manufacturing  boots 
in  a  small  building  where  the  store  now 
stands.  This  business  was  continued  some 
40  years,  at  times  employing  a  dozen  or 
more  men,  and  for  some  20  years  harness- 
making  was  connected,  with  it.  In  1832, 
he  enlarged  his  shop,  and  put  in  a  small 
stock  of  staple  dry  goods  and  groceries. 
In  1854,  the  present  shoe-shop  and  store 
were  built,  and  the  latter  stocked  with  a 
general  assortment  of  goods,  and  this 
business  was  continued  by  him  and  the 
firm  of  I.  &  A.  Kent  some  30  years. 

In  1837,  he  built  the  brick  house  where 
he  now  lives,  and  kept  a  hotel  there  until 
1847.  In  1844,  in  company  with  others, 
he  built  the  starch-factory  near  the  centre 
of  the  town,  and  run  it  until  about  1858. 
In  1847,  put  iron  working  machinery  in 
the  red  shop  at  Maple  Corner,  where  it 
was  run  by  N.  W.  Bancroft  some  4  years. 
He  has  been  a  large  owner  of  real  estate 
in  this  and  other  towns,  a  woolen-factory, 
mills  and  hotel  at  Craftsbury ;  built  and 
stocked  the  store  in  Woodbury,  now  owned 
by  A.  W.  Nelson,  owned  for  some  years 
the  Norcross  mill  in  Woodbury,  the  Ira 
Brown  saw-mill  in  the  north-west  part  of 
Calais,  and  the  old  saw-mill  at  Maple  Cor- 
ner. His  brother,  Ira,  was  a  partner  in 
all  the  above  business  from  1837  to  '66. 
Beside  being  one  of  its  most  active  busi- 
ness men,  he  has  held  nearly  all  the  offices 
in  the  gift  of  the  town,  and  that  he  has 
served  acceptably  is  shown  by  his  contin- 
ued re-elections,  (see  lists  of  town  officers.) 
He  m.  1st  June  7,  1845,  Fanny  H.,  dau. 
of  Col.  Caleb  Curtis,  who  d.  Dec,  24,  1854, 
2d,  Lucy  A.,  dau.  of  Vial  A.  Bliss ;  chil- 
dren born  in  Calais  :  Murray  Abdiel ;  Ella 


CALAIS. 


159 


Fanny,  m.  Arthur  B.  Bacon,  resides  in 
Spencer,  Mass.,  merchant ;  children  :  Fred 
K.,  Fannie  L. 

George,  son  of  Remember,  m.  April  24, 
1835,  Mehitable  Hill  b.  Dec.  2,  1807,  in 
Cabot ;  resides  in  Calais,  a  successful  far- 
mer ;  children:  Marcus  Newell,  b.  June, 
1837,  George  Wallace,  April,  1845.  M. 
Newell  m.  May  4,  1862,  Hester  A.  dau.  of 
Vial  A.  Bliss.  For  several  years  he  re- 
mained upon  the  farm  with  his  father, 
afterwards  engaged  in  the  mercantile  pur- 
suit at  Worcester  Corner,  where  he  died 
Oct.  20,  1876;  children,  Dora  B.,  Frances. 
G.  Wallace,  m.  May,  1868,  Justina  A. 
dau.  of  Kneeland  and  Caroline  Kelton, 
b.  in  East  Montpelier,  Sept.  1849,  resides 
upon  the  homestead  :  children,  Alice  Glee, 
George,  Katie  M.,  Jessie  J. 

Murray,  son  of  Abdiel,  m.  1870,  Ruth 
E.,  dau  of  P.  S.  Bennett,  resides  in  Cal- 
ais ;  son  Dorman  B.  E.  ;  Van  R.,  son  of 
Abdiel,  m.  1874,  Lelia  S.,  dau.  of  S.  H. 
Foster  of  Calais  ;  is  associated  with  J.  E. 
Bacon  of  Spencer,  Mass.,  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  boots;  child,  Marion. 

Ira  Richardson,  son  of  Ira;  m.  1855, 
Anna  E.,  b.  June,  1834,  in  New  York  city, 
died  Aug.  3,  1856;  dau.  of  William  H.  and 
Harriet  A.  Simpson ;  child,  Nora  Anna, 
b.  July  28,  1856,  d.  Oct.  19,  1861.  He  m. 
Feb.  1870,  Inez  R.,  (dau.  of  Hon.  D.  W. 
Aiken  of  Hardwick,)  who  died  June  8,  '74- 
"Rich.  Kent"  as  he  was  familiarly 
known,  was  a  person  whom,  never  pos- 
sessing robust  health,  was  enabled  by  his 
indomitable  will,  perseverance,  and  quick 
perceptive  faculties,  to  accomplish  while 
in  his  younger  years  an  amount  of  business 
which  might  only  have  been  expected  from 
one  of  much  stronger  physique,  and  ma- 
turer  years,  and  when  20  years  of  age 
assumed  the  entire  management  of  the 
mercantile  business  of  I.  &  A.  Kent,  which 
he  continued  for  about  6  years,  when  he 
engaged  in  buying  cattle  and  horses  and 
selling  in  the  Mass.  market  until  1865  ; 
during  which  time  he  filled  various  town 
offices  with  acceptance.  Dec.  1865,  he  en- 
tered into  a  partnership  with  J.  E.  Bacon 
of  Spencer,  Mass.,  in  the  manufacturing 
of  bobifs  of  which  they  did  an   extensive 


and  successful  business  to  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  in  Calais,  October 
9,   1875. 

LeRoy  a.  Kent,  son  of  Ira,  m.  Feb. 
22,  1875,  Blanche  S.,  dau.  of  S.  D.  Hol- 
lister  of  Marshfield,  b.  May  11,  1852  :  son 
I.  Rich.  b.  Oct.  28,  1876,  engaged  in  mer- 
cantile pursuit  at  Craftsbury,  1 868  to  '70  ; 
1873  succeeded  B.  P.  White  in  the  same 
business  at  Kent's  Coi-ner,  where  he  still 
remains ;  received  appointment  of  post- 
master in  1873,  present  incumbent. 

AzRO,  son  of  Remember  2d,  m.  Nov. 
1849,  Hannah  S.,  dau.  of  Edward  and 
Susan  Eastman  b.  in  Salisbury,  N.  H., 
May,  1832.  Learned  the  machinist  trade 
at  Northfield,  and  has  been  employed  in 
the  Central  Vt.  R.  R.  Co.  shops  since 
1849;  since  1863,  has  been  master  me- 
chanic and  general  foreman  in  their  shop 
at  St.  Albans:  children:  Edward  T.,  b. 
July  20,  1853,  d.  May  30,  1859;  Ele  Mar- 
tha, b.  July  20,  1859,  d.  Aug.  31,  1859; 
EdwardB.,  b.  July,  '66,  now  in  Universty  at 
Burlington.     Azro  Ceil,  Aug.  1869. 

Prentiss  J.,  son  of  Remember  2d,  m. 
Sept.  1864,  Elizabeth  M.,  dau.  of  Am- 
brose and  Sally  Atwater  of  Burlington ; 
worked  at  the  trade  of  machinist  and 
teaching  school  till  1857  ;  graduated  from 
the  medical  Dept.  U.  V.  M.,  i860;  went 
to  Michigan  and  engaged  in  drug  business 
in  connection  with  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine. In  1862,  was  appointed  assistant 
surgeon  in  the  174th  Regt.  N.  Y.  Vols. ; 
was  in  active  service  till  spring  of  1864, 
when  by  reason  of  the  consolidation  of 
174th  and  i62d  regiments  he  was  honora- 
bly discharged  ;  after  which  he  resumed  the 
practice  of  medicine  at  Winooski  Falls. 
In  1869,  health  failing,  he  went  to  Wor- 
cester, Mass.,  and  invented  the  "  Kent  & 
Bancroft  self-operating  spinning-mule," 
and  was  engaged  for  a  time  in  its  manu- 
facture and  sale  ;  but  returned  to  Burling- 
ton in  1874,  and  resumed  his  profession, 
where  he  now  resides  ;  children  :  Osborn 
Atwater,  b.  in  Winooski  Falls,  Oct.  24, 
1868,  d.  July  15,  1869;  William  Henry,  b. 
in  Woonsocket,  R.  I.,  July  2,  1871,  d.  in 
Burlington  July,  1872;  Arthur  Atwater,  b. 
in  Smithfield,  R.  I.,  Dec.  1873. 


i6o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


J.  V.  R.  Kent,  son  of  Remember  ist, 
b.  Nov.  1844,  "^-  L^iura  A.,  dau.  of  Col. 
Caleb  Curtis,  who  died  Aug.  31,  1851  ; 
Dec.  26,  1856,  m.  Mrs.  Catherine  A. 
Morse,  dau.  of  Alpheus  J.  PjHss  ;  child, 
Charles  v.,  b.  Dec.  1857.  Mr.  Kent  re- 
mained on  the  old  homestead  to  the  age 
of  20  years,  when  he  learned  the  boot  and 
shoe  trade  with  his  brothers,  I.  &  A.  Kent, 
where  he  worked  about  15  years.  For  the 
last  12  years  he  has  resided  at  Maple  Cor- 
ner on  the  farm  purchased  of  Alonzo  Tay- 
lor of  New  York ;  has  filled  nearly  every 
office  in  the  gift  of  the  town,  many  of 
which  he  held  continuously  tor  many  years. 

EzEKiEL,  3d,m.  Nov.  13,  1836,  Minerva 
Anna,  dau.  of  Col.  Caleb  Curtis ;  a  suc- 
cessful farmer ;  resided  in  Calais  until 
1872,  when  he  moved  to  Montpelier,  where 
he  now  resides  ;  has  held  town  offices  be- 
fore and  since  his  removal ;  daughter,  Alice 
May,  b.  Mar.  i,  i84i,m.  Nov.  1866,  Capt. 
J.  O.  Livingston;  enlisted  May,  1862, 
and  mustered  out  July,  1865  as  Capt.  of 
Co.  G.  9th  Regt.  Vt.  Vols. ;  was  admitted 
to  the  Lamoille  County  Bar,  May  term 
1862,  and  now  practicing  his  profession  m 
Montpelier. 

EATON   FAMILY   IN   CALAIS. 

BY  CALEB  C.    EATON. 

Jacob  Eaton,  Sr.,  settled  in  the  South- 
east part  of  Calais,  on  Kingsbury''s  branch, 
in  1816,  with  a  family  of  4  children,  Isaac, 
(who  2  years  after  was  killed  by  the  kick 
of  a  horse),  Jacob,  Mary  Ann  and  Syl- 
vester C,  of  whom  2  survive,  Jacob  and 
Sylvester,  the  former  living  on  the  old 
homestead  farm.  In  1827,  Nathaniel,  an 
older  son,  and  Jacob,  Jr.,  bought  the  farm 
of  their  father,  and  they  lived  together 
until  the  death  of  the  latter,  Feb.  1843, 
aged  ']^  years.  Nathaniel  moved  to  Mid- 
dlesex, Vt.,  in  March,  1864,  where  he  died 
Feb.  6,  1878,  aged  87  years ;  37  years  of 
his  life  having  been  spent  in  the  town  of 
Calais,  whither  he  moved  from  Hardwick 
at  the  age  of  37  years.  While  living  in 
Calais  he  was  elected  State  Senator  in 
1840  and  '41  ;  Assistant  Judge  of  County 
Court,  1857,  '58  ;  justice  of  the  peace  con- 
tinuously for  24  years,  and  was  often 
called  upon  to  settle  estates  ;  also,  as  com- 


missioner to  locate,  alter  and  establish 
new  roads,  and  as  referee,  and  to  make 
contracts  and  legal  papers.  He  was  a 
useful  man  in  the  community  in  which  he 
lived,  fearless  and  outspoken  in  his  views, 
had  decided  opinions  of  his  own,  and  the 
ability  to  maintain  them.  He  was  twice 
married ;  first,  to  Ruth  Bridgman,  in  Hard- 
wick, in  18 1 2,  by  whom  he  had  two  chil- 
dren, Dorman  Bridgman  and  Ruth  ;  the 
latter  died  in  1849,  at  the  birth  of  her  first 
child.  Dorman  B.  is  an  eminent  lawyer 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  located 
in  1850.  He  has  taken  an  active  and  in- 
fluential part  in  reformatory  measures  in 
in  that  city,  and  is  one  of  the  leaders  in 
favor  of  civil  service  reform  in  this  coun- 
try ;  has  written  an  exhaustive  work  upon 
that  subject,  entitled,  "Civil  Service  in 
Great  Britain";  also,  a  work  entitled, 
"The  Spoils  System,  and  Civil  Service 
Reform  in  the  Custom  House  and  Post- 
office  in  New  York  City" ;  and  numerous 
other  works  of  which  I  am  notable  to  give 
the  titles ;  one  written  during  the  last 
Presidential  campaign  entitled,  "From 
the  Independent  Republicans  of  New  York, 
by  Junius.''''  He  is  a  graduate  of  the  Vt. 
University  ;  also  of  Harvard  Law  School ; 
educated  himself,  and  came  out  free  from 
debt.  He  was  chairman  of  the  Civil  Ser- 
vice Commission,  when  Geo.  Wm.  Curtis 
resigned,  during  Grant's  administration. 

Nathaniel  Eaton  married,  2d,  Mrs.  Ruth 
(Curtis,)  widow  of  Dr.  John  Oilman,  by 
whom  he  had  one  son,  Caleb  C,  born  in 
Calais,  where  he  resided  till  he  was  34 
years  of  age,  when  he  moved  to  Middlesex, 
living  there  16  years;  represented  that 
town  in  the  Legislature  in  1876,  ^yj ;  was 
justice  of  the  peace  4  years  ;  lister  3  years, 
and  appointed  to  take  the  census  for  that 
town  in  1880;  in  May,  1880,  removed  to 
Montpelier,  where  he  now  resides. 

He  married  Susan,  daughter  of  Larned 
Coburn,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  East 
Montpelier ;  children,  4 ;  all  daughters  ; 
2  died  in  infancy ;  Flora  Coburn,  born  in 
Calais,  preceptress  in  Goddard  Seminary, 
Barre,  m.  Prof.  Henry  Priest,  Principal  of 
that  institution,  Aug.  11,  1881  ;  Emily 
Louisa  lives  with  her  parents. 


Calais. 


EAST   CALAIS   PAPERS. 

CONTRIBUTED  BY  MR.  AND  MRS.  ALBERT  DWINELL. 

CAPT.   JOSHUA    LILLEY 

located  at  an  early  day  in  East  Calais,  and 
came  in  possession  of  the  water-power  and 
a  large  tract  of  land  around.  He  put  up  a 
saw-mill  and  a  grist-mill  where  the  saw- 
mill now  stands,  and  about  1805,  built  a 
two-story  house  on  his  hill  farm,  now 
owned  and  occupied  by  Levi  G.  Dwinell. 
Capt.  Lilley  entered  into  speculations  of 
various  kinds,  among  which  was  the  mer- 
cantile, in  which  he  was  unsuccessful  and 
had  to  retrench.  In  1812,  he  sold  his  hill 
farm  to  Israel  Dwinell,  and  about  the  same 
time  his  mills  and  other  landed  property 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Maj.  Nathaniel 
Davis,  of  Montpelier. 

Maj.  Davis,  availing  himself  of  the  water- 
power  facilities,  erected  various  mills, 
among  which  one  for  carding  wool  and 
dressing  cloth,  a  trip-hammer  shop,  where 
were  made  scythes  and  hoes,  and  a  shop 
or  manufacturing  cut-nails. 

One  of  the  inducements  for  starting  a 
nail  factory  was  the  supposition  that  there 
was  iron  ore  in  the  ledges  a  short  distance 
west  of  the  village,  all  of  which  was  true, 
but  in  the  prospecting  made,  it  was  not 
found  rich  enough  to  pay  for  working. 
Nails  were  manufactured  about  2  years, 
when  it  was  found  freights  were  too  much 
to  make  the  business  profitable,  and  it 
went  down,  and  other  business  was  started, 
cabinet  work,  clover-mill,  potash,  etc.  The 
business  development  called  workmen  and 
residents  into  the  place,  and  the  Major 
put  in  a  store. 

SHUBAEL   WHEELER,    ESQ., 

son  of  Bowers  Wheeler,  of  Montpelier, 
(now  East  Montpelier),  married  Elsey 
Davis,  daughter  of  Maj.  Nathaniel,  about 
1 8 14,  and  in  18 16,  they  moved  to  East 
Calais,  and  occupied  a  two-story  house 
erected  by  the  Major,  near  where  the  saw- 
mill now  stands.  He  was  a  lawyer,  the 
first  and  only  one  who  ever  resided  in  town 
for  any  length  of  time.  For  several  years 
he  occupied  a  leading  position  in  the  af- 
fairs of  the  town  and  County,  representing 
the  town  several  times,  and  was  clerk  of 


the  County  Court  for  several  years.  He 
was  interested  in  farming  to  some  extent, 
and  was  partner  for  some  years  with  Sam- 
uel Rich  in  mill  property,  deeded  to  them 
by  Maj.  Davis. 

Judge  Wheeler  was  a  man  of  high  at- 
tainments, largely  endowed  by  nature,  yet 
his  love  of  social  pastime  was  at  the  ex- 
pense of  his  financial  interests.  About 
i860,  he  went  West  to  make  his  home  with 
his  eldest  daughter,  Emily,  the  last  one 
living  of  his  8  children — wife  of  Levi  W. 
Wright,  formerly  of  this  town,  now  of 
Merrimac,  Wis. 

CAPT.    SAMUEL   RICH, 

born  in  N.  Montpelier,  Oct.  22,  1797, 
married  Dolly  Davis,  dau.  of  Maj.  Na- 
thaniel; came  to  E.  Calais  in  March,  1824, 
and  owned  the  saw  and  grist-mills,  to- 
gether with  350  acres  of  land.  In  1836, 
he  built  the  two-story  house  now  occupied 
by  his  son-in-law,  Albert  Dwinell.  In 
1840,  he  rebuilt  the  grist-mill  now  owned 
by  Simeon  Webb. 

In  1850,  he  sold  the  mills  and  his  lands 
to  Albert  Dwinell,  at  which  time  he  gave 
up  active  business.  Mr.  Rich  died  June 
12,  1856;  Mrs.  Rich,  Aug.  15,  1841.  Capt. 
Rich  improved  his  limited  opportunities 
for  schooling,  and  had  the  advantage  of 
one  or  two  terms  at  the  academy.  He 
took  up  the  study  of  surveying,  and  was 
for  many  years  a  practical  surveyor.  He 
was  a  man  of  superior  mental  endow- 
ments ;  strong  memory ;  well  versed  in 
history  and  in  politics ;  always  a  staunch 
whig.  He  had  3  children.  The  son, 
Samuel  D.,  has  been  an  invalid  from  his 
youth ;  the  eldest  daughter,  Irene  D.,  was 
married  to  Albert  Dwinell,  Apr.  10,  1845  ; 
Dolly  A.,  the  second  daughter,  married 
Joseph  W.  Leonard,  and  resides  on  the 
Leonard  farm. 

ISRAEL   DWINELL   AND   FAMILY. 

CONTRIBUTED  BY  L.    G.  DWINELL. 

Israel  Dwinell,  one  of  the  early  set- 
tlers of  Calais,  born  in  Croydon,  N.  H., 
Oct.  8,  1785;  Apr.  I,  1813,  married  Phila 
Oilman,  of  Marshfield,  and  on  the  same 
day  moved  to  Calais,  to  a  farm  on  the 
East  Hill,  where  he  resided  until  his  death, 


1 62 


Vermont  historical  magazine. 


Feb.  20,  1874.  His  wife,  born  in  Hart- 
ford, Ct.,  Sept.  17,  1793,  died  June  i, 
1S64.  They  had  10  children,  all  born  in 
the  same  house  into  which  they  moved 
the  day  they  were  married.  In  the  midst 
of  hardships  which  they  had  in  common 
with  all  early  settlers,  they  found  means 
and  disposition  to  give  their  children  ad- 
vantages which  few  of  their  day  enjoyed, 
two  of  their  sons  obtaining  a  collegiate 
education ;  the  others  enjoying  advantages 
above  the  most.  Shortly  after  settling  in 
life  they  made  a  profession  of  religion,  and 
were  for  many  years  connected  with  the 
church  known  as  "  the  Marshfield  and 
Calais  Church."  In  later  years  they  were 
connected  with  the  Christian  Church  of 
the  town,  they  "dying  as  they  had  lived, 
strong  in  the  faith  of  the  Gospel,"  as  said 
Rev.  Mr.  Sherburn  in  the  funeral  sermon 
of  Mr.  Dwinell. 

Alcander  Dwinell.  son  of  Israel,  was 
born  Feb.  2,  1814,  married  Sarah  Cheney, 
Jan.  31,  1849,  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  where  he 
lived  a  few  years,  and  removed  to  Brook- 
lyn, N.  Y.,  where  he  now  resides.  He 
has  one  son,  William  Alcander,  who  mar- 
ried Julia  Jaquith,  of  Brooklyn,  and  lives 
with  his  father. 

Ira  S.  Dwinell,  son  of  Israel,  born 
Jan.  27,  18 16,  married  Clarina  H.  Pearce, 
Oct.  II,  1842,  setded  and  still  lives  in 
East  Calais.  They  have  had  2  sons  ;  the 
first  died  in  infancy ;  the  second,  Byron 
Lee,  graduated  at  Goddard  Sem.,  Barre ; 
graduated  at  Tufts  College,  class  of  1876, 
and  at  Boston  University  School  of  Med- 
icine at  the  age  of  28  ;  married  Ada  Bar- 
ron, settled  in  Taunton,  Mass.,  practicing 
medicine. 

Solon,  son  of  Israel,  b.  1818,  d.  at  2^ 
years,  the  first  grave  in  the  East  Calais 
cemetery. 

Israel  Edson  Dwinell,  son  of  Israel, 
born  Oct.  24,1820,  "  began  to  fit  for  college 
in  the  Academy  at  Randolph  Center,  Sept. 
1836;  taught  school  in  Calais,  winter  of 
1837  ;  in  Calais  or  Montpelier  each  winter 
but  one  till  graduated  from  college ;  fin- 
ished for  college  at  Montpelier  Academy, 
1837,  '8  and  '9;  entered  the  University  of 
Vt.,  Burlington,  1839;  graduated  in  1843; 


taught  in  Martin  Academy,  East  Ten- 
nessee, 1843-5,  20  months  ;  entered  Union 
Theo.  Sem.,  N.  Y.  City,  1845  ;  graduated 
from  Un.  Theo.  Sem.,  1848;  married  Re- 
becca Eliza  Allen  Maxwell,  in  Jonesboro, 
East  Tennessee,  Sept.  12,  1848  ;  was  home 
missionary,  under  the  A.  H.  M.  Society  in 
Rock  Island,  111.,  7  ms.,  1848-9;  began  to 
preach  in  Salem,  Mass.,  the  spring  of 
1849;  was  ordained  as  colleague  pastor 
with  Rev.  Brown  Emerson,  D.  D.,  Nov. 
22,  1849;  dismissed.  May,  1863;  began 
preaching  in  Sacramento,  Cal.,  July  i, 
1863  ;  installed  pastor  of  the  First  Congre- 
gational Church  of  Christ,  Sacramento, 
Cal.,  July  10,  1864,  where  I  now  am. 

I.  E.  P." 

Albert  Dwinell,  b.  Jan.  15,  1823,  m. 
Irene  D.  Rich,  Apr.  10,  1845,  and  settled 
in  Moscow,  East  Calais,  owning  a  large 
farm,  and  has  also  been  in  the  mercantile 
business  ;  has  been  elected  to  both  branches 
of  the  State  Legislature  ;  has  3  sons  :  ist 
Frank  Albert,  graduated  at  Barre  Acad- 
amy;  m.  Harriet  A.  Hammett ;  settled  in 
Plainfield  in  the  mercantile  business  ;  has 
been  a  member  of  the  State  Legislature 
from  that  town.  2d,  Clarence  Rich, 
graduated  at  Barre  Academy;  m.  Ella  H. 
Hammond,  and  is  in  the  mercantile  bus- 
iness at  East  Calais.  3d,  Dell  Burton,  14 
years  of  age. 

Melvin  Dwinell,  son  of  Israel,  b.  July 
9,  1825,  gives  the  following:  "  Fitted  for 
college  mostly  at  MontiDelier  Academy ; 
entered  the  University  of  Vermont  in  1845  ; 
graduated  Aug.  1849:  was  principal  of 
People's  Academy,  Morrisville,  2  years ; 
came  to  Georgia  in  the  fall  of  185 1  ;  taught 
in  Hamilton,  Ga.,  i  year;  taught  2  years 
in  Macon  Co.,  Ala. ;  Jan.  i,  1853,  bought 
half  in  the  Rome  (Ga.)  Courier  \  a  year 
after,  bought  the  other  half;  have  pub- 
lished the  Rome  Courier  continuously  from 
Jan.  I.  1855,  to  this  time  (1881)  except 
from  May  18,  1864,  to  Sept.  i,  1865.  May 
18,  1864,  the  Federal  troops  took  posses- 
sion of  Rome,  and  I  left.  They  used  my 
material  and  stock  on  hand,  and  when  they 
left,  utterly  destroyed  everything  in  my 
office  except  one  job-press,  which  they 
carried  off.     I  was  mustered  into  the  Con- 


CALAIS. 


163 


federate  army  at  Richmond,  Va.,  Mar.  28, 
1 861,  as  2d  lieut.  for  the  war;  was  pro- 
moted to  1st  lieut.  in  March,  1862  ;  was  in 
the  first  and  second  battle  of  Manassas ; 
actually  engaged  two  days  of  the  seven  in 
the  fights  around  Richmond,  from  June 
28  to  July  25,  1862 ;  was  in  the  first  battle 
of  Fredericksburg  and  the  Gettysburg,  be- 
sides 20  or  30  smaller  engagements  and 
skirmishes.  The  only  wound  received  was 
a  gun-shot  wound  in  the  upper  left  arm  at 
the  battle  of  Gettysburg.  From  this  wound 
I  was  disabled  some  2  months.  After  I 
returned  to  my  command,  in  Nov.  1863,  I 
was  elected  one  of  the  two  representatives 
from  my  (Floyd)  county  to  the  State  'Leg- 
islature, which  exempted  me  from  military 
duty,  and  I  resigned  my  commission,  and 
that  ended  my  military  service,  except 
that  I  served  as  adjutant,  with  the  rank  of 
captain,  for  a  short  time  in  the  spring  of 
1864,  under  Gen.  A.  R.  Wright,  in  com- 
mand of  State  troops.  After  the  close  of 
the  war,  I  returned  to  Rome,  Ga.,  arriving 
here  May  25,  1865,  and  found  that  my  en- 
tire assets  consisted  of  $22.50  in  gold  in 
my  pocket,  and  the  debris  of  a  printing 
establishment,  once  worth  $10,000,  esti- 
mated at  $300 ;  but  I  went  to  work  getting 
up  from  the  ruins,  and  soon  got  type 
enough  to  print  small  circulars,  hand-bills, 
etc.,  using  a  planer  and  mallet  for  lack  of 
a  press.  I  soon  hired  a  small  press,  and 
Sept.  I,  got  out  a  small  weekly  paper.  I 
was  soon  on  my  feet  again,  and  have  since 
done  a  fair  business.  In  the  summer  of 
1875,  I  went  to  California;  visited  on  the 
trip,  Salt  Lake  City,  the  Va.  City  gold  and 
silver  mines,  the  valley  of  Yosemite,  etc. 
In  1876,  I  made  a  trip  to  the  East,  visit- 
ing London,  Paris,  Brussels, Venice,  Rome, 
Herculaneum,  Pompeii ;  ascended  Vesu- 
vius ;  lit  my  cigar  in  the  crater ;  saw  Alex- 
andria, Cairo,  the  Red  Sea,  Jerusalem, 
Damascus,  etc.  I  have  recently  published 
a  volume  descriptive  of  my  travels,  en- 
titled, '  Common  Sense  Views  of  Foreign 
Lands.'" 

Levi  Gilman,  son  of  Israel,  b.  Nov.  3, 
1827,  m.  Louise  M.  Kennan,  Sept.  3,  1857, 
dau.  of  P.  Kennan,  adopted  by  A.  Alden  ; 
settled   on   the   old   homestead,   in   East 


Calais,  where  I  now  live  ;  have  3  children  : 
Julia  Louise,  m.  Nov.  12,  1879,  to  Charles 
P.  Hollister,  of  East  Montpelier,  where 
they  now  live  ;  Maurice  Kennan  entered 
Boston  University  School  of  Medicine, 
Oct.  1880;  Mary  Avis,  14  years  of  age. 

Jane  Phila,  daughter  of  Israel  and 
Phila  Dwinell,  b.  May  8,  1830,  m.  John 
Gardner  Hale,  at  East  Calais,  Sept.  28, 
1852,  Rev.  W.  T.  Herrick  and  Rev.  I.  S. 
Dwinell  officiating ;  children  of  Jane  P., 
Harriet  Amelia,  Jennie  Norton,  b.  in 
Grass  Valley,  Cal.  ;  Edson  Dwinell,  b.  in 
Lyndon,  Vt. ;  Mary  Gilman,  Ellen  Fran- 
ces, b.  in  East  Poultney. 

Harriet  A.,  educated  at  Mrs.  Worces- 
ter's, Burlington,  Tilden  Sem.,  N.  H., 
and  graduated  at  Carlyle  Petersilea's  Music 
School,  in  Boston ;  has  taught  music  at 
Tilden  Seminary,  the  People's  Academy, 
Morrisville,  and  elsewhere.  Jennie  N. 
graduated  at  Mt.  Holyoke  Female  Sem.  in 
1876.  -Edson  D.,  prepared  at  St.  Johns- 
bury  Academy  in  1878,  has  entered  Am- 
herst College. 

Wait  Byron,  son  of  Israel,  b.  May, 
1839,  d.  June,  1848;  Edgar,  son  of  Israel, 
b.  Feb.  1837,  d.  June,  1837. 

'  ALDEN   FAMILY. 

BY   MR.   AND   MUS.  ALBERT  DAVINELL. 

Asa  Alden,  born  in  Natick,  Mass.,  in 
1794,  came  to  Vermont,  1817;  married 
Avis  Snow,  of  Montpelier.  He  and  his 
wife  were  among  the  first  who  came  to 
East  Calais,  and  settled  in  Moscow  in 
1819.  He  was  the  village  blacksmith  about 
30  years,  in  which  occupation  he  had, the 
misfortune  to  lose  one  eye.  For  20  years 
he  was  the  first  hotel-keeper  at  this  place, 
and  held  the  post-office  27  years,  and  other 
offices  of  public  trust.  Reared  under  Con- 
gregational discipline,  his  sympathies  were 
ever  in  that  direction,  and  while  there  was 
no  such  organized  church  in  town,  he  yet 
lived  to  all  appearance  the  life  of  a  quiet 
and  exemplary  Christian .  We  well  remem- 
ber him  at  the  earlier  church  services  and 
singing-schools,  held  in  the  school-house, 
he  being  the  only  one  who  discoursed  bass 
on  a  big  viol  for  miles  around.  He  died 
here.  May  2,  i38o,  aged  86. 


164 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


His  widow  survives,  in  her  8ist  year, 
(1881)  living  with  their  youngest  and  only 
surviving  daughter,  Lydia  Ann,  in  the 
same  house  they  at  first  occupied,  and 
which  is  now  the  oldest  dwelling  in  the 
village  ;  built  by  Capt.  Caleb  Putnam  about 
1818. 

Isaac  ALDEN,nailor  and  merchant,  came 
to  East  Calais  in  181 5  ;  married  for  his  2d 
wife,  Hannah  Snow,  of  Montpelier.  Geo. 
Alden,  nailor,  came  in  18 16;  both  broth- 
ers of  Asa  Alden. 

On  the  west  side  of  the  stream,  next 
door  neighbor  to  Mr.  Alden,  lived 

JONATHAN   HERRICK, 

shoemaker,  an  honest,  temperate,  indus- 
trious man,  and  his  wife,  Drusilla  Cole, 
who  deserves  mention  among  the  early 
settlers,  living  in  Moscow,  East  Calais, 
from  about  1825  till  1847,  when  they  moved 
to  Cabot.  Mrs.  Herrick  died  in  1880. 
For  some  years  Mr.  Herrick  took  the 
lead  in  singing  here,  and  his  two  old- 
est children,  Lucius  and  Caroline,  were 
among  the  best  spellers  in  Moscow. 

THE   DRS.    OF   CALAIS. 

Dr.  Samuel  Danforth,  the  first  phy- 
sician of  Calais,  came  to  this  town  in  1800. 
He  lived  liere  most  of  the  time  until  his 
death,  in  181 1  or  1812. 

Dr.  Stephen  Corey  came  in  1812; 
was  in  town  but  a  short  time. 

Dr.  Jonathan  Eaton  came  in  1812,  and 
remained  3  years. 

Dr.  Nathaniel  B.  Spaulding  came  about 
i8ig,  and  was  here  in  1832. 

Dr.  John  Gilman  came  in  1815,  a  man 
of  marked  abilities  in  his  profession.  [See 
Gilman  Family.] 

Dr.  Charles  Clark  came  in  1825;  re- 
moved to  Montpelier  in  1840. 

Dr.  Asa  George  came  in  March,  1825, 
and  died  in  Aug.  1880,  a  man  of  marked 
character  and  ability,  and  a  leading  man 
in  his  profession. 

Dr.  William  S.  Carpenter  came  in  1841, 
and  left  in  1842. 

Dr.  E.  S.  Deming  came  to  Calais  from 
Cornish,  N.  H.,  in  1843,  located  at  Kent's 
Corner,  and  married  Maria,  dau.  of  Pliny, 
son   of  Colonel  Curtis ;    afterwards  lived 


where  Dr.  Harris  now  lives ;  was  repre- 
sentative one  year ;  was  a  man  of  sterling 
integrity  and  a  successful  physician  ;  moved 
to  Cambridge  in  1854. 

Dr.  M.  Ide  came  in  1854,  and  removed 
to  Stowe  in  1875.  He  was  town  clerk 
many  successive  years,  and  held  other 
town  offices. 

Dr.  G.  H.  Gray  came  in  1868,  and  still 
resides  in  town. 

Dr.  Harris  came  about  1880. 

Drs.  Gleason,  Tilton,  Tobey  and  others 
here  for  indefinite  times. 

college   graduates   of   CALAIS. 

I.E.  Dwinell,  M.  Dwinell,  D.  B.  Eaton, 
Calvin  Short,  C.  L.  Goodell,  University 
of  Vt. ;  Dr.  B.  L.  Dwinell,  Harley  N. 
Pearce,  Tufts  College,  Mass.  ;  A.  N.  Bliss, 
University  of  Michigan ;  Miss  Laura  A. 
Kent,  Miss  Ellen  Cox,  Miss  Eva  Darling, 
Antioch,  Ohio.  F.  B.  Fay  entered  Harvard 
in  1879;  ^-  Cate  entered  Tufts  in  1876; 
C.  L.  Wood,  a  lawyer  in  Chicago. 

Mrs.  Hartshorn  celebrated  her  hun- 
dredth birthday  in  Calais. 

EAST   CALAIS   FIRE. 

BY  CLAREMCE   R.    DWINELL. 

Sept.  5,  1873,  12  o'clock  p.  M.,  20  min- 
utes, the  little  village  of  East  Calais  was 
aroused  by  alarm  of  fire.  The  basement 
of  the  building  of  W.  H.  Ridout,  used  on 
the  first  floor  as  a  tin-shop  by  Wing  & 
Ridout,  was  in  flames,  to  subdue  which 
was  unavailing.  The  fire  had  so  burned 
through  the  floor  above,  it  was  impossible 
to  remove  the  stock  of  goods  and  tools. 
The  second  floor  was  occupied  by  the  fam- 
ilies of  W.  H.  Ridout  and  Alonzo  Batch- 
elder,  who  were  able  to  save  but  little  of 
furniture  and  clothing. 

The  fire  spread  to  P.  F.  Whitcher's 
barn,  the  next  building  south,  which  with 
its  contents  was  completely  destroyed ; 
thence  to  the  boot  and  shoe  store  of  D.  B. 
Fay,  whose  stock  was  partly  removed ; 
next  to  the  hotel  property  of  Phineas 
Wheeler,  which  was  entirely  consumed ;  a 
good  hotel  building,  which  had  been  re- 
cently much  enlarged  and  improved ;  two 
large   barns,     sheds    and    out-buildings ; 


CALAIS. 


i6s 


thence  to  the  shop  of  A.   N.   Goodell,  a 
quick  victim  to  the  flames. 

Only  by  the  untiring  efforts  of  the  cit- 
izens, the  fire  was  kept  from  crossing  to 
the  east  side  of  the  street,  and  to  the  new 
dwelling  of  Z.  G.  Pierce,  just  south  of  the 
hotel.  This  fire  was  a  severe  loss  to  the 
village.  It  has  not  yet  fully  recovered 
from  its  effects,  and  the  hotel  has  not  been 
replaced. 

REMARKABLE   PRESERVATION. 

BY    I.  D.   DWINELL. 

In  the  year  1866,  the  months  of  Aug. 
and  Sept.  were  marked  for  the  unusual 
amount  of  rain  which  fell  "in  these  parts," 
which,  culminating  about  the  21st  of  Sept., 
we  were  disposed  to  call  it  the  line  storm. 
The  falling  torrents  had  raised  the  trib- 
utary streams  and  Kingsbury  branch  to  a 
flood  of  rushing  waters.  Rev.  Mr.  Lis- 
combe,  a  Methodist  minister,  who  with 
his  family  sojourned  with  us  6  months, 
preaching  occasionally  (as  oppoitunity  al- 
lowed) the  morning  of  the  22d,  was  stand- 
ing on  the  center  of  the  foot-bridge  at  the 
head  of  Moscow  falls,  viewing  the  great 
rush  of  water,  when  the  upper  dam  par- 
tially gave  way,  and  the  bridge  started. 
He  gave  one  leap  up  stream,  and  bridge 
and  man  went  over  the  falls,  a  distance  of 
300  feet — 75  feet  perpendicular — over  three 
dams  ;  and  for  a  wonder  to  everybody,  he 
came  out  alive,  bearing  cuts  and  bruises, 
but  not  seriously  injured ;  ruining,  how- 
ever, his  overcoat  and  losing  his  hat. 

Oct.  28,  he  preached  his  farewell  sermon 
here,  and  the  Monday  following,  started 
with  his  family  for  Wisconsin ;  not  with- 
out getting  a  new  hat  and  coat  and  about 
$50  as  a  parting  gift.  His  daughter,  who 
came  here  a  widow  of  seventeen,  was  mar- 
ried Sept.  26  to  Henry  Goodell,  one  of  our 
young  townsmen. 

East  Calais  boasts  of  a  young  man,  a 
graduate  of  Tufts  College  in  1880,  who 
taught  our  district  school,  in  the  winter  of 
1881  ;  Harley  Nelson  Pearce,  who  at  the 
time  of  his  birth,  March,  1855,  had  twelve 
living  grand-parents,  six  on  his  father's, 
and  six  on  his  mother's  side.  The  latest 
surviving  grand-parent  was  Judge  Alonzo 


Pearce,  who  died  July  25,  1879,  aged  8oi 
years. 

LONGEVITY   OF   CALAIS. 

BY  AM  ASA  TUCKKK,  AGED  75. 

Persons  deceased  in  town  who  were  70 
years  of  age  and  over  : 

Darius  Slay  ton,  aged  90  years;  Amasa 
Tucker,  90;  Reuben  D.  Waters,  91  ;  Wel- 
come Ainsworth,  91  ;  Luther  Ainsworth 
88  ;  Lyman  Daggett,  95  ;  Howe  Wheeler 
92 ;  George  Ide,  93 ;  Gideon  Hicks,  Jr. 
95  ;  James  Nelson,  93  ;  Reuben  Wilbur 
94 ;  Stephen  Hall,  92  ;  Barnabas  Doty,  92 
Squire  Jennings,  "]"]  ;  Jared  Wheelock 
87 ;  Pardon  Janes,  82 ;  John  White,  89 
Asahel  Pearce,  87 ;  Alonzo  Pearce,  80 
Benjamin  Gray,  82  ;  Jonathan  Tucker,  83 
Asa  George,  82 ;  Thomas  Stanton,  83 
Ezekiel  Sloan,  88;  John  Martin,  Jr.,  86 
Aaron  Bailey,  over  80 ;  Edmond  Willis 
over  80  ;  Daniel  Young,  86 ;  Bachus  Pearce 

87  ;  Samuel  Fay,  83  ;  Samuel  Mackus,  88 
Thomas  Cole,  85  ;  Gideon  Hicks,  Sr.,  75 
Israel  Dwinell,  88  ;  Abijah  Wheelock,  82 
Asahel  Pearce,  87  ;  Nathan  Bancroft,  82 
Samuel  Robinson,  85  ;  Jabez  Mower,  84 
Jonathan  Pray.    81  ;    Ebenezer   Cox,    81 
Mason  Wheeler,    81  ;  Joseph  Brown,  82 
Remember   Kent,  80 ;    Remember   Kent 
Jr.,  81  ;  Luther  Morse,  82  ;  Calvin  Callier 
82  ;  Welcome  Wheelock,  80  ;  Thos.  Hath- 
away, 84  ;  Samuel  Fuller,  84 ;  Joshua  Bliss, 
2d,  84  ;  John  Martin,  84 ;  Jonathan  Dudley, 
84;  Luther  Ainsworth,  88;  Joshua  Lilley, 

88  ;  Gideon  Wheelock,  80  ;  Jason  Marsh, 
80  ;  Abram  Hawkins,  83  ;  Bucklin  Slayton, 
80;  Willard  Rideout,  86;  Elijah  Nye,  87; 
Sabin  Ainsworth,  76;  Edmund  Willis,  86; 
Moses  Ainsworth  ;  —  Jacob  Ainsworth, 
85;  Mercy  Ainsworth,  86;  Jason  Marsh, 
80 ;  Amos  Jennings,  82 ;  Daniel  Young, 
86;  David  Thayer,  80;  David  Daggett, 
80 ;  Sylvester  Jennings,  82  ;  Edia  Fair,  80  ; 
Beniah  Short,  T^) !  John  Eddy,  76 ;  Elias 
Smith,  70;  Aaron  Lamb,  75;  Nathan 
Parker,  71  ;  John  White,  Jr.,  78  ;  Geo.  W. 
Foster,  70;  Chas.  Dudley,  76;  John  Em- 
erson, 75  ;  Willard  Bugbee,  79  ;  John  Dick- 
erson,  70 ;  Noah  Pearce,  74  ;  Jacob  Eaton. 
Sr.,  'j'j  ;  Chas.  Slayton,  71 ;  Chancy  Spauld- 
ing,  70;  Jes.sa  Slayton,  78;  Simeon  Slay- 


1 66 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ton,  TJ  \  Seth  Done,  71  ;  Shubael  Short, 
79 ;  Phineas  Goodnough,  74  ;  Bucklin  Slay- 
ton,  80  ;  John  Cochran,  74 ;  Britian  Whee- 
lock,  72;  Silas  Wheelock,  70;  Rev.  V.  G. 
Wheelock,  71  ;  Stephen  Pearce,  74;  Noah 
Clark,  75  ;  Nehemiah  Merritt,  ^2, ;  Aaron 
Lilley,  74  ;  Thomas  Foster,  76 ;  Frederick 
Bliss,  'J']  ;  Jeremiah  Cummings,  76  ;  Perez 
Wheelock,  76 ;  Asa  Wheelock,  75  ;  David 
Fair,  79  ;  Squire  Jennings,  78 ;  Aaron 
Wheeler,  78  ;  Adams  White,  71  ;  Reuben 
Pray,  72  ;  Thomas  Pray,  75  ;  Jesse  White, 
74;  Horace  Ainsworth,  70;  Hosea  Ellis, 
'J']  ;  Nathaniel  Hersey,  78  ;  R.  W.  Tobey, 
'j'^ ;  Caleb  Bliss,  79 ;  Sabin  Ainsworth ; 
Jonas  Hall,  73 ;  Isaac  Wells,  "j}, ;  Stephen 
Martin,  76 ;  Ezekiel  Kent,  T}, ;  Lewis  Wood, 
'jy ;  Ezekiel  Burnham  ;  William  Bruce ; 
Joshua  Bliss  ;  Peter  Nelson  ;  Wm.  Abbott ; 
Benj.  Bancroft;  Salem  Wheelock;  Amos 
Wheelock;  Vial  A.  Bliss,  75;  John  J. 
Willard ;  Caleb  Mitchell ;  Lemuel  Perry, 
TJ  ;  Jed'ah  Fay  ;  Sally  Lamb,  95  ;  Rachel 
Bliss,  93  ;  Esther  Kendall,  93  ;  Sarah  Os- 
good, 93;  Sarah  Wood,  91  ;  Amy  M.  A. 
Wheeler,  91  ;  Mrs.  Jas.  Nelson,  91  ;  Nancy 
Wright,  93  ;  Mercy  Willis,  94 ;  Polly  Janes, 
80;  Margaret  Ainsworth,  93;  Julia  John- 
son, 90 ;  Polly  Wheelock,  85 ;  Hannah 
Haskell,  80 ;  Grace  Jennings,  79 ;  Polly 
Kent,  76;  Elvira  White,  74;  Alfrida 
White,  73  ;  Mary  Curtis,  ']'>) ;  Almira  Bliss, 
T}^ ;  Catherine  Robinson,  74 ;  Charity 
Mower;  Mary  Jarvis,  72;  Polly  Marsh; 
Sally  Wheelock,  'j']  ;  Nancy  Hall,  T^i  \  Car- 
oline Wright,  Tj ;  Phebe  Bancroft,  74 ; 
Mrs.  Joseph  Brown ;  Mrs.  Rufus  Green; 
Sally  Marsh,  ^-j ;  Eliza  Nye,  "]"] ;  Sarah 
Mitchell ;  Lucy  Ainsworth,  75  ;  Polly  Fay, 
72  ;  Elanor  Doane  ;  Rachel  Robinson,  78  ; 
Polly  Janes,  79  ;  Jane  Hathaway,  74 ;  Sally 
White,  ']'>) ;  Hannah  Guernsey,  79 ;  Polly 
Haskell,  79 ;  Relief  Eddy,  72 ;  Emeline 
Cole,  71  ;  Lydia  Gray,  78;  Betsey  Stan- 
ton, 70 ;  Catherine  White,  71;  Rowena 
Wheelock,  70  ;  Polly  Dudley,  78  ;  Joanna 
Smith,  79  ;  Jerusha  Emerson,  72  ;  Jerusha 
Sloan,  78 ;  Lydia  Eaton,  75  ;  Amy  Parker, 
"n  ;  Deborah  Slayton,  75  ;  Betsey  Slayton, 
72 ;  Cynthia  Wheelock,  over  70 ;  Eleanor 
Done  ;  Hannah  Jennings,  over  70 ;  Mary- 
Short,  79 ;   Roba  Pierce,   over  70 ;    Sally 


Cochran,  j-j  ;  Cyrena  McKnight,73  ;  Rachel 
Reed,  76;  Hannah  Turner,  71;  Rebecca 
Mackus,  -]■]  ;  Mercy  Cole,  78  ;  Sally  Hicks, 
74;  Phila  Dwinell,  71  ;  Polly  Gilman,  T})  \ 
Mrs.  Johnson,  over  80;  Widow  Brown; 
Mrs.  Samuel  Robinson,  84;  Lucy  Ains- 
worth, 72 ;  Alfrida  Leonard,  80 ;  Lydia 
Eaton,  70;  Hannah  Bliss,  over  70 ;  Azu- 
bah  Tucker,  87;  Hannah  Ainsworth  Per- 
ry, over  80 ;  Sally  Tucker,  over  70  ;  Phila 
Hathaway,  82. 

Mrs.   Esther  Kendall  and   Mrs.    Sarah 

Osgood,  aged  93,  were  twin  sisters,  and 

died  within  about  two  months  of  each 
other. 

OLD   PEOPLE   OF   CALAIS 

now  living,  over  70  years  of  age,  July,  1881  : 
Salem  Goodnough,  82 ;  Aaron  Tucker, 
86;  Hosea  Brown,  81;  Joseph  Whiting, 
82;  Kelso  Gray;  Elijah  S.  Jennings,  81  ; 
Henry  Sumner,  80  ;  Jacob  Eaton,  80  ;  E.  C. 
M'Loud  ;  John  Robinson  ;  Rachel  Tucker, 
81  ;  Rispah  Cox,  81  ;  Lucy  Kent,  81  ;  Mary 
Abbott,  86;  Sarah  Ormsbee,  83;  Polly 
Foster ;  Avis  Alden,  80  ;  Ira  Ellis,  Ardin 
Martin,  Ira  Kent,  Abdiel  Kent,  George 
Kent,  Harvey  Ainsworth,  Orin  Davis, 
Willard  Nourse,  Joseph  Persons,  James  S. 
Daggett ;  Amasa  Tucker,  75  ;  Caleb  Bliss, 
Jerra  Slayton,  Isaac  Davis,  Chas.  B. 
Marsh,  Alonzo  Stowe,  Thos.  J.  Ormsbee, 
Thos.  J.  Porter,  Jacob  White,  Jonas  G. 
Ormsbee,  Mason  W.  Wright;  Lemuel 
Perry,  75  ;  Henry  Fay,  Quincy  A.  Wood, 
Benjamin  King ;  Sally  Fuller,  87 ;  Betsey 
Webster,  81  ;  Mary  Morse,  81  ;  Millicent 
Parker,  87  ;  Sarah  Mann  ;  Rhoda  Goodell, 
83 ;  Deborah  D.  Little,  Mehitable  Kent, 
Sarah  Bancroft,  Louisa  Bliss,  Rutli  Mer- 
ritt, Chloe  Guernsey  ;  Mary  Cochran,  74 ; 
Sarafina  Fay,  Polly  Martin,  Polly  Pierce, 
Susan  Wells,  Polly  Sumner,  Fanny  Thayer, 
Harriet  Bruce,  Caroline  Wright,  Eliza 
Stowe,  Rowe,  P.  S.,  S.  F.  Jones,  Berthana 
Hockett,  Lydia  Brown ;  Lucy  Hammond, 
']^  ;  Lydia  Slayton,  70  ;  Betsey  Martin,  72  ; 
Marilla  Perry,  73. 

Sixteen  persons  have  committed  suicide 
in  town,  and  6  persons  out  of  the  town 
who  formerly  lived  here. 

There  have  been   14  saw-mills  in  town. 


CALAIS. 


167 


8  grist-mills,  2  potasheries,   7    distilleries 
and  10  cider-mills. 

[The  town  of  Calais  and  State  of  Ver- 
mont are  indebted  to  our  aged  contributor, 
Mr.  Tucker,  for  the  longest  longevity  list^ 
both  of  the  dead  and.  living,  received  from 
any  town  yet  in  the  State. — Ed.] 

ACCIDENTAL   DEATHS,    ETC. 

CO.NTKIBUTKI)  BY  ALLEN  MOKSE. 

Joel  Marsh  was  drowned  in  1856,  at  the 
time  he  was  helping  to  roll  a  lot  of  logs 
into  Wheelock  pond,  getting  entangled 
in  them.  1839,  Nathaniel  Bancroft  was 
drowned  at  Montpelier,  during  the  great 
freshet  of  that  year.  S.  Gaius  Ainsworth 
was  killed  by  a  colt  he  was  breaking ;  the 
animal  reared,  and  falling  on  him,  so  in- 
jured him  that  he  died,  1858  or '9  ;  Nelson 
Mower  was  killed  about  1855,  while  draw- 
ing rails  on  a  lumber  wagon,  one  of  them 
slipping  from  the  axles,  striking  one  end 
into  the  ground,  and  cast  back  so  as  to  fall 
upon  his  head,  with  fatal  results. 

June  15,  1873,  Lafayette  Teachout  and 
wife  and  their  little  daughter,  Dell,  about 
6  years  old,  Mrs.  Amasa  MacKnight  and 
Miss  Anna  Tobey  were  drowned  in  Whee- 
lock pond.  They,  in  company  with  18 
others,  were  out  for  a  boat-ride,  when  the 
boat  spnmg  a  sudden  leak,  and  filled  and 
sank.  By  the  exertions  of  a  few  persons 
who  witnessed  the  terrible  accident,  18 
out  of  the  23  were  rescued  from  what 
seemed  certain  death  for  all. 

1879,  ^  ^O"  of  Otis  Gray  was  killed  by 
the  caving  in  of  a  sand-bank,  under  which 
he  was  playing  with  some  schoolmates. 
He  was  about  8  years  old.  James  Jen- 
nings was  frozen  to  death  in  1794,  [See 
record  by  Mr.  Tobey]  and  9  have  died  in 
town  by  suicide. 

Murders. — Rial  Martin,  a  half-foolish, 
half-crazy  person,  shot  and  killed  Jenner- 
son  Wheelock  and  Lucius  Ainsworth,  July 
16,  1858,  for  which  crime  he  was  tried  the 
following  year,  and  sentenced  to  be  hung ; 
but  on  account  of  his  mental  conditions, 
his  sentence  was  changed  to  imprisonment 
at  hard  labor  for  life.  He  died  at  Wind- 
sor about  2  years  after  his  sentence.  Royal 
S.  Carr,    murdered   a   half-breed  Indian, 


WiUiam  Murcommock,  Dec.  11,  1878,  for 
which  he  was  tried,  found  guilty,  and  sen- 
tenced to  be  hung  the  last  Friday  in  April, 
1 88 1,  and  suffered  in  accordance  with  his 
sentence.  These,  it  is  believed  are  all  the 
violent  deaths  that  have  occurred  in  Calais. 

DIPHTHERIA   IN   TEN   DAYS. 

In  one  family,  died,  Aug.  26,  Truman 
Doty,  aged  17  years,  10  months  and  17 
days.  Aug.  31,  Mortimer  D.  Doty,  aged 
12  years,  8  months  and  13  days.  Aug.  31, 
Rinaldo  C.  Doty,  aged  47  years  and  5  days. 
Sept.  4th,  Millard  F.  Doty,  aged  9  years, 
I  month  and  10  days  ;  four  members  of 
one  family  in  ten  days,  a  father  and  three 
sons  carried  to  the  grave  almost  in  one 
week  ; — and  the  mother  sick  at  the  time  of 
their  death.  Other  instances  very  sad 
might  be  given,  but  this  will  suffice  to 
mark,  we  have  felt  this  scourge,  in  com- 
mon with  so  many  towns  in  the  State,  dur- 
ing the  last  20  years. 

KILLED   IN    BATTLE 

May  5th,  1864,  William  H.  Stowe,  of 
Calais,  aged  25  years.  This  young  man 
was  the  first  in  town  to  respond  to  his 
country's  call  for  three  years'  men,  and  en- 
listed into  the  Second  Vermont  Regiment, 
of  which  he  continued  a  brave  and  hon- 
ored member,  beloved  and  respected  by 
all  his  comrades.  His  term  of  service 
having  nearly  expired,  he  was  fondly  an- 
ticipating a  speedy  return  home.  But 
instead  of  his  welcome  presence,  came  the 
sad  intelligence  he  was  shot  in  battle  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  first  day's  terrible 
fighting  in  the  Wilderness.  His  funeral 
was  attended  in  Calais,  on  Sunday,  June 
5th.  A  large  congregation  assembled  to 
testify  their  respect  to  his  memory. 

FRANCIS   WEST   AND   DESCENDANTS. 

In  Jan.  1787,  Francis  West,  of  Roch- 
ester, Mass.,  bought  the  entire  right  of 
Ebenezer  Allen,  one  of  the  proprietors  of 
Calais,  and  the  next  March  began  clearing 
his  2d  div.  lot,  now  owned  by  Aro  P.  Slay- 
ton.  In  the  summer  of  1788,  he  built  upon 
it,  and  March,  1789,  moved  there,  and 
made  it  his  home  while  he  remained  in 
town.  A  deed,  dated  Sept.  1796,  gives 
his  residence  as  Montpelier,  and  in  July, 


1 68 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


1797,  he  disposed  of  the  last  of  his  land  in 
Calais. 

His  children  born  in  Calais  were  :  Free- 
man, b.  Oct.  1789,  the  first  child  born  in 
town,  died  young,  and  was  buried  in  the 
burying-ground  east  of  Caleb  Bliss' ;  Sarah, 
b.  1 79 1,  married  Smith  Bennett,  who 
worked  at  tanning  in  Calais  from  1830 
until  his  death,  in  1859.  His  wife  died  in 
1842,  and  he  afterward  married  Maria, 
daughter  of  Alexander  and  Polly  (Tobey) 
White  ;  his  children  :  Catherine  Bennett, 
b.  i8i8,m.  Forbes  Jones,  resided  in  Calais  ; 
Philip  Sidney  Bennett,  b.  1820,  m.  ist, 
Ruth,  daughter  of  Nathaniel  and  Ruth 
Eaton,  and  2d,  Sarah  A  Cochran ;  resides 
in  Calais,  a  successful  farmer.  His  daugh- 
ter Ruth  m.  Murray  A.  Kent. 

Mary  W.  Bennett,  b.  1828;  L.  Austin 
Bennett,  b.  1833,  enlisted  July  21,  1862; 
died  Feb.  19,  1863. 

MOSES   STONE. 

In  1788,  Nehemiah  Stone,  of  Charlton, 
Mass.,  one  of  the  proprietors  of  Calais, 
deeded  his  2d  div.  lot  (No.  28)  to  his  son, 
Moses  Stone.  The  next  spring  Moses 
came  to  Calais  with  Abijah  and  Peter 
Wheelock,  and  built  upon  his  lot,  now  the 
J.  W.  E.  Bliss  farm.  He  returned  to 
Charlton  in  the  fall,  and  the  next  spring, 
1789,  came  back  with  Abijah  Wheelock, 
Samuel  Twiss,  and  families.  In  Jan.  1794, 
lot  No.  28  was  deeded  to  Jonas  Comings, 
and  soon  after  Stone  left  town. 

SAMUEL   TWISS. 

Samuel  Twiss  and  wife  came  to  Calais 
in  the  spring  of  1789,  and  probably  occu- 
pied the  house  built  by  Moses  Stone  the 
previous  year.  In  company  with  Col. 
Davis,  he  built  the  mills  near  the  center  of 
the  town  in  1793,  and  became  quite  a  land- 
holder in  town,  but  in  1794  or  '5  removed 
to  Coit's  Gore,  now  Waterville,  Vt. 

ROBINSON. 

Capt.  Samuel,  son  of  Josiah  and  Anna 
(Barton),  b.  July  24,  1742,  in  Spencer, 
Mass.,  m.  Molly  Hammond,  and  settled  in 
Charlton,  Mass. ;  was  one  of  the  propri- 
etors of  the  town  of  Calais,  and  a  member 
of  the  committee  that  surveyed  the  town  in 
1783  and  '6,  but  did  not  reside  here  until 


1808,  when  he  built  the  house  where  Capt. 
A.  J.  Mower  now  lives,  and  resided  there 
until  his  death,  Oct.  29,  1827  ;  children  : 
Joel,  b.  1772;  Anna,  b.  1776,  m.  Col. 
tialeb  Curtis ;  Samuel,  b.  1779,  died  un- 
married ;  Lydia,  b.  1783,  taught  school  the 
summer  of  1801,  in  Remember  Kent's 
barn,  m.  Jacob  Wilson,  and  settled  in 
Spencer,  Mass.,  where  they  reared  a  large 
family.  Their  son  Hazary  P.  resided  some 
20  years  in  Calais;  William,  b.  1785; 
Polly,  b.  1787,  m.  Nathaniel  Bancroft; 
James,  b.  1790,  d.  18 14  :  Cynthia  and  Sally, 
b.  1793;  Cynthia  d.  1814,  and  was  the 
first  person  buried  in  the  Robinson  burying- 
ground  ;  Sally  m.  Sherman  Oilman. 

Joel,  son  of  Capt.  Samuel,  m.  Rachel 
Stevens.  He  came  to  Calais  in  1795,  and 
the  next  year  bought  the  i6o-acre  lot  N. 
of  Kent's  Corner,  at  tax  sale  for  15s., 
made  it  his  home  and  died  there,  1832. 
His  wife  died,  1854;  children:  Lydia,  b. 
1797,  m.  Dwight  Marsh;  Eri,  b.  1799, 
died  1803;  John,  b.  1801  ;  Levi,  b.  1803; 
Elon,  b.  1809;  Hiram,  b.  1812. 

Isaac,  son  of  Capt.  Samuel,  m.  Julia 
Harwood,  in  1808,  and  soon  after  settled 
on  the  lot  north  of  his  brother  Joel's, 
where  he  died  July,  1826;  children:  Julia 
M.,  b.  1809,  m.  Luke  Stratton ;  Harriet 
H.,  b.  1811,  m.  Oliver  Mower;  Emeline, 
b.  1815,  died  young;  Samuel  O.,  b.  1816, 
m.  Harriet  (Arnold)  Simpson.  He  learned 
harness-making,  worked  in  Montpelier, 
Albany  and  Troy,  N.  Y.,  and  in  Boston; 
in  1872,  bought  the  mills  near  the  center 
of  Calais,  and  has  been  town  clerk  and 
treasurer  since  1876. 

D.  Azro  A.  Buck,  b.  1823,  m.  Josephine 
Burnett ;  settled  in  Columbus,  O.,  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits.  His  son,  Edward 
Lyon,  b.  1857,  is  a  gradeate  of  :New  Haven, 
Conn.  Law  School. 

William,  son  of  Capt.  Samuel,  m.  Eunice 
Blashfield,  came  to  Calais  {1808,  began 
on  Maple  Corner  lot,  and  afterward  lived 
with  his  father.  His  wife  died  1836  and 
about  1840  he  removed  to  Charlton,  Mass. 
Children:  Adeline  A.,  b.  1818,  m.  a  Mr. 
White  of  Charlton  Mass. ;  Chester  B.,  b. 
1825,  d.  1839;  William  H.,  b.  1827,  died 
young. 


CALAIS. 


169 


John,  son  of  Joel,  m.  1828,  Hannah 
Taylor,  and  bought  soon  after  the  farm 
where  W.  G.  Kent  now  lives.  In  1848, 
exchanged  for  a  farm  at  Maple  Corner, 
and  the  same  year  built  the  "  Red  Shop  " 
which  he  and  his  sons  owned  until  1876. 
His  wife  died  185 1,  and  he  m.  Mrs.  Lucy 
(Hodgkins)  Crosier.  His  children  :  Emily 
E.,  b.  1829,  m.  William  H.  Safford ;  they 
taught  school  some  years  in  Calais,  Mont- 
pelier  and  Strafford ;  in  1854  and  5,  he 
published  the  "Star  of  Vermont"  at 
Northfield ;  was  in  the  printing  house  of 
Houghton  &  Co.  at  Cambridge,  Mass., 
some  six  years,  and  since  1866  has  been 
connected  with  the  publishing  house,  now 
Houghton  &  Mifflin,  Boston.  Their  chil- 
dren are  :  Mary  Alida,  b.  1848,  m.  Dr.  W. 
J.  Clark  of  Milford,  Mass.  Agnes  E.,  b. 
1852,  m.  Charles  E.  White  of  Adams  Ex- 
press Co.  Boston.  William  Leslie,  b. 
1854,  d.  1866.     Lillian  M.,  b.  1871. 

Edwin  E.,  b.  1835,  served  3  years  in  ist 
Reg't.  Vt.  Sharp-shooters ;  was  quarter- 
master sergeant  of  the  reg't. ;  since  1864 
has  engaged  in  mechanical  and  mercantile 
pursuits  in  Worcester,  Mass.,  Lapeer, 
Mich.,  and  ^ince  1877,  in  Calais;  William 
C,  b.  1838,  m.  Coralinn  E.  Bliss;  resided 
in  Calais  ;  died,  1875  ;  daughter,  Ina  Lucy, 
b.  1868. 

Levi,  son  of  Joel,  m.  1832,  Catherine 
Daggett.  He  bought,  1830,  the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  son,  Julius  S.,  where  he  re- 
sided until  his  death,  Sept.  1863 ;  his 
widow  d.  May,  1881  ;  children:  Joel  E., 
b.  1834;  served  in  the  13th  Reg't.  Vt. 
Vols.,  mustered  out  July  21,  1863,  died 
July  28,  1863,  of  disease  contracted  in  the 
service;  Julius  S.,  b.  1836,  m.  Mary  A. 
Pierce,  who  died  1872,  and  he  m.  Harriet 
L.  (Norris)  Persons ;  resides  on  his  fath- 
er's old  farm  ;  children:  IrvinG.,  b.  1864; 
Ilda  G.,  b.  1865  ;  Inda  M.,  b.  1867  ;  Lucy 
C,  b.  1878;  Otis  v.,  b.  1838,  d.  1863; 
Mary  C,  b.  1845,  m.  James  K.  Tobey. 

Elon,  son  of  Joel,  m.  1833,  Patience 
Taylor,  who  died  1853,  and  he  m.  Rachel 
A.  Bliss.  He  lived  upon  his  father's  old 
homestead  until  his  death,  in  1863;  chil- 
dren:    Lenora  G.,    b.    1835,    rn-    Martin 


Goodnough ;  Algernon  E.,  b.  1843,  d. 
1863  ;  thtee  other  children  died  young. 

Hiram,  son  of  Joel,  m.  Julia  Ainsworth, 
who  died  i860,  and  he  m.  Mrs.  Lovisa 
Hodgden ;  resided  in  Calais,  in  Read- 
ing, Vt.,  and  the  last  few  years  of  his  life 
in  Northern  Vt.  and  Canada;  d.  1876. 
His  daughter,  Minerva  J.,  b.  1837,  m.  Sol- 
omon K.  Hapgood,  and  resides  in  Read- 
ing. 

ZOETH  TOBEY, 

b.  Sept.  15,  1764,  m.  Sarah  West,  b.  July 
7,  1770,  and  settled  first  in  New  Bedford, 
Mass.  ;  removed  to  Wardsboro,  Vt.,  about 
1792.  In  1799,  he  bought  the  farm  in  Calais 
now  (1881)  owned  by  C.  O.  Adams,  built 
upon  it,  and  in  1805,  sold  it,  and  removed 
to  Eastern  New  York.  In  18 10,  he  re- 
turned, and  began  clearing  what  is  now 
known  as  the  Dr.  George  farm,  where  he 
died  Mar.  16,  18 12.  The  farm  remained 
in  the  hands  of  his  heirs  until  18 18,  when 
it  was  sold  to  Dr.  John  Gilman.  His 
widow  m.  1st,  Peter  Wheelock,  and  2d, 
John  Gray,  both  of  Calais.  His  children 
were : 

Elizabeth,  b.  1791,  m.  1814,  David  Dag- 
gett, b.  1778,  in  Charlton,  Mass.,  lived  in 
Calais  and  Montpelier.  He  d.  1861  ;  she 
in  1862;  children:  Eli,  b.  1815,  died 
young;  Polly  W.,  b.  1818,  m.  Isaac  fhap- 
man;  Maria  K.,  b.  1820,  m.  Thomas  B. 
Muldoon;  Lyman,  b.  1822,  m.  Mary  E. 
Belding;  Avery  T.,  b.  1824,  m.  Mary  J. 
Corwin  ;  David  J.,  b.  1827, m.  Kate  Roddy  ; 
Delia  P.,  b.  1831,  m.  John  R.  Cooley ; 
Lizzie,  b.  1833,  m.  John  M.  Gunnison. 

Mary  and  Keziah  b.  1793;  Mary  died 
young ;  Keziah  m.  Isaac  Raise,  resided  in 
Somerset,  Niagara  Co.,  N.  Y. ;  in  1865, 
removed  to  Delaware,  where  she  died. 

Avery,  b.  1796,  m.  Sally  Norton,  and 
settled  at  Russellville,  Crawford  Co.,  111., 
had  seven  children,  of  whom  only  one, 
Sewell,  the  youngest,  is  living. 

Polly,  b.  1798,  m.  1820,  Alexander 
White,  by  whom  she  had  two  daughters, 
Sarah  Maria,  b.  1822,  Amanda  R.,  b.  1827, 
d.  1866.  Mr.  White  d.  1828,  and  his 
widow  m.  Jeremiah  Comins,  b.  ^787,  in 
Charlton,  Mass.  She  d.  1855,  and  he  in 
1863. 


lyo 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Richard  West,  b.   1800,  m.  1822,  Lydia, 
dau.  of  Edward  Tucker,  b.   1803.     Shed. 
1844,    and   he   m.    Hannah   C.    (Dodge) 
Kelton.     His  children  were  :    DeUa  Irena, 
b.  1823,  m.  Thomas   Bell,  reside  at  Hills 
Grove,    R.    I.;   children:    Abbie   W.,    b. 
1856,  and  Arthur  T.,  b.  1864  ;  WiUiam  El- 
liott, b.  1825,  m.  1853,  Martha  F.  Martin; 
she  d.  1878 ;   he    now   resides   in   Calais ; 
children  :     Anna  C,  b.  1856,  was  drowned 
in  Wheelock  pond,  June,  1873  ;  Lydia  M., 
b.  1859;  Phebe  Roxana,  b.  1828,  m.  1854, 
Amos  W.   Eddy,    of  Walden,  Vt.,  where 
they  have  since  resided  ;  children  :  Emma 
L.,  b.  1855,  d.  1875  ;  Marcia  M.,  b.  1857  ; 
Nellie  M.,  b.  1862;  Edmund  W.,  b.  1870; 
Orvis    S.,    b.    1832,   m.    1859,    Nancy  M. 
Hargin,  resides   in    Hammond,  St.  Croix 
Co.,  Wis. ;  children  :     Jennie  B.,  b.  1863  ; 
Alpa  A.,  b.    1866;     Lena   J.,    b.     1867; 
James  K.,  b.  1845,  m.  1870,  Mary  C.  Rob- 
inson, lives  in  Calais  ;  children  :    Lelia  M., 
b.  1873;  Laura  C,  b.  1875;  Clara  Leone, 
b.  1879.     Richard  W.  was  a  farmer,  hotel- 
keeper,    and   mill-owner   in   Calais,    East 
Montpelier,  and  Walden,  Vt.,   Royalton, 
N.  Y.,  and  Absecon,  N.  J.     He  died  in 
Calais,  May,    1874.     Zoeth    2d,    b.    1803, 
died  young;    Allen,    b.    1805,    m.    Elvira 
Ellis.     He   was  a   successful  farmer,  and 
resided  in  Calais,  d.   1875;  children:  El- 
bridge  A.,  b.  1847;  Martin  D.,  b.  1853; 
Elbridge  A.  m.  Kate  Doty,  by  whom  he 
had  a  son,  Allen.     His   wife  died    1879, 
and    he   is   now   practicing    medicine   in 
Warren,  N.  H.     Martin  E.  owns  the  old 
homestead. 

MANUFACTORIES    IN   CALAIS. 

BY  ALLEN    MOUSE. 

The  proprietors  of  Calais,  June,  1792, 
to  "  encourage  the  building  of  a  corn-mill 
and  saw-mill "  offered  200  acres  of  land  to 
any  person  who  would  build  the  same 
within  a  specified  time,  and  in  "Octo- 
ber, 1793,  met  and  accepted"  both  mills 
which  had  been  been  built  by  Col.  Jacob 
Davis,  and  Samuel  Twiss,  near  the  center 
of  the  town,  the  saw-mill  on  the  same  spot 
where  the  one  owned  by  S.  O.  Robinson 
now  stands,  and  the  grist-mill  just  below 
it.     These  first  mills  in  town,  were  bought 


about  1800,   by  Jason  Marsh,  and  run  by 
him,   and  his   son,   Jason,    more  than  68 
years.      They   passed  into   the   hands  of 
William  White,  who  owned  them  a  brief 
time;  sold  to  E.   N.  Morse,  who  .sold  to 
S.  O.  Robinson,  in  1872,  present  owner. 
The  situation  of  these  mills  is  good,  and 
had  the  water-power  been  as  good,  no  mills 
in  town   would  have  done  as  much  busi- 
ness ;  but  in  dry   times  they  are   without 
sufficient  water,  still  they  have  always  done 
a  remunerative  business,  and  are  in  repair. 
The  demand  for  lumber,  soon  caused 
other   saw-mills   to  be  built ;    one   about 
1800,  by  Col.   Jacob  Davis  at  the  outlet 
of  what  is  now  known  as  the  Wheelock 
pond,  where  an  excellent  water-power  was 
easily  obtained.   Jason  Marsh,  who  seem- 
ed to  have  a  penchant  for  mill-property, 
which   he    transmitted   to    his    descend- 
ants, bought  this  mill  about  1820,  and  put 
a  run  of  stone  in  a  part  of  the  saw-mill ; 
running  it  a  few  years,  he  sold  to  Gideon 
Wheelock,  who  owned  it  some  years,  since 
which  it  has  passed  through  several  hands  ; 
owned  since  1874,  by  H.  O.  Marsh,  who 
has  added  a  shop  for  the  manufacture  of 
coffins  and  caskets,    in   which  he   does  a 
small  business.     The  saw-mill  is   one  of 
the  best  in   town.     Soon  after  the  2d  mill 
the  3d,  by  Peter  Wheelock,  on  the  present 
C.    Bliss   farm,    poor   water-power,    soon 
abandoned.     1803,  Joel  Robinson  built  a 
saw-mill  at  Kent's  Corner,  which  did  fair 
business  for  a  time  ;    now  in  good  repair ; 
does   a   small    business.        1811,    Joseph 
Brown  built  a  saw-mill  in  the  Brown  dis- 
trict ;  owned  and  run  by  the  Browns  about 
30  years  ;  abandoned.     1828,  Isaac  Davis 
built   the  saw-mill,  Pekin ;    nni  about  25 
years ;  1834,  Charles  Slayton   built   one ; 
not  a  success.       1824,  Dea.    Joshua  Bliss 
built  the  one,  Jesse  White  rebuilt,  about 
1840   at   the  outlet  of  Martin  pond,  now 
owned  by   William   Dailey.      1856,  John 
Robinson  built  one  at  Maple  Corner.     It 
tapered  to  nothing  in  about  15  years. 

Grist  Mills  :  About  1820,  Jason  Marsh 
built  one  at  No.  10,  that  he  run  several 
years  ;  sold  to  Gideon  Wheelock,  who  run 
it  10  or  12  years  and  sold  to  John  Rich, 
who  run  it  about  as  long,  when  it  changed 


CALAIS. 


171 


owners  often  till  1874,  when  E.  D.  Has- 
kell bought,  enlarged,  and  added  machinery 
for  manufacturing  woolen  goods,  and  card- 
ing wool ;  employed  about  6  hands  ;  nin 
about  3  years  ;  failed  ;  since  it  has  done 
but  little.  1 8 17,  Col.  Curtis  built  a  small 
grist-mill  on  Curtis  Pond  ;  abandoned  as  a 
mill  in  about  10  years.  1847,  John  Rob- 
inson built  the  red  shop,  machine  shop, 
etc.,  grist-mill;  the  grist-mill  part  was  of 
small  account ;  the  machine-shop  part  was 
run  by  Nathan  Bancroft  until  1852  ;  since 
used  as  a  general  repair  shop,  etc.,  for  the 
manufacture  of  horse-rakes,  etc.,  owned  by 
L.  A.  Kent. 

Wool-carding:  Holbrook  &  Waters 
began  here  first  on  A.  Haskell's  present 
farm,  about  1802  or '3;  and  continued  the 
business  for  a  few  years.  1820,  Jason 
Marsh  put  a  carding-machine  into  his  grist- 
mill that  was  in  operation  8  or  10  years. 
1827,  E.  C.  and  Ira  McLoud  commenced 
here  and  carried  on  cloth-dressing  at  No. 
ID  till  1844.  They  charged  from  $1,000 
to  $ifoo  a  year;  that  shows  the  looms  of 
our  mothers  were  not  idle  ;  they  sold  to 
G.  J.  Slayton  and  Joseph  Andrews,  who 
continued  the  business  some  10  or  12 
years,  adding  in  time  the  carding  of  wool ; 
the  building  has  since  been  used  for 
making  and  repairing  carriages ;  is  now 
occupied  by  Peter  St.  Rock.  Holbrook  & 
Waters  also  manufactured  wooden  clocks, 
and  cast  bells  up  to  200  pound's  weight ; 
at  the  same  time  they  carded  wool,  but 
their  business  was  small. 

Distilleries  appeared  in  1812,  and  in 
a  short  time  increased  to  seven,  and  did  an 
active  business  for  several  years,  but  as 
the  temperance  element  developed  they 
gradually  went  out  of  existence,  and  for 
the  last  half  century  there  has  not  been 
any  liquor  distilled  in  town,  and  there  is 
probably  less  liquor  drank  in  this  town  at 
present,  than  in  any  other  town  in  the 
county. 

Lemuel  Perry  manufactured  potash,  op- 
posite the  Christian  church,  as  early  it  is 
believed  as  1800,  for  some  10  years,  and 
then  moved  just  below  the  Marsh  mills, 
where  he  continued  the  business  about 
15  years. 


Jonas  Hall  made  axes  and  scythes  in  a 
small  way  for  a  number  of  years,  and  built 
a  two-story  brick  house  for  which  he  made 
the  brick  ;  the  house  is  well  preserved  ; 
owned  now  by  J.  P.  Laird.  Mr.  Hall 
owned  and  improved  the  saw-mill  near 
his  place ;  his  manufactures  commenced 
about  1812. 

Boot  and  shoe  business,  1829, 1.  &  A. 
Kent  commenced  this  manufacture  here, 
which  continues  to  the  present  (1881 — See 
Kent  record.)  In  the  early  years  of  this 
business  they  employed  a  dozen  workmen, 
and  run  a  two-horse  team  from  here  to 
Canada  disposing  of  their  goods.  Of  late 
years  the  business  has  declined,  probably 
owing  very  much  to  the  pressure  of  other 
business,  but  it  has  been  of  material  ben- 
efit to  this  town,  especially  in  its  earlier 
days. 

Starch-making,  1844. — The  Kent  firm 
above,  in  Company  with  L.  Bancroft,  built 
a  starch  factory,  which  they  run  till  i860, 
making  some  years  80  tons.  Soon  after 
Moses  Sheldon  began  to  make  starch  about 
2  miles  below  the  first  company,  but  soon 
gave  up  the  business. 

Carriage-making  was  begun  here  in 
1840,  at  No.  lo*  by  Rial  Ainsworth,  who 
made  carriages  of  40  diflerent  kinds  in  a 
year.     His  business  is  much  smaller  now. 

Silk  culture  excited  some  attention 
here,  and  several  parties  about  1830,  en- 
gaged in  it.  It  soon  died  out.  This  vi- 
cinity, or  those  engaged  in  the  business, 
were  not  adapted  to  that  industry ;  but 
some  silk  cloth  has  been  manufactured  in 
Calais,  handkerchiefs,  etc. 

There  is  one  literary  society  in  the  town, 
called  the  Calais  Circulating  Library  .formed 
in  1832,  with  ^2  members  ;  additions  have 
been  made  nearly  every  year ;  the  library 
numbers  now  nearly  800  vols.  There  was 
also  another  library,  started  at  East  Calais, 
ro  or  15  years  ago.  It  is  much  smaller, 
but  the  books  are  excellent. 
post-office. 

BY  L.  A.  KENT,  P.  M. 

The  first  post-office  was  established  in 
town  about  1828,  Gideon  Wheelock  first 
postmaster,  living  at  the  Center,  where  H. 
Bancroft  now  lives ;   Jonas  Hall  was  the 


172 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


next  P.M.;  the  office  was  kept  at  the  brick 
house  where  James  Laird  now  lives,  from 
1830  to  ■'49,  when  Ira  Kent  was  made  P. 
M.,  and  the  office  moved  to  Kent''s  Corners, 
where  it  has  since  remained,  except  from 
'65  to  '68,  A.  Goodnough  held  the  office  at 
his  house,  where  B.  Wheeler  now  lives. 
B.  P.  White  was  postmaster  from  '68  to 
'73,  when  L.  A.  Kent  succeeded  him,  and 
still  holds  the  appointment.  An  office  was 
created  at  East  Calais  about  1830,  Asa 
Alden  postmaster  till  '57;  then  Z.  G. 
Pierce  about  3  years,  J.  H.  Cole  3  yearS' 
A.  D.  Pearce  8  years,  F.  A.  Dwinell  4 
years,  to  1874,  since  which  time  C.  R. 
Dwinell  has  held  the  office.  In  1880, 
another  office  was  established  at  North 
Calais,  with  S.  B.  Fair  postmaster.  Of 
the  publications  received  at  the  Calais  of- 
fice there  are  65  weeklies,  21  monthlies,  i 
daily,  2  semi-weeklies. 

LETTER   OF   STILLMAN   CHURCHILL, 

sent  to  me  23  years  ago,  inclosing  a  po- 
etical contribution  from  his  wife — Ed. :] 

Mrs.  Churchill  was  born  in  Calais,  Nov. 
29,  181 8;  her  maiden  name  was  Marsh. 
She  was  married  to  Stillman  Churchill, 
Esq.,  in  1841.  She  is  musical  as  well  as 
poetical ;  her  father  (Perry  Marsh),  was  at 
one  time  a  manufacturer  oi  the  piano  (in 
Calais.)  She  is  a  lover  of  music  and  a 
skillful  practitioner.  Mr  C.  removed  to 
Stowe,  his  native  town,  in  1845,  and  went 
to  farming,  she  having  the  care  of  a  large 
dairy,  and  making  butter  and  cheese  with 
her  own  hands.  Her  husband  in  1850  and 
'51,  built  the  Mansfield  House  and  fur- 
nished it  at  an  expense  of  $10,000,  and  cut 
a  road  to  the  top  of  Mansfield.  Mrs.  C. 
was  the  first  lady  who  ever  rode  on  to  the 
summit  of  the  same,  when  she  wrote  the 
lines  headed,  Mansfield  Mountain.  She 
now  resides  again  in  Montpelier.  A  short 
sketch,  which  you  may  alter  as  you  please. 
Stillman  churchill. 

Montpelier,  June  21,  1858. 

MANSFIELD   MOUNTAIN. 
A  song  foi'  the  mountains,  the  storm-brewing  moun- 
tains, 
Ascendinfj  the  lieaveus,  the  vaulted  expanse; 
Their  notches  anil  gorges  llie  antliem  prolong, 
Tlieir  valleys  and  woodlands  enhance. 

Then  join  the  high  cliorus,  O,  man!  'tis  for  thee 
That  up  from  wild  nature  such  pteans  arise; 

Drink  deep  of  its  spirit,  pure,  fearless  and  free. 
And  let  thy  glad  numbers  ascend  to  the  sides. 

With  thought  and  with  puriwse  as  firm, bold, and  strong 

As  rocks  piled  to  mountaius,  send  upward  tliy  song. 


PERSONS   WHO    HAVE   CELEF.RATED   THEIR 
GOLDEN   WEDDINGS. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Howe  Wheeler,  72  years ; 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Salem  Goodenough,62  years ; 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Aaron  Tucker,  60  years ; 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Luther  Moi-se.  59  years  ;  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Aaron  Wheeler,  59  years ;  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Ebenezer  Cox,  57  years  ;  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Joseph  Brown,  55  years;  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  David  Fair,  56  years;  T.  J.  Porter, 
51  ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Asahel  Pearce,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Gideon  Hicks,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Israel 
Dwinell,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Asa  Alden,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Dr.  Asa  George,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Aaron  Lamb,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Alonzo  Pearce, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Benjamin  Gray. 

TOVm   OFFICERS. 

Treasurers. — Samuel  Fay  95,  Peter 
Wheelock  96to98,  Abdiel  Bliss  99  to  1801, 
Oliver  Palmer  1802  to  3,  Joshua  Bliss,  2d, 
1804  to  6,  19  to  21,  Jedediah  Fay  1807  to 

9,  Samuel  Danforth  10,  11,  Lemuel  Perry 
12,  13,  15,  18,  Levi  Wright  14,  Preserved 
Wright  16,  17,  Caleb  Curtis  22  to  25,  Gid- 
eon Hicks  26  to  47,  Nelson  A.  Chase  48 
to  64,  Alonzo  D.  Pearce  65,  William  White, 
66  to  69,  Marcus  Ide  70  to  75,  Jonas  G. 
Ormsbee,  June  1875  to  Mar.  76,  Samuel 
O.  Robinson  76  to  81. 

Moderators. — Joshua  Bliss95,.9,  1800, 
2,  3,  4,  12,  Jonas  Comins  96,  7,  Jonathan 
Eddy  98,   Gershom  Palmer  1801,  7,  8,  9, 

10,  II,  Caleb  Curtis  5,  6,  13,  15  to  24, 
Abijah  Wheelock  14,  Caleb  Putnam  25,  6, 
Shubael  Wheeler  27,  Lovel  Kelton  28, 
Pliny  Curtis  29,  30,  i,  3,  4,  7,  8,  40  to  46, 
Nathaniel  Eaton  32,  5,  56,  Asa  George  36, 
9,  47,  55,  8  to  64,  6,  7,  J.  Harvey  Cole  48 
to  52,  Abdiel  Kent  53,  4,  Rufus  P.  Moses 
57,  Albert  Dwinell  65,  9,  70,  i,  2,  4,  6,  7, 
8,80,  81,  Benjamin  P.  White  68,  James  K. 
Tobey  73-  5.  9- 

Constables. — Jonas  Comins  95  to  97, 
Caleb  Curtis  98,  Aaron  Bliss  99,  Samuel 
Fay  1800,  Jason  Marsh  1801  ;  Joshua  Bliss, 
2d,  1802,  Shubael  Shortt  1803,  Abijah 
Wheelock  4  to  6,  Gideon  Wheelock  7,  8, 
Medad  Wright  9,  J.  R.  Densmore  10,  11, 
Ona  Kelton  12,  13,  Remember  Kent  13, 
Jedediah  Fay  15  to  17,  Nathan  Kelton  18  to 
22,  James   Morse  23,   25  to  28,    Shubael 


CALAIS. 


173 


Wheeler  24,  Perry  Marsh  29,  30,  Alonzo 
Pearce  31  to  33,  Ira  McLoud  34  to  37,  Ira 
Kent  38,  Chas.  B.  Marsh  39  to  41,  Enoch 
C.  McLoud  42  to  46,  David  B.  Fay  47  to 
50,  Luther  Morse  51- to  53,  J.  V.  R.  Kent 
54>  S5>  65,  66,  Alonzo  D.  Pearce  56,  57, 
67  to  69,  Walter  P.  Slayton  58  to  63,  70  to 
74,  Lee  H.  Bliss  64,  Benjamin  P.  White, 
75  to  81. 

Collectors. — Alonzo  C.  Slayton  68, 
Smilie  Bancroft  71. 

Selectmen. — Joshua  Bliss  95,  96,  98  to 
1804,  12,  Edward  Tucker  95,  Jonas  Com- 
ins  95,  97,  Asa  Wheelock  96,  Abijah 
Wheelock  96,  97,  1812,  Oliver  Palmer  97, 
Jonathan  Eddy  98,  Shubael  Shortt  98  to 
1 80 1,  Abdiel  Bliss  99,  Gersham  Palmer 
1800  to  4,  7  to  9,  Peter  Wheelock  2  to  4, 
Caleb  Curtis  5,  6,  15  to  20,  Gideon  Hicks 
5  to  9,  13,  15  to  20,  Samuel  Danforth  6, 
Lemuel  Perry  7  to  9,  13,  14,  19,  22,  Rufus 
Green  10,  11,  Ebenezer  Goodenough    10, 

11,  Levi  Wright  10,  11,  Gideon  Wheelock 

12,  21,  Isaac  Kendall  13,  15,  Samuel  Fay 
14,  Jera  Wheelock  14,  Jedediah  Fay  16,  17, 
Aaron  Lamb  18,  Preserved  Wright  20,  21, 
David  G.  Sheple  21,  Joshua  Bliss,  2d,  22, 
Caleb  Putnam  22  to  26,  Lovel  Kelton  23,36, 
Medad  Wright  23,  24,  Pardon  Janes  24,  25, 
27, Welcome  Wheelock  25,  26,  37,  38,  Shu- 
bael Wheeler  26,  27,  Jonas  Hall  27,  28,  30, 
Alonzo  Pearce  28  to  30,  William  Robinson 
28,  29,  Oliver  Merritt  29,  Jesse  White  30, 
32,  33,  49,  50,  Pliny  Curtis  31,  32,  Nelson 
A.  Chase  31,  32,  42,  43,  45  to  47,  Charles 
Sibley  31,  Joseph  Blanchard  33,  34,48, 
Asa  Alden  33,  34,  47,  49,  50,  Charles 
Dudley  34,  35,  43,  44,  Richard  W.  Tobey 
35'  36,  39,  Alonzo  Pearce  35,  Samuel  Rich 
36,  Joseph  Lance  37,  38,  39,  Israel  Dwin- 
ell  yj ,  38,  John  White  39,  40,  J.  Harvey 
Cole  40,  41,  53,  54,   Levi^is  Wood  40,  41, 

47,  48,  61,  62,  68,  69,  Abdiel  Kent  41,  42, 
44  to  46,   66,   67,   Chester  Bugbee  42,  43, 

48,  49,  55,  56,  57,  73,  Stephen  Pearce  44 
to  46,  Rufus  P.  Moses  50,  51,  Mason  W. 
Wright  51,  52,  Alfred  P.  Hicks  51,  52,  55, 
56,  64,  65,  67,  70,  71,  72,  Jonas  G.  Orms- 
bee  52,  53,  Allen  Tobey  53,  54,  John  V. 
R.  Kent  54,  55,  58,  59,  65,  John  Morse 
56,  John  Rich   57,  William   S.   Orcutt  57, 


59,  60,  61,  66,  68,  69,  Charles  B.  Marsh 
58,  Sidney  H.  Foster  58,  59,60,  Zephaniah 
G.  Pierce  60,  61,  62,  TJ,  78,  9,  Alonzo  M. 
Foster  62,  63,  Ezekiel  Kent  63,  64,  Ira  S. 
Dwinell  63,  William  White  64,  68,  69,  74, 
75'  78'  79.  80,  Albert  Dwinell  65,  Benja- 
min P.  White  66,  67,  70,  71,  72,  Walter 
P.  Slayton  70  to  74,  "]"],  80,  J.  Warren 
Leonard  73,  75,  76,  80,  81,  Andrew  Has- 
kell, 74,  Samuel  O.  Robinson  75,  James 
K.  Tobey  76,  81,  Lemuel  M.  Gate  76,  81, 
Orson  Putnam  "jj,  78,  9. 

Listers. —  Jedediah  Fay  95,  98,  99, 
1 8 13,  Abijah  Wheelock  95,  1805,  11,  Aaron 
Bliss  95,  1805,  Samuel  Fay  96,  99,  1801, 
2.  3,  13'  15'  19'  Jonas  Comins  96,  1803, 
Goddard  Wheelock  96,   Gersham  Palmer 

97,  1806,  Gideon  Wheelock  97,  i8c2,  15, 
16,  Jonathan  Tucker  97, 1809,  Simon  Davis 

98,  Levi  Wright  98,  1801,  12,44,  45,Phin- 
eas  Davis  99,  1801,  5,  Joshua  Lilley  1800, 
Elnathan  Hathaway  1800,  2,  3,  Peter 
Wheelock  1800,  Jonathan  Eddy  1800,  Caleb 
Curtis  1800,  2,  8,  9,  10,  18,21,  22,  24,  25, 
32,  Daniel  Carpenter  1801,  James  Gin- 
nings  1801,  3,  Edward  Tucker  1802,  Rufus 
Green  1803,  Lemuel  Perry  1803,  4,  19, 
Ebenezer  Goodnough  1804,  Alpheus  Bliss 
1804,  Remember  Kent  6,  7,  Noah  C.  Clark 
6,  7,  Oliver  Palmer  7,  Joshua  Bliss  8,  11, 
Samuel  Danforth  8,  Isaac  Kendall  9,  John 
R.  Densmore  10,  12,  13,  15,  Gideon  Hicks 
ID,  II,  14,  16,  17,  18,  20,  23,  27,  32,  33, 
yj,  Aaron  Lamb  1812,  Ephraim  Ladd  14, 
Joel  Robinson  14,  17,  20,  23,  26,  Joshua 
Bliss,  2d,  16,  Caleb  B.  Mitchell  17,  Pre- 
served Wright  18,  Nathan  B.  Spaulding 
19,  Benjamin  Page  20,  Caleb  Putnam  21, 
Isaac  Davis  21,  23,  Israel  Dwinell  22,  24, 
Oliver  Shipley  22,  Lovel  Kelton  24,  25,  27, 

28,  31,  32,  33,   Shubael  Wheeler  25,  28, 

29,  30,  David  G.  Shipley  26,  Lemuel  Bliss 
26,  Welcome  Wheelock  27,  30,  Jabez 
Mower  28,  Nelson  A.  Chase  29,  30,  34,  65, 
Pliny  Curtis  29,  39,  40,  Oliver  Mower  31, 
Pardon  Janes  31,  Abdiel  Kent  ^^y  34,  yj, 
42,  43,  47,  Nathaniel  Eaton  34,  35,  42,  43, 
44,  52,  Lewis  Wood  35,  36,  38,  44,  45, 
Enoch  C.  McLoud  35,  36,  38,  39,  40, 
Charles  Sibley  36,  Alonzo  Pearce  yj,  52, 
John  Walbridge  38,  39,  Silas  Wheelock 
40,  56,  Charles  Dudley  41,  46,  47,  50,  51. 


174 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Alfred  P.  Hicks  41,  43,  50,  Richard  W. 
Tobey  41,  Joseph  Lance  42,  Elias  Smith 
45,  46,  64,  "]■},,  76,  Ezekiel  Kent  46,  57, 
59,  60,  61,  62,  70,  71,  J.  Harvey  Cole  47, 
59,  60,  J.  W.  E.  Bliss  48,  Charles  Stevens 
48,  49,  John  Rich  48,  49,  53,  54,  Allen 
Tobey  49,  50,  51,  52,  55,  66,  74,  Joseph 
W.  Pierce  51,  57,  58,  J.  V.  R.  Kent  53, 
Ira  S.  Dwinell  53,  54,  55,  J.  O.  A.  Allen 
54,  Jesse  White  55,  56,  Levi  G.  Dwinell 
56,  William  White  57,  59,  Loam  Hath- 
away 58,  Jacob  Eaton  58,  Chester  Bugbee 
60  to  63,  65,  68,  70,  71,  J.  Warren  Leon- 
ard 61  to  63,  I.  Rich  Kent  63  to  65,  Lem- 
uel M.  Cate  64,  67,  Charles  French  66,  67, 
Lewis  Bancroft  66,  67,  68,  John  Morse  68, 
Alfred  P.  Wheelock  69,  Walter  P.  Slay- 
ton  69,  John  O.  Haskell  69,  Charles  B. 
Marsh  70,  71,  James  K.  Tobey  72,  73, 
Andrew  Haskell  72,  75,  76,  81,  Alonzo  C. 
Slayton  72,  J.  P.  Carnes  ^i,  74,  78,  81, 
Albert  Dwinell  74,  75,  78,  Alpheus  S.  Bliss 
75,  76,  9,  Henry  C.  Wells  'j'j,  81,  Jerome 
N.  lUiss  -]■],  80,  Harry  A.  Morse  'j'j,  78, 
80,  Albert  C.  George  79,  Isaac  Davis  79, 
Willard  Bugbee  80. 

Superintendent  of  Schools. — Na- 
thaniel Eaton  46,  Nelson  A.  Chase  46,  7, 
50,  6,  7,  60,  Lester  Warren  46,  9,  51, 
Henry  Slayton  48,  Asa  George  52,  Silas 
Wheelock  53,  Sidney  H.  Foster  54,  5, 
Benjamin  P.  White  58,  9,  61,  2,  Lee  H. 
Bliss  63,  4,  J.  Henry  McLoud  65,  6,  8, 
Marcus  Ide  67,  Frank  A.  Dwinell  69,  M. 
S.  Hathaway  70,  i,  2,  4,  5,  6,  7,  81,  Geo. 
H.  Gray  73,  8,  W.  W.  Ainsworth  79,  80. 

Delegates  to  Constitutional  Con- 
ventions.—Samuel  Fay  14,  Benjamin  Page 
22,  Thomas  Cole  28,  Shubacl  Wheeler  36, 
Nelson  A.  Chase  43,  50. 

Justices  of  the  Peace. — Peter  Whee- 
lock 95  to  1805,  Gersham  Palmer  1800  to 
II,  Gideon  Hicks  8  to  49,  Lemuel  Perry 
8  to  18,  22,  30  to  38,  Samuel  Fay  14,  Gid- 
eon Wheelock  17  to  30,  Nathan  Kelton  18, 
Caleb  Curtis  18,  20  to  35,  Isaac  Davis  21, 
2,  Lovell  Kelton  22,  24  to  yj,  Nathaniel 
Eaton  30  to  49,  51,  2,  4,  5,  8,  9,  60,  63, 
Medad  Wright  31  to  34,  Ohver  Mower  31 
to  36,  Shubael  Wheeler  31  to  49,  Jacob 
Tewksbury  il>^  4.  7;  ^^  9'  4°?  Pliny  Curtis 


2)1)^  34i  39  to  45.  Nelson  A.  Chase  33,  34, 
41  to  55,  Asa  George  i^},  to  49,  78,  9,  Ja- 
bez  Mower  33,  34,  yj  to  49,  Jos.  Hatch 
34,  Wm.  Robinson  35  to  39,  Jedediah 
Fay  36,  Shubael  Shortt  36,  Abijah  Whee- 
lock 36,  Jason  Marsh  36,  Alonzo  Pearce 
yi  to  53,  55,  56,  58  to  60,  62  to 75,  H.  W. 
W.  Miller  38,  E.  C.  McLoud  38  to  49, 
Abdiel  Kent  38  to  54,  62,  Luther  Morse 
38  to  50,  Joseph  Lance  })^  to  44,  Richard 
W.  Tobey  40  to  47,  Herman  Bliss  40,  J. 
Harvey  Cole  42,  46  to  49,  54,  57,  Joshua 
M.  Dana  42,  Welcome  Wheelock  42  to  49, 
Charles  Dudley  42  to  49,  Lewis  Wood  46 
to  49,  55  to  57,  61,  Joseph  Blanchard  46 
to  49,  Alfred  P.  Hicks  47  to  50,  53,  4,  8, 
9,  60,  David  B.  Fay  48,  9,  Bennett  Palmer 

48,  9,  Rufus  P.  Moses  49  to  57,  Jonas  Hall 

49,  A.  S.  Nelson  49,  John  Morse  49,  62 
to  67,  Tilnus  Hathaway  49,  52  to  61,  Jonas 
G.  Ormsbee  49,  Ira  S.  Dwinell  49,  76,  'j'j, 

80,  81,  James  S.  Gray  49,  Lemuel  Perry 
Jr.,  49,  John  Rich  50  to  54,  E.  A.  Hath- 
away 51,  H.  K.  Slayton  55  to  62,  Charles 
B.  Marsh  56,  7,  Sidney  H.  Foster  56,  72, 

3,  J.  V.  R.  Kent  57  to  69,  76,  7,  Charles 
S.  Bennett  58  to  60,  62  to  ']},,  Chester 
Bugbee  61,  William  White  61,  2,  Lee  H. 
Bliss  62,  Alonzo  M.  Foster  63  to  65,  J. 
Warren  Leonard  63  to  69,  George  J.  Slay- 
ton 64,  5,  Walter  P.  Slayton  66  to  JT,  80, 

81,  Edwin  D.  Haskell  66,  67,  691071, 
S.  S.  Macomber68  to  T] ,  Otis  Slayton  68, 
Benjamin  P.  White  70  to  ']T),  Elias  Smith 
70,  71,  78,  9,  Benjamin  Wheeler  72,  3,  S. 
O.  Robinson  74,  5,  James  K.  Tobey  74, 
75)  78)  9)  Orson  Putnam  74  to  TJ,  80,  81, 
M.  S.  Hathaway  74,  75,  78,  9,  Shubael  B. 
Fair  ^(3,  7,  80,  81,  Henry  C.  Wells  76,  7, 
J.  P.  Carnes  78,  9,  Alpheus  S.  Bliss,  78, 
9,  Herman  O.  Marsh  78,  9,  W.  W.  Ains- 
worth 80,  81 ,  Harry  A.  Morse  80, 81 ,  Chas. 
French  80,  81. 

Representatives.— Peter  Wheelock  95 
to  99,  Abdiel  Bliss  1800,  i,  Joshua  Bliss  2, 
Gersham  Palmer  3,  5  to  10,  Lemuel  Perry 

4,  Gideon  Wheelock  12,  13,  17,  21,  Sam'l. 
Fay  14,  Benjamin  Page  15,  16,  22,  Caleb 
Curtis  18  to  20,  Lovel  Kelton  23  to  25,  27, 
David  G.  Shipley  26,  Pardon  Janes  28  to 
31,   Shubael   Wheeler  n,   34,   47,    Pliny 


CALAIS. 


I7S 


Curtis  35,  36,  Joseph  Lance  37,  38,  Alonzo 
Pearce  39,  40,  Abdiel  Kent  41,  42,  Chas. 
Dudley  43,  44,  Nelson  A.  Chase  45,  46, 
Enoch  C.  McLoud  48,  49,  David  B.  Fay 
50,  Rufus  P.  Moses  51,  52,  Ebenezer  S. 
Demming  53,  Asa  George,  54,  55,  Lester 
Warren  56,  57,  Hiram  K.  Slayton  58,  59, 
Albert  Dwinell  60,  61,  John  V.  R.  Kent, 
62,  63,  Alonzo  M.  Foster  64,  65,  Sidney 
H.  Foster  66,  67,  Ira  A.  Morse  68,  69, 
Walter  P.  Slayton  72,  73,  James  K.  Tobey 
74,  75,  Erasmus  L.  Burnap  76,  'j'j,  Benja- 
min P.  White  78,  79,  J.  Warren  Leonard 
80,  81. 

State  Senators. — Nathaniel  Eaton  40, 
41,  Albert  Dwinell  78,  79,  80,  81. 

Assistant  Judges  of  County  Court.— 
Shubael  Wheeler  27  to  30,  Pliny  Curtis  y], 
8,  Alonzo  Pearce. 

Judge  of  Probate. — Gersham  Palmer 
10,  Nelson  A.  Chase  68,  69. 

Sheriff. — Alonzo  D.  Pearce  70. 

Clerk  of  County  Court. — Shubael 
Wheeler  45  to  8,  50  to  — 

GRAND   list. 

The  list  for  the  year  1795  was  £lo\, 
los;  1796,^788,105.  The  first  general 
list  under  the  act  of  March  20,  1797,  is 
recorded:  61  polls  at  $20,  $1220;  174^^ 
acres  improved  land  at  $1.75  per  acre, 
$305.37;  other  property  and  assessments, 
$1670.38,  total,  $3195.75.  1798,  67  polls, 
191  acres,  $2142.73,  personal,  total,  $3,- 
816.72  ;  1799,  72polls,  312  acres,  $2702.06, 
personal,  total,  $4689.37  ;  1800,  80  polls, 
400  acres,  $39.50  houses,  $2750.50,  person- 
al, total,  $5090.00. 

For  valuations,  etc.,  upon  which  these 
and  the  following  list  are  based,  see  svun- 
mary  of  list  for  18 12. 

GRAND   LIST   OF    180I. 

The  first  complete  list  now  on  file.  The 
date  next  the  name  signifies  the  year  of 
settlement,  or  near  as  can  be  ascertained  ; 

a.  signifies  acre  or  acres  of  improved  land  ; 

b.  and  figures  following,  appraisal  of  the 
buildings ;  cash  figures  alone,  the  whole 
amount  of  list : 

Wm.  Abbott,  1799  or  1800,  $20;  Ains- 
worth,  Moses  1797,  $6.50;  Reuben,  1799, 


1800,  I  a.,  $28.25,  Sabin,  1797,  4  a.,  $3.50  ; 
Alvord,  Isaac  1801,  $26.50,  Stephen, 
1797,6  a.,  $57;  Bliss,  Aaron  1795,6  a., 
b.  $250,  $62,  Abdiel,  1798,  30  a.,  b.  $400, 
$148.50,  Alpheus,  1799,  1800,  b.  $300, 
$72.50,  Caleb,  1800,  $58,  David,  1797,  7 
a.,  b.  $150,  $88.25,  Frederick,  1795'  1°  a., 
$90.50,  Joshua,  1795,  15  a.,  $115.75; 
Joshua  2d.,  1798,  17  a.,  $124.75,  Noah, 
1798,4  a.,  $70;  Beckwith,  Joshua  1800, 
$40  ;  Carpenter,  Daniel  1800,  b.  $300,  $59  ; 
Clark,  Noah  L.  1797,  5  a.,  b.  $100,  $63.75  ; 
Comings,  Jonas  1795,  5  a.,  b.  $200,  $65.75  ; 
Curtis,  Caleb  1798,  3  a.,  b.  $250,  $76.75; 
Daggett,  David  1778,  $26.50;  Danforth, 
Samuel  1800,  $40;  Davis,  Silas  1801,  $20, 
Simeon,  1795,  8  a.,  $54,  Phineas,  1797,  8 
a.,  b.  $250,  $73.50;  Dickenson,  John  1798, 
$20;  Doane,  Elisha  1797,  t^Z'-i  Eddy, 
Edmund  1800,  b.  $100,  $27,  Jonathan, 
'797>  $31-50;  Emerson,  John  1797,  3  a., 
$63.25;  Fay,  Jedediah  1795,  5  a.,  $65.25, 
Samuel,  1795,  6  a.,  $70.50;  Ginnings, 
Amos  1795,  7  a.,  $88.75,  James,  1795,  5 
a.,  $75.25;  Goodell,  David  1795,  4  a., 
$53.25;  Goodenough,  Ebenezer  1797,9  a., 
$ii6.7S;  Green,  Rufus  1797,  la.,  $49.75; 
Haskell,  Moses  1795,  2  a.,  $56.50;  Hatha- 
way, Asa  1800,   10  a.,  $37.50,  Elnathan, 

1796,  5  a.,  $75.25,  Silas,  1797,  5  a., 
b.  $150,  $43.25,  Thomas,  1797,  2  a.,  $55  ; 
Hicks,  Gideon,    1800,  3  a.,  $38.75,  John, 

1801,  $26.50;  Howland,  Polly,  widow  of 
Abraham,  1795,  3  a.,  $11.75  ;  Janes,  Solo- 
mon 1796,  6  a,,  $48.50;  Kendall,  Isaac 
1798  or  i8oo,"5  a.,  $86.75  ;  Kent,  Remem- 
ber, 1798,  8  a.,  $60;  Kinney,  Stephen 
1801,  $26.50;  Lamb,  Aaron  1789,  b.  $125, 
$55.50,  Jacob,  1801,  $33.40;  Lebaron, 
Francis    1795,  2  a.,  $30;    Lilley,    Joshua 

1797,  10  a.,  $145.50;  Merritt,  Job  1800, 
$53,  Nehemiah,  1800,  b.  $150,  $29.50, 
Oliver,  1801,  $20;  Marsh,  Jason  1800, 
$38.50;  Mitchel,  Caleb  B.  1798,  10  a., 
$40;  Nichols,  Ezra  1801,  $20;  Ormsbee, 
Nathaniel  1800,  $20;  Palmer,  Gershom, 
1797,  6  a.,  $103,  Oliver,  1796,  10  a.,  $97; 
Pearce,  Asahel  1795,  6  a.,  $81.50,  Backus, 
1795,  4  a.,  $75.50,  Noah,  1795,  $51.50, 
Stephen,  1801,  $20;  Perry,  Lemuel  1800, 
$57.50 ;  Pope,  Winslow  1797,  $26.50 ;  Rich, 
Samuel  loa.,  $17.50  ;  Robinson,  Joel  1794, 


176 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


5  a.,  $61.75  ;  Shortt,  Shubael,  1795,  10  a., 
$95.50;  Slayton,  Jesse  1796,  5  a.,  $68.25, 
Simeon,  1795,  4  a.,  b.  $100,  $60  ;  Steward, 
Ethel  1797,  $26.50;  Thayer,  David  1798, 
$36.50,  David,  Jr.,  1798,  $20;  Tisdale, 
Seth  1801,  4  a.,  $7;  Tobey,  Zoath  1799, 
$53;  Tucker,  Amasa  1797,  6  a.,  $73.50, 
David,  1800,  $20,  Edward,  1795,  25  a.,  b. 
$340,  $153.25,  Jonathan,  1797,  10  a.,  b. 
$150,  $102  ;  Wheelock,  Abijah  1795,  10  a., 
$98.50,  Asa,  1795,  9  a.,  $65.25  ;  Gideon, 
1797,  6  a.,  b.  $400,  $78,  Goddard,  1795, 
9  a.,  $103.75,  Jennison,  1795,  8  a.,  $93.50, 
Peter,  Esq.,  1795,  $76.50,  Salem,  1797, 
$38:  White,  Elijah  1797,  3  a.,  $61.75, 
Samuel,  1797,  3  a.,  $64.75  ;  Wilber,  Hol- 
den,  1795,  18  a.,  $104;  Willis,  Edmund 
1797,  $6.50;  Wright,  Levi  1797,  8  a., 
$60.50,  Preserved,  1800,  7  a.,  $53-75; 
Young,  Duncan  1796,  4  a.,  $53.50. 

Names  on  previous  lists  not  on  list  of 
1801  :  Lyman  Daggett,  Salmon  Davis, 
John  Crane,  Stephen  Fay,  David  Fuller, 
Bemis  Hamilton,  James  Sprague,  Leonard 
Wheelock. 

New  names  appear  in  the  list  from  year 
to  year,  1802,  Amasa,  Parley,  Wareham, 
and  Welcome  Ainsworth,  Hannah  Butter- 
field,  Joseph  Ginnings,  Thomas  Haskell, 
Nathan  Janes,  Uriah  Johnson,  George  and 
James  Kelton,  Calvin  Pearce,  Joseph  Perry, 
William  Thayer,  Isaac  Wells,  Medad 
Wright.  1803,  Ezra  Bliss,  James  Dawson, 
William  Drown,  John  Eddy,  Artemas  Fos- 
ter, Joseph  W.  Oilman,  John  Martin,  John 
Ware.  1804,  Benjamin  Andrews,  Chester 
Clark,  Isaac  Davis,  Eliphalet  Huntington, 
Enoch  Kelton,  Nathaniel  Ladd,  James 
Short.  1805,  Luther  Ainsworth,  Amasa 
and  John  Bancroft,  Squire  Bullock,  Ethan 
Powers,  Prince  Sears,  Oliver  Shipley, Buck- 
lin  Slayton,  Amos  Wheelock,  Reubin 
Wilber,  Philip  Vincent.  1806,  Jacob  Ains- 
worth, Benjamin  Bancroft,  Amos  Barnes. 
George  Brown,  John  Goodale,  Phineas 
Goodenough,  Ebenezer  Goodenough,  Jr., 
George  Ide,  Ephraim  Ladd,  Richard  Pitts, 
Jonathan  Pray,  Cyrenus  Shortt.  1807, 
Vial  Allen,  Thomas  Anderson,  Charles 
Bliss,  Stephen  Bates,  Henry  Fish,  David 
Fuller,  Jr.,  Martin  Gilbert,  Jessa  Holmes, 
Pardon  Janes,  Elijah  Nye,   Stephen  01m- 


stead,  Samuel  Pratt,  Phineas  Slayton, 
Uriah  Simons,  Reubin  D.  Waters,  Nathan 
Wheeler,  Jared  Wheelock,  Suel  White, 
Daniel  and  John  Young.  1808,  Thomas 
Andrews,  Galen  and  Charles  Bliss,  Moses 
Blanchard,  William  Crosby,  Thomas  Fos- 
ter, Abraham  Hawkins,  William  Lougee, 
John  McKenzie,  Samuel,  Isaac  and  Wil- 
liam Robinson,  John  Waugh,  Almond 
Wilber.  1809,  Nathaniel  Bancroft,  John 
R.  Densmore,  Jonathan  Green,  Jonas  Hall, 
Isaac  Hawkins,  Barnabas  and  Ebenezer 
Kelton,  John  Martin,  Jr..  Daniel  Nealey, 
Peleg  Redway,  Oliver  Shipley,  Jr.,  Lem- 
uel Tobey,  Isaac  Vincent,  Welcome  Whee- 
lock. 

The  lists  for  1810  and  '11  are  not  pre- 
served. 18 1 2,  Smith  Ainsworth,  George 
and  Ira  Brown,  Isaac  Corey,  Jabez  Carver, 
John  Cate,  John  Chapman,  Salvin  D.  Col- 
lins, Israel  Dwinell,  Gload  Dugar,  Na- 
thaniel Davis,  Jonathan  Eaton,  Luther 
Farnum,  Luke  Fletcher,  Benjamin  Gray, 
Simeon  Guernsey,  Seth  Gary,  Salathiel 
Hammond,  George  Holbrook.  Ona  Kelton, 
William  LeBarron,  William  LeBarron,  Jr., 
Andrew  Nealey,  Beniah  Shortt,  Henry 
Stone,  David  G.  Shipley. 

GRAND   LIST    RECORD   FOR    l8l2. 

From  1 80 1  there  was  a  steady  increase 
in  valuation  :  80  polls  at  $20,  $1600 ;  1679 
acres  of  improved  land  at  $1.75,  2938; 
houses  assessed  in  the  whole  at  $182  ;  112 
oxen  at  $10,  $1120;  405  cows  and  other 
cattle  of  3-years  old  at  $6.50,  2632.50; 
178  cattle  of  2-years  old  at  $5,  $890;  loi 
horses  of  3-ycars  old,  and  upwards,  at 
$13.50,  $1363.50;  10  of  2-years  old  at 
$6.50,  $65  ;  16  of  i-year  old  at  $3.50,  $56 ; 
7  house  clocks  at  $10,  $70  ;  3  gold  watches 
at  $10,  $30;  12  common  do.  at  $5,  $60; 
2750  dollars  of  money  on  hand  and  debts 
due,  at  6  per  cent.,  $165;  i  practitioner 
assessed  at  $25  ;  mechanics  and  owners  of 
mills  and  machines  assessed  in  the  whole 
at  $143;  total,  $11340.  Deduct  for  5 
minors  subject  to  military  duty  and  equip- 
ped by  parents  at  $20,  $100;  deduct  54 
militia  polls  at  $20,  $1080  ;  deduct  5  horses 
of  cavalry  at  $13.50,  $67.50;  leaving  list 
for  State  taxes,  $10092.50 

At  that  time  the  law  required   that  all 


FAYSTON. 


m 


dwellings,  stores  and  shops  (log-houses 
excepted)  should  be  assessed  at  two  per 
cent,  of  their  value,  if  in  the  judgment  of 
the  listers  their  value  did  not  exceed  $1000. 
And  if  valued  at  more  than  $1000,  at  three 
per  cent.  The  law  also  specified  how  per- 
sonal property  should  be  set  in  the  list,  as 
above.  Wooden  clocks  were  not  taxed. 
Attorneys,  physicians,  merchants,  mechan- 
ics, etc.,  were  assessed  in  proportion  to 
their  gains. 

1820:  86  polls  at  $20,  $1720;  1990  acres 
of  improved  land  at  .08  of  appraised  value, 
1^1366.42;  103  houses  and  lots  at  .04  ap- 
praised value,  $247.06;  9  mills,  stores, 
etc.,  at  .06  appraised  value,  $48.60;  140 
oxen  at  $10,  $1400;  429  cows  and  three- 
year  olds  at  $6,  $2574 ;  169  cattle,  two- 
year  olds  at  $5,  $845  ;  132  horses,  three 
years  old  and  upwards,  at  $14,  $1848;  26 
two-years  old  at  $7,  $182  ;  22  one-year  old 
at  $4,  $88  ;  i  stallion  at  $50,  $50 ;  5  brass 
clocks  at  $10,  $50;  I  gold  watch  at  $10, 
$10;  20  common  do.  at  $5,  $100;  $1100 
money  at  .06,  $66;  total,  $11295.08  ;  34 
militia  polls  and  9  cavalry  horses  were  ex- 
empt from  State  taxes. 

1830:  252  polls  at  $10,  $2520;  3690 
acres  of  land  at  .06,  $1558.60;  541  houses 
and  lots  at  .04,  $1401.40  ;  14  mills,  stores, 
etc.,  at  .06,  $62.40;  281  oxenat  $2,  $562  ; 
712  cows  and  other  cattle  of  three  years 
old,  at  $1.25,  $890;  254  cattle  of  two 
years  old  at  .75  each,  $190.50;  25  horses 
and  mules,  three  years  old,  appraised  at 
less  than  $25,  at  $1,  $25;  180  over  $25 
and  less  than  $75,  at  $3,  $540 ;  6  at  $75, 
at  .06,  $36 ;  43  two  years,  at  $2,  $86 ;  33  one 
year,  at  $1.25,  $41.25  ;  2797  sheep  at  .10 
each,  $279.70;  7  carriages  at  .06  of  ap- 
praised value,  $6.30  ;  8  brass  clocks  at  $3, 
$24;  20  watches  at$i,  $20;  $3350  money 
on  hand,  etc.,  at  .06,  $201  ;  $90  bank  stock 
at  .03,  $2.70;  2  practitioners  of  medicine 
assessed,  $35  ;  i  merchant  and  trader,  do., 
$30  ;  total,  $85 1 1 .85  ;  148  militia  polls  and 
6  cavalry  horses,  exempt. 

In  1840,  the  list  amounted  to  $10373.54. 
Later  lists  were  assessed  nearly  as  at  pres- 
ent, and  are  as  follows  : 


Polls. 

Real. 

Personal. 

Gd.  List. 

18.W 

266 

$281,774 

$32,023 

$3,675 

18(K) 

312 

304,473 

46,.M7 

4,134 

1870 

341) 

374,673 

71,936 

4,848 

1878 

326 

296,652 

67,807 

4,269 

FAYSTON. 

BY   MRS.    LAURA   BRIGHAM    BOYCE. 

This  township  is  in  the  S.  W.  corner  of 
the  County,  20  miles  from  Montpelier; 
b.  N.  by  Duxbury,  E.  by  Waitsfield,  S.  by 
Warren  and  Lincoln,  W.  by  Huntington 
and  BuelPs  Gore ;  6  miles  square  ;  land  el- 
evated, lying  in  large  swells,  except  along 
Mill  brook  and  Shephard's  brook,  where 
there  is  some  intervale.  Shephard's  brook 
runs  through  the  North  part  of  the  town, 
and  empties  into  Mad  river  in  Waitsfield. 
It  affords  ample  water  power,  and  several 
flourishing  mills  are  in  operation  on  its 
banks. 

There  was  an  extensive  beaver  meadow 
on  this  stream,  and  many  of  the  trees  on 
its  banks  were  partly  cut  down  by  these 
animals.  The  brook  received  its  name 
from  one  Shephard,  who  used  to  hunt 
beavers  here. 

Mill  brook  runs  through  the  South  part 
of  the  town,  in  an  Easterly  direction,  and 
empties  into  Mad  river  in  Waitsfield  ;  this 
stream  has  good  water-power,  and  several 
mills  and  one  tannery  are  located  on  it. 
There  is  considerable  good  lumber  in  town, 
especially  in  the  more  mountainous  parts, 
the  most  valuable  of  which  is  spruce.  As 
many  as  7,000  or  8,000  clapboard  logs  are 
annually  cut  in  Fayston,  besides  the  com- 
mon lumber,  ash,  basswood,  etc.  There  is 
also  a  good  deal  of  hemlock,  the  bark  of 
which  is  used  extensively  in  tanneries. 
The  spruce  and  hemlock  lumber  is  a  source 
of  profit  to  the  inhabitants.  The  maple  is 
abundant,  and  there  are  many  valuable 
sugar  orchards ;  some  have  a  thousand 
handsome  second  growth  trees  in  one  body. 
This  adds  an  item  to  the  income  of  the 
farmer,  at  the  prices  that  have  prevailed  for 
maple  sugar  and  syrup  of  late  years. 

The  soil  is  strong  and  fertile,  though 
not  as, easily  tilled  as  a  more  sandy  loam. 
These  fertile  upland  farms  are  well  adapted 
to  dairying,  as  the  sweetest  grass  is  found 
here,  and  water  as  pure  and  soft  as  ever 
drank,  two  indispensable  requisites  for  the 
dairy.  Dairying  is  the  chief  source  of  in- 
come of  a  greater  part  of  the  inhabitants, 
though  wheat  and  oats  are  raised  here  in 


23 


178 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


abundance,  but  potatoes  more  especially. 
Corn  is  often  a  remunerative  crop  ;  but  not 
so  sure  as  on  the  intervales. 

Fayston  was  granted  Feb.  25,  and  char- 
tered Feb.  27,  1782,  to  Ebenezer  Wal- 
bridge  and  his  as.sociates.  It  was  first  set- 
tled by  Lynde  Wait  in  1798.  In  1800, 
there  were  18  persons  in  town. 

Lucia  Wait,  daughter  of  Lynde  Wait, 
better  known  as  Squire  Wait,  was  born  in 
1801,  the  first  child  born  in  town;  subse- 
quently, Wait  Farr,  a  son  of  William  Farr, 
was  born,  and  received  a  lot  of  land  from 
Griswold  Wait,  as  being  the  first  male 
child  born  in  town.  From  which  we  see 
in  those  primitive  days  the  weaker  were 
oppressed  by  the  stronger,  as  they  are  still. 
There  was  no  orthodox  reason  why  Lucia 
Wait  should  not  have  had  that  lot  of  land 
as  her  birthright — except  that  she  wasiCt  a 
boy. 

The  town  was  organized  Aug.  6,  1805. 
James  Wait  was  the  first  town  clerk ; 
Thomas  Green  the  first  constable ;  and 
Lynde  Wait,  Rufus  Barrett  and  William 
Williams  the  first  selectmen.  Aug.  27, 
1805,  there  was  a  town  meeting  called  to 
petition  the  General  Assembly  to  be  set  off 
with  other  towns  from  Chittenden  County, 
which  was  not  granted  until  some  time  in 
1810  or  181 1,  when  Fayston  became  a  part 
of  Jefferson  County. 

The  first  highways  were  surveyed  in  1807, 
by  Edmund  Rice,  surveyor.  The  first 
school  district  was  organized  in  1809,  and 
consisted  of  the  whole  town,  but  subse- 
quently, in  1 8 10,  we  believe,  it  was  di- 
vided into  two  districts.  The  first  tax 
levied  on  the  grand  list  was  in  1807,  which 
was  5  cents  on  a  dollar,  to  be  worked  out 
on  the  highway.  The  first  tax  levied  on 
the  grand  list  to  be  paid  in  money  was  in 
1810.  It  was  I  cent  on  a  dollar,  and  we 
have  no  doubt  was  as  hard  for  these  people 
as  were  the  excessive  taxes  during«thewar 
for  their  descendants.  The  taxes  levied 
on  the  grand  list  in  Fayston  during  the  war 
in  one  year  were  $10.79  O"  'i  dollar  of  the 
grand  list,  making  a  poll  tax  of  $21.58,  and 
school  and  highway  taxes  besides,  which 
must  have  made  another  dollar.  This  was 
in  1864.     There  were  several  other  bounty 


taxes  raised  during  the  war,  but  this  was 
the  heaviest.  Fayston  paid  h^r  war  debt 
as  she  went  along,  and  can  show  a  clean 
record.  In  1812,  the  town  voted  to  raise 
I  cent  on  a  dollar  for  the  support  of 
schools,  which  was  to  be  paid  to  the  town 
treasurer  in  grain.  At  this  time  there 
were  25  children  in  district  No.  i,  between 
the  ages  of  4  and  18. 

In  March,  1809,  William  Newcomb, 
William  Rogers  and  Marjena  Gardener 
were  elected  "  hog  ho  wards,"  anoflicenow 
obsolete,  and  exactly  what  its  duties  were, 
even  then,  we  are  unable  to  learn.  But  it 
was  an  old-time  custom  to  elect  newly- 
married  men  to  that  notable  ofiice,  which 
might  have  been  no  sinecure  after  all,  as 
the  swine  in  those  days  all  ran  where  they 
listed,  and  unless  they  were  much  less 
vicious  than  their  modern  descendants,  it 
must  have  needed  three  "  hog  constables" 
to  a  town  to  have  kept  them  in  order. 

In  April,  1808,  William  and  Paul  Boyce, 
two  Quakers,  emigrated  from  Richmond, 
N.  H.,  and  settled  near  beaver  meadow,  on 
Shephard's  brook.  This  was  the  first  open- 
ing in  what  is  now  called  North  Fayston. 
There  is  a  little  romance  connected  with 
this  same  William  Boyce.  It  seems  that 
William's  susceptible  heart  had  been  touch- 
ed by  one  Irene  Ballou,  a  Quaker  maiden 
of  his  native  place,  and  when  he  had  made 
a  beginning  on  his  new  home  in  the  woods 
he  began  to  be  lonely,  and  feel  the  need  of 
a  helpmate  to  wash  his  wooden  plates  and 
pewter  porringer,  and  also  to  assist  him  in 
picking  up  brush,  planting  potatoes,  and 
several  other  things  wherein  the  good 
wives  made  themselves  useful  in  "the 
olden  time,"  being  then  truly  helpmates  for 
men,  instead  of  help  spends,  as  many  of  the 
more  modern  wives  are.  So  William  jour- 
neyed to  Richmond  to  claim  his  bride. 
He  tarried  long,  and  when  he  returned  it 
was  not  the  gentle  Irene  who  accompanied 
him .  Whether  he  met  with  a  fairer  Quaker- 
ess than  she,  and  lost  his  heart  with  her 
against  his  will,  or  whether  Irene  was 
averse  to  going  into  the  new  country, 
among  the  bears  and  wolves,  tradition 
saith  not,  but  that  it  was  not  the  latter 
reason  we  may  infer  from  her  farewell  to 


FAYSTON. 


179 


him  :  "  William,  I  wish  thee  well,  I  hope 
the  Lord  will  bless  thee,  but  I  know  He 
wont."  Says  one  of  his  descendants  :  "I 
think  He  didn't,  for  he  was  always  in  some 
sort  of  trouble  or  other."  Let  the  fate  of 
William  be  a  warning  to  all  young  Quakers, 
as  well  as  those  who  quake  not  at  all,  to 
always  keep  their  promises. 

BOYCE  FAMILY  OF  FAYSTON. 

Paul  Boyce  married  Rhoda  Palmer,  of 
Waitsfield,  and  here  on  the  farm  they  first 
rescued  from  the  wilderness,'  they  lived  to 
a  ripe  old  age,  and  were  finally  buried  in 
tlie  cemetery  not  far  away. 

Their  son,  Ziba  Wentworth  Boyce, 
always  resided  in  town  until  his  death, 
1877,  "igc,  63.  He  received  but  a  common, 
school  education,  but  by  his  own  efforts, 
ultimately  became  a  thorough  scholar,  and 
taught  school  many  terms.  Later  he  served 
the  town  in  various  capacities,  and  up  to 
the  time  of  his  death  was  noted  for  his  fine 
mental  endowments.  He  was  often  jo- 
cosely called  the  "wisdom  of  North  Fays- 
ton,"  and  not  altogether  without  reason. 
He  was  a  writer  of  considerable  ability, 
both  in  prose  and  verse.  His  two  daugh- 
ters inherited  his  talent  for  writing,  more 
especially  his  younger  daughter,  Mrs.  Em- 
ongene  Smith,  now  a  resident  of  Dubuque, 
Iowa.  The  eldest  daughter,  Mrs.  S.  Mi- 
nerva Boyce,  has  always  remained  at  the 
homestead. 

When  Ziba  W.  was  quite  a  young  lad, 
his  father  sent  him  one  night  with  his 
brother  after  the  sheep,  but  they  having 
strayed  from  their  usual  pasture,  they 
failed  to  find  them.  In  the  morning  they 
found  what  there  was  left  of  them,  eleven 
having  been  devoured  by  the  wolves  during 
the  night. 

On  one  occasion  Paul  Boyce  was  going 
off  into  the  woods  with  his  oxen,  when  he 
met  a  bear  with  two  cubs  face  to  face.  The 
meeting  was  not  a  remarkably  pleasant  one 
to  him  ;  he  being  a  Quaker  and  averse  to 
fighting,  was  pleased  when  the  bear  turned 
and  trotted  off. 

About  the  year  1809,  Stephen  Griggs 
emigrated  from  Pomfret,  Conn.,  and  set- 
tled about  one-half  mile  from  Esquire  Wait's 


farm.  He  resided  there  as  long  as  he 
lived,  and  his  companion,  who  survived 
him  many  years,  died  there.  The  place 
has  never  passed  out  of  the  family,  a  grand- 
daughter at  present  residing  there.  This 
farm  and  the  Brigham  farm  are  the  only 
ones  in  South  Fayston  which  have  never 
passed  out  of  the  families  of  the  first  set- 
tlers. 

Deer-yards  were  frequently  found  on  the 
eastern  slopes  of  the  hills.  The  early  set- 
tlers used  to  hunt  them  in  winter  when  the 
snow  was  deep,  so  that  they  could  not  es- 
cape. Buck's  horns  were  often  found  in 
the  woods.  Sable  were  quite  abundant. 
Ezra  Meach,  of  Shelburne,  passed  through 
the  town  in  1809,  setting  his  line  of  traps 
for  sable,  and  blazed  trees  along  his  route. 
He  found  it  quite  profitable  business,  as 
these  animals  were  exceedingly  good  in  the 
western  part  of  the  town.  The  panther,  the 
great  dread  of  the  juvenile  community, 
was  often  seen,  or  supposed  to  be  seen, 
but  never  captured  in  this  town. 

uncle  John's  Indian  raid. 

Some  time  about  1803,  there  were  then 
five  or  six  families  settled  in  what  is  now 
known  as  South  Fayston.  There  were 
Uncle  John  and  Uncle  Rufus  Barrett — I 
call  them  Uncle  John  and  Uncle  Rufus,  as 
these  were  the  names  by  which  I  knew 
them  in  my  early  childhood,  albeit  they 
were  both  young  men  at  the  date  of  my 
story.  There  were  Squire  Wait  and  Thos. 
Green,  and  if  there  were  others  I  do  not 
know  their  names. 

Now  at  that  time  the  raising  of  a  new 
house  or  barn  was  a  job  that  required 
plenty  of  muscle  and  new  rum,  for  they 
were  built  of  logs,  and  very  heavy. 

On  a  certain  day,  somebody  in  Warren 
was  to  raise  a  barn,  and  as  the  country 
was  sparsely  settled,  everybody  was  in- 
vited far  and  near,  and  all  the  men  of  Fays- 
ton went  except  Uncle  John.  Whether 
he  stayed  at  home  to  guard  the  women  and 
children  from  the  bears  and  wolves,  tra- 
dition saith  not.  I  only  know  he  "tarried 
by  the  stuff,"  and  all  went  well  till  near 
sundown,  when  suddenly  there  burst  upon 
his  ears  a  long,  wild  cry,  between  a  howl 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  a  whoop.  Uncle  John  was  on  the 
alert ;  he  listened  with  bated  breath  a  few 
moments ;  louder  and  nearer  than  before 
came  that  terrible  howl,  this  time  in  a  dif- 
ferent direction. 

"'Tis  the  Indian  war  whoop,"  said 
Uncle  John  ;  "  no  doubt  we  are  surround- 
ed, and  the  men  all  away."  He  stood  not 
upon  the  order  of  going,  but  went  at  once. 
Uncle  John  was  no  coward,  and  if  the  red- 
skins got  his  scalp,  they  should  buy  it 
dearly,  he  resolved,  and  seizing  his  gun, 
bidding  his  wife  to  follow,  he  ran  to  alarm 
the  neighbors,  and  get  them  all  together, 
that  he  might  defend  them  as  long  as  pos- 
sible. In  a  short  time  every  woman  and 
child  in  the  settlement  was  ensconced  in 
Uncle  Rufus'  domicile,  with  all  the  fire- 
arms the  settlement  contained,  the  door 
barricaded,  and  all  the  preparations  made 
to  receive  the  red-skins  that  one  man 
could  do,  aided  by  a  few  courageous  women. 
They  listened,  with  hearing  made  acute  by 
fear,  for  the  repetition  of  the  war  whoop. 
Now  they  heard  it  evidently  nearing  them 
— Uncle  John  loaded  all  the  guns — now 
they  heard  it  further  away.  With  pale 
faces  and  palpitating  hearts,  they  awaited 
the  onset.  The  twilight  shades  deepened, 
the  night  closed  in,  but  still  the  Indians 
did  not  attack  them. 

Now  there  was  an  additional  anxiety 
among  the  inmates  of  the  little  cabin,  for 
it  was  time  for  the  men  to  be  returning 
from  the  raising,  and  as  they  were  un- 
armed, they  would  fall  an  easy  prey  to 
the  Indians. 

Meanwhile  the  men,  havingfinished  their 
labors,  were  returning  home,  all  uncon- 
scious of  the  danger  menacing  them.  They 
reached  home,  but  were  surprised  to  find 
those  homes  deserted.  "Come  on  to  my 
house,"  said  Uncle  Rufus,  "perhaps  the 
women  were  lonesome,  and  have  gone  to 
make  my  wife  a  visit."  So,  not  knowing 
what  else  to  tlo,  they  went  on.  Yes,  there 
was  a  light  at  Uncle  Rufus ',  sure  enough, 
and  a  glance  sufficed  to  show  that  there 
was  some  unusual  commotion  within.  What 
could  it  be? 

"  Hark,  I  hear  voices,"  cried  one  of  the 
women,  "  it  is  the  Indians  this  time,  sure." 


The  children  began  to  cry,  and  I  suppose 
it  would  have  been  very  delicate  if  the 
women  had  fainted,  but  they  did  no  such 
thing. 

"What  are  you  all  about  here?  why 
don't  you  let  us  in?"  cried  Uncle  Rufus, 
shaking  the  door.  The  door  was  opened 
speedily,  and  instead  of  being  scalped  by 
the  Indians,  they  fell  into  the  arms  of  their 
astonished  husbands. 

"  What  is  all  this  pow-wow  about,  any- 
way?" said  one.  Then  Uncle  John  ex- 
plained how  he  had  heard  the  Indian  war- 
whoop  off  in  the  woods,  and  had  gathered 
the  women  and  children  there  together 
for  protection.  The  men  burst  into  a  loud 
laugh.  "It  was  the  wolves,"  said  Squire 
Wait,  "we  heard  them  howling  on  the 
mountain  as  we  came  home.  I'll  be  bound 
there  isn't  a  red-skin  within  50  miles." 

Uncle  John  was  somewhat  crestfallen, 
but  he  was  rather  glad  after  all  that  it 
wasn't  Indians,  for  he  preferred  to  have 
his  scalp  in  its  proper  place,  rather  than 
dangling  from  the  red-skins'  belts. 

Sometime  in  1814,  there  was  a  rumor 
current  of  great  treasure  buried  by  the 
Spanish  Legions  at  the  forks  of  Shepherd's 
brook,  and  William  Boyce,  having  a  desire 
for  "  the  root  of  all  evil,"  resolved  to  find 
it.  He  engaged  one  Arad  Sherman,  a 
man  of  such  magical  powers  that  in  his 
hands  a  witch-hazel  rod  performed  as 
many  antics  as  the  rod  of  Aaron,  and  they 
went  about  the  search.  Arad  took  the 
enchanted  rod,  and  lo !  it  pointed  out  the 
exact  location  of  the  buried  treasure,  but 
it  remained  for  them  to  dig  and  get  it.  It 
had  been  revealed  to  Arad  that  they  must 
dig  in  the  night  time,  and  no  word  must 
be  spoken  by  any  one  of  the  number  dur- 
ing the  whole  time  of  the  digging,  else  the 
treasure  would  be  lost  to  them.  So  one 
night  they  started  on  their  secret  expedi- 
tion. Nothing  was  heard  but  the  dull  thud 
of  the  bars  in  the  earth,  and  grating  of  the 
spade.  The  earth  was  obstinate,  but  they 
were  determined  no  powers  of  earth  should 
cheat  them  of  their  treasure.  The  hours 
wore  on,  when  suddenly  William's  bar 
struck  against  the  iron  chest  containing  the 
treasure,    with   a  sharp    "  clink."      Over- 


FAYSTON. 


i«i 


joyed  at  their  success,  William  forgot  the 
caution  and  cried  out  "  I've  found  it !"  At 
that  instant  the  box  shook  with  an  ominous 
rattle,  and  sank  down,  down,  far  below  the 
sight  of  their  longing  eyes,  taking  the«bar 
and  all  with  it,  says  the  tradition.  Fright- 
ened nearly  out  of  their  wits,  they  "ske- 
daddled" for  home,  sadder  if  not  better 
men,  and  the  treasure  remains  buried  there 
to  this  day. 

In  the  winter  of  1826,  a  beautiful  doe 
was  run  down  Shepherd's  brook  to  Mad 
river,  near  Jason  Carpenter's  and  brought 
up  in  an  open  eddy  out  of  the  reach  of  the 
dogs.  Judge  Carpenter  caught  it  in  his 
arms,  and,  seven  or  eight  hunters  coming 
up  just  then,  he  told  them  that  they  could 
not  have  the  doe,  but  each  one  of  them 
might  go  and  select  a  sheep  from  his  flock, 
if  they  would  go  home  .about  their  busi- 
ness. Nothing  but  the  beautiful  doe  would 
satisfy  these  blood-thirsty  hunters,  and, 
seizing  the  deer  by  main  force,  they  killed 
it  on  the  spot. 

Pigeons  were  abundant.  One  device 
for  keeping  them  off  the  grain  patches  was 
a  boy  threshing  a  log  chain  around  a 
stump.  They  used  also  to  construct  bough 
houses  on  the  edge  of  the  field,  and  draw 
a  huge  net  over  the  baiting  place,  thus  se- 
curing dozens  at  a  haul.  Partridges  were 
caught  on  their  drumming  logs  in  snares, 
or,  if  not  there,  the  gunner  was  sure  to 
find  them  in  some  thicket.  So  it  came  to 
be  a  proverb,  "  hunted  like  a  partridge." 

In  early  days  Uncle  Moses  Eaton  used 
to  bring  corn  from  Richmond  on  the  backs 
of  two  horses,  the  roads  not  being  passable 
for  any  vehicle. 

On  his  journey  Uncle  Moses  met  Uncle 
Joe  Clark,  of  Duxbury,  at  Pride's  tavern 
in  Waterbury.  "  Now,"  said  Uncle  Joe, 
"  you  will  want  some  pork  to  go  with  that 
corn,  and  you  just  call  at  my  house,  and 
tell  Aunt  Betsey  to  put  you  up  a  good  clear 
piece  of  pork."  The  next  time  they  met 
Uncle  Moses  said,  "I  called  on  Aunt  Bet- 
sey, as  you  told  me,  and  she  raised  her 
hands  and  blessed  herself,  saying,  "  What 
on  airth  does  that  man  mean,  sending  any 
one  here  for  pork,  when  he  knows  that  we 
hanit  had  any  kind  of  meat  in  the  house 


for  six  months  ?"  But  Uncle  Joe  enjoyed 
the  joke  hugely. 

In  Fayston  there  was  considerable  snow 
on  the  8th  and  9th  of  June,  18 16,  and 
everything  was  frozen  down  to  the  ground. 
The  trees  put  out  new  leaves  three  times 
during  that  season,  having  been  cut  off 
twice  by  frost;  hardly  anything  ripened, 
and  the  settlers  saw  dreary  times. 

WILLIAM    NEWCOMB 

came  to  the  township  quite  early  in  its  set- 
tlement, and  finished  his  days  here.  He 
built  one  of  the  first  framed  houses  in 
town,  Esquire  Wait's  being  the  first ;  Mr. 
Newcomb  and  Merrill  Tyler  each  built 
theirs  the  same  year,  but  I  am  unable  to 
learn  in  what  year.  Mr.  Newcomb's  farm 
was  occupied  by  his  son  Hoseamany  years, 
but  has  passed  into  the  hands  of  strangers. 
The  old  house  was  burned  during  a  high 
wind,  in  Oct.  1878. 

Dr.  Dan  Newcomb,  son  of  Hosea  New- 
comb,  was  born  and  reared  here,  but  has 
been  for  several  years  a  practicing  physi- 
cian in  Steele  County,  111.  He  is  also  the 
author  of  a  medical  work  entitled,  "  When 
and  How,"  a  work  of  considerable  merit. 
Don  Carlos,  another  son,  is  a  prominent 
wholesale  merchant  of  Atchison,  Kansas. 

NATHAN   AND  JACOB   BOYCE. 

In  1808,  Nathan  Boyce  and  his  wife, 
Zeviah,  came  to  Fayston,  and  settled  on 
Shephard's  brook,  near  Paul  Bdyce,  of 
whom  he  was  a  relative,  and  also  of  the 
Quaker  faith.  Nathan  Boyce  died  many 
years  ago ;  his  wife  in  1856,  aged  about  90, 
I  think.  She  resided  with  her  son  Jacob, 
who  died  in  186-.  His  wife  still  survives 
him,  at  the  age  of  81  (1878.  She  is  still 
living,  Aug.  1881.)  She  lives  on  the  old 
farm  with  her  son,  Seth  Boyce.  The  farm 
has  always  remained  in  the  family. 

Jacob  Boyce  had  4  sons  and  4  daughters, 
all  of  whom,  save  one,  are  settled  in  Fays- 
ton or  the  immediately  adjacent  towns. 

BRIGHAM    FAMILY. 

In  1809,  Gershom  Brigham  and  family 
emigrated  from  Winchester,  N.  H.,  and 
settled  in  South  Fayston,  near  Lynde 
Wait's.  Elisha,  their  third  child,  was  then 
17  years  old,  and  eventually  settled  on  the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


same  land,  his  other  brothers  and  sisters 
finding  other  homes.  His  parents  resided 
with  him  while  they  lived,  and  their  bones 
rest  in  the  little  green  grave-yard  on  the 
old  Wait  farm.  Elisha  lived  here  to  ripe 
old  age,  raising  a  family  of  1 1  children,  all 
of  whom  are  now  living  except  one  daugh- 
ter, who  died  at  the  age  of  42.  The  two 
eldest  sons  and  the  two  youngest  daughters 
of  this  family  have  some  literary  talent, 
having  all  contributed  to  the  press  accept- 
ably, in  prose  and  verse.  The  eldest  son, 
[See  separate  notice  of  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham] . 

Elisha  Brigham  died  in  1863,  aged  70 
years;  his  widow  in  1876,  aged  ']'].  The 
old  home  that  she  had  resided  in  for  more 
than  40 years,  took  fire  in  some  mysterious 
manner,  and  was  burned  in  the  early  morn- 
ing hours,  when  her  demise  was  hourly 
expected.  She  was  borne  from  the  flam- 
ing house  to  the  home  of  a  neighbor,  and 
breathed  her  last  in  the  very  house  whence 
she  went  on  her  wedding  day  to  be  mar- 
ried 59  years  before. 

Mrs.  Brigham  was  a  woman  of  remark- 
able powers,  mental  and  physical.  Left  an 
orphan  by  the  death  of  her  mother  at  the 
age  of  12,  she  came  from  Randolph,  Vt., 
her  native  place,  to  reside  in  the  family  of 
Esquire  Wait,  so  she  became  early  identi- 
fied with  the  history  of  the  town.  Her  re- 
markably vigorous  constitution  and  ambi- 
tion to  excel,  fitted  her  for  the  position  of 
a  pioneer's  wife,  and  she  endured  the  hard- 
ships and  deprivations  consequent  on  the 
building  up  of  a  new  place,  with  great 
fortitude.  With  a  large  family  of  her  own 
and  many  cares,  yet  she  acted  as  nurse  for 
half  the  town,  and  such  was  her  skill  in  the 
management  of  the  sick,  that  the  old  phy- 
sician, now  dead,  used  always,  if  he  had 
a  critical  case,  to  send  for  Mrs.  Brigham, 
and  said,  with  her  to  nurse  them,  he  felt 
pretty  sure  of  bringing  his  patients  through. 
Her  very  presence  and  touch  seemed  to 
bring  healing  with  them. 

When  Mrs.  Brigham  was  a  fair,  young 
wife  of  19,  she  was  small,  lithe  and  supple, 
with  nerves  of  steel,  and  she  never  shrank 
from  any  of  the  hardships  of  her  life. 
They  then  made  sugar  nearly  a  mile  from 
j-he  house.     It   was   growing   late    in  the 


spring,  and  Mr.  Brigham  was'  anxious  to 
be  about  his  spring's  work,  and  his  wife, 
being  equally  anxious  for  a  good  supply  of 
sugar,  offered  to  go  with  her  sister,  a  girl 
of  17,  and  boil  in  the  sap.  Taking  the 
baby  with  them,  they  started  for  the  sugar- 
camp.  It  was  late  in  .spring  and  quite 
warm,  and  babies  were  not  killed  by  a 
breath  of  fresh  air  in  those  days.  They 
boiled  sap  all  day,  Mrs.  B.  gathering  in 
some  sap  near  the  boiling  place.  In  the 
afternoon  they  heard  a  good  deal  of  bark- 
ing off  in  the  woods,  but  supposed  it  was 
some  hounds  after  foxes.  Mr.  Brigham 
did  not  get  up  to  the  sugar-camp  to  bring 
down  the  syrup  till  nine  o'clock,  they  stay- 
ing there  alone  until  that  time.  A  neigh- 
bor passing  through  the  camp  early  the 
next  morning,  found  a  sheep  dead  at  the 
foot  of  a  tree  where  Mrs.  Brigham  had 
gathered  sap  at  sundown.  The  sheep  was 
still  warm  when  Mr.  Brigham  arrived  on 
the  spot.  On  looking  around,  they  found 
20  sheep  had  been  killed  by  the  wolves. 
Mrs.  Brigham  and  her  fair  sister  did  not 
care  to  boil  till  nine  o'clock  the  next  night. 
On  one  occasion  Mrs.  Brigham,  desiring 
to  get  some  weaving  done,  mounted  an  un- 
broken, 3-years-oldcolt,  that  had  never  had 
a  woman  on  his  back  before,  and  started 
on  a  ride  of  4  miles  through  the  woods,  to 
Wm.  Farr's,  with  a  bag  of  yarn  fastened  to 
the  saddle-bow.  There  was  only  a  bridle- 
path part  of  the  way,  and  the  colt  was  shy, 
but  he  found  his  match  in  the  little  woman 
of  scarce  100  pounds'  weight,  and  carried 
her  safely  to  her  destination.  Her  busi- 
ness dispatched  at  Mr.  Farr's,  she  started 
homeward  by  another  route,  having  oc- 
casion to  call  at  one  William  Marsten's,who 
lived  far  up  on  the  road  leading  over  the 
mountain  into  Huntington,  and  from  thence 
homeward  by  a  route  so  indistinctly  mark- 
ed, blazed  trees  being  the  guide,  she  mis- 
took a  path  worn  by  the  cattle  for  the 
traveled  road,  and  did  not  discover  her 
mistake  till  she  came  up  to  the  pasture 
fence.  Nothing  daunted,  she  took  down 
the  fence,  passed  over,  then  replaced  it, 
and  went  over,  being  then  so  near  home 
that  she  felt  pretty  sure  of  her  whereabouts. 
After  the  colt  became  better  broken,  she 


FAYSTON. 


i«3 


used  often  to  take  one  child  in  her  arms 
and  another  behind  her,  and  go  to  the 
store,  3  or  4  miles  distant,  or  visit  a  distant 
neighbor,  or  to  go  to  meeting. 

JOTHAM  CARPENTER 

was  the  first  settled  minister,  and  received 
the  minister  lot  of  land  in  this  town.  How 
many  years  he  remained  here  I  know  not, 
but  he  has  one  son  now  living  in  Brook- 
field. 

Preaching  has  generally  been  of  a  desul- 
tory character,  owing  to  the  fact  that  North 
and  South  Fayston  are  divided  by  a  nat- 
ural barrier  of  hills,  that  makes  it  far  more 
convenient  for  the  North  section  to  go  to 
Moretown,  and  the  South  part  is  more  ac- 
cessible to  Waitsfield,  so  that  it  seems 
probable  that  the  different  sections  will 
never  unite  in  worship.  The  people  in  N. 
Fayston  have  an  organized  Baptist  society, 
and  have  quite  frequent  preaching,-  and 
some  years  hire  a  minister,  and  many 
years  ago,  the  Methodists  had  quite  a  large 
society  in  So.  Fayston,  but  it  has  been 
dismembered  a  long  time,  and  most  of  its 
former  members  are  dead,  and  those  re- 
maining have  united  with  the  Methodist 
church  in  Waitsfield. 

John  and  Rufus  Barrett  were  among  the 
early  settlers,  and  one  Thomas  Green,  but 
as  they  have  no  descendants  remaining  in 
town,  I  cannot  tell  when  they  .settled  here, 
but  they  were  here  as  early  as  1803,  it  is 
believed. 

Elizabeth,  widow  of  John  Barrett,  died 
in  Waitsfield  a  few  years  since  (1878) 
aged  93  years.  She  survived  her  husband 
many  years. 

One  Jonathan  Lamson  died  in  town  sev- 
eral years  ago,  at  the  age  of  84.  His  wife 
lived  to  the  age  of  107  years.  Timothy 
Chase  died  at  the  age  of  91  ;  his  wife,  Ruth, 
some  years  earlier,  over  80.  Lynde  Wait, 
the  first  settler,  moved  from  town  many 
years  ago,  and  eventually  went  West,  and 
I  have  learned,  died  at  an  advanced  age, 
over  80.  Nearly  all  the  early  settlers 
whom  I  have  known,  lived  to  ripe  old  age, 
but  they  have  passed  away,  and  with  them 
much  of  the  material  for  a  full  history  of 
the  town.     I  have  gathered  as  much  as  I 


could  that  is  reliable,  but  even  the  last 
two,  from  whom  I  have  elicited  most  of 
the  facts  recorded  here,  have  now  gone  to 
their  long  homes,' and  much  that  I  have 
gathered  here  would  now  be  forever  sealed 
in  silence,  had  I  began  my  work  a  little 
later. 

CAPT.    ELLIOT   PORTER, 

the  first  captain  of  the  militia  in  the  town, 
was  born  in  Hartford,  Vt.,  1785,  married 
Sidney  Ward  in  181 1,  and  soon  after  re- 
moved to  Fayston,  where  they  began  to 
clear  them  a  home  in  the  North  part  of 
the  town,  where  they  resided  till  their 
death.  He  died  at  the  age  of  89 ;  his  wife 
at  86.  They  had  8  children.  William  E. 
Porter,  their  son,  died  at  57 ;  4  sons  are 
now  living. 

WILLARD   B.    PORTER, 

son  of  Elliot,  has  always  resided  in  town, 
near  where  he  was  born,  and  has  served 
the  town  in  almost  every  official  capacity. 
He  has  been  town  clerk  31  years,  school 
district  clerk  25  years,  treasurer  14  years, 
justice  of  the  peace  30  years,  and  in  that 
capacity  married  86  couple.  He  has  rep- 
resented the  town  6  sessions,  including  i 
extra  session,  and  has  attended  2  consti- 
tutional conventions.  Mr.  Porter  says  the 
first  school  he  attended  was  in  his  father's 
log-house  chamber  ;  the  scholars,  his  eldest 
brother,  himself  and  one  Jane  Laws ;  the 
teacher's  name,  Elizabeth  Sherman.  Mr. 
Willard  Porter  has  done  more  business 
for  the  town  than  any  other  person  now 
living. 

WARREN   C.    PORTER 

served  as  a  soldier  during  nearly  the  whole 
war  of  the  Rebellion,  and  has  taught  school 
24  terms.  Dr.  Wilfred  W.  Porter,  see 
separate  notice.  Walter,  the  youngest 
son,  remains  on  the  old  homestead,  and  it 
was  his  care  to  soothe  the  declining  years 
of  his  parents  as  they  went  slowly  down 
the  dark  valley. 

There   was  no  death    occurred  in  the 
family  of  Elliot  Porter  for  50  years. 

Vi^ILLIAM    SHERMAN 

was  among  the  early  settlers  of  Fayston, 
though  I  am  not  informed  in  what  year  he 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


settled  here.  He  represented  the  town  in 
the  general  assembly,  and  held  other  town 
offices.  His  daughter,  widow  of  Eli  Bruce, 
still  lives  on  the  old  honaestead  that  he  re- 
deemed from  the  wilderness. 

ELI    BRUCE 

was  a  long-time  resident  of  Fayston,  and 
did  a  large  amount  of  business  for  the 
town,  several  times  being  the  represent- 
ative, and  justice  of  peace  for  many  years. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  69.  His  daughter 
was  the  first  person  buried  in  the  cemetery 
in  N.  Fayston. 

SILAS   W.    FISHER 

resides  in  N.  Fayston,  on  the  farm  where 
he  has  lived  for  50  years.  His  wife  has 
been  dead  some  years.  He  has  two  sur- 
viving sons ;  one  in  the  West,  and  the 
other,  CM.  Fisher,  is  constable  of  Fays- 
ton at  the  present  time— 1878,  He  died 
in  1879. 

BENJAMIN    B.    FISHER 

was  the  first  postmaster  in  town,  and  held 
the  office  till  his  death,  and  his  wife  held 
the  office  4  years  afterwards.  Truman 
Murray  is  the  present  incumbent. 

RILEY   MANSFIELD 

came  to  the  town  when  he  was  quite  a 
young  man,  and  passed  his  days  here, 
dying  in  1876,  aged  75  ;  his  wife  in  1874; 
out  of  a  large  family,  there  is  only  one  sur- 
viving child  of  theirs. 

JOSEPH   MARBLE 

came  to  Fayston  in  September,  1809,  and 
with  his  wife  Susan  passed  the  remnant  of 
his  days  here,  dying  at  the  age  of  84 ;  his 
wife  at  81.  They  had  11  children,  two 
only  are  living  (1878.)  One  daughter  in 
Wisconsin,  and  Benjamin  on  the  farm 
where  his  father  began  70  years  ago.  He 
is  I  think  now  over  80  years  of  age — is 
still  living,  aged  86.  Cynthia,  daughter  of 
Joseph  Marble,  and  widow  of  Peter  Quim- 
by,  died  Aug.,  1878,  aged  74. 

One  fall,  Joseph  Marble,  Jr.,  had  a  log- 
rolling, to  build  a  new  house,  the  old  one 
giving  signs  of  failing  up.  In  the  evening 
the  rosy  cheeked  lasses  from  far  and  near 
joined  with  the  athletic  youths  in  a  dance. 
It  wasn't   the   "German,"  nor  waltz,  nor 


polka,  but  a  genuine  jig.  It  was  a  merry 
company  who  beat  time  to  the  music  of  a 
corn-stalk  fiddle  in  farmer  Marble's  kitch- 
en, the  jocund  laugh  and  jest  followed  the 
"  O  be  joyful,"  as  it  went  its  unfailing 
round,  which  it  always  did  on  such  occa- 
sions. They  grew  exceedingly  merry,  and 
one  fellow,  feehng  chock  full  and  running 
over  with  hilarity,  declared  "When  they 
felt  like  that  they  ought  to  kick  it  ojit.''^  So 
they  put  in  "  the  double  shuffle,  toe  and 
heel,"  with  such  zest  that  the  decayed 
sleepers  gave  way.  Down  went  floor, 
dancers,  corn-stalk  fiddle,  and  all,  into 
the  cellar.  Whether  the  hilarious  fellow 
"  kicked  it  out"  to  his  satisfaction,  we  are 
not  informed,  but  if  his  fiddle  was  injured 
in  its  journey  it  could  be  easily  replaced. 

In  1830,  a  little  daughter  of  William 
Marston,  4  years  old,  strayed  from  home, 
and  wandered  on  and  on  in  the  obscure 
bridle  path.  She  came  out  at  one  Carpen- 
ter's, in  Huntington,  having  crossed  the 
mountain,  and  spent  a  day  and  a  night  in 
the  woods ;  and  beasts  of  prey,  at  that 
time  were  numerous  upon  the  mountains. 

Jonathan  Nelson  had  a  son  and  daugh- 
ter lost  in  the  woods  about  1842.  The 
boy  was  12  years  of  age,  the  girl  younger. 
After  a  toilsome  search,  they  were  found 
on  the  second  day,  unharmed,  near  Cam- 
el's Hump. 

In  1847,  the  alarm  was  given  that  a 
little  son  of  Ira  Wheeler,  4  years  old,  had 
not  returned  from  school.  The  neighbors 
turned  out,  and  searching  all  day  returned 
at  night  without  any  trace  of  the  lost  one. 
The  mothej  was  almost  distracted.  The 
search  was  continued  the  second  day  with 
no  better  results.  I  remember  hearing 
my  brother  say,  as  he  took  a  quantity  of 
provisions  with  him  on  the  third  day,  that 
they  were  "resolved  not  to  return  home 
again  until  the  boy  was  found  either  dead 
or  alive,"  though  many  thought  that  he 
must  have  perished  already,  either  from 
hunger  and  fatigue,  or  from  the  bears  in- 
festing the  woods.  He  was  soon  found  in 
the  town  of  Duxbury,  several  miles  from 
home,  having  been  nearly  3  days  and 
nights  in  the  woods.  He  had  carried  his 
dinner-pail  when  he  started  from  school 


FAYSTON. 


185 


at  night,  and  providentially  some  of  the 
scholars  had  given  him  some  dinner  that 
day,  so  that  his  own  remained  untouched. 

This  being  the  second  time  the  men  had 
been  called  out  to  hunt  for  lost  children  in 
5  years,  some  of  them  were  getting  rather 
tired  of  the  thing,  whereupon  Ziba  Boyce 
drew  up  a  set  of  resolutions  and  read  them 
on  the  occasion,  after  the  child  was  found, 
and  all  were  feeling  as  jolly  as  such  weary 
mortals  could.  I  have  not  a  copy  of  them 
all,  but  it  was  resolved  "  that  mothers  be 
instructed  to  take  care  of  their  children, 
and  not  let  them  wander  oiT  into  woods  to 
be  food  for  the  bears,  or  for  the  neighbors 
to  hunt  up." 

There  have  been  no  more  lost  children 
to  search  for  in  Fayston  since  that,  so  we 
may  suppose  it  to  have  been  effective. 

Fayston,  along  with  other  towns,  has 
suflered  from  freshets  at  various  times.  In 
the  year  1830,  occurred  what  was  known 
as  the  "great  freshet."  Buildings  were 
swept  away,  one  person  was  drowned,  and 
others  barely  escaped.  The  famous 
"Green  Mountain  slide,"  which  began 
within  a  few  feet  of  the  summit,  where 
the  town  is  divided  from  Buel's  Gore, 
in  sight  of  the  homestead  where  I  was 
born,  occurred  in  the  summer  of  1827. 
It  had  rained  quite  hard  some  days,  and 
the  soil,  becoming  loosened,  gave  way, 
carrying  with  it  trees,  rocks,  and  the  debris 
of  ages,  on  its  downward  course.  Gath- 
ering impetus  as  it  advanced,  for  the  moun- 
tain is  very  steep  here,  it  went  thundering 
down  the  mountain  side  a  distance  of  a 
mile  or  more,  with  a  crash  and  rumble 
that  shook  the  earth  for  miles  around,  like 
an  earthquake.  One  branch  of  Mill  brook 
comes  down  from  here,  and,  being  dam- 
med up  by  the  debris  of  this  grand  ava- 
lanche, its  waters  accumulated  till  it  be- 
came a  miniature  lake,  then  overleaping 
its  barriers  it  rushed  down  to  its  work 
of  destruction  below.  In  July,  1858,  a 
destructive  freshet  visited  Fayston,  and 
the  towns  adjacent.  It  had  been  exceed- 
ingly dry,  and  water  was  very  low.  At 
7  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  on  Satur- 
day, July,  3,  the  workmen  in  the  mill  of 
Campbell  &  Grandy   were   desiring  rain, 


that  they  might  run  the  mill.  They  got 
what  they  desired,  only  got  too  much  ;  for 
instead  of  running  the  mill  they  ran  for 
their  lives,  and  let  the  mill  run  itself,  as  it 
did  very  rapidly  down  stream,  in  less  than 
2  hours  after  the  rain  commenced.  The 
old  saying  "it  never  rains  but  it  pours" 
was  verified  ;  it  came  in  sheets.  I  remem- 
ber watching  the  brooks  surging  through 
our  door-yard  ;  we  felt  no  alarm,  thinking 
a  thunder  shower  not  likely  to  do  much 
damage.  We  retired  to  rest,  and  slept 
undisturbed,  not  being  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  large  streams.  We  learned  in  the 
morning  every  bridge  between  Fayston 
and  Middlesex,  but  one,  was  swept  away. 
Campbell  &  Grandy's  mill  went  off  before 
10  o'clock,  and  the  house  pertaining  to  the 
mill  was  so  much  undermined  by  the  water, 
the  inmates  left,  taking  what  valuables 
they  could  with  them.  Mr.  Green's  fam- 
ily also  deserted  their  house.  The  water 
was  several  feet  deep  in  the  road,  but,  the 
storm  soon  subsiding,  the  houses  did  not 
go  off. 

A  clapboard  mill  owned  by  Brigham 
brother,  on  Shepherd's  brook,  was  ruined. 
Not  a  mill  in  town  escaped  a  good  deal  of 
injury.  Many  people  left  their  houses, 
expecting  them  to  be  carried  down  the 
seething  flood,  and  but  one  bridge  of  any 
account  was  left  in  town,  and  the  roads 
were  completely  demoralized ! 

This  storm  seemed  a  local  one,  not 
doing  much  damage  except  in  the  towns 
in  the  Mad  river  basin  and  on  tributary 
streams.  I  have  heard  it  speculated  that 
two  rain  clouds  met  on  the  mountain 
ridges.  Be  that  as  it  may,  I  think  two 
hours'  rain  seldom  did  such  damage  in  any 
locality. 

In  the  freshet  of  1869,  Fayston  suffered 
less  than  many  other  towns,  but  several 
bridges  were  carried  off,  the  roads  cut  up 
badly,  mill  dams  swept  away,  etc. 

The  mill  rebuilt  on  the  site  of  the  one 
swept  away  in  1858,  this  time  owned  by 
Richardson  &  Rich,  was  again  carried  off, 
but  as  considerable  of  the  machinery  was 
afterward  found,  Mr.  Richardson  deter- 
mined to  rebuild,  putting  it  a  few  rods 
lower  down   the  stream.     He  has  built  a 


24 


i86 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


fine,  large  mill  there,  and  feels  secure  this 
mill  shall  stand. 

Fayston  is  a  veiy  healthy  town.  There 
are  several  living  in  town  over  80  years 
of  age. 

[This  was  written  in  1867.] 

ELISHA   BRIGHAM 

was  born  in  old  Marlboro,  Mass.,  1792. 
In  the  common  school  he  obtained  all  the 
education  he  ever  had  beyond  the  poor 
chance  of  gleaning  a  little,  here  and  there, 
from  a  limited  supply  of  books,  amid  a 
multitude  of  cares  at  home ;  but  at  the 
age  of  12,  he  had  mastered  most  of  Pike's 
Arithmetic ;  performing  more  examples 
by  the  feeble  light  of  an  old-fashioned 
chimney  fire-place,  than  at  school.  So 
engaged  was  he  that  he  often  went  to  bed 
on  a  difficult  problem,  to  dream  it  out  on 
his  pillow.  From  Old  Marlboro,  the  fam- 
mily  removed  to  Winchester,  N.  H.,  and 
there  hearing  of  the  emigration  to  the 
Winooski,  and  Mad  River  Valleys,  they  cast 
lots  with  the  pioneers  to  this  then  wilderness 
country,  and  removed  on  to  the  tract  of 
land  owned  in  the  present  homestead. 
Elisha,  now  16,  began  to  take  the  lead  in 
business,  his  father  being  very  infirm. 
About  half  a  dozen  families  were  settled  in 
the  south  part  of  the  town,  having  made 
little  openings  in  the  forest,  with  no  well 
worked  road  into  the  town.  He  and  two 
other  members  of  the  family,  came  the 
first  year  to  roll  up  the  log-house.  The 
next  year  all  came  on,  and  a  family  of  8 
persons,  several  children  younger  than 
himself,  seemed  to  be  dependent  on  him, 
even  so  young,  as  a  foster-father  and  a 
guardian.  He  commenced  levelling  the 
old  forest  trees,  and  bringing  into  tillage, 
meadow  and  pasturage.  Early  and  late 
he  toiled,  and  year  by  year  the  meadow 
widened,  and  the  line  of  woods  receded. 

In  the  earliest  business  transactions  of 
the  town,  we  find  the  name  of  Elisha  Brig- 
ham.  There  was  hardly  a  year  from  that 
time  till  his  death,  but  what  he  held 
some  town  office.  But  what  most  distin- 
guished him  was  his  exact  honesty.  No 
man  could  ever  say  that  he  defrauded  him 
of  the  least  in  this  world's  goods.  He 
would   rather  suffer    wrong    than    to   do 


wrong.  He  never  could  oppress  the  weak, 
as,  instinctively,  his  whole  nature  prompted 
him  to  espouse  their  cause.  And  his  reli- 
gious example  was  the  crowning  glory  of 
the  man.  He  was  the  real  pioneer  of 
Methodism  in  the  town  ;  for  many  years 
leader  in  all  their  social  meetings,  and 
around  him  grew  up  a  thriving  class.  In 
this  earlier  history  of  the  community  it 
might  well  have  been  christened  the  home 
of  the  good.  Class-leader  and  chorister, 
he  guided  them  encouragingly  on,  and  yet 
his  manner  was  never  exciting,  hardly, 
even,  could  it  be  said  to  be  fervid  or  warm  ; 
but  solid  goodness,  tenderness,  and  genu- 
ine interest  in  all  that  pertained  to  the 
soul's  welfare,  were  manifest.  The  waver- 
ing came  to  him,  for  he  never  faltered  ;  the 
weak,  because  he  was  a  pillar  of  strength. 
He  was  a  man  of  no  doubts  in  his  religious 
belief,  and  a  man  living  not  by  emotion, 
but  principle,  and  his  home  was  one  of 
hospitality ;  particularly  was  the  preacher 
his  guest. 

In  18 16,  collector,  often  juror  and  select- 
man, many  years  lister,  nearly  always  high- 
way-surveyor, district  clerk  or  committee 
man.  In  all  his  more  active  life,  however, 
he  was  nearly  alone  in  his  politics,  he 
being  a  thorough  whig,  while  the  town 
was  intensely  democratic.  For  which  rea- 
son probably  he  was  never  sent  to  the 
Legislature  of  the  State,  as  this  seems  to 
be  the  only  office  of  importance  which  he 
at  some  time  has  not  held. 

At  the  age  of  24,  he  married  Sophronia 
Ryder.  They  had  12  children,  but  one  of 
whom  died  in  infancy ;  the  rest  were  all 
living  in  1863.  One  daughter  died  in 
July,  1866;  the  rest  are  all  living,  1881. 
And  in  the  fullness  of  affection  and  ten- 
derness all  will  say  he  was  a  good  father. 
Daily  he  gatliered  them  around  his  fam- 
ily altar,  while  they  lived  with  him,  and 
sought  for  them  the  reconciliation  of 
God.  He  walked  before  them  soberly, 
patiently,  peaceably.  His  soul  seemed 
like  an  unruffled  river,  gliding  ever  tran- 
quil and  even  in  its  banks  almost  alike 
in  sunshine  and  in  storm.  He  had  no 
enemies;  but  was  Grandfather,  and  "Un- 
cle Elisha,"  to  all  the  neighborhood.    Even 


W.  W.  PORTER. 


FAYSTON. 


187 


the  old  and  young  far  out  of  his  own  im- 
mediate neighborhood,  called  him  by  the 
sobriquet  of  Uncle  Elisha,  and  seemed  to 
mourn  for  him  as  for  a  good  old  uncle. 
His  family  physician  remarked  of  him  after 
his  decease,  that  he  was  "  the  one  man  of 
whom  he  could  say,  he  did  not  know  that 
he  had  an  enemy  in  the  world.  He  was  a 
peacemaker." 

ONLY   A   LITTLE   WHILE. 
BY  MKS.  LAURA  BKIGHAM  BOYCE. 

Ouly  a  little  while 
Lingers  the  springtime  with  Its  sun  and  dew 

And  song  of  birds,  and  gently  falling  rain. 
And  springing  flowers,  on  hillside  and  on  plain. 

Clothing  the  earth  in  garments  fresh  and  new. 

Only  a  little  while 
The  summer  tarries  with  its  sultry  heat; 

Showering  its  smiles  upon  the  fruitful  land, 
Ripening  the  harvest  for  the  reaper's  hand, 

Ere  autumn  shall  the  fruitful  work  complete. 

Only  a  little  while 
The  autumn  paints  with  gorgeousness  the  leaves. 

Ere  wintry  winds  shall  pluck  them  from  the  bough 
To  drape  the  earth's  dark,  corrugated  brow, — 

Then  hasten,  loiterer,  gatlier  in  thy  sheaves. 

Only  a  little  while 
The  winter  winds  shall  moan  and  wildly  rave. 

While  the  fierce  storm-king  walks  abroad  in  might, 
Clothing  the  earth  in  garments  pure  and  white. 

Ere  the  grim  monarch,  too.  shall  find  a  grave. 

Ouly  a  little  while, 
lille's  spring-time  lingers,  and  our  youthful  feet 

Through  flowery  paths  of  innocence  are  led. 
And  joyous  visions  fill  our  careless  head  ; 

Too  bright,  alas  !  as  beautiful  as  fleet. 

Only  a  little  while 
Life's  summer  waits  with  storm  and  genial  suu. 

With  days  of  toil  and  nights  of  calm  repose; 
We  find  without  its  thorn  we  pluck  no  rose. 

And  spring-time  visions  vanish  one  by  one. 

Only  a  little  while 
Ere  autumn  comes  and  life  is  on  the  wane  ! 

Happy  for  us  if  well  our  work  be  done. 
For  if  we  loitered  in  the  summer's  sun. 

How  shall  we  labor  in  the  autumn  rain  ? 

Only  a  little  while, 
And  winter  comes  apace ;  the  hoary  head. 

And  palsied  limbs,  tell  of  the  labors  past, 
Aud  victories  won— all  I  soon  shall  be  the  last,— 

And  they  shall  whisper  softly  "  lie  is  dead." 

W.    W.    PORTER 

was  born  in  Fayston,  July  24,  1826.  He 
was  the  4th  son  of  Elliot  Porter  and  Sidney 
Ward,  the  former  a  native  of  Hartford,  the 
latter  a  native  of  Poultney,  Vt.,  and  a 
daughter  of  Judge  William  Ward,  judge  in 
Rutland  Co.  22  years. 

Wilfred  spent  his  time  until  he  was  17 
on  the  farm,  and  attending  school  winters  ; 


at  which  time  he  commenced  studying  falls 
and  springs,  and  teaching  winters,  attend- 
ing the  academies  at  Montpelier  and  Ba- 
kersfield,  and  working  on  the  farm  during 
the  summer  months  until  he  was  22  years 
of  age. 

As  early  as  fifteen  he  had  set  his  mind 
upon  the  medical  profession  for  life,  and 
bent  all  his  energies  in  that  direction. 
Having  studied  medicine  some  time  pre- 
viously, he,  at  22,  entered  the  office  of  Dr. 
G.  N.  Brigham,  and  began  the  study  of 
medicine,  which  he  continued  suinmers, 
teaching  school  falls  and  winters  for  i.^ 
year,  when  he  entered  the  medical  college 
at  Woodstock,  where  he  remained  one 
term,  and  afterwards  at  Castleton,  Vt.,for 
two  terms,  graduating  from  that  college  in 
the  fall  of '51,  when  he  came  to  Syracuse, 
and  entered  the  office  of  Dr.  Hiram  Hoyt 
for  a  short  time;  May,  1852,  entered  the 
school  at  Geddes  as  principal  teacher  for 
one  year,  and  May  16,  1853,  opened  an 
office  in  that  place  to  practice  his  profession, 
which  he  has  continued  until  the  present. 

At  the  close  of  his  first  year,  the  res- 
ident doctor  of  Geddes  died,  leaving  him 
in  full  possession  of  the  field.  Dr.  Porter 
rose  rapidly,  and  by  integrity  of  purpose 
and  dealing,  grew  into  a  very  large  and  lu- 
crative practice,  which  he  carried  on  for  15 
years,  as  it  were,  alone,  after  which  he 
had  partners  in  the  practice  of  medicine. 

His  practice  gradually  extended  to  the 
city  of  Syracuse,  when,  in  1875,  the  de- 
mand upon  him  for  medical  treatment  from 
that  city  became  so  great  that  he  opened 
an  office  there,  which  he  alternately  at- 
tends upon,  with  his  home  office  in  Geddes. 
He  has  been  for  25  years  a  member  of  the 
Onondaga  County  Medical  Society,  and  for 
one  term  its  president,  and  a  permanent 
meinber  of  the  New  York  State  Medical 
Society ;  also  a  member  of  the  American 
Medical  Association,  and  upon  organiza- 
tion of  the  College  of  Medicine  of  Syracuse 
University,  in  1872,  he  was  appointed  clin- 
ical professor  of  obstetrics  and  gynaecology 
the  first  year,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year, 
professor  in  full,  which  position  he  still  re- 
tains. 

His  skill  in  the  treatment  of  diseases  has 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


won  for  him  a  position  in  the  esteem  of  the 
people  to  be  envied  by  young  practitioners, 
and  his  indomitable  perseverance  and  en- 
durance of  body  have  enabled  him  to  grat- 
ify, in  a  great  measure,  the  laudable  am- 
bition of  his  earlier  years — to  be  among 
the  first  in  his  profession.  He  was  one  of 
the  first  movers  in  the  organization  and 
establishment  of  a  university  at  Syracuse, 
and  since  its  beginning  has  been  a  trustee 
and  closely  identified  with  all  its  interests, 
and  has  been  largely  identified  with  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  his  town  since  his  first  resi- 
dence there,  being  supt.  of  the  schools 
of  the  town  for  gome  2  years,  and  trustee 
of  the  village  school  for  some  25  years ; 
also  being  president  of  the  board  of  educa- 
tion. 

He  and  his  wife  are  warmly  attached  to 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  and  are 
not  only  liberal  supporters  of  the  same, 
but  of  any  enterprise  they  regard  as  look- 
ing to  the  building  up  of  good  society. 

In  the  year  1853,  Nov.  13,  he  married 
Miss  Jane,  daughter  of  Simeon  Draper  and 
Clarissa  Stone,  of  Geddes  ;  children,  Clara 
A.,  George  D.  (deceased),  Wilfred  W. 
Jr.,  Jane  and  Louie. 

LONGEVITY   RECORD   IN    1 88 1. 

Ruth  Chase  died  in  1865,  aged  84 ;  Tim- 
othy Chase  in  1875,  93 ;  Benj.  Corliss,  in 
1865,  nearly  91  ;  Henry  Morgan,  1868,  84. 
The  wife  of  Henry  Morgan  (in  Northfield) , 
over  80  years.  Her  home  was  in  Fayston. 
James  Baird  died  in  1870,  aged  81  ;  Geo. 
Somerville,  1870,  80;  Margarett  Strong, 
1870,  98  ;  Elizabeth  Lamson,  in  1872.  Her 
friends  diiTered  as  to  her  age ;  some  claim- 
ed she  was  104 ;  others  that  she  was  but 
102.  Her  husband,  Jonathan  Lamson, 
died  some  20  years  since,  aged  between  80 
and  90;  Jane  McAughindied  in  1872,  aged 
82;  Capt.  Elliot  Porter,  1874,  nearly  90; 
Sidney  Porter,  his  wife,  1875,  86;  Joseph 
and  Susan  Marble,  over  80 ;  Zeviah  Boyce, 
1856,  aged  about  90;  Mehitable  Tyler, 
1855,  between  80  and  90.  Ehzabeth  Bar- 
rett died  in  Waitsfield  in  1873,  aged  93. 
She  was  for  many  years  a  resident  of  Fays- 
ton,  but  moved  to  W.  a  short  time  before 
her  death. 


TOWN   OFFICERS    187I-1881. 

Town  Clerks,  WillardB.  Porter,  1 871  to 
'80;  D.  8.  Stoddard,  1880;  S.  J.  Dana, 
1 88 1.  Representatives,  1871,  none;  S.  J. 
Dana,  1872  ;  M.  S.  Strong,  1874;  D.  S. 
Stoddard,  1876;  Seth  Boyce,  1878;  Na- 
than Boyce,  1880.  Treasjcrers,  D.  S. 
Stoddard,  1871,  '72;  A.  D.  Bragg,  1875, 
'79;  Seth  Boyce,  1880,  '81.  First  Select- 
men, C.  D.  Billings,  1871 ;  Dan  Boyce, 
1872  ;  C.  S.  Dana,  1874 ;  Seth  Boyce,  1875  ; 
J.  Patterson,  1876;  M.  S.  Strong,  1879; 
John  Maxwell,  1878,  '79;  J.  P.  Boyce, 
1880,  '81.  Constables,  Cornelius  McMul- 
len,  1871,  72;  H.  G.  Campbell,  1873,  '74  = 
C.  M.  Fisher,  1875,  '76,  '79;  S.  J.  Dana, 
1877,78;  Allen  S.  Howe,  1880;  M.  S. 
Strong,  1881.  Grand  Jury,  G.  O.  Boyce, 
i87i,'72,  '73,  '75  ;  W.  B.Porter,  1874,  '76; 
C.  S.  Dana,  1877,  '78;  Seth  Boyce,  1879, 
'80;  R.  Maxwell  andWm.  Chipman,  188 1. 
School  Supt.,  Grey  H.  Porter,  1871,  '72. 
'73;  Rev.  J.  F.  Buzzel,  1874  to  1881. 
Trustees  of  the  Town,  Seth  Boyce,  1873, 
'79;  Geo.  Boyce,  1877,  '78,  '80,  '81.  Jus- 
tices of  the  Peace,  Willard  B.  Porter,  1872, 
'74,  76,  '78;  G.  O.  Boyce,  1872,  '74;  D. 
S.  Stoddard,  1872,  '76,  '78,  '80;  Z.  W. 
Boyce,  1872,  '74;  H.  H.  Morgan,  1872; 
C.  D.  Billings,  1874;  E.  Ainsworth,  1874; 
S.  J.  Dana,  1876,  ^8,  '80;  O.  S.  Bruce, 
J.  Z.  Marble,  1878  ;  Nathan  Boyce,  Stephen 
Johnson,  Dan  Boyce,  1880. 

GERSHOM   NELSON   BRIGHAM,  M.    D., 

for  20  years  a  practicing  physician  at  Mont- 
pelier,  was  born  in  Fayston,  Mar.  3, 1820, 
was  son  of  Elisha  Brigham,  who  made  his 
pitch  in  F.  with  the  first  settlers.  His 
mother,  Sophronia  Ryder,  whose  mother 
was  Lucy  Chase,  a  relative  of  the  Hon. 
Dudley  Chase  [See  Randolph  History, 
vol.  II],  was  a  woman  of  vigorous  consti- 
tution and  an  active,  original  mind.  Sev- 
eral ancestors  in  the  Brigham  line  have 
been  physicians,  one  of  whom  wasGershom 
Brigham,  of  Marlboro,  Mass.,  the  old  an- 
cestral town  of  the  Brighams  of  this  coun- 
try, the  stock  tracing  back  to  the  parish  of 
Brigham  in  Northumberland  Co.,  Eng- 
land. Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham  received  his 
education  in  our  common  schools,  with  a 


,-JO0^^ 


FAYSTON. 


189 


year  in  Wash.  Co.  Gram.  Sch.  and  a  half 
year  at  Poultney  Academy,  and  studied 
medicine  with  Dr.  David  C.  Joslyn,  of 
Waitsfield,  Dr.  S.  W.  Thayer,  now  of  Bur- 
lington, Prof.  Benj.  R.  Palmer,  now  of 
Woodstock,  graduating  at  Woodstock 
Medical  College  in  1845,  attending  three 
courses  of  lectures.  He  has  practiced  3 
years  at  Warren,  then  3  years  at  Waits- 
field;  removed  to  Montpelier,  1849;  at- 
tended lectures  at  the  college  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons,  N.  Y.,  spending  much  time 
in  the  hospitals  of  the  city,  about  which 
time  he  became  a  convert  to  homoeopathy, 
and  was  the  second  person  in  middle  Ver- 
mont to  espouse  the  cause  at  this  time  so 
unpopular,  and  one  of  si.x  who  founded  the 
State  Homoeopathic  Society.  He  has  ed- 
ucated quite  a  number  of  students  in  his 
office,  among  whom,  his  own  son.  Dr. 
Homer  C.  Brigham,  of  Montpelier,  and 
Prof.  Wilfred  W.  Porter,  of  the  Medical 
Department  in  the  Syracuse  University. 
While  at  Montpelier  he  served  a  while  as 
postmaster ;  was  town  superintendent  of 
common  schools  ;  lectured  on  education, 
temperance  and  sundry  scientific  subjects, 
and  has  been  a  contributor  to  medical 
journals,  and  known  to  the  secular  press  in 
essays  and  poetical  contributions  for  over 
25  years.  He  delivered  the  class  poem  be- 
fore the  Norwich  University  in  1870;  pub- 
lished in  that  year  a  12  mo.  vol.,  pp.  180, 
"  The  Harvest  Moon  and  other  Poems"  at 
the  Riverside  Press,  which  with  additions 
came  out  in  a  second  edition. 

The  Doctor  has  since  issued  a  "Work 
on  Catarrhal  Di-seases,"  126  pp.,  and  re- 
ports a  work  on  "Pulmonary  Consump- 
tion," nearly  ready  for  press  ;  that  he  has 
written  this  year,  1881,  a  play  in  tragedy, 
"  Benedict  Arnold,"  that  he  expects  to 
publish.  He  is  regular  contributor  to  three 
medical  journals,  and  has  written  for  as 
many  as  thirty  of  the  leading  newspapers, 
East  and  West.  He  married,  ist,  Laura 
Elvira  Tyler,  dau.  of  Merrill  Tyler,  Esq., 
of  Fayston;  children,  Homer  C,  Willard 
Irving,  Julia  Lena,  Ida  Lenore.  His  first 
wife  died  Mar.  12,  1873.  He  married,  2d, 
Miss  Agnes  Ruth  Walker,  dau.  of  Ephraim 
Walker,  Esq.,  of  Springfield.     They  have 


one  child.  Dr.  Brigham  has  resided  since 
1878,  at  Grand  Rapids,  Mich.  His  son. 
Dr.  Homer  C,  is  in  practice  at  Montpel- 
ier. In  his  poetical  writings — not  a  few — 
the  Doctor  has  always  inclined  to  the  pat- 
riotic. 

Aug.  i6th,  loothanniversary  of  Benning- 
ton battle.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Ver- 
monter's  Society  in  Michigan,  at  Grand 
Rapids,  Hon.  W.  A.  Howard  delivered 
the  oration,  and  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham,  the 
poem.  We  give  an  extract.  In  our  crowd- 
ed pages  we  have  scarce  room  for  poetic 
extracts,  even,  and  this  appears  to  be  the 
musical  town  of  the  County.  Such  a  flock 
of  native  poets,  all  expecting  by  right  of 
manor,  to  sing  in  the  history  of  their  birth 
town,  with  the  one  who  has  written  the 
most  in  this  prolific  field,  we  must  begin 
to  be  brief.  Haply,  he  has  published  too 
widely  to  be  in  need  of  our  illustration  : 

FROM    "THE   BATTLE   OF    BENNINGTON." 

When  Freedom's  cause  in  doubtful  scale 
Hung  trembling  o'er  Columbia's  land, 
And  men  with  sinking  hearts  turned  pale 
That '  gainst  the  foe  there  stood  no  brand, 

Vermont,  thy  banner  rose. 
Green  waved  thy  lofty  mountain  pine. 
Which  thou  didst  make  thy  battle  sign. 
Then  from  the  mountain  fastness  thou 
Didst  sally  with  a  knitted  brow. 

And  tyrants  felt  thy  blows. 

The  bugle  blew  no  frightful  blast 

Where  th '  sulphrous  smoke  its  mantle  cast. 

For  oft  thy  sons  in  forest  field 

The  heavy  broadsword  learned  to  wield 

In  their  old  border  frays. 
Bred  to  reclaim  the  native  soil 
With  sinewed  limb  and  patient  toil, 
The  forest  path  to  stoutly  fend. 
Where  foes  did  lurk,  or  wild  beasts  wend. 

No  danger  did  amaze. 

Free  as  the  mountain  air  they  breathe. 
The  vassal's  place  they  dare  disown; 
The  blade  from  scabbard  to  unsheath 
And  see  the  slaughters  harvest  sown, 

Ere  wrong  shall  rule  the  day. 
So  when  the  midnight  cry,  "To  arms!  " 
Did  reach  them  at  their  northern  farms, 
They  snatched  the  musket  and  the  powder-horn. 
And  shook  their  brand  with  patriots'  scorn, 

And  gathered  to  the  fray. 

Vermont,  thy  soul's  young  life  was  there. 
There  from  thy  rocks  up  leapt  the  fire 
That  made  thy  hills  the  altar-stair 
To  holy  freedom's  star-crowned  spire, 

AVhile  all  the  world  did  doubt. 
In  native  hearts  and  native  blades 
The  freeman's  hope  forever  lives; 
The  soul  that  first  in  sorrow  wades. 
The  most  to  human  nature  gives 

In  sorest  times  of  drought. 


igo 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


The  hosts  of  Albion  sleep  secure. 
The  mountain  path  to  them  is  sure. 
And  In  their  dreams  they  wait  the  day 
To  feast  and  drive  the  mob  away. 

And  lora^e  on  the  town. 
That  dream  to  England  sealed  her  doom ; 
They  roused  to  hear  the  cannon  boom. 
And  see  the  mountaineers  they  scorned 
In  serried  line  of  battle  formed. 

And  on  them  coming  down. 

And  who  here  making  pilgrim.ve. 
When  told  how,  with  their  muskets  clubbed. 
Our  sires  from  breastworks  drove  the  foe. 
How  here  were  English  veterans  drubbed 

By  plowmen  gloved  in  steel. 
Shall  say,  the  race  keeps  not  to-day 
The  Spartan  fire — 

Shall  say,  if  with  this  trenchant  warp 
There  run;^  not  through  a  thread  of  gold; 
Or  if  the  Attic  salt  still  flows 
Through  pulsing  veins  of  later  mold. 
And  pledges  colored  wine. 

From  hence  the  field  of  Bennington 
With  Concord  and  with  Lexington, 
Upv'n  the  patriot's  scroll  sluUl  blaze. 
And  virtue's  hearts  procUum  her  praise. 

Till  chivalry's  f»a^  shall  end — 
Shall  tell  how  Mars  did  glut  his  rage. 
How  screamed  the  eagle  round  her  nest. 
When  death  or  freedom  was  the  gage, 
WhUe  war  unloosed  htr  battle  vest. 

And  carn.\ge  rode  a  fieud. 

And  where  the  nations  strive  and  hope. 
And  in  the  breaking  darkness  grope. 
Here  may  expiring  faith  still  burn. 
And  see  the  patriot's  emblem  turn 
Alwve  this  crimson  sea. 

From  another  poem  on  the  same  sub- 
ject : 

How  grand  thy  towering  cliffs,  where  twines 
The  hemlock's  green  to  wreath  thy  crown: 

How  bright  thy  peaks  when  day  declines. 
As  there  thy  glory  settles  down. 

'\\"heu  stirred  the  border  feud,  how  rang 
The  note  of  war; 

An<)  where  the  wolf  ran  down  her  prey 

By  grange  girt  in  with  woodl.-uul  dun. 
The  ranger  hurrietl  to  the  fray. 
There  flashed  the  border-guardsman's  gun. 

And  when  a  mightier  cause  called  for 
Thy  sons  to  draw  the  sword 


The  bngle  gave  the  hills  its  blast. 

And  men  in  buckskin  breeches  came. 
Their  waists  slung  with  the  powder-horn. 

Their  hearts  with  freedom's  spark  aflame. 
And  battled  UU  the  STATE  was  born. 

thy  border  cry 

Rang  to  the  Northern  cliffs  for  help. 

When  Allen  mustered  for  old  Ti., 
Aud  drove  from  there  the  lion's  whelp. 

From  there  to  Hoosick's  bloody  flume 
M."«rched  forth  our  sires  with  hearts  afl.<ime. 

And  snatched  the  British  lion's  plume. 
And  wrote  for  us  a  storied  name. 


From  a  remembrance  to  \'ermont : 

O,  bring  the  spring  that  plumes  the  glen. 
And  hearty  l>e  the  greeting: 

We'll  think  in  kindness  of  the  men 

■Wliose  hearts  to  ours  gave  beating: 

Nor  shall  their  armor  rust 

Taken  by  us  iu  trust. 


Bathevi  in  the  noon  of  peace,  green,  green 

Forever,  be  those  hills: 
dreen  where  the  hoar-tYost  builds  her  screen. 

And  winter's  goblet  fills. 
The  frost  and  cedar  green: 

Queen  Virgin  of  the  Ancient  Jforth. 

Throned  spirit  of  the  crags. 
Who  called  the  sturdy  Aliens  forth 

To  weave  thy  battle-fl.igs. 
We  take  the  sprig  of  pine. 
Proud  of  our  lineal  line. 
Vermont:  Vermont:  Our  childhood's  home. 

Still  home  where'er  we  roam. 

MISS  SUSAN  GRIGGS. 

BY  -VN-XA  B.  BRAGG. 

Many  elticient  teachers  of  our  district 
schools  have  been  reared  and  educated  in 
this  town,  though  the  greater  part  have 
followed  teaching  but  a  few  terms  before 
commencing  "  Ufe  work,"  but  Miss  Griggs 
has  made  teaching  the  business  of  her  life, 
and  in  years  of  service,  number  of  pupils, 
and  different  branches  thoroughly  learned 
and  imparted  to  others,  has  no  equal  here, 
and  perhaps  but  few  in  our  whole  country. 
She  was  born  in  this  town,  Feb.  1S14. 
From  her  earliest  schoolda}-s,  her  book 
was  her  favorite  companion,  often  upon 
her  wheel-bench,  that  sentence  after  sen- 
tence of  some  coveted  lesson  might  be 
committed  to  memory,  while  her  hands 
spun  thread  after  thread  of  wool  or  flax, 
working  willingly  for  herself  and  her 
brothers  and  sisters,  as  was  the  custom  in 
those  days. 

When  12  years  of  age,  her  father,  an 
earnest  Christian  man,  died,  leaving  his 
wife  and  little  ones  to  struggle  along  the 
path  of  life  alone  in  God's  care.  But  as  in 
his  life  he  had  often  said,  "  Susan  is  our 
student."  so  in  all  her  young  da\-s  after 
she  seemed  to  hear  his  voice  encouraging 
her  to  give  her  time,  talents  and  life  to  the 
work  of  Christian  education.  She  began 
teaching  in  the  Sabbath-school  at  13,  and 
at  16  in  a  district-school,  where  for  manv 
vears  her  time  was  spent,  and  in  attending 
school,  as   she  completed  the  course  of 


FAYSTON. 


191 


study  at  Newbury  Seminary.  In  1850, 
she  was  one  of  the  teachers  sent  out  to 
the  South  and  West  by  Gov.  Slade.  She 
taught  one  year  at  Wihnington,  N.  C, 
and  then  went  toWolcottville,  Ind.,  under 
the  direction  of  Gov.  Slade,  a  small  village 
in  a  new  town,  first  teaching  in  the  family 
of  George  Wolcott,  with  the  addition  of  a 
few  neighbors'  children ;  then  in  a  small 
school-house.  The  school  so  increased, 
Mr.  Wolcott,  the  founder  of  the  village, 
built  a  convenient  seminary  at  his  own  ex- 
pense, furnished  with  musical  instruments, 
library,  apparatus,  etc.  Here  she  taught 
for  17  years,  principal  of  the  school,  hav- 
ing sometimes  one  or  two  assistant  teach- 
ers, and  often  a  hundred  pupils.  Beside 
the  common  and  higher  English  branches, 
there  were  often  classes  in  German,  Latin, 
French  and  painting,  and  always  in  music, 
vocal  and  instrumental,  and  always  a  lit- 
erary society,  and  always  a  Sabbath-school, 
in  which  she  taught  a  class,  and  was  some- 
times superintendent.  She  says  "these 
years  were  full  of  toil,  but  bright  with  hope 
that  minds  were  there  awakened  to  the 
beauties  of  the  inviting  realms  of  purity 
and  truth." 

After  a  short  rest  with  a  brother  in  Mis- 
souri and  another  in  Wisconsin,  she  re- 
sumed teaching  in  Fort  Wayne  College, 
Ind.  ;  afterward  in  Iowa  about  2  years,  and 
is  now  in  Kendallville,  Ind.,  one  of  a  corps 
of  12  teachers;  60  pupils  under  her  charge. 
"  Many  will  rise  up  and  call  her  blessed." 

Mrs.  Celia  (Baxter)  Brigham,  ofEvart, 
Michigan,  contributes  the  following  for  the 
Baxter  family : 

EBER  H.  BAXTER  AND  FAMILY 

came  to  Fayston  in  April,  1831,  and  lived 
there  20  years.  They  had  14  children ; 
one  died  in  infancy.  They  removed  to 
Michigan  with  10  children — two  remained 
in  Fayston — in  185 1 .  Albert  Baxter,  eldest 
son,  had  then  lived  in  Mich,  about  6  years. 
He  has  been  for  the  last  20  years  connected 
with  the  Grand  Rapids  Eagle ;  is  now  ed- 
itor of  Grand  Rapids  Daily  Eagle.  Albert, 
Celia — Mrs.  C.  B.  Brigham  ;  Rosina — Mrs. 
R.  B.  Cadwell,  now  in  California;  Edwin, 
lawyer  in  Grand  Haven,  Mich.;  Uri  J., 
lawyer  in  Washington,  D.  C. ;  Sabrina — 


Mrs.  S.  B.  Cooper,  Evart,  Mich.  ;  and  Vi- 
enna I. — Mrs.  V.  I.  B.  Corman,  Lowell, 
Mich.,  of  the  Baxter  family,  are  more  or 
less  known  as  occasional  authors  in  prose 
and  poetry.  T\^lve  children,  the  father 
now  in  his  80th  year  (1879)  still  survive. 
Ira  C,  sixth  son,  left  his  body  on  the  field 
of  Chickamauga,  Sept.  20,  1863.  E.  1 1. 
Baxter  was  town  clerk  and  justice  of  peace 
in  Fayston  for  several  years. 

MR.S.    CELIA    \\.    BRIGHAM 

has  written  many  years  for  press,  and  for 
many  newspapers  and  journals  short  poems. 
She  has  sent  us  for  her  representation  in 
the  dear  old  birthtown,  a  rather  pretty  col- 
lection, for  which  we  can  make  room  only 
for  the  following : 

TO   MY   SLEEPING   BABE. 
Gently,  little  cherub,  gently 

Droop  those  weary  eyelids  now; 
Slumber's  hand  is  pressing  lightly. 

Softly  on  thy  cloudless  brow. 
Meekly,  little  sleeper,  meekly 

Folded  on  tly  guileless  breast 
Dimpled  hands  of  pearly  whiteness — 

Lovely  is  thy  "  rosy  rest." 
CalnUy,  little  dre.inier.  calmly 

Beats  that  tiny  heart  of  thine— 
As  tlie  pulses  of  tlie  leallet, 

Rocked  to  rest  at  eventime. 
Soaiy,  little  darling,  softly 

Dies  away  thy  mother's  song; 
And  the  angels  come  to  guard  thee. 

Through  the  night  hours,  lone  and  long. 
Sweetly,  blessed  infant,  sweetly 

Fall  their  wldspers  on  thine  ear; 
Smiles  are  on  thy  lips  of  coral — 

Snowy  pinions  hover  near. 

TO   AN   UNSEEN   MINSTREL. 

The  lark  may  sing  to  the  chickadee. 

From  his  lofty  azure  throne,^ 
Nor  feel  the  thrill  in  the  maple  tree. 

Where  his  listener  sits  alone; 
Even  thus,  thy  spirit  sings  to  me — 
Hearest  thou  the  answering  tone? 
From  their  sunward  flight,  can  thy  tireless  wings 
Ever  fold  where  the  forest  warbler  sings? 
Thou  caliest  the  voices  of  long  ago 

From  level-trodden  graves, 
As  the  wind  may  call  an  echoing  note 

From  out  the  dark  sea  caves— 
As  the  burning  stars  of  heaven  may  call 
To  the  restless,  heaving  waves— 
That,  ever-changing  beneath  their  gaze. 
Can  answer  only  lu  broken  rays! 

THE   NEGLECTED   BIBLE. 

Precious,  but  neglected  Bible! 

Let  me  ope  thy  lids  once  more. 
And,  with  reverential  feelings. 

Turn  the  sacred  pages  o'er. 


19:2 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Source  of  joy  au«l  cousolalioa, 

Vaiuly  Jo«?s  thy  tbuut  supply 
Me  with  life's  pure  crystal  waters— 

Lo!  I  lauguish,  faiut  aiid  <.iie: 

Not  b«caus«  ts  sealed  the  ft>uutaiu 

That  could  sootlie  the^eenest  woo ; 
Not  because  the  stream  uufaiUiig 

Hath  oue  uiouieut  ceased  to  flow ; 
But  because  luy  thirsty  spirit, 

Seekiug  bitter  draught.  pasi>ed  by. 
Heedlessly,  the  liviujj  waters — 

Lo !  I  languish,  tUiut  and  die : 

Descriptive  of  how  many  a  Vemionter 
felt  in  1851.  is  a  little  "sonnet"  below,  by 
Elisha  Aldis  Brigham,  sent  me  by  Mrs. 
Brigham.  that  her  husband  may.  as  well  as 
herself,  have  a  little  niche  in  the  history  of 
their  native  town : 

SONNET. 

O,  tell  uje  uot  of  Liberty's  bright  land : 
Where  waa  by  brother  tuau  is  bought  and  sold: 
To  toil  iu  sweat  aud  tears,  for  others  gold. 
Obedient  to  a  tyrant's  steru  command; 
Where  children  part  upon  the  auction  staud 
To  meet  no  more.  :uid  weeping  parents  torn 
Asunder — slave-bound  captives  long  to  mourn. 
Are  scattered  tar  and  wide,  a  broken  baud. 
Where  Justice  on  proud  Freedom's  altar  sleeps. 
Where  mercy's  voice  is  never  heard  to  sigh ; 
Where  pity's  hand  ne'er  wipes  the  tearful  eye 
Of  AlVie's  exiles,  who  iu  misery  weep— 
The  millions  three  who  wear  oppression's  brand; 
Oh:  call  it  not  sweet  Freedom's  happy  land! 
Faystou,  Feb.  1851. 

A  whole  budget  fix»m  natives  in  the 
West :  We  will  not  give  any  one's  long 
piece  entire ;  but  not  having  the  heart  to 
leave  any  son  or  daughter  who  knocks  at 
the  old  Green  Mountain  door,  out  entirely, 
even  if  they  are  unfortunately  a  "poet," 
we  shall  give  some  one  short  extract,  or 
sonnet  for  all  who  have  sent  home  their 
pieces  for  Fayston,  and  let  the  dry  old, 
only  statistici,uis,  growl  as  they  may.  Here 
comes  the  Fayston  men  and  women  of  the 
pen  for  a  page  or  two  :  First,  a  long  poem, 
almost  a  news-column,  fine  print,  "written 
in  my  chamber  at  Washington,  on  the  an- 
niversary eve  of  the  assassination  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln."  We  will  have  six  or  seven 
verses  from 

THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  ASSASSINATION. 

BY   U.  J.  BAXTEK. 

Why  sound  the  bells 
So  mournfully  upon  the  air  of  night? 
Why  volley  fortli  the  guns  upon  the  night. 

With  sudden  peal  that  tells 
Of  darkling  horror  aud  of  dire  aUright  ? 


The  morn  shall  ope 
With  a  dread  tale  that  tells  of  dark  eclipse— 
Of  a  dark  deed  that  throws  its  black  eclipse 

On  all  a  nation's  hope. 
And  smites  the  joy  that  fllled  a  nation's  lips  ? 

Stricken  and  low  : 
Aye,  let  us  weep — weep  tor  the  guilt  and  crime — 
The  ingrate  sense — the  cowatii  guilt  aud  crime! 

Dissolve  iu  tears  and  woe 
The  darkling  horror  of  this  monstrous  time  ! 

His  name  breathe  not. 
His  thrice-accursed  name,  whose  brutal  hand— 
Whose  foul,  polluted  heart  aud  brutal  baud 

A  demon's  pii'pose  wrought. 
And  whelmed  in  grief  our  glad,  r^oiciug  land. 


A  nation's  heart  bowed  with  him  in  the  dust 

We  turn  our  hop*  in  vain 
To  seek  a  chieftain  worthy  of  his  trust. 

No  m.irvel  here  : 
Two  kingliest  come  uot  haply  born  and  twhined — 
Each  age  its  one  great  soul,  nor  matched,  nor  twinned, 

Owuing  no  mortal  peer — 
So  is  his  glory  Iu  our  age  uukinned. 

His  mantle  fell-- 
On  whom  is  not  yet  shown— yet  sure  its  folds 
Are  buried  not— its  rich  and  loving  folds 

Shall  lay  some  blessed  spell 
On  him  who  most  his  uoble  spirit  holds. 

Great  chieftain:    rest: 
Our  hearts  shall  go  as  pilgrims  to  thy  tomb; 
Our  spirits  mourn  and  bless  thy  martyr  tomb; 

We  deem  thy  lot  is  blest; 
Our  love  shall  tob  our  sorrow  of  its  gloom. 

All  coming  time 
Shall  ne'er  despoil  thy  glory  of  its  crown- 
Each  year  shall  set  its  jewels  in  thy  crown- 
Each  day  bell's  passing  chime 
Shall  add  a  tongue  to  speak  thy  just  renown. 

LITTLE   BEN. 
BY  SABAH  BKIUHAM  MA:SSFIELD. 

In  a  lonely  spot  in  a  dismal  street 
Little  Ben  sat  chaUng  his  bare,  cold  feet, 
Aud  so  hungry,  too,  for  nothing  to  eat. 

All  the  long  day  had  poor  Ben. 
His  mother,  alas,  had  loiw;  been  dead — 
So  long,  he  could  just  remember,  her  and 
The  sweet  pale  face  as  she  knelt  by  his  bed 

And  prayed  God  to  bless  Little  Ben. 

The  twilight  deepened,  how  dark  it  grew. 

And  how  heavily  fell  the  chill  night  dew. 

And  the  moaning  wiuds  pierced  through  aud  through 

The  torm  of  poor  little  Ben. 
"  Oh :  why  am  I  left  here  alone."  he  cried, 
"  Dear  mamma  told  me  before  she  died 
She  was  goiug  to  Heaven ;  Oh,  mamma,''  he  sighed, 

'•  Why  don't  you  come  for  poor  Ben  ?  " 

'*  Can  you  b«  happy,  tho'  in  Heaven  a  saint. 

While  I  am  so  cold,  so  weary,  so  faint? 

Dear  mother,  dost  hear  your  poor  darling's  plaint':* 

Oh,  come  tor  your  own  little  Ben: " 
The  morning  came  with  its  rosy  light. 
And  kissed  the  wan  cheeks  aud  lids  so  white. 
They  were  closed  for  aye:  iu  the  loue  ui^bt 

Au  augel  bad  come  for  poor  Ben. 


FAYSTON. 


193 


THE   FIRST   FLOWER   OF   SPRIN(i. 
J$Y  ZIBA  w.  BOYCE,  (dfcflased.) 
The  first  April  violet  beside  the  bare  tree, 
Looking  gayly  up  seerned  to  be  sayliiK  Ui  nie, 
'•  I  come  with  yon  robin,  sweet  spring  to  recall. 
There  caroling  above  me  the  gla<i  news  to  all- 
How  pleased  all  yourfeellngs—youreyt  and  your  ear; 
With  j?ay  exultation  you  welcome  us  here; 
Hut  In  the  soon  future,  surrounded  by  flowers, 
And.Sujnmer  bird's  plumage,  far  frayer  than  ours. 
Forgotten  the  perils  we  willln;^ly  bore- 
First  messengers  t(;lllng  of  winter  no  njore." 
I  thought  of  the  bird,  and  the  flower,  and  then 
Confessed  It  Is  thus  with  all  pioneer  men. 
Let  them  labor  and  suffer  new  truths  to  disclose. 
Their  wants  or  their  woes  there's  n(jbody  knows. 
The  world  owns  the  work  when  the  labor  Is  done— 
They,  the  bird  and  the  flower,  forgotten  and  gone. 

THE   RAIN. 
BY  MBS.  D.  T.  SMITH. 

When  from  winter's  ley  spell 
Burst  the  brooklets  In  the  dell. 

With  a  song; 
When  the  early  robins  call 
From  the  sunny  garden  wall. 

All  day  long; 
When  the  crocus  shows  Its  face, 
And  the  fern  Its  dainty  grace. 

And  the  daffodil; 
And  the  dandelion  bright 
Decks  the  field  wltli  golden  light 

On  the  hill; 
When  the  Spring  has  waked  a  world  again. 
And  the  apple-blossoms  whiten. 
And  the  grasses  gleam  and  brighten. 
Then  we  listen  to  the  rythmic  patter  of  the  rain. 

When  the  lllleE,  snowy  white. 
Gleam  upon  the  lakelet  bright, 

'Mid  their  leaves; 
And  the  twittering  swallows  fly, 
liulldlng  nests  for  by  and  by, 

'Neath  the  eaves; 
Koses  blush  r  the  dewy  morn. 
Bees  their  honey-fjuest  have  gone 

Ail  the  day; 
And  the  daisies,  starry,  bright. 
Glisten  In  the  firefly's  light 

As  they  may; 
When  Summer  decks  t)ie  mountain  and  the  plain, 
When  she  binds  her  golden  sheaves. 
Then  she  til  ts  her  glossy  leaves 
In  the  splashing  and  the  dashing  of  the  rain. 

When  the  maple  forests  redden, 

And  the  sweet  ferns  brown  and  deaden 

On  the  lea, 
Stralghtly  furrowed  lie  the  acres. 
And  we  hear  the  roar  of  breakers 

Out  at  sea; 
When  the  birds  their  columns  muster. 
And  the  golden  piplus  cluster 

On  the  bough. 
And  the  autumn  breeze  Is  sighing. 
Springtime  past  and  Summer  dying. 

Here  and  now; 
And  autumn  winds  are  filled  with  sounds  of  pain 
When  the  katydids  are  calling; 
Tl'.en  the  crimson  leaves  are  falling 
Through  the  weeping  and  the  moaning  of  th'  rain. 
Dubuque,  Iowa. 


THE   MOSS-COVERED   TROUGH. 
BY  8.  MINEltVA  BOYCE. 
Tliat'moss-covered  trough,  decaying  there  yonder, 

I  remember  It  well  when  but  a  child; 
ThoHgh  years  have  flown  by,  I  still  love  to  wander 
Along  the  old  road  by  the  woodland  wild.     " 

Ah!  yes,  I  remember  when  full  and  o'erflowing. 
With  the  clear,  sparkling  nectar,  so  cool; 

The  old  farmer  came  with  his  bucket  ft-om  mowing. 
And  we  drank  from  his  cup,  then  trudged  on  to 
school. 

And  then  'neath  the  low-spreading  maple  close  by  It, 

Were  gathered  the  wUdllugs  of  May ; 
There  blossomed  tlie  hat  of  a  lad  who  drew  nigh  It, 

And  blue-bird  and  robin  sang  sweeter  that  day. 

Though  now  thrown  aside,  to  give  room  for  another, 
All  neglected,  and  moss-grown,  and  old, 

I  still  find  a  charm  to  be  found  In  none  other. 
Were 't  carved  e'er  so  lovely,  or  plated  with  gold. 

Long  ago  the  old  farmer  finished  his  mowing. 
Filled  his  last  bucket,  "  reape'l  his  last  grain;" 

Then  went  just  beyond  where  seed-time  and  sowing 
Win  never  recall  him  to  labor  again. 

And  here  we  give,  if  we  may  nip  at 
will,  the  buds,  for  which  we  only  have 
room,  a  pretty  extract  from  Saurina  Bax- 
ter, born  in  Fayston : 

BUDS  AND   BLOSSOMS. 
We  walked  within  my  garden 
On  a  dewy,  balmy  morn— 


We  paused  beside  a  rose-bush. 

The  swelling  buds  to  note- 
To  drink  the  gushing  fragrance 
Which  round  us  seemed  to  float; 

One  bud  we'd  viewed  but  yesternight. 

When  very  fair  It  grew— 
We'd  waited  for  the  morrow's  light 

To  see  it  washed  In  dew, 
A  worm  had  found  the  curling  leaf. 

Had  marred  the  bursting  budlet. 
Had  withered  stem  and  flower. 

Alas!  for  eartlily  happiness. 

In  bitterness  I  cried. 
Naught  beautiful,  naught  lovely. 

May  on  this  earth  abide! 
A  blight  is  on  the  floweret, 

A  blight  Is  on  the  grove, 
A  doubly  blighting  power  upon 

Those  objects  that  we  love! 

"Mortal!  "  the  voice  seemed  near. 
And  musical  the  tone. 

Are  there  no  buds,  whose  brightness 
Outshines  the  garden  rose? 

What  worm  had  nipped  the  blossom? 
Who  answereth  for  those  ? 

"  Within  the  human  garden 
How  many  a  floweret  lies. 
Despoiled  by  reckless  gardener— 

And  In  the  whispered  lays  we  heard. 
And  from  the  flowers  there  smiled, 
A  plea  for  human  rose-buds — 


25 


194 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Taking  a  skipping  extract  from  Emogene 
M.  Boyce: 

I  paused  ojice  more,  gave  a  few  lingering  looks 
At  the  dear  olden  place,  the  remembered  noolcs: 
The  orchard,  tlie  garden,  the  dark,  silent  mill. 
The  little  red  cot  at  the  foot  of  the  hill, 
Where  the  little  trout  brook,  still  murmured  along; 
The  old  lofty  pines  sang  the  same  mournful  song, 
When  with  father  and  mother,  we  children  four. 
Had  gathered  at  eve  'round  tlie  old  cottage  door. 

SOLDIERS   OF   FAYSTON. 

BY  DOniJIC  S.  STODlJAIiD. 

The  iTotes  of  war  that  rang  through  the 
land  in  the  winter  and  spring  of  6i  were 
not  without  their  effect  upon  the  town  of 
Fayston.  Her  hardy  sons  willingly  re- 
sjionded  to  their  country's  call.  The  fol- 
lowing is  the  record  of  services  rendered 
and  lives  given,  who  served  for  their  own 
town  in  the  order  of  enlistment : 

Thomas  Maxwell,  the  first  resident  o 
Fayston  to  respond  to  the  call  for  volun- 
teers. He  enlisted  May  7,  1861,  at  the 
age  of  20  years,  in  Co.  F.  2d  Vt.  Reg. ;  was 
discharged,  by  reason  of  sickness,  Feb  21, 
1863;  re-enhsted  Mar.  20,  '64,  in  Co.  F. 
17th  Vt.  Reg.  ;  severely  wounded  in  the 
Wilderness  May  6,  '64.  The  ball  entered 
the  neck,  passed  through  the  roots  of  the 
tongue,  and  lodged  in  the  base  of  the 
head,  where  it  still  remains ;  discharged 
June  17,  '65. 

Mark  and  Luther  Chase,  brothers, 
enlisted  Aug.  14,  '61,  in  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ; 
aged  26  and  18  years.  Mark  was  dis- 
charged May  29,  '62 ;  reenlisted  Nov.  27, 
'63 ;  taken  prisoner,  and  died  at  Ander- 
sonville,  Ga.,  July  3,  '64.  Luther  died  in 
hospital  Jan.  31,  '62. 

Geo.  Somerville,  age  23,  enlisted  in 
Co.  G.  6th  Vt.,  Aug.  29,  '61  ;  discharged 
June  23,  '62. 

John  H.  Hunter,  age  41  ;  enlisted 
Sept.  2,  '61,  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ;  chosen  cor- 
poral ;  discharged  ;  reenlisted  Dec.  15,  '63  ; 
lost  an  arm  in  the  service ;  finally  dis- 
charged Mar.  10,  '65. 

Geo.  L.  Marble,  age  30,  enlisted  in 
Co.  G.  6th  Vt.,  Sept.  10,  '61  ;  reenlisted 
Feb.  8. '64;  taken  prisoner  Oct.  19,  '64; 
supposed  to  have  died  in  Libby  Prison. 

Wm.  M.  Strong,  age  19,  enlisted  in  Co. 
G.  6th  Vt.,  Sept.  23,  '6r  ;  served  3  years; 
mustered  out  Oct  28,  '64. 


Allen  E.  Mehuren,  enlLsted  in  Co.  G. 
6th  Vt.,  Sept.  27,  '61,  age  23;  discharged 
by  reason  of  sickness,  Feb.  4,  '63. 

Cornelius  McMullen,  age  29,  enlisted 
in  Co.  B.  6th  Vt.,  Oct.  3,  '61,  re-enlisted 
Dec.  15,  '63,  transferred  to  Co.  H.  Oct. 
16,  '64,  served  till  the  close  of  the  war, 
mustered  out  June  26,  "65. 

Henry  C.  Backus,  age  24,  enlisted  in 
Co.  G.  6th  Reg't.,  Oct.  7,  '61,  promoted 
sergeant,  mustered  out  Oct.  28,  '64. 

Warren  C.  Porter,  age  37,  enlisted 
Oct.  15,  '61,  in  Co.  G.  6lh  Vt.,  served  3 
years,  mustered  out  Oct.  28,  '64. 

Chester  S.  Dana,  age  33,  enlisted  in 
Co.  B.  loth  Vt.,  July  18,  '62,  chosen  sth 
sergeant,  promoted  to  ist  ser'gt.,  sick  in 
general  hospital  much  of  the  latter  part  of 
his  service,  discharged  May  22,  '65. 

LaFayette  Moore,  enlisted  in  Co.  F. 
2d  Vt.  as  a  recruit,  July  30,  '62,  age  26, 
died  in  the  service  Feb.  29,  '64. 

Heman  a.  Moore,  age  21,  enlisted 
in  Co.  F.  2d  Vt.,  Aug.  2,  '62,  mustered 
out  June  19,  '65. 

Eli  Gibson,  recruit  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt.. 
enlisted  Aug.  13,  '62,  age  22,  died  in  the 
service  April  7,  '64. 

Lewis  Bettis,  a  resident  of  Warren, 
enlisted  for  this  town  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt., 
Aug.  13,  '62,  age  37 ;  transferred  to  the 
Invalid  Corps,  Jan.  15,  '64. • 

John  Chase,  age  23,  enlisted  in  Co.  G. 
6th  Vt.,  Aug.  13,  '62  ;  mustered  out  June 
I9>  '65. 

Nathan  Thayer,  age  23 ;  enlisted  in 
Co.  H.  6th  Vt.,  Aug.  13,  '62;  discharged 
June  3,  '63. 

Nelson  J.  Boyce,  age  32  ;  enlisted  in 
Co.  G.  6th  Vt.,  Aug.  16,  '62;  transferred 
to  the  Invalid  Corps  July  i,  '63. 

Lester  H.  Harris,  age  25;  enlisted 
Aug.  18,  '62,  in  Co.  F.  2d  Vt. ;  died  May 
18,  '63. 

The  following  17  soldiers  all  members 
of  Co.  B.  13th  Vt.,  (9  months),  enlisted 
Aug.  25,  '62;  mustered  in  Oct.  10,  '62,  at 
Brattleboro ;  mustered  out  at  the  same 
place  July  21,  '63;  the  battle  of  Gettys- 
burg being  the  only  one  in  which  they 
participated : 

George  O.  Boyce,  2d  serg't.,  age  28; 


FAYSTON. 


195 


with  others  of  his  company  taken  prisoner 
by  rebel  guerrillas  while  going  from  Camp 
Carusi  to  Fairfax  station  with  supply  teams, 
May  14,  ^6^.  They  were  paroled  the  next 
day,  and  returned  to  the  regiment. 

Dorric  S.  Stoddard,  3d  corporal,  age  28  ; 
William  E.  Backus,  age  22,  detailed  scout ; 
John  Baird,  age  20,  died  of  fever  soon 
after  returning  home  ;  Matthew  Blair,  age 
27,  afterwards  re-enlisted  in  56  Mass., 
killed  in  the  Wilderness  ;  Charles  D.  Bil- 
lings, age  ig,  died  at  Camp  Carusi  May  19, 
'6^ ;  Chauncey  Carpenter,  age  39,  re- 
enlisted  Dec.  31,  '63,  in  Co.  C.  17th  Vt., 
discharged  May  13,  '65  ;  Samuel  J.  Dana, 
age  29,  wounded  at  Gettysburg  ;  Royal  S. 
Haskins,  age  21  ;  Charles  C.  Ingalls,  age 
18,  re-enlisted  Sept.  i,  '64,  in  Co.  G.  6th 
Vt.,  mustered  out  June  19,  '65;  Stephen 
Johnson,  age  21,  re-enlisted  Aug.  26,  '64, 
in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt.,  mustered  out  June  19, 
'65;  ZibaH.  McAllister,  age  21,  re-enlist- 
ed in  Cavalry  Co.  C.  Nov.  30,  '63,  trans- 
ferred to  Co.  A.  June  19,  ''65,  mustered 
out  June  26,  "65  ;  Levi  Nelson,  age  20 ; 
William  Nelson,  age  26,  Daniel  Posnett, 
age  47,  Winfield  S.  Rich,  age  24,  Reuben 
Richardson,  age  45,  transferred  to  Co. 
H.,  re-enlisted  Nov.  30,  'S},  in  Co.  H.  6th 
Regt.,  discharged  May  12,  '65. 

William  G.  Wilkins,  age  18,  enlisted  in 
Co.  F.  2d  Vt.,  June  16,  '63,  discharged 
Jan.  21,  '64. 

Robert  Hoffman,  age  21,  enlisted  in  the 
3d  Battery,  Oct.  19,  '64,  discharged  June 
15/65. 

John  W.  Palmer,  enlisted  in  Cavalry, 
Co.  C.  Nov.  28,  '63,  age  23,  transferred 
to  Co.  A.  June  21,  '65,  mustered  out 
Aug.  9,  '65. 

Judson  W.  Richardson,  age  29,  enlisted 
in  Co.  H.  6th  Vt.,  promoted  corporal 
June  19,  '65,  and  mustered  outjune  26,  '65. 

Charles  O.  Dyke,  age  18,  enlisted  Nov. 
30,  '63,  in  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ;  mustered  out 
June  26,  '65. 

Myron  Mansfield,  age  18,  enlisted  Dec. 

2,  '63,  in  Co.  H.  2d  U.  S.  Sharp-shooters  ; 
transferred  to  Co.  H.4th  Vt.,  Feb.  25,  '65  ; 
supposed  to  have  died  at  Andersonville. 

Benj.  B.  Johnson,  age  20,  enlisted  Dec. 

3,  '6^,  in  Co.  G.   6th  Vt. ;  transferred  to 


Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Dec.  4, '64;  mustered 
out  July  15,  '65. 

Wm.  H.  Johnson,  age  18,  enlisted  Dec. 
3,  '63,  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt.  ;  pro.  corp.  Sept. 
23,  '64 ;  serg't.  June  20,  '65 ;  mustered 
June  26,  '65. 

Charles  B.  Corliss,  age  18,  enlisted  Dec. 
3,  '63,  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt.  ;  discharged  June 
28,  '65. 

Anson  O.  Brigham,  age  21,  enlisted 
Dec.  5,  '63,  in  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ;  trans,  to 
invalid  corps,  and  discharged  June  28,^65. 

Calvin  B.  Marble,  age  18,  enhsted  Dec. 
9,  '63,  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt. ;  mustered  out 
June  26,  '65. 

Edwin  E.  Chaffee,  age  18,  enlisted  Dec. 
9,  '63  in  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ;  pro.  corp.  June 
19,  '63  ;  must,  out  June  26,  '65. 

Asa  E.  Corliss,  age  20,  enlisted  Sept.  7, 
'64,  in  Co.  G.  6th  Vt. ;  must,  out  July  19, 
'65. 

John  W.  Ingalls,  age  28,  enlisted  Sept. 
16,  '64,  but  did  not  enter  service. 

This  town  also  furnished  14  non-resident 
soldiers,  of  whom  I  can  give  but  a  meagre 
report,  as  follows : 

Geo.  Arnold,  Francis  E.  Buck,  Thomas 
Bradley,  ist  army  corps ;  Sidney  Dolby, 
54  Ma.ss.  (colored)  ;  Wm.  W.  Green, 
Philip  Gross,  ist  A.  C. ;  Wm.  J.  Hopkins, 
cav. ;  John  J.  Hern,  ist  A.  C. ;  Randall 
Hibbard,  ist  A.  C. ;  Frederic  Kleinke,  ist 

A.  C. ;  Nelson  Parry,  Co.  B.  7th  Vt., 
Nicholas  Schmidt,  ist  A.  C. ;  John  S. 
Templeton  ;  JamesWilliamstown,ist  A.  C. 

The  following  persons  were  furnished 
under  draft,  five  of  whom  paid  commuta- 
tion :  Hiram  E.  Boyce,  Eli  Bruce,  Jr., 
Nehemiah  Colby,  Charles  M.  Fisher, 
Julius  T.  Palmer,  and  one,  Nathan  Boyce, 
procured  a  substitute. 

This  town  probably  furnished  from  her 
own  residents  as  many,  if  not  more,  sol- 
diers for  other  towns  than  were  credited 
to  her  from  non-residents,  the  record  of 
some  of  which  is  given  as  follows : 

Andrew  J.  Butler,  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. ;  Hi- 
land  G.  Campbell,  3d  Vt.  Battery ;  Alba 

B.  Durkee,  Co.  I.  9th  Vt. ;  Timothy  Don- 
ivan,  Co.  H.  6th  Vt. 

In  Co.  G.  6th  Vt. :  Edward  Dillon,  G. 
W.  Fisher,  James  N.  Ingalls,  Robert  Max- 


196 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


well  and  Samuel  Maxwell.  In  3d  Vt.  : 
Wm.  W.  McAllister.  In  Co.  G.  6th  Vt. : 
James  H.  Somerville,  Ichabod  Thomas. 
Dexter  Marble  lost  a  leg  In  the  service,  in 
a  Wisconsin  regiment. 

Thus  I  have  given  as  best  I  can  from 
memory,  and  from  data  at  command,  an 
imperfect  record  of  Fayston  and  Fayston 
men  during  the  rebellion.  Undoubtedly 
the  foregoing  record  is  not  perfect,  yet  I 
think  it  is  substantially  correct. 

Probably  no  town  in  the  state  suffered 
more  financially  than  this.  During  the 
latter  part  of  the  war  when  large  bounties 
were  demanded  by  volunteers,  and  paid  by 
wealthy  towns,  Fayston,  to  save  herself 
from  draft  was  obliged  in  one  year  (1864) 
to  raise  for  bounties  and  town  expenses 
the  almost  unheard  of  sum  of  $12.50  cents 
upon  every  dollar  of  her  grand  list,  thus 
subjecting  the  owner  of  a  simple  poll  list 
to  the  payment  of  a  tax  of  $25.  Yet  this 
enormous  sum  was  paid  immediately,  with 
scarce  a  murmur  of  complaint,  and  not  a 
dollar  left  to  be  a  drag-weight  upon  tax- 
payers in  after  years. 

Fayston  can  look  back  upon  her  finan- 
cial record  as  a  town,  and  the  military  rec- 
ord of  her  soldiers  with  no  feelings  but 
those  of  honor,  satisfaction  and  pride ; 
knowing  that  the  privations  and  valor  of 
her  sons  in  the  field,  and  the  liberality  of 
her  citizens  at  home  all  contributed  their 
mite  to  keep  the  grand  old  flag  still  float- 
ing over  a  free  and  undivided  nation. 

GRAND   ARMY   REPUBLIC'S   RESPONSE   TO 

SUMNER'S   BILL   FOR   ERASING   OUR 

BATTLE    RECORDS. 

BY  D.  S.  STODDARD. 

Blot  out  our  battle  records,  boys, 

Charles  Sumuer's bill  doth  say; 
Forget  that  you  were  soldiers  once, 

And  turn  your  thoughts  away. 

Yes,  turn  your  thoughts  away,  my  boys, 

So  noble,  brave  and  true; 
Forget  you  lugged  a  knapsack  once, 

And  wore  the  army  blue. 

Flaunt  not  that  starry  flag,  my  boys, 

With  Lee's  Mills,  on  its  fold, 
'Twill  make  some  rebel's  heart  ache,  boys, 

To  see  it  there  so  bold. 

And  blot  out  Savage  Station,  too. 

And  likewise  Malvern  Hill; 
That  was  a  noisy  place,  you  know, 

But  blot  it  out,  you  will. 


Fort  Henry,  too,  and  Donelson, 
Where  Grant  "Surrender"  spake, 

In  such  decided  tones  it  made 
The  rebel  Pillow  shake. 

And  Shiloh,  too,  and  Vicksburg,  wliere 

One  Fourth  of  July  day. 
Brave  Pemberton  his  well-tried  sword 

At  the  feet  of  Grant  did  lay. 

And  Cedar  Creek,  and  Winchester, 

And  Sheridan's  famous  ride : — 
Forget  it,  boys,  forget  it  all. 

It  hurts  the  rebels'  pride. 

And  Fredericksburg,  and  Antietam, 

Where  cannon  rang  and  roared ; 
And  Gettysburg,  where  three  long  days 

Grape  shot  and  shell  were  poured. 

Where  thousands  freely  gave  their  lives. 
And  drenched  with  blood  the  sand. 

To  stay  the  flow  of  Treason's  tide 
In  Freedom's  happy  laud. 

And  Richmond,  too,  and  Petersburg, 

And  the  Wilderness,  forget; 
And  comrades  dear  who  fought  so  well. 

Whose  sun  of  life  there  set. 

Forget,  my  boys,  you  ever  marched 

With  Shei'man  to  the  seal 
Deny  you  ever  fought  against 

The  rebels  under  Lee! 

And  Appomattox  Court  House,  too. 

Where  Lee  dissolved  his  camp; 
And  gave  liis  long  and  well-tried  sword 

To  General  U.  S.  Grant. 

Those  names,  we've  loved  them  long,  my  boys. 

And  oft  a  glow  of  pride 
Has  thrilled  through  every  vein,  to  think 

We  fought  there  side  by  side. 

And  oftentimes,  my  comrades  dear, 

Tliere  comes  a  sadder  thought — 
The  price,  the  price!  by  which  our  land 

These  cherished  records  bought. 

And  now  shall  we  erase  tliose  names. 

And  make  our  battle-flags, 
Wlilch  e'er  have  been  the  soldier's  pride, 

Nothing  but  worthless  rags  ? 

No  more  shall  read  those  glorious  names 

While  swinging  in  the  breeze? 
No  more  our  hearts  shall  swell  witli  pride 

To  think  of  bygone  deeds? 

And  nmst  we  suffer  all  this  shame 

To  please  that  rebel  horde. 
Who  brought  the  war  upon  themselves 

By  drawing  first  the  sword? 

Tlieu  we  must  ask  their  pardon,  too, 

For  what  we've  done  and  said ; 
Tramp  down  the  graves  of  comrades  dear. 

And  honor  rebel  dead. 

And  I  suppose  the  next  kind  thing 

That  Sumner'U  want  is  this, 
Tliat  we  get  down  upon  our  knees, 

And  rebel  coat-tails  kiss ! 

Now,  comrades,  when  all  this  appears. 

'Twill  be  when  we  are  dead  I 
When  every  man  who  fought  the  rebs 

Sleeps  In  his  narrow  bed ! 


MARSHFIELD. 


197 


For  while  there's  one  of  us  alive, 
Though  kicked,  or  cuffed,  or  spurned  I 

Our  battle-flags  shall  bear  those  names 
That  we  so  richly  earned! 

And  when  we  swing  them  in  the  breeze, 

Those  names  shall  glisten  there, 
As  long  as  they  enfold  a  stripe 

Or  bear  a  single  star. 

Rebels  may  sigh  for  what  they  lost, 

And  mourn  for  what  we  won ; — 
Their  moans  and  sighs  can  ne'er  atone 

For  half  the  mischief  done. 

And  comrades,  when  we  older  grow. 

And  gray  hairs  fill  our  head. 
And  some  of  us  lie  sleeping  there 

Amid  the  quiet  dead; 

Our  children  then  will  catch  the  theme 

Those  battle-flags  inspire. 
And  oftentimes  their  hearts  be  filled 

With  patriotic  fire  I 

And  should  it  be  in  future  years 

That  Treason  rears  its  head. 
And  threatens  to  destroy  the  land 

For  which  we  fought  and  bled ; 

Our  sons  will  hoist  those  war-worn  flags. 

And  wave  them  tow'rd  the  sky. 
While  rebels  learn  again,  my  boys, 

That  Treason  then  must  die. 

Those  records  fair  shall  never  be 

Expunged  from  human  sight! 
Before  we'll  suffer  that,  my  boys. 

We'll  go  again,  and  flght. 
Faystou,  Vt.,  Jan.  8, 1873. 

Mrs.  L.  B.  Boyce  continues  and  thus 
closes  the  record  of  Fayston  : 

SAMUEL     DANA 

has  been  a  resident  of  Fayston  for  many 
years,  and  raised  a  large  family  here.  Six 
of  his  sons  and  one  son-in-law  were  in  the 
army  in  the  great  rebellion.  Several  of 
them  were  seriously  wounded  while  in  ser- 
vice, yet  all  are  now  living  and  the  father 
and  mother  also. 

I  have  been  able  to  gather  but  little  con- 
cerning our  military  record  previous  to  our 
late  war. 

In  1841,  one  Jesse  Mix  was  a  revolution- 
ary pensioner,  and  William  Wait,  and  a 
Mrs.  Hutchinson.  John  Cloud,  who  lost 
a  leg  in  the  revolutionary  war,  was  for 
many  years  a  resident  of  this  town,  but 
died  elsewhere. 

Of  the  war  of  1 8 1 2  there  are  no  records 
that  I  can  find,  and  the  old  inhabitants  are 
either  dead  or  moved  away. 


MARSHFIELD. 

IIY  MRS.   II.     C.  PITKIN. 

Marshfield  was  granted  to  the  Stock- 
bridge  tribe  of  Indians,  Oct.  16,  1782,  and 
chartered  to  them  June  22,  1790,  by  the 
General  Assembly  of  Vermont,  containing 
23,040  acres ;  lat.  44°  19',  long.  4°  30' 
on  the  upper  waters  of  the  Winooski ; 
bounded  N.  by  Cabot,  E.  by  Peacham  and 
Harris'  Gore,  S.  by  East  Montpelier,  Plain- 
field  and  Goshen  Gore,  W.  by  Calais  and 
East  Montpelier. 

In  the  charter  it  is  stipulated  the  town- 
ship shall  be  divided  into  75  equal  shares, 
etc.,  with  the  usual  charter  conditions. 

The  charter  is  signed  by  Gov.  Moses 
Robinson  and  Joseph  Tracy,  Sec. 

The  township  was  purchased  of  the 
Indians  by  Capt.  Isaac  Marsh  of  Stock- 
bridge,  Mass.,  in  honor  of  whom  it  is 
named,  for  ^140  lawful  money,  and  the 
deed  was  signed  by  18  Indians,  thus : 

0  Joseph  Shawguthguat,  0  Hendrick 
Aupanmat,  0  Jehosuhim  Alokaim,  0  Peter 
Pohijhionurpjsut,  -(-Joseph  Luonahant, 
-)-John  Pophmin,  -(- Solomon  Ouargaria- 
hont,  -(-Uhndrw  Warmaeruph,  -)-Vendru 
Waumurmn,  -|-  Hudrink  Ihchumhwmli, 
-)-  Moses  Laupumnsapeat,  ~\-  Thomas 
Wind,  -\-  John  Thonhpol,  -|-  David  Neson- 
ukausdahawauk,  -\-  Cornelius  Janmauch, 
-)-  David  Nesonuhkeah  Grum,  -|-  Abraham 
Maummumthickhur,  -\-  Isaac   Unamprey. 

This  deed  was  given  July  29,  1789,  and 
witnessed  by  David  Pixley  and  John  Sar- 
geant,  missionary. 

These  Indians,  it  is  supposed,  when 
they  secured  the  grant  of  this  land,  in- 
tended to  remove  here,  and  make  it  their 
hunting-ground,  but  finding  white  settle- 
ments were  beginning  to  cluster  around  it, 
they  disposed  of  it  as  best  they  could,  and 
sought  the  unbroken  forests  of  New  York 
and  called  the  new  home  there,  in  honor 
of  the  old  one  in  Massachusetts. 

Capt.  Marsh  had  married,  for  his  second 
wife,  a  young  widow  by  the  name  of  Pit- 
kin, of  East  Hartford,  Conn.,  and  four  of 
her  sons,  and  two  of  his  own  daughters  were 
among  the'  pioneers  of  his  new  township. 
Caleb  Pitkin  one  of  these  sons,  came  from 
East  Hartford  as  a  surveyor,  with  a  com- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


pany  under  Gen.  Whitelaw,  in  the  spring 
of  1790.  They  spent  the  summer  survey- 
ing in  this  wilderness,  returning  to  Con- 
necticut in  the  autumn.  They  spent  the 
next  season  here  also.  Caleb  was  cook 
for  the  company,  and  it  was  asserted  he 
"  could  cook  as  well  as  a  woman."  In  the 
springs  of  1792,  '93,  he,  together  with  his 
brother,  Martin  Pitkin,  and  Gideon  Spen- 
cer, came  here,  and  labored  clearing  land, 
preparatory  for  a  settlement,  returning  to 
East  Hartford  in  the  autumn,  each  year. 
The  winter  following  Caleb,  having  mar- 
ried Hannah,  daughter  of  Capt.  Marsh, 
and  Gideon  Spencer,  having  previously 
married  Polly,  another  of  his  daughters, 
together  with  Aaron  Elmer,  also  a  married 
man,  removed  to  this  town.  They  came 
as  far  as  Montpelier  with  teams  ;  and  from 
there,  the  snow  more  than  4  feet  deep  in 
Feb.,  they  came  with  handsleds.  Caleb 
Pitkin  settled  on  the  farm  where  his  son, 
Jas.  Pitkin,  now  dead,  resided.  Gideon 
Spencer,  where  his  grandson  Stephen 
Spencer  lives,  and  Aaron  Elmer  where 
John  Harris  Eaton  resides.  All  their  pro- 
visions and  furniture  they  brought  from 
Connecticut  over  roads  which  would  now 
be  deemed  impassable.  In  the  summer 
they  were  joined  by  Ebenezer  Dodge  and 
family. 

John  Preston  Davis,  son  of  Ebenezer 
Dodge,  was  born  Sept.  7th,  of  this  year, 
and  was  the  first  child  born  in  town. 
James,  son  of  Caleb  Pitkin,  was  born  in 
Jan.,  1795,  and  was  the  second  child  born, 
and  the  first  girl  born  in  town,  was  Betsey, 
daughter  of  Gideon  Spencer,  now  wife  of 
Dea.  Dan  Storrs.  During  this  first  season 
no  one  of  these  settlers  owned  a  team, 
and  all  the  grain  for  their  families  was  car- 
ried to  Montpelier  to  be  ground,  and 
brought  home  upon  their  backs,  they  leav- 
ing the  bran  to  lighten  their  loads. 

March  i,  1795,  Joshua,  Stephen,  and 
Nathaniel  Pitkin,  and  Solomon  Gilman 
moved  into  town.  Joshua  Pitkin  settled 
near  the  centre  of  the  town  where  William 
Haskins  now  resides.  Stephen  Pitkin  on 
the  farm  below,  where  Bowman  Martin 
lives,  Nathaniel  Pitkin,  who  was  cousin  to 
the  other  settlers  of  the  name,  on  the  road 


from  Abram  Wood's  to  the  saw-mill  in  the 
south  ]3art  of  the  town,  and  Solomon  Gil- 
man  where  his  grandson  Loomis  Gilman 
now  resides. 

Settlers  continued  to  come  in.  Stephen 
Rich  was  an  early  pioneer,  commencing 
his  settlement  where  his  grandson,  Samuel 
D.  Hollister,  now  lives. 

Nathaniel  Dodge,  another,  who  came  at 
a  day  so  early,  that  he  moved  all  his  goods 
into  town  on  a  hand-sled,  was  an  upright. 
Christian  man,  accumulating  a  good  prop- 
erty and  bringing  up  a  large  family,  only 
two  of  whom  remain  in  town. 

Martin  Pitkin  removed  here  previous  to 
the  organization  of  the  town.  Simeon 
Dwinell  was  also  one  of  the  early  settlers, 
and  one  of  the  best  of  citizens  ;  afterwards 
four  of  his  brothers,  men  of  worth,  Mar- 
tin, Squier,  Zenas,  and  Aaron  Bullock ; 
the  right  kind  of  men  ;  John  Pike,  whose 
5  sons  all  tilled  the  soil  and  made  their 
homes  here ;  Daniel  Bemis  with  his  large 
family  ;  Caleb  Putnam,  the  first  blacksmith 
in  town,  who  made  all  the  nails  used  in 
the  early  clays ;  cut  nails  such  as  are  now 
used,  being  cjuite  unknown.  Mr.  Putnam 
was  not  only  a  good,  ingenious  blacksmith, 
but  also  a  good,  useful  citizen.  After  some 
years,  he  removed  to  Woodbury,  where 
he  died. 

So  rapid  was  the  tide  of  immigration, 
that,  at  the  organization  of  the  town,  61 
men  took  the  freemen"^  oath.  Shall  I  say 
of  these  men,  that  they  were  industrious, 
energetic,  persevering?  None  but  such 
men  would  think  of  making  comfortable, 
permanent  homes  in  a  forest?  The  farms 
they  cultivated,  the  school,  and  dwelling- 
houses  they  erected,  the  thrift  which  soon 
became  apparent  on  every  hand,  all  tell 
what  kind  of  men  were  the  pioneers  of 
Marshfield. 

Joshua  and  Stephen  Pitkin  for  a  few  of 
the  first  years  worked  in  company,  after- 
wards they  mutually  agreed  to  dissolve 
partnership,  and  amicably  divided  their 
possessions.  They  built  the  first  framed 
barn  in  town.  It  was  raised  July  4,  1796. 
This  barn  in  their  settlement  became  the 
property  of  Joshua  Pitkin.  Stephen  Rich 
raised  a  barn  June  20,    1797.      Caleb  and 


MARSHFIELD. 


199 


Stephen  Pitkin  had  each  a  barn  raised 
June  26,  1797.  June  28,  1798,  William 
Holmes  raised  a  barn ;  also  Ebenezer 
Dodge  raised  a  barn  July  6,  '98.  Capt. 
Stephen  Rich  raised  his  house  June  14, 
1800.  This  was  the  first  framed-house  in 
town.  Stephen  Pitkin,  it  is  supposed, 
built  the  next  framed-house,  two-story. 
Joshua  Pitkin  raised  a  two-story  house, 
Sept.  24,  1803.  Nathaniel  Pitkin  raised  a 
house  June  20,  1804,  and  Timothy  Cole 
raised  a  house  June  24,  1804. 

THE   FIRST    RELIGIOUS    MEETING 

in  town  of  which  we  find  any  record,  was 
Sunday,  Aug.  20,  1797,  at  Nathaniel 
Dodge's.  The  25th  of  Sept.  after,  Mr. 
Gilbert  preached  at  Joshua  Pitkin's.  He 
was  a  missionary  from  Connecticut ;  and 
Oct.  20,  '97,  a  meeting  at  Nathaniel 
Dodge's,  no  preacher  mentioned,  and  it  is 
probable  a  sermon  was  read,  as  this  was 
often  the  case  in  after  years.  From  this 
time  meetings  were  occasionally  held  in 
town  ;  very  many  it  seems  at  Capt.  Rich's  ; 
for  many  years  and  also  frequently,  at 
Nathaniel  Dodge's  ;  sometimes  at  Joshua 
Pitkin's.  Among  the  ministers  who  occa- 
sionally preached  here  in  the  early  days, 
were  Elder  Wheeler,  of  Montpelier,  Bap- 
tist, Revs.  Kinnee  of  Plainfield,  Hobart 
of  Berlin,  Lyman,  of  Brookfield,  Wright 
of  Montpelier,  Congregationalists. 

How  did  our  settlers  live  ?  in  every  de- 
partment of  labor,  almost  nothing  to  do 
with?  For  making  of  maple  sugar,  the 
first  five-pail  kettle  owned  in  town,  Caleb 
Pitkin  brought  from  Montpelier  on  his 
back,  and  sap-troughs  had  to  be  made, 
and  the  sugar-house  was  two  huge  logs 
with  the  kettle  hung  between,  the  smoke 
and  ashes  inclined  to  blow  towards  you  ;  the 
sap  had  to  be  gathered  by  hand,  and  where 
was  the  man  who  owned  a  sap-holder  ? 
And  when  sugar  was  made,  where  was  it 
to  be  stored  ?  James  Pitkin  told  the  writer, 
he  could  remember  how  his  father  provided 
for  this  emergency.  In  June,  he  pealed 
bir(jh-  bark,  soaked  it,  and  sewed  it  with  a 
strong  wax-end,  and  thus  made  a  large 
box,  less  the  bottom,  but  he  sat  this  on  a 
smooth  piece  of  bark,  with  a  sap-trough 
under  to  catch  the  molasses,  and  he  recol- 


lects many  times  eating  biscuit  and  butter 
very  near  that  sap-trough.  The  box,  he 
thought,  would  hold  200  pounds.  He  also 
tells  me  the  first  cow  his  father  owned,  he 
drove  from  Newbury  through  the  wilder- 
ness by  marked  trees,  34  miles.  He  did 
not  say  how  the  cow  lived  the  first  winter, 
but  the  second  they  raised  a  very  large 
crop  of  wheat,  and  the  cow  was  fed 
through  winter,  on  wheat  in  the  stook. 
She  was  very  sleek,  and  yielded  a  large 
quantity  of  milk. 

The  children  must  be  educated.  In 
1799,  a  meeting  of  the  settlers  was  called, 
and  they  concluded  to  build  a  log-school 
house,  covered  with  bark.  It  stood  just 
above  where  the  road  turns  off  to  go  to  Dan- 
iel Dodge's.  Miss  Nancy  Caldwell  taught 
the  first  school ;  was  afterwards  married  to 
Rowland  Edwards  of  Montpelier. 

Capt.  Marsh  came  from  Connecticut  to 
visit  his  children  and  their  families  three 
times,  and  once,  Jan.  7,  1797,  his  wife  came 
with  him.  No  small  undertaking  for  a  lady 
past  middle  age,  with  such  roads.  These 
visits  were  seasons  of  great  interest  to 
their  children,  and  no  less  so  to  them- 
selves. They  were  made  happy  by  seeing 
the  prosperity  of  the  settlement,  and  the 
thrift  which  was  apparent  among  their 
children.  Mrs.  Marsh  died  the  next  sum- 
mer. Capt.  Marsh  lived  some  years 
longer,  and  married  the  third  wife. 

When  Capt.  Marsh  and  his  wife  returned 
home,  Joshua  Pitkin  went  in  company  with 
them  as  far  as  Walpole,  N.  H.  ;  was  four 
days  going,  and  four  returning.  They 
went  the  first  day  to  Williamstown,  the 
next  to  Pomfret,  the  next  to  Cavendish, 
and  the  next  to  Walpole.  Joshua  Pitkin 
has  also  a  record  of  his  going  to  Judge 
Lynde's  of  Williamstown,  to  get  a  writ 
made  out,  hiring  a  horse  of  Mr.  Hamett  of 
Montpelier,  for  the  trip,  for  which  he  paid 
4s.  It  is  not  known  what  he  paid  for  making 
out  the  writ.  It  ought  to  have  been  done 
cheap,  as  he  went  20  miles  to  get  it.  He 
mentions  a  visit  of  Dr.  Lamb  of  Mont- 
pelier, to  his  wife,  for  which  he  paid  6s ; 
and  has  a  record  of  wages  paid  Henry  Wal- 
bridge  and  two  other  joiners,  at  work  on  his 
new  house,  $2.25  a  day  for  the  three.     And 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


we  are  informed,  it  was  considered  no  more 
irnmoral  then  to  buy  a  barrel  of  rum,  or 
ID  or  15  gallons  of  brandy,  than  it  was  to 
make  -other  purchases  for  family  use.  The 
mystery  is,  how  any  one  kept  sober ;  how 
any  one  knew  whether  other  people  were 
sober. 

For  a  few  of  the  first  years  the  farmers 
here  went  to  Montpelier  or  Calais  for 
blacksmithing,  till  Caleb  Putnam  moved 
into  town. 

Mr.  John  Knox  was  the  first  person  who 
died  in  town.  The  date  of  his  death  is 
not  known.  Aug.  22,  1797,  a  child  of  Mr. 
Robert  Waugh  was  drowned  in  a  well. 

Joshua  Pitkin  was  appointed  first  justice 
of  peace  Aug.  23,  1799. 

FIRST   RECORD   OF   MARSHFIELD. 

On  application  of  a  number  of  credible 
freeholders  of  the  town  of  Marshfield, 
County  of  Caledonia,  and  State  of  Ver- 
mont, that  said  town  may  be  organized, 
according  to  law,  1  hereby  warn  a  meeting 
of  all  the  Freeholders  and  other  inhab- 
itants of  said  town,  qualified  to  vote  in 
Town-meeting,  to  appear  at  the  dwelling- 
house  of  Joshua  Pitkin,  in  said  town,  on 
the  tenth  day  of  Marcli  next,  at  ten  o'clock 
forenoon  on  said  day.  ist.  To  choose  a 
moderator  to  govern  said  meeting.  2d, 
To  choose  all  officers  that  the  law  requires 
for  organized  towns  to  have. 

Joshua  Pitkin,  Justice  Peace. 

Marshfield,  Feb.  24th,  1800. 

March  loth,  1800. 
This  day  a  Town-meeting  agreeable  to 
the  above  Notification  was  held,  and  ist 
Chose  Stephen  Rich,  Moderator;  2ond, 
Chose  Stephen  Rich,  Town  Clerk  ;  Joshua 
Pitkin,  Clerk  pro  tem.  ;  3rd,  Stephen  Rich, 
1st  Selectman ;  4th,  Stephen  Pitkin,  2ond 
Selectman  ;  5th,  Samuel  Paterson,  3rd  Se- 
lectman ;  6th,  Caleb  Pitkin,  Town  Treas- 
urer; 7th,  Stephen  Rich,  Nathaniel  Pitkin, 
and  Robert  Waugh,  Listers  ;  Gideon  Spen- 
cer, Constable  and  Collector ;  Samuel  Wil- 
son, Grand  juryman;  8th,  Aaron  Elmer, 
Ebenezer  Dodge,  Jun.,  Joseph  Wells,  Sur- 
veyors of  roads ;  9th,  David  Benjamin, 
Ebenezer  Wells,  Nathaniel  Pitkin,  Fence 
Viewers ;  roth,  Robert  Waugh,  Pound 
Keeper;  nth,  Giles  Skinner,  Sealer  of 
Leather;  12th,  Caleb  Pitkin,  Sealer  of 
Weights  and  Measures;  13th,  Giles  Skin- 
ner, Tythingman  ;  14th,  Ebenezer  Dodge 
and  Aaron  Elmer,  Hay  wards;  15th, 
Joshua  Pitkin,  Caleb  Pitkin  and  Joseph 
Page,  auditors  of  accounts  of  Selectmen. 
i6th,  All  the  above  names  chosen  into  the 


several  Offices  have  taken  solemn  oath  for 
the  faithful  discharge  of  their  trust.  This 
meeting  adjourned  untill  the  24th  day  of 
this  month,  by  order  of  the  Selectmen. 

Monday,  Mar.  24,  1800,  town  meeting 
according  to  adjournment.  After  taking 
the  freeman's  oath,  it  was  voted  to  ratify 
the  proceedings  of  the  annual  meeting, 
Stephen  Pitkin,  Esq.,  chosen  moderator 
pro  tem.  "Chose  Stephen  Pitkin  and 
Samuel  Paterson,  Jurymen  to  attend  the 
Supreme  Court ;  Samuel  Paterson,  Joseph 
P.  Page,  Aaron  Elmer,  Elisha  Benjamin, 
Jr.,  Nathaniel  Pitkin,  Ebenezer  Dodge, 
Jr.,  and  Robert  Waugh,  Petit  Jurymen." 

"  Voted  to  assess  a  tax  of  2  cents  on 
the  dollar  on  all  polls  and  ratable  property 
for  the  purpose  of  defraying  town  charges  ; 
to  raise  four  days'  work  a  year,  from  each 
voter  for  the  year  ensuing,  to  mend  the 
highways  ;  that  the  tax  shall  be  worked  out 
in  June,  and  that  the  Selectmen  shall 
credit  the  same  on  the  bills." 

Names  of  the  men  who  took  the  free- 
man's oath  at  said  meeting : 

Stephen  Rich,  Stephen  Pitkin,  Samuel 
Paterson,  Caleb  Pitkin,  Aaron  Elmer,  Eb- 
enezer Dodge,  Ebenezer  Dodge,  Jr.,  Elisha 
Benjamin,  Jr.,  David  Benjamin,  .Samuel 
Wilson,  Hart  Roberts,  Joshua  Pitkin, 
Elisha  Benjamin,  John  Goodale,  Hugh 
Wilson,  Matthew  Jack,  Joel  Knox,  Tim- 
othy Cowles,  Stephen  Cowles,  Amon  Per- 
sons, James  English,  Edmund  Harwood, 
Abraham  Goodale,  Solomon  Spencer, 
George  Gleason,  Martin  Pitkin,  Gideon 
Spencer,  Joseph  P.  Page,  Uriah  Simons, 
Nathaniel  Pitkin,  Joseph  Wells,  Giles 
Skinner,  Robert  Waugh,  Solomon  Gil- 
man,  Ebenezer  Wells,  Selah  Wells,  John 
Waugh,  Stephen  Olmsted,  John  Cutler, 
Samuel  Wilson,  Jr.,  Robert  Dodge,  Chas. 
Gate,  Samuel  Pratt,  Cyrril  Garnsey,  Caleb 
Putnam,  Simeon  Dwinell,  Daniel  Holmes, 
Daniel  Damon,  Calvin  Elmer,  Job  Taylor, 
Ichabod  Shurtleflf,  John  Pike,  Guy  Benja- 
min, Asa  Spencer,  Josiah  Hollister,  An- 
drew Jack,  William  Jones,  Avara  Gilman, 
Wm.  W.  Powers,  Nathan  Jones,  Chester 
Clark,  Stephen  Rich,  town  clerk. 

It  was  voted  at  town  meeting  Jan.  7, 
1800,  Joshua  Pitkin,  Esq.,  mod. ;  Stephen 


MARSHFIELD. 


2ol 


Rich,  district  clerk,  to  support  the  school 
on  the  grand  list ;  Robert  Waugh  and  Na- 
thaniel Pitkin,  school  com. ;  Aaron  Elmer, 
collector.  Voted,  that  no  one  shall  have 
a  right  to  take  any  child  into  his  family  to 
attend  school,  unless  he  take  one  for  a 
year,  and  that  the  selectmen  shall  act  in 
conjunction  with  the  committee  in  exam- 
ining the  school  teacher,  and  to  raise  $34 
to  support  schooling. 

At  town  meeting.  Mar.  25,  1801,  Caleb 
Pitkin,  mod.,  voted  to  divide  the  district; 
set  up  the  old  school-house  at  vendue,  to  be 
'  sold  to  the  highest  bidder ;  sold  the  house 
for  2^  bushels  of  wheat,  on  6  months' 
credit,  to  Aaron  Elmer ;  1 2  squares  of 
glass,  to  Solomon  Gilman,  for  i  bush,  of 
wheat ;  75  nails,  to  Nathaniel  Dodge,  for 
I  peck  of  wheat ;  boards,  to  Robert  Waugh, 
for  9s.  6d.,  to  be  paid  in  wheat;  table,  to 
Joshua  Pitkin,  for  2  bush.  2  qts.  of  wheat ; 
chair,  to  Joshua  Pitkin,  for  3  pecks,  4  qts. 
of  wheat.  The  selectmen  organized  the 
inhabitants  on  the  river  road  into  a  school 
district,  beginning  at  Hart  Roberts'  on 
the  north,  Capt.  Skinner's  at  the  south, 
Nathaniel  Pitkin's  on  the  west,  and  Sam- 
uel Wilson's  and  Joseph  Wells'  on  the 
east.  Stephen  Rich,  Samuel  Paterson, 
Caleb  Pitkin,  were  selectmen. 

So  the  old  school-house  was  sold,  a 
little,  square,  log-building,  covered  with 
bark ;  a  big  stone  chimney,  with  an  open- 
ing above  for  the  smoke  to  go  out  and  the 
rain  to  come  in,  and  the  grand  old  forest 
for  play-ground,  and  did  it  not  ring  with 
the  merry  shouts  of  childhood?  They 
needed  no  gymnasium  then.  Were  there 
not  the  trees  to  climb,  the  birds'  nests  and 
squirrels  to  hunt,  and  partridges  and  wood- 
chucks  to  look  after?  The  children  did 
not  sing  in  school  in  those  days.  They 
had  to  sit  straight,  keep  their  eyes  on  the 
book,  and  their  toes  on  the  crack.  They 
hardly  dared  breathe  in  school-time,  there 
was  such  an  awe  of  femle  and  rod.  The 
children  did  not  sing  in  school,  but  the 
bird's  song  they  heard  through  the  open 
window,  and  when  the  noon-time  came, 
the  children  joined  the  chorus,  and  the  old 
woods  rang  again. 

It  seems  the  inhabitants  not  included  in 

26 


the  river  district,  were  all  in  one  other  dis- 
trict. Afterwards  districts  were  divided 
and  arranged,  as  the  inhabitants  increased, 
according  to  their  needs.  But  it  was  not 
until  about  18 12,  that  a  school-house  was 
built  on  the  river  near  Joshua  Pitkin's. 
Schools  were  kept  in  a  portion  of  a  dwell- 
ing-house, and  sometimes  in  Caleb  Pit- 
kin's old  house.  In  the  mill  district,  now 
the  village,  the  first  school-house  was  built 
in  1 82 1.  The  first  school  in  this  district 
was  taught  by  Miss  Comfort  Gage,  in  the 
summer  of  1820,  in  Capt.  Martin  Pitkin's 
barn,  on  the  place  where  the  writer  re- 
sides. There  was  a  school  a  number  of 
years  in  the  Dwinell  district,  before  the 
convenience  of  a  school-house  was  en- 
joyed. Four  winters  this  school  was  kept 
in  Simeon  Dwinell's  kitchen.  This  to 
some  housekeepers  might  have  seemed  an 
inconvenience,  as  the  house  was  small, 
and  Mrs.  Dwinell  had  8  children  of  her 
own.  But  she  doubtless  got  along  nicely, 
washing  days  and  all.  The  children  must 
be  educated ;  in  those  days  troops  of  little 
ones  were  not  so  much  in  the  way. 

In  1805,  a  committee  was  appointed  by 
the  town  to  act  in  concert  with  the  select- 
men in  purchasing  a  piece  of  ground  for 
the  burial  of  the  dead,  and  the  grave-yard 
near  J.  H.  Eaton's  was  bought  of  Na- 
thaniel Dodge. 

Mar.  1797,  Thomas  McLoud,  of  Mont- 
pelier,  and  Sally  Dodge,  of  Marshfield, 
were  united  in  marriage  by  Joseph  Wing, 
Esq.,  of  Montpelier,  the  first  marriage  in 
town.  Joshua  Pitkin,  Esq.,  was  the  first 
justice  of  peace,  and  Dec.  10,  1801,  he 
married  Ebenezer  Wells  to  Susannah  Spen- 
cer, the  first  marriage  by  a  citizen  of  the 
town. 

Feb.  I,  1803,  a  town  meeting  was  called 
to  see  if  the  town  would  form  themselves 
into  a  Congregational  society,  and  also  to 
see  if  they  would  agree  to  settle  a  minis- 
ter. The  vote  stood  17  in  favor  and  70 
against. 

Bears,  wolves  and  deer  were  very  num- 
erous in  the  early  days  of  Marshfield.  The 
wolves  made  night  hideous  by  their  howl- 
ings,  and  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  to 
kill  a  bear  or  deer.     Joshua  Pitkin,  in  his 


202 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


journal,  speaks  of  killing  8  deer  at  differ- 
ent times,  and  one  bear  story  belonging  to 
ovir  region  has  in  it  sufficient  of  the  tragic 
to  warrant  insertion  here. 

One  season  early  in  September  the  bears 
began  to  make  depiedations  in  the  corn, 
on  the  Skinner  farm,  now  Wm.  Martin's. 
Solomon  Gilman,  one  of  the  early  settlers, 
who  was  a  great  sportsman,  promised  to 
watch  for  the  bear,  and  put  an  end  to  his 
suppers  of  green  corn ;  he  took  his  stand 
at  night  in  the  field,  waiting  the  arrival  of 
the  depredator.  The  bear  came  on,  and 
was  soon  helping  himself,  when  with  true 
aim,  the  hunter  fired.  The  bear  gave  one 
great  spring,  and  came  directly  on,  or 
over  him.  He  felt  his  time  had  come. 
The  blood  was  flowing !  He  caught  the 
lacerated  intestines  in  his  hands,  replaced 
them  as  he  could  in  that  moment  of  des- 
peration, wrapped  the  long  skirt  of  his 
overcoat  about  his  body,  holding  it  firmly 
with  both  hands  ;  had  just  strength  enough 
left  to  shout  for  help,  and  to  run  a  short 
distance.  Help  soon  came.  They  assisted 
him  to  a  place  of  safety,  and  folding  back 
his  overcoat,  a  double  handful  of  bruin's 
entrails  fell  to  the  ground  !  Mr.  G.  lived 
long  to  be  the  terror  of  the  denizens  of  the 
forest,  but  it  was  years  before  he  heard 
the  last  of  being  killed  by  a  bear. 

At  another  time,  Mr.  Gilman  was  pur- 
suing a  bear  through  some  woods  where 
Mr.  Ira  Stone  was  chopping.  Seeing  the 
bear  rapidly  approaching,  Mr.  Stone  sprang 
upon  a  large  rock.  The  bear  came  up. 
Mr.  Stone  attempted  to  strike  him  with 
his  axe,  but  one  blow  of  the  bear's  paw 
sent  the  axe  to  the  ground.  They  now 
clinched.  Mr.  Stone  attempted  to  grasp 
the  bear's  tongue,  but  instead,  the  bear 
crushed  two  of  his  fingers.  They  rolled  to 
the  ground,  the  bear  uppermost.  Just 
now  Mr.  Gilman  came  near,  and  taking 
aim,  shot  the  bear  through  the  head.  The 
crushed  fingers  was  all  the  serious  injury 
Mr.  Stone  received. 

The  settlers  made  quite  a  business  of 
selling  ashes,  and  afterwards,  a  larger  one 
of  making  salts  for  sale.  The  beautiful 
elms,  of  which  there  were  many  on  the 
river  banks  and  in  other  places,  were  cut 


down,  piled  and  burned  for  this  purpose, 
and  a  great  deal  of  other  valuable  timber. 
Salts  sold  well,  so  the  day  and  the  long 
night  were  often  spent  in  boiling  salts,  and 
more  than  one  woman  has  lent  a  hand  at 
this  work. 

There  are  only  two  ponds  which  lie 
wholly  in  this  town — Nigger  Head,  of  cir- 
cular form,  and  about  half  a  mile  in  width, 
and  Nob  Hill  ponds.  Long  pond  lies 
partly  in  Mai-shfield  and  partly  in  Groton. 
Mud  pond  has  within  a  few  years  dried  up. 
Our  county  map  shows  other  ponds  in  our 
eastern  portion,  but  by  actual  survey  it  is, 
found  that  neither  of  these  are  our  side  of 
the  line.  Our  township  is  somewhat  hilly, 
but  in  only  one  case  are  we  entitled  to  the 
name  of  mountain. 

NIGGER   HEAD 

mountain,  in  the  north-easterly  part  of  the 
town,  is  a  steep  precipice,  500  feet  high, 
in  one  place  300  feet  perpendicular.  It  is 
an  imposing  sight,  so  bold,  precipitous 
and  grand — nature  enthroned  in  one  of 
her  wildest  phases.  On  its  dizzy  heights 
we  have  a  remarkably  fine  view  of  the  sur- 
rounding regions,  and  of  the  bright  waters 
of  the  beautiful  pond  below,  and  nowhere 
can  one  get  a  better  view  of  the  fearful 
precipice,  than  in  a  little  boat  on  the 
waters  at  its  base. 

Winooski  river  passes  through  this  town 
from  north  to  south,  more  than  half  of  the 
town  lying  on  the  east.  It  receives  many 
tributaries  in  its  course.  Lye  brook,  the 
outlet  of  Pigeon  pond  in  Harris'  Gore,  is  a 
considerable  stream,  and  falls  into  the 
river  a  little  south  of  the  center  of  the 
town. 

A  part  of  the  south  portion  of  Marshfield 
is  more  easily  convened  at  Plainfield  vil- 
lage, which  really  extends  a  little  into  our 
town  than  at  our  own  village.  As  a  con- 
sequence our  people  in  that  vicinity  attend 
church  at  Plainfield,  while  a  portion  of  the 
people  in  Eastern  Cabot,  on  Molly's  brook 
and  vicinity,  attend  church  at  Marshfield. 

On  the  east  side  of  the  river  a  large 
quantity  of  good  timber  remains  uncut, 
and  there  are  also  on  this  side  of  the  river 
very  large  quarries  of  granite,  beautifully 
clear,  and  of  superior  quality,  and  should 


MARSHFIELD. 


203 


the  time  come  when  a  raih-oad  shall  pass 
up  through  this  portion  of  our  town,  the 
value  of  these  forests  and  quarries  will  be 
estimated  very  differently  from  what  they 
are  now.  As  far  as  farms  are  cultivated 
on  this  side  of  the  river,  they  are  pretty 
good. 

About  the  year  1825,  quite  a  settlement 
was  made  on  this  side,  some  2^  miles  east 
of  where  the  town-house  now  stands.  So 
many  families  moved  in,  that  a  log  school- 
house  was  built,  and  at  one  time  there  was 
a  school  of  30  scholars  ;  but  the  land  prov- 
ing better  for  pasturage  than  tillage,  after 
a  few  years  the  settlement  was  deserted. 
These  large  pastures  are  now  owned  by 
wealthy  farmers. 

The  town  is  in  every  part  well-watered. 
The  east  part  is  noted  especially  for  its 
pure,  soft,  cold  springs.  There  is  also 
hardly  a  farm  in  town  but  what  has  one  or 
more  good  sugar  orchards,  and  the  amount 
of  sugar  made  here  any  year  is  large. 
Through  the  kindness  of  E.  S.  Pitkin, 
Esq.,  I  have  the  following  statistics  of  the 
manufacture  of  maple  sugar  here  in  the 
spring  of  1868,  which  is  above  the  average  : 
Sugar  orchards,  108  ;  sugar  made  in  1868, 
140,350  pounds,  or  more  than  70  tons  ;  18 
orchards  made  each  2,000  and  upwards  ;  40 
made  less  than  2,000  and  more  than  1,000 
pounds. 

WATER   PRIVILEGES. 

Molly's  brook,  from  the  easterly  part  of 
Cabot,  unites  with  theWinooski  soon  after 
entering  this  town.  On  this  brook,  just 
above  the  junction,  are  Molly's  Falls, 
which  are  worthy  the  notice  of  the  trav- 
eler. They  can  be  seen  to  advantage  from 
the  stage-road,  a  mile  above  the  village. 
The  water  falls  in  the  distance  of  30  rods, 
180  feet.  Were  we  writing  fiction,  it  would 
do,  perhaps,  to  follow  the  figures  of  Thomp- 
son in  his  valuable  "  Gazeteer  of  Vermont," 
making  these  falls  500  feet ;  but  we,  who, 
in  the  clear  mornings  of  summer  can  hear 
the  roaring  of  the  water,  will  have  it  just 
as  it  is,  180  feet.  There  is  an  amount  of 
water-power  here  not  often  equalled.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  estimate  how  much 
machinery  might  be  kept  in  motion  by  the 
water    which   is   precipitated    over   these 


falls.  Then,  on  the  river  below,  are  a 
number  of  excellent  mill-sites,  and  in  ad- 
dition to  all  these.  Nigger  Head  brook, 
from  where  it  leaves  Nigger  Head  pond  to 
its  entrance  into  the  Winooski,  has  a  suc- 
cession of  falls,  making  good  locations  for 
mills  ;  all  the  better,  as  the  stream  is  never 
materially  affected  by  drought. 

Among  our  early  settlers  a  good  deal  of 
attention  was  paid  to  orcharding.  On  the 
hill  farms  there  are  good  orchards  and 
fine  fruit,  both  grafted  and  native.  On 
the  river,  apple-trees  have  never  done  as 
well. 

Aug.  22,  1811,  there  was  a  very  great 
rise  of  water,  and  Joshua  Pitkin  lost  grass 
sufficient  for  15  tons  of  hay,  by  the  over- 
flowing of  his  meadows,  as  his  journal  tells. 
In  Sept.  1828,  tliere  was  a  great  flood,  and 
Stephen  Pitkin,  Jr's.  clover  mill,  a  mile 
above  the  village,  was  carried  off;  also 
many  bridges.  July  27,  1830,  a  great  rise 
of  water  carried  off  nearly  all  the  bridges 
on  the  river,  and  greatly  injured  the  uncut 
grass  on  the  meadows,  and  Aug.  i,  1809, 
there  was  a  great  hail-storm,  injuring  gar- 
dens and  corn  very  much.  The  evening 
of  July  5,  1 84 1,  there  was  a  terrific  hail- 
storm through  a  portion  of  the  town.  Veg- 
etation was  much  injured,  and  very  much 
glass  broken.  Aug.  20,  1869,  there  was  a 
very  sudden  rise  of  water,  buildings  were 
injured,  some  small  ones  carried  ofif,  and 
bridges  and  other  property  destroyed. 

A  great  gale  was  experienced  here  May 
13,  1866.  The  wind  was  accompanied 
with  rain,  and  4  barns  and  some  smaller 
buildings  were  blown  down.  Mr.  Amos 
Dwinell  was  in  his  son's  barn  at  the  time, 
and  was  buried  in  its  ruins,  but  extricated 
without  much  injury.  A  number  of  cows 
were  in  two  of  the  demolished  barns,  but 
only  a  very  few  were  seriously  injured. 

In  the  spring  of  1807,  snow  was  4i  feet 
deep  April  4,  and  when  Joshua  Pitkin  be- 
gan to  tap  his  sugar-place,  Apr.  15,  it  was 
3  feet  deep.  May  15,  1834,  there  was  a 
great  snow-storm,  more  than  2  feet  deep. 
In  the  winter  of  1863  and  '4,  snow  was 
very  deep,  fences  covered  for  months. 

We  have  also  had  our  portion  of  fires. 
A  barn  was  burned  Oct.  1806,  Jeremiah's 


204 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Carleton's  blacksmith  shop  in  1827 ;  after, 
an  old  house  of  Caleb  Pitkin's,  the  dwell- 
ing house  of  Nathan  Smith;  the  dwelling- 
house  of  Bemis  Pike,  Feb.  1835;  '"^^^^ 
house  of  Hiram  Goodwin,  May,  1840;  the 
starch-factory  and  clover-mill  of  Stephen 
Pitkin  the  night  of  Dec.  10,  1853,  large 
shoe-shop  of  Henry  Goodwin,  May,  i860; 
house  belonging  to  G.  O.  Davis,  occupied 
by  G.  W.  Nouns,  who  was  severely  burned, 
and  the  family  just  escaped  with  their  lives. 
Mar.  1869,  the  saw-mill  and  shop,  and  all 
the  tools  of  Calvin  York. 

CASUALTIES. 

Betsey  Swetland  and  another  young 
lady  were  riding  on  horseback  May  7, 
18 17,  below  the  village,  when  she  was 
killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree.  vShe  lived  only 
a  few  hours. 

Mr.  Jonathan  Davis,  an  aged  man,  was 
burned  to  death  by  falling  into  the  fire, 
probably  in  a  fit,  and  Jonathan  Davis,  Jr., 
had  a  little  son  drowned  in  a  water-holder 
at  the  door. 

George  Pitkin,  while  drawing  wood 
alone,  fell  before  the  runner  of  the  sled, 
and  was  crushed  to  death,  Feb.  20,  1845. 

Martin  Bemis,  son  of  Abijah  Bemis,  came 
to  his  death  by  slipping  in  the  road,  and  a 
sled  passing  over  him. 

Mrs.  Linton  was  accidentally  shot,  by  a 
gun  carelessly  handled  by  a  boy. 

Mrs.  Tubbs,  an  old  lady,  accidentally 
took  some  oil  of  cedar,  and  lived  but  a 
short  time. 

Mr.  Graves  had  a  little  daughter  scalded, 
so  as  to  cause  death.  A  child  of  Nathaniel 
Lamberton  was  scalded,  so  as  to  cause 
its  death  in  a  short  time.  Mrs.  Benoni 
Haskins  was  burned,  so  as  to  cause  death 
in  a  few  hours.  A  little  child  of  Francis 
Loveland  was  also  burned  to  death  some 
years  since,  and  a  child  of  Spencer  Law- 
rence scalded,  so  as  to  cause  its  death. 

A  number  of  years  ago,  Mr.  Asa  Willis 
had  a  very  remarkable  escape  from  sudden 
death,  while  at  work  on  a  ledge  of  rocks, 
near  where  Daniel  Loveland  resides.  There 
had  been  au  unsuccessful  attempt  made  to 
split  open  a  granite  rock  12  feet  square, 
the  lower  edge  of  which  lay  on  a  large  rock 
15  feet  high.     The  top  of  the  lower  rock 


was  slanting  like  the  roof  of  a  house. 
While  attempting  to  open  the  crevice  al- 
ready commenced  in  the  upper  rock,  suffi- 
cient to  insert  a  blast  of  powder,  the  rock 
split  in  two  nearly  in  the  middle,  Mr. 
Willis  fa*lling  between  the  parts,  and  he 
and  they  sliding  from  the  large  rock  to  the 
ground,  27  feet.  The  two  pieces,  when 
they  reached  the  ground,  stood  in  such  a 
way  that  the  upper  edges  leaned  against 
each  other,  and  the  lower  edges  stood 
apart  so  as  to  leave  a  wedge-shaped  cavity 
large  enough  to  admit  his  body,  and  there 
he  lay.  No  one  was  with  him  but  Mr. 
Joshua  Smith.  On  ascertaining  that  he 
was  alive,  Mr.  Smith  dug  away  the  earth, 
and  succeeded  in  extricating  him  from  his 
perilous  situation.  Neither  he,  nor  the 
physician,  who  was  immediately  called, 
thought  him  much  injured,  and  he  lived  to 
do  a  good  deal  of  hard  work,  and  yet  it  is 
thought  he  never  entirely  recovered  from 
the  eifects  of  the  shock. 

IMPROVEMENTS. 

The  log  hou.ses  of  the  pioneers  soon 
gave  way  to  better  dwellings.  At  the 
present  time  nearly  all  the  houses  in  town 
are  of  modern  style  and  finish,  but  it  is 
the  barns  that  ought  particularly  to  be 
mentioned.  Many  of  them  are  large, 
beautifully  finished  and  painted,  and  not 
surpassed  by  any  in  the  vicinity. 

THE   TOWN   CLERKS 

have  been,  Stephen  Rich  7  years,  George 
Rich  7  years,  Robert  Cristy  g  years,  Mar- 
tin Bullock  16  years,  Jacob  Putnam  19 
years,  Jonathan  Goodwin  2  years,  Samuel 
D.  Hollister  2  years,  and  Andrew  English 
24  years,  from  1849  to  his  death  in  1873  ; 
Geo.  W.  English  2  years,  and  Edgar  L. 
Smith,  elected  in  1875,  now  in  ofiice. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

The  town  was  first  represented  in  the 
Legislature  in  1804,  by  Stephen  Pitkin. 
He  held  this  office  in  all  13  years,  then  by 
George  Rich  3  years,  Wm.  Martin  12 years, 
Josiah  Hollister  2  years,  Alonzo  Foster  2 
years,  Spencer  Lawrence  2  years.  Wel- 
come Cole  2  years,  Horace  Hollister  3 
years,  Ira  Smith  2  years,  Stephen  R.  Hol- 
lister 2  years,  E.  D.  Putnam  2  years.  Hi- 


MARSHFIELD. 


205 


ram  Potter  2  years,  Asa  Spencer  2  years, 
George  A.  Gilman  2  years,  Ingals  Carleton 
2  )-ears,  Samuel  D.  HoUister  2  years,  An- 
drew English  2  years,  Bowman  Martin  2 
years,  C.  W.  H.  Dwinell  2  years,  Wm. 
Martin,  Jr.,  2  years,  and  Preston  Haskins 
2  years.  George  Wooster,  1869-70; 
Moody  Bemis,  1872;  George  Putnam, 
1874;  Levi  W.  Pitkin,  1876;  Marshal  D. 
Perkins,  1878;  Mark  M ears,  1880. 

Town  Treasurer. — George  O.  Davis, 
elected  1870. 

SELECTMEN    FROM    1876. 

EliG.  Pitkin,  1876-77;  H.  P.  Martin, 
1876-78;  J.H.Eaton,  1876;  Willis  Lane, 
1876;  Marcus  R.  Bliss,  1877-78-79;  H. 
H.  Hollister,  1879-80;  Chester  Sawyer, 
1880;  Levi  W.  Pitkin,  Orin  H.  Smith, 
Daniel  Holcomb,  1881. 

TAVERNS. 

Joshua  Pitkin,  Esq.,  raised  the  first 
tavern-sign  Oct.  1805.  He  continued  to 
keep  a  public  house  many  years.  The 
second  tavern  was  opened  by  Charles  Cate, 
where  Erastus  Eddy  now  lives.  Joshua 
Smith  moved  into  town  from  Ashford,Ct., 
in  Dec.  181 1,  bought  out  Mr.  Cate,  and 
commenced  keeping  tavern,  which  he  con- 
tinued 17  years.  He  was  a  kind  neighbor, 
accommodating  to  all,  and  travelers  who 
called  on  him  would  never  forget  the  ex- 
ceeding drollery  of  his  jokes.  He  died  at 
the  age  of  84.  His  wife,  one  of  our  best 
women,  still  lives  (1869)  aged  87. 

Capt.  James  English  opened  a  tavern 
about  the  year  181 1,  where  Obed  Lamber- 
ton  now  resides,  and  kept  a  public  house 
a  number  of  years.  He  was  a  wheelwright 
and  a  highly  respected  citizen ;  removed 
to  what  is  now  the  village;  died  in  1825, 
and  was  buried  with  Masonic  honors. 

Capt.  Jacob  Putnam  bought  out  Capt. 
English  in  1820,  and  kept  a  public  house 
some  years,  and  his  son,  A.  F.  Putnam, 
kept  a  number  of  years  after  at  the  old 
stand,  and  later  at  the  village. 

Dudley  Pitkin  commenced  keeping  a 
tavern  at  the  old  place  occupied  by  his 
father,  about  the  year  1824,  and  for  a  few 
years  continued  the  business. 

Daniel  Wilson  moved  from  Alstead,  N. 


H.,  in  1821,  and  settled  in  the  village.  He 
built  and  run  the  first  carding-machine  in 
town.  He  also  bought  the  place  where 
the  hotel  now  stands,  and  built  there  a 
one-story  plank  house.  The  place  soon 
passed  into  other  hands,  and  in  1826,  was 
bought  by  Eli  Wheelock,  who  put  on  an- 
other story,  and  made  other  additions  to 
the  house,  and  opened  it  as  a  hotel  the 
same  year.  It  has  been  used  for  a  public 
house  till  the  present  time  (1869),  but  so 
many  additions  and  alterations  have  been 
made,  that  it  would  now  be  rather  a  diffi- 
cult matter  to  find  the  original  building. 
The  property  soon  passed  into  other  hands, 
was  purchased  by  Horace  Bliss,  who  re- 
mained in  the  tavern  a  number  of  years ; 
then  sold  to  Lyman  Clark,  who  afterwards 
sold  to  Jabez  L.  Carpenter,  and  it  has  had  a 
number  of  owners  since.  A.  F.  Putnam 
was  proprietor  6  years,  and  sold  to  P. 
Stevens.  The  present  occupant  (1869)  is 
P.  Lee. 

STORES. 

The  first  store  in  town  was  opened  as 
early  as  18 18,  by  Alfred  Pitkin,  son  of 
Joshua  Pitkin,  Esq.,  in  a  one-story  house 
just  opposite  his  father's,  and  just  where 
Wm.  Haskins'  house  stands.  After  a  few 
years  Mr.  Pitkin  removed  to  Plainfield, 
and  later  to  Montpelier.  The  first  store 
in  the  village  was  kept  by  a  Mr.  Kimball. 
He  stayed  here  only  a  short  time. 

Enoch  D.  Putnam  opened  a  store  here, 
Apr.  5,  1840,  and  continued  to  trade  here 
till  March,  1855,  when  he  sold  out  and 
went  to  Cabot,  and  has  recently  removed 
to  Montpelier.  George  Wooster  went  into 
partnership  with  Mr.  Putnam  in  Sept. 
1848.  In  May,  1858,  G.  &  F.  Wooster 
commenced  trade  in  their  starch-factory, 
but  have  since  built  a  large  store,  and  are 
doing  a  good  business. 

A.  F.  Putnam  commenced  trade  in  1866, 
and  IS  also  doing  a  good  business.  Levi 
Bemis  and  some  others  have  also  been  in 
the  mercantile  business  in  our  village,  and 
after  a  time  have  left  for  other  places. 
Geo.  A.  Putnam  is  our  present  merchant 
(1881),  and  Mrs.  Adams  keeps  a  ladies 
store.     A.  F.  Putnam,  postmaster. 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


PHYSICIANS. 

Dr.  Bates  came  here  in  1826.  He  loca- 
ted at  Eli  Wheelock's  hotel;  remained 
but  a  few  months.  In  1827,  Dr.  Hersey 
came  here  to  practice.  He  boarded  at 
Judge  Pitkin's ;  remained  about  a  year. 
About  1828,  Dr.  Daniel  Corliss  settled  in 
our  village,  stayed  a  year  and  removed  to 
Montpelier,  (now  East  Montpelier,  where 
he  died.) 

Dr.  Asa  Phelps  removed  from  Berlin  to 
this  place  in  1831,  and  still  lives  here. 
For  many  years  he  was  the  only  resident 
physician.  He  has  known  as  well  as  any 
other  man,  what  it  was  to  travel  over  our 
hills  on  a  dark  night,  with  the  thermom- 
eter below  zero,  while  the  winds  were 
all  abroad — years  ago.  At  that  time,  we 
had  many  more  poor  people  in  town, 
than  now,  On  such  nights  after  doing  for 
the  sick,  if  he  could  have  lodging  on  the 
floor,  with  his  feet  towards  the  fire,  he 
would  put  up  till  daylight.  He  was  never 
known  after  such  visits  to  complain  of  his 
fare,  indeed  sometimes,  he  had  no  fare  to 
complain  of.  He  has  had  a  large  practice — 
often  without  pay,  never  objecting  to  have 
counsel,  and  if  superseded  by  others,  "he 
kept  the  even  tenor  of  his  way,"  never 
speaking  against  the  practice  of  other 
physicians ;  thus  has  secured  universal 
respect. 

Dr.  Ezra  Paine  moved  here  in  1842,  and 
remained  here  some  2  years. 

Dr.  George  Town  removed  here  from 
Montpelier  in  1852,  but  after  a  few  years, 
sold  out  and  returned  to  Montpelier,  but 
removed  here  again,  and  has  a  good 
practice. 

Dr.  J.  O.  A.  Packer,  homcEopathist,  re- 
moved from  Peacham  here  in  1865.  He 
is  doing  a  good  business. 

LONGEVITY. 

A  few  persons  here  have  attained  to  the 
age  of  90  years.  Dea.  Spencer  died  at 
90;  Mrs.  Capron  overgo;  Mrs.  Cree,  94; 
Mrs.  Austin,  94. 

Mr.  Joel  Parker  and  wife  resided  in  this 
place  a  year  or  two.  Some  few  years  since, 
Mrs.  Parker  had  attained  to  the  great  age 
of  97,  and  on  her  birth-day  sung  two 
hymns  to  a  neighbor  who  called  upon  her. 


Mr.  P.  was  10  years  younger.  They  have 
both  recently  died  in  Northfield,  she  in 
her  looth  year. 

Aged  persons  who  have  died  in  town 
within  2)  or  \  years. — Daniel  Young,  91, 
and  his  wife  Lydia,  85  ;  Sylvester  Love- 
land,  88,  and  his  wife,  84;  Mary  Bemis, 
84;  Samuel  G.  Bent,  81  ;  Ira  Smith,  80; 
Abijah  Bemis,  86;   Willard  Benton,  83. 

Aged  persons  now  living  (1881). — Dr. 
Asa  Phelps,  85  ;  Lucy  Bemis,  86 ;  Sally 
Dwinell,  86;  Mary  York. 

MILLS. 

The  first  saw-mill  in  town  was  built  by 
Stephen  Pitkin,  afterwards  Judge  Pitkin, 
in  1802,  on  Lye  brook.  In  1812,  he  built 
the  first  saw-mill  at  what  is  now  the  village, 
and  a  grist-mill  in  181 8,  which  was  used 
many  years.  The  stone  and  brick  grist- 
mill, now  owned  by  Harrison  F.  Ketchum, 
was  built  in  1 831,  by  Gen.  Parley  Davis 
and  Truman  Pitkin.  About  the  year  1823, 
Simeon  Gage  built  clothing-works  at  the 
south  part  of  the  village,  but  they  were 
used  only  a  few  years. 

LIBRARY. 

There  has  been  for  20  years,  in  this 
place,  a  circulating  library,  of  historical 
works,  travels,  etc. 

CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH. 

BY  MRS.   DEA.  A.   BOYLES. 

The  first  Congregational  church  in 
Marshfield  was  organized  Dec.  24,  1800. 
By  request  of  a  number  of  persons  in 
town,  to  be  embodied  into  a  visible  church 
of  Christ,  Rev.  Mr.  Hobartand  two  breth- 
ren, Mr.  Timothy  Hatch  and  Peterson 
GifTord  of  Berlin,  came  and  organized  a 
church  of  13  members.  Selah  Wells  was 
the  first  deacon,  and  afterwards  Gideon 
Spencer.  For  a  number  of  years  they  had 
additions,  both  by  professions  and  letters, 
and  were  supplied  with  preaching  a  por- 
tion of  the  time  by  ministers  from  the 
neighboring  towns.  Rev.  Mr.  Hobart  of 
Berlin,  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman  of  Brookfield, 
Rev.  Mr.  Wright  of  Montpelier,  Rev. 
Mr.  Worcester  of  Peacham,  and  also  a  Mr. 
Washburn  and  Mr.  Bliss,  were  among 
those  who  occasionally  ministered  to  them. 
About  the  year  18 17,  Rev.  Levi  Parsons, 


MARSHFIELD. 


207 


afterwards  missionary  to  Palestine,  was 
here,  and  preached  a  number  of  times. 
But  they  never  enjoyed  the  blessing  of  a 
settled  minister.  Thus  they  continued  till 
Dec.  8,  1825,  when  with  the  hope  that 
they  should  enjoy  better  privileges,  those 
members  residing  at  the  south  part  of  the 
town,  united  with  the  church  in  Plainfield. 
The  rest  of  the  members,  and  a  number 
of  other  persons  who  wished  to  unite  with 
a  Congregational  church,  thought  best  to 
form  a  church  at  the  north  part  of  the  town, 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  village,  and  by  re- 
quest, Rev.  Mr.  French  of  Barre,  and 
Rev.  Mr.  Heard  of  Plainfield,  came  and 
organized  a  church,  which  still  remains. 
Brothers  Andrew  Currier  and  Alexander 
Boyles,  were  chosen  deacons.  It  has  been 
supplied  with  preaching  a  part  of  the  time. 
Among  those  who  have  labored  here  are 
Rev.  Messrs.  Kinney,  Baxter,  Herrick, 
Ton-ey,  Waterman,  Samuel  Marsh,  and 
Lane.  Rev.  Joseph  Marsh  labored  here 
nearly  2  years.  Through  the  summer  of 
1868,  Rev.  Mr.  Winch,  of  Plainfield, 
preached  at  5  o'clock  every  other  Sabbath. 
There  have  been  many  removals  and  the 
present  number  of  church  members  is 
small . 

Record  from  iS6g  ^0  Aug.  3,  iZji,  by 
Rev.  TV.  F.  CoblcigJi,  pastor,  thett. — For 
several  years  there  had  been  but  little  Con- 
gregational preaching  in  Marshfield,  when 
in  the  spring  of  1870,  Rev.  J.  T.  Graves 
preached  half  of  the  time  for  6  weeks. 
Soon  after.  Rev.  N.  F.  Cobleigh  was  en- 
gaged to  preach  half  of  the  time  for  i  year. 
The  church  had  no  church  property,  but 
in  the  spring  of  187 1,  a  new  church  was 
begun,  a  Sabbath  school  organized,  and  a 
library  obtained.  The  church  will  be  ded- 
icated Aug.  16,  1871.  The  membership 
has  more  than  doubled  during  the  past 
year.  Preaching  services  are  now  held 
every  Sabbath.  Rev.  N.  F.  Cobleigh  is 
to  be  settled  as  pastor  Aug.  i6th  inst. 

Record  from  Ai/g.  1877,  to  i^7<),  from 
Rev.  Geo.  E.  Forbes. — From  this  time  to 
the  spring  of  1877,  Rev.  Mr.  Cobleigh 
was  its  pastor,  and  through  his  faithful  ef- 
forts its  membership  was  very  largely  in- 


creased. Of  the.  57  who  composed  the 
church  when  Mr.  Cobleigh  resigned,  only 
9  were  members  in  1870.  Aug.  16,  the 
church  was  dedicated  and  the  pastor  in- 
stalled. After  Mr.  Cobleigh's  resignation 
in  1877,  Rev.  John  Stone,  of  Berlin,  sup- 
plied until  early  in  1878,  when  Rev.  Paul 
Henry  Pitkin,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  was 
called  to  be  its  pastor.  He  was  installed 
March  14;  is  its  present  pastor  (1879.) 
Alexander  Boyles,  elected  deacon  in  Aug. 
1827,  held  office  till  his  death,  Nov.  27, 
1876.  The  other  deacons  have  been  An- 
drew Currier,  Silas  Carleton,  Benjamin 
Boyles  and  Mervin  Roberts. 

CHRISTIAN   CHURCHES. 

BV  MISS  A.  BULLOCK. 

About  the  year  18 15,  Elder  John  Capron 
commenced  preaching  in  this  town,  and 
soon  after  removed  his  family  here  from 
Danville.  There  was  a  revival  of  religion, 
and  a  church  was  organized  about  this 
time.  They  believed  the  Scriptures,  to- 
gether with  the  spirit  of  God,  a  sufficient 
rule  of  faith  and  practice.  They  were 
blessed  with  more  or  less  prosperity  till 
1825,  when  some  of  them  considered  some 
articles  setting  forth  their  faith  and  cove- 
nant, as  necessary  and  proper  for  a  Chris- 
tian church.  This  caused  a  division,  but 
finally  there  was  a  reorganization  under 
the  pastoral  care  of  Elder  Capron,  Dec. 
15,  1836,  the  two  blending  together  again. 
Between  this  time  and  March  5,  1844, 
44  persons  united  with  this  church,  a  part 
living  in  Calais,  and  a  part  in  Marshfield. 
Among  this  number  there  were  many  of 
whom  we  believed  "their  record  is  on 
high."  Elder  Capron  had  but  little  edu- 
cational advantages,  was  of  warm  and 
energetic  temperament,  and  many  remem- 
ber him  justly,  as  a  friend  and  brother  in 
adversity.  He  moved  from  this  town 
some  time  after  the  death  of  his  excellent 
wife,  who  was  kind  to  all  and  ever  had  a 
word  for  the  afflicted.  She  died  June  14, 
1848,  and  was  buried  in  our  soil,  and  her 
memory  still  clings  to  our  hearts.  Elder 
Capron  being  the  first  settled  minister  in 
town,  was  entitled  to,  and  received  the 
town's  minister  lot  of  land.   He  removed  to 


208 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Stowe.  [See  history  of  Morristown.  Ed.] 
He  was  married  a  second  time,  and  died 
some  years  since. 

About  the  year  1839,  there  was  another 
church  of  the  Christian  denomination  or- 
ganized in  the  North-west  partof  the  town, 
under  the  direction  of  Elder  Jared  L.  Green. 
This  church  was  subjected  to  very  hard 
and  severe  trials.  Many  of  its  members 
sleep  in  the  dust,  some  are  scattered  to 
other  parts,  while  others  are  living  and 
striving  for  the  better  land. 

ADVENT  CHURCH. 

Feb.  6,  1867,  another  church  was  organ- 
ized here  of  6  members,  believing  in  the 
advent  of  Christ  near  at  hand,  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  Rev.  J.  A.  Cleaveland. 

BAPTIST   CHURCH. 

From  the  early  settlement  of  the  town 
there  have  been  residents  here  who  have 
maintained  the  views  of  the  Baptist  church. 
More  than  30  years  ago  a  church  of  this 
denomination  was  organized,  consisting  of 
members  in  Barre,  Plainfield  and  Marsh- 
field.  The  larger  number  resided  in  Barre 
and  Plainfield,  and  this  church  will  prob- 
ably be  mentioned  in  the  history  of  one  of 
those  towns.  [Barre  has  left  it,  we  think, 
to  Plainfield.— Ed.] 

UNIVERSALIST   SOCIETY. 
BY  I;EV.  a.  SCOTT. 

Universalism  was  introduced  into  this 
town  by  Daniel  Bemis,  a  Revolutionary 
soldier,  who  moved  here  from  Conn,  in 
1809.  Soon  after  Ebenezer  Dodge,  Jr., 
and  Robert  Spencer  became  associated 
with  Mr.  B.  in  religious  faith.  The  first 
preacher  of  this  faith  here  was  Rev.  Wm. 
Farewell,  in  1818.  From  this  time  there 
was  occasional  Universalist  preaching  here 
till  1854,  by  Revs.  L.H.  Tabor,  Benjamin 
Page,  Lester  Warren,  and  it  may  be  some 
others. 

In  1854,  Daniel  Bemis,  Junior,  Edwin 
Pitkin,  Jonathan  Goodwin,  Abijah  Hall 
and  others  united  and  secured  the  services 
of  Rev.  Wm.  Sias  for  one-fourth  of  the 
Sabbaths  for  this  and  the  next  year. 
During  1855,  the  friends  organized,  under 
the  name  of  "The  Universalist  Society  of 
Liberal   Christians  in   Marshfield."     The 


society  for  the  year  1856  and  '7.  enjoyed 
the  labors  of  Rev.  Eli  Ballou  for  one- 
fourth  the  Sabbaths. 

In  1827,  an  association  was  formed 
called  "The  Union  meeting-house  soci- 
ety," for  building  and  keeping  in  repair  a 
church  they  erected  in  the  village  in  the 
north  part  of  the  town ;  the  only  church 
edifice  in  town  till  1859.  [In  1831,  when 
the  first  list  of  shares  prepared  apportion- 
ing the  time  to  the  several  denominations, 
the  Universalists  were  represented  by  four 
shares,  owned  by  Sam'l.  Ainsworth,  Daniel 
Bemis,  Jr.,  and  Cyrus  Smith.]  In  1857, 
this  association  repaired  and  modernized 
the  church,  making  it  neat  and  pleasant, 
both  external  and  internal.  Some  of  the 
other  societies,  desiring  more  room  at  this 
time,  relinquished  their  interest  in  the 
church.  The  property  being  sold  to  pay 
the  assessment  upon  it,  it  fell  into  different 
hands,  and  at  the  present  writing,  1869, 
three-fourths  of  the  occupancy  is  given  to 
the  Universalist  society.  This  change  in 
the  occupancy  of  the  house  gave  a  new  im- 
petus to  the  cause  in  the  town.  This  so- 
ciety has  since  sustained  public  worship 
one-half  of  the  Sabbaths,  excepting  1866 
and  '7,  during  which  they  sustained  it  every 
Sabbath.  These  years  were  supplied  as 
follows  :  1858  and  ''9,  by  Rev.  Eli  Ballou  ; 
i860.  Rev.  M.  B.  Newell ;  1861,  '2  and  '3, 
by  Rev.  E.  Ballou;  1864, byRev.  Olympia 
Brown;  1865,  by  Rev.  L.  Warren;  1866, 
7  and  '8,  by  Rev.  A.  Scott.  Revs.  New- 
ell, Brown  and  Scott  lived  in  the  town 
during  their  ministrations.  The  society 
was  united,  and  at  the  present  time,  1869, 
is  in  as  good,  if  not  better,  condition  than 
at  any  former  period,  having  raised  more 
money  for  the  support  of  worship  one-half 
of  the  Sabbaths,  than  it  had  ever  before 
done.  Rev.  L.  Warren  is  to  labor  with  it 
from  May  i,  1869.  Connected  with  the 
society  and  congregation  are  some  40  fam- 
ilies, beside  many  single  individuals  of 
other  families.  There  is  also  a  small  Sab- 
bath-school, for  the  use  of  which  there  is 
a  reading  library  of  150  vols.  The  church 
property  is  worth  from  $3,000  to  $3,500, 
f  of  which  is  given  to  the  occupancy  of 
the  society. 


MARSHFIELD. 


209 


From  paper  of  Rev.  Geo.  E.  Forbes  m 
1879 — Universalist  record  continued. — In 
1869,  Rev.  Lester  Warren  was  engaged  to 
preach  one-half  of  the  time  till  the  spring 
of  1873.  In  July  of  this  year,  Rev.  Geo. 
E.  Forbes  was  settled  over  the  society. 
For  2  years  the  Plainfield  society  united 
with  this  for  his  support.  The  remainder 
of  the  time  he  has  preached  for  this  so- 
ciety exclusively,  and  is  its  present  pastor. 

The  Union  Sabbath-school,  composed 
of  scholars  from  the  different  denomina- 
tions occupying  the  church,  was  continued 
until  1871.  Since  that  time  the  Sabbath- 
school  here  has  been  connected  with  this 
society ;  present  number,  about  90,  officers 
and  pupils.  A.  H.  Davis  was  its  super- 
intendent in  1871  to  '''j^,  when  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  C.  H.  Newton.  Under  the 
ministry  of  Rev.  L.  Warren  in  187 1,  a 
church  was  organized,  which  at  present 
numbers  43  members.  John  E.  Eddyand 
Abial  H.  Davis  were  elected  deacons,  and 
still  hold  the  office.  Ira  H.  Edson  was  the 
first  church  clerk,  succeeded  by  D.  R. 
Loveland  and  C.  H.  Newton,  present 
clerk. 

METHODIST   CHURCH    IN   MARSHFIELD. 

In  May,  1826,  Stephen  Pitkin,  Jr.,  mar- 
ried the  writer,  a  daughter  of  Gen.  Parley 
Davis,  of  Montpelier.  A  few  months  be- 
fore she  had  been  baptized  by  Rev.  Wil- 
bur Fisk,  and  united  with  theM.  E.  church 
on  probation.  Previous  to  their  marriage 
Mr.  Pitkin  had  also  experienced  religion. 
In  Jan.  1827,  there  being  no  Methodists  in 
Marshfield  at  that  time,  they  both  united 
with  the  Methodist  church  in  Cabot ;  he 
as  a  prqbationer,  being  baptized  by  Rev. 
A.  D.  Sargeant,  of  the  N.  E.  Conference, 
and  she,  by  letter,  in  full  connection.  In 
1827,  the  union  meeting-house  was  built 
at  Marshfield,  and  a  committee  appointed 
to  divide  the  time  for  occupying  the  house 
between  the  different  denominations  own- 
ing it.  A  few  Sabbaths  were  set  to  the 
Methodists,  though  Mr.  Pitkin  was  the 
only  Methodist  pew-holder.  Rev.  N.  W. 
Aspinwall,  preacher  in  charge  at  Cabot, 
appointed  and  attended  meetings  here  on 
these   Sabbaths  alternately  with  his  col- 


league. Rev.  Elisha  J.  Scott.  In  Feb. 
1828,  the  first  quarterly  meeting  was  held, 
weather  stormy.  The  meeting  commenced 
Saturday,  p.  m.  Several  ministers  and  one 
minister's  wife  were  in  attendance,  and  all 
were  entertained  at  our  own  house — a 
small  frame-house,  never  encumbered  with 
clapboards. 

The  next  year  Sophronia  and  Sally  Cate 
were  baptized  by  Rev.  Hershal  Foster — 
the  former  now  Mrs.  Guernsey,  of  Mont- 
pelier. These  two,  with  Mr.  Pitkin  and 
myself,  and  a  Mrs.  Whittle,  constituted 
the  first  Methodist  class  in  Marshfield,  or- 
ganized in  the  autumn  of  1829,  Mr.  Pitkin 
class-leader  and  steward.  What  seasons 
of  interest  were  the  class-meetings  and 
prayer-meetings  of  those  days !  The  next 
to  join  were  Samuel  G.  Bent  and  wife. 
Our  numbers  increased  very  gradually ; 
at  most,  we  occupied  the  church  only  \ 
the  Sabbaths.  Rev.  Solomon  Sias,  Rev. 
Stephen  H.  Cutler,  Rev.  E.  J.  Scott,  and 
others,  spoke  to  us  the  words  of  life.  About 
1834,  the  first  wife  of  Andrew  English, 
Esq.,  proposed  to  the  writer,  we  should 
get  the  children  of  the  neighborhood  to- 
gether for  a  Sabbath-school.  As  we  had 
preaching  at  the  church  so  little,  we  met 
at  our  homes  alternately,  at  5  o'clock. 
This  we  did  many  months,  till  we  had  a 
good-sized  school,  when  it  was  proposed 
to  take  our  Sabbath-school  to  the  church, 
where  it  was  duly  organized,  Jeremiah 
Carleton,  Esq.,  first  superintendent.  A 
library  was  procured,  and  the  school  pros- 
pered. It  was  strictly  a  union  Sabbath- 
school.  The  desk  was  supplied  by  minis- 
ters of  different  denominations,  and  our 
Sabbath-school  went  on.  For  a  number 
of  years  the  Methodists  were  supplied  with 
preaching  \  the  time,  by  preachers  who 
lived  in  Cabot.  After  that,  we  were  united 
with  Woodbury  and  Calais,  and  supplied 
in  that  way.  A  few  united  with  the  little 
band  from  year  to  year,  but  deaths  and  re- 
movals kept  our  number  small.  Some  of 
these  death-bed  scenes  were,  however,  re- 
markably happy.  Especially  was  this  the 
case  in  the  death  of  Loammi  Sprague. 

The  first  preacher  sent  here  by  Confer- 
ence was  Rev.  David  Packer,  who  died  a 


27 


210 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


few  years  since  in  Chelsea,  Mass.  He  re- 
sided on  East  Hill,  in  Calais. 

At  this  time  preachers  received  but  a 
very  small  salary,  and  the  members  were 
often  scattering  and  poor.  After  being  in 
Calais  a  few  weeks,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Packer 
one  morning  ate  their  last  food.  Almost 
an  entire  stranger,  Mr.  Packer  did  not  feel 
that  he  could  beg.  After  uniting  in  fam- 
ily prayer,  he  retired  to  an  old  barn  on  the 
place,  while  she  sought  her  closet,  and 
each  alone  committed  their  case  to  the 
father  of  the  stranger  and  the  poor. 

A  mile  away  from  them  lived  a  young 
farmer,  not  a  professor  of  religion.  As  he 
started  after  breakfast  for  the  hay-field  with 
his  hired  help,  something  seemed  to  impel 
him  to  stop.  He  must  go  back  to  the 
house  and  carry  some  provisions  to  the 
new  minister.  It  was  of  no  use  to  say, 
"I'm  not  acquainted  with  them,  I  know 
nothing  of  their  needs,"  he  must  take 
them  some  food.  He  told  the  men  they 
might  go  to  mowing,  he  must  go  back. 
He  went  back,  told  his  wife  his  feelings, 
and  they  together  put  up  meat,  potatoes, 
flour,  butter  and  sugar,  and  other  things, 
a  fair  wagon  load,  and  he  took  it  over, 
and  found  how  blessed  it  was  to  give,  and 
they,  how  safe  to  trust  in  God. 

Slowly  did  the  little  church  increase, 
never  having  preaching  more  than  one- 
fourth  of  the  time  for  many  years. 

In  1 85 1,  the  Congregationalists  and 
Methodists  agreed  to  unite  and  support 
preaching.  First  for  2  years  they  would 
have  Congregational  preaching,  and  then 
Methodist  for  the  next  2.  Rev.  Mr.  Marsh, 
Congregational,  was  our  first  minister, 
and  at  the  close  of  the  two  years  Rev. 
Lewis  P.  Cushman  was  appointed  by  Con- 
ference, and  spent  2  years  with  us.  In 
those  years  a  number  were  added  to  the 
church.  Mr.  Cushman  is  now  a  mission- 
ary in  Texas ;  his  little  daughter,  Clara, 
so  well  remembered  by  us,  started  last 
October  as  a  missionary  to  China. 

Before  the  close  of  Mr.  Cushman's  first 
year  Mr.  Pitkin  died,  and  as  he  had  been 
very  influential  in  procuring  and  sustain- 
ing preaching,  and  there  was  no  one  to 
then  take  his  place,  the  effort  was  now  aban- 


doned, and  for  a  number  of  years  we  had 
no  stated  preaching.  At  length,  in  1859, 
a  few  concluded  to  make  one  more  eff'ort, 
and  Rev.  Joshua  Gill  was  stationed  with 
us.  The  Union  church  had  passed  mostly 
into  the  hands  of  the  Universalists,  and 
we  had  no  preaching  place.  We  needed  a 
church,  and  one  was  put  up  and  covered 
in  '59,  and  finished  in  i860.  The  house 
was  the  right  size,  well  furnished.  Our 
next  minister  was  Rev.  Geo.  H.  Bickford, 
an  excellent  preacher,  and  one  of  the  best 
of  men.  He  died  some  years  later  at 
Barton.  His  last  words,  his  hand  upon 
his  breast,  closing  his  eyes,  that  grand  old 
doxology,  the  gloria,  "Glory  be  to  the 
Father,  the  Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost." 
Rev.  C.  S.  Buswell  came  next  2  years. 
Rev.  James  Robinson  was  stationed  here 
in  1865,  Rev.  Joseph  Hamilton  in  1867; 
both  years  we  had  some  additions.  In 
1869,  Rev.  James  Spinney  was  appointed 
here.     No.  of  vols,  in  S.  S.  library,  450. 

In  1871,  Rev.  J.  Hamilton  was  with  us 
again,  and  stayed  one  year.  In  1872, 
Conference  made  Rev.  C.  P.  Flanders  our 
pastor,  succeeded  in  1874,  by  Rev.  C.  A. 
Smith,  who  was  with  us  3  years,  followed 
by  Rev.  G.  H.  Hastings  in  1877,  in  1879 
by  Rev.  O.  A.  Farley,  and  in  1881  by  Rev. 
C.  H.  Farnsworth,  our  present  pastor. 
Our  members  have  gradually  increased ; 
our  present  number  is  "]■}). 

In  the  spring  of  1870,  we  bought  of 
Bemis  Pike  a  good  house  and  garden  for  a 
parsonage;  cost,  $1,800. 

Feb.  3,  1878,  our  church  was  burned. 
The  society  had  just  put  down  a  new  car- 
pet, and  a  new  organ  and  new  lamps  had 
been  purchased,  which,  together  with  our 
large  Sabbath-school  library,  was  all  con- 
sumed, and  no  insurance.  What  a  loss  for 
us !  But  after  mature  deliberation  we  de- 
cided to  rebuild.  The  Church  Extension 
Society  gave  us  $200,  Rev.  A.  L.  Cooper 
$50,  and  a  few  other  friends  smaller  sums. 
January  16,  1879,  our  new  church  was 
dedicated,  sermon  by  Rev.  A.  L.  Cooper. 
The  church  is  built  in  the  Norman  Gothic 
style  of  architecture,  nicely  finished  and 
furnished  throughout,  warmed  from  the 
vestry  beneath,  and  free  from  debt. 


MARSHFIELD. 


Since  we  have  had  a  church  of  our  own, 
our  Sabbath-school  has  been  prosperous, 
and  never  more  so  than  at  the  present  time. 
It  is  large,  numbering  over  80.  The  pres- 
ent superintendent  is  J.  B.  Pike. 

STEPHEN   PITKIN, 

whose  history  is  so  interwoven  with  early 
Methodism  in  Marshfield,  was  very  un- 
assuming in  his  manners,  and  very  strong 
in  his  temperance  and  anti-slavery  prin- 
ciples. He  belonged  to  the  old  Liberty 
party  when  in  this  town ;  their  caucuses 
were  opened  with  prayer.  He  had  a  great 
aversion  to  pretension.  He  once  lent  his 
sleigh  and  harness  to  a  man  calling  him- 
self John  Cotton,  to  go  to  Barnet,  to  be 
gone  three  days.  Cotton  was  quite  a 
stranger,  having  been  in  our  place  but  6 
weeks,  during  which  he  had  boarded  with 
my  husband's  brother,  working  for  him  a 
part  of  the  time,  and  the  rest  of  the  time 
selling  clocks  he  had  purchased  of  a  Mr. 
Bradford,  in  Barre.  Four  days  went  by. 
On  inquiry,  Mr.  Pitkin  found  that  tire 
clocks  had  been  purchased  on  trust,  and 
all  sold  for  watches  or  money ;  that  he 
owed  $60  toward  his  horse,  and  that  he 
had  borrowed  of  the  brother  with  whom 
he  boarded,  horse-blanket,  whip  and  mit- 
tens. It  seemed  sure  he  was  a  rogue. 
What  could  be  done?  Pursuit  was  use- 
less after  such  a  lapse  of  time.  Mr.  P. 
felt  his  loss  severely ;  he  had  little  prop- 
erty then,  and  what  he  had,  was  the  product 
of  hard  labor ;  but  he  always  made  his 
business  a  subject  of  prayer.  About  3 
weeks  passed  away.  One  evening,  having 
been  out  some  time,  he  came  in,  and  with 
his  characteristic  calmness,  said,  "H — ,  I 
shall  not  worry  any  more  about  my  sleigh 
and  harness ;  I  think  I  shall  get  them  again." 
"  Why  do  you  think  so  ? "  said  I.  His  an- 
swer was,  "I  have  been  praying  God  to 
arrest  Cotton's  conscience,  so  that  he  will 
be  obliged  to  leave  them  where  I  can  get 
them,  and  I  believe. he  will  do  it,"  and 
from  this  time,  Wednesday  evening,  he 
seemed  at  rest  on  the  subject.  The  next 
Tuesday  morning,  as  he  stepped  into  the 
post-office,  a  letter  was  handed  him  from 
Littleton,  N.  H.,  written  by  the  keeper  of 
a  public  house  there  : 


Mr.  Pitkin — Sir : — Mr.  John  Cotton  has 

left  your  sleigh  and  harness  here,  and  you 
can  have  them  by  calling  for  them. 

Yours,  &c.,        John  Newton. 

He  started  for  Littleton  the  same  day, 
some  40  miles,  found  the  sleigh  and  har- 
ness safe,  with  no  encumbrance.  The 
landlord  said  the  Wednesday  night  pre- 
vious, at  12  o'clock,  a  man  calling  himself 
John  Cotton  came  to  his  house,  calling  for 
horse-baiting  and  supper.  He  would  not 
stay  till  morning,  but  wished  to  leave  the 
sleigh  and  harness  for  Mr.  Pitkin,  of 
Marshfield,  Vt.  He  also  requested  the 
landlord  to  write  to  Mr.  Pitkin,  and  said 
he  could  not  write,  and  that  he  took  them 
for  Mr.  Pitkin  on  a  poor  debt,  and  started 
oif  at  2  o'clock  at  night,  on  horseback, 
with  an  old  pair  of  saddle-bags  and  a 
horse-blanket  on  a  saddle  with  one  stirrup, 
and  no  crupper,  on  one  of  the  coldest 
nights  of  that  winter.  None  of  the  other 
men  to  whom  he  was  indebted  received 
anything  from  him,  or  ever  heard  from  him 
after. 

[This  brief  sketch  of  this  so  worthy  man 
cannot  be  better  completed  than  by  the 
following  lines  we  have  in  our  possession, 
which  were  written  by  Mrs.  Pitkin  after  his 
death :] 

"I  have  loved  tliee  on  Earth, 
May  I  meet  thee  in  Heaven!  " 

Thrice,  since  tliey.Iaid  liim  with  the  dead. 
Have  Autumn's  goldeu  slieaves  been  laded. 

Thrice  have  the  spring-birds  come  and  flown. 
And  thrice  the  flowrets  bloomed  and  faded. 

Yet,  yet  the  far-off  birds  returning, 

The  harvest  sunset  gilded  o'er, 
The  flowrets  springing,  blooming,  fading, 

But  whisper,  "  he  will  come  no  moi-e." 

That  hymn  of  praise,  that  voice  in  prayer. 

On  memory's  zephyrs  back  to  me, 
Thrilling  my  inmost  soul,  they  come 

Like  midnight  music  on  the  sea. 

In  these  dear  haunts,  besiile  this  hearth. 
There  is  for  me  no  answering  tone. 

We  knelt  together  by  her  grave, 
I  weep  and  pray  by  theirs  alone! 

Oh,  "  pure  in  heart,"  in  purpose  firm. 

To  nic  be  thy  meek  mantle  given ; 
One  faith,  one  hope  was  ours  on  earth, 

God  grant  us  one  bless'd  home  in  Heaven. 

In  the  winter  of  1866,  a  lodge  of  Good 
Templars  was  organized  here.  Good  has 
been  accomplished,  and  it  is  hoped  much 
more  may  yet  be  done.  The  present  num- 
ber of  members  is  10 1. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


DEA.  GIDEON  SPENCER 

Came  first  to  Marshfield  from  East  Hart- 
ford, Conn.,  in  company  with  Caleb  and 
Martin  Pitkin  in  the  spring  of  1792.  That 
summer  and  the  next  they  worked  clear- 
ing land,  and  preparing  for  the  coming  of 
their  families,  returning  for  them  in  the 
fall.  February,  1794,  Mr.  Spencer,  Caleb 
Pitkin  and  Aaron  Elmer  removed  their 
families  to  this  wilderness,  and  commenced 
the  settlement  of  Marshfield.  From  Mont- 
pelier  they  came  with  hand-sleds  without 
roads  over  snow  4  feet  deep.  Daniel,  old- 
est child  of  the  Spencer  family,  was  4  years 
old.  This  family  had  the  first  daughter, 
born  in  town,  and  their  son,  Horace,  was 
born  the  day  the  town  was  organized. 
Their  location  was  a  mile  from  either  of 
the  other  settlers.  So  neighborly  were  the 
bears,  Mr.  Spencer  found  it  necessary  to 
take  his  gun  when  going  after  his  cow, 
which  had  the  whole  forest  for  pasture. 

He  was  chosen  deacon  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church,  soon  after  its  organization  ; 
was  active  in  sustaining  meeting,  and  at- 
tained the  great  age  of  90  years.  His 
wife,  a  daughter  of  Capt.  Isaac  Marsh,  a 
woman  of  energetic  and  social  habits,  died 
at  the  age  of  86. 

CALEB   PITKIN 

married  Hannah,  daughter  of  Capt.  Isaac 
Marsh,  and  came  first  to  Marshfield  as  a 
surveyor.  He  was  rather  retiring  in  his 
manners,  but  had  a  vein  of  pleasantry 
which  made  him  agreeable  company, 
and  he  had  a  good  education  for  the 
.times.  He  was  a  good  reader,  and  often 
when  no  minister  was  present,  read  the 
Sunday  sermon.  His  trade  was  a  mason, 
and  the  original  stone-chimneys  of  the 
first  dwellings  were  laid  by  him.  His 
wife  was  social,  and  a  worker.  He  re- 
moved to  Peacham  a  few  years  before  his 
death,  Apr.  1813,  at  the  age  of  40.  His 
widow  returned  to  Marshfield,  and  lived 
some  years  after  the  decease  of  her  hus- 
band. The  oldest  son,  James,  still  lives 
on  the  old  place.  One  son,  a  physician, 
has  deceased,  and  a  daughter  lives  in 
Burlington. 


JOSHUA   PITKIN,    ESQ., 

born  in  East  Hartford,  Conn.,  arrived 
with  his  wife  and  three  children  in  Marsh- 
field on  the  1st  of  Mar.,  1795,  and  located 
where  Wm.  Haskins  now  lives.  Not  a 
tree  was  felled  on  the  lot,  excepting  what 
had  been  felled  by  hunters  in  trapping 
for  furs ;  but  he  went  to  work  and  soon 
had  a  spot  cleared,  a  log-house  up  and 
ready  to  occupy.  He  raised  a  large  family, 
and  resided  on  the  same  place  till  his 
death.  He  kept  the  first  public  house  in 
town,  and  was  the  first  justice  of  peace. 
He  and  his  exemplary  wife  united  with  the 
Congregational  church.  She  died  about 
182 1,  and  he  married  again.  He  com- 
menced a  journal  of  his  life  and  busi- 
ness Mar.  28,  1796.  The  last  record  is 
dated  June  10,  1847.  He  died  June  25, 
1847.  His  last  words  were,  "  I  know  that 
my  Redeemer  liveth,"  etc.  Dea.  Pitkin 
of  Montpelier,  his  second  son,  kept  the 
first  store  in  town.  None  of  his  descend- 
ants remain  in  Marshfield. 

HON.    STEPHEN   PITKIN 

came  with  his  wife  into  this  town  March  i, 
1795.  He  had  a  large  farm,  pleasantly 
located,  where  Bowman  Martin  now  re- 
sides. He  was  very  well  educated  for  the 
times,  and  possessed  of  a  strong  mind, 
and  great  energy.  His  keen  eye,  and 
commanding  look  gave  evidence  he  was 
one  to  lead  others,  rather  than  one  to  be 
led.  His  influence  was  great  in  the  busi- 
ness transactions  of  the  town.  He  was 
the  first  town  representative ;  held  the 
office  in  all,  13  years;  was  first  militia 
captain,  eventually  became  a  major,  and 
was  assistant  county  judge  4  years. 

He  was  considerate  of  the  poor,  and  the 
writer  is  informed  by  his  nephew,  James 
Pitkin,  Esq.,  that  in  the  cold  season  of 
i8i6and'i7,  when  almost  no  provisions 
were  raised,  he  bought  salmon  at  Mont- 
pelier by  the  barrel,  when  he  had  to  be 
trusted  for  it  himself,  and  sold  it  out  to 
those  in  need,  taking  his  pay  when  they 
could  work  for  it.  He  continued  to  reside 
on  the  same  farm  till  his  death,  which  took 
place  May  22,  1834,  age  62.  He  raised  a 
family  of  13  children,   12  of  his  own,  one 


MARSHFIELD. 


213 


dying  in  infancy,  and  one,  the  motherless 
babe  of  his  brother,  Levi,  he  and  his  ex- 
cellent wife  adopted  and  brought  up  as 
their  own.  His  oldest  son,  Horace,  set- 
tled in  town,  but  after  a  few  years,  re- 
moved to  Central  Ohio,  where  he  recently 
died.  His  second  son,  Edwin,  an  enter- 
prising citizen,  settled  in  town,  raised  a 
large  and  intelligent  family,  was  consider- 
ably in  town  business, — and  was  for  many 
years  the  principal  surveyor  in  the  vicinity. 
He  died  a  few  years  since.  His  third  son, 
Truman,  settled  in  Marshfield  first,  sub- 
sequently in  Montpelier,  where  he  died, 
leaving  3  sons  and  one  daughter.  One  of 
his  sons.  Gen.  P.  P.  Pitkin,  resides  in 
Montpelier,  and  the  other  two  at  the  West. 
His  4th  son,  Stephen  Pitkin,  Jr.,  will  be 
particularly  mentioned  in  another  place  in 
this  history.  The  two  youngest  sons  went 
West,  where  one  died  a  number  of  years 
since.  Three  daughters  still  live,  one  in 
Iowa,  and  two  in  Massachusetts. 

CAPT.    STEPHEN   RICH, 

born  in  Sutton,  Mass.,  at  15  became  a 
soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  war,  as  a  sub- 
stitute for  his  father.  He  was  at  the  taking 
of  Burgoyne,  and  in  a  number  of  other 
battles.  He  came  to  Marshfield  in  Feb. 
1798,  and  settled  where  his  grandson 
Samuel  D.  Hollister  now  resides.  He 
was  the  first  selectman  of  Marshfield  and 
first  town  clerk;  held  the  ofl!ice  7  years. 
His  only  son  George,  was  also  town  clerk 
7  years.  He  removed  to  Montpelier, 
where  he  died.  Capt.  Rich  filled  various 
town  offices,  and  was  an  esteemed  citizen. 
He  accumulated  a  large  property,  and  had, 
besides  the  son  mentioned,  a  family  of 
five  daughters.  He  resided  where  he  first 
settled  till  his  death,  at  the  age  of  83.  His 
wife,  a  woman  of  uncommon  energy,  sur- 
vived some  years  after  his  decease. 

CAPT.   JOSIAH    HOLLISTER. 

Corn  in  E.  Hartford, Ct., came  to  Marsh- 
field about  the  year  1806.  He  married 
Phebe,  daughter  of  Capt.  Stephen  Rich, 
in  1809.  He  acquired  a  large  property, 
was  respected  by  his  townsmen,  and  had  a 
fair  share  of  town  offices.  He  represented 
the  town  in  the  legislature  of  the  State  2 


years,  and  was  chosen  captain  of  a  com- 
pany of  cavalry.     He  died  at  the  age  of  52. 

HON.    HORACE   HOLLISTER. 

Born  in  E.  Hartford,  Ct.,in  1791  ;  when 
a  young  man  came  to  Marshfielcl,  and  re- 
sided one  year  with  his  brother  Josiah, 
and  then  returned  to  Ct. ;  was  married  to 
Ruth  P.,  daughter  of  Capt.  Stephen  Rich, 
and  moved  to  Colebrook,  N.  H.,  first  in 
1817,  and  to  Marshfield  in  1821.  Like  his 
brother,  he  was  very  successful,  shared 
largely  in  the  confidence  of  the  people, 
and  was  very  much  in  public  business. 
He  was  a  man  who  had  an  opinion  of  his 
own,  and  dared  express  it.  He  was  elect- 
ed to  most  of  the  town  offices ;  was  over- 
seer of  the  poor  many  years  ;  also,  assistant 
judge  2  years,  and  senator  2  years.  He 
died  recently,  aged  76. 

HON.    WILLIAM   MARTIN. 

BY   MRS.   SOLOMON   WELLS,   OF  PLAINFIELD. 

Among  the  early  settlers  of  Marshfield, 
was  Wm.  Martin,  born  in  Francistown, 
N.  H.,  July  28,  1786.  In  1800,  his  father 
and  family  moved  to  the  frontiers  of  Ver- 
mont. William  worked  out  mostly  till  21, 
to  help  support  his  father's  family.  He 
worked  at  South  Boston  a  part  of  the  time, 
and  on  the  first  canal  that  was  built  at 
Cambridge,  and  went  to  Canada,  owing  to 
the  scarcity  of  money  in  Vermont,  and 
worked.  He  had  no  education  except 
what  he  picked  up,  without  attending 
school.  At  18,  he  enlisted  in  a  company 
of  cavalry  ;  was  chosen  at  once  an  officer, 
and  rose  from  one  grade  of  office  to  an- 
other to  colonel.  At  the  time  of  Presi- 
dent Monroe's  visit  to  Vermont,  he  com-* 
manded  the  company  that  escorted  him 
into  Montpelier,  and  took  dinner  with  the 
President.  He  continued  in  the  militia, 
was  in  the  war  of  18 12,  and  at  the  battle 
of  Plattsburgh. 

In  1809,  he  married  Sabra  Axtell,  of 
Marshfield,  and  moved  that  summer  to 
Plainfield,  where  he  lived  4  years,  and 
then  bought  a  farm  in  Marshfield,  about  a 
mile  above  Plainfield  village,  where  he  re- 
sided till  1840.  His  farm  was  one  of  the 
finest  upon  the  head  waters  of  the  Win- 
ooski.     He  had  5  boys  and  2  girls,  two 


:i4 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  whom  are  now  dead.     He  held  many  of 

the  town  offices ;  was  constable  and  col- 
lector 25  years;  12  years  representative, 
and  a  number  of  times  was  one  of  the  as- 
sistant judges  of  the  County  Court.  Up 
to  1840,  much  of  his  time  was  spent  in 
public  business.  He  then  moved  to  Mont- 
pelier  (now  E.  Montpelier,)  afterwards 
returned  to  Marshfield,  but  finally  removed 
to  Rockton,  111.,  where  he  now  resides. 
His  wife  is  still  living  (1869,)  but  has  been 
blind  for  16  years.  He  is  a  man  of  fine 
social  qualities,  and  was  always  hospitable 
and  kind  to  the  poor.  He  acquired  a 
handsome  property,  and  an  accuracy  in 
doing  business  which  but  few  men  possess. 
He  was  many  years  a  member  of  the  Con- 
gregational churchkin  Plainfield. 

JACOB   PUTNAM,  ESQ. 

BY   HON.  E.  D.  PUTNAM,  OF  MONTPELIER. 

'My  father,  Jacob  Putnam,  moved  from 
Alstead,  N.  H.,  to  Marshfield,  with  his 
family,  himself  and  wife,  3  boys  and  3 
girls,  in  the  spring  of  1820.  He  also 
brought  with  him  his  father  and  mother, 
Joseph  and  Miriam  Putnam.  They  were 
among  the  first  settlers  of  Hancock,  N.  H., 
where  my  father  was  born  in  1784.  He 
bought  the  farm  of  James  English,  Esq., 
on  the  river  road,  2  miles  south  of  the  vil- 
lage, 220  acres,  for  which  he  paid  $1,400. 
He  afterwards  sold  50  acres,  and  the  remain- 
der was  sold  in  1868  for  $6,200.  This  is 
about  a  fair  sample  of  the  rise  of  real  estate 
in  the  town  in  the  last  50  years.  Mr.  Eng- 
lish moved  to  the  village,  and  built  a  house 
and  wheelwright  shop.  There  were  at 
^that  time  a  saw  and  grist-mill,  and  only 
two  houses  within  what  are  now  the  limits 
of  the  village.  The  land  where  the  vil- 
lage now  stands  was  then  but  partially 
cleared,  and  there  were  no  settlements 
east  of  the  river,  except  in  the  extreme 
N.  E.  and  S.  E.  corners  of  the  town,  and 
there  was  but  little  money  in  the  country. 
Most  of  the  business  transactions  were  in 
neat  stock  and  grain.  When  anything  of 
any  considerable  value  was  bought  on 
credit  (as  was  usually  the  case,)  notes 
were  generally  given,  payable  in  neat  stock 
in  Oct.,  or  grain  in  Jan.  following.  When 


the  prices  of  the  stock  could  not  be  agreed 

upon  by  the  parties,  three  men  were  se- 
lected as  appraisers,  their  appraisal  to  be 
binding  upon  the  parties.  ,  A  pair  of  good 
oxen  were  worth  about  $50  to  $60  ;  cows, 
$12  to  $15  ;  corn  and  rye  were  worth  5octs. 
per  bushel ;  oats,  20  cents  ;  potatoes,  12  to 
20  cents.  Good  crops  of  wheat  were  gen- 
erally raised  in  town,  and  I  can  recollect 
of  wheat  being  carried  as  late  as  1824,  to 
Troy,  N.  Y.,  for  a  market.  There  was  no 
manufacturing  to  any  considerable  extent 
done  in  this  country  as  early  as  1820. 
Nearly  all  the  clothing  was  made  at  home 
by  hand.  The  spinning-wheel  and  loom 
might  be  found  in  almost  every  house,  and 
among  my  earliest  recollections  is  the  buzz 
of  the  wheel  and  the  thumping  of  the  old 
loom,  and  whenever  there  came  a  pleasant, 
sunny  day  in  March,  the  flax-break  might 
be  heard  at  almost  every  farmer's  barn, 
and  very  well  do  I  recollect  the  "  big 
bunches  "  of  woolen  and  linen  yarn  which 
"ornamented"  the  kitchen  of  the  old 
homestead,  spun  by  my  mother  and  sis- 
ters. The  words  of  Proverbs,  "  She  seek- 
eth  wool  and  flax,  and  worketh  diligently 
with  her  hands,"  were  peculiarly  applicable 
to  my  mother.  In  addition  to  making  all 
the  cloth  for  clothing  the  family,  she  made 
hundreds  of  yards  of  woolen  and  linen 
cloth,  and  exchanged  it  at  the  store  for 
family  necessaries.  These  days  have 
passed.  A  spinning-wheel  is  'rarely  seen 
now ;  if  found  at  all,  it  is  stowed  away  in 
some  old  garret,  a  relic,  and  the  sewing- 
machine  is  annihilating  the  needle.  Are 
people  happier  now  than  they  were  then? 
My  father  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  the 
public ;  was  town  clerk  19  years,  and  oc- 
casionally held  other  town  offices.  He 
lived  on  the  same  place  where  he  first 
bought  36  years,  to  the  time  of  his  death, 
in  1856,  aged  72  years.  My  mother  died 
in  1864,  aged  81.  They  lived  together  52 
years.  Their  children  are  all  living,  except 
the  eldest  son,  Thomas  B.,  who  died  Apr. 
30,  1830.  The  youngest  son,  A.  F.  Put- 
nam, is  the  present  postmaster  of  Marsh- 
field. My  grandfather  died  in  1826,  aged 
83  years;  my  grandmother  in  1835,  aged 
91. 


MARSHFIELD. 


215 


JONATHAN   GOODWIN,  ESQ. 
BY  MKS.  H.  L.  GOODWIN. 

Jonathan  Goodwin  was  born  at  Con- 
cord, N.  H.,  May  27,  1784,  where  he 
passed  his  youth  and  early  manhood.  He 
was  one  of  a  large  family.  Were  it  not 
for  the  experience  of  the  late  war,  it  would 
be  difficult  for  a  person  in  these  days  to 
realize  the  bitterness  of  party-spirit  and 
controversy,  even  among  kindred,  which 
existed  before  and  during  the  war  of  1812. 
At  a  family  gathering  where  politics  were 
discussed,  Jonathan  being  a  Democrat, 
and  the  other  members  of  the  family  Fed- 
eralists, a  brother  remarked,  "as  there 
was  a  prospect  of  war,  it  would  be  a  good 
time  for  him  to  show  his  patriotism  and 
courage,  if  he  had  any."  He  replied,  "it 
was  a  pity  those  who  had  so  much  sympa- 
thy for  the  enemies  of  their  country,  were 
not  in  a  position  to  afford  them  the  aid  and 
assistance  they  would  naturally  wish  to 
give."  These  remarks  were  never  for- 
gotten. Jonathan  enlisted  as  recruiting 
sergeant,  was  afterwards  lieutenant  and 
captain;  was  stationed  at  Saco,  Me.,  Bos- 
ton and  Plattsburgh.  At  the  latter  he  re- 
ceived an  injury  from  which  he  never  re- 
covered, and  was  a  pensioner  the  remain- 
der of  his  life.  It  is  worthy  of  remark  that 
during  the  7  years  he  was  in  the  United 
States'  service,  although  at  that  time  the 
custom  of  using  ardent  spirits  was  almost 
universal,  he  never  indulged  in  it,  not  even 
after  being  assured  by  his  physician  that 
probably  he  would  not  survive  the  cam- 
paign without  it.  In  18 14,  his  family 
moved  from  Concord,  N.  H.,  to  Randolph, 
Vt.  After  his  discharge  he  removed  to 
Chelsea,  and  in  1839,  to  this  town  to  re- 
side with  his  eldest  son.  The  following 
summer  they  built  a  house,  and  occupied 
it  one  winter.     In  April  it  was  burned. 

It  was  burned  on  Saturday.  The  next 
day.  Elder  Capron  announced  from  his 
pulpit  that  on  Monday  the  inhabitants 
would  meet  to  assist  Messrs.  Goodwin  in 
getting  out  timber  for  another  house-frame. 

On  Monday,  men  enough  came  to  cut 
the  timber,  hew  it,  frame  it,  draw  it  over  a 
mile,  and  raise  a  house,  28  by  34  feet,  in  a 
day. 


He  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life  in 
Marshfield ;  was  justice  of  peace,  town 
clerk  2  years,  postmaster  2  years,  and 
often  administered  on  the  estates  of  the 
deceased,  and  gave  general  satisfaction. 
Although  in  early  life  his  opportunities  for 
education  were  limited,  he  was  a  person  of 
more  than  ordinary  information,  especially 
in  history  and  the  Bible,  of  which  he  was 
a  daily  student. 

In  early  life  he  united  with  the  Baptist 
church  in  Concord,  but  during  a  season  of 
religious  interest  in  Chelsea,  was  drawn  to 
a  more  thorough  examination  of  the  Scrip- 
tures than  ever  before,  which  led  to  his 
embracing  the  doctrine  of  the  final  re- 
demption of  all,  in  which  belief  he  after- 
wards continued  till  his  death,  Jan.  1867, 
aged  82,  generally  respected  as  a  man  and 
a  Christian. 

REV.    MARCUS    M.    CARLETON, 

.son  of  Jeremiah  Carleton,  Esq.,  was  born 
in  Marshfield,  1826.  When  about  15,  he 
made  a  profession  of  religion,  uniting  with 
the  Congregational  church  in  Barre,  where 
he  resided  with  his  uncle.  He  soon  after 
decided  to  be  a  foreign  missionary,  and 
from  hence  devoted  all  his  energies  to  pro- 
curing a  suitable  education.  He  first  en- 
tered Middlebury  College,  but  removed  to 
Amherst  College,  Massachusetts,  where  he 
graduated,  and  on  account  of  a  chronic 
cough  went  south  to  study  theology  at 
Columbia,  S.  C.  After  finishing  his  course, 
he  offered  himself  to  the  Congregational 
Board  for  foreign  missions,  but  was  not 
accepted,  they  fearing  his  health  would 
fail ;  but  determined  in  his  resolutions  he 
offered  himself  immediatqly  to  the  Presby- 
terian Board  by  whom  he  was  accepted, 
and  sailed  for  India  in  1865,  where  he  has 
labored  most  of  the  time  since.  He  was 
stationed  first  in  Ambalia  city,  but  the 
mission  seeing  him  eminently  fitted  for  an 
itinerant,  set  him  apart  for  that  work  after 
a  few  years,  since  which  he  has  lived  most 
of  the  time  in  a  tent,  travelling  from  vil- 
lage to  village  in  Ambalia  district,  in- 
structing and  preaching  to  the  people,  and 
having  studied  medicine,  .finding  it  very 
advantageous   to    him   in    his    ministeral 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


labors  among  the  inhabitants,  he  also  ad- 
ministers to  them  as  a  physician — some- 
times his  family  accompany  him  in  the 
tent ;  but  during  the  hot  season  they  gen- 
erally remain  among  the  mountains,  where 
he  sometimes  rests  with  them  during  the 
hottest  period.  [An  account  of  his  family 
we  will  not  repeat  here,  as  we  have  already 
given  the  same  in  a  notice  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Carleton  with  his  family  in  Barre — See  No. 
I,  of  this  vol.  p.  40.  A  member  of  the 
Carleton  family  tells  me  he  is  a  man  of 
herculean  frame — physically  and  mentally 
a  very  strong  man.  In  a  letter  to  his 
father  in  1879,  an  extract  of  which  lies 
before  me,  he  speaks  o^  his  good  health 
as  a  source  of  great  joy — seems  to  luxu- 
riate body  and  soul  in  his  nomadic  preach- 
ing life.] 

MARSHFIELD  MILITARY   RECORD. 
SOLDIERS   OF    l8l2. 

This  place  furnished  8 :  Abijah  Bemis, 
Phineas  Bemis,  Obadiah  Bemis,  David 
Cutting,  John  Waugh,  Abijah  Hall,  Isaac 
Austin,  and  Philip  Delan. 

Lewis  Bemis,  a  brother  of  three  of  these 
soldiers,  was  also  from  this  town,  though 
he  enlisted  from  Barnet.  His  father  and 
friends  all  resided  here,  and  he  should 
have  a  notice  here.  He  belonged  to  the 
old  4th  regiment,  which  was  sent  out  un- 
der Col.  Miller  to  the  then  territory  of 
Ohio,  to  look  after  the  Indians  who  were 
making  depredations  on  the  frontier  set- 
tlements. At  one  time  they  came  to  the 
dwelling  of  a  Mr.  Harriman,  (whose  wife 
was  the  daughter  of  Alexander  Parker  of 
Montpelier,  and  sister  of  Mrs.  James  Pit- 
kin of  this  town,)  just  about  an  hour  after 
the  savages  had  murdered  and  left  him 
and  his  family.  They  pressed  on,  but 
failed  to  overtake  the  Indians,  and  soon 
after  joined  the  main  body  under  the  infa- 
mous Gen.  Hull  on  its  way  to  Fort  Detroit. 
Before  arriving  at  Detroit,  Col.  Miller  saw 
HulPs  treachery,  and  accused  him  of  it, 
and  challenged  him  to  fight  a  duel,  both 
before  and  after  their  arrival,  quite  in  vain  ; 
he  surrendered  the  fort  and  army  without 
firing  a  gun.  In  that  fort,  among  our 
men,  were  a   number  of  British  who  had 


deserted  and  joined  our  army.  The  next 
morning,  and  two  or  three  succeeding 
mornings,  our  army  was  paraded  and  the 
British  officers  walked  along  and  inspected 
it,  and  when  they  saw  a  British  soldier, 
he  was  tapped  on  the  shoulder,  and  com- 
manded to  step  out.  Where  they  had 
suspicions,  and  yet  were  not  certain  as  to 
their  being  British  subjects,  they  would 
question  them.  A  number  of  times  Mr. 
Bemis,  though  he  never  saw  Ireland,  was 
asked,  '*  In  what  town  in  Ireland  were  you 
born"?  Each  time  his  answer  was,  "I 
was  born  in  Paxham,  in  Massachusetts." 
One  poor  fellow,  the  first  time  they  came 
round,  succeeded  in  squinting  his  eyes  so 
as  fairly  to  deceive  them,  and  after  that 
succeeded  in  slipping  down  an  embank- 
ment just  in  the  right  time  to- save  his  life. 
About  40  of  these  jDOor  deserters  were 
taken  out  and  shot.  The  army,  surren- 
dered by  Hull,  was  then  taken  to  Quebec, 
and  confined  in  a  prison-ship  on  the  St. 
Lawrence,  where  they  were  allowed  but  one 
half  pint  of  water  per  day,  though  their 
prison  was  floating  on  the  river,  and  if  any 
one  attempted  to  let  down  a  cup  for  water, 
he  was  shot  down.  Three-fourths  of  the 
prisoners  eventually  died  from  the  cruelties 
there  received.  The  rest  were  eventually 
exchanged. 

Jesse  Webster  died  in  Marshfield, 
Oct.  20,  1878,  aged  83  years.  He  was  one 
of  the  Plattsburgh  volunteers,  and  had  an 
application  for  pension  pending  at  the  time 
of  his  death. 

It  is  not  known  that  any  one  enlisted 
from  this  town,  in  the  war  with  Mexico. 

But  when  the  great  rebellion  broke  out, 
that  intensity  of  feeling  which  thrilled  from 
the  prairies  of  the  West  to  the  shores  of 
the  Atlantic,  found  an  answering  tone 
among  our  hills,  and  by  our  firesides.  And 
as  call  after  call  for  reinforcements  came, 
the  father  left  his  family,  the  son  his  pa- 
rents, in  many  cases,  alas  !  to  return  no 
more. 

They  came  in  serried  ranks,  the  boys  in  blue, 
Who  at  their  country's  call  no  danger  knew ; 
Room  !  room  !  for  Marshfield  boys,  our 
soldiers  true. 


MARSHFIELD. 


217 


LIST  OF  SOLDIERS  FURNISHED  FOR  WAR  OF 
THE  REBELLION. 

BY    GEN.   p.    p.  I'lTKlN,  OF  MONTPELIER. 

Alphonso  Lessor,  Co.  D,  2d  Reg.   Pro.  Lt,  wd. 

Patrick  Mahar,  F,  2.     Wd.  &  dis.  Oct.  31,  62. 

Alvah  H.  Miles,  F,  2. 

Chauncey  Smith,  D,  2.  Died  of  disease  in 
army. 

David  P.  Bent,  G,  4.  Died  ;  buried  at  Wash- 
ington. 

Byron  Bullock,  G,  4.    Died  of  disease  in  army. 

Hiram  Hall,  H,  3.     Died. 

John  E.  Aiken,  G,  4. 

Robert  A.  Spencer,  G,  4. 

Edward  W.  Bradley,  F,  6.     Wounded. 

Homer  Hollister,  F,  6.     Wounded  in  hand. 

Asa  H.  Winch,  ist  Bat.     Died  at  New  Orleans. 

Joshua  D.  Dunham,  2d  Bat.  Died  at  New 
Orleans. 

George  W.  Nownes,  C,  First  Cav. 

Ira  Batchelder,  C,  First  Cav.     Wounded. 

Josiah  O.  Livingston,  I,  9.  Pro.  Capt.  Co.  G, 
Oct.  19,  '64. 

George  N.  Carpenter,  I,  9.     Pro.  ist.  Lieut. 

Benjamin  F.  Huntington,  I,  9. 

Vilas  Smith,  I,  9.  Lost  overboard  Steamer 
U.  S.  near  Fortress  Monroe. 

John  Q.  Amidon,  I,  11. 

Jackson  Blodgett,  I,  11.     Died. 

George  H.  Wheeler,  I,  11. 

Harvey  L.  Wood,  I,  11.     Deserted. 

Benj.  F.  Shephard,  Jr.,  I,  11.  Died  in  Hosp. 
at  Montpelier. 

Robert  H.  Tibbetts,  I,  11,     Killed  in  battle. 

Alvah  A.  Cole,  I,  11. 

Elbridge  G.  Wilson,  I,  11.     Killed  in  battle. 

p-rancis  H.  Felix,  I,  11.     Injured  in  shoulder. 

John  W.  Huntington,  I,  11. 

Lorenzo  D.  Mallory,  C,  ist  Cav.  Pris'nr  at 
Andersonville  ;  exch'd,  died  on  way  home. 

William  R.  Gove,  C,  ist  Cav. 

Charles  Nownes,  C,  ist  Cav. 

Thaddeus  S.  Bullock,  G,  4.     Died  in  hospital. 

Nathaniel  Robinson,  G,  4.  Ball  in  hand, 
cannot  be  extracted. 

Calvin  R.  Hills,  G,  4.     Wounded. 

William  A.  Webster,  A,  4.  Died  at  Ander- 
sonville. 

Wesley  P.  Martin,  G,  4. 

David  B.  Merrill,  A,  4. 

Smith  Ormsbee,  G,  4.  Shot  on  picket,  died 
from  wound. 

Samuel  Wheeler,  A,  4. 

John  Bancroft,  C,  Cav.     Died. 

Parker  S.  Dow,  C,  8  Regt. 

Frederick  H.  Turner,  H,  11. 

David  K.  Lucas,  3d  Bat. 

Edmund  H.  Packer,  3d  Bat. 

Allen    Phelps,   Frontier    Cav, 

Moses  Lamberton,  do.     do. 

Edward  L.  Wheeler,  do.  do. 

Leonard  H.  Fulsome,  do.  do. 

Frank  L.  Batchelder,  E,  4  Regt. 

Ira  Ainsworth,  E,  4. 

Patrick  Moore,  D,  8. 

Lysander  E.  Walbridge,  E,  8. 

Theron  T.  Lamphere,  E,  8. 

Hiram  Graves,  K,  2. 

Thomas  Witham,  K,  2.     Died,  prisoner. 


28 


George  H.  Nelson,  D,  2.     Badly  wounded. 

David  Powers,  D,  2. 

Henry  A.  Rickard,  D,  2. 

Joseph  S.  M.  Benjamin,  B,  Cav. 

Francis  H.  Ketchum,  C,  "  Badly  wound- 
ed with  shell. 

Eri  McCrillis,  C,  Cav.    Died  at  Andersonville. 

Geo.  W.  Nownes,  C,  Cav.    Died  Andersonv'e. 

Cyrus  Farnsworth,  H,  4  Regt. 

Horace  Burnham,  C,  Cav. 

Charles  M.  Wing,  B,  Cav.     Leg  broken. 

Norman  W.  Johnson,  F,  2  Regt.  Ball  thro, 
body  and  wrist,  lived. 

John  O.  Morse,  I,  9.     Died. 

James  H.  Carpenter,  H,  11. 

John  Graves,  Jr.  H,  1 1.   Died  at  Andersonville. 

Solon  H.  Preston,  H,  11. 

William  W.  Willey,  H,  11. 

Walter  H.  Morris,  G.  3.     Wounded. 

Charles  H.  Newton,  G,  4.    Wn'ded  with  shell. 

James  Aylward,  E,  17.     Died. 

John  H.  Amidon,  I,  11. 

Charles  T.  Clark,  E,  17.     Died. 

James  Clark,  C,  17.     Died. 

William  G.  French,  E,  17.     Died. 

Clark  J.  Foster,  E,  17.      Badly  wn'ded  in  leg. 

Benj.  F.  Huntington,  E,  17. 

Daniel  Hogan,  E,  17. 

Wm.  E.  Martin,  E,  17.  ist  Lieut.;  killed  be- 
fore Petersburg. 

Harvey  L.  Batchelder,  C,  13. 

Martin  L.  Chandler,       "    " 

Eli  S.  Pitkin,  C,  13. 

Charles  A.  Davis,  C,  13. 

Hudson  J.  Kibbee,  "   " 

Sereno  W.  Gould,  "    " 

Charles  E.  Shephard,  C,  13. 

Albert  Sargeant,  C,  13. 

Willard  M.  Austin,  C,  13. 

Orson  Woodcock,     "    " 

Rufus  H.  Farr,  C,  13. 

Benjamin  B.  Buzzell,  C,  13. 

David  Huntington,      "    " 

Joseph  Simmons,  C,  13. 

Lucius  D.  Nute,   "   " 

In  1863  a  draft  was  ordered ;  34  men 
were  drafted,  but  only  one,  Cottrill  Clif- 
ford, went  into  the  service ;  22  paid  their 
commutation  money.  Clifford  served  his 
time,  was  discharged,  and  accidentally 
killed  on  his  way  home.  I  do  not  find  his 
name  in  our  list  of  soldiers  ;  probably  he 
was  put  in  to  fill  up  some  regiment  sep- 
arately from  our  other  men. 

There  went  out  98  from  us,  28  of  whom 
never  returned.  A  few  were  brought  back 
to  be  buried,  but  most  of  our  dead  sleep  on 
Southern  soil.  In  the  vigor  of  young 
manhood  they  went,  one  and  another, 
who  were  household  treasures. 

"The  loved  of  all,  yet  none 

O'er  their  low  bed  may  weep." 

Perhaps  the  last  news  of  them  was,  "  seen 
on  the  battle-field,"  or   "  taken  prisoner," 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  then  long  months  elapsed  ere  one 
word  could  be  heard  to  stay  the  anguish  of 
suspense.  At  last  came  the  fearful,  "Died 
at  Andersonville." 

MONTPELIER   &   WELLS    RIVER   RAILROAD. 

When  the  history  of  Marshfield  was 
written  eleven  years  ago,  we  had  no  rail- 
road. About  this  time  a  charter  was 
granted  for  the  Montpelier  &  Wells  River 
road,  which  passes  through  our  town  about 
a  mile  from  the  village.  The  town  bonded 
itself  in  the  sum  of  $17,500,  and  private 
subscriptions  made  up  the  sum  of  $30,000. 
All  is  paid  but  about  half  the  bonds. 

The  first  train  of  cars  went  through  here 
Nov.  29,  1873.  Of  course  the  rejoicing 
was  great. 

A  year  or  two  later  we  were  connected 
with  the  rest  of  the  world  by  telegraph. 
The  advantage  to  the  public  is  not  easily 
estimated.  The  railroad  is  doing  good 
business.  L.  D.  Nute  is  station  agent  and 
telegraph  operator.  A  private  telegraph 
is  owned  and  run  by  George  A.  Putnam 
and  L.  D.  Nute,  from  the  depbt  to  Put- 
nam's store,  where  the  post-office  is  lo- 
cated. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Putnam  are  telegraph 
operators. 

THE   THANKS   OF   THE   WRITER 

are  due  to  James  Pitkin,  Andrew  English 
and  E.  S.  Pitkin,  Esqs.,  and  others,  for 
the  assistance  rendered  her  in  this  work  ; 
also  to  Miss  Anna  Pitkin,  of  Montpelier, 
for  the  loan  of  her  father's  journal. 


[We  have  known  our  excellent  historian- 
ess  of  Marshfield  more  than  20  years. 
Mrs.  Pitkin  was  a  favorite  contributor  in 
our  "Poets  and  Poetry  of  Vermont," 
(1858,)  in  which  see  from  her  pen,  "  The 
Young  Emigrant,"  "  The  Fugitive  Slave," 
pages  333,  334.  So  well  has  Mrs.  Pitkin 
written  for  us,  and  for  the  Montpelier 
papers  in  the  past,  Z/ofPs  Herald  and  other 
papers,  we  cannot  forbear,  not  solicited  by 
her,  but  of  our  own  good  will,  to  place  a 
little  group  selected  from  her  poems  at  the 
foot  of  her  history  here — Ed.] 


A  THOUGHT. 

BY  MES.  HANNAH  C.   PITKIN. 

For  tliee,  busy  man,  in  a  forest  lone 
A  shoot  liatli  started,  a  tree  liatli  grown. 
Tlie  axe-nian,  percliance,  may  liave  laid  it  low 
For  thy  narrow  house— it  is  ready  now. 
All  ready— but  mortal,  art  thou,  art  thou? 

Maiden,  thy  dream  of  affection  so  warm, 
Trust  not.    The  shroud  to  envelop  thy  form 
Is  woven,  is  coming,  by  wind  or  wave; 
'Tis  thine,  by  a  stamp  which  no  mortal  gave, 
Thou  canst  not  turn  from  the  path  to  the  grave. 

Art  thou  tolling  for  wealth,  the  weary  day. 
Or  tliirsting  for  fame— there's  a  pillow  of  clay 
On  a  lowly  bed,  'tis  waithig  thee  there. 
The  mould  and  the  worm  tliy  pillow  will  share; 
Spirit,  Oh,  wliere  is  thy  refuge — Oh,  where  ? 

TO    THE    itinerant's   WIFE. 

BY  MBS.  H.  C.  PITKIN. 

Out  on  the  ocean,  dark  and  wild 

A  little  bark  was  driven. 
One  kindly  star  looked  out  and  smiled 

A  precious  boon  from  heaven ; 
It  warned  of  threatening  near. 
Just,  just  in  time  the  rocks  to  clear. 

1  stood  upon  a  point  of  land 

Where  ocean  billows  came, 
A  beauteous  wave  just  kissed  the  strand. 

Then  seaweed  swept  again. 
'Twas  gone,  to  come  again  no  more, 
But  left  a  gem  upon  the  shore. 

A  wanderer  lone  mid  desert's  waste, 

Beneatli  a  burning  sky. 
Sank  down  at  last  despairingly. 

He  felt  that  he  must  die. 
My  Island  Home,  so  dear  to  me, 
I  never,  never  more  may  seel 

Oh  God :  he  cried.    A  tiny  flower 

Just  caught  his  closing  eye, 
And  in  its  winsome  loveliness. 

It  seemed  to  whisper  "  try." 
God  lives,  take  heart,  so  o'er  the  main 
He  found  his  Island  Home  agajn. 

So  sister,  like  the  star  be  thine 

To  bless  the  tempest  driven. 
And  point  to  poor  despairing  ones 

The  narrow  way  to  Heaven. 
And  in  the  wanderer's  darkest  hour. 
Sweetly  to  win  him  like  the  flower. 

In  blessing  be  thou  ever  blest, 

Cheer  age,  and  counsel  youth. 
And  ever  where  thy  pathway  lies, 

Scatter  the  gems  of  truth. 
And  hear,  when  Death  is  lost  in  Life 
Blessings  on  the  Itinerant's  Wife. 

from  an  historical  account  of 
marshfield. 

CONTRIBUTED  BY  REV.  GEO.  E.  FORBES   IN  1879. 

[After  the  Legislature  of  Vermont  had 
approbated  and  passed  the  General  Res- 
olutions of  1878,  to  assist  in  finishing  this 
work,  the  MS.  history  of  Mrs.  Pitkin,  fur- 
nished to  us  for  the  work  in   i86q,  havingf 


MARSHFIELD. 


219 


been  sent  to  the  Claremont  Manufacuring 
Company  of  New  Hampshire,  and  by  them 
withheld  four  years,  with  the  other  Wash- 
ington County  papers  sent,  under  their 
proposition  to  immediately  print.  We 
wrote  to  Mrs.  Pitkin  for  a  duplicate  of  her 
history.  Unable,  from  the  infirmities  of 
her  age  and  feebleness,  from  fully  under- 
taking to  so  do,  she  engaged  the  assist- 
ance of  Rev.  Mr.  Forbes,  who  gave  us  a 
very  reliable  and  pleasant  paper  of  about 
half  the  length  of  Mrs.  Pitkin's  paper,  with 
which  we  were  pleased  and  should  have 
published,  had  we  not  fortunately  mean- 
time recovered  Mrs.  Pitkin's  papers,  which 
as  they  are  the  fullest  record,  as  she  was 
first  invited  to  write,  and  is  so  eminently 
a  Washington  County  woman,  daughter 
of  old  Gen.  Parley  Davis,  of  Montpelier, 
and  a  long-time  honored  and  beloved  res- 
ident of  Marshfield,  we  are  assured  no 
other  writer  could  be  so  acceptable  to 
Marshfield,  and  none  other  to  the  County, 
and  so  have  given  the  papers  of  Mrs.  Pit- 
kin in  full,  nearly ;  and  will  here  but  ap- 
pend a  few  extracts  from  the  paper  by  Mr. 
Forbes,  containing  information  or  points 
in  it  not  in  Mrs.  Pitkin's  paper;  while  we 
feel  to  express  under  the  circumstances 
more  thanks  to  Mr.  Forbes  than  if  able  to 
give  his  paper  more  fully — Ed.] 

Marshfield  is  situated  in  the  eastern  part 
of  the  County,  and  lies  on  both  sides  ot 
the  Winooski  river,  which  flows  through  it 
from  north  to  south.  The  soil  is  a  mix- 
ture of  clay  and  loam  ;  the  surface  broken 
and  hilly,  is  divided  into  productive  farms. 
The  river  valley,  and  that  part  of  the  town 
lying  west  of  it,  contains  the  best  tillage 
land,  which  has  very  largely  been  brought 
under  cultivation.  The  eastern  part,  more 
rocky,  is  used  principally  for  pasturage ; 
although  in  the  eastern  part  in  some  sec- 
tions there  are  some  good  farms. 

The  original  forests  were  heavy  timbered 
with  maple,  beech,  birch,  spruce  and  hem- 
lock, and  some  elm,  fir,  cedar  and  pine. 
In  the  eastern  part  there  yet  remains  a 
considerable  growth  of  spruce  and  hem- 
lock, but  it  is  rapidly  being  cut  off  for  lum- 
ber. Sugar-maples  are  to  be  found  in  all 
parts  of  the  town,  producing  quite  as 
abundantly  of  sugar  as  in  any  other  part  of 
New  England. 

Besides  the  Winooski  river  privileges 
there  are  two  or  three  streams  which  fur- 
nish good  water-power  the  larger  part  of 


the  year.  It  has  not  been  utilized  to  any 
large  extent,  however,  hence  the  town  is 
not  noted  for  its  manufacturing  interests. 
Molly's  Falls,  on  Molly's  brook,  about  a 
mile  from  the  village,  in  a  distance  of  30 
rods  the  water  falls  between  200  and  300 
feet  in  a  series  of  beautiful  cascades. 
During  high  water  the  roar  of  these  falls 
can  be  heard  for  several  miles.  A  good 
view  of  these  falls  can  be  obtained  from 
the  road  leading  to  Cabot.  There  is  also 
a  very  pretty  cascade  on  Nigger-head 
brook,  about  a  third  of  a  mile  south  of  the 
village,  where  it  is  crossed  by  the  road 
leading  to  the  depot.  The  town  has  only 
one  village,  which  is  situated  on  the 
Winooski  river,  about  a  mile  from  the 
Cabot  line.  The  Montpelier  &  Wells 
River  R.  R.  crosses  the  town,  running 
nearly  parallel  with  the  river  from  Plain- 
field  until  within  a  mile  of  the  village, 
when  it  makes  almost  a  right  angle  to  the 
east,  passing  Nigger-head  pond, and  thread- 
ing its  way  through  a  notch  in  the  moun- 
tains to  the  Connecticut  river.  The  Marsh- 
field station  on  this  road  is  one  mile  from 
the  village,  and  15  miles  from  Montpelier. 

It  is  not  known  what  white  men  first 
visited  the  town's  location.  This  town- 
ship was  purchased  of  the  Stockbridge 
Indians,  (see  Mrs.  Pitkin's  paper,)  but  it 
is  not  certain  whether  these  Indians  ever 
occupied  this  territory.  At  the  time  of  the 
purchase  by  Mr.  Marsh,  they  were  resi- 
dents of  New  Stockbridge,  Montgomery 
Co.,  N.  Y. 

When  the  first  settlers  picked  their 
dwelling-places,  Mr.  Pitkin  settled  upon 
the  river  near  the  place  where  Bowman  P. 
Martin  now  resides ;  Messrs.  Dodge  and 
Spencer  settled  further  south  and  west  on 
the  higher  land.  Here  was  the  birth-place 
of  the  first  child  born  in  town,  a  son  to 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ebenezer  Dodge,  Sept.  17, 
1794,  the  place  of  his  birth  about  a  mile 
north  of  Plainfield  village ;  the  place  is 
still  owned  by  descendants  of  the  Dodge 
family. 

The  first  "  burying-ground "  was  pur- 
chased by,  and  for  the  use  of  the  town. 
The  first  interment  therein  that  has  a  stone 
to  mark  the  spot  was  the  infant  twin  sons 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  Joshua  and  Ruth  Pitkin,  died  January 
9,  1800.  Stephen  Pitkin,  Jr.,  donated  the 
land  for  the  village  cemetery,  and  the  first 
interment  in  it  was  liis  adopted  daughter, 
Eunice  Sweeny. 

There  have  been  five  church  organiza- 
tions in  town.  At  present  there  are  but 
three,  as  the  Christian,  and  Calvinistic 
Baptist  have  become  extinct.  There  have 
been  1 1  school  districts  in  town.  The  pres- 
ent number  is  10,  each  of  which  has  a 
school  of  from  20  to  30  weeks  per  year. 
The  school  ir}  village  district  has  two  de- 
partments, but  employs  two  teachers  only 
during  the  winter  term,  as  a  rule.  The 
town  has  no  academy,  but  competent 
teachers  hold  select  schools  at  frequent 
intervals,  affording  educational  facilities 
for  those  wishing  to  remain  in  towji.  And 
the  seminaries  at  Montpelier  and  Barre,  as 
well  as  academies  in  the  vicinity,  have 
drawn  a  considerable  number  of  students 
from  this  town.  There  are  but  two  per- 
sons, however,  from  this  town  who  have 
received  a  full  collegiate  education.  Rev. 
Marcus  M.  Carleton,  missionary  in  India, 
and  Prof.  Curtis  C.  Gove,  Principal  of 
High  School  at  Westport,  N.  Y. 

The  principal  business  of  the  town  has 
been,  and  still  is,  farming.  At  present 
there  is  but  little  manufacturing  being  done. 
There  is  i  boot-shop  for  making  men's  thick 
boots  and  overshoes,  2  harness-shops,  i 
tin-shop,  I  photograph  saloon,  2  cooper- 
shops,  where  are  manufactured  butter  and 
sugar- tubs,  and  sap-buckets.  Six  saw- 
mills, one  clap-board  and  three  shingle 
mills.  Two  of  the  saw-mills  are  run  by 
steam ;  the  rest  by  water-power ;  one 
cheese-factory,  and  i  starch  factory.  There 
is  I  blacksmith  shop,  2  wheelwright  shops, 
and  3  carpenter-shops.  There  is  a  hotel, 
and  a  patent  medicine  laboratory.  There 
are  3  stores,  and  3  churches.  The  town 
cannot  boast  of  a  lawyer.  It  has  3  doctors, 
Asa  Phelps  and  George^  M.  Town,  allo- 
pathic;  J.  Q.  A.  Packer,  homoeopathic. 

The  town  representatives  from  1870  to 
1879  have  been:  Moody  Bemis,  George 
A.  Putnam,  L.  W.  Pitkin,  D.  M.  Perkins. 

The  population  in  1840,  was  1,156;  in 
1850,    1,102;    in    i860,    1,160;    in    1870, 


1,072.  The  decrease  which  the  census  of 
1870  shows,  is  doubtless  owing  to  the 
abandonment  of  some  of  the  smaller  and 
most  unproductive  farms,  and  the  Western 
emigration  of  many  of  the  younger  men. 

LEWIS   BEMIS. 

There  are  a  few  pensioners  of  the  war  of 
1812  yet  living.  One  of  the  ''soldiers  of 
this  war,  Lewis  Bemis,  enlisted  at  Barnet 
in  1808.  His  son,  Daniel  H.  Bemis,  of 
Lancaster,  Mass.,  writes  of  him :  "He 
enlisted  at  Barnet  in  1808,  and  served  5 
years  in  the  4th  Reg't.  of  Regular  U.  S. 
Infantry.  He  was  with  Harrison  in  his 
march  through  the  wilds  of  Ohio  in  pur- 
suit of  the  Indians,  and  was  in  the  battle 
of  Tippecanoe,  when  over  half  of  the  men 
in  his  company  were  killed  or  wounded. 
The  man  on  either  side  was  killed,  and  he 
was  slightly  wounded  in  the  face  by  a  rifle 
ball.  He  was  in  11  battles  and  13  skir- 
mishes with  the  Indians.  He  used  to  re- 
late to  his  children  the  story  of  the  sol- 
diers' sufferings  while  on  their  march  to 
join  Hull,  and  through  Ohio ;  how  their 
thirst  was  so  intense,  that  when  they 
reached  Lake  Erie,  in  spite  of  their  offi- 
cers, large  numbers  threw  themselves  on 
the  beach,  and  drank  until  they  died  from 
the  effects  of  it.  He  was  under  Hull  when 
he  surrendered  at  Maiden,  near  Detroit, 
and  was  a  prisoner  26  weeks,  during  which 
time  he  suffered  greatly,  both  for  want  of 
water  and  decent  food.  Their  bread,  he 
used  to  say,  bore  the  mark  on  the  package 
in  which  it  was  enclosed,  1804.  He  was 
paroled,  and  went  from  Halifax  to  Boston, 
where  he  arrived  a  few  days  before  the 
term  of  his  enlistment  expired.  He  soon 
after  enlisted  again  in  a  Company  of  Light 
Artillery,  with  which  he  went  up  and  joined 
Gen.  Macomb's  army  the  day  before  the 
battle  of  Plattsburg.  A  part  of  the  bat- 
tery was  stationed  at  the  bridge-head  at 
Plattsburg,  and  the  remainder  sent  to  Bur- 
lington, to  prevent  the  British  from  land- 
ing and  destroying  that  place.  He  was 
with  that  portion  of  the  battery  sent  to 
Burlington,  and  so  did  not  have  any  active 
part  in  tlie  battle ;  but  assisted  in  burying 
the  dead.     He  was  one  of  the  party  who 


MARSIIFIKLD. 


buried  the  British  dead  after  the  engage- 
ment. He  was  discharged  after  peace 
was  ratified,  having  served  in  all  about  6 
years  and  6  months ;  5  years  under  the 
first  enhstment  in  the  4th  Infantry,  and  18 
months  in  the  Light  I5attery.  He  died  in 
1855,  at  Clinton,  Mass.,  where  he  is  l)uried, 
aged  7^:' 

IRA   SMITH. 
BY  nP.V.  GEOllGE  E.  FORBES. 

He  was  the  son  of  Joshua  and  Keturah 
Smith;  was  born  in  Woodstock,  Conn., 
Jan.  22,  1800.  At  1 1  years,  he  came  with 
his  parents  to  Marshfield.  They  moved 
on  to  the  farm  now  owned  and  occupied 
by  J.  E.  Eddy.  During  his  minority,  Ira 
worked  on  the  farm  summers  and  attended 
.school  winters  until  he  was  18.  The  school- 
liouse  then  stood  near  the  present  resi- 
dence of  Webster  Haskins.  Soon  after 
there  was  a  school-house  erected  where 
the  village  now  stands,  in  which  he  taught 
the  first  school.  He  was  paid  in  grain,  to 
the  value  of  $12  per  month,  boarding  him- 
self. In  1821,  he  purchased  300  acres  of 
wild  land  lying  around  the  present  site  of 
the  Marshfield  depot,  which  he  cleared, 
and  cultivated  15  acres,  .spending  apart  of 
his  time  there,  and  the  balance  in  working 
out,  until  he  was  29,  when,  Jan.  4,  1829, 
he  was  married  to  Hannah  Jacobs,  and 
they  settled  at  first  on  his  cleared  land, 
but  a  short  time  after,  as  he  purchased,  and 
they  removed  to,  the  home  of  his  parents, 
where  they  lived  11  years.  For  about  4 
years  after  selling  the  home  farm,  he 
rented  different  places,  but  in  1844,  pur- 
chased a  farm  on  which  the  remainder  of 
his  life  was  spent.  He  died  Sept.  18, 1880, 
leaving  a  widow,  one  son,  Orrin,  who  lives 
on  the  homestead,  and  two  daughters,  now 
Mrs.  Levi  Benton,  of  Marshfield,  and  Mrs. 
C.  H.  Newton,  of  Montpelier.  One  son 
died  in  the  army,  and  a  daughter  married 
E.  B.  Dwinell,  but  died  a  few  years  after, 
and  4  children  died  quite  young.  Mr. 
Smith  held  many  of  the  town  offices,  being 
regarded  by  the  citizens  as  a  man  of  worth 
and  integrity.  He  represented  the  town 
in  the  Legislature  during  1844-5.  I"  pol- 
itics he  was  a  Democrat,  and  never  failed 
by  his  vote  to  express  his  faith  in  the  doc- 


trines of  his  party.  His  last  public  act 
was  to  rise  from  the  sick  bed  to  which  he 
had  been  confined  for  several  days,  and  go 
to  the  polls  to  deposit  his  ballot  for  the 
several  State  officers.  He  believed  in  the 
vital  principles  of  religion,  but  in  accord- 
ance with  the  general  character  of  the 
man,  his  faith  found  expression  in  deeds 
rather  than  in  word.  In  religious  sym- 
pathy he  was  a  Universalist,  and  gave  his 
influence  and  means  to  promote  the  inter- 
ests of  that  society  in  town.  His  morals 
were  always  above  reproach.  He  was 
temperate  in  deed  and  in  word  ;  drank  no 
intoxicating  liquors,  no  tea  or  coffee,  and 
never  used  tobacco  in  any  form  ;  was  fru- 
gal and  industrious,  and  consequently  was 
enabled  to  acquire  a  good  property,  while 
generously  responding  to  many  calls  for 
the  promotion  of  educational  and  benev- 
olent enterprises. 

He  possessed  an  indomitable  will  and 
wonderful  endurance  from  the  time  that  he 
hired  out  as  a  laborer,  at  9  years  of  age, 
until  he  abandoned  active  toil,  a  short 
time  before  his  death.  He  met  all  duties 
with  a  manly  spirit,  and  evinced  his  willing- 
ness to  obey  the  primal  law  of  life — labor. 
He  had  a  remarkably  strong  constitution, 
and  when  his  "golden  wedding"  was  cel- 
ebrated in  1879,  he  seemed  nearly  as  hale 
and  hearty  as  a  man  of  60  years,  though 
even  then  there  were  premonitory  symp- 
toms of  the  disease  which  caused  his  death. 
For  nearly  2  years  he  suffered  from  a 
cancer  on  the  lower  lip,  and  during  the 
latter  half  of  this  time,  especially,  did  he 
endure  extreme  pain  and  inconvenience  in 
taking  food.  But  under  all  these  trials  he 
exhibited  great  fortitude,  and  died  re- 
signed to  his  Maker's  will.  His  funeral 
was  attended  by  a  large  concourse  of  cit- 
izens besides  the  numerous  relatives,  thus 
testifying  of  the  esteem  in  which  he  was 
held  by  the  entire  community.  The  fun- 
eral services  were  brief;  no  formal  eulogy 
was  pronounced  ;  his  life  had  preached  its 
sermon,  and  with  a  few  words  of  comfort 
to  the  bereaved  ones,  the  last  sad  rites 
were  ended,  and  the  body  of  this  worthy 
man  was  borne  to  its  final  resting-place. 
His  age  was  81  years.     "Though  dead,  he 


222 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


yet  speaketh,"  in  his  good,  solid,  practical 
life. 

UNIVERSALIST    CHURCH. 

CONTINUED. 

The  Rev.  Geo.  E.  Forbes  continued  as 
pastor  until  May,  1880.  For  i  year  suc- 
ceeding this  date  the  church  had  only  oc- 
casional preaching  services,  and  during 
this  time  its  numbers  were  diminished  by 
the  death  of  two  members.  In  May,  1881, 
the  Rev.  Eli  Ballou,  D.  D.,  was  engaged 
as  pastor  for  one-half  the  time.  This  en- 
gagement continues  at  present,  (Aug.  18, 
1881.) 

MARSHFIELD  VOTED  FOR   THE   GAZETTEER 

at  the  town-meeting  held  March  4,  1879, 
to  send  a  subscription  to.  Miss  Hemenway 
for  the  whole  work,  attested  by  E.  L. 
Smith,  town  clerk. 


MIDDLESEX. 

BY   STEPHEN    HERRICK,    ESQ. 

The  town  of  Middlesex  was  chartered 
June  8,  1763,  by  Benning  Wentworth, 
Esq.,  then  Governor  of  the  Province  of 
New  Hampshire,  to  the  following  grantees  : 
Jacob  Rescaw,  Benjamin  Crane,  3d,  Seth 
Trow,  Richard  Johnson,  Lawrence  Eg- 
bert, Jr.,  James  Campbell,  David  Ogden, 
Matthias  Ross,  Jonathan  Skinner,  Jehial 
Ross,  Ebenezer  Canfield,  Daniel  Ogden, 
Jonathan  Dayton,  Jr.,  Lawrence  Egbert, 
Samuel  Crowell,  William  Bruce,  Robert 
Earl,  Patridge  Thacher,  Joshua  Horton, 
Job  Wood,  George  Ross,  Cornelius  Lud- 
low, Nathaniel  Barrett,  Esq.,  Jeremiah 
Mulbard,  John  Roll,  Jr.,  Joseph  New- 
march,  Nathaniel  Little,  Henry  Earl, 
Richard  Jennee,  Esq.,  Gilbert  Ogden,  John 
Little,  George  Frost,  Daniel  Ball,  Samuel 
Little,  3d,  David  Morehouse,  Jr.,  Thomas 
Woodruff,  John  Force,  Joseph  Raggs,  Jr., 
Capt.  Isaac  Woodruff,  Daniel  P.  Eunice, 
Jacob  Brookfield,  Jonathan  Dayton,  3d, 
Isaac  Winors,  Samuel  Meeker,  Jr.,  David 
Loomeris,  John  Cory.  Jr.,  Alexknder  Car- 
miea,  David  Bonnel,  James  Seward,  Ste- 
phen Potter,  Nathaniel  Potter,  Stephen 
Wilcocks,  Thomas  Dean,  Jonas  Ball,  Amos 
Day,  John  David  Lamb,  William  Lamb, 
William  Brand,  James  Colie,  Jr.,  William 
Hand,  Robert  French,  Samuel  Crowell, 
Jonathan  Woodruff,  Ezekiel  Ball,  Aaron 
Barnett. 

THOMAS  MEAD  AND  THE  FIRST  SETTLERS. 

The  first  settler  in  this  town  20  years 
subsequent  to  the  above  date  made  his  first 


settlement  here.  Having  succeeded  in 
finding  one  of  the  best  lots  of  land  in 
Washington  County,  on  the  Onion  River, 
5  miles  from  Montpelier  village,  here  Mr. 
Thomas  Mead  made  his  excellent  location. 
The  second  settler,  Jonah  Harrington, 
chose  his  location  about  2^  miles  from 
Montpelier  on  a  superior  lot  of  land. 
Seth  Putnam  came  soon  after  with  three 
brothers,  Ebenezer,  Jacob  and  Isaac,  who 
were  soon  followed  by  Ephraim  Willey, 
Ebenezer  Woodbury,  Ira  Hawks,  Solomon 
Lewis,  Samuel  Mann,  Isaac  Bidwell,  Henry 
Perkins,  Daniel  Harrington,  Samuel  Mon- 
tague, Nathaniel  Carpenter,  Daniel  Smith, 
Hubbard  Willey,  Asa  Harrington,  Joseph 
Chapin,  William  Holden,  Lovewell  War- 
ren, Jesse  Johnson,  Joseph  Hubbard, 
David  Harrington,  Jonathan  Fisher,  Isaac 
Bidwell,  Oliver  Atherton,  Robert  McEIroy, 
Nathan  Huntley. 

organization  of  the  town. 
Copy  of  a  record  in  the  town  clerk's  of- 
fice in  Middlesex : 
To  SetJi  Putnajii,  Esq.: — 

Sir — We,  the  Inhabitants  of  the  town 
of  Middlesex,  petition  your  honor  to  grant 
a  Warrant  for  the  purpose   of  calling  a 
town-meeting  in  .said  town  of  Middlesex 
on  Monday,  the  29  of  March  instant,  at 
ten  of  the  clock  in  the  morning,  for   the 
purpose  of  Organization  of  said  Town. 
Edmond  Holden, 
Levi  Putnam, 
Samuel  Harris, 
Isaac  Putnam. 
Chittenden,  March  15th,  1790. 

In  pursuance  ofthe  foregoing  Petition,  By 
the  authority  of  the  state  of  Vermont,  you 
are  hereby  directed  to  warn  all  the  free- 
Holders  and  other  inhabitants  of  the  town 
of  Middlesex  to  meet  at  the  dwelling-house 
of  Seth  Putnam,  Esq.,  in  said  Middlesex, 
on  Monday,  the  29th  day  of  March  Instant, 
at  ten  of  the  clock  in  the  morning.  Firstly 
to  choose  a  moderator  to  govern  said 
meeting. 

2dly,  tq  choose  a  town  Clerk,  Select- 
men, Town  treasurer,  and  all  other  Town 
ofiicers  according  to  Law,  and  of  your  do- 
ings herein  make  due  return  according  to 
Law. 

Given  under  my  hand  at  said  Middlesex, 
this  15th  day  of  March,  A.  D.,  1790. 

To  Levi  Putnam,  freeholder  of  the  Town 
of  Middlesex.  Seth  Putnam, 

Justice  of  the  Peace. 


MIDDLESEX. 


223 


Served  the  within  Warrant  by  notifying 
the  inhabitants  by  setting  up  a  true  copy 
at  my  dwelHng  house  in  Middlesex. 

March  i6th,  1790. 

Levi  Putnam,  Freeholder. 

Mar.  29,  1790,  According  to  within  war- 
rant being  met,  made  choice  of  Levi  Put- 
nam, Modera'r  ;  Seth  Putnam,  Town  Clerk  ; 
Thomas  Mead,  Levi  Putnam  and  Seth 
Putnam,  selectmen  ;  Edmond  Holden,  con- 
stable and  collector  of  taxes ;  Lovewell 
Warren,  Town  Treasurer  ;  Jonas  Harring- 
ton, Surveyor.  Attest, 

Seth  Putnam,  T.  C. 

Recorded  May  7th,  1790. 

I  find  by  the  records  in  the  town  clerk's 
office  that  the  honorable  Seth  Putnam  was 
chosen  to  represent  the  town  of  Middlesex 
on  the  first  day  of  September,  1807,  and 
that  the  number  of  votes  cast  for  repre- 
sentative was  30.  The  general  reader  will 
at  first  think  it  strange,  to  say  the  least, 
that  the  town  had  no  representative  till  1 7 
years  after  its  organization ;  but  may  re- 
member Vermont  was  not  admitted  into 
the  Union  until  Feb.  1791. 

Samuel  Mann,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
of  the  town,  bought  two  lots  of  land  3 
miles  N.  E.  of  Middlesex  village.  I  bought 
the  same  lots  Oct.  19,  1820,  at  which  time 
I  commenced  an  acquaintance  with  the  in- 
habitants of  Middlesex.  I  came  into  the 
town  with  my  family  Mar.  16,  1821.  The 
venerable  Thomas  Mead  was  then  very 
far  advanced  in  years,  and  had  a  great 
number  of  children  and  grand-children. 
His  son  Thomas,  and  grand-son  Thomas, 
lived  in  his  house,  and  also  Jacob  Morris, 
who  married  his  daughter,  making  in  all 
four  families.  Mr.  Thomas  Mead  was  a 
church-going  man  and  was  much  respected. 
There  was  no  meeting-house  in  town  until 
several  years  after  I  came,  except  a  small 
house  of  one  story,  which  was  built  by  a 
very  upright  and  benevolent  man, 

SAMUEL   HASKINS, 

who  built  it  at  his  own  expense  to  present 
to  the  Methodist  church,  which  was  then 
in  a  prosperous  state  here.  He  owned  a 
saw-mill  and  grist-mill,  and  an  oil-mill. 
While  he  was  grinding  large  cakes  of  oil- 
meal,  one  of  the  stones,  6  feet  or  more  in 
diameter,  broke  away  from  the  axle-tree  or 
shaft,  and  threw  him  backward  against  the 


oil-trough,  and  broke  both  of  his  legs. 
The  stone  which  remained  attached  to  the 
axle-tree  rolled  around  swiftly  against  the 
other,  crushing  them  nearly  off,  until  the 
sufferer  was  released  by  a  neighbor,  who 
took  away  the  stone  and  conveyed  him  to 
his  house.  Two  physicians  were  soon  in 
attendance  ;  both  limbs  were  taken  off,  but 
the  good  man's  sufferings  soon  ceased, 
and  he  passed  away  calmly.  I  was  stand- 
ing by  to  behold  the  solemn  sight,  and 
could  truly  say : 

"How  still  and  peaceful  is  tlie  grave 
Wlien  life's  vain  tumult  all  is  passed; 

Tlie  appointed  liouse  by  Heaven's  decree 
Receives  us  all  at  last." 

After  the  death  of  this  generous  man, 
the  house  was  changed  from  a  meeting- 
house to  a  dwelling-house,  and  thus  re- 
mains. It  stands  near  the  S.  E.  corner  of 
the  town  cemetery,  owned  and  occupied 
by  a  grand-daughter  of  the  deceased  and 
her  husband. 

LOVEWELL   warren, 

one  of  the  first  settlers,  was  town  treasurer 
in  1790.  He  was  much  esteemed  by  his 
neighbors.  Leander  Warren,  a  son  of 
Lovewell,  represented  the  town  several 
times,  and  was  much  esteemed  by  his 
townsmen.  Rufus  Warren,  a  son  of  Le- 
ander, has  also  represented  the  town. 

HON.    SETH    PUTNAM 

had  3  sons.  Holden,  the  oldest,  repre- 
sented the  town  several  times.  Roswell, 
the  second,  was  an  estimable  citizen,  much 
esteemed,  and  the  reverend  George  Put- 
nam was  a  minister  of  the  Gospel,  much 
esteemed.  Hon.  Seth  Putnam  made  the 
town  a  present  by  deeding  to  the  town  a 
small  lot  of  land  for  a  cemetery,  where  his 
remains  and  the  remains  of  a  part  of  his 
family  are  buried.  Their  graves  are  en- 
closed by  an  iron  fence.  Almost  all  the 
first  settlers  of  Middlesex  were  living  here 
when  I  came.  I  think  the  number  of  men 
was  about  210  who  were  heads  of  families, 
and  they  have  all  passed  away  from  earth. 

WILLIAM    HOLDEN, 

one  of  the  first  settlers,  bought  a  lot  of 
land  about  i^  miles  from  the  village,  the 


224 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


farm  now  owned  by  William  B.  McEIroy. 
Mr.  Holden  had  5  sons,  Horace,  William, 
Xetxes,  Moses  and  Philander.  Horace 
Holden,  chosen  town  clerk  in  March,  1820, 
held  the  office  32  years.  At  the  end  of  32 
years,  his  son,  William  H.  Holden,  was 
chosen,  and  held  the  office  19  years.  C. 
B.  Holden,  a  son  of  Horace,  held  the  office 
from  March,  1873,  to  the  time  of  his  death, 
July  25,  1878,  and.  James  H.  Holden  ap- 
pointed July  27,  1878,  by  the  selectmen; 
held  the  office  until  September  3,  1878. 
Horace,  William,  Xerxes,  Moses  and  C. 
li.  Holden  represented  the  town  several 
times  each,  and  have  all  passed  away,  and 
William  H.  Holden  has  also  passed  away. 

JOSEPH   CHAPIN 

was  born  Oct.  28,  1758.  His  son,  Joseph 
Chapin,  Jr.,  was  born  June  25,  in  Weathers- 
field,  Vt.,  in  1792.  Joseph  Chapin,  Sr., 
settled  in  Middlesex  when  the  town  was 
quite  new ;  his  .son,  Joseph  Chapin,  Jr., 
was  a  farmer,  and  by  industry  and  good 
economy,  acquired  a  very  handsome  prop- 
erty for  his  children,  and  left  a  good  name. 
His  wife  passed  away  many  years  before 
his  departure.  She  was  sister  to  Horace 
Holden.  Joseph  Chapin,  Sr.,  lived  to  the 
age  of  96  years,  and  was  esteemed  by  all 
who  knew  him. 

Joseph  Chajjin,  Jr.,  had  2  sons.  Hink- 
ley,  the  oldest,  was  killed  instantly.  He 
was  a  brakeman  on  the  cars,  and  received 
the  fatal  blow  when  passing  through  or 
under  a  bridge.  William  Chapin,  his  son, 
still  survives  and  has  held  many  important 
offices  in  town. 

The  Chapin  family  own  lots  in  our  beau- 
tiful cemetery,  and  the  remains  of  their 
loved  ones  are  deposited  there.  One  of 
Joseph  Chapin,  Jr's.,  daughters,  with  her 
husband,  Otis  Leland,  are  living  in  sight 
of  our  beautiful  cemetery,  where  they  often 
visit  the  graves  of  their  departed  friends — 
their  son,  their  parents  and  grand-parents, 
and  brother  who  was  killed  on  the  cars. 

JEREMIAH   LELAND, 

one  of  the  first  settlers,  removed  from 
Charlestown,  N.  H.  He  died  soon  after 
I  came  to  Middlesex,  respected  by  all  who 
knew  him  ;  left  3  sons,  Rufus,  James  and 


Jeremiah,  all  of  whom  have  long  since 
passed  away,  esteemed  by  all,  and  their 
remains  are  deposited  in  our  cemetery, 
with  the  remains  of  all  their  partners  in 
life.  James,  son  of  Jeremiah,  was  never 
married.  Jeremiah,  Jr.,  has left4 sons,  all 
now  living,  two  of  whom  have  rejDresented 
the  town,  and  Rufus  has  left  two  sons, 
who  are  now  living,  worthy  men,  much 
esteemed. 

EBENEZER    PUTNAM, 

a  brother  of  Col.  Seth  Putnam,  was  a  man 
about  50  years  of  age  when  I  came  to  live 
in  Middlesex,  in  1821.  He  was  a  very 
pleasant,  social  man,  and  worked  with  me 
to  score  timber  for  a  barn.  His  son,  Rus- 
sel,  hewed  the  timber.  Soon  after,  Russel 
was  taken  sick.  I  visited  him  several 
times.  His  sufferings  were  very  great  be- 
fore he  passed  away.  He  left  several 
daughters  and  one  son,  whose  name  was 
Holden,  who  was  a  sheriff  of  good  repute, 
and  enlisted  in  the  last  war,  and  lost  his 
life  in  the  defence  of  his  country. 

JACOB   PUTNAM, 

another  brother  of  Col.  Seth  Putnam,  set- 
tled on  a  branch  of  Onion  river  in  Middle- 
sex, about  5  miles  above  Montpelier  vil- 
lage. I  became  acquainted  with  him  soon 
after  I  came  to  the  town.  He  was  a  man 
of  good  understanding.  I  was  associated 
with  him  and  Nathaniel  Carpenter  in  mak- 
ing an  appraisal  of  all  the  real  estate  in 
Middlesex  soon  after  I  came.  He  died 
many  years  since.  His  son,  C.  C.  Put- 
nam, and  C.  C.  Putnam,  Jr.,  are  persever- 
ing men  and  good  citizens. 

Isaac  Putnam,  another  brother  of  Seth 
Putnam,  lived  in  Montpelier,  and  passed 
away  to  the  spirit  life,  leaving  a  good  name 
and  a  respectable  posterity. 

NATHANIEL   CARPENTER 

was  one  of  the  first  settlers  ;  voted  for  town 
representative  in  September,  1807;  was 
town  clerk  in  all  9  years,  and  a  justice  of 
the  peace,  I  think,  30  years,  or  more.  He 
died  in  the  winter  of  1837.  In  182 1,  when 
I  came  to  live  here,  he  lived  one  mile  from 
our  village  and  5  miles  from  Montpelier 
village.     He  had  4  sons  by  a  second  mar- 


MIDDLESEX. 


225 


riage  ;  two  or  more  by  a  previous  marriage  ; 
his  four  last  sons  were,  N.  M.  Carpenter, 
Don  P.  Carpenter,  and  Heman  and  Al- 
bert. Don  P.  Carpenter  has  been  one 
of  the  side  judges  of  Washington  Coun- 
ty Court,  and  Heman,  judge  of  Wash- 
ington County  Probate  Court,  and  N.  M. 
Carpenter  is  a  respectable  and  successful 
farmer.  I  know  less  of  Albert,  as  he  set- 
tled in  a  distant  state. 

CAPT.    ROBERT   MCELROY, 

one  of  the  first  settlers,  lived  2  miles  from 
Middlesex  village.  His  family  were  an 
aged  mother,  who  emigrated  from  Scotland, 
his  wife,  4  sons  and  3  daughters.  Ira,  the 
oldest  son,  died  single;  Harry,  the  second 
son,  had  3  sons,  Clesson  R.  and  H.  L.  Mc- 
Elroy,  and  Wm.  B.  McElroy.  Lewis  had 
2  sons  and  Jeremiah  2  sons,  in  all,  7 
grandsjons.  Capt.  Robert  McElroy  and 
wife,  mother  and  4  sons,  have  passed 
away.  Harry  McElroy's  third  son,  Wm. 
B.  McElroy,  was  chosen  town  clerk,  Sept. 
3,  1878. 

It  will  be  observed  by  this  that  Capt. 
Robert  McElroy  has  left  a  good  record. 
In  addition  to  the  above  I  think  it  is  my 
duty  to  state  that  Harry  McElroy's  eldest 
son,  Clesson  R.  McElroy,  was  a  lieutenant 
in  the  army  and  a  valiant  officer,  held  in 
high  esteem  by  both  officers  and  soldiers, 
and  Harry  McElroy's  second  son,  H.  L. 
McElroy,  has  been  superintendent  of  com- 
mon schools  in  Middlesex  for  several  years, 
and  as  such  highly  esteemed. 

JESSE  JOHNSON 

was  one  of  the  first  settlers,  and  voted  for 
representative  in  1807.  He  was  far  ad- 
vanced in  life  in  1820.  His  son,  Jesse 
Johnson,  Jr.,  was  a  man  in  the  prime  of 
life,  and  lived  about  50  years  after  1820, 
and  was  for  many  years  associated  with 
Mo.ses  Holden,  his  son-in-law,  in  trade. 
They  were  esteemed  by  all  who  knew 
them,  were  good  economists,  and  accumu- 
lated a  large  property,  and  have  passed 
away.  They  have  left  no  son  to  perpetuate 
their  names. 

EPHRAIM   WILLEY 

was  one  of  the  first  settlers,  and  had  2 
sons,  Hubbard  and  Benjamin,  who  were  in 

29 


the  prime  of  life  in  1820.  They  have  all 
passed  away ;  but  have  left  a  great  number 
of  children  and  grand-children  to  perpet- 
uate their  memory,  all  of  whom  are  re- 
spectable citizens,  even  as  their  fathers 
and  grandfathers  before  them  were. 

RUFUS   CHAMBERLIN,  ESQ., 

one  of  the  first  settlers,  was  in  1821  a  man 
far  advanced  in  life,  and  had  then  living  5 
sons  and  3  daughters.  His  oldest  son, 
Clesson,  died  in  Massachusetts.  Oliver 
A.  Chamberlin,  the  second  son,  and  A. 
L.  Chamberlin,  the  fourth,  are  still  liv- 
ing. Rufus  Chamberlin,  Esq.,  and  wife, 
2  daughters  and  3  sons,  have  passed  from 
this  life,  but  not  without  leaving  children 
and  grandchildren  to  perpetuate  their 
memory,  though  most  of  the  grandchildren 
have  passed  away.  I  will  name  a  few : 
Wm.  H.  Holden,  C.  B.  Holden,  Martha 
Holden  ;  children  of  Horace  Holden  and 
his  wife,  Mary  Chamberlin,  and  Mary,  also 
a  daughter  of  Oliver  A.  Chamberlin.  Our 
town  clerk  is  a  son  of  Harry  McElroy  and 
his  wife,  Mary  Ann,  dau.  of  Rufus  Cham- 
berlin, both  of  whom  have  passed  away. 

MERCHANTS   AND   STORES,    1879. 

We  have  three  stores  in  Middlesex  vil- 
lage, one  owned  and  occupied  by  Benja- 
min Barrett  and  James  H.  Holden,  one  by 
J.  O.  Hobart,  and  one  by  N.  King  Her- 
rick,  all  doing  a  good  business  without 
danger  of  failing.  Our  merchants  are  as 
reliable  as  those  of  Montpelier,  and  I  choose 
to  patronize  them. 

We  have  at  this  date,  Jan.  1879,  ^^ 
physician  in  town.  Nearly  all  of  the  peo- 
ple of  Middlesex  employ  the  physicians 
who  live  in  Montpelier  village. 

MEETING-HOUSES   AND   CHURCHES. 

We  have  three  meeting-houses,  all  good  ; 
one  good  brick  one  in  the  village,  near  the 
passenger  depot,  one  built  of  wood  in  the 
center  of  the  town,  and  another  of  wood  in 
the  small  village  denominated  Shady  Rill. 
They  are  all  kept  well  painted  and  in  good 
repair.  The  one  in  Middlesex  village  is 
now  occupied  by  the  Methodists  one-half 
of  the  time,  and  seldom  at  any  other  time, 
and  it  is  about  the  same  as  to  the  house  in 
the   center  of  the   town.     The   meeting- 


226 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


house  in  Shady  Rill  was  built  about  30 
years  ago,  by  the  Freewill  Baptists,  and  it 
is  occupied  by  those  who  built  it,  and  their 
posterity.  There  was  a  Congregational 
church  in  this  town  when  the  brick  meeting- 
house was  built,  but  there  is  not  now.  I 
think  it  passed  away  about  1845.  The 
Methodist  church  has  about  36  members 
at  this  time.    The  Freewill  Baptist  church, 

1  think,  is  about  the  same  as  to  numbers. 
The    Methodist   denomination    own    a 

good  and  well-finished  parsonage  house 
and  out-buildings,  all  well  arranged,  near 
the  brick  meeting-house  in  Middlesex. 

MICAH   HATCH 

was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  war, 
and  was  an  early  settler  of  Middlesex. 
He  bought  two  or  more  good  lots  of  land, 
4  miles  north  of  Montpelier  village.  He 
had  2  sons,  Micah  and  David ;  David  had 

2  sons,  Zenas  and  Gardner.  Zenas  was 
drafted  and  lost  his  life  in  defence  of  his 
country.  A  daughter  of  Micah  Hatch 
was  the  mother  of  the  Hon.  Zenas  Upham, 
one  of  the  side  judges  of  Orange  County 
Court  in  1878. 

SOLOMON   LEWIS 

was  an  early  settler  of  Middlesex,  and  set- 
tled on  the  North  branch  of  Onion  river, 
6  miles  north  of  Montpelier  village.  Wil- 
liam Lewis,  a  son  of  Solomon,  owned  and 
occupied  the  farm  for  many  years,  and  said 
farm  is  now  owned  by  Lathrop  Lewis,  a 
son  of  the  late  William  Lewis.  I  could 
say  much  in  commendation  of  Mr.  Sol- 
omon Lewis  and  his  son  William,  and  of 
his  grandson,  Lathrop,  all  of  whom  have 
been  good  citizens. 

EZRA   CUSHMAN 

was  one  of  the  early  settlers,  a  respectable 
merchant,  and  associated  as  such  with 
Theophilus  Cushman,  his  nephew,  in  trade 
in  Middlesex  village  in  the  early  settlement 
of  the  town,  was  a  man  in  whom  the  people 
all  had  the  utmost  confidence.  He  mar- 
ried a  daughter  of  Hon.  Seth  Putnam. 
Their  son,  the  Rev.  Lewis  Cushman,  a 
Methodist  minister  much  esteemed,  has 
been  engaged  in  the  ministry  more  than  30 
years,  previous  to  1879. 


CAPT.    ZERAH    HILLS 

was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  town. 
He  had  3  sons,  Lorenzo,  Justin  and  Zerah. 
Zerah  built  the  house  above  described, 
and  had  it  very  nearly  completed  when  the 
Rebel  war  commenced,  and  he  enlisted  in 
defence  of  our  country,  and  died  in  its  de- 
fence June  25,  1863,  lamented  by  all  who 
knew  him. 

COL.    HUTCHINS 

was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Middlesex. 
He  had  two  sons,  Timothy  and  Solomon. 
Solomon  married  a  sister  of  ex-Governor 
Paul  Dillingham.  Solomon  Hutchinskept 
a  public  house  in  Middlesex  village  when 
the  town  was  quite  new.  I  think  the 
house  was  the  first  public  house  kept  in 
Middlesex.  Solomon  Hutchins  and  his 
immediate  family  have  long  since  passed 
away,  but  leaving  a  respectable  posterity 
of  children,  grandchildren  and  great 
grandchildren. 
March,  1879. 

MIDDLESEX   CONCLUDED. 

BY  VOLNEY  V.  VAUGHN,  ESQ. 

The  township,  situated  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Winooski  river,  30  miles  from 
the  mouth  of  the  river  at  Burlington,  lat. 
44°,  20',  long.  4°,  2',  is  bounded  N.  by 
Worcester,  E.  by  East  Montpelier  and 
Montpelier,  S.  by  Berlin  and  Moretown, 
from  which  it  is  separated  by  the  Winooski, 
and  W.  by  Waterbury. 

The  N.  H.  charter,  by  Wentworth,  was 
granted  "  by  command  of  His  Excellency, 
King  George  III.,  in  the  third  year  of  his 
reign,"  and  provides : 

The  township  of  Middlesex,  lying  on 
the  east  side  of  French  or  Onion  river,  so 
called,  shall  be  six  miles  square  and  no 
more,  containing  23,040  acres. 

The  first  meeting  for  the  choice  of  town 
officers  shall  be  held  on  the  26th  day  of 
July  next,  to  be  notified  and  presided  over 
by  Capt.  Isaac  Woodruff",  and  that  the  an- 
nual meeting  forever  hereafter  for  the 
choice  of  officers  for  said  town  shall  be  on 
the  second  Tuesday  of  March,  annnally. 

The  town  was  to  be  divided  into  71 
equal  shares ;  each  one  of  the  65  propri- 
etors to  whom  it  was  granted  to  hold  one 
share,  and  6  shares  as  usual  in  the  N.  H. 
charters  for  the  Governor's  right,  the  ben- 


MIDDLESEX. 


227 


efit  of  the  Gospel  and  schools.  The  Gov- 
ernor's land  was  a  tract  of  500  acres  in  the 
S.  W.  corner  of  the  town. 

The  council  of  New  York  established 
the  county  of  Gloucester  in  1770,  which 
included  this  town,  arid  the  first  record  of 
a  proprietors'  meeting  found  in  our  town 
records  commences : 

A  meeting  of  the  proprietors  of  the 
Township  of  Middlesex,  on  Onion  River, 
in  the  Province  of  New  York,  holden  at 
the  dwellLng-house  of  Samuel  Canfield, 
Esq.,  in  New  Milford,  Conn.,  on  Tuesday, 
ye  tenth  day  of  May,  1770. 

At  this  meeting  Partridge  Thatcher,  of 
New  Milford,  was  chosen  moderator,  and 
SanTuel  Averill,  of  Kent,  clerk. 

It  was  voted  to  "lay  out  said  township 
and  lot  one  division  of  100  acres  to  each 
right,"  and  Samuel  Averill  was  chosen 
agent  to  agree  with  a  surveyor  and  chain- 
bearers  to  do  the  business.  It  was  voted 
to  lay  a  tax  of  $3  per  right,  to  pay  the  ex- 
pense of  surveying,  and  Partridge  Thatcher 
and  Samuel  Averill  laid  out  the  ist  division 
as  above  voted. 

The  proprietors  held  a  meeting  at  Kent, 
Apr.  13,  1773,  Samuel  Averill,  Jr.,  clerk. 
Voted  $2.50  per  right  instead  of  the  $3.00 
voted  before  to  pay  the  expense  of  the 
surveys. 

Oct.  14,  1774,  Samuel  Averill,  Jr.,  col- 
lector, sold  8  lots  of  land  at  public  auc- 
tion, to  satisfy  unpaid  taxes  voted  as  above. 
Partridge  Thatcher  and  Samuel  Averill, 
Jr.,  bid  off  4  lots  each,  at  ^i  2s.,  N.  Y. 
money,  per  lot. 

The  first  deed  of  Middlesex  lands  re- 
corded is  from  Samuel  Averill,  Jr.,  to 
Samuel  Averill  of  5  full  rights,  dated  Kent, 
Litchfield  Co.,  Dec.  30,  1774,  and  ac- 
knowledged before  Wm.  Cogswell,  justice 
of  the  peace. 

The  first  proprietors'  meeting  held  in 
Vermont  was  at  Sunderland,  Oct.  13,  1783, 
Isaac  Hitchcock,  proprietors'  clerk,  and  the 
2d  and  3d  division  of  lands  were  made,  and 
surveys  recorded  Feb.  9,  1786. 

The  first  proprietors'  meeting  held  in 
Middlesex  was  at  the  house  of  Lovell  War- 
ren, Aug.  14,  1787.  Choice  was  made  of 
Seth  Putnam,  proprietors'  clerk,  and  ad- 
journed until  Nov.   5,  same  year,  and  at 


this  adjourned  meeting  it  was  claimed  that 
all  former  surveys  or  pretended  surveys 
had  been  made  inaccurately,  that  some  of 
the  lots  had  been  laid  out  within  the  limits 
of  Montpelicr,  that  proprietors  could  not 
find  their  lots,  etc.,  and  it  was  "  Resolved 
to  hold  null  and  void  all  former  surveys  or 
pretended  surveys." 

It  was  voted  to  lay  out  the  ist,  2d  and 
4th  divisions  in  69  lots  each,  of  104  acres 
in  a  lot,  the  4  acres  beingallowed  for  high- 
ways. Where  the  village  now  stands,  30 
acres  were  reserved  for  a  mill  privilege, 
and  104  acres  of  the  pine  lands  just  east- 
erly of  the  mill  site  for  the  first  mill- 
builder,  if  he  built  a  mill  within  i2months. 
This  reservation  was  the  3d,  called  the 
white-pine  division,  which  was  laid  out  in 
about  i-acre  lots,  and  divided  among  the 
proprietors  the  same  as  the  other  divisions. 
The  1st,  2d  and  3d  divisions  were  allotted 
in  1787  and  '88,  and  surveys  recorded  in 
September,  1788.  Allotted  by  Gen.  Parley 
Davis,  surveyor ;  Isaac  Putnam,  hind- 
chainman  ;  Jacob  Putnam,  fore-chainman. 
The  4th  division  was  allotted  by  Gen. 
Davis  in  1798. 

This  allotting,  if  accurately  surveyed, 
would  cover  22,162  acres,  which  would 
leave  878  acres  undivided  land,  of  which 
each  proprietor  would  own  an  equal  share. 
This  land,  which  is  north-easterly  of  the 
Governor's  right,  has  been  taken  up  or 
"pitched"  from  time  to  time,  until  it  is 
all  claimed  on  titles  of  original  rights. 

By  an  act  of  the  legislature,  approved 
Oct.  30,  1850,  so  much  of  the  town  as  is 
contained  in  lots  numbering  50,  55,  56,57, 
58,  63  and  64,  and  so  much  of  the  undi- 
vided land  as  lies  westerly  of  a  line  com- 
mencing at  the  most  south-easterly  corner 
of  lot  number  64,  and  running  south  t,6° 
west  and  parallel  with  the  original  line  be- 
tween Waterbury  and  Middlesex  to  the 
Governor's  right,  so  called ;  thence  on  the 
line  of  the  Governor's  right  to  the  original 
town  line,  was  annexed  to  the  town  of 
Waterbury,  whichleaves  about22,ooo  acres 
as  the  present  area  of  Middlesex. 

The  change  in  the  town  line  was  made 
to  benefit  a  few  families  who  lived  in  the 
west  part  of  the  town  who  could  more  con- 


228 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


veniently  attend  meetings  and  go  to  market 
in  Waterbury  than  in  Middlesex,  on  ac- 
count of  living  the  west  side  of  a  high 
range  of  hills  or  mountains,  that  form  a 
natural  boundary,  and  so  separate  the  two 
towns  that  only  one  carriage-road  directly 
connects  them.  The  change  brings  the 
town  line  as  now  established  very  near  the 
summit  of  this  range  of  mountains. 

Near  the  S.  E.  corner  of  the  town  com- 
mences a  less  elevation  of  land,  which  ex- 
tends in  a  northerly  direction  a  little  east 
of  the  centre  of  the  town,  which  unites 
with  the  higher  range  about  4  miles  from 
the  south  line,  and  gives  the  south  part  of 
the  town  a  slope  southerly  towards  the 
Winooski,  and  the  northern  and  eastern 
part  a  slope  easterly  towards  the  North 
Branch  of  the  Winooski,  which  fiows 
through  the  N.  E.  corner  of  the  town. 

The  surface  of  the  township  is  somewhat 
uneven,  but  the  soil  is  generally  very  fer- 
tile and  productive.  There  are  many  ex- 
cellent farms  on  the  hills,  and  some  fine 
intervales  along  the  river  and  branch,  and 
although  the  meadows  are  not  very  ex- 
tensive, they  are  enough  so  to  form  a  num- 
ber of  very  good  and  valuable  farms. 

The  land  is  naturally  covered  with  maple, 
birch,  beech,  ash,  elm,  butternut,  red-oak, 
iron-wood,  pine,  spruce,  hemlock,  fir  and 
other  smaller  trees  and  bushes  such  as  are 
common  in  this  part  of  the  State. 

The  N.  W.  corner  of  the  town  contains 
about  1200  acresof  nearly  unbroken  forest, 
covering  the  mountain  and  lying  along  its 
base,  which  only  needs  steam-power  in  the 
immediate  vicinity,  backed  by  good  me- 
chanical enterprise  and  skill,  to  make  it 
valuable  property. 

This  town  will  compare  favorably  with 
the  other  towns  in  the  County  for  farming 
and  lumbering. 

NATURAL   CURIOSITIES. 

Nature  has  given  our  territory  fully  an 
average  share  of  the  singular  and  odd,  and 
of  the  grand  and  sublime. 

Among  the  oddities  is  a  rocking  stone 
on  the  farm  of  William  Chapin,  near  the 
Centre.  This  stone,  weighing  many  tons, 
is  so  evenly  balanced  on  a  high  ledge  that 


it  can  be  rocked  forward  and  back  with 
ease.  On  the  mountain  west  of  the  late 
C.  B.  Holden  farm  is  a  high  cliff  of  rocks, 
from  which  many  heavy  pieces  of  rock  have 
become  detached  and  fallen  to  the  ravine 
below.  These  are  so  placed  that  they 
form  some  curious  caverns  on  a  small  scale, 
which  are  noted  hedge-hog  habitations. 
One  of  these  rocks,  sheltered  by  the  over- 
hanging cliff  from  which  it  fell,  which  is 
some  6  feet  long,  4  feet  wide,  and  from  i 
to  2  feet  thick,  lies  on  another  rock  in  such 
a  manner  that  it  projects  over  nearly  half 
its  length,  and  is  so  nicely  balanced  that  a 
man  can  teeter  it  up  and  down  with  one 
finger. 

A  few  years  ago  there  stood  by  the  road- 
.side  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Daniel 
Pembrook,  an  iron-wood  or  remon  tree, 
which  about  2  feet  from  the  ground  di- 
vided into  two  trunks,  each  about  6  inches 
in  diameter.  They  grew  smooth  and 
nearly  straight,  and  from  i  to  2  feet  apart 
for  some  10  feet,  where  they  again  united 
in  one  solid  trunk,  which  was  about  10 
inches  in  diameter ;  this  continued  about  3 
feet,  where  it  again  divided.  The  two 
trunks  above  were  similar  to  the  two  be- 
low for  about  10  feet;  there  it  united  once 
more,  and  above  threw  out  branches  and 
had  a  "top"  similar  to  other  trees  of  its 
kind.  This  tree  was  cut  down  by  some 
one  who  had  an  eye  keener  for  the  useful 
than  for  the  ornamental. 

The  only  road  that  directly  connects 
this  town  with  Waterbury,  about  i^  miles 
from  the  river,  passes  through  a  notch  be- 
tween masses  of  ragged  ledges  which  for 
many  rods  rise  almost  perpendicular  on 
either  side  to  the  height  of  100  feet  or 
more,  with  just  fair  room  for  a  good  car- 
riage-road and  a  small  stream  of  water  be- 
tween. 

The  channel  called  the  Narrows,  worn 
through  the  rocks  by  the  Winooski  be- 
tween this  town  and  Moretown,  is  quite  a 
curiosity.  Of  this  grand  work  of  time 
Moretown  may  justly  claim  a  share,  but  as 
this  town  is  the  most  benefited  by  it,  Mid- 
dlesex history  would  be  incomplete  with- 
out a  description.  The  channel  is  about 
80  rods  in  length,  some  30  feet  in  depth, 


MIDDLESEX. 


i2g 


and  averaging  about  60  feet  wide.  Where 
the  bridge  leading  from  Middlesex  village 
across  to  Moretown  spans  the  channel,  the 
width  at  the  top  of  the  cut  is  less  than  the 
depth.  Below  this  bridge  for  many  rods 
the  rocks  rise  very  nearly  perpendicular  for 
some  30  feet,  appearing  like  a  wall.  Above 
the  bridge  for  many  rods  they  rise  on  either 
side  to  near  the  same  elevation,  but  not 
quite  so  steep,  leaving  the  chasm  only  a 
few  feet  wide  at  the  bottom,  and  the  river 
runs  very  rapidly  through  the  channel.  At 
the  upper  end  of  the  Narrows  is  a  dam  and 
the  mills  described  elsewhere.  Just  below 
the  bridge,  and  in  direct  line  with  the 
course  of  the  river  above,  is  a  high  pinna- 
cle of  rocks.  When  the  river  is  low  it 
runs  the  north  side  of  this,  and  when  the 
water  is  high  it  flows  on  both  sides,  or  sur- 
rounds it. 

By  a  survey  made  by  the  late  Hon.  Wm. 
Howes  a  few  years  ago,  it  was  ascertained 
that  the  fall  in  the  river  from  below  the 
dam  at  Montpelier  village  to  the  top  of 
the  water  in  the  pond  at  Middlesex  was 
only  5  feet  11  inches. 

There  are  many  things  that  indicate  that 
at  some  distant  day  these  ledges  formed  a 
barrier  that  obstructed  the  water  of  the 
river,  and  raised  it  many  feet  higher  than 
the  meadows  along  the  river  above  this 
place,  forminff  a  large  pond  or  lake,  that 
flowed  not  only  these  meadows  but  a  part 
of  Montpelier,  including  the  greater  part 
of  the  village,  and  a  portion  of  the  towns 
of  Barre,  Berlin  and  Moretown.  About  2 
miles  above  the  Narrows  the  ledge,  near 
where  the  carriage-road  now  is,  some  50 
feet  above  the  present  bed  of  the  river, 
bears  unmistakable  evidence  of  the  wash- 
ing of  the  waters  of  the  river  or  lake. 

While  gazing  on  this  woudrous  work 

Of  nature's  law,  divinely  fair, 
We  feel  how  great  the  worl{  of  time. 

How  weak  and  frail  we  mortals  are. 

We  feel  the  feeling  grow  of  awe, 
While  looking  on  this  rolling  tide, 

And  think  these  were  the  works  of  God, 
In  which  mankind  could  take  no  pride. 

Along  the  mountain  side  in  the  N.  W. 
part  of  the  town  are  many  rills  and  brooks, 
that  come  rushing  down  steep  declivities 
and  leaping  from  high  precipices,  forming 


many  beautiful  cascades  and  miniature  cat- 
aracts, which  if  as  great  as  they  are  lofty 
would  be  supremely  grand.  Here,  too,  are 
found  high  overhanging  cliffs  and  deep 
ravines,  and  all  the  sublimity  common  to 
the  mountains  of  the  Verd  Mont  State. 

But  when  we  stand  upon  the  summit  of 
the  highest  peak,  3,558  feet  above  Lake 
Champlain,  and  cast  our  eye  at  a  glance 
over  more  than  10,000  sq.  miles  of  the 
surrounding  country,  looking  down  over 
the  homes  of  tens  of  thousands  of  our 
steady  villagers  and  sturdy  yeomanry,  view- 
ing the  well-cultivated  plains  and  forest- 
covered  hills,  and  beholding  the  distant 
mountain  scenery,  the  winding  streams 
and  ever-varied  landscape,  here  we  find 
magnificence  and  grandeur  combined. 

It  might  be  said  Bublime  and  fail". 

And  lofty  are  our  verdant  hills. 
And  crystal  streams  from  fountains  flow 

That  turn  witli  ease  the  swiftest  mills. 
Our  plains',  how  grand,  how  marked  with  cave, 

While  each  proclaims  the  work  of  God ; 
And  man,  with  thanks  and  willing  hands. 

Improves  the  rich  and  fertile  sod. 

For  the  following  very  good  description 
of  our  mountains  I  am  indebted  to  Wm. 
Chapin : 

MOUNTAINS   OF   MIDDLESEX. 

BY    WM.  CHAPIN,   ESQ. 

Near  the  South-west  corner  of  Middle- 
sex there  rises  abruptly  from  the  south 
bank  of  the  Winooski  river  a  range  of 
clearly-defined  mountains,  that  extends 
about  20  miles,  being  nearly  on  the  line 
between  Middlesex  and  Waterbury,  and 
extending  between  Worcester  and  Stowe, 
a  little  to  the  east  of  the  line  between 
those  towns,  and  ending  near  Elmore  pond, 
in  the  Lamoille  valley.  These  mountains 
are  called  "The  Hogbacks "  in  some  of 
the  earlier  geographical  works  of  Vermont, 
but  that  name  now  applies  only  to  the 
south  end  of  the  range  near  the  Winooski. 

The  most  conspicuous  points  in  Middle- 
sex are  locally  known  as  ' '  Burned  Mount- 
ain," "White  Rock,"  or  "  Castle  Rock," 
and  "  Mt.  Hunger."  This  Mt.  Hunger  is 
nearly  on  the  line  between  Middlesex  and 
Worcester,  and  a  little  east  of  the  corners 
of  the  four  towns,  Middlesex,  Worcester, 
Stowe  and  Waterbury.  Its  height  is  3648 
feet  above  the  sea. 


230 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


As  the  topmost  stone  of  this  mountain, 
which  is  the  highest  point  in  the  range,  is 
doubtless  in  the  town  of  Worcester,  that 
town  may  perhaps  fairly  claim  the  honor 
of  having  within  its  limits  one  of  the  pleas- 
antest  places  of  public  resort  to  be  found 
in  New  England. 

The  name  of  Mt.  Hunger  was  given  by 
a  party  of  hunters  who  went  out  from  Mid- 
dlesex Centre  on  a  winter's  day,  some  60 
years  ago,  to  hunt  for  deer  on  this  mount- 
ain. Lost  in  the  vast  woods,  they  had  to 
stay  out  all  night,  with  nothing  to  eat  save 
one  partridge,  and  that  without  salt  or 
sauce.  When  they  got  home  the  next 
day,  half  starved  and  wholly  tired  out, 
they  said  they  \\?LAhQe.Yi  on  Mount  Hunger . 
Not  an  inviting  name,  certainly,  but  very 
appropriate  to  the  occasion. 

The  only  comfortable  way  and  road  to 
the  summit  at  the  present  time  is  in  and 
through  Middlesex.  From  the  earliest 
settlement  of  the  town  this  has  been  a 
favorite  resort  for  all  who  have  had  suffi- 
cient hardihood  of  muscle  and  wind  to 
make  the  first  ascent.  But  the  way  was 
rough,  tangled  and  steep.  A  better  way 
was  needed,  and  in  due  time  was  made. 
The  Mt.  Hunger  road  was  commenced  in 
October,  1877,  and  completed  June  i, 
1878.  It  was  on  its  first  survey  2  miles 
and  16  rods  in  length,  extending  from  the 
public  highway  in  Middlesex  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  mountain.  The  first  500  rods 
was  made  a  good,  safe  and  comfortable 
carriage  road.  The  last  half  mile  is  very 
steep,  and  only  a  foot-path  could  be  made, 
but  the  path  is  so  well  provided  with  stairs 
and  other  conveniences  that  children  6 
years  of  age  have  gone  up  safely,  and  men 
of  86  years  have  gone  up  without  difficulty. 
[The  late  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  of  Mont- 
pelier,  twice  after  86  years  of  age.]  Many 
teams  of  one  to  6  horses  drawing  carriages 
from  two  to  20  persons,  have  gone  up  and 
down  this  road  in  the  summers  of  1878,  ^Q 
and  '80,  without  an  accident  or  mishap  to 
any  one. 

To  build  such  a  road,  through  a  dense 
forest  of  spruce,  birch  and  maple  woods, 
was  no  small  undertaking,  requiring  some 
courage,  much  capital  and  a  vast  amount 


of  hard  labor.  Thousands  of  trees  had  to 
be  dug  up  by  the  roots — giant  birches  that 
clung  to  the  ground  for  dear  life,  well- 
rooted  spruce,  and  tough  beeches  and 
maple ;  thousands  of  knolls  and  hills  had 
to  be  graded  or  removed,  and  hardest  of 
all,  thousands  of  rocks  and  ledges  to  be 
blasted,  dug  out,  or  got  around  in  some 
way. 

Hundreds  of  feet  of  bridging  had  to  be 
built  across  the  many  little  brooks  and  rills 
that  come  down  the  mountain  sides.  The 
longest  bridge  is  in  Middlesex,  near  the 
Worcester  line,  and  is  137  feet  long.  At 
the  upper  end  of  the  carriage-road  is  a 
level  plateau  that  has  been  well  cleared  of 
the  undergrowth  and  made  smooth,  and 
here  a  barn  has  been  built  to  accommodate 
travelers  with  teams.  The  grade  of  the 
road  is  necessarily  somewhat  steep,  but  as 
it  is  a  continual  rise  from  the  foot  to  sum- 
mit, no  very  sharp  or  steep  pitches  are  to 
be  found  in  the  whole  length  of  it. 

This  road  was  built  by  Theron  Bailey, 
Esq.,  of  Montpelier,  proprietor  of  the 
"  Pavilion,"  and  is  owned  and  occupied  by 
him  as  a  toll  road,  the  various  land-owners 
on  the  route  having  deeded  him  the  right 
of  way,  and  some  25  acres  of  land  for 
building  and  standing  ground  at  the  top. 

The  construction  of  this  road  was  under 
the  superintendence  of  Wm.  Chapin,  Esq., 
of  Middlesex  Centre,  and  was  completed, 
with  the  exception  of  stairs  and  bridges, 
in  60  working  days,  and  with  a  gang  of 
less  than  20  men. 

Whether  this  road  will  be  kept  up  in  re- 
pair or  not,  remains  to  be  seen.  The  mount- 
ain top  is  one  of  the  pleasantest  places  of 
earth,  and  will  be  visited  so  long  as  people 
inhabit  the  country  ;  standing  in  an  isolated 
position,  it  commands  a  view  of  the  whole 
country ;  to  the  east,  to  the  White  Mount- 
ains, west,  to  the  Adirondacks,  north,  to 
the  Canadian  Provinces,  and  south,  to  the 
Massachusetts  line ;  a  score  of  villages, 
many  lakes  and  ponds,  and,  best  of  all, 
thousands  of  New  England  farms  and 
homes. 

Among  those  who  visited  here  in  the 
olden  time  was  the  late  Daniel  P.  Thomp- 
son, of  Monti^eher,  who   climbed  up,  fol- 


MIDDLESEX. 


231 


lowing  the  town  line  for  a  guide,  about 
1833,  and  no  doubt  much  of  the  sublime 
mountain  scenery  so  beautifully  described 
in  "  May  Martin,"  "  The  Green  Mountain 
Boys,"  and  other  Vermont  stories,  was 
studied  from  nature  here. 

The  tops  of  all  of  these  mountains  were 
covered  with  timber  at  the  settlement  of 
the  town  ;  now  some  10  acres  are  burned 
down  to  the  bare  rock  on  the  top  of  Mt. 
Hunger,  about  the  same  area  on  "  White 
Rock,"  and  on  Burned  Mountain  the  fire 
has  cleared  some  30  to  40  acres.  The 
spaces  thus  opened  aflbrd  the  finest  out- 
look upon  the  surrounding  country. 

"  Now  on  the  ridges,  bare  and  bleak, 

Cool  'round  my  temples  sighs  the  gale. 
Ye  winds!  that  wander  o'er  the  Peak, 

Yc  mountain  spirits!  hail! 
Angels  of  health!  to  man  below 

Ye  bring  celestial  airs; 
Bear  back  to  Him,  from  whom  ye  blow. 

Our  praises  and  prayers." 

Middlesex  Centre,  1880.  w.  c. 

WATER-POWER,    MILLS   AND   FRESHETS. 

The  town  is  abundantly  watered  by 
springs,  brooks  and  rivers.  There  are  but 
very  few  houses  in  town  that  are  not  sup- 
plied with  a  stream  of  clear,  pure,  soft 
water,  running  from  some  never-failing 
spring. 

Numerous  brooks  rise  among  the  mount- 
ains and  on  the  hills,  and  flow  across  the 
,  town.  One  called  Big  brook  rises  N.  W. 
of  the  Centre,  flows  a  southerly  course  to 
near  the  centre  of  the  town,  then  flows 
south-westerly  to  the  Winooski,  emptying 
just  above  the  village. 

On  this  stream,  about  half  a  mile  from  its 
mouth,  has  been- a  saw-mill  the  greater 
part  of  the  time  for  upwards  of  60  years, 
and  at  diflferent  times  there  have  been  mills 
at  three  other  places  on  the  stream,  one 
being  near  the  Centre.  The  best  of  these 
mills,  built  by  Solomon  Hutchins  about  20 
years  ago,  was  destroyed  by  fire  soon  after 
it  was  completed.  The  other  mills  have 
rotted  down,  been  damaged  by  freshets 
and  never  repaired,  or  been  taken  down, 
and  at  present  there  is  no  mill  on  the 
stream  ;  but  there  is  a  repair  shop,  owned 
by  Myron  Long,  in  place  of  the  mill  first 
described. 


Along  the  mountains  northerly  of  the 
height  of  land  near  the  Centre,  rise  many 
brooks,  which,  flowing  south-easterly  and 
uniting,  form  a  quite  large  stream,  which 
empties  into  North  Branch  about  5  miles 
from  Montpelier  village. 

The  two  largest  of  these  brooks  unite  at 
Shady  Rill,  about  one  mile  from  the 
Branch,  and  here  in  the  year  1824,  Jedu- 
than  Haskins  and  Ira  McElroy  built  a  saw- 
mill on  the  right  bank  of  the  stream,  which 
stood  about  4  year^,  and  was  washed  away 
by  a  freshet.  It  was  rebuilt  soon  after  by 
Haskins  on  the  other  side  of  the  stream. 
This  mill  stood  until  about  1850,  when  it 
was  washed  away  and  never  rebuilt.  On 
the  east  stream  of  the  two  that  unite  at 
Shady  Rill,  about  ^  mile  above  that  place, 
a  saw-mill  was  built  some  years  ago.  In 
1869,  or  '70,  this  mill  was  bought  by  Isaac 
W;  Brown,  of  Montpelier,  who  put  in  a 
clapboard  mill,  which  was  run  by  John 
Hornbrook  until  1872. 

In  1872,  W.  H.  Billings  came  fromWaits- 
field  and  bought  the  mill.  He  ran  the  old 
mill  2  years,  and  his  brother,  J.  J.  Billings, 
went  in  company  with  him.  The  fall  of 
1875,  they  built  a  new  mill,  34  by  60 
feet,  and  put  in  a  small  engine  to  run  part 
of  the  machinery.  In  this  mill  they  did  a 
good  business,  which  was  increasing  each 
year  until  the  mill  was  burned.  May  8, 
1880.  At  that  time  they  had  several 
thousand  logs  in  the  mill-yard,  and  they 
immediately  commenced  clearing  out  the 
debris  of  the  burned  mill,  and  laying  the 
foundation  for  a  large  new  mill,  48  feet  by 
96.  They  put  in  a  75  horse-power  engine, 
and  commenced  cutting  out  boards  and 
timber  July  17,  and  in  the  course  of  the 
summer  they  nearly  finished  the  mill  and 
put  in  all  the  machinery  necessary  for  cut- 
ting, planing  and  matching  boards,  and 
sawing  and  dressing  clapboards.  It  is 
now,  Jan.  1881,  one  of  the  best  mills  in 
the  State,  and  capable  of  turning  out  10 
car-loads  of  dressed  lumber  per  month. 
There  is  another  mill,  on  another  sti-eam, 
about  half  a  mile  west  of  this  mill,  now 
owned  by  Geo.  W.  Willey. 

In  181 5,  Esquire  Bradstreet  Baldwin 
came  from  Londonderry,  and  built  a  mill 


232 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


where  Putnam's  mills  now  stand,  on  North 
Branch,  about  5^  miles  from  Montpelier, 
since  which  there  has  been  a  mill  there. 

We  are  favored  by  the  following  de- 
scription of  these  mills  through  the  kind- 
ness of  C.  C.  Putnam,  Esq: 

"  The  north  branch  of  the  Winooski, 
which  empties  into  the  main  stream  at 
Montpelier,  flows  through  the  N.  E.  corner 
of  Middlesex,  about  3  miles,  on  which  is 
situated  one  of  the  best  mill  privileges  in 
the  State,  with  a  fall  o/  32  ft.,  on  which 
was  erected  a  mill  in  18 15,  by  Bradstreet 
Baldwin,  son  of  Benjamin  Baldwin,  of 
Londonderry,  Vt.  The  mill  built  by  Brad- 
street  Baldwin,  on  the  above-mentioned 
privilege,  was  owned  and  occupied  by  sev- 
eral parties  until  purchased  by  C.  C.  Put- 
nam and  Jacob  Putnam,  about  1845.  -^t 
that  time  the  capacity  of  the  mill  was  about 
100,000  ft.  per  annum.  The  old  mill  was 
situated  on  the  west  side  of  the  stream  at 
the  top  of  the  fall.  In  1854,  was  erected 
a  large  double  gang-mill  on  the  east  side 
of  the  stream  below  the  fall  to  take  advan- 
tage of  the  32-feet  fall,  together  with  a 
grist-mill  and  machinery  for  dressing  lum- 
ber. The  latter  was  consumed  by  fire  in 
1862.  The  same  year  was  erected  by  C. 
C.  Putnam  on  the  same  site,  the  mill  now 
standing,  with  two  laige  circular  saws. 
Since  then  have  been  added  to  the  mill, 
planers,  matchers,  edging-saw,  butting- 
machine  and  band-saw  for  cutting  out  chair 
stock,  the  capacityof  the  mill  being  2,000, - 
000  ft.  dre.ssed  lumber  per  year.  The  past 
year,  C.  C.  Putnam  &  Son,  the  present 
owners,  have  shipped  150  car-loads  of 
dressed  lumber  to  New  Hampshire,  Mas- 
sachusetts, Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island, 
valued  from  $25,000  to  $30,000.  The  most 
of  this  lumber  is  cut  on  their  land  in 
Worcester,  and  floated  down  the  stream. 
In  connection  with  their  lumber  business 
they  have  a  supply  store,  containing  all 
necessaries  for  their  workmen  and  public 
generally,  doing  a  business  of  from  $15,000 
to  $20,000  per  year." 

Henry  Perkins  came  to  town  somewhere 
about  1800,  and  built  the  first  grist  and 
saw-mill  at  the  Narrows,  where  the  village 
stands.     He  lived   in   the   Widow  Aaron 


Ladd  house,  one  of  the  two  first  houses  in 
the  village.  Soon  after,  Samuel  Haskins 
built  an  oil-mill,  and  Thomas  Stowell  built 
a  clothing-works  mill. 

In  those  early  days,  when  news  were 
conveyed  on  horseback  as  the  swiftest 
means  ;  when  freighting  between  here  and 
Boston  was  mostly  done  with  oxen  ;  before 
Ark  Wright  had  invented  the  spinning  Jenny, 
or  carding-machines  were  known ;  when 
the  women  did  all  the  carding  and  spin- 
ning by  hand ;  when  farmers  had  to  go  a 
great  way  to  mill,  and  carry  their  grist  on 
horseback,  or  on  their  shoulders  ;  when  the 
meat  mostly  used  was  that  of  wild  game, 
and  salt  to  season  it  sometimes  $3.58  per 
bu.  ;  when  8  children  were  called  an  av- 
erage family,  and  12  or  13  not  uncommon, 
and  boys  and  girls  were  not  afraid  of  work  ; 
when  the  "  goode  housewyfe  "  found  ample 
time  to  spin  yarn  from  wool,  flax  and  tow, 
and  weave  cloth  to  clothe  all  in  her  goodly 
family,  works  were  then  in  vogue  and  built 
for  coloring,  fulling,  pressing  and  dressing 
cloth.  In  May,  18 18,  a  freshet  swept  away 
the  clothing-works,  but  they  were  soon 
built  up  again. 

At  the  time  of  this  freshet  Luther  Has- 
kins was  moving  from  the  farm  which  he 
sold  to  Stephen  Herrickin  1820,  and  which 
Mr.  Herrick  still  owns  and  occupies.  He 
got  his  cattle  as  far  as  the  river,  and  could 
get  them  no  farther  on  account  of  high 
water.  Nathaniel  Daniels  and  John  Cooms 
undertook  to  go  from  the  village  in  a  boat 
to  take  care  of  the  cattle.  They  had  pro- 
ceeded some  20  rods  up  the  river,  when 
the  current  upset  the  boat.  Cooms  swam 
ashore,  and  seeing  Daniels  struggling  in 
the  water,  was  about  to  swim  in  to  rescue 
him,  when  some  one  who  considered  the 
undertaking  too  dangerous,  held  Cooms 
back,  and  Daniels  was  drowned. 

Nov.  1 82 1,  all  the  mills  were  destroyed 
by  fire.  They  were  soon  rebuilt,  with  a 
good  woolen  factory  in  place  of  the  clothing- 
works,  which  was  built  by  Amplius  Blake, 
of  Chelsea,  who  employed  Artemas  Wilder 
to  superintend  it. 

In  Sept.  1828,  was  another  freshet, 
which  swept  away  the  factory,  grist-mill, 
oil-mill  and  saw-mill.     Much  to  the  credit 


MIDDLESEX. 


233 


of  the  owners,  they  went  to  work  with  true 
Yankee  courage  immediately,  and  rebuilt 
the  mills  in  a  stronger  and  more  secure 
manner,  and  had  them  all  in  operation 
within  2  years.  They  were  not  secure 
enough,  however,  to  withstand  the  exten- 
sive freshet  of  July,  1830,  during  which 
the  water  in  the  Winooski  probably  was 
the  highest  ever  known  since  the  State  was 
settled,  being  at  its  greatest  height  July 
27  or  28,  so  high  it  flowed  through  the  vil- 
lage, and  a  dam  was  built  across  the  upper 
end  of  the  street,  to  turn  the  current  of  the 
river  back  towards  the  Narrows.  All  the 
mills  were  raised  by  the  water  from  their 
foundations,  and  sailed  oflf  together  like  a 
fleet,  taking  the  bridge  below  with  them, 
until  they  struck  the  high  pinnacle  of  rocks 
a  few  rods  below  the  bridge,  when,  with  a 
deafening  crash,  they  smashed,  and  ap- 
parently disappeared  in  the  rolling  flood. 

The  weather  in  the  summer  of  1830  was 
cold  and  wet  up  to  July  15.  From  the  15th 
to  the  24th  it  was  mostly  clear  and  exces- 
sively warm.  During  the  day  of  the  15th, 
the  thermometer  rose  in  the  shade  to  94°, 
the  i6th  it  rose  to  92°,  the  17th  to  92^°, 
the  1 8th  to  92°,  the  19th  to  90°,  the  20th 
to  91°,  and  the  21st  to  94°. 

The  rain  commenced  in  the  afternoon  of 
Saturday,  the  24th,  and  continued  till  the 
Thursday  following,  and  is  believed  to  be 
the  greatest  fall  of  water  in  the  length  of 
time  ever  known  in  Vermont,  the  fall  at 
Burlington  being  more  than  7  inches,  3.85 
in.  of  which  fell  the  26th  in  16  hours. 

After  this  freshet,  Jeduthan  and  Luther 
Haskins  built  here  an  oil-mill,  which  was 
bought  by  Enos  Stiles  in  1835,  and  suc- 
cessfully operated  by  him  for  33  years.  He 
sold  to  Y.  Dutton,  who  now  owns  it.  There 
were  many  oil-mills  in  the  State  at  an 
early  day,  but  they  had  all  been  abandoned 
except  two,  when  Mr.  Stiles  sold  his  mill. 
Mr.  Dutton  kept  the  mill  in  operation  for 
a  time  after  he  owned  it,  and  is  supposed 
to  be  the  last  one  in  the  State  to  give  up 
making  oil  from  flax-seed.  The  Messrs. 
Haskins  also  built  a  grist-mill,  which  was 
afterward  owned  for  many  years  by  Geo. 
&  Barnard  Langdon,  of  Montpelier,  who 
sold  to  L.  D.  Ainsworth.     He  has  at  great 


expense  fortified  it  against  freshets,  and 
made  it  a  first-class,  modern  flouring  and 
grist-mill,  where  he  does  a  good  business. 
He  also  owns  a  planing-mill  near  the  grist- 
mill, and  a  saw-mill  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river  in  Moretown,  which  accommo- 
dates many  who  reside  in  Middlesex,  and 
has  recently  bought  the  old  oil-mill  of 
Dutton. 

In  Oct.  1869,  there  was  a  freshet  that 
did  considerable  damage.  No  buildings 
were  carried  off",  but  the  highways  were 
badly  washed,  and  many  bridges  carried 
away.  In  the  town  report  the  following 
March  I  find,  in  addition  to  a  highway  tax 
of  50  cents  on  a  dollar  of  the  grand  list, 
about  $3,000  in  orders  drawn  for  extra 
work  and  expense  on  highways  and  bridges. 
The  river  was  so  high  thatMr.  Ainsworth's 
saw-mill  teetered  up  and  down  on  the  water, 
and  would  have  been  swept  away  had  it 
not  been  securely  chained  to  the  trees  and 
ledges. 

OF   THE   MINERALOGY 

here  but  little  is  yet  known.  Rock  crystal 
is  quite  common,  and  some  very  fine  spec- 
imens of  crystal  quartz  have  been  picked 
up.  The  largest,  most  transparent  and 
most  perfect  specimens  have  been  found  in 
the  north  western  part  of  the  town,  along 
the  foot  of  the  mountain.  The  crystal 
quartz  found  here  is  mostly  nearly  white. 
Some  of  the  specimens  are  traversed  in  va- 
rious directions  with  hair-like  crystals  of  a 
reddish,  yellowish  or  brown  color,  and 
similar  to  those  found  elsewhere  along  the 
gold  formation,  so  called,  that  extends 
through  this  part  of  the  State.  Many 
stones  are  also  found  of  which  iron  enters 
largely  into  the  formation  ;  and  it  is  claimed 
that  gold  has  been  found  in  small  quanti- 
ties in  the  eastern  part  of  the  town,  but  no 
very  valuable  mines  have  yet  been  discov- 
ered here. 

MAGNETIC   VARIATION. 

From  an  examination  of  the  lines  nm 
when  the  town  was  alloted  in  1788,  it  ap- 
pears that  the  westerly  variation  of  the  mag- 
netic needle  is  now  very  nearly  4°,  so  that 
lines  in  this  town  that  were  run  N.  36°  E. 
in  1787,  now  in  i88x  nm  N.  40°  E. 


30 


234 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ANIMALS. 

The  first  settlers  found  in  the  forest  of 
this  town,  the  black  bear,  raccoon,  wol- 
verine, weasel,  mink,  pine  martin  (im- 
properly called  .sable),  skunk,  American 
otter,  wolf,  red  fox,  black  or  silver  fox, 
cross  fox,  lynx,  bay  lynx  or  wild  cat,  star- 
nosed  mole,  shrew  mole.  Say's  bat,  beaver, 
musk  rat,  meadow  mouse,  jumping  mouse, 
white  bellied  or  tree  mouse,  woodchuck, 
the  gray,  black,  red,  striped,  and  flying 
squirrel,  hedge-hog,  rabbit,  moose,  and 
common  deer. 

In  1831,  a  very  large  moose  left  the 
mountain  near  the  notch  road,  and  wan- 
dered towards  the  village  of  Middlesex. 
He  crossed  the  Winooski  near  the  eddy 
just  below  the  narrows,  and  went  across 
the  meadows  on  the  farms  now  owned  by 
Joseph  Newhall  and  Joseph  Knapp  in 
Moretown,  passing  through  a  field  of  wheat 
on  the  latter  farm.  He  then  crossed  Mad 
river  near  its  mouth,  and  started  in  the  di- 
rection of  the  large  tract  of  woods  near 
Camel's  Hump  mountain.  This  is  sup- 
posed to  be  the  last  wild  moose  that  ever 
visited  Middlesex. 

COUNTY   MEMBERSHIP. 

Middlesex  has  had  the  honor  to  belong 
to  Gloucester  County,  established  by  the 
N.  Y.  Council,  Mar.  16,  1770;  Unity,  es- 
tablished Mar.  17,  1778  ;  name  changed  to 
Cumberland,  Mar.  21,  1778  ;  to  Benning- 
ton, being  set  to  this  County  by  change 
of  county  line  Feb.  i,  1779:  to  Addison 
Co.,  formed  Oct.  18,  1785;  to  Jefferson 
County,  incorporated  Nov.  i,  1810;  to 
Washington  Co.,  the  name  of  JeiTerson 
being  changed  to  Washington  in  18 14. 

Middlesex  can  boast  of  being  the  first 
town  settled  in  Washington  County,  as 
the  county  is  now  organized ;  but  it  was 
not  the  first  town  chartered,  Duxbury, 
Moretown  and  Waterbury  having  been 
chartered  one  day  first,  June  7,  1763. 

The  altitude  at  Middlesex  village  was 
given  by  D.  P.  Thompson  at  520  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  probably 
meaning  the  elevation  of  the  railroad  at 
that  place.  He  did  not  claim  minute  ac- 
curacy, but  as  his  estimate  was  deduced 


from  data  of  surveys  for  canals  and  rail- 
roads, it  is  probably  a  very  near  approxi- 
mation. 

CARRYING   THEIR   VISITORS    HOME. 

Somewhere  between  1825  and  1830,  a 
carpenter  and  joiner,  named  Downer,  came 
with  his  family  from  Canada  to  build  the 
house  where  Elijah  Whitney  now  lives,  for 
Jacob  Putnam,  and  moved  his  family  into 
a  house  about  2  miles  easterly  from  Wor- 
cester Corner,  and  owned  by  Wm.  Ar- 
buckle.  Downer,  for  some  reason,  went 
to  Canada  in  the  winter,  and  left  his  wife 
and  four  or  five  children  in  Worcester,  and 
during  his  absence  they  were  aided  by  the 
town.  DanforthW.  Stiles  then  lived  where 
he  had  made  the  first  beginning,  on  what 
is  now  known  as  the  Nichols'  place,  above 
Putnam's  Mills,  and  the  Downer  family 
came  there  and  to  Jacob  Putnam's  on  a 
visit.  When  they  were  ready  to  return 
home,  they  procured  a  team,  and  a  boy 
started  to  drive  them  home  and  take  the 
team  back,  but  they  were  met  near  the  line 
by  Worcester  men,  who  turned  their  team 
around,  and  told  them  to  drive  back  into 
Middlesex,  and  they  returned  to  Stiles'. 
Stephen  Herrick  was  overseer  of  the  poor 
in  Middlesex,  and  Stiles  immediately  no- 
tified him  of  the  affair,  and  he  started  with 
his  team  to  carry  the  family  back.  He 
took  the  woman  and  children,  and  accom- 
panied by  Stiles,  they  proceeded  to  within 
about  a  mile  and  a  half  of  the  house,  which 
distance  was  through  a  thick  woods,  when 
they  were  stopped  by  two  men  who  were 
felling  trees  across  the  road  so  lively  that 
after  considerable  effort  to  cut  their  way 
thi'ough,  they  returned  with  the  family  to 
Middlesex,  leaving  the  family  at  Esquire 
Baldwin's. 

Herrick  went  home,  arriving  there  about 
dark,  and  rode  about  that  part  of  the  town 
to  mform  the  men  of  his  defeat  and  pro- 
cure assistance,  and  was  soon  on  the  road 
to  Worcester  again,  accompanied  by  Elijah 
Holden,  with  a  span  of  horses  and  double 
sleigh  to  carry  the  family,  and  by  Horace 
Holden,  Moses  Holden,  Xerxes  Holden, 
Asa  Chapin,  Torry  Hill,  Josiah  Holden 
Abram  Gale,  John  Bryant,  George  Sawyer, 
Jeremiah  Leland,  Sanford  White, Lewis  Mc- 


MIDDLESEX. 


235 


Elroy  and  others,  in  all  22  men,  with  9  teams 
and  plenty  of  axes,  bars  and  levers,  with 
which  to  clear  the  track,  and  they  were 
joined  by  Stiles  when  they  reached  his 
place,  making  23  men.  When  they  reach- 
ed the  woods  they  were  again  stopped, 
this  time  by  16  Worcester  men  with  axes, 
who  commenced  to  fell  trees  into  the  road, 
as  fully  resolved  to  prevent  any  further  tax 
to  support  the  Downers,  as  the  Boston 
"tea  party  "  were  to  avoid  paying  the  three 
cent  tax  on  tea.  The  Middlesex  men 
commenced  clearing  the  road,  and  pro- 
ceeded some  distance  in  that  way,  but  the 
1 6  men  kept  the  trees  so  thick  in  the  road 
ahead,  that  Herrick  ordered  his  men  to 
leave  the  road,  and  cut  a  new  road  through 
the  woods  around  the  fallen  trees.  In 
this  way  they  succeeded  better,  and  when 
the  trees  became  too  numerous  ahead,  they 
dodged  again,  and  brushed  out  a  road 
around  them,  Holden  following  close  be- 
hind with  the  family.  As  soon  as  it  was 
certain  that  they  would  succeed,  Herrick 
proceeded  alone  to  the  house,  to  protect 
that  from  being  destroyed,  and  to  have  a 
fire  when  the  woman  and  children  should 
get  there. 

Very  soon  after  he  reached  the  house, 
William  Hutchinson  entered  with  a  fire- 
brand, and  was  about  to  set  fire  to  the 
house,  when  Herrick  seized  him,  threw 
him  to  the  floor,  and  seating  himself  on 
Hutchin.son,  held  him  fast.  Torry  Hill 
soon  entered,  with  a  gruff  "  whose  here?" 
Herrick  answered,  "  I  am  here,  and  here  is 
this  little  Bill  Hutchinson,  who  bothered 
me  yesterday  by  felling  trees  into  the  road." 
"Let  me  have  him,"  said  Torry.  Herrick 
released  him,  when  he  sprang  for  the  fire, 
determined  to  carry  out  his  purpose,  but 
Torry  seized  him  by  the  collar,  and  snap- 
ping him  to  the  door,  gave  him  a  kick  that 
made  him  say,  "  Til  go ! "  "  Yes,  you  will 
go,  and  that  d: — d  quick,  too,"  said  Hill, 
giving  him  another  kick,  that  sent  him 
many  feet  from  the  house. 

Soon  after  both  parties  arrived  at  the 
house,  and  the  family  was  escorted  in  about 
daybreak.  A  war  of  words  followed,  with 
some  threatening.  One  tall,  muscular, 
Worcester  man,   named  Rhodes,  stepped 


out,  and  threatening  loudly,  exclaimed, 
"  I  can  lick  any  six  of  you!"  Torry  Hill 
sprang  in  front  of  him,  and  smacking  his 
fists  together,  replied,  "  My  name  is  six, 
come  on!"  but  no  blows  were  struck. 

Herrick  was  soon  called  before  Judge 
Ware,  of  Montpelier,  to  answer  to  the 
charge  of  violating  the  statute  against  re- 
moving any  person  or  persons  from  one 
town  in  this  State  to  any  other  town  in  the 
State  without  an  order  of  removal.  It  was 
proved  conclusively  that  all  the  home  they 
had  was  in  Worcester,  that  they  were  vis- 
iting in  Middlesex,  and  desired  to  return, 
and  that  the  defendant  only  helped  them 
to  return  to  their  house  in  Worcester.  Wm . 
Upham  and  Nicholas  Baylies,  counsel  for 
Worcester,  and  Judge  Jeduthan  Loomis 
for  defendant. 

Although  the  Worcester  people  were 
beat,  they  did  not  give  up,  but  arranged  a 
double  sled  so  that  the  driver's  seat  was 
attached  to  the  forward  sled,  and  a  blow 
or  two  with  an  axe  would  free  the  hind  sled 
and  body,  and  taking  the  family  on  the 
sled,  they  gave  them  a  free  ride  up  north, 
and  when  in  a  suitable  place  the  driver  de- 
tached the  forward  sled,  and  trotted  off 
towards  home,  leaving  the  woman  and 
children  in  the  road,  comfortably  tucked 
up  in  their  part  of  the  sled,  and  where 
they  would  be  under  the  necessity  of  so- 
liciting the  charity  of  Her  Majesty's  sub- 
jects in  Canada. 

POPULATION   AND   GRAND   LIST. 

1783,  population  i  or  2  ;  1791,60;  1793, 
grand  list  ^280,  ids.;  1800,  population 
262;  1810,  population  401,  list  $4770.37; 
1820,  726, $7623 ;  1830, 1 156,  $5720 ; 1840, 
1279,  $8240;  1850,  1365,  $2952.52;  i860, 
1254,  $3459.51;  1870,  1171,  $3584.63; 
1880,  1087,  $3128;  1881,  $5068. 

In  1794,  our  votes  for  governor  were, 
for  Thomas  Chittenden  10,  Elijah  Paine  4, 
Louis  R.  Morris  i,  and  Samuel  Mattocks  i. 

It  was  voted  to  raise  3d.  per  pound  for 
making  and  repairing  roads,  and  2d.  per 
pound  to  defray  town  expenses. 

The  5d.  on  a  pound  was  2  1-12  per  ct. 
of  the  grand  list,  which  was  a  great  varia- 
tion from  the  125  to  150  per  ct.  raised  by 


236 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  town  for  a  few  years  past  for  necessary 
expenses  and  highways. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  first  district  extended  along  the 
river,  but  we  have  not  learned  the  exact 
location  of  the  first  school-house.  The 
district  was  divided  in  1794,  the  line  be- 
tween lots  6  and  7  on  the  river,  and  one 
school-house  built  near  where  the  No.  i 
school-house  now  stands,  and  No.  2  school- 
house,  which  was  waslied  away  by  the 
freshet  of  1818,  about  half  way  from  the 
village  to  where  the  road  leading  towards 
the  Centre  passes  under  the  railroad. 

As  the  town  became  settled,  new  dis- 
tricts were  organized  until  they  numbered 
13,  but  at  present  only  1 1  support  schools, 
two  having  been  divided  and  set  to  other 
districts.  With  two  or  three  exceptions, 
the  school-houses  have  been  newly  built  or 
repaired  within  a  few  years,  and  are  in 
good  condition,  and  the  schools  will  com- 
pare favorably  with  the  common  schools 
of  surrounding  towns. 

The  natural  division  of  the  township 
prevents  any  natural  central  point  in  town, 
and  no  high  schools  of  any  grade  have 
been  established  here,  but  many  of  the 
larger  scholars  attend  the  high  schools  and 
seminaries  at  Montpelier,  Barre,  Water- 
bury  and  elsewhere. 

The  number  of  families  having  children 
of  school  age  is  about  170,  and  the  num- 
ber of  school  children  only  about  225, 
consequently  our  schools  are  all  small 
compared  with  the  schools  of  early  days. 
About  the  year  1825  Stephen  Herrick 
taught  at  the  Centre  and  had  75  scholars  ; 
Hubbard  Willey  sending  10,  Ezra  Nichols 
7,  and  others  nearly  as  many. 

TOWN   OFFICERS. 

Representatives — Samuel  Harris  was 
rei^resentative  in  1791  ;  Seth  Putnam,  1792, 
'93,  '94,  '96,  '97  to  1800,  '3,  '4,  '5,  '7,  '8, 
'13  to  '17,  '22;  Josiah  Hurlburt,  1795; 
Henry  Perkins,  1801,  '2,  '6;  David  Har- 
rington, 1809  to  1813,  '17,  '19,  '21  :  Na- 
thaniel Carpenter,  1818,  '20;  Josiah  Hol- 
den,  1823,  '24,  '28,  '29;  Holden  Putnam, 
1825,  '26,  '27,  '34,  '36,  '40;  John  Vincent, 
1830,    '33^   '35.    '37;    Wm.    H.    -Holden, 


1831  ;  Wm.  J.  Holden,  1838;  Leander 
Warren,  1841, '44, '58, '59 ;  Horace  Hol- 
den, 1842,  '43;  Wm.  H.  Holden,  1845; 
Joseph  Hancock,  1846,  '48;  John  Poor, 
1849,  '5°;  Oliver  A.  Chamberlin,  1851, 
'52,  '55;  Moses  Holden,  1853,  '54;  Geo. 
Leland,  2d,  1856,  '57;  James  H.  Holden, 
i860;  Jacob  S.  Ladd,  1861,  '62;  Wm.  E. 
McAllister,  1863;  C.  C.  Putnam,  1864, 
'65;  Rufus  Warren,  1866,  '67;  Charles  B. 
Holden,  1868,  '69;  Jarvil  C.  Leland,  1870; 
Jacob  Putnam,  1872;  Sylvanus  Daniels, 
1874;  C.  C.  Eaton,  1876;  Myron  W. 
Miles,  1878;  Wm.  Chapin,  1880. 

Superintendents  of  Schools. — David 
Goodale  was  chosen  in  1846;  Aaron  Ladd, 
1847,  '48,  '49;  Stephen  Herrick,  1850,  '56, 
'66;  George  Bryant,  1851  ;  Wm.  H.  Hol- 
den, 1852;  Wm.  Chapin,  1853,  '57,  '69; 
H.  Fales,  1854;  Anson  Felton,  1855;  H. 
L.  McElroy,  1858,  '61  to  '66;  Marcus 
Gould,  1859,  '60;  W.  L.  Leland,  1867; 
C.  C.  Putnam,  Jr.,  1868,  '70;  Elijah 
Whitney,  1879,  '80;  V.V.Vaughn,  1871 
to  '79,  '81. 

First  Selectmen. — Thomas  Mead, 
1790,  '95,  '96;  Samuel  Harris,  1791  ;  Seth 
Putnam,  1792,  '98,  1803,  '4,  '14,  '15;  Levi 
Putnam,  1793;  Josiah  Hurlburt,  1794; 
Leonard  Lamb,  1797  ;  Henry  Perkins,  1799 ; 
David  Harrington,  1800,  'i,  '2;  Ephraim 
Willey,  1805;  Elisha  Woodbury,  1806; 
Josiah  Holden,  1807,  '8  ;  Nathaniel  Car- 
penter, 1809,  'II,  '13,  '18,  '19, '20, '21  ; 
Jo.seph  Hutchins,  1810 ;  Ephraim  Keyes, 
1812;  Daniel  Houghton,  181 6;  Jacob  Put- 
nam, 1817;  Horace  Holden,  1822,  '23, '27, 
'35'  '36,  '39,  '46,  '47  ;  James  Jordan,  1828; 
John  Vincent,  1829,  '30,  '31,  '34;  Wm.  H. 
Holden,  1833;  Aaron  Ladd,  1837;  S.  C. 
Collins,  1838;  Leander  Warren,  1840,  '57; 
Geo.  H.  Lewis,  1841,  '42,  '53;  O.  A. 
Chamberlin,  1843,  '44,  '48,  '49,  '51  ;  Sam- 
uel Daniels,  1845  ;  George  Leland,  1850, 
'52;  C.  C.  Putnam,  1854,  '71,  '72,  ''73; 
Jacob  S.  Ladd,  1855  ;  Moses  Holden,  1856; 
Wm.  D.  Mclntyre,  1858;  David  Ward, 
1859,  '60,  '66,  '67,  '68;  Osgood  Evans, 
1861  ;  Andrew  A.  Tracy,  1862  ;  Jas.  H. 
Holden,  1863,  '64;  D.  P.  Carpenter,  1865 ; 
Jarvil  C.    Leland,    1869;   Jacob    Putnam, 


MIDDLESEX. 


237 


1870;  Gardner  Sawyer,  1874,  '81;  Elijah 
Somers,  1875 ;  Wm.  B.  McElroy,  1876; 
Hiram  A.  Sawyer,  1877;  Norris  Wright, 
1878;  D.-R.  Culver,  1879;  C.  J.  Lewis, 
1880. 

Constables. — The  first  constable  elect- 
ed was  Edmond  Holden,  in  1790;  Daniel 
Hoadley,  1791  ;  Jacob  Putnam,  1792  ;  Seth 
Putnam,  1793;  Samuel  Harris,  1794,  '97, 
'98,  '99  ;  Josiah  Hurlburt,  1795  ;  Wm.  Hol- 
den, 1796,  1820;  Henry  Perkins,  1800; 
Rufus  Chamberlin,  1801  ;  David  Allen, 
1802;  Ira  Hawks,  1803;  Thomas  Mead, 
1804,  '5,  '6;  David  Harrington,  1807  to 
'13  ;  Josiah  Holden,  1814  ;  Horace  Holden, 
1817,  '19,  ''24 ;  Luther  Haskins,  1818  ;  Dan- 
iel Houghton,  1821  ;  Jeduthan  Haskins, 
1822  ;  Alexander  McCray,  1825;  Ira  Mc- 
Elroy ,  1825  ;  O.  A.  Chamberlin,  1828; 
Wm.  A.  Nichols,  1829;  Luther  Farrar, 
1830,  '31  ;  D.  P.  Carpenter,  1833,  '34,  '36, 
'^y  ;  Gideon  Hills,  1835  ;  Stephen  Herrick, 
1838,  '39,  '40,  '42,  '45  ;  Geo.  Leland,  1841  ; 
Philander  Holden,  1843,  '44-  '4^;  Geo.  H. 
Lewis,  1847, '48,  ''49;  Wm.  H.  Holden, 
1850, '51  ;  Wm.  Slade,  1852;  Frank  A. 
Blodgett,  1853,  '54  ;  Curtis  Haskins,  1855; 
Ezra  Ladd,  1856,  '57  ;  Wm.  Chapin,  1858, 
'59;  C.  B.  Holden,  i860  to '74;  Myron  W. 
Miles,  1874  to  the  present,  1881. 

Overseers  since  1841. — Robert  Mc- 
Elroy, 1842;  Selectmen,  1843,  '75  i  Jedu- 
than Haskins,  1844;  D.  P.  Carpenter, 
1845  ;  Wm.  S.  Clark,  1846;  Wm.  D.  Mc- 
Intyre,  1847,  '67,  '68,  '69;  Enos  Stiles, 
1848,  '49;  Thomas  Stowell,  1850;  Benja- 
min Scribner,  1851,  '53,  '54,  '64;  Stephen 
Hen-ick,  1852,  '58;  Daniel  B.  Sherman, 
1855,  '56;  Geo.  R.  Sawyer,  1857;  W.  H. 
Clark,  1859;  C.  C.  Putnam,  i860  to '67 ; 
David  Ward,  1870;  Elijah  Somers,  1871, 
'72, '73, '74;  Seaver  Howard,  1876,  ''77; 
Putnam  W.  Daley,  1878;  H.  A.  Sawyer, 
1879,  '80,  '81. 

First  Justices. — Seth  Putnam,  1789, 
1811,  '12;  Nathaniel  Carpenter,  1813, '14, 
'15,  '17,  '18,  '23  to  '30,  and  '33  to  '39; 
Rufus  Chamberlin,  1816;  Daniel  Hough- 
ton, 1819,  '20,  '22;  David  Harrington, 
1821  ;  Wm.  H.  Holden,  1831,  '32,  ""^S; 
Horace  Holden,  1839,  '40>'4i>  '44i  nearly 


all  the  time  till  his  death,  in  1865  ;  Wm. 
T.  Clark,  1842;  Thomas  Stowell,  1843; 
John  Poor,  1853;  Jas.  H.  Holden,  1864, 
'65,  '67  to  '72  ;  Marcus  Gould,  1866;  C.  C. 
Putnam,  1872,  '73,  '74.  '75  !  D.  P.  Carpen- 
ter, '76,  '77,  '78,  '80.  Seth  Putnam,  first 
justice  in  1789,  held  the  office  of  justice  26 
years;  David  Harrington,  15  years;  Thos. 
Stowell,  12  years;  John  Poor,  14  years; 
Nathaniel  Carpenter,  first  justice,  20  years, 
and  Horace  Holden  was  justice  at  least 
38  years. 

Town  Agents.— Stephen  Herrick,  1842, 
'52. '57, '58,  '60,  '61,  '66,  '72;  Geo.  H. 
Lewis,  1843,  '44;  John  Poor,  1845,  '53; 
Holden  Putnam,  1846  to  '51  ;  George  W. 
Bailey,  1855,  '56 ;  Wm.  D.  Mclntyre,  1859  ; 
Leander  Warren,  1862,  '63,  '64, '65, '71, 
'73  ;  D.  P.  Carpenter,  1867,  '68,  '69 ;  David 
Ward,  1870;  C.  C.  Putnam,  1874, '75; 
Wm.  Chapin,  1876,  '77,  '78,  '80,  '81  ; 
Rufus  Warren,  1879. 

County  Judges. — Hon.  James  H.  Hol- 
den, Hon.  Don  P.  Carpenter. 

Members  of  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion.— Seth  Putnam  was  member  in  1793  ; 
Rufus  Chamberlin  in  18 14,  '22,  '28  and  '36; 
Wm.  H.  Holden  in  1843;  O.  A.  Cham- 
berlin in  1850. 

Postmasters. —  Theophilus  Cushman 
was  postmaster  in  1824 ;  Daniel  Houghton, 
1828  ;  Aaron  Ladd,  1829;  Moses  L.  Hart, 
1830;  Nathaniel  Bancroft,  1831  ;  Moses  L. 
Hart,  1832,  ''23;  Hiram  Mclntyre,  1834  to 
'38;  Ransom  B.  Jones,  1838,  '39;  Horace 
Snow,  1840  to  '45  ;  Wm.  C.  Stowell,  1845, 
'4*6;  Harris  Hoyt,  1847;  A.  A.  Haskins, 
1848,  '49  ;  A.  H.  Hayes,  1850  ;  Jesse  John- 
son, Jr.,  1851,  '52;  Anson  G.  Burnham, 
1853,  '54;  Geo.  H.  Lewis,  1855  to  '59; 
Simpson  Hayes,  1859,  '60,  '61  ;  James  H. 
Holden,  1862  to  1881,  inclusive. 

Physicians. — A  doctor  by  the  name  of 
Billings  practiced  and  resided  in  Middle- 
sex in  1821  ;  Holdridge  soon  after  ;  Joseph 
Lewis,  1825;  Samuel  Fifield,  1830;  Daniel 
Kellogg,  '33  ;  Henry  Dewey,  '34  ;  H.  Dewey 
and  Jona  Webster,  '35  ;  Jona  Webster,  '36, 
'37;  Rial  Blanchard,  '40,  '41,  '42;  David 
Goodale,  '44;  F.  B.  Packard,  '45  ;  Chand- 
ler Poor,  dentist,  '45  ;  David  Goodale,  '46, 


238 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


'47;  A.  H.  Hayes  and  B.  L.  Conant,  '48; 
A.  H.  Hayes,  '49;  Horace  Fales,  '50  '51, 
'52,  '53'  '54,  '55  ;  J.  W.  Sawin, '58, '59; 
H.  L.  Richardson,  '61,  '62,  '63;  O.  L. 
Watson,  '65,  '66;  —  Risdon,  '79;  W.  G. 
Church,  '80  and  '81. 

There  might  have  been  physicians  in 
town  previous  to  any  named,  but  I  have 
no  such  record  or  evidence.  In  addition 
to  those  named,  other  physicians  have 
lived  in  town,  among  whom  is  Dr.  Zela 
Richardson,  a  son  of  Frederick  Richard- 
son, who  was  one  of  the  first  inhabitants 
of  Stowe.  The  Dr.  was  born  in  Stowe  in 
Dec.  1799,  went  to  Castleton  when  about 
22  years  of  age,  and  studied  for  the  pro- 
fession under  Dr.  Thompson,  and  com- 
menced practicing  according  to  the  Thomp- 
sonian  system  in  Brandon  and  vicinity  in 
about  1824.  He  moved  to  Stowe  in  1833, 
and  practiced  some  there  till  1840,  when 
he  moved  to  where  Silas  Mead  now  re-' 
sides  in  Moretown,  where  he  lived  until 
1846,  when  he  moved  across  the  river  to 
Middlesex  village,  where  he  has  ever  since 
resided,  but  for  the  last  thirty  years  he  has 
nearly  discontinued  practice. 

Among  others  who  have  lived  and  prac- 
ticed in  town  a  short  time  each  are  a  doc- 
tor by  the  name  of  Conant,  and  Dr.  Spicer, 
Dr.  Scott  and  a  cancer  doctor  named  Hill, 
and  perhaps  a  few  others. 

THE   CLERGY   OF   THE   TOWN. 

No  record  has  been  found  of  the  first 
preaching  in  Middlesex,  but  it  is  known 
that  about  1812  the  Methodist  minister  of 
the  Barre  circuit  preached  occasionally  in 
town,  and  that  in  18 13, 

REV.    STEPHEN    HERRICK, 

of  Randolph,  took  the  place  of  the  Baire 
circuit  preacher,  and  in  his  circuit  visited 
Middlesex  often,  and  usually  held  meet- 
ings in  the  school-house,  then  standing  on 
the  north  side  of  the  road,  very  near  the 
present  line  between  the  farms  now  occu- 
pied by  Stephen  Herrick  and  Joseph  Ar- 
buckle.     About  the  same  time, 

NATHAN   HUNTLEY 

organized  a  religious  society,  commonly 
called  Elder  Huntley's  church,  which  in 
belief  and  manner  of  worship  was  nearest 


that  of  the  Free  Will  Baptists.  Elder 
Huntley  continued  his  labors  until  about 
1822,  when  through  his  advice  the  society 
decided  to  disband,  and  many  of  the  mem- 
bers joined  the  other  churches. 

ELDER   BENJAMIN   CHATTERTON 

was  probably  a  resident  of  Middlesex  longer 
than  any  other  preacher  that  has  ever  re- 
sided here.  He  was  a  member  of  Elder 
Huntley's  church,  and  was  ordained  Elder, 
and  commenced  preaching  soon  after  the 
society  to  which  he  belonged  disbanded. 
He  was  a  Free  Will  Baptist,  and  continued 
to  preach  in  town  occasionally  until  near 
his  death.  He  was  buried  on  the  farm 
wliere  he  lived,  on  East  Hill,  now  owned 
by  Charles  Silloway. 

A  list  of  many  of  the  clergymen  who  have 
labored  in  this  town,  with  dates  to  show 
about  what  time  they  were  preachers  in 
Middlesex  :     John  F.  Adams,  Methodist 
circuit  preacher  in    1821 ;  E.    B.  Baxter 
Congregationalist,  183 1  ;   Benjamin  Chat 
terton,  Free  Will  Baptist,    1834;    E.    G 
Page  and  Isaiah  Emerson,  Meth.,  '35  ;  J 
T.  Pierce,  Cong.,  '38;  Edward  Copeland 
Meth., '39;   Hiram  Freeman,   Cong.,  '39 
and  '40 ;  W.  N.  Peck,  Meth.,  '40,  '41  ;  El- 
bridge  Knight,  Cong.  ;  and  Wm.  Peck  and 
Israel  Hale,  Meth.,  '42  ;  John  H..Beckwith, 
Cong.,  and  H.   P.   Cushman,   Meth.,  '43, 
'44,  '45  ;  P.  Merrill,  Meth.,  '46;  N.  Web- 
ster in  '47;  D.  Willis,  Meth.,  '48;  E.  B. 
Fuller,  Free  Will  Baptist,  '51,  '52;  Joshua 
Tucker,    Free   Will    Baptist,    'sS'i   L.   H. 
Hooker,  Meth.,  and  —  Cummings,  Free 
Will  Baptist,  '54;  E.  Dickerman,  Meth., 
and  O.   Shipman,  Free  Will  Baptist,  '55, 
'56;  Abner   Newton,    Meth.,    '57;   J.    S. 
Spinney,   Meth.,   '58,  '59;  N.  W.  Aspin- 
wall,  '60,  '61  ;   W.   E.  McAllister,  Meth., 
'62,  '63  ;  T.  Drew,  Meth.,  '64;  F.  H.  Rob- 
erts, '65,    '66;    A.    Hitchcock,   '67;  Dyer 

Willis,    '68;  Goodrich,    '69;   W.  A. 

Bryant,  Meth.,  '71,  '72,  '73  ;  O.  A.  Farley, 
'74,  '75  j  L.  O.  Sherburn,  '76;  C.  S.  Hurl- 
burt,  '77,  '78;  T.  Trevillian,  '79,  '80; 
W.  H.  Dean,  '81. 

EARLY   INCIDENTS  AND   ANECDOTES. 
The  following  account  of  the  hardships 
of  the  first  family  who  made  a  settlement 


MIDDLESEX. 


239 


in  this  town,  from  Deining's  Vermont  Offi- 
cers, 1851,  written  by  Horace  Holden: 

' '  Thomas  Mead  was  the  first  settler  in 
tlie  town  and  the  first  in  the  county.  He 
came  from  Westford,  Mass.,  having  pur- 
chased a  right  of  land  in  Middlesex.  He 
came  as  far  as  Royalton  with  his  wife  and 
two  or  three  children.  Here  he  shouldered 
his  gun,  knapsack  and  ax,  and  set  forward 
alone  to  find  Middlesex,  on  Winooski 
river.  He  went  from  Brookfield  through 
the  woods  to  the  head  of  Dog  river,  fol- 
lowing that  down  to  its  junction  with  the 
Winooski,  and  over  that  river  to  Middle- 
sex, having  informed  his  wife  that  in  a 
given  time  he  should  return,  unless  he  sent 
her  word  to  the  contrary.  On  his  arrival 
he  found  Mr.  Jonah  Harrington  had  made 
a  pitch,  and  commenced  chopping  about  2 
miles  below  Montpelier  village,  where  he 
tarried  till  morning  when  he  went  down  the 
river  about  3  miles  to  the  farm  now  owned 
by  Thomas  Stowell,  where  was  formerly  a 
tavern.  Here  he  made  his  ''pilch,''''  and 
a  very  good  one  too  for  a  farmer ;  but  had 
he  continued  down  to  the  village  of  Mid- 
dlesex it  might  have  been  much  better 
around  the  falls  in  that  place. 

"  He  was  so  pleased  with  swinging  his  ax 
among  the  trees  on  his  own  land,  subsist- 
ing on  such  game  as  he  took  with  wooden 
traps  and  his  gun,  that  his  promise  to  his 
wife  to  return  was  not  fulfilled.  She  be- 
came alarmed  about  him,  procured  a  horse, 
loaded  it  with  provisions,  and  set  forth  to 
find  her  husband ;  following  up  White 
river  to  its  source  in  Granville,  thence 
down  Mad  river  through  Warren,  Waits- 
field  and  Moretown  to  its  junction  with 
the  Winooski  about  half  a  mile  below 
Middlesex  village,  crossed  that  river  and 
travelled  up  it  about  one  mile,  where,  to 
her  joy  and  his  surprise,  she  found  her 
husband  in  the  afternoon  of  the  third  day, 
doing  a  good  business  among  the  maples, 
elms  and  butternuts.  From  Royalton  to 
Rochester  she  had  a  bridle  path,  then  to 
Middlesex  were  only  marked  or  spotted 
trees  ;  was  often  under  the  necessity  of  un- 
loading her  horse  to  get  him  past  fallen 
timber,  and  often  had  to  lead  him  some 
distance.     Mr.  Mead's  family  soon  moved 


into  town.  Mr.  Mead's  third  son,  Joel, 
was  born  in  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  Jan.  18, 
1785,  she  having  gone  there  for  better  ac- 
commodations than  Middle.sex  then  af- 
forded. Some  time  in  June,  1785,  Mrs. 
Mead  was  gone  from  home  on  a  very 
cloudy  afternoon.  Mrs.  Mead  had  to 
look  for  her  cows,  which  ran  in  the  woods 
at  large.  She  started  in  good  season, 
leaving  three  small  children,  one  a  nursing 
infant  5  months  old,  alone  in  the  house. 
Not  hearing  the  bell  on  the  cows,  she 
took  their  tracks  and  followed  down  the 
river  about  i^  miles,  found  where  they 
had  fed  apparently  most  of  the  day,  but 
no  bell  to  be  heard.  She  then  sought 
their  tracks,  and  found  they  had  gone 
down  the  river,  and  over  "Hog  back 
mountain"  to  Waterbury,  one  of  the 
roughest  places  in  all  creation,  almost; 
but  cows  must  be  found,  or  children  go  to 
bed  supperless.  She  made  up  her  mind 
to  "go  ahead,"  and  crossing  the  almost 
impassible  mountain,  and  following  on, 
found  the  cows  near  the  present  railroad 
depot  in  Waterbury,  6  or  7  miles  from 
home . 

"By  this  time  it  had  become  dark,  and 
backed  up  by  a  tremendous  thunder- 
shower,  rendered  it  so  dark,  that  return- 
ing over  that  mountain  in  the  night  was 
out  of  cjuestion.  In  this  unpleasant  sit- 
uation, she  found  her  way  to  Mr.  James 
Marsh's,  the  only  hut  in  that  village,  and 
stayed  till  the  first  appearance  of  daylight, 
when  she  started  her  cows  for  home  on  a 
double  quick  time,  where  she  safely  ar- 
rived before  any  of  her  children  had  com- 
pleted their  morning  nap.  She  concluded 
the  children  had  so  long  a  crying  spell 
before  going  to  sleep,  they  did  not  awake 
as  early  as  usual." 

About  1795,  Mr.  M.ead  kept  a  few 
sheep,  the  only  sheep  kept  in  town  at  that 
time.  He  had  to  keep  a  close  watch  of 
them  and  yard  them  nights,  to  keep  them 
from  falling  a  prey  to  the  bears  that  were 
then  plenty  in  the  woods. 

One  morning  he  found  his  sheep  had 
broken  out  of  their  pen,  and  following 
them  a  short  distance  northerly  from  his 
house,  he  found  a  sheep  that  had  been 


240 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


killed  and  partly  eaten  by  the  bears.  He 
returned  to  his  house,  took  his  gun,  and 
started  in  search  of  the  intruders.  He  had 
not  proceeded  far  into  the  woods  before  he 
came  in  sight  of  a  bear  that  was  on  the  re- 
treat. He  proceeded  cautiously  after  bruin, 
keeping  the  bear  to  the  windward,  and  fol- 
lowed up  the  hill  in  a  northern  direction, 
until  he  came  near  the  top  of  the  hill,  when 
he  again  came  in  sight  of  his  game,  and 
was  skulking  along  to  get  a  better  chance 
to  shoot,  when  his  wife,  who  had  become 
alarmed  by  his  absence  and  followed  him, 
came  in  sight  and  halloed  to  him.  This 
started  the  bear,  but  a  quick  shot  rolled 
the  sheep-thief  over  on  the  ground  lifeless. 
The  courageous  woman  told  her  husband 
she  had  seen  another  bear  while  she  was 
searching  for  him,  and  they  started  back 
in  the  direction  where  she  had  seen  it. 
They  had  not  proceeded  far  when  they 
came  in  sight  of  the  second  bear,  which 
Mr.  Mead  also  killed  with  one  shot  from 
his  faithful  gun.  They  then  returned 
towards  where  the  sheep  had  been  killed, 
thinking  to  pick  up  and  save  the  wool  that 
had  been  scattered  by  the  carniverous 
shearers. 

As  they  came  in  sight  of  the  spot,  bruin 
number  three  was  finishing  his  morning 
meal.  Mr.  Mead  immediately  settled  his 
account  with  this  bear  in  the  same  way  he 
settled  with  the  other  two,  and  went  home 
feeling  very  well  after  his  before-breakfast 
exercise.  He  then  informed  the  few  neigh- 
bors in  town  of  what  he  had  done,  who 
collected  together,  helped  get  the  three 
bears  out  of  the  woods  and  dress  them, 
and  all  had  a  "jovial  time"  and  joyful 
feast. 

As  the  number  of  settlements  in  town 
increased,  the  bears  became  less  numerous, 
and  when  one  was  seen  it  was  often  the 
occasion  of  a  lively  and  exciting  chase. 
Sometimes  nearly  all  the  men  within  four 
or  five  miles  would  join  in  the  chase,  or 
surround  the  woods  in  which  the  bear  was 
known  to  be,  and  lucky  was  the  animal 
if  he  escaped  unharmed.  Three  bears  were 
killed  one  year  at  three  such  hunts.  At 
one  time,  about  the  year  1830,  a  bear  was 
discovered  somewhere  near  the  spot  where 


the  guide-board  now  is,  near  the  Centre, 
and  "all  hands"  started  in  pursuit.  Geo. 
Holden,  then  living  at  the  Centre,  where 
Mrs.  Daniels  now  resides,  started  with  a 
pitchfork,  the  weapon  he  happened  to  have 
in  his  hands  when  he  first  heard  the  cry, 
"a  bear!  a  bear!"  The  bear  was  chased 
down  towards  theWinooski,  and  made  his 
way  to  somewhere  near  the  river  on  the 
Governor's  Rights,  where,  being  worried 
by  dogs  and  hotly  pursued  by  men,  he  un- 
dertook to  climb  a  tree  that  stood  on  a 
very  steep  side-hill.  Mr.  Holden,  then  a 
strong,  courageous  young  man,  was  near, 
and  ran  to  the  foot  of  the  tree  as  the  bear 
was  hitching  up  it,  and  stuck  the  pitchfork 
into  the  bear's  posterior.  Bruin ,  not  liking 
10  be  helped  up  in  that  way,  dropped  upon 
his  hind  feet,  and  threw  his  fore  feet  around 
Mr.  Holden's  body.  Holden  at  the  same 
time  seized  the  bear  "at  a  back-hug  hold," 
and  they  tumbled  over  on  the  ground,  and 
rolled  over  and  over  to  the  foot  of  the  hill, 
and  some  say  into  the  river,  where  they 
quit  their  holds,  and  bruin  ran  until  he  was 
out  of  the  way  of  men  and  pitchforks,  and 
went  up  another  tree.  The  word  spread 
rapidly  that  the  bear  was  up  a  tree,  and  the 
men  gathered  together  and  commenced 
shooting  at  him.  Many  shots  had  been 
fired  when  Horace  Holden  put  in  an  ap- 
pearance. After  amusing  himself  and 
others  present  for  a  few  minutes  by  crack- 
ing jokes  and  telling  stories  at  the  expense 
of  the  sharp-shooters,  who  were  too  ex- 
cited to  kill  a  bear,  he  expressed  a  desire  to 
try  it  himself.  No  sooner  did  his  rifle 
crack  than  the  bear  loosened  his  hold  on 
the  tree  and  fell  to  the  ground. 

FIRST   SETTLEMENTS   IN   THE   EAST   PART 
OF   THE   TOWN. 

Jacob  Putnam  settled  where  Elijah  Whit- 
ney now  lives  in  1802  ;  Micah  Hatch  on 
the  old  Hatch  place,  so-called,  the  same 
year;  Wm.  Lewis  on  the  Lathrop  Lewis 
farm  in  1805  ;  John  Arbuckle  where  Put- 
nam Daley  now  lives,  about  1808;  Lewis 
McElroy  where  Dudley  Jones  now  lives,  in 

1822;  Caleb   Bailey  and  York  lived 

on  the  George  Herrick  farm  in  1823 ;  Ich- 
abod  Cummings  began  on  the  Ziba  Smith 
farm  in  1824,  lived  there  one  year,  and  re- 


MIDDLESEX. 


241 


moved  the  next  year  to  the  farm  where  he 
with  his  Oramel,  now  live ;  Daniel  Colby 
lived  on  the  farm  where  Frank  Maxham 
and  son  now  live,  in  1826. 

The  most  ancient  writings  with  a  pen 
in  town,  are  probably  in  the  possession  of 
James  Vaughn,  among  which  is  a  book 
commenced  by  George  Vaughn  in  Oct. 
1687  ;  the  writing  done  by  him  being  very 
neatly  executed,  and  a  commission  of 
1696,  given  here  et  literatem  : 

"William  Stoughton  Esqr  Lieutent 
Governour  and  Comander  in  chief  in  and 
over  his  Matys  Province  of  the  lllasssa- 
chusetts  Bay  in  New  England.  To  Jo- 
seph Vaughn  Greeting,  By  virtue  of  the 
power  and  authority  in  and  by  his  Matys 
Royal  Commission  to  me  granted,  I  do  by 
these  presents  constitute  and  appoint  you 
to  be  Ensign  of  the  Foot  Company  of  Mili- 
tia in  the  Town  of  Middleboro  within 
the  County  of  Plimouth  whereof  Jacob 
Thompson  Gent  is  Lieutenant.  You  are 
therefore  carefully  and  diligently  to  dis- 
charge the  duties  of  an  Ensign  by  order- 
ing and  Exercising  the  sd  Company  in 
arms  both  Inferiour  Officers  and  Souldiers 
Keeping  them  in  good  order  and  Disci- 
pline, Commanding  them  to  obey  you  as 
their  ensign,  And  yourself  to  observe  and 
follow  such  orders  and  directions  as  you 
shall  receive  from  your  sd  Lieutenant  and 
other  your  Superiour  Officers,  according  to 
the  Rules  and  Discipline  of  War  pursuant 
to  the  trust  reposed  in  you.  Given  under 
my  hand  &  seal  at  arms  at  Boston  the 
Fifth  day  of  August,  1696,  In  the  Eighth 
year  of  the  Reign  of  our  sovereign,  Lord 
William  the  Third,  by  the  Grace  of  God, 
of  England,  Scotland,  France  and  Ireland, 
King,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  &c. 

By  Command  of  the  Lieut.  Governor.,  &c. 
Wm.  Stoughton." 

Jsa.  Addington,  Secr'y. 

THE   MIDDLESEX    MONEY   DIGGERS. 

"  May  Martin,  or  The  Money  Diggers," 
by  D.  P.  Thompson,  is  known  to  be  found- 
ed upon  the  fact  that  men  dug  here  for 
money,  at  the  foot  of  the  nearly  perpendic- 
ular drop  of  a  hundred  feet  or  more  from 
the  southerly  part  of  the  highest  peak  of 
Camel's  Hump.  It  was  commenced  by  a 
few  men  in  1824  or  '25,  who  built  a  shanty 
there,  one  side  a  large  piece  of  detached 
ledge,  the  other  three  sides,  log  of  un- 
trimmed  spruce  and  fir,  quite  young  ;  the 


roof  formed  by  drawing  in  the  trees  as 
they  neared  the  top,  until  the  boughs  met 
the  ledge  above,  which  shelter  being  pro- 
tected from  the  north  and  west  winds  by 
the  high  ledge,  made  a  warm  and  com- 
fortable place,  under  which  the  men  pro- 
fessed to  dig  in  search  of  the  treasure  sup- 
posed to  have  been  secreted  by  Capt.  Kidd 
somewhere  on  this  continent.  They  were 
in  part  directed  in  their  search  by  a  woman 
living  towards  the  North  part  of  tlie  State, 
who  claimed  to  see  into  unsearchable  things 
by  looking  into  a  transparent  quartz  stone 
or  piece  of  glass.  This  company  subsisted 
mainly  by  duping  the  nearest  settlers  so  as 
to  get  them  to  furnish  food.  One  man  let 
them  have  his  sheep  to  eat  until  they  had 
devoured  a  large  flock,  he  expecting  good 
pay  when  the  treasure  should  be  found. 
Many  were  the  conjectures  as  to  the  object 
of  these  money-diggers.  Some  thought 
they  were  a  band  of  counterfeiters,  others 
that  they  were  a  set  of  thieves,  while  a  few 
thought  they  were  honestly  digging  for 
money,  and  were  hopeful  for  their  success. 

Their  work  was  brought  to  a  close  by  a 
party  of  young  men  from  Middlesex,  among 
whom  was  Enos  Stiles,  who  gives  the  fol- 
lowing account  of  their  expedition,  he  be- 
ing the  only  one  of  the  party  now  alive  : 

Dec.  II,  1826,  between  8  and  9  o'clock 
in  the  evening,  Ira  McElroy,  Calvin  Farrar, 
Amos  L.  Rice,  Archy  McElroy,  Jerry  Mc- 
Elroy, Alexander  M.  Allen  and  Enos  Stiles 
started  from  Middlesex  village  for  Camel's 
Hump,  with  a  view  to  discover  what  they 
could  of  the  work  or  object  of  the  money- 
diggers  there,  and  were  accompanied  by 
Nathaniel  Carpenter,  then  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  who  went  to  act  as  an  official  if 
any  arrests  should  be  made.  As  they 
started,  it  so  happened  Danforth  Stiles, 
from  the  east  part  of  Middlesex,  one  Hink- 
son  and  one  Reed  were  on  their  way  to  the 
mountain,  and  fell  in  with  them.  There 
was  no  temperance  law  then  to  forbid,  no 
Good  Templars  to  interfere,  and  acting 
upon  the  principle  that  which  contained 
the  most  heat  and  stimulus  was  the  best 
beverage  for  a  long  journey  in  a  winter's 
night,  they  took  two  gallons  of  new  rum 
for  drink  with  them,  and  what  provisions 


31 


242 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


needed  beside.  Leaving  their  teams  at 
Ridley's  tavern,  now  Ridley's  Station,  they 
took  their  provision  and  drink,  and  pro- 
ceeded on  foot  to  the  mountain,  about  6 
miles  distant.  Esq.  Carpenter  stopped  at 
the  last  house  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain 
to  await  for  business,  if  needed,  and  the 
other  seven  of  the  party  kept  on  up  the 
steep  mountain,  through  some  two  or  three 
miles  of  thick  forest. 

When  about  half  way  up,  after  crossing 
a  spruce  ridge  and  coming  into  hard  wood 
where  it  was  lighter,  they  called  the  roll, 
and  found  one  man  missing.  Three  men 
were  detailed  to  go  back  and  find  him, 
which  they  did  some  one-third  mile  back, 
lying  in  the  snow  fast  asleep,  having  ap- 
parently fallen  asleep  and  dropped  out  of 
line  unnoticed  by  the  rest  of  the  party. 
Nothing  more  of  note  occurred  until  they 
arrived  in  the  early  break  of  day  at  the 
headquarters  of  the  money-diggers,  where 
they  found  Rodney  Clogston,  of  Middle- 
sex, the  leader  of  the  band,  one  Shackford, 
Eastman,  and  Friezell,  up,  dressed,  with  a 
good  fire  burning  before  the  shanty. 

After  looking  over  the  premises  a  little, 
four  of  the  party  went  up  to  the  top,  and 
were  there  at  sunrise  playing  a  game  of 
cards.  The  south  wind  was  blowing  warm, 
and  they  suffered  no  inconvenience  from 
cold.  It  had  been  warm  for  a  number  of 
days,  and  the  snow  was  not  very  deep  at 
that  time.  After  taking  breakfast,  well- 
washed  down,  the  Middlesex  party  com- 
menced a  thorough  search  for  goods,  coin- 
ing implements,  treasures  or  excavations, 
which  continued  till  about  i  o'clock  p.  m., 
and  resulted  in  finding  nothing  except  a 
little  digging  done  inside  of  the  shanty  in 
the  ledge  that  formed  one  of  its  sides, 
about  what  might  have  been  done  by  two 
men  with  powder,  good  drills  and  a  sledge 
in  one  day. 

Giving  up  searching,  the  party  came  to- 
gether at  the  camp  and  had  a  social  time, 
until  some  were  feeling  pretty  well,  when 
one  man  said  he  did  not  want  to  trouble 
the  camp  for  anything,  and  offered  to  pur- 
chase one  cent's  worth  of  meat,  which  was 
dealt  out  to  him. 

Then  some  of  the  boys,  being  possessed 


of  evil  spirits  as  well  as  good,  commenced 
to  break  spruce  twigs  and  put  them  on  the 
fire  for  the.  fun  of  seeing  them  burn  ;  this 
made  a  division,  and  two  opposing  parties 
were  formed.  Two  of  the  men  from  the 
east  part  of  the  town  sided  with  the  dig- 
gers, and  one  remained  silent  and  neutral, 
which  made  six  against  seven,  when  the 
invaders  commenced  piling  on  larger  brush, 
and  soon  had  the  shanty  in  a  rousing  blaze. 
The  diggers  defended  their  property  smartly 
by  words,  and  declared  that  their  things 
should  all  burn  and  the  boys  would  be 
compelled  to  pay  for  them  ;  but  no  fighting 
was  donfe,  and  before  the  fire  reached  any 
of  their  things  they  made  a  rush  and  saved 
their  trumpery,  and  let  the  shanty  burn. 
The  bmsh  was  so  dry,  the  blaze  shot  into 
the  air  some  fifty  feet,  making  a  splendid 
sight,  but  the  diggers'  lodge  was  reduced 
to  ashes.  In  less  than  two  hours  after,  the 
money-diggers  were  all  on  the  march  for 
home,  thus  ending  the  digging  for  Captain 
Kidd's  treasures  on  Camel's  Hump. 

THE   COLDEST   NIGHT   HERE 

in  the  month  of  July  since  the  year  iSi6, 
was  probably  in  1829.  Enos  Stiles  relates 
that  he  worked  at  haying  for  Elijah  Holden 
on  the  farm  where  Gardner  Sawyer  now 
resides,  in  1829,  and  that  he  and  two 
other  men  who  were  mowing  on  the  loth 
of  July  threw  down  their  whetstones  on  a 
swath  of  hay,  one  above  another,  and  that 
when  he  took  up  the  upper  stone  on  the 
morning  of  the  nth,  the  stones  were 
frozen  together  so  that  he  raised  the  three 
together  when  he  lifted  the  top  one.  But 
he  says  the  frost  did  not  seriously  injure 
the  growing  crops. 

FIRES. 

The  only  fire  in  town  supposed  to  be  in- 
cendiary was  that  burning  the  store,  tavern- 
house  and  barns  standing  where  B.  Bar- 
rett's store  and  tavern  now  stand,  and 
owned  in  1835  by  a  man  named  Mann. 
In  May,  that  year,  the  buildings,  with  3  or 
4  horses  and  one  ox,  were  burned,  and 
Simeon  Edson,  who  kept  tavern  where  J. 
Q.  Hobart  now  lives,  was  arrested  on 
charge  of  setting  the  fire.  At  a  justice 
trial  the  jury  found  him  guilty,  and  he  was 


MIDDLESEX. 


243 


lodged  in  jail  to  await  County  Court  trial. 
After  being  in  jail  for  some  time,  he  got 
bail,  and  never  appeared  at  trial,  and  as 
there  was  lack  of  good  proof,  his  bonds 
were  never  called  for. 

THE    SAP-FEEDER, 

SO  generally  used  by  maple  sugar-makers 
to  run  the  sap  into  the  pans  or  evaporators 
as  fast  as  it  evaporates,  was  invented  by 
the  late  Moses  Holden,  Esq.,  who  for 
many  years  owned  and  carried  on  the 
sugar-place  about  2  miles  from  his  home 
in  the  village  ;  was  a  part  of  the  Scott  farm. 
He  was  a  large,  strong  man,  a  great 
worker,  and  seldom  had  any  help  in  sugar- 
ing, and  often  felt  the  need  of  having  his 
sap  boiling  safely  when  he  was  away. 
Hearing  a  description  of  a  floating  con- 
trivance for  regulating  the  amount  of  water 
running  into  the  flume  of  a  certain  mill,  gave 
him  an  idea  about  regulating  the  sap  running 
into  his  sap-pans,  and  he  went  to  Montpelier 
and  told  one  of  the  tinmen  there  what  he 
wanted  made.  The  tinman  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  it  for  fear  of  ridicule  in 
case  of  a  failure ;  but  going  to  another  tin- 
shop,  the  tinman  made  the  feeder  accord- 
ing to  directions,  and  only  asked  for  a 
chance  to  make  more  if  it  proved  a  suc- 
cess. Mr.  Holden  took  his  invention 
home,  elevated  his  sap-holder,  put  on  his 
feeder,  and  started  a  fire.  It  worked  well 
during  the  day,  and  when  he  left  at  night, 
he  filled  his  holder  with  sap  and  his  arch 
with  wood,  and  when  he  returned  in  the 
morning,  found  his  holder  nearly  empty 
and  everything  right.  He  never  applied 
for  a  patent,  but  used  this  first  feeder  as 
long  as  he  sugared,  and  it  is  still  used  by 
Wm.  Scott,  who  bought  the  sugar-place. 

Moses  Holden  died  in  May,  1878,  at  an 
advanced  age.  He  had  always  been  a  res- 
ident of  the  town,  had  represented  it  in 
the  Legislature  twice,  and  had  filled  many 
offices  of  trust  and  responsibility.  Many 
stories  are  told  of  his  physical  strength, 
one  of  them  being  to  the  effect  that  he  has 
been  known  to  cut  and  split  8  cords  of  three- 
foot  wood  in  one  day.  He  could  lift  up  a 
full  barrel  of  cider,  hold  it,  and  drink  from 
the  bunof-hole. 


BURYING   GROUNDS. 

At  an  early  date,  Hon.  Seth  Putnam 
deeded  his  one-acre  lot  in  the  white  pine 
division,  which  is  in  the  village,  on  the 
east  side  of  the  street  opposite  the  railroad 
depot,  to  the  town  for  a  burying  ground. 
The  yard  is  well  fenced,  and  kept  in  as 
good  condition  as  the  scanty  room  will  ad- 
mit. I  have  not  learned  who  was  the  first 
person  buried  there,  and  the  number  can- 
not be  very  accurately  determined,  but  the 
cemetery  is  nearly  all  occupied. 

The  following  names,  taken  mostly  from 
the  headstones  there,  show  that  there  sleep 
some  of  the  brave  veterans  who  fought  to 
establish  our  nation,  and  some  of  the  dar- 
ing pioneers  who  cleared  the  dense  forest 
from  our  fertile  fields  : 

Lyman  Tolman,  aged  95,  Cyrus  Hill,  94, 
Ebenezer  Woodbury  —  Revolutionary  sol- 
diers ;  Hon.  Seth  Putnam,  fourth  settler  in 
town,  93 ;  Capt.  Holden  Putnam,  Captain 
at  Plattsburgh,  86;  Jesse  Johnson,  Sen'r, 
86 ;  Luther  Haskins,  84 ;  Mary  Petty  Has- 
kins,  wife  of  Luther,  81  ;  Sally,  wife  of  Dr. 
Joseph  Lewis,  83 ;  Polly  Goldthwait,  79 ; 
Elihu  Atherton,  79 ;  Moses  Holden,  78 ; 
Aaron  Ladd,  78  ;  Jesse  Johnson,  Jr.,  ']']. 

As  the  ripened  autumn  leaves  surely 
and  successively  drop  from  the  forest  trees 
and  are  borne  to  the  silent  earth,  so  are 
we,  in  sure  succession,  dropping  from  the 
stage  of  life,  and  being  borne  to  the  silent 
cities  of  the  departed.  And  as  the  inhab- 
itants of  these  cities  will  soon  outnumber 
those  living  in  our  villages  and  along  our 
valleys  and  hill  sides,  it  seems  just  and 
appropriate  proper  mention  should  be 
made  of  them  ;  and  I  think  much  credit  is 
due  the  inhabitants  of  this  town  and  near 
vicinity  for  the  improving  and  adorning  of 
their  cemeteries.     The  ground  now  called 

THE  MIDDLESEX  CENTRE  CEMETERY, 

is  now  one  of  the  most  neatly  arranged 
country  cemeteries  to  be  found ;  situated 
in  a  sightly,  pleasant  place,  on  the  east 
side  of  the  first  made  and  most  direct 
road  from  the  village  to  the  Centre,  about 
2  miles  from  the  river,  on  the  top  of  the 
first  of  three  elevations  of  rolling  ground 
found  in  coming  from  the  village  on  this 


244 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


road.  Along  the  roadside  and  within  the 
gate  near  the  entering  avenue,  is  a  grove 
of  handsome  maples  in  rows,  casting  their 
shade  upon  the  turf  and  over  the  pretty, 
white  school  house  upon  the  left.  The 
grounds  within  the  cemetery  are  neatly 
arranged  in  6  rows  of  lots,  with  3  carriage 
avenues  running  the  length  of  the  ground 
and  cross  avenues.  Each  lot  is  raised 
above  the  avenues,  with  walk  left  between 
each  2  lots,  and  flowers,  blooming  shrubs 
and  roses,  break  the  mat  of  thick  green  grass 
and  add  their  beauty  to  the  sacred  plots. 
A  substantial  wall  and  close-trimmed  cedar 
hedge  inclosing  all. 

But  it  is  more  the  tasteful  arrangement 
of  the  whole  that  makes  the  place  seem 
beautiful  for  every  one,  than  any  profuse 
adornment.  The  stranger,  too,  pauses  to 
admire  the  lovely  scenery  around  as  well, 
and  the  mourners  feel  a  spirit  of  thankful- 
ness that  their  dear  friends  are  resting  in 
so  fair  a  place. 

There  are  some  200  graves  here  now, 
with  many  monuments.  Jan.  i,  181 2  Na- 
than Benton,  one  of  the  first  settlers, 
deeded  2  acres  of  land  here  to  Joseph 
Chapin,  Josiah  Holden  and  16  others:  the 
land  tc  be  used  for  a  neighborhood  bury- 
ing ground.  In  the  spring  of  1822  there 
were  5  graves  in  this  ground,  but  it  was 
in  an  open  field,  and  had  not  been  exactly 
located.  That  year  the  neighbors  met 
and  appointed  Stephen  Herrick  to  meas- 
ure and  stake  out  the  ground,  and  a  fence 
was  built  around  it. 

But  little  was  done  to  improve  it  more 
until  about  1856,  when  through  the  influ- 
ence and  under  the  supervision  of  Horace 
Holden,  the  friends  of  the  deceased  buried 
there,  and  others  who  felt  interested,  be- 
gan to  kill  the  weeds  and  brakes  that  had 
become  abundant,  and  improvements  were 
continued  from  time  to  time  till  1858,  when 
everything  was  completed  nearly  as  at  pres- 
ent. In  1866,  an  association  was  formed 
called  "  The  Middlesex  Centre  Cemetery 
Association,"  to  which  Aaron  Ladd,  Asa 
Chapin,  and  21  others,  owners  of  lots, 
deeded  their  right  and  title.  Under  the 
Association  each  one  of  those  who  deeded 
and  each  one  who  took  an  active  part  in 


the  work  of  improving  the  ground  were  en- 
titled to  a  family  lot. 

SOME   OF   THE   OLDEST 

buried  here  are :  Elizabeth  McElroy,  came 
from  Scotland  to  U.  S.  in  1740,  died  in 
1823,  aged  99;  Joseph  Chapin,  SenV,  96 
Susanna  Chase,  89  ;  Jeremiah  Leland,  78 
Elizabeth,  wife  of  Jeremiah  Leland,  88 
Samuel  Daniels,  87  ;  Lucretia,  wife  of  Sam- 
uel Daniels,  78  ;  Polly  McElroy,  84 ;  San- 
ford  White,  80;  Maj.  John  Poor,  79,  and 
Eliza  M.,  his  wife,  ']■}, — both  buried  in  one 
grave;  Joseph  Chapin,  Jr.,  78  ;  Horace 
Holden,  74 ;  Marian  Leland,  92 ;  Abram 
Gale,  78,  and  Mary,  his  wife,  92 ;  Marga- 
ret Mead,  79 ;  Benjamin  Willey,  72  ;  Mary 
Wilson,  73 ;  Hosea  Minott,  74 ;  Knight 
Nichols,  81,  and  Mercy,  his  wife,  92  ;  Geo. 
H.  Lewis,  71. 

THE  NORTH  BRANCH  CEMETERY. 

On  North  Branch,  about  i  mile  below 
Putnam's  Mills,  is  another  cemetery,  of 
which  Mr.  Putnam  furnishes  the  following 
description : 

"About  1 8  ID,  J  no.  Davis  was  buried  on 
land  then  occupied  by  him,  known  as  the 
Scudder  lot,  nearly  in  front  of  his  house, 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road.  After 
that  time  the  place  was  used  for  a  burying 
ground,  and  k  of  an  acre  was  enclosed  with 
a  log-fence.  At  that  time  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Flanders  lived  where  Chester 
Taylor  now  lives ;  Levi  Lewis  and  wife, 
Polly,  lived  where  G.  M.  Whitney  now 
does.  J  no.  Davis  and  wife,  Nancy,  were 
the  first  who  lived  on  the  Stiles  place. 
James  Pittsly  and  wife,  Esther,  commenced 
on  the  place  known  as  the  Bohonnon 
place,  on  the  east  side  of  the  stream,  now 
occupied  by  Jacob  Putnam.  After  this, 
Wm.  Lewis  purchased  the  Scudder  lot  and 
the  inhabitants  erected  a  board  fence  around 
the  burying  lot.  Oct.  8,  1863,  an  asso- 
ciation was  formed  called  the  North  Branch 
Cemetery  Association.  The  trustees  pur- 
chased id  acres,  together  with  the  old 
ground  of  Lathrop  Lewis,  son  of  Wm. 
Lewis,  for  $150,  and  built  a  good,  substan- 
tial fence  around  it,  erected  a  hearse-house 
and  purchased  a  hearse.  The  location 
being  on  the  main  road,  and  the  soil  dry 


MIDDLESEX. 


245 


and  sandy,  makes  it  the  most  desirable 
cemetery  in  the  town." 

Some  of  the  oldest  buried  in  North 
Branch  Cemetery  were  :  Clarissa  Gould, 
aged  66  ;  Ruth  Minott,  66 ;  Daniel  Russell, 
68;  his  wife.  Temperance,  8i  ;  Reuben 
Russell,  78;  his  wife,  Susannah,  69;  John 
Gallison,  83 ;  his  wife,  Phebe,  85  ;  Allen 
Gallison,  68;  Enoch  Kelton,  64;  his  wife, 
Huldah,  72  ;  Josiah  Wright,  76;  his  wife, 
Betsy,  84 ;  Nathaniel  Wentworth,  71  ;  Eliz- 
abeth, reUctof  Moses  Wentworth,  87  ;  Wil- 
liam Lewis,  88 ;  his  wife,  Hannah,  67 ; 
Jacob  Putnam,  73  ;  his  wife,  Polly  W.,  57  ; 
Betsy  Thayer,  67  ;  Isaac  Batchelder,  61  ; 
his  wife,  Mary,  68 ;  David  Herrick,  86 ; 
his  wife,  Mary,  85  ;  Stephen  C.  Jacobs,  76 : 
Andrew  Tracy,  75  ;  his  wife,  Levina,  84 ; 
Ebenezer  Cummings,  94 ;  Abel  H.  Cole- 
man, 75;  David  Gray,  82;  David  Hatch, 
63  ;  his  wife,  Sarah,  57  ;  John  McDermid, 
nearly  ']'] ;  his  wife,  Adelia,  nearly  72 ; 
Louiza  Lane,  72;  Margaret  Smith,  81; 
Thomas  Culver,  71  ;  his  wife,  Anna,  73 ; 
Zeley  Keyes,  76;  Micah  Hatch,  83;  his 
wife,  Mary,  69  ;  Ephraim  Hall,  68  ;  Tim- 
othy Worth,  84 ;  Solomon  Lewis,  89 ;  his 
wife,  Susannah,  70;  his  second  wife,  Lu- 
cinda,  68 ;  Elizabeth  Church,  60 ;  Sabra 
Burreli,  85  ;  Wm.  R.  Kinson,  56;  Hannah 
Kinson,  73 ;  Eunice  Edgerly,  64. 

Mrs.  Lydia  King,  widow  of  Elder  Na- 
thaniel King,  died  at  the  house  of  her  son- 
in-law,  Stephen  Herrick,  at  the  age  of  91 
years,  and  was  buried  in  Northfield. 

REMARKABLE  CASE  OF   PETRIFACTION. 

In  March,  1846,  James  Vaughn  (the 
writer's  father,)  and  family,  which  in- 
cluded his  father,  Daniel  Vaughn,  moved 
from  Pomfret,  this  state,  on  to  a  farm  in 
the  N.  W.  part  of  Middlesex. 

"Uncle  Daniel,"  as  he  was  universally 
called  in  Windsor  County,  was  a  man 
about  5  feet,  10  inches  in  height,  broad 
shouldered,  stout  built,  and  weighing  some 
more  than  200  lbs.  He  was  noted  for  his 
remarkable  strength,  his  strong,  heavy 
voice,  his  sociality,  his  song-singing  and 
story-telling,  and  was  a  notedly  robust 
man,  the  solidity  of  muscle  increasing  as 
age    advanced    to   such   an   extent   as    to 


make  it  necessary  for  him  to  use  a  cane 
or  crutches  for  the  last  15  years  of  his  life. 

He  died  of  dropsy  June  3,  1846,  aged 
78  years,  and  by  his  request  was  buried  in 
a  place  selected  by  himself  in  a  sightly 
spot  near  the  house  where  he  died.  The 
following  March  the  eldest  daughter  of 
James  Vaughn,  aged  16,  died  of  consump- 
tion, and  was  buried  in  a  grave  near  her 
grandfather.  In  Feb.  1855  their  remains 
were  taken  up  to  be  removed  to  the  family 
burying-lot  in  Woodstock  cemetery.  The 
remains  of  the  young  lady  were  found  in 
the  usual  condition  of  those  buried  that 
length  of  time. 

The  uncommon  heft  of  Mr.  Vaughn's 
coffin  led  to  an  examination  of  the  re- 
mains, when  it  was  found  that  the  body 
had  become  petrified.  Every  part,  ex- 
cepting the  nose,  was  in  perfect  form, 
nearly  its  natural  color,  but  a  little  more 
of  a  yellowish  tinge,  hard  like  stone,  and 
it  weighed  550  lbs.  The  petrified  body 
was  viewed  by  Mr.  Vaughn's  family  and 
many  of  the  neighbors  in  Middlesex,  and 
was  also  seen  by  many  at  Woodstock.  A 
somewhat  minute  examination  by  physi- 
cians and  scientific  men  revealed  the  fact 
that  the  fingers,  toes  and  the  outer  part  of 
the  body  were  very  hard  and  brittle,  but 
that  the  length  of  time  had  not  been  suffi- 
cient to  so  fully  change  the  inner  portions 
of  the  most  fleshly  parts  of  the  body  and 
limbs.  But  it  was  generally  believed  by 
those  who  made  examination  that  a  few 
years  more  of  time  would  have  made  the 
work  of  petrifaction  complete,  and  chan- 
ged the  entire  body  to  a  mineral  forma- 
tion, that  would  perhaps  endure  for  ages. 

A  biographical  sketch  of  him  we  have 
not  given,  as  it  properly  belongs  in  Pom- 
fret  history,  of  which  town  he  was  an 
early  settler. 

SUDDEN   AND   ACCIDENTAL   DEATHS. 

Luther  Haskins,  aged  about  80,  died  in 
a  chair  in  Barrett  &  Holden's  store.  He 
.sat  leaning  slightly  back,  and  was  first 
noticed  to  be  dead  by  Will  Herrick,  who 
happened  to  go  into  the  store. 

Nancy  Hornbrook,  aged  16,  daughter  of 
Wm.  Hornbrook,  dropped  dead  at  a  party 
at  Alfred  Warren's,  about  the  year  1856. 


246 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


When  the  railroad  was  being  built,  Lo- 
vina  Cameron,  aged  about  13,  dau.  of  Ira 
Cameron,  of  this  town,  was  visiting  in 
Berlin.  She  and  a  cousin  and  another  girl 
were  walking  over  the  railroad  bridge  near 
Montpelier  Junction,  stepping  from  one 
stringer  to  another,  all  having  hold  of 
hands,  when  one  made  a  misstep,  and  Miss 
Cameron  and  her  cousin  fell  through  into 
the  river  and  were  drowned. 

U.  W.  Goodell,  nephew  of  L.  D.  Ains- 
worth,  was  struck  on  the  forehead  by  a 
stick  thrown  by  a  circular  saw  while  work- 
ing in  Mr.  Ainsworth's  saw-mill,  and  lived 
but  a  few  hours. 

Chester  Newton,  while  working  in  the 
same  mill,  helping  to  saw  logs,  was  twitch- 
ed upon  the  large  circular  saw,  by  the  saw 
catching  a  board  he  was  moving,  and  so  hor- 
ribly mangled  that  he  lived  but  a  short  time. 

Alvaro,  son  of  Frederick  Richardson, 
brakeman  on  the  cars,  aged  26  years,  was 
killed  by  his  head  striking  the  timbers 
overhead  in  the  dry-bridge  at  Waterbury, 
in  1879.  Hinkley  Chapin,  aged  22,  was 
killed  at  the  same  place,  and  in  the  same 
way,  in  1851. 

In  1872,  Louis  AmePs  house,  on  east 
hill,  caught  fire  from  smoking  meat  in  the 
wood-shed,  and  Mr.  Amel  was  overcome 
by  the  flames  while  removing  property, 
and  burned  with  the  house.     Age,  51  yrs. 

Nathaniel  Daniels  was  drowned  in  1818  ; 
see  account  of  freshets.  George,  a  son  of 
Hiram  Williams,  was  drowned  in  the  river 
below  the  Narrows,  while  bathing,  aged 
about  16.  Frank,  son  of  Osgood  Evans, 
was  in  a  boat  above  the  Narrows,  one  pad- 
dle broke,  and  he  went  over  the  falls  and 
was  drowned.  His  body  was  found  in  the 
eddy  below  the  Narrows.  .  The  only  son 
of  Asa  Chapin,  was  drowned  in  a  spring 
while  drawing  water  for  use  in  the  house, 
and  a  little  son  of  Samuel  Mann  was 
drowned  in  a  spring  on  the  Stephen  Her- 
rick  farm. 

James  Daniels,  aged  about  78,  living  at 
Lawrence  Fitzgerald's,  was  found  dead  in 
bed  in  the  morning. 

There  have  been  10  cases  of  suicide  in 
the  last  60  years  by  Middlesex  people,  7  of 
which  were  committed  in  town. 


STEPHEN   HERRICK. 

BY  THE  EDITOR. 

We  do  not  usually  give  sketches  of  the 
living,  but  the  senior  writer  of  this  town 
history  being  so  aged  a  man,  and  it  being 
somewhat  remarkable  in  his  case  that  of 
210  men  living  in  the  town  when  he  set- 
tled here,  who  had  families,  that  he  has 
been  the  last  survivor  of  them  all  for  eight 
and  a  half  years  past,  it  seems  a  moderate 
autobiographic  record  in  such  circum- 
stances is  admissible. 

Mr.  Herrick  is  of  English  and  Scotch 
descent,  son  of  Stephen,  senior ;  born  in 
Randolph,  Vt.,  Feb.  19,  1795.  In  the 
fall  of  1820,  he  came  to  Middlesex,  and  se- 
lected his  location,  bought  in  October,  but 
returned  to  Randolph,  taught  school  that 
winter  after  in  Brookfield,  and  returned  to 
Middlesex  in  April,  1821.  He  bought  his 
farm  of  Reuben  Mann,  son  of  Samuel,  who 
was  one  of  the  first  settlers,  and  where  Mr. 
H.  has  continued  to  reside  for  the  past  61 
years.  He  married  Lydia,  dau.  of  Rev. 
Nathaniel  King ;  their  children  :  Eliza — 
mar.  ist,  Chester  Pierce  of  N.  H.,  2d, 
Samuel  Warren  of  Middlesex,  3d,  Ad  in 
Miles  of  Worcester,  has  three  children 
living :  Nathaniel  King,  the  only  son, 
who  m.  Jane  Foster,  3  children,  2  living — 
King  Herrick,  as  he  is  always  called,  is  a 
merchant  at  Middlesex  village  ;  Emily  R., 
who  died  at  22  ;  Harriet,  who  m.  Abram 
S.  Adams,  had  5  children,  and  is  deceased  : 
Laura  Jane,  who  m.  John  McDermid,  had 
2  daughters,  buried  one  ;  Nancy  Jane,  who 
m.  Arthur  McDermid,  bro.  to  John,  3  chil- 
dren, her  husband  dying,  m.  2d,  Freder- 
erick  A.  Richardson ;  Lydia  Ann,  who 
mar.  Heman  Taplin,  no  children ;  and 
youngest,  Alma  R.,  born  In  1842,  married 
V.  V.  Vaughn,  Mar.  8,  1865,— children, 
Mabel,  died  at  10  yeafs,  Wilmar  Herrick, 
Ida  Alma,  and  Frank  Waldo. 

Mr.  Herrick  has  been  a  man  of  great 
physical  strength  and  vigorous  mind. 
The  following  will  evince  what  his  mental 
ability  has  been : 

When  the  Vt.  Central  R.  R.  was  being 
built,    Abram    B.    Barker    and    Thomas 


MIDDLESEX. 


247 


Haight  contracted  to  build  2  miles  of  it 
below  Middlesex  village.  They  carried 
on  work  for  about  a  year  and  failed.  Ste- 
phen Herrick  took  a  contract  to  finish  the 
work;  carried  it  on  about  13  months,  and 
in  consequence  of  short  estimates  also 
failed — but  for  which  he  immediately  com- 
menced a  suit  against  the  R.  R.  Co.,  and 
afterwards  was  retained  for  and  commen- 
ced a  suit  in  favor  of  Barker  and  Haight 
as  agent  for  their  creditors.  After  carry- 
ing on  these  suits  for  8  years  he  got  a  de- 
cree against  the  R.  R.  Co.  in  his  own 
case  for  about  $9000 ;  the  Barker  & 
Haight  suit  he  prosecuted  for  20  years  be 
fore  getting  a  final  decree. 

In  these  suits  he  took  all  his  testimony 
himself,  examined  his  witnesses  himself 
in  court,  and  wrote  out  his  own  pleas.  In 
a  word  he  was  his  own  lawyer.  It  is  said 
he  once  appeared  in  Supreme  court  with 
his  case  written  out,  filling  300  pages,  that 
Gov.  Paine,  the  president  of  the  road, 
said  that  that  book  would  be  the  death  of 
him.  Mr.  Herrick  tells  the  story  now 
well,  and  adds  //lai  it  was.  When  Gov. 
Paine  was  summoned,  he  told  the  officer 
he  had  rather  meet  the  devil  than  that 
Stephen  Herrick  in  the  court. 

He  has  also  successfully,  as  town  agent, 
managed  many  suits  for  the  town,  includ- 
ing the  noted  Wythe  pauper  suit  with 
Moretown,  the  Beckwith  suit  in  regard  to 
settling  the  3  ministerial  lots,  and  the  East 
Hill  road  suit,  and  has  managed  many 
grand  jury  suits,  in  all  of  which  he  acted 
as  his  own  counsel  and  made  his  own 
pleas. 

The  Saturday  before  the  death  of  the  late 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  these  two  old  men 
met  upon  the  street  at  Montpelier  village. 
Said  Mr.  Baldwin,  "We  two  old  men, 
the  two  oldest  inhabitants  of  ourresi^ective 
neighboring  towns,  should  have  a  visit  to- 
gether." Mr.  Herrick  assented,  and  asked 
where  it  should  be.  "It  must  be  at  my 
house,"  replied  Mr.  Baldwin,  "  and  next 
Saturday,  one  week  from  to-day."  The 
following  Wednesday  Mr.  Baldwin  died. 
Mr.  Herrick  seems  remarkably  hale  and 
hearty  yet. 


REVOLUTIONARY   PENSIONERS. 

No  official  list  of  Revolutionary  soldiers 
who  have  resided  in  Middlesex  can  be  ob- 
tained, but  the  following-named  men  are 
said  to  have  been  Revolutionary  pension- 
ers who  have  lived  in  town  :  Estes  Hatch, 
—  Sloan,  Jas.  Hobart,  Cyrus  Hill,  Micah 
Hatch,  David  Phelps,  Col.  Joseph  Hutch- 
ins,  Joseph  Chapin,  Sr.,  Lyman  Tolman. 

Seth  Putnam  was  one  of  the  first  three 
settlers  in  Washington  County,  having 
moved  into  Middlesex  in  1785.  He  was  a 
cousin  to  the  noted  Israel  Putnam,  and  as 
a  subaltern  in  Col.  Warner's  celebrated 
regiment  of  Green  Mountain  Boys,  partic- 
ipated in  their  battles  and  marches  in  the 
old  Revolution.  He  related  many  of  his 
adventures  of  the  first  settlement,  and 
among  them  one  of  a  remarkable  march 
which  he  made  through  the  wilderness  in  a 
snow-storm,  from  Rutland,  where  he  had 
been  in  attendance  as  a  member  of  the 
legislature  during  the  month  of  November. 
The  only  traveled  road  to  his  home  was 
then  around  by  Burlington, 

SOLDIERS,  BURIED   IN   TOWN  IN   THE 
WAR   OF    1 86 1. 

S.  F.  Jones,  Jacob  Jones  and  Zenas 
Hatch, — in  North  Branch  Cemetery. 

Chester  Newton, — in  the  Cemeteiy  at 
the  Center. 

Nathaniel  Jones, — in  the  village  Ceme- 
tery. 

Mrs.  Esther  Shontell,  of  this  town,  sent 
seven  sons  into  the  army  in  this  war :  Wil- 
liam, who  measured  6  feet  8  inches  in 
height ;  Benjamin,  6  feet  4  inches  ;  Fred- 
erick, 6  feet  3  inches ;  Leander,  5  feet  9 
inches ;  Lewis,  6  feet  i  inch ;  Joseph,  6 
feet  7  inches ;  Augustus,  6  feet.  Two  of 
the  brothers  were  killed ;  and  the  mother 
draws  a  pension  for  one  of  them.  Anoth- 
er left  a  widow,  and  two  are  pensioned  on 
account  of  wounds. 

O,  the  strong  Middlesex  boys 
W  ere  luad  for  tlie  war  I 

And  Die  name  of  each  Iiero 
To  the  ages  afar 

Shall  leave  a  track  like  a  comet- 
Each  shine  as  a  star. 


248 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


List  of  Men  credited  to  the  Town  of  Middlesex,  i  861-1865. 

BY  STEPHEN  IIERKICK. 


VOLUNTEERS   FOR   THREE   YEARS. 


Names. 

Age. 

Reg.  Co. 

Enlistment. 

Brown,  Harvey  W. 

19 

2    F 

May    7  61 

Smith,  William  S. 

22 

do 

do 

Ripley,  William  C. 

21 

3H 

June    I  61 

Scribner,  Walter 

21 

4G 

Aug  22  61 

Herrick,  George  S. 

23 

do 

Aug  29  61 

Leonard,  Alonzo  R. 

21 

do 

Sept    3  61 

Leonard,  Charles  P. 

19 

do 

do 

Cushman,  George  H. 

34 

do 

Aug  22  61 

Evans,  Goin  B. 

21 

6  G 

Feb   1862 

Gould,  Page 

21 

6H 

Aug  14  61 

Gould,  Worthen  T. 

18 

do 

do 

Jones,  Stephen  F. 

44 

do 

do 

Jones,  Jacob  G. 

18 

do 

do 

Divine,  John 

30 

6  G 

Oct   15  61 

Lee,  John  Jr. 

32 

do 

Sept  20  61 

Sweeny,  James 

35 

do 

Sept  23  61 

Leonard,  John  R. 

26 

6  F 

Oct     3  61 

Whitney,  Elijah 

31 

do 

Oct     8  61 

Hogan,  John 

22 

6H 

Aug  14  61 

Shontell,  William 

25 

8  E 

Oct""  21  61 

Shontell,  Benjamin 

24 

do 

Dec  16  61 

Shontell,  Frederick 

22 

do 

Jan    ID  62 

Shontell,  Leander 

19 

do 

Dec  16  61 

Amel,  Louis 

3« 

do 

Oct     7  61 

Warren,  Lorenzo  S. 

do 

Dec    7  61 

Warren,  Alonzo  S. 

20 

do 

do 

Kinson,  Benjamin  H. 

26 

do 

Oct     3  61 

Wilson,  Francis 

28 

do 

do 

Nichols,  Roswell  S. 

41 

do 

Nov  30  61 

Lewis,  Frederick  A. 

18 

CavC 

Sept  13  61 

Lewis,  UeForest  L. 

20 

do 

Nov  12  61 

Scott,  Elisha 

50 

do 

Sept  20  61 

George,  Albert 

21 

do 

Sept  13  61 

Smith,  John  W. 

41 

do 

Sept  12  61 

Chase,  Austin  A. 

21 

do 

Oct     3  61 

Spencer,  George  W. 

28 

do 

Sept  20  61 

Hastings,  Sidney  B. 

42 

do 

do 

Dudley,  William  N. 

32 

do 

Sept  12  61 

Preston,  Philander  R. 

27 

do 

Sept  21  61 

Wells,  Warren  O. 

38 

1st  Bat 

Dec     3  61 

Hills,  Zerah 

34 

do 

do 

Oakland,  George 

24 

2d  Bat 

Oct    2361 

Hogan,  Henry 

20 

9    I 

June  18  62 

Smith,  William  P. 

19 

do 

June  30  62 

Cushman,  Holmes 

27 

ID    B 

July  25  62 

Williams,  Hiram 

29 

do 

Aug    I  62 

Morrisett,  John 

28 

do 

July  30  62 

Patterson,  Robert 

35 

do 

Aug    6  62 

Scaribo,  Fabius 

28 

do 

Aug    4  62 

Lewis,  Charles  J. 

25 

11  D 

Aug  12  62 

Fifield,  William  C. 

41 

6  F 

Aug  15  62 

Tobin,  John  W. 

18 

do 

do 

Cameron,  Sylvester 

25 

do 

do 

Ward,  Tertullus  C. 

26 

do 

Bean,  Albert 

23 

2  D 

do 

Bruce,  George  W. 

23 

loK 

Aug  II  62 

Jones,  Jabez 

19 

II  I 

Dec     5  63 

Chase,  Amos  J. 

40 

Cav  C 

Nov  24  63 

Buck,  William  H.  H. 

22 

Cav  G 

Dec  II  63 

Templeton,  James  A. 

45 

Cav  C 

Dec     863 

Cameron,  John 

26 

do 

Dec  18  63 

Rublee,  Otis  N. 

18 

3d  Bat 

Sept    563 

Herrick,  Geo.  S. 

25 

do 

Nov    2  63 

Amel,  Louis 

19 

do 

Sept  1563 

Remarks. 

Died  Feb.  4,  63,  at  Point  Lookout,  Md. 

Died  Sept.  5,  61,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

Discharged  Nov.  8,  62.  [23,  65. 

Corp  :  pris.  June  23,  64  :  must,  out  May 

Discharged  Jan.  21,  63. 

Discharged  Dec.  18,  62. 

Re-en.  Feb.  8,  64  :  must,  out  May  23,  65. 

Corp  :  killed  at  Weldon  R.R.  June  23,  64. 

Discharged  April  24,  63.        [June  26,  65. 

First  Serg  :   wd.  April  16,  62  :  must,  out 

Died  Jan.  4,  63,  at  Belle  Plains,  Va. 

Died  Feb.  63,  at  Brattleboro. 

Died  Jan.  24,  62,  at  Camp  Griffin. 

Re-en.  Dec.  1 5, 63  :  must,  out  June  26,  65. 

Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  :  must,  out  July  15,  65. 

Discharged  Jan.  8,  62. 

Mustered  out  Oct.  28,  64. 

First  Lieut :  resigned  June  19,  62. 

Wd.  April  16,  62  :  deserted  Jan.  19,  63. 

Corp  :  discharged  Feb.  12,  63. 

Discharged  Oct.  16,  62. 

Died  May  j6,  62. 

Wd.  Sept.  4,  62  :  must,  out  Aug.  3,  64. 

Re-en.  Jan.  5,  64  :  must,  out  June  28,  65. 

Wd.  Sept.  4,  62 :  dis.  April  6,  63. 

Died  March  19,  63. 

Died  June  18,  62. 

Corp  :  died  Dec.  5,  62. 

Musician  :  discharged  June  30,  62. 

Paroled  pris  :  must,  out  May  23,  65. 

Mustered  out  Nov.  18,  64. 

do  [Nov.  1 8,  64. 

Pro.  Corp  :  wd.  Apr.  i,  63  :  mustered  out 

Corp  :  discharged  Oct.  9,  62. 

Discharged  Nov.  27,  61. 

Discharged  Oct.  3,  62. 

Discharged  Nov.  18,  64. 

Discharged  Jan.  13,  63. 
'  Wd.  July  6,  63  :  Re-en.  Dec.  31,  63';  tak- 

ken  pris.  June  29,  64;  died  at  Florence, 
:  S.  C,  Jan.,  65. 

Corp  :  mustered  out  Aug.  10,  64.       [La. 

Col-p  :  died  June  25,  63,  at  Port  Hudson, 

Corp:  re-en.Feb.20,64:  mus.out  July  31,65 

Pro.  Corp:  do.  Serg:  mus.  out  June  13,  65. 

Died  Oct.  12,  62. 

Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 

Died  Feb.  17,  65,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 

Wd.  Oct.  19,  64:  dis.  May  27,  65. 

Mustered  out  June  22,  65.  [15,  65. 

Sec.  Lt :  pro.  istLt :  do.  Capt :  dis.  May 

Must,  out  June  19,65.        [out  June  19, 65. 

Wd.Sep.  19,  64:  pro.  Corp:  do  Serg:  mus. 

Mustered  out  June  19,  65. 

Killed  in  ac.  at  Gettysburgh,  July  3,  63. 

Died  Oct.  3,  64,  at  Sandy  Hook,  of  wds. 

Deserted  July  5,  63. 

Died  at  Middlesex,  July  10,  65. 

Mustered  out  Aug.  9,  65. 

Discharged  Sept.  15,  65. 

Mustered  out  Aug.  9,  65. 

Wd.  May  6,  64 :  discharged  Feb.  22,  65. 

Musician  :  mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
do  do 

do 


MIDDLESEX. 


249 


Names. 

Age. 

Reg.  Co. 

,    Enlistment. 

Remarks. 

Chase,  Albert  H. 

19 

•3d  Bat 

Aug  29  63 

Mustered  out  June  i  q,  61;. 

Kirkland,  William 

21 

do 

Sept     563 

do 

Leonard,  Alonzo  R. 

21 

do 

do 

do 

Libby,  Frank  F. 

iS 

do 

Nov  II  63 

Promoted  Corporal  :     do 

Shontell,  William 

27 

do 

Sept  1 5  63 

do 

Stone,  Charles  H. 

20 

do 

Sept   363 

do 

Hastings,  Flavel  J. 

20 

Cav  C 

Dec    4  63 

Mustered  out  Aug.  9,  65.      [Aug.  17,  64. 

Scott,  George  W. 

18 

do 

Dec  II  63 

Pris.  June  29,  64  :  died  at  Andersonville, 

Wheeler,  Charles 

45 

10   B 

Dec  19  63 

Discharged  May  15,  65. 

Wing,  Lemuel  B. 

18 

SSC 

Dec  28  63 

Discharged  Mar.  10,  65.                   [9,  65. 

Murray,  Henry 

'9 

CavC 

Dec  31  63 

Pro.  Serg  :  wd.  Apr.  3,  65  :  must  out  Aug. 

Shepley,  Elliot  W. 

43 

do 

Dec  25  63 

Wd.  May  5,  64  :  Must,  out  Aug  9,  65. 

Towner,  John  S. 

26 

do 

Dec  18  63 

Pris.  June  29,  64  :  died  Oct.  2,  64. 

Barton,  David 

44 

10  B 

Dec  14  63 

Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 

Smith,  Abner 

42 

do 

Dec  28  63 

Killed  in  act.  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  1,64. 

Magoon,  Henry  C. 

i8 

4  G 

do 

Died  at  Brattleboro,  Aug.  20,  64. 

Mee,  Cornelius 

18 

II  H 

Dec  19  63 

Mustered  out  Aug  2,  65. 

Mustered  out  July  14,  65 :  pro.  Corp. 

Willey,  Albert 

19 

17  c 

Sept    3  63 

VOLUNTEERS    FOR    NINE    MONTHS, 

Putnam,  Chris.  C.  Jr. 

23 

13     I 

Aug  25  62 

Pro.  Serg  :  must,  out  July  21,  63. 

Whitney,  William  H.  H. 

,  22 

do 

do 

Discharged  April  6,  63. 

Whitney,  Hiram  G. 

20 

do 

do 

Musician  :  mustered  out  July  21,63. 

Whitney,  Sidney  E. 

18 

do 

Aug  29  62 

do 

Jones,  Dudley  B. 

31 

do 

do 

do 

Jones,  Jabez 

18 

do 

do 

do 

Benjamin,  R.  Plummer 

22 

13  B 

do 

do 

Jones,  Edwin 

18 

do 

do 

do 

McElroy,  Clesson  R. 

do 

Aug  25  62 

2d  Lt :  pro.  1st  Lt:  mus.  out  July  21,  63. 

Luce,  Merrill  O. 

18 

do 

do 

Corp  :  pro.  Serg  :                  do 

Potwin,  Joseph 

36 

do 

do 

Corp  :                                      do 

Ordway,  Royal 

30 

do 

do 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Barnett,  William  W. 

28 

do 

do 

do 

Willey,  Albert 

18 

do 

do 

do 

Flood,  Gregory 

18 

13  H 

do 

do 

Nichols,  Eugene 

25 

13  B 

do 

do 

Miles,  Otis  G. 

31 

do 

do 

Pro.  Corp  :  Must,  out  July  21,  63. 

Chase,  Albert  H. 

18 

do 

do 

do    - 

McCarron,  Barney 

18 

do 

do 

do 

Chamberlin,  Burt  J. 

20 

do 

do 

do 

Rublee,  Otis  H. 

18 

13  A 

Oct     3  62 

Musician :                  do 

White,  Lucian  W. 

23 

13  B 

Sept    I  62 

do 

Moulton,  Stedman  D. 

30 

do 

Sept    3  62 

Discharged  April  24,  63. 

Wright,  Edwin  L. 

27 

13  c 

Aug  29  62 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Taylor,  Francis  F. 

18 

do 

Sept   862 

Died  April  16,  63, 

Lawrence,  George  S. 

22 

do 

Sept  1 5  62 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Scribner,  Hiram  W. 

18 

do 

Sept   8  62 

do 

Slade,  William 

42 

do 

Sept  10  62 

do 

VOLUNTEERS    FOR 

ONE   YEAR. 

Atridge,  Nathaniel 

21 

Rec 

Aug  19  64 

Discharged  Oct.  i,  64. 

Cameron,  James 

18 

2  D 

July  30  64 

Mustered  out  June  19,  65.    [pris,  of  wds. 

Jones,  Edwin  R. 

20 

CavC 

Aug  22  64 

Died  Oct.  7,  64,  at  Mt.  Jackson,  Va.,  while 

Nichols,  Henry  W. 

18 

2D 

Aug     2  64 

Mustered  out  June  19,  65.      [June  19,  65. 

Alden,  Sylvester  O. 

27 

do 

Aug  19  64 

Wd.  at  Cedar  Creek.Oct.  19,  64  :  must,  out 

Edgerly,  James 

39 

do 

Aug  20  64 

Died  Oct.  31,  64,  at  Winchester,  Va. 

Saunders,  Asa  S. 

28 

do 

do 

Mustered  out  Tune  19,  61;. 

Dodge,  Wallace  W. 

21 

3d  Bat 

Aug  22  64 

do 

Dutton,  Charles  H. 

22 

do 

do 

do 

Wakefield,  William  H. 

23 

17  E 

Aug  31  64 

Mustered  out  June  2,  65. 

Andrews,  Salmon  F. 

28 

do 

do 

Mustered  out  May  13,  65. 

Whitney,  Geo.  M. 

34  FrontCav  Jan      3  65 

do            June  27,  65. 

Connor,  Francis  R. 

21 

do 

do 

do 

Whitney,  Sidney  E. 

20 

do 

do 

do 

Stiles,  Orrin 

43 

2D 

Feb     4  65 

Mustered  out  July  115,  6s. 

Nichols,  Eugene  H. 

22 

do 

do 

do 

Loizell,  Julius 

18 

do 

Feb     8  65 

do 

Smith,  James  H. 

22 

7   I 

Feb  II  65 

Mustered  out  Feb.  11,  66. 

Wells,  Warren 

li 

5t  Corps 

Jan    25  65 

Discharged  Jan.  24,  66. 

Marsh,  Rufus  H. 

do 

Feb  14  65 

Discharged  Feb.  13,  66. 

Richardson,  Plummer  H 

.  20 

6K 

Mar  1 5  65 

Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 

250 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 
Hatch,  Zenas 

Vaughn,  Henry  J. 
Woodward,  Harrisoi 

Hogan,  John  C. 

Orrin  Bruce, 
Myron  W.  Miles, 


Age. 


DRAFIED   AND    KNTERED    SKRVICE. 
Rey.  Co.    EnViUmenl. 


21 


2    D     July  13  63 

6    E  do 

2   K  do 


Remarks. 
Wd.  at  Spottsylvania,  Mav  12,  64:  died 

Nov.  II,  64,  of  wds.  rec.  Oct.  19,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  13,  65. 
Discharged  Jan.  23,  64. 

SUBSTITUTE — FOR    M.  O.   EVANS. 

20      4     I     July  23  63       Pris.  June  23,  64  :  sup.  died  in  reb.  pris. 

PAID   COMMUTATION. 

Francis  E.  Connor,  Jeremiah  Mahonev,  Luther  Maxhani, 

Chester  Smith,  E.  D.  Williams,    '  Chas.  H.  Willev. 


SOLDIERS   IN   THE  WAR   OF    l8l2. 

Being  unable  to  obtain  an  official  list  of 
the  1812  soldiers,  I  rely  on  the  recollection 
of  the  oldest  men  in  town  for  the  following 
list  of  Plattsburgh  Volunteers  : 

Holden  Putnam,  captain  of  the  Company 
from  Middlesex  and  vicinity,  Horace  Hol- 
den, Xerxes  Holden,  Lewis  Putnam,  Ze- 
bina  Warren,  Nathaniel  Carpenter,  Alan- 
son  Carpenter,  Samuel  Barnett,  David  Har- 
rington, Ephraim  Keyes,  Benj.  Chatterton, 
Nathan  Huntley, Abram  Gale,  Rufus  Cham- 
berlin,  Rufus  Leland,  Samuel  Meads,  Jesse 
Johnson,  Hubbard  Willey,  "  Priest"  Cole. 

It  is  related  respecting  some  of  the  Mid- 
dlesex volunteers  to  Plattsburgh  :  The 
Sunday  previous  to  the  battle,  a  Middlesex 
minister,  known  as  "Priest"  Cole,  preach- 
ed a  fiery  war  sermon,  in  which  he  urged 
every  man  capable  of  bearing  arms  to 
bravely  turn  out  and  meet  the  British  in 
case  of  an  invasion.  Before  the  close  of 
that  week  the  march  of  the  enemy  towards 
Vermont  was  announced,  and  the  reverend 
minister  was  one  of  the  volunteers.  When 
Captain  Putnam  reached  the  Lake  with 
his  company,  he  drew  them  up  in  a  line, 
and  gave  orders  for  "all  who  had  the 
cannon  fever  and  did  not  want  to  cross  the 
lake,  to  fall  back  to  the  rear."  Not  a  man 
stirred  except  Priest  Cole,  who  stepped 
back  a  few  paces  and  there  remained.  A 
few  days  after  the  battle,  Rev.  Mr.  C.  was 
sitting  in  Enoch  Clark's  store,  in  the  house 
now  occupied  by  L.  D.  Ainsworth,  when 
Esquire  Nathaniel  Carpenter  entered,  and 
sitting  down  by  his  side,  slapping  him  on 
the  knee,  remarked,  "Priest  Cole,  I  was 
never  more  surprised  in  my  life  than  I  was 
to  see  you  step  back  and  not  want  to  meet 
the  British."  Mr.  Cole  coolly  replied, 
"  Esq.  Carpenter,  it  is  a  great  deal  easier 
to  preach  than  to  practice." 


OUR  CHRISTMAS  TREE  AT  THE  CHURCH. 

BY  MES.  ALMA  K.  VAUGUN. 

You  have  asked  lor  a  poem,  and  what  shall  it  be? 
O,  yes,  I  will  sing  for  our  new  Christmas  tree. 
Let  all  come  under  its  boughs,  the  great  and  the  small. 
It' the  house  is  not  full,  'tis  no  (^hristmas  at  all. 
Let  us  laugh  and  be  merry;  all  be  of  good  cheer. 
For  our  Christmas  day  conies  only  once  in  a  year, — 
How  delighted  and  happy  we  all  feel  to-night, 
How  the  little  ones  look  on  tlie  tree  with  delight  I 

But  I  could  not  but  think,  as  we  just  knelt  in  prayer, 
Of  the  poor  and  the  lowly,  have  they  a  gift  there? 
And  my  mind  it  turned  back  to  the  thouglits  of  the 

morn. 
That  'twas  on  Cliristmas  Eve  that  our  Saviour  was 

born. 
Though  the  gift  may  be  humble  that's  placed  on  the 

tree, 
'Tis  in  memory  of  Christ;— like  His  gifts  let  it  be;— 
If  a  gift  to  tlie  poor  or  the  meek  has  been  given. 
You've  laid  up  for    yourselves  a  rich    treasure   in 

Heaven. 

We  now  honor  His  birthday  with  gifts  and  with  mirtli ; 
Let  us  hope  for  His  kindness  and  love  while  on  earth, 
Anfi  that  Heaven's  rich  blessings  may  rest  on  us  all. 
That  no  sorrow,  nor  evil,  nor  ill  may  befall. 
Then  take  not  the  gifts  from  the  tree  with  fond  pride. 
But  think  'twas  for  tliee  that  our  Saviour  has  died; 
And  receive  each  gift  liumbly,  to-night,  from  the  tree. 
As  an  emblem  of  love— of  His  kindness  to  thee. 

SUNSHINE   WILL   FOLLOW   THE   RAIN. 
BY  MKS.  ALMA  K.  VAUGHN. 

Life  has  its  moments  of  gladness. 

Life  lias  its  moments  of  pain; 
Yet  God,  He  is  near  in  our  sorrow. 

Sunshine  will  follow  the  rain. 

Why  are  we  ever  a  shading 
Our  moments  of  gladness  with  pain? 
.   Why  are  we  apt  to  repining? 
Sunshine  will  follow  tlie  raiu. 

NOTHING   LEFT   UNDONE. 

Oh,  can  we,  as  the  night  has  come. 
Review  the  day  with  pride,  and  say. 

We  have  left  nothing  now  undone 
Of  which  we  should  have  done  to-day? 

For  soon,  liow  soon  our  days  are  through. 

Our  work  in  life  will  all  be  done; 
Oh,  can  we  say,  as  death  draws  nigh, 

No  eajrthly  task  is  left  undone  ? 

[We  selected  from  Mrs.  Vaughn's  poems 
one  or  two  other  pieces,  which  we  should 
give  would  it  not  overrun  the  pages  allot- 
ted for  Middlesex. — Ed.'\ 


MONTPELIER. 


251 


MONTPELIER. 

BY   HON.    ELIAKIM    P.    WALTON. 

From  the  first  Vermont  grant  of  the 
town  of  Montpelier,  Oct.  21,  1780,  to  Jan. 
I,  1849,  the  territory  known  by  that  name 
embraced  the  present  towns  of  Montpelier 
and  East  Monpelier  ;  hence  this  paper 
will  for  that  period  give  the  history  of  the 
two  existing  towns  under  the  original 
name,  and  of  the  present  town  of  Mont- 
pelier from  the  last-named  date. 

location. 

The  origmal  town  was  located  on  the 
longest  river  which  has  both  its  origin  and 
embouchure  within  the  State — the  Win- 
ooski.  In  a  map  published  at  New  Haven, 
Conn.,  about  1779,  this  river  was  called, 
' '  A',  a  la  iMoelle,  French  R.  or  iremisoo  R. , 
also  Otiiain  A."  The  first  name  was  given 
by  Champlain  in  1609,  to  the  next  princi- 
pal river  north,  now  called  Lamoille,  and 
it  was  erroneously  applied  to  the  Winooski 
on  the  map  referred  to  ;  French,  or  Onion, 
river  was  the  name  given  in  early  New 
Hampshire  charters  of  towns  located  on 
the  river,  and  ' '  IVenusoo  "  and  ' '  Oniain'''' 
were  the  erroneous  readings  by  the  drafts- 
man or  engraver,  for  the  genuine  and  beau- 
tiful Winooski,  and  the  equally  genuine 
but  strong-flavored  Onion,  which  suggests 
rather  the  richness  of  the  broad  meadows 
on  either  bank  than  the  exceeding  beauty 
of  the  mingled  landscape  of  water,  meads 
and  magnificent  mountains. 

The  town  was  located  in  fatitude  44° 
17'  north,  and  longitude  4°  25'  east  from 
tlie  capitol  at  Washington,  and  about  10 
miles  north-east  from  the  exact  geograph- 
ical centre  of  the  State,  which  is  near  the 
west  line  of  Northfield,  in  the  mountain 
between  Northfield  and  Waitsfield.  Four 
important  branches  embouch  in  the  town 
or  on  its  border :  Dog  river  from  the 
south,  Stevens's  Branch  from  the  south-east 
and  Kingsbury's  Branch  and  North  Branch 
from  the  north,  while  the  Winooski  itself 
enters  near  the  north-eastern,  and  runs  to 
the  south-western,  corner  of  the  town. 
Dog  river  gave  the  passage  for  the  Vermont 
Central  railroad  through  the  mountains  to 
the   third   branch  of  White    river,   which 


has  its  source  at  the  same  level  as  that  of 
Dog  river  ;  Stevens's  Branch  has  the  same 
source  in  one  of  its  branches  as  the  second 
branch  of  White  river,  which  cuts  through 
the  eastern  mountain  range  by  the  famous 
"  Gulf"  in  WilliamstOwn,  and  a  branch  of 
Stevens's,  from  Barre,  gives  easy  access  to 
the  valley  of  Wait's  river.  The  northern 
branches  of  the  Winooski  give  eligible 
passes  to  the  upper  valleys  of  Wells  and 
Lamoille  rivers,  and  North  Branch  gives 
an  easy  and  almost  a  perfectly  straight  pass 
into  the  valley  of  the  Lamoille, oppositeWild 
Branch,  which  cuts  through  to  a  branch 
of  Black  river,  and  thas  opens  a  clear  way 
to  Lake  Memphremagog  at  Newport.  This 
location  of  the  town,  so  central  and  so 
easily  accessible  to  the  surrounding  coun- 
try in  every  direction,  probably  had  an 
important  influence  in  making  it  the  polit- 
ical capital  of  the  State,  as  it  certainly  has 
had  upon  the  thrift  of  its  business  men. 
These  facts  also  indicate  that  in  the  future, 
as  ability  shall  be  given,  the  village  of 
Montpelier  will  become  the  centre  for  the 
intersection  of  at  least  five  railroad  lines, 
ruixuing  in  tlie  river  valleys  above  named, 
making  it  ultimately  as  accessible  by  rail 
as  it  has  been  by  the  ordinary  highways. 
The  Central  railroad  now  opens  two  of 
these  valleys  to  Montpelier  ;  in  the  third,  the 
Montpelier  and  Wells  River  railroad  is  now 
in  operation  ;  in  the  fourth,  the  managers 
of  the  Central  road  contemplate  the  laying 
of  a  track,' and  in  that  event  the  valley  of 
the  North  Branch  to  the  Lamoille  will 
alone  remain  to  be  occupied.  A  survey 
for  a  railroad  there  has  been  made,  and  the 
route  is  proved  to  be  feasible. 
earliest  grants. 
The  earliest  known  grant  of  any  part  of 
the  territory,  on  which  the  township  was 
located,  was  made  by  CadwalladerColden, 
Lieutenant  and  acting  Governor  of  the  then 
royal  Province  of  New  York,  June  13, 
1770,  under  the  name  of  "Newbrook," 
which  was  a  grant  to  Jacobus  Van  Zant. 
On  a  niap  of  Vermont,  and  of  parts  of 
New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts,  New  York 
and  Pennsylvania,  published  at  New  Haven, 
Conn.,  when  the  inhabitants  of  Vermont 
held  their  lands    "by   the  triple    title   of 


252 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


honest  purchase,  of  Industry  in  Settling, 
and  now  lately  that  of  conquest,''''  the  last 
phrase  indicating  about  1779  as  the  date — 
this  New  York  township  seems  to  have 
embraced  Montpelier  eastward  from  ashort 
distance  west  of  the  mouth  of  North  Branch, 
near  the  spot  on  which  the  State  Capitol 
stands,  with  parts  of  Barre,  Plainfield  and 
Berlin.* 

On  the  25th  of  June,  1770,  still  another 
small  portion  of  Montpelier,  on  the  East- 
ern border  of  the  town,  was  granted,  by 
the  same  authority,  under  the  name  of 
"  Kingsborough,"  to  John  Morin  Scott, 
who  was  subsequently  a  delegate  from  New 
York  in  the  Continental  Congress  ;  and  on 
the  3d  of  July,  1771,  John  Murray,  Earl  of 
Dunmore,  and  then  Governor  of  New  York, 
granted  yet  another  portion,  under  the 
name  of  "  Kilby,"  to  William  McAdams. 
According  to  the  map  referred  to,  this 
grant  covered  all  but  a  very  narrow  gore 
between  the  New  Hampshire  grant  of 
Middlesex  and  the  preceding  New  York 
grants  of  Kingsborough  and  Newbrook. 
Hon.  Hiland  Hall  has  suggested  that 
Newbrook  embraced  Waterbury  and  vi- 
cinity, Kingsborough,  Montpelier  and  vi- 
cinity, and  Kilby,  Middlesex  and  vicinity  ;f 
but  the  New  Haven  map  very  correctly 
marks  all  the  towns  granted  by  New 
Hampshire  on  the  North  side  of  the  Win- 
ooski,  from  Colchester  to  Middlesex,  both 
included,  with  the  names  they  now  bear,  ex- 
cept BelioH  for  Bolton,  and  an  dmission  of 
the  corner  of  Richmond,  which  is  included 
in  Jericho.  Immediately  adjoining  and 
East  of  Middlesex  is  "  Kilby,"  just  where 
Montpelier   belongs.     The  only  difficulty 


*  The  explanation  on  the  map  brings  ont  so  strongly 
the  Vermont  spirit  of  those  days,  that  it  is  worth  copy- 
ing entire,  as  follows  : 

"The  Townships  or  Grants  East  of  Lake  Cham- 
"  PLAIN  are  laid  down  as  granted  by  tlie  State  of 
'•New  Hampshire,  Except  those  that  are  marked 
"  Y  Which  were  grantc<i  by  the  State  of  New  Yokk 
"on  unlocated  ground,  where  they  do  not  interfere 
"with  the  Hampshire  Grants;  tlie  Spurious  New 
"  York  grants  that  interfere  with  the  Older  ones  are 
"marked  will;  dotted  lines,  and  as  they  are  mostly 
"  granted  to  Officers  in  the  Regular  army  except  a 
"few  which  liave  the  name  of  Wallis,  Kemp,  and 
"  some  such  otlier  favourites  of  these  Princes  of  Laud 
"Jobbers  MooKE,  Dunmoke,  Colden,  and  Tryon, 
"  Stamped  on  them,  it  was  not  thouglit  wortli  while  to 
"  note  them :  Especially  as  the  Inhabitants  of  the 
"  State  of  Vermont  now  hold  them  by  the  triple  title 
"of  honest  purchase,  of  Industry  in  Settling,  and  now 
"  lately  that  of  Conquest."' — Map  facimj  paije  630  in 
Vol.  4,  of  Documentary  History  of  New  York. 

t  Vermont  Historical  Society  Collections,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
154,155,156, 


in  the  case  is  that  "Kilby"  contained 
30,000  acres,  or  6,930  fnore  than  Mont- 
pelier, which  would  make  "Kilby "cov- 
er a  part  of  the  present  towns  of  Plain- 
field  and  Marshfield,  with  the  whole  of 
Montpelier  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  in  that 
case,  the  junctions  of  North  Branch  and 
Stevens's  Branch  with  the  Winooski  should 
be  in  "  Kilby  "  on  the  map,  whereas  they 
are  in  "  Newbrook."  The  writer  has  con- 
jectured that  "Kilby"  in  fact  embraced  part 
of  the  territory  laid  down  on  the  map 
as  Middlesex,  and  that  Montpelier  was 
covered  by  parts  of  "Kilby,"  "New- 
brook "  and  "Kingsborough,"  which  would 
bring  Berlin  very  near  its  correct  place  on 
the  map,  where  it  is  in  fact  quite  erro- 
neously placed  in  relation  to  Middlesex. 
These  statements  are  of  some  interest  as 
belonging  to  the  history  of  the  town,  yet 
they  are  of  no  possible  importance,  since 
the  grantees  of  New  York  appear  never  to 
have  availed  themselves  of  their  grants, 
though  an  attempt  was  made  to  survey  this 
region  in  1773,  by  Samuel  Gale,  which  was 
prevented  by  Ira  Allen.* 

The  names  of  the  New  York  grantees  do 
not  appear  in  the  list  of  persons  who  re- 
ceived compensation  for  their  lands  out  of 
the  $30,000  paid  by  Vermont  to  New  York 
as  a  settlement  of  the  long  and  bitter  con- 
troversy for  title  and  jurisdiction.  The 
three  New  York  grants  were  therefore  dor- 
mant, or  had  lapsed  for  want  of  compliance 
with  prescribed  conditons,  when,  in  1780,  a 
petition  was  filed  in  the  office  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  State  of  Vermont,  by  Timothy  Big- 
elow,  Jacob  Davis,  Jacob  Davis,  Jr.,  Thos. 
Davis,  and  others,  asking  for  a  grant  of 
unappropriated  land.  This  was  at  the 
most  critical  period  in  the  history  of  Ver- 
mont, when  New  York  and  New  Hamp- 
shire were  both  claiming  jurisdiction  of 
the  State,  and  Congress  seemed  so  strongly 
bent  upon  sacrificing  it  to  one  of  the  claim- 
ing States,  or  dividing  it  between  both, 
that  the  agents  of  Vermont  in  Congress 
withdrew,  and  indignantl}'  refused  further 
to  attend,  though  invited  to  do  so.f 


*  Vt.  Historical  Society  Collections,  Vol.  I,  p.  306, 
where  Allen  states  explicitly  that  Gale's  camp  was 
"  tu'ar  the  uorllieast  corner  of  the  [then]  jHesont 
town  of  Montpelier." 

^Saiiie,  Vol.  II,  pages  31-34. 


MONTFELIER. 


253 


At  this  period,  two-thirds  of  the  State 
were  occupied  by  the  scouts  of  the  British 
army  and  the  Green  Mountain  Boys,*  and 
the  British  far  exceeded  the  Vermonters 
in  the  number  of  men  and  in  military  sup- 
plies. In  fact,  on  the  very  day  when  the 
General  Assembly  authorized  the  grant  of 
Montpelier,  Major  Carleton  with  a  British 
force  was  at  Ticonderoga,  just  returned 
from  a  successful  raid  on  North-eastern 
New  York,  in  which  he  had  captured  Forts 
Ann  and  George,  and  destroyed  nearly  all 
the  farm-houses  and  barns  in  the  towns  of 
Kingsborough  and  Oueensborough.f 

It  was  at  this  critical  time  that  Vermont 
was  forced  to  rely  on  policy  rather  than 
arms  for  protection,  and  the  negotiation 
with  Gen.  Frederick  Haldimand,  Governor 
and  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  British 
forces  in  Canada,  was  then  instituted.  In 
these  desperate  circumstances,  one  of  the 
greatest  difficulties  was  the  want  of  money 
with  which  to  supply  and  pay  the  little 
army  of  the  infant  State — a  State  which 
was  not  only  relying  solely  on  its  own  re- 
sources for  its  own  defense,  but  actually 
had  furnished  and  was  in  part  supporting 
Col.  Seth  Warner's  regiment  in  the  Con- 
tinental army,  then  and  while  in  service 
used  for  the  protection  of  Vermont's  most 
dangerous  enemy — New  York.  For  the 
extraordinary  expenses  of  military  defense, 
the  taxes  upon  a  people  just  entered  upon 
the  primeval  forests,  and  having  hardly 
cleared  enough  to  afford  a  scanty  support 
even  in  peaceful  times,  would  not  suffice  ; 
and  necessarily,  therefore,  the  State  Gov- 
ernment relied  upon  the  sale  of  its  wild 
lands,  and  of  the  confiscated  estates  of  en- 
emies, for  a  fund  to  meet  extraordinary 
expenses.  An  essential  point  of  course 
was,  to  find  purchasers  who  could  make 
ixady  pay  in  specie,  or  its  equivalent,  and 
thus  supply  the  pressing  needs  of  the  gov- 
ernment. Accordingly  we  find,  on  the 
Assembly  journal  of  the  14th  of  October, 
1780,  the  following  entry: 

Resolved,  that  a  Committee  of  five,  to 
join  a  Committee  from  the  Council,  be  ap- 

'Iii  Octolier,  17S(»,  the  nionlli  in  which  the  grant  of 
M<>nl|ielicr  was  aslvcd,  a  Britisli  party  passed  Ihroiigh 
ihat  town,  on  tlicir  way  to  attack  Royulton.—yee  B.  H. 
\\\\.\\'&  Eastern   Veini<na,\>  ;i.s:j. 

t  VI.  Hisl.  .•Soc.  Coll.,  Vol.  II.  pages  -iti,  41  44,  6U-69. 


pointed  to  take  into  consideration  the  sit- 
uation of  ungranted  lands  within  this  State 
which  can  be  settled,  and  the  several  pe- 
titions filed  in  the  Secretary's  office  pray- 
ing for  grants  of  unlocated  lands,  and 
report  their  opinion  w/iat  lands  can  be 
granted  and  what  persons  will  most  con- 
duce to  the  welfare  of  t/iis  State  to  Iiave  such 
grants. 

The  members  chosen  by  ballot  are,  Mr. 
Samuel  Robinson,  Mr.  [Edward]  Harris, 
Col.  [John]  Strong,  Mr.  [EI:)enezer]  Cur- 
tiss,  and  Mr.  [Joshua]  Webb.* 

This  Committee  was  deemed  so  impor- 
tant that  on  the  17th  of  October,  1780,  the 
Assembly  added  to  it  four  members,  to 
wit:  Mr.  [Matthew]  Lyon,  Mr.  [Benja- 
min] Whipple,  Mr.  [Thomas]  Porter,  and 
Mr.  [Major  Thomas]  Murdock.f  The 
members  of  this  Committee  were  selected 
from  the  then  most  important  towns  in 
the  State,  to  wit :  Bennington,  Halifax, 
Dorset,  Windsor,  Rockingham,  Arlinsj- 
ton,  Rutland,  Tinmouth  and  Norwich ; 
and  the  Council  completed  the  Committee 
by  adding  leading  men  of  the  time,  all 
noted  in  Vermont  history,  to  wit :  Ira 
Allen,  John  Fassett,  (Jr.,)  Jonas  Fay  and 
Paul  Spooner.J 

The  grant  of  the  township  of  Montpel- 
ier— a  name  given  by  Col.  Jacob  Davis — 
was,  in  this  emergency,  the  first  one  rec- 
ommended by  the  Committee  and  the  first 
one  authorized  by  the  General  Assembly. 

In  General  Assembly,  I 

Saturday  Oct.  21st,  1780.  \ 

The  committee  appointed  to  take  into 
consideration  the  ungranted  lands  in  this 
State,  and  the  several  Pitches  on  file  in  the 
Secretary's  office,  &c.,  brought  in  the  fol- 
lowing report,  viz  : 

"That,  in  our  opinion,  the  following 
tract  of  land,  viz  :  lying  east  of  and  adjoin- 
ing Middlesex,  on  Onion  river,  and  partly 
north  of  Berlin,  containing  23040  acres,  be 
granted  by  the  Assembly  unto  Col.  Timo- 
thy Bigelow  and  Company,  by  the  name 
of  Montpelier." 

Signed,    Paul  Spooner,  Chairman. 

The  aforesaid  report  was  read  and  ac- 
cepted, and 

Resolved,  That  there  be  and  hereby  is 
granted  unto  Col.  Timothy  Bigelow  and 
company,  being  sixty  in  number,  a  town- 
ship of  land,  by  the  name  of  Montpelier, 


*  Ms.  Assembly  Journal,  1778-1784,  p.  128. 

t  Same  Axsoiihly  Journal,  p.  130. 

t  J/i.  Journals  of  (Juinuil,  1778  lo  1780,  ;j.  al3. 


254 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


situate  and  lyin^  in  this  State,  bounded  as 
follows,  viz :  lying  east  of  and  adjoining 
Middlesex,  on  Onion  river,  and  partly 
north  of  Berlin,  containing  23040  acres : 
And  the  Governor  and  Council  are  hereby 
requested  to  issue  a  Grant  or  Charter  of 
incorporation  of  said  township  of  Montpe- 
lier,  under  such  restrictions,  reservations, 
and  for  such  considerations,  as  they  shall 
judge  best  for  the  benefit  of  the  State.  * 
In  Council,  ? 

Saturday,  21st  Oct.,  "1780.  ^ 

The  Governor  and  Council,  to  whom  was 
referred  the  stating  the  fees  for  the  grant 
of  land  made  this  day,  by  the  General  As- 
sembly of  this  State,  having  had  the  same 
under  their  consideration,  have  stated  the 
fees  aforesaid  at  four  hundred  and  eighty 
pounds  for  the  sd.  land,  being  one  town- 
ship by  the  name  of  Montpelier,  in  hard 
money,  or  an  equivalent  in  Continental 
Currency,  to  be  paid  by  Col.  Timothy  Big- 
elow  or  his  attorney,  on  the  execution  of 
the  Charter  of  Incorporation,  on  or  before 
the  2oth  day  of  January  next. 

Attest,        Joseph  Fay,  Secy. 
i;48o.  t 

Although  the  sole  condition  of  the  grant 
was  the  payment  of  ^480,  in  specie  or  an 
equivalent  in  Continental  Currency,  by  the 
20th  of  January  1781,  the  first  charter  was 
not  granted  until  the  14th  of  August  of 
that  year,  when  a  very  imperfect  charter 
was  drawn — probably  by  Thomas  Tolman, 
one  of  the  grantees  and  Deputy  Secretary 
of  the  Governor  and  Council — and  execu- 
ted by  Governor  Chittenden.  In  this  char- 
ter no  boundaries  were  given  to  the  town ; 
the  customary  five  rights  reserved  for  edu- 
tional  and  religious  purposes  were  not  in- 
serted, but  were  referred  to  as  in  the  char- 
ter of  the  town  of  Ripton  ;  and  two  onerous 
conditions  were  imposed,  to  wit :  first,  that 
within  3  years  after  the  circumstances  of 
the  then  existing  war  would  permit,  5  acres 
of  land  should  be  planted  or  cultivated,  a 
house  at  least  18  feet  square  on  the  floor 
be  erected,  and  one  family  settled,  on  each 
respective  Right,  on  penalty  of  forfeiture 
of  the  land  ;  and,  second,  reserving  all  Pine 
Timber  suitable  for  a  Navy  to  the  use  and 
benefit  of  the  Freemen  of  the  State.  As 
this  is  not  tJic  charter  of  the  town,  another 
having  been  substituted  for  it,  and  granted 
to  the  original  and  a  few  other  grantees. 


*  Ms.  Assembly  Journal  1778-1784  ;).  138. 
t  Ms.  Journals  of  Council,  1778  to  1780,  p.  315. 


in  1804,  it  is  omitted  in  this  paper,  and 
the  reader  is  referred  for  a  copy  to  Hon. 
Daniel  P.  Thompson's  Histoiy  of  Montpe- 
lier, published  in  i860,  pp.  21  and  22. 

Notwithstanding  the  imperfection  of  the 
charter  of  1781,  the  proprietors  proceeded 
to  allot  and  organize  the  town  under  it,  be- 
ginning with  a  warning  dated  June  1 1 , 
1784,  which  was  less  than  three  years  from 
the  date  of  the  original  charter,  and  four- 
teen months  after  the  close  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  by  Gen.  Washington's  proc- 
lamation of  Apr.  19,  1783.  Before  noticing 
the  proprietors  and  the  record  of  their 
meetings,  it  is  best  to  give  a  list  of  the 
proprietors,  which  is  embraced  in»the  per- 
fected and  now  actual  charter  of  the  town, 
that  was  authorized  by  a  special  act  of  the 
General  Assembly,  passed  Feb.  i,  1804, 
and  executed  on  the  6th  of  the  same 
month. 

The  Charter  of  Montpelier. 
The  Govei'Hor  of  the  State  of  Ver- 
[l.s.]     inont,  to  all  People  to  who  in  these 
Presents  shall  come.      Greeting  : 

Whereas,  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of 
Vermont,  at  their  adjourned  session,  hold- 
en  at  Windsor,  on  the  first  day  of  Febru- 
ary A.  D.  1804,  was  pleased  to  pass  an  act 
entitled  '  an  act  authorizing  the  Gov- 
erernor  of  this  State  to  issue  a  new  charter 
of  Montpelier,' — 

A/'cnu,  therefore.  Know  Ve,  that  I,  Isaac 
Tichenor,  Goverjior  within  and  over  said 
State,  and  in  the  name,  and  by  the  author- 
ity of  the  same,  and  in  pursuance  of,  and 
by  virtue  of  the  act  aforesaid,  Do,  by  these 
presents,  give  and  grant  the  tract  of  land 
hereafter  described  and  bounded,  unto  Tim- 
othy Bigclow,  and  to  the  several  persons 
hereafter  named,  his  associates,  in  equal 
shares,  viz  : 

Ebenezer  Waters,  Ebenezer  Upham, 
Elisha  Wales,  Elisha  Smith  Wales,  Joel 
Frizzle,  Bethuel  Washburn,  John  Wash- 
burn, Elijah  Rood,  Thomas  Chittenden, 
George  Foot,  Elisha  Smith,  Jedediah 
Strong,  James  Prescott,  Jacob  Brown,  Gid- 
eon Ormsbee,  James  Mead,  John  W.  Dana, 
Timothy  Brownson,  Gideon  Horton,  Mat- 
thew Lyon,  Samuel  Horsford,  Ithamer 
Horsford,  William  Smith,  Jacob  Spear, 
Jonas  Galusha,  MaryGalusha,  Noah  Smith, 
Moses  Robinson.  Moses  Robinson,  Jun., 
John  Fassett,  Jun.,  Jonas  Fay,  Abiathar 
Waldo,  Thomas  Tolman,  Timothy  Stan- 
ley, Joseph  Dagget,  Ira  Allen,  Lyman 
Hitchcock,  James  Gamble,  Alanson  Doug- 


MONTPELIER. 


255 


lass,  Adam  Martin,  the  heirs  of  Isaac  Nash, 
Jonathan  Brace,  Howell  Woodbriclge, 
Ja:mes  Brace,  Henry  Walbridge,  Jun.,  Jo- 
seph Fay,  William  Goodrich,  Sybil  Good- 
rich, Thomas  Matterson,  Amos  Waters, 
David  Galusha,  Jacob  Davis,  Ephraim 
Starkweather,  Shubael  Peck,  Jacob  Davis, 
Jan.,  Thomas  Davis,  John  Ramsdell,  Issa- 
cher  Reed,  Isaac  G.  Lansingh,  PLbenezer 
Davis,  Asa  Davis,  Levi  Davis,  Ebenezer 
Stone,  and  Samuel  Allen, — 

Which,  together  with  the  five  following 
Rights,  reserved  to  the  several  public  uses, 
in  manner  following,  include  the  whole  of 
said  tract  or  township,  to  wit:  One  Right 
for  the  use  of  a  Seminary  or  College,  one 
Right  for  the  use  of  County  Grammar 
Schools  in  said  State,  lands  to  the  amount 
of  one  Right  to  be  and  remain  for  the  set- 
tlement'of  a  Minister  or  Ministers  of  the 
Gospel  in  said  Township  forever,  lands  to 
the  amount  of  one  Right  for  the  support  of 
the  social  worship  of  God  in  said  Town- 
ship, and  lands  to  the  amount  of  one  Right 
for  the  support  of  an  English  School  or 
Schools  in  said  Township, — which  said  two 
Rights  for  the  use  of  a  Seminary  or  Col- 
lege, and  for  the  use  of  County  Grammar 
Schools,  as  aforesaid,  and  the  Improve- 
ments, Rents,  Interests  and  Profits  arising 
therefrom,  shall  be  under  the  control,  or- 
der, direction  and  disposal  of  the  General 
Assembly  of  said  State  forever. 

And  the  proprietors  of  said  Township 
are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
locate  said  two  Rights  justly  and  equitably, 
or  quantity  for  quantity,  in  such  parts  of 
said  Township  as  they,  or  their  committee, 
shall  judge  will  least  incommode  the  gen- 
eral settlement  of  said  Tract  or  Township. 

And  the  said  proprietors  are  further  em- 
powered to  locate  the  lands  aforesaid, 
amounting  to  three  Rights,  assigned  for 
the  settlement  of  a  Minister  or  Ministers, 
for  their  support,  and  for  the  use  and  sup- 
port of  English  Schools,  in  such,  and  in  so 
many  places,  as  they,  or  their  committee, 
shall  judge  will  best  accommodate  the  in- 
habitants of  said  Township  when  the  same 
shall  be  fully  settled  and  improved,  laying 
the  same  equitably,  or  quantity  for  Cjuan- 
tity, — which  said  lands,  amounting  to  the 
three  Rights  last  mentioned,  when  located 
as  aforesaid,  shall,  together  with  the  Im- 
provements, Rights,  Rents,  Profits,  Dues 
and  Interests,  remain  inalienably  appropri- 
ated to  the  uses  and  purposes  for  which 
they  are  respectively  assigned,  and  be  un- 
der the  charge,  direction  and  disposal-  of 
the  inhabitants  of  said  Township  forever. 

Which  tract  of  land,  hereby  given  and 
granted  as  aforesaid,  is  bounded  and  des- 
cribed as  follows,  to  wit : 

Beginning  at  a  Basswood  Tree  on  the 


North  Bank  of  Onion  River  marked  Mid- 
dlesex Corner,  July,  13,  1785  ;  thence 
North  36°  East,  six  miles  to  a  Beech  Tree 
marked  Montpelier  Corner,  June  14, 
1786;  thence  South  54°  East,  six  miles 
and  a  half,  to  a  Maple  Straddle  marked 
Montpelier  Corxei^  June  17,  1786  ; 
thence  South  36°  West,  five  miles  and  five 
chains,  to  a  Basswood  Tree  in  Barre  North 
line,  marked  June  19,  1786;  thence  North 
67°  West,  one  mile  and  sixty  seven  chains, 
to  Onion  River :  thence  down  said  river  as 
it  tends  to  the  first  bound. 

And  that  the  same  be,  and  hereby  is  in- 
corporated into  a  Township  by  the  name 
of  Montpelier. 

And  the  inhabitants  that  do,  or  shall 
hereafter,  inhabit  said  Township,  are  de- 
clared to  be  enfranchised,  and  entitled  to 
all  the  privileges  aud  immunities  that  the 
inhabitants  of  other  towns  within  this  State 
do,  and  ought,  by  the  laws  and  Constitu- 
tion thereof,  to  exercise  and  enjoy. 

To  have  and  to  hold  the  said  granted 
premises,  as  above  expressed,  with  all  the 
privileges  and  appurtenances  thereunto  be- 
longing, unto  them  and  their  respective 
heirs  and  assigns  forever. 

In  testimony  whereof  /  Jiave  caused  these 
letters  to  be  made  patent,  and  the  seal  of 
our  State  to  be  hereunto  affixed. 

Given  under  my  hand  at  Windsor,  this 
6th  day  of  February,  A.  D.  1804,  and  of 
the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the 
twenty-eighth.  Isaac  Tichenor. 

By  His  Excellency's  command, 
David  Wing,  Jr.,  Secretary  of  State. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  boundaries 
are  stated  ;  that  all  conditions  are  omitted, 
the  town  then  being  fully  organized  and 
well  settled,  having  a  population  of  about 
1000;  and  that  the  list  of  grantees  and 
proprietors  numbers  65  persons  instead  of 
the  original  60.  The  additional  names  are 
the  five  first  following  that  of  Timothy  Big- 
elow.  It  appears  from  the  record  of  a  pro- 
prietors' meeting,  held  in  January  1787,  that 
Joel  Frizzle  (one  of  the  additional  five) 
owned  the  original  right  of  James  Gamble, 
and  his  pitch  was  confirmed  to  him.  Prob- 
ably the  other  four  became  proprietors  in 
the  same  way — by  purchasing  original 
rights.  The  explanation  of  retaining  in 
the  new  charter  the  names  of  original  gran- 
tees who  had  sold  their  rights  to  the  five 
new  grantees  in  that  case  is,  that  it  was 
done  out  of  abundant  caution,  to  make  the 
title  of  the  purchasers  unquestionable.  The 
original  charter  is  not  now  to  be  found, 


256 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  probably  it  was  destroyed  on  the  issu- 
ing of  the  new  charter,  in  which  case  it  was 
fit  that  the  five  persons  then  holding  orig- 
inal rights  by  purchase  should  have  their 
names  recorded  in  what  was  thereafter  to  be 
the  charter  of  the  town.  The  town  record 
indicates  that  the  copy  of  the  original  char- 
ter has  been  cut  out,  and  the  new  charter 
substituted  for  it. 

THE   ORIGINAL   PROPIETORS   OF 
MONTPELIER. 

The  list  of  grantees  is  remarkable  for  the 
number  of  the  influential  men  of  the  State 
embraced  in  it,  to  wit :  Thomas  Chitten- 
den, Governor;  Moses  Robinson,  Judge  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  Governor,  and  U.  S. 
Senator ;  Jonas  Galusha,  Judge  of  Supreme 
Court,  and  Governor^  Ira  Allen,  State 
Treasurer,  Surveyor-General,  Agent  to 
Congress,  and  the  man  of  all  sorts  of  work 
in  surveying,  road-making,  financiering, 
and  State  politics  at  home,  and  in  sharp 
statesmanship  and  diplomacy  abroad ;  Jo- 
nas and  Joseph  Fay,  Secretaries,  and 
Thomas  Tolman,  Deputy  Secretary,  and 
all  authors  of  State  papers,  the  first-named 
Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  the  first 
two,  agents  to  Congress,  and  employed  in 
the  Haldimand  correspondence  ;  Matthew 
Lyon,  Clerk  of  the  General  Assembly, 
Member  of  Congress,  and  an  energetic 
and  heroic  man  in  politics  and  business  en- 
terprises ;  and  JohnFassett,  Jr.,  and'Noah 
Smith,  the  first  a  Councillor,  and  both 
Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court.  With  such 
proprietors,  residing  in  Western  Vermont, 
and  most  of  them  remote  from  Montpelier, 
it  is  not  surprising  that  a  deep  interest  was 
felt  in  the  town,  and  a  powerful  influence 
exerted  for  its  early  prosperity  in  quarters 
where  naturally  it  would  receive  little  sym- 
pathy or  favor. 

THE   "founder"   of   THE   TOWN. 

■  The  first  grantee  of  Montpelier,  wlio  in 
the  Pedigree  of  the  Lawrence  family  of 
Massachusetts  is  styled  ' '  Founder  of  the 
toum  of  /Montpelier,  Vermont,''^  was  Col. 
Timothy  Bigelow,  of  Worcester,  Mass., 
born  August  12,  1739.  He  was  a  distin- 
guished officer  in  the  American  War  for 
Independence ;  a  Major  under  Gen.   Ar- 


nold in  the  expedition  against  Quebec,  in 
1775-6;*  Commander  of  the  15th  Conti- 
nental Regiment  at  the  capture  of  Bur- 
goyne  and  other  battles  ;  and  a  Member  of 
the  Provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts 
in  1 774  and  1775.  Washington  said,  when 
reviewing  Col.  B.\s  soldiers, — "This  is 
discipline  indeed."  His  son  Timothy  was 
one  of  the  most  distinguished  lawyers 
of  Massachusetts,  for  thirty  years  a  mem- 
ber of  one  or  the  other  branch  of  the  Leg- 
islature, and  Speaker  of  the  House  for 
eleven  years  ;  and  his  grand-daughter 
Katharine,  daughter  of  the  second  Timo- 
thy Bigelow,  married  the  late  Abbott  Law- 
rence, LL.  D.,  Representative  in  Congress, 
and  Minister  Plenipotentiary  at  the  Court 
of  St.  James. t  The  "  founder  "  of  Mont- 
pelier died  May  31,  1790,  ten  months  be- 
fore the  town  was  organized,  and  doubtless 
his  rights  to  lands  in  the  town  all  passed 
to  other  persons  previous  to  the  organiza- 
tion, the  deeds  of  which  will  probably  be 
found  in  the  records  in  the  Orange  County 
Clerk's  office.  The  author  of  the  pedigree 
of  the  Lawrence  family  of  course  had  the 
tradition  that  Timothy  liigelow  was  the 
founder  of  the  town,  and  perhaps  full  and 
authentic  testimony  to  the  fact. 

The  writer  of  this  paper  can  only  con- 
jecture the  ground  on  which  the  chief 
honor,  as  founder,  should  be  conceded  to 
Col.  Bigelow ;  but  the  conjecture  is  so 
reasonably  founded  as  to  leave  no  doubt  of 
its  accuracy.'  The  original  petition  of 
Timothy  Bigelow  and  others  for  the  grant 
bore  the  names  of  at  least  three  of  the 
Davises  who  were,  with  Joel  Frizzle,  the 
first  settlers  in  the  town ;  and  the  Davises 
were  all  from  Worcester  County,  Mass., 
of  which  Timothy  Bigelow  was  a  resident. 


*Arnol(i's  field  officers  were  Lieut.  Col.  Christopher 
Greene,  (the  hero  of  Red  Bank,  on  the  Delaware,) 
Lieut.  Col.  Roger  Enos,  [alterwards  General  Com- 
manding in  Vermont,  under  the  authority  of  the 
State,]  and  Majors  [Return  J.J  .Meigs,  [of  Connecti- 
cut, afterwards  of  Ohio,  and  (atlier  of  the  Governor  of 
Ohio,  and  U.  S.  Postmaster  General  of  that  name,] 
and  [Timothy]  Bioelow.— Z.ossms''«  Pieloriat  I<\eld 
Hook  of  the  Revolution,  Vol.  I,  p.  190.  Lossing  records 
that  on  the  expedition,  Maj.  Bigelow  ascended  a  high 
mountain,  then  covered  with  snow,  hoping  to  gain  a 
sight  of  Queljec;  for  whicli  feat  the  name  "Mount 
Bigelow  "  was  given  to  it,  and  is  still  retained. 

t  Neio  England  Genealogical  Register,  Vol.  10,  1856, 
facing  page  297.  Blake's  Biographical  Dictionary 
states  that  the  second  Timothy  Bigelow  above  named 
during  a  practice  of  32  years,  "argued  not  less  than 
15,000  cases."  A  later  biographer  reduced  the  num- 
ber to  10,000.    His  death  at  64  is  not  surprising. 


MONTPELIER. 


257 


At  the  session  in  Oct.  1779,  tlie  legisla- 
ture of  Vermont  established  a  form  of  town 
charters,  and  appointed  Ira  Allen  to  visit 
sundry  states  to  further  the  interests  of  the 
State.*  The  Vermont  Ms.  State  Papers 
contain  many  petitions  for  lands  granted 
in  1779,  made  on  a  uniform  printed  form, 
which  was  most  probably  furnished  by 
Allen  (then  Surveyor-General;)  and  many 
petitions  in  1779  and  1780,  of  land  com- 
panies formed  in  Massachusetts,  Connecti- 
cut and  New  Hampshire,  and  in  some 
cases  of  officers  and  men  in  the  continental 
army.  These,  it  is  most  reasonable  to 
presume,  were  among  the  fruits  of  Allen's 
mission,  which  clearly  was  to  make  an  in- 
terest for  Vermont  in  as  many  states  as 
possible,  and  also  in  the  army. 

The  conjecture  then  is,  that  Col.  Big- 
elow  was  the  head  of  one  of  these  land 
companies,  as  Gen.  William  Prescott,  of 
Massachusetts,  certainly  was  of  another. 
Gen.  Prescott  was  with  Col.  Bigelow  at 
the  capture  of  Burgoyne,  and  their  resi- 
dences in  Massachusetts  were  in  the  same 
region — the  one  at  Groton  and  the  other 
at  Worcester.  At  the  head  of  such  a 
company,  Col.  Bigelow  would  have  been 
the  most  active  and  influential  man  in 
forming  it,  and  by  his  influence,  and  pos- 
sibly by  his  aid,  the  Davises  were  en- 
listed, who  were  the  foremost  men  at  work 
upon  the  ground ;  and  their  associates, 
most  of  them  from  Worcester  and  Ply- 
mouth Counties,  Mass.,  were  by  the  same 
influence  led  to  become  settlers.  Certain 
it  is  that  many  of  the  early  settlers  were 
from  that  part  of  Massachusetts.  To  this 
day  a  Montpelier  man  cannot  visit  Wor- 
cester, Rochester,  New  Bedford,  Yar- 
mouth, and  Edgartown,  without  finding 
in  each  town  names  that  were  familiar  in 
Montpelier  sixty  years  ago — such  as  Davis, 
Clark,  Stevens,  Burgess,  Hatch,  Bennett, 
Hammett,  and  Nye.  The  writer  is  confi- 
dent that  the  original  petition  for  the  grant, 
could  it  be  found,  would  prove  that  the 
company  was  chiefly  composed  of  Massa- 
chusetts men,  such  as  Col.  Bigelow  would 
most  fitly  head,  and  so  make  him  justly 

*  n.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  I,  p.  405. 


entitled  to  the  credit  his  descendants  have 
claimed  for  him. 

proprietors''  meetings. 

On  application  of  more  than  one  six- 
teenth of  the  proprietors,  a  warning  was 
issued  June  1 1 ,  1 784,  for  the  first  proprie- 
tors' meeting,  "at  the  house  of  Eliakim 
Stoddard,  Esq.,  inn-holder,  in  Arlington, 
[Bennington  county,]  on  Tuesday  the 
17th  day  of  August  [then]  next,  at  9  of 
the  clock  in  the  forenoon,"  for  the  pur- 
pose of  choosing  moderator,  proprietors' 
clerk,  and  treasurer,  and  to  see  what  the 
proprietors  would  do  respecting  a  division 
of  the  township.  A  meeting  was  holden 
accordingly,  composed  of  Gov.  Thomas 
Chittenden,  Hon.  Timothy  Brownson, 
Maj.  Gideon  Ormsby,  Jonas  Galusha,  and 
Thomas  Tolman,  esquires,  and  Mesrrs 
Joseph  Daggett  and  John  Ramsdell — who 
acted  for  themselves,  and  for  others  by 
power  of  attorney.  Of  these  seven  per- 
sons a  majority  were  men  of  the  highest 
worth  and  influence  in  the  State  :  Gov- 
ernors Chittenden  and  Galusha ;  Timothy 
Brownson,  President  of  the  Board  of  War, 
and  Councillor  from  1778  to  1795,  and 
"one  of  the  most  trusted  and  confidential 
advisers  of  Gov.  Chittenden  during  the 
whole  period  of  his  perilous  and  successful 
administration;"*  Maj.  Gideon  Ormsbee, 
who  was  then  and  for  many  years  a  repre- 
sentative of  Manchester  in  the  General 
Assembly,  and  Thomas  Tolman,  Deputy 
Secretary  to  the  Governor  and  Council. 
The  officers  elected  by  the  meeting  were : 
Gideon  Ormsbee,  moderator;  Thos.  Tol- 
man, clerk ;  and  Jonas  Galusha,  treasurer. 
It  was  voted  to  lay  out  a  first  division  of 
lands  in  the  town,  in  lots  of  150 acres  each, 
and  a  committee  of  six  was  appointed  for 
the  purpose,  to  wit :  Thomas  Tolman, 
Samuel  Horsford,  Gideon  Ormsbee,  Jonas 
Galusha,  Joseph  Daggett,  and  Samuel 
Beach— all  but  Mr.  Beach  being  propri- 
etors, and  he  was  the  surveyor. 

The  meeting  adjourned  to  the  first 
Monday  in  April,  1785,  but  there  was  no 
meeting  at  that  time,  and,  under  a  new 
warning,  the  next  meeting  was  at  Arling- 


Qilaiid  Hall's  Early  Historij  of  Vermont,  p.  458. 


33 


258 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ton,  Jan.  11,  1786,  of  which  Col.  Timothy 
Brownson  was  moderator.  The  appoint- 
ment of  Mr.  Tolman  as  cleric  and  the  order 
for  the  first  division  were  ratified,  provid- 
ing that  5  acres  should  be  added  to  each 
lot  or  right,  as  an  allowance  for  highways, 
and  that  the  division  should  be  laid  out  in 
good  form  and  as  near  to  the  centre  of  the 
town  as  might  be.  Col.  Jacob  Davis  of- 
fered to  complete  the  survey  for  £1  3s. 
lod.  per  right,  and  this  was  accepted.  A 
new  committee  for  laying  out  the  division 
was  then  appointed,  consisting  of  Col. 
Jacob  Davis,  Ebenezer  Waters,  (or,  on  his 
failure,  Caleb  Ammadon,)  Samuel  Hors- 
ford,  Col.  Samuel  Robinson,  and  Capt. 
Abiather  Waldo. 

By  adjournment,  the  next  meeting  was 
held  at  the  house  of  the  clerk,  Thomas 
Tolman,  in  Arlington,  Jan.  9,  1787.  In 
the  absence  of  Col.  Brownson,  Col.  Jacob 
Davis  was  appointed  moderator.  The 
members  of  the  committee  to  lay  out  the 
first  division,  who  were  present,  were 
sworn  before  Gov.  Chittenden  to  a  faith- 
ful discharge  of  their  trust,  and  then  sub- 
mitted a  return,  plan  and  survey-bill  of 
the  division,  which  was  accepted  and  or- 
dered to  be  recorded.  A  "draft,"  or 
drawing  by  lot,  was  then  made,  in  the 
presence  of  the  meeting,  as  the  law  re- 
quired, and  a  lot  or  right  in  the  first  di- 
vision was  in  that  way  assigned  to  each 
proprietor.  Accounts  were  allowed,  £^7 
9s.  to  Col.  Jacob  Davis  for  laying  out  the 
division — ^5  to  Thomas  Tolman  for  clerk's 
fees — and  15s.  to  the  collector  for  expense 
of  advertising  the  first  tax.  A  tax  on  each 
proprietor's  right,  of  ^^i  5s.  was  then  laid, 
out  of  the  proceeds  of  which  treasurer 
Galusha  was  directed  to  pay  the  above  ac- 
counts. Joseph  Daggett  was  appointed 
collector,  and  was  directed  to  collect  the 
tax  in  time  for  a  vendue  sale  of  lands,  in 
default  of  payment  on  any  right,  on  the  2d 
Tuesday  of  the  succeeding  June.  It  was 
represented  to  this  meeting  that  Joel  Friz- 
zel  had  become  an  actual  settler,  and  had 
made  his  "  pitch  "  as  owner  of  the  right  of 
James  Gamble ;  whereupon  it  was  voted 
that  his  pitch  be  granted  and  confirmed  to 
him  on  the  right  of  Gamble,  and  a  lot  of 


103  acres,  (the  three  as  an  allowance  for 
highways,)  was  thus  allowed  to  him,  and 
located  on  the  Winooski,  at  the  S.  W. 
corner  of  the  town,  adjoining  Middlesex, 
subsequently  known  for  many  years  as  the 
John  Walton  farm,  and  now  owned  by 
Col.  Elisha  P.  Jewett,  and  known  as  the 
Jewett  farm.  It  was  also  voted  to  lay  out 
a  second  division  of  lands  but  excluding 
pine  lands,  to  contain  66  lots,  excluding 
the  rights  of  James  Gamble,  (provided  for 
in  FrizzePs  pitch,)  Jacob  Davis,  Jacob 
Davis,  Jr.,  and  Thomas  Davis,  who,  in 
lieu  of  rights  to  be  drawn,  were  allowed  to 
select  two  lots  of  186  acres  each,  within 
the  second  division,  convenient  for  a  saw- 
mill and  a  grist-mill.  It  was  then  voted 
to  make  a  third  division,  called  the  '-Pine 
Pitch  Division,"  lying  between  Frizzel's 
pitch  and  the  second  division,  being  the 
land  reserved  in  the  second  division,  and 
this  was  to  be  divided  into  70  equal  lots. 
This  division  was  small,  17  acres  and  i, 
or  \  of  an  acre  to  the  proprietor  of  each 
right.  It  was  on  the  hill  west  of  Green 
Mount  Cemetery,  and  Thompson  stated, 
on  the  authority  of  the  late  Simeon  Dewey, 
Esq.,  who  sawed  the  greatest  part  of  the 
pine  on  this  division,  that  the  trees  were  of 
the  most  splendid  northern  sort,  not  ex- 
celled elsewhere  in  Vermont,  or  in  New 
Hampshire,  or  even  Maine.  The  condi- 
tion of  the  first  charter,  then  existing,  as 
to  pine  suitable  for  a  navy,  received  an 
interpretation  most  liberal  to  the  propri- 
etors of  the  town,  many  of  whom  sold 
their  right  to  Col.  Davis,  and  most  of  the 
lumber  unquestionably  went  into  vessels 
that  were  securely  anchored  on  dry  land. 
The  State  was  not  a  loser  by  this  appro- 
priation, however,  since  the  pines  from 
that  hill  sheltered  many  a  man  who  had 
served  his  State  and  country  on  sea  and 
land  in  the  revolutionary  struggle,  and  who 
gave  sons  and  grandsons  to  serve  them  in 
the  war  of  181 2  and  in  the  last  and  great- 
est struggle  of  all.  Col.  Davis  was  em- 
ployed to  survey  these  two  divisions  on 
the  same  terms  as  for  the  first  division ; 
and  Ebenezer  Waters,  surveyor.  Col.  Ja- 
cob Davis,  Parley  Davis,  Nathan  Waldo 
and  Joel   Frizzel   were  appointed  a  com- 


MONTPELIER. 


259 


mittee  to  lay  them  out.  After  other  formal 
business,  the  meeting  adjourned  to  the 
second  Tuesday  of  the  next  June,  at  the 
house  of  Capt.  Elisha  Wales,  in  Arlington. 

June  II,  1787,  the  proprietors  met  per- 
suant  to  adjournment.  Col.  Timothy 
Brownson  in  the  chair.  Ebenezer  Wa- 
ters, Col.  Jacob  Davis,  and  Nathan  Wal- 
do, of  the  committee  to  lay  out  the  second 
and  third  divisions  were  sworn,  and  then 
submitted  their  rejaort,  which  was  accep- 
ted by  a  unanimous  vote.  A  drawing  was 
then  made,  "the  same  being  done  deliber- 
ately, correctly,  and  in  open  meeting,"  by 
surveyor  Waters,  so  as  to  allot  the  land  in 
the  second  and  third  divisions  equally  to 
each  proprietor.  On  the  12th,  the  ac- 
counts for  surveys,  &c.,  were  allowed  and 
a  tax  voted ;  Col .  Jacob  Davis  and  Parley 
Davis  were  appointed  a  committee  to  lay 
out  and  make  the  necessary  highways ; 
and  the  meeting  adjourned  to  the  second 
Tuesday  in  January,  1788.  On  the  same 
day,  June  12,  1787,  a  vendue  sale  of  pro- 
prietors' lots  took  place  for  non-payment 
of  taxes,  and  the  sales  were  recorded,  and 
rules  for  redemption  adopted.  About  half 
of  the  original  proprietors'  rights  to  the 
first  division  were  sold,  and  mainly  to  Col. 
Jacob  Davis,  and  the  proprietors'  clerk, 
Thomas  Tolman. 

The  meeting  at  Arlington  in  January, 
1788,  extended  the  time  for  completing 
roads  until  the  succeeding  June ;  assessed 
a  tax  of  3s.  per  right  for  making  roads ; 
allowed  the  accounts  of  its  officers,  and  ad- 
journed to  the  first  Wednesday  of  June 
following,  at  the  house  of  Jonas  Galusha, 
in  Shaftsbury. 

June  4,  1788,  the  proprietors  met  ac- 
cording to  adjournment ;  accepted  the  re- 
port of  the  committee  appointed  to  make 
roads  ;  allowed  their  accounts,  andassessed 
an  additional  tax  of  19s.  per  right  for  the 
construction  of  roads. 

The  next  proprietors'  meeting  was  held, 
on  due  warning,  at  Montpelier,  Aug.  28, 
1792,  of  which  Clark  Stevens  was  mod- 
erator, and  David  Wing,  Jr.,  clerk — both 
of  Montpelier.  The  meeting  ordered  the 
fourth  and  last  division  of  lands  to  be 
made  under  the  direction  of  Col.   Jacob 


Davis,  and  adjourned  to  the  second  Tues- 
day of  May,  1793,  at  the  house  of  Col. 
Jacob  Davis,  in  Montpelier. 

May  14,  I793i  the  proprietors  met  as 
per  adjournment,  when  the  fourth  division 
was  accepted  and  allotted  in  70  equal 
parts.  After  allowing  the  accounts  for  the 
same,  the  meeting  adjourned,  to  meet  at 
the  (public)  house  of  David  Wing,  Jr.,  in 
Montpelier,  on  the  14th  of  May,  179$- 

The  adjourned  meeting  assembled  at 
the  time  named  ;  "  and  there  appearing  no 
business  before  the  meeting.  Voted,  that 
this  meeting  be  dissolved."  This  was  the 
last  meeting  of  the  proprietors,  the  land 
all  having  been  allotted,  and  the  town 
passed  by  formal  organization  under  a 
legal  town  government. 

FIRST   SETTLERS. 

According  to  his  agreement  with  the 
proprietors,  made  in  January,  1786,  Col. 
Jacob  Davis  with  a  surveying  party  en- 
tered the  town  that  year,  and  surveyed  and 
laid  out  the  first  division  of  lands,  his  re- 
port having  been  made  in  January,  1787; 
but  this  service  did  not  technically  amount 
to  "  a  settlement,"  although  Col.  Davis 
then  undoubtedly  determined  to  settle  in 
the  town.  Iri  the  spring  of  the  same  year, 
1786,  previous  to  the  survey  of  the  first  di- 
vision, Joel  Frizzel  entered  upon  the  south- 
west corner  lot  of  the  town,  on  the  farm 
formerly  of  John  Walton,  and  now  of  Col. 
E.  P.  Jewett,  cleared  a  small  part  of  it, 
planted  corn,  erected  a  small  log-house, 
and  resided  in  it  with  his  wife,  a  French 
woman.  "  This,"  said  Zadock  Thompson, 
"  was  the  first  family  in  town."*  In  the 
later  edition,  he  qualified  this,  by  calling  it 
"  the  first  attempt  to  settle,"  adding  that 
"  the  first  permanent  clearing  and  settle- 
ment was  not  made  till  the  spring  after" — 
that  is,  the  spring  of  1787.  Daniel  P. 
Thompson  concurred  with  this  last  state- 
ment, giving  the  Davises  the  honor  of  first 
"permanent  settlement,"  and  character- 
izing Frizzel  as  an  occasional  sojourner, 
in  his  calling  as  trapper  and  hunter,  in  this 
part  of  the  wilderness,  who  "squatted  on 
the  banks  of  the  river,  in  the  south-west 


'  Vermont  Gazetteer,  1824. 


26o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


corner  of  the  township."  The  Davises 
need  no  honor  at  the  expense  of  Frizzel. 
They  certainly  were  the  leading  men  in 
point  of  everything  but  the  mere  date  of 
settlement.  Frizzel  was  officially  recog- 
nized as  a  settler ;  his  pitch  was  confirmed 
to  him  ;  the  charter  recognized  him  as  an 
original  proprietor  in  the  right  of  James 
Gamble  ;  and  in  Jan.  1787,  the  proprietors 
appointed  him  as  one  of  the  committee  to 
lay  out  the  second  and  third  divisions. 
D.  P.  Thompson  conceded  that  he  may 
have  remained  "a  year  or  two  longer" 
after  the  laying  out  of  these  divisions, 
which  would  give  him  a  residence  in  the 
town  of  about  5  years.  The  writer  does 
not  hesitate  to  say,  on  these  grounds,  that 
Joel  Frizzel  was  the  first  actual  settler, 
dating  from  the  spring  of  1786.  In  a  year, 
however,  he  was  followed  by  much  more 
enterprising,  energetic  and  valuable  men, 
though  without  their  families  until  1788. 

May  3,  1787,  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  with 
his  cousin  Parley  Davis,  and  a  hired  man, 
left  his  family  in  Brookfield,  taking  one 
horse  and  as  large  a  quantity  of  provisions 
as  could  be  carried,  and  on  that  day 
reached  the  house  of  Seth  Putnam,  in 
Middlesex,  whose  farm  joined  the  lot  in 
Montpelier  which  Frizzel  then  occupied. 
On  the  4th,  Col.  Davis  and  party  cut  a 
bridle-road  from  Putnam's  along  the  bank 
of  the  Winooski  to  a  hunter's  camp  in 
Montpelier,  on  the  ground  now  occupied 
by  Washington  County  jail,  nearly  in  the 
centre  of  Montpelier  village.  The  hunt- 
er's hut  was  a  very  good  one,  well  roofed, 
and  walled  on  three  sides,  and  was  used 
until,  in  8  or  10  days,  a  substantial  log- 
house,  32  by  16  feet,  was  constructed  and 
occupied.  At  this  time  two  sons  of  Col. 
Davis  had  reached  the  camp,  Jacob,  junior, 
aged  19,  and  Thomas,  aged  15  years.  The 
party  immediately  made  an  onslaught  on 
the  magnificent  maple  forest  then  stand- 
ing, and  cleared  the  land  now  bounded  by 
Court  street  on  the  North,  North  Branch 
on  the  East,  the  Winooski  on  the  South, 
and  the  State  House  and  depot  grounds  on 
the  West.  This  was  the  first  occupancy 
of  Montpelier  village  with  an  intention  to 
settle  permanently.     This  land  was  cleared 


in  time  to  plant  it  with  corn,  of  which  a 
good  crop  was  realized  ;  and  early  in  June, 
Col.  Davis  left  to  attend  the  proprietors' 
meeting  at  Arlington  on  the  nth,  and 
Parley  Davis  proceeded  to  survey  and  lo- 
cate on  a  lot  of  about  300  acres  at  the 
centre  of  the  town,  which  became  his 
home  for  a  long  and  honorable  life. 

The  work  of  clearing  the  land  was  con- 
tinued during  the  summer,  and  embraced 
most  of  the  meadow  land  between  the 
hills  and  the  Winooski  as  far  west  as  the 
knoll  on  which  the  Parson  Wright  house 
stands,  now  occupied  by  the  widow  of  the 
first  pastor's  son,  the  late  Jonathan  Ed- 
wards Wright.  This  included  the  meadow 
land  south  of  State  House  hill  and  west  of 
North  Branch,  being  nearly  50  acres. 
Thompson  stated,  on  the  authority  of  sur- 
viving contemporaries,  that  Col.  Davis 
alone  felled,  trimmed  out  and  cut  into  log- 
ging lengths,  an  acre  of  forest  of  average 
growth  per  day,  and  continued  at  this  rate 
for  several  successive  days.  There  was 
time  then  in  that  season  for  other  work, 
and  it  was  vigorously  used.  Col.  and 
Parley  Davis  having  been  appointed  in 
June,  a  committee  to  lay  out  and  construct 
necessary  roads,  this  work  was  entered 
upon  at  once.  The  first  road  constructed 
was  from  the  Union  House  bridge,  now 
the  entrance  to  School  street,  skirting  the 
hill  nearly  on  the  present  line  of  Courtand 
High  streets  to  the  Winooski  at  the  Parson 
Wright  place,  and  then  following  the  river, 
substantially  as  the  highway  still  does,  to 
Middle.sex  line.  The  second  road  cut  out 
by  the  Davises  was  in  Berlin,  being  the 
present  road  from  near  the  crest  of  Berlin 
hill,  passing  on  the  east  side  through  the 
Andrew  Cummings  farm  to  the  Winooski, 
and  then  following  the  river  to  the  Gas 
works,  where  the  stream  was  fordable,  ex- 
cept in  high  water.  This  intersected  a 
road,  or  more  properly  path,  which  had 
been  opened  through  Berlin  to  the  mouth 
of  Dog  river,  and  thus  made  a  shorter  route 
from  the  older  eastern  towns  to  Montpelier. 
Over  this  road,  in  fact,  most  of  the  early 
settlers  in  Montpelier  came. 

Tlie  food  of  the  sturdy  foresters  during 
the    summer   and   autumn   of   1787,    was 


MONTPELIER. 


261 


mainly  of  the  fish  of  the  streams  and  the 
game  of  the  woods  ;  but  these  were  of  the 
best.  The  streams  were  full  of  trout,  some 
of  them  weighing  5  pounds  ;  and  the  woods 
with  wild  game,  such  as  moose,  bears  in 
abundance,  deer,  partridges,  etc.,  and 
these,  with  the  few  condiments  brought 
in  by  the  party,  vegetables  and  corn  of 
the  summer''s  growth,  and  a  little  flour 
from  the  older  settlements,  furnished  bills 
of  fare  tempting  even  to  gourmands,  and 
were  amply  sufficient  for  the  pioneers  of  the 
settlement.  All  their  work  that  year  was 
preparatory  for  settlement.  The  log-house 
was  not  furnished  with  cellar,  floor,  oven 
and  chimney  until  autumn,  and  then,  hav- 
ing secured  the  fruits  of  the  first  harvest. 
Col.  Davis  returned  with  his  sons  to 
Brookfield,  to  prepare  his  family  for  mov- 
ing into  the  new  town  and  the  new  house 
with  the  first  sufficient  fall  of  snow. 

The  family  consisted  of  Col.  Davis  and 
wife,  two  sons,  and  four  daughters.  The 
sons  have  already  been  named.  The 
daughters  were  Rebecca,  who  became  wife 
of  Hon.  Cornelius  Lynde  of  Williamstown  ; 
Hannah,  wife  of  Hon.  David  Wing,  Jr., 
of  Montpelier,  Secretary  of  State ;  Polly, 
wife  of  Capt.  Thomas  West  of  Montpelier ; 
and  Lucy,  wife  of  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard 
of  Montpelier.  Another  daughter  was  born 
in  Montpelier. 

Near  the  close  of  December,  1787,  Col, 
Davis  dispatched  his  sons  Jacob  and  Thom- 
as, with  their  sisters  Rebecca  and  Polly — 
all  that  could  be  carried  at  once — to  Mont- 
pelier, intending  tb  complete  the  removal 
of  the  family  by  a  second  journey  of  the 
team,  with  which  Jacob  Davis  returned  to 
Brookfield.  But  a  series  of  heavy  snow- 
storms made  the  journey  impracticable ; 
and  thus  the  lad  Thomas  and  the  two  girls 
were  the  only  tenants  of  the  new  homestead 
until  March.  "Not  another  human  face," 
said  Thompson,  "made  its  appearance  at 
this  lonely,  snow-hedged  and  forest-girt 
cabin."  Most  welcome  then  was  the  ad- 
vent of  the  remainder  of  the  family  in 
March,  1788. 

FIRST    THINGS. 
The  summer  work  of  1788  comprised  the 
tilling  of  the  ground  previously  cleared  ;  the 


clearing  of  the  remainder  of  the  meadow 
to  the  Parson  Wright  place,  and  part  of 
that  east  of  North  Branch,  now  occupied 
by  Main  Street ;  extending  the  clearing  on 
the  west  side  to  the  falls  on  which  now 
stand  the  works  of  Lane,  Pitkin  &  Brock ; 
and  the  erection  of  the  first  dam  and  saw- 
mill on  those  falls. 

During  the  next  summer,  1789,  Col. 
Davis  erected  the  first  grist-mill  on  the 
falls  of  North  Branch ;  and  thus  prepara- 
tions were  made  to  tempt  new  settlers  with 
facilities  for  the  erection  of  dwellings  and 
converting  the  crops  of  corn  and  grain  in 
the  neighborhood  into  bread-stuffs. 

Sept.  22,  the  first  birth  in  town  oc- 
curred, being  that  of  Clarissa  Davis,  young- 
est daughter  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  and  wife 
of  Hon.  George  Worthington  of  Montpe- 
lier. 

Col.  Davis  employed  all  the  men  whose 
services  could  be  commanded,  his  house 
of  course  being  head-quarters,  and  more- 
over serving  as  hotel  for  all  visitors.  A 
larger  house  was  a  necessity ;  and  there- 
fore, in  the  summer  of  1790,  the  Colonel 
erected  a  large  house,  of  two  stories,  with 
four  spacious  rooms  in  each  story,  and  an 
attic  that  served  on  occasions  as  a  welcome 
dormitory.  This  was  the  first  completed 
frame  house  in  Montpelier.  After  Col. 
Davis  left  it,  this  dwelling  became  the  first 
County  jail-house,  and  was  such  until  1858, 
when  it  was  removed  to  another  part  of 
Elm  Street,  where  it  is  still  used  as  a  dwell- 
ing-house. A  frame  for  a  house  had  been 
erected  a  few  days  before  Col.  Davis's,  but 
the  house  was  not  completed  so  soon  as 
his.  It  was  on  the  hill  one  mile  north- 
east of  the  village,  and  was  long  known  as 
the  Silloway  house,  though  it  was  built  by 
James  Hawkins,  the  first  blacksmith  in 
Montpelier,  and  finished  in  1791.  About 
the  same  time  Hawkins  also  built  the  third 
frame  house,  in  which  the  first  store  was 
opened  by  Dr.  Frye.in  1791.  This  house 
stood  until  1873,  and  was  the  first  dwelling- 
house  on  the  west  side  of  Main  Street, 
nearest  to  the  Arch  Bridge.  These  were 
quickly  succeeded,  all  built  by  the  ener- 
getic Hawkins,  by  the  first  Union  House, 
which  was  the  hotel  kept  by  Houghton, 


262 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Tufts,  Cottrill  (before  taking  the  Pavilion,) 
Lamb,  Mann,  and  others  in  our  remem- 
brance, and  was  burnt  in  1835;  and  the 
Cadwell  house,  near  the  junction  of  Main 
and  State  Streets,  once  the  finest  residence 
in  the  village,  and  the  favorite  boarding- 
place  of  governors  and  other  dignitaries, 
the  wreck  of  which  still  stands,  to  the  re- 
gret of  many  who  would  have  so  eligible  a 
location  for  business  purposes  -worthily 
improved. 

The  first  wagon  was  brought  into  town 
in  1789,  from  Vergennes,  by  Thomas  Da- 
vis, who  had  to  cut  much  of  his  way  from 
Williston  to  Montpelier,  and  scale  "Rock 
Bridge,"  in  Moretown,  by  an  ingenious 
pieee  of  engineering,  which  is  fully  de- 
scribed by  Thompson. 

The  first  notable  stranger  in  Montpelier 
was  Prince  Edward  of  England,  Duke  of 
Kent,  son  of  George  III.  and  father  of 
Queen  Victoria.  He  was  the  guest  of  Col. 
Davis  for  a  night  in  the  winter  of  lygo-'gi, 
coming  with  an  armed  retinue  of  20  men, 
to  defend  him  from  violence,  and  serve  as 
"tasters"  to  try  his  food  and  save  him  from 
poison.  Col.  Davis  so  far  assured  the 
prince  of  personal  safety,  that  he  consent- 
ed to  dismiss  most  of  his  attendants,  who 
returned  to  Montreal,  and  the  prince  con- 
tinued his  journey  to  Boston  in  a  more 
modest  and  sensible  style.  * 

The  first  male  child  born  in  town  was 
James,  son  of  Solomon  Dodge,  April  5, 
1790.  The  first  marriage  recorded  is  that 
of  Jacob  Davis  Jr.  of  Montpelier  and  Caty 
Taplin  of  Berlin,  the  ceremony  being  per- 
formed by  the  father  of  the  bride,  John 
Taplin  Esq.,  Oct.  3,  1791. 

The  first  school  was  kept  in  a  log  house 
on  the  river  near  Middlesex  line,  by  Jacob 
Davis,  jr.,  and  continued  from  about  1789 
to  1 79 1.  In  1 79 1  a  school  was  kept  in 
the  village,  in  Col.  Davis'  house,  by  David 
Wing,  jr.,  who  was  subsequently  Secre- 
tary of  State;  and  in  1794,  the  town  was 
divided  into  six  districts,  and  schools 
were  regularly  maintained  thereafter. 

The  first  tavern  was  built  for  Col.  Davis 
on  Main  street,  in  1793.  It  was  the  origi- 
nal "  Union  House,"  on  the  site  of  the 


vriiompsoii's  Monlpelie7\p.  53. 


Unitarian  church.  This  tavern  was  burnt 
in  1835,  rebuilt  and  again  burnt  in  1859, 
and  the  third  Union  house  was  erected  on 
its  present  site.  The  second  tavern, 
known  as  the  "  Hutchins  Tavern,"  and 
afterwards  the  "  Shepard  Tavern,"  was 
built  about  1800,  opposite  the  entrance  of 
Barre  to  Main  street.  The  "Pavilion" 
was  built  in  preparation  for  the  Legislature 
in  1 808 ;  it  was  probably  the  finest  hotel 
in  the  State  then,  and  indeed  for  many 
years,  and  had  a  high  reputation,  specially 
under  Thomas  Davis,  and  Mahlon 
Cottrill. 

The  first  physician  was  Spaulding  Pierce, 
in  1790;  the  first  lawyer,  Charles  Buckley, 
1797  ;  the  first  minister,  Ziba  Woodworth, 
free  will  Baptist,  and  one  of  the  first  set- 
tlers;  and  the  first  mechanics  were  Col. 
Earned  Lamb,  carpenter  and  mill-wright — 
James  Hawkins,  blacksmith,  David  Tol- 
man,  clothier,  Paul  Knapp,  brick-maker. 

The  first  thanksgiving  day  observed  in 
the  town  was  Dec.  i ,  1 791 .  The  first  social 
ball  occurred  at  the  house  of  Col.  Davis, 
on  the  evening  of  the  next  day,  Dec.  2 ; 
and  that  was  succeeded  immediately  by 
the  first  death  noted  in  the  record  of  the 
town — thus  : 

"Theophilus  Wilson  Brooks,  drowned 
Dec.  3d,  1 791." 

In  fact,  however,  his  death  was  accom- 
panied by  that  of  his  betrothed.  Miss  Bet- 
sey Hobart,  daughter  of  Capt.  James  Ho- 
bart,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  Berlin.  An 
account  of  this  unusually  sorrowful  event, 
written  two  days  after  and  printed  in  a 
New  York  City  newspaper,  Dec.  31,  1791, 
has  recently  come  into  the  possession  of 
The  Vermont  Historical  Society.  It  is  as 
follows : 

Extract  of  a  letter  fr  01/1  Montpelier ,  (Vt..) 
dated  December  5 ,  1 79 1 . 
A  melancholy  accident  took  place  here 
last  Saturday  morning,  of  which  the  fol- 
lowing is  an  account :  On  Friday,  the  2d 
instant,  being  the  day  after  Thanksgiving 
in  this  State,  the  young  people  in  'this 
neighborhood  assembled  to  spend  the  even- 
ing in  dancing.  Amongst  others,  two 
young  gentlemen  from  this  town  waited  on 
two  Misses  Hobart,  of  Berlin,  on  the  other 
side  of  Onion  river.  After  having  spent 
the  greater  part  of  the  night  in  merriment, 


^^^^^^^ '^^^^^^;^^ 


MONTPELIER. 


263 


they  parted  about  two  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing'. The  above-mentioned  couples  hav- 
ing to  cross  the  river  in  a  canoe,  they  tour, 
(together  with  the  ferryman,)  imprudently 
got  in  all  at  once,  and  had  not  got  far  from 
the  shore  before  the  canoe  overset ;  but  by 
the  exertions  of  the  ferryman,  they  righted 
her,  and  he,  together  with  a  Mr.  Putnam, 
one  of  the  young  gentlemen,  and  one  of 
the  girls,  got  in  ;  but  in  helping  the  other 
girl  in,  they  unfortunately  overset  the  sec- 
ond time.  They  then  endeavored  for  the 
shore.  Mr.  Putnam,  at  the  dangerof  his  life, 
swam  ashore  with  the  younger  Miss  Ho- 
bart  under  his  arm  ;  but  were  both  of  them 
so  far  chilled  as  to  be  unable  to  stand, 
having  swam  more  than  forty  rods,  as  the 
water  was  high  and  the  current  swift,  be- 
fore they  reached  the  shore.  The  ferry- 
man got  ashore  by  the  helpx)f  the  canoe  ; 
the  other  couple  perished  in  the  water. 
The  young  gentleman  drowned  is  Mr.  The- 
ophilus  Wilson  Brooks,  son  of  Deacon 
Brooks,  of  Ashford,  Connecticut,  a  val- 
uable young  man,  aged  25.  The  young 
woman  is  a  daughter  of  Capt.  Hobart,  of 
Berlin,  an  amiable  young  woman,  about 
twenty  years  of  age.  The  body  of  the 
young  woman  was  found  about  a  mile  be- 
low, yesterday  morning.  Mr.  Brooks  is 
not  yet  found. 

VITAL   STATISTICS. 

In  this  connection,  the  vital  statistics  of 
the  town  in  its  earliest  years  may  as  well 
be  stated.  From  the  settlement  of  the 
first  family  in  the  spring  of  1786  to  the 
summer  of  1799 — more  than  13  years — the 
number  of  deaths  recorded  was  16.  Of 
these,  3  were  accidental,  and  9  of  diseases 
incident  to  infants  and  children ;  and  of 
the  4  remaining,  adult  cases,  2  were  of 
consumption,  i  of  fever,  and  i  of  a  disease 
unknown.  The  number  of  births  in  the 
same  period  is  stated  by  Thompson  at  130. 
The  population  in  1791  was  113,  and  in 
1800,  890 — Thompson's  estimated  average 
for  the  whole  time,  400.  The  rate  of  deaths 
was  therefore  less  than  i^  per  annum,  and 
the  percentage  five-sixteenths  of  i  percent, 
per  100  of  population.  The  registration 
report  states  the  percentage  of  deaths  in 
the  whole  State  to  population,  in  1858,  to 
be  1. 1 4,  which  is  more  than  three  times 
greater  than  in  Montpelier  for  the  first  13 
years.  The  rate  of  births  in  Montpelier 
was  I  to  every  40  persons ;  whereas  in  the 
State,    in    1858,    the   rate   was   only  i  to 


every  49  persons.  The  difference  between 
the  town  and  the  State  in  the  proportion  of 
births  to  deaths  is  most  remarkable ;  in 
the  town  the  births  being  more  than  eight 
times  the  number  of  deaths,  while  in  the 
State,  the  number  of  births,  in  1858,  was 
less  than  twice  the  number  of  deaths.  It 
certainly  must  be  conceded  that  Montpel- 
ier was,  at  the  start,  a  remarkably  fruitful 
and  healthy  town.  This  is  presumed  to 
be  true  of  nearly  all  Vermont  towns  at  the 
first  settlement — of  all  that  were  not  ex- 
posed, by  their  location,  to  peculiar  mala- 
rial influences.  Few  but  hardy  and  en- 
ergetic men  and  women  would  brave  the 
perils  and  hardships  of  frontier  life,  and 
the  labor  of  converting  pathless  forests 
into  habitable,  traversable  and  tillable 
fields ;  and  such  people  are  proof  against 
most  diseases. 

Thompson  stated  other  striking  facts  as 
to  the  health  of  the  village  of  Montpelier, 
in  his  chapter  on  epidemics,  which  we 
quote  nearly  in  full.  The  records  of  Rev. 
Mr.  Wright,  noted  by  Thompson,  were 
undoubtedly  more  complete  than  the  town 
records.  The  good  parson  was,  from  re- 
ligious principle,  as  well  as  from  strong 
sympathy,  a  visitor  to  the  bedside  of  all 
the  sick  and  dying,  and  his  parish  then 
included  the  entire  village. 

EPIDEMICS. 
FKOM   D.  P.   THOMPSON'S  HISTORY. 

Endemics  we  have  none.  From  first  to 
last  no  diseases  have  made  their  appear- 
ance in  town  which  could  be  discovered  to 
be  peculiar  to  the  place,  or  to  have  been 
generated  by  any  standing  local  causes. 
Of  epidemics,  Montpelier  has  had  its 
share,  but  still  a  light  share  compared,  as 
we  believe,  with  a  majority  of  the  towns 
in  the  State,  only  four  deserving  the  name 
having  occurred  from  the  first  settlement 
of  the  town  to  the  present  day. 

The  first  of  these  was  the  dysentery, 
which  fatally  prevailed  throughout  the 
town,  in  common  with  most  other  towns 
in  Vermont,  during  the  summer  and  fall  of 
1802.  The  victims  in  Montpelier  were : 
Mrs.  Sophia  Watrous,  wife  of  Erastus  Wat- 
rous,  Esq. ;  Erastus  Hubbard,  a  younger 
brother  of  Timothy  Hubbard  ;  John  Wig- 
gins, another  young  man,  and  a  consider- 
able number  of  children. 

The  second  epidemic  was  the  typhus 
fever,  which  prevailed   to   a  considerable 


264 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


extent  in  the  summer  season  of  1806,  and 
proved  fatal  to  Montpelierls  favorite  and 
most  honored  citizen,  David  Wing,  Jr., 
then  Secretary  of  State.  Luther  Mosely, 
Esq.,  another  vakied  citizen,  also  fell  a 
victim  to  the  same  disease,  together  with 
a  young  man  by  the  name  of  Cutler,  a  girl 
by  the  name  of  Goodale,  and  several 
others. 

The  third  epidemic  visiting  the  town 
was  that  fearful  disease  known  by  the 
name  of  spotted  fever,  which,  to  the  gen- 
eral alarm  of  the  inhabitants,  suddenly 
made  its  appearance  in  the  village  in  the 
winter  of  181 1.  The  first  victim  was 
Sibyl  Brown,  a  bright  and  beautiful  daugh- 
ter of  Amasa  Brown,  of  the  age  of  nine 
years,  who,  on  Saturday,  Jan.  2d,  was  in 
school,  on  the  evening  of  that  day  sliding 
with  her  mates  on  the  ice,  and  the  next 
morning  a  corp.se.  The  wife  of  Aaron 
Griswold,  and  the  first  wife  of  Jonathan 
Shepard,  were  next,  and  as  suddenly  de- 
stroyed by  this  terrible  epidemic,  which 
struck  and  swept  over  the  village,  to  which 
it  was  mostly  confined,  like  the  blast  of  the 
simoom,  and  was  gone.  There  were  over 
70  cases  in  this  village,  and,  strange  to 
tell,  but  three  deaths  of  the  disease,  which 
at  the  same  time  was  nearly  decimating 
the  then  400  inhabitants  of  Moretown,and 
sweeping  off  60  or  70  of  the  2,000  inhab- 
itants of  Woodstock.  The  chief  remedy 
relied  on  here  was  the  prompt  use  of  the 
hot  bath,  made  of  a  hasty  decoction  of 
hemlock  boughs  ;  and  the  pine-board  bath- 
ing vessel,  made  in  the  shape  of  a  coffin, 
was  daily  seen,  during  the  height  of  the 
disease,  in  the  streets,  borne  on  ths  shoul- 
ders of  men,  rapidly  moving  from  house  to 
house,  to  serve  in  turn  the  multiplying 
victims.  So  strange  and  unexpected  were 
the  attacks,  and  so  sudden  and  terrible 
were  often  the  fatal  terminations  of  the 
disease,  that  it  was  likened  to  the  Plague 
of  the  Old  World.  Some  of  its  types, "in- 
deed, so  closely  resembled  the  Plague,  as 
well  to  justify  men  in  deeming  them  one 
and  the  same  disorder.  A  bright  red  spot, 
attended  with  acute  pain  in  some  in- 
stances, appeared  in  one  of  the  limbs  of 
the  unwarned  victim,  and,  like  the  old 
Plague  spot,  spread,  struck  to  the  vitals 
and  caused  his  death  in  a  few  hours.  In 
other  instances,  a  sort  of  congestion  of  the 
blood,  or  silent  paralysis  of  all  the  func- 
tions of  the  life,  stole  unawares  over  the 
system  of  the  patient,  his  pulse  faltered 
and  nearly  stopped,  even  before  he  dream- 
ed of  the  approach  of  the  insidious  de- 
stroyer. The  late  worthy  Dr.  James  Spald- 
ing once  told  us,  that  he  was  the  student 
of  an  eminent  physician,  in  Alstead,N.  H,, 
when  the  epidemic  visited  that  place,  that 


he  frequently  went  the  rounds  with  his  in- 
structor in  his  visits  to  his  patients,  and 
that  on  one  of  these  occasions  they  made 
a  friendly  call  on  a  family  in  supposed 
good  health,  when  the  master  of  the  house 
congratulated  himself  on  the  prospect  that 
he  and  his  )oung  family  were  about  to  es- 
cape the  disease  which  had  been  cutting 
down  so  many  others.  Something,  how- 
ever, in  the  appearance  of  one  or  two  of  the 
apparently  healthy  group  of  children  present 
attracting  the  attention  of  the  old  Doctor, 
he  fell  to  examining  their  pulses,  when  in 
two  of  them  he  found  the  pulse  so  feeble 
as  to  be  scarcely  perceptible ;  but  keeping 
his  apprehensions  to  himself,  he  made 
some  general  prescriptions  for  all  the 
children,  and  left,  hoping  his  fears  would 
not  be  realiz^l.  Within  three  days  both 
of  those  children  were  buried  in  one  grave. 
The  physicians  who  had  charge  of  these 
cases  in  Montpelier  were  Dr.  Lamb,  Dr. 
N.  B.  Spalding,  Dr.  Woodbury,  and  Dr. 
Lewis,  of  Moretown.  Volumes  have  been 
written  on  the  causes  of  this  and  similar 
epidemics,  and  yet  to  this  day  the  subject 
is  involved  in  clouds  of  mystery. 

The  fourth  epidemic  followed  soon  after 
the  last,  and  in  some  instances,  assumed 
some  of  its  peculiar  types.  This  occurred 
in  the  winter  of  18 13,  and  was  here  gen- 
erally called  the  typhus  fever,  though  it 
partook  more  of  the  characteristics  of  per- 
ipneumony,  or  lung  fever,  being  the  same 
disease  which  first  broke  out  the  fall  be- 
fore, among  the  U.  S.  troops  at  Burling- 
ton, and  by  the  following  mid-winter  had 
become  a  destructive  epidemic  in  nearly 
every  town  in  the  State,  carrying  oiT,  ac- 
cording to  the  statistics  of  Dr.  Gallup, 
more  than  6,000  persons,  or  one  to  every 
40  of  its  whole  population.  In  this  whole 
town,  during  the  year  1813,  the  number  of 
deaths — most  of  which  were  of  this  dis- 
ease— was  78,  among  which  were  those  of 
Capt.  N.  Doty,  R.  Wakefield,  C.  Hamblin 
and  others,  in  the  prime  of  life.  This  great 
number  of  deaths  in  one  year  was,  beyond 
all  comparison,  greater  than  ever  occurred 
before,  or  has  ever  occurred  since,  it  is  be- 
lieved, in  proportion  to  the  population, 
which  was  then  about  2,000;  while  the  av- 
erage number  of  deaths  in  town  per  year, 
about  that  period,  was,  as  near  as  can  now 
be  ascertained,  but  a  little  over  20,  and  of 
course  but  little  more  than  one  death  in 
100.  In  the  village,  according  to  records 
left  by  the  Rev.  Chester  Wright,  the  av- 
erage number  of  deaths  for  the  five  years 
preceding  18 13  was  but  four  per  year, 
which  must  have  been  considerably  less 
than  one  to  100  yearly.  This  seems  to  be 
confirmed  by  another  record  left  by  Mr. 
Wright,  of  the  number  of  deaths  occurring 


MONTPELIER. 


265 


each  year  in  the  village  for  the  14  years 
succeeding  18 16,  ])y  which  it  appears  that 
the  average  number  of  deaths  in  the  vil- 
lage, during  that  whole  period,  was  but  10 
yearly,  while  the  population  during  the 
last-named  period  increased  from  nearly 
1,000  in  1816  to  nearly  2,000  in  1830;  so 
that  the  rate  of  mortality  during  the  whole 
19  years,  of  which  we  have  given  the  ap- 
proximate statistics,  was,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  18 14,  always  greatly  less  than  one 
to  every  100  inhabitants  ;  all  going  to  con- 
firm what  we  have  before  stated  respecting 
the  peculiar  healthiness  of  the  location  of 
our  town,  and  especially  of  our  village, 
from  the  earliest  times  to  the  present  day. 

Notices  of  Proprietors'  Meetings,  of  taxes, 
and  of  Sales  of  lands  for  Taxes  in  Mont- 
pelier — Compiled  by  Henry  Stevens, 
Se7iior,  from  files  of  the  [^Windsor']  Ver- 
mont Journal  and  the  \_Bennington'] 
Vermont  Gazette.* 

organization  of  the  town. 
March  4,  1791,  Jacob  Davis,  Clark 
Stevens  and  Jonathan  Cutler  presented  a 
petition  to  JohnTapIin,  of  Berlin,  a  justice 
of  the  peace  for  the  County  of  Orange, 
praying  that  a  warrant  might  be  issued  for 
callifig  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  to  or- 
ganize the  town.  Though  this  petition 
was  not  legal,  (having  the  signatures  of 
only  three  freeholders,  while  the  statute 
required  four,)  Justice  Taplin  took  no  no- 
tice of  the  defect,  but  issued  a  warrant  "  to 
Clark  Stevens,  one  of  the  principal  inhab- 
itants of  Montpelier,"   requiring  him    to 


*  It  wiU  be  observed  that  tliesc  legal  notices  cover  a 
niucli  larger  amount  or  taxes  than  that  given  lii  the 
preceding  text.  Compilations  Iil<e  tlie  above,  for 
many  towns,  may  be  I'ovind  In  tlie  State  Library,  at 
the  end  of  an  old  volume  of  tlie  Windsor  Journal. 

Jour 

Proprietors  to  meet  Aug  17, 1784,  No 

Ditto,  Sept  12,  1786,  [not  lioldcn,] 

Ditto,  Sept  26,  1785,  [not  liolden,] 

Ditto,  2d  Wednesday  of  .Jan  178(i, 

Taxed  25s  8d  per  right,  Jan  9,  '87, 

Proprietors  to  meet  2d  Tuesday 
of  June,  1787. 

Sale  of  lands  for  the  tax  of  25s  8d, 
June  12,  1787, 

Taxed  £1 9s  4d  by  tlie  proprietors, 
June  12,  1787, 

Lands  to  be  sold  for  said  tax, Oct. 
16, 1787. 

Lands  to  l)e  sold  for  town  tax, 
Jan  3,  1788, 

Taxed  19s  6d  per  right  by  the  pro- 
prietors [June,  '88,] 

Lands  to  be  sold  for  said  tax  last 
Wednesday  of  Oct,  1788, 

Taxed  £27  14s  5d  for  tlie  general 
survey, 

Lands  to  be  sold  for  do.  Feb  16,'89, 

Two  penny  tax  to  be  paid  in  la- 
bor, May,  June  and  July,  '89, 

Lands  to  be  sold  for  the  general 
survey  tax,  March  16,  1789, 

Lands  to  be  sold  for  the  2  penny 
tax,  June  23.  1791, 

Proprietors  to  meet  Aug  28, 1792, 


nal. 

.   48 

108 
118 
184 

lazette. 

No.  55 
114 
117 
122 
190 

193 

203 

196 

203 

207 

212 

215 

222 

226 

234 

258  Vol .  6 

,No.  5 

269  " 

6, 

16 

276  " 

284 

6. 
[no 

24 

sales.] 

290  Vol.6, 

40 

289  " 

6, 

34 

403  " 
465 

8, 

49 

warn  a  meeting  of  the  freeholders  and 
other  inhabitants  of  the  town,  to  meet  at 
the  house  of  Jacob  Davis  on  Tuesday,  the 
29th  day  of  March,  1791,  at  9  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  to  choose  a  moderator,  clerk,  ' 
selectmen,  trea.surer,  and  all  other  town 
officers,  and  to  see  if  said  town  will  choose 
some  proper  person  to  remove  the  pro- 
prietors' records  into  the  town.  This 
warrant  was  dated  March  8,  1791,  and  on 
the  same  day  Mr.  Stevens  posted  his  warn- 
ing in  accordance  with  the  warrant  and 
the  statute.  Pursuant  to  the  warning  a 
meeting  was  holden,  of  which  the  follow- 
ing is  the  record : 

First  Town  Meeting. 

At  a  town  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of 

Tviontpelier,  legally  warned  and  met  at  the 

dwelling-house  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  in  said 

Montpelier,  on    the    29th   day  of  March, 

179I'— 

Proceeded  to  choose  a  Moderator,  &c. 
&c. 

1st,  Voted,  and  chose  Col.  Jacob  Davis 
Moderator  to  govern  said  meeting. 

2nd,  Voted,  and  chose  Ziba  Wood  worth 
Town  Clerk. 

3d,  Voted,  and  chose  James  Hawkins  ist 
Select  Man. 

4th,  Voted,  and  chose  James  Taggart  2d 
Select  Man. 

5th,  Voted,  and  chose  Hiram  Peck  3d 
Select  Man. 

6th,  Voted,  and  chose  Jonathan  Cutler 
Town  Treasurer. 

7th,  Voted,  and  chose  Parley  Davis  Con- 
stable and  Collector. 

8th,  Voted,  and  chose  Josiah  Hurlburt 
Highway  Surveyor. 

9th,  Voted,  and  chose  Benj.  I.  Wheeler 
Highway  Surveyor. 

loth.  Voted,  and  chose  .Solomon  Dodge 
Highway  Surveyor. 

nth  Voted,  and  chose  Col.  Jacob  Davis 
Lister. 

J 2th,  Voted,  and  chose  Benj.  I.  Wheel- 
er Lister. 

13th,  Voted,  and  chose  Clark  Stevens 
Lister. 

14th,  Voted,  and  chose  Col.  Jacob  Davis 
Fence  Viewer. 

15th,  Voted  to  adjourn  said  meeting  till 
the  1st  Tuesday  of  .September. 

The  aforementioned  officers  were  duly 
sworn  and  affirmed  to  the  faithful  discharge 
of  their  respective  offices,  before  John 
Taplin,  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  said  Coun- 
ty- 

Ziba  Woodworth,  Town  Clerk. 


34 


266 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


On  the  record  is  tlie  following;  list  of  vo- 
ters who  took  jxiit  in  the  organization  of 
the  town,  to  which  we  liave  aihled.  when- 
ever possilile,  tile  region  from  wliich  tliesc 
original  freemen  o(  the  town  c.vme. 

r>enjaniin  I.  Wheeler,  Rehobolh,  Mass. ; 
David  Parsons.  Oxford,  now  Charlton, 
Mass.  ;  Parley  Davis,  Oxford,  now  Charl- 
ton, Mass.  ;  Kbenezer  Dodge,  Peterbor- 
ongh,  N.  li. ;  Solomon  Dodge,  Peterbor- 
ough, N,  H.;  Nathaniel  Peek,  Royalston, 
Mass.  ;  David  Wing,  Rochester,  Mass.  ; 
Lemuel  lirooks,  Ashford,  Ct. ;  Clark  Ste- 
vens, ]\ochester,  Mass. ;  Jonathan  Snow, 
Rochester,  Mass.  ;  Hiram  Peck,  Royals- 
ston,  Mass.  ;  James  Hawkins,  James  Tag- 
gart,  John  Templeton  ;  IClisha  Cummins, 
born  in  Sutton.  Mass.  ;  Jonathan  C"utler, 
Charles  McCloud  ;  Col.  Jacol)  Davis,  Ox- 
ford, now  Charlton,  Mass.  ;  Isaac  Putnam  ; 
Nathaniel  Davis,  Oxford,  now  Charlton, 
Mass.  ;  Ziba  Woodworth,  Pozrah,  Conn.  ; 
Jerathmel  [P.]  Wheeler,  Rehoboth,  Mass.  ; 
Smith  SteVens,  Rochester,  i\Ia.ss.  ;  Charles 
Stevens,  Rochester,  Mass.  ;  Edmund  Doty  ; 
Duncan  Young,  a  Scotchman,  from  Pur- 
go\  ne's  armv  ;  Freeman  West.  New  Bed- 
ford. Mass.  ' 

The  name  of  Josiah  Ilurlburt  appears  in 
the  list  of  town  oflicers  elected,  and  it  is 
presumed  he  was  a  citizen  of  lawful  age. 
Jacob  Davis,  Jr.,  was  also  of  age  and  a 
citizen  at  that  time.  Thompson  states  that 
David  Wing  Jr.  and  Earned  Lamb  were 
then  Freemen  of  the  town,  and  sugge.sts 
that  they  may  have  been  absent  on  the  day 
of  the  meeting.  This  would  make  the 
whole  number  known  to  be  freemen  of  the 
town  at  the  organization,  30.  The  total 
population,  by  the  census  taken  that  year, 
was  113,  which  was  small  for  the  number 
of  voters  ;  but  doubtless  several  who  acted 
in  town  meeting  had  not  then  brought 
their  families  into  town. 

These  names  indicate,  as  the  fact  was, 
that  on  the  organization  of  the  town,  set- 
tlements liad  been  made  in  every  quarter 
of  it,  on  the  hills  antl  in  the  river  valleys. 
Even  now  the  farms  of  these  men  are 
easily  recognized,  and  many  are  owned  by 
the  descendants  of  the  original  settlers. 
The  early  occupancy  of  the  town  so  gen- 
erally was  doubtless  due  to  the  provision 
in  the  original  charter,  which  required 
"that  each  proprietor,  his  heirs  or  assigns, 


shall  plant  or  cultivate  5  acres  of  land,  and 
build  an  house  at  least  18  feet  sciuare  on  the 
Hoor,  or  have  one  family  settled  on  each 
respective  right,  within  the  term  of  3  years 
after  the  circumstances  of  the  war  will  ad- 
mit of  a  settlement  with  safety,  on  penalty 
of  the  forfeiture  of  each  respective  right,  or 
share  of  land,  in  saitl  t()wnshi[),  not  so 
improved  or  settled." 

IIAIUTS    AND   CIIARACTKR    OV    rilK    FIKST 
SKTTI.KKS. 

I'lIDM    I).    I'.   TllciiMr.-ON. 

Among  the  whole  list  of  the  27  freemen 
who  joined  m  its  organization  we  fuul  but 
one  or  two  who  did  not  become,  not  only 
the  permanent  residents  of  the  town,  but 
the  permanent  owners  ol  the  farms  they 
first  purchased  and  improved  for  their 
homes.  And  in  looking,  now,  over  that 
ever  to  be  honored  roll  of  men,  then  all 
farmers,  consisting  of  the  Wheelers,  the 
Davises,  the  Templetons,  the  Putnams, 
the  Stevenses,  the  Cumminses,  etc.,  and 
then  glancing  over  the  town,  we  can 
scarcely  find  one  of  the  original  homesteads 
of  all  those  thus  settling  which  is  not  still 
in  the  possession  of  some  one  of  their  de- 
scendants. This  fact  alone  speaks,  vol- 
umes in  praise  of  the  original  inhabitants 
of  the  town.  It  speaks  in  such  praise,  be- 
cause it  presupposes  and  proves  the  ex- 
istence, in  them,  of  that  invaluable  combi- 
nation of  traits  of  character  which  can 
alone  ensure  full  success  in  building  uji  an 
abidingly  thrifty  town,  and  a  well-ordered 
and  respectable  community — the  resolu- 
tion and  physical  endurance  necessary  tor 
subduing  the  forests,  the  frugality  and 
economy  in  living  reciuired  tor  retaining 
and  increasing  the  amount  of  their  hard 
earnings,  and  the  foresight  and  general 
capacity  for  business  indisjiensable  for  the 
successful  management  of  their  accjuisi- 
tions. 

That  the  first  inhabitants  of  Montpelier 
were  generally  men  of  great  i)hysical 
powers,  resolution  and  stability  of  pur- 
pose, and  that  they  applied  their  energies 
of  body  and  mind  to  the  best  etVect,  in 
clearing  up  and  improving  their  township, 
mav  be  well  enough  seen  in  the  pictures 
we  have  already  clrawn  of  the  first  years  ot 
the  settlement,  but  more  certainly  so  in 
the  noble  results  of  their  exertions,  which, 
after  20  vears,  stood  developed  in  their 
individual  thrit't,  in  their  aggregate  wealth 
and  pecuniary  independence. 

But  those  results  were  not  brought  about 
by  hard  labor  alone.  Strict  frugality  ni 
living  lent  its  scarcely  less  important  aid 
in  the  work.     Nature  has  but  few  wants  ; 


MONTPELIER. 


267 


and  these  settlers  and  their  families  seem 
U)  have  been  well  content  to  put  up  with 
her  real  requirements.  The  ambition  for 
(h'si)lay  in  dress,  e(iuippa<(e  and  costly 
lMiil(lin<(s  was  a  forbidden,  and  an  almost 
unknown,  passion  among  them.  And  all 
expectations  of  making  property  without 
work,  or  of  living  on  credit,  were  ideas 
which  were  still  more  scouted.  They 
dressed  comfortaljly  but  very  plainly,  wear- 
ing, for  the  12  or  15  years  of  the  settle- 
ment at  least,  scarcely  anything  but  what 
was  the  ]iroduct  of  their  own  looms  and 
spinning-wheels.  With  these  implements, 
so  necessary  for  the  times,  nearly  every 
household  was  supplied.  The  girls  spun, 
and  the  mothers  wove,  from  their  own 
wool,  the  flannels  to  be  dressed  or  pressed 
for  their  best  winter  wear,  and  from  their 
own  flax  the  neat  linen  checks  for  their 
gowns  and  aprons  for  summer.  Then  the 
females  of  that  day  made  their  health, 
tlieir  husbands'  or  fathers'  wealth,  and  es- 
tablished enduring  habits  of  industry  for 
themselves,  as  they  were  passing  along  in 
their  daily  routine  of  hou.sehold  employ- 
ments. And  who  does  not  see  how  much 
better  it  would  in  reality  be  for  the  health, 
constitutions  and  habits  of  the  females  of 
the  present  day,  if  they  were  compelled  to 
resort  to  the  same  way  of  clothing  them- 
selves and  their  families.  P'oreign  man- 
ufactured goods  were  scarcely  u.sed  at  all 
for  clothing  during  the  first  dozen  years  of 
the  settlement.  The  wives  who  came  into 
town  with  their  husbands  might  have 
brought  with  them,  perhaps,  their  calico 
gowns;  and  it  was  known  that  "  Marm 
Davis,"  as  that  pattern  of  hou.sewives,  the 
heli)-meet  of  Col.  Davis,  was  called,  had 
brought  with  her  a  silk  gown — the  one,  it 
is  believed,  in  which  she  was  married  ;  but 
it  is  not  known  that  there  were  any  others. 
The  first  silk  dress  that  was  ever  pur- 
chased and  brought  into  Montpelier  for 
one  of  its  lady  residents  was  one  obtained 
for  the  wife  of  Judge  David  Wing,  and 
was  first  worn  by  her  at  a  meeting  late  in 
1803. 

"  I  well  remember  when  that  first  silk 
gown  made  its  appearance,"  recently  said 
an  aged  lady  cotemiJorary  of  the  favored 
])ossessor  of  the  rare  garment,  to  us  while 
making  encjuires  about  such  matters.  "  It 
was  a  meeting  held  in  one  of  Col.  Davis' 
new  Ijarns.  Hannah,  that  is  Mrs.  Wing, 
came  in  with  it  on,  and  made  quite  a  sen- 
sation among  us,  but  being  so  good  a 
woman,  and  putting  on  no  airs  about  it, 
we  did  not  go  to  envying  her.  We  thought 
it  extravagant,  to  be  sure  ;  but  as  her  hus- 
band had  just  been  elected  Secretary  of 
State,  and  might  wisli  to  take  her  abroad 
with  him,  we  concluded  at  length  that  the 


purchase  might  be  perhaps,  after  all,  (|uite 
a  pardonaljle  act." 

Ribbons  and  laces  were  not  worn  nor 
po.s.se.ssed  by  the  women  ;  and  the  wearing 
of  bonnets,  which  are  thought  to  require 
trimmings  made  of  such  materials,  was 
scarcely  more  fre(juent.  Instead  of  bon- 
nets, they  generally  wore  for  head-dress 
when  going  abroad,  the  more  substantial, 
but  no  less  neat  and  tasteful,  small  fur 
hats,  which  were  then  already  being  man- 
ufactured in  several  of  the  older  towns  in 
the  State.  And  it  was  not  till  a  merchant 
had  established  himself  in  town  that  any 
innovation  was  made  in  these  simple  kinds 
of  female  attire.  Then,  for  the  first  time, 
calico  gowns  became  common — the  best 
qualities  of  which  cost  75  cents  per  yard, 
but  of  so  strong  and  substantial  a  fabric 
that  one  of  them  would  outwear  two,  or 
even  three  of  most  of  those  of  the  present 
day. 

The  men  clre.s.sed  as  plain,  or  plainer. 
Tow  cloth  for  summer,  and  striped  un- 
dressed woolens  for  winter,  were  the  stand- 
ing materials  of  their  ordinary  apparel. 
For  jjublic  occasions,  however,  most  of 
them  managed  to  obtain  one  dress  each, 
made  of  homespun  woolen,  colored  and 
dressed  cloth,  which,  as  they  used  them, 
were  generally  good  for  their  lifetimes. 
The  first  "go-to-meeting"  dresses  of  the 
boys  were  also,  of  course,  domestic  man- 
ufacture, and  generally  of  fustian.  A  new 
fustian  coat  was  a  great  thing  in  the  eyes 
of  a  boy  of  fourteen  in  those  days. 

But  as  theirdays  of  gallantry  approached, 
their  ambition  sometimes  soared  to  a  new 
India  cotton  shirt,  which  then  cost  62 
cents  per  yard,  though  now  not  a  fourth 
of  that  amount.  The  men  wore  fur  caps 
or  felt  hats  for  every-day  use,  but  some  of 
them,  fur  hats  on  public  occasions  ;  and  a 
few  of  the  wealthier  cla.ss,  especially  if 
they  became  what  was  called  public  char- 
acters, bought  themselves  beaver  hats, 
which  stood  in  about  the  .same  relation 
among  the  outfits  of  the  men  as  did  silk 
gowns  among  those  of  the  women,  such 
hats  at  that  time  costing  $30  each.  IJut 
this  was  not  so  very  bad  economy  as  might 
be  supposed,  after  all,  since  one  of  the 
clear  beaver  hats  of  that  day  would  not 
only  wear  through  the  lifetime  of  the 
owner,  but  the  lifetime  of  such  of  his  sons 
as  had  the  luck  to  inherit  it. 

The  ordinary  articles  of  family  food 
were  corn  and  wheat  bread,  potatoes, 
peas,  beans  and  garden  vegetables,  pork, 
fish  and  wild  game.  Sweet-cake,  as  it  was 
called,  was  rarely  made,  and  pastry  was 
almost  wholly  unknown.  Indeed,  we  have 
been  unable  to  learn  that  a  pie  of  any  kind 
was  ever  seen  on  a  table  in  town  till  nearly 


268 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  dozen  years  after  it  was  first  settled. 
About  that  time,  however,  one  of  the 
elder  daughters  of  Col.  Davis,  on  noticing 
some  fine  pumpkins  that  were  brought  to 
the  house  during  the  harvesting,  conceived 
the  ambitious  idea  of  making  a  mess  of 
pumpkin  pies,  and  obtaining  at  last  the 
reluctant  consent  of  her  mother  to  let  her 
make  the  experiment,  she  made  a  batch 
which  took  to  a  charm  with  the  whole  fam- 
ily and  the  several  visitors  invited  to  par- 
take of  the  novel  repast.  After  this, 
pumpkin  pies  became  a  staple  of  the  tea- 
table  on  all  extra  occasions. 

Laboring  men  who,  in  felling  the  forest, 
logging,  or  boiling  .salts,  as  the  first  state 
of  making  potashes  and  pearls  was  called, 
often  went  considerable  distances  from 
their  homes  to  work,  generally  took  their 
dinners  along  with  them  into  the  woods, 
leaving  the  women  to  take  care  of  the 
cattle  and  everything  recjuiring  atten- 
tion about  home.  These  dinners  gener- 
ally consisted  of  baked  or  stewed  pork  and 
beans,  and  not  unfrequently  of  only  bread 
and  raw  salt  pork.  Colonel  Davis  always 
used  to  recommend  to  his  laborers  to  eat 
their  pork  raw  or  without  any  kind  of 
cooking,  contending  that  it  was  more 
healthy  when  eaten  in  that  way  than  in  any 
other.'  Some  of  the  new  hands  that  had 
been  hired  in  by  the  Colonel  at  last,  how- 
ever, rebelled  against  the  practice.  Among 
the  latter  was  Lemuel  Brooks,  the  after- 
wards well-known  Captain  Brooks,  who 
assured  his  fellow-laborers  one  day,  after 
they  had  been  making  their  dinners  on 
raw  pork,  that  he  was  determined  to 
set  his  wits  to  work  and  see  if  he  could 
not,  by  the  next  noon,  get  up  a  more 
christianlike  dinner.  Accordingly  he  came 
on  the  next  morning  with  gun  and  ammu- 
nition, and  just  before  noon  stepped  off 
into  the  neighboring  thickets,  and  shot 
two  or  three  brace  of  partridges,  which,  in 
their  chosen  localities,  were  as  plenty  as 
hens  about  a  farm-house.  And  having 
speedily  plucked  and  dressed  the  birds,  he 
suspended  them  by  the  legs  over  a  fire 
..struck  and  built  for  the  purpose,  with  a 
thick  slice  of  pork  made  to  hang  directly 
above  each,  so  that  the  salt  gravy  should 
drip  upon  or  into  them,  and  moisten  and 
season  them  while  cooking.  As  soon  as 
he  had  thus  prepared  his  meal,  he  hallooed 
to  the  men,  and  in  his  usual  jovial  and 
humorous  manner,  bid  them  come  in  and 
partake  of  his  "  new  invented  dinner  of 
parched  partridges."  And  parched  part- 
ridges thenceforward  became  a  favorite 
meal  among  the  woodmen  of  the  settle- 
ment. 

The   out-door   work,    at   the   period  of 
which  we  have  been  speaking,  was  by  no 


means  all  performed  by  the  male  inhab- 
itants. Wives  and  daughters  considered 
it  no  disparagement  to  go  out  to  work  in 
the  fields,  or  even  into  the  forest,  when- 
ever the  occasion  required  it  at  their  hands. 
They  boiled  salts  and  made  maple  sugar  at 
times  in  the  woods,  and  often  in  busy 
seasons,  worked  with  their  husbands,  fath- 
ers or  brothers,  in  making  hay,  harvesting 
grain,  husking  corn  and  digging  potatoes 
in  the  field.  The  wives  and  daughters  of 
the  rich  and  poor  alike  cheerfully  engaged 
in  all  these  out-door  employments,  when 
tlie  work,  for  want  of  the  necessary  male 
help  or  other  circumstances,  seemed  to  in- 
vite their  assistance.  Even  Colonel  Davis, 
whose  family  was  regarded  as  standing  in 
the  first  position  in  society,  could  be  seen 
leading  his  bevy  of  beautiful  daughters 
into  his  fields  to  pull  flax. 

But  fmgality  in  modes  of  dress,  the 
supplies  of  the  table,  and  other  domestic 
arrangements  for  saving  expenses  and  liv- 
ing within  their  means,  did  not  constitute 
the  whole  of  their  system  of  economy. 
Tlieir  provident  forecast  taught  them  the 
evils  of  debt.  For  they  felt  that  under 
the  depressing  influence  of  that  sort  of 
slavery,  they  could  never  enjoy  that  feel- 
ing of  proud  iudependence  which  they 
carefully  cherished,  and  which  constituted 
the  best  part  of  their  happiness.  They 
rightly  appreciated,  also,  the  bad  moral 
tendencies  of  that  evil,  than  which  scarcely 
nothing  more  silently  and  surely  tends, 
with  its  numberless  temptations,  to  do 
what  we  otherwise  would  not  do,  to  de- 
l^ase  our  best  feelings  and  convictions  as 
men,  and  undermine  our  best  civic  virtues 
as  freemen.  Our  first  settlers,  therefore, 
carefully  avoided  it,  making  their  calcula- 
tions far  ahead  so  to  live,  so  to  purchase, 
and  so  to  enlarge  their  plans  of  improve- 
ment, as  to  keep  out  of  debt,  and  often 
foregoing  the  most  tempting  of  bargains 
rather  than  increase  it. 

To  enable  the  reader  to  estimate  the 
cost  of  living  and  the  profits  of  farming,  as 
well  as  to  appreciate  the  frugality  of  set- 
tlers, it  will  be  well  to  note  a  few  of  the 
prevailing  prices  of  labor,  stock  and  other 
products  of  the  day,  as  well  as  those  of 
the  few  necessary  articles  which  the  set- 
tlers were  compelled  to  import  for  their 
use  and  consumption  in  living,  or  in  pur- 
suing their  ordinary  avocations. 

PRICES  OF  LABOR,  STOCK, EXPORTED 
AND  IMPORTED  ARTICLES. 

The  wages  of  the  best  class  of  laborers 
were' $9.00  per  month,  and  42  to  50  cents 
for  casual  day's  work. 

The  common  price  of  wheat  was  67  cts. 
per  bushel ;    Indian   corn,   50 ;   oats,   25 ; 


MONTPELIER. 


269 


potatoes,  25  ;  best  yoke  of  oxen,  $40.00 ; 
best  horses,  $50;  best  cows,  $25  ;  salts  of 
lye,  $4  to  $5  per  cwt. ;  pork,  in  dressed 
hogs,  $4  to  $6 ;    beef,  averaging  $4. 

Of  articles  imported,  the  prices  were  : 
For  rock  salt,  $3  per  bushel ;  common, 
$2.50;  loaf  sugar,  42  cts.  per  lb. ;  brown, 
17  to  20  cts.  ;  common  W.  I.  molasses, 
$1.17  per  gallon;  green  tea,  $2  per  lb.; 
poorest  Bohea,  50  cts.  per  lb.  ;  nutmegs,  12 
cts.  each  ;  ginger,  34  cts.  per  lb.  ;  pepper, 
75  ;  iron  shovels,  $1.50  each  ;  broad-cloth, 
$8  to  $10  per  yd. ;  E.  I.  cotton  cloth,  62 
cts. ;  calico,  50  to  75  cts.  ;  W.  I.  nmi,  $2 
per  gallon;  dry  salt  fish,  11  cts.  per  lb. 

And  yet,  with  these  extremely  low  pri- 
ces for  their  products,  and  enormously 
high  ones  for  their  imported  necessaries, 
the  settlers,  such  was  their  industry  and 
frugality,  steadily  progressed  along  the 
way  to  independence  and  wealth.  But 
though  the  openings  in  the  forest,  rapidly 
increasing  in  extent  and  number,  the  more 
and  more  highly  cultivated  fields,  the  bet- 
ter and  better  filled  barns,  and  the  con- 
stantly multiph-ing  stock  of  the  barn- 
yards, made  their  yearly  progress  in  thrift 
clearly  obvious  to  all,  yet  the  ratio  of  that 
progress  can  be  accurately  estimated  only 
from  the  financial  statistics  of  the  town. 
And  for  this  purpose  we  subjoin  the  sev- 
eral grand  lists  of  the  town  from  its  or- 
ganization for  the  ne.xt  succeeding  fifteen 
years,  or  to  and  including  1807,  all  taken 
yearly  and  on  the  same  plan. 

GRAND  LISTS  OF  MONTPELIER  FROM  1 792 
TO    1806,  INCLUSIVE. 
1792,  $2,141.67;    1793,  $3,075.00;   1794, 
$4,531.67;     1795.^5.705-83;   1796,  $7,660; 

1797.  $9,794-18.;  1798,110,963.93;  1799, 
$14,538.75;  1800,  $15,390.93;  1801,  $16,- 
979.77;  1802,  $17,437.13;  1803,  $18,126.- 
99;  1804,  $19,310.91;  1805,  $22,920.55; 
1806,  $25,883.80. 

The  increase  of  the  population  of  the 
town,  in  the  meanwhile,  will  be  .seen  by 
the  different  enumerations  of  the  U.  S. 
Census,  the  whole  of  whicli,  as  we  may 
not  find  a  more  convenient  place  for  them, 
we  will  also  here  insert. 

Census  of  the  Town. — By  the  first 
enumeration,  1791,  113;  in  1800,  890; 
1810,  1,877;  1820,  2,308;  1830,  2,985; 
1840,  3,725  ;  1850,  Montpelier,  2,310,  East 
Montpelier,  1,448,  united,  3,758;  i860, 
Montpelier,  2,411,  East  Montpelier,  1,328, 
united,  3,739 ;  1870,  Montpelier,  3,023, 
East  Montpelier,  1,130,  united,  4,153; 
1880,  Montpelier,  3,219,  East  Montpelier, 
972,  united,  4,191. 

This  statement  shows  a  steady  increase 
except  in  i860,  '70  and  '80,  when  East 
Montpelier  lost  materially.     From  1840  to 


i860  the  old*  town  as  a  whole  was  nearly 
stationary,  while  the  present  town,  or  the 
old  village,  has  constantly  increased. 


Part  II.  History  Subsequent  to  the 
Organization  of  the  Town. 

The  strictly  civil  history  of  the  town 
from  its  organization  is  that  of  every  town 
in  Vermont — a  record  of  town  meetings, 
of  roads  laid,  school  districts  established, 
taxes  voted,  cemeteries  provided,  and  lists 
made  of  persons  warned  out  of  town  that 
they  might  not  become  chargeable  to  it  as 
paupers  ;*  of  elections,  national,  state  and 
town,  and  of  annual  reports  and  returns 
required  ;  of  intentions  of  marriage,  mar- 
riages, births  and  deaths — very  incom- 
plete. These  fill  volumes,  and  are  of  no 
use  but  for  occasional  reference,  and  in- 
stead of  these  it  is  deemed  best  to  give  con- 
densed statements,  under  different  heads, 
of  what  has  served  to  make  the  town,  and 
most  to  mark  its  history,  mainly  outside  of 
its  official  records. 

political  history. 

Votes  for  President  fro/n  1828  to  i88o.f 

1828,  John  Quincy  Adams,  (National 
Republican,)  185  ;  Andrew  Jackson,  (Dem- 
ocratic,) 171. 

1832, t  Andrew  Jackson,  (Democratic,) 
284;  Henry  Clay,  (Nat.  Repub.)  163; 
Wm.  Wirt,  (anti-Masonic,)  70. 

1836,  Martin  Van  Buren,  (Democratic,) 
311  ;  Wm.  Henry  Harrison,  (Whig,)  246. 

1840,  Martin  Van  Buren,  (Democratic,) 
348;  Wm.  Henry  Harrison,  Whig,)  340; 
scattering  5. 

1844.  James  K.  Polk,  (Democratic,) 
348;  Henry  Clay,  (Whig.)  250;  James  G. 
Birney,  (Abolition,)  55. 

1848, §   Zachary  Taylor,   (Whig,)  403; 


•These  lists  contain  llie  names  of  tlie  wealtliiest  as 
well  as  of  tlie  poorest  citizens,  witli  tlieii-  families,  Ir- 
respective of  character,  color  or  condition,  and  were 
intended  to  embrace  every  person  wlio  at  the  lime 
liad  not  become  lettally  chargeable  to  the  town  in  case 
aid  or  support  slioiild  be  needed. 

t  The  first  recorded  vote  is  that  of  1828,  the  presiden- 
tial electors  having  been  previously  elected  by  tlie 
General  Assembly. 

J  There  is  no  record  of  presidential  vote,  and  the 
votes  given  above  were  for  Slate  officers  that  year, 
being  llie  nearest  approximation  to  the  presidential 
vote. 

§Atallof  the  elections  thus  marked  [ijl,  members 
and  officers  ot  the  Legislature  voted  in  Montpelier. 


270 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Lewis   Cass,   (Democratic,)    333 ;  Martin 
Van  Buren,  (Free-Soil,)  249. 

After  the  Division  of  t/ie  Town. 

1852,  Winfield  Scott,  (Whig,)  388; 
Franklin  Pierce,  (Democratic,)  222  ;  John 
P.  Hale,  (Abolition,)  171. 

1856, §  John  C.  Freemont,  (Republi- 
can,) 726;  James  Buchanan,  (Democratic,) 
198 ;  scattering,  i. 

i860, §  Abraham  Lincoln,  (Republican,) 
541  ;  Stephen  A.  Douglass,  (Democrat- 
ic,) 180;  Edward  Everett,  (Conservative,) 
3 ;  John  C.  Breckenridge,  (pro-slavery 
Dem.)  2. 

1864,  §  Abraham  Lincoln,  (Republican,) 
664;    Geo.    B.  McClellan,   (Democratic,) 

157- 

1868,  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  (Republican,) 
416;  Horatio  Seymour,  (Democratic,)  148. 

1872,  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  (Republican,) 
496;  Horace  Greeley,  (Liberal,)  223; 
Charles  O'Connor,  (Democrat,)  3. 

1876,$  Rutherford  B.  Hayes,  (Republi- 
can,) 577  ;  Samuel  J.  Tilden,  (Democrat,) 

423- 

1880,  James  A.  Garfield,  (Republican,) 
651  ;W.  S.  Hancock,  (Democrat,)  382; 
scattering,  2. 

In  ten  of  the  above  elections  the  ma- 
jority of  votes  cast  in  Montpelier  was  for 
the  candidate  elected ;  in  one  instance  the 
plurality  was  for  the  candidate  elected  ;  in 
one  instance  the  plurality  and  in  two  in- 
stances the  majority  was  for  candidates  who 
were  not  elected.  In  10  elections  out  of  14, 
therefore,  the  preference  of  Montpelier 
has  coincided  with  that  of  the  nation ; 
four  times  on  the  Democratic  side,  and  six 
times  on  the  Republican  side. 
Votes  for  Governor  front  1792  to  1880. 

1792,  Thomas  Chittenden  24. 

1793,  Thomas  Chittenden  23,  Samuel 
Hitchcock  2,  Parley  Davis  i. 

1794,  Thomas  Chittenden  26,  Elijah 
Paine  25,  Nathaniel  Niles  i. 

1795,  Thomas  Chittenden  27,  Lsaac 
Tichenor  19. 

1796,  Isaac  Tichenor  24,  Thos.  Chitten- 
den 17,  Paul  Brigham  i. 

1797,  Elijah  Paine  22,  Samuel  Hitch- 
cock 6,  David  Wing,  Jr.,  3,  Lewis  R. 
Morris  i. 


1798-99,  Unanimous  for  Isaac  Tichenor, 
the  votes  being  47  and  64. 

1800,  Isaac  Tichenor  59,  Paul  Brigham 
2,  Edward  Lamb  i. 

1801,  Isaac  Tichenor  51,  Paul  Brigham 
I,  Israel  Smith  i. 

1802,  Isaac  Tichenor  49,  Israel  Smith 
13,  Joseph  Wing  i. 

1803,  Isaac  Tichenor  59,  Jonathan  Rob- 
inson 12. 

1804,  Isaac  Tichenor  65,  Jona.  Robin- 
son 28,  Lewis  R.  Morris  2,  Jonas  Galu- 
sha  I. 

1805,  Isaac  Tichenor  69,  Jona.  Robin- 
son 16,  Israel  Smith  i. 

1806,  Isaac  Tichenor  58,  Israel  Smith 
23,  James  Fisk  i. 

1807,  Isaac  Tichenor  68,  Israel  Smith  21. 

1808,  Lsaac  Tichenor  117,  Israel  Smith 
109;  Wm.  Chamberlain  2. 

1809,  Jonas  Galusha  155,  Isaac  Tichenor 
112.  Paul  Brigham  4,  Charles  Marsh  and 
Edward  Lamb  i  each. 

1810,  Jonas  Galusha  147,  Isaac  Tichenor 
107,  Paul  Brigham,  Elijah  Paine  and 
James  Fisk  i  each. 

181 1,  Jonas  Galusha  150,  Martin  Chit- 
tenden 103,  Paul  Brigham  2,  Wm.  Cham- 
berlain and  Benjamin  Swan  i  each. 

1812,  Jonas  Galusha  163,  Martin  Chit- 
tenden 147,  Paul  Brigham  2,  Timothy 
Merrill  and  Salvin  Collins  i  each. 

18 1 3,  Jonas  Galusha  172,  Martin  Chit- 
tenden 150,  Paul  Brigham  and  William 
Chamberlain  2  each,  Chauncey  Langdon  i. 

1814,  Jonas  Galusha  163,  Martin  Chit- 
tenden 156,  Wm.  Chamberlain  and  Ed- 
ward Lamb  i  each. 

181 5,  Martin  Chittenden  175,  Jonas  Ga- 
lusha 171,  Paul  Brigham  and  Nahum  Kel- 
ton  I  each. 

1816,  Jonas  Galushanone,  Saml.  Strong 
none;  number  of  votes  not  recorded. 

1817,  Jonas  Galusha  147,  Isaac  Tichenor 
72. 

i8i8-''i9,  Jonas  Galusha  155,  Charles 
Marsh  i  ;  same  each  year. 

1820,  unanimous  for  Richard  Skinner; 
191  votes  cast. 

i82i-'22,  Richard  Skinner  172,  Dudley 
Chase  2  ;  same  both  years. 

1823,  Cornelius  P.  Van  Ness  145. 


MONTPELIER. 


271 


1824,  Cornelius  P.  Van  Ness  126,  Sam- 
uel C.  Crafts  I. 

1825,  Cornelius  P.  Van  Ness  227,  Sam- 
uel C.  Crafts  5,  Wm.  A  Griswold  i. 

1826,  Ezra  Butler  189,  Lemuel  Whitney 
56,  Joel  Doolittle  2,  Samuel  C.  Crafts  i. 

1827,  Ezra  Butler  359;  opposition  vote 
not  published ;  no  town  record. 

1828,  Samuel  C.  Crafts  187,  Joel  Doo- 
little 2. 

1829,  Samuel  C.  Crafts  190,  Joel  Doo- 
little 74,  Heman  Allen  11,  Chauncey  Lang- 
don  2,  Ira  Allen  and  Silas  Crafts  i  each. 

1830,  Samuel  C.  Crafts  181,  Ezra  Meach 
172,  Wm.  A.  Palmer  37. 

183 1,  Ezra  Meach  234,  Heman  Allen 
141, Wm.  A.  Palmer  77,  Samuel  C.  Crafts  i. 

1832,  Ezra  Meach  284,  Samuel  C.  Crafts 
163,  Wm.  A.  Palmer  70. 

1833,  John  Roberts  216,  Wm.  A.  Palmer 
193,  Ezra  Meach  114,  Horatio  Seymour 
18,  James  Bell  3,  D.  A.  A.  Buck  i. 

1834,  Wm.  C.  Bradley  347,  Wm.  A. 
Palmer  154,  Horatio  Seymour  1 18,  Samuel 
C.  Crafts  I. 

1835,  Wm.  C.  Bradley  302,  Charles 
Paine  115,  Wm.  A.  Palmer  52,  Wm.  A. 
Griswold  and  Dudley  Chase  i  each. 

1836,  Wm.  C.  Bradley  375,  Silas  H. 
Jennison  281,  Wm.  Slade  i. 

1837,  Wm.  C.  Bradley  346,  Silas  H. 
Jennison  292. 

1838,  Wm.  C.  Bradley  388,  .Silas  H. 
Jennison  305. 

1839,  Nathan  Smilie  405,  Silas  H.  Jen- 
nison 340,  Timothy  Goodale  3,  Lyman 
Fitch  I. 

1840,  Paul  Dillingham,  Jr.,  428,  Silas  H. 
Jennison  386,  Solomon  Sias  5,  scatter- 
ing 3- 

1841,  Nathan  Smilie  445,  Charles  Paine 
261,  Titus  Hutchinson  43,  Samuel  C. 
Crafts  and  H.  F.  Janes  i  each. 

1842,  Nathan  Smilie  430,  Charles  Paine 
272,  Charles  K.  Williams  22,  C.  B.  Wil- 
liams I. 

1843,  Daniel  Kellogg  404,  John  Mat- 
tocks 248,  Charles  K.  Williams  26. 

1844,  Daniel  Kellogg  420,  Wm.  Slade 
318,  Wm.  R.  Shafter  70,  scattering  i. 

1845,  Daniel  Kellogg  382,  Wm.  Slade 
238,  Wm.  R.  Shafter  83,  scattering  2. 


1846,  John  Smith  385,  Horace  Eaton 
269,  Lawrence  Brainerd99,Heman  Allen2. 

1847,  Paul  Dillingham,  Jr.,  366,  Horace 
Eaton  255,  Lawrence  Brainerd  100,  Dan- 
iel Kellogg  4,  Jedediah  H.  Harris  i. 

1848,  Paul  Dillingham,  Jr.,  376,  Carlos 
Coolidge  258,  Oscar  L.  Shafter  118. 

After  the  Division  of  the  Town. 

1849,  Carlos  Coolidge  248, Horatio  Need- 
ham  248. 

1850,  Charles  K.  Williams  259,  Lucius 
B.  Peck  236,  John  Roberts  12. 

1851,  Charles  K.  Williams  238,  Tim- 
othy P.  Redfield  223,  John  S.  Robinson  14. 

1852,  Erastus  Fairbanks  242,  John  S. 
Robinson  125,  Lawrence  Brainerd  89. 

1853,  Erastus  Fairbanks  220,  John  S. 
Robinson  173,  Lawrence  Brainerd  68, 
Stephen  Royce  i . 

1854,  Stephen  Royce  248,  Merritt  Clark 
165,  Lawrence  Brainerd  9,  Wm.  C.  Kit- 
tredge  i. 

1855,  Stephen  Royce  378,  Merritt  Clark 
144,  Wm.  R.  Shafter  3. 

1856,  Ryland  Fletcher  284,  Henry  Keyes 
155,  scattering  4. 

1857,  Ryland  Fletcher  197,  Henry  Keyes 
100,  scattering  2. 

1858,  Hiland  Hall  236,  Henry  Keyes 
124,  Wm.  R.  Shafter  3,  Philip  C.  Tucker  i. 

1859,  Hiland  Hall  265,  John  G.  Saxe 
123. 

i860,  Erastus  Fairbanks  326,  John  G. 
Saxe  140,  Robert  Harvey  4. 

1 861,  Andrew  Tracy  199,  Frederick 
Holbrook  146,  Wm.  R.  Shafter  2,  Hiram 
Atkins  I. 

1862,  Frederick  Holbrook  173,  Paul 
Dillingham  19,  B.  H.Smalley  6,  Levi  Un- 
derwood 5,  scattering  4. 

1863,  John  G.  Smith  318,  Timothy  P. 
Redfield  67.  ' 

1864,  John  G.  Smith  399,  T.  P.  Red- 
field  97,  scattering  i. 

1865,  Paul  Dillingham  268,  Charles  N. 
Davenport  90. 

1866,  Paul  Dillingham  327,  Charles  N. 
Davenport  125. 

1867,  John  B.  Page  288,  John  L.  Ed- 
wards 112,  B.  B.  Smalley  i. 

1868,  John  B.  Page  457,  John  L.  Ed- 
wards 175. 


272 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


1869,  Peter  T.  Washburn  301,  Homer 
W.  Heaton  138. 

1870,  John  W.  Stewart  322,  Homer  W. 
Heaton  167. 

1872,  Julius  Converse  424,  Abram  B. 
Gardner  265. 

1874,  Asahel  Peck  301,  W.  H.  H.  Bing- 
ham 297. 

1876,  Horace  Fairbanks  503,  W.  H.  H. 
Bingham  369,  scattering  i . 

1878,  Redfield  Proctor  37S,  W.  H.  H. 
Bingham  258,  scattering  il • 

1880,  Roswell  Farnham  540,  E.J.  Phelj^s 
290,  scattering  i. 

From  the  above  record  it  appears  that 
the  town  was  Federal  in  politics  from  its 
organization  until  1809,  the  year  after  the 
election  of  Mr.  Madison  as  President : 
that  in  1809  and  until  18 15  the  Republicans 
of  the  Jeffersonian  school  were  in  the  ma- 
jority;  and  that  in  1815,  the  Federalists 
obtained  a  small  majority.  The  vote  of 
1 81 6  is  not  to  be  found  in  the  town  re- 
cords, and  search  has  been  made  for  it  in 
the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  but 
without  finding  it.  The  representative 
elected  in  that  year  was  a  Jeffersonian  Re- 
publican, and  in  1817  the  town  was  of  the 
same  politics  by  a  vote  of  two  to  one. 
From  that  period  there  was  no  serious  di- 
vision in  State  politics  for  12  years.  It 
was  "the  era  of  good  feeling,"  following 
the  .successful  close  of  the  war  of  181 2  with 
Great  Britain,  and  the  people  of  the  town 
were,  with  rare  exceptions,  substantially 
unanimous.  On  the  election  of  Gen.  Jack- 
son, a  new  organization  of  two  political 
parties  was  made — known  as  the  National 
Republican  and  the  Democratic  parties — 
and  each  was  composed  of  men  gathered 
from  the  old  Federal  and  Republican  ranks. 
These  \i»sre  speedily  followed  by  the  anti- 
masonic  party,  and  the  votes  from  1830  to 
1835  inclusive,  reveal  the  existence  of  the 
three  parties  in  Montpelier,  and  also  that 
the  Democratic  party  was  in  the  ascendan- 
cy. In  1836  and  until  1841,  there  were 
but  two  parties.  Democratic  and  Whig, 
the  latter  being  in  the  minority.  In  1841, 
the  anti-slavery  party  was  developed,  and 
three  organized  parties  were  in  existence 
until  the  division  of  the  town  January  i, 


1849 :  but  in  all  this  period  the  Democrat- 
ic party  was  ascendant,  and  in  fact  elected 
the  town  officers  in  every  year  after  1830 
until  1849.  ^i^  the  governor  vote  in  1848, 
the  old  town  was  exactly  balanced  between 
the  Democrats  on  the  one  side  and  the 
Whigs  aud  Anti-Slavery  men  on  the  other. 

AFTER  THE  DIVISION  OF  THE  TOWN. 

In  1849,  the  number  of  parties  was  again 
reduced  to  two,  by  a  fusion  of  the  Demo- 
crats and  Anti-Slavery  men  into  what  was 
called  the  Freesoil  party,  and  the  town  was 
exactly  tied  on  the  vote  for  Governor,  but 
it  elected  the  first  Whig  representative  in 
the  person  of  the  late  Jackson  A.  Vail, 
Esq.,  a  lawyer  and  legislator  of  great  abili- 
ty. From  that  period  until  the  formation 
of  the  R'epublican  party  in  1854,  the  Whigs 
uniformly  prevailed,  as  the  Republicans 
have  done  since  1854,  the  election  of  Mar- 
cus D.  Gilman  excepted. 

TOWN    REPRESENTATIVES     FROM     1 792     tO 
1882. 

1792  to  1796,  5  years,  Jacob  Davis; 
1797,  8,  1800,  01,  4  yrs.,  David  Wing,  Jr. ; 
1799,  1802,  Parley  Davis;  1803,  10,  Jo- 
seph Woodworth ;  1804,  14,  15,  Edward 
Lamb;  1805  to  1809,  Cyrus  Ware;  1811, 
12,  Timothy  Merrill ;  1813,  Joseph  Howes, 
after  which  for  some  years  he  was  in  the 
military  service  of  the  United  States ; 
1816,  17,  18,  20,  29,  Nahum  Kelton ;  1819, 
George  Worthington ;  1821,  22,  23,  26, 
Araunah  Waterman;  1824,  5,  Samuel 
Prentiss;  1827,  8,  30,  William  UiDham ; 
1831,  32,  2>1)^  Azel  Spalding;  1834,  5, 
Wm.  Billings;  1836,  7,  Lucius  B.  Peck; 
1838,  9,  Royal  Wheeler;  1840,  41,  Hora- 
tio N.  Baylies;  1842,  3,  Addison  Peck; 
1844,  5,  Jeremiah  T.  Marston ;  1846,  7, 
Charles  Clark;   1848,  Homer  W.  Heaton. 

REPRESENTATIVES    AFTER  THE  DIVISION 
OF  THE  TOWN. 

1849,  50,  Jackson  A.  Vail;  1851,  2, 
Hezekiah  H.Reed;  1853,  Eliakim  P.  Wal- 
ton, recorded  as  E.  P.  Walton  Jr. ;  1854, 
Abijah  Keith;  1855,  Elisha  P.  Jewett; 
1856,  7,  Ferrand  F.  Merrill;  1858,  59, 
George  W.  Collamer;  i860,  61,  George 
C.  Shepard  ;  1862,  3,  Charles  Reed  ;  1864, 
5,  Whitman  G.  Ferrin;  1866,  7,  Joel  Fos- 


MONTPELIER 


273 


ter,  Jr. ;  1868,  9,  James  R.  Langdon  ;  1870, 
71,  Joseph  Poland  ;  1872,  3,  Parley  P.  Pit- 
kin ;  1874,  5,  Marcus  D.  Gilman ;  1876, 
7,  Charles  T.  Sabin ;  1878,  79,  Hiram  A. 
Huse;  1880,  81,  B.  F.  Fifield,— the  six 
last  for  biennial  sessions. 

CITIZENS  OF  MONTPELIER  WHO  HAVE  HELD 
CIVIL  OFFICES  IN  THE  GOVERNMENT  OF 
THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Electors  of  President  and  Vice  -  Presi- 
dent— 1836,  Edward  Lamb;  1840,  Joseph 
Reed  ;  1852,  Ezekiel  P.  Walton  ;  1872, 
Elisha  P.  Jewett.  Augustine  Clark  and 
Wm.  P.  Briggs  also  held  this. office,  but 
previous  to  their  residence  in  Montpelier. 

Senators  in  Congress — Samuel  Prentiss, 
1831  to  42,  II  years;  William  Upham, 
1843  to  53,  10  years. 

Members  of  Congress — Lucius  B.  Peck, 
1847  to  51,  4  years;  Eliakim  P.  Walton, 
1857  to  63,  6  years;  Charles  W.  Willard, 
1869  to  75,  6  years. 

U.  S.  District  Judge — Samuel  Prentiss, 
1S42  to  56,  14  years, 

(7.  S.  District  Attorneys — Lucius  B. 
Peck,  1853  to  57;  B.  Franklin  Fifield, 
1869  to  1881. 

United  States  Marshal —  George  W. 
Barker,  1835  to  37. 

Clerk  of  U.  S.  Circuit  and  District 
Courts — Edward  H.  Prentiss,  1842  to  59, 
17  years. 

Register  of  the  U.  S.  Treasury — Stod- 
dard B.  Colby,  appointed  in  1866,  and 
died  while  in  office. 

Post-Ojfce  Depart/nciU — Charles  Lyman 
was  appointed  clerk  in  the  Dead  Letter 
Office  in  1861,  and  is  now  in  that  depart- 
ment ;  also  Miss  Emma  Camp. 

Treasury  Department  and  General  Laiid 
Office — Henry  Howes. 

Agents  for  Pay itig Pensions — Azel  Spald- 
ing, Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  George  Howes, 
Stephen  Thomas.  The  office  was  re- 
moved to  New  Hampshire  while  Gen. 
Thomas  was  incumbent. 

Collector  of  Internal  Revemte — Joseph 
Poland,  Sept.  1862  to  Mar.  69;  C.  S. 
Dana,  Mar.  1869 to  81  ;  J.  C.  Stearns,  from 
July  I,  1881. 

In  this  list  might  be  included  the  roll  of 
postmasters,  sundry  inspectors  in  the  rev- 


enue department,  and  the  names  of  a  few 
who  have  been  employed  in  subordinate 
offices  at  Washington,  but  a  correct  list  is 
impracticable. 

CITIZENS  OF  MONTPELIER  WHO  HAVE  HELD 
CIVIL  OFFICES  IN  THE  STATE  GOVERN- 
MENT. 

Members  of  the  Council  of  Cetisors — 
Nicholas  Baylies,  1813;  Joshua  Y.  Vail, 
1820;  Ezekiel  P.  Walton,  1827;  Joseph 
Reed,  1834;  Hezekiah  H.  Reed,  1841  ; 
Joseph  A.  Prentiss,  1862;  Charles  Reed, 
1869. 

Members  of  Constitutional  Conventions — 
Jacob  Davis,  1793;  Joseph  Howes,  1814; 
Darius  Boyden,  1822 ;  Stephen  Foster, 
1828;  Nahum  Kelton,  1836;  Jeremiah  T. 
Marston,  1843.  1850;  Oramel  H.  Smith, 
1857;  Eliakim  P.  Walton,  1870. 

Councillors  previous  to  the  State  Senate 
in  1836 — Nicholas  Baylies,  1814  to  15; 
George  Worthington,  1827  to  31. 

State  Senators — Araunah  Waterman, 
1836-8  ;  Wooster  Sprague,  1842,  4;  Or- 
amel H.  Smith,  1845,  7;  Charles  G.  East- 
man, 1851,  3;  Joseph  Poland,  1858,  60; 
Charles  W.  Willard,  i860,  62 ;  Roderick 
Rjchardson,  1862,  64  ;  Charles  Reed,  1864, 
7 ;  Charles  Dewey,  1867,  70;  Eliakim  P. 
Walton,  1874  to  1878. 

State  Treasurers — Augustine  Clark,  1 833 
to  37;  John  Spalding,  1841  to  46;  Elisha 
P.  Jewett,  1846;  George  Howes,  1847  to 
53  ;  John  A.  Page,  1853  ;  and  again  elected 
in  1866,  and  is  still  in  office. 

Secretaries  of  State — David  Wing,  Jr., 
1802  to  6;  Timothy  Merrill,  1831  to  36; 
Chauncey  L.  Knapp,  1836  to  41  ;  James 
McM.  Shafter,  1842  to  49;  Ferrand  F. 
Merrill,  1849  to  53;  Daniel  P.  Thompson, 
1853  to  55;  Charles  W.  Willard,  1855  to 
57;  Geo.  W.  Bailey,  Jr.,  1861  to  65. 

Secretary  of  Governor  and  Council — 
George  B.  Manser,  1832  to  36. 

Secretary  of  Civil  and  Military  Affairs — 
George  B.  Man.ser,  1836  to  41. 

Clerks  of  House  of  Representatives — 
Timothy  Merrill,  1822  to  31;  Oramel  H. 
Smith,  ^r<?  tem.,  1835;  Ferrand  F.  Mer- 
rill, 1838  to  49;  George  R.  Thompson, 
1856  to  58. 


35 


274 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


yittlges  of  the  Supreme  Court — Samuel 
Prentiss,  1825  to  29,  and  chief  justice  one 
year;  Nicholas  Baylies,  1831  to  33;  Isaac 
F.  Rodtield,  1836  to  59,  24  years,  and 
chief  justice  8  years  ;  Asahel  Peck,  circuit 
court  1S51  to  56,  Supreme  Court,  1S60  to 
72.  13  years;  Timothy  P.  Retitield.  1872. 
and  is  in  office. 

yudi^vs  of  the  County  Court — Da\id 
Wing,  Jr.,  Caledonia  County  Court,  1797- 
1807,  10  years;  Cyrus  Ware,  chief  judge  of 
Caledonia  County,  1808  to  1 1  ;  Salvin  Col- 
lins, Jefferson  (now  Washington)  County, 
181 1.  12;  Joseph  Howes,  1819  to  27; 
Shubael  Wheeler.  1827  to  31  ;  JohnSp.ald- 
ing,  1840;  Daniel  Baldwin.  1846  to  8. 

State's  Attorneys — Timothy  iMerrill.  18 1 1 
to  13,  1815  to  22,  9  years;  Nicholas  Bay- 
lies. 1813.  14,  25;  Wm.  Upham,  1829; 
Azel  Spalding,  1830  to  35;  Homer  W. 
Heaton.  1839,  41,  60,  61  ;  Or.imel  H. 
Smith.  1S42,  43,  44;  Chiules  Recti.  1847- 
8;  Stoddard  B.  Colby,  1850,  51  ;  Ferrand 
F.  Merrill,  1854-56;  Clarence  H.  Pitkin, 
1880.  and  is  now  in  office. 

futfi^es  of  rrohaie  Court — David  Har- 
rington, 1811,  1812;  Salvin  Collins,  1815 
to  1820;  Jeduthan  Loomis,  J820  to  1830; 
Joseph  Reed,  1830  to  1833;  Rawsel  R. 
Keith.  1833  to  1836;  Daniel  P.  Thomp- 
son, 1837,  38,  39;  C.eorge  Worthington. 
1840;  Azel  Spalding.  1842  to  45;  Jacob 
Scult,  1850,  51  ;  Joseph  Poland.  1852,  53; 
Nelson  A.  Chase,  1854,  55;  Timothy  R. 
IMerrill,  i860  to  70. 

Clerks  of  Supreme  ami  County  Courts — 
C.eorge  Rich.  181 1  to  19,  and  clerk  of  the 
Supreme  Court  only,  1819,  20;  Joshua  Y. 
\'ail,  clerk  of  County  Court,  1819,  20,  and 
of  both  courts.  1821  to  39,  18  years;  Still- 
man  Churchill.  1839  ^o  44:  Daniel  P. 
Thompson.  1844.  45 :  Jackson  A.  \'ail, 
1849;  Shubael  Wheeler,  1846  to  9,  50  to 
58.  1 1  years ;  Luther  Newconib,  1858  to 
77.  19  years:  Melville  E.  Sniilie,  from 
1877,  and  still  in  office. 

///{,■//  Sher//fs — Ck-orge  Worthington. 
1814;  Rawsel  R.  Keith,  18251032;  Isaiah 
Silver,  1840;  Andrew  A.  Sweet,  1841,  42; 
C.eorge  W.  Barker.   1843  to  46;  Addison 


I.  W.  Brown,  1871  ;  John  L.  Tuttle.  1877. 
and  still  in  office. 

BUSINKSS    HISTORY. 

From  the  peculiar  location  of  Montpelier 
vilhige,  in  a  basin  into  which  all  the  main 
roads  converged  through  river  \alle\s  from 
the  north  and  the  south,  the  east  and  the 
west,  it  has  from  the  beginning  been  an 
important  business  place,  tempting  to 
merchants  and  professional  men,  and  re- 
paying good  endea\ors  with  abunilant 
success.  Not  long  before  his  tlcath.  the 
late  venerable  Arthur  Post  wick,  oi  Jer- 
icho, informed  the  writer  that  in  his  early 
career  as  a  business  man,  Montpelier,  in- 
stead of  his  nearer  neighbor  Burlington,  was 
the  place  where  he  purchased  his  gooils. 
thus  showing  that  Montpelier  merchants 
found  customers  even  in  the  valley  of  Lake 
Champlain.  as  they  did  also  through  the  cen- 
tral part  of  the  State,  and  north  to  Canada 
line.  Burlington  had  the  advantage  in 
trade  tor  all  articles  brought  by  water 
from  Canada,  but  not  until  1830,  after  the 
construction  of  the  Champlain  canal,  diil 
the  population  of  Burlington,  which  is  as- 
sumed as  a  measure  of  business  for  the 
purpose  of  this  comparison,  exceed  that  of 
Montpelier.  This  is  the  more  remarkable 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  Burlington  is  by 
five  or  six  years  the  older  town,  and  at  the 
outset  in  1791  had  a  population  nearly 
three  times  as  large  as  Montpelier.  Tlie 
population  of  the  two  towns  from  i/Oi  to 
1840  was  as  follows  : 

Burlington  1791, 332;  1800,815;  1810. 
1690;  1820,2111;  1830,3226;  1S40.  4271. 

Montpelier,  1791,  113;  1800,  890;  1810, 
1877;  1820.  230S;  1830,2985;  1840,3725. 

From  1791  to  1820  the  advance  of  Mont- 
pelier w;xs  the  most  rapid ;  but  since  the 
opening  of  the  Champlain  canal,  and  the 
railroads,  and  more  recently,  by  the  supe- 
rior energy  and  wisdom  of  Burlington  in 
establishing  manufactures  on  a  large  scale, 
the  "Queen  City"  has  tar  outstripped  not 
onlv  Montpelier  but  all  of  her  neighbors 
except  Rutland. 

MANUFACTURES. 

Lest  the  above  tribute  to  the  enterprise 
and  sa^acitv  of  Burlins^ton  be  taken  as  a 


Peck.  1846,  47;  Joseph  W.  Howes,  1849;  Lensure  of  Montpelier,  it  is  necessary  to 


MON'l'l'ia.lJOR. 


275 


recall  the  fact  that  in  the  early  history  of 
the  town,  and  for  several  years,  her  busi- 
ness men  were  as  enteri)risinj;,  and  even 
as  daring,  in  respect  to  manufactures  as  to 
merchandize.  It  was  the  misfortune,  how- 
ever, of  the  most  considerable  enterprises 
to  i)e  baalked  by  fire  or  flood,  and  of  others 
by«changes  in  modes  of  manufacture — as 
of  hats,  ready  made  clothing,  and  machine- 
made  boots  and  shoes, and  household  furni- 
ture, until  at  last  capitalists  were  dissuad- 
ed from  every  adventure  of  the  kind,  and 
have  turned  their  surplus  capital  into  in- 
vestments in  real  estate  abroad.  United 
States  bonds,  in  banking  and  insurance 
companies  at  home.  For  capitalists  mere- 
ly, this  is  perhaps  the  most  prudent  course  ; 
but  for  the  town,  for  its  growth  in  popula- 
tion and  business,  it  is  unfortunate.  The 
earliest  necessities  of  the  .settlers  of  the 
town  and  vicinity  were  .saw-mills,  for  lum- 
ber to  construct  their  dwellii.gs,  and  grist- 
iniils  to  prepare  materials  for  food  for  man 
and  beast.  These  were  first  provided  on  the 
falls  of  the  North  liranch,  and  were  burnt 
in  March,  1826.  Mills  of  each  .sort  were 
also  erected  on  the  falls  of  the  Winooski, 
and  the  grist-mill  owned  by  Col.  James  II. 
Langdon  was  destroyed  by  a  flood.  Mar. 
25,  1826.  This  mill  was  rebuilt  by  Col. 
Langdon,  and  was  sub.sequently  enlarged 
by  his  son,  James  R.  Langdon,  into  a 
flouring  mill  of  the  first  class,  with  a  capac- 
ity for  250  barrels  per  day.  A  profitable  bus- 
ness  was  done  in  this  mill  for  several  years, 
but  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Mont- 
pelier  Manufacturing  Company  and  is  now 
used  for  other  purposes.  The  saw-mill  on 
tile  same  falls  was  burnt  in  Oct.  1834,  was 
re])uilt,  and  is  now  used  by  the  same  compa- 
ny. A  fourth  grist-mill,  erected  by  James 
K.  Langdon,  is  now  owned  and  run  by  Mr. 
K.  W.  Bailey. 

The  superabundance  of  the  production 
of  grain  in  early  days  led  to  another 
species  of  manufacture,  which  would  hardly 
be  tolerated  in  these  days.  In  1805,  a 
distillery  of  spirituous  liquors  was  estab- 
lished, and  was  run  for  a  few  years,  when 
it  was  converted  into  a  manufactory  of 
earthen  ware,  which  was  continued  until 
stone   and    tin    ware   superseded  earthen. 


In  1824,  another  distillery  was  started,  to 
use  up  surplus  grain  in  store ;  but  in  2 
years  the  grain  was  disposed  of  and  the 
still  was  abandoned. 

Another  necessity  from  the  beginning 
was  tanneries  of  leather,  and  the  first  was 
established  early  in  the  present  century  by 
Elijah  Witherell  and  Silas  Cobb,  which 
has  been  succeeded  by  others.  Thomas 
Dodge,  an  apprentice  to  Witherell,  stole 
his  indentures  of  apprenticeship,  left  his 
employer,  and  started  a  small  establish- 
ment, in  which  Dodge  struggled  a  while, 
and  gave  up  the  business  for  shoemaking. 
Still  another  large  tannery  was  established 
in  later  years,  and  is  now  successfully  run 
by  Peck  &  Johonnott,  and  Peck  l^  Cum- 
mings  are  in  the  same  business. 

The  clothing-mill,  as  it  was  called,  or 
mill  for  wool-carding,  fulling,  dyeing  and 
dressing  cloth,  was  another  necessity  when 
the  frugal  and  industrious  housewives  were 
obliged  to  si)in  and  weave  their  own  wool. 
Of  these  there  were  two,  which  were  con- 
tinued until  home-made  cloth  gave  way  to 
the  handsomer  jiroductions  of  the  power- 
looms. 

The  most  useful  and  promising  under- 
taking, by  way  of  manufactures,  was  by 
Sylvanus  Baldwin,  in  the  erection  of  a 
cotton  mill  in  18 10.  From  a  memorial  to 
Congress  in  1832,  signed  by  the  distin- 
guished Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Albert 
Gallatin,  it  appears  that  "as  early  as  the 
"year  1810,  there  were,  north  of  the  Po- 
"  tomac,  50  mills  for  sijinning  cotton  in 
"operation,  and  25  more  that  went  into 
"operation  the  ensuing  year.  The  weav- 
"  ing  business  had  commenced,  but  was 
"  not  so  far  advanced."  Baldwin's  cotton 
mill  at  Montpelier  was  therefore  among 
the  first  fifty  in  the  country,  and  moreover 
it  was  among  the  few  that  had  attained  the 
dignity  of  weaving  cotton  yarn  into  sheet- 
ings and  shirtings.  This  was  5  years  be- 
fore the  first  power-loom  in  America  was 
set  in  motion,  (in  1815,)  at  Waltham, 
Mass.  Having  established  this  mill,  Mr. 
Baldwin  joined  with  Klisha  Town  in  the 
invention  and  construction  of  a  l(.)om  for 
spinning  flax  and  silk  l)y  water-power,  with 
a  model  of  which   he   went  to  Europe,  in 


276 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  hope  of  winning  a  handsome  premium 
offered  for  such  a  machine  by  the  first  Na- 
poleon. This  enterprise  failed  through 
the  mischances  of  war.  In  Mr.  Baldwin's 
absence,  the  mill  was  run  successfully  by 
his  brother,  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  on 
whose  authority  this  account  is  given. 
On  the  return  of  the  owner,  the  cotton- 
mill  was  sold  to  David  Harrington,  and  in 
December,  18 13,  it  was  destroyed  by  fire. 
The  first  and  the  last  owner  were  then 
crippled  in  means,  and  this  enterprise  was 
perforce  abandoned. 

At  a  later  date  a  similar  enterprise  was 
undertaken  by  Araunah  Waterman  and 
Seth  Parsons,  about  1820,  who  erected  a 
large  and  well-appointed  woolen  factory 
for  its  day.  It  was  operated  for  a  time, 
but  that,  too,  was  burned.  Mar.  22,  1826, 
with  the  loss  of  the  life  of  Robert  Patter- 
son, one  of  the  operators,  and  nearly  fatal 
injury  to  Araunah  Waterman  and  Joel 
Mead.  A  second  woolen  factory  was 
built  in  1837-8,  by  Col.  H.  N.  Baylies, 
which  ultimately  was  converted  into  lum- 
ber-works by  A.  W.  Wilder  &  Co.  Still 
another  woolen  factory  was  built  and  op- 
erated at  West  Montpelier  at  a  recent  date, 
and  this  was  burned. 

Among  the  early  manufacturing  estab- 
lishments was  an  oil -mill,  built  by  Col. 
Earned  Lamb,  which  in  1810  was  con- 
verted into  the  before-named  cotton-mill, 
and  burned.  Another  was  erected  subse- 
quently by  Enos  Styles,  of  Middlesex,  and 
Hubbard  &  Jewett,  of  Montpelier,  which 
was  also  burned  in  October,  1834. 

Of  paper-mills  there  have  been  three. 
One  by  Silas  Burbank,  which  was  burned  ; 
one  by  Samuel  Goss  and  John  Reed, 
which  was  also  burned ;  and  a  third  on  the 
Burbank  site,  which  was  operated  by  Silas 
Goddard  &  Brothers,  Augustus  Goss  and 
George  W.  Cobb,  E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons, 
and  last  by  A.  M.  &  D.  P.  Squires.  The 
water  of  the  Winooski  was  seriously  in- 
jured for  the  use  of  paper-makers,  by  an 
extraordinary  flood  in  1830,  which  cut 
into  high  clay-banks  in  Barre,  that  now 
contribute  clay  to  the  stream  with  every 
rain.     On  this  account,  as  well  as  the  un- 


reliability of  water-power,  the  manufacture 
of  paper  was  abandoned. 

Another  early  and  widely-known  man- 
ufacturing establishment  was  that  of  Eras- 
tus  Watrous  and  George  Worthington, 
hatters.  They  were  succeeded  by  Luman 
&  Norman  Rublee,  who  continued  in  the 
business  until  the  advent  of  silk  hats»put 
an  end  to  the  old  mode  of  manufacture. 

Still  another  old  etablishment,  (1816,) 
having  customers  in  two-thirds  of  the  State, 
was  the  boot  and  shoe  manufactory  of 
Silas  C.  French  and  Nehemiah  Harvey, 
which  was  continued  for  a  long  series  of 
years. 

The  making  of  saddles,  harnesses  and 
trunks  was  commenced  by  Oliver  Goss  in 
1804.  Henry  Y.  Barnes  followed  in  1817, 
who  continued  for  many  years.  There 
have  been  several  others  in  this  line  of 
business. 

Among  the  earliest  experiments  on  a 
small  scale  was  the  manufacture  of  cut 
nails  from  hoop-iron,  by  Joshua  Markham. 
Small  as  was  the  business  compared  with 
that  of  modern  nail  factories,  Markham's 
nails  were  greatly  used  and  highly  appre- 
ciated, bringing  16  cents  per  pound. 

Another  iron  manufacture  was  that  of 
large  screws  for  mills,  and  all  other  pur- 
poses requiring  strong  screws.  This  bus- 
iness was  prosecuted  many  years  in  Mont- 
pelier by  Ellis  Nye,  who  ultimately  went 
into  the  employ  of  the  late  Joshua  Thwing, 
of  Barre,  iron-founder  and  millwright. 

49  years  ago,  (1832,)  an  iron-foundry 
was  established  by  Alfred  Wainwright, 
which  was  continued  by  sundry  successors 
until  it  came  into  the  possession  of  Lane, 
Pitkin  &  Brock,  and  is  now  a  part  of  their 
works  used  in  the  very  extensive  business 
of  manutacturing  saw-mill  and  other  ma- 
chinery. 

The  manufacture  of  mill,  factory  and 
other  machinery  has  been  prosecuted  by 
Araunah  Waterman ;  Wooster  Sprague, 
whose  works  were  burned  in  October, 
1834;  and  by  Medad  Wright,  at  West 
Montpelier,  who  with  his  son  still  con- 
tinues in  the  business. 

Among  the  manufacturers  of  household 
furniture  were  Thomas  Reed,  Sr.  ;  C.  &  J. 


MONTPELIER. 


277 


Wood  ;  James  Rowland  ;  Anson  Davis  ; 
Lyman  Briggs,  Samuel  VV.  Abbott  &  Co. ; 
Emery  &  Brown,  and  Abbott  &  Emery. 
This  is  another  business  which  has  been 
materially  changed,  from  the  complete 
manufacture  from  the  lumber,  to  simply 
upholstering  and  other  finish  of  articles 
manufactured  elsewhere,  in  which  E.  N. 
Scovill  is  now  engaged. 

The  manufacture  of  tin-ware,  and  the 
sale  of  stoves,  hardware,  agricultural  im- 
plements, etc.,  in  connection  therewith  in 
several  instances,  has  long  been  an  im- 
portant business.  In  this  class  are  to  be 
reckoned  Chester  W.  Houghton,  and  his 
son  William;  Zenas  Wood;  E.  A.  Webb 
&  Co. ;  Zenas  &  Charles  Wood  ;  Andrew 
A.  Sweet ;  Erastus  Hubbard ;  Dennison 
Dewey;  Braman  &  Tilden  ;  E.  Scribner, 
Jr. ;  Barrows  &  Peck  ;  Bancroft  &  Spear, 
and  Geo.  M.  Scribner. 

Without  allusion  to  the  mechanical 
trades,  such  as  are  common  throughout 
the  State,  the  early  history  of  Montpelier 
in  manufactures  may  well  be  concluded  by 
mentioning  an  extraordinary  enterprise  for 
Vermont — the  only  instance — and  that  is, 
boring  through  850  feet  of  solid  rock,  (ex- 
cept occasional  interstices,)  inan endeavor 
to  find  salt  water  and  start  the  manufacture 
of  salt.  The  experiment  was  apparently 
countenanced  by  the  geological  forma- 
tions in  the  neighborhood,  and  about  60 
citizens  of  the  town  furnished  funds  for 
the  work,  which  was  prosecuted  nearly  10 
years  and  a  half,  at  an  expense  of  $2,100. 
The  intention  was  to  bore  a  well  to  the 
depth  of  1,000  feet,  but  when  850  feet  had 
been  reached,  the  drill  by  some  accident 
became  fastened  so  firmly  that  no  avail- 
able power  could  start  it.  But  for  this  ac- 
cident, the  depth  designed  would  have 
been  reached,  and  doubtless  a  much  lower 
depth,  as  men  would  not  have  been  want- 
ing to  carry  on  the  work  for  the  fun  of  it. 
The  attempt  was  certainly  creditable  for 
the  good  intentions  and  enterprise  of 
those  engaged  in  it,  and  it  did  not  dam- 
age their  reputation  for  prudence.  They 
had  no  very  high  expectations,  and  en- 
couraged none  in  others,  as  they  might 
easily   have   done.      They   swindled    no- 


body in  the  manner  of  the  oil  and  mining 
corporations  of  a  later  day.  They  spent 
their  own  money,  and  were  respected 
rather  than  ridiculed  for  the  biggest  bore 
in  Vermont. 

The  later  important  manufactures  of 
Montpelier  comprise  machinery,  by  Medad 
Wright  &  Son,  West  Montpelier;  saw- 
mill and  other  machinery,  water-wheels 
and  castings,  and  also  brick,  by  Lane,  Pit- 
kin &  Brock — a  very  extensive,  rapidly 
growing  and  prosperous  business ;  car- 
riages and  sleighs  for  children,  and  other 
business  in  iron  and  lumber  by  the  Mont- 
pelier Manufacturing  Company  ;  and  last, 
lumber  in  the  Pioneer  Manufacturing  Co's. 
works,  by  Edwin  Lane. 

LIST    OF   ATTORNEYS. 

D.  p.   THOMPSON'S  LIST  TO  AUGUST,  18fi0. 

Charles  Bulkley,  Cyrus  Ware,  Samuel 
Prentiss,  Nicholas  Baylies,  William  Up- 
ham,  Timothy  Merrill,  J.  Y.  Vail,  Jed- 
uthan  Loomis,  James  Lynde,  Thomas 
Reed,  Azro  Loomis,  Roswell  H.  Knapp, 
H.  H.  Reed,  L.  B.  Peck,  J.  P.  Miller,  D. 
P.  Thompson,  O.  H.  Smith,  C.  J.  Keith, 
Azel  Spalding,  S.  B.  Prentiss,  Nicholas 
Baylies.  Jr.,  Geo.  B.  Manser,  F.  F.  Merrill, 
J.  T.  Marston,  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  H.  W. 
Heaton,  John  H.  Prentiss,  Charles  Reed, 
Wm.  K.  Upham,  J.  A.  Vail,  Stillman 
Churchill,  R.  S.  Bouchett,  Geo.  W.  Reed, 
A.  W.  Tenney,  Charles  W.Prentiss,  Tim- 
othy P.  Redfield,  Luther  Newcomb,  Joseph 
A.  Prentiss,  Stoddard  B.  Colby,  C.  W. 
Willard,  Wm.  P.  Briggs,  B.  F.  Fifield, 
W.  G.  Ferrin,  Geo.  W.  Bailey,  Jr.,  C.  J. 
Gleason . 

Additiojts  from  Aug.   i860  to  1881. 

Samuel  Wells,  Joseph  A.  Wing,  Nelson 
A.  Taylor,  C.  D.  Swasey,  Albert  Clarke, 
Rodney  Lund,  C.  D.  Harvey,  F.  V.  Ran- 
dall, Asahel  Peck,  James  S.  Peck,  Mel- 
ville E.  Smilie,  Luther  L.  Durant,  Geo. 
W.  Wing,  Arthur  Culver,  J.  O.  Livings- 
ton, Clarence  H.  Pitkin,  C.  W.  Porter, 
H.  K.  Field,  H.  A.  Huse,  C.  H.  Heath, 
C.  S.  Pitkin,  H.  G.  Dewing,  Hiram  Carle- 
ton,  S.  C.  Shurtleff,  Henry  Oviatt.JohnE. 
Harris,  T.  R.  Gordon,  Rush  P.  Barrett, 
J.  K.  Kinney,  O.  D.  Clark,  G.  B.  Clifford, 
H.  W.  Kemp,  John  G.  Wing. 


178 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


PRACTICING   PHYSICIANS   TO    1872. 

D.   P.   THOMPSON'S   I^IST   TO   ISGU. 

Pierce  Spalding,  Philip  Vincent,  Ed- 
ward Lamb,  Stephen  Peabody,  Jacob  P. 
Vargeson,  Sylvester  Day,  Samuel  Pren- 
tiss, Phineas  Woodbury,  Nathan  B.  Spald- 
ing, Nathaniel  C.  King,  James  Spalding, 
Eleazer  Hamblin,  Julius  Y.  Dewey,  Ben- 
jamin Walton,  Hart  Smith,  Seth  Field, 
Azel  Holmes,  F.  W.  Adams,  Zebulon  P. 
Burnham,  Charles  Clark,  Daniel  Corliss, 
Milo  P.  Burnham;  Sumner  Putnam,  East 
Montpelier,  removed  to  Montpelier ;  Thos. 
C.  Taplin  homoeopathist :  J.  M.  Gregory, 
dentist;  Ralph  Kilbourn,  dentist;  M. 
Newton,  and  Brockway  &  Hawley,  den- 
tists;  O.  P.  Forbush,  dentist ;  Orrin  Smith, 
C.  M.  Rublee,  E.  Paine;  G.  N.  Brigham, 
homoeopathist;  C.  B.  Chandler,  W.  H. 
H.  Richardson,  James  Templeton,  G.  H: 
Loomis,  F.  A.  McDowell,  M.  M.  Marsh, 
C.  M.  Chandler. 
Additions  from  Atigust,    i86o  to  1881. 

Lucy  A.  Cooke,  clairvoyant ;  A.  B.  Haw- 
ley, dentist;  Charles  E.  Davis,  dentist; 
John  M.  Comegys,  dentist;  H.  L.  Rich- 
ardson; J.  M.  Templeron,  botanic;  A. 
Denio,  eclectic  ;  R.  W.  Hill,  cancers  ;  Mrs. 
L.  M.  Smith,  botanic ;  D.  G.  Kemp,  Geo. 
W.  Nichols,  J.  E.  Macomber,  G.  P. 
Greeley;  C.  H.  Plumley,  practical  re- 
former ;  N.  W.  &  R.  G.  Gilbert,  dentists  ; 
J.  B.  Woodward;  H.  C.  Brigham,  homoe- 
opathist ;  C.  R.  Pell,  dentist,  and  succeed- 
ed by  H.  G.  Williams. 

MERCHANTS   AND   TRADERS. 

U.   p.   THOMPSON'S  LIST  TO  AUtiUST,   1860. 

1791 — Dr.  Frye. 

1794 — Col.  Joseph  Hutchins. 

I7g6— Col.  J.  &  W.  Hutchins. 

1799 — Hubbard  &  Cadwell. 

1802 — W.  I.  Cadwell;  Col.  D.  Robbins, 
cast  part  of  town,  Robbins  &  Freeman. 

1803 — Hubbard  &  Wing,  Langdon  & 
Forbes. 

1807 — Timothy  &  Roger  Hubbard,  Jas. 
H.  Langdon,  Uriah  H.  Orvis,  Dunbar  & 
Bradford. 

1808  —  Chester  W.  Houghton,  Josiah 
Parks. 

1809 — John  Crosby,  drugs,  etc. 


1810 — L.  Q.  C.  Bowles,  Walton  &  Goss, 
booksellers,  etc. ;  French  &  Dodge,  shoes. 

181 1 — J.  F.  Dodge,  Langdon  &  Barnard. 

18 13 — John  Spalding. 

1814— C.  Hubbard  &  J.  Spalding,  D. 
Baldwin  &  Co.,  Austin  Arms,  Emerson  &; 
Wilkins,  Luther  Bugbee,  Charles  Storey. 

1815 — Wright  &  Sibley,  books,  etc. 

1816— E.  P.  Walton  &  Geo.  S.  Walton, 
books,  etc. ;  French  &  Harvey,  shoes. 

1818 — Sylvester  Larabee  ;  E.  P.  Walton, 
books,  etc.  ;  H.  Y.  Barnes,  harness  and 
saddlery. 

1821 — John  Barnard,  Langdon  &  Spald- 
ing, Chester  Hubbard,  Barnard  &  Dutton, 
W.  I.  Cadwell  &  Son. 

1822— C.  Hubbard  &  E.  P.  Jewctt,  Rog- 
er Hubbard. 

1823— Dutton  &  Baylies,  W.  W.  Cad- 
well. 

1824 — Hubbard  &  Kimball,  T  M.  Taylor, 
Warren  Swift,  Langdon,  Spalding  &  Co., 
Otis  Standish. 

1825 — Baldwin,  Hutchins  &  Co.,  Cad- 
well &  Goldsbory,  Taylor  &  Prentiss ; 
Dodge  &  Standish,  drugs,  etc. 

1826— Wiggins  &  Seeley  ;  Geo.  W.  Hill, 
books,  etc. 

1827 — Luther  Cross,  Joseph  Wiggins, 
Goss  »&  Wiggins. 

1828 — Luther  Cross  &  Co.,  Hubbard, 
Jewett  &  Co.,  Spalding,  Storrs  &  Co.,  Bay- 
lies tS:  Hutchins. 

1829 — N.  Harvey,  shoes. 

1830 — Baldwin  &  Prentiss. 

1 83 1 — Charles  Lyman ;  I.  S.  &  G.  Town, 
jewelry,  etc. ;  W.  W.  Cadwell,  Hart  &  Ri- 
ker;  J.  M.  &  B.  H.  Snow,  harnesses;  E. 
H.  Prentiss,  drugs. 

1832— W.  &  M.  P.  Hutchins. 

1833 — Emerson,  Lamb  &  Co.,  Snow, 
Bancroft  &  Co.,  Snow  &  Bancroft,  A.  C. 
Pierce  &  Co.,  Silver  &  Pierce,  Standish  D. 
Barnes,  G.  W.  Ware,  Baldwin  &  Scott. 

1834 — Jewett  &  Howes,  Burbank  &  Hub- 
bard, Baylies  &  Hart,  Ebenezcr  Colburn  ; 
S.  B.  Flint,  saddlery  and  harness  ;  Hutch- 
ins &  Wright ;  Wm.  Clark,  books,  etc. 

1835— H.  N.  Baylies  &  Co. ;  Harvey  & 
Harran,  shoes  ;  John  &  Charles  Spalding, 
Silver,  Pierce  &  Co.,  Silas  Burbank  &  Co., 
Ira  Day,  Wm.  A.  Prentiss. 


m 


MONTPELIER. 


279 


1836 — Jewett,  Howes  &  Co.,  Emerson 
&  Russell,  Baylies  &  Storrs. 

1837— Bancroft  &  Riker,  C.  &  L.  L. 
Lainb,  C.  Alexander. 

1838 — Spalding  &  Foster,  Langdon  & 
Wright ;  Town  &  Witherell,  jewelry  ;  John 
S.  Abbott,  clocks,  etc. 

1839— Baylies  &  Goss ;  S.  P.  Redfield, 
ch'ugs ;  J.  T.  Marston,  E.  P.  Walton  & 
Sons,  books,  etc. ;  Storrs  &  Langdon. 

1840 — Charles  Spalding,  Silver,  Lamb  & 
Co.  ;  Harran  &  Dodge,  boots  and  shoes. 

1841 — H.  N.  Baylies,  Jewett  &  Howes, 
Baldwin,  Scott  &  Co.,  Lyman  &  King, 
J.  H.  Ramsdell ;  Cross,  Hyde  &  Co., 
bakers. 

1842 — Cross,  Day  &  Co.,  Benjamin  Day 
&  Co.,  French  &  Bancroft,  Ellis,  Wilder  & 
Co.  ;  Clark  &  Collins,  drugs. 

1843 — Silas  C.  French,  boots  and  shoes. 

1844 — Augustus  Haven,  Zenas  Wood, 
stoves  and  tin;  Webb,  Bancroft  &  Co.; 
J.  15ooth,  hats ;  Moses  &  Rich,  No.  Mont- 
pelier;  J.  Huntington,  East  Montpelier. 

1845 — ^-  '^  C.  Wood,  stoves  and  tin  ;  J. 
T.  Marston,  books,  etc.  ;  Wm.  T.  Burn- 
ham,  hats,  etc.  ;  Samuel  Abbott,  jewelry  ; 
N.  C.  King,  No.  Montpelier. 

1846— Bancroft  &  Riker,  J.  W.  Howes, 
L.  &  A.  A.  Cross,  Erastus  Hubbard. 

r847 — Harvey  King. 

1848 — Loomis  &  Camp  ;  Hyde,  Dodge  & 
Co.,  hardware;  E.  C.  Holmes;  Witherell 
&  Mead,  jewelers ;  Eastman  &  Danforth, 
books,  etc.  ;  A.  A.  Sweet,  tin  and  stoves  ; 
Alfred  Scott,  hats. 

1849 — Keith  &  Barker;  S.  K.  Collins, 
Redfield  &  Grannis,  drugs.. 

1850— Scott  &  Field,  Geo.  P.  Riker,  Ban- 
croft &  Holmes;  Abbott  &  Emery  John 
Wood,  James  Howland,  cabinet  work ;  L. 
M.  Wood,  R.  R.  Riker,  clothing  and  tailor- 
ing. 

185 1 — Hubbard  &  Blake,  stoves. 

1852 — Peck  &  Lewis;  Ballou  &  Burn- 
ham,  books,  etc. ;  R.  W.  Hyde,  T.  C. 
Barrows,  iron  and  hardware. 

1853 — Lyman  &  King. 

1854— Keith  &  Barker,  Ellis  &  Bancroft, 
Gustavus  Hubbard,  Walker  &  White,  Wil- 
der, Scott  &  Co. ;  Smith  &  Pierce,  Dr.  B. 
O.Tyler,  drugs;  Geo.  L.  Kinsman,  hats; 


N.  C.  Bacon  ;  Emery  &  Brown,  crockery 
and  furniture;  Wm.  P.  Badger,  W.  W. 
Cadwell,  hats  ;  Phinney  &  Mead,  jewelers  ; 
S.  M.  Walton,  book-bindery;  C.  G.  East- 
man, Ballou  &  Loveland,  books  and  sta- 
tionery;  Wm.  McCoUum. 

1855— C.  W.  Storrs,  John  S.  Barker,  H. 
S.  Loomis,  Peck  &  Bailey,  Union  Store, 
Fuller  &  Smith,  Jacob  Scott;  Oliver  & 
Helmer,  hardware ;  French  &  Sanborn, 
H.  B.  Witt,  clothing;  Fred  E.  Smith,  Col- 
lins &  Pierce,  drugs ;  Keith  &  Peck,  leath- 
er dealers. 

1856— W.  Corliss,  E.  Montpelier;  Chas. 
Sibley,  No.  Montpelier;  Palmer  &  Storrs; 
Burbank&  Langdon,  flour  ;  Hyde  &  Foster, 
hardware  ;  A.  C.  Field,  clothing. 

1857— Ellis  &  Hatch,  Livingston  &  Sal- 
mon;  James  G.  French,  clothing;  S.  C. 
Woolson,  merchant  tailor ;  Storrs  &  Ful- 
ler, W.  L  goods  and  groceries. 

1858— J.  P.  Dewey  ;  J.  S.  Lee,  clothing  ; 
L.  F.  Pierce,  drugs;  Q.  K.  Bennett,  guns 
and  pistols ;  Mercantile  Union,  L  H.  P. 
Rowell,  agent;  C.  &  S.  E.  Robinson; 
Adams  Kellogg,  E.  Dewey,  hats  and  cloth- 
ing ;  Emery  &  Field,  crockery  and  furni- 
ture ;  Wm.  Storrs;  Herrick&  Page,  shoes  ; 
A.  A.  Mead,  jewelry  ;  T.  C.  Phinney,  jew- 
elry, changed  to  book-store. 

1859 — E.  C.  Lewis;  S.  S.  Boyce,  books, 
etc;  S.  Abbott,  jewelry;  Field  &  Watson, 
M.  P.  Courser,  A.  L.  Carlton  ;  J.  R.  Lang- 
don, flour;  J.  C.  Emery,  crockery  and  fur- 
niture ;  E.  Gunnison,  shoes ;  Bailey  & 
Brothers,  Palmer  &  Stetson,  Wooster 
Sprague. 

1860— Eli  Marsh,  Wm.  B.  Burbank,  J. 
W.  Ellis  &  Co.  ;  Jacob  Smith,  clothing  ; 
Deming&  Brooks. 

Additions  frotii  Aug.   i860. 

i860 — George  Watson  ;  Fisher  &  Strat- 
ton,  silver-platers,  etc.  ;  Braman  &  Tilden  ; 
Dennison  Dewey,  stoves,  glass  and  tin- 
ware. 

1861— Geo.  W.  Scott  &  Co.,  Ellis  & 
Foster,  Calvin  Robinson,  S.  E.Robinson; 
M.  C.  Parkinson,  watches,  etc. ;  Chas.  H. 
Cross,  bakery  and  confectionery;  J.  V. 
Babcock  &  Co.,  furniture;  D.  T.  Knapp, 
Roger  Bulkley,  harnesses,  etc. 


28o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


1862— C.  W.  Ston-s;  Geo.  W.  Wilder, 
books,  etc.;  E.  Bickford,  J.  C.Page,  boots 
and  shoes  ;  L.  F.  Pierce  &  Co.,  drugs. 

1863 — N.  P.  Brooks,  dry  goods  and 
hardware;  Wm.  F.  McCkn-e,  groceries; 
N.  K.  Brown,  drugs;  Barnes  &  Johnson, 
J.  Lease,  harnesses,  etc. 

1864— Nichols  &  French,  clothing  ;  J. 
A.  Taft  &  Co.,  George  Jacobs,  Daniel 
Scribner,  flour  and  groceries  ;  Kellogg  & 
Adams,  hats  and  clothing;  J.  P.  Dewey, 
flour,  grain  and  nails;  H.  &  C.  FuIIerton, 
boots  and  shoes;  Wood,  Bixby  &  Co., 
druggists  ;  S.  Freeman,  jewelry,  etc.  ;  Wm. 
F.  Braman,  hardware,  etc. ;  Charles  Cross 
&  Son,  bakers  and  confectioners  ;  E.  Scrib- 
ner, Jr.,  stoves  and  tin-ware  ;  Dennis  Lane, 
saw-mill  machinery. 

1865— L.  W.  Smith;  Jacob  Smith  & 
Son,  furniture;  A.  D.  Arms  &  Co.,  D. 
Neveux,  W.  I.  goods;  E.  R.  Skinner, 
staple  and  fancy  goods,  wholesale  ;  Blanch- 
ard.  Peck  and  Jqjionnott,  leather;  Wm. 
F.  Braman  &  Co.,  hardware;  John  W. 
Clark,  wagons  and  sleighs. 

1866 — Martin  &  Simonds  ;  Geo.  Nich- 
ols, ready-made  clothing  ;  Carleton  &  Co., 
W.  I.  goods;  Mark  French,  preserved 
fruits;  J.  E.  Smith  &  Co.,  stationery  and 
fancy  goods  ;  J.  Bodell,  boots  and  shoes  ; 
Bixby  &  Co.,  druggists  ;  Redfield  &  Crooks, 
drugs  ;  Lane,  Pitkin  &  Brock,  iron-founders 
and  machinists  ;  E.  N.  Scovell,  furniture  ; 
Henry  Cobb,  marble  monuments,  etc. 

1867 — New  York  Dry  Goods  Store; 
Emery  &  Carleton,  crockery  and  carpet- 
ings;  H.  E.  Fifield  &  Co.,  flour  and  W.  I. 
goods ;  L.  L.  Tanner,  boots  and  shoes ; 
W.  F.  Braman,  hardware,  etc.;  J.  V. 
Babcock,  drugs,  etc.  ;  Ira  S.  Town, 
watches  and  jewelry  ;  Peck  &  Johonnott, 
leather  ;   C.  Spear,  gas  and  water  fixtures. 

1868— B.  Benjamin  &  Co. ;  W.  E.  Ad- 
ams, hats  and  clothing ;  Denison  Taft  & 
Son,  flour,  etc.  ;  B.  M.  Chaffee,  boots  and 
shoes ;  Lamb  &  Peck,  hardware,  etc, ; 
Putnam  &  Co.,  N.  K.  Brown  &  Co.,  drugs  ; 
Flanders  &  Kinson,  platers,  etc. 

1869 — A.  C.  Dewey  &  Co.,  flour,  lime, 
plaster,  etc. ;  J.  C.  Emery,  crockery,  car- 
petings,  etc.;  Philbrick  Brothers,  W.  I. 
goods,  etc. ;  Barrows  &  Peck,  hardware. 


etc. ;  Babcock  &  Cutler,  drugs,  etc.  ;  W'. 
A.  Boutelle  &  Wife,  dry  goods  and  milli- 
nery ;  Blanchard,  Keith  &  Peck,  leather, 
etc. ;  A.  L.  Carleton,  dry  goods;  Hinckley 
&  Best:  C.  F.  FuIIerton,  boots  and  shoes; 
S.  S.  Towner,  millinery  and  fancy  goods; 
Farwell  Brothers,  clothing;  T.  H.  Cony 
&  Co.,  W.  I.  goods;  J.  W.  Page,  teas, 
coffee,  spices  and  tobacco,  wholesale  ;  T.C. 
Phinney,  books,  stationery,  fancy  goods 
and  homoeopathic  medicines  ;  Hiram  At- 
kins, staple  stationery  ;  Medad  Wright  & 
Son-,  lumber  and  machinery.  West  Mont- 
pelier;  W.  H.  Barnes,  harnesses,  etc.; 
Cobb  &  Cummins,  marble  monuments ; 
Stimson  &  Co.,  patent  door  springs. 

1870 — Calvin  Robinson  &  Co. ;  Bailey 
&  Park,  Storrs  &  Jones,  W.  I.  goods,  etc. ; 
Carlos  Bancroft  &  Son,  W.  I.  goods,  iron, 
etc. ;  W.  L.  Washburn  &  Co.,  T.  J.  Hunt, 
W.  F.  Waterman  &  Co.,  W.  I.  goods  and 
groceries ;  Spear  &  Bancroft,  tin-ware, 
stoves,  etc. ;  Woodward  &  Blakely,  drug- 
gists;  D.  McDonald,  furniture,  carpetings, 
etc. ;  E.  Hatch,  boots  and  shoes  ;  E.  Spin- 
ney, fresh  and  salt  fish,  etc.  ;G.  P.  Foster, 
coal  and  wood  ;  D.  Taft  and  Son,  lumber ; 
Kimball  &  Hewett,  monuments,  etc. ;  J. 
W.  Paine,  A.  Allen,  cigars. 

1871 — C.  Blakely,  drugs,  etc.;  Scovill 
&  Lyon,  furniture,  etc. ;  Jacobs  Brothners, 
flour  and  W.  I.  goods;  C.  E.  Winch  & 
Co.,  W.  I.  goods  and  groceries;  Thomas 
McGee,  sewing-machines  ;  Fisher,  Colton 
&  Kinson,  platers,  etc. ;  J.  O'Grady,  boots 
and  shoes;  N.  C.  Bacon,  auction  store; 
J.  Bruce,  harnesses  and  carriage  trim- 
mings ;  Soper  &  Lord,  cloths  and  merchant 
tailors;  T.  A.  Dewing,  boots  and  shoes. 

1872 — George  Jacobs,  flour, W.  I.  goods, 
etc. ;  Smith  Brothers,  coal ;  L.  W.  Jones, 
provisions,  W.  I.  goods,  etc. ;  Geo.  M. 
Scribner,  stoves  and  tin-ware  ;  F.  C.  Gil- 
man,  wagons  and  sleighs ;  B.  T.  Soper  & 
Co.,  cloths  and  merchant  tailors;  A.  G. 
Stone,  watches  and  jewelry;  Crosby  & 
Taplin,  dry  goods;  Redfield  &  Bascom, 
drugs,  etc. 

1873 — Montpelier  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, children's  carriages,  etc. ;  Hatch  & 
Farnsworth,  boots  and  shoes ;  C.  E.  Hos- 
ford,  clothing,  etc. ;  Crosby  &  Taplin,  dry 


■^ 


""^^C^^L^t^  ^5^^^^«^t/^?^^^^ 


MONTPELIER. 


2S'l 


goods ;  Babcock  &  Cutler,  drugs,  etc.  ;  A. 
Luce  &  Son,  groceries;  V.  Konsalik, 
watches,  etc. 

1874 — J.  D.  Clogston,  tin-ware  ;  Putnam 
&  Marvin,  groceries,  crockery  and  glass. 

1875 — E.  P.  Towner,  boots  and  shoes; 
Fuller  &  Howe,  dry  goods ;  Mrs.  A.  L. 
Carlton,  dry  goods ;  Bascom  &  Dewey, 
Wilson  &  Co.,  drugs,  etc. ;  C.  H.  Heaton, 
groceries. 

1876— A.  &  A.  Johonnott,  leather;  N. 
P.  Brooks  &  Son,  house-finishing  tools 
and  fixtures,  glass,  sash,  blinds,  doors,  etc. ; 
E.  H.  Towne,  merchant  tailor;  C.  P. 
Pitkin,  coal  and  wood;  H.  C.  Webster, 
dry  goods  ;  Lyon  &  Daley,  furniture,  etc.  ; 
A.  J.  Braley,  groceries;  C.  H.  Keene, 
watches  and  jewelry. 

1877 — Fred  Blanchard,  tin-ware,  etc. ; 
C.  W.  Selinas,  harnesses,  etc.  ;  Henry 
Cobb,  marble  monuments;  Kimball  & 
Carter  and  H.  C.  Cross,  granite  monu- 
ments ;  S.  C.  &  H.  H.  Woolson,  merchant 
tailors ;  Chase  &  Edgcombe,  boots  and 
shoes;  A.  H.  Bailey,  Smith  Brothers, 
dry  goods ;  Orange  Fifield,  flour,  gro- 
ceries, etc. ;  Washburn  &  Co.,  millinery. 

1878 — Sabin  Manufacturing  Co.,  door- 
springs  ;  Miss  M.  L.  Page,  millinery; 
Henry  Lowe  &  Son,  teas  and  fine  gro- 
ceries. 

1879 — C.  W.  Skinner,  watches,  jewelry, 
etc. ;  A.  J.  Howe,  dry  goods. 

1880 — Sumner  Kimball,  granite  monu- 
ments; C.  H.  Shipman,  C.  E.  Stow, 
boots  and  shoes ;  Blanchard  Brothers, 
flour,  iron  and  hardware ;  W.  W.  Park, 
flour  and  groceries  ;  E.  W.  Bailey  &  Co., 
flour  and  feed ;  Montpelier  Carriage  Co., 
children's  carriages. 

1 88 1 — C.  A.  Best,  millinery  and  dry 
goods;  D.  W.  Temple,  dry  goods;  J.  A. 
Murray,  W.  L  goods  and  groceries ;  H.  E. 
Slayton,  books  and  stationery ;  E.  R. 
Meader,  millinery  and  sewing-machines ; 
Geo.  E.  Wheeler,  marble  monuments. 

When  not  otherwise  indicated,  the  per- 
sons named  were  dealers  in  goods  of  the 
usual  variety  to  be  found  in  country  stores 
until  about  185 1,  and  after  that  date  in 
dry  goods.  The  list  is  necessarily  imper- 
fect previous    to  i860,  and   since   that   it 

.     36 


might  have  been  swelled  to  double  its 
length  by  the  insertion  of  the  names  of  per- 
sons engaged  in  business  not  included  gen- 
erally in  the  preceding  list.  Notably  is  a 
long  line  of  dealers  in  family  groceries  and 
provisions,  several  with  restaurants  con- 
nected, and  some  doing  a  large  business  in 
fruits.  The  list  is  made  from  the  Vermont 
Registers,  and  hence  the  true  dates  should 
be  a  year  behind  those  given  as  a  general 
rule . 

BANKS   AND   INSURANCE   COMPANIES. 

The  Bank  of  Montpelier  was  chartered 
in  1825,  and  organized  in  1826,  with  a 
capital  of  $50,000.  The  first  president 
was  Hon.  Elijah  Paine,  of  Williamstown, 
and  his  successors  under  the  charter  and 
re-charters  were  James  H.  Langdon,  Tim- 
othy Hubbard,  John  Spalding,  Thomas 
Reed,  Jr.,  Rawsel  R.  Keith,  E.  P.  Jewett, 
and  George  C.  Shepard.  This  bank  was 
re-chartered  in  1840,  with  a  capital  of 
$75,000,  and  still  again  in  1853,  with  a 
capital  of  $100,000.  The  cashiers  were 
Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  Charles  R.  Cleaves, 
George  Howes,  Geo.  B.  Reed  and  Chas. 
A.  Reed.  This  bank  was  succeded  in 
1865  by  the  Montpelier  National  Bank, 
organized  under  the  national  banking  law, 
with  a  capital  of  $300,000,  whose  officers 
from  its  organization  have  been  James  R. 
Langdon,  president,  George  C.  Shepard, 
vice-president,  and  Chas.  A.  Reed,  cash- 
ier, until  1 88 1,  when  E.  D.  Blackwell 
succeded  Mr.  Reed.  The  capital  is  now, 
1881,  $360,000. 

The  Vermont  Bank  was  chartered  in 
1848,  and  organized  in  1849,  with  a  cap- 
ital of  $100,000.  The  presidents  were 
Hezekiah  H.  Reed,  George  W.  Collamer, 
Homer  W.  Heaton,  E.  H.  Prentiss  and 
Roderick  Richardson  ;  and  its  cashier,  John 
A.  Page.  This  bank  continued  until  the 
First  National  Bank  of  Montpelier  was  or- 
ganized in  1865,  under  the  national  bank- 
ing law,  the  president  of  which  has  been 
John  A.  Page ;  and  the  cashiers,  R.  J. 
Richardson,  L.  F.  Richasdson,  J.  C.  Tap- 
lin  and  J.  C.  Houghton. 

The  State  Bank  was  organized  in  1858, 
under  the  general  banking  law  of  Vermont, 


2^2 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


with  a  capital  of  $100,000,  held  mainly  by 
stockholders  in  the  old  bank  of  Montpelier. 
Its  officers  were  James  R.  Langdon,  pres- 
ident, and  George  B.  Reed,  cashier.  Bus- 
iness was  continued  but  a  few  years. 

To  the  banks  in  Montpelier  one  compli- 
ment is  due — they  always  have  been  per- 
fectly sound  and  reliable,  without  any 
exception. 

Latest  organized  is  the  Montpelier  Sav- 
ings Bank  and  Trnst  Company,  chartered 
in  1870,  organized  in  May,  1S71,  and  com- 
menced business  Aug.  i,  1871.  Its  offi- 
cers are  Homer  W.  Heaton,  president ; 
Whitman  G.  Ferrin,  treasurer,  succeeded 
by  A.  W.  Ferrin.  July  i,  1880,  there 
were  1685  depositors,  deposits  $346,284.33, 
and  surplus  $31,060.11. 

The  Vermont  Mntual  Fire  Insurance 
Company 

was  incorporated  in  1827,  organized  in 
March,  1828,  and  is  now  in  the  54th  year  of 
successful  and  beneficent  operation.  The 
lirst  President  was  Hon.  Chapin  Keith  of 
Barre,  and  his  successors  were  Hon.  Israel 
P.  Dana  of  Danville,  and  Hon.  John 
Spalding  of  Montpelier — the  terms  of  these 
three  covering"  the  first  13  years  of  the 
company.  In  1841,  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin 
of  Montpelier  consented  to  take  the  office, 
and  he  was  re-elected  at  every  annual  elec- 
tion until  1874, — 31  years.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  James  T.  Thurston  and  Hon. 
W.  H.  H.  Bingham.  Hon.  Joshua  Y. 
Vail  was  the  first  permanent  Secretary, 
and  held  the  office  until  1850,  who  was 
succeeded  by  Hon.  Charles  Dewey,  who 
served  until  1871,  when  Mr.  James  T.  Sa- 
bin  was  elected,  who  is  the  present  Secre- 
tary. The  treasurers  until  1842  were  Hon. 
George  Worthington,  Hon.  Oramel  H. 
Smith,  Calvin  Jay  Keith,  Esq.,  Hon. 
Homer  W.  Heaton  and  Harry  Vail.  In 
1842,  James  T.  Thurston  was  appointed 
and  he  was  succeeded  by  O.  J.  Vail  and 
H.N.  Taplin,  Jr.  In  this  Company  prop- 
erty for  insurance  is  divided  into  five  class- 
es, with  rates  of  insurance  varying  in  pro- 
portion to  the  hazrrd  of  each  class,  and 
the  theory  of  the  company  is  to  make  the 
property    insured  in  each  class   bear   the 


losses  of  its  own.  Theoretically,  therefore, 
this  Company  has  five  distinct  mutual  in- 
surance companies  under  one  management ; 
and  distinct  accounts  of  the  five  diflferent 
classes  have  been  kept  for  many  years,  to 
enable  the  directors  to  assign  to  each  the 
proper  rates  of  insurance.  The  theory  of 
the  company  is  probably  due  to  abundant 
caution  in  respect  to  the  classes  which  are 
occasionally  exposed  to  sweeping  fires, 
from  which  isolated  property  is  always  ex- 
empt. It  is  an  exception  which  proves  the 
wisdom  of  the  rule.  The  whole  number 
of  policies  issued  from  March  31,  1828,  to 
Aug.  I,  1881,  was  219,841  :  of  this  num- 
ber 190,428  have  expired  or  been  canceled, 
leaving  in  force,  at  the  last  date,  29,413. 
The  whole  amount  insured  has  been  $237,- 
333,504,  of  which  the  amount  canceled 
or  expired  is  $200,430,697 — leaving  the 
amount  insured  Aug.  i,  1881,  $36,902,807. 
The  whole  amount  of  premium  notes  tak- 
en is  $21,456,983.09,  of  which  the  sum  of 
$18,810,474.93  has  expired  or  been  cancel- 
ed, leaving  in  force,  as  a  fund  for  the  pay- 
ment of  losses  and  expenses,  Aug.  i,  1881, 
$2,646,508.16.  The  whole  cash  receipts 
of  the  Company  have  amounted  to  $3,653, - 
940.38,  and  the  whole  amount  paid  for  loss- 
es and  expenses,  (including  a  new  and 
permanent  office,)  $3,643,289.08— leaving 
a  balance  in  the  treasury,  Aug.  i,  1881,  of 
$10,651.30.  Chargeable  upon  this  surplus 
are  unadjusted  claims  for  losses  estimated 
at  $4,383.30.  The  total  amount  of  assess- 
ments made  in  54  years  is  178^  per  cent., 
or,  on  the  average,  3  and  1-3  per  cent, 
per  annum  of  the  premium  notes.  This 
result  indicates  that  the  premium  notes 
have  on  the  average  constituted  a  fund, 
legally  collectable  if  accessary,  more  than 
five  times  greater  than  the  size  of  the  loss- 
es and  expenses,  and  so  proves  the  safety, 
against  any  possible  contingency,  of  insur- 
ance in  institutions  managed  on  the  rnles 
of  this  company. 

The  Farmers''  Mutual  Fire  Insurance 
Company 
was   incorporated  and   organized   in   No- 
vember,   1849,    its    first    president   being 
Hon.  Azel  Spalding,  then  of  Montpelier. 
His  successors   have  been   Hon.   William 


MONTPELIER. 


283 


Howes,  of  Montpelier,  Hon.  George  W. 
Bailey,  of  Middlesex,  Hon.  William  L. 
Sowles,  of  Swanton,  and  P.  P.  Pitkin,  of 
Montpelier,  tlie  present  incumbent.  Hon. 
Joseph  Poland,  of  Montpelier,  has  been 
the  secretary  since  the  organization.  Sam- 
uel Wells  was  treasurer  until  his  death, 
and  was  succeeded  by  Geo.  W.  Leslie. 
As  its  name  implies,  the  purpose  of  this 
Company  is  to  insure  only  farmers'  prop- 
erty, and  other  property  of  like  kind  as  to 
hazard — in  theory  corresponding  with  the 
first  or  least  hazardous  class  ot  the  Ver- 
mont Mutual  before  described.  The  main 
difference  between  the  two  companies  is, 
that  the  Vermont  Mutual  first  ascertains 
its  losses  and  expenses  from  month  to 
month,  assesses  the  premium  notes  to  pay 
them,  and  collects  (annually)  these  assess- 
ments ;  while  the  Farmers''  Company  re- 
quires payment  by  the  insured  in  advance, 
of  a  sum  estimated  to  be  sufficient  to  meet 
the  losses  and  expenses  during  the  life  o  f 
the  policy,  which  in  that  Company  is  5 
years.  As  ample  security,  however,  to 
the  insured  against  loss,  each  member  of 
the  Farmers'  Company,  (as  in  the  other 
Company,)  is  required  to  give  a  premium 
note,  which  is  assessable  or  legally  collect- 
able in  case  of  necessity. 

The  National  Life  Insurance  Cot)ipany 

was  incorporated  in  November,  1848,  with 
an  authorized  capital  of  $100,000.  This 
was  reduced  to  $50,000,  by  an  amendment 
of  the  charter  in  1849,  and  the  Company 
was  located  at  Montpelier.  Benjamin 
Balch  made  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  or- 
ganize the  institution  in  1849,  and,  early  in 
1850,  it  was  organized  by  others,  with 
Hon.  Wm.  C.  Kittredge,  of  Fairhaven,  as 
president,  and  Roger  S.  Howard,  Esq.,  of 
Thetford,  as  secretary.  These  gentlemen 
resigned  after  brief  service,  when  Dr. 
Julius  Y.  Dewey,  of  Montpelier,  was  ap- 
pointed president,  which  office  he  held 
until  his  death,  when  he  was  succeeded  by 
his  son,  Hon.  Charles  Dewey.  James  T. 
Thurston,  Esq.,  of  Montpelier,  served 
awhile  as  secretary,  when  Geo.  W.  Reed, 
of  Montpelier,  was  appointed,  and  has 
since  held  the   office.     The  financial   af- 


fairs of  the  institution  are  managed  by  a 
board  of  trustees,  and  not  by  a  treasurer. 
The  whole  amount  of  risks,  Oct.  i,  1880, 
was  $8,623,156.  The  assets  of  the  Com- 
pany are  invested  in  U.  S.  and  State  bonds, 
bank  stock  and  notes  amply  secured  by 
mortgage,  the  par  value  of  which  on  the 
1st  of  Oct.  1880,  was  $2,253,837.07.  This 
institution  has  been  prudently  and  very 
successfully  managed,  and  bears  a  high 
reputation  among  those  who  are  familiar 
with  this  class  of  insurance  companies. 

STATE-HOUSES. 

The  position  of  Montpelier  as  State 
capital  from  1808,  and  County  seat  from 
181 1,  has  contributed  much  to  the  growth 
of  the  population  and  business  of  the 
town,  and  given  it  a  prominence  in  the 
political,  judicial,  religious  and  social  af- 
fairs of  the  State  which  otherwise  it  could 
not  have  attained,  and  an  influence  from  the 
strongest  and  best  men  of  the  town,  which 
has  always  been  wisely  used.  The  names 
of  Wright  and  Lord  in  the  churches,  of  Pren- 
tiss and  Baylies  and  Loomis  in  all  judicial 
circles,  of  Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  among  bank- 
ers, and  of  the  senior  E.  P.  Walton  in  the 
editorial  and  political  field — not  to  men- 
tion the  living — were  known  and  respected 
throughout  the  State,  and  their  influence  is 
still  felt  through  a  great  number  in  Vermont 
and  elsewhere,  who  profited  by  their  ex- 
cellent teachings  and  examples. 

Previous  to  1808,  there  had  been  46  ses- 
sions of  the  General  Assembly  in  14  dif- 
ferent towns ;  23  sessions  in  the  eastern 
side  of  the  State,  in  or  near  the  valley  of 
Connecticut  river ;  22  on  the  western  side, 
1 1  of  which  were  in  Bennington  County, 
and  1 1  in  or  near  the  valley  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  and  one  session  in  the  north-eastern 
part.  These  locations  at  extreme  points 
from  a  common  centre  entailed  hardships 
of  access,  alternately  on  the  one  side  of  the 
Green  Mountains  and  the  other,  and  many 
inconveniences  and  evils  in  future  years 
which  then  were  hardly  considered.  Among 
these  was  the  impossibility  of  preserving 
complete  records  of  public  and  official  do- 
ings, and  files  of  State  papers  ;  because  ot 
which,  the  early  civil  and  political  history 


284 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  the  State,  so  far  as  official  records  and 
papers  are  concerned,  is  at  best  but  frag- 
mentary, and  much  of  that  which  has  since 
been  obtained  consists  of  the  fragments 
gathered  by  the  late  Henry  Stevens,  Sr., 
in  the  attics  of  deceased  state  officers, 
judges  and  legislators,  and  among  the  rags 
of  the  paper-mills.  These  were  purchased, 
indexed  and  bound  at  considerable  expense 
to  the  State.  To  remedy  the  inconven- 
iences of  a  State  without  a  capital,  and  the 
frequent  disputes  between  rival  towns  for 
the  compliment  of  a  legislative  session, 
the  General  Assembly  of  1805  appointed  a 
committee  to  "  fix  upon  a  place  in  the 
town  of  Montpelier,  for  the  erection  of 
buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
Legislature  of  this  State,"  and  on  condi- 
tion that  the  town  of  Montpelier  should 
erect  the  buildings  and  convey  them  to  the 
State,  with  the  land  whereon  they  shall 
stand,  declared  that  "  said  buildings  shall 
become  the  permanent  seat  of  the  legisla- 
ture for  holding  all  their  sessions."*  In 
the  debate  of  1857,  on  the  State  house 
question,  the  late  Dorr  J.  Bradley,  of 
Brattleboro,  gave  a  tradition  as  to  the  act 
of  1805,  which  doubtless  came  from  his 
father,  the  late  Hon.  Wm.  C.  Bradley,  in 
these  words : 

But  the  gentleman  from  Westford  has 
accused  those  of  the  House  who  oppose 
moving  to  Burlington,  of  sectional  prej- 
udice. I  have  wondered  that  this  subject 
was  not  earlier  mentioned  in  the  debate, 
but  I  did  not  expect  it  would  come  from 
the  quarter  it  does.  The  question  is  a 
sectional  question  ;  it  was  a  sectional  ques- 
tion before  the  gentleman  from  Westford, 
or  any  other  member  of  this  House,  was 
born ;  and  it  was  to  allay  that  sectional 
jealousy  that  the  Capitol  was  located  here. 
Our  ancestors  settled  on  the  eastern  and 
western  borders  of  the  then-called  New 
Hamp.shire  Grants,  and  the  common  dis- 
pute with  New  York  united  them  in  inter- 
est and  in  action.  They  were  not,  how- 
ever, so  blind  as  not  to  see  that  the  great 
natural  feature  of  their  territory  must  be 
respected.  For  a  long  time,  this  great 
range  of  mountains  through  their  centre, 
prevented  their  having  any  Capitol.  Each, 
year,  however,  the  disputes  for  the  locality 
of  the  next  session  became  too  tiresome, 

*  Vermo7it  Capitol,  1857.  p.  284.  Succeeding  pages  in 
that  volume  give  other  ofBchil  papers,  ami  various 
facts  connected  witli  the  first  and  second  State  houses. 


and  they  resorted  to  an  expedient.  They 
did  not  call  for  "  centralizing"  some  point 
in  their  periphery.  They  knew  enough  to 
know  they  could  not.  They. sought  what 
was  then  a  little  hamlet  among  the  moun- 
tains, but  on  neither  side  of  them.  It  was 
selected  because  it  was  on  neither  side. 
A  division  of  the  range  left  it  a  perfect 
geogi^aphical  puzzle  to  decide  on  which 
side  it  should  be  classed.  How  many  a 
heart  among  those  wise  old  men  rejoiced 
that  the  mountains,  for  which  the  State 
had  been  named,  the  mountains,  heretofore 
a  curse,  were  to  be  henceforth  a  blessing. 
These  mountains,  into  which,  and  not 
over  which,  our  law-makers  were  to  travel, 
were  to  become  the  centre  about  which 
the  affections  of  all  might  cluster.  They 
were  careful  not  to  wound  the  pride  of 
either  side.  Their  governors  were  alter- 
nately selected  from  each.  The  senators 
to  Congress,  being  only  two,  were  always 

taken   one   from  each  side 

Mr.  Chairman,  the  Capitol  was  located 
here  as  a  measure  of  peace.  It  was  to 
build  us  up  from  a  divided,  into  a  united 
and  homogeneous  people.  Fifty  years  of 
peace  have  been  the  product  of  this  act  of 
wisdom!  Our  old  worthies  were  right. 
They  set  that  puzzle  to  their  children  on 
purpose  ;  they  knew  what  they  were  about ; 
their  children  understood  them.  Shall 
we,  their  grand-children,  affect  ignorance 
of  their  intention?  Shall  we  discard  all 
those  lessons  of  wisdom,  to  find  a  place 
where  some  tourist  may  go  with  a  sketch- 
book, or  some  artist  with  a  pallet.''  Above 
all,  which  idea  is  sectional,  that  of  pre- 
serving this  peace  of  half  a  century,  or 
that  of  violating  its  provisions?  I,  for 
one,  am  a  kind  of  Samaritan  on  this  sub- 
ject. "Our  fathers  worshipped  in  this 
mountain  ;"  not  bowing  themselves  to  the 
Adirondacks  across  the  Lake,  nor  to  the 
White  Hills  from  St.  Johnsbury ;  but  this 
mountain — the  Green  Mountain  range; 
and  I  am  for  going  down  to  no  Jerusalem 
on  the  east  or  the  west. 

The  act  making  Montpelier  the  capital 
of  the  State  was  passed  Nov.  8,  1805,  and 
on  the  25th  of  the  next  month,  the  town, 
in  legally  warned  town  meeting,  appointed 
a  committee  to  receive  subscriptions  and 
donations,  and  to  superintend  the  erection 
of  the  buildings  at  the  expense  of  the  sub- 
scribers, the  town  as  a  corporation  not  to 
be  liable  for  the  buildings  or  the  expenses 
of  the  committee.  The  town  then  had  a 
population  of  about  1200  only,  and  a  grand 
list  of  less  than  $23,000,  and  the  heaviest 
part  of  the  task  rested  naturally  upon  the 


MONTPELIER. 


iSs 


village,  which  then  had  probably  less  than 
half  of  the  population  and  property  ;  and 
moreover  money  of  any  sort  was  exceed- 
ingly rare.  Subscriptions  were  promptly 
made,  but  they  were  payable  "in  labor  or 
materials  when  reasonably  called  for;" 
"such  articles  of  materials  and  produce"  as 
the  subscribers  chose;  and  "in  grain, 
neat  cattle,  provisions,  or  goods  at  such 
times  as  we  [the  subscribers]  shall  partic- 
ularly specify."  Some  materials,  specially 
nails  and  glass,  required  cash,  and  cash 
had  to  be  provided.  Sept.  2,  1806,  the 
town  voted  almost  unanimously  to  petition 
the  Legislature  to  grant  a  tax  of  four  cents 
per  acre  on  all  the  land  of  the  town,  [which 
would  raise  about  $800,]  to  be  expended 
in  completing  the  State-House  ;  but  noth- 
ing appears  to  have  been  done,  and  the 
time  was  near  [Sept.  i,  1808,]  when  the 
work  was  to  be  completed.  Therefore, 
May  12,  1808,  the  town  voted  a  tax  of  4 
cents  on  the  dollar  of  the  list  of  1807, 
[which  would  raise  about  $1000,]  two- 
tliirds  payable  in  grain  and  provisions,  and 
one-third  in  specie  or  current  bank  bills, 
or  orders  from  the  building  committee,  or 
receipts  or  orders  from  the  architect  and 
constructor.  Deacon  Sylvanus  Baldwin. 
The  constable  began  to  collect  this  tax,  when 
he  was  met  by  the  objection,  from  ashrewd 
farmer,  that  by  the  constitution  of  the 
State  a  town  had  not  the  power  to  tax  its 
inhabitants  for  the  purpose  of  building  a 
State-house.  The  judges  and  lawyers 
were  then  consulted,  and  lo !  the  judg- 
ment of  the  farmer  was  unanimously  af- 
firmed. This  was  a  predicament  very  un- 
welcome to  the  people,  most  of  whom  were 
willing  to  pay  the  tax ;  yet  it  was  a  serious 
predicament,  because  the  constable  dared 
not  attempt  to  collect  a  tax  which  might 
afterwards  be  repudiated,  and  thus  the 
burden  be  cast  upon  himself.  In  this 
emergency  two  projects  were  suggested : 
one  being  the  selection  of  a  collector  who 
had  no  property,  and  the  other  a  minor  as 
collector,  on  the  presumption  that  he 
would  not  be  suable.  The  latter  course 
was  adopted,  and  the  tax-bill  was  put  into 
the  hand  of  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  brother 
of  Sylvanus.     He  collected   the  tax,  even 


the  constitutionally  scrupulous  farmer  pay- 
ing his  proportion  with  his  townsmen. 
The  original  subscriptions,  the  tax,  and 
other  donations,  amounted  to  from  $8000 
to  $9000,  which  was  the  cost  of  the  house 
exclusive  of  the  land — 20  rods  by  16,  which 
was  given  by  Thomas  Davis. 

THE   FIRST   STATE-HOUSE 

was  constructed  of  wood,  50  by  70  feet  on 
the  ground ;  36  feet  high  to  the  roof,  sept- 
angular-shaped in  front,  and  otherwise 
square.  About  20  feet  of  the  front  was  in 
three  floors — the  first  being  the  vestibule 
to  the  hall  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, which  was  50  feet  square,  and  rose 
to  the  height  of  the  first  two  stories  front ; 
the  second  floor  gave  entrance  to  the  gal- 
lery of  the  House  ;  and  the  third  floor,  cov- 
ering the  vestibules  and  hall  of  the  House, 
was  occupied  by  the  room  of  the  Governor 
and  Council,  into  which  an  audience-room 
for  spectators  opened,  and  by  committee- 
rooms — one  of  them  named  Jefferson  Hall, 
and  famous  as  the  scene  of  political  cau- 
cuses. The  roof  was  surmounted  by  a 
modest  cupola,  in  which  was  the  finest- 
toned  bell  the  town  has  ever  had.  The 
building  was  plainly  furnished,  warmed 
with  stoves,  and  lighted  with  tallow  can- 
dles— the  hall  of  the  House  with  a  chan- 
delier so  striking  in  its  proportions  and  so 
brilliant  in  its  eff'ect  as  to  be  a  marked  ex- 
ception to  the  plainness  of  everything  else, 
and  to  incur  the  censure,  as  a  piece  of 
"foolery,"  of  one  of  the  wisest  of  the  old 
legislators — Henry  Olin.  This  house  was 
used  until  1836,  when  it  was  succeeded  by 

THE   SECOND   STATE-HOUSE. 

This  was  authorized  by  act  of  Nov.  8, 
1832,  on  condition  that  Montpelier  should 
pay  $15,000  towards  its  construction. 
This  sum  was  paid,  and  $3000  more  for 
additional  land.  The  second  house  was 
beautiful  and  substantial — a  perfect  speci- 
men (the  dome  excepted,)  of  Grecian 
architecture — and  the  finest  Capitol  of  its 
day  in  New  England,  if  not  in  the  coun- 
try. The  grounds,  including  fence,  ter- 
race and  approaches,  were  the  same  as 
now  ;  and  as  the  building  was  in  form  the 
same  as  the  present,  a  Greek  cross,  diff"er- 


286 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ing  little  in  dimensions,  (but  more  in  the 
roof  and  dome,)  a  particular  description  is 
not  necessary.*  The  whole  cost,  (the 
Davis  land  excepted,)  of  this  house  and 
grounds  was  1^132,077.23.  This  Capitol 
was  used  until  Jan.  5,  1857,  when,  through 
a  lack  of  due  caution  both  in  erecting  and 
managing  the  heating  apparatus,  the  wood- 
work of  the  interior  took  fire,  and  all  the 
wood-work  was  destroyed,  and  the  walls 
of  granite  and  brick  were  badly  damaged. 

THE  THIRD  STATE-HOUSE 

was  authorized  by  act  of  Feb.  27,  1857, 
which  appropriated  $40,000  on  condition 
that  the  inhabitants  of  Montpelier  should 
give  good  and  sufficient  security  to  pay  in- 
to the  treasury  a  sum  equal  to  the  whole 
cost  of  the  work.  This  security  was  given 
in  a  bond  in  the  sum  of  $100,000.  At  the 
session  of  1858,  no  appropriation  was  made 
by  the  State,  and  the  work  was  carried  on  to 
completion  b}'  funds  advanced  by  citizens 
of  Montpelier,  leaving  bills  for  the  lurni- 
ture  and  some  other  debts  outstanding  to 
the  amount  of  $34,000  in  1859,  which  sum 
the  State  then  assumed,  and  the  cost  of  con- 
struction was  reported  in  1859,  as  being 
"witliin  $150,000."  The  first  appropria- 
tion by  the  State,  Feb.  1857,  was  $40,000 ; 
the  second,  Nov.  1857,  was  $30,000,  and 
whatever  should  be  paid  by  Montpelier  on 
the  bond  required  by  the  first  named  act — 
the  amount  then  paid  being  $42,000 ;  and 
the  State  in  1S59  appropriated  the  further 
sum  of  $34,000 — making  in  all  $146,000. 
The  contributions  of  Montpelier  to  the 
three  houses  have  amounted  to  about  $71,- 
000,  exclusive  of  interest  and  the  land 
originally  deeded  by  Thomas  Davis,  which 
now,  if  it  was  private  property,  would  be 
the  most  valuable  land  in  the  town.  Every 
part  of  the  building,  which  is  ever  heated 
or  artifically  lighted,  is  fire-proof,  the  ma- 
terials being  granite,  brick,  iron  and  mar- 
ble ;  and  the  roof  and  dome,  which  can 
hardly  ever  be  exposed  to  fire  unless  by 
lightning,  are  covered  with  copper  and  con- 
nected by  copper  conductors  running  to  the 
ground  drains.  The  style  of  architecture 
is  the  same  as  that  of  the  second  capitol, 


*  For  IV  ftood  description  sec  [Ziulock]   T/ioiii/tson's 
Yeimont  [C'lvll  History,]  pajtcs  lal-'.'. 


but  the  furniture,  upholstery,  gas  fixtures, 
and  heating  apparatus  (by  steam)  are  far 
superior.  The  central  building  is  72  feet 
8  inches  in  height,  surmounted  by  a  dome 
and  cupola  56ft.  gin.  in  ht. — extreme  ht.  to 
base  of  the  statue  representing  Agriculture, 
which  caps  the  cupola,  129  feet  5  inches. 
The  length  of  the  central  building  is,  for  the 
portico  18  feet  and  the  side  walls  95  feet  8 
inches — in  all  113  feet  8  inches;  and  the 
breadth  is  72  feet  8  inches.  The  wings 
are  each  52  feet  in  length,  making  the  ex- 
treme length  of  both,  including  the  width 
of  the  central  building,  176  feet  8  inches. 
The  width  of  each  wing  is  50  feet  8  inches, 
and  the  height  47  feet  8  inches,  with  cor- 
nices reaching  to  8  feet  below  that  of  the 
central  building,  giving  to  the  whole  pile  the 
shape  of  the  Greek  cross.  By  the  enlarge- 
ment of  the  building,  opportunity  was  giv- 
en for  great  improvements  in  its  value  and 
convenience  for  public  business.  The 
State  Library  has  been  materially  enlarged 
aud  improved,  specially  in  law,  history, 
and  general  literature,  until  it  has  come  to 
be  indispensable  to  judges,  lawyers,  and 
literary  men  for  books  of  reference,  and 
the  number  of  volumes  has  largely  out- 
grown the  room.  A  fine  State  Cabinet  of 
mineralogy  and  natural  history  has  been 
formed,  and  it  receives  additions  annually. 
The  battle-Hags  of  the  Vermont  troops  in 
the  war  for  the  Union  are  carefully  pre- 
served, with  the  portraits  of  many  of  her 
officers ;  and  within  the  State  Department 
and  the  room  assigned  to  the  Vermont 
Historical  Society  all  the  fragments  of  the 
early  history  of  the  State  that  are  attain- 
able are  gathered  and  safely  kept.  On  the 
whole,  the  glory  of  the  latter  house  greatly 
exceeds  that  of  the  former. 

COUNTY   BUILDINGS. 

From  the  settlement  of  the  town  until  1797 
it  was  in  the  County  of  Orange.  In  1795, 
the  town  voted  unanimously  to  petition 
the  Legislature  to  be  set  oft"  to  the  County 
of  Chittenden,  and  failed  to  succeed,  but 
was  annexed  to  the  County  of  Caledonia  in 
1797,  and  there  remained  until  the  County 
of  Jeft'erson  was  organized  Dec.  i,  1811, 
with  Montpelier  as  the  county  town.   The 


MONTPELIER. 


287 


name  of  the  County  was  changed  to  Wash- 
ington in  1 8 14.  The  first  court  house  was 
erected  in  18 18,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
State  House  grounds — a  wooden  building, 
which  now  adjoins  the  Catholic  church, 
and  is  occupied  by  its  priest.  The  second 
house,  of  brick,  was  erected  on  the  corner 
of  State  and  EhTi  streets  in  1843,  ^^^  was 
burned  the  same  year.  The  third,  a  brick 
building,  enlarged  in  1879,  partly  burned 
in  1880,  and  re-finished  in  Aug.  1880,  was 
erected  on  the  same  site  in  1844.  The 
first  jail-house  was  the  dwelling-house  of 
the  first  settler  in  the  village — Jacob  Davis. 
It  was  given  to  the  County  by  Thomas 
Davis,  son  of  Jacob,  and  was  converted 
into  a  jail  and  residence  for  the  jailor. 
The  changes  in  this  building,  to  adapt  it 
to  its  purposes,  were  made  at  the  expense 
of  citizens  of  Montpelier.  In  1832,  the 
County  rebuilt  the  jail  part  of  this  building, 
and  gave  back  half  of  the  building  to  the 
original  donor,  who  then  needed  this  act 
of  justice.  In  1857,  the  County  substi- 
tuted the  present  substantial  and  handsome 
building  for  the  old  one,  and  paid  Mr. 
Davis  for  his  interest  in  the  property.  In 
this  connection  a  fact  is  added  to  correct  the 
perhaps  general  impression  that  the  State- 
House  and  other  public  buildings  are 
sources  of  wealth  to  the  citizens  of  the 
town,  especially  the  hotel-keepers.  Mr. 
Davis  gave  bountifully  of  his  property  to 
the  State  and  County,  doubtless  hoping  to 
regain  all  his  gifts  and  more,  by  the  in- 
creased patronage  he  would  receive  in  his 
hotel.  That  hotel  was  the  finest  of  its 
day,  at  least  in  the  State,  and  was,  as  it 
has  almost  ever  since  been,  the  one  most 
favored.  Mr.  Davis  was  himself  an  indus- 
trious, temperate  and  laborious  man,  and 
had  the  aid  of  sons  and  daughters  born  in 
his  house ;  and  yet  he  would  have  died  a 
poor  man,  entirely  dependent  upon  his 
children,  but  for  the  remnant  of  his  early 
patrimony  which  was  restored  in  his  old 
age  by  the  County. 

HOTELS. 

The  first  building  serving  as  a  public 
house  was  Col.  Jacob  Davis'  residence  on 
Elm  street,  afterwards  the  jail-house,  and 
still  serving  for  dwellings  on  another  part 


of  the  same  street.  The  first  hotel  in  the 
town  and  county,  built  specially  for  the 
purpose,  was  built  by  Col.  Jacob  Davia, 
about  1793 — the  Union  House,  on  the  site 
of  the  present  Unitarian  church.  It  was 
of  wood,  and  was  burned  in  1835.  An- 
other hotel  of  brick  was  erected  on  the 
same  site,  and  that  also  was  burned  in 
1859,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  present 
Union  House,  standing  on  the  opposite 
corner  of  Main  and  Court  streets.  The 
second  hotel  built  was  the  Hutchins  tav- 
ern, longer  known  as  the  Shepard  tavern, 
a  wooden  building,  which  stood  on  Main, 
opposite  Barre  street;  it  was  burned.  The 
third  hotel  erected  was  the  Pavilion,  by 
Thomas  Davis,  in  1807-8,  a  brick  build- 
ing. For  its  day  it  was  one  of  the  best 
hotels  in  New  England,  adorned  with 
mouldings,  carved  wood-work,  and  fresco 
painting  excelled  only  in  modern  times. 
Mahlon  Cottrill  enlarged  the  building  to 
about  double  its  original  dimensions.  This 
building  was  succeeded  by  the  present 
building,  erected  by  Theron  O.  Bailey, 
which  is  one  of  the  most  perfect  hotels  in 
New  England.  The  third  hotel  erected 
was  by  Obadiah  Eaton  in  i8io,  on  ground 
now  occupied  by  the  Central  Vermont  rail- 
road for  depot  purposes.  This  building 
was  moved  to  Elm  street,  and  is  now  oc- 
cupied as  a  dwelling-house.  The  fourth 
hotel  was  of  brick,  on  the  south  side  of 
State  street,  and  a  few  doors  west  of  Main 
street,  which  was  kept  for  many  years  by 
Rufus  Campbell,  Hugh  Gourley,  William 
Rogers  and  others,  and  was  then  converted 
into  stores.  It  was  erected  about  1824. 
The  fifth  was  the  Eagle  hotel,  on  State 
street,  enlarged  and  changed  into  the 
present  American  house.  The  sixth  was 
the  brick  dwelling-house  on  State  street 
erected  by  Henry  Y.  Barnes,  and  changed 
into  a  temperance  hotel.  For  many  years 
it  was  known  as  Burnham's  hotel,  and  is 
now  known  as  the  Bishop  house.  This 
comprises  the  list  of  hotels  in  the  present 
town  of  Montpelier.  In  the  part  of  the 
old  town  which  is  now  East  Montpelier, 
the  writer  remembers  five  taverns,  some 
of  which  were  not  without  fame  in  their 
day.     For  a  time  there  was  a  hotel  in  the 


28^ 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


present  limits  of  Montpelier,  but  not  in 
the  village,  known  as  the  Coffee  House. 
It  was  on  the  farm  two  miles  from  the 
State-House,  and  on  the  road  to  Barre. 
The  farm  was  originally  owned  by  Jacob 
Davis,  Jr.,  and  is  still  known  as  the  Coffee 
House. 

RELIGIOUS   HISTORY. 

The  to\vn  records  show  action  by  the 
town  in  respect  to  the  gospel  fund  and 
to  preaching  at  different  times,  commenc- 
ing March  i6,  1795,  but  not  much  fruit. 
About  that  time  the  first  Methodist  class 
was  formed.  [See  History  of  Methodist 
church,  by  Methodist  contributors.]  From 
1 79 1,  Clark  Stevens,  Friend  or  Quaker, 
was  a  resident  of  East  Montpelier,  and 
was  joined  by  others  of  the  same  per- 
suasion, when  religious  meetings  were  held  ; 
in  1803,  a  society  was  regularly  organized, 
and  shortly  after  a  house  for  their  meet- 
ings was  erected.  In  1804,  regular  re- 
ligious meetings  were  established  in  the 
village  for  services  in  "singing  and  read- 
ing of  sermons  "  when  destitute  of  preach- 
ing. The  first  record  of  regular  preaching, 
in  what  is  now  Montpelier,  was  by  Rev. 
Clark  Brown,  of  Brimfield,  Mass.  In  1805, 
he  was  employed  by  the  town  to  preach 
for  one  year ;  but  he  did  not  succeed  in 
that  profession,  and  in  1806,  left  it  and 
started  a  newspaper.  In  1807,  a  Mr. 
Hovey  was  employed  as  preacher,  but  left 
the  same  year. 

FIRST   CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH. 

In  the  winter  of  1808,  Rev.  Chester 
Wright  spent  a  few  Sabbaths,  and  Apr. 
12,  thereafter,  83  leading  citizens  of  the 
village  formed  "The  First  Congregational 
Society  in  Montpelier."  July  20,  1808, 
"The  First  Congregational  Church" 
was  formed,  consisting  of  17  members. 
Mr.  Wright  was  then  employed  as  stated 
preacher,  and  continued  as  such  until  Aug. 
16,  1809,  when  he  was  made  the  perma- 
nent pastor  of  the  church.  The  number 
of  the  members  of  this  church  reported  in 
June,  1872,  was  440,  of  whom  155  were 
then  non-residents  who  had  not  taken 
letters  of  dismission  or  formally  changed 
their  relation.     The  whole  number  admit- 


ted to  this  church  has  been  near  1200, 
thus  showing  that  the  removals  by  emigra- 
tion and  death  have  been  about  900.  The 
meetings  were  usually  held  in  the  State- 
House,  sometimes  in  the  Academy  build- 
ing until  1820,  when  what  has  been  com- 
monly known  as  "the  brick  church  "was 
erected,  at  a  cost  of  about  $8,000.  The 
present  elegant  and  substantial  building, 
called  "  Bethany  Church,"  which  was  ded- 
icated Oct.  15,  1868,  occupies  the  site  of 
the  old  church.  The  value  of  Bethany 
church  was  reported  to  the  last  General 
Convention  to  be  $70,000 ;  but  including 
the  land  and  organ,  and  the  cost  of  the 
construction  of  the  building,  the  sum 
should  be  about  $6,000  greater.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  list  of  the  pastors  of  the  First 
Congregational  Church  of  Montpelier : 

Aug.  16,  1809,  to  Dec.  22,  1830,  Ches- 
ter Wright;  Oct.  26,  1831,  to  April  19, 
1835,  Samuel  Hopkins;  Aug.  25,  1836,  to 
July  15,  1840,  Buel  W.  Smith;  Dec.  15, 
1 84 1,  to  Dec.  9,  1846,  JohnGridley ;  Sept. 
27,  1847,  to  1878,  W.  H.  Lord;  1878  to 
the  present  time,  J.  H.  Hincks. 

SECOND   congregational  CHURCH,    OR 
FREE   CHURCH. 

This  church  was  organized  in  1835,  con- 
sisting mainly  of  members  of  the  First 
Congregational  church.  For  a  few  years, 
under  the  ministration  of  Rev.  Sherman 
Kellogg,  it  prospered,  but  afterwards  de- 
clined, and  about  the  year  184S,  was  aban- 
doned, a  part  of  the  members  returning  to 
the  First  Church,  and  others  joining  the 
Methodist  church.  The  pastors  and  min- 
isters of  this  church  were  :  1835  to  1842, 
Sherman  Kellogg;  1842  to  1844,  Joab 
Seeley ;  1845  to  1847,  E.  J.  Comings. 
This  church  and  society  erected  and  used 
the  building  on  State  street,  which  is  now 
the  Village  Hall. 

FREE   WILL   BAPTIST   CHURCH. 

Elder  Ziba  Woodworth,  (see  biograph- 
ical sketch  in  East  Montpelier,)  was  a  cit- 
izen of  the  town  at  its  organization,  and 
on  its  record  is  a  certificate  of  his  good 
standing  in  the  Baptist  church  prior  to  his 
residence  here.  From  about  1800,  Mr. 
Woodworth  was  in  the  habit  of  exhorting 


MONTPELIER. 


289 


as  occasion  offered,  and  in  1806,  he  was 
ordained,  and  preached  from  1806  to  1826. 
Philip  Wheeler  is  named  in  Walton's  Reg- 
ister as  a  Baptist  preacher  in  181 5-16,  and 
again  from  1823  to  1825,  and  also  Samuel 
Parker  from  1827  to  1832.  A  church  was 
organized  in  1830,  says  D.  P.  Thompson, 
which  would  be  in  the  ministry  of  Mr. 
Parker.  In  1870,  the  church  and  society 
commenced  the  construction  of  a  hand- 
some church  edifice  on  School  street, 
which  has  since  been  completed.  The 
clerical  list,  so  far  as  it  is  attainable,  is  as 
follows,  beginning  with  the  organization 
of  the  church  in  1830:     1830-32,  Samuel 

Parker;    1840,   Keniston ;    1841-43, 

ZebinaYoung;  1849, Jackson;  1866-8, 

N.  P.  Foster  ;  1869-71,  William  Fitz ; 
1872-78,  N.  Newton  Glazier;  1879  to  the 
present  time,  H.  A.  Rogers. 

UNIVERSALIST   CHURCHES  OR  SOCIETIES. 

In  an  account  of  the  religious  condition 
of  the  town  previous  to  1811 ,  the  late  Rev. 
Chester  Wright  stated  that  previous  to 
1800,  there  had  rarely  been  any  preaching 
except  by  the  Methodists ;  that  the  in- 
creased population  from  1800  was  divided 
into  various  sects,  the  largest  number  pro- 
fessing Universalism.  A  society  of  this 
sect  was  formed  in  the  village,  (now  Mont- 
pelier,)  in  183 1  ;  one  had  been  formed 
earlier  at  the  centre  of  the  old  town,  and 
shared  the  meeting-house  there  with  other 
denominations,  and  at  a  later  date  a  third 
was  formed  in  East  Montpelier,  and  erect- 
ed a  house  of  worship  in  East  Montpelier 
village,  which  has  been  maintained  ever 
since,  and  is  now  a  handsome  structure. 
The  following  list  of  Universalist  preach- 
ers in  Montpelier  has  been  gathered  from 
Walton's  Register : 

1833,  John  M.  Currier;  1834,  John  M. 
Austin;  1835,6.  H.  Fuller,  J.  Wright; 
1836,  J.  Wright;  1837-8,  John  Gregory; 
1839,  J.  Wright,  J.  Boyden;  1840 to  1866, 
Eli  Ballou;  1867-70,  J.  O.  Skinner;  1871, 
E.  Ballou. 

UNITARIAN   CHURCH   AND   SOCIETY. 

There  had  been  occasionally  missionary 
efforts  for  this  denomination,  but  no  stated 
preaching    and    permanent    organization 

37 


until  after  the  coming  of  Rev.  C.  A.  Allen 
in  1865.  A  church  and  society  has  been 
formed,  consisting  of  Universalists  and 
Unitarians,  and  a  handsome  church  edi- 
fice has  been  erected  on  the  corner  of 
Main  and  School  streets,  called  "The 
Church  of  the  Messiah."  The  list  of  min- 
isters embraces  but  two  names :  Rev. 
Chas.  A.  Allen  began  his  labors  in  Mont- 
pelier in  1864,  and  remained  here  5  years, 
receiving  leave  of  absence  for  a  year  in 
1869,  and  resigning  his  charge  before  that 
leave  had  expired.  Rev.  J.  Edward  Wright 
became  pastor  in  1869,  and  is  now  (1881) 
in  charge. 

PROTESTANT   EPISCOPAL   CHURCH. 

In  1842,  a  church  of  this  denomination 
was  organized,  consisting  in  part  of  mem- 
bers dismissed  by  request  from  the  first 
Congregational  church,  among  them  being 
the  first  rector.  A  small  church  edifice 
was  immediately  built,  and  in  1867-8,  an- 
other elegant  one  on  State  street,  near  the 
centre  of  the  village,  which  superseded  the 
first.  It  is  called  "Christ  Church."  The 
list  of  rectors  is  as  follows  : 

1843-49,  George  B.  Manser;  1850-53, 
E.  F.  Putnam  ;  1854-65,  F.  W.  Shelton ; 
1866-8,  D.  C.  Roberts ;  1869-70,  Wm.  J. 
Harris;  1871-79,  A.  Hull;  1880  and  since, 
H.  F.  Hill.  [An  additional  paper  is  prom- 
ised by  the  rector.  Rev.  Mr.  Hill. — Ed.] 

ROMAN  CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 

No  record  is  found  of  regular  ministra- 
tions according  to  the  forms  of  the  Cath- 
olic church  for  any  considerable  period 
previous  to  1850,  but  there  had  been  fre- 
quent visitations  before  that  date,  notably 
by  "  Father  O'Callaghan,"  of  Burlington. 
The  old  court  house  was  first  converted  to 
the  uses  of  a  church,  and  was  again  con- 
verted into  the  priest's  residence,  when  a 
convenient  brick  edifice  had  been  erected 
near  the  State  House,  now  known  as  "  St. 
Augustine."  The  congregation  is  the 
largest  in  the  town,  being  gathered  from 
Montpelier  and  neighboring  towns.  The 
clerical  list  is  as  follows,  gathered  from 
Walton's  Register : 

1850-53,  Hector  Drolette ;  1861-63,2. 
Druon;  1864-81,  J.  M.P.  Duglue,  inwhose 


290 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


absence  Father  Savoie  officiated.  [An  ad- 
ditional paper  will  be  given  hereafter. — 
Ed.] 

LITERARY  INSTITUTIONS,  NEWSPAPERS,  &C. 

The  history  of  the  common  schools — at 
least  until  the  establishment  of  a  graded 
school  by  the  union  of  all  the  districts  in 
the  village — is  that  of  every  other  town  of 
like  population,  and  need  not  be  given. 
Preliminary  to  a  notice  of  the  chartered 
literary  institutions  in  their  order,  four  so- 
cieties designed  to  supplement  the  formal 
schools  are  worthy  of  notice. 

LIBRARIES   AND   DEBATING   SOCIETIES. 

The  first  was  a  Circulati)ig  Library,  of 
about  200  vols.,  established  in  1794,  and  lo- 
cated in  the  centre  of  the  old  town,  probably 
under  the  care  of  the  late  Parley  Davis. 
One  feature  was  the  exclusion  of  all  novels 
as  well  as  all  religious  books,  thus  limit- 
ing the  selection  of  books  to  works  of 
history,  travels,  biography,  the  sciences, 
philosophy,  agriculture,  mechanics,  and 
such  poetry  as  was  admissible  under  the 
rule ;  and  the  second  was  the  establish- 
ment of  a  similar  library  in  the  village, 
Feb.  28,  1814,  which  was  not  quite  so  ex- 
clusive in  character.  Both  libraries  ex- 
isted for  many  years,  and  were  undoubtedly 
useful  to  all  who  were  disposed  to  profit  by 
them.  The  third  was  a  literary  society 
formed  about  1807,  for  theme  writing  and 
debate,  called  "  The  Franklin  Society,''''  of 
which  the  apprentices  in  the  printing- 
offices  and  other  mechanical  trades  were 
the  members.  Its  rules  required  gentle- 
manly language  and  deportment ;  and  one 
who  was  an  originator  of  the  society,  (the 
late  Gen.  Ezekiel  P.  Walton,)  informed 
the  writer  that  all  the  members  became 
intelligent,  valuable  and  influential  cit- 
izens, except  one  alone,  who  was  expelled 
for  profanity.  Another  society,  with  the 
same  name,  existed  in  1828.  A  similar 
but  small  society  was  in  existence  some 
few  years,  dating  also  from  about  1828, 
and  with  like  results  ;  at  least  three  of  the 
members  became  editors,  two  of  them 
Members  of  Congress  at  the  same  time, 
and  another  a  judge  of  the  superior  court 


of  one  of  the  large  Western  States.*  The 
fourth  was 

"THE   MONTPELIER    LYCEUM," 

formed  Nov.  18,  1829,  which  was  contin- 
ued for  several  years.  Its  design  was 
"mutual  improvement  in  useful  knowl- 
edge," and  the  means  were,  by  addresses, 
lectures,  essays,  reports  upon  assigned 
topics,  and  oral  debate  upon  selected  ques- 
tions. The  members  were  not  only  the 
young  people  of  both  sexes  from  the 
schools,  but  also  professional  men,  mer- 
chants and  mechanics  of  all  ages.  The 
lad  in  his  teens  met  his  minister,  his 
teacher,  his  doctor,  or  the  judges  and  law- 
yers of  the  village,  in  public  debate,  and 
all  were  encouraged  to  take  part  in  the  ex- 
ercises. The  fruits  were  indeed  "im- 
provement in  useful  knowledge,"  and  the 
art  of  imparting  knowledge  ;  making  good 
writers  and  keen  debaters,  sharpening  the 
intellectual  powers,  educating  in  all  the 
members  a  taste  for  whatever  is  excellent 
and  useful  in  literature  and  science,  and 
inspiring  a  zeal  for  personal  and  public 
improvement.  Its  first  president, and  prob- 
ably its  originator,  was  the  well-beloved 
principal  of  Washington  County  Grammar 
School  for  12  years — the  late  Rev.  Jona- 
than C.  Southmayd. 

WASHINGTON   COUNTY   GRAMMAR   SCHOOL. 

Nov.  7,  1810,  Montpelier  Acadet/iy  was 
incorporated,  the  iiame  being  changed  in 
1 8 13  to  Washington  County  Grammar 
School,  and  endowed  with  the  rents  of  the 
Grammar  School  lands.  The  first  acad- 
emy building  was  of  wood,  44  by  36  feet 
on  the  ground,  and  two  stories  in  height. 
It  was  located  on  what  is  now  the  triangle 
on  Main  at  the  intersection  of  Spring  street, 
near  the  "  Academy  bridge."  This  build- 
ing was  burned  in  1822,  when  a  more  com- 
modious brick  building  was  erected,  which 
was  used  until  it  was  superseded  by  the 
larger  and  still  more  commodious  Union 
School  building,  erected  at   the  head  of 


•Tliree  of  the  graduatds  from  Gen.  Walton's  print- 
ing-office were  serving  in  Congress  at  the  same  time 
In  1857-'59— two  as  Members  ol  the  House  from  Massa- 
chusetts and  Vermont,  and  a  tliird.  liailing  from  a 
Western  State,  in  the  i)ost-office  of  the  House,  and 
allerward  in  the  Clerks'  Department,  and  as  Pay- 
master in  the  Army  in  the  Ktbellion  war.  Two  other 
graduates  from  that  office  became  clergymen  of  good 
reputation. 


MONTPELIER. 


291 


School  street  in  1858-9.  The  principal 
instructors  of  the  Academy  and  Grammar 
School,  until  its  union  with  the  Graded 
School,  were :  James  Whorter,  James 
Dean,*  Joseph  Sill,  Benton  Pixley,t  ^^^ 
Hill,  Thomas  Heald,  Justus  W.  French, J 
Seneca  White,  Heman  Rood,  John  Stev- 
ens, Jonathan  C.  Southmayd,  J.  B.  East- 
man, Augustus  A.  Wood,  ||  Aaron  G. 
Pease, §  Calvin  PeascH  J.  H.  Morse,  M. 
Colburn,  Geo.  N.  Clark,**  Davis  Strong, 
Horace  Herrick,  J.  E.  Goodrich,  Charles 
Kent  and  C.  R.  Ballard.  Others  were 
temporarily  employed,  and  among  them 
was  the  late  Hon.  Joshua  Y .  Vail,  in  the  early 
years  of  the  .school,  and  Robert  Hale  in 
the  later ;  and  in  the  interim  between  the 
destruction  of  the  first  academy  building 
and  the  completion  of  the  second,  the 
want  of  an  academy  was  measurably  sup- 
plied by  a  classical  school  under  a  Mr. 
Sherard.  For  many  years,  dating  from 
the  preceptorship  of  Mr.  Southmayd, 
Washington  County  Grammar  School  was, 
among  others  of  its  day,  of  the  very  high- 
est reputation  in  the  State,  sending  out  as 
teachers,  clergymen,  lawyers,  physicians 
and  public  men,  a  long  roll  to  the  high 
honor  of  the  institution  audits  instructors. 

MONTPELIER    UNION   GRADED   SCHOOL. 

Prompted  in  part  by  a  bequest  of  $1,000 
by  Hezekiah  H.  Reed,  land  was  purchased 
aniiply  sufficient  for  school  purposes  for 
many  generations,  and  a  school-house 
erected  at  a  cost  of  $19,000,  when,  under 
the  general  statute  and  special  acts  passed 
in  1858-9,  the  four  school-districts  in  the 
village  were  united  into  one  Union  School 
district.  The  special  acts  gave  full  powers 
in  respect  to  the  course  of  study,  and  with 
a  union  of  Washington  County  Grammar 


*  Afterward  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  tlie  Ilni- 
versity  of  Vermont.  [See  vol.  I,  Burlington  Paperon 
the  University  by  Prof  Clark— Ed.] 

t  Clergyman  iu  Williamstowu  and  missionary  among 
the  Western  Indians. 

t  Clergyman  In  Vermont,  New  York  and  New  Jer- 
sey. 

II  Clei'gyman  in  Newr  York. 

§  Clergyman  In  Vermont. 

Tl  Professor  and  President  of  University  of  Vermont, 
who  died  while  pastor  of  a  Presbyterian  church  at 
Rochester,  N.  Y.  [See  biography  "of,  by  brother  of 
President  Pease,  vol.  I,  this  work — Ed.] 

**  Professor  in  University  of  Vermont,  and  now 
clergyman  and  Secretary  of  ihe  American  Board  for 
Foreign  Missions.-  [See  Paper  by  him  on  U.  V.  M., 
vol.  I,  Vt.  Hist.  Gaz.— Ed.] 


School  with  the  district,  a  course  was 
adopted  embracing  all  studies  necessary, 
from  the  primary  to  the  highest  grades  re- 
quired for  admission  to  colleges  and  the 
highest  institutions  for  the  education  of 
females.  Thus  was  formed  a  Union  and 
Graded  School,  which  has  endeared  itself 
to  children  and  parents,  and  is  an  honor 
and  a  source  of  just  pride  to  the  town. 
The  principals  have  been:  1859-61,  M. 
M.  Marsh;  1862-71,  Daniel  D.  Gorham  ; 
1872-74,  C.  W.  Westgate;  1875-77,  J.E. 
Miller;  1878-9,  A.  W.  Blair  ;  1880,  W.W. 
Prescott;  1881,  H.  R.  Brackett. 

NEWSPAPERS  AND  AUTHORS. 

The  first  newspaper  established  in  Mont- 
pelier  was  T/ie  Vermo7it  P?'eciirsor,  by 
Clark  Brown,  in  November,  1806.  Mr. 
Brown  had  not  been  fortunate  as  a  preach- 
er, having  failed  in  a  few  months,  and 
he  was  little  more  fortunate  as  publisher, 
since  he  sold  his  paper  in  less  than  a  year 
to  Samuel  Goss,  the  first  proprietor  of 
The  Watchmaji,  which  was  afterwards, 
from  January,  1826,  the  Vermont  IVatch- 
mati  (Sr^  State  Gazette,  and  from  Dec.  13, 
1836,  and  still  is,  the  Vetv/ioni  Watchman 
(3r^  State  Jourtial ;  and  the  oldest  newspa- 
per in  Montpelier.  The  real  germ  of  the 
Watchman,  however,  was  not  the  Precur- 
sor, but  the  Green  Moiintain  Patriot,  es- 
tablished at  Peacham,  Feb.  1798,  by  Sam- 
uel Goss  and  Amos  Farley,  and  discontin- 
ued in  March,  1807,  the  year  in  which  Mr. 
Goss  moved  his  office  to  Montpelier.  The 
editors  of  the  Watchman  have  been  Sam- 
uel Goss,  Ezekiel  P.  Walton,  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton Jr.,  [so  known  to  the  public,  the  true 
name  being  Eliakim  P.  Walton,]  Joseph 
&  J.  Monroe  Poland.  The  period  of  Mr. 
Goss  was  from  1807  to  1810;  of  Mr.  Wal- 
ton senior  until  about  1830,  after  which 
his  brother  Joseph  S.  Walton  assisted  for 
awhile,  and  E.  P.  Walton  Jr.  until  Sept. 
1853  ;  the  latter  was  editor  and  proprietor 
until  Jan.  16,  1868,  and  editor  until  Mar. 
1868;  and  from  March  1868,  the  Messrs. 
Poland  were  in  charge  until  J.  M.  Poland 
retired.  During  the  40  years  of  service  by 
Walton,  senior,  the  business  of  book-pub- 
lishing and  .selling  was  connected  with  the 


292 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


newspaper,  and  for  several  years  after  his 
sons  had  become  of  age,  the  business  was 
greatly  enlarged  by  uniting  under  one 
•  mariagement  the  newspaper,  job  and  book- 
printing,  paper-making,  book-binding,  and 
book-selling,  making  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant business  establishments  in  the 
town,  and  furnishing  support  to  a  greater 
number  of  families  than  any  other  at  the 
time. 

The  next  newspaper  in  point  of  time  was 
The  Freemaii's  Press,  by  Derick  Sibley, 
or  Wright  &  Sibley.  The  germ  of  that 
paper  was,  it  is  supposed,  The  Weekly 
Wanderer,  commenced  at  Randolph  in 
Jan.  1 80 1,  by  Sereno  Wright,  and  discon- 
tinued in  181 1  ;  or  possibly  was  removed 
to  Montpelier  and  re-issued  as  ''The  Free- 
mail's  Press.''''  In  D.  P.  Thompson's  list 
of  business  men,  however,  the  names  of 
Wright  &  Sibley  do  not  appear  until  18 15. 
They  may  have  come  earlier,  and  probably 
did,  as  Rev.  John  Gridley's  History  fixes  the 
date  "about  1813."  The  latter  was  the 
Jeffersonian  Republican  as  theWatchman 
was  the  Federal  organ,  until  "the  era  of 
good  feeling"  came  to  Montpelier  in  1818, 
when  Jonas  Galusha  received  all  the  votes 
of  Montpelier  except  one.  The  "Press" 
was  discontinued  about  that  time — possi- 
bly before  18 17,  leaving  "the  Watchman" 
sole  occupant  in  the  field.  Mr.  Sibley  re- 
moved to  Rochester,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was 
highly  esteemed,  and  a  son  of  his — possi- 
bly a  native  of  Montpelier, — has  been  one 
of  the  most  successful  men  of  this  country 
in  telegraph  companies. 

The  next  newspaper  in  the  order  of  time 
was  the  '■'■Vermont  Patriot  &■=  State  Gazette,'''' 
established  Jan.  17,  1826,  by  George 
Washington  Hill  &  Company.  It  was  in- 
tended to  be  the  organ  of  the  Jackson  par- 
ty (since  called  Democratic)  in  Vermont, 
as  was  Isaac  Hill's  "Patriot"  in  New 
Hampshire.  The  "Vermont  Patriot"  was 
continued  for  some  years  by  its  founders  ; 
from  1834  by  Geo.  W.  Hill  and  William 
Clark;  from  1839  by  Jeremiah  T.  Mars- 
ton;  from  1848  by  Eastman  &  Danforth  ; 
from  1854  by  C.  G.  Eastman,  and  the  ad- 
ministrator of  his  estate,  from  whom  the 
paper  passed  to  E.  M.  Brown,  and  short- 


ly after  was  merged  in  the  present  "Argus 
atid  Patriot,''''  published  and  edited  by  Hi- 
ram Atkins.  The  dates  given  above,  ex- 
cept as  to  the  birth  of  the  "Patriot,"  have 
been  taken  from  D.  P.  Thompson's  list  of 
business  men,  and  may  not  be  entirely 
accurate,  though  it  is  believed  they  are 
nearly  so.  Mr.  Hill  did  not  possess  the 
editorial  tact  of  his  distinguished  brother, 
and  employed  others  to  do  the  chief  edito- 
rial work,  and  most  prominent  among  the 
several  so  employed  were  Horace  Steele 
and  Hugh  Moore — Steele,  the  author  of 
"The  Indian  Captive,"  (omitted  front  Za- 
dock  Thompson's  list  of  Vermont  books,) 
and  Moore  a  poet  of  no  mean  rank.  Both 
Marston  and  Eastman  were  able  editors, 
and  Eastman  was  the  sweetest  of  Vermont 
poets. 

"The  State  JotirnaV  was  established 
Nov.  I,  1831,  by  Knapp&Jewett — Chaun- 
cey  L.  Knapp,  a  graduate  from  the  Watch- 
man office,  and  Elam  R.  Jewett.  The 
"Journal"  was  continued  until  December 
1836,  as  the  organ  of  the  Anti-Masonic 
party,  and  was  then  merged  in  the  "Watch- 
man." Mr.  Knapp  was  the  chief  editor, 
and  after  filling  State  offices  in  Vermont 
and  Massachusetts,  and  serving  four  years 
in  Congress  for  the  Lowell,  Mass.,  dis- 
trict— 1855-59, — "^^  ^^  "°'^  ^'^  harness 
again  as  editor  of  a  daily  newspaper  in 
Lowell.  Mr.  Jewett  was  for  a  long  time 
connected  with  the  Commercial  Advertiser 
of  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  and  has  retired  from  the 
newspaper  business  with  an  ample  fortune, 
but  is  yet  engaged  in  a  lucrative  business 
kindred  to  "the  art  of  arts." 

The  Voice  of  Freedom  was  established 
in  January  1839,  by  Allen  &  Poland,  with 
C.  L.  Knapp  editor,  an  anti-slavery  news- 
paper, which  was  continued  until  1842, 
and  then  removed  to  Brandon.  It  was 
succeeded  in  1844,  at  Montpelier,  by  the 
"Green  Momitain  pyeeman,''''  by  Joseph 
Poland,  which  is  now  published  by  Her- 
bert R.  Wheelock.  The  editors  have  been 
Joseph  Poland,  Jacob  Scott,  Daniel  P. 
Thompson,  Sidney  S.  Boyce,  Charles  W. 
Willard,  J.  W.  Wheelock,  H.  R.  Whee- 
lock, and  H.  A.  Huse.    [See  paper  later.] 

The  "Christian   Repositoiy ,''''   organ   of 


MONTPELIEK. 


293 


the  Universalist  denomination,  was  started 
in  Woodstock  as  "The  Universalist  Watch- 
man" in  1829,  by  William  Bell,  and  re- 
moved to  Montpelier  about  1836,  and  its 
title  changed.  For  most  of  the  period  of 
its  publication  in  Montpelier,  Eli  Ballou 
was  the  editor  and  he  was  also  publisher, 
under  the  firms  of  Ballou  &  Loveland,  and 
Ballou  &  Son.  It  was  merged  in  a  Boston 
paper  in  1870,  having  been  edited  for  the 
three  preceding  years  by  J.  O.  Skinner. 

The  "■Christian  Messenger,''''  [see account 
of  by  Rev.  J.  R.  Bartlett.] 

'Y\\t' Vermont  Farmer  was  commenced 
in  Montpelier  in  1879,  t)y  L.  P.  Thayer, 
and  removed  to  Northfield  in  1881. 

For  The  Vermont  Chronicle,  now  pub- 
lished here,  see  Windsor,  next  volume. 

For  about  40  years  a  daily  paper  has 
been  issued  from  the  "Watchman"  office 
during  the  sessions  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly. It  was  originated  for  the  convenience 
only  of  members  of  the  Legislature  and 
persons  having  business  before  it,  and  at 
first  was  a  small  sheet  of  one  or  two  pages, 
containing  an  abstract  of  daily  proceed- 
ings. Soon  it  grew  into  a  small  news- 
paper of  four  pages,  and  contained  an  ab- 
stract of  debates  as  well  as  of  proceedings, 
and  was  in  demand  for  more  general  cir- 
culation. It  became  at  last  a  daily  paper 
of  medium  size,  or  equal  to  the  original 
weekly  "Watchman,"  and  was  entitled 
"  Waltofi's  Daily  Journal,''''  to  distinguish 
it  from  his  weekly  newspaper.  From  the 
outbreak  of  the  rebellion  in  the  spring  of 
1 86 1,  until  July,  1868,  it  was  continued 
regularly  as  a  daily  paper — with  two  edi- 
tions each  day  for  most  of  that  period — 
and  was  supplied  by  correspondents  in 
several  of  the  Vermont  regiments  with  val- 
uable materials  for  Vermont's  history  in 
the  War,  much  of  which  is  yet  to  be  pre- 
served in  a  more  convenient  form.  Daily 
papers  have  occasionally  been  issued  dur- 
ing the  Legislative  sessions  from  the  "  Pat- 
riot "and  "Argus"  office,  and  also  from 
the  "Freeman"  office,  and  from  the  lat- 
ter a  daily,  was  published  during  the  war. 

A  regular  visitor  into  more  Vermont 
households  than  have  received  the  Mont- 
pelier newspapers  altogether,  is  "Walton's 


Vermont  Register."  It  was  started  by  E. 
P.  Walton,  Sr.,  and  his  brother,  George 
S.  Walton,  in  18 17,  the  first  number,  (be- 
ing the  Register  for  1818,)  having  been 
printed  and  published  in  the  closing 
months  of  that  year.  From  that  date 
until  the  present  time  it  has  been  annually 
issued,  and  although  it  has  not  increased 
much  in  superficial  dimensions,  and  is  still 
a  convenient  hand-book,  it  has  increased 
in  matter  as  fast  as  the  professional  and 
other  business  of  the  State  has  increased. 
The  second  number  of  the  Register,  (for 
1819,)  was  published  by  E.  P.  Walton, 
Sr.,  Geo.  S.  having  deceased,  and  the 
publication  was  continued  by  him  and  his 
sons  until  1853,  when  the  publication  was 
commenced  by  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  the 
present  Eliakim  P.  Walton.  In  a  few 
years  the  proprietorship  was  given  by  him 
to  Samuel  M.  Walton,  and  by  him  it  was 
transferred  to  the  Claremont  Manufacturing 
Co.  in  1867,  their  first  issue  having  been 
the  number  for  1868,  and  in  1881  to  the 
White  River  Paper  Co.  From  1817,  or 
the  origin  of  the  Register,  until  now,  the 
editors  have  been  E.  P.  Walton,  Sr.,  and 
E.  P.  Walton,  Jr. — so  it  ever  has  been, 
and  still  is,  "  Walton'' s  Vermotit  Register .'''' 
For  several  years  the  blanks  in  the  calen- 
dar pages  were  filled  with  guess-work  as  to 
the  weather,  and  the  writer  of  these  pages 
exercised  his  ingenuity  in  filling  in  that 
sort  of  matter  when  a  boy — a  confession 
which  suggests  the  utter  folly  of  the  fash- 
ion. It  was  the  general  fashion  in  al- 
manacs, however,  and  for  the  credit  of 
Walton's  it  must  be  said,  that  nobody 
could  be  harmed  by  a  prognostication  of 
"  rain  or  snow"  in  April,  or  of  "  unsteady 
weather,  flying  clouds ;  we  seldom  fail  of 
having  a  cold  north-easterly  storm  this 
month" — all  of  which  is  the  weather  wis- 
dom for  May,  1820.  The  three  last 
months  of  that  year  were  suffered  to  go  to 
press  without  any  weather  at  all,  but  it  is  a 
fact  that  the  weather  went  on  according  to 
its  will,  without  the  slightest  respect  to  the 
Almanac  maker,  or  the  hopes  or  fears  of 
those  who  relied  upon  him.  This  folly 
was  abandoned  finally,  and  a  page  was  in- 
serted   from    year   to    year   containing   a 


294 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


weather  table,  which  was  originally  framed 
by  the  astronomer  Herschel,  and  corrected 
by  observations  made  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Adam  Clarke.  It  is  obvious,  however, 
that  any  scheme,  constructed  by  observa- 
tions on  another  continent,  and  with  a 
different  climate  from  ours,  cannot  be  re- 
liable here  ;  probably  not  as  reliable  as  the 
judgment  of  persons  who  will  themselves 
carefully  observe  the  connection  of  fair 
or  foul  weather  with  the  direction  of  the 
wind,  and  watch  the  thermometer  and 
barometer — or  better  still,  the  daily  an- 
nouncements from  the  weather  office  at 
Washington ;  which,  by  the  way,  take  no 
notice  of  the  moon  ?is  an  element  in  fore- 
casting the  weather.  The  time  came  to 
relieve  "Walton's  Register"  from  this 
useless  matter,  and  it  was  gladly  improved. 

Among  the  papers  temporarily  published 
at  Montpelier  were  "  The  Temperance 
Star,"'  publishedin  1841-2  by  the  Vermont 
Temperance  Society,  and  edited  by  Geo. 
B.Manser;  '-The  Harrisonian,''''  a.  cam- 
paign paper  issued^ in  1840,  from  the 
JVaichman  office,  and  edited  by  E.  P. 
Walton,  Jr. ;  ''The  Reformed  Drunkard,'''' 
in  1842,  by  F.  A.  McDowell,  changed  to 
"  The  Reformer,''''  -^nd  discontinued;  and 
a  monthly  literary  and  religious  magazine 
in  1838,  called  "  The  Green  Mountain 
Emporium,''''  by  John  Milton  Stearns, 
which  was  removed  to  Middlebury  and  dis- 
continued. 

The  newspapers  continued  at  this  date, 
1 88 1,  are  "  The  Vermont  Watchman  and 
State  Journal,"  (Republican,)  by  Joseph 
Poland;  "Argus  and  Patriot,"  (Demo- 
cratic,) by  Hiram  Atkins;  "The  Green 
Mountain  Freeman,"  (Republican,)  and 
"The  Christian  Messenger,"  (Methodist 
Episcopal,)  by  H.  R.  Wheelock. 

Of  books  printed  and  published  at  Mont- 
pelier a  formidable  list  could  be  made  by 
including  legislative  journals, statute  books. 
Supreme  Court  and  other  reports,  school 
books,  sermons,  pamphlets,  almanacs  and 
registers.  The  titles  of  many  of  these 
may  be  found  in  the  catalogue  of  the  Ver- 
mont State  Library,  and  their  omission 
here  is  excusable.  Of  the  books  noticeable 
are  the  following  :    Valedictory  Address  of 


George  Washington,  1812,  an  edition  of 
which,  thanks  to  the  Washington  Benevo- 
lent Societies,  saved  the  Watchman  office 
from  passing  into  the  hands  of  a  sheriff; 
Indian  Captive,  or  the  Burning  of  Royal- 
ton,  by  Horace  Steele,  12  mo.,  1812  ;  Di- 
gested Index  of  law  reports,  by  Nicholas 
Baylies,  1814,  3  vols,  octavo,  1512  pages; 
On  Free  Agency,  by  Nicholas  Baylies, 
1820,  i2mo.  216  pages;  Gazetteer  of  Ver- 
mont, by  Zadock  Thompson,  1824,  12  mo. 
312  pages;  English  Grammar,  by  Rufus 
Nutting,  1826,  12  mo.  136  pages;  May 
Martin,  by  D.  P.  Thompson,  i6mo.  1835, 
edition  after  edition  of  which  has  been 
printed  in  America  and  in  England ;  and 
The  Green  Mountain  Boys,  1839,  by  D. 
P.  Thompson,  2  vols.  i2mo.  536  pages; 
The  Gift,  1841,  Poems,  by  Sophia  Watrous 
[Bemis,]  24mo.  172  pages;  Theological 
Criticism,  Poetical  Scraps,  and  Dogmas  of 
Infidelity,  1843,  by  F.  W.  Adams,  M.  D., 
12  mo.  240  pages;  Poems,  by  CJiarles  G. 
Eastman,  1848,  12  mo.  208  pages,  of  which 
a  new  and  enlarged  edition,  with  a  me- 
moir, has  been  recently  printed  ;  The  Cap- 
ital of  Vermont,  journal  of  proceedings 
and  debates  of  the  special  session  of  the 
General  Assembly,  February,  1857,  with 
an  appendix  and  engravings — 8  vo.  300 
pages,  1857;  History  of  the  Town  of 
Montpeher,  by  Daniel  P.  Thomp.son,  i860, 
octavo,  312  pages;  The  Second  Brigade, 
or  Camp  Life,  by  a  Volunteer,  [E.  F. 
Palmer,]  16 mo.  224  pages,  1864;  Adju- 
tant General's  Reports,  octavo,  1862,  no 
pages — 1863,  106  pages — 1864,  958  pages 
— 1865,  762  pages — 1866,  368  pages — all 
embracing  an  official  history,  by  Hon.  Peter 
T.  Washburn,  of  the  part  taken  by  Vermont 
in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion ;  Steps  to 
Heaven,  by  Rev.  F.  S.  Bliss,  12  mo.,  1868, 
184  pages;  Collections  of  the  Vermont 
Historical  Society,  octavo,  vol.  I,  1870, 
508  pages — vol.  II,  1871,  530  pages;  The 
Family  Physician,  &c.,  by  Dr.  Leonard 
Thresher,  8vo.  1871,  406  pages ;  and  the 
Governor  and  Council,  embracing  journals 
of  the  Council  of  Safety  and  (iovernor  and 
Council,  early  historical  documents  and 
biographical  notices,  edited  by  Eliakim  P. 
Walton,  8  vols.,  published  1873-1881. 


MONTPELIER. 


295 


Of  citizens  of  Montpelier  the  number  who 
have  been  authors  is  not  large,  but  their 
works  are  voluminous.  The  list  in  the  order 
of  time  embraces  Horace  Steele,  historical, 
I  vol. ;  Nicholas  Baylies,  law  and  metaphys- 
ics, 4  vols. ;  Samuel  Woodworth,  pamphlet 
poem  on  the  battle  of  Plattsburgh  ;  Sophia 
Watrous,  poems,  i  vol. ;  Rev.  F.  W.  Shel- 
ton,  tales  and  miscellaneous  papers,  5  vols., 
previous  to  his  removal  from  town;  D.  P. 
Thompson,  historical  novels  and  history, 
10  vols ;  F.  W.  Adams,  theology  and  po- 
etry, I  vol. ;  C.  G.  Eastman,  poems,  i  vol- 
ume ;  in  all,  24  volumes. 

Several  who  were  once  residents  of 
Montpelier  became  authors  after  their  re- 
moval ;  among  whom  are  Rev.  Samuel 
Hopkins,  (pastor  of  the  first  Congrega- 
tional church,)  author  of  two  historical 
volumes  on  the  Puritans  in  the  reign  of 
Queen  Elizabeth  ;  Rev.  JohnS.  C.  Abbott, 
(who  temporarily  supplied  the  desk  of  the 
same  church,)  author  of  numerous  histor- 
ical, religious  and  miscellaneous  books  ; 
Hon.  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  author  of  several 
elaborate  and  valuable  law  books  ;  Hugh 
Moore,  author  of  a  memoir  of  Ethan  Allen, 
and  Zadock  Thompson,  author  of  the  Gaz- 
etteer and  History  of  Vermont,  2  volumes, 
and  of  other  works.  This  hst  might  proba- 
bly be  extended.  The  published  orations, 
addresses,  sermons,  speeches,  and  other 
pamphlets,  the  work  of  Montpelier  men, 
combined,  would  make  several  volumes ; 
and  in  such  volumes  the  names  of  Goss, 
Prentiss,  Merrill, Wright,  Gridley,  Upham, 
Walton,  [senior  and  junior,]  Peck,  Pease, 
[Aaron  and  Calvin,]  Gridley,  Willard, 
Lord,  and  many  others,  would  appear  as 
authors.  Taken  all  together,  therefore, 
the  literary  history  and  character  of  the 
town  has  been  highly  creditable. 

MILITARY   HISTORY. 

The  first  military  company  was  organized 
in  1794,  consisting  of  72  men,  many  of 
whom  had  served  in  the  Revolutionary 
War.  The  late  Gen.  Parley  Davis  was 
the  first  captain.  From  that  date  Mont- 
pelier, in  common  with  other  towns,  main- 
tained the  military  organizations  required 
by  law  ;  and  of  these  a  history  is  not  nec- 


essary.   Military  matters  of  special  interest 
will  be  noted. 

Minttte  Men  m  1794. 
A  special  town  meeting,  July  21,    1794, 
voted 

That  this  town  will  ensure  to  the  Min- 
ute Men,  now  enlisted  from  this  town,  the 
wages,  while  in  actual  service,  that  the 
Governor  and  Council  of  this  State  have 
promised  to  recommend  the  Legislature  to 
ensure  them  ;  provided  that  Congress  nor 
said  Legislature  do  not  do  it. 

It  seems,  then,  that  the  town  had,  upon 
the  requisition  of  the  Governor  and  Coun- 
cil, furnished  its  quota  of  minute  men  for 
an  expected  emergency,  and  patriotically 
guaranteed  payment  to  them  while  in 
actual  service.  D.  P.  Thompson  conjec- 
tured that  there  was  then  no  danger  of 
war,  foreign  or  Indian,  and  that  the  whisky 
insurrection  in  Pennsylvania  was  the 
source  of  the  possible  emergency.  Mr. 
Thompson's  conjecture  was  materially  er- 
roneous, and  implied  a  suspicion  of  the 
fidelity  of  the  people  of  Vermont  to  law 
and  order,  which  was  never  entertained. 
Quotas  of  troops,  to  quell  the  insurrection 
in  Western  Pennsylvania  in  1794,  were  re- 
quired from  four  neighboring  States  only. 
A  fierce  war  was  waged  in  the  summer  of 
1794  by  the  Indians,  on  the  North-western 
frontier,  with  whom  Wayne,  Scott,  and 
others  were  contending ;  but  no  minute 
men  were  required  in  Vermont  to  meet 
danger  from  any  Indian  war.  The  real 
danger  was  from  Great  Britain,  and  the 
emergency  apprehended  for  Vermont  was 
an  attack  from  Canada  on  her  Northern 
frontiers.  Great  Britain  had  interfered 
with  American  commerce  ;  Congress  had 
debated  a  proposition  for  sequestrating 
the  debts  due  from  American  to  British 
citizens,  and  resolved  on  non-intercourse 
with  Great  Britain.  An  army  of  80,000 
men  was  authorized  at  that  period  if  emer- 
gencies should  require  it.  The  vote  of 
this  town  shows  that  the  Governor  and 
Council  had  met  in  a  special  session,  be- 
tween the  regular  sessions  of  Oct.  1793 
and  '94,  and  required  the  raising  of  min- 
ute men — of  course  in  response  to  instruc- 
tions from  the  National  Government — and 
yet  the  writer  of  this  paper  has  searched 


296 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  mariLiscript  Council  Journal  in  vain  for 
the  record  of  that  meeting.  The  journal 
of  the  regular  session  of  Oct.  1794  does 
show  that  the  State  authorities  had  acted 
and  provided  the  men.  Nothing  came  of 
these  preparations  for  war,  except  a  dem- 
onstration that  the  people  responded  cheer- 
fully to  the  requirements  of  the  national 
and  state  authorities.  Montpelier,  at 
least,  was  entitled  to  that  honor. 

Governor''s  Gjiard. 

At  an  early  day  Vermont  adopted  the 
forms  of  Massachusetts  in  respect  to  the 
public  honors  paid  to  His  Excellency,  the 
Governor.  That  was  his  title,  and  being 
at  least  nominally  "excellent,"  his  person 
was  at  least  nominally  very  precious.  He 
must  have  a  military  guard  on  public  oc- 
casions, to  escort  if  not  to  defend  him.  If 
the  governor  of  Vermont  did  not  himself 
bear  the  sword  and  a  cocked  hat — as  Mas- 
sachusetts governors  did — he  must  be  sur- 
rounded by  swords  and  cocked  hats  on 
gala  days  ;  and  every  day  in  his  walk  from 
his  boarding-house  to  the  Council  cham- 
ber, he  must  be  attended  by  the  high  sher- 
iff of  the  county,  bearing  a  sword.  When 
Montpelier  became  the  capital  of  the  State, 
the  people  there,  and  in  the  vicinity,  fur- 
nished both  the  State-House  and  a  Gov- 
ernor's guard,  called  "  Washington  Artil- 
lery," corresponding  to  the  "Ancient  and 
Honorable  Artillery "  of  Boston.  It  was 
chartered  in  1807.  This  company  was  in- 
dependent of  the  regular  State  military  or- 
ganizations ;  it  chose  its  own  officers,  who 
were  commissioned  by  the  Governor  in 
person,  who  also  reviewed  the  company 
annually  on  presenting  the  commissions. 
The  business  of  the  company  was  to  per- 
form escort  duty  when  the  Governor  came 
to  town  on  the  day  before  the  meeting  of 
the  General  Assembly  ;  to  escort  the  Gov- 
ernor and  General  Assembly  and  their  of- 
ficers to  the  church  where  the  election  ser- 
mon was  delivered,  on  "Election  day;" 
and  to  fire  salutes  as  proclamation  was 
made  from  the  portico  of  the  state-house, 
by  the  sheriff  of  the  county,  of  the  election, 
severally,  of  the  Governor,  Lieutenant- 
Governor,     Treasurer    and     Councillors. 


The  company  again  met,  in  the  week  suc- 
ceeding, elected  its  officers,  and  was  re- 
viewed by  His  Excellency.  Thus  it  had 
at  least  three  days  of  service  in  each  year. 
In  fact,  its  "trainings"  were  more  fre- 
quent. Composed,  as  it  was,  of  selected 
men,  it  always  ranked  high.  This  organ- 
ization was  maintained  until  the  necessity 
for  it  was  obviated  by  giving  the  pre- 
eminence to  civil  over  military  power. 
The  military  and  the  armed  sheriff  were 
then  excused  from  further  service  on  such 
occasions  in  1836. 

WAR  OF  1812-16. 

The  military  history  of  Vermont  at  this 
period  is  singularly  deficient,  "  our  foreign 
relations  and  defensive  operations  being 
exclusively  committed  to  the  management 
of  the  general  government,"*  without  in- 
tervention by  the  State  authorities,  such 
as  from  1861  to  1865,  when  the  admirable 
system  of  Adjutant-General  Washburn 
preserved  an  accurate  record  of  the  Ver- 
mont officers  and  soldiers  who  served  in 
the  War  of  the  Rebellion.  There  is,  there- 
fore, no  State  record  of  the  services  of 
Vermonters  in  the  War  of  1812,  excepting 
only  an  imperfect  record  of  the  Plattsburgh 
volunteers,  gathered  many  years  after  the 
battle.  Two  modes  were  adopted  by  the 
General  Government  in  raising  armies,  to 
wit :  by  drafts  from  the  militia  of  the  sev- 
eral states,  called  "  detached  militia,"  and 
by  enlistments  into  the  United  States 
army.  In  both  cases  the  men  were  under 
the  command  of  United  States  officers,  and 
hence  no  complete  rosters  can  be  found 
anywhere  short  of  the  records  of  the  War 
Department  at  Washington.  A  roster  of 
officers  only  has  been  published  in  the 
American  State  Papers,  and  with  the  aid 
of  this  the  following  list  is  made  : 

Earned  Lamb,  of  Montpelier,  appointed 
Captain  previous  to  1 808.  He  commanded 
a  company  of  U.  S.  troops  stationed  at 
Montpelier  in  1808,  but  left  the  army  be- 
fore the  roster  alluded  to  was  published. 
Mr.  Lamb  died  at  St.  Louis  about  1828. 

Sylvester  Day,  of  Montpelier,  was 
commissioned  as  surgeon  Mar.   13,  1813. 


♦Message  of  Gov.  Martin  CliUteudeu,  1813. 


MONTPELIER. 


297 


He  remained  in  the  army  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  at  Pittsburgh,  Penn.,  about 
1864. 

GusTAVUs  Loojviis  was  commissioned 
as  2d  Lieutenant,  Mar.  i ,  1 8 1 1 ,  and  was 
placed  on  the  retired  list  Mar.  13,  1865, 
with  the  rank  of  brevet  Brigadier  General. 
He  was  probably  a  resident  of  Thetford  at 
the  time  of  his  appointment,  but  for  many 
years  his  home,  when  on  leave  of  absence, 
was  at  Montpelier,  and  here  his  family  for 
a  time  resided.     He  died  in  1871. 

Sylvester  Churchill  was  commis- 
sioned as  Lieutenant  in  18 12,  and  as  Cap- 
tain in  the  3d  Artillery,  Aug.  15,  1813. 
During  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  he  was 
Inspector  General  of  the  U.  S.  army,  with 
the  rank  of  brevet  Brigadier  General.  He 
died  at  Washington  near  the  close  of  that 
war.  He  resided  in  Montpelier  for  a  few 
years  previous  to  1809,  when  he  removed 
to  Windsor,  and  became  one  of  the  pro- 
prietors of  the  Vermont  Republican  news- 
paper. 

In  18 1 3,  Congress  authorized  the  enlist- 
ment and  organization  of  46  regiments,  to 
serve  one  year.  Of  these,  four  were  as- 
signed to  Vermont.  The  headquarters  of 
one  were  at  Rutland  and  Bennington ;  of 
one  at  Woodstock  ;  and  of  two  at  Burling- 
ton. The  roster  of  the  officers  of  the  31st 
regiment  of  infantry,  Daniel  Dana,  Col- 
onel, contains  the  names  of  the  following 
persons  from  Montpelier  and  its  immediate 
vicinity  ;  Cyrus  Johnson,  captain  ;  Pres- 
BURY  West,  ist  Lieutenant;  John  Put- 
nam, 2d  Lieutenant;  Jonathan  Eddy,  3d 
Lieutenant. 

Undoubtedly  there  were  several  Mont- 
pelier men  in  this  regiment,  and  probably 
in  the  two  regiments  enlisted  at  Burling- 
ton, but  their  names  cannot  be  given. 

Thelistof  Montpelier  men  in  the  regular 
army  or  naval  service  may  as  well  be  com- 
pleted here  as  follows  :  Hannibal  Day, 
son  of  Dr.  Sylvester  Day,  commissioned  as 
2d  Lieut.  July  i,  1823,  and  breveted  Brig- 
adier General,  March  13,  1865.  He  is 
still  living  and  is  on  the  retired  list.  Asa 
Richardson,  commissioned  as  2d  Lieu- 
tenant at  a  little  later  date  ;  after  serving 
several  years  he  left   the   army ;  but  how, 

38 


the  writer  is  uncertain — perhaps  he  re- 
signed, or  was  placed  on  the  retired  list  as 
a  disabled  officer.  Disabled  he  certainly 
was.  Charles  C.  Upham.  now  deceased, 
was  paymaster  in  the  navy  for  about  20 
years,  and  attained  the  rank  of  Captain, 
and  was  high  on  the  list  when  retired. 
George  Dewey,  Midshipman,  Sept.  23, 
1854,  Commander  from  April  13th,  1872. 
Charles  E.  Clark,  Midshipman,  Sept. 
29,  i860,  Lieut.  Commander  from  March 
12, 1868 — appointed  from  Bradford.  R.  Ju- 
lius Richardson  was  paymaster  during 
the  Civil  War.  Theodore  G.  Dewey, 
Midshipman,  June  19,  1875. 

To  resume  the  subject  of  the  War  of 
18 12.  It  was  declared  June  18,  and  the 
Proclamation  was  not  generally  published 
in  Vermont  until  about  the  first  of  July. 
The  news  wa^  not  unexpected  nor  unpre- 
pared for,  since  it  appears  that  there  was 
a  body  of  troops  at  Montpelier  as  early  as 
the  8th  of  July,  under  the  command  of 
Col.  Cutting  of  the  U.  S.  Army.  The 
Governor  and  Council  met  at  Montpelier 
on  the  23d  of  July  and  adjourned  on  the 
25th.  The  business  was  not  for  the  rais- 
ing of  troops,  but  to  represent  to  the  Na- 
tional authorities  the  pressing  necessity  of 
arms  and  ammunition  to  prepare  the  mili- 
tia of  the  State  to  resist  invasion.  In  a 
memorial  prepared  for  that  purpose  it  was 
declared,  tJiat  tJie  orders  from  the  War  De- 
partment '-for  detached  \iiiilitia'\  men  had 
been  promptly  obeyed.''''  The  number  of 
detached  men  required  of  Vermont  by  the 
act  of  Congress  of  April  10,  1812,  was 
3000.  The  inference,  then,  from  the  state- 
ment of  the  Governor  and  Council  is,  that 
within  less  than  a  month  the  Vermont  mil- 
itia had  responded  to  all  the  demands  made 
upon  them.  Undoubtedly  this  was  true, 
and  more,  since  many  Vermonters  enlisted 
into  the  regular  army.  The  patriotism  of 
the  people — each  political  party  spurring 
the  other  on — would  not  permit  drafting, 
but  rather  a  supply  of  all  the  needed  men 
by  volunteering.  This  was  demonstrated 
by  the  Light  Infantry  Company  of  Mont- 
pelier, whose  quota  of  men  to  be  "detached'' 
was  eight.  The  company  was  paraded ; 
i  its  captain  [the  late  Hon.  Jeduthan  Loom- 


298 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


is,  a  strong  opponent  of  the  war,]  addressed 
the  men,  declaring  that  it  was  their  duty 
to  obey  the  order  of  the  Governient,  and 
then  ordered  all  who  were  ready  to  volun- 
teer to  march  two  paces  to  the  front.  At 
the  word,  all  marched  out  but  five,  and  the 
consequence  was  that  there  was  no  "draft- 
ing" except  to  see  who  should  serve  as 
"Home  guards"  on  the  peace  establish- 
ment. The  recjuired  number  went  into 
service  on  the  frontier ;  but  the  writer  can 
give  the  name  of  only  one,  the  late  Hon.  Jo- 
seph Howes.  He  remained  for  the  period 
required,  serving  on  the  regimental  staff  as 
Sergeant  Major.  Judge  Howes  had  agreed 
to  divide  the  service  with  the  Hon.  Daniel 
Baldwin ;  but  when  the  time  came  for 
Judge  Baldwin's  turn,  the  officers  in  com- 
mand would  not  permit  a  compliance  with 
the  agreement  by  Judge  Howes.  A  com- 
mission in  the  regular  army  for  permanent 
service  was  tendered  to  Judge  Howes,  but 
he  declined  on  account  of  the  pressing  ne- 
cessities of  his  family,  and  recommended 
the  late  Col.  Cyrus  Johnson  of  Berlin,  who, 
as  we  have  seen,  did  join  the  31st  Infantry 
as  Captain.  The  total  number  of  "de- 
tached militia"  in  Montpelier  cannot  be 
given.  There  were  then  three  militia  com- 
panies in  the  town  liable  to  draft,  and  two 
of  these  were  usually  much  larger  than  the 
Light  Infantry.  The  whole  number  was 
probably  about  thirty. 

The  invasion  of  Plattsburgh,  in  Septem- 
ber, 1 8 14,  gave  another  occasion  for  rival- 
ry between  the  two  political  parties,  which 
divided  the  town  very  nearly  into  two 
equal  parts,  the  Jeffersonian  Republicans 
having  a  bare  majority  for  Governor,  and 
the  Federalists  electing  the  town  repre- 
sentative. Both  parties  rallied  to  repel  the 
invasion.  A  company  was  immediately 
organized  and  marched  for  the  seat  of 
war.  The  election  of  Timothy  Hubbard 
as  captain  indicated  that  the  Federalists 
were  the  majority  of  the  company,  but  the 
roll  bears  the  names  of  good  and  true 
men  of  both  political  parties.  The  follow- 
ing is  a  copy  of  the  roll,  which  the  writer 
has  had  in  his  possession,  in  the  hand- 
writing of  the  late  Hon.  Joseph  Howes, 
who  was  second  lieutenant : 


Copy  of  a  Roll  of  Flattsbtirgh  Volunteers 
1)1  ade  at  Burlington,  Sept.  lot/i,  18 14,  by 
\_Brigadier']  Genl.  P.  \l\irley'\  Davis — 
belonging  to  Montpelier  &^  vicinity. 

Timothy  Hubbard,  Capt. ;  Isaac  Put- 
nam, 1st  Lieut.  ;  Joseph  Howes,  2d  Lieut. ; 
Stephen  Foster,  Ensign. 

Sergeants — Roger  Hubbard,  Benj.  Phin- 
ney,  George  Rich,  Jacob  F.  Dodge. 

Corporals — Ira  Owen,  Alanson  Allen, 
Mark  Goss,  David  Barton. 

Musick — Paul  Emerson,  Elijah  Perry, 
Joseph  Hancock,  Jona.  Stevens,  Jeduthan 
Doty. 

Privates — Joel  Mead,  Cyrus  Brigham, 
Jacob  Grossman,  Irani  Nye,  Daniel  Wood, 
Caleb  Morse,  James  Arbuckle,  Thomas 
Mead,  Jr.,  Ephraim  Nye,  Wm.  Taplin. 
Andrew  May,  James  Caldwell,  Nathaniel 
Bancroft,  Zebina  Moulton,  Samuel  Rich, 
Michael  Hammett,  Daniel  Perry,  John 
Hull,  Francis  Lull,  Darius  Boyden,  Thos. 
Brooks,*  Abijah  Howard,  Henry  F.  Janes, f 
Samuel  Scott,  Cyrus  Ware,  Perrin  B.  Fisk, 
Parrot  Blaisdell,  Jr.,  Phineas  Dodge,  Jo- 
seph Woodworth,  Josiah  Benjamin,  Harry 
Richardson,  Dyer  Richardson,  PelegWhit- 
tredge,  Thos.  McKnight,  Samuel  Davis, 
Lemuel  McKnight,  Abial  French,  Calvin 
Hale,  Eliada  Brown,  James  Bennett,  Rus- 
sell Steward,  Anthony  Burgess,  Ira  May, 
Stephen  Jacobs,  Samuel  Mead,  David  Per- 
sons, Nathan  Kelton,  Thomas  Reed,  Jr., 
Isaac  LeBarron,  James  Short,  John  Marsh, 
Jona.  Cutler,  Jr.,  Silas  Loomis,  Bartholo- 
mew Kimball,  Jonathan  Shepard,  Silas 
Burbank,  Andrew  Dodge,  Jr.,  John  Young, 
George  Gifford,  David  Grey,  John  P. 
Davis,  Samuel  Upham,  Simon  Cummings, 
Thomas  Parker.  Isaac  Ames,  Earl  Cate, 
Benjamin  Nealey,  Robert  Dodge,  Peter 
Nelson,  Aaron  Gould,  John  Brown,  Jo- 
seph Andrews,  Simeon  Bates,  JosiahWing, 
Joel  Tenjpleton,  James  Pine,  Josiah  White, 
Paul  Hathaway,  Arthur  Daggett,  Jr., 
Isaiah  Burgess,  James  Pittsley,  Phineas 
Parsons,  Amos  Farley,James  Allen,  Simeon 
Daggett,  Elias  Metcalf,  Abner  West,  Amos 
Andrews,  Zenas  Johnson,  Nathaniel  Proc- 


*  Grandfather  of  Brig.  Gen.  W.  T.  H.  Brooks,  who 
commanded  tlie  Vermont  Brigade  in  the  Sixth  Corps 
in  1862. 

t  Member  of  Congress  from  Vermont,  1835-7. 


MONTPELIER. 


299 


tor,  Solomon  Stone,  Clark  Lumbard,  Rol- 
and Edwards,  Asahel  Lyon,  Henry  Cham- 
berlain, Jona.  Dudley,  Chester  Luce,  Peter 
C.  Lovejoy,  John  C.  Perry,  John  Cataffey 

[Chaffey,]  Fassett. 

The  total  number  of  officers  and  men  is 
1 18.  They  were  all  volunteers,  and  a  few 
citizens  of  Berlin  and  perhaps  of  Calais  ex- 
cepted, they  were  from  the  old  town  of 
Montpelier.  The  publication  of  this  roll 
now — probably  for  the  first  time — will  serve 
as  a  memorial  of  the  dead,  and  inspire 
their  descendants,  if  need  be,  with  a  like 
patriotic  spirit.  The  total  number  of  Ver- 
mont troops  at  Plattsburgh,  Sept.  1 1 ,  1814, 
was  2,500  ;  probably  three  times  that  num- 
ber were  on  the  way  there,  making  in  all, 
7,500,  of  which  Montpelier  furnished  one- 
64th  part. 

THE   WAR   OF   THE   REBELLION. 

The    full   record  of    Adjutant   General 
Washburn  precludes  the  necessity  of  any 
details,  or  any  assertion    that  Montpelier 
performed  fully  its  part  in  that  .ever  mem- 
orable war.     The   total   number   of  men 
required  from  Montpelier  to  fill  all  quotas 
was  189,  and  the  town  furnished  236,  be- 
ing 47  more  than  her  quota.     The  princi- 
pal field  and  staff  officers  were  :     Colonels, 
Nathan  Lord,  Jr.,  6th  ;  Francis  V.  Randall, 
13th.   Lieut.  Colonels,  Edward  M.  Brown, 
8th;    Andrew   C.    Brown,   13th.     Majors, 
James  S.  Peck,    17th;  John    D.    Bartlett, 
1st  cavalry.     Adjutants,  James   S.    Peck, 
13th  ;  J.  Monroe  Poland,  15th.     Capt.  and 
Assistant  Quarter  Masters,  Perley  P.Pitkin, 
2d ;  John  W.  Clark,  6th ;  Fred.  E.  Smith, 
Edward  Dewey,  8th.     Capt.  and  Com.  ot 
Subsistence,    Albert    L.    Carleton,    iith. 
Quarter  Master,  Nelson  A.  Taylor,  13th. 
Surgeon,  Charles M.  Chandler, 6th.    Most 
of  the  Montpelier  iTien  were  in  the  2d  and 
13th  regiments — the  2d  being  in  the  Sixth 
Corps,  which  had  the  highest  reputation 
of  any  in   the  army  of  the  Potomac  for 
fighting,  and  the  13th  wa.s  in  Gen.  Stan- 
nard's  famous  flank  movement  at  Gettys- 
burgh  on   the  3d  of  July,  1863,  of  which 
Major  Gen.  Doubleday  in  his  report  said, 
"that  it  is  to   Gen.    Stannard   and   Col. 
Gates  that  the  country  is  mainly  indebted 


for  the  repulse  of  the  enemy's  charge  and 
the  final  victory  of  the  3d  of  July."* 

The  present  military  organization  in 
Montpelier  is  one  company  of  infantry, 
under  Capt.  Ely  Ely-Goddard. 

PUBLIC   ENTERPRISES.  -' 

A  review  of  what  has  already  been  re- 
corded will  show  that  the  people  of  Mont- 
pelier have  been  remarkable  for  their  lib- 
erality in  securing  and  establishing  public 
institutions.     The  population  of  the  whole 
town  in    1810  was    1877,  of  which  about 
one-half  was  in  the  present  town,  the  pop- 
ulation of  which  in  1870  was  3023  ;  yet  the 
people    of  this  comparatively  small  town 
have  contributed  largely  in  the  erection  of 
three  state  houses ;  have   built   and   sup- 
ported three   academies,  and  contributed 
$20,000   to  the  Methodist   Seminary  and 
Female  College  ;  have  erected  one  masonic 
hall,  and  purchased  a  village  hall ;   have 
contributed  to  three  court  houses  and  two 
jails ;  and  have  erected  and  supported  i  r 
church  buildings,  some  of  them  at  a  very 
large   expense.      Other   sources   of    very 
great  expense,  unusual  to   most  villages, 
which  cannot  be  fully  estimated,  have  been 
in  streets  and  sidewalks  and  the  provision 
of  gas.     Much  of  the  village  of  Montpelier 
was  originally  little   above  the  surface  of 
the  rivers  which  flow  through  it,  and  the 
principal   streets  have  been  put  in  their 
present   condition   by  filling   and   raising 
them  with  earth.     Two  of  the  stores  on 
State  street,  near  Main,  have  been  raised 
about  8  feet  above  their  original  founda- 
tions, and  other  stores  are  at  about  the 
same  height  above  the  foundations  of  the 
first  buikUng  erected  upon  their  sites.     To 
a  less  degree  a  great  portion  of  three  of 
the  longest  streets  has  been  raised  in  the 
same  way.     In  this  process  a  large  sand- 
hill in  the  northern   part   of  the  village, 
once  the  site  of  a  cemetery,  has  been  re- 
moved, and  such  inroads  have  been  made 
into   neighboring  hills   and   ledges  as  to 
make  many  sites  for  buildings.     It  can  be 
truly  said  that  compactly  built  streets  now 
cover  spots   once    occupied  by  malarious 
bogs  or  inaccessible  clay-banks  and  ledges. 


*  Adjutant  General  Washburn's  Report  for  1864,  ap- 
pendix F,  page  60. 


3O0 


VERiMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Another  source  of  expenditures  liberally 
made  has  been  the  fire  department.  The 
Montpelier  Fire  Company  was  chartered 
Nov.  7,  1809,  and  consisted  of  the  fore- 
most men  of  the  village.  A  fire  engine 
was  purchased,  which  has  been  carefully 
preserved  ever  since.  Under  the  village 
corporation  an  efficient  fire  department 
was  constituted,  which  at  one  time,  by 
means  of  leading  hose  and  water-tanks, 
was  within  the  reach  of  every  dwelling. 
Since  that  period,  though  the  department 
has  been  maintained  with  six  engines  and 
a  hook  and  ladder  company,  the  erection 
of  buildings  in  remote  parts  of  the  village 
has  outrun  the  supply  of  water.  Another 
good  work  which  commended  itself  to  the 
liberality  of  the  town  was  the  establish- 
ment of  Green  Mount  Cemetery.  It  was 
founded  by  a  former  citizen  of  the  town, 
Calvin  Jay  Keith,  Esq.,  after  he  had  ceased 
to  be  a  permanent  resident.  It  is  now  a 
noble  monument  to  his  memory. 

It  is  in  other  and  vastly  wider  fields, 
however,  in  which  the  leading  men  of 
Montpelier  have  stood  foremost ;  enter- 
prises affecting  not  the  town  merely,  but 
the  whole  State,  and  other  states  and 
countries,  and  for  which  Montpelier  has 
not  yet  claimed  the  honor  that  is  justly 
due  to  her  citizens.  A  consideration  of 
these  will  fitly  close  a  paper  which  has  far 
outrun  the  original  design  of  its  writer. 

WINOOSKI   TURNPIKE. 

First  among  the  enterprises  of  general 
public  interest  was  the  Winooski  Turnpike, 
extending  from  the  terminus  of  [Elijah] 
Paine's  turnpike,  (at  the  line  between 
Berlin  and  Montpelier,)  to  Burlington. 
This  company  was  chartered  Nov.  7,  1805. 
Two  Montpelier  men  were  in  the  list  of 
corporators,  to  wit :  Charles  Bulkley, 
(whose  business  was  in  Montpelier,  resi- 
dence in  Berlin,)  and  David  Wing,  Jr., 
who  was  then  Secretary  of  State ;  and 
Parley  Davis,  of  Montpelier,  was  one  of 
the  three  commissioners  appointed  to  lay 
out  the  road.  Col.  James  H.  Langdon 
and  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard  were  leading 
stockholders  ;  and  Mr.  Hubbard  for  some 
years,  and  then  Col.   Thomas  Reed   until 


the  Vermorkt  Central  railroad  was  con- 
structed, were  managers  of  the  road.  It 
-was  of  great  public  convenience,  and  a  val- 
uable property  to  the  company.  This 
road  and  Cottrill's  stage  lines  were  famous 
in  their  day. 

PROJECTED   CANALS. 

The  earliest  canals  projected  in  which 
Vermont  was  interested,  were  the  ship 
canal,  projected  about  1784  by  Ira  Allen, 
to  connect  the  St.  Lavvrence  river  with 
Lake  Champlain  ;  and  the  Champlain  canal, 
projected  by  Elkanah  Watson  and  Gen. 
Philip  Schuyler  in  1792.*  Otter  Creek 
and  Missisco  rivers  were  made  navigable 
for  a  few  miles  each.  These  for  the  west- 
ern border  of  the  State,  while  on  the  east- 
ern border,  the  main  work  being  at  Bel- 
lows Falls,  Connecticut  river  was  made 
navigable  for  flat  boats  as  far  north  as  the 
mouth  of  White  river,  and  in  favorable 
seasons  farther  still.  But  for  projected 
canals  within  the  State,  and  across  it  from 
west  to  east,  the  chief  honor  is  due  to 
Montpelier  men.  A  meeting  of  delegates 
from  Chittenden,  Washington,  Orange  and 
Caledonia  Counties  met  at  Montpelier, 
June  30,  1825,  and  appointed  three  com- 
missioners to  ascertain  the  practibility  of 
opening  water  communication  between 
Lake  Champlain  and  Connecticut  river. 
These  were  Araunah  Waterman,  John  L. 
Woods  and  John  Downer.  They  secured 
surveys  in  1825,  by  Anthony  M.  HolT- 
man,  of  Swanton,  John  Johnson,  of  Bur- 
lington, and  Araunah  Waterman,  of  Mont- 
pelier, assisted  by  Sylvanus  Baldwin,  who 
was  also  of  Montpelier.  The  surveys  cov- 
ered routes  from  Montpelier  via  White 
and  Wells  river ;  also  from  Montpelier  to 
the  present  summit  of  the  Vermont  Cen- 
tral railroad  at  Roxbury ;  and  from  Lake 
Champlain  to  Montpelier.  A  report  by 
Messrs.  Waterman  and  Woods  was  made 
to  Gov.  Van  Ness,  Nov.  2,  1825,  which 
was  communicated  to  the  General  Assem- 
bly ;  and  another  report  was  made  to  the 
Governor,  Jan.  18,  1826,  by  Mr.  Water- 
man, to  whom  belongs,  it  is  believed,  the 

*  Gen.  Schuyler  wrote  to  Gov.  Thomas  Ciiitteiideu 
on  this  subject,  Oct.  17, 1793.  His  letter  is  in  vol.  24  of 
Vermont  (Manuscript)  State  Papers,  page  66. 


MONTPELIER. 


301 


chief  honor  of  promoting  the  enterprise. 
This  favorable  report  of  Messrs.  Water- 
man and  Woods  secured  prompt  action  by 
the  General  Assembly,  which,  Nov.  17, 
1825,  requested  the  Governor  to  solicit  the 
Secretary  of  War  to  direct  suitable  engi- 
neers to  ascertain  the  different  heights  of 
land  and  the  waters  on  the  several  routes 
in  the  State  where  it  is  contemplated  to 
make  canals  or  improve  the  navigation  of 
rivers.  In  anticipation  of  favorable  re- 
ports, the  Onion  River  Navigation  and 
Tow  Path  Company  was  incorporated  Nov. 
8,  1825  ;  an  act  to  provide  for  improving 
the  navigation  of  the  valley  of  Connecticut 
river  was  passed  Nov.  9  ;  on  the  15th  the 
Battenkill  Canal  Company,  and  on  the  17th 
the  Otter  Creek  and  Castleton  River  Canal 
Company  was  incorporated.  In  response 
to  the  application  of  Gov.  Van  Ness, 
many  surveys  were  made  in  Vermont  by 
the  U.S.  Topographical  Engineers.  These 
included  the  Lamoille  and  Black  rivers  to 
Lake  Memphremagog,  and  the  Clyde  and 
Passumpsic  rivers  ;  the  Winooski  to  Mont- 
pelier,  and  from  Montpelier  by  both  White 
and  Wells  rivers  to  the  Connecticut ;  while 
beyond  the  limits  of  Vermont  surveys 
were  made  with  a  view  of  possibly  linding 
feasible  water  communication  between 
Lake  Champlain  and  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 
These  surveys  were  failures  in  respect  to 
canals,  but  served  efficiently  in  pointing 
the  lines  for  the  railroads  which  have  been 
constructed  since,  or  are  now  in  the  pro- 
cess of  construction. 

RAILROAD    ENTERPRISES. 

As  in  projected  canals,  so  in  railroads, 
Montpelier  men  were  early  in  the  field, 
and  most  efficient  promoters,  both  in  in- 
fluence and  money.  The  honor  of  first 
suggesting  a  connection  of  Boston  with 
Lake  Ontario  by  railroad  is  undoubtedly 
due  to  John  L.  Sullivan,  a  distinguished 
civil  engineer  of  Massachusetts.  This  was 
in  1827,  in  letters  addressed  to  the  late 
venerable  Elkanah  Watson,  of  Port  Kent, 
N.  Y.,  a  most  efficient  promoter  of  public 
enterprises  of  various  sorts.*     The  honor 


*  Men  and  Times  of  the  Revolution,  or  Memoirs  of 
Elkanah  Watson,  page  ali.  In  a  report  by  the  late 
Litii.  I'iirli-y  Davis,  of  Moutpclicr,  uiaile  Feb.  17,  1830, 
tlie  date  of  Mr  .Sullivan's  corrcspondonce  is  assij^nod 
lo  182IJ. 


of  securing  the  completion  ofj^this  great 
enterprise  is  doubtless  chiefly  due  to  the 
late  Gov.  Charles  Paine  ;  but  the  credit  of 
indicating  the  line  on  which  the  work  was 
actually  constructed,  and  of  instituting  the 
measures  which  led  to  the  realization  of 
the  work  through  the  labors  of  Gov.  Paine 
and  his  coadjutors,  clearly  belongs  to 
Montpelier.  The  railroad  line  from  Bos- 
ton to  Lake  Champlain  was  first  formally 
indicated  by  Mr.  Sullivan  ;  but  in  point  of 
fact  it  was  one  of  the  lines  which  Water- 
man and  Davis  and  Baldwin,  of  Mont- 
pelier, had  indicated  for  canals  in  1825  ; 
while  from  Lake  Champlain  to  the  St. 
Lawrence  at  Ogdensburgh,  Mr.  Sullivan's 
line  was  by  a  transit  of  the  lake  from  Bur- 
lington by  ferry,  and  thence  by  rail  up  the 
valley  of  the  Ausable  ;  but  on  the  17th  of 
Feb.  1830,  the  report  of  Gen.  Parley  Davis, 
of  Montpelier,  made  to  a  convention  of 
citizens  of  Washington  and  Orange  Coun- 
ties, indicated  not  only  Mr.  Sullivan's  line, 
but  substantially  the  line  which  was  act- 
ually adopted — that  is,  from  the  lake  "near 
Champlain,  (N.  Y.,)  and  thence  in  a  di- 
rect route  to  Ogdensburgh."  Now,  in  jus- 
tice to  other  Montpelier  men  particularly, 
and  to  the  town  in  general,  other  faces 
should  be  recorded. 

The  files  of  Montpelier  newspapers,  for 
the  year  1830,  alone  contain  railroad  mat- 
ter enough  to  fill  at  least  two  respectable 
volumes  :  and  that  was  4  years  before  the 
first  locomotive  had  been  brought  into 
New  England,  and  5  years  before  the  first 
New  England  road  had  been  completed. 
The  discussion  of  the  Boston  and  Ogdens- 
burgh railroad  question  in  the  Watchman 
was  begun  earlier,  but  the  fitst  efficient  ac- 
tion in  Montpelier  dates  from  Jan.  26, 
1830;  when,  on  hearing  that  the  commit- 
tee of  the  Massachusetts  legislature  had  re- 
ported in  favor  of  a  railroad  to  Lowell,  cit- 
izens of  Montpelier  met  immediately,  and 
appointed  a  committee  to  report  upon  the 
subject  at  an  adjourned  meeting  on  the  2d 
of  February.  That  committee  reported  at 
the  time  appointed,  and  their  report  fa- 
vored internal  improvements  generally, 
and  specially  a  railroad  from  Boston  to 
Ogdensburgh.     The  report  concluded  with 


302 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


these  resolutions,  and  the  meeting  acted 
accordingly : 

Resolved,  That  the  public  good  requires 
vigorous  and  persevering  efforts  on  the 
part  of  all  intelligent  and  public  spirited 
individuals,  until  by  the  enterprise  of  in- 
dividuals, the  co-operation  of  State  Legis- 
latures, or  the  aid  of  the  General  Ciovern- 
ment,  the  survey  and  completion  of  a  route 
is  established  for  a  National  Railroad />'w// 
the  seaboard  at  Boston,  through  Lo^ivell, 
Mass.,  Concord  in  New  Hampshire,  and 
thence  by  the  most  convetiient  route  through 
the  valley  of  Onioti  river  to  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  and  thence  to  the  waters  of  Lake  On- 
tario at  Ogdensburgh,  New  York* 

Resolved,  That  the  chairman  and  secre- 
tary of  this  meeting  be  authorized  to  call 
an  assembly  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  coun- 
ty of  Washington,  at  such  time  and  place 
as  they  may  think  proper,  to  consult  on 
this  important  subject,  and  to  adopt  such 
measures  as  may  be  deemed  expedient. 

Which  is  respectfully  submitted. 
Lyman  Reed,   ~^ 
E.  P.  Walton,  >  Com»iittee. 
S.  Baldwin,      ) 

At  this  meeting.  General  Parley  Davis, 
Joshua  Y.  Vail,  Araunah  Waterman,  and 
Sylvanus  Baldwin,  Esqrs.,  were  appointed 
a  committee  "  to  prepare  a  topographical 
and  statistical  statement  of  facts  on  the 
subject  of  a  route  for  a  railroad  from  Bos- 
ton to  Ogdensburgh  ;"  and  Hon.  Daniel 
Baldwin  was  appointed  an  agent  to  repre- 
sent the  views  of  the  meeting  to  the  Massa- 
chusetts Railroad  Association. 

These  were  all  Montpelier  men,  Lyman 
Reed  being  then  a  citizen.  He  had  been 
a  merchant  in  Boston  previously,  and  has 
since  been  in  Baltimore  and  Boston.  He 
was  zealous  for  the  interests  of  Boston, 
and  very  well  informed  on  the  then  new 
question  of  railroads.  He  prepared  the 
first  lectures  on  the  subject  for  the  Mont- 
pelier Lyceum  ;  and  then  elaborated  these 
into  seven  articles,  which  were  published 
in  Mr.  Walton's  newspaper,  the  then  named 
Vermont  Watchman  &^  State  Gazette. 

The  President,  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard, 
and  the  Secretary  of  the  meeting,  O.  H. 
Smith,  Esq.,  immediately  called  a  meeting 
of  citizens  of  Washington  county  and  vi- 

•In  the  Railroad  Jubilee,  Sept.  1851,  this  resolution 
was  placed  on  one  of  the  banners,  with  the  names  of 
the  Committee  appended,  and  it  was  styled  "  An  ex- 
tract from  the  First  Report  in  relation  to  a  railroad 
from  Boston  to  Ofrdensburgh,  dated  Feb.  9,  [2,]  1830." 
—See  Boston  Railroad  Jubilee,  1851,  page  132. 


cinity,  which  was  holden  at  Montpelier, 
Feb.  17,  1830.  Gen.  E.  P.  Walton  (se- 
nior) presided,  and  O.  H.  Smith,  Esq., 
was  Secretary.  At  this  meeting  the  com- 
mittee on  topographical  and  other  facts, 
through  Gen.  Parley  Davis,  submitted  an 
elaborate  report,  which  filled  four  columns 
of  the  IVatchmati  &^  State  Gazette.  With 
the  aid  of  knowledge  derived  from  John  L. 
Sullivan  of  Massachusetts,  and  John  Mc- 
Duffie  of  Bradford,  as  to  routes  in  Massa- 
chusetts and  New  Hampshire ;  of  other 
engineers  as  to  both  routes  in  New  York ; 
and  the  canal  surveys  and  the  personal 
knowledge  of  Davis,  Waterman,  and  Syl- 
vanus Baldwin,  as  to  the  routes  in  Ver- 
mont,— the  entire  line  from  Boston  to  Og- 
densburg  was  covered,  and  an  array  of  fa- 
vorable facts  presented,  which  gave  a  pow- 
erful impulse  to  public  opinion  in  all  the 
States  interested,  and  gained  for  its  au- 
thors and  Montpelier  the  highest  credit. 

Feb.  22,  1830,  The  Vermont  Railroad 
Association  was  formed  at  Montpelier,  of 
which  all  the  officers  were  Montpelier  men. 
They  were  :  Timothy  Hubbard,  President ; 
Joseph  Howes,  Vice  President ;  Araunah 
Waterman,  Joshua  Y.Vail,  Silas  C.  French, 
Ira  Owen,  Timothy  Merrill,  Directors ; 
Daniel  Baldwin,  Treasurer ;  Lyman  Reed, 
Recording  Secretary  ;  E.  P.  Walton,  (Sr.,) 
Corresponding  Secretary. 

The  first  response  to  Montpelier  was 
made  on  the  nth  of  March,  1830,  by  a 
meeting  at  Keeseville,  N.  Y.,  of  which 
Elkanah  Watson  was  chairman.  The  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Washington  and  Orange 
County  meeting  at  Montpelier  on  the  pre- 
ceding 17th  of  February,  including  the  full 
report  of  Gen.  Davis,  were  read.  It  was 
resolved  "  that  we  cordially  concur  in  the 
sentiments  disclosed  in  the  proceedings  of 
a  meeting  held  at  Montpelier,  Vt.,  on  the 
17th  ultimo;"  and  a  committee,  of  which 
Mr.  Watson  was  chairman,  was  "author- 
ized to  commence  a  correspondence  with 
that  appointed  at  the  Montpelier  meeting, 
and  with  any  other  similar  bodies,"  and 
"with  our  national  and  state  authorities." 
A  copy  of  the  proceedings,  both  of  the 
Keeseville  and  Montpelier  meetings,  was 
sent   to  Hon.    Isaac  Finch,  M.   C,  from 


MONTPELIER. 


303 


New  York,  who  was  requested  to  invite 
the  co-operation  of  the  New  York  delega- 
tion in  securing  U.  S.  engineers  to  make 
surveys . 

March  23,  1830,  Ogdensburgh  respond- 
ed;  Apr.  6,  Concord,  N.  H.,  and  on  the 
1 2th  of  May,  Chittenden  County  entered 
spiritedly  into  the  enterprise  by  a  meeting 
at  Burlington.     That  meeting 

Resolved,  That  we  consider  the  public 
much  indebted  for  the  patriotic  exertions 
of  numerous  associations  of  individuals  on 
the  contemplated  route,  and  particularly 
to  tliegejitletnen  of  Washington  and  Orange 
Counties  for  t/ieir  elaborate  and  able  report, 
and  offer  them  our  zealous  co-operation  in 
the  laudable  endeavor  to  excite  attention 
and  diffuse  information  on  the  subject. 

The  meeting  most  miportant  in  its  re- 
sult, however,  was  held  at  Malone,  N.  Y., 
on  the  26th  of  May,  1830,  of  which  a 
former  citizen  of  Montpelier,  George  B.  R. 
Gove,  Esq.,  was  an  active  member.  The 
important  feature  in  the  proceedings  was 
the  suggestion  of  a  General  Railroad  Con- 
vention, to  consist  of  delegates  from  coun- 
ties on  the  proposed  railway  route  in  New 
York,  Vermont  and  New  Hampshire.  The 
proceedings  of  this  meeting  were  published 
in  the  Boston  Patriot,  whose  editor  ap- 
proved of  the  proposed  General  Conven- 
tion, to  be  held  at  Montpelier,  and  in 
which  Massachusetts  also  was  to  be  repre- 
sented, adding :  "The  Lowell  road  will 
be  the  beginning  of  the  work,  that  before 
many  years  we  hope  to  see  extend  to  the 
Lakes."     That  work  occupied  21  years. 

July  4,  1830,  Elkanah  Watson  submit- 
ted an  elaborate  and  interesting  report  "  to 
the  gentlemen  of  the  Boston  and  Ogdens- 
burgh Railroad  Committee  for  the  Coun- 
ties of  Essex  and  Clinton,  State  of  New 
York."  Three  facts  from  a  man  of  so  high 
repute  must  be  recorded  here.  He  first 
alluded  to  the  purpose  of  the  Keeseville 
meeting  as  being  "  to  consult  on  the  pro- 
priety of  co-operating  with  our  eastern 
brethren,  /Jiore  especially  the  patriotic  town 
of  Montpelier ,  ifi  the  State  of  Vermont,  on 
the  splendid  project  of  a  railroad  from 
Boston  to  Ogdensburgh  ;"  and  then  settled 
the  question  of  priority,  between  himself 
and  Mr.  Sullivan,  as  to  the  first  suggestion 


of  the  grand  scheme,  in  these  words  :  "  It 
will  be  my  fortunate  lot,  in  character  of  an 
old  and  successful  projector,  to  play  the 
second  fiddle,  in  figurative  language.  Mr. 
Sullivan  opened  the  ball  by  a  correspond- 
ence with  me  in  1827."  And  again :  "Let 
me  therefore  bear  testimony  at  the  tribunal 
of  this  generation  and  posterity,  that  the 
credit  is  exclusively  due  to  John  L.  Sulli- 
van, Esq.,  a  distinguished  civil  engineer, 
and  son  of  the  late  Governor  Sullivan,  of 
Boston."  The  third  fact  is  the  statement 
that  the  circulars  issued  by  the  Malone 
Committee,  for  the  General  Convention  at 
Montpelier,  were  prepared  by  Mr.  Watson. 
Oct.  6,  1830,  the  General  Convention, 
consisting  of  delegates  from  Massachu- 
setts, New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  and  New 
York — 48  in  all — was  held  at  Montpelier. 
The  president  was  Luther  Bradish,  of 
Moira,  N.  Y.,  afterwards  of  New  Y'ork 
city,  and  president  of  the  State  Senate. 
The  secretaries  were  Albe  Cady,  of  Con- 
cord, N.  H.,  and  John  Johnson,  of  Bur- 
lington, Vt.,  Surveyor  General  of  the 
State.  It  was  a  body  of  able  and  earnest 
men,  and  interesting  addresses  were  de- 
livered by  Elkanah  Watson,  of  Port  Kent, 
N.  Y.,  and  James  Hayward,  (engineer,) 
Henry  Williams,  (merchant,)  and  David 
Lee  Child,  (editor,)  of  Boston.  An  im- 
portant communication  from  John  L.  Sul- 
livan was  read,  and  the  Convention  was 
closed  by  a  speech  by  President  Bradish. 
Two  of  Vermont's  most  famous  railroad 
men  15  years  afterward,  appeared  for  the 
first  time  in  that  role  in  this  Convention — 
Charles  Paine,  of  Northfield,  and  Timothy 
FoUett,  of  Burlington ;  one  the  first  pres- 
ident of  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad  Co., 
and  the  other  of  the  Rutland  and  Burling- 
ton Co.  The  main  business  of  the  Con- 
vention consisted  of  six  resolutions,  rais- 
ing the  same  number  of  committees  for 
furthering  the  great  project.  In  forming 
these  committees  the  Convention  went 
outside  of  its  own  body  and  enlisted  em- 
inent men  in  each  State,  such  as  Daniel 
Webster,  Richard  Fletcher,  Amos  Binney, 
and  Robert  G.  Shaw,  of  Boston  ;  Matthew 
Harvey,  Samuel  Bell,  Wm.  A.  Kent,Chas. 
G.    Atherton   and  Jo.seph  Bell,    of   New 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Hampshire;  D.  Azro  A.  Buck,  Heman 
Allen,  (of  Milton  and  Burlington, )Timothy 
Follett,  Dudley  Chase,  and  Samuel  Pren- 
tiss, of  Vermont ;  and  Richard  Keese, 
Luther  Bradish,  Geo.  Parrish,  and  Elkanah 
Watson,  of  New  York.  The  scheme  was 
an  admirable  one  to  enlist  men  wielding 
a  powerful  influence  in  the  communities 
where  they  dwelt ;  but  it  was  inefficient 
for  concentrated  action,  by  reason  of  the 
impracticability  of  ever  bringing  the  com- 
mittee-men together,  and  became  illusory 
by  depending  upon  the  General  Govern- 
ment to  commence  the  work,  at  least  by 
surveys,  if  not  by  aid  in  the  construction 
of  the  road.  The  project  was  worthy  of 
being  treated  as  a  national  one  ;  but  suc- 
cess was  not  attained  until  all  idea  of  even 
State  aid  was  abandoned,  and  the  heavy 
burden  was  cast  upon  individual  enterprise 
through  incorporated  companies  in  the 
several  States  interested. 

The  first  charter  for  the  Vermont  sec- 
tion of  the  road  was  passed  Nov.  lo,  1835, 
being  an  act  to  incorporate  The  Vermont 
Central  Railroad  Co.  The  commissioners 
for  obtaining  stock  were  John  N.  Pomeroy, 
Timothy  Follett,  John  Peck  and  Luther 
Loomis,  of  Burlington ;  John  Spalding, 
Timothy  Hubbard  and  Jonathan  P.  Miller, 
of  Montpelier ;  Amplius  Blake,  of  Chelsea, 
Chester  Baxter,  of  Sharon,  and  Lewis 
Lyman,  of  Hartford.  The  first  meeting 
of  the  commissioners  was  held  at  Mont- 
pelier, Jan.  6,  1836,  and  the  books  for 
subscriptions  to  the  stock  were  first  opened 
at  the  same  place  on  the  next  day.  This 
attempt  failed,  as  the  originators  of  it  ex- 
pected it  would  fail.  The  purpose  and 
effect  was  to  show  to  Massachusetts,  New 
Hampshire  and  New  York  that  Vermont 
was  ready  to  co-operate,  and  would  be 
ready  when  the  time  should  come  for 
practical  action  on  their  part. 

The  second  charter  of  the  Vermont 
Central  Railroad  Company  passed  Oct.  31, 
1843.  The  commissioners  were  Charles 
Paine,  of  Northfield,  John  Peck  and  Wyllys 
Lyman,  of  Burlington,  Daniel  Baldwin 
and  Elisha  P.  Jewett,  of  Montpelier,  An- 
drew Tracy,  of  Woodstock,  and  Levi  B. 
Vilas,  of  Chelsea ;   who  were  required  to 


open  books  of  subscription  within  one  year 
at  Montpelier,  Burlington,  and  such  other 
places  as  they  might  deem  proper.  This 
requirement  was  observed,  but  not  until 
the  spring  of  1845  was  the  work  of  procur- 
ing subscriptions  vigorously  pressed.  Pre- 
liminary to  this,  a  Railroad  Convention, 
consisting  of  delegates  from  various  parts 
of  Vermont  and  New  Hampshire,  met  at 
Montpelier,  Jan.  8,  1844.  Hon.  Charles 
Paine,  of  Northfield,  was  president ;  Hon. 
Elijah  Blaisdell,  of  Lebanon,  N.  H. ;  Gen. 
Joel  Bass,of  Williamstown,  Simeon  Lyman, 
of  Hartford,  and  Hon.  Joseph  Howes,  of 
Montpelier,  Vice  Presidents;  and  Hon. 
Oramel  H.  Smith,  of  Montpelier,  and 
Halsey  R.  Stevens,  Esq.,  of  Lebanon, 
N.  H.,  Secretaries.  Hon.  Charles  Paine, 
of  Northfield,  and  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin 
and  Col.  Elisha  P.  Jewett,  of  Montpelier, 
were  constituted  a  Central  Corresponding 
and  Financial  Committee,  with  authority 
to  raise  funds  and  procui^e  surveys  from 
Connecticut  river  to  Lake  Champlain,  and 
to  examine  routes  on  the  west  side  of  the 
mountains.  James  R.  Langdon,  Esq.,  of 
Montpelier,  advanced  ten  thousand  dol- 
lars for  the  purpose,  and  the  surveys  were 
executed  that  season,  and  a  favorable  re- 
port made  Nov.  20,  1844. 

The  commissioners  appointed  by  the 
Central  charter  necessarily  awaited  the  re- 
sults of  the  surveys  before  pressing  for 
subscriptions  to  the  stock ;  but  a  further 
delay  was  occasioned  by  the  neglect  of  the 
directors  of  the  Concord,  (N.  H.,)  road, 
chiefly,  to  secure  the  construction  of  what 
is  now  the  Northern  (N.  H.)  railroad. 
Assurances  had  been  given  by  these  di- 
rectors, and  a  meeting  of  the  active  pro- 
moters of  the  Central  road  with  the  di- 
rectors of  the  Concord  road  had  been  ap- 
pointed at  Lebanon,  N.  H.  Gov.  Paine, 
with  several  Montpelier  gentlemen,  at- 
tended on  the  part  of  the  Central,  but 
there  was  no  appearance  of  the  Concord 
directors.  It  happened  that  a  meeting  of 
the  friends  of  the  then  projected  Sullivan 
(N.  H.)  road  had  been  fixed  for  the  next 
day  at  Claremont.  In  this  emergency, 
Gov.  Paine  requested  Col.  Elisha  P.  Jew- 
ett and  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  of  Montpelier, 


MONTPELIER. 


30s 


to  attend  the  Claremont  meeting,  and  to 
pledge  the  Central  road  to  a  connection  tuith 
the  Sullivan,  Cheshire  and  Fitchbitrg  roads, 
thus  forming  a  railway  line  through  to 
Boston.  This  was  done,  and  it  proved  to 
be  a  masterly  stroke,  forcing  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Northern  (N.  H.)  road,  and 
securing  ultimately  the  completion  of  the 
Cheshire,  Sullivan,  Vermont  Central,  Ver- 
mont &  Canada,  and  Northern  (N.  Y.) 
roads  to  Ogdensburgh — a  realization  of 
the  grand  scheme  suggested  by  Mr.  Sul- 
livan in  1826-27,  and  vigorously  urged' 
all  along  the  line  by  the  action  of  Mont- 
pelier  in  1830.  The  Claremont  meeting 
was  April  30,  1845.  Within  the  next 
fortnight  the  New  Hampshire  Railroad 
Commissioners  reported  in  favor  of  per- 
mitting the  construction  of  the  Northern 
(N.  H.)  railroad  from  Concord  to  West 
Lebanon,  and  the  Governor  approved  the 
report.  On  the  4th  of  June  the  directors 
of  the  Fitchburgh  road  voted  in  favor  of  a 
connection  with  the  Central,  and  a  circu- 
lar to  that  effect  was  issued,  signed  by  of- 
ficers of  the  Fitchburgh,  Vermont  &  Mas- 
sachusetts, and  Cheshire  roads ;  and  on 
the  loth  of  June  the  books  of  subscription 
to  Central  stock  were  opened  in  Boston. 
Thus  rapid  were  the  movements  of  all  the 
lines  concerned,  after  Gov.  Paine's  "  flank 
movement"  at  Claremont — as  famous,  by 
the  way,  among  railroad  men  then,  as  was 
Stannard's  at  Gettysburgh  in  army*circles 
afterward. 

The  work  of  obtaining  capita!  in  Boston 
for  the  Central  road  was  undertaken  at  a 
time  apparently  very  unfavorable,  by  reason 
of  sharp  competition  between  the  Central 
and  Rutland  Companies  in  direct  opposi- 
tion to  each  other,  as  well  as  of  the  ap- 
peals for  stock  for  the  Cheshire,  Sullivan, 
Northern,  and  other  roads.  The  writer 
was  an  active  participant  in  the  struggle, 
and  this  is  a  fit  occasion  to  express  the 
opinion  he  has  long  entertained,  that  with- 
out a  sharp  contest  and  competition,  the 
capitalists  of  Boston  could  not  have  been 
aroused  and  interested — especially  those 
who  had  already  invested  in  the  Massa- 
chusetts roads  that  were  to  be  connected 
with  those    to  be  built  in  Vermont — and 


the  work  would  have  been  slow  ;  perhaps 
a  work  of  years.  As  it  was,  all  of  the  then 
competing  roads  quickly  obtained  the  cap- 
ital requisite  for  organization,  and  all  were 
speedily  constructed—too  speedily  for  econ- 
omy. 

The  work  of  obtaining  Central  stock  in 
Vermont  was  assigned  to  Hon.  Daniel 
Baldwin,  of  Montpelier,  who  had  able 
assistants,  however,  in  the  towns  most  in- 
terested, from  Burlington  to  Windsor. 
Gov.  Paine  took  the  task  of  raising  capital 
in  Boston,  and  as  his  assistants  engaged 
the  services  of  James  R.  Langdon  and  E. 
P.  Walton,  Jr.,  of  Montpelier, — Mr.  Lang- 
don as  an  eminent  business  man,  and  Mr. 
Walton  to  write  for  the  press.  As  already 
lecorded,  the  books  were  opened  in  Bos- 
ton, June  10,  1845  ;  on  the  3d  of  July  the 
first  meeting  of  stockholders  was  called, 
and  on  the  23d  of  July  the  meeting  was 
held  and  the  Company  legally  and  formally 
organized  at  Montpelier  with  a  subscribed 
capital  of  two  millions — the  work  of  a 
month  and  a  half.  The  amount  obtained 
to  that  date  in  Boston  was  $1,500,000 ; 
and  the  amount  obtained  in  Vermont  was 
$500,000,  of  which  $200, cop  was  subscribed 
in  Montpelier.  The  whole  amount  of 
stock  and  bonds  taken  by  Montpelier  was 
near  $400,000,  and  exceeded  that  sum  in 
the  opinion  of  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin. 
Montpelier  certainly  was  the  leading  town 
in  the  enterprise,  and  yet,  unlike  North- 
field,  St.  Albans,  and  Burlington,  it  has 
received  only  such  advantages  from  the 
road  as  were  necessarily  incidental.  It 
has  had  merely  the  power  to  get  on  to  the 
road  and  use  it,  through  the  disadvantages 
of  a  branch. 

It  is  due  to  Gov.  Paine  and  his  coadju- 
tors to  say,  that  from  the  first,  their  ob- 
jects were  far-reaching  and  vast.  It  has 
already  been  stated  that  the  necessities  of 
the  Central  road  led  Gov.  Paine  to  the 
adroit  movement  which  forced  the  com- 
pletion of  the  Fitchburg  and  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Cheshire,  Sullivan  and  North- 
ern (N.  H.)  railroads  to  meet  the  Central 
on  the  west  bank  of  Connecticut  river. 
But  this  was  only  a  part  of  the  scheme  of 
Gov.  Paine  and  his  colaborers.     One  of  the 


39 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


first  things  done,  on  opening  the  Central 
books  for  subscription  in  Boston,  was  the 
construction  of  a  map,  prepared  and  pub- 
lished b}' the  writer  of  this  paper,  which 
gave  all  the  great  western  lakes  and  the 
bordering  territory  in  the  United  States 
and  Canada,  and  a  table  of  the  tonnage  of 
all  the  U.  S.  collection  districts  on  the 
Lakes,  copied  from  the  official  report  of  the 
U.  S.  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  This 
was  a  revelation  of  the  vast  internal  com- 
merce of  our  country,  exceeding  its  for- 
eign commerce.  It  was  at  first  received 
with  surprise  and  doubt,  and  it  became 
necessary  to  confirm  the  table  by  placing  an 
official  printed  copy  of  the  Secretary's 
report  in  the  Boston  Exchange,  for  the  in- 
spection of  the  doubters.  This  was  fol- 
lowed for  nearly  three  months  by  a  series 
of  articles  in  the  Boston  papers,  prepared 
by  myself,  for  the  purpose  of  magnifying 
the  Central  road  as  a  necessary  way  for 
Boston  to  reach  not  only  the  local  trade  ot 
Central  Vermont,  but  also  the  immense 
commerce  of  the  North-western  States  and 
Canada.  This  large  view  always  prevailed 
in  the  Central  councils,  and  it  has  been 
executed  with  wonderful  success.  The 
Central  by  its  lease  pushed  the  Vermont 
and  Canada  road  to  Rouse's  Point,  and 
the  Northern  N.  Y.  road  to  Ogdensburgh 
followed ;  then  the  Vermont  and  Canada 
was  connected  with  Montreal  and  the 
Canadian  system  of  railroads,  of  which  it 
may  be  said  that  they  owe  much  to  the 
Vermont  Central  and  managers  of  other 
New  England  roads.  When  the  line  from 
Boston  to  Ogdensburgh  was  assured,  Gov. 
Paine  and  Central  friends  visited  Sir  Allan 
McNab,  of  Canada,  and  in  1857  a  com- 
mittee of  Boston  gentlemen,  among  them 
Central  men,  visited  Lord  Elgin,  and 
made  a  tour  from  Hamilton  to  Quebec — 
the  purpose  of  both  being  to  urge  the  con- 
struction of  railroads  in  Canada,  which 
have  since  been  completed.  At  a  later 
date  the  Central  Vermont  managers  estab- 
lished a  line  of  steamers  from  Ogdensburgh 
to  the  head  of  Lake  Superior,  and  out  of 
that  has  grown  the  Northern  Pacific  rail- 
road, which  will  speedily  span  the  conti- 
nent.    Truly  the  .suggestion  ot   Mr.  Sulli- 


van in  1826-27,  and  the  report  of  the 
three  citizens  of  Montpelier  in  1830,  have 
been  matvellously  productive  in  develop- 
ing the  resources  of  this  country  and  Can- 
ada, and  supplying  freight  to  the  numerous 
steamers  of  Sir  Hugh  Allan  and  of  the 
Cunard  and  other  lines  of  ocean  steam- 
ers. As  the  writer  of  this  paper  has  lived 
to  see  these  grand  results,  he  cannot  but 
regard  his  labor  in  Boston  in  1845  ^^  ^'''^ 
greatest  work  of  his  life. 

Only  three  of  the  fathers  of  the  Vermont 
Central  Railroad  are  now  living,  and  these 
are  all  Montpelier  men,  to  wit :  Col.  Eli- 
sha  P.  Jewett,  commissioner  under  the 
second  and  actual  charter,  James  R.  Lang- 
don,  and  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  until  his  fath- 
er's death  in  1855,  and  now  E.  P.  Walton. 

Nbtwithstanding  the  disappointment  to 
the  expectations  of  the  town,  the  zeal  and 
liberality  of  its  citizens  for  public  improve- 
ments have  survived.  Various  railroad 
enterprises  have  been  undertaken  and 
charters  obtained,  but  only  one  has  been 
realized.  The  entire  cash  fund  required 
for  the  construction  of  the  Montpelier  and 
Wells  River  railroad  was  $400,000,  and  of 
this  $250,000  was  subscribed,  and  more 
than  $200,000  has  been  paid  by  Mont- 
pelier, more  than  half  of  the  cash  capital. 
The  road,  howeyer,  is  not  managed  in  the 
intere-t  of  Montpelier. 

The  last  feature  in  railway  construction 
is  the<lVrt;7'f7£'  Guage  Road;  and  in  this, 
as  in  the  projected  canals  and  the  Boston 
and  Ogdensburgh  railroad  line,  Montpelier 
has  been  the  pioneer  town  in  Vermont. 
The  matter  was  first  discussed  in  Mont- 
pelier newspapers,  and  the  first  result  was 
a  meeting  of  citizens  of  Washington,  La- 
moille, Caledonia  and  Orleans  Counties, 
at  Albany,  in  March,  1872.  In  conse- 
quence of  measures  then  set  on  foot,  funds 
were  raised,  and  surveys  have  been  made 
from  Montpelier  to  Canada  line,  embrac- 
ing several  routes  in  various  portions  of 
the  intervening  country.  Notices  for  ap- 
plications to  the  General  Assembly  for  the 
charter  of  narrow  guage  railway  companies 
from  Canada  line  via  Montpelier  to  Rut- 
land, were  the  first  published,  and  these 
have  been  followed  by  many  other  notices 


MONTPELIEK. 


307 


in  various  parts  of  the  State.  It  is  the 
dawning  of  a  new  era  in  internal  improve- 
ment, promising,  by  cheaply-constructed 
roads  economically  operated,  to  develop 
the  resources  of  sections  otherwise  in- 
accessible to  railroads,  and  to  contribute 
to  the  prosperity  of  the  through  standard 
gauge  roads  by  a  large  increase  of  their 
business.  Whatever  may  be  the  faults  or 
shortcomings  of  Montpelier  in  other  re- 
spects, it  must  be  conceded  that  the  enter- 
prise and  bounty  of  its  citizens  have  largely 
benefitted  the  State — far  more  largely  the 
State  than  their  own  personal  interests,  or 
the  interests  of  their  town. 

A  few  things  have  been  accidentally 
omitted,  and  many  purposely,  which  will 
be  supplied  by  others.  Of  the  things 
omitted  is  a  notice  of  the  State  Arsetial 
buildings.  During  the  war  of  the  rebellion 
a  necessity  arose  for  hospitals  specially 
adapted  to  cases  of  chronic  diarrhoea.  A 
medical  commission  was  appointed  by  the 
U.  S.  Government,  who  made  extensive 
explorations,  and  reported  that  a  point  in 
Minnesota,  and  what  is  now  Seminary 
Hill  in  Montpelier,  were  the  best  in  the 
country.  The  latter  being  most  accessi- 
ble, the  State,  under  the  advice  of  Gov. 
John  G.  Smith,  erected  commodious  and 
admirably  arranged  hospital  buildings, 
which  were  used  until  after  the  close  of 
the  war.  Then,  as  compensation  to  the 
State,  the  Secretary  of  War  assigned  to 
Vermont  arms,  equipment  and  ammuni- 
tion to  the  value  of  $600,000.  This  ne- 
cessitated the  erection  of  arsenal  build- 
ings, and  these  were  located  near  the  hos- 
pital. A  large  part  of  these  military  supplies 
have  been  sold,  and  the  proceeds  put  into 
the  State  treasury. 

Another  omission  was  Prospect  Park, 
located  two  miles  east  of  the  State-house, 
and  in  an  admirable  position  for  its  scen- 
ery and  accommodations  for  State  and 
County  Fairs.  It  is  private  property, 
owned  by  J.  W.  Brock,  L.  Bart  Cross, 
and  the  estate  of  the  late  J.  Warren  Bailey, 
but  it  ought  to  become  the  property  of  the 
State  Agricultural  Society. 

This  imperfect  record  of  Montpelier  has 
far  exceeded  the  design  of  the  writer,  and 


yet  his  purpose  has  been  to  be  brief  in  re- 
spect to  most  matters  already  made  public, 
and  more  elaborate  in  things  never  gath- 
ered in  any  previous  history  of  the  town. 
In  the  last  field,  the  writer  acknowledges 
his  indebtedness  for  material  aid  to  the 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  the  oldest  resident 
of  Montpelier,  who  recently  died  in  his  90th 
year.  e.  p.  w. 

October  10,  188 1. 


MONTPELIER   POSTMASTERS. 

BY  M.   D.  OILMAN. 

A  post-ofiice  was  first  established  at 
Montpelier,  Apr.  i,  1798,  and  the  first 
postmaster,  Charles  Bulkley,  [see  Judge 
Bulkley,  Berlin,  No.  i,]  to  Apr.  i,  I801 ; 
Timothy  Hubbard,  to  Apr.  i,  1810;  Syl- 
vanus  Baldwin,  to  July  i,  1813  ;  Joshua  Y. 
Vail,  to  May  15,  1829;  Geo.  W.  Hill,  to 
Feb.  II,  1837;  Geo.  W.  Barker,  to  Dec. 
26,  1840;  Edwin  S.  Merrill,  to  Dec.  29, 
1843;  Geo.  W.  Reed,  to  May  8,.  1849; 
Charles  Lyman,  to  Apr.  28,  1853 ;  Charles 
G.  Eastman,  to  June  14,  1858 ;  Timothy 
P.  Redfield,  to  Apr.  2,  1861  ;  James  G. 
French,  to  Apr.  15,  1869;  John  W.Clark, 
to  July  I,  1881  ;  James  S.  Peck,  present 
incumbent,  (Oct.  1881.) 

NEWSPAPER   RECORD. 
FKOM   MAKCUS  DAVIS   OILMAN,  IIIST.   LIB. 

The  Freetiiati's  Press — A  Democratic 
paper,  published  at  Montpelier,  was  com- 
"menced  in  1809,  not  in  1812  or  1813,  as 
stated  by  Thompson  in  his  history  of 
Montpelier.  The  first  issue  was  Aug.  25, 
1809.  A  file  of  the  "Freeman's  Press"  is 
in  Mr.  Gilman's  library.  It  was  printed 
by  Derrick  Sibley,  and  subsequently  by 
Wright  &  Sibley,  for  proprietors,  who  ap- 
pear to  have  been  the  leading  Democrats 
of  Montpelier  and  the  neighboring  towns. 
The  " Freeman's  Press"  was  the  second 
paper  published  at  the  Capital.  It  is  in- 
teresting as  giving  many  quaint  views  of 
life  and  times  in  those  early  days,  the  ad- 
vertisements, especially,  possessing  much 
interest. 

The  paper  was  devoted  mainly  to  na- 
tional politics,  only  a  small  space  being 
given  to  local  and  State  matters.     This 


3o8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


file  begins  with  No.  3,  and  embraces  a 
period  of  about  2^  years.  In  the  issue  of 
Sept.  8,  the  first  in  this  file,  there  are  but 
6  lines  of  editorial,  and  those  relate  to  the 
State  election  returns,  which  are  published 
in  part.  There  are  five  advertisements. 
Forbes  &  Langdon  advertise  for  their 
customers  to  pay  up,  and  also  that  "they 
had  "just  received  from  Philadelphia  a 
quantity  of  Scotch  snuff  of  superior  qual- 
ity."" Charles  Huntoon — not  mentioned 
by  Thompson — general  merchant,  "offers 
for  sale  at  his  stores  in  Montpelier  and 
Berlin  a  general  assortment  of  English  and 
India  goods,  etc.,  etc.,  which  he  will  sell 
for  salts  of  lye,  ashes,  butter,  cheese,  beef 
cattle,  and  all  country  produce."  George 
B.  R.  Gove — also  not  mentioned  by 
Thompson — being  about  to  leave  Mont- 
pelier, offers  for  sale  "one  House  and 
Store,  with  5  acres  of  land  within  100  rods 
of  the  State  House,  pleasantly  situated  in 
the  centre  of  business,  and  is  one  of  the 
best  stands  for  a  merchant  in  the  State." 
This  was  the  store  on  Main  St.,  adjoining 
Bethany  Church, with  land  attached.  "Also 
an  oil  mill  near  Onion  river  bridge,  also  a 
gin  distillery,  new  and  complete,  and  a 
small  farm  in  lierlin,  and  other  lands." 
Dec.  15,  1809,  we  learn  that  Silas  Burbank 
has  purchased  the  oil  mill  of  Mr.  Gove, 
and  wants  flax  seed,  for  which  one  gallon 
of  oil,  or  one  dollar  in  cash,  will  be  given 
per  bushel.  October  13,  1809,  Chester  W. 
Houghton  wants  a  few  thousand  bushels 
of  potatoes  delivered  at  his  distillery,  for 
which  he  will  give  in  exchange  i  qt.  of  gin 
per  bushel  or  20  cents  in  English  goods. 
Josiah  Parks,  bookseller,  publisher,  and 
justice  of  the  peace,  was  a  persistent  ad- 
vertiser, continuing  through  the  entire  file 
of  papers.  So  also  were  Justin  and  Elias 
Lyman,  merchants,  of  Hartford,  Vt.  In 
the  paper  of  May  2,  181 1,  is  the  marriage 
by  Josiah  Parks,  Esq.,  of  Mr.  Ezekiel  P. 
Walton,  printer,  and  Miss  Pru.ssia  Persons. 
November  5,  1809,  James  Peck  opens  a 
martial  music  school.  Dec.  2,  1809,  Chas. 
Bulkley,  agent  for  the  trustees  of  Mont- 
pelier Academy,  politely  says  : 

The  gentlemen  and  ladies  of  the  vicinity 
are  with  pleasure  informed  that  an  addi- 


tional room  has  been  fitted  up  in  the 
Academy,  for  the  accommodation  of  a 
ladies'  school.  An  instructor  has  been  ob- 
tained, whose  attainments  are  in  every 
respect  adequate  to  instruct  in  the  several 
branches  of  reading,  grammar,  geography, 
painting,  embroidering,  and  the  various 
kinds  of  needle-work. 

Sylvanus  Baldwin,  a  stockholder  in  the 
paper,  is  a  liberal  advertiser  of  houses 
and  lands  for  sale,  and  to  be  let,  and 
of  patent  rights  for  sale.  He  is  also  in- 
terested in,  and  agent  for,  a  cotton  and 
woolen  mill  near  "Paine's  bridge."  Jan. 
1 8 10,  Thomas  Reed  continues  the  chair, 
cabinet  and  painting  business,  at  his  old 
.stand.  July  4,  18 10,  the  Democratic  Re- 
publican citizens  of  Montpelier,  Calais, 
Marshfield  and  Plainfield,  celebrated  the 
4th  at  Capt.  Samuel  Rich's,  North  Mont- 
pelier, and  it  would  appear  that  the  Fed- 
erals did  not  celebrate  the  4th  of  July  in 
those  days.  Col.  Caleb  Curtis,  of  Calais, 
acted  as  Marshal,  and  Nahum  Kelton,  of 
Montpelier,  as  Assistant.  "The  Declara- 
tion of  Independence  was  read,  prefaced 
by  some  well-timed  remarks  by  J.  Y.  Vail, 
Esq.,  a  truly  republican  oration  was  de- 
livered by  Timothy  Merrill,  Esq.,  which  did 
honor  to  his  head  and  heart ! "  A  sump- 
tuous dinner  in  a  grove  with  regular  and 
volunteer  toasts  followed,  Josiah  Parks 
being  Chairman  of  Committee  on  toasts, 
which  latter  expressed  the  usual  Demo- 
cratic sentiments  of  the  time. 

Jan.  i,i8ii,  "  Found  near  the  Academy 
last  evening,  a  good  bandanna  handker- 
chief, which  the  owner  may  have  by  ap- 
plying to  D.  Sibley."  Jan.  7,  181 1,  "good 
stock  of  hay  at  $5.50  per  ton,  and  cash, 
labor,  pork,  shingles,  or  grain,  received  in 
payment.  I  live  on  the  West  road  in 
Calais,  near  Col.  Curtis'"."  Signed,  Wil- 
liam Thayer. 

Mar.  7,  181 1,  Amos  Bugbee,  who  is  a 
machinist,  and  connected  with  the  cotton 
and  woolen  factory  before  mentioned,  offers 
for  sale  Dutch  plows.  Mar.  20,  Josiah 
Fisk  carries  on  the  clothier's  business, 
and  does  blue-dyeing  at  his  shop  in  Mont- 
pelier. 

May  30,  1 8 1 1 ,  the  Press  says,  ' '  we  notice 
in  the  last  Wrt;/cV/;««;/ the  following:   'Our 


MONTPELIER. 


309 


glorious  federal  triumph  in  New  York ;  the 
Clinton  interest  is  no  more.'  This  is  not 
the  first  time  the  patrons  of  this  paper 
have  been  egregiously  imposed  upon  in 
this  way.  DeWitt  Clinton  is  elected  by 
over  three  thousand  majority." 

Nov.  II,  181 1,  brings  the  file  near  the 
war  of  18 1 2,  and  political  feeling  began  to 
run  high.  November  7,  181 1,  Wright  & 
Sibley  purchase  the  entire  stock  of  the 
"  Freeman's  Press  "  establishment,  and  are 
sole  proprietors  ;  and  about  this  time  they 
remove  "to  the  chamber  of  the  White 
Store  opposite  Major  Langdon's,"  in  the 
wooden  building  adjoining  Bethany  church, 
now  occupied  by  Fisher  &  Colton,  sad- 
dlery and  hardware  store. 

Morse's  tavern,  sometimes  called  "Peo- 
ple's Rest,"  appears  to  have  been  the  usual 
place  for  citizen's  meetings,  etc. 

We  learn  from  Sylvanus  Baldwin,  post- 
master at  that  time,  that  the  mail  facilities 
of  Montpelier  at  this  time  were  two  mails 
per  week  each,  from  the  South  and  West ; 
and  one  mail  per  week  each  from  the  North 
and'  East.  We  notice  that  Washington 
news  was  from  20  to  30  days  old  when 
published  in  Montpelier. 

The  Freeman^s  Press  was  published  till 
about  the  close  of  the  war  with  Great 
Britain,  18 15.  After  the  suspension  of 
the  Press,  there  was  no  Democratic  paper 
in  Montpelier  until 

THE   VERMONT   PATRIOT   AND   STATE 
GAZETTE, 

established  by  the  Hon.  Isaac  Hill,  of 
Concord.  N.  H.  First  No.,  Jan.  17,  1826, 
page-size  21x30  inches,  enlarged  to  24x36, 
Apr.  15,  1841.  Mr.  Hill  placed  his  brother 
Geo.  W.  in  charge  as  manager,  under  the 
firm  of  Geo.  W.  Hill  &  Co.,  with  Horace 
Steele,  editor,  soon  succeeded  by  Hugh 
Moore,  Esq.,  of  Concord,  N.  H.,  an  ed- 
ucated and  accomplished  gentleman,  who 
held  the  position  several  years,  Mrs.  Geo. 
W.  Hill,  a  lady  of  culture  and  talent,  ren- 
dering editorial  service  during  the  latter 
years  of  her  husband's  connection  with  the 
paper.  From  Apr.  30,  1827  to  1834,  Mr. 
Hill  was  sole  publisher,  when,  not  satis- 


factorily succeeding,   he  sold  to  William 
Clark,  some  time  foreman  in  the  office. 

Mr.  Hill  was  postmaster  under  Gen. 
Jackson's  appointment  until  after  Van 
Buren's  election,  when  soon  after  he  re- 
tired to  a  farm  in  Lowell,  Vt.,  and  re- 
moved to  Johnson  about  1850,  where  he 
still  resides,  (1881,)  a  hale  old  gentleman 
of  the  "olden  time." 

Jeremiah  T.  Marston,  who  read  law  in 
Montpelier,  and  had  just  opened  an  office, 
became  editor  when  Mr.  Clark  became 
proprietor.  Mr.  Marston  continued  editor 
only  till  Apr.  i,  1838,  when  he  with  Geo. 
W.  Barker  bought  out  Clark  for  $2,200. 
Mr.  Clark  removed  to  New  York  City,  and 
became  connected  with  the  large  printing 
house  of  Trow  &  Co.,  where  he  continued 
until  the  failure  of  his  eyesight  quite  re- 
cently, when  he  retired  from  business,  and 
resides,  (1879,)  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  He 
married  Fanny,  dau.  of  Isaiah  Silver,  of 
Montpelier. 

Mr.  Barker,  P.  M.  under  Van  Buren, 
after  the  "Hard-Cider-Log-Cabin"  cam- 
paign of  1 840,  retired  from  newspaper 
business  to  engage  in  building  railroads, 
and  died  not  long  since  in  Sheboygan, 
Wis. 

The  political  aspect  looked  discouraging 
for  a  Democratic  editor,  but  Marston, 
young  and  full  of  hope,  determined  to  per- 
severe— became  sole  proprietor  and  editor, 
brought  out  his  paper  enlarged  at  $1,200 
cost,  pushed  ahead,  and  made  the  most 
lively,  wide-awake  and  best  looking  paper 
in  the  State,  until  bought  out  in  1846  by 
Chas.  G.  Eastman  and  Jos.  B.  Danforth, 
the  former,  editor;  the  latter,  manager. 
Mr.  Marston  accumulated  during  his  con- 
nection with  the  paper  $15,000  to  $20,000. 
He  removed  to  Madison,  Wis.,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  commercial  and  farming  business. 
He  married  a  daughter  of  Jacob  F.  Dodge, 
of  Montpelier.  They  have  3  children. 
Mrs.  R.  W.  Hyde,  of  this  village,  is  a 
sister  of  Mrs.  Marston.  Mr.  Marston  has 
not  taken  an  active  part  in  politics  since 
leaving  Montpelier,  but  in  the  political  up- 
heavings  since  then  he   has  somehow  got 


3'o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


on  the  opposite  side  from  where  he  used 
to  be. 

In  July,  1851,  Eastman  bought  out 
Danforth,  and  remained  sole  editor  and 
proprietor  until  his  death,  Sept.  i860. 
[The  biography  of  Mr.  Eastman  will  be 
given  in  the  history  of  Barnard,  next  vol.] 

Mr.  Danforth  removed  to  Rock  Island, 
III.,  where  he  published  the  Rock  Island 
Argus,  a  Democratic  paper,  until  recently, 
since  which  a  "National  Journal" — for 
whom  farther,  see  history  of  Barnard,  next 
vol. 

Location  of  the  Vennont  Patriot:  West- 
erly side  of  Main  street,  opposite  Bethany 
church  ;  wood  structure,  printing-office  in 
the  second  story ;  rear  part  of  first  story 
occupied  as  a  book-bindery  by  a  Mr.  Wat- 
son, who  went  to  South  Carolina  and  died 
there,  and  the  front  part  for  the  post- 
office,  kept  by  Mr.  Hill.  When  the  South- 
ern and  Western  mails  arrived,  by  stage, 
about  the  same  time,  10  to  11  o'clock,  A.  m., 
the  little  room  would  be  crowded  to  ex- 
cess. After  the  mail  was  opened.  Post- 
master Hill  would  read  out  in  a  loud  voice 
the  address  of  every  letter  received,  upon 
the  conclusion  of  which  there  would  be  a 
stampede  of  those  for  whom  there  were  no 
letters. 

The  Patriot  was  published  here  until  it 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Marston  &  Barker, 
when  it  was  removed  to  State  street,  in  the 
Ballou  building,  opposite  First  National 
Bank,  where  the  printing-office  was  in  the 
second  story,  Mr.  Marston  having  a  book- 
store on  the  first  floor,  and  a  large  reading- 
room,  well  supplied  with  newspapers,  in 
the  rear,  for  the  benefit  of  any  one  who 
chose  to  use  it.  It  was  there  the  friends 
of  the  editor  and  Patriot  gathered  for 
news  and  political  gossip.  It  was  in  this 
room  the  election  of  James  K.  Polk  was 
first  announced  in  Montpelier  by  a  hurried 
scrawl  from  Hon.  J.  McM.  Shafter,  then 
Whig  Secretary  of  State  for  Vermont, 
written  at  Burlington  and  forwarded  by 
the  stage-driver  to  Col.  E.  P.  Jewett,  it 
reading  as  follows:  "New  York  gone! 
all  gone !  We  have  got  to  take  Polk, 
Texas  and  the  devil !"  and  we  also  got  with 
Polk  that  vast  and  rich  territory  compris- 


ing not  only  Texas,  but  NewMexico,  Utah, 
Arizona,  Nevada  and  California,  to  which 
latter  State,  Mr.  Shafter  removed  some 
25  years  ago,  being  now  one  of  its  prom- 
inent men.  [See  Shafter  family  in  history 
of  Athens,  later  in  this  vol.] 

Eastman  and  Danforth  on  their  pur- 
chase removed  the  Patriot  office  across  the 
bridge  to  a  wooden  building,  then  standing 
on  land  now  occupied  by  the  easterly  part 
of  Union  Block,  opposite  the  westerly  ten- 
ement of  Walton  block,  where  it  remained 
during  the  publication  by  Eastman  and  by 
E.  M.  Brown.  [For  Col.  E.  M.  Brown,  see 
Woodstock  in  next  vol.] 

FROM   AMERICAN  NEWSPAPER  REPORTER. 

THE   ARGUS   AND   PATRIOT 

is  the  result  of  a  union,  early  in  1863,  of 
the  Bellows  Falls  Argus  with  the  Vermont 
Patriot — the  former  commenced  in  1853, 
by  Hiram  Atkins,  at  Bellows  Falls.  The 
paper  under  its  present  title  began  with 
about  2,000  subscribers  ;  office-room,  30  by 
42  feet ;  presses,  a  small-sized  "  Ruggles" 
for  job  work,  and  Newbury  cylinder  for 
the  paper;  working  force,  three  hands 
with  the  editor.  It  now  employs  one  of 
each  size  of  the  Degener  job-presses,  i 
Globe  half  medium,  i  hand  press,  2  first 
class  Cottrell  &  Babcock  cylinder  presses 
— one  the  largest  press  of  any  kind  in  the 
State  (1881)  ;  office  hands  20 — on  job-work 
8  or  10 ;  in  outfit,  type,  etc.,  is  in  the  very 
front  of  the  printing  establishments  of  the 
State.  The  work  of  the  office  goes  all 
over  the  State,  into  each  of  the  New  Eng- 
land States,  New  York,  Wisconsin,  etc. 
Several  thousand  dollars  value  of  paper, 
card,  ink,  etc.,  kept  constantly  on  hand. 
All  has  gone  on  expanding.  The  large 
three-story  building,  opposite  Bethany 
church,  once  familiarly  known  as  the  Lyman 
store,  is  now  better  known  as  the  Argus 
and  Patriot  building,  owned  by  its  own 
editor  and  proprietor.  From  the  time  Mr. 
Atkins  assumed  control  of  the  Argus  and 
Patriot,  every  week  has  added  new  names 
to  his  subscription  till  the  list  is  over 
6,000.  The  Argus  and  Patriot  has  occa- 
sionally been  published  daily  during  ses- 
sions of  the  Legislature. 


cZu^c.^^, 


MONTPELIER. 


311 


THE   VOICE   OF   FREEDOM. 
PROM  iroN.  JOSEPH  poland. 

The  publication  of  The  Voice  of  Free- 
dom was  commenced  January  ist,  1839, 
by  Emery  A.  Allen  and  Joseph  Poland  as 
publishers,  under  the  firm  name  of  Allen 
&  Poland.  Hon.  Chauncey  L.  Knapp, 
then  holding  the  office  of  Secretary  of 
State  by  favor  of  the  Whig  party,  was  em- 
ployed as  editor.  The  publication  office 
was  in  the  second  story  of  the  Barnes  shop 
building,  first  door  East  of  the  Bishop 
hotel.  In  September  of  the  same  year  Mr. 
Poland  retired  from  the  paper  by  reason  of 
ill  health,  and  its  publication  was  con- 
tinued through  the  year  by  Mr.  E.  A. 
Allen.  At  the  beginning  of  the  second 
volume  the  proprietorship  passed  to  the 
State  Anti-slavery  Society,  Mr.  Knapp 
still  remaining  as  editor.  After  a  few 
months,  more  or  less,  the  paper  fell  into 
the  hands  of  Mr.  Jedediah  Holcomb,  of 
Brandon,  and  was  removed  to  that  place, 
where  it  was  subsequently  discontinued. 
Mr.  Knapp  has  been  for  many  years  the 
editor  and  publisher  of  the  Lowell,  (Mass.,) 
Daily  Ote^w,  his  son  of  late  years  having 
been  associated  with  him  in  the  business. 
Among  other  important  positions  he  has 
filled  are  those  of  Clerk  of  the  Massachu- 
setts House  of  Representatives  and  Mem- 
ber of  Congress  from  the  Lowell  district. 
Mr.  Allen  is  a  practicing  physician  in  Ran- 
dolph, Mass.,  and  Mr.  Poland  is  editor 
and  proprietor  of  the  Watchman  &^  your- 
nal,  Montpelier. 

Though  an  individual  enterprise,  the 
Voice  of  Freedotn  was  regarded  as  the 
organ  of  the  then  recently  formed  Anti- 
slavery  Society  of  the  State,  of  which  Row- 
land T.  Robinson,  of  Ferrisburgh,  was 
President,  and  Dr.  J.  A.  Allen,  of  Mid- 
dlebury.  Secretary.  As  yet  the  anti- 
slavery  sentiment  of  the  State  had  not 
taken  the  form  of  political  action,  and  only 
sought  to  promote  its  objects  by  moral 
and  religious  methods.  But  recent  events 
had  given  a  new  impetus  to  the  movement, 
and  the  roar  of  the  on-coming  tide  which 
was  destined  to  sweep  American  slavery 
out  of  existence,  might  already  be  heard  in 
the  distance.     The  celebrated  controversy 


in  Congress  concerning  the  right  of  peti- 
tion, with  John  Quincy  Adams  as  its  elo- 
quent champion,  was  then  at  its  height. 
The  so-called  "Atherton  gag"'  had  just 
been  adopted  by  the  national  House  of 
Representatives,  whereby  "every  petition, 
memorial,  resolution,  proposition  or  paper, 
touching  the  abolition  of  slavery,  or  the 
buying,  selling  or  transferring  of  slaves  in 
any  state,  district  or  territory  of  the  United 
States,"  was  "laid  on  the  table  without 
being  debated,  printed,  read  or  referred," 
and  had  produced  such  general  indignation 
among, all  parties  that  the  legislature  of  the 
State,  in  the  fall  of  that  year,  by  a  nearly 
unanimous  vote  in  both  houses,  had  de- 
manded the  repeal  of  said  obnoxious  res- 
olution, and  instructed  our  Senatois  and 
requested  our  Representatives  to  labor  for 
its  repeal.  They  were  also  instructed,  by 
the  same  legislature,  to  "  use  their  utmost 
efforts  to  prevent  the  annexation  of  Texas 
and  to  procure  the  abolition  of  slavery  and 
the  slave  trade  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
and  the  territories,  and  the  slave-trade  be- 
tween the  several  states."  Indeed,  so  far 
had  Mr.  Knapp,  the  editor  of  the  "  Voice,''"' 
progressed  in  the  direction  of  distinct  po-_ 
litical  action  that,  the  year  following^ 
when  Harrison  and  Tyler  were  the  Whig 
standard-bearers,  he  was  waited  upon  by  a 
delegation  from  the  Whig  State  Com- 
mittee with  the  intimation  that  the  sup- 
port of  their  presidential  candidates  was  a 
condition  precedent  to  his  re-election  to 
the  office  of  Secretary  of  State.  Where- 
upon he  distinctly  avowed  that  he  would 
support  no  man  for  these  high  positions 
"with  the  smell  of  slavery  upon  his  gar- 
ments." The  result  was  that  Mr.  Knapp 
was  superseded  the  ensuing  fall  by  Hon. 
Alvah  Sabin,  of  Georgia,  as  Secretary  of 
State. 

THE  GREEN  MOUNTAIN  FREEMAN 

was  established  at  Montpelier,  as  the  organ 
of  the  Liberty  party,  in  January,  1844,  by 
Joseph  Poland,  with  Rev.  J.C.  Aspenwall, 
a  Methodist  preacher,  as  editor.  Mr. 
Aspenwall  retired  in  the  fall  of  the  same 
year,  leaving  the  entire  charge  of  the  paper 
in  the  hands  of  the  proprietor.  A  few 
months  subsequently,  Rev.  C.  C.  Briggs, 


312 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  Congregational  preacher  and  anti-slav- 
ery lecturer,  became  joint  editor  and  pub- 
lisher, the  firm  being  Poland  &  Briggs. 
In  May,  1846,  Mr.  Briggs  retired,  and  the 
paper  was  conducted  by  Mr.  Poland  until 
January,  1849,  with  Mr.  H.  D.  Hopkins 
as  associate  editor  during  the  year  1848. 
The  first  of  January,  1849,  infirm  health 
induced  the  proprietor  to  sell  and  transfer 
the  paper  to  the  Hon.  Jacob  Scott,  of 
Barre,  who  had  for  some  years  been  a 
leading  man  in  the  anti-slavery  ranks,  and 
a  candidate  for  Lieutenant  Governor  and 
also  for  Congress.  During  the  year  1849, 
Hon.  Daniel  P.  Thompson  became  asso- 
ciated with  Mr.  Scott,  and  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  succeeding  volume  he  became 
sole  proprietor  and  editor.  In  1856  the 
paper  was  sold  to  Mr.  S.  S.  Boyce.  In 
1 861  the  paper  was  bought  by  Hon. 
Charles  W.  Willard,  who  was  its  editor 
for  twelve  years  thereafter,  and  who  was 
sole  proprietor  until  1869,  when  he  sold  a 
half  interest  to  Mr.  J.  W.  Wheelock.  In 
1873,  Mr.  Wheelock  became  sole  proprietor 
and  editor,  and  so  remained  until  his  death 
in  1876,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son, 
Mr.  Herbert  R.  Wheelock,  the  present 
proprietor  and  editor.  The  ofSce  of  pub- 
lication was  first  in  the  second  story  of 
the  Lyman  &  King  store,  (now  the  Argiis 
Or' Falrioi  huMing,)  then  in  Cross'  Bakery, 
in  the  rear  of  Babcock  &  Cutler's  drug 
store,  then  in  the  second  story  of  the 
Barrows  &  Peck  hardware  store,  then  re- 
moved to  the  new  "Freeman  Building" 
erected  by  S.  S.  Boyce,  and  subsequently 
to  its  present  quarters.  Of  the  several 
gentlemen  connected  with  the  Freeman 
from  first  to  last,  it  is  believed  Mr.  Aspen- 
wall  is  dead ;  Mr.  Boyce  was  engaged  in 
the  war  of  the  rebellion,  and  has  since  re- 
sided in  New  York ;  Messrs.  Scott,  Thomp- 
son, Willard  and  J.  W.  Wheelock  have 
deceased  ;  Mr.  Briggs  is  a  successful  bank- 
er and  manufacturer  at  Rockford,  Illinois  ; 
Mr.  Hopkins  is  living  in  Montpelier,  but 
with  impaired  health,  while  the  founder  of 
the  paper  is  now  editor  and  publisher  of 
the  Watchman  &^  Journal,  at  Montpelier 
— the  office  in  which  he  learned  the  print- 
er's trade  when  a  boy. 


As  we  have  said,  the  Green  Mountain 
Freeman  was  established  as  the  organ  of 
the  Liberty  party  of  the  State,  and  for  five 
years,  and  until  the  character  of  the  party 
was  somewhat  "  watered,"  to  use  a  phrase 
current  on  change,  by  the  absorption  of 
the  free-soil  element  of  the  Democratic 
party  in  1848,  it  had  the  proud  distinction 
of  representing  a  political  party  which  was 
never  surpassed  in  any  country  or  age  for 
the  purity  of  its  principles  and  the  uncom- 
promising firmness  with  which  it  pursued 
its  single  purpose.  Never  had  an  organ  a 
more  intelligent  and  devoted  constituency. 
At  the  date  of  its  transfer  to  Mr.  Scott  in 
1848  it  had  4,000  subscribers.  By  the 
union  that  year  with  the  free-soil  portion  of 
the  Democratic  party  in  the  free  states, 
and  joining  in  the  support  of  Martin  Van 
Buren  for  the  Presidency,  the  character  of 
the  party  became  less  distinctively  religious 
and  more  political ;  but  the  fundamental 
principle  of  the  original  organization  was 
never  lost  sight  of  until,  through  the  agency 
of  the  Republican  party  and  the  consequent 
election  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  the  doctrine 
of  our  boasted  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence was  transformed  from  a  cruel  lie  to 
a  living  truth.  And  the  founder  of  the 
F'reeman  looks  back  upon  his  five  years' 
labors  in  this  connection  as  the  crowning 
glory  of  his  life. 

Botanic  Advocate.  —  A  monthly,  com- 
menced about  1837,  and  continued  about 
2  years.  By  Drs.  Wright  and  F.  A.  Mc- 
Dowell. 

Green  Mountain  Emporiutn,  and  Liter- 
erary.  Moral  and  Religious  Record. — By 
J.  Milton  Stearns,  8  vo.  monthly,  16  pages 
each  ;  commenced  November,  1838,  con- 
tinued only  a  short  time,  and  moved  to 
Middlebury. 

Vermont  Family  Visitor — Commenced 
in  1845,  and  issued  about  a  year  only. 

Vermont  Temperance  Star — Eight  page 
quarto,  monthly.  Address,  Geo.  B.  Man- 
ser. Vol.  I,  No.  6,  is  August,  1839, 
Montpelier,  Vt. 

The  Watchword — A  temperance  paper. 
Editorial  committee  :  Rev.  J.  C.  W.  Coxe, 
Rev.  J.  E.  Wright,  H.  D.  Hopkins,  H.  A. 


MONTPELIER. 


313 


Huse.  Feb.  14,  1874.  Only  a  few  num- 
bers issued. 

Ver//ioiit  Tetnperaiice  Banner — Started 
in  the  fall  of  1879,  under  the  auspices  of 
W.  F.  Scott  and  J.  P.  Eddy.  One  num- 
ber published  and  then  suspended  for  want 
of  patronage. 

The  Vernionter — Fred.  H.  Kimball,  ed- 
itor and  publisher,  July,  1879.  4  pp. 
"The  representative  amateur  paper  of 
Vermont"  published  at  present. 

The  Era,  by  Edward  Clark,  and  the 
Echo,  by  Chas.  F.  Burnham,  were  started 
about  1875,  while  both  editors  were  serving 
their  apprenticeship  in  the  Argus  office. 
Of  both  papers,  only  one  or  two  numbers 
were  issued. 

Young  American,  ^874 — Wm.  M.  Ken- 
dall, Jr.,  printer  and  publisher.  An  8  page 
paper,  printed  at  Montpelier,  while  its  ed- 
itor was  attending  school ;  and  after  his 
education  was  completed,  removed  to  its 
former  place  of  publication,  Lebanon,  N. 
H.,  Mr.  Kendall  becoming  the  editor  and 
publisher  of  the  Dollar  Weekly  at  that  place. 

Postage  Stamp  Reporter,  iZ'j'j — ,C.  F. 
Buswell,  publisher.  8  pp.  7x5^.  Issued 
monthly,  devoted  to  stamp  collecting,  and 
discontinued  on  increase  of  postage  regu- 
lation, with  its  Sept.  No.,  1877. 

Green  Monntain  Boys,  \?>tj — Tuttle  & 
Dewey,  publishers.  8  pp.  6  x  8,  and  is- 
sued monthly. 

Winooski  Impetus — Metropolis  of  Ver- 
mont, April  15,  1835,  to  March,  1836.  4to. 
Published  monthly  by  a  society  of  young 
men. 

The Montpelierian — Vol.  5,  No.  i.  Sem- 
inary Hill,  Montpelier,  Vt.,  Jan.  20,  1877. 
Published  by  the  Literary  Society  of  the 
Vermont  Methodist  Seminary.  4  to,  p.  8, 
[4]     Continued  monthly. 

{Editors  and  publishers  now  residing  at 
Montpelier — E.  P.  Walton,  retired;  Jo- 
seph Poland,  present  proprietor  of  the 
Watchman  ]  J.  M.  Poland,  retired  ;  Hiram 
Atkins,  proprietor  of  the  Argus,  to  whom 
we  are  indebted  for  the  fine  views  of  Beth- 
any and  Christ  Church  in  No.  3  of  the 
Gazetteer;  H.  R.  Wheelock  and  H.  A. 
Huse  of  the  Freeman^^         (|^ 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MONTPELIER. 
BY  M.  D.  OILMAN, 

Librarian  of  the  Vermont  Historical  Society. 

Montpelier  has  been  prominent  in  the 
printing  of  books  from  an  early  period  of 
its  history ;  the  number  of  book  imprints 
issued  from  the  press  of  this  town,  as 
shown  in  my  bibliography  of  Vermont,  a 
work  in  course  of  preparation,  exceeds  800, 
including  of  course  official  publications  for 
the  State,  which  are  probably  more  than 
half  of  the  number. 

The  earliest  Montpelier  imprint  I  have 
met  is  a  work  compiled  by  Clark  Brown 
with  the  title:  "The  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States,  and  of  Vermont,  also  Washington's 
Farewell  Address,"  etc.  Printed  by  Ben- 
jamin H.  Wheeler,  for  Brown  &  Parks, 
1807.     16°  p.  76. 

Mr.  Brown  started  the  first  newspaper 
in  town,  the  "Vermont  Precursor,"  which 
he  published  weekly,  Nov.  1806  to  Sept. 
1807,  when  he  sold  out  to  Samuel  Goss, 
who  was  at  that  time  publishing  a  paper  at 
Peacham. 

Mr.  Goss  re-christened  the  "Precursor" 
as  the  "Watchman,"  numbering  consec- 
utively from  the  commencement  of  the 
former.  In  1808,  Mr.  Brown  delivered  a 
Masonic  Sermon  at  Danville:  "The  Mor- 
al and  Benevolent  Design  of  Christianity 
and  Freemasonry,"  etc.  Danville  :  Eben- 
ezer  Eaton. 

The  following  partial  list  of  books  and 
pamphlets  relating  in  any  way  to  Montpe- 
lier is  of  interest,  as  showing  the  class  of 
literature  circulated  among  the  people,  es- 
pecially in  the  earlier  history  of  the  State  ; 
the  list  is  compiled  wholly  from  my  bibliog- 
raphy of  Vt. 

The  publications  of  the  numerous  insti- 
tutions and  organizations  in  the  State, 
such  as  religious,  educational,  masonic, 
temperance,  odd  fellows,  agricultural,  med- 
ical, benevolent,  military,  railroads,  insur- 
ance and  others,  for  full  lists  of  which  see 
Walton's  Registers,  are  omitted  here  as 
well  also  as  all  official  State  publications, 
and  town  reports,  although  Montpelier 
printers  have  had  their  full  share  of  the 
printing  of  the  above  works.     All  the  pub- 


40 


3U 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


lications  named  were  printed  in  Montpelier 

unless  otherwise  noted. 

Adams,    Daniel.        Englisli    Grammar. 

Published  by  L.  O.  C.  Bowles,  1814. 
— Another  edition,  same  publisher,  1817. 
— The   Scholar's    Arithmetic.     Wright  & 

Sibley,  printers,  1812. 
Adams,  F.  W.     "  Theological  Criticisms." 

Published   by  J.   E.    Thompson.    1843. 

p.  216. 

Mr.  Adams  was  an  eminent  pliysician  in  Montpelier 
for  many  years,  where  he  died  in  Dec.  1858,  aged  71. 

Aiken,  Solomon.  "An  Appeal  to  the 
Churches,"  etc.,  p.  120,  printed  by  E.  P. 
Walton,  182 1. 

Allis,  Rev.  O.  D.  Funeral  Sermon  on 
the  death  of  Chas.  M.  Griswold,  1862. 
Printed  at  the  Freeman  office. 

Austin,  Rev.  Samuel.  Election  Sermon. 
1816.     Printed  by  Walton  &  Goss. 

Baldwin,  Daniel.  Memorial  Service, 
held  in  the  Church  of  the  Messiah,  at 
Montpelier,  Aug.  7,  1881.  Printed,  for 
private  distribution,  by  Joseph  Poland. 
8°  p.  18.     [By  Rev.  J.  Edw.  Wright.] 

See  sketch  of  Mr.  Baldwin,  ^o<Z. 

Ballou,  Eli.  Review  of  Rev.  A.  Royce's 
Sermon  against  Universalism.  Printed 
by  F.  A.  McDowell,  Universalist  Watch- 
man office,  1838. 

Barber,  E.  D.  Democratic  Oration  at 
Montpelier,  1839.     Patriot  office  print. 

Barre.  Reply  of  the  people  of  Barre  to 
the  attack  of  Rev.  A.  Royce,  1845.  Po- 
land &  Briggs,  printers,  p.  51. 

Baylies,  Nicholas.  A  Digested  Index 
to  Law  Reports  in  England  and  the 
United  States.  Printed  by  Walton  & 
Goss,  1814.  3  vols.  8°  p.  xiv,  545  ;  vii, 
455  ;  vii,  509. 

— An  Esssay  on  the  Human  Mind.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer,  1820.      16°  p.  216. 

— A  second  edition.     Same  imprint,  1829. 

Bayne,  Thomas.  Funeral  Sermon  on  the 
death  of  Hon.  Ira  H.  Allen,  1866.  Wal- 
ton, printer. 

Bent,  Rev.  J.  A.  Thanksgiving  Sermon  at 
Stowe,  1854.    E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  printer. 

Bible.  I  am  informed  that  an  edition  of 
the  New  Testament  was  printed  by  the 
late  Ezekiel  P.  Walton,  at  Montpelier, 
in  the  early  part  of  the  present  century, 
but  I  have  never  seen  a  copy.  Some 
thirty  editions  of  the  Bible  and  parts 
thereof  have  been  printed  in  Vermont, 
mainly  at  Brattleboro,  Windsor  and 
Woodstock. 

Boardman,  Rev.  E.  J.  Immediate  Abo- 
lition Vindicated.  An  addre.ss  at  Ran- 
dolph, 1838.     Walton  &  Son,  printers. 


Boyle,  Capt.  R.  Voyages  and  Adven- 
tures. Printed  by  Wright  &  Sibley. 
12°  p.  262. 

Brigham,G.N.    Poems,  1870.    I2°p.  187. 

— Second  edition  of  same,  1874,  p.  219. 
Cambridge,  Mass. 

Buchanan,  Rev.  C.  The  Works  of. 
Walton  &  Goss,  printers,  1813.  12° 
p.  369. 

Bunyan,  Rev.  J.  The  Heavenly  Foot- 
man, 181 1.  Walton  &  Goss,  printers. 
24°  p.  108. 

Bliss,  Rev.  J.  I.  Funeral  Sermon  on 
Capt.  L.  H.  Bostwick  at  Jericho,  1863. 
E.  P.  Walton,  printer. 

Burton,  Rev.  Asa.  False  Teachers  De- 
scribed, a  sermon  at  Thetford,  1810. 
Montpelier:  Printed  by  Samuel  Goss. 

— Funeral  Sermon  on  Mrs.  Joram  Allen, 
at  Thetford,  181 1.  Wright  &  Sibley, 
printers . 

— Funeral  Sermon  on  Oramel  Hinckley,  at 
Thetford,  1812.     Wright  &  Sibley. 

Burton,  Rev.  H.  N.  "Go  Forward." 
A  Missionary  Sermon  at  St.  Johnsbury, 
1868.     Fieeman  print. 

Butler,  J.  D.  See  Article,  Vt.  Hist.  So- 
ciety. 

Carpenter,  Hon.  Hem  an.  Family  Re- 
Union,  1871.     Polands' print. 

Chalmers,    Rev.    Thomas.      Discourses 
on  Revelation.     2   vols,   in  one,  p.  175 
and  194,   12°.      E.  P.  Walton,  printer, . 
1819. 

Chandler,  Rev.  A.  Sermon  at  Waits- 
field,  1826.     E.  P.  Walton,  printer. 

Channing,  Rev.  W.  E.  Election  Sermon 
in  Boston,  1830.  Reprinted  by  Geo.  W. 
Hill,  Montpelier. 

Christian  Pilgrim,  i8°  p.  143.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer.     Comical  illustrations. 

Cobb,  Enos.  An  Exposition  of  Dr.  Cobb's 
art  of  discovering  the  faculties  of  the 
Human  Mind,  etc.  Montpelier,  1846. 
12°  p.  31. 

Coburn,  a.  The  Scholar's  Teacher  of 
Geography.     Montpelier,  1838.    p.  13. 

Dascomb,  Rev.  A.  B.  Memorial  Record 
ofWaitsfield,  1867.     Freeman  Print. 

— Sermon  on  the  death  of  Pres.  Lincoln, 
1865.     Walton's  Print. 

Davis,  Henry.  Election  Sermon  at  Mont- 
pelier, Oct.  12,  1815.  Walton  &  Goss. 
8°  p.  40. 

Davis,  Miss  Mary  E.  [A  native  of  Plain- 
field.]  Poems.  Argus  &  Patriot  print, 
1877.     12°  p.  349. 

Day,  Norris.  A  Lecture  on  Bible  Poli- 
tics.    Moiftpelier,  1846. 


MONTPELIER. 


315 


Dean,  James.  Gazetteer  of  Vermont. 
Printed  by  Samuel  Goss,  1808.  8°  p.  44. 

TliiB  was  the  first  gazetteer  of  tlie  State. 

Dewey,  C.  C.  Woman  Suffrage.  Journal 
Press,  Montpelier,  1869. 

Dolphin,  James.  Travels  of,  among  the 
Indians,  etc.  Wright  &  Sibley,  print- 
ers, 1812.     18°  p.  72. 

Dow,  Peggy,  [Wife  of  the  famous  Lo- 
renzo Dow.]  Poetry.  Printed  by  E.  P. 
&  G.  S.  Walton,  1818.     24°  p.  160. 

Earle,  Jabez.  The  Christian's  Looking- 
Glass.  Walton  &  Goss, 1817.     i8°p.7o. 

Eastman,  C.  G.  Sermons,  etc.,  by  Rev. 
J.  Burchard.  Burlington,  1836.  12°  p. 
119. 

— Poems.  Montpelier  :  Eastman  &  Dan- 
forth,  printers,  1848.      12°  p.  208. 

— Second  Edition  enlarged,  T.  C.  Phin- 
ney,  publisher,  1880.  12°  p.  xxi  and  233, 
with  steel  portrait  and  a  sketch  of  the 
author. 

See  history  of  newspapers  in  Montpelier.  [For  bi- 
ography of  Eastman,  see  Barnard  history  in  succeed- 
ing volume.— Ed.] 

Elliot,  Rev.  L.  H.  Sermon  on  the 
death  of  Rev.  Dr.  Silas  McKeen,  Bi'ad- 
ford,  1877.     Polands'  print. 

Emerson,  Mrs.  Lucy.  New  England 
Cookery,  etc.  Montpelier  :  Printed  for 
Josiah  Parks,  1808.     18°  p.  84. 

Mrs.  Emerson  was  a  sister  of  the  late  venerable 
Thomas  Reed,  an  early  settler  at  Montpelier;  he  was 
the  lather  of  the  late  Thomas  and  Hezekiah  H.  Reed. 

Foster,  Hosea  B.,  of  Berlin,  Vt.  Poems. 
Montpelier,  Vt. :  Printed  by  Ballou, 
Loveland  &  Co.,  i860.     18°  p.  72. 

Franklin,  Benjamin. 
Wealth.  Walton  & 
1810.     18°  p.  31. 

— Life    of  Dr.    Franklin 

printer,  Montpelier,  1809.     12°  p.  202. 

P'renyear,  Rev.  C.  P.  Funeral  Sermon 
on  the  death  of  Wm.  H.  Carr,  in  Ja- 
maica.     Argus  and  Patriot  print,  1870. 

Frothingham,  Rev.  F.  Dedication  Ser- 
mon, Church  of  Messiah,  Montpelier, 
1866.     Ballou,  printer. 

Fuller,  Rev.  Andrew.  Baptism.  Print- 
ed by  Samuel  Goss,  1807.     p.  15. 

Perhaps  the  first  imprint  by  Mr .  Goss  in  Montpelier, 
a-!  he  purchased  the  "Precursor"  in  September,  1807. 
Sec  ante^  Brown,  Olauk. 

— Another  edition,  1814.  Printed  by  Wright 

&  Sibley,     p.  16. 
Gallup,  Dr.    J.  A.     Address   before  the 

Vermont  Medical  Society  at  Montpelier, 

Oct.  10,  1822.     E.  P.  Walton,  printer. 

8°  p.  26. 
Gestrin,  Prof.  C.  E.  H.    Vacation  Labors, 

1879.     Argus  and  Patriot  print,  p.  51. 


The 
Goss, 


Way   to 

printers, 


Samuel    Goss, 


Greene,  Rev.  R.  A.  Funeral  Sermon  on 
the  death  of  Mrs.  James  Nichols,  of 
Northfield,  March  6,  1876.  Argus  and 
Patriot  print.     8°  p.  12. 

Green  Mountain  Emporium,  and  Litera- 
ry, Moral  and  Religious  Record.  By  J. 
Milton  Stearns.  Vol.  i,  No.  8.  Mont- 
pelier, June,  1839.  Monthly.  Allen  & 
Poland,  printers.     RI  8°  p.  15. 

Gregory,  Rev.  John.  Review  of  Bishop 
Hopkins,  against  Universalism.  Mont- 
peUer:     Wm.  Clark,  1835.     8°  p.  12. 

— History  of  Northfield.  Argus  and  Pat- 
riot print,  1878.     8°  p.  319. 

— An  Expose  of  Spiritualism.  Polands' 
print,  1872.     8°  p.  104. 

Gridley,  Rev.  John.  History  of  Mont- 
pelier, in  a  Discourse  in  the  Brick 
Church,  Montpelier,  Thanksgiving  Day, 
Dec.  8,  1842.  E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons, 
printers.     8°  p.  48. 

A  valuable  work,  and  very  scarce. 

— The  Young  Man  Beguiled  of  his  Strength. 

A    Sermon   at   Montpelier,    March    29, 

1846.     Eastman   &   Danforth,  printers. 

12°  p.  21. 

Mr.  Gridley  was  pastor  of  the  "  Brick  Church"  at 
Montpelier,  1841-4G,  when  he  moved  to  Kenosha,  Wis., 
where  he  died  Dec.  27.  1876,  aged  80  years. 

Haddock,  Prof.  C.  B.  An  Address  be- 
fore the  Railroad  Convention  at  Mont- 
pelier, January  8,  1844.  E.  P.  Walton 
&  Sons,  printers.     8°  p.  24. 

Hall,  S.  R.  The  Child's  Assistant  to 
Geography.  Third  edition,  1831.  Mont- 
pelier: Published  by  J.  S.  Walton. 
12°  p.  75. 

First  edition  was  published  in  1827,  witli  same  im- 
print. Many  editions  were  afterwards  published.  An 
enlarged  edition,  revised  by  Rev.  P.  H.  White,  was 
published  at  Montpelier  in  1864,  by  C.  W  Willard.  and 
a  third  edition  in  1874,  of  280  pages,  12  mo..  Freeman 
print.  Another  edition  in  1878,  same  imprint,  and  the 
work  is  still  in  use  in  our  public  schools. 

Harrison,  Wm.  H.  Biographical  Sketch 
of.  Watchman  Office,  Montpelier,  1836. 
12°    p.  30. 

Harvard  College.  Fourth  Report  of 
Class  of  1 86 1,  J.  Edward  Wright,  Class 
Secretary.  Freeman  print,  1878.  8° 
p.  30. 

Hervey,  James.  Meditations,  etc.  Sam- 
uel Goss,  printer,  1810.     12°  p.  144. 

HiNCKS,  Rev.  J.  H.     "  The  Mission  of  a 

Child's  Life."     A  sermon   preached  in 

Bethany  Church,  Montpelier,  March  20, 

1 88 1.     Printed  for  private  distribution. 

Joseph  Poland,  printer.     8°  p.  28. 

Preached  on  occasion  of  the  deaths  of  Mary,  aged  7 
years,  daughter  of  Jas.  W.  Brock,  Esq.,  and  Clara,  aged 
13  years,  daughter  ot  J.  Monroe  Poland,  Esq. 

Holmes,  James  H.  A  Manual  on  Win- 
dow Gardening.  Montpelier,  1877. 
12°  p.  184. 


3i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Hooker,  Rev.  E.  W.  Address  on  Sacred 
Music,  at  Castleton,  1843.  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton &  Sons,  printers.     8°  p.  16. 

Hopkins,  Rev.  Samuel.  The  Evils  of 
Gambling.  A  Sermon  at  Montpelier, 
April  19,  1835.  E.  P.  Walton  &  Son, 
printers.     8°  p.  22. 

House,  Rev.  A.  H.  Conversation.  A 
Sermon  at  Island  Pond,  Feb.  14,  1858. 
Printed  by  Ballou,  Loveland  &  Co.  8° 
p.   16. 

Hutchinson,  Titus.  Jurisdiction  of 
Courts.    Freeman  print,  1855.    8°  p.  15. 

Johnson,  John.  A  Mathematical  Ques- 
tion, propounded  by  the  Vicegerent  of 
the  World.  Answered  by  the  King  of 
Glory.  Montpelier:  Published  by  John 
Crosby,  18 13.     18°  p.  143. 

Johnson,  Oliver.  Address  before  the 
Vermont  Anti-Slavery  Society,  at  Mid- 

.  dlebury,  Feb.  18,  1835.  Knapp  &  Jevv- 
ett,  printers.     8°  p.  32. 

Jones,  Charles  E.  Life  and  Confessions 
of.  Printed  by  Ballou,  Loveland  &  Co., 
i860.     12°  p.  168. 

Jones,  Henry.  The  seven  Churches  in 
Asia,  the  Millenial  thousand  years,  etc. 
Knapp  &  Jewett,  printers,  1834.  12° 
p.  70,  ■ 

Kelton,  C.  G.  The  New  England  Col- 
lection of  Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs. 
Published  by  Geo.  W.  Hill,  1829.  24° 
p.  168. 

Lamb,  Earned.  The  Militia's  Guide,  etc. 
Printed  by  Samuel  Goss,  1807.  18° 
p.  108. 

Linsley,  D.  C.  Report  of  his  survey  of 
a  road  from  the  foot  to  the  summit  of 
Mount  Mansfield,  Oct.,  1865.  Mont- 
pelier.    8°  p.  7. 

Lord,  Rev.  Wm.  H.  A  Sermon  on  occa- 
sion of  the  death  of  Hon.  John  McLean. 
Preached  in  Cabot,  Vt.,  Feb.  7,  1855. 

— Remembrance  of  the  Righteous.  A 
Sermon  on  occasion  of  the  death  of  Gen. 
Ezekiel  P.  Walton.  Preached  at  Mont- 
pelier, Nov.  29,  1855. 

— The  Present  and  the  Future.  A  Sermon 
on  occasion  of  the  death  of  Mrs.  Lucre- 
tia  Prentiss,  wife  of  Hon.  Samuel  Pren- 
tiss. Preached  at  Montpelier,  June  17, 
1855. 

— A  Tract  for  the  Times.  National  Hos- 
pitality.    1855.     p.  48. 

— Life,  Death,  Immortality.  A  Sermon 
on  the  death  of  Samuel  Prentiss,  LL.  D. 
Preached  in  the  Congregational  Church, 
in  Montpelier,  January  18,  1857. 

— A  City  which  hath  Foundations.  A  Ser- 
mon preached  on  occasion  of  the  Fiftieth 


Anniversary  of  the  Organization  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church  in  Mont- 
pelier, July  25,  1858. 

— A  Sermon  on  occasion  of  the  death  of 
Hon.  Ferrand  F.  Merrill.  Preached  in 
the  Congregational  Church,  Montpelier, 
May  8,  1859. 

— A  Sermon  on  the  Causes  and  Remedy 
of  the  National  Troubles.  Preached  at 
Montpelier,  April  4,  1861. 

— A  Sermon  on  occasion  of  the  death  of 
Rev.  James  Hobart.  Preached  in  the 
Congregational  Church,  Berlin,  Vt., 
July  18,  1862. 

^In  Memoriam.  Address  at  the  funeral 
of  Mrs.  James  T.  Thurston,  Montpelier, 
April  3,  1865. 

— The  Uses  of  the  Material  Temple.  A 
Sermon  preached  at  the  Dedication  of 
Bethany  Church,  Montpelier,  Oct.  15, 
1868. 

' — Address  and  Services  at  the  funeral  of 
Dea.  Constant  W.  Storrs,  Montpelier, 
March  26,  1872. 

— Woman's  Mission  for  Christ.  A  Ser- 
mon preached  at  the  funeral  of  Mrs. 
James  R.  Langdon,  at  Montpelier,  Aug. 
3,  1873. 

All  of  tlie  above  were  printed  at  the  office  of  the 
Vermont  Watcluuan  and  tjtate  Journal. 

— Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Hon.  Samuel 
Prentiss,  published  in  the  United  States 
Law  Magazine. 

— Also,  two  or  more  articles  in  the  Prince- 
ton Review. 

Lyman,  Elijah.  Sermon  before  the  Leg- 
islature at  Montpelier,  Oct.  13,  1814,  by 
Elijah  Lyman,  A.  M.,  Pastor  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church  in  Brookfield.  Mont- 
pelier:    Walton  &  Goss. 

Mansfield,  Mrs.  Lucy  (Langdon.)  Me- 
morial of  Charles  Finny  Mansfield,  com- 
prising extracts  from  his  diaries,  letters, 
and  other  papers.  New  York :  Baker 
&  Godwin,  printers.  1866.  8°  p. 
265  (2.) 

Mrs.  Mansfield,  daughter  of  James  R.  Langdon.  of 
Montpelier.  was  born  In  Berlin  in  1841,  and  married 
tlie  subject  of  tliis  memorial  in  1861.  He  died  in  1865. 
Mrs.  Mansfield  has  since  married  again,  and  resides  in 
New  Yorlf. 

Marsh,  Rev.  Samuel.  Message  from 
God,  etc.  .  Montpelier,  1844.     8°  p.  16. 

— The  Age  of  Prophecy.  Press  of  East- 
man &  Danforth,  1848.     16°  p.  16. 

— National  Prosperity.  Montpelier,  1849. 
16°  p.  16. 

— The  Modern  Colporteur  Revival  System. 
Press  of  Eastman  &  Danforth,  1849. 
16°  p.  142. 

— Hard  Questions  Answered.  Eastman 
&  Danforth,  1849.     P-  7~- 


MONTPELIER. 


317 


— Universalism.  Press  ofEliBallou,  1850. 

16°  p.  28. 
— Reply   to    Ballou.      Montpelier,    1850. 

16°  p.  32. 
— Uncle    Nathan.      Ballou   &   Loveland, 

1854.     16°  p.  218. 
Marshall,  E.   F.     New  Spelling  Book. 

Published  by  E.  P.  Walton  &  Son,  1838. 

12°  p.  144. 

Mason,  John.  Treatise  on  Self  Knowl- 
edge. Wright  &  Sibley,  printers,  1813. 
24°  p.  194. 

— The  same.  Published  by  E.  P.  Walton, 
1819.     18°  p.  177. 

McKeen,  Rev.  Silas.  Civil  Goverment  a 
a  Divine  Institution.  A  Sermon  before 
the  Legislature,  Oct.  9,  1857.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer.     8°  p.  34. 

—A  History  of  Bradford,  J.  D.  Clark  & 
Son,  publishers,  1875.     8°  p.  462. 

Miller,  Col.  Jonathan  P.  The  Condi- 
tion of  Greece  in  1827-28,  New  York: 
J.  &  J.  Harper,  1828.     8°  p.  300. 

— Letters  from  Greece.     [By  Col.  Miller 

and  others.]     Boston,  1825.     8°  p.  20. 

rSee  D.  P.  Thompson's  History  of  Montpelier  for 
a  slietcti  of  Col.  Miller,  also  vol.  11  of  this  Gazetteer- 
History  of  Randolph.] 

The  Minister  preachings  his  own  Funeral 
Sermon.  Wright  &  Sibley,  1812.  24° 
p.  96. 

Miscellaneous.  Memoirs  of  that  truly 
eccentric  character,  the  late  Timothy 
Dexter,  together  with  his  last  will  and 
testament.  Montpelier,  1808.  Sabin's 
Bibliography. 

— Records  of  the  Montpelier  Lyceum, 
1829-1836.     Manuscript,  p.  353. 

[Belongs  to  the  Vt.  Hist.  Society.] 

— Catalogue  of  books  of  the  Montpelier 
Agricultural  Society,  n.  p.  n.  d. 

— Winooski  Impetus.  Metropolis  of  Ver- 
mont, April  15,  1835  to  March  1836. 
4°  Monthly,  by  a  society  of  young  men. 

— Services  at  the  Dedication  of  Green 
Mount  Cemetery,  Sept.  15,  1855.  E. 
P.  Walton,  Jr.,  printer,     8°  p.  40. 

—A  Child's  Book.  Illustrated.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer.     32°  p.  8.  n.  d. 

— Reports  of  Town  Officers  in  printed 
form,  annually,  since  1843. 

— Act  of  Incorporation,  By-Laws  etc.,  of 
the  Village  of  Montpelier,  1848.  8°  p. 
12.  Editions  of  the  same,  1855,  1864 
and  1875. 

— Village  Reports,  annually. 

— Catalogue  of  the  Sabbath  School  Library 
of  the  First  Cong'l  Church,  1861.  Wal- 
ton's print.      12°  p.  18. 


— In  Memoriam  of  Rt.  Rev.  John  Henry 
Hopkins,  in  Christ  Church,  Montpelier, 
1868.  Argus  and  Patriot  print.  8°  p. 
16. 

— Illustrated  Capital  Advertiser,  1872. 
Argus  and  Patriot  print.     8°  p.  8. 

— Reports  of  the  Committee  on  Water 
Supply  for  the  Village  of  Montpelier, 
1873.     Poland's  print.     8°  p.  20. 

— Illustrated  Circular  of  Lane  Manufactur- 
ing Company,  Montpelier,  1875.  Argus 
and  Patriot  print.     12°  p.  152. 

— Exhibition  of  the  New  Organ  in  Trinity 
Church,  Nov.  5,  1875. 

— Webb's  Montpelier  Directory,  1875-6-7. 
8°  p.  50. 

— Pocket  Directory  of  the  Village  of  Mont- 
pelier for  1877.  Poland's  Press.  18° 
p.  90. 

— Montpelier  Illustrated ;  with  a  brief 
sketch  by  E.  P.  Walton.  In  N.  Y. 
Daily  Graphic,  Nov.  8,  1877. 

— Montpelier  Monufacturing  Company's 
20th  annual  catalogue,  1877.     8°  p.  32. 

— Montpelierian,  vol.  5,  No.  i,  Jan.  20. 
1877.  4°  p.  8  and  (4.)  Continued 
monthly  by  the  Literary  Societies  of 
Methodist  Seminary. 

Moore,  Z.  S.  Sermon  Oct.  6,  1813,  at 
th^  Ordination  of  Rev.  Jacob  Allen  at 
Tunbridge.     Walton  &  Goss,  printers. 

Morton,  Rev.  D.  O.  Wine  is  a  Mocker: 
Sermon  at  Montpelier  Oct.  16,  1828,  at 
the  formation  of  the  Vermont  Temper- 
ance Society.  Printed  by  E.  P.  Walton. 
8°  p  16. 

Murray,  Lindley.  The  English  Reader, 
1823.  E.  P.  Walton  printer.  12°  p. 
262. 

New  England  Economical  House-Keeper, 
and  family  Receipt  Book.  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton &  Sons,  1845. 

Nutting,  Rufus.  Grammar.  Third  edi- 
tion. E.  P.  Walton,  printer,  1826.  12° 
p.  136. 

— Fourth  and  fifth  edition,  same  imprint, 
p.  144. 

— Nutting's  New  Grammar..  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton &  Sons,  1840.     p.  184. 

Palmer,  E.F.  The  Second  Brigade;  or, 
Camp  Life.    E.  P.  Walton,  printer,  1864. 

Palmer,  Rev.  J.  E.  A  Collection  of 
Essays,  etc.  E.  P.  Walton  &  Son, 
1836.     12°  p.  306. 

Parker,  Rev.  Daniel.  A  Sermon,  Church 
Privileges,  etc.,  at  Brookfield,  March  9, 
1847.     E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons.     p.  19. 

Peach  AM.  Addresses  at  the  opening  of 
the  Congregational  Church  atPeacham, 


3i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Sept.   28,    1871.      Polands'  print.      8° 

p.  66. 
— Catalogue  of  the  Library  of  the  Juvenile 

Society   at   Peacham.      Polands'   print, 

1881.     8°  p.  24. 
Peake,  Rebecca.     Trial  of,  for  murder, 

at  Orange    County  Court,   Dec.    1835. 

E.  P.  Walton  &  Son,  printers.      12°  p. 

88. 
Peck,  Lucius  B.     Speech  in  Congress,  on 

Slavery   in    the    Territories,    April   23, 

1850.     p.  8. 
— Proceedings  of  the  Washington  County 

Bar  on  the  death    of  Hon.   Lucius    B. 

Peck,  at  March  Term,  1867.     Freeman 

print.     8°  p.  20. 
Perrin,  Rev.  Truman.    Dietetics — Sound 

Health,  etc.     Freeman  print,  1861.     8° 

p.  19.     See  History  of  Berlin,  ante,  p  63. 
Perrin,  Rev.  William.     The  Accident; 

or  Henry  and  Julia ;  and  other  poems. 

Walton  &  Goss,  printers,  1815.     12°  p. 

64.     See  Hist,  of  Berlin,  p.  62. 
Peter  the  Great.     Life  and  Reign  of. 

Wright  &  Sibley,  printers,   1811.     12° 

p.  316. 
Phinney,    T.    C.      The    Literary   News. 

Monthly,  May,  1878.    8°  p.  8.    For  Sept. 

1881.     p.  32.     Continued. 
Postage  Stamp  Reporter.     C.  F.  Bus- 
well,   editor.     Monthly,  vol.    i,    No.  i. 

Montpelier,  January,  1877.     8°  p.  8. 
PowARS,    Grant.     Oration  at  Thetford, 

July  4,  1812.     Wright  &  Sibley,  print- 
ers.    8°  p.  16. 
Prentiss,    Hon.    Samuel.      Oration    at 

Plainfield, July4,  1812.    Walton&Goss, 

printers.     8°  p.  39. 
— Remarks  in  the  U.S.  Senate  on  Slavery 

in  the  District  of  Columbia,  March  i, 

1836.     Washington  :    p.  14. 
— Speech  in  the  Senate,  January  16,  1838, 

on  the  Vermont  Resolutions  on  the  ad- 
mission of  Texas,  and  the  slave  trade. 

Washington:     8°  p.  10. 
— Speeches  in  the  Senate,  March  2d  and 

30th  and  April  6th,  1838,  on  Dueling. 

Washington  :     8°  p.  19. 
— Speech  in  the  Senate,  June  23,  1840,  on 

the  Bankrupt  Bill.    Washington:    p.  20. 
— Proceedings  in  the  District  Court,  Oct. 

Session,  1857,  on  the  Death  of  Judge 

Prentiss.     Windsor:     8°  p.  16. 
Proceedings  and  Address  of  a  Jackson 

Convention  at  Montpelier,  June  27,  1828. 

Geo.  W.  Hill,  printer.     8°  p.  24. 
Proceedings  of  the  Montpelier,  [Vt.,  Con- 
gregational]   Association   in    Sept.,    in 

reply  to  annexed  Statements  of  Henry 

Jones,  against  Freemasonry.     Danville, 


1830.     12°  p.  22.     See  Jones,  Henry, 
ante. 

Progressive  Reader.  Printed  by  Geo. 
W.  Hill,  1833.     18°  p.  216. 

Rand,  Festus  G.  Autobiography  of;  A 
Tale  of  Intemperance.  J.  &  J.  M.  Po- 
land.    8°  p.  16. 

Randall,  Rev.  E.  H.  Address  on  the 
death  of  President  Lincoln,  at  Randolph, 
April  19,  1865.  Walton's  print.  8° 
p.  12. 

Rawson,  Rev.  Nathaniel.  Discourse  at 
Hardwick,  on  the  Sabbath  succeeding 
his  Ordination,  Feb.  17,  181 1.  Printed 
by  Walton  &  Goss.  [See  biography  of, 
in  Orleans  Co.  papers  and  items,  vol.  11, 
this  Gazetteer.] 

Redfield,  Hon.  Isaac  F.  Charge  to  the 
Grand  Jury  in  Washington  County,  No- 
vember Term,  1842.  Burlington:  8° 
p.  16. 

See  Gilmaii's  Bibliography  for  a  biog.  sketcli  of 
Judge  Redfield,  and  a  list  of  his  law  publications,  etc. 

Redfield,  T.  P.  Report  on  the  claim  of 
the  Iroquois  Indians  upon  the  State  of 
Vermont.     1854.     8°  p.  40. 

Reed,  George  B.  Sketch  of  the  Early 
History  of  Banking  in  Vermont,  Read 
before  the  Vt^  Hist.  Soc.  at  Montpelier, 
Oct.  14,  1862.     8°  p.  28. 

— Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Hon.  John  Reed, 
of  Boston.     Boston,  1879.     8°  p.  22. 

Mr.  Reed  is  a  native  of  Montpelier;  born  July  28, 
18i9;  son  of  the  late  Thomas  Reed,  Esq.,  an  early  and 
prominentcitizen  of  thetown.  Mr,  Geo.  B.  Reed  has 
l>een  for  many  years  a  law  bookseller  and  publi'-licr  in 
Boston.  He  is  well  versed  in  the  history  of  Vermont, 
and  has  been  a  liberal  donor  to  the  Vt.  Hist.  Soc. 

Religious  Courtship,  [By  Daniel  De 
Foe.]  Printed  by  Derrick  Sibley,  for 
Josiah  Parks,  i8lo.      12°  p.  348. 

Rollins,  E.  E.  Memorial  Record  of 
Greensboro  Soldiers,  1861-5.  Free- 
man print,  1868.  12°  p.  77.  [See 
Greensboro  in  vol.  11,  this  Gazetteer.] 

Sanders,  D.  C.  A  History  of  the  Indian 
Wars.  Wright  &  Sibley,  printers.  12° 
p.  319.     1812. 

a  very  scarce  work.  Mr.  Sanders  was  the  first  Pres- 
ident of  the  University  of  Vermont.  [See  biography 
of,  in  History  of  Burlington  In  vol.  i,  this  Gazetteer.] 

Savage,  R.  A.  Memorial  Record  of  the 
Soldiers  of  Stowe,  1861-5.  Freeman 
Print,  1867.  12'^  p.  104.  [See  Stowe 
in  vol.  II,  this  Gazetteer.] 

ScoTT,  Walter.  The  Lady  of  the  Lake. 
A  Poem.  Wright  &  Sibley,  printers, 
1813.     18°  p.  320. 

Scott,  William.  Lessons  in  Elocution, 
etc.  Published  by  E.  P.  &  G.  S.  Wal- 
ton, 1818.     18°  p.  383. 

—Another  edition,  byE.  P.  Walton,  1820. 
p.  407. 


MONTPELIER. 


319 


Select  Sentences.      Printed   for  John 

Crosby,  1813.     18°  p.  36. 
Shelton,  Rev.   F.   W.     Address   at   the 

funeral  of  Mrs.  Upham,  in  ChristChurch, 

May  II,  1856.     E.   P.  Walton,  printer. 

8°  p.  16. 

Mr.  Shelton  was  Rector  ofClirist  Cliurcli,  Montpel- 
ier,  1854-66;  he  was  a  pleasant  writer,  and  published 
several  volumes,  besides  numerous  articles  in  the 
Knickerbocker  Magazine.  Mr.  Shelton  died  at  Car- 
thage Landing,  oii-the-Hudson,  June  2U,  1881. 

Shepard,  Sylvanus.  The  Phoenix  Chron- 
icle. The  Bonfire,  in  which  450  books 
were  burned.  A  View  of  Montpelier 
and  all  the  country  villages  in  the  State. 
Printed  for  the  author,  1825.     8°  p.  18. 

Mr.  Shepard  was  an  early  settler  of  East  Montpel- 
ier. 

Short  Expose  of  the  management  of  the 
finances  of  Vermont.  Patriot  office, 
1844.     p.  8. 

Skinner,  Rev.  Warren.  Capital  Pun- 
ishment. A  Lecture  before  the  Legis- 
lature of  Vermont,  and  others,  Oct.  26, 
1834.     Geo.  W.  Hill,  printer.     8"^  p.  19. 

— The  Christian  Ministry.  A  Sermon  be- 
fore the  Universalist  Convention  at 
Montpelier,  Jan.  17,  1833,  at  the  Ordi- 
nation of  Rev.  J.  M.  Austin.  Geo.  W. 
Hill.     8°  p.  25. 

Smith,  Ruth  B.,  (of  Newbury.)  The 
Pension  Case  of  the  late  Capt.  James  T. 
Smith.     Polands'  print,  1879.    8°  p.  32. 

Southmayd,  Jonathan  C.  Address  be- 
fore the  Philological  Society  of  Middle- 
bury  College,  August  15,  1826.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer. 

— Discourse  at  Montpelier,  March  16, 
1828,  on  the  use  of  distilled  spirits.  E. 
P.  Walton,  printer.     8°  p.  16. 

Spalding,  Rev.  Geo.  B.,  D.  D.  God  in 
the  War.  A  Serir.on  at  Vergennes, 
Nov.  26,  1863.   Burlington:     8°  p.  21. 

— A  Discourse  commemorative  of  Gen. 
Samuel  P.  Strong,  at  Vergennes,  Feb. 
28,  1864.     Burlington  :     8°  p.  22. 

— A  Discourse  at  Dover,  N.  H.,  May  18, 
1873,  ori  the  two  hundredth  anniversary 
of  the  settlement  of  that  town.  Dover, 
N.  H.     8°  p.  29. 

— A  Discourse  Commemorative  ol  Hon. 
John  P.  Hale,  at  Dover,  N.  H.,  Nov. 
27,  1873.     Concord,  N.  H.     8°  p.  19. 

— Relation  of  the  Church  to  Children.  A 
Discourse  at  Haverhill,  N.  H.,  Nov.  6, 
1873.     Bristol,  N.  H.     8°  p.  12. 

— The  Dover  Pulpit  during  the  Revolu- 
tion. A  Discourse  Commemorative  of 
Rev.  Jeremy  Belknap,  D.  D.,  July  9, 
1876.     Dover,  N.  H.     8°  p.  31. 

— Semi-Centennial  Discourse  at  Laconia, 
N.  H.,  June    18,   1878,  before  the  Con- 


ference Churches  of  Strafford  County. 
Dover,  N.  H.     8°  p.  20. 
— Normal   School  Trainirig.     Address  at 
Gorham,  Maine,   Dec.  26,  1878.     Port- 
land, Me.     8°  p.  12. 

— Address  before  the  New  Hampshire 
Sunday-School  Convention  at  Haverhill, 
N.  H.,  Nov.  6,  1879.  Bristol,  N.  H. 
8°  p.  8. 

Rev.  Dr.  Spaldin;;  is  a  native  of  Montpelier,  son  of 
the  late  James  Spalding,  M.  I).  He  is  pastor  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  Dover,  N.  H,,  where  he 
was  settled  in  1869.  See  Granite  Monthly.,  vol.  i,  p. 
197-9,  for  a  biographical  sketch. 

Spalding,  James  R.  An  Address  on  Fe- 
male Education  at  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  Aug. 
22,  1855.     New  York.     8°  p.  28. 

— An  Oration  at  the  Semi-Centennial  An- 
niversary of  the  University  of  Vermont, 
August,  1854.     8°  p.  2>2,- 

Mr.  Spalding,  an  elder  brother  of  tlie  above,  died  at 
the  residence  of  liis  brother  in  Dover.  Oct.  10.  187-.'. 
He  was  born  in  Montpelier,  Nov.  15, 1821.  Mr.  Spald- 
ing was  a  gentlemon  of  tine  culture  and  attainments. 
For  many  years  he  was  an  associate  editor  of  the  New 
York  Courier  and  Inquirer,  and  he  was  mainly  tlie 
founder  of  the  New  Y'ork  World  newspaper  in  1859 ;  an 
appropriate  tribute  to  the  worth  of  .Mr.  Spalding,  by 
Ricliard  Grant  White,  was  printed  in  the  daily  World 
01  October  12, 1872. 

Stebbins,  R.  L  Sermon  at  the  Ordina- 
tion of  Mr.  Charles  A.  Allen,  as  min- 
ister of  the  Church  of  the  Messiah,  at 
Montpelier,  March  i,  1865.  Ballou, 
Loveland  &  Co.     12°  p.  27. 

Steele,  Zadock.  His  Indian  Captivity, 
and  an  account  of  the  burning  of  Roy- 
alton.  E.  P.  Walton,  printer,  1818. 
12°  p.  144. 

Stone,  J.  P.  A  History  of  Greensboro, 
and  the  Congregational  Church,  1854. 
E.  P.  Walton.     8°  p.  40. 

Swett,  Josiah.  Sermon  at  the  funeral 
of  Mr.  Sarah  E.  Weston,  at  West  Ran- 
dolph, Nov.  23,  1851.  E.  P.  Walton  & 
Son.     8°  p.  24. 

Teachem,  Mrs.  The  Infant  School  Primer. 
E.  P.  Walton,  printer,  [1832.]  12°  p. 
24. 

Thomas,  Rev.  A.  C.  Analysis  and  Con- 
futation of  Miller's  Theory  of  the  End 
of  the  World  in  1843.  £:ii  Ballou, 
printer,  1843.     8°  p.  30. 

Thompson,  Daniel  G.  A 'First  Latin 
Book,  introductory  to  Ceaser's  Commen- 
taries on  the  Gallic  War.  Chicago, 
1872.     12°  p.  224. 

Mr.  Thompson  is  a  native  of  Montpelier,  son  of  the 
late  Hon.  Daniel  P.  Thompson,  and  resides  in  New 
York;  he  published  articles  on  "Intuition  and  Infer- 
ence." in  tlie  Mind,  A  Quarterly  Revieio  of  Psychology 
and  Philosophy,  London,  July  and  October  numbers, 

Thompson,  Daniel  Pierce.  [A  partial 
list  of  the  works  by  Judge  Thompson 
may  be  found  in  this  History  under  Ber- 
lin, p.  69-72,   vol.  4,   together  with  a 


320 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


biographical  sketch.  The  works  omit- 
ted in  the  Berlin  article  are  given  here.] 

— The  Adventures  of  Timothy  Peacock, 
Esquire,  or  Freemasonry  Illustrated. 
Middlebury,  1835.  12°  p.  218.  Pub- 
lished anonymously. 

— Revised  Statutes  of  Vermont,  i  vol. 
1835- 

— Address  before  the  Vt.  Hist.  Society, 
1850.     Burlington.     8°  p.  22. 

— History  of  the  Town  of  Montpelier  to 

i860,  with  Biographical  Sketches.     E. 

P.  Walton  printer.     8°  p.  312. 

Mr.  Tliompson's  novels  contiuue  in  demand,  an  edi- 
tion by  Nicliols  &  Hall,  Boston,  1876,  in  four  volumes, 
contains;  vol.  1,  "  May  Martin,"  "  Guardian  and 
Ghost,"  "  Shaker  Lovers,"  "  Ethan  Allen  and  the  Lost 
Children,"  "  The  Young  Sea  Captain."  Old  Soldier's 
Story,"  "  New  Way  to  Collect  a  Had  Debt,"  and  "  Au 
Indian's  Revenge,"  p.  380.  Vol.  2,  "Locke  Anisden,  or 
the  School-master,"  p.  'Jai.  "The  Rangers,"  2  v.  in 
one.  p.  174, 155.    "Green  Mountain  Boys,"  vol.  4,  p  364. 

— Another  edition  of  the  above  four  vol- 
umes by  the  same  publishers,  i88i. 

Thompson,  George.  Address  to  the 
Legislature  and  Citizens  of  Vermont,  at 
Montpelier,  Oct.  22,  1864.  Freeman 
print.     8°  p.  18. 

Thompson,  Zadoc.  Gazetteer  of  Vermont. 
E.  P.  Walton  printer.  1824.  12°  p. 
312. 

Thompson,  S.  New  Guide  to  Health,  or 
Botanic  Family  Physician.  Montpelier, 
Printed  for  the  publisher,  1851.  12°  p. 
122. 

Thoughts  on  Divine  Goodness.  Print- 
ed by  Geo.  W.  Hill.     1828,  12°  p.  148. 

Thresher,  Leonard.  The  Family  Phy- 
sician, etc.  Argus  and  Patriot  print. 
1871,  8°  p.  406. 

Truair,  Rev.  John.  Sermon  at  Mont- 
pelier.    Mach7,  1813.     Walton&Goss. 

— The  Alarm  Tioimpet.  Sermon  at  Berk- 
shire, Sept.  9,  1813,  on  the  war.  Wal- 
ton &  Goss.     8°  p.  27. 

Universalism.  Form  for  Constitution 
and  by-laws  for  the  use  of  Universalist 
Churches,  etc.  Ballou  &  Burnham's 
press.     1851,  12°  p.  16. 

— Discussion  on  Endless  Punishment,  by 
Rev.  Luther  Lee,  and  Rev.  Eli  Ballou. 
Ballou  &  Loveland  printers.     1857,  12° 
p.  84. 

Upham,  Hon.  Willam.  Speech  in  the  U. 
S.  Senate,  March  i,  1847,  on  the  three 
million  Bill.    Washington.     8°  p.  8. 

— Speech  in  the  U.  S.  Senate  on  the  Mex- 
ican War,  Feb.  15.  1848.     p.  19. 

— Speech  in  the  Senate,  July  26,  1848,  on 
the  Compromise  Bill.     p.  7. 

— Report  on  the  Revolutionary  Claims, 
Feb.  9,  1849. 


— Speech  in  Senate,  July  i  and  2,  1850, 
on  the  Compromise  Bill.     p.  16. 

— Obituary  Addresses  on  the  death  of  Mr. 
Upham,  delivered  in  the  Senate  and 
House,  January  15,  1853.     8°  p.  8. 

[Vide  biographical  sketch  post.] 

Upham,  William  K.  Argument  for  De- 
fendant in  case  Nathan  Harris  vs.  Col- 
umbiana Co.  Insurance  Company,  (Ohio), 
1853.     p.  II. 

Mr.  Upliam  was  a  native  of  Montpelier,  son  of  Sen- 
ator Upham,  died  at  Canton.  Ohio.  Mar.  22, 1865. 

Wait,  Augustine.  Speech  before  the 
Brotherhood  of  St.  Patrick,  Dublin,  Ire- 
land, Nov.  24,  1862.  E.  P.  Walton, 
printer,     p.  20. 

Walton,  Hon.  Eliakim  P.  Speech  on 
the  Admission  of  Kansas,  in  the  House 
of  Representatives, Mar. 3 1, 1858.  Wash- 
ington :     8°  p.  15. 

— Speech  on  Free  Trade  and  Protective 
Tariff,  in  the  House  of  Representatives, 
Feb.  7,  1859.     8°  p.   14.     Washington. 

— Speech  in  the  House  on  the  State  of  the 
Union,  Feb.  16,  1861.     8°  p.  8. 

— Speech  in  the  House  on  the  Confiscation 
of  Rebel  Property.  Delivered  May  24, 
1862.     8°  p.  15. 

Mr.  Walton  edited  and  compiled  a  history  of  the 
Vermont  Capitol,  a  book  of  300  pages,  printed  in  1857. 
He  delivered  an  address  on  the  first  Legislature  of 
Vermont,  before  the  Historical  Society  in  1S78;  also 
an  address.  "History  of  Early  Printing  in  Vermont," 
before  the  Vt.  Publishers'  Association,  at  Benning- 
ton, August,  1877,  which  Is  printed  in  the  "Centennial 
Proceedings  at  Bennington."  But  the  crowning  work 
of  Mr.  Walton  is  the  editing  and  publishing  of  the 
eight  volumes  of  the  Governor  and  Council,  so  called. 
This  is  a  work  invaluable  to  every  student  of  Ver-. 
mont  history,  and  Its  appreciaiion  will  increase  as 
time  passes.  [A  most  satisfactory  work— that  Ver- 
mont. Governor  and  Council— Ed.]  Another  work 
of  great  convenience  to  all  Vernionters,  as  well  as 
others,  is,  Walton's  Vekmont  Register  and  Al- 
manac. This  work,  with  which  everybody  In  Ver- 
mont ought  to  be  familiar,  was  published  at  Mont- 
pelier by  the  Walton  Family,  1818-1867,  and  since  then 
at  Claremont,  N.  H„  under  tue  same  old  familiar  title. 
There  is  an  excellent  sketch  of  Mr.  Wallon  in  my  bib- 
liography of  Vt.,  which  I  will  not  mutilate  by  giving 
even  an  abstract  in  this  place.  Seepost.  I  do  not  speak 
of  Mr.  Walton's  "History  of  Montpelier,"  prepared  for 
Miss  Hemenway's  Gazetteer,  as  I  have  not  seen  it.  It 
is  proper  to  say  a  word  in  this  place  to  prevent  confu- 
sion,as  to  the  same  Initials  of  the  two  Mr.E.P.Waltons, 
whose  names  occur  so  frequently  in  the  imprints  of 
this  list.  The  father,  Ezekiel  Parker  Walton,  con- 
tinued in  the  printing  business  at  Montpelier,  1807- 
1853;  the  ehlest  son.  Eliakim  Persons  Walton,  became 
a  partner  with  his  father  in  1833,  under  the  firm  name 
of  E.  I'.  Walton  &  Son.  Later,  one  or  two  younger 
sons  of  the  elder  Walton  became  members  of  the  Arm, 
which  then  became  E.  P.  Walton  &  Sous.  Eliakim 
wrote  his  name  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  until  the  death  of 
Ills  father  in  1855. 

Waring,  Geo.  E.  Jr.  Elements  of  Agri- 
culture.   S.M.Walton,  1855.   i2°p.288. 

Washington,  George.  Valedictory  Ad- 
dress. Walton  &  Goss,  printers,  1812. 
p.  45. 

Watrous,  Miss  Sophia.  The  Gift.  Poems. 
E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons,  1841.     12°  p.  172. 

Watts,  Isaac.  Twelve  Sermons,  Moral 
and  Divine.  Wright  &  Sibley,  1811. 
12°  p.  359- 


iMONTPELIER. 


321 


— Psalms  of  David,  Hymns  and  Spiritual 
Songs.  Walton  &  Goss,  18 14.  18° 
p.  296,  259. 

— Logic,  or  the  Right  use  of  Reason.  E. 
P.  Walton,  printer,  1819.     12°  p.  288. 

Webb,  T.  S.  Freemason's  Monitor.  Wal- 
ton &  Goss,  printers,  1816.     12°  p.  312. 

Webster,  Noah.  Spelling  Book.  E.  P. 
Walton  &  Son,  1839.  Another  edition, 
1844. 

Wheeler,  Rev.S.  H.  Memorial  Sermon 
on  Mrs.  Betsey  Carpenter,  of  Waterbury, 
Nov.  7,  1875.  Press  of  J.  &  J.  M.  Po- 
land.    8°  p. 15. 

Wheelock,  Rev.  Edwin.  Historical 
Sketch  of  the  Town  of  Cambridge. 
Freeman  print,  1876.     12°  p.  15. 

Wheelock,  Rev.  V.  G.  Revelation  and 
Science  Harmonize.  A  Sermon,  i86g. 
Polands'  print. 

— Growth  of  the  Gospel.  A  Sermon  at 
Stanbridge,  P.  Q.,  1871.  Journal  Steam 
Printing  Establishment.     8°  p.  12. 

White,  Rev.  P.  H.  Ecclesiastical  His- 
tory of  Vermont.  An  Essay  read  at 
Newbury,  June  21,  1866.  Walton's 
print.     8°  p.  7. 

— Jonas  Galusha.  Memoir  of,  read  before 
the  Vt.  Hist.  Society,  1866.  E.  P. 
Walton,  printer.     8^  p.  16. 

Wild,  Rev.  A.  W.  Funeral  Sermon  at 
Greensboro,  July  10,  1864,  on  the  death 
of  E.  E.  Hartson  and  Horace  Sutham. 
Freeman  print.     8°  p.  18. 

Willard,  Hon.  Charles  W.  Speech  in 
the  House  of  Representatives,  April  9, 
1869,  on  the  Cuban  Question.  Wash- 
ington :     p.  8. 

— Cuban  Belligerency.  Speech  in  the 
House,  June  15,  1870.  Washington: 
p.  15. 

— Interstate  Commerce.  Speech  in  the 
House,  March  24,  1874.  Washington  : 
p.  25. 

— Civil  Service.  Speech  in  the  House, 
April  17,  1872.     p.  8. 

WiLLiAMSTOWN.  Methodism  in.  His- 
torical Address,  Dec.  19,  1880,  by  Rev. 
Mr.  Bartlett.  Messenger  print.  12° 
P-  35- 

Wing,  Joseph  A.  "Pluck,"  and  Other 
Poems.    Freeman  print,  1878.   12°  p. 252. 

Worcester.  Record  of  Births,  Mar- 
riages and  Deaths  in,  Oct.  1813  to  June 
1858.  By  S.  S.  Abbott.  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton, printer.     18°  p.  31. 

Worcester,  Rev.  Leonard.  Funeral 
Sermon  at  Hardwick,  Aug.  30,  18 14,  on 
the   death    of  Mrs.    Lydia,    consort   of 


Samuel  French,  Esq.  Walton  &  Goss. 
8°  p.  24. 

— Sermon  at  Montpelier,  Oct.  15,  1809. 
Peacham,  Vt.  Samuel  Goss,  printer. 
8°  p.  24. 

— Appeal  to  the  Conscience  of  Rev.  Sol- 
omon Aiken.  Printed  by  E.  P.  Walton. 
8°  p.  16. 

Worcester,  Rev.  Thomas.  Serious 
Reasons  against  Triune  Woi^ship.  Wal- 
ton &  Goss,  1812. 

Wright,  Rev.  Chester.  Federal  Com- 
pendium ;  an  Arithmetic.  Middlebury, 
1803.     12°  p.  108. 

— Services  at  the  Ordination  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Wright  at  Montpelier,  Aug.  19,  1809. 
Sermon  by  Rev.  Asa  Burton,  Charge  by 
Rev.  Stephen  Fuller,  of  Vershire,  and 
the  Right  Hand  of  Fellowship  by  the 
Rev.  Calvin  Noble,  of  Chelsea.  Peach- 
am:  Printed  by  Samuel  (ioss,  i8og. 
8°  p.  24. 

— Election  Sermon,  18 10.     Randolph. 

— Funeral  Sermon  on  the  death  of  Sibyl 
Brown.  Preached  Jan.  11,  181 1.  Wal- 
ton &  Goss,  printers.     8°  p.  12. 

— Sermon  before  the  Vt.  Bible  Society  at 
Montpelier,  Oct.  28,  18 12.  Walton  & 
Goss.     8°  p.  14. 

— Funeral  Sermon,  Dec.  27,  1813,  on  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Hannah,  wife  of  Jeduthan 
Loomis,  Esq.     Walton  &  (ioss. 

— Sermon  before  the  Female  Mission  So- 
ciety in  Montpelier,  i8r6.  E.P.Wal- 
ton, printer,     p.  14. 

— Sermon  at  Middlebury,  Aug.  16,  18 14. 

Middlebury  :     8°  p.  16. 
— Saints   Resurrection.      Sermon   on  the 

death  of  Geo.  S.  Walton,  at  Montpelier, 

June  10,  18 18.     E.  P.  Walton,  printer, 

8>.  15. 

— Address  on  the  Death  of  Adams  and 
Jefferson,  at  Montpelier,  July  25,  1826. 
Printed  by  George  W.  Hill  &  Co.  8° 
p.  19. 

— The  Devil  in  the  Nineteenth  Century. 
Two  Discourses  at  Hardwick,  May  6, 
1838.     E.  P.  Walton  &  Son.     8°  p.  21. 

Yale,  Calvin.  Some  Rules  for  the  in- 
vestigation of  Religious  Truth.  E.  P. 
Walton,  1826.     8°  p.  15. 

— Sermon  before  the  Vt.  Colonization  So- 
ciety at  Montpelier,  Oct.  17,  1827.  E. 
P.  Walton.     8°  p.  15. 

Young,  Samuel.  Oration  at  Bennington, 
August  16,  1 8 19.  Argus  and  Patriot 
print,  1871.     p.  4. 

See  Article  onVt.  Hisl.  Society  tor  additional  Mont- 
pelier imprints,  etc. 


41 


322 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MACiAZINE. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY. 

BY  M.  D.  OILMAN,  LIBUAKIAN. 

It  is  deemed  appropriate  that  a  brief  no- 
tice of  the  Historical  Society  shall  be  in- 
cluded in  the  history  of  Montpelier,  for  the 
reason  among  many,  that  its  headquarters 
and  library  are  located  in  this  town. 

The  Society  was  incorporated  by  act  of 
the  general  assembly,  approved  Nov.  5, 
1838,  under  the  name  of  "The  Vermont 
Historical  and  Antiquarian  Society ;"  the 
persons  named  in  the  act  are  Henry  Ste- 
vens of  Barnet,  Oramel  H.  Smith,  Daniel 
P.  Thompson  and  George  B.  Mansur,  of 
Montpelier. 

By  an  act  of  the  general  assembly  ap- 
proved Nov.  16,  1859,  the  name  of  the 
Society  was  changed  to  "The  Vermont 
Historical  Society ;''  and  by  an  act,  ap- 
proved Nov.  21,  the  same  year,  room  No. 
9  in  the  State  Capitol  was  granted  for  the 
uses  of  the  Society  for  its  library  and  bus- 
iness purposes  ;  the  Society  by  permission 
also  uses  a  large  book  case  in  room  No.  12. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Society  was 
held  at  Montpelier,  the  third  Thursday  of 
Oct.  1840,  at  which  the  Society  was  organ- 
ized, and  Henry  Stevens  elected  president 
and  librarian,  Geo.  B.  Mansur  and  D.  P. 
Thompson,  secretaries.  At  this  meeting 
associate  members  were  elected:  Silas  H. 
Jennison,  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  D.  M.  Camp, 
E.  P.  Walton,  Daniel  Baldwin,  Geo.  W. 
Benedict,  Solomon  Stoddard,  and  Norman 
Williams. 

Mr.  Stevens  continued  as  president  of 
the  Society  until  about  1858,  when  he  was 
succeeded  by  the  Hon.  Hiland  Hall,  who 
was  president  until  Oct.  1866,  when,  upon 
his  retirement,  Rev.  Pliny  H.  White  was 
elected,  and  held  the  office  until  his  death, 
April  24,  1869. 

Hon.  Geo.  F.  Houghton  was  elected 
president  Oct.  19,  1869,  and  held  the  office 
until  his  death,  Sept.  22,  1870;  Rev.  W. 
H.  Lord  was  elected  president  in  Oct. 
1870,  and  held  the  offiae  until  Oct.  1876, 
when  he  declined  further  service  ;  the  pres- 
ent incumbent,  the  Hon.  E.  P.  Walton, 
succeeded  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lord. 

The  librarians  of  the  Society  have  been 
as    follows:   Henry   Stevens,  Esq.,    1840- 


1858,  Hon.  Charles  Reed,  1858,  until  his 
death,  March  7,  1873;  he  was  succeeded 
by  Hiram  A.  Huse,  Esq.,  until  Oct.  1874, 
when  the  present  incumbent,  Mr.  M.  D. 
Gilman,  was  elected. 

Among  the  most  prominent  and  active 
workers  in  behalf  of  the  Historical  Society, 
should  be  mentioned,  Henry  Stevens  Esq., 
Hon.  Hiland  Hall,  Hon.  Charles  Reed, 
Rev.  Pliny  H.  White,  Geo.  F.  Houghton, 
Esq.,  and  the  Hon.  Eliakim  P.  Walton. 

The  annual  meetings  of  the  Society  are 
held  at  Montpelier,  Tuesday  preceding 
the  third  Wednesday  of  October. 

Persons  desiring  to  become  members  of 
the  Society  can  do  so,  on  the  recommenda- 
tion of  any  member,  and  the  payment  of 
|;2.oo  for  admis.sion,  and  $1.00  per  annum 
thereafter. 

The  Society  at  the  present  time,  1881, 
is  in  a  flourishing  condition  ;  it  has  a  sys- 
tem of  exchanges  and  correspondence 
with  all  kindred  societies  in  this  country 
and  some  in  England,  besides  a  large  cor- 
respondence and  exchange  with  individuals. 

The  library  is  estimated  to  contain  from 
7000  to  8000  vols,  of  books,  about  500 
bound  vols,  of  newspapers,  and  12000  to 
15000  pamphlets,  besides  a  large  quantity 
of  manuscripts,  letters,  and  historical  curi- 
osities. 

A  card  catalogue  of  the  bound  volumes 
and  newspapers  has  been  completed,  and 
all  books  received  are  added  to  the  cata- 
logue. 

The  Society  has  portraits  in  oil  of  Hon. 
Hiland  Hall,  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord  and  Hon. 
D.  P.  Thompson,  all  presented  to  the  So- 
ciety, the  two  latter  painted  by  Montpel- 
ier's  native  son,  the  distinguished  artist, 
Thomas  W.  Wood,  and  by  him  presented 
to  the  Society. 

As  is  the  case  with  most  libraries  of  the 
time  in  our  country,  that  of  the  Historical 
Society  has  outgrown  the  room  set  apart 
for  it,  and  is  greatly  in  need  of  more 
space,  which  we  trust  will  soon  be  pro- 
vided in  the  proposed  addition  to  the  State 
Capitol. 

The  following  list  of  publications  by  the 
Vermont  Historical  Society  is  thought  to 
be  complete  : 


MONTPELIER. 


323 


*  Address  by  James  D.  Butler,  atMont- 
pelier,  Oct.  16,  1846:  "Deficiencies  in 
Our  History."  8°  p.  36.  Montpelier : 
Eastman  &  Danforth. 

*  Addresses  on  the  Battle  of  Benning- 
ton, and  Life  of  Col.  Seth  Warner,  at 
Montpelier,  Oct.  20,  1848,  by  James  D. 
Butler  and  Geo.  F.  Houghton.  Burling- 
ton :     8°  p.  99. 

Address  at  Montpelier,  Oct.  24,  1850, 
by  Daniel  P.  Thompson.  Burlington:  8° 
p.  22. 

*  Address,  "  Life  and  Service*'  of  Mat- 
thew Lyon,"  Oct.  29,  1858,  by  Rev.  P.  H. 
White.     Burlington :     8°  p.  26. 

*  Address,  "The  Marbles  of  Vermont," 
Oct.  29,  1858,  by  A.  D.  Hager.  Burling- 
ton :     8'"  p.  16. 

Constitution,  By-Laws,  Act  of  Incorpo- 
ration, and  catalogue  of  Officers  and  Mem- 
bers of  the  Society.  Woodstock,  i860. 
8 '  p.  16. 

*  Proceedings  of  21st  Annual  Meeting, 
and  Address  by  Rev.  Joseph  Torrey,  "His- 
tory of  Lake  Champlain,"  Oct.  16,  i860. 
Burlington  :     8°  p.  27. 

Proceedings,  Special  Meeting  at  Bur- 
lington, Jan.  23,  1861.  Burlington:  8° 
p.  7,  8. 

Proceedings,  Annual  Meeting  at  Mont- 
pelier, Oct.  15  and  16,  1861.  St.  Albans. 
8°  p.  17. 

Proceedings,  Special  Meeting  at  Bur- 
lington, Jan.  22  and  23,  1862.  8°  p.  8. 
St. Albans. 

Address  on  Town  Centennial  Celebra- 
tions. By  Henry  Clark,  at  Burlington, 
Jan.  22,  1862.     8°  p.  8.     St.  Albans. 

*  Address  by  Henry  B.  Dawson  on  the 
Battle  of  Bennington,  at  Burlington,  Jan. 
23.  1861.  Printed  in  Hist.  Magazine, 
May,  1870;  reprinted  in  Argus  and  Pat- 
riot, Montpelier,  June  27,  July  4,  11, 1877. 

*  Address,  "Early  History  of  Banking 
in  Vermont,"  by  Geo.  B.  Reed,  Oct  14, 
1862.     8°  p.  28. 

*  Address,  "Gov.  Philip  Skene,"  by 
Henry  Hall,  of  Rutland,  at  Windsor,  July 
2.  1863.  Printed  in  (Dawson's)  Hist. 
Magazine,  vol.  il,  2d  series,  p.  280-83. 

*  Address  on  Joseph  Bowker,  by  Henry 
Hall,  Special  meeting  at  Windsor,  July  i. 


2,    1863.      Printed    in    (Dawson's)    Hist. 
Magazine,  vol.  11,  2d  series,  p.  351-54. 

*  Address,  "  Evacuation  of  Ticonderoga, 
1777,"  at  a  Special  Meeting  at  Brattle- 
boro,  July  17,  1862,  by  Henry  Hall.  Print- 
ed in  (Dawson's)  Hist.  Magazine,  August, 
1869. 

Proceedings  at  Brattleboro,  July  16,  17, 
and  at  the  Annual  Meeting  at  Montpelier, 
Oct.  14,  1862.     St.  Albans.     8°  p.  26. 

*  Address,  "  Secession  in  Switzerland," 
by  J.  W.  DePeyster,  at  Montpelier,  Oct. 
20,  1863.     Catskill:     8°  p.  72. 

*  Address,  "Life  of  Hon.  Richard  Skin- 
ner," by  Winslow  C.  Watson,  at  Mont- 
pelier, Oct.  20,  1863.     Albany:     8°  p.  30. 

*  Address,  "Edward  Crafts  Hopson," 
by  Henry  Clark,  Jan.  25,  1865.  Special 
meeting  at  Rutland.     8°  p.  6. 

*  Address,  "Charles  Linsley,"  by  E.  J. 
Phelps.  Special  meeting  at  Brdndon, 
Jan.  28,  1864.     Albany:     8"  p.  20. 

*  Address,  "  Battle  of  Gettysburgh,"  by 
G.  G.  Benedict.  Special  meeting  at  Bran- 
don, Jan.  26,  1864.     Burlington:     8°p24. 

*  Another  edition,  enlarged,  p.  27,  and 
appendix  iv.     Illustrated. 

Addresses,  on  "  Solomon  Foot,"  by  Geo. 
F.Edmunds,  on  "Gov.  Galusha,"  by  P. 
H.  White,  on  "New  England  Civiliza- 
tion," by  Rev.  J.  E.  Rankin,  at  Mont- 
pelier, Oct.  16,  1866.  Walton's  print. 
8°  p.  72. 

*  Addre.ss  on  Theophilus  Herrington,  by 
Rev.  P.  H.  White.  Special  meeting  at 
Rutland,  Aug.  20,  1868.     8°  p.  6. 

*  Memorial  Address  on  Hon.  Jacob  Col- 
lamer,  by  James  Barrett,  at  Montpelier, 
Oct.  20,  1868.     8°  p.  61. 

Proceedings,  and  Addresses  at  Mont- 
pelier, Oct.  19,  20,  I869.  "  Capture  of 
Ticonderoga,"  by  Hiland  Hall;  "Memo- 
rial on  P.  H.  White,"  by  Henry  Clark. 
Journal  print,  Montpelier.     pp.  15,  32,  16. 

Proceedings,  Oct.  and  Nov.  1870;  con- 
tains address  on  Hon.  Charles  Marsh,  by 
James  Barrett.     Montpelier,  p.  xxvii,  54. 

Proceedings,  and  Address  by  L.  E. 
Chittenden,  on  "  Capture  of  Ticonderoga." 
At  Montpelier,  Oct.  8,  1872.  Montpelier: 
Printed  for  the  Society.     8°  p.  xxi,  127. 

*  Memorial  .Sketch  of  Charles  Reed,  by 


324 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


H.  A.  Huse,  at  the  Annual  Meeting  at 
Montpelier,  Oct.  13.  1874.  Printed  in 
Daily  Journal. 

Address,  "  History  of  the  St.  Albans 
Raid,"  delivered  at  Montpelier,  Oct.  17, 
1876,  by  Hon.  E.  A.  Sowles.  St.  Albans  : 
S°  p.  48,  including  proceedings  of  the  So- 
ciety. 

Collections  of  the  Society,  2  vols.     Vol. 

1,  Montpelier,  1870.     8°p.  xix,  507.    Vol. 

2,  Montpelier,  1871.  8°  p.  xxviii,  530. 
Proceedings,  Oct.  15,  1878,  at  Mont- 
pelier, with  addresses:'  by  Rev.  M.  H. 
Buckham,  on  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord,  and  by 
Hon.  E.  P.  Walton,  on  "The First  Legis- 
lature of  Vermont."  Folands'  print.  8° 
p.  xvi,  47. 

Proceedings,  Oct.  19,  1880,  at  Mont- 
pelier, with  address  by  Hon.E.  A.  Sowles, 
on  "  Fenianism,"  ete.  Rudand  :  8°  p. 
xxviii,  \2,)  43. 

Numerous  addresses  in  addition  to  those 
noticed  have  been  delivered  before  the;  So- 
ciety, the  manuscripts  of  some  of  which 
are  on  file  in  its  archives. 

The  publications  marked  with  a  *  are 
out  of  print,  and  cannot  be  furnished  by 
the  Society. 

THE  VERMONT  STATE  LIBRARY. 
KY  HIRAM  A.  HUSK,  STATE  LIBRARIAN. 

Legislation  as  to  a  state  library  began  in 
1825.  The  State  had  about  forty  years 
before,  it  is  true,  gone  into  the  book  bus- 
iness in  rather  a  curious  manner  by  seizing 
the  library  of  Charles  Phelps,  Esq.,  of 
Marlboro,  an  energetic  friend  of  New  York 
rule.  This  seizure  was  made  in  1782,  and 
Stephen  R.  Bradley  seems  to  have  had 
charge  of  the  confiscated  literature  for  a 
time.  In  1784  the  legislature  was  provid- 
ing that  the  committee  for  revising  the 
laws  (an  undertaking  begun  in  1782  and 
not  completed  till  1787)  should  be  paid 
out  of  this  library.  The  resolutions  of  the 
General  Assembly,  March  6,  1784,  relating 
to  such  payment  are  as  follows  : 

Resolved,  that  Stephen  R.  Bradley,  Esq., 
be,  and  is  hereby  directed  to  deliver  to 
Nathaniel  Chipman  andMicah  Townsend, 
Esqrs..  Committee  for  revising  the  laws, 
or  either  of  them,  upon  the  order  or  appli- 
cation of  them,  or  either  of  them,  such  of 


the  books  late  the  property  of  Charles 
Phelps,  Esq.,  as  they  or  either  of  them 
may  think  necessary  for  them  in  revising 
the  laws,  he  taking  their  receipt  for  such 
books  to  account.     And  further, 

Resolved,  That  all  letters  from  either  o  f 
the  Committee  for  revising  the  laws  to  the 
other  upon  the  business  of  their  appoint- 
ment, be  conveyed  free  of  postage.  That 
the  accounts  of  the  said  Committee,  when 
the  business  of  their  appointment  shall  be 
completed,  shall  be  adjusted  by  the  Com- 
mittee of  Pay-Table,  at  the  rate  of  twelve 
shillings  each  per  day,  while  they  are  sever- 
ally employed  in  the  business,  for  their 
time  and  expences.  That  the  Committee 
be  paid  for  their  services  out  of  the  library 
late  the  property  of  said  Phelps,  at  a  rea- 
sonable appraisement,  to  be  made  by  such 
persons  as  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Legis- 
lature, to  be  men  acquainted  with  the  val- 
ue of  books,  and  to  be  made  under  oath, 
at  cash  price  ;  unless  the  Legislature  shall 
see  proper  to  restore  said  library  to  said 
Phelps;  or  unless  said  Phelps  shall  redeem 
the  books  so  appraised  by  paying  the  said 
Committee  such  sum.  as  they  shall  be  ap- 
praised at.  The  aforesaid  Committee  to 
have  their  choice  of  what  books  they  take 
in  payment.  Pro^iided  the  said  committee 
revise  the  statutes  of  this  State  which  have 
not  already  undergone  their  examination, 
by  the  session  of  Assembly  in  October 
next.  And  if  the  said  library  shall  be  re- 
stored to  said  Phelps,  or  shall  be  insuffi- 
cient for  payment,  the  Legislature  will  pay 
the  said  Committee  for  such  their  services, 
in  hard  money,  or  an  equivalent. 

Whatever  became  finally  of  the  Phelps 
books  their  temporary  possession  did  not 
establish  a  state  library  any  more  than,  in 
the  troubled  days  of  the  revolution,  the 
possession  of  that  "one  negro  whench"  for 
whose  care  Matthew  Lyon  charged  the 
State,  established  slavery. 

The  following  is  the  resolution  under 
which  the  Vermont  State  Library  was 
formed  : 

In  Council,  Nov.  17,  1825. 
Resolved,  the  general  assembly  concur- 
ring herein.  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of 
the  governor  and  council  annually,  to  ap- 
point some  suitable  person,  whose  duty  it 
shall  be  to  take  charge  of,  and  keep  in 
good  order,  all  the  books  and  public  docu- 
ments, deposited  in  the  state-house,  in 
Montpelier ;  and  that  a  suitable  room  in 
the  state-house  be  placed  under  the  con- 
trol of  such  person,  for  a  place  of  deposit 
for  such  books  and  documents  :  and  such 
person,  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty,  shall 


MONTPELIER. 


325 


be  governed  by  such  rules  and  regulations 
as  the  governour  and  council  shall,  from 
time  to  time,  prescribe. 

[Concurred  Nov.  17,  1825.] 

Calvin  J.  Keith  was  the  first  librarian, 
and  was  appointed  Nov.  17,  1825.  He 
was  librarian  4  years,  and  after  his  service 
there  were  frequent  changes  in  the  office 
for  30-'years. 

Until  1836  the  librarian  was  appointed 
by  the  governor  and  council ;  then  till  1848 
by  the  governor ;  and  from  184S  till  1858 
by  the  senate  and  house  of  representatives. 
In  1857  the  control  of  the  library  was  put 
into  the  hands  of  trustees,  who  appoint  a 
librarian.  The  trustees  organized  Nov. 
16,  1858,  and  appointed  Charles  Reed  li- 
brarian. Mr.  Reed  died  March  7,  1873, 
and  was  succeeded  by  the  present  libra- 
rian. 

The  greater  part  of  the  books  of  the  li- 
brary escaped  the  fire  of  Jan.  6,  1857, 
which  destroyed  the  state-house.  While 
the  present  state-house  was  building,  the 
masonic  hall  was  used  for  the  lil)rary.  A 
catalogue  of  the  library  was  printed  in 
1850,  one  in  1858,  and  one  in  1872. 

The  library  for  nearly  30  years  depend- 
ed principally  for  increase  on  the  receipt 
of  State  publications  and  on  e.xchanges. 
In  1854,  an  annual  appropriation  of  $200 
for  the  purchase  of  books  was  made  ;  this 
appropriation  was  increased  to  $500  in 
1866  and  to  $800  in  1876.  The  substan- 
tial growth  of  the  library  and  its  real  use 
date  from  the  beginning  of  Mr.  Reed's 
services  as  librarian.  He  used  the  small 
sums  at  his  command  with  great  good 
judgment,  and  made  a  useful  working  li- 
brary of  it. 

The  library  now  contains  about  19,000 
bound  volumes,  exclusive  of  duplicates. 
It  has  outgrown  the  quarters  that,  when 
Mr.  Reed  took  charge  of  it,  were  more 
than  ample,  and  is  now,  though  its  books 
overflow  into  committee  rooms,  cramped 
for  room.  In  American  law  reports  it  is 
among  the  best  libraries  in  the  country  ; 
in  other  departments  it  is  incomplete,  but 
growing  in  those  branches  that  appear  to 
be  of  most  use. 

The  present  officers  of  the  library  are  : 
Trustees,  ex  officio,  the  governor,  the  chief 


justice  and  the  secretary  of  state ;  State, 
E.  J.  Phelps,  Horace  Fairbanks,  L.  G. 
Ware ;  resident,  E.  P.  Walton,  Joseph 
Poland  and  Chas.  H.  Heath;  librarian, 
Hiram  A.  Huse ;  first  assistant  librarian, 
Thomas  L.  Wood. 

Portraits,  <^c. — Among  the  noticeable 
things  in  the  library  are  two  portraits  be- 
longing to  the  Historical  Society,  the 
work  and  gift  of  Thomas  W.  Wood,  a  na- 
tive of  Montpelier,  and  now  one  of  the  first 
artists  of  New  York  city.  One  is  a  por- 
trait of  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord  and  the  other  of 
Hon.  Daniel  P.  Thompson.  A  portrait, 
by  Mr.  Wood,  of  Judge  Prentiss  is  also  in 
the  capitol,  though  the  formal  presentation 
to  the  Historical  Society  has  not  yet  been 
made.  These  portraits  are  valuable  for 
their  artistic  as  well  as  their  historical  mer- 
it,and  in  the  same  class  may  be  mentioned, 
of  the  portraits  in  the  executive  chamber, 
thatof  Gov.  Smith,  byThos.  LeClear.  The 
portrait  of  Gov.  Paine  is  a  good  copy,  from 
a  good  original  by  Chester  Harding  ;  and 
that  of  (iov.  Williams,  by  B.  F.  Mason, 
is  a  creditable  piece  of  work.  The  other 
portraits  in  the  governor's  room  are  no 
doubt  historically  valuable.  A  bust  of  Gov. 
Erastus  Fairbanks,  by  J.  O.  A.  Ward,  is 
excellent  work,  as  is  one  of  Judge  Elijah 
Paine  by  Greenough.  There  is  also  a  fine 
bust  of  Jacob  Collamer  by  Preston  Powers. 
Julian  Scott's  large  painting  of  the  Battle 
of  Cedar  Creek  is  too  big  for  the  governor's 
room,  and  whatever  good  work  there  is  in 
it  has  no  chance  to  "vindicate"  itself.  A 
portrait  of  Washington  hangs  over  the 
speaker's  chair  in  the  Hall  of  the  House 
of  Representatives. 

There  should  also  be  mentioned  the 
statue  of  Ethan  Allen  which  stands  at  the 
entrance  to  the  capitol.  It  is  of  heroic 
size,  is  the  work  of  Larkin  G.  Mead, 
was  completed  in  1861,  and  on  the  loth 
of  October  in  that  year  was  "inaugurat- 
ed," Hon.  Fred.  E.  Woodbridge  of  Ver- 
gennes  delivering  the  oration.  Two  of 
the  field-pieces  captured  from  the  Hes- 
sians at  Bennington,  are  to  be  seen  in  the 
capitol,  as  well  as  the  battle  flags  of  the 
Vermont  organizations  that  served  in  the 
war  of  the  rebellion. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


\_Present  Artists  in  Montpelier — J.  F. 
(iilman,  crayon  portrait  painter.  Union 
block;  A.  N.  Blanchaid,  Main  St.,  A.  C. 
Harlow,  Ellis  block.  State  st.,  photogra- 
phers. Mr.  H.  is  just  completing  for  the 
engraver  the  copy  of  an  oil  portrait  of  Gen. 
Parley  Davis,  for  our  next  No. — Ed.] 

THE  STATE  CABINET. 

BY  PHOF.  IIIKAM  A.  CUTTIN(i    M.  I)., 

State  Geologist  and  Curator  ol'isiati'  Caliinet. 

This  is  a  collection  in  Natural  History 
provided  for  by  law  and  kept  in  the  State 
house.  It  is  intended  to  show  the  geolo- 
gy and  natural  history  of  the  State.  The 
collection  of  rock  showing  the  .sections 
across  the  State  were  collected  by  the  geo- 
logical survey.  This  was  added  to  by  the 
purchase  of  the  Zadoc  Thompson  collec- 
tion of  natural  history,  and  by  donations 
and  otherwise  it  has  been  largely  increased. 
The  space  alloted  for  the  display  of  speci- 
mens is  very  inadequate,  and  in  conse- 
quence thousands  of  them  are  packed 
away.  There  is,  however,  over  20,000  on 
exhibition,  and  those  displayed  are  intend- 
ed to  show  the  character  of  the  rocks  and 
all  the  minerals  found  in  the  State  as  well 
as  insects,  birds,  animals,  Indian  relics, 
&c.  Many  specimens  are  of  great  value, 
and  if  lost  could  never  be  replaced.  The 
collection  was  first  in  charge  of  the  geo- 
logical survey,  then  in  charge  of  State  Geol- 
ogist Albert  D.  Hager.  who  was  curator  un- 
til he  left  the  State  in  1869.  In  1870,  Dr. 
Hiram  A.  Cutting  was  appointed  as  his 
successor,  and  still  has  charge.  Since  his 
appointment  the  collection  has  more  than 
doubled.  The  number  of  visitors  ranges 
from  12  to  25  thousand  annually,  and  it  is 
one  of  the  greatest  educational  interests  of 
the  State. 

Though  intended  only  to  be  representa- 
tive of  the  natural  history  of  Vermont, 
there  has,  by  various  donations,  several 
hundred  of  foreign  specimens  crept  in, 
many  of  which  are  on  exhibition,  and  are 
valuable,  as  comparatives  with  similar  spec- 
imens in  the  State.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
this  valuable  aid  to  V'ermont  education 
will  ere  long  have  the  space  granted  nec- 
essary for  the  full  display  of  its  specimens, 
when  it  will  be  truly  one  of  the  most  valu- 
able collections  in  New  England. 


PAPERS  FURNISHED   BY  CHAS.  UE  F.  BANCROFT. 

NUMBER  OF  DEATHS  IN  TOWN  YEARLY, 

From  Jan.   i,  1%^^,  to  Oct.   i,  1881. 


825. 
826. 
827. 
828. 
829. 
830. 

831. 
832. 

833 
834- 
835- 
836. 

837- 
838 

839- 
840. 
841. 
842. 
843- 


•30 
•31 
•15 

.14 
.14 
.14 
.14 
•23 
•23 
•17 
.20 
.  22 
.20 
.24 
.28 
.46 
.58 
.41 
.41 


1844. 
1845. 
1846. 
1847. 
1848. 
1849. 
1850. 
1851. 
1852. 

1853- 
1854. 
1855. 
1856. 
1857. 
1858. 
1859. 
i860. 
1861. 
1862. 


•45 
.  22 

•32 
•36 

•23 
.41 
.28 
•35 
•35 
•31 
•25 
.30 

•35 
.29 

•25 
•34 
•25 
.29 

•.30 


1863. 

I864. 

1865. 

1866. 

1867. 

1868. 

1869. 

1870. 

1871 

1872. 

1873^ 
1874. 

1875. 
1876. 

1877. 
1878. 
1879. 
1880. 
1881. 


....46 
....31 
....42 
....29 
....25 
. ...  39 
....31 
....29 

28 

.  ..66 
....50 
••••55 
••••75 
....56 
....48. 
....  40 
..  .48 
....66 
....60 
a  book 
■  the  old 


The  above  was  compiled  from 
kept  by  the  late  Aaron  Bancroft,  ' 
village  sexton,"  containing  a  record  of  all 
the  deaths  occurring  from  1825  to  1857  in 
the  village  and  the  suburbs,  (which  is 
about  the  present  limits  of  the  town,) 
since  which  time  the  State  law  has  re- 
quired the  registration  of  all  deaths.  But 
the  town  records  showing  that  the  regis- 
tration is  very  imperfect  since  then  to  the 
date  of  1 87 1,  the  files  of  the  newspapers 
published  in  town  had  to  be  resorted  to 
for  those  years.  Since  1871  I  have  kept  a 
record  of  all  deaths.  I  think  upon  the 
whole,  from  my  researches  and  inquiries, 
that  the  above  is  a  very  accurate  state- 
ment. From  1825  to  1845  a  large  per- 
centage of  the  deaths  were  children,  and 
the  remainder  of  adults  of  a  middle  age  of 
life,  acute  diseases  being  the  cause  of  a 
large  percentage  of  them.  From  1845  the 
record  shows  a  gradual  increase  of  longev- 
ity, the  last  fifteen  years  showing  a  large 
percentage  as  being  adults  past  the  middle 
age  of  life,  some  of  these  years  the  av- 
erage age  of  the  deaths  in  town  being 
about  50  years.  In  1880-81  the  deaths  of 
children  were  in  an  excess,  resulting  main- 
ly from  diphtheria.  The  registration  of 
the  deaths  in  town  to  the  year  1823,  (when 
the  registration  ceased,)  is  very  iinperfect, 
only  from  one  to  five  being  registered  oc- 
curring in  the  whole  town  yearly,  and  some 
years  none  at  all.  b. 


MONTI'ELIKR. 


.327 


LONGEVITY  OF  MONTPKLIER. 

Persons  who  Jiave  died  since  1825. 

1878  Phoebe  Hazard loi^ 

[864  Thomas  Davis 95^ 

1861  Nathan  Jewett 95 

[847  Aaron  Griswold 95 

1854  Betsey  Watson 94 

1874  Phoebe  Tuthill 94 

[861  Levi  Humphey 92 

1863  Simeon  Dewey 92 

r868  Peter  Nichols'. .92 

[880  Eleanor  Needham 92 

[  88 1  Aurelia  Rose 92 

1847  Mrs.  Campbell 91 

[863  Jonathan  Shepard 91 

1864  Mo.ses  Cree 91 

1877  Naomi  Dodge 91 

[877  John  Gray 91 

[839  Mrs.  Edwards 90 

1863  Francis  Gangau    90 

r  866  Samuel  Goss 90 

[871  Hetty  Houghton 90 

[876  Mary  M.  Vail 90 

1 880  Luther  Poland 90 

[842  Mary  Cadwell 89 

[860  Rev.  Zadoc  Hubbard 89 

[864  Aichen  Butterfly 89 

1 865  Hannah  Marsh 89 

[  88 1  Daniel  Baldwin 89 

1872  Aaron  Bancroft 88 

[842  Luther  King 88 

[866  Nathaniel  Proctor 88 

[868  Mary  Taylor 88 

[  875  Dyer  Loomis 88 

[875  Sally  Grant 88 

[  875  Silas  Barrows 88 

[876  Lucy  L.  Loomis 88 

[879  Thomas  Gannon 88 

[835  John  Taplin 87 

[854  Amos  Strong 87 

[865  Lucy  A.  Ripley 87 

[867  Rufus  Campbell 87 

[872  Thomas  Needham 87 

1877  Mitchell  St.  John 87 

[880  Julia  A.  Clark 87 

[881  Dorothy  Home 87 

[  839  Esther  Hatch 86 

[846  John  Melon 86 

[846  Sarah  Philbrook 86 

[852  Elijah  Nye 86 

[853  Dexter  May 86 

[857  Patty  Reed 86 

[S63  Mary  Leonard. 86 

1869  Sarah  T.  Hayward 86 

[875  Anna  Pitkin 86 

[875  Anna  Waugh '. 86 

1877  Mrs.  Luther  Howe 86 

IS78  Pru.ssia  Walton 86 

1879  Luman  Rublee 86 

[  880  Susan  Loomis  Brown 86 

[839  Arthur  Daggett 85 

[840  Mrs.  Bancroft 85 

[849  Mrs.  Wesijohn 85 


1 844  Dolly  Harran 85 

1847  Samuel  LIpham 85 

1850  Darius  Boyden 85 

1853  Capt.  Eben  Morse 85 

1855  Mrs.  Emerson 85 

1862  Mrs.  Wilson 85 

1864  Rhoda  Brooks 85 

1866  Phoebe  Gallison 85 

1872  Lucy  Guernsey 85 

1876  Betsey  Waugh 85 

1878  William  Bennett 85 

1826  Mrs.  Cross 84 

1849  ^^•'■''-  Lydia  Taplin 84 

1849  Betsey  Wright 84 

1853  Lydia  Lamb 84 

1856  Col.  Asahel  Washburn 84 

1862  John  Gallison 84 

1866  William  Kinson 84 

1869  Mary  H.  French 84 

1871  Patty  Howes 84 

1871  .Sarah  Phinney 84 

1874  Rawsel  R.  Keith 84 

1874  Deborah  Washburn 84 

1876  Zenas  Wood 84 

1879  Anna  Stoddard 84 

1879  Lyman  G.  Camp 84 

1849  Ebenezer  Frizzle 83 

185 1  Jacob  Davis 83 

1854  Rebecca  Davis 83 

1854  ZionCopeland 83 

1856  Hannah  Dana 83 

1859  Joseph  Reed 83 

1864  Thomas  Clark, 83 

1864  Jane  Law.son '^7, 

1864  B.  Frank  Markham 83 

1865  David  Gray ^-^ 

1865  Polly  Mitchell   83 

1867  Isaac  Wilson S3 

1869  Edmund  H.  Langdon 83 

1870  Joseph  Rowell 83 

1872  John  Wood 83 

1872  Content  Skinner 83 

1875  t'olly  White 83 

1875  Mary  Wood 83 

1850  Mrs.  Eben  Mor.se 82 

1858  Mrs.  Holden 82 

1859  Jared  Dodge 82 

1865  Anna  F.  Bancroft 82 

1868  Dr.  Aaron  Smith 82 

1874  Michael  Malony 82 

1875  I'olly  Kimball 82 

1875  Elizabeth  (Jones)  Caryl 82 

1876  John  Home 82 

1880  Edward  L.  Taplin 82 

1881  Oramel  H.  Smith 82 

1823  Rebecca  Davis 81 

1828  John  Tuthill 81 

1846  Eliakim  D.  Persons 81 

1870  John  Palmer 81 

1873  Nathaniel  Abbott 8r 

1874  Sally  Spaulding 81 

1879  Margaret  Stimson 81 

i88o  Daniel  Cameron. . . , 81 

1881  Cynthia  Hill 81 


328 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


[H72 

1839 

[842 

[844 

[849 
1859 
t863 

1863 
[863 
1869 
[870 
[871 
'874 
[875 
1875 
1876 

1S77 
1S7S 
[880 
[881 

t843 
[846 
[856 
t859 
t859 
t859 
[860 
1 861 
t862 
[863 
(869 
[871 
[872 
r874 
[875 


.845 
1843 
r847 
[846 
[856 
[867 
1872 
[872 
1872 
[877 
[878 

1879 

1880 
1828 
1840 
1840 
[843 
1847 
[849 
1852 
[852 
'?59 

1864 
[866 
1867 
[868 


Joseph  Somerby 80 

Timothy  Hatch 80 

Mrs.  Doty 80 

Hannah  Paine 80 

Cyrus  Ware 80 

Araunah  Waterman 80 

Silas  Jones 80 

Joseph  Howes So 

Mrs.  Yatter 80 

Peter  Rose 80 

John  Spalding 80 

Bridget  Brodie 80 

Hannah  Ferrin 80 

William  Bills 80 

Anna  Smith 80 

Jane  Hutchinson 80 

Betsey  Young 80 

Dr.  Buckley  O.  Tyler 80 

William  Paul 80 

Horace  .Spencer 80 

David  Parsons 79 

Lemuel  Brooks 79 

William  Noyes 79 

Sarah  Wilder 79 

Nancy  Town 79 

Mary  Lewis 79 

Benjamin  Staples 79 

Mandy  Mclntyre 79 

Abigail  Dewey 79 

Silas  C.  French 79 

John  G.  Clark 79 

Hugh  Rourk 79 

Jacob  Mclntyre 79 

Isaac  Lavigne 79 

Daniel  Wilson 79 

Rev.  Elisha  Brown 79 

Mrs.  Levey 78 

Mrs.  Hassam 78 

Lucretia  Parsons 78 

Silas  Burbank 78 

Mrs.  Phoebe  Mann 78 

Mason  Johnson 78 

Thomas  Dodge y't^ 

Mary  Prime 78 

Polly  Coffey 78 

Sherman  Hubbard 78 

William  W.  Cadwell 78 

Margaret  Fitzgibbons, 78 

Helen  Crane 78 

Polly  Dudley 78 

Mrs.  (^ale     77 

Mrs.  Lawson 77 

Jesse  Cole 77 

John  Walton 77 

Mrs.  Cole 77 

Dolly  Wa.shburn 77 

Polly  Davis 77 

Betsey  Cummings 77 

Welcome  Cole 77 

Mary  Goss 77 

Polly  Warren 77 

John  Carroll 77 

Sally  Richardson 77 

Persis  B.  Davis 77 


1870  Esther  French 77 

187 1  Henry  Y.  Barnes 77 

1873  Dr.  Aaron  Denio 77 

1874  Susan  Rowell 77 

1875  Thomas  Donahue 77 

1875     Dr.  James  Templeton 77 

1878  Mrs.  Daniel  Cameron 77 

1879  Orin*  Pitkin 77 

1880  Caroline  Barnes 77 

1827     Hannah  Carr 76 

1863  Nabby  Smith 76 

1864  Sarah  Wilder 76 

1873  Barnabas  H.  Snow 76 

1874  Clarissa  Kellogg 76 

1875  James  Boyden 76 

1876  Sarah  Jones 76 

1877  Dr.  Julius  Y.  Dewey 76 

1878  Alpheus  Flanders 76 

1880  Fanny  Peck , 76 

1881  Zebina  C.  Camp 76 

1881     Mary  Jacobs 76 

188 1     Dorothy  Walling 76 

1827     Samuel  Campbell 75 

1840     Lois  P.  Lawson 75 

1845     Mrs.  Packard 75 

1848  Roger  Hubbard 75 

1849  Betsey  Cadwell 75 

1850  Mrs.  Lawton 75 

1855  Mrs.  Jacob  F.  Dodge 75 

1856  Thomas  Hazard 75 

1857  Betsey  H.  Vail : 75 

1857     Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss 7$ 

1865  Sylvanus  Ripley 75 

1869     Margaret  Moorcroft 75 

1869     Nehemiah  Harvey 75 

1869     Dr.  Reuben  W.  Hill 75 

187 1  Sally  Taplin 75 

1872  Anna  Hubbard 75 

1873  Nathan  Dodge 75 

1840     Polly  Barton 74 

1842     Mrs.  Wheelock 74 

1845     Mrs.  John  Walton 74 

1845     Dr.  Edward  Lamb 74 

1847     I.saac  Freeman 74 

1849     Mrs.  Matthew 74 

1851  Mrs.  Kendall 74 

i860     Francis  Smith 74 

1861  Susan  Abbott 74 

1864  Antoine  Rivers 74 

1865  Richard  Paine 74 

1865     Isaiah  Silver 74 

1865  Ruth  C.  Moulton 74 

1866  Thayer  Townshend 74 

1866     Hubbard  Guernsey 74 

1868     Daniel  P.  Thompson 74 

1868     Frederick  Marsh 74 

1874  Dr.  Charles  Clark 74 

1879  Mrs.  John  Girard 74 

1881     Jesse  Hutchinson 74 

1826     Mrs.  Nye 73 

1S35     Mrs.  Eliakim  D.  Persons 73 

1864     Isaac  Putnam 73 

1838     Mrs.  Elijah  Nye 73 

1862  Jane  Hathaway 73 


MONTPELIER. 


329 


1864  Abby  Langdon 73 

1868  Philomila  Flint t^ 

1872  Hannah  Patterson -j-i, 

1873  Phoebe  Redway 73 

1876  Mrs.  Orange  Fifield ']}, 

1875  Richard  Dillon -ji 

1876  Mary  M.  Davis -]■}, 

187S  Orlena  Hoyt .' -jt, 

1836  Charles  Bulkley 72 

1837  Mrs.  Holmes 72 

1838  Mrs.  Timothy  Hatcl; 72 

1837  Thomas  Reed,  Sr 72 

1840  Lucy  Trowbridge 72 

1849  Sally  Shepard 72 

1858  Ann  Wheaton 72 

1864  Dr.  Thomas  C.  Taplin 72 

1870  William  Moorcroft 72 

1870  Stukely  Angell 72 

187 1  Jeremiah  Davis 72 

1872  Constant  W.  Storrs 72 

1872  Benjamin  Brown 72 

1873  Timothy  Cross 72 

1874  Col.  Levi  Boutwell 72 

1879  Betsey  Cadwell 72 

1826  Mrs.  Dodge 71 

1838  Mrs.  Partridge 71 

1842  Mrs.  De.xter  May 71 

1849  Mrs.  Anna  Cutler 71 

i860  Samuel  Forbes 71 

1864  Calvin  Warren 71 

1864  Thomas  Reed 71 

1867  Dr.  Charles  B.  Chandler 71 

1878  Peter  G.  Smitli ._. 71 

1880  Anson  Davis 71 

188 1  Mary  Sargent 71 

1839  M''^-  <^oIlins 70 

1839  •M'"'^-  Burrell 70 

1841  Ebenezer  Lewis 70 

1854  B.  B.  Dimmick 70 

1854  Joshua  Y.  Vail 70 

1854  Sophia  B.  Loomis 70 

1854  Mrs.  Peck 70 

1854  Lucretia  Prentiss 70 

1854  James  Taylor 70 

1861  Samuel  Abbott ,. . .  .70 

1861  William  P.  Briggs 70 

1863  David  Fitzgibbons 70 

1863  Anna  O'Brien 70 

1865  Valentine  Willey 70 

187 1  William  B.  Hubbard 70 

1872  Nancy  Johnson 70 

1873  Luther  Cross 'jo 

1873  Daniel  Willey 70 

1875  Margaret  Cooper 70 

1875  Mary  Gannon 70 

1876  Allen  Gallison 70 

1879  Mary  Donahue 70 

1880  Mary  Fenton 70 

1873  Mrs.  Daniel  Baldwin 'j-j 

Note. — In  the  preceding  list  are  includ- 
ed the  names  of  a  few  who  for  many  years 
were  residents  of  this  town,  but  died  while 
temporarily  residing  in  some  other  place. 

B. 

42 


PERSONS  RESIDING  IN  TOWN,  OCT.  1 5,  1 88 1, 
IN   THEIR    70TH    YEAR    AND   OVER. 

Dr.  Nathaniel  C.  King 92 

Lucy  Mead 92 

Martha  Rivers 91 

Joshua  Bliss 88 

Lydia  M.  Warren 88 

John  Murphy 86 

Enos  Stimson 86 

Patrick  Brodie 86 

Lucia  Clark 86 

Joseph  Wood 85 

Mary  Gunnison 84 

Prudence  Camp 84 

Rebecca  Sweet 84 

Josephine  Lavigne 84 

Betsey  Haskins 84 

Clark  Fisk 84 

Polly  Cross 84 

Francis  Labouchire 84 

Elvira  Shafter 83 

Lucinda  Stevens 83 

Andrew  A.  Sweet 83 

Appleton  Fitch 83 

Peter  Crapeau 83 

Polly  M.  Chadwick 82 

Loraine  Riker 82 

Wooster  Sprague 82 

Duran  Stowell 82 

William  Kelly 82 

Joseph  Felix 82 

Eben  Gunnison 81 

Roxa  Gould 80 

Orin  Cummins 80 

Horatio  N.  Taplin 80 

Elisha  P.  Jewett 80 

James  McLaughlin 80 

Abby  S.  Dodge 79 

Nelson  A.  Chase 79 

Sarah  R.  Cleaves 79 

Patrick  Corry 79 

Clarissa  Silloway 79 

Orange  Hfield 78 

Dorothy  Harran 78 

Lucy  Snow 78 

Miranda  C.  Storrs 78 

Eliza  Boutwell ij 

Susan  R.  Aiken -j-j 

Stephen  Bennett -ji 

Clarissa  Chase 76 

Margaret  Crapo 76 

Randall  Darling 76 

Geo.  S.  Hubbard 76 

Eliza  Hubbard 76 

Dorcas  Maxham 76 

Nancy  Sprague 76 

John  F.  Stone 76 

Henry  W.  Sabin 76 

Kendall  T.  Davis 76 

Snow  Town 75 

Mary  Tuttle 75 

Henry  Nutt 75 

Eben  Scribner 75 

John  Slattery 75 

Patrick  McManus 75 


330 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Julius  H.  Bostwick 75 

Maria  L.  W.  Reed 74 

Harriet  L.  Taplin 74 

Jacob  Smith 74 

Emerson  Demeritt 74 

Michael  Savage    74 

Elizabeth  Alain 74 

Hopy  Hartwell 74 

Mary  L.  Nutt 74 

Louisa  Seymour 74 

Joseph  L.  Scoville 74 

Olive  Fisk 73 

Sydney  P.  Redfield IZ 

Rufus  R.  Riker 73 

Nancy  George T}, 

Sarah  H.  Nelson 73 

John  O.  A.  Peck 73 

Ira  S.  Town 11 

John  Demerritt 72 

Charles  H .  Severance 72 

Moses  Yatter 72 

Susan  E.  Pitkin 72 

Lydia  P.  Stone 72 

George  W.  Scott 72 

Samuel  Town 72 

Judith  Town 72 

Hannah  Dana .71 

Lucinda  C.  Bowen 71 

Samuel  Dodge 71 

Eliza  Hougliton 71 

Emeline  Lewis 7 1 

Jane  Meadowcroft 71 

Nancy  M.  Paul 71 

Isaac  Seymour 71 

Marble  Russell 71 

Susan  Flanders 70 

Clortina  Guernsey 7° 

Homer W.  Heaton 7° 

Amira  Demeritt 7° 

Ezra  F.  Kimball 70 

Joseph  Paro 7° 

Julia  Rivers 7° 

Mary  Smith 70 

Joseph  Alain 7° 

Sophronia  Guernsey 70 

Peter  Cayhue 7° 

Mary  CoiTey 7° 

John  Flynn 7° 

Ezekiel  Kent 70 

Wm.  N.  Peck 70 

Mary  D.  Storrs 70 

Maria  Scoville 7° 

Mary  Town To 

Joseph  A.  Wing 70 

Erastus  Hubbard 7° 

Edna  Robinson 70 

Samuel  S.  Kelton 6g 

Margaret  Bancroft 69 

Major  S.  Goodwin 69 

Charles  H.  Cross 69 

Caroline  M .  Cross 69 

Eliakim  P.  Walton 69 

Erastus  Camp 69 

Solon  J.  Y.  Vail 69 

B. 


ACCIDENTS. 

Four  persons  have  been  killed  in  town 
by  the  falling  of  trees.  Previous  to  i8oo, 
in  the  east  part  of  the  town  a  little  girl,  a 
step-daughter  of  Benjamin  Nash,  was  ap- 
proaching "her  father,  who  was  cutting 
down  a  tree  in  the  border  of  the  woods 
near  the  house,  when  the  tree  fell  in  the 
direction  in  which  she  was  making  her 
way,  and  killed  her.  The  second  was  a 
young  man  named  Chamberlain,  who  was 
killed  by  the  falling  of  a  tree  in  a  central 
part  of  the  town  in  the  year  1801.  And 
another  by  the  name  of  Robinson,  during 
that  or  the  following  year,  was  killed  by 
the  falling  of  a  tree  in  the  north  part  of 
the  town.  And  yet  another,  an  idiotic 
man,  by  the  name  of  Charles  Davis,  was 
killed  by  a  tree  of  his  own  falling,  by  un- 
dertaking to  get  out  of  danger  by  running 
in  the  same  direction  in  which  the  tree 
had  started  to  fall. 

At  a  later  period,  a  stranger  was  drowned 
while  attempting  to  wade  through  the  river 
near  Montpelier,  having  mistaken  the  place 
of  fording. 

In  1824,  Theron  Lamphere  was  drowned 
in  the  mill-pond,  while  attempting  to  swim 
over. 

About  1822,  Thomas,  Jr.,  son  of  Thos. 
Davis,  was  accidently  shot. 

In  1828,  a  man  by  the  name  of  Mead, 
from  Middlesex,  was  killed  by  the  falling 
of  the  earth  from  the  excavated  bank  in 
the  rear  of  the  house  of  W.  W.  Cadwell. 

In  the  store  of  Erastus  Hubbard,  Oct.  12, 
1848,  election  day,  Mr.  Hubbard,  or  his 
clerk,  was  weighing  out  a  parcel  of  powder 
to  some  one  of  the  crowd  in  the  store- 
room and  around  the  door.  Powder  had 
doubtless  been  scattered  on  the  floor,  in 
filling  the  can  from  which  it  was  being 
poured  into  the  scales ;  and  one  or  more 
persons  were  smoking  cigars  in  the  room, 
when  suddenly  a  terrific  explosion  follow- 
ed. Azro  Bancroft  and  a  Mr.  Sanborn 
were  so  burned  that  they  did  not  survive, 
and  one  or  two  others  were  sadly  maimed. 
Mr.  Hubbard's  life,  in  consequence  of  the 
burns  received,  was  for  months  despaired 
of.  He  finally  recovered,  but  wearing  for 
life  marks  of  the    accident.     The  second 


MONTPELIER. 


331 


floor  of  the  building  was  lifted  by  the  ex- 
plosion about  half  a  foot,  and  the  store 
set  on  fire,  but  the  flames  were  soon  ex- 
tinguished with  little  additional  damage. 

Two  fatal  accidents  from  gunpowder  oc- 
curred in  blasting  out  the  rock  for  the 
foundation  of  the  second  State  House. 
Elisha  Hutchinson,  of  Worcester,  was 
struck  down  dead  near  the  Insurance  of- 
fice, by  a  stone  thrown  by  a  blast  on  the 
ledge  about  30  rods  ;  and  John  W.  Culver, 
a  mechanic  of  Montpelier,  was  the  same 
season  struck  at  the  distance  of  20  rods 
and  killed,  by  a  wooden  roller  placed  over 
the  mine  to  prevent  the  stones  from  flying ; 
while  a  young  man  by  the  name  of  Tucker, 
from  Calais,  one  of  the  workmen  on  the 
State  House  foundation,  was  so  injured  by 
one  of  the  blasts  that  he  lost  his  eyesight 
and  his  prospects  were  ruined,  for  life. 

In  August,  1859,  a  promising  son  of 
Charles  Lyman,  aged  about  12  years,  was 
drowned  at  the  mouth  of  Dog  river,  while 
bathing. 

In  the  spring  of  1858,  the  body  of  a  Mr. 
Williams,  of  Middlesex,  an  insane  person, 
was  found  in  the  flume  of  Langdon's  mill. 
About  the  same  period  a  man,  not  a  resi- 
dent of  this  town,  drowned  himself  by 
forcing  his  way  through  a  hole  in  the  ice 
in  the  North  Branch,  a  mile  or  two  above 
the  village. 

Aug.  9, 1863,  Carlos  J.,  aged  1 1  years,  son 
of  Carlos  Bancroft,  was  drowned,  while 
bathing  near  the  sand-bottom  bridge. 

Jan.  14,  1864,  Henry  Crane,  of  this 
town,  at  one  time  High  Sheriff"  of  the 
County,  was  killed  by  the  cars  in  New 
London,  Canada. 

1864,  a  daughter  of  Alexander  Noble,  of 
10  years,  was  drowned  in  the  Worcester 
Branch  mill-pond.  She  was  gathering 
flood-wood. 

Apr.  ID,  1865,  a  soldier  named  Cushman 
was  maimed  for  life  by  the  premature  dis- 
charge of  a  cannon  while  firing  a  salute 
over  the  recent  victories,  he  subsequently 
dying  of  the  injuries  in  Boston. 

April  3,  1867,  Peter  Lemoine,  aged  21, 
a  blacksmith,  was  killed  by  the  premature 
discharge  of  a  cannon  while  firing  a  .salute 


over  an  election,  and  Alexander  Jangraw 
was  maimed  for  life. 

Aug.  3,  1867,  John  McGinn,  aged  68,  a 
stone  mason,  was  thrown  from  his  wagon 
when  opposite  the  Bethany  church,  by  his 
runaway  horse,  and  instantly  killed. 

In  Apr.  1870,  Alexander  Noble,  of  this 
town,  while  assisting  in  getting  out  a  jamb 
of  logs  in  the  Connecticut  river,  was 
drowned. 

May  16,  1871,  Chas.  Braley,  aged  about 
18  years,  while  out  hunting,  accidentally 
ignited  some  powder  which  he  carried 
loosely  in  his  pocket,  causing  an  explo- 
sion, which  proved  fatal  a  day  or  two 
after. 

Oct.  I,  1872,  John  Braley,  aged  21,  a 
brother  of  the  above,  night  watchman  in 
the  Centra]  Vermont  depot,  was  instantly 
killed  while  coupling  cars  in  the  depot. 

Aug.  3,  1872,  Truman  Best,  a  merchant 
in  town,  was  drowned  while  out  pleasure 
riding  in  a  boat  on  the  Langdon  mill-pond. 
In  trying  to  assist  a  party  in  another  boat 
to  recover  an  oar  which  they  had  lost,  both 
boats  were  carried  over  the  dam.  The 
two  boats  contained  five  men, -three  of 
whom  swam  safely  to  the'  shore,  but  one 
of  them,  Fred  W.  Bancroft,  was  rescued 
in  a  very  exhausted  condition,  while  pas- 
ing  underneath  the  Central  railroad  bridge, 
with  ropes,  while  clinging  to  a  boat.  Mr. 
Best  is  supposed  to  have  struck  his  head 
upon  the  rocks  below  the  dam  as  he  came 
over,  and  was  made  insensible.  His  body 
was  not  found  for  some  days  afterwards, 
the  river  being  very  much  swollen  at  the 
time  when  it  was  found,  about  two  miles 
below  down  the  river. 

June  24,  1873,  Johnnie,  aged  10  years, 
son  of  Patrick  Kane,  was  drowned  while 
in  bathing,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Worcester 
Branch. 

Mar.  4,  1874,  Michael  McMahon,  an 
aged  section  man,  was  killed  by  cars, 
being  caught  by  the  side  of  the  cars,  while 
in  motion,  and  the  end  of  the  depot. 

May  25,  1874,  Alfred  Goodnough,  aged 
50,  a  farmer,  while  driving  across  the  rail- 
road track  near  Sabin's,  was  run  into  by  a 
car,    and   received  injuries  which  proved 


332 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


fatal,  he   dying   two    days   after  at    Mr. 
Sabin's  house. 

1874,  a  little  daughter  of  John  O'Grady 
fell  from  the  road  opposite  the  machine- 
shop  into  the  river,  and  was  drowned. 

July  22,  1875,  Bessie,  aged  5  years,  a 
dau.  of  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord,  was  thrown 
from  the  wagon  by  a  runawa)-  horse,  while 
descending  the  hill  road  leading  down 
from  Gould  hill  to  Wrightsville,  and  re- 
ceived injuries  which  proved  fatal  in  a  tew 
hours . 

June  24,  1S76,  Erastus  Lamphear,  aged 
49,  a  carpenter  and  joiner,  was  blown  from 
the  roof  of  a  barn  which  he  was  raising, 
and  severely  injured.  He  was  carried  to 
his  residence,  and  died  the  following  day. 
Sept.  23,  1876,  Charles  W.  Bailey,  one  of 
Montpelier's  most  worthy  citizens  and 
business  men,  was  killed  by  the  cars  at 
Essex  Junction. 

Sept.  26,  1876,  by  a  collision  of  two 
passenger  trains  on  the  Montpelier  and 
Wells  River  railroad,  near  the  residence  of 
W.  E.  Hubbard,  Benjamin  F.  Merrill,  en- 
gineer of  one  of  the  engines,  lost  a  leg, 
and  several  other  train  men  being  more  or 
less  injured. 

In  June,  1877,  Henry  L.  Hart,  a  young 
man,  aged  23,  started  on  a  pleasure  trip 
down  the  Winooski  in  a  row  boat,  and 
was  last  seen  near  the  mouth  of  the  river 
at  Burlington  a  few  days  afterwards.  His 
hat  and  a  few  contents  of  the  boat  were 
picked  up,  but  of  his  fate  nothing  was  ever 
learned. 

Aug.  I,  1879,  Aaron  M.  Burnham,  arch- 
itect and  builder,  of  this  town,  was  fatally 
injured  while  superintending  the  erection 
of  a  church  at  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  death  en- 
suing two  days  after. 

Sept.  I,  1879,  Johnnie  H.,  of  5  years, 
son  of  J.  W.  F.  Washburn,  while  play- 
ing on  the  bank  of  the  river  near  the  eddy, 
fell  in  and  was  drowned. 

July  23,  1880,  while  firing  a  salute  in 
front  of  the  State  Arsenal  grounds,  Wm. 
Henry  Willey  and  Clark  B.  Roberts,  by 
the  premature  discharge  of  the  cannon, 
were  severely  injured,  each  losing  an  arm. 
Willey  was  an  old  soldier,  and  Roberts  a 
young  man. 


Sept.  II,  1880,  James  M.  Wade,  aged 
19,  a  brakeman  on  the  Montpelier  and 
Wells  River  railroad,  was  thrown  from  the 
train  near  the  State  Fairgrounds,  was  run 
over,  and  received  injuries  which  proved 
fatal  about  a  week  after. 

Oct.  12,  iSSi,  Peter  Marcott,  Jr. ,  aged 
29  years,  a  teamster,  was  instantly  killed 
on  East  Mechanic  street,  his  neck  being 
broken,  caused  either  by  being  thrown 
from  his  wagon  seat,  and  striking  upon 
his  head  as  one  of  the  wheels  dropped  into 
a  deep  rut  in  the  road,  or  by  being  struck 
upon  the  head  by  the  wagon  body,  the 
horses  starting  up  suddenly  as  he  was 
about  to  get  upon  the  seat. 
SUICIDES. 

In  I  So  I,  the  wife  of  John  Cutler  de- 
stroved  herself  by  hanging,  and  a  few 
years  later.  Miss  Nancy  Waugh  dro\vned 
herself. 

June  10,  1861,  Henry  Boyden,  aged  yj , 
living  just  across  the  river  on  the  Berlin 
side,  hung  himself. 

July  30,  1865,  George  V.  Rose,  aged 
26,  a  U.  S.  recruiting  officer  stationed  here, 
shot  himself. 

Sept.  3,  1867,  J.  Fred  Cross,  aged  27, 
proprietor  of  the  American  House,  shot 
him.self. 

Nov.  27,  1867,  John  S.  CoUins,  aged  30, 
died  very  suddenly,  and  is  supposed  to  have 
taken  poison  purposely. 

Jan.  17,  1870,  William  Monsier,  aged 
42,  destroyed  his  life  by  drinking  muriatic 
acid.  After  lingering  three  days,  he  died 
a  most  horrible  death. 

Sept.  187 1,  Isaac  Scribner,  aged  66, 
hung  himself. 

Aug.  29,  1873,  Albert  N.  Daniels  shot 
himself,  after  attempting  to  take  the  life  of 
another  by  shooting. 

Oct.  25,  Rawsel  R.  Keith,  aged  84, 
who  had  been  a  long  suiferer  from  kidney 
disease,  ended  his  sufferings  by  taking  a 
dose  of  laudanum. 

Apr.  14,  1875,  Mary  Clancy  hung  her- 
self, insanity  supposed  to  be  the  cause 
from  religious  excitement. 

Aug.  8,  1875,  Daniel  K.  Bennett,  a  gun- 
smith, shot  himself  in  a  moment  of  insan- 
ity. 


AIONTPELIER. 


333 


Apr.  6,  1876,  William  J.  Rogers,  aged 
30,  a  traveling  agent,  by  taking  poison. 

June  6,  1876,  Mrs.  Mary  Churchill,  aged 
32,  being  deranged  for  some  months,  took 
her  life  by  hanging  herself. 

June  19,  1877,  Harvey  W.  Cilley,  aged 
34,  hung  himself. 

Tune  30,  1881.  Jesse  Hutchinson,  aged 
74,  by  taking  poison. 


In  1840,  an  Irishman  was  killed  in  a 
fight  with  one  of  his  countrymen,  near  the 
old  Arch  Bridge,  and  the  homicide  was 
tried  and  sent  to  the  State  Prison,  but  in  a 
few  years  pardoned. 

April  25,  1867,  Patrick  Fitzgibbons  was 
killed  on  State  street.  He  was  intoxicated, 
and  quarreled  with  three  traveling  agents 
in  the  Village  Hall,  where  they  were  at- 
tending a  dance.  The  agents  leaving  the 
hall,  Fitzgibbons  followed,  accompanied 
by  a  companion,  his  brother-in-law.  An 
officer,  anticipating  trouble,  followed  them. 
When  passing  through  the  alley-way,  he 
came  upon  Fitzgibbons,  who  was  in  a  sit- 
ting position  in  a  chair,  which  he  carried 
from  the  hall,  dead,  having  been  stabbed 
through  the  heart.  All  were  arrested  and 
acquitted,  it  always  remaining  a  mystery 
whether  he  was  killed  by  one  of  the  agents, 
or  by  his  brother-in-law  through  a  mis- 
take, the  night  being  very  dark. 

Oct.  1864,  Patrick  Branigan,  who  had 
just  returned  home  from  three  years'  ser- 
vice in  the  war  as  a  member  ot  the  ist  Vt. 
Battery,  very  mysteriouely  disappeared. 
He  was  last  heard  of  late  at  night,  return- 
ing home  in  an  intoxicated  condition,  sing- 
ing on  his  way.  When  nearly  to  his 
house,  which  was  opposite  the  Washing- 
ton Colinty  jail,  his  voice  suddenly  ceased. 
His  not  putting  in  an  appearance  the  fol- 
lowing day,  foul  play  was  suspected,  as  he 
had  quite  a  large  sum  of  money  on  his 
person.  The  river  which  passes  in  tlie 
rear  of  the  house  was  very  high  at  the 
time.  Thinking  that  his  body  might  be 
found  in  the  river,  it  was  dragged  as  soon 
as  possible,  but  was  not  found,  and  his 
fate  yet  remains  a  mystery. 

Aug.   29,    1873,  Albert  N.    Daniels,  an 


employee  of  the  Montpelier  Manufacturing 
Company,  attempted  to  take  the  life  of  a 
young  lady,  an  employee  of  the  same 
works,  with  whom  he  was  keeping  com- 
pany. He  fired  two  shots  at  her  with  a 
revolver,  only  one  taking  effect,  and  that 
not  proving  fatal.  After  shooting  two 
shots  at  her,  he  shot  himself  through  the 
heart,  instantly  expiring.  The  act  was 
committed  during  the  working  hours  in 
the  room  in  which  the  lady  was  employed. 
On  Sept.  27,  18S0,  Joseph  Dumas,  of 
Northfield,  who  formerly  resided  at  Mont- 
pelier, came  to  the  latter  place,  and  was 
last  seen  on  the  street  that  evening.  A 
week  later  his  body  was  found  in  the 
Branch,  just  below  the  Academy  bridge, 
with  several  cuts  upon  the  liead.  Parties 
last  seen  with  him  were  strongly  suspected 
of  foul  play,  but  sufficient  evidence  could 
not  be  obtained  to  warrant  their  arrest. 


The  number  of  disastrous  fires  which 
had  occurred  in  town  previous  to  i860  are 
small.  The  first  one,  it  is  believed,  was 
in  1801,  when  the  first  frame  school  house, 
standing  near  the  west  end  of  the  old  bury- 
ing ground  on  the  Branch,  accidently 
caught  fire  and  was  consumed. 

In  Dec,  i'Si3,  a  fire  occurred  which  re- 
sulted in  the  entire  destruction  of  the  large 
two-story  cotton-mill,  that  had  been  for 
some  time  in  .successful  operation  at  the 
river  falls,  not  far  from  the  site  now  occu- 
pied by  E.  W.  Bailey's  grist  mill. 

August,  1813,  barn  of  J.  B.  Wheeler, 
Esq.,  with  most  of  his  crop  of  new  hay, 
was  struck  by  lightning. 

In  1815,  the  dwelling  house  of  Seth  Par- 
sons was  burned,  at  a  loss  of  $1,500. 

Winter  of  18 16,  a  school-house  on  East 
hill,  while  the  school  was  being  kept  by 
Shubael  Wheeler. 

December,  18 18,  a  paper  mill  and  cloth- 
ing works  occupying  the  old  site  of  the 
cotton  factory,  was  burned,  with  a  loss  of 
about  $4,000. 

About  1820,  dwelling-house  of  Abijah 
Howard. 

In  1822,  the  blacksmith  shop  of  Joseph 
Howes  was  burned,  and  the  same  vear  the 


334 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


old  Academy  building  was  totally  con- 
sumed by  fire. 

1824,  two-story  house  of  the  late  Hon. 
David  Wing,  Jr. 

In  March,  1826,  occurred,  considering 
the  loss  of  life  and  personal  injuries,  the 
most  calamitous  fire,  perhaps,  ever  expe- 
rienced in  town  up  to  that  time.  The  wool- 
en factory  and  grist  mill,  on  the  falls  of 
the  North  Branch,  owned  by  Araunah 
Waterman  and  Seth  Parsons,  caught  fire 
about  daybreak,  and  was  totally  consumed, 
causing  a  loss  of  many  thousand  dollars  to 
the  i^roprietors. 

While  the  fire,  which,  when  discovered, 
had  gained  too  much  headway  to  leave 
much  hope  of  saving  the  factory,  was 
raging  in  one  part  of  the  lower  story,  Mr. 
Waterman,  Mr.  Joel  Mead,  and  Robert 
Patterson,  a  leading  workman  in  the  es- 
tablishment, made  their  way  to  the  upper 
story,  and  fell  to  work  to  gather  up  and 
throw  from  one  of  the  windows  what  cloths 
and  stock  they  supposed  they  might  have 
time  to  save.  But  the  fire  below  spread 
with  such  unexpected  rapidity,  that  before 
they  were  aware  of  any  danger,  the  fire 
burst  into  the  room,  cutting  off  their  re- 
treat downward  by  the  stairs,  and  even 
preventing  access  to  the  windows  the 
least  elevated  from  irregular  ground  be- 
neath. At  this  crisis  Mr.  Waterman, 
closely  followed  by  Mr.  Mead,  made  a  des- 
perate rush  through  tlie  smoke  and  flame 
for  a  window  in  the  end  of  the  building 
next  the  Branch,  stove  out  the  sasli  with 
the  heel  of  his  boot,  and  threw  himself 
half  suffocated  through  the  aperture  to  the 
rough  and  frozen  ground  or  ice  some  30 
feet  below.  Mr.  Mead  followed  in  the 
perilous  leap,  and  they  were  both  taken  up 
nearly  senseless  from  the  shock,  terribly 
bruised  and  considerably  burned  in  the 
face  and  hands.  But  none  of  their  bones 
were  broken,  and  they  both  in  a  few  weeks 
recovered.  Nothing  more  was  seen  of  the 
fated  Patterson  except  his  charred  skel- 
eton, which  was  found  in  the  ruins  after 
the  fire  subsided.  For  some  reason  he 
had  decided  not  to  follow  Mr.  Waterman 
and  Mr.  Mead  in  the  only  way  of  escape 
then  left  open  to  them,  and  the  next  min- 


ute probably  perished  in  the  smoke  and 
fire  which  must  then  suddenly  have  en- 
veloped him. 

May,  1827,  a  two-story  wooden  build- 
ing, standing  on  the  site  of  the  present 
Argus  building,  and  then  owned  and  oc- 
cupied by  Wiggins  &  Seeley  as  a  store,  was 
burned,  causing  a  loss  of  probably  not 
over  $2,000. 

April,  1828,  a  paper  mill  owned  by  Goss 
&  Reed,  of  Montpelier,  situated  at  the 
falls  on  the  Berlin  side  of  the  river,  was 
burned  ;  loss  about  $4,000. 

1834,  the  oil  mill  and  saw  mill,  in  the 
former  of  which  was  W.  Sprague's  machine 
shop,  standing  also  on  the  Berlin  side  of 
the  river,  but  mostly  owned  and  worked 
by  Montpelier  men,  were  both  wholly 
burned. 

Feb.  1835,  the  first  Union  House,  built 
by  Col.  Davis  about45  years  before,  caught 
fire  about  midday,  and  was  entirely  con- 
sumed ;  loss  about  $3,000. 

1842,  the  dwelling-house  of  p.  H.Smith, 
Esq.,  caught  fire,  and  the  roof  part  of  the 
building  was  destroyed. 

1843,  the  new  brick  Court  House,  stand- 
ing near  the  present  one,  was  burned,  but 
the  records  and  files  were  mostly  saved. 

1848,  school-house  in  the  Wheeler  dis- 
trict. 

1849,  barn  of  John  Gallison,  with  hay, 
five  horses  and  colts. 

1849,  dwelling-house,  barn  and  sheds  of 
Charles  Burnham. 

1853,  the  dwelling-house  of  Harry  Rich- 
ardson, near  the  Union  House,  was  wholly 
destroyed  by  fire. 

1854,  the  building  of  Ira  Town,  occu- 
pied by  him  as  a  goldsmith's  shop,  stand- 
ing on  the  present  site  of  A.  A.  Mead's 
shop,  was  burned  in  part,  and  the  adjoin- 
ing building  of  the  Patriot  office  consider- 
ably injured. 

1854,  also,  the  roof  part  of  the  upper 
story  of  Walton's  book-store  was  destroy- 
ed by  fire,  and  but  for  the  timely  striking 
of  a  shower  on  the  excessively  dry  roofs, 
that  whole  block  of  wooden  buildings 
would  probably  have  been  destroyed. 

1854,  was  burned  a  two-story  house 
standing  back  of  the  old  Masonic  Hall. 


*«  v..-'*»C-^'" 


I 


1!  ' 
I. J 


'A'.KNVAt'?/  r*.r 


MONTPELIER. 


335 


1854,  dwelling-house  of  Orrin  Slayton. 

1854,  three  barns  of  Orlando  F.  Lewis. 

Within  the  year  1857,  two  small  houses 
were  burned  near  the  brick-yard,  and  one 
near  Keith's  lodge. 

1858,  school-house  in  Henry  Nutt's 
school  district. 

1858,  a  new  one-story  house  of  Mr.  Cook- 
son,  on  the  road  leading  from  the  cooper's 
shop  north,  through  the  great  pasture, 
was  burned ;  and  in  the  beginning  of  the 
next  year,  another  building  erected  by  the 
same  man,  on  the  same  spot,  was  also 
burned  down. 

December,  1859,  the  large  three-story 
brick  and  wood,  second  Union  House,  val- 
ued about  $5,000,  was  destroyed  by  fife. 

We  make  the  whole  to  i860,  but  24; 
and  the  property  destroyed,  except  the 
.State  House,  which  was  public  property, 
to  come  within  $50,000.  Was  ever  a  village 
of  the  size,  in  this  respect,  more  favored? 

i860,  the  old  Harran  house,  on  Upper 
Elm  street,  burned. 

1861,  a  house  occupied  by  Thos.  Arm- 
strong, in  rear  of  the  Burnham  hotel. 

1862.  the  store  of  William  W.  Cadwell, 
on  Main  street,  was  consumed. 

Jan.  1863,  Mrs.  Chas.  G.  Eastman's 
house,  on  Main  sti'eet,  was  partially  con- 
.sumed. 

In  the  spring  of  1864,  the  present  Union 
House  was  nearly  destroyed. 

Mar.  24,  1868,  dry  house  of  Lane  Man- 
ufacturing Company  consumed. 

Sept.  2,  1868,  R.  H.  Whittier's  slaugh- 
ter house,  up  the  "Branch,"  consumed. 

Jan.  29,  1870,  L  S.  Town  &  C.  W. 
Storrs'  block,  on  State  street,  partly  con- 
sumed. 

Apr.  26,  1870,  Daniel  P.  Thompson's 
residence,  on  Barre  street,  consumed. 

Dec.  29,  1870,  the  Vt.  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Co's.  new  building  badly  damaged. 

Jan.  26,  William  Moorcroft's  Woolen 
Factory,  at  Wrightsville,  consumed. 

Sept.  18,  1871,  Grovner  B.  Paine's 
house,  on  North  street,  consumed. 

1872,  Lane  Manufacturing.  Company's 
second  dry  house  consumed. 

Dec.  5,  1872,  Chas.  Reed's  residence, 
on  State  street,  badly  damaged. 


May,  1873,  Stephen  Cochran's  resi- 
dence, on  Seminary  Hill,  consumed. 

Mar.  12,  1875,  the  first  great  fire;  May 
I,  the  second. 

Feb.  28, 1875,  Andrew  Burnham's  house, 
on  Court  street,  considerably  damaged. 

Apr.  22,  1875,  W.  A.  Boutelle's  black- 
smith shop,  on  Elm  street,  consumed. 

May,  1875,  a  house  belonging  to  Bart 
Scribner,  up  the  "  Branch." 

Dec.  27,  1875,  one  of  the  Pioneer  Man- 
ufacturing shops  burned. 

Feb.  1876,  Alonzo  Redway's  residence, 
on  Court  street ;  loss  $5,000. 

Aug.  9,  T.  O.  Bailey's  barns,  on  Mid- 
dlesex street ;  loss  $1,200. 

Aug.  21,  Wm.  E.  Hubbard's  barn,  on 
Barre  street ;  loss  $600. 

Nov.  13,  E.  D.  Grey's  paint  shop,  on 
Main  street ;  loss  $800. 

In  1877  no  fire  occurred,  and  also  in 
1874. 

Aug.  26,  1878,  Louis  Barney's  barn,  on 
North  street,  consumed. 

January  3,  1878,  a  destructive  fire  at 
Wrightsville — A.  A.  Green's  residence  and 
blacksmith  shop  and  Ezra  D.  Rawlins' 
residence. 

Oct.  II,  a  barn  on  Gould  Hill,  belong- 
ing to  Henry  Cummins. 

Dec.  30,  the  school-house  near  Henry 
Nutt's  place. 

Apr.  23,  1879,  a  barn  belonging  to  A. 
D.  Bancroft,   on   North  street. 

June  20,  Geo.  Jacob's  barn,  on  Main 
street,  consumed  ;  loss  $600. 

June  21,  a  house  belonging  to  Medad 
Wright,  up  the  "  Branch,"  consumed. 

Sept.  2,  1880,  a  storehouse  belonging  to 
C.H.  Heath,  on  Barre  street,  consumed. 

Oct.  3,  1880,  W.  E.  Dunwoodie's  res- 
idence, on  Upper  Main  street,  consumed  ; 
loss  $1,500. 

Jan.  8,  1 88 1,  C.  W.  Willard's  residence, 
on  State  street,  badly  damaged. 

Jan.  17,  one  of  the  Cab  Shop  buildings 
burned,  on  the  Berlin  side. 

Apr.  II,  a  barn  belonging  to  J.  R. 
Langdon,  on  Barre  street,  consumed. 

Aug.  4,  1 88 1,  a  new  slaughter  house  on 
upper  North  street,  owned  by  W.  L.  Le- 
land,  was  consumed. 


336 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


In  the  year  of  1875,  MontpeJier  was 
visited  by  two  veiy  destructive  fires,  in- 
volving the  loss  of  many  thousand  dollars. 
The  first  of  these  fires  broke  out  about  one 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  March  12,  in  a 
one  and  one-half  story  wooden  building  on 
Main  street,  owned  by  Thomas  W.Wood, 
and  occupied  Ijy  Joseph  D.  Clogston  as  a 
tin  shop.  This  was  consumed,  and  the 
two  adjoining  ones  on  the  east  side,  the 
first  owned  by  Carlos  Bancroft,  a  story 
and  a  half  wooden  building,  occupied  by 
Peck  &  Cummins,  leather  dealers,  was 
also  con.sumed  ;  and  the  second,  a  two  and 
a  half  story  wooden  building,  owned  by 
James  R.  Langdon,  and  occupied  by 
Barrows  &  Peck,  hardware  and  stoves, 
was  partly  consumed.  This  fire  was  hardly 
under  control  when  fire  was  discovered 
breaking  out  through  the  roof  of  Ira  S. 
Town's  three-story — and  the  C.  W.  Storrs' 
estate — wooden  building,  on  State  street. 
This  was  consumed,  and  the  three-story 
brick  block  on  the  south  sfde,  owned  by 
Timothy  J.  Hubbard,  the  adjoining  build- 
ings on  the  north  side,  the  first  a  new, 
three-story  brick  block,  owned  by  Erastus 
Hubbard  ;  the  second,  a  large,  three-story 
wooden  building,  owned  by  Fred  E.  Smith, 
and  the  Rialto,  owned  by  W.  A.  Boutelle 
and  Eli  Ballou,  were  ne.xt  consumed,  and 
Eli  Ballou's  three-story  wooden  building 
was  partly  burned  before  the  flames  were 
stayed.  In  the  rear  of  these  was  a  story 
and  a  half  wooden  building,  owned  by  T. 
J.  Hubbard,  and  used  as  a  tenement  and 
storehouse,  which  was  also  burned.  Aid 
was  summoned  from  Barre,  which  was 
responded  to  by  an  engine  and  company. 
Nine  buildings  were  burned,  and  twenty 
business  men  and  firms  burned  out,  be- 
sides three  law  firms,  a  dentist,  photog- 
rapher, and  four  societies.  The  firms 
burned  out  were,  on  Main  street,  J.  D. 
Clogston,  stoves  and  tin  shop ;  Peck  & 
Cummins,  leather  dealers  ;  Barrows  &  Peck, 
hardware  and  stoves.  On  State  street,  C. 
B.  Wilson,  drugs  and  medicines ;  Geo.  L. 
Nichols,  clothing  ;  Ira  S.  Town,  jeweler  ; 
Orrin  Daley,  fruit  and  restaurant;  S.  C. 
Woolson,  merchant  tailor ;  A.  A.  Mead, 
jeweler;   T.    C.    Phinney,  books   and  sta- 


tionery ;  JangraVv  &  Meron,  barbers  ;  Chas. 
Keene,  jeweler ;  C.  H.  Freeman,  photog- 
rapher: W.  A.  Boutelle,  millinery;  E.  H. 
Towne,  merchant  tailor ;  J.  O'Grady,  boot- 
maker ;  T.  W.  McKee,  sewing  machines  ; 
State  Treasurer's  office,  C.  H.  Heath,  L. 
L.  Durant,  and  Gleason  &  Field's  law  of- 
fices, Masonic  hall,  Naiad  Temple  of 
Honor  hall.  Post  Brooks  G.  A.  R.  hall, 
and  Sovereigns  of  Industry  hall.  The 
total  loss  on  buildings  and  goods  was 
about  $75,000,  with  an  insurance  of  about 
$47,000. 

The  only  accident  that  occured  was  by 
the  falling  of  the  ruins  of  the  Rialto  build- 
ing, under  which  Wm.  T.  Dewey,  a  fire- 
man, was  buried,  but  escaping  with  a 
broken  leg. 

The  business  firms  had  hardly  got  es- 
tablished in  their  new  or  temporary  quar- 
ters, when  they  were  visited  by  the  second 
great  fire,  more  destructive  than  the  first. 
This,  like  the  first,  broke  out  on  the  west 
side  of  Main  street,  in  the  rear  end  of  Jef- 
ferson Bmce's  brick  building,  at  about 
1 2  :  30  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  May  i , 
There  being  a  high  wind  at  the  time,  the 
flames  spread  very  rapidly.  All  the  build- 
ings on  that  side  of  the  street  running 
south  as  far  as  the  Montpelier  and  Wells 
River  railroad  depot  were  soon  consumed, 
and  also  the  James  R.  Langdon  building 
on  the  north  side,  parti}"  destroyed  by  the 
previous  fire.  All  of  the  buildings  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  street,  from  the  Fred- 
erick Marsh  residence  to  the  railroad  track, 
and  from  the  head  of  Barre  street  up  the 
street  as  far  as  the  residence  of  Joel  Foster, 
Jr.,  on  one  side,  and  the  residence  of 
Louis  P.  Gleason  on  the  other,  were  laid 
in  ashes  in  a  few  short  hours,  making  a 
total  of  thirty-eight  buildings  burned,  only 
three  of  them  brick,  the  rest  wooden,  and 
most  of  them  very  old,  among  them  being 
the  old  Shepard  stand  and  the  Col.  Jon- 
athan P.  Miller  house.  The  buildings 
burned  were  owned  by  following  parties  : 
West  side.  Main  street,  a  story  and  a  half 
brick  building,  J.  Bruce;  two  large  bai'ns 
in  the  rear,  T.  J.  Hubbard;  new,  two- 
story  wooden  building,  new,  three-story 
wooden   one,   tenement   house   and    out- 


MONTPELIER. 


iZ7 


buildings,  all  owned  by  James  G.  French  ; 
one-story  wooden  one,  by  D.  K.  Bennett; 
two-story  and  a  half  wooden  one,  byN.  C. 
Bacon  ;  another  of  the  same  material  and 
dimensions,  the  old  Shepard  tavern,  and  a 
new,  one-story  wooden  building,  all  owned 
by  Eben  Scribner.  On  the  east  side  oi 
the  street,  the  old  Frederick  Marsh  store, 
the  residences  and  out-buildings  of  Mrs. 
John  Wood,  William  C.  Lewis,  and  Mr. 
Lewis'  blacksmith  shojD,  Mrs.  Timothy 
Cross'  residence,  the  large,  four-story 
wooden  building,  owned  by  Mrs.  C.  B. 
Wilson,  Mr.  Zenas  Wood's  residence,  with 
out-buildings,  the  old  Miller  house,  owned 
by  Andrew  Murray.  On  Barre  street, 
south  side,  the  residence  and  out-buildings 
of  Mrs.  B.  M.  Clark,  Geo.  S.  Hubbard 
and  Carlos  L.  Smith,  and  a  tenement 
house  of  Mrs.  Clark.  Barre  street,  north 
side,  Mrs.  R.  W.  Hyde's  residence,  and 
brick  house  owned  by  James  R.  Langdon. 
Fifteen  business  firms  were  burned  out, 
one  livery  stable,  a  carriage-maker  and 
blacksmith,  and  forty  families.  The  bus- 
iness firms  were  :  W.  A.  Boutelle,  milli- 
nery ;  R.  T.  Eastman,  carriage-maker; 
John  O.  Adams,  livery;  H.  C.  Webster, 
dry  goods;  Putnam  &  Marvin,  W.  1. 
goods ;  N.  P.  Brooks,  hardware;  D.  K. 
Bennet,  gunsmith ;  N.  C.  Bacon,  auction 
store ;  Barrows  &  Peck,  stoves,  tin  and 
hardware;  Henry  Cobb,  marble  dealer; 
Geo.  M.  Scribner,  stoves  and  tin  ware; 
Hyde  &  Foster,  iron  and  heavy  hardware  ; 
J.  D.  Clogston,  tin  ware;  Philip  Preston, 
W.  I.  goods.  Families  burned  out  on 
Main  street,  west  side,  were:  J.  Bruce, 
H.  C.  Webster,  Fred.  W.  Morse,  E.  N. 
Hutchins,  A.  W.  Edgerly,  Geo.  S.  West, 
Elisha  Walcott,  Mrs.  Harris,  Geo.  W. 
Parmenter,  Chas.  T.  Summers,  GilmanD. 
Scribner,  Oliver  P.  Thompson  ;  Main,  east 
side,  C.  W.  Selinas,  Frank  Keyes,  Jerome 
J.  Pratt,  Mrs.  Glysson,  Zenas  Wood,  Mr. 
I.  Lovely,  Mrs.  S.  C.  Gray,  Mrs.  Mary 
Lamb,  Miss  Selinas,  Mrs.  Dyer  Richard- 
son, Mrs.  Timothy  Cross,  Wm.  C.  Lewis, 
Mrs.  John  Wood,  Philip  Preston,  Mrs. 
Frederick  Marsh,  Carlos  W.  Norton  ;  Barre 
street,  south  side,  Mrs.  B.  M.  Clark,  Chas. 
T.  Thurston,  C.  M.  Pitkin,  Peter  Nathan, 


Moses  Morey,  Joseph  Felix,  Mrs.  Aurelia 
Allard,  Carl  L.  Smith,  Hiram  B.  Wood- 
ward ;  north  side,  Mrs.  R.  W.  Hyde,  and 
Col.  C.  B.  Wilson. 

The  flames  spread  so  rapidly,  and  the 
heat  being  so  intense,  very  little  time  was 
given  to  remove  the  goods  and  furniture 
from  the  burning  buildings.  What  was 
removed  and  carried  into  the  street  was 
soon  burned.  Many  families  and  some 
business  men  lost  their  all,  the  total  loss 
being  about  $120,000,  with  an  insurance 
of  about  $75,000. 

Several  firemen  and  citizens  were  quite 
severely  burned  in  their  efforts  to  stay  the 
flames  and  in  saving  goods.  Many  build- 
ings in  various  parts  of  the  village  caught 
fire  from  the  falling  cinders,  and  with  great 
effort  were  extinguished.  The  light  of  the 
fire  was  seen  for  many  miles  in  towns 
about  us,  and  within  a  radius  of  twenty 
miles  it  was  as  light  as  day,  people  being 
awake  ^thinking  that  the  fire  was  that  of 
some  near  neighbor's  buildings.  In  the 
appeals  for  aid  sent  out,  Barre  and  North- 
field  each  responded  by  sending  fire  en- 
gines and  men,  and  at  dawn  the  fire  was 
under  control.  Daylight  presented  a  sad 
picture  from  the  State  street  bridge  to  the 
Montpelier  and  Wells  River  depot,  and  as 
far  as  Joel  Foster's  house,  on  Barre  street, 
but  three  buildings  remaining  standing —  ■ 
T.  J .  Hubbard's  brick  and  wooden  build- 
ings on  the  corner,  and  Carlos  Bancroft's 
brick  building  adjoining. 

Never  was  more  energy  displayed  than 
ill  the  rebuilding  of  the  burned  districts, 
the  smoke  having  barely  cleared  away  when 
several  large  and  splendid  brick  blocks 
were  under  way  in  the  course  of  erection, 
some  of  them  occupied  within  four  months. 

May  25,  1880,  the  Court  House  burned, 
leaving  only  the  outside  walls  standing ; 
loss  $15,000.  It  had  been  remodeled  and 
enlarged  the  previous  year,  an  extension 
of  22  feet  having  been  added  in  the  rear, 
the  whole  costing  about  $10,000.  All  the 
books  and  records  of  value  were  saved, 
the  only  loss  being  the  files  of  the  news- 
papers published  in  town  for  many  years 
back,  all  being  a  total  loss. 


43 


338 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Jan.  6,  1857,  the  State  House,  which 
was  being  warmed  up  on  the  eve  of  the  sep- 
tenary Constitutional  Convention,  caught 
fire  from  the  furnace,  and  all  but  the  empty 
granite  walls,  with  their  brick  linings,  was 
destroyed,  and  all  the  contents,  except  the 
library,  which  was  got  out,  and  the  l)ooks 
and  papers  in  the  safe  of  the  Secretary  of 
State's  office,  a  few  articles  of  furniture 
and  the  portrait  of  Washington,  was  re- 
duced to  a  heap  of  ruins. 

BURNING   OF   THE   STATE   HOUSE. 

BY  JOSEPH  A.  WING,  KSQ. 

O'er  Montpelier,  beauteous  town, 

The  shades  of  nij;ht  were  closing  down ; 

The  lovely  moon,  the  queen  of  night, 

Was  driving  on  lier  chariot  briglit; 

And  star  on  star  their  Influence  lent, 

'Till  glowed  with  fire  tlie  firniaiuent. 

The  wind  was  blowing  high  and  strong, 

Aud  swept  in  fearful  gusts  along; 

The  piercing  cold  had  cleared  the  street 

Of  merry  voice  and  busy  feet, — 

And  gathered  'round  the  cheerful  hearth. 

The  smiling  face,  the  social  mirth, 

Show'd  that  the  night  was  gaily  past. 

While  outward  howled  the  roaring  blast. 

What  means  that  wild  and  startling  cry. 
To  which  the  echoing  hills  reply? 
First  feeble,  low,  and  faint  and  mild ; 
Then  loud,  and  terrible  and  wild. 
'Tisfire!  flre!  that  awful  sound  I 
Firel  Are!  firel  the  h  Us  resound! 
Now  rising  near— now  heard  afar, 
The  stillness  of  the  night  to  mar, 
Joih'd  with  the  wind's  wild  roaring,  hear 
The  cry  of  fire  burst  on  the  earl 
Forth  from  the  hearth,  the  shop,  the  store, 
.    At  that  dread  sound,  the  myriads  pour— 
And,  gathering  as  they  pass  along. 
Each  street  and  alley  swells  the  throng. 
The  rattling  engines  passing  by. 
The  roaring  wind,  the  larum  cry. 
The  ringing  bells,  the  wild  afifright. 
Still  add  new  terrors  to  the  night. 

See  yonder  grand  and  stately  pile. 
With  lofty  dome,  and  beauteous  aisle. 
Our  village  glory  and  our  pride. 
Whose  granite  walls  old  Time  defied; 
Her  halls  of  state,  her  works  of  art, 
Both  please  the  eye,  and  charm  the  heart. 

The  moon's  pale  light  on  those  dark  walls 

Coldly  now  is  gleaming; 
But  in  her  proud  and  lofty  halls 

A  wilder  light  is  streaming. 
Now  gaily  dancing  to  and  fro. 
Now  upward  speeds  its  flight- 
See!  on  its  dome,  now  capped  with  snow. 
The  flame  doth  spread  its  fearfi;l  glow 
Of  purple  light. 

The  wind  roars  loud,  the  flames  flash  high. 
Leaping  and  dancing  to  the  sky ; 

While  in  the  rooms  below. 
From  hall  to  hall  resistless  rushing. 
From  doors  and  windows  furious  gushing— 

Oh!  how  sublime  the  show! 


Dark  clouds  of  smoke  spread  far  and  wide. 
And  balls  of  fire  on  every  side 

Fall  like  the  aniumu  hail ; 
Before  the  fury  of  the  blast. 
The  rushing  flames,  that  spread  so  fast. 

The  heart  of  man  may  quail. 

Ah,  man,  how  feeble  is  thy  power. 
In  that  dread  and  fearful  hour 

When  flames  are  flashing  free 
From  lofty  spires  and  windows  high. 
And  clouds  of  smoke  obscure  the  sky. 
As  onward,  on,  the  flames  rush  by 

In  wildest  revelry! 

Roar  on,  fierce  flame;  beneath  thy  power 
The  works  of  years,  in  one  short  hour. 

Are  swept  from  earth  away ; 
And  nought  is  left  of  all  their  pride. 
But  ashes,  scattered  far  and  wide. 
And  crumbling  walls,  with  smoke  dark-dyed. 

Spread  out  in  disarray. 

That  lofty  pile,  one  hour  ago,— 

The  State's  just  pride,  the  Nation's  show, 

Capp'd  with  its  bright  and  virgin  snow,— 

In  beauty  shone: 
The  next,  a  mass  of  ruined  walls. 
Of  columns  broke,  and  burning  halls, — 

Its  beauty  flown. 


FLOODS. 

From  incontestible  indications,  it  ap- 
pears the  water  in  the  unprecedented  rise 
of  the  Winooski  in  the  flood  of  1785,  rose 
some  three  or  four  feet  higher  than  the 
highest  parts  of  State  street.  This  would 
have  submerged  nearly  every  acre  of  the 
whole  of  the  present  site  of  Montpelier 
village  from  one  to  a  dozen  feet,  from  the 
rise  of  the  hills  on  one  side  to  that  of  the 
corresponding  ones  on  the  other  side. 

Floods  filling  the  channels  of  the  river 
and  branch  to  the  tops  of  their  banks,  with 
overflows  in  all  the  lower  places,  were  of 
almost  yearly  occurrence  during  the  first 
20  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  town. 
But  the  first  one  that  fairly  overflowed  the 
banks  and  came  into  the  streets  to  much 
extent,  occurred,  as  far  as  we  have  been 
able  to  ascertain,  in  the  summer  about 
18 ID,  the  water  submerging  all  the  lower 
parts  of  Main  and  State  streets,  bursting 
over  the  western  bank  of  the  branch  just 
above  State  street  bridge,  tearing  out  the 
earth  near  the  bridge,  rendering  the  street 
nearly  impassible  for  wagons,  and  leaving, 
on  the  subsiding  of  the  flood,  a  pond  hole 
6  or  8  feet  deep  and  20  wide,  extending  to 
the  border  of  the  street.  Into  this  hole 
one  of  the  lawyers  blundered  on  a  dark 


MONTPELIER. 


339 


night  some  time  afterwards,  as  we  recollect 
from  the  circumstance  that  the  wags  of 
the  village  dubbed  him  for  the  time, 
"Walk-in-the-Water,"  in  allusion  to  the 
name  of  the  Indian  chief,  who,  about  the 
same  time,  had  in  some  way  become  known 
to  the  public. 

In  this  hole  was  subsequently  drowned, 
from  falling  in  during  a  dark  evening, 
Carver  Shurtleff,  a  little  man  with  a  big 
voice,  noted  for  expertness  in  flax-dressing 
and  his  propensity  for  trading  in  dogs. 

March  24,  25,  1826,  on  the  breaking  up 
of  the  river,  an  unusually  high  spring  flood 
swept  away  the  old  trestle-bridge  lead- 
ing across  the  river  to  Berlin,  and  car- 
ried off"  the  grist  mill  of  James  H.  Lang- 
don,  on  the  Berlin  side.  This  flood  oc- 
curred in  the  night,  and  was  entirely 
unexpected.  Probably  less  than  a  dozen 
people  witnessed  it,  and  can  testify  to  the 
peril  in  which  many  families  were  placed. 
As  the  ice  broke  up  above  Langdon's  mill, 
it  formed  a  dam  upon  the  bridge  and  piers, 
and  almost  the  entire  river  was  turned 
through  what  is  now  Barre  street  and  the 
lower  part  of  Main  street,  in  a  body  like  a 
wall  or  large  wave.  My  informant  saw  it 
coming  near  the  Shepard  tavern,  was 
forced  to  run  with  all  speed,  and  found  no 
refuge  until  he  reached  the  portico  of  the 
Union  House.  Fortunately  this  change  in 
the  course  of  the  river  lasted  but  a  few 
minutes,  else  marty  houses  would  have 
been  swept  off.  The  bridge  gave  way, 
and  with  it  the  dam,  taking  a  part  of  one 
of  the  paper  mills  and  the  river  wall  of 
Langdon's  grist  mill,  and  on  the  following 
day  the  grist  mill  fell  into  the  stream. 

Sept.  1828,  occuried  the  flrst  of  what 
are  called  the  two  great  floods  at  Mont- 
pelier  village.  After  nearly  three  days  of 
almost  continued  rain,  which  grew  more 
copious  every  day,  and  ended  with  an  ex- 
cessively heavy  and  prolonged  shower  on 
the  night  of  the  4th,  the  water  rose  4  or  5 
feet  higher  than  had  been  known  since  the 
town  was  settled,  and  nearly  the  whole 
village,  cellars,  streets  and  ground  floors 
were  inundated.  Two  bridges  and  a  barn, 
on  the  North  Branch,  were  swept  away, 
and  fences,  wood-piles  and  lumber  along 


the  banks  very  generally  carried  down 
stream.  The  office  of  the  writer  of  these 
pages  was  then  in  Langdon's  great  brick 
building  on  the  corner.  His  boarding- 
place  was  at  W.  W.  CadwelPs,  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  street,  and  a  pretty  cor- 
rect idea  of  the  depth  of  the  water  may  be 
had  in  the  fact,  which  we  distinctly  re- 
member, that  at  noon,  when  the  water  had 
attained  its  height,  Mr.  Cadwell  came  for 
us  in  a  skiff",  and  running  it  into  the  entry- 
way  leading  to  the  offices  on  the  second 
floor,  took  us  in  from  the  third  stair,  and 
rowing  us  across  the  street  and  into  the 
front  hall,  landed  us  on  the  fourth  stair 
leading  to  the  chambers  of  his  own  house, 
where  the  cooking  for  the  family  on  that 
day  could  only  be  done. 

The  second,  and  still  greater,  of  these 
floods,  was  July  29,  1830,  when  the  water 
rose  full  6  inches  higher  than  in  the  last, 
and  ran  over  the  window-sills  and  into  the 
lower  rooms  of  several  houses  around  the 
head  of  State  street.  The  two  lower 
bridges  over  the  Branch  were  again  swept 
away.  The  office  building  of  Joshua  Y. 
Vail,  on  State  street,  was  floated  off",  and 
lodged  in  a  low  branching  tree  near  the 
old  Episcopal  church,  from  which  it 
was  afterwards  lowered  down,  and  drawn 
back  to  its  old  stand.  Two  other  small 
buildings,  standing  near  the  bank  of  the 
Branch,  were  carried  down  stream,  and 
wholly  broken  up  in  the  rapids  below  the 
village.  Much  damage  was  occasioned  by 
this  gi-eat  flood,  but  it  was  marked  by  the 
still  greater  calamity  of  the  loss  of  life. 
Nathaniel  Bancroft,  of  Calais,  a  middle- 
aged  farmer  of  considerable  property,  was 
drowned.  We  then  resided  near  the  east- 
erly end  of  Main  street,  on  the  swell  where 
Carlos  Bancroft  now  lives.  Towards  noon, 
at  the  height  of  the  water,  we  threw  to- 
gether a  few  plank  in  the  edge  of  the  water 
which  came  to  the  foot  of  that  rise,  about 
10  rods  from  the  Loomis  house,  near  the 
residence  of  Dr.  Charles  Clark,  mounted 
our  rude  raft  with  a  setting  pole,  and 
sailed  through  the  entire  length  of  Main 
street  to  the  end  of  the  Arch  Bridge  over 
the  river.  When  about  midway  on  the 
voyage,   Mr.   Bancroft,    with  one  or  two 


340 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


others  from  the  same  quarter,  who  had 
come  down  to  see  the  flood,  rushed  past 
us  on  the  sidewalk,  which  was  covered  with 
less  depth  of  water,  all  evidently  much  ex- 
cited by  the  novelties  of  the  scene,  and, 
regardless  of  a  wetting,  making  their  way 
through  the  water  as  fast  as  possible 
toward  the  corner,  where  the  greatest 
damage  was  expected  to  occur.  As  we 
were  nearing  the  old  Shepard  tavern  stand, 
a  pile  of  wood  at  the  north-easterly  end  of 
the  barn  began  to  rise,  tumble  and  float 
away  in  the  strong,  deep  current,  which 
here  made  from  the  street  through  by  the 
way  of  the  barn  towards  the  confluence  of 
the  branch  and  the  river.  At  this  junc- 
ture, the  luckless  Bancroft,  who  had  just 
reached  a  dry  place  before  the  barn  door, 
and  stood  eating  a  cracker,  rushed  down 
into  the  water  with  the  idea  of  saving 
some  of  the  wood,  and  not  being  aware 
how  rapidly  the  ground  fell  off  here,  was 
in  a  moment  beyond  his  depth,  and  sunk 
to  rise  no  more.  When  his  body  was  re- 
covered, 20  or  30  minutes  afterwards,  his 
mouth  was  found  full  of  half-masticated 
cracker,  life  gone  beyond  all  the  arts  of 
resuscitation.  It  is  probable  he  was  stran- 
gled at  the  outset,  and,  as  others  have 
been  known  to  do,  died  almost  instantly. 

There  have  been  numerous  partial  over- 
flows of  the  streets  at  various  times,  filling 
up  grocery  and  other  cellars,  and  doing 
injuries  to  bridges,  mills  and  other  build- 
ings, by  sudden  winter  floods  and  the  con- 
sequent breaking  up  and  damming  of  the 
ice  in  the  streams,  within,  above  and  below 
the  village.  Among  these  was  one  that 
suddenly  occurred  in  February,  1825,  in 
the  middle  of  a  night  preceded  by  a  re- 
markably warm  and  heavy  rain.  There 
was  a  ball  at  the  Union  House  that  night, 
and  as  John  Pollard,  ol  Barre,  with  his 
sisters  and  others,  were  returning  from 
the  ball,  their  team  became  completely 
imprisoned  on  a  little  knoll  in  a  road 
about  a  mile  above  the  village,  by  mons- 
trous blocks  of  the  disrupting  ice  of  the 
river,  which  were  being  driven  with  amaz- 
ing force  into  the  road  immediately  above 
and  below.  The  party  escaped  to  the 
hills,  and  the  ladies  waded  through  the 


snow,  two  feet  deep,  to  a  house  half  a  mile 
distant,  while  the  team  was  not  extracted 
till  the  next  morning.  Another  sudden 
breaking  up  of  the  ice  occurred  in  January, 
1840,  in  the  evening,  after  a  warm,  rainy 
afternoon.  The  ice,  broken  up  in  the 
river  above,  was,  under  the  impetus  of  the 
rising  water  and  a  strong  south  wind, 
driven  through  the  whole  length  of  the 
mill  pond,  three-fourths  of  a  mile,  in  about 
10  minutes.  It  was  suddenly  brought  to 
a  stand  at  the  narrowing  of  the  channel  at 
the  Arch  Bridge,  when  half  the  whole 
river  was  thrown  over  all  the  lower  part  of 
Barre  street,  and  for  a  short  time  all  the 
buildings  on  that  part  of  the  street  were  in 
imminent  danger  of  being  swept  away. 
Before  much  damage  was  done,  however, 
Mr.  Langdon's  mill  dam  was  crushed 
down  and  forced  away  beneath  the  tre- 
mendous pressure  of  the  ice  above,  when 
the  river  at  once  fell  back  into  its  ordi- 
nary channel. 

Of  the  several  great  floods  that  have  oc- 
cured  in  town  that  of  Oct.  4,  1869,  was  the 
greatest  of  them  all.  On  Saturday  even- 
ing, Oct.  2,  a  severe  rain  storm  set  in,  and 
continued  to  pour  with  scarcely  a  moment's 
interruption  until  the  middle  of  Mon- 
day afternoon.  The  river  banks  began  to 
overflow  about  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
on  Monday.  About  this  time  the  Sand 
Bottom  bridge  across  the  Branch  above 
the  dam  was  carried  away.  It  passed  the 
Foundry  bridge  without  doing  any  dam- 
age, but  the  Academy  bridge  was  carried 
off  when  this  one  struck  it.  The  Union 
House  bridge  also  gave  away  when  struck 
by  these.  As  these  neared  the  Post-office 
bridge  great  alarm  was  felt  for  the  safety 
of  the  Rialto  block.  Fortunately  the  build- 
ing was  strong  enough  to  withstand  the  con- 
cussion received  from  them  when  they 
struck  the  bridge.  The  only  damage  done 
was  the  raising  up  of  the  upper  side  of  the 
bridge  several  feet.  The  water  continued 
to  rise  very  rapidly  until  about  6.30  P.  M., 
when  it  was  at  its  greatest  height,  remain- 
ing at  this  point  until  about  8  o'clock, 
when  it  began  to  fall.  At  5  o'clock  on  the 
following  morning  the  streets  were  again 
passable.     The  depth  of  the  water  in  the 


MONTPELIER. 


341 


streets  and  around  the  village,  except  on 
the  high  lands,  when  at  its  greatest  height, 
was  from  two  to  six  feet,  our  streets  in 
many  parts  of  the  village  having  been 
raised  up  from  one  to  two  feet  since  that 
time.  At  the  head  of  State  street  and  on 
Main  it  was  about  three  and  a  half  feet, 
down  State  street  below  the  Post-office 
bridge  from  five  to  six  feet.  In  the  bar 
room  of  the  American  house  the  water 
was  some  two  and  a  half  feet  in  depth,  it 
being  over  the  top  of  the  cook  stove  in  the 
kitchen.  Many  ludicrous  scenes  were 
witnessed  in  the  attempts  to  save  swine, 
cattle  and  horses.  A  large  number  of 
liogs  under  the  barns  at  the  American 
house  were  first  removed  into  the  bar 
room  and  then  carried  to  the  chambers 
above.  The  Washington  County  court 
being  in  session  at  the  time,  the  court 
officials,  lawyers,  jurymen,  etc.,  were  con- 
veyed to  their  boarding  places  in  a  boat  by 
Mr.  James  R.  Langdon,  the  boat  rowing 
into  the  court  house  yard,  and  taking  them 
from  the  steps.  Among  those  who  had 
narrow  escapes  from  drowning  were  Mr. 
James  G.  Slafter  of  this  town,  and  Mr. 
Tucker  of  Northfield,  who  in  attempting 
to  get  from  the  depot  to  the  Pavilion,  got 
on  to  Mr.  Dewey's  hay  scales,  which  were 
rioating  down  the  street.  Failing  to  man- 
age their  unwieldly  bark,  they  were  carried 
down  the  street  as  they  were,  being  drawn 
into  the  current,  but  saved  themselves  by 
catching  the  limbs  of  the  trees  near  where 
Mr.  Badord  now  lives,  from  which  they 
were  saved  by  a  boat. 

A  very  laughable  scene  was  that  of  a  boat 
load  being  conveyed  from  the  court  house 
to  the  Pavilion.  When  opposite  that  ho- 
tel, the  boat  struck  the  top  of  a  hitching 
post  as  it  was  passing  over  it,  and  cap- 
sized. They  all  scrambled  to  their  feet 
and  waded  into  this  hotel.  At  6  o'clock, 
the  Railroad  bridge  was  carried  off.  It 
floated  down  stream  whole,  taking  one  of 
the  large  trees  off  on  the  bank  of  the  river 
just  below  E.  P.  Jewett's.  In  striking  the 
center  pier  of  the  railroad  bridge  at  Jewett 
crossing,  it  swung  around  into  the  field  on 
the  north  side,  and  there  remained  until 
taken  to  pieces  and  brought  back.     A  very 


large  amount  of  loss  was  caused  by  the 
damage  to  the  carpets  and  furniture  in  the 
residences  and  to  the  goods  in  the  stores, 
sufficient  time  not  being  given  for  their  re- 
moval. A  large  amount  of  wood  was  lost 
by  floating  away,  cords  of  it  passing  down 
through  the  streets.  The  town  suffered 
loss  to  the  extent  of  several  thousand  dol- 
lars by  the  loss  of  bridges,  and  nearly  all 
of  the  plank  street  crossings  flowing  away. 
The  brick  side  walks  in  town  were  ruined, 
the  sand  being  washed  out  from  under 
them,  and  the  bricks  being  piled  in  heaps 
about.  There  was  no  loss  of  life.  All  of 
the  boats  that  were  to  be  had  were  made 
available  b\'  the  removing  of  goods  and 
persons  to  places  of  safety.  The  water 
was  estimated  to  be  about  18  inches  higher 
than  it  was  in  1830. 

[Note. — The  record  of  the  fires,  acci- 
dents, crimes,  and  floods,  occurring  pre- 
vious to  i860,  we  take  from  Thompson's 
History  of  Montpelier.]  b. 

REVOLUTIONARY   SOLDIERS, 

who  lived  and  died  in  this  town  : 

Col.  Jacob  Davis,  aged  75.  Eliakim  D. 
Persons,  died  in  1846,  aged  81.  Estis 
Hatch,  died  in  1834,  aged  86.  Luther 
King,  died  in  1842,  aged  88.  Aaron  Gris- 
wold,  died  in  1847,  aged  95.  Ziba  Wood- 
worth,  died  in  1826,  aged  66,  and  his  broth- 
er, Joseph  Wood  worth,  the  date  of  whose 
death  is  unknown. 

Some  16  other  early  settlers  of  this  town 
were  also  Revolutionary  soldiers,  but  lived 
in  that  part  of  the  town  now  East  Mont- 
pelier. Doubtless  there  were  others  who 
resided  here,  but  I  am  unable  to  learn 
their  names. 

For  Soldiers  of  181 2,  see  page  298. 

MEXICAN   WAR. 

Four  soldiers  enlisted  from  this  town, 
and  serve?d  through  the  war,  nearly  two 
years,  in  the  9th  reg't  U.  S.  vols.  : — Rich- 
ard Dodge,  Daniel  Cutler,  Luman  Grout, 
William  Guinan.  Cutler  left  the  regiment 
in  Mexico,  and  never  returned.  Dodge, 
Grout  and  Guinan  served  through  the  Re- 
bellion. Guinan  died  a  few  years  ago, 
and  Dodge  and  Grout  are  now  both  living 
in  town. 


342 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


List  of  Men  furnished  by  the  Town  of  Montpelier,  1861-1865. 
Compiled  mainly  from  the  Adjutant  General's  Reports,  from  1864  to  1872,  inclusive, 

BY  ClIAS.  DK  F.  BANCROFT. 
FIRST   REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE    MONTHS. 

Mustered  into  service,  May  2,  1S61.     Mustered  out  August  15,  1861. 


Names.  Age. 

Buxton,  John  H.  18 

Coffey,  Robert  J.  19 

Goodwin,  Royal  B.  22 

Gove,  Freeman  R.  27 

Newcomb,  George  W.  18 

Webster,  Oscar  N.  26 


Co.      Eiilistiuent.  Uemarks. 

F  Mustered  out  Aug.  15,  61. 


do 
do 
do 
do 
do 


SECOND   REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 


Allen,  Andrew  H. 
Ballou,  Horace  C. 
Ballou,  Jerome  E. 
Barrett,  John 
Bennett,  Amos  N. 
*Brown,  Harvey  W. 
Bryant,  Eliphalet  E. 
tBryant,  James  G. 
Burgin,  Patrick 
Burnham,  William  T. 
Camp,  William  H. 
Clark,  Charles 
Clark,  Dayton  R 
Cassavaint,  Thomas  L. 
Contant,  Augustus 
Grossman,  Horace  F. 
Dodge,  Richard  S. 
Field,  William  C. 
Fitzgerald,  Timothy 
Ford,  Abraham 
Gravlin,  John 
Goodrich,  Victor 
Goron,  Josejih  N. 
Guinan,  William 
Guinan,  Edmund 
Gunnison,  Eri  S. 
Guyette,  Cyril  G. 
Harran,  Selden  B. 
Harran.  Ira  L. 
Hogan,  Dennis 
Jabouzie,  'Charles 
Kelton,  John  A. 
La  Monte,  Robert 
Lapierre,  Nelson 
Loomis,  Elverton 
Macon,  Alfred 
tMahoney,  Sylvester  D. 
Maloney,  Thomas 
McCaully,  Thomas 
McNamara,  John 
Minouge,  William 
tNoyes,  Wallace  W. 
Neveaux,  Seraphine 
Parker,  Jared 
Perrin,  Julius 
Persons,  Plynne  C 
Phillips,  Walter  A. 
Quinn,  John 
Randall,  Francis  V. 
Rodney,  Lewis 
Rose,  Peter 
Rose,  William 
Sanders,  Joseph  A. 


Mustered  into  service,  June  20,  i86r. 

18     D     May     7  61  Died  July  26,  61. 

¥  do  Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 

F  do  Sergt.     Discharged  Feb.  23,  63. 

B     Mar.  20  62  Mustered  out  March  25,  65. 

F     May   11  61  Pro.  Corp.  Killed  at  Fredericsb'gh,  Mar.  3,  63. 

F     May   17  61  Re-enlisted.  Mustered  out  July  17,  65. 

K     May   16  61  Discharged  Nov.  23,  61. 

B     Aug.    4  63  Mustered  out  July  16,  65. 

July    30  62  Killed  at  Bank's  Ford,  May  3,  63. 

May  23  61  Capt.     Resigned  Oct.  25,  61. 

May     7  61  Sergt.     Mustered  out  June  20,  64. 

June     7  61  Discharged  March  6,  62. 

May     7  61  Rec'd  prom,  to  Capt.     Must,  out  June  29,  64. 

Aug.  2061  Prom.  Serg.  Re-enlist.  Must,  out  July  15,  65. 

June    9  61  Dis.  Jan.  23,  63.  Sub.  July,  63.  do. 

Aug  20  61  Pro.  Capt.     Hon.  dis.  Oct.  30,  63,  for  wds.  rec. 

May     7  61  Discharged  March  29,  63. 

do  Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 

Aug   23  61  Re-enlisted  Dec.  21,  63.  Deserted  Feb.  11,  64. 

June  16  61  Sergt.     Discharged  Nov.  20,  63. 

Mar   20  63  Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 

May     7  61  Killed  at  Bull  Run,  July  21,  61. 

Aug   1662  Prom.  Serg.     Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 

May     7  61  Sergt.     Discharged  Sept.  21,  61. 

do  Discharged  July  25,  63. 

do  Corp.     Mustered  out  June  20,  64. 

do  Pro.  Com.  Serg.  Re-en.  Must,  out  July  16,  65. 

do  Died  Nov.   14,  61. 

June     661  Deserted  Sept.  15,  63. 

Aug    20  61  Discharged  vSept.  29,  63. 

Dec    29  62  Discharged  July  18,  63. 

May     7  61  Discharged  Nov.  27,  62. 

June  15  61  Mustered  out  June  23,  64. 

Mar      I  62  Discharged  March  8,  63. 

May    7,  61  Discharged  Sept.  13,  62,  for  wounds  received. 

May  20  61  Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 

July   27  63  Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Aug    II  61  Mustered  out  Sept.  12,  64. 

May     7  61  Pro.  Sergt.    Re-en.    Mustered  out  July  16,  65. 

H     Aug  20  61  Deserted  July  20,  62. 

H  do  Killed  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64. 

F    July   21  63  Received  wounds.  Mustered  out  Aug.,  65. 

K     Mar    11  62  Pro.  Corp.     Mustered  out  July  11,  65. 

F     May     7  61  Transferred  to  Invalid  Corps,  Sept.  i,  63. 

F  do  Discharged  Nov.  7,  61. 

F  -  July    21  61  Discharged  Sept.,  61. 

F     May     7  61  ist  Lieutenant.  Discharged  Dec.  31,  61. 

H     May   25  61  Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 

F  do  Capt.     Pro.  Col.  13th  Reg't  Sept.  24,  62. 

B     Mar   29  62  Mustered  out  April  24,  65. 

H     May   16  61  Discharged  Feb.  i6,  63. 

F     Feb    18  62  Pro.  Corp.  Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 

F     May     7  61  Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 


21 

20 
41 
30 

19 
21 

28  B 

30  D 

43  H 

21  F 
H 

21  F 

22  H 
F 
F 
D 
F 

H 
H 
E 
F 
F 
F 
F 
F 
F 
F 
D 


24  H 

24  K 

22  F 

21  D 

:^5  F 

20  F 

26  F 

37  F 

39  H 

18  F 
26 
23 


20 
21 

36 
29 


MONTPELIER. 


343 


I!<iii;irl;s. 
Mustered  out  June  25,  61;. 
Pro.  Corp.  Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12, 64. 
Mustered  out  Oct.  12,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 
Killed  at  Wilderness,  May  4,  64. 
Discharged  Oct.  25,  61. 
Died  June  28,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 
Discharged  Dec.  4,  62.  [Fredericksburgh. 

Re-en.  Died  May  12,  64,  of  wciunds  recei'd  at 
Discharged  July  24,  62. 

FANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

vice,  July  16,  1861. 
Mustered  out  July  11,  65. 
Killed  at  Lee's  Mills,  April  16,  62. 
Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  Julv  11,  65. 
Died  Dec.  16,  63. 

Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  Julv  11,  65. 
Died  Feb.  6,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  27,  64. 
Discharged  August,  65,  for  wounds  received. 
Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 
Discharged  March  10,  63. 
Re-enlisted.     Discharged  Sept.  5,  66. 

RTH    REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service,  Sept.  20,  1861. 

24     D  Aug   28  61  Re-en.     Pro.  to  Capt.     Hon.  dis.  March  8,  65. 
for  wounds  received.  [Juty  15,  65. 

G  Aug    27  61  Pro.  1st  Lt.     Re-en.     Taken  pris.     Must,  out 

K  Sept     5  61  Pro.  Sergt.     Mustered  out  Sept.  30,  64. 

K  Aug    16  63  Discharged  March  9,  64. 

G  July    24  63  Died  in  Andersonville  prison,  October,  64. 

K  Sept     7  61  Discharged  May  9,  64. 

G  Mar    17  62  Discharged  Feb.  8,  64. 

G  Sept     2  61  Killed  at  P'redericksburgh,  Sept.  19,  62. 

G  Sept     9  61  Died  Feb.  26,  64,  of  wounds  received. 

G  Sept  24  61  Discharged  March  9,  63. 

G  Sept  19  61  Died  Oct.  5,  62,  of  wounds  received. 

G  Aug   24  61  Pro.  Corp.     Must,  out  Sept.  30,  64. 

G  Mar      3  62  Pro.  Corp.     Must,  out  July  13,  65. 

K  Aug    13  62  Died  March  12,  63. 


Shainbeau,  Francis 
Shorcy,  Elscine 
Stearns,  Parish  L. 
Stearns,  Henrv 
Stone,  Horatio 
Storrs,  Charles  W. 
Taylor,  Benjamin 
Town,  Josiah  L. 
Wade,  Charles,  jr. 
White,  George  A. 
Wright,  Edwin  N. 


*Burke,  John,  jr. 
Divine,  Patrick 
Dudley,  David 
Franklin,  Roswell 
Laundrv,  Joseph 
Loomis,  Vernon  L. 
Mason,  William  R. 
*McLaughlin,  Charles 
McManus,  James  W. 
Rose,  Frank 
Severance,  George  S. 


Aikens,  Joseph  P. 

Chamberlain,  Russell  T. 
Coffey,  Robert  J. 
Davis,  Frank 
tGilman,  Sidney  A. 
Gove,  Freeman  R. 
*Goodwin,  Lucius  J. 
Kent,  Hermon  O. 
Ladue,  Joseph 
Mailhote,  Leonard   H. 
Mailhote,  Victor  W. 
Silloway,  Henry  F. 
*Silloway,  Charles  P. 
Smith,  Levi 


A.sf. 

Co. 

Knlistiiicnt. 

41 

C 

Mar     6  62 

24 
18 

F 
F 

May     7  61 
Oct     JO  61 

39 
19 

20 

23 

F 
D 
F 
F 

May     7  61 

Dec      9  63 

May     7  6r 

do 

21 

F 

do 

36 

F 

do 

20 

F 

Aug    20  61 

27 

F 

May     7  61 

IRD 

REGIMENT   OF    IN 

Mustered  into  ser' 

18 

iS 

25 

K 
K 
K 

Feb    T3  64 

July    ID  61 

do 

45 
23 
18 

H 
K 
H 

June     I  61 
do 
do 

28 

B 

June    3  61 

20 
25 
33 
19 

K 

K 
H 

I 

Jan       2  64 
Aug   22  63 
June     I  61 
July      5  61 

FIFTH    REGIMENT   OF   INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  Sept.  16,  1861. 


Bickford,  Frederick  T. 
Dodge,  William 
Fuller,  George  H. 
Goodwin,  David 
Goodwin,  Royal  B. 
Gray,  Ira  S. 
Hoyt,  Orlena 
Hawley,  Amos  B. 
Rice,  James 
Spalding,  Charles  C. 


23  Band  Aug  29  61  Discharged  April  11,  62. 

42     do    Sept  3  61                         do 

27    do     Aug  29  61                         do 
21    do            do                                do 

23  A     Sept  16  61  Discharged  Jan.  19,  63. 

24  D     Sept  5  61  Killed  at  Savage  Station,  June  29, 62. 
24     D     July  18  62  Discharged  March  4,  63. 

27     D     Sept  20  61  Pro.  Sergt.     Mustered  out  Sept.  15,  64. 

30  Band  Aug  24  6r  Leader.     Discharged  April  11,  62. 

36     D     Sept  16  61  1st  Lieut.     Hon.  dis.  for  disabil.  Oct.  10,  62 


SIXTH   REGIMENT   OF   INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 


tAinsworth,  James  S. 
{Campbell,  Alex.  jr. 
Chandler,  Charles  M. 
Clark,  John  W. 

Hatch,  George 
tHorr,  John  P. 
Johnson,  P'rank 
Lord,  Nathan,  jr. 
tLewis,  Frank  L. 
Ormsbee,  George  W. 
Phelps,  John  D. 


Mustered  into  service,  Oct.  15,  1861. 

20  H  July    20  63  Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 
27     K  July   22  63  Mustered  out  June  25,  65. 

34  Oct     29  61  Surgeon.     Resigned  Oct.  7,  63. 

33  Oct     14  61  Q.  M.     Pro.  Capt.  &  Ass't  Q.  M.  U.  S.  Vols., 
[Apiil  7,  64.     Resigned  Dec.  7,  64. 

29  Oct     15  61  Q.  M.    Pro.  ist  Lieut.    Must,  out  Oct.  28,  64. 
F  July    22  63  Killed  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  64. 

18     H  Aug     4  61  Pro.  Sergt.     Re-en.     Must,  out  July  19,  65. 

30  Sept  16  61  Colonel.     Resigned  Dec.  iS,  62. 

21  H  July    18  63  Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 

18     H  Aug     4  6i  Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 

30      B  Aug     9  61  Discharged  Dec.  31,  63. 


344 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Nmiiics.  Xgi-.  Co.  EntiblniLMit. 

Raymond,  Levi  27  H  Aug    14  61 

Stone,  Adoniram  J.  18  H  Aug    11  61 

Stone,  Henrv  C.  20  H  do 

tSpaulding,  John  P.  23  H  July    23  63 

JSprague,  Frederic  W.  A  July    13  63 

White,  Henry  18  F  Oct      3  61 

•fWillev,  Norman  21  B  July   31  63 

JWille'v,  William  H.  28  B  July    1563 


Keiuaiks. 
Pro.  Corp.     Re-en.     Muster,  out  June  26,  65. 
Discharged  March  10,  62. 
Discharged  Oct.  30,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 
Killed  in  action,  June  5,  64. 
Discharged  Nov.  3,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 
do 


Fowler,  Levi  D. 
*Goodwin,  Lucius  J. 
Kent,  Lorenzo  E. 
Storrs,  Charles  W. 


Abbott,  Henry  C. 
Brown,  Edward  M. 
Dewey,  Edward 

Foster,  Isaac  G. 
Getchell,  John  W. 
Jones,  Alonzo 
Nichols,  Roswell  S. 
Sinclair,  Hiram  D. 
Smith,  Fred.  E. 
Thayer,  James  E. 
Webster,  Oscar  N. 


Brown,  Stephen 
Jacobs,  Don  L. 
McManus.  Patrick 
Plant,  Charles 
Preston,  Asa  L. 
Smith,  Otis  B. 
*Seymour,  Isaac 
Sylvester,  Frank 


Ayer,  Albert  J. 
Bailey,  Gustave 
Bovar,  Peter 
Bradley,  Henry  M. 
Brooks,  Robert 
Brown,  George  G. 
Burgess,  Charles 
Burke,  John 
Carr,  James  M. 
Cayhue,  Tuffield,  Jr. 
Coburn,  Curtis  A. 
Edson,  John  H. 
Glysson,  Andrew  J. 
Greeley,  Allen 
Hubbard,  George  J. 
Hall,  Lewis  A. 
Kennedy,  Felix 
Pierce,  Hiram  M. 
Selinas,  Julius 
Smith,  Hiram  S. 
Smith,  John  G. 
Stetson,  Ezra 
Stickney,  Edward  J. 
Storrs,  Oilman 
Waldron,  Ezekiel  S. 
Wood,  Joseph  Jr. 


SEVENTH    REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  Feb.  12,  1862. 
18     K     Dec  13  61     Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  May  18,  65, 
18     K     Oct     18  64     Taken  prisoner.     Mustered  out  May  18,  65. 

20  K     Jan     2062     Pro.  Sergt.     Re-en.     Mustered  out  May  4,  66. 

21  K     July    23  63     Died  Apr  15,  65,  of  wds  reed  at  Spanish  Fort. 

EIGHTH    REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service,  Feb.  18,  1862. 
30      C     Nov   19  63     Pro.  ist  Lieutenant  in  2d  La.  Regiment. 
Lieut.  Colonel.     Resigned  Dec.  23,  63. 
Q.  M.     Pro.  Capt.  &  Asst.  Q.  M.  U.  S.  Vols., 

Feb.  II,  65.     Res.  May  29,  65. 
Discharged  Oct.  12,  63. 
Re-enlisted.     Mustered  out  June  28,  65. 
Discharged  Oct.  16,  62. 
Discharged  June  30,  62. 
Discharged  Jan.  4,  63. 
Q.  M.     Resigned  Nov.  30,  63. 
Sergt.  Killed  at  Bayou  des  Allems,  Sept.  4,  62. 
Discharged  Oct.  15,  62. 

NINTH    REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  July  9,  1862. 
I      June  25  62     Discharged  March  14,  63. 


40 

34 

Jan 
Jan 

9  62 
12  64 

ii 

E 
E 

Jan 
Dec 

462 
10  61 

44 
41 

E 
E 

Jan 

Nov 

662 
3061 

44 

E 

Sept 

2861 

31 

35 
27 

E 

I 

Oct 
Dec 

I  61 
361 

44 
25 
44 
21 
20 
18 
44 


28 


35 
18 

38 
43 
27 
18 


19 
26 


23 

37 


25 


I  'May  31  62  Mustered  out  July  8,  65. 

G  June     5  62  Discharged  Nov.  1 5,  62. 

I  May   26  62  Deserted  July  30,  62. 

I  June  16  62  Discharged  July  5,  65. 

I  June  23  62  Discharged  Nov.  3,  62. 

I  do  Discharged  Feb.  20,  63. 

I  May  29- 62  Discharged  Dec.  i,  62. 

REGIMENT   OF    INFANTRY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  Sept.  i,  1862. 
B     July    30  62     Died  Sept.  16,  63. 


B  do  Discharged  Nov.  3,  62. 

B  July   30  62  Deserted  June  19,  64. 

B  "       do  Discharged  Mar.  5,  63. 

B  July    24  62  Died  in  Danville  Prison,  Dec.  23,  64. 

B  July   30  62  Promoted  Corporal.    Must  out  June  22,  65. 

B  July    18  62  Discharged  Sept.  17,  63. 

B  do  Died  at  Brandy  Station, Va.,  Nov.  9,  64. 

B  July   30  62  Corporal.     Pro.  Sergeant.     Died  July  i,  64. 

B  do  Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 

B  July    12  62  Trans,  to  Signal  Corp.  Sept  i,  63. 

Aug   27  62  Lieutenant  Colonel.     Resigned  Oct.  16,  62. 

B  July   30  62  Mustered  out  June  21,  65. 

B  July    26  62  Pro.  Corp.    Died  July  i,  64,  of  w'ds  rec'd. 

B  July   30  62  Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 
B            do  do 

B  July   28  62  Died  Dec.  8,  63.  [action. 

B  July   30  62  Serg't.   Dis.  Sept.  23,  64,  for  wounds  rec'd.  in 

B  do  Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 

B  Aug     4  62  Pro.  Sergeant.     Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 

B  July   30  62  Mustered  out  June  22,  65. 

B  Aug     462  1st  Lieut.    Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 

B  July  3062  Corp.  Pro.  to  ist  Lieut.   Must,  out  June  22,65. 

B  do  Killed  at  Mine  Run,  Nov.  27,  63. 

B  do  Died  Apr.  6,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

B  do  .  Promoted  Corporal.  Mustered  out  June  22,64. 


MONTPELIER. 


345 


ELKVENTH    REGIMENT,    HEAVY   ARTILLERY.       THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service,  Sept.  ii,  1862. 


Names. 
Anson,  Charles  H. 
Buxton,  Harris  B. 
Carlton,  Alfred  L. 
Clark,  Charles  W. 

Felt,  George  M. 
Field,  Daniel  G. 
*Hunt,  William  H. 
Rice,  James 
Wells,  William 
Wilson,  John  R. 


A^e.    Co.      Enlistment.  Remarks, 

21            Aug   3062  Q.  M.  Pro.  Capt.  Co.  E.  Must,  out  June  24, 65. 

19     H     July     362  Died  Feb.  20,  63.                                       [11.63. 

23  Aug    14  62  Q.  M.  Pro.  Capt.  and  C.  of  S.  U.  S.  V.  March 

24  .Sept     I  62  C.  S.  Pro.  ist  Lieut.  Co.  G.  63.     Mustered  out 

June  24,  65. 

(8      I     July    19  62  Pro.  Corp.     Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 

Aug    n  62  H.  S.     Discharged  December  22,  62. 

64  Discharged  Oct.  10,  64,  at  New  Haven,  Conn. 

F     Aug    1262  Capt.  Honorably  dis.  for  disability,  Apr.  2265. 

I      Aug    26  62  Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 

62  Rec'd.  pro  to  ist  Lieut.  Must,  out  June  24,  65. 


J)- 
26 

19 


THIRTEENTH    RE(;iMENT    INFANTRY.      NINE    MONTHS. 


Mustered  into  service,  Oct.  10,  i 

Alexander,  Thomas  C.  31  I  Aug   2562 

Ballou,  Wallace  H.  28  I            do 

*Ballou,  Jerome  E.  21  C  Oct     2962 

Bixby,  Freeman  23  A  Aug    25  62 

Brown,  Andrew  C.  34                    do 

*  Burke,  Walter  21  H  Sept  1962 

Campbell,  James  18  I  Aug   25  62 

Cannon,  Fergus  38  H  Oct     10  62 

Clark,  Albert  22  I  Aug   25  62 

Dakin,  Henry  44  H  Sept  27  62 

Daniels,  William  iS  I  Aug    25  62 

Davis,  George  H.  35  I             do 

Davis,  Isaac  K.  28  I             do 

Dewey,  Peter  G.  19  I             do 

Dodge,  Wallace  W.  19  I             do 

Farwell,  John  G.  19  I             do 

Flanders,  John  P.  24  I             do 

Hoyt,  Franklin  45  I              do 

Jangraw,  Frank  18  I             do 

Kneeland,  Howland  19  I             do 

Ladd,  John  W.  22  I             do 

Lamb,  James  C.  26  1             do 

Langdon,  John  B.  Jr.  19  I             do 

Laviolette,  Eugene  27  I             do 

Lemwin,  George  E.  21  I             do 

Marr,  Hobart  J.  18  I  Aug  25  62 

Marsh,  Eli  T.  27  C  Aug   29  62 

McLaughlin,  Charles  18  H  Sept  29  62 

Mitchell,  David  21  I  Aug   25  62 

Morris,  Francis  18  I             do 

Noyes,  William  45  I             do 

Peck,  Alonzo  D.  23  I             do 

Peck,  George  A.  20  I             do 

Peck,  James  S.  23  I             do 

Piper,  Wilber  F.  24  I             do 

Prentiss,  Samuel  F.  20  I             do 

Randall,  Charles  F.  18  I  Sept  24  62 

Randall,  Francis  V.  37  Sept  13  62 

Roaks,  William  18  H  Sept  29  62 

Seaver,  Curtis  H.  22  I  Aug   25  62 

Smith,  H.  Dwight  27  I             do 

Smith,  Guy  24  I             do 

Swazey,  Charles  D.  29  I             do    - 

Taylor,  Nelson  A.  30                    do 

Van  Orman,  John  J.  25  I             do 

Washburn,  Charles  PL  44  I             do 

Welch,  John  21  I             do 

Wright,  Prentice  C.  23  I            do 

Wright,  Benjamin  N.  30  I             do 


862  ;  mustered  out,  July  2X,  1863. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Corp.     Pro.  S.  M.     Must,  out  July  21,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
H.  S.     Mustered'  out  July  21,  63. 
Lieut.  Col.     Resigned  Mav  5,  63. 
Died  Mar.  4,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do      '  ' 

Serg't.     Pro.  1st  Lieut.    Must,  out  July  25,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 
Corporal.     Discharged  May  5,  63. 
Discharged  Feb.  4,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 

do 

do 
Mustered  out   [ulv  21,  63. 

do" 
Discharged  Nov.  25,  62. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Pro.  Com.  Sergt.     Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 

do 

do 
Corporal.     Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 

do 
Discharged  February  28,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Discharged  Jan.  25,  63.  [July  21,  63. 

2d  Lieut.     Pro.  Adjutant.  Jan.  63.     Must,  out 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63.  [21,  63. 

S.  M.    Pro.  2d  Lieut.  Feb.  63.    Must,  out  July 
S.  M.    Pro.  2d  Lieut.  Jan.  63.     Must,  out  July 

21,63. 
Colonel.     Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 
Pro.  Corp.     Must,  out  July  21,  63.  [July2i,63. 
Com.  Serg't.  Pro.  C.  M.  S.  Nov.  62.  Must,  out 
Mustered  out  July  23,  63.  [21,  63. 

Q.  M.  S.  Pro.  Q.  M.  Nov.  62.    Must,  out  July 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do 

do 
Discharged  Jan  31,  63. 
Killed  at  Gettysburgh,  July  3,  63. 


Poland,  J.  Monroe 
44 


FIFTEENTH   REGIMENT   INFANTRY.      NINE   MONTHS. 
Mustered  into  service,  1862  ;  out,  in  1863. 
21  Aug     2  62     Adjutant.     Mustered  out  Aug.  5,  63. 


346 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


SEVENTEENTH    REGIMENT.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service 


Names, 

Age. 

Co. 

EiillstmeiU. 

Atherton,  Omri  S. 

22 

C 

Feb 

1564 

Burbank,  William  B. 

24 

E 

Aug 

22  64 

Camp,  Harley  W. 

3- 

E 

Jan 

I  64 

Cannon,  Fergus 

39 

C 

Nov 

563 

Carpenter,  Chauncey 

35 

C 

Dec 

31  63 

Cassivaint,  Oliver 

34 

D 

Feb 

16  64 

Dow,  Napoleon 

22 

C 

do 

*  Dodge,  Richard  S. 

40 

K 

Aug 

264 

Emerson,  Andrew  A. 

•  18 

E 

Feb 

1864 

Fisk,  Seymour  M. 

35 

E 

do 

Girard,  Alfred 

18 

C 

do 

Oilman,  Charles 

19 

E 

Oct 

2963 

Gould,  Gustavus 

21 

E 

Feb 

2464 

Guinan,  William 

3- 

E 

Feb 

2964 

Hoyt,  Franklin 

46 

C 

Aug 

2563 

Lamb,  James  C. 

27 

E 

Dec 

2363 

Ladosa,  Joseph 

25 

C 

Feb 

17  64 

Lavally,  Henry 

19 

C 

Feb 

1964 

Mahuron,  Horace 

iS 

C 

Feb 

1864 

*Marshall,  William 

45 

E 

Mar 

17  64 

Nichols,  Roswell  S. 

44 

C 

Feb 

16  64 

Peck,  James  S. 

24 

E 

Dec 

363 

Randall,  Charles  W. 

18 

C 

Feb 

23  64 

Randall,  Francis  V. 

40 

Feb 

10  64 

*Rose,  Joseph 

23 

H 

May 

10  64 

*Robinson,  Geo.  S. 

32 

E 

Apr 

12  64 

St.  John,  Andrew 

44 

C 

Feb 

25  64 

St.  John,  Dominique 

38 

C 

Feb 

17  64 

Taro,  John 

C 

Feb 

16  64 

Voodry,  Adna  J. 

19 

E 

Mar 

1964 

FIRST    REGIMENT   CAY 

Mustered  i 

into  sei 

Bartlett,  John  D. 

31 

C 

Oct 

14  61 

Buxton,  John  H. 

19 

C 

Sept 

II  61 

Carpenter,  Charles     - 

25 

c 

Feb 

20  61 

Carter,  Constant 

27 

E 

Oct 

4  61 

French,  Frank  S. 

27 

C 

Oct 

361 

Staples,  Marshall  S. 

36 

C 

Nov 

9  61 

Tebo,  Peter 

21 

M 

Oct 

10  62 

by  companies  in  1864. 

Remarks. 
Corporal.     Died  Nov.  5,  64. 
ist  Lieutenant.     Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 
Corp.     Fro.  Serg't.     Must,  out  July  21,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 
Discharged  May  13,  65. 
Discharged  June  12,65. 
Discharged  July  14,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 
Died  June  17,  64. 
Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 

do 

do 

do 
Discharged  Oct.  30,  64. 
Serg't.     Dis.  June  19,  65,  for  vv'ds.  received. 
Q.  M.     Pro.  1st  Lieut.     Must,  out  July  14,65. 
Deserted  Dec.  25,  64. 
Mustered  out  May  24,  65. 
Pro.  Corporal.     Mustered  out  July  21,  65. 
Died  June  3,  64,  of  wounds  rec'd.  in  action. 
Mustered  out  July  17,  65. 
Received  pro.  to  Major.  Must,  out  July  24,  65. 
2d  Lieut.     Discharged  March  9,  65. 
Colonel.     Mustered  out  July  17,  65. 
Killed  near  Petersburgh,  July  27,  64. 
Capt.     Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 
Discharged  Aug.  30,  64. 
Discharged  July  14,  65. 
Mnstered  out  July  14,  65. 


Captain.     Pro.  Major.     Resigned  Apr.  62. 

Discharged  Nov.  26,  62. 

Discharged  Oct.  3,  62. 

Mustered  out  Nov.  18,  64. 

Discharged  Nov.  27,  61. 

Discharged  Dec.  7,  62. 

Discharged  May  21,  64. 


FIRST    BATTERY    LIGHT   ARTILLERY. 

Mustered  in  1861. 


THREE   YEARS. 


Armstrong,  Thomas  34 


Branagan,  Patrick 
Brecette,  Peter 
Brodar,  Joseph 
Goodwin,  Henry  W. 
Howland,  John 
Laundry,  Charles 
Laundry,  Frank 
Laundry,  Jesse 
Mitchell,  Sullivan  B. 
Raspel,  Henrick  W. 
Riker,  James  B. 


Jan     14  62 


36 

Jan 

27  62 

19 

Dec 

9  61 

4S 

Jan 

1362 

22 

J>iov 

19  61 

43 

Nov 

II  61 

18 

Dec 

16  61 

22 

Dec 

10  61 

19 

Dec 

9  61 

41 

Nov 

21  61 

39 

Feb 

1362 

19 

Dec 

13  61 

Must,  out  Aug.   10,  64.     Died  in  Reg.  Service 
July  26, 65,  of  w'ds.  rec'd.  at  Port  Hudson. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  10,  64. 

do 
Discharged  March  28,  63. 
Discharged  June  5,  62. 

Corp.     Pro.  Serg't.     Must,  out  Aug.  10,  64. 
Must,  out  Aug.  ID,  64. 

do 

do 
Died  July  25,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  10,  64. 
Pro.  2d  Lieut.     Must,  out  Aug.  10,  62. 


Curry,  Michael 


SECOND    BATTERY    LIGHT   ARTILLERY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  1861. 
18  Dec    25  61     Discharged  Oct.  20,  62. 

THIRD    BATTERY    LIGHT   ARTILLERY.      THREE   YEARS. 

Mustered  into  service  1863. 


Bousquet,  Francis  O. 

19 

Dec 

2563 

Deserted  Aug.  31,  64. 

Brown,  John  H. 

45 

Dec 

1963 

Died  Sept.  16,  64. 

Butterfly,  Frank 

18 

Dec 

12  63 

Mustered  out  June  1 5,  65. 

Campbell,  James 

19 

Dec 

22  63 

do 

*Campbell,  Humphrey 

18 

Aug 

20  64 

do 

MONTPELIER. 


347 


Names. 
*Cayhue,  Jesse 
Chalifaux,  Naraise 
*Curry,  Michael 
*Dodge,  Wallace  H. 
Estis,  Charles  O. 
*Jangraw,  Alexander 
*Jangraw,  Frank 
*Gravlin,  Peter 
Langdon,  John  B.  Jr. 
Miller,  John 
*Morris,  Frank 
*Morris,  Joseph 
Moulton,  Benjamin  J. 
Palmer,  Henry  A. 
Phillips,  Walter  A. 
Prevost,  Clement 
Reynard,  Edmund 
*Rowe,  Joseph 
Staples,  Guy  B. 
Staples,  Marshall  S. 
Taplin,  Eben 
Valley,  Joseph 
Washburn,  William  L. 
*Yatta,  William 


Age. 

Co.      Enlistment. 

l8 

Dec    2363 

28 

Dec    2663 

21 

Apr    23  64 

21 

Aug   22  64 

18 

Sept     7  63 

18 

Aug    19  64 

21 

Sept     7  63 

30 

Aug    18  64 

Oct     30  63 

18 

Dec      5  63 

19 

Aug    17  64 

20 

do 

27 

Dec    12  63 

18 

Dec      I  63 

22 

Dec    12  63 

19 

Sept   1563 

26 

Dec      I  63 

35 

Aug      3  64 

18 

Oct     16  63 

37 

do 

25 

Dec    1663 

24 

Dec    26  63 

20 

do 

18 

Dec    29  63 

Remarks. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 

do 

do 

do 

do 

do 

do 

do 
Q.  M.  Serg't.     Must,  out  June  15,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 

do 

do 

do 

do 
1st  Lieut.     Honorably  discharged  Feb.  3,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Discharged  Jan.  28,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 

do 
Artificer.     Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Corp.    Pro.  to  2d  Lieut.   Must,  out  June  1 5,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 

do 

do 


SECOND    REGIMENT    U.    S.    SHARP-SHOOTERS.      THREE   YEARS. 


Severance,  Luther 
Pitkin,  Perley  P. 

JSmith,  Henry  C. 

IBrunell,  Frank  J. 
tRobinson,  John 

Williamson,  John 

*Batchelder,  Josiah  L. 
*Gravlin,  Frank  Jr. 
*Guinan,  William 
*Jangra\v,  Oughtney 
*Kimball,  Frank 
*Nichols,  Lucius 
*Stowe,  Lorenzo 
*Wells,  John  T. 
*Wood,  Lewis 
*Gravlin,  Peter 
*Clogston,  O.  Curtis 
*Cutler,  Marcus  M. 
*Washburn,  J.  W.  F. 

Clark,  William  H. 
Gilmore,  Edward  C. 
Parker,  Jared 
Parker,  Lucius  R. 
Storrs,  Charles  W. 
Webster,  Oscar  N. 

Bixby,  H.  Roger 
Clark,  Fred 
Collins,  John 
Cross,  Oscar  N. 
Daniels,  William 
Dewey,  Peter  G. 


Mustered  in  1861. 
2;      E     Aug    II  62     Mustered  out  June  12,  65. 

FIELD   AND   STAFF   OFFICERS. 

35  June     6  61     Captain  and  Q.  M.      Pro.  to  Col.  and  O.  M. 

U.  S.  Vol. 

FORTY-THIRD   U,    S.    COLORED    REGIMENT. 

July    21  63     Mustered  out  65. 

FIRST   COMPANY   OF   DRAFTED    MEN. 

July   21  63     Discharged  Oct.  22.  63. 
July   27  63     Deserted. 


CREDIT   IN    U.    S.    NAVY. 

Jan       3  64    Juniata  Sophronia. 


Discharged  June  3,  65. 


Mustered  out  July,  6i 
Must,  out,  64. 


IN    REGIMENTS    FROM   OTHER   STATES. 

13th  N.  H.  Regiment.     Enlisted,  63,  3  years. 

36tla  Mass.    Enlisted,  63,  3  years.  [July,  63. 

14th  R.  L  Reg't.  9  months.     Enlisted  Sept.  62.     Serg't.     Must,  out 
Sth  Maine.     Enlisted  July,  62,  3  years.     Must,  out  July,  65. 
39th  Mass.   Enlisted,  63,  3  years.  Killed  at  Piedmont,  Va.,  June  5,64. 
14th  R.  I.  Reg't.  9  mos.     Enlisted  Sept.  62.    Mustered  out  July,  63. 
14th  R.  L  Reg't.  9  mos.     Enlisted  Sept.  62.     Died,  63. 
14th  R.  L  Reg't.  9  mos.     Enlisted  Sept.  62.     " 

2d  N.  H.  Reg't.  3  years.     Enlisted  May,  61. 
do  do 

2d  Mass  Artillery.     Enlisted  Dec.  17,  63.     Must,  out  Sept.  65. 

7th  Ohio  Infantry.     Enlisted  Apr.  17,  61.     Must,  out  Aug.  64. 
24th  Mass.  Infantry.     Enlisted  Dec.  63.     Mustered  out  Aug.  66. 

VETERAN    RESERVE   CORPS.      ENLISTED    MEN. 

E     July     6  63  Must,  out  Nov.  13,  65. 
E           do  do 

E    July    13  63  do 

July    22  63  do 

July   25  63  Transferred  to  Co.  K.  7th  Regiment,  in  64. 

July     4  64  Mustered  out  July  3,  66. 

FIRST   REGIMENT   FRONTIER   CAVALRY. 

19  M     Jan       3  65     Mustered  out  June  27,  65. 
18     M  do  do 

27  M  do  Pro.  Corporal.     Mustered  out  June  27,  63. 

24  M  do  Com.  Sergeant.     Mustered  out  June  27,  05. 

20  M  do  Mustered  out  June  27,  65. 
22  M  do                                do 


348 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 

Age. 

Co. 

EnlUfment. 

Remark.'!. 

Howard,  George  D. 

22 

M 

do 

1st  Lieut.     Resigned  March  i6,  65, 

Lemwin,  George 

"2 

M 

do 

Pro.  Sergeant.     Mustered  out  June  27,  65. 

McCluskey,  Charles  A. 

28 

M 

do 

Mustered  out  June  27,  65. 

Morse,  Joseph  B. 

i<S 

M 

do 

do" 

Moulton,  Isaac  R. 

19 

M 

do 

do 

Newcomb,  George  W. 

M 

do 

Deserted  Mar.  23,  65. 

Prentiss,  Herbert  J. 

iS 

M 

do 

Mustered  out  June  27,  61;. 

Tyler,  Eugene  C. 

iS 

M 

do 

do 

ELEVKNTH 

U.    i 

5.    INFANTRY.     THREE   YEARS.       RECRUITS   OF    1865. 

Bailey,  Clinton 

June  22  65 

Discharged  June  28,  68. 

Baxter,  Robert 

Aug   26  65 

Died  Aug.  19,  66,  in  Richmond,  Va. 

Bryant,  Eliphalet  E. 

Aug   22  65 

Died  Sept.  16,  66,  in  Richmond,  Va. 

Chalyfaux,  Maxy 

June    27  65 

Died  Aug.  1 5,  66,  in  Richmond,  Va. 

Connolly,  Michael 

Aug      4  65 

Discharged  Aug.  4,  68. 

Emerson,  Amos  N. 

June  26  65 

Discharged  Dec.  16,  65. 

Fowler,  Levi  D. 

June  20  65 

Deserted  Sept.  24,  65. 

Handlin,  J.  H. 

July    20  65 

Deserted  May  18,  67. 

Lucia,  Oliver 

June  27  65 

Deserted  June  20,  66. 

Mack,  James 

June  20  65 

Deserted  Dec.  16,  65. 

Nealor,  Edward 

July   2865 

Died  Sept.  8,  66,  in  Richmond,  Va. 

Pridelieu,  Francis 


Brock,  James  W. 


June  19  65     Discharged  June  19,  68. 

ENROLLED    MAN    WHO     FURNISHED   SUBSTITUTE. 


DRAFTED    MEN    WHO    FURNISHED   SUBSTITUTES. 

Bradish,  Alonzo  G.  Colton,  Henry  C.  Foster,  Henry  M. 

Huntington,  William  L.  Nichols,  George  L.  Reed,  Charles  A. 

Sterling,  Joseph  Tilden,  Geo.  W.  Town,  Chauncey  W. 

DRAFTED    MEN    WHO    PAID   COMMUTATION. 

Babcock,  Jerry  V.  Bailey,  Charles  W. 


Morey,  Moses  P. 
Standish,  William  O. 


Allen,  Benjamin  V. 

Barnes,  Henry  Courser,  Merrill  P. 

Palmer,  Nahuni  Pope,  Walter 

Woodward,  Justus  1>. 

*  Residents  of  Montpelier,  but  credited  to  other  towns,  for  the  reason  that  at  the  date  of 
their  enlistment  the  quota  of  the  town  was  full,  and  they  were  credited  to  other  towns  that 
they  might  draw 'their  state  bounty.  At  all  the  calls  made  by  the  Government  for  troops 
during  the  war,  the  town  kept  in  excess  of  her  quota.  For  various  reasons,  several  went  into 
other  states  and  enlisted,  and  were  not  town  credits.  Therefore,  it  seems  no  more  than  jusf 
and  right  that  all  of  the  names  of  these  men,  so  far  as  are  known,  should  be  written  in  history 
as  credit  to  the  town. 

t  Substitute. 

X  Drafted. 


montpelier's  roll  of  honor. 


,        Name. 
Allen,  Andrew  H. 
Ayers,  Albert  J. 
Atherton,  Omri  S. 
Armstrong,  Thomas 
Baxter,  Robert 
Bennett,  Amos  N. 
Brooks,  Robert 
Brown,  John  H. 
Bryant,  Eliphalet  E. 
Buxton,  Harris 
Burgin,  Patrick 
Burke,  John 
Burke,  Walter 
Carr,  James  M. 
Cayhue,  Tuffield 
Chalifaux,  Maxy 
Divine,  Patrick 
Emerson,  Andrew  A. 
Franklin,  Roswell 
Gilman,  Sydney  A. 


Reg't. 


D 

2 

B 

ID 

C 

17 

Re 

gu 

lar 

Service 

II 

U. 

S, 

.  R.  Reg't. 

F 
B 

10 

3d 

Battery 

11 

U. 

s. 

R.  Reg't. 

H 

II 

D 

2 

B 

10 

C 

13 

B 

10 

B 

10 

II 

U. 

s. 

R.  Reg't, 

K 

3 

E 

17 

H 

3 

G 

4 

Died  July  26,  61. 

Died  Sept.  16,  62. 

Died  Nov.  6,  64. 

Died  July  26,  65,  of  w'ds.  rec'd.  at  Port  Hudson. 

Died  Sept.  6,  66,  at  Richmond,  Va. 

Killed  at  Fredricksburgh,  May  3,  63. 

Died  in  Danville  Prison,  Ga..  Dec.  23,  63. 

Died  at  City  Point,  Va.,  Sept.  16,  64. 

Died  at  Richmond,  Va.,  Sept.  16,  66. 

Died  Feb.  20,  63. 

Killed  at  Banks  Ford,  May  3,  63. 

Died  at  Brandy  Station,  Va.,  Nov.  9,  64. 

Died  at  Wolfs  Run  Shoals,  Va.,  Mar.  4.  62,. 

Died  July  i,  64. 

Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  63. 

Died  at  Richmond,  Va.,  Aug.  15,  66. 

Killed  at  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  16,  62. 

Died  July  17,  64. 

Died  Dec.  16,  63. 

Died  in  Andersonville  Prison,  Oct.  64. 


MONTPELIER. 


349 


Name. 

Co. 

Reg't. 

Gray,  Ira  S. 

D 

5 

Greeley,  Allen 

B 

10 

Goodrich,  Victor 

F 

2 

Harran,  Selden  B. 

F 

2 

Horr,  John  P. 

H 

6 

Kent,  Hermon  G. 

G 

4 

Kennedy,  Felix 

B 

10 

Kimball,  Frank 

39  Mass 

.Reg. 

Ladue,  Joseph 

G 

4 

Loomis,  Vernon  L. 

H 

Mailhote,  Victor  W. 

G 

4 

Mahonev,  Sylvester  1). 

F 

Marshall,  William 

E 

17 

McManus,  James  \V. 

K 

Minouge,  William 

H 

Mitchell,  Sullivan  B. 

1st  Battery 

Nealor,  Edward 

II  U 

S 

R.  Reg- 

Rose,  Joseph 

H 

17 

Shorey,  Elscine 

F 

2 

Smith,  Levi 

K 

4 

Sprague,  Fredrick  W. 

A 

6 

Stetson,  Ezra 

B 

10 

Stone,  Horatio  F. 

H 

2 

Storrs,  Gilman  U. 

B 

10 

Storrs,  Charles  W. 

K 

7 

Stowe,  Lorenzo, 

14th 

R. 

L  Reg't. 

Taylor,  Benjamin 

F 

1 

Thaver,  James  E. 

E 

S 

Waldron,  Ezekiel 

B 

10 

White,  George  A. 

H 

2 

Wright,  Benjamin  N. 

I 

'3 

Remarks. 

Killed  at  Savage  Station,  June  29,  62. 

Died  July  i,  63,  of  vv'ds.  rece'd.  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Killed  at  Bull  Run,  July  21,  61. 

Died  Nov.  16,  61. 

Killed  at  Cedar  Creek,  (Jet.  19,  64. 

Killed  at  Fredricksburgh,  Dec.  19,  62. 

Died  Dec.  8,  63. 

Killed  at  Piedmont,  Va.,  June  5,  64. 

Died  Feb.  26,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Died  Feb.  6,  63. 

Died  Oct.  5,  62,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Died  June  3,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Died  July  25,  64,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Died  in  Richmond,  Va.,  Sei)t.  8,  66. 

Killed  at  Petersburgh,  July  27,  64. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Died  May  12,  63, 

Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 

Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 

Killed  in  Wilderness,  May  4,  64. 

Killed  at  Mine  Run,  Nov,  27,  63. 

Died  Apr.  10,  65,  ofw'ds.  rec'd.  at  Spanish  Fort. 

Died  in  63. 

Died  June  28,  62. 

Killed  at  Bayou  Des  Allems,  Sept.  4,  62. 

Died  Apr.  6,  65.  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 

Killed  at  Gettysburg,  July  3,  63. 


In  addition  to  these  might  be  added  the  names  of  many  who  were  wounded  and  disabled, 
and  did  not  survive  their  disability  long  after  ihe  war  or  their  discharge.  Below  we  give  the 
names  of  those  who  lost  a  limb  :  Capt.  Horace  Grossman,  Co.  F,  2d  Regiment,  and  Private 
Charles  McLaughlin,  Co.  K,  3d  Regiment,  losing  a  leg  ;  .Serg't.  Hiram  M.  Pierce,  Co.  B,  loth 
Regiment,  and  Private  Elverton  Loomis,  Co.  F,  2d  Regiment,  losing  an  arm. 

RECAPI'lULATION. 

Total  number  of  men  furnished  who  entered  the  service 365 

Furnished  substitute 10 

Paid  commutation 10 

No.  who  served  their  teim  of  enlistment,  or  to  close  of  war 120 

Mustered  out  previous  to  close  of  the  war  at  the  expiration  of  their  term  of  service 80 

Discharged  for  disability,  for  wounds  received  and  various  other  causes 114 

Killed  in  battle 21 

Died  of  wounds  received  in  action 1 1 

Died  of  diseases  contracted  in  the  service 17 

Died  in  rebel  prisons 2 

Deserted 12 


Perhaps  it  would  be  proper  here  to  men- 
tion the  names  of  those  who  were  natives 
of  Montpelier,  and  had  sought  homes  in 
the  West,  and  from  there  had  enlisted  and 
lost  their  lives  in  the  defence  of  their 
country  : 

Walter  M.  Howes,  son  of  the  late  Hon. 
William  Howes,  of  Prescott,  Wis.,  for- 
merly of  Montpelier,  enlisted  at  the  age  of 
21  years,  was  promoted  to  Orderly  Ser- 
geant of  Co.  F,  37th  Wis.  reg't ;  was  se- 
verely Avounded,  but  recovered.  In  mount- 
ing the  enemy's  works  before  Petersburgh, 
April  2,   1865,  he  was  struck  by  a  solid 


shot  and  instantly  killed.  He  was  a  young 
man  of  fine  character,  high  promise  and 
an  excellent  soldier. 

Col.  Holden  Putnam,  of  the  93d  Illinois, 
was  killed  in  one  of  Gen.  Grant's  battles 
with  Bragg  in  1863.  Col.  Putnam  left 
Montpelier  about  1853,  and  settled  in  Free- 
port,  111.,  where  he  was  successfully  en- 
gaged in  the  banking  business.  When 
the  war  broke  out,  Putnam,  true  to  the 
name  he  bore,  at  once  gave  his  services  to 
his  country,  and  gave  the  name  new  honor 
by  patriotism  and  bravery  as  was  given  by 
the  Gen.  Putnam  of  Revolutionary  fame. 


350 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Capt.  William  W.  Hutchins,  son 
of  the  late  William  Hutchins  of  tins 
town,  when  the  rebellion  broke  out 
resided  in  Prescott,  Wis.  He  le- 
linquished  a  good  business,  and  en- 
listed as  a  private  in  the  6th  Wis- 
consin, and  received  promotions  to 
Captain.  While  gallantly  leading 
his  Company  at  the  battle  neai 
Ream's  Station,  Va.,  Aug.  19,  1864, 
he  was  killed.  He  was  a  brave  sol- 
dier and  a  good  officer. 

We  give  below  an  account  of  a  very  re- 
markable military  expedition  under  the 
command  of  Lieut.  W.  F.  Cross,  son  of 
the  late  Timothy  Cross,  of  Montpelier, 
which  took  place  on  the  21st  of  December, 
1863,  ^^  Dakota  Territory. 

He  was  ordered  to  march  with  twelve 
men  a  distance  of  forty  miles,  to  destroy  a 
camp  of  Sioux  Indians.  The  thermometer 
stood  at  35°  below  zero.  It  was  so  cold 
that  the  party  could  not  ride,  and  they 
were  therefore  compelled  to  march  twenty- 
five  miles  in  tliat  Arctic  weather.  They 
broke  up  the  camp,  killing  the  Indians, 
(we  are  sorry  to  add  and  scalping,  though 
that  is  the  fashion  in  such  wars,)  and  re- 
turned without  the  loss  of  a  man,  though 
two  horses  gave  out  and  were  left  on  the 
road.  On  the  return  march,  the  ther- 
mometer was  24°  below  zero.  The  party 
was  absent  39  hours,  and  in  that  time 
marched  80  miles,  most  of  the  way  on 
foot,  on  snowy  ground,  and  in  weather 
never  exceeded  for  severity  in  any  military 
expedition,  unless  it  was  in  Napoleon's 
Russian  campaign. 


REUNIONS. 

There  has  been  one  soldiers'  reunion  in 
town,  and  several  officers'  reunions. 

All  hail  these  reunions!  the  whole  soul  expand" 
With  this  greeting  of  hearts  and  this  clasping  ofliands ; 
The  heroes  who  stood  'midst  the  carnage  and  roar. 
And  the  red  stream  of  battle,  in  council  once  juore. 

Then  raise  the  loud  shout,  the  sweet  hymn  of  the  free. 
Let  it  swell  on  (he  breeze  o'er  the  mountain  and  sea; 
For  our  old  battle  banner,  tho'  riddled  and  worn, 
Not  a  single  bright  star  from  its  glory  is  torn. 


OLD    MASONIC    HALL,— 1834. 
MASONIC. 

BY  THOS.  H.  CAVE. 

Aurora  Lodgp:,  No.  9,  F.  &  A.  M., 
was  chartered  Oct.  14.  1796,  the  petition 
for  which  was  signed  by  Moses  Hubbard, 
Benjamin  Waite,  and   others. 

The  hall  first  occupied  we  have  been  un- 
able to  ascertain  ;  but  in  1805-6  the  meet- 
ings were  held  in  a  room  over  Geo.  B.  R. 
Gove's  store,  (the  building  now  occupied 
by  Fisher  &  Colton,)  on  Main  street.  Then 
from  1809  to  1822,  they  had  a  hall  in  the 
old  Academy  building.  About  the  first  of 
January,  1822,  this  was  destroyed  by  fire. 
January  7th  of  that  year,  they  assembled 
at  Reuben  Lamb's  mansion-room,  so 
called  ;  and  from  Feb.  4  of  the  same  year 
held  their  meetings  in  the  Pavihon  hotel, 
then  kept  by  Thomas  Davis,  until  they  oc- 
cupied their  new  hall.  The  corner  stone 
of  this  hall  was  laid  Aug.  8,  1822,  with 
masonic  ceremonies,  the  oration  being  de- 
livered by  Erastus  Watrous.  The  Lodge 
held  their  first  meeting  in  their  new  hall 
Oct.  7,  1822.  This  building  stood  at  the 
corner  of  School  and  Main  streets,  on  the 
site  now  occupied  by  Bethany  church. 
(See  engraving  above.) 

Among  the  members  of  the  Lodge  we 
rind  the  names  of  many  prominent  citizens 
of  this  and  adjoining  towns  : 

Sylvester  Day,  Rev.Benj.Chatterton 

Levi  Pitkin,  Lovell  Kelton, 

Nathan  Doty,  Salmon  Washburn, 

Thos.  Reed,  Sen"r,  Silas  Burbank, 
Samuel  Prentiss,  Jr.,  Elijah  Witherell, 

Parley  Davis,  Chester  Nye, 

Charles  Bulkley,  Jacob  Miller, 

Erastus  Watrous,  Col.  Samuel  Fifield, 

David  Wing,  Jr.,  Denison  Smith, 

Cyrus  Ware,  Hezekiah  H.  Reed, 


MONTPELIER. 


351 


Cornelius  Lynde, 
Timothy  Hubbard, 
Geo.  W'orthingtori, 
Seth  Putnam, 
Chapin  Keith, 
Richard  Holden, 
James  Fiske, 
Col.  Cyrus  Johnson, 
Larned  Lamb, 
Eliakim  D.  Persons, 
Lemuel  Farwell, 
Wyllis  L  Cadwell. 
Apollos  Hall, 
Joseph  Wing, 
Isaac  Putnam, 
Thomas  Wallace, 
Salvin  Collins, 
Silas  W.  Cobb, 
James  Deane, 
Amasa  Bancroft, 
Sylvanus  Baldwin, 
Abel  Knapp, 
Jeduthan  Loomis, 
Jonah  Parks, 
John  Spalding, 
Dr.  James  Spalding, 
R.  Bailev, 
O.  H.  Smith, 
Gamaliel  Washburn, 
ChesV  W.Houghton, 
Joseph  Howes, 
Daniel  Baldwin, 
Samuel  Goss, 
Nathan  Jewett, 


Roger  G.  Bulkley, 
Joseph  Wiggins, 
Gen.  Gusta.  Loomis, 
L.  O.  C.  Bowles, 
Isaiah  Silver, 
Harry  Richardson, 
Perrin  B.  Fisk, 
Israel  Dewey, 
Otis  Standish, 
Jona.  Wallace, 
Diah  Richardson, 
Thomas  Reed,  Jr., 
Nat.  C.  King, 
Svlvanus  Ripley, 
R'.  R.  Keith, 
Nathl.  Bancroft, 
Barzillai  Davenport, 
Walter  Little, 
M.  T.  C.  Wing, 
H.  N.  Baylies, 
Parrot  Blaisdell, 
Daniel  H.  Dewey, 
Roswell  H.  Knapp, 
Nelson  A.  Cha-^e, 
Mark  Goss, 
Norman  Rublee, 
John  Goldsbury, 
Joseph  S.  Walton, 
Geo.  W.  Hill, 
Dr.  Charles  Clark, 
Dr.  John  Winslow, 
Joel  Winch, 
Maj.  John  Poor. 


The  Lodge  flourished  until  the  time  of 
the  great  anti-masonic  wave  in  1834.  We 
find  among  the  documents  preserved  the 
following  notice,  which  was  published  at 
the  time  in  the  Vermotit  li  'atch/nan  : 

MASONIC  NOTICE. 

A  meeting  of  all  the  masons  in  Wash- 
ington County  is  hereby  notified  to  be 
holden  at  the  hall  in  Montpelier,  on  Fri- 
day, the  19th  day  of  September  inst.,  at  i 
o'clock,  P.  M.,  for  the  purpose  of  taking 
under  consideration  the  unhappy  and  di- 
vided state  of  community  on  the  subject  of 
Freemasonry.  It  is  desirable  that  the 
views  and  feelings  of  every  mason  in  the 
County  should  be  fully  represented  and 
expressed  upon  that  occasion.  This  no- 
tice is  the  result  of  a  very  extensive  con- 
sultation among  masons,  and  is  given  at 
their  request. 

Montpelier,  lothofSept.,  1834. 


We,  the  undersigned,  do  cordially  ap- 
prove of  the  above  notice,  and  request  that 


the   same  should  be  published  in  all  the 
papers  in  this  County. 

Montpelier,  10  September,  1834. 


H.  H.  Reed, 
Luman  Rublee. 
R.  R.  Keith, 
Isaiah  Silver, 
Israel  Dewey, 
William  Mann, 
H.  N.  Baylies. 
H.  Richardson, 
G.  W.  Barker, 
Ira  Owen, 


Saml.  Goss, 
Simeon  L.  Post, 
Oramel  H.  Smith, 
Alonzo  Pearce, 
S.  C.  French, 
N.  Jewett, 
Nathl.  Bancroft, 
Jos.  Howes, 
Jason  Carpenter, 
Lovel  Kelton. 


In  accordance  with  said  notice,  the 
members  met  at  Masonic  hall.  We  copy 
from  the  records : 

At  a  special  communication  of  Aurora 
Lodge  No.  9,  duly  summoned  and  hold- 
en at  Mason's  Hall,  in  Montpelier,  on 
Friday,  the  19th  day  of  September,  A. 
L.  5834. 

Number  of  brethren  present,  about  sixty. 
On   motion,    the    following   resolutions 

were  passed  and  adopted  by  said  Lodge, 

viz : 

Resolved  and  voted.  That  the  trustees, 
or  the  survivors  of  them,  who  hold  the  ti- 
tle to  the  Masonic  Hall  in  trust  for  the  use 
of  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  9,  (reference  being 
had  to  the  deed  of  trust,)  be,  and  are 
hereby  directed  to  sell  said  Hall,  and  all 
right  this  Lodge  may  have  therein,  and 
also  to  sell  all  and  singular  the  personal 
property  belonging,  to  said  Lodge,  and 
make  all  collections  of  dues  to  said  Lodge 
(if  any)  as  soon  as  may  be,  and  to  the 
best  advantage,  and  from  the  avails  of 
such  sales  and  collections  to  pay  all  sums 
due  from  said  Lodge ;  the  same  to  be  as- 
certained and  certified  by  Jeduthan  Loom- 
is, who  is  hereby  appointed  a  committee 
for  that  purpose  ;  and  the  balance  of  such 
avails  to  pay  and  deliver  to  the  Treasurer 
of  the  Washington  County  Grammar 
School,  for  the  use  and  disposal  of  the 
trustees  of  said  Grammar  School,  to  whom 
the  same  is  hereby  presented  as  a  dona- 
tion from  this  Lodge  for  the  purpose  of 
education ;  and  a  cop}'  of  this  vote  shall 
be  their  sufficient  warrant  for  the  same. 

Resolved  and  voted.  That  until  a  sale  of 
the  Masonic  Hall  shall  be  made  and  com- 
pleted, full  leave  and  license  is  hereby  giv- 
en, and  the  Lodge  does  hereby  approve  of 
all  kinds  of  assemblies  being  held  in  this 
Lodge  room,  under  the  direction  and  con- 
trol of  the  trustees  aforesaid  of  said  Hall. 

Resolved  and  voted,  That  Aurora  Lodge, 
No.  9,  be  now  dissolved,  and  closed  forever. 

Attest,  Hezekiah  H.  Reed, 

Sec'y  pro  tem. 


352 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


King  Solomon  Royal  Arch  Chapter, 
No.  5, — Commenced  working  under  a  dis- 
pensation granted  Oct.  7,  1809,  and  char- 
tered Jan.  3,  1810. 

Charter  Members — Charles  Bulkley, 
Erastus  Watrous,  Joseph  Freeman,  Solo- 
mon Miller,  Nathan  Doty,  Sherman  Minot, 
Denison  Smith,  Sylvanus  Baldwin,  and 
Cabot  W.  Hyde. 

Jan.  18,  1810, — The  first  board  of  officers 
were  elected,  as  follows :  Charles  Bulkley, 
High  Priest ;  Erastus  Watrous,  King ;  Jo- 
seph Freeman,  Scribe ;  Joseph  Howes, 
Treasurer  ;  Jeduthan  Loomis,  Secretary  ; 
Solomon  Millar,  Captain  of  the  Host ;  Na- 
than Doty,  Principal  Sojourner;  Phineas 
Woodbury,  Royal  Arch  Captain :  Sylvan- 
us Baldwin,  Master  of  3d  Veil ;  Denison 
Smith,  Master  of  2d  Veil;  George  Worth- 
ington.  Master  of  Lst  Veil;  Nathan 
Jewett,  Tyler. 

The  Chapter  held  its  meetings  in  the 
hall  occupied  by  Aurora  Lodge.  Many  of 
the  masons  mentioned  in  the  list  of  the 
Lodge  were  members  of  this  body.  We 
give  the  names  of  a  few  not  given  there 
who  took  their  degrees  in,  and  were  mem- 
bers of,  this  Chapter  : 

Hiram  Steele,  Asa  Partridge,  Jona. 
Briggs  of  Marshfield,  Isaac  Fletcher  of 
Lyndon,  Jacob  Davis  of  Randolph,  Mat- 
thias Haines  of  Cabot,  Gov.  Samuel  C. 
Crafts  of  Craftsbury,  N.  R.  Sawyer  of 
Hydepark,  J.  Stearns  of  Chelsea,  Seth  G. 
Bigelow  of  Brookfield,  Z.  P.  Burnham, 
Gov.  Julius  Converse  (then)  of  Randolph, 
J.  K.  Parish  of  Randolph,  D.  Azro  A. 
Buck  of  Chelsea  ;  and  many  others  might 
be  given  did  space  permit. 

We  copy  from  the  Chapter  Records  : 

Oct.  20,  1816. —  Voted,  That  the  treas- 
urer pay  out  of  the  funds  of  the  Chapter 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  Vermont  Bible  So- 
ciety the  sum  of  thirty  dollars. 

Dec.  4,  1816. —  Voted,  To  appropriate 
ten  dollars  tor  the  benefit  of  schools  in  the 
Western  States. 

Whether  the  Chapter  formally  surren- 
dered its  charter  or  not,  we  have  no  means 
of  knowing,  but  at  the  time  of  the  dissolu- 
tion of  the  Lodge  it  is  probable  that  it  was 
forfeited,  as  we  find  no  record  of  meetings 
after  that  time. 


MoNTPELiER  Council  of  Royal  and 
Select  Ma.sters. — Organized  Jan.  3, 
1818,  by  Jeremy  L.  Cross,  with  Lucius  O. 
C.  Bowles  as  T.  I.  G.  M.,  Nathan  Jewett 
as  D.  I.  G.  M.,  and  Daniel  Baldwin  as  P. 
C.  We  can  find  no  further  record  of  their 
proceedings  other  than  that  they  existed 
until  the  breaking  up  of  Masonry  in  1834, 
though  they  did  not  surrender  their  char- 
ter initil  the  revival  of  Masonry  in  this 
State  about  the  year  1850  or  '51,  when  by 
so  doing  they  received  a  new  one. 


Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22,  F.  &  A.  M.— 
Chartered  Jan.  9,  185 1. 

Charter  Members. — Harry  Richardson, 
John  Poor,  Walter  Little,  Diah  Richard- 
son, Ira  S.  Town,  Henry  Crane,  Otis 
Peck,  Shubael  Wheeler,  T.  C.  Taplin, 
Levi  Boutwell,  Gamaliel  Washburn. 

The  first  meeting  was  held  in  the  office 
of  Dr.  T.  C.  Taplin,  Feb.  5,  1850,  for  the 
purpose  of  drawing  up  a  petition  for  a 
charter. 

The  first  election  of  officers  occurred 
March  25,  185 1,  at  which  time  the  follow- 
ing list  was  chosen :  T.  C.  Taplin,  W. 
M.  ;  Levi  Boutwell,  S.  W.  ;  John  Poor,  J. 
W. ;  A.  A.  Cross,  Sec'y ;  Ira  S.  Town, 
Treas. ;  Gamaliel  Washburn,  S.  D. ;  Diah 
Richardson,  J.  D.  ;  Henry  Crane,  Tyler. 

The  first  hall  occupied  by  the  Lodge 
was  in  the  third  story  (over  the  Vermont 
Bank,)  of  the  building  now  owned  by  L. 
B.  Huntington,  on  State  Street.  They 
remained  here  until  Nov.  13,  1859,  when 
they  removed  into  the  new  block,  built  for 
S.  S.  Boyce,  afterwards  owned  by  Fred  E. 
Smith.  This  they  occupied  until  it  was 
destroyed  in  Montpelier's  first  great  fire, 
March  12,  1875.  Meetings  were  then  held 
in  the  American  House,  owned  by  Chester 
Clark,  a  prominent  member  of  the  Order, 
until  the  completion  of  Union  Block,  where 
a  spacious  hall  and  ante-rooms  were  fitted 
up  especially  for  the  use  of  the  Masonic 
bodies.  The  first  meeting  was  held  in  the 
new  hall  Dec.  13,  1875,  which  they  now 
occupy. 

List  of  Fast  Masters— T.  C.  Taplin, 
1850;  Gamaliel  Washburn,  1851-54,  1856; 


MONTPELIER. 


353 


John  C.  Emery,  1855,  1857-59,  1861-63, 
1878-79:  John  W.  Clark,  i860;  Denison 
Dewey,  1864;  Jas.  S.  Peck,  1869-71;  J. 
W.  F.  Washburn,  1872-74;  J.  Austin 
J'aine.  1875-76;  Truman  C.  Phinney,  I 
1865-68,  1880,  and  now  in  office. 

List  of  officers,  elected  A-pjil  11,  1881 — 
T.  C.  Phinney,  W.  M. ;  Geo.  W.  Wing. 
S.  W. ;  J.  W.  F.  Washburn,  J.  W.  ;  Jas. 
C.  Houghton,  Treas.  ;  Thos.  H.  Cave, 
Sec''y ;  Steplien  R.  Colby,  S.  D. ;  F^red. 
W.  Morse,  J.  D. :  Chas.  "c.  Ramsdell,  S. 
.S.  ;  G.  Blair,  J.  S.  ;  C.  C.  Dudley,  Chap- 
lain ;  A.  F.  Humphrey,  Marshal :  W.  A. 
Briggs,  Organist;  Isaac  M.  Wright,  Tyler. 

No.  of  members,  167.  Regular  com- 
munications, Monday  evening  of  week  in 
which  the  moon  fulls.  Annual,  April  com- 
munication. 

King  Solomon  Royal  Arch  Chapter, 
No.  7. — Chartered  Aug.  14,  1851. 

Charter  Metnbers — John  Poor,  Levi 
Boutwell,  Appleton  Fitch,  David  Leach, 
Walter  Little,  Simeon  Eggleston,  Harry 
Richardson,  Gamaliel  Washburn,  Joel 
Winch. 

The  Chapter  commenced  its  labors  un- 
der a  dispensation  dated  Jan.  9,  185 1,  and 
on  April  8  conferred  the  R.  A.  degree  up- 
on Henry  Crane,  Geo.  S.  Johnson,  and 
Joel  Winch,  Jr. 

The  first  election  of  officers  occurred 
Dec.  27th,  185 1,  with  the  following  result : 

John  Poor,  High  Priest;  T.  C.  Taplin, 
King;  Silas  C.  French,  Scribe ;  J.  E.  Bad- 
ger, Sec'y  ;  Levi  Boutwell,  Treas. ;  Gama- 
liel Washburn,  Captain  of  the  Host ;  Har- 
ry Richardson,  Principal  Sojourner ;  Geo. 
S.  Johnson,  Royal  Arch  Captain;  M;  O. 
Persons,  Master  of  3d  Veil;  Joel  Winch, 
Jr.,  Master  of  2d  Veil ;  J.  P.  W.  Vincent, 
Master  of  1st  Veil ;  Henry  Crane,  Tyler. 

The  Chapter  has  held  its  meetings  in 
connection  with  Aurora  Lodge  continously 
since  its  organization,  sharing  with  it  in  the 
expenses  of  rent. 

Past  High  Priests — John  Poor,  T.  C. 
Taplin,  Gamaliel  Washburn,  Levi  Bout- 
well, C.  N.  Carpenter,  Eli  Ballou,  Fred.  E. 
Smith,  John  W.  Clark,  J.  W.  F.  Wash- 
burn, James  S.  Peck. 


Officers  elected  April  14,  1881 — Geo.  W. 
Wing,  H.  P. :  Truman  C.  Phinney,  K.  ; 
Geo.  Atkins,  S. ;  Thos.  H.  Cave,  Sec'y : 
Jas.  C.  Houghton,  Treas.;  J.  W.  F. 
Washburn,  C.  of  H.  :  C.  Blakely,  P.  S.  ; 
Thos.  L.  Wood,  R.  A.  C.  :  Geo.  L.  Lane, 
M.  3d  V.  ;  Geo.  Blair,  M.  2d  V. ;  Henry 
W.  Drew,  M.  ist  V. ;  Chas.  W.  Guernsey, 
Daniel  S.  Wheatley,  Stewards  ;  Rev.  How- 
ard F.  Hill,  Chaplain;  Wm.  A.  Briggs, 
Organist;  Isaac  M.  Wright,  T\ler. 

No.  of  members,  112.  Stated  Convoca- 
tions, Thursday  evening  of  week  in  which 
the  moon  fulls.  Annual,  April  convoca- 
tion. 

MoNTPELiER  Council,  No.  4,  Royal 
AND  Select  Masters — Chartered  Aug. 
10,  1855. 

The  first  meeting  was  held  June  2>°, 
1853, — working  under  the  old  charter, — 
with  the  following  officers  :  John  Poor,  Th. 
111.  G.  M.  ;  T.  C.  Taplin,  R.  111.  G.  M.  ; 
Samuel  L.  Adams,  111.  G.  M.  ;  Otis  Peck, 
Prin.  Cond. ;  Joel  Winch,  Capt.  of  G. ; 
Harry  Richardson,  Marshal ;  Gamaliel 
Washburn,  Recorder ;  Simeon  Eggleston, 
Tyler. 

They  held  meetings  until  Feb.  i,  1855, 
conferring  the  degrees  on  a  number  of 
companions.  Having  complied  with  a 
resolution  of  the  Grand  Council,  surren- 
dering their  old  charter,  and  requesting  a 
new  one,  the  same  was  granted  them,  da- 
ted Aug.  10,  1855. 

First  board  of  officers  elected. — T.  C. 
Taplin,  Th.  111.  G.  M. ;  Samuel  E.  Adams, 
R.  111.  G.  M. ;  David  Roberts,  111.  G.  M. ; 
Wm.  P.  Badger,  Treas.  ;  John  E.  Badger, 
Recorder;  Gamaliel  Washburn,  Prin. 
Cond. ;  John  W.  Hobart,  Capt.  of  the  G. ; 
Wm.  Rogers,  Marshal ;  Henry  Crane, 
Tyler. 

Past  Illustrious  Masters — John  Poor, 
one  year;  T.  C.  Taplin,  nine  years;  Ga- 
maliel Washburn,  four  years  ;  Truman  C. 
Phinney,  who  received  his  eleventh  elec- 
tion April  14th,  1 88 1. 

Board  of  officers  elected  April  14,  1 88 1 . — 
Truman  C.  Phinney,  Th.  111.  M.  ;  Fred. 
E.  Smith,  D.  M.  ;  John  W.  Clark,  P.  C. 
of  the    W. ;  Jas.    C.    Houghton,    Treas. ; 


45 


354 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Thos.  H.  Cave,  Recorder;  Geo.  W.  Wing, 
Capt.  of  the  G.  ;  J.  W.  F.  Washburn, 
Cond.  of  the  C. ;  Rev.  H.  F.  Hill,  Chap- 
lain;  W.  A.  Briggs,  Marshal;  Thos.  L. 
Wood,  Steward;  Isaac  M.  Wright,  Sen- 
tinel. 

The  Council  occupies  the  same  hall  in 
connection  with  the  Lodge  and  Chapter. 

No.  of  members,  70.  Regular  Assem- 
blies, Thursday  evening  in  which  the  moon 
fulls.     Annual  in  April. 

Mount  Zion  Commandery,  No.  9, 
Knights  Templar. — Date  of  charter, 
March  20,  1873.  Charter  members,  Jon- 
athan L.  Mack,  Henry  D.  Bean,  Frank 
H.  Bascom,  G.  V.C.Eastman,  J.  Monroe 
Poland,  Jas.  W.  Brock,  Emory  Town,  C. 
E.  Abbott,  A.  McGilvary. 

First  Board  of  Officers.—].  L.  Mack, 
Eminent  Commander ;  H.  D.  Bean,  Gen- 
eralissimo; F.  H.  Bascom,  Captain  Gen- 
eral;  G.  V.  C.  Eastman,  Prelate;  C.  E. 
Abbott,  Senior  Warden ;  A.  McGilvary, 
Junior  Warden  ;  Joel  Winch,  Treasurer ; 
J.  M.  Poland,  Recorder;  E.  Town,  Stand- 
ard Bearer ;  L.  Bart.  Cross,  Sword  Bearer  ; 
G.  W.  Tilden,  Warder. 

Officers  Elected  Dec.  1880.— J.  L.  Mack, 

E.  C. ;  Geo.  W.  Wing,  Generalissimo ; 
Henry  Ferris,  Capt.  Gen. ;  C.  Blakely, 
Prelate;  J.  S.  Batchelder,  S.  W. ;  W.  A. 
Briggs,  J.  W. ;  J,  C.  Houghton,  Treas. ; 
Geo.  Atkins,  Recorder;  E.  L.  White,  St. 
B. ;  J.  C.  Cady,  Sw.  B.  ;  J.  W.  F.  Wash- 
burn, Warder;  George  Blair,  istCapt.  G. ; 
J.  Henry  Jackson,  2d  Capt.  G. ;  M.  Man- 
ning, 3d  Capt.  G. ;  A.  McGilvary,  Com- 
missary;  D.  S.  Wheatley,  Sentinel. 

Jonathan  L.  Mack  has  been  Eminent 
■Commander  since  the  organization. 

Stated  Conclaves,  first  Thursday  in  each 
month;  No.  of  members,  58. 

Gamaliel  Lodge  of  Perfection, 
Ancient  Accepted  Scottish  Rite. — Dispen- 
sation granted  Dec.  15th,  1874;  chartered 
Aug.  i8th,  1875  ;  constituted  Sept.    i6th, 

1875- 

First  Board  of  Officers. — F.  H.  Bas- 
com, 32°,  T-  P-  Grand  Master;  A.  C. 
Dewey,  32°,  Deputy  Grand  Master;  J.W. 

F.  Washburn,  32°,  V.  S.  Grand  Warden; 


M.  T.  McNeely,  32°,  V.  J.  Grand  Warden  ; 
A.  N.  Pearson,  32°,  Grand  Orator;  M.  O. 
Pingree,  32°,  Grand  Keeper  of  the  Seals; 
H.  S.  Smith,  32°,  Grand  Treasurer;  C.H. 
Heaton,  32°,  Grand  Secretary;  S.  R. 
Colby,  32°,  G.  M.  of  Ceremonies;  C.  C. 
Church,  16°,  Grand  Hospitaler;  H.  Pat- 
terson, 14°,  Grand  Capt.  of  the  G. ;  J.  A. 
Paine,  14°,  Grand  Organist ;  C.Clark,  14°, 
Grand  Tyler;  H.  W.  Lyford.  14°,  Grand 
Chaplain. 

Board  of  Officers,  1 88 1 . — Rev .    Howard 

F.  Hill,  32°,  T.  P.  Gr.  Ma.ster;  S.  R. 
Colby,  32°,  D.  Gr.  Master;  William  A. 
Briggs,  16°,  S.  Gr.  Warden;  Geo.  W. 
White,  16°,  J.  Gr.  Warden;  Ed.  R. 
Morse,  16°,  Gr.  Orator;  C.  H.  Heaton, 
32°,  Gr.  Secretary:  H.  W.  Lyford,  14°, 
Gr.  K.  of  Seals:  H.  C.  Bartlett,  32°,  Gr. 
M.  of  Cer. ;  H.  D.  Bean,  14°,  Gr.  Hos- 
pitaler; Henry  Lowe,  16°,  Gr.  Capt.  of  the 

G.  ;  J.W.  F.  Washburn,  32°,  Gr.  Organ- 
ist; I.  M.  Wright,  16°,  Gr.  Tyler. 

Regular  meetings,  Tuesday  evening  of 
week  in  which  the  moon  fulls. 
Place  of  meeting.  Masonic  Hall. 

Mount  Calvary  Council  of  Princes 
OF  Jerusalem,  Ancient  Accepted  Scottish 
Rite. — Chartered  Sept.  20,  1880. 

Board  of  Officers,  1881.— F.  H.  Bas- 
com, 32°,  M.  E.  S.  P.  G.  M. ;  J.  W.  F. 
Washburn,  32°,  G.  H.  P.  D.  G.  M.  ; 
Chas.  H.  Heaton,  32°,  M.  E.  S.  G.  W. ; 
Geo.  W.  Wing,  16°,  M.  E.  J.  G.  W. ; 
S.  R.  Colby,  32°,  Val.  Gr.  Treas. ;  Wm. 
A.  Briggs,  16°,  V.  G.  S.  K.  of  S.  &  A. ; 
Rev.  H.  F.  Hill,  32°,  V.  G.  M.  of  Cer.; 
H.  S.  Smith,  32°,  Val.  Gr.  Almoner ;  F.  F. 
Fletcher,  16°,  V.  Gr.  M.  of  Ent. ;  Henry 
Lowe,  16°,  Gr.  Tyler. 

Regular  meetings,  Tuesday  evening  of 
week  in  which  the  moon  fulls,  at  Masonic 
Hall. 

St.  Helena  Conclave. — May  i,  1875, 
Frank  H.  Bascom,  32°,  D.  D.  Intendant 
General,  instituted  at  Masonic  Headquar- 
ters, Montpelier,  the  above  named  conclave 
of  the  "Imperial,  Ecclesiastical  and  Mil- 
itary" Order  of  the  Red  Cross  of  Rome 
and  Constantine,  the  Invincible  Order  of 
Knights  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  and  the 


MONTPELIER. 


355 


Holy  Order  of  St.  John   the  Evangelist. 
The  following  officers  were  elected  : 

Frank  H.  Bascom,  32°,  Montpelier, 
Most  Puissant  Sovereign ;  J.  W.  F.  Wash- 
burn, 32°,  Montpelier,  Viceroy ;  George 
W.  Tilden,  Barre,  Senior  General ;  E.  A. 
Newcomb,  Waterbury,  Junior  General; 
J.  H.  Jackson,  Barre,  High  Prelate  ;  Albert 
Dewey,  32°,  Montpelier,  Recorder;  Geo. 
W.  Wing,  Montpelier,  Treasurer;  Horace 
W.  Lyford,  Warren,  Prefect ;  H.  O.  Hatch, 
Barre,  Standard  Bearer;  D.  A.  Gray, 
Waterbury,  Herald ;  John  C.  Cave,  14°, 
Montpelier,  Sentinel. 

This  Chivalric  and  Christian  Order  was 
founded  A.  D.  313,  by  Constantine;  the 
Great  Roman  Emperor.  It  is  the  Ancient 
Knighthood  of  Europe,  and  is  the  most 
ancient  body  of  Christian  Masonry  known. 
It  is  conferred  upon  Knights  Templaronly 
in  America,  and  is  the  ne  plus  ultra  of 
York  Rite  Masonry,  being  conferred  upon 
a  select  few  only. 

Oct.  3,  1876,  Frank  H.  Bascom,  of 
Montpelier,  was  appointed  Deputy  for 
Vermont,  to  institute  Mt.  Sinai  Temple  of 
the  Ancient  Arabic  Order  of  Nobles  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine.  It  is  conferred  only  on 
Knights  Templars  and  32°  and  2,2,°  of  the 
A.  &  A.  Rite. 

Geo.  O.  Tyler,  33°,  of  Burlington,  was 
elected  ist  Grand  Potentate,  and  Charles 
H.  Heaton,  32°,  of  Montpelier,  Grand  Re- 
corder. The  present  Grand  Potentate  is 
A.  C.  Dewey,  32°,  and  F.  H.  Bascom,  32, 
Grand  Recorder. 


KNIOHTS   OF   HONOR. 

Capital  Lodge,  No.  917. — Organized 
Feb.  26,  1878.  Charter  members,  J.  W. 
Clark,  R.  J.  Coffey,  Orrin  Daley.  C.  H. 
Farnsworth,  Thos.  Marvin,  H.  M.Pierce, 
Geo.  W.  Parmenter,  T.  C.  Phinney,  Geo. 
L.  Story,  D.  S.  Wheatley,  J.  B.  Wood- 
ward, Chas.  Wells. 

Regular  meetings,  first  and  third  Wed- 
day  evenings  in  each  month. 

Hall  in  Sabin's  Block,  Main  Street; 
membership,  44. 


ODD  FELLOWS. 

Vermont  Lodge,  No.  2,  was  instituted 
May  15,  1845;  the  charter  was  granted 
April  26,  of  that  year.  The  charter  mem- 
bers were  Rev.  Eli  Ballou,  Thos.  Poole, 
James  W.  Bigelow,  Lorenzo  Dow,  Wm. 
H.  Cottrrill. 

In  1852  it  suspended,  and  was  revived 
under  its  present  charter,  July  24,  1873. 

Charter  Members. ^-K.  T.  Keith,  C.  T. 
Summers,  A.  D.  Lane,  Chas.  F.  Collins, 
Marble  Russell,  Geo.  Reed,  T.  C.  Bar- 
rows, G.  B.  Dodge,  O.  T.  Dodge,  L.  M. 
Washburn,  A.  N.  Pearson. 

The  first  officers  were,  A.  T.  Keith, 
N.  G.  ;  A.  N.  Pearson,  V.  G. ;  A.  D.  Lane, 
Secretary. 

The  following  board  of  officers  were 
elected  July  i,  1881  : 

W.  D.  Reid,  N.  G. ;  A.  W.  Ferrin,  V. 
G. ;  H.  C.  Web.ster,  Rec.  Sec'y. ;  C.  F. 
Collins,  Per  Sec'y. ;  D.  W.  Dudley,  Treas. ; 
C.  T.  Summers,  R.  S.  N.  G. ;  Hem;y 
Whitcomb,  L.  S.  N.  G. ;  C.  W.  Guern- 
sey, R.  S.  V.  G. ;  A.  Clark,  L.  S.  V.  G. ; 
C.  E.  Wood,  Warden;  J.  H.  Jackson, 
Conductor;  H.  E.  Slayton,  Inside  Guard; 
Chas.  O.  Foster.  Outside  Guard ;  Charles 
Ferrin,  R.  S.  S. ;  Orville  Dewey,  L.  S.  S. ; 
Rev.  H.  F.  Hill,  Chaplain. 

Hall  in  Post  Office  Block,  State  Street. 

Brooks  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army 
OF  THE  Republic,  was  instituted  April  28, 
1873- 

Charter  Members. — P.  P.  Pitkin.  F.  V. 
Randall,  J.  S.  Peck,  J.  W.  Clark,  J.  O. 
Livingston,  F.  E.  Smith,  Geo.  S.  Robin- 
son, C.  B.  Wilson,  J.  M.  Poland,  N.  N. 
Glazier,  A.  C.  Brown,  H.  C.  Lull,  O. 
Daley,  A.  G.  Bean  and  Elihu  Snow. 

Present  Officers.—^.  F.  Waterman, 
Commander;  W.  E.  Lawson,  Senior  Vice 
Commander;  N.  C.  Peck,  Junior  Vice 
Commander;  H.  L.  Averill,  Adjutant; 
H.  M.  Pierce,  Quarter  Master;  Geo.  W. 
Colby,  Surgeon  ;  Chas.  A.  Sanders,  Chap- 
lain ;  W.  W.  Noyes,  Officer  of  the  day; 
J.J.  Young,  Officer  of  the  Guard  ;  C.  E. 
Stowe,  O.  M.  Sergeant. 

The   Post    meets    the   first   and    third 


356 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Tuesday  evenings  in  the  month  at  their 
Hall,  on  South  Main  Street. 

The  Post,  in  a  financial  point  of  view, 
is  even  with  the  world.  It  has  assisted 
many  deserving  soldiers  and  their  fam- 
ilies. It  has  always  observed  the  memo- 
rial services  on  Decoration  Day  in  a  man- 
ner highly  commendable ;  and  has  been 
assisted  materially  by  the  citizens  of  the 
Capital  on  that  day.  It  has  done  many 
deeds  of  charity,  and  still  has  that  work  to 
perform,  and  should  receive  the  aid  of  all 
good  citizens. 

Membership,  150. 

St.  John  Baptist  Benevolent  So- 
ciety.— Incorporated  Nov.  23,  1872. 

The  object  of  the  Saint  John  Baptist 
Society  of  Montpelier  is  to  render  aid  to 
the  members  in  sickness,  and,  by  the  spirit 
of  Christian  association,  to  encourage  the 
practice  of  the  social  virtues,  and  revive 
among  them  the  sentiments  of  their  na- 
tionality. To  accomplish  this  end,  as 
honorable  as  it  is  useful,  the  members 
agree  to  hold  frequent  meetings,  and  to 
make  regular  contributions  to  form  a  re- 
serve fund  by  means  of  which,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  conditions  expressed  in  the 
rules  of  the  society,  each  member  will  be 
entitled  to  a  daily  but  temporary  assist- 
ance. 

Charter  AJet/ibers.  —  Mitchell  Sweet, 
Eugene  Laviolette,  John  C.  White,  Joseph 
N.  Goron,  Cyprien  Peltier,  Dieu  D.  Nev- 
eaux,  Peter  St.  Rock,  Alexander  Camp- 
bell, John  Rock,  John  Doucette,  Alex- 
ander Campbell,  Jr.,  John  Jangraw,  Ferd 
La  Croix,  Seraphine  Neveaux,  Alexander 
Jangraw,  Humphrey  Campbell,  John  Gag- 
non,  Jesse  Cayhue,  Louis  Greenwood, 
Frank  Greenwood,  Frank  Lucie,  Louis 
Rodney,  David  Brown,  Leonard  Mailhote, 
Peter  Gay,  Jerry  Gay,  Frank  Lanier, 
Marcus  Louiselle,  Corliss  Desaulniers, 
Edward  Rattell. 

Present  Officers,  1881. — President,  Al- 
phonso  Shorey  ;  Vice  Pres't,  Paul  Terieo  ; 
Secretary,  Mitchell  Sweet ;  Treasurer, 
Seraphine  Neveaux ;  Marshal,  Louis  Rod- 
ney. 

Membership,  50. 


members   of   WASHINGTON    COUNTY   BAR. 

BY  JOSEPH  A.  WING,  ESQ. 

The  following  are  now  residents  at 
Montpelier: 

Homer  W.  Heatox,  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  Washington  Co.,  November  term, 
1835  ;  now  aged  70. 

Joseph  A.  Wing,  admitted  to  the  Bar 
April  term,  1836,  and  in  1881  is  71  years 
of  age :  practiced  in  Plainfield  till  June, 
1858,  and  since  that  time  has  practiced 
law  at  Montpelier. 

Luther  L.  Durant,  aged  54  years,  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Washington  County, 
November  term,  1850.  Commenced  at 
Waitsfield,  June,  1852,  went  to  Water- 
bury  in  1855,  'ii''d  came  to  Montpelier, 
Nov.  1866. 

Carlisle  J.  Gleason,  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  Washington  County,  September 
term,  1858. 

Whitman  G.  Ferrin,  aged  64  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Lamoille  County, 
1843,  June  term  ;  moved  to  Montpelier  in 
1859. 

Timothy  P.  Redfield,  aged  67  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Orleans  County, 
June  term,  1838  ;  practiced  in  that  county 
till  1848,  when  he  removed  to  Montpelier. 
He  was  elected  Judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court  by  the  Legislature  at  the  October 
session,  1870,  and  has  been  Judge  of  said 
Court  till  the  present  time. 

JosiAH  O.  Livingston,  admitted  in 
Lamoille,  May  term,  1861  ;  was  in  the 
Army  as  Adjutant  of  the  9th  Regiment ; 
moved  to  Montpelier  in  1872. 

Stephen  C.  Shurtleff,  aged  43  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Washington  Co. 
March  term,  1863;  commenced  at  Plain- 
field  in  October,  and  came  to  Montpelier, 
September,  1876. 

C.  H.  Heath,  aged  52  years,  admitted 
to  the  Bar  in  Lamoille  County,  Dec.  7, 
1859;  removed  to  Plainfield  in  1859,  '^"'^ 
from  there  to  Monti^elier  in  1872. 

Thomas  J.  Deavitt,  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  1867  ;  practiced  in  Moretown,  and 
moved  to  Montpelier  in  1873. 


oAtvvL^  4r  Ji<^ 


C-tyy^ 


MONTPELIER. 


357 


Hiram  A.  Huse,  a  graduate  of  Albany 
Law  School  in  May,  1867;  admitted  in 
Orange  County,  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
1873,  '^"cl  ^^'^^  appointed  State  Librarian 
in  1873. 

Benjamin  F.  Fifield,  aged  49  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Washington  Co.  in 
1859. 

Hiram  Carleton,  aged  43  years,  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County 
at  the  September  term,  1865  :  commenced 
the  practice  of  law  at  Waitsfield.  in  May. 
1866,  and  moved  from  there  to  Montpelier 
in  December,  1875. 

Melville  E.  Smilie,  aged  37  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Washington  County, 
March  term,  1866.  He  began  practice  at 
Waterbury  in  1867.  and  removed  to  Mont- 
pelier in  1875 ;  was  appointed  County 
Clerk  in  1876,  and  has  continued  clerk  to 
the  present  time. 

George  W.  Wing,  aged  38  years,  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County, 
March  term,  1868. 

Truman  R.  Gordon,  aged  30  years, 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Washington  Co. 
September  term,  1877;  commenced  prac- 
tice in  Montpelier  in  1878. 

Henry  K.  Field,  aged  35  years,  was 
admitted  to  Windham  County  Court,  Sept. 
term,  187 1  ;  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
1872. 

Charles  W.  Porter,  aged  32  years, 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington 
County,  Sept.  term,  1874. 

Clarence  H.  Pitkin,  aged  32  years, 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington 
County,  March  term,  1872.  He  is  the 
present  State's  Attorney  of  the  Count}'. 

William  A.  Lord,  aged  32  years,  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington  Co. 
March  term,  1876. 

Rush  P.  Barrett,  aged  26  years,  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Windsor  County, 
Dec.  7,  1878;  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
May,  1 88 1. 

Harry  G.  Dewing,  aged  29,  admitted 
to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County,  Sept. 
term,  1875. 


Harlan  W.  Kemp,  aged  23  years,  ad' 
mitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County, 
Sept.  7,  1880. 

James  S.  Peck,  aged  41  years,  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County, 
Sept.  7,  1866;  now  Postmaster  of  Mont- 
pelier. 

OsMAN  D.  Clark,  aged  26  years,  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington  Co. 
March  term,  1879. 

John  G.  Wing,  aged  22  years,  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County, 
Sept.  term,  1880. 

Frank  W.  Tuttle,  aged  21  years,  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Washington  Co.  at 
the  March  term,  1881. 

Henry  Oviatt,  aged  22  years,  admit- 
ted to  Washington  County  Bar,  March 
term,  1875  ;  the  present  short  hand  re- 
porter of  the  Court. 

There  are  many  members  of  the  Bar  of 
Washington  County  who  were  once  resi- 
dents of  Montpelier,  who  are  now  living  in 
other  States,  who  are  honorable  members 
of  the  profession,  among  whom  are  Hon. 
Samuel  B.  Prentiss,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio ; 
Joseph  A.  Prentiss,  of  Winona,  Minn. ; 
C.  W.  Prentiss,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio,  and 
Chauncey  W.  Town,  of  New  York  city ; 
J.  P.  C.  Cottrill,  of  Milwaukee;  Daniel  G. 
Thompson,  of  New  York  city  ;  Azel  Spald- 
ing, of  Kansas;  Chester  W.  Merrill,  of 
Cincinnati ;  Rodney  Lund,  of  Boston  ;  N. 
A.  Taylor,  of  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa ;  Still- 
man  Churchill,  of  Chicago;  Jeremiah  T. 
Marston,  of  Madison,  Wis. 

From  the  formation  of  the  County  of 
Washington,  the  bar  of  the  County  was 
noted  for  men  of  learning  and  talent,  who 
have  passed  away  by  death.  Of  those  who 
have  died  who  lived  in  Montpelier,  or  had 
their  offices  in  Montpelier,  are  the  follow- 
ing, many  of  whom  should  have  more  than 
a  passing  notice :  Charles  Bulkley,  Cyrus 
Ware,  Samuel  Prentiss,  Wm.  Upham, 
Nicholas  Baylies,  Jeduthan  Loomis,  Azro 
Loomis,  Lucius  B.  Peck,  Stoddard  B.  Col- 
by, Oramel  H.  Smith,  Wm.  P.  Briggs, 
Jackson  A.  Vail,  William  H.  L^pham,  Jon- 
athan P.  Miller,  D.  P.  Thompson,  George 


358 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


R.  Thompson,  Calvin  J.  Keith,  Samuel  B. 
Prentiss,  C.  W.  Willard,  Charles  Reed, 
Charles  F.  Smith,  Ferrand  F.  Merrill, 
Timothy  Merrill,  Thomas  Reed,  Hezekiah 
H.  Reed,  Joshua  Y.  Vail,  J.  T.  Marston, 
George  B.  Manser,  Samuel  Wells,  George 
W.  Bailey,  Jr.,  Samuel  W.  Chandler. 

C.  D.  Swazey,  C.  D.  Harvey,  R.  S. 
Boutwell,  were  in  Montpelier  in  1865, 
whether  living  or  not  I  cannot  tell. 

[Note. — Judge  Bulkley  is  noticed  in 
Berlin  and  in  these  pages  as  the  first  post- 
master in  Montpelier,  and  the  first  lawyer. 
W^e  have  been  told  he  was  a  strong  man, 
of  fine  talent,  and  that  the  house  is  still 
standing  on  Berlin  side  in  which  he  lived, 
which  is  all  we  have  been  able  to  learn 
about  him.  '  We  would  be  pleased  to  learn 
more,  as  also  ot  any  and  all  mentioned,  of 
whom  we  have  not  full  notice  among  our 
biographies  to  yet  follow,  which  embrace 
at  least  twenty  or  more  of  the  above 
names. — Ed.] 

VERMONT   BAR   ASSOCIATION. 

This  association  was  formed  Oct.  22, 
1878,  at  Montpelier,  and  organized  by  the 
appointment  of  the  following  officers  : 

President,  Edward  J.  Phelps,  Burling- 
ton; Vice  Presidents,  G.  W.  Harmon, 
Bennington, Wheelock  G.  Veazey, Rutland, 
William  E.  Johnson,  Woodstock,  Guy  C. 
Noble,  St.  Albans,  Wm.  P.  Dillingham, 
Waterbury  ;  Secretary,  Hiram  F.  Stevens, 
St.  Albans;  Treasurer,  Wm.  G.  Shaw, 
Burlington. 

The  association  numbered  about  100 
members,  and  was  chartered  by  the 
Legislature  of  1878,  approved  Nov.  14, 
1878,  and  duly  organized  under  the  charter 
by  the  election  of  the  officers  above  named 
for  one  year.  At  the  first  annual  meeting, 
at  Montpelier,  Oct.  28,  1879,  the  follow- 
ing officers  were  elected  for  the  ensuing 
year:  President,  L.  P.  Poland,  of  St. 
Johnsbury ;  Vice  Presidents,  George  W. 
Harmon,  Bennington,  Roswell  Farnham, 
Bradford,  John  L.  Edwards,  Newport ; 
Secretary,  Clarence  H.  Pitkin,  Montpelier  ; 
Treasurer,  Wm.  G.  Shaw,  Burlington. 

The  2d  annual  meeting  of  the  association 
was  held  on  the  4th  Tuesday  in  October, 
1880,  when  the  following  officers  were  ap- 
pointed : 


President,  Walter  C.  Dunton,  Rutland  ; 
Vice  Presidents,  Warren C.  French, Wood- 
stock, John  Prout,  Rutland,  Guy  C.  Noble, 
St.  Albans  ;  Secretary,  Clarence  H.  Pitkin, 
Montpelier;  Treasurer,  Wm.  G.  Shaw, 
Burlington. 

The  3d  annual  meeting  was  held  on 
Tuesday,  Oct.  25th,  1881,  when  the  fol- 
lowing officers  were  elected : 

President,  Daniel  Roberts,  Burlington ; 
Vice  Presidents,  Geo.  W.  Harmon,  Ben- 
nington, John  L.  Edwards,  Newport,  Ros- 
well Farnham,  Bradford;  Secretary,  Clar- 
ence H.  Pitkin,  Montpelier;  Treasurer, 
Chas.  W.  Porter,  Montpelier;  Managers, 
Daniel  Roberts,  Burlington,  W.  P.  Dil- 
lingham, Waterbury,  John  W.  Rowell, 
Randolph,  O.  E.  Butterfield,  Wilmington, 
Henry  C.  Ide,  St.  Johnsbury. 

The  association  is  in  a  prosperous  con- 
dition, with  about  120  members,  from  all 
parts  of  the  State,  and  is  of  great  benefit 
to  the  legal  profession  in  the  State. 

THE  MEDICAL  MEN  OF  MONTPELIER. 

BY  SUMNER  PUTNAM,  M.  U. 

Physicians  who  have  lived  and  practiced 
in  Montpelier  within  my  remembrance  or 
since  1828 : 

Dr.  Edward  Lamb  was  the  leading 
physician  in  this  town  for  over  40  years. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  74,  in  1845. 

Dr.  James  Spalding,  who  died  in 
1858  at  the  age  of  66,  was  the  chief  sur- 
geon here  for  many  years. 

Dr.  J.  Y.  Dewey  had  a  full  practice 
here  from  1825  to  1850,  when  he  became 
interested  in  life  insurance,  and  discontin- 
ued practice.     He  died  in  1877. 

As  these  men  reached  the  zenith  of  their 
fame,  Dr.  F.  W.  Adams  of  Barton  suc- 
ceeded them,  and  being  a  whole  team  in 
himself  soon  acquired  fame.  If  reports 
were  true,  he  neither  feared  man,  nor  the 
God  of  his  fathers,  but  was  really  a  kind- 
hearted  man,  a  good  physician  and  sur- 
geon.    He  died  in  1859  o''  60. 

Dr.  Z.  P.  BuRNHAM  practiced  here  a 
few  years,  but  about  1840  moved  to  Low- 
ell, Mass. 


Jr>  /r't^P^ 


^ 


MONTPELIER. 


359 


Dr.  Ezra  Paine  was  a  practitioner  here 
from  1859  to  "JT),  when  he  moved  to  Bos- 
ton, where  he  now  resides. 

In  1849,  Dr.  Chas.  Clark  moved  into 
Montpelier,  and  had  a  large  practice  in  the 
village  and  surrounding  country  until  1865, 
when  his  health  failed.  He  died  in  1874 
at  the  age  of  74  years. 

Dr.  C.  M.  RuBLEE  born  in  town;  died 
in  town  1870.  [See  sketch  in  the  biogra- 
phies.] 

About  1850,  Dr.  Orrin  .Smith  of  Berlin 
moved  here,  and  practiced  until  1856, 
when  he  went  to  Chicago,  and  has  since 
died.  I  have  heard  many  of  his  former 
patrons  .speak  of  him  with  respect. 

Dr.  C.  B.  Chandler  came  from  Tun- 
bridge  in  1856;  died  in  1867.  He  was  re- 
spected by  all  who  knew  him.  [See  sketch 
in  biographies.] 

About  1850,  Dr.  T.  C.  Taplin  practiced 
homoeopathy,  and  adhered  to  high  dilu- 
tions, too. 

Then  followed  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham, 
homoeopathist,  who  did  not  always  give 
infinitesimals,  and  moved  to  Michigan  in 
1875. 

Dr.  B.  O.  Tyler,  I  think,  moved  from 
Worcester  to  this  place  and  became  en- 
gaged mostly  in  selling  drugs.  He  died 
May  20,  1878,  at  an  advanced  age. 

Dr.  W.  H.  H.  Richardson  moved  here 
about  1858,  from  E.  Montpelier,  and  prac- 
ticed successfully  till  1867,  when  he 
moved  to  Winona,  Minn.,  to  continue 
practice,  and  engaged,  somewhat,  in  real 
estate  speculations,  but  in  a  few  years  died 
suddenly  of  apoplexy  in  the  prime  of  life. 

Since  the  days  of  Lamb,  Spalding,  and 
Dewey,  up  to  the  dates  of  those  at  present 
here,  two  or  three  other  physicians  have 
practiced  here,  for  a  short  time,  viz  : — Dr. 
G.  H.  LoOMis,  Dr.  W.  Azel  Holmes, 
Dr.  F.  A.  McDowell,  Dr.  M.  M.  Marsh, 
and  Dr.  J.  H.Jackson.  Dr.  H.  L.  Rich- 
ardson practiced  l>ere  in  1866,  and  Dr. 
Mulligan  about  1858  or '59;  the  latter 
of  whom  died  here  soon  after  beginning 
practice. 

Of  the  physicians  at  present  in  practice 
here,  Dr.  C.  M.  Chandler,  son  of  C.  B. 


Chandler,  came  here  in  1860,  but  went 
south  as  surgeon  during  the  war,  and  final- 
ly settled  in  practice  here  in  the  fall  of 
1865. 

Dr.  S.  PuTNAAi,  now  the  oldest  physi- 
cian in  town;  came  here  in  the  spring  of 
1865,  and  desiring  to  establish  himself  hon- 
orably, and  crowd  no  one,  purchased  the 
residence  and  '■'■good  wiW^  of  the  late  Dr. 
Chas.  Clark,  the  latter  of  which  purchases 
he  was  not  fortunate  enough  to  retain,  if 
indeed,  he  ever  received  it  at  all. 

The  same  year,  1865,  Dr.  J.  E.  Macom- 
BER,  a  native  of  East  Montpelier,  moved 
to  this  place  from  Worcester. 

In  1866.  Dr.  D.  G.  Kemp  succeeded  Dr. 
W.  H.  H.  Richardson  in  practice. 

Dr.  J.  B.  Woodward  came,  I  think, 
from  Kansas  to  this  place,  about  1870, 
having  formerly  practiced  in  Waterbury, 
this  county.  He  engaged  at  first  in  the 
drug  trade  but  soon  came  into  practice, 
which  he  pursued  with  avidity  until  the 
fall  of  1879,  when  in  consequence  of  a 
slight  wound  of 'the  finger,  received  during 
a  surgical  operation,  cellulites  and  septicae- 
mia supervened,  sadly  terminating  in  death. 

About  1876,  Dr.  H.  G.  Brigham,  hom- 
oeopathist, succeeded  his  father  G.  N. 
Brigham  in  practice. 

'  The  Eclectic  School  of  Medicine,  so 
called,  (Thompsonians  formerly)  have 
been  represented  here  since  about  1864  by 
Dr.  J.  M.  Templeton,  and  latterly  also, 
by  Dr.  H.  E.  Templeton. 

For  more  than  thirty  years  Madame 
Lucy  A.  Cooke  has  been  consulted  here 
as  a  clairvoyant  physician,  her  patrons 
coming  from  all  parts  of  the  country. 

In  the  spring  of  1880,  Dr.  W.  D.  Reid, 
from  Canada  West,  opened  an  office  here, 
and  about  the  same  time  Dr.  Geo.  E.  Ma- 
LOY  began  practice  in  Montpelier. 

Oct.  29,  188 1. 

RESIDENT    DENTISTS. 

O.  P.  Forbush,  for  some  years  here ; 
Richard  Newton,  partner  with  Forbush ; 
Alfred  Clark  ;  H.  T.  Whitney ;  G.  E.  Hunt 
opened  an  office  here  Oct..  1879. 


36o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


<j-te-yiJU€} 


The  morning  of  life  is  g.)ne, 
Tlie  evening  sliades  appear; 

LORENZO  DOW,  IN  THIS  COUNTY. 

Chief  among  the  early  missionaries  in 
Washington  County  and  in  Montpeher, 
was  Lorenzo  Dow,  a  Methodist  preach- 
er ;  not  a  conference  preacher,  exactly, 
but  one  whose  circuit  extended  all  over 
Vermont,  the  Canadas,  the  South,  Ire- 
land, Scotland,  and  wherever  he  chose  to 
go  ;  who  came  and  went  as  the  "wind  that 
bloweth  wherever  it  listeth."  A  true, 
genuine  methodist  though ;  he  never 
preached  any  other  doctrine.  The  pio- 
neer of  methodism  in  Washington  County  ; 
but  a  man  who  must  be  his  own  leader, 
who  could  never  restrain  himself  to  circuit 
rules.  He  had  joined  the  Methodist  con- 
ference in  his  youth,  had  been  appointed 
to  a  circuit ;  it  could  not  hold  him  ;  remon- 
strated with,  reappointed,  shot  off  on  a 
fervent  tangent.  Conference  dropped  him, 
could  not  keep  a  man  it  could  neither  rule 


or  guide.  Every  minister 
seemed  against  him  — Cal- 
vinistic  divine,  regular 
Methodist  circuit  preach- 
er as  well, — decried  by  all, 
he  prevailed.  He  thick- 
ened his  appointments, 
the  multitude  hung  on  the 
words  from  his  lips,  his 
oddities  attracted,  his  ec- 
centricities were  his  great 
cliarm.  He  was  called 
••Crazy  Dow,"'  which  name 
seemed  to  please  him  very 
well.  From  his  home  in 
Connecticut,  he  had  his 
yearly  line  of  preaching 
places  all  up  through  into 
Canada.  On  his  annual 
visit  to  Vermont,  he  al- 
ways visited  this  Count}'. 
We  hear  of  him  before  he 
enters  at  Danville  ;  when 
entered,  in  Cabot,  Calais, 
Plainfield,  Barre  and  al- 
ways at  Montpelier.  At 
the  close  of  a  first  visit  to 
Montpelier,  as  narrated  to 
me  a  few  years  since,  by 
an  old  gentleman,  now 
dead,  who  was  present, 
and  his  devoted  admirer,  Dow  said  at 
pai'ting  with  his  audience  "One  year  from 
this  day,  I  will  again  preach  here."  The 
people  after  he  left  laughed  at  his  giving 
out  an  appointment  so  far  ahead  and  at 
his  sq()posing  that  he  would  keep  it.  The 
year  came  round,  no  one  remembered  it, 
but,  lo !  in  a  year  to  the  day  and  hour,  Dow 
appeared  to  fulfil  his  engagement ;  his 
first  salutation  to  the  crowd,  gathering 
around  him,  "Crazy  Dow  is  with  you 
once  again  V  He  preached  as  I  never 
heard  any  one  but  him  ;  for  three  hours  he 
held  his  large  audience  so  still  you  could 
have  heard  a  pin  drop  on  the  floor,  said 
our  narrator,  and  at  the  end  of  his  sermon, 
gave  out  another  appointment  for  a  year 
from  the  day.  People  rather  looked  for 
him  the  next  year.  As  he  left  in  the  morn- 
ing and  kept  to  the  hour  as  well  as  day 
before,  he  was  expected  in    the  morning 


MONTPELIER. 


361 


We  are  journeying  to  that  laiui 
From  wlifciice  there's  no  return. 

again,  and  not  appearing  some  said  he 
would  not  come,  others  that  he  would  be 
here  before  night,  and  others  that  because 
a  crazy  man  had  taken  the  freak  to  keep  an 
appointment  once,  there  was  no  reason  to 
look  for  him  to  do  so  again.  His  appear- 
ance in  the  afternoon  put  an  end  to  the 
growing  anxiety.  On  he  came,  about 
mid-afternoon,  accompanied  by  Peggy.  He 
was  not  married  when  he  came  before,  or 
did  not  bring  his  wife  with  him.  They 
both  were  dressed  in  plain,  homespun, 
woolen  garments,  a  long  cloak  of  plain 
woolen  cloth  reaching  to  their  feet,  wooden 
shoes  on  their  feet,  and  both  wore  large 
brimmed  chip  hats,  just  alike,  and  each 
carried  a  staff  or  walking-stick.  They 
journeyed  upon  horseback,  but  dismounted 
without  the  village,  and  walked  up  the 
street  to  the  place  for  the  meeting,  follow- 
ed by  the  crowd.  Dow  excused  his  being 
46 


late,  that  his  companion 
could  not  travel  as  fast  as 
he  could,  and  declined  an 
invitation  to  dinner,  al- 
though neither  he  or  his 
companion  had  dined  that 
day.  It  was  getting  late 
for  his  meeting ;  he  would 
not  take  any  refreshments 
till  after  he  had  preached 
a  long  sermon,  nor  suffer 
his  wife  to.  Dow  mounted 
the  platform,  and  seating 
himself  in  the  chair,  sat 
for  some  moments  silently, 
gazing  intently  at  his  au- 
dience, and  then  suddenly 
arising  upon  his  feet,  at  a 
signal  from  him,  Peggy, 
who  was  seated  with  the 
audience,  arose  to  her  feet 
— clad  in  her  long  cloak 
and  hat,  stood  gravely 
waiting.  Said  Dow,  "This 
woman  with  me  is  Peggy 
Dow.  I  have  brought  her 
with  me  that  she  may  teach 
the  women  subservience  to 
their  husbands."  To  Peg- 
gy, "Standstill!"  Peggy 
stood  very  still.  "Be 
seated!"  Peggy  sat  down.  Dow  com- 
menced his  sermon,  preaching  with  his 
cloak  and  hat  on.  Dow  always  wore  his 
hat  when  he  preached,  and  as  he  never 
shaved,  had  a  very  long  beard,  that  added 
to  his  conspicuous  and  distinguished  ap- 
pearance. Peggy,  a  simple  and  amiable 
woman,  was  a  good  help  to  Dow.  She 
greatly  delighted  in  class  and  prayer- 
meetings,  and  was  a  very  good  singer. 
"PeggyDow's  Hymn  Book" — See  Gilman's 
Bibliotheca,  p.  315, — was  printed  at  Mont- 
pelier.  Here  it  was  probably  first  used  in 
the  meetings  of  those  early  days.  Long 
after  Peggy's  death,  the  hymn  book  was 
used  by  Dow.  A  gentleman  in  Montpelier 
has  one  now  that  was  given  to  him  or  to 
his  wife  by  Dow.  The  State  Historical 
Library  has  a  copy.  Lorenzo  Dow  had 
opposition,  however,  to  meet  at  Mont- 
pelier, as  well  as  elsewhere.     It  was  this, 


362 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


perhaps,  made  Montpelier  a  favorite  preach- 
ing place.  Opposition  gave  an  attraction 
to  a  place.  He  counted  upon  it  to  succeed. 
It  was  ladder  and  platform  to  him.  That 
churches  or  clergy  combined  against  him, 
l)ut  added  to  his  popularity.  One  year 
some  good  church  ladies  of  this  village, 
loving  quiet  and  orderly  ways,  took  the 
matter  in  hand,  and  in  the  school-house 
where  the  meetings  were  held  put  in  a 
quilt.  A  party  of  ladies  were  at  work 
when  Dow  arrived.  Not  a  word  he  said 
to  the  ladies'  blockade.  A  moment  he 
stood  in  the  open  door,  in  his  uncouth 
long  garment  and  unshorn  awfulness,  look- 
ing majestically  upon  the  equally  silent 
and  suddenly  abashed  ladies,  when,  turn- 
ing from  the  door,  springing  upon  a  wood- 
pile in  the  yard,  he  commenced  preaching. 
Long  before  he  ende'd,  a  crowd  packed  the 
yard  around  him,  and  every  woman  in  the 
school-house  was  seen  at  the  windows  and 
at  the  door.  It  had  been  utterly  impossi- 
ble for  them  to  restrain  their  curiosity, 
and  listening,  had  become  so  magnetized 
by  the  marvelous  man,  they  took  out  the 
unfinished  quilt,  and  surrendered  the 
school-house  for  the  evening.  Dow  said 
when  he  saw  the  ladies  there,  he  made  up 
his  mind  he  should  be  present  at  the  shak- 
ing of  that  quilt,  and  he  was. 

Again  he  preached  on  the  wood-pile  at 
the  door  of  the  old  Court  House,  closed 
against  him,  and  drew  out,  it  is  said,  all 
the  audience  of  a  "four  days'  meeting," 
that  had  been  got  up  just  as  he  was  com- 
ing, but  five.  Hearing  Dow's  voice  with- 
out, at  first  one  man  stole  out,  then  an- 
other and  another.  In  vain  the  minister 
paused  in  the  midst  of  his  sermon  to  look 
reproof,  and  continued  his  discourse.  An- 
other left,  now  a  whole  seat  at  once.  The 
minister  finished  his  sermon,  but  at  the 
end  only  five  persons  were  left  in  the 
house — himself,  the  two  other  ministers 
seated  beside  him,  and  the  two  deacons. 

He  kept  the  people  awake  while  with 
them,  and  in  his  absence  they  heard  of 
him :  now  in  Georgia,  among  the  planta- 
tions South,  having  splendid  success.  He 
was  to  preach  under  a  large  tree.  A  man 
could  sit  among   tlie    liranches   perfectly 


concealed  by  the  thick  foliage.  The  eve- 
ning before,  Dow  came  to  the  spot  with  a 
negro,  a  good  trumpet  blower.  Standing 
under  the  tree,  Dow  thus  instructed  him  : 
He  should  come  before  any  one  in  the 
morning,  and  hide  in  the  tree  overhead, 
and  remain  breathlessly  still  till  Dow  in 
his  preaching  should  call  out  the  third  time 
"Gabriel!"'  and  then  blow  his  tnmipet. 
The  morning  opened,  to  a  vast  dark  as- 
sembly. Lorenzo  preached  on  the  "Judg- 
ment Day,"' — a  tremendous  sermon, — and 
when  he  had  wrought  the  crowd  up  to  its 
highest  pitch, — pausing,  listening, — cried 
out  again,  still  more  loud  and  terrific — 
"  But  you  don't  believe  it !  If  I  were  to 
tell  you  that  Gabriel — will  sound  his  trum- 
pet— before  we  leave  this  spot — you  would 
not  believe  me  !  The  earth  may  open  be- 
neath your  feet,  and  you  tumble  into  hell, 
before  you  will  believe  !  This  trumpet  may 
sound  this  very  day  !"  The  audience  be- 
came strangely  excited.  "  Gabriel  may 
sound  his  trumpet  at  any  time  now."  Gaz- 
ing intently  up — "Methinks  I  see  him! 
Methinks  I  hear  his  trumpet  now !  Ga- 
briel will ■'  A  quick  trumpet  peal  over- 
head ;  a  startled  negro  crowd,  eyes  rolling 
in  their  sockets ;  a  blast  more  loud, — 
groanings,  falling  upon  their  knees,  black 
terror  developed, — shriller  and  shriller  the 
invisible  trumpet ;  confusion,  flight,  clutch- 
ings  to  each  other,  some  praying,  others 
famting.  With  the  loudest  blast,  the  ne- 
gro, tnu-npet  in  hand,  leaped  in  his  excite- 
ment from  the  tree  into  the  sprawling 
i  crowd,  mistaken  for  Gabriel.  Dow  took 
advantage  of  the  confusion  to  leave.  He 
afterwards  called  it  a  trial  of  the  power  of 
of  imagination. 

Finding  on  the  fresh  leaves  of  our  early 
history  the  tracks  of  this  eccentric  Dow 
"  everywhere,"  we  had  thought  to  trace  out 
some  account  of  his  labors  here  and  else- 
where from  his  published  journal,  but 
learning  that  a  first  nephew  of  his  was  still 
living,  we  will  do  better,  and  introduce  to 
you,  with  his  faithful  and  graphic  memorial 
paper,  Mr.  Lewis  J.  Bridgmax,  of  New 
York,  a  son  of  Vermont,  Biographist  of 
his  famous  uncle.  Lorenzo  Dow. 


MONTPELIER. 


3^3 


LEWIS    JOSEPH     BRIDGMAN 


The  following  sketch  of  the  Life  and  Times  of  the  celebrated  Lorenzo  Dow,  and  his  first  wife,  Peggy  Dow> 
is  compiled  from  some  of  their  own  writings,  but  principally  is  original  matter,  known  to  no  one  outside  of  the 
author,  LEWIS  JOSEPH  BRIDGMAN. 


Note  to  the  Reader. — Having  been 
requested  to  write  a  brief  sketch  of  the  life 
of  the  eccentric  Lorenzo  Dow,  for  publi- 
cation in  the  history  of  Vermont,  I  comply 
with  the  pressing  request,  yet  at  this  busy 
season  of  commercial  business,  I  can 
scarcely  find  the  time  to  do  justice  to  so 
distinguished  a  character  as  the  subject  of 
this  brief  memoir.  I  know  of  whom  I 
write.  His  eccentricities  of  character  may 
have  sometimes  made  him  the  subject  of 
ridicule  and  jest,  still  he  possessed  talents 
of  a  very  high  order,  that  on  many  occa- 
sions in  forensic  discourses  have  discom- 
fitted  his  opponents,  and  drawn  from  them 
the  warmest  congratulations.  He  possess- 
ed in  a  remarkable  degree  the  idiosyncra- 
sies of  the  Dow  race  ;   but  all  his  oddities 


possessed  a  point  often  bordering  on  the 
satirical.  Like  his  father  before  him,  he 
was  gifted  with  a  great  amount  of  "  handy 
change,"  as  he  used  to  denominate  wit. 
His  memory  was  also  remarkable,  border- 
ing on  the  marvelous.  The  memory  of 
Lorenzo  being  as  strong  as  it  is  reported, 
was  nevertheless  eclipsed  by  his  father, 
Humphrey  Bean  Dow,  which  was  so  re- 
tentive, that  by  hearing  any  one  verse  read 
in  any  part  of  the  Bible,  he  would  readily 
repeat  the  next ;  as  incredible  as  this  may 
appear,  he  was  bften  put  to  the  test  in  the 
presence  of  the  family,  when  I  have  been 
an  interested  spectator,  and  I  never  re- 
member of  any  omission. 

I  recollect  well  when  1  was  a  boy.  Uncle 
Lorenzo    came    to    visit   his     sister,    (my 


364 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


mother,)  while  we  were  living  in  Hard- 
wick,  Vt.  One  day  at  dinner  we  had  a 
new  pitcher,  made  to  commemorate  some 
of  the  events  of  the  war  of  i8 12-14  with 
Great  Britain.  Upon  one  side  of  the 
pitcher  was  a  spread  eagle  in  gilt,  with  a 
wreath  running  around  the  eagle  of  chain- 
work,  and  in  each  link  of  the  chain,  there 
being  21  links,  were  the  names  of  our  gen- 
erals who  fouglit  during  the  war.  Gen. 
Brown's  name  stood  at  the  top.  Uncle 
took  up  the  pitcher,  and  told  the  number 
of  battles  Gen.  Brown  had  fought,  the  num- 
ber of  men  he  had  in  each  action,  the  killed, 
wounded  and  missing :  those  who  fought 
against  him.  the  number  of  men  killed  and 
taken  prisoners :  so  with  each  general 
until  he  had  gone  through  with  the  entire 
number.  Then  turning  the  pitcher  around 
to  the  reverse  side,  there  was  a  jDicture  of 
a  gilt  ship  under  full  sail,  with  the  names 
of  the  commodores  or  post  captains  who 
took  part  in  the  same  war,  Commodore 
Rogers'  name  standing  at  the  top.  Uncle 
gave  also  the  number  of  naval  battles, 
when  and  where  fought,  the  number  of 
ships  he  commanded  in  each,  number  of 
men,  how  many  lost,  and  how  many  pris- 
oners he  took,  and  the  minute  history  and 
details  of  each  commander.  The  time 
taken  in  relating  the  battles  was  some  two 
hours  and  a  half. 

LORENZO     DOW 

was  born  of  Puritan  parents,  in  Coven- 
try, Tolland  Co.,  Ct.,  October  i8th,  1777. 
His  parents  were  born  in  the  same  town, 
from  English  ancestors.  Ulysses,  the 
oldest  of  the  family,  studied  medicine,  but 
finally  devoted  his  time  to  teaching  in  an 
academy  in  New  London,  Ct.  He  taught 
the  classics,  astronomy,  surveying,  and 
navigation.  He  taught  the  latter  to  many 
of  the  post  captains  in  our  young  navy, 
The  next  in  the  family  was  Ethelinda  Dow, 
my  mother,  who  subsequently  married 
Joseph  Bridgman,  then  living  in  Coventry. 
Subsequently  my  parents  moved  to  Hard- 
wick,  Vt.,  where  my  brother.  Rev.  Au- 
gustus Leroy,  and  Christiania  and  the 
writer  of  this  article  were  born.  The  next 
daughter  in  my  grandfather's  family  was 
Orrilana,  who  while  visiting  my  mother  in 


Hardwick,  became  acquainted  with  Mr. 
Fish,  and  married  him  there.  The  next 
daughter,  Merya,  married  the  son  of  Gov. 
Huntington,  of  Connecticut,  and  settled 
first  in  Georgia.  The  next  was  Lorenzo, 
and  the  youngest  was  Tabitha,  who, 
while  on  a  visit  to  lier  sisters  in  Hard- 
wick, became  acquainted  with  Capt.  Sam- 
uel French,  of  that  town,  and  married 
him.  These  three  sisters  marrying  in 
that  town,  were  among  the  first  families 
to  settle  in  that  new  country,  and  their  de- 
scendants have  filled  offices  of  trust  and 
profit  in  various  departments  of  govern- 
ment and  state.  The  only  son  of  the 
author  of  this  sketch  is  pastor  of  a  large 
and  flourishing  church  in  Albany,  N.  Y., 
and  is  the  youngest  man  who  ever  had  the 
title  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  conferred  on 
him  this  country. 

In  younger  life,  Lorenzo  was  possessed 
of  a  very  weak  and  tender  constitution 
which  prevented  him  from  joining  in  those 
athletic  sports  which  have  a  tendency  to 
bring  health  and  strength  to  the  young. 
His  mind  at  a  very  early  age  became  re- 
ligiously impressed  with  the  thoughts  of 
God  and  the  works  of  Creation ;  and  the 
questions  he  would  ask  his  parents,  showed 
characteristics  far  beyond  his  years.  A 
little  later,  while  laboring,  in  more  mature 
years,  under  that  harrassing  disease  the 
asthma,  he  showed  a  resignation  that  was 
surprising  in  one  so  young.  He  tells  us 
in  his  autobiography  that  at  the  age  of  12 
years,  his  hopes  of  worldly  pleasure  was 
greatly  blasted  by  a  sudden  illness  occa- 
sioned by  overheating  himself  with  hard 
labor,  and  drinking  cold  water  while  in  that 
state,  that  in  subsequent  years,  would  al- 
most take  his  breath,  from  the  most  excru- 
ciating pains.  About  this  time  his  mind 
became  greatly  exercised  on  the  subject  of 
his  salvation.  One  night  he  dreamed  that 
he  saw  the  prophet  Nathan  in  a  large  as- 
sembly of  people,  prophesying  many 
things.  1  got  an  opportunity,  (he  says) 
to  ask  him  how  long  I  should  live?  The 
prophet  answered,  until  you  are  two  and 
twenty.  This  dream  was  so  imprinted  up- 
on his  mind,  that  it  caused  many  serious 
and  painful  hours  at  intervals. 


MONTPELIER. 


365 


When  about  13  years  and  upward,  he 
tells  us  he  was  much  impressed  by  the 
death  of  John  Wesley  ( 1 79 1 . )  He  dreamed 
that  he  saw  Wesley,  who  asked  him  if  he  ev- 
er prayed,  he  said  no,  and  soon  after  he  met 
Wesley  a  second  time,  who  asked  him  the 
same  question  again,  and  he  answered  no, 
when  Wesley  said  you  must,  and  disap- 
peared. In  the  same  dream,  Wesley  came 
once  more,  and  asked  the  same  question, 
he  told  him  that  he  had  prayed,  then  said 
Wesley,  "be  faithful  until  death.*'  This 
dream  so  impressed  him,  that  he  broke  off 
from  his  old  companions  and  began  a 
course  of  secret  prayer  which  lasted  through 
life.  Subsequently  his  feelings  were  so 
aroused  by  the  doctrine  of  unconditional 
reprobation  and  particular  election,  he  be- 
came nearly  deranged. 

About  this  time  the  Methodists  came  in- 
to Coventry  and  began  preaching,  and  he 
went  to  hear  them.  On  one  occasion,  the 
preacher  took  for  his  text  "Is  there  no 
balm  in  Gilead?  Is  tliere  no  physician 
there  ? " 

[Here  follows  a  page  of  a  sermon  on 
hell  and  its  pungent  effect  on  a  mind  la- 
boring under  "election," — we  omit.  We 
do  not  give  sermons  and  the  statements 
seem  sufficient. — Ed.] 

It  nearly  drove  him  to  commit  suicide. 
The  idea  that  filled  his  mind  was  that  there 
was  no  mercy  for  him.  He  at  last  threw 
himself  on  the  ground,  and  cried  to  the 
Lord,  "I  submit;  1  yield!  If  there  be 
mercy  in  heaven  for  me,  let  me  know  it ; 
and  if  not,  let  me  go  down  to  hell,  and 
know  the  worst  of  my  case.  As  these 
words  flowed  from  my  heart,"  he  writes,  "I 
saw  the  Mediator  step  in,  as  it  were,  be- 
tween justice  and  my  soul,  and  these  words 
applied  to  my  soul  with  great  power,  'Son, 
thy  sins,  which  are  many,  are  forgiven 
thee ;  thy  faith  hath  saved  thee ;  go  in 
peace.'" 

From  this  time  on  his  happiness  was 
complete.  Many  trials  and  doubts  and 
conflicting  emotions  possessed  him ;  still 
his  firm  confidence  in  the  God  of  hosts 
carried  him  triumphantly  through  all  his 
after  tribulations. 


In  the  "exemplified  experience,"  at  this 
time,  his  brother-in-law,  Mr.  Fish,  was  so 
interested  that  he  became  a  seeker  of 
Christ.  Lorenzo  often  said  his  greatest 
desire  to  live  was  to  obtain  a  higher  degree 
of  holiness  here,  that  he  might  be  happier 
hereafter.  He  was  a  believer  to  a  certain 
extent  in  dreams ;  he  had  many,  some  of 
which  were  exact  forerunners  of  what 
soon  after  came  to  pass.  A  remarkable 
one  occurred  as  follows  :  he  dreamed  he 
was  in  a  strange  house.  "As  1  sat  by  the 
fire,  a  messenger  came  in  and  said,  'there 
are  three  ministers  come  from  England, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  will  pass  by  this 
way."  1  followed  him  out,  and  he  disap- 
peared. I  ran  over  a  woodpile,  and  jumped 
upon  a  log,  to  have  a  fair  view  of  them. 
Presently  three  men  came  over  a  hill  from 
the  west  towards  me ;  tlie  foremost  dis- 
mounted ;  the  other  two,  one  of  whom  was 
on  a  white  horse,  the  other  on  a  reddish 
one.  both  with  the  three  horses  disap- 
peared. 1  said  to  the  first,  'Who  are  you  ?' 
He  replied,  'John  Wesley,'  and  walked 
towards  the  east.  He  turned  round  and 
looked  me  in  the  face,  and  said  'God  has 
called  you  to  preach  the  gospel.  You  have 
been  a  long  time  between  hope  and  fear, 
but  there  is  a  dispensation  of  the  gospel 
committed  to  you.  Woe  unto  you  if  you 
preach  not  the  gospel.'" 

His  mind  having  been  previously  drawn 
towards  a  preacher's  life,  this  singular 
dream  decided  the  contest,  and  he  entered 
the  ministry.  He  was  placed  upon  a  cir- 
cuit extending  into  New  Hampshire,  then 
a  wilderness.  Wherever  he  preached  souls 
were  converted.  His  circuit  was  enlarged 
into  the  State  of  Vermont.  As  he  became 
more  known,  invitations  flowed  in  upon 
him  from  all  parts. 

His  health  was  very  often  broken  down 
on  account  of  the  disease  brought  upon 
him  while  a  boy,  and  resulted  in  the  asth- 
ma to  that  extent  that  he  either  sat  up 
whole  nights  or  slept  on  the  floor. 

He  never  took  a  collection  for  preach- 
ing, but  sometimes  received  gifts  from  in- 
dividuals. His  preaching  took  hold  upon 
the  careless,  the  blasphemer,  and  all  in  a 


366 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


remarkable  manner.  Revivals  succeeded 
revivals  all  over  the  territory  where  he 
preached. 

In  the  town  of  Brandon,  Vt.,  a  rich  mer- 
chant with  his  niece  came  some  distance 
to  hear  him  preach,  but  when  they  saw 
how  plain  the  young  man  looked,  their 
first  thought  was  to  go  home,  but  conclud- 
ed to  stay  and  see  the  thing  out,  as  they 
had  taken  so  much  pains  to  get  there. 
After  the  sermon  their  consciences  ap- 
peared to  be  touched,  and  they  were  con- 
strained to  cry  for  mercy.  In  that  place 
25  others  came  out  and  joined  the  church. 
The  people  said,  "  Lorenzo  has  clone  some 
good,  by  turning  the  mind  of  the  blasphe- 
mer, from  collecting  his  debts,  to  religion, 
and  so  we  are  kept  out  of  jail." 

His  great  success  was  in  visiting  from 
house  to  house,  and  in  making  personal 
appeals  to  individuals.  On  many  occa- 
sions he  made  appointments  for  preaching 
6  months  and  even  18  months  ahead,  and 
always  fulfilled  them  to  the  minute,  even 
if  he  had  to  ride  a  horse  to  death  to  reach 
the  place  in  time,  as  it  has  been  the  case 
more  than  once. 

In  Vermont,  in  passing  through  a  dense 
woods  one  day  to  fill  an  appointment,  he 
saw  two  men  chopping  wood.  He  mount- 
ed on  a  large  stump,  and  said  "Crazy 
Dow  will  preach  from  this  stump  6  months 
from  to  day,  at  2  o'clock,  p.  m."  Six 
months  from  that  time  an  immense  audi- 
ence was  assembled,  and  Dow  in  going  to 
the  place  saw  a  man  in  great  distress  look- 
ing for  something.  Dow  encjuired  what 
the  matter  was.  The  man  replied  that  he 
was  poor,  and  that  some  one  had  stolen 
his  axe,  and  that  he  felt  the  loss  very 
much.  Lorenzo  told  him  if  he  would  go 
to  the  meeting  he  would  find  his  axe.  Be- 
fore getting  to  the  place  of  service,  Dow 
picked  up  a  stone  and  put  it  in  his  pocket. 
After  the  delivery  of  a  powerful  sermon, 
Dow  said — "  There  is  a  man  here  who  has 
had  his  axe  stolen,  and  the  thief  is  here  in 
this  audience,  and  I  am  going  to  throw 
this  stone  right  to  his  head," — drawing 
back  his  hand  as  though  in  the  act  of 
throwing  the  stone.  One  man  ducked  his 
head.     Dow  went  up  to   him   and  said — 


"  You  have  g6t  this  man's  axe  I"  And  so 
he  had,  and  went  and  brought  it  and  gave 
it  to  him. 

Not  to  weary  the  reader,  I  will  give  but 
one  more  incident  here,  (of  which  scores 
could  be  authenticated,)  to  show  the  re- 
markable success  with  which  his  efforts 
were  blessed.  In  one  of  his  meetings  again 
in  Vt.,  (Wallingford,)  Dow  was  intro- 
duced to  a  man  by  the  name  of  Solomon 
Moon,  who  cavilled  at  every  thing  of  a  re- 
ligious aspect.  Having  delivered  some  re- 
ligious counsel,  with  the  solemn  recjuest 
that  he  should  seriously  reflect  upon  it, 
Dow  left  him  to  his  own  reflections.  A 
few  days  after,  in  another  part  of  the  cir- 
cuit, some  40  miles  from  his  home,  Solo- 
mon Moon  stood  up  in  the  lovefeast,  and 
declared  how  he  was  caught  in  a  promise, 
and  to  ease  his  mind  was  necessitated  to 
fulfil  it,  and  within  three  days  found  the 
reality  of  what  he  had  doubted ;  and  be- 
sought others  not  to  be  afraid  of  promising 
to  serve  God.  Said  he — "  I  bless  the  day 
that  ever  I  saw  the  face  of  Brother  Dow." 
It  was  curiosity,  as  he  testified,  which  first 
induced  him  to  come  out  to  hear  the  man 
who  was  called  Crazy  Dow.  In  this  love- 
feast  the  cry  began  again,  and  continued 
within  two  hours  of  the  setting  sun. 

About  this  time  he  felt  it  his  duty  to 
visit  Ireland,  and  without  money  or  any  of 
the  necessaries  for  a  voyage  across  the  At- 
lantic. Money  and  all  necessary  conve- 
niences were  furnished  from  friends,  many 
sending  gifts  of  whom  he  had  never  heard 
before.  Providence  in  a  very  special  man- 
ner on  this,  and  other  similar  occasions, 
bountifully  supplied  his  wants. 

While  HI  Ireland  the  Lord  blessed  his 
preaching  to  hundreds  of  souls.  He  crossed 
the  ocean  14  times,  and  traveled  extensive- 
ly through  Ireland,  England,  Scotland, 
and  even  to  the  Continent.  On  one  of 
his  visits  to  Dublin,  he  caught  the  small 
pox  the  natural  way,  and  was  so  far  gone 
with  it  that  it  became  necessary  to  sew 
sheets  around  him  to  keep  the  skin  from 
falling  off".  For  many  days  his  case  was 
pronounced  hopeless,  but  the  same  merci- 
ful Providence  that  watched  over  him  at 
all    times    brought    him    through    safely. 


MONTPELIER 


367 


While  staying  with  the  great  Dr.  Paul 
Johnson,  of  Dublin,  this  sickness  took 
place,  and  while  there,  his  only  child  was 
born.  In  remembrance  of  the  Doctor  and 
hij  wife,  Dow  named  m_\-  youngest  sister 
after  the  Doctor's  wife,  "  Letitia  Johnson" 
Bridgman,  and  the  youngest  son  of  Mrs. 
Fish,  "Paul  Johnson"  Fish,  after  the 
Doctor.  The  last  voyage  made,  on  his 
return  to  America,  he  brought  home  many 
works  relating  to  the  Quakers  or  Friends, 
and  some  rare  histories  relating  to  the 
court  of  St.  James,  which  are  now  out  of 
print.  I  recollect  well  when  the  books 
were  brought  home  to  our  house  in 
Hebron,  Ct.,  there  being  2,200  volumes. 

Dow  lays  down  a  few  words  for  reflec- 
tions, viz.  :  The  "pleasure"  of  the  Lord 
was  the  moving  cause  of  creation,  love 
was  the  moving  cause  of  redemption,  and 
faith  is  the  instrumental  cause  of  salvation  ; 
but  sin,  man's  own  act,  is  the  cause  of  his 
damnation. 

The  glory  of  God  ovir  object,  the  will  of 
God  our  law,  his  spirit  our  guide,  and  the 
Bible  our  rule,  that  Heaven  may  be  our 
end.  Hence  we  must  watch  and  pray,  en- 
dure to  the  end  to  receive  the  crown  of 
life,  where  there  is  pleasure  without  pain 
forever  more. 

PEGGY    HOAKUM    DOW, 

the  first  wife  of  Lorenzo,  was  born  in 
Granville,  Mass.,  1780,  of  parents  who 
were  strangers  to  God,  although  her  father 
was  a  member  of  the  church  of  England, 
and  her  mother  had  been  raised  by  parents 
of  the  Presbyterian  order.  Her  mother 
died  when  she,  was  5  months  old,  leaving 
behind  2  sons  and  4  daughters.  "My 
eldest  sister  married,"  says  Peggy,  "when 
I  was  6  years  old,  and  she  prevailed  on  my 
father  to  give  me  to  her,  which  accordingly 
he  did,  and  I  was  carried  into  the  State  of 
New  York,  and  saw  his  face  no  more!" 

Peggy,  at  a  very  early  age,  had  serious 
religious  impressions,  which  lasted  for 
some  years,  and  at  last  eventuated  in  a 
bright  Christian  hope.  But  the  vicissitudes 
and  changes  she  passed  through  in  a  life 
so  young,  caused  her  to  look  to  her  Heav. 
enly  Father  for  help  more  than  otherwise 


she  might  have  done.  But  her  whole  soul 
was  of  a  religious  cast ;  her  whole  mind  ' 
was  filled  with  the  love  of  her  Saviour. 
She  says  in  one  of  her  letters,  "My 
brother-in-law  ....  embraced  re- 
ligion, and  we  were  a  happy  family,  . 
three  in  number.  .  .  .  The  preachers 
made  our  house  their  home,  and  it  was  my 
delight  tp  wait  on  them."  She  formed  a 
little  class  of  seven  persons,  and  in  their 
meetings  for  prayer  and  praise  it  was  a 
heaven  on  earth  to  their  souls. 

About  this  time  camp-meetings  began 
to  be  introduced  into  that  part  of  the 
country,  attended  by  the  conversion  of 
many  souls.  Says  Peggy,  in  her  writings, 
"  there  was  one  about  30  miles  from  where 
I  then  lived,  and  my  brother-in-law  at- 
tended it,  where  he  met  with  Lorenzo 
Dow,  on  his  way  to  Canada,  and  invited 
him  home  to  preach  at  our  preaching- 
house,  and  sent  on  the  appointment  a  day 
or  two  beforehand,  so  as  to  give  publicity  ; 
and  as  he  was  a  singular  character,  we 
were  very  anxious  to  see  and  hear  him. 
The  day  arrived,  he  came,  and  the  house 
was  crowded,  and  we  had  a  good  time.  I 
was  very  much  afraid  of  him,  as  I  had 
heai'd  such  strange  things  about  him. 
My  brother-in-law  invited  him  to  our  house, 
and  after  several  days  he  came,  and  little 
did  I  think  that  he  had  any  thoughts  of 
marrying,  and  in  particular  that  he  should 
make  any  proposition  of  the  kind  to  me, 
but  so  it  was."  In  conversation  with  her 
sister,  he  enquired  how  long  Peggy  had 
been  a  Christian,  what  the  character  of 
her  company  was,  and  whether  she  had 
ever  manifested  a  desire  to  marry  a  min- 
ister. He  was  answered  satisfactorily. 
Soon  after,  meeting  Peggy,  Lorenzo  asked 
her  if  she  would  accept  such  an  object  as 
him.  She  went  directly  out  of  the  room 
and  made  no  reply.  "As  it  was  the  first 
time  he  had  spoken  to  me,"  she  writes, 
"  I  was  ver\'  much  surprised."  The 
next  evening  the  conversation  was  renew- 
ed, when  Peggy  gave  her  consent  to  marry 
him,  and  travel  with  him  when  it  was  nec- 
essary. They  were  married  Sept.  4th. 
The  next  morning  Lorenzo  started  off  on 
a  preaching  tour  to  New  Orleans,  in  ful- 


368 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


filment  of  a  chain  of  appointments  given 
out  six  months  before,  and  Peggy  never 
saw  him  again  for  i8  months;  this  chain 
of  appointments  was  over  4,000  miles. 

For  many  years  after,  she  was  his  con- 
stant traveling  companion.  She  traveled 
with  him  through  every  state  and  territory 
in  the  United  States,  and  through  the 
British  Dominions,  sharing  in  his  fatigue, 
sleeping  on  the  ground  in  the  wilderness, 
with  the  open  canopy  of  heaven  for  a 
roof,  or  lodging  in  the  cane-brakes  of  the 
South  when  no  house  could  be  reached. 
All  this  suffering  and  deprivation  she  joy- 
fully submitted  to,  believing  it  was  the 
Lord's  will.  It  seemed  that  the  burning 
desire  of  her  heart  was  to  know  exactly 
what  the  Lord  would  have  her  do. 

Peggy  writes.  May  20,  18 14,  they  were 
at  Hoboken,  a  delightful  spot  of  the  earth, 
upon  the  Jersey  side  of  the  river  opposite 
New  York,  where  from  the  window  of  the 
room  we  occupy  we  have  a  grand  view  of 
the  city.  On  the  other  hand  the  Jersey 
side  presents  to  view,  decorated  with  all 
the  charms  of  spring,  green  trees  and 
shady  groves. 

In  June  following,  the  deep  trials  and 
conflicts  through  which  she  passed  began 
to  tell  sadly  upon  her  health. 

peggy'.s  last  letter  to  her  husband. 

Dear  Lorenzo : — I  take  my  pen  again  to 
converse  with  you,  this  being  the  only 
way  we  communicate  our  thoughts  to  each 
other,  when  .separated  by  rivers  and  moun- 
tains, and  I  esteem  it  a  precious  privilege. 
I  have  much  cause  to  adore  the  beneficent 
hand  of  Providence  for  his  mercy  to  usward, 
although  we  have  our  trials,  yet  he  mixes 
mercy  with  them.  He  has  of  late  given 
me  some  tokens  for  good — my  heart  has 
been  enabled  to  rejoice  in  his  love  in  a 
considerable  degree.  At  a  meeting  a  few 
nights  ago,  where  Methodists  and  Presby- 
terians were  united,  and  there  was  a  union 
in  my  heart  to  all  the  dear  children  of  my 
Master,  I  have  felt  more  strength  to  say 
in  my  heart,  "the  will  of  the  Lord  be  done." 
I  think  yesterday,  my  desire  to  (iod  was, 
if  it  would  be  more  for  His  glory  for  you  to 
return  in  a  few  weeks,  you  might ;  if  not,  so 
let  it  be.  Go,  my  Lorenzo,  the  way  yon  are 
assured  ike  Lord  calls,  and  if  we  meet  no 
more  ixx.  this  vale  of  tears,  may  God  pre- 
pare us  to  meet  in  the  realms  of  peace,  to 
range  the  blest  fields  on  the  banks  of  the 


river,  and  sing  hallelujah  forever  and  ever. 
I  am  very  sure  if  I  reach  safe  the  destined 
port,  1  shall  have  cause  to  sing.  I  trust 
the  Lord  who  has  called  you  to  leave  all, 
will  give  you  a  rich  reward ;  in  this  woi-ld, 
precious  souls,  and  in  the  world  to  con-^e  a 
crown  of  glory.  I  have  seen  Bro.  Tarbox 
since  his  return  ;  nothing  has  taken  place 
anew.  You  have  been  accustomed  to 
similar  treatment.  Ma\-  you  have  patience 
and  true  philanthropy  of  heart;  that  is 
most  desirable.  You  cannot  conclude 
from  what  I  have  written,  that  I  would  not 
rejoice  to  see  )ou  return,  if  it  would  be 
consistent  with  the  will  of  God ;  but  I 
would  desire,  above  all  things,  not  to  be 
found  fighting  against  him.  Your  father 
is  as  well  as  we  ma}-  expect  considering 
his  infirmities. 

My  dear  Lorenzo,  I  bid  adieu  once  more. 
May  the  Lord  return  you  to  your  poor 
Peggy  again.  I  liave  written  five  times 
before  this.  Peggy  Dow. 

Jan.  22,  i8(8. 

My  uncle  was  in  Europe,  expecting  to 
make  an  extended  tour,  but  by  peculiar 
feelings  of  his  own,  and  premonitions 
from  friends  in  Europe  in  relation  to  his 
wife's  health,  he  returned  to  America  one 
year  sooner  than  he  had  made  arrange- 
ments for  when  leaving.  Peggy  had  at- 
tended a  writing-school  in  his  absence, 
taken  a  heavy  cold,  and  it  had  settled  on 
her  lungs.  She  traveled  some  with  her 
husband  after  his  return,  but  while  in 
Providence,  R.  I.,  he  found  her  one  morn- 
ing in  her  room  weeping ;  enquiring  the 
cause,  after  some  hesitation  she  replied, 
"  The  consumption  is  a  flattering  disease  ; 
but  I  shall  return  back  to  Hebron,  and 
tell  Father  Dow  that  I  have  come  back  to 
die  with  him  !  " 

She  requested  her  husband  not  to  leave 
her  till  she  had  got  better  or  worse,  which 
request  she  had  never  made  before  under 
any  circumstances.  In  September  the}- 
returned  to  Hebron.  They  never  parted 
but  twice  after  Lorenzo's  return  from 
Europe  ;  once  for  a  night,  and  once  while 
on  business  for  five  days  in  Boston. 

She  continued  to  decline  until  Decem- 
ber, when  one  night  she  woke  up  and  en- 
quired the  day  of  the  month,  and  being 
informed,  said  she  was  bound  by  the  month 
of  January  ;  she  counted  ever}'  day  until 
the  year  expired,  and   then   almost  e\ery 


MONTPELIER. 


369 


hour  until  the  morning  of  the  fifth,  when 
she  asked  her  husband  if  he  had  been  to 
bespeak  a  coffin  for  her.  She  was  an- 
swered in  the  negative.  In  the  evening 
she  asked  if  he  had  called  in  the  neigh- 
bors. "I  answered  no,"  he  has  recorded, 
"but  Bro.  Page  and  wife  came  in.  which 
seemed  refreshing  to  her,  in  whose  com- 
pany she  had  spent  many  hours. ■■■  At  2 
o'clock  that  night  she  requested  to  have 
the  family  called  up,  which  being  done, 
she  failed  very  fast.  Being  asked  if  she 
felt  any  pain,  she  replied,  "  no."  As  she 
was  dying,  Lorenzo  held  her  in  his  arms, 
and  said,  "  Lord,  thou  gavest  her  to  me  ! 
I  have  held  her  only  as  a  lent  favor  for 
fifteen  years,  and  now  I  resign  her  back  to 
Thee  until  we  meet  again  beyond  the 
swelling  flood  I "'  .She  replied  with  a  hearty 
"Amen,''"  and  soon  expired. 

By  Lorenzo's  request  she  was  laid  out 
in  the  bombazine  dress  she  wore  the  last 
time  she  went  to  church,  and  with  woolen 
blankets  in  the  coffin,  and  was  buried 
7  feet  in  depth  in  the  cemetery  at  Burrows 
hill,  Hebron,  Ct. 

She  possessed  exquisite  sensibility,  but 
affection  and  condescension.  The  writer 
was  then  a  boy,  but  remembers  the  cir- 
cumstances well. 

The  following  was  put  upon  her  tomb- 
stone : 

*  * 

i  FEGGYDOW,  * 

*  * 

*  •  * 

'I  SHARED  THE  VICISSn'UDES  OF  LORENZO  * 

*  * 

*  * 

*  FIFTEEN    YEARS.  * 

*  * 

*  * 

*  And  died  January  6th.   1820.        * 

*  '  * 

*  Aged    39.  * 

*  * 

**:fr******************************** 

Three  months  after  the  decease  of  his 
first  wife,  Lorenzo  married  his  second 
wife  in  Montville,  Ct.,  who  proved  to  be 
the  very  opposite  of  his  "  Peggy"  in  tem- 
perament, social  qualities,  and,  in  short, 
everything  that  goes  to  make  a  lady  of 
refinement.  Politeness  and  amiability 
were  wanting  in  his  second  wife.  Gifted 
with  talents  of  a  high  order,  educated  in 


the  best  schools  of  the  country,  still  she 
proved  that  with  the  highest  talents,  a 
person  can  be  a  fool. 

Lorenzo  now  at  this  age  began  to  feel 
the  effects  of  his  severe  labors  and  dej^ri- 
vations.  His  health  began  to  give  wav, 
the  asthma  troubled  him  more  than  form- 
erly, and  his  sufferings  from  that,  and  a 
tumor  growing  in  his  side,  were  at  times 
so  painful  that  it  prevented  sleep  for  whole 
nights  together;  and  during  the  spasms, 
his  only  rest  was  in  standing  upright.  He 
now  in  view  of  settling  his  worldly  affairs, 
paid  off  all  obligations  on  the  farm  in 
Montville,  it  being  heavily  mortgaged  when 
it  came  into  his  hands,  through  his  wife's 
friends.  It  consisted  of  500  acres,  and 
commanded  a  large  stream  of  water,  on 
which  he  had  built  mills  and  factories  of 
various  kinds,  and  which  were  in  success- 
ful operation.  He  now  felt  that  after  his 
large  house  and  farm  buildings  were  all 
finished  in  splendid  order,  he  and  his  wife 
could  enjoy  themselves  :  and  proposed  tak- 
ing a  trip  to  New  Orleans,  where  he  had 
been  a  number  of  times  before.  Once  his 
expenses  were  paid  both  ways  by  the  Free- 
masons ;  he  having  taken  all  the  degrees 
then  known  in  this  country ;  and  much  of 
his  time  was  devoted  to  lecturing  in  lodges 
for  the  "good  and  welfare  of  the  Order." 
They  left  in  their  private  carriage  with 
horses  and  driver.  He  had  had  a  man  to 
go  on  some  time  before  them  to  make  ap- 
pointments for  his  preaching.  Arriving  in 
Georgetown,  D.  C,  he  was  taken  sick. 
While  he  lay  in  distress,  he  signed  a  will, 
giving  to  her  all  real  and  personal  proper- 
ty, together  with  his  present  money,  some 
$3000.00,  which,  had  he  been  in  his  right 
mind,  she  never  would  have  received  a 
dollar  of.  His  disease  was  short,  but  pain- 
ful in  the  extreme,  his  end  hastened  by 
the  bursting  of  the  tumor.  He  died  Feb. 
2,  1834,  aged  56  years.  His  funeral  was 
attended  by  a  large  concourse  of  sympathiz- 
ing friends,  some  of  the  principal  families 
of  Georgetown  and  Washington,  and  many 
thousand  Freemasons,  as  he  was  buried 
under  the  Order  of  that  body.  The  whole 
was  a  solemn  and  very  imposing  cere- 
mony. 


47 


37° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


There  has  fallen  one  of  the  mighty  men 
of  his  time  ;  one,  who  has  been  the  means 
in  the  hands  of  God  of  the  conversion  of 
thousands  upon  thousands,  in  this  country 
and  in  Europe ;  and  whose  name  will  go 
down  the  ages  as  a  good  and  wise  man, 
when  those  who  have  waded  through  fields 
of  blood  and  carnage  to  obtain  a  throne, 
will  be  lost  in  the  vortex  of  revolution. 

Owing  to  the  condemnation  of  Holmead's 
burial  ground  in  Washington  as  in  the  way 
of  sanitary  reform,  the  remains  of  the 
dead  buried  therein  had  to  be  removed, 
and  among  them  those  of  Lorenzo  Dow, 
the  eccentric  missionary  of  the  last  genera- 
tion. A  Masonic  Lodge  in  Connecticut, 
his  native  State,  endeavored  to  secure  the 
privilege  of  reinterring  the  remains  of  their 
brother  in  the  craft  with  due  ceremonial. 
The  Methodist  clergy  of  Baltimore  also 
took  steps  to  honor  the  Preacher,  but  the 
District  clergy  got  ready  first,  and  reburied 
Dow  on  Friday  in  the  Rock  Creek  Ceme- 
tery, in  a  lot  given  by  the  banker  Corco- 
ran, who  admired  hnn  as  a  "prophet"  in 
life. 

The  old  tomb  at  Holmead's  bore  on  a 
stone  slab  the  following  singular  inscrip- 
tion, the  last  lines  of  which  were  dictated 
by  himself: 

*;|t!)C  ******************************** 

*  * 

*  THE    REPOSITORY    OF  * 

*  LORBNZO      DOW,     * 

J  Who  was  born  in  Coventry,  Conn.,  ^ 

*  Oct.  i8,  1777.  I 

*  Died  Feb'y  2,   1834,  * 

I  JIE..    B6.  % 


%  A  Christian  is  the  highest  style  of  man.  ^ 

%         He  is  a  slave  to  no  sect;  takes  no  * 

*  private  road;  but  looks  through  * 

*  nature  tip  to  nature's  God.  * 

*  •  * 

*******************************  ^:*** 

The  removal  of  this  slab  revealed  the 
remains.  The  skeleton  was  all  preserved, 
the  long  snowy  beard  lay  in  life-like  natu- 
ralness upon  the  breast  bone,  beneath 
which  the  vest  was  in  good  preservation, 
and  fully  buttoned.  The  right  sleeve  of  the 
coat  was  in  good  condition  and  the  greater 
part  of  the  pants.     The  mahogany  coffin 


had  almost  entirely  crumbled,  the  largest 
portion  not  being  over  18  inches  long. 

The  last  words  on  record,  knbwn  of  Lo- 
renzo's writing,  are  : 

"We  must  soon  part;  therefore,  as  I 
take  leave  of  you,  my  request  is,  to  lay 
aside  prejudice,  sacrifice  sin.  sink  into  the 
will  of  (jod,  take  him  for  your  protector 
and  guide,  by  attention  to  the  sweet  influ- 
ence of  his  spirit  on  the  mind,  that  you 
may  be  useful  in  your  day  to  your  fellow- 
mortals  here  ;  and  as  an  inward  and  spir- 
itual worshiper,  ascend  to  God.  Thus  it 
may  be  well  with  you  here  and  hereafter. 

"■  A7Heii.  Adieu  till  we  meet  beyond 
this  life ! 

"Farewell. 

"  Lorenzo." 

['♦  Farewell  means  to  do  well."'] 

Lorenzo  Dow  had  only  one  child,  a 
daughter,  born  in  Dublin,  that  died  soon 
after  their  return  to  this  country,  aged 
five  months,  and  was  buried  in  Georgia. 

The  following  anecdotes  in  a  mea.sure 
illustrate  the  eccentricities  of  Dow,  and 
all,  with  one  or  two  e.xceptions,  never  be- 
fore having  appeared  in  print.  In  my 
youth  my  uncle  spent  much  of  his  time  in 
our  family,  the  members  of  which  have 
passed  away,  which  gives  me  the  opportu- 
nity, as  being  the  only  one  left  who  was 
familiar  with  his  habits  and  life. 

In  the  eastern  part  of  the  town  of  Mans- 
field, on  a  lofty  eminence  known  as  "  Meth- 
odi.st  Hill,'"  is  an  old  barn,  in  which  were 
held  the  first  Methodist  meetings  in  the 
town,  aud  where  Lorenzo  Dow  is  said  to 
have  preached  his  first  sermon.  That  he 
entered  the  barn  early,  and  laid  down  up- 
on one  of  the  long  benches,  and  feigned 
sleep.  Dressed  in  tow  pants,  coatless, 
and  shoes  minus  the  stockings,  he  would 
naturally  be  taken  for  anything  but  a  min- 
ister ;  therefore  as  the  people  began  to 
flock  together  and  as  the  appointed  hour 
was  approaching,  they  began  to  try  to 
arouse  him,  telling  him  there  was  to  be  a 
meeting  but  the  minister  had  not  come. 
He  jumped  up,  asked  what  time  it  was, 
and  being  informed  it  was  meeting  time, 
brushed  his  hair,  entered  the  pulpit  and 
preached  a  rousing  sermon,  after  which  he 
a.sked  if  anv  one  in  the  room  wanted  to  be 


MONTPELIER. 


371 


prayed  for,  "  If  so,"  said  he,  "pray  for 
yourselves!"  whereupon  he  took  his  hat 
and  left. 

While  our  family  were  living  on  the  Dow 
farm  in  Hebron,  my  father  had  charge  of 
the  place,  and  one  hot  summer's  day  we 
were  mowing  hay  in  the  bog  meadow  and 
it  was  "rather  slim  picking."  My  father 
composed  the  following  lines  in  the  fore- 
noon, and  when  we  came  up  to  dinner,  he 
repeated  them  to  Uncle  Lorenzo,  who,  be- 
ing of  a  high  spirit,  did  not  for  some  days 
speak  to  father : 

III  Hebron  town  there  lies  a  piece  of  land, 
Surrounded  by  rocks  and  hills,  and  ou  it  water  stands ; 
This  meadow  lays  quite  low,  and  is  owned  by  Lorenzo 

Dow, 
And  all  the  grass  that  on  it  grows  will  scarcely  keep 

one  cow. 
There  is  here  and  there  a  spear,  and  those  are  very 

scarce. 
In  fact,  there  is  not  so  much  in  bulk,  as  the  beard  that 

grows  on  his  face. 

Some  years  before  be  became  so  cele- 
brated, he  used  to  travel  principally  on 
horseback  ;  and  as  he  had  to  meet  his  ap- 
pointments punctually,  no  matter  what  the 
weather  might  be,  he  had  to  go  dressed  for 
all  weathers.  To  do  this,  he  had  an  oil- 
cloth cloak  made  something  like  a  bed- 
quilt,  with  a  hole  cut  through  the  middle  to 
put  his  head  through,  and  the  cloak  hung 
in  folds  around  his  person,  and  in  a  meas- 
ure protected  his  horse  from  the  storm. 
Dressed  in  this  outlandish  manner,  on  one 
occasion  he  overtook  a  heavily  loaded 
team  in  a  stormy  day,  the  driver  urging 
his  horses  up  a  steep  hill,  the  roads  almost 
impassable  in  the  deep  mud,  the  driver 
belaboring  the  poor  beasts  with  blows  and 
uttering  blasphemous  oaths,  when  Lorenzo 
overtook  him.  Listening  a  moment  to  the 
man's  profanity,  he  asked  him  "if  he  ever 
prayed?"  The  driver  said  no,  and  would 
be  damned  if  he  ever  would.  Lorenzo  gave 
him  a  silver  dollar  to  bind  his  oath,  and 
made  him  promise  he  never  would  pray, 
and  rode  on  to  the  next  tavern,  about  a 
mile,  and  put  up.  In  a  short  time,  on 
came  the  driver,  full  gallop,  to  give  the 
dollar  back  to  the  person  from  whom  he 
had  received  it,  thinking  he  had  sold  his 
soul  to  the  devil,  but  Lorenzo  would  not 
take  it  back.     The  thought  worked  so  up- 


on the  man,  it  eventuated  in  his  conver- 
sion. 

While  living  in  Hebron,  there  was  a  Mr. 
Little,  a  hatter,  a  man  who  was  very  anx- 
ious to  quiz  people,  and  endeavor  to  get 
the  best  of  them  in  his  jokes.  Meeting 
Mr.  Dow  in  the  street  one  day,  after  pass- 
ing the  compliments  of  the  morning,  Mr. 
L.  said  "I  would  like  to  ask  you  a  ques- 
tion." Lorenzo  reiMied  "  Go  on."  "Can 
you  tell  me  how  many  white  beans  it  takes 
to  make  a  bushel?"  Lorenzo  fixed  his 
little  keen  black  eyes  on  him  a  moment, 
and  replied,  "it  takes  just  as  many  white 
beans  to  make  a  bushel  as  it  does  Littles 
to  make  a  man." 

In  the  same  town  there  lived  one  of  those 
low,  cunning  sneaks  by  the  name  of  Skin- 
ner, who,  like  barnacles,  attach  themselves 
to  any  one  who  will  give  them  a  hearing. 
Meeting  Lorenzo  one  day,  as  he  (Skinner) 
was  going  to  the  grist-mill  with  his  bags 
of  grain  on  his  horse,  he  riding  on  the 
bags, — stopped  his  horse,  and  looking  di- 
rectly into  Lorenzo's  face,  said,  "Mr.  Dow, 
there  are  many  of  my  neighbors  who  would 
like  to  know  why  you  wear  your  hair  and 
beard  so  long?"  L.  turned  upon  him  a 
withering  look,  and  said,  "Mr.  Skinner, 
when  I  was  a  boy  my  father  used  to  send 
me  to  the  mill,  and  1  used  to  go  right 
straight  to  the  mill ;  and  when  my  grist 
was  ground,  used  to  return  directly 
home ;  never  stopped  to  ask  impertinent 
questions,  but  always  minded  my  own  bus- 
ine.ss.  Good-bye,  Mr.  S.,"  and  immedi- 
ately turned  his  back  and  walked  off. 

On  one  occasion  he  sold  a  yoke  of  oxen 
to  Elder  Wilcox,  a  Baptist  clergyman,  liv- 
ing in  Montville,  Ct.,  for  the  sum  of  $65. 
The  Elder  worked  the  cattle  very  hard, 
and  after  a  while  one  of  the  oxen  took  sick 
and  died,  when  he  came  to  Mr.  D.  repeat- 
edly for  damages  in  the  loss  of  the  ox.  It 
was  satisfactorily  proved  the  ox  was  well 
when  sold.  At  last,  annoyed  by  the  El- 
der's, insolence,  D.  threw  down  his  pocket- 
book,  and  told  him  to  take  out  a  sum  suf- 
ficient to  pay  him.  He  took  $65.00,  the 
same  as  he  gave  for  both  oxen,  and  the  El- 
der kept  the  well  one.  Lorenzo  wrote  a 
receipt  in  this  fashion,  and  made  him  sign 


3?: 


VERiMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


it:  "Received  of  L.  Dow  sixty-five  dol- 
lars, in  full  of  all  demands,  from  the  be- 
gining  to  the  end  of  the  world."  Thus 
cutting  off  any  further  demands  against 
Uow  from  Wilcox  to  any  amount. 

Uow's  first  wife  was  a  very  tender  heart- 
ed, amiable.  Christian  woman  ;  and  he  used 
to  teaze  and  annoy  her  in  many  ways  for 
sport,  while  Peggy  would  take  it  all  to 
heart  and  grieve  over  it-  His  second  wife, 
a  perfect  amazon,  with  a  regular  tiger-tem- 
per, used  to  rule  him  with  a  rod  of  iron,  so 
much  so  that  Dow  had  one  room  finished 
in  his  new  mansion  in  Montville  expressly 
for  himself,  and  always  carried  the  key. 
Over  the  fireplace  he  had  a  gilt  hen  paint- 
ed, and  over  it  in  large  golden  letters : 
"  The  hen  crows  here." 

It  was  reported  that  in  consequence  of 
his  last  wife's  mother  opposing  the  match, 
because  Dow  was  a  Methodist  in  belief 
and  her  daughter  being  a  Presbyterian, 
that  it  became  necessary  to  be  married 
away  from  home.  The  arrangement  was 
made  that  on  a  certain  evening  he  was  to 
preach  in  a  school-house,  and  that  Lucy 
Dolbear,  his  intended,  should  be  present, 
and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  discourse,  at 
a  certain  signal,  Lucy  should  get  up. 
When  the  sermon  was  ended  and  the  ben- 
ediction pronounced,  Mr.  Dow  said,  "If 
there  is  any  one  here  who  would  like  to 
marry  me,  they  will  manifest  it  by  rising." 
A  n^gro  woman  rose  up  at  the  same  time 
his  intended  did.  He  took  Lucy,  and 
went  to  Elder  Whittlese\'"s,  and  they  were 
mairied  that  night. 

There  was  a  stor}  going  the  rounds  of 
the  papers  in  Vermont  of  Lorenzo  Dow 
raising  the  devil.  One  day  while  he  was 
at  the  dinner  table  at  our  house  in  Hard- 
wick,  mother  asked  him  about  it.  Lorenzo 
replied  that  the  circumstances  were  as  fol- 
lows:  In  traveling  through  the  northern 
part  of  Vermont,  he  was  belated  one  night 
in  a  blinding  snow-storm.  He  went  for 
the  only  light  he  could  discover,  _  and 
found  it  came  from  a  small  log-house. 
After  repeated  knockings  at  the  door,  a 
woman  opened  it.  He  asked  accommoda- 
tions for  the  night.  She  said  her  husband 
was  gone,  and  she  could  not  possibly  ac- 


commodate a  stranger.  But  he  plead  with 
so  much  earnestness,  she  concluded  to 
take  him  in.  He  immediately  went  to 
bed,  without  removing  his  clothing,  in  a 
little  corner,  separated  off  from  the  room 
where  the  family  lived  by  a  partition  of 
rough  boards,  with  cracks  between,  cov- 
ered with  paper  pasted  over,  which  was 
torn  oft'  in  many  places,  and  anything 
going  on  in  the  opposite  room  could  be 
easily  .seen.  It  soon  appeared  this  woman 
was  not  alone,  but  had  a  paramour.  Late 
in  the  night  on  came  her  husband,  drunk, 
as  usual,  and  demanded  admittance,  hal- 
looing and  cursing  at  the  top  of  his  voice, 
his  wife  all  the  while  trying  to  stop  him, 
but  before  opening  the  door,  she  secreted 
her  pal  in  a  cask  of  tow  in  the  room. 
When  admitting  her  husband,  she  tried  to 
silence  him  by  telling  him  that  Lorenzo 
Dow  was  in  the  other  room,  and  if  he  was 
not  still  he  would  wake  him  up.  Well, 
says  the  husband,  I  understand  he  can 
raise  the  devil,  and  now  he  has  got  to  do 
it.  Notwithstanding  all  the  appeals  of  his 
wife,  the  husband  pounded  on  the  door, 
calling  on  Dow  to  come  out.  At  last  Dow- 
pretended  to  be  roused  out  of  a  sound 
sleep,  (although  he  had  been  awake  all  the 
time)  ;  rubbing  his  eyes  and  yawning,  he 
came  out.  The  man  insisted  on  Dow"s 
raising  the  devil,  and  would  not  take 
110  for  an  answer.  Well,  if  you  insist  on 
it,  said  Dow,  I  will  do  it,  but  when  he 
comes,  it  will  be  in  aflame  of  fire, and  you 
must  set  the  doors  wide  open,  so  he  will 
have  plenty  of  room.  The  man  opened 
his  door,  and  Dow,  taking  the  candle, 
touched  the  tow  in  the  cask.  In  an  in- 
stant the  cask  was  wrapped  in  flame,  and 
the  man  inside  jumping  out,  all  on  fire, 
ran  up  the  street  like  the  very  devil,  all  of 
a  light  blaze,  tearing  through  the  snow  at 
the  rate  of  2  :  40.  The  husband  was  so 
frightened,  for  once  it  made  a  sober  man 
of  him. 

When  I  was  g  years  old,  my  parents 
moved  to  Connecticut,  and  Uncle  Lorenzo 
journeyed  with  us.  At  one  of  our  stopping 
places  he  was  called  on  to  preach.  It  was 
about  4  p.  .M.  In  a  few  minutes  they  had 
in  the  hotel  where  we  stopped  a  congrega- 


MONTPELIER. 


373 


tion  of  some  300  persons.  In  the  course 
of  the  sermon,  he  pointed  to  a  young  man 
present,  and  said,  "How  came  you  to 
steal  that  sheep,  and  dress  and  have  it 
cooked?  Do  you  think  it  tasted  any 
better  than  if  you  had  gone  to  work, 
earned  the  money,  and  paid  for  it  like  an 
honest  man  ? "  After  the  sermon,  my  sister 
Christiania  asked  him  what  lie  meant  by 
being  so  personal,  and  making  such  a  di- 
rect accusation  of  stealing,  when  he  never 
was  in  that  town  before,  and  knew  no  one 
present ;  that,  having  made  a  charge,  if  he 
could  not  sustain  it,  would  go  hard  with 
him.  Uncle  Lorenzo  replied  he  felt  in- 
tensely impressed  in  a  very  peculiar  man- 
ner to  say  what  he  did,  so  much  so  that 
he  could  not  stop  until  he  had  made  the 
charge.  It  was  soon  told  us  by  the  land- 
lord that  two  years  before,  that  man  stole 
a  sheep,  had  it  cooked,  and  eaten  in  his 
own  family.  He  was  sued,  but  his  father 
settled  it  so  it  did  not  go  into  court.  The 
reader  may  analyze  this,  whether  there 
were  any  spiritual  manifestations. 

The  next  night  we  put  up  at  another  inn, 
and  as  my  uncle  entered  the  house,  he 
met  an  old  acquaintance,  a  Deacon  in  a 
Congregational  church  there.  The  Dea- 
con was  in  the  act  of  shaving.  Seeing  our 
party,  he  said — "Mr.  Dow,  do  you  ever 
shave .^"  Uncle  L.  said,  "1  shave  a  Con- 
gregatioiial  Deacon  once  in  a  while.'' 

On  the  farm  that  Lorenzo  owned  in 
Montville,  Ct.,  there  was  a  dam  at  the  out- 
let of  a  large  pond.  Below  on  the  stream 
my  uncle  owned  some  mills,  and  below 
these  was  a  large  cotton  factory,  owned  by 
one  of  his  neighbors,  employing  a  large 
number  of  operatives.  In  the  night  his 
neighbor  would  go  and  open  the  gate,  and 
let  the  water  out  of  the  pond  to  run  certain 
machinery.  The  next  day  there  was  not 
water  enough  to  run  his  own  mill.  The 
result  was  L.  D.  went  and  had  a  gate 
made  of  boiler-iron,  and  spiked  down  so 
the  man  of  the  factory  could  not  open  it. 
He  then  raised  his  dam  to  the  height  of  25 
feet,  keeping  back  the  water  for  months. 
His  neighbor  wanted  water  to  run  his  fac- 
tory, while  Dow  closed  his  mills  up  for  re- 
pairs.    The  result  was  his  neighbor  sued 


him,  and  beat  him.  Dow  carried  up  the 
case  to  the  next  court,  and  got  beat  there. 
He  then  carried  the  case  to  the  court  of 
last  resort,  and  got  beat  again.  Then  Dow 
took  his  hired  man,  and  opened  the  gate. 
The  three  months  of  water  accumulated, 
the  pressure  upon  the  gate  was  immense  ; 
the  stream  poured  forth  in  a  torrent.  Says 
Dow  to  the  man,  "He  wants  water;  give 
him  more.  Hoist  the  gate  higher,"  and, 
looking  on  the  rushing  stream,  said,  "  my 
neighbor  wants  water,  and  water  he  shall 
have.  Take  the  gate  out."  The  impet- 
uous current  did  more  damage  to  tlie  cot- 
ton factory  than  three  months'  laying  still 
for  the  want  of  water. 

This  was  the  basis  of  that  work  pub- 
lished by  Dow,  entitled  "Fresh  Water 
Law,  or  Twenty-nine  Reasons  why  a  man 
cannot  control  the  water  on  his  own  land." 

Lorenzo  Dow  was  once  preaching  in  the 
State  of  Ohio,  and  having  unusual  freedom 
of  thought  and  delivery,  the  congregation 
was  thrilled  with  admiration  and  delight. 
When  the  interest  was  at  its  height,  he 
suddenl}-  stepped  down  from  the  desk,  and 
deliberately  walked  to  another  part  of  the 
room  and  pointing  his  long,  sarcastic  fin- 
ger at  a  person  to  whom  he  was  a  total 
stranger,  and  fijcing  on  him  his  searching 
eyes,  addressed  him  thus  : — "  1  niean/(7«  .' 
Yes,  you!  who  ran  away  from  Connecticut 
between  two  days  to  avoid  pa3ing  your 
honest  debts  ;  and  more  than  this,  you  per- 
secuted and  abused  your  wife  because  she 
was  endeavoring  to  seek  religion !  Aint 
you  as/iat/ied  of  yourself /^'  The  poor  fel- 
low looked  as  though  annihilation  would 
be  the  highest  boon.  Dow  returned  to  the 
desk  and  resumed  the  thread  of  his  dis- 
course, and  by  his  wonderful  tact  and  mag- 
netism raised  the  congregation  to  the  same 
summit  of  interest  as  before.  After  the 
benediction  was  pronounced,  the  people, 
who  knew  nothing  of  the  man's  antece- 
dents, instituted  searching  inquiry  into  the 
man's  history  and  found  that  Dow's  charg- 
es were  true  to  the  very  letter. 

On  another  occasion  while  preaching  in 
a  grove,  a  young  ma'n  commenced  rattling 
some  boards  at  no  great  distance  from  the 
preacher's  stand.     The  speaker  cautioned 


374 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


him  very  mildly  at  first,  but  every  little 
while  he  would  renew  the  mischief.  At 
length  Dow  cast  on  him  a  serious  look, 
remarking  : — "  Those  boards  will  make 
your  coffin.''  The  young  man  died  in  a 
few  weeks,  and  the  carpenter  not  thinking 
of  Dow's  remark  made  use  of  the  very 
identical  boards.  These  are  but  specimens 
of  what  occurred  along  the  history  of  his 
life. 

He  was  once  holding  forth  in  a  place  in 
a  very  powerful  manner,  and  all  at  once  he 
paused  in  his  discourse,  and  very  deliber- 
ately made  the  remark:  "There  is  a  man 
present,  who  has  been  considered  a  very 
respectable  person,  but  he  is  guilty  of  hug- 
ging and  kissing  another  man's  wife. 
Both  parties  are  present.  The  man  has  a 
white  feather  on  his  head  ;  and  the  woman 
blushes  deeply."  In  an  instant  a  man 
reached  his  hand  to  his  head,  and  Dow 
pointing  to  him  said,  "  Thou  art  the 
man.''  And  pointing  to  the  woman,  whose 
cheeks  were  scarlet,  said,  "Thou  art 
the  woman."  Subsequent  developments 
showed  that  Dow's  arrows  hit  the  mark. 

At  another  time,  while  preaching  in 
Mississippi,  some  rowdies  were  thrusting 
a  knife  into  a  beautiful  beaver  hat  of  his, 
at  some  distance  from  the  stand.  He 
turned  to  them  and  addressed  them 
thus  : — The  laws  of  society  condemn  you  ; 
the  laws  of  your  country  condemn  you ; 
moreover  the  laws  of  God  condemn  you. 
The  word  condemned  means  damned,  ist. 
You  are  villains.  2d.  You  are  condemned 
villains,  that  is  you  are  damned  villains. 
3d.  God  condemns  you  by  His  law ;  that 
is  He  damns  you.  Hence,  you  are  God 
da»ined  villains ! 


THE   VERMONT   UIBLE   SOCIETY 

Had  its  organization  at  the  capital.  The 
first  meeting  was  held  at  the  hall  of  the 
Academy,  Oct.  28,  1812.  Hon.  Wm.  C. 
Harrington,  mod.,  Jeduthan  Loomis,  clerk. 
Rev.  Chester  Wright  preached  the  opening 
sermon,  and  before  the  meeting  dissolved 
88  persons  had  become  members,  and 
$323.75  raised.  First  officers :  Charles 
Marsh,  preset.  Gen.  Abner  Forbes,  treas., 
Wm.  Page,  sec'v. 


METHODISM   IN   MONTPELIER. 

BY  REV.  J.  R.  BAKTLETT. 

The  history  of  the  Methodist  Church  in 
Montpelier  extends  to  the  earliest  associa- 
tions of  Methodism  in  Vermont. 

Various  accounts  have  been  given  of  the 
introduction  of  Methodism  into  Vermont, 
some  of  which  are  only  matters  of  tradi- 
tion and  probably  incorrect.  It  is  now 
known  that  the  first  Methodist  preacher 
sent  to  Vermont  by  the  authorized  voice 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and 
who  accepted  and  worked  under  the  ap- 
pointment, was  Nicholas  Snethen,  who  at 
the  Conference  held  at  Thompson,  Conn., 
convened  Sept.  20,  1796,  was  "  read  off " 
as  the  appointee  to  "  Vershire  circuit." 

This  was  an  entirely  new  field  for  Meth- 
odistic  preaching,  and  Mr.  Snethen  prob- 
ably went  to  his  appointment  with  no  def- 
inite knowledge  of  the  existence  of  any 
Methodist  families  in  Vermont  except  one 
in  Vershire,  one  in  Bradford,  and  perhaps 
a  few  others  in  the  extended  territory 
which  comprised  the  "  circuit." 

"  Vershire  circuit  reached,"  as  the  re- 
cords state,  "from  the  towns  near  the 
Connecticut  river  to  Montpelier."  These 
boundaries  are  somewhat  indefinite,  but 
were  as  accurate,  perhaps,  as  any  in  the 
early  days  of  Methodism,  when  bounding 
the  parish  of  a  Methodist  preacher. 

Jesse  Lee,  the  pioneer  of  Methodism  in 
New  England,  was  Presiding  Elder,  and 
in  his  journal  makes  reference  to  Vershire 
circuit  in  these  words:  "Many  of  the 
places  where  we  preached  in  that  circuit 
were  quite  new  settlements ;  the  houses 
were  very  small,  and  but  scattered  through 
the  country.  The  preachers  had  to  en- 
counter many  difficulties  and  to  endure 
many  hardships.  But  one  thing  which 
made  up  for  all  the  difficulties  was  this, 
the  people  were  fond  of  attending  meeting 
by  day  or  by  night,  and  were  very  kind  to 
the  preachers ;  and  best  of  all  was,  sin- 
ners were  awakened,  and  in  a  little  time 
some  of  them  became  the  happy  subjects 
of  the  favor  of  God,  and  were  zealously  en- 
gaged in  trying  to  help  forward  the  work 
of  the  Lord  as  far  as  thev  could.     Since 


MONTPELIER. 


375 


then  we  have  prospered  considerably  in 
this  new  part  of  the  country." 

The  fragmentary  records  which  are  the 
only  means  of  information  now  extant,  give 
conclusive  evidence  that  Montpelier  was 
thus  visited  by  the  earl}-  itinerant  preach- 
ers, and  that  it  immediately  became  an  ap- 
pointment for  stated  and  regular  preach- 
ing. It  is  probable,  however,  that  such 
preaching  was  only  at  intervals  of  consid- 
erable extent  in  point  of  time,  and  that  the 
meetings  were  small  as  regards  the  num- 
ber in  attendance,  being  held  in  dwellings, 
or  possibl}'  in  school-houses  where  they 
existed  and  could  be  obtained  for  the  pur- 
pose. Arminian  theology  was  then  re- 
garded as  an  interloper,  and  met  with  its 
opposing  creeds  of  Calvinistic  dogmas  on 
the  one  hand  and  extreme  Liberalism  on 
the  other,  as  its  vital  and  untiring  dispu- 
tants. 

D.  P.  Thompson's  History  of  Montpe- 
lier speaks  of  "  A  great  public  meeting"  for 
a  doctrinal  debate,"  held  in  Montpelier 
during  the  summer  of  1799,  in  which  a 
"Rev.  Mr.  Mitchell,  of  some  other  part 
of  the  State,"  appeared  "on  the  part  of 
the  Methodists."  Doubtless  this  was 
Joseph  Mitchell,  the  preacher  on  the 
"Vergennes  circuit"  in  that  year.  Mr. 
Mitchell  was  never  an  appointee  on  any 
circuit  which  included  Montpelier,  but 
was  a  man  of  untiring  energy,  great  intel- 
lectual power  and  unceasing  labors  in  his 
calling  as  a  preacher,  and  it  is  recorded  of 
him  that  he  traveled  at  the  rate  of  nearly 
6,000  miles  a  year  while  on  the  Vergennes 
circuit.  His  appearance  in  Montpelier  at 
this  time  would  seem  to  indicate  either 
that  he  was  an  occasional  visitor  and 
preacher  here,  although  not  on  his  stated 
circuit,  or  that  he  was  brought  forward  to 
champion  the  doctrines  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  by  the  friends  of  the 
same. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  Montpelier 
may  have  been  occasionally  visited  by  the 
preachers  of  Vergennes  circuit,  as  well  as 
by  those  of  Vershire  circuit,  of  which  it 
was  a  part,  for  the  early  Methodist  preacher 
had  a  habit  of  making  himself  heard,  and 
of  feeling  very  much  at  home   wherever, 


and  under  whatever  circumstances  he  could 
find  a  congregation,  and  in  view  of  the 
common  sympathy  and  purpose  among 
the  early  preachers,  especially,  it  is  pre- 
sumable that  no  exclusive  right  of  territory 
was  thought  of  by  any  circuit  preacher. 

Lorenzo  Dow,  famed  for  his  eccentric- 
ities of  life  and  speech,  and  an  able  though 
irregular  worker  in  the  early  itinerancy,  is 
also  known  to  have  been  an  occasional 
preacher  at  Montpelier,  but  was  never  an 
appointee  on  any  circuit  which  included 
the  town  in  its  jurisdiction.  So  of  others 
whose  names  are  not  in  the  list  of  Meth- 
odist preachers  included  in  this  sketch, 
but  who  may  be  remembered,  or  perhaps 
recorded,  as  having  engaged  in  the  work 
to  a  greater  or  less  extent. 

The  preachers  who  succeeded  Mr. 
Snethen  upon  Vershire  circuit  while  Mont- 
pelier continued  within  its  bounds,  were, 
in  1797,  Ralph  Williston ;  in  1798,  Joseph 
Crawford;  in  1799,  Mr.  Crawford  again, 
with  Elijah  Chichester  as  his  colleague ; 
in  1800,  Thomas  Dewe}  ;  in  1801,  Truman 
Bishop  and  Thomas  Branch;  in  1802, 
Solomon  Langdon  and  Paul  Dustin ;  in 
1803,  Samuel  Draper  and  Oliver  Beale. 
The  dates  above  given  indicate  the  "Con- 
ference year,"  commencing  with  the  an- 
nual session  in  the  summer  of  the  year 
named,  and  continuing  to  the  following 
session.  In  1804,  the  circuit  was  divided, 
and  Montpelier  became  a  part  of  the  new 
"  Barre  circuit,"  which  included  the  fol- 
lowing within  its  jurisdiction :  Barre, 
Plainfield,  Middlesex,  Montpelier,  North- 
field,  Williamstown,  Washington,  Berlin, 
and  Orange.  It  is  uncertain  whether 
Moretown  and  Waitsfield  were  in  the  cir- 
cuit at  this  time,  or  were  added  subse- 
quently ;  but  eventually  they  were  so  in- 
cluded, as  well  as  other  towns. 

There  are  257  names  upon  the  oldest 
list  of  members  now  to  be  found,  and 
which  seems  to  include  the  entire  circuit 
as  it  existed  in  1804. 

Of  this  number  it  is  difficult  to  decide 
how  many  were  residents  of  Montpelier, 
as  the  Montpelier  membership  is  not 
grouped  as  in  some  of  the  other  towns,  but 
it  seems  to  be  not  more  than  six  or  eisht. 


376 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


There  was,  however,  a  "class"  organ- 
ization, and  it  was  represented  in  the  re- 
ported "collections'"  ate  ach  quarterly 
meeting  of  the  circuit,  the  amounts  vary- 
ing in  these  early  reports  from  35  cents  to 
;iP8.54,  the. last  named  being  the  report  on 
Apr.  19,  1806,  at  the  last  quarterly  meet- 
ing in  the  Conference  year. 

July  23,  1808,  collections  from  two 
classes  in  Montpelier  were  reported,  indi- 
cating that  another  class  was  formed  about 
this  time,  subsequent  reports  showing  the 
continuation  of  this  arrangement.  The 
first  receipt  of  "public  money"  reported 
from  Montpelier  was  at  a  quarterly  meet- 
ing held  at  Plainfield,  October  16,  1807, 
the  amount  being  $1.60.  The  name  of 
the  first  class  leader  was  Ansel  Patterson, 
who  afterwards  removed  to  Barre,  and 
was  eventually  expelled  from  membership. 

The  number  in  society  as  reported  to 
the  annual  Conference  of  1812  was  330 
upon  the  circuit,  and  of  this  number  25 
were  in  the  two  classes  in  Montpelier, 
David  Harris  and  Elias  Kingsley  being 
the  leaders,  and  having  thirteen  and  twelve 
in  their  respective  classes,  and  three  "on 
trial"  in  the  class  of  Mr.  Kingsley.  The 
records  are  very  meagre  during  these  in- 
tervening years,  but  there  is  evidence  of  a 
steady  growth  in  numbers  and  increase  of 
influence  for  the  church  in  the  community. 

Aug.  5,  1820,  the  quarterly  meeting  was 
held  in  Montpelier,  being  the  first  on 
record  as  held  in  this  town.  It  is  not  cer- 
tain, however,  that  quarterly  meetings 
were  now  held  here  for  the  first  time,  as 
some  of  the  records  in  former  years  are  in- 
complete, and  it  is  obvious  that  such  meet- 
ings were  held,  of  which  no  record  is  now 
extant,  or  at  least  known  to  exist.  The 
record  of  this  meeting  is  very  meagre, 
being  only  a  statement  of  the  time  and 
place  and  the  amount  of  the  collections 
and  disbursements  as  follows  : 

(2uarterly  meetings  held  at  Montpelier, 
for  Barre  circuit,  August  5,  1820. 
Public  collection,  $8.62. 
Paid  Ella  Dunam  expense,  6.00 

Squire  B.  Harskell    do.  2.62 

$8.62 
This  brief  record  is  suggestive,  however, 


of  a  meeting  which  was  probably  one  of 
impressive  and  solemn  interest  in  the  com- 
munity. A  Methodist  "  quarterly  meet- 
ing" in  1820  was  likely  to  be  an  event  of 
great  local  interest.  Barre  circuit  com- 
prised at  this  time  some  twelve  or  more 
towns  within  its  bounds,  and,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  custom  in  these  olden  times, 
there  would  be  likely  to  be  in  attendance 
at  the  quarterly  meeting  some  from  every 
preaching  station  on  the  circuit,  and  a 
general  attendance  of  the  members  and 
friends  of  the  Methodist  Church  in  towns 
convenient  of  access  to  the  place  of  meet- 
ing. It  is,  therefore,  probable  that  this 
meeting  was  one  of  considerable  local  im- 
portance. Mr.  Henry  Nutt  remembers 
the  occasion,  and  that  the  meeting  was 
held  in  the  grove  at  the  "Centre,"  and 
very  largely  attended  by  the  people  from 
all  adjoining  and  some  other  towns. 

Rev.  Elihu  Scott,  who  is  now  living  in 
Hampton,  N.  H.,  writes: 

In  June,  1825,  I  received  my  first  ap- 
pointment in  the  New  England  Confer- 
ence, on  old  Barre  circuit,  Vermont,  one 
of  the  oldest  and  best  at  that  time  in  the 
State.  John  Lord  was  preacher  in  charge, 
David  Leslie  second,  E.  Scott  third ;  and 
because  we  had  not  help  enough,  we  took 
on  Horace  Spaulding  for  the  fourth,  (a 
school  teacher  and  local  preacher  of  good 
abilities.)  The  following  is  a  list  of  the 
towns  then  embraced  in  the  circuit — a 
name  that  meant  something  in  those  days 
— namely :  Barre,  Montpelier,  Calais, 
Plainfield,  Marshfield,  Orange,  Washing- 
ton, Williamstown,  Brookfield,  Randolph, 
Bethel,  Roxbury,  Northfield  and  Berlin. 
I  think  we  had  preaching  every  Sabbath 
only  in  Barre  ;  in  a  few  other  places  once 
in  two  weeks,  in  others  once  in  four  weeks, 
and  in  others  once  in  eight  weeks.  But 
with  lectures,  as  we  then  called  them — 
that  is,  preaching  on  week  days,  afternoon 
or  evening,  in  all  our  outlying  neighbor- 
hoods where  we  had  classes,  four  or  five 
times  a  week  three  weeks  out  of  four,  sum- 
mer and  winter,  in  jjrivate  houses  or 
school-houses,  and  visiting  all  our  mem- 
bers frequently,  we  found  plenty  of  hard 
work  to  keep  us  out  of  idleness  and  mis- 
chief. 

Previous  to  1826,  the  Methodists  had  no 
church,  but  during  this  year  one  was  built 
by  them  at  the  Centre  of  the  town,  in 
which  meetings  were  then  held  alternatelv 


MONTPELIER. 


377 


with  services  in  the  old  State  House  in 
the  village.  At  the  first  quarterly  meet- 
ing held  in  the  church,  Wilbur  Fisk  preach- 
ed upon  the  theme  of  "  endless  misery" — 
a  memorable  sermon,  which  was  much 
discussed  in  the  community. 

In  1828,  Montpelier  was  made  a  station, 
and  thenceforward  lost  its  identity  with 
Barre  circuit,  but  gained  one  of  its  own. 
The  appointments  of  preachers  for  Barre 
circuit  from  its  formation  to  this  time,  (all 
of  whom  were  of  course  regular  visitors  to 
Montpelier  at  stated  appointments,)  were 
as  follows:  In  1804,  Oliver  Beale  ;  1805, 
Elijah  Hedding  and  Daniel  Young;  1806, 
Philip   Munger  and    Jonathan    Chaney ; 

1807,  Sam'l  Thompson  and  Eleazer  Wells  ; 

1808,  Solomon  Sias  ;  1809,  Warren  Ban- 
ister and  George  Gary;  1810,  Eliazer 
Wells  and  Squire  Streeter;  181 1,  Nathan- 
iel Sternes  and  John  Jewett ;  1812,  Eb- 
enezer  F.  Newell  and  Joseph  Dennett ; 
1813  and '14,  David  Kilburn,  Jason  Walk- 
er being  his  colleague  in  '14 ;  1815  and  '16, 
Joel  Steele,  Thomas  C.  Pierce  being  a 
colleague  in  '16;  181 7  and  '18,  Leonard 
Frost;  i8ig,  Thomas  C.  Pierce;  1820, 
Squire  B.  Haskell  and  Ella  Dunham  ;  182 1, 
John  F.  Adams  and  Abraham  Holway ; 
1822,  J.  F.  Adams,  D.  Leslie;  1823,  Sam- 
uel Norris  and  Haskell  Wheelock  ;  1824, 
D.  Kilburn,  H.  Wheelock  and  A.  H. 
Houghton;  1825,  John  Lord,  D.  Leslie 
and  Elihu  Scott;  1826,  A.  D.  Merrill  and 
J.  Templeton;  1827,  J.  B.  White,  E. 
Jordan  and  R.  L.  Hai-vey. 

There  had  also  appeared  among  the 
Methodist  preachers  in  the  town  the  fol- 
lowing men  who  had  occupied  the  office  of 
presiding  elder  upon  the  district  of  which 
Barre  circuit  was  a  part :  Jesse  Lee, 
George  Pickering,  Shadrack  Bostwick, 
John  Brodhead,  Joseph  Crawford,  Elijah 
Sabin,  Thomas  Branch,  Eleazer  Wells, 
Joseph  A.  Merrill,  John  Lindsley,  John  G. 
Dow,  Wilbur  Fisk. 

Among  these  names  that  of  Wilbur  Fisk 
is  not  the  least  prominent,  and  to  the 
present  generation  is  a  household  name  in 
memory  of  a  man  who  made  his  impress 
in  society  as  but  few  men  are  able  to  do. 
The  sermon  of  Mr.  Fisk  before  the  Ver- 

48 


mont  Legislature  of  1826  is  now  preserved, 
having  been  printed  in  pamphlet  form. 
Mr.  Fisk  has  been  called  the  "  founder  of 
Methodism  in  Montpelier,"  but  although 
his  influence  was  of  great  value  to  Meth- 
odism in  Montpelier,  his  work  was  inci- 
dental to  its  history  rather  than  the  found- 
ation of  it.  He  was  a  strong  man  in  the 
denomination,  and  doubtless  exercised  an 
influence  which  served  in  a  great  measure 
to  dispel  the  opposition  and  the  prejudices 
which  had  met  the  early  efforts  of  Meth- 
odists to  secure  an  acknowledged  right  to 
worship  God  according  to  the  dictates  of 
their  consciences,  and  the  preferences  of 
their  religious  tastes.  [For  Presiding  Elder 
Fisk,  see  Windham  County  vol.,  (follow- 
ing Washington  County  papers,)  of  which 
County  he  was  a  native — Ed.]  It  is  also 
probable  that  this  growing  strength  in  the 
society  gave  encouragement  to  the  local 
interests  to  such  an  extent  as  to  bring 
about  the  independent  existence  of  "  Mont- 
pelier station,"  and  thus  secure  a  resident 
pastor  who  could  give  his  entire  attention 
to  the  interests  of  the  church  in  Mont- 
pelier. 

So  it  came  about  that  at  the  annual  con- 
ference, held  at  Lynn,  Mass.,  (this  terri- 
tory being  then  comprised  in  "the  New 
England  Conference,")  and  commencing 
July  23,  1828,  Barre  circuit  was  again  di- 
vided, (having  lost  "  Brookfield  circuit" 
in  1826,)  and  "Montpelier  station"  be- 
came an  appointment.  John  Lord  was 
presiding  elder  of  the  district,  and  JohnG. 
Dow  the  stationed  preacher. 

The  first  quarterly  meeting  was  held  at 
the  church  "(at  the  Center)  Sept.  20  and 
21,  1828.  Regular  meetings  had  been 
held  up  to  this  time,  but  the  "  quarterly 
meeting  "  now  convened  for  the  first  time 
on  the  station,  and  as  there  was  but  one 
steward  under  the  circuit  arrangement,  it 
became  necessary  to  choose  others ;  the 
completed  board  was  as  follows  :  Stephen 
Sanborn,  Daniel  Culver,  Samuel  Upham, 
Cyrenus  G.  Kelton,  (Recording  Steward,) 
and  Henry  Nutt.  At  a  subsequent  meet- 
ing the  board  of  trustees  was  increased  to 
five,  and  then  comprised  Salvenus  Morse, 
John   Stevens,    James    Arbuckle,    Daniel 


378 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Culver  and  Henry  Nutt ;  and  the  member- 
ship was  comprised  in  seven  classes,  as 
follows:  I,  Henry  Nutt  leader,  13  mem- 
bers ;  2,  Elias  Wakefield  leader,  9  mem- 
bers and  two  on  trial ;  3,  Cyrenus  G.  Kel- 
ton  leader,  16  members ;  4,  Goodyear 
Bassett  local  preacher  and  leader,  16  mem- 
bers and  one  on  trial ;  5,  James  Arbuckle 
leader,  7  members  and  5  on  trial ;  6,  Dan- 
iel W.  Fox  leader,  20  members  ;  7,  Nathan 
Howard  leader,  13  members;  total,  - 105 
members  and  8  on  trial. 

The  financial  exhibit  for  this  first  year 
is  as  follows :  Collections  for  this  year's 
avails  of  subscription  papers,  $204 ;  private 
donations, $15  ;  ministerial  or  public  money, 
$62  ;  quarterly  collections,  $49  ;  total,  jf330. 
Disbursements,  Paid  Rev.  J.  G.  Dow  for 
traveling  expenses,  $10;  for  house  rent, 
$70;  fuel,  $15  ;  table  expenses,  $85  ;  quar- 
terage, $140;  paid  Rev.  John  Lord,  P.E., 
$10;  total,  $330. 

An  interesting  relic  of  the  time  here 
written  of  is  an  original  "class  paper," 
now  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  al- 
though yellow  with  age,  and  carrying  an 
inscription  of  faded  writing,  but  still  very 
legible,  as  follows : 


pontpclicr  (flass  |!a]pfcr.---^o.  1. 

HENRY  NUTT,    Leader. 
John  G.  Dow,  S.  P.     Rev.  John  Lord,  P.  E. 

Remember  and  observe  the  Quarterly  Fast. 
See  Discipline. 


Keep  yourselves  in  the  love  of  God. 

—Bible. 


Made  April  15th,  1829. 


The  original  size  of  the  above  when 
folded  is  5^x2^  inches,  and  when  unfold- 
ed, it  is  twelve  times  as  large,  and  con- 
tains the  names  of  the  members  of  the 
class  indicated,  with  lines  and  spaces  to 
record  their  state  in  life,  (married,  single 
or  widowed,)  their  state  in  the  church, 
(full  membership  or  on  trial,)  and  their 
attendance  or  non-attendance  at  class 
meetings.  The  church  records,  although 
merely  incidental  of  the  routine  business 
during  the  next  6  years,  indicate  a  general 
state  of  prosperity  and  a  healthy  growth 


in  the  membership.  John  G.  Dow  was 
again  appointed  preacher  in  charge  in 
1829,  with  Eleazer  Wells  presiding  elder. 
James  Templeton  was  the  preacher  in  '30 
and  '31  ;  Ezra  Sprague,  '32  ;  John  Currier 
ii^'SS  i  (Josiah  A.  Scarrit,  presiding  elder,) 
and  Elihu  Scott  the  preacher  in  '34.  At 
this  time  there  was  under  agitation  a  pro- 
ject to  build  a  Methodist  church  in  the 
village,  the  meetings  having  been  held  in 
the  old  Court  House  up  to  this  time. 

The  following  record  is  still  preserved, 
apparently  upon  the  original  paper  where 
it  was  written : 

MoNTPELiER,  Feb.  12,  1834. 

According  to  previous  notice  given,  a 
meeting  was  called  for  the  purpose  of  tak- 
ing into  consideration  the  expediency  of 
building  a  Methodist  meeting-house. 

On  motion,  Hon.  Cyrus  Ware  was 
called  to  the  chair,  and  E.  H.  Washburn 
was  appointed  secretary. 

On  motion,  a  committee  was  appointed 
consisting  of  three,  to  be  denominated  a 
Methodist  meeting-house  committee.  Lu- 
ther Cross,  Samuel  Upham,  Jonathan  M. 
Snow,  comprise  this  committee,  whose 
duty  it  shall  be  to  find  a  site  on  which  to 
build  said  house,  and  any  other  business 
belonging  to  the  subject.    . 

On  motion,  the  meeting  was  adjourned 
to  meet  at  the  State  House,  on  the  24th 
instant,  at  6  o'clock  p.  m. 

E.  H.  Wasubviin,  Sfcre/ary. 

Feb.  24,  1834. 

Met  pursuant  to  adjournment,  Hon.  C. 
Ware  in  the  chair,  and  J.  M.  Snow,  sec- 
retary _^r^  ^em. 

On  motion,  the  question  was  tried  rel- 
ative to  the  site  belonging  to  Mr.  Jewett. 

On  motion,  Col.  J.  P.  Miller  was  added 
to  the  committee  above  raised,  and  also 
Mr.  James  Arbuckle  and  Mr.  Nahum. 

On  motion,  the  meeting  was  adjourned 
to  the  loth  of  March. 

E.  H.  Washburn,  Secretary. 

March  loth,  1834. 
On  motion  of  Hon.    C.   Ware,    Smith 
Sherman  was  called  to  the  chair. 

On  motion,  said  meeting  agreed  to 
build  on  the  Keith  site. 

On  motion,  adjourned  to  meet  on  the 
24th  instant. 

E.  H.  Washburn,  Secretary. 

MoNTPELiER,  March  24,  1834. 
Met  pursuant  to  adjournment  after  read- 
ing  the    notice   published   in   the    news- 
papers.     Hon.    C.    Ware   called    to   the 
chair.     Trustees :     Cyrenus  Morse,  Sam- 


MONTPELIER. 


379 


uel  Upham,  Jr.,  Christopher  C.  Wing,  A. 
D.  H.  Cadwell,  James  Arbuckle ;  Meth- 
odist meeting-house  committee :  C.  C. 
Wing,  J.  M.  Snow,  Wm.  B.  Hubbard. 
4th.  To  act  on  draft  for  a  constitution  for 
said  society.  Constitution  adopted.  Plan 
A,  for  a  meeting-house  adopted. 

On  motion,  the  meeting  was  adjourned 
four  weeks.         E.  H.  Washburn,  Sec. 

No  further  record  of  this  movement  is 
preserved,  and  the  project  seems  to  have 
waited  development  for  the  time  being. 

The  earliest  records  of  the  Sunday-school 
are  July,  1835;  one  superintendent,  5 
teachers,  48  scholars ;  75  vols,  in  the  li- 
brary. It  seems  probable  that  there  was 
a  Sunday-school  organization  some  years 
earlier,  and  it  is  also  probable  that  the  or- 
ganization has  been  continued  ever  since. 

Aug.  31,  1836,  the  New  Hampshire  and 
Vermont  Conference  commenced  its  sev- 
enth annual  session  in  Montpelier,  under 
the  presidency  of  Bishop  Elijah  Hedding. 
It  must  have  been  with  peculiar  feelings 
of  gratitude  to  God,  that  Bishop  Hedding 
now  looked  upon  the  assembling  of  this 
conference.  In  1805,  he  had  been  a 
preacher  on  Barre  circuit,  and  had  occa- 
sionally visited  and  preached  in  Mont- 
pelier. 

In  1824,  he  was  elected  and  ordained 
Bishop,  and  in  1830,  had  presided  over 
the  first  session  of  the  New  Hampshire 
and  Vermont  Conference  at  Barre,  and 
now  in  the  course  of  his  official  duties, 
came  to  preside  over  the  session  to  be  held 
in  Montpelier.  The  number  of  members 
in  the  church  in  Montpelier  at  this  time 
was  453.  The  sessions  of  the  conference 
were  held  in  the  "Brick  Church,"  (Con- 
gregational.) It  is  remembered  that  John 
Brodhead  was  also  present  among  other 
visitors. 

Following  this  conference  the  building 
enterprise  assumed  definite  form. 

Daniel  Baldwin  was  made  chairman  of 
the  building  committee,  and  eventually 
bore  the  burden  of  carrying  the  church 
to  completion.  His  financial  account  of 
receipts  and  expenditures  amounting  to 
$3,176.15,  paid  into  his  hands  and  fully 
accounted  for,  was  rendered  to  the  stew- 
ards under  date  of  1840. 


The  deed  of  the  land  was  given  by 
Rawsel  R.  Keith  to  the  stewards  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  consid- 
ation  being  named  as  $500,  and  the  lot 
being  described  as  "situated on  the  north- 
erly side  of  the  road  leading  from  William 
Manny's  to  the  State  House  ; "  as  bounded 
by  lands  belonging  to  Keith  and  Blaisdell, 
and  the  road,  having  4  rods  width  and 
being  8  rods  in  length  from  the  road  to  the 
rear  boundary  line.  This  deed  was  made 
and  attested  Dec.  16,  1836,  and  recorded 
Jan.  19,  1837.  The  deed  was  given,  to 
quote  its  language,  "upon  the  especial 
trust  and  confidence  that  they  shall  erect 
and  build  thereon  a  house  or  place  of  re- 
ligious worship  for  the  use  of  the  members 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 
Montpelier  according  to  the  rules  and  dis- 
cipline which  from  time  to  time  may  be 
agreed  upon  by  the  ministers  and  preachers 
by  said  church  at  their  general  conference  in 
the  United  States  of  America,"  and  men- 
tioning further  expectation  that  the  prop- 
erty should  remain  in  the  control  of  the 
said  church  under  its  disciplinary  rules. 
Some  33  years  later,  Nov.  8,  1869,  the 
title  was  made  absolute  by  the  execution 
of  another  deed  by  which  for  a  consider- 
ation of  $100,  Mr.  Keith  quit-claimed  to 
the  stewards  of  said  church  all  right  and 
title  to  the  same  piece  of  land,  indicating 
that  when  it  became  necessary  to  make  a 
change  in  the  church  property,  it  was 
found  that  doubt  existed  as  to  the  right  of 
the  church  to  dispose  of  the  same  under 
the  original  title.  This  illustrates  the 
truth  that  not  only  mice  but  men  also 
sometimes  overlook  the  means  of  egress, 
when  deeply  intent  in  improving  the  op- 
portunity of  ingress  upon  a  desired  pos- 
session. 

The    church    was    dedicated   Nov.    19, 

1837,  and  the  sermon  preached  by  Rev.  S. 
Kelley,  pastor.  In  1838  the  church  in 
Montpelier  village  was  made  a  station  by 
itself,  with  99  names  upon  its  roll  of  mem- 
bership. 

The  first  quarterly  meeting  held  in  the 
church  at  Montpelier  village  was  Apr.  7, 

1838,  and  after  this  time  usually  occurred 
at  this  place.     In  1837,  Middlesex  charge 


38o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


was  united  with  Montpelier  for  the  time 
being,  and  two  preachers  were  appointed 
to  the  work.  In  1839,  East  Montpelier 
was  annexed  in  like  manner,  but  in  each 
instance  the  arrangement  was  only  for  the 
current  year.  During  these  years  and  the 
following  there  was  a  steady  growth  in  the 
membership  of  the  church,  with  occasional 
revival  of  religion.  In  1858,  the  Vermont 
Annual  Conference,  (organized  in  1844,) 
held  its  fourteenth  session  in  Montpelier, 
Bishop  Osman  C.  Baker  presiding.  The 
conference  convened  May  13th. 

In  1866,  the  22d  session  of  the  Vermont 
Annual  Conference  was  held  in  Mont- 
pelier, convening  April  19,  with  Bishop 
Matthew  Simpson  presiding.  This  was 
the  centennial  year  of  American  Metho- 
dism, dating  from  its  introduction  in  1766, 
and  great  interest  attached  to  the  observa- 
tion of  proper  demonstrations  to  commem- 
orate such  an  occasion  of  congratulation. 
On  Friday  evening,  April  20,  a  "  centenary 
meeting"  was  held,  at  which  Gov.  Dilling- 
ham presided,  Rev.  H.  Eastman  read  a 
poem  suited  to  the  occasion,  and  Rev.  G. 
C.  Bancroft  delivered  an  address.  The 
Sabbath  services  were  particularly  interest- 
ing. Bishop  Simpson  preaching  at  the 
Congregational  Church  in  the  forenoon, 
and  the  other  services  in  the  several 
churches  being  conducted  by  other  vis- 
itors and  by  members  of  the  conference. 

Sept.  21,  1868,  it  was  voted  by  the 
leaders  and  stewards'  meeting,  (official 
board,  improperly  so  called,)  "  to  build  a 
new  house  of  worship,"  and  the  necessary 
measures  were  taken  in  due  time  to  dis- 
pose of  the  church  property  then  held  by 
the  society,  and  to  procure  the  land  and 
erect  the  church  edifice  now  owned  by 
this  society.  Like  other  church  enter- 
prises ot  this  character,  this  involved  years 
of  toil  and  sacrifice  on  the  part  of  the 
people,  and  corresponding  labor  and  sac- 
rifice by  the  pastors  who  found  their  lot 
cast  with  this  society  during  the  several 
following  years.  It  is  not  within  the  prov- 
ince of  this  article  to  relate  the  details  of 
the  effort  to  erect  this  new  house  of  wor- 
ship, but  to  record  its  completion  for 
dedication  on  Nov.  24,  1874,  Rev.  W.  R. 


Clark,  D.  D.,  of  the  New  England  Con- 
ference, being  the  preacher  of  the  dedica- 
tory sermon. 

Among  the  material  encouragements  in 
the  undertaking  was  the  donation  of  the 
mas.sive  bell  by  Col.  H.  C.  Nutt,  at  about 
$1,500  cost,  and  which  was  made  a  "  me- 
morial gift"  in  the  name  of  two  sisters 
deceased,  and  whose  names  are  cast  in  an 
inscription  on  the  bell,  as  follows  : 


IN     MEMORY 

OF 

MY     SISTERS, 

FANNY  AND  ASENATH 


H.  C.  NUTT, 

Trinity   M.  E.  Church, 

Montpelier,  Vt., 

1872. 


[Fanny  W.  Nutt  was  born  in  Mont- 
pelier, March  2d,  1836;  united  with  the 
Methodist  Church  in  this  village  in  1854; 
married  Chas.  H.  Tenney,  M.  D.,  Nov.  25, 
1862,  and  died  Nov.  8,  1864.  Dr.  Tenney, 
who  was  Assistant  Superintendent  of  the 
Vt.  Insane  Asylum,  died  in  Brattleboro, 
April  27,  1874.  Two  poems  from  her  pen 
appear  in  "The  Poets  and  Poetry  of  Ver- 
mont," one  of  which  attracted  very  pleas- 
ant notice : 

THE   TWO    CROWNS. 

Over  ocean's  deep  blue  waters. 

In  a  home  of  royal  pride, 
Is  a  darliiiK  little  baby. 

Known  througliout  the  world  so  wide. 

I  suppose  that  he  Is  winning. 

Just  as  other  babies  are ; 
Laughing  eyes  and  dimpled  shoulders, 

Brow  as  polished  marble  fair; 
Robes  of  costliest  lace  aud  rausUn, 

Showing  forth  his  baby  charms- 
Strings  of  purest  diamonds  flashing 

From  his  rosy  neck  and  arms. 

Tended  by  a  score  of  servants. 

Feeding  from  a  golden  bowl — 
Worshipped  by  a  mighty  nation — 

Whence  this  homage  of  the  whole? 


MONTPELIER. 


381 


Ah  I  adown  tlie  misty  future 

They  can  see  that  baby  brow, 
Seamed  by  many  a  care-worn  furrow — 

Not  as  fresh  and  fair  as  now; 
Robbed  of  all  the  golden  ringlets 

That  his  beauty  now  enhance; 
Wearing,  as  to  hide  its  wrinkles. 

The  Imperial  Crown  of  France. 

'Neath  our  roof-tree  fondly  nestles 

Just  the  dearest  little  thing. 
That  within  an  earth-hon;e  ever 

Folded  up  its  tiny  wing. 

Eyes  of  blue,  and  golden  tresses 

Waving  'round  a  brow  of  light, 
Looks  she  like  a  little  cherub 

In  her  flowing  robes  of  white; 
With  no  ornaments  we  deck  her 

But  the  charms  that  nature  gives, 
Save  a  pair  of  golden  arrows, 

Looping  up  her  little  sleeves. 

At  her  birth  no  bells  were  pealing, 

Save  the  bells  of  silent  joy ; 
At  her  feet  bows  no  proud  nation 

As  before  the  Emperor's  boy. 

But,  I've  often  heard  at  twilight 

Angel  feet  come  tripping  in: 
Bending  o'er  her  midnight  slumbers, 

Often  angel  forms  have  seen ; 
And  I  almost  hear  them  tell  her 

That  a  crown  of  glory  bright 
Waits  to  bind  our  baby's  forehead 

In  the  blessed  world  of  light. 

The  interest  in  wliich  is  not  diminished, 
but  rather  enhanced,  now  the  fair,  dear 
author  sleeps  in  Green  Mount  Cemetery, 
and  the  pure  young  Prince  has  won  the 
martyrdom  of  tlie  brave  by  the  barbaric 
Abyssinian  spear.  Touching  sequel  of 
human  hope,  if  we  look  on  one  side  of  the 
leaf.  If  we  turn  the  leaf,  it  may  have  a 
very  beautiful  golden  lining. — Ed.] 

The  Trinity  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
edifice  is  a  substantial  brick  structure,  of 
plain  exterior,  well  located  upon  Main  st. 
Its  extreme  length  upon  the  outside  is  11 1 
feet,  with  a  corresponding  width  of  60  feet. 
The  ground  floor  is  occupied  by  a  spacious 
vestibule,  and  from  which  a  passage  24  feet 
in  length  and  10  feet  in.  width,  leads  to  the 
vestry,  62  x  58  feet,  being  the  largest  lec- 
ture room  in  town,  while  upon  the  right  of 
the  passage  from  the  vestibule  is  a  class- 
room, 24  feet  square,  and  upon  the  left  two 
ladies'  parlors,  each  24  x  12  feet,  and  con- 
nected by  folding  doors.  From  the  vesti- 
bule on  each  side  is  a  stairway,  5  ft.  5  in. 
wide,  with  20  steps  of  7  in.  rise,  leading 
to  the  second  floor,  on  which  is  the  main 
audience  room,  73  ft.  long,  58  ft.  wide,  and 


32  ft.  high,  and  having  excellent  acoustic 
properties.  The  pews  are  120  in  number, 
giving  600  sittings,  while  the  gallery  over 
the  vestibule  will  seat  100,  making  a  total 
seating  capacity  of  700  in  the  permanent 
seats.  The  organ  loft,  situated  back  of 
the  pulpit,  is  22  ft.  wide  by  17  ft.  depth, 
and  is  furnished  with  a  superior  instrument, 
made  by  Geo.  H.  Ryder  of  Boston,  and 
which  was  purchased  by  the  ladies  of  the 
Society.  On  each  side  of  the  organ  loft  is 
a  room  17x13  ft.,  and  intended  for  the 
toilet  of  the  preaclier  and  the  choir.  The 
audience  room  is  heated  by  two  furnaces, 
and  the  vestry  by  a  third,  all  located  in  the 
cellar,  while  the  smaller  rooms  are  provid- 
ed with  stoves  for  heating  purposes. 

The  following  is  a  complete  list  of  pas- 
tors who  have  been  identified  with  this 
church  since  its  independent  existence, 
commencing  in  1828,  and  also  the  names 
of  the  presiding  elders  of  Montpeiier  dis- 
trict, several  of  whom  have  resided  in  this 
town  during  their  term  of  office  : 

1828,  John  G.  Dow,  John  Lord,  Pre- 
siding Elder;  1829,  John  G.  Dow,  pastor, 
Eleazer  Wells,  Presiding  Elder;  1830  and 
'31,  James  Templeton  ;  1832, Ezra  Sprague  ; 
^^33^  John  Currier,  Josiah  A.  Scarritt,  P. 
E. ;  '34  and  '35,  Elihu  Scott ;  '36  and  '';i7, 
Samuel  Kelley,  Charles  D.  Cahoon,  P.  E. ; 
'38  and '39,  Eleazer  Smith,  ElishaJ.  Scott, 
P.  E.  ;  '40  and  '41 ,  Charles  R.  Harding  ;  '42, 
'43,  '44,  ElishaJ.  Scott,  J:  G.  Dow,  P.  E.  ; 
'45  and  '46,  Amasa  G.  Button,  John  Cur- 
rier, P.  E.  in  '46;  '47  and  '48,  Alonzo 
Webster;  '49,  S.  P.  Williams;  '50  and '51, 
S.  Chamberlain,  A.  T.  Bullard,  P.  E. ; 
'52  and  '53,  Benjamin  Walker;  '54,  Ed- 
mund Copeland ;  '55  and  '56,  F.  D.  Hem- 
enway,  E.  J.  Scott,  P.  E. ;  '57  and  '58, 
H.  P.  Gushing,  W.  J.  Kidder,  P.E.  in '58  ; 
'59  and  '60,  W.  D.  Malcom  ;  '61  and  '62, 
Isaac  McAnn,  P.  P.  Ray,  P.  E.  in  '62 ; 
'63  and  '64,  A.  L.  Cooper ;  '65  and  '66,  M. 
Ludlum,  A.  L.  Cooper,  P.  E.  in  '66;  '67 
and  '68,  B.  Taylor.  Mr.  Taylor  was  re- 
leased in  Aug.  '68,  and  Isaac  McAnn  com- 
pleted the  conference  year.  1869,  S. 
Holman;  '70,  H.  W.  Worthen,  J.  A. 
Sherburn,  P.  E.  in  '70;  '71  and  '72,  J. 
W.  C.  Coxe.     Mr.  Coxe  was  released  in 


382 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  fall  of  V2»  and  James  Morrow  sup- 
plied the  remainder  of  the  conference  year. 
1873  and  ^4,  H.  A.  Spencer,  I.  McAnn, 
P.  E.  in  '74 ;  '75  and  '76,  J.  M.  C.  Fulton  ; 
'78  and  '79,  Charles  Parkhurst,  Church 
Tabor,  P.  E.  in  '78.  Mr.  Parkhurst  was 
released  in  the  fall  of  '79.  and  N.  Fel- 
lows, of  the  N.  E.  Conference,  supplied 
the  remainder  of  the  conference  year,  and 
was  appointed  as  pastor  in  '80  ;  ^81,  D.  E. 
Miller. 

The  annual  statistics  of  the  society  as 
reported  to  the  conference  of  1881  are  as 
follows  :  Members,  234 ;  probationers, 
22  ;  local  preachers,  2  ;  number  in  Sunday- 
school,  200 ;  officers  and  teachers,  24 ; 
probable  value  of  church  edifice,  $27,- 
000 ;  probable  value  of  parsonage  prop- 
erty, $2,000:  indebtedness,  none;  paid 
for  ministerial  support,  pastor,  $1,000; 
presiding  elder,  $68;  bishops,  $12;  con- 
ference claiinants,  $25  ;  total,  $1,105  ;  cur- 
rent expenses,  $275 ;  benevolent  collec- 
tions, $182;  total  annual  financial  dis- 
bursement, $1,562. 

THE   VERMONT   CHRISTIAN   MESSENGER. 

BY  REV.  J.  R.  BARTLKTT. 

No  certain  data  is  at  hand  to  indicate 
the  birthplace  of  the  Messenger.  One  in- 
formant states  that  it  was  started  in  New- 
bury in  1846,  by  Rev.  Wm.  M.  Willets. 
The  first  record  of  it  is  found  in  Wal- 
ton's Vermont  Register  for  1848,  stating 
that  it  was  published  in  Montpelier  in 
1847.  In  1853,  it  was  removed  to  North- 
field,  and  in  1859  again  removed  to  Mont- 
pelier, where  it  has  since  been  published. 

During  its  history  it  has  been  published 
by  Rev.  Elisha  J.  Scott,  Rev.  Alonzo 
Webster,  C.  W.  Willard  (commencing  in 
1861)  ;  J.  W.  Wheelock  (Willard  &  Whee- 
lock  from  1869  to  1874,  and  then  by  Mr. 
Wheelock  and  his  estate  to  1879),  since 
which  time  the  present  proprietor,  Mr. 
Herbert  R.  Wheelock,  has  continued  the 
publication  in  the  ofiice  of  the  "Green 
Mountain  Freeman."  Among  its  editors 
Rev.  Elisha  J.  Scott,  Rev.  Alonzo  Web- 
ster, and  Rev.  W.  D.  Malcom,  have  served 
the  longest  terms. 


The  following  memorial  sketch  of  Mr. 
Scott  was  published  in  the  Vermont  Con- 
ference Minutes  of  the  session  of  1866: 

Rev.  Elisha  J,  Scott  was  born  in  Greens- 
boro, Vt.,  Aug.  II,  1803,  and  died  in 
Montpelier,  Jan.  24,  1866,  in  his  63d  year. 
Bro.  Scott  was  a  son  of  pious  parents,  and 
a  father's  prayers  and  a  mother's  religious 
instructions  were  among  his  earliest  and 
sweetest  recollections.  The  principles  of 
our  holy  Christianity  took  a  strong  hold  of 
his  young  mind,  and  at  the  age  of  12  years 
he  gave  his  heart  to  the  Saviour,  and  joined 
the  Baptist  Church,  of  which  his  parents 
were  members.  He  continued  in  this 
Church  some  7  years,  when  the  Rev.  Wil- 
bur Fisk,  of  precious  memory,  was  sent  to 
preach  in  an  adjoining  town.  While  listen- 
ing to  his  preaching,  a  change  was  wrought 
in  his  views  of  Christian  doctrine,  and 
ever  after  in  sentiment  and  sympathy  he 
was  a  Methodist.  He  Ixad  early  convic- 
tions that  he  was  sent  into  the  world  to  be 
a  minister  of  Jesus,  and  made  preparation 
to  enter  upon  his  life  work.  He  was  re- 
ceived on  trial  in  the  M.  E.  Conference  in 
1828;  was  ordained  Deacon  by  Bishop 
Hedding,  at  Barre,  June  27,  1830,  and 
Elder  by  Bishop  Roberts,  at  Lyndon,  Aug. 
12,  1832.  He  filled  with  great  accepta- 
bility and  usefulness  the  following  ap- 
pointments, namely :  Cabot,  Craftsbury, 
Barton,  Brookfield  and  Chelsea  Circuits, 
Woodstock,  Chelsea,  Newbury  and  Barre 
Stations — all  one  year  each ;  Montpelier 
District  as  Presiding  Elder,  4  years  ;  Mont- 
pelier Station,  3  years,  the  third  year  as 
Supernumerary.  He  was  then  placed  on 
the  superannuated  list  for  9  years,  when  he 
was  again  made  eifective,  and  traveled 
Montpelier  District  a  second  term  of  four 
years  as  Presiding  Elder.  During  the 
last  years  of  this  term  his  health  complete- 
ly failed,  and  he  again  took  a  superannu- 
ated relation,  which  he  held  during  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life.  During  his  retirement 
from  the  active  work  of  the  ministry,  he 
performed  much  useful  labor  in  supplying 
on  the  Sabbath  appointments  near  the 
place  of  his  residence,  as  Superintendent 
of  common  schools  in  his  county,  and  as 
editor  of  the  Messenger.  He  was  for  sev- 
eral years  Secretary  of  the  Conference, 
and  a  delegate  to  the  General  Conference, 
which  met  at  Cincinnati,  May,  1836. 

[We  have  among  our  waifs  the  follow- 
ing hymn,  we  clipped  from  some  Mont- 
pelier paper  at  the  time — probably  the 
Messenger,  composed  by  him  a  few  days 
before  his  death,  to  be  sung  at  his  fu- 
neral.— Ed.] 


MONTPELIER. 


383 


THE  DYING  CHRISTIAN'S  ADIEU  TO  EARTH. 

Launched  on  Death's  dark,  rolling  stream, 

Earthly  scenes  recede  from  view; 
Oh!  how  trifling  all  now  seem. 

As  I  bid  them  each  adieu. 
Pleasant  scenes  I  tliey  could  not  last— 

Morning  clouds,  and  earthly  dew, 
Soon  exhaled— and  quickly  past. 

Ere  we  thought  to  say  adieu. 
Once,  to  me  did  they  impart 

Happiness,  short-lived,  but  true; 
Now,  as  from  tliera  all  I  part. 

Cheerfully  1  say  adieu. 
Richer  joys  my  soul  shall  taste, 

Joys  that  are  forever  new; 
To  these  joys  I  gladly  haste. 

Bidding  all  below  adieu. 
Objects  to  my  heart  most  dear. 

Friends  so  loving  and  so  true; 
Even  those,  without  a  tear, 

I  can  bid  my  brief  adieu. 
Short  the  time  that  will  us  part. 

Then  our  union  we'll  renew, 
Wlien  heart  closely  joined  to  lieart. 

Ne'er  sliall  breatlie  tlie  sad  adieu. 
Farewell!  earth,  no  onger  liome. 

Heaven  opens  to  my  view; 
O'er  hill  and  vale  no  more  I  roam. 

Loved  scenes!  my  fond  adieu. 
Hark!  wiiat  music  do  1  hear? 

Sweet  the  strains— full  and  new- 
How  It  floods  my  ravished  ear! 

World  of  death!  my  last  adieu. 

Rev.  Alonzo  Webster,  D.D.,  was  born 
in  Weston,  Jan.  27,  1818  ;  joined  the  New 
Hampshire  Conference  in  1837,  and  by  the 
division  of  the  same,  became  a  member  of 
the  Vermont  Conference  at  its  formation 
in  1844;  remained  in  active  service  in  this 
Conference  19.  years  as  pastor,  and  3  years 
of  service  as  Presiding  Elder,  9  years  of 
which  he  occupied  the  editorial  chair  of 
the  Messenger.  In  1856,  and  again  in 
i860,  lie  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the 
General  Conference,  and  in  1866  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  South  Carolina  Conference. 
In  1869,  he  received  the  appointment  as 
Professor  in  the  Baker  Theological  Insti- 
tute, first  established  at  Charleston,  S.  C, 
but  afterward  removed  to  Orangeburg,  to 
become  a  part  of  Claflin  University,  of 
which  Dr.  Webster  was  made  President  in 
1870.  In  1874,  he  resigned  this  position 
to  accept  an  appointment  as  Presiding 
Elder  of  Charleston  District,  and  in  1876, 
and  again  in  1880,  was  elected  to  repre- 
sent the  South  Carolina  Conference  in  the 
General  Conference.  His  present  address 
is  Orangeburg,  S.  C. 


Rev.  W.  D.  Malcom  assumed  the  ed- 
itorial chair  in  1867,  and  continued  to  oc- 
cupy the  position  until  April,  1881.  He 
was  born  in  Albany,  N.  Y.,  July  3,  1827; 
in  early  life  worked  as  a  printer  ;  studied  at 
the  Newbury  Seminary,  and  joined  the 
Vermont  Conference  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  in  1848,  since  which  he 
has  continued  in  the  itinerant  work  of  a 
Methodist  minister  with  the  exception  of 
one  year,  ('49,)  when  he  located,  rejoining 
in  1850.  Of  the  33  years  of  his  ministerial 
life,  nearly  8  years  have  been  passed  in  the 
office  of  Presiding  Elder,  which  position 
he  now  fills  upon  the  St.  Johnsbury  Dis- 
trict. In  1864,  he  was  a  delegate  to  the 
General  Conference,  and  for  five  successive 
years  filled  the  ofiice  of  Secretary  to  the 
Vermont  Annual  Conference.  He  is  widely 
known  in  Vermont  as  a  genial  Christian 
minister,  an  able  preacher,  and  a  loyal  and 
industrious  worker  in  his  Master''s  vine- 
yard. 

The  present,  (Oct.  1881,)  editorial  force 
consists  of  Rev.  J.  R.  Bartlett,  Barre,  ed- 
itor; Rev.  W.  R.  Davenport,  Cambridge- 
port,  assistant ;  Rev.  J.  O.  Sherburn,  Roch- 
ester, Sunday-school  lessons.  The  Mes- 
senger is  conducted  as  a  denominational 
religious  newspaper,  in  the  interests  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  its  editors 
being  pastors  in  this  Church,  and  members 
of  the  Vermont  Annual  Conference.  It  is, 
however,  a  purely  private  enterprise,  in- 
volving the  Conference  in  no  financial  or 
moral  responsibility,  further  than  its  juris- 
diction to  expect  all  persons  who  are  mem- 
bers of  the  Conference  to  conform  to  sound 
doctrines  of  the  Church  in  their  public 
teachings,  and  to  the  rules  of  the  Disci- 
pline in  their  manner  of  personal  conduct. 
But  as  it  seeks  its  support,  in  the  main, 
from  the  membership  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  it  is  reasonable  to  ex- 
pect that  it  will  be  loyal  and  true  to  the  in- 
terests of  the  same,  and  it  is  conduct^  on 
this  basis ;  while  at  the  same  time  it  seeks 
to  avoid  mere  sectarianism  of  the  narrow 
school,  and  to  cultivate  a  catholic  spirit, 
which  while  free  to  express  its  denomina- 
tional choice,  is  yet  cordial  and  friendly  to 
all  other  Christian  churches. 


MONTPELIER. 


38s 


VERMONT   METHODIST   SEMINARY  AND 
FEMALE   COLLEGE. 

BY   REV.  J.  A.  SHEKBCRN. 

In  giving  a  history  of  this  institution  it 
is  necessary  to  briefly  notice  those  institu- 
tions of  which  this  is  the  legitimate  suc- 
cessor. For  the  first  40  years  or  so,  of 
the  existence  of  Methodism  in  this  State, 
it  had  no  schools  under  its  special  super- 
vision ;  not  because  it  did  not  value  schol- 
astic advantages,  but  because,  for  the  time 
being,  there  were  other  interests  to  serve 
it  valued  more. 

Nearly  50  years  since,  Poultney  Acad- 
emy, under  the  supervision  of  the  Troy 
Conference,  and  Newbury  Seminary,  under 
the  New  Hampshire  Conference,  were 
opened  for  students  in  the  fall  of  1834. 

N.  H.  Conference  then  embraced  what 
now  composes  the  N.  H.  Conference  and 
that  part  of  Vermont  lying  east  of  the 
Green  Mountains,  making  Newbury  com- 
paratively central  to  the  whole  territory. 
The  funds  for  the  purchase  of  lands  and 
the  erection  of  buildings  for  Newbury  Sem- 
inary were  obtained  by  subscriptions  and 
collections  from  the  whole  Conference. 
The  buildings  were  good,  [see  descrip- 
tion in  History  of  Newbury,  vol.  li,  pages 
951  and  952  of  this  work,]  located  on  a 
beautiful  plateau  overlooking  the  valley  of 
the  Connecticut,  and  affording  a  good  view 
of  mountain  scenery  in  New  Hampshire. 
The  early  purpose  of  the  founders  of  this 
school  was  to  make  it,  in  part,  a  manual 
labor  school  for  young  men  ;  for  this  pur- 
pose a  farm  was  purchased,  but  after  a 
few  years'  trial  the  plan  was  abandoned, 
and  the  farm  sold. 

In  connection  with  Newbury  Seminary, 
there  was  the  Newbury  Biblical  Institute, 
having  its  board  of  trustees  and  its  own 
professors.  Out  of  this  grew  first,  the 
Concord  Biblical  Institute,  Concord,  N. 
H.,  and  finally,  the  School  of  Theology  of 
the  Boston  University.  There  was,  also, 
in  connection  with  the  school,  the  Female 
Collegiate  Institute,  having  its  separate 
board  of  trust,  though  its  teachers  were 
the  Seminary  teachers  as  well.  Rev. 
Charles  Adams,  now  D.D.,  of  Washing- 


ton, D.  C,  being  first  principal,  and  Miss 
French,  now  Mrs.  Joel  Cooper,  a  widow 
in  Iowa,  preceptress.  Mr.  Adams  had 
worthy  successors.  Bishop  O.  C.  Baker, 
D.D.,  C.  T.  Hinman,  D.D.,  J.  E.  King, 
D.  D.,  and  others.  Miss  French  had  her 
successors,  women  not  to  be  forgotten, 
none  of  whom  are  remembered  with  great- 
er respect  than  the  late  Mrs.  C.  P.  Tap- 
Un. 

Newbury  Seminary  early  in  its  history 
took  high  rank  as  a  school,  and  maintained 
it  well  through  its  entire  history.  Well 
may  "old  Newbury"  be  proud  of  her 
alumni,  and  her  alumni  be  proud  of  her, 
as  well. 

[We  here  reserve  a  notice  of  the  Spring- 
field Methodist  school,  not  to  forestall  the 
right  of  a  town  in  a  later  volume  to  give 
the  history  of  its  own  institutions  :] 

Springfield  Wesleyan  Seminary  for  a 
time  was  quite  a  rival  of  Newbury,  doing 
good  work,  but,  being  comparatively  local, 
was  not  its  equal. 

In  1844,  the  N.  H.  Conference  was  di- 
vided, leaving  that  part  of  it  which  lay  in 
Vermont,  by  itself,  which  was  made  a  sep- 
arate Conference,  called  the  Vermont  Con- 
ference. 

In  i86q,  the  Burlington  and  St.  Albans 
District,  embracing  the  greater  part  of 
Western  Vermont,  and  belonging  to  the 
Troy  Conference,  were  added  to  the  Vt. 
Conference,  which  materially  changed  its 
geographical  center. 

Poultney  Academy  was  at  one  time 
wholly  suspended,  and  was  afterward  re- 
vived, and  passed  into  private  hands. 
N.  H.  Conference  had  built  a  Seminary 
for  itself,  Newbury  Seminary  needed  funds 
to  repair  its  old  buildings  or  build  new 
ones,  and  it  was  found  hard  to  sustain 
Spingfield  Seminary.  Under  these  cir- 
cumstances, Vt.  Conference,  under  whose 
patronage  Newbury  and  Springfield  were, 
decided,  and  the  trustees  of  both  schools 
concurred,  to  seek  a  central  location  and 
combine  the  schools.  Rev.  W.  J.  Kidder 
being  the  prime  mover. 

The  friends  of  Newbury  struggled  hard 


49 


386 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


to  retain  the  school  there,  while  West 
Randolph,  Northfield,  Waterbury  and 
Montpelier  competed  for  it.  Montpelier 
guaranteeing  $20,000  to  aid  the  enterprise, 
it  was  located  there,  upon  the  site  occu- 
pied formerly  by  the  U.  S.  Hospital,  which 
with  its  buildings,  was  bought  for  $16,500. 
The  situation  is  upon  a  beautiful  plateau,  1 50 
rods  from  the  center  of  Montpelier  village, 
on  elevated,  dry  ground.  The  view  ex- 
tends from  Orange  Mountains  on  the  east 
to  Camel's  Hump  on  the  west,  and  from 
Berlin  heights  on  the  south  to  Worcester 
on  the  north.  It  would  be  difficult  to  find 
a  more  beautiful  location  in  the  State  of 
Vermont  for  an  institution  of  learning. 

Revs.  A.  G.  Button,  R.  Morgan,  I. 
McAnn  and  A.  Hitchcock  were  each  for  a 
time  employed  as  agents  in  raising  funds 
for  the  completion  of  the  Seminary  build- 
ings, Noah  Granger,  agent  for  raising  an 
endowment  fund  of  $50,000,  $30,000  of 
which  is  pledged,  the  income  only  of 
which  can  be  used  in  aid  of  the  school. 
The  school  was  chartered  in  1865,  under 
the  name  of  Vermont  Conference  Sem- 
inary and  Female  College  ;  but  was  after- 
ward changed  to  its  present  name,  "Ver- 
mont Methodist  Seminary  and  Female 
College."  Hon.  Paul  Dillingham  was 
president,  A.  G.  Button,  secretary,  and 
Joseph  Gould,  treasurer  of  the  first  board 
of  trust.  Rev.  A.  G.  Button  and  Paul 
Mclnstry  supervised  the  remodeling  of  the 
buildings  in  1868,  and  the  school  was 
opened  the  same  fall. 

The  Newbury  Seminary  boarding-house 
furnishings  and  school  apparatus  were  re- 
moved to  this  Institution,  and  the  funds 
resulting  from  the  sale  of  the  Springfield 
Seminary  property  was  also  paid  into  this 
Institution. 

In  the  fall  of  1868,  the  school  was 
opened,  with  a  faculty  most  of  whom  had 
recently  been  teachers  in  Newbury  Semi- 
nary, and  many  of  their  former  pupils 
came  with  them.  Rev.  S.  F.  Chester 
having  been  the  last  Principal  at  Newbury, 
was  the  first  Principal  at  Montpelier. 

The  Seminary  building,  having  been 
erected  under  the  superintendence  of  Revs. 


S.  Holman  and  A.  G.  Button,  was  opened 
for  use  in  the  fall  of  1872,  which  is  thought 
to  be  one  of  the  finest  academic  buildings 
in  New  England.  The  school  property, 
grounds,  buildings,  etc.,  are  valued  at 
$82,000. 

At  present  there  are  in  the  School  seven 
courses  of  study,  as  follows  : 

1.  Common  English,  .     .     .     .  i  year. 

2.  Business, 2  years. 

3.  Modern, 3  years. 

4.  Music. 3  years. 

5.  College  Preparatory,    ...  3  years. 

6.  Latin  Scientific,      ....  4  years. 

7.  Collegiate, 4  years. 

While  the  scholarship  is  designed  to  be 
thorough,  the  moral  and  religious  welfare 
of  the  students  is  a  prominent  feature  of 
this  school ;  and  though  founded  and  fos- 
tered by  the  Methodist  Church,  it  gladly 
welcomes  students  of  all  communions,  giv- 
ing to  them  the  privilege  of  such  Church 
Sabbath  service  as  their  parents  or  guar- 
dians may  designate. 

It  is  with  gratitude  that  we  acknowledge 
the  healthful  religious  influence  which  has 
been  manifest  since  the  transfer  of  the 
school  to  Montpelier,  though  it  has  hardly 
reached  what  was  often  seen  in  its  palmiest 
days  at  Newbury.  It  has  been  at  Mont- 
pelier only  about  12  years,  and  its  alumni 
are  already  taking  rank  as  educators,  min- 
isters, lawyers  and  business  men. 

Frmcipals  at  Montpelier. — Rev.  S.  F. 
Chester,  A.  M.,  Rev.  C.  W.  Wilder,  A.  M., 
Rev.  J.  C.  W.  Coxe,  A.  M.,  Rev.  L. 
White,  A.  M.,  and  Rev.  J.  B.  South- 
worth,  the  present  Principal,  who  has  com- 
menced his  sixth  year. 

Present  Board  of  Trust. — Rev.  J.  A. 
Sherburn,  president ;  Rev.  A.  L.  Cooper, 
secretary;  P.  H.  Hinkley,  Esq.,  treasurer. 

By  the  blessing  of  God,  and  the  wise, 
united  and  persistent  efforts  of  the  friends 
of  this  school,  it  is  hoped  it  may  live  in 
growing  efficiency  and  usefulness  as  the 
years  go  by,  being  a  blessing  not  only  to 
the  Church  which  built  it  and  cares  for  it, 
but  also  to  the  wide,  wide  world. 


MONTPELIER. 


387 


BETHANY   CHURCH,  MONTPELIER,  VT. 
CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH   PAPERS. 

[Compiled  from  material  furnished  chiefly  by 
Hon.  Joseph  Poland,  but  in  which  we  shall 
purposely  omit  the  statistics  given  by  Mr. 
Walton    on   page   239,    preceding.— Ed.] 

The  first  Congregational  organization  in 
Montpelier  was  the  Society — 83  members 
— formed  in  April,  1800,  antedating  the  or- 
ganization of  the  Church  3  months  and  8 
days.  It  was  called  the  "  First  Congre- 
gational Society  of  Montpelier."  Its  first 
declaration  was : 

Impressed  with  the  importance  of  relig- 
ious institutions  to  society  in  general,  and 
to  ourselves  as  men,  and  taking  into  con- 
sideration the  unsettled  state  of  such  insti- 
tutions in  this  part  of  the  country,  and  the 
necessity  of  uniting  in  religious  opinions 
and  harmony :  we  do  hereby  agree  and 
form  ourselves  into  a  religious  society,  by 
the  name  of  the  first  Congregational  Socie- 
ty in  Montpelier,  under  the  following  reg- 
ulations : 

1.  We  pledge  ourselves  to  each  other 
that  we  will  (laying  aside  all  trifling  dif- 
ferences) according  to  our  abilities,  main- 
tain regular  meetings  in  our  Society,  and 
contribute  to  the  support  of  preaching,  and 
when  consistent,  to  maintaining  a  regular 
clergyman  in  the  Society. 

2.  That  no  member  of  this  Society  shall 
be  compelled  to  pay  any  sum  or  sums  for 
the  use  of  the  Society,  except  such  sum  as 
he  shall  voluntarily  subscribe. 

3.  When  any  member  of  the  society 
shall  remove  to  such  distance  as  to  render 
it  inconvenient  for  him  to  attend  our  meet- 
ings, or  shall  in  conscience  think  he  ought 


to  dissent,  he  may  notify  the  Clerk  there- 
of, whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  enter  the  same 
on  record,  and  such  person  shall  no  long- 
er be  considered  as  a  member  of  this 
Society. 

4.  We  agree  to  meet  at  the  usual  place 
of  holding  meetings,  in  the  Academy  in 
Montpelier,  on  Wednesday,  the  27th  day 
of  April,  instant,  at  3  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, for  the  purpose  of  organizing  said 
society  with  proper  officers,  and  transact- 
ing any  proper  business  when  met. 

Dated  at  Montpeher,  this  12th  day  of 
April,  1800. 

Elisha  Town,  George  Worthington,  Jo- 
seph Hutchins,  Geo.  B.  R.  Gove,  Oliver 
Goss,  Thomas  Davis,  Timothy  Hubbard, 
John  Bates,  Charles  Bulkley,  Augustus 
Bradford,  John  Hurlbut,  Alden  Clark, 
Isaac  Freeman,  Amasa  Brown,  Jeduthan 
Loomis,  Stuart  Boynton,  Willis  I.  Cad- 
well,  Abel  Wilson,  Phineas  Woodbury, 
Thomas  Reed,  Sylvester  Day,  Nathan  Jew- 
ett,  E.  D.  Persons,  Samuel  Prentiss,  jun., 
Urial  H.  Orvis,  Ellis  Nye,  Joseph  Howes, 
Linus  Ellis,  William  Hutchins,  Jeremiah 
Wilbur,  Roswell  Beckwith,  David  Tuthill, 
M.  B.  Billings,  Jonathan  Shepherd,  Eras- 
tus  Watrous,  Silas  Burbank,  Cyrus  Ware, 
Roger  Hubbard,  Joseph  Freeman,  Edward 
Lamb,  Nahum  Kelton,  Earned  Lamb,  C. 
W.  Houghton,  Josiah  Parks,  Sylvanus 
Baldwin,  Joseph  Wiggins,  Abner  H.  Pow- 
ers, Abel  Crooker,  Ebenezer  Morse,  Enoch 
Cheney,  Mason  Johnson,  Samuel  Go.ss, 
David  Edwards,  Oliver  Dewey,  John  Hunt, 
Ichabod  Peck,  Darius  Boyden,  Levi  Pit- 
kin, E.  Lewis,  Hers.  Estabrooks,  T.  Gay- 
lord,  Jude  Converse,  Theop.  Pickering, 
Archibald  Kidd,  Joseph  Ray,  Paul  Knapp, 
Henry  Howes,  Samuel  West,  D.  Edwards, 
jun.,  Jonathan  Edwards,  Aaron  Bass, 
Charles  Hamlin,  William  Hamlin,  Timo- 
thy Hatch,  Solomon  Lewis,  Elijah  Tyler, 
John  Howes,  Joshua  Y.  Vail,  J.  H.  Lang- 
don,  S.  W.  Cobb,  Ebenezer  Parker. 

April  27th,  this  Society  held  its  first 
meeting,  and  chose  Samuel  Goss  to  con- 
tract with  a  clergyman.  June  24th,  the 
Society  voted  to  employ  Rev.  Chester 
Wright.     (See  sketch.) 

The  original  members  of  the  Church,  or- 
ganized July  the  20th,  were  : 

Amasa  Brown,  Sylvanus  Baldwin,  An- 
drew Dodge,  Heraldus  Estabrooks,  Sam- 
uel Goss,  Timothy  Hatch,  Joseph  Howes, 
Solomon  Lewis,  Sibyl  Brown,  Bachsheba 
Burbank,  Lydia  Davis,  Susannah  Lewis, 
Lydia  Hatch,  Polly  Barker,  Patty  Howes, 
Rebeckah  Persons,  Sarah  Wiggins. 

Relation  of  CJuirch  and  Society.  —  The 
Society  owns  and  has  care  of  the  house, 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


by  mutual  understanding  with  the  Church, 
provides  for  and  pays  the  salary  of  the  pas- 
tor, and  all  funds  needful  for  public  wor- 
ship. When  the  pulpit  is  vacant,  the 
Church  may  appoint  a  committee  to  act 
with  a  committee  of  the  Society,  if  they 
choose,  or  leave  it  to  the  committee  of  the 
Society  to  secure  a  supply.  In  the  settle- 
ment of  a  pastor,  the  Church  take  the  first 
step  in  voting  a  call ;  after  which  the  So- 
ciety are  asked  to  concur  with  the  action 
of  the  Church,  and  a  call  is  given  by  joint 
action.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  Socie- 
ty is  on  the  last  Monday  of  December. 

At  the  first  communion  after,  12  persons 
more  were  added  to  the  Church,  and  Aug. 
i6th,  the  day  of  Mr.  Wright's  ordination, 
15  children  were  baptized.  In  the  3  years 
subsequent  to  1812,  30  persons  united  with 
the  Church;  from  1816  to  1820,  142;  in 
1827,  more  than  70.  In  1830,  the  last  of 
Mr.  Wright's  pastorate,  the  Church  was 
almost  daily  enlarging. 

REV.    CHESTER   WRIGHT. 

Prepared,  by   particular   request,  for  this  work,  by   his 

grandson,  Rev.  J.  Edward  Wright. 

Thompson,  in  his  History  of  Montpelier, 
having  drawn  a  dark  picture  of  the  low 
moral  state  into  which  the  town  had  lapsed 
at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century, 
refers  to  the  action  of  a  large  portion  of  the 
better  class  of  the  people  who  desired  a 
reformation,  which  resulted  in  the  engage- 
ment of  a  minister  and  the  organization  of 
a  church,  from  which  time  a  marked  im- 
provement was  seen,  and  "the  village  of 
Montpelier,  redeemed  and  regenerated 
through  the  blest  instrumentalities  of  the 
affectionate  and  untiring  labors  of  the 
devoted,  self-sacrificing  and  high-souled 
Father  Wright,  at  length  took  its  stand 
among  the  most  moral  and  orderly  com- 
munities in  the  State."  Perhaps  the  wri- 
ter's enthusiastic  admiration  led  him  in- 
to exaggeration  in  ascribing  so  great  a  re- 
sult to  the  efforts  of  one  man ;  but,  with 
all  due  allowance  made,  Mr.  Wright  must 
certainly  be  ranked  among  the  very  first 
and  worthiest  of  Montpelier's  moral  bene- 
factors. He  was  the  first  pastor  of  its 
Congregational  Church,  and  here  his  min- 
istry continued  for  more  than  twenty  years. 


For  a  large  part  of  that  period  he  was  the 
only  pastor  in  the  town.  It  was  his  first 
settlement.  It  was  at  a  time  when  the 
preacher  spoke  with  an  official  authority 
which  he  does  not  command  to-day.  And 
the  town  itself  was  then  "  in  the  gristle," 
.as  it  were.  Thus  it  was  the  very  time  for 
moral  and  religious  suasions  to  tell.  His 
faithful  work  did  tell ;  and  many  have  there 
been  who  would  sympathize  with  the  his- 
torian's enthusiasm  for  his  subject,  even 
if  they  could  not  fully  endorse  all  his  lan- 
guage. "  Even  to  this  day,"  said  the  Rev. 
W.  H.  Lord,  D.  D.,  in  the  pulpit  which 
Mr.  Wright  once  occupied,  and  eighteen 
years  after  his  decease,  "  the  living  power 
of  his  ministry  is  seen  and  felt  in  all  this 
community,  and  his  memory  is  kept  in  the 
hearts  of  many,  fresh  and  sacred — fragrant 
and  perfumed  with  the  savor  of  a  deep, 
deathless  devotion  to  the  cause  of  his  Mas- 
ter. The  church,  nay,  the  village  of  Mont- 
pelier, is  indebted  to  him,  under  God,  for 
many  of  those  principles  and  sentiments, 
and  generous,  hospitable,  social  traits,  and 
kind  brotherly  feelings,  which  have  dis- 
tinguished its  society.  Underneath  all  the 
frivolities  and  conventionalities  of  her  mod- 
ern life,  there  is  a  strong  blessed  under- 
current of  human  sympathies,  and  effect- 
ive feelings  of  social  interest  and  life, 
which  have  their  source  in  the  influence 
of  his  ministry." 

The  man  from  whose  labors  such  grand 
results  flowed,  was  born  in  Hanover,  N. 
H.,  Nov.  6,  1776.  He  was  the  son  of  Na- 
thaniel and  Jemima  (Bartlett)  Wright,  and 
the  fourth  of  their  eight  children. 

His  father  was  a  farmer,  one  of  the  first 
settlers  of  Hanover,  an  estimable  man, 
and  a  deacon  of  the  Congregational  church. 
His  mother,  a  woman  of  deep  piety,  died 
when  he  was  8  years  old,  and  his  father 
subsequently  married  Mary  Page,  by  whom 
he  had  three  children.  In  1815,  two  years 
after  her  death,  he  was  united  to  Mrs. 
Martha  Conant  May*. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  passed  his 
youth  on  the  farm,  and  intended  to  follow 
his  father's  occupation.  He  bought  a 
farm  in  Berkshire,  Vt.,  on  attaining  his 
majority,  but  before  working  long  on  it 


MONTPELIER. 


389 


was  led  to  consider  the  claims  of  the 
Christian  ministry,  and  to  change  his  en- 
tire plan  of  life.  He  began  the  necessary 
course  of  classical  study,  finished  it,  and 
entered  Middlebury  College  in  1802.  He 
supported  himself  during  his  preparatory 
work  and  his  college  course  partly  by 
teaching,  and  graduated,  having  maintain- 
ed a  fair  standing,  in  1806,  being  then  30 
years  of  age.  For  2  years  he  was  the  pre- 
ceptor of  the  Addison  County  Grammar 
School,  and  then  he  began  the  study  of 
theology  with  the  Rev.  Asa  Burton,  D.  D., 
of  Thetford,  Vt.  Later,  his  studies  were 
directed  by  the  Rev.  Timothy  Dwight, 
D.  D.,  of  New  Haven,  Conn.,  and  he  was 
licensed  to  preach  in  1808.  In  June  of 
that  year  his  services  were  engaged  by  the 
newly  formed  Congregational  society  in 
Montpelier,  and  after  12  months  he  was 
invited  to  settle  as  their  pastor,  at  a  salary 
of  "  $350  for  the  first  year,  $375  for  the  sec- 
ond, $400,  together  with  the  use  of  a  con- 
venient parsonage,  annually,  after  the 
second  year."  His  ordination  took  place 
Aug.  16,  1809;  sermon  by  the  Rev.  Asa 
Burton,  D.  D.,  of  Thetford  ;  charge  by  the 
Rev.  Stephen  Fuller,  of  Vershire,  and  right 
hand  of  fellowship  by  the  Rev.  Calvin 
Noble,  of  Chelsea.  His  labor  in  this 
place  having  continued  more  than  a  score 
of  years,  he  was  dismissed  Dec.  22,  1830 
— a  step  which  seemed  inevitable  to  the 
council  which  consented  to  it,  in  view  of 
the  withdrawal  of  support  by  members  who 
were  offended  by  Mr.  Wright's  course  in 
regard  to  Free  Masonry. 

The  early  years  of  his  ministry  were 
very  fruitful  to  the  church  and  the  com- 
munity generally.  "The  church  received 
additions  at  almost  every  communion  till 
the  time  of  my  ordination,"  he  says. 
The  band  of  seventeen  who  were  consti- 
tuted a  church,  July  20,  1808,  became 
seventy  by  the  fall  of  1810.  "In  two 
short  years,  the  testimony  is  universal," 
says  the  Rev.   Dr.  Lord,  "  a  great  change 

passed  over  the  society In 

family  after  family,  the  worship  of  the  true 
Jehovah  was  established,  and  morning  and 
evening  sacrifice  was  regularly  offered  in  the 
name  of  Jesus.     Men  of  unbelieving  and 


skeptical  sentiments  became  impressed  and 
sobered.  Young  men  of  dissipated  habits 
became  industrious  and  devout.  The 
streets  no  longer  echoed  with  ribaldry  and 
profaneness ;  social  life  and  intercourse 
were  greatly  refined  and  improved  ;  .  .  . 
and  it  seemed  as  if  the  placid  and  benefi- 
cent spirit  of  Christianity  had  descended  to 
hover  over  and  to  dwell  in  a  place  once  so 
troubled  and  distracted." 

In  the  4  years,  from  1816  to  1820,  142 
persons  were  received  into  the  church. 
Indeed,  "at  no  time  in  the  history  of  Mr. 
Wright's  ministry,  was  there  any  remark- 
able moral  sterility.  The  influences  of 
divine  grace  and  truth  were  steady  and 
effective.  The  special  times  of  religious 
interest  were  not  followed  by  drought  and 
reaction."  And  the  records  show  that  428 
persons  were  welcomed  to  the  fellowship 
of  the  organization  during  Mr.  Wright's 
pastorate. 

His  labors  were  not  limited  to  his  own 
flock,  nor  confined  within  the  boundaries 
of  his  own  parish.  His  missionary  activ- 
ity was  very  great,  and  wherever  oppor- 
tunity offered,  he  held  religious  meetings 
to  the  limit  of  his  strength,  whether  in 
churches,  dwellings,  school-houses,  or 
barns.  He  was  a  leader  in  the  councils  of 
his  denomination  in  the  State,  and  was 
often  sent  as  a  delegate  to  ecclesiastical 
gatherings  beyond  its  borders. 

Theologically,  he  was  conservative.  ■ 
"  New  lights  "  in  religious  doctrine  were 
to  him  false  lights.  But  he  was  in  advance 
of  most  of  his  associates  in  reformatory 
work.  Very  early  did  he  enlist  against  in- 
temperance, endeavoring  to  stem  the  evil 
tide.  The  cause  of  the  slave  readily  won 
his  sympathy  and  his  advocacy.  The  ed- 
ucation of  the  young  commanded  much  of 
his  thought ;  the  great  Anti-Masonic  con- 
troversy aroused  his  interest.  And  in  all 
these  matters  he  "  conferred  not  with  flesh 
and  blood "  as  to  the  course  to  pursue. 
He  closed  his  ears  against  the  suggestion 
of  prudential  considerations.  He  only 
asked,  "What  is  right?  What  is  the 
path  of  duty  ? "  and,  when  conscience  gave 
answer,  heeded  her  voice  alone.  He  may 
have  erred ;  if  so,  his  was  not  the  error  of 


39° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  cool  time-server  and  trimmer,  a  slirewd 
calculator  for  self;  it  was  the  error  of  one 
whose  whole  being  thrilled  with  devotion 
to  God  and  man,  of  one  whose  excess  was 
ever  on  the  side  of  conscientiousness  and 
philanthropy. 

As  Mr.  Wright  had,  during  his  pastorate 
in  Montpelier,  eked  out  his  small  salary  by 
occasionally  acting  as  a  tutor,  so,  after  his 
dismissal,  he  had  for  some  time  charge  of 
the  instruction  of  a  class  of  boys  at  his 
house,  preaching  meanwhile,  as  opportu- 
nity offered,  in  churches  readily  accessi- 
ble from  this  village.  He  was  regularly 
engaged  for  quite  a  while  to  fill  the  pulpit 
in  East  Montpelier. 

In  1836,  he  was  settled  in  Hardwick,  in 
this  State,  remaining  there  till  early  in 
1 840,  when  failing  health  led  him  to  return 
to  Montpelier,  where  he  died  of  consump- 
tion, Apr.  16,  at  his  former  residence,  then 
occupied  by  his  daughter,  Mrs.  J.  W. 
Howes.  His  body  was  placed  in  the 
graveyard  on  Elm  street,  but  on  the  open- 
ing of  Green  Mount  Cemetery,  it  was  re- 
moved thither. 

His  widow,  «^^  Charlotte  Clapp  Whitney, 
ofRoyalton,  survived  him  19  years.  They 
were  married  in  April,  181 1,  and  had  6 
children,  four  of  whom  lived  to  maturity, 
and  were  married — Jonathan  Edwards, 
married  Fanny  Wyman  Houghton,  of  Mont- 
pelier ;  Charlotte  Whitney,  married  James 
H.  Howe,  of  Troy,  N.  Y. ;  Julia,  married 
Joseph  W.  Howes,  of  Montpelier  ;  and 
Eliza  Maria,  married  Ferrand  F.  Merrill, 
of  Montpelier.  Of  these  four  children, 
only  Mrs.  Howes  survives  at  the  present 
date.  Descendants  of  all  the  others  are 
living,  however. 

Although  Mr.  Wright's  literary  training 
began  late,  he  was  a  man  of  no  mean  at- 
tainments as  a  scholar,  and  held  high  rank 
among  his  contemporaries.  He  was  rec- 
ognized as  possessing  a  sound  judgment, 
and  his  counsel  and  advice  were  often 
sought. 

He  was  from  18 19  till  his  decease  a 
member  of  the  corporation  of  Middlebury 
College.  While  engaged  in  teaching,  he 
published  an  arithmetic  entitled,  "The 
Federal    Compendium ;"   and   at   various 


times  quite  a  number  of  his  sermons  were 
printed ;  not  only  obituary  discourses,  but 
also  others — as  an  "  Election  Sermon"  in 
1 8 10,  a  sermon  before  the  Middlebury 
College  Charitable  Society  in  18 14,  and  in 
the  latter  part  of  his  life,  two  sermons, 
which  he  entitled,  "The  Devil  in  the 
Nineteenth  Century,"  and  which  were 
called  forth  by  certain  extravagances  com- 
mitted, under  the  name  of  religion,  in 
Hardwick.  [The  "  New  Lights,"  see  ac- 
count of  in  vol  I,  page  329,  of  this  work. — 
Ed.] 

In  person,  Mr.  Wright  was  under  the 
average  height,  of  slight  figure,  with  keen 
brown  eyes.  Though  described  as  "ap- 
parently deficient  in  physical  powers,"  he 
was  quick  in  all  his  movements,  vigorous 
and  energetic  in  action,  and  intrepid  in 
the  face  of  danger.  Pre-eminent  as  a 
pastor,  he  was  persuasive  and  successful 
as  a  preacher,  a  leader  among  philanthro- 
pists, stainless  in  private  life,  and  ever 
alive  to  the  material,  as  well  as  the  spirit- 
ual, interests  of  the  people  whose  servant 
he  made  himself  "for  Jesus'  sake." 

J.  E.  w. 

After  the  close  of  Mr.  Wright's  ministry 
there  was  an  interval  of  9  months  before 
the  church  was  supplied  with  another 
pastor,  and  when  Mr.  Hopkins'  3^  succeed- 
ing years'  pastorate  closed.  Rev.  Mr. 
Burchard,  the  noted  revivalist,  took  the 
vacant  pulpit  for  a  40  days'  protracted 
meeting,  of  which,  says  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Lord,  in  his  fiftieth  anniversary  sermon, 
"  Good  was  accomplished  at  a  tremendous 

cost Of  course,  after  such  an 

exciting  preacher,  the  church  found  it  diffi- 
cult to  settle  down  to  the  regular  ministra- 
tions of  the  word,  or  to  find  a  pastor  who 
would  unite  their  suffrages.  For  a  year 
thereafter,  the  society  was  afilicted  with  17 
candidates,  a  sufficient  number  to  have 
furnished  a  half  dozen  superior  ministers." 

At  length  a  call  was  given  to  Rev.  Buel 
W.  Smith,  who  accepted  it,  and  labored 
here  4  years,  as  long  as  his  health  would 
permit. 

Mr.  Gridley  was  pastor  for  the  next  5 
years,    during  which  the  only  important 


druj.k^ 


MONTPELIER. 


391 


event  was  the  dismissal  of  several  members 
to  the  Ej^iscopal  church,  of  which  says  Mr. 
Lord : 

Including  one,  for  a  long  time  a  faithful 
and  efficient  co-laborer  with  us,  a  super- 
intendent of  the  Sunday-school,  and  the 
not  infrequent  lay  reader  of  sermons  to 
this  congregagation  ;  a  gerftleman  of  edu- 
cation and  piety,  who  became  the  first 
rector  of  that  church  in  this  village.  It  is 
not  inappropriate  to  say  that  while  we 
greet  the  success  and  prosperity  of  that 
society,  and  rejoice  in  its  present  health- 
ful activity  and  enlargement,  and  recog- 
nize it,  in  its  methods  and  ways,  as  an  ef- 
ficient agent  of  Christ's  Kingdom,  we 
take  peculiar  satisfaction  and  pleasure  in 
the  remembrance  that  many  of  the  prin- 
ciples and  persons,  which  have  given  to 
it  such  animation  and  efficiency,  were  be- 
gotten and  nurtured  under  the  shadow  of 
these  walls.  And  it  is  almost  with  a  ma- 
ternal sentiment  that  we  contemplate  its 
origin,  while  with  fraternal  salutation  we 
bid  it  to-day  God  speed  in  the  work  in 
which  we  are  united,  of  raising  this  whole 
community  to  the  level  of  the  Gospel. 

Mr.  Lord  succeeded  to  Rev.  Mr.  Grid- 
ley  in  the  pastorate,  of  which  he  says  : 

I  have  already,  on  a  former  occasion, 
adverted  to  the  records  of  my  own  min- 
istry among  you ;  yet  still,  the  occasion 
would  seem  to  require  some  notice  of  its 
events.  I  came  here  in  a  time  of  division 
and  controversy.  With  the  dreams  of 
youth  and  inexperience,  I  entered  upon 
the  hard  toil  of  the  ministry,  in  a  disunited 
church,  divided  not  in  principle,  not  in 
vital  sentiment,  but  in  local  policy  and 
about  persons.  The  records  of  the  church 
from  that  day  to  this  are  not  mere  statis- 
tics and  notes  and  catalogues  to  me,  but  a 
life,  a  labor,  a  struggle,  full  of  fears  and 
apprehensions,  and  encouragements,  and 
joys  and  hopes.  I  will  only  say  that  God 
has  blessed  an  unworthy  and  feeble  min- 
istry, and  thank  Him  for  the  vast  mercies 
that  have  followed  the  course  of  our  rela- 
tionship. The  short  period  of  11  years 
has  been  filled  with  changes.  I  preach  in 
the  same  house,  but  not  to  the  same  audi- 
ence that  listened  to  my  first  sermon. 
There  have  been  80  removals  and  63  deaths 
in  the  society ;  in  the  church,  70  dismis- 
sions and  43  deaths  since  I  began  my  work 
with  you,  a  considerable  increase  in  the 
society  and  80  baptisms. 

The  admissions  during  Mr.  Wright's 
pastorate,  428 ;  during  that  of  Mr.  Hop- 
kins, 48  ;  that  of  Rev.  Buel  W.  Smith,  137  ; 
that  of  Mr.  Gridley,  21 ;  and  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Lord,  139,  to   1876,  when  the  Manual  of 


Bethany  Church  was  published,  which  in- 
cluded his  pastorate,  less  the  last  year ; 
making  to  that  date,  1,126  received  to 
membership. 

Deacons. —  The  deacons  given  in  this 
Manual  who  have  served  the  church  to  1876 
are — Sylvanus  Baldwin,  George  Worthing- 
ton,  Salvin  Collins,  Alfred  Pitkin,  E.  P. 
Walton,  William  Howes,  Jeduthan  Loom- 
is,  John  Wood,  Norman  Rublee,  Constant 
W.  Storrs,  F.  F.  Merrill,  E.  P.  Walton, 
Jr.,  N.  P.  Brooks,  John  A.  Page,  and 
Joseph  Poland. 

Chtirdi  Clerks. —  Samuel  Goss,  1808; 
Rev.  Chester  Wright,  1809  to  '30;  James 
Spalding,  1831  ;  Jeduthan  Loomis,  1832; 
Rev.  Samuel  Hopkins,  1832  to  '35  ;  Jedu- 
than Loomis,  1S35  ;  Rev.  Buel  W.  Smith, 
'^'^THi  '38;  Lyman  Briggs,  1840,  '41  ;  Rev. 
John  Gridley,  1842  to  '46;  Gustavus  H. 
Loomis,  1846,  '47  ;  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord,  D.D., 
1848  to  '75  ;  Mahlon  C.  Kinson,  1876  to 
'79;  Rev.  C.  S.  Smith,  1880. 

This  church  is  Congregational  in  polity 
and  affiliation,  and  heartily  receives  the 
doctrine  and  order  of  Christianity  as  they 
are  stated,  for  substance,  in  the  declara- 
tion of  faith  and  order  made  by  the  Boston 
Council  of  the  Congregational  Churches  of 
the  United  States  in  1865,  and  adopted  by 
the  General  Convention  of  Ministers  and 
Churches  of  Vermont  in  1874. 

Resuming  our  extracts  from  Mr.  Lord's 
sermon : 

This  church  can  now  give  her  invitations 
with  more  earnestness  and  force  than  ever 
before.  She  has  a  history  of  50  years  ;  she 
has  tested  the  virtue  of  her  everlasting 
foundations  ;  she  has  a  roll  of  924  members, 
of  whom  364  are  to-day  in  her  earthly  com- 
munion, and  nearly  300  gone  home  to  that 
happy  harbor, 

'■Whose  gardens  and  whose  goodly  walks 
Continually  are  green." 

The  celestial  spirit  of  peace  has  never 
long  been  absent  from  this  society ;  joy 
and  peace  have  been  the  rule.  I  seem  to 
hear  the  voice  of  her  many  choirs,  all 
blending  this  day  in  grand  unison  to  the 
glory  of  God.  I  seem  to  catch  some 
strains  of  the  strange  melody  of  all  her 
singers  and  instruments  of  music.  I  listen 
to  the  solemn  dirge  for  her  dead,  the  sober 
grief  of  her  funeral  orations,  the  sobs  of 
her  mourners,  the  songs  of  her  redeemed. 
Again,  in  long  circles  of  young  men  and 


392 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


maidens,  of  strong  men  and  furrowed  age, 
her  thousand  witnesses  for  Christ  seem  to 
collect,  and  stand  before  her  altar  and  re- 
peat her  solemn  consecration,  and  sit 
around  the  hallowed  emblems  of  her  Sav- 
ior's death.  Again,  I  hear  their  conclud- 
ing triumphant  acclaim,  the  sublime  dox- 
ology  to  the  Triune  Jehovah,  not  one  voice 
wanting  in  that  imagined  song.  Again,  I 
seem  to  hear  the  words  of  prayer  and  invi- 
tation, and  the  voices  long  or  lately  hushed 
in  death,  that  used  to  break  the  stillness 
of  her  conference. 

And  as  the  imagination  goes  into  the 
past,  to  awake  into  life  its  history,  and  to 
kindle  its  scenes,  so  does  it  project  itself 
onward,  fifty,  an  hundred  years.  Then 
another  voice  than  mine  shall  address  an- 
other audience  than  this,  on  the  centennial 
birthday  of  the  church.  Two  or  three 
that  joined  it  at  the  last  communion  may 
hear  the  discourse.  The  rest  shall  have 
fallen  asleep.  Another  organ  shall  respond 
to  the  fingers  of  another  player ;  another 
choir  shall  chant  the  same  sublime  psalm 
and  hymns  ;  these  places  left  of  us  shall  be 
filled  with  many  more.  Eternity  will  be 
our  residence.  May  its  centennial  cycle 
find  us  all,  if  removed  from  earth,  in  that 
City  which  hath  foundations,  whose  Build- 
er and  Maker  is  God. 

REV.    WILLIAM    HAYES   LORD,    D.  D. 

BY  PISES.  BUCKHAM,  OF  THE  VT,  UNIVBKSITY. 

From  an  Address  read  before  the  VI.  His- 
torical Society ,  Oct.  14,  1878. 

William  H.  Lord  was  the  son  of  Rev. 
Nathan  Lord,  President  of  Dartmouth  from 
1828,  35  years.  William  Lord  was  thus 
brought  at  four  years  old  into  the  midst 
of  a  college  circle,  and  brought  up  under 
the  strong  influences  of  that  remarka- 
ble man  from  whom  he  inherited  some 
of  his  most  characteristic  and  pronounced 
opinions.  He  entered  his  collegiate  course 
in  his  sixteenth  year,  ranked  well  in  all 
his  studies,  excelling  in  language  and 
literature,  was  a  Phi  Beta  Kappa,  de- 
livered the  Greek  poem  at  Commencement ; 
graduated  (1846)  atAndover;  but  was  not 
a  subtle  logician.  He  could  state  an  opin- 
ion with  clearness  and  force,  and  present 
it  with  luminous  illustration  and  persuasive 
appeal,  better  than  he  could  maintain  it  in 
the  lists  against  all  comers.  Shortly  after 
finishing  his  studies,  he  began  to  preach 
in  Montpelier.  He  was  emphatically  a 
preacher ;  his  diction  choice  and  elegant. 


He  abhorred  "stump  sermons"  and  "stump 
prayers."  One  of  the  incidental  benefits  of 
attending  his  ministry  was  an  education  in 
good  English.  His  delivery  was  pleasing, 
dignified,  with  little  gesture.  That  was  true 
in  his  case,  affirmed  of  almost  all  orators, 
the  spoken  word  often  produced  an  effect 
which  the  mere  reader  cannot  account  for. 
His  preaching  was  no  iteration  of  common- 
place ideas.  Christ,  as  he  conceived  and 
preached  him,  was  not  the  mere  leader  ot 
a  system  of  truth  which  could  be  stated  in 
propositions  and  soon  exhausted,  but  the 
source  and  channel  of  a  new  life  which 
flows  in  upon  our  old,  sin-wasted  human- 
ity, reviving,  stimulating,  glorifying  every 
part  of  it.  The  distinguishing  merit  of 
his  preaching  was  a  rare  and  happy  com- 
bination of  the  intensely  evangelical  with 
the  broadly  human  spirit.  Those  who 
think  only  through  their  feelings,  were 
melted  by  its  tenderness.  He  received 
pressing  calls  from  larger  places.  After 
refusing  one,  he  said  to  his  congregation, 
"  I  love  to  dwell  among  my  own  people  ; 
but  for  this  sentiment,  perhaps  principle, 
I  might  have  gone  a  half  score  of  times. 
.  I  do  not  easily  change  my  place 
or  opinions.  I  will  not  say  that  I  have 
not  been  tempted,  or  that  I  should  not 
have  found  satisfaction  in  other  places  that 
might  have  been  mine ;  but  I  have  pre- 
ferred to  dwell  among  my  own  people." 

It  would  not  be  correct  to  infer  an  un- 
interrupted smoothness.  There  were  oc- 
casions of  diff'erence,  elements  of  discord, 
irritation  on  the  part  of  some  of  his  peo- 
ple, disgust  upon  his  part,  such  as  would 
have  sundered  any  pastoral  relation  less 
firmly  cemented.  His  opinions  —  the 
strongly  conservative  opinions  of  his  father 
on  slavery  and  the  relation  of  the  church 
to  social  reform — were  distasteful  to  a  por- 
tion of  his  congregation.  He  did  not  mix 
them  up  in  preaching  the  Gospel,  but  what 
he  believed,  he  believed  firmly,  and  he 
was  not  a  man  to  trim  his  creed  to  the 
passing  gale.  Some  of  these  questions 
are  now,  thank  God,  obsolete,  and  it  be- 
longs only  to  his  biographer  to  insist  upon 
the  hold  he  must  have  had  upon  the  af- 
fections of  his  people,  that   amid  all  the 


/^^..E^^, 


MONTPELIER. 


393 


tria  '  and  excitements  of  the  times,  no  one, 
or  but  few  at  most,  ever  thought  of  part- 
ing with  their  admired  or  beloved  pastor, 
or  would  have  changed  him  for  the  most 
trenchant  reformer  in  the  nation. 

Dr.  Lord's  pulpit  was  in  Montpelier,  but 
through  the  members  of  the  Legislature 
and  others  whose  duties  brought  them  to 
the  Capital,  he  reached  a  large  number  of 
the  leading  men  of  the  State.  He  was  at 
the  time  of  his  death  the  best  known  of 
any  minister  in  the  State,  and  the  most 
widely  known  out  of  the  State.  His  pres- 
ence at  councils,  his  services  on  public  oc- 
casions, were  highly  appreciated.  In  1867, 
his  Alma  Mater  conferred  on  him  the  de- 
gree of  Doctor  of  Divinity.  He  did  much 
editorial  work  during  his  last  years  for  the 
Vermont  Chronicle;  his  articles  in  the 
Princeton  Review,  elaborated  with  more 
care  probably  than  anything  else  from  his 
pen,  it  would  be  difficult  to  match  for  bril- 
liancy of  literary  execution  in  any  Amer- 
ican magazine. 

But  how  shall  I  speak  of  him  as  a  friend? 
One  of  the  most  remarkable  things  about 
him  was  his  capacity  for  friendship.  His 
friends  were  from  all  classes  of  society ; 
from  all  religious  denominations ;  from  all 
vocations ;  but  all  were  the  select  men  of 
their  class.  One  who  for  many  years  en- 
joyed the  closest  intimacy  with  him,  and 
whom,  among  all  his  friends,  I  think  Mr. 
Lord  would  himself  have  chosen  to  speak 
of  him  on  this  point.  Rev.  Frederick  W. 
Shelton,  Episcopal  clergyman,  writes  of 
him : 

He  was  the  anima;  dimidium  mece — he 
was  the  half  of  my  soul.  Open-hearted, 
open-handed,  liberal  as  the  day,  nothing 
sordid  or  narrow-minded  entered  into  the 
texture  of  his  soul.  To  know  a  man  as  I 
knew  him,  is  in  most  cases  to  dissolve  the 
charm  of  companionship,  yet,  I  can  say  of 
him,  he  was  one  of  whom  I  never  wearied, 
whose  conversation  was  always  fresh,  fruit- 
ful, suggestive.  He  grew  in  my  estima- 
tion, and  perpetually  became  a  stronger 
man.  An  intercourse  of  12  years  was 
broken  never  by  the  slightest  coldness  or 
doubtful  act  on  his  part,  and  I  do  declare 
that  1  could  never  find  in  him  or  with  him 
any  fault  at  all. 

If  these  seem  almost  romantic  expres- 
sions of  attachment  between  man  and  man, 


I  venture  they  would  be  endorsed  by  East- 
man, if  alive,  Gregory  Smith,  Stewart, 
Phelps,  and  a  long  list  of  men  in  whom  he 
inspired  a  love  for  himself  like  that  of  Jon- 
athan for  David. 

But  in  1868,  his  system  begun  to  show 
signs  of  breaking  down.  He  took  a  trip 
to  Europe,  and  partly  recovered.  He  in- 
tensely enjoyed  it,  but  far  from  his  family, 
Bethany  church,  the  hope  of  a  life-time, 
taking  shape  in  stone  and  mortar,  he  could 
not  wait  full  recovery ;  took  a  run  through 
Europe,  and  hastened  home ;  preached 
with  wonted  vigor ;  saw  Bethany  church 
completed — fit  memorial,  though  he  knew 
it  not,  of  his  own  service  for  Him  in  whose 
honor  it  was  built.  He  continued  for  8 
years  more  to  preach  to  his  people  ;  never, 
they  say,  with  such  solemnity  and  power 
as  these  last  years,  while  to  the  eyes  of 
his  friends,  visibly  breaking  down ;  not  so 
much  ageing — his  mental  powers  showed 
no  signs  of  decay — as  giving  way  to  some 
hidden  destroyer.  A  terrible  calamity,  re- 
sulting in  the  death  of  a  little  daughter, 
[see  accidental  deaths,  page  332,]  was  more 
than  his  constitution,  undermined,  could 
bear.  He  died,  in  his  54th  year,  the  30th 
of  his  pastorate.  Mar.  18,  1877. 

[For  a  list  of  Mr.  Lord's  publications, 
see  Bibliography  of  Montpelier,  on  page 
316,  and  a  notice  of  him  as  a  benefactor 
and  President  oi  the  Vermont  Historical 
Society.] 

Rev.  Mr.  Lord  married,  at  Andover, 
Mass.,  June  i,  1848,  Harriet  Adams  Aiken, 
daughter  of  John  Aiken,  Esq.  Mrs.  Lord 
was  born  in  Manchester,  Vt.  They  had 
6  children,  all  born  in  Montpelier.  The 
family  of  Dr.  Lord,  now  living,  are — Mrs. 
Lord,  tarrying  with  her  aged  and  infirm 
mother  in  Andover,  Mass. ;  William  A.,  a 
lawyer  in  Montpelier;  Mary  E.,  wife  of 
William  R.  Burleigh,  Esq.,  resides  at 
Great  Falls,  N.  H. ;  Sarah  A.,  wife  of 
Rev.  M.  D.  Kneeland,  resides  at  Water- 
loo, N.  Y. ;  Jane  A.,  wife  of  George  W. 
Sargent,  M.  D.,  resides  at  Skaneateles, 
N.  Y. ;  Charles  H.,  student  at  Great  Falls, 
N.  H. 


5° 


394 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


SABBATH  SCHOOL  RECORD. 

FROM  MK.  JOSEPH  W.  HOWES. 

Letter  of  Mr.  Howes  to  Mr.  Poland. 
Montreal,  Jan.  7,  1862. 
Dear  Sir : — In  complying  with  your  re- 
quest for  statistics  of  your  Sabbath-school, 
I  have  been  quite  at  loss  to  know  what  you 
most  desired.  Were  I  to  give  you  the 
many  interesting  facts  and  incidents  con- 
nected with  a  superintendency  of  some  12 
years,  as  a  teacher  of  5  years,  and  my 
childhood  and  early  youth  as  a  scholar,  it 
would  require  moi^e  time  than  you  could 
devote  to  read  or  listen  to.  Nor  could 
these  facts  be  of  deep  interest  to  the  ma- 
jority of  the  present  school.  I  have,  rather, 
selected  some  facts  connected  with  its 
earliest  history,  which  are  quite  meagre, 
and  some  general  items  to  a  later  date, 
from  which  you  can  select  such  as  you 
deem  desirable.  It  may  not  be  uninter- 
esting to  your  church  to  know  to  whom 
they  are  indebted  for  such  labors  of  love 
as  performed  by  the  teachers  of  the  Brick 
Church  Sunday-school,  many  of  whom  are 
now  reaping  the  reward  of  those  labors  in 
that  land  where  their  works  do  follow 
them. 

From  an  Address  to  the  Brick  Church 
Sunday  School,  Jan.  i,  1843. 

The  first  effort  made  in  this  place  for 
the  religious  instruction  of  the  youth  and 
children,  was  by  the  first  pastor,  probably 
in  the  summer  of  1808.  The  first  meetings 
were  held  in  the  hall  of  the  first  Academy, 
built  on  Main  street,  on  Saturday  after- 
noons. The  lessons  was  the  Assembly's 
Catechism.  Questions  were  proposed  by 
the  pastor,  who  was  the  only  teacher,  and 
the  answers  repeated  by  the  scholars,  and 
full  explanations  of  the  answers.  It  is 
said  such  proficiency  was  made  by  many, 
they  were  able  to  repeat  all  the  answers 
and  comprehend  their  meaning.  The  few 
who  at  first  gave  attendance,  soon  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  with  them  most  of  the 
youth  connected  with  families  of  the 
church.  How  long  this  plan  was  pursued, 
is  not  certain.  Nothing  more  definite  is 
known  until  18 13,  when  the  pastor  was  ac- 
customed to  meet  persons  of  all  ages  Sun- 
day, at  5  o'clock,  p.  M.,  in  Jefferson  Hall, 
one  of  the  large  rooms  in  the  first  State 
House,  used  for  holding  the  county  and 
other  courts  and  for  religious  meetings. 
The  Bible  was  the  subject  of  study,  sub- 


jects proposed  and  answered  from  Scrip- 
ture. 

In  1S16,  three  Sabbath-schools  were  or- 
ganized in  the  village,  conducted  by  teach- 
ers under  a  supervisory  committee.  One 
was  held  in  the  school-house,  near  where 
the  Methodist  chapel  now  stands,  con- 
ducted by  Deacon  Worthington,  Dr.  J. 
Crosby  and  Joseph  Howes  ;  another  in  the 
Academy,  conducted  by  Messrs.  Walton, 
Goss  and  others ;  a  third,  in  the  dancing- 
hall  of  the  hotel,  kept  by  Mrs.  Hutchins, 
and  afterwards  by  Jona.  Shephard,  con- 
ducted by  Deacon  Baldwin,  J.  Barnard, 
and,  I  think,  H.  Y.  Barnes.  These  schools, 
held  in  the  morning  of  the  Sabbath,  at 
their  close  would  march  with  their  teach- 
ers to  the  State  House,  to  attend  the  meet- 
ing there.  They  were  discontinued  in  the 
winter. 

In  1817,  there  was  an  increased  interest 
in  the  Sabbath-school,  a  revival  having 
called  many  into  the  church  and  schools 
who  were  of  efficient  aid.  Each  scholar, 
for  every  ten  verses  recited  without  mis- 
take, received  a  small  blue  ticket,  with 
printed  verse  of  Scripture,  value  one  mill ; 
ten  of  the  blue  were  exchanged  for  a  red 
one,  value  one  cent.  Some  learned  so 
many  verses,  there  was  not  time  to  hear 
them  all.  At  close  of  the  summer  term 
this  year  there  was  a  public  examination  of 
all  the  schools  in  the  old  State  House, 
conducted  by  the  pastor,  when  each  class 
recited  some  passage  of  Scripture  or  a 
hymn,  and  the  red  tickets  were  all  paid  for 
in  books. 

In  the  summer  of  18 19,  schools  and  places 
were  the  same,  except  the  third,  which 
was  removed  to  the  building  once  stand- 
ing opposite  the  Brick  Church,  conducted 
by  H.  Y.  Barnes,  Daniel  Baldwin  and  J. 
Barnard.  In  this  school  one  or  two  schol- 
ars committed  from  three  to  six  hundred 
verses  every  week.  The  teachers  were 
surprised  how  this  was  done,  as  they  had 
to  labor  through  the  week.  "  They  car- 
ried their  Bibles  into  the  field  with  them, 
and  learned  while  they  worked."  A  school 
was  held  a  short  time  in  the  school-house 
near  the  late  Samuel  Abbott's  ;  Supt.  not; 
remembered. 


MONTPELIER. 


395 


While  the  schools  were  well  sustained 
in  the  village,  a  number  of  young  men 
organized  schools  in  the  adjacent  districts  ; 
one  in  the  school-house  near  Mr.  Warren's, 
in  Middlesex ;  another,  in  the  then  Brooks 
district ;  one  in  the  (old)  center  of  the 
town. 

In  1820,  a  church  was  completed,  and 
here  the  different  schools  met,  under  the 
supervision  of  a  committee. 

In  1821  or  '2,  through  the  influence  of  a 
Mr.  Osgood,  of  Montreal,  whose  life  was 
devoted  to  doing  good,  the  first  library 
was  obtained,  and  a  Sunday-school  so- 
ciety formed.  Rev.  C.  Wright,  president ; 
Joseph  Howes,  librarian  ;  with  a  board  of 
managers,  and  the  school  was  held  after 
the  afternoon  service,  and  from  this  time 
the  school  was  continued  through  the  win- 
ter. The  first  library,  after  being  well 
read,  was  presented  to  the  Sabbath-school 
in  Worcester,  and  a  new  one  purchased. 

Of  the  next  5  years  little  can  be  said.  It 
was  a  season  of  great  declension  in  religion. 
Nov.  1826,  Rev.  J.  C.  Southmayd  was 
chosen  superintendent,  and  Jos.  Howes, 
librarian.  Mr.  Southmayd  was  the  first 
superintendent  of  the  school,  and  this  the 
first  record  of  anything  concerning  this 
school  to  be  found  upon  the  records  of 
this  church. 

About  this  time  a  precious  revival  of 
religion  commenced  in  this  place,  and 
continued  through  the  autumn  and  winter, 
which  gave  a  new  impulse  to  the  school, 
and  many  who  had  before  left  at  the  ages 
of  12  and  14,  with  the  impression  they 
were  too  old  to  attend,  returned,  desiring 
to  learn  the  way  of  God  more  perfectly. 
Nor  were  there  wanting  those  ready  to 
engage  earnestly  in  the  good  work  of 
teaching.  Eternity  alone  can  reveal  the 
blessed  results  of  that  revival  upon  this 
school,  this  church  and  this  community. 

In  1827,  there  were  25  teachers ;  24  in 
1828.  There  was  a  Bible  class  for  adults, 
held  a  short  time  by  the  pastor  and  super- 
intendent on  Sabbath  evenings,  embracing 
a  large  number  of  the  congregation  ;  sub- 
ject, the  Epistle  of  Paul  to  the  Romans. 

The   earliest    record   of    teachers   and 


scholars  I  have  seen  is  dated  1831,  and 
were :  William  Howes,  C.  W.  Storrs, 
Edward  Taplin,  Abial  P.  Atherton,  E.  P. 
Walton,  Norman  Rublee,  Samuel  Goss, 
J.  W.  Howes,  J.  S.  Walton,  C.  L.  Knapp, 
John  Wood,  N.  D.  Dewey,  Misses  South- 
mayd, M.  A.  Washburn,  Samantha  Wash- 
burn, Harriet  H.  Washburn,  R.  Emily 
Washburn,  Emily  Bradshaw,  Sophia  Wat- 

rous,  Scoville,  A.    Howes,  Frances 

Hand,  Rebecca  Hunt,  Harriet  Walton, 
Eliza  Kimball. 

April,  1832,  Gen.  E.  P.  Walton,  super- 
intendent; the  school  roll,  170;  teachers, 
24.  An  infant  class  was  formed.  Miss 
Eliza  Kimball,  (Mrs.  Field,)  teacher, 
which  met  at  the  same  hour  of  the  school 
in  the  vestry. 

The  first  regular  teachers'  meetings 
commenced  this  year,  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  an  excellent  young  man  at- 
tending our  Academy,  from  Royalton, 
N.  Wright  Dewey,  who  many  years  since 
went  to  his  reward. 

This  year,  or  about  this  time,  the  monthly 
concert,  which  has  since  been  so  regularly 
observed,  was  established.  From  this 
time  to  1836,  no  record  of  the  school  is  to 
be  found ;  but  it  is  the  impression  it  was 
well  sustained.  1836,  Gen.  Walton  was 
superintendent;  Samuel  Goss  and  J.  W. 
Howes,  assistants.  Owing  to  the  ill 
health  of  Mr.  Walton  and  the  resignation 
of  Mr.  Goss,  the  duty  devolved  upon  Mr. 
Howes. 

1837,  the  teachers  were  :  A.  S.  Pitkin, 
Charles  Spalding,  Geo.  P.  Walton,  Fran- 
cis Stebbins,  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  J.  W. 
Howes,  Mrs.  B.  W.   Smith,  Mrs.  Oakes, 

Misses    Harriet    Wilder,  Atherton, 

Lucy  Nye,  Frances  Perrin,  Eunice  Vail, 
Augusta  Merrill,  Eliza  Spalding.  Mr.  Pit- 
kin and  Geo.  P.  Walton,  not  living.  There 
was  an  average  attendance  of  100  scholars, 
and  efforts  were  made  to  increase  the  num- 
ber. Every  family  was  visited,  parents  be- 
came interested,  and  2  or  3  Bible  classes 
formed,  one  of  them  being  taught  by  the 
pastor.  Rev.  B.  W.  Smith,  who  ever  took 
a  lively  interest  in  the  school.  The  re- 
ports of  those  who  visited  at  this  time  were 


396 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


very  interesting.     Many   of  the  scholars 
were  enjoying  the  Way  of  Life. 

1838,  G.  B.  Mansur  was  appointed  as- 
sistant superintendent,  which  office  he  held 
while  connected  with  this  church,  as  well 
as  teacher.  It  was  ascertained  during  the 
II  previous  years,  75  members  of  the 
school  had  united  with  the  church,  four  of 
them  young  men,  preparing  for  the  min- 
istry. The  school  resolved  to  educate  a 
young  lad  in  Ceylon,  for  which  to  pay  $20 
per  annum  for  5  years,  which  was  done. 
22  united  with  the  church  this  year  by 
profession,  10  being  members  of  the 
school. 

1839,  the  total  number  of  scholars  was 
205;  average,  120;  conversions,  9:  teach- 
ers, 25.  1840,  total  number  of  scholars, 
175;  average,  114;  teachers,  23;  no  con- 
versions. 1841,  teachers,  G.  H.  Loomis, 
Jos.  Prentiss,  G.  W.  Scott,  B.  F.  Goss, 
B.  B.  Dimmock,  G.  B.  Mansur,  Misses 
Harriet  Hunt,  Mary  Vail,  Fanny  Water- 
man, Mary  Smith,  Harriet  Doty,  Mrs. 
Elias  Hall,  Misses  Charity  Loomis,  Em- 
eline  Lewis,  Nancy  Perry,  A.  Phinney, 
Eliza  M.  Wright,  Fanny  Lewis,  Sophia  Wil- 
liams,   Redfield,  Eliza  Harvey ;  schol- 
ars, 204;  average  attendance,  118  ;  6  con- 
versions. 1842,  total  number  of  scholars, 
219;  average,  129;  conversions,  7.  1843 
to  '48,  most  of  the  time  attendance  good. 
Numbers  of  our  most  promising  youth  de- 
ceased, most  having  pleasing  evidence 
they  had  entered  into  that  rest  that  re- 
maineth.  1843,  teachers,  Francis  C.  Keith, 
Jos.  Pitkin,  Mrs.  Isaac  Worcester,  Misses 
R.  Burton,  M.  Camp,  Mr.  J.  H.  Morse; 
1844,  Misses  Rebecca  Loomis,  Eliza  B. 
Rublee,  Mr.  Ralph  Kilbourn,  C.  W.  Bad- 
ger, John  Barker,  Misses  Harriet  Bowen, 
Clarissa  Clark,  Mr.  Wm.  Storrs.  Messrs. 
Morse,  Kilbourne,  Barker,  and  Miss  Clark, 
have  died. 

1848,  Mr.  Merrill  was  appointed  super- 
intendent, which  office  he  held  until  1851. 
[I  am  not  quite  sure  of  this  ;  it  is  possible 
that  Dea.  Storrs  officiated  a  part  of  this 
time.] 

185 1,  resuming  the  superintendency,  I 
found  the  school  in  a  prosperous  condi- 
dition — 230  scholars,  the  largest   number 


ever  known,  with  31  teachers.  The  spirit 
that  searcheth  hearts  was  in  our  midst. 
Numbers  listened,  attracted  to  follow  the 
heavenly  voice.  My  connection  with  the 
school  ceased  in  May  of  this  fruitful  year. 
Sunday-School Siiperititendents. — Mr.  J . 
W.  Howes  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  F.  F. 
Merrill,  whose  last  year  was  1858  ;  Joseph 
Poland  served  in  1859,  '60,  '61  ;  Chas.  W. 
Willard,  1862;  H.  D.  Hopkins,  1863, 
187 1,  inclusive ;  D.  G.  Kemp,  1872, '73. 
'74;  A.  G.  Stone,  1875,  '76;  Hiram  Carl- 
ton, 1877  to  the  present  time. 

THE   DEDICATION    OF    BETHANY   CHURCH, 
OCT.    15,   1868. 

Exercises : — Organ  Voluntary;  Invocation, 
Rev.  W.  S.  Hazen;  Scripture,  Rev.  E. 
/.  Carpenter ;  Anthem ;  Prayer,  Rev.  J. 
Copeland. 

DEDICATION   HYMN. 
BY  BEV.  JOHN  KING  LOED,  Brother  of  the  Pastor. 
When  God  the  prUnal  light  unsealed, 

And  bound  in  spheres  its  golden  bars, 
Tlirough  all  the  glowing  vault  there  pealed 
The  chorus  of  the  morning  stars. 

When  Christ  was  born,  those  notes  again 
Bang  througii  the  sapphire-sprinkled  space; 

Judea's  hill-sides  caught  the  strain, 
And  earth  gave  to  Heaven  the  praise. 

And  when  the  promised  age  of  gold 
Sees  fairer  lands  and  brighter  skies 

Spring  from  the  ruins  of  the  old, 
Still  louder  shall  the  anthem  rise. 

Meanwhile,  along  these  walls  where  now 

Our  first  glad  sacrifice  we  bring. 
That  song  shall  echo  till  we  bow 

To  sing  with  angels  near  the  King. 

SERMON. 
BY  REV.  W.  H.  LORD,  D.  D.,   Pastor. 

"  I  will  not  give  sleep  to  mine  eyes,  nor 
slumber  to  mine  eyelids,  until  I  find  out  a 
place  for  the  Lord,  an  habitation  for  the 
mighty  God  of  Jacob." — Psalm  132  :4,  5. 

This  is  Solomon's  record  of  the  vow  of 
his  father  David.  It  was  the  natural  ex- 
pression of  that  tender  piety,  of  that  de- 
votion to  the  name  and  honor  of  God, 
which  illumines  the  whole  character  of  the 
son  of  Jesse,  and  which  raises  him,  in 
spite  of  his  stupendous  sins  and  deep  falls, 
to  a  sublime  height  of  moral  excellence. 
All  other  things  made  way  in  his  mind  to 
the  glorious  purpose  of  finding  a  habita- 
tion for  God.  He  was  a  king,  and  perils 
environed  his  throne.     He  was  a  states- 


MONTPELIER. 


397 


man,  and  his  people  needed  the  help  of  a 
generous  government.  He  was  a  poet, 
and  -the  sacred  inspiration  of  his  harp 
thrilled  the  heart  of  his  nation,  as  it  has  of 
all  nations  since.  He  was  a  warrior,  and 
a  councillor,  and  oft  must  have  longed  to 
lay  aside  the  armor  of  battle  and  woo  the 
refreshment  of  rest.  But  all  other  duties, 
and  all  other  desires,  were  dwarfed  in  his 
fervid  soul  by  one  imperious  obligation. 
What  were  politics,  statesmanship,  war, 
letters,  nay,  his  own  flesh  and  blood  to 
him,  while  God  had  no  worthy  habitation 
in  Israel?  What  was  it  to  him  that  he 
could  point  to  a  royal  palace,  and  rooms 
of  state,  and  golden  furniture,  and  Tyrian 
hangings,  while  Jehovah  had  no  palace 
yet  built  for  Him,  where  He  could  hold 
His  court  and  receive  the  homage  of  His 
subjects.  While  Israel  dwelt  in  tents, 
they  had  another  for  their  tabernacle. 
But  when  they  had  an  imperial  city,  and 
dwelt  in  ceiled  houses,  marble  and  gold 
were  not  too  rich  or  beautitul  for  their 
shrine.  Nothing  else  was  safe  unless 
God's  house  was  built.  The  temple  was 
the  citadel  of  the  nation.  David's  sword 
would  be  sharper,  his  scepter  mightier,  his 
lyre  sweeter,  if  all  were  reckoned  of  less 
import  than  the  task  of  finding  a  temple 
for  the  Lord.  The  vow  of  the  king  of 
Israel  is  of  much  larger  range  than  its 
original  historical  application.  We  can- 
not confine  our  thought  to  the  narrow 
range  of  long  past  Jewish  history,  when 
the  passage  before  us  has  been  brightened 
by  the  light  which  falls  upon  it  from  Beth- 
lehem and  Calvary.  This  expression  say^ 
in  effect,  that  within  the  soul  itself,  God's 
presence,  honor  and  truth  must  first  be 
secured.  To  find  a  place  for  the  Lord 
within  the  heart,  is  at  once  our  high  priv- 
ilege and  obligation.  To  enthrone  God  at 
the  summit  of  thought ;  to  enshrine  Him 
in  the  sanctuary  of  love ;  to  lay  open  to 
Him  the  hidden  springs  of  the  will ;  to  de- 
tain Him  within  the  chamber  of  the  soul ; 
this  is  to  build  for  Him  a  palace  more 
beautiful,  more  glorious,  than  any  made 
with  stone  or  decorated  with  gold ;  and 
this  is  to  win  from  Him  a  presence  of  light 
and  power  more  resplendent  than  the  she- 


kinah  of  the  temple  of  Jerusalem.  The 
christian  soul  is  the  true  temple  of  the 
Godhead,  when  it  is  cleansed  by  the  blood 
of  Christ ;  when  it  is  filled  with  the  graces 
of  the  spirit ;  when  it  is  enriched  with  the 
tracery  and  ornaments  of  the  divine  word. 
When  it  is  thronged  with  holy  and  adoring 
thoughts,  as  His  servants  and  courtiers 
casting  their  tributes  at  his  feet,  then  it  is 
brightened  with  a  light  and  beauty  so 
shining,  that  God  may  indeed  be  said  to 
be  glorified  in  man,  and  to  have  found  in 
him  His  true  habitation  and  rest. 

But  another  application  of  these  words 
will,  I  doubt  not,  have  been  anticipated 
by  those  who  are  gathered  within  these 
walls  on  this  day  of  high  and  thankful  joy. 
May  we  not  say  that  this  noble  pile  itself 
is  the  product  of  a  resolution  such  as  was 
that  of  the  king  of  Israel.  By  the  per- 
mission and  love  of  the  Infinite  God,  we 
are  to-day  realizing  long  cherished  hopes 
— long  dreamt  dreams.  To-day  is  com- 
pleted the  prayer  of  years.  Difiiculties 
have  been  surmounted,  and  results  achiev- 
ed, for  which  we  are  indebted  to  the  good- 
ness of  God.  We  behold  the  end  and  re- 
ward of  much  sacrifice,  of  large  and  genial 
hearts,  of  wise  and  unconquerable  wills, 
of  cultivated  and  solid  intelligence.  All 
that  could  be  won  by  our  zeal,  and  intel- 
ligence and  devotion  has  been  secured. 
Our  eyes  behold  that  which  is  in  very  deed 
a  worthy  place  for  the  temple  of  the  Lord 
— an  habitation  for  the  Mighty  God  of 
Jacob.  David  had  to  bequeath  his  un- 
realized intention  to  his  son  and  successor ; 
but  the  most  of  us  who  began  to  build, 
have  been  spared  to  witness  the  fulfilment 
of  our  hope,  and  the  justification  of  our 
wisdom  and  foresight.  And  if  one  who  is 
not  a  stranger  to  the  impulses  and  motives 
which  have  swayed  the  minds  of  those  who 
have  labored  for  this  result,  may  be  per- 
mitted to  interpret  the  sagacious  and  gen- 
erous intelligence  which  has  given  this 
noble  structure  to  our  State  and  our 
church,  I  would  unhesitatingly  say,  that  to 
promote  our  dear  Redeemer's  glory  has 
been  its  first,  its  master  motive.  To  raise 
a  monument,  (however  unworthy  our  best 
must  be  of  Him,)   to  His  glory  who  died 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


for  us ;  to  oifer  at  His  feet  a  measure  of 
that  wealth  which  he  has  placed  at  our 
disposal ;  to  thank  Him  thus  visibly,  thus 
palpably,  for  His  grace  to  us  ;  to  make  a 
good  foundation  for  a  better  work  for  Him 
— this  was,  this  is,  the  object  of  all.  Even 
if  nought  else  came  of  this  gratitude  ;  even 
if  such  thankfulness  were  refracted  upon 
ourselves  in  no  new  blessings,  this  grateful 
adoration,  this  love  of  the  Son  of  God,  is 
the  motive  which  has  found  so  beautiful, 
so  splendid,  an  expression  in  a  building, 
which,  from  to-day  and  henceforth,  is  ded- 
icated to  the  glory  and  service  of  Jesus 
Christ.  If  aught  else  of  pride  or  ostenta- 
tion mingles  with  this,  may  He  who  de- 
serves all  we  have,  forgive  and  cleanse  the 
foul  unrighteousness. 

It  is  true  that  since  Christ  was  crucified, 
the  Father  seeketh  such  to  worship  Him  as 
worship  in  spirit  and  tiojth.  Mount  Mo- 
riah  and  Mount  Gerizim  are  not  essential 
to  worship.  He  who  dwelleth  in  a  temple 
made  without  hands,  needs  not  a  temple 
made  with  hands.  The  whole  earth  has 
now  become  a  house  of  prayer  and  the 
gate  of  Heaven,  for  the  Son  of  God  hath 
dwelt  in  it  and  consecrated  it  by  His 
presence.  And  yet  a  house  of  worship 
does  not  invade  the  spirituality  of  worship. 
It  may  rather  enhance  and  intensify  it.  No 
more  is  the  closet  a  place  for  one  Christian, 
than  the  church  is  the  place  for  many 
Christians.  And  Christ  fills  both  with  His 
presence,  and  loves  both  the  dwelling  of  a 
beautiful  and  holy  soul,  and  the  habitation 
of  a  beautiful  and  sacred  house.  He  who 
hath  made  all  things  beautiful,  loves  beau- 
tiful things  and  beautiful  places. 

Repulsiveness  of  form  is  not  necessarily 
united  with  spirituality  of  life  and  purity  of 
faith,  and  the  autonomy  of  the  local  church 
under  Christ  does  not  imply  that  it  ought 
to  dwell  in  a  barn.  And  when  the  beauty 
of  the  temple  expresses  both  the  abun- 
dance of  christian  wealth,  and  the  fervor 
of  christian  love  ;  when  it  is  the  exponent 
of  ability  and  affection,  then  I  see  no 
reason  why  God  should  not  love  it  as  He 
did  the  tabernacle  of  old — more  than  all 
the  dwellings  of  His  people.  I  see  no 
reason  why  He  should  not  love  to  come 


into  it  and  make  the  place  of  His  feet  glo- 
rious. 

I  have  thought  it  not  inappropriate  to 
this  occasion,  to  ask  your  attention  to  the 
uses  of  the  material  temple ;  the  moral  and 
spiritual  purpose  of  such  a  house  as  that  in 
which  we  are  assemhled  to-day ;  and  why 
we  should  build  it,  and  why  we  should 
love  it ! 

I.  To  begin  with  its  lowest  uses,  itwill 
be  in  the  first  place  an  intellectual  land- 
mark, cultivating  the  best  thought  and  the 
best  taste. 

As  it  towers  in  conspicuous  beauty  high 
above  the  surrounding  buildings,  it  is  a 
natural  expression  in  solid  stone  of  an  in- 
tellectual truth.  May  we  not  say  that  it 
illustrates,  on  a  small  scale,  Bishop  Butler's 
argument  upon  the  necessity  for  a  visible 
church?  It  is  a  silent,  but  most  eloquent, 
preacher  of  the  first  and  highest  of  all 
truths.  It  embodies  and  visibly  perpet- 
uates the  institutions  of  Christianity.  A 
visible  church  is  a  standing  memorial  of 
the  duty  we  owe  to  our  Creator,  and  by  the 
form  of  religion  ever  before  our  eyes, 
serves  to  remind  us  of  the  reality.  And 
the  more  impressive  and  beautiful  the 
form,  the  more  easily  will  the  transition  be 
to  the  true  character  and  glory  of  the  ob- 
ject of  worship.  Throughout  the  civilized 
world,  each  of  the  temples  of  Christendom 
bears  a  voiceless  but  effective  testimony 
for  Christ.  No  thoughtful  man  ever  looks 
at  it  from  without,  even  if  he  never  enters 
it  as  a  worshipper,  but  he  asks  himself: 
"  What  does  this  building  represent?  Why 
is  it  here  ?  Is  it  the  monument  of  an  ex- 
tinct sentiment,  or  of  a  hving  conviction? 
Is  it  the  ornamented  sepulcher  of  religious 
faith,  or  the  powerful  instrument  of  a 
springing  and  advancing  life  ? "  Thus  the 
material  building  suggests  a  line  of  thought, 
backward  and  forward.  It  is  a  history,  or 
a  prophecy.  Its  dim  aisles,  and  vaulted 
corridors  and  arched  ceilings,  its  columns 
hewn  into  transparent  strength,  and  its 
roof  painted  with  the  colors  of  the  iris, 
have  a  message  to  men  which  they  can  but 
hear.  It  is  a  message  of  warning,  or  a 
message  of  hope. 

There  is  a  city  of  the  old  world  whose 


MONTPELIER. 


399 


palaces  and  squares  are  now  falling  into 
the  sea,  out  of  which  she  rose.  Never  did 
earthly  city  have  a  more  beautiful  shrine. 
It  was  at  once  a  type  of  the  redeemed 
church  of  God,  and  an  illuminated  scroll  of 
His  written  word.  Neither  gold  nor  crystal 
was  spared  in  its  building,  and  it  was 
adorned  with  all  manner  of  precious  stones. 
The  skill  and  the  treasures  of  the  East 
gilded  every  letter  and  illumined  every 
page,  till  "  the  temple  shone  from  afar 
like  the  star  of  the  Magi."  And  as  I 
walked  along  the  alleys  of  that  strange 
city,  or  floated  upon  its  liquid  streets,  and 
remembered  how  she  had  thrown  off  all 
shame  and  restraint,  and  had  become  filled 
with  the  madness  of  the  whole  earth,  the 
falling  frescoes  of  gold,  and  the  sinkmg 
columns  of  marble  of  her  great  cathedral, 
seemed  to  utter  in  the  dead  ear  of  Venice, 
"  Know  thou  that  for  all  these  things  God 
will  bring  thee  into  judgment."  Her  sin 
was  done  in  the  face  of  the  House  of  God, 
burning  with  the  letters  of  His  law.  And 
the  building,  now  shored  up  from  its 
watery  grave  by  huge  timbers,  has  a  his- 
tory, in  which  one  who  sees  it,  must  read 
both  the  triumphs  and  the  corruptions  of 
Christianity. 

There  were  no  material  churches,  or 
scarcely  any,  in  the  early  ages  of  persecu- 
tion. When  the  church  dared  to  come 
forth  from  the  catacombs  and  live  in  pub- 
lic, she  had  already  triumphed — her  places 
of  worship  were  the  symbols  of  victory. 
And  do  they  not  now  speak  to  our  reason 
and  our  hearts,  and  to  our  imaginations, 
somewhat  as  of  old?  What  means  the 
house  of  christian  assembly,  but  that  God 
delighteth  still  in  the  communion  of  His 
saints?  What  means  the  tapering  spire, 
but  that  our  hopes  are  beyond  the  sky  to 
which  it  points?  What  means  the  cross 
which  rises  from  the  eastern  porch,  but 
that  the  atoning  blood  which  flowed  on 
calvary,  warrants  these  hopes  in  sinners, 
such  as  we?  What  means  the  declaration 
traced  in  the  centime  of  yon  orbed  window, 
but  that  our  peace,  comfort  and  salvation 
are  centered  in  the  triune  Godhead  ?  What 
means  the  lamb  pencilled  over  organ  and 
choir,  but  that  all  our  praise  is  due  unto 


Him  who  hath  loved  us  and  washed  us 
from  our  sins  in  his  blood  ?  What  means 
that  open  Bible,  translucent  with  the 
light  of  Heaven,  and  shedding  its  beams 
down  upon  the  head  of  the  preacher, 
save  that  God's  word  is  the  source  of  His 
wisdom,  and  the  hiding-place  of  His  power  ? 
What  mean  these  inscriptions  on  the  walls, 
over  arch,  aisle  and  door,  except,  not  that 
Rome  has  a  monopoly  of  Scripture  or  of 
Heaven,  but  that  the  Son  of  God  is  the 
impregnable  foundation  of  the  Christian 
Church,  and  faith  in  Him  the  only  way  of 
entering  His  kingdom  and  glory?  And 
what  signify  these  colors,  which  cling  so 
fondly  to  the  instructed  eye,  and  bind  the 
very  senses  to  the  chariot  wheels  of  ce- 
lestial meditation,  save  that  God  Himself 
would  be  worshipped  in  the  beauty  of  ho- 
liness ?  There  are  very  few  of  us  appre- 
ciate the  nobleness  and  sacredness  of  color. 
It  is  not  a  subordinate  beauty.  It  is  not  a 
mere  source  of  sensual  pleasure.  He  who 
says  so,  speaks  carelessly.  What  would 
the  world  be  if  the  blue  were  taken  from 
the  sky,  and  the  gold  from  stars  and  suns, 
and  the  silver  from  the  moon,  and  the  ver- 
dure from  the  leaves,  and  the  crimson  from 
the  blood  of  man,  and  the  flush  from  the 
cheek,  the  radiance  from  the  eye,  and  the 
whole  earth  were  clothed  in  an  ashen  gray? 
Should  we  not  then  know  what  we  owe  to 
color?  The  fact  is,  that  of  all  God's  gifts 
to  the  sight  of  man,  color  is  the  holiest, 
the  most  beautiful  and  divine.  The  great 
architect  of  the  world  has  employed  colors 
in  His  creation  as  the  accompaniment  of 
all  that  is  purest  and  most  precious.  He 
has  laid  the  foundations  of  His  temple  in 
jasper  and  sapphire,  and  garnished  its 
blue  dome  with  stars  of  light.  We  shall 
not  worship  Him  in  less  hohness,  if  we 
worship  Him  in  more  beauty  than  our 
fathers  knew.  Even  as  we  gaze  upon  the 
outline  of  the  chief  buildings  which  have 
been  reared  for  Christ,  our  thoughts  must 
be  insensibly  affected.  In  the  training  of 
the  soul  we  must  subordinate  the  senses  to 
the  service  of  religion.  And  the  beauty  of 
the  church  is  not  a  poor  teacher,  for  the 
eye  cannot  choose  but  see,  and  it  will  sug- 
gest to  the  imagination,  to  the  heart  of 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


many  a  man,  the  supremacy,  the  great- 
ness, the  solitary  magnificence  of  God. 

There  are  many  tendencies  of  thought 
in  our  day  that  sei"ve  to  obscure  this  primal 
truth.  Men  are  wont  to  merge  Jehovah  in 
the  work  of  His  hands,  or  to  deny  the  ex- 
istence of  His  Son.  The  great  questions 
which  are  debated  around  us,  touch  not 
simply  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  but  the 
existence  of  God  himself.  Skeptical  in- 
fluences are  being  constantly  infiltrated 
into  the  thought  of  society,  into  the 
minds  of  the  young,  and  into  the  life  of 
the  world. 

Now  this  church  takes  such  debated  and 
assailed  truths,  and  a  great  deal  else,  for 
granted.  It  stands  to  the  minds  of  the 
very  youth  that  play  and  wander  under  its 
shadow,  in  the  place  of  an  argument.  It 
represents  in  a  visible,  material  form  the 
settled  faith  of  the  church.  It  lends  new 
charm  to  that  faith.  It  tacitly  forces  the 
truth  of  God's  majestic  separation  from, 
and  infinite  superiority  to.  His  creatures, 
fairly  in  upon  the  intelligence  of  a  child. 
It  does  more.  It  forces  in  upon  his  con- 
viction, also,  the  nearness  of  God  to  man, 
and  the  love  which  He  bears  to  us. 

This  is  God's  house,  separate  from  the 
whirl  of  the  streets,  from  the  passion  of 
the  hour,  from  the  jostle  of  life.  It  stands 
alone  among  other  buildings,  unlike  them 
all,  more  massive,  more  imposing,  more 
elegant.  But  its  doors  are  open.  The 
mighty  noise  of  its  music  swells  through 
its  arches.  Its  floor  is  moistened  by  the 
tears  of  love  and  penitence.  The  King 
Himself  holds  court  in  it,  and  His  wor- 
shippers throng  His  presence,  and  carry 
away  His  bounty.  So  its  silent  and  me- 
lodious eloquence  is  ever  more  of  man's 
distance  from  God,  of  God's  nearness  to 
man.  Will  God  in  very  deed  dwell  with 
man?  The  temple  of  prayer  answers  the 
question  as  no  argument  can.  Some  of 
us  may  remember  when  our  minds  were 
first  opening  in  a  world  of  thought,  and 
groping  their  way  in  the  twilight  toward  a 
deeper  and  higher  knowledge.  Into  this 
mental  confusion,  how  would  not  a  mate- 
rial symbol  of  the  truth  have  helped  to  in- 
troduce  the  welcome  reign  of  light  and 


order?  Tell  a  child  that  revealed  reHgion 
is  the  highest  of  all  truths,  that  all  other 
truth  leads  up  to  it,  or  radiates  from  it, 
and  he  will  faintly,  if  at  all,  guess  your 
meaning.  He  has  not  yet  climbed  high 
enough  to  get  your  idea.  But  throw  your 
doctrine  into  a  concrete  form,  so  that  his 
eye,  and  ear  and  imagination  shall  be 
taken  captive ;  let  it  speak  to  him  from  the 
timbers  and  beams  of  the  house,  from  the 
colors  of  its  walls  and  ceilings,  from  the 
stones  of  its  foundations  and  structure, 
from  the  music  of  its  organ,  as  well  as 
from  the  lips  of  the  preacher,  and  you 
shall  speedily  make  your  way  to  his  thought 
and  to  his  heart,  and  give  him  a  lasting 
form  and  impress.  .  He  may  not  be  con- 
scious of  the  powers  at  work  upon  him, 
or  the  result  achieved  within  him.  He  will 
receive  the  moulding  influence  as  the  tree 
drinks  in  its  verdure,  as  the  flower  absorbs 
its  loveliest  tints  from  the  air  and  sunlight, 
but  it  will  form  his  character  and  his  habit, 
and  give  him  a  lifelong  loyalty  to  the  truth 
he  has  received.  As  the  years  pass  over 
him,  and  full  of  good  service,  with  the 
peace  of  his  God  and  Savior  in  his  soul, 
he  feels  that  he  is  sinking  towards  his 
grave,  he  will  look  back,  perchance,  to  this 
church  as  the  first  instructor  of  his  im- 
mortal spirit.  Here  was  mapped  out  the 
truth  which  came  from  Heaven,  and  which 
can  alone  redeem  a  sinful  or  sustain  a 
dying  man.  He  will  then  remember  how 
in  the  home  of  his  youth,  when  all  naked 
statement  of  truth  would  have  been  lost 
upon  him,  there  was  one  building  among 
many,  noblest  in  its  proportions,  richest  in 
its  ornamentation,  which  pointed  to  a 
truth,  the  knowledge  and  love  of  which  was 
life  eternal.  And  his  gratitude,  multiplied 
by  the  gratitude  of  others,  from  genera- 
tion to  generation,  will  justify  the  wisdom 
of  those  builders,  who  would  not  suffer  their 
eyes  to  sleep,  nor  their  eyelids  to  slumber, 
nor  the  temples  of  their  heads  to  take  any 
rest,  until  they  had  found  a  temple  of  the 
Lord,  a  habitation  for  the  God  of  Jacob. 
He,  and  such  as  he,  till  the  last  stone  is 
not  left  upon  another,  will  bless  those  who 
thus  set  forth,  in  language  which  all  could 
understand,    the  preciousness,  the  unap- 


MONTPELIER. 


401 


preached  preciousness  of  our  divine  Re- 
deemer's gospel. 

2.  A  second  use  of  the  material  temple 
is  the  culture  of  reverence.  Reverence  is 
not  merely  a  virtue,  to  find  its  exercise 
when  we  go  to  church.  It  ought  to  be 
the  habit  of  the  soul.  Reverence  is  the 
recognition  of  greatness.  It  is  the  soul 
seeing  something  higher,  better,  nobler 
than  itself.  Woe  to  him  who  has  no  en- 
thusiasm, no  passionate  love  for  persons, 
services  or  institutions  which  represent 
God,  and  who,  therefore,  has  no  rever- 
ence ;  who  believes  that  there  is  no  great- 
ness before  which  it  should  be  his  happi- 
ness to  lie  prostrate,  and  towards  which 
he  may  not  aspire.  Nothing  is  more  cer- 
tain than  the  intellectual  and  moral  deg- 
radation of  him  who  never  feels  veneration 
or  love.  The  sneer  which  he  lavishes  on 
all  around,  reacts  on  his  own  moral  life. 
The  insolence  which  marks  his  address  is 
traced  in  every  line  of  his  face.  He  whose 
motto  is  "Nil  admirari;"  who  sees  no 
good  in  what  others  respect ;  who  never 
looks  through  the  clear  crystal  lens  of  gen- 
erous appreciation  on  a  beauty  or  a  great- 
ness that  is  not  his  own,  will  sooner  or 
later  win  the  indignation  or  the  compassion 
of  his  fellow  men. 

So  deeply  did  one  semi-infidel  feel  this 
to  be  true,  that  he  is  said  to  have  declared, 
that  if  God  did  not  exist,  it  would  be  nec- 
essary to  invent  Him  for  the  use  of  the 
educator  of  the  human  mind.  It  is  only 
the  sight  of  God  which  creates  reverence. 
Hence  the  church  alone  is  the  school  of 
reverence.  The  church  of  Christ  alone 
brings  God  home  to  the  human  soul.  Na- 
ture knows  not  God.  For  a  moment  it 
seems  to  detect  Him  in  the  starry  heav- 
ens, or  in  the  stormy  sea ;  or  in  the  fra- 
grant freshness  of  the  summer  air ;  or  in 
the  calm  brilliancy  of  a  perfect  landscape. 
But  it  only  admires.  It  has  no  heart  for 
reverence,  because  it  has  no  heart  for  ad- 
oration. It  banishes  God  behind  a  sys- 
tem of  laws. 

But  the  Gospel,  on  the  other  hand,  is 
the  religion  of  Immanuel,  God  with  us. 
He  is  with  us  in  His  Providence,  in  His 
power,  in  His  wisdom,  in   His  love.     He 


is  with  us  in  His  advent,  in  His  tempta- 
tion ;  in  His  ministry,  in  His  passion  ;  in 
His  resurrection,  in  His  sacraments.  Ever 
since  the  incarnation,  the  "  tabernacle  of 
God  is  with  men."  The  Shekinah  has 
rent  the  veil  of  the  temple,  and  come  forth 
among  us.  We  know  that  He  is  not  far 
from  any  one  of  us.  We  express  this 
knowledge  when  we  speak  of  Him  ;  when 
we  keep  His  Word ;  when  we  enter  the 
place  of  His  assembly.  It  is  in  the  vis- 
ible, material  church  we  learn  reverence 
by  precept  and  example.  The  silence, 
which  is  only  broken  that  man  may  speak 
of  God,  or  to  God  ;  the  adoring  attitudes 
of  devout  worshippers ;  the  chant  which 
raises  the  soul  above  the  world ;  the  con- 
fession which  opens  upon  it,  through 
flashes  of  moral  light,  the  true  sight  of  the 
Most  Holy ;  these  things  suggest,  day  by 
day,  year  by  year,  a  sympathetic  attitude 
of  the  spirit.  They  succeed,  at  last,  in 
persuading  us  to  bend  before  Him  who  is 
the  object  and  explanation  of  what  is  going 
on  around  us.  They  cry  out,  as  if  with 
one  voice,  to  the  soul,  and  the  voice  does 
not  die  away,  "  Oh,  come,  let  us  worship 
and  fall  down  and  kneel  before  the  Lord 
our  Maker."  And  thus  a  constant  attend- 
ant at  the  church  learns  an  inward  habit, 
which  is  the  safeguard  of  his  intellect,  the 
charm  and  lusti"e  of  his  social  life,  the 
aroma  of  his  character  and  intercourse, 
and  the  final  deliverance  and  redemption 
of  his  soul.  Very  few  lovers  of  the  church 
and  of  church-going,  find  their  way  down 
to  death.  Their  path  is  a  shining  one. 
They  learn  at  last  the  value  of  the  blood  of 
atonement ;  the  glory  of  the  Savior,  and  a 
hearty  recognition  of  His  supreme  beauty. 
The  profound  yearnings  of  the  spirit, 
which  bring  them  within  the  house  of  God, 
are  at  length  satisfied.  The  message  of 
light  and  pardon,  repeated  week  by  week, 
is  at  last  heard.  Men  may  murmur  about 
the  dullness  of  the  sermon  ;  but  for  every 
soul  that  is  alive  to  the  terrible  mysterious- 
ness  of  life  and  death,  and  who  resorts  to 
the  place  where  it  may  find  God  and  come 
even  to  His  seat,  there  is  a  freshness  and 
perpetual  interest  in  the  Gospel  message. 
He  who  seeks  its  repetition  will  learn  the 


51 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


secret  of  its  power,  and  find  the  peace 
which  it  brings.  "It  was  here,"  some  will 
say,  of  this  very  church,"  "  it  was  here,  O 
my  Lord  and  my  God,  that  I  learned  to 
know  and  love  Thee,  and  found  out  my 
own  misery,  and  felt  the  grace  and  sweet- 
ness of  thy  pity  and  thy  pardon.  It  was 
here  I  learned  the  awfulness  and  blessed- 
ness of  life,  the  greatness  of  eternity." 
And  many  a  redeemed  soul  will  sing  here- 
after, "  Lord  Jesus,  in  this,  Thy  temple,  I 
told  Thee  my  sins  and  my  sorrows,  was 
washed  in  Thy  blood,  and  saw  Thy  glory 
face  to  face." 

3.  Another  use  of  the  material  temple, 
is  to  assist  the  culture  of  the  conscience. 
The  moral  sense  learns  and  grows  by  dis- 
cipline. Ever  since  Christ  drove  the 
money-changers  out  of  the  house  of  prayer, 
the  conscience  has  had  new  light  upon  the 
sacredness  of  places  of  worship  and  the 
duties  of  religion.  Doubtless  the  con- 
science is  roused  and  trained  by  association 
as  well  as  by  authority.  It  is  informed  and 
invigorated  by  every  opportunity  for  good 
or  for  evil.  There  are  seasons  in  every 
man's  life  when  he  finds  himself  face  to 
face  with  forms  of  evil,  upon  resistance  to 
which  his  whole  eternity  depends.  For 
many  a  falterer  this  church  may  strike  the 
trembling  balance  in  his  favor.  The  strug- 
gle, of  which  his  soul  is  the  scene,  may 
here  be  laid  bare  before  the  all  Holy  and 
Merciful.  The  temptation  to  lust,  or  cru- 
elty, or  avarice,  or  selfishness,  or  coward- 
ice of  soul,  may  be  exorcised,  or,  at  least, 
lose  half  its  force  in  the  scenes  and  ser- 
vices of  this  building.  When  all  has 
seemed  to  be  lost,  and  the  darkness  of  sin 
has  well  nigh  settled  down  upon  the  heart, 
then  God  here  turns  himself  again,  and 
looks  down  from  Heaven,  and  beholds  and 
visits  in  mercy.  There  are,  indeed,  those 
to  whose  conscience  the  church  says  noth- 
ing. But  with  the  great  majority  it  is  not 
so.  Its  services,  its  ministers,  nay,  the 
very  lines  and  beauties  of  its  architecture, 
are  destined  to  be  intertwined  with  the 
deep  secrets  of  many  a  spirit,  and  to  have 
their  place  in  the  checkered  history  of 
thought  and  hope,  of  fear  and  passion,  of 
suffering  and  joy,  which  will  be  revealed  by 


the  light  of  another  world.  And  among 
the  spiritual  mysteries  which  will  here- 
after be  known  as  belonging  to  these  walls, 
not  the  least  will  be  their  silent  contribu- 
tion to  the  growth  of  the  moral  sense. 

4.  Nor  shall  it  be  without  its  effect  in 
shaping  the  aims  and  unfolding  the  pur- 
poses of  many  a  life.  This  life  it  teaches 
us  is  not  a  game  of  chance,  or  a  decree  of 
fate,  the  sport  of  events,  or  the  result  of 
fixed  necessity.  Each  man  is  instructed 
by  it  and  in  it,  that  he  is  to  hallow  his 
earthly  life  by  a  religious  principle.  It 
stands  as  a  perpetual  memorial  of  God  and 
of  human  responsibility  in  the  very  centre 
and  heart  of  secular  business  and  strife  ; 
an  unchangeable  teacher  of  man's  obliga- 
tion to  make  his  life  a  single  tribute  to 
God's  glory.  And  this  church,  in  itself, 
in  its  services,  is  destined  to  have  a  large 
influence  upon  men's  purposes  in  life ;  is 
destined  to  brace  their  wills  to  the  right, 
to  promote  their  obedience  to  the  truth,  to 
open  their  hearts  to  a  larger  destiny  than 
would  have  been  possible  without  it.  In 
the  very  proportion  of  its  inspiring  and  im- 
pressive beauty,  it  is  to  become  a  helper  of 
our  souls  in  all  good.  Here  our  hearts 
will  be  opened,  and  kept  open.  The  very 
place  that  is  filled  with  fragrant  perfume  of 
the  spicery  that  has  been  poured  on  Christ's 
head,  will  assist  the  soul  to  a  better  life. 
Creatures  of  association  as  we  are,  here 
our  wills  will  be  directed  and  strengthened  ; 
here  our  whole  inward  life  will  get  a  unity 
and  force,  which  will  tell  both  in  time  and 
eternity.  Here  provision  may  be  made  for 
the  dark  days  that  are  coming,  "for  in  the 
time  of  trouble  He  shall  hide  me  in  His 
tabernacle  ;  yea,  in  the  secret  place  of  His 
dwelling  shall  He  hide  me,  and  set  me  upon 
a  Rock." 

In  dedicating  this  church,  we  do  not 
gratify  a  mere  artistic  or  aesthetic  senti- 
ment. We  do  not  inaugurate  a  monu- 
ment, which  the  economy  of  common 
sense,  or  the  demand  of  Christian  love, 
might  deem  superfluous.  For  this  church, 
in  all  its  lofty  beauty,  is  a  hymn  of  praise 
to  the  Son  of  God,  and  embodies  and 
gives  shape  to  the  essential  features  of  the 
Christian  work  and  life.     The   ministries 


MONTPELIER. 


403 


and  associations,  the  very  roof  and  win- 
dows, the  very  tower  and  buttresses  of  this 
building,  are  destined  to  mould  practically 
the  daily  life  of  those  who  are  here  to  learn 
to  face  the  battle  of  life  as  men  and  Chris- 
tians should  face  it.  And  here,  too,  many 
a  modest  flower  will  catch  a  Divine  inspi- 
ration, and  blossom  into  lovely  and  fra- 
grant beauty,  and  shed  its  incense  of 
praise,  until  it  shall  be  transferred  to  a 
more  glorious  temple,  to  bloom  there  love- 
lier and  forever.  Such  a  church,  we  trust, 
will  do  more  than  promote  the  intellectual 
and  moral  growth  of  those  who  worship  in 
it,  of  the  community  around  it.  It  will  do 
more  than  cultivate  taste  and  art.  It  will 
open  men's  hearts  to  God.  It  will  help 
them  toward  Christ.  It  will  teach  them 
the  rare  graces  of  Christianity.  It  is  the 
product  of  self-denial.  It  will  be  its  teacher 
too.  This  church  is  no  mere  offering  of 
that  which  has  cost  nothing.  It  is  the 
gift  of  love,  and  love  lives  by  sacrifice. 
Love  is  not  the  desire  to  have.  It  is  the 
passion  to  give.  And  we  trust  that  this 
church  will  be  to  us  a  means  of  grace  in 
this  respect,  and  perpetually  teach  us  that 
all  the  best  things  of  life  come  by  our  sac- 
rifices, and  that  our  proudest,  divinest  sat- 
isfaction will  arise  in  the  future  from  our 
most  generous  offerings  to  the  service, 
work,  and  glory  of  God.  This  house  will 
show  us,  so  long  as  it  stands,  that  our  best 
riches,  our  richest  feelings  and  delights 
come  from  our  largest  gifts  to  God.  Learn 
we  this,  if  nothing  else  to-day,  that  joy 
comes  by  giving  to  Christ.  It  is  more 
blessed  to  give  than  to  receive.  And  thus 
this  building  will  have  manifold  influences 
upon  our  souls.  Hereafter  we  shall  know 
how  these  lines  of  beauty,  on  which  our 
eyes  now  rest  with  tranquil  pleasure  or  cu- 
rious admiration,  have  been  graven  deep 
in  many  a  memory,  and  have  linked  for- 
ever many  a  soul's  inmost  life  with  the  eye 
and  hand  of  the  Creator. 

5.  Another  use  of  such  a  material  edi- 
fice as  this,  is  to  render  more  attractive  the 
system  and  polity  of  faith  and  worship 
with  which  it  is  connected.  It  will  add  a 
charm  to  the  Congregational  order  and 
service.     There  is  no  reason  why  the  ex- 


cellent order  of  our  New  England  fathers 
should  not  make  all  the  warm  sentiments 
of  our  nature  tributary  to  its  growth. 
None,  why  its  beams  and  timbers  should 
not  breathe  the  very  odors  of  the  cedars  of 
Lebanon.  None,  why  its  garments  should 
not  smell  of  myrrh  and  aloes  and  cassia 
out  of  the  ivory  palaces.  It  is  the  church 
of  our  fathers,  the  old  homestead  and 
sanctuary  of  our  hearts,  full  of  rich  mem- 
ories, of  dear  associations,  of  priceless 
legacies  of  faith  and  hope  and  patience 
from  those  who  have  left  the  earthly  con- 
gregation and  gone  above  the  stars.  This 
simple,  beautiful  and  cathoHc  polity  is  the 
very  daughter  of  the  King.  She  has 
trusted  so  much  to  her  intrinsic  and  im- 
perial grace  as  to  laugh  at  outward  adorn- 
ing. She  has  been  so  beautiful  and  glo- 
rious within,  that  her  friends  have  dreamed 
not  of  her  exterior  robing  and  drapery. 
But  she  is  all  glorious  within,  and  why 
should  not  her  clothing  be  of  wrought  gold. 
In  her  places  of  assembly  the  saints  have 
sat  and  worshipped,  and  why  should  not 
her  gates  be  jasper,  her  walls  chalcedony, 
and  her  arches  and  ceilings  traced  with 
the  colors  of  the  rainbow.  Within  her 
sanctuary,  millions  without  number  have 
learned  the  new  song,  and  why  should  not 
the  frescoed  arches  of  her  roof  resound  with 
the  anthem  of  the  organ.  It  will  not  do 
altogether  to  despise  the  moral  uses  of 
material  beauty.  It  will  not  do  for  a  church 
to  be  beneath  the  intelligence,  the  taste 
and  the  wealth  of  a  community.  We  may 
make  art  our  master  and  we  may  make  it 
our  servant.  We  have  too  much  abjured 
it  as  either.  We  may  now  give  to  it  its 
proper  place,  as  a  helper  and  minister  in 
our  great  and  noble  work.  The  day  is 
past  for  Israel  to  dwell  in  tents  or  in  barns. 
When  she  needs  to  do  it,  she  may,  nor 
will  she  lose  the  ark  and  the  covenant  and 
the  shekinah.  But  when  she  needs  not  to 
do  it,  she  must  exchange  her  tabernacle 
for  a  temple ;  for  even  Christ  demands 
what  we  can  give  Him,  and  He  who  is 
worshipped  in  spirit  and  in  truth,  would 
have  the  worship  of  His  house  conform  to 
our  taste  and  wealth  and  love.  The  es- 
sence  of  Puritanism   was   not   hatred   of 


404 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY. 


beauty,  but  love  of  Christ ;  and  wherever 
love  of  Christ  may  prompt  to  a  more  beau- 
tiful temple,  the  spirit  of  the  fathers  will 
linger,  and  Elijah's  robe  may  fall  upon 
Elisha's  shoulders.  The  prophet  of  fire 
may  make  way  for  the  Prophet  of  Peace. 
Our  church  has  fought  a  noble  battle  for 
Christ  under  a  leader  nobler  than  itself; 
nor  need  it  now  be  weary  of  its  work,  nor 
fear  to  adapt  its  usages  and  forms  to  the 
exigencies  of  future  conflicts.  So  long  as 
it  keeps  the  old  spirit,  it  may  not  hesitate 
to  avail  itself  of  new  formal  attractions. 

After  Christ  had  gone  into  the  heavens, 
and  the  old  temple  of  Mount  Moriah  had 
perished,  and  the  arch  of  Constantine  was 
built,  the  temples  that  had  been  construct- 
ed for  the  service  of  divided  and  local  gods 
were  pressed  into  the  service  of  the  One 
God.  Every  form  and  .symbol,  it  was  be- 
lieved, which  belonged  to  the  old  world, 
might  be  claimed  as  the  spoil  and  heritage 
of  that  which  succeeded  it.  But  one  and 
another  form  which  had  pressed  into  its 
service  the  roughest  stone,  the  richest 
marble  and  the  rarest  art,  could  as  little 
resist  the  idolatrous  tendencies  of  the 
heart  as  Solomon's  temple  had  done.  All 
came  at  last  to  feed  the  earth-born  tastes 
which  they  had  boasted  they  could  subdue 
and  sanctify. 

Then  the  idea  grew  up  that  such  tem- 
ples stifled  the  Spirit ;  that  art  was  a  dan- 
gerous ally  of  devotion ;  that  the  most 
ugly  building  was  the  one  that  God  was 
most  likely  to  inhabit;  that  the  upright  and 
pure  soul  was  his  only  true  temple.  They 
were  very  beautiful  and  true  words,  and 
pointed  to  high  truths,  just  as  the  towers 
and  minarets  of  the  old  temples  pointed  to 
them ;  but  they  are  just  as  little  able  to 
reach  and  preserve  them.  Hardness,  se- 
verity, dogmatism,  could  hide  itself  where 
there  seemed  to  be  only  the  utmost  sim- 
plicity and  barrenness  of  form.  But  both 
were  false.  Each  doctrine  is  unscriptural 
and  fatal.  The  one  gave  religion  bound 
as  a  captive  into  the  hands  of  art,  and 
made  its  services  fantastical,  sensuous  and 
corrupt.  The  other  gives  God's  beautiful 
universe  up  to  the  devil,  as  his  rightful 
possession,  and  makes  him  the  monopolist 


of  all  that  attracts  and  charms  our  bodily 
sense.  The  one  bound  the  invisible  under 
the  dominion  of  the  visible.  The  other 
tramples  the  life  out  of  the  material  and 
visible.  We  do  wisely,  then,  as  our  fath- 
ers would  have  done  had  they  had  the  war- 
fare of  our  day  on  their  hands,  when  we 
aim  to  make  all  that  is  artistic  and  all  that 
is  beautiful,  bring  their  tributes  and  lay 
them  at  the  feet  of  Christ ;  we  should  ex- 
clude nothing  that  makes  our  polity  more 
attractive  and  effective.  While  we  do  not 
doubt  that  its  essential  glory  is  the  pres- 
ence of  Christ  in  its  service,  we  shall  not 
be  likely  to  exalt  any  form  of  outward 
beauty  above  its  intrinsic  worth. 
.  Nor  is  our  Congregational  system  un- 
worthy that  it  should  avail  itself  of  all  the 
helps  and  ministries  of  beauty.  A  gener- 
ous, practical  catholicity  may  well  dwell  in 
a  palace.  A  church  that  does  not  assume 
to  declare  its  own  organization  as  com- 
mensurate with  the  Church  of  God,  which 
allows  of  diversity  of  ceremony  and  un- 
essential form,  might  well  have  a  royal 
tabernacle.  If  we  believed  in  augury  and 
signs,  we  might  easily  translate  into  a 
happy  omen  the  gentle  inclination  of 
obeisance  which  the  cross  on  yon  Roman 
tower  has  been  making  for  the  year  that  is 
past,  to  Bethany  church.  For  why  should 
not  the  least  denominational,  sectarian,  ex- 
clusive and  arrogant  of  all  the  churches, 
receive,  like  Joseph's  sheaf,  the  homage  of 
all  its  brethren? 

We  love  this  Congregational  polity.  In 
it  the  life  takes  precedence  of  the  form,  and 
we  would  irradiate  with  its  life  a  beautiful 
form.  Nor  would  we  refuse  our  fellowship 
to  those  who  have  the  same  spirit,  but  a 
narrower  and  contracted  form.  We  have 
no  Shibboleth  to  utter.  We  have  no  rit- 
ualistic bed  on  which  to  stretch  or  shorten 
the  human  spirit.  We  have  no  old  judaistic 
skins  in  which  to  pour  the  new  wine  of  the 
Gospel.  We  give  to  every  church,  to 
every  man,  the  largest  possible  liberty.  In 
the  midst  of  a  sisterhood  of  Christian  de- 
nominations, we  boast  that  we  are  not  de- 
nominational. We  call  each  Christian 
brother — we  call  every  living  church  a  sis- 
ter church.     It  is  not  a  word  fellowship ; 


MONTPELIER. 


405 


we  can  welcome  all  to  our  congregation,  to 
our  ordinances,  to  our  table.  We  love 
this  freedom  of  church,  a  freedom  to  give 
as  well  as  to  receive — to  give  the  hospital- 
ity of  our  pulpits,  our  sacraments  and  our 
charities. 

We  give  an  earnest  protest  against  sec- 
tarian exclusiveness,  and  ask  only  that  a 
man  should  love  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in 
order  to  our  communion.  We  hold  our- 
selves at  liberty  to  love  a  Pascal  and 
Fenelon,  a  Tillotson  and  Beveridge,  a 
Calvin  and  Luther,  a  Williams  and  Wesley. 
And  when  we  see  some  good  brethren  of 
other  churches  put  into  the  strait-jacket  of 
their  own  creeds  or  ritual,  and  kept  from  a 
hospitality  and  a  charity  which  Christ  re- 
quires, and  their  own  hearts  intensely  de- 
sire, by  their  ecclesiastical  order,  I  rejoice 
that  we  are  under  no  such  bondage,  and 
under  no  sad  necessity  to  prove  that  the 
blood  of  the  Son  of  God  only  runs  in  the 
veins  of  our  own  denomination.  And  why 
should  not  an  unsectarian  church,  the 
oldest,  most  numerous  and  most  inde- 
pendent in  New  England,  by  far ;  rich  in 
members,  influence,  position  and  history  ; 
rich  in  the  records  of  the  living  and  in  the 
rolls  of  her  dead ;  with  no  necessity  of 
pleading  for  additions  to  her  numbers  with 
that  resistless  earnestness  with  which  a 
hungry  man  cries  for  bread,  and  with  a 
disposition  to  give  bread  to  all  that  per- 
ish, why  should  not  such  a  church  have 
suitable  dwellings  for  its  sanctuaries?  Why 
should  not  the  garments  of  such  a  broad 
and  catholic  polity  be  of  Tyrian  dyes,  and 
its  habitation  be  fashioned  after  the  simil- 
itude of  a  palace  ?  And  we  have  reason  to 
bless  God  for  the  generous  Christian  en- 
terprise and  cultivated  Christian  taste 
which  are  coming  to  be  shown  in  the  mem- 
bers of  our  faith  and  order  in  the  erection 
of  their  churches. 

Finally,  a  noble  material  temple,  such  as 
this,  is  prophetic.  It  suggests  and  fore- 
shadows a  future  history.  We  cannot  but 
have  been  struck,  as  we  entered  it  this 
morning,  with  a  building  so  simple  in  its 
plan,  yet  so  ornate  and  splendid  in  its  de- 
tail ;  so  lavishly  decorated,  and  yet  so  en- 
tirely useful  and  practical ;  such  a  beautiful 


specimen  of  the  taste  and  art  of  our  time, 
and  yet  so  wholly  subservient  to  an  end  be- 
yond. I  should  misinterpret  the  spirit 
that  has  raised  these  walls,  if  I  should  bid 
you  mark  only  the  wealth  of  form  and 
color  that  meets  your  eyes,  or  ask  you  to 
contrast  it  with  the  primitive  models  of 
our  puritan  architecture.  We,  at  least, 
who  have  done  something  towards  raising 
this  temple  of  God,  may  feel  that  its  beauties 
should  enrich  us  with  lessons  of  deeper 
and  more  practical  value  than  can  attach 
to  anything  which  can  be  measured  by  the 
eye  or  sense.  Its  real  interest  to  us,  lies 
in  its  future  and  in  its  results.  To  us,  and 
to  our  children,  it  may  be  indeed,  for  gen- 
erations, a  Bethany ;  the  home  of  Christ 
and  his  friends  ;  a  place  of  wondrous  mir- 
acles and  benedictions  ;  the  scene  of  large 
growths  of  spiritual  character,  that  shall 
rival  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  or  the  palm 
trees  of  Olivet.  It  will  be  a  dear  house- 
hold name  which  shall  be  embalmed  in 
thoughts  and  feelings  as  fragrant  as  cluster 
about  the  old  Bethany  of  the  Son  of  God. 
The  hopes  and  dreams  of  the  past  are 
crystalized  into  stone.  We  shall  admire 
it  more  and  more,  love  it  more  and  more, 
as  it  becomes  associated  with  all  that  is 
sacred  and  tender  in  our  spiritual  histories. 
Slowly  but  surely  it  will  be  the  nucleus  and 
habitation  of  a  family  of  Christ  which  shall 
be  ever  forming,  and  ever  separating  and 
re-forming  in  the  skies.  We  shall  count 
no  cost  it  has  brought,  no  sacrifice  we  have 
made,  for  we  have  sown  seed  here  that 
shall  bear  successive  harvests  of  light  and 
peace  and  joy  while  the  world  stands.  We 
have  broken  the  alabaster  box  on  the  head 
of  our  Savior,  and  who  shall  say  that  it 
shall  have  no  memorial  in  the  future?  It 
will  foster  a  large  generosity,  and  be  at 
once  the  proof  and  the  helper  of  benefi- 
cence in  the  cause  of  Christ.  It  will  wit- 
ness the  vows,  the  prayers  and  the  tears  ot 
our  posterity,  and  its  manifest  presence 
will  bring  them  the  blessings  they  seek. 
To  thousands  of  eyes  and  imaginations  it 
will  sing  of  the  glory  of  the  upper  temple  ; 
that  glory  which  eye  hath  not  seen,  but 
which  the  eye  shall  yet  see  and  be  satis- 
fied.    It  will  help  our  thoughts  upward  in 


4o6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


their  flights,  and  earthly  architecture  will 
be  the  symbol  to  us  of  the  heavenly,  the 
divine  pattern  of  that  which  is  in  the  king- 
dom of  God.  We  have  laid  these  stones 
and  spread  these  arches  and  traced  these 
colors,  not  as  a  show  of  veneration,  not  to 
put  our  love  on  exhibition,  not  to  assure 
men  that  we  believe  in  Christ,  and  can 
prove  our  faith  on  so  magnificent  a  scale  ; 
but  the  building  itself  is  a  part  of  ourcom- 
munion.with  Heaven.  It  is  an  invocation 
of  trust.  It  is  a  sentence  of  praise.  It  is 
a  hymn  we  sing,  a  prayer  we  offer.  It 
stands  in  a  line  with  the  Stone  of  Bethel, 
with  the  Shekinah  of  the  tabernacle,  with 
the  temple  on  Mount  Moriah,  "with  the 
synagogue  of  Nazareth,  with  the  upper 
chamber  where  the  bread  from  heaven  was 
the  food  and  the  blood  of  Christ  was  the 
wme,  and  with  the  room  at  Jerusalem, 
where  the  tongues  of  fire  preached  at  the 
dedication  of  Christendom,  and  the  Holy 
Spirit  inaugurated  the  visible  church  for 
the  nations." 

And  if  any  object  that  all  this  richness 
is  needless,  we  say  more,  that  it  prefigures 
to  our  dull  sense  a  wider  and  grander  glory 
than  we  see.  It  is  a  mortal  means  to  an 
immortal  end.  It  lifts  our  gross  under- 
standing. It  images  a  beauty  that  tran- 
scends it.  It  is  the  hinder  part  of  the 
glory  that  is  inconceivable.  It  is  the  gate 
of  Heaven  and  the  vestibule  of  the  Holy 
of  Holies.  It  signifies  more  than  we  can 
at  once  receive.  It  is  a  stray  fragment  of 
the  upper  temple,  a  Gloria  in  Excelsis, 
amid  the  loud  din  and  stir  of  the  world 
around  it.  And  each  sweet  melody  or 
prolonged  harmony  of  the  princely  organ 
is  but  a  foretaste  of  that  music  whose  won- 
drous noise  fills  the  wide  spaces  of  Heaven. 
Here  we  stand  but  on  the  threshold  of 
mu.sic.  The  infinite  combinations  of  the 
two  thousand  pipes  of  this  instrument  can 
never  be  made  by  the  most  skillful  mortal 
player.  The  loftiest  art  can  never  com- 
pass a  tithe  of  its  harmonies.  There  is  no 
sound  without  its  significance,  no  organ 
without  its  antitype.  And  when  this  in- 
strument accompanies  the  simplest  hymn 
which  comes  from  the  lips  of  childhood,  or 
some  grand  old  hallelujah  chant  of  Asaph, 


or  prayer  of  David's,  or  pours  forth  its 
melodious  strains  like  the  rolling  of  a  river 
or  the  rushing  of  a  tide,  I  know  it  is  a 
faint,  yet  but  the  faintest  type  of  that  surg- 
ing flood  of  sound  which  shall  fill  the 
heavens  when  the  redeemed  and  the  angels 
shall  open  the  seven-fold  chorus  of  halle- 
lujahs and  harping  symphonies.  The 
solemn  grandeur,  or  plaintive  melody,  or 
jubilant  exultation  of  its  manifold  combi- 
nations, are  a  feeble  prophecy  of  what  that 
music  will  be  when  the  voice  of  the  whole 
church  of  God,  the  twelve-fold  chorus  of 
Israel's  ransomed,  shall  join  with  all  the 
trumpets  and  harps  sounding  on  the  other 
side,  in  the  unimagined  crescendo  and  glo- 
rious dechachord  of  Eternity.  Thus  we 
read  the  future  in  the  present,  and  the 
temple  of  to-day  is  a  prophecy  of  that  wor- 
ship and  that  temple, 

"When  all  the  halls  of  Zion 
For  aye  shall  be  complete. 
And  in  the  land  of  beauty 
All  things  of  beauty  meet. 

Where  tears  are  ever  banished 
And  smiles  have  no  alloy. 
With  jasper  glow  thy  bulwarks. 

Thy  courts  with  emeralds  blaze. 
The  sardius  and  the  topaz 
Unite  in  thee  their  rays; 
Thine  ageless  walls  are  bonded 

With  amethyst  unpriced. 
Thy  Saints  build  up  its  fabric. 
And  the  Comer  Stone  is  Christ." 

And  now  what  wait  we  for  ?  What  re- 
mains but  that  you  should  perfect  your 
work?  If  this  building  is  to  be  all  and 
more  than  we  pray  or  think ;  if  it  is  to  be 
the  habitation  of  God  and  the  fountain  of 
nameless  blessings  to  you  and  to  your 
children  to  the  last  generation  ;  if  He  who 
dwells  in  the  highest  Heavens  is  to  make 
it  His  tabernacle,  and  in  very  deed  dwell 
with  us,  and  vouchsafe  His  spiritual  pres- 
ence, power  and  glory  in  His  temple,  I  now 
call  upon  you  to  offer  to  Him  this  build- 
ing, and  dedicate  it  to  His  sole  service, 
and  to  the  honor  and  praise  of  His  dear 
Son. 

[The  keys  were  here  presented,  and  the 
building  offered  for  dedication,  by  D.  Taft, 
Esq.] 

Acceptance  and  Dedication, 

By  Prof.  M.  H.  Buckham. 


MONTPELIER. 


407 


We  receive  this  building  at  your  hands. 
I  ask  you  now  to  rise  and  stand  upon  your 
feet,  as  we  offer  it  as  our  gift  to  Almighty 
God,  and  dedicate  it  to  the  Father,  the 
Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost.  With  one  ac- 
cord let  us  consecrate  it  to  the  Master's 
glory,  to  Christ  and  the  Church.  And  as 
the  dedication  of  the  church  is  vain  with- 
out the  solemn  consecration  of  the  wor- 
shippers too,  I  call  upon  you  all  to  dedi- 
cate yourselves  to  the  service  of  God. 
To  Him  may  your  souls  be  dedicated. 
To  Him  may  your  bodies  be  dedicated. 
To  Him  may  your  spirits  be  dedicated. 
And  that  He  may  graciously  accept  this 
solemn  act,  I  call  upon  you  all  now  to  pray. 

Anthem. 

Benediction,  By  Rev.  L.  Tenney. 

Missionaries  : — Mrs.  Sarah  Coleman, 
married  Erastus  Dean  of  Salisbury,  and 
went  from  this  Church  to  the  Cherokee 
Mission  about  40  or  50  years  since,  Mrs. 
Emeline  (Bradshaw)  Dodge,  and  Mrs. 
Coleman,  who  married  Freder'k  Ellsworth. 
Samuel  Mosely  from  this  place  went  to 
the  Choctaw  Mission,  and  Mrs.  Lucinda 
(Washburn)  Wright,  who  married  a  mis- 
sionary not  from  this  State. 

ART  AND  NATURE — VERMONT  IN  SUMMER. 

We  have  no  quarrel  with  art.  It  is  the 
province  of  man's  genius.  It  is  the  realm 
of  his  skill  and  intelligence.  But  we  have 
a  greater  love  for  nature.  It  is  the  prov- 
ince of  God's  genius,  the  realm  of  his  in- 
finite intelligence  and  power.  He  never 
paints.  He  creates.  The  glory  and  sweet- 
ness and  marvels  of  life  are  the  effects  of 
His  handiwork.  In  perpetual  change  in  har- 
mony with  invariable  law  He  finds  the  se- 
cret and  hiding  of  His  power.  There  are 
some  galleries  of  art  that  are  especially  in- 
teresting. The  Louvre  ravishes  the  inexpe- 
rienced eye.  But  the  Dresden  and  Floren- 
tine halls  never  weary  the  cultivated  vis- 
ion and  the  instructed  taste.  Men  travel 
across  the  sea,  time  and  again,  to  look 
upon  these  triumphs  of  human  genius. 
There  are  bright  pictures  in  other  gal- 
leries worth  the  price  of  an  European 
tour  to  look  at  but  once.  The  mar- 
riage of  St.  Catherine,  and  the  infant  Sa- 


viour in  the  Vatican,  haunts  the  mem- 
ory like  an  imperishable  dream.  A  few 
great  paintings  in  certain  salons  stand 
out  from  all  the  rest  like  the  face  of  Denner 
in  the  Imperial  collection  at  Vienna;  or  a 
few  unsurpassed  art  collections  attract  the 
attention  of  all  tourists,  like  the  Academy 
of  St.  Luke  in  Rome.  And  it  is  the  same  in 
nature.  A  few  regions  God  has  made  more 
beautiful  than  others.  His  hand  has  fash- 
ioned some  dreams  or  symbols  of  heaven 
in  certain  landscapes  of  earth.  And  we 
have  always  thought  that  the  Almighty  in- 
tended, when  He  formed  the  hills  of  Ver- 
mont, and  shook  out  the  green  drapery  of 
the  forests  over  their  sloping  shoulders, 
and  made  them  fall  in  folds  like  the  robe 
of  a  king  along  their  sides,  to  give  us  a  dim 
picture  of  the  new  creation  and  the  celes- 
tial realm.  Italy  is  a  land  of  rarer  sunsets 
and  deeper  sky,  of  haunting  songs  and 
grander  memories  ;  Switzerland  is  a  region 
of  more  towering  sublimity  and  unapproach- 
able grandeur,  but  in  all  the  galleries  of 
God,  there  is  none  that  so  shows  the  ex- 
quisite genius  of  creative  art ;  the  blending 
of  all  that  is  beautiful  and  attractive,  with 
nothing  to  terrify  the  eye  ;  the  mingling  of 
much  of  the  material  glory,  both  of  the 
earth  and  the  heavens,  with  so  little  to  ap- 
pall the  sense.  Vermont  in  summer  is  the 
Almighty's  noblest  gallery  of  divine  art. 
We  never  traverse  its  valleys  or  climb  its 
hills,  in  this  sweetest  of  all  months ;  we 
never  lie  down  on  the  banks  where  the  wild 
thyme  blows,  or  under  the  shade  of  the 
balsam  or  the  fir  ;  we  never  trace  the 
mountain  streams  and  watch  for  the  silver 
flashes  which  tempt  the  silent,  gentle 
angler,  who  "handles  his  worm  tenderly," 
to  throw  his  fly ;  we  never  penetrate  the 
secret  places  in  the  heart  of  the  hills,  or 
watch  the  pleasant  wooing  which  is  always 
going  on  in  shady  places  between  the  rip- 
pHng  waters  and  the  ash,  the  beech  and 
the  willow,  which  bend  to  kiss  them  as 
they  pass,  without  a  grateful  sense  of  the 
riches  of  God,  and  an  irrepressible  wish  to 
share  them  with  our  friends  whose  sense 
of  beauty  is  mainly  nurtured  at  human 
sources. — Rev.  Mr.  Lord  in  the  Vermont 
Watchman. 


4o8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


"THE   CHURCH   OF   THE  MESSIAH." 
INDEPENDENT. 

BY  REV.  J.  EDWAUD  WRIGHT. 

It  seems  appropriate  to  introduce  a 
sketch  of  this  society,  with  some  account 
of  Unitarian  and  Universalist  work  done 
in  Montpelier  before  1864.  "In  an  ac- 
count of  the  religious  condition  of  the  town 
previous  to  181 1,  the  late  Rev.  Chester 
Wright  stated  that  previous  to  1800,  there 
had  rarely  been  any  preaching  except  by 
the  Methodists  ;  that  the  increased  popula- 
tion from  1800  was  divided  into  various 
sects,  the  largest  number  professing  Uni- 
versalism."  Among  the  prominent  men 
among  the  first  settlers  who  avowed  them- 
selves Universalists  were  Gen.  Pearley 
Davis  and  his  brother  Hezekiah,  Capt. 
Stephen  Foster,  Mr.  Arthur  Daggett,  Es- 
quire Sibley,  and  Capt.  Isaac  Putnam. 
Rev.  Paul  Dean,  who  was  the  Universalist 
minister  in  Barre  in  1808,  and  for  some 
years  thereafter,  preached  occasionally  in 
Montpelier,  as  did  other  ministers  of  that 
sect  from  time  to  time.  Universalists  par- 
ticipated, under  the  leadership  of  Gen. 
Davis,  in  building  the  Union  meeting- 
house, at  the  Center  of  the  town,  at  an 
early  date.  Later,  they  eflfected  a  sep- 
arate organization,  and  built  a  substantial 
brick  house  of  worship  at  the  East  village, 
and  later  still,  the  same  society,  while  con- 
tinuing to  use  the  brick  house,  built  an- 
other, of  wood,  at  the  North  village.  "  The 
following  list  of  Universalist  preachers  in 
Montpelier,  has  been  gathered  from  Wal- 
ton's Register  :  1833,  John  M.  Currier; 
1834,  John  M.  Austin  ;  1835,  B.  H.  Fuller, 
J.  Wright;  1836,  J.  Wright;  1837, '38, 
John  Gregory;  1839,  J.  Wright,  J.  Boy- 
den  ;  i840-'66,  Eli  Ballou  ;  1867,  '70,  J.  O. 
Skinner;  187 1,  Eli  Ballou." 

But  it  is  not  to  be  understood  that  all 
of  these  ministers  were  engaged  in  preach- 
ing in  Montpelier  during  the  years  set 
against  their  names.  No  doubt  all  re- 
sided here,  and  some  of  them  preached 
within  the  limits  of  the  old  town  of  Mont- 
pelier, but  some  were  employed  elsewhere. 

For  some  17  years  preceding  1830,  little 
or  nothing  was  done  to  sustain  Universal- 
ism  in  this  town ;  but  about  the  year  1831, 


a  society  was  organized  in  what  is  now 
Montpelier,  prominent  in  which  were  such 
men  as  Wooster  Sprague,  (who  started 
the  enterprise,)  Simeon  S.  Post,  Dr.  J.  Y. 
Dewey,  Richard  W.  Hyde,  Alfred  Wain- 
wright,  Araunah  Waterman,  Mahlon  Cot- 
trill,  Edward  Brown,  Joel  Goldsbury,  and 
General  Shubael  Flint.  The  Rev.  John 
M.  Austin  served  as  pastor  of  this  society 
forsome3  years,  when  he  was  called  to  Dan- 
vers,  Mass.  The  meetings  were  held  in 
the  old  State  House,  near  the  present  Pa- 
vilion. After  Mr.  Austin  left,  the  society 
had  no  regular  meetings  ;  but  occasionally 
a  meeting  was  held  by  them  in  the  Mason- 
ic Hall,  the  Rev.  John  E.  Palmer  of  Barre, 
and  the  Rev.  Rus.sell  Streeter,  and  others, 
occupying  the  desk  from  time  to  time,  until 
1840,  when  Rev.  Eli  Ballou  bought  "The 
Christian  Repository,"  and  removed  from 
Stowe  to  Montpelier  to  edit  and  publish  it. 
He  preached  a  part  of  the  time  for  several 
months  after  coming  to  town,  in  Masonic 
Hall,  but  found  himself  too  much  octupied 
otherwise,  to  justify  his  continuing  the  ef- 
fort. In  1 85 1,  he  obtained  the  assistance 
of  Rev.  John  S.  Lee,  (now  Prof,  in  Canton 
Theological  School)  ;  a  new  society,  called 
"The  Liberal  Christian  Church,"  was  or- 
ganized ;  and  meetings  were  regularly  held 
for  2  years  in  the  "Free  Church,"  (now 
"  Capital  Hall,")  the  first  year  by  Messrs. 
Ballou  and  Lee,  alternately,  the  second 
year  by  Mr.  Ballou  alone.  But  the  dis- 
couragements proved  too  great  to  be  over- 
come, and  another  long  period  of  inaction 
followed. 

Very  few  Unitarian  ministers  had  ever 
been  heard  in  Montpelier ;  and  only  occa- 
sionally had  an  avowed  Spiritualist  given 
a  lecture,  or  a  "  seance."  Among  the  for- 
mer the  Rev  G.  W.  Burnap,  D.  D.,  of 
Baltimore,  Md.,  (whose  sister  was  the 
mother  of  our  honored  townsmen,  Charles 
and  George  Reed),  the  Rev.  A.  A.  Liver- 
more  of  Keene,  N.  H.,  the  Rev.  Chas. 
Brooks  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  and  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Ingersoll  of  Burlington,  preached  here 
at  different  times. 

But  in  October  of  1864,  Mr.  Charles  A. 
Allen,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  College  in 
1858,  and  of  Meadville  Theological  School 


MONTPELIER. 


409 


in  1864,  began,  in  the  spirit  of  a  missiona- 
ry, to  hold  meetings  in  Montpelier,  to 
which  ' '  liberal  christians"  of  whatever  de- 
nomination, were  especially  invited.  The 
congregations  met  first  in  "Village  Hall," 
but  soon  permission  was  obtained, — (not 
without  opposition  however), — to  occupy 
the  Court  House ;  and  for  more  than  a 
year  the  meetings  were  held  there.  The 
number  who  assembled,  hardly  more  than 
a  dozen  at  first,  rapidly  increased.  A  so- 
ciety was  formed  in  Dec.  1864,  under  the 
title  of  "The  Montpelier  Independent 
Meeting  House  Society."  In  March  of  the 
next  year  Mr.  Allen  was  ordained  in  the 
"  Brick  Church,"  Rev.  R.  P.  Stebbins, 
D.  D.,  preaching  the  sermon.  The  society 
soon  proceeded  to  build  a  house  of  worship 
on  the  north-west  corner  of  Main  and 
School  streets,  which  was  dedicated  Jan. 
25,  1866,  under  the  name  of  "  The  Church 
of  the  Messiah,"  Rev.  F.  Frothingham 
preaching  the  sermon.  The  cost  of  the 
site,  the  building,  and  the  organ  was  about 
$20,000. 

"The  Covenant  of  Christian  Fellowship 
in  the  Church  of  the  Messiah,"  adopted 
May  19,  1867,  reads  as  follows:  "We 
write  our  names  to  this  Covenant  in  the 
faith  and  fellowship  of  Christian  disciples  ; 
trusting  in  God  our  Father  in  heaven,  ac- 
cepting the  Gospel  of  Christ  as  our  sover- 
eign law,  and  resolving,  by  the  help  ot 
God,  to  live  in  honesty  and  charity  with 
all  men,  and  in  Christian  faithfulness  with 
one  another." 

Among  those  active  in  the  organization 
of  this  society  were  Richard  W.  Hyde, 
Col.  Levi  Boutwell,  Hon.  W.  G.  Ferrin, 
Joel  Foster,  Jr.,  Hon.  Nelson  A.  Chase, 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  Hon.  Charles  Reed, 
George  W.  Reed,  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham,  H. 
S.  Loomis,  L.  B.  Huntington,  Rev.  Dr. 
EH  Ballou,  Albert  Johonnott,  George  Wat- 
son, W.  F.  Braman,  Hon.  J.  A.  Wing, 
and,  in  most  cases  the  wives  of  these  gen- 
tlemen. 

While  the  society  was  yet  occupying  the 
Court  House,  they  organized  a  Sunday 
school,  which  has  been  at  various  dates 
under  the  superintendence  of  the  pastors, 
and    Hon.    Charles   Reed,    Hon.    N.    A. 


Chase,  Messrs.  Geo.  W.  Wing,  Joel  Fos- 
ter, Jr.,  Albert  Johonnott,  and  Fred  Blan- 
chard.  Its  library  contains  [1881]  over 
500  bound  volumes,  besides  pamphlets. 
The  teachers  and  scholars  on  its  roll  have 
together  numbered  for  several  years  about 
140,  though  the  attendance  has  only  occa- 
sionally exceeded  100.  The  number  of 
families  connected  with  the  society  through 
some  or  all  of  their  members  is  over  200. 

Mr.  Allen's  pastorate  continued  about  5 
years.  In  the  fall  of  1869,  he  obtained 
leave  of  absence  for  a  trip  to  Europe,  and 
the  Rev.  J.  Edward  Wright,  a  native  of 
Montpelier,  was  engaged  to  supply  his 
place  for  a  year.  While  away,  Mr.  Allen 
tendered  his  resignation,  which  was  ac- 
cepted, and  Mr.  Wright  became  the  pas- 
tor, and  yet  continues  in  that  position. 

The  society  has  never  been  embarrassed 
by  any  considerable  debt ;  and,  altho'  com- 
posite in  its  membership,  comprising  Uni- 
tarians, Universalists,  some  Spiritualists, 
and  not  a  few  formerly  associated  yith  dif- 
ferent "orthodox"  denominations,  has 
throughout  its  existence  enjoyed  remarka- 
ble harmony,  and  almost  uninterrupted 
prosperity.  Too  much  praise  can  not  be 
given  to  Mr.  Allen  for  the  hopefulness  and 
zeal  with  which  he,  unsummoned,  began 
the  enterprise,  and  for  the  energy,  and 
tact,  and  persistence,  and  untiring  activity 
with  which  he  labored,  gathering  the  peo- 
ple .together,  uniting  them  with  a  common 
purpose,  inspiring  them  with  the  convic- 
tion that  they  could  build  a  church,  and 
communicating  to  them  his  own  spirit  of 
faithfulness  and  self-sacrificing  devotion. 

THE   CHRISTIAN   REPOSITORY. 

In  1833  Rev.  John  M.  Austin,  then  pas- 
tor of  a  Universalist  Society  in  Montpelier 
village,  and  Rev.  B.  H.  Fuller,  bought 
"The  Universalist  Watchman  and  Chris- 
tian Repository,"  of  Rev.  William  Bell, 
who  had  published  it  a  few  years  in  Wood- 
stock, and  changed  the  place  of  publication 
to  Montpelier.  Mr.  Austin  dissolved  his 
connection  with  the  paper  in  a  short  time, 
on  his  removal  to  Danvers,  Mass.,  but  Mr. 
Fuller  continued  the  publication  two  or 
three  years,  when  he  sold  half  his  interest 


52 


410 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


to  Rev.  John  Moore  of  Lebanon,  N.  H. 
The  paper  was  removed  to  Lebanon,  and 
published  there  a  year  or  two  by  Messrs. 
Moore  and  Fuller.  Then,  about  the  year 
1838,  Rev.  Joseph  Wright  became  the  pro- 
prietor, and  Montpelier  was  again  made 
the  place  of  publication.  Rev.  John  E. 
Palmer  and  others  co-operating  with  Mr. 
Wright  in  the  work. 

In  January,  1840,  Rev.  Eli  Ballou,  then 
of  Stowe,  purchased  the  paper  and  contin- 
ued its  publication  regularly  as  a  weekly 
journal  during  30  years,  or  until  May,  1870, 
when  he  sold  it  to  the  •'  Boston  Universal- 
ist  Publishing  House,"  and  thus  the  paper 
was  merged  in  "  The  Universalist,"  known 
at  the  present  date  as  "The  Christian 
Leader." 


CHRIST  CHURCH,  MONTPELIER,  VT. 
HISTORICAL   SKETCH   OF   CHRIST   CHURCH. 

BY  HIKAM  ATKINS,  ESQ. 

The  first  confirmation  in  Montpelierwas 
in  1839,  when  Bishop  Hopkins  visited  the 
Capital,  and  administered  that  apostolic 
rite  in  the  meeting-house  of  the  Metho- 
dists, to  Mrs.  S.  P.  Redfield,  Mrs.  J.  M. 
Richardson  and  Hon.  Isaac  F.  Redfield  ; 
the  first  of  these  being  at  that  time  the 
only  person  in  Montpelier  reared  in  the 
Church. 


In  1840,  Christ  Church  Parish  was  im- 
perfectly organized,  and  reported  to  the 
Diocesan  Convention  in  September  by  Mr. 
George  B.  Manser,  a  candidate  for  holy 
orders,  there  being  four  confirmations  that 
year.  In  1841  the  first  parish  meeting  was 
held,  and  George  B.  Manser,  Isaac  F. 
Redfield,  J.  Y.  Dewey,  S.  P.  Redfield, 
A.  C.  Pierce,  H.  N.  Baylies,  and  Daniel 
Baldwin,  were  elected  vestrymen.  S.  P. 
Redfield  served  15  years,  until  1858,  and 
Dr.  J.  Y.  Dewey  from  1841  until  187 1,  ex- 
cept from  1866  to  '68,  when  he  was  at  his 
own  request  excused  from  service.  During 
Dr.  Dewey's  last  two  years  of  service  he 
was  senior  warden. 

In  1842  the  parish  was  represented  in  Di- 
ocesan Convention  by  George  B.  Manser, 
a  lay  delegate.  Sept.  21,  1842,  Mr.  Manser 
was  made  a  deacon,  and  took  charge  of 
the  parish.  During  this  year  it  was  fully 
organized,  and  the  work  of  building  a 
church,  on  the  site  now  occupied  by  the 
"Riverside"  building,  set  about,  the  funds 
being  raised  by  subscription  and  sale  of 
pews.  Dec.  29,  1842,  the  church  was  con- 
secrated, and  regular  service  commenced 
Jan.  15,  1843.  June  7,  Mr.  Manser  was 
advanced  to  the  priesthood,  and  became 
Rector.  The  Diocesan  Convention  met  in 
Montpelier,  Sept.  20,  1843,  ^^d  Hon. 
Isaac  F.  Redfield  represented  the  parish  as 
lay  delegate,  being  the  first  regular  del- 
egate. In  1845,  the  first  contribution  for 
church  work  outside  was  made  by  the 
parish — $12.70,  the  sum  not  being  so  im- 
portant as  the  spirit  of  the  gift  was  signifi- 
cant. In  1846  the  ladies  of  the  parish 
raised  $100  for  a  bell. 

In  1848,  Mr.  Manser  resigned  his  charge, 
the  place  being  temporarily  filled  by  Rev. 
F.  W.  Shelton,  who  officiated  for  Mr. 
Manser  8  months,  from  Oct.  1847,  to  June, 

1848.  The  following  September,  Mr. 
Manser  returned,   but  finally  resigned  in 

1849,  and  Jan.  18,  1850,  the  Rev.  E.  F. 
Putnam  became  rector.  During  this  year 
the  bell  in  the  tower  of  the  present  church 
was  procured,  at  a  cost  of  $250.  In  1849, 
Hon.  Timothy  P.  Redfield  was  elected  a 
vestryman,  and  has  served  continuously  to 
the  present,  having  been  senior  and  junior 


MONTPELIER. 


411 


warden  several  years,  lay  delegate  to  the 
Diocesan  Convention,  and  lay  delegate  to 
represent  the  Diocese  in  the  General  Con- 
vention. In  1850,  Hon.  Charles  Dewey 
was  chosen  a  vestryman,  and  has  held  the 
position  almost  continuously  until  the 
present  time,  and  he  is  now  senior  warden. 
In  1850,  the  parish  had  increased  in  num- 
bers enough  to  entitle  it  to  two  lay  del- 
egates in  the  Diocesan  Convention,  and 
Messrs.  T.  P.  Redfield  and  Chas.  Dewey 
were  the  first  who  went  there  together. 
This  year,  Hon.  S.  B.  Colby  was  chosen 
one  of  the  vestry,  and  remained  a  member 
of  it  until  the  election  of  1864,  when  he 
was  not  re-elected,  having  removed  to 
Washington,  D.  C,  to  assume  the  duties 
of  Register  of  the  Treasury,  which  position 
he  filled  until  his  decease  in  1867. 

In  1852,  the  debt  was  reported  reduced, 
and  extinguished  in  1865.  The  first  Sun- 
day in  June,  1854,  the  Rev.  E.  F.  Putnam, 
who  was  a  much-loved  rector  of  the  par- 
ish, died  at  St.  Albans,  having  been  com- 
pelled by  ill  health  to  previously  resign  his 
rectorship,  and  upon  the  parish  records  is 
spread  a  sincere  and  warm  testimonial  of 
the  high  esteem  and  true  affection  felt  for 
him.  Nearly  30  years  have  elapsed  since 
his  departure,  but  his  memory  is  still  green 
in  the  hearts  of  the  people  then  here.  The 
day  of  Mr.  Putnam's  decease.  Rev.  F.  W. 
Shelton  became  rector,  and  remained  as 
such  until  the  spring  of  1866,  when  he  re- 
signed. 

Aug.  3,  1866,  Rev.  Daniel  Crane  Roberts 
was  elected  rector,  and  the  same  month 
assumed  the  duties  of  the  position.  Mr. 
Roberts'  resignation  was  accepted  May  8, 
1869,  and  Rev.  Wm.  J.  Harris,  D.  D., 
was  chosen  rector  Aug.  30,  1869.  Dr. 
Harris  resigned  late  in  1870,  and  Rev. 
Andrew  Hull,  D.  D.,  was  elected  rector 
March  20,  1871.  Dr.  Hull  was  rector  of 
the  parish  until  the  summer  of  1879,  when 
his  resignation  of  May  12,  1879,  took  ef- 
fect. Oct.  13,  1879,  Rev.  Howard  Fremont 
Hill,  of  Concord,  N.  H.,  the  present  incum- 
bent, was  elected  rector. 

Of  the  seven  rectors,  the  first  three  are 
dead.  In  the  sermon  of  Dr.  Shelton, 
which  follows  this  sketch.  Dr.  Manser  and 


Rev.  Mr.  Putnam  are  spoken  of  as  their 
good  work  deserved,  and  the  memory  of 
Dr.  Shelton  is  delightful  to  all  who  knew 
that  good  man. 

The  first  recorded  baptism  is  that  of 
Berkeley  Baldwin,  infant  son  of  Dr.  F.  W. 
McDowell,  though  12  baptisms  had  been 
previously  reported.  The  first  recorded 
marriage  is  that  of  Mr.  James  T.  Thurston 
and  Miss  Fanny  Witherell.  The  first 
marriage  by  Mr.  Shelton  was  that  of  Mr. 
Charles  Dewey  and  Miss  Betsey  Tarbox, 
May  3,  1848. 

Among  the  earlier  vestrymen  we  find 
the  names  of  R.  S.  Howard,  afterwards 
rector  at  Woodstock,  Homer  W.  Heaton, 
Esq.,  C.  W.  Bancroft,  George  Langdon, 
E.  P.  Scribner  and  others.  But  those 
most  closely  identified  with  the  parish  in 
this  relation  are  S.  P.  Redfield,  who  served 
from  1843  to  '58,  and  was  junior  warden  in 
1844,  and  senior  warden  from  1845  to  '52 ; 
J.  W.  Ellis,  who  has  been  vestryman  most 
of  the  time  since  1845,  ^^'^  many  years 
junior  warden  or  senior  warden  ;  Stoddard 
B.  Colby,  vestryman  in  1848  and  junior 
warden  from  that  time  until  1850,  and 
again  in  '58  ;  and  Hon.  Roderick  Richard- 
son, now  of  Boston,  who  was  a  vestryman 
and  senior  warden. 

The  present  vestry  consists  of  Hon. 
Timothy  P.  Redfield,  Charles  Dewey,  J. 
W.  Ellis,  Fred  E.  Smith,  Hiram  Atkins, 
Edward  Dewey,  L.  P.  Gleason,  Geo.  E. 
Taplin,  and  H.  N.  Taplin,  Jr.  Mr.  I.  P. 
Dana  was  elected  a  vestryman  in  1879  and 
re-elected  in  1880  and  1881,  but  is  not 
now  a  member  of  the  vestry,  having  re- 
signed when  he  removed  from  the  Parish. 

Mr.  Smith,  who  is  now  junior  warden, 
was  first  chosen  vestryman  in  1864;  Mr. 
Atkins  in  1868;  Mr.  Edward  Dewey  in 
1871  ;  Mr.  L.  P.  Gleason  in  1876;  Mr.  G. 
E.  Taplin  in  1876;  Mr.  Dana  and  Mr. 
H.  N.  Taplin,  Jr.,  in  1879. 

Mr.  Truman  C.  Phinney  was  chosen  ves- 
tryman in  1853,  and  held  the  position  till 
he  declined  further  service  j  he  was  also 
for  several  years  junior  warden. 

In  1866,  the  parish  voted  to  erect  anew 
church,  and  efficient  measures  were  at 
once  taken.      Liberal  subscriptions  were 


412 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


made  by  the  leading  men  of  the  parish, 
seconded  in  their  liberalit}'  by  those  less 
wealthy.  The  S.  B.  Colby  estate,  on  State 
street,  opposite  the  Court  House,  was  se- 
cured, and  the  work  commenced.  The 
church  was  consecrated  June  2,  1868. 
(See  introductory  view.) 

The  ground  plan  includes  nave  and 
aisles,  chancel,  organ  chamber  and  sac- 
risty, the  tower  being  engaged  in  the  north- 
ern end  of  the  east  aisle.  Exterior,  108 
by  55  feet;  tower  and  spire,  100  feet;  in- 
terior—  nave,  22  feet  wide,  separated  by 
two  colonnades  from  the  two  aisles,  each 
1 1  feet  wide ;  chancel  1 7  feet  wide  by 
23  deep ;  whole  exterior,  except  roof 
and  clerestory,  light-colored  Barre  and 
Berlin  granite ;  aisle  walls  without  but- 
tresses ;  clerestory,  timber  slatted  outside. 
The  north  front  is  the  most  imposing  part 
of  the  exterior.  The  tower  is  of  three 
stages,  a  single  leaf-door  in  the  lowest, 
two  long,  narrow,  glazed  lights  in  the 
second,  three  equal  belfry  windows  in  the 
third;  the  belfry  stage,  a  plain  square; 
below,  double  buttresses  at  the  angles, 
running  into  a  massive  blocking  of  the  wall 
at  the  base,  which  gives  an  effect  of  sin- 
gular strength  and  solidity.  A  similar 
character  is  given  to  the  buttress  on  the 
opposite  angle  of  the  north  end.  The 
tower  is  surmounted  by  a  broach  spire, 
crowned  with  a  well-carved  finial,  all  stone 
to  the  top.  The  main  doorway  is  of  two 
leaves,  in  the  middle  of  the  north  end,  with 
jamb  shafts  and  mould  arch.  In  the  gable 
is  a  round  window,  with  three  spherical 
triangles  containing  three  bold  trefoils, 
the  interspaces  being  filled  with  quatre- 
foils  and  smaller  openings.  The  coped 
gable  is  covered  with  a  very  bold,  large, 
plain  cross  of  stone — the  only  cross  on 
the  exterior.  On  entering  the  interior,  the 
effect  of  loftiness  is  far  in  advance  of  one's 
expectations  from  seeing  the  exterior  alone. 
The  nave  and  aisles  are  of  five  bays  ;  the 
chancel  of  two  ;  the  apparent  length  of  the 
nave,  increased  by  an  arch  at  the  north 
end,  like  and  opposite  the  bold  and  well- 
marked  chancel  arch.  The  columns  are 
four  shafts  in  clusters,  with  mouldings  be- 
tween, the  arches  resting  on  them  corre- 


spondingly moulded.  The  aisle  windows 
are  single  lights  in  each  bay.  The  chancel 
arch  is  well  worked  ;  chancel-rail  and  wain- 
scot, altar — which  stands  out  from  the 
wall — in  black  walnut ;  seats  in  the  nave, 
doors,  etc.,  black  ash  and  black  walnut,  in 
their  natural  tmts. 

The  organ  chamber,  on  the  west,  opens 
by  a  narrow  arch  in  the  church,  and  by  a 
broader  one  into  the  nave  ;  the  organ  is  a 
fine  and  powerful  instrument.  The  roof  is 
ceiled  in  three  coats,  the  centre  one  being 
the  narrowest.  The  framing  of  the  prin- 
cipals shows  within,  with  braces  and  span- 
drils  of  open  tracery ;  and  similar  braces 
run  longtitudinally  along  the  purlines,  from 
principal  to  principal,  these  timberings 
adorned  with  color,  the  whole  ceiling  other- 
wise a  light  blue.  The  windows  are  filled 
with  stained  glass,  the  altar  window,  the 
largest,  having  three  lights  under  atraceried 
head ;  the  central,  widest  light,  the  full- 
length  figure  of  our  Lord  blessing  the 
chalice.  The  evangelistic  symbols  and 
other  emblems  fill  the  side  lights  and  head 
of  the  window ;  clerestory  windows  of 
chancel,  nave  and  northern  rose  window, 
pattern  glass  of  rich  colors  ;  aisle  windows 
all  with  borders  of  colors,  each  an  em- 
blem in  the  head,  otherwise  filled  with 
stencilled  quarries ;  font  near  the  sacristy 
door,  Vermont  marble. 

The  architect  was  J.  J.  R.  Randall,  of 
Rutland ;  the  builder,  P.  Trow,  of  Mont- 
pelier.  The  painting  was  done  by  N. 
Osgood  Snow,  of  Montpelier.  The  marble 
for  the  font  was  the  gift  of  Hon.  Pitt  W. 
Hyde,  and  the  beautiful  and  appropriate 
design  was  from  the  pencil  of,  and  fur- 
nished by.  Rev.  John  Henry  Hopkins. 
The  cost  of  the  church  was  over  $30,000 ; 
the  only  subscriptions  received  from  out- 
side the  parish  were :  In  New  York, 
George  Bradshaw,  $1,000 ;  M.  M.  Kellogg, 
$500;  George  R.  Thompson,  $150;  E.  S. 
Jaffrey,  $75.  In  Philadelphia,  Jay  and 
H.  D.  Cooke,  $400.  In  Washington  City, 
from  Charles  Knapp,  $200.  In  Burling- 
ton, from  V.  P.  Noyes,  $100.  No  small 
part  of  the  credit  due  for  the  perfectness 
with  which  the  work  was  completed  be- 
longs of  right  to  Judge    Richardson  and 


MONTPELIER. 


413 


his  associates  of  the  building  committee, 
Col.  Fred  E.  Smith  and  the  late  Carlos 
Bancroft,  Esq.  The  last  of  the  building 
debt  was  extinguished  some  years  since. 

In  1843,  there  were  15  communicants; 
in  1863,  68;  in  1868,  "j^ .  The  statistics 
for  1881  show:  Families,  86,  comprising 
266  individuals  ;  individuals  not  included 
in  families,  30;  total,  296;  baptisms  for 
the  year,  16;  confirmations,  6;  communi- 
cants, 129 — males  44,  females  85  ;  Sunday- 
school  teachers,  6;  pupils,  67. 

The  following  sermon,  by  Dr.  Shelton, 
preached  Sept.  3,  1865,  is  inserted,  as  his- 
torically valuable  in  that  it  shows  well 
what  manner  of  men  were  the  three  de- 
ceased rectors  of  this  church  : 

Sermon  by  Dr.  Shelton,  1865. 

"  Return,  we  beseech  thee,  O  God  of  hosts : 

look  down  from  heaven,  and  behold,  and  visit 

this  vine.     So  will  not  we  go  back  from  thee  : 

quicken  us,  and  we  will  call  upon  thy  name." 

Ps.  80:   14,  18. 

A  few  words  will  suffice  to  explain  the 
allusion  contained  in  the  above  passage. 
The  kingdom  of  Israel  is  spoken  of  under 
the  similitude  of  a  vine  which  was  of  God's 
own  planting.  It  had  taken  root,  and 
flouri-shed  abundantly,  put  forth  its  lively 
shoots,  green  leaves  and  blossoms  and 
borne  its  ripe  fruit.  But  it  was  subject  to 
vicissitudes,  as  of  wind  and  weather,  and 
evil  elements,  sometimes  its  branches  were 
lopped  off,  not  by  the  careful  pruning 
hand,  but  by  the  act  of  violence,  yet  the 
root  was  strong,  and  hearty,  full  of  life 
blood,  ready  to  spring  up  with  greater  vig- 
or than  before.  The  Jewish  people  were 
not  like  some  rough,  rank  offshoot,  but 
chosen  of  God  himself  as  a  peculiar  race 
to  whom  he  would  manifest  his  peculiar  fa- 
vor, they  were  a  choice  vine  in  the  wilder- 
ness, growing  up  under  the  golden  sun- 
shine and  dews  of  Heaven. 

Under  the  same  similitude  Christ  al- 
ludes to  himself.  "I  am  the  vine.  Ye 
are  the  branches."  He  was  the  main 
stock,  the  root,  the  source  of  life,  and  sus- 
tenance and  vigor.  His  disciples  every 
where  were  but  so  many  parts  and  mem- 
bers of  the  same.  After  the  Jewish  church 
had  fulfilled  its  mission,  the  root  still  ex- 


isted, though  all  the  former  branches  were 
razed  to  the  ground.  The  Saviour  in  his 
Divine  nature  was  the  root  of  David,  even 
as  in  his  generation,  he  was  according  to 
human  genealogy,  David's  offspring.  The 
primitive  christian  church,  from  this  im- 
planted ineradicable  root  sprang  up  like  a 
tender  vine.  In  its  incipient  growth,  in 
its  subsequent  stages,  up  to  the  present 
time,  it  has  been  subject  to  every  vicissi- 
tude of  the  outer  elements ;  but  the  good 
Father  has  been  the  husbandman  and  has 
ever  watched  over  it,  and  he  has  promised 
that  he  will  do  so  with  a  kindly  care.  The 
rank  reeds  and  vegetation  of  the  world 
have  tried  to  choke  it  in  its  dwindled  es- 
tate, to  draw  away  its  sustenance,  pressing 
upon  it,  overtopping  it,  and  casting  it  in 
their  baleful  shade,  but  deep  down  and 
fixed  the  vital  germ  has  remained,  and 
only  gathered  strength.  The  enemy  has 
sowed  tares  all  around  it,  hoping  if  they 
would  not  extract  the  life,  that  the  origi- 
nal plant  would  be  torn  up  in  the  effort  to 
exterminate  the  thick  tares.  But  the  man- 
date went  forth  to  the  husbandman  to  do 
not  that,  but  the  plant  could  grow  and 
flourish  still  amid  the  elements  of  evil, 
until  the  harvest  time.  Sometimes  the 
sword  of  violence  was  applied,  or  the  fires 
raged  so  as  to  destroy  apparently  nearly 
every  branch,  and  budding  offshoot,  and 
all  which  remained  above  the  ground. 
The  destruction  thus  far  was  permitted 
only  that  the  future  exuberance,  and  fruit- 
age, of  the  vine  might  be  greater.  The 
sword  could  not  lop  any  closer ; — the  fire 
with  its  devouring  breath  could  not  pene- 
trate any  deeper.  It  is  the  very  province 
of  Christ,  illustrated  by  his  own  brillant 
career,  to  bring  up  life  out  of  death,  and  a 
resurrection  of  glory  out  of  dust  and  ashes. 
Now  the  branches  of  the  original  plant  are 
over  all  the  earth,  though  still  liable  to  be 
broken  ofT  by  storms,  and  to  be  left  bleed- 
ing. The  church  was  small  among  elements 
which  were  apparently  great ;  it  was  weak 
among  those  which  were  apparently 
mighty.  It  is  elsewhere  in  scripture  lik- 
ened to  the  minutest  of  seeds .  ' '  The  king- 
dom of  heaven  is  like  to  a  grain  of  mustard 
seed,  which  a  man  took  and  sowed  in  his 


414 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


field,  which  indeed  is  the  least  of  all  seeds, 
but  when  it  is  grown,  it  is  the  greatest 
among  herbs,  and  becometh  a  tree,  so  that 
the  birds  of  the  air  come  and  lodge  in  the 
branches  thereof."      {Matt.  xiii. :  31.) 

Every  body  of  believers  wherever  found, 
every  organized  church,  every  distinct 
collection  of  disciples  in  which  Christ's 
ministry  is  maintained,  to  whom  His  Gospel 
is  preached  and  His  sacraments  are  admin- 
istered, may  still  be  likened  to  a  vine,  which 
the  great  husbandman  himself  has  caused 
to  be  planted  in  such  a  ground,  or  in  such 
a  locality,  and  has  committed  to  his  ser- 
vants to  watch  over  it,  and  however  small  it 
may  be  at  the  start,  however  it  may  be 
liable  to  dangers  or  vicissitudes,  however 
imperfect  may  be  the  culture,  if  it  be  a 
true  offshoot  of  Christ,  it  must  flourish,  be- 
cause it  draws  its  life  blood  from  the  very 
source  of  life.  This  little  body  of  disciples, 
this  church  established  in  our  very  midst, 
which  not  only  professes  the  pure  doctrines, 
but  is  named  by  the  very  name  of  Christ, 
is  a  vine, — even  yet  in  its  incipient  growth, 
but  planted  by  the  hand  of  faith — which 
has  already  borne  some  fruit,  and  under 
the  fostering  smiles  of  the  Divine  favor,  it 
is  hoped  and  believed  that  it  will  do  so  far 
more  abundantly.  It  has  experienced  its 
struggles,  its  trials,  its  changes,  its  difficul- 
ties, its  retardments  in  a  soil  originally  un- 
congenial to  it  in  some  of  its  inherent  char- 
acteristics, and  to  its  peculiar  form.  I 
propose  now  to  refer  to  the  phases  of  its 
history  thus  far,  to  look  back  upon  it  from 
its  original  start,  to  gather  up  a  few  facts 
and  statistics  from  its  scanty  memorials, 
that  we  may  see  what  have  been  the  deal- 
ings of  God  with  it  in  its  hitherto  humble 
career,  and  what  may  be  its  hopes  and 
promise  for  the  future.  If  such  a  contem- 
plation, in  a  sketch  however  feebly  drawn, 
shall  serve  to  strengthen  the  bonds  of  at- 
tachment with  you  who  are  members  of  this 
Church  of  Christ,  to  awaken  a  renewed  in- 
terest in  its  welfare,  to  stimulate  your  ef- 
forts to  promote  its  future  growth,  to  ani- 
mate your  zeal,  to  confirm  your  courage, 
and  to  keep  you  ever  more  firmly  knit  to- 
gether in  one  body,  in  the  unity  of  the  Spirit 
and  in  the  bond  of  Peace,  then  whatever 


may  occur  to  one  who  has  so  long  ministered 
imperfectly  among  you,  this  labor  will  not 
be  in  vain.  And  that  it  may  not  be,  is  my 
humble  and  .sincere  prayer. 

On  the  8th  of  Sept.,  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord  1840,  a  number  of  inhabitants  of  this 
town  associated  themselves  together  for 
the  purpose  of  supporting  the  ministry  of 
the  Gospel  and  maintaining  public  worship 
in  conformity  with  the  constitution  and 
canons  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church 
in  the  Diocese  of  Vermont,  and  they  adopt- 
ed, received,  and  promised,  entire  con- 
formity to  the  aforesaid  constitution  and 
canons.  The  document  whereby  they 
thus  associated  themselves  together,  is 
signed  by  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  Julius  Y. 
Dewey,  Geo.  B.  Manser,  H.  N.  Baylies, 
J.  W.  Ellis,  Geo.  Langdon,  C.  W.  Ban- 
croft, Wm.  Upham,  Charles  Dewey,  and 
some  others  who,  altho'  not  closely  iden- 
tified with  the  society,  gave  it  their  good 
will,  their  influence,  and  pecuniary  sup- 
port. On  Easter  Monday,  Anno  Domini 
1841,  the  church  was  fully  organized  under 
the  title  and  designation  of  Christ  Church 
and  a  vestry  elected,  Geo.  B.  Manser  be- 
ing senior  and  Isaac  F.  Redfield  junior 
warden.  Soon  after  a  lot  was  secured,  the 
present  church  edifice  was  erected,  and  on 
the  29th  day  of  December,  A.  D.  1842,  it 
was  at  the  request  of  the  wardens  and  ves- 
try duly  consecrated  to  the  worship  of 
Almighty  God,  by  the  Rt.  Rev.  John 
Henry  Hopkins  D.  D.,  Bishop  of  the 
Diocese,  according  to  the  rites,  usages  and 
services  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
in  the  United  States,  and  about  that  time, 
or  shortly  after,  the  Rev.  Geo.  B.  Manser 
entered  upon  his  duties  as  the  first  Rector. 
In  this  connection  he  continued  uninterrupt- 
edly until  the  fall  of  1847,  being  then  ab- 
sent for  a  few  months  at  the  South,  acting 
as  assistant  Rector  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hanks 
in  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  and  the  Rev. 
F.  W.  Shelton  of  the  Diocese  of  New 
York,  who  had  recently  received,  orders, 
was  invited  to  supply  his  place  until  his 
return,  which  occured  in  the  spring  or 
summer  of  the  year  following,  1848.  On 
July  16  of  the  same  year,  having  received 
a  call  to  another  field,  Mr.  Manser  tendered 


MONTPELIER. 


415 


his  resignation  to  the  wardens  and  vestry, 
who  passed  a  resolution  conveying  to  him 
their  '  unfeigned  thanks  for  his  faithful  care 
and  useful  labors,'  assuring  him  at  the  same 
time  of  their  '  friendly  confidence  and  sin- 
cere regard.'  As  I  had  the  happiness  of  a 
personal  acquaintance  with  him  during  my 
first  brief  residence  in  this  place,  and  was 
for  some  time  a  guest  under  his  roof,  and 
after  an  interval  of  some  years  was  again 
frequently  associated  with  him  in  kindly 
intercourse,  it  affords  me  a  melancholy 
satisfaction  in  this  place  to  recall  your  first 
excellent  Rector  to  remembrance,  and  to 
pay  to  his  worth  a  passing  tribute.  To  a 
man  of  his  innate  modesty  and  sensibility 
his  position  was  sufficiently  trying  in  being 
the  first  to  officiate  here,  and  in  entering 
upon,  to  him,  a  strange  and  untried  field. 
He  had  heretofore  been  an  active  member 
of  the  Congregational  society,  and  as  a 
warmly  religious  man  had  been  identified 
with  the  same,  and  entered  zealously  into 
the  performance  of  whatever  appeared 
conducive  to  the  cause  of  Christ.  Educa- 
ted, moreover,  to  the  profession  of  the 
law,  he  had  more  or  less  to  do  with  the 
conflicting  claims  of  persons  in  this  vicin- 
ity. His  views  witli  regard  to  the  consti- 
tution of  the  church  having  undergone  a 
change,  and  his  convictions  becoming  at 
last  fixed,  he  voluntarily  relinquished  a  pro- 
fession which  would  yield  him  a  much  bet- 
ter support,  and  under  such  circumstan- 
ces, entered  the  ministry  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  church,  and  became  your  first 
Rector.  His  position  was  more  difficult, 
and  the  embarrassments  wherewith  he  had 
to  contend  were  greater  than  those  of  any 
who  succeeded  him.  With  what  patience 
he  bore  his  burdens,  and  with  what  fideli- 
ty he  performed  his  work,  can  be  attested 
by  many  who  now  hear  me.  They  knew 
well  the  tenderness  of  his  feelings,  his 
warm  sympathies  and  affections,  the  right- 
nessofhis  intentions,  the  disinterested- 
ness and  purity  of  his  heart.  They  knew 
where  to  find  him  in  the  dark  hour  of  ca- 
lamity, and  he  proved  at  all  times  a  genial 
and  warm  hearted  friend.  He  made 
worldly  sacrifices  for  the  cause  of  the 
church,  and   his  name  and   memory  and 


example  are  now  cherished  in  grateful  re- 
membrance. Shortly  after  his  retirement 
from  this  parish,  he  was  called  to  the  Rec- 
torship of  St.  Peter's  church  at  Benning- 
ton, where  he  likewise  performed  a  good 
work,  modestly  pursuing  his  course,  and 
while  yet  in  the  vigor  of  life  with  the  pros- 
pect still  of  many  ye^s  of  usefulness,  he 
was  smitten  with  disease,  and  full  of  faith 
and  hope  and  joy,  expired  on  the  17th  day 
of  November,  1862.  Resolutions  of  affec- 
tion, regret  and  of  tender  sympathy  with 
his  family  were  passed  by  the  vestries 
of  St.  Peter's  at  Bennington,  and  of  Christ 
Church  Montpelier,  as  well  as  by  the  con- 
vention of  the  Diocese,  of  which  he  was 
for  many  years  and  up  to  the  time  of  his 
decease,  the  efficient  secretary.  How  long 
an  interval  elapsed  after  the  departure  of 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Manser  from  this  parish  before 
the  vacancy  was  supplied  does  not  appear 
on  the  records,  but  the  Rev.  Edward  F. 
Putnam  was  as  early  as  June,  1850,  acting 
as  its  rector,  and  in  this  connection  he 
continued  to  within  a  few  months  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  at  St.  Albans,  on 
the  first  Sunday  in  June,  1854.  By  a  sin- 
gular coincidence,  on  that  same  day  this 
church  was  re-opened  after  an  intermission 
of  its  regular  sevices  for  some  time,  and  he 
who  now  addresses  you,  entered  upon  his 
duties  as  Rector.  Thus  the  worship  of 
this  church  was  again  renewed  at  the  very 
hour  when  the  soul  of  this  excellent  man 
was  entering  into  the  glories  of  heaven. 
It  was  not  my  happiness  to  be  personally 
acquainted  with  him,  but  with  regard  to 
his  christian  devotion,  the  warmth  of  his 
sympathies  and  the  excellence  and  amiabil- 
ity of  his  character,  there  is  but  one  senti- 
ment among  the  members  of  this  parish. 
He  was  not  only  a  sincere  christian,  but 
on  principle  and  conviction  a  strict  and 
decided  churchman.  Though,  as  I  have 
been  informed,  not  brillant  as  a  preacher, 
he  was  efficient,  active,  and  zealous  in  the 
work  of  the  parish,  and  his  memory  like- 
wise will  long  be  gratefully  cherished  by 
this  people. 

For  myself,  I  am  but  the  third  rector 
since  the  foundation  of  this  parish,  both  of 
the  former  ones  having  already  entered 


4i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


into  their  rest.  Nearly  the  wl\ole  of  the 
time  which  has  elapsed  since  my  entering 
into  orders  has  been  passed  in  your  midst. 
I  stand  not  here  at  this  time  to  record  its 
varied  experience,  its  phases  of  personal 
joy  and  sorrow.  I  have  shared  with  you 
alike  in  the  seasons  of  pleasure  and  of  bit- 
terness. The  friendships  which  I  have 
formed  here  will  be  cherished  during  my 
life.  I  can  only  regret  that  I  have  accom- 
plished so  little,  but  I  shall  drop  a  few 
tears  on  this  vine,  and  pray  that  with 
better  tending  its  branch  may  be  green 
and  vigorous  forever. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  you  to  hear  a 
few  statistics,  after  which  I  shall  suggest 
what  occurs  to  me  as  suitable  to  be  said, 
at  your  present  state  of  progress,  and  if  I 
can  think  of  anything  which  would  tend  to 
your  future  good,  will  venture  to  speak 
boldly. 

The  early  records,  as  is  very  apt  to  be 
the  case  in  the  first  struggling  origin  of  a 
parish,  are  deficient.  They  have  no  doubt 
been  made,  but  the  papers  have  been  lost 
or  mislaid.  There  are  no  transcripts  of 
either  deaths,  baptisms  or  confirmations, 
although  there  must  have  been  many. 
There  are  those  of  marriages  only.  Con- 
sequently, I  cannot  present  the  sum  total 
which  ought  to  be  rendered.  The  defi- 
ciency as  to  mere  numbers  could  be  sup- 
plied, if  I  had  at  hand  a  full  file  of  journals 
of  the  Convention,  of  which  several  copies 
for  reference  ought  to  be  on  hand,  at  least 
with  the  rector  and  wardens.  That  I  have 
not  saved  them  carefully,  is  my  own  fault, 
which  must  here  be  acknowledged.  That 
in  accurate  business  habits  I  am  decidedly 
deficient,  those  who  have  known  me  as 
long  as  you  have,  will  bear  me  witness, — 
I  have  got  no  head  for  them. 

During  the  incumbency  of  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Manser,  20  couples  were  united  by  him  in 
the  bonds  of  holy  matrimony.  Deaths, 
baptisms  and  confirmations,  as  I  have  said, 
are  not  recorded. 

By  the  Rev.  Mr.  Putnam,  9  couples  were 
united  in  the  bonds  of  holy  matrimony,  43 
persons  were  baptized,  and  during  his 
term  of  office  17  were  confirmed  by  the 
Bishop. 


During  my  own  rectorship  there  have 
been  31  marriages,  67  baptisms,  and  50 
confirmations. 

Thus,  altogether,  since  the  foundation 
of  the  parish,  60  couples  have  been  mar- 
ried according  to  the  rites  of  the  church. 
There  have  been,  so  far  as  the  records  in- 
form us,  107  baptisms  and  67  confirma- 
tions. 

This  record  I  quote,  not  to  rejoice  in  its 
fulness,  not  to  glory  ip  the  fruits,  but 
simply  to  tell  the  truth  in  its  meagreness. 
Perhaps  more  work  might  have  been  done, 
and  more  ought  to  have  been  done.  These 
are  only  the  beginnings  and  first  fruits.  If 
only  thus  few  have  been  baptized  and  con- 
firmed in  the  most  holy  faith,  yet  these  re- 
sults are  not  unimportant.  God  only  knows 
what  blessed  influences  may  spring  from 
these  few  persons  if  they  only  lead  the 
rest  of  their  lives  according  to  such  a  be- 
ginning. Not  a  single  rite  has  been  per- 
formed of  which  it  is  possible  for  us  to 
estimate  the  multiplied  and  diversified  in- 
fluences. What  can  be  more  beautiful 
and  impressive  than  the  marriage  service 
according  to  the  ritual  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  ?  Who  can  go  away  without  tears 
from  the  quiet  altar,  or  fail  to  feel  the 
holy  benediction  which  is  bestowed  on  the 
heads  of  the  young  couples,  and  can  they, 
however  thoughtless,  have  ever  gone  away, 
and  the  particular  form  in  which  this  cer- 
emony was  celebrated,  according  to  the 
church,  have  had  no  eff"ect  upon  their 
after  lives?  Will  nothing  proceed  from 
the  acts  of  those  who  have  brought  their 
children  in  faith  to  the  baptismal  altar ;  and 
when  you  have  witnessed  the  beautiful  rite 
of  confirmation,  and  have  heard  the  pa- 
triarchal benediction  pronounced  therein, 
have  you  considered  that  this,  notwith- 
standing its  temporary  impressions,  was 
but  a  mere  empty  show  ?  Let  me  tell  you 
that  feeble  as  are  the  human  agencies, 
little  as  we  can  boast,  few  as  are  the  nu- 
merical results  which  we  can  show,  there 
is  not  an  act  which  has  been  seriously  and 
reverently  performed  in  this  church,  during 
these  two  score  years,  which  will  not  work 
with  a  never-ending,  and  still  widening  in- 
fluence.    Those   who  have   kneeled  with 


MONTPELIER. 


417 


you  at  this  altar  in  times  gone  by  are  scat- 
tered everywhere.  They  are  thousands  of 
miles  away,  but  they  remember  what  was 
done  here,  and  they  are  inspired  thereby 
with  pleasant  thoughts  and  sweet  afifec- 
tions,  and  away  off"  in  the  wide  prairie, 
or  some  remote  wilderness,  they  go  and 
plant  an  offshoot  of  the  little  vine  which 
they  have  helped  to  nurture  here;  and 
that,  too,  will  grow,  and  leave  out,  and 
blossom,  and  bear  fruit  abundantly. 

But  let  us  further  review  our  course  thus 
far.  This  church,  in  the  aggregation  of 
its  first  members,  consisted  of  a  mere  nu- 
cleus. It  was  so  very  small  and  weak  as 
hardly  to  excite  in  the  minds  of  others  not 
attached  to  it,  the  apprehension  that  it 
would  encroach  unduly.  Those.first  mem- 
bers were  not  men  of  great  wealth.  The 
most  of  them  had  not  been  educated  or 
brought  up  in  the  Episcopal  Church.  Col- 
lected around  them  there  were  a  few  others 
who  lent  countenance  and  material  sup- 
port. Some  came  from  mere  personal  re- 
gard for  those  who  have  in  turn  adminis- 
tered to  you ;  some  from  a  sentiment  of 
predilection  for  the  mild,  genial,  liberal 
and  uncensorious  spirit  of  the  Episcopal 
Church ;  others  from  a  true  admiration  of 
her  forms  of  prayer  and  liturgic  worship. 
They  were  drawn  by  all  these  causes  rather 
than  by  a  particular  perception  or  regard  for 
her  apostolic  constitution  or  distinctive 
principles.  It  was  not  a  homogeneous 
society.  Many  who  had  a  distinct  faith  of 
their  own,  differing  in  important  particulars 
from  our  confessed  standard  of  doctrine, 
very  kindly,  and  with  a  very  liberal  spirit, 
notwithstanding  this  difference,  gave  of 
their  rneans  and  do  to  this  day.  And  I 
take  this  occasion  to  say,  that  if  some  few 
of  them,  not  many  it  is  tobe  hoped,  should 
go  out  from  this  fold,  where  they  can  find 
those  precise  shades  of  doctrine  which 
they  profess  to  hold,  we  should  be,  in  turn 
to  them  as  individuals,  well  wishers,  and 
rather  remember  their  kind  offices  in  the 
past  than  feel  inclined  to  censure  them  for 
what  they  may  choose  to  do,  and  have  a 
right  to  do  in  the  future.  For  myself, 
they  will  have  my  personal  esteem  and  re- 
gard.    The  smallness'  of  your  numbers  was 


then  the  first  drawback,  but  that  was  pre- 
cisely the  same  as  attached  to  the  first 
origin  of  Christianity  itself.  Outside  of 
the  pale  there  was,  as  was  to  be  expected, 
the  usual  amount  of  prejudice  and  mis- 
apprehension on  the  part  of  those  from 
whom  we  diff'er  in  constitution  and  gov- 
ernment, rather  than  in  essential  Chris- 
tian doctrine.  This  might  have  been 
greater  had  not  your  first  rectors  been  men 
of  placable  temper  and  of  good  judgment. 
A  rash,  zealous,  impracticable  churchman 
might  have  destroyed  this  new  project  in 
the  embryo. 

In  the  book  of  your  records  there  is  fre- 
quent allusion  to  a  church  debt  unliquidated, 
and  discussion  of  means  and  steps  to  be 
taken  to  wipe  it  out,  for  no  society  can 
make  satisfactory  progress  with  an  over- 
hanging debt.  Such  was  the  condition  of 
things  in  1854,  when  I  first  entered  upon 
the  duties  of  rector.  Of  the  remaining 
matters  it  is  now  more  difficult  and  delicate 
for  me  to  speak,  yet  you  will  expect  that 
something  should  be  said.  The  society 
was  then  small ;  it  is  so  still,  for  it  is  yet 
comparatively  in  its  infancy,  and  those 
who  have  gone  before  me,  as  well  as  my- 
self, have  been  only  pioneers.  The  best 
years  of  my  life  and  the  best  fruits  of  my 
education  have  been  given  here,  with  very 
imperfect  results  for  the  present,  but  when 
better  men  shall  come  after  me,  they  will 
reap.  The  past  will«not  have  been  in  vain. 
For  eleven  years  I  have  administered  in 
this  parish,  and  though  neither  very  strong 
or  very  robust,  have  been  kept  from  this 
desk  but  one  Sunday  by  sickness.  It 
might  be  alleged,  and  no  doubt  justly, 
that  it  might  have  been  possible  for  me  to 
have  advanced  the  cause  of  the  society 
with  more  onset  and  vigor.  You  have  had 
the  best  opportunity,  by  the  longest  ac- 
quaintance with  me,  to  know  those  im- 
perfections which  are  bound  up  in  my  very 
nature.  At  the  same  time  I  trust  it  will 
not  be  considered  indelicate  if  I  refer  to 
some  of  the  general  principles  which  I 
have  endeavored  to  follow  out  in  the  di- 
rection of  this  parish.  Here  there  is,  we 
may  say,  a  comparatively  fixed  population 
with  regard  to  numbers — not  otherwise, 


53 


4i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


for  our  young  people  are  drained  off  when 
they  might  be  of  service  to  us,  and  go  to 
contribute  their  energies  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  mighty  West.  There  is  no 
surplus  population  as  in  some  teeming, 
overflowing  town,  where  an  active,  bustling 
minister  could  go  forth  into  the  streets  and 
alleys  and  gather  a  flock.  The  ground  had 
been  pre-occupied  by  religious  bodies,  with 
their  prescriptive  limits  well  defined,  and  a 
mere  proselyting  spirit  would,  it  seems  to 
me,  have  accomplished  little  in  attempting 
to  cross  these  bounds,  nor  have  I  directly 
or  knowingly  interfered  with  any  one's 
rights,  or  wounded  any  in  their  preposses- 
sions or  prejudices.  Spasmodic  move- 
ments of  any  kind  have  not  been  tried, 
but  the  quiet,  regular  routine  of  the  church 
in  the  regular  administration  of  the  ser- 
vices and  sacraments,  on  all  the  principal 
appointed  days  throughout  the  year,  wheth- 
er fasts  or  festivals,  has  been  trusted  to 
work  its  slow,  steady,  but  ultimately  sure, 
results.  With  thin  numbers,  and  an  in- 
clement season  nearly  half  the  year — mem- 
bers of  the  parish  living  at  far  distances — 
I  have  not  attempted  to  carry  out  the  cathe- 
dral system  of  the  church  to  any  greater  ex- 
tent ;  firstly, because  in  agiven  time  I  am  on- 
ly capable  of  accomplishing  a  given  amount 
of  intellectual  work,  and  secondly,  be- 
cause, in  my  judgment,  our  present  circum- 
stances did  not  seem  to  warrant  it.  While 
no  great  stickler  for  minute  forms,  nice  in- 
terpretation, and  slavish  adherence  to  ru- 
brics, or  to  whatever,  according  to  my  own 
common  sense,  I  regard  of  small  moment 
compared  with  weightier  matters,  I  have 
endeavored  to  conform  to  the  general  sys- 
tem of  the  church  in  all  its  essential  par- 
ticulars— but  that  I  should  stand  up  here 
and  assert  that  I  have  performed  my  full 
duty,  God  forbid.  Outside  of  official  min- 
istrations it  has  been  my  endeavor  to  keep 
the  members  of  this  flock  together  by  the 
cords  of  kindly  fellowship,  in  the  unity  of 
spirit  and  in  the  bonds  of  peace  ;  to  assuage 
differences  and  to  heal  wounds.  Of  the 
sacred  ties  which  have  connected  me  to 
many  in  a  place,  where,  notwithstanding 
my  mistakes  or  faults,  there  has  been  ac- 
corded to  me  so  long  an  almost  unequalled 


kindly  sentiment,  I  do  not  propose  to  speak 
now.  In  consequence  of  new  movements, 
you  have  reached  a  phase  which  will  call 
for  the  exercise  of  your  best  judgment,  and 
I  would  desire  to  state  correctly  the  posi- 
tion in  which  the  parish  now  stands.  The 
church  debt,  which  had  been  an  incubus 
from  the  foundation,  has  been  cleared  away. 
There  is  not,  to  my  knowledge,  a  cent  of  it 
remaining.  This  is  not  due  to  my  activi- 
ties, but  to  those  of  others,  yet  it  is  a 
source  of  gratitude  to  me  that  it  has  been 
done  in  my  time.  You  have  an  organ  of 
the  finest  tone  and  most  perfect  workman- 
ship, and  the  constancy  and  effect  with 
which  the  attractive  musical  services  of  the 
church  have  been  maintained,  has  been 
extraordinary  for  a  parish  of  limited  extent 
and  means,  and  is  known  and  acknowledg- 
ed throughout  the  State.  In  the  Capital, 
where  many  resort,  it  is  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance that  the  Episcopal  services  should 
be  rendered  as  perfectly  as  means  will 
permit,  in  all  their  parts. 

With  regard  to  numbers  at  present,  of 
those  directly  or  indirectly,  from  principle 
or  from  preference,  attached  to  this  church, 
there  are  more  than  enough,  when  fully 
brought  together,  to  fill  all  these  seats. 
You  have,  infact,  sufficient  strength  for  the 
day  and  generation — only  comparative 
weakness.  The  root  is  firmly  implanted 
in  the  ground.  It  cannot  be  torn  up — by 
the  grace  of  God — no,  never.  You  who 
have  stood  by  when  that  germ  was  sown, 
may  live  to  rejoice  in  the  luxuriant  foliage 
and  fruitage  of  the  vine.  But  you  must 
give  to  it  a  more  assiduous  culture.  There 
must  be  more  corps  (fesprit — above  all, 
more  ardent  affection  for  the  ciuse  of 
Christ,  as  well  as  for  this  church  of  Christ 
— more  perfect  co-operation,  unity  of  pur- 
pose and  brotherly  love.  Perhaps  with 
even  a  little  interval  of  flagging  despond- 
ency, the  slow  work  of  years  might  be  un- 
done. Stand  together  with  more  decision 
than  you  have  done  before,  and  you  are 
stronger  than  you  ever  have  been. 

An  edifice,  strong,  substantial,  beautiful 
in  architectural  proportions,  will  be  built 
at  some  time  after  I  am  gone.  I  should 
have   accounted  it  an    honor,    had     you 


MONTPELIER. 


419 


chosen  to  accord  it,  not  to  a  stranger,  but 
to  me,  who  have  spent  here  the  best  portion 
of  my  life,  to  see,  at  least,  the  incipience 
of  that  undertaking.  But  perhaps  at  some 
future  day  when  I  shall  come  here,  my 
eyes  may  be  greeted  by  the  tapering  spire, 
surnwunted  by  the  cross,  and  my  ears 
charmed  by  the  sound  of  musical  chimes 
on  the  clear  mountain  air,  upon  some 
golden  Sunday  or  on  some  festive  holiday. 

Present  or  absent,  my  thoughts  shall 
often  recur  to  these  courts  endeared  to  me, 
not  only  by  mournful,  but  by  all  pleasing 
and  delightful  associations,  and  I  shall  hope 
to  join  with  you  in  the  same  prayers  which 
we  have  repeated  to-day,  and  to  have  my 
soul  uplifted  by  the  same  sacred  melodies. 

It  will  be  a  great  trial  of  my  life  to  part 
with  you,  and  I  trust  that  I  can  say  with 
the  Psalmist  David,  when  he  expressed  his 
joy  at  being  called  on  to  go  up  to  the 
sanctuary,  and  when  he  extolled  the  Holy 
City — "  Peace  be  within  thy  walls,  and 
prosperity  within  thy  palaces.  For  my 
brethren  and  companions'  sakes,  I  will  now 
say,  Peace  be  within  thee." 

REV.    FREDERICK   W.    SHELTON,    LL.  D. 

BY  H.   A.  HUSE. 

Frederick  W.  Shelton  was  born  in  Ja- 
maica, Long  Island,  in  1814,  and  died  at 
Carthage  Landing,  N.  Y.,  June  20,  1881. 
He  was  the  son  of  Nathan  Shelton,  an 
eminent  physician.  His  preparation  for 
college  was  at  the  Jamaica  Institute,  and 
he  graduated  from  the  College  of  New 
Jersey,  Princeton,  and  from  the  General 
Theological  Seminary.  He  was  ordained 
in  1847,  and  was  rector  successively  in 
Huntington,  L.  I. ;  Fishkill,  N.  Y. ;  Mont- 
pelier ;  and  Carthage  Landing,  (Low  Point,) 
Dutchess  County,  N.  Y.  He  for  some 
months  in  1848  officiated  in  Montpelier  in 
the  absence  of  Mr.  Manser,  and  was  rector 
of  Christ  Church  from  185410  1866.  Dr. 
Shelton  went  from  here  to  Carthage  Land- 
ing, where  he  remained  rector  till  his 
death.  His  home  at  Carthage  Landing 
was  beautifully  situated  on  the  banks  of 
the  Hudson,  and  his  situation  there  was 
one  well  suited  to  a  man  of  thoughtful  and 
genial  temperament. 


He  left  a  widow  and  two  sons.  Mrs. 
Shelton,  who  now  lives  in  Carthage  Land- 
ing, was  Rebecca  R.  S.  Conkling,  daugh- 
ter of  David  S.  Conkling,  (a  brother  of 
Judge  Alfred  Conkling,)  who  married  Isa- 
bella Fletcher,  a  daughter  of  Col.  Fletcher 
of  the  British  Army,  who  was  a  descend- 
ant of  Fletcher,  the  dramatist.  Of  the  six 
children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Shelton,  four  are 
dead.  The  two  oldest,  born  in  New  York 
city,  died  of  scarlet  fever  in  Montpelier  the 
second  year  after  they  came  here ;  a  baby, 
8  months  old,  also  died  in  Montpelier. 
The  second  year  after  they  went  to  Car- 
thage Landing,  a  boy  of  thirteen  died. 
The  two  youngest  sons  are  now  living,  and 
are  in  business  in  Omaha.  The  older  of 
them  graduated  at  Trinity  College,  Hart- 
ford, in  1879. 

Dr.  Shelton  was  a  man  of  marked  influ- 
ence on  the  parishes  of  which  he  had 
charge,  and  this,  though  he  had,  and  none 
knew  it  better  than  he,  but  little  of  what 
is  known  as  executive  or  business  ability  in 
his  make-up.  His  preaching  was  of  the 
best,  and  his  own  life  was,  in  its  Christian 
graces,  a  model. 

Dr.  Shelton's  writing,  whether  in  ser- 
mon or  in  book,  had  many  charms  for  all 
who  heard  or  read.  In  an  article  in  the 
"Churchman"  of  July  23,  1881,  is  found 
the  following : 

One  might  say  that  Dr.  Shelton's  literary 
faculty  amounted  almost,  if  not  absolutely, 
to  genius.  His  invention  was  fertile  and 
various,  his  fancy  delicate,  and  his  hiimor 
ever  fresh  and  delightful.  His  mind  was 
of  the  same  type  with  Washington  Irving's, 
although  it  was  marked  by  a  mystical  force 
and  teiidency,  evinced  by  the  romance  and 
allegory  it  gave  birth  to,  which  the  elder 
and  greater  writer  has  not  exhibited.  While 
a  collegian  he  became  a  contributor  to  the 
Knickerbocker  Magazine,  then  and  for 
many  years  afterward  the  chief  organ  of 
American  periodical  literature.  Before 
he  came  of  age,  Bartlett  &  Melford  pub- 
lished for  him  a  satire  in  rhyme  entitled, 
'*  Trollopiad  ;  or,  Travelling  Gentleman  in 
America,"  annotated  with  sketches  of  the 
series  of  foreign  travellers  whose  flippant 
descriptions  of  the  land  of  freedom  once 
provoked  the  ire  of  our  native  writers. 
Besides  many  papers  buried  under  the 
covers  of  divers  magazines,  he  published 
"Gold  Mania,"  1850;  "The  Use  and 
Abuse  of  Reason,"  1850,  and  other  minor 


420 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


works,  and  "  Salander  and  the  Dragon — a 
romance,"  1851  ;  "The  Rector  of  St.  Bar- 
dolphs,"  1853,  (second  edition,  1856)  ;  "Up 
the  River,"  1853;  "  Chrystalline ;  or.  The 
Heiress  of  Fall  Down  Castle — a  romance," 
1854;  "Peeps  from  the  Belfry;  or.  The 
Parish  Sketch  Book,"  1855,  (second  edi- 
tion, 1856.)  Latterly  he  has  spent  much 
time  and  labor  upon  a  translation  of  sev- 
eral of  the  "  Dialogues  of  Plato,"  and  it  is 
believed  that  his  manuscript  is  ready  for 
the  press.  It  should  also  be  said  that  his 
sermons  were  characteristic  compositions, 
original  in  thought,  brightened  often  by 
unconscious  strokes  of  humor  and  quicken- 
ed by  touches  of  genuine  pathos. 

Among  the  resolutions  passed  by  the 
clergy  present  at  the  funeral  of  Dr.  Shel- 
ton,  was  one  in  which  they  said,  "  we  bear 
our  willing  and  grateful  testimony  to  the 
delightful  personal  character  of  our  dear 
friend,  to  the  exquisite  charm  of  his  con- 
versation, to  his  genial  hospitality,  to  the 
high  principle  which  singularly  distinguish- 
ed him,  and  to  the  sweetness,  humility  and 
devotion  of  his  Christian  life  and  walk." 

Two  weeks  after  his  death,  a  committee, 
consisting  of  Charles  Dewey,  Fred  E. 
Smith,  J.  W.  Ellis  and  T.  C.  Phinney,  for 
the  wardens,  vestry  and  parish  of  Christ 
Church,  said  in  a  letter  to  Mrs.  Shelton,  of 
which  a  copy  is  spread  upon  the  parish 
records : 

We  remember  the  loyal  service  which  he 
did  for  Christ  while  Rector  in  this  Parish. 
We  recall  how  he  faithfully  ministered  the 
sacraments  of  life.  We  think  of  the  in- 
stnaptions  which  his  lips  gave  and  his  walk 
enforced.  We  review  the  memory  of  his 
presence  when  joy  was  warm  and  fresh  in 
our  homes,  and  when  sorrow  brooded 
heavily  upon  us.  We  think  of  him  as  the 
genial  friend  who  was  with  us,  and  whom 
we  rejoiced  to  have  with  us.  We  call  up 
the  past  relations  which  he  bore  in  this 
community  as  a  man  and  citizen.  And  al- 
though we  have  but  recently  learned  the 
story  of  his  declining  health  from  his  own 
lips,  and  felt,  with  him,  that  his  life  could 
not  be  protracted  very  long,  the  news  of 
his  going  away  has  come  to  us  to  awaken  a 
host  of  memories  which  we  cannot  name, 
but  only  suggest.  We  desire  to  assure  you 
that  at  this  hour  our  prayers  and  thoughts 
are  with  you,  and  that  we  are  only  repre- 
sentatives of  many  in  whom  the  recent 
tidings  have  revived  many  fond  recollec- 
tions of  that  one  who  has  gone  on  but  a 
little  while  before. 


From  several  unpublished  poems  of  Mr. 
Shelton,  which,  with  the  historical  sermon, 
were  kindly  sent  to  us  by  Mrs.  Shelton 
to  select  from,  we  give  : — 

THE   SKEPTIC   TO   HIS   SOUL. 

"  Aniraula,  vagula,  blandula, 
Hospes  coinesque  corporis, 
Qua  nunc  abibis  in  loca, 
Pallidula,  riKida,  nudula. 
Nee,  ut  soles,  dabis  jocos?" 

Invisible  onel  little  elfl 

Who  makest  uiy  bosom  tliy  home, 
Hid  away  In  the  midst  of  myself, 

I  have  asked  thee,  like  Hadrian  of  Rome, 
Have  implored  with  a  passionate  cry, 
With  a  tear  of  affection,  a  sigh. 

Come,  tell  me  a  part  or  the  whole, 
What  is  it,  what  is  it  to  die? 
But  never  a  word  in  reply. 

Oh  I'syche, my  Darling,  my  Soul! 

Say,  is  it  not  due  to  mj'  love, 

Thou  close-nestling  one,  winged-dove. 

Since  thou  hast  been  with  me  from  birth, 
Though  thou  earnest  down  from  above. 

And  I  am  a  clod  of  the  earth? 
Near,  near  as  my  tremulous  heart. 

Why  far,  far  away  as  the  pole. 
Guest  of  mine  that  thou  wilt  not  impart. 
Nor  tell  thy  poor  friend  what  thou  art. 
In  a  voice  or  as  soft  as  a  breatli 
As  it  slips  from  the  chill  lips  of  death, 

Or  loud  as  the  thunders  tliat  roll. 
While  I  stand  with  expectance  and  wait. 
Like  a  beggar  for  crumbs  at  a  gate. 

Oh  Psyche,  my  Darling,  my  Soul  I 

Forever  I  count  thee  within 

The  retreat  of  thy  innermost  shrine. 
But  enwrapt  in  a  body  of  sin 

Shrink  as  if  from  a  presence  divine. 
And  vain  are  my  struggles  to  win 

What  no  art  of  the  living  e'er  stole. 
The  key  of  the  mystery  dread. 

And  rifle  it  from  thy  control. 
Thou  giv'st  it  alone  to  the  dead. 
As  lie  lies  in  his  cold,  narrow  bed. 

Oh  Psyche,  my  Darling,  my  Soul ! 

Thus  I  con  thy  enigma,  my  wife, 

One  more  blind  than  the  Sphinx  could  propose. 
That  we,  fondly  wedded  through  life. 

Should  be  only  acquaint  at  its  close. 
Ah!  cause  of  contention  and  strife! 
That  thou  wilt  not  breathe  in  my  ear 

What  is  writ  on  tliy  mystical  scroll, 
But  keep'st  it  away  from  thy  dear 
As  if  it  were  something  to  fear. 

Oh  Psyche,  my  Darling,  my  Soul! 

In  the  twilight  of  groves  I  have  stood. 

In  the  shadow  of  solitudes  vast. 
Where  nothing  of  earth  could  intrude, 
To  question  my  soul  as  I  would 

And  wring  out  the  secret  at  last. 

But  the  night,  it  is  coming  on  fast. 
When  thou  slialt  be  winging  thy  flight 

Toward  the  rivers  of  crystal  that  roll 

Through  the  regions  of  beauty,  thy  goal; 
I  shall  know  what  thou  knowest,  aright, 
1  shall  go  where  thou  goest  ihat  night. 

Oh  Psyche,  my  Darling,  my  Soul! 


MONTPELIER. 


421 


EXTRACTS 

From  a  Poem  entitled  "The  Sirens,"  delivered  be- 
fore tlie  Literary  Societies  of  Norwich 
University,  Aug.  17, 1865. 

Ye  who  embarlt  as  with  the  risen  sun. 
On  the  rude  sea,  life's  voyage  just  begun, 
Ev'n  as  tlie  East  the  rosy  day-dawn  streaks 
With  purple  light  of  youth  upon  your  cheeks, 

Ponder  the  story  well. 
Whatever  shore  you  reach,  wherever  you  may  dwell! 

When  ye  approach  the  realm 
Of  weird  enchantment,  steady  hold  the  helm. 
For  soon  the  Siren  strain 
Will  visit  you  again. 
Impalpable  and  fine. 
As  if  it  were  divine, 
Sweet  as  it  was  of  yore. 
Beguiling  evermore. 
Lure  you  to  ruin  on  the  rock-bound  coast. 
Where  all  your  precious  argosy  is  lost. 

Hence  ye  delusive  joys! 
Stop,  stop  your  listening  ears  with  wax,  ray  boys! 
Or  mixed  with  silvery  voice&Jyon  may  hark 

The  sea  dogs  bark! 
Lo!  Sylla  and  Charybdis  on  each  side 

Are  yawning  wide! 
With  strong  determination  bind  yourselves. 
Nor  own  the  fetters  ot  perfidious  elves. 
When  the  wild  nymph  of  Pleasure  from  her  lair 
Spreads  her  white  arms  an(f  makes  her  bosom  bare. 
And  beckons  as  she  shakes  her  flowing  locks 
To  woo,  and  lure  you  to  the  perilous  rocks. 
Fly  from  the  promise  of  Elysian  joys. 
Cling  to  your  oars  for  life,  and  pull,  my  boys! 

Wberc  dwells  not  soul-destroying  witchery  ? 
Whither  we  fly- 
To  try  her  subtle  arts 
On  these  fond,  beating  hearts, 
With  necromantic  spell 
To  lead  thro'  Error's  portals  down  to  hell — 
W  atching  our  frail  barques  as  we  glide  apace. 
On  to  eternal  glory  or  disgrace. 
Around  her  may  be  amaranthine  bloom. 
Flowers  of  loveliest  hue  and  sweet  perfume. 
And  she  is  sometime  beautiful;  her  wand 
Holds,  like  a  goddess,  in  her  milk-white  hand: 
Beams  a  fond  welcome  from  her  starry  eyes. 
And  all  the  waste  is  changed  to  Paradise. 
Ye  mariners!  ye  red-lipped,  rosy  youth. 
Oh!  list  the  music  of  celestial  truth; 
For  Duty  is  the  polar  star  to  guide 
To  home,  to  Heaven,  in  spite  of  wind  or  tide. 
Should  folly  tempt  you  with  its  base  alloys. 
Cling  to  your  oars  for  life,  and  pull,  my  boys! 
Regard  Ulysses  in  his  golden  prime. 
And  reign  like  him  upon  a  throne  sublime. 

Even  vice  may  have  a  face 

Of  bright,  potential  charm, 
A  soft,  bewildering  grace 

To  mitigate  alarm. 
Of  flowers  she  weaves  her  chain 

To  bind  the  victim  up. 
Love-philtres  for  the  brain 
Are  mingled  in  her  cup. 
She  with  fleet  and  gay  advances, 
Song  and  viol,  mazy  dances. 
Glancing  smiles  with  each  emotion. 
Like  the  sunbeams  on  the  oceani 
Woos  you  from  the  path  of  glory. 
Beckoning  from  her  promontory. 
See  thro'  the  flimsy  gauze,  and  spurn  her  joys. 
Cling  to  your  oars  for  life,  and  pull,  my  boys! 


Where  dwells  the  craven  coward  on  these  hills? 
Oft  glittering  with  their  diadems  of  snow. — 

The  air  is  fraught  with  freedom,  and  the  rills 
Leap  forth,  and  chant  its  pa;an  as  they  go. 

The  pulses  bt-at.  the  heart  with  rapture  thrills 
At  the  all-beautiful,  majestic  scene. 
Mountains  on  mountains  piled,  sweet  vales  between. 
It  Is  the  clime  where  stalwart  men  have  birth, 
FuU-panoplled  as  from  the  very  earth. 
When  the  war-bugle  sounds  the  first  alarms 
Peak  back  to  sun-lit  peak  clamors,  to  arms!  to  arras! 

Once  when  the  tide  of  battle  raved. 
And  rolled  o'er  many  a  blood-stained  wreck. 

And  the  Star-Spangled  banner  waved 
Beneath  the  old  Chapultepec; 

When  Mexic  legions  numbered  strong. 
And  gleamed  on  high  their  pennon 'd  spears, 

A  horseman  bore  the  word  along. 
Where  stood  the  bold  Green-Mountaineers, 

"  Help  from  Vermont,  upon  the  right! 
Our  ranks  are  reeling  and  unsteady! "' 

Then  rose  the  wild  shriek  of  delfght 

From  those  who  never  quailed  in  fight, 
"Aye,  aye,  VEnMONTis  heady!" 

Onward  they  dashed  upon  the  foes. 
As  loose  the  mountain  torrents  break. 

And  swift  the  starry  banner  rose 
Above  the  old  Chapultepec. 
Then  ever  let  tte  watchword  fly 
From  rank  to  rank  to  rank,  from  earth  to  sky. 
And  Echo  catch  the  glad  reply- 
Vermont  is  ready! 

SOLDIER   BOY   TO   HIS   GREEN   MOUNTAIN 
MARY. 
Oh,  bweet  is  the  breath  of  the  morning 
And  sparkling  the  dew  on  the  lawn. 
When  fresh  is  the  summer's  adorning. 

And  the  winter  is  over  and  gone. 
But  my  Mary  is  purer  and  sweeter. 

And  bright  as  the  day-star  of  Truth, 
When  waking  or  dreaming  I  meet  her, 
In  the  light  and  the  freshness  of  youth. 
She  has  cheered  on  her  soldier  to  duty. 

Though  afar  from  the  scenes  of  his  toll. 
From  htr  home  by  the  river  of  beauty. 
On  the  banks  of  the  charming  Lamoille. 

Oh.  sweet  is  the  carol  of  blrdllngs. 

When  the  forests  are  budding  in  May, 
When  the  bobolink  sings  in  the  meadow. 

And  Robin  replies  on  the  spray; 
But  in  silence  and  gloom  of  midwinter, 

In  battle  with  treason  and  wrong. 
One  thought  on  the  face  of  my  Mary 
Steals  Into  ray  heart  like  a  song. 
So  she  cheers  on  her  soldier  to  duty. 

Though  afar  from  the  scenes  of  his  toll, 
From  her  home  by  the  river  of  beauty. 
On  the  banks  of  the  charming  Lamoille. 

Oh,  dear  is  the  home  of  my  childhood. 

Each  valley,  and  mountain  and  lea. 

But  vain  without  love  is  the  wild  wood, 

Without  love  In  the  land  of  the  free. 
When  the  flag  floats  from  ocean  to  ocean. 

And  the  din  of  the  battle  is  o'er, 
I  will  fly  on  the  wings  of  devotion. 
And  part  with  my  Mary  no  more. 
Then  she'll  welcome  her  soldier  from  duty 

To  her  arms  from  the  scenes  of  his  toll. 
By  her  own  lov'd  river  of  beauty 
On  the  banks  of  the  charming  Lamoille. 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


CHURCH   OF   ST.  AUGUSTINE,   MONTPELIER,  VT. 


CATHOLIC    HISTORY   OF   MONTPELIER. 

Contimted from  page  289. 

Rev.  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan,  a  priest  of 
the  Diocese  of  Cork,  Ireland,  was  sent  by 
Bishop  Fenwick,  of  Boston,  to  Burlington 
in  the  month  of  July,  1830.  From  this 
time  till  1851,  he  must  have  occasionally 
visited  the  Catholics  of  Montpelier,  but  no 
records  exist  of  his  laboring  amongst  them. 
Father  O'Callaghan  died  at  Holyoke, 
Mass.,  in  the  year  1861.  About  the  year 
1850,  Rev.  H.  Drolet,  a  Canadian  priest, 
was  sent  to  reside  at  Montpelier.  He 
lived  here  till  the  fall  of  1854,  when  he  re- 
turned to  Canada,  where  he  died.  He  it 
was  who  bought  the  old  Court  House, 
which  was  used  as  a  church  until  the  erec- 
tion of  the  present  edifice  by  Father  Druon. 
After  the  departure  of  Father  Drolet,  the 
Montpelier  Catholic  congregation  was  at- 
tended by  the  Oblate  Fathers  from  Bur- 
lington until  November,  1856,  when  Very 
Rev.  Z.  Druon  became  pastor  af  the  Cath- 
olic congregation,  and  officiated  here  as 
such  until  July  15,  1864,  when  he  was  re- 
placed by  Rev.  Joseph  Duglue. 

-J*  Louis,  Bp.  of  Burlington. 


ST.  Augustine's. 
Rev.  Z.  Druon,  while  in  charge  of  this 
parish,  built  in  1859  the  present  church, 
dedicated  to  St.  Augustine,  and  purchased 
a  church  burying-ground.  Father  Duglue 
made  some  improvement  on  the  church  and 
house  for  the  priest,  and  built  a  good 
school  building  on  a  lot  adjoining  the 
church,  whieh  commands  a  fine  view  of 
the  village  and  State  House  grounds.  This 
institution  was  given  in  charge  to  ladies 
from  St.  Joseph's,  Barlington,  who  have  a 
large  and  flourishing  school  here. 

Rev.  Z.  Druon,  V.  G. 

O'Callaghan,  Rev.  Jeremiah.  A  Crit- 
ical Review  of  Mr.  J.  K.  Converse's 
Calvinistic  Sermon  ;  also,  of  the  Errone- 
ous proposition  of  Two  Innovators,  by 
the  Rev.  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan,  R.  C. 
Priest,  Burlington,  Vt.  Burlington: 
Printed  for  the  Author,  1834.  16  mo. 
p.  58. 

— Usury,  Funds  and  Banks ;  also,  fore- 
stalling Traffic  and  Monopoly  ;  likewise 
Pew  Rent  and  Grave  Tax  ;  together  with 
Burking  and  Dissecting  ;  as  well  as  the 
Galilean  Liberties,  are  all  repugnant  to 
the  Divine  and  Ecclesiastical  Laws  and 
Destructive  to  Civil  Society.  To  which 
is  prefixed  a  Narrative  of  the  Author's 
Controversy   with    Bishop    Coppinger, 


MONTPELIER. 


423 


and  of  his  sufferings  for  justice's  sake, 
by  the  Rev.  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan, 
Roman  Catholic  Priest.  Burlington  : 
Printed  for  the  Author,  1834.  8  vo.  p. 
380. 
— The  Creation  and  Offspring  of  the  Prot- 
estant Church ;  also  the  Vagaries  and 
Heresies  of  John  Henry  Hopkins,  Prot- 
estant Bishop  ;  and  of  other  False  Teach- 
ers. To  which  is  added  a  Treatise  on 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  Priesthood  and 
Matrimony.  By  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan, 
Roman  Catholic  Priest.  Burlington: 
Printed  for  the  Author,  1837.  12  mo. 
p.  328. 
— Exposure  of  the  Vermont  Banking,  by 
the  Rev.  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan,  Roman 
Catholic  Priest.  Burlington:  Free  Press 
Print.  8  vo.  p.  32. 
— Atheism  of  Brownson's  Review — Unity 
and  Trinity  of  God — Divinity  and  Hu- 
manity of  Christ  Jesus — Banks  and 
Paper  Money.  Burlington,  Vt.,  1852. 
R.  C.  8  vo.  pp.  306,  (2.) 
— The  Hedge  round  about  the  Vineyard, 
Dressed  up.  1844.  12  mo.  p.  360. 
Father  O'Callaghan  labored  at  Burling- 
ton with  much  success  from  1830  to  1852. 

—  Gilmari's  Bibliography  of  Vt, 

The  books  of  Father  O'Callaghan,  that 
we  have  examined,  have  considerable  pith. 
The,  attack  on  Brownson's  Review  was 
during  his  transformation,  before  he  had 
come  up  to  the  Catholic  standard.  His 
biography  (Brownson's)  belongs  to  our 
next  volume,  or  Windsor  Co. 

Between  the  visits  of  Reverend  Father 
O'Callaghan  and  Father  Drolet,  was  the 
missionary  labors  of  Rev.  John  Daly  for  a 
time,  his  field  reaching  from  Canada  to 
Brattleboro.  We  have  not  learned  more  of 
him. 

REV.    H.    DROLET, 

the  first  resident  priestat  Montpelier,  must 
have  come  here  to  reside,  we  think,  as 
early  as  1850,  as  we  learn  by  a  letter  of 
Gen.  Clarke,  Secretary  to  the  Senate,  who 
was  here  at  the  time,  that  the  old  Court 
House  that  Father  Drolet  purchased,  as 
the  Bishop  states,  was  used  as  a  church  in 
the  fall  of  1850,  and  we  find  Father  Drolet, 
or  the  General  for  him — the  General  took 
charge  of  the  matter — succeeding  in  "  bor- 
rowing ground  "  of  the  Legislature  for  the 
society  to  build  a  vestry  on  in  the  rear  of 
the    old   Court    House,   then  used   as   a 


church,  (or  to  the  left  hand,)  the  site,  we 
understand,  of  the  present  church. 

From  a  letter  of  Gen.  D.  W.  C.  Clarke 
to  his  wife,  Nov.  3,  1850  : 

I  attended  mass  at  Montpelier,  Friday 
morning,  (All  Saints,)  stealing  quietly 
away  from  my  seat  in  the  Senate  Chamber 
for  that  purpose.  The  poor  Catholics 
looked  upon  me  with  surprise  as  I  knelt 
among  them,  and  declined  the  offer  of  a 
"  better  place."  I  rather  like,  you  know, 
to  kneel  right  among  the  most  humble,  and 
God  knows  I  delong  there.  Mass  was  cel- 
ebrated in  the  new  church  the  Catholics 
are  finishing  off,  (it  was  formerly  the  Court 
House,)  within  a  dozen  rods  of  the  State 
House.  The  interior  is  wholly  unfinished, 
but  it  did  seem  to  me,  like 
worshipping  God  "  in  His  holy  temple." 

Acts  of  iS so.  No.  87 — Resolution  grant- 
ing license  to  a  religious  society  to  occupy 
a  piece  of  the  land  of  the  State  near  the 
State  House : 

Resolved,  by  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives,  That  the  Sergeant-at- 
Arms  is  authorized  to  permit  the  Religious 
Society  who  are  fitting  up  and  repairing 
the  old  Court  House,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  public  grounds,  for  the  purpose  of  re- 
ligious worship,  to  occupy  so  much  land 
belonging  to  the  State  as  may  be  necessary 
for  the  erection  of  a  vestry  room  in  the 
rear  of  said  building ;  provided,  however, 
this  resolution  may  be  revoked  at  any 
time,  by  joint  resolution  of  the  two  houses 
of  the  Legislature. 

The  above  resolution  was  adopted  Nov. 
13,  1850. 

The  General,  and  his  friends  in  the 
Senate  and  in  the  House,  having  got  the 
loan  of  the  land,  it  eventuated  soon  after 
in  the  purchase  of  it. 

Father  Drolet  was  born  in  the  city  of 
Quebec,  Canada,  and  died  in  the  Parish  of 
St.  Jude,  Diocese  of  St.  Hyacinth,  be- 
tween the  years  1861  and  1863. 

Rev.  Father  B.  Maloney  and  Father 
Coopman,  Oblates,  attended  Montpelier 
from  Jan.  1856  to  Nov.  1856. 

REV.    ZEPHYRINUS   DRUON,    V.  G., 

was  born  Mar.  14,  1830,  at  Vendin  le  Vieil 
Pas  de  Calais,  and  ordained  priest,  July  3, 
1853,  at  Beauvais,  France.  He  studied 
for  the  priesthood  in  the  Grand  Seminary 
of  Arras ;  came  to  this  country  in  August, 
1850,  with  Bishop  Rappe ;  continued  his 
theological  studies  in  Cleveland,  O.,  and 


424 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


finished  them  at  Paris  in  the  Seminary  of 
St.  Sulpice  ;  went  back  to  Cleveland  ;  was 
curate  at  the  cathedral  there  4  months ; 
came  to  Vermont,  January,  1854;  was  the 
residing  priest  of  Bennington,  i  year ;  of 
East  Rutland,  2  years  ;  of  Montpelier,  8  or 
9  years  ;  finally  of  St.  Albans,  16  years  to 
the  present.  He  was  very  much  honored 
and  esteemed  in  Montpelier.  He  has  been 
called,  and  undoubtedly  is,  the  most  schol- 
arly, piquant  and  solid  preacher  and  writer 
of  the  Catholic  clergy  in  the  State.  He 
received  his  appointment  as  Vicar  General 
in  1864,  or  at  the  end  of  the  year  1863. 

REV.   JOSEPH   DUGLUE 

was  born  Sept.  3,  1834,  at  Carentoir, 
Morbihan,  France.  He  studied  for  the 
priesthood  in  the  Grand  Seminary  of 
Vannes,  came  to  this  country  in  September, 
1855,  with  Bishop  de  Goesbriand,  and 
continued  his  theological  studies  in  the 
Grand  Seminary  at  St.  Sulpice,  at  Balti- 
more, Maryland,  and  was  ordained  priest 
at  Burlington,  Feb.  4,  1857.  He  was  first 
sent  to  Middlebury,  then,  in  i860,  he  was 
called  to  the  cathedral.  At  the  end  of  the 
year  1862,  he  was  appointed  to  Fairfield, 
where  he  remained  until  July,  1864,  when 
he  was  appointed  to  Montpelier.  In  1877, 
he  went  to  France,  on  account  of  ill  health, 
and  was  absent  one  year.  On  his  return, 
he  was  sent  to  Waterbury,  where  he  was 
three  months,  when,  in  January,  1879,  he 
was  replaced  at  Montpelier,  where  he  is 
now  pastor,  of  whom  we  may  say,  to  quote 
the  words  of  a  priest.  Father  McLaughlin, 
of  Brandon,  in  his  silver  jubilee  discourse, 
"Father  Duglue,  the  Priest  at  the  Capital, 
if  it  would  not  be  savoring  of  a  joke, 
I  should  say  is  a  capital  Priest." 

The  interior  of  St.  Augustine's  is 
very  plain  for  a  Catholic  church.  The 
building  is  small,  and  the  church  will  only 
seat  about  950.  There  are  two  side  aisles, 
but  no  centre  aisle.  The  windows  have 
only  a  partial  coloring  of  red  glass  in  the 
top.  Between  the  windows,  in  simple 
black  wood  frames,  the  stations  of  the 
cross  run  along  the  walls,  as  in  every  Cath- 
olic chapel — the  representative  via  doloro- 
sa— the  path  of  dolor  from  Pilate's  hall  to 


the  Tomb  in  the  Garden.  The  chancel, 
too,  is  poor  in  art — very  poor — only  the 
little  side  altars  in  the  foreground  at  the 
right  and  left,  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  and 
St.  Joseph;  in  the  main  chancel,  a  very 
plain  wood  altar,  the  figure  of  St.  Augus- 
tine in  the  wall-niche  over  behind ;  two 
Sacred  Heart  pictures  on  the  wall  beside. 
The  oldest  church  in  Christendom  is  plant- 
ed on  the  Capital  Hill  in  almost  as  poor  a 
state  as  the  Cave  at  Bethlehem.  The  re- 
ligion of  Rome  has  not  been  long  intro- 
duced in  this  county.  There  are  but  three 
other  Catholic  churches  in  the  whole 
county,  yet.  One  might  expect  to  find  a 
handsome  church  at  the  Capital — a  church 
more  suitable  to  the  place — an  edifice  sec- 
ond to  none  in  the  State  in  magnitude  and 
decoration.  Feeling  particularly  the  want 
thereof  on  this  honorable  and  beautiful 
hillside,  still  the  poor  congregation  go  in 
and  out,  a  look  very  well  content  in  their 
faces  —  a  respectable  throng  every  Sun- 
day and  holiday.  The  motherly  church 
adapts  herself  sweetly  to  all  peoples  and  all 
conditions,  in  the  grandeurs  of  the  cathe- 
dral, in  the  poorest  mission  chapel,  ever  to 
the  Catholic  his  true  Alma  Mater. 

The  Catholic  cemetery  of  St.  Augustine's, 
which  is  a  little  above  Main  street,  in  Clay 
Hill  district,  the  land  for  which  was  bought 
of  Thomas  Reed  and  Charles  Clark,  Dec. 
1857,  was  not  deeded  or  inclosed  and 
blessed  by  the  Bishop  until  i860.  The 
first  grave  made  therein  was  that  of  Ed- 
ward Cadieu,  a  young  child  of  Theophile 
Cadieu.  About  an  acre  adjoining  was 
bought  of  George  Jacobs,  Nov.  1879,  ^"^ 
blessed  by  Rev.  Joseph  Duglue,  Septem- 
ber 5,  1880. 

ST.    MICHAEL'S   SCHOOL, 

of  which  Father  Druon  speaks  as  com- 
manding a  fine  view  upon  the  hillside,  is 
situated  a  little  to  the  east  of  the  church  of 
St.  Augustine.  Outwardly,  the  ample 
white  building,  with  a  cross  on  its  roof, 
attracts  the  eye  from  the  street ;  within,  it 
is  pleasantly  and  comfortably  furnished. 
Five  ladies  reside  at  the  institution,  and 
have  a  school  of  some  over  170  pupils.  It 
has  been  put  down  200.     Father  Duglue 


MONTPELIER. 


42s 


thinks  "  it  will  average  170  daily  attend- 
ance and  some  over."  The  Young  Ladies 
Sodality  of  B.  V.  M.  of  this  congregation 
is  always  presided  over  by  one  of  the  la- 
dies of  St.  IVIichaePs,  and  is  the  best  ap- 
pearing Sodality  of  Catholic  young  ladies 
that  we  know  of  in  the  State. 

We  learn  since  the  above  was  in  print 
that  the  old  Court  House  was  bought  of 
J.  Barnard  Langdon  in  1850;  also  by  a 
letter  of  Father  Drolet  to  Bishop  Fitzpat- 
rick  of  Boston,  work  was  first  commenced 
on  remodeling  the  old  Court  House  into  a 
Church,  July,  1850. 

Moreover  that  Father  Duglue  has  had 
the  honor  to  say  mass  at  Barre,  Sunday, 
Nov.  13,  1 88 1,  supposed  to  be  the  first 
Catholic  service  ever  held  at  that  place. 


THE   BAPTIST   CHURCH   OF   MONTPELIER. 

FUKNISHED   BY  THE    PASTOlt. 

[Tlie  first  pari  of  the  following  Historical  Sketch  of 
this  church  was  writlen  by  Col.  H.  D.  Hopkins 
about  the  time  of  the  dedication  of  their  l)ouse  of 
worship,  and  published  in  a  Montpelier  paper  Feb. 

6,  187o.] 

"The  church  was  organized  in  June,  1865, 
with  14  members,  only  five  of  whom  were 
males.  Hon.  Joseph  Rowell — since  de- 
ceased— and  Philip  Hill,  Esq.,  were  chosen 
Deacons  pro  tern,  and  the  Rev.  Rufus 
Smith,  who  was  agentfor  the  denomination 
within  the  State,  was  chosen  Clerk.  Mr. 
Smith  also  supplied  the  pulpit  of  the  con- 
gregation on  the  Sabbath — sometimes  by 
occupying  it  himself,  and  sometimes  by 
arrangement  with  other  clergymen  in  the 
vicinity.  The  first  Sunday  services  of  this 
young  church  were  in  Village  Hall. 

October,  1865,  a  call  was  given  to  Rev. 
H.  D.  Hodge  to  become  pastor,  who  declin- 
ed. February  following  a  call  was  given  to 
Rev.  N.  P.  Foster,  M.  D.,  of  Burlington, 
and  he  accepted,  but  did  not  enter  upon  the 
pastorate  until  October  of  the  same  year. 
Up  to  this  time  1 1  persons  were  added  to 
the  church,  four  of  whom  entered  by  profes- 
sion of  faith.  Dr.  Foster  remained  with 
the  church  till  April,  1869,  during  which 
time,  as  would  appear  by  the  results,  he 
labored  faithfully  and  well  for  the  growth 
of  the  church  and  the  success  of  the  Re- 
deemer's Kingdom.  While  he  was  pastor, 
17  persons  were  added  to  the  church.     The 


little  organization  of  1865  had  in  less  than 
four  years  more  than  tripled  its  member- 
ship. 

The  second  pastor  was  Rev.  William 
Fitz,  who  began  his  labors  in  September, 
1869,  and  closed  them  in  November,  1871. 
He  was  a  faithful  minister,  a  pleasant, 
companionable  man,  an  able  preacher,  and 
was  highly  esteemed  outside  the  denomi- 
nation, as  well  as  in.  The  church  received 
21  members  during  his  pastorate  of  a  little 
more  than  2  years.  The  third  and  present 
pastor,  the  Rev.  N.  Newton  Glazier,  began 
his  labors  in  January  of  last  year,  and  the 
friends  of  the  Society  and  congregation 
can  wish  them  nothing  better  in  the  line 
of  human  ministries,  we  are  sure,  than  that 
he  may  long  remain  with  them.  A  young 
man,  a  growing  and  a  good  man,  he  seems 
specially  fitted  to  lead  on  this  people  in  their 
work  in  the  world.  9  persons  were  added 
to  the  church  in  the  first  year  of  his  minis- 
try. This  brings  a  partial  history  of  this 
organization  down  to  the  present  time, 
(Feb.,  1873,)  58  members  having  been 
added  to  the  14  who  originally  united  to 
form  it.  Two  persons — one  of  them  the 
Hon.  Joseph  Rowell,  one  of  the  founders 
of  this  church,  and  long  an  ardent  friend 
and  supporter  of  the  denomination, — have 
died  from  among  its  members,  and  by  re- 
movals it  has  suffered  further  depletion,  so 
that  its  present  number  is  57.  In  July, 
1869,  the  church  elected  as  its  deacons, 
E.  E.  Andrews  and  E.  S.  Hibbard.  In 
August  of  1865,  a  Sunday  School  in  con- 
nection with  the  church  was  organized, 
over  which  Mr.  Hibbard  was  chosen  Su- 
perintendant,  and  he  still  holds  the  office, 
(Feb.,  1873)  laboring  with  true  christian 
zeal  to  make  it  successful  in  its  work. 

We  have  stated  that  this  people  began 
worship  in  Village  Hall.  Remaining  there 
a  few  months,  they  removed  to  Freeman 
Hall — the  apartment  now  occupied  by  the 
Temple  of  Honor;  and  then  on  the  12th 
of  November,  they  removed  to  the  Court 
House.  Here  they  remained  till  January 
of  1868,  when  they  were  ordered  by  the 
Assistant  Judges  of  the  County,  against  the 
remonstrance  of  nearly  all  the  lawyers  of 
the  County,  and  many  prominent  citizens 


54 


426 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  Montpelier,  to  vacate  the  premises,  and 
it  was  done.  Though  they  had  been  la- 
boring to  the  ultimate  erection  of  a  place 
of  worship  for  their  use,  and  were  slowly 
gathering  subscriptions  for  the  purpose, 
it  was  the  action  of  the  court,  the  sending 
of  them  adrift,  houseless  as  they  were, 
which  perhaps  gave  them  the  nerve  neces- 
sary for  such  an  undertaking ;  and  conse- 
quently they  made  ready,  and  on  the  23d 
of  March,  ground  was  broken  for  the  foun- 
dation of  their  new  and  beatiful  church  edi- 
fice. During  the  summer  work  upon  it  was 
pushed  forward  with  all  possible  vigor,  and 
in  November  they  were  enabled  to  enter 
the  basement,  though  at  first  it  lacked  win- 
dows. It  is  worthy  of  mention  that  from 
June,  1865,  to  this  time  they  worshipped 
in  no  less  than  16  different  rooms.  It  was 
therefore  no  wonder  if  on  entering  premi- 
ses they  could  call  their  own,  though  not 
the  most  inviting^  and  comfortable,  they 
felt  to  "  thank  God  and  take  courage." 

The  New  Church  edifice  stands  at  the 
corner  of  School  and  St.  Paul  streets, 
fronting  on  the  former.  It  is  of  wood, 
gothic  in  style,  and  of  good  proportions. 
It  was  built  from  plans  and  specifications 
generously  furnished  to  the  society  without 
expense  by  A.  M.  Burnham,  Esq.,  archi- 
tect, and  speaks  well  for  his  good  taste  as 
a  builder.  The  size  of  the  main  building 
is  46  by  75  feet,  the  auditorium  is  44  by 
61  feet,  26  feet  high,  with  sloping  ceilings, 
and  will  seat  comfortably  400  persons. 
The  choir  gallery,  which  is  only  slightly  el- 
evated and  standing  in  the  front  end  of 
the  building,  is  finished  with  heavy  rail 
and  balustrades  of  black  walnut.  The  or- 
gan loft,  and  the  recess  for  the  pulpit — the 
latter  in  the  opposite  end  of  the  building — 
are  finished  with  triple  gothic  arches  and 
scroll  corbets  for  pendants.  The  chancel 
is  10  by  30  feet,  and  contains  robing-room 
aud  baptismal  font.  It  is  reached  both  by 
stairs  leading  from  the  vestry  below,  and 
by  steps  from  the  auditorium.  The  base- 
ment is  ID  feet  high,  and  divided  in  a 
most  desirable  manner  into  vestibule,  class- 
room, kitchen  for  sociables,  etc.  The 
spire  and  bell  tower  are  situated  in  the  left 
hand  front  corner,  and  are  heavily  mount- 


ed with  gable  and  offset  buttresses  and 
bracketed  clock-faces.  The  handsome  spire 
rises  to  140  feet,  and  on  the  right  hand 
rises  another  tower  of  smaller  proportions, 
finished  with  double  cornice,  with  buttres- 
ses ending  in  turrets  and  finials.  The  en- 
trance to  the  church  is  by  doors  in  the 
towers,  the  larger  7  by  13  feet.  The  ves- 
try is  reached  both  by  a  side  door  from 
St.  Paul  street  and  by  stairs  leading  down 
from  the  vestibule.  The  basement  is  fin- 
ished (externally)  with  rustic  block-work, 
projecting  ten  inches  from  the  main  build- 
ing, which  forms  a  pedestal  for  buttresses 
to  rest  upon  between  the  windows  of  the 
main  auditory.  The  windows  of  the  audi- 
torium are  pointed  gothic,  with  heavy 
stools  aud  corbets,  and  are  set  with  figured 
glass  of  extremely  pretty  pattern.  The 
pews  are  similar  to  those  of  Bethany 
Church,  (of  which  Col.  Hopkins  is  a  loved 
and  honored  member,)  heavy  black  wal- 
nut frames,  with  black  ash  panels.  The  pul- 
pit, which  is  little  more  than  a  desk  for  the 
Bible,  is  of  new  design,  and  is  constructed 
of  black  and  French  walnut.  The  chan- 
cel is  supplied  with  three  massive  chairs,  of 
a  style  well  fitted  for  the  purpose.  The 
walls  and  ceilings  are  frescoed  in  modern 
Persian  arches,  laid  in  colors  attractive  and 
beautiful.  The  slips  are  cushioned,  and  a 
carpet  of  modern  figure  and  colors  covers 
the  floor  of  the  chancel,  auditorium  and 
singers'  gallery.  The  cost  of  the  church 
was  about  $17,000.  It  is  an  ornament  to 
the  town,  and  a  credit  to  the  enterprise 
and  self-denial  of  those  by  whose  labors 
and  calculations  it  has  been  reared. 

The  dedication  was  on  Jan.  29,  1873,  at 
2  o'clock,  in  the  presence  of  a  crowded 
and  interested  audience.  First,  anthem, 
"Blessed  be  the  Lord  God  of  Israel!" 
Invocation  and  reading  of  Scripture,  by 
Rev.  Wm.  Fitz,  the  selection  relating 
chiefly  to  God's  House,  its  delights  and 
uses ;  prayer,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Morrow,  of  the 
Methodist  church  ;  "All  hail  the  power  of 
Jesus'  name,"  by  choir  and  congregation  ; 
sermon  by  Rev.  Mr.  Glazier,  pastor ;  text, 
"We  preach  Christ  crucified  ;"  an  able  ef- 
fort, delivered  with  much  earnestness. 
After  the  sermon,   chant,    "  I  will  lift  up 


MONTPELIER. 


427 


mine  eyes  unto  the  hills,  from  whence 
Cometh  my  help;"  prayer  of  dedication, 
by  Rev.  Mr.  Smith,  of  St.  Albans,  and  the 
benediction.  The  services  seemed  to  im- 
press all  persons  present  as  appropriate  and 
interesting,  and  must  have  been  especially 
so  to  the  little  company  of  believers  whose 
earthly  temple  this  house  henceforth  is 
to  be." 

Col.  Hopkins,  a  few  weeks  later,  in  an- 
other article  wrote  :  "  The  Baptist  church 
is  the  only  place  in  town  where  the  build- 
ing and  the  organization  occupying  it  bear 
the  same  name.  It  is  characteristic  of 
these  people,  we  believe,  that  they  fling 
their  colors  to  the  breeze.  Coming  to  their 
beautiful  church,  you  are  made  to  feel  that 
you  are  welcome.  Their  pastor.  Rev.  Mr. 
Glazier,  will  impress  you  as  a  man  of  char- 
acter, ability  and  earnestness.  His  pulpit 
efforts  will  not  suffer  in  comparison  with 
those  of  older  and  more  notable  men. 
The  audience  is  at  present  small,  but  it  is 
the  confident  expectation  of  the  few  that 
their  numbers  shall  yearly  increase.  They 
are  well  united  and  commendably  devoted 
to  work." 

Mr.  Glazier  closed  his  pastorate  on  the 
last  day  of  June,  1878,  exactly  six  years 
and  six  months  from  its  beginning.  Dur- 
ing his  pastorate  fifty-eight  members  were 
received  into  the  church,  two  of  them  being 
baptised  by  Mr.  Glazier  on  the  first  Sun- 
day after  his  pastorate  closed.  He  is  a 
man  of  most  lovable  and  forbearing  spirit. 
His  public  discourse  is  rich  and  spiritual, 
and  Biblical  in  doctrine.  His  private  con- 
versation is  elevating  and  remarkably  en- 
tertaining. His  departure  from  his  people 
was  like  the  parting  from  the  old  home  of 
a  son  or  a  brother.  After  a  lapse  of  three 
years,  his  discourses  still  linger  forcefully 
in  the  minds  of  the  people  to  whom  he 
ministered,  and  the  influence  of  his  sweet 
temper  and  godly  life  abides  as  a  benedic- 
tion, not  only  upon  his  devoted  parishion- 
ers, but  also  upon  the  pastor  who  succeeds 
him.  He  is  now  the  pastor  of  the  strong 
Baptist  church  in  South  Abington,  Mass. 

Rev.  Henry  A.  Rogers,  at  present  min- 
istering to  the  church,  became  its  pastor 
Oct.  3,  1878,  ordained  by  the   church  to 


the  Gospel  ministry,  Nov.  7,  following. 
The  efforts  of  the  church  during  the  first 
3  years  of  his  pastorate  have  been  in  the 
line  of  more  perfect  discipline  and  organiza- 
tion. Distinct  departments  of  church  work 
have  been  organized  in  the  interest  of 
foreign  missions,  home  missions,  the  Ver- 
mont Baptist  State  Convention,  music, 
education,  parish  gatherings,  parish  visit- 
ing, temperance  and  Sunday-schools. 

The  Sunday-schools  have  been  a  marked 
feature  in  the  history  of  the  work  of  the 
church  during  this  period.  The  school  in 
the  church  has  been  making  a  gradual  gain 
in  numbers,  and,  we  think,  in  efficiency, 
under  the  superintendencyof  H.  B.  Wood- 
ward, H.  J.  Andrews  and  Ives  Batchelder, 
successively,  and  now  of  Jas.  H.  Burpee. 
The  services  of  the  first  three  of  these  su- 
perintendents were  lost  to  the  church  by 
their  removal  from  the  vicinity. 

A  mission  school  was  organized,  three 
miles  distant,  at  Wrightsville,  Nov.  27, 
1878,  S.  S.  Towner,  superintendent.  Upon 
his  removal  to  Lynn,  Mass.,  M.  C.  Whitney 
was  appointed  by  the  church  as  superin- 
tendent, Sept.  4,  1879.  At  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  school  district  in  March, 
1 88 1,  on  motion  of  P.  C.  Wright,  the  dis- 
trict passed  a  vote  that  their  school-house 
should  not  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  a 
Sunday-school.  From  this  time,  accord- 
ingly, the  school  was  of  necessity  dis- 
continued. 

A  second  mission  Sunday-school  was 
organized  in  East  Montpelier,  distant  five 
miles,  in  the  school-house  of  district  No. 
II,  May  4,  1879,  Samuel  L.  LilHe,  su- 
perintendent. Sept.  4,  1879,  he  resigned, 
being  about  to  go  away,  and  George  W. 
Sanders  was  appointed  in  his  place,  and  is 
present  superintendent. 

A  third  mission  school  was  begun  at 
Montpelier  Center,  distant  3  miles.  May 
25,  1879,  F.R.Spalding,  superintendent. 
He  also  resigned  Sept.  4,  1879,  to  go  else- 
where, and  Jno.  W.  Smith  was  elected  by 
the  church  to  the  superintendency,  which 
office  he  still  fills. 

It  was  voted  at  the  district  school  meet- 
ing. Mar.  30,  1880,  that  the  school-house 
in  which  the  services  had  been  held  should 


428 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


be  closed  against  them.  But  a  neighbor, 
Mr.  West  Ormsbee,  who  had  not  before 
attended  the  school,  opened  his  commo- 
dious hall,  and  the  school  immediately 
doubled  in  number. 

At  a  called  meeting,  July  20,  1881,  of 
district  No.  6,  Montpelier,  2  miles  from 
town,  and  immediately  adjoining  the 
Wrightsville  district,  by  vote  of  the  meet- 
ing, their  house  was  put  at  the  disposal  of 
the  Baptist  pastor  for  Sunday-school  ser- 
vice on  Sunday  afternoons.  Accordingly, 
a  school  was  organized  on  the  following 
Sunday,  July  24.  Mr.  E.  K.  Dexter  was 
subsequently  appointed  to  superintend  it. 
None  of  these  schools  has  omitted  a  single 
session,  winter  or  summer,  since  they  were 
organized.  They  are  all  supplied  by  the 
church  with  circulating  libraries,  and  books 
from  which  to  learn  and  sing  sacred  song. 

There  have  been  ;i;i  added  to  the  church 
during  this  time.  The  church  has  now  97 
members,  (Oct.  i88i,)but  only  aboutone- 
half  are  resident  members,  that  is,  live 
within  4  or  5  miles  of  the  church.  But 
none  of  the  non-resident  members  reside 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  any  other  reg- 
ular Baptist  church.  The  whole  number 
of  members  belonging  to  the  church  since 
its  beginning  is  155. 

•     Henry  A.  Rogers,  Pastor. 

ORGANISTS   AND   MUSICIANS. 
BY  A.  A.  HADLKY,   Organist. 

Among  the  principal  musicians  who  have 
been  teachers  and  organists  in  Montpelier 
are : 

S.  B.  Whitney,  teacher  and  organist  in 
1862 — for  about  4  years  here — who  has 
since  made  himself  famous  in  Boston  as  an 
organist  and  conductor. 

About  this  time,  or  before,  was  Mr.  H. 
Irving  Proctor,  who  taught  successfully, 
and  is  now  at  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

I  think,  following  Mr.  Whitney,  was  Mr. 
Irving  Emerson,  who  played  at  the  old 
Brick  Church  3  years,  and  also  taught ; 
now  located  at  Hartford,  Ct.,  organist  and 
superintendent  of  music  in  public  schools. 

In  1868,  the  now  famous  H.  Clarence 
Eddy,    from   Massachusetts,    played    the 


organ  at  Bethany  church  for  2^  years ; 
afterwards  he  studied  abroad  several  years, 
and  is  now  located  in  Chicago  as  director 
of  the  Hershey  music  school,  and  is  con- 
sidered one  of  the  greatest  of  living  organ- 
ists. 

Following  him,  at  the  Bethany  church, 
as  organist,  was  Mr.  W.  A.  Briggs,  who 
is  a  fine  organist,  and  somewhat  noted  as  a 
composer. 

Mr.  W.  A.  Wheaton,  who  teaches  at 
"  Goddard,"  Barre,  beside  being  a  success- 
ful teacher,  isalsoorganistat  the  Unitarian 
church,  Montpelier. 

Mr.  Horace  H.  Scribxer,  who  has 
also  taught  here  several  years,  is  pres- 
ent organist  at  the  Episcopal  church,  and 
is  liked  by  all  as  an  accompanist  on  the 
organ  and  piano. 

Mr.  A.  A.  Hadley,  who  has  studied 
some  time  at  Boston,  has  charge  of  the 
musical  department  in  the  "Vermont Con- 
ference Seminary  and  Female  College,"  at 
Montpelier,  and  is  organist  at  Trinity 
M.  E.  Church,  this  village. 

Mr.  Andrew  J.  Phillips  was  chorister 
several  years,  ending  in  1879,  at  Bethany 
church,  and  teacher  of  vocal  music.  He 
married  while  here  a  daughter  of  Judge 
Redfield,  and  has  a  brother  at  present 
here,  Mr.  Wm.  E.  Phillips,  a  photograph 
artist  with  Mr.  Harlow. 

Mr.  Fred  W.  Bancroft,  a  resident  and 
native  of  Montpelier.,  present  chorister  at 
Christ  Church,  has  a  good  deal  of  local 
reputation  as  a  fine  tenor  singer. 

Among  the  ladies,  Ellen  Nye,  beside 
being  a  good  teacher,  is  the  finest  pianist 
in  this  vicinity.  * 

Mrs.  Briggs,  who  sang  at  the  time  Mr. 
Phillips  was  chorister  at  Bethany,  and  for 
several  years,  is  distinguished  as  a  very 
fine  soprano,  and  now  sings  at  Boston. 

Miss  Cheney,  also  a  very  fine  soprano, 
sang  several  years  at  the  Unitarian  church 
here.     She  now  sings  at  Burlington. 

Among  other  sopranos  are  Josie  Roleau 
and  Mrs.  Wheatley,  much  liked,  and  of 
the  altos.  Miss  Mary  Phinney  and  Miss 
Clara  Dewey  deserve  special  notice. 


MONTPELIER. 


429 


BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES. 

From  Thompson's  History  of  Montpelier. 
COLONEL   JACOB   DAVIS. 

Colonel  Jacob  Davis,  the  first  perma- 
nent settler  of  Montpelier,  and  emphati- 
cally the  chief  of  its  founders,  was  born  in 
Oxford,  Mass.,  in  1739.  ^^'^  descendants 
have  preserved  no  memorials  of  his  youth, 
and  only  know  he  received  no  advantages 
of  education  except  from  the  common 
schools  of  the  times.  In  1754,  the  part  of 
the  town,  in  which  his  father's  family  re- 
sided,, was  set  oft"  from  Oxford,  and  incor- 
porated by  the  name  of  Charlton.  Here 
he  lived  until  he  removed  to  Vermont. 
He  married  Rebecca  Davis,  of  the  same 
town,  a  second  cousin,  and  an  intelligent, 
amiable  and  every  way  estimable  young 
lady.  Mr.  Davis  must  have  been  a  man 
of  considerable  property  and  standing  in 
his  town  ;  and  he  probably  passed  through 
all  the  lower  grades  of  military  office  in  the 
militia  of  his  county,  and  became  widely 
known  as  an  active  patriot  in  the  cause  of 
the  American  Revolution  ;  for  in  1 776,  we 
find  him  acting  under  a  ColonePs  commis- 
sion of  one  of  the  regiments  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts detached  or  drafted  militia,  subject 
to  the  call  of  Congress  or  the  Commander- 
in-Chief,  whenever  the  occasion  might  re- 
quire. How  much  he  was  in  active  service 
is  not  known ;  but  the  traditions  of  his 
family  make  him  to  have  been  with  his 
command  in  the  little  army  of  Washington 
in  the  memorable  crossing  of  the  Delaware 
to  attack  the  Hessians  at  Trenton  in  De- 
cember, 1776.  He  was  .subsequently  un- 
der contract  to  carry,  and  so  did,  the  Unit- 
ed States  mail  over  one  of  the  mail  routes 
in  his  part  of  Massachusetts  for  some  years. 
A  few  years  after  there  was  an  old  Jew  en- 
gaged in  traffic,  who  owned  a  large  house, 
or  ware-house,  in  the  neighboring  town  of 
Leicester ;  Colonel  Davis,  and  another  gen- 
tleman of  the  vicinity,  purchased  this 
building,  had  it  fitted  up,  and  a  select  high 
school  put  in  operation.  This  was  the 
small  beginning  of  the  afterwards  well 
known  Leicester  Academy,  founded  in 
1 774 ;  and  that  Colonel  Davis  was  consid- 
ered one  of  its  founders  is  shown  by  the 


fact,  since  his  death,  his  family  have  re- 
ceived a  letter  asking  for  his  portrait  that 
it  might  be  placed  in  the  Academy  build- 
ing, with  that  of  the  other  founders  of 
that  institution. 

Early  in  the  year  1780,  he  had  turned 
his  attention  to  the  purchase  of  wild  lands 
in  the  new  State  of  Vermont ;  and  was 
among  the  most  active  in  procuring  the 
granting  and  chartering  of  the  township, 
which  he  caused  to  be  named  Montpelier, 
at  the  October  session  of  the  Legislature 
of  Vermont  in  that  year.  From  that  time 
to  the  commencement  of  the  meetings  of 
the  proprietors  in  the  winter  of  1786, which 
he  attended.  Colonel  Davis  appears  to 
have  been  energetically  engaged  in  his  pri- 
vate business,  at  Charlton,  or  in  public  en- 
terprises, like  the  one  above  mentioned. 
But  ffom  this  year,  and  perhaps  the  year 
before,  he  was  obviously  employed  in  dis- 
posing of  his  quite  handsome  property  in 
Massachusetts,  and  arranging  for  removal 
to  his  newly  elected  home  in  Vermont. 
In  the  winter  of  1787,  after  having  made, 
during  the  previous  summer  and  fall,  sev- 
eral journeys  into  the  State  to  attend  the 
meetings  of  the  proprietors,  commence  the 
survey  of  the  new  township,  in  whicii  he 
had  secured  three  rights,  or  about  1000 
acres,  and  make  selection  of  pitches  for 
the  occupation  of  himself  and  sons,  he  re- 
moved his  family  to  Brookfield,  then  the 
nearest  settled  town  to  Montpelier ;  and 
early  in  the  following  spring,  still  leaving 
his  wife  and  daughters  at  Brookfield,  till  a 
comfortable  home  could  be  provided  for 
them,  he  came  with  his  sons  and  a  hired 
man  to  make  his  opening  in  the  dark  for- 
ests of  Montpelier.  His  career  for  the 
next  12  or  15  years,  involved,  to  a  remark- 
able degree,  the  history  of  the  town.. 

Near  the  year  1800,  he  became  involved 
in  several  large  and  vexatious  lawsuits, 
growing  out  of  disputed  land  titles  or  the 
sales  of  lands  he  had  effected  through  his 
agencies  under  foreign  landholders.  In 
one  of  these,  for  want  of  his  ability  to 
make  legal  proof  of  payments  that  the  dis- 
tant proprietors  had  received,  a  large  judg- 
ment was  obtained  in  the  United  States 
Circuit  Court  against  him,  which  was  con- 


43° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


sidered  by  himself,  his  family  and  friends, 
so  unjust  that  he,  with  their  concurrence, 
resolved  never  to  pay  it.     And  in  pursu- 
ance of  this  determination,  he  conveyed  to 
his  sons  and  sons-in-law  the  principal  part 
of  his  attachable  property,  and,  removing 
his  family  to  Burlington,  so  as  to  be  within 
the  limits  of  Chittenden  county  jail-yard, 
invited  the  service  of  the  execution  taken 
out   against    him    on    his    own     person. 
Here  in  Burlington,  he  led  a  quiet  life  for 
over  a  dozen  years,  during  which  frequent 
offers  of  compromises  were  made  him  by 
the  plaintiffs  in  the  suit,  which  he  steadily 
rejected  till  the  winter  of  1814,  when  they 
made  an  offer  so  nearly  amounting  to  a  re- 
linquishment of  their  whole  claim,  and  so 
virtually  involving  an  admission  of  its  in- 
justice, that  he  accepted  it,  and  the  whole 
matter   in   dispute  was   amicably  settled. 
But  before  he  became  prepared  to  remove, 
as  he  was  about  to  do,  to  his  beloved  Mont- 
pelier,  he  was  attacked  by  an  acute  disease 
which  terminated   his  life   April  9,  1814. 
His  remains  were  brought  to  Montpelier 
for  interment,    and    a   broad   tomb-stone 
marking  the  place  where  they  repose  may 
now  be  found  in  the  old  village  grave-yard. 
In  person.  Col.  Davis  was  6  feet  high, 
broad-shouldered,  compactly  formed  and 
well    proportioned,    with   unusually   large 
bones  and  muscles.     His  face  was  round 
favored,  and  handsomely  featured,  and  his 
whole  appearance  dignified  and  command- 
ing.    His   great   physical   powers  are  in- 
stanced in  his  ability  to  slash  an  acre  of 
forest  land  in  a  day.     Let  one  other  suffice. 
Old  Mr.  Levi  Humphrey,  one  of  the  first 
settlers,  who  died  in   this   town,   August, 
1859,  aged  93  years,  told  us,  about  a  fort- 
night before  his  death,  he  well-remembered 
being  one  day  at  Col.  Davis'   log  house, 
when  the  latter  requested  two  of  his  strong- 
est  hired   men  to  go    into    the  yard   and 
bring  in,  for  a  back-log  for  their  long  open 
fire-place,  a  cut  of  green  maple  4  feet  long 
or  more  and  nearly  2  feet  in  diameter.     In 
compliance,  they  each  took  hold  of  an  end, 
but  reported  they   were  unable  to  bring  it 
in,  and  were  preparing  to  roll  it  up  to  the 
door  with   handspikes,  when  the  Colonel, 
havmg  noticed  their  failure  to  take  up  the 


log,  came  out,  motioned  them  aside,  and 
grasping  the  ends  with  his  long  arms,  lift- 
ed and  marched  into  the  house  with  it,  and 
threw  it  on  to  the  fire,  pleasantly  remark- 
ing to  them  as  he  did  so,  that  "  they  did 
not  appear  to  be  any  great  things  at  log- 
lifting."  But  Col.  Davis'  physical  powers 
were  of  small  account  in  the  comparison 
with  the  other  strong  traits  of  the  man, 
his  enterprise,  energy,  judgment  and  far- 
reaching  sagacity  ;  but  even  they  were  not 
all  the  good  qualities  of  his  character ;  no 
needy  man  ever  went  empty-handed  from 
his  door ;  he  ever  gave  employment  of 
some  kind  to  all  who  asked  for  it ;  and  so 
well  he  rewarded  all  his  employees,  that  no 
reasonable  man  in  the  whole  settlement 
was  ever  heard  to  complain  of  the  amount 
of  wages  he  paid,  or  any  unfair  conduct  in 
his  dealings. 

[In  addition,  Mr.  Gilman  gives :  Charl- 
ton, the  birth  place  of  Col.  Davis,  adjoins 
Leicester  on  the  north.  Hon.  Emory 
Washburn,  in  his  history  ot  Leicester, 
states  that  the  academy  in  that  town,  one 
of  the  oldest  in  the  state,  "owes  its  founda- 
tion to  the  generosity  and  public  spirit  of 
Col.  Jacob  Davis,  and  Col.  Ebenezer  Crafts, 
whose  munificence  was  suitably  acknowl- 
edged in  the  Act  of  Incorporation.  They 
purchased  the  commodious  dwelling  house, 
then  recently  occupied  by  Aaron  Lopez, 
and  its  appendages,  together  with  an  acre 
of  land,  which  they  conveyed  to  the  Trus- 
tees of  Leicester  Academy,  in  consideration 
of  the  regard  they  bear  to  virtue  and  learn- 
ing, which  they  consider  greatly  conducive 
to  the  welfare  of  the  community.  The 
value  of  this  estate  was  $1716,  and  was 
situated  directly  in  front  of  the  present 
Academy  buildings.  The  liberality  of 
these  gentlemen,  one  of  them  (Davis)  res- 
ident of  Charlton,  and  the  other  (Crafts) 
of  Sturbridge,  deserves  the  gratitude  of  pos- 
terity." Col.  Davis  owned  a  valuable  es- 
tate in  Charlton,  adjacent  to  that  of  his 
brother,  Ebenezer  Davis.  Col.  Nathan- 
iel, Gen.  Parley,  and  Hezekiah  Davis, 
three  brothers,  early  settlers  in  Montpelier, 
were  sons  of  Ebenezer  Davis  of  Charlton, 
and  nephews  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  not 
cousins,  as  stated  by  Thompson.] 


MONTPELIER. 


431 


REBECCA   DAVIS. 

The  efficient  help-meet  of  the  energetic 
man,  whose  life  and  character  we  have  but 
too  briefly  sketched,  was  born  in  Oxford, 
Mass.,  in  1743;  married  about  the  year 
1765,  and  died  Feb.  25,  1823.  She  lies 
buried  by  the  side  of  her  husband  in  this 
village,  where  she  peacefully  passed  the  last 
as  well  as  the  middle  portion  of  her  useful 
and  exemplary  life.  She  early  united  with 
the  Congregational  Church  after  it  was  es- 
tablished in  this  village,  and  had  long  been 
considered  a  Christian  in  works,  as  well 
as  faith,  which  would  have  well  wan-anted 
an  earlier  public  profession  of  religion. 
Unusually  comely  in  person,  with  a  sweet 
smile  ever  on  her  lips,  kind  in  disposition, 
intelligent  and  discreet,  she  was  the  never 
failing  friend  ofthe  needy  and  distressed,  the 
judicious  adviser  of  the  young,  and  the  uni- 
versal object  of  the  love  and  respect  of  all 
classes  of  the  people  of  the  settlement.  Of 
the  more  than  half  score  of  her  cotempora- 
ries  in  this  town  of  whom  we  have  made 
inquiries  respecting  her,  all  most  cordially 
united  in  affirming,  in  substance,  what  we 
will  only  quote  as  the  warmly  expressed 
words  of  one  of  them;  "Mrs.  Colonel 
Davis  was  one  of,  the  best,  the  very  best, 
women  in  the  whole  world !"  She  was  a 
mother  in  the  early  Montpelier  Israel,  and 
she  has  left  behind  her  a  name  bright  with 
blessed  memories. 

HON.    DAVID   WING,    JR., 

was  born  in  Rochester,  Mass.,  June  24, 
1766;  removed  with  his  father  and  family 
to  Montpelier  about  1790,  and  settled 
down  with  them  on  a  farm  adjoining  what 
is  now  known  as  the  old  Clark  Stevens 
place,  in  the  east  part  of  the  town.  He 
had  doubtless  received  a  rather  superior 
common  school  education',  though  the  ed- 
ucational accomplishments,  which  he  al- 
most at  once  exhibited  after  coming  into  the 
Settlement,  were  probably  mainly  the  fruits 
of  his  native  taste  and  scholarship,  which 
is  strikingly  conspicuous  in  all  the  memo- 
rials, social  or  civil,  that  he  has  left  behind 
him.  He  taught  the  second  school  of  the 
town,  which  was  opened,  it  is  believed,  in 
the  same  year  in  which  he  became  one  of 


its  inhabitants.  Within  about  2  years 
after  his  arrival,  he  was  elected  town  clerk, 
and  during  the  next  dozen  years  the  offices 
of  town  agent,  town  representative,  judge 
of  the  county  court  and  secretary  of  state, 
seem  to  have  been  crowded  upon  him  in 
regular  and  rapid  succession.  As  an  ev- 
idence of  his  great  popularity  among  his 
townsmen,  maybe  cited,  that  while  he  was 
holding  the  office  of  side  judge,  and  chief 
judge  of  the  county  court — ten-fold  the 
best  office  held  by  any  other  inhabitant  of 
the  town — he  was  elected  the  town  repre- 
sentative 4  years  previous  to  his  election 
as  secretary  of  state  ;  and  not  content  with 
that,  for  the  several  years  during  that 
time,  they  threw  their  entire  vote  for  him 
as  state  treasurer.  Considering  the  jeal- 
ousies usually  existing  among  the  numbers 
found  in  every  town  who  believe  them- 
selves qualified  for  office,  and  who  gen- 
erally raise  a  clamor  against  bestowing  an 
office  on  a  man  who  is  already  holding 
another  good  office,  perhaps  nothing  could 
be  adduced,  which  shows  so  strongly,  the 
personal  regard  in  which  David  Wing  was 
universally  held  by  his  almost  idolizing 
townsmen. 

In  1792,  he  married  Hannah,  second 
daughter  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  a  young 
lady  of  many  personal  attractions  and 
much  moral  excellence.  They  had  eight 
children,  whose  names  show  the  classical 
tastes  of  the  father,  and  estimation  in 
which  the  different  noted  personages  of 
history  were  held  by  him  :  Debby  Daphne, 
Christopher  Columbus,  Algernon  Sidney, 
Marcus  Tullius  Cicero,  Maria  Theresa, 
David  Davis,  Caroline  Augusta  and  Max- 
imus  Fabius.  The  two  first  daughters 
died  in  infancy  ;  the  other  children  arrived 
at  maturity,  and  took  highly  respectable 
positions  in  society,  though  only  one  of 
them  appears  to  have  fully  inherited  the 
tastes  and  native  scholarship  of  their 
father— the  Rev.  Marcus  T.  C.  Wing. 

In  person.  Judge  Wing  was  of  medium 
height,  of  a  good  form,  fine  head,  shapely 
features  and  an  animated  countenance,  all 
made  the  more  attractive  and  winning  by 
the  dignified  affability  of  his  manners.  As 
an  instance  of  the  quickness  of  his  per- 


432 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ceptions,  his  ready  business  capacities  and 

the  versatile  character  of  his  talents,  sev- 
eral of  his  yet  surviving  cotemporaries 
have  named  to  us  the  fact,  of  which  they 
were  frequently  cognizant,  that  he  would 
correctly  and  rapidly  draw  up  any  kind  of 
document,  report,  despatch  or  legal  in- 
strument in  writing,  and  at  the  same  time 
maintain  a  connected  and  lively  conversa- 
tion with  those  around  him. 

He  was  elected  secretary  of  state  in  the 
fall  of  1802,  and  while  still  holding  the 
office,  and  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness 
and  high  promise,  was  suddenly  swept 
away  by  a  malignant  fever,  Sept.  13, 1806. 
Rarely  has  a  death  occurred  in  this  sec- 
tion of  the  State  which  produced  so  pro- 
found a  sensation  in  community,  and  it 
was  mourned  as  a  great  loss,  not  only  to 
the  town  but  to  the  whole  State. 

[Marcus  Tullius  Cicero  Wing,  son  of 
David  Wing,  Jr.,  born  Oct.  17,  1798; 
graduated  at  Middlebury  in  the  Class  of 
1820;  read  medicine  in  Montpelier,  1820- 
1821  ;  was  teacher  in  Maryland,  1821- 
24 ;  studied  at  the  Episcopal  Theological 
Seminary  in  Alexandria,  Va.,  6^  years; 
was  tutor  in  Kenyon  College,  O.,  1826-29  ; 
Rector  of  an  Episcopal  church  in  Board- 
man,  O.,  1829-31  ;  editor  of  the  Gambier 
Observer,  and  treasurer  and  general  agent 
of  Kenyon  College,  several  years,  since 
which  he  has  been  Professor  of  Ecclesiasti- 
cal History  in  the  Episcopal  Theological 
Seminary  of  Ohio  at  Gambier.  He  has  re- 
ceived the  degree  of  D.  D.  (1853.) 

—  Pearson  Calalogxie. 
ELDER   ZIBA   V^OODWORTH, 

a  man  whose  character  was  marked  by 
many  peculiar  qualities,  whose  life  was 
checkered  by  many  peculiar  events,  was 
born  Apr.  1769,  in  Bozrah,  Ct.,  and  was  a 
connection  of  the  gallant  Col.  Ledyard, 
who  married  his  aunt,  and  his  two  broth- 
ers, Joseph  and  Asahel  Woodworth,  Ziba, 
the  younger,  but  17,  became  soldiers  in 
Col.  Ledyard's  regiment ;  when  that  re- 
vengeful devil  incarnate,  Benedict  Arnold, 
led  the  British  against  New  London,  and 
utterly  desolated  it  with  fire  and  sword, 
Ziba  and  his   brother  Asahel   were,  with 


their  brave  uncle  in  command,  in  Fort 
Griswold,  on  the  Groton  side  of  the 
Thames,  Joseph  being  with  another  de- 
tachment some  miles  distant,  but  hasten- 
ing on  to  the  rescue.  While  the  infamous 
Arnold  was  devastating  New  London,  he 
sent  out  a  detachment  of  several  hundred 
British  troops,  under  Col.  Eyre,  to  carry 
Fort  Griswold.  The  resistance  of  Col. 
Ledyard  was  gallant  but  unavailing.  Part 
of  the  works  were  dilapidated,  and  the 
British,  after  being  kept  at  bay  about  an 
hour,  and  suffering  the  temporary  loss  of 
their  Colonel,  who  was  badly  wounded, 
^nd  the  loss  of  their  second  in  command. 
Major  Montgomery,  who,  with  many  of 
the  soldiers,  was  killed,  poured  into  the 
Fort  in  overwhelming  numbers,  under  the 
lead  of  the  third  officer  in  rank,  the  vin- 
dictive and  brutal  Major  Broomfield.  Col. 
Ledyard  surrendered  the  Fort,  and,  while 
presenting  his  sword,  hilt  first,  to  the 
British  commander,  was  murderously  run 
through  the  body  by  his  own  weapon. 
Thereupon  the  British  commenced  an  in- 
discriminate butchery  of  the  Americans. 
Among  the  first,  Ziba  and  his  brother 
Asahel  were  prostrated — Asahel  by  a 
bullet,  shattering  the  bones  of  his  knee ; 
Ziba  by  a  head-wound,  which  rendered  him 
insensible.  They  had  not  yet  done  enough 
for  the  desperately  wounded  Ziba  ;  one  of 
them  made  a  heavy  lunge  with  a  bayonet 
into  his  bowels  ;  the  wound,  though,  owing 
to  the  strength  and  thickness  of  the  new 
tow  shirt  he  had  on,  not  proving  mortal, 
and  another  struck  him  senseless  with  the 
butt  of  a  musket  on  the  head.  The  mas- 
sacre was  intended  to  be  universal.  [As 
this  account  had  from  the  lips  of  Uncle 
Ziba  in  his  lifetime  appears  to  violate  his- 
tory, it  will  be  contended  by  some  that  he 
mistook  some  other  British  officer  there 
slain  for  the  murderer  of  Ledyard.]  After 
all  had,  or  were  supposed  to  have,  received 
their  death  wounds,  the  British,  in  their 
wanton  ferocity,  dragged  out  a  dozen  or  so 
of  those  who  exhibited  the  most  signs  of 
life,  piled  them  into  a  detached  cart,  and 
sent  it  rolling  down  a  steep  bank  till  it 
struck  a  large  apple  tree,  by  which  it  was 
stove  to  .pieces  in  the  shock,  and  made  a 


MONTPELIER. 


433 


sudden  end  of  its  groaning  victims.  Most 
of  these  particulars  were  had  from  the  lips 
of  Ziba  Woodworth. 

After  a  long,  distressing  sickness,  Ziba 
recovered,  except  in  the  use  of  his  knee, 
and  in  a  few  years,  came  with  his  two 
brothers,  and  perhaps  other  members  of 
his  family,  to  settle  in  Montpelier.  His 
first  pitch  was  made  on  the  lot  lying  about 
I  mile  east  of  the  village,  which  he  soon 
sold  to  James  Hawkins,  and  purchased 
another  on  the  Branch,  about  i^  mile  above 
the  village,  where  he  resided  till  his  death, 
Nov.  27,  1826. 

He  married  and  lived  some  years  with 
his  wife  in  Connecticut,  when  they  were 
divorced,  and  soon  after  coming  here,  he 
married  Lucy  Palmer,  from  Canaan,  N.H. 
Their  children,  5,  all  but  their  son  John, 
who  is  still  living,  (i860,)  died  in  child- 
hood. 

He  came  into  Montpelier  about  1790, 
was  present  at  its  organization  and  its  first 
town  clerk.  Ever  after  coming  here,  he 
was  accounted  a  religious  man  of  the  Free 
Will  Baptist  persuasion.  In  about  1800, 
he  began  to  exhort  in  public  meetings,  and 
in  January,  1806,  was  licensed  and  or- 
dained at  a  quarterly  meeting  of  Free  Will 
Baptists  held  at  Danville.  He  did  not, 
however,  preach  statedly  anywhere,  but 
mostly  confining  himself  to  his  farm,  di- 
vided his  spare  time  between  politics  and 
religion,  and  became  as  ardent  a  partisan 
as  he  was  a  Christian. 

Elder  Woodworth  was  of  small  stature, 
limping  in  gate,  but  of  wonderfully  an- 
imated manner,  and  his  heart  seemed  ever 
absolutely  overflowing  with  the  gushing 
of  benevolenee.  Once,  learning  a  poor 
man  from  his  neighborhood,  who  had 
moved  to  Ohio,  had  fallen  sick  and  died 
there,  leaving  two  or  three  unprotected 
children,  he  left  his  business,  journeyed 
all  the  way  to  Ohio,  at  his  own  ejcpense, 
in  a  single,  wagon,  and  brought  all  the 
children  home  with  him.  And  still  Uncle 
Ziba  had  enough  faults  to  mingle  with  his 
virtues,  to  make  him  sometime  the  subject 
of  doubtful  remarks  among  the  less  char- 
itable of  the  community.  He  was  quite 
energetic  in  all  he  did   or   said,  and    the 

55. 


ardor  of  his  temperament  often  led  him 
into  some  extravagance  of  speech  or  action. 
But,  take  him  all  in  all,  he  was  a  man  of 
the  kindest  of  impulses,  a  hearty  friend,  a 
charitable  opponent,  a  good  neighbor  and 
a  good  citizen. 

DOCTOR   EDVi^ARD   LAMB, 

born  in  Leicester,  Mass.,  1771,  had  not  the 
advantages  of  a  full  public  education,  but 
studied  at  the  academy,  growing  up  in 
that  town,  in  which  the  classics  were  be- 
ginning to  be  taught  several  years,  and  af- 
ter that  added  a  respectable  knowledge  of 
Latin  and  Greek,  and  entered  as  a  medical 
student  with  Dr.  Fiskeof  Sturbridge,  con- 
tinuing with  him  until  he  had  attended  a 
course  of  medical  lectures  in  Boston  and 
Cambridge,  when,  at  the  age  of  about  24, 
he  removed  to  Montpelier,  where  his  elder 
brother,  Colonel  Earned  Lamb,  had  some 
years  preceded  him,  and  settled  in  his  pro- 
fession. In  1803  he  married  Polly  Wither- 
ell  of  Montpelier,  who  died  in  1822,  leaving 
no  issue.  He  was  constable  and  collector 
of  the  town  from  1799,  ^^^  years;  town 
representative  in  1804,  14,  15  ;  and  what 
should  be  esteemed  a  still  greater  honor, 
was  one  of  the  Presidential  electors  when 
Gen.  Harrison  was  run  in  1836. 

Although  not  much  of  a  public  speaker, 
he  acquitted  himself  well  in  his  public  star 
tions,  for  he  was  a  man  of  rare  good  sense, 
unusually  extensive  practical  information, 
and  had  a  wonderful  memory  he  had  stored 
with  a  vast  fund  of  all  sorts  of  knowledge 
and  learning. 

We  know  of  but  two  public  performances 
of  his,  not  connected  with  the  above  named 
offices — one  the  delivery  of  an  original  ora- 
tion at  the  first  celebration  of  the  fourth  of 
July  ever  held  in  Montpelier,  in  1806,  the 
other  his  valuable  address  on  the  "  Science 
of  Medicine,"  delivered  before  the  Ver- 
mont Medical  Society  some  15  years  later. 

But  it  was  in  his  profession  he  was  best 
known  to  the  public,  and  that  more  favor- 
ably and  extensively  than  often  falls  to  the 
lot  of  a  local  physician.  His  opinions 
among  his  professional  brethen,  in  this 
section  of  the  State,  were  widely  sought 
and   respected.     In   a  knowledge   of  the 


434 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


technicalities  of  medical  science  he  scarce- 
ly had  a  superior.  In  all  the  ordinary  dis- 
eases, his  skill  was  equal  to  that  of  other 
good  physicians — in  fevers  it  was  such  as 
to  place  him  with  the  very  ablest  practition- 
ers of  Vermont.  The  estimation  in  which 
his  skill  was  held,  in  this  respect,  by  his 
professional  brethren,  is  sufficiently  attest- 
ed, that  during  the  general  and  fatal  prev- 
alence of  malignant  fevers  in  1813  and  14, 
he  had  at  one  time  no  less  than  14  sick 
physicians  under  his  immediate  care  in  this 
part  of  the  State. 

During  the  run  of  the  spotted  fever,  in 
this  vicinity,  Dr.  Lamb  had  the  chief  care 
of  70  cases,  and  lost  but  three.  His  prac- 
tice in  his  own  town,  was,  at  least  40  years, 
as  full  as  it  was  successful ;  while  for  diffi- 
cult cases  his  attendance  was  sought  in  all 
the  surrounding  country. 

He  had  some  unfortunate  deficiences. 
In  all  his  own  pecuniary  affairs,  he  was 
singularly  remiss.  More  than  half  the 
time,  it  is  believed,  he  made  no  charges 
for  his  services  at  all.  He  rarely  dunned 
any  man ;  and  if  he  did,  it  was  when  he 
happened  to  be  hard  pressed  for  money  to 
keep  up  his  unusally  plain  and  cheap  way 
of  living.  Then  often  he  would  go  to  some 
abundantly  responsible  customer,  owing 
him  honestly,  perhaps,  $50,  ask  for  $15  or 
5f2o,  and  on  receiving  it,  hand  back  a  re- 
ceipt, in  full  of  the  whole  account.  In  fact, 
he  was  one  of  the  most  unselfish  men  in 
the  world,  and  could  not  be  brought  to  care 
any  more  for  money,  except  for  supplying 
his  absolute  present  wants,  than  so  much 
dirt  beneath  his  feet.  And  in  all  his  ex- 
tensive practice  among  all  classes  of  com- 
munity, it  probably  never  once  entered  his 
head  to  make  the  least  distinction  between 
the  richest  and  poorest,  in  the  promptitude 
and  faithfulness  of  his  attendance.  And 
the  consequence,  while  his  just  and  honest 
earnings  would  have  made  him,  well  man- 
aged, worth  $50,000,  he  died  worth  scarce- 
ly one  hundredth  of  that  amount.  He 
was  everybody's  servant,  and  everybody's 
friend  but  his  own ;  and  being  at  last 
seized  with  one  of  the  ten  thousand  fevers 
he  had  so  successfully  managed  in  others, 
he  at  once  predicted  its  end  but  too   cor- 


rectly, and  in  a  few  days  passed  peacefuly 
away,  Nov.  4,  1845,  aged  about  74,  uni- 
versally regretted  and  respected. 

Personally,  he  was  of  medium  height, 
rather  stocky,  moderate  in  his  motions, 
slightly  limping  in  gait  in  consequence  of 
a  fever  sore  on  one  of  his  legs  in  his  youth, 
and  very  neglectful  in  all  matters  of  dress 
and  outward  appearance, — all  which  were 
at  once  forgotten,  when  one  confronted  his 
massive  and  noble  head,  manly  features, 
pleasant  blue  eye,  and  thoughtful,  impres- 
sive countenance  ;  and  socially,  he  was  one 
of  the  most  kindly  and  agreeable  men,  full 
of  instructive  remarks,  generally  aptly  illus- 
trated by  the  fund  of  piquant  and  amusing 
anecdotes  which,  in  the  course  of  his  vari- 
ous reading  and  experience,  he  had  treas- 
ured in  his  remarkable  memory. 

If  ever  a  people  owed  a  great  and  une- 
quivocal debt  of  gratitude  to  any  one  man, 
the  people  of  Montpelier  and  vicinity  rest 
under  such  an  obligation  to  Dr.  Lamb. 

COL.   JAMES    H.    LANGDON, 

the  successful  merchant  of  Montpelier,  was 
born  in  Farmington,  Conn.,  Mar.  3,  1783. 
When  a  youth  he  entered  the  store  of 
Gen.  Abner  Forbes,  then  the  leading  mer- 
chant of  Windsor,  Vt.,  to  acquire  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  mercantile  profession,  which 
he  had  determined  to  make  the  business  of 
his  life.  And  such  was  the  progress  he 
made  and  the  confidence  he  inspired,  and 
tact  and  good  judgment  he  displayed  in  all 
the  details  of  trade,  and  more  important 
transactions  of  business  coming  within  the 
scope  of  his  action,  that  his  employer. 
Gen.  Forbes,  before  he  reached  the  age  of 
21,  took  him  into  partnership,  and  estab- 
lished him  at  the  head  of  a  branch  store 
in  the  village  of  Montpelier,  in  1803.  For 
the  next  half  dozen  years  he  continued  to 
do  business  under  the  firm  of  Langdon  & 
Forbeg ;  when  justly  believing  he  had  ac- 
cumulated capital  enough  and  friends 
enough  in  this  place  to  warrant  the  move- 
ment, he  bought  out  Gen.  Forbes'  interest 
in  the  store,  and  thenceforward  conducted 
the  business  in  his  own  name,  and  entirely 
on  his  own  responsibility. 

From  this  time,  alone   or   in   company 


(^/fmZ4^A^^.-^e^Z^>^t^^'^ 


>0v      V0^ 


^ 


i'^iMy  ^^,j^.^r^,f^^ 


MONTPELIER. 


435 


with  different  partners,  the  first  and  longest 
continued  being  the  systematic  and  clear- 
headed John  Barnard,  who  was  prematurely 
cut  down  by  an  acute  disease  in  1822  ;  and 
the  next,  the  Hon.  John  Spalding,  still 
surviving,  [since  deceased.]  From  this 
time,  for  the  next  20  years,  Col.  Langdon 
seemed  to  be  wafted  forward  on  one  un- 
varied tide  of  prosperity  and  success,  and 
great  public  benefits  grew  out  of  his  com- 
mercial career,  as  he  was  instrumental  in 
reforming  the  irregularities  of  trade,  which 
up  to  his  day  custom  had  sanctioned,  and 
in  placing  it  on  a  just  and  honorable  basis  ; 
and  while  thus  conferring  untold  benefits 
on  his  town  by  what  he  did,  and  by  the 
force  of  his  salutary  examples,  he  so  con- 
ducted his  dealings  as  well  to  deserve  all 
the  remarkable  success  which  attended 
him.  But  we  need  not  here  enlarge  on  his 
noble  characteristics  as  a  merchant ;  we 
shall  rather  confine  the  remainder  of  our 
sketch  to  that  which  particularly  marked 
him  as  a  man  and  a  citizen,  .and  gave  him 
that  strong  hold  on  public  feeling,  and  that 
high  place  in  the  public  estimation,  which 
he  retained  through  life. 

In  1809,  Col.  Langdon  married  Miss 
Nabby  Robbins,  of  Lexington,  Mass.,  a 
union  from  which  sprang  five  children, 
Amon,  who  died  in  childhood,  John  B., 
James  R.,  George,  and  Caira  R.  Langdon. 
[John  Barnard  and  George  Langdon  have 
died;  James  Robbins  and  Caira  R.,  now 
Mrs.  Nicholas,  are  still  living.] 

Col.  Langdon  ever  manifested  a  proper 
interest,  and  often  took  an  active  part  in 
the  public  affairs  and  official  business  of 
the  town,  having  at  various  times  filled 
with  acceptance  its  most  important  offices. 
He  also  entered,  and  was  rapidly  promoted, 
in  the  military  line,  till  he  gained  the  title 
by  which  he  is  here  designated.  In  the 
year  1828,  having  removed  over  the  river 
to  his  beautiful  meadows  within  the  bor- 
ders of  Berlin,  he  was  elected  with  unusual 
unanimity  by  the  people  of  that  town,  as 
their  representative  in  the  Legislature  ;  and 
in  the  following  year  re-elected  to  the  office 
still  more  unanimously ;  and  by  the  appli- 
cation of  his  excellent  judgment  and  great 
practical   knowledge   in   the   business    of 


legislation,  he  well  justified  the  choice  of 
his  constituents.  In  1828,  he  was  elected, 
on  the  retirement  of  the  Hon.  Elijah  Paine, 
the  first  to  hold  the  office.  President  of  the 
Bank  of  Montpelier,  which  responsible 
office  he  continued  to  hold  to  the  time  of 
Jiis  death. 

Inperson,Col.  Langdon  was  well  formed, 
and  his  features  were  all  shapely  and  hand- 
some ;  while  his  countenance  was  lighted 
up  by  one  of  the  most  kindly  and  winning 
smiles  that  ever  enlivened  the  human  face. 
Nor  did  his  countenance  belie  his  heart, 
inherently  sincere,  sympathetic  and  hu- 
mane. And,  while  in  all  the  movements 
and  enterprises  of  public  benevolence,  his 
liberality  was  commensurate  with  his  means, 
in  private  charities  and  individual  assist- 
ance, he  went,  as  he  wished,  far  beyond 
what  was  ever  generally  made  known  to 
the  public ;  for  he  was  extremely  averse  to 
making  any  parade  of  his  benefactions, 
and  his  favors  were  very  generally  con- 
ferred under  injunctions  of  .secrecy.  And 
thus  it  was,  that  the  extent  of  his  private 
charities  and  pecuniary  assistance  to  the 
distressed  and  those  laboring  under  busi- 
ness embarrassments,  were  never  known 
except  through  the  irrepressible  outgush- 
ings  of  gratitude  from  the  lips  of  those 
whom  he  had  relieved. 

His  lenity  and  forbearance  towards  all 
who  were  indebted  to  him  were  remark- 
able ;  and,  to  the  credit  of  human  nature 
be  it  said,  as  remarkable  was  the  gratitude 
of  those  thus  favored,  and  their  determin- 
ation that  he  should  never  be  the  loser  by 
the  kindness  he  had  conferred.  After  he 
had  retired  from  business,  expecting  to  be 
much  absent,  he  placed  his  demands,  over 
$100,000,  in  the  charge  of  a  confidential 
agent,  who  was  an  attorney,  strictly  en- 
joining him  to  sue  nobody  and  distress 
nobody,  but  use  all  kindly,  and  charge 
him  for  all  the  expense  and  trouble  in- 
curred in  the  collections.  And  though 
this  great  amount  of  miscellaneous  de- 
mands remained  in  the  hands  of  that  at- 
torney for  nearly  three  years,  and  though  a 
large  number  of  the  debtors  failed  during 
that  time,  yet  in  all  that  period  never  was 
[  a  single  dollar  lost  out  of  the  whole  col- 


436 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


lection.  On  the  eve  of  their  failures,  or 
when  they  had  any  fears  of  faikire,  the 
debtors  would  come  privately  to  the  agent, 
and,  with  the  remark,  that  "  Col.Langdon 
had  been  too  good  to  them  to  be  injured," 
voluntarily  placed  in  his  hands  the  fullest 
securities  they  had  in  their  power  to  offer. 
Within  one  week  after  such  transactions, 
perhaps  these  debtors  would  fail ;  sheriffs 
would  be  scouring  the  country  for  prop- 
erty, and  almost  every  creditor  would 
.suffer  loss  except  Col.  Langdon.  He,  to 
the  wonder  of  all,  was  always  found  secure. 
The  last  characteristic  incident  of  his 
life  occurred  when  he  was  on  his  death 
bed.  Finding  his  end  drawing  near,  he 
sent  for  his  attorney,  and  ordered  him  to 
make  a  life  lease  to  an  old  revolutionary 
soldier  of  the  farm  he  occupied,  but  of 
which  the  Colonel  held  a  mortgage  for 
more  than  its  value.  This  was  the  last 
business  transaction  of  his  life.  He  died 
Jan.  7,  1831.  As  he  was  the  idol  of  the 
people  when  he  lived,  so  at  his  death  he 
was  lamented  by  more  friends  in  the  com- 
munity at  large  than  falls  to  the  lot  of  but 
few  to  have  numbered  among  their  real 
mourners. 

HON.   JEDUTHAN   LOOMIS 

was  born  in  Tolland,  Conn.,  Jan.  5,  1779. 
After  receiving  a  fair  academical  education, 
he  studied  law  with  Hon.  Oramel  Hinck- 
ley, of  Thetford,  Vt.  ;  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  there,  and  came  to  Montpelier  and  es- 
tablished himself  about  1805. 

Mar.  II,  1807,  he  married  Hannah, 
daughter  of  Col.  and  Judge  Oramel  Hinck- 
ley, of  Thetford,  who  died  suddenly,  Dec. 
24,  1813,  leaving  no  issue.  Oct.  10,  1814, 
he  married  Miss  Charity  Scott,  of  Peacham, 
who  died  June  13,  1821,  leaving  2  sons, 
Gustavus  H.,  the  late  Dr.  Loomis,  and 
Chauncey.  Oct.  8,  1822,  he  married  Miss 
Sophia  Brigham,  of  Salem,  Mass.,  who 
died  in  1855,  leaving  Charity, — Mrs.  Dana, 
of  Woodstock, — now  deceased ;  Mrs.  Jo- 
seph Prentiss,  of  Winona,  Minn.,  and 
Charles  Loomis,  Esq.,  now  deceased. 
Judge  Loomis  died  Nov.  12,  1843. 

In  1814,  Mr.  Loomis  was  appointed 
Register   of  Probate   for   the   District  of 


Washington,  but  held  the  office  only  one 

year. 

In  1820,  he  was  elected  the  Judge  of 
Probate  for  this  district,  and  had  the  un- 
usual honor  of  receiving  ten  successive 
elections,  the  greatest  number  of  elections 
of  any  other  man  in  this  County  being  five, 
given  to  the  Hon.  Salvin  Collins. 

From  1807,  up  to  his  death,  there  is 
scarcely  a  year  in  which  he  did  not  receive, 
and  well  and  faithfully  execute,  some  one 
of  the  trusts  or  offices  of  the  town.  And 
the  last  20  years  of  his  life  he  was,  besides 
being  an  efficient  friend  of  the  common 
schools,  always  a  laboring  trustee,  often 
the  head  prudential  committee,  and  always 
the  treasurer,  and  chief  pillar  of  Wash.  Co. 
Gram.  School.  In  the  latter  capacity,  for 
which,  and  for  being  so  long  the  admitted 
model  Judge  of  Probate  of  all  this  part  of 
the  State,  he  was  mostly  known  to  the 
public  abroad. 

There  was  once  extant  an  old  book 
called  "The  Minute  Philosopher."  We 
mention  the  name,  because  so  suggestive 
of  the  character  of  Judge  Loomis.  He 
was  a  very  carefully  reasoning  man,  and 
carried  his  philosophy  into  all  the  minutia 
of  business.  Any  of  the  little  trusts  or 
commissions  growing  out  of  a  town,  school 
district,  highway  district,  or  neighbor- 
hood or  family  affairs,  which  the  more  am- 
bitious or  selfish  would  disdain  to  accept, 
or,  if  they  did,  only  half  execute,  he  would 
cheerfully  accept,  and  always  execute  with 
the  most  scrupulous  care.  Indeed,  he 
seemed  to  consider  it  his  duty  to  do  every- 
thing asked  of  him,  if,  in  performing  it,  he 
thought  he  could  benefit  his  fellow-men 
individually,  or  the  public  at  large.  It 
was  so  with  him  in  his  profession,  so  in 
the  church  of  which  he  vvas  an  officer,  and 
it  was  so  everywhere. 

Being  a  tall,  dark-complexioned  man,  of 
formal  manners,  with  a  grave  and  rather 
austere  countenance,  he  might  be  taken  by 
the  unacquainted  for  a  man  with  few  sen- 
sibilities ;  but  break  through  the  apparent 
atmosphere  of  repulsion,  and  approach 
him,  and  you  would  find  him  as  affection- 
ate as  a  brother. 

Being  extremely  strict  in  all  moral  and 


MONTPELIER. 


437 


religious  observances,  and  seemingly  rather 
set  in  his  opinions,  he  might  sometimes 
be  taken  for  a  bigot ;  but  get  at  his  real 
views  and  feelings,  and  you  would  find 
him  absolutely  liberal,  and  willing  to  make 
all  the  allowance  for  errors  which  the 
largest  charity  might  demand. 

A  man  of  legal  knowledge,  ordinary 
good  judgment,  and  of  known  good  mo- 
tives, who  is  willing  to  perform  the  duties 
of  every  small  needful  office,  as  well  as 
great  one,  and  who  is  ever  ready  to  act 
the  part  of  adviser,  assistant  and  friend, 
in  adjusting  town  difficulties  and  neigh- 
borhood dissensions,  is  always  a  great 
blessing  to  a  village  community,  and  such 
was  Judge  Jeduthan  Loom  is.  More  than 
will  ever  be  justly  appreciated,  probably, 
is  Montpelier  village  indebted  to  him  for 
his  untiring  and  self-sacrificing  e.xertions 
to  advance  her  best  interests. 

HON.    TIMOTHY   MERRILL. 

Emphatically  a  public  man,  was  born  in 
Farmington,  Conn.,  Mar.  26,  1781,  where, 
having  received  little  more  than  a  common 
school  education,  when  becoming  of  age, 
he  shouldered  his  pack,  and  travelled  on 
foot  to  Bennington,  Vt.,  where  his  older 
brother,  Hon.  Orsamus  C.  Merrill,  had 
some  years  before  established  himself  in 
the  legal  profession.  Here  he  studied  law  ; 
was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  commenced 
practice  in  partnership  with  the  after- 
wards noted  Robert  Temple,  in  Rutland. 
But  not  feeling  very  well  satisfied  with  his 
situation,  dissolved  with  Temple  in  less 
than  a  year,  and  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
1809,  and  established  himself  alone  in  his 
profession.  In  1812,  he  married  Clara, 
daughter  of  Dr.  Fassett,  of  Bennington. 
They  had  5  children — a  son  who  died  in 
infancy  ;  Ferrand  F.  Merrill,  our  late  well- 
known  fellow  citizen;  Edwin  S.  Merrill, 
of  Winchendon,  Mass.,  formerly  post- 
master of  Montpelier ;  Clara  Augusta,  who 
died  in  1842,  and  Timothy  R.  Merrill,  our 
present  town  clerk. 

In  1811-12,  Mr.  Merrill  was  the  town 
representative  of  Montpelier.  In  181 1, 
was  elected  the  first  State's  Attorney  of 
the  new  County  of  Jefferson,  and  in  181 5 
to  the  same  office,  the  name  of  the  county 


being  now  changed  to  that  of  Washington, 
which  office  he  held  through  seven  succes- 
sive elections,  eight  in  all ;  two  more  than 
ever  received  in  that  office  by  any  other 
man  in  the  county,  Dennison  Smith  hav- 
ing received  but  si.\.  In  181 5,  he  was 
elected  Engrossing  Clerk  of  the  General 
Assembly,  and  received  seven  successive 
elections  to  that  office.  In  1822,  he  was 
elected  Clerk  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, and  received  nine  successive  elec- 
tions to  that  office.  In  183 1,  he  was 
elected  Secretary  of  State,  which  office  he 
retained  till  his  death,  having  received  in  it 
five  successive  elections. 

In  his  profession,  Mr.  Merrill  took  a 
very  fair  rank,  and  was  sustained  by  as 
fair  a  patronage.  But  his  public  employ- 
ments required  too  much  of  his  time  and 
attention  to  permit  him  to  reach  the  posi- 
tion in  his  profession  to  which  his  admitted 
talents  would  have  otherwise  doubtless 
raised  him.  He  was  ever  considered,  how- 
ever, a  safe  legal  adviser ;  and  in  his  ap- 
peals to  juries,  as  well  as  in  his  addresses 
to  public  assemblies,  he  often  warmed  up 
into  genuine  eloquence,  the  effect  of  which 
was  heightened  by  one  of  the  most  clear- 
toned  and  melodious  voices  which  it  was 
ever  the  good  fortune  of  a  public  man  to 
possess ;  and  yet  with  such  a  fair  profes- 
sional business  to  bring  him  money,  be- 
sides his  receipts  from  his  public  offices, 
he  died  worth  bift  little  property,  and  what 
added  pertinency  to  the  fact,  his  family 
ever  dressed  and  lived,  for  their  position, 
with  great  plainness  and  frugality ;  but  he 
never  charged  anything  for  advice,  though 
his  office  was  thronged  by  those  seeking 
it ;  being  naturally  a  peace  man  and  very 
conscientious,  he  would  advise  three  men 
out  of  lawsuits  where  he  would  one  into 
them.  He  never  charged  for  his  legal 
services  much  more  than  half  what  was 
usually  charged  by  other  lawyers  of  the 
same  standing,  and  what  he  did  charge  he 
would,  in  any  event,  often  remit  a  part 
from,  and  if  his  client  was  unsuccessful,  be 
quite  likely  to  give  in  nearly  the  whole  of 
it. 

In  person,  he  was  below  the  medium 
height,  but  had  a  fine  head,  good  features 


438 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  a  very  intelligent  and  prepossessing 
countenance.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
affectionate  of  husbands  and  fathers,  one 
of  the  most  agreeable  of  neighbors,  and 
one  of  the  most  correct  and  enlightened  of 
citizens — honored  be  his  memory. 

HON.  FERRAND   F.    MERRILL, 

son  of  Hon.  Timothy,  of  whom,  to  a  most 
singular  extent,  the  public  history  of  the 
father  was  the  history  of  the  son.  Like 
the  father,  and  for  about  the  same  number 
of  years,  though  at  a  much  younger  age, 
the  son  was  Clerk  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives. Like  the  father,  was  the  son 
at  once  transferred  from  the  clerkship  to 
the  office  of  Secretary  of  State,  to  be 
therein  retained,  we  believe,  exactly  the 
same  number  of  years  during  which  the 
former  lived  to  hold  the  office.  Like  the 
father,  the  son  was  State's  Attorney  for 
Washington  County,  though,  through  the 
altered  rules  of  rotation,  not  so  long  ;  and, 
like  the  father,  was  the  son,  for  the  now 
customary  term,  the  representative  of 
Montpelier  in  the  legislature. 

By  his  education,  by  his  readiness  in  all 
matters  in  form,  acquired  under  his  fath- 
er's trainings,  advantages  of  personal  ap- 
pearance, and  great  courtesy  of  manners, 
he  was  unusually  fitted  to  do  well  and  ap- 
pear well  in  public  life,  and  was  an  accom- 
plished and  popular  officer.  In  the  legis- 
lature he  became  a  prominent  member, 
and  in  the  difficult  position  in  which  he 
found  himself  placed,  in  the  keenly  con- 
tested question  relative  to  the  removal  of 
the  seat  of  government  from  Montpelier, 
he  displayed  an  ability  and  tact  which  met 
the  full  approval  of  his  constituents,  and 
which,  had  he  consented  to  be  again  a 
candidate,  would  have  ensured  him  further 
elections. 

In  private  life  he  was  blameless,  in  all 
his  social  relations  much  esteemed.  In 
the  furtherance  of  the  interests  of  religion, 
morals  and  education,  he  took  a  conspic- 
uous part,  and,  in  fine,  he  began  to  be 
looked  upon  as  one  of  the  most  capable  and 
useful  of  our  citizens,  when  he  died  of  apo- 
plexy. May  2,  1859,  in  the  meridian  of  his 
usefulness,  and  when  his  prospects  for  pro- 
fessional eminence  were  the  brightest. 


HON.    ARAUNAH   W^ATERMAN 

was  born  in  Norwich,  Conn.,  Nov.  8,  1778. 
He  sprang  from  good  Revolutionary  stock, 
his  father  having  been  at  first  a  subaltern 
officer,  and  then  commissary,  in  the  con- 
tinental army,  and  his  uncles  either  officers 
or  soldiers.  His  advantages  for  education 
were  6  months  schooling  before  the  age  of 
12.  At  about  13,  he  was  apprenticed  to  a 
carpenter  of  his  town,  and  served  till  21, 
working  steadily  by  day,  and  studying  at 
night  by  the  light  of  pine  knots,  to  make 
up  the  deficiences  of  his  education.  Soon 
after  acquiring  his  trade,  was  recommend- 
ed as  a  master  mechanic  to  Gen.  Pinkney, 
of  South  Carolina,  who  was  wishing  to 
build  somewhat  extensively  on  his  several 
large  plantations,  was  accepted,  and  the 
first  year  devoted  himself  to  the  superin- 
tendency  of  erecting  the  various  structures 
contemplated,  among  which  was  a  fine 
summer  house  on  Sullivan's  Island,  and 
the  next  year,  having  by  his  capacity  and 
integrity  gained  the  fullest  confidence  of 
Gen.  Pinkney,  who  was  appointed  U.  S. 
Minister  to  England,  was  made  steward 
and  chief  supervisor  over  all  the  General's 
estates.  After  leaving  Gen.  Pinkney's  em- 
ployment, he  returned  to  Connecticut,  but 
in  1801  or  1802,  came  to  Vermont  with  his 
brothers,  the  present  Judges  Joseph  and 
Thomas  Waterman,  and  other  brothers 
and  sisters,  and  with  them  settled  in 
Johnson.  In  1804,  he  married  Rebecca, 
daughter  of  Oliver  Noyes,  of  Hydepark, 
and  sister  of  the  Hon.  David  P.  Noyes,  by 
whom  he  had  several  children,  among 
whom  is  the  Hon.  Vernon  W.  Waterman,  of 
Morristown.  His  wife  dying  in  181 2,  in 
something  over  a  year  afterward,  he  mar- 
ried Mehitable  Dodge,  of  New  Boston, 
N.  H.,  now  deceased,  but  long  known 
among  us  as  a  most  estimable  woman,  by 
whom  he  had  7  children,  two  of  whom, 
daughters,  are  still  living  on  the  old  home- 
stead in  Montpelier.  After  residing  in 
Johnson  about  a  dozen  years,  engaged  in 
farming,  constructing  the  machinery  re- 
quired about  the  different  mills  of  that 
brisk  village,  and  particularly  by  the  card- 
ing and  clothing  works  with  which  he  be- 
came  connected,    he   removed   to   Mont- 


MONTPELIER. 


439 


pelier  about  the  beginning  of  1 8 14,  and 
purchased  the  farm  and  a  portion  of  the 
water  privilege,  lying  on  the  west  bank  of 
the  North  Branch,  above  and  around  the 
falls,  on  the  borders  of  this  village.  Here, 
besides  carrying  on  his  farm ,  he  soon  en- 
gaged in  erecting,  improving  and  carrying 
on  carding  and  clothing  works,  and  before 
many  years,  in  connection  with  Seth 
Persons,  erected  and  put  in  operation  the 
comparatively  extensive  woolen  factory, 
which  was  burned  March,  1826,  and  at  the 
burning  of  which  he  came  near  losing  his 
life.  After  this,  he  mainly  employed  him- 
self in  improving  his  farm,  which,  with  his 
house,  soon  brought  considerably  within 
the  village  by  its  gradual  extension  in  that 
direction,  he  continued  to  occupy  until  his 
death,  coming,  at  the  age  of  80,  to  close 
his  unusually  varied,  active  and  laborious 
life,  Jan.  31,  1859. 

In  1821,  ''22,  ''23,  '26,  Mr,  Waterman  was 
elected  town  representative  of  Montpelier. 
When  the  new  State  Senate  was  estab- 
lished, in  1836,  Mr.  Waterman  was  tri- 
umphantly elected  as  one  of  the  two  first 
senators  of  Washington  County,  and  on  the 
following  year,  as  triumphantly  re-elected 
to  complete  the  senatorial  term,  which,  in 
what  is  called  the  Tzvo  Year  Rule,  had 
been  previously  adopted.  In  1840,  he  was 
elected  by  the  legislature  to  the  office  of 
Judge  of  the  County  Court,  which  office, 
however,  being  unsought  and  unexpected 
by  him,  he  declined  to  accept.  As  a  rep- 
resentative and  senator,  he  never  spoke 
for  the  sake  of  talking,  and  never  except 
to  support  some  measure  which  he  be- 
lieved calculated  for  the  public  good,  or  to 
subserve  some  cherished  political  interest ; 
and  then  his  extensive  practical  knowledge 
and  accurate  political  information  enabled 
him  to  speak  with  effect. 

We  find  Mr.  Waterman's  name  on  our 
town  records  often  associated  with  ,the 
most  important  of  our  town  offices.  But 
he  was  not  much  known  in  these,  because, 
doubtless,  he  was  almost  constantly  in 
higher  posts  attracting  a  more  general  no- 
tice. Being  esteemed  the  best  surveyor  in 
this  section  of  the  country,  he  was,  after 
our  old    surveyor.   Gen.  Davis,  began  to 


retire  from  the  field,  much  employed  on 
difficult  surveys  of  land  plots,  disputed 
lines,  and  laying  out  of  new  public  roads, 
and  about  1830,  when,  on  the  completion 
of  the  great  canal  in  New  York,  the  feasi- 
bility of  canals  across  this  State  began  to 
be  agitated,  he  was  appointed,  under  an 
appropriation  from  the  general  govern- 
ment, to  conduct  a  survey  for  a  canal  from 
Burlington  up  the  valley  of  the  Winooski, 
and  over  the  heights  to  Wells  River,  run- 
ning into  the  Connecticut.  This  he  ac- 
complished, and,  in  doing  it,  was  the  first 
man  to  ascertain  the  altitude  of  Montpel- 
ier above  Lake  Champlain,  and  the  alti- 
tude of  Kettle  Pond,  on  the  eastern  border 
of  Marshfield,  the  lowest  summit  level  of 
the  heights  between  Montpelier  and  Con- 
necticut river.  And  in  proof  of  the  accu- 
racy of  his  survey,  as  imperfect  as  were 
his  instruments,  may  be  cited  the  fact, 
that  when  the  surveys  of  the  Central  rail- 
road were  perfected,  it  was  found  that  the 
engineers,  with  their  greatly  more  perfect 
instruments,  and  their  everyway  better 
equipments  and  means,  had  made  the  level 
of  the  top  of  the  dam  across  the  river  at 
Montpelier  to  vary  but  between  3  and  4  feet 
from  the  altitude  recorded  in  Mr.  Wa- 
terman's survey  made  a  dozen  years  be- 
fore. 

Mr.  Waterman  was  active  in  improving 
our  common  schools,  and  for  many  years 
one  of  the  most  efficient  of  the  trustees  of 
our  Academy.  And  in  despite  of  the  mul- 
tiplicity of  his  cares,  found  time  to  keep 
himself  posted  in  matters  of  general  science 
and  Hterature.  He  was  probably  the  most 
reliable  geologist  in  Montpelier.  In  a 
knowledge  of  the  principles  of  mechanics 
and  their  practical  applications,  he  had  few 
superiors  anywhere.  His  knowledge  of 
history  was  extensive,  and  of  our  national 
politics  singularly  ample  and  accurate. 
The  late  Jonathan  Southmayd,  12  years 
preceptor  of  our  Academy,  was  in  the 
habit  of  often  conferring  with  Mr.  Water- 
man in  the  solution  of  difficult  problems  in 
the  higher  branches  of  mathematics,  me- 
chanics and  other  sciences,  and  once  re- 
marked, he  had  never  met  a  man,  not  ed- 
ucated in   a  college,  who  could  compare 


440 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


with  him  in  the  extent  of  his  general  and 
the  accuracy  of  his  scientific  knowledge. 

As  a  citizen,  man  and  neighbor,  his  use- 
fulness and  practical  benevolence  were 
universally  admitted,  and  the  assistance 
he  was  frequently  rendering  others, through 
their  bad  returns  for  the  favors  conferred, 
kept  down  to  a  simple  competence  what 
would  othewise  have  been  a  handsome 
property  for  the  inheritance  of  his  family. 

Among  those  of  an  active  life,  a  man's 
capacities  and  character  are  best  accurately 
measured  by  what  he  accomplishes.  By 
this  rule,  what  Mr.  Waterman  accomplish- 
ed would  place  him  far  above  the  level  of 
ordinary  men.  In  the  first  place  he  made 
himself — no  common  achievement  where 
such  a  man  is  made,  and  made  under  such 
disadvantages ;  and  then  he  achieved  for 
himself,  for  his  family  and  for  the  public, 
all  that  we  have  related  of  him.  Let  all 
that  stand  as  the  simple  record  of  his  life. 
What  cause  have  his  friends  to  ask  for  a 
better  monument  to  his  memory? 

HON.  CYRUS   WARE, 

son  of  Jonathan  Ware,  of  Wrentham, 
Mass.,  was  born  May  8,  1769.  His  father 
died  when  he  was  but  3  years  of  age,  but 
he  continued  with  his  family  and  attended 
the  common  schools  of  the  place  till  nearly 
14,  when  he  went  to  Hartford,  Vt.,  to 
learn  the  blacksmith's  trade,  in  the  shop 
of  a  Mr.  BiUings,  who  had  married  his 
sister,  and  worked  faithfully  at  the  trade 
till 2 1  ;  and  then,  with  what  knowledge  he 
had  contrived  to  pick  up  by  reading  during 
his  apprenticeship,  he  went  to  studying 
law  with  Hon.  Charles  Marsh,  of  Wood- 
stock, and  after  a  year  or  two,  went  to 
Royalton  and  completed  the  prescribed 
course  of  legal  studies  with  Jacob  Smith, 
Esq.,  and  was  here  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
1799,  and  the  same  year  came  to  Mont- 
pelier,  and  opened  an  ofl5ce  in  this  village. 
His  capacities  appear  to  have  early  attract- 
ed the  attention  of  his  townsmen;  for 
within  about  one  year  after  he  came  into 
town,  we  find  him  figuring  in  town  offices, 
in  some  one  of  which  he  was  retained  until 
the  September  State  election,  1805,  when 
he  represented  Montpelier  in  the  General 
Assembly,  and  did   so   acceptably  acquit 


himself,  his  constituents  gave  him  five  an- 
nual successive  elections,  a  number  never 
exceeded  in  the  case  of  any  Montpelier 
representative,  and  never  equalled  except 
in  the  case  of  Col.  Davis.  While  still  rep- 
resentative, he  was  in  1808  made  chief 
Judge  of  Caledonia  County  Court,  and  re- 
ceived three  successive  elections,  being 
continued  in  that  office  until  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  new  County  of  Jefferson,  which, 
on  account  of  his  residence  within  it,  made 
him  ineligible  to  any  further  elections  to 
the  bench  of  Caledonia  County.  In  addi- 
tion, he  was  annually  appointed  what  is 
called  the  law  and  trial  justice  of  the  peace 
for  the  last  forty  years  of  his  life,  doing, 
through  a  large  portion  of  that  period,  the 
greater  share  of  the  justice  business  of  the 
place,  and  making  its  profits  the  main 
means  of  his  livelihood. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  Judge  Ware,  at 
the  time  he  was  the  Judge  of  the  Caledonia 
County  Court  and  the  representative  of 
Montpelier,  and  for  many  years  afterwards, 
was  one  of  the  most  influential  men  in  the 
State.  That  his  rulings  and  decisions 
while  judge  met  the  approbation  of  the 
bar  and  the  people,  is  shown  by  his  being 
annually  elected  to  the  bench  as  long  as 
he  was  eligible,  at  the  instance  of  the 
people  of  the  county  where  his  judicial 
ministrations  were  best  known.  As  town 
representative,  he  secured  to  his  town,  by 
his  talents  and  skillful  management,  the 
location  of  the  seat  of  government  and  its 
untold  advantages.  The  late  Hon.  John 
Mattocks,  who  was  an  active  participant  in 
what  was  called  the  "first  State  House 
struggle,"  was  afterwards  heard  by  more 
than  one  person  to  declare,  however 
strongly  right  and  policy  demanded  the 
location  of  the  seat  of  government  here  at 
the  centre  of  the  State,  yet  so  keen  was 
the  rivalry  for  the  honor  by  the  older  vil- 
lages of  the  State,  it  would  never  have 
been  conferred  on  Montpelier,  but  for  the 
unwearied  exertions  and  exceedingly  skill- 
ful management  of  its  representative,  Judge 
Ware. 

For  the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life, 
through  improvidence  in  his  affairs  and  the 
growing  expenses   of  a  large  family,  but 


MONTPELIER. 


441 


not  through  personal  vices,  he  appears  to 
have  sunk  into  comparative  poverty,  and 
into  the  public  neglect  that  too  often  ac- 
companies it.  But  even  in  his  lowest  state 
of  poverty,  he  was  the  philosopher. 

"  I  hope  you  don't  call  fiie  poor,"  he 
would  say  to  those  who  attempted  to  com- 
miserate him.  "  I  consider  it  settled  that 
a  white  child  is  worth  two  negro  children, 
which  are  held  at  $500  apiece,  and  as  fast 
as  I  had  children  born,  I  put  them  down 
on  my  inventory  at  $1,000  each,  till  my 
estate  reached  the  handsome  amount  ot 
$6,000,  and,  thank  Heaven,  I  have  the 
same  property  yet  on  hand." 

In  structure  of  mind,  thought,  words  and 
ways.  Judge  Ware  was  probably  the  most 
perfectly  original  character  we  ever  had  in 
Montpelier.  And  his  shrewd  observations 
and  quaint  and  witty  sayings  were,  in  his 
day,  more  quoted  than  those  of  any  other 
man  in  all  this  section  of  the  country. 
Clear,  discriminating  and  patient  in  in- 
vestigating all  important  cases,  which  he 
conducted  by  a  silent  process  of  mind,  yet 
the  result  was  generally  made  known  in 
terms  and  phrases  which  nobody  else  would 
think  of  using.  His  brain  was  singularly 
creative,  and  it  seemed  to  be  his  greatest 
recreation  to  indulge  in  its  half-serious, 
half-sportive  frolics.  We  have  it  from  a 
lady  of  this  village,  when  a  small  girl,  she 
and  her  mate  used  to  resort  to  his  house 
night  after  night,  to  hear  him  improvise  an 
original  novel,  which,  for  their  gratifica- 
tion, he  would  begin  one  evening,  take  up 
the  ne.xt  where  he  left  it,  and  so  carry  it 
on,  in  good  keeping,  through  a  succession 
of  hearings,  till  it  was  finished,  making 
probably  a  more  instructive  and  amusing 
tale  than  many  that  have  been  published. 

Judge  Ware  married  Patty,  daughter  of 
Gardner  Wheeler,  Esq.,  of  Barre,  May  26, 
1803,  who  survived  him.  They  had  6 
children — Gardner  W.,  deceased;  Patty 
Militiah,  wife  of  Samuel  Caldwell,  of  St. 
Johns,  Canada  East;  Cyrus  Leonard,  of 
the  vicinity  of  New  York ;  Henry,  of  Ohio  ; 
George,  of  parts  unknown ;  Mary,  wife  of 
Joel  Foster,  Jr.,  and  Louisa. 

Judge  Ware  died  at  Montpelier,  Feb.  17, 
1849,  aged  nearly  80. 

56 


CAPTAIN   TIMOTHY   HUBBARD. 

To  be  numbered  with  those  who,  by 
their  business  capacities  and  energy  of 
character,  contributed  most  to  the  wealth 
and  prosperity  of  Montpelier,  were  three 
brothers,  Timothy,  Roger  and  Chester 
Hubbard,  who  came  here  before  or  about 
the  beginning  of  the  present  century. 
They  were  all  enterprising,  clear  headed 
men,  and,  while  they  remained  in  trade, 
successful  merchants,  especially  Chester 
Hubbard,  who  confined  himself  exclusively 
to  trade,  and  died  in  1832,  leaving,  though 
then  only  in  middle  life,  a  very  handsome 
property.  As  the  elder  more  particularly 
identified  himself  with  the  public  offices 
and  institutions  of  the  town,  and  more 
largely  attracted  public  attention,  we  have 
selected  him  as  their  representative. 

Timothy  Hubbard  was  born  near  the 
city  of  Hartford,  Conn.,  Aug.  17,  1776, 
lived  with  his  father  and  worked  on  a  farm 
till  21,  getting  all  the  education  he  ever 
had  at  the  common  school.  After  contin- 
uing to  work  on  his  father's  farm,  on  stipu- 
lated wages,  probably,  about  4  years  after 
he  was  of  age,  he  came,  in  1799,  to  Mont- 
pelier, established  himself  in  trade  with 
Wyllis  I»  Cadwell,  Esq.,  a  connection  of 
the  Lymans  of  Hartford,  Conn,  and  Hart- 
ford, Vt.  In  1801,  he  married  Lucy,  the 
third  daughter  of  Colonel  Jacob  Davis,  a 
very  estimable  woman.  In  1803,  he  dis- 
solved his  connection  with  Mr.  Cadwell, 
and  went  into  partnership  in  trade  with 
his  brother-in-law,  the  Hon.  David  Wing. 
After  the  death  of  Judge  Wing,  in  1806, 
he  associated  with  him  his  brother,  Roger 
Hubbard,  till  about  181 6,  when  he  ceased 
to  be  any  further  engaged  in  mercantile 
affairs,  and  employed  himself  in  supervis- 
ing the  cultivation  of  his  different  valuable 
farms  in  Berlin,  and  particularly  the  one 
on  the  borders  of  Montpelier  Village, 
which  he  soon  made  his  homestead  for 
the  remainder  of  his  life. 

In  1 8 10,  he  was  elected  Captain  of  the 
fine  military  company,  called  the  Gover- 
nor's Guards,  of  which  Isaac  Putnam  was 
the  first  captain;  and  though  he  was 
taken  almost  from  the  ranks,  he  soon 
showed  himself  to  be  one  of  the  best  mili. 


442 


♦VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tary  officers  that  ever  paraded  a  company 
in  the  streets  of  Montpelier ;  and  when 
the  news  of  the  invasion  of  Plattsburgh, 
in  September,  1814,  reached  Montpelier, 
he  sallied,  cane  in  hand,  into  the  streets, 
summoned  a  drummer  and  fifer  to  his  side, 
and  with  them  marched  the  streets  all  day, 
beating  up  volunteers,  to  start  for  the 
scene  of  action,  and  before  night,  he  had 
enlisted  three-fourths  of  his  fellow  citizens, 
who  chose  him  Captain  by  acclamation. 
Being  now  at  the  head  of  perhaps  the 
largest  and  best  company  of  all  the  Ver- 
mont Plattsburgh  volunteers,  with  the 
staunch  Joseph  Howes  for  his  second  in 
command,  he  gave  his  orders  for  the  next 
day  ;  and  at  an  early  hour,  the  next  morn- 
ing, they  were  all  seen  pouring  along,  in 
hot  haste,  for  the  seat  of  war,  by  night 
were  in  Burlington,  the  next  day  embark- 
ing on  sloops,  crowding  all  sail  for  Platts- 
burgh, but  did  not  arrive  in  season  to  take 
their  place  in  the  line  of  battle. 

Captain  Hubbard  was  often  chosen  to  fill 
town  offices,  especially  if  there  happened  to 
be  pending  any  financial  difficulty,  growing- 
out  of  conflicting  interests,  which  others 
were  unwilling  to  touch,  which  he  always 
straightened  without  fear  or  favor  to  clique 
or  party ;  often  at  the  expense  of  another 
election,  though  when  another  such  diffi- 
culty occurred  they  were  all  for  calling  him 
back  again  ;  when  in  his  singularly  frank, 
independent  way,  he  would  give  them  to 
understand,  it  was  all  the  same  with  him, 
whether  they  elected  him  or  not,  but  if 
they  did,  they  might  depend  on  it,  he 
should  not  fear  to  do  his  duty.  And  there 
can  be  little  doubt,  had  he  kept  down  this 
marked  trait  of  character,  or  played  even 
a  little  of  the  demagogue,  we  should  have 
seen  him  in  higher  civil  offices. 

Captain  Hubbard  was  sometimes  harsh 
in  rebuking  the  faults  of  others,  or  in  de- 
fending himself,  when  he  unexpectedly 
met  opposition  in  the  path  of  what  he  con- 
sidered his  right  and  duty  ;  but  he  seemed 
to  give  no  lasting  oifense  ;  for  the  oftended 
knew  as  soon  as  he  found  himself  in  the 
wrong,  he  would  be  the  first  to  rectify  it. 
He  was  liberal  to  the  poor  and  all  educa- 
tional,   religious  and   benevolent   objects. 


When,  in  what  had  been  called  the  Barre 
street  school  district,  was  built  a  new  school 
house,  some  twenty  years  ago,  [now  some 
forty,]  the  Captain  bought  and  caused  to  be 
hung  in  the  cupola  of  this  school  building, 
a  valuable  new  bell.  And  the  district 
thereupon,  at  a  regular  meeting,  unani- 
mously voted  that  their  school  house  should 
thereafter  be  called ' '  Hubbard  Street  School 
House,''^  and  the  street  on  which  it  stood 
be  changed  from  Barre  Street  to  Hitbbard 
Street.  And  this  is  still  the  only  name 
that  can  be  legitimately  applied  to  it. 

Captain  Hubbard's  business  and  finan- 
cial talents,  and  trustworthiness  for  all, 
not  excepting  even  the  most  important 
posts,  were  widely  admitted  in  his  day, 
and  can  hereafter  always  be  made  to  ap- 
pear on  public  records,  the  records  of  the 
numerous  estates,  of  which  he  was  the  effi- 
cient administrator,  and  the  records  of  the 
Bank  of  Montpelier  which,  for  years,  he 
skilfully  managed  in  the  capacity  of  its 
president. 

About  the  age  of  fifty  he  reached  a  point 
which  few  wealthy  men  ever  reach,  the 
point  when  he  thought  he  had  property 
enough,  and  that  he  had  better  be  bestow- 
ing it  where  it  would  do  the  most  good. 
Accordingly  he  began  giving  i.t  to  the  most 
needy  of  the  numerous  circle  of  his  rela- 
tives, and  continued 'the  good  work,  till  a 
full  third  of  his  estate  had  been  bestowed 
on  them.  His  first  wife  dying  in  1839,  '""^ 
married  Anner  May,  who  survived  him. 
He  died  Oct.  28,  1850.  He  has  no  de- 
scendants. 

GENERAL   EZEKIEL   P.    WALTON. 

In  the  incipient  stages  of  the  growth  of 
every  country  village  there  are  nearly  always 
two  different  personages  who  occupy  the 
largest  space  in  the  thoughts  of  the  people 
— the  Minister  and  the  Editor.  And  in 
proportion  as  these  are  faithful,  intelligent 
and  able,  so,  to  an  almost  unappreciable 
extent,  will  be  its  moral,  social  and  intel- 
lectual advancement.  It  was  the  good  for- 
tune of  Montpelier,  for  the  first  twenty 
years  after  the  place  could  fairly  lay  claim 
to  the  dignity  of  a  village,  to  have  the 
right  kind  of  a  man  for  her  Minister,  and 


f/"^^:^ 


MONTPELIER. 


443 


the  right  kind  of  a  man  for  an  Editor,  in 
the  persons  of  Chester  Wright  and  Ezekiel 
P.  Walton. 

Ezekiel  Parker  Walton  was  born  in 
the  year  1789,  in  Canterbury,  N.  H.,  in 
which  town  his  father,  George  Walton, 
formerly  resided,  but  frofn  which  he  at 
length  removed  to  Peacham,  Vt.  There 
was  a  good  academy  at  Peacham,  and 
young  Walton,  previous  to  reaching  the 
age  of  fifteen,  attended  it  a  few  terms, 
studying  the  ordinary  English  branches, 
and  completing  all  the  school  education  he 
ever  received. 

There  was,  at  this  time,  a  small  newspa- 
per, of  Federal  politics,  published  at  Peach- 
am by  Mr.  Samuel  Goss,  a  practical  print- 
er and  Editor  of  his  own  paper,  which  was 
called  the  Greeti  Mo2iiitain  Patriot.  Into 
this  establishment  the  boy  Walton  often 
found  his  way,  and  at  length  began  to  feel  so 
much  interest  in  the  business  he  saw  going 
on  that  he  offered  himself  as  an  apprentice 
to  the  trade ;  and  Mr.  Goss,  as  he  has  re- 
cently told  us,  so  liked  the  looks  of  the 
bright  little  fellow  that  he  concluded  to 
take  him  in  that  capacity,  and  in  despite  of 
the  opinions  of  others,  who  believed  that 
little  could  ever  be  made  of  him.  As  Mr. 
Goss  had  predicted,  however,  the  boy 
turned  out  a  well  behaved,  faithful  appren- 
tice, and  made  good  proficiency  in  his 
trade.  After  serving  three  years  at  his 
trade  in  Peacham,  he  came,  in  1807,  to 
Montpelier,  with  Mr.  Goss,  who  bought 
out  the  Vei'mont  Prentrsor,  a  paper  estab- 
lished here  the  year  previous  by  Rev.  Clark 
Brown,  and  changed  the  name  to  that  of 
the  Vermont  Watchman.  Here  he  served 
out  the  remainder  of  his  apprenticeship, 
which  expired  in  18 10;  when,  being  of  le- 
gal age,  he,  in  company  with  Mark  Goss, 
a  fellow  apprentice  in  the  office,  bought 
out  Mr.  Samuel  Goss  ;  and  the  paper  was 
then,  for  the  next  half  dozen  years,  con- 
ducted by  the  firm  of  Walton  &  Goss,  Mr. 
Walton  discharging  the  chief  duties  of  ed- 
itor. In  1 8 16,  Mr.  Mark  Goss  went  out 
of  the  establishment,  and  Mr.  Walton  be- 
came its  sole  proprietor  and  editor,  and  so 
continued  nearly  twenty  years ;  when,  as 
his  sons  became  of  age,  he  took  them  into 


partnership,  and  the  business,  to  which 
book-selling  and  paper-making  were  at 
length  added,  was  conducted  in  the  name 
of  E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons  until  1853,  during 
which  he  wholly  gave  up  the  proprietor- 
ship of  the  newspaper  to  his  oldest  son, 
the  present  Hon.  Eliakim  Persons  Walton. 
Though  the  editorship  had  been  entrusted 
to  this  son  for  many  years  previous  to 
1853,  General  Walton  continued  to  assist 
in  editing  and  writing  for  certain  depart- 
ments of  the  paper,  even  into  the  last  year 
of  his  life. 

At  an  early  period  he  passed  rapidly 
along  the  line  of  military  promotion  till  he 
reached  the  rank  of  Major  General,  when 
he  threw  these  kinds  of  honors  aside  and 
thought  no  more  of  them.  Mr.  Walton 
was  never  an  office  seeker,  nor  was  oiifice, 
as  much  as  was  due  to  him  as  a  man  and 
a  politician,  nor  half  as  much  as  was  due 
to  him  from  his  party,  ever  bestowed 
on  him.  He  was,  however,  several  times 
the  candidate  of  his  party  for  town  Repre- 
sentative, but  never  when  that  party  hap- 
pened to  be  in  the  majority.  In  1827,  he 
was  elected  one  of  the  Council  of  Censors, 
and  served  with  credit  to  himself  and  elec- 
tors, among  a  board  of  the  most  distin- 
guished men  in  the  State,  Judges  B. 
Turner,  D.  Kellogg  and  S.  S.  Phelps  be- 
ing included  among  the  number.  In  the 
Presidential  election  of  1852,  he  was  elect- 
ed one  of  the  Electoral  College  for  Ver- 
mont, when  the  vote  of  the  State  was 
thrown  for  General  Scott.  In  1854,  he 
was  nominated  as  candidate  for  the  office 
of  Governor  of  Vermont  by  a  large  mass 
State  Convention,  and  could  the  people 
have  had  their  way,  would  have  been  tri- 
umphantly elected. 

But  out  of  an  ardent  desire  to  consoli- 
date the  political  sentiments  of  the  people 
in  one  controlling  organization,  as  well  as 
out  of  high  personal  regard  for  the  ven- 
erable Chief  Justice,  Stephen  Royce,  who 
had  been  previously  named  for  the  execu- 
tive chair  by  a  Convention  of  the  Whig 
party.  General  Walton  cheerfully  yielded 
his  place  on  the  ticket.  The  name  of  Judge 
Royce  was  substituted  by  the  State  Com- 
mittee, and  he  was  heartily  supported  by 


444 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  people ;  and  thus  was  organized  the 
present  Republican  party  of  the  State. 
For  that  organization  a  large  measure  of 
credit  is  due  to  Gen.  Walton. 

We  have  named  the  circumstances  con- 
nected with  Mr.  Walton's  nomination  to 
the  office  of  .governor,  for  the  double  pur- 
pose of  showing  the  remarkable  lack  of 
even  well-warranted  assumptions  in  the 
man,  and  his  patriotic  readiness  to  submit 
to  any  personal  sacrifice  which  he  was  led 
to  suppose  public  good  required  him  to 
make,  as  well  as  of  showing  how  his  party, 
while  so  generally  admitting  his  qualifica- 
tions for  office,  and  the  merit  of  his  ser- 
vices in  their  behalf,  so  strangely  over- 
looked him,  when  they  so  often  had  the 
power  to  reward  and  honor  him.  That  he 
was  ever  honorable  and  just  in  his  treat- 
ment towards  his  political  opponents,  the 
writer  of  this  sketch,  who  was  for  many 
years  one  of  them,  can,  and  here  does, 
most  cheerfully  attest ;  and  the  late  Araunah 
Waterman,  who  was  ever  a  staunch  political 
opponent,  was  often  heard  frankly  to  admit 
that  "General  Walton  was  both  an  honor- 
able man  and  an  honest  politician."  That 
he,  in  his  long,  persistent,  judicious  and 
able  editorial  labors,  was  eminently  instru- 
mental in  establishing  the  ascendency  of 
his  party  and  keeping  it  in  power,  is  a  fact 
too  well  known  to  be  questioned.  Prob- 
ably, indeed,  that  man  has  never  lived  in 
Vermont  who  did  so  much  toward  build- 
ing up  the  old  Whig  party  of  the  State, 
and  its  successor,  the  Republican  party, 
which  he  lived  to  see  become,  from  the 
minority  in  which  he  found  it,  one  of  the 
most  overwhelming  majorities  ever  re- 
corded in  the  history  of  party  warfare. 
But  while  it  was  his  lot  to  do  so,  and  see 
all  this,  it  was  his  lot  also  to  be  often  com- 
pelled, like  many  another  political  editor, 
"to  make  brick  without  straw,"  or,  in 
other  words,  manufacture  great  men  out  of 
small  patterns,  who,  when  made,  carried 
their  heads  so  high  as  generally  to  entirely 
overlook  their  political  creator. 

Mr.  Walton's  style  of  writing  was,  for 
his  advantages,  unusually  correct,  and  un- 
usually well  calculated  for  enforcing  his 
sentiments  and  enlisting  the  sympathy  of 


his  readers.  During  the  first  years  of  his 
residence  in  Montpelier,  he,  in  company 
with  other  young  aspirants  of  the  village, 
got  up  an  associadon  for  mutual  improve- 
ment in  knowledge  and  literature,  called 
the  "  Franklin  Society."  In  this  society, 
in  which  theme  writing  was  a  leading  ex- 
ercise, he  probably  made  much  progress  in 
forming  his  style,  which  was  evidently 
modelled  on  that  of  Dr.  Franklin,  so  gen- 
erally the  great  oracle  of  the  printer  boy. 
The  bon  homtfie  of  "Poor  Richard,"  how- 
ever, can  never  be  successfully  imitated  by 
a  man  without  a  good  heart.  But  Mr. 
Walton  had  that  heart,  and.  through  the 
force  of  finely-blended,  emotional  and  in- 
tellectual qualities  of  his  heart,  he  grad- 
ually formed  a  style  of  his  own,  which, 
with  the  vein  of  good  common  sense  that 
pervaded  it,  gave  him  rank  with  the  most 
pleasing  and  instructive  of  our  editorial 
writers.  As  before  intimated,  he  continued 
to  write  for  his  old  paper  to  the  last,  and 
in  so  doing,  besides  his  instructive  articles 
on  farming  and  domestic  economy,  he 
wrote  and  pubhshed  in  the  li'atc/i/naii,th.& 
year  before  his  death,  sixteen  numbers  on 
the  events  of  the  Olden  Times  in  the  Valley 
of  the  Winooski,  over  the  signature  of 
Oliver  Old-School,  which  deserve  to  be  re- 
published in  pamphlet,  for  public  reading 
and  preservation. 

In  the  political  world.  Gen.  Walton  was 
ever  a  person  to  be  consulted  ;  among  men 
he  was  always  a  man ;  in  the  church  an 
influential  officer ;  in  the  social  circle  a 
dignified,  but  a  very  courteous  and  kindly 
companion,  and  in  his  family  an  exemplary 
husband  and  father.  His  integrity,  whether 
in  business  or  politics,  appears  never  to 
have  been  doubted,  by  either  friend  or  foe  ; 
his  general  intellectual  capacity  was  al- 
ways conceded,  and  his  frank  and  generous 
disposition  known  to  the  utmost  limits  of 
his  extensive  personal  acquaintance. 

Apr.  28,  181 1,  Mr.  Walton  married  Miss 
Prussia,  daughter  of  Eliakim  D.  Persons, 
of  Montpelier,  by  whom  he  had  8  children 
— Eliakim  P.,  6  years  in  Congress  ;  Harriet 
Newell,  wife  of  Hon.  H.  R.  Wing,  a 
lawyer  of  standing  at  Glen's  Falls,  N.  Y. ; 
George  Parker,  a   very   promising  young 


M:<^//tc.    V/^^/to^ , 


MONTPELIER. 


445 


man,  who  died  at  the  age  of  about  24 
years,  at  New  Orleans  ;  Nathaniel  Porter, 
for  some  years  the  accountant  of  the  firm 
of  E.  P.  Walton  &  Sons;  Chauncey,  now 
deceased;  Samuel  M.,  the  book-binder  in 
Montpelier ;  Ezekiel  Dodge,  who  died  at 
the  age  of  about  25  years,  at  Philadelphia : 
and  Mary,  wife  of  George  Dewey,  a  mer- 
chant of  New  York  city. 

In  his  religious  character,  Mr.  Walton 
was  an  earnest,  frank,  sincere  Christian, 
always  warm  and  generous  in  the  utter- 
ance and  support  of  his  principles.  He 
combined  the  wisdom  of  the  serpent,  the 
boldness  of  the  lion  and  the  harmlessness 
of  the  dove,  in  his  whole  Christian  course  ; 
was  a  devoted  member  and  an  honorable 
office  bearer  in  the  Congregational  church 
for  many  years.  His  piety  irradiated  his 
household,  his  secular  cares  and  his  place 
of  business.  Everywhere,  at  all  times,  he 
was  the  admirable  type  of  a  Christian  gen- 
tleman. In  the  Conference,  in  the  Sabbath- 
school,  in  the  support  of  charitable  and 
religious  institutions,  none  smpassed  and 
few  equalled  him.  The  young  men  in  his 
office  felt  his  influence  very  strongly.  Of 
the  many  who  graduated  from  his  office, 
and  came  to  fill  afterwards,  with  honor, 
public  stations  in  the  councils  of  the  State 
and  in  the  halls  of  Congress,  and  in  the 
courts  of  justice,  twelve  have  been  mem- 
bers of  churches,  and  two  have  become 
useful  and  respected  ministers  of  the  Gospel. 
And  none  could  bear  higher  testimony  to 
the  invariable  and  elevated  religious  char- 
acter of  Mr.  Walton  than  they. 

Gen.  Walton  died  Nov.  27,  1855,  leav- 
ing, as  might  be  expected  from  one  of  his 
liberal  views,  not  much  property,  indeed, 
but  that  "  good  name  "  which  is  better  than 
riches. 

MRS.    PRUSSIA   PERSONS   WALTON, 

widow  of  the  late  Gen.  Ezekiel  P.Walton, 
daughter  of  Eliakim  D.  Persons,  died  at 
her  home  Saturday,  June  22,  1878,  aged  86 ; 
the  oldest  resident  at  her  death  in  the 
town  ot  Montpelier.  The  IVatc/uiian  ?,?Lys, : 
The  long  life  of  this  "  elect  lady,"  though 
filled  with  unusual  cares  and  responsibili- 
ties, was  nevertheless  rendered  beautiful 
by   her   naturally   exuberant    spirits,    her 


tender  regard  for  all  her  fellow-beings,  and 
her  unfaltering  trust  in  Him  in  whom  she 
believed.  Her  kindly  heart  and  her  dili- 
gent hands  were  busy  to  the  last  in  works 
of  charity  and  mercy,  and  few  are  the 
dwellings  among  us  but  contain  some 
dainty  token  of  affection  wrought  by  her 
deft  fingers.  The  blessing  of  the  whole 
community  rested  upon  her  as  she  ex- 
changed the  imperfect  joys  of  earth  for  the 
perfect  bliss  of  Heaven. 

DR.    JAMES   SPALDING, 

who  for  40  years  was  a  successful  prac- 
ticing physician  of  Montpelier  village  and 
vicinity,  died  at  his  residence,  October, 
1866.  The  following  accurate  sketch  and 
deserved  tribute  to  his  memory  appeared 
in  the  Boston  Medical  and  Surgical  Jour- 
nal:  [somewhat  condensed.] 

"Dr.  Spalding  was  born  in  Sharon,  Vt., 
Mar.  20,  1792.  His  father,  Dea.  Reuben 
Spalding,  was  one  of  the  earliest  settlers 
in  the  State,  whose  life  was  not  more  re- 
markable for  his  toils,  privations  and 
energy,  as  a  pioneer  in  a  new  country, 
than  for  his  unbending  integrity,  and  for 
the  best  qualities  of  the  Old  New  England 
Puritanism.  James  was  the  third  son  of 
12  children,  all  of  whom  reached  maturity 
and  were  settled  in  life  with  families.  At 
the  age  of  seven  he  received  a  small  wound 
in  the  knee  joint,  which  confined  him  for 
more  than  6  months,  attended  with  ex- 
treme suffering.  By  the  skill  of  Dr. 
Nathan  Smith,  of  Hanover,  the  limb  was 
at  length  healed,  leaving  the  knee  par- 
tially anchylosed,  however,  to  recover  from 
which  required  years.  While  thus  con- 
fined, probably  from  estimation  of  Dr. 
Smith,  which  estimation  was  retained 
through  life,  he  decided  to  be  a  physician 
and  surgeon.  He  never  attended  a  high 
school  or  academy,  but  he  acquired  a  good 
common  school  education,  besides  storing 
his  mind  with  much  general  knowledge 
and  that  mental  discipline  which  so  highly 
distinguished  him  in  after  life.  He  com- 
menced study  at  the  age  of  17  with  Dr. 
Eber  Carpenter,  of  Alstead,  N.  H.,  stip- 
ulating the  expenses  of  his  education  should 
be  defrayed  by  his  practicing  one  year  with 
the  Doctor  after  he  had  graduated.  He 
applied  himself  with  uncommon  assiduity 


446 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


to  his  medical  studies,  taking,  at  the  same 
time,  private  lessons  in  Greek  and  Latin. 
At  20  years  he  graduated  at  the  Dartmouth 
Medical  Institution,  having  heard  the  lec- 
tures from  Smith  and  Perkins. 

While  a  student,  his  opportunities  for 
practice  were  very  extensive  ;  the  spotted 
fever  prevailed  generally  throughout  New 
England.  This  epidemic  was  truly  appal- 
ling in  Alsteadand  the  neighl^oring  towns. 
Dr.  Spalding  brought  his  discriminating 
mind  to  the  subject  with  all  the  close  ob- 
servation of  a  veteran  in  the  science,  and 
arrived  at  the  same  conclusions  as  to  its 
pathology  and  treatment  as  others  who 
stood  the  most  eminent  in  the  profession. 
His  position  was  very  embarrassing,  being 
called  the  "  boy  physician,"  havingtomeet 
veterans  in  the  profession  for  whom  he 
entertained  an  exalted  opinion.  Modesty 
would  hardly  permit  him  to  differ  from 
them,  yet  he  had  so  studied  this  epidemic, 
in  most  cases  his  views  and  treatment  were, 
adopted. 

After  practicing  2  years  in  Alstead  with 
Dr.  Carpenter,  he  commenced  business  in 
Claremont,  but  having  friends  in  Mont- 
pelier,  was  induced  to  remove  to  this  place. 
Though  but  a  boy,  he  had  seen  much 
practice,  and  performed  many  surgical  op- 
erations, and  it  required  but  a  short  time 
for  him  to  gain  general  confidence  as  a 
physician,  and  more  especially  as  a  sur- 
geon, which  he  retained  without  abatement 
through  life.  His  fixed  purpose  was  im- 
provement in  his  profession  ;  he  never  en- 
gaged in  any  other  business  or  sought  any 
political  preferment.  Others  may  have 
done  more  under  other  circumstances,  yet 
by  his  example,  integrity,  industry,  com- 
munications for  the  medical  journals,  and 
dissertations  before  the  County  and  State 
Medical  Societies,  from  time  to  time,  it  may 
be  said,  he  added  something  to  the  gen- 
eral stock  of  knowledge  in  his  profession, 
and  that  as  a  surgeon  he  was  successful 
above  most  others.  His  particular  trait  of 
mind  was  a  sound  judgment,  based  upon  a 
careful,  discriminating  examination  of  all 
the  evidence  which  gave  in  each  individual 
case  its  peculiar  characteristic.  Well  in- 
formed in  books  and  the  general  principles 


of  his  profession,  having  an  e.xtensive  in- 
tercourse with  his  medical  brethren,  he 
was  well  prepared  to  impart  to  others  the 
results  of  his  extensive  experience.  He 
was  an  original  thinker,  not  only  in  his 
medical  and  surgical  practice,  but  in  other 
departments.  It  was  a  maxim  with  him 
that  there  should  be  no  guess-work  in  his 
profession,  more  especially  in  surgery.  In 
consultations,  due  respect  was  paid  to  the 
opinions  of  his  professional  brethren,  but 
still  he  would  suffer  his  judgment  to  be  in- 
fluenced only  as  the  evidence  in  the  case 
affected  his  own  mind,  never  evading  re- 
sponsibility, and  always  governed  by  his 
own  independent  conclusions,  and  for  this 
reason  he  was  much  sought  for  in  con- 
sultations. He  retained  through  life  the 
confidence  and  respect  of  his  professional 
brethren,  and  while  differing  from  others 
in  his  diagnosis  and  treatment  of  disease, 
he  succeeded  in  leaving  the  coiifidence  of 
patient  and  friends  in  the  attending  physi- 
cian unabated,  discharging  his  duty  to  his 
patients  without  injury  to  the  feelings  or 
reputation  of  any  one.  It  being  the  settled 
maxim  of  his  life,  that  strict  integrity  is  the 
true  and  only  policy  which  should  govern 
every  man  who  desires  his  own  interest  or 
that  of  others,  he  never  sought  to  appro- 
priate to  himself  what  justly  belonged  to 
them. 

For  more  than  40  years  he  was  an  active 
member  of  the  Vermont  State  Medical 
Society,  and,  through  it,  labored  to  ad- 
vance the  best  interests  of  the  profession 
he  so  much  loved,  and  became  acquainted 
with  most  of  the  distinguished  physicians 
of  the  State,  among  whom  he  had  many 
personal  friends.  In  1819,  he  was  elected 
secretary,  which  office  he  held  for  over  20 
years.  In  1842,  he  was  chairman  of  a 
committee  to  draft  a  petition  for  a  geolog- 
ical survey  of  the  State.  He  was  vice 
president  of  the  Medical  Society  in  1843, 
treasurer  in  1844,  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee on  the  History  of  the  Society  in 
1845.  He  read  a  thesis  in  1846,  "On  Na- 
ture as  manifested  in  Disease  and  Health," 
which  was  highly  commended.  He  was 
elected  president  in  1846,  '7,  '8,  and  de- 
livered a  dissertation  on  "Typhus  Fever" 


MONTPELIER. 


447 


in  1848,  which  was  published  by  a  vote  of 
the  society.  He  was  elected  a  correspond- 
ing secretary  in  1850,  and  librarian  in 
1854,  which  office  he  held  until  his  death. 
He  was  also  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Fellows  of  the  Vermont  Academy  of  Med- 
icine, besides  holding  many  offices  con- 
nected with  science,  literature,  temper- 
ance, etc.  But  few  men  in  the  country 
have  seen  such  an  amount  of  disease  and 
so  carefully  observed  the  peculiarities  of 
the  various  epidemics  occurring  for  nearly 
half  a  century ;  and  it  is  to  be  regretted 
that  so  little  is  left  on  record  of  his  exten- 
sive observations  and  experience  both  as  a 
physician  and  surgeon.  In  private  life  he 
was  a  man  of  much  amenity  of  manners,  of 
great  worth  and  purity  of  character,  en- 
larged benevolence  and  of  high-minded 
purposes  in  all  that  goes  to  make  the  en- 
lightened Christian  and  good  citizen. 

In  1820,  he  married  Miss  Eliza  Reed,  of 
Montpelier.  They  raised  6  children — 
James  R.,  an  editor  in  the  city  of  New 
York;  William  C,  a  distinguished  physi- 
cian of  Watertown,  Wis. ;  Martha  E.,  died 
at  18 ;  Jane,  who  married  Dr.  Warner  of 
Weathersfield,  Conn. ;  George  B.,  a  cler- 
gyman and  Doctor  of  Divinity,  of  Dover, 
N.  H.,  and  editor  of  the  New  Hatnpshire 
Journal;  and  Isabella,  wife  of  Mr.  Louns- 
bury,  of  Hartford,  Ct. 

Mrs.  Spalding,  a  woman  of  many  vir- 
tues, died  in  1854,  and  about  2  years  after, 
Dr.  Spalding  married  Mrs.  Dodd,  a  daugh- 
ter of  the  late  Wyllys  Lyman,  of  Hartford, 
Vt.,  who  died  in  1857. 

HON.    SAMUEL   PRENTISS 

was  born  in  Stonington,  Ct.,  Mar.  31, 
1782 ;  his  family,  of  a  pure  English  and 
Puritan  stock,  are  traceable  as  far  back 
as  13 1 8,  through  official  records  which 
show  the  reputable  positions  occupied  by 
branches  of  the  family,  till  they  came  to 
New  England,  where  the  lineage  at  once 
took  stock  among  the  best  in  the  colonies. 
In  direct  descent  he  was  the  6th  from  his 
first  American,  but  English-born,  ancestor, 
Capt.  Thomas  Prentiss,  born  in  England 
about  1620,  became  a  resident  of  Newton, 
Mass.,  1752,  was  a  noted  cavalry  officer  in 
the  King  PhiHp  war,  and  died  1710,  leav- 


ing Thomas  Prentiss,  Jr.,  father  of  Samuel 
Prentiss,  ist,  father  of  Samuel,  2d,  who 
was  a  colonel  in  the  Revolutionary  Army, 
and  father  of  Samuel,  3d,  a  physician  and 
surgeon  in  the  army,  and  the  father  of 
Judge  Samuel  Prentiss,  of  Montpelier. 
The  whole  stock  of  the  Prentiss  family 
was  good,  but  this  branch  was  particularly 
so,  both  physically  and  intellectually. 
Col.  Prentiss,  of  Revolutionary  memory,  6 
feet  high,  weighing  over  200  pounds,  with- 
out corpulency,  was  one  of  the  best  built, 
most  muscular  men  of  the  times  ;  and  the 
different  members  of  the  family  descend- 
ing from  him,  for  the  last  two  or  three  gen- 
erations, of  which  those  now  living  have 
been  cognizant,  will  be  remembered  to 
have  been,  with  a  rare  uniformity,  well- 
formed,  shapely  and  good-looking,  possess- 
ing an  unusual  intellectual  capacity  and 
power. 

When  Samuel  was  about  a  year  old,  he 
removed  with  his  family  from  Stonington, 
Ct..  to  Worcester,  Mass.,  and  from  thence 
in  about  3  years  to  Northfield,  Mass., 
where  his  father.  Dr.  Prentiss,  continued 
the  successful  practice  of  his  profession  in 
1818,  the  son  being  kept  in  his  earlier 
boyhood  at  the  common  schools,  and 
while  yet  young,  put  into  classical  studies 
with  the  Rev.  Samuel  C.  Allen,  minister 
of  the  town,  and  at  about  19,  entered  as  a 
law  student  in  the  office  of  Samuel  Vose, 
Esq.,  of  the  same  town.  He  did  not 
complete  the  course  of  legal  studies  there, 
but  with  that  object,  passed  over  into  the 
neighboring  village  of  Brattleboro,  and 
entered  the  office  of  John  W.  Blake,  Esq., 
from  whence,  Dec.  1802,  he  wasadmitted  to 
the  bar  several  months  before  his  majority. 

In  view  of  what  Mr.  Prentiss  afterward 
became,  all  will  understand  he  studied  the 
elementary  principles  of  the  law  before  his 
admission  to  the  Bar ;  but  few,  perhaps, 
are  aware  how  close  and  extensive  in  the 
meantime  had  been  his  study  of  the  great 
masters  of  English  literature,  how  careful 
the  cultivation  of  his  taste,  and  how  much 
his  proficiency  in  the  formation  of  that 
style,  which  subsequently  so  peculiarly 
stamped  all  his  mental  efforts,  whether  of 
writing  or  speaking,  with  unvarying  strength 


448 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  neatness  of  expression.  We  recollect 
of  having  once  met  with  a  series  of  literary 
miscellany  written  by  him,  probably  when 
he  was  a  law  student,  published  first  in  a 
newspaper  in  consecutive  numbers,  and 
afterwards  republished  by  some  one  in 
pamphlet  form,  which  were  all  alike  marked 
by  neatness  of  style  and  beauty  of  senti- 
ment, and  which,  though  only  intended, 
doubtless,  for  mere  off-hand  sketches, 
would  have  favorably  compared  with  our 
best  magazine  literature. 

Early  in  the  year  1803,  he  came  into 
this  part  of  the  State,  and  opened  an  office 
in  the  new,  but  promising  village  of  Mont- 
peHer,  which  was  to  be  everafter  his  home, 
and  the  central  point  of  the  field  of  the 
splendid  professional  success  which  he  was 
destined  to  achieve. 

His  legal  attainments,  the  genius  he  dis- 
played in  developing  them,  the  skill  he 
manifested  in  the  management  of  his 
cases,  and  his  peculiarly  smooth  and  happy 
manner  as  a  speaker,  appear  almost  im- 
mediately, after  he  commenced  practice 
here,  to  have  attracted  attention,  and  given 
him  a  distinguished  place  in  the  estimation 
of  all  the  people  of  the  surrounding  coun- 
try as  a  young  man  of  unusual  promise. 
But  he  knew  better  than  to  repose  on 
laurels  of  this  kind  ;  that  not  to  advance  in 
his  profession,  was  virtually  to  recede ; 
that  he  could  make  no  real  progress  with- 
out exploring  the  great  field  of  jurispru- 
dence, within  whose  portals  he  had  only 
just  entered  ;  in  other  words,  not  without 
devoting  himself  to  study,  careful,  close 
and  unremitting  ;  and  commenced  a  course, 
which,  passing  beyond  the  applications  of 
all  his  own  special  ca.ses,  was  as  extended 
as  the  principles  of  the  law  itself,  when  re- 
garded no  less  as  a  science  than  a  system 
of  technicalities,  and  this  course  for  the 
next  twenty  years,  while  all  the  time  in 
active  employ  as  a  practitioner,  he  pur- 
sued with  an  assiduity  and  perseverance 
rarely  ever  witnessed  among  lawyers  who, 
like  him,  have  already  reached  the  higher 
ranks  of  their  profession. 

Such  a  course  of  legal  research,  con- 
ducted by  a  mind  of  the  discrimination 
and  power  of  analysis,  which  characterized 


that  of  Mr.  Prentiss,  could  not  long  re- 
main unattended  by  fruits.  We  find  the 
legislature  of  his  State,  as  early  as  1822, 
proffering  him,  with  singular  unanimity,  a 
seat  as  one  of  the  associate  justices  on  the 
bench  of  the  Supreme  Court,  which  honor 
he  declined,  but  in  1824  and  '25,  consent- 
ed to  serve  his  town  as  their  representative 
in  the  General  Assembly,  and  having  been 
triumphantly  elected,  soon  gave  unmis- 
takable earnest  of  those  abilities  as  a  leg- 
islator and  a  statesman,  which  were  after- 
wards so  conspicuously  displayed  in  the 
broader  field  of  the  council  chamber  of  the 
nation.  At  the  session  of  the  legislature  of 
1825,  he  was  elected  first  associate  justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court  so  unanimously,  and 
with  so  many  private  solicitations  for  his 
acceptance,  he  did  not  longer  decline  a 
membership  in  our  State  tribunal,  and 
went  upon  the  bench,  where  so  scrupulously 
and  ably  he  executed  the  duties  of  his  post 
the  next  4  years,  that  by  almost  common 
consent  he  was  elected  in  1829,  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Vermont,  and 
in  1830,  a  member  of  the  United  States' 
Senate,  and-  was  re-elected  in  1836  a 
second  term  to  the  Senate,  and  before  his 
term  of  service  had  quite  expired  was  nom- 
inated by  the  President,  and  without  the 
usual  reference  of  his  case  to  a  committee, 
unanimously  confirmed,  as  the  Judge  of 
United  States'  District  Court  of  this  State, 
in  place  of  Hon.  Elijah  Paine,  then  just 
deceased.  This  quiet,  though  highly  re- 
sponsible office,  whose  duties  were  to  be 
discharged  so  near  home,  he,  in  his  de- 
clining health,  preferred  to  a  seat  on  the 
bench  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  which  it  was  more  than  intimated 
from  high  quarters  he  might  soon  obtain. 
He  therefore  accepted  the  post,  which  he 
continued  to  hold  till  his  death,  Jan.  15, 
1857. 

Such  was  the  brilliant  official  career  of 
the  Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss  for  the  last  34 
years  of  his  life  ;  he  never  passed  an  hour 
without  bearing  the  responsibilities  of  some 
important  public  trust,  and  was  never  re- 
moved from  one  except  to  be  promoted  to 
a  higher  one,  till  he  had  reached  the  high- 
est but  one  within  the  gift  of  the  American 


MONTPELIER. 


449 


people ;  and  as  a  senator,  he  won  an  en- 
viable and  enduring  reputation  in  a  body 
embracing  almost  all  the  intellectual  giants 
in  that  highest  period  of  American  states- 
manship. Among  the  beneficent  meas- 
ures, of  which  he  was  the  originator  and 
successful  advocate,  was  the  law,  still  in 
force,  for  the  suppression  of  duelling  in 
the  District  of  Columbia.  His  speeches  in 
support  ot  that  measure  have  taken  rank 
among  the  best  specimens  of  senatorial  el- 
oquence. His  speech  against  the  bank- 
rupt law  of  1840  was  pronounced  by  John 
C.  Calhoun  to  have  been  the  clearest  and 
most  unanswerable  of  any,  on  a  debatable 
question,  which  he  had  heard  for  years. 
His  stand  on  this  occasion  attracted  the 
more  public  notice,  from  the  fact  that  he 
had  the  independence  to  contest  the  pas- 
sage of  the  bill,  in  opposition,  with  only 
one  exception,  to  the  whole  body  of  his 
party.  And  there  can  be  but  little  doubt 
that  his  argument,  which  was  felt  to  stand 
still  unanswered,  had  much  to  do  with  the 
repeal  of  that  unfortunate  law,  a  few  years 
afterwards. 

Judge  Prentiss  was  obviously  held  in  the 
highest  estimation  in  the  Senate,  alike  for 
the  purity  and  worth  of  his  private,  and 
the  rare  ability  of  his  senatorial  character. 
His  equal  and  confidential  relations  with 
Henry  Clay  and  Daniel  Webster  were  at 
that  day  well  known ;  while  his  sterling 
talents  and  civic  virtues  were  admitted  and 
admired  by  all,  who,  as  we  were  often  told 
at  the  time,  cheerfully  joined  his  more 
particular  associates  in  conceding  him  to 
be  the  best  lawyer  in  the  Senate. 

It  is  in  his  character  as  a  jurist,  however, 
that  Mr.  Prentiss  will  be  longest  remem- 
bered. It  is,  perhaps,  sufficient  praise  for 
him  to  say,  that  not  one  of  that  series  of 
able  and  lucid  decisions,  which  he  had 
made  while  on  the  bench  of  our  Supreme 
Court,  has  ever  been  overruled  by  any  suc- 
ceeding tribunal  in  this  State,  nor,  as  far 
as  we  are  apprized,  by  that  of  any  other, 
though  those  decisions  are,  to  this  time, 
being  frequently  quoted  in  the  courts  of 
probably  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union. 
With  the  legal  profession,  facts  of  this  kind 
involve  probably  the  best  evidence  of  high 


judicial  accomplishment  which  could  pos- 
sibly be  adduced.  With  those  out  of  that 
profession,  the  opinions  of  other  great  and 
learned  men  respecting  the  one  in  ques- 
tion, might  be,  perhaps,  more  palpably 
conclusive.  And  to  meet  the  understand- 
ings of  both  these  classes,  therefore,  we 
will  close  our  remarks  on  this  part  of  our 
subject  by  mentioning  a  curious  legal  co- 
incidence, which,  while  it  involved  an.im- 
portant  decision,  was  the  means  of  draw- 
ing forth  a  high  compliment  from  the  lips 
of  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  all  our 
American  jurists  : 

Some  time  during  Judge  Prentiss'  Chief 
Justiceship  of  this  State,  Sir  Charles  Bell, 
of  the  Common  Bench  of  England,  made, 
in  an  important  case,  a  decision  whicnwas 
wholly  new  law  in  that  country  ;  and  it  was 
afterwards  discovered,  when  the  reports  of 
the  year,  on  both  sides  of  the  water,  were 
published,  that  Judge  Prentiss  had,  not 
only  in  the  same  year,  but  in  the  same 
week  or  fortnight,  made,  in  one  oi  our  im- 
portant suits,  precisely  the  same  decision, 
which  was  also  then  new  law  here,  arriving 
at  his  conclusion  by  a  process  strikingly 
similar  to  that  of  the  English  justice. 
This  remarkable  coincidence,  involving 
the  origin  of  then  new,  but  now  well- 
established  points  of  law,  and  involving, 
at  the  same  time,  an  inference  so  flattering 
to  our  Chief  Justice,  at  once  attracted  the 
notice  of  the  celebrated  Chancellor  Kent, 
of  New  York,  who,  soon  after,  falling  in 
company  with  several  of  our  most  noted 
Vermonters,  cited  this  singular  instance  in 
compliment  to  the  Vermont  Chief  Justice, 
and  after  remarking  that  there  was  no 
possibility  that  either  the  American  or 
English  justice  could  be  apprised  of  the 
other's  views  on  the  point  in  question, 
wound  up  by  the  voluntary  tribute  : 

"Judge  Story,  the  only  man  to  be 
thought  of  in  the  comparison,  is  certainly 
a  very  learned  and  able  man  ;  but  I  cannot 
help  regarding  Judge  Prentiss  as  the  best 
jurist  in  New  England." 

Perhaps  there  is  nothing  about  which 
there  is  more  misconception  among  men 
generally  than  in  what  constitutes  a  really 
great  intellect.     Most  people  are  prone  to 


57 


45° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


be  looking  for  some  bold  and  startling 
thoughts,  or  some  brilliant  or  learned  dis- 
play of  language,  in  a  man,  to  make  good 
in  him  their  preconceived  notions  of  in- 
tellectual greatness.  And  should  they  see 
him  take  up  a  subject  in  a  simple,  natural 
manner,  analyze  it,  reject  all  the  fictitious, 
retain  all  the  real,  arrange  the  elements, 
and,  thus  clearly  proceeding,  at  length 
reach  the  only  just  and  safe  conclusion  of 
which  the  case  admits,  they  would,  per- 
haps, feel  a  sort  of  disappointment  in  not 
having  seen  any  of  the  imposing  mental 
machinery  brought  into  play,  which  they 
supposed  would  be  required  to  produce  the 
result.  Demagogues  might  indeed  make 
use  of  such  machinery,  but  a  truly  great 
man,  never.  For  it  is  that  very  simplicity 
and  clearness  of  mental  operations  which 
can  only  make  an  intellect  efficient,  safe 
and  great.  Grasp  of  thought,  penetration 
and  power  of  analysis,  are  the  expressions 
generally  used  in  describing  a  mind  of  the 
character  of  that  of  Judge  Prentiss.  But 
they  hardly  bring  us  to  a  realization  of  the 
extremely  simple  and  natural  intellectual 
process,  through  which  he  moved  on,  self- 
poised,  step  by  step,  with  so  much  ease 
and  certainty  to  the  impregnable  legal  po- 
sitions where  he  was  content  only  to  rest. 
And  to  have  fully  realized  this,  we  should 
have  listened  to  one  of  his  plain  but  lu- 
minous decisions,  on  a  case  before  sup- 
posed to  be  involved  in  almost  insuperable 
doubts  and  perplexities — perceived  how, 
at  first,  he  carefully  gathered  up  all  that 
could  have  any  bearing  on  the  subject  in 
hand  ;  how  he  then  began  to  scatter  light 
upon  the  seemingly  dark  and  tangled  mass  ; 
and  then,  how,  segregating  all  the  irrele- 
vant and  extraneous,  and  assorting  the 
rest,  he  conducted  our  minds  to  what  at 
length  we  could  not  fail  to  see  to  be  the 
truth  and  reality  of  the  case.  That  Judge 
Prentiss  possessed,  besides  his  profound 
knowledge  of  the  law  as  a  science,  a  finely- 
balanced  and  superior  intellect  is  unques- 
tionable ;  and  that  it  became  so,  in  the  ex- 
ercise of  those  peculiar  traits  we  have  been 
attempting  to  describe,  need,  it  appears  to 
us,  to  be  scarcely  less  doubted. 


In  person,  Judge  Prentiss  was  nearly  6 
feet  high,  well-formed,  with  an  unusually 
expansive  forehead,  shapely  features  and  a 
clear  and  pleasant  countenance,  all  made 
the  more  imposing  and  agreeable  by  the 
affable  and  courtly  bearing  of  the  old  school 
gentleman. 

In  his  domestic  system,  he  was  a  rigid 
economist,  but  ever  gave  liberally  when- 
ever the  object  conmanded  his  approba- 
tion. Let  a  single  instance  suffice  for  il- 
lustration :  Some  years  before  his  death, 
his  minister  lost  an  only  cow  ;  and  the  fact 
coming  to  his  ears,  he  ordered  his  man  to 
drive,  the  next  morning,  one  of  the  cows 
he  then  possessed,  to  the  stable  of  the 
minister.  But  strangely  enough,  the  cow 
selected  for  the  gift  died  that  night.  He 
was  not  thus  to  be  defeated,  however,  in 
his  kind  purpose ;  for  hearing  that  the 
minister  had  engaged  a  new  cow,  at  a 
given  price,  he  at  once  sent  him  the  amount 
in  money  required  to  pay  for  it. 

Judge  Prentiss  has  gone  ;  but  the  people 
of  the  town,  which  had  the  honor  to  be  his 
home,  will  cherish  his  memory  as  long  as 
they  are  capable  of  appreciating  true  ex- 
cellence, and  be  but  too  proud  to  tell  the 
stranger  that  he  was  one  of  their  towns- 
men. 

At  the  October  session  of  the  United 
States  District  Court,  following  the  death 
of  Judge  Prentiss,  after  a  suitable  annouce- 
ment  by  the  district  attorney,  and  the  de- 
livery in  court  of  eloquent  tributes  to  the 
character  of  the  deceased,  by  the  Hon. 
Solomon  Foot,  and  the  Hon.  David  A. 
Smalley,  the  new  judge,  the  following  pre- 
amble and  resolutions  were  entertained, 
and  ordered  to  be  placed  upon  the  records 
of  the  court,  as  "an  enduring  evidence  of 
the  high  veneration  in  which  his  memory 
was  held  by  the  Bar  "  : 

Whereas,  the  Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss, 
late  Judge  of  the  District  Court  of  the 
United  States  for  the  District  of  Vermont, 
having  departed  this  life  within  the  present 
year,  and  the  members  of  this  Bar  and  the 
officers  of  this  Court  entertaining  the  high- 
est veneration  for  his  memory,  the  most 
profound  respect  for  his  great  ability, 
learning,  experience  and  uprightness  as  a 
Judge,  and  cherishing  for  his  many  public 


MONTPELIER. 


451 


and  private  virtues  the  most  lively  and  af- 
fectionate recollection,  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  his  uniformly  unosten- 
tatious and  gentlemanly  deportment,  his 
assiduous  discharge  of  his  official  duties, 
his  high  sense  of  justice,  his  unbending 
integrity,  and  the  exalted  dignity  and  pur- 
ity of  his  public  and  private  character, 
furnish  the  highest  evidence  of  his  intrin- 
sic worth,  and  of  his  great  personal  merit. 

Resolved,  That  the  District  Attorney, 
as  Chairman  of  this  meeting  of  the  Bar, 
communicate  to  the  family  of  the  deceased 
a  copy  of  these  proceedings,  with  an  assur- 
ance of  the  sincere  condolence  of  tlie  mem- 
bers of  the  Bar  and  the  officers  of  this 
Court,  on  account  of  this  great  and  irrep- 
arable bereavement. 

Resolved,  That  in  behalf  of  the  Bar  and 
the  officers  of  this  Court,  the  Honorable 
the  Presiding  Judge  thereof  be,  and  he  is 
hereby,  respectfully  requested  to  order  the 
foregoing  preamble  and  resolutions  to  be 
entered  on  the  minutes  of  the  Court. 

MRS.    LUCRETIA   PRENTISS, 

daughter  of  the  late  Edward  Houghton, 
Esq.,  of  Northfield,  Mass.,  was  born  Mar. 
6,  1786,  and  received  a  good  English  edu- 
cation for  the  times.  She  married  Samuel 
Prentiss,  Esq.,  in  1804,  and  settled  down 
with  him  for  life  in  the  village  of  Mont- 
pelier.  Here  she  became  the  mother  of  12 
children,  George  Houghton,  Samuel  Blake, 
Edward  Houghton,  John  Holmes,  Charles 
Williams,  Henry  Francis,  Frederick  James, 
Theodore,  Joseph  Addison,  Augustus,  Lu- 
cretia  and  James  Prentiss. 

(ieorge  H.  Prentiss  died  soon  after  ar- 
riving at  maturity  and  settling  down  in  his 
profession,  which,  like  that  of  all  the  rest 
of  the  brothers  who  reached  manhood,  was 
that  of  the  law.  Augustus,  and  Lucretia, 
the  only  daughter,  died  in  infancy. 

The  cares,  labors  and  responsibilities  of 
the  wife  are  generally,  to  a  great  extent, 
mingled  with  those  of  the  husband.  Much 
less  than  usual,  however,  were  they  so  in 
the  case  of  Mrs.  Prentiss.  In  consequence 
of  the  close  occupation  of  the  time  of  her 
husband  in  his  crowding  legal  engagements 
when  at  home,  and  his  frequent  and  long- 
continued  absences  from  home  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  professional  or  official  duties, 
almost  the  whole  care  and  management  of 
his  young  and  numerous  family  devolved 


on  her.  And  those  who  know  what  un- 
ceasing care  and  vigilance,  and  what  blend- 
ing of  kindness,  discretion  and  firmness, 
are  required  to  restrain  and  check,  without 
loss  of  influence,  and  train  up  with  the 
rightful  moral  guidance,  a  family  of  boys 
of  active  temperaments,  of  fertile  intellects 
and  ambitious  dispositions,  so  that  they 
all  be  brought  safely  into  manhood,  will 
appreciate  the  delicacy  and  magnitude  of 
her  trust,  and  be  ready  to  award  her  the 
just  meed  of  praise  for  discharging  it,  as 
she  confessedly  did,  with  such  unusual  faith- 
fulness and  with  such  unusual  success. 
Mrs.  Prentiss  died  at  Montpelier,  June  15, 
1855,  in  her  70th  year. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  say  too  much  in 
praise  of  the  character  of  this  rare  woman. 
She  was  one  of  earth's  angels.  In  her  do- 
mestic and  social  virtues  ;  in  the  industry 
that  caused  her  "to  work  willingly  with  her 
hands;"  in  "  the  law  of  kindness"  that 
prompted  her  benevolence,  and  the  wis- 
dom that  so  judiciously  and  impartially 
dispensed  it ;  together  with  all  the  other  of 
those  clustered  excellencies  that  went  to 
constitute  the  character  of  the  model  woman 
of  the  wise  man — in  all  these  Mrs.  Prentiss 
had  scarce  a  peer  among  us,  scarce  a  su- 
perior anywhere.  She  did  everything  for 
her  family,  and  lived  to  see  her  husband 
become  known  as  he  "  sat  among  the  Elders 
of  the  land,"  and  her  nine  surviving  sons, 
all  of  established  characters,  and  present- 
ing an  aggregate  of  capacity  and  good  re- 
pute unequalled,  perhaps,  by  that  of  any 
other  family  in  the  State,  and  all  praising 
her  in  their  lives.  These  were  her  works, 
but  not  all  her  works.  The  heart-works 
of  the  good  neighbor,  of  the  good  and 
lowly  Christian,  and  the  hand-works  that 
looked  to  the  benefit  and  elevation  of  so- 
ciety at  large,  were  by  her  all  done,  and 
all  the  better  done  for  being  performed 
so  unobtrusively,  so  cheerfully  and  so  un- 
selfishly. 

D.  p.  T. 

oil,  many  a  spirit  walks  the  world  unheeded. 
That,  when  its  veil  of  sadness  is  laid  down, 

Shall  soar  aloft  with  pinions  unimpeded, 
Wearing  its  glory  like  a  starry  crown. 

—Julia  Wallace, 


452 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


THE   HON.    JOSEPH   REED, 

Born  in  Westford,  Mass.  Mar.  13,  1766, 
when  about  12  years  of  age  left  Westford, 
to  live  with  his  uncle  in  Plymouth,  N.  H., 
for  about  6  years,  receiving  only  the  advan- 
tages of  a  common  school  education,  and 
at  18  commenced  and  served  a  3  years'  ap- 
prenticeship to  the  carpenter's  trade,  with 
James  Sargeant,  of  Plymouth,  after  which 
he  worked  one  year  for  his  master  for  $150, 
and  then  continued  at  his  trade  nearly  5 
years  in  the  vicinity,  when  he  relinquished 
for  good  his  trade  and  entered  the  store  of 
Mr.  Mower  Russell  in  Plymouth,  but  soon 
removed  to  Thetford,  Vt.,  where  in  1803 
he  opened  a  store.  In  June  1804,  he  mar- 
ried first.  He  had  no  children  by  this  mar- 
riage. In  1812,  he  married  second,  Eliza- 
beth, daughter  of  Rev.  Jacob  Burnap  D. 
D.  of  Merrimac,  N.  H.,  by  whom  he  had 
2  sons,  Charles  and  George  W.  In  18 14, 
15,  16,  Mr.  Reed  was  elected  town  repre- 
sentative of  Thetford  and  received  5  more 
elections  in  the  next  7  years.  In  181 8, 
19,  he  was  elected  one  of  the  Judges  of 
Orange  County  Court.  Having  been  very 
successful  in  trade  in  Thetford  and  closed 
up  business  there,  he  removed  to  Montpe- 
lier  in  1827.  In  1830,  31,  32,  he  was  elect- 
ed Judge  of  probate  for  the  district  of 
Washington  County,  and  in  1834,  was 
chosen  one  of  the  Council  of  Censors  to 
revise  the  constitution  of  the  State,  and 
in  1840,  one  of  the  presidential  elec- 
tors who  threw  the  vote  of  Vermont  for 
General  Harrison,  and  he  was  county 
treasurer  for  almost  the  last  30  years  of 
his  life.  His  second  wife,  who  shared  his 
cares  and  his  fortunes  through  nearly  the 
most  active  period  of  his  life,  and  who  was 
the  mother  of  his  children,  died  and  he 
married  her  sister.  Miss  Lucy  Burnap,  for 
his  third  wife,  who  dying  soon  after,  he 
married  his  fourth  wife.  Miss  Frances  M. 
Cotton,  daughter  of  the  Hon.  John  H. 
Cotton  of  Windsor,  who,  with  a  daughter, 
still  survives  him. 

Judge  Reed  at  his  death,  Feb.  6,  1859, 
left  a  handsome  fortune,  and,  what  is  far 
better,  a  character  which  his  descendants 
may  be  proud  to  contemplate.  Of  him, 
his  personal  peculiarities  and  general  char- 


acter, it  was  said,  in  a  tribute  from  a  dis- 
criminate source,  which  appeared  in  one 
of  our  jDublic  journals  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  — "  He  was  a  gentleman  of  the  Old 
School,  precise  and  methodical  in  his  hab- 
its :  of  noble  presence  and  demeanor  ;  hon- 
est and  sincere  in  all  his  dealings  ;  reserved 
and  prudent  in  his  speech,  sagacious  and 
comprehensive  in  his  views,  of  resolute 
and  unflinching  perseverance,  and  wise 
and  ample  generosity." 

This  single  sentence  finely  embodies 
the  whole  of  his  general  character,  yet 
some  of  its  peculiar  traits  may  be  more 
definitely  told.  Among  which  was  beside 
his  unbending  integrity  his  particular  and 
nice  conscientiouness.  But  the  way  in 
which  Judge  Reed  eflfected  the  most  good, 
and  for  which,  doubtless,  he  will  be  the 
longest,  and  by  the  largest  number  remem- 
bered, was  assisting  indigent,  but  promis- 
ing young  men  in  obtaining  an  education. 
When,  in  about  middle  life,  he  found  he 
had  accumulated  a  property  which  aiforded 
a  yearly  surplus  over  the  economical  sup- 
port of  his  family,  and  the  probable  ex- 
pense of  educating  his  children,  he,  as  he 
once  told  a  friend,  began  to  feel  it  his  duty 
to  bestow  at  least  a  good  portion  of  that 
surplus  on  objects  calculated  for  public 
good.  And  distrusting  the  wisdom  of 
many  of  the  schemes  of  benevolence  in 
vogue,  on  which  others  were  bestowing 
their  charities,  he  for  some  time  cast  about 
him  for  a  system  by  which  to  bestow  his 
money  so  that  it  might  conduce  to  the 
most  benefit  to  individuals,  and  through 
them  to  society  at  large.  And  he  soon 
settled  on  loaning  to  any  poor  young  man, 
showing  promise  of  usefulness,  such  sums 
of  money  as  he  should  need  to  carry  him 
through  College,  without  requiring  any  se- 
curity for  the  payment  of  the  amounts  ad- 
vanced, and  leaving  the  payment  a  wholly 
voluntary  matter  with  the  beneficiary.  And 
having  made  known  his  intentions,  and 
finding  no  lack  of  applications,  he  at  once 
put  his  system  in  practice,  and  nobly  per- 
severed in  keeping  it  up  to  the  last  year 
of  his  life,  and  till  the  number  of  young 
men  educated  through  his  means  amount- 
ed to  more  than  twenty,  among  whom  are 


MONTPELIER. 


453 


to  be  found  some  of  the  most  eminent  men 
of  the  country,  ornamenting  the  learned 
professions,  or  adding  dignity  to  the  offi- 
cial positions  to  which  their  merits  have 
raised  them. 

Other  wealthy  men  may  have  been  as 
benevolent,  others  as  patriotic,  in  bestow- 
ing money  for  temporary  purposes,  but  few 
can  boast  of  having  originated,  and  so 
persistently  maintained,  for  so  long  a  pe- 
iod,  a  system  of  benevolence  so  wise  and 
noble,  of  such  wide  spread,  happy  influen- 
ces which  have  flowed  from  the  one  which 
stands  associated  with  the  memory  of  the 
late  Joseph  Reed. 

HEZEKIAH    HUTCHINS   REED, 

was  born  at  Hamstead,  N.  H.,  May  26, 
1795,  and  came  with  his  father.  Captain 
Thomas  Reed,  and  family  to  Montpelier 
in  1804.  From  1804  to  about  1812,  he 
for  the  greater  part  of  the  time,  attended 
the  academy  in  Montpelier,  and  made 
such  proficiency,  and  exhibited  jjromise 
of  so  much  executive  talent,  at  16,  he  suc- 
sessfully  taught  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
forward  winter  schools  in  his  town,  and 
soon  after  went  to  Fort  Atkinson,  N.  Y., 
and  became  a  clerk  in  the  store  of  Mr. 
Gove,  while  the  American  Army  was  win- 
tering there  in  1813.  When  the  army  re- 
treated southward,  he  followed  it  to  Pitts- 
burgh, where  it  took  its  final  stand,  and 
remained  with  it  in  the  capacity  of  sutler 
till  the  battle  of  Plattsburgh,  September, 
1814,  at  which  he  was  present.  The  fol- 
lowing winter  he  taught  school  in  Grand 
Isle  County ;  after  which  he  commenced 
the  study  of  the  law  in  the  office  of  the 
Hon.  Dan  Carpenter  of  Waterbury ;  the 
spring  of  18 19,  was  admitted  to  the  Bar, 
and,  during  the  following  summer,  went 
West  and  settled  for  practice  in  Troy, 
Ohio ;  remained  about  5  years,  collected 
in  his  earnings,  and  invested  them  in 
flour,  which  he  put  on  board  one  of  the 
flat  boats  of  the  Ohio,  and  sailed  down  to 
Natches,  sold  it,  and  with  the  proceeds  in 
his  pocket,  returned  on  horse-back  through 
Tennessee,  Kentucky  and  Pennsylvania  to 
Philadelphia,  and  then  by  other  convey- 
ance   to    his    old    home    in   Montpelier^ 


where  he  went  into  partnership  with  his 
brother,  Thomas  Reed,  Esq.,  who  had  al- 
ready opened  a  law  office  in  the  village. 
This  partnership  lasted  about  20  years, 
and  was  attended  throughout  with  unusual 
pecuniary  success.  The  Messrs.  Reed  did 
a  very  large  business,  mostly  in  collecting 
and  in  honorable  speculations,  acting  as 
advocates  in  the  courts  but  little  more  than 
in  the  management  of  their  own  cases. 
They  invested  largely  in  the  stock  of  the 
first  and  second  Bank  of  Montpelier,  and 
bought  out  nearly  all  the  stock  of  the  old 
Winooski  Turnpike,  which  they  eventuallv 
sold  out  at  a  good  bargain  to  the  Vermont 
Central  Railroad  Company.  They  also 
became  extensive  land  owners  in  this  and 
several  of  the  Western  States,  and  their 
purchases  of  this  character  all  turned  out, 
in  the  aggregate,  very  profitable  invest- 
ments. 

Mr.  Reed  was  elected,  by  general  ticket, 
a  member  of  our  Council  of  Censors  in 
1 841  ;  was  one  of  the  delegates  of  Ver- 
mont to  the  National  Convention  which 
nominated  Gen.  Winfield  Scott  for  Pres- 
ident, and  was  for  many  years  considered 
one  of  the  most  influential  politicians  in 
the  State.  In  185 1,  52,  he  was  by  a  large 
majority  elected  representative  of  Montpe- 
lier in  the  legislature,  and  on  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Vermont  Bank,  in  1849,  was 
chosen  its  first  president  and  retained  in 
the  office  till  his  death. 

Mr.  Reed  was  an  unusually  energetic, 
stirring  business  man ;  but  business  and 
money-making  were  evidently  not  the  only 
objects  of  his  life.  He  was  ever  public 
spirited,  entering  into,  and  often  leading 
in,  all  enterprises  designed  for  the  public 
good  and  the  social,  religious  and  educa- 
tional interests  of  his  town,  with  his  usual 
zeal  and  energy ;  and  was  always  quite 
ready  to  help  on  all  such  movements  by 
liberal  subscriptions.  He  perhaps  should 
be  considered  the  foremost  in  bringing 
about  our  present  Union  School.  He  gave 
$1000  towards  the  building  to  be  erected 
on  its  establishment.  He  died  suddenly, 
and  almost  in  the  prime  of  his  life,  of  in- 
flammation of  the  lungs,  while  on  a  jour- 
ney to  the  West,  June  15,  1856,  and    now 


454 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


sleeps  in  our  new  Green  Mount  Cemetery, 
which  he  took  so  much  pride  in  planning 
and  ornamenting. 

THE    HONORABLE    WILLIAM    UPHAM, 

son  of  Captain  Samuel  Upham,  was  born 
in  Leicester,  Mass.,  Aug.  5,  1792.  In 
1802,  his  father  and  family  removed  to 
Vermont,  and  settled  on  a  farm  near  the 
Centre  of  Montpelier,  where,  from  10  to 
about  15  years  of  age,  he  worked  on  the 
farm,  only  attending  the  winter  schools  of 
the  common  school  district  in  which  he 
resided ;  when  he  met  with  an  accident, 
which  apparently  gave  a  new  turn  to  his 
destinies  for  life : — while  engaged  about 
a  cider  mill,  his  hand  so  caught  in  the  ma- 
chinery, and  all  the  fingers  of  the  right 
hand,  were  so  crushed  that  they  had  to  be 
amputated  even  with  the  palm.  This,  un- 
fitting him  for  manual  labor,  led  his  father 
to  consent  to  what  had  before  been  his 
wish,  the  commencement  of  a  course  of 
education,  preparatory  to  the  study  of  the 
law.  Accordingly  he  attended  the  old 
academy,  at  Montpelier,  a  few  terms,  and 
then,  with  the  late  Reverend  William  Per- 
rin  of  Berlin  for  a  fellow  student,  pursued 
the  study  of  Latin  and  Greek,  about  one 
year,  with  the  Reverend  James  Hobart  of 
Berlin.  In  1808,  he  entered  the  ofiice  of 
the  Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss,  in  Montpelier, 
as  a  law  student ;  and,  after  pursuing  his 
legal  studies  there  about  three  years,  he 
was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  soon  went  in- 
to partnership  in  the  practice  of  the  law 
with  the  Hon.  Nicholas  Baylies.  After 
continuing  in  partnership  with  Mr.  Baylies 
a  few  years,  he  opened  an  office  alone  in 
Montpelier ;  and  from  that  time,  until  his 
election  to  the  United  States  Senate,  he, 
either  alone  or  with  temporary  partners, 
continued  in  the  constant  and  successful 
practice  of  his  profession,  the  business  of 
which  was  always  more  than  ample  enough 
to  require  his  whole  time  and  attention. 
For  the  firsi  thirty  years  of  his  professional 
career,  Mr.  Upham,  with  the  exception  of 
only  one  instance,  steadily  declined  the 
many  profers  of  his  friends  for  his  promo- 
tion to  civil  office,  though  his  opportunities 
for  holding  such  offices  included  the  chance 


for  a  seat  on  the  bench  of  our  Supreme 
Court.  The  excepted  instance  was  in- 
volved in  his  consent  to  run  as  candidate 
for  town  representative,  in  1827;  when, 
though  the  majority  of  his  party  was  a 
matter  of  much  doubt,  he  was  triumphant- 
ly elected.  In  1828,  he  was  re-elected, 
and  in  1830,  received  a  third  election, 
serving  throug  all  the  three  terms  to  the 
entire  satisfaction  of  his  constituents,  and 
therein  exhibiting  talents  as  a  public  de- 
bator  which  gave  him  a  high  position  in 
the  Legislature.  In  the  presidential  cam- 
paign, 1840,  he,  for  the  first  time,  took  an 
active  part  in  politics,  and,  to  use  a  mod- 
ern phrase,  stumped  nearly  the  whole 
State,  making  himself  everywhere  known 
to  the  people  by  the  peculiar  traits  of  his 
popular  eloquence,  and  by  doing  efficient 
political  service  in  favor  of  the  election  of 
General  Harrison.  In  1841,  he  was  elect- 
ed to  a  seat  in  the  United  States  Senate  ; 
and  in  1847,  was  re-elected  to  the  same 
distinguished  office,  and  died,  at  Washing- 
ton, before  the  completion  of  his  last  term, 
Jan.  14,  1853. 

In  his  professional  career,  to  which  the 
main  energies  of  his  life  were  devoted,  he 
became  widely  known  as  one  of  the  best 
advocates  in  the  State.  He  was,  indeed, 
what  might  be  called  a  natural  lawyer,  and 
the  practice  of  his  profession  seemed  to 
amount  to  almost  a  passion  with  him  ;  and, 
even  in  his  youth,  even  before  he  com- 
menced his  legal  studies,  he  would  often, 
it  was  said,  leap  up  from  his  dreamain  his 
bed,  and  go  to  pleading  some  imaginary 
law  case.  And,  what  he  determined  to  be, 
that,  he  became,  one  of  the  most  success- 
ful jury  lawyers  to  be  found  in  any  country. 
Never  hesitating  for  word,  and  fluent 
almost  beyond  example,  the  style  of  his 
speaking  was  rapid,  thoroughly  earnest, 
and  often  highly  impassioned,  and  so  mag- 
netic was  that  earnestness  and  seeming 
confidence  in  his  case,  and  so  skilfully 
wrought  up  were  his  arguments,  that  bad 
indeed  must  have  been  his  side  of  the 
question,  if  he  did  not  command  the  sym- 
pathies and  convictions  of  a  good  part,  if 
not  all,  of  the  jury. 

As  a  statesman  it  ill  befits  us  to  judge 


MONTPELIER. 


455 


him,  while  those,  who  spoke  by  more 
authority,  and  from  better  opportunities, 
have  so  well  and  fully  done  so.  At  the 
time  the  customary  resolutions,  on  the 
occasion  of  his  death,  were  introduced  in 
Congress,  Senator  Foot,  in  his  obituary 
address,  said  of  him  : 

"  His  impaired  health,  for  some  years 
past,  has  restrained  him  from  participating 
so  generally  and  so  actively  in  the  discus- 
sions of  this  body,  as  his  inclination  might 
otherwise  have  induced  him  to  do,  or  his 
ability  as  a  public  debator  might  perhaps 
have  demanded  of  him.  Nevertheless  his 
speeches  on  several  important  and  excit- 
ing public  questions,  have  the  peculiar  im- 
press of  his  earnestness,  his  research,  his 
ability  and  his  patriotic  devotion  to  the 
best  interests  of  his  country.  A  striking 
example  is  furnished  of  his  fidelity  to  the 
trust  committed  to  him,  and  his  constant 
and  patient  attention  to  his  public  duties 
here,  in  the  fact,  which  I  had  from  his  own 
mouth,  that  during  the  ten  years  of  his 
service  in  this  body,  he  never  absented 
himself  from  the  City  of  Washington  for  a 
single  day,  while  Congress  was  in  session, 
and  never  failed,  while  the  condition  of  his 
health  would  permit,  of  daily  occupying 
his  seat  in  the  Senate." 

Senator  Seward  said : 

"William  Upham  was  of  Vermont:  a 
consistent  exponent  of  her  institutions. 
He  was  a  man  of  strong  and  vigorous  judg- 
ment, which  acted  always  by  a  process  of 
sound,  inductive  reasoning,  and  his  com- 
peers here  will  bear  witness  that  he  was 
equal  to  the  varied  and  vast  responsibilities 
of  the  Senatorial  trust.  He  was  a  plain, 
unas.suming,  unostentatious  man.  He  nev- 
er spoke  for  display,  but  always  for  con- 
viction. He  was  an  honest  and  just  man. 
He  had  gotten  nothing  by  fraud  or  guile  ; 
and  so  he  lived  without  any  fear' of  losing 
whatever  of  fortune  or  position  he  had 
attained.  No  gate  was  so  strong,  no  lock 
so  fast  and  firm,  as  the  watch  he  kept 
against  the  approach  of  corruption,  or  even 
undue  influence  or  persuasion.  His  na- 
tional policy  was  the  increase  of  industry, 
the  cultivation  of  peace,  and  the  patronage 


of  improvement.  He  adopted  his  opinions 
without  regard  to  their  popularity,  and 
never  stifled  his  convictions  of  truth,  nor 
suppressed  their  utterance,  through  any 
fear  or  favor,  or  of  faction  ;  but  he  was,  on 
the  contrary,  consistent  and  constant 

As  pilot  well  expert  in  perilous  wave. 

That  to  a  steadfast  starre  his  c-ourse  hath  bent." 

Mr.  Upham's  best  known  speeches  in 
the  Senate  are  his  speech  on  Three  Million 
Bill,  delivered  March  i,  1847;  on  The  Ten 
Regimetit  Bill,  and  the  Mexican  War,  de- 
livered Feb.  15,  1848;  on  the  Bill  to  es- 
tablish Territorial  Governments  of  Oregon, 
New  Mexico  and  California,  delivered  Ju- 
ly 28,  1848 ;  on  the  Compromise  Bill,  de- 
livered July  I  and  2,  1850. 

These  were  all  published  in  pamphlet 
form,  as  well  as  in  all  the  leading  political 
papers  of  the  day,  and  at  once  received 
the  stamp  of  public  approbation  as  elabo- 
rate and  able  efforts.  But  besides  these, 
and  besides  also  the  numerous  written  and 
published  reports  he  made  during  his  Con- 
gressional career,  as  chairman  of  commit- 
tee on  Revolutionary  Claims,  on  the  Post 
Office  and  Post  Roads,  and  of  other  com- 
mittees, Mr.  Upham  made  many  other 
speeches  on  various  subjects,  which, 
though  less  extensively  circulated  perhaps, 
than  those  above  enumerated,  yet  received 
almost  equal    praise   from    high    quarters. 

Of  the  latter  may  be  cited,  as  an  instance, 
his  speech  in  opposition  to  the  Tariff"  bill 
of  1 846 ;  and  to  show  the  approbation  with 
which  it  was  received,  at  the  time,  among 
distinguished  men,  we  are  permitted  to 
copy  a  characteristic  note  from  Mr.  Web- 
ster, which  was  sent  Mr.  Upham,  the  even- 
ing after  the  speech  was  delivered,  and 
which,  after  his  death,  was  found  among 
his  private  papers : 

Thursday  Eve.,  July  26,  1846. 

My  Dear  Sir : — If  you  could  convenient- 
ly call  at  my  house,  at  eight  or  nine  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  I  shoutd  be  glad  to  see 
you  for  five  minutes.  I  wish  to  take  down 
some  of  your  statements  respecting  the 
market  abroad,  for  our  wool.  Following 
in  your  track,  my  work  is  to  compare  the 
value  of  the  foreign  and  home  markets. 
Yours  truly,         Daniel  Webster. 

If  I  had  the  honor  of  being  a  corre- 
spondent of  Mrs.  Upham,  I  should  write 


456 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


to  her  to  say,  that  you  had  made  an  excel- 
lent speech.  The  point,  of  the  duty  of 
government  to  fulfil  its  pledges,  so  fre- 
quently and  solemnly  made,  was  exhibited 
in  a  very  strong  light.  D.  w. 

A  friend  wrote  that  the  Senator  "was 
keenly  sensible  of  the  dignity  of  his  office, 
and  careful  in  the  discharge  of  its  duties, 
and  from  his  constancy,  industry,  and  in- 
tegrity, he  was  one  of  the  most  useful 
members  of  the  senate." 

MRS.    SARAH    UPHAM. 

Sarah  Keyes,  wife  of  the  Hon.  Senator, 
was  born  in  Ashford,Conn.  She  was  a  sister 
of  Mrs.  Thomas  Brooks  of  Montpelier,  the 
grandmother  of  Gen.  W.  T.  Brooks,  the 
distinguished  commander  of  the  Vermont 
Brigade  through  part  of  the  war  of  the  Re- 
bellion, and  while  with  'her  sister  here, 
became  acquainted  with  Mr.  Upham,  with 
whom,  at  the  early  age  of  19,  she  united 
her  destinies  for  life.  Many  a  public  man 
has  been  left  to  regret  that  he  had  not  a 
partner  who,  by  her  personal  attractions, 
wit  and  conversational  powers,  was  fitted 
to  sustain  herself  in  the  social  circles  into 
which  his  high  position  brought  him.  Not 
so  Mr.  Upham  ;  his  wife,  who  usually  at- 
tended him  to  Washington,  readily  and 
gracefully  sustained  herself  among  the  best 
society  congregated  at  the  National  Capi- 
tal, and  was  ever,  at  home  or  abroad,  the 
cordial,  sparkling,  intelligent  woman,  and 
eminently  popular.  Each  successive  season 
for  years,  and  after  her  own  family  had 
grown  up,  the  young  people  of  Montpelier 
were  indebted  to  her,  more  than  to  any 
other  lady  at  the  Capital,  for  her  inexclu- 
sive  hospitalities,  and  efibrts  that  never 
wearied,  to  promote  their  happiness  and 
culture  ;  for  the  numerous  pleasant  parties 
at  which,  with  the  approbation  of  her  lib- 
eral^ vvarm-souled  and  congenial  husband, 
she  delighted  to  gather  them  at  her  house, 
within  her  beautiful  home,  under  her  charm- 
ing influence.  Her  very  presence  was  re- 
fining and  a  delight.  A  lady  so  charitable, 
magnetic  and  influential  is  a  great  gift  to 
society.  Such  was  Mrs.  Upham,  as  still 
remembered  by  numerous  friends,  and  what 
to  her  surviving  daughters  is  more  pre- 
cious, and  for  the  example  of  women  more 
beautiful,  she  was  no  less  marked  and  ex- 


cellent in  her  every-day  life  of  family  duties 
and  cares  and  affections — the  wise  and 
able  woman  in  her  own  house.  The  rich- 
est fruit  must  ripen  and  fall.  After  her 
husband  died,  though  of  a  buoyant  disposi- 
tion, and  striving  hard  to  bear  her  loss  with 
Christian  resignation,  she  soon  began  to 
droop,  and  on  the  8th  of  May,  after,  1856, 
followed  him  to  the  grave,  mourned  by 
her  children  and  many  friends.  The  por- 
trait of  Mrs.  Upham  in  this  volume  was 
copied  from  a  painting  done  shortly  after 
her  marriage,  while  that  of  the  Senator 
was  taken  many  years  later.       e.  p.  w. 

WILLIAM    KEVES   UPHAM, 

oldest  son  of  Senator  Upham,  was  born  in 
Montpelier,  April  3,  18 17,  admitted  to  the 
bar  there,  and  soon  thereafter  removed  to 
Ohio,  where  he  gained  a  large  and  lucra- 
tive  practice,  and  ultimately  rose  to  the 
head  of  his  profession  in  that  State,  rank- 
ing, wrote  a  biographer,  "  with  Chase, 
Stanton,  Corwin,  Vinton,  John  A.  Bing- 
ham, and  others."  This  statement  has 
been  confirmed  to  the  writer  of  this  note 
by  a  judge  of  an  Ohio  court,  in  which  Mr. 
Upham  practiced.  He  died  Mar.  22, 1865, 
and  a  handsome  monument  was  erected  to 
him  by  the  bar  of  Stark  Co.,  O.         e.  p.  w. 

MAJ.    CHARLES   C.    UPHAM, 

the  second  son  of  Senator  Upham,  was 
born  in  Montpelier,  April  3,  18 19,  and  was 
educated  there.  In  1852,  he  entered  the 
U.  S.  Navy  as  Paymaster,  and  by  his  con- 
duct so  far  won  the  confidence  of  the  de- 
partment that  he  was  assigned  to  duties  of 
a  confidential  character.  He  died  sud- 
denly at  Montpelier,  June  ID,  1868.  His 
wife,  Mrs.  Abbie  E.- Upham,  did  not  long 
survive  him.  e.  p.  w. 

MRS.    GEORGE   LANGDON, 

who  was  Sarah  ,  Sumner,  oldest  daughter 
of  Senator  Upham,  was  born  in  Mont- 
pelier, and  Mary  Annette,  youngest 
daughter  of  Senator  Upham,  resides  with 
her.  Both  of  these  ladies  have  inherited 
all  the  beautiful  graces  and  the  remarkable 
characteristics  of  their  mother,  and  are 
favorites  as  well  in  the  Capitals  of  Ver- 
mont and  the  Nation,  as  elsewhere.  They 
are  both  still  living,  [1881.]       e.  p.  w. 


^\\ 


■•%*    <^» 


c-y'^?t-'^-<r<>^;^ 


/. 


MONTPELIER. 


4?7 


COL.   JONATHAN   PECKHAM   MILLER 

was  born  in  Randolph,  Feb.  24,  1797.  His 
father,  who  died  in  1 799,  had  given  him  to 
his  uncle,  Jonathan  Peckham,  who,  dying 
about  1805,  appears  to  have  commended 
the  boy  to  the  care  of  Gapt.  John  Granger, 
of  the  same  town,  and  with  that  gen- 
tleman he  resided  till  1813,  when  he  went 
to  Woodstock  to  learn  the  tanner's  trade. 
He  did  not  remain  long  there,  however, 
before  sickness  compelled  him  to  return ; 
and  his  illness  settling  into  protracted 
feeble  health,  he  made  Mr.  Granger's  house 
his  home  for  the  next  4  years.  But  during 
this  time  the  invasion  of  Plattsburgh  by 
the  British  occurring,  and  Capt.  Lebbeus 
Egerton,  of  that  town,  having  raised  a 
company  of  volunteers  to  go  to  the  rescue, 
young  Miller,  sick  or  well,  determined  on 
joining  the  expedition,  which,  neverthe- 
less, turned  out  to  be  a  bloodless  one  ;  for 
the  company  had  not  quite  time  to  reach 
the  scene  of  action  before  the  battle  was 
over,  and  the  enemy  had  beat  a  retreat ; 
when  they  all  returned  to  Randolph,  with 
no  other  glory  than  that  which  arose  from 
this  good  showing  of  their  patriotic  inten- 
tions. Whether  this  incident  started  in 
Miller  a  taste  for  military  aifairs,  or  whether 
he  began  to  feel  farming  would  prove  too 
tame  an  occupation  for  him,  is  not  fully 
known ;  but  certain  it  is,  as  early  as  1817, 
he  resolved  to  change  his  mode  of  life,  and 
went  to  Marblehead,  Mass.,  where  a  com- 
pany of  United  States  troops  were  sta- 
tioned, and  enlisted  as  a  common  soldier 
in  the  army.  He  continued  in  the  service 
about  2  years,  being  a  part  of  the  time  sta- 
tioned on  our  northern  frontier,  when,  his 
health  again  failing,  he  procured  a  dis- 
charge, and  returned  to  Randolph,  where 
he  attended  the  academy  of  that  town,  and 
soon  began  to  fit  for  college.  After  dili- 
gently prosecuting  his  studies  here  till  the 
summer  of  182 1,  he  entered  Dartmouth 
College  ;  but,  for  some  reason,  left  in  the 
course  of  a  few  weeks,  and  joined  a  class, 
of  like  standing  as  the  one  he  had  been  in 
at  Dartmouth,  in  the  University  of  Ver- 
mont. At  Burlington  College,  he  steadily 
pursued  his  studies,  advancing  with  the 
rest  of  his  class,  to  almost  the  last  year  of 

58 


the  prescribed  course  of  collegiate  require- 
ments, when,  May  24,  1824,  the  college 
buildings  accidentally  caught  fire  and  were 
totally,  consumed,  and  with  them  a  portion 
of  the  public  library  and  the  private  books 
of  the  students,  among  which  were  thosJ 
of  Mr.  Miller. 

He  was  now  afloat  again ;  but  does  not 
appear  to  have  long  hesitated  in  making 
up  his  mind  upon  a  course  of  action  for 
his  immediate  future.  The  struggles  of 
Greece  for  liberty  had  by  this  time  become 
the  theme  of  every  American  fireside,  and 
the  appalling  woes  her  people  were  suff'er- 
ing  from  the  remorseless  cruelties  of  their 
turbaned  oppressors,  had  already  enlisted 
the  sympathies  of  every  American  heart 
that  could  feel  for  anything.  As  might  be 
expected  of  one  of  Miller's  warm  and  pat- 
riotic nature,  his  feelings  had  been  among 
those  of  the  first  to  be  aroused  at  the  re- 
cital of  these  tales  of  outrage.  But  here- 
tofore he  had  been  engaged  in  the  accom- 
plishment of  the  task  before  him — the  com- 
pletion of  his  college  course.  He  thought 
it  hardly  worth  his  while  now,  however,  at 
his  age,  to  enter  a  new  college  for  this  pur- 
pose, and,  if  not,  his  time  was  on  his  own 
hands.  Why,  then,  should  he  not  go  to 
succor  the  opi^ressed,  as  well  as  other  pat- 
riotic Americans  who  had  already  sailed 
for  Greece,  or  were  intending  shortly  to  do 
so  ?     With  the  question,  came  the  decision. 

He  knew  there  was  in  Boston  an  asso- 
ciation of  wealthy  and  influential  gentle- 
men, styled  the  Greek  Committee,  who  had 
been  selected  to  receive  and  appropriate 
contributions  for  the  Greek  cause,  by  pur- 
chasing needed  munitions,  or  by  furnish- 
ing the  means  of  transit  to  those  who, 
without  such  means,  were  willing  to  volun- 
teer their  personal  services  in  behalf  of  the 
oppressed.  But  he  must  first  obtain  an 
introduction  to  them  ;  and  for  this  purpose 
he  went  to  Gov.  Van  Ness,  at  the  destruc- 
tion of  whose  house  by  fire,  a  short  time 
before,  he  knew  he  had  performed  an  im- 
portant and  dangerous  service  in  rescuing 
valuable  property  from  the  flames.  The 
Governor,  who  never  forgot  a  benefit,  wrote 
a  letter,  not  only  of  introduction,  but  of 
warm  recommendation  of  Mr.  Miller,  to 


458 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  Hon.  Thomas  L.  Winthrop,  and  the 
Hon.  Edward  Everett,  the  President  and 
Secretary  of  the  Greek  Association,  who, 
in  their  turn,  gave  him  letters  to  the  Pres- 
ident and  leading  members  of  the  Greek 
Government,  at  Missolonghi,  and  furnish- 
ed him  withal,  with  over  $300,  to  enable 
him  to  pay  his  passage,  equip  himself  with 
a  good  personal  outfit,  and  have  money  left 
for  exigencies  that  might  arise  after  he 
had  reached  his  destination  ;  when  he,  with 
other  American  volunteers,  sailed  for  Malta, 
Aug.  21,  1824.  After  reaching  that  place, 
and  spending  a  few  weeks,  and  at  some 
other  of  the  neighboring  islands,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  the  fated  Missolonghi,  and  en- 
quired out  the  house  which  Lord  Byron, 
then  very  late  deceased,  had  made  his 
headquarters,  and  which  had  been  retained 
for  the  ordinary  meetings  of  the  members 
of  the  government  of  Western  Greece. 
Here  he  encountered  Dr.  Mayer,  who  was 
a  root  of  the  fighting  stock  of  William  Tell, 
of  Switzerland,  and  had,  for  several  of  the 
last  years,  been  one  of  the  bravest  and 
most  useful  of  the  European  volunteers  in 
Greece.  Mr.  Miller  presented  his  creden- 
tials to  the  Doctor,  and  was  promised  an 
early  presentation  to  members  of  the  gov- 
ernment. He  was  also  invited  to  take  up 
his  quarters  in  that  house,  and  having  been 
shown  a  room  where  he  might  take  a  little 
of  the  repose  he  so  much  needed,  he 
wrapped  his  cloak  around  him,  threw  him- 
self down  on  the  floor,  and  was  soon  asleep. 
Before  long,  however,  he  was  awakened  by 
the  entrance  of  a  man  already  widely  known 
through  Europe  and  America.  This  was 
Gen.  George  Jarvis,  a  son  of  Benjamin 
Jarvis,  of  New  York,  who  held  a  situation 
under  the  U.S.  Government  in  Germany, 
where  the  son  was  born,  educated  and 
reared  to  manhood.  He  entered  the  Greek 
.service  in  1821 ,  and  continued  in  it  through 
the  whole  of  that  memorable  struggle, 
passing  through  every  grade  of  military 
office  to  the  rank  of  brigadier  general  of 
Lord  Byron's  brigade,  and  seeing,  prob- 
ably, more'fighting,  and  undergoing  more 
suffering  and  hardship  than  any  one  of  all 
the  heroes  of  Greece.  He  and  Mr.  Miller 
appear  to  have  almost  at  once'  made  the 


discovery  that  they  were  congenial  spirits, 
and  a  mutual  friendship  and  respect  sprang 
up  between  them,  which  soon  resulted  in 
Mr.  Miller's  appointment  as  one  of  the 
General's  staff  officers,  with  tlie  rank  of 
colonel  in  the  Greek  service. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  to  follow  Colonel 
Miller  through  the  various  hardships  he 
endured  through  tlie  next  2  years  of  that 
wild  and  bloody  conflict,  nor  enumerate 
those  feats  of  arms  which  seem  so  to  have 
awakened  the  admiration  of  the  Greeks, 
and  caused  him  to  be  known  among  them 
by  the  peculiar  name  of  The  Aiiiei'ican  Dare 
Devil.  Let  an  instance  or  two,  which  we 
have  had  from  his  own  lips,  serve  as  a 
specimen  of  his  many  personal  risks  and 
escapes,  as  well  as  of  his  individual  daring. 

On  one  occasion,  when  he  was  stationed 
in  command  of  a  small  band  of  soldiers  in 
a  walled  garden,  a  few  miles  from  Napoli, 
he  suddenly  discovered  the  place  to  be 
surrounded  by  a  force  of  some  thousand 
Turkish  troops.  Knowing  that  the  instant 
the  weakness  of  his  band  was  discovered 
they  would  all  be  sacrificed  on  the  spot. 
Col.  Miller  at  once  resolved  on  the  des- 
perate expedient  of  a  sally  right  into  the 
mouth  of  the  lion,  and  calling  on  his  band 
to  follow  at  his  heels,  he  dashed  out  into 
the  midst  of  the  closely  investing  foe, 
firing  his  girdle  full  of  pistols,  and  slash- 
ing about  him  with  his  sword  as  he  went, 
with  such  fury  as  to  astonish  the  Turks, 
who  supposing,  of  course,  the  garden  to  be 
full  of  Greeks,  about  to  scatter  death 
among  them  from  behind  the  walls,  in- 
stantly became  panic  struck  and  fled. 

Another  instance  of  a  similar  character 
occurred  in  a  different  part  of  the  peninsula, 
when  Gen.  Jarvis  and  Col.  Miller,  with  a 
small  force,  being  unexpectedly  beset  by  a 
large  body  of  Turkish  cavalry,  were  wholly 
cut  off  from  their  companions,  and,  as 
their  only  chance  of  escaping  with  life, 
were  compelled  to  n.m  for  a  piece  of  woods 
at  the  top  of  a  hill  a  fourth  of  a  mile  dis- 
tant. But  this  only  resort  came  near  prov- 
ing a  fatal  one.  A  large  squad  of  the 
mounted  fiends  pursued  them,  and  were  all 
within  pistol  shot,  while  the  woods  were 
yet  too  far  distant  to  be  reached  by  them. 


MONTPELIER. 


459 


They  supposed  there  was  but  a  moment 
more  for  them  in  this  world  ;  but  they  re- 
solved that  that  moment  should  not  be 
passed  unimproved .  They  suddenly  wheel- 
ed round,  drew  up  their  pieces,  and  fired 
directly  into  the  faces  of  their  pursuers, 
who.  in  surprise  at  the  strange  act,  came 
to  a  dead  halt,  and  the  next  instant  turned 
and  lied,  doubtless  believing  that  they 
would  not  take  such  a  stand  unless  there 
lay  concealed  in  the  borders  of  the  woods 
a  force  of  their  foes,  from  whom  it  was 
their  wisdom  to  escape  while  they  could. 

The  first  of  these  instances  we  find  in 
substance  related  in  Post  s  Visits  to  Greece 
and  Constantinople  in  1827,  and  also  in 
Dr.  Hoive'^s  History  of  Greece,  and  the 
latter,  not  before  named  in  history,  is 
doubtless  an  equally  veritable  incident. 

Besides  the  many  personal  encounters 
and  skirmishes  with  the  foes  of  Greece,  of 
the  character  of  those  just  described,  Col. 
Miller  was  an  active  participant  in  several 
important  engagements,  in  which  his  gal- 
lantry appears  to  have  attracted  favorable 
notice.  Among  these  we  find  one  hand- 
somely alluded  to  in  the  lately  published 
volume  of  '•'^ Travels  in  Greece  and  Russia,'"'' 
by  Bayard  Taylor : 

At  the  end  of  the  Argive  plain  is  the 
little  village  of  Miles,  where  Ypsilanti 
gained  a  splendid  victory  over  the  troops 
of  Ibrahim  Pacha,  and  Col.  Miller  greatly 
distinguished  himself. 

But  the  most  continuous,  the  hardest 
and  most  important  of  Col.  Miller's  mil- 
itary services  in  Greece  were  in  the  terri- 
ble twelve  months'  siege  of  the  ill-fated 
Missolonghi,  one  of  the  most  wealthy  and 
populous  towns  of  the  Grecian  peninsula. 
We  have  space  only  to  give  a  general  idea 
of  the  character  of  this  siege  ;  and  this  idea 
will  perhaps  be  the  best  given  by  a  letter 
from  Dr.  Mayer,  of  whom  we  have  before 
spoken,  and- who  was  one  of  the  130  per- 
sons perishing  in  the  last  defense  of  the 
place,  written  within  three  days  before  his 
death  ;  and  in  another  letter  from  Colonel 
Miller  himself  to  Edward  Everett,  after 
Missolonghi  had  fallen,  and  he  had  es- 
caped with  the  remnant  of  the  besieged, 
as  he  has  described,  out  of  the  city,  but 
not  out  of  danger  : 


DR.  Mayer's  letter. 

The  labors  which  we  have  undergone, 
and  a  wound  I  have  received  in  the  shoul- 
der, which  I  am  in  expectation  is  one 
which  will  be  my  passport  to  eternity,  have 
prevented  me  till  now  from  bidding  you 
my  last  adieus.  We  are  reduced  to  teed 
on  the  most  disgusting  animals ;  we  are 
suffering  horribly  from  hunger  and  thirst. 
Sickness  adds  much  to  the  calamities  that 
overwhelm  us.  More  than  1740  of  our 
brothers  are  dead.  More  than  100,000 
bombs  and  balls,  thrown  by  the  enemy, 
have  destroyed  our  bastions  and  our  houses. 
We  have  been  terribly  distressed  by  cold, 
and  we  have  suffered  great  want  of  food. 
Notwithstanding  so  many  privations,  it  is 
a  great  and  noble  spectacle  to  witness  the 
ardor  and  devotedness  of  the  garrison.  A 
few  days  more,  and  these  brave  men  will 
be  angelic  spirits,  who  will  accuse  before 
God  the  indifference  of  Christendom  for  a 
cause  which  is  that  of  religion.  All  the 
Albanians  who  deserted  from  the  standard 
of  Reschid  Pacha  have  now  rallied  under 
that  of  Ibrahim.  In  the  name  of  all  our 
brave  men,  among  whom  are  Noto  Bot- 
zaris,  Travellas,  Papodia  Mautopolas, 
and  myself,  whom  the  government  has  ap- 
pointed generals  to  a  body  of  its  troops, 
I  announce  to  you  the  resolution,  sworn  to 
before  Heaven,  to  defend,  footbyfoot,  the 
land  of  Missolonghi,  and  bury  ourselves, 
without  listening  to  any  capitulation,  under 
the  ruins  of  this  city.  History  will  render 
us  justice ;  posterity  will  weep  over  our 
misfortunes.  I  am  proud  to  think  that  the 
blood  of  a  Swiss,  of  a  child  of  William 
Tell,  is  about  to  mingle  with  that  of  the 
heroes  of  Greece.  May  the  relation  of 
the  siege  of  Missolonghi,  which  I  have 
written,  survive  me.  I  have  made  sev- 
eral copies  of  it.  Cause  this  letter,  dear 
S ,  to  be  inserted  in  some  public  jour- 
nal. 

This  beautiful  and  touching  letter  to  a 
friend  has  been  preserved  in  the  History 
of  Greece.  Col.  Miller's  letter,  which  was 
also  embodied  in  the  same  history,  is  as 
follows : 

Napoli  de  Romania,  ? 
May  3,  1826.  \ 

Edward  Everett  : 

Honored  and  Dear  Friend: — It  is  with 
emotions  not  to  be  expressed,  that  I  now 
attempt  to  give  an  account  of  the  fall  of 
Missolonghi, and  the  heart-rending  situation 
of  ill-fated  Greece.  Missolonghi  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  Turks,  eight  days  since, 
after  a  gallant  defense  of  eleven  months 
and  a  half.  When  we  take  into  consider- 
ation the  means  of  its   defense,  and    the 


460 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


overwhelming  numbers  that  approached  it 
by  sea  and  land,  there  cannot  be  a  doubt 
but  that  its  resistance  rivals  anything  of 
the  kind  either  in  ancient  or  modern  times. 
The  particulars  of  its  fall  are  enough  to 
draw  tears  from  the  most  obdurate  and  un- 
feeling heart,  and  will  bring  into  action 
the  energies  of  the  Christian  world,  if,  in- 
deed, such  a  world  can  be  said  to  exist. 
Pardon  me,  my  dear  sir ;  the  agonies  of 
my  mind  cause  the  expression ;  for  who 
can  believe,  that,  in  an  age  like  this,  if 
there  are  Christians,  infidels  should  be  al- 
lowed to  butcher  an  entire  population? 

Missolonghi  contained  over  8,000  in- 
habitants at  the  time  of  its  surrender,  or 
rather  of  its  destruction.  There  were  no 
more  than  3,000  capable  of  bearing  arms ; 
the  rest  were  women  and  children.  We 
were  reduced  to  the  last  extremity  for  pro- 
visions, having  eaten  all  the  mules  and 
horses  which  were  in  the  place,  when  the 
gloomy  inhabitants  were  cheered  by  the 
arrival  of  the  Greek  fleet ;  but  alas  !  the 
gallant  Mianlis  found  the  Turkish  force 
too  strong  for  his  little  Squadron.  After 
sustaining  considerable  loss  in  three  at- 
tempts to  break  through  the  Turkish  fleet, 
he  retired.  The  inhabitants  of  Missolonghi 
were  now  driven  to  desperation.  They 
knew  of  the  unhappy  fate  of  those  who  had 
been  taken  at  Aurtolico,  and  of  the  out- 
rages the  Arabs  would  commit  if  the  place 
should  capitulate.  They  took  a  horrid  but 
glorious  resolution  of  blowing  into  the  air 
their  wives,  daughters  and  sons.  I  call  it 
glorious,  because  the  women  desired  it ; 
and  there  was  no  possible  way  of  prevent- 
ing the  Arabs  from  committing  outrages 
upon  the  women  and  boys,  if  they  once 
should  get  them  into  their  power.  They 
all  assembled  at  the  old  Turkish  Seraglio. 
Their  husbands  and  brothers,  after  laying 
a  train  of  powder,  embraced  them  for  the 
last  time,  then  giving  them  matches,  left 
them  to  set  fire  to  the  train.  The  men 
then  prepared  themselves  for  cutting  their 
way  through  the  Turkish  camp,  sword  in 
hand.  And  out  of  the  3,000,  only  1,000 
are  said  to  have  escaped. 

There  is  the  greatest  sorrow  here, women 
beating  their  breasts,  and  asking  every 
Frank  they  meet,  "  if  all  the  Christian 
world  has  forsaken  them?"  I  must  close 
this  hasty  scrawl,  for  my  heart  is  too  full 
to  write  more.  I  lost  all  my  articles  of 
European  clothing  at  Missolonghi.  But 
this  is  nothing.  If  I  am  happy  enough  to 
escape,  I  shall  go  to  Smyrna. 

My  regards  to  Mrs.  Everett.  I  am 
thankful  it  is  not  for  her  to  endure  the  dis- 
tress of  the  fair,  but  ill-fated  daughters  of 
Greece. 

I  am,  dear  sir,  with  due  respect,  your 
humble  servant,  J.  P.  Miller. 


This  was  the  last  of  all  systematic  re- 
sistance  the   poor   Greeks    were    able    to 
make  ;  and  they  remained  in  their  desolated 
country,   a   subdued,  but   not   conquered 
people,  till  the  Christian  nations  having 
been  aroused,  the  naval  victory  at  Navarino 
secured  the  independence  of  their  country. 
But  the  people,  in  the  meanwhile,  were  in 
a  starving  condition  ;  and  Col.  Miller,  after 
lingering  there  till  fall,  came  here  to  the 
United  States  to  arouse  his  countrymen  to 
the  work  of  contributing  for  supplying  of 
their  wants.     Arriving  here  in  November, 
he  lectured  through  most  of  the  Northern 
and  Middle  States  with  that  object ;  but  in 
Feb.    1827,  while    thus   engaged,    he  was 
appointed  by  the  N.  Y.  Greek  Committee 
to  the  agency  of  going  to  Greece  and  /Su- 
perintending the  distribution  among  the 
suffering  inhabitants  of  that  country  of  a 
cargo  of  provisions  that  had  been  already 
collected  for  them.     He  went,  was  gone 
about  a  year,  and  discharged  his  duty  to 
the  full  satisfaction  of  the  friends  of  Greece 
here,   as    the   proofs,  published   with   his 
journal  by  the  Harpers  of  New  York,  after 
his    return,    abundantly   make     manifest. 
The  aggregate  value  of  the  provisions  and 
clothing  distributed  by  him  in  Greece  was 
over  $75,000.     Yet  it  was  found  to  be  well 
for  the  beneficiaries  that  he  could  act  both 
in  the  character  of  almoner  and   soldier 
with  equal  efficiency.     For,  when  he  ar- 
rived in  Greece,  he  was  beset  by  sharpers 
and  mercenary  villains  of  all  kinds,  who 
insolently  demanded  portions  of  his  cargo 
in  despite  all  his  judicious  rules  for  dis- 
tribution ;  and  in  one  instance  a  scheme 
was  laid  to  get  possession  of  his    whole 
store,   and   it  would  probably  have  been 
successful,  as  well  as  the  less  bold  attempts 
of  the  kind,  but  for  the  decisive  stand  and 
personal  intrepidity  of  Col.   Miller,  who, 
on   such  occasions,  would   throw   off"  the 
character  of  the  almoner  as  quick  as  the 
Quaker  did  his  coat,  draw  sword  and  pistols, 
and  drive  the  lying  knaves  from  his  pres- 
ence. 

Among  the  things  which  were  destined 
to  become  permanent  remembrancers  of 
Col.  Miller's  expedition  to  Greece,  was 
the  adoption  and   education  of  a   Greek 


MONTPELIER. 


461 


orphan  boy,  Lucas  Miltiades,  who,  after 
having  received  through  his  childhood  and 
youth  from  the  Colonel  all  the  privileges 
and  affectionate  care  and  kindness  which  a 
father  could  have  bestowed,  removed  West 
soon  after  reaching  his  majority.  And 
Lucas  Miltiades  Miller  has  now  become, 
through  the  advantages  thus  received,  and 
his  own  capacity,  energy  and  enterprise, 
one  of  the  most  respected,  wealthy  and  in- 
fluential citizens  of  Wisconsin. 

Lucas  M.  was  the  younger  of  two  broth- 
ers brought  to  this  country  by  Col.  Miller 
and  Dr.  Russ,  the  intimate  friend  pf  the 
former,  and  one  of  the  most  cultivated, 
noble  and  efficient  of  all  his  compatriots  in 
the  Greek  Revolution. 

Another  momento  was  what  now  should 
be  considered  an  antiquarian  relic  of  great 
interest — nothing  less  than  the  veritable 
sword  which  Lord  Bryon  wore  in  his  Greek 
campaign.  Lord  Bryon  gave  this  sword 
to  a  young  Greek  named  Loukas,  a  Cap- 
tain in  his  legion,  who  afterwards  was  shot 
dead  in  a  sortie  from  the  Acropolis  at  Ath- 
ens ;  and  being  found  with  his  sword 
knotted  to  his  wrist,  was  carried  into  the 
fortress.  When  the  sword  and  his  clothing 
were  sold  for  the  benefit  of  his  sisters  by 
the  English  Consul  of  Poros,  who  was  re- 
quested to  take  charge  of  the  effects  of  the 
deceased.  Col.  Miller,  being  present  at  the 
sale,  purchased  the  sword  and  brought  it 
home  on  his  second  return.  He  loaned  it 
to  a  Mr.  Castanis,  a  native  Greek  lecturer, 
by  whom  it  was  carried  back  to  Greece, 
and  for  a  long  time  was  supposed  to  be 
lost.  But  when,  a  few  years  since.  Col. 
Miller's  daughter,  who  in  the  meantime 
had  grown  to  womanhood  and  married  Mr. 
Abijah  Keith,  of  Montpelier,  visited  Greece 
with  her  husband,  and  while  there  receiv- 
ing the  flattering  attentions  of  the  many 
who  called  on  her  in  manifestation  of  their 
gratitude  for  what  her  father  had  once 
done  for  them,  for  their  relatives  and  for 
their  country,  she  learned  the  whereabouts 
of  Mr.  Castanis  and  this  sword,  and  soon 
recovered  it.  And  being  at  the  house  of 
the  now  celebrated  George  Finlay,  of 
Athens,  known  not  only  as  Lord  Byron's 
early  British  associate  in   Greece,  but  as 


the  learned  antiquarian,  and  historian  of 
the  different  eras  of  Greece,  he  at  once 
identified  the  sword,  and  gave  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Keith  the  following  certificate,  which 
we  copy  from  the  original  in  their  posses- 
sion : 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Keith  have  just  shown  me 
the  sword  which  Col.  Miller  purchased  at 
Poros,  at  the  sale  of  the  effects  of  Captain 
Loukas : — This  sword  1  have  seen  in  Lord 
Byron's  possession,  before  he  gave  it  to 
Loukas  ;  and  I  was  present  at  Poros  when 
it  was  sold.  George  Finlay. 

Athens,  17  January,  1853. 

Dr.  Russ,  who  has  already  been  men- 
tioned, and  who  is  still  living  in  New  York, 
will  also  attest  to  all  the  material  facts 
above  presented. 

The  identity  of  this  sword,  which  has  an 
Asiatic  inscription  on  the  blade,  with 
Byron's  initial  and  a  crown  engraved  on 
the  hilt,  is  thus  placed  beyond  a  cavil. 

Soon  after  his  second  return  from  Greece, 
Col.  Miller  came  to  Montpelier,  and  took 
up  his  permanent  residence,  passed  through 
a  regular  course  of  legal  studies,  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar,  and  opened  a  law  office 
in  the  place  in  company  with  Nicholas 
Baylies,  Esq. 

In  June,  1828,  he  married  the  daughter 
of  Capt.  Jonathan  Arms,  a  capitalist.  In 
1830,  '31  and  '';i;i,  he  was  elected  the  rep- 
resentative of  Berlin,  within  whose  borders 
he  was  then  residing  with  his  father-in-law, 
Capt.  Arms.  During  the  session  of  the 
legislature  of  1833,  Col.  Miller  introduced 
the  following  resolution : 

Whereas,  slavery  and  the  slave  trade, 
as  existing  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  are 
contrary  to  the  broad  declaration  of  our 
Bill  of  Rights,  which  declares  that  liberty 
is  the  inalienable  right  of  all  men ;  and 
whereas  they  are.  a  national  evil,  disgrace 
and  crime,  which  ought  to  be  abolished ; 
and  whereas  the  power  of  legislation  for 
that  District  is  with  the  Congress  of  these 
United  States,  therefore. 

Resolved,  the  Governor  and  Council  con- 
curring herein,  that  our  Senators  in  Con- 
gress be  directed,  and  representatives  in 
Congress  be  requested,  to  use  their  en- 
deavors to  effect  the  abolition  of  slavery 
and  the  slave  trade  in  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

This  preamble  and  resolution,  which  we 
have  copied   at   large,    not   only   because 


462 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Col.  Miller  was  the  mover,  but  because 
they  constituted  the  first  anti-slavery  move- 
ment in  the  legislature  of  Vermont,  were, 
after  lying  on  the  table  some  weeks,  called 
up  by  Mr.  Miller,  earnestly  supported  by 
him,  and, — that  being  long  before  it  was 
good  policy  for  leading  politicians  to  sup- 
port anti-slavery  resolutions, — opposed  by 
Mr.  Foot,  of  Rutland,  who  moved  to  dis- 
miss the  resolution.  The  House,  how- 
ever, refused  to  dismiss  it,  by  20  majority, 
but  consented  to  refer  it  to  the  next  ses- 
sion, when  it  was  finally  dismissed  by  1 5 
majority. 

From  about  this  time,  however.  Colonel 
Miller  gave  his  almost  undivided  attentions 
and  sympathies  to  the  cause  of  anti- 
slavery,  lecturing  in  all  parts  of  the  State, 
and  not  only  bestowing  his  time  and 
labors,  but  a  large  amount  of  money  for 
its  advancement.  And  it  probably  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  no  man  ever  did  as 
much  as  Col.  Miller,  in  building  up  the 
anti-slavery  party  of  Vermont,  and  putting 
it  on  that  onward  march  and  steady  in- 
crease, which  raised  it  to  a  power  that 
made  it  necessary  for  the  dominant  party, 
as  a  matter  of  self-preservation,  to  adopt 
its  principles  and  take  all  its  members  into 
political  fellowship. 

In  1840,  Col.  Miller,  one  of  the  two 
Vermont  delegates,  attended  the  World's 
Anti-Slavery  Convention,  in  London, where 
he  appears  to  have  been  much  noticed  by 
Daniel  O'Connell,  Lord  Brougham,  and 
other  leading  men  of  the  kingdom,  to 
whom  he  had  formerly  become  known  by 
his  championship  of  oppressed  Greece. 
He  took  a  prominent  part  in  the  debates 
of  this  celebrated  convention.  And,  in 
glancing  over  the  volume  of  its  proceed- 
ings, published  the  next  year  in  London, 
we  are  unable  to  perceive  why  his  speeches 
do  not  honorably  compare  with  the  major- 
ity of  those  of  the  many  very  able  men  of 
whom  that  body  was  composed. 

As  a  public  speaker.  Col.  Miller  was 
off-hand,  bold  and  earnest,  appearing  more 
solicitous  of  bringing  out  his  principles 
with  effect,  than  of  draping  his  thoughts 
with  the  graces  of  oratory.  And  in  his 
manners  in  private  life,  he  exhibited  the 


same  characteristics  by  which  he  was 
known  in  all  his  public  actions— a  fearless 
utterance  of  his  opinions,  and  a  straight- 
forward, unstudied  frankness,  united  with 
a  soldierly  bearing,  which,  with  the  af- 
fectedly refined,  was  considered  as  ap- 
proaching the  borders  of  roughness.  As 
a  citizen,  he  was  public-spirited,  without 
vices,  and  benevolent  to  a  proverb.  He 
always  had  around  him  half  a  regiment  of 
the  poor,  or  poor  tenants,  who  came  not 
to  pay  him  rents,  but  to  obtain  additional 
favors  ;  and  the  fact  that  both  these  classes 
contitiued  to  throng  him  throv:gh  life  is 
sufficient  evidence  that  they  never  went 
away  emptyhanded.  He  must  have  given 
away,  during  his  residence  in  Montpelier, 
in  private  charities,  in  the  furtherance  of 
the  anti-slavery  cause,  and  in  aidance  of 
educational  or  benevolent  institutions,  the 
largest  part  of  a  handsome  fortune,  re- 
ceiving in  return  nothing  but  the  good 
name  he  carried  to  his  grave. 

He  died  prematurely,  in  consequence  of 
an  accidental  injury  to  his  spine,  Feb.  17, 
1847,  leaving  a  .wife  and  one  child,  the 
daughter  to  whom  we  have  before  alluded, 
Mrs.  Abijah  Keith  ;  and  he  now  sleeps  on 
the  boldest  point  of  yonder  Green  Mount 
Cemetery,  beneath  the  massive,  square, 
rough  granite  obelisk,  so  typical,  in  many 
respects,  of  his  Roman  virtues  and  strong 
traits  of  character. 

[Sarah  Arms,  the  widow  of  Col.  Miller, 
died  in  Chicago,  Dec.  22,  1864,  aged  76. 
Her  remains  were  brought  back  to  Mont- 
pelier, and  interred  in  Green  Mount  Cem- 
etery, by  the  side  of  her  renowned  and 
honorable  husband.] 

Hon.  D.  p.  Thompson. —  [For  biograph- 
ical sketch  of  Mr.  Thompson,  see  Berlin, 
page  69  of  vol.  IV,  this  work.] 

GEORGE   ROBINSON   THOMPSON, 

was  born  at  Montpelier,  Jan.  3,  1834. 
He  was  the  oldest  son  of  the  late  Hon. 
Daniel  P.  Thom.pson.  He  fitted  for  col- 
lege at  the  Washington  County  Grammar 
School,  and  entered  the  LIniversity  in 
1849;  graduating  in  1853.  He  studied 
law  at  Montpelier,  and  was  for  two  years 
clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and 


/ 


oT^ 


A^.^a^ 


MONTPELIER.  463 

been  imposed  the  grateful  duty,  not  to 
pronounce  his  euology,  but  to  speak  of 
those  quahties  of  mind  and  heart  which 
rendered  him  so  popular  with  the  Court, 
so  respected  by  the  public,  so  dear  to  us 
all. 

Lucius  B.  Peck  was  the  son  of  General 
John  Peck,  and  was  born  in  October,  1802, 
at  Waterbury,  in  this  county.  He  lived 
there  until  he  was  nineteen  years  of  age, 
when,  having  finished  a  preparatory  course, 
he  was  admitted  as  a  cadet  to  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point,  July  i,  1822, 
where  he  stayed  one  year.  Although  he 
was  studious  and  scholarly,  and  took  a 
high  rank  in  his  class,  he  was  compelled 
to  resign  on  account  of  ill  health.  His 
resignation  was  accepted  Aug.  15,  1823. 
The  following  year,  having  regained  his 
health,  he  entered  the  office  of  Hon.  Sam- 
uel Prentiss  as  a  student-at-law. 

From  those  who  were  his  fellow  students, 
I  learn  that  here  he  first  began  to  develop 
those  powers  of  clear  discrimination  and 
accurate  judgment  for  which  he  was  after- 
wards so  much  distinguished. 

After  about  one  year  spent  in  laborious 
toil  under  the  guiding  hand  of  Judge  Pren- 
tiss, he  went  into  the  ofiice  of  Hon.  Deni- 
son  Smith  of  Barre,  where  he  completed 
his  studies  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
this  county  at  the  September  term,  1825. 

He  immediately  formed  a  partnership 
with  Mr.  Smith,  who,  at  this  time,  was  ad- 
vanced in  years,  and  with  a  large  practice. 
The  duties  that  this  connection  imposed 
upon  Mr.  Peck  were  arduous,  but  exceed- 
ingly beneficial.  He  felt  these  responsi- 
bilities and  labored  like  a  Hercules  to  be 
equal  to  them.  His  modesty  of  manner 
excited  sympathy,  and  his  clearness  of 
mind  challenged  attention.  While  the  old 
clients  of  Mr.  Smith  at  first  naturally 
doubted  his  untried  hand,  acquaintance 
soon  begot  familiarity,  and  familiarity  con- 
fidence, and  in  a  few  years,  we  find  Mr. 
Peck  in  the  full  tide  of  successful  practice 
in  Orange  and  Washington  counties. 

So  great  was  the  confidence  of  the  pub- 
lic, that  at  this  early  age,  soon  after  he 
commenced  practice,  he  was  sent  to  the 
Legislature  as  the  representative  of  Barre. 


removed  in  1856  to  New  York  to  practice 
his  profession,  where  he  acquired  a  good 
position.  Mr.  Thompson  was  a  man  of 
fine  literary  attainments  and  very  social 
tastes.  On  the  night  of  Feb.  6,  1871,  on 
his -way  to  Albany  to  argue  a  case  before 
the  Court  of  Appeals,  he  was  instantly 
killed  by  a  disaster  to  the  train  at  New 
Hamburgh,  N.  Y.  Mr.  Thompson  mar- 
ried a  daughter  of  the  late  Dr.  T.  C.  Tap- 
lin,  of  Montpelier,  and -left  two  children. 

Daniel  G.  Thompson,  youngest  son 
of  the  late  Hon.  D.  P.  Thompson,  is  now 
practising  law  in  New  York  city,  being  the 
junior  member  of  the  legal  firm  of  Jordan, 
Stiles  &  Thompson,  the  senior  of  which 
is  Hon.  Edward  Jordan,  late  Solicitor  of 
the  Treasury. 

ADDITIONAL  BIOGRAPHIES. 

HON.  LUCIUS   B.  PECK, 

Lawyer  and  Member  of   Congress,  and   forty  years  a 
resident  of  Montpelier. 

ADDRESS  OF  B.  F.  FIFIELD,  Esq., 

By  request  of  the  Bar,  read  before  the  assembled 
^Court,—His  Honor,  Asnhel  Peck,  presiding. 

May   IT   PLEASE   THE   CoURT  : 

On  the  28th  day  of  December  last,  in  a 
neighboring  state,  amid  the  friendless  as- 
sociations of  a  strange  city,  Hon.  Lucius 
B.  Peck  died  of  paralysis,  in  the  65th 
year  of  his  age.  On  the  29th  his  remains 
were  brought  to  his  old  home  in  Montpe- 
lier, and  on  the  30th,  at  the  Pavilion  Ho- 
tel, they  were  viewed  with  sorrow  and  re- 
gret by  his  old  friends  and  fellow  towns- 
men. On  the  31st,  at  4  o'clock,  P.  M.,  we 
attended  his  funeral  in  a  body  ;  we  heard 
pronounced  the  touching  and  impressive 
words  of  the  Episcopal  burial  service  ;  we 
listened  to  the  solemn  chant  of  anthems 
breathing  forth  in  melodious  numbers 
consolation  to  the  living  and  blessings  up- 
on the  dead,  and  as  the  lingering  twilight 
of  the  departing  year  faded  away  in  the 
west,  we  silently  and  mournfully  followed 
the  remains  of  him  whom  we  respected  and 
loved,  and  deposited  them  within  the  cold 
walls  of  the  tomb. 

To-night,  in  pursuance  of  a  time-hon- 
ored custom,  we  meet  to  testify  our  respect 
for  our  eminent   friend,  and  upon  me  has 


464 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Though  he  talked  little,  he  always  talked 
well.  His  deference  to  the  opinions  of 
others  was  always  marked,  and  generally 
he  found  greater  pleasure  in  being  an  at- 
tentive listener  than  a  noisy  debator. 

About  1827,  Mr.  Smith  died,  and  soon 
afterwards  Mr.  Peck  removed  to  Montpe- 
lier,  and  continued  the  practice  of  law  here 
from  that  time  till  the  time  of  his  death. 
From  the  time  Mr.  Peck  removed  to  Mont- 
ier  his  practice  was  constantly  increasing. 
He  began  to  be  generally  known  over  the 
State  ;  in  Orange  county,  he  was  engaged 
in  almost  every  case. 

Dillingham,  Upham  and  Collamer  also 
practiced  there, — all  men  of  superior  abil- 
ity. Pitted  against  each  other  their  wits 
were  sharpened  and  the  traces  always  kept 
tight.  The  sharp  retort,  the  fiery  sarcasm, 
the  nervous  energy  of  Mr.  Upham  found 
their  match  in  the  cool,  deliberate,  mental 
power  of  Mr.  Peck ;  they  were  generally 
matched  against  each  other. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  courts  are 
not  now  what  they  were  then.  There  were 
no  railroads  then ;  local  attachments  and 
feelings  were  stronger  than  now.  The 
county  seat  was  to  the  county  a  center  to 
which  all  ejes  were  turned  on  court  day. 
The  hotels  were  filled,  the  court-house 
jammed  with  an  interested  and  partisan 
audience,  who  were  keen  to  sympathize 
with  and  applaud  any  happy  hit  which 
came  from  the  lawyer  who  vindicated  the 
cause  in  which  they  happened  to  believe. 
Thus  emulation  was  created  ;  each  lawyer 
knew  what  was  expected  of  him.  He  stood 
not  in  representation  of  his  client  alone, 
but  he  stood  to  vindicate  a  just  cause  and 
hurl  back  all  anathemas  that  trenched  upon 
the  rectitude  of  the  intentions  of  his  client, 
his  witnesses  and  friends.  The  opposing 
counsel  stood  as  gladiators,  determined  to 
win  or  die. 

Mr.  Upham  was  the  senior  of  Mr.  Peck, 
but  he  had  for  him  a  profound  respect ; 
after  the  battle  was  over  they  were  the  best 
of  friends.  They  were  wholly  dissimilar. 
Mr.  Upham  was  fiery,  impetuous  and 
headstrong.  Mr.  Peck  was  slow,  deliber- 
ate and  argumentative,  but  as  he  proceeded 
the  hearers  felt  that  a  strong  mental  pow- 


er was  operating  to  instruct  the  under- 
standing and  convince  the  mind. 

Mr.  Upham's  power  lay  in  his  extreme 
earnestnesss,  his  biting  denunciations,  and 
often  his  eloquent  appeals  to  the  passions 
or  prejudices  of  his  hearers. 

Mr.  Peck's  lay  in  the  candor  and  fair- 
ness of  his  statement,  and  the  matchless 
elimination  of  truth  from  falsehood. 

These  very  dissimilarities  in  their  char- 
acters contributed  to  make  them  friends, 
and  the  more  that  each  recognized  in  the 
other  what  was  wanting  in  himself. 

There  was  Dillingham,  too,  the  last  of 
them  now  living,  whose  emotional  counte- 
nance and  musical  voice,  notwithstanding 
the  fire  of  Mr.  Upham  and  the  candor  of 
Mr.  Peck,  were  very  apt  to  snatch  the 
verdict  from  both  if  he  could  only  get  the 
close  of  the  case. 

It  was  with  such  men,  and  amid  such 
surroundings,  that  Mr.  Peck  practiced 
from  the  time  he  came  to  Montpelier  down 
to  about  1845.  To  hold  any  position  of 
equality  with  such  men,  he  was  obliged  to 
labor  incessantly.  But  this  he  always  did 
cheerfully,  for  he  loved  his  profession. 

About  1830,  he  married  the  daughter  of 
Ira  Day,  Esq.,  of  Barre,  who  was  then  one 
of  the  wealthiest  and  most  influential  men 
in  the  State.  For  a  few  years  they  board- 
ed, and  then  he  went  into  the  house  which 
he  continued  to  occupy  up  to  the  time  of 
his  wife's  death,  in  1854.  After  his  mar- 
riage, the  charms  of  domestic  life  added  to 
his  happiness,  and  the  years  flew  swiftly  by. 

I  have  it  from  his  own  lips  that  these 
years  from  1830  to  1845  were  the  pleasant- 
est  of  his  life.  And  his  old  friends  re- 
member with  g^at  pleasure  the  generous 
hospitalities  which  were  so  gracefully  dis- 
pensed by  him  and  his  accomplished  wife 
during  these  years.  Happy  in  his  home, 
and  successful  in  his  profession,  Mr.  Peck 
was  content,  though  still  aspiring. 

About  this  time  he  was  retained  as  gen- 
eral counsel  for  the  Vermont  Central  Rail- 
road through  the  influence  of  Gov.  Paine, 
who  had  a  thorough  appreciation  of  his 
safe  and  reliable  legal  advice,  and  from  that 
time  to  the  time  of  his  death,  he  continued 
their  counsel.     But  though  overwhelmed 


MONTPELIER. 


46s 


with  professional  business,  Mr.  Peck,  after 
1845,  mingled  to  some  extent  in  politics. 
From  1847  to  185 1,  he  represented  this 
district  in  Congress.  While  there  he 
formed  many  valuable  acquaintances,  and 
among  those  of  whom  he  was  most  accus- 
tomed to  speak,  were  Daniel  S.  Dickinson 
and  Gov.  Marcy,  for  with  them  in  particu- 
lar, he  was  on  intimate  and  familiar  terms. 

His  congressional  career  was  satisfactory 
to  his  constituents.  He  was  respected 
and  honored  by  all  who  knew  him,  and  in 
all  the  speeches  which  he  made  there  is 
the  same  precision  and  accuracy  for  which 
he  was  noted  at  home.  But  I  think  po- 
litical life  was  distasteful  to  him. 

He  was  essentially  a  man  of  habit.  His 
profession  was  the  profession  of  law.  He 
had  become  habituated  to  the  routine  of 
that  kind  of  labor,  and  when  he  stepped 
into  a  new  arena  he  felt  that  he  had  strayed 
from  home,  and  I  think  his  mind  ever 
turned  from  the  dissipations  of  the  fashion- 
able life  of  Washington  with  fond  regret  to 
his  quiet  home  among  his  friends  and  the 
green  hills  of  Vermont.  Indeed,  he  has 
told  me  this  in  substance,  many  times, 
and  that  the  greatest  mistake  of  his  life 
was  in  going  to  Washington  at  all.  Prob- 
"ably,  however,  when  he  resumed  the  prac- 
tice of  law  on  his  return  from  Washington 
in  1852,  his  reputation  received  additional 
lustre  by  reason  of  his  congressional  life. 
Since  1852,  there  have  been  fewlargesuits 
in  the  State  in  which  he  has  not  been  re- 
tained. 

Mr.  Peck  was  United  States  District 
Attorney  under  President  Pierce,  and  was 
once  or  twice  nominated  by  his  party  as 
Governor  of  this  State.  From  1859  to  his 
death,  he  was  president  of  the  Vermont  & 
Canada  Railroad. 

But  his  fame  rests  in  his  professional 
life.  And  here  it  was  that  he  desired  to 
have  it  rest.  It  was  to  this  that  he  bent 
his  energies  ;  here  was  his  ambition,  and  it 
cannot  be  doubted  that  at  last  he  stood 
without  his  peer,  princeps  inter  principes. 
Quintilian  tells  us  that  a  successful  law- 
yer must  be  a  good  man.  By  this  I  sup- 
pose is  meant  that  he  must  have  a  char- 
acter for  integrity  which  will  inspire  con- 


fidence. Mr.  Peck  had  this  in  a  remark- 
able degree.  Everybody  believed  not  only 
in  his  ability,  but  also  in  his  honesty.  His 
word  was  law.  Hence  his  opinion  was 
sought  from  far  and  near.  Every  client  he 
ever  had  was  sure  to  return  in  new  emer- 
gencies, and,  when  he  again  departed,  it 
was  with  renewed  and  enlarged  confidence. 

His  kindness  and  patience  in  listening  to 
the  tedious  and  almost  senseless  recital  of 
imaginary  wrongs  by  moneyless  clients  is 
also  worthy  of  remark.  In  the  very  height 
of  his  professional  reputation,  I  doubt  if 
he  ever  refused  to  counsel  a  client,  how- 
ever poor  he  might  be,  or  however  small 
the  controversy,  and  I  need  hardly  say 
in  this  presence  that  such  controversies 
are  sometimes  as  intricate  and  difficult  of 
solution  as  they  are  petty  and  insignifi- 
cant in  magnitude. 

He  was  seldom  if  ever  angry — never 
abusive.  I  can  safely  say  that  I  never 
knew  him  to  speak  ill  of  any  person.  I  do 
not  doubt  he  had  his  dislikes,  but  if  he  had 
he  kept  them  to  himself.  He  had  no  petty 
jealousy  of  his  brethren  at  the  bar.  He 
never  believed  it  necessary  to  success  that 
it  should  be  built  upon  the  ruins  of  his 
fellows.  "  With  malice  toward  none  and 
charity  for  all,"  his  ambition  was  to  rise  by 
his  own  merit,  and  give  others  the  same 
opportunity. 

His  courtesy,  too,  to  the  younger  mem- 
bers of  the  bar  has  become  proverbial. 
For  many  years  his  position  has  been  com- 
manding ;  his  opinion  was  therefore  sought 
by  those  younger  than  himself.  Who  of 
us  does  not  remeinber  his  forbearance  and 
patience  ? 

Mr.  Peck  was  slow  in  forming  his 
opinions.  Every  loop-hole  in  a  question 
was  revolved  over  and  over  in  his  mind 
before  any  definite  conclusion  was  an- 
nounced. A  leading  though  homely  maxim 
with  him  was,  "  Be  sure  you  are  right,  and 
then  go  ahead  !"  He  believed  in  the  ad- 
vice of  Polonius  to  his  son  : 

Beware 
Of  entrance  to  a  quarrel;  but,  being  tn. 
Bear  It,  that  the  opposer  may  beware  of  thee. 

He  was  peaceful  in  his  habits,  and  for 
many  years  past  has  been  more  inclined  to 


59 


466 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


advise  settlements  than  to  bring  suits. 
His  friends  were  few,  but  as  a  general  rule 
very  select.  These  he  bound  to  his  heart 
with  hooks  of  steel.  In  this  connection  I 
cannot  refrain  from  speaking  of  his  reti- 
cence. By  those  who  did  not  know  him 
well,  this  has  been  taken  for  coldness.  But 
it  was  very  far  from  that. 

Mr.  Peck  was  one  of  the  most  sensitive 
men  I  ever  knew  ;  hence  he  was  never  ob- 
trusive. His  sensibilities  were  delicate, 
and  his  apparent  reserve  was  the  result  of 
a  retiring  modesty,  rather  than  coldness  of 
heart.  He  was,  on  the  contrary,  I  confi- 
dently affirm,  one  of  the  kindest-hearted 
men  I  ever  knew.  If  he  did  a  favor,  it 
was  quite  as  apt  to  be  behind  your  back  as 
to  your  face.  If  he  bestowed  charity  it 
was  with  no  ostentation.  If  done  at  all,  it 
was  because  it  was  proper  and  right ;  no* 
because  it  might  or  might  not  be  talked 
about. 

I  have  already  alluded  to  the  force  of 
habit  upon  him.  When  once  the  wheels 
were  in  the  groove,  it  was  difficult  to  get 
him  out  of  it.  I  remember  well  when  we 
moved  into  our  new  office,  about  i860. 
Many  a  time  have  I  known  him  to  pass  by 
to  the  old  office,  and  never  discover  his 
error  until  he  had  got  to  the  stairway  or 
the  door.  It  was  many  months  before  he 
felt  at  home  in  our  new  quarters,  and  I 
believe  his  old  sign  never  came  down  from 
over  the  old  office  until  within  two  years. 

Mr.  Peck  never  pressed  a  debtor ;  I 
never  knew  him  to  dun  one,  even.  But, 
while  he  never  troubled  others,  he  was  al- 
ways prompt  in  his  engagements,  and  they 
were  fulfilled  with  no  quibbling,  no  mis- 
understandings. In  short,  he  had  a 
homely,  old-fashioned  honesty,  and  he  was 
particularly  attracted  towards  one  who  had 
the  same.  His  dealings  with  other  mem- 
bers of  the  bar  were  of  the  same  character ; 
he  was  open,  frank,  straightforward,  and 
he  was  never  found  in  any  diffi^rent  position 
to-day  from  what  he  was  yesterday.  Hence 
his  word  was  a  bond. 

He  delighted  in  the  practice  of  the  law, 
not  so  much  in  the  contentions  of  the 
forum,  as  in  the  law  as  a  science.  His 
mind,  whether  in  or  out  of  court,  was  ever 


dwelling  upon  it ;  he  thought  of  nothing 
else,  cared  for  nothing  else.  Here  was  his 
heart,  and  here  was  he  also.  He  had  a 
mind  and  temperament  peculiarly  adapted 
to  the  scientific  investigation  of  legal  prin- 
ciples. For  his  mind,  being  active  and 
strong,  gave  him  great  power  of  analysis, 
and  his  temperament  being  slow  and  cau- 
tious, no  conclusion  was  announced  until 
the  analysis  was  complete.  His  chief  ex- 
cellence consisted  in  his  power  to  separate 
and  distinguish  things  essential  from  things 
of  circumstance,  and  here  he  himself  could 
only  be  his  parallel. .  His  clear  discrimina- 
tion easily  penetrated  the  small  clap-trap 
with  which  some  lawyers  attempt  to  con- 
ceal, rather  than  elucidate  the  trutli,  and 
having  a  clear  understanding  himself,  he 
'  could  make  it  clear  to  others  also. 

Mr.  Peck  was  not  a  man  of  great  gen- 
eral learning,  or  high  scholarly  culture ; 
his  reading  was  generally,  though  not  al- 
ways, confined  to  the  leather-bound  vol- 
umes of  our  office ;  there  he  revelled  in 
perfect  contentment.  And  as  each  new 
volume  was  issued,  he  drank  from  the  clear 
fountains  of  the  law,  and  renewed  again 
his  acquaintance  with  old  and  familiar 
principles  as  applied  to  new  cases. 

He  never  indulged  in  satire  'or  sarcasm  ;• 
at  most,  it  could  only  be  called  a  pleasant- 
ry. His  kindness  of  heart  forbid  that  he 
should  wound  the  feelings  of  others. 

He  never  ventured  upon  flights  of  im- 
agination or  sketches  of  fancy.  He  con- 
sidered them  as  but  small  aids  in  the  elu- 
cidation of  truth,  and  when  these  arts  were 
opposed  to  him,  they  faded  away  into  the 
thin  air  of  nothingness  as  he  exposed  their 
worthlessness.  For  want  of  these  arts  it 
has  sometimes  been  said  that  he  was  not  a 
great  jury  advocate.  If  by  this  is  meant 
he  was  not  brilliant  in  his  conceptions, 
and  swift  and  rapid  in  that  kind  of  imagery 
which  captivates  the  fancy  and  pushes  the 
mind  momentarily  from  its  true  balance,  I 
agree  to  it,  but  if  the  art  of  good  advocacy 
consists  in  convincing  the  understanding 
and  riveting  the  mind  upon  the  vital  and 
centralizing  points  of  a  case,  then,  I  think, 
he  was  a  great  jury  advocate,  and  his  great 
success  in  this  regard  is  the  best  proof  of 


MONTPELIER. 


467 


the  truth  of  it.  It  should  always  be  re- 
membered that  after  the  advocacy  is  over, 
comes  the  rigid,  unbending  charge  of  the 
court.  The  minds  of  the  jury  quickly  re- 
gain their  equanimity,  and  return  to  the 
pivotal  points  in  the  case. 

But  however  this  may  be,  his  pre- 
eminence in  the  Supreme  Court  for  more 
than  twenty  years  has  never  been  ques- 
tioned. It  was  remarked  by  Chief  Justice 
Redfield,  many  years  since,  that  he  was 
the  model  lawyer  of  the  State,  and  one  of 
the  most  scholarly  and  appreciative  of  our 
present  judges  has  often  said  that  no  man 
helped  the  court  like  Mr.  Peck.  The  ex- 
pression is  peculiarly  appropriate  ;  for,  to 
help  the  court  implies  ability  and  willing- 
ness on  his  part,  and  confidence  and  trust 
on  theirs.  When  Mr.  Peck  arose,  he 
stood,  not  the  friend  of  his  client  alone, 
but  also  the  friend  of  the  court.  Instantly 
they  would  lean  forward  to  catch  the  meas- 
ured tones  of  his  voice,  as  principle  after 
principle  was  announced,  constituting  an 
unbroken  chain  of  logical  deduction,  never 
diverging  or  diffuse,  but  ever  aiming  at  a 
given  result,  and  when  the  conclusion  was 
reached,  he  always  sat  down.  There  was 
no  repetition,  no  tautology. 

His  appearance  here  was  always  quiet ; 
his  style  of  address  conversational.  With 
great  deference  on  his  part,  he  and  the 
court  seemed  to  be  conferring  together. 
He  was  recognized  their  equal,  and  he 
never  abused  the  high  compliment.  Hence 
the  weight  of  his  character  gave  great  force 
to  his  arguments.  He  was  a  man  of  few 
words,  but  they  were  spoken  with  great 
precision  and  measured  accuracy. 

■  In  recent  years  I  think  he  has  not  been 
accustomed  to  rely  upon  cases  to  any  great 
extent.  When  a  cause  was  to  be  argued, 
his  first  question  was,  what  is  right?  and 
he  never  would  fail  to  find  some  legal  prin- 
ciple which  would  adapt  itself  to  his  view 
of  the  case.  He  never  believed  law  was  a 
code  for  the  advancement  of  legalized 
trickery,  but  that  in  its  proper  administra- 
tion, it  was  co-extensive  with  the  highest 
morality,  and  productive  of  the  purest  jus- 
tice. 

With  such  a  head  and  such  a  heart,  Mr. 


Peck  practiced  for  40  years  in  the  courts  of 
this  State.  True  to  his  clients,  true  to  the 
court,  loved  by  the  bar  and  respected  by 
the  public,  he  leaves  behind  him  a  reputa- 
tion whose  lustre  will  illumine  these  altars 
of  justice  so  long  as  the  votaries  of  the  law 
shall  study  it  as  a  science,  or  practice  it 
with  fidelity.  The  future  law  student  will 
find  our  reports  full  of  the  imprints  of  his 
masterly  mind,  and  will  read  with  uncea.s- 
ing  delight  those  pages  in  which  legal 
principles  have  been  so  moulded  under  his 
guiding  hand  as  to  adapt  themselves  justly 
to  the  ever-varying  and  changing  circum- 
stances of  life. 

The  barbarous  conception  of  the  poet, 
that 

The  evil  tliat  men  do,  lives  after  tliera; 
The  good  is  oft  interred  with  their  bones, 

will  find  no  verification  in  his  case. 

His  gentleness,  his  courtesy,  and  the 
noble  qualities  of  his  heart  will  be  remem- 
bered by  all  of  us  who  are  living,  and  the 
monuments  of  his  learning,  spread  all  over 
our  jurisprudence,  will  be  remembered  by 
those  who  come  after  us. 

But,  may  it  please  the  court,  he  is  gone 
from  us  now ;  his  labors  are  over,  his  des- 
tiny accomplished.  Placidly  and  calmly 
he  has  laid  off  the  armor  of  life.  The 
armor  was  battered  and  worn  ;  it  had  been 
through  many  a  battle,  for  he  had  fought  a 
good  fight.  Truthfully  and  appropriately 
may  we  apostrophize  it. 

Bruised  pieces  go 
Ye  iiave  been  nobly  borne  I 

Mr.  Peck,  said  the  Hon.  Timothy  P. 
Redfield  on  this  occasion,  was  the  veteran 
leader  of  this  bar,  and  for  more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century  had  stood  among  the 
foremost  of  his  profession  in  the  State. 

He  was  also  a  model  in  courtesy  and  ur- 
banity in  court.  He  loved  and  honored, 
but  never,  by  a  professional  act,  degraded 
the  profession  ;  and  his  kindness  and  cour- 
tesy were  extended  alike  to  his  brethren 
and  the  court.  As  a  mere  lawyer,  it  is  not 
probable  this  bar  will  soon  find  again  so 
perfect  a  model. 

He  was  in  attendance  upon  the  last  ses- 
sion of  this  court,  in  his  usual  health.     At 


468 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  General  Term  of  the  Supreme  Court, 
in  November,  he  had  the  responsible  care 
of  a  large  number  of  important  cases,  and 
it  was  observed  that  he  exhibited  more 
than  his  accustomed  elasticity  and  vigor. 
A  few  days  afterwards,  while  upon  profes- 
sional business  in  the  city  of  Lowell,  Mass., 
he  was  suddenly  stricken,  and  lingered,  with 
the  windows  of  his  intellect  darkened,  until 
the  28th  of  December,  when  the  light  went 
out. 

[Of  the  resolutions  on  his  death,  passed 
by  the  bar,  we  most  admire  :] 

Resolved,  That  we  respected  him  for  a 
modesty  that  never  assumed,  and  a  cour- 
tesy that  never  gave  offense  ;  we  loved  him 
for  his  honesty ;  we  admired  him  for  his 
learning ;  and  that  in  all  these  character- 
istics, so  happily  united,  he  has  left  us  a 
rare  example. 

STODDARD   BENHAM    COLBY. 

BY  HON.   T.  P.  REDFIELD. 

Stoddard  Colby  was  the  second  son  of 
Capt.  Nehemiah  Colby,  born  at  Derby, 
Orleans  County,  Jan.  18 16. 

In  1829,  he  began  fitting  for  college  in 
the  office  of  the  late  Judge  Redfield,  who 
had  then  commenced  the  practice  of  the 
law,  in  the  little  village  of  Derby  Center, 
in  which  Capt.  Colby  was  the  chief  citizen 
and  actor. 

Stoddard  was  an  easy  and  ready  scholar, 
and  acquired  language,  especially,  and  its 
use,  with  great  facility.  Judge  Redfield, 
fresh  from  college  attainment,  undulled  by 
professional  labors,  was  to  young  Colby  a 
thorough  teacher  in  the  Greek  and  Latin 
languages.  Colby  entered  the  freshman 
class  of  Dartmouth  College  in  the  fall  of 
1832,  and,  in  due  course,  graduated  in  the 
summer  of  1836.  He  was  among  the  few 
best  scholars  in  the  class ;  was,  without 
question,  elected  one  of  the  Phi Bela  Kappa 
members  from  his  class,  which  comprise 
the  best  recitation  scholars,  not  exceeding 
one-third  of  the  whole  number  in  the  class. 
He  was  a  good  recitation  scholar  in  all  de- 
partments ;  but  his  special  gifts  were  in 
the  languages ;  and  as  a  ready  writer  and 
debater,  he  was  among  the  best.  After 
his  graduation,  he  studied  law  in  the  office 
of  the  late  Senator  Upham,  at  Montpelier, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar   in  Orleans 


County,  at  the  December  term,  1838,  and 
entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession 
at  his  old  home  in  Derby  Center.  He  was 
elected  representative  from  the  town  of 
Derby  in  the  year  1841,  on  the  democratic 
ticket,  although  a  large  majority  of  the 
voters  of  Derby  were,  at  that  time,  Whigs  ; 
which  shows  that  personally,  Mr.  Colby 
was  highly  esteemed  by  the  citizens  of  his 
native  town. 

He  practiced  his  profession  at  Derby 
with  all  the  success  in  business  that  could 
be  expected  in  the  limited  sphere  in  which 
he  necessarily  moved  in  that  place.  The 
first  case  he  argued  in  the  County  Court 
was  in  behalf  of  his  uncle.  Dr.  Moses  F. 
Colby,  in  the  famous  suit,  Nelson  v.  Colby, 
for  malpractice  as  a  surgeon  in  treating 
the  fracture  of  the  neck  of  the  thigh  bone 
of  the  plaintiff's  wife.  The  theory  of  the 
plaintiff's  case  was  that  Dr.  Colby  had 
needlessly  confined  his  patient  in  splints, 
till  her  health  gave  way,  and  she  became 
insane,  in  consequence  of  the  treatment, 
when,  in  fact,  there  had  been  no  fracture. 
The  surgeons  of  the  plaintiff  claimed  that 
such  a  fracture  could  seldom  be  united,  by 
a  bony  union,  in  persons  of  the  patient's 
age ;  and  if  so,  with  shortened  limb,  and 
imperfect  motion,  and  that  in  Mrs.  Nelson's 
case,  there  was  no  shortening  of  the  limb  ; 
"and  perfect  symmetry  of  motion." 

Mattocks,  Cushman,  Bell,  and  the  late 
Judge  Smalley,  giants  in  those  days,  were 
all  engaged,  and  took  part  in  the  trial,  and 
young  Colby  opened  the  argument  to  the 
jury,  in  the  defence.  By  the  argument  he 
established  a  reputation  as  a  good  advocate, 
which  followed  and  adhered  to  him  for 
more  than  20  years  of  his  professional  prac- 
tice in  this  State.  He  always  used  choice 
and  beautiful  language ;  was  facile  in  illus- 
tration, and  in  figures  of  speech,  and  ever 
ready  in  wit  and  sarcasm.  His  client  after 
three  jury  trials  was  cast  in  that  first  suit ; 
and  while  the  suit  was  pending  on  excep- 
tions, and  petition  for  new  trial  in  the  Su- 
preme court,  Mrs.  Nelson  died,  and  it  was 
then  ascertained  that  the  limb  had  been 
fractured,  and  the  fragments  had  united  in 
a  perfect  bony  union ;  and  the  plaintiff  dis- 
continued his  case  from  the  docket. 


MONTPELIER. 


469 


Mr.  Colby  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
1846,  and  soon  after  formed  a  law  partner- 
ship with  the  late  Lucius  B.  Peck.  The 
law  firm  of  Peck  &  Colby  was  then  a  lead- 
ing firm  in  the  important  legal  business  of 
the  State,  and  continued  so  till  1863,  when 
it  was  dissolved,  and  Mr.  Colby  was  made 
Register  of  the  Treasury,  and  removed  to 
Washington.  He  continued  to  hold  this 
position  in  the  Treasury  until  his  death,  in 
the  fall  of  1867.  He  died  at  Haverhill, 
N.  H.,  and  was  buried  in  the  beautiful 
cemetery  on  the  highlands,  near  Haverhill 
Corner. 

Mr.  Colby  was  twice  married.  His  first 
wife  was  Miss  Harriet  E.  Proctor,  the 
eldest  sister  of  Gov.  Proctor.  She  per- 
ished on  the  ill-fated  steamer,  Henry  Clay, 
which  was  burned  on  the  Hudson  River. 
He  afterwards  married  Miss  Ellen  Hunt, 
who  survives  him.  By  the  first  marriage 
he  had  four  children,  two  of  whom  sur- 
vive ;  and  by  the  second  marriage,  two 
children. 

He  will  be  remembered  by  his  intimate 
friends  and  acquaintances  for  his  genial 
wit  and  fertile  resource  in  conversation, 
and  the  rich-garnered  treasury  of  story  and 
anecdote. 

But  his  reputation  as  a  public  man  must 
rest,  mainly,  upon  the  character  won  in 
the  varied  and  various  tilts  in  the  legal 
tournament,  during  the  practice  of  a  quar- 
ter of  a  century  at  the  bar  of  Vermont. 
In  that  tournament,  he  was  conceded  to 
be  one  of  the  most  brilliant  advocates  at 
the  bar  of  his  native  State.  He  had  no 
evil  habit — no  tarnish  upon  his  good  name  ; 
was  for  many  years  a  consistent  member  of 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  church  ;  and  died, 
seemingly,  before  his  work  was  finished, 
at  the  age  of  52. 

SAMUEL   GOSS, 

our  most  venerable  citizen,  said  the  Watch- 
man, in  a  notice  of  his  death,  one  who  for 
his  age,  character,  and  fidelity  as  the  ruler 
of  his  house,  well-deserved  the  title  of  pa- 
triarch, died  at  Montpelier,  Sabbath  morn- 
ing,— Aug.  19,  1866 — in  his  90th  year. 
He  was  born  in  Hollis,  N.  H.,Nov.  1776; 
served   an   apprenticeship  as  printer  with 


Amos  Farley  and  Rev.  Leonard  Worces- 
ter in  the  office  of  "  Isiah  Thomas,  the 
father  of  printers,"  at  Worcester,  Mass., 
entering  the  office  at  the  age  of  15,  and  at 
21,  (says  Col.  Hopkins  in  a  notice  of  Mr. 
Goss  in  the  Boston  Journal,)  he  went  to 
Boston  and  purchased  a  second-hand  press 
and  other  printing  materials,  to  set  up 
business  for  himself.  Setting  his  face 
toward  Vermont,  he  arrived  with  his 
scanty  outfit  at  Peacham,  on  the  24th  of 
Jan.  1798,  and  for  want  of  better  accom- 
modations, established  his  office  in  asmall 
school-house,  a  building  scarcely  large 
enough,  as  he  used  to  say,  to  seat  20  chil- 
dren, and  8  days  afterwards,  issued  the 
first  number  of  the  Green  Moiaiiahi  Pat- 
7-iot,  a  paper  which  he  edited  and  published 
9  years,  in  company  with  Mr.  Farley — firm 
Farley  &  Goss — when  he  removed  his  print- 
office  to  Montpelier,"  [see  Walton,  page 
291,]  and  commenced  the  Vermont  Watch- 
man. Selling  the  Watchman  in  18 10,  to 
the  late  Gen.  E.  P.  Walton  and  Mark  Goss, 
(a  younger  brother,)  both  of  whom  were 
apprentices  to  Farley  &  Goss,  he  engaged 
in  paper-making,  which  he  continued  for 
many  years  at  Montpelier.  Ardent  in 
temperament,  clear  and  strong  in  con- 
victions of  duty,  everything  entered  into 
he  prosecuted  with  energy  and  zeal.  In 
the  church  and  Sabbath-school  no  one  was 
more  earnest  and  faithful.  We  think  he 
has  served  more  years  in  the  Sabbath- 
school  than  anybody  within  our  knowledge, 
unless  it  was  his  friend  and  brother  in  the 
church,  the  late  Col.  Asahel  Washburn. 
Next  best  he  loved  his  country,  and  from 
youth  till  he  had  reached  almost  a  century 
of  years,  George  Washington  was  his 
model  of  a  statesman,  with  his  announce- 
ment of  whose  death  in  his  paper,  appear- 
ed from  his  pen  : 

AN   ODE,    OCCASIONED   BY   THE   DEATH    OF 

GEN.    GEORGE   WASHINGTON, 

DEC.    II,    1799. 

Why  do  these  niournlul  accents  flow. 

Why  drops  the  unavailing  tear, 
What  dire  event,  what  fatal  blow. 
Which  thus  excites  a  pang  severe? 
In  sad  responses  eolioes  througli  the  skies, 
Columbia's  Parent,  Friend  and  Savior  dies! 


470 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


'Tis  true,  alas  I  too  true,  we  mourn 

The  exit  of  our  Hero  Chief; 
While  on  celestial  pinions  borne 
He  soars  aloft  o'er  pain  and  grief; 
Yet  grateful  millions  will  their  loss  deplore. 
Tin  time's  extinct,  and  virtue  is  no  more. 

In  him  those  charms  that  bind  the  heart. 

And  tranquilize  the  Iniman  mind, 
Beam'd  sweet  effulgence  thro'  tliat  part, 
Which  now  is  to  the  toml)  consign'd. 
In  scenes  of  joy,  in  days  of  gloomy  strife. 
Benign  and  calm  the  Hero  pass'd  through  life. 
No  monarch  on  liis  shining  throne 
Can,  justly,  equal  honors  claim ; 
His  modest  worth  resplendent  shone, 
Unrivall'd  on  the  lists  of  fame. 
Nor  lives  the  man,  with  griet  Columbia  cries. 
So  good,  so  kind,  so  temp'rate  and  so  wise. 
O,  could  Ci)lumbia's  deepest  groan, 
Re-anlmate  his  slumb'ring  clay. 
No  longer  would  affliction's  moan 
Pervade  a  realm  so  lately  gay. 
But  prayers,  nor  tears,  nor  virtuous  deeds  could  save. 
Nor  magic  arts  can  raise  him  from  tlie  grave. 
Then  cease  to  mourn  the  great  uian's  fate. 

Let  Heaven's  superior  will  be  done; 
And  future  heroes  imitate 

Tlie  matchless  deeds  of  Washington; 
Who  once  our  troops  to  splendid  vict'ry  led, 
Establislied  peace,  but  now,  alas,  is  dead. 

Mr.  Goss  was  a  contributor  to  the  Poets 
and  Poetry  of  Vermont,  revised  edition. 

During  the  years  of  the  rebellion,  his 
heart  was  with  his  country.  It  was  a 
habit  with  him  to  visit  the  old  "Watch- 
man" office,  ever  to  him  an  endeared  spot, 
twice  a  day  to  get  the  latest  war  news. 
"  On  one  of  his  last  visits,  he  submitted  a 
patriotic  poem,"  says  the  editor,  "which 
was  to  have  been  published,  but  he  took 
it  back  to  make  some  changes  in  it,  doubt- 
less, forgot  it ;  we  now  regret  its  lo.ss." 
We  think,  perhaps,  we  have  found  the 
poem.  The  following,  contributed  by  his 
daughter,  was  among  his  last,  it  not  his 
last,  poetical  efforts  : 

fugitive's  DIRECTORY — Impromptu. 

BY   SAMUEL  GOSS. 

Old  Gov.  Wise  is  all  in  a  foam 
Because  his  blacic  cattle  to  Northern  States  roam, 
And  bids  us  poor  Yankees  to  seud  them  all  back. 
Without  e'en  a  bloodhound  to  scent  out  their  track. 
But  humanity  says,  no,  let  them  rest  here  a  wliile. 
And  tlielr  fears  of  re-capture  in  slumbers  beguile. 
But  when  tliey  re.-olve  to  quit  the  straw  as  their  bed, 
Just  stuff  their  old  pockets  with  dried  beef  and  bread. 
And  bid  them  go  forward  alone,  in  the  night. 
With  the  star  in  the  north  as  their  guide  and  their 

light. 
To  degree  45  near  the  line  of  the  State, 
And  the  beautiful  plain  of  Canada  East, 
Wliere  prudence  suggests  a  permanent  stand. 
Quite  removed  from  the  lash  of  the  slave-driver's  hand. 
And  here  let  them  rest,  and  effectually  prove, 
The  obvious  fact— a  pleasant  remove. 


Samuel  Goss  was  one  of  the  first  per- 
sons with  whom  the  Editor  of  the  Gazetteer 
became  acquainted  in  Montpelier.  We 
have  of  him  a  special  remembrance,  and 
for  him — as  he  was  then  in  his  fine,  ripe 
old  age — a  special  reverence.  The  few 
last  years  of  his  life  he  suffered  much,  it 
is  recorded  of  him,  from  the  infirmities  of 
age,  and  prayed  for  patience  to  wait  his 
change,  and  went  gladly  to  his  rest.  He 
was  buried  with  Masonic  honors,  from  the 
residence  of  his  son-in-law,  Hon.  O.  H. 
Smith,  in  Green  Mount  Cemetery,  in 
the  spot  selected  by  himself,  almost  side 
by  side  with  his  ancient  colleague  and 
pupil,  Farley  and  Walton. 

For  60  years  he  had  been  a  worthy  and 
prominent  citizen  of  the  place.  "  His  life 
has  extended  over  three  generations  of 
men,"  .  .  said  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lord  in 
his  funeral  discourse,  "and  he  was  ever 
one  of  the  first  in  all  excellent  enterprises 
and  institutions,  and  one  of  the  last  to 
withdraw  his  hand.  He  began  life  for 
himself  in  Peacham,  about  the  close  of  the 
last  century.  He  established  in  that  place 
a  paper  which  he  published  and  edited, 
doing  all  the  work  with  his  own  hands  for 
several  years.  He  was  a  nervous  and  vig- 
orous prose  writer,  and  often  enriched  his 
columns  with  poetic  effusions  of  no  mean 
merit.  When  he  removed  to  this  town,  it 
was  in  its  infancy.  He  brought  with  him 
his  press  and  his  paper,  and  the  developed 
energies  of  a  confident,  earnest,  self- 
reliant  Christian  man.  He  conducted  his 
paper,  as  its  early  copies  will  show,  with  a 
marked  ability.  He  held  a  sharp  and 
trenchant  pen,  never  forgetful  of  Christian 
principles  and  Christian  charity,  however, 
but  the  faithful  index   of  a   clear,  acute, 

active  and  intense  perception 

Long  after  he  was  70  years  of  age,  he  was 
wont  to  labor  with  his  hands  through  the 
whole  day,  and  in  the  evening  give  him- 
self to  some  Christian  work,  or  while  away 
time  with  his  book  or  his  pen.  But  how- 
ever much  he  was  interested  in  all  public 
affairs,  I  think  he  most  of  all  delighted  in 
the  welfare  and  upholding  of  the  church. 
He  was  one  of  the  seventeen  who  organ- 
ized and  constituted  the  first  Consfregational 


MONTPELIER. 


471 


church  in  this  town.  He  was  the  first 
clerk,  and  its  records  were  kept  by  his 
hand  and  attested  by  his  name.  No  name, 
unless  it  be  the  pastor's,  appears  there  so 
often  as  his.  There  was  no  trying  duty 
of  his  profession  he  ever  sought  to  avoid, 
and  no  fitting  and  beneficent  work  he  did 
not  eagerly  perform.  ...  A  teacher 
in  the  Sabbath-school  for  35  years,  his 
name  was  always  fragrant  in  it  like  ointment 
poured  forth." 

Of  the  17  original  members  of  the  Con- 
gregational church,  he  was  the  last  sur- 
vivor but  one. 

Samuel  Goss  was  the  son  of  John  and 
Catherine  (Conant)  Goss,  the  second  of 
10  children,  the  eldest  being  John,  Jr. 
Samuel  Goss  married,  June,  1803,  Mary 
French,  born  Oct.  1784;  children:  Wm. 
A.,  Benjamin  F.,  Mary,  Mary  W.,  Eliza, 
Samuel  P.,  Lydia  French,  Lucy  A.,  John, 
and  Samuel  French.  Mrs.  Goss  died  Oct. 
27,  1 861.  Of  the  children,  only  two  are 
living,  Mrs.  O.  H.  Smith,  of  Montpelier, 
and  Samuel  F.  Goss.'of  Chicago. 

Benjamin  Franklin  Goss,  son  of 
Samuel,  born  in  Peacham,  1806,  brought 
to  Montpelier  in  1808,  was  brought  up  in 
this  town,  and  prepared  for  business  in  the 
store  of  Roger  Hubbard,  (now  deceased.) 
He  went  from  here  to  Northfield,  and  was 
several  years  in  successful  business  con- 
nection with  Gov.  Paine ;  from  thence  to 
Waterbury,  Brandon  and  Vergennes,  where 
as  elsewhere,  he  was  an  energetic  man  of 
business,  and  zealous  in  benevolent  and 
religious  enterprises.  He  died  in  Ver- 
gennes in  1878.  His  disease,  of  the 
brain,  had  the  peculiarity  to  bring  out  viv- 
idly, almost  to  the  exclusion  of  his  bodily 
suiTerings,  his  early  boyhood,  the  lessons 
of  his  parents  and  the  Sabbath-school. 
Hour  after  hour,  he  would  repeat  from  the 
Scriptures  and  hymna  of  youth,  at  the 
same  time  recognizing  every  attention. 
He  was  exceedingly  courteous  and  grateful 
to  his  attendants  during  his  long  5  months' 
illness,  withal  as  vivacious  and  cheerful  as 
in  his  most  fortunate  days.  It  was  sad  to 
see  mind  and  body  slowly,  but  surely 
wasting  away,  but  comforting  to  see  he 
recognized  no  sorrow,     He  was  buried  in 


the  family  lot  in  Montpelier  Green  Mount 
Cemetery. 

Mrs.  Lucy  A.  (Goss)  Cobb,  the  young- 
est daughter  of  Samuel  Goss,  died  in  Kal- 
amazoo, Mich.,  1879,  of  whom  the  local 
paper  speaks  as  a  most  estimable  woman. 

HON.    ORAMEL   HOPKINS   SMITH 

was  born  in  Thetford,  Oct.  1798,  came  to 
Montpelier  about  1830;  studied  law  in  the 
office  of  Judge  Prentiss,  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  1825,  and  remained  in  Judge  Pren- 
tiss' office  2  years  after.  In  his  earlier 
professional  years,  he  repeatedly  served 
as  assistant  clerk  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives ;  was  State's  attorney  3  years, 
ending  in  1844;  justice  of  the  peace  25 
successive  years ;  40  years  a  constant  at- 
tendant upon  the  services  of  the  Congre- 
gational church  in  this  village,  and  during 
a  quarter  of  a  century  led  its  choir.  Of 
his  professional  ability,  the  fact  that  his 
name  appears  in  the  court  records  for  25 
years  preceding  i860,  as  counsel  in  nearly 
all  the  cases  of  those  days,  is  conclusive 
proof. 

July,  i860,  at  White  River  Junction, 
arising  at  midnight  in  the  hotel,  without  a 
light,  to  take  a  train  north,  he  stumbled 
against  a  piece  of  furniture  and  fell,  strik- 
ing a  wardrobe  on  the  back  of  his  neck. 
Every  physical  power  from  his  neck  down- 
wards was  instantly  paralyzed,  but  his  vocal 
organs  and  every  faculty  of  the  mind  re- 
mained in  active  play.  To  Dr.  Dixi 
Crosby's  remark  that  he  had  about  one 
chance  in  one  hundred  for  recovery,  he 
promptly  replied,  "  I'll  take  that  chance!" 
In  the  course  of  a  year,  his  will  power  and 
wonderful  vitality  so  far  triumphed,  he  re- 
sumed practice  in  his  office  as  a  counsellor, 
though  his  right  side  remained  perma- 
nently paralyzed,  and  for  18  years  longer, 
under  difficulties  that  would  have  appalled 
a  less  resolute  man,  plied  his  profession 
with  energy  and  industry.  Late  at  night, 
the  light  shining  from  his  office  window, 
on  the  second  floor  of  the  building  at  the 
corner  of  Main  and  State  streets,  frequently 
told  of  the  old  painstaking  faithfulness 
triumphing  over  his  infirmities. 

He  was  one   of  the  organizers   of  the 


472 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Montpelier  Gaslight  Company,  and  an 
officer  in  it  several  years ;  his  was  the  sec- 
ond house  in  Montpelier  piped  for  burning 
gas.  He  also  in  its  early  days  devoted 
much  time  to  the  affairs  of  the  Vermont 
Central  R.  R.,  losing,  like  many  others  of 
the  early  friends  of  that  road,  many  thou- 
sand dollars.  For  several  of  his  last  years, 
from  age  and  infirmities,  he  was  not  able 
to  attend  to  business,  and  died  at  his  home 
at  the  "  Riverside,"  in  1881,  in  his  83d 
year.  He  was  the  oldest  surviving  mem- 
ber of  the  Washington  County  Bar  except 
Hon.  Paul  Dillingham,  of  Waterbury. 

He  married,  in  1830,  Mary  Warner, 
daughter  of  Samuel  Goss.  They  had  4 
children:  Chas.  F.,  who  was  graduated 
at  Dartmouth  in  1854;  studied  law  in  his 
father's  office  ;  removed  to  Michigan,  and 
died  at  the  age  of  31  ;  another  son,  who 
died  in  infancy ;  and  two  daughters,  both 
married  and  live  in  Montpelier — Ellen  J., 
wife  of  C.  J.  Gleason,  and  Lucy  A.,  wife 
of  Chas.  A.  Reed. 

The  widow  of  Mr.  Smith  still  resides  at 
the  "Riverside,"  Nov.  1881. 

Mr.  Smith  was  also  an  honored  member 
of  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22,  F.  &  A.  M. 
The  following  is  from  the  record  book  of 

the  Lodge : 

^ 


JJV   MJEMORIAM. 

§ra.  0nitncl  ^Pi>hins  ^mifh, 

Born  in  Tlietford,  Vt.,  Oct.  i6,  1798; 

Died  at  Montpelier,  Vt. ,  January  23d,  1881  ; 

Aged  82  yrs.,  3  mos.  and  4  days. 

Affiliated  with  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22,  F.  &  A.  M. 
Dec.  12,  1S53. 

Past  Grand  Secretary  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Vt. 

Treasurer  of  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22, 

From  December  4,  1S54,  to  December,  1857. 


"  Awaiting  the  sound  of  the  gavel 
in  the  East." 


[From  Obituary  in  the  VeriDont  Watchman.] 
COL.    THOMAS   REED 

was  born  at  Hamstead,  N.  H.,  Mar.  29, 
1793.  He  was  a  son  of  Capt.  Thomas 
Reed,  and  came  with  his  father  to  Montpe- 
lier in  1804,  where  he  resided  until  his  de- 
cease. He  was  by  profession  a  lawyer, 
and  at  his  decease  the  oldest  attorney  in 
the  court  in  this  County ;  though  for  many 


years  prior  to  the  first  stroke  of  his  disease 
— some  five  years  prior  to  his  death, 
and  from  which  he  never  rallied — he  had 
not  been  an  active  practitioner  at  the  bar. 
For  the  last  20  years,  his  active  labor 
was  mainly  as  a  farmer,  a  pursuit  in  which 
he  took  much  delight,  and  which  he  thor- 
oughly understood,  as  indeed,  he  under- 
stood everything  which  he  undertook  to 
do.  During  the  last  5  years  he  was 
an  invalid,  and  for  3  years  was  with- 
drawn from  all  business,  the  .slow  progress 
of  his  disease  undermining  a  naturally  vig- 
orous constitution  until  April  18,  1864, 
when  another  shock  of  paralysis  rendered 
him  unconscious,  and  he  remained  in  that 
state  until  he  quietly  passed  away  on  the 
19th. 

For  more  than  40  years  he  was  one  of 
the  leading  citizens  of  our  town. 

His  early  life  was,  in  many  respects,  a 
.severe  struggle  with  adverse  circumstances. 
He  held  himself  not  at  all  obliged  to  for- 
tune or  the  favor  of  any  one,  for  the  success 
he  achieved,  and  he  became  austere,  almost 
combative  in  his  manner.  He  despised  all 
shams.  Humbugs  stood  no  chance  under 
the  severe  scrutiny  of  his  eye  and  the 
arrows  of  his  searching  interrogation. 
His  sagacity  was  seldom  at  fault.  Few  of 
his  ventures  failed  of  returning  with  profit. 
He  exacted  of  others  what  he  was  always 
ready  to  yield  to  them,  equal  and  exact 
justice.  No  deserving  charity,  no  worthy 
enterprise  ever  sought  his  aid  in  vain. 
Many  hearts  have  been  warmed  by  unob- 
trusive gifts  from  his  hand,  for  which  he 
would  not  patiently  listen  to  thanks. 

He  had  a  capacious  intellect.  His  mind 
was  as  stalwart  and  vigorous  as  his  body, 
and  he  never  allowed  either  to  become  en- 
ervated by  idleness.  His  reading  was  va- 
ried and  thorough.  There  were  few  sub- 
jects with  which  the  general  scholar  is  fa- 
miliar that  he  had  not  searched.  He  never 
forgot  anything  of  value  to  him,  whether 
he  had  found  it  in  books,  or  in  observa- 
tion, which  with  him  was  never  .superficial, 
but  always  critical  and  complete.  He  be- 
lieved what  was  worth  knowing  at  all  was 
worth  knowing  well.  His  learning  was  ac- 
curate and  full,  his  opinions  well  matured, 


MONTPELIER. 


473 


deliberate  and  precise.  We  have  regarded 
Mr.  Reed  as  mentally  one  of  the  strongest 
men  in  the  State,  and  if  he  had  early  had  the 
advantages  of  a  complete  educatio*i,  and 
had  given  his  great  force  of  character  and 
strength  of  will  to  intellectual  pursuits,  he 
would  undoubtedly  have  reached  the  first 
rank  among  the  intellects  of  Vermont,  if 
not  of  New  Ehgland. 

He  was  one  of  the  strongest,  most  hon- 
est and  most  worthy  citizens  of  Montpe- 
lier.  He  belonged  to  a  generation  which 
is  now  nearly  gone,  the  men  whose  energy, 
strong  will,  business  activity,  commer- 
cial sagacity,  integrity  and  generous  enter- 
prise, have  made  our  town  what  it  is.  Of 
his  cotemporaries,  many  have  gone  before, 
and  few  remained  to  attend  at  his  funeral. 
Well  will  it  be  for  us  all,  if  we,  like  Mr. 
Reed,  do  our  work  well,  and  leave  a  fra- 
grant memory  to  be  cherished  by  those 
who  shall  one  day  take  our  places. 

Addition  by  E.  P.  Walton. 

The  foregoing  just  tribute  to  Col.  Reed, 
appeared  in  the  Green  Mountain  Freeman, 
and  was  doubtless  from  the  pen  of  the  late 
Hon.  Daniel  P. -Thompson.  It  should  be 
added,  that  as  a  banker  for  many  years 
Col.  Reed  was  at  the  head  of  the  financiers 
of  the  State,  an  acknowledged  authority, 
from  which  there  was  no  appeal ;  and  as  a 
writer  on  political  questions,  he  was  caus- 
tic in  controversy,  sure  of  his  facts,  and 
powerful  in  argument.  On  the  record  of 
the  old  bank  of  Montpelier  will  be  found 
a  very  able  and  conclusive  argument 
against  the  free  banking  act,  which  grew 
out  of  the  party  clamor  of  "  Smilie  and 
bank  reform" ;  but  the  following  extracts 
of  a  letter  to  Stephen  Foster,  Esq.,  of  Der- 
by Line,  written  Dec.  6,  1855,  are  given 
as  evidence  of  Col.  Reed's  wisdom  and 
prudence  as  a  banker : 

"  Keep  in  mind  always  that  if  you  have 
good  security  for  all  your  loans  your  bank 
can't  fail,  nor  the  stockholders  fail  to  get 
good  dividends. 

"  When  a  man  comes  by  other  banks  to 
yours  for  a  loan,  you  may  know  that  he  has 
borrowed  as  much  as  he  is  entitled  to  from 
his  capital  or  that  he  is  discredited  at  home . 

60 


"  Keep  in  mind  the  fact  that  many  men 
are  made  great  and  rich  by  distance,  and 
you  may  be  sure  that  if  any  go  by  other 
banks  to  do  business  at  yours,  that  they  go 
there  because  they  are  obliged  to,  and  not 
from  love. 

"If  a  man  asks  you  for  a  loan  whom 
you  don't  know  to  be  responsible,  the  only 
safe  way  is  to  consider  him  good  for  noth- 
ing and  take  security  accordingly.  Chari- 
table presumption  and  banking  presump- 
tion in  regard  to  men  are  entirely  differ- 
ent :  the  charitable  presumption  in  regard 
to  a  man  that  you  don't  personally  know 
about,  is  always  that  he  is  good  and  rich ; 
but  the  banking  presumption  is  that  he  is 
good  for  nothing — and  the  cashier  who  does 
not  act  by  this  rule  will  first  or  last,  if  not 
constantly,  be  a  loser  by  his  error. 

"Have  no  dealings  with  a  stranger  in 
buying  drafts  or  checks  of  him  unless  he 
can  refer  you  to  some  responsible  man  in 
the  neighborhood  as  to  his  character. 

"  Never  take  a  draft  of  anybody  without 
its  being  first  accepted,  unless  it  is  other- 
wise secured  than  by  the  drawer's  name — 
and  never  do  so  if  you  know  the  drawer  to 
be  good,  for  how  do  you  know  he  will  ac- 
cept? Many  buyers  of  produce,  wool,  &c., 
will  often  present  such  drafts,  and  if  the 
cashier  takes  them,  he  has  no  security  but 
the  drawer,  and  he  is  often  a  stranger. 
Many  banks  have  lost  by  such  careless- 
ness. 

"In  fine,  pay  out  no  money  but  on  se- 
curity of  more  than  one  name — and  never 
'regard  as  security  an  endorser  or  under- 
signer  who  is  connected  with  the  principal 
as  partner,  or  one  who  must  fail  if  the  prin- 
cipal does. 

"  Banks,  being  allowed  to  take  only  six 
per  cent,  can't  afford  to  lose  anythmg,  and 
therefore  it  is  expected  by  their  customers 
that  perfect  security  will  be  required — and 
if  any  one  objects  to  this,  there  is  a  double 
reason  why  you  should  require  it  of  him. 
Many  men,  who  are  known  to  be  good, 
think  they  should  not  be  asked  to  give  se- 
curity for  what  they  want  to  borrow — but 
such  can  have  no  difficulty  to  find  se- 
curity, and  they  should  be  required  to  find 
it,  otherwise  you  will  find  it  difficult  to  get 


474 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


security  of  those  who  are  more  doubtful, 
and  be  subject  to  the  charge  of  partiality. 
Security,  Security,  Security,  that  is  the 
main  thing — and  mind  always  to  have  the 
security  taken  before  you  let  the  money  go. 
It  is  scarcely  ever  got  afterwards." 

Mr.  Reed  was  commissioned  Colonel  of 
Vermont  militia  Aug.  il,  1825,  by  Gov. 
Van  Ness  ;  and  honorably  discharged  June 
27,  1827,  by  Gov.  Butler. 

The  late  Daniel  Baldwin,  shortly  before 
his  death,  said  to  the  writer  ot  this  note, 
that  he  regarded  Col.  Reed  as  being,  intel- 
lectually, the  strongest  man  that  Montpelier 
has  had.  Mr.  Reed  was  certainly  pre-em- 
inent in  his  chosen  role  as  banker,  but  not 
superior  to  many  others  in  other  profes- 
sions. It  is  doubtless  true,  however,  that 
if  he  had  adhered  to  the  profession  of  the 
law,  and  limited  himself  as  counsellor  in 
the  supreme  court  and  cases  in  chancery, 
he  would  have  reached  a  very  high  rank. 
The  severity  of  his  manner  and  speech  un- 
fitted him  for  a  jury  trial.  He  always 
won  by  honest  force,  if  he  did  win,  and 
not  by  suavity  or  trickery. 

CAPT.    ISAAC   RICKER. 
[From  infoiniation  I'liniislud  liy  the  family.] 

Isaac  Ricker  wasborninDover,  N.  H., 
Christmas  day,  1784.  Here  his  early  years 
were  passed,  and  from  Dover  he  enlisted 
in  the  old  N.  E.  4th  Reg.  Infantry,  U.  S. 
A.,  in  181 1,  and  was  in  the  service  all 
through  "the  last  war  with  Great  Britain," 
as  the  old  soldiers  of  18 12,  I  have  noticed, 
in  speaking  of  it,  almost  invariably  style 
the  war  of  1812,  '14,  with  England.  He 
was  under  Col.  Boyd,  and  the  regiment 
was  called  the  best  in  the  United  States  at 
that  time.  He  was  also  under  Harrison 
when  he  took  command  at  Cincinnati. 
Boyd's  regiment  was  with  Gen.  Harrison 
when  he  won  his  brightest  laurels.  Capt. 
Ricker  was  there,  and  led  his  company 
in  to  the  battle  of  Tipj^ecanoe. 

His  weight  being  200  at  this  time,  tall 
and  massive,  he  was  an  imposing  looking 
and  bold  officer. 

The  Indians  surprised  them,  as  is  well 
known,  that  night.  He  was  in  Hull's  army 
when  he  surrendered  at  Detroit  his  brave 


soldiers  to  the  English,  and  he,  like  all  the 
rest  of  Hull's  infamously  sacrificed  men, 
suffered  more  in  his  imprisonment,  follow- 
ing thereupon,  than  has  ever  been  written. 
He  was  7  years  in  the  United  States  ser- 
vice, and  never  got  scratch,  wound  or  pen- 
sion, though  his  widow,  a  second  wife,  has 
had  one  for  about  2  years  past.  After  the 
war  he  was,  for  about  2  years,  a  recruiting 
officer  of  the  U.  S.  A. 

He  came  to  Montpelier  in  18 17,  and  set-, 
tied  on  the  site  where  is  now  the  residence, 
store  and  shop  of  his  son,  Rufus  Ricker, 
merchant  tailor.  State  street,  just  opposite 
the  post-office.  He  was  deputy  sheriff  of 
the  County  and  constable  some  years. 
Capt.  Ricker  was  a  staunch  Democrat. 
"  He  fought  too  many  years  for  the  whole 
country  to  be  anything  else,"  says  his  son. 

We  were  told  by  an  old  native  citizen  of 
this  County,  at  Burlington,  the  other  day 
— Mr.  Leonard  Johonnott — that  Captain 
Ricker  and  Senator  Upham  were  particular 
friends ;  that  he  always  worked  enthusi- 
astically and  efficiently  in  any  election  for 
Upham.  "Why,"  said  his  old  Barre 
neighbor,  "any  history  of  Montpelier  vil- 
lage of  50  years  ago,  witKout  Capt.  Isaac 
Ricker,  would  be  no  history  at  all."  He 
cared  little  for  town  offices,  or  political 
honors  for  himself,  but  was  all  alive  and 
energetic  for  his  friends.  And  yet  says 
one  who  knew  him  best  in  Montpelier, 
"he  was  a  man  who  did  not  usually  talk 
much ;  he  had  been  under  military  tactics 
too  long ;  but  a  prompt  man  when  he  did 
take  hold,  and  acted  with  so  much  integrity 
as  a  sheriff,  and  so  kindly,  he  was  uncom- 
monly respected  and  trusted  by  those  he 
took  into  custody." 

Captain  Ricker  married,  first,  Nancy 
Dame,  of  Rochester,  N.  H.  She  had  7 
children,  of  whom  Rufus  R.  Ricker,  Fran- 
cis Derancis  Ricker  and  Mrs.  Priscilla 
Holmes,  widow  of  Edwin  C.  Holmes,  are 
now  living  here.  Another  son,  George  P. 
Ricker,  was  for  many  years  engaged  in  busi- 
ness in  town,  and  died  from  accident, 
in  August,  185 1.  His  first  wife  dying,  he 
married,  about  1828,  Loramie  W.  Hart,  of 
Burlington,  who  survived  him,  and  still 
lives  in  Montpelier.    She  had  two  children : 


"     4 


\         1 


<py  Gt'T^-ry-*^  ^3 


't- 


MONTPELIER. 


475 


Harrison  Hart  Wright,  now  living  in  San 
Francisco,  a  '49er,  one  of  the  pioneers  ot 
that  State,  born  in  Montpelier ;  and  a  son 
of  12  years,  who  died  of  typhus.  Capt. 
Ricker  died  July  i6,  1837,  and  is  buried 
in  Green  Mount  Cemetery. 

THOMAS   NEEDHAM 

was  born  in  Salem,  Mass.,  Nov.  1785  ;  re- 
moved to  Mount  Vernon,  N.  H.,  in  1812, 
where  he  married,  that  year,  Eleanor 
Dodge,  and  they  came  to  Montpelier  in 
18 19,  where  they  resided  the  remainder  of 
their  days.  Mr.  Needham  wasa  cooperby 
trade,  which  vocation  he  followed  through 
life.  He  was  a  man  of  brain,  a  great 
reader,  and  kept  himself  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  the  affairs  of  the  country. 
Politically,  he  was  a  Democrat,  an  ardent 
worker  and  earnest  supporter  of  his  party, 
which  was  in  a  majority  in  town  in  his 
day.  For  25  years  he  wielded  an  influence 
in  town,  either  at  town  or  State  elections, 
far  greater  than  any  other  man.  He 
never,  however,  aspired  for  office.  Re- 
peatedly, he  was  asked  by  his  party  to  ac- 
cept of  their  nomination  of  him  as  their 
candidate  for  town  representative,  which 
was  equivalent  to  an  election,  but  always 
refused  to  accept  of  it.  Of  town  offices, 
he  was  for  several  years  a  justice  of  peace, 
selectman,  and  overseer  of  the  poor ;  the 
poor  being  bounteously  cared  for  under 
his  management.  He  also  held  the  office 
of  first  jail  commissioner  many  years.  In 
all  of  the  offices  held  by  him,  he  was  faith- 
ful to  their  trust.  He  died  June  12,  1872, 
in  his  87th  year,  leaving  2  sons,  Algernon 
Sydney,  for  many  years  a  sea  captain,  now 
residing  in  Montpelier,  and  Daniel,  resid- 
ing in  Barre.  His  wife,  Eleanor  D.,  died 
Oct.  9,  1880,  in  her  93d  year.  C.  B. 

THE   OLD   VILLAGE   SEXTON. 

[From  ol)itiiarv  bv  Hon.  Joseph  Poland  and 
Col".  H.  V.  Hopkins.] 

Aaron  Bancroft  was  born  in  Wood 
End,  now  within  the  present  limits  of 
Boston,  Mass.,  Feb.  2,  1784.  He  wasone 
of  a  family  of  12  children,  and  a  son  of 
Samuel  Bancroft,  who  was  a  brother  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Aaron  Bancroft,  of  Worcester, 
Mass.,  father  of  George  Bancroft,  the  his- 


torian ;  being  a  direct  descendant  of  Thos. 
Bancroft,  a  Puritan,  who  landed  in  Boston 
in  1632. 

Aaron,  the  subject  of  our  sketch,  was 
married  in  1804,  to  Anna  Foster,  of  Wood 
End,  and  removed  to  Montpelier  in  1813. 
He  began  work  at  his  mechanical  trade, 
that  of  a  shoemaker,  which  he  followed 
uninterruptedly  until  he  was  84  years  of 
age,  when,  by  an  accidental  fall,  he  re- 
ceived injuries  which  disabled  him  from 
further  service.  In  18 13,  the  year  he  came 
to  town,  the  old  Elm  Street  Cemetery  was 
opened,  and  he  was  soon  after  made  its 
sexton,  the  duties  of  which  office  he  faith- 
fully performed  for  nearly  50  years,  until 
July,  1857,  when  the  new  cemetery,  Green 
Mount,  was  occupied,  having  been  dedi- 
cated the  previous  year.  What  a  tale  of 
mortality  could  the  old  se.xton  tell : 

"  Nigh  to  a  grave  tliat  was  newly  made, 
Leaned  a  Sexton  old  on  his  earth-worn  spade; 
His  work  was  done,  and  he  paused  to  wait 
The  funeral  train  through  the  open  gate. 
A  relic  of  by-gone  days  was  he, 
And  his  locks  were  wliite  as  the  foamy  sea; 
And  thes,e  words  came  from  his  lips  so  thin, 
'  I  gather  them  in,  I  gather  them  in.' 

"  I  gather  them  in  lor  man  and  boy ; 
Year  after  year  of  grief  and  joy ; 
I've  builded  the  houses  tliat  lie  around 
In  every  nook  of  this  burial  ground; 
Mother  and  daughter,  fatlier  and  son, 
Come  to  my  solitude,  one  by  one,— 
But  come  tliey  stranger,  or  come  they  kin, — 
I  gather  them  in,  I  gather  tliera  in. 

"  Many  are  witli  me,  but  still  I'm  alone, 
I'm  king  of  the  dead— and  I  make  my  throne 
On  a  monument  slab  of  marble  cold, 
And  my  sceptre  of  rule  is  the  spade  I  hold. 
Conid  they  from  cottage,  or  come  they  from  hall, 
Mankind  are  my  subjects— all,  all,  all! 
Let  them  loiter  in  pleasure,  or  toilfuUy  spin — 
I  gather  them  in,  I  gather  tliem  in. 

"  I  gather  them  in — and  their  final  rest 
Is  here,  down  here,  in  the  earth's  dark  breast  I ' 
And  tlie  Sexton  ceased,  for  the  funeral  train 
Wound  mutely  o'er  tliat  solemn  plain ; 
And  I  said  to  my  heart.  When  time  is  told, 
A  mightier  voice  tlian  tliat  Sexton's  old 
Will  sound  o'er  tlie  last  trump's  dreadful  din — 
'I  gatlierthem  in, I  gather  them  in! '" 

In  18 19,  when  the  old  brick  church  was 
erected,  he  was  made  its  sexton,  in  which 
capacity  he  officiated  for  two  score  of 
years.  In  "form  and  feature"  he  was 
the  exact  representation  of  his  office,  gray, 
bowed,  kind,  slow-spoken  and  courteous. 
In  his  earlier  day,  he  possessed  great  phys- 
ical strength  and  muscle  even  up  to  the 


4/6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


age  of  50 ;  he  repeatedly  bore  off  the  palm 
in  wrestling  matches  and  foot-races.  He 
was  also  endowed  with  a  remarkable  mem- 
ory, which  he  retained  to  the  last.  To  him 
we  are  indebted  for  the  record  of  the  vital 
statistics  of  the  town,  making  a  list  of 
about  a  thousand  deaths,  which  he  kept 
for  46  years,  until  1857,  since  which  time 
the  State  law  has  required  the  registration 
of  all  deaths  by  the  district  clerk. 

In  1804,  Mr.  Bancroft  and  his  wife  united 
with  the  Congregational  church,  of  which 
they  remained  faithful  members  till  their 
death.  Mrs.  Bancroft  died  in  Oct.  1865, 
aged  82;  and  Mr.  Bancroft,  Mar.  26,  1872, 
aged  88  years.  That  he  was  a  sincere 
Christian,  no  one  ever  doubted  who  knew 
him,  for  his  daily  life  gave  uniform  testi- 
mony to  the  genuineness  of  his  profession. 
His  Bible  was  his  daily  food,  even  upon 
his  dying  bed,  and  he  found  great  comfort 
in  the  songs  of  Zion,  which  he  always 
dearly  loved,  until  the  summons  came. 
Artless  and  as  trustful  as  a  child,  faithful  to 
all  his  trusts,  cheerful  under  .the  worst 
trials,  a  peacemaker  everywhere,  pure  in 
heart  and  exemplary  in  life,  Aaron  Bancroft 
may  well  be  said  to  have  lived  and  died  an 
honest  man. 

He  reared  a  family  of  5  sons  and  3 
daughters  :  Aaron,  Sarah,  Henry,  Mary, Ed- 
ward C,  Daniel  Foster,  Eliza  and  Charles 
E  ;  two  more  died  in  infancy.  All  now  are 
deceased  but  two,  Daniel  Foster,  now  re- 
siding in  New  York  city,  and  Mrs.  Mary 
Rogers,  in  Cabot.  The  sons  all  learned 
various  mechanical  trades,  which  they  fol- 
lowed through  life,  all  being  superior  work- 
men at  their  several  trades. 

CAPT.    LEMUEL    BROOKS, 

born  in  Connecticut  in  1767,  married 
Rhoda  Barber,  of  Simsbury,  Ct.,  and  came 
to  Montpelier  in  January,  1798.  He  was 
present  and  cast  his  vote  in  the  first  town 
meeting  held  in  Montpelier.  He  first  set- 
tled in  the  part  now  called  East  Montpelier, 
where  he  lived  for  40  years,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Montpelier  village,  where  he 
died  in  1846,  during  the  session  of  the 
Legislature  here,  aged  79  years,  and  was 
buried  in  the  old  Elm  Street  Cemetery. 


He  is  remembered  by  his  descendants  as  a 
large  man,  almost  of  heroic  size,  a  kind 
old  gentleman,  fond  of  a  joke  and  of  his 
grandchildren.  He  and  his  wife  lived 
happily  together  48  years.  They  had  no 
sons,  but  a  family  of  5  daughters,  four  of 
whom  married  :  Mary,  A.  Sidney  Wing,  of 
Montpelier  ;  Rhoda,  General  Humphrey  ; 
Amanda,  another  Mr.  Humphrey  ;  Fanny, 
Loomis  Palmer. 

MRS.    RHODA    BROOKS. 

Rhoda  Barber,  born  in  Simsbury,  Ct., 
Nov.  17,  1798,  immediately  after  her  mar- 
riage with  Lemuel  Brooks,  Jan.  1798,  came 
to  Montpelier.  There  were  but  two  framed 
houses  at  that  time,  and  the  frame  of  an- 
other, in  the  old  town  of  Montpelier,  com- 
prising the  present  Montpelier  and  East 
Montpelier.  The  frame  was  that  of  the 
Cadwell  house,  still  standingat  the  head  of 
State  street,  that  became  and  continued  for 
many  years  to  be  the  most  spacious  and  ele- 
gant private  dwelling  in  town,  and  the  quar- 
ters of  successive  governors  of  the  State. 
When  Mrs.  Brooks  first  saw  the  frame,  it 
was  surrounded  by  the  stumps  and  trunks 
of  trees  that  had  been  cut  down  to  open  a 
site  for  the  building.  Mrs.  Brooks  went 
to  the  farm  of  her  husband,  now  in  East 
Montpelier,  where  they  remained  till  their 
removal  to  this  village  in  1838.  After  the 
death  of  Mr.  Brooks,  she  resided  with  her 
son-in-law,  Loomis  Palmer,  until  her  death, 
Dec.  21,  1873,  aged  85  years. 

Mrs.  Brooks  was  large  and  elegant  in 
person,  of  perhaps  the  finest  English  type 
of  beauty;  dignified  in  her  manners,  genial 
in  her  temper,  and  of  great  intelligence. 
Mr.  Thompson  was  largely  indebted  to  her 
for  material  for  his  history  of  Montpelier. 

A  lady  of  a  well-ordered  life,  whose 
Christian  faith  was  illustrated  by  hospital- 
ity and  charity ;  whose  end  was  more  than 
beautiful.  Awaking  without  sickness  on 
the  morning  of  the  anniversary  of  her  hus- 
band's birth,  she  calmly  told  her  daughter 
that  she  was  going,  and  entered  at  once 
upon  the  way  from  earth  to  Heaven. 

THOMAS   BROOKS, 

brother  of  Lemuel,  settled  in  Montpelier 
not  far  from  the  time  that  his  brother  did. 


i-j^Ss^    ^*^^ 


K 


\\ 


'f^^~i^L-'isi^^/^^k-^  'i 


^^fyCc^rc-T^ 


MONTPELIER. 


477 


Children  of  Thomas  and  Roxa  Brooks : 
Delorma,  Lemuel,  Keyes,  Mary,  Melanc- 
thon,  Sarah,  Lorenzo,  Joseph,  Harriet, 
Thomas,  Roxa. 

JONATHAN   SHEPARD. 

One  afceranotherthe  now  thinly  scattered 
band  of  our  first  settlers  are  all  fast  passing 
away.  Of  the  earliest  pioneer  settlers  of 
Montpelier,  Jonathan  Shepard  went  to  his 
long  rest  July  26,  1863.  He  was  born  in 
Haverhill,  Mass.,  June  31,  1772,  and  at 
the  age  of  21,  came  to  Montpelier,  where, 
for  the  first  two  or  three  years,  he  was  in 
the  employment  of  the  first  settler.  Col. 
Jacob  Davis,  being  constantly  engaged 
with  others  of  the  ColonePs  band  of  hardy 
laborers  in  clearing  up  the  lands  now  con- 
stituting the  site  of  our  flourishing  village. 
After  a  few  years,  he  married  a  Miss  Bur- 
dick,  of  Waitsfield,  who  died  of  spotted 
fever  in  18 10,  and  a  few  years  subsequently, 
he  married  the  widow  of  Wm.  Hutchins, 
many  years  since  deceased.  His  first 
"pitch"  was  on  the  lands  afterwards 
known  as  the  Silloway  farm,  near  Henry 
Nutt's.  Soon  selling  this,  however,  he 
purchased  the  well-known  valuable  farm 
lying  around  the  mouth  of  Dog  river, 
which  he  held  till  a  few  years  ago,  when  it 
passed  into  the  hands  of  his  son,  George 
C.  Shepard,  Esq.  While  carrying  on  this 
farm,  he  became  the  occupant  of  the 
Hutchins\  or  Farmers'  inn,  which,  to  the 
very  general  acceptance  of  the  public,  he 
kept  for  nearly  30  years. 

Mr.  Shepard  was  never  known  as  an 
office-holder ;  for,  though  often  offered 
them,  he  uniformly  declined  all  offices. 
He  was  a  man  of  much  decision  of  char- 
acter— of  great  energy,  of  fine  business  ca- 
pacities, and  from  the  first  has  been  among 
our  most  active  and  enterprising  citizens, 
and  by  these  qualities,  he  accumulated  a 
very  handsome  property ;  and  what  is 
better,  he  was  an  honest  man,  ever  re- 
garding his  word  as  sacred. — Obit. 

HON.   JOSEPH    HOWES   AND   WIFE. 

Joseph  Howes,  born  in  Lebanon,  Conn., 
March  28,  1783,  died  in  Montpelier,  April 
26,  1863.  He  was  descended  from  one  of 
the  early  puritans  who  settled  in  Plymouth 


County,  Mass.  Judge  Howes  came  to 
Montpelier  with  his  wife  in  1808,  both  re- 
mained there  during  their  lives,  and  both 
were  among  the  members  of  the  First  Con- 
gregational church,  now  commonly  known 
as  Bethany  church,  at  its  organization  in 
1810,  of  which  they  were  ever  faithful  and 
highly-honored  members.  Judge  Howes 
was  intelligent,  decided  and  immovable  in 
his  religious  and  political  opinions.  Be- 
ginning as  a  Jeffersonian  Republican,  he, 
with  the  most  of  that  party  in  Vermont, 
supported  John  Quincy  Adams  for  presi- 
dent in  1824,  and  after  Gen.  Jackson's 
election  in  1828,  adhered  successively  to 
the  National  Republican,  Whig,  and  the 
modern  Republican  parties.  He  was  pat- 
riotic, served  nearly  two  years  on  the 
frontier  as  adjutant  in  the  war  of  181 2-' 15, 
and  served  so  well  that  a  commission  in 
the  regular  army  was  offered  him,  which 
he  declined  on  account  of  the  pressing 
needs  of  his  young  family.  In  Sept.  1814, 
however,  he  started  for  Plattsburgh  as 
second  lieutenant  in  the  volunteer  Mont- 
pelier company,  a  roll  of  which,  in  his 
hand-writing,  has  been  found  among  his 
papers.  He  represented  Montpelier  in 
the  Legislature  of  1813,  and  while  holding 
that  office,  left  for  military  service  on  the 
frontier;  was  also  a  Judge  of  Washington 
County  Court,  1819  to  1827;  and  served 
several  years  as  surveyor  of  public  build- 
ings, his  duty  being  to  i^rovide  for  sweep- 
ing, heating  and  lighting  the  State  House, 
and  furnish  stationery  for  both  Houses. 
His  bill  for  these  services  in  the  session  of 
37  days  in  1825  was  $68.71,  $3  of  which 
only  was  for  his  personal  service — less 
than  $2  per  day  for  all,  which  is  less  than 
the  daily  pay  now  of  a  page.  He  was  also 
long  engaged  in  the  most  responsible  town 
offices, — moderator,  selectman,  overseer, 
and  magistrate.  He  was  thoroughly  con- 
scientious in  the  discharge  of  all  his  public 
and  private  duties — severely  just  as  against 
himself,  and  severely  censorious  of  all 
wrong ;  but  he  was  also  generous  to  those 
who  had  wronged  him. 

PattyWilder, daughter  of  Abel  Wilder, 
of  Norwich,  and  grand-daughter  of  Lieut. 
Gov.  Elisha  Payne,  of  Lebanon,  N.  H., 


478 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


was  born  in  1786,  married  Judge  Howes  in 

1808,  and  died  January  20,  1871.  While 
her  husband  was  of  a  severe  type,  she  was 
gentle,  mild,  charitable,  and  these  mingled 
qualities  made  a  household  of  obedient  and 
affectionate  children,  of  whom  there  were 
nine,   to   wit:     William,    born   April   21, 

1809,  went  to  Prescott,  Wis.,  about  30 
years  ago,  became  mayor  of  the  town,  and 
was  judge  of  probate  for  his  district  sev- 
eral years,  and  until  his  death  ;  Almira, 
widow  of  Lieut.  Gov.  David  M.  Camp,  of 
Derby;  Joseph  Wilder,  born  Nov.  5,  1812, 
was  a  merchant  and  sheriff  of  this  county 
in  1849:  [for  more,  see  ante,  pages  394- 
396.]  George,  born  Nov.  14,  1814,  was  a 
merchant,  cashier  of  the  Bank  of  Mont- 
pelier  from  1841  to  1858,  and  State  treas- 
urer 1847  to  '53  ;  Sarah  Sophia,  born  July 
27,  1 817,  married  E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  June 
6,  1836,  and  died  Sept.  3,  1880;  Solon, 
born  Aug.  6,  18 19,  died  in  early  manhood  ; 
Martha  is  widow  of  Rev.  Calvin  Pease, 
Professor  and  President  in  the  University 
of  Vermont,  and  at  his  death  pastor  of  a 
Presbyterian  church  in  Rochester,  N.  Y. ; 
Henry,  born  March  7th,  1826,  died  in 
childhood  ;  and  last,  Henry,  born  Apr.  30, 
1829,  was  for  some  years  a  cashier,  and 
since  1865  has  been  employed  in  the  Na- 
tional Treasury  and  Interior  Departments. 

Judge  Howes  was  a  blacksmith,  and  I 
have  a  very  tine  engraving  of  the  interior 
of  a  blacksmith's  shop,  which  I  have  al- 
ways called ///y  7w/A  coat  of  arms.  E  p.  w. 

DR.    JULIUS   YEMANS   DEWEY. 
[Extracts  from  an  obituary  b    Dr.  Suniiur  Putnaiii.] 

Julius  Yemans  Dewey  was  born  in 
Berlin,  Aug.  22,  1801  ;  his  father,  Simeon 
Dewey,  being  among  the  first  to  settle  in 
that  town,  coming  from  Hanover,  N.  H., 
nearly  100  years  ago.  Juhus  was  one  of  a 
family  of  8  children,  and  very  active  when 
a  lad,  not  only  working  upon  the  farm, 
but  traveling  about  the  country,  both  on 
foot  and  on  horseback,  as  an  assistant 
drover.  But  in  his  nineteenth  summer, 
one-half  day's  work,  which  consisted  in 
loading  and  pitching  17  loads  of  hay,  de- 
termined his  choice  of  a  profession,  from 
the  fact  that  for  a  long  time  afterward  he 


was  sick  with  pain  and  inflammation  in 
the  hepatic  region,  from  which,  however, 
he  finally  recovered,  and  outlived  all  the 
members  of  his  father's  family.  Having 
acquired  a  good  preliminary  education  at 
the  Wash.  Co.  Gram.  School,  he  studied 
medicine  with  Dr.  Lamb.,  a  celebrated 
practitioner  in  those  days,  resident  at 
Montpelier,  and  in  1823,  received  his  de- 
gree from  the  medical  department  of  the 
Vermont  University,  and  commenced  prac- 
tice at  Montpelier.  In  consequence  of  his 
activity,  intelligence  and  skill,  he  soon  ac- 
quired a  large  professional  business,  and 
June  9,  1825,  married  Miss  Mary  Perrin, 
daughter  of  Zachariah  Perrin,  of  Berlin. 
The  fruit  of  this  union  was  18  years  of 
happy  domestic  life  and  4  children  :  Chas. 
and  Edward  Dewey,  of  Montpelier,  Geo. 
Dewey,  of  the  U.  S.  Navy,  and  Mrs.  Dr. 
Geo.  P.  Greeley,  of  Nashua,  N.  H.  Fur- 
thermore, these  years  were  crowned  with 
professional  and  financial  success,  but  all 
too  soon,  the  faithful  wife  and  mother  was 
called  from  her  earthly  home,  and  the  circle 
thus  painfully  broken,  remained  severed 
about  2  years,  when  it  became  restored  by 
a  second  marriage  with  Mrs.  Susan  L. 
Tarbox,  of  Randolph,  an  estimable  lady, 
who  brought  with  her  an  excellent  daugh- 
ter, now  the  wife  of  his  oldest  son,  which 
arrangement  proved  very  happy  in  all  re- 
spects. 

Though  brought  up  in  a  family  the  heads 
of  which  were  rigidly  Puritan,  Dr.  Dewey 
chose  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church,  in 
which  he  was  long  a  faithful  office-bearer, 
a  liberal  supporter  and  an  influential  ad- 
viser, especially  against  the  modern  fash- 
ions which  find  no  countenance  except  in 
the  Roman  churches.  In  politics,  he  was 
ardent  and  intelligent,  and  to  him,  per- 
haps, quite  as  much  as  any  other  one,  is  to 
be  ascribed  the  defeat  of  the  anti-masonic 
Gov.  Palmer  in  1835,  and  the  subsequent 
success  of  the  Whig  and  Republican  par- 
ties in  Vermont ;  yet  he  was  never  an 
office-seeker,  but  acted  simply  upon  his 
convictions  of  what  was  best  for  the  State 
and  the  nation. 

In  1850,   Dr.    Dewey,   with  others,  or- 


-fl-'''**i 


W'a  ^' 


--^« 


-.    ^i2?fe 


MONTPELIER. 


479 


ganized  the  National  Life  Insurance  Com- 
pany of  IVIontpelier,  and  soon  became  its 
president  and  chief  manager,  and  so  re- 
mained until  his  death.  Under  his  auspi- 
cious management,  in  27  years,  the  com- 
pany has  acquired  a  large  number  of 
policy-holders,  presenting  a  record  of  suc- 
cess unequalled,  and  worthy  the  confidence 
and  patronage  of  those  who  desire  at  death 
to  doubly  ensure,  if  possible,  a  legacy  to 
their  families.  Indeed,  amid  the  financial 
ruin  and  distress  prevalent,  this  noble 
monument  of  his  provident  care  and  in- 
dustry affords  relief  to  many  a  worthy 
debtor,  and  stands  against  the  invasion  of 
want  as  a  bulwark  to  many  a  widowed  and 
orphaned  home. 

In  1854,  being  deprived  by  death  of  a 
second  wife,  at  53  years  of  age,  apparently 
in  the  prime  of  life,  and  by  nature  strongly 
inclined  to  make  the  best  of  life  and  its 
blessings,  especially  the  endearments  and 
comforts  of  home,  he  fortunately  married 
Mrs.  Susan  E.  Lilley,  of  Worcester,  Mass., 
a  beautiful  and  excellent  woman,  who  also 
brought  with  her  a  beautiful  daughter,  now 
the  wife  of  his  second  son,  and  for  the  last 
20  years  made  his  home  a  paradise,  until 
his  final  departure  shrouds  it  in  mourning, 
(1876.) 

During  his  last  years,  his  relations  as 
husband,  parent  and  grand-parent  were 
eminently  happy.  I  have  heard  him  re- 
mark that  few  men  had  been  so  unfortunate 
as  himself  in  the  loss  of  excellent  wives, 
and  that  no  man  could  have  been  more 
fortunate  in  replacing  them.  He  was  very 
strongly  attached  to  home  and  its  endear- 
ments— his  wife,  children  and  grand- 
children, and  they  always  received  from 
him  the  kindest  attention,  care  and  pro- 
vision ;  and,  in  return,  he  received  from 
them,  and  carried  with  him  at  his  depart- 
ure, their  utmost  love,  confidence  and  re- 
spect. 

Dr.  Dewey  was  eminently  a  strong,  self- 
made  man, — a  person  who  thought  care- 
fully, intelligently  and  broadly ;  conse- 
quently, every  enterprise  to  which  he  put 
his  hands,  proved  a  success.  Education, 
the  church,  all   forms  of  public  welfare — 


town,  state  and  national,  as  the  found- 
ation and  defense  of  home,  social  order, 
progress  and  wealth,  were  near  and  dear 
to  his  heart,  and  always  received  his  cor- 
dial support.  During  a  long  and  active 
life,  his  ability  and  integrity  reached  and 
maintained  the  highest  standard.  Socially, 
he  was  friendly,  open  and  cheerful. 

On  the  2oth  of  May,  1876,  he  partook  of 
a  hearty  dinner,  over-exercised,  and  be- 
came much  excited  in  discussion.  Imme- 
diately, symptoms  of  disturbed  digestion 
began,  and  a  bad  night  followed,  the  pulse 
soon  falling  to  28  or  30  per  minute.  This 
state  continued  until  the  morning  of  the 
29th,  at  3  :  30  o'clock,  when,  in  full  con- 
sciousness, in  the  76th  year  of  his  age,  the 
heart  instantly  ceased  to  beat,  the  counte- 
nance flushed,  soon  became  full  and  dusky, 
efforts  at  respiration  ceased  almost  imme- 
diately, consciousness  was  gone,  and  the 
paleness  of  death  .settled  over  the  features. 

"Soul,  thought,  will, ideatiou— 
All,  so  quickly  severed 
Fi'oru  their  loved  abode — 
O,  who  may  or  e'er  can, 
The  mystery  of  life. 
Of  death,  illume,  unveil. 
To  the  mourning  circle 
Left  beliind?" 

MEDICAL   MEN   OF   MONTPELIER. 

BV  DIl.  SUMNER  PUTNAM. 

FREDERICK   W.    ADAMS 

was  born  in  Pawlet,  in  1786,  and  his  lit- 
erary remains  show  him  to  have  been  ed- 
ucated. He  studied  medicine  with  Dr, 
Oliver  Harmon,  of  Pawlet,  attended  med- 
ical lectures  at  Dartmouth  College,  and 
began  practice  in  Fairfield  before  he  grad- 
uated. Remaining  there  some  time,  he 
moved  to  Cambridge,  and  from  Cambridge 
to  Barton  in  18 14,  and  in  1822,  returned 
to  Dartmouth,  and  received  his  diploma. 
He  continued  to  practice  in  Barton  and 
vicinity  till  1836,  where  he  acquired  great 
reputation  as  a  physician  and  surgeon, 
being  called  at  times  a  distance  of  50  miles 
to  perform  capital  operations.  He  was 
also  the  first,  or  one  of  the  first,  to  call 
attention  to  the  American  hellebore  or 
veratrum  viride  in  practice.  In  the  winter 
of  1835  and  1836,  he  attended  medical  lec- 
tures at  Philadelphia,  with  a  view  of  set- 


48o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tling  in  Montpelier,  which  he  did  in  1836, 
his  name  and  reputation  soon  following,  if 
it  had  not  already  preceded  him. 

Located  at  Montpelier,  he  was  at  first 
shunned  by  many  on  account  of  his  re- 
puted skepticism  ;  but  being  a  large,  gen- 
tlemanly appearing  man,  of  dignified  pres- 
ence, destined  to  excite  attention  and 
command  respect  or  fear  anywhere,  he  soon 
became  a  leading  practitioner  in  the  town 
and  surrounding  country. 

Dr.  Adams  was  a  man  of  literary  taste, 
and  having  long  been  esteemed  an  infidel 
or  atheist,  he,  in  1843,  at  the  request  of 
friends,  published  a  book  entitled  "  The- 
ological Criticism,"  which  entitles  him  to 
rank  with  Paine  and  Ingersoll  in  their  esti- 
mate of  the  Bible,  the  church  and  the 
clergy.  But  only  as  respects  these  points 
did  his  skeptical  philosophy  seem  to  touch 
his  heart,  as  the  following  may  tend  to 
show  :  When  he  first  came  here,  a  lead- 
ing church  felt  it  a  duty  to  circulate  papers 
asking  its  members  to  sign  their  names 
promising  not  to  employ  him  profession- 
ally. After  a  time,  the  same  men,  one  a 
deacon,  who  circulated  the  first  paper, 
came  to  him  with  a  subscription  paper  to 
help  repair  the  church,  to  which  appeal 
he  replied,  "  God  forbid  that  he  should  so 
misapply  his  money.  He  much  preferred 
to  give  it  to  the  poor  and  needy  whom  he 
knew." 

All  of  those  formerly  acquainted  with 
him  here,  with  whom  I  have  conversed, 
declare  the  Doctor  to  have  been  a  very 
benevolent,  generous,  honorable,  kind- 
hearted  man.  Says  one,  "He  lived  more 
practical  Christianity  daily,  than  any  other 
man  in  town."  When  a  poor  man  asked 
him  for  his  bill,  he  would  say,  "How 
much  money  have  you?"  "  O,  not  much  !" 
would  be  the  reply.  "How  many  children 
have  you?"  "  Four  or  five,"  as  the  case 
might  be.  "Well,  then,  you  will  want  all 
the  money  you  have,  and  more  too ;  here, 
take  this,"  handing  out  five  dollars,  per- 
haps. Also,  every  now  and  then  he  would 
buy  a  web  of  calico,  cotton  cloth,  or  what- 
ever he  thought  might  be  needed,  and 
slyly  hand  it  in  at  the  back  door  of  the 
poor.     On  the  other  hand,  of  the  usurious 


rich,  he  would  take  a  good  bill,  but  no 
more  than  professional,  saying  to  himself, 
if  I  get  the  money,  I  shall  give  some  of  it 
to  the  needy,  and  that  they  will  not  do  if 
they  keep  if.  A  lady,  whose  family  phy- 
sician he  had  been,  said,  "do  not  have  it 
go  into  his  biography  that  he  was  an  in- 
fidel, for  he  was  not.  See  the  lines  he 
composed  on  the  death  of  my  daughter," 
handing  me  the  long-preserved  lines,  full 
of  beautiful  sentiment : 

O,  God  I  forgive  us  the  distrust 

Deep  agony  liatli  wrouglit. 
Of  dispensation  doubtless  Just, 

With  liidden  mercies  I'rauglit. 

But  when  an  idol  is  removed, 
Although  from  earth  to  Heaven, 

Our  hearts  rebel,  that  one  so  loved 
Should  have  been  lent,  not  given. 

O,  hard,  and  harder  yet  to  bear 

The  cross  we  now  sustain ; 
While  memory  will  not  forbear 

To  ambrotype  our  pain. 

We  own  that  we  should  be  resigned, 

And  put  in  God  our  trust; 
Yet  human  selfishness  is  blind. 

Nor  sees  that  God  is  just. 

Hence,  we  should  solemnly  invoke 

The  Faith  too  seldom  giv'n, 
That  sees  this  mercy  in  the  stroke, 

A  soul  transferred  to  Heaven. 

It  is  said  that  he  and  Dr.  Shelton,  Rector 
of  the  Episcopal  church  in  this  place  at 
that  time,  were  on  particularly  good  terms, 
often  joking  and  bantering  each  other — 
Shelton  often  inviting  Dr.  A.  to  attend 
church,  while  he  would  as  often  contempt- 
uously decline  to  so  misspend  his  time. 
But  Dr.  S.  having  prepared  a  sermon  for 
him,  continued  to  invite  him  tochurch,  and 
at  last  he  came,  when  the  usher  seated  him 
well  up  in  front.  Dr.  S.  now  took  from 
the  drawer  his  long-prepared  sermon,  on 
the  text,  "The  fool  hath  said  in  his  heart, 
there  is  no  God,"  and  delivered  from  his 
pulpit  a  powerful  discourse,  which  Dr.  A. 
seemed  to  take  pretty  much  to  himself, 
meanwhile,  sitting  uneasily  in  his  seat,  and 
sweating  profusely.  The  old  Doctor  had 
a  good  mind  to  be  mad,  but  then  he  con- 
cluded to  blow  it  oiT. 

Dr.  Adams  was  a  musician,  and  also 
made  violins,  which  are  said  to  have  chal- 
lenged the  admiration  of  Ole  Bull.  Ole 
Bull  called  on  him  when  here,  and  he  and 
the  Doctor  had  some  music. 


^^i^^'^-^; 


^^^///TTTXTL^/f-  (^MC'f^^n^^^^ , 


MONTPELIER. 


He  was  twice  married,  and  a  daughter 
of  his  now  resides  in  Barton.  He  died 
Dec.  17,  1858,  of  pneumonia,  aged  72, 
with  a  clear  intellect,  and  when  asked  if 
he  died  as  he  had  lived,  answered,  "  If 
there  is  a  Christian's  God,  I  am  not  afraid 
to  trust  myself  in  his  hands." 

Abridged  from  memoir  in  Transactions  of  the 
Vermont  Medical  Society. 

DR.    C.    B.    CHANDLER 

was  born  Apr.  24,  1796,  at  Chester.  Dur- 
ing his  minority,  he  resided  at  the  home  of 
his  father  upon  the  farm,  and  acquired  at 
the  common  school  and  Chester  Academy 
sufficient  education  to  become  a  successful 
teacher. 

He  read  medicine  with  Dr.  Bowen,  at- 
tended lectures  at  Woodstock,  and  after, 
at  Brown  University,  R.  I.  ;  where  he  grad- 
uated, and  commenced  practice  in  Tun- 
bridge  in  1823.  About  the  same  time,  he 
married  Miss  Nancy  Atherton,  of  Balti- 
more, by  whom  he  had  two  sons,  who  are 
now  alive,  and  one  of  whom  succeeded 
him  in  business  in  this  town,  and  is  now 
in  full  practice.  In  1837,  his  first  wife 
died.  After  this  he  married  Miss  Amanda 
Chapman,  of  Tunbridge,  who  died  in  1841, 
His  third  marriage  was  to  Mrs.  F.  A.  C. 
Harvey,  of  Cabot,  who  survived  him. 

Having  practiced  his  profession  suc- 
cessfully 33  years  in  Tunbridge,  he  came 
to  Montpelier,  and  bought  out  Dr.  Orrin 
Smith,  and  soon  acquired  a  good  practice, 
showing  himself,  in  the  10  years  which  he 
resided  here,  to  be  a  careful,  judicious 
physician,  a  good  surgeon,  a  friendly,  gen- 
erous, and  strictly  honorable  man.  With- 
out sickness,  warning  or  premonition,  he 
died  instantly,  Jan.  8,  1867,  in  his  71st 
year,  while  unharnessing  his  horse  after  a 
long  ride  ;  it  was  supposed  of  apoplexy,  as 
several  of  the  family  had  died  from  that 
cause. 

The  high  estimation  in  which  he  was 
held  in  every  respect  may  be  inferred  from 
the  following  extract  from  a  daily  paper 
published  in  Montpelier  at  the  time  of  his 
death.  "  He  removed,"  says  the  editor  of 
the  Freevian,  "to  Montpelier  in  1856, 
where  for  his  high  reputation  as  a  skillful 
surgeon  and  physician,  and  his  excellences 

61 


as  a  citizen,  ever  ready  and  zealous  in 
every  good  work,  he  was  highly  esteemed. 
Though  far  advanced  in  years,  he  seemed 
to  be  physically  and  intellectually  vigorous, 
and  to  the  last  was  actively  engaged  in  his 
profession.  His  death  is,  therefore,  a  se- 
vere loss  to  his  family,  to  the  medical  pro- 
fession, and  to  the  community.  They 
find  consolation  in  the  remembrance  that 
his  life  had  been  one  of  great  usefulness, 
founded  upon  his  firm  conviction  of  the 
genuineness  of  practical  Christianity.  Ir- 
reproachable in  all  his  relations  in  life, 
invaluable  as  a  friend,  of  most  excellent 
example  as  a  citizen,  and  performing  with 
scrupulous  fidelity  and  with  untiring  labor 
every  prompting  of  the  warmest  and  kind- 
est heart,  he  was  in  all  his  life  the  truest 
type  of  the  upright,  benevolent,  beneficent 
man.  Others  have  left  us  more  noted, 
perhaps,  for  talents  and  high  position  be- 
fore the  public,  but  never  one  more  missed 
and  mourned  than  is-,  and  long  will  be, 
this  worthy,  active,  and  intelligent  Chris- 
tian physician. 

Ever  humane  and  self-sacrificing,  he  as 
cheerfully  bestowed  his  professional  aid  on 
the  poor,  when  he  never  asked  or  expected 
pay,  as  on  the  wealthy  and  influential ; 
and  it  has  been  this  noble  trait,  in  addi- 
tion to  his  fine  social  qualities,  his  entire 
sincerity  and  sterling  worth  as  a  man, 
which  has  so  widely  endeared  hiin  to  all 
classes  of  people  in  this  region  of  country. 
He  once  told  a  friend  that  he  wanted  no 
higher  fame,  and  no  better  reward,  than  to 
have  it  thought  and  said  at  his  death,  that 
he  sincerely  endeavored  to  do  all  the  good 
he  could,  and  to   be   a   kind   and  honest 


DR.    C.   M.    RUBLEE. 

Chauncey  Moore  Rublee,  son  of  Luman 
and  Mrs.  Luman  (Burbank)  Rublee,  was 
born  at  Montpelier,  Nov.  25,  1823.  At 
fourteen,  he  left  the  Academy  in  this  place, 
and  became  a  clerk  in  the  drug  store  of 
E.  H.  Prentiss,  and,  after  2  years'  service, 
began  the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr. 
Charles  Clark ;  attended  medical  lectures, 
and  graduated  at  Woodstock,  after  three 
years'  study.     In  Dec.   1848,  he  sailed  for 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Paris,  and  writes  to  his  friends  of  the  pas- 
sage :  "We  had  but  two  storms,  and  I 
assure  you  I  never  wish  to  witness  another. 
I  wished  myself  in  Vermont.  When  I  saw 
the  noble  ship  in  which  I  was  about  tosail, 
lying  at  the  dock,  it  did  not  seem  possible 
for  it  to  be  blown  about  by  the  wind,  but 
after  getting  out  to  sea,  I  realized  what  the 
wind  and  waves  could  do,  and  then  the 
ship  appeared  to  me  as  it  was — a  mere 
egg-shell  dancing  upon  the  water.  On 
reaching  Paris,  I  hired  a  room,  furnished 
with  everything  necessar)',  and  a  foiiine, 
as  they  are  called  here,  to  take  care  of  it, 
for  which  I  pay  $6  per  month,  and  I  get 
my  food  where  I  please.  I  devote  con- 
siderable of  my  time  at  present,  to  learn- 
ing to  speak  French,  and  am  able  to  talk  a 
little."  Again:  "  In  the  fore  part  of  the 
day,  I  am  either  at  the  lying-in  hospital 
with  Paul  Dubois,  or  in  the  surgeons'  hos- 
pital with  Velpeau ;  in  the  fever  hospital 
with  Louis,  or  at  the  venereal  hospital 
with  Ricord.  Paul  Dubois  is  considered 
the  most  able  man  in  his  hospital  in  Paris. 
I  had  a  letter  of  introduction  to  him.  He 
received  me  very  kindly,  and  offered  me 
any  assistance  he  could  render.  He  speaks 
English  very  well." 

In  the  same  letter  he  writes  of  the  Rev- 
olution of  1848  :  "  The  Frenchmen  have 
accomplished  a  great  work,  drove  Louis 
Phillip  from  his  throne,  .  .  .  and  pro- 
claimed France  a  Republic,  in  the  presence 
of  700,000  people."  Of  the  Socialist  In- 
surrection which  followed  in  June,  he  wrote 
Aug.  6  :  "  Several  pieces  of  cannon  were 
stationed  near  the  street  where  I  live,  and 
it  was  one  continual  roar.  After  each  shot, 
a  load  of  wounded  would  be  carried  by  my 
window.  Of  400  in  one  command,  all 
killed  but  30.  Next  morning  I  went  to  the 
dead  house  where  the  killed  were  deposit- 
ed before  burial — a  sad  picture — fathers 
and  mothers  after  their  sons,  sisters  for 
their  brothers,  and  when  they  found  them, 
it  would  seem  as  if  they  would  die  with 
sorrow." 

On  returning  to  Montpelier,  he  began 
practice,  and  soon  married  Miss  Sarah  E. 
Clark,  daughter  of  Dr.  Charles  Clark.  In 
1855,  he  moved  to  Boston,  to  engage  in 


city  practice,  but  before  long  his  health 
began  to  fail ;  it  never  had  been  strong, 
and  while  at  Boston  he  bled  at  the  lungs 
two  or  three  times,  which  induced  him  to 
return  to  Montpelier,  where  he  continued 
to  do  office  business,  making  a  specialty 
of  diseases  of  the  eye  and  ear,  and  surgi- 
cal cases.  In  the  winter  of  i860,  he  .spent 
3  months  in  Paris,  by  which  his  health 
was  improved. 

He  had  one  son,  Chas.  C.  Rublee,  M.  D. 
Dr.  C.  M.  Rublee  was  a  clear-headed,  en- 
ergetic, honorable  man,  a  good  physician 
and  surgeon,  and  accumulated  property 
from  the  practice  of  his  profession,  though 
his  body  was  weak  and  infirm.  He  kept 
office  hours  5  years  after  he  was  unable  to 
walk  any  considerable  distance,  seldom, 
or  never,  mentioning  his  own  sufferings 
and  infirmities.  During  the  last  month  of 
his  life  he  was  confined  to  his  room,  his 
cough  becoming  worse,  prostration  rapidly 
increased,  and  death  came  to  his  rehef 
Jan.  26,  1870, 

DR.    W.    H.    H.    RICHARDSON, 

son  of  Samuel  and  Martha  Richardson, 
was  born  in  Orange,  Vt.,  in  1824,  and  died 
of  cerebral  apoplexy,  in  Winona,  Minn., 
June  5,  '74.  At  an  early  age,  having  shown 
an  aptitude  for  learning,  he  was  fitted  for 
college  at  Thetford  Academy,  and  entered 
Dartmouth,  where  he  remained  to  the  end 
of  his  junior  year  ;  on  account  of  ill  health 
he  was  obliged  to  omit  the  senior  year; 
but  left  college  with  a  good  reputation  for 
scholarship  and  moral  character. 

After  regaining  his  health,  he  com- 
menced the  study  of  medicine  in  the  office 
of  Dr.  Taplin,  of  Corinth,  Vt.,  and  at- 
tended lectures  at  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  grad- 
uating in  1849.  Subsequently,  he  grad- 
uated at  the  College  of  Physicians  and 
Surgeons,  New  York  city,  and  entered 
Bellevue  Hospital,  where  he  remained  one 
year  as  house  physician. 

In  Oct.  1850,  he  married  Miss  Cynthia 
P.  Stewart,  and  in  185 1,  commenced  the 
practice  of  his  profession  in  East  Mont- 
pelier, removing  to  Montpelier  in  1856, 
where  for  1 1  years  he  enjoyed  a  large  and 
lucrative  practice.     By  rigid  economy  and 


-=^1^1^ 


%\t 


"r^ 


^>^^^^^^^^. 


MONTPELIER. 


483 


close  attention  to  business,  lie  acquired  a 
very  respectable  competence. 

In  1866,  becoming  tired  of  riding  over 
the  adjacent  hills  at  all  hours  of  the  day 
and  night,  realizing,  as  only  a  physician 
can,  the  magnitude  of  the  burden  as  age 
advances,  which  many  times  is  a  thank- 
less task,  he  determined  to  remove  to  a 
more  densely  populated  country,  and,  after 
traveling  through  the  Western  States,  he 
purchased  a  residence  in  the  beautiful  city 
of  Winona,  Minn.,  on  the  westerly  bank 
of  the  great  Mississippi,  where,  surround- 
ed by  his  family,  possessed  of  urbanity  and 
great  good  sense,  he  enjoyed  the  confidence 
and  respect  of  his  neighbors  and  towns- 
people and  the  profession  to  which  he  be- 
longed, as  well  as  that  of  those  who  sought 
his  counsel  and  advice. 

CAPT.  NATHAN  JEWETT 

was  born  in  Hopkinton,  N.  H.,  March 
8,  1767,  and  died  in  Montpelier  Dec. 
29,  1861,  in  his  95th  year.  About  the 
time  Vermont  declared  her  independence, 
■  the  church  in  Connecticut,  which  ruled  that 
State,  commenced  a  persecution  of  the 
brethren  who  preferred  the  Cambridge 
Platform,  which  drove  several  clergymen 
and  many  excellent  men  into  other  states. 
Several  of  the  fugitives  came  to  Vermont 
and  New  Hampshire  and  settled  in  or  near 
the  Connecticut  river  valley,  and  among 
these  was  the  Hon.  Elisha  Payne,  who  was 
very  influential  in  effecting  the  two  unions 
of  New  Hampshire  towns  with  Vermont, 
and  for  a  time  held  the  offices  of  Lieut. 
Governor  and  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Vermont,  though  residing  in  what 
is  now  Lebanon,  N.  H. 

Capt.Jewett  commended  himself  to  Gov. 
Payne  so  well  that  he  won  the  Governor's 
daughter  Ruth,  born  at  Plainfield,  Conn., 
July  9,  1770,  and  married  her  Dec.  10, 
1793,  at  Lebanon.  From  this  marriage 
came  the  son,  whose  notice  follows,  and 
two  daughters  who  were  long  ornaments 
in  the  society  of  Montpelier :  Julia  Jew- 
ett,  widow  first  of  Chester  Hubbard,  a 
successful  merchant,  and  last  of  Hon.  Au- 
gustine Clarke,  who  was  State  Treasurer; 
and  Eliza  S.  Jewett,  widow  of  the    Hon. 


William  R.  Shafter,  of  Townshend.  Mrs. 
Clarke  died  June  i,  1881,  at  the  age  of 
87  years.     Mrs.  Shafter  is  still  living. 

Capt.Jewett  came  to  Montpelier  in  1807, 
and  resided  there  until  his  death,  always 
highly  respected  for  perfect  probity,  and 
generosity  beyond  his  means  in  behalf  of 
the  best  interests  of  the  community.  I 
remember  him  as  a  well  formed  man 
and  dignified  and  gentlemanly  in  his 
demeanor — qualities  which  contributed 
to  his  election  to  the  captaincy  of  the 
Washington  Artillery.  This  company  was 
specially  incorporated  as  the  Governor's 
guard,  consisted  of  picked  men,  and  was 
entirely  independent  of  other  military 
organizations.  The  dignity  of  a  Cap- 
taincy in  such  a  company  was  equal  to  that 
of  a  Major  General  of  the  militia.  Inc'eed, 
on  election  day  the  Captain  was  quite  as 
great  in  the  eyes  of  the  customary  crowd 
as  His  Excellency  the  Governor,  His  Hon- 
or the  Lieut.  Governor,  the  Honorable 
Council,  and  the  General  Assembly. 

COL.  ELISHA  PAYNE   JEWETT 

was  born  in  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  June  5th, 
1 80 1,  and  married  Miss  Julia  Kellogg 
Field,  daughter  of  the  late  Hon.  Charles 
K.  Field  of  Brattleboro,  Jan.  15,  1861. 
He  was  tiie  only  son  of  Nathan  and  Ruth 
Payne  Jewett,  and  he  has  an  only  daughter 
who  bears  her  grand-mother  Jewett's 
name. 

Col.  Jewett  at  15  years  was  apprenticed 
to  the  late  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin  as  a  clerk 
in  the  mercantile  business,  and  after  ser- 
vice for  six  years  he  engaged  in  trade  for 
himself  successfully,  in  the  firms  of  Hub- 
bard &  Jewett  and  Jewett,  Howes  &  Co. 
On  retiring  from  that  business  he  was  in- 
terested in  the  construction  of  a  portion  of 
the  Vermont  Central  Railroad,  and  of  the 
Great  Western  from  Suspension  Bridge  to 
Hamilton,  Ontario. 

Later  he  engaged  in  agriculture,  pur- 
chasing the  beautiful  farm  on  the  Winooski, 
in  the  south-west  corner  of  the  town,  on 
which  the  first  settlement  was  made.  He 
has  greatly  improved  that  farm  and  other 
lands  in  his  possession.  It  is  however 
for  Col.  Jewett's  active  exertions,  by  his 


484 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


personal  influence  and  very  generous  con- 
tributions for  tlie  good  of  liis  town,  to 
churclies,  State  houses,  and  other  things 
touching  the  interests  of  his  neighbors, 
that  he  will  long  have  "a  name  to  live." 

His  integrity  and  reputation  as  a  finan- 
cier are  fully  attested  by  the  offices  he  has 
held.  He  was  a  bank  director  in  Montpe- 
lier  for  42  years ;  president  of  the  State 
Bank  (Montpelier)  6  years ;  State  Treas- 
urer— 1846  and  7,  and  town  representative 
in  1855.  He  was  also  Presidential  Elec- 
tor at  large  in  1872.  Some  of  the  services 
of  Col.  Jewett,  in  getting  up  the  Vermont 
Central  Railroad,  have  been  already  no- 
ticed in  the  history  of  Montpelier,  but  one 
incident  remains  to  be  recorded.  The 
Vermont  Central  Railroad  never  could 
have  been  built  without  a  connecting  road 
in  New  Hampshire,  and  the  dominant  par- 
ty in  that  State  was  hostile  to  railroads. 
A  committee  of  Central  men,  of  which 
Col.  Jewett  was  one,  was  therefore  sent  to 
Concord  to  wait  upon  the  legislature  and 
secure  a  charter.  A  scheme  was  arranged 
by  Franklin  Pierce,  soon  afterwards  Presi- 
dent, Judge  Upham  and  others,  to  have 
charters  granted  on  condition  that  no  rail- 
roads should  be  built  except  on  the  con- 
sent of  a  board  of  commissioners,  who  of 
course  would  be  of  the  dominant  party. 
Col.  Jewett  therefore  ensconced  himself  at 
the  Democratic  head-quarters  and  soon 
prevailed  upon  an  influential  anti-railroad 
man  to  accept  the  office  of  cotnmissioner,  and 
the  charter  was  granted.  Soon  after- 
wards Col.  Jewett  assisted  in  Gov.  Paine's 
flank  movement  in  favor  of  the  Fitchburgh 
line,  when  the  Railroad  Commissioners 
hastened  to  approve  the  charter  of  the 
Northern  N.  H.  Railroad  Company. 

Col.  Jewett  derives  his  military  title  from 
having  been,  with  Gov.  Charles  Paine,  on 
the  staiFof  Maj.  Gen.  Ezekiel  P.  Walton. 

E.  p.  w. 

SAMUEL   WELLS. 

If  intelligent  and  successful  devotion  to 
the  highest  interests  of  a  community  for 
the  best  portion  of  a  more  than  average 
life  entitles  one  to  grateful  mention  when 
the  record  of  that  community  is  made  up, 


then  surely  does  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
deserve  a  no  mean  place  upon  the  roll  of 
honor  of  Montpelier. 

Samuel  Wells  was  born  in  Milton, 
Chittenden  County,  Vt.,  Sept.  23,  1822. 
His  father,  William  Wells,  was  a  respected 
farmer  of  that  town,  and  a  veteran  of  the 
War  of  1812,  having  served  five  years  as  a 
non-commissioned  officer.  The  record 
says  :  "He  was  in  the  expedition  which 
invaded  Canada  under  Gen.  Scott,  and 
participated  in  the  battles  of  Chippewa, 
French's  Mills,  and  the  siege  and  capture 
of  Fort  Erie.  He  was  also  one  of  the  sur- 
vivors of  the  memorable  charge  at  Lundy's 
Lane,  under  Col.  Miller,  when  two-thirds 
of  the  attacking  force  was  cut  down." 

Samuel  was  the  eldest  of  seven  children, 
five  of  whom  died  in  childhood.  With  no 
educational  advantages  in  early  life  but 
the  common  schools  of  that  day,  these 
were  so  prized  and  utilized  as  to  enable 
the  farmer  boy  himself  to  become  a  suc- 
cessful teacher  at  the  early  age  of  18.  Sub- 
sequently he  entered  the  law  office  of  Hon. 
A.  G.  Whittemore,  of  Milton,  where  he 
not  only  completed  his  course  of  legal 
studies,  but,  better  still,  became  so  thor- 
oughly imbued  with  the  high-toned  pro- 
fessional practice  and  honorable  business 
habits  of  the  distinguished  gentleman  with 
whom  he  studied,  as  to  furnish  him  a  model 
in  all  his  subsequent  life.  While  studying 
law  he  also  acquired  a  knowledge  of  prac- 
tical surveying,  which  was  of  great  service 
to  him  in  after  years. 

After  admission  to  the  bar  in  Chittenden 
County,  Mr.  Wells  opened  an  office  in 
Bakersfield,  Franklin  County,  where  he 
practiced  his  profession  for  some  two  years. 
During  this  period  he  interested  himself  in 
the  subject  of  fire  insurance,  and  finally 
became  impressed  with  the  advisability  of 
the  farmers  of  the  State  eftecting  insurance 
by  themselves,  and  thus  avoiding  liability 
for  the  more  hazardous  classes  of  fire 
risks.  Accordingly,  in  October,  1849,  he 
came  to  Montpelier,  and  after  enlisting 
other  parties,  an  application  was  made  to 
the  legislature,  then  in  session,  for  an  act 
to  incorporate  the  Fanners'  Mutual  Fire 
Insarattce  Company.     The  application  was 


^^rX^/.^^?*^/ 


MONTPELIER. 


485 


strenuously  opposed  in  various  quarters, 
but  finally  prevailed,  and  on  the  day  suc- 
ceeding its  passage  the  company  was  or- 
ganized. At  this  organization  Mr.  Wells 
was  chosen  Treasurer  and  also  a  Director 
of  the  company,  both  of  which  positions  he 
continued  to  hold  by  unanimous  annual 
elections  for  28  years,  and  until  the  day  of 
his  death.  With  a  single  exception,  there 
was  not  another  instance  of  like  service  in 
the  history  of  the  company.  With  that 
exception,  not  one  of  the  original  Directors 
remained  in  office,  and  ten  out  of  the  fifteen 
had  long  before  passed  away. 

With  his  company  organized,  Mr.  Wells 
entered  at  once  upon  the  discharge  of  his 
official  duties  with  all  the  ardor  of  his  na- 
ture, and  in  an  almost  incredibly  brief 
period  of  time  the  "  Farmers'  Mutual" 
became  one  of  the  established  and  honored 
institutions  of  the  State.  It  was  both  the 
pride  and  monument  of  all  his  after  life. 
Its  management  led  him  to  visit  all  sec- 
tions of  the  State,  and  he  thus  became 
more  generally  and  favorably  known  than 
falls  to  the  lot  of  most  of  our  public  men. 
Of  the  three  thousand  losses  which  the  com- 
pany sustained  prior  to  his  death,  he 
doubtless  personally  adjusted  more  than 
one-half,  and  no  party  ever  had  reason  to 
accuse  him  of  injustice  or  trickery.  Of  all 
the  moneys  which  he  recieved  and  dis- 
bursed as  treasurer  of  the  company — 
amounting  to  nearly  a  million  of  dollars — 
not  a  single  dollar  was  ever  misappropriat- 
ed to  his  personal  advantage  or  diverted 
from  its  legitimate  use. 

But  fidelity  to  these  public  trusts  by  no 
means  circumscribed  or  measured  the  ex- 
tent and  value  of  his  services  to  the  im- 
mediate community  in  which  he  lived. 
With  a  generous  spirit,  and  a  ready  and 
skillful  hand,  he  welcomed  all  the  broad 
and  varied  duties  of  the  good  citizen. 
His  own  limited  advantages  for  early  edu- 
cation led  him  to  devise  liberal  things  for 
the  youth  of  later  generations.  The  long 
and  bitter  struggle  which  finally  resulted 
in  the  establishment  of  Montpelier's  ex- 
cellent Union  School,  was  inaugurated  by 
Mr.  Wells  and  three   or  four   associates. 


and  the  almost  endless  and  delicate  labor 
required  to  supersede  the  time-honored 
district  system  by  the  infinitely  better  plan 
of  miion  and  gradation,  with  all  the  legis- 
lation needful  to  render  it  complete  and 
harmonious,  devolved  more  largely  upon 
him  than  upon  any  other  one  individual. 
And  for  several  years  after  the  new  system 
was  adopted  he  afforded  it  the  benefit  of 
his  aid  and  counsel  as  a  member  of  the 
prudential  committee.  The  same  is  true 
of  the  excellent  Fire  Department,  which 
has  been  maintained  during  the  last  25 
years.  An  entire  re-organization  was  ef- 
fected, improved  engines  purchased,  new 
companies  formed  and  equipped,  and  a 
new  departure  in  discipline  and  efficiency 
taken,  largely  through  his  instrumentality. 
For  several  years  he  held  the  responsible 
position  of  chief  engineer,  and  was  a  lead- 
ing actor  in  this  department  long  after 
failing  health  warned  him  to  desist. 

In  1870,  in  consultation  with  others,  he 
procured  the  chartering  of  the  Montpelier 
Savings  Bank  and  Trust  Company,  of 
which  he  was  one  of  the  corporators — an 
institution  now,  (1881,)  with  more  than 
half  a  milhon  dollars  of  deposits  and  cap- 
ital. In  1874  he  obtained  the  charter  of 
the  Union  Mutual  Fire  Instirance  Com- 
pa7iy,  with  a  view  of  providing  insurance  in 
home  companies  for  such  classes  of  prop- 
erty as  could  not  be  insured  in  the  Farm- 
ers' Company,  and  which  had  hitherto 
been  compelled  to  seek  accommodation 
largely  outside  of  the  State.  In  this  com- 
pany he  was  an  active  director  until  his 
death. 

In  1872  he  became  impressed  with  the 
absolute  need  of  a  better  water  supply  for 
the  village,  and  with  such  aid  as  he  could 
commanjl,  secured  the  consideration  of  the 
subject  at  the  annual  village  meeting  of 
that  year,  which  resulted  in  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  committee  to  examine  and  re- 
port upon  the  desirability  of  the  general 
project,  and  the  comparative  merits  of  the 
several  sources  of  supply.  Mr.  Wells  was 
chairman  of  that  committee,  and  much 
time  and  labor  were  expended  in  the  ex- 
amination of  localities,  analysis  of  waters, 
survey  of  routes,  and  estimates  of  the  cost 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  material  and  construction — all  of  which 
was  submitted  in  an  exhaustive  printed  re- 
port at  the  annual  village  meeting  of  1873. 
That  report  strongly  recommended  that 
the  supply  be  taken  from  Berlin  Pond 
brook,  and  that  the  work  be  undertaken  at 
once ;  and  the  reasons  given  for  that  re- 
commendation have  never  been  contro- 
verted. When  the  village  finally  decides 
to  meet  this  imperative  necessity — and  it 
is  believed  that  that  time  is  in  the  very 
near  future — it  will  be  found  that  the  work 
is  all  plainly  mapped  out  in  Mr.  Wells' 
report  of  1873. 

Charters  for  the  Montpelier  Matuifacticr- 
ingCompafiyzndi  also  the  Pioneer  Manufac- 
turing  Co7npany,  were  prepared  and  their 
enactment  procured  by  him,  the  establish- 
ment of  which  have  added  largely  to  the 
population  and  industrial  interests  of  the 
town ;  and  if  all  the  benefits  anticipated 
therefrom  have  not  been  realized,  it  is 
solely  because  the  monied  men  of  the 
place  persistently  withheld  their  pecuniary 
aid  and  fostering  care.  Mr.  Wells  also 
actively  aided  in  the  work  of  securing  the 
Wells  River  railroad,  and  expended  no 
little  time  and  labor  in  efforts  to  secure  other, 
in  some  respects  better,  connecting  railway 
lines.  He  was  principally  instrumental  in 
the  purchase  and  fitting  up  of  Village  Hall, 
which  has  ever  since  not  only  supplied  an 
essential  need,  but  proved  a  source  of  no 
small  profit  to  the  village  ;  also  the  Town 
Farm,  where  our  poor,  whom  we  "always 
have  with  us,"  find  a  comfortable  asylum. 
And  while  acting  as  one  of  the  "Fathers 
of  the  town,"  which  he  did  for  several 
years,  it  is  far  within  the  truth  to  say  that 
more  was  accomplished  by  way  of  opening 
new  streets,  improving  old  ones,  extending 
and  repairing  sidewalks,  providing  suitable 
drainage,  and  improving  the  external  and 
sanitary  condition  of  the  village,  than  was 
ever  effected' in  the  same  length  of  time  be- 
fore or  since.  These,  and  nameless  kin- 
dred enterprises,  show  the  creating,  shap- 
ing and  fostering  hand  of  Mr.  Wells,  and 
generations  yet  to  come  will  share  the  ben- 
efits of  his  generous  and  self-denying 
labors.  Nor  did  he  shrink  from  assuming 
his  full  proportion  of  the  burdens  of  these 


public  improvements,  for  the  records  of 
each  one  will  testify  to  an  outlay  of  time, 
labor  and  money  which  furnish  the  best 
possible  guaranty  of  good  faith,  and  which 
show  a  degree  of  liberality  entirely  dispro- 
portioned  to  his  means.  And  while  the 
more  conservative  portion  of  the  commu- 
nity looked  upon  some  of  his  enterprises  as 
visionary  and  impracticable,  time  is  rapidly 
demonstrating  that  his  only  misfortune  was 
to  be  but  a  tithe  as  far  in  advance  of  the 
times  as  his  critics  were  in  the  rear. 

Though  the  general  practice  of  the  law 
was  abandoned  on  coming  to  Montpelier, 
Mr.  Wells  nevertheless  retained  his  con- 
nection with  the  bar,  making  a  specialty 
of  insurance  law  and  practice.  He  was  in- 
dustrious and  thorough  in  the  preparation 
of  his  cases,  and  sought  for  the  solid 
ground  of  equity,  which  he  regarded  as  the 
very  essence  of  law.  Some  points  of  in- 
surance law  of  the  first  importance  became 
permanently  settled  through  his  instru- 
mentality. 

In  politics  Mr.  Wells  was  an  unwaver- 
ing Democrat,  thoroughly  imbued  with 
the  principles  of  the  schools  of  Jefferson 
and  Jackson.  He  was  unskilled  in  the 
party  tactics  of  modern  times,  and  might 
well  have  said,  with  Addison : 

"  Believe  who  will  the  artful  shams— not  I." 

However,  he  followed  the  fortunes  of 
his  party,  and  the  esteem  in  which  he  was 
held  by  his  associates  is  well  certified  by 
his  having  been  made  at  different  elections 
their  candidate  for  Congress,  State  Treas- 
urer and  Presidential  elector,  and  also 
chosen  a  member  of  the  State  Committee 
and  chairman  of  the  District  Committee. 
He  was  also  made  a  candidate  for  various 
county  offices.  His  party  being  uniformly 
in  the  minority,  however,  he  received  no 
elections  to  office  save  such  as  were  con- 
ferred by  his  political  opponents ;  but  in 
such  esteem  was  he  held  that  for  many 
years  he  was  chosen  a  selectman,  town 
agent  and  justice  of  the  peace. 

The  leading  traits  of  Mr.  Wells'  char- 
acter were  well  stated  by  one  of  the  local 
papers  at  the  time  of  his  decease  : 

"  Montpelier  had  no  better  citizen  than 
Samuel  Wells.     Honest  in  all  his  convic- 


\m^\ 


■"s._ 


\ 


MONTPELIER. 


487 


tions  and  actions  ;  public-spirited  and  lib- 
eral in  all  projects  for  the  general  good  ; 
favoring  all  improvements  that  promised 
to  enhance  the  prosperity  of  the  town ; 
very  generous  in  aiding  all  objects  of  char- 
ity ;  ever  ready  to  assist  those  who  were 
trying  to  assist  themselves  ;  careful  in  form- 
ing opinions,  and  then  courageous  in  avow- 
ing and  standing  by  them  ;  a  considerate 
and  kind-hearted  man,  a  true  friend,  an 
excellent  neighbor,  an  affectionate  husband 
and  father,  he  was  one  of  those  whose  true 
worth  will  be  more  and  more  realized  as 
time  develops  what  was  lost  when  he  was 
taken.  His  proudest  monument  will  be 
that  all  are  fully  justified  in  speaking  well 
of  him,  and  that  he  was  really  an  honest 
man — "the  noblest  work  of  God."  Than 
this,  no  higher  eulogy  can  be  given  any 
man." 

Though  not  a  communicant,  Mr.  Wells 
was  a  habitual  attendant  and  liberal  sup- 
porter of  Bethany  church.  For  many 
years  he  served  upon  its  prudential  com- 
mittee, and  had  the  custody,  as  surveyor, 
of  its  church  edifice. 

In  Sept.  1854,  Mr.  Wells  was  married 
to  Mary  P.  Leslie,  of  Newbury,  who,  to- 
gether with  two  daughters,  survives  him, 
a  son  having  died  in  childhood. 

Jan.  31,  1878,  before  completing  his  57th 
year,  Mr.  Wells  died — prematurely,  as  the 
record  runs  and  as  the  world  judges  ;  but 

"  We  live  in  deeds,  not  years ;  in  tlioughts,  not  breatlis ; 
In  feelings,  not  in  figures  on  a  dial. 

He  most  lives 

Who  tliinks  most,  feels  the  noblest,  acts  the  best." 

Judged  by  this  standard. 


"The  hand  of  the  reaper 
Sought  the  ears  that  were  hoary." 


J- 


HON.  JOHN   SPALDING, 

son  of  Reuben  Spalding  of  Sharon,  born 
1790,  died  April  26,  1S70,  in  his  8ist  year. 
He  came  to  Montpelier  in  18 13,  and  en- 
tered into  trade  for  himself,  and  afterwards 
was  a  partner  in  the  firms  of  Chester  Hub- 
bard &  Spalding,  Langdon  &  Spalding, 
Langdon,  Spalding  &  Co.,  and  John  & 
Charles  Spalding,  retiring  from  mercantile 
employments  in  1840,  after  which  he  spent 
much  of  his  time  in  agricultural  pursuits. 
He  married  a  daughter  of  Hon.  Salvin 
Collins,  who  bore  him  two  sons  and  three 
daughters,  John  and  Eliza  now  [1881] 
only   surviving.     Judge    Spalding    was   a 


large  and  good  looking  man,  of  a  kind 
disposition,  and  exxessively  affectionate  to 
his  children.  His  integrity  was  undoubt- 
ed, and  so  earned  for  him  the  responsible 
offices  which  he  held.  He  was  some  time 
Director  and  President  of  the  old  Bank  of 
Montpelier,  and  also  President  of  the  Ver- 
mont Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company, 
Judge  of  Washington  County  Court  1840, 
and  State  Treasurer  1841  to  1846. 

MAJ.  RICHARD   W.  HYDE 

was  born  in  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  Oct.  11, 
1801,  died  in  Montpelier  Nov.  13,  1865. 
He  came  of  good  stock,  which  contributed 
many  good  men  to  this  State,  Lieut.  Elihu 
Hyde  having  served  as  representative  for 
Lebanon  in  our  Legislature  1781,  under 
the  second  union  with  New  Hampshire 
towns,  and  been  commissioned  as  a  mag- 
istrate. Maj.  Hyde  came  to  MontpeHer  in 
1828,  and  lived  thereuntil  his  death.  The 
following  account  of  his  business  life,  and 
beautiful  tribute  to  his  character,  from  the 
pen  of  the  late  Hon.  C.  W.  Willard,  writ- 
ten in  Nov.  1865,  will  make  the  best  biog- 
raphy of  this  worthy  man. 

"  Some  35  years  ago  Major  Hyde  came  to 
Montpelier  and  embarked  in  mercantile 
business,  which  he  followed  without  inter- 
ruption and  with  well-merited  success  up 
to  the  time  of  his  death — at  which  time  he 
was  senior  partner  of  the  firm  of  Hyde, 
Foster  &  Co.,  a  house  of  the  first  respecta- 
bility and  prosperity.  The  gradual  but 
steady  success  which  attended  the  busi- 
ness life  of  Mr.  Hyde  through,  all  those 
years  which  brought  vicissitudes  to  perhaps 
most  of  his  cotemporaries,  was  the  result 
of  no  tricks  of  trade  or  hazardous  specula- 
tion ;  but  the  legitimate  fruit  of  enlighten- 
ed judgment  and  honorable  dealing.  And 
his  example  in  this  respect, now  bequeathed 
to  the  junior  members  of  the  firm,  is  a  rich 
legacy  in  itself,  and  a  sure  harbinger  of 
success  if  properly  followed. 

"  But  Mr.  Hyde's  business  habits  in  no 
degree  rendered  him  indifferent  or  narrow- 
minded  in  respect  to  the  best  interests  of 
our  community.  No  man  among  us  more 
heartily  seconded  all  enlightened  plans  to 
promote  the  material   interests   and  pros- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


parity  of  the  town — to  improve  our  schools 
— to  build  and  support  our  churches — to 
meet  the  calls  of  general  benevolence  and 
charity,  and  especially  to  supply  the  neces- 
sities of  the  poor. 

"  In  his  political  associations  Mr.  Hyde 
was  a  life-long  democrat ;  but  with  him 
democracy  meant  patriotism,  and  he  re- 
fused to  follow  any  banner  but  the  flag 
of  his  country.  And  during  the  late  war 
no  man  in  the  community  labored  more 
earnestly  or  contributed  more  freely  than 
he  to  furnish  men  and  means  for  bearing 
that  loved  banner  onward  to  victory  and 
peace.  Thank  God  that  he  lived  to  see 
the  desire  of  his  heart  granted  ! 

"Mr.  Hyde  himself  was  no  stranger  to 
bereavement.  Death  had  repeatedly  vis- 
ited his  family,  and  stirred  to  their  very 
depths  the  deep  fountains  of  his  nature. 
But  his  great,  loving  heart,  so  susceptible 
of  grief,  turned  as  if  by  superior  attraction 
to  the  still  greater  and  more  loving  heart 
of  the  Father  of  us  all ;  and  here  he  found, 
not  only  consolation  in  his  grief,  but  a  firm 
foundation  for  his  religious  creed,  in  the 
confident  belief  that  the  Infinite  God,  who 
desires  the  salvation  of  all,  will  bring  them 
in  His  own  good  time  and  manner  to  the 
joys  of  His  heavenly  home. 

"The  home  of  Mr.  Hyde  was  proverbially 
the  abode  of  hospitality  and  good  cheer. 
Here  all  ages  and  conditions  found  a  com- 
panion and  friend.  Here  the  benevolence 
and  geniality  of  his  nature  were  fully  de- 
veloped, and  from  this  central  .sun  influen- 
ces of  love  and  good  will  radiated  through 
all  the  community.  To  his  beloved  fami- 
ly the  loss  is  unspeakable — inconceivable. 
We  offer  no  word  of  consolation,  for  vain 
is  the  help  of  man.  The  profound  respect 
and  sympathy  of  the  community  was  appro- 
priately manifested  on  the  occasion  of  the 
funeral,  by  the  closing  of  our  places  of 
business,  and  the  attendance  of  a  large 
concourse  of  people  to  mingle  their  tears 
with  the  bereaved,  and  testify  their  grief 
that  the  manly  form,  the  pleasant  smile 
and  the  cheering  voice  of  our  departed 
friend  would  be  seen  and  heard  among  us 
no  more  forever. 


"  As  we  conveyed  the  mortal  remains  of 
our  departed  brother  to  their  chosen  rest- 
ing-place in  our  beautiful  Cemetery,  toward 
the  close  of  a  pleasant  autumn  day,  with 
the  partially-veiled  sun  sinking  tranquilly 
to  his  rest,  and  committed  "earth  to  earth 
and  dust  to  dust,"  commending  his  spirit 
to  Him  who  is  the  Resurrection  and  the 
Life, — we  could  but  inwardly  exclaim — 

"  Be  thy  virtues  with  the  living. 
And  thy  spirit  ours," 

Maj.  Hyde  first  engaged  in  the  bakery 
business  as  junior  member  in  the  firm  of 
Cross  &  Hyde,  and  this  was  followed  by 
the  large  mercantile  business  above  allud- 
ed to.  He  left,  surviving,  a  son,  Edward 
D.  Hyde,  who  has  succeeded  to  his  fath- 
er's business,  and  two  daughters — all  borne 
to  him  by  Sarah  L.,  youngest  daughter  of 
the  late  Jacob  F.  Dodge  of  Montpelier. 

JAMES     T.     THURSTON. 

BY  nOX.   C.  W.  WILLAKD. 

The  death  of  James  Tottingham  Thurs- 
ton, long  a  resident  of  Montpelier,  de- 
mands of  the  public  journalist  more  than 
the  mere  mention  of  his  decease  ;  and  per- 
haps here,  even  more  than  ordinarily  hap- 
pens with  men  of  equal  worth,  because  he 
never  by  any  ostentation  of  virtue  seemed 
to  challenge  commendation,  is  it  proper 
that  we  should  recognize  the  value  of  a 
life  singularly  industrious,  honest  and  tem- 
perate, successful  in  its  connection  with 
business  interests  and  public  concerns,  dear 
to  those  who  had  the  pleasure  of  his  friend- 
ship, and  made  happy  by  the  love  of  those 
who  enjoyed  the  affection  of  his  home. 

Mr.  Thurston  was  the  son  of  Moses 
Thurston  and  Hannah  Bolton  Thurston, 
and  was  born  in  Cambridge,  Vt.,  Feb.  19, 
18 1 8.  His  father  was  a  farmer,  and  the 
education  of  which  the  son  had  the  bene- 
fit at  home  was  only  such  as  a  youth  of 
quickness  of  intellect  could  obtain  in  the 
common  schools  of  the  town,  at  a  time 
when  such  schools  could  hardly  be  called 
institutions  of  learning,  but  only  served  to 
give  boys  an  acquaintance  with  the  rudi- 
ments of  knowledge.  He  came  to  Mont- 
pelier when  he  was  15  years  of  age,  living 
with  his  brother-in-law,  Henry  W.  Sabin, 
and  serving  part  of  the  time  as  his  clerk, 


MONTPELIER. 


4^9 


attending  for  two  or  three  years  the  dis- 
trict school  during  the  winter  months, 
and  possibly  a  term  or  two  at  the  academy. 
His  after  life,  however,  served  to  show 
how  little  the  fitness  for  responsible  po- 
sitions and  ability  to  do  well  everything 
that  a  prominent  business  man  and  citizen 
has  to  do,  depends  upon  the  learning  of 
the  schools.  In  1838,  he  was  employed 
as  clerk  in  the  Vermont  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Company,  where  he  performed  his 
work  so  satisfactorily,  that  in  1842  he  was 
made  treasurer  of  the  company.  This 
position  he  occupied — with  the  exception 
of  a  period  of  14  months  in  1850-51,  when 
he  acted  as  secretary  of  the  National  Life 
Insurance  Company — for  32  years.  At 
the  time  he  was  made  treasurer,  Daniel 
Baldwin  was  president  of  the  company, 
and  such  men  as  Joseph  Reed,  Joseph 
Howes,  John  Spalding  and  George  Worth- 
ington  were  active  directors.  The  com- 
pany then,  though  well  established,  was 
doing  a  small  business  in  comparison  with 
what  it  afterwards  commanded,  and  no 
small  share  of  its  subsequent  success  is 
due  to  the  faithful  and  intelligent  labors  of 
its  treasurer.  In  1874,  Mr.  Thurston  was 
made  president,  succeeding  Mr.  Baldwin, 
who  had  held  the  office  34  years.  In  1877, 
he  resigned  the  office  on  account  of  his  in- 
creasing infirmity,  which  made  even  its 
lightest  duties  a  severe  tax  upon  his 
strength. 

Mr.  Thurston  was,  besides  his  connec- 
tion with  the  Fire  Insurance  Company,  a 
director  of  the  National  Life  Insurance 
Company  from  1852,  until  his  death,  and 
for  nearly  the  whole  time  a  trusted  and 
continually-consulted  member  of  its  finan- 
cial committee.  He  was  also  a  director  of 
the  First  National  Bank  of  Montpelier 
from  its  organization,  and  his  acquaintance 
with  men  and  affairs  and  his  prudent  judg- 
ment made  him  a  valuable  officer.  He  was 
at  different  times  clerk,  selectman  and 
lister  of  Montpelier,  and  latterly  for  many 
years  a  favorite  presiding  officer  in  town 
and  public  meetings. 

In  politics  Mr.  Thurston  was,  until  1861, 
a  democrat,  and  associated  with  such  dem- 

62 


ocrats  as  Paul  Dillingham,  Daniel  Bald- 
win, Chas.  G.  Eastman,  T.  P.  Redfield, 
Charles  Reed,  John  A.  Page,  Stephen 
Thomas  and  W.  H.  H.  Bingham.  He  was 
the  candidate  of  that  party  for  state  treas- 
urer from  1856  to  i860.  Since  the  com- 
mencement of  the  rebellion  in  1861,  he  has 
acted  and  voted  with  the  republican  party. 
He  was  not,  however,  either  as  democrat 
or  republican,  a  zealous  partisan,  but  al- 
ways held  his  opinions  of  public  men  and 
measures  subject  to  his  intelligent  estimate 
of  their  real  worth  without  much  respect 
for  their  party  labels. 

Mr.  Thurston  united  with  the  Congrega- 
tional church  in  Montpelier,  where  he  had 
formerly  worshipped,  in  1858,  was  a  mem- 
ber of  its  communion  at  his  decease,  and 
a  regular  attendant  upon  its  services  when 
his  health  permitted.  His  religion  was  a 
matter  of  judgment  rather  than  of  emotion, 
a  belief  in  the  present  value  of  an  upright 
life  rather  than  in  the  saving  power  of 
ecstatic  states  of  mind  or  unreasoning  faith 
in  creeds — in  short,  an  intelligent,  con- 
sistent, exemplary,  practical  Christianity, 
a  Christianity  that  believes  the  road  to 
Heaven  should  be  traveled  not  on  Sundays 
alone,  but  on  other  days  in  the  week  as 
well. 

In  1843,  Mr.  Thurston  was  married  to 
Fanny  W.  Witherell,  of  Montpelier,  who 
died  in  1865,  leaving  one  son,  John  B. 
Thurston,  now  a  respected  citizen  of 
Montpelier.  Afterward,  Mr.  Thurston 
married  Mrs.  Sevira  J.  Currier,  of  Mont- 
pelier, who  survives  him.  His  home  was 
a  delight  to  him  and  to  those  under  its 
roof,  a  place  to  which  he  always  turned 
with  fondness  and  longing  when  away,  a 
home  now  darkened  by  the  shadow  of 
death. 

It  may  justly  be  said  of  Mr.  Thurston's 
life  that  it  was  calm  and  steady,  flowing 
like  the  current  of  a  river  that,  between 
even  banks,  keeps  its  quiet  course  to  the 
sea.  He  was  a  conservative  rather  than  a 
reformer,  but  conservative  more  in  action 
than  in  thought,  as  often  happens  with 
men  of  a  temper  seldom  stirred  by  the 
heats  of  passion  or  emotion  ;  but  no  gen- 
uine reform  that  commended  itself  to  the 


490 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


sober  judgment  ever  lacked  his  sympathy 
or  support.  Rev.  Mr.  Hincks,  in  remarks 
at  the  funeral  service,  said  that  Mr. 
Thurston  was  not  aggressive  in  his  re- 
ligion ;  and  he  might  have  said  with  equal 
justice  that  he  did  not  belong  to  the  ag- 
gressive type  of  man.  He  was  not  of  the 
men  who  found  states  and  conquer  king- 
doms, but  of  the  other  equally  valuable 
men  who  hold  fast  the  progress  already 
made,  yet  never  refuse  to  advance  when 
new  ideas  open  the  way.  He  had  a  lively 
sense  of  humor,  a  rare  appreciation  of  the 
ridiculous,  was  a  keen  observer  of  men,  en- 
joyed a  good  story  and  told  one  exceeding- 
ly well,  and  was  genial  and  witty  as  well  as 
philosophic  and  thoughtful  in  conversa- 
tion. He  was  quick  to  see  the  force  of  logic, 
just  and  intelligent  in  his  estimate  of  his 
associates  and  the  men  of  his  time,  always- 
giving  countenance  and  aid  to  every  work 
that  met  his  approval,  liberal  in  contribu- 
tions to  all  benevolent  objects,  ready  to 
aid  with  his  labor  and  his  purse  every  en- 
terprise that  contributed  to  the  growth, 
the  reputation  and  the  influence  of  his 
town,  faithful  to  his  many  friends,  and  not 
unjust  to  his  few  enemies.  He  had  a  ju- 
dicial temper  of  mind,  that  peculiar  excel- 
lence which  commands  respect  rather  in 
the  long  run  than  in  moments  of  excitement 
and  the  heat  of  controversy,  that  calmness 
that  not  seldom  frets  impatient  minds  be- 
cause it  does  not  jump  with  their  conclu- 
sions and  run  with  their  speed,  but  which 
always  proves  its  worth  and  vindicates 
itself  as  time  wears  on.  He  loved  life,  and 
had  joy  in  living.  In  his  long  struggle 
with  disease,  he  would  gladly  have  wel- 
comed returning  health,  for  the  delight  he 
always  found  in  seeing  the  faces  and  hear- 
ing the  voices  of  his  friends,  for  his  love 
for  the  sweet  pleasures  which  nature  in  a 
hundred  ways  offered  to  him,  and  for  the 
sense  of  being  a  part  of  a  living,  moving 
world.  Yet  he  met  his  death  patiently, 
without  vain  regrets,  mourning  most  of  all 
that  with  those  he  loved  so  well  he  should 
no  more  from  our  breezy  hills  look  out  on 
the  fair  pictures  that  summer  and  autumn 
spread  over  our  mountains  and  along  our 
valleys,  nor  hear  the   "various  language" 


which  nature  addresses  to  him  who,  in 
love  of  her,  "holds  communion  with  her 
visible  forms." 

The  writer  of  this  notice  cannot  forbear 
adding  to  this  imperfect  sketch  an  expres- 
sion of  his  own  high  esteem  for  Mr. 
Thurston,  and  his  sense  of  personal  sorrow 
at  his  death.  An  acquaintance  for  more 
than  a  score  of  years,  much  of  the  time 
familiar  and  friendly,  had  revealed  many 
of  his  excellent  qualities  of  mind  and 
heart,  but  three  months  spent  last  winter 
with  him  in  a  far-away,  sunny  valley  of 
the  Ozark  mountains,  and  the  daily  de- 
lights of  a  cordial,  frank,  confiding  com- 
panionship, ripened  this  friendship  of  so 
many  years  into  a  warm  personal  attach- 
ment that  will  ever  be  a  treasured  memory 
to  him  who  survives. 

From  the  Resolutions  passed  by  the  Vt. 
Mutual  Fire  Ins.  Co.  after  his  death,  we 
give: 

Be  it  resolved,  we  deeply  feel  and  mourn 
the  loss  of  James  T.  Thurston,  our  true 
friend  and  associate,  whose  upright  de- 
portment, integrity  of  character,  good 
judgment  and  usefulness  as  a  citizen  en- 
deared him  to  all,  especially  to  us  who 
knew  him  so  well.  May  his  many  virtues 
be  ever  cherished  by  us,  and  be  an  exam- 
ple for  those  that  follow  him.  May  we  re- 
member in  the  words  so  often  quoted  by 
him,  "  'Tis  not  all  of  life  to  live,  nor  all  ot 
death  to  die." 

And  from  the  resolutions  passed  by  the 
National  Life  Insurance  Co: 

Resolved,  that  we  sincerely  mourn  and 
profoundly  regret  the  death  of  our  friend 
and  associate,  James  T.  Thurston,  whose 
quick  perception,  great  caution,  sound 
judgment,  unblemished  character,  and  per- 
fect integrity,  together  with  other  credit- 
able qualities  of  his  head  and  heart,  have 
endeared  him  to  us  for  many  years.  His 
many  virtues  will  be  long  remembered  by 
us  the  survivors.     ''May  he  rest  in  peace.'"' 

JOSEPH   W.  WHEELOCK. 

[From  .an  article  by  Hou.  CuAiiLES  W.  Willard  in 

the  Green  Moiuilain  Freeman  of  Marcli  1,  J87fi.] 

Joseph  Wilson  Wheelock,  who  died  at 
his  home  in  Berlin,  Feb.  23,  1876,  was 
born  in  Eden.  His  father,  Martin  Whee- 
lock, had  5  sons  and  2  daughters.  Joseph 
had  a  common  school  education,  and  when 


MONTPELIER. 


491 


about  18  entered  the  office  of  the  SL  Al- 
bans Messenger,  learned  the  printer's 
trade;  remained  till  Aug.,  1847;  then 
worked  at  his  trade  in  the  office  of  the 
Green  Mountain  Gazette,  at  Bradford  about 
5  years,  and  came,  Feb.,  1852,  to  Montpe- 
lier,  as  foreman  into  the  office  of  the 
Green  Mountain  Freeman,  of  which  the 
late  Hon.  D.  P.  Thompson  was  proprietor 
and  editor,  and  remained  in  charge  of  that 
office,  as  foreman,  during  the  proprietor- 
ship of  Judge  Thompson,  and  that  of  S.  S. 
Boyce,  and  from  April,  1861,  to  Jan.,  1869, 
while  Mr.  Willard  owned  the  paper.  Mr. 
Boyce,  during  his  ownership  of  the  Free- 
tnan,  purchased  the  subscription  list,  and 
became  the  publisher  of  the  Vermont 
Christian  Messenger,  and  the  Messenger 
has  been  published  at  the  Freeman  office 
since  that  time.  Jah.,  1869,  Mr.  Whee- 
lock  became  a  half  owner  of  the  Freeman 
and  Messenger  subscription  list  and  print- 
ing establishment,  and  from  that  time  had 
the  entire  management  of  the  business  of 
the  office,  and  the  practical  management 
of  the  papers  until  Jan.,  1873.  when  he 
purchased  Mr.  Willard's  remaining  inter- 
est in  the  business,  and  became  and  re- 
mained managing  editor  and  proprietor 
until  his  decease. 

Mr.  Wheelock's  active  life  was  in  the 
printing  office,  and  was  identified  with  his 
craft.  Few  men  have  had  a  busier  life,  or 
one  into  which  more  work  has  been  crowd- 
ed. For  many  years  subject  to  an  infirmi- 
ty which  made  office  work  often  painful, 
he  never  shirked  any  of  the  responsibili- 
ties of  his  position,  but  often  insisted, 
against  the  remonstrance  of  his  employers 
on  undertaking  work  that  could  only  be 
done  by  giving  his  own  labor  at  unusual 
hours.  In  that  respect,  he  always  held  his 
personal  comfort  subordinate  to  his  devo- 
tion to  the  business  in  hand.  He  seemed 
more  solicitous  to  make  his  service  for 
others  profitable,  than  to  spare  himself, 
and  when  he  became  owner  of  the  print- 
ing establishment,  almost  for  the  first 
time  began  to  take  an  occasional  rest  from 
the  exacting  duties  of  the  office  ;  yet  never, 
until  compelled  to  keep  away  by  his  final 


illness,  quite  surrendered  an  immediate 
supervision,  as  in  the  former  days  when, 
as  foreman,  no  detail  of  the  work  escaped 
his  notice,  and  his  hand  was  ready  at  the 
case,  at  the  make-up,  or  at  the  press,  as 
the  exigency  might  require. 

He  seemed  to  have  no  ambitions  out- 
side of  his  profession ;  yet  he  had,  un- 
doubtedly, the  aspiration  of  the  true  men 
of  his  profession  to  become  the  owner  and 
manager  of  an  influential  newspaper,  and 
he  deservedly  reached  that  position.  But, 
unfortunately,  his  strength  was  then  too 
much  broken  by  the  gathering  forces  of 
the  disease  that  he  had  fought  against  so 
stoutly  for  years,  to  admit  of  his  doing  for 
the  papers  he  managed,  what  he  would 
otherwise  have  clone.  He  appeared  to  an- 
ticipate this,  and  hesitated  as  to  the  pur- 
chase of  Mr.  Willard's  half  of  the  paper, 
because  he  feared  his  health  was  gradually 
but  surely  failing  him,  and  finally  made 
the  venture  rather  to  establish  his  sons  in 
business  than  on  his  own  account.  With 
the  valuable  acquaintance  with  public  men 
and  public  affairs  which  his  long  connec- 
tion with  a  newspaper  at  the  Capital  of 
the  State  gave  him,  and  with  the  higher 
education  as  an  editor,  which  an  intelligent 
man  gets  in  a  printing  office  better  than 
anywhere  else,  Mr.  Wheelock  was  as  well 
fitted  to  be  the  manager  of  a  leading  Ver- 
mont newspaper  as  any  person  in  the 
State ;  but  the  printing  department  drew 
him  quite  too  much  away  from  the  edito- 
rial room  for  •  his  own  reputation  as  a 
writer  and  editor.  While  Mr.  Willard  was 
editor  of  the  Freeman,  Mr.  Wheelock 
wrote  many  articles  for  which  others  got 
undeserved  credit,  some  of  them  having 
been  copied  as  widely  and  with  as  much 
appreciation  as  anything  ever  written  for 
the  Freeman.  His  style  as  a  writer  was 
clear,  graceful  in  turn  of  expression,  and 
forcible  and  pointed  enough  to  leave  no 
doubt  of  his  meaning,  a  compliment  that 
cannot  always  be  paid  to  editorials  in 
either  country  or  city  newspapers.  He 
had,  moreover,  what  his  readers  will  call 
to  mind,  a  vein  of  wit  and  humor  in  idea 
and  expression,  which  made  some  of  his 


492 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


descriptive  articles  highly  enjoyable,  and 
established  for  him  a  reputation  among  his 
contemporaries  as  one  who  had  few  equals 
and  no  superiors  in  that  really  difficult, 
yet  very  popular  kind  of  newspaper  writ- 
ing. If  he  had  devoted  himself,  as  he  was 
often  advised,  more  to  editing  his  paper 
and  less  to  printing  it,  he  would  have 
achieved  a  reputation  second  to  that  of 
no  editor  in  the  State,  and  would  very 
likely  have  prolonged  a  life  in  a  large  de- 
gree useful  to  his  friends  and  to  the  public. 

Mr.  Wheelock's  residence,  for  most  of 
the  time  he  was  connected  with  the  Free- 
tnan,  was  just  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Winooski  river  in  Berlin.  He  was  for  a 
long  time  clerk  and  treasurer  of  that  town, 
and  represented  it  two  years  in  the  legis- 
lature. He  was  one  of  the  most  trusted 
advisers  of  the  authorities  of  the  town,  was 
ever  solicitous  for  its  interests,  and,  ap- 
parently without  effort  to  become  so,  was 
influential  in  all  town  matters.  In  the 
politics  of  the  town  and  of  the  county  his 
judgment  and  advice  were  always  prudent 
and  wise,  and  wene  listened  to  and  followed 
as  often  and  as  far  as  those  of  any  other 
man.  A  robust  common  sense,  a  quick 
understanding  of  men,  a  plain  and  direct 
method  of  dealing  with  men  and  meas- 
ures, a  faithfulness  and  integrity  in  his 
associations  which  made  others  believe  in 
him  and  trust  him,  were  the  elements  of 
character  which  gave  him  strength  with 
his  fellows,  and  won  for  him  the  good 
name  which  he  enjoyed  and  merited,  but 
he  was  almost  bashful  in  his  modesty,  and 
was  best  known  for  the  really  strong  man 
he  was  by  his  intimates  and  those  who 
sought  his  advice.  *  *  *  fhe  strug- 
gle and  the  pain,  as  well  as  the  joy 
and  hope,  of  life  for  him  are  over,  while 
yet  he  was  scarcely  past  the  prime  of  his 
years  ;  but  he  performed  each  day  the  duty 
the  day  brought  with  it ;  and  what  better 
epitaph  can  the  longest  life  win  for  its 
close  ? 

Mr.  Wheelock  married  Laura  E.  Phil- 
lips, who  survives  him,  and  he  leaves  two 
sons  and  a  daughter  trained  to  his  own 
calling.     *     *     * 


HON.    CHARLES   W.    WILLARD. 
BY  II.   A.  HUSE. 

[From  the  Green  Mountain  Freeman  of  Wednesday, 
Juiu'  9,  1880.] 

Mr.  Willard  died  Monday  night,  at  twen- 
ty-five minutes  after  twelve.  Sunday  he 
was  about  his  room,  as  he  has  never  failed 
of  being  for  years,  though  his  hold  on  life 
has  been  so  slender,  but  began  failing, 
and  from  that  time  sank  rapidly.  His 
mind  had  all  its  native  clearness  till  within 
three  or  four  hours  before  his  death,  when 
he  became  unconscious. 

Charles  Wesley  Willard  was  the  son  of 
Josiah  Willard  and  Abigail  (Carpenter) 
Willard,  and  was  born  in  Lyndon,  June  i8, 
1827.  He  graduated  at  Dartmouth  college 
in  185 1,  and  soon  after  leaving  college, 
came  to  Montpelier,  where  he  studied  law 
in  the  office  of  Peck  &  Colby,  and  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Washington  County  Bar  in 
1853.  He  became  a  partner  of  Ferrand  F. 
Merrill  for  a  time  after  his  admission. 

In  1855,  '56,  he  was  secretary  of  state, 
and  after  that  declined  a  re-election.  In 
i860,  '61,  he  was  a  member  of  the  senate 
for  this  county.  In  the  latter  year,  he 
became  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Free- 
ffian,  and  so  remained  until  1873.  About 
1865,  he  for  a  time  was  in  Milwaukee, 
Wis.,  in  the  editorial  chair  of  the  Sentinel. 
And  during  his  later  years  his  pen  has  not 
been  idle,  as  some  of  the  leading  journals 
of  the  country  could  say.  The  columns  of 
this  paper  have  also  been  favored  now  and 
then  by  good  doctrine  and  wise  words 
over  his  well-known  initials. 

In  1868,  Mr.  Willard  was  elected  to 
congress,  and  represented  this  district 
from  Mar.  4,  1869,  to  Mar.  4,  1875.  He  was 
laborious  in  legislation,  as  in  all  things, 
and  his  congressional  work  told  on  his 
constitution,  and  since  his  retirement  he 
has  been  in  very  delicate  health.  Visits 
to  Colorado  and  elsewhere  failed  to  re- 
establish his  health.  But  he  was  not  a 
man  to  give  up  or  rust  out,  and  last  year 
he  accepted  an  appointment  as  one  of  the 
commissioners  to  revise  the  statutes.  Col. 
Veazey,  the  other  commissioner,  having 
gone  upon  the  bench,  the  burden  of  the 
work  fell  upon  Mr.  Willard.     He  took  it. 


O^Oj-Zc/-^^^^^^.^ 


MONTPELIER. 


493 


and  the  work  was  done  and  well  done — 
the  copy  all  prepared,  and  about  three- 
fourths  of  it  put  to  press  under  his  super- 
vision— before  he  was  taken  away.  He 
liked  to  work  ;  like  any  good  workman  he 
knew  he  could  do  good  work,  and  we  re- 
joice to  know  that  the  activities  of  the 
past  year  cheered  his  last  days  with  the 
thought  and  knowledge  that  he  was  yet 
doing  a  man's  work  among  men. 

Of  Mr.  Willard's  home  life  here  in 
Montpelier,  among  his  neighbors  and 
friends,  we  need  not  speak.  He  was  known 
of  his  townsmen,  and  many  more  had  per- 
sonal knowledge  of  his  straightforward  kind- 
ness than  the  casual  observer  of  his  re- 
served ways  would  ever  suspect.  He  was 
a  member  of  the  Bethany  Congregational 
church.  In  1855,  he  married  Miss  Emily 
Doane,  daughter  of  Hezekiah  H.  Reed. 
Mrs.  Willard  has  left  with  her  four  chil- 
dren :  Miss  Mary,  Ashton  R.  (who  grad- 
uated at  Dartmouth  last  year),  Eliza  May, 
and  Charles  Wesley.  Mr.  Willard  leaves 
a. brother,  A.  J.  Willard,  of  St.  Johns- 
bury,  and  a  sister,  Mrs.  Hannah  Flint,  of 
Concord,  N.  H.,  surviving  him. 

To  say  the  things  that  should  be  said  of 
Mr.  Willard,  we  are  not  able.  To  say  the 
truth,  and  not  to  say  that  which  to  those 
who  did  not  know  him  might  seem  to 
come  from  affection  instead  of  judgment, 
from  the  heart  and  not  from  the  head,  is 
a  hard  task.  But  the  people  of  Vermont, 
and  especially  those  who  for  so  many  years 
knew  through  the  columns  of  this  paper 
Mr.  Willard's  every  day  thoughts,  will 
make  no  mistake  in  this  matter.  They 
will  know  that  when  it  is  said  he  was  the 
"  first  citizen  of  the  State,"  the  words  are 
words  of  truth  and  soberness,  and  not 
those  of  over-zealous  friendship. 

He  had  their  well-deserved  esteem,  con- 
fidence, and  indeed  affection.  The  quali- 
ties that  gave  the.se  to  him  were  not  those 
of  the  "  magnetic  "  order.  He  captivated 
by  no  studied  arts,  by  no  assumed  effu- 
siveness of  manner,  but  rather  in  spite  of 
the  total  lack  of  those  too  common  attri- 
butes. He  was  refined,  scholarly ;  in 
manner  as  in  mind,  he  was  the  gentleman. 

Mr.  Willard  had  this  good  judgment  of 


his  fellow-citizens,  and  with  it  their  affec- 
tion, as  any  one  may  find  who  will  go 
among  the  people  of  the  State  in  the  vil- 
lages and  on  the  farms,  because  of  the 
honesty  of  his  purpose  and  of  his  act,  be- 
cause of  his  fearlessness  in  maintaining 
what  he  thought  was  right  and  because  of 
the  strength  which  was  in  his  fearless  blow. 
A  private  citizen  in  after  years,  and  hold- 
ing to  life  by  the  lightest  thread,  he  was 
looked  to  for  counsel  by  those  in  the  full 
strength  of  manhood,  and  honored  by  a 
following  of  his  thought  which  fails  to  come 
to  mo.st  of  those  in  high  places.  Hislater 
life  taught  well  the  lesson  that  "the  post 
of  honor  is  the  private  station." 

To  give  even  the  briefest  history  of  Mr. 
Willard's  work  would  require  much  time 
and  labor.  To  give  even  what  he  did 
while  in  congress  the  merest  mention 
would  require  time  and  space  and  study 
that  are  not  at  command.  He  was  a  care- 
ful legislator,  and  one  whose  counsel  bore 
fruit  in  the  halls  of  legislation  when  given. 

When  he  spoke,  he  spoke  for  effect  on 
legislation,  and  that,  at  times,  he  was 
overborne  was  because  he  stood  up  against 
friend  and  foe  when  he  thought  what  they 
wanted  was  wrong.  Had  he  always  thought 
with  his  party,  had  he  always  consented 
to  costly  schemes  which  fellow-members 
urged,  instead  of  always  standing  for 
what  he  believed  was  right,  and  trying  to 
head  off  unnecessary  appropriations,  he 
might  have  been  more  popular  in  con- 
gress— he  could  not  have  been  more  useful. 
But  he  did  as  he  did,  and  he  did  well. 
For  it  is  better  to  have  lived  as  he  lived, 
to  leave  as  he  left  a  good  name,  that  will 
for  many  a  year  be  held  as  the  synonym  of 
that  which  is  pure,  right  and  devoid  of 
fear  or  shadow  of  turning — a  name  that 
represents  an  ideal  manhood — than  to  have 
had  continuance  in  or  accession  of  public 
station.  His  life  was  an  honor  to  his 
State  and  a  good  to  those  who  knew  him. 

MAHLON    COTTRILL, 

in  every  sense  of  the  word  a  Vermonter, 
was  born  in  Bridport  in  1797,  his  life 
thus  dating  back  almost  to  the  birth  of  the 
State.     He  came  to  Montpelier  in   1826, 


494 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  went  into  the  employ  of  Watson  Jones, 
who  was  then  running  a  line  of  stages  be- 
tween Montpelier  and  Burlington.  Atthat 
time  the  line  between  Montpelier  and 
Royalton  was  opened  by  Ira  Day,  of 
Barre,  and  Samuel  Blodgett,  of  Royalton. 
Day  and  Cottrill  soon  bought  out  Jones, 
and  together  established  what  became  the 
great  central  stage  route  through  the 
State,  and  the  main  thoroughfare  for  travel 
between  Montreal  and  Boston,  and  con- 
tinued such  until  the  advent  of  railroads 
in  this  part  of  the  State.  He  was  an  ex- 
tensive mail  contractor,  favorably  known 
at  the  Post-office  Department  at  Washing- 
ton. While  engaged  in  the  stage  busi- 
ness, he  purchased  the  Pavilion  hotel  at 
Montpelier,  which  he  kept  until  1856, 
when  he  sold  it  to  Col.  Boutwell.  Mr. 
Cottrill  then  purchased  the  residence  next 
east  of  the  Pavilion,  which  he  owned  at 
the  time  of  his  decease,  and  where  he  re- 
sided until  1861,  when  he,  in  company 
with  other  gentlemen,  contracted  to  carry 
the  United  States  mail  from  Kansas  City 
to  Santa  Fe.  He  was  at  Kansas  City, 
Mo.,  in  the  active  superintendence  of  this 
line  of  stages,  when  he  was  attacked  by  a 
remittant  fever,  which  terminated  fatally, 
Oct.  1864. 

He  married  in  1822,  Catherine  Couch  of 
Bath,  N.  H.,  a  lady  possessing  in  a  remark- 
able degree  the  administrative  abiUty  which 
made  her  celebrated  as  a  hostess,  to  which 
she  added  a  frankness  and  heartiness  of 
manner,  which  seemed  to  have  no  dis- 
guises, to  despise  pretence,  and  to  be  open 
as  the  day.  She  died  at  Montpelier  in 
1861. 

Mr.  Cottrill  was  a  successful  man,  and  a 
person  of  superior  common  sense.  What- 
ever he  did,  he  did  well,  and  had  not  much 
patience  with  one  whose  work  was  not  done 
thoroughly  and  on  time,  and  yet,  never 
hurrying,  never  appearing  anxious  or  ex- 
cited— a  reticent,  self-reliant  man. 

As  host  of  the  Pavilion  he  was  best 
known,  both  in  and  out  of  the  State,  far 
and  wide,  as  the  prince  of  landlords,  and 
whose  hotel  was  the  traveler's  as  well  as 
the  sojourner's  home.  He  seemed  like  a 
gentleman  of  the  olden  time,  stately,  yet 


not  even  cold  in  aspect,  of  unruffled  tem- 
per and  wonderful  self-possession.  He 
made  for  the  Pavilion  a  most  excellent 
character,  and  he  got  for  himself,  by  his 
connection  with  it,  a  respect  wider  than 
the  State,  and  eminently  deserved. 

In  Montpelier  he  was  much  esteemed. 
Almost  the  whole  of  his  active  life  was 
passed  here,  and  he  was  identified  with  all 
the  interests  which  have  aided  to  make  the 
town  what  it  is.  His  means,  which  his 
business  sagacity  and  ability  enabled  him 
to  accumulate,  were  spent  liberally.  He 
gave  generously,  but  without  ostentation, 
to  every  deserving  charity,  and  to  all  ben- 
evolent and  religious  institutions  ;  and  he 
was  a  ready  helper  of  all  public  improve- 

JTlCntS.  —Watchman  Obituary. 

Jed.  p.  C.  Cottrill,  son  of  Mahlon 
Cottrill,  born  in  Montpelier,  graduated  at 
Burlington  College  in  1857.  He  now 
lives  in  Milwaukee ;  his  profession,  the 
law.  Of  him  the  Milwaukee  News  says, 
"he  confessedly  stands  among  the  fore- 
most at  the  bar  of  Milwaukee  County." 
And  he  was  "at  the  13th  annual  communi- 
cation of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Free  Masons 
of  Wisconsin,  June  9,  1874,  elected  Grand 
Master."  The  productions  from  his  pen, 
in  the  reports  of  the  committee  on  foreign 
correspondence  of  the  Grand  Chapter  of 
Wisconsin,  are  among  the  ablest  and  best 
in  American  Masonic  literature. 

The  other  children  of  Mr.  Cottrill  are 
William,  a  famous  hotel-keeper  in  the 
west ;  George,  a  lawyer  in  New  York  city  ; 
Lyman  and  Charles. 

COL.  LEVI   BOUTWELL 

was  born  in  Barre,  Feb.  5,  1802.  He  was 
early  in  life  thrown  upon  his  own  resources, 
and  thus  acquired  self-reliance,  energy 
and  perseverance.  Having  learned  the 
spinner's  trade,  he  followed  it  in  Hartland 
and  afterwards  in  StraiTord.  Then  going 
to  Thetford,  he  bought  an  interest  in  a 
carding  and  cloth-dressing  establishment, 
the  buildings  of  which  were  swept  away  by 
a  great  freshet  in  1828,  leaving  him  penni- 
less. 'From  1830  to  1837,  he  was  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits  in  West  Fairlee. 
Meeting  with  poor  success   he  tried  hotel 


t>-f^fjZy^^£>^ 


MONTPELIER. 


495 


keeping,  first  in  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  later  in 
Chelsea,  where  he  remained  5  years.  He 
came  to  Montpelier  in  1846,  and  leased 
the  Union  House,  which  stood  on  ground 
now  occupied  by  the  Church  of  the  Mes- 
siah. Ten  years  later  he  became  proprie- 
tor of  the  Pavilion,  and  for  about  12  years 
served  as  its  landlord.  Then  he  rented  it 
to  others ;  but  it  remained  in  his  posses- 
sion till  his  death,  March  27,  1874. 

His  first  wife  was  Miss  Jerusha  Peabody 
of  Reading,  by  whom  he  had  three  children, 
two  of  whom  are  now  living, — Harry  Syl- 
vester, and  Elizabeth  Jane,  the  wife  of 
Hon.  T.  R.  Merrill.  His  second  wife, 
married  a  short  time  before  he  came  to 
Montpelier,  was  Miss  Eliza  Burbank,  a 
sister  of  the  late  Silas  Burbank  of  this 
place.     She  is  yet  living. 

For  nearly  a  generation  Col.  Boutwell 
was  actively  and  prominently  identified 
with  the  interests  of  Montpelier.  His  po- 
sition as  landlord  of  the  leading  hotel 
brought  him  into  contact  with  large  num- 
bers of  influential  men ;  and  his  physical 
and  mental  characteristics  were  so  striking 
that  those  who  met  him  once  were  not 
likely  to  forget  him.  For  almost  half  a 
century  he  was  connected  with  the  Mason- 
ic Order,  and  he  held  many  positions  of 
honor  in  that  fraternity.  From  his  youth 
he  was  an  outspoken  Universalist,  although 
not  trained  in  that  faith ;  and  after  having 
for  many  years  assisted  in  the  maintenance 
of  churches  not  of  his  choice,  he  rejoiced 
in  the  opportunity  of  joining  with  others 
in  organizing  the  Church  of  the  Messiah, 
in  Montpelier,  of  which  he  continued  to 
be,  during  the  rest  of  his  life,  one  of  its 
most  enthusiastic  and  generous  supporters. 
Goddard  Seminary,  in  Barre,  was  largely 
indebted  to  his  munificence.  The  Ver- 
mont Conference  Seminary  in  Montpelier 
came  in  for  a  share  of  his  benefactions. 
His  hopefulness  and  energy,  and  resolu- 
tion, did  much  to  make  the  Wells  River 
Railroad  an  a.ssured  fact.  He  was  a  man 
of  remarkable  force,  both  mental  and  phys- 
ical ;  he  belonged  to  the  class  of  inspiring 
men,  men  who  communicate  their  own 
strength  to  others;  he  was  a  man  " born 
to  command,"  a  fact  recognized  in  his  elec- 


tion to  the  colonelcy  of  a  regiment  of  mili- 
tia. In  him  we  saw  that  paradox  in  hu- 
manity, a  young  old  man,  whose  three 
score  and  twelve  years  strove  in  vain  to 
quench  the  fire  of  his  youth ;  for,  though 
for  a  year  he  had  been  somewhat  enfee- 
bled, still  he  kept  about  his  business  till 
within  some  two  weeks  of  his  death,  and 
did  not  take  his  bed  till  his  last  day. 

He  was  a  man  in  whom  there  was  no 
lukewarmness ;  he  was  always  either  cold 
or  hot, — a  hearty  hater  and  an  ardent  lov- 
er, a  man  of  impulse,  intensity,  impetuos- 
ity, a  man  of  head-long  self-forgetting 
generosity,  a  quick-responding  friend  of 
the  poor  and  needy,  always  vulnerable  in 
his  sympathies,  a  hater  of  cant,  and  shams, 
knaveries  and  deceptions,  quick-witted 
and  keen ;  often  coarse  of  speech,  but 
kind  of  heart ;  as  one  said  of  him,  "made 
up  rough  side  out;" — a  man  whose  deed 
was  frequently  better  than  his  word.  In 
truth  his  word  sometimes  repelled  men. 
He  was  often  more  forcible  than  polite, 
and  no  doubtfulness  of  mind,  or  fear  of 
man  ever  led  him  to  stop  the  current  of 
his  vehement  speech  till  he  could  substi- 
tute a  smooth  phrase  for  the  rough  one 
that  was  on  his  tongue's  tip.  But  those 
who  knew  him  well  discerned  the  man 
through  the  man7ier,  and  honored  the  rug- 
ged honesty,  the  bluff  benevolence,  the 
thorough-going  truthfulness,  the  unawed 
independence,  and  the  deep  tenderness, 
too,  which  characterized  him. 

GOV.  ASAHEL   PECK,  A.  M.,  LL.  D. 

He  was  descended  from  Joseph  Peck, 
who  was  in  the  twenty-first  generation 
from  John  Peck  of  Bolton,  Yorkshire 
county,  England.  Thus  the  genealogy 
of  the  Pecks  has  been  traced  as  far  back 
as,  and  probably  farther  than,  that  of  any 
other  Vermont  family.  Joseph  Peck,  the 
American  ancestor  of  the  subject  of  our 
notice,  came  from  Hingham,  England,  to 
Hingham,  Mass.,  in  1638.  Asahel,  third 
son  of  Squire  Peck  and  Elizabeth  Goddard, 
was  born  at  Royalston,  Mass.,  in  Sept., 
1803,  and  brought  by  his  parents  about 
1 806  to  Montpelier,  who  settled  in  what  is 
known   as   East    Montpelier.      Receiving 


496 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  discipline  of  a  farm  until  he  was  of 
age,  the  benefit  of  the  common  school, 
and  fitting  for  college  at  Washington 
County  Grammar  School,  he  entered  the 
University  of  Vermont,  but  in  his  senior 
term  left  college  for  a  course  of  study  in 
the  French  language  in  Canada.  The 
incipient  eminent  judge  and  governor  en- 
tered then  upon  the  study  of  the  law  with 
his  oldest  brother,  Nahum  Peck,  of  Hines- 
burgh.  Asahel  Peck's  name  as  attorney, 
at  Hinesburgh,  appears  in  Walton's  Reg- 
ister for  1833,  when  he  was  thirty  years  of 
age.  In  that  year  he  removed  to  Burling- 
ton, where  all  his  professional  life  was 
spent.  Doubtless  his  progress  at  the  bar 
was  slow,  as  he  was  not  a  man  to  push  his 
way,  but  to  honestly  win  it  by  merit.  In- 
deed, a  characteristic  of  him  is  that  he  was 
slow  in  everything,  but  in  the  end  he  was 
almost  always  sure  to  be  right,  and  that  he 
regarded  as  the  only  point  worth  gaining. 
He  was  a  thorough  and  patient  student, 
and  a  conscientious  lawyer  and  judge. 
Possessing  a  tenacious  memory,  he  held 
all  that  he  had  secured  in  years  of  study, 
and  could  instantly  bring  his  great  store 
of  learning  to  bear  upon  any  legal  question 
presented  to  him.  Touching  his  abilities 
as  a  lawyer,  we  cite  an  incident  that  oc- 
curred several  years  ago  :  The  late  Rufus 
Choate,  who  will  be  remembered  as  one 
of  the  most  eloquent  and  eminent  lawyers 
of  Massachusetts,  met  Mr.  Peck  as  an  an- 
tagonist at  the  trial  of  an  important  case, 
and  at  its  conclusion  Mr.  Choate  was  so 
astonished  to  find  such  a  lawyer  m  Ver- 
mont, that  he  went  to  Mr.  Peck  and  urged 
him  vehemently  to  remove  to  Boston,  as- 
suring him  that  he  would  win  fame  and 
fortune.  No  inducement,  however,  could 
move  Mr.  Peck ;  having  once  made  up  his 
mind,  nothing  could  change  it.  Burling- 
ton he  had  selected  as  the  place  to  practice 
his  profession,  and  Burlington  it  must  and 
should  be,  and  was.  Of  his  reputation  as 
a  lawyer  and  judge,  an  eminent  member 
of  the  bar  declares  that  no  man  in  New 
England  since  Judge  Story  has  equalled 
Judge  Peck  in  his  knowledge  of  the  com- 
mon law  of  England  and  the  law  of  equity. 
As  Governor,  we  can  bear  testimony  that 


he  was  one  of  the  very  best  that  Vermont 
has  ever  had — thoroughly  independent, 
prudent  in  every  act,  and  carefully  in- 
specting the  minutest  detail  of  everything 
presented  for  his  official  approval.  Mr. 
Peck  was  a  judge  of  the  Circuit  Court 
from  1851  until  it  ceased  in  Dec,  1857, 
and  of  the  Supreme  Court  from  i860  until 
1874,  when,  it  being  understood  that  he 
had  retired  from  the  bench  to  a  farm  in 
Jericho,  to  renew  the  employments  of  his 
youth,  he  was  elected  Governor  for  the 
term  1874-1876.  He  was  never  married. 
Since  leaving  the  executive  chair,  he  has 
been  often  employed  as  counsel  in  impor- 
tant cases ;  and  doubtless,  had  his  life 
been  spared,  would  for  some  years  more 
have  shown  himself  as  a  grand  master  of 
the  law.  In  speaking  of  the  probable  ac- 
tion of  the  Republican  state  convention  of 
1874,  at  which  Judge  Peck  was  nominated 
for  Governor,  the  Watchman  spoke  of 
him  in  the  following  terms,  which  his 
course  while  in  the  gubernatorial  chair 
fully  vindicates :  "The  State  would  be 
honored  by  his  selection  for  it.  So  long 
as  Vermont  designates  such  men  as  he  is 
for  its  highest  offices,  it  is  not  liable  to 
the  old  Tory  reproach  against  Republican 
government,  which  condemned  republics 
'  not  because  the  people  elected  their  offi- 
cers, but  because  they  elected  unworthy 
and  ignoble  men  to  office.'  He  would  be 
a  worthy  successor  in  the  executive  chair 
of  Moses  Robinson,  Galusha,  Palmer, 
Tichenor,  Skinner,  Williams,  Van  Ness, 
Royce  and  Hall,  who  were  his  predecss- 
eors  on  the  bench.  His  name  will  evi- 
dently harmonize  the  diverse  interests  of 
the  Republican  party,  and  will  reconcile 
all  differences.  It  is  not  merely  unobjec- 
tionable. It  is  in  every  respect  honorable 
and  fit  to  be  made.  His  nomination 
would  be  followed  by  a  triumphant  elec- 
tion." 

Gov.  Peck  was  a  citizen  of  Montpelier 
185s  to  1875,  'iii'i  fi'°"''  that  time  resided 
on  his  farm  in  Jericho,  where  he  died  May 
18,  1879.  E.  p.  w. 

[IiiserteJ  by  request. J 

Hon.  E.  P.  Walton  :  Dear  Sir — I 
thank  you  for  the  interest  you  are  taking 


r 


<  ^ 


1   -  \. 


\ 


MONTPELIER. 


497 


for  the  memory  of  my  late  brother,  Gov. 
Peck.  And  withal  you  will  recollect  that 
he  had  A.  M.  added  or  prefi.xed  to  his 
name  by  the  University  of  Vermont,  and 
LL.  D.  by  Middlebury  College,  and  which 
is  written  on  his  $700  granite  monument 
at  Hinesburgh,  and  whose  attachment  to 
the  people  of  Montpelier  was  never  abated 
or  withdrawn.         Youvs  Truly, 

Nahum  Peck. 

carlos  bancroft. 

[From  the  obituaries  in  the  Argus  and  the  Watchman 
at  the  time  of  his  deatli.] 

Mr.  Bancroft,  who  contributed  much  to 
make  the  town  of  Montpelier  everywhere 
honored  and  honorable  in  business  and  fi- 
nancial circles,  was  born  in  Plainfield,  this 
county,  Mar.  20,  1809.  At  three  years  of 
age  he  lost  both  of  his  parents,  and  was 
brought  up  by  Arthur  Daggett  of  East 
Montpelier.  He  went  to  Massachusetts  at 
16  years  and  learned  the  stone-cutter's 
trade  ;  worked  in  the  Navy  Yard  at  Charles- 
town  ;  went  to  Norfolk,  Va.  Navy  Yard  and 
worked  for  a  time,  and  returned  to  Mont- 
pelier. He  engaged  with  his  brother, 
Watrous,  on  the  stone  work  of  the  second 
state  house,  afterward  burned.  Much  of 
that  exceptionally  fine  work,  which  was 
so  much  admired,  was  wrought  by  his 
hand.  After  this,  he  formed  a  part- 
nership with  Geo.  P.  Ricker,  and  after 
the  death  of  Mr.  Ricker  with  E.  C. 
Holmes,  terminating  after  25  years  by  the 
death  of  Mr.  Holmes  in  1870.  The  firm 
has  since  been  C.  Bancroft  Qr'  Son — 
Arthur  D.,  the  oldest  son,  being  the  part- 
ner. In  1839,  Mr.  Bancroft  married  a 
daughter  of  Col.  Cyrus  Johnson  of  Ber- 
lin, who  was  the  mother  of  his  children, 
and  died  Sept.  15,  1856.  Feb.  3,  1858, 
he  married  Margaret  Wallace,  widow  of 
John  McLean,  Esq.,  of  Cabot,  and  sister  of 
Dr.  M.  P.  Wallace,  who  survives  him.  Of 
his  6  children  but  one  survived,  Frederick 
W. ;  of  the  others,  but  two  reached  the 
age  of  maturity,  his  daughter  Jennie,  who 
married  a  Mr.  Scott  and  died  about  two 
years  after  her  marriage,  and  his  oldest 
son,  Arthur  D. 

From  his  youth  up,  Carlos  Bancroft  was 
one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Democratic  party 
here.  Besides  repeatedly  filling  various 
town  offices,  selectman,  &c.,  he   had,  for 

(>2. 


many  years,  been  an  acting  director  and 
vice-president  of  the  Farmers'  Insurance 
Co.,  and  a  director  of  the  Montpelier  Na- 
tional Bank  ;  both  were  benefited  largely  by 
his  prudent  counsel  and  sound  judgment. 
Though  entirely  successful  in  business,  he 
never  accumulated  a  dollar  but  by  honora- 
ble dealing.  His  word  was  never  called  in 
question,  and  his  opinion  in  matters  of  bus- 
iness generally  put  an  end  to  all  contro- 
versy. He  was  one  of  the  building  com- 
mittee of  Christ  Church,  where  he  attended 
worship.  In  one  word,  as  a  citizen,  neigh- 
bor, and  friend,  he  was  a  man  of  large 
worth. 

He  died  of  the  insidious,  slow  old-fash- 
ioned consumption  ;  so  insidious  that  none 
suspected  the  familiar  face  of  one  so  uni- 
versally known  and  respected  would  be  so 
soon  removed  from  our  thoroughfares  and 
business  places.  Monday  evening,  he  re- 
tired apparently  in  his  usual  health,  for 
the  last  few  months  not  his  former  robust 
health,  a  state  of  increasing  feebleness,  but 
which  did  not  debar  him  from  attention  to 
his  business.  Early  the  next  morning,  he 
had  a  coughing  fit  in  which  he  ruptured  a 
blood-vessel ;  hemorrhage  ensued  and  be- 
fore the  physician  could  be  summoned  he 
was  dead.     Age  67,  Oct.  24,  1876. 

Arthur  Daggett  Bancroft,  .son  of 
Carlos,  who  had  all  the  traits  of  his  father, 
inherited  consumption  and  died  at  2)7 ■  He 
was  one  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town,  much 
esteemed  by  his  townsmen  in  life,  and  left 
a  very  handsome  estate.  He  married  Ju- 
liette, daughter  of  Algernon  S.  Camp,  form- 
erly of  Montpelier,  now  of  Chicago.  They 
had  children,  who  with  his  widow  reside 
at  Montpelier. 

watrous  family  in  montpelier. 
Some  sixty  years  ago  Erastus  Watrous, 
the  hatter,  lived  on  Main  street,  a  very 
intelligent  man,  who  worked  quietly 
away  at  his  trade  many  years,  died  Dec. 
16,  1828,  aged  54,  and  was  buried  in  Elm 
street  cemetery. 

Mrs.  Erastus  Watrous  was  a  lady  of 
much  natural  talent,  and  handsome  per- 
sonal appearance.  At  the  visit  of  Gen.  La- 
fayette   to    Montpelier,  in    1825,  she   was 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


selected  and  made  the  welcome  address  to 
the  French  general  in  behalf  of  the  ladies 
of  Montpelier.  She  died  July  4,  1832, 
aged  40. 

Charles  Watrous,  a  son  of  the  hat- 
ter, born  in  Montpelier,  graduated  at 
Middlebury  in  the  class  of  1817.  He  read 
theology  in  Montpelier  for  a  year  after, 
and  then  learned  the  printer's  trade  of 
Walton  ;  but  soon  after  went  South,  where 
he  taught  for  a  short  time,  and  then  relin- 
quishing teaching,  worked  at  his  trade  for 
short  intervals  in  different  States.  He  at 
length  became  deranged,  or  partially  so. 
While  insane,  he  wrote  and  published  in 
Troy,  N.  Y.,  a  book  on  the  craft  and  dan- 
gers of  masonry. — For  title  of  his  work 
.see  Montpelier  bibliography  by  Gilman, 
page  — .  Soon  after  the  issue  of  his  book, 
he  returned  to  Montpelier,  where  he  stayed 
only  a  few  months,  and  went  to  Concord, 
N.  H.,  where  he  died,  about  1835,  by  his 
own  hand. 

Erastus  B.,  sonof Erastus,  Sen.,  astir- 
ring  character,  went  to  New  Me.xico  and 
became  immensely  rich.  He  is  supposed  to 
be  still  living. 

Sophia  Watrous,  daughter  of  the  hat- 
ter, was  born  in  Montpelier,  and  resided 
here  till  her  marriage  with  Mr.  Bemis, 
when  she  removed  to  Northfield.  where 
she  resided  the  last  twenty  years  or  more 
of  her  life.  She  embraced  the  Spiritualist 
belief  some  years  before  her  death.  She 
and  her  husband  have  both  been  deceased 
some  years,  now,  and  are  buried  at  North- 
field.  Before  her  marriage,  while  she  re- 
sided at  Montpelier,  she  published  a  small 
volume  of  her  poems,  which  had  the  honor 
at  least  of  being  the  first  volume  of  poems 
written  and  published  in  the  county.  From 
Mrs.  Sophia  Watrous  Bemis'  little  book, 
"  The  Gift,"  and  the  prettiest  lines,  we 
think,  she  ever  wrote,  a  mortuary  poem : 

THE  IMBECILE. 

Child  of  misfortune,  few  liave  sliared 

Sucli  love  as  was  tliiue  own; 
And  all  along  thy  rayless  path 
•    A  guiding  star.  It  slioue. 
Aflfectlon  changeless  in  excess 

When  love  and  pity  meet; 
And  find  on  earth  a  resting  place, 

A  mother's  breast  the  seat. 


It  asks  no  aid  of  outn-ard  charms 

Nor  e'en  the  light  of  mind; 
It  then  becomes  a  holy  thing; 

But  few  the  pearl  can  find. 

Such  love  was  thine,  and  eatth  is  poor 

The  precious  gift  to  buy; 
It  wolte  with  thy  young  dawning  life 

And  caught  thy  dying  sigh. 

And  tender  lives  thy  cherished  thought 

■Within  that  mother's  breast; 
Affliction  marked  tliy  course  on  eartli, 
Heaven  guard  thy  peaceful  rest. 

The  imbecile  was  her  brother.  We  are 
told  the  family  were  all  odd  or  singular  in 
their    ways ;     yet    streaked    with    talent. 

They  are  all  gone  and  have  left  no  de- 
scendants but  Erastus  B.  ed. 

HON.    GEORGE   WORTHINGTON, 

a  native  of  Connecticut,  came  to  Mont- 
pelier at  an  early  day,  married  the  youngest 
daughter  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  and  engaged 
in  the  hatting  business  with  Erastus 
Watrous.  He  became  a  prominent  man  ; 
was  high  sheriff  in  18 14,  representative, 
1819,  councillor,  1827  to  1831,  and  judge 
of  probate,  1840.  Retiring  from  the  hat- 
ting business  to  agriculture,  on  the  farm 
now  largely  occupied  by  State,  High  and 
Middlesex  streets,  and  residing  in  the 
present  dwelling  of  Charles  A.  Reed,  he 
was  largely  employed  in  the  settlement  of 
estates.  He  was  a  deacon  of  the  First 
Congregational  [Bethany]  church  from 
Feb.  7,  1 812,  for  about  half  a  century, 
when  he  removed  to  Irasburgh,  where  he 
died,  and  also  his  two  sons,  JohnandHon. 
George,  Jr.,  who  was  representative  and 
senator  from  Orleans  County. 

REV.    ELISHA   BROWN. 

formerly  a  member  of  the  New  Hampshire 
Conference,  was  born  in  Gloucester,  R.  I., 
May  14,  1802,  anddiedin  Montpelier,  Feb. 
II,  1 88 1,  in  his  79th  year.  When  about 
ten  years  old.  his  father  moved  to  Sutton, 
Vt.,  where  he  lived  until  he  was  about 
thirty  years  of  age.  Early  converted,  in 
default  of  any  Methodist  society  in  his  im- 
mediate community,  he  was  for  a  season  a 
member  of  the  Freewill  Baptist  com- 
munion. His  religious  views,  however, 
being  Methodistic,  of  the  most  pronounced 
type,  he  subsequently  connected  himself 
with  the  Methodist  church,  and  after  spend- 
ing several  vears  in  teaching,  entered  the 


.•-^?«^J 


^^^r^^t^>-^2>t> 


MONTPELIER. 


499 


itinerant  ministry  of  that  denomination, 
joining  the  New  Hampshire  Conference  at 
a  time  when  it  included  all  the  territory  of 
Vermont  east  of  the  Green  Mountains. 

During  the  earlier  period  of  his  ministry 
he  preached  at  Greensboro,  Troy,  West- 
field,  Walden,  Cabot  and  East  St.  Johns- 
bury,  touching,  meantime,  the  top  and 
bottom  of  the  toils  and  trials,  joys  and 
triumphs,  of  the  itinerancy  in  very  difficult 
fields  at  that  early  day.  About  forty  years 
ago  he  moved,  with  his  family,  to  New- 
bury, to  give  his  children  the  benefit  of 
the  old  Newbury  Seminary.  During  his 
residence  of  fifteen  years,  or  more,  at  that 
place,  he  supplied  several  churches  in  the 
vicinity  of  Newbury,  also  devoting  much 
time  to  teaching.  In  the  year  1855  he  re- 
moved to  Montpelier,  and  for  several  years 
supplied  churches  at  East  Montpelier, 
Wright's  Mills  and  Berlin.  He  was  the 
"  stated  supply  "  of  the  latter  charge,  in- 
deed, for  nine  consecutive  years,  during 
much  of  that  time  occupying,  with  his  ven- 
erable mother,  the  old  parsonage,  and  per- 
forming most  acceptably  all  the  duties  of 
the  pastorate.  During  the  past  ten  or 
twelve  years  he  has  spent  many  months, 
from  time  to  time,  in  the  family  of  his  son- 
in-law,  the  writer,  and  will  be  well  re- 
membered at  Monson,  Brookfield,  Danvers, 
and  especially  at  Milford — supplying  with 
great  acceptance,  during  the  writer's  pas- 
torate at  the  latter  place,  the  adjacent 
Mendon  charge  for  the  space  of  one  year. 
For  the  last  four  or  five  years  of  his  life, 
"in  age  and  feebleness  extreme,"  he 
"  halted  feebly  to  the  tomb,"'  tenderly  cher- 
ished and  cared  for  in  the  home  of  his  son, 
Col   A.  C.  Brown,  Montpelier. 

Of  the  life,  gifts  and  activities  of  Father 
Brown,  much  might  be  said.  He  was 
an  instructive,  sensible,  and  sympathetic 
preacher,  and  a  most  successful  pastor. 
Very  tall ,  and  large  and  massive  physically, 
his  personal  appearance,  with  his  flowing, 
patriarchal  beard,  was  very  impressive. 
Exemplary  in  all  his  walk  and  character, 
and  always  ready  for  every  good  work  in 
the  interest  of  religion  and  humanity,  being 
particularly  ardent  and  active  on  temper- 
ance lines,  he   commanded    the  universal 


and  affectionate  esteem  of  all  classes  of 
citizens  in  the  several  communities  where 
he  labored.  No  teacher,  or  preacher,  per- 
haps, was  ever  more  fondly  regarded  or 
tendedy  remembered.  Hence  his  ser- 
vices to  preside  at  weddings  and  on  funeral 
occasions  were  in  constant  requisition. 
The  aged  were  wont  to  seek  his  companion- 
ship, while  the  young  and  those  in  middle 
life  looked  to  him  for  counsel ;  and  even 
little  children  always  had  a  glad  word  and 
a  pleasant  smile  for  Father  Brown,  cheer- 
ing his  last  days  by  gifts  of  flowers,  not 
more  fresh  and  fragrant  than  the  innocence 
and  love  of  their  sweet  young  lives  that 
prompted  these  gifts.  He  warmly  appre- 
ciated and  very  gratefully  remembered  all 
the  kind  and  thoughtful  attentions  of 
neighbors  and  friends  during  his  declining 
years. 

Though  his  life  of  nearly  fourscore  years 
brought  to  him  his  full  share  of  burden- 
bearing,  and  responsibility,  and  physical 
suffering,  and  sorrow,  he  never  wavered 
in  his  convictions,  or  shrank  from  any  post 
of  duty  when  dearly  presented  to  him. 
Not  only  so,  but  endowed  by  nature  with 
a  fine  vein  of  humor,  his  strong  religious 
trust  conspired  with  his  very  genial  tem- 
perament to  enable  him,  in  the  midst  of 
all  his  troubles  and  sorrows,  to  maintain 
an  untroubled  serenity  and  cheerfulness. 
He  was  one  of  the  sunniest  and  most 
kindly  of  men.  Father  B.  was  a  great 
Bible  reader,  having,  in  the  course  of  his 
life,  read  the  Sacred  Volume  through  scores 
of  times.  His  favorite  text,  and  one  which 
in  his  later  days  he  has  been  often  heard, 
and  with  great  fervor,  to  repeat,  was  :  "I 
have  been  young,  and  now  am  old,  yet 
have  I  never  seen  the  righteous  forsaken, 
nor  his  seed  begging  bread." — Ps.  37  :  2^. 
Over  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago  Mr. 
Brown  buried  the  companion  of  his  youth. 
Three  out  of  five  children  survive  him.  In 
the  weakness  of  his  last  days  he  was  con- 
stantly "waiting  and  watching"  for  the 
moment  that  should  announce  his  happy 
release.  Very  quietly  at  last,  as  if  he  had 
laid  him  down  to  sleep,  he  entered  into 
his  final  rest.  Rev.  N.  Fellows,  his  pastor, 
on  the  occasion  of  his  funeral,  which  was 


500 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


very  largely  attended,  gave  a  very  compre- 
hensive, appropriate  and  impressive  review 
of  Mr.  Brown's  life  and  character,  earnestly 
recommending  to  the  church  of  which  he 
was  a  member,  and  to  all  who  knew  him, 
to  follow  the  example  of  his  consecrated 
life.  R.  H.  H. 

Mr.  Brown  was  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity,  and  had  taken  the  several  de- 
grees up  to  and  including  the  Knights 
Templar.  He  was  a  member  of  Aurora 
Lodge,  No.  22,  from  the  records  of  which 
we  take  the  followins: : 


IN  MEMORIAM. 

BRO.  ELISHA  BROWN, 

Born  in  Gloucester,  R.  I.,  May  14,  1802, 

Died  at  Montpelier,  Vt. ,  February  nth,  188: 

Aged  7S  years  and  9  months. 

Took  his  degrees  in  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22, 
as  follows : 
Initiated  Feb.  8th,  1S69. 

Passed  Feb.  15th,  1869. 

Raised  Feb.  22d,  1869. 


Chaplain  of  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22, 
From  December  13,  1869,  to  April  15,  1S7S. 


'  Summoned  from  labor  to  refreshment. 


MAJ.    A.    L.    CARLTON. 

Alfred  Lathrop  Carlton  was  born  in 
Morristown,  Lamoille  County,  in  1829. 
His  father,  Benjamin  Franklin,  and  mother, 
Betsey  Lathrop,  a  cousin  of  Daniel  Web- 
ster, were  married  in  Waterbury  in  1826. 
Mr.  Carlton  was  the  eldest  of  four  sons, 
of  whom  but  one  survives.  His  mother  is 
still  living,  being  84  years  of  age.  He  ob- 
tained an  excellent  education,  and  was  for 
some  years  a  teacher.  In  1854,  he  married 
Margaret,  eldest  daughter  of  Hon.  Clark 
Fisk,  of  Eden,  and  removed  to  Montpelier, 
where  he  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits, 
which  he  steadily  and  succe.ssfully  followed 
until  the  day  of  his  death,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  a  few  years'  absence  in  obeying 
the  call  of  his  country. 

In  the  summer  of  1862,  Mr.  Carlton  en- 
listed in  the  Eleventh  Regiment,  in  camp 
at  Brattleboro,  and  was  soon  commissioned 
by  Gov.  Holbrook  as  quartermaster  of  the 
regiment.  This  regiment,  it  will  be  re- 
membered, was  for  some  time  employed 
in   the  defenses   of  Washington.     While 


thus  engaged,  Lieut.  Carlton  was  promoted 
to  the  responsible  position  of  commissary 
of  subsistence,  with  the  rank  of  captain. 
E.xceedingly  capable  and  faithful  as  an 
officer,  his  field  of  duty  was  rapidly  en- 
larged, until  the  immense  work  of  furnish- 
ing supplies  and  cattle  to  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac  fell  upon  his  shoulders. 

In  a  single  trip  to  Western  Pennsylvania, 
for  the  purchase  of  cattle,  he  took  out  half 
a  million  of  dollars,  and  drew  on  govern- 
ment for  another  half  million.  To  dis- 
charge promptly  and  efficiently  the  duties 
of  his  position,  he  required  the  assistance 
of  from  one  hundred  to  two  hundred  faith- 
ful men,  and  often  a  detailed  escort  of  as 
many  more  in  taking  herds  to  the  front, 
and  yet,  so  well  organized  was  his  depart- 
ment, so  systematically  conducted,  and  so 
well  kept  constantly  in  hand,  that  he 
might  defy  even  the  exigencies  of  war  to 
find  his  account  in  an  unsettled  or  unsat- 
isfactory condition.  Indeed,  so  enviable 
was  his  reputation  as  an  officer,  that  when 
Senator  Collamer,  through  whose  kindness 
he  received  his  promotion,  inquired  at  the 
headquarters  in  Washington  after  the 
standing  of  his  appointee,  the  reply  was,  * 
"He  is  a  model  officer.  His  capacity, 
integrity,  efficiency  and  invariable  habit  of 
closing  up  his  affairs  every  day,  are  worthy 
of  all  praise."  Mr.  Carlton  was  also  de- 
tailed for  similar  service  in  New  York 
city,  and  at  some  southern  points,  being 
retained  in  service  nearly  a  year  after  the 
general  mustering  out  took  place.  Many 
were  the  bribes  he  refused  during  these 
years,  saying,  "  I  rather  go  home  with  a 
clear  conscience."  He  was  twice  very 
dangerously  ill ;  once  with  his  regiment, 
and  again  at  Aquia  Creek.  As  an  attesta- 
tion of  his  honorable  record  as  an  officer, 
he  was  made  Major  by  brevet  before  leav- 
ing the  service,  and  that  without  any 
agency  or  knowledge  on  his  part. 

Like  hundreds  of  thousands  of  his  asso- 
ciates, Mr.  Carlton  returned  from  the  field 
of  strife  to  assume  the  avocations  and  re- 
sponsibilities of  a  good  citizen.  Soon 
after  his  return,  he  made  a  public  pro- 
fession of  his  faith  in  Christ,  which  he  had 
long  cherished,  and  united  with  Bethany 


^y^^y. 


MONTPELIER. 


501 


church.  From  that  time  he  was  an  active 
and  influential  member,  holding  various 
positions  of  honor  and  trust  in  both  the 
church  and  society,  and  particularly  in  the 
Sabbath-school.  He  was  a  man  of  deep 
convictions  and  strong  prejudices,  and  he 
would  far  sooner  endure  a  sharp  contro- 
versy than  yield  a  point  which  he  believed 
to  be  right.  His  natural  frankness  and 
freedom  of  speech  was  augmented  by  an 
instructive  and  overwhelming  detestation 
of  hypocrisy  and  duplicity.  He  was  an 
earnest  worker  in  temperance  and  all  moral 
reforms.  The  same  qualities  which  con- 
stituted his  superiority  as  an  officer  in  the 
army,  marked  his  discharge  of  the  various 
official  trusts  committed  to  him  both  in  the 
church  and  community.  Capacity,  in- 
tegrity, system  and  promptness  in  under- 
taking and  completing  a  given  duty,  were 
his  prominent  traits.  He  was  a  strong 
power  for  good  in  the  community  in  which 
he  lived.  He  died  in  Montpelier,  May  29, 
1874. 

ROBERT    HARVEY   WHITTIER 

was  the  son  of  John  Whittier  and  Sally 
Edgerton,  of  Cabot,  was  born  in  that 
town  June  16,  1822,  and  died  at  Montpe- 
lier Feb.  13,  1879.  At  the  age  of  21  years 
he  came  to  Montpelier,  under  the  friendly 
agency  of  the  late  Schuyler  Phelps,  Esq., 
of  Berlin,  and  entered  the  service  of  the 
late  William  S.  Smitb,  who  for  many  years 
conducted  a  meat  market  in  this  village. 
After  spending  three  or  four  years  in  this 
position,  he  went  for  a  brief  period  to  Bos- 
ton, and  then  returned  to  Vermont  and 
opened  a  meat  market  in  St.  Johnsbury. 
After  the  expiration  of  about  a  year,  and 
upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Phelps,  the  friend 
and  patron  of  his  youth,  Mr.  Whittier  was 
married  to  his  daughter,  Susan  C,  and  re- 
moved to  the  Phelps  homestead,  in  Berlin, 
where  he  remained  for  seven  or  eight  years. 
In  1858,  he  came  to  Montpelier  and  bought 
out  the  old  and  popular  meat  market  of 
the  late  William  B.  Hubbard,  "on  the 
corner,"  which  business  he  successfully 
and  honorably  conducted  until  the  day  of 
his  death.  The  character  of  his  business 
was  such  as  to  bring  him  a  very  extended 


acquaintance,  and  his  proverbially  genial 
nature  and  buoyant  spirits  made  friends 
of  all  who  knew  him — insomuch  that  the 
business  men  of  the  town  are  few  who 
were  so  extensively  known  or  whose  death 
would  be  so  seriously  felt.  In  the  death 
of  Mr.  Whittier  the  community  has  lost  a 
public  spirited  citizen,  whose  shoulders 
were  always  ready  for  his  share  of  the  bur- 
dens ;  the  poor  a  generous  friend,  the  ex- 
tent of  whose  quiet  charities  will  never  be 
revealed  in  time ;  the  church  of  his  choice 
a  habitual  attendant,  and  appreciative  lis- 
tener and  a  ready  and  cheerful  supporter  ; 
his  family  the  kindest  of  husbands  and 
fathers.  Mr.  Whittier  leaves  a  widow  and 
son,  who  share  the  heartiest  sympathy  of 
the  entire  community.  The  funeral  was 
observed  on  Saturday,  Rev.  Mr.  Hincks, 
of  Bethany  church,  officiating.  A  large 
concourse  of  people  were  in  attendance,  as 
were  the  Masonic  fraternity  in  a  body. 

—  Watchman. 
THE   DODGE   FAMILY. 

In  181 1  two  brothers,  Jared  and  Thomas 
Dodge,  who  were  born  in  New  Hamp- 
shire, came  from  Barre  to  this  town. 
Jared,  the  eldest  of  the  two,  early  be- 
came a  member  of  the  Congregational 
church,  and  was  a  devoted  member  until 
his  death.  He  married  Naomi  Olcutt,  of 
Keene,  N.  H.,  and  reared  a  family  of  6 
sons  and  3  daughters,  another  daughter 
dying  in  infancy.  Mary,  the  eldest,  mar- 
ried for  her  first  husband  a  Mr.  Wallace, 
and  for  her  second,  William  Storrs,  for 
many  years  a  merchant  in  town,  who  died 
in  March,  1870.  She  was  a  Spartan 
mother,  for  she  gave  her  two  only  sons  to 
the  late  war,  who  were  both  sacrificed  upon 
the  altar  of  their  country.  (See  the  town 
military  record.)  Of  the  other  daughters, 
Angelina  and  Abigail  died  when  in  their 
teens.  Almira  married,  and  is  yet  living. 
Of  the  sons,  Theodore  A.,  the  eldest,  was 
a  very  eccentric  man.  When  the  rebellion 
broke  out,  he  offered  his  services  to  his 
country,  but  for  age  and  disability  was  re- 
jected. We  give  an  extract  frorh  one  of 
his  poetic  effusions,  to  the  tune,  "  Scots 
wha  hae  wi'  Wallace  bled"  : 


so: 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


THK  VEKMONT  VOLUNTKER. 

Who  for  Freedom's  cause  and  law. 
Freedom's  swoiit  of  Justice  draw. 
For  the  liopo  that  sajjcs  saw, 
"  Let  hlui  follow  nio." 

By  the  blood  our  fitthers  shed, 
Reekliijr  In  a  gory  bed. 
By  till'  ftreat  Iiiiniorlal  dead. 
On  to  victory  I 

Be  this  Freedom's  eaU  to  earth, 
Mindless  of  whate'cr  their  birth, 
I. el  all  people  shout  It  forth. 
Rouse  the  world  to  arms! 

Here  hath  Freedom's  sun  arose. 
On  the  hearth-stone  'mid  its  foes. 
Flashing  brlxht  on  ceaseless  blows. 
Conflict  and  alarms. 

Blades  are  crossed  and  red  with  gore, 
Let  us  rise  as  those  of  yore. 
From  the  mountain  and  the  shore. 
And  relight  their  brands. 

Heroes  sleepinfi  'ueath  the  sod. 
Shall  time  waken  unto  God, 
When  'tis  only  His  the  rod. 
Then  shall  right  abide. 

He  died  in  1879,  aged  65.  Eleazerwent 
to  California  at  an  early  day,  where  he  yet 
resides.  Oilman  B.  has  been  for  many 
years  janitor  of  Bethany  church. 

Richard  S.  is  the  veteran  of  two  wars. 
(See  town  military  record  of  Mexican  War 
and  Rebellion.)  At  the  battle  of  Chepul- 
tepec,  Mexico,  he  was  complimented  by 
his  officers  for  bravery  in  the  storming  of 
the  fort.  He  was  the  first  man  to  scale 
the  walls,  and  when  handing  down  the 
enemy's  flag,  received  a  bayonet  wound  in 
the  face,  which  scar  he  carries  to  this  day, 
as  he  does  also  several  others  received  in 
action.  When  a  boy  he  was  dubbed  with 
the  title  of  "  Shack,"  which  he  is  familiarly 
known  by  to  this  day.  To  give  all  of  the 
narrow  escapes  which  he  has  passed  through 
would  fill  a  volume.  He  was  never  ' '  dared  " 
but  what  he  made  the  "attempt,"  I'egard- 
less  of  the  result.  The  other  two,  Wm. 
and  Joel,  also  reside  in  town.  Jared  died 
Mar.  I.  1S59,  in  his  82d  year,  and  his  wife 
in  Aug.  1877,  in  her  92d  year. 

Thomas  married  twice  ;  had  4  children 
by  his  first  marriage — i  son  and  3  daugh- 
ters,— Job  Dodge,  the  son,  died  a  year 
since,  in  Illinois,  leaving  a  large  estate ; — 
his  second  wife  was  Abby  S.  (Cady)  Grant, 
by  whom  he  had  two  daughters.  He  was 
for  several  years  a  partner  with   Silas  C. 


French,  in  the  boot  and  shoe  business. 
He  died  March  31,  1867,  aged  78.  His 
wife  is  now  living,  at  the  age  of  79.  He  is 
credited  as  being  the  author  of  the  quota- 
tion of  ".-^  long  pull,  a  s/n>fii^  piiU,  atui  a 
pull  altogether.'^''  We  are  informed  that  the 
late  U.  S.  Senator  Jacob  Collamer  being 
informed  of  this,  asked  him  for  his  pic- 
ture, which  upon  receiving,  had  a  portrait 
painted  from  it,  and  placed  it  in  the  Na- 
tional Art  Gallery  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

GEORGE  LAXGDON, 

fourth  son  of  Col.  James  H.  Langdon,  was 
born  in  Montpelierin  18 15,  and  died  there 
Nov.  10,  1870,  aged  55  years.  Educated 
in  the  schools  of  Montpelier,  and  having 
received  a  handsome  patrimony,  he  early 
in  life  married  Miss  Sarah  .Sumner,  oldest 
daughter  of  Senator  William  Upham.  Mrs. 
Langdon  inherited  the  remarkable  graces 
of  her  mother,  and  from  the  moment  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Langdon  established  themselves 
in  a  home,  their  gracious  hospitality  at 
orice  attracted  the  best  society,  not  only 
of  Montpelier  but  of  the  State,  and  from 
other  States.  Mrs.  Langdon  had  the  ad- 
vantage of  experiences  in  the  best  society 
in  the  national  capital,  and  thus  with  her 
qualities  was  admirably  fitted  to  shine  so- 
cially. But  it  was  not  in  polite  society 
alone  that  Mr.  Langdon  was  distinguished. 
He  had  a  genial  and  generous  heart,  and 
knew  the  blessedness  of  giving  to  the  poor. 
The  late  Rev.  Dr.  Lord  wrote  of  him  as 
follows : 

There  are  few  of  the  prominent  public 
men  of  Vermont  who  will  not  recall  his 
genial  presence  and  his  modest  and  gener- 
ous courtesy  and  kindness.  Placed  by 
inherited  wealth  above  the  necessity  of 
toil,  and  beyond  anxiety,  he  has  made  the 
pleasant  amenities  and  courtesies  and  hos- 
pitalities of  life  his  business.  He  was  as 
kind  to  the  poor  as  he  was  hospitable  to 
his  own  class  associates.  We  have  known 
him  to  drive  in  a  cold,  stormy  day  in  win- 
ter, six  miles,  to  carry  to  a  desolate  and 
aged  widow,  whose  situation  accidentally 
became  known  to  him,  a  load  of  provisions  ■ 
suited  to  her  necessities.  His  heart  was 
ever  overflowing  with  neighborly  kindness, 
and  his  hand  ever  quick  to  assist  in  any  of 
the  troubles  of  those  around  him.  Few 
men  will  be  more  missed  from  our  social 
life. 


Si-    \ 


\   "    "^w.. 


^^T^  CL-  ^^^X^^^^<-^ 


MONTPELIER. 


503 


■  The  tidings  of  his  death  will  carry  sor- 
row to  many  hearts,  and  few  who  knew 
him  will  not  give  the  tribute  of  a  warm 
and  honest  tear-  to  his  memory.  The 
places  that  knew  him  will  miss  his  accus- 
tomed face,  and  will  mourn  for  one  of  their 
most  gentle  and  welcome  visitants,  and  his 
many  friends  and  associates  will  never  for- 
get that  presence,  now  made  sacred  by 
death,  which  always  brought  with  it  a  most 
agreeable  and  genial  atmosphere. 

MRS.    JAMES   R.    LANGDON. 

[A  brief  of  her  funeral  sermon  by  Dr. 
Lord,  as  the  sweetest  description  that 
could  be  given,  from  this  the  sweetest  of 
his  printed  sermons.  We  regret  we  have 
not  space  for  the  beautiful  discourse  en- 
tire.— Ed.] 

"She  hath  done  wJiat  she  could.''' — Mark 
14 :  3.  It  is  a  beautiful  tribute  to  an  af- 
fectionate woman.  It  was  the  simple  ac- 
ceptance by  the  Son  of  God  of  a  humble 
and  fragrant  nature  which  had  bloomed  out 
in  hearty  love  for  her  Divine  Lord. 
In  this  memorial  service  for  one  who  has 
been  the  companion  of  "  honorable  women 
not  a  few  "  in  this  church  and  community, 
I  may  with  propriety  select  these  blessed 
words  of  our  Saviour  as  most  accurately 
descriptive  of  her  character  and  work  in 
life.  I  love  not  to  lose  from  my  sight  the 
faces  of  my  dear  friends  and  parishioners. 
I  love  not  to  bid  farewell  to  those  endeared 
to  me  by  a  long  and  gentle  ministration  of 
kindness  and  help  ;  but  if  I  must,  .  . 
it  is  with  delight  I  may  think  and  speak  of 
them  in  such  words  as  were  consecrated  by 
our  Saviour  to  be  the  perpetual  memorial 

of  those  noble  women  who,  how- 
ever reserved  and  quiet  and  domestic,  .  . 
have  yet  in  their  place  .  .  .  earned  for 
themselves,  by  their  sweet  and  patient  de- 
votion, the  generous  applause  of  the  Son 
of  God  :  "they  have  done  what  they  could." 

What  is  the  work  of  women  in 
this  world  as  sei'vants of  the  blessed  Jesus? 
Have  they  influence  peculiarly  their  own? 

If  they  are  unfaithful  is  any  one 
else  able  to  take  their  place,  and  make  our 
societies,  our  homes,  our  churches  more 
and  more  like  Heaven?  .  .  .  When  I 
lookupon  such  pure,  gentle,  unostentatious 
women  as  Mrs.  Langdon  was  ;  upon  those 
beautiful,  honorable  Christian  women,  not 
a  few,  who  have  lived  among  us, 
I  cannot  doubt  how  such  questions  will 
have  their  answer.  Such  women  as  have 
lived  in  this  village  as  Christian  mothers, 
wives  and  sisters,  .  .  .  whose  names 
are  embalmed  with  the  spices  of  their  own 
modesty  and  purity  and  love,  with  the  fra- 


grance of  their  own  faith  and  charities, 
give  us  some  idea  of  the  saintly  work 
which  Christ  has  given  to  women  to  do  in 
this  world,  and  of  their  surprising  fitness 
to  do  it ;  both  to  soften  its  asperities,  to 
subdue  its  roughest  and  worst  characters, 
and  to  carry  the  self-sacrificing  ministry  of 
the  Son  of  Man  into  all  of  our  human 
abodes.  ...  I  love  to  think  that  our 
Saviour  places  the  seal  of  his  benison  .  . 
on  the  qualities  of  spiritual  sincerity  and 
gentleness ;  on  the  possible  graces  of  a 
quiet  Christian  life ;  on  the  offerings  of 
self-denying  love.  She  hath  done  what 
she  could.  She  hath  adorned  her  station 
with  the  precious  graces  of  tenderness  and 
love.  This  is  the  central  and  most  de- 
cisive test  of  the  excellence  of  all  char- 
acter, especially  of  those  whose  lives  seem, 
but  seem  only,  to  be  confined  to  a  nar- 
rower sphere  than  pertains  to  manly  life, 
secluded  within  the  walls  of  domestic  care 
and  duty  and  love.  .  .  .  We  all  know 
how  great  loveliness  and  sweetness  there 
are  in  personal  offices  of  love.  We  are 
familiar  with  the  .  .  .  supremacy  of 
personal  relationship  and  bonds.  The  per- 
sonality of  aifection  just  suits  itself  to  our 
natural  wants.  A  religion  that  did  not 
provide  for  the  exercise  of  the  domestic 
and  personal  offices  of  love  would  lack 
hold  on  our  human  sympathies,  and  Christ 
has  blessed  the  sex  with  which  his  incar- 
nated human  life  was  alone  positively  affil- 
iated and  related,  by  bestowing  a  peculiar 
honor  upon  the  quiet  duties  of  personal 
love.  .  .  .  The  kindness  which  watches 
over  our  earliest  steps,  the  voice  which  di- 
rects our  first  prayers  and  songs,  '  the  love 
which  surrounds  home  with  the  charms  of 
a  regained  Paradise,  and  fills  the  air  of 
the  household  with  the  scent  of  violets  and 
lilies,  and  with  the  perfume  of  personal 
service  to  the  sick,  the  dying  and  the  dead  : 
these  are  the  qualities  and  offices  that 
meet  the  full  benediction  of  Christ's  word.' 
Our  Saviour  had  a  very  blessed  personal 
relation  with  many  noble  women  when  he 
was  here.  His  personal  influence  on  the 
womanly  hearts  around  him  can  be  clearly 
traced  as  His  work  went  on.  She  whom 
all  the  generations  will  call  blessed,  who  is 
the  only  human  medium  of  the  assumption 
of  our  nature  by  the  Infinite  God,  gave 
Him  his  first  caress  and  received  his  last 
words  of  human  love.  What  a  wonderful 
relation  !  In  which  her  heart  glowed  with 
incomparable  love,  adding  the  sacredness 
of  a  religious  feeling  to  the  wealth  of  a 
mother's  affection  ;  in  which  his  heart  beat 
with  an  unwonted  pulse,  adding  the  ten- 
derness of  human  dependence,  gratitude 
and  trust,  to  the  sentiments  of  celestial 
pity  and  love.     Sacred  type  of  all  blessed 


504 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


maternal  and  filial  love  ;  which  is  ever  di- 
vested of  all  the  usual  qualities  of  human 
passion  and  selfishness,  and  blends  every- 
thing that  is  best  and  purest  in  the  human 
with  everything  that  is  sweetest  and  holiest 
in  the  Divine.  What  her  happiness  must 
have  been  in  the  more  than  thirty  years  in 
which  she  had  Him  to  herself  as  a  deep 
wellspring  of  delight,  watching  over  Him, 
waiting  on  Him,  beholding  His  glory  and 
believing  that  glad,  prophetic  hymn  which 
her  own  lips  had  sung  before  He  was  born, 
as  to  "how  her  soul  rejoiced  in  God  her 
Saviour."  And  what  a  happiness  there 
must  have  been  in  his  long  troubled  heart 
for  her  sake,  we  have  some  glimpses  in 
the  words  which  broke  from  his  dying  lips 
to  the  dearest  disciple  and  the  legacy  He 
gives  to  the  beloved  John,  "  Son,  behold 
thy  mother."  The  domestic  life  of  Christ 
is  veiled,  but  if  that  veil  were  lifted,  doubt- 
less we  should  see  how  much  his  pure 
heart  was  strengthened  by  a  ministry  more 
sympathetic  than  that  of  the  angels,  how 
much  a  woman's  hand  soothed  his  spirit, 
and  a  mother's  love  solaced  and  helped  his 
sorrows.  We  should  see  some  of  the 
blessed  interchanges  between  the  human 
mother  and  the  Divine  Son. 

But  not  from  her  alone  did  He  have  the 
ministry  of  personal  kindness.  A  few 
devoted,  grateful  women  waited  upon  Him 
all  through  his  journeys.  They  gave  him 
their  enthusiastic  sympathy  in  his  work 
until  the  close  of  his  life,  and  when  He 
finished  his  suffering  career  on  the  cross, 
"  Many  women  were  there  beholding  and 
ministering  unto  Him."  .  .  .  Blessed 
were  those  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  .  .  . 
who  bewailed  their  King  as  he  trod  the 
wine-press  alone.  But  did  these  women 
alone  have  the  honor?  The  service  of 
Christ  was  not  their  monopoly.  They 
were  the  first  fruits  ;  they  were  examples 
.  .  .  not  to  be  envied  ;  but  to  be  imi- 
tated, by  all  their  sisters  who  desire  to 
know  the  unspeakable  joy  of  Christian  ser- 
vice, and  they  have  been  imitated.  Faith 
works  by  love,  .  .  .  and  its  power 
has  not  failed  since  "Holy  women,"  . 
in  all  the  relations  of  life,  in  the  lowly 
offices  of  Christian  ministration,  have  filled 
the  houses  which  they  adorned  as  wives, 
mothers  and  sisters,  with  the  outpoured 
fragrance  of  the  graces  of  Christ,  .  .  . 
and  refreshed  the  hearts  that  trusted  in 
them.  Many  sons  have  crowned  their 
heads  with  blessings.  Their  husbands 
have  praised  them  in  the  gates  of  the  city. 
They  have  made  the  deserts  of  this  rough 
and  arid  life  green  as  the  land  of  Elim, 
and  woven  their  precious  golden  threads 
through  the  whole  fabric  of  society  till  it 
has  brightened  with  the  warmest  and  deep- 


est colors.  Eternity  alone  can  measurfe 
the  influence  of  a  virtuous  woman  ;  a  true- 
hearted  daughter  ;  a  loving  sister  ;  a  faith- 
ful wife;  a  devoted  mother.  Her  price  is 
above  rubies.  The  heart  of  her  husband 
safely  trusts  in  her.  She  stretcheth  her 
hand  to  the  poor 

I  need  not  say  the  memories  I  cherish 
of  Mrs.  Langdon  have  colored  and  im- 
pressed all  these  thoughts  which  I  have 
spoken  to-day.  .  .  .  She  was  a  Chris- 
tian wife  and  mother,  who  consecrated  her 
life  to  her  holy  domestic  mission.  .  . 
She  made  her  home  fragrant  with  the  per- 
fume of  piety  and  love The 

thanks  of  the  poor  she  has  blessed ;  the 
tributes  of  the  sick  she  has  visited ;  the 
sweetness  of  the  charities  she  has  bestowed 
throng  to  make  the  fading  light  of  her 
evening  tranquil  and  beautiful. 

Mrs.  Langdon  has  resided  here  38  years. 
She  was  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Charles 
Bowen,  of  Middlebury,  whose  life  has  not 
been  unknown  to  us,  and  who,  at  his  great 
age,  remains  to  mourn  over  his  daughter, 
and  to  look  for  the  welcome  she  will  give 
him  to  his  long  looked  for  home.  She 
was  married  Dec.  22,  1836.  Not  long 
after,  she  united  with  the  church  whose 
welfare  she  has  never  for  a  moment  for- 
gotten. .  .  .  To  those  who  die  in  the 
Lord,  death  is  only  the  gate  ;  its  iron  side 
turned  toward  us,  its  golden  side  turned 
the  other  way.  w.  h.  l. 

Mrs.  Langdon  was  LucyPomeroy  Bowen, 
born  Sept.  29,  18 14,  at  Northfield,  Mass., 
and  died  Aug.  i,  1873.  Her  children  were  : 
Lucy  Robbins,  born  Apr.  10,  1841  ;  Har- 
riet Frances,  February  2,  1845  ;  Elizabeth 
Whitcomb,  Apr.  6,  1847 ;  James  Henry, 
Apr.  9,  1851. 

THE   GEORGE  W.   BAILEY   FAMILY. 

I  think  no  couple  have  ever  contributed  to 
Montpelier  more  stalwart,  energetic,  suc- 
cessful and  popular  men  than  did  the  late 
Hon.  Geo.  W.  Bailey  and  his  wife,  a  sis- 
ter of  Hon.  Abel  K.  Warren  of  Berlin. 
They  were  both  natives  of  Berlin,  but 
spent  most  of  their  active  life  in  Elmore, 
where  their  children  were  born,  but,  until 
the  senior  Bailey's  death,  resided  in  Mid- 
dlesex, on  the  border  of  Montpelier. 

George  W.  Bailey,  Jr.,  was  the  first 
to  depart,  in  early  manhood.  He  had 
adopted  the  law  as  his  profession,  was 
Secretary  of  State  for  four  years,  which  at- 
tested his  fidelity  in  that  office,  married 
Georgiana,  daughter  of  the  late  Col.  Thom- 


MONTPELIER. 


505 


as  Reed,  but  was  soon  stricken  down  by 
consumption,  dying  inMontpelier,  July  13, 
1864. 

Charles  W.  Bailey  was  one  of  the 
firm  of  Bailey  Brothers,  active  and  shrewd 
business  men  of  Montpelier,  engaged  main- 
ly in  furnishing  horses,  cattle  and  sheep  to 
Boston  markets,  where  his  attendance  was 
regular,  and  by  his  fine  personal  presence 
and  bluff  but  genial  manners  he  was  a  fa- 
vorite. While  attending  personally  to  the 
care  of  sheep  on  a  freight  train  at  Essex 
Junction,  he  was  instantly  killed,  Sept. 
23,  1876.  More  than  a  thousand  people 
honored  him,  when  his  remains  were 
brought  to  Montpelier  to  be  borne  to  his 
home.  Mr.  Bailey  left  a  widow,  two  sons 
and  a  daughter.     His  age  was  45- 

J.  Warren  Bailey,  the  oldest  of  the 
brothers,  was  also  a  member-  of  the  firm 
for  several  years,  and  was  also  largely  em- 
ployed in  civil  offices  in  the  town,  in  which, 
as  in  his  own  business,  he  was  very  effi- 
cient. He  died  of  a  brief  illness,  April 
21,  1880,  aged  56.  He  left  a  widow  and 
two  daughters. 

The  Boston  Jo7iriial  said  : 

He  was  a  brother  of  T.  O.  Bailey  of  the 
Pavilion,  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Bailey, 
Bullock  &  Co.,  commission  merchants, 
Chicago,  and  of  V.  W.  Bullock  &  Co., 
Burlington,  Iowa,  grain  dealers.  Mr.  Bai- 
ley was  in  the  grain  business  at  Montpelier, 
a  Director  in  the  savings  bank,  and  has 
held  several  town  offices.  He  was  univer- 
sally liked  and  was  very  liberal  in  the  use 
of  his  large  property.  He  was  the  eldest 
of  six  brothers,  three  of  whom  now  survive 
him,  and  was  widely  known. 

The  Watchman  <Sr»  State  yoiirnal  said  : 
Born  in  Elmore  May  i,  1824,  he  was 
near  the  completion  of  his  56th  year. 
About  25  years  ago  he  came  to  Montpelier 
and  engaged  with  John  Peck  in  a  general 
produce  business  in  the  store  west  of  the 
"arch."  The  following  year  Mr.  Peck 
withdrew,  and  the  firm  of  Bailey  Brothers 
was  formed  by  the  admission  of  Charles 
Bailey, — a  partnership  that  was  destined 
to  achieve  a  widespread  reputation  for  the 
extent  and  fearlessness  of  its  operations 
and  the  combination  of  business  acumen 
and  high  sense  of  commercial  honor  it 
displayed.  In  1846,  the  brothers  gave  up 
the  store  and  confined  their  operations  to 
a  general  live-stock  business.  At  the  dis- 
solution of  the  partnership  in    1872,  each 

64 


continued  to  employ  in  distinct  operations 
the  comfortable  fortunes  their  united  ef- 
forts had  secured.  Five  years  ago  Mr. 
Bailey  engaged  with  V  .W.  Bullock,  Esq., 
in  the  grain  business  at  Burlington,  Iowa, 
and  about  a  year  ago  his  operations  in  that 
direction  led  to  the  formation  of  the  firm 
of  Bailey,  Bullock  &  Co.,  in  Chicago,  his 
brother,  E.  W.  Bailey,  Esq.,  of  Montpe- 
lier, moving  to  Chicago  to  assume  the  act- 
ive management  of  the  business  of  this 
company.  In  1855,  Mr.  Bailey  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Harriet  Guyer  of  Wolcott,  who 
survives  him  with  the  daughters,  Misses 
Ella  and  Clara.  The  funeral  was  largely 
attended  on  Saturday,  the  citizens,  repre- 
senting every  class  of  the  community,  form- 
ing an  honorary  escort  to  the  cemetery. 
The  funeral  services  were  conducted  by 
Rev.  J.  H.  Hincks,  assisted  by  Rev.  N. 
Fellows  of  Trinity  church.  Among  the 
mourning  relatives  was  the  venerable 
mother  of  the  deceased,  now  verging  on 
four  score  years,  who  has  survived  to  fol- 
low to  the  grave  the  three  eldest  of  her  six 
sons,  each  dying  under  peculiarly  afflicting 
circumstances.  Mr.  Bailey  was  distin- 
guished for  the  native  keenness  and  pre- 
cision of  his  judgment  in  business  trans- 
actions. It  was  eminently  speculative, 
but  tempered  with  an  element  of  caution, 
that  taught  him  to  shun  hazardous  ventures. 
In  this  community  and  among  his  former 
associates  his  bluff  ways  and  ready  humor 
will  be  greatly  missed ;  and  his  name  will 
long  survive  in  local  anecdotes,  illustrating 
his  readiness  at  repartee  and  power  of  pun- 
gent expression.  In  the  loss  of  their  nat- 
ural guardian  and  protector,  the  widow  and 
daughters  will  have  the  unfeigned  sympa- 
thy of  this  community,  which  will  also  ex- 
tend to  the  aged  mother,  and  to  the  sur- 
viving sister  and  brothers  the  assurance  of 
its  participation  in  their  sorrow. 

A  fact  but  little  known  is  that  Warren 
and  Charles  Bailey  furnished  the  United 
States  with  horses  for  a  regiment  in  the 
war  for  the  Union.  It  was  a  gift  worthy 
of  millionaires,  but  they  were  not  that, 
though  wealthy,  patriotic  and  generous. 

Both  Warren  and  Charles  also  very  large- 
ly aided  their  brother, 

Theron  O.  Bailey,  in  constructing  and 
furnishing  the  Pavilion,  which  has  won 
rank  among  the  very  best  hotels  in  New 
England,  has  made  himself  thereby  widely 
famous. 

The  other  brothers  are  Doct.  James, 
residing  in  Ticonderoga,  N.  Y.,  and  Ed- 
ward, who   while    retaining  his   business 


$o6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


interests  in  Montpelier,  is  largely  engaged 
in  the  western  states.  A  sister  and  the 
aged  mother  still  reside  in  Elmore,   e.p.w. 

CHARLES   GAMAGE   EASTMAN, 

born  at  Fryeburgh,  Me.,  was  brought  to 
Barnard,  the  home  of  his  father,  at  an  early 
age,  where  amid  the  rural  scenes  of  a  town 
beautiful  in  mountain  scenery,  his  early 
years  were  mostly  passed. 

"His  mother,  Rebecca  Gamage  of  Frye- 
burgh, was  a  woman  beautiful  in  mind, 
person  and  affections,"  in  all  which  the 
son  strongly  resembled  his  mother. 

Born  to  dependence,  chiefly  upon  his 
own  resources,  Charles  Gamage  worked 
his  way  through  the  district  schools  and 
neighboring  academies  up  to  college,  com- 
pleting his  preparation  at  the  academy  in 
Meriden,  N.  H. ;  he  entered  Burlington 
College,  the  University  of  Vermont,  when 
about  i8  years  of  age.  Here  he  wrote  for 
the  old  Burlington  Sentinel  first,  and  suc- 
ceeding to  the  admiration  of  his  party — 
he  was  a  Democrat  from  his  earliest  years  ; 
"  always  a  Democrat  and  never  anything 
but  a  Democrat " — he  soon  was  contribu- 
ting to  the  other  Democratic  papers  of  the 
State.  His  articles  for  the  newspapers 
winning  immediate  appreciation  most  flat- 
tering to  a  young  author,  his  mind  was 
soon  turned  to  the  after  profession  of  his 
life,  that  of  an  editor,  which  he  left  college 
before  graduating  to  adopt. 

His  first  enterprise  in  opening  his  pro- 
fession was  the  starting  of  a  small  journal 
in  the  interest  of  the  Democratic  party  at 
Johnson,  Lamoille  Co.,  which  obtained 
considerable  attention,  and  was  regarded 
a  credit  to  the  young  editor,  but  not  prov- 
ing a  money  success,  was  relinquished,  and 
in,  1840,  the  no  way  discouraged  editor 
established  himself  at  Woodstock,  the 
county  town  of  old  Windsor,  and  inaugu- 
rated "■  The  Spirit  of  the  Age,''^  and  his 
journal  at  once  assumed  a  high  position 
among  the  Democratic  organs  of  the 
State.  The  earnest,  skillful  editor,  still  in 
flush  of  early  manhood,  confident  of  the 
strength  of  his  principles,  entered  like  an 
athlete  the  newspaper  arena,  giving  battle 
with  vigor  in  all  the  political  contests  on 


the  tapis,  and  consequently  soon  became 
"a  leader  in  the  councils  of  his  party 
throughout  the  State,"  and  duly  "  a  prom- 
inent director  of  its  policy  in  national 
affairs." 

In  1846,  he  sold  out  The  Spirit  0/  the 
Age  at  Woodstock,  and  came  to  Mont- 
pelier and  bought  out  the  Vermont  Patriot, 
of  which  he  continued  the  editor  and  pub- 
lisher for  the  remainder  of  his  life.  At  the 
same  time  that  he  established  himself  in 
Montpelier,  he  established  for  himself  also, 
a  home — how  happily,  he  himself  teaches 
in  .song.  He  married  a  daughter  of  Dr. 
John  D.  Powers  of  Woodstock,  Mrs. 
Susan  S.  Havens,  whose  fairest  praise  is 
in  that  song  from  their  domestic  hearth  : 

I  touch  my  liarp  for  one  to  me 

Of  all  the  world  most  dear, 
Whose  heart  is  like  the  golden  slieaves 

That  crown  the  ripened  year; 
Whose  cheek  is  fairer  than  the  sky 

When 't  blushes  into  morn. 
Whose  voice  was  in  the  summer  night 

Of  silver  streamlets  born  ;— 

To  one  whose  eye  the  brightest  star 

Might  for  a  sister  own. 
Upon  wliose  lip  tlie  honey-bee 

Might  build  lier  waxen  throne; 
Whose  breatli  is  like  tlie  air  that  woos 

The  buds  in  April  liours, 
Tliat  stirs  within  the  dreamy  heart 

A  sense  of  opening  flowers. 

I  touch  my  harp  for  one  to  me 

Of  all  the  world  most  dear. 
Whose  heart  is  like  the  clustering  vine 

Tliat  crowns  the  ripened  year; 
Whose  love  is  like  the  living  springs 

The  mountain  travellers  taste. 
That  stormy  winter  cannot  chill. 

Nor  thirsty  summer  waste. 

They  had  2  sons  and  one  daughter,  all 
born  in  Montpelier. 

Eastman  to  his  sleeping  child  : 

SWEETLY   SHE   SLEEPS. 
Sweetly  she  sleeps  I  her  cheek  so  fair 

Soft  on  the  pillow  pressed. 
Sweetly,  see!  while  her  Saxon  hair 

Watches  Iier  heaving  breast. 
H\ish!  all  low,  thou  moving  breeze. 

Breathe  tlirougU  her  curtain  white; 
Golden  birds,  on  the  maple  trees. 

Let  her  sleep  while  her  dreams  are  light. 
Sweetly  she  sleeps,  her  cheek  so  fair 

Soft  on  her  white  arm  pressed. 
Sweetly,  seel  and  her  childish  care 

Flies  from  her  quiet  rest. 
Hush  I  the  earliest  rays  of  light 

Their  wings  in  the  blue  sea  dip. 
Let  her  sleep,  sweet  child,  with  her  dreams  so 
bright. 

And  the  smile  that  bewilders  her  lip. 


'i^^--0^>n^-i^oiyiA) 


MONTPELIER. 


507 


Mr.  Eastman  continued  to  prosper  in  his 
newspaper  and  political  affairs.  His  paper 
was  the  leading  Democratic  organ  of  the 
State.  We  quote  from  the  George  R. 
Thompson  and  Gilman  biography,  prefac- 
ing the  last  volume  of  his  poems  (1880.) 

It  is  as  the  conductor  of  this  journal 
that  he  is  the  most  widely  remembered 
among  politicians  ;  and  he  managed  it  with 
an  ability  and  faithfulness  that  secured  it  a 
reputation  and  influence  seldom  possess- 
ed by  a  country  newspaper.  His  writings 
in  this  paper  were  in  accordance  with  the 
character  of  the  man, — direct,  incisive,  and 
earnest.  He  never  hesitated  to  say  what- 
ever was  true,  if  it  were  proper  to  be  said  ; 
and  in  his  exposures  of  the  errors  or  frauds 
of  his  opponents  he  employed  intellectual 
weapons  of  the  sharjDest  and  most  cutting 
kind.  His  arguments  were  convincing,  his 
logic  clear,  and  his  convictions  were  stamp- 
ed with  truth.  His  paper  was  not  in  any 
way  pre-eminent  as  a  literary  one.  It 
might  be  supposed,  judging  from  his  al- 
most idolatrous  love  of  literary  pursuits, 
that  his  journal  would  have  been  more 
prominent  in  that  respect ;  but  he  never 
seemed  ambitious  to  make  it  so.  These 
inclinations  were  gratified  in  another  way. 
Though  a  member  of  a  political  party  never 
in  the  ascendancy  in  Vermont,  he  occupied 
many  influential  official  positions.  He  was 
a  leading  member  of  the  Democratic  Na- 
tional Conventions  of  1848,  '52,  '56  and 
'60,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death  was  a 
prominent  member  of  the  National  Demo- 
cratic Committee. 

In  1852,  '53,  he  was  a  senator  of  Wash- 
ington County;  "a  laborious  and  useful 
one,"  and  twice  candidate  of  his  party  for 
a  member  of  Congress,  and  postmaster  of 
Montpelier  about  6  years. 

In  person,  he  was  inclined  to  be  large — 
not  too  large, — very  handsomely  formed, 
with  open,  magnetic,  beautiful  counte- 
nance, that  drew  almost  at  will  hosts  of 
friends  to  his  cordial  heart.  The  idol  of  his 
party,  he  had  a  multitude  of  friends,  also 
out  of  it.  True  to  a  poet  nature,  abstract- 
ed, rapt,  fitful,  sombre  at  times,  even  ;  now 
and  then  November, — probably,  at  a  De- 
cember tide — the  height  of  the  weird,  when 
he  traced  that  "scene  in  a  Vermont  win- 
ter," that  "  fearful  night  in  the  winter  time, 
as  cold  as  it  ever  can  be" — when  "the 
moon  is  full  but  the  wings  of  the  furious 
blast  dash  out  her  light." 


"  All  day  had  the  snows  come  down — all  day," 

"  The  fence  was  lost  and  the  wall  of  stone." 

"  ou  the  mouutain  peak 

How  the  old  trees  writhe  and  shriek ." 

"  Such  a  night  as  this  to  be  found  abroad." 
The  "shivering  dog"  "by  the  road." 
"  See  him  crouch  and  growl "  "and  shut  his 
eyes  with  a  dismal  howl."  "  And  old  man 
from  the  town  to-night,"  that  "lost  the 
travelled  way."  "  The  midnight  past," 
"  the  moon  looks  out,"  the  Morgan  mare 
"  that  at  last  o'er  a  log  had  floundered 
down,"  the  old  traveller  "  in  coat  and  buf- 
falo," stark  and  stiff  in  his  sleigh  in  the 
snow-piled  mountain  hollow  ! 

But  an  occasional  mood  ;  he  had  the  heart 
of  June  inhis  nature — the  spirit  of  spring 
in  his  spirit — whose  verse  oftener  trailed 
over,one  line  blossoming  into  another,  like 
a  trailing  arbutus  in  May  woods.  The  old 
liked  him.  He  was  so  genial ;  young  men 
and  women  liked  him  ;  little  children  loved 
him.  Long  by  those  who  were  children  in 
Montpelier  in  his  time,  will  "  his  contagious 
laugh  be  remembered,"  and  the  charm- 
ing hilarity  with  which  he  would  push 
forward  their  innocent  sports.  It  is  said 
of  him  that  no  young  man  ever  sought  en- 
couragement from  him  in  vain.  He  had 
wide  and  generous  views  of  life,  an  ample 
charity  for  thoughtlessness  or  "  repented 
erring."  As  the  head  of  a  family,  we  may 
quote  the  words  of  Dr.  Lord  to  his  mourn- 
ing family  at  his  funeral : 

You  will  remember  him  first  and  longest 
for  what  he  was  to  you  personally, — for 
what  he  was  in  his  domestic  and  social  re- 
lations. You  will  not  forget  the  kindness 
of  his  heart,  the  amenity  and  cheerfulness 
of  his. manners,  the  liveliness  of  fancy  and 
wit  with  which  he  cheered  the  household. 
.  .  .  You  will  not  lose  the  recollection 
of  his  kind  words,  of  his  considerate  atten- 
tions, of  his  fatherly  acts  and  affections. 
You  will  remember  the  melody  of  his  flute 
as  it  led  the  voices  of  his  children  in  their 
songs  and  hymns ;  the  written  prayers, 
which  I  am  told  he  composed  for  them,  to 
be  used  morning  and  evening  in  their  devo- 
tions. And  so  long  as  love  has  a  place  in 
your  hearts,  this  household  will  not  cease 
to  have  a  shrine  where  his  memory  shall 
be  kept  green  and  sacred. 

The  favorite  of  his  party,  as  a  politician, 
a  lovely  family  and  society  man,  it  is   still 


5o8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


as  a  poet  that  Eastman  has  been  the  widest 
known  and  his  memory  will  be  most  peren- 
nial. Fluent  in  composing,  laborious  in 
revision — from  his  college  days,  or  a  little 
before,  he  wrote  and  pruned,  and  pruned 
and  rewrought,  and  pruned  again,  refining 
and  changing  almost  ad  infinitum  till  the 
day  of  his  death.  The  result :  "  As  a  lyri- 
cal poet  there  is  no  American  writer  who 
can  be  called  his  superior."  He  was  the 
first  American  poet  named  with  praise  in  the 
Edinhirgh  Review ;  the  old  Scotchman, 
wary  of  American  poets,  broke  through  the 
ice  and  praised  Eastman  handsomely  over 
20  years  since,  while  he  yet  lived  to  catch 
the  beautiful  over-the-ocean-glow  coming 
from  the  fire  he  had  kindled.  Facile,  agree- 
able, amusing,  as  a  poet,  but  not  confident. 
Strange !  Did  he  not  know  his  own  pow- 
ers? It  seems  he  did  not; — "sensitive 
and  doubtful  as  to  their  reception  " — when 
his  poems  were  committed  to  the  press, 
when  his  book  appeared  and  was  winning 
golden  laurels,  "  almost  sorry  he  had  pub- 
lished it."  The  writer  remembers  to  have 
heard  him  say,  he  had  made  up  his  mind, 
he  believed,  to  never  publish  any  poem 
until  it  had  been  written  seven  years  and 
he  had  revised  it  every  year. 

Mr.  Eastman  brought  out  his  first  vol- 
ume of  poems  in  1848;  from  which  he 
contributed  with  manifold  retouchings,  to 
the  poems,  ten  pages  to  Miss  Hemenway's 
First  Edition  of  the  Poets  and  Poetry  of 
Vermont  in  1858,  including:  "A  Picture." 

The  farmer  sat  in  his  easy  chair 
Smoliiug  his  pipe  of  clay—, 

Eastman's  "  Dirge  "  : 

"Softly! 

She  is  lying 

Wltli  lier  lips  apart; 
Softly  I 

She  is  dying 

Of  a  broken  heart." 

"I  see  her  not" — "Uncle  Jerry,"  and 
other  pieces  ;  and  in  the  same  work,  revised 
and  enlarged,  "A  scene  in  the  Vermont 
Winter,"  specially  for  the  volume,  and 
other  poems  ;  as  many  pages  in  this  sec- 
ond volume  as  in  the  first. 

Mr.  Eastman's  health  began  steadily  to 
fail  from  May,  i860.  "  An  obstinate  and 
painful  disease  burdened  his  spirit  and 
wasted  his  frame."      Never  man  needed 


rest  more  ;  "  but  his  pride  and  sympathies 
were  enlisted  in  the  business  of  his  party," 
and  too  faithful  to  the  complicated  respon- 
sibilities identified  with  and  accumulated 
upon  him,  he  unwisely,  but  most  unsel- 
fishly, (says  Mr.  Thompson  in  his  sketch), 
made  secondary  his  own  interest  of  health 
and  life.  "  But  he  was  at  home  in  the 
bosom  of  his  family  when  his  eyes  closed 
to  the  scenes  he  loved  so  well ;  and  his 
last  moments,  painless  and  calm,  were 
brightened  by  the  love  of  family  and 
friends,  and  cheered  with  the  substantial 
hope  of  eternal  happiness  and  joy."  He 
died  at  his  residence  in  Montpelier,  Sept. 
16,  i860. 

Mary  Avery  Eastman,  the  last  and 
only  living  descendant,  was  born  in  Mont- 
pelier, in  1849.  She  married,  1S72,  Eldin 
J.  Hartshorn,  son  of  Hon.  John  W.  Harts- 
horn of  this  State,  and  now  resides  at 
Emmetsburg,  Iowa,  where  her  husband  is 
practicing  his  profession  of  the  law  ;  has 
been  State  Senator,  &c. 

John  G.  Eastman,  eldest  son  of  Chas. 
G.,  died  in  Montpelier  in  his  20th  year. 
May  30,  1870. 

Edward  S.,  second  son  of  Charles  G., 
died  in  Montpelier  in  his  19th  year,  Oct. 
2,  1875. 

Mrs.  Eastman,  for  several  years  after 
her  husband's  decease,  until  after  the 
death  of  her  two  sons,  continued  to  reside 
at  Montpelier,  spending  a  part  of  each 
year  with  her  daughter  at  the  West ;  but 
within  a  few  years  has  again  taken  up  her 
residence  in  Woodstock. 

To  the  first  and  sweetest  of  our  Poets — 
pre-eminently  our  State  bard,  we  must — we 
could  not  satisfy  Montpelier  otherwise,  nor 
yet  ourself,  though  crowding  to  a  close — 
make  space  for  yet  a  cluster  from  his  poems 
to  lay  at  the  foot  of  his  biography  at  the 
Capital  : 

the  first  settler. 

His  hair  is  white  as  the  winter  snow, 
His  years  are  many,  as  you  may  know, — 

Some  eighty-two  or  three; 
Yet  a  hale  old  man,  still  strong  and  stout. 
And  able  when  "tis  fair  to  go  out 

His  friends  in  the  street  to  see; 
And  all  who  see  his  face  still  pray 
That  for  many  a  long  and  quiet  day 

He  may  live,  by  the  Lord's  mercy. 


MONTPELIER. 


509 


He  came  to  the  State  when  the  town  was  new. 
When  the  lordly  pine  and  the  hemlock  grew 

In  the  place  where  the  court  house  stands; 
When  the  stunted  ash  and  the  alder  black, 
The  slender  fir  and  the  tamarack. 

Stood  thick  on  the  meadow  lands; 
And  the  brook,  that  now  so  feebly  flows. 
Covered  the  soil  where  the  farmer  hoes 

The  corn  with  his  hardy  hands. 

He  built  in  the  town  the  first  log  hut; 
And  he  is  the  man,  they  say,  wlio  cut 

The  first  old  forest  oak ; 
His  axe  was  the  first,  with  its  echoes  rude. 
To  startle  the  ear  of  the  solitude, 

With  its  steady  and  rapid  stroke. 
From  his  high  log-heap  through  the  trees  arose, 
First,  on  the  hills,  mid  the  winter  snows. 

The  fire  and  the  curling  smoke. 

On  the  land  he  cleared  the  first  hard  year. 
When  he  trapped  the  beaver  and  shot  the  deer. 

Swings  the  sign  of  the  great  hotel; 
By  the  path  where  he  drove  his  ox  to  drink 
The  mill-dam  roars  and  the  hammers  clink. 

And  the  factory  rings  its  bell. 
And  where  the  main  street  comes  up  from  the  south 
Was  the  road  he  "  blazed  "  from  the  river's  mouth. 

As  the  books  of  the  town  will  tell. 

In  the  village,  here,  where  the  trees  are  seen. 
Circling  'round  the  beautiful  Green, 

He  planted  his  hills  of  corn ; 
And  there,  where  you  see  that  long  brick  row, 
Swelling  with  silk  and  calico, 

Stood  the  hut  he  built  one  morn; 
Old  Central  street  was  his  pasture  lane. 
And  down  by  the  church  he  will  put  his  cane 

On  the  5pot  where  his  boys  were  born. 

For  many  an  hour  I  have  heard  him  tell 
Of  the  time,  he  says,  he  remembers  well, 

When  high  on  the  rock  he  stood. 
And  nothing  met  his  wandering  eye 
■    Above,  but  the  clouds  and  the  broad  blue  sky. 

And  below,  the  waving  wood; 
And  how,  at  night,  the  wolf  would  howl 
Round  his  huge  log  fire,  and  the  panther  growl. 

And  the  black  fox  bark  by  the  road. 

He  looks  with  pride  on  the  village  grown 
So  large  on  the  land  that  he  used  to  own; 

And  still  as  he  sees  the  wall 
Of  huge  blocks  built,  in  less  than  the  time 
It  took,  when  he  was  fresh  in  his  prime. 

To  gather  his  crops  in  the  fall ; 
He  thinks,  with  the  work  that,  somehow,  he 
Is  identified,  and  must  oversee 

And  superintend  it  all. 

His  hair  is  white  as  the  winter  snow. 

And  his  years  are  many,  as  you  may  know,— 

Some  eighty-two  or  three; 
Yet  all  who  see  his  face  will  pray. 
For  many  a  long  and  quiet  day 

By  the  Lord's  good  grace,  that  he 
May  be  left  in  the  land,  still  hale  and  stout, 
And  able  still  when  'tis  fair,  to  go  out 

His  friends  in  the  street  to  see. 

THE  BATTLE   OF   PLATTSBURGH. 

He  who  has  still  left  of  his  two  hands  but  one. 

With  that  let  him  grapple  a  sword; 
And  he  who  has  two,  let  him  handle  a  gun; 

And  forward,  boys!  forward!  the  word. 


The  murmuring  sound  of  the  fierce  battle-tide 

Already  resounds  from  afar; 
Forward,  boys!  forward,  on  every  side. 

For  Vermont  and  her  glittering  star! 

Who  lingers  behind  when  the  word  has  passed  down 

That  the  enemy  swarm  o'er  the  line? 
When  he  knows  in  the  heart  of  a  North  border  town 

Their  glittering  bayonets  shine  V 
Push  on  to  the  North;  the  fierce  battle-tide 

Already  resounds  from  afar; 
Push  on  to  the  North  from  every  side. 

For  Vermont  and  her  glittering  star! 

Forward!  the  State  that  was  first  in  the  fight 

When  Allen  and  Warner  were  here. 
Should  not  be  the  last  now  to  strike  for  the  right. 

Should  never  be  found  in  tlie  rear! 
Then,  on  to  the  North!  the  fierce  battle-tide 

Already  resounds  from  afar; 
Push  on  to  the  North  from  every  side. 

For  Vermont  and  her  glittering  star! 

Hark!  booms  from  the  lake,  and  resounds  from  the 
land. 

The  roar  of  the  conflict.    Push  on  1 
Push  on  to  the  North!  on  every  hand 

Our  boys  to  the  rescue  have  gone; 
Forward!  the  State  that  was  first  in  the  fight 

When  Allen  and  Warner  were  here. 
Should  not  be  the  last  now  to  strike  for  the  right. 

Should  never  be  found  in  the  rear. 

OF   LOVE   AND   WINE. 

Of  love  and  wine  old  poets  sung, 

Old  poets  rich  and  rare,— 
Of  wine  with  red  and  ruby  heart. 

And  love  with  golden  hair; 
Of  wine  that  winged  the  poet's  thought. 

And  woke  the  slumbering  lyre; 
Of  love  that  through  the  poet's  line 

Ran  like  a  flash  of  fire. 

But  wine,  when  those  old  poets  sung 

Its  praises  long  ago. 
Was  something  subtler  than  the  bards 

Of  modern  ages  know; — 
Ay,  wine  was  wine  when  Teian  girls. 

Flushed  with  the  rosy  dew. 
To  old  Auacreon's  fiery  strains 

Through  wanton  dances  flew. 

And  love,  when  those  old  poets  sung 

Its  praises  long  ago. 
Was  something  warmer  than  the  bards 

Of  modern  ages  know ;  — 
Ay,  love  was  love  when  Teian  girls. 

Flushed  with  the  melting  fire. 
With  roses  crowned  Anacreon's  brow. 

With  kisses  paid  his  lyre. 

PURER   THAN   SNOW. 

Purer  than  snow 

Is  a  girl  I  know; 
Purer  than  snow  is  she; 

Her  heart  is  light. 

And  her  cheek  is  bright,— 
Ah !  who  do  you  think  she  can  be  ? 

/know  very  well. 

But  I  never  shall  tell, 
'Twould  spoil  all  the  fun,  you  see; 

Her  eye  is  blue; 

And  her  lip,  like  dew. 
And  red  as  a  mulberry. 


510 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


THE  APPLE   BLOSSOM. 

Here's  an  apple  blossom,  Mary ; 

See  how  delicate  and  fair! 
Here's  an  apple  blossom,  Mary ; 

Let  me  weave  it  in  your  hair  I 

Ah!  thy  hair  is  raven,  Mary, 
And  the  curls  are  thick  and  bright; 

And  this  apple  blossom,  Mary, 
Is  so  beautifully  white! 

There!  the  apple  blossom,  Mary, 
Looks  so  sweet  among  your  curls! 

And  the  apple  blossom,  Mary, 
Crowns  the  sweetest  of  the  girls. 

But  the  apple  blossom.  Mary, 

You  must  have  a  little  care 
Not  to  tell  your  mother,  Mary, 

That  /wove  it  in  your  hair! 

HON.  RAWSEL  R.  KEITH, 

oldest  son  of  Hon.  Chapin  Keith,  born  in 
Uxbridge,  Mass.,  Nov.  21,  1790,  died  in 
Montpelier  Oct.  25,  1874.  Coming  to 
Barre  with  his  father  in  1793,  he  remained 
there  until  1817,  when  he  came  to  Mont- 
pelier as  deputy  sheriff,  and  held  that  office 
and  the  shrievalty  until  1831.  He  was 
Judge  of  Probate  1833  to  36,  and  long  a  di- 
rector and  finally  president  of  the  Bank  of 
Montpelier,  retiring  voluntarily  from  these 
positions.  He  was  a  man  of  firmness  and 
integrity,  and  highly  esteemed  by  his  fel- 
low citizens.  He  married  Mary  T.  Wheel- 
er of  Barre,  who  bore  him  2  sons;  R.  D. 
W.  Keith,  now  of  Chicago,  and  Alonzo  T. 
Keith,  now  of  Montpelier. 

LUTHER   NEWCOMB,    ESQ. 

UY  H.  A.  HU8E. 

Luther  Newcomb,  for  many  years  the 
county  clerk  of  Washington  County,  was 
born  in  Derby,  Apr.  10,  1826,  and  died 
from  Bright's  disease,  at  his  home  in  Mont- 
pelier, Jan.  2,  1876.  His  father  was  Dr. 
Luther  Newcomb,  whose  wife  was  Lucretia 
Martin.  Dr.  Newcomb  was  the  first  phy- 
sician to  locate  in  that  part  of  northern 
Vermont,  and  was  eminent  in  his  profes- 
sion ;  among  his  students  was  Dr. Colby,  the 
father  of  Stoddard  B.  Colby.  Dr.  New- 
comb died  when  Luther  was  5  years  old, 
and  the  boy  remained  with  his  mother  6 
years  after  his  father's  death. 

The  family  was  intimate  with  Hon.  Isaac 
F.  Redfield,  and  when  Luther  was  11  years 
old,  he  came  to  Montpelier  and  became  the 
same   as   a  member   of  Judge    Redfield's 


family.  He  studied  under  the  direction  of 
the  Judge  and  entered  Wash.  Co.  Gram- 
mar School,  where  he  pursued  his  studies 
until  prepared  to  enter  college.  He  then 
read  law  under  the  direction  of  Judge  Red- 
field,  and  was  for  a  time  a  student  in  the 
office  of  O.  H.  Smith,  Esq.  Though  fit- 
ted for  admission  to  the  bar,  he  did  not 
apply  for  it,  but  receiving  an  appoint- 
ment in  the  customs  service  he  was  2  years 
a  revenue  officer  on  Lake  Champlain. 

Jan.  I,  1849,  he  was  appointed  Deputy 
Clerk  of  Wash.  Co.  Court  under  Shubael 
Wheeler.  He  was  in  Dec,  1857,  appoint- 
ed Clerk  and  held  the  position  during  the 
rest  of  hislife.  He  was  a  model  officer,  and 
had  not  only  the  respect  and  affection  of 
the  Washington  County  bar  and  the  court, 
but  as  the  general  term  of  the  Supreme 
Court  was  held  here,  that  of  members  of 
the  bar  of  the  whole  State. 

Mr.  Newcomb  married  June  25,  1857, 
Amanda  Thomas,  only  daughter  of  Gen. 
Stephen  Thomas.  His  wife  and  3  sons, 
Charles,  Luther,  and  Stephen  T.,  survive 
him. 

Mr.  J.  W.  Wheelock,  who  died  the 
month  after  Mr.  Newcomb,  on  the  death 
of  the  latter  wrote  for  his  paper,  from  his 
own  sick  bed,  a  few  words  concerning  his 
old  friend,  and  among  them  were  the  fol- 
lowing : 

He  was  in  many  respects  a  remarkable 
man.  Beneath  a  business-like  and,  to  the 
casual  observer,  almost  stern  exterior,  was 
hidden  a  heart  tender  as  that  of  a  woman, 
and  one  ever  prompting  him  to  those  kindly 
thoughts  and  acts  which  so  ennoble  and 
exalt  human  nature.  Unobtrusive,  and 
apparently  concerned  only  about  the  proper 
performance  of  his  duties  as  clerk  of  the 
court,  he  yet  possessed  so  comprehensive 
and  discriminating  powers  of  mind  that  he 
took  in  almost  intuitively  the  bearings  and 
consequences  of  matters  brought  before 
him  ;  and  many  a  sentence  of  crisp  brevity 
has  contained,  as  in  a  nut-shell,  the  law 
and  wisdom  of  it,  and  the  decision  at 
which  the  learned  judge  arrives  after  a 
most  elaborate  and  exhaustive  review. 
.  .  .  He  was  always  ready  to  aid  and 
encourage  the  inexperienced  or  timid,  and 
many  a  success  has  been  achieved  through 
a  timely  word  of  advice  and  aid  from  him. 
He  was  judicious  as  a  counsellor,  valuable 


MONTPELIER. 


5ir 


and  safe  as  an  adviser,  and  faithful,  even 
unto  death,  in  his  friendships. 

The  funeral  of  Mr.  Newcomb  was  in  the 
Court  House,  Rev.  J.  E.  Wright  conduct- 
ing the  services?  and  Hon.  Charles  W. 
Willard  making  an  address.  Mr.  Willard 
in  his  address  spoke  not  only  as  the  rep-, 
resentative  of  the  bar,  but,  indeed,  as  the 
nearest  friend,  and  said  that  the  friend- 
ship of  Luther  Newcomb  had  been  tJie 
friendship  of  his  manhood  and  his  life. 

CHARLES   CLARK,    M.    D., 

son  of  Nathaniel  and  Lucy  (Perry)  Clark, 
was  born  in  what  is  now  known  as  East 
Montpelier,  Jan.  31,  1800.  His  parents 
were  among  the  early  settlers  of  the  town, 
and  had  come  from  Rochester,  Mass.  It 
is  claimed  by  some  members  of  the  Clark 
family  still  residing  in  Rochester,  that  they 
are  descended  from  Thomas  Clark,  mate 
on  the  Mayflower,  who  returned  on  the 
brig  Anne,  and  settled  in  the  Plymouth 
colony  in  1623.  One  of  the  oldest  stones 
in  the  cemetery  at  Plymouth  bears  the 
name  of  Nathaniel  Clark,  who  died  in  17 14, 
at  74. 

Charles  was  the  second  son  in  a  family 
of  6  children.  An  injury  of  his  left  knee, 
in  his  fourth  year,  caused  its  amputation 
3  years  after.  This  was  before  the  day  of 
anaesthetics.  As  illustrative  of  the  spirit 
of  the  boy,  when  the  surgeon.  Dr.  Nathan 
Smith  of  Hanover,  propo.sed  to  bind  him, 
as  was  usual  in  such  cases,  the  child  re- 
fused, placed  himself  on  the  table,  sub- 
mitted to  the  painful  operation  without  the 
quivering  of  a  muscle,  without  a  word  or 
any  sign  of  pain. 

His  father  died  when  he  was  but  10 
years  of  age,  and  from  that  time  on,  with 
an  indomitable  courage  characteristic  of 
his  whole  life,  he  supported  himself  by  his 
own  labor. 

The  record  of  the  next  20  years  is  astory 
of  trials  and  privations,  which  a  less  brave 
spirit  would  not  have  overcome.  His  ed- 
ucational advantages  were  limited  to  the 
common  school  and  a  few  terms  in  the 
Washington  County  Grammar  School.  He 
studied  his  profession  with  Dr.  Edward 
Lamb,  of  Montpelier,  and  as  early  as  1819, 


attended  lectures  at  Castleton  Medical 
College.  He  began  the  practice  of  med- 
icine with  Dr.  N.  C.  King,  of  North  Mont- 
pelier, in  1 82 1,  and  removed  to  Calais 
2  years  later,  where  he  purchased  a  small 
farm  of  20  acres,  and  set  up  for  himself. 
He  was  soon  after  married  to  Clarissa 
Boyden,  daughter  of  Darius  Boyden,  Esq., 
of  Montpelier,  where  he  resided  14  years. 
In  speaking  of  these  early  days  he  used  to 
say,  "Medical  practice  in  these  days  of 
warm  wraps  and  nice  robes  is  quite  another 
thing  from  my  experience  in  the  dead  of 
winter  on  hor.seback,  or  at  best  in  a  bare 
sleigh,  with  insufficient  clothing." 

In  1837,  he  removed  to  Montpelier,  pur- 
chasing the  Boyden  homestead,  where  he 
resided  for  12  years,  securing  an  extensive 
practice  not  only  in  Montpelier,  but  in 
surrounding  towns,  winning  public  confi- 
dence and  affection  wherever  known. 

In  1849,  he  moved  into  the  village  of 
Montpelier,  both  for  the  better  education 
of  his  children  and  the  more  convenient 
practice  of  his  profession,  in  which  he  con- 
tinued actively  engaged  till  1865,  when  he 
met  with  an  accident  resulting  in  a  severe 
and  protracted  illness,  from  which  he  never 
wholly  recovered.  After  this,  he  retired 
from  general  practice,  retaining  only  office 
and  consultation  business.  In  1868,  he 
was  again  severely  injuredby  being  thrown 
from  his  carriage.  From  this  he  had  par- 
tially recovered,  when  a  year  later  he  was 
stricken  with  paralysis.  With  patient  en- 
durance he  lingered  through  5  years  more 
of  suffering  and  prostration  till  his  death, 
June  21,  1874. 

Dr.  Clark  was  a  man  of  more  than  or- 
dinary natural  gifts,  or  he  would  never  have 
accomplished  what  he  did — left  poor  in 
this  world's  goods,  crippled  by  his  physical 
infirmity,  and  with  but  very  limited  op- 
portunities of  education.  In  person  he 
was  6  feet  of  stature  and  fine  presence  and 
great  physical  endurance.  He  was  re- 
markable for  his  keen  observation  of  men 
and  things,  and  was  rarely  mistaken  in  his 
judgment.  His  genial  manners,  generous 
sympathies,  and  fund  of  anecdote,  made 
him  always  welcome  at  the  bedside  of  his 
patients,  and  contributed  not  a  little  to  his 


512 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


success.  He  was  thoroughly  devoted  to 
his  profession,  kept  himself  well  informed 
of  the  progress  of  the  science  through 
standard  medical  journals,  and  was  always 
ready  to  accept  and  try  new  methods.  But 
his  own  experience  and  observation  served 
him  better  than  books.  He  compounded 
his  medicines  with  little  regard  to  received 
formulas,  and  more  from  his  judgment  in 
each  particular  case.  Those  best  ac- 
quainted with  him,  greatly  regret  that  he 
did  not  write  out  for  the  benefit  of  the 
profession  the  results  of  his  large  and 
varied  experience. 

As  a  man  and  a  citizen,  it  is  not  too 
much  to  say  that  he  was  universally  es- 
teemed— a  man  of  public  spirit,  interested 
in  every  movement  and  enterprise  that 
looked  to  the  welfare  of  society.  Though 
not  a  professor  of  religion  till  late  in  life, 
he  started  and  superintended  a  Sabbath- 
school  during  his  short  residence  at  North 
Montpelier,  was  one  of  the  earliest  and 
staunchest  advocates  of  temperance,  and 
was  always  urging  improvements  in  meth- 
ods and  opportunities  of  education.  He 
spared  no  self-denial  and  sacrifice  to  give 
his  own  children  advantages  which  were 
denied  to  himself,  and  in  the  same  gen- 
erous spirit  sought  the  welfare  of  others. 
He  was  for  12  years  president  of  the  board 
of  trustees  and  chairman  of  the  prudential 
committee  of  the  Washington  County 
Grammar  School,  and  for  many  years  treas- 
urer of  the  Vermont  Medical  Society,  of 
which  he  was  an  active  member.  He  was 
too  much  given  to  his  own  special  work  to 
engage  in  political  life,  yet  he  yielded  to 
the  wishes  of  his  friends,  and  served  as 
representative  of  Montpelier  in  the  Legis- 
lature in  1846,  '47.  He  was  not  a  public 
speaker,  as  he  felt  the  need  of  proper 
culture  for  this,  but  was  esteemed  as  a  very 
useful  working  man  on  committees.  His 
judgment  was  always  valued  in  practical 
questions  of  politics.  One  incident,  how- 
ever, he  was  wont  to  recall  with  a  good 
deal  of  satisfaction  in  later  years.  A  bill 
for  a  license  law  was  being  pushed  through 
the  legislature,  and  was  likely  to  pass, 
greatly  to  the  regret  of  friends  of  tem- 


perance. Just  at  the  last  moment  when 
an  amendment  was  possible.  Dr.  Clark 
rose  to  his  place  without  previous  con- 
sultation with  others,  presented  a  brief 
amendment,  urged  it  home  with  a  few 
chosen  words,  and  secured  its  prompt 
passage  by  the  House.  A  leading  politi- 
cian who  had  been  interested  in  carrying 
the  measure,  rushed  across  the  hall  at 
once,  and  said  to  him  with  much  excite- 
ment, "Your  amendment  has  killed  the 
bill."  "Just  what  I  intended,"  was  the 
reply.  He  was  warmly  congratulated  by 
friends  of  temperance  at  once  and  for 
years  after  on  the  defeat  of  a  measure 
which  he  felt  would  have  been  attended 
with  serious  injury  to  the  best  interests  of 
the  State. 

The  following  tribute  was  rendered  him 
by  his  pastor,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lord:  "His 
life  began  with  suffering,  it  clo.sed  in  suf- 
fering, but  its  long  intermediate  years  were 
filled  with  hard  work,  with  brave  labors, 
irradiated  by  a  warm,  genial  spirit,  by  de- 
votion to  the  best  interests  of  his  fellow- 
men,  with  zeal  for  education,  good  morals 
and  religion,  by  professional  skill,  fidelity 
and  enthusiasm.  He  received,  as  he  em- 
inently merited,  the  respect,  confidence 
and  love  of  all  who  knew  him." 

— From  the  Family. 
DEA.  CONSTANT   W. STORKS 

was  born  in  Royal  ton  in  1801,  came  to 
Montpelier  in  1822,  and  from  that  time 
until  his  death  was  engaged  in  merchan- 
dise— more  than  half  a  century.  In  1831, 
he  became  a  member  of  the  First  Congre- 
gational Church,  and  in  1835  was  elected 
one  of  its  deacons — an  office  which  he  tried 
to  magnify  as  long  as  he  lived.  For  22 
years  he  was  treasurer  of  the  Vermont  Do- 
mestic Missionary  Society.  He  was  great- 
ly interested  in  religious  matters,  and  la- 
bored incessantly  in  season  and  out  of 
season.  Early  in  life  he  married  a  daugh- 
ter of  Wyllis  I.  Cad  well,  who  bore  him  two 
sons  and  a  daughter,  the  beautiful  daughter 
dying  when  about  to  reach  maturity.  The 
widow  and  son  survive.  Dea.  Storrs  died 
Mar.  23,  1872.  E.  p.  w. 


:Z^ 


MONTPELIER. 


SI3 


HON.    CHARLES   REED. 

BY  REV.  J.  EDWAKD   WUIGHT. 

Charles  Reed  was  born  in  Thetford, 
Nov.  24,  1814,  and  died  in  Montpelier, 
after  a  sickness  of  less  than  three  days, 
Mar.  7,  1873.  He  was  the  oldest  child  of 
Hon.  Joseph  Reed,  and  his  second  wife, 
Elizabeth  Burnap,  daughter  of  Rev.  Jacob 
Burnap,  of  Merrimac,  N.  H.,  and  sister 
of  the  scholarly  Unitarian  minister  long 
settled  in  Baltimore,  Md.,  Rev.  George 
W.  Burnap,  D.  D.  Montpelier  was  Mr. 
Reed's  home  from  1827,  when  his  father 
came  here  to  reside.  He  pursued  his  pre- 
paratory studies  at  the  Washington  County 
Grammar  School,  entered  Dartmouth  Col- 
lege, and  graduated  in  1835.  Among  his 
classmates  and  intimate  friends  there  was 
the  late  Governor  Peter  T.  Washburn. 
He  studied  law  in  Montpelier,  in  the  office 
of  Hon.  William  Upham,  and  afterwards 
for  2  years  in  the  Dane  Law  School,  Har- 
vard University,  where  he  received  the  de- 
gree of  LL.B.  in  1839.  He  was  admit- 
ted to  the  Washington  County  Bar  in 
1838,  and  in  Sept.,  1839,  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  Hon.  Homer  W.  Heaton,  which 
continued  for  a  third  of  a  century  without 
change  in  the  location  of  the  office,  being 
only  dissolved  by  Mr.  Reed's  death.  He 
married  Emily  Eliza,  eldest  daughter  of 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin  of  Montpelier,  June 
5,  1842,  by  whom  he  had  five  children; 
two  of  whom,  Elizabeth  Burnap,  wife  of 
Col.  J.  H.  Lucia  of  Vergennes,  and  Maria 
G.,  with  their  mother,  survived  him. 
(Mrs.  Lucia  died,  leaving  husband  and  3 
children,  Jan.  5,  1881.) 

From  time  to  time  Mr.  Reed's  fellow 
citizens  honored  themselves  in  honoring 
him  with  positions  of  trust.  He  was  cho- 
sen justice  ot  the  peace  for  a  number  of 
years  ;  was  elected  state's  attorney  in  1847, 
and  again  in  1848,  and  was  appointed  reg- 
ister of  probate  in  the  latter  year, — per- 
forming the  duties  of  the  office  by  deputy. 
For  some  5  years  he  was  one  of  the  select- 
men of  Montpelier.  In  1858,  he  was  cho- 
sen trustee  and  librarian  of  the  State  libra- 
ry, and  also  a  member  of  the  Vt.  Historical 
Society,  in  whose  work  he  was  deeply  in- 
terested, serving  as  one  of  its  curators,  and 

65 


publishing  committee,  and  also  as  its  li- 
brarian. He  represented  Montpelier  in 
the  Legislatures  of  1862  and  1863,  and  for 
the  three  following  years  occupied  a  seat 
in  the  Senate  chamber.  While  in  the 
Senate,  he  interested  himself  ardently  in 
the  institution  of  the  Vermont  Reform 
School,  now  located  in  Vergennes,  and  be- 
came chairman  of  its  first  board  of  trustees, 
which  position  he  retained  till  his  death. 
At  the  establishment  of  Green  Mount  Cem- 
tery  in  Montpelier,  Mr.  Reed  was  chosen 
one  of  its  commissioners,  and  was  re- 
elected to  that  trust,  which  he  had  held 
for  many  years,  on  the  last  day  of  his 
active  business  life.  He  was  one  of  the 
four  far-sighted  men  who  advocated  and 
secured  that  change  in  the  school  system 
of  Montpelier,  which  brought  the  Washing- 
ton County  Grammar  School  and  the  district 
schools  into  harmonious  relations  under 
the  same  board  of  management  and  in  the 
same  building ;  and  he  was  repeatedly 
elected  chairman  of  the  united  committees. 
In  1869,  he  was  chosen  a  member  of  the 
Council  of  Censors,  and  in  that  capacity 
advocated  extending  the  right  of  suffrage 
to  women.  Politically  he  was  a  democrat 
in  early  life,  but  from  the  breaking  out  of 
the  rebellion,  he  took  sides  with  the  repub- 
lican party.  His  last  illness  was  occasion- 
ed by  a  cold  taken  in  the  chilly  air  of  the 
unwarmed  State  Library,  while  he  was  in- 
vestigating some  historical  topic.  This 
was  increased  by  exposure  a  few  days  later, 
at  the  March  meeting,  which  his  interest  in 
Temperance  Reform  led  him  to  attend ; 
and  thus  were  developed,  in  a  constitution 
originally  strong,  but  weakened  by  over- 
work, the  pleuro-pneumonia  and  conges- 
tion which  ended  his  earthly  career. 

Mr.  Reed  was,  first  of  all,  a  man  of 
ititegrity.  This  appeared  in  his  business 
relations  with  others,  and  won  for  him 
their  utmost  confidence  ;  and  it  was  shown 
also  in  his  faithfulness  to  his  own  convic- 
tions. He  never  seemed  to  stop  to  ask  if 
the  course  contemplated  would  gain  for 
him  profit  and  applause  or  involve  loss  and 
unpopularity.  Among  those  of  a  different 
faith,  he  adhered  steadfastly  to  the  Unita- 
rian views  with  which  he   was  imbued  in 


514 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


his  childhood  ;  and,  when  opportunity  of- 
fered, entered  zealously  into  the  work  of 
establishing  in  Montpelier  a  church  that 
should  represent  what  he  thought  to  be 
the  truth  in  religious  doctrine.  He  was 
among  the  foremost  in  the  organization  of 
the  Church  of  the  Messiah,  and  was  inde- 
fatigable in  laboring  to  promote  its  inter- 
ests. He  acted  with  like  decision,  energy, 
and  straight-forwardness  in  regard  to  the 
Temperance  agitation,  and  the  Woman 
Suffrage  Reform. 

He  was  also  a  man  of  marked  public 
spirit.  With  private  cares  that  were  by  no 
means  small,  he  undertook  a  great  variety 
and  amount  of  work  for  the  general  wel- 
fare— work  for  which  he  received  little  or 
no  remuneration,  direct  or  indirect.  The 
value  of  the  services  he  rendered  to  his 
town  and  State,  in  his  devotion  to  educa- 
tional interests,  the  Reform  School,  the 
State  Library,  and  the  Historical  Society, 
cannot  be  estimated  in  money,  and  can  be 
appreciated  in  its  full  e.xtent  by  very  few. 
Rarely,  indeed,  does  any  philanthropist 
contribute  so  freely  from  his  purse  to  char- 
itable objects,  as  did  Mr.  Reed  lavish  from 
the  wealth  of  his  time,  and  physical  and 
mental  strength,  for  the  public  good. 

Further,  he  was  ever  loyal  to  his  native 
State.  In  the  words  of  another,  "'As  a 
Vermonter,  believing  in  Vermont  and  the 
genuine  Vermont  character,  deeply  inter- 
ested in  the  past  history  of  the  State,  and 
its  present  prosperity,  Mr.  Reed  will  be 
much  missed.  He  was  one  of  the  no- 
blest and  truest  of  loyal  Vermonters. 
As  an  officer  of  the  State  Historical  So- 
ciety he  rendered  invaluable  service  in 
getting  up  and  putting  in  form  for  pres- 
ervation much  of  the  early  history.  .  .  . 
The  State  has  not  another — if  we  except 
those  who  have  been  associated  with  him 
in  this  work,  Hons.  Hiland  Hall  and  E.  P. 
Walton — to  fill  his  place." 

In  his  chosen  profession,  Mr.  Reed 
reached  a  proud  eminence,  (yet  singularly 
without  pride,)  and  gained  a  handsome 
property.  H.  A.  Huse,  Esq.,  a  fellow- 
member  of  the  bar,  at  one  time  his  assist- 
ant, and  later  his  successor  in  the  charge 
of  the    State   Library,  said   of  him,  in  a 


memorial  sketch  read  before  the  Vermont 
Historical  Society,  "Charles  Reed  was  a 
true  lawyer,  taking  pride  in  his  profession, 
and  loving  the  law  as  a  science  wherein 
reason  has  her  most  perfect  work,  and  be- 
cause his  knowledge  of  it  enabled  him  to  be 
truly  a  counsellor  to  those  in  trouble. 
Grounded  by  severe  study  in  the  founda- 
tion principles,  his  directness  and  the  im- 
patience with  which  he  viewed  worthless 
and  irrelevant  matter  made  him  a  good 
pleader.     His  papers  always  gave  him  a 

standing  in  court Mr  Reed, 

on  trial  of  a  case,  presented  clearly  to 
court  or  jury  the  facts  proved  and  the  law 
applicable  to  them.  This  was  done  not  by 
the  use  of  rounded  periods,  impassioned 
gesture,  or  appeal  to  the  emotional  nature. 
His  imagination  supplied  him  neither  with 
facts  not  in  the  case,  nor  with  the  coloring 
and  magnifying  power  which  often  distorts 
things  from  their  true  relation,  and  gives 
what  is  unimportant  undue  prominence. 
But  it  was,  I  think,  in  the  court  of  chan- 
cery, and  perhaps  still  more  in  the  supreme 
court,  that  Mr.  Reed  showed  the  qualities 
most  clearly  that  stamped  him  as  one  of 
the  leaders  of  the  bar.  In  the  court  of 
last  resort  the  premises  were  fixed  and  un- 
changing, and  from  them  he  worked  most 
unerringly  to  the  conclusion.  The  brief 
method  of  statement,  the  condensed  argu- 
ment, had  there  their  true  sphere  and  al- 
ways their  due  weight.  While  it  was  not 
given  to  him  to  charm  by  silvery  speech, 
it  was  given  him  to  convince  by  the  close- 
ness of  his  logic.  The  clear-cut  intellect, 
trained  by  careful  study,  made  him  in- 
valuable as  a  legislator.  During  his  term 
of  service  the  laws  passed  received  more 
careful  scrutiny,  and  were  more  carefully 
framed  from  the  very  fact  of  his  presence  ; 
and  much  of  the  intelligible  legislation  of 
the  last  few  years  owes  its  shape  to  his 
skill,  as  well  since  as  during  his  occupancy 
of  a  seat  in  the  law-making  body. 

"  In  yet  another  direction  was  his  ability 
as  a  lawyer  called  into  activity.  Before 
1858,  the  State  Library  was  a  mass  of  leg- 
islative documents  without  form,  and  void 
of  any  use.  A  few  law  reports  were  inter- 
mingled, and  formed  a  stock  from  which 


\    \ 


MONTPELIER. 


515 


impecunious  and  conscience-lacking  men 
plundered  at  will.  To  make  this  one  of 
the  best  libraries  in  the  Union  in  the  De- 
partment of  American  Law,  without  large 
expense  to  the  State,  was  a  labor  of  years 
with  Mr.  Reed.  His  success,  with  the 
means  at  his  command,  has,  I  am  sure, 
not  been  paralleled.  The  bar  and  bench 
of  the  county  and  State  owe  a  great  debt 
to  him  for  the  thoroughness  of  the  work." 

Charles  Reed  was  no  courtier,  nor 
trimmer.  He  could  not  cajole,  he  could 
not  flatter,  he  could  not  fawn  and  curry 
favor.  His  sincerity  appeared  often  as 
bluntness,  and  sometimes  gave  offence. 
But  those  who  were  acquainted  with  him 
had  in  their  minds  an  ever  ready  explana- 
tion of  his  occasional  roughness  of  speech 
and  manner,  in  the  knowledge  that  they 
were  dealing  with  an  upright,  downright 
honest  man,  who,  under  an  exterior  some- 
what hard,  carried  a  heart  throbbing  with 
devotion  to  the  welfare  of  all,  a  man  of 
Roman  firmness,  and  of  Jacksonian  wil- 
lingness to  assume  the  responsibility  in  an 
emergency  ;  a  man  whose  record,  whether 
public  or  private,  had  always  been  sin- 
gularly free  from  stain  ;  a  man  whose  very 
presence  strengthened  the  worthy  pur- 
poses of  the  timid  and  hesitating  about 
him,  a  man  whose 

.    ,    .    '■  Daily  prayer,  far  better  nnderstood 
In  acts  than  words,  was  simply  doing  good.'''' 

JAMES   G.    FRENCH, 

son  of  Micah  French,  of  Barre,  was  born 
in  Peru,  N.  Y.,  in  1824,  and  died  in  Mont- 
pelier,  suddenly,  Aug.  8,  1878.  Employed 
for  a  while  as  a  clerk,  he  opened  a  clothing 
store  in  Montpelier,  in  which  he  was  quite 
successful.  He  was  postmaster  8  years 
under  President  Lincoln,  and  subsequently 
entered  into  the  construction  of  the  Mont- 
pelier &  Wells  River  Railroad.  He  was 
also  very  energetic,  and  even  daring,  in 
real  estate  operations,  and  to  him,  more 
than  to  any  one  man,  Montpelier  owes  the 
construction  of  its  spacious  and  elegant 
stores.  Mr.  French  married  a  daughter  of 
the  late  JoelGoldsbury,  of  Barre,  and  she, 
with  an  only  daughter,  Mrs.  W.  T.  Dewey, 
survive  him. 


LUTHER   CROSS, 

born  in  Swanzey,  N.  H.,  1802,  established 
himself  in  mercantile  business  in  Mont- 
pelier in  1827.  In  the  same  year  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Polly  M.  Day,  of  Woodstock, 
who  bore  him  four  children :  Gustavus 
T.,  who  died  March  13,  1867,  aged  33 
years  ;  Luther  Burnell,  now  of  Montpelier  ; 
Royal  D.,  now  in  the  West;  and  Lucia  D., 
now  wife  of  Marcus  A.  Farwell,  of  Chicago. 
Mr.  Cross  was  interested  in  politics,  and 
personally  very  popular ;  hence  he  was 
often  the  Whig  candidate  for  represent- 
ative in  the  old  town  of  Montpelier,  and 
always  received  more  than  his  party  vote  ; 
but  the  town  was  so  strongly  Democratic 
that  success  was  impossible.  He  was, 
however,  a  magistrate  many  years  in  suc- 
cession, and  by  the  Legislature  was  re- 
peatedly elected  sergeant-at-arms.  He 
built  three  brick  dwellings,  which  were 
the  best  in  Montpelier  in  his  day,  and  two 
of  them  are  the  best  of  the  brick  houses 
now.  The  three  are  the  two  houses  on 
State  street  now  occupied  by  Hons.  John 
A.  Page  and  B.  F.  Fifield,  and  the  Cross 
homestead  on  Elm  street.  He  also  built 
the  "  Willard  block  "  on  Main,  at  the  head 
of  State  street.  He  died,  suddenly.  Mar. 
9,  1873,  aged  71  years. 

CHARLES   AND   TIMOTHY   CROSS 

came  to  Montpelier  about  the  time  of  the 
advent  of  Richard  W.  Hyde,  and  with  him 
started  the  first  bakery  in  town. 

Chas.  H.  Cross  was  born  in  Tilton, 
N.  H.,  Feb.  13,  1812,  and  his  wife  was 
born  an  hour  or  two  before  him.  He 
is  highly  esteemed,  a  staunch  Methodist, 
and  a  liberal  contributor  to  that  church 
and  its  educational  institution  on  Seminary 
Hill.  He  is  still  engaged  in  a  large  bakery 
and  confectionary  business  with  his  eldest 
and  well-known  son,  L.  Bart.  Cross. 

Timothy  Cross  died  some  years  ago. 
His  house  was  destroyed  in  the  last  great 
fire,  and  his  widow  and  children  removed 
to  Cambridgeport,  Mass. 

[To  Charles  Cross  the  Methodist  church 
are  also  indebted  chiefly  for  the  fine  wood 
engraving  of  their  church  building.— ed.] 


Si6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


DANIEL   BALDWIN 

(BY   REV.  .T.  EDWAllD   WRIGHT.) 

Was  born  in  Norwich,  Vt.,  July  21,  1792, 
and  died  in  Montpelier,  Aug.  3,  188 1.  He 
was  the  youngest  of  the  seven  children  of 
Daniel  and  Hannah  (Havens)  Baldwin. 
His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Robert 
Havens,  of  Royalton,  whose  house  was 
the  first  entered  by  the  Indians  when 
Royalton  was  burned.  He  was  orphaned 
before  he  was  two  years  old,  and  the  des- 
titute brood  was  scattered.  He  came  to 
Montpelier  in  1806,  and  remained  till  he 
was  of  age  under  the  guardianship  of  his 
older  brother,  Sylvanus,  a  man  of  prom- 
inence and  marked  ability.  With  him  he 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade,  availing  him- 
self also  of  some  brief  opportunities  for 
attending  school ;  but,  from  the  time  of 
attaining  his  majority  for  many  years,  he 
was  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits,  with 
gratifying  success.  He  relinquished  these 
in  1848,  to  devote  himself  more  exclu- 
sively to  his  duties  as  president  of  the 
Vt.  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  of  which 
he  was  the  original  projector,  and  in  which 
he  took  the  first  policy,  March  31,  1828. 
He  was  president  of  this  Company  from 
1 84 1  to  1874,  and  regarded  with  a  well- 
grounded  satisfaction  the  remarkable  pros- 
perity and  growth  of  the  Company  during 
his  administration.  While  cautious  and 
conservative,  he  was  eminently  progressive 
both  early  and  late  in  life.  In  1827,  he  led 
in  the  effort  to  establish  salt  works  in 
Montpelier.  "He  was  called  again  and 
again  into  the  direction  of  the  Bank  of 
Montpelier  and  the  Montpelier  National 
Bank,  and  was  a  director  in  the  latter  at 
the  time  of  his  decease.  He  was  among 
the  first  to  advocate  and  further  the  build- 
ing of  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad,  and 
agitated  the  subject  from   1830  until  the 

desired  end  was  attained He 

was  also  one  of  the  first  board  of  directors 
of  the  Vermont  Central,  but  retained  that 
position  only  a  year,  having  always  stren- 
uously maintained,  in  opposition  to  the 
Northfield  interest  which  prevailed,  that 
the  route  should  be  by  way  of  the  Wil- 
liamstown  Gulf.  As  long  ago  as  1850,  he 
was  one  of  a  committee  of  eight,  of  which 


the  Hon.  J.  A.  Wing  was  chairman,  who 
raised  a  subscription,  and  procured  at  con- 
siderable expense  to  themselves  a  survey 
of  a  route  for  a  railroad  from  Montpelier 
to  Wells  River."  *  He  was  also  one  of  the 
originators  and  the  general  manager,  dur- 
ing the  early  years  of  its  existence,  of  the 
Montpelier  (Jaslight  Co.  "  He  was  town 
treasurer  in   1828,  and  then  again  for   11 

consecutive  years   from   1835 

From  1837  to  1847  he  was  trustee  of  the 
'  Surplus  Fund.'  For  many  years  from 
and  after  1837,  he  was  the  chief  engineer 
of  the  fire  department.  During  the  years 
1846  and  1847,  he  occupied  tlie  bench  as 
associate  judge  of  the  Washington  County 
Court,  but  from  1850  on,  wath  the  excep- 
tion of  one  year's  service  as  lister,  he  uni- 
formly avoided  public  oflSce."*  In  early 
life  he  held  high  position  in  the  Masonic 
Order.  "He  was  connected  with  the 
Vermont  Colonization  Society  during  all 
its  active  existence,  a  large  part  of  the 
time  as  its  treasurer,  and  then  as  its  pres- 
ident." *  In  politics  he  was  a  democrat — 
during  the  rebellion  a  "  war  democrat," 
voting  more  than  once  for  the  republican 
candidate — and  in  religion  he  was  em- 
phatically a  '■'■liberal  Christian,"  avowing 
deep  interest  in  "  Spiritualism,"  but  con- 
tributing generously  to  churches  of  various 
creeds,  and  joining  most  heartily  with 
Unitarians  and  Universalists  in  the  organ- 
ization and  support  of  the  Montpelier 
Independent  Meeting-House  Society,  of 
whose  board  of  trustees  he  was  chairman 
from  the  establishment  of  the  board  in 
1866  to  the  day  of  his  death.  In  his  will 
he  manifested  his  undying  interest  in 
Montpelier,  by  bequeathing  $2,000,  to  be 
used  under  certain  conditions  in  securing 
a  suitable  water  supply  for  the  village. 

He  married,  in  1820,  Emily  Wheelock, 
grand-daughter  of  the  first  president  of 
Dartmouth  College.  She  died  in  1872. 
A  son  and  four  daughters  were  born  to 
them,  all  of  whom  reached  maturity  and 
were  married ;  but  only  two,  the  first  and 
second  daughters,  Mrs.  Charles  Reed  and 
Mrs.  Marcus  D.  Gilman,  have  survived 
their  parents.  The  society  of  their  six 
grand-children   was  a    delight   to    Judge 

*  Memorial  Sermon  by  Rev.  J.  Edward  Wright. 


^jyayrt^c<^  y^ cc/c/^^/^y^ 


MONTPELIER. 


517 


Baldwin  during   the   last   summer   of  his 
life. 

He  was  a  man  extensively  known  in  the 
State,  and  universally  esteemed  for  his 
probity,  his  sound  judgment,  his  public 
spirit  and  his  benevolence.  Deliberate  in 
planning  and  moderate  in  moving,  he  was 
yet  positive  in  his  decisions  and  energetic 
in  his  actions.  A  man  of  a  peculiarly 
placid  and  even  temper,  and  sustained  by 
a  Christian  trust,  he  bore  earth's  trials 
with  great  calmness,  and  his  declining 
years  furnished  the  community  an  im- 
pressive illustration  of  what  it  is  to  "  grow 
old  beautifully."  Though  not  free  from 
all  the  infirmities  which  commonly  attend 
old  age,  he  was  wonderfully  vigorous  in 
mind  and  body,  and  found  life  enjoyable 
down  to  his  last  day ;  when  suddenly  his 
powers  all  collapsed,  and  with  a  brief 
struggle  he  passed  on,  leaving  an  honored 
name  and  a  blessed  memory.  It  is  rare 
that  a  life  is  more  entirely  successful  in  both 
ts  material  and  moral  aspects,     j.  E.  w. 

[Lucia  L.,  wife  of  W.  C.  D.  Grannis,  of 
Chicago,  and  daughter  of  Hon.  Daniel 
Baldwin,  died  in  Chicago,  aged  28.] 

From  the  records  of  Aurora  Lodge,  No. 
22,  F.  &  A.  M.,  we  take  the  following: 
^ 


IJff   MEMORIAM. 

BRO.    DANIEL    BALDWIN, 

Born  in  Norwich,  Vt.,  July  21,  1792, 

Died  at  Montpelier,  Vt.,  August  3,  188 1 ; 

Aged  8g  years  and  13  days. 

Initiated  in  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  9,  at  Montpelier, 

January  3,  1814 ; 

Passed  January  31,  1814; 

Raised  in  Columbian   Lodge,  Boston,  Mass., 

May  14,  1S14. 

Affiliated  with  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  22, 

July  II,  1881. 

Bro.  Baldwin  was  an  old  time  Mason,  one  of 
those  who  passed  through  the  fiery  trials  of  the 
anti-masonic  period,  and  that  he  was  unyielding 
in  his  devotion  to  the  fraternity  is  evinced  by  the 
fact  that  he  and  Wor.  Bro.  Joseph  Howes  op- 
posed to  the  bitter  end  the  surrender  of  the  char- 
ter of  old  Aurora  Lodge,  No.  9.  In  this,  how- 
ever, he  was  unsuccessful,  and  the  Lodge  suc- 
cumbed to  what  was  probably  inevitable,  and  it 
was  voted,  Sept.  19,  1S34,  to  surrender  the  charter. 

He  successively  filled  all  the  offices  of  the  Lodge 
from  that  of  Tyler  to  Worshipful  Master,  to  which 
latter  office  he  was  elected  June  26,  1S20. 

He  was  also  a  prominent  officer  in  King  .Solo- 
mon R.  A.  Chapter,  No.  5,  and  a  member  of 
Montpelier  Council,  R.  &  S.  M. 

Bro.  Baldwin  was  a  just  and  upright  Mason, 
ever  generous  and  liberal  in  dispensing  Masonic 
charity,  and  was  always  ready  to  whisper  good 
counsel  in  the  ear  of  a  brother. 


MEMORIAL   ADDRESS 

0/  the  Vermont  Mutual  Fire  insurance 
Company. 
At  the  first  meeting  of  the  directors  of 
the  Vt.  Mu.  Fire  Ins.  Co.  after  the  death 
of  Mr.  Baldwin,  Aug.  3,  1881,  the  Presi- 
dent offered  the  following  resolutions, 
which  were  unanimously  adopted  : 

Resolved.  That  we  have  learned  with 
profound  regret  of  the  death  of  Hon.  Dan- 
iel Baldwin,  so  long  connected  with  this 
Company,  and  identified  with  the  best  in- 
terests of  the  town  for  three  fourths  of  a 
century.  We  duly  appreciate  his  eminent 
services  as  an  officer  of  this  company,  and 
his  usefulness  as  a  citizen. 

Resolved,  That  we  extend  to  his  family 
the  sympathy  of  this  Board  in  the  loss  of 
one  who  has  so  long  been  a  kind  friend 
and  able  counselor. 

And  a  committee  was  chosen  to  prepare 
a  memorial  address  to  be  read  at  the  An- 
nual Meeting  of  the  Company,  which  was 
prepared  and  read  by  Dr.  Hiram  A.  Cut- 
ting, of  Lunenburgh. 

"  The  Vermont  Mutual  Fire  Insurance 
Company  "  is  a  name  so  familiar  to  every 
Vermonter,  in  fact,  so  woven  into  the  af- 
fairs and  interests  of  the  people  of  this 
State,  that  when  its  originator,  Daniel 
Baldwin,  died  upon  the  3d  day  of  August, 
in  his  90th  year,  it  sent  a  thrill  of  sorrow 
through  the  hearts  of  thousands.  It  was 
his  foresight  which  planned  a  system  of 
insurance  that  recommended  itself  for  its 
cheapness,  and  won  for  itself  golden  opin- 
ions, supplying,  as  it  did,  the  unfortunate 
with  means  to  reconstruct  their  homes 
promptly  when  the  fire-fiend  had  swept 
them  away.  Rightly  has  it  been  said  of 
this  company,  "  That  it  has  clothed  the 
naked,  fed  the  hungry  and  supplied  the 
destitute,"  and  just  was  the  sorrow  for  the 
departed  man,  for  he  was  both  the  father 
and  patron  of  this  most  beneficial  associa- 
tion in  our  State.  It  was  a  happy  inspi- 
ration which  induced  George  Bliss,  a  can- 
vasser for  the  Springfield  Fire  and  Marine 
Insurance  Company,  about  the  year  1818, 
to  call  upon  Daniel  Baldwin,  who  was  tem- 
porarily stopping  in  Boston,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  soliciting  his  insurance.  Mr. 
Baldwin  was  at  that  time  a  prosperous 
young   merchant.      He    investigated   the 


5i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


subject  carefully,  was  pleased  with  the  idea, 
had  his  property  insured,  and  accepted  the 
agency  of  the  company  for  this  section, 
which  he  retained  for  2  years,  receiving 
premiums  to  the  amount  of  over  $4,000, 
with  only  $2,000  in  losses.  It  was  during 
this  period  that  the  idea  of  cheaper  insur- 
ance, based  upon  the  mutual  plan,  sug- 
gested itself  to  Mr.  Baldwin.  He  coun- 
seled with  a  number  of  the  business  men 
of  that  day,  but  could  get  little  encourage- 
ment from  any,  with  the  exception  of 
Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  James  H.  Langdon, 
Joshua  Y.  Vail,  and  Chester  Hubbard. 
With  these  coadjutors,  at  a  second  trial, 
Nov.  10,  1827,  the  Vermont  Mutual  Fire 
Insurance  Company  was  chartered;  yet 
not  without  great  opposition.  The  mem- 
ber from  Middlebury,  one  of  its  opposers, 
moved  an  amendment  of  the  bill,  granting 
a  charter,  requiring  the  company  to  pay 
6  per  cent,  of  the  profits  into  the  State 
treasury  annually.  This  shows  that  that 
member  of  our  Legislature,  at  least,  knew 
little  of  mutual  insurance. 

Under  this  grant  the  company  was  or- 
ganized, Jan.  21,  1828.  As  Daniel  Bald- 
win originated  the  charter,  he  was  elected 
president  of  the  meeting,  but  declined, 
and  J.  H.  Langdon  was  elected  in  his 
stead.  There  were  but  six  persons  pres- 
ent. A  board  of  directors  was  chosen,  and 
that'  board,  of  which  Hon.  Mr.  Baldwin 
was  an  active  member,  elected  Chapin 
Keith  of  Barre,  president,  J.  Y.  Vail,  sec- 
retary, and  George  Worthington  treasurer, 
both  of  Montpelier.  Their  first  policy  was 
issued  in  March,  1828,  to  Daniel  Baldwin. 

In  October,  1828,  the  directors  rej^orted 
186  policies  issued,  and  that  the  company 
was  gaining  in  strength  and  popularity.  A 
small  beginning,  truly,  for  a  company  that 
now  issues  between  5,000  and  6,000  poli- 
cies annually. 

Mr.  Keith  was  succeeded  at  the  end  of 
the  year  by  Israel  P.  Dana  of  Danville,  as 
president,  who  held  the  office  until  1838, 
to  be  followed  by  John  Spalding  of  Mont- 
pelier, who  held  the  office  until  184 1,  when 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  elected, 
holding  office  as  president  for  ;i;i  years. 
During  this  time,  he  administered  the  af- 


fairs of  the  corporation  as  its  head.  He 
had  around  him  trusty  men,  tried  and  true  ; 
yet  he  has  probably  traveled  more  miles 
on  insurance  business,  and  talked  insurance 
with  more  persons  than  any  other  50  men 
in  the  State.  His  heart  and  soul  were  in 
the  work,  and  with  him  that  meant  success. 
He  understood  the  principles  and  rules  of 
insurance  as  few  ever  do.  He  adjusted 
equitable  rates  for  various  classes  of  prop- 
erty with  a  truly  wonderful  precision.  His 
devotion  to  the  duties  of  his  office  were 
both  conscientious  and  enthusiastic.  As 
an  adjustor,  he  was  almost  without  an 
equal ;  while  he  settled  closely  and  eco- 
nomically for  the  company,  he  gained  the 
respect  and  good  will  of  the  insured,  for 
he  was  frank  and  honest,  dealing  as  he 
would  have  others  deal  with  him.  Few,  if 
any,  ever  felt  aggrieved,  and  many  were 
the  testimonials  showered  upon  him  in 
later  years,  for  his  honest  dealing  with 
them,  when  they  through  loss  were  render- 
ed almost  powerless  to  contest  the  validity 
of  their  insurance,  had  they  been  forced 
so  to  do. 

The  prosperity  of  the  Vermont  Mutual 
Fire  Insurance  Company  is  the  proudest 
testimonial  he  can  have  of  his  zeal  and 
well-directed  services,  and  those  who  par- 
take of  the  benefits  of  that  organization 
cannot  fail  to  gratefully  remember  the  man, 
who  more  than  any  other  one  has  made  the 
strong  and  reliable  concern  what  it  is. 
That  its  progress  may  be  the  more  evident, 
I  would  say  that  the  number  of  policies  in 
force  in  1831  was  1,869;  i"  1841,  12,012; 
in  1851,  11,790;  in  1861,  22,237;  in  1871, 
27,488;  and  in  1881,  29,413.  Such  an  in- 
crease in  business  is  without  precedent  in 
any  mutual  company  in  our  Union,  and 
shows  definitely  that  the  true  and  unwav- 
ering course  of  all  connected  with  it,  has 
gained  the  confidence  of  the  people,  and 
the  company  is  an  honor  to  our  State,  and 
it  is  fitting  that  we  should  honor  the  man 
who  originated  the  philanthropic  scheme, 
and  with  untiring  zeal  pushed  it  to  so 
grand  success. 

Age  creeps  stealthily  on  us  all,  and  as 
Judge  Baldwin  felt  the  pressure  upon  him, 
and  looked  with  a  just  pride  upon  an  insti- 


JOHN     WOOD 


MONTPELIER. 


519 


tution,  almost  his  own ;  and  surrounded 
by  helpers  in  the  insurance  business  which 
he  had  himself  educated,  he  thought  that 
they  had  better  allow  him  to  retire  ;  and 
so  after  his  election  as  president  for  the 
31st  year,  he  sent  in  the  following  resigna- 
tion, in  March,   1871  : 

To  the  Directors  of  the  Vermont  Afiiiual 
Fire  Insurance  Company  : 

Gentlemen  : — Owing  to  infirmities  in 
consequence  of  old  age,  I  do  not  feel  com- 
petent to  discharge  the  duties  of  president 
of  this  company  as  they  should  be,  and 
therefore  resign  the  office,  to  take  place  as 
soon  as  some  person  shall  be  elected  to  fill 
the  responsible  place  I  have  so  long  occu- 
pied. D.  Baldwin. 

Montpelier,  March  ist,  1871. 

No  action  was,  however,  taken  upon 
this,  and  he  was  again  re-elected  in  Octo- 
ber. He  immediately  resigned,  but  was 
over-persuaded,  and  consented  to  serve 
one  year  more  by  having  a  Vice  President 
to  relieve  him  of  some  of  the  duties  which 
now  rested  quite  heavily  upon  him.  James 
T.  Thurston  was  elected  Vice  President, 
and  thus  he  was  continued  until  Oct.  14, 
1874,  when  Mr.  Thurston  was  elected 
President ;  but  Hon.  Mr.  Baldwin  was  re- 
tained as  director,  so  that  his  counsel  and 
advice  might  rightly  be  available.  Judge 
Baldwin,  however,  soon  withdrew  almost 
wholly  from  the  office,  but  still  retaining 
his  mental  faculties  in  a  remarkable  de- 
gree up  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

All  honor  to  the  departed,  and  may  his 
valuable  counsels  and  noble  example  live 
with  the  company ;  and  his  original  and 
true  principles  of  insurance  be  carried  out 
by  the  insurer,  and  the  household  word  of 
Vermont  continue  to  be  the  "  Old  Ver- 
mont Mutual."  Let  us  here  to-day,  as  offi- 
cers of  this  company,  pledge  ourselves 
anew  to  the  duties,  and  thus  we  may  hope 
to  retain  with  our  prosperity,  which  seems 
assured,  tVie  good  will  and  honor  of  our 
patrons,  that  \ve  may,  in  part,  share  in  the 
tributes  of  praise  so  justly  given  to  the  de- 
parted. 

W.  H.  H.  Bingham, 

L.  G.  Hinckley,         >  Com 

Hiram  A.  Cutting, 


ABRAHAM    G.    D.    TUTHILL 

was  born  at  Oyster  Pond,  Long  Island, 
and  in  due  time  chose  to  become  an  artist. 
To  perfect  himself,  he  spent  seven  years 
as  a  pupil  of  the  great  painter,  Benjamin 
West,  in  London,  and  one  year  in  Paris. 
Returning  to  this  country,  he  spent  a  few 
years  in  Montpelier,  where  a  sister  resided, 
and  where  now  there  are  to  be  found  many 
beautiful  specimens  of  his  work.  His 
artist  life  was  mainly  spent  at  Buflfalo, 
Detroit,  and  other  western  cities  ;  but  he 
returned  to  Montpelier,  and  died  there, 
June  12,  1843,  aged  67. 

JOSHUA   Y.    VAIL 

was  one  of  the  very  early  lawyers  of  Mont- 
pelier. He  served  awhile  as  Preceptor  of 
Washington  County  Grammar  School,  and 
was  County  Clerk  1819-1839,  18  years. 
He  was  also  Secretary  of  the  Vermont  Mu- 
tual Fire  Insurance  Company  from  the  or- 
ganization in  1828  until  1850,  and  member 
and  Secretary  of  the  Council  of  Censors  in 
1820.  His  wife  was  a  devoted  chris- 
tian mother,  Mary  M.,  sister  of  the  artist 
Tuthill,  and  all  of  her  children  have  been 
well  connected.  Two  of  her  sons,  Solon 
J.  Y.  and  Oscar  J.,  still  reside  in  Montpe- 
lier, and  two  daughters  survive,  one  at 
Newbury  and  one  in  the  West — foui'  out 
of  nine  children.  Mr.  Vail  died  in  1854, 
in  his  70th  year;  and  his  wife  in  1876, 
aged  90.    Both  were  born  on  Long  Island. 

THE   WOOD   FAMILY. 

Late  in  the  last  century  three  brothers 
were  born  in  Leominster,  Mass.,  the  eldest 
of  whom  spent  half  of  his  life  in  Mont- 
pelier, and  the  others  much  the  largest  part. 
They  were  Cyrus,  John,  and  Zenas  Wood. 
They  were  all  of  Puritan  stock,  and  mem- 
bers of  the  first  Congregational  church  in 
Montpelier. 

Cyrus  Wood  settled  in  Lebanon,  N.  H., 
about  1809,  taking  his  brother  John  with 
him,  who  was  then  about  20  years  of  age. 
In  1814,  both  came  to  Montpelier  and  en- 
tered into  partnership  in  the  cabinet- 
making  business,  which  was  continued 
until  the  death  of  Cyrus,  Nov.  25,  1840. 

John  Wood,  born  July  20,  1788,  mar- 
ried Miss  Mary  Waterman,  of  Lebanon, 


520 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


N.  H.,  who  was  truly  a  helpmeet  for  him, 
an  industrious,  pious  and  prudent  woman. 
Bearing  his  share  in  the  military  burdens 
of  his  time,  he  became  captain  of  Wash- 
ington Artillery,  which  was  a  high  honor. 
But  it  was  in  the  churches  that  he  was 
most  conspicuous.  Long  a  deacon  in  the 
first  Congregational  church,  -he  went  to 
the  Free  church  on  its  organization,  and 
ou  its  dissolution,  to  the  Methodist  church. 
In  all  he  was  an  earnest  worker,  instant 
and  earnest  in  prayer  and  exhortation,  and 
his  pure,  honest  and  loving  life  attested 
the  sincerity  of  his  religious  convictions. 
He  died  Jan.  14,  1872,  in  his  84th  year, 
leaving  a  son  and  daughter,  the  son  being 
Thomas  W.  Wood,  the  now  highly  dis- 
tinguished artist. 

Zenas  Wood,  born  Jan.  i,  1793,  came 
to  Montpelier  at  a  somewhat  later  date, 
and  engaged  in  the  stove  and  tin-ware 
business,  in  which  he  was  quite  success- 
ful. He  had  all  the  excellent  character- 
istics of  his  brother  John,  but  was  some- 
what less  demonstrative.  He  sympathized 
keenly  with  the  sick  and  suffering,  as  the 
writer  of  this  note  had  occasion  to  know 
by  personal  experience.  Mr.  Wood  was 
a  prudent  business  man,  and  for  some 
years  was  a  director  in  the  old  Bank  of 
Montpelier.  In  the  last  great  fire  here 
his  real  estate  was  destroyed,  and  he  went, 
a  lone  and  sad  man,  to  his  affectionate 
daughters  in  St.  Johnsbury,  where  he  died 
Oct.  29,  1876,  in  his  84th  year.     e.  p.  w. 

For  notice  of  Thomas  W.  Wood,  see 
post. 

THE   COTTRILL    FAMILY — Corrections. 

Mahlon  Cottrill,  born  in  Bridport,  Vt., 
Aug.  29,  1797  ;  died  in  Kansas  City,  Mo., 
Oct.  20,  1864. 

Catherine  Smith  Couch,  his  wife,  born 
in  Landaft",  N.  H.,  April  i,  1792;  died  in 
Montpelier,  April  28,  1861. 

Their  children  were  :  William  H.,  born 
June  6,  1823,  now  a  very  popular  hotel- 
keeper  at  Appleton,  Wis.  Lyman  Hawley, 
born  May  16,  1825,  and  died  in  Oregon, 
Nov.,  1877.  Charles  Edward  Huntington, 
born  July  11,  1826;  died  Feb.  3,  1833. 
George  Washington,  born  May  18,  1828 ; 
now  a  lawyer  in  N.  Y.  City.  Henry  Clay, 
born  June  26,  1830;  died  Feb.  12,  1833. 
Jedd  Philo  C,  born  Apr.  15,  1832;  now  a 
lawyer  in  Milwaukee,  Wis.  Charles  Mah- 
lon, born  Oct.  20,  1834;  now  in  Milwau- 
kee, Wis.,  and  a  prosperous  man. 


commissioned  officers — MONTPELIER. 

Col.  Nathan  Lord,  Jr.,  commissioned 
colonel  of  the  6th  Vt.  regt.,  Sept.  16,  1861  ; 
resigned  Dec.  16,  1862.  Now  resides  in 
Cleaveland,  Ohio. 

Col.  Francis  V.  Randall,  commis- 
sioned capt.  of  Co.  F.  2d  regt..  May  25, 
1 86 1,  promoted  col.  of  the  13th  regt., 
Sept.  24,  1862:  mustered  out  of  service 
July  21,  1863;  enlisted  and  commissioned 
col.  of  the  17th  regt.  Feb.  10,  1864;  mus- 
tered out  of  service  July  17,  1865  ;  remov- 
ed from  Montpelier  to  Brookfield  in  1877. 

Col.  Perley  P.  Pitkin,  commissioned 
quartermaster  of  the  2d  regt.  June  6,  1861  ; 
promoted  captain  and  assistant  quarter- 
master of  U.  S.  vols.  Apr.  3,  1862,  and 
subsequently  to  the  rank  of  colonel  and 
quartermaster  of  the  depot  department  of 
the  army  of  the  Potomac ;  was  chosen 
quartermaster  general  of  Vt.  after  the  close 
of  the  war,  which  office  he  held  several 
years,  and  has  since  remained  a  resident 
of  Montpelier. 

Lieut. -Col.  Edward  M.  Brown,  adj. 
5  regt.  Sept.  16,  1861  ;  promoted  lieut.-col. 
of  the  8th  regt.,  Jan.  9,  1862 ;  resigned 
Dec.  23,  1863.  Col.  Brown  now  resides 
in  Bismarck,  Dakota,  receiving  the  appoint- 
ment of  U.  S.  land  agent,  and  removing 
thenre  in  1873. 

Lieut. -Col.  Andrew  C.  Brown,  com- 
missioned lieut.-col.  of  the  13th  regt., 
Aug.  25,  1862  ;  resigned  May  5,  1863,  and 
continues  to  reside  in  Montpelier. 

Lieut. -Col.  John  H.  Edson,  commis- 
sioned lieut.-col.  of  the  loth  regt.  Aug. 
27,  1862;  resigned  Oct.  16,  1862;  resides 
elsewhere. 

Maj.  John  D.  Bartlett,  commissioned 
capt.  of  Co.  C,  1st  regt.,  Vt.  cav.,  Oct. 
14,  1861  ;  promoted  to  major  Nov.  18, 
1861  ;  resigned  Apr.  25,  1862;  removed 
to  Ma.ss.  in  1870. 

Maj.  James  S.  Peck,  comniissioned 
2d  lieut.  of  Co.  I.  13th  reirt.,  Aug.  25, 
1862;  promoted  to  adj't,  Jan.  1863;  mus- 
tered out  July  21,  1863  ;  enlisted  as  private 
in  Co.  E.  17  regt.,  Dec.  3,  1863;  commis- 
sioned adj't.  of  the  regt.  Apr.  12,  1864; 
promoted  mai'or  July  10,  1865;    mustered 


^    .^-'^j 


3^^^y3; 


MRS.  MAHLON  COTTRILL. 


MONTPELIER. 


52i 


out  July  25,  1865  ;  was  chosen  adjH.  and 
inspector-gen.  of  the  State  in  187 1,  hold- 
ing the  office  ten  years,  receiving  re-elec- 
tion, and  resigning  in  188 1,  receiving  the 
appointment  of  postmaster  of  this  town  in 
April,  1 88 1. 

Adj't.  J.  Monroe  Poland,  commission- 
ed adjutant  of  the  15th  regt.  Oct.  2,  1862 ; 
mustered  out  of  service  Aug.  5,  1863,  and 
continues  to  reside  in  town. 

Capt.  William  T.  Burnham,  commis- 
sioned captain  of  Co.  H.2d  regt..  May  23, 
1861  ;  resigned  Oct.  25,  1861  ;  died  in 
Montpelier,  June  20,  1862. 

Capt.  Horace  H.  Crossman,  commis- 
sioned 2d  lieut.  of  Co.  F.  2d  regt..  May 
20,  1 861  ;  promoted  ist  lieut.  Jan.  24, 
1862;  capt.  Oct.  I,  1862;  honorably  dis- 
charged Oct.  30,  1863,  for  wounds  receiv- 
ed in  battle,  necessitating  the  amputation 
of  his  leg.  He  died  in  Washington,  D. 
C,  a  few  years  after. 

Capt.  Dayton  P.  Clark  enlisted  as 
private  in  Co.  F.  2d  regt.  May  7,  1861  ; 
promoted  to  sergt.  June  20,  1861  ;  com- 
missioned 1st  lieut.  Jan.  29,  1862;  pro- 
moted to  capt.  Nov.  3,  1863;  was  acting 
adjutant  of  the  regt.  for  some  months,  and 
at  the  battle  of  Spottsylvania,  May  12, 
1864,  was  in  command  of  the  regt. ;  mus- 
tered out  of  service  June  29,  1864,  and 
continues  to  reside  in  Montpelier. 

Capt.  Joseph  P.  Aikens  enlisted  from 
Barnard  as  private  in  Co.  D4th  regt.  Aug. 
28,  1861,  receiving  promotions  to  corp. 
and  sergt. ;  re-enlisted  from  Montpeher 
Dec.  15,  1863;  commissioned  ist  lieut.  of 
Co.  C.  May  6,  1864;  promoted  capt.  Aug. 
9,  1864;  wounded  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct. 
19,  1864,  and  honorably  discharged  Mar. 
8,  1865,  for  wounds  received. 

Capt.  Charles  H.  Anson,  enlisted  and 
appointed  to  quartermaster-serg.  of  the 
nth  regt.  Sept.  i,  1862;  commissioned  2d 
lieut.  of  Co.  E.  Aug.  11,  1863;  promoted 
to  1st  lieut.  Dec.  28,  1863,  and  to  captain 
Apr.  2,  1865,  for  gallantry  in  the  assault 
on  Petersburgh,  Va. ;  mustered  out  of  ser- 
vice June  24,  1865  ;  now  resides  in  Mil- 
waukee, Wis.,  where  he  is  engaged  in 
business. 

Capt.   James   Rice  enlisted  Aug.    24, 

66 


1 86 1,  as  leader  of  the  5th regt.  band;  dis- 
charged April  II,  1862  ;  enlisted  in  Co.  F. 
nth  regt.,  and  commissioned  as  capt.  Aug. 
12,  1862;  honorably  discharged  for  disa- 
bility, Apr.  28,  1865  ;  now  a  resident  of 
Pueblo,  New  Mexico,  where  he  removed  to 
soon  after  the  war,  and  has  held  the  office 
of  mayor  of  that  city  since  his  residence 
there  for  some  years. 

Capt.  George  S.  Robinson  of  Mont- 
pelier, as  a  credit  from  Berlin,  commis- 
sioned 1st  lieut.  of  Co.C.  13th  regt.,  Aug. 
29,  1862  ;  resigned  Feb.  16,  1863  ;  enlisted 
and  commissioned  capt.  of  Co.  E.  17th 
regt.,  Apr.  12,  1864;  wounded  April  12, 
1865  ;  mustered  out  June  14,  1865,  and 
continues  to  reside  in  Montpelier. 

Capt.  Alfred  L.  Carlton,  commis- 
sioned regt.  quartermaster  of  the  i  ith  regt. 
Aug.  14.  1862 ;  promoted  to  2d  lieut.  of 
Co.  C.  Dec.  12,  1862;  to  captain  and  com- 
missary of  subsistence  of  U.  S.  vols..  Mar. 
II,  1863;  mustered  out  in  1865;  died  in 
Montpelier,  May  29,  1874. 

Capt.  John  W.  Clark,  commissioned 
quartermaster  of  the  6th  regt.  Sept.  28, 
1 861  ;  promoted  to  capt.  and  assist,  quar/- 
termasterof  theU.  S.  vols.,  Apr.  11,  1864; 
resigned  Dec.  7,  1864;  appointed  post- 
master of  Montpelier,  Mar.  1869,  holding 
the  office  12  years,  retiring  July  i,  1881. 

Capt.  Fred  E.  Smith,  commissioned 
as  quartermaster  of  the  8th  regt.,  Nov.  23, 
1861  ;  honorably  discharged  Nov.  30,  1863, 
and  continues  to  reside  in  Montpelier. 

Capt.  Edward  Dewey,  commissioned 
quartermaster  of  the  8th  regt.,  Jan.  12, 
1864;  promoted  capt.  and  assist,  quarter- 
master of  U.  S.  vols.,  Feb.  11,  1865,  and 
continues  to  reside  in  Montpelier. 

O.  M.  Nelson  A.  Taylor,  commis- 
sioned quartermaster  of  the  13th  regt., 
Nov.  28,  1862;  mustered  out  July  21,  '63; 
residence  Nov.  i,  188 1,  Council  Bluifs,  la. 

Surgeon  Charles  M.  Chandler,  com- 
missioned assist,  surgeon  of  the  6th  regt., 
Oct.  10,  1861  ;  promoted  to  surgeon  Oct. 
^9,  1861 ;  resigned  Oct.  7,  1863,  and  re- 
sumed his  practice  in  Montpelier,  where  he 
continues  to  reside. 

1st  Lieut.  Walter  A.  Phillips,  com- 
missioned 1st  lieut.  Co.  F.  2d  regt..  May 


522 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


21,  1861  ;  discharged  Dec.  31,  1861  ;  en- 
listed as  a  credit  from  Calais,  as  private 
of  Co.  H.  13th  regt.,  Aug.,  1862;  pro- 
moted Corp.  and  sergt.,  and  com.  as  ist 
lieut.,  June  4,  1863;  mustered  out  July  21, 
1863  ;  enlisted  and  com.  as  2d  lieut.  of  3d 
battery,  Dec.  12,  1863;  promotec]  to  ist 
lieut.  Jan.  2,  1864,  honorably  discharged 
Feb.  3,  1865,  for  disability,  and  now  re- 
sides in  Peoria,  111.,  where  he  is  engaged 
in  business. 

1st  LiEur.  Russell  T.  Chamberlain, 
enlisted  as  private  in  Co.  G.  4th  regt., 
Aug.  27,  1861  ;  promoted  corp.  March  3, 
1862;  re-enlisted;  promoted  sergt.  June 
10,  1864;  regt'l  com.  sergt.,  Jan.  i,  1865; 
2d  lieut.  Co.  A.  Feb.  27,  1865  ;  ist  lieut. 
June  4,  1865  ;  mustered  out  July  13,  1865  ; 
was  taken  prisoner,  and  in  confinement 
several  months  ;  he  now  resides  in  Oregon. 

1st  Lieut.  Charles  C.  Spalding, 
commissioned  sergt. -maj.  of  the  5th  regt., 
Sept.  16,  1861  ;  promoted  to  ist  lieut.  of 
Co.  D.  Nov.  5,  1861  ;  honorably  discharg- 
ed for  disability  Oct.  10,  1862;  died  in 
Boston,  Jan.  19,  1877. 

1st  Lieut.  George  H.  Hatch,  regt'l 
com.  sergt.  Oct.  15,  1861,  of  the  6th  regt. ; 
promoted  2d  lieut.  of  Co.  H.  Oct.  22; 
1862;  1st  lieut.  May  4,  1863;  mustered 
out  of  service  Oct.  28,  1863";  now  resides 
in  Nashua,  N.  H. 

1st  Lieut.  Henry  C.  Abbott,  enlisted 
Nov.  9,  1 861,  as  private  in  Co.  C.  8th  regt ; 
promoted  ist  lieut.  in  2d  Louisiana  regt. 
Sept.  I,  1862. 

ist  Lieut.  William  B.  Burbank,  en- 
listed in  Co.  E.  17th  regt. ;  com.  2d  lieut. 
April  9,   1864;    promoted    ist  lieut.  Aug. 

22,  1864;  mustered  out  of  service  July  25, 
1865  ;  died  in  Montpelier,  Nov.  5,  1870. 

1st  Lieut.  James  C.  Lamb,  enhsted  as 
private  in  Co.  E.  17th  regt.,  Dec.  23,  '63  ; 
promoted  quartermaster  sergt.  Oct.  17  '64; 
1st  lieut.  Co.  B.  July  i,  '65  ;  mustered  out 
July  14,  '65  ;  died  in  Montpelier,  March 
18,  1869. 

ist  Lieut.  George  D.  Howard,  com- 
missioned 1st  lieut.  Co.  M.  frontier  cavalry, 
Jan.  3,  1865  )  resigned  Mar.  i6,  '65  ;  now 
resides  elsewhere. 

1st  Lieut.  Frank  Anson,  enlisted  as  a 


credit  from  Halifax  as  private  in  Co.  E. 
nth  regt.,  Jan.  5,  1864;  regtlcom.  sergt. 
Jan.  17,  1864;  regt'l  quartermaster  sergt. 
Sept.  I,  1864;  promoted  2d  lieut.  Co.  A. 
May  13,  1865;  1st  lieut.  May  23,  1865; 
mustered  out  of  service  Aug.  25,  1S65  ; 
now  resides  in  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  where  he 
is  engaged  in  business. 

1st  Lieut.  Ezra  Stetson,  commission- 
ed 1st  lieut.  Co.  B.  lothregt.,  Aug.  4,  '62; 
killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  1864. 

1st  Lieut.  Edward  J.  Stickney,  en- 
listed as  private  of  Co.  B.  July  30,  1862; 
promoted  corp.  Mar.  27,  1864 ;  sergt.  Sept. 
I,  1864;  2d  lieut.  Dec.  19,  1S64;  ist  lieut. 
March  22,  1865;  mustered  out  July  21, 
1865;  died  in  Montpelier,. Jan.  12,  1875. 

1st  Lieut.  Charles  W.  Clark,  ap- 
pointed as  regt'l  com.  sergt.  nth  regt., 
Sept.  I,  1862;  promoted  2d  lieut.  Co.  G. 
March  29,  1863;  ist  lieut.  Nov.  2,  1863; 
mustered  out  of  service  June  24,  1865  ;  re- 
sides at  present  in  Montpelier. 

ist  Lieut.  John  R.  Willson,  enlisted 
as  private  of  Co.  1.  i  ith  Vt.  July  15,  1862  ; 
promoted  corp.  Jan.  i,  1864;  sergt.  Sept. 
22,1864;  2d  lieut.  Dec.  2,  1864;  wounded 
March  27,  1865  ;  promoted  ist  lieut.  June 
1865,  mustered  out  of  service  June  24,  '65  ; 
and  now  resides  in  Maiden,  Mass. 

1st.  Lieut.  Albert  Clark,  enlisted  as 
private  in  Co.  I.  13th  regt.  Aug.  25,  1862; 
promoted  sergt.  Oct.  10,1862;  ist  lieut. 
Co.  G.  Jan.  22,  1863;  mustered  out  July 
21,  1863;  now  resides  in  Boston,  Mass. 

1st  Lieut.  Samuel  F.  Prentiss,  enlist- 
ed as  private  in  Co.  I.Aug.  25,  1862; 
promoted  ist  lieut.  Feb.  23,  1863;  muster- 
ed out  July  21,  1863;  now  resides  in  New 
York  city,  where  he  is  successfully  engaged 
in  the  practice  of  law. 

2d  Lieut.  Charles  W.  Randall,  ap- 
pointed sergt.  maj.  of  the  13th  regt.  Oct.  10, 
1862  ;  promoted  2d  lieut.  Co.  G.  Jan.  '63  ; 
mustered  out  July  21,  '63;  enlisted  and 
com.  2d  lieut.  of  Co.  C.  17th  regt.,  Feb. 
23,  '64  ;  honorably  discharged  for  disabil- 
ity March  9,  1865  ;  died  in  Montpelier  Oct. 
20,  1868. 

2d  Lieut.  James  B.  Riker,  enlisted 
Dec.  31,  1 861,  as  private  in  ist  battery; 
quartermaster  sergt.  Sept.  20,  1862  ;    pro- 


MOrvfTPELIER. 


523 


moted  sergt.-maj.  Sept.  1863^  2d  lieut. 
April  4,  1864;  mustered  out  of  service 
Aug.  10,  1864;  now  resides  in  New  York. 

2d  Lieut.  Eben  Taplin,  enlisted  as 
private  in  3d  battery,  Dec.  16,  1863;  pro- 
moted Corp.  Jan.  i,  1864;  wounded  Aug. 
8,  '64;  promoted  Aug.  23,  1864,  quarter- 
master sergt.  ;  2d  lieut.  Feb.  28,  1865  ; 
mustered  out  June  15,  1865;  now  resides 
in  Burlington,  Vt.      c.  de  f.  Bancroft. 

Dec.  I,  1881. 

MILITARY   NECROLOGY. 

Soldiers  who  have  died  in  to^vn  since  the  war. 

rSet  military  talilc,  pp.  34-.'-a49.) 

Thos.  C.  Alexander,  Nov.  27,  '69,  age 
39,  13th  reg. 

Sam'l.  Andrews,  Aug.  27,70,  age  25,  2d 
Vt.  bat. 

Lieut.  Chas.  E.  Bancroft,  Feb.  i,  '79. 
age  49,   Co.  I,  13th  reg.  (Waterbury.) 

Lieut.  Wm.  B.  Burbank,  Nov.  5,  '70,  age 
33,  17th  reg. 

Capt.  Wm.  T.  Burnham,  June  20,  '62, 
age  51,  2d  reg. 

Maj.  Alfred  L.  Carlton,  May  29,  '74.  age 
45,  I  ith  reg. 

John  S.  Collins,  Nov.  27,  '67,  age  30, 
F.  C.  cav. 

L.  M.  Collins,  Dec.  8,  '71.  age  26,  17th 
reg.  (East  Montpelier.) 

Solomon  Dodge,  Dec.  11,  ''64,  age  39, 
Ohio  reg. 

Lorenzo  Dow,  Dec.  i,  '69,  age  25,  2d 
Vt.  bat.  (Berlin.) 

William  Dow,  Sept.  18,  '71.  age  33,  2d 
Vt.  bat.  (Berlin.) 

Olin  French,  Sept.  29,  '68,  age  28,  ist 
cav.  reg.   (Bar re.) 

John  C.  Hackett,  Oct.  13,  '75,  age  56, 
6th  reg.  (Berlin.) 

Orlena  Hoyt,  June  30,  "78,  age  72,5th  reg. 

Timothy  Hornbrook,  Dec.  24,  '74,  age 
32,  2d  reg.  (Berlin.) 

John  W.  Ladd,  Dec.  4,  '70.  age  34,  13th 

Lieut.  James  C.  Lamb,  Mar.  16,  '69, 
age  38,  13th  and  17th  reg. 

Lieut.  Chas.  S.  Loomis,  Dec.  8, '68,  .age 
38,  on  Gen.  McPherson's  staff. 

Peter  Lemoine,  Apr.  3,  '67,  age  22,  ist 
Vt.  bat.   (Plainfield.) 


Chas.  W.  Randall,  Oct.  20,  '68,  age  22, 
13th  and  17th  reg. 

Benj.  Spinard,  May  2i,'79>  age 39,  nth 
reg.   (Albany,  Vt.) 

Louis  Seymour,  Dec.  29,  '72,  age  39, 
Co,  M,  1st  Vt.  cav. 

Lieut.  Edward  J.  Stickney,  Jan.  12, '75, 
age  30,  loth  reg. 

Andrew  St.  John,  Jan.  5,  '']'],  age  57, 
17th  reg. 

Cyril  Wheeler,  Mar.  18,  '76,  age  47,  2d 
reg.  (East  Montpelier.) 

Alfred  Whitney,  July  30,  "76,  age  48, 
I  Ith  reg.   (Berlin.) 

Surgeon  Jas.  B.  Woodward,  Oct.  4,  '79, 
age  55.   (Kansas  reg.) 

Edwin  C.  Cummins,  Feb.  27,  '73,  age 
34,  4th  reg.   (East  Montpelier.) 

Montpelier  soldiers  who  have  died  elsewhere 
since  the  war. 

Jerome  E.  Ballou,  Jan.  25,  '75,  age  32, 
13th  reg.,  at  Cincinnati. 

Henry  M.  Bradley,  Nov.  12, '65,  age  24, 
loth  reg.,  at  Williston. 

Curtis  A.  Coburn,  Nov.  7,  '66,  age  25, 
loth  reg.,  at  New  Orleans. 

Capt.  Horace  F.  Crossman,  2d  reg., 
at  Washington,  D.  C. 

Franklin  S.  French,  ist  cav.,  at  Chicago. 

Alfred  Girard,  17th  reg.,  at  Coaticook, 
Que.,  Apr.  9,  1875. 

Frank  J.  Brunell,  in  1864. 

Wm.  Guinan,  Nov.  6,  '74,  age  44,  2d 
and  17th  reg.,  at  Springfield,  Mass. 

David  Goodwin,  Feb.  27,  '''j},,  age  33, 
5th  reg.,  at  Hartford,  Conn. 

Thos.  H.  McCaulley,  Mar.  26,  '67,  age 
24,  2d  reg.,  at  Hanover,  N.  H. 

Chas.  D.  Swasey,  died  June,  '65,  age 
31,  13th  reg.,  at  Minneapolis,  Minn. 

George  S.  Severance,  3d  reg.,  killed  in 
railroad  accident  in  Illinois,  1869. 

Curtis  H.  Seaver,  June  29,  '72,  age  32, 
13th  reg.,  at  Richmond,  Vt. 

Robert  Patterson,  Dec.  27,  '74,  age  57, 
loth  reg.,  at  Fitchburg,  Mass. 

Hiram  D.  Sinclair,  Aug.  25,  '71,  age  58, 
8th  reg. 

Lieut.  Chas.  C.  Spalding,  Jan.  19,  '''j'j, 
age  50,  5th  reg.,  at  Boston. 

Peter  Tebo,  ist  cav.,  died  in  Plainfield 
a  few  years  since.  c.  de  f.  b. 


524 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


GREEN   MOUNT   CEMETERY. 

Revolutionary  War. — Elder  Ziba  Wood- 
worth  died  in  1826,  aged  66.  Eliakim  D. 
Persons  died  in  1846,  aged  81. 

War  of  1812. — George  W.  Bailey,  Sr., 
died  in  1868,  aged  70.  William  Bennett 
in  1878,  aged  85.  Darius  Boyden,  1850, 
aged  85.  Abel  Carter  in  1869,  aged  83. 
Col.  Parley  Davis,  '48,  aged  82.  Jacob  F. 
Dodge  in  1838,  aged  56.  Amos  Farley  in 
1836,  aged  59.  Lieut.  Joseph  Howes  in 
1863,  aged  80.  Abijah  Howard  in  1840, 
aged  62.  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard  in  1840, 
aged  66.  Roger  Hubbard  in  1848,  aged 
65.  Azro  Loomis  in  1831.  Jonathan  P. 
Miller  in  1847,  aged  50.  Lieut.  Thomas 
Reed  in  1864,  aged  71.  Capt.  Isaac  Rick- 
er  in  1837,  aged  53.  Jonathan  Shepard  in 
1863,  aged  91.  Cyrus  Ware  in  1849,  aged 
80.  Araunah  Waterman  in  1859,  aged  80. 
Daniel  Wilson  in  1875,  aged  70. 

War  of  the  Rebellion. — ist  Lieut.  Chas. 
E.  Bancroft,  Jerome  E.  Ballou. 

Henry  Black,  member  of  2d  Maine  regt., 
died  at  Sloan  hospital,  Montpelier  July 
9,  1864.  Capt.  Lucius  H.  Bostwick,  Co. 
F  13th  Vt.  regt.,  died  June  4,  '63,  age  25. 

Capt.  William  T.  Burnham,  Lieut.  Wm. 
B.  Burbank,  Maj.  Alfred  L.  Carlton,  John 
S.  Collins,  Luther  M.  Collins,  Wm.  Dow. 

Surgeon  Elihu  Foster,  surgeon  of  the 
7th  regt.,  died  in  Hydepark,  Jan.  9,  1867. 
John  Fisk,  iith  regt.,  died  in  Hydepark, 
Oct.  4,  1863. 

John  C.  Hackett,  Thomas  Hand,  2d  Vt. 
regt.,  died  at  Sloan  Hospital,  Jan.  8,  1865. 

John  W.  Ladd,  Lieut.  James  C.  Lamb, 
Lieut.  Charles  S.  Loomis. 

Vernon  L.  Loomis,  member  Co.  H  3d. 
regt.,  died  Feb.  3,  1863,  aged  19  years. 
Arthur  M.  Pearson,  member  Co.  F  2d  regt., 
died  in  Berlin,  Sept.  15,  1876,  age  40. 
Philander  A.  Preston,  Co.  C  ist  cav.,  'ied 
in  Florence,  S.  C,  Jan.  20,  1865,  age  31. 
Harlan  P.  Sargent,  Co.  I  9th  Vt.,  died  at 
Fortress  Monroe,  Nov.  30,  1863,  ^g^  25. 

Lieut.  Charles  C.  Spalding,  Lieut.  Ed- 
ward J.  Stickney,  Charles  D.  Swasey. 

Wallace  H.  Whitney,  Co.  M  rst  cav., 
died  at  Sloan  hospital,  Montpelier,  Jan. 
27,  1865.     Alfred  Whitney. 


ELM   STREET   CEMETERY. 

Revolutionary  War. — Col  Jacob  Davis 
died  Feb.,  1814,  age  75.  Aaron  Griswold 
died  in  1847,  age  95.  Luther  King  died 
in  1842,  age  88. 

H^ar  of  18 1 2. — Stukeley  Angell  died  in 
1S70,  age  J 2,.  David  Barton  in  1839,  "^b^ 
57  ;  Silas  Burbank  in  1847,  age  78.  Joseph 
Buzzell  in  1833,  age  68.  Simeon  Cum- 
mins in  1836,  aged  55.  Thomas  Hazard 
in  1856,  aged  75.  Capt.  Eben  Morse  in 
1858,  age  85.  Samuel  Mead  in  1827,  age 
40.  Iram  Nye  in  18 — ,  age  — .  Ira  Owen 
in  1836,  age  48.  George  Rich  in  1834, 
age  48.  Diah  Richardson  in  1866,  age  72. 
Harry  Richardson  in  1862,  age  70. 

War  of  Rebellion,  j86i. — Selden  B. 
Harran,  Co  F  2d  regt.,  died  at  George- 
town, D.  C,  Nov.  I4,.i86i,age  20.  Sergt. 
Omri  S.  Atherton,  Co.  C  17th  regt.,  died 
Nov.  6,  1864,  age  23.  Sergt.  Thomas 
McCaulIey. 

CENTER   CEMETERY. 

War  of  1812. — ^James  Arbuckle  died  in 
1844,  age  61.  Moses  Parmenter  in  1860, 
age  85.  Benjamin  Phinney  In  1831,  age 
61.  Nathaniel  Proctor  in  1866,  age  88-. 
Josiah  Wing  in  1849,  aged  jt,.  John 
Young  in  1876,  age  89. 

Mexican  U'ar. — Capt.  George W.  Estes 
of  the  navy  died  in  1871,  aged  60. 

War  of  i86i. — Samuel  Andrews,  Ed- 
win C.  Cummins.  Lorenzo  D.  Cutler,  Co. 
C  13th  regt.,  died  July  24,  1863,  age  21. 
Lorenzo  Dow.  Andrew  H.  Emerson,  Co. 
E  17th  regt.,  died  July  27,  1864,  aged  18. 
Albert  N.  Mann,  Co.  I  9th  regt.,  died 
Sept.  8,  1872,  age  28.  Orvis  Ormsbee, 
Co.  G  4th  regt.,  died  in  Virginia,  Jan.  19, 

1862,  age  21.  Hiram  D.  Sinclair.  Wil- 
lard  Snow,  Co.  C  13th  regt.,  died  July  19, 

1863,  age  23.  Cyril  Wheeler.  Lemuel  B. 
Wing,  2d  Co.  Sharpshooters,  died  in  1867, 
age  22. 

CATHOLIC   CEMETERY. 

War  of  1861.— William  Blair,  Co.  I 
13th  regt.,  died  in  Berlin,  June  7,  1873, 
age  28.  Walter  Burke,  Co.  H  13th  regt., 
died  at  Wolfs  Run  Shoals,  March  4,  1863, 
age  23.  Frank  Lanier,  Co.  C  nth  regt., 
died  in  Berlin.     Abraham   Leazer,  Co.  C 


MONTPELIER. 


52s 


13th  regt.,  died  in  Virginia,  March  j6,  '63, 
aged  45.  Rock  Lemwin,  Co.  E  .17th  regt., 
March  11,  1864,  age  43.  Peter  Lemoine, 
Erank  Sanchargrin,  died  at  Sloan  hos- 
pital, Montpelier,  in  1864.  Louis  Sey- 
mour. Joseph  Shontell,  3d  Battery,  died 
in  Washington,  D.  C,  March  13,  1864, 
age  19.     Andrew  St.  John,  Peter  Tebo. 

ON  STATE   AKSENAL   GROUNDS. 

Sevnnary  Hill. — William  Whitney,  3d 
regt.,  died  at  Sloan  hospital,  Jan.  27,1865, 
age  27. 

Momiments  in  Green  Mount  Cemetery  of 
those  buried  elsewhere. — Charles  W.  Storrs, 
Co.  K  7th  regt.,  died  of  wounds  at  Mobile, 
Ala.,  April  10,  1865,  age  23.  Gilman  D. 
Storrs,  Co.  B  loth  regt.,  killed  at  Orange 
Grove,  Nov.  27,  1863,  age  20.  Oscar 
Maxham,  Co.  E  8th  regt.,  died  at  Salis- 
bury, N.  C,  Feb.  II,  1864,  age  27.  Or- 
rin  Maxham,  Co.  E  8th  regt.,  died  in 
Louisiana,  Feb.  6,  1863,  age  23. 

Eliphalet  Bryant,  nth  U.  S.  A.  regu- 
lars, died  in  Richmond,  Va. 

May,  1 88 1,  there  were  28  headstones 
furnished  by  the  government,  and  erected 
for  the  soldiers  buried  in  the  diiTerent  cem- 
eteries of  Montpelier. 

BURIED   IN  NATIONAL   CEMETERIES. 

James  M.  Carr,  loth  regt.  Co  B.  John 
H.  Brown,  3d  Battery.  Ezekiel  S.  Wal- 
dron,  loth  regt.  Co  B,  City  Point. 

Tuffield  Cay  hue,  loth  regt.  Co.  B,  Cold 
Harbor,  Va.  Joseph  Ladue,  4th  regt.  Co. 
G,  Culpepper  Court  House. 

Robert  Brooks,  loth  regt.  Co.  B,  Dan- 
ville, Va. 

Felix  H.  Kennedy,  loth  regt.  Co.  B. 
Benjamin  F.  Taylor,  2d  regt.  Co.  F,  Cy- 
press Hill,  N.  Y. 

Benjamin  N.  Wright,  13  regt.  Co.  L 
Gettysburgh,  Penn. 

James  E.  Thayer,  8th  regt.  Co.  E,  Chale- 
mette,  near  New  Orleans. 

Sydney  A.  Gilman,  4th  regt.  Co.  G, 
Andersonville,  Ga. 

Charles  Storrs,  7th  regt,  Co.  K,  Mo- 
bile, Ala. 

Roswell  Franklin,  3d  regt.  Co.  H.  Allen 
Greeley,  loth  regt.  Co.  B,  Alexandria,  Va. 

Harris  Buxton,  nth  regt.  Co.  H.  Har- 
mon O.  Kent,  4th  regt.  Co.  G.  Albert  J. 
Ayer,  loth  regt.  Co.  B,  Asylum,  Washing- 
ton, D.  C.  C.  DE  F.  B. 


ANECDOTES   AND    INCIDENTS   OF    MONTPE- 
LIER   SOLDIERS. 

The  first  man  to  offer  his  services  to  his 
country  from  Montpelier  was  Robert  J. 
Coffey,  who  at  the  age  of  19  years  enlisted 
in  Co.  F,  1st  Vt.  regt.,  .which  was  mus- 
tered into  service  May  2,  1861.  Five 
more  boys  from  the  town  responded  to  the 
call  and  enlisted  in  the  same  company 
within  a^few  hours  after.  On  being  mus- 
tered out  with  the  regiment,  Aug.  15, 
1861,  Sergt.  Coffey  enlisted  Sept.  5,  1861, 
in  Co.  K,  4th  regiment.  At  the  battle  of 
Banks'  Ford,  Va.,  May  2,  1863,  one  inci- 
dent occurred,  it  being  the  next  day  after 
the  6th  Army  Corps  had  charged  and 
captured  Mary's  Heights.  During  the 
battle,  Co.  K,  4th  regiment  was  deployed 
as  skirmishers.  After  making  a  charge 
and  capturing  a  number  of  prisoners,  and 
withdrawing  back  towards  the  rear,  ist 
Lieut. Chas. Carter  who  was  in  the  command 
of  the  company,  shouted  "  come  on  boys  ; 
we  will  get  more  of  them  yet."  Sergt. 
Coffey  went  forward  with  the  lieutenant  a 
short  distance,  when  spying  a  rebel  taking 
aim  at  the  lieutenant  from  behind  a  tree, 
he  fired,  the  ball  taking  effect  in  the  rebel's 
arm,  when  he  advanced  and  gave  himself 
up  a  prisoner,  and  was  sent  to  the  rear. 
They  then  advanced  to  the  brow  of  a  small 
hill.  The  bullets  coming  thick,  they 
crawled  behind  an  old  tree-top  for  protec- 
tion. Sergt.  Coffey  reloaded  his  rifle  here, 
an  Enfield,  and  as  they  were  rising  up  to 
take  their  departure, — things  getting  a 
little  warm  there — w^ien  they  were  front- 
ed by  three  rebels,  an  officer  and  two  men, 
who  upon  the  demand  made  by  the  serg- 
geant  and  lieutenant,  surrendered  and 
threw  down  their  arms.  As  Lieut.  Carter 
started  with  the  prisoners  to  the  rear, 
Sergt.  Coffey  heard  the  clanking  of  a  sword, 
and  ran  around  the  tree-top,  and  was  met 
by  a  large,  fine  looking  rebel  officer.  The 
reply  to  the  demand  of  .surrender  made  by 
Sergt.  Coffey  was  a  blow  across  the  ser- 
geant's bayonet  from  the  sword  of  the  offi- 
cer, which  was  parried  off.  As  the  rebel 
drew  his  revolver  to  fire,  the  sergeant  dis- 
charged his  rifle  at  him  from  a  position  of 
charge   bayonets.     The  officer  fell   dead, 


526 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


being  shot  through  the  head.  At  this  mo- 
ment Lieut. Carter  called  on  Sergt. Coffey  to 
come  back  with  him.  As  the  sergeant 
started  to  go,  he  saw  a  rebel  captain  and 
six  men  just  below  him,  which  was  on  the 
bank  of  a  small  stream.  At  this  moment, 
when  the  captain  was  giving  an  order  to 
his  men,  the  sergeant  pointed  his  empty 
rifle  into  his  face  and  ordered  him  to  sur- 
render. The  captain  thinkirig  that  they 
were  surrounded  exclaimed,  "  don'tshoot," 
and  ordered  his  men,  who  were  in  the  rear 
of  him  several  feet,  to  surrender.  The  cap- 
tain gave  himself  up  ;  the  other  six  men 
came  upon  the  bank,  five  of  them  privates, 
all  armed  with  Enfield  rifles,  and  the 
other,  a  lieutenant,  also  well  armed. 
Dropping  their  guns,  the  sergeant  threw 
them  into  the  stream  below.  As  tliey  ad- 
vanced towards  where  the  captain  stood, 
the  lieutenant  says  to  the  captain,  "what 
are  we  a  doing  here?  he  is  all  alone." 
The  sergeant  pointed  his  rifle  into  the  lieu- 
tenant's face  and  cocked  it,  and  told  him 
to  march  on.  As  they  advanced  a  squad 
of  Co.  A  boys,  who  were  forming  a  skir- 
mish line  on  the  right,  came  in  sight ;  the 
sergeant  called  on  them  for  assistance,  as 
they  were  but  a  few  rods  off";  which  call 
they  responded  to  by  coming.  Taking 
the  swords  from  the  captain  and  lieutenant, 
the  sergeant  marched  them  in  the  direction 
of  his  regiment,  which  had  just  formed  a 
Hne  of  battle  on  a  little  rise  of  ground  sev- 
eral rods  in  the  rear.  The  sergeant  deliv- 
ered them  over  to  Col.  Stoughton  in  the 
presence  of  the  regiment.  The  colonel 
directed  him  to  take  them  to  the  rear  and 
deliver  them  to  the  prevost  guard.  On 
their  way  the  rebel  captain  informed  Sergt. 
Coff'ey  that  his  name  was  Carpenter,  and 
that  he  was  captain  of  a  company  in  the 
2 1  St  North  Carolina  regiment,  thai  the 
lieutenant  belonged  to  the  same  regiment, 
and  also  that  the  officer  whom  he  killed, 
was  a  major  of  the  same  regiment.  The 
five  privates  belonged  to  the  8th  Louisiana 
regiment.  There  being  no  vacancy  for 
promotion  at  that  time,  Sergt.  Coffey  was 
detailed  with  si.x  other  deserving  men  to 
go  to  Vermont  and  assist  in  making  out 
the  draft.     Six  days  after  he  rejoined  his 


regiment ;  he  was  wounded  at  Fairfax 
Court  house,  Va.,  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
further  disable  him  for  service  in  the  war. 
The  above  narration  is  authenticated  by 
several  comrades  of  his  regiment  as  a  true 
narrative. 

In  addition  to  this  narrative  might  be 
added  many  more  of  the  daring  deeds  per- 
formed by  Montpelier  "boys"  in  the  army. 
Among  them  that  performed  by  private 
Wallace  W.  Noyes  of  Co.  F,  2d  regiment, 
who  received  special  mention  from  the 
commanding  officer  at  the  battle  of  Spott- 
sylvania,  May  12,  1864.  He  mounted  the 
enemy's  breast  works  and  fired  some  30 
rifles  down  into  the  enemy  in  rapid  succes- 
sion, they  being  loaded  and  passed  up  to 
him  by  his  comrades  from  below ;  the  bul- 
lets passing  like  rain  above  him,  but  he 
escaped  unhurt,  although  a  bullet  passed 
through  his  cap  and  was  knocked  off;  he 
was  afterwards  severely  wounded,  but  re- 
covered, and    now  resides  in   Montpelier. 

Another  deed  which  is  credited  in  history 
from  his  commanding  officer,  was  by  Cor- 
poral William  L.  Washburn  of  the  3d  Vt. 
battery,  at  the  engagement  before  Peters- 
burgh,  Va.,  in  April,  1865.  At  one  stage 
in  the  engagement,  the  severe  firing  from 
the  enemy's  guns  compelled  the  3d  battery 
boys  to  leave  their  guns  and  retire  behind 
some  breast-works  in  the  rear.  Corp. 
Washburn  remained  by  his  gun,  a  12 
pounder,  and  loaded  and  fired  alone,  that 
the  battery  might  not  be  silenced.  There 
he  continued  until  the  "  boys"  returned  to 
the  guns.     He  escaped  without  a  scratch. 

NOTES  AND   NECROLOGY. 

Samuel  Abbott,  engaged  in  the  jewelry 
business  for  many  years  in  town,  died  May 
4,  1861,  aged  70. 

Aaron  Bancroft,  Jr.,  an  excellent  me 
chanic  at  several  trades,  and  in  early  life 
engaged  in  the  jewelry  business,  was  a 
great  "wag,"  always  full  of  jokes.  He 
was  commissioned  captain  of  a  militia 
company  in  town,  which  office  he  held 
several  years  from  1833.  He  died  March 
23,  1869,  aged  60  years. 

Chas.  E.  Bancroft,  for  some  years  engag- 
ed in  the  stove  and  tin  business  in  this 


MONTPELIER. 


527 


town ;  was  a  man  of  mechanical  genius, 
having  taken  out  several  patents,  principal- 
ly on  tinman's  tools.  He  died  Feb.  i,  1879, 
aged  49,  leaving  one  son,  Chas.  De  F., 
and  one  daughter,  Alice  D. 

Cornelius  Watrous  Bancroft,  (see  biog- 
raphy of  Carlos  Bancroft,)  was  engaged 
many  years  in  the  mercantile  business  ;  an 
excellent  business  man  and  citizen,  diedr 
Jan.  22,  1856,  aged  48,  leaving  a  son, 
Howard,  now  residing  in  Columbus,  O. 

Arthur  D.  Bancroft  died  April  11,  1881, 
aged  37,  (see  biog.  page  497.) 

James  Boyden  came  about  1830;  was 
for  some  years  engaged  in  preaching  the 
Universalist  faith,  but  giving  this  up,  fol- 
lowed his  trade,  that  of  cabinet  maker, 
until  his  death,  Jan.  22,  1875,  aged  "]"] . 

Milton  Brown,  Esq.,  son  of  Amasa 
Brown,  was  born  April,  1801,  in  Winch- 
endon,  Mass. ;  came  to  Montpelier  with 
his  father  in  1807,  resided  in  Worcester, 
representing  that  town  7  years  in  the  legis- 
lature, and  removing  to  Montpelier,  was 
high  sheriff  several  years.  He  died  July  3, 
1853,  aged  54. 

Geo.  P.  Blake,  a  merchant,  died  sud- 
denly, Aug.  I,  1854,  aged  51. 

Silas  Burbank,  a  native  of  Montpelier, 
for  many  years  successfully  engaged  in 
business  in  town,  died  Aug.  14,  1872,  aged 
65  years. 

Hon.  Augustine  Clark,  who  had  held 
the  office  of  state  treasurer  while  a  resi- 
dent of  this  town,  but  was  for  many  years 
previous  a  resident  of  Danville,  holding 
many  offices  in  that  town  and  county,  died 
June  17,  1841,  aged  59. 

Wyllys  I.  Cadwell,  who  came  to  this 
town  in  1799,  and  was  successfully  en- 
gaged in  business,  died  in  1823,  aged 
about  45. 

Wm.  W.  Cadwell,  son  of  Wyllys  I.,  for 
many  years  engaged  in  business,  and  also 
holding  various  town  offices — ^justice  of 
peace,  overseer  of  the  poor — died  Dec.  17, 
1877,  aged  78. 

Col.  Abel  Carter,  a  leading  citizen  of 
this  town,  born  in  Lancaster,  Mass.,  died 
Jan.  9,  1869,  aged  83,  in  Lowell,  Mass. 

Lyman  G.  Camp,  who  came  about  1830, 
was  a  contractor  and  builder,  and  Wash- 


ington County  jailor  many  years.  He  died 
May  15,  1879,  aged  84,  leaving  5  daughters 
and  3  sons. 

Zebina  C.  Camp  came  in  1820;  was  a 
contractor  and  builder  of  railroads,  held  the 
office  of  sergeant-at-arms  of  the  State  for 
several  years,  and  the  town  office  of  road 
commissioner  many  years ;  died  Jan.  3, 
1 88 1,  aged  76. 

Geo.  W.  Collamer  represented  the  town 
in  the  Legislature ;  was  extensively  en- 
gaged in  manufacturing,  and  accumulated 
a  large  property ;  died  October  15,  1865, 
aged  62. 

Jacob  Davis,  Jr.,  son  of  Col.  Jacob 
Davis,  the  first  settler  of  the  town,  who 
came  with  his  father  at  the  age  of  19  years, 
died  May  4,  185 1,  aged  83. 

Thomas  Davis,  who  was  the  youngest 
son  of  Col.  Davis,  was  17  at  the  time  of 
its  settlement.  He  was  the  builder  and 
owner  of  the  first  Pavilion,  and  died  Dec. 
17,  1864,  aged  95  years. 

Anson  Davis,  son  of  Thomas,  held  va- 
rious town  offices,  and  was  some  years 
sheriff;  died  Sept.  11,  1880,  aged  71,  leav- 
ing one  son,  James,  residing  in  New  York 
city. 

Simeon  Dewey,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
of  the  town  of  Berlin,  but  for  the  last  20 
years  of  his  life  residing  in  this  village  with 
his  .son.  Dr.  Julius  Y.  Dewey,  died  Jan.  1 1 , 
1863,  aged  92. 

Osman  Dewey,  son  of  Simeon,  a  worthy 
citizen,  died  Feb.  5,  1863,  aged  68  years, 
leaving  four  sons,  Frank,  now  a  wealthy 
merchant  of  Boston  ;  DenLson,  Simeon  and 
Orville,  of  Montpelier;  two  daughters, 
Mrs.  John  W.  Clark,  of  this  village,  and 
Mrs.  H.  L  Proctor,  residing  in  Iowa. 

Amos  Farley,  a  member  of  Montpelier 
Co.  at  Plattsburgh,  in  181 2,  and  for  many 
years  foreman  of  the  Watchman  office, 
died  Feb.  5,  1836,  aged  59. 

Gen.  Shubael  B.  Flint  was  Brig.  Gen.  of 
the  State  militia  several  years,  was  engaged 
in  the  harness  business  some  years,  and 
died  Dec.  18,  1856,  aged  57. 

Stephen  Freeman,  engaged  in  the  jew- 
elry business  in  town  from  1864  until  death, 
was  an  excellent  citizen ;  died  Apr.  13, 
1872,  aged  54. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Silas  C.  French,  for  many  years  engaged 
in  the  boot  and  shoe  business  in  town, 
died  Aug.  28,  1863,  aged  79. 

Geo.  P.  Foster,  for  15  years  proprietor 
of  the  Union  House,  from  1865,  an  en- 
ergetic citizen,  died  Jan.  i,  1881,  aged  48, 
leaving  one  son,  Chas.  O.  Foster. 

Fernando  C.  Oilman,  a  son  of  Jehial 
Oilman,  born  in  Montpelier,  was  engaged 
many  years  in  the  manufacturing  of  car- 
riages in  town,  until  his  death,  Nov.  26, 
1880,  aged  56,  leaving  one  son,  Septimus 
C,  now  residing  in  Boston. 

David  Oray,  one  of  the  early  citizens  of 
Montpelier,  a  member  of  Montpelier  Co. 
at  Plattsburgh,  died  Nov.  16,  1865,  aged 
83.  Two  sons,  men  of  property,  William 
and  David  R.,  reside  in  town. 

John  Oray  came  to  Montpelier  with  his 
father  in  1^4,  at  the  age  of  8  years ;  was 
a  farmer,  and  accumulated  a  large  prop- 
erty, in  speculations,  being  an  active  busi- 
ness man.  He  died  in  the  village,  Dec. 
14,  1877,  aged  91. 

Nehemiah  Harvey  came  here  in  1810; 
was  a  partner  of  Silas  C.  French  in  the 
shoe  business  many  years,  and  died  April 
22,  1869,  aged  75.  His  two  sons,  Howard 
died  in  the  West,  and  Alonzo  K.  in  Mont- 
pelier. 

Robert  Hargin,  born  in  Ireland,  came  to 
Montpelier  in  1832,  was  many  years  con- 
nected with  the  old  Pavilion  in  Cottrill's 
day ;  was  constable  of  the  town  several 
years,  and  an  active  member  of  the  Meth- 
odist church,  died  Aug.  17,  1878,  aged  64. 

Chester  W.  Houghton,  proprietor  many 
years  of  the  old  Union  House,  also  en- 
gaged several  years  in  the  tin  business, 
died  May  26,  1826,  aged  47. 

Abijah  Howard  came  in  an  early  day, 
held  various  town  offices,  was  a  much- 
respected  citizen,  a  member  of  the  Mont- 
pelier Co.  at  the  battle  of  Plattsburgh,  and 
died  Dec.  30,  1840,  aged  62. 

Edwin  C.  Holmes  came  to  Montpelier 
in  1826,  when  a  boy;  became  a  successful 
merchant;  was  a  partner  of  Carlos  Ban- 
croft about  20  years ;  married  a  daughter 
of  Capt.  Isaac  Riker;  died  May  17,  1871, 
aged  59,  leaving  a  son,  Edwin  C,  now  re- 


siding in  Texas,  and  a"daughter,  Helen, 
wife  of  Oeo.  Howes. 

Roger  Hubbard,  a  brother  of  Captain 
Timothy  Hubbard,  came  at  an  early  day, 
and  was  engaged  in  business  many  years. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Montpelier  Co. 
at  Plattsburgh,  and  died  Nov.  1848,  aged 
65,  leaving  three  sons,  Erastus,  Oustavus 
and  Oeorge,  the  two  former  residing  in 
town,  and  a  daughter,  Fanny,  who  married 
Martin  Kellogg,  and  resides  in  New  York. 

Chester  Hubbard,  another  brother  of 
Capt.  Timothy,  also  came  at  an  early  day  ; 
was  a  successful  business  man,  and  died 
Aug.  27,  1832,  aged  44,  leaving  one  son, 
Timothy  J.,  and  a  daughter,  who  married 
Anderson  D.  Dieter,  a  merchant  of  New 
Orleans,  since  a  resident  of  Montpelier, 
and  now  deceased. 

Timothy  J.  Hubbard,  who  accumulated 
a  handsome  property  in  real  estate  specu- 
lations, died  Nov.  7,  1880,  aged  57. 

William  B.  Hubbard  came  herein  1830, 
accumulated  a  large  property  in  business, 
and  died  Nov.  21,  1871,  aged  70  years, 
leaving  one  son,  Wm.  E.,  residing  in  town. 
Two  daughters,  Mrs.  Oeo.  Wilder  and 
Mrs.  Kinsman,  are  both  deceased. 

John  Barnard  Langdon,  eldest  son  of 
Col.  James  H.  Langdon,  engaged  in  busi- 
ness in  early  life,  died  July  2,  1868,  aged 
57,  leaving  one  son,  John  B.  Jr.,  now  of 
Montpelier. 

Azro  Loomis,  merchant,  of  an  early 
date,  died  in  1831.  Left  one  son,  Hora- 
tio S.,  of  this  town. 

Edwin  C.  Lewis,  a  boot  and  shoe  mer- 
chant, died  May  13,  1867,  aged  57  years. 

Joel  Mead  came  to  Montpelier  at  an 
early  day,  and  married  Lucy,  sister  of  Col. 
James  H.  Langdon  ;  was  engaged  in  busi- 
ness ;  on  the  loth  of  March,  1838,  was 
drowned  by  the  breaking  of  the  ice  when 
crossing  Lake  Champlain,  aged  53  years. 
He  left  four  sons,  Almon  A.,  of  this  town, 
James  and  Joel,  now  in  the  West,  and 
Lucius,  deceased,  and  a  daughter,  who 
married  Harry  S.  Boutwell,  of  this  town. 
His  widow  is  yet  living,  aged  92. 

Levi  Pierce,  druggist  and  apothecary,  a 
worthy  young  man,  died  at  the  age  of  36, 


MONTPELIER. 


529 


Jan.  19,  1864,  leaving  two  sons,  Clarence 
C.  and  John  C. 

Addison  L.  Paige,  for  many  years  in  the 
livery  business,  and  also  held  the  office  of 
sheriff,  died  April  4,  1865,  aged  55. 

Loomis  Palmer  came  in  1829,  was  en- 
gaged in  business  several  years,  and  died 
Apr.  9,  1875,  aged  63. 

Dea.  Alfred  Pitkin,  who  was  engaged  in 
trade  many  years  from  about  1820,  died 
Oct.  26,  1855,  aged  64.  His  only  son, 
Alfred  Jr.,  died  Oct.  8,  1846,  aged  22. 

Orrin  Pitkin,  engaged  in  the  meat  busi- 
ness for  about  50  years,  from  1820,  died 
April  25,  1879,  aged  76.  His  youngest  son 
Charles  C,  died  in  Montpelier,  Sept.  11, 
1872,  aged  19. 

Nathaniel  Proctor  came  at  an  early  day, 
was  a  member  of  the  Montpelier  Co.  at 
the  battle  of  Plattsburgh,  and  died  Mar  31, 
1866,  aged  88. 

Dr.  Chas.  R.  Pell,  an  excellent  citizen, 
who  opened  a  dental  office  in  town  in  1871, 
died  Mar.  4,  1881,  aged  35,  leaving  four 
sons  all  in  their  teens. 

Luther  Poland,  father  of  the  Hons.  Luke 
P.  and  Joseph  Poland,  came  in  1850;  was 
engaged  in  lumbering,  and  died  June  16, 
1880,  aged  90. 

Luman  Rublee  came  in  18 1 8,  was  en- 
gaged in  the  hat  manufacturing  business 
many  years,  and  died  May  12,  1879,  aged 
86.     (See  biography  ofDr.  C.  M.  Rublee.) 

Barnabas  Snow,  an  esteemed  resident 
of  the  town,  born  in  Montpelier,  ■  1797, 
died  June  30,  1873  ;  married  a  sister  of  Car- 
los Bancroft,  by  whom  he  had  3  daughters, 
Mrs.  N.  C.  Tabor,  Mrs.  Luther  Cree,  of 
Montpelier,  and  Mrs.  Watson  of  Mass. 

Philip  Sprague,  son  of  the  Hon.  Wooster 
Sprague,  who  was  president  of  the  horti- 
cultural society  of  Boston,  died  Aug.  6, 
1874,  aged  44. 

Isaiah  Silver,  for  many  years  a  leading 
merchant  in  town,  died  May  5,  1865,  aged 
74,  leaving  five  sons,  George,  William, 
Albert,  Charles  E.,  and  Henry  D.,  a 
sergt.  of  Co.  F  of  ist  U.  S.  artillery,  who 
had  the  honor  of  planting  the  American 
flag  on  the  bloody  hill  of  Cerro  Gordo,  in 
the  Mexican  war.  He  died  at  San  Juan 
de  Ulloa,  Mexico,  June  7,  1848. 

67 


William  S.  Smith  came  in  1841  ;  was  en- 
gaged in  the  produce  business  until  his 
death.  Mar.  19,  1870,  aged  62,  leaving  one 
son,  Carlos  L.,  and  two  daughters,  one, 
now  wife  ofWm.  O.  Standish,  all  of  Mont- 
pelier. 

Peter  G.  Smith,  colored,  came  to  Mont- 
pelier in  1832,  and  opened  hair-dressing 
rooms,  which  business  he  continued  in 
until  death ;  was  a  citizen  of  the  highest 
character,  respected  by  all  of  his  towns- 
men.    He  died  Dec.  7,  1878,  aged  71. 

Wm.  S.  Storrs  came  in  1823,  was  en- 
gaged in  business  many  years,  and  died 
Mar.  5,  1870,  aged  65.  His  two  sons 
were  killed  in  the  Rebellion.  (See  war 
record,  page  350.) 

Josiah  Town  came  in  1810,  and  com- 
njenced  business,  which  he  continued  until 
his  death,  March  30,  1826,  aged  49,  leav- 
ing two  sons,  Josiah,  who  died  Sept.  20, 
1832,  aged  31,  and  Ira  S.,  a  jeweler  of 
this  village. 

Preston  Trow  came  in  1830,  was  en- 
gaged in  house  building,  and  accumulated 
a  handsome  property.  He  died  Oct.  i, 
1879,  aged  69. 

Dr.  B.  O.  Tyler  came  to  Montpelier  in 
1852,  and  engaged  in  the  druggist  busi- 
ness for  some  years;  died  May  21,  1878, 
aged  80. 

Elisha  Town,  an  inventor  of  consider- 
able note,  taking  out  several  patents, 
died  Apr,  12,  1844,  aged  63,  leaving 
five  sons.  Snow,  Samuel,  Benjamin,  Bar- 
nard, and  a  physician  residing  in  Marsh- 
field.  The  first  four,  whose  ages  are  from 
60  to  76,  all  reside  in  town,  within  a  few 
rods  of  where  they  were  born,  each  being 
a  few  rods  from  each  other. 

John  Taplin,  Esq.,  one  of  the  first  and 
leading  settlers  of  the  town  of  Berlin, 
(see  Berlin,)  but  residing  the  last  years  of 
his  life  in  Montpelier  with  his  children, 
was  married  twice.  By  his  first  wife  he 
had  12  children;  by  his  second,  9,  all  but 
one  living — that  being  accidentally  scalded 
in  infancy — to  maturity,  marrying,  and 
settling  down  as  the  heads  of  families,  thus 
furnishing  an  instance  of  family  fruitful- 
ness  and  health  which  perhaps  never  had  a 


53° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


parallel  in  the  State  of  Vermont.  He  died 
Nov.  1835,  aged  87. 

Jackson  A.  Vail.  Esq.,  son  of  Joshua  Y. 
Vail,  represented  the  town  in  the  Legisla- 
ture, (see  Washington  Co.  Bar,)  and  died 
Apr.  16,  1871,    aged  56. 

Col. Asahel  Washburn,  a  highly  esteem- 
ed citizen,  being  the  originator  of  Sunday- 
schools  in  Vermont,  died  Apr.  9,  1856, 
aged  84. 

Gamaliel  Washburn,  for  upwards  of  30 
years  a  worthy  resident  of  Montpelier,  and 
for  several  holding  the  office  of  sheriiF  and 
jailor,  was  a  Mason  of  the  highest  degrees 
in  the  Masonic  order.  He  died  Dec;  28, 
1868,  aged  66,  leaving  three  sons.  Miles, 
now  of  Boston;  Geo.  C,  a  physician  of 
Waterbury;  and  Justus  W.  F.,  of  Mont- 
pelier; and  two  daughters,  Mrs.  D.  S. 
Wheatley,  of  this  town,  and  Mrs.  Emory 
Bailey,  of  Boston. 

Chas.  Wood,  son  of  Cyrus  Wood,  en- 
gaged in  the  tin  business  several  years, 
and  died  Feb.  5, 1864,  aged  54,  leaving  one 
son,  Charles  E. 

Jonathan  E.  Wright,  a  most  esteemed 
citizen,  son  of  Rev.  Chester  Wright,  was 
several  years  engaged  in  business  in  town, 
removed  to  Boston,  where  he  continued 
in  business  about  20  years,  and  returned  to 
Montpelier,  where  he  died,  May  9,  1872, 
aged  61,  leaving  one  son.  Rev.  J.  Edward 
Wright,  pastor  of  the  Church  of  the 
Messiah,  Fanny,  a  daughter,  having  de- 
ceased some  years  since. 

ADDITIONAL   CITIZENS'   NECROLOGY. 

1857     Abbott,  Christopher 29 

1875     Abbott,  Timothy 49 

1880     Ainsworth,  Nathaniel  D 52 

1827     Bacon,  Samuel 27 

1 838  Bancroft,  Henry 24 

1848     Bancroft,  Azro 29 

1845     Bancier,  Ambrosie  Jr. 24 

1847     Bancier,  Ambrosie 67 

1862     Bancier,  Louis 52 

1834     Baldwin,  Edward 33 

1839  Barton,  David 57 

1867     Bickford,  Ebenezer 57 

1875     Bixby,  Luther 59 

1837     Bigelow,  Silas yj 

1880     Bisconers,  John 45 

1877  Benway,   Eli 59 

1872  Belair,  Edward 55 

1878  Braley,  Andrew  J 50 

1 853  Bryant,  Jeremiah 56 


870 
846 

828 
866 

874 
844 


874 
874 
833 
874 
880 
828 
830 

833 
836 
836 
866 

844 
881 
862 
842 
873 
839 
868 
872 
874 
831 
875 
852 
859 

849 
867 
852 
^53 
837 
841 

875 
828 
854 
865 
865. 

84s 
854 
863 
864 
878 
841 
861 
838 

879 
866 

834 
842 

853 
835 
843 
848 

875 
871 
872 
844 
847 


Bryant,  Henry 32 

Brooks,  Zolates 22 

Brooks,  Lorenzo  D 23 

Brockway,  Abner 49 

Brown,  Josiah  L 64 

Brown,  Stewart 65 

Broody,  Mathew 22 

Buckley,  Francis  ....    56 

Burnham,  Lewis 68 

Buswell,  George  M 51 

Buzzel,  Joseph 68 

Butterfly,  Napoleon 19 

Buck,  Dana 62 

Cam])bell,  Henry 49 

Campbell,  David iS 

Carr,  Samuel 40 

Carrigan,  John 48 

Caravan,  John 27 

Carpenter,  David 59 

Cartemarche,  David 45 

Carson,  Thomas 31 

Chase,  Austin 22 

Clark.  Ira 24 

Clark,  Bradley  M 54 

Cleaves,  Charles  R. . . . 45 

Clifford,  Thomas 62 

Clough,  Moses 56 

Coffey,  Richard 23 

Collins,  Salvin 62 

Cowdry,  Daniel 64 

Conners,  James 54 

Cree,  George 

Crosby,  Nicholas 62 

Cross,  Gustavus 34 

Cross,  Albert  A 36 

Culver,  John  W ^^i 

Cutler,  Miles 40 

Cutler,  Prentiss 33 

Cutler,  Timothy  B 66 

Cutler,  Jonathan 56 

Culver,  D.W 38 

Currier,  John  O 41 

Cutting,  Israel 68 

Day,  Benjamin .- . . .  24 

Darling,  Joseph 38 

Dewey,  Osman 68 

Dewey,  Samuel 45 

Dieter,  Anderson  D 53 

Doty,  H 38 

Doty,  John 65 

Dodge,  Jacob  F 56 

Dodge,  Theodore  A 65 

Ducharme,  Francis 46 

Dugar,  Horace   25 

Dumas,  Joseph 49 

Dumas,  Edward 26 

Dunning,  Mr 31 

Eaton,  Leonard 42 

Emerson,  Orin 45 

Edgerly,  Albert  W, 27 

Estis,  Capt.  Geo.  W 60 

Fales,  Chas.  H 22 

Foster,  Deacon 44 

Foster,  Douglas 47 


MONTPELIER. 


531 


1868  Fish,  Orville  E 21 

1878  Finn,  John 33 

1879  Frasier,  Daniel 32 

1S31  French,  Henry  0 28 

1S50  Fuller,  David 64 

1826  Gaylord,  Thomas 67 

1871  Gauthier,  James 25 

1842  Gilman,  J.  D • 29 

185 1  Gilman,  Jehial 60 

1865  Gireaux,  John  B 68 

1877  Gerard,  Peter 19 

1877  Gerard,  Joseph 18 

1877  Gary,  Ephraim 67 

1877  Gary,  William  H 30 

1841  Gravlin,  Peter 54 

1857  Gravlin,  Joseph 28 

1841  Gleason,  Dr.  Jacob 34 

1839  Greenough,  Ira 34 

1842  Green,  Wesley   21 

1869  Gould,  Rodney 55 

1875  Gould,  Lorenzo  D 48 

1878  Gould,  Orlando 28 

1 87 1  Gray,  James 57 

1875  Gray,  William 21 

1875  Gray,  Mark  W 28 

1866  Guernsey,  Madison 57 

1877  Guernsey,  Lorenzo  D 66 

1847  Guernsey,  Mr 47 

1833  Hall,  George 35 

1826  Hatch,  Timothy 36 

1830  Hatch,  Enoch 38 

1840  Hatch,  Jeremiah 52 

1843  Hatch,  Ira 29 

1842  Hall,  Moses  E 35 

1843  Hayward,  R.  B 34 

1871  Harvey,  Alonzo  K 41 

1867  Harran,  John 41 

1873  Hawley,  George  P 60 

1869  Haskins,  Curtis 50 

1880  Hazard,  George 64 

1873  Hersey,  Heman  F 50 

1854  Hersey,  Elijah 68 

1853  Heaton,  Volnev yj 

1879  Heath,  Theron  H 18 

1879  Haven,  William  T 46 

1876  Hibbard,  Edwin  S 37 

1880  Hines,  John  N 48 

1869  Hollis,  Charles  H 46 

1848  Holmes,  Ebenezer 85 

1852  Holmes,  Barzillai 44 

1844  Hopkins,  Nathaniel 55 

1 84 1  Howes,  Solon 22 

1880  Houghton,  Rev.  James  C 69 

1836  Houghton,  Lucius 36 

1859  Home,  William 29 

1859  Howland,  James 60 

1853  Hyde,  George 22 

1856  Hubbard,  Elijah 

1868  Hubbard,  Zadock 25 

1851  Hubbard,  William  L 34 

1845  Hutchins,  James 39 

1835  Hutchins,  William -^Z 

1 85 1  Hutchins,  Orison 39 

1 84 1  Jacques,  Thomas 20 


S35 
841 

848 
860 
872 
84S 
840 
863 
867 
881 
828 
846 
854 
855 
856 


863 
869 
873 
873 
872 
842 
828 


871 

873 
880 
872 
835 
849 
B55 
835 
861 

874 
868 

831 

832 

839 
870 
848 
827 
872 

844 
863 
869 
876 
848 
876 
839 
873 
857 
849 

874 
872 

874 
858 
872 

873 
836 

837 
869 

875 


Jenkins,  James 33 

Jennings,  Solomon 31 

Jones,  Watson 57 

Jones,  James 40 

Jones,  Elmer 21 

Jones,  William 18 

Johnson,  D.  P 28 

Johnson,  Willis 63 

Johonnott,  Peter 68 

Kane,  Moses 48 

Kimball,  Jacob  F 46 

Kimball,  Seth 42 

Kilbourne,  Ralph 57 

Kilbourne,  Dr.  G.  H 32 

Kilbourne,  Edward  R 20 

Kinsman,  Newell 63 

Kinsman,  John  A 

Kinson,  William  R 56 

Keeler,  Andrew 42 

Kent,  Hermon  G 69 

Ladd,  Ezra  W 41 

Ladam,  Joseph 42 

Lamb,  Center 40 

Lamphere,  Mr 65 

Lawrence,  David 35 

Lawrence,  Isaac 63 

Lawrence,  Charles 65 

Lease,  Gerdin 65 

Leland,  James ■ 64 

Lewis,  David 65 

Littleton,  Samuel 56 

Luce,  Hubbard 25 

Lyman,  Simeon 45 

Marsh,  Lewis 31 

Marsh,  William  D 41 

Marsh,  Ezra 67 

Marsh,  Emerson 18 

Marsh,  Julian 29 

Marsh,  John 35 

Mathieu,  Edmund 22 

Mailhot,  Eustache 61 

Mathieu,  James 80 

Mead,  Samuel 40 

Medler,  Patrick 62 

McKay,  Alba 36 

McCauUy,  James 62 

McClure,  William  F 19 

McCue,  John 56 

Mclntire,  Timothy 25 

McFarland,  James 56 

Miller,  Albert 38 

Miller,  John 47 

Milliken,  Dr.  Edward 29 

Morse,  Almon  C 28 

Mosely,  Harmon  G 45 

Myers,  Leslie 21 

Neveaux,  Dieu  D 41 

Newton,  Jeduthan 38 

Newhall,  Joseph.. 42 

O'Niel,  Thomas 21 

Owen,  Ira 47 

Parker,  John 45 

Parker,  Josiah  L 35 

Parker,  TerajMe  W 57 


532 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


1869     Park,  William 63 

1859     Patterson,  James 64 

1865     Paine,  Richard. 74 

1838     Paddock,  James 67 

1877     Pitkin,  William  L 38 

1846     Pitkin,  Alfred 22 

1872     Pitkin,  Charles  C 20 

1834     Peck,  Ichabod * 62 

1851  Peck,  Moses 68 

1831     Percival,  Thomas 35 

1852  Phinney,  Elisha 

1855  Phinney,  Jay 26 

1845     Potter,  Luther 20 

1856  Prescott,  Enoch  H 31 

1875  Poland,  Charles  F 28 

1833     Prentiss,  George 24 

1879  Reed,  James  M 48 

1838     Reynolds,  Elisha 52 

1865     Redfield,  Frederick 22 

1863     Rice,  Thomas  P 60 

1876  Rich,  George 46 

1862     Richardson,  James  M 45 

1870  Richardson,  Redfield  J 21 

1851  Rivers,  Paul 60 

i860     Rivers,  Felix 35 

1852  Ripley,  Franklin 24 

1853  Rowell,  Hiram 26 

1867  Robinson,  Geo.  W 34 

1874  Robinson,  Charles  C 22 

1875  Robinson,  Nelson  A 63 

1 840  Saftbrd,  Charles 37 

1837  Sanders,  Otis 29 

1889     Sargent,  John  P 35 

1841  Sanborn,  Lucius  L 32 

1880  Scott,  Samuel  P 70 

1840     Shepard,  Leander 40 

1844     Sherburne,  Enoch 18 

1843     Sherburne,  Henry 67 

1 87 1  Simonds,  George 22 

1830     Slade,  Thomas 50 

1865     Smalley,  Waters  B 48 

1838  Smith,  Dr.  Hart 33 

1868  Smith,  George  H 35 

1867  Smith,  Leander  W y] 

1876  Smith,  Alexander 55 

1881  Smith,  Walter  J .' 19 

1840     Stearns,  Lewis 63 

1855     Staples,  John  W 69 

1868  Sterling,  Henry 31 

1848     Stickney,  Orin 37 

1853     Stickney,  Asa 34 

1830  Stickney,  William 55 

1874  St.  John,  Andrew,  Jr 27 

1868     St.  Onge,  Mitchell 67 

1880  Skinner,  Ephraim  C 39 

1875  Sullivan,  Timothy 64 

1846     Taplin,  Guy  C 42 

1839  Thombury,  Philip 19 

1832     Town,  Josiah 31 

1876  True,  ZibaR 62 

1881  True,  Charles  B 35 

1868     Tyler,  Lorenzo  D 62 

1826     Tuller,  Martin 21 

1831  Tuthill,  William 60 


852  Wainwright,  Alfred 62 

846  Warner,  M.  D 

850  Walsh,  William 42 

851  Wilder,  A.  W.  Sr 57 

846  Washburn,  Judah 58 

844  Washburn,  Ephraim 45 

840  Walton,  Edward 

850  Walton,  John 56 

862  Weed,  Nathan 41 

843  Whiten,  David yj 

849  Whitney,  Levi 45 

849  Wheelock,  Loomis 42 

849  Witherell,  Elijah 32 

862  Wing,  David 45 

856  Wing,  A.  Sidney 61 

867  Wing,  Christopher  C 33 

856  Wing,  Lemuel  B 36 

850  Wing,  Myron 27 

854  Wing,  Melvin 

830  Worcester,  William 22 

872  Wright,  Jerome 29 

839  York,  Chester. .«. 29 

834  Young,  James 34 

C.   DE  F.  KAN'CROFT. 

GREEN   MOUNT   CEMETERY. 

History  from :  Services  at  tlie  Dedicalion  of  Green 
Mount  Cemetery,  Montpelier.  Vt..  Sept.  15,  1855. 
Published  by  order  of  the  Commissioners.  Montpe- 
lier: E.P.  Walton,  Jr., printer,  1855. 

Calvin  J.  Keith,  (see  page  47)  who 
died  in  1853,  left  a  bequest  of  $1000  in  his 
will  for  "purchasing  a  suitable  place  for  a 
burying-ground  in  Montpelier,  and  inclos- 
ing and  planting  trees  in  the  same,"  and 
named  Constant  W.  Storrs  with  the  trust- 
ees of  his  estate  to  "lay  out  the  ground  into 
lots  and  dispose  of  the  same  at  a  reasona- 
ble price,  reserving  a  portion  to  be  given 
gratuitously  to  the  poor.  The  amount  re- 
ceived for  lots  to  be  used  by  said  trustees  in 
improving  said  ground  and  in  planting  the 
same  thickly  with  trees."  To  the  liberality 
and  public  spirit  of  this  gift,  "the  town 
responded  equally  liberal,  and  at  the  next 
annual  meeting  appointed  Hezekiah  H. 
Reed,  James  T.  Thurston  and  Stoddard 
B.  Colby  a  committee  to  act  on  the  behalf 
of  the  town"  with  the  trustees.  The  joint 
committee  purchased  of  Isaiah  Silver  at  a 
cost  of  $2210  about  40  acres,  which  are 
now  inclosed  and  constitute  Green  Mount 
Cemetery,  work  on  which  was  commenced 
in  the  Autumn  of  1854.  By  act  of  the 
Legislature  that  same  year,  the  whole  man- 
agement was  vested  in  five  commissioners 
to  be  chosen  by  the  town ;  Elisha  P.  Jew- 
ett,    Hezekiah    H.   Reed,    Charles    Reed, 


MONTPELIER. 


533 


James  T.  Thurston  and  George  Langdon 
were  elected  at  the  annual  March  meeting 
1855,  the  first  board  of  commissioners." 
The  town  at  the  same  time  placing  at  their 
disposal  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  Cem- 
etery $5000.  The  grounds  were  so  far 
completed  as  to  be  dedicated  with  the 
usual  forms  and  exercises  Sept.  15,  1855. 

Dedication  Services. — Chant,  written  for 
the  occasion,  by  Col.  H.  D.  Hopkins,  per- 
formed by  the  Union  Choir  Association, 
words,  Psalm  90,  adapted  ;  reading  of  the 
Scriptures  by  Rev.  F.  D.  Hemmenway : 

Man  that  is  born  of  a  woman  is  of  few 
days  and  full  of  trouble.  He  cometh  forth 
as  a  flower  and  is  cut  down — Job. 
And  Abraham  stood  up  from  before  his 
dead,  and  spake  unto  the  sons  of  Heth, 
saying  :  I  am  a  stranger  and  a  sojourner 
with  you,  give  me  a  possession  of  a  burying- 
place,  that  I  may  bury  my  dead.  .  . 
And  the  field  of  Ephron,  .  .  .  the 
field  and  the  cave  which  was  therein  and 
all  the  trees  that  were  in  the  field,  that 
were  in  all  the  borders  round  about  were 
made  sure  unto  Abraham  for  a  possession 
in  the  presence  of  the  children  of  Heth. — 
Genesis.  .  .  Behold  I  show  you  a  mys- 
tery ;  we  shall  not  all  sleep,  but  we  shall 
all  be  changed.  In  a  moment  in  the  twink- 
ling of  an  eye  at  the  last  trump. —  isi  Co7-. 

Prayer— By  Rev.  Wm.  H.  Lord: 
Almighty  and  most  merciful  God,  the 
Father  of  our  spirits  and  Framer  of  our 
bodies  :  it  becometh  us  to  recognize  Thee 
at  this  time,  and  adore  thy  glorious  Maj- 
esty. Thou  hast  formed  us  out  of  the  dust 
of  the  earth,  and  passed  upon  us  the  irre- 
versible sentence  of  Thy  holiness  ;  dust 
thou  art,  and  unto  dust  thou  shalt  return. 
We  acknowledge  the  justice  of  the  decree 
which  consigns  these  earthly  tabernacles 
of  our  spirits  to  the  darkness  and  silence 
of  the  grave.  And  as  we  contemplate  the 
multitudes  of  successive  generations,  who 
have  all  returned  to  the  earth  from  whence 
they  sprang,  our  hearts  are  impressed  with 
the  reality  of  Thy  government  over  us, 
and  with  the  solemnity  of  our  present  con- 
dition and  future  destiny.  And  most  Holy 
Father,  as  we  are  now  assembled  in  this 
place,  to  consecrate  to  our  own  use,  and  to 
the  use  of  the  generations  that  shall  follow 
us,  this  burial  place  for  the  dead,  we  be- 
seech Thee,  that  serious  thoughts  of  the 
greatness  and  majesty  of  Thine  adminis- 
tration, and  of  our  own  weakness  and  frail- 
ty, may  take  possession  of  us.  Remind 
us,  we  pray  Thee,  of  our  personal  relations 
to  thy  moral  law,  and  to  the  future  before 


us.  Let  not  the  ceremony,  in  which  we 
engage,  be  merely  listless  and  formal ;  but 
enlisting  our  minds  and  hearts,  may  it  send 
them  forth  to  the  contemplation  of  that 
promised  inheritance  of  Thy  people,  where 
there  is  neither  death  nor  the  grave,  and 
where  no  funeral  monument  and  no  conse- 
crated sepulchre  shall  ever  be  seen  to  indi- 
cate the  mortality  and  to  mark  the  corrup- 
tion of  its  inhabitants.  For  however  beau- 
tiful and  attractive  we  may  make  this  place 
of  sepulture,  we  yet  confess.  Great  God, 
that  it  is,  in  all  its  parts,  significant  of  our 
transitory  and  perishing  estate,  and  that  its 
various  attractions  cannot  conceal  from  our 
thoughts  the  solemn  use  to  which  it  is  de- 
voted, and  the  still  more  solemn  fact  that 
makes  its  use  imperative.  We  beseech 
Thee,  that  as  often  as  we  visit  this  spot,  it 
may  suggest  the  most  serious  and  salutary 
reflections,  and  lead  to  the  most  earnest 
and  holy  purposes.  And  while  we  may 
here  attest  our  considerate  and  generous 
affection  for  the  dead,  let  this  common 
home  of  us  all,  teach  us  most  impressively 
our  duties  to  the  living.  As  we  here  dis- 
cover the  certain  destination  to  which  we 
are  all  tending,  may  we  learn  wisdom  to 
guide  us  amid  the  various  relations  of  life, 
and  find  fresh  and  strong  incentives  to  the 
performance  of  every  duty,  and  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  every  grace.  May  we  look  to 
Him,  Who,  from  out  of  the  darkness  of 
the  grave,  has  brought  life  and  immortal- 
ity to  light,  and  in  His  gospel  spoken  to  us 
of  a  resurrection  from  the  dust  of  the 
earth.  May  we  here  learn  to  cherish  and 
to  value  the  hope  of  a  better  life,  revealed 
in  Thy  Word,  and  to  believe  heartily  in 
Him,  Who  will  soon  destroy  death  and  rob 
the  grave  of  its  victims.  And  when  we 
commit  the  bodies  of  our  friends  to  this 
consecrated  earth,  may  it  be  with  the  lively 
and  assured  hope,  that  through  the  blood 
of  Jesus  Christ,  appropriated  by  fajth,  we 
ma)-  all  be  reunited  in  Thy  kingdom  of 
blessedness,  to  go  no  more  out  forever. 

Hear  this  our  prayer,  and  unto  Thy 
name.  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Ghost,  be 
everlasting  praises  ;  Amen. 

Address— By  Rev.  F.  W.  Shelton  : 
We  stand  upon  a  hill-side  which,  almost 
yesterday,  lay  unreclaimed  in  its  original 
wildness,  and  now  already  it  begins  to 
look  like  an  embellished  garden.  Art  has 
redeemed  it  from  its  rude  estate,  with  an 
almost  magic  transformation.  It  has  its 
winding  walks,  and  will  have  its  shady 
avenues.  It  is  the  most  choice  position  in 
this  valley,  and  its  natural  surface  presents 
the  charm  of  great  variety.  There  is  no 
stretch  of  landscape,  in  this  neighborhood, 
around  the  abodes  of  the  living,  which  can 
vie  in  beauty  with  this  Paradise  which  you 


534 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


now  dedicate,  as  the  resting  place  of  your 
beloved  dead.  And  it  is  easy  to  predict 
what  its  aspect  will  be  in  a  few  years, 
when  its  remaining  roughness  shall  have 
been  assuaged  ;  when  every  returning  sum- 
mer shall  bring  with  it  a  richer  shadow, 
and  an  added  bloom  : —  when  affection 
shall  have  beautified  it  in  every  nook,  and 
watered  its  flowers  with  tears. 

On  this  occasion,  so  fraught  with  sol- 
emn, yet  not  unpleasing  suggestion,  your 
thoughts  will  naturally  recur  to  one  whose 
hand  was  always  open  with  a  generous 
largess,  and  who  devised  a  portion  of  his 
wealth  for  so  benevolent  an  end.  The 
heart  is  cold  in  death  which  lately  throbbed 
with  sympathy  for  the  living,  but  if  no 
chiselled  shaft  should  rise  in  gratitude  upon 
the  height  to  bear  the  record  of  his  vir- 
tues, this  spot  shall  be  his  noblest  monu- 
ment.    Peace  to  his  ashes. 

You,  too,  have  done  well,  and  have  re- 
sponded to  a  true  sentiment  in  consecra- 
ting these  acres  to  a  purpose  so  hallowed. 
Here,  indeed,  the  husbandman  shall  not 
put  in  the  grain,  nor  shall  the  plough-boy 
carol,  nor  shall  the  waving  corn  be  seen 
upon  these  hills.  They  shall  receive  the 
germs  of  a  richer  harvest  in  their 
bosom.  This  land  shall  not  change  hands. 
It  is  the  inalienable  heritage  of  the  dead 
forever.  It  is  their  riches,  their  right, 
their  possession ; — theirs,  with  all  its 
abundant  variety  of  hill  and  dale,  and 
rocks,  and  flowing  water ; — a  little  dust, 
but  it  is  enough  to  satisfy  the  wants  of 
many.  It  will  be  protected  with  a  jealous 
care,  and  none  will  be  so  rude  in  instinct 
as  to  pluck  a  flower.  The  winds  alone 
shall  rifle  the  buds  which  grow  in  this  gar- 
den, and  the  frosts  of  heaven  shall  nip 
their  heads.  The  laws  which  truly  guard 
it,  are  not  the  statutes  inscribed  on  pillars  ; 
they  are  those  which  are  graven  deep  in 
human  nature :  and  the  sentinels  which 
keep  tv'atch  over  the  tomb,  are  the  most 
delicate  sensibilities  of  the  heart.  Thus 
shall  it  descend  as  a  burial  place  from  gen- 
eration to  generation,  till  it  shall  become 
so  rich  and  holy  with  beloved  dust,  that  all 
the  treasures  upon  earth  would  not  wrest 
it  from  your  possession.  It  is  now  offered, 
with  all  its  boundaries  which  lie  beneath 
these  skies.  The  deeds  will  be  presented 
by  your  commissioners. 

•'  This  fairest  spot  of  hill  and  glade, 
Wliere  blooms  tlie  flower  and  waves  the  tree. 

And  silver  streams  delight  the  shade, 
We  consecrate,  O  Death,  to'Tliee." 

An  innate  sentiment  teaches  us  to  have 
respect  to  the  ashes  of  the  departed.  Thus 
when  the  spark  of  life  is  fled,  the  mourner 
stands  long  to  gaze  upon  the  casket  which 
contained  the  jewel.  Tenderly  does  he 
close  the  eyes  which  shall  know   no  more 


"their  wonted  fires,"  and  imprints  a  last 
kiss  on  the  lips  which  Death  has  sealed. 
,  He  scatters  flowers  upon  the  silent  bo.som. 
He  enrobes  the  form  of  the  sleeper  in  fair 
and  white  habiliments,  and  at  last  in  silence 
and  in  sorrow  commits  it  to  the  purifying 
mould  ; — earth  to  earth, — ashes  to  ashes, 
— dust  to  dust.  Nor  does  he  rest  con- 
tented when  he  has  put  it  from  his  sight 
with  the  latest  ceremonials  which  decency 
reciuires.  He  guards  the  sacred  spot  from 
each  profane  intrusion,  and  there  he  lin- 
gers long,  if  he  has  loved  well. 

We  find  a  care  for  sepulture  existing  by 
the  proof  of  earliest  records. 

"Abraham  stood  up,  and  bowed  him- 
self to  the  peopb  of  the  land,  even  to  the 
children  of  .Heth.  And  he  communed 
with  them,  saying,  'If  it  be  your  mind 
that  I  should  bury  my  dead  out  of  my 
sight,  hear  me,  and  intreat  for  me  to 
Ephon  the  son  of  Zohar,  that  he  may  give 
me  the  cave  of  Machpelah,  which  he  hath, 
which  is  in  the  end  of  his  field ;  for  as 
much  money  as  it  is  worth  he  shall  give  it 
me,  for  a  possession  of  a  burial  place 
among  you.'" — Gen.  23,  7-9. 

All  people  have  exhibited  the  like  trait 
of  humanity.  The  dreamy  Turk  will  leave 
the  living  crowd  which  is  by  the  Bosphorus, 
and  sit  all  day  beside  the  graves  of  his 
kindred.  The  red  man  of  the  forest  cher- 
ishes within  him  the  same  germ  and  attri- 
bute of  a  higher  civilization  :  for  as  a  hard 
fate  drives  the  tribes  still  onward  to  the 
"  Father  of  Waters,"  the  last  thoughts  of 
their  hearts  is  directed  towards  the  spots 
where  rest  the  bones  of  their  fathers. 

He  who  does  violence  to  such  a  senti- 
ment, lacks  even  the  refinement  of  the 
savage.  It  is  the  tendency  of  the  age  to 
disregard  in  some  things  that  which  the 
past  held  sacred,  and  to  bear  them  down  in 
a  vast  development  of  physical  means  and 
physical  energ)'.  That  utility  is  short-sight- 
ed which  shall  ever  trample  on  the  dictates 
of  a  genuine  decency.  The  pyramids  still 
rise  sublime,  with  no  better  base  than  the 
sands  of  the  desert ;  but  we  must  only 
look  for  ruins  where  Mammon  builds  his 
altars  on  a  dead  man's  bones. 

When  we  gaze  upon  this  crowd,  in  con- 
nection with  the  object  which  has  brought 
them  here,  and  consider  how  large  a  part 
of  it  shall,  at  some  time  or  other,  be  dis- 
solved and  mingle  with  this  surrounding 
dust,  it  awakens  a  throb  of  feeling  to 
which  words  cannot  do  justice.  There  is 
a  poetry,  it  is  true,  connected  with  the  cul- 
tivation of  rural  cemeteries  ;  but  I  trust 
that  it  is  something  better  than  the  senti- 
mentalism  which  is  without  depth  and 
vapid.  For  it  is  not  the  charm,  which  we 
may  throw  around  these  melancholy  places, 


MONTPKLIER. 


535 


that  can  deprive  death  of  its  sting,  or 
soften  one  shadow  on  the  brow  of  the 
King  of  Terrors.  It  is  not  that  the  dark- 
ness of  the  grave  can  be  mitigated,  because 
the  outside  of  it  is  beautified  like  a  garden, 
nor  that  the  sleeper  will  rest  more  softly  on 
a  bed  which  is  perfumed  with  violets.  It 
will  be  as  cold  and  hard  and  dark  beneath 
the  clod,  as  if  no  garlajids  were  above 
it.  But  the  teachings  of  a  holy  faith  can 
give  a  meaning  to  such  adornments,  and 
surround  them  with  a  tender  solace,  as  the 
emblems  of  an  immortal  bloom. 

It  is  because  of  the  effect  which  they 
will  have  upon  ourselves,  and  not  for  any 
good  which  they  will  do  the  silent  sleepers. 
To  be  occupied  in  such  pious  rites,  is  to 
disengage  us  a  little  from  the  world's  in- 
crustations ;  to  break  asunder  from  the 
bonds  of  a  prevailing  selfishness  ;  to  pay 
that  which  is  due  to  memory,  and  raise  our 
eyes  to  the  halo  which  invests  the  future. 
It  is  to  gain  strength  for  ourselves  to  look 
down  fearlessly  into  the  portals  of  the  sol- 
emn tomb  ;  to  pay  in  thought,  and  study, 
and  reflection,  something  of  what  we  owe 
to  the  characters  of  the  good  and  noble. 
We  know  that  man  but  poorly,  whom  we 
have  only  known  when  he  was  living.  The 
best  may  be  said  only  to  begin  to  live  when 
the  grave  has  closed  upon  them.  I  speak 
not  this  of  their  own  destiny,  but  their 
major  influence  is  given  forth,  only  when 
they  have  ceased  to  be.  It  is  the  memory 
of  their  lives,  more  than  their  very  lives, 
which  can  sink  at  last  into  our  hearts, 
or  fully  exhibit  their  own.  They  are 
like  those  things  which  we  might  not 
have  noticed,  if  they  had  not  passed 
by.  So,  the  river  rolls  on  over  an  arid 
landscape,  but  when  its  chiefest  volume 
has  left  the  banks,  then  the  vegetation 
springs  up.  It  is  from  the  past,  the  past, 
that  we  gather  all  our  wisdom,  and  live  a 
thousand  years  in  a  day.  Thus  we  see 
that  it  springs  from  a  refined  motive,  and 
that  its  tendency  is  salutary,  when  we  seek 
to  adorn  a  spot  like  this.  It  is  to  cherish 
the  memory  of  those  who  have  gone  before 
us,  and  to  show  that  love  is  not  an  empty 
name. 

"  How  sleep  tlie  brave,  who  sink  to  rest, 
By  all  tlieir  country's  wislies  blest! 
When  Spring:,  with  dewy  fingers  cold. 
Returns  to  deck  their  hallowed  mould, 
She  there  shall  dress  a  sweeter  sod 
Than  Fancy's  feet  have  ever  trod." 

In  surveying  this  spot,  and  the  uses  for 
which  it  is  designed,  some  might  be  dis- 
posed to  inquire — what  need  of  these  ex- 
tensive domains  ?  At  a  little  distance  from 
where  we  are  now  standing,  among  these 
wild  Green  Mountains,  there  is  a  humble 
village  in  the  valley.  It  is  full  of  thrift 
and  industry,  yet  when  centuries  shall  have 


passed  away, — from  its  location  by  nature, 
it  will  be  only  a  village  still. 

This  place  shall  be  a  city  ;  the  youngest 
here  present  may  live  to  see  how  it  shall 
outstrip  the  other,  in  the  number  of  its 
inhabitants .  There  will  be  no  such  compact 
masses  and  ranks  of  men  in  yonder  streets 
as  shall  be  assembled  here.  Thus  death 
gains  upon  life  in  all  places,  until  life  shall 
gain  the  final  victory  over  death. 

On  the  border  of  that  village  there  is 
already  a  cemetery  of  the  dead,  but  it 
would  soon  be  overcrowded.  It  clamors  al- 
ready for  a  larger  domain.  Thus  necessity 
itself  has  coincided  with  feeling  in  selecting 
a  more  ample  and  eligible  place.  There 
are  many  tender  and  touching  associations, 
no  doubt,  connected  with  that  spot,  for  its 
consecration  is  coeval  with  the  settlement 
of  this  village.  How  many  tears  have 
fallen  on  its  hitherto  untroubled  and  quiet 
graves.  There  the  child  slumbers,  and  the 
young  man,  cut  down  in  the  nobility  of  his 
strength  ;  there  the  blossoms  of  the  almond 
tree  have  fallen  ;  there  the  lovely  daughter 
has  been  borne  away,  when  bursting  into 
the  grace  of  womanhood,  and  when 

Consumption,  like  a  worm  in  tlie  bud, 
Preyed  on  her  damask  cheek." 

There,  truly,  are  deposited  the  richest 
treasures  which  you  had  on  earth. 

But  if  in  love  and  tenderness  you  shall 
disturb  those  ashes,  to  bring  them  here,  it 
will  be  only  as  when  one  shall  rearrange  a 
couch,  that  they  may  rest  more  sweetly 
and  securely  and  cjuietly  forever.  Here 
you  will  come  afterward  to  smooth  their 
narrow  bed,  to  recall  their  virtues,  to  re- 
new your  vows  of  constancy,  and  to  say, — 
"My  Father!  my  Mother!  my  Brother! 
my  Sister  !     my   Child  !     forget   thee  ! — 

NEVER." 

Hither  will  you  come  with  every  chang- 
ing season  of  the  year  to  renew  your  pil- 
grimage. Hither,  when  the  winter  is  past, 
when  the  rain  is  over  and  gone,  when  the 
flowers  appear  on  the  earth,  and  the  time 
of  the  singing  of  birds  is  come,  and  the 
voice  of  the  turtle  is  heard  in  our  land ; 
hither,  when  the  autumn  dyes  the  foliage 
with  mellow  tints  and  hectic  colors ;  and 
you  will  reflect  upon  it  without  a  pang,  and 
you  yourselves  will  covet  no  better  lot  than 
at  last  to  lie  down  with  these  sleepers. 

Who  ever  thought  these  rocks  and  jagged 
hills,  which  Nature  fashioned  in  her  wild- 
est moods,  should  so  suggest  the  idea  of 
quiet  .-*  No  love  of  sordid  weal  could  have 
accomplished  that  which  you  have  this 
day  achieved  by  your  aff'ection.  Well 
may  yon  Mount,*  which  towers  sublime, 
remove  the  blue  veil  from  before  his  eves. 


'  Camel's  Hump. 


536 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


to  gaze  on  this  assembled  multidude. 
Here  shall  the  rough  rocks  be  transformed 
to  snowy  marble  ;  but  if  no  sculpture  mem- 
orized the  dead,  these  glorious  hills  would 
be  a  monument.  Yon  silver  stream  shall 
chant  a  constant  requiem.  What  spot 
more  silent  and  select  than  this  among  the 
gorgeous  scenery  of  the  mountains,  where 
Summer  paints  her  richest  contrasts,  and 
Winter  strews  her  costliest  jewelry  around 
the  realms  of  Death  !  There  is  an  Echo 
here  which  mocks  the  ear,  but  wakes  up 
sympathies  within  the  heart.  The  chaunt- 
ing  voices  and  the  rich  harmonic  chords, 
which  just  went  up  into  the  open  sky,  re- 
turned in  undulations,  fainter  still  to  mor- 
tal sense,  but  never  obsolete.  Even  now 
comes  stealing  back  the  soul  of  wild  flowers 
on  the  soft,  Septembral  breeze.  It  is 
Death  alone  which  dies.  This  is  the 
Christian's  solace.  This  shall  cheer  the 
mourning  crowds  which  wind  through  yon- 
der gateway,  when  they  come  to  lay  be- 
neath the  turf  the  loved  and  lost.  All  who 
are  in  the  grave  shall  come  forth,  for  this 
corruptible  must  put  on  incorruption,  and 
this  mortal  must  put  on  Immortality. 

Presentation  of  the  title  deeds  by  H.  H. 
Reed,  Esq., in  behalf  of  the  commissioners. 

Dedication. — By  Rev.  Dr.  Lord. 

Sir:  We  receive  these  Title  Deeds  as 
representing  and  describing  these  beautiful 
and  extensive  grounds,  which  have  been  se- 
lected with  so  much  taste,  and  enclosed 
and  arranged  with  so  great  propriety  and 
beauty,  for  the  purpose  of  a  burial  place 
for  our  dead.  The  munificent  provision  of 
one  of  our  citizens,  together  with  the  un- 
usual and  noble  liberality  of  the  town,  in 
furnishing  the  large  means  to  procure  and 
embellish  such  a  spot  as  this,  have  been 
equalled  only  by  the  energy,  the  economy 
and  discretion  with  which  you  have  ap- 
plied them.  In  reaching  the  close  of  your 
labors,  you  have  far  exceeded  our  anticipa- 
tions ;  and  now  present  to  us  a  lot,  in  it- 
self, and  in  all  its  arrangements,  perfectly 
adapted  to  the  use  for  which  it  was  de- 
signed, and  most  fit  to  be  consecrated  for- 
ever to  the  purpose  of  christian  sepulture. 

It  has  ever  been  the  practice,  both  of 
humanity  and  of  religion,  to  commemorate 
the  dead  by  material  monuments,  and  to 
regard  the  spot,  which  furnished  a  resting 
place  for  their  bodies,  as  peculiarly  sacred. 
The  enclosures  wherein  the  spirit  of  love 
and  mourning  has  perpetuated,  by  the 
planted  flower,  by  the  rude  cross,  by  the 
simple  stone,  by  the  marble  shaft,  or  by 
the  magnificent  massive  monument,  some 
traces  of  the  affection  of  children,  of  par- 
ents and  of  friends,  and  which  recall  the 
images  of  youth  and  beauty,  of  wisdom  and 


goodness,  and  relate  their  worth  and  varied 
excellence  ;  are  ever  hallowed  in  the  minds 
of  men.  We  do,  then,  give  utterance  to 
the  common  sentiments  of  human  nature, 
when  we  comply  with  your  request,  ancl 
formally  consecrate  and  set  apart,  to  its  de- 
signed and  appropriate  uses,  this  Ceme- 
tery. 

We  do  now,  therefore,  dedicate  all  this 
ground,  herein  described,  stretching  from 
its  rocky  battlements  on  the  east  to  its 
flinty  ramparts  on  the  west ;  from  its  lofty 
northern  boundary,  along  down  its  sloping 
sides  ;  with  its  central  mounds,  its  alluvial 
heart,  and  its  interval  reaching  near  to  the 
banks  of  the  beautiful  river  that  flows  at  its 
base  ;  with  all  its  trees  and  rocks,  its  val- 
leys and  hills,  its  springs  and  ravines  ;  with 
all  its  arranged  and  still  unfinished  lots  ;  to 
be  a  perpetual  possession  unto  us  and  to 
our  children,  as  a  place  where  we  may 
piously  bury  our  dead,  and  rear  over  their 
ashes  the  symbols  of  our  aftection,  and 
the  mementoes  of  their  worth.  We  dedi- 
cate it,  as  a  place  of  reverent  and  mourn- 
ful, yet  sweet  recollections,  of  the  departed  ; 
of  high  and  solemn  contemplation  upon 
the  uncertainty  of  human  life  and  its  cer- 
tain destiny ;  of  serious  purposes  of  holy 
living  and  preparation  for  death  ;  of  cheer- 
ful and  glorious  anticipations  of  that  time 
when  the  graves  shall  be  opened,  and  the 
dead,  both  small  and  great,  shall  come 
forth  'to  the  promised  resurrection,  and  re- 
new, amid  scenes  far  brighter  than  these, 
the  holy  affections  and  the  pious  friend- 
ships of  their  primeval  abode.  And  while 
we  consecrate  it  to  the  dead,  we  commit 
it  also  to  the  generous  care  of  the  living ; 
with  the  hope,  that  it  may  be  preserved  in 
its  present  loveliness  ;  with  the  prayer,  that 
whenever  its  turf  may  be  broken,  it  shall 
be  but  to  receive  to  its  keeping  the  body 
of  one  who  believes  in  our  Lord  and  Sa- 
viour Jesus  Christ,  as  the  Resurrection  and 
the  Life. 

Hymn — By  Charles  G.  Eastman. 

This  fairest  spot  of  bill  and  glade. 

Where  blooms  the  flower  and  waves  the  tree. 
And  silver  streams  delight  the  shade, 

We  consecrate,  O  Death,  to  thee. 

Here  all  the  months  the  year  may  know 
Shall  watch  this  "  Eden  of  the  Dead," 

To  wreathe  with  flowers  or  crown  with  show 
The  dreamless  sleeper's  narrow  bed. 

And  when  above  its  graves  we  kneel. 

Resigning  to  the  mouldering  urn 
The  friends  whose  silent  hearts  shall  feel 

No  balmy  summer's  glad  return  ; 

Each  marble  shaft  our  hands  may  rear. 

To  mark  where  dust  to  dust  is  given, 
Shall  lift  its  chiselled  column,  here. 

To  point  our  tearfUl  eyes  to  Heaven. 


MONTPELIER. 


537 


Benediction — By  Rev.  F.  D.  Hemmenway. 

Thus  was  this  most  beautiful  inclosure 
dedicated  to  Montpelier's  dead,  just  27 
years  ago  this  fall.  The  number  of  inter- 
ments to  date,  Dec.  24,  1881,  is  999,  Sim- 
eon Lyman,  a  merchant,  buried  Oct.  3, 
1855,  aged  45  years,  being  the  first. 

A  thousand  times  the  turf  has  already 
been  broken  in  Green  Mount  to  receive  the 
household  props  of  this  people,  the  treas- 
ures of  its  happy  homes.  We  see  on  this 
spot  how  death  takes  toll.  How  many 
sleep  around  the  monument  of  the  benefi- 
cent Keith,  upon  every  side,  who  assisted 
in  the  beautiful  consecration  just  portray- 
ed :  Constant  W.  Storrs,  among  the  first, 
and  all  the  commissioners,  but  one,  who 
selected  and  prepared  the  grounds  are  here. 
The  Pastor  who  offered  the  first  prayer  on 
this  .spot — by  the  side  of  his  little  Bessie. 
The  Poet  who  wrote  its  hymn  of  beauty, 
the  Poet  of  this  cemetery  still.  Shelton 
of  the  lovely  address,  every  paragraph  like 
a  cluster  of  precious  stones,  sleeps,  also — 
in  the  bosom  of  the  neighboring  State 
upon  the  West. 

Here  are  the  graves  of  Thompson,  East- 
man, Lord,  Samuel  Goss,  Daniel  Baldwin, 
Charles  Reed,  Samuel  Wells  and  a  few 
others  whose  names  are  identified  with  our 
early  acquaintance  at  Montpelier.  Most 
of  those  whose  biographies  are  written  in 
this  book  rest  here  ;  even  some  buried  in 
old  Elm  Street  Cemetery  with  their  old 
sexton,  have  been  brought  up  and  re- 
interred  here  ;  whose  histories  have  been 
so  studied,  though  otherwise  unknown,  the 
names  on  the  headstones  look  like  old 
friends.  It  is  but  our  second  visit,  and 
yet  we  cannot  feel  quite  like  a  stranger 
here.  What  Vermonter  could  by  Thomp- 
son's grave  ?  by  his  grave  as  yet  without 
monument  or  stone  !  the  author  of  the 
Green  Mountain  Boys  has  built  himself  his 
own  monument  more  enduring  than  of 
marble — "Pete  Jones"  is  his  monument 
more  resonant  than  brass  ;"  May  Martin," 
a  fairer  headstone  than  another  could  raise. 
It  is  not  doubted  this  grave  will  yet  have 
the  due  commemorative  stone.  Only,  we 
miss  it  here  now — "  D.  P.  Thompson" 
was  so  well  known  and  endeared  to  the 


people  of  the  State  ;  in  Montpelier  so  long- 
time and  honorable  a  resident — her  pleas- 
ant historian.  An  early  friend  to  our 
Gazetteer;  he  was  first  engaged  to  write 
for  it  the  chapters  of  Montpelier  History ; 
a  few  months  before  his  death  finding  he 
would  not  be  able,  wrote  "  take  therefore, 
anything  I  have  ever  written  for  Montpe- 
ler,  or  for  Washington  County,  or  for  the 
State,  whether  printed  or  in  manuscript, 
the  whole  or  in  part,  as  you  would  if  it 
were  your  own,  for  I  shall  not  be  able  to 
do  as  1  had  intended ;  and  I  would  name 
to  you  the  Hon.  E.  P.  Walton,  as  the  man 
the  best  qualified  to  aid  you  and  to  write 
the  history  of  Montpelier."  Having  been 
so  successful  in  the  history  of  Montpelier, 
nearing  its  close,  pleasant  to-day  is  the  re- 
membrance of  his  intention — the  thought- 
ful kindness  of  his  last  letter  ;  and  we  shall 
be  very  happy  if  we  may  see,  as  we  may 
if  contributed  by  his  friends,  his  portrait 
stand  with  his  biography  in  this  County 
volume,  for  which  he  would, no  doubt,  have 
written  so  much  and  so  well,  had  he  lived 
to  this  day  ;  and  where  it  may  stand  in  the 
one  town  which  has  a  prior  claim,  his  own 
beloved  Berlin,  adjoining  Montpelier  on 
the  pleasant  south,  where  was  his  father's 
old  farm,  where  he  was  born,  just  over  the 
river. 

A  handsome  monumental  pile! — worthy 
the  Sleeper  below.  A  name  in  the  mar- 
ble, by  author,  man  or  woman,  never  for- 
gotten— the  first  literary  benefactor — the 
handsome  and  the  gracious  patron,  who 
pruned  till  they  gleamed  almost  like  fresh 
poems,  and  sent  his  beautiful  contribu- 
tions with  words  of  confidence  to  your 
first  book  in  press,  and  when  it  came 
gave  it  notice  through  his  newspaper  at 
the  capital,  and  sold  many  copies  in  his 
old  book-store  on  State  Street,  and  ad- 
vised and  contributed  to  its  successor. 
The  sight  of  this  beautiful  tomb  swells  our 
heart  full ; — glad  for  as  proud  of  his  fame, 
— talented,  bland,  witty,  generous  East- 
man ;  the  vigor,  point,  beauty  and  mazy 
grace  of  his  poetry  all  seem  concentrated 
and  perpetuated  here. 

A  granite  stone ;  the  tenant  here  that 
bluff,  iorn-framed,  but  golden-hearted  old 


68 


538 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


landlord  at  the  Pavilion,  the  first  time 
that  we  were  at  Montpelier,  who  declared 
promptly  that  he  had  no  bill  for  a  30ung 
woman  who  had  given  Vermont  the  hand- 
somest book  ever  printed  in  the  State. 
Poor  book-makers  might  hope  to  live  out 
their  days  were  all  landlords  Col.  Bout- 
wells.  Peace  to  the  ashes,  severely  silent, 
of  the  every-inch-alive,  stirring  old  host. 
His  monument  is  just  what  it  should  be — 
granite — large.  We  would  like  his  stout 
figure  in  bronze  in  the  grounds  of  the  Pa- 
vilion. We  are  very  glad  of  his  portrait  in 
our  book.  Joint  vote  of  praise  from  the 
State  House,  Levi  Boutwell  did  better ; 
bread  is  better  than  fame. 

Here  ; — Samuel  Goss!  Farley,  Wal- 
ton, his  confreres.  Father  Goss  had  one 
of  tbose  countenances  it  stirs  the  heart 
agreeably  to  look  into,  pleasant  as  intelli- 
gent, sensible  as  gracious.  Gen.  E.  P. 
Walton  we  almost  seem  to  know  in  his 
son,  Hon.  E.  P. 

The  grave  of  the  first  lady  with  whom 
we  became  acquainted  at  Montpelier — the 
first  wife  of  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham,  who  re- 
sided some  30  years  in  Montpelier  vil- 
lage. Mrs.  Brigham  was  a  cheerful, 
active  little  woman,  storing  her  home 
with  the  honey  of  comfort ;  but  when  we 
saw  her  last  the  rose  of  consumption  was 
painted  on  her  cheek.  Never  was  her 
cordiality  so  touching.  I  could  not  pass 
her  resting-place  without  pausing.  I 
would  plant  one  historical  flower  on  her 
grave.  It  shall  be  the  poetic  hyacinth, 
that  sweetest  poem,  to  our  thought,  from 
the  pen  of  her  talented  husband,  and  which 
was  inspired  by  a  scene  connected  with  her 
death-bed. 

SONG   OF   THE    HVACINTH. 

One  lay  with  bright  eyes  looking  lor  the  Christ, 
Anil  so  near  to  heaven  it  seemed  that  she  could  hear 
The  song  olflowers.     A  purple  hyacinth, 
Which  from  a  vase  dranlv  dew  and  slied  it  round 
In  fragance,  played  an  Interlude  that  called 
Her  half-flown  spirit  back.    For  when  her  eye 
Was  lixed  on  it,  till  all  her  face  did  smile, 
She  handed  forth  her  pale  white  hand  and  asked 
That  it  he  given  her.    We  never  shall  forget 
That  smile,  the  dainty  way  her  fingers  toyed 

Among  the  petals; 

music  cadences 

Began,  "  How  sweet!"— 't  was  even  as  a  child 
Sweet  toys  and  grows  aflame  with  joy.    And  as 
We  gazed  and  saw  the  dappled  halo  glow 


And  ripple  over  all  her  face,  we  said 
It  is  the  breaking  light  of  heaven.    That  night 
She  died,  the  fragrance  of  the  hyacinth 
Upon  her  fingers,  sweetest  smile  that  e'er 
Warme<i  human  face  yet  lingering;  and  her 
Low  lullaby  a  soug  of  that  sweet  flower. 
SONG. 
There  Is  no  death,  no  death,  my  dearest. 

No  death  but  death  of  pain ; 
The  sleeping  ones,  my  child,  are  nearest 
To  Alden's  rapturing  strain. 


O,  fold  thy  lids  and  drop  thy  sorrow, 

And  fleep  thee  IVee  of  pain ; 
And  when  thou  wakest  on  the  morrow 

Thou  wilt  be  born  again. 

O  sleej)  the  sleep  past  earth's  sad  waking. 

This  death  is  nature's  rest; 
And  in  the  new  morn  that  Is  breaking 

Drift  thee  unto  the  blest. 

The  grave  of  Dr.  Lord  again ;  whose 
words  were  poetry  and  whose  sermons 
poems,  though  we  knew  him  first  histori- 
cally. We  had  not  been  at  Montpelier  for 
several  years ;  standing  at  the  closed 
doors  of  the  Historical  Society,  "a  private 
session,"  as  there  told, — that  is  a  business 
meeting,  the  annual  meeting  having  closed 
a  half  day  earlier  than  we  had  expected, 
Dr.  Lord,  hearing  the  name  of  the  woman 
at  the  door,  came  down  as  she  was  turning 
to  leave,  and  taking  both  hands — prince  of 
a  man  as  he  was  in  manners  and  courtesy 
— would  not  suffer,  saying  as  he  led  her 
within,  there  was  not  any  closed  .session 
to  her,  or  there  should  not  be,  and  they, 
within,  were  only  all  her  brothers  in  the 
same  work,  as  siie  who  had  done  more 
than  them  all,  and  having  led  her  to  a 
seat,  so  easily  and  pleasantly  introduced 
her,  a  woman  alone  with  the  assembled 
historical  gentlemen  of  the  State,  felt  no 
awkwardness.  He  inquired  if  she  was  a 
member, and,  informed  "  itwas  contrary  to 
a  by-law,"  by  his  motion,  seconded  by  Hon. 
Hiland  Hall  of  Bennington,  presiding,  the 
bar  was  immediately  removed  against  a 
lady's  admission  to  membership  in  the  So- 
ciety ;  pronounced  and  made  obsolete  by 
an  unanimous  vote  of  welcome  to  the  first 
woman  admitted  to  the  State  Historical 
Society,  in  the  old  State  House,  and  which 
coming  at  the  capital,  and  thus  naturally, 
never  having  been  before  asked,  or  expect- 
ed by  the  receiver,  but  which  came,  when 
introduced   by   Rev.  Dr.  Lord — who  was 


.MONTPELIER. 


539 


made  President  of  the  Society  the  same 
day — so  whole  and  genially,  it  wiped  away 
in  one  moment,  gracefully,  all  the  exclu- 
siveness  of  the  past.  For  its  being  an  hon- 
or received  in  Montpelicr,  pardon,  the  per- 
sonal relation  ;  as  Montpelier  is  one  of  the 
few  towns  of  the  State  which  have  given  us 
more  roses  than  thorns,  let  us  toy  with  one. 
The  resting-place  of  one  of  the  patri- 
archs of  the  village.  On  one  of  the 
sultriest  days  of  a  sultry  summer — the  op- 
pressive noon — winding  out  from  the  street 
of  the  Capital,  down  by  the  river — a  vein 
of  delicious  coolness  by  the  roadside — a 
gentle  south  breath  from  over  the  river, 
brushing  softly  aside  the  heated  atmos- 
phere that  beat  down  from  above — the 
funeral  of  the  man  who  had  lived  the  most 
years  in  Montpelier  came  to  Green  Mount, 
gradually  ascending  the  hill-side  to  the 
shade  of  trees  into  which  the  carriages 
wound  and  stood  while  the  venerable  old 
man  was  laid  in  the  evergreen-lined  grave. 
The  coffin  resting  deep  down  on  the  mosses 
at  the  bottom,  the  breath  of  the  mourners 
and  of  all  the  crowd  stilled  to  listen  to  the 
service ;  all  hearts  touched  to  sympathy 
with  the  cool,  sweet  pulse  of  nature  here, 
we  thought,  and  it  seemed  the  whole  crowd 
thought  with  us,  more  beautiful  is  the  gar- 
den of  the  dead  than  the  home  of  the  liv- 
ing ;  and  a  place  not  to  lose  its  attractions, 
how  many  will  follow,  drawn  on,  attracted 
while  they  know  not  how.  Where  the  old 
man  and  the  young  man  lie  down  together, 
beautiful  encampment-ground  ! — to-day, 
and  what  may  it  be  a  hundred  years  from 
to-day  ?  The  descendants  of  the  people 
of  Montpelier  no  doubt  may  in  a  hun- 
dred years  make  this  place  more  beauti- 
ful thau  now.  He  who  may  then  come 
up  to  these  grounds  may  find  the  en- 
trance, upon  the  south  by  the  river,  the 
same  as  now,  but  an  inclosure  extended 
northward  and  eastward  and  westward — a 
city  of  the  departed  instead  of  a  gar- 
den ;  walls  in  inscriptions,  ornamentations, 
mossings.  The  ponderous  gate  lettered 
on  the  iron  in  bronze  "  Where  the 
Weary  are  at  Rest."  Within,  near  the 
gate  where  the  mourners  go  by  a  colossal 
cross  from  the  granite  of  our  mountains, 


in  raised  letters  upon  the  body — "Jesus 
Christ  Died  For  all."  All  the  streets 
longer — more  streets,  more  graves  in  all 
the  streets,  and  over  every  walk  and  grave, 
the  beauty  of  age  in  nature.  Nature  never 
loses  in  beauty ; — more  leaves,  more  flow- 
ers, more  tints,  more  mosses,  richer  paint- 
ed rocks.  How  beautiful  the  rocks  grow 
old ;  softened,  garnitured  with  moss,  vine 
and  flower,  more  and  more  every  lapsing 
year.  Man  lives  for  a  hundred  years,  na- 
ture for  a  hundred  hundred.  How  beauti- 
ful in  marble,  too,  its  visitor  may  find  this 
city,  one  hundred  years  more  past. 

And  on  the  boldest  cliff 
Of  these  expanded  grounds,  swelling  mountainward — 
If  we  may  look  through  the  haze  of  future  years — 
What  statue,  grander  than  living  man. 
Stands,  counting  tlie  multitude,  slumbering 
So  long  at  his  feet— trumpet  in  hand. 
Waiting  to  summon  up  these  long  sleepers? 

I  note  the  change,  as  the  years  ran  on 
And  art  with  the  people  grew,  how  tlie  crevices 
In  tills  hillside  showed,  until  tills  Eden 
Of  the  dear  disparted  was  so  fair  and  famed. 
The  traveller  from  over  the  seas  called 
It  *  The  Art  Garden  of  the  Departed ' 
Of  this  land  ;  in  every  rural  recess. 
Scripture  history  was  so  put  in  marble  : 
So  fair  upon  the  hills  and  mounds  and  plains. 
Within  tlie  dales  and  rocks  and  caves  and  woods 
And  lawns,  beside  tlie  river  and  the  rills- 
Beseeming  tlie  cemeteries  of  the  dead 
In  the  capital  of  a  State  where  tlie  rocks 
Are  marble— the  statues  of  the  native  sculptors  : 

Fair  as  the  white  rose  growing  by  tlie  grave. 

The  Ruler's  daugiiter,  standing  by  lier  couch, 

Just  risen— the  dear  Master  of  Life, 

Holding  the  little  damsel  by  tlie  hand. 

Over  whose  face  new  breath  and  beauty  breaking. 

Eastward—"  in  the  rocky  battlements,"  tliat  cave 
By  tall  trees,  half-embowered.  Lazarus  statue. 
Or  figure,  grave-swatlied,  coming  forth— there  I 

Wliere  the  sun  touches  first  the  grave. 
All  shrubs  and  flowers  of  fragrancy  crowding 
To  depict  tliat  garden  of  the  resurrection — 
Jesus  Christ  and  Magdalene  standing  within. 

Tlie  marble  sliaft,  tlie  massive  monument. 

The  simple  stone,  shrubbery  so  surrounding,— tree 

And  flower  and  vine  adorning,— eacii  did  seem. 

As  the  eye  gathered  it  in,  more  beautiful  : 

The  chiseled  column— tlie  planted  flower. 

Rivaled  by  the  pure  lilies  on  the  stone,— 

The  rose  in  the  foliated  marble  : 

Tlie  oldest  stone,  most  mossed,  most  beautiful; 

As  the  ancient  rocky  rampart,  the  brown  moss 

Clinging  to,  tlie  golden  moss,  th'gray  wand-moss 

In  every  crumbling  fissure,  scarlet  tipped. 

Most  fair  country  :  for  ail  the  people  thought 
Affection  could  not  make  too  fair  the  Eden 
Of  their  Dead— deposited  in  hope. 


540 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES  OF 
LIVING  PERSONS. 

TIMOTHY   PARKER    REDFIELD, 
(BY  B.   F.  FIFIELD,   ESQ.) 

the  son  of  Dr.  Peleg  and  Hannah  (Parker) 
Redfield,  was  born  at  Coventry,  Nov.  3, 
18 12.      The   father   w^as   born  of  sturdy 
English  stock  at  Killingworth,  Conn.,  the 
grandson  of  Capt.    Peleg   Redfield,  who 
bravely  fought  through  the  revolutionary 
war.     The    mother  was  the   daughter   of 
Isaac  and  Bridget  (Fletcher)  Parker,  born 
at  Westford,   Mass.,  in  Nov.,    1785,  and 
married   at  Weathersfield,  Vt.,  in  March, 
1803.     They   removed  to   Coventry,  Vt., 
with  two  children,  in  the  fall  of  1807,  and 
raised  a  family  of  6  sons  and  6  daughters, 
amid  the  perils  and  hardships  of  frontier 
life.      [See  Coventry,  Vol.  II,  this  work.] 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  had  the  usual 
experience   of    Vermont    boys   born    and 
brought  up  on  a  farm,  but  here  were  laid 
the   rudiments  of  that  industry,  self-reli- 
ance, and    independence,  which    have   so 
much  distinguished  him  and  which  is  pecu- 
liar to  the  stock.     At  Dartmouth  College 
he   ranked   among  the  first   of  his  class, 
was    elected  a    member  of  the    Phi  Beta 
Kappa  Society,  and  graduated  with  high 
honors  in    the  class  of  1836.     He  imme- 
diately commenced  the  study  of  the  law  in 
the  office  of  his  brother,  the  Hon.  Isaac 
F.   Redfield,  was  admitted  to  the    bar  in 
Orleans  county  in  1838,  began  the  practice 
of  his  profession  at  Irasburgh,  and  con- 
tinued it  there  until  his  removal  to  Mont- 
pelier  in  1848.     He  was  senator  from  Or- 
leans county  in  1848.     He  practiced  his 
profession  at  Montpelier  from  1848  to  1870, 
when  he  was  elected  Judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  and  has   received   successive  elec- 
tions from  that  time  to  the  present,  1881. 
He  was  married  to  Helen  W.  Grannis  of 
Stanstead,  Province  of    Quebec,  Feb.  6, 
1840,  by  which  marriage  he  had  4  children, 
three  of  whom  sleep  in  Green  Mount  Cem- 
etery at  Montpelier,  and  the  only  .surviving 
child,  Alice,  the  wife  of  Andrew  J.  Phil- 
lips, now  resides  at  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

While  in  the  practice  of  his  profession 
at  Montpelier,  he  became   widely  known 


through  the  State  as  one  of  the  most  reli- 
able, painstaking  and  thoroughly  well-read 
lawyers  in  the  profession.  From  1856,  to 
the  time  of  his  elevation  to  the  bench  he 
was  a  constant  attendant  upon  the  courts 
in  Orleans,  Caledonia  and  Washington 
counties,  and  it  is  no  disparagement  to 
others  to  say  that  he  had  no  superiors 
either  in  the  'knowledge  of  the  law,  or  its 
practical  adaptation  to  the  complicated 
affairs  of  life.  His  sturdy  independence, 
elevated  character  and  fine  legal  attain- 
ments, commanded  respect  and  admira- 
tion from  all  who  knew  him,  and  a  man 
who  was  once  his  client  was  always  his 
client. 

In  1870,  a  vacancy  occurred  on  the  su- 
preme court  bench.  Mr.  Redfield  had 
always  been  a  democrat  in  politics,  but  his 
fitness  for  the  position  was  so  generally  ac- 
knowledged that  he  was  elected  to  the 
place  by  a  legislature  overwhelmingly  re- 
publican, and  against  numerous  competi- 
tors. His  dignified  judicial  bearing  and 
acknowledged  impartiality  made  him  at 
once  a  general  favorite  with  the  public, 
the  bar  and  his  associates.  His  fame  may 
and  will  justly  rest  upon  his  judicial  life. 

His  brother,  Isaac  F.  Redfield,  occupied 
a  seat  upon  the  bench  of  Vermont  for  25 
years,  and  he  left  it  in  i860  only  to  extend 
his  fame  and  establish  it  as  one  of  the  fore- 
most jurists  of  the  age,  whether  English  or 
American. 

In  each  of  the  brothers  is  found  in  like 
degree  that  quality  of  all  others  the  most 
rare,  the  judicial  temperament,  and  in  each 
is  also  found  the  intellectual  grasp  on  the  one 
hand  and  fine  sense  of  justice  on  the  other 
hand  which  is  so  essential  to  the  just  ad- 
ministration of  the  law. 

Judge  Redfield  is  an  excellent  scholar, 
and  while  his  bearing  is  reserved  and  dig- 
nified, such  as  becomes  his  position,  yet 
in  social  life  he  is  one  of  the  most  charming 
of  companions.  His  reminiscences  of  the 
old  bar  and  his  fund  of  anecdotes  are  the 
delight  of  those  who  enjoy  his  friendship, 
and  will  be  long  remembered  by  those  who 
come  after  him.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Episcopal  church  and  a  devoted  christian, 
not  only  in  profession  but  also  in  practice. 


^-^v. 


.^^^^  ^^ 


MONTPELIER. 


541 


In  short,  Judge  Redfield  is  a  model  in  all 
that  constitutes  a  conscientious,  christian 
gentleman,  and  an  able,  upright,  impartial 
judge. 

To  speak  thus  of  his  record  is  but  the 
"just  meed  of  praise  to  acknowledged 
worth,"  and  "to  keep  the  memory  of  such 
men  green  is  but  to  strengthen  and  stimu- 
late public  virtue." 

HON.    ELIAKIM    PERSONS   WALTON. 

[From  M.D.  Gilman's  Bibliography  of  Vermont,  now 
in  course  of  preparation.] 

Eliakim  Persons  Walton  was  born  in 
Montpelier,  Feb.  17,  1812,  and  was  the 
first-born  son  of  the  late  Gen.  Ezekiel 
Parker  Walton  and  Prussia  Persons.  On 
the  Walton  side  the  genealogy  goes  back 
with  almost  absolute  certainty,  through 
Ezekiel  P.''s  father,  who  was  the  late  Geo. 
Walton,  of  Peacham,  born  at  New  Market, 
N.  H.,  in  1762,  and  married  Mary  Parker, 
of  New  Hampshire,  to  George  Walton,  a 
Quaker  born  in  England,  in  whose  house 
at  Newcastle,  N.  H.,  in  June,  1682,  oc- 
curred the  best  authenticated  case  of  witch- 
craft which  has  ever  been  recorded  in  New 
England.  See  Mather's  Magnalia  Christi 
Americana,  edition  of  1820,  vol.  2,  p.  393, 
and  Brewster's  Rambles  about  PortsmoutJi, 
second  series,  pp.  343-354-  On  the  Persons 
side,  all  that  can  be  asserted  is  that  Eliakim 
Davis  Persons  was  a  native  of  Long  Island, 
and  his  wife,  Rebecca  Dodge,  was  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, probably  Northfield,  who  had 
numerous  relatives,  (one  of  them  inter- 
married with  a  Houghton,  uncle  of  the 
late  Mrs.  Samuel  Prentiss,  of  Montpelier,) 
residing  near  the  south-eastern  line  of 
Vermont.  Her  father  and  two  of  her 
brothers,  Asa  and  John,  setded  in  Barre, 
Vt.,  and  a  third,  Daniel,  in  Northern  Ver- 
mont. They  have  numerous  descendants 
at  this  day  in  Eastern  and  Western  Ver- 
mont, and  in  the  Western  States.  It  was 
and  is  a  race  of  sterHng  virtues.  The  par- 
ticular subject  of  this  notice  was  educated 
first  by  his  mother  in  letters  and  reading 
the  notes  of  music ;  second,  by  an  occa- 
sional attendance  at  the  district  school,  in 
which  he  was  specially  noted  for  his  habit 
of  running  away  on  every  possible  occasion  ; 
third,    by    many    terms    in    Washington 


County  Grammar  School,  in  which  he  was 
fitted  for  college  by  one  of  the  best  prin- 
cipals that  school  ever  had,  the  late  Jona- 
than C.  Southmayd.  But  the  young  E.  P. 
was  not  permitted  to  go  to  college,  and 
thereupon  entered  the  law  office  of  Samuel 
and  Samuel  B.  Prentiss,  when  Judge  Pren- 
tiss was  in  the  United  States  Senate. 
Here  he  obtained  the  elements  of  the  law, 
and  moreover  an  insight  into  national  pol- 
itics, through  the  books  and  documents 
received  by  Judge  Prentiss  as  senator. 
But  largely  he  was  educated  in  his  father's 
printing  office,  and  an  excellent  school 
every  printing  office  is  to  any  boy  or  girl 
who  has  obtained  the  elements  of  an 
English  education,  and  will  improve  the 
opportunities  of  the  office.  From  the  time 
the  lad  was  "knee-high  to  a  toad,"  and 
had  to  stand  in  a  chair  to  get  up  to  the 
"  case,"  this  boy  was  put  into  the  office, 
and  kept  there  in  vacations  from  schools. 
Another  very  useful  school  was  the  old 
Montpelier  Lyceum,  with  its  written  essays 
and  extemporaneous  debates.  In'i826-'7 
he  spent  a  year  in  Essex,  N.  Y.,  and  there 
edited  and  printed  his  first  newspaper,  a 
single  issue  of  the  Essex  County  Republican. 
The  editors  and  publishers  were  away,  and 
had  suspended  publication  for  a  week  ;  but 
the  young  and  ardent  politician  could  not 
have  it  so.  Without  any  authority  from 
his  masters,  he  got  up  a  paper  full  of  edi- 
torial matter — part  of  it  written  and  part 
of  it  composed  at  the  case — and  took 
proof-sheets.  The  question.  Shall  it  be 
printed?  was  a  doubtful  one.  The  proof- 
sheets  were  thereupon  submitted  to  the 
late  Gen.  Henry  H.  Ross,  of  Essex,  then 
a  member  of  Congress,  and  a  zealous 
Adams  man.  Bringing  back  the  proof- 
sheets,  the  General  came  with  his  face 
beaming  with  smiles,  put  both  hands  on 
the  boy's  shoulders,  and  said,  "Print  it, 
boy!  print  it !  "  From  that  moment,  though 
preferring  the  law,  the  business  of  printer 
and  editor  seemed  to  have  been  ordained 
for  him.  On  becoming  of  age,  in  1833, 
he  became  a  partner  with  his  father  in  the 
publication  of  the  Ver}iiont  Watchman  and 
State  Gazette.  Gen.  Walton  wrote  occa- 
sionally for  that  paper,  but  other  branches 


542 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  a  very  extensive  business  demanded  his 
attention,  and  the  newspaper  and  printing 
department  were  in  the  charge  of  E.  P. 
Walton,  Jr.,  as  his  signature  commonly 
was  during  the  life  of  his  father,  although 
not  correct  except  when  the  initials  of  it 
were  given.  In  1853,  the  paper,  then  the 
Vermont  Watchman  and  State  Journal, 
came  into  his  possession  exclusively,  and 
so  continued  until  the  sale  to  the  Messrs. 
Poland,  in  1868. 

During  all  this  period  the  editorship  of 
Walton's  Vermont  Register  was  in  his 
charge,  as  it  still  is  in  all  except  the  Bus- 
iness Directory.  The  Vermont  Capitol, 
1857,  consisted  mainly  of  his  reports;  vol- 
ume two  of  the  collections  of  the  Vermont 
Historical  Society  was  edited  by  him  ;  and 
also  the  eight  volumes  of  the  Records  of 
the  Governor  and  Council,  together  with 
documents  touching  the  early  history  of 
the  State.  Although  an  active  and  zealous 
politician  from  his  youth,  and  helping  many 
men  to  high  offices,  he  never  sought  offices 
for  himself.  Nevertheless  in  1853  he  was 
elected  representative  of  Montpelier ;  and 
in  1856,  greatly  to  his  surprise,  he  was 
called  upon  by  the  late  Senator  Foot,  and 
another  member  of  the  Vermont  delegation 
still  living,  to  become  a  candidate  for 
Congress  in  the  first  congressional  dis- 
trict, on  the  grounds  that  a  change  was 
absolutely  necessary,  and  that  the  member 
then  to  be  elected,  according  to  the  usual 
courtesy  in  such  cases,  should  come  from 
Washington  County.  Under  the  very  del- 
icate circumstances  of  the  case,  Mr.  Walton 
was  unwilling  to  be  a  candidate,  and  urged 
the  late  Ferrand  F.  Merrill  to  stand  in  his 
stead.  Mr.  Merrill  refused,  and  ultimately 
Mr.  Walton  was  nominated  and^  received 
three  elections,  after  which  he  declined 
further  service.  In  1870  he  was  the  del- 
egate of  Montpelier  in  the  Constitutional 
Convention ;  and  he  was  also  senator  for 
Washington  County,  1874  until  1878. 
The  honorary  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  has 
been  conferred  upon  Mr.  Walton  by  the 
University  of  Vermont,  and  also  by  Mid- 
dlebury  College.  He  has  been  president 
of  the  Publishers'  and  Editors'  Association 
of  Vermont   from   its   organization    until 


1 88 1,  and  also  of  the  Vermont  Historical 
Society  since  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lord  retired. 
Mr.  Walton  married,  June  6,  1836,  Sarah 
Sophia,  second  daughter  of  the  late  Hon. 
Joseph  Howes,  of  Montpelier,  who  died 
Sept.  3,  1880. 

For  a  list  of  Mr.  Walton's  publications, 
see  atite.  Bibliography  of  Montpelier. 

In  addition  to  those  referred  to  there 
are  the  following  printed  papers  by  Mr. 
Walton : 

Oration  delivered  at  Northfield,  July  4, 
1837,  and  printed  in  the  Watchman  and 
Journal  of  July  •24,  by  request  of  Charles 
Paine,  chairman  of  the  committee  of  ar- 
rangements. 

Remarks  on  the  death  of  Charles  Paine, 
delivered  at  Northfield,  July  29,  1853. 
Printed  in  the  Watch/Jian  and  Journal  oi 
Aug.  4,  and  also  in  pamphlet  form. 

Speech  delivered  on  the  battle-field  at 
Hubbardton,  July  7,  1859,  on  the  inaugu- 
ration of  the  battle  monument.  Printed 
in  the  Watchman  and  Journal  as  an  edi- 
torial, and  reprinted  in  pamphlet  form  at 
Rutland. 

Address  on  Hon.  Nathaniel  Chipman, 
delivered  on  the  unveiling  of  his  monu- 
ment at  Tinmouth,  Oct.  2,  1873.  Printed 
in  some  of  the  Rutland,  Burlington  and 
Montpelier  newspapers. 

Letter  to  Hon.  Geo.  F.  Edmunds,  Jan. 
1872,  with  elaborate  and  carefully  prepared 
tables  on  the  apportionment  of  members 
of  Congress  on  the  census  of  1870.  Print- 
ed by  order  of  the  United  States  Senate. 

The  apportionment  by  the  old  rule  under 
the  census  of  i860  gave  Vermont  two 
members  of  the  House  instead  of  three. 
Mr.  Walton  had  no  personal  interest  in 
the  matter,  as  his  last  term  in  Congress 
was  covered  by  the  old  apportionment ;  but 
he  had  a  deep  interest  for  his  native  State, 
which  he  dearly  loved  and  had  long  tried 
to  serve.  Both  houses  had  passed  a  bill 
reducing  Vermont  to  two  members,  when 
Mr.  Walton  carefully  examined  the  sub- 
ject, and  demonstrated  that  the  bill  did 
not  fairly  observe  the  national  constitu- 
tion and  was  unjust  to  eight  states.  He 
then  explained  the  matter  to  Senator  Col- 
lamer,    and    under    his   lead   the   Senate 


i 


MONTPELIER. 


543 


passed  a  supplementary  bill,  and  the  re- 
sult was  that  Vermont  and  the  other  seven 
states  got  the  additional  member.  Under 
the  census  of  1870,  precisely  the  same 
process  was  repeated.  Mr,  Walton  again 
interfered,  and  Senators  Edmunds  of  Ver- 
mont and  Thurman  of  Ohio  carried  an 
amendment  to  the  House  bill,  which  saved 
the  suffering  states.  It  is  but  justice  to 
say  that  Vermont  is  very  largely  indebted 
to  Mr.  Walton  for  saving  her  third  mem- 
ber of  Congress  for  twenty  years. 

HOMER   WALLACE   HEATON, 

a  member  of  the  Washington  County  Bar, 
and  now,  and  since  1832,  a  resident  of 
Montpelier,  was  born  in  the  adjoining 
town  of  Berlin,  Aug.  25,  1811.  His  par- 
ents were  Dr.  Gershom  Heaton  and  Polly 
Wallace,  daughter  of  Matthew  Wallace, 
one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Berlin. 

Mr.  Heaton's  educational  advantages 
were  the  common  school,  one  year  at 
the  St.  Lawrence  Academy  of  Potsdam, 
N.  Y.,  and  two  years  at  the  Washington 
County  Grammar  School  at  Montpelier,  of 
which  J.  C.  Southmayd  was  the  excellent 
principal. 

In  Aug.  1832,  Mr.  Heaton  commenced 
the  study  of  the  law  with  Col.  Jonathan 
P.  Miller  and  Nicholas  Baylies,  Jr.,  of 
Montpelier,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar 
of  the  Washington  County  Court,  at  the 
Nov.  Term,  1835,  when  he  commenced 
practice  in  company  with  Colonel  Miller, 
and  so  continued  until  1839,  when  from 
failing  health  Colonel  Miller  retired.  In 
Sept.  1839,  Mr.  Heaton  and  Charles  Reed 
entered  into  partnership  for  the  practice  of 
the  law,  as  Heaton  &  Reed,  which  was 
continued  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Reed, 
Mar.  7,  1873.     (See  plate,  p.  356.) 

Mr.  Heaton  was  the  treasurer  of  the 
Vt.  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company  for  2 
years — 1837  and  1838  ;  and  was  state's 
attorney  for  Washington  County  4  years — 
was  elected  by  the  Legislature  at  the  Octo- 
bersessions,  1839  ^^^  1841,  and  the  an- 
nual Sept.  elections  in  i860  and  1861. 
Upon  the  retirement  of  Joshua  Y.  Vail,  a 
long  time  county  clerk,  the  office  was  ten- 
dered Mr.  Heaton  by  Judge  Isaac  F.  Red- 


field  and  the  county  Judges,  which  was 
declined. 

July  I,  1 84 1,  Mr.  Heaton  married  Miss 
Harriet  Stearns,  daughter  of  John  Stearns, 
of  Boston,  Mass.  She  died  April  26,  1859, 
at  the  age  of  42  years.  Of  this  marriage 
three  sons  are  now  living,  Charles  H., 
James  S.,  and  Homer  W. 

Mr.  Heaton  was  the  representative  of 
the  ori  ginal  town  of  Montpelier  in  the 
Legislature,  at  the  October  session,  1848, 
when  the  town  was  divided,  and  the  towns 
of  Montpelier  and  East  Montpelier  crea- 
ted. At  that  session  Mr.  Heaton  was  the 
candidate  of  the  Democratic  party  for 
Speaker ;  there  being  three  parties — the 
Whig,  Democratic  and  Free  Soil — and 
neither  in  a  majority  :  there  resulted  a  dead 
lock,  which  continued  through  four  days' 
session,  when  the  Whig  candidate  was 
elected  on  the  46th  ballot. 

At  this  session  the  National  Life  Ins. 
Co.  was  chartered.  The  bill  for  that  pur- 
pose being  referred  to  a  select  committee 
of  three  members — Mr.  Heaton  being  one 
— was  reported  favorably  and  passed.  Mr. 
Heaton  was  one  of  the  directors  of  this 
company  and  a  member  of  its  finance  com- 
mittee for  several  years.  He,  at  the  same 
session,  introduced  a  bill  for  the  incorpo- 
ration of  the  Vermont  Bank,  which  was 
passed,  and  Mr.  Heaton  was  one  of  its  di- 
rectors during  its  existence  as  a  State 
Bank,  and  for  2  years  its  president. 

Since  the  organization  of  the  Montpelier 
Savings  Bank  &  Trust  Company  in  1871, 
Mr.  Heaton  has  been  one  of  its  trustees 
and  the  president. 

In  politics,  he  has  always  been  a  Demo- 
crat, having  cast  his  first  presidential  vote 
for  Andrew  Jackson  at  his  second  election. 

Mr.  Heaton  was  the  Democratic  candid- 
ate for  governor  at  the  annual  election  in 

1869,  and   the   first   biennial  election   in 

1870.  He  was  the  Democratic  candidate 
for  member  of  Congress  from  the  first  Dis- 
trict at  the  elections  in  1872  and  1874.  He 
was  a  delegate  to  the  Democratic  National 
Convention  at  Baltimore  in  1872,  when 
Horace  Greeley  was  nominated  for  Pres- 
ident. He  has  also  been  a  candidate  of 
his  party  for  Presidential  Elector. 


544 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


JAMES   ROBBINS   LANGDON, 

third  son  of  Col.  James  H.  and  Nabby 
Robbins  Langdon,  born  Oct.  3,  1813,  was 
educated  in  Washington  County  Grammar 
School,  and  then  from  choice  entered  his 
father's  grist-mill,  and  applied  himself  to 
learn  the  miller's  trade  and  the  way  to 
manage  the  business  of  a  flouring-mill. 
This  was  in  fact  the  turning  point  in  his 
business  life,  but  his  father  did  not  ap- 
prove, and  tempted  him  to  leave  the  mill 
by  offering  to  furnish  capital  and  share  the 
profits  with  his  son  in  a  promising  specula- 
tion. At  15,  then,  the  lad  started  out  to 
scour  New  England  and  New  York,  and 
purchase  Spanish  coin,  and  sell  it  in 
Canada  at  a  moderate  profit.  Persisting 
in  this  business  until  Spanish  coin  be- 
came scarce,  he  retired  with  a  net  profit 
of  $3,400,  which  was  divided  between 
father  and  son.  Spending  a  short  time  at 
Derby  Line  as  a  clerk,  he,  at  17,  busied 
himself  in  settling  his  father's  estate,  and, 
after  receiving  his  patrimony,  invested 
part  of  it  in  a  store  at  Greensboro ;  but 
the  store  and  goods  were  soon  burned, 
and  then  he  entered  upon  his  long  and 
very  successful  career  as  flour  merchant 
and  manufacturer,  in  which,  by  doing  an 
immense  business  at  a  small  profit,  he  ac- 
cumulated a  very  large  fortune  for  a  coun- 
try merchant.  Indeed,  it  is  certain  that 
no  merchant  of  Montpelier  has  ever 
handled  property  to  so  great  an  amount  as 
he  has  done,  or  with  such  uniform  success. 
His  rule  has  been  to  keep  accurate  ac- 
counts of  every  branch  of  his  business, 
and  to  understand  it  all  thoroughly,  even 
to  the  smallest  detail.  Hence,  by  his  sa- 
gacity and  this  perfect  knowledge,  success 
was  unavoidable.  But  the  profits  of  this 
large  and  successful  business  figure  only 
as  a  part  of  his  present  fortune.  Mr. 
Langdon  has  ever  been  a  sagacious,  pru- 
dent and  fortunate  financier.  The  profits 
of  mercantile  business  have  been  invested 
in  the  stock  of  sound  banks,  not  one  of 
which  ever  failed  or  proved  unfortunate, 
and  in  United  States  bonds.  At  20  he 
was  elected  a  director  in  the  old  Bank  of 
Montpelier,  and  for  48  years  he  has  been 


director,  and  for  many  years  president,  in 
three  successive  banks  in  Montpelier. 

In  another  field,  however,  Mr.  Langdon 
has  rendered,  and  is  still  rendering,  very 
important  services  :  in  the  Vermont  Central 
Railroad,  and  the  succeeding  Central  Ver- 
montRailroad.  In  preceding  pages,  304-'5, 
Mr.  Langdon's  work  for  the  Central  road 
has  been  noted,  but  it  is  to  be  added  that 
he  was  a  director  for  the  first  2  years.  In 
1873,  ^^  entered  the  Central  Vermont 
road,  and  has  been  made  vice  president 
and  chairman  of  the  finance  committee. 
In  the  last  position  he  assumed  a  responsi- 
bility which  few  private  citizens  are  ever 
called  to ;  but  nobody  doubts  his  ability 
and  his  will  to  discharge  it  wisely  and  well. 

Although  Mr.  Langdon  has  opinions  of 
his  own  on  the  current  political  questions 
of  the  day,  he  has  never  put  himself  forward 
as  a  politician,  or  a  candidate  for  office. 
There  was,  however,  an  unwise  and  long- 
continued  division  among  the  Republicans 
of  the  town  in  1868,  which  was,  by  common 
consent,  settled  by  the  election  of  Mr. 
Langdon  as  representative,  and  he  was  re- 
elected in  1869,  doing  good  service,  es- 
pecially in  financial  matters. 

In  early  life  Mr.  Langdon  was  by  an  ac- 
cident disabled  sufficiently  to  discourage 
most  men  from  personal  labors ;  but  he 
has  been  content  to  do,  patiently  and  per- 
sistently, greater  work  than  most  thor- 
oughly endowed  men,  physically,  are  able 
to  accomplish. 

Mr.  Langdon  has  two  children  :  Lucy, 
formerly  Mrs.  Mansfield,  of  Nyack,  N.Y., 
and  now  the  wife  of  Mr.  Schroeder,  of 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  first  superintendent  of 
the  Astor  Library;  and  Elizabeth  W.  The 
latter  received  a  shock  some  years  ago, 
which  has  ever  since  made  her  an  object  of 
the  tenderest  solicitude  and  care,  and  nobly 
is  her  father  doing  his  part.         e.  p.  w. 

For  a  notice  of  Mrs.  James  R.  Langdon, 
see  page . 

Hon.  Nicholas  Baylies  resided  here 
25  years,  1810-1835,  see,  also,  page  314, 
when  he  removed  from  Mcntpelier.  We 
regret  that  we  have  no  further  notice  of 
the  Judge  for  these  pages. 


f\ 


MONTPELIER. 


545 


JOSEPH    ADDISON    WING, 

son  of  Josiah  and  Polly  (Gray)  Wing,  was 
born  in  the  part  of  this  town  now  known 
as  East  Montpelier,  Dec.  26,  1810.  He 
opened  a  law  office  one  year  before  his  ad- 
mission to  the  bar,  May  13,  1835,  inPlain- 
field,  this  County,  where  he  remained  until 
June,  1838,  when  he  removed  to  Mont- 
pelier village,  where  he  has  lived  ever 
since.  He  married,  Jan.  i,  1840,  Samantha 
E.  Webster,  of  Cabot,  daughter  of  Jesse 
Webster,  of  that  town.  Mr.  Wing  has  two 
sons,  Geo.  W.,  the  eldest,  a  practicing  at- 
torney in  the  same  office  with  himself  on 
State  street,  and  John  G.,  his  youngest  son, 
also  a  lawyer  in  his  office,  and  four  daugh- 
ters, Florence  A.,  Annette  M.,  Alice  M. 
and  Elizabeth  B.  Mr.  Wing  has  for  many 
years  handled  the  pen,  writing  for  the 
newspapers,  paying  to  incidents  and  oc- 
casions of  public  interest  the  tribute  of  his 
verse,  and  in  1878,  brought  out  a  small 
12  mo.  vol.  of  252  pp.,  printed  in  this  vil- 
lage, of  no  little  interest  to  the  many  friends 
to  whom  it  was  thus  presented. 

A  few  extracts  from  Mr.  Wing's  book, 
which  is  the  second  volume  of  poems  pub- 
lished by  a  native  of  the  town  : 

'•  Go  forth  my  little  book,  devoid  of  pride; 

Go  like  tlie  brooks  that  tliroiigh  the  valleys  glide, 

And  greener  make  the  verdure  by  their  side; 

Go  like  the  dew  that  silently  doth  fall 

When  o'er  the  earth  night  spreads  her  sable  pall; 

Go  you,  and  zealously  mankind  entice 

To  seek  for  virtue  and  to  flee  from  vice." 

EXTRACTS   FROM    "PLUCK." 

(  Without  pluck.) 

"  See  yonder  man  with  downciist  look  pass  by, 
Mark  you  his  face— no  fire  is  in  his  eye; 
His  coat  is  seedy,  and  bis  hat  is  old. 
His  pockets  empty  of  both  bills  and  gold, 
Silent  he  passes  through  the  busy  throng; 
No  friend  doth  cheer  him  as  he  goes  along. 
No  one  is  there  that  old  man's  hand  to  clasp 
And  warm  his  lieart  with  friendship's  kindly  grasp 
Onward,  unnoticed,  to  liis  cot  he  goes. 
Where  from  the  world  be  buries  all  his  woes; 
There  will  he  dwell  unnoted  and  unknown 
Till  death's  cold  hand  shall  claim  him  as  his  own." 
(  With  pluck.) 

"Next  view  the  great  Napoleon, 
When  in  Us  zenith  glowed  his  sun ; 

Napoleon  wore  as  sweet  a  smile 
When  banished  to  fair  Elba's  isle. 
As  when  in  Russia's  northern  sky 
He  saw  his  eagles  proudly  fly." 

69 


WHAT   SHALL   WE   DO  ? 

Wliat  shall  I  do  ?  what  shall  I  do  ? 

'  Tis  trutli  I  can't  decide. 
So  many  smiling  maids  I  view. 

Which  I  shall  make  my  bride. 

I  can't  decide,  I  can't  decide— 

There's  Ann,  so  gay  and  witty, 
And  lovely  Sue,  the  village  pride, 

And  Mary,  young  and  pretty. 

There's  blooming  Helen,  Fan,  and  Prue, 

With  fairy  forms  and  features. 
And  Lydia,  Betsey,  Esther  too, 

All  lovely,  charming  creatures. 

I  can't  decide,  I  can't  decide, 

'  Mid  eyes  of  every  hue. 
Prom  Melvell's  of  the  glistening  black 

To  Kate's  of  melting  blue.' 

A   WAIL. 

A  wail  is  on  the  southern  air, 

A  wail  across  the  sea; 
A  rebel  wail  the  breezes  bear, 
A  wail  of  woe  and  fell  despair 

Wherever  traitors  be 

A  wail  of  fear,  of  want  and  pain, 

A  wail  of  grief  and  care; 
It  sweeps  along  eaeh  Southern  plain, 
'Tls  heard  from  o'er  the  stormy  main 

Prom  every  traitor  there. 

It  comes  from  Georgia's  fertile  land. 

Where  her  broad  rivers  flow, 
Where  Sherman's  gallant  vet 'ran  band 
Before  Savannah  made  a  stand 

And  humbled  the  proud  foe, 

'  Tis  heard  from  Charleston's  burning  halls. 

Which  late  the  world  defied, 
And  from  Columbia's  blackened  walls, 
Where  Sherman's  host  the  foe  appals 

And  spreads  destruction  wide. 

It  comes  from  Carolina's  shore 

As  mourners  at  the  grave ; 
The  pride  of  Wilmington  is  o  'er 
The  stripes  and  stars  forevermore 

Above  her  towers  shall  wave. 

It  comes  from  Richmond's  crowded  street, 

Where  Davis  reigns  in  pride  : 
Where  want  and  woe  you  constant  meet, 
And  starving  women  oft  entreat 

With  bread  to  be  supplied. 

But  louder  still  that  wail  shall  be 

That  floats  along  the  air. 
Until  the  starry  flag  you  see 
Float  o  'er  a  land  from  slavery  free 
And  find  no  traitors  there. 
April  2,  1865. 

06i< ;— Mrs.  Sarah  Elizabeth  Bancroft,  Mar. 
16,  1859. 

Upon  her  silent  tomb 

The  sweetest  flowers  shall  bloom 

Of  early  spring  ; 
The  willow's  branch  shall  wave,' 
And  birds  around  her  grave 
Their  matins  sing. 


546 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


CHARLES   G.    EASTMAN. 

WEITTEN  AT  HIS  GRAVE  IN   GKEEN  MOUNT 
CEMETERY,  MONTPELIER,  VT.,   1860. 

There  is  a  void  in  bovver  and  Iiall 

And  ffrief  obscures  the  day, 
A  loved  one  from  the  circle  small 

Hath  passed  from  earth  away. 

Death  garnered  here  no  whitened  sheaf 

Ripe  for  the  sickle  keen, 
Be  garnered  here  no  bud  or  leaf 

From  Spring's  fair  flelds  so  green. 

A  noble  oak  lies  prostrate  now, 

It  fell  in  all  its  pride; 
Its  trunk  was  sound  and  green  each  bough, 

But  still,  alas  !  it  died. 

Ah,  Eastman,  ever  kind  and  true. 

Lies  buried  'neatli  this  sod  ; 
His  soul,  we  trust,  in  garments  new 

Has  flown  to  meet  his  God. 

He  had  not  reached  the  noon  of  life, 

His  sun  knew  no  decline; 
His  path  of  life  was  rendered  gay 

By  fairest  flower  and  vine. 

His  lyre,  tliat  late  the  soul  could  move 

To  smiles  and  tears  at  will 
And  warm  the  heart  to  faith  and  love. 

Is  tuneless  now  and  still. 

Now  here  within  this  sacred  ground 

He  rests  in  deatirh  cold  sleep. 
And  often  on  this  humble  mound 

His  wife  and  children  weep. 

Bring  flowers  upon  his  grave  to  place, 

And  set  the  trees  around; 
He  loved  the  flowers  in  all  their  grace — 

He  chose  this  sacred  ground. 

Here  let  him  rest  where  first  the  sun 

Its  morning  beams  illume. 
And  when  its  glorious  race  is  run 

Last  shines  on  Eastman's  tomb. 

NELSON   A.    CHASE 

was  born  in  Petersham,  Mass.,  Feb.  i8, 
1802,  and  brought  to  Calais,  Vt.,  in  1804. 
Dec.  13,  1827,  he  married  Clarissa,  daugh- 
ter of  Gideon  Hicks,  Esq.,  town  clerk 
of  Calais  almost  time  out  of  mind.  Mr. 
Chase  was  town  clerk  of  Calais  16  years, 
town  repreentative  2  years,  and  delegate  to 
two  Constitutional  Conventions.  He  re- 
moved to  Montpelier  in  1836,  and  has  re- 
sided here  since,  except  Sept.  1841  to 
Sept.  1865,  when  he  was  again  in  Calais. 
He  has  been  town  clerk  of  Montpelier  3 
years,  Judge  of  Probate  2  years,  Register  of 
Probate  20  years,  County  Commission- 
er 3  years,  and  is  widely  known  as  a 
land-surveyor.  He  is  highly  esteemed  for 
his  capability  and  honesty. 


HON.    RODERICK   RICHARDSON 

(BY  HON.  T.  P.  UEDFIELD.)  i 

Was  born  at  Stafford,  Conn.,  Aug.  7, 1807. 
He  was  the  second  son  of  Roderick  and 
Anna  (Davis)  Richardson  ;  came  to  Waits- 
field,  Vt.,  with  his  parents,  when  2  years 
old.  When  a  boy  he  went  into  mercantile 
business  with  his  father,  and  when  17  years 
of  age,  went  to  Boston,  to  do  the  routine 
duties  of  a  country  merchant.  It  was  so 
well  done,  that  he  continued  to  do  all  that 
important  and  responsible  business  while 
thus  connected  with  his  father.  When  of 
full  age,  he  went  into  business  for  himself, 
and  continued  in  general  and  extensive 
business  at  Waitsfield  until  he  removed  to 
Montpelier  in  1855.  While  at  Waitsfield, 
he  was  elected  for  5  successive  years  rep- 
resentative for  said  town  in  the  legislature 
of  the  State,  and  for  4  years  senator  for 
the  County ;  also  associate  judge  of  the 
County  Court  for  one  term,  and  declined  a 
re-election.  In  all  these  various  and  re- 
sponsible public  trusts  he  was  vigilant,  in- 
fluential and  respected.  While  in  the 
legislature,  he  was  efficient  in  procuring 
the  charter  of  the  Vermont  Bank  at  Mont- 
pelier ;  was  a  director  of  the  bank  from 
its  organization  ;  was  the  chosen  agent  of 
the  bank  to  procure  the  re-organization, 
under  the  National  Bank  System ;  was 
president  of  said  bank  for  several  years. 
Thus  while  at  Waitsfield,  he  became  largely 
interested  in  the  public  affairs  of  the  County 
and  the  State,  and  the  local  public  in- 
terests of  Montpelier,  and  had  the  full 
confidence  of  his  associates.  After  he 
came  to  Montpelier,  his  interest  in  all  that 
concerned  the  public  weal,  not  only  con- 
tinued, but  was  enlarged.  Schools  at 
Montpelier  had  become  neglected,  and  all 
interest  in  them,  seemingly,  supplanted 
by  other  matters  that  engrossed  public  at- 
tention. Judge  Richardson,  with  his  ac- 
customed energy,  entered  upon  the  plan 
of  re-organizing  the  schools  in  Montpelier, 
and  devoted  more  than  2  years  of  gra- 
tuitous, hard  labor  to  the  building  of  the 
new  school-house  for  the  graded  school. 
And  as  a  consequence  of  the  effort  and  in- 
terest enlisted  at  that  time,  the  whole 
school  system  at  Montpelier  has  become 


m^ 


-% 


W^^/^e^i^ 


c 


c^ 


A^^i^tD 


MONTPELIER. 


547 


revolutionized,  and  educational  interests 
have  become  cardinal. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Episcopal 
church,  and  was  active  and  efficient  in  all 
the  affairs  of  the  diocese.  He  was  three 
times  elected  from  this  diocese  delegate  to 
the  National  Triennial  Conventions  in 
New  York  city  and  Philadelphia,  and  one  of 
the  standing  committee  continuously  until 
his  removal  to  Boston.  By  his  liberality, 
and  two  years  of  gratuitous  personal  labor, 
Christ  church,  Montpelier,  was  built.  The 
obstacles  in  his  way  were  many,  and  to 
the  ordinary  man,  formidable  ;  but  his  zeal 
did  not  flag  until  the  capstone  of  the  spire, 
in  solid  granite,  had  crowned  his  labor. 

He  was  married  to  Harriet  E.  Taylor, 
Feb.  28,  1839.  They  had  4  sons;  3  of 
whom  survive,  are  married,  and  in  business. 
Mrs.  Richardson  still  survives,  and,  in 
vigorous  health,  graces  their  hospitable 
mansion  at  Newton  Highlands,  Mass. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  descended 
from  vigorous  Puritan  stock.  His  ances- 
tor, Amos  Richardson,  was  resident  and 
householder  on  Washington  street,  Boston, 
just  north  of  the  Old  South  Church,  in 
1640;  removed  to  Stonington,  Conn.,  in 
1666,  and  was  there  elected  representative 
to  the  General  Court,  and  was  the  agent 
of  Gov.  Winthrop  for  New  England.  He 
will  be  remembered,  and  valued,  not  for 
any  brilliant  speech  he  has  made,  or  for 
any  beautiful  scrap  of  poetry  he  has  writ- 
ten ;  but  as  a  man  of  affairs,  of  keen  per- 
ception, and  just  discrimination,  and  of 
judgment  so  well  balanced,  and  of  such 
unfaltering  energy  of  character,  that  in 
whatever  he  engaged,  he  enlisted  his  whole 
soul,  and  overcame  all  impediment ;  nor 
could  subtlety  delude  or  deceive  him.  In 
whatever  undertaking,  he  is,  therefore, 
necessarily,  successful.  And  it  will  justly 
be  said  of  him,  that  the  world  is  better 
that  he  has  lived  ;  and  for  that  he  will  be 
remembered. 

The  graded  school  system  for  which  Mr. 
Richardson  labored  so  well  has  been  very 
successful  in  this  place  ;  combined  with  the 
old  Washington  County  Grammar  School, 
they  take  the  children  from  the  a  b  c  up  to 


prepared  for  college ;  on  the  tax  of  the 
grand  list,  every  citizens's  boy  or  girl  may 
have  a  solid  education. 

Mr.  Walton  gives  the  first  schoolhouse, 
on  page  262, — a  log-house,  the  second,  a 
year  or  two  after,  1793  or '4,  a  frame-house 
was  "  on  the  road  to  the  hills  on  the 
Branch  Falls,  near  the  spot  now  occupied 
by  the  old  burying-ground.  The  school 
in  this  house  was  taught  by  Abel  Knapp, 
afterwards  Judge  Knapp  of  Berlin.  In  a 
few  years  this  house  was  burned,  and  an- 
other was  built  near  where  the  Methodist 
chapel  now  stands." — {Thompson,  i860.) 

The  act  of  the  incorporation  of  the 
Washington  County  Grammar  School  was 
procured  by  the  Hon.  David  Wing,  Jr. 
Mr.  Thompson  says  in  1800,  (a  print  mis- 
take) .  Mr.  Walton's  date,  page  290,  is  cor- 
rect. The  first  board  of  trustees,  when 
incorporated,  were  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  Hon. 
Charles  Bulkley,  David  Wing,  Jerahmel 
B.  Wheeler  and  Thomas  West,  Jr.  "  In 
1 800-1-2,  the  school  districts  in  town  re- 
ceived a  remodelling,"  and  were  then  ten 
in  number,  four  of  which  were  formed  into 
the  present  Union  and  Graded  School, 
1858-g,  leaving  6  districts. 

The  number  of  scholars  in  town  in  1802, 
was  about  400 — the  present  number  1882, 
about 

TOWN    TREASURERS. 

Jonathan  Cutler,  first,  1792,  i  year; 
after  Elnathan  Pope,  i  year;  Joseph 
Wing,  alternately  29  years ;  Joshua  Y. 
Vail,  I  year ;  John  Barnard,  2  years ; 
Daniel  Baldwin,  alternately,  12  years; 
H.  N.  Baylies,  i  year;  Carlos  Bancroft, 
2  years ;  Timothy  Cross,  i  year;  J.  A. 
Page,  6  years  to  1856;  R.  Richardson, 
1856-59;  George  W.  Scott  in  i860. — 
'rho?Hpson . 

TOWN   CLERKS. 

Ziba  Woodworth,  first  town  clerk,  1791  ; 
Clark  Stevens,  1792;  David  Wing,  Jr., 
1793-1807;  Joseph  Wing,  1807-1835 ; 
Lyman  Briggs,  1835-1846;  James  T. 
Thurston,  1846-1851;  Jona.  E.  Wright, 
1851;  W.  W.  Cadwell,  1852-1855  ;  Geo. 
L.  Kinsman,  1855  to  1859;  Adams  Kel- 
logg, 1859. — Tho))ipson. 


548 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


SELECTMEN. 

James  Hawkins,  1791,  '92  ;  James  Tag- 
gart,  Hiram  Peck,  1791  ;  Benj.  I.Wheeler, 
1792,  '93,  '94,  '96-1S02,  '11  '12,  '14  to  '19 ; 
Rufus   Wakefield,    1793;      Parley    Davis, 
1794,  '97  to  1801,  '02,  '03,  '08,  '23  ;  Barna- 
bas Doty,   1794,  '95;  Jacob    Davis,  1795, 
'99;    Joseph  Woodworth,    1795,   1805  to 
1813, '14;    A.  Nealey,  J.  Putman,   1795; 
Elnathan  Pope,   1796;  David  Wing,  Jr., 
1797  to  1807;    Arthur  Daggett,  1801,  02; 
Paul  Holbrook,  1803,  '04;   Clark  Stevens, 
1804,  ''05,  '10;  Jerahmel  B.  Wheeler,  1806 
to  '10,  '13;  Cyrus  Ware,  1808;    James  H. 
Langdon,    181 1,  '20,  '21,   '22,  '24;    Ziba 
Woodworth,      1812;     Jeduthan     Loomis, 
1813;   Samuel  Rich,  1813  ;  Salvin  Collins, 
1814, '17, '18;    Timothy  Hubbard,    1815, 
'16,  '19,  '29;    Nathaniel  Davis,  1815,  '16; 
Nahum    Kelton,    18 17   to   1822    '26,    ''27, 
'28;    Joel  Bassett,    1819;  Isaac    Putnam, 
1820;    Aranuah  Waterman,    1821,    1830; 
Joseph    Howes,    1822,  '23,  1825  to  1829, 
'52,    '53;     Josiah   Wing,    1822,    1825    to 
1829,    '31   '32;     Joseph    Wiggins,    1823; 
Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  Andrew  Sibley,   1824; 
Samuel    Templeton,     1825,     1829,    1830; 
Stephen  Foster,  1829;    Apollos    Metcalf, 
1830;  Royal   Wheeler,   1831  to  '36;    Jo- 
seph Reed,   1831,   '32;    Jared  Wheelock, 
1833;    Harry  Richardson,   1833,  '34. '35- 
'36;  George  Clark,  1834,  '35  ;  Isaac  Gate, 
1836,  '37,  '48  ;  William  Billings,  1836,  'yj  ; 
Lewis  Sibley,  Alfred  Wainwright.   1837; 
John   Gray,  Joel   Bassett,    Alfred    Pitkin, 
1838;  R.  R.  Keith,  Earned  Coburn,  Cyrus 
Morse,  1839.  4°  i    Charles  Sibley,   Ira  S. 
Town,  1841,  42;  John  Vincent,  1841,  '42, 
'43;  Thomas  Needham,  L.  A.  Hathaway, 
1843,  '44;  Hiram  Sibley,  1844,  ''45;   John 
J.   Willard,    Carlos    Bancroft,    1845,    46; 
Charles   Walling,    1846,  '47;    George   S. 
Hubbard,  1847,  '48  ;  John  I.  Putnam,  1847  ; 
S.  F.Stevens,  1848;  Thomas  Reed,  1849; 
C.   W.  Bancroft,   1849,  '5°-    '55;    C.  H. 
Collins,    William  Howes,    1850;    George 
Worthington,  1851  ;  John  Spalding,  185 1, 
'54;  B.  F.  Wall*er,  185 1;    Geo.  C.  Shep- 
herd, 1852  ;  Wm.  N.  Peck,  1852,  '53,  '54, 
'56,^57;   Henry  Nutt,    1853,  '54;   Charles 
Reed,  1855,  '56,  '57,  '59;  A.  W.  Wilder, 
1855.  \_Scc p.  549, 


HON.   JOHN  A.    PAGE 

was  born   at    Haverhill,    N.  H.,  June  17, 
1814,  son  of  Gov.  John  Page  and  Hannah 
Merrill  Page.     Receiving  an  education  at 
Haverhill,  he  at  15  became  clerk  in  a  dry 
goods  store,  and  at  17  engaged  in  a  whole- 
sale dry  goods  store  in  Portland,  Me.,  and 
was  speedily  put  in  charge  of  the  counting- 
room,  and  made  confidential  and  financial 
clerk.     In  1832,  in    his  19th  year,  he  ac- 
cepted a  partnership  in  a   well  established 
mercantile   firm    in  Haverhill,  N.  H.     In 
the  spring  of  1837,  his  business  was  closed 
and  he  intended  to  go  to  the  West,  but  he 
accepted   the   cashiership   of  the  Grafton 
Bank  in  Haverhill,  which  he  held  until  the 
expiration  of  the  charter,  when  he  took  the 
cashiership  of  the  Caledonia  Bank  in  Dan- 
ville, Vt.,    and  in    September,   1848,   was 
elected   representative   of  Danville  in  the 
Legislature.     While  in  that  office  he  was 
prevailed  upon  by  Gov.  Erastus  Fairbanks 
to   become  Financial   Agent  of  the    Pas- 
sumpsic  and  Connecticut  Rivers  Railroad 
Co.,  and  removed  to  Newbury.    In  March, 
1849,  he  accepted  the  cashiership  of  the 
"  Vermont  Bank,"  and  removed  to  Mont- 
pelier,  where  he  has  since  resided.     This 
brief  resume  of  Mr.  Page's  experience  and 
success   as   a  financier  sufficiently  shows 
that  he  is  admirably  qualified  for  the  posi- 
tions of  still  higher  responsibility,  to  which 
he  was  speedily  called.     In  the  autumn  of 
1853,    he  was  elected   State  Treasurer  by 
the  Joint  Assembly,  there  having  been  no 
election  by  the  people.     Mr.  Page  affilia- 
ted with  the  Democratic  party,  as  his  father 
had  long  done,  and  in  1854,  he  was  super- 
seded in  the  treasurer's  office  by  the  first 
treasurer  elected  by  the  Republian   party. 
On  the  organization  of  the  First  National 
Bank    of  Montpelier,  in    1865,   Mr.  Page 
was  elected  a  director  and  president,  and 
still  holds  these  positions.     In  1866  he  was 
elected  State  Treasurer,  and  has  been  sub- 
sequently re-elected  at  every  election.    Mr. 
Page  has  been  for  several  years  an  active 
member  and  deacon  in  Bethany  Church, 
and  a  liberal  supporter  of  it,  and  of  kin- 
dred  institutions,     such    as    the    Sabbath 
school,  Bible  Society,  Foreign  and  Domes- 
tic Missionary  Societies,  &c.       e.  p.  w. 


*^ 


MONTPELIER. 


549 


David  W.  Wing,  1856,  '57  ;  R.  W.  Hyde, 
1858,  '59;  Ebenezer  Scribner,  1858,' 59: 
Joseph  Poland,  Joel  Foster,  Jacob  Smith, 
i860. —  Thompson'' s  List. 

TOWN   TREASURERS — 1860   TO    1 88 1. 

George  W.  Scott,  i86o-'6i  -'62 -'63-64 
_'65- 66-^67- 68-69.  L.  Bart  Cross,  1870 
-'71 -''72 -73.  James  C.  Houghton,  Jr., 
i874-'75-'76-'77-'78-'79-'8o-'8i. 

TOWN   CLERKS — 1860TO    1 88  I. 

Adams  Kellogg,  i86o-'6i-'62.  W.  E. 
Adams,  1863-64-65-66.  Nelson  A. 
Chase,  1867-68-69.  George  W.  WLng, 
1870-71-72.  Timothy  R.  Merrill,  1873 
-  74- 75- 76-77- 78- 79-'8o- 81 . 

OVERSEERS   OF   POOR — 1860   TO    1881. 

H.  Y.  Barnes,  i86o-'6i-'62.  B.  H. 
Snow,  i863-''64-'65-'66-''67.  Henry  Barnes, 
1878,  resigned,  and  Timothy  Cross  elected 
May  19,  1868,  at  a  special  meeting.  Wm. 
W.  Cadwell,  1869-70-71-  Chester  Clark, 
1872.  Wm.  W.  Cadwell,  1873-74-75 
'76-77  (died.)  Denison  Taft  filled  re- 
mainder of  1 877- ''78  as  overseer.  Geo. 
S.  Hubbard,  1878-79- 8o-'8i. 

SELECTMEN — 1860    TO    1 88 1. 

Joseph  Poland,  i860;  Joel  Foster,  Jr., 
i860,  '61,  '62,  '65,  '81  ;  Jacob  Smith,  i860, 
'61,  '62  ;  Carlos  Bancroft,  1862,  '66;  Hen- 
ry Nutt,  1863,  '64,  '66,  '67  ;  Jas.  T.  Thurs- 
ton, 1865,  '66,  '67;  Charles  Reed,  1861, 
'67  ;  Perley  P.  Pitkin,  1868,  '74,  '80  ;  Sam- 
uel Wells,  1868,  '69,  '70;  Albert  Johon- 
nott,  1868,  '69,  '70,  '78,  '79,  '80  ;  H.  Bost- 
wick,  T.  O.  Bailey,  E.  F.  Kimball,  1871, 
'72;  Joel  Foster,  Jr.,  1873,  '81  ;  Dennison 
Dewey,  1873;  Dennis  Lane,  Homer  W. 
Heaton,  1874,  '75,  '76,  '77;  J.  Warren 
Bailey,  1874,  '75,  "76,  '■]'],  '78;  Sumner 
Kimball,  1877,  '78;  Arthur  D.  Bancroft, 
1879,  '80  ;  Willard  C.  Walker,  Clark  King, 

1881.  T.  R,  M. 

From  the  Records. — Town  meeting, 
March  29,  1792:  Caleb  Bennett,  sealer  of 
leather ;  Truman  West,  pound  keeper ; 
David  Parsons,  tithing  man. 

Haywards. — Perley  Davis,  Isaac  Put- 
nam, Lemuel  Brooks,  Jacob  Davis,  Jr., 
Edmund  Doty. 

Grand  Juror. — Nathaniel  Parks. 


Sealer  oflVeigJdsand  Measures. — Jona- 
than Cutler. 

Auditors. — John    Templeton.     Rufus 
Wakefield,  David  Wing. 

Town  Meeting,  March  8th,   1813,  John 
Templeton,  [firstj  Overseer  of  the  Poor. 
T.  R.  Merrill,  Towji  Clerk. 
Dec.  1881. 

FIRE   DEPARTMENT. 
[THOMPSON  TO  I860.] 

In  18 14,  the  first  fire  company  was  or- 
ganized in  town,  the  sum  of  $380  raised  by 
subscription  among  the  citizens  of  the  vil- 
lage for  the  purpose,  and  an  engine  and 
hose  purchased.  In  1835,  another  com- 
pany was  formed,  and  a  second  engine 
purchased.  And  in  1837,  a  third  engine 
was  purchased,  with  about  800  feet  of 
hose ;  and  a  third  company  was  organized 
to  man  it,  with  a  hook  and  ladder  compa- 
ny to  act  generally.  About  this  time  the 
whole  fire  department  was  re-organized, 
and  placed  under  the  direction  of  the  Hon. 
Daniel  Baldwin,  who  was  appointed  chief 
engineer.  Mr.  Baldwin  acted  in  this  ca- 
pacity many  years,  and,  at  length  resign- 
ing the  responsible  post,  was  succeeded 
by  Carlos  Bancroft,  who,  in  1852,  was 
succeeded  by  Capt.  Almon  A.  Mead,  who 
has  ever  since  been  the  efi^cient  chief  en- 
gineer of  the  department.  In  January, 
i860,  "two  large  Button  engines  were  pur- 
chased," the  fire  department  having  been 
re-organized  in  December,  and  companies 
organized  to  manage  them.  No.  4  engine 
arrived  in  February,  and  No.  5  in  April. 
The  Chief  Engineers  of  the  department 
from  1859  were  Capt.  A.  A.  Mead,  from 
1852  to  '66;  Samuel  Wells  2  years  from 
1866;  Jas.  W.  Brock,  2  years  to  1870; 
Geo.  C.  Clark  in  1871,  and  Gen.  P.  P. 
Pitkin  from  that  date,  10  years,  andnow 
continues  to  hold  the  ofiice. 

The  Foremen  of  the  several  companies 
from  the  same  date,  are :  No.  4,  John  W. 
Clark,  i860,  '61,  '62;  Levi  Pierce  in  1863, 
who  died  in  January,  1864  ;  Denison 
Dewey  in  1864;  Edwin  C.  Lewis  in  1866, 
who  died  in  1867;  Freeman  Bixby,  1867, 
'68;  Lewis  Wood,  1869,  '70,  '71,  '76;  now 
resides   in   Taunton,    Mass.  ;    Alex.    Jan- 


550 


VERMONT  HISrORirAI.  MAGAZINE. 


^jraw,  1872  to '77  ;  Chas.  F.  Collins,  1877 
to '81,  inclusive.  No.  5,- — llonry  Haines, 
three  mos.  in  iS6o,  now  resides  in  Wave- 
lanil.  U)\va  ;  Horace  F.  (."rossnian,  the  re- 
niaininj;  <■)  inontlis  of  i8()0.  lie  tlieil  in 
\Vasi»int;toii,  1).  C"..  .ilunit  iS(>7.  (leo.  .S. 
Robinson,  1861, '62;  i>li\er  K.  Dutton  in 

1863,  now  resiiles  in  (Miio  ;  Robert  J. 
Harj;!!!  in  iS(>4;  tieo.  C".  C'l.irk.  1865  to 
'71-  He  died  in  Holland.  Mich..  .Apr.  22, 
1878.  Isaac  I\I.  Wrij^ht.  1871.  "72;  A.  O. 
.Se.ihurv,  1873.  '74,  '75-  "<^^w  resides  in 
Hoston;  John  \V.  I'aj^e,  in  1876,  now  re- 
sides in  Nebraska;  Robert  J.  CoOey.  1877, 
'78,  now  resides  in  Richmond,  \'t.  ;  Chas. 
C.  Ranisdell,  1879,  '80,  \Si. 

Hook  anil  Ladder  Co.  No.  1  :  tIeo.  S. 
Hubbard  in  i860;  .Ailanis  Kello!;g,  1861, 
'(12  ;  now  resides  in  1  ouisi.ui.i.  Is.iac  A. 
Lathri>i)    in    1863  ;    Curtis    S.    Newcomb, 

1864,  '(15.  He  died  in  Sprinutield,  Ma.ss. 
in  1867.  Lewis  H.  Hnntint^ton,  1866, '67; 
Andrew  J.  Howe,  1868.  '(x) ;  John  L.  Tut- 
tle,  1870,  '71  ;  Moses  K.me,  187J  to  '80. 
He  dietl  Oct.  -\  1881.  Horace  Mills  in 
in  1880;  Joseph  l>.  Morse,  1881. 

No.  2  was  re-ort;ani/.etl  and  w;is  dis- 
banded in  December,  1875.  Foremen  : 
Lewis  Wood,  i868;  Samuel  Wells,  1869; 
he  died  Jan.  1878;  Wn\.  l>.  Standish, 
1870  ti>  '74;  Ceo.  r.  Foster  in  1874 — he 
died  Jan.  1,  iSSi.  Charles  H.  Carter,  in 
1875.  All  the  ex-toremen  of  the  compa- 
nies are  residiiii;  in  town  at  the  present 
date — Dec.  24,  iS8i,  but  tiiose  ijiven  as 
residing  elsewhere. 

The  tire  department  of  this  villatie  has 
been  eminently  successful,  and  has  unques- 
tionably already  been  instrumental  in  .sav- 
ing hundreds  of  thousanils  of  dollars  of 
property.  .\nd  now,  with  its  :;  ens;ines. 
nearly  jooo  teet  ot  hose.  I.ulders,  ami  all 
other  neeiltul  ei|uipn>ents,  .uul  with  its  .il- 
most  three  lunidreil  liremen  to  work  anil 
man.ii^e  tliein,  is  probably  the  best  and 
most  etlicient  tire  department  in  the  State. 

There  are  now  three  companies  in  this 
village,  otVicered  for  1882  as  follows  : 

//(>(>/:  tif.'i/  I  iuiiier  Company — H.  C. 
Lull,  torem.ui  ;  Wm.  Cooilwin,  1st  assist- 
ant ;  John  I'ori.d,  2il  assistant;  M.  C. 
Kinson,  i  leik  ;   L.  Rodney,  steward. 


I\/ii^int-  Ci>////>t7fn',  Av'.  4 — Chas.  F.  Col- 
lins, foreman;  Samuel  Luke,  1st  assist- 
ant; Fd.  Donwoodie,  2d  assistant;  C.  W. 
(iuernsey,  clerk  and  collector;  Hiram  .At- 
kins, tre.isurer;   Otis  C.  Miles,  steward. 

J'.Hi^i/t('  Lotfiptuiy,  Ao.  5 — Moses  Lear- 
son,  toreman  ;  Janus  Cros.sett,  ist  a.ssist- 
ant;  Marcus  Lynch,  toreman  of  ho.se; 
Charles  D.  F.  Hancrott,  secretary  and  col- 
lector;  Robert  J.  Hargin,  treasurer;  Lu- 
cius .S.  (unnlwin,  steward. 

The  Hook  and  L.ulder  h.is  Oo  men; 
No.  4,  70  men;  No.  5,  75  men.  Lhere 
are  three  other  engines  that  have  no  com- 
pan\'  ;  iuit  are  never  needed  now  as  the 
village  h.is  tour  pumps.  Tiieron  O.  Bai- 
ley's steam  pump  .it  the  Pavilion,  I'dwin 
W.  Hailey's  iniil-[nimp,  w.iter-power,  the 
c.ib  shop  pumj),  bv  w.iter  power  .mil  the 
Lane  Manulacturing  Co.  i)ump  bv  water 
power,  and  these  immps  are  so  situateil  as 
to  be  suthcient,  with  the  present  companies, 
in  all  cases  of  tire  that  may  occur  here. 

A  ver\  h.uulsome  cart,  cost  about  ;?iooo, 
w.is  puich.ised  tor  the  Hook  .mil  Ladder 
Comp.my  some  1 -'  ye.us  since.  I'iie  tire 
companies  are  all  volunteer  companies, 
exempt  from  poll  taxes  for  tire  services  ; 
h.ive  a  gooil  business  account,  and  were 
never  in  better  condition  than  at  the 
present.  [i".  i>i"  v.  n.J 

r.\l>l>lTlONAI,,] 

UNION    Ml'Tli.Vl.   KIKK    INS.    tXK 

Mr.  Walton's  history  of  Montpelier  was 
written  nearly  a  dozen  years  .igo,  before 
the  above-named  companv  was  organized, 
and  in  hastily  making  it  out  that  company 
w.is  .iicident.ilh  omitted.  It  lonnnenced 
business  July  28,  1875,  and  .-Vug.  i,  1881, 
it  had  #2,716,590.50  insured,  with  premi- 
um notes  to  the  amount  of  $163,105.82. 
The  otlicers  are  W.  C.  Ferrin,  Pies.,  J. 
W.  Prock,  \'ice  Pies.,  A.  C.  Prown,  .Sec, 
W.  !•'.  Pi.im.m.    Pre. IS. 

iMONi  i:k  AiuM  1  rio.Msrs. 

The  tirst  antislavery  votes  for  President 
ever  cast  in  Montpelier,  were  given  to 
James  C.  Uirney  in  1840,  and  the  honor 
belongs  to  Zenas  Wood,  John  Wood, 
Henry  Y.  Harnes.  He/.eki.ih  Ward  and 
Joseph  Somerby.  Phe  whole  number  cast 
in  the  .St.ite  w.is  319. 
[See  portrait  of  Zenas  Wood,  opposite.] 


1  n  ) 


M-. 


ir/ 


MONTPELIER. 


551 


GRADUATES   OF   MONTPELIER. 

Some  of  the  graduates  of  Montpelier,  to 
which  further  additions  can  be  made  in 
this  work,  in  a  supplementary  form.  From 
President  Buckham,  of  Burlington 
College,  we  have  received  the  following 
account  for  this  town  of 
graduates  from  the  vt.  university  : 
Library,  University  of  Vt.,  ? 
Burlington,  Nov.  24,  1881.   ) 

To  President  Buckham : 

My  Dear  Sir. — I  beg  to  hand  you  below 
the  information  which  1  understood  you  to 
desire  yesterday,  regarding  the  graduates 
of  the  University  who  have  entered  from 
Montpelier.  This  list  is  necessarily  very 
imperfect,  from  the  fact  that  no  annual 
catalogues  were  issued  before  1808;  and 
the  further  fact  that  we  possess  no  copies 
of  those  of  the  following  years:  1809  to 
1821,  1824  to  1833,  1864  to  1865. 

In  1824,  George  Washington  Houghton 
was  graduated  ;  in  1827,  Nicholas  Baylies  ; 
1838,  George  Washington  Reed;  1840, 
James  Reed  Spalding;  1844,  Carlos  Allen 
Sprague  ;  1845,  Charles  Dewey  and  Na- 
thaniel George  Clark  ;  1846,  James  Pren- 
tiss and  Jonathan  Allen  Wainwright ;  1847, 
George  Washington  Cottrill ;  1848,  Edward 
Bingham  Chamberlain  and  Geo.  Sennott ; 
1847,  Charles  Carroll  Spalding;  1849, 
Charles  Loomis ;  1852,  Jedd  Philo  Clark 
Cottrill;  1853,  George  Robinson  Thomp- 
son; 1856,  Charles  Colburn  Prentiss,  Geo. 
Bailey  Spalding  and  Henry  Lingan  Lamb  ; 
1858,  Alfred  Bowers  Thompson;  i860, 
James  Stevens  Peck ;  1861,  John  Pushee 
Demeritt  and  John  Wright  Norton;  1862, 
James  Wilson  Davis  and  J.  Monroe  Poland. 

Besides  these,  I  find  record  of  William 
K.  Upham  as  a  sophomore  in  1834  and 
Theodore  Prentiss  in  1839;  John  Barnard 
and  George  Bradshaw  as  juniors  in  1840; 
Henry  Lee  Dodge,  a  senior  in  1845  i  Alfred 
Washburn  Pitkin,  sophomore  in  1843; 
Oscar  Silver,  freshman  in  1842;  Samuel 
Mosely  Walton,  sophomore  in  1843  !  Tim- 
othy Abbott  and  Charles  Warren  Badger, 
freshmen  in  1844. 

From  East  MoHtpelier. — Lewis  Earned 
Coburn  and  Milo  Latimer  Templeton  in 
1859;  Salvin  Collins  Clark,  freshmen  in 
1854. 


If  Montpelier  is  credited  with  A.  B. 
Thompson,  (1858,)  I  see  not  why  Charles 
Wheeler  Thompson,  (1854,)  should  not 
be  set  down  to  the  same  town — though  in 
point  of  fact  both  of  them  came  from  the 
same  house  on  the  Berlin  side  of  the 
Winooski  river,  and  C.  W.  T.  called  him- 
self of  Berlin,  as  he  truly  was.  So,  too, 
J.  W.  Norton,  if  I  rightly  recollect,  was 
not  really  from  Montpelier,  but  from  Berlin 
or  Middlesex. 

The  above  is  the  best  showing  I  can 
make,  by  reason  of  our  lack  of  over  30  an- 
nual catalogues.  j.  e.  g. 

(Gov.)  Asahel  Peck  was  in  college  at 
Burlington  in  his  senior  term,  and  Charles 
G.  Eastman  entered  and  was  for  a  time 
there,  and  Dr.  Julius  Y.  Dewey  graduated 
at  the  medical  department  in  1823.  E.  P. 
Walton  and  Hon.  S.  S.  Kelton  also,  give 
as  graduates  at  this  college  from  Mont- 
pelier :  David  M.  Camp,  1810;  Charles 
Strong  Smith,  and  Thomas  Davis  Strong, 
1848;  Charles  H.  Heath,  1854;  Benjamin 
Franklin  Fifield,  1855;  Charles  Daley 
Swazey,  1859,  o^  Montpelier,  and  Geo.  B. 
Nichols,  now  of  Chicago  ;  Henry  Dodge, 
now  in  California;    C.  A.  Sprague  now  in 

Watertown,    Wis. ;     Hollister,    of 

East  Montpelier. 

graduates  at  middlebury  college. 

Class  of  i?>o6. — Rev.  Chester  Wright, 
first  pastor  of  Bethany  church  ;  atite,  page 
388. 

Class  of  1807. — Jona.  C.  Southmayd. 

Class  of  1808. — Joshua  Y.  Vail. 

Class  of  18 1 7. — Charles  Watrous, 
page  498. 

(r/rtJ'j<?/'i82o.— Marcus  TuLLius  Cicero 
Wing,  and  Daniel  P.  Thompson. 

Class  of  1825. — Asahel  C.  Washburn. 

GRADUATES  AT  .DARTMOUTH   COLLEGE. 

Class  of  182s. — Rev.  George  Barney 
Manser,  first  pastor  of  Christ  Church  ; 
ante,  see  pages  411,  414,  415. 

Class  of  1832. — Charles  William 
Prentiss,  son  of  the  Hon.  Samuel  and 
Lucretia  (Houghton)  Prentiss,  was  born  at 
Montpelier,  Oct.  18,  1812.  He  read  law 
and  commenced  practice  at  Irasburg ;  rep- 
resented it  in  the  Vt.  Legislature  2  years ; 
removed  his  office  to  Montpelier.  He 
married  Caroline  Kellogg,  of  Peacham. — 
Alnmni  tablet. 


552 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Class  of  1835. — Charles  Reed,  page 
513,  whose  wife,  says  the  record  of  Dart- 
mouth, is  grand-daughter  of  President 
Eleazer  Wheelock. 

Class  of  \%T^(i. — Redfield  and  Colby; 
Stoddard  Colby,  page  468  ;  Judge  Redfield, 
page  540. 

Timothy  Parker  Redfield,  A.  M., 
the  son  of  Dr.  Peleg  and  Hannah  (Parker) 
Redfield,  was  born  at  Coventry,  Nov,  3, 
181 1.  He  read  law  and  began  practice  at 
Irasburg,  in  1S37  ;  represented  it  in  the 
Vt.  Legislature  in  1839;  was  also  a  State 
senator  in  1848;  removed  that  year  to 
Montpelier,  and  there  continues,  promi- 
nent in  his  profession.  He  married  Helen 
W.,  daughter  of  Maj.  William  Granniss, 
of  Stanstead,  P.  O.,  Feb.6,  1840.  Isaac 
Redfield,  D.  C.  1825,  is  his  brother. — 
Alumni  tablet. 

Stoddard  Benham  Colby,  A.  M.,  the 
son  of  Capt.  Nehemiahand  Melinda  (Lar- 
rabee)  Colby,  was  born  at  Derby,  Feb.  3, 
1816.  He  read  law  at  Lyndon;  began 
practice  at  Derby ;  represented  it  in  the 
Legislature  of  Vt. ;  removed  to  Montpelier, 
and  remained  until  1864;  was  State's  At- 
torney for  Washington  Co.  in  185 1  and 
1852 ;  became  register  of  the  U.  S.  Treas- 
ury in  Aug.  1864.  He  married,  ist,  Har- 
riet Elizabeth,  daughter  of  the  Hon.  Jabez 
Proctor,  of  Proctorsville,  Feb.  11,  1840; 
2d,  Ellen  Cornelia,  daughter  of  Caleb  Hunt, 
of  Haverhill,  N.  H.,  July  12,  1855. — Abctn- 
ni  tablet. 

Class  of  \Z\-}y. — Rev.  William  Hayes 
Lord,  pastor  of  Bethany  church,  p.  393. 

Class  of  i?>^7 . — OziAS  Cornwall  Pit- 
kin, the  son  of  Dea.  Alfred  and  OrphaW. 
Pitkin,  was  born  at  Montpelier,  May  2, 
1827.  He  taught  at  Morrisville  2  years  ; 
was  head  of  the  high  school  at  Taunton, 
Mass.,  5  years  ;  removed  to  Chelsea  Mass., 
in  1854.  He  married  Caroline  M.,  dau.  of 
Wm.  Muenscher,  of  Taunton,  Mar.  1852. 
— Aliiiiini  tablet. 

Class of\%^\ . — Charles  Wesley  Wil- 
LARD,  page  492. 

Class  of  1854. — Charles  Franklin 
Smith,  the  son  of  Oramel  Hopkins  and 
Mary  (Goss)  Smith,  was  born  at  Mont- 
pelier, about  1833,  and  died  at  Hancock, 
Mich.,  Apr.  23,  1864,  aged  31.  He  read 
law  with  his  father ;  went  into  practice  at 
Chicago,  111.,  but  removed  to  Hancock,  2 
or  3  years  prior  to  his  death. — Ahanni 
tablet. 

Class  of  1862. — Chauncey  Warriner 
Town,  the  son  of  Ira  Strong  and  Frances 


Miretta  (Witherell)  Town,  was  born  at 
Montpelier,  July  4,  1840.  He  read  law, 
and  has  opened  an  office  in  New  York  city. 
— Alumni  tablet. 

Class  of  iS6'^. — Hiram  Augustus  H  USE, 
the  son  of  Hiram  S.  and  Emily  M.  (Blod- 
gett)  Huse,  was  born  at  Randolph,  Jan. 
17,  1843;  resident  lawyer  at  Montpelier, 
and  present  librarian  of  the  Vt.  St.  Hist. 
Society;  contributor  for  Randolph  in  vol. 
II.  this  work,  and  to  the  present  volume. 

Class  of  1866. — Chester  W.  Merrill, 
the  son  of  Ferrand  Fassett  and  Eliza 
Maria  (Wright)  Merrill,  was  born  at  Mont- 
pelier, Apr.  23,  1846.  He  has  been  an 
Assistant  at  the  New  Ipswich  Academy. — 
Ahanni  tablet. 

Mr.  Merrill  is  now  Librarian  of  the  Cin- 
cinnati Free  Public  Library. 

Class  of  1866. — George  Washington 
Wing,  the  son  of  Joseph  Addison  and 
Samantha  Elizabeth  (Webster)  Wing,  was 
born  at  Plainfield,  Oct.  22,  1843. — Alumni 
tablet.  {See  next  page} 

Class  of  1867. — Howard  F.  Hill,  the 
son  of  John  M 'Clary  and  Elizabeth  Lord 
(Chase)  Hill,  was  born  at  Concord,  N.  H., 
July  21,  1846. — Alumni  tablet. 

Mr.  Hill  is  now  Rector  of  Christ  Church, 
Montpelier. 

THOMAS   W.    wood, 

only  son  of  the  late  John  Wood,  is  also  a 
son  of  Montpelier,  of  whom  her  people 
are  very  justly  and  highly  proud.  With  a 
natural  genius  for  sketching  and  painting, 
he  has  persevered  until,  by  his  long  expe- 
rience and  correct  taste,  he  has  become 
one  of  the  best  realistic  and  portrait  paint- 
ers in  the  country,  and  has  so  commanded 
the  admiration  and  respect  of  his  brother 
artists  that  he  is  honored  with  the  office  of 
President  of  an  association  of  artists  in 
New  York  city.  Mr.  Wood's  winter  studio 
is  in  New  York  city,  but  his  summers  are 
generally  spent  in  Vermont,  at  "  Athen- 
wood,"  an  unique  and  beautiful  cottage  in 
a  mountain  gorge,  which,  however,  over- 
looks the  village  of  Montpelier.  He  is 
not  merely  a  very  successful  artist,  but  a 
gentleman  who  is  highly  esteemed  by  all 
who  know  him.  We  have  hoped  to  re- 
ceive data  for  a  more  detailed  notice,  but 
are  obliged  to  go  to  press  with  this  imper- 
fect one.  E.  p.  w. 


MONTPELIER. 


553 


(^Dartmouth  Graduates,  continued.) 

Herbert  Stebbins,  now  at  Andover  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  John  W.  Page,  WilUam 
A.  Lord,  Rush  P.  Barrett  and  Ashton  R. 
Willard  of  this  town,  are  also  Dartmouth 
graduates. 

Amherst  College — Class  of  1869. — 
D.  G.  Thompson,  Henry  K.  Field. 

Class  of  1870. — John  B.  Thurston,  J. 
Edward  Miller. 

Class  of  i8yi. — J.  C.  Houghton,  Jr., 
John  V.  Brooks. 

Class  of  1876. — Albert  A.  Redway  and 
Osman  D.  Clark. 

Denison  University,  (Ohio). — Rev. 
Henry  A.  Rogers,  present  pastor  of  the 
Baptist  Church,  Montpelier. 

Grand  Seminary  OF  Arras  (France). 
Very  Rev.  Zephyrinus  Druon, — page  423. 

Grand  Seminary  of  Vannes,  (France.) 
Joseph  Duglue,  present  pastor  of  St.  Au- 
gustine's church,  Montpelier, — page  424. 

Harvard  College. — Class  of  1858, 
Rev.  Charles  A.  Allen,  first  pastor  of  the 
Church  of  the  Messiah;  Rev.  J.  Edward 
Wright,  present  pastor  of  the  same  ;  class 
of  1878,  William  Zebina  Bennett,  Profes- 
sor of  Chemistry  and  Philosophy  in  Wor- 
cester University,  Ohio;  and  Charles  J. 
Hubbard,  Romeo  G.  Brown  and  Carrol 
King  are  now  coUegiates  at  Harvard. 

Princeton  College,  N.J. — Rev.  Fred- 
erick W.  Shelton,  who  was  rector  of  Christ 
church . 

Tufts  College. — W.  L.  Warren,  1869. 

Union  Theological  Seminary,  (New 
York  city). — Class  of  1863,  James  W. 
Davis . 

Yale  College. — Rev.  J.  H.  Hincks 
graduated  at  this  college,  A.  B.,  in  1874, 
and  at  the  Theological  Seminary  S.  F.  B., 
in  1876;  and  J.  R.  Brackett,  Principal  of 
the  High  School  here  has  the  "P.  H.  D." 
from  Yale,  received  in  1879. 

The  following  Montpelier  clergymen 
have  received  the  D.  D.  :  Rev.  Wm.  H. 
Lord,  Rev.  F.  W.  Shelton,  Rev.  Andrew 
Hull,  and  Rev.  Eli  Ballou. 


Ladies  who  have  graduated  at  college  : 
Clara  Pitkin  at  Oberlin,  Letitia  Durant 
at  Burlington,  or  \J.  V.  M.,  Emma 
Hoyt  at  Vassar. 

origin  of  the  christian  messenger. 

A  recent  visit  to  the  rooms  of  the  New 
England  Methodist  Historical  Society  in 
Boston,  has  given  us  an  opportunity  to 
find  the  files  of  the  early  issues  of  the 
"  Vermont  Christian  Messenger,"  and  from 
them  we  have  the  following  definite  infor- 
mation regarding  its  origin.  The  first 
number  was  issued  under  date  of  Mar.  12, 
1847,  at  Newbury,  Rev.  S.  P.  Williams 
being  the  publisher;  Rev.  Wm.  W.  Wil- 
lett  and  Rev.  E.  J.  Scott,  editors;  N. 
Granger  agent,  and  L.  J.  Mclndoe  printer. 
Mr.  Williams  (then  presiding  elder  of 
Danville  District)  retired  from  the  publish- 
ing interest  as  announced  in  the  issue  of 
July  16,  1847,  and  Messrs.  Willett  &  Scott 
became  the  proprietors  as  well  as  editors. 
On  Jan.  i,  1848,  the  "Messenger"  was 
removed  to  Montpelier,  and  on  March  11, 
of  the  same  year.  Rev.  E.J.  Scott  became 
the  sole  proprietor  and  chief  editor,  with 
Rev.  J.  T.  Peck,  A.  M.,  (now  Bishop 
Peck)  as  the  corresponding  editor.  On 
Sept.  6,  1848,  Rev.  A.  Webster  became 
joint  proprietor  with  Mr.  Scott,  and  on 
Mar.  6,  1850,  the  names  of  E.  J.  Scott 
and  A.  J.  Copeland  appeared  as  proprie- 
tors. On  Nov.  6,  1850,  Mr.  Scott  was 
announced  as  sole  proprietor,  and  on  Jan. 
I,  185 1,  as  sole  editor  also.  We  have  not 
been  able  to  find  the  files  of  the  succeed- 
ing years  to  1 861,  and  will  be  very  grateful 
for  information  which  will  give  us  access 
to  any  which  may  be  in  existence. 

J.  R.  Bartlett. 
Barre,  Vt.,  Dec.  30,  1881. 

GOLDEN    WEDDINGS. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Capt.  Joseph  Somerby, 
celebrated  the  first  golden  wedding  in 
Montpelier  village  many  years  ago. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Worcester  Sprague,  cele- 
brated their  golden  wedding  Mar.  11,  1878. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Henry  Nutt,  celebrated 
their  golden  wedding  June  18,  1878.  All 
of  this  village. 


70 


554 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


THE   4TH    OF   JULY,    1807. 

Well  does  the  writer  remember  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  village  the  first  time  he 
entered  it,  which  was  on  the  fourth  of 
July,  1807.  State  street  had  then  been 
surveyed,  but  not  opened.  There  had 
been  before  one  bridge  across  the  Branch, 
and  that  was  at  the  Union  House  ;  but 
even  that  had  been  carried  away,  we  think, 
by  the  flood  of  the  previous  sjjring.  At 
all  events,  no  bridge  was  there  then.  The 
men  and  women  rode  through  the  stream 
on  horses,  or  in  carts  and  wagons,  and  we 
boys  rolled  up  our  trowsers  over  our  knees 
and  waded  across,  not  one  in  ten  of  us  be- 
ing cumbered  with  either  stockings  or 
shoes.  The  point  of  attraction  was  the 
new  State  House  grounds,  and  our  way  led 
along  the  old  road  down  the  ri\er,  under 
the  hill,  where  the  back  street  now  ex- 
tends from  the  Union  House  to  the  Cath- 
olic Church.  All  on  our  left,  after  passing 
the  Colonel  Davis  establishment,  and  one 
or  two  small  houses  on  the  bank  to  the 
east  of  it,  was  a  smooth,  broad,  well-tilled 
meadow,  covered  with  wa\'ing  green  corn. 
Two  lines  of  stakes  running  east  and  west 
could  be  traced  through  the  midst  of  the 
meadow. 

"  What  in  the  world  are  all  those  stakes 
for,  setting  up  .so  straight  and  curious,  all 
in  a  row  there  ?''  asked  one  of  the  older, 
out  of  town  boys.  "  Those  stakes  ?  Why 
they  are  to  show  where  we  are  to  have  a 
new  handsome  street  from  the  new  State 
House  right  across  the  Branch,  with  a 
fine,  elegant  new  bridge,"  replied  a  village 
boy,  pricking  up  with  pride  at  the  thought. 
"  A  street,"  rejoined  the  other,  "  well,  I 
wonder  wheie  they  expect  to  find  houses 
to  put  upon  it.  It  appears  to  me  you  vil- 
lage folks  are  trying  to  grow  grand  all  at 
once.  When  you  get  the  new  State  House 
up,  I  expect  we  shan't  be  able  to  touch 
you  with  a  rod  pole." 

This  natural  little  bout  of  words  among 
the  boys  of  that  time,  showed  two  things 
better  than  a  page  of  elucidation ; — first, 
the  extent  of  the  important  changes  and 
improvements  in  contemplation  for  the 
village,  and  second,  the  starting  points  of 
the  simultaneous  growth  of  that  village 
pride  and  country  jealousy,  which,  proba- 
bly, are  ever  in  a  greater  or  less  degree  to 
be  found,  wherever  villages  exist,  to  crow 
and  affect  superiority,  and  country  towns 
to  build  up  and  sustain  them. 

When  we  reached  tlie  place  where  the 
then  novelty  of  our  national  jubilee  was  to 
be  celebrated,  we  found  the  exercises  of 
the  clay  were  to  be  performed  on  the 
ground-work  of  the  new  State  House,  the 
foundation  walls  of  which  were  all  up,  the 
sills  and  flooring  timbers  framed  together, 


and  roughly  floored  over,  and  the  plates 
and  some  other  of  the  hea\'y  upper  timbers 
ranged  round  tlie  borders  of  this  ground 
frame-work.  Near  tlie  centre  of  the  area 
thus  formed,  was  erected  a  broad  platform, 
on  which  was  placed  a  table  and  several 
chairs  for  the  orator  of  the  day  and  those 
who  assisted  in  the  usual  services :  while 
around  it,  on  the  borders  of  the  whole 
area,  were  erected  bushes,  or  rather  small 
trees,  freshly  cut  and  brought  from  the  ad- 
joining woods  on  the  hill,  to  serve  for 
shade  for  the  speaker  and  audience.  The 
orator  was  Paul  Dean,  a  Universalist  min- 
ister, who  resided  in  Boston,  but  who 
about  that  time  preached  for  some  small 
period  in  different  parts  of  Montpelier. 

This  was  the  first  general  public  celebra- 
tion of  the  Fourth  of  July  ever  held  in 
Montpelier.  A  small  village  celebration 
was,  however,  held  the  preceding  summer, 
in  a  booth,  built  in  a  meadow  near  the 
Davis  mills  on  the  Branch,  and  Dr.  Ed- 
ward Lamb  wrote  and  delivered  the  ora- 
tion.—  Thompson. 

GEN.  PERLEY  P.  PITKIN 
was  born  in  Marshfield,  son  of  Truman 
Pitkin,  and  grandson  of  Hon.  Stephen  of 
Marshfield,  and  Gen.  Parley  Davis  of 
Montpelier.  His  father  removed  to  what 
is  now  East  Montpelier,  and  shortly  his 
mother  died,  leaving  three  young  children. 
Perley  P.  was  brought  up  under  the  eye  of 
Gen.  Davis,  married  in  East  Montpelier, 
represented  that  town  2  years,  and  resided 
there  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  rebell- 
ion. June  6,  1861.  he  was  commissioned 
Quarter  Master  of  the  2d  Regt.  of  Vermont 
Vohmteers,  and  went  to  the  front.  The 
writer  of  this  notice  was  then  in  Washing- 
ton, and  well  remembers  the  astonishment 
of  the  red-tape  gentlemen  of  the  War  De- 
partmentat  the  promptitude  ofO.  M.  Pitkin 
in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  and  the  vim 
with  which  he  demanded  supplies.  His 
controlling  idea  was  that  Vermont  bo\s 
musfhe  taken  care  of,  and  they  were,  as  well 
as  an  efficient  officer  could  do  it.  His  valu- 
able qualities  were  soon  discovered,  and  in 
less  than  a  year  he  was  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  Captain,  and  not  long  after  to  that 
of  Colonel  and  head  of  the  Depot  Depart- 
ment of  the  army  of  the  Potomac.  He  re- 
turned to  Montpelier,  where  his  family  was 
located,  and  entered  into  business  with 
Dennis  Lane  and  J.  W.  Brock  in  the  manu- 


MONTPELIER. 


555 


facture  of  saw-mills,  which  now  have  a  wide 
reputation ;  and  this  has  been  developed 
into  the  Lane  Manufacturing  Company, 
which  now  has  the  largest  and  most  suc- 
cessful business  which  any  manufacturing 
concern  in  Montpelier  has  ever  had.  He 
resigned  his  colonelcy  and  was  elected 
Quarter-Master  General  of  the  State,  and 
having  charge  of  the  State  Arsenal,  and 
military  supplies  far  beyond  the  wants 
of  the  State,  he  succeeded  in  making  sales 
to  foreign  governments,  which  materially 
aided  the  State  treasury  and  reduced  the 
burden  of  taxation  of  the  people.  He  rep- 
resented Montpelier  in  the  legislature 
1874-5,  and  since  his  residence  has  al- 
most constantly  been  employed  in  town 
and  village  offices.  e.  y.  w. 

FIRST   ELECTION   DAY    IN   MONTPELIER. 

By  the  terms  of  the  act,  locating  the 
seat  of  government  at  Montpelier,  the 
State  House  was  to  be  completed  by  the 
first  of  September,  1808.  It  was  done; 
and  great  were  the  preparations  made 
among  the  villagers,  and  great  tlie  antici- 
pations raised  among  them  and  through  all 
the  surrounding  community,  in  view  of  the 
advent  of  the  new  and  important  day  of 
"  Election y  Streets  were  cleared  of  lum- 
ber and  rubbish,  side-walks  prepared  of 
plank  or  gravel,  houses  painted,  new  suits 
of  clothes  purchased,  and  everything  made 
to  assume  the  sprucest  appearance.  A 
fine  artillery  company  uniformed  through- 
out with  plumed  Bonaparte  hats  and  the 
dress  of  field  officers  in  all  except  the  epau- 
lette on  the  privates,  was  organized  from 
among  the  first  citizens  of  this  and  the 
neighboring  towns,  to  serve  as  the  gover- 
nor's guard,  and  be  in  special  attendance 
on  Election  days.  Of  this  company  Isaac 
Putnam,  a  man  nearly  six  feet  high,  weigh- 
ing over  two  hundred  pounds,  well  propor- 
tioned, and  as  noble  in  soul  as  in  body, 
had  the  honor  of  being  chosen  the  first 
captain,  and  no  one  of  those  present  now 
living  can  fail  to  recall  his  fine  and  com- 
manding military  appearance  on  those  oc- 
casions as  he  stood  up  between  his  soldiers 
and  the  encircling  crowd,  like  Saul  among 
the  people.  An  iron  six-pounder  field 
piece  had  been  procured  ;  and  a  thrill  of 
excitement  ran  through  the  excited  hearts 
of  all  the  boys  of  the  community  at  the 
news,  that  when  the  election  of  State 
officers  was  declared  on  Election  clay,  "  a 
cannon,  a  great  cannon,  was  to  be  fired  in 
Montpelier  Hollow  !" 

The   eventful  day  at  length  came,  and 


with  it  two-thirds  of  the  population  of  all 
the  neighboring  country,  15  or  20  miles 
around,  came  pouring  into  the  village. 
But  instead  of  attempting  any  further  gen- 
eral description  of  the  then  entire  novelties 
of  the  day  and  their  eftect  on  the  multitude, 
we  will,  at  the  risk  of  the  imputation  of 
losing  our  dignity  as  a  historian,  again 
have  recourse  to  the  reminiscences  of  our 
boyhood.  We  were,  of  course,  there  on 
that  day  among  the  throngs  of  excited 
boys,  congregated  from  all  quarters,  to 
witness  the  various  sights  and  performances 
expected  on  that  important  occasion.  A 
showy  procession  had  been  formed  in  the 
fore  part  of  the  day,  led  by  tlie  military  in 
all  the  marching  pomp  of  flying  colors  and 
rattling  drums,  and  followed  by  the  State 
officers,  members  of  the  legislature  and  a 
concourse  of  citizens,  and  the  Election 
sermon  had  been  preached  by  the  Rev. 
Sylvanus  Haynes,  pastor  of  the  Baptist 
Church  of  Middletown.  The  House  of 
Representatives  had  been  organized  by  the 
election  of  Dudley  Chase,  Esq.,  of  Ran- 
dolph, Speaker;  and  a  canvassing  com- 
mittee appointed  still  earlier  in  the  day  and 
put  to  work  in  counting  the  votes  for  State 
officers.  And  as  the  hour  of  sunset  ap- 
proached, and  as  there  had  been  for  some 
hours  no  public  demonstrations  to  be  wit- 
nessed, a  great  proportion  of  the  crowd 
was  scattered  all  over  the  village.  We 
and  a  lot  of  other  boys  were  standing  in 
the  street  somewhere  against  our  present 
Court  House,  when,  sudden  as  the  burst- 
ing of  a  thunderclap,  the  whole  village 
shook  with  the  explosion  of  the  cannon  on 
the  State  House  common.  VV^e  all  instant- 
ly ran  at  the  top  of  our  speed  for  the  spot. 
When  we  had  got  about  half  way  there, 
we  met  a  gang  of  other  boys  from  one  of 
the  back  towns,  who,  taken  by  surprise 
and  seized  with  panic  at  the  stunning 
shock,  were  fleeing  for  their  4ives  in  the 
opposite  direction ;  but  gaining  a  little 
assurance  from  seeing  us  rushing  toward 
the  scene  of  their  fright,  one,  braver  than 
the  rest,  stopped  short,  boldly  faced  about 
and  exclaimed,  "Hoo!  I  an't  a  n'attom 
afraid !"  and  all  now  joining  in  the  race, 
we  were,  in  another  minute,  within  a  few 
rods  of  the  smoking  gun,  which  had  been 
discharged  on  the  announcement  of  the 
election  of  Isaac  Tichenor  as  Governor. 
The  next  moment  our  attention  was  at- 
tracted by  the  voice  of  Israel  P.  Dana, 
sherift'of  the  county,  standing  on  the  upper 
terrace  of  the  State  House,  and  loudly  pro- 
claiming— "Hear  ye!  hear  ye !  hear  ye! 
the  Honorable  Paul  Brigham  has  been 
elected  Lieutenant  Governor,  in  and  over 
the  State  of  Vermont,  by  the  suffrages  of 
the  freemen .    God  save  the  people !"    Then 


556 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


another  discharge  of  the  piece  saluted  our 
recoiling  ears  and  sent  its  sharp  echoes 
from  side  to  side  between  the  encircling 
hills.  Then  came  the  announcement  of 
the  election  of  Benjamin  Swan  as  Treas- 
urer, followed  by  a  third  gun ;  then  the 
last  announcement  of  the  election  of  Coun- 
cillors, followed  by  a  fourtli  gun  ;  and  then, 
without  further  official  announcements,  the 
salute  of  guns  was  continued  till  one  for 
each  of  the  states  had  been  fired. 

Such  were  the  performances  on  the  first 
Election  day  in  Montpelier,  and  such  the 
interest  and  excitement  they  created  among 
the  multitude. — Thompson. 

HON.    JOSEPH   POLAND, 

second  son  of  the  late  Dea.  Luther  and 
Nancy  (Potter)  Poland,  was  born  in 
Underbill,  Mar.  14,  181S;  removed  with 
his  father  in  1821  to  Coifs  Gore,  now 
Waterville,  and  worked  on  a  farm  till  1835, 
when  he  came  as  an  apprentice  to  the 
Montpelier  W^atcJmian  office,  and  remain- 
ed until  1839.  January  i,  1839,  l''^  com- 
menced the  publication  of  the  Voice  of 
Freedofft,  but  in  less  than  a  year  sold  out 
on  account  of  ill  health.  In  June,  1840, 
he  started  the  Lamoille  Whig  at  Johnson, 
and  continued  it  3  years.  In  1844,  he  re- 
turned to  Montpelier,  and  established  the 
Green  Mountain  F?-ee)nan,  and  continued 
it  until  Dec.  1848.  In  1868,  in  connection 
with  his  son,  J.  Monroe,  he  purchased  the 
Watchman  and  Journal,  of  which  he  is 
still  in  charge.  It  is  probable  that  no  ed- 
itor in  Vermont,  now  in  the  harness,  has 
had  Mr.  Poland's  experience  of  25  years  in 
connection  with  the  public  press. 

Mr.  Poland  has  held  numerous  public 
offices,  the  duties  of  all  having  been  faith- 
fully performed:  In  1842,  assistant  clerk 
of  the  House  of  Representatives;  1852-3, 
judge  of  probate  for  Washington  County ; 
i858-'6o,  state  Senator;  i870-'7i,  town 
representative;  1861-68,  collector  of  U. 
S.  internal  revenue  for  the  first  Congres- 
sional District;  1849-1881,  secretary  and 
director  of  The  Farmers'  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Co7Hpatiy — offices  which  he  has 
held  ever  since  the  organization  of  the 
company,  and  to  which  he  has  been  an- 
nually elected  by  unanimous  votes. 

Mr.  Poland  may  well  be  ranked  as  a 
veteran    in     the    celebrated    anti-slavery 


movement  which  has  now  become  histori- 
cal, having  enlisted  in  1843,  and  conducted 
the  organ  of  the  party  in  Vermont,  and 
served  as  chairman  of  its  State  Committee, 
for  many  years  ;  so  that  he  may  now  prop- 
erly indulge  in  the  double  boast  of  both 
him  that  girdeth  on  the  harness  and  he 
that  putteth  it  off — having  lived  to  see 
American  slavery  not  only  forever  extin- 
guished by  the  organic  law  of  the  land,  but 
remembered  only  with  such  detestation 
that  history  blushes  at  the  record. 

In  1840  Mr.  Poland  married  Mary  Ann, 
daughter  of  the  late  Joseph  Rowell.  They 
had  7  children,  of  whom  5  have  died : 
3  in  infancy,  Clara  A.,  a  beautiful 
daughter,  in  1865,  and  Charles  F.,  when 
developing  into  a  promising  manhood,  in 
1875.  Two  sons  survive,  J.  Monroe  and 
Edward  R.  Mrs.  Poland  died  in  1862, 
and  in  1873  Mr.  P.  married  Miss  Julia M. 
Harvey,  daughter  of  James  K.  Harvey,  of 
Barnet,  deceased. 

Mr.  Poland  joined  the  first  Congrega- 
tional (Bethany)  church  in  1839,  "^"^^  ^'^^ 
several  years  he  has  been  one  of  its  deacons, 
an  earnest  worker  in  its  Sabbath-school, 
and  a  promoter  of  all  reformative  and 
Christian  enterprises.  He  is  favorably 
known  in  the  churches  of  Vermont,  and  is 
now  publisher  of  two  religious  newspapers, 
the  Vermont  Chronicle  and  the  A'cio  Hamp- 
shire Journal.  E.  P.  w. 

OLD   PEOPLE   OF    1 88 1. 

The  oldest  man  living  in  town  is  Dr. 
Nathaniel  C.  King,  born  July  19,  1789; 
settled  in  the  north  part  of  the  old  town  in 
1805,  and  came  to  the    village  to  reside  in 

1875- 

The  oldest  woman  residing  in  town  is 
Mrs.  Lucy  Mead,  born  July  2^,  1789;  has 
been  a  resident  of  the  village  since  1813. 

The  oldest  person  living  in  the  village, 
and  born  in  the  limits  of  the  old  town,  is 
Orin  Cummins,  born  Feb.  23,  1801. 

The  oldest  person  living  in  the  village, 
born  in  the  limits  of  the  new  town,  is  John 
Q.  A.  Peck,  born  in   1808. 

The  oldest  person  living  in  town  and 
born  in  the  village  limits,  is  Snow  Town, 
born  in  1806. 


J/"^"''*^ 


MONTPELIER. 


557 


The  oldest  person  living  in  the  village, 
and  born  in  the  village,  is  Wm.  Nelson 
Peck,  born  Sept.  i8,  1811. 

The  oldest  resident  of  the  village  is  Hon. 
Elijah  Paine  Jewett,  who  has  resided  here 
since  1805,  and  is  80  years  of  age. 

The  oldest  French  resident  of  the  town 
is  Joseph  Wood,  who  came  in  1831,  and 
is  now  85  years  of  age. 

The  oldest  Irish  resident  in  town  is 
James  McLaughlin,  who  came  in  1832,  and 
is  now  80  years  of  age.  Mr.  John  Murphy 
came  in  1834,  and  is  now  86  years  of  age. 

WILLIAM    W.    CADWELL. 

Among  the  very  old  and  worthy  citizens 
of  Montpelier  was  William  W.  Cadwell, 
who  was  born  in  Hatfield,  Mass.,  May  12, 
1799,  and  in  the  same  year  was  brought  to 
Montpelier  by  his  father,  Wyllis  I.  Cadwell. 
He  succeeded  his  father  in  trade  for  many 
years,  and  on  retiring  was  employed  as 
town  clerk,  magistrate,  overseer  of  the 
poor,  &c.  He  was  esteemed  as  an  honest 
man,  always  having  the  interests  of  the 
town  at  heart.  He  died  suddenly  in  1877, 
aged  78  years. 

The  above  was  not  written  in  time  to 
appear  with  the  biographies  of  deceased 
citizens  of  Montpelier.  e.  p.  w. 

[We  had  filed  and  overlooked  till  now.] 

MRS.    GOVERNOR    RANSOM, 

a  native  of  Montpelier,  and  a  sister  of 
William  W.  Cadwell,  Esq.,  who  died  at 
the  residence  of  her  son-in-law  in  Fort 
Scott,  Kansas,  Nov.  17,  1877.  She  was 
for  many  years  a  resident  of  Michigan,  of 
which  state  her  husband  was  both  gover- 
nor and  chief  justice.  Mrs.  Ransom's 
name  before  marriage  was  Almira  Cadwell. 
The  home  of  the  Cadwells  was  in  the  old 
house  still  standing  at  the  head  of  State 
Street.  Mrs.  Constant  W.  Storrs  and 
Mrs.  Geo.  P.  Ricker  are  the  only  represen- 
tatives of  the  old  family  left  here,  now. 
Almira  Cadwell,  it  is  said,  was  a  beautiful 
girl.  The  old  house  was  considered  the 
only  house  in  Montpelier  worthy  to  re- 
ceive Lafayette  in,  on  his  visit  to  the  capi- 
tal of  the  State  of  the  Green  Mountain 
Boys,  for  whom  the  great  French  General 
always  had  a  particular  admiration. 


MRS.    SARAH   SPALDING, 

widow  of  the  late  Hon.  John  Spalding,  who 
was  for  many  years  the  treasurer  of  the 
State  of  Vermont,  died  at  her  home  in 
Montpelier  Jan.  19,  1874,  in  her  83d  year. 
Mrs.  Spalding,  a  virtuous  and  excellent 
woman,  was  a  great  sufferer  for  many 
years  previous  to  her  death,  and  an  inva- 
lid for  over  40  years.  A  few  days  before 
her  death,  she  had  a  second  paralytic 
shock,  after  which  she  was  never  able  to 
speak.  She  was  the  mother  of  8  children, 
among  whom  was 

CHARLES   C.    SPALDING, 

a  graduate  of  Burlington  College,  see  page 
"Charles  Spalding  was  first  civil  en- 
gineer for  a  time.  In  1849,  when  the 
California  gold  fever  broke  out,  he  was 
among  the  pioneers  who  sought  that  auri- 
ferous land,  making  the  passage  in  a  sailing 
vessel  around  Cape  Horn.  His  success  at 
mining  was  indifferent.  Returning  home 
via  the  Pacific  coast  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexi- 
co, he  spent  about  a  year  in  Montpelier, 
when  he  went  to  New  York  and  entered 
the  service  of  Harnden  &  Co.  as  express 
messenger  between  New  York  and  Boston. 
Soon  going  West,  he  engaged  in  survey- 
ing and  railroad  engineering  in  Ohio,  Illi- 
nois and  Kentucky.  At  the  time  of  the 
establishment  of  Kansas  as  a  territory,  he 
was  living  in  one  of  the  border  counties 
of  Missouri,  where  he  married  a  Missouri 
lady.  He  took  part  in  the  establishment 
of  its  territorial  government,  making  pre- 
liminary surveys  and  encouraging  immigra- 
tion by  writing  special  letters  to  the  New 
York  Tribune,  which  attracted  no  little 
attention  in  the  East.  He  published  a  pa- 
per in  Lawrence,  Kansas,  and  was  elected 
an  alderman,  and  was  for  a  short  time 
mayor  of  the  city.  He  took  the  democrat- 
ic side  on  the  outbreak  of  the  Kansas  war, 
and  soon  after  left  the  state.  He  after- 
wards taught  school,  and  at  the  breaking 
out  of  the  war  returned  to  the  East,  en- 
listing in  the  6th  Vermont  Regiment, 
served  2  years,  came  home  and  started  the 
Newport  Netvs,  at  Newport,  Vt.  This  he 
sold,  and  went  to  Boston  in  1866,  and  took 
a  position  on  the  Boston  Post.  In  1869, 
he  became  connected  with  the  Boston 
Herald,  and  remained  with  that  paper  up 
to  the  time  of  his  decease.  He  had  been 
suffering  from  a  complication  of  diseases, 
and  his  death  was  not  unexpected. — Biir- 
lingtoti  Free  Press. 

He  was  perhaps  best  known  to  the  pub- 
lic through  the  police  court  column  of  this 
journal,  which  he  has  written  almost  con- 


5S8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tinuously  for  several  years  past.  The  hu- 
mor, the  philo-sophy,  the  philanthropy, 
which  he  has  there  introduced  into  his 
homilies  upon  the  doings  of  the  criminal 
classes  of  this  Metropolis,  have  endeared 
him  in  the  hearts  of  thousands  of  people 
who  knew  him  not  personally,  and  who 
will  regret  sincerely  his  demise. — Rutland 
Herald. 

[See  biography  of  Hon.  John  Spalding, 
page  487.] 

JAMES   REED   SPALDING, 

of  the  class  of  1840,  died  at  Dover,  N.  H., 
early  in  October,  1872,  in  the  fiftieth  year 
of  his  age.  He  was  a  native  bf  Montpelier, 
and  chose  journalism  as  his  profession, 
soon  after  his  graduation.  He  first  gained 
reputation  as  the  chief  editorial  writer  of 
the  New  York  Courier  and  Enquirer,  dur- 
ing the  last  year  of  its  existence.  From 
that  paper  he  went  to  the  New  York 
World,  which  he  was  interested  in  estab- 
lishing as  a  religious,  rather  than  a  political 
newspaper  ;  but  the  experiment  soon  failed 
in  that  form,  and  when  Mr.  Marble  got 
possession  of  the  paper,  and  turned  it  into 
a  democratic  organ,  Mr.  Spalding  left  it 
and  went  upon  the  Times,  where  he  re- 
mained many  years  and  did  his  best  work. 
His  daily  leader — generally  upon  a  politi- 
cal subject — was  uniformly  the  best  piece 
of  writing  upon  the  editorial  page,  uniting 
vigor  with  finish,  full  knowledge  of  his 
theme,  and  a  statesman's  grasp  of  its  rela- 
tions. He  had  his  first  attack  of  paralysis 
before  the  death  of  Mr.  Raymond,  and  re- 
tired to  the  country,  but  for  some  months, 
at  least,  kept  up  his  constant  contributions 
to  the  editorial  department  of  the  paper. 
He  was  a  man  of  high  literary  attainments 
and  was  an  essayist  rather  than  an  editor. 
To  a  moral  character  of  great  purity  was 
added  the  fervor  of  Christian  faith,  which 
did  not  find  utterance  in  noisy  declaration, 
but  shone  luminously  in  the  simplicity  of 
his  manners,  and  the  consecration  of  his 
splendid  powers  to  the  advocacy  of  such 
principles  as  he  deemed  best  calculated  to 
benefit  mankind.  The  disease  which  im- 
paired his  powers  in  later  life  and  eventu- 
ally caused  his  death  was  apoplectic  paraly- 
sis. One  of  his  finest  public  eff"orts  was 
an  oration  delivered  at  the  semi-centennial 
celebration  of  the  foundation  of  this  Uni- 
versity, in  1854. — U.  I'.  M.  Obituary. 

Mr.  Spalding  was  brother  of  Rev.  George 
B.  Spalding  of  Dover,  N.  H.,  editor  of 
the  New  Hampshire  Journal,  and  son  of 
Dr.  James  Spalding — p.  445.  Dr.  James 
and  Hon.  John  Spalding,  father  of  Charles 
Carrol,  were  brothers. 


MARCUS   D.    OILMAN, 

born  in  Calais,  Jan.  28,  1820,  came  to 
Montpelier  in  1835,  and  was  engaged  in 
merchandise  there  and  at  Northfield  until 
1845,  when  he  started  out  on  a  tour  in 
search  of  a  favorable  place  in  which  to 
locate.  This  tour  embraced  the  Atlantic 
cities  from  Boston  to  Baltimore,  and  the 
western  cities  and  promising  towns  to  the 
Mississippi  river.  He  was  greatly  im- 
pressed by  Chicago,  then  a  fresh  city  of 
about  8000  inhabitants,  among  whom  were 
many  Vermonters.  Having  in  the  mean- 
time married  Maria  Malleville,  daughter  of 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  of  Montpelier,  he 
left  that  town  in  June,  1845,  with  his  wife 
and  his  few  effects,  for  Chicago,  and  in  less 
than  a  week  after  his  arrival  formed  a  co- 
partnership with  Charles  Follansbee  for  a 
general  mercantile  business,  wholesale  and 
retail.  At  the  end  of  the  first  year  he  pur- 
chased the  entire  stock,  and  from  that 
time,  either  alone  or  with  different  part- 
ners, Mr.  Oilman  prosecuted  his  business, 
for  most  of  the  time  in  two  wholesale  estab- 
lishments— one  of  dry  goods  and  the  other 
of  groceries;— and  so  successfully  prosecu- 
ted it,  that  he  was  content  to  retire  in  1868, 
when  for  two  years  he  with  his  family  re- 
sided at  Riverside,  Newton,  Mass.,  and 
then  returned  to  the  old  homestead  and 
the  scenes  of  their  childhood  and  youth,  at 
Montpelier,  where  their  beautiful  home 
still  is. 

Politically  Mr.  Oilman  has  been  from 
youth  a  Democrat,  and  his  familiar  ac- 
quaintance with  and  friendship  for  "  Tlie 
Little  Giant,"  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  in- 
spired in  him  a  zeal  that  has  never  flagged. 
He  has  been  the  candidate  of  his  party  for 
Mayor,  and  also  Treasurer  of  Chicago ; 
and  he  was  tendered  the  candidacy  for 
State  Treasurer  of  Illinois,  which  he  de- 
clined. He  was  the  representative  of 
Montpelier,  i874-'5,  and  the  only  man 
ever  elected  as  a  Democrat  since  the  di- 
vision of  the  old  town ;  but  a  Republican 
legislature  had  so  high  an  appreciation  of 
his  integrity  and  business  qualities  that 
he  was  elected  a  Director  of  the  State 
Prison.  He  was  Librarian  of  the  Vermont 
Historical    Society,    1874-1881,    and   has 


N'***;^ 


a^c^^ 


/y&/^^^ 


MONTPELIER. 


559 


rendered  the  Society  and  the  State  inval- 
uable services,  and  his  declination  of  further 
service  is  a  great  loss.  His  taste  is  for 
antiquities,  history  and  biography,  and  his 
private  library  in  these  lines  is  probably 
more  extensive  and  valuable  than  any- 
other  in  the  State.  He  is  an  honorary 
or  corresponding  member  of  various  his- 
torical and  other  organizations.  He  is 
President  of  the  Vermont  Numismatical 
Society,  and  will  ere  long  appear  as  author 
of  a  Bibliography  of  Vennont,  which  he 
has  been  industriously  preparing  for  sev- 
eral years. 

Mr.  Oilman's  political  record  to  this  date 
cannot  be  completed  without  adding  that 
he  was  chairman  of  the  Vermont  delega- 
tion in  the  National  Democratic  Conven- 
tion of  1876,  and  voted  for  Samuel  J. 
Tilden  every  time.  His  democracy  is  cer- 
tainly both  unimpeachable  and  unappeas- 
able. 

For  additional  notices  of  Mr.  Oilman 
and  his  family,  see  atite,  pages  155-157. 

E.  p.  w. 

A   soldier's    letter — WAR   OF    '6 1. 

Extract : — Curtis  A.  Coburn  was  ap- 
pointed regimental  postmaster  at  Brattle- 
boro,  Vt.,  and  also  brigade  postmaster 
while  in  camp  near  Washington ;  we  all 
liked  him  much.  He  was  always  very 
anxious  that  we  should  get  our  mails 
promptly  and  daily,  if  it  was  to  be  got  at. 
He  was  transferred  to  the  Signal  Corps  in 
August  last,  and  was  captured  by  the  reb- 
els while  on  our  retreat  from  Culpepper  to 
Bull  Run,  in  October. 

Sergt.  Hiram  M.  Pierce,  (in  whom  I 
feel  more  particularly  interested,  he  always 
being  with  the  Company,)  has  been  a  good 
soldier  and  done  his  duty  well  in  every 
spot  and  place,  and  by  his  good  conduct 
won  the  esteem  of  every  member  in  the 
company ;  always  cheerful  and  happy. 
While  a  detachment  of  Cos.  B,  O,  and  K, 
were  doing  picket  duty  at  Conrad's  Ferry, 
Md.,  one  year  ago,  he  was  detailed  as  act- 
ing quartermaster  and  also  sergt. -major  of 
the  detachment,  and  in  those  positions  he 
was  found  fully  competent.  By  his  gal- 
lantry at  the  battle  of  Orange  Orove,  he 
proved  himself  to  be  an  earnest,  brave  and 
noble  champion  to  the  cause  of  humanity, 
liberty  and  his  country.  In  the  progess  of 
that  battle  as  we  were  ordered  to  fix  bayo- 
nets and  charge,  on  approaching  the  rail 
fence  he  spoke  so  loud  that  he  was  heard 


by  every  one  in  the  company,  "  Come  on 
Co.  B,"  and  was  one  of  the  first  to  climb 
the  fence.  He  had  been  over  but  a  mo- 
ment when  I  heard  him  exclaim — "  I  am 
wounded,  my  arm  is  broken."  The  next 
time  I  saw  him  was  at  Brandy  Station,  Va., 
several  days  afterwards  ;  as  soon  as  I  heard 
that  the  wounded  had  arrived,  1  went  down 
to  see  them,  and  I  found  Sergt.  Pierce; 
he  appeared  quite  glad  to  see  me,  as  I  was 
to  see  him,  but  1  felt  very  sorry  to  see  him 
with  but  one  arm,  (his  left  arm  was  taken 
off  above  the  elbow) .  He  told  me  that  it 
had  been  very  painful,  for  on  account  of 
the  hasty  retreat  of  the  medical  corps  from 
the  field  in  light  marching  order,  his  arm 
was  not  attended  to  until  two  or  three  days 
after  the  battle. 

Lieut.  Stetson,  who  had  been  in  com- 
mand of  the  company  most  of  the  time 
since  we  have  been  in  the  service,  drew 
my  attention  at  the  battle  of  Orange 
Grove.  He  stood  bravely  at  his  post,  re- 
marking "boys,  keep  cool,  and  do  not 
shoot  until  you  can  see  something  to  shoot 
at !"  Lieut'  Abbott  of  Co.  D,  (then  act- 
ing as  1st  Lieut,  of  Co.  B,)  was  doing  all 
all  he  could  to  keep  a  good  line,  and  also 
to  preserve  good  order  in  the  company. 
After  Oilman  Storrs  was  shot,  a  boy  that 
we  have  missed  very  much,  Lieut.  Stetson 
(whom  you  all  know  is  not  very  easily 
scared),  grasped  a  musket,  and  asking  the 
boys  if  they  had  any  ammunition  for  him, 
I  gave  him  some  caps,  and  some  one  else 
some  cartridges,  when  he  loaded  and  fired 
as  fast  as  he  could,  remarking  that  "  he 
hoped  that  each  bullet  would  do  good  exe- 
cution, for  they  had  killed  his  boy  Oim." 
Lieut.  Abbott  came  out  with  us  as  orderly 
sergeant,  and  after  he  was  promoted  to  2d 
lieut.  of  Co.  D,  the  company  very  gener- 
ously presented  him  a  sword,  belt  and 
shoulder-straps,  costing  about  $50,  as 
a  testimony  of  their  regard  for  him. — 
ll'atc/iinan. 

Curtis  Coburn,  who  enlisted  from  Mont- 
pelier,  learned  the  printer's  trade  at  the 
Repository  ofiice,  of  Mr.  Charles  H.  Sev- 
erance, now  of  the  VVatcfunan  office. 
Coburn  died  in  New  Orleans ;  see  page 
523.  .  Lieutenants  Abbott  and  Stetson,  see 
page  522. 

CHARLES    W.    LYMAN, 

[To  whom  we  find  the  following  tribute 
in  the  Baltimore  Atnerican,^ 

Died,  Oct.  10,  1866,  in  Shelby,  Ohio, 
after  a  short  illness,  C.  W.  Lyman,  former- 
ly of  Montpelier,  leaving  a  young  wife, 
child  and  numerous  friends  to  mourn  his 
untimely  end. 


560 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


He  was  among  the  foremost  who  rallied 
to  his  country's  defense  when  the  tocsin  of 
war  sounded,  serving  faithfully  and  gal- 
lantly as  a  line  officer  in  the  "Wallace 
Zouaves"  of  Indiana.  Subsequently  he 
was  promoted  to  a  position  of  great  respon- 
sibility in  the  Southwest,  where,  for  ability, 
integrity  and  honor,  he  won  the  highest 
encomiums  from  such  men  as  "  Grant, 
Sherman  and  McPherson" — men  whom 
the  nation  loves  to  honor.     As  a  man  and 


a  friend  he  was  generous  to  a  fault,  and 
few  can  boast  of  more  sincere  friendship 
or  warmer  admirers.  As  a  father  and  hus- 
band he  was  all  that  love  and  fidelity  could 
make  him ;  young  and  full  of  ambitious 
hopes,  he  passed  from  our  midst  a  bright 
example  to  all  who  love  the  generous  and 
the  good. —  Watchman. 

His  remains  were  brought  to  Montpelier 
and  interred  in  Green  Mount. 


CENTRAL  VERMONT  DEPOT  AT  MONTPELIER. 

Coming  up  from 
Montpeher  Junction, 
some  less  than  2  miles 
below,  we  arrive  at 
the  Montpelier  station 
in  about  five  minutes' 
ride  from  the  Junction. 
The  cars  stop  at  the 
new  Central  depot, 
which  the  eye  strikes 
but  a  moment  before 
landing  —  almost  the 
same  instant  the  State 
House,  on  the  street 
beyond,  on  higher 
ground,  and  the  prin- 
cipal part  of  State  St. 
running  along  the  river 
side,  opens  up  a  pleas-  ^ 

ant  view  of  the  village  of  the  Green  Moun- 
tain Capital  on  the  first  approach  to  it  by 
railroad  from  St.  Albans  and  Burlington 
way.  The  first  railroad  depot  building, 
which  stood  upon  the  same  site,  was  erected 
in  1850 — a  brick  structure,  150x50  feet, 
creditable  for  the  time,  and  a  beginning; 
but  a  better  building  being  desired  in 
which  to  receive  the  Legislature,  and  more 
suitable  to  the  place,  the  present  commo- 
dious brick  depot  was  erected,  being*com- 
pleted  September  1880.  We  have  the  view 
of  the  exterior ;  the  interior  is  well  and 
conveniently  finished  for  the  Capital  depot ; 
a  very  wide  central  hall — wide  enough  for 
the  town  representatives  of  several  of  the 
smaller  counties  of  the  State  to  walk  through 
abreast — gentlemen    and    ladies'    waiting: 


rooms  upon  the  left,  baggage  room,  tel- 


egraph and  express  offices  upon  the  right. 
The  whole  building,  warmed  by  steam, 
with  all  modern  conveniences. 

The  first  train  of  cars  entered  Mont- 
pelier, June  20,  1849.  The  travelling 
public  found  accommodations  a  few  months 
until  the  first  depot  house  was  built,  in  a 
freight  house,  first  built,  just  over  the  track 
south. 

At  this  point  in  our  description,  failing 
to  find  exact  data  to  continue,  we  wrote  to 
J.  W.  Hobart,  Gen.  Supt.  of  the  Cen.  Vt. 
R.  R.  at  St.  Albans,  that  we  had  the  en- 
graving of  the  depot,  were  preparing  a 
sketch,  and  asking  for  such  data  and  in- 
formation as  he  could  give,  who  has  sent 
the  following  descriptive  letter,  which,  find- 
ing so  interesting,  we  have  concluded  to 
sive  entire : 


MONTPELIER. 


561 


MR.    HOBART'S    letter. 

St.  Albans,  Vt.,  Jan.  2,  18S2. 
Miss  Hemenway  : 

Madam : — Your  tavor  of  the  3 1  st  ult.  came 
duly  to  hand,  and  I  feel  much  interest  in 
the  subject  of  your  enquiries.  Probably 
there  is  no  one  hving  who  is  more  fa- 
miliar with  the  early  history  of  the  railroad 
in  Montpelier  than  myself.  The  advent  of 
the  cars  into  that  beautiful  town  occurred 
on  the  4th  of  July,  1S49,  and  the  tirst  train 
consisted  of  ten  platform  cars,  loaded  with 
100  bbls.  of  fiour  each,  and  covered  with  a 


[Vt.  Mutual  Fire  Ins.  Co.'s  Building, — Railro 

new  white  cheese  canvas  over  each  car. 
The  train  was  drawn  by  engine  Winooski. 
John  Danforth  was  engineer,  and  the  writer 
of  this  was  the  conductor.  Later  in  the 
day,  passenger  trains  ran  in  charge  of  the 
same  persons,  and  well  do  I  remember  the 
interest  manifested  and  the  commotion 
created  among  the  people  who  came  in 
from  the  surrounding  country.  There 
being  a  circus  upon  the  meadow  near  Mrs. 
Nicholas'  house,  on  the  Berlin  side,  which 
taken  together  with  the  usual  4th  of  July 
as  a  holiday,  the  town  was  packed,  and  we 
were  compelled  to  send  men  in  advance  to 
clear  the  way  for  the  train.  Every  build- 
ing from  which  the  cars  could  be  seen  was 
covered,  every  available  window  occupied, 
the  tops  of  buildings  were  covered  if  pos- 
sible, and  even  the  tree-tops  were  alive 
with  people. 

Warner  Hine,  who  was  then  master  of 
transportation,  was  the  acting  agent  at 
that  station  during  the  summer  of  1849. 
In  the  autumn  of  that  year  the  road  was 
completed  to   Waterbury,  and   Mr.    Hine 

71 


with  his  force  was  removed  to  that  station, 
and  Mr.  J.  Edwards  Wright  was  made  the 
first  permanent  station  agent  at  Montpelier, 
where  he  remained  until  Aug.  185 1,  re- 
signing his  position  at  that  time  to  engage 
in  the  purchase  of  wool  in  Ohio.  A.  V.  H. 
Carpenter,  now  the  General  Passenger 
Agent  of  the  Milwaukee  &  St.  Paul  R.  R., 
succeeded  Mr.  Wright,  and  remained  in 
that  position  until  June,  1862,  at  which 
time  he  was  relieved  to  take  another  po- 
sition, and  J.  W.  Hobart  was  enstalled  as 
the  agent.  Up  to  that  time  Mr.  Hobart 
had  been  a  clerk  for  both  Mr. 
Wright  and  Mr.  Carpenter. 
_  As  you  are  aware,  Montpelier 

is  at  the  terminus  of  a  branch 
ofone  and  one-fourth  of  a  mile 
in  length,  and  up  to  October  of 
that  year,  all  the  trains  passed 
in  and  out  over  the  branch.  In 
October  they  discontinued  run- 
ning the  main  line  trains  into 
Montpelier,  but  in  place  estab- 
lished a  branch  train,  consisting 
simply  of  a  small  engine,  fitted 
up  With  seats  each  side  of  the 
tender. 

This  engine  was  called  the 
"Abigail  Adams."  It  was  de- 
termined in  the  course  of  a  very 
few  days  that  it  would  be  im- 
possible to  do  the  business  of 
the  Capital  with  the  facilities 
then  provided.  So  the  Presi- 
dent, Gov.  Paine,  ordered  a 
small  car  built,  as  the  engine 
had  not  sufficient  capacity  to 
AD  Square.]  handle  a  large  car,  except  under 
the  most  favorable  circumstan- 
ces. Meantime,  however,  a  large  car  was 
provided,  and  when  the  business  required 
it,  the  car  was  attached  to  this  miniature 
engine,  which  in  many  instances  proved 
unequal  to  the  task,  and  the  conductor, 
who  was  none  other  than  the  agent  at 
Montpelier,  the  cars  of  the  branch  trains 
having  been  added  to  his  duties,  the 
baggage  master,  and  many  times  the  en- 
gineer, were  compelled  to  push  in  aiding 
the  engine  the  whole  distance,  and  it  was 
not  unfrequently  the  case,  that  the  pas- 
sengers themselves,  in  response  to  a  re- 
quest, would  aid  in  furnishing  power  to 
move  the  train. 

I  cannot  now  give  you  the  name  of  the 
first  engineer  of  this  little  engine,  but  one 
of  the  engineers  who  is  now  there,  came 
soon  afterwards.  (I  refer  to  Mr.  James 
Bowers,  and  I  have  no  doubt  he  will  give 
you  the  name.) 

In  due  time  the  small  car  was  finished, 
and  we  had  less  trouble.  This  car  proved 
quite  a  novelty,  it  having  been  finished 
like  an  omnibus,  with  seats  upon  the  side. 


562 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


This  condition,  however,  did 
not  last  long,  as  it  was  found 
and  admitted  by  the  officers, 
who,  by  the  way,  were  not 
over  and  above  friendly  tn 
Montpelier,  that  the  facilities 
were  entirely  inadequate ;  sc 
a  full  and  quite  a  respectable 
train  was  provided,  consisting 
ofan  engine  called  the  "Flying 
Dutchman,"  a  baggage  and  a 
first-class  passenger  car.  Soon 
after  the  management  chan<; 
ed  from  Northfield  to  St.  Al 
bans,  and  Montpelier  \\a- 
evidently    improved    by    th(_ 

change.     James  Bowers,  who 

is  still  there,  was  one  of  the  "^^^^ 
engineers  who  ran  the  "Flying 
Dutchman."      J.   W.    Hobart 
remained  there  until    March, 
1859,  ^"^^   ^^^^   succeeded  by 
the  present  incumbent,  S.  L. 
Howe,  Esq.,  who  was  for  some   time  pre- 
vious the  assistant  of  Mr.  Hobart.     I  am 
very  nearly  as  familiar  with  the  history  of  the 
railroad  interest  of  Montpelier  since    this 
period,  but  as  it  covers  a  period  of  about  22 
years,  and  my  time  is  limited,  I  leave  it  for 
others,  Mr.  Howe  and  many  others  in  Mont- 
pelier being  perfectly  familiar  with  aftairs 
since  the  above  date  of  1839.     It  gives  me 
much  pleasure  to  communicate  these  facts, 
and  if  they  are  of  any  value  to  you  in  making 
up  the  history    ot    the    best   town    in   the 
State.  I  shall  certainly  be  very  well  paid. 
I  know  very  well  all  the  gentlemen  whose 
portraits  you  have,  and  they  certainly  will 
prove  a  very  valuable   accession    to  your 
history. 

1  intended  to  have  mentioned  earlier  in 
my  letter  that  our  Vice  President,  Mr. 
James  R.  Langdon,  is  perhaps  more  fa- 
miliar with  the  history  of  our  road  than 
any  gentleman  in  Montpelier.  He,  I  think, 
was  one  of  the  original  board  of  directors, 
with  Gov.  Paine  as  President.  If  at  any 
time  you  should  desire  to  make  any  further 
enquiry,  it  will  give  me  pleasure  to  give 
you  such  information  as  I  may  have. 
Hoping  you  will  continue  to  be  as  success- 
ful as  you  have  been  in  the  past,  in  the 
progress  and  completion  of  your  work,  and 
extending  the  compliments  of  the  season, 
I  remain  very  truly  and 

Respectfully  yours, 

J.  W.  Hobart. 

Mr.  Bowers  gives  the  engineers  :  Wm. 
Patterson,  James  Bowers,  Henry  Wallace, 
William  Greenleaf,  Fred  Webster,  Henry 
Buckley,  Ed.  Eaustice,  Chas.  Greenleaf, 
Wm.  Dolloff,  B.  F.  Merrill,  Williahi  Gould, 
Robert  Gregg, David  Daniels,  A.  S.  Caswell. 


[Pavilion  Hotel,  opposite  Central  Vermont  Depot.] 

Through  the  hall  of  the  Central  depot 
)ou  pass  on  a  broad  pavement  of  brick 
over  to  State  street  and  the  Pavilion  hotel, 
from  the  steps  of  which  you  look  back  and 
have  a  good  view  of  the  depot.  The  view 
was  taken  from  the  steps  of  the  Pavilion. 
It  is  at  the  Pavilion  the  Governors  always 
stop  during  the  sessions  of  the  Legislature. 

The  baggage  masters  have  been  :  Z.  R. 
True,  Gamaliel  Washburn,  S.  E.  Bailey, 
C.  T.  Hobart,  H.  W.  Drew,  T.  W.  Bailey, 
E.  W.  Thompson,  W.  H.  Pingree,  James 
Finn.  The  station  agent  was  conductor 
on  the  Branch  till  the  Barre  road  opened, 
since  which  T.  W.  Bailey  has  been  con- 
ductor. S.  L.  Howe  is  the  present  station 
agent. 

Tlie  TelegrapJi  ami  Express  Office. — The 
Vermont  and  Boston  Telegraph  Company 
was  incorporated  by  the  October  Session 
of  the  Legislature,  1848,  and  a  station  es- 
tablished at  Montpelier  in  connection  with 
an  express  office  of  Cheney  &  Co.,  of 
Boston,  opened  in  1849.  The  express 
office  was  first  kept,  until  the  opening  of 
the  passenger  depot,  here,  in  the  Hubbard 
building.  Col.  H.  D.  Hopkins  was  the 
first  manager  of  both  the  telegraph  and 
express  office,  and  for  24  years  after  — 
Bigelow  was  the  first  telegraph  operator. 
Mr.  H.  W.  Drew,  who  succeeded  Col. 
Hopkins,  is  the  present  express  agent  and 
manager  of  the  telegraph  office  ;  Mr.  A.  G. 
Trulan,  operator. 


MONTPELIER. 


563 


The  next  building  of  like  public  interest, 
after  the  Central  depot,  is  the  depot  of 
the 

MONTPELIER  AND  WELLS  RIVER  R.  R., 

run  under  W.  A.  StowelPs  administration 
since  this  road  was  opened,  Nov.  24,  1873  i 
J.  G.  Farwell  station  agent  to  the  present. 
The  conductors  from  here  to  Wells  River 
have  been,  H.  S.  Boutwell,  son  of  Colonel 
Levi  Boutwell,  of  Montpelier.  George 
Smith,  of  this  village,  Henry  Whitcomb, 
of  Jonesville,  Charles  Ferrin,  of  this  vil- 
lage, and  Eugene  Rand,  present  conductor. 

Siipt.  —  W.  A.  Stowell ;  Cashier  and 
GetCl  Passenger  Agent,  Fred.  W.  Morse; 
Train  Master,  Henry  W.  Whitcomb. 

Engineers  and  firemen. — John  Carter, 
James  Hadlock,  Charles  Field,  James 
Boutwell,  George  Cummings,  Geo.  Morse, 
Charles  Noyes,  W.  S.  Keeler,  Herbert 
Lawrence  aud  Harvey  Edgerly. 


[Watchman  &  Journal  Building,  State  St.] 

ANECDOTES  OF    LEVI    BOUTWELL. 
BY  COL.  H.    D.  HOPKINS. 

Col.  Boutwell, — there  was  not  in  all  the 
wide  circle  of  his  acquaintance  a  person 
who  had  seen  another  like  him.  His  face 
was  singularly  expressive.  He  could  look 
savage  enough  to  chill  you  with  fear,  or 
kindly  enough  to  inspire  the  confidence  of 


the  most  doubting  and  timid.  He  said  in 
his  life-time  a  thousand  things  which  for 
genuine  originality  and  severity  were 
worthy  of  a  professional  satirist.  Many  a 
time  have  we  seen  in  town  or  village  meet- 
ing a  prosy  debate  cut  short,  and  the  vote 
reached  by  one  of  his  brief,  gruff  speeches, 
as  in  the  meeting  of  the  Wells  River  rail- 
road company  in  Jan.,  1874.  The  meet- 
ing was  about  to  ballot  for  directors,  when 
one  gentleman  suggested  that  the  Board 
should  consist  of  five  instead  of  nine,  as 
heretofore.  Another  suggested  seven ; 
still  others  were  on  their  feet  ready  to  make 
some  motion  or  suggestion,  or  engage  in 
a  little  speech,  when  the  sturdy  old  Colonel 
sprang  nervously  up,  and  said,  "  I  think, 
Mr.  Chairman,  we  will  have  it  nine.  I 
want  some  to  watch,  as  well  as  others  to 
pray."  This  speech  was  the  end  of  the 
debate  on  that  subject.  The  nine  direc- 
tors were  immediately  ordered,  and  the 
election  made. 

Once  he  was  sitting  in  the  bar-room  of 


OOKBINDERY, 


jATESTREEy^ 

BtpeliehVi 


2MC 


[Rialto  Elock,  State  St.] 

the  "  Pavilion,"  with  his  knees  well  spread 
before  that  familiar  old  fireplace,  while  he 
looked  intently  on  the  burning  pile  before 
him.  His  face  bore  a  specially  stern  look. 
Some  one  came  in,  and  saluted  him  with, 
"  How  are  you.  Colonel  ?"  His  reply  was 
as  apt  as  original.  "  Well,"  he  said  :  "I 
manage  to  keep  tolerably  even   tempered, 


564 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


[WASHINGTON    COUNTV    COLKT    HOUSE,    STATE   STREET.] 


thank  ye  ;  mad  as  the  devil  clear  through 
all  the  time." 

Col.  Boutwell  was  a  supporter  of  the 
"Church  of  the  Messiah" — Unitarian — 
and  a  faithful  attendant  upon  its  services. 
Two  or  three  years  ago,  in  the  summer 
season,  some  little  boys  of  the  neighbor- 
hood got  in  the  way  of  loitering  about  the 
door  and  vestibule  of  the  church  during 
service  hours  Sunday  evenings.  As  they 
became  familiar,  they  become  also  bold 
and  somewhat  noisy.  At  length  they  got 
so  curious  as  to  go  up  and  push  the  door 
to  the  audience  room  a  little  open,  and 
look  in.  Then  if  somebody  in  the  audi- 
ence changed  position  a  little,  so  that  they 
apprehended  danger,  they  would  ' '  cut  and 
run  " ;  but  presently,  when  all  was  quiet 
again,  they  would  repeat  the  experiment. 
At  length  Col.  Boutwell  became  much  dis- 
turbed, and  felt  he  could  stand  the  uncivil 
conduct  of  the  lads  no  longer.  So  he 
went  out  to  rectify  things,  and  give  the 
lads  some  lessons  in  morals  and  good  man-  < 


ners.  The  boys  left  the  house  by  the 
shortest  way,  and  run,  some  up  street, 
some  down,  and  some  across.  The  Col. 
pursued  hotly  in  one  direction.  Leaving 
his  hat  in  the  church,  he  soon  lost  also  his 
wig.  But  without  stopping  to  replace  that, 
he  followed  on.  At  length  he  closed  in 
with  one  of  the  intruders,  and  shaking  him 
and  cuffing  him  in  a  way  more  frightening 
than  damaging,  and  heading  him  toward 
the  church,  he  said,  "  what  are  you  about 
here,  you  little  cuss,  you  ?  Why  ain't  you 
up  in  there  getting  some  religion,  as  you 
ought  to  be,  instead  of  being  out  here 
raising  the  devil  in  this  way  ?" 

The  Colonel  was  uncommonly  bald,  and 
without  his  heavy  dark  wig  looked  not  a 
bit  like  himself.  Once  he  was  in  the  wash 
room  of  the  Pavilion,  and  for  convenience 
in  his  ablutions  had  laid  his  wig  aside. 
Presently  a  young,  spruce  feeling  chap, 
with  extremely  red  hair,  came  in  too. 
Noticing  the  Colonel's  nude  head,  he  in- 
quired, "  well.  Uncle,  why  don't  you  have 


MONTPELIER. 


565 


some  hair  on  your  head  ?"  It  was  an  im- 
pudent question,  and  the  Colonel  knew  it. 
Looking  savagely  on  the  red  head  of  the 
saucy  young  stranger,  he  replied,  "  When 
they  made  me,  and  had  me  all  finished  ex- 
cept my  hair,  they  told  me  that  they  had 
nothing  left  except  red  hair.  I  told  them, 
then,  'I  gad,'  I  wouldn't  have  any.  I 
had  rather  go  without.  They  might  save 
that  for  impudent  young  popinjays  and 
fools."  The  young  inquisitive  and  joker 
was  perfectly  willing  to  drop  the  subject. 


[AKGU^    t    PMUIOT   IU  ILDINt      M  \1\    M  Ittt  1  J 

PRESIDENT   MONROE'S   VISIT. 

(From  "The  ruESiDENT's  Touk,"     By  S.  Putnam 
Waldo,  published  at  Hartford,  Ct.,  1819.) 

"At  10  (a.  m.)  he  was  met  and  wel- 
comed by  the  committee  of  arrangements, 
at  Mr.  Stiles',  in  Berlin.  The  procession 
was  then  formed,  under  direction  of  the 
marshals,  and  proceeded  to  Montpelier. 

A  little  before  1 1,  a  discharge  of  artillery 
announced  the  near  approach  of  the  Chief 
Magistrate  of  the  nation.  On  entering 
the  village,  he  alighted  from  his  carriage, 
and  proceeded  with  the  cavalcade,  on 
horseback,  to  the  Academy,  through  the 
Main  street,  lined  on  each  side  by  citizens, 
under  direction  of  Joseph  Howes,  Esq. 
Returning  to  the  head  of  State  street,  the 
President  dismounted,  was  received  by  the 
'  First  Light  Company,'  commanded  by 
Lieut.  E.  P.  Walton,  and  conducted  to 
the  State  House  under  a  national  salute 
from  the  'Washington  Artillery.' 

In  front  of  the  State  House,  between 
three  and  four  hundred  masters  and  misses, 
students  of  the  Academy  and  members  of 
the  schools  in  the  village,  dressed  in  a  neat 
uniform,  each  tastefully  decorated  with 
garlands  from  the  field  of  nature,  were  ar- 


ranged in  two  lines  facing  each  other,  in 
perfect  order.  Previous  to  the  arrival  of 
the  escort,  the  two  companies  of  Cavalry, 
with  an  expedition  and  regularity  which 
did  them  honor,  had  placed  themselves  at 
a  proper  and  convenient  distance  on  the 
left  of  the  juvenile  procession. 

The  President  walked  through  this  assem- 
blage of  youth,  uncovering  his  head,  and 
bowing  as  he  passed,  entered  the  State 
House  under  a  fanciful  arch  of  evergreens, 
emblematic,  we  trust,  of  the  duration  of 
our  liberties,  on  one  side  of  which  were 
these  words  :  '  July  4,  1776  ; '  on  the  other, 
'Trenton,  Dec.  26,  1776.'  When  in  front 
of  the  house,  in  the  portico  of  the  second 
story,  the  Hon.  James  Fisk,  chairman  of 
the  committee  of  arrangements,  in  presence 
of  the  military  and  a  great  concourse  of 
assembled  citizens,  delivered  the  following 
iddress  : 
To  the  President  of  tJte  United  States: — 

"  Sir  : — The  citizens  of  Montpelier  and 
Its  vicinity  have  directed  their  committee 
to  present  you  their  respectful  salutations, 
and  bid  you  a  cordial  welcome. 

The  infancy  of  our  settlements  places  our 
progress  in  the  arts  and  sciences  something 
behind  most  of  our  sister  states  ;  but  we 
shall  not  be  denied  some  claim  in  a  share 
of  that  ardent  love  of  liberty,  and  the  rights 
of  man,  that  attachment  to  the  honor  and 
mterest  of  our  conntry,  which  now  so  dis- 
tinguish the  American  character  ;  while  the 
fields  of  Hubbardton,  the  heights  of  Wal- 
loomsack,  and  the  plains  of  Plattsburgh,  are 
admitted  to  witness  in  our  favor. 

Many  of  those  we  now  represent,  ven- 
tured their  lives  in  the  Revolutionary  con- 
test, and  permit  us,  sir,  to  say,  the  value 
of  this  opportunity  is  greatly  enhanced  by 
the  consideration,  that  we  now  tender  our 
respects  to  one  who  shared  in  all  the  hard- 
ships and  dangers  of  that  eventful  period, 
which  gave  liberty  and  independence  to 
our  country ;  nor  are  we  unmindful  that 
from  that  period  until  now,  every  public 
act  of  your  life  evinces  an  unalterable  at- 
tachment to  the  principles  for  which  you 
then  contended. 

With  such  pledges,  we  feel  an  unlimited 
confidence,  that  should  your  measures 
fulfil  your  intentions,  your  administration 
under  the  guidance  of  Divine  Providence, 
will  be  as  prosperous  and  happy  as  its 
commencement  is  tranquil  and  promising  ; 
and  that  the  honor,  the  rights  and  inter- 
ests of  the  nation  will  pass  from  your  hands 
unimpaired.  JAMES  FISK, 

For  the  Committee. 

"  To  this  address  the  President  made  an 
affectionate  and  appropriate  reply,  which 
was  received  with  three  times  three  ani- 
mated cheers  by  the  citizens. 


S66 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


The  President  then,  with  his  suite,  com- 
mittee, marshals  and  clergy,  visited  the 
schools  in  the  Representatives''  room, 
which  was  adorned  with  maps  and  globes 
drawn  by  the  scholars  ;  while  the  front  of 
the  gallery  and  chandelier  displayed  a 
beautiful  variety  of  vines  and  ornaments. 
The  scholars  received  him  by  rising,  and 
Mr.  Hill,  the  preceptor  of  the  Academy, 
by  saying,  '  I  present  to  Your  Excellency 
the  finest  blossoms  and  fairest  flowers  that 
our  climate  produces' — he  replied,  '  They 
are  the  finest  nature  can  produce.'     After 


CHURCH    OF    THE    .MESSIAH,    MAIN   STREET 


in.specting  the  maps  and  globes,  with  ap- 
probation, he  retired  ;  was  received  at  the 
door  by  the  '  Washington  Artillery,'  com- 
manded by  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard,  and 
escorted  through  a  line  of  citizens  extend- 
ing from  the  State  House  to  the  dwelling 
of'^Wyllis  I.  Cadwell,  Esq.,  where  he  par- 
took of  a  cold  collation  served  up  with  ad- 
mirable taste  and  elegance. 

The  schools  then  formed  a  procession, 
preceded  by  the  '  First  Light  Company,' 
with  instrumental  music,  and  moved  to  the 
Academy.  In  passing  the  President's 
quarters  they  saluted  him  ;  the  masters,  by 
uncovering  their  "heads ;  the  misses,  by 
lowering  their  parasols. 

The  President  having  signified  his  pleas- 
ure to  dispense  with  the  escort  of  cavalry. 


after  taking  an  aflfectionate  leave  of  the 
committee  of  arrangements,  ascended  his 
carriage,  and  resumed  his  journey  to  Bur- 
lington." 

GEORGE   W.    BARKER. 
BY  C-'L.  H.  D.   HOh-KINS. 

Mr.  Barker  was  at  one  time  postmaster 
of  Montpelier,  and  then  high  sheriff  of  the 
County,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death,  a 
well-known  railroad  contractor  at  Manito- 
woc, Wis.  For  many  years  he  was,  in 
Vermont,  a  leading  man 
at  the  Capital,  and  exert- 
ed a  strong  influence  in 
shaping  the  action  of  the 
democratic  party,  both 
personally  and  through 
the  Vermont  Patriot,  with 
which  he  was  for  a  time 
connected.  When  the  Vt. 
Central  railroad  was  build- 
ing, he  was  one  of  the 
contractors,  and  made 
about  $xo,ooo — a  hand- 
some amount  for  the  time. 
He  subsequently  took  a 
contract  on  the  New  York 
end  of  the  Rutland  and 
Washington  railroad,  but 
when  a  crash  came  in  the 
affairs  of  that  road,  he. 
with  others,  was  obliged 
to  succumb  and  go  down. 
His  loss  was  a  heavy  one, 
and  involved  others  than 
himself,  notably  the  late 
Hon.  R.  R.  Keith,  who 
.suffered  to  the  amount  of 
$15,000.  Mr.  Barker's  next  venture  was 
at  Paineville,  Ohio,  and  would  have  result- 
ed favorably  to  him  but  for  the  fact  that 
the  company  proved  to  be  insolvent.  His 
next  move  was  Manitowoc  above  named. 
Judge  Keith,  who  knew  Mr.  Barker  better 
than  any  other  man  in  Montpelier,  though 
he  lost  by  him,  always  had  confidence  in 
his  capacity  and  integrity.  Mr.  B.  was  a 
genial  man,  a  kind  neighbor,  and  especially 
delighted  to  speak  encouraging  words  to 
young  men,  and  the  results  of  some  of  his 
endeavors  in  this  line  happen  to  be  known 
to  the  writer   of  this   brief  notice.     Mr. 


MONTPELIER. 


567 


Barker  was  a  man  not  to  be  forgotten.  In 
stature,' he  was  very  large,  and  in  manner, 
exceptionally  genial.  Though  a  man  of 
position  and  well-formed  opinions,  he  could 
tenaciously  maintain  his  own  view  of  a 
question  without  wounding  the  feelings  of 
another.  Mr.  Barker  was  very  fond  of 
church  music — especially  of  thefugvie  tunes 
in  vogue  in  the  early  years  of  the  present 
century,  and  he,  Ferrand  F.  Merrill,  Capt. 
A.  A.  Sweet  and  Dr.  Gustavus  H.  Loomis, 
all  of  whom  were  as  fond  of  that  style  of 
music  as  Mr.  Barker  was,  used  to  have 
many  a  pleasant  sit-down  together,  re- 
hearsing them,  and  deploring  their  de- 
parture from  the  choirs  and  the  choir  re- 
pertories. •  Of  these  four  gentlemen,  only 
Capt.  Sweet  is  living  at  this  present  writ- 
ing, Jan.  I 


RESIDE^CE   OF   GEORGE   C.    SHEPAUD,    MAIN   STREET. 


George  C.  Shepard,  youngest  son  of 
the  late  Jonathan  Shepard,  was  born  in 
Montpelier,  Aug.  26,  1820,  and  has  been 
eminently  a  Montpelier  man,  not  only 
spending  his  life  here,  but  bringing  a  wife 
here,  who  is  a  grand-daughter  of  one  of 
the  earliest  citizens  of  Montpelier,  Thomas 
Brooks,  and  daughter  of  Joseph  Brooks, 
who  was  a  native  of  Montpelier ;  and  he 
brought  her  to  a  beautiful  Montpelier 
home,  in  the  dwelling  of  the  late  Hon. 
Samuel  Prentiss,  which  has  been  remodel- 
ed and  improved  so  as  to  become  as  charm- 


ing a  home  as  the  town  can  boast  of.  Mr. 
Shepard  availed  himself  so  well  of  our 
schools  and  Academy,  that  he  has  been 
able  to  discharge  successfully  every  public 
duty.  He  is  prominent  socially,  polit- 
ically and  financially.  For  some  years  he 
was  Director,  Vice-President  and  Presi- 
dent of  the  old  Bank  of  Montpelier,  and 
he  has  been  Director  and  Vice-President 
of  the  Montpelier  National  Bank.  He 
represented  the  town  in  the  Legislatures  of 
1862  and  '63,  and  has  also  represented  his 
Congressional  District  in  a  National  Con- 
vention of  the  Republican  partv. 

E.  p.  \v. 
COL.    ABEL   carter, 

who  during  the  last  days  of  his  life  occu- 
pied the  house  now  owned  and  occupied  by 
Col.  Fred  E.  Smith,  oh  Elm  street,  was  a 
man  to  be  remembered. 
He  was  by  trade  a  saddler 
and_  harness-maker,  and  a 
man  of  very  positive  feel- 
ings and  opinions,  espe- 
cially in  politics.  As  an 
abolitionist,  he  was  out- 
spoken, even  to  bitterness, 
and  delighted  to  get  into 
an  argument  with  a  con- 
servative whig,  that  he 
might  ply  him  with  hard 
questions.  His  hatred  of 
slavery,  slave-holders  and 
their  apologists — Northern 
dough-faces,  as  he  delight- 
ed to  call  them,  was  most 
intense.  He  was  sheriff  of 
Washington  Co.  from  1833 
to  1837,  and  held  the  office 
of  Sergeant-at-Arms  at  the  State  House 
one  year,  1837  to  '38. 

Another  prominent  and  well-known  cit- 
izen of  Montpelier  for  many  years  previous 
to  1868,  was 

GAMALIEL   WASHBURN, 

who  occupied  a  small  cottage  house  on 
Elm  street,  opposite  the  old  cemetery. 
He  was  for  many  years  jailor,  and  also 
janitor  in  the  old  Brick  Church,  and  his 
polite  attentions  to  the  needs  of  all  wor- 
shipers there,  are  well  remembered.  He 
was  a  prominent  Mason,  and  as  such  was 


568 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


highly  respected.  Two  lodges  of  the  order 
are  named  in  honor  of  his  memory,  one  at 
Danville,  and  another  in  Montpelier.  He 
died  in  Dec.  1868.  h.  d.  h. 

THE   OLD   BRICK   CHURCH. 

BY  COL.  H.  D.  HOPKINS. 

[From  a  full  account  of  tlie  "  Old  Brick  "  anil  the  new 
"Betliany"'  clmrcli  in  files  of  the  Argus  .{■  Patriot.^ 

Appreciating  the  uses  of  Christian  wor- 
ship, the  fathers  of  the  town  began  in  1817 
to  discuss  the  propriety  and  necessity  of  a 
house  for  this  purpose.  The  first  act  was 
the  formins^r  of  the   "Montpelier  Meetiny- 


INTERIOK  OF  BKTHAXV  CHURCH. 


house  Society,  consisting  of  62  gentlemen 
at  first,  and  which  list  embraces,  we  judge, 
all  the  then  prominent  men  of  Montpelier : 
Samuel  Prentiss,  Samuel  Goss,  E.  P.  Wal- 
ton, Geo.  Worthington,  Nicholas  Baylies, 
Sylvanus  Baldwin,  Daniel  Baldwin,  Holden 
Putnam,  Jonathan  Shepard,  and  others. 
In  Dec.  1820,  the  list  was  augmented  by 
25  names  more.  Of  these  active  men 
none  are  now  living. 

The  society  at  its  first  meeting,  Nov.  4, 
1817,  voted  to  build  a  house,  Sylvanus 
Baldwin,  Jeduthan  Loomis,  Samuel  Goss, 
Calvin  Winslow  and  J.  H.  Langdon  to  re- 
port  a   plan ;    Lovewell    Warren,    Joseph 


Wiggins,  Joseph  Howes  "to  view  the  sites 
proposed,  ascertain  prices  and  conveniences 
of  each."  Nov.  12.  "committee  on  plan" 
made  their  report,  not  accepted ;  were  in- 
structed to  furnish  a  plan  with  steeple  or 
cupola. 

Nov.  24th,  it  was  voted  the  house  should 
be  for  the  use  of  the  First  Congregational- 
ist  Society  in  Montpelier,  under  the  control 
of  the  proprietors  ;  the  sale  of  pews  to 
commence  at  the  State  House,  Nov.  29th  ; 
every  note  for  the  purchase  of  a  pew  should 
be  payable  to  the  society, 
and  divided  into  three  equal 
annual  payments,  one-half 
in  neat  stock  or  grain,  and 
one-half  in  money ;  and  the 
house  was  to  be  60x70  feet, 
' '  exclusive  of  cupola  or  stee- 
ple," with  122  pews. 

Three  lots  were  sharply 
contested  for,  one  the  site 
of  the  old  brick  house  back 
of  Mrs.  Hyde's;  one  the  lot 
of  Mrs.  Joseph  Reed,  oppo- 
site the  State  House,  and 
the  other  that  on  which  the 
Brick  church  was  built.  They 
had  to  resort  to  the  ballot, 
taken  at  the  State  House, 
Dec.  loth,  which  resulted 
for  the  Houghton  "spot." 
The  house  cost  over  $6,000. 
We  cannot  state  when  it 
was  ready  for  occupancy, 
but  its  use  was  tendered  to 
the  General  Assembly  for 
the  Election  Sermon  on  the  2d  Thursday, 
Oct.  1820,  and  to  the  Masonic  Society  the 
day  previous,  and  Dec.  29th,  105  pews  had 
been  sold  for  $7,620,  of  which  Calvin  Wins- 
low,  the  contractor,  received  $7,000.  The 
highest  price  paid  for  a  pew  was  $151,  by 
Joseph  Howes.  Richard  Wilkins,  Jedu- 
than Loomis  and  Samuel  Goss  paid  $150 
each  for  a  pew  ;  Chester  Houghton,  $140  ; 
Jonathan  Shepard,  $120;  Salvin  Collins, 
$117.  .  .  .  And  the  old  Brick  church 
remained  the  Sabbath  home  of  this  society 
for  more  than  45  years.  The  last  service 
in  it  was  Sunday,  May  6,  1866.  In  a  few 
days  the  walls  of  the  old  church  and  the 


MONTPELIER. 


569 


Masonic  hall  were  leveled  to  the  ground, 
and  the  present  Bethany  church  occupies 
the  site. 

Bethany  exterior,  124x72,  height  of 
nave,  65  feet ;  Gothic  architecture  ;  tower 
height,  68  feet,  21x21;  chapel,  50x35; 
ridge,  36  feet  from  ground  ;  church  and 
tower,  walls  and  buttresses,  dark  red  stone  : 
arches,  mouldings,  etc.,  dark  blue  stone; 
chapel  walls,  Burlington  stone,  almost 
white,  with  warm  flush  of  rose  ;  trimmings, 
of  dark  red  stone ;  at  eastern  vestibule, 
with  wide  corridor  and  three  porches,  with 


opens  up :  Interior  divided  by  columns 
into  nave  and  aisle,  with  an  apsidal  chan- 
cel;  church  and  chancel,  deep  wainscotted 
in  chestnut,  with  black  walnut  cap  and 
base  ;  beams  of  the  roof  cased  in  chestnut ; 
ceiling,  a  clear  blue ;  walls,  a  soft  stone 
color ;  aisle-roof,  nave-roof,  arches,  clere- 
story, spandals  pierced  with  capsed  open- 
ings, all  highly  ornamental ;  principal  tim- 
bers of  the  roof,  richly  moulded  ;  roof  open 
quite  to  the  ridge,  60  feet  high  from  the 
floor  of  the  audience  room.  The  roof  of 
the  chancel  is  supported  by  detached  shafts. 


RESIDENCE   OF   JOSEPH   POLAND,    SCHOOL   STREET. 


tall  gables  finished  with  cappings  of  the 
dark  blue  stone,  terminated  with  foliated 
crosses ;  and  in  the  gable  of  the  centre 
porch,  in  wall-recess,  with  pointed  arch, 
the  great  rose-window,  rich  in  tracery  and 
stained  glass ;  from  the  cornice  of  the 
belfry  rises  the  spire,  enriched  with  shafted 
windows,  canopies,  ornamental  slating,  to 
a  finial  and  cross  of  gold,  153  feet  from 
the  ground  ;  between  the  side  walls  of  the 
church,  arched  windows,  supported  by  but- 
tresses, filled  with  tracery  ;  roofs  of  church, 
chapel  porches,  covered  with  slating  in  al- 
ternate bands  of  plain  and  shell-work. 
As  you  enter  from  the  vestibule,  thus  it 

72 


their  moulded  bases  resting  on  corbels  in 
the  angles  of  the  apsis ;  carved  ribs  rising 
from  these  shafts  to  the  stained  glass  sky- 
light in  the  centre  ;  the  chancel  is  separated 
from  the  nave  by  a  richly-moulded  arch, 
resting  on  clustered  shafts ;  windows  all 
with  arched  mouldings,  resting  on  orna- 
mental corbels. 

Choir  and  organ  in  the  chancel,  sepa- 
rated from  the  pulpit  by  columns  and  in- 
terlacing arches.  The  blue  ceiling  here 
has  crimson  and  buff  borders,  panels  with 
ornaments  in  color  and  panels  with  me- 
dallions. The  walls  of  the  chancel  are 
maroon,  border  of  crimson  and  buff,  vine 


57° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  oak  leaves  in  blue  ;  chancel  windows, 
stained  glass,  bordered  in  blue,  each  with 
medallion  in  crimson ;  purple  wall  below 
each  window,  border  of  olive,  white  and 
green,  with  two  panels  with  Gothic  heads 
and  spandrels  filled  with  ornaments.  The 
whole  coloring  of  the  interior  is  exceed- 
ingly rich  and  chaste,  over  nave  and  aisles, 
as  well  as  chancel.  The  compartments 
formed  in  the  blue  ceiling  by  the  roof 
timbers,  have  wide,  rich  borders — diag- 
onal bands  of  crimson  and  bulT.  The  roof 
timbers  are  a  rich  maroon,  flecked  with 
orange,  yellow,  and  a  stellar  pattern  in 
lighter  maroon  ;  the  shields  on  the  ends  of 
hammer-beams,  a  white  ground  with  crim- 
son border  and  scroll  ornaments;  "walls 
and  columns  below,    neutral  gray ;  shafts. 


BAPTIST   CHURCH,    SCHOOL    STREET. 


colors  of  the  stained  glass  in  the  whole 
interior,  chancel,  side  walls,  clere-story, 
exceedingly  beautiful.  The  chancel  win- 
dows and  large  rose  windows  are  es- 
pecially rich,"  with  a  declaration  of  the 
Most  Holy  Trinity  in  the  centre  light  of 
the  great  rose  window. 

Our  view  represents  the  Interior  of 
this  church.  For  the  history  of  Bethany, 
see  Mr.  Waltonls  paper,  page  288 ;  also 
396-407.  For  the  historian  who  writes 
up  the  history  of  the  next  hundred  years  of 
Montpelier,  this  handsome  edifice  of  stone 
will  remain  perfect,  as  now ;  to  the  old 
which  has  already  passed  away,  we  there- 
fore give  the  more  space  and  the  more  care 
to  gather  up  its  fragments  now,  before  ir- 
revocably lost. 

The  organ  is  superbly 
pleasing  to  the  eye,  har- 
monizes admirably  with 
the  interior  of  the  church, 
and  for  general  quality  of 
tone,  and  characteristic 
voicing  of  individual  stops, 
^,==  we  have   never  heard  ex- 

celled :  The  clarionette 
seems  like  the  veritable 
instrument  itself,  the  obeo 
approximates  more  nearly 
to  the  true  imitation  than 
any  stop  we  have  ever 
heard  called  by  its  name — 
the  Tox  Jiumana — people 
hearing  it  are  actually  de- 
ceived by  it,  and  look 
around  to  see  who  is  sing- 
ing. We  have  many  times 
heard  it  pronounced  sec- 
ond to  no  instrument  in 
the  country  of  its  size,  and 
are  not  prepared  to  deny 
the  statement.  Its  first 
concert  was  the  evening 
before  the  dedication  of 
Bethany. 


arch  -  mouldings  of  windows  and  doors 
flecked  out  with  crimson,  green,  purple 
and  flesh  color."  We  are  taken  with  the 
beauty  of  the  coloring,  "the  effect"  of 
which  ."  is    much  enhanced  by   the   rich 


AN   OLD-TIME   SINGING-MASTER, 

Col.  H.  D.  Hopkins,  who  for  35  years 
knew  all  that  was  going  on  in  all  the  choirs 
around  ;  knew  all  the  leading  singers  ;  kept 
singing-school ;    conducted    musical    con- 


MONTPELIER. 


571 


ventions,  and  for  27  years  conducted  the 
musicin  "Brick"and  "Bethany"  churches, 
and  so  on ;  who  knew  the  leaders  in  the 
"  Old  Brick"  from  the  first  day  to  the  end, 
and  who  ought  to  have  been  asked  for  a 
paper  on  this  subject,  and  would  have 
been,  had  the  Compiler  been  aware  of  his 
relations  to  these  matters  in  time.  Moses 
E.  Cheney,  of  Barnard,  the  old  popular 
singing-master  of  the  State,  says,  "  Brother 
Hopkins  must  be  remembered  when  you 
notice  the  churches,  certainly.  He  has 
done  more  free  labor  in  Montpelier  than 
any  other  man,  and  that  so  well." 

The  first  transient  singing-master  that 
ever  taught  here,  says  Mr.  Hopkins,  was 
Joseph  Wilder,  from  Derby,  Vt.,  and  the 
early  choristers  of  the  Brick  church  were 
Hon.  Joseph  Howes,  O.  H.  Smith,  Esq., 
several  years.  Dr.  Gustavus  Loomis,  Chas. 
W.  Badger,  and  Moses  E.   Chenev,  who 


MONTPELIER   UNION   SCHOOL   BUILDING 


led  the  singing  of  the  old  Brick  church 
about  1840,  for  3  years,  and  did  much  to 
inspire  the  service  of  song  with  new  life. 
He,  also,  was  the  projector  and  conductor 
of  the  first  musical  convention  ever  held 
in  Vermont,  and  it  is  believed  in  America. 
It  has  been  so  stated  in  the  public  prints, 
and  has  never  been  denied.  The  con- 
vention was  held  in  the  old  Brick  church. 


May,  1839,  and  was  attended  by  towns- 
people not  only,  but  by  clergymen  and 
lawyers  from  all  parts  of  the  State.  The 
facts  relating  to  this  convention  should 
not  go  unmentioned,  and  the  honor  of  it 
should  be  placed  where  it  belongs,  with 
Moses  E.  Cheney,  the  true  Vermonterand 
antiquarian. 

John  H.  Paddock  was  the  first  organist 
here.  George  W.  Wilder,  who  is  in  busi- 
ness now  at  the  head  of  State  street,  an 
esteemed  citizen  of  Montpelier  at  the  pres- 
ent time,  was  another  organist  at  the  old 
Brick,  also  Miss  Hosford  and  a  Mrs. 
Bigelovv  ;  and  John  and  Zenas  Wood  were 
leading  singers  at  the  "  Old  Brick"  in  its 
palmy  days,  and  perhaps  others—doubtless. 
Mr.  H.  assisted  at,  and  reported  for  all 
the  musical  conventions  held  at  Montpelier 
for  more  than  20  years,  in  which  he  says, 
in  report  of  the  Annual  Central  Vermont 
Musical  Conven- 
tion,held  at  Wash- 
ington Hall,  in  this 
village,  Jan.  '67 — 
four  days.  Mr. 
Phillips,  of  St. 
Albans,  elicited 
the  first  hearty 
applause,  and  Pro- 
fessor N.  L.  Phil- 
lips, of  Barre,  the 
man  who  perhaps 
has  taught  more 
singers  than  any 
other  in  Central 
Vermont,  appear- 
ed in  a  superb  solo. 
We  are  always 
astonished  at  the 
vigor  and  force  of 
that  voice,  a  grand 
type  of  what  we 
wish  all  voices  might  be  at  sixty.  The 
5th  and  6th  same  annual  conventions  Mr. 
Hopkins  directed. 

His  first  letter  to  the  Boston  Journal 
was  written  in  1859,  ^"^^  ^'"^^il  the  failing 
of  his  health,  in  1875,  he  was  the  only 
regular  Vermont  correspondent  of  that 
paper.  He  has  also  written  quite  exten- 
sively for  the  Montpelier  and  other  State 


572 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL    MAGAZINE. 


papers.  For  some  few  years  he  has  been 
too  much  of  an  invalid  for  business  labor, 
but  occasionally  now  writes  a  good  article 
for  press.  We  have  been  indebted  on  these 
last  pages  to  his  present  pen  and  huge  old 
scrap-book  for  several  articles.  As  a  speci- 
men of  the  Colonel's  humorous  vein,  we 
purloin  the  following  : 

TO   MY   OLD    BOOTS. 
BY  SOME  ONE. 

For  three  full  j'ears,  and  soinetliing  more. 

You've  served  me  a  faitliful  "  pair; " 
I  therefore  don't  wonder  that,  all  things  considered. 

You're  looking  "the  worse  for  the  wear." 


SONG   OF   THE    DYING   YEAR. 

BY  JOSEPHINE  M.   SWEET. 

In  the  race  that  thou  hast  run, 
In  this  cycle  of  the  sun. 
Hast  thou  in  life's  hattle  won? 

What  hast  thou  done? 

What  hast  thou  done? 

When  fears  shadowed  o'crtlie  field, 
In  temptation  didst  thou  yield? 
Or  hast  thou  in  life's  battle  won? 

What  hast  thou  done  ? 

What  hast  thou  done  ? 

Hast  thou  fainted  by  tlie  way, 
'  Neath  the  burden  of  noon-day  ? 
Or  hast  thou  in  life's  battle  won  ? 

Wliat  hast  tliou  done  ? 

What  liast  thou  done  ? 


RESIDENCE  OF  MR.   M.  D.  OILMAN,   BALDWIN   ST. 
THE  STATE  CAPITOL. 


Your  "bottoms"  and  "uppers"  were  "A  number  one," 

And  fitting  so  snugly  about. 
Have  made  a  good  place  to  keep  "  a  foot  in," 

While  the  damp  and  the  cold  you  kept  out. 

Yes,  "A  number  one  I  "  I  wear  nothing  else; 

Double  soles— oak-tanned  and  French  calf. 
Albeit  old  Crispin,  with  impertinence,  said, 

"You  wear  number  nine  and  a  half." 

'Twas  a  way  you  had,  much  to  your  credit. 

In  parting,  permit  me  to  say. 
Of  being  quite  constantly  "  round  under  foot," 

And  yet,  not  much  in  the  way. 

In  bidding  you  now  a  long  adieu. 
And  remembering  the  good  yon  have  done, 

I  give  you  permission,  if  tlie  d — 1  don't  get  you, 
To  say  that  your  "  soles  are  your  own." 

And  if  in  the  place  where  you  finally  stop. 
There  should  chance  to  be  paper  and  quill. 

Please  write  me  a  leUer,  and  tell  me  if 
They  permit  you  to  "  go  it  boots"  still. 


Josephine  M.  Sweet,  a 
native  of  Montpelier,  a 
contributor  to  the  Watch- 
man, Green  Mountain 
Freeman,  etc,  under  the 
)iom  de  plume  of  "  Evan- 
geline," for  many  years. 

The  zephyrs  commence 
to  come,  the  poets  from 
abroad  join  to  help  Mont- 
pelier sons  and  daughters 
sing  —  one,  [was  it  the 
Hon.  Wm.  C.  Bradley?] 
It  is  like  his  wit,  very,  and 
of  his  palmy  time,  joins 
in  a 

LA.MENTATION, 

[Written  soon  after  the 
NEXT  DOOR  WEST  OF  ^djo^^i^ent  of  the    Ver- 
mont    Legislature,     Nov. 
1826.] 

Montpelier  mourns— her  streets  are  still, 
Save  when  tlie  street-yarn  ladies  spin; 

And  scarce  a  stranger's  seen  at  Mann's, 
Or  Campbell's,  or  at  Cottrill's  Inn. 

The  guardians  of  the  people's  rights 
Have  done  their  work,  gone  home  to  prove  il ; 

And  let  the  State-house  stand,  because 
Barnum  and  Bailey  could  not  move  it. 

But  though  the  building  stands  secure. 
And  long  may  stand  the  village  boast,' 

Tlie  villagers  are  called  to  mourn 
The  comforts  and  the  friends  they've  lost. 

Their  BuUer''s  gone,  their  Baker,  too; 

Their  Clarkes  have  fled  as  Siri/t  as  thought; 
Tlieir  Barber''s  left  their  chins  uushaved, 

And  e'en  their  Poller''s  gone  to  pot. 

Their  Walkers  nimbly  walked  away. 
Their  Mason  ami  their  Smiths  are  still ; 

Their  Carpenters  lay  down  their  tools. 
Their  honest  Miller  loaves  his  mill. 


MONTPELIER. 


573 


Their  skillful  Fisher-man  lias  gone 

With  Bates  to  lure  ami  Spear  to  strike; 
Witli  him  are  fled  the  Finney  tribe, 

But  more  especially  the  Pike. 
The  Swn7i  they  dearly  loved  to  pick, 

Has  flown,  with  plumage  bright  as  gold; 
Their  Buck  lias  bounded  o'er  the  hills, 

Their  playful  Lamb  has  broke  liis  fold. 

The  Noble  and  the  l'oung\\nya  gone. 
The  Rich  have  left  thera  to  despair; 

Their  Gay,  their  Best  attire  is  lost, 
And  not  a  Spencer^ s  left  to  wear. 

Their  learned  Proctor,  pious  Dean, 
And  holy  Palmer  in  the  lurch, 

Have  left  their  flocks,  and  left  them,  too. 
Without  a  Temple,  Bell  or  Church. 

And  those  who  loved  the  mazy  dance. 
Enjoy  no  more  the  lively  Ball; 

Tliey've  lost,  alas!  their  pleasure  House, 
And  miss  theii-,riclilv-furnislK'd  Hall. 


STATi:    CAl'ITOL. 

They  once  could  boast  a  pleasant  Hill. 

Delightful  Rhodes,  a  charming  Lane, 
A  Warren,  Bridge,  and  Shedd  and  Barnes, 

That  they  may  never  see  again. 

Their  Forrest  and  their  Woods  are  felled. 

The  Major  who  their  forces  led. 
Has  broken  up  his  glittering  Camp, 

And  friendly  Scott  and  French  are  fled. 

All's  lost!  the  men  have  lost  their  Crafts, 
They've  lost  their  Ambler  and  tlieir  Wheeler, 

Have  lost  their  Steele,  their  Peck,  their  Rice; 
And,  oh!  their  women  have  lost  their  Keeler. 

Yes,  all  is  lost,  and  those  who've  gone. 
Have  long  ere  now,  perchance,  forgot  "em ; 

They  lost  their  Solace,  lost  their  Child, 
And  lost  their  Pride,  and  Hyde,  and  Bottum.. 

Amos  W.  Barnum,  Vergennes. 

Benjamin  F.  Bailey,  Burlington. 

His  Excellency  Ezra  Butler,  Waterbury. 

Samuel  S.  Baker,  Arlington. 

Samuel  Clark,  Brattleboro ;  Jonas  Clark, 

Middletown. 
Benjamin  Swift,  St.  Albans. 


David  Barber,  Hubbardton. 

Abel  W.  Potter,  Pownal. 

Leonard    Walker,   Springfield;  James   O. 

Walker,  Whiting. 
Leonard  Ufa  son,  Ira. 

Ira  Siiiitli,  Orwell ;  Asahel  Smith,  Ludlow  ; 
Israel  H.  Smith,  Thetford  ;  Joab  Smith, 
Fairfield. 
Luther  Carpenter,  Orange  ;   Dan   Carpen- 
ter, Waterbury. 
Alexander  Miller,  Wallingford. 
Nathan  v^/V/zt';-,  Parkerstown,  nowMendon. 
Robert  B.  Bates,  Middlebury,  Speaker. 
Spear — no  such  name  in  list  of  the  Legis- 
lature  in   Walton's  Register,   for  1826. 
Johnson  finny,  Monkton. 
Ezra  Pike,  Jr., Vineyard,  now  Isle  LaiMotte. 
Benj.  Swan,  Woodstock,  State  Treasurer. 
D.  Azro  A.  Bnck,  Chelsea. 
Shubael  La?nb,  Wells. 

William  lYoble.  Charlotte. 

Nathan  Young,  Strafford. 

Moody  Rich,  Maidstone. 

Dwight  Gay,  Stockbridgc. 

Thomas  Best,  Highgate. 

William  Spencer,  Corinth. 

Jabez  /'roctor.  Councillor. 

Barnabas  Dean,  Weathersfield. 

William  A.  Palmer,  Danville. 

Robert  Temple,  Rutland. 

James  Ijell,  Walden. 

Charles  Church,  Hancock. 

Abraham  Ball,  Athens. 

Alvin  House,  Montgomery. 

William  Hall,  Rockingham. 

Jarius  Hall,  Wilmington, 

Burgess  Hall,  Shelburne. 

Samuel  /////,  Greensboro. 

William  Rhodes,  Richmond. 

Josiah  Lane,  Wheelock. 

George  Warren,  F"airhaven. 
John  Bridge,  Pomfret. 
Jonah  Shedd,  Peacham. 
Melvin  Barnes,  Jr.,  Grand  Isle. 
Wells  De  luirrest,  Lemington. 
Nathan     U\iod,    Vernon;     Jonah     Wood, 

Sherburne;    Ziba  Woods,  Westford. 
Major  Hawley,  Manchester. 
David  M.  Camp,  Derby. 
Richard  Scott,  Stratton. 
Thomas    G.    French,    Brunswick;     John 

French,  Minehead,  now  Bloomfield. 
Samuel  C.  Crafts,  Orleans  Co.  Councillor. 
James  Ambler,  Jr.,  Huntington. 
Nathan  Wheeler,  Grafton. 
William  Steele,  Sharon. 
John  Peck,  Washington  Co.  Councillor. 
Ephraim  Rice,  Somerset. 
Wolcott  H.  Keeler,  Chittenden. 
Calvin  Solace,  Bridport. 
Thomas  Child,  Bakersfield. 
Darius  Pride,  Williamstown. 
Dana  Hyde,  Jr.,  Guilford. 
Nathan  Bottum,  Shaftsbury. 


574 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Patents,  we  have  not  had  any  paper 
prepared  for :  Dennis  Lane  took  out  a 
patent  for  improvement  in  head  blocks  for 
saw-mills,  Sept.  6,  1864  ;  Ashbel  Stim- 
son,  in  1876,  for  spring-hinges  for  doors. 

At  THE  Centennial,  Montpelier  Man- 
ufacturing Company  took  the  award  for 
children's  carriages,  and  F.  C.  Oilman  for 
sulky  and  buggy. 

SONS   AND    citizens    OF    MONTPELIER 
ABROAD. 

We  have  not  yet  obtained  a  satisfactory 
list.  We  will  mention  here  briefly  the 
few  not  already  included  in  a  family  no- 
tice in  these  pages,  that  have  been  fur- 
nished to  us  chiefly  by  Chas.  De  F.  Ban- 
croft and  Mr.  Walton,  and  will  be  pleased 
if  a  more  extensive  list  may  be  givenTor 
the  County  volume. — Ed. 

L.  L.  Walbridge,  a  native  of  Mont- 
pelier, has  been  reporter  for  the  Boston 
Journal,  and  cit)-  editor  of  the  St.  Louis 
Democrat ;  is  one  of  the  best  short-hand 
writers  in  the  country  ;  was  one  of  the  wit- 
nesses on  the  impeachment  trial  of  Presi- 
dent Johnson. 

Wm.  Pitt  Kellock;,  present  U.  S.  Sen- 
ator from  Louisiana,  the  son  of  Rev.  Sher- 
man Kellogg,  we  counted  once  as  a  "  Mont- 
pelier boy ; "  also,  Henry  C.  Nutt,  son  of 
Henry  Nutt.  of  this  town,  now  President 
of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Railroad  ;  Joel 
Mead,  a  wealthy  lumber  merchant  in  She- 
boygan, Wis. ;  James  Mead,  his  brother, 
a  leading  banker  in  Oshkosh,  Wis.  Their 
aged  mother  still  resides  with  us;  Wm.  P. 
Strong,  son  of  the  old  hotel-keeper  here. 
President  of  the  Atchison,  Topeka  and 
Santa  Fe  Railroad,  a  brother  of  his  in 
Faribault,  Minn.,  and  another,  a  prominent 
business  man  in  Beloit,  Wis.  ;  Edwin  S. 
Merrill,  son  ot  the  late  Timothy  Merrill, 
in  Winchendon,  Mass. ;  George  Silver, 
son  of  Isaiah  Silver,  in  Tivola,  N.  Y. ; 
James  Davis,  son  of  Anson  Davis,  and 
great-grandson  of  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  Pro- 
fessor in  an  Institution  in  New  York  City ; 
Dodge  W.  Keith,  son  of  Hon.  R.  W. 
Keith,  who  gives  his  father''s  portrait  to 
the  work,  a  successful  merchant  in  Chicago  ; 
Harold  Sprague,  a  merchant  in  Chicago; 
R.  J.  Richardson,  of  Des  Moines,  Iowa, 


a  grain  merchant;  James  and  Frank 
Muldoon  were  born  poor  boys,  now 
successful  traders  in  Wisconsin ;  Henry 
L.  Lamb,  in  Troy,  inspector  of  banks,  has 
been  editor  on  the  Troy  Times  \  Col.  E. 
M.  Brown,  editor  of  the  New  Orleans 
Delta  during  Butler's  administration  ;  Azel 
Spalding,  a  member  of  the  Kansas  House 
of  Representatives  in  1861  ;  Hon.  A.  W. 
Spalding,  son  of  Azel,  Senator  of  Jeffer- 
son County,  Kansas,  in  1862;  Fred.  T. 
BiCKFORD,  who  has  been  Superintendent 
of  the  U.  S.  Telegraph  Co.  at  Pittsburg, 
Pa.,  and  Superintendent  of  the  Russian 
Extension  Telegraph  Co's.  line  in  Siberia, 
now  at  Washington,  D.  C,  we  think  ;  and 
many  others  whom  the  old  friends  at  home 
would  be  pleased  to  see  enrolled  on  their 
list  of  sons  and  citizens  abroad. 


Omission  in  Mr.  Oilman's  li.st  of  Mr. 
Walton's  printed  papers — an  address  on 
the  death  of  Stephen  A.  Douglass  in  1863, 
printed  by  order  of  Congress,     e.  p.  w. 

Page  365  should  read,  "  we  do  not  give 
sermons  when  the  statements  seem  suffi- 
cient ;  "  we  sometimes  give  sermons — his- 
torical ones. 

Page  539,  "where  the  sun  touches  first 
the  grove,"  not  "where  the  sun  touches 
first  the  grave."  Same  paper,  page  537, 
iron-framed ;  not  corn-framed. 

Page  478  should  read,  an  obituary  by 
Dr.  Sumner  Putnam. 

Page  424,  Theinteriorof  St.  Augustine's, 
for  there  are  two  side  aisles,  but  no  centre 
aisle,  should  read,  there  are  two  side  aisles 
and  a  centre  aisle,  and  "  Between  the  win- 
dows, in  simple  black  wood  frames,  the 
stations,"  should  read  instead,  in  gilt 
frames.  In  this  last  mistake  we  wholly 
exonerate  our  compositors — it  was  our  own 
mistake,  in  the  press  of  our  cares  but  too 
carelessly  made  ;  and  it  should  have  been 
added,  the  church  has  very  handsome  vest- 
ments and  altar  adornments,  a  lovely  statue 
of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  upon  a  Christ- 
mas night  or  Easter  morning  appears  very 
fresh  and  beautiful. — Ed. 

Page  530,  John  W.  Culver  in  1 833, not  '35 . 

Montpelier's  Lament,  page  572,  from  old 
scrap-book  of  Dr.  Bradford,  of  Northfield. 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


575 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 

BY  HON.  S.  S    KELTON. 

The  town  of  East  Montpelier  was  organ- 
ized Jan.  I,  1849,  having  been  set  off  from 
Montpelier  by  the  Genei^al  Assembly  at 
their  session  in  1848,  on  the  petition  of 
citizens  of  Montpelier  village.  The  meet- 
ing for  organization  was  called  by  Addison 
Peck,  a  justice  of  the  peace,  on  the  peti- 
tion of  6  freeholders  to  him  directed  for 
that  purpose. 

The  officers  elected  at  this  first  meeting 
were :  Mod.  Addison  Peck ;  town  clerk, 
Royal  Wheeler;  selectmen,  Stephen  F. 
Stevens,  Isaac  Gate,  J.  C.  Nichols  ;  treas., 
A.  Peck;  overseer  of  poor,  A.  Peck;  con- 
stable, J.  P.  W.  Vincent. 

The  first  child  born  in  town,  after  organ- 
ization, was  Clara  Davis,  daughter  of  Pear- 
ley  and  Cynthia  Davis,  Jan.  19,  1849. 
The  first  marriage  was  Rodney  G.  Bassett 
and  L.  Amelia  Willard,  Jan.  21,  1849,  by 
Charles  Sibley,  justice  of  peace. 

The  town  is  bounded  northerly  by  Cal- 
ais, easterly  by  Plainfield  and  a  small  part 
of  Marshfield,  southerly  by  Berlin,  from 
which  it  is  separated  by  the  Winooski  riv- 
er and  a  part  of  Barre,  and  Westerly  by 
Montpelier  and  Middlesex,  and  contains 
18,670  acres ;  population  in  1880,  972 ; 
grand  list  in  1881,  $9,251. 

The  township  is  watered  by  the  Winooski 
river,  which  runs  through  the  southerly 
corner,  and  along  the  southerly  boundary, 
by  Kingsbury  Branch,  which,  after  drain- 
ing the  numerous  ponds  in  Woodbury  and 
Calais,  crosses  the  northeasterly  corner 
of  the  town,  and  enters  the  Winooski ; 
(its  name  was  derived  from  that  of  an 
early  settler  living  near  the  stream,)  and 
by  numerous  small  streams,  affording 
many  excellent  mill-sites.  The  surface  of 
the  town  is  uneven,  but  the  soil  is  good 
and  productive,  and  there  is  scarcely  any 
waste  land  in  town.  The  prevailing  char- 
acter of  the  rocks  is  slate  and  lime,  with 
granite  boulders  scattered  in  the  easterly 
part.  Of  timber,  the  sugar  maple,  beech, 
spruce  and  hemlock  largely  predominate, 
with  a  great  variety  in  less  quantity. 

There  are  some  very  fine  sugar  orchards 
in  this  town ;   that  of  Cyrus  Morse  num- 


bers 2,750  trees,  all  supplied  with  tin  tubs, 
the  sugar-house  and  fixtures  being  fully 
equal  to  the  requirements  of  so  large  a 
number  of  trees.  In  a  good  season  they 
make  io,ooo  lbs.  of  sugar,  for  which  there 
is  a  ready  sale,  rendering  it  one  of  the  best 
industries  of  a  large  farm. 

The  industries  of  East  Montpelier  are 
chiefly,  almost  exclusively,  agricultural ; 
the  farms  are  of  medium  size,  generally 
containing  from  75  to  150  acres,  some  of 
200  to  300,  and  a  few  as  large  as  400  acres, 
devoted  to  a  mixed  husbandry,  the  dairy 
decidedly  taking  the  lead  ;  some  attention 
is  given  to  the  rearing  of  blood  stock, — of 
horses,  cattle,  sheep  and  swine. 

There   are  two  small  villages  in  town, 

EAST  VILLAGE, 

situated  on  the  Winooski,  containing  a 
meeting-house,  school-house,  store,  tav- 
ern, post-office,  established  about  1825,  a 
grist-mill,  saw-mill  with  planer,  two  car- 
penters and  joiners  and  blacksmith  shop. 

This  village  has  suffered  great  loss  by 
fires;  1817,  or  thereabouts,  a  hulling  mill 
was  burned;  1825,  or  '26,  a  blacksmith 
shop ;  1847,  the  tavern-house,  store,  two 
barns  and  all  the  out  buildings, — property 
of  John  Mellen ;  1852,  the  Union  store 
and  goods  ;  1859,  the  blacksmith  shop  of 
G.  W.  Lewis;  1868,  the  store  and  goods 
of  C.  H.  Stevens,  together  with  the  barn 
of  C.  C.  Willard ;  1869,  the  store  of  J.  C. 
Nichols,  with  the  goods,  the  property  of 
Col.  Randall ;  also  in  the  immediate  neigh- 
borhood, 1857,  the  house  of  Norman 
French  ;  1866,  the  house  of  George  Dag- 
gett, one  of  the  best  houses  ever  built  in 
town — struck  by  lightning ;  1871,  the  barns 
of  C.  A.  Tabor,  together  with  all  the  farm 
produce,  tools,  and  four  horses. 

[Store  and  tavern  since  burned. — Ed.] 

NORTH    MONTPELIER, 

situated  on  Kingsbury  branch,  contains 
a  post-office,  store,  grist-mill,  saw-mill, 
woolen-factory,  boot  and  shoe-shop,  black- 
smith shop,  and  the  manufacture  of  musi- 
cal instruments  by  E.  D.  &  G.  G.  Nye. 
The  water  power  in  this  place  is  very  ex- 
cellent. 

There  are  ten  school  districts  in  town, 
each  supplied  with  a  good,   well-finished 


576 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


school-house,  where  a  school  is  kept  from 
6  to  9  months  each  year,  besides  four  frac- 
tional districts,  where  the  scholars  attend 
school  in  adjacent  towns. 

LIBRARIES. 

In  1794,  a  circulating  library  was  estab- 
lished at  the  center  of  the  town,  in  the 
house  of  Pearley  Davis, — he  being  librari- 
an,— containing  200  volumes,  made  up  of 
history,  travels,  biography,  and  works  of 
scientific,  philosophic  or  moral  character. 
These  books  were  freely  circulated  through 
the  town  for  a  long  period  of  years.  The 
ladies'  circulating  library  was  established 
in  East  village  in  1859,  containing  223  vols. 
A  Sunday  school  library  of  290  vols,  in 
1850:  one  atNorth  Montpelierof  160  vols, 
in  1867.  In  1 86 1,  an  agricultural  library 
was  organized  at  East  village  of  116  vols., 
which  was  burned  in  C.  H.  Stevens'  store, 
in  1868. 

CHURCH     EDIFICES. 

There  are  four  meeting-houses  in  town  ; 
that  belonging  to  the  Society  of  Friends 
was  first  used  as  such,  in  1802,  having 
previously  been  used  as  the  store  of  Col. 
Robbins.  The  Union  Meeting-house  at 
the  center  of  the  town  was  built  in  1823, 
and  is  also  used  as  a  town-house. 

At  east  village  is  a  Universalist  house, 
built  in  1833,  the  Rev.  John  E.  Palmer, 
of  Barre,  preaching  the  dedication  sermon, 
Jan.  8,  1834. 

At  North  Montpelier  a  Univer.salist  house 
was  built  in  1867.  This  is  much  the  best 
house,  in  the  belfry  of  which  is  one  of  the 
best  bells  in  the  vicinity. 

RELIGIOUS   SOCIETIES. 

In  1793,  there  was  a  religious  society  of 
Friends  organized  in  the  east  part  of  the 
town,  who  for  many  years  assembled  them- 
selves together  regularly  twice  a  week,  a 
meek  and  contrite  people,  under  the  preach- 
ing of  Clark  Stevens.  It  was  their  custom 
to  hold  silent  meetings,  when  the  spirit  of 
the  Lord  did  not  move  them  to  speak. 

FREEWILL    BAPTISTS. 

There  was  a  Freewill  Baptist  church 
organized  in  the  east  part  of  the  town  at 
an  early  day,  and  a  great  awakening  in  the 
religious  cause,  under  the  efficient  labors 


of  Elder  Benjamin  Page.  They  held  their 
meetings  in  barns,  dwelling-houses,  or 
anywhere  where  the  way  was  open  for 
them.  Subsequently  there  was  a  church 
organized  by  the  same  denomination  in 
the  north  part  of  the  town,  under  the 
preaching  of  Elder  Paul  Holbrook. 

UNIVERSALISTS    OF    EAST    MONTPELIER. 

Two  of  the  most  active  pioneers  of  this  so- 
ciety were  the  late  Gen.  Parley  Davis  of 
Montpelier  Center,  and  Arthur  Daggett, 
who  lived  and  died  near  the  East  village. 
These  first  settlers  in  town  had  preaching 
of  the  faith  they  cherished,  at  an  early  day. 
Rev.  William  Farwell,  Hosea  Ballou,  Paul 
Dean  and  John  E.  Palmer  were  the  first 
ministers.  Their  society  here  was  organ- 
ized Feb.  8,  1834.  The  cause  prospered 
until  there  was  more  of  this  faith  in  town 
than  any  other.  The  resident  pastors  of 
"The  Universalist  Society"  were  Rev. 
Tracy  R.  Spencer,  R.  M.  Byram,  Simeon 
Goodenough  and  Lester  Warren.  Rev. 
Mr.  Warren,  now  living  in  town,  says  he 
was  employed  for  this  society  by  Parley 
Davis,  Arthur  Daggett  and  others,  in  May, 
1838.  He  preached  once  or  twice  a  month, 
in  the  Center  and  at  the  East  village,  for  9 
years.  And  now  he  has  "vesper  service" 
in  the  new  church  at  tlie  North  village, 
once  in  two  weeks.  The  meetings  are 
well  attended,  as  are  also  a  "course  of 
lectures"  arranged  by  "The  Prudential 
committee"  of  "The  Lyceum."  Rev.  E. 
Ballou  also  preached  alternately  with  Mr. 
W.  for  several  years,  until  the  settlement 
of  the  late  Rev.  T.  R.  Spencer. 

EPISCOPAL   METHODISTS. 

Rev.  Jesse  Lee,  who  was  the  pioneer  of 
Methodism  in  New  England,  first  preached 
in  this  town  in  1795,  and  formed  the  first 
society.  He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Ralph 
Williston,  Nicholas  Sneathen,  Gideon 
Draper,  and  others. 

Alexander  Parker,  his  wife  and  two  or 
three  of  their  daughters,  Enoch  Cate  and 
wife,  Sylvanus  Morse  and  wife,  David  Per- 
sons and  wife,  John  Stevens  and  wife, 
Joseph  and  James  Gould  and  their  wives, 
were  among  the  early  Methodists  of  the 
town. 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


sn 


Since  the  organization  of  the  society 
they  have,  like  most  institutions,  experi- 
enced at  intervals  seasons  of  prosperity 
and  decline. 

THE   CHRISTIANS. 

There  was  a  society  of  Christians  organ- 
ized in  this  town  a  few  years  since,  who 
supported  preaching  a  portion  of  the  time. 

EPIDEMICS. 

Of  epidemics,  only  4  deserving  the  name 
have  occurred  from  the  first  settlement  of 
the  town  to  the  present  day.  The  first  of 
these  was  the  dysentery,  which  fatally  pre- 
vailed in  the  summer  and  fall  of  1802. 
The  second  was  the  typhus  fever,  which 
prevailed  to  considerable  extent  in  the 
summer  of  1806.  The  third,  that  fearful 
disease  known  by  the  name  of  spotted 
fever,  which  suddenly  made  its  appearance 
in  the  winter  of  1811.  In  the  fall  and 
winter  of  1813,  the  typhus  fever  again  very 
fatally  prevailed.  The  number  of  deaths 
from  this  disease  in  the  whole  (old)  town, 
was  78  :  much  the  larger  number  of  which 
were  outside  the  present  limits  of  East 
Montpelier. 

The  town  is  believed  to  be  one  of  the 
healthiest  in  the  State  ;  the  average  num- 
ber of  deaths  for  the  last  20  years  has  been 
17  ;  the  largest  number  in  1862,  being  29  ; 
the  smallest  number  in  1867,  only  7. 

The  oldest  person  living  in  town  is  Anna 
Gould,  born  at  Sutton,  Mass.,  Aug.  12, 
1787;  came  to  this  town  in  1803;  is  the 
widow  of  Simeon  Gould,  who  died  in  1879, 
aged  98  years,  by  whom  she  had  9  chil- 
dren, of  whom  7  are  now  living  at  this 
writing,  (Sept.  1881).  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Gould's  marriage  life  was  70  years. 

The  oldest  person  who  was  born  in  town 
is  Mrs.  Paulina  Davis,  widow  of  the  late 
Timothy  Davis,  and  daughter  of  Clark 
Stevens,  born  Sept.  15,  1795.  (Oct.  i,'8i.) 

Mrs.  Harriet  Goodwin,  widow  of  Hon. 
Israel  Goodwin,  and  daughter  of  Capt. 
Isaac  Putnam,  born  July  29,  1796. 

The  oldest  inhabitant  of  the  town  is  Mrs. 
Sally  Vincent,  widow  of  Capt.  Isaac  Vin- 
cent, anddaughter  of  Darius  Boyden,  Esq., 
born  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  July  4,  1793; 
came  to    East   Montpelier  early   in  1794, 


and  has  lived  in  town  continuously  since, 
87  years,  7  months. 

The  oldest  person  who  ever  lived  in 
town  was  Mrs.  Molly  Gould,  who  died  in 
1851,  aged  102  years,  i  month.  Mrs. 
Gould  was  born  at  Sutton.  Mass.,  in  1749  ; 
married  John  Gould  of  the  same  town  in 
1768;  raising  a  large  family  of  children; 
came  to  this  town  in  181 1. 

THE    EARLY   SETTLEMENT. 

It  is  by  no  means  certain,  who  cut  the 
first  tree,  or  built  the  first  house.  Gen. 
Pearley  Davis  undoubtedly  made  the  first 
pitch,  being  two  lots  of  the  first  division, 
at  the  center  of  the  town,  of  which  he  re- 
ceived a  deed  from  Jacob  Davis,  May  28, 

1788,  the  consideration  being  "eighty 
pounds,  lawful  money .''''  He  made  a  be- 
ginning soon  after,  putting  up  a  log-house 
and  barn  that  season,  but  returned  to 
Massachusetts  to  teach  school  the  following 
winter.  He  cut  and  stacked  the  hay  on  a 
beaver  meadow  in  the  north  part  of  the 
town,  (now  owned  by  E.  H.  Vincent)  that 
season,  which  was  mostly  drawn  to  Col. 
Jacob  Davis'  the  following  winter,  he  fall- 
ing short  of  fodder  for  his  teams,  and  those 
of  new  settlers  who  would  stop  for  a  time 
with  him  on  their  arrival. 

In  June,  1788,  John  Templeton  and 
Solomon  Dodge  came  to  East  Montpe- 
lier, from  Peterboro,  N.  H.,  and  com- 
menced felling  the  forest  on  their  respect- 
ive lots,  (being  adjacent)  preparatory  to 
establishing  their  new  homes,  returning  to 
New  Hampshire  to  do  their  haying,  after 
which,  they  worked  the  remainder  of  the 
season,  clearing  their  land,  and  building 
each  a  log-house.     The  following  spring, 

1789,  in  March,  they  returned  with  their 
families  for  a  permanent  settlement,  ac- 
companied by  their  father-in-law,  James 
Taggart.  After  stopping  about  three  weeks 
with  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  they  proceeded  to 
their  new  homes,  5  miles  distant,  the 
snow  at  this  time  being  2  feet  deep.  On 
arriving  at  Mr.  Templeton's  house,  the 
roof  having  been  covered  with  bark,  a  part 
of  which  had  blown  off,  they  found  the 
snow  nearly  as  deep  inside  the  house  as 
out.  This  had  a  decided  cool  look,  but 
there  was  no  backing  down,  the  snow  was 


73 


578 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


shoveled  out,  a  fire  built,  and  they  spent 
the  remainder  of  their  days  on  that  farm, 
which  is  still  owned  and  occupied  by  their 
grandson,  Austin  Templeton. 

Mr.  Dodge  and  wife  lived  and  died  on 
their  adjacent  farm,  where  their  youngest 
daughter  still  resides,  the  wife  of  J.  R. 
Young.  These  were  the  first  families  that 
moved  into  the  town  of  East  Montpelier. 

During  the  first  season  all  their  grain 
had  to  be  brought  from  Brookfield,  (getting 
it  ground  at  Williamstown)  a  distance  of 
20  miles, — on  a  man^s  back. 

In  the  fall  of  this  year,  (1789)  as  their 
first  crops  were  harvested.  Col.  Davis'  mill 
on  North  Branch  was  ready  to  do  the  grind- 
ing, and  save  the  Brookfield  tramp. 

Mrs.  Templeton  was  accustomed  to  say 
in  her  later  years,  that  she  did  not  see  a 
woman,  except  her  two  sisters,  (Jenna 
Taggart  who  lived  with  her  and  Mrs. 
Dodge,)  for  a  year,  lacking  one  day,  and 
that  no  family  (except  as  above)  lived 
nearer  than  Col.  Jacob  Davis",  being  5 
miles.  Mr.  Templeton  died  May  18,  18 13, 
aged  48  years. 

The  third  family  that  moved  into  town, 
was  Jonathan  Snow  and  wife,  in  March, 
1790, — Mr.  Snow  having  been  here  and 
made  a  small  beginning  the  summer  be- 
fore, in  the  east  part  of  the  town.  They 
stopped  several  days  with  Mr.  Templeton 
on  their  way.  After  living  on  their  land 
two  or  three  years,  Mr.  Snow  sold  out  to 
his  father-in-law,  Barnabas  Hammett,  and 
lived  a  year  or  two  below  Montpelier  vil- 
lage, returning  to  an  adjacent  lot  of  his 
first  beginning,  now  owned  and  occupied 
by  his  youngest  son,  Alonzo  Snow,  where 
he  continued  to  reside.  Mr.  Snow  was  born 
at  Rochester,  Mass  ,  July  12,  1768,  mar- 
ried Lydia  Hammett  Feb.  11,  1790,  and 
came  to  this  town  by  the  then  express  train, 
an  ox  team  ;  after  rearing  a  large  family, 
died  Mar.  31,  1846. 

During  1790,  quite  a  large  addition  was 
made  to  the  population,  for  we  find  that 
March  29,  1791,  at  the  organization  of  the 
old  town,  of  the  27  voters  present,  24  were 
residents  of  East  Montpelier,  viz  :  Benja- 
min I.  Wheeler,  David  Parsons,  Pearley 
Davis,  Ebenezer  Dodge,  Solomon  Dodge, 


Nathaniel  Peck,  David  Wing,  Lemuel 
Brooks,  Clark  Stevens,  Jonathan  Snow, 
Hiram  Peck,  James  Taggart,  John  Tem- 
pleton, Elisha  Cummins,  Jonathan  Cutler, 
Charles  McCloud,  Isaac  Putnam,  Nathan- 
iel Davis,  Jerahmel  Wheeler,  Smith  Ste- 
vens, Charles  Stevens,  Edmund  Doty, 
Duncan  Young.  The  last  survivor  of  this 
pioneer  band,  was  Elisha  Cununins,  who 
died  Nov.  21,  i860,  aged  93  years. 

The  first  child  born  in  town  was  James 
Dodge,  son  of  Solomon  Dodge,  Apr.  5, 
1790;  the  first  female  child  born  was  Mary 
Templeton,  daughter  of  John  Templeton, 
May  3,  1791.  The  first  death  was  that  of 
Betsey  Cate,  a  child  of  Enoch  Cate,  8 
months  old.  The  first  resident  of  East 
Montpelier  who  was  married  was  Clark 
Stevens,  with  Huldah  Foster  of  Rochester, 
Mass.,  Dec.  30,  1792.  The  first  meeting- 
house was  a  log-house,  built  by  Clark  Ste- 
vens and  Caleb  Bennett,  (Friends),  on  the 
highway  near  the  line  of  their  farms,  in 
1793,  and  used  as  such  till  1802.  This  is 
believed  to  be  the  first  meeting-house  ever 
built  in  Washington  County. 

Dr.  Philip  Vincent  was  the  first  physi- 
cian who  came  into  town ;  he  came  from 
New  Braintree,  Mass.,  in  February,  1795, 
and  settled  where  his  grandson,  Horace 
M.  Vincent,  now  resides;  died  in  1813, 
aged  54  years.  The  first  merchant  was 
Col.  David  Robbins,  who  built  and  began 
trade  in  what  is  now  the  Quaker  meeting- 
house, in  1796.  The  first  tavern  kept  in 
town  was  by  Freeman  Snow,  opened  in  1 798 
or  '99,  near  where  George  Davis  now  lives. 
The  first  saw-mill  was  built  by  Pearley 
Davis,  on  the  brook  at  the  N.  W.  corner 
of  lot  no.  45,  1st  div.,  in  1792,  he  having 
bought  2  acres  of  land  for  that  purpose,  of 
Caleb  Bennett,  for  which  he  paid  "  three 
pounds,  lawful  money.'''' 

The  first  grist-mill  was  built  by  Samuel 
Rich,  in  1795,  on  Kingsbury  Branch, 
where  the  mill  of  M.  V.  B.  Hollister  now 
stands. 

SAMUEL   RICH 

was  born  at  Sutton,  Mass.,  Feb.  24,  1769. 
He  came  to  this  town  in  1792;  was  mar- 
ried to  Margaret  McCloud  Dec.  i,  1796. 
Besides  doing  an  extensive  farming  busi- 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


579 


ness,  (owning  700  acres  of  land)  he  built 
and  run  a  grist-mill,  a  saw-mill,  acarding- 
machine,  a  fulling-mill,  a  brick-yard  and 
distillery  ;  he  also  kept  a  tavern  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  subsequently  to  1805. 

In  1805,  he  built  a  very  nice,  large 
dwelling-house,  said  to  have  been  the  best 
house  in  the  County  at  that  time.  The 
place  was  known  for  a  long  term  of  years, 
as  Rich's  Hollow,  so  largely  did  his  busi- 
ness predominate  over  that  of  all  others. 
He  was  a  carpenter  by  trade,  and  built  the 
large  barn  (80x32  feet)  for  Nathaniel  Da- 
vis, in  1793,  being  the  first  barn  of  any 
magnitude  ever  built  in  this  town.  He 
died  in  1827,  leaving  10  sons  and  daugh- 
ters, one  of  whom,  Jacob  Rich  Esq.,  resided 
at  the  old  homestead  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  in  1878. 

BENJAMIN    1.    WHEELER. 

Born  at  Rehoboth,  Mass.,  Sept.  19, 
1766;  settled  at  an  early  date  in  Montpe- 
lier,  now  East  Montpelier,  on  the  farm 
where  he  lived  until  his  death.  In  the 
spring  of  1793, he  married  Huldah  French, 
of  Attleboro,  Mass.  At  the  organization 
of  the  town  of  Montpelier,  in  1791,  he  was 
elected  one  of  the  listers  and  one  of  the 
highway  surveyors,  and  the  same  year 
town  grand  juror.  In  1792,  he  was  elect- 
ed selectman,  and  held  that  office  16  years 
previous  to  1818.     He  died  March  7,  1845. 

JERAHMEL    B.    WHEELER. 

Born  at  Rehoboth,  Mass. ;  settled  in 
Montpelier,  now  East  Montpelier,  at  an 
early  date,  on  the  farm  where  he  lived  till 
his  death.  He  married  Sybil  French,  of 
Attleboro,  Mass.  In  1792,  he  was  elected 
first  constable,  and  that  year  warned  the 
first  freemen's  meeting  ever  held  in  that 
town.  Afterwards,  between  1806  and 
1813,  he  held  the  office  of  selectman  5 
years,  and  was  justice  of  the  peace  several 
years.     He  died  in  the  spring  of  1835. 

MAJ.    NATHANIEL    DAVIS. 

Among  the  men  of  business  prominence 
in  the  early  history  of  the  town,  none  were 
more  conspicuous  than  Nathaniel  Davis. 
He  was  born  at  Oxford,  Mass.,  Nov,  25, 
1769;  in  1789,  he  came  to  Montpelier  and 
purchased  a  tract  of  land  in  the  north-east 
part  of  the  town,  and  commenced  a  clear- 


ing at  once,  there  being  but  two  families  in 
what  is  now  East  Montpelier  at  that  time. 
In  1792,  having  married  Miss  Dolly  Davis 
of  his  native  town,  he  commenced  house- 
keeping, and  doing  business  on  a  large 
scale.  The  following  year,  he  built  a  saw- 
mill on  his  farm,  having  turned  a  brook 
a  mile  above  him  to  obtain  sufficient 
water  to  run  the  mill.  In  addition  to 
clearing  up  his  farm  very  rapidly,  in  1793, 
or  '94,  he  built  a  barn  80x32  feet ;  in  '95, 
he  built  a  two-story  house  42x32  feet, — 
the  same  being  occupied  by  his  son  Col. 
Nathaniel  Davis,  at  the  time  of  his  death, 
in  1879  ;  this  is  the  oldest  house  in  town  at 
this  writing,  1881.  Before  the  year  1800, 
he  built  a  potash  and  store,  and  did  an  ex- 
tensive and  successful  mercantile  business 
for  about  25  years. 

Soon  after  1810,  Mr.  Davis  commenced 
what  is  now  the  village  of  East  Calais,  by 
building  at  that  place,  a  grist-mill,  saw- 
mill, nail  factory,  a  scythe  factory,  and 
opening  a  store  ;  subsequently  this  prop- 
erty was  surrendered  to  2  of  his  daughters, 
having  married  the  Hon.  Shubael  Wheeler 
and  Samuel  Rich,  Jr.  Esq.  Another 
daughter,  who  married  N.  C.  King,  Esq., 
was  equally  as  well  provided  for. 

In  1825,  Mr.  Davis  having  closed  his 
mercantile  business,  and  disposed  of  his 
outside  property,  as  above,  in  connection 
with  his  son  commenced  doing  a  more  ex- 
tensive farming  business,  by  buying  farm 
after  farm,  till  they  were  able  to  sell  more 
than  100  head  of  beef  cattle  per  annum. 

In  1838,  they  built  the  large  woolen  fac- 
tory at  North  Montpelier,  which,  in  con- 
sequence of  an  unfortunate  partnership, 
entered  into  at  the  completion  of  the  build- 
ing, was  a  very  disastrous  enterprise.  He 
died  in  1843,  aged  74  years. 

(From  Thompson's  History  of  Montpelier.) 
GEN.   PEARLEY   DAVIS, 

a  son  of  Nathaniel  and  Sarah  Davis,  was 
born  in  Oxford,  (in  the  part  afterwards 
becoming  Charlton,)  Mass.,  Mar.  31,  1766, 
and,  after  receiving  rather  an  unusually 
good  English  education,  at  the  then  new 
academy  in  the  neighboring  town  of  Lei- 
cester, including  a  knowledge  of  survey- 
ing, he  came  into  town  with  Col.  Davis, 
bringing  his  set  of  surveyor's  instmments. 


58o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  at  once  engaging  in  the  original  sur- 
veys of  the  township,  first  as  an  assistant 
and  finally  as  a  principal  surveyor  of  the 
town  and  county. 

It  was  while  thus  employed,  as  he  once 
told  the  writer  of  this  sketch,  that,  coming 
on  to  the  splendid  swell  of  forest  land  then 
crowning  the  elevation  at  the  center  of  the 
town,  he  was  so  struck  with  tlie  general 
indications  of  the  soil  and  the  natural 
beauty  of  the  location,  as  seen  beneath  the 
growth  of  stately  maples,  cumbered  with 
little  underbrush,  that  he  resolved  he  would 
here  make  his  pitch,  feeling  confident  that 
this  must  be  the  seat  of  town  business,  and 
then  believing  even  that  it  would  become 
the  site  of  its  most  populous  village. 

The  mistake  of  Gen.  Davis,  so  far  as 
regarded  the  growing  up  of  mucli  of  a 
village  on  the  highlands  of  the  town,  ap- 
pears to  have  been  quite  a  common  one 
with  our  early  settlers.  Impressed  at  first, 
as  he  was,  with  the  inviting  appearance  of 
the  higher  parts  of  their  respective  town- 
ships, when  contrasted  witli  the  forbidding 
aspect  of  the  dark  and  tangled  valleys,  the 
most  able  and  enterprising  of  them,  for  a 
general  thing,  made  their  pitches  accord- 
ingly, as  in  the  instances  of  the  settlements 
of  Randolph,  Danville,  and  dozens  of 
other  towns  in  this  State.  But  they  soon 
found  their  anticipated  villages  slipping 
down  into  the  valleys,  to  leave  them,  in 
that  respect,  high  and  dry  on  the  hills, 
with  the  most  traveled  roads  all  winding 
along  the  streams.  First,  there  must  be 
mills ;  then  a  place  near  to  shoe  horses ; 
then  a  place  for  refreshment  of  both  man 
and  horse ;  and  while  all  this  is  going  on, 
it  is  a  convenience  and  a  saving  of  time  to 
be  able  to  purchase  a  few  family  necessa- 
ries ;  thence,  to  meet  these  calls,  first 
comes  the  blacksmith's  shop,  then  the  tav- 
ern, then  the  store ;  and  you  have  the 
neucleus  of  a  continually  growing  village 
already  formed ;  while  people  soon  find 
out  it  is  easier  going  round  a  hill  than  over 
it,  and  build  their  roads  accordingly. 

So  far,  however,  as  regarded  the  seat  of 
town  business,  Gen.  Davis'  predictions 
were  fulfilled  ;  for  he,  having  pitched  on  a 
tract  of  300  acres  of  land  at  the  center, 
and  built  a  commodious  house,  had  the 
satisfaction  of  seeing  it  the  receptacle  of 
all  town  meetings  till  a  public  house  was 
erected ;  and  the  latter  was  the  place  of 
such  meetings,  either  for  the  whole  town 
or  his  part  of  it,  up  to  the  day  of  his  death. 
At  all  these  town  meetings  he  was  always 
an  active  and  influential  participator. 
And  in  looking  over  the  records  of  the 
town  for  the  first  half  century  of  its  corpo- 
rate existence,  we  can  scarcely  find  a  page 
on  which  his  name  does  not  appear  coup- 


led with  some  of  its  most  important  trusts 
or  offices. 

In  1794,  he  was  elected  captain  of  the 
first  military  company  ever  organized  in 
town ;  and  before  the  year  had  closed  he 
was  promoted  to  the  office  of  major  of  the 
regiment  formed  from  the  companies  of  the 
different  towns  in  this  section.  In  1798, 
he  was  elected  a  colonel  of  the  regiment ; 
and  in  1799,  he  was  still  further  promoted 
to  the  prominent  post  of  general.  In  1799, 
he  was  also  honored  by  his  townsmen 
with  a  seat  in  the  legislature,  and  received 
from  them  2  elections  as  their  representa- 
tive in  the  General  Assembly. 

In  1794,  Gen.  Davis  married  Miss  Re- 
becca Peabody,  daughter  of  Col.  Stephen 
Peabody  of  Amherst,  N.  H.,  the  lady  of 
whose  medical  skill  and  general  usefulness 
we  have  particularly  spoken  while  treating 
of  the  incidents  and  characters  of  the  early 
settlement.  From  this  union  sprang  7 
daughters,  most  of  whom  lived  to  connect 
themselves  with  the  best  families  of  this  or 
other  towns;  and  one  of  them,  (now 
(deceased,)  Mrs.  Truman  Pitkin,  whose 
family  occupy  the  old  homestead,  was 
the  mother  of  Perley  P  Pitkin,  Esq.,  the 
present  representative  of  East  Montpelier  ; 
while  of  the  surviving,  one,  endowed  with 
high  gifts  of  poesy,  is  the  widow  of  the 
late  Hon.  S.  Pitkin,  and  another  the  wife 
of  the  Hon.  Royal  Wheeler. 

Gen.  Davis,  in  the  expanded  benevolence 
of  his  mind,  appeared  to  take  an  interest  in 
the  welfare  of  all  his  fellow-men,  and  par- 
ticularly so  of  the  young,  for  whose  im- 
provement in  knowledge  he  labored  earn- 
estly and  always.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
active  and  liberal  in  establishing  a  Town  Li- 
brary. He  was  ever  anxious  to  see  our  com- 
mon schools  supplied  with  competent  teach  ■ 
ers  ;  and  in  subscriptions,  and  in  the  educa- 
tion of  his  daughters,  he  largely  patronized 
our  academy.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
pleasant,  animated  and  instructive  of  com- 
panions, one  of  the  best  of  neighbors,  and 
one  of  the  most  public  spirited  and  useful 
of  citizens.  In  short,  with  his  strong, 
massive  person,  prepossessing  face,  intelli- 
gent eye,  genial  and  hearty  manner,  and 
earnest  tone  of  conversation,  he  was  one 
whom  the  world  would  unite  in  calling  a 
grand  old  fellow,  and  as  such  he  will  be 
remembered  till  the  last  of  the  generation 
who  knew  him  shall  have  followed  him  to 
the  grave. 

He  died  April  14,  1848,  at  the  age  of  a 
little  over  82  years.  His  relict,  Mrs.  Re- 
becca Peabody  Davis,  died  Feb.  5,  1854, 
aged  about  83  years  and  6  months. 

CLARK   STEVENS 
was   born   in  Rochester,  Mass.,  Nov.   15, 
1764.     At  the  age  of  18,  he  was  drafted  as 


EAST  MONTPELTER. 


S8i 


a  soldier,  and  served  in  that  capacity  sev- 
eral months  during  one  of  the  last  years 
of  the  American  Revolution.  After  leav- 
ing the  army,  he  engaged  himself  as  a  sea- 
man at  the  neighboring  port  of  New  Bed- 
ford, and  spent  several  years  in  the  ven- 
tures of  the  ocean.  But  tlie  perils  he  had 
here  encountered  in  the  whaling  and  coast- 
ing trade,  not  only  revived  the  religious 
impressions  formerly  experienced,  but  led 
him  to  resolve  on  the  quiet  pursuits  of 
husbandry,  and  to  remove,  with  that  object 
in  view,  to  the  new  town  of  Montpelier  in 
Vermont.  Accordingly  he  immigrated  in- 
to this  town  in  1790,  in  company  with 
David  Wing,  the  elder,  and  his  sons,  pur- 
chased and  at  once  began  to  clear  up  the 
valuable  farm  near  Montpelier  East  village, 
which  has  ever  since  been  the  family 
homestead.  After  effecting  a  considerable 
opening  in  the  wilderness,  and  building 
the  customary  log-house  and  barn,  he  re- 
turned to  the  land  of  his  fathers,  and,  Dec. 
13,  1792,  married  Miss  Huldah  Foster  of 
his  native  Rochester;  brought  her  imme- 
diately on  and  installed  her  as  the  mistress 
of  his  heart  and  household. 

Soon  after  his  marriage,  Mr.  Stevens 
appears  to  have  been  more  deeply  than  ever 
exercised  with  his  religious  convictions ; 
when  soon,  by  the  aid  of  some  neighbors 
who,  like  himself,  had  previously  united 
themselves  with  the  Society  of  Friends  or 
Quakers,  he  built  a  log-meeting-house  on 
the  bank  of  a  little  brook  a  short  distance 
to  the  north-west  of  his  dwelling.  And 
here,  under  his  lead,  that  little  band  of 
congenial  worshipers  established  in  the 
wilderness  the  first  altar  for  the  worship 
of  the  living  God  ever  erected  in  Wash- 
ington County.  Subsequently  this  band 
was  received  into  membership  with  the 
New  York  Society  of  Friends,  who  held 
monthly  meetings  in  Danby,  in  the  south- 
western part  of  Vermont,  which  meetings 
were  eventually  established  at  Starksboro, 
in  this  State.  Of  the  latter,  he  became  a 
regular  monthly  attendant,  and  in  18 15, 
having,  besides  being  the  leader  and 
teacher  of  his  Society  at  home,  travelled, 
each  year,  hundreds  of  miles  to  attend 
monthly,  quarterly  and  yearly  meetings  in 
Vermont,  New  York,  and  in  the  different 
States  of  New  England,  and  everywhere 
evinced  his  faithfulness  as  a  laborer,  and 
his  ability  as  a  religious  speaker  and  teach- 
er, he  was  publicly  acknowledged  by  the 
Starksboro  Association  as  a  regular  and 
accepted  minister  of  the  gospel.  Years 
before  this,  through  his  instrumentality, 
and  that  of  his  worthy  and  perhaps  most 
energetic  fellow-laborer  in  the  cause,  the 
late  Caleb  Bennett,  his  Society  at  home 
had   been   considerably   enlarged,    and   a 


commodious  meeting-house  erected  a  half 
mile  or  more  distant  from  the  first  primi- 
tive one  above  mentioned. 

But  if  Clark  Stevens  was  a  man  of  the 
intelligence  and  virtue  which  caused  him 
to  be  placed  in  such  a  prominent  position 
in  his  religious  connections,  why  was  he 
not,  as  well  as  other  citizens  of  his  town  of 
the  same  grade  of  capacity,  promoted  to 
posts  of  civil  trusts,  or  other  wordly  hon- 
ors? It  was  because,  after  having  been  made 
the  second  town  clerk  of  the  town,  and 
reluctantly  consented  to  serve  in  that  ca- 
pacity one  year — it  was  simply  because  he 
ever  uniformly  declined  to  accept  them. 
Time  and  again  would  the  town  gladly 
have  made  him  their  representative  in  the 
Legislature.  But  all  movements  of  that 
kind  were  by  him  promptly  discouraged 
and  stopped  at  the  outset.  On  the  organ- 
ization of  the  new  county  of  Jefferson,  in 
such  high  esteem  were  his  worth  and  abili- 
ties held  by  the  leading  men  of  the  county 
at  large  that,  on  their  united  recommenda- 
tion, he  was,  without  his  knowledge  or 
consent,  appointed  by  the  Legislature  to 
the  more  important  and  tempting  office  of 
a  judge  of  the  court.  But  this  he  also 
promptly  declined,  and  gave  the  public  to 
understand  that  civil  honors  had  so  few 
charms  for  him  that  it  would  thereafter 
be  in  vain  for  them  to  offer  them  for  his 
acceptance. 

Thus,  "  he  had  wrought  out  his  work, 
and  wrought  it  well."  Thus  he  lived,  and 
thus,  at  the  ripe  age  of  nearly  ninety,  he 
peacefully  passed  away,  at  his  old  resi- 
dence, on  the  2oth  of  December,  1853, 
with  the  characteristic  words  on  his  lips  : 
"  I  have  endeavored  to  do  what  I  appre- 
hended was  required  of  me.  I  have  nought 
but  feelings  of  love  for  all  mankind  ;  and 
my  hope  of  salvation  is  based  on  the  mercy 
of  God  through  his  Son  Jesus  Christ." 

Personally,  Clark  Stevens  was  one  of 
the  finest  looking  men  of  his  times.  Full 
6  feet  high,  and  nobly  proportioned,  with 
a  shapely  contour  of  head  and  features, 
dark  eyes  and  a  sedate,  thoughtful  counte- 
nance, his  presence  was  unusually  impos- 
ing and  dignified.  He  was  a  prince  in 
appearance,  but  a  child  in  humility.  He 
was  unquestionably  a  man  of  superior  in- 
tellect, and  that  intellect  was,  in  all  its 
traits,  peculiarly  well  balanced.  But  it 
was  his  great  and  good  heart  which  shown 
out  the  most  conspicuously  through  all  the 
actions  of  his  long  and  beneficent  life.  In 
fine,  Clark  Stevens,  in  the  truest  sense  of 
the  term,  was  a  great  man.  D.  p.  T. 

•'  Goodness  without  greatness 
Is  but  an  empty  show; 
But.  O,  how  rich  and  beautiful! 
When  they  together  xrow." 


582 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ISAAC   GRAY 

died  in  East  Montpelier,  Oct.  7,  1874, 
aged  97  years,  2  months,  16  days.  He 
was  the  oldest  man  in  the  county  at  the 
time  of  his  death,  having  resided  in  the 
town  where  he  died  one  day  over  80  years. 
He  was  born  in  Rochester,  Mass.,  July  22, 
1777.  John  and  May  Gray,  his  parents, 
started  with  their  9  children  for  Vermont, 
Sept.  14,  1794,  and  arrived  at  Caleb  Ben- 
nett's, in  Montpelier — now  East  Montpe- 
lier—Oct.  6,  following,  having  been  22 
days  on  the  road,  their  only  means  of  con- 
veyance of  family  and  goods  having  been 
an  ox-cart  drawn  by  two  pairs  of  oxen. 
Mr.  Bennett  had  come  from  New  Bedford, 
Mass.,  two  or  three  years  earlier,  and  with 
him  Mr.  Gray  and  family,  being  old  ac- 
quaintances, stopped  a  number  of  days,  as 
did  Thomas  Allen  and  family,  who  had 
traveled  with  the  Grays  from  the  old  Bay 
State ;  this  made  a  pretty  thick-settled 
family,  but  large  houses  were  not  such  a 
necessity  then  as  now. 

SAMUEL   TEMPLETON, 

born  at  Peterboro,  N.  H.,  Nov.  15,  1788, 
came  to  East  Montpelier  in  March,  1789. 
He  was  at  the  time  of  his  death  one 
of  the  oldest  residents  of  East  Montpe- 
lier,— aged  89  years,  7  months,  15  days. 
When  the  deceased  was  but  4  months  old, 
his  father,  John  Templeton,  in  company 
with  Solomon  Dodge,  removed  to  East 
Montpelier  from  Peterboro,  N.  H.,  at  that 
time  there  being  no  families  in  that  local- 
ity, and  but  one.  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  in  the 
then  limits  of  Montpelier.  On  their  arri- 
val here  the  snow  was  so  deep  that  they 
were  unable  to  proceed  further,  and  were 
compelled  to  stop  with  Col.  Davis  a  week. 
Reaching  their  new  home,  they  discovered 
that  the  roofs  of  the  rude  shanties  which 
they  had  erected  the  year  previous  had 
been  blown  off,  and  the  snow  was  as  deep 
in  their  houses  as  on  the  ground,  they  be- 
ing compelled  to  shovel  the  snow  out,  and 
make  their  beds  as  best  they  could.  The 
two  men  had  married  sisters,  named  Tag- 
gart,  and  cleared  farms  adjoining,  that  on 
which  Sam'l  Templeton  died  being  the  one 
cleared  by  his  father,  while  a  daughter  of 
Mr.  Solomon  Dodge,  Mrs.  John  R.  Young, 


resides  on  the  one  which  her  father  clear- 
ed. The  deceased  was  a  good,  reliable 
citizen,  and  leaves  one  son  and  a  daugh- 
ter— Austin  Templeton,  of  East  Montpe- 
lier, and  Mrs.  James  M.  Howland,  of 
Montpelier.  Although  Mr.  Templeton 
had  always  lived  on  the  same  place,  yet  he 
has  resided  in  four  counties  and  two  towns, 
and  paid  taxes  in  three  counties. 

DR.    NATHANIEL   CLARK    KING, 
[BY  DR.  SUMNEB  PUTNAM.] 

came  to  Montpelier,  now  East  Montpelier, 
about  181 2.  He  was  born  in  Rochester, 
Mass.,  July  19,  1789,  being  one  of  five 
brothers,  and  the  third  son  of  Jonathan 
King  and  Mary  Clark  King. 

In  his  boyhood  he  attended  district 
school  until  fifteen  years  old,  when  his 
father  gave  him  his  time,  and  he  was  to 
provide  for  himself.  He  immediately  en- 
tered a  private  school  to  fit  himself  for 
teaching,  and  the  study  of  medicine.  He 
studied  the  languages,  Greek  and  Latin, 
and  made  such  progress  that  he  taught 
school  the  winter  after  he  was  sixteen,  and 
began  to  read  medicine  in  1808  ;  and  con- 
tinued to  teach,  and  read,  until  the  fall  of 
1811.  Having  studied,  mixed  medicines, 
and  visited  patients  more  or  less  with  Dr. 
Foster  of  Rochester  for  3  years,  he  attend- 
ed medical  lectures  at  Hanover,  N.  H., 
Dr.  Nathan  Smith  being  at  the  head  of  the 
medical  department  of  Dartmouth  College 
at  that  time. 

He  began  practice  at  North  Montpelier 
about  18 1 2,  having  a  sister  residing  in  that 
vicinity,  and  in  18 14,  at  the  call  for  volun- 
teers he  went,  as  surgeon,  with  others,  to 
Plattsburgh  when  the  British  invaded  that 
place.  In  18 17,  he  married  Miss  Fanny, 
second  daughter  of  Maj.  Nath.  Davis,  one 
of  the  foremost  settlers  in  town,  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits.  About  this  time 
his  father-in-law  Davis  offered  him  a  good 
chance  to  go  into  trade,  which  he  accept- 
ed, and  gradually  ceased  to  visit  the  sick 
generally,  prescribing  for  and  visiting  only 
those  who  were  especially  anxious  for  his 
counsel.  After  years  of  trade  and  careful 
investment  of  savings,  he  became  perhaps 
the  wealthiest  resident  in  East  Montpelier. 
In  1849  and  1850,  he  represented  the  town 


a 


j/'\  y^    "'^^ 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


583 


in  the  legislature,  and  for  many  years  did 
a  large  justice  business  ;  many  sought  his 
advice  in  matters  important  to  them,  and 
being  a  well-informed,  social  man,  of  large 
acquaintance,  many  couples  formerly  ap- 
plied to  him  to  join  them  in  marriage. 

Between  1818  and  1835,  six  children 
were  born  to  him,  only  three  of  whom 
reached  maturity,  and  are  living  at  the 
present  time — two  of  them  at  Montpelier, 
with  one  of  whom  he  now  resides  at  the 
age  of  92,  and  until  within  a  few  months 
retaining  his  faculties  in  a  remarkable  de- 
gree.    Naturallv  a  man  of  strong  mind, 


capable,  honest  and  conscientious,  yet  full 
of  pleasantry  and  anecdote,  he  has  endur- 
ed with  fortitude  and  even  cheerfulness 
whatever  misfortunes  came  upon  him,  and 
in  the  course  of  a  long  life  has  made  nu- 
merous friends,  many  of  the  younger  class 
of  whom  yet  often  call  to  see  him,  while 
few  or  none  of  his  earlier  associates  now 
remain. 

Although  his  father  was  an  orthodox 
deacon,  and  his  oldest  brother  a  clergy- 
man of  the  same  denomination,  views 
broader  and  more  hopeful  have  ever  found 
a  place  in  his  heart. 


EAST   MONTPELIER   LONGEVITY    LIST. 


Persons  over  80  years  of  age  who  have  lived  and  died  in  East  Montpelier. 

Dec.   1st,   1 88 1. 


Nicholas  D.  Bennett,  83 

Daniel  Russell,  Sr.,  83 

Rebina  Davis,  83 

Gen.  Parley  Davis,  82 

Caleb  Bennett,  82 

Esac  Howland,  82 

Joseph  Gould,  82 

Abial  French,  82 

Ezra  Bassett,  82 

Jeduthan  Doty,  82 

Sarah  Wing,  82 

Paul  Hathaway,  82 

Cyrus  Stoddard,  82 

Abigail  Beckley,  82 

Polly  Nelson,  82 

Sally  Parker,  81 

Betsy  Phinney,  81 

Moses  Parmenter,  81 

Shubael  Short,  81 

Temperance  Russell,  81 

Polly  Peck,  81 

Lot  Hathaway,  2d.,  81 

Lot  Hathaway,  Sr.,  80 

Smith  Stevens,  80 

Sally  Parker,  80 

Jonn  Stevens,  80 

David  Gould,  80 

Susanna  Ellis,  80 

Arthur  Daggett,  80 

Eunice  Hammett,  80 

Eunice  Williams,  80 

David  French,  80 

Polly  Stoddard,  80 

Nancy  Holbrook,  80 

Barnabas  Hammett,  80 

Job  Macomber,  79 

Nahum  Kelton,  ygh 

Nathaniel  Cutler,  79 

Wm  .Templeton,  Jr.,  79 


Molly  Gould, 

102^ 

Lucy  Templeton, 

88 

Mrs.  Chamberlain, 

lOI 

David  Wing,  Sr., 

88 

Triphina  Shepard, 

99^ 

Mary  Stevens, 

88 

Betsy  Carroll, 

99 

Sally  Merritt, 

88 

Simeon  Gould, 

98 

Lucinda  Sanders, 

88 

Isaac  Gray, 

97h 

Freeman  Snow, 

87 

Benjamin  Ellis, 

96 

George  Clark, 

87 

Elias  Metcalf, 

95 

John  Upton, 

86 

Bethiah  Parker, 

95 

Rebecca  Giles, 

86 

Phoebe  Dudley, 

95 

Susanna  Clark, 

86 

Mary  Gould, 

95 

Ruth  Bennett, 

86 

Daniel  Gould, 

94 

Oliver  Merritt, 

86 

Samuel  Davis, 

94 

Pauline  Davis, 

86 

Rachel  Bliss, 

94 

Jesse  Bassett, 

86 

Lorane  Templeton, 

94 

Huldah  Wheeler, 

85 

Isaac  Vincent, 

93h 

Hezekiah  Tinkham, 

85 

Theophilus  Clark,  Sr 

.   93-^ 

Edward  West, 

85 

Elisha  Cummins, 

93 

Reliance  Stevens, 

85 

James  Foster, 

93 

John  Gray,  Sr., 

85 

Lucinda  Cutler, 

93 

Anna  Gray, 

85 

Eunice  Vincent, 

92 

Reliance  Stevens, 

85 

Polly  Waters, 

92 

George  Clark, 

85 

Samuel  Patterson, 

91 

Ezra  Paine, 

85 

Joanna  Wakefield, 

91 

Nathaniel  Ormsbee, 

84 

Jemima  Morse, 

91 

Lovina  Tracy, 

84 

Margaret  Holmes, 

91 

Timothy  Davis, 

84 

Abigail  Cutler, 

91 

Annis  Tabor, 

84 

Clark  Stevens, 

90 

David  Daggett, 

84 

Sylvanus  Morse, 

90 

Abigail  Hathaway, 

84 

John  Chase, 

90 

John  Putnam, 

84 

Elizabeth  Boy  den. 

90 

Caty  West, 

84 

Edward  Clough, 

90 

Sally  Parmenter, 

84 

Willard  Shepard, 

90 

Sally  Ormsbee, 

83 

Reuben  Waters, 

90 

Daniel  Russell,  Sr., 

83 

Harriet  Hamblin, 

90 

Jesse  Bailey, 

83 

Samuel  Templeton, 

89^ 

Elijah  McKnight, 

83 

Daniel  Bassett, 

89 

John  Boyden, 

83 

Ruth  Daggett, 

88 

Benajah  Putnam, 

83 

Abigail  Nash, 

88 

Abigail  Lawson, 

83 

William  Gray, 

88 

584 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


EAST  MONTPELIER   LONGEVITY   LIST. 

Living  in  tcnvn  Dec.   i,   1881. 

BY  CHAS.   DE  F.  BANCROFT. 

Anna  Gould, 
Polly  Gould, 
Sally  Vincent, 
Lydia  P.  Parker, 
Cyrus  Morse, 
Belinda  Paine, 
Harriet  P.  Goodwin, 
Polly  Richards, 
William  Holmes, 
Ann  Cummins, 
Harriet  Choate, 
Catherine  Stevens, 
Mahala  Templeton, 
Culver  W.  Lane, 
Eleanor  Norcross, 
Abigail  Southgate, 
Theophilus  Clark, 
Rodney  Cummins, 
Fanny  Gray, 
Betsey  Gray, 
Hannah  Bliss, 
Putnam  McKnight, 
Margaret  McKnight, 
Polly  Hathaway, 
Willard  Cutler, 
Ralph  W.  Warner, 
Amasa  Cummings, 

A  very  remarkable  instance  of  longevity,  is,  of  a  Mrs.  Betsy  Carroll  and  her  three 
daughters  of  this  town.  Mrs.  Carroll  died  at  the  age  of  99  years ;  one  daughter, 
Mrs.  Lucinda  Cutler  at  the  age  of  93 ;  the  second,  Mrs.  Abigail  Cutler  at  the  age  of 
91,  and  the  other  now  living  in  town,  Mrs.  Polly  Gould  at  the  age  of  90  years. 


94 

Stephen  Gould, 

77 

Eunice  Parmenter, 

73 

90 

Joseph  Richards, 

77 

Polly  Gould,  2d, 

72 

89 

Nahum  Templeton, 

77 

Marcus  B.  Hamblin, 

72 

87 

Mirinda  Dodge, 

76 

Prentiss  M.  Shepard, 

72 

85 

Lawson  Hammett, 

76 

Freeman  N.  West, 

72 

85 

Lorenzo  D.  Gray, 

76 

Hosea  Gould, 

72 

85 

Phebe  Perry, 

76 

Polly  Burno, 

71 

84 

Relief  M.  Stewart, 

76 

Lucy  B.  Clark, 

71 

83 

John  R.  Young, 

76 

Jefferson  F.  W.  Dodge 

.71 

81 

Anna  Beckley, 

75 

Joseph  Gray, 

71 

81 

Timothy  Blake, 

75 

Mary  F.  Sibley, 

71 

81 

Samuel  Davis, 

75 

Alonzo  Snow, 

71 

81 

Dulcena  Edwards, 

75 

Ann  Blake, 

70 

80 

Almira  Wheeler, 

75 

Lucius  Cummins, 

70 

80 

WMUard  Sanders, 

75 

Almira  Fleming, 

70 

80 

Edward  G.  Davis, 

74 

Philura  D.  Hamblin, 

70 

79 

Samuel  Edwards, 

74 

Harriet  H.  Peck, 

70 

79 

Betsey  Harvey, 

74 

Sherlock  Peck, 

70 

79 

Aurelia  Jacobs, 

74 

William  Templeton, 

70 

79 

Abigail  Lawson, 

74 

Scjuier  Bailey, 

69 

79 

Luther  M.  Parmenter, 

74 

Mercy  E.  Clough, 

69 

79 

Betsey  M.  Sibley, 

74 

Diana  Holmes, 

69 

78 

Lydia  Young, 

74 

Ezekiel  D.  Nye, 

69 

78 

Almira  Warner, 

74 

Joel  Ormsbee, 

69 

n 

Chester  S.  Guernsey, 

73 

Harriet  Stevens, 

69 

77 
77 

Elhanan  Norcross, 

73 

Mary  B.  South  wick. 

69 

SUICIDES   AND   CASUALTIES 

Within  the  present  limits  of  East  Aiontpelier 
from  its  settlement  to  Dec. ,  1 88 1 . 

BY  TEUMAN  C.  KELTON,  TOWN  CLERK. 

A  little  girl,  daughter  of  B.  Nash,  was 
killed  by  a  falling  tree  in  the  east  part  of 
the  town  previous  to  1800. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Chamberlin, 
about  21  years  of  age,  was  killed  by  a  fall- 
ing tree  during  the  year  1801,  near  the 
center  of  the  town,  and  another  the  follow- 
ing year  by  the  name  of  Robinson,  in  the 
north  part  .of  the  town. 

The  wife  of  John  Cutler  hung  herself  in 
1801. 

The  foregoing  are  taken  from  D.  P. 
Thompson's  History  of  Montpelier. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Alonzo  Kingsley 
was  killed  by  a  tree  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  George  H.  Chase,  about  1800;  and 
Daniel  Blanchard  was  killed  by  a  falling 


tree  Sept.,  1803,  near  the  site  of  No.  5,  or 
four  corners  school  house. 

A  child  of  Jonathan  Edwards  fell  from  a 
raft  and  drowned  in  the  lower  pond  of  N. 
Montpelier,  about  1825. 

Charles  Plumb  was  drowned  while  bath- 
ing, about  1819,  just  below  the  Clark  Ste- 
vens bridge,  aged  16  years. 

Nancy  Waugh  committed  suicide  by 
drowning  in  the  brook  east  of  George  Da- 
vis' residence,  about  1829. 

Elisha  Gray,  aged  about  28,  drowned 
or  died  in  a  fit  occasioned  by  plunging  in 
the  water  when  over-heated,  Aug.  19, 
1 83 1.  A  child  of  Heman  Powers  was 
drowned  by  falling  from  a  raft,  at  East 
village  mill-pond. 

The  wife  of  Henry  French  committed 
suicide  with  the  razor,  near  East  Village. 
Also  a  man  by  the  name  of  Ladd. 

William  Stoddard  committed  suicide  by 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


585 


hanging,  at  the  present  residence  of  Aro 
P.  Slay  ton. 

A  child  of  Theophilus  Clark  died  from 
being  scalded  by  sitting  into  a  pail  of  hot 
water. 

William  Alger  died  from  a  gun  shot 
wound,  (accident)  April  5,  1844,  on  the 
farm  now  known  as  the  Norcross  farm. 

Charles  Pitkin  died  at  A.  J.  Hollister's 
from  accidental  gun  shot  wound. 

Dec.  22,  1857,  George  W.  Jacobs  died 
from  poison  by  taking  a  solution  of  corro- 
sive .sublimate  by  mistake. 

June  25,  i860,  Abner  Chapman,  aged 
13  years,  and  Herbert  L.  Nye,  aged  7 
years,  son  of  George  G.  Nye,  were  drown- 
ed while  bathing  in  the  Branch  below  N. 
Montpelier. 

July  5,  1862.  Nathan  Parker,  aged  72, 
died  from  being  gored  by  a  bull. 

Oct.  31,  1863,  Ellison  Albee,  aged  26, 
fell  from  a  loaded  wagon  and  was  run  over 
and  killed,  while  at  work  for  Elon  O. 
Hammond. 

Feb.  15,  1866,  Eustice  Morris,  aged  53, 
was  killed  by  a  falling  tree  while  chopping 
for  T.  C.  Kelton. 

July  13,  1868,  ZadockH.  Hubbard,  aged 
25,  died  from  sun-stroke,  while  at  work  for 
Charles  A.  Tabor. 

Nov.  9,  1873,  Pliny  P.  Pearsons,  aged 
34,  died  from  a  cut  on  the  head  by  a  circu- 
lar saw,  while  working  under  the  mill  at 
N.  Montpelier. 

Nov.  22,  1875,  Bessie  K.  Lord,  aged  5, 
daughter  of  Rev.  W.  H.  Lord,  of  Montpe- 
lier, was  thrown  from  a  carriage  and  killed 
in  the  west  part  of  the  town. 

Arbiickle  murde?'. -r-Hiram  W.  Arbuckle, 
aged  27,  living  with  his  mother  at  East 
Village,  April  13,  1877,  shot  George  Shortt, 
a  young  man  of  16,  who  was  sitting  on  a 
bench  by  the  stove  in  the  grist-mill.  The 
ball  striking  the  breast  bone,  glanced  down 
to  the  left  side.  Shortt  starting  to  leave 
by  a  back  door  was  hit  in  the  arm  above 
the  elbow  by  a  second  ball,  after  its  passing 
through  the  stove-pipe,  he  at  the  same 
time  stumbling  over  some  wood  on  the 
floor.  The  appearance  was  that  the  last 
shot  was  fatal.  Arbuckle  immediately  left 
the  mill  and  went  to  the  black-smith  shop 


of  his  brother-in-law,  George  W.  Bancroft, 
and  shot  him  twice  and  then  returned  back 
near  the  mill.  About  that  time,  Bancroft 
came  out  of  the  shop  and  started  for  his 
house.  Arbuckle  seeing  him,  ran  after 
him  and  chased  him  round  some  lumber 
near  the  road.  Bancroft  then  changed  his 
course  and  ran  for  the  mill,  followed  by 
Arbuckle,  who  fired  again  just  as  he  was 
entering  the  mill  door,  he  falling  dead  on 
the  floor.  Arbuckle  then  went  to  his 
home  and  remained  there  until  the  arrival 
of  the  constable,  George  Howland,  who 
had  been  sent  for  about  a  mile  distant, 
when  he  stepped  out  at  a  back  door  and 
shot  himself,  falling  dead  instantly.  The 
situation  of  the  mill,  shop  and  house  are 
is  about  like  the  points  of  a  triangle,  12 
rods  apart,  and  Bancroft's  house  next  to 
the  other  house.  The  young  man,  Shortt, 
strange  to  say,  was  not  fatally  hit,  the  ball 
of  the  first  shot  was  taken  out  on  the  out- 
side of  the  left  ribs,  some  8  or  10  inches 
from  where  it  struck  him.  At  the  time  of 
the  shooting,  the  miller,  Mr.  Clifford,  and 
two  other  neighbors  were  in  the  mill,  and 
no  one  except  Bancroft  was  in  the  shop. 
No  cause  can  be  assigned  for  the  shooting, 
except  an  unpleasantness  with  Shortt, 
growing  out  of  a  collision  of  teams  some 
time  previous  at  a  ride,  and  the  dissipation 
of  Bancroft  and  treatment  to  his  wife,  who 
was  the  sister  of  Arbuckle. 

July  18,  1878,  Henry  R.  Campbell  fell 
from  a  load  of  hay  and  was  killed. 

Dec.  20,  1878,  Bert  R.  Macomber,  aged 
17,  committed  suicide  by  shooting. 

Nov.  30,  1879,  Doct.  John  H.  Peck  died 
from  over  dose  of  chloroform. 

April  24,  1880,  Byron  Eastman,  aged 
20,  was  drowned  by  the  upsetting  of  a 
boat  at  North  Montpelier. 

SYLVANUS   SHEPHERD 

is  remembered  by  the  citizens  of  Montpe- 
lier as  an  odd  character  about  town  in  its 
early  days.  His  brother,  Willard  Shep- 
herd, was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  East 
Montpelier,  and  became  an  opulent  farm- 
er. The  old  two-story  brick  house  he 
built  near  the  line  of  East  Montpelier  and 
Plainfield  is  occupied  by  his  descendants. 
He  was  the  author  of  "The  Phoenix  Chron- 


74 


586 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


icle."  The  word  Phoenix  signifies  arising 
out  of  its  own  ashes.  The  Bonfire  in 
which  450  books  were  burnt :  A  view  of 
Montpelier  and  all  the  country  places  in 
the  State,  &c.  &c.  By  Sylvanus  Shep- 
herd. Printed  for  the  author.  1825,  8vo. 
pp.  18. — Gilmari's  Bibliography. 

THE    STEP-MOTHER. 

Lines.  wriUen  by  Clark  Stevens  in  his  8dih  year, 
to  a  lady  who  was  a  second  wife. 
A  step-mother's  lot  is  one  that 's  hard- 
She  need  be  constant  on  her  guard; 
There  are  so  many  minds  to  please. 
She  should  be  often  on  her  knees, 
To  pray  for  grace  her  patli  to  tread. 
And  by  her  Saviour's  will  be  led; 
For  what  suits  one  will  not  another. 
So  I  do  pity  the  step-mother. 

See  biography  of  Clark  Stevens,  page 
581.  In  his  old  age  he  often  amused  him- 
self with  rhyming  tributes  for  his  friends, 
acrostics  largely.  This,  just  given,  is 
taken  from  a  quarto  blank  book,  84  pages, 
all  written  after  he  was  85  years  of  age. 

TOWN   OFFICERS. 

Town  Clerk — Royal  Wheeler,  1849  to 
1855  inclusive;  Austin  D.  Arms,  1856  to 
1862  inclusive.  Truman  C.  Kelton,  1863 
to  the  present  time  — 188 1. 

Treasurer — Addison  Peck,  1849,  '5°>'Si- 
N.  C.  King,  1852  to  1861  inclusive.  S. 
S.  Kelton,  1862  to  1877.  T.  C.  Kelton, 
1877  to  the  present  time — 1881. 

Overseer  of  the  Poor — Addison  Peck, 
1849,  '5°'  '51-  Jacob  Bennett,  1852  to 
i86q.  Addison  Peck,  i860  to  1865.  John 
G.  Putnam,  1865-66.  John  M.  Willard, 
1867  to  1875  inclusive.  Solon  F.  Cum- 
mins, 1876  to  the  present  time — 1881. 

\st  Selectman — J.  C.  Nichols,  1845-50, 
'51;  Jacob  Rich,  1852;  Samuel  Temple- 
ton,  1853;  Lorenzo  Gray,  1854;  Edson 
Slayton,  1855,  '56;  Ezekiel  D.  Nye,  1857  ; 
Hazen  Lyford,  1858;  Jas.  Bennett,  1859; 
Orlando  F.  Lewis,  i860,  '61  ;  Truman  C. 
Kelton,  1862;  John  C.  Tabor,  1863;  Jas. 
A.  Coburn,  1864;  S.  S.  Kelton,  1865; 
John  M.  Willard,  1866;  J.  L.  Coburn, 
1867;  Thomas  B.  Stevens,  1868;  Squire 
Bailey,  1869;  M.  D.  Willard,  1870, '71  ; 
Clark  King,  1872,  '^l,  '74;  E.  H.  Vin- 
cent, 1875;  Eri  Morse,  1876;  S.  W.  Hill, 
1877  ;  D.  H.  Patterson,  1878  ;  J.  C.  Paine, 


1879;  G.  H.  Uix,  1880;  Orlando  Clark, 
1881. 

Representative — N.  C.  King,  1849,  "50; 
J.  P.  W.  Vincent,  1851,  '52;  James  Tem- 
pleton,  1853,  '54;  Stephen  F.  Stevens, 
1855,^56;  Earned  Coburn,  1857,  '58;  P. 
P.  Pitkin,  1859,^60;  E.  D.Nye,  1861,^62; 
T.  C.  Kelton,  1863,  '64;  Prentice  M. 
Shepard,  1865,  '66;  Timothy  Davis,  1867, 
'68;  J.  A.  Coburn,  1869,  Vo;  T.  B.  Ste- 
vens, 1872,  ''']->)\  H.  D.  Foster,  1874;  J. 
L.  Coburn,  1876;  Austin  Templeton, 
1878  ;  A.  A.  Tracy,   1880. 

Represetitatives  fro7n  East  Montpelier  be- 
fore division  of  town — Pearley  Davis, 
1799,  1802  ;  Nahum  Kelton,  1816, '17, '18, 
'20,  "29;  Wm.  Billings,  1834,  '35;  Royal 
Wheeler,  1838,  '39;  Addison  Peck,  1842, 
'43;  Dr.  Charles  Clark,  1846,  '47. 

VOTES  FOR  GOVERNOR  AND  PRESIDENTS. 

1849 — Horatio  N.  Needham,  free  soil, 
213;  Carlos  Coolidge,  whig,  76;  Jonas 
Clark,  dem.,  21. 

1850  —  Lucius  B.  Peck,  dem.,  193; 
Charles  K.  Williams,  whig,  85 ;  John 
Roberts,  free  soil,  32. 

1 85 1 — Timothy  P.  Redfield,  free  dem., 
146;  Chas.  K.Williams,  whig,  59;  John 
Roberts,  dem.  24. 

1852 — Lawrence  Brainerd,  free  soil,  107  ; 
John  S.  Robinson,  dem.,  81  ;  Erastus  Fair- 
banks, whig,  65.  Presidential,  Winfield 
Scott,  37;  Franklin  Pierce,  47. 

1853 — John  S.  Robinson,  dem.,  loi  ; 
Lawrence  Brainerd,  free  soil,  91  ;  Erastus 
Fairbanks,  whig,  51. 

1854 — Stephen  Royce,  whig,  98  ;  Merritt , 
Clark,  dem.,  95;  Lawrence  Brainerd,  free 
soil,  5. 

1855 — Stephen  Royce,  whig,  163;  Mer- 
ritt Clark,  dem.,  95;  Lawrence  Brainerd, 
free  soil,  i . 

1856  —  Ryland  Fletcher,  whig,  168; 
Henry  Keyes,  dem.,  87.  Presidential, 
Fremont,  139;  Buchanan,  40. 

1857  —  Ryland    Fletcher,    whig,     128; 
Henry  Keyes,  dem.,  93. 

1858 — Hiland  Hall,  whig,  145;  Henry 
Keyes,  dem.,  92. 

1859 — Hiland  Hall,  whig,  163  ;  John  G. 
Saxe,  dem.,  102. 

i860 — Erastus    Fairbanks,    whig,    180; 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


587 


John   G.   Saxe,    dem.,    87.     Presidential, 
Lincoln,  1 13  ;  Douglass,  32. 

1861 — Frederick  Holbrook,repub.,  141  ; 
Andrew  Tracy,  whig,  y2)'i  H.  B.  Smalley, 
dem.,  13. 

1862 — Frederick  Holbrook,  repub.,  iii. 

1863 — John  G.  Smith,  repub.,  161  ; 
Timothy  P.  Redfield,  dem.,  62. 

1864 — John  G.  Smith,  repub.,  149; 
Timothy  P.  Redfield,  dem.,  56.  Presi- 
dential, Lincoln,  131  ;  McClellan,  25. 

1865 — Paul  Dillingham,  repub.,  122; 
Charles  N.  Davenport,  dem.,  49. 

1866 — Paul  Dillingham,  repub.,  129; 
Charles  N.  Davenport,  dem.,  41. 

1867 — John  B.  Page,  rep.  176;  J.  L. 
Edwards,  dem.,  39. 

1868 — John  B.  Page,  repub.,  174;  John 
L.  Edwards,  dem.,  51.  Presidential, 
Grant,  156;   Seymour,  28. 

1869 — Peter  T.  Washburn,  repub.,  143  ; 
Homer  W.  Heaton,  dem.,  48. 

1870 — John  W.  Stewart,  repub.,  129; 
Homer  W.  Heaton,  dem.,  41. 

1872 — Julius  Converse,  repub.,  155; 
Abraham  B.  Gardner,  dem.,  47.  Presi- 
dential, Grant,  107;   Greeley,  19. 

War  of  the 


1874 — Asahel  Peck,  repub.,  77-^  W. 
H.  H.  Bingham,  dem.,  41. 

1876 — Horace  Fairbanks,  repub.,  134; 
W.  H.  H.  Bingham,  dem.,  57.  Presiden- 
tial, Hayes,  109;  Tilden,  t,?,- 

1878 — Redfield  Proctor,  repub.,  145; 
W.  H.  H.  Bingham,  dem.,  55. 

1880 — Roswell  Farnham,  repub.,  166; 
Edward  J.  Phelps,  dem.,  56.  Presidential, 
Garfield,  108;  Hancock,  17. 

SOLDIERS   OF    EAST   MONTPELIER. 

Soldiers  of  the  Revolution,  who  lived 
and  died  in  East  Montpelier . — Hezekiah 
Tinkham,  Edward  West,  Elias  Metcalf, 
John  Putnam,  Job  Macomber,  Daniel 
Russell,  Sen.,  Theophilus  Clark,  Clark 
Stevens,  Samuel  Southwick,  Enoch  Gate, 
John  Gray,  Joshua  Sanders. 

Soldiers  of  the  War  of  18 12. — Rowland 
Edwards,  Enoch  Kelton,  Nathan  Kelton, 
John  Gould,  John  B.  Kelton,  John  Morgan, 
Jasper  M.  Stoddard,  Moses  Parmenter. 

Soldiers  of  the  Mexican  War. — Daniel 
Cutler,  Orange  McKay.' 

Rebellion.     ' 


COMPILED  MAINLY  FROM   THE  ADJUTANT  GENERAL'S  REPORT  BY  CHARLES    DE  F.   BANCROFT. 
VOLUNTEERS  FOR  THREE  YEARS  CREDITED  PREVIOUS  TO  CALL  FOR  300,000  MEN,  OCT.  l6,  1S63. 


Discharged  Dec.  9,  62. 

Died  June  14,  62,  in  Louisana. 

Discharged  May  18,  65. 

Mustered  out  July  27,  64. 

Credited,  but  does   not  appear  to  have 

entered  the  service. 
Died  May  7,  62. 
Discharged  Dec.  17,  61. 
Transferred  to  U.  S.  Navy  Apr.    1 5,  64  ; 

discharged  June  6,  65. 
Mustered  out  Oct.  28,  64. 
Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  ;  disch.  June  4,  64. 
Deserted  July  26,  64. 
Died  July  4,  62,  of  wounds  rec'd  at  Lee's 

Mills. 
Discharged  Oct.  10,  62. 
Died  at  New  Orleans,  Sept.  3,  62. 
Killed  at  Fredericksburgh  Dec.  13,  62. 
Pro.  corp.  ;  wounded  Aug.  21,  64  ;  must. 

out  June  19,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  21,  65. 
Discharged  Nov.  22,  61. 
Mustered  out  Nov.  18,  64. 
Captain  ;  resigned  Aug.  14,  61. 
Killed  in  action  May  3,  64. 
Died  April  14,  62. 

1st  lieut.  ;  died  May  9,  62,  Wash'n,  D.  C. 
Prom.  corp.  ;  discharged  Dec.  23,  62. 


Names. 

Age. 

Co.  Rej 

t.     Enlistment 

Andrews,  Gustavus  A. 

43 

K    3 

July  10  61 

Bancroft,  Charles  F. 

18 

I  Bat. 

Jan.    18  62 

Bancroft,  Daniel  P. 

23 

C  Cav. 

Aug  28  62 

Bailey,  Hiram  A. 

19 

H    3 

June    I  61 

Beaudreau,  Stephen 

Bent,  David  J. 

20 

G   4 

Aug  30  61 

Burnham,  Andrew 

36 

H    2 

do    20  61 

Carley,  Charles 

F    6 

do    15  62 

Carley,  Henry 

24 

F   6 

Sept  23  61 

Carley,  William 

44 

E   8 

Nov  28  61 

Carr,  Chester 

26 

I   II 

Aug  II  62 

Connell,  Thomas 

22 

K    3 

July  10  61 

Cummins,  Edwin 

22 

G   4 

Aug  27  61 

Cutler,  Charles  F. 

21 

K    7 

June    I  62 

Dearborn,  Roswell  H. 

-3 

G   4 

Aug  29  61 

Dillon,  William  2d., 

iS 

F   6 

do    15  62 

Field,  Reuben  R. 

24 

B  Cav 

do  do  do 

Gero,  Geoige 

28 

K    3 

July  ID  61 

Gray,  William  C. 

22 

C  Cav 

Sept  13  61 

Hammond,  Elon  O. 

45 

K    3 

June  1661 

Hargin,  Ira  J. 

18 

F   2 

Aug  14  62 

Hill,  Amasa 

29 

K    3 

July  10  61 

Hill,  Henrv  H. 

21 

G   4 

Sept  21  61 

Hill,  Joseph  P. 

20 

E    3 

June    I  61 

VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 

Age. 

Co. 

Regt.     Enlistment 

Rowland,  Hiram  B. 

42 

G 

3 

June  15  61 

Joslyn,  Triffley 

21 

G 

4 

Sept   3  61 

Lapiere,  Cypren 

21 

F 

2 

Feb  24  62 

Lapiere,  Joseph 

21 

F 

2 

do      5  62 

Lawrence,  Stephen  D. 

28 

F 

2 

Aug  14  62 

Mann,  Albert  N. 

21 

I 

9 

May  23  62 

Maxham,  George 

38 

E 

8 

Dec    8  61 

Mitchell,  John 

18 

K 

3 

July  10  61 

Morse,  Joseph  Jr., 

29 

H 

'7 

Aug  20  61 

Morris,  Joseph 

18 

C  Cav 

Aug  14  61 

Muckler,  Henry 

28 

G 

4 

do  27  6r 

Ormsbee,  Elhanan  W. 

24 

G 

4 

Aug  30  61 

Ormsbee,  Mansaur  A. 

28 

F 

May    7  61 

Ormsbee,  Orvis 

20 

G 

4 

Aug  30  61 

Persons,  Charles  E. 

20 

G 

4 

Aug  27  61 

Persons,  Levi  A. 

24 

G 

4 

do  do  do 

Persons,  Phineas  C. 

~3 

F 

6 

Feb  25  62 

Pitkin  Perley  P. 

35 

2 

June  20  61 

Prescott,  Dexter  S. 

22 

G 

4 

Aug  22  61 

Putnam,  Isaac  A. 

24 

G 

4 

do  24  61 

Sanders,  Charles  A. 

29 

G 

4 

Aug  24  61 

Seymour,  Isaac 

44 

I 

9 

June  2362 

Shorey,  Theodore 

19 

F 

2 

May   7  61 

Silloway,  Seth  P. 
Sinnott,  William 

Slayton,  Austin  C. 
Smith,  James  H. 
Snow,  Oscar  D. 
Southwick,  George  W. 
Stevens,  William  B. 

Steward,  Dexter  G. 
Templeton,  Charles  A. 
Thibeault,  Antoine 
Trow,  George  E. 
Washburn,  William  L. 
Wheeler.  Cyril 
Willey,  Alonzo  D. 
Wemes,  James 

Barnet,  Lucius  H. 
Carson,  Charles  H. 
Coburn,  Lewis  L. 
Cutler,  Lorenzo  D. 
Flint,  Norris  W. 
Genait,  Victor 
Hill,  Horace  L. 
Howland,  William  H. 
Laws  on,  William  E. 
Lewis,  William  H. 
Martin,  Henry  H. 
Nye,  Alanson 
Ormsbee,  Hosea  B. 
Ormsbee,  William  H. 
Pierce,  George 
Pratt,  Azro  A. 
Slayton,  Rufus  H. 
Snow,  Willard  C. 
Stoddard,  Francis  F. 
Templeton,  Albert  C. 
Tucker,  Marcus  F. 
Wakefield,  Christopher  H. 
Wakefield,  Henry 
Wakefield,  William  H. 


39  1st  Bat  Dec  7  61 
44     I     2     Aug  27  62 

21  K  3  July  10  61 
19  F  6  Oct  2  61 
19  H  3  June  I  61 
32  1st  Bat  June  16  62 
23     G    4     Aug  22  61 


24 
19 

18 
20 
18 

33 
24 

38 


July  ID  61 
Oct  7  61 
Aug  28  62 
Aug  20  62 
do  28  61 
do  20  62 
July  10  61 
Apr    5  62 


Discharged  Jan.  21,  63. 

W'd  at  Wilderness  ;  must  out  Sept.  30, 64. 

Trans,  to  V.  R.  .C,  Apr.  20,  65  ;     must. 

out  July  20,  65. 
Discharged  Sept.  13,  62. 
Rejected  by  Brigade  Surgeon. 
Discharged  Nov.  5,  62. 
Promoted  corp.  ;  re-enlisted  June  5,  64. 
Deserted  Jan.  21,  62. 
Mustered  out  Sept  13,  64. 
Discharged  Nov.  26,  62. 
Discharged  April  19,  62. 
Killed  at  the  Wilderness  May  5,  64. 
Discharged  Jan.  14,  63. 
Died  Jan.  19,  62,  at  Camp  Griffin,  Va. 
Mustered  out  Sept.  30,  64. 
Sergeant  ;  discharged  Apr.  17,  62. 
Discharged  July  31,  62. 
Quartermaster ;     pro.    capt.    and    assist. 

quartermaster  U.  S.  A.,  April  13.  62. 
Discharged  Nov.  10,  62. 
1st  sergt.  ;    prom.  2d  lieut.  Co.    H,  Jan. 

19,  62  ;    1st  lieut.  Co.  C,  Oct.  20,  63  ; 

killed  at  the  Wilderness  May  5,  64. 
Discharged  April  4,  62. 
Discharged  Feb.  20,  63. 
Prom.  Corp.  ;    sergt. ;  re-enlisted  ;  must. 

out  July  15,  65. 
Discharged  April  30,  64. 
Discharged  May  18,  63,  for  wounds  rec'd 

at  Fredericksburgh. 
Mustered  out  July  27,  64. 
Discharged  Oct.  30,  64. 
Died  Oct.  14,  61. 
Mustered  out  August  10,  64. 
Pro.  serg't ;  died  of  wounds  rec.  at  Cold 

Harbor,  June  12,  64. 
Discharged  Sept.  17,  62. 
Corporal  ;  died  Oct.  17,  62. 
Died  at  White  Oak  Church,  Dec.  24,  62. 
Mustered  out  Sept,  12,  64. 
Discharged  Feb.  17,  63.  [18,  63. 

Wounded  at  Fredericksburgh  ;  dis.   May 
Killed  at  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  16,  62. 
Discharged  July  8,  63. 


VOLUNTEERS  FOR  NINE  MONTHS. 


C  13     Aug  29  62      Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do  .  do  do 

do  do  Captain  ;  mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do  do  Serg't ;  died  at  Brattleboro,  July  24,  63. 

do       Aug  29  61       Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  Wd.  July  3,  63  ;  must.  out.  July  21,  63. 

do  do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

H  13  do  do 

C   13  do  Wounded  July  3,  63  ;  died  July  19,  63. 

do  do  Pro.  corp  ;  must,  out  July  21,  63. 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  do 

do  do  Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 


EAST  MONTPELIER. 


589 


CREDITS  FOR 

Names. 
Ainsworth,  Eugene  D. 

Barton,  Geo.  M. 
Batcheider,  John  D. 
Burnhani,  Edwin 

Carson,  Charles  H. 
Clark,  Isaac 

Collins,  Luther  M. 
Goodell,  Lewis 
Gove,  George  D. 
Rowland,  Arthur  L. 
Howland,  William  H. 

Jackson,  Marcus  N. 
Langdon,  John  C. 
Mason,  Gilman 
Mason,  Joseph 
O'Neil,  Daniel 
Pierce,  Dgvid 
Roscoe,  Curtis  W. 
Sanders,  Charles  A. 
Thomas,  William  W. 
Wakefield,  Henry 
Washburn,  Ira  A. 


Francis,  Edgar  A. 
Jangraw,  Francis 
Morris,  Joseph 
Morris,  Francis 
Dana,  Alpheus  T. 
Lewis,  William  H. 
Potter,  Robert 
Rowe,  Joseph 
Skiddy,  Lawrence 
Stevens,  Henry  A. 
Hoyt,  Enoch  S. 


3  YEARS,  UNDER  CALL  OF  OCT.   1 7,  1863,  FOR  300,000  MEN. 
Age    Co.  Regt.     Enlistment.  Remarks. 


18       III      Nov  23  63 


Holmes,  Ira 
Maxham,  George 

Aldrich,  Levi  II. 

Gray,  George  S. 
Ripley,  William  C. 

Bigelow,  John  B. 
Giovanni,  Don 


Benjamin,   David 
Bliss,  George  E. 
Buzzell,  George  W. 
Cummins,  Luther 
Davis,  George 
Davis,  Nathaniel  Jr., 
Davis,  Oscar  L. 
Edwards,  Samuel  Jr. 


17 


31 

18 
19 

17 
iS 

23 


18 
18 

44 
20 

19 

27 

19 

18 


18 


3  Bat 
I  II 
I  II 

E17 
I  [I 

H17 
I  II 

3  Bat 
E17 

E  17 

I  II 
3  Bat 
I  II 
I  II 

B    5 
K  Cav  Jan 
Hii     Dec 
3  Bat 
I  II 
E17 
I  II 


Dec  26  63 

Nov  21  63 

do    23  63 

Sept  14  63 
Nov  29  63 

do  963 
do  23  63 
Dec  23  63 
Sept  21  63 
do    14  63 


Nov  23  63 

Oct   3063 

Dec     4  63 

Nov  27  63 

do    24  63 

I  64 

263 

Aug    5  64 

Dec  23  63 

Sept  15  63 

Dec  28  63 


Wd.  at  Cold   Harbor,  June    i,  64;  dis. 

Apr.  27,  65. 
Pro.  corp  ;  mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Died  at  Ft.  Slocum,  D.  C,  Feb.  27,  64. 
Wd.  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.   19.  64;  pro. 

corp  ;  must,  out  July  17,  65. 
Corp  ;  killed  at  Wilderness,  May  6,  64. 
Died  June  6,  64,  of  wounds  received  at 

Cold  Harbor. 
Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 

do  June  29,  65. 

do  June  15,  65. 

Deserted  from  hospital  in  65. 
Corporal.     Died  May  10,  64,    of  wounds 

received  May  6,  64. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  25,  65. 

do  May  13,  65. 

Discharged  Apr.  15,  64. 

do  [65. 

Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  Apr.  64  ;  dis.  June  15, 
Killed  in  action  March  i,  64.  [22,  64. 

Corp  ;  died  at  Andersonville  prison,  Sept. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Discharged  Jan.  31,  65. 
Died  at  Salisb.  prison,  N.C.,  Feb.  20,  65. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  5,  65. 


VOLUNTEERS    FOR    ONE   YEAR. 


D  2 
21  3  Bat 
20       do 

19  do 

20  K    7 

21  Ft  Cav  Jan 
19    E   8     Feb 


Aug  20  64 

do    17  64 

do 

do 

Feb     I  65 

365 
o  65 


24  3  Bat  Aug  18  64 
33  D  7  Feb  13  65 
19  Ft  Cav  Jan  3  65 
V.  R.  C.     Feb   17  65 


Mustered  out  June  19,  65. 

do  do    15,  65. 

do  do 

do  do 

do  Jan.  31,  66. 

do  June  27,  65. 

do  do   28,  65. 

do  do    25,  65. 

do  Feb.  13,  66. 

do  June  27,  65. 
Died  Oct.  i,  65. 


VOLUNTEERS  RE-ENLISTED  FOR  THREE  YEARS. 


24     E    8 

41       do      June    5  64 


First  en.  a  credit  to  town  of  Woodbury. 

Deserted  May  28,  64. 
Wounded  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.   19,64; 
must,  out  July  17,  65. 


DRAFTED  MEN  WHO  ENTERED  THE  SERVICE. 

24     K    3    July  13  63      Wounded  at  Cold  Harbor 


64; 


C    2 
D    2 


June  3, 

des.  Oct.  I,  64. 
Killed  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64. 
Wd.  May  5,  64,  and  Sept.  19,  64 ;  pro. 

corp.  Oct.  31,  64;  serg't.  Feb.   7,  65; 

must,  out  July  15,  65. 

SUBSTITUTES  FURNISHED  BY  DRAFTED  MEN. 

48     B   C     July  24  63      Substitute  for  John  H.  Peck;  must,  out 
June  26,  65. 
do  Substitute  for  Darwin  A.  Stewart ;  des. 

before  assignment  to  Co.  or  Reg't. 

DRAFTED  MEN  WHO  PAID  COMMUTATION. 


do 
do 


Foster,  Edwin  H. 
Gould,  Henry  M. 
Gould,  John  M. 
Hollister,  Martin  V. 
Holmes,  Henry  C. 
Ordway,  Edward, 
Parmenter,  Marcus 


Pierce,  Aaron 
Seabury,  Edward  T. 
Smith,  Willard  G. 
B.  Stevens,  Thomas  B. 

Templeton,  Austin 
Templeton,  H.  H. 
Wasson,  David  H. 


59° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


RECAPITULATION. 

Volunteers  for  3  years 86 

Volunteers  for  i  year s 12 

Volunteers  for  9  months 24 

Drafted  men  who  entered  service 3 

Furnished  substitute 2 

Paid  commutation , 22 

Mustered  out  at  expiration  of  time  of  service,  or  the  close  of  the  war 64 

Discharged  for  disability 30 

Killed  in  battle 8 

Died  of  wounds  received  in  action 6 

Died  of  disease  contracted  in  service 11 

Died  in  Rebel  prisons 2 

Deserted 6 


ROLL   OF   HONOR. 


Name. 

Bancroft,  Charles  F. 
Batchelder,  John  D. 
Bent,  David  J. 
Carson,  Charles  H. 
Clark,  Isaac 
Cornell,  Thomas 
Cutler,  Charles  F. 
Cutler,  Lorenzo  D. 
Dearborn,  Rosvvell  H. 
Gray,  George  S. 
Hargin,  Ira  J. 
Hill,  Amasa 

Hill,  Henry  H.  ist  lieut. 
Howland,  William  H. 
Hoyt,  Enoch  S. 
Ormsbee,  Elhanan  W. 
Ormsbee,  Or  vis 
Pierce,  David 
Putnarn,  Isaac  A.  ist  lieut. 
Roscoe,  Curtis  W. 
Snow,  Oscar  D. 
Snow,  Willard  C. 
Stevens,  William  B. 
Templeton,  Charles  A. 
Thibeault,  Antoine 
Wakefield,  Henry 
Willey,  Alonzo  D. 


D;ite  of  deatli. 

June  14,  1862. 
Feb.  27,  1864. 
May  7,  1862. 
May  5,  1864. 
June  6,  1864. 
July  4,  1862. 
Sept.  3,  1862. 
July  24,  1863. 
Dec.  13,  1862. 
May  5,  1864. 
May  5,  1864. 
April  14,  1862. 
May  9,  1862. 
May  10,  1864. 
Oct.  3,  1865. 
May  5,  1864. 
Jan.  19,  1862. 
Mar.  I,  1864. 
May  5,  1864. 
Sept.  22,  1864. 
Oct.  14,  1861. 
July  19,  1863. 
June  12, 1864. 
Oct.  17,  1862. 
Dec.  24,  1862. 
Feb.  20,  1865. 
April  16,  1862. 


ERRATA. 

[OF  MR.    WALTON.] 

Page  329,  Miranda  C.  Storrs  should  be 
Maria  Cadwell  Storrs. 

Page  357,  William  H.  Upham  should 
be  William  Keyes  Upham.  e.  p.  w. 

Page  299,  soldiers  furnished  by  the  town 
given  as  236,  quota  189,  should  be  336, 
and  a  quota  of  289  to  fill. 

[OF  C.  DE  F.  BANCU  >FT.] 

Page  331,  Willie  Kelly,  aged  11  years, 
killed  by  a  sweep  on  Barre  street,  in  1869. 


Page  331,  a  W^illey  child  killed  on  Main 
street;  run  over,  age  6,  1870. 

Page  331,  Michael  McMahon  killed, 
should  read,  aged  30  years. 

Page  231,  William  Mousier,  not  William 
Monsier. 

Page  332,  D.  K.  Bennett,  Aug.  3,  not 
Aug.  8. 

On  page  348  should  be  added  the  names 
of  Edward  Ordway,  Edward  Seabury  and 
Willard  G.  Smith  to  the  list  of  drafted 
men  from  Montpelier  as  having  paid  com- 
mutation. They  are  erroneously  given  in 
the  Adjutant  General's  printed  report  of 
1864,  as  credits  from  East  Montpelier. 

Page  345,  '6,  Frank  V.  Randall,  Jr., 
enlisted  Jan.  i,  1863,  at  the  age  of  11  years  ; 
a  credit  from  this  town  as  a  musician  in 
Co.  F,  13th  Reg't.,  and  mustered  out  of 
service  July  21,  '63;  enlisted  Jan.  5,  '64, 
as  musician  in  Co.  E,  17th  Reg't.  ;  mus- 
tered out  July,  '65. 

Page  342,  Ansel  H.  Howard,  aged  18 
years,  enlisted  Aug.  20,  '61,  in  Co.  H,  2d 
Reg't. ;  promoted  corporal ;  re-enlisted 
from  Montpelier,  Dec.  21,  '63;  promoted 
sergeant ;  mustered  out  of  service  July 
I5,'65. 

Page  345,  William  Goodwin,  enlisted 
Aug.  25,  1862,  at  the  age  of  24,  in  Co.  I, 
13th  Regt.  Mustered  out  with  the  regi- 
ment July  21,  1863. 

Page  524,  Center  Cemetery  should  read 
Cutler  Cemetery, 

Page  530,  James  Conners'  age  should  be 
24,  not  54. 

Additional. — Mrs.  Rhoda  Brooks,  page 
476,  the  date  of  her  birth  should  be  1788, 

J.  A.  Wing,  p.  545  ;  birth  Oct.,  not 
Dec.  26,  1 810,  remained    in  Plainfield  58. 

Page  289,  Drolette,  should  be  Drolet. 


COMMEMORATION. 


PORTRAITS  AND  DONORS. 


Clark  Stevens  of  East  Montpelier,  old  town  clerk  and  Quaker  minister — first 
preacher  in  old  Montpelier.  Donated  by  Hon.  S.  S.  Kelton,  historian  of  East 
Montpelier,  and  Thomas  B.  Stevens,  grandson  of  Clark  Stevens. 

Gen.  Parley  Davis  of  East  Montpelier,  iirst  general  surveyor  of  Washino-ton 
County.     Donated  by  his  grandson,  Benjamin  I.  Wheeler  of  East  Montpelier. 

Gen.  Ezekiel  P.  Walton.     By  Hon.  E.  P.  Walton. 

Mrs.  Prussia  Persons  Walton.     By  Mrs.  Harriet  N.  Wing  of  Glens  Falls,  N.  Y. 

Hon.  E.  P.  Walton.     By  Hon.  E.  P.  Walton. 

Col.  James  H.  Langdon,  Mrs.  James  H.  Langdon,  James  R.  Langdon.  By 
James  R.  Langdon. 

George  Langdon.     By  Mrs.  Geo.  Langdon. 
Dr.  Julius  Y.  Dewey.     By  Hon.  Charles  and  Edward  Dewey. 
Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin.     By  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Marcus  D.  Gilman. 
Hon.  Charles  Reed.     By  Mrs.  Charles  Reed. 
Hon.  Charles  W.  Willard.     By  Mrs.  Charles  W.  Willard. 
Senator  William  Upham,  Mrs.  William  Upham.     By  Mrs.  George  Langdon. 
Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss.     By  Joseph  A.  Prentiss,  Esq.,  Winona,  Minn. 
Rev.  William  H.  Lord.     By  Ladies  of  Bethany  Church. 
Rev.  Frederick  W.  Shelton.     By  Episcopal  Church  Society. 
Rev.  Chester  Wright.     By  Rev.  J.  Edward  Wright. 
Capt.  Nathan  Jewett,  Col.  Elisha  P.  Jewett.     By  Col.  E.  P.  Jewett. 
John  Wood,  Thomas  W.  Wood.     By  Thos.  W.  Wood. 
Judge  Timothy  P.  Redfield.     By  Hon.  T.  P.  Redfield. 
Hon.  Homer  W.  Heaton.     By  Hon.  Homer  W.  Heaton. 
Joseph  A.  Wing,  Esq.     By  J.  A.  Wing,  E.sq. 
Gen.  Perley  P.  Pitkin.     By  Gen.  P.  P.  Pitkin. 

Hon.  Lucius  B.  Peck.     By  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Anna  M.  Mallary,  Towanda,  Penn. 
Hon.  Stoddard  B.  Colby.     By  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Col.  Carey,  Washington,  D.  C. 
Charles  G.  Eastman.     By  Mrs.  Charles  G.  Eastman. 
Jonathan  Shepard.     By  George  C.  Shepard. 
Gov.  Asahel  Peck.     By  Nahum  Peck  of  Hinesburgh. 
Hon.  Rawsel  R.  Keith.     By  Dodge  W.  Keith  of  Chicago. 

Mahlon  Cottrill,  Mrs.  Mahlon  Cottrill.  By  Jedd  P.  Cottrill,  Esq.,  Milwaukee. 
Col.  Levi  Boutwell.     By  Mrs.  Levi  Boutwell  and  H.  S.  Boutwell. 
Dr.  Nathaniel  C.  King  of  East  Montpelier,  Dr.  Sumner  Putnam  of  Montpelier. 
By  Dr.  Sumner  Putnam. 

Carlos  Bancroft.     By  Mrs.  Carlos  Bancroft. 

Aaron  Bancroft.     By  Chas.  De  F.  Bancroft  and  two  old  citizens. 

Zenas  Wood.     By  his  daughters  at  St.  Johnsbury. 

Richard  W.  Hyde.     By  Mrs.  R.  W.  Hyde  and  family. 


592  VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 

Hon.  John  A.  Page.     By  Hon.  J.  A.Page. 

Hon.  Joseph  Poland.     By  Hon.  J.  Poland. 

Charles  W.  Bailey.     By  Mrs.  Chas.  W.  Bailey. 

J.  Warren  Bailey.     By  Mrs.  J.  W.  Bailey. 

Major  Alfred  L.  Carleton.     By  Mrs.  A.  L.  Carleton. 

Rev.  Elisha  Brown.     By  Col.  A.  C.  Brown. 

Luther  Cross.     By  Luther  B.  Cross. 

Robert  H.  Whittier.     By  Mrs.  R.  H.  Whittier. 

Dea.  Constant  W.  Storrs.     By  Mrs.  C.  W.  Storrs. 

Marcus  D.  Gilman.     By  M.  D.  Gilman. 

Hiram  Atkins.     By  H.  Atkins. 

Hon.  Roderick  Richardson.     By  Hon.  R.  Richardson. 

Dr.  Charles  Clark.     By  the  family. 

WOOD  ENGRAVINGS    SPECIALLY  FOR  THIS  WORK. 

Lorenzo  Dow  and  Peggy,  and  Bridgman.     By  L.  J.  Bridgman. 

Church  of  St.  Augustine.     From  the  Catholic  Society. 

Trinity  M.  E.  Church.     By  the  Society — Mrs.  Laura  A.  McDermid,  solicitor. 

Church  of  the  Messiah.     By  the  Unitarian  Society,  through  John  G.  Wing,  Esq. 

Baptist  Church.     By  Society  and  friends,  through  John  W.  Smith. 

Central  Vermont  Depot.     From  Can.  Vt.  R.  R.  Co.,  St.  Albans. 

Vermont  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Building.     From  the  Company. 

Residence  of  Marcus  D.  Gilman.     From  Mr.  Gilman. 

Washington  County  Court  House.     By  the  Montpelier  lawyers,  through  Hiram 

Carleton,  Esq. 
Residence  of  George  C.  Shepard.     From  Mr.  Shepard. 
Riverside  House.     From  C.  J.  Gleason,  Esq. 

Plates  before  engraved. — Christ  Church — By  favor  of  Mr.  Atkins  of  the  Argu.s. 
Bethany  Church,  The  State  House,  Pavilion,  &c.  The  Interior  of  Christ 
Church,  Bethany,  and  Trinity  M.  E.,  subscriptions  commenced  for. 

Note  to  the  Portraits. — Those  of  Col.  Langdon  and  wife,  and  Gen.  Walton 
and  wife,  were  painted  by  Tuthill,  (a  pupil  of  Benjamin  West)  ;  tho.se  of  Mahlon 
Cottrill  and  wife,  by  Mason,  and  all  when  the  parties  were  so  young,  their  portraits 
will  be  recognized  by  only  a  few  persons.  The  same  is  true  to  some  extent  of  the 
portraits  of  Gen.  Parley  Davis  and  Mrs.  LTpham.  The  signature  of  Prussia  Walton 
was  writren  at  the  age  of  82. 

FINIS. 

Montpelier,  thou  hast  won  my  heart 

By  all  thy  generous  ways ; 
It  is  my  joy,  my  pride,  thy  noble  men, 

Thy  matrons  beauteous  in  their  days — 
To  praise. 

And  I  would  write  thy  happy  name 

On  the  historic  page. 
In  letters  as  of  gold,  to  hand 

Down  to  the  future  age — 

Montpelier. 

Abby  Maria  Hemenway 


MORETOWN. 


593 


MORETOWN. 

[Compiled  from  tlie  newspaper  records  and  papers 
contributed.] 

"The  township  was  chartered  June  7, 
1763,  the  grant  to  contain  6  square  miles 
to  be  divided  into  71  shares  ;  one-eighth  to 
each  of  the  64  proprietoirs  ;  each  drawing 
one  lot  out  of  each  division,  thei-e  being 
three  divisions.''  The  charter  says,  before 
any  division  of  land  be  made  to  proprie- 
tors, a  tract  of  land  as  near  the  center  of 
the  town  as  the  land  will  admit  shall  be 
reserved  and  marked  out  for  town  lots, 
one  of  which  shall  be  allotted  to  each  pro- 
prietor, of  the  contents  of  i  acre — they 
paying  as  rent  therefor  for  the  term  of  10 
years,  one  ear  of  Indian  corn,  on  the  25th 
of  Dec.  annually,  if  lawfully  demanded, 
and  said  rent  to  commence  Dec.  25,  1762. 
Also  each  proprietor  was  to  pay  one  shil- 
ling proclamation  money  on  every  100 
acres  of  land.  After  the  town  was  organ- 
ized, it  passed  a  vote  to  "quiet "  those  who 
had  previously  selected  and  were  occupy- 
ing lots,  in  lieu  of  drawing  by  lot  as  speci- 
fied in  the  grant.  By  "quiet"  it  is  pre- 
sumed was  meant  to  let  them  hold  the  lots 
selected.  Moretown  was  settled  prior  to 
1790;  for  in  1790,  Ebenezer  Haseltine 
came  to  the  N.  W.  part,  and  commenced 
to  clear  a  farm  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
from  Duxbury  line.  It  was  on  Winooski 
or  Onion  river,  and  the  place  where  his 
son,  Ebenezer  Haseltine,  now  resides. 
But  it  appears  that  Seth  Munson  was  living 
near  where  Mr.  Haseltine  made  a  pitch, 
when  Mr.  H.  arrived — so  it  is  evident  a 
few  settlers  had  made  a  beginning  prior  to 
1790.  At  this  date,  1790,  there  were  only 
a  few  houses  in  Montpelier,  and  these  were 
log ;  and  it  is  said  that  Mr.  H.  helped  cut 
the  first  hay  ever  cut  in  Montpelier,  and 
on  the  spot  where  the  Vennont  Watchman 
office  now  stands.  When  the  Indians  were 
on  their  way  to  burn  Royalton,  they 
camped  on  the  meadow  owned  by  Mr. 
Haseltine.  Arrow  heads  and  stone  hatchets 
have  been  found  on  this  farm.  The  first 
school  district  in  town  was  formed  in  this 
neighborhood.  Mrs.  Ebenezer  Haseltine 
and  Aunt  Judith  Haseltine  used  to  gather 
sap  on  snow-shoes,  and  catch  cart  loads 


of  trout  from  Onion  river.  Aunt  Judith  H. 
died  in  Aug.  1876,  aged  more  than  95 
years.  In  those  early  days  the  settlers 
went  to  Burlington  to  mill,  in  canoes, 
carrying  the  canoe  and  grist  around  the 
falls  in  Bolton.  Sometimes  they  would 
make  "  plumping  mills,"  by  making  a  hole 
in  a  large  stump  to  hold  the  grain,  and 
bending  a  sapling  over,  fasten  to  it  a  chunk 
of  wood  to  pound  the  corn  with.  Of  this 
no  one  need  be  ashamed,  for  one  of  our 
presidents  ground  corn  in  the  same  way. 
Bears  and  wolves  disturbed  the  people  to 
some  extent,  frequently  coming  out  in  the 
daytime.  Three  wolves  came  one  night 
and  put  their  paws  on  the  yard  fence  of 
Abner  Child,  on  Moretown  Common,  but 
went  back  to  the  mountains  and  howled. 
The  next  day,  about  2  p.  m.,  a  deer  came 
and  jumped  into  the  same  yard,  being 
driven  in  by  the  wolves,  -it  was  thought. 
The  deer  soon  left,  and  wolves'  tracks  were 
afterward  seen  in  connection  with  its  tracks 
toward  the  river. 

A  young  lady  was  riding  on  horseback 
from  the  Common  toward  the  Hollow,  and 
met  a  bear.  She  turned  back,  told  her 
story,  and  some  men  rallied,  pursued  and 
killed  the  bear.  It  was  distributed  be- 
tween persons,  many  wanting  a  piece. 
The  head  was  taken  by  one  man,  and  the 
next  day  or  two  the  jaw  of  the  bear  was 
put  on  the  table  whole,  the  teeth  all  in. 

A  few  years  since,  as  Rev.  Mr.  Powers 
was  returning  from  Northfield  to  this  town, 
he  met  a  bear,  which  he  treed  and  watched 
while  his  boy  went  to  the  village  anc^  rallied 
soine  men,  who  came  and  killed  the  bear. 
It  was  voted  to  give  Mr.  P.  the  bear.  The 
bears  have  not  all  left  town,  but  the  most 
of  those  remaining  are  biped. 

Mar.  9,  1792,  Joseph  Haseltine,  Seth 
Munson,  David  Parcher  and  Ebenezer 
Haseltine  petitioned  Richard  Holden,  a 
justice  of  the  peace  of  Waterbury,  to  call  a 
town  meeting  of  inhabitants  of  Moretown, 
to  meet  at  Jos.  Haseltine's,  Mar.  22,  1792, 
to  elect  town  officers. 

Met  agreeable  to  warning  and  chose 
Daniel  Parcher,  moderator ;  and  chose 
Seth  Munson,  town  clerk  ;  chose  as  select- 
men, Joseph  Haseltine,  Daniel  Parcher 
and  John  Heaton ;  chose  Philip  Bartlett, 


75 


594 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


treasurer ;  chose  Joseph  Haseltine,  con- 
stable ;  chose  John  Heaton  and  Ebenezer 
Hasehine,  Usters  ;  chose  Joseph  Haseltine, 
collector  of  town  rates  ;  and  Joseph  Parcher, 
highway  surveyor.  Voted  to  dissolve  the 
meeting.  Attest, 

Seth  Munson,  Tmun  Clerk. 

Up  to  1832,  the  town  meetings  were 
held  on  Moretown  Common.  At  that  date 
an  article  in  the  "  warning"  for  town  meet- 
ing called  the  voters  together  under  great 
excitement.  Much  confusion  prevailed, 
until  it  was  ordered  to  call  every  voter  into 
the  house,  and  appoint  a  talisman  to  notice 
each  man  and  record  "yes  "or  "no"  as 
he  should  pass  out,  voting  on  the  article. 

The  article  was  to  see  if  the  legal  voters 
would  remove  the  town  meeting  from  the 
Common  to  the  Hollow.  The  majority 
voted  ••  yes."  .Since  that  date  the  town 
meetings  have  been  held  at  the  Hollow. 
The  present  town  house  was  then  started 
by  subscription. —  U^ritten  in  1876. 

[Among  the  papers  of  the  late  Henr)- 
Stevens,  Antiquarian  of  V'ermont,  we 
copied  the  following  heads  of  papers  in  his 
collections  :  "  Surveys  in  Moretown,"  "  A 
vendue  pitch  for  Nathaniel  Chipman,"  con- 
taining 360  acres.  No.  83,  signed  Wm. 
Sawyer.  In  the  office  of  Robert  Temple, 
Rutland  County  Court,  "Copies  of  Ira 
Allen's  sales  in  Moretown  " ;  complete,  I 
think.  "  Copy  of  Smith's  deed  of  land  in 
Moretown";  "  Copy  of  Sawyer's  deed  to 
Lovell "  ;  "Ira  Allen  and  Fiske's  agreement 
selecting  lands  in  Moretown";  "Agree- 
ment concerning  land  in  Moretown  be- 
tween Ira  Allen,  and  James  Mowry,  of 
Corinth  "  ;  "  Ira  Allen  and  Thomas  Mead's 
land  in  Moretown";  "Colchester,  June 
25,  1790,  Deed  to  Col.  Ira  Allen  of  500 
acres  of  land  in  Moretown,  by  Samuel 
Allen."] 

By  searching  the  old  records,  it  is  found 
proprietor's  meetings  were  held  for  some 
years  after  the  town  was  organized. 

Among  the  prominent  men  of  the  pres- 
ent century  may  be  named  Abner  Child, 
who  was  one  of  the  earlier  settlers,  Har- 
vev  W.  Carpenter,  Alpheus  C.  Noble, 
Hon.  Joseph  Sawyer,  Rufus  Clapp  and 
Calvin  Kingsley,  M.  D.,  town  clerk  for  44 
years,  or  since  1832.     He  is  now  partially 


retired  to  enjoy  a  competency  gained  in 
his  profession.  The  others  have  nearly, 
if  not  all,  died,  and  some  of  them  were  of 
the  principal  men  from  1830  to  1850. 

The  Dr.  has  also  represented  the  town 
several  times  in  the  State  Legislature. 

Judge  Sawyer  has  a  widow  and  2  sons 
residing  in  town.  One  of  those  sons  has 
a  "bull's  eye"  watch  which  the  Judge  used 
to  carry,  and  which  had  not  been  cleaned 
and  run  for  40  years  until  recently ;  it  is 
said  to  be  150  years  old.  The  same  son 
has  a  clock  100  years  old. 

A  very  serious  calamit)  occurred  in  1830 
— the  greatest  freshet  ever  known  in  Mad 
River  V'alley.  It  raised  the  river  until 
nearly  all  the  street  was  covered.  Miss 
Harriet  Taylor,  of  Waitstield,  (now  Mrs. 
Hon.  Roderick  Richardson,  of  Boston, 
Mass.,)  was  teaching  school  in  our  village 
at  the  time  of  the  freshet.  She  boarded 
with  a  family  living  where  Mr.  Freeman 
now  resides.  Tiie  water  drove  them,  in 
the  night,  to  the  chamber  of  the  house,  and 
they  could,  in  the  darkness,  hear  the 
splashing  of  the  water  and  the  thumping 
of  floating  chairs  and  tables  against  the 
chamber  floor — to  which  the  water  had 
risen.  To  add  to  their  distress  the  cries 
of  a  sick  child  were  constantly  calling  their 
attention.  Toward  morning  the  cellar  wall 
under  a  part  of  the  house,  fell  in  with  a 
splash,  causing  new  fright  which  led  the 
inmates  of  the  chamber  to  pray  to  God, 
the  Father  of  Him  who  once  said  to  the 
winds  and  waves,  "Be  still."  The  next 
morning  the  family  and  teacher  were  floated 
away  to  safety  on  a  barn  door.  The  sick 
child  died  in  a  few  hours  after  the  rescue. 
Henry  Carpenter,  residing  further  down 
the  river,  started  with  his  wife  and  bo}', 
the  boy  walking  between  them,  with  hands 
in  theirs,  to  go  to  a  neighbor's.  They  in- 
tended to  keep  the  road,  wading  through 
the  water ;  but  coming  to  deeper  water 
Mrs.  Carpenter  let  go  the  boy's  hand  and 
probably  became  strangled.  Mr.  C.  called 
in  the  darkness  but  no  voice  replied.  The 
boy  swam  back  to  the  house.  The  father 
in  sadness  rallied  some  neighbors,  and  the 
next  day  the  mother  and  wife  was  found 
on  the  meadow  below,  cold  in  death. 


MORETOWN. 


S9S 


One  family  fled  to  the  hilis  and  stayed 
out  all  night  in  the  rain,  holding  a  little 
babe  in  their  arms.  Who  the  little  babe 
was  let  grandmother  tell. 

This  newspaper  record  sent  to  us,  we 
think,  by  Rev.  Seldon  B.  Currier,  we  will- 
interrupt  here  to  give. 

THE  BURSTING   OF   A   CLOUD  OVER  JONES'S 
BROOK   IN   MORETOWN. 

BY  HON.    D  P.    THOMPSON. 

1  have  used  the  term,  bursting  of  a  cloud, 
as  the  caption  of  this  article,  because  it  is 
expressive  of  a  popular  notion,  and  not  be- 
cause it  is  either  philosophical  or  correct. 
It  has  long  been  a  prevalent  belief,  that  in 
cases  of  extraordinary  tails  of  water  over 
particular  localities,  clouds,  like  old  leath- 
er bottles,  suddenly  burst  and  let  the  wa- 
ter they  contain  fall  to  the  earth  almost  in 
a  body,  like  rivers  falling  over  precipices  in 
cataracts  ;  whereas  nothing  could  be  more 
unscientific  or  farther  from  the  truth.  No 
collected  body  of  water,  not  even  to  the 
amount  of  a  cjuart,  could  remain  suspended 
in  a  cloud  a  single  second,  but  would  in- 
stantly fall  to  the  earth  from  the  force  of 
the  universal  law  of  gravitation.  The 
great  deluging  torrents  of  rain  that  occa- 
sionally occur,  simply  proceed  from  unusua  1 
thickness,  or  upward  extent  of  the  cloud. 
This  will  be  more  readily  understood,  per- 
haps, when  we  consider,  that  if  a  cloud 
half  a  mile  thick  discharges  from  its  gath- 
ering mists  a  heavy  rain,  one  of  a  mile 
thick  would  produce  a  rain  doubly  hea\'y, 
and  so  on,  in  the  same  proportion,  with 
every  additional  thickness  ot  cloud,  till 
that  thickness,  as  has  been  known  some- 
times to  be  the  case,  extends  upwards  to 
the  distance  of  5  or  6  miles,  when  from  the 
whole  mass  the  water  reaches  the  earth 
less  in  the  form  of  rain,  indeed,  than  the 
pouring  of  a  cataract. 

The  most  remarkable  instance  of  these 
great  falls  of  water,  which  was  ever  known 
in  this  region,  occurred  about  30  years  ago, 
round  'the  sources  of  Jones's  Brook,  a 
small  mill  stream  that  rises  in  Moretown 
mountains  and  empties  into  the  Winooski 
river  3  miles  below  Montpelier.  The 
mountains  round  the  source  of  this  stream 
rise  to  the  hight  of  about  2000  feet,  with 
unusual  abruptness,  and,  at  the  .same  time, 
so  curve  round  as  to  leave  the  intermedi- 
ate space  in  the  form  of  a  deep,  half-basin, 
down  the  precipitous  sides  of  which  a  sud- 
den shower  descends  almost  as  rapidly  as 
water  strolling  down  the  steepest  roof  of  a 
house,  and  collecting  at  the  bottom,  pours, 
in  a  raging  river,  down  the  valley  to  the 
outlet  of  the  stream.  It  was  over  this 
mountain-rimmed  basin  that  burst  the  ex- 


traordinary thunder-storm  which  I  have 
undertaken  to  describe,  and  which  passed 
among  the  inhabitants  under  the  name  of 
the  bursting  of  a  cloud. 

On  the  day  and  hour  this  storm  occurred, 
I  chanced  to  be  on  a  high  hill,  east  of 
Montpelier  village,  which  afforded  a  plain 
view  of  the  whole  range  of  the  Moretown 
mountains.  It  was  a  still,  sultry,  mid- 
summer day,  when  my  attention  being  at- 
tracted by  the  sudden  obscuration  of  the 
sun,  1  looked  toward  the  west,  and  saw  the 
unusual  spectacle  of  two  heavy  clouds  rap- 
idly rolling  toward  each  other,  in  the  line 
of  the  range  just  named,  from  diametrically 
opposite  directions,  the  point  where  the 
collision  must  occur  being  evidently  at  the 
natural  basin  already  particularized,  or 
on  the  high  mountain  above  it.  These 
stiangely  moving  clouds  I  watched  with  in- 
tense interest.  On,  on  they  rolled  toward 
each  other,  with  their  long,  streaming  col- 
umns and  menacing  fronts,  like  two  op- 
posing, hostile  lines  of  cavalry  rushing  to- 
gether for  deadly  conflict.  As  anticipated, 
the  collision  occurred  directly  over  the  ba- 
sin and  on  the  sides  of  the  adjoining 
mountains,  and  there,  the  opposing  cur- 
rents being  of  equal  strength,  the  inter- 
mingling clouds  came  to  a  dead  stand. 
Presently,  however,  the  colliding  masses 
began  to  rise  upward  and  double  over  and 
over  till  they  had  swelled  into  a  huge, 
dome-like  figure,  shooting  up  miles  into 
the  darkened  heavens,  and  here  commenced 
a  startling  display  of  the  electric  phenome- 
non. With  the  short,  sharp  and  quickly 
repeating  peals  of  thunder,  the  fierce 
streams  of  lightning  were  seen  bursting  in 
rapid  succession  from  every  part  of  the  sur- 
charged cloud,  like  some  hotly  worked 
battery  of  artillery  from  a  smoke-enveloped 
field  of  battle.  But  soon  the  expanding 
cloud  shut  out  the  basin  and  vallev  from 
sight ;  and,  being  unable  to  see  more,  I 
returned  home,  and,  with  much  interest, 
waited  to  hear  the  result  of  the  fearful  ele- 
mental exhibition  I  had  been  witnessing. 

The  news  of  the  remarkable,  and  in  one 
instance,  fatal  eff"ects  of  that  storm,  in  the 
disastrous  flooding  of  Jones's  Brook,  at 
length  reached  us.  The  inhabitants  of  the 
basin,  when  the  storm  burst  upon  them  so 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly,  were  struck 
with  astonishment  and  alarm  at  the  un- 
wonted quantities  of  water  that  descended 
upon  them  from  the  seemingly  flooded 
heavens.  A  settler  who  lived  nearest  the 
foot  of  the  mountain  described  the  rain  as 
"  coming  down  in  bucketsful."  I  was  in  a 
field  a  short  distance  from  my  house  when 
it  struck,  and  was  so  astonished  at  first  I 
knew  not  what  to  do.  But  the  rain,  if  it 
could  be  called  rain,  coming  thicker  and 


596 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


faster,  I  ran  with  all  my  might  for  the 
house,  but  was  almost  drowned  before  I 
got  there,  and  then  it  was  only  to  find  the 
water  gushing  into  the  house  on  all  sides 
till  it  was  nearly  knee-deep  on  the  floor." 
And  so  with  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  ba- 
sin. No  place  afforded  them  any  protec- 
tion ;  rivers  were  in  all  their  houses  within, 
and  rivers,  rising  into  seas,  were  all  around 
them  without ;  and  they  looked  on  with 
mute  consternation  at  that  tremendous  out- 
pouring of  the  clouds.  But  they  were  the 
first  to  be  relieved.  The  rain,  after  the 
brief  duration  of  less  than  half  an  hour, 
ceased  as  suddenly  as  it  came  ;  and  the  in- 
habitants ran  out  of  their  drenched  houses 
just  in  time  to  behold  the  numerous  uniting 
streams,  that  had  come  pouring  down  from 
the  encircling  mountain,  gathering  into  a 
mighty  river  that  swept  away  shanties, 
fences,  old  trees,  logs,  lumber  and  every- 
thing in  its  path,  and  bearing  them  in 
wild  confusion  on  its  surface,  went  foam- 
ing, tumbling  and  roaring,  like  a  cataract, 
with  amazing  force,  down  the  valley  to- 
ward the  outlet,  three  or  four  miles  below. 
But  the  principal  scene  arising  from  the 
destructive  and  fatal  progress  occurred  at 
a  saw-mill,  owned  by  Mr.  Oren  Clark,  and 
situated  about  a  mile  from  the  mouth  of 
the  stream.  When  the  storm  was  spending 
its  force  on  the  sides  of  the  mountain  and 
the  basin  beneath,  Mr.  Clark  was  at  work 
in  a  field  near  the  mill  with  his  hired  man, 
Ebenezer  Eastman.  And  being  apprised 
by  the  great  volume  and  blackness  of  the 
clouds  hanging  over  the  mountain  at  the 
west,  that  an  unusual  shower  was  falling 
round  the  sources  of  the  stream,  they  pro- 
ceeded at  once  to  the  mill  and  commenced 
such  temporary  repairs  of  the  dam  and 
flume  as  would,  they  believed,  secure  them 
against  the  rush  of  water,  which,  in  greater 
or  less  quantities,  they  knew  would  soon 
be  down  upon  them.  While  deeply  en- 
grossed in  hurrying  forward  the  contem- 
plated repairs,  they  were  aroused  by  a 
deafening  roar  that  burst  suddenly  upon 
their  ears  from  the  stream  but  a  short  dis- 
tance above  the  mill ;  when  looking  up 
they  beheld  to  their  astonishment  and 
alarm,  a  wild,  tumultuous  sea  of  comming- 
ling flood-wood  and  turbid  waters,  with  a 
wall-like  front  ten  feet  high,  tumbling  and 
rolling  down  upon  them  with  furious  up- 
roar, and  with  the  speed  of  the  wind. 
Knowing  that  the  mill  could  not  stand 
before  such  an  avalanche  of  water,  and 
beginning  to  be  specially  alarmed  for  their 
personal  safety,  they  attempted  to  secure 
a  retreat  over  the  log-way  which  extended 
from  the  mill  to  the  high  grounds  five  or 
six  rods  distant.  Over  this  they  made 
their  way   with    all    possible    speed.     But 


such  was  the  velocity  of  the  on-rushing 
torrent  that  they  had  not  proceeded  half 
way  before  the  mill  building  came  down 
with  a  crash  behind  them,  the  log-way  was 
swept  from  beneath  their  feet,  and  the 
next  moment  they  were  struggling  for  their 
lives  in  a  flood  a  dozen  feet  deep,  foaming, 
boiling,  and  so  filled  with  trees,  timber  and 
all  sorts  of  ruins,  that  it  did  not  seem  pos- 
sible for  a  human  being  to  be  borne  along 
in  the  frightfully  whirling  mass  and  live  a 
single  minute. 

"I  saw  Eastman  once,"  said  Mr.  Clark 
in  describing  to  me  this,  the  most  terrible 
scene  of  his  life.  "  It  was  when  I  rose  to 
the  surface  after  the  first  plunge.  He  was 
struggling  desperately  to  get  his  head 
above  the  flood- wood.  But  I  saw  him  no 
more  ;  for  the  next  moment,  I  was  borne 
down  beneath  the  surface  by  a  raft  of  logs 
that  swept  over  me.  From  that  time  I 
was  whirled  onward  with  my  head  some- 
times below,  and  sometimes  above  the  wa- 
ter, till  I  found  myself  nearing  the  wooded 
bank  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream, 
when  I  soon  came  within  reach  of  a  small 
tree,  which  I  grasped  and  held  on  to,  till 
I  began  to  count  m\self  saved.  But  the 
tree  quickly  came  up  by  the  roots  and  I 
was  again  plunged  into  the  flood.  But, 
though  now  nearly  in  despair,  I  struggled 
on,  and  soon  was  fortunate  enough  to  grasp 
another  sapling  by  means  of  which  I  at 
length  drew  myself  ashore  and  fell  down 
half  drowned  and  half  dead  from  bruises 
and  exhaustion.  It  was  now  nearly  dark. 
After  rallying  my  strength  a  little,  I  com- 
menced crawling  and  stumbling  through 
the  tangled  thickets  along  up  the  stream 
till,  after  a  struggle  of  seeming  hours,  I  at 
last  reached  a  point  opposite  my  house, 
where,  by  loud  hallooing,  I  rallied  my  fam- 
ily, who  believed  me  lost,  and  informed 
them  I  would  proceed  on  to  the  next  house, 
on  that  side,  stay  all  night  and  cross  the 
next  morning.  This  I  did,  and  the  next 
morning  reached  home,  where  I  was  re- 
ceived as  one  risen  from  the  dead." 

The  remains  of  Eastman  were  found  the 
next  day  washed  up  near  the  mouth  of  the 
stream  on  the  meadow  of  Samuel  Jones, 
who  was  injured  in  the  loss  of  crops,  the 
covering  of  his  lands  by  flood-wood  and 
washing  away  the  soil,  to  the  amount  of 
$300.  Whether  Eastman  was  drowned,  or 
killed  by  being  crushed  among  the  logs, 
was  never  known.  Either  cause  was  suf- 
ficient to  have  produced  his  death. 

Such  were  the  leading  events  attending 
the  memorable  thunder-storm  on  Jones's 
Brook. 

The  Mad  river  affords  some  of  the  best 
water  privileges  found   in   the    State,  and 


MORETOWN. 


597 


should  the  inhabitants  of  Moretown  induce 
some  moneyed  firm  to  put  in  a  large  man- 
ufacturing house  here,  thus  utilizing  more 
of  the  water  power,  and  urge  the  building 
of  a  contemplated  railroad,  which  has  al- 
read}'  been  surveyed  through  the  town,  it 
would  greatly  develop  the  resources  of  and 
build  up  our  town. 

Moretown  is  consideralily  broken  in 
surface,  but  is  romantic,  and  aifords  much 
to  please  and  profit  the  student  of  nature. 
CamePs  Hump  is  seen  from  various  points, 
and  is  only  a  few  miles  distant  from  More- 
town.  Mineral  .springs  are  found  here, 
which  by  pufiing  and  patronizing,  would 
be  quite  equal  to  many,  no  better,  but  cel- 
ebrated ones. 

It  is  quite  a  dairy  town,  some  farmers 
having  20  or  more  cows,  and  many  others 
10  to  20. 

There  are  now  3  stores,  3  blacksmith 
shops,  two  saw-mills,  2  clapboard,  2  shingle 
and  2  planing-machines  in  the  village; 
also  I  hotel,  i  harness-shop,  employing 
several  workmen,  2  carriage  and  sleigh- 
shops,  I  grist-mill,  i  sash,  door  and  blind- 
shop,  near  by  a  dressmaker,  2  milliners,  i 
goldsmith  and  i  tinman. 

We  have  also  a  very  excellent  high 
school,  taught  by  Miss  Folsom. 

Polly  Phemia  Munson  was  probably  the 
first  child  born  in  Moretown,  and  Paul 
Knapp  the  first  person  who  died  in  town. 
He  was  killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree. 

[Thus  far  the  paper  we  credit  to  Rev. 
Seldon  B.  Currier.  The  following  is  from 
a  lady  of  Moretown,  contributed  10  or  12 
3'ears  since]  : 

The  first  school-house  in  this  town  was 
within  the  limits  of  the  present  village  of 
Moretown.  In  the  first  settlement  of  the 
town  there  were  three  lots  set  off"  for  the 
first  minister.  Rev.  Mr.  Brown,  Univer- 
salist,  the  first  minister  settled,  deeded 
the  land  to  the  town  for  the  benefit  of 
schoqls.  There  are  14  school  districts  in 
town  now,  and  we  had  three  schools  in 
the  village  last  winter  (1869),  and  for  sev- 
eral years  we  have  had  a  select  school 
every  spring  and  fall.  Our  population  in 
i860  was  a  little   over    1400.     There  has 


not  been  any  state  prison  candidate  from 
this  place  to  this  date — 1870. 

Our  first  representative  of  the  town, 
Luther  Moseley,  was  chosen  by  7  voters. 

The  first  store  was  opened  here  by 
Winship  &  Thornton,  18 15.  The  first 
load  of  goods  was  bought  in  Burlington, 
and  brought  into  town  by  Cephas  Car- 
penter. Winship  was  a  butcher  from  that 
place. 

In  1822,  Mr.  Stevens  commenced  trade 
here.  He  built  a  distillery  to  make  whisky, 
and  died  about  2  years  after.  His  death 
was  a  great  loss  to  the  town.  A  starch 
factory  was  built  in  1833,  by  Martin  L. 
Lovell  and  Francis  Liscomb,  and  run 
about  5  years,  after  which  it  was  bought 
by  Jesse  Johnson,  and  used  for  a  tannery 
from  3  to  5  years,  when  it  was  burned. 

The  first  and  only  hotel  to  the  present, 
was  built  and  kept  by  Joseph  Sawyer,  in 
1835.  There  are  some  stores  of  the  olden 
time  here. 

Nearly  50  years  since,  Nathan  Wheeler 
(I  think  his  name  was  Nathan),  5  years 
old,  son  of  Ira  Wheeler,  was  lost  on  his 
way  home  from  school.  The  news  spread. 
The  farmers  left  their  hay  down,  and  came 
from  Waterbury,  Northfield,  Duxbury, 
Waitsfield,  nearly  1500  men,  and  joined  in 
the  search  for  the  lost  boy.  After  a  three 
days'  diligent  hunt  the  boy  was  found  in 
Duxbury.  It  rained  very  hard  when  he 
was  found,  and  the  little  fellow  was  trudg- 
ing on ;  he  said  he  was  going  home.  Capt. 
Barnard  said  if  the  boy  should  work  hard 
all  of  his  life  and  be  prospered,  he  never 
could  pay  all  for  their  trouble  in  finding 
him ;  but  when  we  realize  the  sympathy 
and  good  feelings  manifested,  he  felt  that 
they  were  all  well  paid.  The  boy  grew  to 
be  a  man,  became  a  good  soldier  and  died 
for  his  country,  and  so,  well  paid. 

COL.    EZEKIEL   CLAPP, 

a  farmer  and  prominent  citizen  of  More- 
town,  was  a  whole-souled  man,  much  es- 
teemed by  his  neighbors.  About  the  time 
he  was  appointed  Colonel,  Capt.  Rufus 
Barnard,  Capt.  Orson  Skinner,  Maj.  Elias 
Taylor  and  Col.  Clapp  attended  a  military 
meeting  at  Waterbury  one  evening,  and 
after  the  meeting,  it  being  10  o'clock  p.  m., 


598 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


it  was  agreed  they  would  all  go  to  Major 
Taylor's,  in  Waitsfield,  to  see  a  large  cat- 
amount that  had  been  killed  on  the  East 
Mountain.  The  company  tilled  2  sleighs. 
It  was  very  cold,  but  they  reached  Waits- 
field,  and  actually  saw  a  large  dead  cat- 
amount. The  company  did  not  get  back 
to  Moretown  till  the  next  morning. 

Many  years  before  this,  Mr.  Clapp  was 
carrying  an  iron  kettle  he  had  borrowed  of 
a  neighbor,  home  on  his  head.  He  lived 
at  this  time  on  Mad  river,  about  a  mile 
above  Moretown  village.  Being  tired,  he 
sat  down  to  rest,  and  soon  saw  a  bear 
seated  a  little  distant,  suspiciously  regard- 
ing him  and  his  kettle.  Clapp  sprang 
forward,  and  cast  his  kettle  at  the  bear. 
The  bear  not  liking  the  sound  of  the  kettle 
as  it  fell,  rushed  away,  and  Clapp  picking 
up  the  kettle,  made  his  best  way  home. 
Mr.  Clapp  died  about  2  years  since  (1868). 
The  record  of  him  is,  "a  man  truthful  and 
upright  in  all  his  dealings." 

Samuel  Pierce,  who  settled  here  from 
Berlin  many  years  since,  tells  of  several 
deer  having  been  killed  in  Moretown  soon 
after  he  came.  They  were  shot  when  they 
came  down  from  the  mountain  to  drink. 
He  and  Burr  Freeman  killed  one,  and  he 
had  the  skin  tanned  and  made  into  gloves, 
and  for  a  long  time  after  boasted  of  having 
a  pair  of  Vermont  deer-skin  gloves.  Mr. 
Pierce  is  now  (1870),  about  70  years  of 
age. 

DR.    STEPHEN    PIERCE, 

from  Massachusetts,  was  the  first  physician 
that  settled  in  town.  He  lived  on  the 
farm  now  occupied  by  Mr.  Bisbee.  He 
was  a  good  doctor,  upright  in  all  his  prac- 
tice, and  made  himself  honored  and  useful 
in  his  chosen  field  of  labor.  He  died  in 
Barnard  about  1864.  Soon  after  he  came 
to  Moretown,  one  man  remarked  that  tlie 
Doctor  had  a  very  good  theory  of  physic, 
but  he  lacked  the  practice.  Soon  after 
this  Mr.  A.  March  had  a  sick  child.  He 
went  to  the  Doctor  and  wanted  to  get 
some  theory  of  physic  for  his  child.  The 
Doctor  gave  him  some,  and  often  spoke  of 
the  joke  to  his  friends. 

DR.    LESTER    KINGSLEY 

came  to  this  town  in  Feb.   1827,  and  has 


been  in  practice  here  now  over  40  years. 
He  has  many  friends,  and  is  now  (1870), 
the  town  clerk.  Dr.  Calderwood  came  to 
assist  Dr.  K.  in  his  practice  in  May  of 
this  year.  [Dr.  Kingsley  was  town  clerk 
from  March  1832  to  March  1880,  annually 
elected,  holding  the  office  48  years,  and 
about  ID  months  to  the  time  of  his  death. 
He  was  postmaster  from  1837  to  '62 — 25 
years,  and  represented  Moretown  in  the 
Legislature  in  1841,  '42,  and  was  actively 
engaged  in  his  profession  here  52  years, 
till  within  2  years  of  his  death,  Jan.  4, 
1 88 1,  aged760 

DR.    HAVLETT, 

homoeopathist,  has  been  here  2  years,  from 
1868.  He,  too,  has  been  successful  and 
won  many  friends,  and  his  wife  has  also 
made  herself  welcome  among  us,  by  teach- 
ing music. 

There  are  three  merchants  in  town : 
C.  Lovejoy,  James  Evans,  Nathan  Spauld- 
ing.  Mr.  Evans  commenced  trade  May, 
1862  [removed  to  Boston  sincej.  Mr. 
Spaulding  commenced  about  1858,  and  has 
charge  of  the  post-office  [gone  to  Burling- 
ton]. His  father,  now  deceased,  was  a 
highly  esteenied  Methodist  minister.  He 
was  buried  here. 

There  is  one  grist-mill  in  town  [two 
now],  owned  by  a  Mr.  Robinson  ;  i  sash 
and  blind  factory,  owned  by  Geo.  Bulkley 
and  Geo.  Thornton,  [which  is  now  Mr. 
Fassett's  grist  and  saw-mill,  tub  factory 
and  planing-machine  matcher,]  four  saw- 
mills, three  owned  by  David  T.  Jeff.  Beld-  0^^ 
ing,  one  on  the  river  by  Lorenzo  Wells's ; 
3  blacksmith's  shops,  carried  on  by  Curt. 
Carpenter  &  Co.,  Calvin  Foster,  and  M. 
Taylor ;  Calvin  Foster's  carriage  shop, 
where  he  has  done  a  good  business  a  great 
many  years ;  Towle  &  Lovejoy's  wheel- 
wright shop,  where  a  good  business  has 
been  done ;  [given  up  and  turned  into  the 
blacksmith  shop  of  Wallings  &  Spauld- 
ing] ;  Collins  built  another  shop  and  con- 
tinued business  as  before ;  William  Saw- 
yer's harness  shop  employs  several  men, 
[has  removed  into  a  larger  shop,  with  his 
son,  partner]  ;  Mr.  Towle's  harness  shop 
[he  has  left  town,  and  the  shop  is  now 
closed]  ;  and  we  liave  also  2  shoemakers. 


X 


MORETOWN. 


599 


[Written  by  Mrs.  Smith  in  1870,  correct- 
ed by  Mr.  Aaron  Goss,  of  Moretown,  in 
tlie  fall  of  1881.] 

CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH. 

[from  MRS.  SMITH.] 

The  original  members  of  the  First  Con- 
gregational Church  in  Moretown  were — 
Reuben  Hastings,  John  Stockwell,  Sam- 
uel Eaton,  Mrs.  Eleazer  Wells,  and  Mrs. 
Stockwell.  The  meeting  for  the  organi- 
zation was  in  the  first  log  school-house. 

Mrs.  Smith  gives  from  the  records  the 
following  account  of  the  second  organ- 
ization : 

"  The  Congregational  Church  in  More- 
town  and  Duxbury  met  this  day  at  the 
house  of  Dea.  Benton  in  said  Moretown, 
for  the  purpose  of  taking  into  considera- 
tion the  disorganization  of  the  said  church 
in  Moretown  and  Duxbury,  organized 
church.  The  subject  had  been  previously 
presented  to  these  churches,  and  the  above 
named  meeting  of  the  two  churches  was 
duly  warned.  The  meeting  was  organized 
by  choosing  the  Rev.  Samuel  G.  Tenney 
of  Waitsfield,  moderator,  and  the  Rev. 
Lyndon  S.  French  of  Fayston,  co-minister 
commissioned  by  the  Vt.  Dom.  Society  to 
labor  in  the  church  of  Fayston  and  More- 
town,  scribe.  After  due  consideration  it 
appeared  that  the  church  in  Moretown  was 
not  prepared  for  the  new  organization.  It 
was  accordingly  voted  to  adjourn  the  meet- 
ing until  the  i8th  day  of  January,  1836,  to 
be  held  at  the  same  place,  and  that  pre- 
vious to  the  new  organization,  each  church, 
separately,  should  hold  a  meeting  to  pass 
a  vote  that  the  new  organization  should  be 
the  dissolving  of  the  two  former  churches 
in  said  Moretown  and  Duxbury. 

Signed  Samuel  G.  Tenney, 

Lyndon  S.  French. 

Moretown,  Jan.  18,  1836." 

The  church  in  Moretown  and  Duxbury 
met  agreeably  to  agreement,  having,  as 
was  voted  at  the  first  meeting,  each  of 
them  voted  to  disorganize  the  old  church 
by  organizing  a  new  one.  The  moderator 
then  called  for  those  members  in  those  two 
churches  who  wished  to  unite  in  a  new 
church,  to  present  themselves.     The  fol- 


lowing members  came  forward  from  More- 
town  :  Nathan  Benton,  Eunice,  his  wife, 
Abraham  Spofford  and  Sarah,  his  wife,  H. 
Spaulding  and  Mary,  his  wife.  From 
Duxbury  :  Reuben  Munson  and  Mary,  his 
wife,  Earl  Ward,  and  Mrs.  Fanny  Avery." 
RELIGIOUS   HISTORY. 

[BY   C.   A.   SMITH  ] 

The  first  church  organized  in  town  was 
a  Congregational  church.  Deacon  Nathan 
Benton  and  Philemon  Ashley  were  among 
its  early  and  prominent  members.  The 
school-house,  and  afterward  the  town 
house  at  the  village,  were  used  as  places 
of  worship.  Public  worship  was  main- 
tained until  about  1840,  when  the  mem- 
bership being  quite  small,  the  church  was 
merged  in  the  Congregational  church  at 
S.  Duxbury,  the  services  at  first  being 
held  at  Moretown  and  Duxbury  alternate- 
ly, but  afterward  at  S.  Duxbury  alone. 

The  Congregational  Church  at  S.  Dux- 
bury was  founded  at  an  early  period. 
Among  its  first  members  were  Reuben 
Munson,  Hezekiah  Ward,  and  Earl  Ward, 
his  son.  Messrs.  Seeley  and  Pomeroy 
were  the  earliest  pastors.  This  church  is 
the  only  church  in  Duxbury,  the  people  of 
N.  Duxbury  being  better  accommodated 
at  Waterbury.  It  has  never  had  a  large 
membership.  Its  relations  with  the  M.  E. 
church  at  Moretown  are  of  the  most  cor- 
dial character,  and  for  several  years  the 
pastor  of  the  M.  E.  church  at  Moretown 
has  been  the  acting  pastor  of  the  Congre- 
gational church  at  S.  Duxbury. 

Aniasa  Cole  was  probably  the  first 
Methodist  preacher  in  Moretown.  He 
was  a  local  preacher  living  near  Middlesex. 
Soon  after,  in  1809,  Joshua  Luce,  a  local 
preacher  from  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  settled  in 
town.  He,  with  his  wife  and  daughter 
Roxana,  were  probably  the  first  Metho- 
dists in  town.  By  their  efforts  a  Metho- 
dist church  was  soon  organized,  and  More- 
town  became  a  part  of  the  old  Barre  Cir- 
cuit, Vermont  District  and  New  England 
Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  a  circuit 
embracing  Barre,  Montpelier,  Middlesex, 
Moretown,  Waitsfield  and  Warren. 

In  the  town  clerk's  ofiice  there  is  a  rec- 
ord of  the  certificate  of  the  ordination  of 


6oo 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Amasa  Cole  as  a  deacon  by  Bishop  Mc- 
Kendree,  at  Durham,  Me.,  June  4,  1814, 
also  of  that  of  Leonard  Foster,  by  Bishop 
Asbury,  June  10,  1818.  Zadoc  Hubbard, 
Ebenezer  Johnson,  Calvin  Clark,  Barna- 
bas Mayo  and  William  Harris  were  among 
the  leading  members  prior  to  1820. 

The  first  church  edifice  was  built  in 
1832,  at  the  Common.  This  was  occupied 
for  22  years,  until  in  1854,  the  present 
church  at  the  village  was  erected.  The 
old  church  still  stands,  though  unoccupied. 
Messrs.  Frost,  Newell,  Steele,  Peirce  and 
Haskell  were  among  the  earliest  itinerants 
on  this  circuit,  while  Bishop  George,  Wil- 
bur Fisk  and  Elijah  Hedding  (afterward 
Bishop)  have  officiated  here. 

Rev.  Justin  Spaulding  was  born  in  this 
town  in  1802.  He  was  for  some  years  a 
missionary  in  South  America,  afterward  a 
presiding  elder  in  New  Hampshire  Con- 
ference. His  health  failing,  he  returned 
to  his  native  town  and  resided  here  until 
his  death. 

Rev.  Nathan  B.  Spaulding  was  born  in 
Moretown  ;  entered  the  Methodist  ministry 
from  this  town.  He  belonged  successive- 
ly to  the  New  England  and  to  the  New 
Hampshire  Conferences,  in  which  he  held 
a  prominent  position.  A  partial  failure  of 
health  necessitated  a  retirement  from  the 
itinerancy  in  middle  life.  He  located  in 
his  native  town,  and  continued  to  preach 
occasionally  as  health  and  opportunity  per- 
mitted until  his  death  in  1863. 

The  topography  of  this  town  is  such 
that  the  inhabitants  of  large  portions  of  its 
territory  can  more  conveniently  attend 
church  at  Northfield,  Montpelier,  Middle- 
sex and  Waterbury  than  at  Moretown  vil- 
lage. The  M.  E.  church  is  the  only  Prot- 
estant church  in  town.  At  some  periods 
of  its  history  its  membership  has  been 
much  larger  than  at  present ;  but  its  con- 
dition and  prospects  are  very  hopeful. 

Mrs.  Smith  says  in  her  paper,  "  the 
first  Methodist  meeting  was  held  in  Mr. 
Slayton's  barn."  It  is  probable,  says  our  re- 
cord, that  we  credit  to  Rev. Mr.  Currier,  that 
Mr.  Cole  was  the  first  Methodist  preacher 
in  town.     He  resided  near  Middlesex,  and 


was  accustomed  to  walk  from  home  to  the 
Common,  preach,  and  return  without  din- 
ner for  the  reason  that  "  Jack  did  not  eat 
his  supper," — none  was  offered  him  to  eat. 
In  the  winter  season  this  walk  and  work 
must  have  been  very  fatiguing,  especially 
when  he  broke  his  own  path  through  the 
snow,  often  knee  deep. 

When  the  people  of  Moretown  heard 
the  cannon's  roar  at  Plattsburg,  the  towns- 
men met  at  the  tavern  kept  by  Joshua 
Luce,  on  the  farm  where  Alvin  Pierce  now 
resides,  to  see  who  would  volunteer  to 
go  to  Plattsburg  to  repulse  the  British. 
This  was  in  1812.  Both  the  local  pireach- 
ers  were  present  and  heartily  encouraged 
the  men. 

Mr.  Luce  was  a  local  preacher,  but  farm- 
ing was  his  main  occupation.  He  preach- 
ed on  the  Common,  in  the  dwelling  house 
of  Ebenezer  Johnson,  and  in  the  school 
house. 

Among  the  prominent  members  of  the 
Methodist  Church  in  1820,  and  for  some 
years  subsequent,  were  Ebenezer  Johnson 
— who  was  town  clerk  prior,  for  some 
years,  to  1832,  when  Dr.  Kingsley  suc- 
ceeded him — Calvin  Clark  and  Barnabas 
Mayo — whose  names  are  among  the  sub- 
stantial and  influential  members  of  the 
Methodist  family  of  that  date. 

William  Harris  and  his  excellent  wife, 
known  as  "Aunt  Ruth,"  were  noted  for 
their  generosity,  keeping  what  was  called 
a  Methodist  tavern,  and  many  a  weary 
itinerant  found  shelter  and  food  and  rest 
in  the  home  of  "Aunt  Ruth." 

In  1832,  the  first  Methodist  meeting 
house  in  town  was  built  on  the  Common, 
and  for  22  years  it  was  occupied  in  regular 
meetings.  But  in  1854,  Moretown  Hollow 
— now  village  proper — built  the  house  now 
used  for  worsliip.  For  some  years  before 
the  church  building  was  erected  at  the 
Hollow,  the  Methodists  worshipped  in  the 
town-house  in  the  village  or  Hollow,  and 
at  the  Common  alternately.  Soon  after 
the  church  was  built,  in  the  village  the 
Common  meetings  were  nearly  abandoned, 
and  meetings  held  at  the  new  house  only. 

Three  prominent  men — who  became 
ministers  of  the  Gospel — had  their  origin 


MORETOWN. 


60 1 


in  this  town.  Rev.  Justin  Spaulding,  son 
of  Levi  and  Thankful  Spaulding.  [See 
paper  before.]  His  widow  and  several 
children  are  now  residing  in  Moretown  and 
vicinity. 

Rev.  Newell  Spaulding,  brother  of  the 
last  named,  is  now  living,  and  resides  in 
New  York  city. 

Rev.  Nathan  B.  Spaulding  [see,*  also, 
page  before.] 

When  the  Barre  circuit  included  the  6 
towns,  before  named,  and  the  meetings 
were  sometimes  held  in  Wm.  Harris'  barn, 
when  the  quarterly  meetings  were  held 
here,  as  many  as  80  teams  have  been 
counted  around  the  barn  from  the  other 
towns  of  the  circuit,  which  centered 
around. 

The  Methodists  of  Moretown  and  the 
Congregationalists  of  South  Duxbury  have 
alternate  meetings  at  present,  and  have  but 
one  pastor.  They  have  a  good  congrega- 
tion and  an  excellent  Sabbath  School.  If 
any  one  who  may  read  this  listened  to  a 
concert  by  the  South  Duxbury  Sabbath 
School  on  the  first  Sabbath  of  October, 
1876,  they  will  doubtless  bear  testimony 
to  the  truthfulness  of  the  above  statement, 
in  calling  the  school  an  excellent  one. 

For  the  present  prosperity  of  the  Metho- 
dist Church  in  Moretown,  any  one  desiring 
can  see  the  Annual  Minutes  of  Conference, 
1876.  The  parsonage  buildings  have  been 
repaired  and  neatly  fitted  up  this  year. 

MINISTERS    FROM    i860   TO    1 88 1. 
i860,  J.  W.  Bemis  ;  1862,  J.  Gill ;  1863- 

4,  P.  N.  Granger;  1865-6,  L.  C.  Powers; 
1867-8,  W.  B.  Howard;  1869-70,  D. 
Willis;  1871-2,  J.  S.  Spinney;  1873,  H. 
G.  Day;   1874-5,    D.  Willis;   1876-7,  C. 

5.  Buswell;  1878-9,  C.  A.  Smith;  1880- 
81,  S.  B.  Currier. 

REV.    LEMUEL    C.    POWERS, 
(BY  A.  8.  COOPEK.J 

whose  life  was  marked  with  uniform  con- 
sistency and  faithfulness,  was  born  in 
Rochester,  this  State,  August,  1828.  He 
made  a  Christian  profession  at  the  age  of 
13,  and  commenced  his  labors  as  a  Metho- 
dist preacher  when  about  30.  His  fields 
were  first  as   a  local   preacher  on  Bethel 

76 


Lympus  charge  two  years  ;  after  as  Con- 
ference preacher  there  2  years ;  next  at 
Topsham  2  years,  and  then  at  Moretown 
in  1864,  '66.  The  first  was  a  dry  year, 
but  he  labored  on  earnestly,  especially  in 
the  Sunday  school,  and  in  his  second  year 
just  as  he  was  prostrated  by  disease,  he 
was  cheered  by  12  or  15  persons  at  North 
Fayston,  embraced  in  his  charge,  profess- 
ing conversion  and  wishing  to  receive  bap- 
tism from  his  hands ;  but  his  work  was 
done,  and  he  received  his  discharge  on  the 
eve  of  the  holy  Sabbath— Nov.  18,  1866. 
To  an  only  brother  who  watched  by  his 
bedside  while  he  was  dying,  he  said:  "I 
am  realizing  now  how 

'  Jesus  can  make  a  dying  bed 
Feel  soft  as  downy  pillows  are  ' "  ; 

and  passed  without  a  struggle  or  groan  to 
his  rest. 

He  left  a  wife  and  4  children.  Revs. 
Gill  and  Spaulding  attended  his  funeral. 
After  his  brethren  in  the  ministry  and 
others  bore  his  body  to  the  grave,  the  citi- 
zens assembled  and  passed  resolutions  of 
respect  for  his  memory  and  sympathy  for 
his  family. —  [For  further  mention  see  the 
place  of  his  birth — Rochester,  in  next 
volume.] 

CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   MORETOWN. 

Those  of  this  faith  are  almost  entirely 
Irish.  The  first  settlers  were  Daniel 
Murray,  John  Hogan,  Patrick  Calvy,  Pat- 
rick Farral  and  Daniel  Divine.  They 
purchased  lands  on  what  is  called  South 
hill.  Most  of  them  commenced  with  very 
limited  means,  but  by  industry  have  gen- 
erally prospered,  and  will  now  average 
with  others  of  the  town  in  wealth.  There 
is  one  school  district  almost  all  Irish 
pupils. 

There  are  now  90  who  have  grand  lists, 
and  probably  75  voters.  Among  the  prom- 
inent men  of  the  present  are  Andrew 
Murray,  Daniel  Hassett,  Patrick  Lynch, 
Thomas  and  Charles  McCarty,  and  the 
three  Kerin  brothers.  Moretown  is  now  a 
central  point  for  the  Catholic  population 
of  South  Du.xbury,  Fayston,  Waitsfield 
and  Warren.  The  first  priest  officiating 
here   was   Father  Jeremiah  O'Callaghan, 


602 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


who,  if  we  are  correctly  informed,  was  the 
first  CathoUc  priest  in  Vermont. 

[The  first  resident  Irish  priest,  but  not 
the  first  Catholic  priest  in  Vermont.  There 
was  a  resident  priest,  undoubtedly,  at  the 
old  French  Mission  of  St.  Catherine,  in 
Wells,  at  the  Isle  La  Motte  Mission  of  St. 
Anne  (see  vol.  ii.  page  558),  and  the 
French  Mission  in  Swanton,  some  interest- 
ing account  of  which  will  be  given  in  the 
history  of  the  late  Rev.  John  B.  Perry,  of 
Swanton,  to  be  embraced  in  this  work — of 
any  of  which  missions  we  would  be  par- 
ticularly pleased  to  receive  any  informa- 
tion that  any  person  may  be  able  to  com- 
municate, however  trifling  apparently. 
Every  little  link  helps  in  putting  together 
the  broken  chain  that  binds  us  to  the 
early  days.  Our  histories  are  very  ob- 
scure so  far  back ;  the.  least  little  incident 
is  the  little  track  to  the  explorer  that  leads 
to  the  clue.  There  have  been  also  mis- 
sionary priests  earlier  than  Father  O'Calla- 
ghan,  as  Rev.  James  Fulton,  the  venerable 
pastor  now  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Re- 
deemer, East  Boston,  who  was  an  early 
missionary  in  Vermont.  See  his  "  Early 
History  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  New 
England." — Ed.] 

"  He  resided  in  Burlington,  officiating 
there  and  in  this  town,  and  probably  in 
other  places.  Father  O'Callaghan  was 
also  an  author,  and  wrote  five  volumes  on 
different  subjects.  The  second  priest  of- 
ficiating here  was  Father  Drolet,  the  third. 
Father  Druon,  the  fourth.  Father  Duglue, 
the  fifth,  Father  Galligan,  who  resides  at 
Waterbury,  officiating  there,  in  this  town, 
and  in  Northfield. 

The  land  for  building  a  church  on,  and 
also  for  a  burial  ground,  was  given  to  the 
Catholic  society  by  Col.  Miller  of  Mont- 
pelier,  in  1841.  In  1858,  the  society 
built  their  present  church  building  on  South 
hill,  which  is  a  little  more  than  a  mile  from 
the  village,  nearly  east.  They  contem- 
plate building  a  new  church  edifice  in  the 
village,  at  no  very  distant  future. — News- 
paper Record,  1879. 

The  Rev.  Fathers  O'Callaghan,  Daly, 
Drolet,  Maloneya  nd  Coopman,  O.  M.  J., 


visited  occasionally  this  mission,  before 
Rev.  Z.  Druon  built  the  Church  (St.  Pat- 
rick's) in  i860.  The  lot  upon  which  the 
church  stands  had  been  given  many  years 
before  by  three  members,  to  be  used  part- 
ly as  a  burying  ground.  The  number  of 
Catholic  families  in  this  mission  is  about 
40 ;  mostly  farmers.  They  are  attended 
now  by  Rev.  Thomas  Galligan,  from  Wat- 
erbury, and  were  previously,  after  the  de- 
parture of  Father  Druon,  attended  from 
Montpelier  by  his  successor  there,  Rev. 
Joseph  Duglue,  who  had  the  pastoral  care 
of  them  for  a  few  years. 

Rev.  Z.  Druon. 
Aug.  21,  1876." 

"  The  document  sent  you  by  Father 
Druon  is,  I  think,  quite  correct.  The  lot 
on  which  the  church  stands  was  donated 
in  1855  by  Frank  Lee,  Peter  Lee,  and  J. 
Miller.     I  copy  from  the  deed  itself. 

Louis  Bp.  of  Bulington. 

Jan.  2,  1882." 

PROMINENT   SONS   OR   CITIZENS. 

Among  the  men  of  note  who  were  born 
or  have  lived  in  Moretown,  in  the  early 
part  of  their  lives,  is  Rev.  Eland  Foster, 
a  preacher  and  author.  He  has  held  many 
good  appointments  in  and  around  New 
York  city.  Mr.  Foster  married  the  daugh- 
ter of  Dr.  Palmer,  of  New  York.  He  with 
his  wife  are  great  revival  workers.  [What 
has  Rev.  Mr.  Foster  published?  titles  of 
his  works  asked  for,  not  yet  received — Ed.] 

Rev.  William  High  may  also  be  named 
as  one  who  was  brought  up,  if  not  born, 
in  our  town,  and  who  is  well  known  as 
quite  a  noted  pulpit  orator. 

Also,  Rev.  E.  C.  Bass,  now  of  New 
Hampshire  Conference,  is  a  native  of 
Moretown,  and  graduate  of  the  Vermont 
University. 

longevity  of  moretown. 

Persons  deceased  in  town  70  years  of  age 
and  over. — Philemon  Ashley  80,  Roger  G. 
Bulkley  86,  Lyman  Child  81,  Reuben  Per- 
kins 72,  John  Pattrill  82,  Lyman  Cobb  72, 
Ephraim  Cobb  81,  Israel  Noble  84,  Elisha 
Goodspeed  88,  Levi  Spalding  81,  Constant 
Freeman  ']'],  Jesse  Thornton  71,  Cephas 
Carpenter  88,  Nathan  Benton  70,  Nathan 


MORETOWN. 


603 


Benton  Jr.  79,  Stephen  .Pierce  88,  Charles 
Howe  91,  Abram  Spofford  82,  Elijah  Win- 
ship  'J2,,  Rowland  Taylor  T"],  Icliabod 
Thomas  79,  Morty  Kerin  82,  Timothy 
Hutchins  76,  Abner  Child  87,  Reuben 
Hawks  75,  James  Smith  'jt,,  James  Smal- 
ley  84,  Levi  Munson  72,   Richard   Welch 

71,  John  Poor"79,  Horace  HeatonSi,  Zela 
Keyes  76,  Martin  Mason  70,  Daniel  Wood- 
bury 91,  Daniel  Murray  70,  Samuel  Carl- 
ton 83,  Earl  Ward  70,  David  Stockwell 
75,  Philetus  Robinson  76,  Micah  B.  Tap- 
lin  78,  Ward  Page  74,  Francis  Hope  82, 
Robert  Prentiss  83,  Matthias  Cannon  82, 
John  Snyder  85,  Daniel  Hassett  72,  John 
Flanagan  76,  Wm.  Prentiss  83,  Eber  C. 
Child  76,  Lester  Kingsley  76,  Samuel 
Pierce  82,  William  Prentiss  Sr.  80,  Ezra 
Harris  over  70,  Isaac  Foster,  Caleb  Hobbs, 
Ebenezer  Johnson,  Ebenezer  Mayo,  Hart- 
well  Robinson,  Harvey  Stowell,  Samuel 
Kingsbury,  Alfred  Cram,  Emory  Taylor, 
Paul  Knapp  87,  Ebenezer  Haseltine  79, 
Elisha  Atherton  79,  Henry  Colby  84, 
Richard  Colby  89,  David  Belding,  John 
Goss  73,  Aladuren  Stowell  80,  Sylvia  Ash- 
ley 76,  Sally  Bulkley  80,  Eunice  Noble  71, 
Lydia  Foster  84,  Martha  Davis  85,  Thank- 
ful Spalding  80,  Sibyl  Clapp  80,  Phoebe 
Thornton  80,  Lucinda  Curtis  89,  Anna 
Carpenter  71,  Esther  Benton  "]"] ,  Elizabeth 
Pierce  'jt^,  Martha  Howe  96,  Rebecca 
Pierce  T^f  Jane  G.  Seaver  81,  Sarah  Free- 
man 70,  Nancy  Smith  74,  Mary  Allen  "JT, 
Elizabeth  Hall  75,  Betsey  Vose  86,  Polly 
P.  Wells  81,  Louisa  A.  Martin  71,  Abigail 
Haseltine  79,  Emily  Allen  70,  Prudence 
Freeman  90,  PhilaGoss  72,  Dolly  F.  Child 

88,  Sally  Stiles  I},,  Susan  Hope  78,  Har- 
riet McNaulty  74,  Rhoda  Willey  80,  Lydia 
Robinson  86,  Eliza  M.  Poor  73,  Mary 
Nash  78,  Isabel  C.  Jackson  71,  Priscilla 
Knapp  93,  Polly  Howes  TJ,  Phoebe  Rice 

89,  Sarah  D.  Walton  74,  Betsey  Clark  88, 
Ruth  Slayton  81,  Lucinda  Stowell  75, 
Anna  Barton  86,  Mariam  Leland  92,  Par- 
nel  Boutwell  71,  Shuah  Keyes  88,  Flor^nda 
F.  Belding  87,  Sally  Corss,  Eunice  Snyder 
85,  Lucinda  Prentiss  75,   Lizzie    Prentiss 

72,  Mrs.  Amos  Palmer  over  70,  Esther 
(Luce)  Ridley  86,  Lucy  Silsby  over  70, 
Mrs.    Eben'r    Mayo,  Dolly    Child,    Mrs. 


Ephraim  Clark,  Rachel  Kingsbury,  Anna 
Munson  86,  Clarissa  Heaton  96,  Mrs.  Al- 
fred Crane  70,  Juda  Haseltine  96,  Mrs. 
John  Foster  over  70,  Mrs.  David  Stockwell 
over  70,  Susan  Foster  74,  Hannah  Flan- 
ders 90,  Huldah  Colby  70,  Lucretia  Free- 
man ']■},,  Lydia  Goss  "T}^,  Betsey  Hutchin- 
son, Mrs.  Aladuren  Stowell  75. 

Old  people  of  Moretoivti  now  living  over 
70. — Joel  D.  Rice  75,  Lewis  Bagley  78, 
Uriah  Howe  72,  Calvin  Foster  78,  John 
Towle  80,  Wm.  B.  Foster  80,  Osgood 
Evans  78,  Hiram  Hathaway  70,  Smith 
Freeman  72,  Ezra  Hutchinson  81,  William 
Deavitt  over  70,  Rolland  Knapp  over  70. 
Mary  B.  Evans  73,  Abigail  Child  81,  Mary 
A.  Spalding  86,  Polly  Prentiss  82,  Cornelia 
W.  Goss  75  Lucinda  Tubbs  79,  Rahamah 
T.  Bulkley  72,  Sarah  Seaver  70,  Mary 
Somerville  over  70,  Mrs.  Joel  Rice  75, 
Nancy  Carlton  80,  Priscilla  Knapp  81. 

Wales  Bass,  son  of  Alpheus  Bass,  of 
Moretown,  was  killed  instantly,  Dec.  1863, 
being  thrown  from  a  load  of  wood ;  the 
horses  had  taken  fright. 

ADDITIONAL   FROM   AARON   GOSS. 

Longevity. — Charlotte  Smith  died  in 
town,  aged  93 ;  and  the  following  died 
during  the  past  year,  1881  :      J_es>t^  \ 

Dr.  L-ttther  Kingsley,  aged  "jd  years, 
who  lived  in  town  nearly  60  years,  had 
been  town  clerk  nearly  50  years. 

Wm.  Prentiss,  aged  83,  had  always 
lived  in  town. 

Samuel  Pierce,  aged  82,  had  lived  in 
town  58  years. 

Mrs.  Florinda  Belden,  aged  87,  and  Mrs. 
Lydia  B.  Foster,  So.    . 

Simon  Stevens  had  his  distillery  on  the 
premises  where  D.  F.  Freeman  now  lives. 
He  was  a  very  resolute  business  man,  and 
died  by  taking  a  severe  cold  from  over- 
work. G. 

RE-UNION  OF  OSGOOD  EVANS'  FAMILY, 

which  held  a  pleasant  re-union  in  this 
town,  at  the  old  homestead,  Sept.  1879  i 
there  being  present  Mr.  Evans,  the  father, 
76  years  of  age;  Mrs.  Evans,  72;  J.  D. 
Evans  and  family,  of  the  firm  of  Batch- 
elder,  Evans  &  Co.,  Boston,  produce  deal- 
ers— wife  and  2  children ;  E.  A.  Shattuck, 


6o4 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Central  R.  R.  engineer,  and  family  ;  M.  O. 
and  G.  B.  Evans  and  families,  and  Geo. 
C,  who  lives  with  his  father ;  and  grand- 
children present,  27. 

MATTHEW   HALE   CARPENTER 

was  born  in  Moretown,  Dec.  22,  1824,  and 
died  at  Washington;  D.  C,  Feb.  24,  1881, 
while  serving  as  United  States  Senator 
from  the  State  of  Wisconsin.  His  parents 
named  him  Decatur  Merritt  Harmon  Car- 
penter ;  how  and  why  his  name  was  changed 
will  appear  further  on. 

His  grandfather.  Col.  Cephas  Carpenter, 
was  long  a  resident  of  Moretown — a  man 
of  strong  intellect  and  marked  character- 
istics. For  years  he  was  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  and  as  such  presided  in  the  trial  of 
cases  almost  without  number.  When  a 
trial  was  had  before  another  justice,  he 
was  usually  found  acting  as  counsel  for 
one  of  the  parties,  in  which  capacity  he 
was  cjuite  the  equal  of  most  of  the  practicing 
attorneys  of  his  day.  It  has  been  truly 
said  of  him  that  "  he  was  a  lawyer,  though 
not  a  member  of  any  bar." 

His  father  was  Ira  Carpenter,  who  was 
born  in  Moretown,  and  resided  there  until 
well  advanced  in  life,  when  he  removed  to 
Warren.  He  was  a  particularly  fine-looking 
man,  easy  in  manner,  social  in  his  habits, 
and  a  favorite  among  his  acquaintances. 
For  more  than  twenty  years  he  held  the 
office  of  deputy  sheriff,  and  was  frequently 
constable  of  the  town.  In  discharging  the 
duties  of  these  offices  he  was  thrown  much 
into  the  company  of  Hon.  Paul  Dillingham, 
a  lawyer  residing  in  Waterbury,  but  having 
a  large  practice  in  the  Mad  River  Valley. 
Such  close  business  relations  soon  made 
them  fast  friends,  and  Mr.  Carpenter's 
house  became  Mr.  Dillingham's  habitual 
stopping-place  when  at  Moretown.  During 
these  visits  "Merritt,"  as  the  boy  was  then 
called,  attracted  the  attention  of  the  genial 
attorney  from  Waterbury,  who  frequently 
bantered  him  about  coming  to  live  with 
him,  promising  to  make  a  lawyer  of  him. 
On  the  occasion  of  a  certain  trip  to  More- 
town,  while  passing  over  the  height  of 
land  midway  between  the  latter  village  and 
Waterbury,  Mr.  Dillingham  was  surprised 
to  meet  young  Carpenter,  then  a  lad  of  14, 


trudging  along  on. foot  with  all  his  worldly 
effects  in  a  small  bundle.  When  asked 
where  he  was  going,  the  boy  replied,  "To 
Waterbury,  to  live  with  you  and  be  a 
lawyer."  'Squire  Dillingham,  as  he  was 
then  popularly  called,  finding  his  former 
proposals  thus  unexpectedly  accepted,  di- 
rected the  lad  to  go  ahead,  report  to  Mrs. 
Dillingham,  and  await  his  return  at  night. 
Mrs.  Dillingham  was  greatly  pleased  with 
her  youthful  visitor,  who  made  such  good 
use  of  his  undeveloped  arts  as  an  advocate 
that  when  Mr.  Dillingham  returned,  he 
found  an  entente  co7'diale  had  already  been 
established  between  his  wife  and  the  boy. 
And  this  is  how  young  Carpenter  became  a 
protege,  though  never  a  formally  adopted 
son  of  Hon.  Paul  Dillingham,  whose  house 
thereafter  was  the  only  home  he  had  until 
he  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, and  had  made  one  for  himself  in 
the  West. 

In  1843,  through  the  influence  of  Mr. 
Dillingham,  he  was  appointed  a  cadet  in 
the  Military  School  at  West  Point,  in 
which  institution  he  pursued  his  studies 
for  2  years.  Having  no  taste  for  military 
life,  but  desiring  above  all  things  else  to  be 
a  lawyer,  he  at  the  end  of  that  time  ten- 
dered his  resignation.  This  was  accepted, 
and  he  immediatety  returned  to  Water- 
bury, and  entered  Mr.  Dillingham's  office 
as  a  student.  In  Nov.  1847,  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Washington  County  Bar ; 
but  conscientiously  refused  to  practice  with- 
out further  preparation.  He  went  to  Boston, 
where  he  was  generously  taken  into  the 
office  of  Rufus  Choate.  He  soon  won,  not 
only  the  good  opinion  of  that  great  man, 
but  his  admiration  and  unbounded  confi- 
dence. Mr.  Choate  assisted  him  in  select- 
ing a  library  suitable  to  his  needs,  and  ad- 
vanced the  money  to  pay  for  the  same. 
Equipped  with  this,  he  removed  to  Beloit, 
Wis.,  in  the  year  1848. 

At  this  time  he  was  tall  and  handsome 
of  figure,  with  a  noble  head  and  winning 
blue  eyes,  with  a  voice  of  sympathetic 
quality,  and  with  a  manner  of  mingled 
frankness  and  almost  boyish  roguishness. 
His  prospect  was  full  of  promise,  when, 
after  a  few  months'  residence  in  Beloit,  he 


MORETOWN. 


605 


was  suddenly  and  unaccountably  afflicted 
with  a  disease  of  the  eyes,  which  resulted 
for  several  months  in  total  blindness.  For 
18  months  he  was  under  treatment  in  New 
York,  poor,  almost  hopeless  of  cure,  and 
with  no  other  than  his  constant  friends, 
Mr.  Dillingham  and  Rufus  Choate.  Nearly 
3  years  were  thus  lost— so  far  as  professional 
advancement  was  concerned—before  he  was 
able  to  return  and  resume  the  practice  of 
his  profession  in  Beloit.  Poor  as  he  then 
was,  he  managed  to  collect  what  was  then 
the  best  law  library  in  the  county,  and  from 
the  first  developed  that  thoroughness  of 
"working  out"  cases  which  ever  since 
characterized  him.  Then,  as  since,  he  was 
very  fond  of  literary  studies.  The  poets 
he  had  almost  by  heart,  and  his  studies  of 
the  historical,  philosophical  and  political 
classics  of  England  and  America  were  un- 
ceasing. Politically,  he  was  a  democrat  of 
the  most  decided  cast.  Going  to  Beloit 
just  as  the  "free-soil "  movement  was  carry- 
ing all  before  it,  he  had  to  breast  the  al- 
most unanimous  political  sentiment  of  a 
county  and  town  invincibly  whig  before, 
then  "free-soil,"  and  since  republican. 
Still,  he  assailed  his  opponents  in  their 
stronghold  with  so  much  fearlessness,  wit, 
logic,  constitutional  learning  and  unfailing 
bonhotninie,  that  only  his  few  enemies  were 
vexed  at  his  personal  popularity. 

Still  democratic  on  his  return  to  Beloit, 
he  became  known  more  widely  by  occa- 
sional speeches  in  various  parts  of  the 
state,  while  his  professional  success  grew 
with  steadiness.  So  strong  had  be  become 
in  a  few  years  in  his  own  county,  that  in 
1852  he  received  the  legal  majority  of 
votes  cast  for  district  attorney,  although 
his  party  was  beaten  by  over  1500  votes. 
His  opponent  received  the  certificate, 
owing  to  the  diversity  in  the  use  of  the 
numerous  initials  of  his  name  on  the  ballots 
cast  by  his  supporters,  but  Mr.  Carpenter 
appealed  to  the  court,  and  vindicated  both 
his  right  and  legal  ability  before  the  su- 
preme tribunal  of  the  state  with  equal 
success.  It  was  in  consequence  of  this 
experience  that  he  obtained  legislative 
sanction  to  the  name,  Matthew  Hale 
Carpenter,  by  which  he  had  become  to  be 


called  by  his  admirers  in  a  spirit  of  pleas- 
ant recognition  of  his  splendid  legal  abil- 
ities. 

From  this  time  until  1869,  he  never  held 
an  office,  nor  was  he  a  candidate  for  one. 
He  devoted  himself  to  the  study  and  prac- 
tice of  the  law  with  an  enthusiasm  which 
knew  no  bounds,  and  had  a  large  and  lu- 
crative practice. 

In  1856,  he  was  the  leading  counsel  for 
the  respondent  in  the  remarkable  proceed- 
ings by  qtio  warranto,  to  try  the  title  to  the 
office  of  governor  of  Wisconsin  between 
the  relator  Bashford  and  the  incumbent 
Bars  tow. 

In  1859,  hs  removed  to  Milwaukee,  and 
formed,  by  invitation,  a  law  partnership 
with  Hon.  E.  G.  Ryan,  then  the  acknowl- 
edged leader  of  the  Wisconsin  Bar,  and 
afterwards  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  that  state. 

Two  such  natural  leaders  of  men  could 
not  long  remain  partners,  and  this  partner- 
ship was  soon  dissolved.  Mr.  Carpenter 
opened  an  office  for  himself,  and  was  con- 
stantly crowded  with  business.  From 
i860  to  1867  his  time  was  almost  constantly 
occupied  with  litigation  connected  with  the 
railroads  of  the  state,  and  which  was  finally 
carried  to  the  supreme  court  of  the  United 
States,  where  upon  his  first  appearance  he 
won  the  rare  honor  of  a  highly  compli- 
mentary notice  from  that  grave  tribunal. 

"  Meanwhile,  the  outbreak  of  armed  re- 
bellion gave  Carpenter  the  opportunity  to 
lead  in  politics  as  in  law.  Having  been  a 
devoted  Douglas  Democrat,  a  believer  in 
the  constitution,  and  a  stalwart  defender 
of  the  Union,  he  burst  the  bonds  of  party 
allegiance,  as  soon  as  the  democratic  party 
South  openly  carried  out  its  plans.  No 
voice  in  Wisconsin,  at  the  outset  of  the 
war,  was  so  clear,  electric  and  thrilling  as 
his,  when  the  First  Wisconsin  regiment 
was  sent  to  the  front.  His  speech  was  a 
trumpet  blast  that  was  worth  an  army  corps 
to  the  cause  that  inspired  him  with  the 
courage  of  an  apostle  and  the  prescience 
of  a  prophet.  It  came  from  his  heart  and 
went  to  the  hearts  of  the  people.  It  an- 
ticij^ated  the  necessity  of  emancipation  and 
filled  the  souls  of  old  anti-slavery  leaders 


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with  apprehensions  of  its  untinieliness. 
In  all  the  subsequent  phases  of  the  war  he 
was  constantly  in  the  lead,  but  never  had 
to  go  bevond  the  doctrines  and  sentiments 
of  the  speech  that  made  him  the  foremost 
republican  leader,  in  the  hearts  of  the 
people." 

During  the  dark  days  of  1863  and  1864, 
Mr.  Carpenter  supported  the  government 
by  public  speeches  and  printed  arg^iments, 
in  which  he  took  the  most  advanced  posi- 
tion as  to  the  war  powers  of  the  govern- 
ment outside  the  constitution  when  the 
life  of  the  nation  was  in  peril.  His  power- 
ful arguments,  maintaining  the  measures 
of  the  government,  attracted  universal 
attention.  So  great,  indeed,  had  his 
reputation  become  as  a  constitutional 
lawyer,  that  in  1867,  when  the  tamous 
McArdle  case  was  coming  on  for  argument 
before  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  Secretary  Stanton  engaged  Mr. 
Carpenter  to  make  the  principal  argument 
for  the  government.  His  argimient  in 
that  case,  it  may  be  safely  said,  will  rank 
with  the  greatest  efforts  ever  made  before 
that  or  any  other  judicial  tribunal.  After 
the  completion  of  his  brief,  he  submitted 
it  to  Secretary  Stanton,  who  cordially  ap- 
proved it.  but  added  that  William  M.  Mer- 
edith, of  Philadelphia,  was  the  king  of 
American  lawyers,  and  that  before  the  ar- 
gument was  made  he  desired  to  have  his 
judgment  as  to  its  soundness.  Provided 
with  a  note  of  introduction  from  the  Sec- 
retary and  a  $1000  retainer,  Mr.  Carpenter 
went  to  Philadelphia,  and  submitted  his 
argimient  to  Mr.  Meredith.  A  whole  day 
was  spent  at  the  hitter's  residence  in  a 
very  thorough  examination  of  it.  At  the 
conclusion  Mr.  Meredith  wrote  Secretary 
Stanton  in  these  words:  "I  have  care- 
fully examined  the  argument  of  Mr.  Car- 
penter in  the  matter  of  McArdle.  To  it  I 
cannot  add  a  word ;  from  it  1  would  not 
subtract  one." 

This  case,  though  fully  argued,  was 
never  decided,  the  court  holding  that  it 
had  no  jurisdiction  ;  but  the  National  Leg- 
islature endorsed  the  soundness  of  Mr. 
Carpenter's  views  by  subsequently  enact- 
ing  laws   for   the    reconstruction   of    the 


Southern  States,  which  were  founded  upon 
the  principles  maintained  by  him  in  this 
argimient. 

In  1869.  ^^^  ^^'^^  elected  United  States 
Senator  by  the  republicans  of  Wisconsin. 
During  his  service  he  bore  a  conspicuous 
part  in  the  debates,  and  increased  his  rep- 
utation as  an  orator  and  constitutional 
lawyer.  In  March  1873,  he  was  elected 
President //v'/f-w/ort' of  the  Senate,  which 
position  he  held  until  the  expiration  of  his 
term  in  1S75.  At  this  time  he  was  the 
choice  of  the  repubhcans  of  his  state  as 
his  own  successor,  but  the  democrats  were 
then  engaged  in  defeating  regular  nomina- 
tions through  a  coalition  with  disappointed 
republicans.  By  a  combination  of  this 
kind,  largely  composed  of  democrats.  Mr. 
Carpenter  was  defeated. 

During  the  next  4  years  he  remained  in 
Washington,  constantly  employed  in  im- 
portant causes.  Among  these  was  the 
impeachment  trial  of  Secretary  Belknap, 
in  which  he  appeared  for  the  defendant. 
He  aLso  appeared  for  Mr.  Tilden  before 
the  electoral  commission,  and  displayed 
rare  knowledge  of  state  and  national  laws. 

In  1879,  h^  ^^'^■'^  again  elected  a  senator 
from  the  State  of  Wisconsin  to  succeed 
Timothy  O.  Howe,  which  office  he  held  at 
the  time  of  his  death. 

During  all  the  time  he  was  in  the  Senate 
he  continued  the  practice  of  the  law,  mostly 
in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States. 
His  cases  embraced  almost  every  question 
that  could  be  raised  under  the  Rcconstmc- 
tion  Acts  of  Congre.ss.  the  13th.  14th  and 
15th  Amendments  to  the  Constitution,  as 
well  as  the  numerous  questions  constantly 
growing  out  of  great  business  transactions. 
Upon  his  ability  and  acquirements  as  a 
lawyer  and  an  advocate  his  reputation  will 
rest. 

His  devotion  to  the  law  led  him  to  look 
for  the  principle  underlying  every  measure 
requiring  his  action,  and  unless  such 
measure  seemed  to  be  founded  upon  sound 
principles,  it  failed  of  his  support.  Hence 
he  often  differed  in  opinion  with  his  po- 
litical associates  who  had  gained  reputa- 
tions as  statesmen.  Upon  one  of  these 
occasions,  being  taunted  with  the  fact,  he 


MORETOWN. 


607 


exclaimed,  "I  am  a  lawyer,  not  a  states- 
man." 

To  be  a  good  lawyer  was  his  ambition 
and  pride,  and  in  the  midst  of  his  political 
career,  when  opposition  newspapers  were 
pouring  abuse  upon  him  without  stint  or 
mercy,  he  found  consolation  in  the  fact 
that  none  of  them  had  charged  him  "with 
being  a  poor  lawyer." 

Ex-Attorney-General  Jesse  Black,  who 
had  much  professional  intercourse  with 
Mr.  Carpenter,  said  of  him  after  his  death  : 

"The  American  bar  has  not  often  suf- 
fered so  great  a  misfortune  as  the  death  of 
Mr.  Carpenter.  He  was  cut  off  when  he 
was  rising  as  rapidly  as  at  any  previous 
period.  In  the  noontide  of  his  labors  the 
night  came,  wherein  no  man  can  work. 
To  what  height  his  career  might  have 
reached  if  he  had  lived  and  kept  his  health 
another  score  of  years,  can  now  be  only  a 
speculative  question.  But  when  we  think 
of  his  great  wisdom  and  his  wonderful  skill 
in  the  forensic  use  of  it,  together  witli  his 
other  qualities  of  mind  and  heart,  we  can- 
not doubt  that  in  his  left  hand  would  have 
been  uncounted  riches  and  abundant  honor 
if  only  length  of  days  had  been  given  to 
his  right.  As  it  was,  he  distanced  his  co- 
temporaries,  and  became  the  peer  of  the 
greatest  among  those  who  had  started  long 
before  him.  The  intellectual  character  of 
no  professional  man  is  harder  to  analyze 
than  his.  He  was  gifted  with  an  eloquence 
sid generis.  It  consisted  of  free  and  fear- 
less thought,  borne  upon  expression  power- 
ful and  perfect.  It  was  not  fine  rhetoric, 
for  he  seldom  resorted  to  poetic  illustra- 
tion ;  nor  did  he  make  a  parade  of  clinch- 
ing his  facts.  He  often  warmed  with  feel- 
ing, but  no  bursts  of  passion  deformed  the 
symmetry  of  his  argument.  The  flow  of 
his  speech  was  steady  and  strong — as  tlie 
current  of  a  great  river.  Every  sentence 
was  perfect ;  every  word  was  fitly  spoken  ; 
each  apple  of  gold  was  set  in  its  picture 
of  silver.  This  singular  faculty  of  saying 
everything  just  as  it  ought  to  be  said,  was 
not  displayed  only  in  the  Senate  and  in  the 
courts  ;  everywhere,  in  public  and  private, 
on  his  legs,  in  his  chair,  and  even  lying  on 
his  bed,  he  always  'talked  like  a  book.'" 


In  personal  appearance,  Mr.  Carpenter 
was  striking  and  distinguished.  He  was 
above  the  average  stature,  broad  shoulder- 
ed and  well  proportioned.  His  head  was 
large,  well  set  and  finely  formed.  His 
hair  grew  in  profusion,  and  formed  a  fine 
setting  for  a  countenance  which  was  al- 
ways strong  and  winning,  but  which  was  in- 
expressibly sad  or  characteristically  bright 
and  cheery — ^just  as  the  mood  happened  to 
be  in  which  one  found  him. 

In  temperament,  he  was  buoyant,  en- 
thusiastic, energetic  and  kind.  His  buoy- 
ancy never  left  him,  his  sparkle  (and  it 
was  his  alone),  never  ceased,  his  energy 
never  diminished,  his  industry  never  wea- 
ried, and  his  generosity  and  kindness,  al- 
ways large,  only  grew  larger  and  more 
comprehensive  as  life  went  on. 

His  services  as  a  speaker  were  sought 
on  all  occasions  where  public  joy  or  public 
sorrow  sought  expression.  The  following 
extract  from  one  of  his  addresses  will  give 
an  idea  of  his  style  : 

"The  loves  and  friendships  of  individ- 
uals partake  of  the  frail  character  of  human 
life;  are  brief  and  uncertain.  The  experi- 
ences of  human  life  may  be  shortly  summed 
up  :  a  little  loving  and  a  great  deal  of  sor- 
rowing; some  bright  hopes  and  many 
bitter  disappointments ;  some  gorgeous 
Thursdays,  when  the  skies  are  bright  and 
the  heavens  blue,  when  Providence,  bend- 
ing over  us  in  blessings,  glads  the  heart 
almost  to  madness ;  many  dismal  Fridays, 
when  the  smoke  of  torment  beclouds  the 
mind,  and  undying  sorrows  gnaw  upon  the 
heart ;  some  high  ambitions  and  many 
Waterloo  defeats,  until  the  heart  becomes 
like  a  charnel-house,  filled  with  dead  af- 
fections, embalmed  in  holy  but  sorrowful 
memories  ;  and  then  the  cord  is  loosened, 
the  golden  bowl  is  broken,  the  individual " 
life — a  cloud,  a  vapor — passeth  away." 

Mr.  Carpenter  was  a  profound  believer 
in  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures — of 
which  he  was  a  close  and  appreciative 
student — and  of  the  divinity  of  Christ. 
One  of  his  reasons  for  this  belief  may  be 
found  in  the  following  extract  from  a  letter 
written  by  him  to  Prof.  David  Swing : 

"Whoever  will  read  Cicero's   Twilight 


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Speculations  about  Duty  and  the  Future 
Life,  remembering  that  perhaps  he  was  the 
fullest  man  of  an  antiquity,  the  ripest 
scholar  and  student  of  the  highest  period 
of  Roman  civilization,  and  remembering 
that  from  the  birth  of  Cssar  to  the  birth 
of  Christ  the  only  change  that  came  to 
civilization  was  a  decline,  and  that  Jesus 
belonged  to  an  out-of-the-way  people — a 
people  apart  from  the  high  tides  of  human 
greatness — and  then  will  read  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount,  I  cannot  comprehend  how 
he  can  escape  the  conclusion  that  the  dif- 
ference is  not  one  of  degree,  but  of  kind. 
That  Jesus,  surrounded  as  he  was,  could 
have  promulgated  a  system  of  morals  em- 
bodying all  that  is  most  valuable  in  the 
prior  life  of  the  world,  and  to  which  nine- 
teen centuries  of  civilization  have  been 
unable  to  add  a  thought  or  impart  an  orna- 
ment, is  a  fact  not  to  be  explained  by  any 
ridicule." 

At  the  time  of  his  death,  his  law  library 
alone  had  cost  him  more  than  $40,000, 
and  his  library  of  miscellaneous  works 
numbered  about  10,000  vols. 

He  was  married  to  Caroline,  daughter  of 
Hon.  Paul  Dillingham,  of  VVaterbury,  Nov. 
27,  1855.  Four  children  were  born  to 
them,  of  whom  two — daughters — died  in 
infancy.  Of  the  two  now  living,  Lillian 
Carpenter,  now  a  young  lady,  is  the  eldest ; 
the  other,  Paul  Dillingham  Carpenter,  is  a 
lad  of  14  years.  Mrs.  Carpenter,  with  her 
son  and  daughter,  now  reside  in  the  city 
of  Milwaukee. 

[The  above  are  facts  furnished  by  the 
Dillingham  family  of  Waterbury,  with 
journal  notices.] 

MRS.    HOPY    HOLT, 

aged  over  94  years,  is  the  oldest  person 
we  have  any  record  of  now  living  in  More- 
town.  She  was  born  in  New  Bedford, 
Mass.  Her  parents  were  Abraham  and 
Mary  (White)  Howland.  Her  mother 
lived  to  nearly  82  years.  Mrs.  Holt  was 
the  wife  of  Amos  Holt,  who  died  in  More- 
town  some  38  years  since,  and  the  mother 
of  10  children,  9  of  whom  lived  to  settle  in 
life  as  heads  of  families  ;  7  now  living ;  3 
over   70 :  Amos    Holt,  of  Berkshire,   age 


T],  Sept.  last;  Hopy,  aged  74,  June  '81 — 
Mrs.  Hopy  Holt  Hartwell,  now  of  Mont- 
pelier,  widow  17  years  of  William  Hart- 
well,  who  died  aged  59,  in  Berlin;  and 
Mrs.  Mary  Goodspeed,  who  lives  in  North- 
ern New  York,  aged  72. 

Mrs.  Hopy  Holt,  in  her  life  of  almost  a 
century,  has  lived  in  Montpelier,  Calais 
and  Moretown,  and  perhaps  in  one  or  two 
other  towns  in  this  county. 

She  remembers  when  Montpelier  river 
was  of  the  size  of  a  large  brook.  She 
says  when  young  she  was  spry,  and  could 
jump  as-  far  as  any  one  ;  that  with  a  long 
pole  she  could  have  reached  into  the  mid- 
dle of  the  stream,  and  jumped  over.  Now 
at  95,  she  can  drop  down  on  her  feet  upon 
the  hearth,  at  the  fire-place,  light  her  pipe 
sitting  on  her  feet,  and  spring  up  lightly 
again  without  touching  a  hand  down  ;  a 
feat  not  half  of  the  women  of  40  can  ac- 
complish. She  states  her  little  house 
where  she  lived  in  Montpelier,  stood  upon 
ground  covered  now  by  the  mill-pond  near 
the  Arch-bridge,  near  the  centre  of  the 
present  pond.  That  there  were  but  two 
framed  houses  in  Montpelier  village  when 
she  removed  to  Calais.  Her  present  home 
is  with  her  son,  G.  H.  Holt  of  Moretown. 
We  saw  the  mother  of  94  and  daughter  of 
74,  together  the  past  summer.  It  seemed 
quite  a  sight,  a  mother  with  a  daughter  of 
74  years  by  her  side  ;  and  the  mother  in 
appearance  bid  fair  to  outlive  the  daughter. 

Since  the  above  was  in  type  we  have 
learned  that  Mrs.  Hopy  Holt  died  Dec. 
12,  1 88 1,  aged  94  years,  3  mos.  24  days. 

TO   MY   GRANDFATHER, 

BY  MRS.   CELIA  BAXTER  BRIGHAM. 

The  weight  of  years  is  on  thy  brow, 

And  age  lias  dimmed  tliine  eye, 
Thy  step  falls  not  as  lightly  now. 

As  in  the  years  gone  by ; 
Yet  is  thy  brow  serene  and  calm, 

Thine  eye  uplifted  still  ; 
Thy  trust  in  God's  protecting  arm 

Old  age  can  never  chill. 

I  look  far  back  through  years  on  years. 

Before  thy  locks  were  gray, 
And  see  the  smile  that  soothed  my  fears, 

And  cheered  my  infant  play. 
Those  mild  blue  eyes— they  kindly  beam 

On  all  around  thee  yet  ; 
So  like  my  mother's  own  they  seem, 

I  never  can  forget. 


MORETOWN. 


609 


The  music  of  thy  deep-toueii  voice, 

Attuned  in  sacred  song, 
Oft  made  my  raptured  heart  rejoice, 

When  days  were  briglit  and  long; 
And  now,  wlien  short  and  sadder  all 

Tlie  fleeting  days  liave  grown. 
Kind  memory  loveth  to  recall 

Each  spirit-tlirilling  tone. 

I  know  tliat  Time's  relentless  hand 

Is  laid  upon  thy  head  ; 
Thee  guiding  to  the  shadowy  land. 

With  still,  unfaltering  tread, 
Yet  hath  he  gently  dealt  with  thee. 

Since  thou,  through  smiles  and  tears, 
With  retrospective  glance  canst  see 

The  graves  of  eiglity  years. 

I  know  the  tide  that  bears  thee  on 

Hath  no  returning  wave. 
Yet  down  its  current  One  hath  gone 

Far  mightier  than  the  grave. 
And  He,  who  conquered  every  foe 

On  Adam's  race  that  waits, 
Will  guide  thee,  when  the  waves  o'erflow, 

Within  the  Eternal  gates. 

Abner  Child  of  Moretown,  to  whom  the 
above  lines  were  written,  died  in  1854, 
aged  87. 

THE   LAKE   OF   THE   CLOUDS. 

BY  CORNELIA  J.  CHILD. 

Aye !  Others  may  wander  'neath  far  distant  skies. 

For  the  beauties  of  scenery  not  granted  us  here. 
And  when  suns  o'er  a  classical  land  shall  arise. 

May  forget  all  tlie  beauties  that  blossom  more  near; 
But  the  glories  of  Nature,  wjiatever  they  are, 

Can  never  be  elsewhere  more  dear  than  my  own. 
And  no  magical  eye-glass  can  render  more  fair 

A  bright  distant  scene,  than  a  bright  one  at  home. 

There's  a  rapture  of  feeling  that  swells  to  the  soul. 

When  we  gaze  on  a  land  that  is  hallowed  in  song; 
But  a  deeper  soul-worship,  beyond  our  control. 

When  the  glories  we  love,  to  our  own  land  belong. 
Then  when  weary  of  bright  skies  and  Alpine  delights, 

The  grandeur  of  home  on  thy  memory  crowds. 
Come  back  and  ascend  to  Mansfield's  proud  heights. 

To  bathe  the  tired  limbs  in  the  "Lake  of  the  Clouds.' ' 

There  are  broader  expanses  of  water  and  wave. 

Where  gems  at  the  bottom  in  sunshine  lie  sparkling. 
But  we  can  imagine  as  much  in  the  wave     [darkling; 

Where  the  shades  of  the  wood  and  the  steep  rock  lie 
And  never  did  light  glimmer  down  from  the  moon. 

And  o'er  a  dark  wave  more  encliantingly  plaj'. 
Than  there,  where  baptized  in  the  depths  of  tlie  flood. 

The  bright  stars  lie  watching  the  sleep  of  the  day. 

Oh,  Lake  of  the  Clouds  1  oft  my  bright  fancy  takes  me 

On  fairy-like  wings  to  tliy  home  in  the  air. 
And  cooling  my  lips  in  the  waves  of  thy  fountain, 

I  fancy  a  charm  talismanic  lies  there; 
That  never  shall  mortal  that's  tasted  thy  waters, 

Or  had  them  wept  o'er  him  in  dews  from  the  skies. 
Fail  to  honor  his  country  with  love  patriotic. 

And  leave  a  warm  prayer  for  lier  weal  when  he  dies. 

But  whenever  a  son  of  the  ever-green  Mountains 
Shall  feel  Freedom's  fire  less  ardently  burn,     [him. 

Thy  waves  will  all  spring  to  the  clouds  to  rain  o'er 
And  the  Genius  of  Country  replenish  the  urn. 


Then  though  there's  no  bright  spell  of  History  cast  o'er 
To  kindle  the  mind  and  wake  intellect's  joys,    [thee 

A  classical  charm  shall  be  thine  yet  in  story,  [boys. 
For  thy  waves  have  been  parted  by  Green  Mountain 

A  body  of  water  on  Mansfield  Mountain, 
familiarly  known  to  sportsmen  as  the 
"  Lake  of  the  Clouds." 

MILITARY    REGISTER. 

BY  AARON  GObS. 

Co.  G.  dth  Reg.  Vt.  Vols,  from  Oct.  15, 
1 861,  to  Jan.  I,  1864. 

Bixby,  Russell,  enlisted  from  Bi"adford. 

Boyce,  George  C,  from  P'ayston,  lost  in 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness. 

Bowen,  Warren,  from  Topsham. 

Brock,  E.  A.,  residence  not  put  down. 

Corliss,  C.  B.,  from  Duxbury. 

Craig,  Daniel  R.,  Orange. 

Clemens,  Charles,  Orange. 

Caruth,  Albert  W.,  Topsham. 

Craig,  Albert  E.,  Orange. 

Chase,  John  J.,  Fayston. 

Church,  Geo.  K.,  Washington. 

Demass,  Oliver  P.,  Fayston. 

Eastman,  Geo.  E.,  W.  Topsham. 

Emerson,  James  K.,  Wolcott. 

Fenton,  Bartholomew,  Moi^etown. 

Goodspeed,  Elisha,  Warren. 

Gilson,  Eli,  South  Fayston. 

Gove,  Ira  S.,  veteran,  Lincoln;  killed  at 
Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  June  8,  '64. 

Greene,  Edson,  Orange. 

Gillett,  Abel  W.,  Duxbury ;  served  his  time 
in  invalid  corps. 

Heath,  Horace  L.,  West  Topsham ;  pro- 
moted by  commission  in  negro  reg. 

Howe,  C.  C,  Thetford. 

Hunter,  John  H.,  veteran,  wounded  at 
Funkstown,  Md.,  July  10,  '63;  also 
wounded  in  the  Wilderness,  Va.,  May 
4,  '64 :  had  his  right  arm  amputated 
May  5,  '64.  Hunter  was  one  of  the  best 
of  soldiers ;  would  have  marched  right 
into  a  cannon's  mouth  if  it  had  been 
necessary ;  he  knew  no  fear  of  death 
when  in  action. 

Johnson,  Benjamin  B.,  wounded  at  Spott- 
sylvania,  May  11,  '64. 

Johnson,  William  H. 

Kenney,  Geo. W.,  wounded  at  Banks'  Ford, 
May  4,  '63  ;  not  down  where  from. 

Lyford,  Henry,  veteran,  Hardwick ;  wd. 
at  Savage  Station,  Va.,  June  30,  '63. 


n 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Lewis,  Edwin  C,  veteran,  Northfield ; 
commissioned  in  negro  regiment,  and 
sent  to  the  south-western  department. 

Marble,  Calvin  B.,  Fayston. 

Marble,  Geo.  L.,  veteran,  Fayston;  killed 
at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  '64. 

McLam,  Robert,  West  Topsham. 

McCandlish,  Benjamin,  Burlington. 

Mills,  Charles,  Warren. 

Watson,  Ezra  G.,  not  stated  where  from. 

Meader,  Wm.,  wd.  at  Franklin  Crossing, 
Va.,  June  7,  "63. 

Moore,  Joseph  Jr.,  Bradford;  wounded  at 
Mary's  Heights,  May  3,  '63. 

Moore,  Carlos  B.,  Bradford. 

Paul,  Joseph,  Topsham  ;  promoted  to  ad- 
jutant clerk. 

Persons,  Fred  D.,  Warren  ;  promoted  to 
orderly  serg't.  Oct.  1864. 

Porter,  Warren  C,  Fayston;  taken  pris. 
at  Banks'  Ford,  May  4,  '63. 

Ricker,  Benjamin,  Washington ;  taken 
prisoner  at  Banks'  Ford,  May  4,  '63. 

Richardson,  Reuben,  Fayston,  veteran, 
having  served  in  the  9  months'  men. 

Shonnio,  Arnold,  Duxbury ;  wounded  at 
Mary's  Heights,  May  3,  '63 ;  leg  ampu- 
tated May  5. 

Smith,  Emery  L.,  Northfield;  taken  pris. 
at  Savage  Station,  Va.,  June  30,  "62; 
also  wounded  at  the  battle  of  the  Wil- 
derness, Va.,  May  6,  '64;  Smith  was  a 
good  soldier. 

Stoddard,  Lyman,  veteran ;  wounded  at 
Mary's  Heights,  May  3,  '63. 

Strong,  Wm.  H.,  Fayston. 

Shontell,  Lewis,  Middlese.x. 

Stratton,  Charles  E.,  Orange. 

Tillotson,  Leander,  Topsham. 

Tucker,  Julius  E.,  veteran,  Rochester; 
taken  prisoner  at  Bull  Run  and  probably 
killed  by  one  of  Mosby's  guerillas. 

Taylor,  John  W.,  not  credited  where  from. 

Veo,  Joseph,  Northfield  ;  wounded  atFred- 
ericksburg,  Dec.  12,  '62,  and  Mary's 
Heights,  May  4,  '63. 

Usher,  Nathan  D.,  veteran,  Goshen  Gore. 

Wright,  H.  R.,  town  not  given. 

Whipple,  John,  town  not  given. 

Whittlesey,  James  E.,  Moretown,  nick- 
named Horace  Greeley ;  transferred  to 
invalid  corps. 


Boyden,  Dexter,  Duxbury  ;  transferred  to 

invalid  corps  ;  wounded  at  Banks'  Ford. 
Bates,  Lewis,  Fayston ;  transferred  to  in- 
valid corps. 
Boyce,  Nelson,  Fayston  ;  transferred  to  in- 
valid corps. 
Burnham,  Martin  ;  transferred  to  the  U.  S. 

Army,  from  Williamstown. 
Collins,  Daniel,  Moretown  ;  transferred  to 

invalid  corps. 
Rock,  Joseph,  Nortlifield ;  transferred  to 

invalid  corps. 
McDonald,    Michael,    not   stating    where 

from  ;  transferred  to  invalid  corps. 
Shonnio,  Geo.,    Duxbury;    transferred  to 

invalid  corps  ;  killed  in  action. 
Buzzell,    Ezekiel,     Moretown ;     killed     at 

Savage  Station,  June  30,  '62. 
Craig,  Wm.,  Orange;  killed  at  Funkstown, 

July  10,  '63. 
Murray,   James  R.,  Moretown;   killed  at 

Savage  Station,  June  30,  '61. 
Shedrick,  Geo.,  Lincoln;  killed  at  Savage 

Station,  June  30,  '62,  beloved  by  all  the 

Company. 
Hathaway,  Wm.  H.,   died   Sept.    12,  '63; 

Co.  B.  13th. 
Foster,    Wilber,    Co.    D,    2d    Vt.    Vols; 

died  Feb.  21,  '63. 
Foster,  Leonard  R.,  Co.  B,  loth  Vt.  Vols.  ; 

killed  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  '64. 

Engagements  tJie  Company  were  in. — 
Lee's  Mills,  Va.,  Apr.  16,  '62;  Williams- 
burg, Va.,  May  5,  '62  ;  Golden's  Town, 
Va.,  June  27;  Savage  Station,  Va.,  June 
27 ;  White  Oak  Swamp,  Va.,  June  30; 
South  Mountain,  Md.,  Sept.  14;  Antietam, 
Md.,  Sept.  17;  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec. 
II  to  15;  Mary's  Heights,  May  3,  '63; 
Banks'  Ford,  May  4,  '63  ;  Fredericksburg, 
June  6,  '63;  Gettysburg,  Pa.,  July  2d  and 
3d,  '63;  Funkstown,  Md.,  July  10,  '63; 
Rappahannock  Station,  Va.,  Nov.  7,  '63; 
Locust  Grove,  Nov.  27,  '63. 

Discharged  for  Wounds. —  George  A. 
Jones,  wounded  at  White  Oak  Swamp, 
July  I,  '62;  James  Keer,  wounded  at  An- 
tietam ;  Andrew  J.  Slayton,  not  stated 
what  discharged  for;  Chas.  E.  Spaulding, 
Chester  P.  Streeter,  George  Somerville, 
James  Sweeney,  Albert  Williams. 


MORETOWN. 


6ii 


Deserters. — Jewell  S.  Eddy,  George  C 
Welton,  William  Mills,  James  Wemes. 

2d  Brigade,  2d  Division  6th  Army  Corps, 
Co.  G.  Officers. 

Captain,  Edward  R.  Kinney ;  promoted 
from  1st  lieut.,  Co.  I,  June  30,  '63. 

1st  Lieutenant,  Charles  C.  Backus ; 
promoted  serg't.  to  2d  lieut.,  and  to  ist 
lieut.,  Nov.  I,  "62. 

Captain,  W.  H.  H.  Hall;  resigned  Apr. 
30,  ''62. 

Captain,  L.  M.  Tubbs ;  promoted  from 
lieut.,  Co.  B,  June  14,  '62  ;  resigned  June 
20, '63. 

1st  Lieutenant,  Alfred  M.  Nevens  ;  died 
May  2,  '62,  of  wounds  received  at  Lee's 
Mills  ;  buried  in  the  cemetery  at  the  village 
in  Moretown. 

1st  Lieutenant,  Benoni  B.  Fullam,  pro- 
moted from  serg't.  major  June  14,  '62 ; 
dismissed  Oct.  25,  '62. 

2d  Lieutenant,  Edwin  C.  Lewis ;  re- 
signed '62. 

2d.  Lieutenant,  Edwin  C.  Joslyn ;  pro- 
moted from  private,  Co.  D,  Dec.  7,  '62  ; 
pro.  to  1st,  Co.  D,  F'eb.  3,  '63. 

2d  Lieutenant,  Fred  D.  Kimball ;  pro- 
moted from  Co.  D,  Feb.  3,  '63  ;  wounded 
July  16,  '63 ;  discharged  Oct.  22,  '63. 

Sergeants. —  ist,  George  F.  Wilson,  vet- 
eran, from  Northfield,  killed  at  Gaines' 
Farm,  June  i,  '64;  Henry  C.  Backus, 
Fayston ;  Wm.  M.  Cleaveland,  Hancock, 
a  very  brave  soldier,  killed  at  the  battle  of 
the  Wilderness,  Va.,  May  6,  '64;  Ernest 
E.  Burroughs,  wounded  July  10,  '63,  at 
Funkstown,  Md.,  killed  at  Gaines'  Farm, 
June  I,  '64;  James  Harriman,  wounded  at 
battle  of  Wilderness,  Va.,May  6,  '64;  ist, 
Oscar  G.  Kelsey,  Warren,  died  July  10, 
'62,  of  wounds  received  at  Gould's  Farm  ; 
1st,  John  F.  Jones,  Waitsfield,  discharged 
Apr.  16,  '63  ;  Charles  C.  Backus,  promoted 
to  2d  lieut.  June  12,  '62. 

Corporals. — Leman  J.  Holden,  Hard- 
wick;  John  Lee,  Jr.,  Middlesex ;  Hiram 
Goodspeed,  Warren ;  Charles  P.  Divoll, 
Topsham,  died  June  i,  '64,  of  wounds  re- 
ceived at  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  Va. ; 
Frank  A.  Trask,  Warren ;  Aaron  Goss, 
Moretown,  promoted  from  private  Dec. 
28,  '63,  by  order   of  regimental   officers; 


Bertram  D.  Campbell,  Waitsfield,  died  of 
measles;  Wm.  H.  Smith,  Waitsfield,  died 
of  measles,  Dec.  '61;  Merrill  H.  Pucklin, 
Warren,  died  of  chronic  diarrhoea  ;  Oscar 
J.  Moore,  Lincoln. 

Musiciaris. — John  Devine,  fifer,  veteran, 
from  Middlesex  ;  Michael  P.  Eagan,  drum- 
mer, Moretown  ;  Caleb  Heath,  drummer, 
discharged;  David  C.  Holt,  fifer,  dis- 
charged ;  Charles  Franklin,  Barre,  team- 
ster; C.  C.  Armington,  Duxbury,  pioneer 
and  general  laborer. 

Privates  Discharged. — George  A.  Jones, 
Northfield,  wounded  at  White  Oak  Swamp, 
Va.,  July  I,  '62;  James  Keer,  Hancock, 
wounded  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  '62. 

The  following  not  stated  where  from  : 
Alonzo  Lane,  Andrew  J.  Slayton,  Charles 
E.  Spaulding,  Chester  P.  Streeter,  Geo. 
Somerville,  James  Sweeney,  Albert  Wil- 
liams. 

Soldiers  buried  in  Moretown. — Those  be- 
longing to  other  organizations,  who  died 
and  are  buried  in  town  :  Osman  G.  Clark, 
died  July  11,  '64,  of  chronic  diarrhoea ;  Co. 
B,  loth  Vt.  Vols. 

Died  of  Diseases. — Wm.  H.  Allard, 
Mar.  15,  '64;  Newell  Antoine,  Sept.  '62; 
W.  H.  H.  Badger,  Feb.  12,  '63  ;  Jonathan 
Boyden,  June  20,  '62;  Edwin  J.  Chase, 
Feb.  4,  '62 ;  Edwin  Canfield,  Aug.  '62 ; 
W.  N.  S.  Clariin,  died  May  20,  '63,  of 
wounds  received  at  Banks'  Ford,  May  4, 
'63  ;  Morris  L.  Divoll,  Dec.  28,  '62  ;  Dexter 
M.  Davis,  Jan.  '62;  Geo.  Sawyer,  Jr., 
Dec.  7,  '62 ;  Manley  Hoyt,  June,  '62 ; 
Nathaniel  Shattuck,  April,  '62 ;  Oramel 
Turner,  July  28,  '62  ;  Harry  H.  Wright, 
Feb.  '65,  all  of  typhoid  fever. 

Discharged  for  Disability. — Albert  Ains- 
worth,  Henry  Balch,  Emerson  E.  Davis, 
Michael  Donovan,  Goin  Bailey  Evans, 
Charles  Freeman,  Lewis  Goodell,  JohnH. 
Oilman,  Horace  Hall,  Jarvis  C.  Harris, 
Hiram  B.  Howland,  Allen  Mahuran,  Wm. 
Mills,  Wm.  F.  Moore;  Henry  Newton, 
Angus  G.  Nicholson,  Peter  Pero,  Harrison 
Persons,  Edwin  Phillips,  promoted  to 
assistant  surgeon,  4th  Vt.  Vols.  ;  Seth  T. 
Porter.  [The  places  of  residence  do  not 
appear  on  the  register.] 


6l2 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


NORTHFIELD. 

BY  EEV.    JOHN  GREGORY. 

[Conipiled   from    his    Historv    of    Nortlifield,    pub- 
lished ill  1878.] 

This  town  is  situated  in  the  southern 
part  of  Washington  County,  lo  miles  from 
Montpelier,  lat.  44°  8',  long.  4°  25' ;  and 
very  near  the  center  of  the  town  is  the 
geographical  center  of  the  State.  The 
original  town  was  chartered  Aug.  10,  1781, 
to  Maj.  Joel  Matthews  and  his  associates, 
and  contained  18,518  acres.  A  tract  of 
land  from  the  east  part  of  VVaitsfield,  con- 
taining 6000  acres,  was  annexed  to  North- 
field  Nov.  7,  1822.  Five  equal  shares  or 
rights  were  reserved  to  the  use  of  the  pub- 
lic, and  the  grants  were  conditioned  that 
each  proprietor  should,  "  within  the  term 
of  three  years  next  after  the  circumstances 
of  the  war  will  admit  of  it  with  safety," 
"  plant  and  cultivate  5  acres  of  land,  and 
build  a  house  at  least  18  foot  square  on  the 
floor,  or  have  one  family  settled  on  each 
right,  on  pain  of  forfeiture  of  his  share." 

The  first  proprietors'  meeting  was  held 
in  Hartford,  Vt.,  Nov.  11,  1783.  The 
proprietors  met  at  diiferent  times  at  Wind- 
sor, Hartland  and  Pomfret,  also,  till  1794, 
when  the  town  had  sufficient  settlers  to 
take  care  of  itself  at  home. 

The  township  appears  to  have  been  first 
surveyed  by  Marston  Cabot,  from  the  vote 
at  one  of  the  proprietors'  meetings. 

Voted  that  Mr.  Marston  Cabot  be  al- 
lowed 27  days  in  surveying  Northfield. 

i  s. 

At  gs  I  per  day  -  -  -  -  12.  3. 
And  1 8s  expense  money  -  -  o.  18. 
And  for  three  gallons  of  West 

India  rum  at  8  |  per  gal.  and 

one    of  New  England  ditto 

at  5  I  6  per  gallon,  -     -      i,     9.     6 

14.   10.     6 

PROPRIETORS   OF   NORTHFIELD 

as  they  stand  in  the  charter,  with  the  num- 
ber of  each  proprietor's  lot,  and  the  range 
it  was  in ;  the  first  figure  after  the  name 
for  the  lot,  the  second  for  the  range ;  the 
lots  having  been  drawn  by  Mr.  Cabot  as 
the  law  directed,  beginning  with  the  first 
in  the  charter : 

Major  Joel  Matthews,  10,  6;  Captain 
William  Gallup,  i,    i  ;    Michael  Flinn,  7, 


D. 

o 
o 


2  ;  Oliver  Williams,  4,  5  ;  Amos  Bicknal, 

6,  7  ;  Benjamin  Cox,  2,3;  Zebulon  Lyon, 

1,  5;  Timothy  Grow,  7,  i  ;  Benjamin  Em- 
mons, 8,  5;    Steel  Smith,   3,  6;    Samuel 
Smith,   10,  5  ;    Samuel  Patrick,  9,  4;    Ze- 
bina  Curtis,   5,    i  ;      Elias    Taylor,   3,  2 
Ebenezer  Smith,  9,3;  John  Smith,  10,  i 
Elisha  Smith,  1,2;   Edward  Hazen,  8,  2 
John  W.  Dana,  6,  5  ;    Zebulon  Lee,  8,  i 
Sylvester  Smith,  2,  4;  James  Cady,  5,  2 
Joel  English,  i,  7;    Resolved  Sessions,  8, 
Edmund  Hodges,  6,  3  ;   Abel  Emmonds, 
6,6;  Thomas  Chittenden,  10,  2;    Joseph 
Parkhurst,  7,  5  ;    Calvin  Parkhurst,  3,   3  ; 
Moses  Kimball,  8,  7  ;  Ebenezer  Parkhurst, 

3,  I  ;  William  Andrews,  4,  4  ;  James  An- 
drews, 2,  6 ;  Paul  Spooner,  8,  6 ;  Amasa 
Spooner,  10,  i  ;  Jeremiah  Richardson,  2, 
I  ;  Daniel  Gilbert,  7,  6;  Amos  Robinson, 
9,  6  ;  Elias  Thomas,  5,  6  ;  Ebenezer  Miller, 

7,  7;  George  Dennison,  2,  2;  Barnabas 
Strong,  5,  3  ;  John  Throop,  7,  3  ;  Beriah 
Green,  1,3;  Joseph  Kimball,  3,  5  ;  Oliver 
Gallup,  1,4;  John  Payne  of  Pomfret,  8,  4  ; 
Amasa  Payne,  3,  4  ;  Elijah  Payne,  9,  2  ;  Ja- 
cob Clark,  5,  5  ;  Abida  Smith,4,  7  ;  Barkus 
Green,  2,  7;  Elisha  Smith,  B.  A.,  9,  i  ; 
David  Fuller,  6,  4;    William  Gallup,  Jr., 

2,  3  ;  Jesse  Safford,  4,  6 ;  Thomas  Lawton, 

4,  2  ;  Willys  Hall  4,  i  ;  Samuel  Matthews, 
6,  I  ;  Benjamin  Burtch,  2,  5  ;  Oliver  Tay- 
lor, 5,  7;  John  Sergeants,  1,8;  Phineas 
Williams,  10,  4;  Sbubal  Child,  6,  2;  Pe- 
rias  Gallup,  9,  5  ;  College  Right,  3,  7  ; 
Right  for  the  County  Grammar  School,  7, 
4;  First  settled  Minister's  Right,  i,  6; 
Right  for  the  support  of  the  Ministry,  2,  8  ; 
Town  School  right,  5,  4. 

The  first  land  cleared  in  town  was  by 
Elijah  Paine,  some  time  previous  to  the 
first  settlement,  which  was  made  in  May, 
1785,  by  Amos  Robinson  and  others  from 
Westminster,  Vt. 

THE   FIRST   TOWN   MEETING 

was  called  by  jDetition  from  a  number  of 
respectable  inhabitants  of  Northfield,  by 
Cornelius  Lynde,  Esq.,  of  Williamstown, 
to  meet  at  the  house  of  Dr.  Nathaniel 
Robinson,  who  lived  a  little  N.  W.  of  what 
is  now  the  poor-farm.  Said  meeting  was 
holden  March  12,  1794,  Cornelius  Lynde 
Esq.  moderator,  at   which   the   following 


NORTHFIELD. 


613 


first  board  of  town  officers  were  chosen ; 
Nathaniel  Robinson,  town  clerk ;  Stanton 
Richardson,  Amos  Robinson,  Ezekiel  Rob- 
inson, selectmen ;  David  Denny,  consta- 
ble :  William  Ashcroft,  Stanton  Richard- 
son, Ezekiel  Robinson,  listers ;  David 
Tenny,  collector  of  taxes ;  Aquillo  Jones, 
Samuel  Richardson,  highway  surveyors. 
EARLY   HARMONY   IN   POLITICS. 

The  first  votes  were  cast  in  Northfield 
for  Governor,  Isaac  Tichenor,  Lieut.  Gover- 
nor, Paul  Brigham,  treasurer,  Samuel  Mat- 
tocks, and  12  councillors,  Samuel  Spaflford 
and  others,  in  1800,  for  each  one,  12  votes, 
which  must  have  been  near  the  number  if 
not  all  the  legal  voters  at  that  time  in  town. 

In  1801,  three  school  districts  made  re- 
turns of  the  number  of  scholars  that  at- 
tended school  within  their  limits.  In  No. 
I,  the  Loomis  district  now,  Ebenezer  Fox 
sent  I,  John  Coales  i,  James  Paul  3,  Da- 
vid Hedges  2,  Ithamer  Allen  6,  Ezekiel 
Pierce  4,  William  Tubbs  3. 

In  district  No.  2,  in  the  Robinson  neigh- 
borhood,— the  principal  part  of  the  town 
at  that  early  day — John  Kathan  sent  r, 
William  Coales  2,  Aquillo  Jones  2,  Amos 
Robinson  6,  Ezekiel  Robinson  5,  Nathan- 
iel Robinson  6,  Abraham  Shipman  3,  Oli- 
ver Cobleigh  2,  John  Emerson  3,  Abel 
Keyes  3,  William  Ashcroft  5,  Justus  Burn- 
ham  2. 

In  district  No.  3, — the  school-house  be- 
ing on  the  main  road  to  South  Village, 
near  where  Mr.  Guild  now  lives — Stanton 
Richardson  sent  5,  Samuel  Richardson  5, 
Eliphas  Shipman  5,  Isaac  Lynde  4,  Isaiah 
Bacon  5,  Amos  Starkweather  3,  Thomas 
French  2,  Justus  Burnham  2,  Roswell  Car- 
penter I,  Elisha  Brown  i,  and  two  years 
later,  in  district  No.  4, — what  is  called 
South  Village — Isaac  Lynde  sent  5  schol- 
ars, Eliphas  Shipman  5,  Amos  Starkweath- 
er 2,  David  Denny  5,  Justus  Burnham  4, 
EHsha  Brown  i,  being  a  return  of  118 
scholars  in  these  4  districts  ;  and  showing 
besides,  who  were  early  settlers  in  these 
neighborhoods ;  and  all  these  men  were 
laborers,  and  earnest  laborers,  and  happy 
withal.  The  noble  men  of  that  day  knew 
they  could  not  grow  rich  without  industry, 
and  valiantly  did  they  make  the  wilderness 


resound  with  the  echoes  of  toil,  as  the  tall 
old  trees  came  crashing  down  upon  the 
right  hand  and  left,  laid  low  by  the  sturdy 
woodman's  axe!  Even  with  their  priva- 
tions, they  were  measurably  comfortable 
and  happy. 

TOWN    OFFICERS,    MAR.    7,     1826. 

Amos  Robinson,  moderator  ;  voted  that 
the  meeting  be  opened  with  prayer ;  Eli- 
jah Smith,  Jr.,  town  clerk;  Elijah  Burn- 
ham, John  Mead,  Charles  Paine,  select- 
men ;  Albigence  Ainsworth,  Elijah  Smith, 
Jr.,  Jesse  Averill,  Harry  Ainsworth,  list- 
ers ;  John  Starkweather,  constable  and 
collector  of  taxes ;  John  Fiske,  grand 
juror;  William  Jones,  Amos  Robinson, 
Joel  Winch,  Michael  Shaw,  Wm.  Wales, 
Jr.,  Alva  Henry,  Curtis  Wright,  excused  ; 
Hezekiah  Williams,  Samuel  Dunsmoor, 
Titus  Rice,  Wm.  Case,  Horace  Fullerton, 
Elijah  Smith,  Jr.,  John  Fiske,  Jacob  Ami- 
don,  highway  surveyors ;  Jacob  Keyes, 
Oliver  Averill,  John  Braley,  fence  view- 
ers;  John  West,  pound  keeper  (excused), 
David  Robinson  chosen  ;  Elijah  Smith,  Jr., 
sealer  of  leather  ;  Joseph  Keyes,  sealer  of 
weights  and  measures  ;  David  Stiles,  Jus- 
tus Burnham,  Asa  Sprout,  tything  men ; 
(Asa  Sprout  excused)  ;  Justus  Burnham, 
Suel  Keyes,  James  Nichols,  John  White, 
Albert  Stevens,  haywards  ;  Nathaniel 
Jones,  Amos  Robinson,  John  West,  com- 
mittee to  settle  with  overseer  of  the  poor ; 
Oliver  Averill,  Henry  Knapp,  committee 
to  settle  with  treasurer;  John  Fiske,  over- 
seer of  the  poor ;  William  Cochran,  Na- 
thaniel Jones,  Samuel  Whitney,  Oliver 
Averill,  Henry  Emerson,  committee  to 
divide  the  ministerial  money;  Wm.  Coch- 
rane (excused) — chose  Elijah  Smith  ;— 
Amos  Robinson,  Nathan  Green,  David  M. 
Lane,  Nathaniel  Jones,  Benjamin  Fiske, 
Joseph  Williams,  Jesse  Averill,  Eleazer 
Loomis,  Daniel  D.  Robinson,  Samuel 
Dole,  John  West,  Albigence  Ainsworth, 
Ezekiel  Robinson,  Anson  Adams,  Joel 
Winch,  Oliver  Averill,  John  White,  Abel 
Keyes,  petit  jurors ;  voted  to  annex  the 
highway  districts  in  which  Roswell  Car- 
penter and  Oliver  Averill  live  ;  chose  Seth 
P.  Field,  district  committee. 

Elijah  Smith,  Jr.  Town  Clerk. 


6i4 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


REPRESENTATIVES. 

From  1794,  when  the  town,  was  organ- 
ized, until  1801,  no  representatives  were 
chosen  :  1808-09-1 1-14,  Amos  Robinson  ; 
1810-15-17,  Gilbert  Hatch;  1818-19, 
Abraham  Shipman  ;  1820-21,  Josiah  B. 
Strong;  1822-23,  Joel  Winch;  1824-25, 
Abel  Keyes  ;  1826-27,  John  Starkweather  ; 
1828-29,  Charles  Paine  ;  1830-31,  Lebbeus 
Bennett;  1832-33,  John  Averill  ;  1834, 
David  Robinson  ;  1835-41-53-54-61,  Mo- 
ses Robinson  ;  1836,  Anson  Adams  ;  1837 
-39,  Jesse  Averill ;  1840,  Lebbeus  Ben- 
nett;  1842,  Nathan  Morse;  1843,  David 
W.  Hadley;  1844,  John  L.  Buck;  1845- 
46-73,  David  W.  Hadley;  1847-48,  He- 
man  Carpenter;  1849,  George  B.  Pierce; 
1850-51,  John  Gregory;  1852,  no  choice; 
1855-56,  Wilbur  F.  Woodworth ;  1857- 
58,  Isaac  B.  Howe;  1859-60,  Jasper  H. 
Orcutt ;  1862,  Edward  F.  Perkins;  1863, 
Charles  Barrett;  1864,  George  M.  Fiske ; 
1865-66,  Samuel  Keith;  1867-68,  Edwin 
K.  Jones;  1869,  George  B.  Warner;  1872 
-73,  Edmund  Pope;  1874-5,  Elbridge  G. 
Pierce;  1876-77 — [representatives,  other 
town  officers  and  matters  in  regard  to  the 
early  and  present  civil  history  of  this  town 
— completed  by  Joseph  K.  Egerton] — 
1878-9,  no  representative  ;  1880-81,  N.  E. 
Dewey. 

STATE   SENATORS   FROM   NORTHFIELD. 

1846-47,  Moses  Robinson  ;  1856-57, 
John  Gregory  ;  1862-63,  Philander  D. 
Bradford  ;  1866-68,  Jasper  H.  Orcutt; 
1870-73,  Heman  Carpenter. 

SELECTMEN    1 794   TO    1878. 

Stanton  Richardsoii,  1794,  96,  97,  1802, 
II,  12;  Amos  Robinson,  1794,  95,  1810; 
Ezekiel  Robinson,  1794,  95,  99,  1803,  04, 
II,  15;  David  Denny,  1795,98,  1800,  03, 
04,  06;  James  Paul,  1796,  97,  1805  ;  Will- 
iam Ashcroft,  1796;  Oliver  Cobleigh, 
1797,  98,  99.  1800  ;  Aaron  Partridge,  1798  ; 
Abraham  Shipman,  1799,  1800,  01,  05,  06, 
07,  13,  15;  Ithamer  Allen  ,1802,  03,  04; 
Nathaniel  Robinson,  1801,  02:  Dan- 
iel Edson,  1805  ;  Elijah  Smith,  1806, 
13,  18,  Joseph  Nichols,  1807,  09;  Charles 
Jones,  1807,  17;  Gilbert  Hatch,  1808,  09, 
10,  17,  20,  27;  Joseph  Slade,  1808;  Thos. 
Slade,    1808;    William  Jones,   1809,    12; 


James  Morgan,  1810,  14;  Oliver  Averill, 
1811,  12,  19,40;  Charles  Jones,  1813,  19; 
Amos  Brown,  1814;  Seth  Smith,  1814; 
Jesse  Averill,  1815,  16,  17,  20,  21,  27,  28, 
3O'  31 '  33>  35>  36,  40;  Eleazer  Loomis, 
1816 ;  Joseph  R.  Williams,  1816,  1819,  21, 
22;  Nathaniel  Jones,  1818,  20;  Richard 
Hedges,  1821,  22;  Joel  Winch,  1823,  48; 
David  M.  Lane,  1823,  24,  27;  Elijah 
Burnham,  1824,  25,  26,  28,  33,  35,  2,7,  38; 
Daniel  Parker,  1823  ;  Abel  Keyes,  1824, 
25;  Benjamin  Fiske,  1825;  John  West, 
1826,29;  Charles  Paine,  1826,  30,  31; 
Anson  Adams,  1828,  29;  Daniel  D.  Rob- 
inson, 1829;  Joel  Brown,  1830;  Erastus 
Parker,  1831  ;  Harry  Ainsworth,  1832; 
David  Partridge,  1832;  John  Averill,  1832, 
33;  Jason  Eaton,  1834;  Samuel  Fiske, 
1834,  47;  Eleazer  Nichols,  1834;  Joel 
Parker,  Jr.,  1835  ;  David  W.  Hadley,  1836, 
40,41,42,  43,44,45,46,55,  56,58,  59,63, 
64,70,  71,  72,  74,  75;  Hiram  Dwinell, 
1836,  43  ;  Samuel  U.  Richmond,  1837,  38, 
39,  51,  52,  57,  60,  61  ;  James  H.  Johnson,- 
1837  ;  Lebbeus  Bennett,  1838,  39  ;  Nathan 
Morse,  1841,43,44,45,47,48,49,53,  54; 
Nathaniel  King,  Jr.,  1841,  42,  44;  Luther 
S.  Burnham,  1842 ;  Moses  Robinson, 
1845,  48,  49,  50,  to  51,  58,  59  ;  James  Pal- 
mer, 1846;  Emanuel  Sawyer,  1847;  Ara 
V.  Rawson,  1849,  50 ;  Anson  Munson, 
1850  ;  Heman  Carpenter,  1851,  52  ;  Marvin 
Simons,  1853  to  58,  60,  64,  65,  67  ;  Aaron 

D.  Metcalf,  1857  ;  F.  A.  Preston,  1858,  59  ; 
C.  Woodbury,  i860,  61,  62  ;  A.  J.  William 
Braley,  1862  ;  I,  W.  Brown,  1863,  64  ;  A.  S. 
Williams,   1864;  J.    H.  Orcutt,   1865-67; 

E.  K.  Jones,  1865  to  67  ;  William  Winch, 
1868,  69;  Samuel  Keith,  1868,  69;  Reu- 
ben Smith,  1868;  Joseph  Gould,  1869; 
Edmund  Pope,  1870-71  ;  D.  T.  Averill, 
1870-71  ;  George  Nichols,  1872,  jt,,  76-78  ; 
E.  C.  Fiske,  1872,  J2>'-'  John  A.  Kent, 
1873  ;  E.  K.  Jones,  1874-75  ;  O.  D.  Ed- 
gerton,  1874,  75;  James  Morse,  R.  W. 
Clark,  1876-82;  J.  H.  Rawson,  1879,  82; 
Fred.  Parker,  1880,  82. 

GRAND   LIST    1794-1882. 

1794.  295^,  5s.;  1795,  671^,  15s.; 

1796,  433  £,  los.  ;  1797,  $1,738-35  ;  1/98, 
$2,126.75;  1799,  $2,051.47;  1800,  $2,776.- 
74;  1801,  $3,000.96;  1802,  $3,153.16; 


NORTHFIELD. 


615 


1803,  $3,230.88;  1804,  $3,808.92;  1805, 
$4,201.84;  1806,  $4,391.31  ;  1807,  $5,203.- 
15;  1808,  $5,285.75;  1809,  $5,632.34; 
1810,  $5,907.32;  1811,  $5,735;  1812, 
$5,942.65  ;  1813,  $6,027.83  ;  1814,  $6,147.- 
12;  1815,  $6,238.50;  1816,  $6,267.25; 
1817,  $6,607.50;  1818,  $6,003;  1819, 
$6,994;  1820,  $7,441.96;  1821,  $6,748.54; 
1822,  $5,305.42;  1823,  $6,458.84;  1824, 
$8,036.56;  1825,  $7,701.75;  1826,  $6,480. - 
99;  1827,  $6,802.95;  1828,  $5,635.23; 
1829,  $7,620.02;  1830,  $8,159.95;  1831, 
$8,064.12;  1832,  $9,743.80;  1833,  $9,977.- 
66;  1834,  $10,197.18;  1835,  $10,270.20; 
1836,  $11,017.97;  1837,  $11,337.17;  1838, 
$11,280.80;  1839,  $11,341-82;  1840,  $11,- 
821.52;  1841,  $12,834.74;  1842, $3,906.23; 
1843,  $4,281.25;  1844,  $4,226.36;  1845, 
$4,286.80;  1846,  $4,400.32  ;  1847,  $4,776. - 
50;  1848,  $4,744.70;  1849,  $5,035-96; 
1850,  $5,205.05;  1851,  $5,440.07;  1852, 
$7,408. 16;  $1853,  $7, 341. 28;  1854,  $7,857.- 
09;  1855,  $8,285.97;  1856,  $8,144.97; 
1857,  $8,187.71;  1858,  $8,848.12;  1859, 
$8,848.12;  i860,  $8,695.70;  1861,  $8,875.- 
94;  1862,  $8,798.42;  1863,  $8,642.08; 
1864,  $8,569.26;  1865,  $8,467.30;  1866, 
$8,428.48  ;  1867,  $9,041.37  ;  1868,  $9,212.- 
45;  1869,  $9,415.70;  1870,  $8,148.32; 
1871,  $9,422.20;  1872,  $9,288.33;  1873, 
$8,640.40;  1874,  $8,569.04;  1875,  $8,314. - 
37;  1876,  $8,871.14;  1877,  $8,561.91; 
1878,  $8,530.57;  1879,  $7,589-15;  1880, 
$7,440.16;  1881,  $11,788.02;  acres,  24,480 
Number  of  legal  voters,  1880,  800  ;  popu- 
lation, 2,836;  grand  list  in  1881, $11,788.02; 
town  trea.«urer,  G.  B.  B.  Denny ;  consta- 
ble, F.  W.  Gold  ;  sup't  of  schools,  Chas. 
Dole  ;  overseer  of  goor,  F.  A.  Preston ; 
town  agent,  John  P.  Davis. 

LISTERS  1 794- 1 882. 
Stanton  Richardson,  1794,  95,  96,  97; 
Ezekiel  Robin.son,  1794,  1803,  10;  William 
Ashcroft,  1795,96;  Ezekiel  Pierce,  1795, 
96,  1802;  Nathaniel  Robinson,  1797; 
Samuel  Pierce,  1797;  David  Denny,  1798; 
Abel  Keyes,  1768,  1807;  James  Paul, 
1798,  1803;  Aaron  Partridge,  1799;  Oli- 
ver Cobleigh,  1799,  1800,  02,  04,  08,  og ; 
Abraham  Shipman,  John  Emerson,  1800; 
Elisha  Brown,  1800,  1804,  05  ;  Amos  Rob- 
inson, 1804,  06,  28;  Gilbert  Hatch,  1801, 


03;  Ethan  Allen,  1804,  05,  11;  Joseph 
Nichols,  1806,  07,  08,  09;  James  Morgan, 
1806;  Charles  Jones,  1807,  09,  12;  Na- 
thaniel Richardson,  18 10,  11,  31;  Jesse 
Averill,  181 1,  18,  26,  37,  45  ;  Gilbert  Hatch, 
181 1,  12,  14,  16,  18;  Seth  Smith,  1812; 
Oliver  Averill,  1813,  14,  17;  Nathaniel 
Jones,  1813,  15,  27  ;  Eleazer  Loomis,  1814, 
15,  27,  Solomon  Dunham,  1815;  Thomas 
Slade,  1816;  Nathaniel  Green,  1816,  20; 
Josiah  B.  Strong,  1817,  18;  Dyer  Loomis, 
1817;  John  Starkweather,  1819,  21,22; 
Elijah  Smith,  Jr.,  1819,  26;  Daniel  D. 
Robinson,  1819,  23,  28;  John  Hinckley, 
1820,  21;  James  Morgan,  1820;  Charles 
Jones,  1821  ;  Charles  Paine,  1822,  23,  28; 
Joseph  Keyes,  1822;  Joseph  Williams, 
1823,  27;  Benjamin  Porter,  1824;  Sam- 
uel Gilson,  1824,  25  ;  Henry  Knapp,  1825  ; 
John  West,  1824,  25;  David  M.  Lane, 
Harry  Ainsworth,  1826,  29;  Elijah  Smith, 
1829;  John  Averill,  1829,  35,  38 ;  John  L, 
Buck,  Erastus  Parker,  Allen  Patch,  1830; 
David  Partridge,  1831  ;  Daniel  Parker,  Jr., 
1831  ;  Elijah  Smith,  Jr.,  1832,  35,  36,  37; 
Elijah  Burnham,  1832;  Joel  Winch,  1832, 
34,  36,  42,  65,  66;  George  K.  Cobleigh, 
^^33y  34;  Samuel  Denny,  1833,  34;  Nu- 
man  R.  Dryer,  1834,  36 :  David  W.  Hadley, 
1835,  39;  David  Robinson,  1837,  38; 
John  Starkweather,  1838  ;  Hiram  Dwinell, 
1839;  Moses  Robinson,  1839,  4°,  4^,  43. 
44,  47,  48,  49,  57,  59.  61,  62,  63,  64 ;  Sam- 
uel N.  Richmond,  1840,  41,  45,  46,  47,  48, 
50,  52,  53;  Harvey  Tilden,  1841,  43;  Na- 
than Morse,  1842;  James  Gould,  1843; 
William  Nichols,  1844,  52,  57;  Daniel  P. 
King,  1844,  46,  48;  Marvin  Simonds, 
1845,  51,  52,54,  58;  G.  P.  Randall,  1846; 
Moses  Thurston,  1847 ;  D.  W.  Hadley, 
1849,  51,  52,  53,  54,  55,  60;  Richard  H. 
Litde,  1849;  Joseph  Denney,  Joseph 
Gould,  Hiram  Henry,  1850;  William  Gold, 
Jr.,  1851,52,  56;  Henry  Jones,  Jr.,  1854; 
A.  D.  Metcalf,  1855,  74;  F.  A.  Preston, 
1855,  56,  57,  59,  60;  William  C.  Woodbu- 
ry, 1858,  64;  E.  B.  Pride,  1858;  D.  S. 
Burnham,  1859;  George  Robinson,  i860; 
L  W.  Brown,  1861,62;  Freeman  Thresh- 
er, 1861,  62,  63,  77  ;  A.  D.  Metcalf,  1863 ; 
J.  C.  Gallup,  1864,  65,  66,  74,  78;  Wil- 
liam H.  Loomis,  1865,  66;  George  Nich- 


6i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ols,  1867,  70,  71  ;  William  S.  Smith,  1867  ; 
William  Gold,  1868;  A.  A.  Preston,  1868, 
69,  75;  William  R.  Tucker,  1868,  69;  T. 
L.  Salisbury,  1869;  F.  S.  Kimball,  1870; 
Fred  Parker,  1871,  72,76;  Ira  A.  Holton, 
1871,  72,  73,  74,  75  ;  William  H.  Loomis, 
1872;  Royal  Clark,  1873;  James  Morse, 
1873,  74;  Royal  W.  Clark,  1874;  Francis 
Wright,  1875;  E.  H.  Howes,  1876,  T]  \ 
O.  P.  Winch,  1876;  J.  H.  Ransom,  1877; 
John  L.  Mosely,  C.  A.  Tracy,   1878  ;  C. 

B.  Tilden,  E.  C.  Fiske,  1879,  80;  Fiee- 
man  Thresher,  1879  ;  E.  H.  Howes,  1880; 
J.  A.  Holton,  J.  C.  Gallup,  Andrew  Doty, 
1881. 

TOWN    CLERKS    FROM    1794- 

Nathaniel  Robinson,  Gilbert  Hatch,  Eli- 
jah Smith,  Volney  H.  Averill,  C.  A.  Edg- 
erton,  Geo.  B.  B.  Denny. 

POSTMASTERS. 

Oliver  Averill,  John  E.  McClure,  Volney 
H.  Averill,  Elijah  Smith,  J.  A.  S.  White, 
Wm.  Rogers,  Francis  V.  Randall,  James 
Currier,  Roswell  Dewey,  Geo.  W.  Soper,  J. 
H.  Orcutt. 

COUNTY   OFFICERS. 
John  Starkweather,   I.  W.  Brown,   high 
sheriffs  ;  John  L.  Buck,  Heman  Carpenter, 

C.  H.  Joyce,  Frank  Plumley,  state's  att'ys  ; 
Nathan  Morse,  D.  W.  Hadley,  side  judges  ; 
H.  Carpenter,  judge  of  probate;  D.  T. 
Averill,  high  bailiff. 

LAWYERS 

who  have  practiced  in  this  town  to  1878: 
John  L.  Buck,  B.  F.  Chamberlain,  Heman 
Carpenter,  F.  V.  Randall,  A.  V.  H.  Car- 
penter, A.  C.  May,  Charles  H.  Joyce,  Geo. 
M.  Fisk,  C.  N.  Carpenter,  James N.  John- 
son, E.  J.  McWain,  Frank  Plumley,  C.  D. 
Joslyn,  Cyrus  M.  Johnston.  Lawyers 
since  Gregory's  book — F.  R.  Bates,  D. 
Webster,  B.  F.  Chamberlin,  Edward  Farr. 

PHYSICIANS. 

Nathaniel  Robinson,  Jeptha  White,  Ben- 
jamin Porter,  Julius  Easterbrook,  John 
Work,  Clifton  Claggett,  NumanR.  Dryer, 
Samuel  W.  Thayer,  Washington  Cochran, 
Jared  Barrett,  Edward  H.  Williams,  Joshua 
B.  Smith,  George  Nichols,  Edwin  Porter, 
P.  D.  Bradford,  Samuel  Keith,  M.  Mc- 
Clearn,  Daniel  Bates,  P.  E.  O.  Chase, 
S.    H.    Colburn,    M.    F.    Styles,    G.    W. 


Colton,  J.  Draper,  H.  C.  Brigham,  Leonard 
Thresher,  W.  B.  Mayo,  O.  O.  Davis,  L. 
W.  Hanson,  J.  H.  Winch,  Green. 

THE    PAPER    CARRIER. 

Henry  Dewey,'  of  Randolph,  was  the 
first  regular  paper  carrier  for  this  town,  by 
bringing  the  weekly  news,  and  Ambrose 
Nichols,  the  second.  The  paper  carrier 
was  always  a  welcome  visitor.  When  the 
tin  horn  sounded  his  approach,  the  chil- 
dren were  on  tip-toe,  and  would  rush  out 
to  the  highway  to  get  their  papers,  which 
were  read  with  great  avidity.  A  paper 
once  a  week  was  considered  a  very  great 
blessing. 

NORTHFIELD    IN  THO.MPSON'S   GAZETTEER, 
(1824.) 

There  were  considerable  revivals  of  re- 
ligion here  in  1802,  1807,  1811  and  1821. 
There  are  three  ordained  preachers  :  Elder 
Joel  Winch  and  Nathan  B.  Ashcroft,  Meth- 
odists, and  Elder  James  Morgan,  Freewill 
Baptist.  The  epidemic  of  i8ii-'i2  was 
very  mortal  here,  and  the  dysentery  swept 
off  about  30  children  in  this  town  in  the 
fall  of  1823.  The  physicians  are  Benjamin 
Porter  and  Julius  Easterbrook.  The  prin- 
cipal stream  in  this  town  is  Dog  river, 
which  runs  through  it  in  a  northerly  di- 
rection, and  affords  a  great  number  of  val- 
uable mill-privileges.  A  range  of  argilla- 
ceous slate  passes  through  the  township 
from  south  to  north.  The  surface  is  con- 
siderably uneven,  but  it  forms  a  convenient 
centre,  in  which  is  a  small  village,  contain- 
ing a  meeting-house,  one  tavern,  two 
stores,  one  saddler,  one  hatter,  two  black- 
smith shops,  one  physician, .  one  tannery, 
and  17  dwelling-houses.  This  is  a  place 
of  some  business,  and  is  rapidly  increas- 
ing. The  second  house  was  erected  in 
this  village  in  18 14.  There  is  a  small 
village  \h  miles  south  of  the  one  above 
mentioned,  containing  2  saw-mills,  i  grist 
and  I  fulling-mill,  i  carding-machine,  i 
cider-mill  and  several  machine-shops.  One 
mile  north  of  the  meeting-house  (Depot 
Village)  is  an  extensive  woolen-factory, 
containing  230  spindles  and  8  looms. 
There  are  also  here  some  other  mills  and 
machinery.  There  are  in  town  9  school- 
districts,  7  school-houses,    i   company  of 


NORTHFIELD. 


617 


militia,  i  of  artillery,  8  saw,  3  grist  and  2 
fulling-mills,  I  carding-machine,  i  woolen- 
factory,  2  stores,  2  taverns,  2  tanneries 
and  4  blacksmith  shops. 

BRIEF   BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES 

of  the  first  settlers  and  most  prominent 
citizens  of  Northfield,  from  1785  to  1878, 
condensed  from  Mr.  Gregory's  History, 
page  58  to  251,  inclusive.  Mr.  Gregory's 
volume  is  8vo.  pp.  319.  The  preceding 
part  of  this  paper  is  the  summary  of  the 
town  history  contained  in  its  first  57  pages. 

JOHN  Gregory's  toast 
at  the  Northfield  centennial   day   dinner. 
The  4th  of  July,  1876: 

The  early  settlers  of  Nortlifield: — 
Prompted  by  their  love  of  freedom,  strong 
in  the  ambition  of  their  manhood,  and  clad 
in  the  garb  of  truth  and  morality,  they 
sought  amid  the  wilds  of  Vermont  a  home 
for  themselves,  and  for  those  who  should 
come  after  them.  Through  their  efforts 
the  wilderness  was  made  to  blossom  as  the 
rose,  and  the  fruits  of  their  labors  are  to 
us  a  priceless  inheritance. 

AMOS    ROBINSON, 

born  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  Aug.  19,  1762; 
next  to  Elijah  Paine,  was  the  most  influen- 
tial man  of  that  early  day  ;  made  the  first 
settlement.  May,  1785,  where  his  son, 
Hon.  Moses  Robinson,  now  lives  (1878). 
He  was  the  first  representative  of  the  town, 
re-elected  13  successive  years,  with  the 
exception  of  181  o;  justice  of  the  peace 
many  years,  and  was  a  large-hearted,  hon- 
orable man,  well-qualified  for  a  leader  in  a 
new  settlement.  He  induced  a  number  of 
his  relatives  and  friends  to  move  from 
Westminster,  Vt.  to  this  town.  He  mar- 
ried for  his  first  wife  Batheny  Jones,  chil- 
dren :  Polly,  b  1786 ;  Kezia,  b  1787  ;  Amos, 
b  1789;  Patty,  b  1791  ;  Alman,  b  1794; 
Judge,  b  1795;  Loretta,  b  1796;  Elijah,  b 
1799.  He  married  for  his  second  wife 
Mrs.  Submit  Holden  ;  children  :  Moses,  b 
1804  ;  Sophronia,  b  1810;  Caroline,  b  181 5. 
Mr.  Robinson  died  Mar.  13,  1840. 

Kezia  Robinson,  daughter  of  Amos 
and  Batheny,  was  the  first  child  born  in 
Northfield.  She  married  Ira  Sherman, 
of  Waterbury,  and  died  in  1877. 

H.on  Moses  Robinson,  son  of  Amos, 
who   lived   on    the    old   homestead,    held 

78 


many  town  offices,  and  was  State  Senator 
in  1846-7.     He  died  Apr.  22,  1881. 

Judge  Robinson,  another  son  of  Amos, 
settled  near  the  Roxbury  line  ;  was  a  farmer. 

col.    EZEKIEL    ROBINSON, 

brother  of  Amos,  born  in  Providence,  R. 
I.,  July  15,  1764,  came  from  Westminster, 
May,  1785,  nearly  10  years  before  the  town 
was  organized,  and  settled  on  the  farm 
now  occupied  by  John  Henry,  on  the  East 
Hill.  He  was  moderator,  selectman,  col- 
lector, &c.  He  married  Dinah  Doubleday, 
born  in  Palmer,  Mass.,  April  28,  1764. 
Mrs.  Erastus  Parker,  a  daughter  of 
Col.  Ezekiel,  of  Waterbury,  says,  "I  have 
heard  father  and  mother  tell  much  about 
their  living  in  a  log  house  without  a  board 
or  door  about  it,  until  they  had  2  children  ; 
when  the  first  was  born,  Jan.  26,  1788, 
father  went  over  the  hills  of  deep  snow, 
with  snow  shoes  and  a  hand  sled,  almost 
down  to  Farewell  village,  9  miles,  to  get  a 
midwife.  She  went  home  with  him,  some 
of  the  way  on  a  sled,  and  some  on  foot." 

"I  was  quite  young,  but  remember  the 
talk  about  father  being  called  a  '  Fed,'  and 
Uncle  Amos  Robinson  a  '  Whig.'  Father 
held  the  common  offices  in  town,  and  was 
a  surveyor  through  all  its  early  history. 
He  used  to  take  large  pieces  of  peeled  hem- 
lock bark  for  his  bed,  and  make  a  rousing 
fire  to  keep  the  wolves  off — they  used  to 
follow  him  home,  many  a  time  close  to  his 
horse's  heels.  The  bears  were  kept  from 
the  cabin  the  same  way,  by  great  fires." 

They  had  7  children:  Lucinda,  b  1788; 
Daniel,  b  1789;  Reuben,  b  1791  ;  Sylva- 
nus,  b  1793  ;  Anna,  b  1796 ;  David,  b  1799 ; 
Weltha,  b  1806.     All  born  in  Northfield. 

Mr.  Robinson  died  in  1834 ;  Mrs.  Rob- 
inson died  in  185 1. 

DR.    NATHANIEL   ROBINSON, 

brother  of  Amos,  came  to  Northfield  soon 
after  him,  and  settled  on  East  Hill.  The 
first  town  meeting,  and  town  meetings  fre- 
quently after,  were  held  at  his  house.  He 
was  a  very  good  physician,  and  the  first  one 
that  practiced  in  town ;  and  first  town 
clerk,  and  held  the  office  until  he  died,  and 
was  frequently  elected  to  other  offices,  and 
decidedly  popular  with  the  people.  He 
married  Lucy  Cushman ;  they  had  8  chil- 


6i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


dren:  Lydia,  b  1784;  Peggy,  b  1786;  Bet- 
sey, b  1789;  Nathaniel,  b  1791  ;  Lucy,  b 
1794;  Philetus,  b  1797;  Weltha,  b  1800; 
Adaline,  b  1802.  All  born  in  Northfield, 
except  Lydia  and  Peggy,  in  Westminster. 
Mr.  Robinson  died  in  1813,  with  the 
measles. 

DAVID    ROBINSON, 

son  of  Col.  Ezekiel,  born  in  1799-  Begin- 
ning life  as  a  farmer,  with  comparatively 
nothing,  his  industry  and  economy  led  him 
to  engage  in  the  first  manufacturing  inter- 
ests of  the  Falls  Village,  with  James  Gould, 
Walter  Little,  and  David  Fletcher,  about 
1835.  They  made  woolen  goods.  The 
business  was  a  success,  when  he  died,  at 
the  age  of  42.  He  was  in  independent  cir- 
cumstances, and  honored  as  a  man  of  ster- 
ling integrity.  He  married  Sarah  Denny 
of  Northfield,  in  1820.  They  had  10  chil- 
dren :  George,  Mary,  Ezekiel,  Charles, 
John,  Martin,  Ezekiel  2d,  Franklin,  Sarah 
Ellen  and  David. 

George,  son  of  David,  was  for  a  time 
in  trade  with  Joseph  Denny,  at  the  Centre 
Village,  later  carried  on  himself  the  same 
business  there  and  at  the  Depot  Village. 
He  was  agent  and  one  of  the  company  of 
the  Brookfield  Fork  Factory.  Mrs.  Rob- 
inson died  in  1866.  Mr.  Robinson  moved 
in  1867,  and  now  resides,  with  his  daugh- 
ters, in  Fairbault,  Minn.,  and  is  engaged 
in  the  grain  trade. 

THOMAS   AVERILL,    SR., 

born  in  Westminster,  1745,  and  his  wife, 
Elizabeth,  a  sister  of  Amos  Robinson, 
came  from  Westminster  here,  with  his  two 
sons,  Jesse  and  John,  in  1805.  Oliver, 
another  son,  came  2  years  later.  They 
settled  on  the  East  Hill,  the  only  part  of 
the  town  much  settled,  but  a  little  distance 
from  the  first  clearing,  and  were  all  enter- 
prising farmers.  Mr.  Averill  was  a  man 
well  calculated  for  a  pioneer  settlement, 
but  terribly  afflicted  with  that  awful  dis- 
ease cancer,  which  shortened  his  days. 
His  house  was  used  occasionally  for  town 
meetings. 

Children  :  John,  b  1775  i  Betsey,  b  1777  ; 
Amos,  b  1779;  Oliver,  b  1782;  Nabbie,  b 
1784;  Jesse,  b  1786;  Lucy,  b  1788;  Lavi- 
na,  b  1790  ;  John,  b  1794  ;  Keziah,  b  1798. 


Mr.  Averill  died  in  1823,  aged  78  years  ; 
Mrs.  Averill  in  1840,  aged  88. 

col.  OLIVER  AVERILL, 
after  living  on  the  East  Hill  a  number  of 
years,  farming  and  blacksmithing,  removed 
to  the  Center  village,  engaging  in  the  same 
business.  He  was  a  public  spirited  man, 
and  received  many  town  offices.  He  was 
town  treasurer  many  times,  and  such  was 
the  unbounded  confidence  his  fellow  towns- 
men reposed  in  him  that  they  did  not  re- 
quire a  bondsman.  He  was  postmaster 
also  many  years,  holding  the  office  until 
1842. 

He  was  a  characteristic  man,  of  a  ner- 
vous temperament,  and  very  decisive.  He 
did  not  wait  for  others  to  form  an  opinion 
before  he  expressed  his  on  politics  or  any 
particular  subject ;  but  he  was  a  man  of 
whom  it  might  be  said,  "in  him  there  was 
no  guile  :"  and  in  his  old  age  was  remark- 
ably active,  and  retained  his  natural  buoy- 
ancy of  spirit  almost  to  the  close  of  his 
life.  He  married  Polly  Hopkins,  born 
Mar.  7,  1780;  they  had  4children.  Their 
son,  Volney  H.,  was  many  years  town 
clerk.  His  children  were:  Volney  H.,  b 
1804,  died  1871  ;  Riley,  b  1807,  died  1863; 
Rolan,  b  1813;  Mary,  b  1824;  all  in 
Northfield,  except  Volney  H..  in  West- 
minster. Mr.  Averill  died  Apr.  11,  1870, 
aged  88;  Mrs.  Averill  Oct,  5,  1847,  aged 
67. 

CAPTAIN   JESSE   AVERILL. 

No  man  in  this  town  had  more  to  do 
with  its  public  business  from  1815  to  1840. 
He  held  almost  every  office  that  the  town 
could  confer  upon  him,  selectman,  represen- 
tative, justice  ot  the  peace,  lister,  modera- 
tor, school  committee,  &c.  He  commenc- 
ed his  public  career  when  quite  young,  and 
was  deservedly  popular  with  both  political 
parties.  His  sound  judgment  and  quiet, 
unostentatious  manner  endeared  him  to 
the  people,  and  his  sterling  honesty  and 
firmness  of  mind,  always  seeking  to  do 
right,  and  particularly  being  the  friend  of 
the  poor  and  unfortunate,  led  him  to  be 
appointed  administrator  in  the  settling  of 
many  estates. 

He  was  one  who  never  sought  office, 
but  office  would  seek  him,  and  when  the 


NORTHFIELD. 


619 


voters  had  a  severe  contest  over  some  can- 
didate, and  found  they  could  not  elect 
him,  they  would  say,  "  Let's  send  Captain 
Jesse;  we  can  elect  him!" 

He  married  Polly  Loomis,  of  Hinsdale, 
Mass.,  born  Nov.  28,  1783,  sister  to  Eleaz- 
er  and  Dyer  Loomis  ;  children,  all  born  in 
Northfield,  Clark,  1812;  Maria  P.,  1814; 
Russell,  1816;  Thomas,  1820;  David  T., 
1823. 

Mr.  Averill  died  July  25,  1S60,  aged 
74;  Mrs.  Averill  Oct.  17,  1S55,  aged  72. 

JOHN  AVERILL, 

youngest  brother  of  Amos,  Oliver  and 
Jesse,  carried  on  blacksmithing  with  farm- 
ing on  the  East  Hill.  He  bought  100  acres 
of  land  formerly  owned  by  Judge  Paine, 
including  the  first  clearing.  He  was  rep- 
resentative, selectman,  lister,  justice  of  the 
peace,  and  overseer  of  the  poor,  honoring 
his  trusts.  He  lives  [1878]  near  the  Cen- 
ter village,  at  the  age  of  84,  having  sold 
his  farm  a  number  of  years  ago  to  his 
nephew,  D.  T.  Averill.  He  has  probably 
seen  more  years  in  Northfield,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  or  two,  than  any  man  now 
living.  His  recollection  of  past  events  is 
very  good,  and  I  am  indebted  to  him  for 
many  reminiscences  in  the  lives  of  the 
early  settlers  ;  more  than  to  any  other  man. 

Mr.  Averill  remembers  when  a  lad  of 
attending  the  raising  of  Judge  Paine's  fac- 
tory, in  the  Factory  Village,  and  it  is  vivid 
in  his  memory  that  they  had  pork  and 
beans  for  dinner,  cooked  in  a  five-pail- 
kettle. 

He  married  Loretta,  daughter  of  Amos 
Robinson;  children:  Albert  J.,  1819; 
Charles,  1823;  George,  1827,  died  1856; 
Loretta  C,  1831  ;  Edwin,  1835,  dead; 
Henry,  1837  ;  all  in  Northfield.  Mr.  Aver- 
ill died  in  1881. 

ELIJAH    SMITH 

and  wife,  Polly  (Nichols)  born  in  Putney, 
1763,  1764,  married  in  Northfield,  1785; 
lived  in  Putney  until  1803,  when  they  re- 
turned here  and  spent  the  remainder  of 
their  lives ;  had  8  children :  Polly,  Sally, 
Susanna,  Elijah,  David,  Betsey,  Fanny, 
Emily. 

Mr.  Smith  died  in  1840,  age  ']']  ;  Mrs. 
Smith  in  1844,  ^ge  80. 


ELIJAH  SMITH,    JR., 

born  in  Putney,  1795  ;  came  to  Northfield 
with  his  father,  in  1803;  married  Anna, 
daughter  of  Col.  Ezekiel  Robinson,  Dec, 
1818;  had  10  children:  Edward  A.,  Julia 
A,,  Louisa,  Amanda,  Ann  Maria,  Charles 
E.,  Frederick  E.,  Caroline  M.,  Erastus  P., 
JohnE.,  all  in  Northfield. 

Mr.  Smith  died  July  7,  1863,  aged  68; 
Mrs.  Smith  July  27,  1875,  aged  79. 

Mr.  Smith  was  of  tall,  commanding  fig- 
ure, manly  and  dignified  in  deportment. 
He  was  for  many  years  Governor  Paine's 
chief  clerk,  and  enjoyed  the  respect  and 
esteem  of  all  who  knew  him.  He  suc- 
ceeded Gilbert  Hatch  as  town  clerk,  and 
held  the  office  a  number  of  years.  His 
elegant,  precise  penmanship  stands  out  in 
bold  relief  all  through  the  town  records 
during  the  years  he  was  town  clerk.  He 
was  an  obliging  man.  and  the  writer  has 
been  pleased  to  notice  the  reverence  and 
respect  our  citizens  have  for  his  memory. 
The  prominent  characteristic  of  his  life, 
and  which  gave  him  success,  was  his  high 
sense  of  public  virtue,  his  irreproachable 
integrity.  The  tongue  of  calumny  never 
dared  to  whisper  a  suspicion  of  him. 
Through  all  his  private  and  public  life 
there  shone  the  luster  of  a  noble  manhood, 
and  a  pure,  unsullied  name. 

GILBERT    HATCH, 

born  in  Preston,  Conn.,  Aug  14,  1764; 
married  Sally  Nichols, born  Jan.  22,  1767, 
and  came  to  Northfield  between  1790  and 
1800,  and  settled  on  the  William  Gold 
farm.  He  was  town  clerk  from  1813,  when 
Dr.  Robinson  died,  many  years,  and  held 
other  town  offices ;  children  by  his  first 
wife:  Polly,  b.  1801  ;  Sarah,  1802;  Amos 
S.,  1803;  Elizabeth,  1805;  Edward  N., 
1806;  Sidney  S.,  1808;  Sarah  Ann,  1810; 
by  his  second  wife,  Martha  Royce ; — his 
first  died  in  1817, — he  had  Sidney,  b  1818  ; 
Gilbert  M.,  1822;  Marion  F.,  1824;  all 
born  in  Northfield.     He  died  in  1835. 

ELEAZER   LOOMIS, 

and  his  brother  Dyer,  at  19  and  17  years, 
came  and  settled  on  the  mountain  near 
where  Hopson  Barker  now  resides.  Eleaz- 
er  was  born  in  Hinsdale,  Mass.,  1785  and 
married  Polly  Buck,  who  was  born  in  Con- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


necticut  in  1787.  They  had  good  success 
in  wheat,  raising  one  year  300  bushels. 
Living  opposite  where  our  raih'oad  depot 
now  stands,  they  could  look  down  into  the 
valley  of  Dog  River,  where  not  a  stick  of 
timber  had  been  cut. 

They  had  many  struggles  for  a  foothold 
in  the  forest,  but,  like  other  early  settlers 


neat  stock  Esquire  Amos  Robinson  used 
to  say  he  would  give  more  for  her  judgment 
in  that  direction  than  for  any  man's  in 
Northfield. 

At  one  time  the  saw-mill  stopped,  the 
saw  breaking,  and  the  men  were  so  busy 
in  their  farming  operations  that  they  could 
not   go  to  Westminster  for  another,  Mrs. 


with   brave  hearts  and  willing  hands,  sue-  :  Jones  volunteered   and  brought   it  in  her 


cess  crowned  their  labors.  At  times  the 
howling  of  wild  beasts,  as  they  often  said, 
made  their  hair  stand  on  end ;  for  the 
country  abounded  with  bears,  wolves  and 
catamounts.  One  morning  Eleazer  went 
out  to  a  corn-crib,  made  of  rails,  back  of 
his  house,  to  get  some  corn  for  his  hens, 
when  a  huge  bear,  that  had  been  helping 
himself,  jumped  down  from  the  crib,  which 
so  alarmed  the  young  man  he  ran  round 
on  the  other  side  and  Bruin  and  he  met 
face  to  face,  and  both  being  more  fright- 
ened ran  round  again,  both  trying  to  es- 
cape. 

After  a  few  years,  the  brothers  moved 
to  the  east  side  of  the  mountain,  to  what 
is  called  the  "  North  Corner,"  where  Eleaz- 
er's  son,  William  H.  Loomis,  now  resides. 
Eleazer  held  a  number  of  town  offices ; 
was  a  hard  working  man,  and  well  liked. 
His  children  were  Roxanna,  Eleazer,  Lou- 
isa, Cynthia,  William,  Mariette,  Adaline ; 
all  born  in  Northfield.  He  married  for 
his  second  wife  Louisa  Bullock,  of  Berlin. 
He  died  in  1S66;  Mrs.  Loomis  in  1835. 

AQUILLO   JONES, 

born  in  Westminster,  1745,  cahie  to  this 
town  soon  after  Esquire  Amos  Robinson. 
He  married  Prudence  Wise,  and  they  settled 
on  the  farm  known  afterwards  as  the 
"  Bennett  place."  Mrs.  Jones  came  to 
Northfield  on  horseback,  using  for  a  rid- 
ing stick  a  twig  of  a  "  Balm  of  Gilead," 
which  she  stuck  into  the  ground  by  her 
log-house,  and  it  became  a  great  tree. 
She  was  a  help-meet  to  her  husband,  and 
could  turn  her  hand  to  the  cradle,  the 
loom,  the  sugar-place,  and  the  barn-yard. 
It  was  said  by  those  who  worked  for  them 
that  she  would  get  up  mornings,  in  the 
spring  of  the  year,  by  two  or  three  o'clock, 
and  go  to  the  barn  to  see  if  the  cows  were 
cared  for,  and   in  judging  of  the  value  of 


arms,  riding  on  horseback.     A  feat  to  test 
the  patience  and  strength  of  a  stout  man. 

Aquillo  was  troubled  about  what  would 
become  of  his  earthly  tabernacle  after  he 
had  "  shufiled  it  off,"  he  declared  often  he 
would  not  be  buried  on  "Cobble  Hill,"  a 
little  burying-ground  near  where  he  lived, 
"it  looked  so  cold  and  dreary."  Being 
questioned  about  his  son  Charles  buying 
a  farm  in  Randolph  (where  they  were  all 
going  to  live)  he  guessed  he  had  not  got 
cheated,  for  they  had  a  good  burying- 
ground  in  that  town. 

Children  of  Aquillo  and  Prudence : 
William,  Charles,  Polly,  Nancy,  Sally. 
He  died  in  1830,  age  82,  and  his  wife  in 
1824,  age  82. 

William  came  with  his  father,  and,  after 
a  few  years,  settled  on  Judge  Paine's  turn- 
pike, near  the  toll-gate,  and  commenced 
keeping  tavern  in  18 11  on  the  farm  now 
occupied  by  Timothy  Holland.  This  was 
quite  a  public  place  of  resort  in  those  early 
days  of  staging ;  horses  used  on  the 
through  line  to  Boston  were  changed  here. 

Mr.  Jones  married  Sally  Babbitt,  and 
they  had  13  children,  born  in  Northfield: 
Charles,  Lucy,  Louisa,  Emery,  William, 
William,  Jr.,  Lamira,  Sarah,  Rebecca,  Pru- 
dence, Seth,  Harriet,  Luther.  Mr.  Jones 
died  in  1840,  aged  63 ;  Mrs.  Jones  in  1829, 
aged  44. 

Charles  Jones  settled  on  the  old  home- 
stead, and  built  the  two-story  house  near 
"  Bennett's  Pond,"  now  owned  by  Edward 
Howes.  He  married  Lucinda,  daughter 
of  Col.  Ezekiel  Robinson  ;  children  :  Alba, 
Daniel,  Lucinda,  Caroline,  Daniel  2d,  and 
Weltha.  Mr.  Jones  died  at  Menasha, 
Wis.,  in  1871,  where  he  located  in  1855, 
age  91. 

ABRAHAM   SHIPMAN 

came  from  Westminster  at   a   very  early 


NORTHFIELD. 


621 


day,  and  was  quite  a  prominent  man  in 
the  settlement.  He  was  a  selectman  8 
years,  and  represented  the  town  in  the 
legislature.  His  first  wife's  name  was  An- 
nis  Rice;  his  children  were  Azubah,  Hi- 
ram, Orran,  Ophir,  Orphia,  Sardis.  She 
died  in  1809,  and  Mr.  Shipman  married 
Peggy,  daughter  of  Doctor  Nathaniel  Rob- 
inson, who  had  two  children :  Annis  R. 
and  Phidelia  C. 

A  story  is  told  of  "Uncle  Abraham." 
One  April,  nearly  52  years  since,  when  our 
townsman,  David  T.  Averill,  was  in  small 
clothes,  his  father.  Captain  Jesse,  started 
for  the  cows  near  evening,  not  knowing 
the  little  fellow  was  following  him.  After 
his  return  he  learned  the  boy  was  missing. 
Great  alarm  prevailed  for  fear  he  would 
wander  into  the  woods  near  by,  and 
perish  before  morning,  and  search  was 
commenced.  At  "  Uncle  Abraham's  "  the 
lights  were  burning  ;  all  but  the  old  people 
had  retired  ;  they,  as  usual,  smoking,  pre- 
paratory to  going  to  bed,  when  a  noise 
was  heard  at  the  window,  and  two  little 
hands  came  pat  upon  the  panes  of  glass. 
Aunt  Peggy  was  alarmed ;  the  fire  flew 
from  her  pipe  across  the  room  ;  but  Uncle 
Abraham  went  out,  and  brought  in  the 
lost  child,  and  he  was  stripped  of  his  wet 
clothes,  wrapped  in  a  warm  blanket  and  fell 
asleep.  The  shell  was  sounded,  the  news 
flew  along  the  line  where  the  men  were  in 
search.  Col.  Geo.  K.  Cobleigh,  quite  ex- 
cited, who  had  been  riding  up  and  down 
the  road  some  time,  hearing  the  good  news, 
cried  out  with  a  stentorian  voice,  "  The 
child  is  found;  he  is  safe  in  AbrahaiiCs 
bosom .'" 

Eliphus  Shipman,  brother  of  Abraham, 
settled  about  the  same  time.  He  lived 
and  died  in  a  little  log-house  near  where 
James  Morse,  Esq.,  now  lives,  and  mar- 
ried one  of  the  four  sisters  (Sally  Double- 
day,)  who  came  to  this  town  together, 
being  the  first  women  seeking  a  new  home 
in  the  wilderness  here ;  their  children 
were  :  Phebe,  Electa,  Caleb,  Levi,  Daniel, 
Edmund,  Cynthia,  and  Polly. 

ELEAZER    NICHOLS,    SR., 

born   in    Putney,    1762;     married    Betsey 
Goodwin,  of  Putney,  and  settled   here  in 


1809.  Their  children  were:  Ambrose, 
Eleazer,  Jr.,  James,  Patty,  Polly,  William, 
Betsey,  John  G.,  Lucy,  Laura.  Mr.  Nich- 
ols died  in  1831,  and  Mrs.  Nichols  in  1853. 

AMBROSE  NICHOLS, 

born  in  Putney,  1791,  came  to  Northfield 
in  1809.  He  married  Sally  Hutchinson, 
of  Braintree,  and  located  upon  the  farm 
afterwards  owned  by  Moses  Lane.  He 
built  the  "Red  House,"  now  occupied  by 
Miss  Maria  Howes,  which  was  the  second 
house  erected  on  the  road  leading  from  the 
Center  to  the  "  Factory  village."  He  was 
many  years,  and  until  his  death,  the  "  Post- 
man" of  this  section.  His  route  included 
the  towns  of  Berlin,  Barre,  Williamstown, 
Brookfield,  Randolph,  Braintree,  Roxbury, 
and  Northfield.  The  well  known  sound 
of  "Ll^ncle  Armus'"  horn,  calling  his  pa- 
trons to  the  road-side  for  their  weekly 
news,  was  always  welcomed. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Nichols  had  3  children : 
Ambrose,  Jr.,  Sarah,  and  George  A.  Mr. 
Nichols  died  in  1835,  '^"f'  ^lis  widow  in 
1853- 

ELEAZER   NICHOLS,    JR. 

came  at  sixteen  to  Northfield  with  his  fath- 
er. He  is  now  [1878]  in  his  8sth  year. 
Though  feeble,  his  mind  retains  its  memory 
to  a  good  degree.  He  has  until  lately  had 
in  his  possession  the  ballot  box  used  at  the 
first  town  meeting  held  in  Northfield,  Mar. 
25,  1794,  said  to  have  been  made  by  Seth 
Smith;  5  inches  long  inside,  and  2  wide, 
and  ih.  deep,  dug  out  of  a  pine  block.  It 
has  been  presented  to  the  town  for  safe 
keeping. 

He  married  Mrs.  Orra  Starkweather 
White,  mother  of  George  J.  and  John  A.  S. 
White,  Oct.,  1822,  and  they  lived  for  more 
than  50  years  on  the  farm  where  the  Adams 
Slate  quarry  is  now  yielding  beautiful  ma- 
terial for  roofing.  Their  children  were  all 
born  in  this  town :  Mary  Ann,  Orra  E., 
Olivia  C,  Dudley  C,  Emma.  Mrs.  Nich- 
ols died  in  1877, 

JAMES   NICHOLS, 

born  in  Putney,  1796,  came  to  Northfield 
in  1809.  He  learned  the  carpenter  and 
joiner's  trade  soon  after,  which  he  indus- 
triously pursued  till  compelled  by  the  infir- 
mities of  age  to  retire  from  the  more  active 


622 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


pursuits  of  life.  He  married  Annis  A.  1 
Dole,  of  Danville,  Jan.  i,  1826;  they  had 
two  children :  George,  b  1S27 ;  Annis, 
1830.  Mrs.  Nichols  died  in  1830,  and 
Mr.  Nichols  married  for  his  second  wife 
Harriet  West,  May  i,  1831  ;  their  children 
are:  James  C,  Jane  E.,  John  W.,  Mary 
E.  Mr.  Nichols  died  in  1873  '■<  Mrs.  Nich- 
ols died  in  1876. 

WILLIAM    NICHOLS, 

born  in  Putney,  1802,  married  Roxanna 
Herrick,  of  Barre,  and  settled  on  the  farm 
now  owned  by  Harvey  R.  Keyes,  and  where 
Mrs.  Nichols  still  resides.  The  house  they 
first  occupied  was  the  first  one  erected  on 
Main  street,  between  the  two  villages,  and 
was  built  by  Justus  Burnham.  Mr.  Nich- 
ols acc^uired,  through  an  honest  indus- 
try, a  handsome  property,  and  died  in 
1863,  lamented  by  a  large  circle  of  ac- 
quaintances. 

HON.    GEORGE   NICHOLS, 

son  of  James  and  Annis  A.  Nichols,  was 
born  in  Northfield,  Apr.  17,  1827.  He 
married  Ellen  Maria,  daughter  of  Abijah 
and  Maria  B.  Blake,  of  Vergennes,  Apr. 
8,  1852,  who  was  born  in  New  Haven, 
Apr.  I,  1832.  To  them  were  born  Alice 
Margaret  in  1853,  and  a  son  in  1858,  both 
of  whom  died  in  infancy. 

Dr.  Nichols  was  educated  at  the  com- 
mon school  and  Newbury  Seminary,  fitted 
for  college,  but  never  entered,  having  de- 
termined to  study  medicine,  and  could  not 
see  the  way  clear  to  pursue  both  courses. 
He  commenced  teaching  school  previous  to 
his  15th  birthday.  In  1848,  he  was  ap- 
pointed State  Librarian  by  Governor  Cool- 
idge,  and  received  successive  annual  elec- 
tions till  1853.  He  studied  medicine  with 
Dr.  S.  W.  Thayer;  graduated  at  the  Ver- 
mont Medical  College  at  Woodstock  in 
185 1  ;  commenced  business  in  his  native 
town,  combining  with  it  that  of  apothecary 
and  druggist  in  1854,  which  latter  business 
he  still  retains,  and  continued  in  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession  with  eminent  success 
till  his  return  from  the  army  in  1863,  hav- 
ing served  as  surgeon  of  the  13th  Reg., 
Vt.  Vols.  In  1865,  he  was  appointed 
Secretary  of  State  by  Governor  Smith, 
which    office    he    has   since   continuously 


held.  In  1870,  was  a  member  and 
President  of  the  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion;  in  1872,  a  delegate  to  the  National 
Republican  Convention,  and  made  a  mem- 
ber of  the  National  Republican  Committee, 
and  has  been  a  member  and  Secretary  of 
the  Republican  State  Committee  since  that 
year.  In  1868,  he  was  elected  director, 
and  in  1874,  president,  of  the  Northfield 
National  Bank;  in  1872,  chairman  of  the 
board  of  commissioners  to  receive  subscrip- 
tions to  the  capital  stock  of  the  Cen- 
tral Vermont  Railroad  Company,  and  has 
been  clerk  of  the  same  since  its  organiza- 
tion. The  Doctor  has  been  repeatedly 
honored  in  elections  to  the  various  munic- 
ipal offices  of  trust  and  responsibility,  and, 
what  may- be  worthy  of  mention,  with  the 
exceptions  of  1856-58-59-63  and  66,  has 
been  moderator  of  the  annual  town  meet- 
ings since  1854. 

JOSEPH   NICHOLS, 

abrother  of  Eleazer  Nichols,  Sr.,  came  from 
Putney,  about  1805  ;  was  a  carpenter,  and 
assisted  in  building  Judge  Paine's  dwelling- 
house  in  William stown,  on  the  turnpike ; 
was  selectman,  &c.  His  children  were 
Sally,  Leonard,  Martin,  Louisa,  Harrison. 

JASON   WINCH, 

born  in  Framingham,  Mass.,  Sept.  2, 
1746,  settled,  in  1813,  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  grand-son,  Joel  Winch.  He 
married  Abigail  Howe,  of  Dorchester, 
Mass.  Their  children  were  Asa,  Joel, 
Hannah,  Abigail,  Thomas. 

REV.    JOEL   WINCH 

married  Anna  Kezar  in  1808,  and  came  to 
Northfield  in  181 5,  living  on  what  is  now 
called  the  "Joel  Winch  farm."  Their 
children  were:  Joel,  Jr.,  Enoch,  Anna, 
Elijah,  Isaac,  Benjamin  P.,  and  Mary. 

Mr.  Winch  was  an  eccentric,  remark- 
able man,  a  Methodist  preacher,  joined 
the  conference  at  19;  was  ordained  by 
Bishop  Asbury  in  Boston,  June  4,  1807. 
As  a  preacher,  he  was  full  of  wit  and  pleas- 
antry, and  sent  home  his  arguments  with 
great  pathos  and  power. 

He  was  a  staunch  Mason.  When  many 
were  going  back  on  their  principles,  he  re- 
mained firm,  glorying  in  the  sentiments 
George   Washington     had    honored,    and 


NORTHFIELD. 


623 


which  had  comforted  and  elevated  millions 

of  our  race.     No  place  seemed  dearer  to 

him  than  the  lodge  room  ;   surrounded  by 

the  fraternity,  he  was  happy,  and  he  made 

others  so  around  him.     Masonry  was  his 

great  theme    while   among  the  brethren ; 

almost   single    handed    he    fought    for    it 

in  Northfield,  and  lived  to  see    the   order 

again  respected  and  beloved.     He  could 

say  : 

"  A  sacred  burden  is  this  life  ye  bear; 
Looli  on  it,  lift  it,  bear  it  solemnly. 
Stand  up  and  wallt  beneath  it  steadfastly, 
Fail  not  for  sorrow,  falter  not  for  sin. 
But  onward,  upward,  till  the  goal  ye  win." 

Elder  Winch  died  in  1854. 

ARIEL  EGERTON, 
born  in  Norwich,  Conn.,  June  8,  1789, 
moved  with  his  father's  family  in  1796  to 
Brookfield,  Vt.,  from  whence  he  came  to 
Northfield  in  the  fall  of  181 1 .  The  follow- 
ing winter  he  taught  school  on  the  east 
hill.  Of  the  scholars  that  winter,  only 
one,  John  Averill,  is  known  to  be  living  in 
town.  The  winter  following  he  taught, 
near  Judge  Paine's  factory,  and  in  1815, 
built  a  house  and  store  at  the  Center  vil- 
lage. His  store  was  the  first  building 
erected  in  that  village  for  business  pur- 
poses. He  continued  there  in  trade  until 
1819;  in  1824,  bought  from  Judge  Paine 
the  grist-mill  on  the  east  hill,  which  he 
carried  on  about  5  years  ;  in  1829,  bought 
a  large  building  at  the  South  village,  and 
started  a  chair-factory,  which  he  kept  in 
operation  about  5  years,  and  tlien  removed 
from  Northfield. 

Mr.  Egerton  was  among  the  first  in  this 
vicinity  to  observe  the  injurious  effects 
arising  from  the  use  of  licjuors,  and  very 
early  became  active  in  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance. In  the  winter  of  1826,  he  invited 
the  people  living  in  his  neighborhood  to 
meet  at  their  school-house  and  listen  to 
some  statements  with  regard  to  the  use 
and  abuse  of  intoxicating  drinks.  About 
40  were  present,  and  that  was,  as  we  be- 
lieve, the  first  attempt  in  the  State,  aside 
from  pulpit  addresses,  to  present  the  tem- 
perance question  in  a  public  lecture.  In 
1828,  about  20  of  the  citizens  of  the  town 
united  to  form  a  temperance  society.  Mr. 
Egerton   was   elected   its   first  president ; 


Orange  Hovey,  secretary.  Mr.  Egerton 
delivered  an  address  in  the  Center  meeting- 
house, which  was  published  in  the  Mont- 
pelier  ll'atcJniiaii  and  other  papers  in  the 
State. 

Mr.  Egerton  died  in  Quechee,  in  1859. 
His  wife  survives  him  (1878),  living  with 
her  oldest  son,  Hon.  Charles  B.  Egerton, 
at  Ironton,  Ohio.  Her  maiden  name  was 
Abigail  P.  Keyes,  only  daughter  of  Capt. 
Abel  Keyes,  of  Putney,  born  Aug.  11, 
1796.  They  had  8  children  :  Almira  E., 
Laura  E.,  Olive  S.,  Cynthia  M.,  Abby  S., 
Charles  B.,  John  S.,  Joseph  K.  ;  all  born 
in.  Northfield,  and  four  now  living. 

JOSEPH    KEYES   EGERTON 

lived  in  Quechee  until  the  death  of  his 
father,  when  he  moved  to  Norwich,  where 
he  resided  15  years,  and  came  to  North- 
field,  March,  1877.  He  married  Sarah  F. 
Tyler,  of  Claremont,  N.  H.,  in  1856,  and 
had  two  children,  Edith  K.  and  Fred  T. 

Mr.  Egerton  was  clerk  in  J.  C.  Brooks' 
store  in  Hartford  4  years,  i  year  in  Cleave- 
land's  at  Brookfield,  and  i  year  with  Camp 
&  Thayer  in  Northfield.  He  was  post- 
master at  Quechee  from  1853  to  1861, 
when  he  removed  to  Northfield  ;  he  was 
town  agent,  town  treasurer  and  justice  of 
the  peace ;  joined  the  Odd  Fellows  in 
Northfield  in  1852;  joined  the  Masons  in 
1854,  and  was  Grand  Lecturer  of  the 
Grand  Lodge  of  Vermont  3  years,  from 
1867  to  1870. 

I  am  under  great  obligation  to  Mr. 
Egerton  for  his  valuable  assistance  in  work- 
ing up  the  history  of  his  ancestors,  his 
father,  and  the  Keyes'  who  built  so  ex- 
tensively in  Northfield. 

WILLIAM    AND    TAMASIN   ASHCROFT, 

from  Connecticut,  had  1 1  children  ;  one  of 
them,  Lois,  was  born  in  Judge  Paine's 
grist-mill,  and  was  the  second  child  born 
in  town.  Mr.  Ashcroft  took  part  in  the 
first  meetings  that  were  held  here.  He 
settled  on  what  is  now  the  poor  farm.  He 
held  town  offices  ;  children  :  Daniel,  Sarah, 
Abigail,  Tamasin,  John  D.,  Lydia,  Eliza 
T.,  Nathan  B.,  Lois,  William,  Lucy. 

REV.    NATHAN   BROWN   ASHCROFT, 

son  of  William,  born  in  Brookline,  Conn., 
in  1787,  and  came  to  Northfield  with  his 


624 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


father.  He  was  a  preacher  of  the  Methodist 
order,  ordained  by  Bishop  Kendrick  as  an 
Elder,  in  Bristol,  R.  I.,  Sept.  5,  1822,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  ministers  in  this  sec- 
tion. In  his  latter  days  also  he  not  only 
looked  after  the  spiritual  wants  of  the 
people,  but  attended  to  their  physical  ail- 
ments, deaUng  in  "roots and  herbs"  after 
the  Thompsonian  plan. 

Mr.  Ashcroft  married  Betsey  Lawrence, 
in  Plainfield,  in  1812.  Their  children  were  : 
Hester  Ann  R.,  Nathan  Sias,  John  Wesley, 
Eliza  Ann.  Mr.  Ashcroft  died  in  1857; 
Mrs.  Ashcroft  in  1872. 

JOEL  SIMONDS 
settled  on  the  mountain  where  Mr.  Annis 
used  to  live,  in  1816,  but  afterwards  moved 
to  a  farm  in  the  N.  E.  corner  of  the  town. 
He  married  Lydia  Brailey,  of  Hartford. 
They  had  13  children:  Daniel,  Polly, 
Joel,  Horace,  Albert  Clark,  Charles,  Rufus, 
Seth,  John,  Lydia,  Harriet,  John;  all  but 
two  born  in  Northfield. 

Rev.  Joel  Simonds,  his  son,  resides  at 
the  Center  village,  and  still  owns  the  farm 
where  his  father  lived.  He  married  Olive 
Pitkin,  in  1844. 

James  and  Elethen  Paul  were  early 
settlers  on  the  Berlirtroad,  near  the  north 
corner ;  children  :  Lucy,  Mary,  Benjamin, 
Belinda,  Daniel  J.,  Hosea,  all  born  here. 

LEBBEUS   BENNETT, 

born  in  Connecticut,  1777,  .settled  on  the 
"Bennett  place,"  a  well-to-do  farmer; 
married  Elizabeth  Millington  ;  children  : 
MeHnda,  Ambrose,  Gamaliel,  Seymour, 
Rial,  Joseph,  Lucinda. 

AMOS   HOWES, 

born  in  Windham,  Conn.,  1792,  married 
Melinda,  daughter  of  Lebbeus  Bennett. 
Their  children  were  :  Augustus,  Harriet, 
Fanny,  Lucinda,  Maria  M.,  Elizabeth, 
Seymour,  Adelia  L.,  Edward  H.,  Lebbeus 
A.,  all  born  in  Chelsea,  and  all  living  now 
(1878),  in  Northfield,  but  two. 

ANANIAS    TUBES 

came  from  Gilsum,  N.  H.,  to  Northfield  in 
1806,  and  settled  in  the  Loomis  neighbor- 
hood. He  married  Hannah  Hill.  Their 
children  were :  Jeremiah,  Sally,  Patty, 
Annie,    Elizabeth,   William,    Julia,    Polly 


and  Solomon.     He  died  in  1828,  aged  84; 
his  wife  in  1832,  aged  80. 

He  was  a  soldier  of  the  Revolutionary 
War ;  enlisted  under  Benedict  Arnold, 
and  marched  under  his  command  through 
the  wilderness  of  Maine ;  was  wounded 
and  taken  prisoner  at  Quebec.  He  had 
orders  after  enlisting  to  march  in  two  days, 
and  a  pair  of  pants  must  be  had.  His 
wife  took  her  shears,  cut  the  wool  from  two 
sheep,  one  white  and  one  black,  which  she 
carded  together,  and  with  the  assistance  of 
a  neighbor,  spun,  wove,  and  made  a  pair 
of  pants  before  she  slept,  and  they  were 
ready  at  the  time  they  were  wanted. 

DAVID   HEDGES 

was  born  on  Long  Island,  where  both  his 
parents  died  before  he  was  a  year  old. 
Most  of  his  early  life  was  spent  m  Connec- 
ticut. He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolution- 
tionary  War ;  married  Hannah  Shaw ; 
came  to  Randolph  in  1784;  one  of  the 
first  settlers  of  that  town  ;  came  to  North- 
field  in  1794,  with  12  children;  was  the 
17th  family  here;  children:  Jeremiah, 
Daniel,  Hannah,  Phebe,  Matthew,  Esther, 
David,  Stephen,  Jerusha,  Lewis,  Richard, 
and  Elijah.  He  lived  at  the  North  Corner. 
His  son  Stephen  died  at  26 ;  the  rest  of 
his  children  all  settled  in  life  ;  one  in  Ohio, 
one  in  Western  New  York,  and  the  others 
in  Vermont,  several  living  in  this  town  a 
while.  The  three  youngest  died  in  North- 
field.  Mr.  Hedges  died  in  1829,  aged  94; 
Mrs.  Hedges  in  1830,  aged  81. 

Richard,  son  of  David,  born  in  Ran- 
dolph, 1785  ;  when  a  lad  went  to  hunt  up 
cattle,  when  all  was  a  wilderness  in  Dog 
River  valley ;  with  no  building  except 
Stanton  Richardson's  log-house.  In  18 10, 
he  married  Rhoda,  daughter  of  Joel  Reed, 
of  Williamstown,  and  settled  on  the  East- 
Hill,  the  first  farm  west  of  Judge  Paine's 
grist-mill,  where  he  lived  43  years.  His 
first  wife  died  in  18 19,  leaving  two  daugh- 
ters, Louisa  M.,  and  Cynthia.  Mr.  Hedges 
married  for  his  second  wife,  Julia,  daughter 
of  Ananias  Tubbs  ;  children  :  Daniel,  Gil- 
bert, Rhoda,  Betsey  E.,  Julia,  Matthew 
M.,  John,  Francis  A. ;  all  born  in  North- 


NORTHFIELD. 


625 


field.  Mr.  Heda;es  died  in  1872,  age  97. 
Mr.s.  Hedge.s  in  1872,  age  83. 

THOMAS  SLADE, 

from  Alstead,  N.  H.,  appears  on  the  rec- 
ords as  an  early  settler.  He  was  quite  a 
noted  schoolmaster.  His  son  Thomas, 
the  miller,  who  followed  in  the  footsteps 
of  his  father,  says,  "  He  taught  school  in 
Amos  Robinson's  district  6  or  8  terms, 
boarding  at  home,"  where  Herbert  Glidden 
now  lives.  He  also  taught  school  in  Chel- 
sea and  Brookfield,  and  was  a  surveyor 
many  years  in  this  town.  He  married 
Clarissa  Burroughs ;  children :  Howard, 
Lavinna,  Calista,  Clarissa,  Allen,  Thomas, 
Jr.,  Anna,  William;  all  but  Howard  born 
in  Northfield.  Mr.  Slade  moved  to  Mont- 
pelier  in  1823,  and  died  in  1829. 

PARLEY  TYLER 

was  born  in  Connecticut  in  1779,  ^^^^  soon 
after  coming  to  Northfield  bought  of  Judge 
Paine  100  acres,  on  what  was  known  after- 
ward as  Tyler  Hill.  He  married  Betsey 
Rood,  of  Brookfield.  Their  children  were 
Martin  P.,  Matilda,  Juliet,  Squire,  Daniel, 
Royal,  Edward,  Jason,  Louisa,  Jason  C, 
John  A.  Mr.  Tyler  died  in  1855;  Mrs. 
Tyler  in  1849. 

Daniel  Tyler  relates  a  story  of  one  Bean, 
the  first  known  thief  convicted  in  North- 
field.  He  broke  into  Judge  Paine's  fac- 
tory one  Sunday  afternoon,  and  took  out 
25  rolls  of  cloth,  and  hid  them  under  a 
hemlock  tree-top,  40  rods  back  of  the  fac- 
tory. The  next  day  all  hands  turned  out 
to  look  for  the  stolen  goods  and  the  thief. 
Bean  took  one  roll  on  his  back  and  made 
for  the  East  Hill,  and  went  across  Mr. 
Tyler's  farm,  and  left  it  in  the  woods, 
going  to  the  house  and  asking  for  break- 
fast. Mrs.  Tyler  told  him  he  had  better 
wait  until  dinner,  it  being  then  1 1  o'clock, 
but  he  said  that  he  was  out  surveying  land, 
and  some  bread  and  cheese-would  answer. 

The  news  soon  reached  the  East  Hill  a 
theft  had  been  committed,  and  search  was 
made,  and  not  far  from  noon  Bean  return- 
ed to  Tyler's  house,  and  suspecting  that 
he  was  the  guilty  one,  Mr.  Tyler  asked 
him  if  he  had  seen  any  cattle  in  his  trav- 
els, when  he  answered  he  had  not ;    said 


"  Daniel  :  '  Father  approached  him,  get- 
ting nearer  and  nearer  by  slow  advances, 
when  he  sprung  upon  him  and  took  him 
down,  when  he  told  me  to  yank  oft"  that 
roll  of  cloth  upon  his  back,  which  I  did 
very  easily,  as  it  was  tied  on  with  listing, 
although  I  was  only  9  years  of  age.  Soon 
Bean  gave  up,  and  said  he  would  go  where 
we  wanted  he  should.  We  fastened  him 
with  a  rope  and  led  him  into  the  house, 
when  he  said,  'Well,  mother,  I  have  come 
back  to  dinner.'  It  was  but  a  little  while 
before  all  the  villagers,  headed  by  Judge 
Paine,  Amos  Robinson,  and  John  Stark- 
weather, had  arrived,  when  he  had  a  pre- 
liminary trial  before  Esquire  Robinson.  I 
can  well  remember  how  Starkweather's 
hands  shook  when  he  read  the  warrant  as 
constable,  it  being  new  business  to  him. 
This  was  the  first  man  convicted  of  steal- 
ing and  sent  to  the  State  prison  from 
Northfield.'" 

DAVID   DENNY, 

born  in  Windsor,  Jan.  7,  1774,  one  of  the 
earliest  settlers  in  Northfield,  was  a  col- 
lector of  taxes,  and  held  a  number  of  town 
offices.  He  located  on  the  hill,  near  the 
South  village,  where  his  grandson  David 
now  resides.  The  numerous  family  of 
Dennys  in  Northfield  are  his  descendants. 
He  married  Betsey  Spooner ;  their  chil- 
dren :  Paul  S.,  Asenath,  Adolphus,  Amasa, 
Sally,  Samuel,  Harriet,  Eliza,  Joseph.  Mr. 
Denny  died  in  182 1. 

Adolphus  Denny,  born  in  1796,  lived 
and  died  at  the  old  homestead  of  his  father. 
He  married  Eliza  Frizzel,  born  in  1804; 
their  children  were  :  David,  Sarah,  Kath- 
erine,  George,  Mary,  Katherine.  Mrs. 
Denny  died  in  1864.  Mr.  Denny  married 
2d,  Mrs.  Electa,  widow  of  Col.  George  K. 
Cobleigh,  and  died  in  1873. 

Dea.  Samuel  Denny,  son  of  David,  was 
a  farmer,  and  a  respected  officer  of  the 
Congregational  church.  No  man  attended 
public  worship  with  more  fidelity  than  he 
did,  and  he  raised  up  a  family  of  industri- 
ous and  re.spected  children,  all  in  good 
circumstances.  He  married  Prudence 
Ellis,  of  Berlin,  Sept.  1828;  children: 
Harriet  E.,  Andrew  E.,  Addison  W.,  Le- 


79 


626 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


land  H.,  George  B.,  Amasa  M.,  Prudence 
J.     He  died  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  in  1874. 

Joseph,  son  of  David,  was  but  10  years 
old  when  his  father  died.  At  19  he  left 
home,  with  just  25  cents  to  commence  life 
for  himself.  He  labored  in  Randolph  i 
year,  went  to  Berlin,  and  worked  upon  a 
farm  4  years ;  commenced  the  tannery 
business  at  Berlin  Corners,  exchanged  for 
the  hotel  there,  and  also  .bought  his  first 
farm,  which  occupation  he  always  followed 
in  connection  with  his  other  pursuits ; 
about  1841,  entered  into  the  mercantile 
business,  continued  in  Berlin  till  1847, 
when  he  moved  his  goods  to  Northfield 
Center,  and  continued  in  business  5  or  6 
years,  when  he  sold  out,  and  turned  his 
attention  more  particularly  to  farming. 
He  came  here  and  engaged  in  mercantile 
business  in  1847  ;  in  1856  formed  a  part- 
nership in  tailoring  with  J.  C.  B.  Thayer, 
and  also  with  Geo.  H.  Crane  in  general 
merchandise  some  3  years,  and  with  his 
oldest  son  in  i860,  till  his  removal  to 
Worcester,  Mass.  ;  when  he  took  the  next 
son  into  business,  with  the  style  of  C. 
Denny  &  Co. 

OLIVER   COBLEIGH 

came  here  from  Westminster  in  1796.  He 
married  Abiah  Doubleday,  one  of  the  four 
sisters  who  came  from  that  town,  and  were 
the  foremost  women  to  take  up  their  resi- 
dence in  this  wilderness  country;  Dinah, 
Ezekiel  Robinson's  wife,  Anna,  Stanton 
Richardson's  wife,  and  Sally,  Eliphus  Ship- 
man's  wife,  all  extraordinary,  courageous 
women.  Mr.  Cobleigh's  children  were : 
Dinah,  George  K.  and  Harriet. 

George  K.,  son  of  Oliver,  held  a  num- 
ber of  town  offices  ;  made  a  good  officer  in 
the  militia,  and  rose  to  the  rank  of  Colonel. 
He  lived  many  years  at  the  South  village, 
where  he  died.  He  married  Electa,  daugh- 
ter of  Eben  Frizzel.  Children:  Caroline, 
George,  Martin,  Dennison  and  Charles  H. 

Martin  Cobleigh,  son  of  George,  lives 
at  South  Northfield,  and  is  engaged  in 
the  sash,  door  and  blind  business. 

JOSEPH  smith,  jr., 
born  in  Putney,  in  1775.    In  1807,  influenc- 
ed by  his  brother-in-law,  Cajat.  Abel  Keyes, 
came  to    Northfield,   bought  two  lots   of 


land  from  David  Denny,  Esq.,  built  a  house 
near  where  E.  K.  Jones'  store  now  stands, 
in  the  south  village,  and  opposite  his  house 
built  a  store,  16x25,  the  first  in  town,  and 
filled  it  with  goods;  but  in  1809,  he  sold 
out  to  C.  W.  Houghton,  of  Montpelier,  and 
the  next  year  returned  to  Putney. 

SOLOMON   DUNHAM 

lived  at  an  early  day  not  far  from  Judge 
Paine's  grist-mill,  on  the  East  Hill ;  was  a 
clothier  and  carried  on  that  business  there. 
He  removed  to  the  south  village  afterwards, 
and  worked  at  the  same  trade.  He  mar- 
ried E-xperience  Smith  ;  children  :  Expe- 
rience, Mary,  Sally,  William  H.  H.,  Al- 
bert, all  born  in  Northfield. 

Mr.  Dunham  had  three  wives ;  by  his 
third,  Harriet,  daughter  of  David  Denny, 
he  had  two  sons  :  Franklin  and  George. 

HON.    NATHAN   MORSE, 

of  the  south  village,  was  born  in  Fitz- 
william,  N.  H.,  and  came  here  from  Rox- 
bury  in  1838.  He  held  a  number  of 
offices  in  town ;  was  representative  and 
also  assistant  judge  in  the  Washington 
County  Court.  He  married  for  his  first 
wife  Polly,  daughter  of  John  Hutchinson, 
Esq.,  of  Braintree ;  children:  Nathan, 
Polly,  Betsey,  Lucy  H.  Mrs.  Morse  died 
in  1845,  and  he  married  Martha  Abbott  of 
Williamstown ;  they  had  one  son,  James. 
Judge  Morse  died  in  1862.  Mrs.  Morse 
died  in  1875. 

LUCIUS    EDSON, 

born  in  Wheatley,  Mass.,  1798;  married 
Matilda  Ainsworth  of  Brookfield,  and 
came  to  Northfield  in  1822.  He  and  Arba 
Crane  bought  out  Solomon  Dunham,  in 
the  cloth-dressing  business  near  Judge 
Paine's  grist-mill,  where  they  worked  two 
falls,  and  Mr.  Edson  went  to  the  South 
village,  where  he  added  wool-carding  to 
cloth-dressing.  He  had  4  children  :  Mar- 
shall L.,  AHce  J.,  E.  Annette,  Walter  A.  ; 
all  born  in  Northfield. 

ANSON   ADAMS 

came  from  East  Roxbury  about  18 16,  and 
settled  in  the  "  Winch  neighborhood."  A 
log  house  was  his  dwelling-place,  without 
doors  or  windows,  using  quilts  in  their 
stead.  Crockery  and  other  household 
goods  were  brought   in  the  arms  of  the 


NORTHFIELD. 


627 


family,  through  snow  banks  and  by  marked 
trees,  making  life  real  if  not  pleasant. 

Mr.  A.  came  originally  from  Connecticut 
to  Vermont;  married  Sukey  Gold,  sisterof 
Deacon  William  Gold  ;  children  :  Adaline, 
Elvira,  Emily,  Susan,  Avaline  M.,  Harriet 
S.,  Charlotte,  Ursula,  Roswell,  Sophronia, 
Anson,  George  W.,  Fanny  H.,  all  but  two 
born  in  Northfield. 

SAMUEL   L.    ADAMS, 

born  in  Brookfield,  Oct.  1796.  married 
Harriet  Cobleigh,  July  1828,  and  settled  in 
Northfield.  He  was  a  believer  in  the  doc- 
trine of  the  restitution  of  all  things,  a  good 
Mason,  and  died  as  he  had  lived,  strong 
in  his  faith.  His  wife  died  in  1S49.  Four 
of  his  children  are  now  living  :  John  Ouincy, 
Harriet  M.,  Abbie  A.,  Laura  W.,  all  born 
in  Northfield. 

Mr.  Adams  died  at  the  home  of  his 
oldest  daughter,  in  Revere,  Mass.,  Dec. 
1877,  aged  81.  He  was  brought  to  North- 
field,  and  buried  at  the  Center  cemetery, 
with  Masonic  honors,  having  made  his  ar- 
rangements for  the  last  great  change,  and 
requesting  his  old  friend,  Rev.  John  Greg- 
ory, to  attend  his  last  service. 

JOHN    EMERSON, 

a  blacksmith,  lived  at  an  early  day  on  the 
East  Hill,  in  the  Averill  neighborhood. 
He  came  to  Northfield  from  Norwich,  and 
was  a  brother  of  Harry  Emerson,  the 
hatter,  who  carried  on  that  business  at  the 
Center  village. 

ETHAN   ALLEN. 

We  had  an  Ethan  Allen  in  that  early 
period  of  the  town's  history.  Not  the  re- 
nowned hero  of  Ticonderoga,  but  an  Ethan 
Allen  who  run  Judge  Paine's  grist-mill  sev- 
eral years. 

SHERMAN   GOLD, 

born  in  1813,  deacon  of  the  Universalist 
church,  for  many  years  carried  on  the  sash, 
blind  and  door  business  at  the  South  vil- 
lage— a  sincere,  conscientious  man,  gen- 
erally respected.     Died  in  1873. 

JAMES    LATHAM,  SR., 

born  1750,  came  here  from  Chesterfield, 
N.  H.,  at  an  early  day.  He  married  Su- 
sannah Brit,  born  in  1752.  Their  children 
were  : 

James  Latham,  Jr.,  settled  in  the  Shaw 


neighborhood.  He  married  Polly,  daugh- 
ter of  Amos  Robinson,  Esq.,  and  they  had 
15  children:  Bathany,  Leonard,  Nancy, 
Patty  R.,  Hollis,  Arvilla,  Susanna,  Eli, 
Nancy  L.,  Almon,  Loran,  Seth  W.,  Mar- 
shall, Cynthia,  Mary  A. 

Ezra  Latham,  married  Polly,  daughter 
of  Aquillo  Jones;  children:  Ezra,  Jr., 
Orrin,  Harvey,  Daniel. 

CAPT.    JOHN   STARKWEATHER, 

born  in  Norwich,  1790,  married  Cynthia 
Nichols,  step-daughter  of  Capt.  Abel  Keyes, 
Dec.  1809.  Sept.  181 1,  he  took  the  free- 
man\s  oath,  and  thereafter  during  his  life 
was  almost  continually  in  town  and  other 
public  offices  :  lister,  grand  juryman,  mod- 
erator of  town  meetings,  justice  of  the 
peace,  deputy  sheriff,  high  sheriff  of  the 
county,  representative,  and  captain  of  a 
military  company  2  years,  and  several 
years  kept  tavern  at  the  Center  village. 
He  was  a  friendly,  familiar  man,  and  be- 
fore 40  years  old,  children  called  him 
"  Uncle  John."  He  was  quite  popular  as 
an  officer.     He  died  in  1841. 

DEA.    REUBEN   SMITH, 

a  beloved  member  of  the  Baptist  church, 
came  from  Tunbridge  to  Northfield,  and 
settled  in  the  South  village  in  1826.  He 
married  Molly  Mudgett ;  children:  Polly, 
Apha,  William,  Tabitha,  Reuben,  Josiah 
and  Anna. 

WILLIAM    KEVES,    ESQ., 

born  in  Putney,  1766,  removed  to  North- 
field  in  1799,  located  on  East  Hill,  and 
bought  his  farm  of  his  brother,  Abel  Keyes  ; 
in  1804,  sold,  and  bought  near  where  the 
Center  hotel  stands  ;  his  nearest  neighbor, 
Stanton  Richardson,  west  of  the  river 
nearly  half  a  mile.  He  sold  at  the  Center 
about  1 8 10,  and  his  farm  was  soon  after 
sold  for  building  lots.  In  1816,  he  bought 
the  farm  next  south  of  the  Stanton  Rich- 
ardson place,  and  for  several  years  carried 
on  brick-making.  His  daughter,  Mrs.  Lucy 
Knapp,  now  living  in  Northfield,  relates 
that  in  18 18  there  was  a  great  deal  of  sick- 
ness. Dr.  Porter's  bill  for  medical  services 
in  her  father's  family  that  year  was  large 
enough  to  pay  for  all  the  brick  used  in 
building  his  house.  Mr.  Keyes  was  one  of 
the  earliest  Methodists,  active  in  organiz- 


628 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ing  their  church  in  this  town,  and  for  more 
than  50  years  a  class-leader  therein.  He 
married  Betsey  Nichols,  of  Putney  ;  chil- 
dren :  Polly,  Jacob,  William,  Lucy,  Sewall, 
Eliza,  Abel,  Sally,  Emeline.  Mr.  Keyes 
died  Dec.  1849. 

CAPTAIN  ABEL  KEYES, 
born  in  Putney,  Sept.  11,  1773.  In  the 
summer  of  1790,  while  prospecting  for  a 
new  home,  came  to  Northfield,  and  in  view 
of  its  water-power,  believing  it  would  be- 
come a  great  manufacturing  town,  decided 
to  locate  here.  The  next  spring  he  bought 
of  Judge  Paine  the  mills  and  100  acres  on 
East  Hill,  there  being  the  first  settlement 
in  town.  He  lived  there  about  5  years, 
improved  the  mills,  and  then  sold  the  farm 
to  his  brother  William,  and  the  mill  prop- 
erty to  Judge  Paine.  In  1804,  his  daugh- 
ter, Mrs,  A.  P.  Egerton,  relates  her  father 
made  a  journey  to  Putney,  on  horseback, 
taking  her  with  him  on  the  same  horse, 
she  being  8  years  old,  it  being  to  induce 
some  of  his  friends  to  come  to  Northfield 
to  live.  In  1807,  Captain  Keyes  purchased 
of  David  Denny,  a  saw-mill  and  few  acres 
of  land  in  what  is  now  called  South  North- 
field.  The  saw-mill  he  enlarged  and  im- 
proved, built  a  grist-mill,  potash,  and  sev- 
eral dwelling-houses,  and  in  3  years,  main- 
ly through  his  influence  and  labors,  "  Slab 
City,"  as  it  was  long  called,  had  become  a 
lively  village.  His  wife's  brother,  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  had  a  store  there,  the  first 
store  in  Northfield.  In  iSio,  Captain 
Keyes  sold  his  mills  to  C.  W.  Houghton, 
of  Montpelier,  and  in  181 2,  the  rest  of  his 
property  in  that  village,  and  removed  to 
the  Factory,  where  Judge  Paine  had  just 
begun  to  build  a  village.  He  remained 
there  one  year,  living  in  the  "  Old  Abbey," 
a  house  that  stood  where  George  C.  Ran- 
dall's house  now  is,  and  afterwards  built 
for  Judge  Paine  the  two  houses  that  now 
stand  near  the  bridge.  In  18 14,  he  pur- 
chased several  lots  of  land  where  the  Cen- 
ter village  now  is.  The  next  year,  with- 
his  son,  Joseph,  he  built  .several  dwelling- 
houses,  a  machine-shop,  and  a  potash  ;  in 
1818,  the  Center  Village  Hotel,  which  they 
kept  about  5  years;  in  1819,  the  church 
known  as  the  old  yellow  meeting-house. 


In  1824,  they  sold  all  their  property  at 
the  Center,  and  bought  that  Capt.  Keyes 
had  formerly  owned  at  Slab  City  ;  rebuilt 
the  mills  ;  lived  there  3  years  ;  sold,  moved 
to  the  Falls,  now  Gouldsville,  and  on  the 
site  where  Gould's  factory  now  stands 
built  a  saw  and  grist-mill.  Capt.  Keyes 
lived  there  till  1838,  his  son  Joseph  having 
sold  out  there  some  years  previously.  He 
then  bought  a  saw-mill  up  the  river,  a 
grist-mill  and  a  dwelling-house  ;  lived  there 
till  1839,  ^'"id  move  !  to  Illinois,  and  one 
year  after  to  Lake  Mills,  Wis.,  where  he 
died  in  1848,  aged  75.  There  are  now 
standing  in  this  town  about  40  buildings 
erected  by  Capt.  Abel  Keyes  and  his  son 
Jo.seph.  The  Captain  was  one  of  the  most 
enterprising  men  of  the  town  during  all  his 
stay  in  it.  He  held  various  offices,  was 
lister  ill  1798,  Captain  of  a  military  com- 
pany, justice  of  the  peace  many  years,  se- 
lectman and  representative.  He  possessed 
robust  health,  ceaseless  activity,  could  do 
everything  but  persevere  and  wait.  He 
could  prepare  his  land,  plant  and  hoe,  but 
could  not  wait  for  the  corn  to  ripen.  The 
framing,  raising  and  enclosing  a  building 
were  just  to  his  taste  ;  he  could  plan  for 
and  direct  a  multitude  of  men,  but  the 
quiet  work  of  finishing  the  structure  must 
be  left  to  more  patient  workers,  and  be- 
came a  proverb,  "  Capt.  Abel  always  moves 
just  before  harvest."  Industrious  and 
honest,  his  success  in  life  was  limited  only 
by  his  habit  of  leaving  to  others  the  pleas- 
ant task  of  reaping  the  reward  of  his  labors. 
He  married  Mrs.  Esther  Nichols,  in  1793. 
They  had  two  children,  Joseph  and  Abigail 
P.,  and  Mrs.  Keyes  had  a  daughter  by  her 
first  husband. 

CAPT.  JOSEPH  KEYES, 
born  in. 1 795;  married  Zeruah  Eggleston 
in  18 16,  who  had  2  children,  Simon  and 
Cynthia.  He  married  a  second  wife, 
Olive  Williams  ;  children  :  Abel,  Catha- 
rine W.,  Elisha  W.,  Oliver  A.,  Emily  O. 
Mr.  Keyes  died  at  Menasha,  Wis.,  Sept. 
17,  1874.  He  followed  his  trade  as  mill- 
wright in  Wisconsin,  after  his  removal 
with  his  father  to  that  state,  and  was  very 
successful. 

Many  of  our  citizens  remember  he  built 


NORTHFIELD. 


629 


a  machine  shop  at  the  Center  viilage,  on 
the  east  side  of  the  common,  run  by 
steam,  the  first  motive  power  by  steam  in 
Northfield,  and  a  great  curiosity  at  that 
day.  On  its  sides  were  painted  the  words 
"  Machine  Shop."  The  Wisconsin  Jour- 
nal says  of  Mr.  Keyes  : 

As  the  crisis  which  came  upon  the  coun- 
try in  1837  was  approaching,  finding  it 
difficult  to  proceed  with  his  extensive 
business,  he  made  disposition  of  it  in  the 
spring  of  1836,  and  little  left  but  his  head 
and  hands,  backed  up  by  most  indomitable 
courage,  energy,  and  a  powerful  constitu- 
tion, he  struck  out  to  seek  his  fortune  in  a 
new  country,  and  landed  in  Milwaukee 
June,  1836.  Wisconsin  at  that  time  was 
an  inviting  field  for  men  of  his  type.  It 
needed  intelligent,  enterprising,  hard  work- 
ing men  to  develop  its  immense  resources. 
He  being  one  of  that  class,  found  a  cordial 
welcome  to  the  territory  by  the  few  bold 
spirits  who  had  preceded  him,  and  an  am- 
ple scope  of  country  in  which  to  operate. 
In  1837,  he  and  his  family  removed  to 
Lake  Mills,  being  the  first  white  settlers  in 
that  town.  He  proceeded  to  the  erection 
of  a  grist  and  saw-mill,  that  proved  of  vast 
advantage  to  the  settlement,  and  very  soon 
laid  out  the  village  of  Lake  Mills,  being 
its  original  founder.  Here,  he  erected  the 
first  school-house  in  the  town,  and  em- 
ployed the  first  teacher,  a  Miss  Catlin  of 
Cottage  Grove,  in  this  county,  all  with  his 
individual  means — an  act,  of  itself,  which 
is  a  proud  monument  to  his  name  and 
fame,  and  proves  his  life  has  not  been  a 
failure. 

For  over  50  years  he  was  a  prominent 
Mason.  He  loved  the  order,  and  was 
one  of  its  most  honored  and  respected 
members.  The  golden  wedding  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Keyes  was  celebrated  in  187 1, 
surrounded  by  children,  grand-children, 
and  great-grand-children  ;  children  :  Abel 
Keyes,  now  of  Menasha,  Hon.  E.  W. 
Keyes,  postmaster  of  Madison,  Oliver 
Keyes,  now  of  Hudson,  and  Mrs.  H.  D. 
Fisher,  of  Menasha.  Mrs.  Olive  Williams, 
relict  of  Capt  Joseph  Keyes,  departed  this 
life  at  Menasha,  Feb.  18,  1878,  in  her  78th 
year.  In  all  positions  in  life  she  was  hon- 
ored for  her  many  virtues. 

HON.    ELISHA   W.    KEYES, 

son  of  Joseph,  born  in  Northfield,  Jan.  23, 
1828,  left  Northfield  with  his  father's  fam- 
ily. May  1837,  for  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  thence 
to  Lake  Mills.  In  early  life  he  was  first  in 
his  classes  at  school,  and  in  sports  and 
games  ;  following  in  the  wake  of  his  father 


and  grandfather,  he  led  the  van.  He  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  Madison  at  23,  and 
soon  acquired  an  extensive  and  lucrative 
practice ;  was  District  Attorney  of  Dane 
County  in  185S,  '59;  in  1861,  was  appoint- 
ed postmaster  of  the  city  of  Madison, 
which  office  he  still  holds  (1878)  ;  was 
maygr  of  Madison  in  1865  and  '66  ;  in  1867, 
Chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Central 
Committee  ;  for  i  o  years  he  conducted  the 
affairs  of  the  republican  party  of  the  State 
with  such  strength  and  power  of  organiza- 
tion as  to  earn  for  him  the  now  widely- 
known  title  of  "  The  Bismarck  "  of  Western 
politics.  In  1872  and  '76,  was  a  delegate 
to  and  Chairman  of  the  Wisconsin  Dele- 
gation in  the  National  Republican  Con- 
ventions ;  now  as  "  Boss  Keyes,  of  Wis- 
consin," he  is  familiarly  known  in  every 
state  in  the  Union.  In  1877,  he  declined 
a  re-election  as  Chairman  of  the  State  Re- 
publican Committee,  and  resumed  an  active 
practice  of  law.  He  is  one  of  the  Regents 
of  the  State  Lhiiversity  of  Wisconsin. 

Mr.  Keyes  is  of  a  stout,  compact  build, 
has  a  strong  constitution  and  good  health. 
He  is  esteemed  a  good  hater,  a  firm  friend, 
and  one  whoni  men  at  large  instinctively 
recognize  as  a  leader.  He  has  been  twice 
married;  children:  five. 

Alvah  Henry,  son  of  Hiram,  born  in 
Alstead,  N.  H.,  1799,  was  killed  in  North- 
field  June  28,  1831,  by  the  fall  of  a  tree. 

Edmond  Shipman  and  wife  Betsey, 
(Nichols)  had  13  children.  He  was  a 
blacksmith  by  trade,  and  worked  at  the 
Centre  village. 

REV.     HOSEA   CLARK, 

a  preacher  of  the  Methodist  church  en- 
joyed the  reputation  of  being  a  devoted 
man ;  was  elected  a  justice  of  the  peace, 
and  had  a  way  of  administering  the  law  in 
a  forcible  manner,  sometimes  to  the  dis- 
comfiture of  the  legal  profession  ;  and  was 
not  afraid  of  expressing  his  opinion  on 
any  subject  that  came  before  him  for  con- 
sideration. He  married  Mrs.  John  Rich- 
ardson ;  they  had  two  children,  Lucia  Ann 
and  Stephen  Alonzo ;  born  in  Northfield. 

ELIJAH    BURNHAM,    ESQ., 

born  in  Brookfield  1795,  came  to  North- 
field,  in  1819.     He  married  Maria  Simons, 


630 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  Williamstown  ;  had  13  children.  After 
two  previous  settlements  they  kept  tavern 
at  the  Falls  village,  where  John  Fisk  for- 
merly did,  and  finally  settled  near  the 
Depot  village.  Mr.  Burnham  was. a  prom- 
inent man  in  the  early  days  ;  was  select- 
man loyears,  justice  of  the  peace,  lister,  and 
held  other  offices.  He  was  a  skillful  vete- 
rinarian, and  frequently  sent  for  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  town  to  relieve  the  animal 
creation  of  their  ailments.  He  died  here 
March,  1S73.  Mrs.  Burnham  lives  with  a 
daughter  in  Williamstown,  at  the  age  of 
84(1878);  children:  Laura,  Mary,  Aaron 
M.,  Marshall  D.,  Philanda,  Philura,  So- 
phronia,  Dennison  S.,  Joshua  J.,  Emily, 
Ellen,  George  M. 

JOEL   BROWN, 

born  in  Old  Deerfield,  Mass.,  1799,  came 
with  his  father  to  Williamstown,  and  when 
the  Indians  returned  from  the  burning  of 
Royalton,  was  with  others  taken  captive 
and  carried  to  Montreal,  and  lodged  in 
jail,  but  through  one  Zadock  Steel  and 
others,  they  liberated  themselves,  and 
picked  their  way  back  to  their  homes.  [See 
History  of  Randolph,  vol.  11  of  this  work, 
page  978.]  When  quite  a  lad  Joel  was  fre- 
quently sent  to  Royalton  to  mill,  by  marked 
trees,  and  heard  the  howling  of  wolves. 

Mr.  Brown  at  21  came  to  Northfield, 
and  cut  the  first  tree  in  what  is  now  the 
Center  village,  very  near  the  old  machine 
shop,  where  he  subsequently  lived.  But 
few  buildings  were  then  erected  on  Dog 
river.  Stanton  Richardson's  log-house, 
where  the  late  John  H.  Richardson  lived, 
was  the  only  one  accessible,  and  here  Mr. 
Brown  boarded,  crossing  the  river  on  a 
tree  that  had  fallen  over  it.  Mr.  Brown 
built  a  shanty  very  near  the  old  town- 
house,  to  shelter  himself  in  rainy  days.  It 
was  his  intention  of  making  a  permanent 
home  at  the  Center,  but  his  intended  being 
in  poor  health,  and  her  friends  objecting 
to  her  coming  into  this  new  country, 
caused  him  to  return  to  Brookfield,  and  he 
did  not  return  until  1828,  when  he  located 
on  the  road  from  the  Center  to  Roxbury. 
He  did  teaming  to  Burlington,  bringing 
back  flour  and  other  staple  goods,  which 
he  disposed  of.     He   married    ist,    Anna 


Edson,  of  Brookfield,  in  1801,  and  they 
had  one  daughter,  Rebecca.  He  married 
2d,  Dorcas  Nichols,  and  they  had  8  chil- 
dren;  Daniel,  Anna,  Isaac  W.,  Susan, 
Eliza,  Ruth,  Joel,  Jr.,  D.  Amanda.  Mrs. 
Brown  died  in  1863 ;  Mr.  Brown  in  i<S69. 

ISAAC    W.    BROWN 

bought  out  his  father  in  the  hotel  business 
at  the  Center  in  1837,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  carried  it  on,  a  wide-awake,  obliging 
landlord;  in  1855,  moved  to  the  Depot 
village,  built  some  eight  buildings  there, 
among  them  the  first  Odd  Fellows  Hall, 
on  Central  street ;  was  selectman,  lister, 
constable,  deputy  and  high  sheriff,  serving 
in  some  capacity  as  an  officer  for  34  years  ; 
was  a  director  in  the  Wells  River  Railroad 
in  1872,  and  an  agent  for  the  Central  Ver- 
mont Railroad.  He  married  Sylva  Elvira 
Partridge  in  1835,  who  died  in  1863;  chil- 
dren :  Jane  and  George  W.  He  married 
Janette  Taylor,  who  died  in  1865  ;  moved 
to  Montpelier  in  1866;  married  Mrs.  Carrie 
W.  Camp  in  1S68,  who  died  in  1873.  He 
moved  to  Boston,  and  married  Mrs.  Sarah 
A.  Warren  for  his  fourth  wife,  in  1874, 
and  died  in  Northfield,  Aug.  10,  1875. 

Dr.  Clifton  Claggett,  born  in  Merri- 
mack, N.  H.,  1808,  came  to  Northfield  in 
1832,  and  located  in  the  Center  village  to 
practice.  He  married  Catherine,  daugh- 
ter of  Harry  Emerson,  and  has  two  sons, 
Charles  C,  William  C. ;  born  in  Northfield. 

Harry  Emerson,  born  in  Norwich, 
1 78 1,  came  to  Northfield  in  1821,  when 
about  40  years  of  age,  and  located  in 
the  Center  village.  He  was  a  hatter  by 
trade ;  married  Dorcas  Demmon,  and  had 
9  children. 

Albijence  Ainsworth,  a  merchant  in 
the  Center  village,  in  the  store  on  the  cor- 
ner adjoining  the  brick  dwelling  of  Col. 
Oliver  Averill.  He  built  the  brick  house 
in  that  village  where  Elijah  Winch  lives. 
His  father  kept  the  well-known  "Ains- 
worth Tavern,"  on  the  hill  road  to  Cleave- 
land  village.  Mr.  Ainsworth  married 
Emily,  daughter  of  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman  of 
Brookfield;  children:  Mary  J.,  Annette. 
STANTON   RICHARDSON, 

born  in  Haddam,  Conn.,  1755;  came  to 
Northfield  about  1785;  was  a  prominent 


NORTHFIELD.  631 

build  a  yard-fence  to  keep  his  little  ones 
in ;  but  even  this  did  not  prevent  another 
son,  George  S.,  from  meeting  with  as  sad 
a  fate  ;  he  was  drowned  in  a  wash-tub ; 
pulling  himself  up  by  it,  lost  his  balance 
and  fell  in. 

Nathaniel,  son  of  Stanton,  was  a  mill- 
wright ;  held  offices  in  town ;  went  to 
Canada  to  live  ;  returned  ;  built  the  two- 
story  brick  house  beyond  the  Center  vil- 
lage, where  Israel  Avery  now  resides  ;  also 
a  house  and  saw-mill  about  half  way  to 
Roxbury;  married  Nabby  Bosworth,  of 
Berhn ;  children:  Nathaniel  B.,  Abigail, 
Caroline  M.,  Sarah  Ann,  Melissa,  Alonzo, 
Adelia.  Mr.  R.  died  at  76;  his  wife  at  86 
years. 

SAMUEL    RICHARDSON, 

born  in  Haddam,  Conn.,  1742,  a,  shoe- 
maker, was  another  early  settler.  "Uncle 
Sam  Richardson  "  was  a  great  story-teller, 
hammering  out  soles  for  the  understand- 
ings of  his  customers,  he  would  indulge  in 
stories,  not  always  careful  to  see  how  they 
would  come  out ;  and  he  was  a  devout 
man,  also. 

It  is  related,  Judge  Paine  had  loaned  his 
trusty  old  horse  to  a  woman  who  worked 
for  him,  to  go  to  the  South  village  to  do  a 
little  trading,  the  Judge  requesting  her  to 
stop  at  Mr.  Richardson's  and  do  an  errand  ; 
on  her  return  asked  her  why  she  was  gone 
so  long?  She  said,  when  she  arrived  she 
heard  the  old  gentleman  praying,  and 
waited  till  he  got  through.  The  Judge 
said,  "Well,  what  did  the  old  horse  say 
about  it?"  Her  reply  came  quick,  "  Your 
horse  did  not  say  anything  about  it.  Judge, 
for  he  had  never  heard  one  before." 

Samuel  Richardson  and  wife  Clarissa 
had  two  children  :  Hannah  and  Jonathan. 
Jonathan  was  the  owner  of  the  dog  that 
Thompson  in  his  Gazetteer  refers  to — that 
the  river  was  named  after.  While  out 
hunting,  the  dog  attacked  a  large  moose, 
and  was  drowned,  in  what  is  known  as  the 
moose  hole  in  the  river.  It  was  in  the 
spring  the  moose  broke  through  the  ice, 
and  dog  and  moose  both  went  under. 

Jonathan  was  a  noted  hunter,  and  killed 
10  wolves  in  one  day. 

Samuel  Richardson  married  for  his  sec- 


man  ;  held  a  number  of  town  offices,  being 
the  first  selectman  chosen,  and  finally  set- 
tled on  the  farm  near  the  Depot  village, 
where  his  descendant,  John  H.  Richard- 
ardson,  lived  and  died.  He  married  Anna 
Doubleday  ;  children  :  Nathaniel,  Sarah, 
Samuel,  Ezra  T.,  John,  Anna,  Sarah, 
Sylvanus,  Horace,  Prudence,  Chauncey,  all 
but  two  born  in  Northfield. 

The  wife  of  Stanton  Richardson  made 
once  a  journey  to  Westminster,  on  horse- 
back, with  a  small  child  in  her  arms,  car- 
rying her  eatables  in  a  pair  of  saddle-bags. 

Mr.  Richardson  having  caught  a  bear 
with  a  pair  of  cubs,  tamed  the  young  ones, 
and  they  became  interesting  acquisitions, 
making  themselves  at  times  familiar  without 
invitation.  The  family  lived  in  a  log-house 
with  an  old-fashioned  chimney,  inside  of 
which  you  could  sit,  and,  looking  up,  see 
stars  in  the  evening.  One  night,  when  Mrs. 
Richardson  had  retired  with  Ezra  T.,  an  in- 
fant, one  of  the  young  bruins  crawled  upon 
the  roof,  came  down  the  chimney,  worked 
his  way  into  the  bed, nestling  down  between 
Mrs.  Richardson  and  her  babe.  The  child 
remonstrated,  when  the  mother,  seeing  the 
kind  of  company  she  had,  took  the  bear  by 
the  nape  of  his  neck,  and  tumbled  him  on  to 
the  floor. 

One  thanksgiving  da}'  Mrs.  Richardson 
invited  all  the  people  in  Williamstown  and 
Northfield  to  be  present.  They  came,  and 
had  for  dinner  boiled  victuals,  roast  pig, 
beans,  and  baked  Indian  pudding,  and  a 
jolly  good  time.  For  extension  tables, 
they  took  the  doors  off  their  wooden 
hinges,  and  used  them. 

Mr.  Richardson  presented  the  town 
land  for  the  first  burying  ground,  near  the 
Center,  on  "Richardson  meadow,"  now 
owned  by  Mr.  Gallup. 

John,  son  of  Stanton,  lived  and  died  on 
the  farm  of  his  father,  near  the  Depot  vil- 
lage. He  was  a  prominent  farmer,  and 
raised  7  children  :  Sarah  S.,  George  M., 
John  Harris,  Marshall  H.,  George  S.,  Mary 
J.,  Daniel  W.,all  born  in  Northfield.  Mr. 
Richardson  died  in  1834.  His  first  son 
was  drowned  in  Dog  river,  opposite  the 
house,  when  about  3  years  old,  and  the 
father  afterwards  took   the   precaution  to 


632 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ond  wife  Jerusha  Royce  :  children  :  Stan- 
ton, Lemuel  B.,  Clarissa,  Prudence,  Arael, 
Amisa,  Martha,  Jerusha.  Mr.  Richardson 
lived  to  90  years,  his  wife  to  85. 

JOHN  HILDRETH  BUCK,  ESQ., 
son  of  John  L.  Buck  [Simon  Smith  was 
the  first  lawyer  in  Northfield,  but  only  re- 
mained for  a  few  months  and  left.  The 
second  was  John  L.  Buck,  for  whose  bi- 
ography see  Reading,  volume  to  follow.] 
was  born  in  Northfield,  and  grew  to  his 
majority  among  the  Green  Mountains.  He 
graduated  from  the  University  of  Vermont 
in  the  class  of  1850,  and  returned  to  North- 
field,  where  he  remained  in  the  office  of 
his  father  until  February,  1851,  when  he 
removed  to  Lockport,  N.  Y.,  his  present 
home.  Feb.  1854,  he  was  admitted  to 
the  B4r  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State 
of  New  York.  Aug.  1854,  he  married 
Harriet  M.  Fletcher,  daughter  of  Hon. 
Paris  Fletcher,  of  Bridport.  In  1874,  he 
was  elected  mayor  of  his  adopted  city,  and 
served  one  term,  declining  a  renomination. 

DR.    BENJAMIN    PORTER, 

born  in  Old  Volentown,  Conn.,  1788,  lived 
with  his  father,  a  Congregational  clergy- 
man, and  settled  in  Plainfield,  N.  H.,  until 
he  was  12  years  of  age.  He  attended  the 
academy  at  Meriden,  studied  for  the  med- 
ical profession,  graduating  at  Dartmouth. 
This  town  was  his  first  settlement  as  a 
physician.  On  his  first  visit,  passing  by 
where  the  Episcopal  church  now  stands, 
he  saw  Judge  Paine  and  John  Green  sow- 
ing wheat  on  newly-cleared  land,  and  in- 
cjuired  of  the  Judge  if  this  town  would  be 
be  a  good  place  for  a  physician  to  locate. 
The  reply  was  it  would,  if  a  man  had  a 
strong  constitution,  and  was  wilHng  to 
work  hard  for  poor  pay. 

The  Doctor  settled  on  the  East  Hill  in 
1816,  boarding  3  years  with  Captain  Jesse 
Averill,  and  moved  to  the  "Post  farm," 
where  he  remained  4  years,  and  went  to 
the  Center  village ;  built  the  two-story 
brick  house  where  he  lived  and  died.  He 
married  Sophia  Fullerton  ;  children  :  Eliz- 
abeth, Edward,  Edwin,  Benjamin  F. 

The  Doctor  had  quite  a  practice,  being 
the  first  physician  in  town  after  Nathaniel 


Robinson  and  Jeptha  White  ;  was  good  in 
fevers;  he  died  Feb.  21,  1876. 

Dr.  Edwin  Porter  is  the  only  prac- 
ticing physician  here,  born  in  Northfield  ; 
a  graduate  of  the  Vermont  University  in 
1850.  He  studied  medicine  with  his  father, 
was  a  private  student  of  Prof.  Peaslee,  of 
Dartmouth  ;  attended  three  courses  of  lec- 
tures, and  graduated  in  the  Medical  De- 
partment in  1853 ;  in  1854,  combined  the 
drug  business  with  his  practice,  with  Geo. 
Tucker  one  year ;  has  carried  on  the  busi- 
ness alone  since.  He  married  Carrie  S. 
daughter  of  Hon.  Heman  Carpenter,  in 
1867. 

RoswELL  Dewey,  P.  M.  6  years,  has 
been  surveyor,  constable,  justice  of  the 
peace,  and  an  excellent  teacher  of  sacred 
music  30  years. 

dr.    JEPTHA   WHITE 

lived  on  a  farm  near  the  Center  village. 
He  married  Orra  Starkweather,  and  had 
two  children:  George  J.  and  John  A.  S., 
to  the  latter  of  whom  credit  is  due  for  re- 
membering in  his  will  the  old  cemetery  at 
the  Center  village,  whereby  it  has  been 
beautified  and  improved  by  a  nice  granite' 
wall  in  front.  He  was  a  prominent  mer- 
chant, and  had  great  influence  with  his 
party. 

DR.    WILLIAM   J.    SAWIN, 

son  of  Levi  S.,  studied  medicine  with  Dr. 
Claggett,  and  graduated  at  Dartmouth 
College  in  1854,  and  began  the  practice  of 
his  profession  in  Watertown,  Wis.,  the 
same  year;  March,  1861,  removed  to 
Chicopee  Falls,  Mass.  ;  the  following  June, 
enlisted  as  a  private  soldier ;  in  September, 
transferred  to  3d  Vt.  Reg.  as  hospital  stew- 
ard ;  served  as  physician  in  the  3d,  4th and 
5th  Vt.  Reg.  Oct.  '61  to  June,  '62  ;  pro. 
to  surgeon  in  2d  Vt.  brigade  in  1862,  and 
to  surgeon-in-chief  of  brigade  in  1862; 
was  discharged  with  the  loth  Massachu- 
setts regiment  at  the  expiration  of  his  term 
of  service  in  1864,  and  returned  to  Chic- 
opee P^alls.  On  the  evening  of  Dec.  3, 
1875,  ^^  the  Asylum  of  Springfield  Com- 
mandery  of  Knight  Templars,  while  in  the 
act  of  clothing  himself  in  the  regalia  of  his 
office,  preparatory  to  being  installed  as 
Eminent  Commander  of  that  body,  and  in 


NORTHFIELD. 


633 


the  presence  of  a  large  number  of  his 
brethren,  William  J.  Sawin,  an  honored 
Past  Grand  Warden  of  the  Grand  Lodge 
of  Massachusetts,  was  stricken  down  by 
apoplexy  and  died  instantly. 

John  P.  Davis,  from  Barnard,  born 
i8ig,  has  been  in  the  mercantile  business 
at  the  Center  village  since  1850. 

Rev.  Samuel  Written,  an  early  set- 
tler, at  one  time  owned  all  the  land  at  the 
Center  village,  before  it  was  cleared.  He 
was  a  farmer  and  Baptist  preacher.  He 
had  nine  children,  Samuel,  Woodbury, 
Joseph,  Mercy,  Rebecca,  Clarissa,  Caroline 
and  Julia.  He  moved  to  Malone,  N.  Y., 
where  he  died. 

DAVID   M.    LANE, 

born  in  Hampton,  N.  H.,  Mar.  29,  1793, 
came  here  from  Strafford  in  1820.  He 
was  a  surveyor,  and  the  country  being 
new,  and  property  changing,  his  services 
were  greatly  needed.  The  writer  has  fre- 
quently heard  him  mentioned  as  a  very 
promising  man ;  but  he  was  cut  down  at 
the  early  age  of  ;i7.  He  built  the  first 
brick  building  in  town,  the  old  school- 
house  at  the  Center,  making  the  brick 
himself,  burning  the  lime,  and  doing  most 
of  the. carpenter  work  with  his  own  hands. 
He  bought  100  acres  of  timber  land,  and 
was  a  very  industrious  man,  beloved  by  the 
community,  and  left  a  wife  and  4  daughters. 

Joshua  Lane,  brother  of  David  M., 
born  in  Chichester,  N.  H.,  Nov.  1798, 
moved  here  from  Strafford  in  1821,  one  of 
the  most  enterprising  citizens  of  that  day. 
His  first  move  in  building  was  on  the 
Patterson  farm,  used  lately  for  slate  pur- 
poses. He  bought  and  erected  dwellings 
in  a  number  of  places,  living  in  the  winter 
in  a  house  he  built  at  the  Center.  Among 
his  largest  purchases,  with  his  brother 
David,  was  the  farm  on  the  mountain,  and 
it  is  thought,  he  cleared  with  his  help 
around  him  some  300  acres  of  timber  land. 
He  linally  settled  in  West  Berlin.  "  Lanes- 
ville  "  was  named  after  him.  He  was  an 
enthusiastic  Mason,  and  was  buried  with 
its  honors.  He  died  at  79,  and  left  one 
son,  Moses  Lane. 

Josiah  and  Moses,  brothers  of  David  and 
Joshua,  also  settled  in  this  town. 

80 


Moses  Lane,  C.  E.,  .son  of  Joshua, 
graduated  at  the  University  of  Vermont  in 
1845.  By  Gov.  Paine  was  appointed 
assistant  engineer,  Aug.  1845,  for  the  lo- 
cation and  construction  of  the  Vermont 
Central  Railroad  ;  was  employed  as  a  civil 
engineer  on  this  and  other  railroads  in 
New  England  till  1849;  '^^'^^  Principal  of 
an  academy  in  Springfield,  N.  Y.,  3  years  ; 
was  engaged  a  short  time  as  resident  en- 
gineer on  the  construction  of  the  Albany 
and  Susquehanna  Railroad  at  Albany; 
1856,  was  appointed  to  the  position  of 
principal  assistant  engineer  for  the  con- 
struction of  the  Brooklyn  water-works,  and 
has  been  constantly  employed  the  past  22 
years  as  a  hydraulic  engineer  ;  was  13  years 
on  the  water-works  of  Brooklyn,  6  as  prin- 
cipal assistant,  and  7  as  chief  engineer ; 
had  charge  of  the  construction  of  the 
Milwaukee  water-works  as  chief  engineer, 
where  he  was  employed  7  years,  and  has 
been  connected  with  other  important  pub- 
lic works  as  chief  or  consulting  engineer. 
He  married  the  daughter  of  the  late  Dr. 
Varney  Ingalls,  of  Erie  County,  N.  Y.,  in 
1851  ;  has  4  children,  and  now  resides  in 
Milwaukee,  Wis. 

HON.    ALVIN    BRALEY. 

[See  History  of  Hartford  and  Ro.xbury 
for  early  history.]  After  he  came  to  North- 
field,  was  bank  director,  justice  of  the 
peace,  village  trustee,  and  interested  in 
manufactures,  and  in  1868,  was  made  Pres- 
ident of  the  National  Bank,  which  office  he 
filled  until  his  death.  His  demise  was  a 
loss  to  our  town,  for  he  was  not  only  able 
but  willing  to  assist  in  the  establishment 
of  such  institutions  as  promised  to  build 
up  the  place. 

FISK    BROTHERS, 

Benjamin,  John,  Nathaniel  and  David,  all 
stalwart  men,  of  whom  it  may  be  said, 
"and  there  were  giants,"  came  from  Wil- 
liamstown. 

Benjamin  was  a  storekeeper  in  the 
South  village  about  1816;  married  Hannah 
Herrick  ;  they  had  7  children  ;  Delphine, 
Philander,  Caroline,  Dennison,  Sophia, 
Rosina,  John  D. 

John,  born  in  Williamstown,  1783,  kept 
tavern  in  the  Falls  village  about  1825,  quite 


634 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


a  noted  place  for  trainings.  He  married 
Betsey  Martin,  and  diey  had  13  children: 
Olive,  Betsey,  Siloma,  John,  Lydia  M., 
Melinda,  Eunice,  Azro  J.,  Sarah,  Lucinda, 
Maria  L.,  Mary,  Hannah. 

Nathaniel  came  in  18 19,  and  died  in 
1861,  age  87.     He  rai.sed  8  children. 

David  married  Sarah  Reed;  they  had 
7  children:  Sarah  Ann,  David  R.,  Harvey 
R.,  Ann  Eliza,  George  M.,  Fanny  C.,  Van 
Loren  M.  Mr.  Fisk  died  in  1864;  Mrs. 
Fisk  in  1865. 

George  M.  Fisk,  son  of  David,  born 
in  Wolcott,  June  7,  1830.  He  studied  law 
with  Hon.  Heman  Carpenter ;  was  admit- 
ted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County  in 
1854;  the  Supreme  Court  in  1856;  the 
United  States  Court  in  1874;  in  1854, 
went  to  Prof.  John  W.  Fowler's  law  school 
in  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.  In  1863,  repre- 
sented the  town  in  tiie  Legislature  ;  was  a 
delegate  to  the  National  Democratic  Con- 
vention in  St.  Louis,  in  1876.  In  1864, 
he  built  the  two  factories  in  the  Depot  vil- 
lage now  run  by  Mr.  Howarth,  and  put  in 
the  machinery  now  in  use,  had  a  large  in- 
terest in  the  lumber  business  at  Granville, 
Vt.,  sold  the  Union  Slate  Quarry,  and 
other  quarries  of  slate  in  town,  is  now 
[1S78]  President  of  the  Northfield  Savings 
Bank.  He  married  Jane  E.,  daughter  of 
James  Nichols,  in  1856. 

DANIEL  W'ORTHIXGTON, 
born  in  1775.  He  came  from  Williams- 
town,  and  located  on  the  Gartield  place  in 
1 81 8.  Afterwards  he  went  to  the  Falls 
village,  and  bought  the  saw-mill  of  Free- 
dom Edson  and  built  a  house,  when  there 
were  but  one  or  two  log-houses  on  the  east 
side  of  the  river.  Under-brush  and  huck- 
leberry bushes  covered  the  land  now 
spread  over  with  buildings.  He  married 
Polly  Fisk,  born  in  1780,  and  raised  11 
children:  Huldah,  Elijah,  Sophia,  Lyman, 
Mary,  Rhoda,  Daniel,  David,  Theodore 
S.,  Elias,  Francis.  Mrs.  W.  died  in  1851, 
and  he  in  1866. 

COL.    CHARLES    H.    JOYCE, 

the  present  Member  of  Congress  from  the 
First  District  of  Vermont,  came  to  North- 
field  in  1850,  and  commenced  reading  law 
at  the  Center,  with  John  L.  Buck,  Esq., 


read  with  him  one  year,  then  with  F.  V. 
Randall,  Esq.,  at  Northfield  Falls,  one 
year,  and  then  with  F.  F.  Merrill,  Esq., 
at  Montpelier,  one  year,  when  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  of  Washington  County, 
at  the  September  term,  1852.  In  1853, 
Mr.  Joyce  entered  into  co-partnership 
in  the  practice  of  law  at  Northfield  with 
C.  N.  Carpenter,  Esq.,  and  subsequently 
with  F.  V.  Randall.  In  1853,  he  was  ap- 
pointed State  Librarian.  In  Dec.  1855, 
he  opened  a  law  office  in  Northfield.  In 
1856,  he  was  elected  State's  Attorney,  and 
was  re-elected  to  the  same  office  in  1857. 

As  soon  as  Mr.  Joyce  was  elected  State's 
Attorney,  his  practice  of  law  began  to  in- 
crease, andinMar.  1861,  he  had  afinedock- 
et,  and  did  a  good  business.  When  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  issued  his  call  for  75,000 
men,  he  was  at  Montpelier  attending  court. 
He  immediately  returned  home  to  North- 
field,  and  with  the  aid  of  some  others, 
raised  a  company  of  men  which  tried  to 
get  into  the  ist  Regiment,  commanded  by 
Gen.  Phelps.  He  did  not  succeed  in  this, 
but  Gov.  Fairbanks  tendered  him  the  po- 
sition of  Major  in  the  2d  Regiment,  which 
he  accepted,  and  on  the  7th  of  June,  1862, 
was  promoted  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  his 
regiment.  He  remained  in  the  service 
until  Jan.  1863,  when  he  was  compelled 
to  resign  his  position,  on  account  of  poor 
health. 

After  returning  from  the  army,  and  par- 
tially recovering  his  health,  he  located  in 
Rutland,  resuming  the  practice  of  law  in 
company  with  C.  C.  Dewey,  Esq.  The 
partnership  continued  until  the  spring  of 
1866,  when  it  was  dissolved,  and  he  car- 
ried on  business  on  his  own  account.  In 
1869,  he  was  elected  to  the  Hou.se  of  Rep- 
resentatives from  Rutland,  and  again  in 
1870-71.  The  last  2  years  he  was  elected 
Speaker,  which  office  he  conducted  in  a 
manner  that  pleased  all  parties,  and  made 
him  decidedly  popular. 

Mr.  Joyce  took  a  lively  interest  in  the 
campaign  of  1868,  stumping  his  own  State, 
and  making  many  speeches  both  in  New 
York  and  New  Hampshire.  In  1874,  he 
was  nominated  as  the  successor  of  Hon. 
C.  W.  Willard,  and  elected  to  the  Forty- 


NORTHFIELD. 


635 


fourth  Congress,  and  re-elected  in  1876, 
'78.  In  the  campaign  of  1876,  he  made 
speeches  in  Vermont,  New  Hampshire, 
New  York,  Connecticut  and  Indiana,  for 
Hayes  and  Wheeler. 

Speeches  of  Mr.  Joyce. — In  the  Forty- 
fourth  Congress  the  first  eulogy  on  the 
death  of  Henry  Wilson;  speech  on  the  cur- 
rency, in  favor  of  honest  money;  a  speech 
on  the  presentation  of  the  statue  of  Ethan 
Allen,  to  be  placed  in  Memorial  Hall  in 
the  National  Capital;  a  speech  on  the  Cen- 
tennial Exposition  to  be  held  at  Philadel- 
phia in  1876;  a  speech  in  confirmation  of 
certain  land  claims  in  the  Territory  ot 
New  Mexico;  a  speech  on  the  counting  of 
the  electoral  vote  of  Louisiana,  and  one  on 
counting  the  electoral  vote  of  Vermont. 

In  the  Forty-fifth  Congress,  speeches. — 
One  on  the  contested  election  case  of 
Patterson  against  Belford,  from  Colorado; 
one  in  the  contested  election  case  of  Acklen 
against  Darrell,  of  Louisiana;  a  speech  on 
the  "  Resumption  act,  and  the  remonetiz- 
ation  of  silver;"  a  speech  on  a  proposed 
amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  relating  to  the  election  of 
President  and  "V^ice-President,  and  also  re- 
lating to  the  Civil  Service  of  the  govern- 
ment; a  speech  on  the  Mexican  Pension 
Bill,  against  restoring  to  the  pension-roll 
the  names  of  those  wJiich  had  been  stricken 
off  for  participation  in  the  rebellion,  and 
a  speech  on  the  Tariff. 

In  addition,  the  Colonel  has  delivered 
speeches  and  orations  on  nearly  every 
Fourth  of  July  and  on  nearly  every  "  Dec- 
oration Day"  since  the  war.  His  mag- 
netic, forcible  way  of  stating  his  arguments 
makes  him  popular  with  the  masses,  and 
we  predict  for  him  a  still  more  brilliant 
future. 

Mr.  Joyce  married  Rowena  M.  Randall, 
and  they  have  had  three  children:  Inez 
R.,  Grace  R.  and  Charlie  R. 

REV.    JOHN   GREGORY, 

born  in  Norwalk,  Conn.,  Nov.  18,  1810; 
went  to  New  York  State  when  quite  young, 
and  served  an  apprenticeship  of  seven 
years  at  fancy  painting,  in  the  city  of  Al- 
bany. When  21  years  of  age,  he  com- 
menced studying  for  the  ministry  in  the 
Universalist  denomination.  He  was  or- 
dained in  Salisbury,  Herkimer  county, 
N.  Y.,  where  he  made  his  first  settlement 
in  1832.  After  two  years'  labor  in  this 
town  he  removed  to  Burlington,  Vt.,  where 


he  preached  i  year  ;  from  there  he  went  to 
Woburn,  Mass.,  and  preached  2  years, 
and  after  a  year's  labor  in  Vermont,  went 
to  Charleston,  S.  C,  where  he  edited  the 
Southern  Evangelist,  and  supplied  the  pul- 
pit of  the  Universalist  church  in  that  city 
I  year.  From  Charleston,  the  climate  not 
agreeing  with  him,  he  returned  to  Ver- 
mont, and  preached  in  Montpelier,  Berlin, 
Williamstown  and  Northfield  i  year,  when 
he  received  a  call  to  settle  in  Ouincy, 
Mass.,  where  he  remained  3  years. 

In  1842  Mr.  Gregory  was  elected  repre- 
sentative to  the  general  court  from  Quincy, 
and  from  there  went  to  Fall  River,  Mass., 
where  he  preached  2  years,  and  then  came 
back  to  Vermont,  and  preached  3  years  in 
Williston.  In  1850,  he  came  to  Northfield 
and  settled  on  a  farm  on  the  West  Hill, 
thinking  with  St  Paul  it  was  no  disgrace 
for  a  minister  to  labor  with  his  hands,  and 
engaged  in  stock  raising.  For  25  years, 
he  was  connected  with  the  Vermont  State 
Agricultural  Society  ;  claims  to  have  been 
one  of  the  originators  of  that  society  ;  was 
director  of  it  during  that  time,  and  presi- 
dent of  it  2  years,  and  some  years  had  as 
great  a  variety  of  choice  animals  at  the 
Fair  as  any  other  man.  He  was  promi- 
nent in  the  raising  of  Morgan  horses, 
French  Merino  sheep,  Hereford,  Devon, 
Ayrshire  and  Shorthorn  Durham  cattle, 
paying  $400  for  one  French  Merino  sheep 
that  was  raised  in  the  vicinity  of  Paris,  all 
of  which  were  brought  to  Northfield  to 
improve  the  stock  of  farmers.  He  assisted 
in  establishing  the  very  successful  "Dog 
River.- Valley  "  Association,  and  served  as 
president  of  it  three  years,  having  during 
that  time  fairs  that  were  not  excelled  by 
any  in  the  State. 

For  the  last  quarter  of  a  century  he  has 
preached  as  opportunity  presented  in  the 
"region  round  about"  Northfield.  In 
1850,  he  was  representative  to  the  Legisla- 
ture from  Northfield  ;  in  1856,  was  elected 
senator  from  Washington  county,  and  re- 
elected in  1857.  He  received  the  appoint- 
ment of  assistant  assessor  in  the  revenue 
department  under  Abraham  Lincoln  ;  was 
re-appointed  by  Andrew  Johnson,  and 
continued  in  the  service  lo^  years. 


636 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Mr.  Gregory  desires  to  put  on  record  his 
fidelity  to  the  two  great  reforms  that  have 
agitated  the  country  during  the  last  40 
years,  "  Himian  Freedom''''  and  "  Temper- 
ance.''^ Nov.  8,  1844,  the  following  vote 
was  passed  and  published  in  the  Boston 
Trumpet:  "  Universalists  on  Slave- 
ry." At  the  recent  annual  meeting  of  the 
Old  Colony  Association  at  New  Bedford, 
Mass.,  the  following  resolution,  offered  by 
the  Rev.  John  Gregory,  of  Fall  River,  was 
adopted : 

Resolved,  That  as  Slavery  has  been  voted 
by  this  body  to  be  "  in  everlasting  hostility 
to  the  true  spirit  of  Jesus  Christ,''  we  here 
pledge  ourselves  to  discountenance  this 
evil  in  all  possible  ways  and  forms ;  and 
will  agitate  the  question  in  our  several 
societies,  and  endeavor  to  diffuse  abroad 
an  honest  moral  sentiment  on  the  subject. 

While  in  the  Senate  Mr.  Gregory  deliv- 
ered a  speech  on  "  Suffering  Kansas,"  that 
was  instrumental  in  a  vote  being  passed 
directing  the  governor  to  appropriate 
$20,000  for  the  relief  of  the  people  in  Kan- 
sas, should  he  ascertain  they  were  in  a 
suffering  condition.  He  has  delivered  a 
large  number  of  addresses  in  Massachusetts 
and  Vermont  on  those  reforms,  and  always 
without  compensation. 

Mr.  Gregory  resides  in  Northfield  (Depot 
Village),  on  Main  street,  in  the  only  brick 
house  in  that  part  of  the  town,  it  being  the 
third  house  built  on  that  street.     (1878). 

Rev.  John  Gregory  died  suddenly  of 
apoplexy  at  his  residence  in  Northfield, 
Sept.  25,  1881. 

ORVIS   DARWIN    EDGERTON, 

born  in  Potsdam,  St.  Lawrence  ceunty, 
N.  Y.,  Aug.  15,  1 82 1,  was  the  second  child 
of  a  family  of  7  children.  His  father, 
James  Harvey  Edgerton,  was  among  the 
early  settlers  of  that  county,  from  Brook- 
field,  in  this  State.  The  minority  of  Mr. 
Edgerton  was  passed  going  to  a  district 
school,  working  on  a  farm,  and  at  mechan- 
ical business,  teaching  school,  etc.,  with  a 
few  terms  at  the  St.  Lawrence  academy. 

In  the  spring  of  1843,  ^^  went  to  Ohio, 
which  was  then  considered  "far  West." 
For  3  years  from  the  spring  of  1846,  was 
with  F.  &  T.  R.  Taylor,  building  a  fork- 
factory  at  Brasher  Falls,  N.  Y.,  putting  in 


the  machinery,  and  making  and  selling 
forks  and  hoes,  and  Jan.  1849  was  married 
to  Roxana  Sophia  Taylor,  daughter  of  the 
senior  member  of  the  firm.  The  next 
spring  he  purchased  a  stock  of  drugs, 
medicines,  groceries,  dry  goods,  etc.,  and 
engaged  in  business  with  others,  and  in 
outside  operations  of  butter,  cattle,  horses, 
etc.  ;  in  1856  sold  out  to  his  partners,  and 
for  10  years  kept  an  office  as  justice  of  the 
peace,  and  business  connected  with  the 
office  ;  held  several  town  offices  ;  was  post- 
master during  President  Fillmore's  admin- 
istration, and  was  4  years  justice  of  the 
sessions,  or  assistant  judge  for  the  county  ; 
in  1856  he  sold  his  interest  in  Brasher, 
and  removed  to  Northfield  ;  formed  a  part- 
nership with  his  brother,  C.  A.  Edgerton, 
in  the  mercantile  business,  and  has  since 
resided  here ;  has  been  village  and  town 
treasurer,  2  years  one  of  the  selectmen ; 
4  years  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  savings 
bank,  and  as  a  business  man  has  been  suc- 
cessful. He  is  in  religion,  a  Congrega- 
tionalist.  He  has  one  son,  Charles  Darwin 
Edgerton,  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth,  class 
of  1878. 

CHARLES  A.  EDGERTON,  ESQ., 
born  in  Potsdam,  N.  Y.,  son  of  James  H. 
Edgerton,  came  to  Northfield  in  the  Spring 
of  1847,  and  worked  at  the  mechanical 
business  several  years.  In  1855,  the 
Union  Store  Division,  No.  678,  was  organ- 
ized, and  he  was  appointed  agent,  and 
managed  it  until  it  closed  in  1857.  In  the 
Spring  of  1858,  he  commenced  mercantile 
business  in  Union  Block,  with  L.  H.  King, 
the  firm,  Edgerton  &  King,  doing  a  good 
business  in  a  general  way  until  the  sum- 
mer of  i860,  when  they  dissolved,  Mr. 
King  taking  a  store  In  the  new  block  east 
of  the  Universalist  Church,  and  Mr.  Ed- 
gerton keeping  the  store  in  Union  Block 
until  1866,  when  he  formed  a  partnership 
with  his  brother,  O.  D.  Edgerton,  who 
moved  to  Northfield  from  Brasher  Falls, 
N.  Y.,  the  firm  being  known  as  Edgerton 
Brothers,  who  continue  to  do  business  at 
the  present  time. 

Mr.  Edgerton  was  town  clerk  1865-75; 
several  years  treasurer  of  the  Vt.  Mfg.  Co., 
treasurer  and  superintendent  till  the  com- 


NORTHFIELD. 


637 


pany's  shops  were  burned,  Dec,  1876, 
and  has  been  a  director  of  the  Northfield 
National  Bank  since  Jan.  13,  1874,  and 
Vice  President  since  Jan.  9,  1877,  and 
has  been  a  director  in  the  graded  and  high 
school  since  its  present  organization,  1873. 
He  married  Harriet  A.  Newcomb,  of 
Waitsfield,  and  has  2  children. 

HALSEY   R.    BROWN, 

born  in  Burke,  taught  school  winters  from 
the  age  of  15  to  21,  when  he  went  to  Be- 
loit,  Wis.  for  i  year;  returned  to  Burke, 
and  engaged  in  merchandise  1 1  years  ;  then 
farmed  2  seasons  ;  was  representative  1866- 
7,  receiving  all  the  votes  cast  but  one ; 
filled  a  number  of  offices  in  town ;  came 
to  Northfield  in  1868;  was  with  Rufus 
Young  3  years  in  the  Paine  Block,  in  the 
grocery  and  dry  goods  business,  after, 
went  into  company  with  Andrew  Denny, 
now  carrying  on  an  extensive  business  of 
store-keeping,  tannery,  milling,  and  in  the 
lumber  trade,  one  of  our  most  prosperous 
tirms  in  Northfield.  He  has  been  8  years 
a  steward  in  the  Methodist  ChurcTi  here, 
and  since  the  demise  of  Joseph  Gould, 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday  School.  Be- 
fore leaving  Burke,  he  was  without  excep- 
tion selected  to  conduct  funerals,  and  is 
employed  frequently  in  the  same  business 
in  Northfield. 

LESTER   MARTYN, 

now  living  at  the  Depot  village,  [1878] 
retains  his  recollection  of  the  early  history 
of  Northfield  to  a  good  degree.  He  taught 
school  when  a  young  man,  was  of  indus- 
trious habits,  and  well  liked  as  a  citizen 
and  neighbor.  He  remembers  hearing  the 
report  of  the  big  guns  at  Plattsburgh, 
Sept.  II,  1814.  News  came  that  volun- 
teers were  wanted,  as  the  British  were  out 
in  great  force,  and  a  number  of  men  from 
Northfield,  like  Cincinnatus  of  old,  left 
their  business  at  home  and  hastened  to 
Burlington,  where  they  were  to  cross  the 
Lake,  but  before  they  arrived  information 
was  received  the  battle  had  gone  in  favor 
of  the  Americans,  and  they  returned  to 
their  homes  rejoicing. 

He  married  Mrs.  Mary  Flint,  of  Wil- 
liamstown  ;  they  had  one  child,  Emma  O., 
and  one  adopted  son,  James  R.,  who  gave 


his  life  for  his  country.  He  was  born  in 
Williamstown  in  1840,  enlisted  in  1861  in 
Company  J.,  5th  Vt.  Vols.,  and  was  mor- 
tally wounded  in  the  battle  of  the  wilder- 
ness. He  came  home  to  Northfield,  lived 
near  7  months,  and  died  in  1864. 

DEA.  NATHANIEL  JONES, 
from  Claremont,  N.  H.,  built  the  two-story 
house  on  Water  street  now  owned  by  John 
Willey.  He  was  a  justice  of  the  peace, 
man  of  good  abilities.  He  raised  7  chil- 
dren :  Roys,  George,  Elisha,  Henry,  Cyn- 
thia, Nathaniel,  Orena. 

JAMES   N.    JOHNSON,    ESQ., 

born  in  Northfield,  Sept.  4,  1833  ;  devel- 
oped scholarly  tastes  when  quite  young, 
and  a  fondness  for  politics  and  public 
speaking.  His  advantages  for  an  educa- 
tion were  limited  to  a  few  terms  of  district 
school,  and  about  a  year  at  Northfield 
Academy,  in  1851-52.  He  taught  school 
with  good  success  a  few  years,  studied  law 
with  F.  V.  Randall,  at  Northfield;  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  of  Washington  county 
in  1854;  went  to  Chicago  in  1856,  and 
engaged  in  the  law  and  collection  business 
with  Cornell  &  Jameson,  till  into  i860; 
returned  to  Northfield ;  has  since  resided 
here,  practicing  his  profession. 

HON.    PHILANDER    D.    BRADFORD 

was  born  in  Randolph,  Apr.  11,  18 11. 
His  father,  John  Bradford,  was  a  native  of 
Kingston,  Mass.,  born  Dec.  26,  1765.  In 
early  life  he  removed  to  Alstead,  N.  H., 
where  he  married  Miss  Lucy  Brooks,  Jan. 
9,  1799.  Subsequently  he  came  to  Ran- 
dolph, where  he  resided  until  his  death, 
Nov.  19.  1814.  Four  years  later,  upon  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Lucy  Brooks  Bradford, 
Philander  D.,  the  youngest  of  6  children, 
went  to  Alstead,  N.  H.,  to  live  with  rela- 
tives of  his  mother,  but  at  15  returned  to 
Randolph,  and  entered  the  Orange  County 
Grammar  School,  where  he  received  his 
education  preparatory  to  the  study  of  the 
medical  profession.  At  20  he  commenced 
the  study  of  medicine  with  his  brother. 
Dr.  Austin  Bradford;  in  1833,  graduated 
at  the  Woodstock  Medical  School,  then  a 
branch  of  Middlebury  College,  and  in  1850, 
received  the  degree  of  A.  M.  from  the 
University  of  Vermont.     He  practiced  his 


638 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


profession  in  Braintree,  Randolph  and 
Bethel,  until  1854,  when  he  removed  to 
Northfield,  where  lie  lias  since  resided, 
with  a  good  practice. 

In  1853  and  1854,  Dr.  Bradford  was 
elected  to  the  State  Legislature  by  the 
Free-soil  party  of  Randolph,  and  was  a 
prominent  member  of  that  party  when  in 
its  infancy.  And  when  others  forsook 
their  free  princii)les  and  joined  those  who 
elected  Robinson  and  Kidder,  Governor 
and  Lieutenant-Governor,  Dr.  Bradford 
remained  true  to  his  convictions,  and  la- 
bored zealously  for  the  cause  of  human 
freedom.  In  1854,  he  was  elected  com- 
missioner of  insane,  and  re-elected  in 
1855.  In  1857,  he  was  elected  Professor 
of  physiology  and  pathology  in  Castleton 
Medical  College,  and  continued  with  the 
same  until  its  suspension  in  1862.  In  Dec, 
1862,  he  was  commissioned  by  Governor 
Holbrook,  Surgeon  of  the  5th  Regt.  Vt. 
vols.,  but  was  compelled  by  ill-health  to  re- 
sign his  commission  in  March  following. 
In  1862,  '63  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
Vermont  Senate,  also  President  of  the 
Vermont  Medical  Society  in  '63.  In  i860, 
he  was  elected  Grand  Master  of  the  Grand 
Lodge,  I.  O.  O.  F.,  of  Vermont,  and  in 
1861,  was  at  the  head  of  the  Grand  Divis- 
ion of  the  Sons  of  Temperance  of  Vermont. 
He  was  elected  trustee,  also  Professor  of 
Physiology,  in  Norwich  University  in  1867  ; 
and  was  a  member  of  the  Right  Worthy 
Grand  Lodge  of  the  United  States,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  in  1875-76. 
He  early  threw  the  weight  of  his  influence 
into  the  scale  of  Temperance — is  a  worthy 
"Good  Templar,"  and  foremost  in  every- 
thing that  promises  blessings  on  our  race. 
He  is  a  capital  presiding  officer,  and  by 
his  good  humor  and  happy  adaptation  to 
circumstances,  makes  even  a  crowded  as- 
sembly orderly  and  attentive.  Dr.  Brad- 
ford was  married  to  Miss  Susan  H.  Edson, 
daughter  of  John  Edson,  M.  D.,  of  Ran- 
dolph, in  1835,  by  whom  he  had  one 
daughter.  Miss  Ellen  E.,  now  the  wife  of 
George  W.  Soper,  Esq.,  of  Northfield, 
who  is  postal  agent  over  the  Central  Ver- 
mont railroad. 

Mrs.  Susan    H.  Bradford  died  Oct.  15, 


1865,  and  in  May,  1867,  the  Doctor  mar- 
ried Mrs.  O.  W.  Moore,  widow  of  the  late 
Hiram  Moore,  Esq.,  of  Sharon. 

HON.    JASPER    H.    ORCUTT, 

seventh  son  of  Samuel  M.  and  Mary  B. 
Orcutt,  born  in  Roxbury  ;  moved  to  North- 
field,  March,  1849,  and  from  1848  to  '58 
was  most  of  the  time  in  the  employ  of  the 
Vt.  Cen.  R.  R.,  constructing  buildings 
and  in  other  mechanical  work. 

In  1858  he  entered  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness with  Freeman  Page.  In  1864,  bought 
out  Mr.  Page,  and  carried  on  the  business 
about  a  year  alone  ;  then  was  in  trade  with 
A.  E.  Denny  4  years  ;  they  built  the  store 
where  Denney  &  Brown  are  in  business  ; 
in  1870,  sold  out  with  Mr.  Denney  and 
bought  an  interest  in  the  Paine  Factory 
property ;  from  that  time  has  been  en- 
gaged in  manufacturing  slate,  lumber  and 
strawboard,  is  now  interested  in  the  Adams 
Slate  and  Tile  company ;  clerk  and  super- 
intendent. Mr.  Orcutt  was  village  trustee 
several  years,  deputy  sheriffsix  years,  con- 
stable and  collector  of  taxes  2  years,  high 
sheriff"  of  Washington  county  2  years : 
representative  2  years,  county  senator  3 
years  ;  has  been  selectman,  auditor,  justice 
of  the  peace,  enrolling  officer  during  the 
rebellion,  is  one  of  the  trustees  of  the 
Northfield  savings  bank,  postmaster  from 

1869  to ;  and  was  chairman  of   the 

building  committee  of  the  Graded  School 
Academy.  He  has  been  twice  married, 
and  has  two  children.  His  mother  is  liv- 
ing in  Northfield,  with  her  sons,  and  is 
the  oldest  inhabitant,  being  in  her  96th 
year.     (1878.) 

HON.    HEMAN    CARPENTER, 

born  in  Middlesex,  July  10,  181 1,  was 
fitted  for  college  at  the  Washington  County 
Grammar  School  at  Montpelier,  studied 
law  with  the  Hon.  Wm.  Upham,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  at  theNovemberTerm 
of  the  Washington  County  Court,  1836,  and 
came  to  the  "Factory  Village,"  Northfield, 
the  first  of  December  following,  and  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law.  He  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Supreme  Court  of  Vermont 
two  years  after,  and  to  the  District  Court 
of  the  LTnited  States  in  1842;  was  State 
Librarian  4  years,  from  1832  till  's?'  ^^^ 


NORTHFIELD. 


639 


removed  the  State  Library  from  the  "old 
State  House"  to  the  new,  numbering  and 
cataloguing  all  the  books  therein.  He 
was  superintendent  of  schools,  and  devot- 
ed from  ID  to  25  days  in  examining  teach- 
ers and  visiting  schools  each  year,  giving 
his  services  to  the  town,  and  held  other 
minor  offices.  He  was  elected  to  the 
legislature  for  1847-48,  and  introduced 
the  "  Homestead  Bill"  for  the  first  time, 
and  pursued  that  measure  until  it  was  en- 
acted into  a  law.  He  was  made  judge  of 
probate  for  1849-50;  appointed  on  Gov. 
Eaton's  staff  in  I847,  with  the  rank  of 
colonel ;  was  selectman  for  1852-53;  ap- 
pointed receiver  of  the  South  Royalton 
Bank  in  1857;  was  State's  attorney  for 
Washington  County  for  1865-66  ;  was  trus- 
tee for  the  United  States  deposit  money 
for  1851-52,  and  elected  to  the  State  Sen- 
ate for  1870-72. 

He  procured  the  charter  for  the  "North- 
field  Academy"  in  1846,  raised  the  sub- 
scription for  building  it,  paying  more  than 
any  other  man  except  Gov.  Paine,  was 
secretary,  treasurer  and  trustee  of  the  in- 
stitution, was  one  of  the  executive  com- 
mittee from  its  organization  down  to  Apr. 
18,  1868,  when  he  resigned  all  of  said 
offices,  having  completed  the  education  of 
his  children  at  said  school ;  was  a  promi- 
nent man  in  his  denomination,  president 
of  Goddard  Seminary  from  1868  to  '76, 
when,  by  reason  of  poor  health,  he  resign- 
ed that  office,  having  paid  liberally  and 
generously  for  its  establishment,  and  on 
resigning  the  office  of  president,  received 
from  the  trustees  a  very  complimentary 
resolution. 

He  was  foremost  in  establishing  the 
graded  school  in  Northfield,  gave  liberally 
towards  Norwich  University,  and  educated 
his  children  in  a  manner  creditable  to  him- 
self and  advantageous  to  them.  In  i860, 
the  University  of  Vermont  conferred  upon 
him  the  honorary  degree  of  Master  of 
Arts. 

He  became  a  voter  in  1832,  and  identi- 
fied himself  with  the  '■'  National  Republi- 
can "  party,  and  has  remained  faithful  to 
its  principles  ever  since.  He  has  attended 
45  State  Conventions  of  his  party,  40  of 


which  he  attended  in  39  successive  years. 
He  was  a  delegate  froni  Vermont  to  the 
Republican  Convention  at  Philadelphia  in 
1856,  which  nominated  John  C.  Fremont. 
He  attended  the  two  National  Conventions 
which  nominated  Gen.  Grant.  He  was 
the  marshal  for  Washington  County  at  the 
"Log  Cabin"  Convention  at  Burlington  in 
1840,  and  president  of  the  State  Conven- 
tion at  Rutland  in  1870  which  nominated 
Gen.  P.  T.  Washburn  for  Governor.  Being 
a  positive  man,  he  was  never  in  doubt  as 
to  his  support  of  men  or  measures. 

He  also  taught  school  in  the  Center  Vil- 
lage in  the  winters  of  1833,  '34,  being 
hired  by  Mr.  Dryer  by  reason  of  ability  to 
govern  a  turbulent  school  that  had  been 
very  disorderly  for  a  few  winters,  and  the 
scholars  were  brought  into  good  subjec- 
tion and  discipline  by  him,  so  that  for 
many  years  the  school  felt  the  influence  of 
his  teaching  and  government. 

Mr.  Carpenter  is  a  firm  believer  in  the 
final  restoration  of  all  human  intelligence 
to  holiness  and  happiness  in  God's  own 
good  time.  He  has  been  a  delegate,  vice 
president  and  president  of  the  Universalist 
State  Convention  for  many  years,  and  in 
1877  it  passed  the  following  resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  Con- 
vention be  tendered  to  the  Hon.  Heman 
Carpenter  for  the  able  and  efficient  manner 
in  which  he  has  executed  the  office  of  pres- 
ident of  this  Convention  for  several  years 
past,  and  for  the  urbanity  and  good  spirit 
he  has  manifested  toward  all  the  members 
of  that  Convention. 

When  Mr.  Carpenter  came  to  North- 
field  there  were  but  14  houses  in  the  "Fac- 
tory Village."  He  has  borne  his  part 
manfully  in  all  the  positions  he  has  filled 
by  the  suffrages  of  his  fellow  citizens,  bear- 
ing always  his  share  of  the  burdens. 

Mr.  Carpenter  married  Harriet  S.  Gil- 
christ, of  Chelsea,  Feb.  14,  1838,  who  was 
born  in  Goffstown,  N.  H.,  Dec.  24,  18 16. 
They  had  4  children  :  George  Nathaniel, 
Caroline  Sophronia,  Jason  Heman,  Abigail 
Fidelia. 

Mrs.  Carpenter  died  June  21,  1865,  and 
Judge  Carpenter  married  his  present  wife, 
Mrs.  Betsey  S.  Edgerton,  Oct.  16,  1866, 
at  Burlington.     She  was  born  in   Berlin, 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


July  20,  1822,  and  was  the  widow  of  John 
H.  Edgerton,  and  daughter  of  Solomon 
Nye. 

JAMES  GARY  BARRtL  THAYER, 

born  in  Braintree,  Aug.  10,  1824;  fourth 
son  of  Dr.  Samuel  W.  Thayer,  came  to 
Northfield,  and  became  clerk  for  George 
B.  Pierce  about  1840,  and  has  since,  except 
a  few  months  in  1848,  been  a  resident  of 
this  town.  In  1848,  he  became  clerk  for 
H.  H.  Camp  ;  was  in  partnership  with  him 
I  year,  and  went  into  the  clothing  business, 
which  he  has  since  followed,  and  has  been 
treasurer  of  the  Northfield  savings  bank 
since  it  commenced  operations  in  1869; 
in  religion  is  an  Episcopalian ;  has  been 
twice  married  ;   has  4  children, 

REUBEN   M.    MCINTOSH, 

born  in  Bethel,  1823;  was  brought  up  a 
farmer,  but  when  of  age  learned  the  daguer- 
rean  art,  and  practiced  in  and  about  his 
native  town.  In  1853,  he  moved  to  North- 
field,  and  worked  in  the  first  daguerrean 
saloon  established  in  this  place.  From 
that  time  to  within  a  few  years  he  worked 
at  making  pictures  in  the  daguerrean,  am- 
brotype,  and  photograph  process  with 
marked  success.  Latterly  he  has  made  a 
specialty  of  taking  stereoscopic  views,  and 
among  the  noted  places  he  has  visited  are 
the  Ausable  Chasm,  Mount  Mansfield, 
and  Black  River  Falls  in  Cavendish,  taking 
a  great  variety  of  scenes  that  commend 
themselves. 

ROSWELL   CARPENTER 

came  to  Northfield  when  the  country  was 
very  new,  not  far  from  1787.  He  was 
from  Charlestown,  N.  H.,  married  Louisa 
Larkins  of  Rockingham.  They  had  four 
children  :  Elvira,  Louisa,  Roswell,  Ursula  ; 
all  born  in  Northfield. 

Mr.  Carpenter,  it  is  said,  was  a  good 
dancer.  So  Col.  George  Cobleigh  and 
Adolphus  Denney,  Esq.,  loved  to  "  trip 
the  light  fantastic  toe  in  the  mazy  dance," 
and  took  great  delight  in  parties.  Proba- 
bly there  was  no  scientific  violining  in 
those  days,  but  a  good  deal  of  fiddling. 

Dr.  Matthew  McClearn,  born  in 
Nova  Scotia,  1824,  came  herefrom  Boston 
and  commenced  the  practice  of  medicine 
in  1855.     He  came  for  the  benefit  of  his 


health,  and  remained  2  years ;  is  one  of 
the  charter  members  of  the  Vermont  State 
Eclectic  Medical  Society,  was  its  treasurer 
27  years,  its  president  i  year,  and  is  also  a 
member  of  the  National  Eclectic  Medical 
Association.  He  is  married,  and  has  4 
children. 

Simon  Eggleston,  born  in  Middle- 
town,  N.  Y.,  came  here  in  1793.  He 
worked  for  Judge  Paine  in  his  factory  21 
years,  and  for  the  Governor  16 — a  boss- 
spinner  much  of  the  time,  but  during  his 
last  years  a  sorter  of  wool,  and  a  more 
faithful  man  to  his  employers,  perhaps 
never  lived. 

almon  weatherbee 
moved  from  Moretown  to  Northfield  in 
1S45  ;  worked  for  Governor  Paine  in  his 
factory  and  grist-mill.  He  built  the  house 
where  his  family  now  live — the  first  house 
on  that  hill.  He  was  killed  Dec.  1 1,  1867, 
in  the  terrible  railroad  disaster  at  Harlow 
Bridge.  He  was  an  industrious  and  good 
citizen,  and  his  sad  death  was  lamented 
by  his  fellow  townsmen.  He  left  a  wife 
and  3  children. 

SILAS   SHELDON, 

born  in  Dorset,  Jan.  25,  1794,  came  to 
Northfield  in  18 16.  He  married  Sarah 
Richardson,  Jan.  25,  18 18,  for  his  first 
wife,  and  Anna  Richardson  for  his  second, 
Dec.  30,  1 82 1,  twin  daughters  of  Stanton 
and  Anna  Richardson.  The  first  wife  died 
Dec.  I,  1818,  leaving  twins,  Silas  Harmon 
and  Samuel  Richardson,  when  5  days  old. 
The  second  wife  had  :  Chauncey  D.,  Martin 
B.,  Chauncey  G. 

DEA.    CALVIN   CADY, 

born  in  Pomfret,  Conn.,  1786,  located  in 
Berlin,  this  County,  and  worked  for  Porter 
Perrin  for  $12  a  month  in  haying,  he 
agreeing  to  do  all  the  pitching  both  ways. 
He  and  the  hands  would  work  until  8 
o^clock  at  night,  then  milk  the  cows,  eat 
break  and  milk,  and  go  to  bed.  He  lived 
at  one  time  at  Lanesville,  and  attended  a 
saw-mill.  It  is  said,  one  night  he  was 
standing  on  the  carriage  of  the  mill  that 
ran  out  over  the,  end  of  the  mill,  and  falling 
partially  asleep,  stepped  off,  and  fell  some 
20  feet,    where  it  was   rocks   below ;   but 


NORTHFIELD. 


there  happened  to  be  a  slab  which  stood 
one  end  against  the  mill  and  the  other  on 
the  rock,  and  he  struck  that  on  his  back, 
and  bounded  off  to  his  feet,  and  was  not 
hurt.  He  removed  to  Northfield  in  1828, 
and  by  working  hard  keeping  Judge  Paine  s 
boarding-house,  he  succeeded  in  getting 
into  comfortable  circumstances.  He  took 
a  great  interest  in  his  children  as  long  as 
he  lived,  and  made  it  a  point  to  get  them 
together  as  often  as  he  could,  especially  on 
thanksgivings.  He  was  one  of  the  deacons 
of  the  Congregational  church  here,  and 
had  the  esteem  and  confidence  both  of  his 
church  and  townsmen.  He  married  Betsey 
Merrill,  May,  1809,  who  was  born  in  1785. 
Their  children  were:  Almira,  Abigail, 
Calvin,  Jr.,  George,  Eliza,  Laura,  Luther, 
Lyman,  Mary  A.  Mr.  Cady  died  in  1867  ; 
Mrs.  Cady  in  1858. 

William  Allen,  now  living  on  the  old 
homestead,  is  one  of  the  oldest  inhabitants 
born  in  Northfield.  He  married  Esther  E. 
Libby,  of  Strafford,  in  1825;  children: 
Harrison  P.,  Nancy,  John  L.,  Edna, 
Emily  E.,  Marietta  C,  John  W.,  Amanda 
L.,  all  born  in  Northfield. 

ITHAMAR   ALLEN,  JR., 

born  in  1778,  came  here  from  Gill,  Mass., 
with  his  father  at  a  very  early  day,  and 
they  settled  near  the  north  corner.  Ith- 
amar,  Jr.,  married  Nancy,  daughter  of 
Aquillo  Jones,  and  moved  to  the  Falls  vil- 
lage, and  located  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  his  son  William,  where  his  father  lived 
and  died.  At  that  time  the  whole  valley 
north  of  our  Depot  village  was  all  a  wil- 
derness, and  Acjuillo  bought  this  farm, 
together  with  the  Burnham  place,  for  al- 
most a  song,  and  gave  the  former  land  to 
his  daughter  Nancy.  Their  children  were  : 
Elijah,  William,  Charles,  Sally,  Chloe, 
Amanda,  Edna,  Warren,  Adaline,  born  in 
Northfield.  Mr.  Allen  died  in  1861,  aged 
83  years. 

ABIJAH    HOWE, 

born  in  Middleton,  Mass.,  1788,  married 
Martha  Bridgman,  of  Hanover,  N.  H., 
and  came  to  Northfield  in  1834,  and 
settled  on  the  farm  where  Walter  Bow- 
man now  lives.  Mr.  Howe  graduated  at 
Dartmouth  in  18 10.     They  had  7  children  : 


Theoda,  Asa,  Martha  A-,  Sophia  D., 
Hannah  S.,  Lsaac  B.,  Miraett.  Mr.  Howe 
died  in  1872,  aged  83  ;  Mrs.  Howe  in  1865, 
aged  76  years. 

ISAAC    B.    HOWE.    ESQ., 

came  to  Northfield,  with  his  father,  when 
about  7  years  old,  where  his  boyhood  days 
were  passed  on  a  farm.  At  the  age  of  18 
he  commenced  teaching  school,  but  aban- 
doned this  in  2  years  for  civil  engineering 
on  the  Vermont  Central  railroad.  He  was 
employed  on  that  road  and  the  Vermont 
and  Canada  about  12  years,  having  charge 
of  the  civil  engineering  and  road  repairs. 
He  is  now  a  resident  of  CHnton,  Iowa.  He 
has  at  various  times  made  valuable  im- 
provements now  in  general  use  on  rail- 
ways, although  but  few  of  them  have  been 
secured  by  letters  patent.  He  also  in- 
troduced several  novel  and  useful  improve- 
ments in  the  construction  of  the  city  water 
works  while  president  of  the  Clinton  Water 
Works  Company. 

In  the  spring  of  1861,  Mr.  Howe  went  to 
Iowa,  to  take  the  position  of  chief  engineer 
and  assistant  superintendent  of  the  railway 
from  Clinton  to  Council  Bluffs.  The  next 
season  he  was  appointed  superintendent  of 
the  350  miles  of  railroad  from  Clinton  to 
the  Missouri  river  at  Omaha,  which  posi- 
tion he  held  until  the  summer  of  1872, 
when  ill  health  compelled  him  to  withdraw 
from  active  railway  service. 

For  several  years  Mr.  Howe  has  been 
extensively  engaged  in  operating  stone  and 
marble  quarries  in  Iowa  and  Illinois,  and 
with  his  banking  business  keeps  him  in 
constant  employment.  He  is  one  of  that 
kind  of  men  who  prefer  to  "wear  rather 
than  rust  out." 

Mr.  Howe  was  representative  of  North- 
field  in  1857-58,  and  received  other  marks 
of  appreciation  during  his  citizenship 
among  us.  To  show  his  love  for  the  town 
of  his  adoption  is  as  strong  as  ever,  an  ex- 
tract from  a  letter  is  given  : 

This  proposed  history  will  not  only  be 
of  great  interest  to  us  who  are  now  here, 
but  it  will  have  a  greater  interest  to  those 
who  are  to  succeed  us.  My  little  "  Hawk- 
eye  "  son  delights  in  hearing  me  tell  of 
what  I  did  when  I  was  a  little  boy,  and  I 
derive   pleasure   from    the   recital,  as   the 


642 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


dream-like  memories  of  the  olden  time  al- 
most bring  back  the  perfume  of  the  wild 
flowers  and  fruits  I  gathered  when  a  little 
barefooted  boy,  forty  years  ago!  Your 
history  of  Northtie'd  would  be  to  me  what 
my  early  history  is  to  my  children.  It  is 
almost  17  years  since  I  left  Vermont,  but 
my  interest  in  the  State  and  in  good  old 
Northfield  remains  as  strong  as  ever,  and 
it  gratifies  me  to  know  that  I  am  not  yet 
quite  forgotten,  but  may  still  claim  cit- 
izenship in  your  hearts,  if  not  in  your 
elections. 

The  family  monument  is  in  the  North- 
field  cemetery,  a  portico  monument  of  the 
Doric  order;  base  7x12  feet  from  the 
ground  to  the  top  of  the  pediments ;  of 
Vermont  granite.  The  urn  was  executed 
by  J.  S.  Collins,  of  Barre  ;  all  other  work 
by  Jones  Trow,  of  Berlin  ;  original  designs 
by  Isaac  B.  Howe. 

JUSTUS    BURNHAM,    ESQ., 

came  here  from  Hardwick,  Mass.,  quite 
early,  and  worked  at  the  carpenter  trade, 
building,  with  John  Green,  the  first  house 
on  Main  street,  where  Mrs.  William  Nich- 
ols resides.  His  children  were  :  Betsey, 
Anna,  Hannah,  Asa,  Isabella,  Arbijah, 
Rhoda,  David,  Lydia,  Violet. 

LUTHER    S.    BURNHAM, 

born  in  Brookfield,  Feb.  18,  1797,  came 
to  Northfield  in  1840,  and  settled  on  a 
farm  at  the  Falls  village,  and  was  a  man 
respected  and  beloved.  He  married  Lucy 
Nelson,  of  Orange,  1798,  and  they  had  6 
children:  James  H.,  Harris,  David  N., 
Elosia,  Lucy  Ann,  Helen  M. 

REV.    JAMES    HAHVEV    BURNHAM 

at  an  early  age  evinced  a  remarkable  apti- 
tude for  study,  especially  for  theology.  As 
he  grew  up,  he  wished  to  enter  the  minis- 
try of  the  Universalist  denomination,  and 
his  whole  soul  seemed  bent  in  that  direc- 
tion. His  parents  did  not  much  favor  the 
idea,  but  at  last  consented.  He  attended 
Newbury  Seminary  a  few  terms ;  taught 
school  with  very  good  success,  and  after  a 
while  commenced  preaching  in  Irasburgh, 
Barton  and  Coventry.  His  sermons,  like 
his  uniform  bearing,  were  noted  for  clear- 
ness, candor,  and  marked  conscientious- 
ness, rather  than  livel}-  imagination,  love 
of  sensation,  or  eflfort  for  pojmlarity.  Soon 
after   he  married   Ann  P.  Alexander,    of 


Northfield,  and  settled  as  a  Universalist 
minister  in  Troy,  Vt.  Here  his  health 
failed  him,  and  he  returned  to  this  town, 
and  engaged  in  trade  at  the  Center  vil- 
lage. His  wife  died  of  consumption  in 
1848.  After  her  death  Mr.  Burnham  re- 
sumed preaching  and  settled  in  Sacrappa, 
Me.;  in  1850,  married  Mary  A.  Barnard, 
of  Southbridge,  Mass.,  and  became  a  part- 
ner of  Rev.  Eli  Ballou,  at  Montpelier,  in 
the  book  business  and  publishing  of  the 
"  Cliristian  Repository  "  where  he  remain- 
ed till  his  death,  Sept.  11,  1853,  in  the 
full  prime  of  his  manhood,  of  consump- 
tion, a  loss  to  the  denomination  of  which 
he  was  a  worthy  member. 

MARVIN    SIMONS, 

born  in  Williamstown,  1804,  and  his  wife, 
Olive  Fisk,  born  Dec.  1806,  moved  here 
in  March,  1829,  and  died  Dec.  1870,  age 
66.  He  was  one  of  the  oldest  and  best 
citizens  of  the  town,  had  resided  here  40 
years,  was  justice  of  the  peace  19  years, 
selectman  12,  and  during  his  life  held 
many  large  trusts.  He  never  sought  prefer- 
ment, but  his  fellow  citizens,  without  dis- 
tinction of  party,  relying  on  his  good  judg- 
ment and  integrity,  kept  him  in  service. 
His  children  were:  Marcellus  M.,  Lycur- 
gus  L.,  Darrion  A.,  Cordelia  J.,  Olive  M., 
Alma  A.,  Willie  G. 

FREEDOM    EDSON. 

At  one  time  he  owned  all  the  land  in 
the  Falls  village.  He  married  Phebe  Ship- 
man  ;  children:  Daniel,  Martin  T.,  Bet- 
sey, Eli,  Sally,  Sophia,  Marietta,  Sylves- 
ter, Cynthia  M.,  Caroline  E. 

WILLIAM    R.    TUCKER, 
who  was  born  in  Norwich,  1812,  and  came 
to  this  town  in   1835,  at  one  time  owned 
650  acres  in  the  town. 

JAMES  GOULD, 
born  in  Amesbury,  Mass.,  1803;  married 
Rebecca  Morrill ;  their  children  were : 
Mary  E.,  Harriet  B.,  Hannah  R.,  James  P. 
About  1835,  Mr.  Gould  came  to  North- 
field,  and,  in  company  with  Walter  Little, 
established  a  potato  starch  factory  at  Falls 
village,  which  they  successfully  operated  a 
few  years,  until  it  was  destroyed  by  fire. 
He  then  engaged  in  woolen  manufacturing, 
a  part  of  the  time   with  Erastus  Palmer, 


NORTHFIELD. 


643 


extending  and  enlarging  as  increasing 
business  warranted,  until  failing  health 
forced  him  to  withdraw  from  business, 
when  he  sold  to  his  brother  Joseph,  and 
passed  much  of  his  time  with  his  children 
in  Wisconsin  and  Iowa,  until  1867,  when 
he  removed  to  Wisconsin,  and  in  company 
with  his  son  engaged  in  the  lumber  busi- 
ness, etc.  Under  the  pressure  of  business 
his  health  again  failed.  He  died  at  Janes- 
ville,  May,  1877. 

Shrewd  in  business,  but  more  anxious  to 
do  justice  to  others  than  to  exact  the  same  ; 
foremost  in  worthy  enterprises ;  never 
seeking  to  make  himself  conspicuous,  ac- 
cepting office  only  when  forced  upon  him  ; 
diffident,  tender-hearted  as  a  child,  his 
highest  ambition  seemed  to  be  to  do  good 
and  make  others  happy.  By  his  will,  his 
remains  were  brought  back  for  burial  in 
our  cemetery,  and  his  last  resting-place  is 
marked  with  a  shaft  of  granite  from  the 
green  hills  of  the  State  he  loved  so  dearly. 

JOSEPH  GOULD, 

born  in  1809 ;  came  to  this  town  with  his 
brother  James  in  1835.  ^'^  1857,  he  pur- 
chased the  woolen  factory  at  Gouldsville, 
which  was  consumed  by  fire  Jan.  31,  1873. 
On  the  23d  of  June  next,  he  commenced  to 
rebuild  on  the  old  site,  and  in  March,  1875, 
put  in  operation  a  first-class  mill.  For  12 
years  previous  to  his  death  his  son  Joseph 
W.,  had  been  in  partnership  with  him  in 
the  manufacturing  business.  He  married 
twice,  and  had  3  children:  Joseph  W., 
Hannah  C,  Alice  M.  He  united  with  the 
Methodist  church  in  1863  ;  was  a  leading- 
member  here.  The  pipe  organ  in  his 
church  at  Northfield  stands  as  a  monu- 
ment of  his  beneficence. 

WALTER  LITTLE, 
born  in  Haverhill,  Ma.ss.,  in  1797  ;  in  1813 
was  drafted  as  a  soldier  and  stationed  at 
Portsmouth,  and  after  his  discharge  worked 
in  the  factory  at  Salisbury,  Mass.  He 
came  to  Vermont  in  1820,  and  worked  for 
Judge  Paine  in  his  factory  3  years.  In 
1823,  he  went  back  to  Salisbury,  and 
worked  at  his  trade  till  1830,  when  he  re- 
turned to  Northfield,  brought  his  carding 
machinery  with  him,  and  set  it  up  at  the 


Falls  village.  James  Gould,  with  8  horses, 
moved  him  from  Salisbury,  and  bought 
out  Joseph  Keyes'  half  interest  in  the  grist, 
saw  and  cloth-mills  which  they  were  run- 
ning. Mr.  Little  and  Joseph  Keyes  com- 
menced the  first  building  for  a  mill  in  1824, 
at  the  Falls  ;  James  Gould  going  into  part- 
nership with  Mr.  Little  in  1831.  In  1832 
Messrs.  Little  &  Co.  built  the  starch 
mill ;  1837,  they  dissolved  partnership, 
Mr.  Gould  taking  the  custom-mill,  and  Mr. 
Little  the  starch-mill.  In  1847,  Mr.  Little 
went  to  Barre,  remaining  2  years,  thence 
to  North  Montpelier  and  engaged  in 
woolen  manufacturing,  where  he  died  in 
1859.  He  married  Jerusha,  daughter  of 
Samuel  Richardson,  in  1824,  and  they  had 
children:  Hazen  A.,  Sarah  H.,  Walter  S. 
He  was  a  successful  business  man,  and 
Northfield  is  indebted  to  him  for  starting 
manufactures  at  the  Falls  village.  He 
gave  employment  to  many  laboring  men 
and  women,  and  with  his  genial  good  na- 
ture contributed  much  to  the  enjoyment  of 
those  around  him.  He  liked  a  good  joke 
and  a  good  story,  and  knew  when  to  make 
business  pleasant  and  agreeable  ;  and  was 
a  leading  and  faithful  mason. 

WEST   HILL,    NORTHFIELD. 

A  number  of  inhabitants  settled  here  at 
an  early  day  on  land  belonging  to  the 
town  of  Waitsfield,  but  in  1822  four  tier  of 
lots  were  by  act  of  the  Legislature  annex- 
ed to  Northfield. 

WILLIAM    COCHRAN, 

from  Hanover,  N.  H.,  made  the  begin- 
ning there  in  1798.  He  married  Polly 
Graves.  Their  son  Stephen  was  the  first 
child  born  in  that  part  of  the  town.  Their 
children  were:  William  G.,  Lyman,  Wel- 
tha,  Stephen,  Washington,  Edmund,  Pol- 
ly, James. 

STEPHEN    COCHRAN 

resides  at  the  Center  village,  is  a  tailor  by 
trade,  and  well  respected. 

DEA.    DANIEL   PARKER, 

from  Jaffrey,  N.  H.,  a  year  later  than  Mr. 
Cochran,  located  on  West  Hill.  He  mar- 
ried Jennia  Cochran,  of  Peterboro,  N.  H., 
and  had  5  children. 

Daniel  Jr.  graduated,  called  the  best 
scholar  of  his  class,  at  Burlington  college. 


644 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Afterward  was  ordained  a  Congregational 
minister,  preached  some  3  or  4  years  in 
Craftsbury ;  came  back  to  South  North- 
field,  where  he  lived  on  the  Kathan  farm ; 
from  there  went  to  Brookfield,  and  pub- 
lished a  book  called  "  The  ConstiUitio7ial 
fnsirticto?- ,'''  designed  for  colleges  and  com- 
mon schools ;  while  canvassing  for  this 
work  he  visited  Glover,  and  while  there, 
died  at  the  house  of  Rev.  Levi  H.  Stone. 
He  left  a  son  who  is  now  a  physician  of 
considerable  note  in  Texas.  The  Doctor 
contributed  from  his  father's  papers  two  ar- 
ticles for  Mr.  Gregory's  book.     Extracts': 

THE  "DYE-TUB. 

How  bright  is  the  picture  of  childish  emotion, 

When  memory  paiuls  what  I  used  to  enjoy — 
Tlie  frolic  and  fun,  and  each  curious  notion, 

And  all  the  droll  capers  I  cut  when  a  boy! 
The  wide-spreading  fire-place,  and  pile  of  wood  by  it' 

The  pot-hook  and  candlestick  hung  on  a  wire, 
The  porridge-pot,  kettle,  and  frying  pan  nigh  i  , 

And  e'en  the  old  dye-tub  that  stood  by  the  fire; 
That  old  wooden  dye-tub,  the  wooden-hooped  dye-tub. 

The  blue  begrimmed  dye-tub  that  stood  by  the  fire. 

"  I  saw  the  stately  towering  trees, 
I  felt  the  soft  and  fragrant  breeze, 

A  wild,  romantic  boy; 
I  heard  the  robin's  early  song, 
I  heard  the  warbling  rills, — 
With  vast  delight  I  roamed  along 
O'er  Northfield's  rural  hills." 

"  When  with  a  heart  with  care  oppressed, 
Wanilering  I  seek  a  place  of  rest. 

In  whicli  to  find  repose. 
Where  J  in  friendship's  bowers  reclined, 

Enjoying  rural  bliss,  may  find 
Oblivion  for  my  woes. 
"  From  fancy's  visionary  flight, 

O'er  distant  woods  and  rills. 
I'leased  with  the  well-known  scenes  I  light 
On  Northfield's  rural  hills." 

CAPT.  HENRY  KNAPP, 
born  in  Claremont,  N.  H.,  Nov.  1787, 
came  to  Northfield  in  1808,  and  with  Harry 
Jones  and  Silas  Rice,  Jr.,  young  men 
about  his  age,  commenced  clearing  land 
around  the  four  corners  on  West  Hill, 
where  Mr.  Knapp  finally  made  for  himself 
a  good  home.  These  young  men  built  a 
shanty,  took  hemlock  boughs  for  bedding, 
got  bread  baked  at  Deacon  Parker's,  and 
spent  a  few  summers  in  clearing  land  ;  in 
the  fall  migrating  South  to  Claremont, 
and  returning  with  the  spring.  It  was  a 
happy  day  for  Mr.  Knapp  when  he  suc- 
ceeded in  clearing  an  acre  of  land,  and 
getting  it  well  sown  with  rye,  because  it 


was  his,  and  the  result  of  his  labors,  though 
they  were  obliged  to  go  to  Waitsfield  to 
get  their  potatoes  at  this  time. 

Years  after,  when  Mr.  Knapp  had  pros- 
pered, he  conceived  the  idea  of-  building  a 
large  barn,  and  after  cutting  the  timber 
and  preparing  it  by  the  old  rule,  the  ques- 
tion was  how  to  raise  it.  The  inhabitants 
were  few  and  greatly  scattered,  but  at  the 
end  of  three  days'  hard  labor  from  all  that 
could  be  induced  to  lend  a  helping  hand 
from  the  towns  of  Northfield,  Waitsfield 
and  Roxbury,  the  barn  was  raised,  and 
stands  to-day  upon  the  old  foundation. 

Living  on  the  main  road  from  West 
Roxbury  to  the  "north  neighborhood"  in 
Northfield,  he  often  had  new-comers  lo- 
cating farms  call  on  him,  and  to  his  credit 
always  had  his  "latch  string  out,"  and 
assisted  to  his  ability  those  who  after  be- 
came substantial  citizens  of  our  growing 
and  prosperous  town. 

He  married  Lucy,  daughter  of  William 
Keyes,  in  1818,  born  in  Northfield  in  1798, 
now  living  (1878),  in  the  Depot  village, 
with  her  children. 

George  Henry  died  in  Libby  Prison, 
Richmond,  Va.,  in  1864;  was  a  soldier 
from  Minnesota,  and  taken  prisoner  by  the 
rebels. 

SAMUEL  U.  RICHMOND,  ESQ., 
born  in  1803,  came  to  Northfield  with  his 
father  in  1823.  He  was  a  prominent  man 
in  the  Methodist  church,  and  a  leader  in 
the  Democratic  party.  No  man  was  ever 
turned  hungry  from  his  door.  He  was 
prompt,  industrious,  well  regulated,  and 
his  word  was  as  good  as  his  bond.  He 
moved  to  the  Depot  village  in  1867,  and 
died  very  suddenly  in  1873.  He  married 
Sophia,  daughter  of  Capt.  Henry  Knapp  ; 
children  :  Samuel  A.,  Henry  C,  Carlos  S., 
Lucy  S.,  George  H. 

DR.    N.    W.    GILBERT. 

Norman  W.  Gilbert,  born  in  Morris- 
town,  1830,  married  Sarah  Atwell,  of 
Waterbury,  i8S4;  studied  dentistry  in 
Lowell,  Mass.  ;  1858,  settled  in  Northfield  ; 
1867,  removed  to  Montpelier;  1873,  to 
Boston,  where,  Jan.  1877,  Mrs.  Gilbert 
died,  and  soon  after  the  Doctor  returned 


NORTHFIELD. 


645 


to  Northfield.  He  is  a  graduate  of  the 
Boston  Dental  College. 

HON.    DAVID   W.    HADLEY, 

resides  on  the  same  place  where  his  father 
located.  At  the  age  of  16,  on  the  death 
of  his  father,  he  took  charge  of  the  farm 
and  family.  He  has  been  representative 
and  selectman — see  town  list  for — and  as- 
sistant judge  for  Washington  county  in 
1850,  '51.  Judge  Hadley  has  the  honor 
of  owning  the  lot,  by  actual  calculation  of 
General  Jackman,  is  not  only  the  center 
of  Northfield,  but  the  center  of  Vermont ; 
lot  9,  range  5,  and  originally  belonged  to 
Peres  Gallup.  [This  center  of  the  State 
honor  is  claimed  by  three  towns,  or  more. 
See  Waitsfield  to  follow. — Ed.]  Judge 
Hadley  married  Louisa  Brown  of  Willis- 
ton,  and  has  8  children. 

GURDON  RANDALL, 

born  in  Scotland,  Conn.,  in  1795  ;  when  8 
years  old  came  to  Northfield  with  his 
father,  who  settled  in  "  Connecticut  Cor- 
ner." Mr.  Randall  was  a  carpenter  and 
joiner,  and  followed  that  business  as  long 
as  he  lived.  He  married  Laura  S.  War- 
ner of  Putney,  born  in  1803;  they  had  9 
children  :  Gurdon  Paine,  Francis  Voltaire, 
Laura  T.,  Jean  J.  R.,  Minerva,  Rouena 
M.,  Edward  H.  Citizen  Frances  Voltaire, 
Charles  Rush. 

ALLEN   BALCH, 

born  in  Old  Topsham,  Mass.,  1791,  came 
here  in  1829,  and  settled  on  West  Hill, 
where  John  Plastridge  lives.  He  started 
out  in  the  month  of  March,  for  his  new 
home,  moving  his  family  and  effects  with 
a  yoke  of  oxen  on  a  sled.  Getting  as  far 
as  Springfield,  he  found  the  snow  so  deep 
he  hired  a  stage-driver  to  take  his  family 
to  Northfield  ;  but  found  them  a  few  days 
after  at  Mr.  Sampson's  in  Roxbury,  the 
driver  not  being  able  to  go  any  further 
with  his  team.  Journeying  along  up 
through  the  west  part  of  the  town,  they 
stopped  over  night  at  Capt.  Henry  Knapp's. 
The  women  on  the  next  morning  had  to 
wade  through  the  snow  to  get  to  their  log- 
house.  He  married  Hepsebah  Dodge  of 
N.  H.  ;  9  children;  died  in  1881. 

ADIN    SMITH, 

born  in  Monkton,   1794,  came  from  Rox- 


bury to  Northfield,  and  settled  on  the 
West  Hill  in  1835.  He  married  Lydia 
Waterman,  born  in  Brookfield,  1792  ;  chil- 
dren :  Alvin  F.,  Elvira  E.,  John  W.,  b 
1819;  Levi,  b  1821  ;  DanforthA.,  b  1825; 
Fanny  B.,  Gilbert  O.,  b  1830;  Mary  L., 
Wm.  M.  Adin  Smith  and  wife  made  the 
greatest  sacrifice  of  any  of  our  citizens,  in 
consenting  that  four  of  their  sons,  Levi, 
Danforth,  John  and  Gilbert,  might  enlist 
to  assist  in  putting  down  the  rebellion,  all 
of  whom  gave  their  lives  to  this  end,  ex- 
John,  who  returned. 

WILLIAM    A.    GALLUP, 

born  in  Hartland,  May,  1795,  came  to 
Northfield  in  18 17,  and  began  a  clearing, 
boarding  with  David  Denny  and  Isaiah 
Shaw.  Growing  homesick,  he  went  back 
to  Hartland.  He  was  quite  a  military 
man,  and  received  a  commission  as  lieu- 
tenant of  light  artillery,  from  Gov.  C.  P. 
Van  Ness,  in  1825.  He  married  Betsey 
Dodge,  of  Mass.,  and  in  1828,  came  back 
to  Northfield  to  stay,  settling  in  the  N.  W. 
part  of  the  town,  where  his  son,  Jonathan 
C.  Gallup,  until  lately  resided ;  children  : 
J.  C,  Wm.  W.,  Roderick  O.  Mrs.  Gal- 
lup died  Mar.  1859,  ^"^1  ^^^-  G-  Apr.  1868. 
J.  C.  Gallup,  son  of  Wm.  A.,  came  to 
Northfield  with  his  father,  was  very  suc- 
cessful, and  possessed  one  of  the  largest 
tracts  of  land  in  Northfield.  At  the  time 
he  sold  his  West  Hill  farm  it  contained 
930  acres.  He  moved  into  the  depot  vil 
lage  in  1866,  and  bought  the  fine  resi- 
dence formerly  owned  by  Perley  Belknap, 
commanding  one  of  the  best  views  of  the 
village.  He  has  been  a  lister,  1864-5-6, 
and  in  1874-8  ;  was  director  and  president 
of  the  chair  manufacturing  company ;  is 
director  in  the  Northfield  National  Bank  ; 
has  a  wife  and  3  children. 

SEWALL   DAVIS, 

born  in  Charlestown,  N.  H.,  in  1791,  set- 
tled in  the  west  part  of  the  town.  Their 
children  were:  Howard,  Louisa,  William, 
Hannah.  At  the  burning  of  Charlestown, 
his  Bible,  while  all  the  other  books  in  the 
book-case  were  burned,  even  those  that 
laid  on  the  Bible,  was  preserved  from  de- 
struction ;  had  only  one  cover  somewhat 
charred. 


646 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


JONATHAN  BRIGGS, 
from  Putney,  about  18 17,  settled,  after 
living  a  while  in  the  Center  village,  on  the 
farm  on  West  Hill  where  his  son  Harvey 
now  resides.  He  was  a  constable  here  a 
few  years,  and  gave  the  land  where  the 
yellow  meeting-house  stood,  on  condition 
it  should  revert  back  to  his  heirs  should  it 
not  be  used  for  such  a  purpose,  which  was 
done  accordingly  after  its  removal.  He 
had  2  wives  and  1 1  children. 

James  Steele,  born  in  Antrim,  N.  H., 
1793,  married  Esther  Smith,  in  East  Rox- 
bury,  1815,  born  in  Randolph,  1798.  They 
had  6  children.  Mr.  Steele  died  at  the 
old  homestead,  in  1869,  and  Mrs.  Steele 
in  1875. 

Mr.  Steele  bought  his  farm  of  Nathan 
Morse  in  1829,  for  $3,700,  but  t  acre 
cleared,  and  moved  on  about  April,  draw- 
ing his  goods  on  a  hand-sled  about  2 
miles,  as  there  were  no  roads.  His  small 
log-house  was  covered  with  hemlock  bark, 
and  he  had  to  build  a  fire  on  the  ground 
in  the  center  of  the  house,  the  smoke  going 
up  through  a  hole  left  open  in  the  roof; 
oiled  paper  was  put  up  to  slits  in  the  logs 
to  admit  light,  and  a  blanket  hung  up  for 
a  door.  They  had  3  children  at  the  time. 
He  came  from  Brookfield  to  Northfield. 

Warren  Rice,  born  in  Claremont, 
N.  H.,  Dec.  24,  1794,  married  Judith 
Johnson,  in  Cornish,  and  moved  to  North- 
field  in  182 1  ;  children:  Ruhanna  P.,  Al- 
mira  T.,  Arial  K.,  Willard  A.  Mr.  Rice 
died  Nov.  29,  1845. 

Edward  Ingalls,  writing  in  the  Argus 
and  Patriot  of  this  family,  says  : 

Mrs.  Rice's  mother  lived  to  be  98  years 
old,  and  could  read  without  spectacles  at 
that  age.  At  one  time  the  men  folks  were 
all  gone,  and  Mrs.  Rice  was  left  alone 
with  Mr.  Rice's  father  and  mother,  they 
being  infirm  and  unable  to  do  anything 
for  themselves,  and  an  invalid  son  of  her 
own,  who  was  also  helpless.  The  wind 
was  blowing  strong  from  the  north-west  at 
the  time.  Mrs.  Rice  thought  she  heard  a 
crackling  like  fire.  Looking  about  to  see 
what  it  was,  she  found  the  roof  of  the 
house  in  flames,  and  burning  smartly. 
She  carried  water  quite  a  distance  into  the 
attic,  and  put  the  fire  out  in  the  inside  so 
she   could   open    the    scuttle,    when   she 


climbed  out  on  the  roof  and  put  it  out 
there  also. 

DAVID    R.    TILDEN, 

writer  of  a  "chronicle  on  the  war  made 
on  Gov.  Paine  and  the  friends  of  the  pro- 
jected railroad  route  through  Northfield," 
published  in  the  Montpelier  Watchman — 
see  Mr.  Gregory's  for  pages  161-164. — He 
was  born  in  Williamstown  in  1800,  resided 
some  years  in  this  town,  had  three  wives, 
one  son  Ai  N.,  by  his  first,  5  children  by 
his  second,  and  two  by  his  third.  He 
died  in  Plattsburgh,  N.  Y.,  in  1847. 

FRANK   PLUM LEY. 

born  in  Eden,  was  reared  on  a  farm,  and 
had  no  other  advantages  than  farming  boys 
generally  have ;  for  several  years  taught 
school  in  districts  and  academies  both 
East  and  West;  in  1866,  entered  the  law 
office  of  Powers  &  Gleed,  at  Morrisville ; 
in  1867,  the  Law  Department  of  Michigan 
University,  and  also  pursued  a  selected 
course  of  the  Literary  Department  of  that 
University,  and  in  1869,  was  admitted  to 
practice  law  at  the  Lamoille  County  Court ; 
June  following,  came  to  Northfield,  and 
entered  the  law  office  of  Hon.  Heman  'v 
Carpenter  ;  Jan.  1870,  the  firm  of  Carpenter  j 
&  Plumley  was  formed  ;  dissolved  by  lim-  / 
itation  in  1876;  Dec.  1877,  became  senior  ' 
partner  of  the  firm  of  Plumley  &  Johnson. 
In  1 87 1,  Mr.  Plumley  married  Lamina  L. 
Fletcher,  of  Eden,  then  preceptress  of 
Northfield  Graded  School,  and  they  have 
2  children,  Charles  Albert  and  Theodora 
May. 

[Mr.  Plumley  prepared  the  history  of 
Eden  for  vol.  11  of  the  Gazetteer.] 

SOME  OF  THE  EARLY  ANECDOTES  OF 
THE  TOWN. 

BY  HON.  HEMAN    CARl  ENTEK. 

Capt.  Henry  Knapp,  one  of  the  early 
settlers  in  the  southwest  part  of  Northfield, 
that  part  set  from  Waitsfield,  was  a  well- 
to-do  farmer,  just  in  all  his  dealings,  want- 
ing just  what  belonged  to  him,  and  with  a 
due  regard  to  the  rights  of  others.  This 
trait  of  his  character  was  well  brought  out 
by  a  little  incident  that  occurred  about  40 
years  ago.  His  farm  lying  near  the  base 
of  the  mountain  between  Waitsfield  and 
Northfield,    the   sheep-pastures  and  folds 


NORTHFIELD. 


647 


were  liable  to  be  visited  by  bears  which 
some  seasons  were  very  destructive  to  the 
sheep  in  that  neighborhood.  About  1839, 
or  near  that  time,  a  great  hunt  was  planned. 
The  inhabitants  of  Roxbury,  Warren, 
Waitsfield  and  Northfield  were  to  assemble 
under  their  respective  commanders.  The 
Roxbury  forces  under  the  command  of 
Esquire  Orcutt ;  Warren  forces  under 
Capt.  Sargent ;  Waitsfield  forces  under 
Capt.  Campbell,  and  Northfield  forces  un- 
der the  leadership  of  Capt.  Samuel  Duns- 
moor.  The  preliminaries  being  previously 
settled,  the  forces  took  up  the  line  of  march 
at  a  given  hour.  It  was  a  bright  October 
day.  Capt.  Knapp  put  up  teams  in  his 
stable,  and  went  to  the  hunt.  Heman 
Carpenter,  a  Mr.  Timothy,  and  Mr.  Gla- 
zier put  up  their  teams  in  the  Captain's 
stable.  After  a  tiresome  day,  climbing 
precipices  and  crossing  ravines,  they  reach- 
ed Capt.  Knapp's  home  just  at  dusk,  tired 
and  hungry  as  bears,  but  "  nary"  a  bear 
was  seen  that  day.  The  three  gentlemen 
above  named,  called  at  the  house  of  Capt. 
Knapp,  just  as  the  family  were  about  to  sit 
down  to  their  supper.  Mr.  C.  inquired  of 
the  Captain  if  he  and  his  friends  might  sup 
with  them,  assuring  him  that  he  should  be 
paid.  "  O,  yes,"  said  the  Captain,  "cer- 
tainly." They  sat  down;  there  was  a  plen- 
tiful supply  of  fried  pork,  potatoes,  brown 
bread  and  new  cider,  and  better  justice  was 
never  done  to  the  eatables.  Supper  over, 
Mr.  Carpenter  says  to  the  Captain,  "  what 
is  to  pay  ?"  The  Captain  replied,  "that 
he  should  charge  12^  cents  for  each  horse, 
and  should  charge  Mr.  C.  12^  for  his  sup- 
per, and  the  other  gentlemen  10  cents 
each  for  their  supper,"  adding,  '■'■[think 
Mr.  C,  you  eat  a  little  more  than  they  did.'''' 
Mr.  C.  thanked  him  for  his  kindness,  ac- 
knowledged the  justice  and  reasonableness 
of  the  demand,  paid  the  bill  and  departed 
for  home.  In  1847  and  1848,  Mr.  C.  rep- 
resented the  town  in  the  legislature,  and 
received  the  cordial  support  of  the  Captain, 
and  in  consideration  of  the  fitness  and 
qualifications  of  the  Captain,  Mr.  C.  ap- 
pointed him  justice  of  the  peace  for  those 
2  years. 

Amos   Robinson,    the    first    settler    of 


Northfield,  was  a  man  of  strong  build  and 
dark  complexion.  He  began  his  "clear- 
ing" near  the  east  line  of  the  town  next 
to  Williamstown,  and  as  was  the  custom 
in  those  days,  a  bell  was  hung  with  a  strap 
around  the  cow's  neck,  and  the  cow  turned 
into  the  woods  to  browse.  One  night  his 
cow  did  not  come  up,  and  he  could  not 
find  her.  The  next  morning  he  renewed 
the  search,  and  finding  her  trail,  followed 
it  through  the  woods,  and  in  the  afternoon 
came  into  a  clearing  in  the  town  of  Wash- 
ington. He  was  discovered  by  the  owner 
of  the  clearing,  and  taken  for  an  Indian, 
the  man  in  great  fright  ran  for  his  log- 
cabin,  screaming,  "The  Injuns  are  com- 
ing!" "The  Injuns  are  coming!"  Mr. 
Robinson  followed  to  the  cabin  door,  how- 
ever, and  succeeded  in  satisfying  the  in- 
mates he  was  no  "Injun,"  but  an  honest 
settler  of  Northfield  in  pursuit  of  a  stray 
cow,  and  finding  it,  he  returned  home 
through  the  woods,  a  distance  of  about  8 
miles,  contented  that  no  worse  thing  had 
befallen  him  than  to  have  been  taken  for 
an  Indian. 

Rev.  Joel  Winch  [see  biography,  page 
622],  was  a  very  shrewd,  jovial,  homespun 
kind  of  a  man,  full  of  fun  and  anecdote. 
He  was  a  good  farmer,  and  a  pretty  good 
preacher.  He  would  work  the  six  days, 
and  on  Sundays  j^reach  in  school-houses  in 
the  surrounding  neighborhoods.  On  one 
occasion  he  was  holding  forth  in  the 
school-house  near  the  head  of  Berlin  pond. 
It  was  haying  time,  and  the  sturdy  tillers 
of  the  soil  filled  the  house,  and  being 
wearied  through  the  labors  of  the  week, 
and  having  confidence  in  the  good  elder  at 
the  helm,  his  congregation  had  mostly  re- 
clined their  heads  to  take  a  gentle  snooze. 
The  Elder,  discoursing  upon  the  fall  of 
Adam,  described  in  the  3d  chapter  of  Gen- 
esis, stopping  short,  and  casting  his  eyes 
deliberately  over  the  sleepy  congregation, 
taking  in  the  situation,  cried  out  at  the 
top  of  his  voice,  "Adam,  where  art  thou?" 
The  sleepers  awoke,  surprised  and  aston- 
ished, looking  at  each  other  with  amaze- 
ment. The  preacher  resumed,  and  there 
was  no  more  snoozing  in  the  congregation 
that  day. 


648 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


About  1833  or  '4,  the  Congregational 
society  in  town  had  arranged  to  settle  a 
young  minister  by  the  name  of  Furguson, 
and  it  was  said  their  purpose  was  to  ap- 
propriate the  ministerial  lands  in  town  to 
the  use  of  their  denomination.  To  head 
off  this  arrangement,  and  to  secure  the 
lands  to  the  use  of  schools,  it  was  arrang- 
ed to  settle  Elder  Winch  over  the  Uni- 
versalist  society,  and  for  him  to  deed  the 
lands  to  the  town  for  the  use  of  schools. 
Accordingly,  Elder  Winch  was  installed 
over  the  Universalist  society  according  to 
the  usages  of  that  denomination,  and  he 
deeded  the  lands  to  the  town,  for  the  use 
of  the  common  schools. 

The  Elder  for  several  succeeding  Sun- 
days preached  to  his  new  society  in  the 
"  old  yellow  meeting-house  "  at  the  Center 
village,  on  the  east  side  of  what  is  now  the 
"  burying-ground."  On  one  of  these  Sab- 
baths the  Elder  was  discoursing  with  great 
earnestness  and  eloquence  upon  the  de- 
generacy of  the  race  and  the  hypocrisy  of 
the  times,  when  he  rounded  off  a  climax  by 
saying:  "My  Christian  friends,  I  tell 
you  there  is  more  church  lumber  than 
church  member  in  this  sinful  world."  This 
utterance  was  characteristic  of  the  Elder, 
and  was  original  with  him. 

[  The  newspapers  had  out  a  few  years 
since  another  Northfield  anecdote.  A 
farmer  in  Moretown,  it  seems,  took  his 
fatted  hog  after  slaughtered  to  Northfield 
to  sell.  The  Northfield  butcher  in  a  fit  of 
generosity  patronizingly  said  the  hog  being 
such  a  fine  one,  he  would  make  him  a  pres- 
ent of  the  head,  which  he  accordingly  did, 
then  weighed  the  hog  mimis  the  head  and 
paid  for  it.  It  took  the  unsophisticated 
seller  a  number  of  days  before  he  could 
settle  it  in  his  head  how  the  butcher  could 
keep  his  usual  health  under  such  a  chronic 
attack  of  generosity,  but  he  saw  the  point 
at  last,  and  found  he  had  not  only  sold 
pork,  but  himself  a  little,  also.] 

RELIGIOUS   SOCIETIES. 

FROM  HON.  JOHN  GREGORY. 

To  show  how  the  different  societies  in 
Northfield  stood  as  to  numbers  when  the 
law  required  the  legal  voters  to  express 
their    preference    where    the    ministerial 


money  should  be  distributed,  from  the 
town  records  the  report  of  the  committee  : 

June  3, 1823,  division  of  ministerial  money 
as  follows : 

Methodist  Society $12  83 

Congregationalist  Society 8  42 

Restorationist  Society i?  24 

Free  Will  Baptist  Society ^1,  ~1> 

Christian  Society 5  61 

Division  for  1825,  as  follows  : 

Free  Will  Baptist  Society $7  62 

Congregationalist  Society 6  11 

Restorationist  Society '^\  1)2) 

Christian  Society 4  27 

Methodist  Society 25  00 

Oliver  Averill,  Nathan  Green,  Virgil 
Washburn,  Joel  Winch,  Harry  Emerson, 
committee  ;  Elijah  Smith,  town  clerk. 

THE   UNION    MEETING-HOUSE, 

at  the  Center  village,  was  the  first  one 
built  in  this  town,  and  was  completed  in 
1820;  building  committee:  Amos  Rob- 
inson, Charles  Jones,  Freedom  Edson, 
Nathaniel  Jones  and  Oliver  Averill. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors,  Apr.  6, 
1820,  for  selling  the  pews,  it  was  voted 
one-fourth  the  value  be  paid  in  money, 
and  the  other  three-fourths  in  stock  or 
grain,  and  that  the  house  should  be  com- 
pleted by  the  first  day  of  November,  and 
at  that  time  a  payment  of  money  and 
stock  to  be  made.  The  whole  number  of 
pews,  50,  were  all  sold  at  public  auction 
save  12,  for  $760. 

The  division  of  time  for  each  denomina- 
tion reported  by  the  committee  was  as 
follows  : 

The  Methodist  Society,  first  Sabbath  in 
each  month  except  February  and  March  ; 
the  Restorationist  Society,  the  third  Sab- 
bath in  each  month  and  fifth  in  August ; 
the  Congregational  Society,  fourth  Sab- 
bath in  each  month  except  March  and 
August ;  the  remainder  to  the  Free  Will 
Baptist  Society. 

Josiah  B.  Strong,  Oliver  Averill,  Na- 
thaniel Jones,  Joel  Winch,  committee. 

This  first  house  built  in  Northfield  for 
religious  worship  was  of  humble  preten- 
sions, painted  yellow,  and  there  being  no 
steeple  or  cupola  upon  it,  it  resembled  a 
barn  very  much,  and  hence  became  a  bye- 
word,  and  was  called  by  the  irreligious 
"  God's  yellow  barn."  In  process  of  time 
other  churches,  more   expensive  and  de- 


NORTHFIELD. 


649 


sirable,  were  built  in  town,  and  this  plain 
but  comfortable  old-fasliioned  meeting- 
house was  sold  to  the  Catholics,  and 
placed  upon  the  land  in  the  Depot  village 
given  them  by  Gov.  Paine,  where  with 
some  new  improvements  it  made  a  respect- 
able appearance. 

[Whereupon  some  Catholic  wag  of  the 
day  wrote :] 

AN   impromptu:    "god's  YELLOW  BARN." 

It  liad  tlic  hue  of  gold  in  its  color  in  tlie  ea'iier  day. 
And  it  was  named  In  rather  of  an  irreligious  way; 
The  wicked  Protestant  boys  called  it  a  house  for  cattle. 
That  is,  called  it  barn  1    what  a  barn  's  for  certain- 
naughty  tattle  ! 
And  God^s  .'  who  did  at  length,  it  seems,  vindicate  his 

claim — 
So  it  had  a  regeneration  and  bears,  at  last,  a  Catholic 

name. 
Ah!  little  did  he  know  who  painted  it— that  odd  fellow, 
It  had  the  temt  of  the  Pope,  Pat,— the  Pope's  flag  is 
yellow. 

Was  it  prophetic  ?  the  Puritan's  brush  made  it  gold- 
en I  y  so ; 

That  beautiful,  radiant,  peerless  color  of  the  sun! 

Instead  of  some  dull  and  clod-like,  and  pitiful  dun; 

Only  He  who  sees  the  "  beginning  and  end  may  know;" 

He  did  know;  but  it  "looks  respectable  "  now,  says 
Gregory,  John; 

Removed  from  "ye  old  grounds,"  "some  new  im- 
provements made  upon." 

["  The  little  old  yellow  meeting-house," 
that  was,  soon  however,  was  burned — by 
lightning,  whereupon  the  joke  seemed  to 
return  upon  the  author  of  the  impromptu — 
who  it  seems  took  it  silently.  See  Catho- 
lic record,  later.] 

METHODISM    IN   NORTHFIELD. 

BY  UEV.  A.  C.  STEVENS. 

Northfield  was  first  .settled  on  East  Hill 
in  1785,  by  Amos  and  Ezekiel  Robinson 
and  Stanton  Richardson.  One  of  these, 
at  least,  Stanton  Richardson,  belonged 
to  the  Methodist  church.  It  was  not  how- 
ever till  some  few  years  later  that  the  first 
Methodist  class  was  formed.  The  first 
class-leader  was  William  Keyes.  The 
names  of  those  who  were  members  of  this 
class,  as  near  as  can  now  be  ascertained, 
were — William  Keyes,  leader,  Stanton 
Richardson,  Elijah  Smith,  Joseph  Nich- 
ols, and  their  wives. 

The  first  Methodist  preacher  formally 
appointed  to  Vermont  was  Nicholas  Sne- 
then,  in  1796,  to  what  was  then  known  as 
Vershire    Circuit.     It   is   probable,    how- 

82 


ever,  that  the  Methodist  itinerant  had  be- 
fore this  date  preached  the  word  of  life 
within  the  bounds  of  this  State.  The 
General  Conference  of  iSoo  placed  the 
whole  of  Vermont,  New  Hampshire,  Can- 
ada, much  of  Connecticut,  and  all  of  New 
York  east  of  the  Hudson,  in  the  New 
York  Conference.  This  large  territory 
was  divided  into  districts.  Pittsfield  Dis- 
trict embraced  New  York  city,  the  whole 
of  Long  Island,  extended  northward,  em- 
bracing Vermont,  and  stretching  far  into 
Canada.  It  was,  however,  not  till  about 
1804  that  regular  Methodist  preaching  was 
sustained  in  Northfield,  when  the  Barre 
circuit  was  formed,  embracing  some  dozen 
towns,  of  which  Northfield  was  one.  The 
first  regular  Methodist  preachers  in  the 
the  town  were  Elijah  Hedding  and  Dan 
Young  ;  but  little  is  recorded  of  the  latter  ; 
One,  however,  who  remembers  him,  speaks 
of  him  as  "  tall  and  slim  in  person,  full  of 
zeal  for  the  Master,  much  like  Stonewall 
Jackson  in  appearance."  The  other,  Eli- 
jah Hedding,  became  afterwards  well 
known  as  one  of  the  bishops  of  the  M.  E. 
Church.  The  preaching  service  was  held 
in  the  barns  and  log-houses  of  the  people. 
The  preachers  would  come  around  once  in 
two  or  four  weeks,  as  the  extent  of  the 
circuit  would  admit.  It  was  not  till  1820, 
the  first  meeting-house  was  erected  in 
town,  a  "  Union  Church,"  built  at  the 
Center  village — "the  old  Yellow  Meeting- 
house." The  Methodists  had  the  privi- 
lege of  occupying  it  a  part  of  the  time. 
The  names  of  but  few  of  the  preachers  to 
1820  can  now  be  recalled  by  the  older  in- 
habitants of  the  town. 

Soon  after  Hedding  and  Young  left  the 
circuit,  Eleazer  Wells  and  Warren  Bannes- 
ter  were  preaching  to  the  scattered  flock  in 
demonstration  of  the  Spirit  and  with  pow- 
er. Elder  Beals  and  the  eccentric  and  stir- 
ring Joel  Winch  were  preachers  of  that 
early  day.  Elder  Branch,  David  Kilborn 
and  Elder  Streeter,  Rev.  Mr.  Southerland, 
also,  a  good  preacher  from  or  near  Boston, 
came  up  into  the  wilderness  to  seek  the 
lost  sheep.  The  Union  church  was  com- 
pleted in  1820.  About  this  time.  Elder 
J.  F.  Adams  was   on  the   circuit.     Under 


650 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


his  labors  there  was  a  sweeping   revival, 
— whole  families  were  converted. 

From  1820  to  1830,  the  preachers  on  the 
circuit,  as  far  as  now  can  be  ascertained, 
were:  1823.  Wilder  Mack  and  Elder  Ma- 
hew  ;  1824-5,  John  Lord  and  David  Les- 
ley. Lesley  was  a  massive  built  man, 
height  some  6  feet,  4  inches, — A  man  of 
faith  and  zeal.  Horace  Spaulding  also 
preached  here  before  1830. 

In  1827,  C.  D.  Cahoon  and  Chester 
Levings  were  on  the  circuit.  Then  follow- 
ed William  McCoy,  C.  R.  Harding  and 
Eleazer  Jordan.  Most  of  these  devoted  men 
have  gone  home.  1830-40,  John  Nason 
and  F.  T.  Dailey  traveled  the  circuit. 
John  Nason  is  spoken  of  as  a  "powerful 
man,  burning  with  zeal,  who  had  warm 
friends  and  bitter  enemies. ■•  Under  his 
labors  another  revival  swept  over  North- 
field.  About  this  time,  the  name  of  Elisha 
J.  Scott  appears  as  one  of  the  ministers  on 
the  circuit,  a  young  man  of  earnestness 
and  piety,  and  this  being  his  first  appoint- 
ment. The  names  of  Haynes  Johnson, 
then  a  young  man,  Washington  Wilcox, 
Ariel  Fay,  a  great  worker,  Moses  Sander- 
son, J.  A.  Scarritt  and  Samuel  Richardson 
appear  among  those  stationed  here ;  and 
Elder  Cowen,  and  about  1835,  John 
Smith,  more  widely  known  as  "  Happy 
John,"  then  a  young  man,  preached  on 
the  circuit.  Few  who  have  seen  or  heard 
"  Happy  John"  will  ever  forget  him.  He 
was  a  man  of  medium  height,  compactly 
built,  with  a  bright  eye,  and  a  voice  as 
clear  and  ringing  as  a  trumpet.  At  camp 
meetings  he  was  in  his  element.  He  was 
not  a  great  preacher,  but  frequently  one  of 
the  most  powerful  men  in  prayer  and  ex- 
hortation that  Vermont  Methodism  has 
known. 

In  this  decade  Northfield  is  put  down  in 
the  Minutes  as  a  station  by  itself,  able  to 
support  a  minister  all  the  time — with  a 
membership  between  300  and  400. 

1840-50:  From  1820  to  1842,  the  Meth- 
odist church  in  Northfield  worshipped  in 
the  "  Union  meeting-house,"  or  in  private 
houses.  In  1842,  Gov.  Paine,  who  had  built 
a  church  at  the  "  Depot  Village  "  for  the 
accommodation    of    the    workmen   in  his 


factory,  gave  the  Methodists  the  privilege 
of  occupying  this  house  as  their  place  of 
worship.  A.  T.  Bullard,  one  of  the  fath- 
ers in  the  Vermont  Conference,  was  the 
stationed  preacher  that  year.  During  the 
decade  the  following  ministers  were  sta- 
tioned at  Northfield  :  A.  T.  Bullard,  John 
Currier,  J.  H.  Patterson,  A.  Webster,  A. 
G.  Button,  John  G.  Dow.  The  most  of 
these  men  are  now  living.  They  have 
done  noble  service,  and  their  names  will 
be  inseparably  connected  with  the  history 
of  Vermont  Methodism. 

1850-60  :  At  the  beginning  of  this  dec- 
ade H.  P.  Gushing  was  stationed  at  North- 
field.  During  his  pastorate  the  "  Paine 
meeting-house  "  became  too  small  to  ac- 
commodate the  worshippers,  and  was  en- 
larged. W.  J.  Kidder  succeeded  Mr. 
Gushing.  The  sudden  death  of  Governor 
Paine  occurred  in  1853.  His  church  was 
thrown  into  the  market  and  sold  at  public 
auction,  and  bought  by  the  Congregational 
Society,  and  the  Methodist  Society  lost 
their  place  of  worship.  But  their  courage 
was  equal  to  the  demands  of  the  hour. 
Cheered  and  led  on  in  the  work  by  their 
earnest  and  wide-awake  pastor,  W.  J. 
Kidder,  the  foundation  of  a  new  church 
was  laid  on  Main  street,  during  the  month 
of  May,  1854;  and  dedicated  to  the  wor- 
ship of  Almighty  God  in  December  of  the 
same  year.  The  ministers  who  followed 
Mr.  Kidder  to  i860,  were  E.  A.  Rice,  W. 
D.  Malcom  and  I.  McAnn. 

1860-70:  The  pastors  of  the  church 
during  this  decade  were  A.  L.  Cooper,  J. 
A.  Sherburn,  S.  H.  Colburn,  J.  Gill,  and 
R.  Morgan.  During  Mr.  Morgan's  pasto- 
rate the  church  was  enlarged  and  beauti- 
fied, rendering  it  now  one  of  the  best 
churches  in  the  Vermont  Conference. 

The  next  decade  (1S70)  opens  with  the 
pastorate  of  A.  C.  Stevens,  the  present 
pastor  of  the  church.  During  the  entire 
history  of  the  M.  E.  Church  in  Northfield 
a  revival  spirit  has  prevailed  among  both 
pastors  and  members.  It  has  now  a  mem- 
bership of  between  200  and  300,  a  church 
valued  at  $12,000.  a  parsonage  valued 
at  $2,000. 

The  ofiicers  of  the  church  now  are  :   Pas- 


NORTHFIELD. 


651 


tor,  Rev.  A.  C.  Stevens ;  class-leaders, 
S.  V.  Richmond,  Hosea  Clark,  John  Wil- 
ley,  Eli  Latham,  Hugh  S.  Thresher. 

METHODIST   RECORD,    1870-1878. 
BY   REV.  W.  J.  KIDDER. 

A.  C.  Stevens,  pastor  1870-71-72;  W. 
R.  Puffer,  1873;  W.  D.  Malcom,  1874; 
A.  B.  Truax,  1875-76-77;  O.  M.  Bout- 
well,  1878. 

For  many  years  there  has  been  a  flourish- 
ing Sunday-school  connected  with  the 
church.  H.  R.  Brown  is  superintendent, 
with  23  officers  and  teachers,  200  schol- 
ars, and  300  vols,  in  the  library.  The 
present  membership  of  the  church  is  :  Pro- 
bationers, 24 ;  in  full  membership,  320 : 
total,  344. 

Several  ministers  have  been  raised  up 
here,  prominent  among  whom  was  Paul 
C.  Richmond,  many  years  a  member  of 
the  Maine  Conference,  who,  after  a  long 
and  successful  ministry,  a  few  years  since 
crossed  the  dark  river,  and  went  triumph- 
antly to  his  reward ;  and  others  are  still  in 
the  field  gathering  sheaves  for  their  Master 
in  the  Vermont,  New  England  and  Provi- 
dence Conferences.  In  the  year  1870  a 
perpetual  lease  of  a  piece  of  ground  was 
secured  for  camp-meetings,  and  by  an  act 
of  the  Legislature,  the  Central  Vermont 
Camp-Meeting  Association  was  incorpo- 
rated, with  power  to  hold  all  the  property 
necessary  for  the  purpose  of  holding  camp- 
meetings,  or  any  other  meetings  of  a  re- 
ligious character,  Sunday-schools,  picnics, 
or  temperance  meetings,  and  all  such  prop- 
erty to  the  amount  of  $10,000  is  to  be  free 
from  taxation.  This  ground  has  been 
fitted  up  at  an  expense  of  some  $2,000. 
Several  cottages  have  been  erecte  !  thereon 
by  the  different  societies  of  the  Montpelier 
district,  and  by  private  individuals  as 
family  residences,  and  camp-meetings  have 
been  held  on  the  ground  annually,  we 
think  with  good  success. 

H.  W.  Worthen  was  pastor  in  1879,  80, 
81.  In  1879,  t^^  members  residing  in 
Roxbury  were  organized  into  a  Society, 
and  their  connection  with  the  Northfield 
church  ceased. 

The  present  membership  of  the  church 


is  as  follows :    probationers,   42 ;    in  full 
membership,  185  ;  total,  227. 
Northfield,  Jan.  19,  1882. 

UNIVERSALISM    IN   NORTHFIELD. 
FKOM  REV.  .JOHN  GREGORY'S  BOOK. 

At  an  early  day  many  prominent  men 
manifested  a  desire  to  have  Universalist 
meetings  in  town,  and  consequently  an 
occasional  meeting  was  held,  as  a  preacher 
of  that  faith  came  along  and  desired  to  ad- 
dress the  people.  School-houses,  private 
houses,  barns  and  groves  were  used  by 
the.  early  pioneers,  of  Universalism,  the 
friends  feeling  it  a  ble.ssed  privilege  to  oc- 
cupy such  humble  places,  where  they 
could  listen  to  the  preached  words.  Tim- 
othy Bigelow  was  the  first  man  we  have 
any  account  of  addressing  the  citizens  of 
Northfield,  on  the  subject  of  Universal- 
ism. We  learn  by  the  town  records  that 
he  was  ordained  in  Barnard,  Sept.  21, 
1809,  by  the  Universalist  Convention, 
Thomas  Barnes  being  moderator,  and 
Hosea  Ballou,  clerk.  He  commenced 
preaching  in  Northfield  about  that  time, 
and  tiiere  are  those  now  living  who  re- 
member him. 

No  record  has  been  preserved  of  the 
Universalist  preachers  who  laiiored  in  this 
section  up  to  1821,  when  the  union 
meeting-house  was  built  in  the  Center  vil- 
lage, and  the  members  of  that  order,  by 
contributing  to  its  erection,  claimed  as 
large,  if  not  the  largest  portion  of  it  for 
holding  their  public  ministrations.  We 
learn  that  Father  Palmer,  who  had  for- 
merly been  connected  with  the  Christian 
denomination,  became  a  believer  in  "the 
restitution  of  all  things,"  and  preached 
with  great  unction  and  power  in  different 
parts  of  this  town.  Father  Farwell,  of 
Barre,  a  devout  man,  preached  as  oppor- 
tunity presented  in  Northfield  and  vicinity, 
and  had  great  success  in  making  pros- 
elytes to  that  faith.  On  dwelling  on  tlie 
love  of  God,  he  would  frequently  be  so 
carried  away  with  his  feelings  that  he 
would  cry  and  laugh  at  the  same  time, 
and  men  and  women  of  other  names  were 
led  to  admit  that  he  was  honest  in  his 
feelings  ;  that  he  believed  his  doctrine  was 
the  power  of  God  unto  salvation. 


652 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


The  Universalist  church  in  the  Center 
village  was  built  in  the  summer  of  1841, 
Jesse  Averill.  Harvey  Tilden  and  Joel 
Parker  being  the  building  committee. 
Fathers  Streeter,  Palmer,  Sampson,  E. 
Ballou,  A.  Scott,  and  other  Universalist 
clergymen  took  part  in  the  dedicatory 
services.  For  a  time  it  was  quite  a  sub- 
stantial building,  and  although  up  to  this 
day  a  majority  of  the  pews  are  held  by 
this  order,  others  of  weaker  means  are  al- 
lowed to  use  it  for  funeral  occasions,  and 
occasionally  on  the  Sabbath,  without 
charge.  But  time,  the  great  leveller,  has 
written  decay  upon  its  walls,  and  soon  it 
will  be  numbered  with  the  things  that 
were. 

Rev.  L.  H.  Tabor  was  the  first  preacher 
employed  after  this  house  was  built,  and 
he  labored  here  but  half  the  time,  being 
engaged  the  other  half  at  Plainfield.  Rev. 
Alanson  Scott  followed  him  in  1843,  and 
was  the  first  clergyman  of  that  order  who 
resided  here.  Rev.  R.  S.  Sanborn  succeed- 
ed him,  preaching  a  short  time,  and  since 
him  other  preachers  supplied  the  desk  one- 
half  or  one  quarter  of  the  time,  until  the 
new  church  was  built  at  the  Depot  village, 
when  the  old  one  was  abandoned  entirely 
by  those  who  built  it. 

Among  the  prominent  Universalists  who 
contributed  liberally  to  the  erection  of  one 
or  both  churches  at  the  Center  village, 
were  Amos  Robinson,  Jesse  and  Oliver 
Averill,  Lebbeus  Bennett,  Elijah  Burn- 
ham,  Isaac  P.  Jenks,  John  West,  John 
Starkweather,  Heman  Carpenter,  Roswell 
Carpenter,  Judge  Robinson,  David  R.  Til- 
den, Thomas  S.  Mayo,  Samuel  Fisk,  Sid- 
ney Hatch,  Moses  Robinson,  Sherman 
Gold,  Harvey  Tilden,  I.  W.  Brown,  Lewis 
Hassam,  Volney  H.  Averill,  Joel  Parker, 
Elijah  Pride,  William  Wales,  Mrs.  Hurl- 
burt,  and  otiiers. 

After  repeated  efforts  to  get  a  vote  to 
build  a  new  church  in  the  Depot  village, 
for  the  railroad  was  drawing  business,  the 
post-office  and  a  majority  of  the  citizens 
to  that  place,  a  vote  was  passed  to  take 
measures  to  purchase  the  land  and  proceed 
with  the  building.  In  November,  1858, 
at  a  society  meeting,  51  votes  were  cast 


to  locate  said  church  on  the  H.  M.  Bates 
lot,  north  of  the  common,  and  H.  Tenney, 
T.  A.  Miles,  J.  C.  Gault,  Sherman  Gold 
and  John  Gregory  were  appointed  a  build- 
ing committee.  The  church  was  com- 
pleted the  following  summer,  dedicated  to 
God  in  the  usual  form  December,  1859, 
and  Rev.  O.  H.  Tillotson  selected  as  pas- 
tor, and  commenced  his  labors  the  first 
Sunday  in  January,  i860,  at  a  salary  of 
$1,000  per  year.  The  society  prospered 
under  his  ministration,  for  he  was  well 
liked,  honoring  his  profession  as  he  did  by 
a  well-ordered  life.  He  died  in  Northfield 
in  1863,  aged  47  years,  lamented  by  a 
large  parish,  leaving  a  wife  and  one  son. 
Of  him  it  might  have  been  said  :  "A  good 
man  has  fallen." 

His  remains  were  interred  in  our  beau- 
tiful Elmwood,  and  many  a  tear  has  fallen 
upon  his  grave,  at  the  recollection  of  his 
manly  bearing  and  Christian  usefulness. 

Rev.  Eli  Ballou  supplied  the  pulpit  un- 
til the  Rev.  C.  W.  Emerson  was  settled  as 
pastor,  who  labored  with  them  3  years. 
Then  followed  the  Rev.  Stacy  Haines  Mat- 
lack,  an  excellent  young  brother,  who,  in 
feeble  health,  preached  to  the  society  near- 
ly one  year,  but  was  compelled  to  resign 
his  pasturate,  and  died  at  the  home  of  his 
parents,  in  Eaton,  O.,  Apr.  15,  1870,  age 
30  years.  He  was  a  graduate  of  St.  Law- 
rence University  at  Canton,  N.  Y.,  of  the 
class  of  '71,  and  Northfield  was  his  first 
charge. 

The  Rev.  R.  A.  Green  followed  Mr. 
Matlack,  remaining  5  years.  Since  then 
the  hard  times  and  the  removal  of  many 
friends,  have  greatly  embarrassed  the  so- 
ciety. Rev.  W.  M.  Kimmell,  of  Ohio, 
commenced  his  labors  as  pastor  the  first 
Sunday  in  May,  1878. 

FREE   WILL    BAPTIST   CHURCH. 

This  denomination  had  quite  a  good  so- 
ciety in  1823,  so  that  they  drew  more  pub- 
lic money  than  the  Methodists  that  year. 
But  schism  got  in  among  them,  they  died 
out,  and  have  no  longer  a  name  to  live  in 
Northfield.  Elder  Nathaniel  King  was 
their  prominent  preacher 

Sylvanus,  son  of  Col.  Ezekiel  Robinson, 
was  ordained  as  a  Baptist  Elder,  by  the 


NORTHFIELD. 


6S3 


laying  on  of  hands,  by  Elders  James  Mor- 
gan, George  Hackett,  and  Ziba  Pope,  Feb. 
27,  1 82 1,  and  preached  here  and  else- 
where as  opportunity  presented. 

James  Morgan  was  ordained  as  a  Bap- 
tist Elder,  June,  1822,  by  Elders  Daniel 
Batchelder  and  Thomas  Moxley,  and 
preached  considerable  in  Northfield..  Ma- 
ny years  have  passed  since  the  Baptists 
gave  up  their  organization,  and  the  writer 
has  not  been  able  to  find  one  of  that  order 
tliat  can  give  him  a  history  of  the  rise  and 
decline  of  this  once  prominent  society. 
Deacon  Nathaniel  Jones  was  its  principal 
lay  member,  and  his  zealous  advocacy  of 
Millerism  not  only  tended  to  break  up  the 
Baptist  society,  but  injured  him  in  point 
of  property.  John  GREGORY. 

REV.    NATHANIEL    KING. 

From  an  obituary  by  Elder  Henderson, 
who  preached  his  funeral  sermon  : 

Died  in  Northfield,  Oct.  18,  1852,  Elder 
Nathaniel  King,  aged  85-^  years.  He  was 
born  in  Hampstead,  N.  H.  ;  at  8  years, 
his  father  removed  to  Sutton,  N.  H., 
where  he  resided  until  21  years  of  age. 
At  22,  he  visited  Tunbridge,  Vt.,  which 
was  new  and  but  sparsely  settled,  purchas- 
ed a  tract  of  land  and  commenced  making 
improvements.  In  1794  he  married  Miss 
Lydia  Noyce,  which  relation  was  sustain- 
ed with  honor  and  fidelity  58  years.  He 
was  permitted  to  see  an  interesting  family 
gathered  around  him.  In  1799,  he  indulg- 
ed a  hope  in  Christ,  and  in  1802,  was  pub- 
licly consecrated  to  the  work  of  the  gos- 
pel ministry.  His  ministerial  labors  will 
live  in  grateful  remembrance  while  his  re- 
mains moulder  in  the  dust.  He  felt  deep- 
ly interested  for  the  heathen  in  his  blind- 
ness, the  slave  in  his  chains,  and  the  poor 
around  him. 

He  contributed  $100  for  the  endowment 
of  the  Vree  Will  Baptist  Biblical  School 
at  Whitestown,  N.  Y.,  $150  for  the  Bible 
cause,  $350  for  the  Mission  cause,  and 
other  benevolent  enterprises  shared  in  his 
liberal  contributions. 

Of  his  useful  life,  42  years  were  spent  in 
Tunbridge  and  Randolph,  and  14  years  in 
Northfield.  In  each  of  these  towns  he  se- 
cured the  confidence  and  esteem   of  his 


townsmen,  and  as  a  token  of  their  esteem 
and  confidence  he  was  appointed  to  offi- 
ces of  trust,  and  for  13  years  represented 
the  town  of  Tunbridge  in  the  Legislature. 

Elder  King,  as  a  husband  and  parent, 
was  kind  and  afi'ectionate ;  as  a  citizen, 
upright  and  patriotic  ;  as  a  Christian,  hum- 
ble, faithful  and  consistent ;  as  a  minister, 
in  his  public  ministrations  plain,  direct 
and  fearless, — in  labors  untiring,  and  suc- 
cessful. He  was  long  spared  to  bless  the 
church  and  the  world. 

His  sickness  was  protracted  and  dis- 
tressing ;  but  he  repeatedly  assured  his 
friends  that  the  doctrine  he  had  preached 
for  more  than  half  a  century  sustained  him 
in  the  time  of  trial.  His  end  was  calm 
and  triumphant.  In  his  removal,  one  of 
the  strong  men  and  faithful  watchmen  of 
Zion  has  fallen.         M.  C.  Henderson. 

East  Randolph,  Oct.  25,  1852. 

OBITUARY   OF   MRS.    NATHANIEL    KING. 

Lydia,  widow  of  the  late  Rev.  Nathan- 
iel King,  died  in  Middlesex,  Feb.  5,  aged 
90  years,  6  months.  She  was  born  in 
Bow,  N.  H.,  and  when  quite  young,  re- 
moved to  Tunbridge,  Vt.,  where  she  re- 
sided many  years.  In  1794,  she  married 
the  man  whose  relation  was  enjoyed  for  58 
years.  She  indulged  a  hope  in  Christ  in 
in  1799,  and  soon  after  received  baptism 
and  united  with  the  F.  Baptist  church  in 
Tunbridge.  During  the  50  years'  minis- 
try of  her  husband,  she  ever  encouraged 
him  in  his  work,  and  enjoyed  the  satisfac- 
tion of  having  contributed  much  to  the 
cause  of  Christ.  Her  interest  was  identi- 
fied with  the  denomination  for  70  years, 
and  in  advanced  age,  her  attachment  was 
not  allowed  to  decliue. 

A  family  of  5  sons  and  8  daughters 
gathered  around  her.  Nine  remain  to 
mourn  her  departure,  and  cherish  her 
memory.  She  lived  to  see  a  numerous 
posterity  extending  to  the  fourth  genera- 
tion. Her  last  10  years  were  pleasantly 
passed  in  the  family  of  Stephen  Herrick, 
Esq.,  (Mrs.  H.  a  daughter,)  where  she 
received  the  kindest  attention.  On  the 
loth,  funeral  services  were  conducted  by 
the  writer,  after  which  her  remains  were 
brought  to  Northfield,  and  laid  by  the  side 


654 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  xMAGAZINE. 


of  those  of  her  husband.  The  occasion 
was  solemn  and  interesting. 

M.  C.  Henderson. 

THE   CHRISTIAN   CHURCH  \ 

liad  something  of  a  following  in  1823,  but 
was  the  smallest  of  all,  as  we  learn  by  the 
amount  of  public  money  they  drew.  Af- 
ter the  yellow  meeting  house  was  removed 
from  the  Center,  they  ceased  holding 
meetings,  and  became  extinct  as  a  reli- 
gious society.  Efforts  have  been  made  to 
find  some  one  that  would  give  a  brief  ac- 
count of  this  order  in  Northfield,  but  in 
vain.  J.  G. 

CONGREGATIONAL    CHURCH    IN    NORTHFIELD. 
BY  REV.  WM.   S.  HAZEN. 

Most  of  the  first  settlers  of  Northfield 
were  Universalists,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  that  was  the  prevailing  religious  in- 
fluence in  town.  Then  a  Methodist  church 
and  a  Free  Will  Baptist  church  were  organ- 
ized ;  and  as  the  population  of  the  town 
increased,  a  number  of  families  were  found 
who  preferred  the  "  Congregational  Way." 

Virgil  Washburn,  a  devoted  Christian, 
who  came  from  Randolph,  was  especially 
active  among  them.  Occasionally  meet- 
ings were  held  in  private  houses  or  barns. 
Sometimes  they  had  preaching  by  clergy- 
men from  neighboring  towns.  The  pro- 
fessing Christians  among  this  company, 
after  consultation  as  to  liow  they  could 
best  promote  their  own  spiritual  interests 
and  those  of  their  friends,  decided  to  form 
a  church.  The  meeting  was  called  and 
the  church  organized  in  "  the  little  yellow 
meeting-house"  at  the  Center  Village. 
The  first  record  of  the  church  reads  : 

Northfield,  May  27,  1822.  This  day  was 
organized  the  first  Congregational  church 
of  Christ  in  this  town.  Composed  of  the 
following  persons,  viz  :  Josiah  B.  Strong, 
Virgil  Washburn,  Moses  R.  Dole,  Samuel 
Whitney,  Thomas  Whitney,  Lucy  Whit- 
ney, Clarissa  Strong,  Rizpah  Whitney  and 
Betsey  Houghton,  by  professing  their  faith 
in  Christ,  and  entering  into  covenant  bonds 
with  God  and  each  other.  They  then  pro- 
ceeded to  choose  Brother  Josiah  B.  Strong 
Moderator,  Brother  Samuel  Whitney  clerk, 
and  Dea.  Virgil  Washburn  Deacon. 

Attest,  ELIJAH  LYMAN.)  Ministers  of 

AM.MI  NICHOLS,  (   the  Gospel. 

June  17,  1822,  there  is  this  record: 


This  day  held  a  church  meeting  accord- 
ing to  appointment.  Voted  to  hold  open 
communion  with  all  regularly  organized 
Christian  churches. 

The  feelings  of  these  nine  Christian  men 
and  women  as  they  stood  up  and  entered 
into  covenant  with  one  another  and  the 
Lord  J  can  be  better  imagined  than  de- 
scribed. It  was  a  step  on  their  part  taken 
after  much  deliberation  and  prayer.  They 
felt  the  importance  of  the  movement,  and 
the  responsibility  resting  upon  them  indi- 
vidually. They  were  in  earnest  in  seeking 
the  honor  and  glory  of  God,  and  the  spir- 
itual good  of  their  friends  and  neighbors. 
To  secure  for  themselves  and  children  reli- 
gious privileges,  they  were  willing  to  bear 
heavy  burdens,  to  practice  great  self-denial. 
Thus  this  small  company  were  organized 
into  a  church  and  ready  for  Christian  work ; 
but  their  condition  and  prospects,  humanly 
speaking,  were  not  flattering ;  they  had  no 
home.  The  only  right  they  had  in  any 
house  of  worship,  was  in  the  small  meet- 
ing-house in  which  the  church  was  organ- 
ized. This  they  could  occupy  the  fifth 
Sabbath  of  every  month  in  which  there 
were  five  Sabbaths.  They  had  not  the 
means  with  which  to  provide  themselves  a 
home.  They  were  not  able,  even,  to  sup- 
port regular  preaching  ;  occasionally  they 
had  preaching,  and  the  ordinances  were 
administered  by  the  pastors  of  neighbor- 
ing churches  :  Revs.  Elijah  Lyman,  Ammi 
Nichols,  James  Hobart,  Salmon  Hurlburt, 

E.  B.  Baxter,  Joel  Davis,  Amariah  Chan- 
dler,    Henry    Jones,    A.    C.    Washburn, 

F.  Reynolds  and  others;  such  was  the 
distrust  of  their  success,  many  whose  sym- 
pathies were  with  Congregationalism  stood 
aloof  even  during  a  very  extensive  revival 
about  1825  ;  the  converts  who  would  nat- 
urally have  united  with  this  church,  turned 
from  it  because  they  thought  it  would  prove 
a  failure.  The  first  addition  to  the  church 
was  Sarah  Shipman,  Feb.  23,  1823.  Dur- 
ing the  first  10  years  there  were  ig  admis- 
sions and  2  dismissions  by  letter.  I  have 
no  record  of  deaths.  If  none,  the  church 
when  ID  years  old  numbered  only  26, 
These  were  years  of  struggling  for  very  ex- 
istence.   When  the  church  had  increased  in 


NORTHFIELD. 


655 


strength  and  influence,  so  that  it  was 
thought  advisable  to  hold  public  services 
every  Sabbath,  a  school-house  in  the  Depot 
village  was  occupied.  Shut  out  of  this 
house  by  vote  of  the  district,  a  large  room 
in  Gov.  Paine's  woolen  factory  was  used. 
During  the  winter  of  1835,  a  subscription 
paper  was  started  to  raise  funds  to  build  a 
church,  but  Gov.  Paine  forestalled  the 
necessity  by  building  a  house  and  inviting 
the  church  to  worship  in  it,  and  it  was 
dedicated  to  "  The  Father,  Son  and  Holy 
Ghost,"  Dec.  i,  1836,  Rev.  J.  K.  Converse 
of  Burlington,  preaching  the  sermon,  and 
offering  the  dedicatory  prayer.  This  house 
was  occupied  for  about  6  years,  when  the 
church  decided  to  build  a  house  at  the 
Center  for  itself,  of  which  it  would  have 
the  entire  control. 

The  edifice  was  erected  and  dedicated 
Aug.  3,  1843  ;  thus  when  21  years  old  the 
church  had  a  habitation  of  its  own  as  well 
as  a  name.  The  church  continued  to 
worship  in  this  house,  till  the  railroad 
having  been  built  and  business  so  centered 
in  the  Depot  village  it  seemed  desirable 
the  church  should  be  there,  and  Dec.  1854, 
it  was  decided  to  change  back  from  the 
Center,  and  the  house  built  by  Gov.  Paine 
formerly  used,  was  bought  of  the  heirs, 
enlarged,  repaired,  and  has  been  the  home 
of  the  church  since. 

The  first  10  years  the  church  could  not 
hold  meetings  regularly  on  the  Sabbath, 
but  the  last  years  "reading  meetings" 
were  held,  which  Dea.  Cady  usually  con- 
ducted. Gov.  Paine  frequently  reading  the 
sermon. 

In  Sept.  1833,  Mr.  James  Ferguson,  a 
young  man,  commenced  laboring  with  the 
church.  He  was  called  to  be  its  pastor, 
but  died  the  very  day  he  was  to  have  been 
ordained  and  installed. 

On  the  last  Sabbath  in  May,  1834,  Rev. 
Calvin  Granger  preached  for  the  church, 
and  arrangements  were  made  with  him  for 
"  stated  supply."  June  4, 1836,  thechurch 
voted  to  give  Rev.  Calvin  Granger  a  call 
to  become  the  pastor,  with  a  salary  from 
the  church  and  society  of  $200,  the  re- 
mainder of  the  salary  to  be  supplied  by  the 
Home  Missionary  Society. 


Dec.  I,  1836,  Mr.  Granger  was  installed, 
and  was  pastor  till  Dec.  1842,  when  he  was 
dismissed  by  advice  of  a  council. 

After  this  I  find  no  record  of  any  action 
of  the  church  in  regard  to  ministers  until 
Sept.  12,  1843,  when  Rev.  Thos.  S.  Hub- 
bard was  invited  to  become  pastor,  who 
declined,  and  Nov.  25th,  after,  the  church 
voted  to  hire  Rev.  Wm.  Claggettone  year, 
whose  services  were  retained  till  the  end  of 
1845. 

Again,  no  record  of  action  in  regard  to  a 
minister  till  Sept.  19,  1846 ;  the  church 
voted  to  employ  Rev.  J.  H.  Benton  one 
year.  March  24,  1847,  he  was  installed, 
and  was  pastor  till  Sept.  7,  1849,  when 
dismissed  by  advice  of  a  council.  The  rea- 
sons given  were,  "inadequate  support,  a 
call  received  from  a  church  in  Michigan,  and 
circumstances  growing  out  of  that  call." 

In  Jan.  1850,  Mr.  Ambrose  Smith  was 
acting  pastor ;  July  9,  1850,  ordained  ;  dis- 
missed Apr.  24,  1853,  and  soon  after  Rev. 
C.  B.  Tracy  became  acting  pastor.  He 
received  a  unanimous  call  to  become  pas- 
tor. There  is  no  record  of  the  acceptance 
of  this  call,  but  he  remained  acting  pastor 
till  the  close  of  1855. 

Dec.  27,  1855,  Rev.  L.  H.  Stone  was 
voted  a  call  to  become  pastor.  His  labors 
commenced  the  first  of  April,  but  there  is 
no  record  of  the  acceptance  of  this  call, 
and  Mr.  Stone  was  not  installed,  but  con- 
tinued acting  pastor  till  the  first  of  Apr. 

1863,  when  Mr.  C.  W.  Thompson  supplied 
till  the  first  of  Sept.  after,  when  the  min- 
istry of  the  present  pastor.  Rev.  Wm.  S. 
Hazen,  commenced,  who  was  ordained 
pastor  Oct.  12,  1864. 

The  first  deacon  was  Virgil  Washburn, 
who  held  the  office  from  the  day  of  organ- 
ization till  Apr.  I,  1832,  when  at  his  own 
request  he  was  dismissed,  and  recommend- 
ed to  the  fellowship  of  the  church  in  Ran- 
dolph. Aug.  II,  1832,  Caleb  Winch  and 
Calvin  Cady  were  chosen  deacons,  and 
continued  in  office  until  their  death  ;  the 
first,   Apr.    27,    1843;   the  last,   Apr.    12, 

1864.  There  is  no  record  of  the  election 
of  Chas.  C.  Closson  and  Samuel  Denny, 
but  it  must  have  been  during  1843.  They 
served  till  their  dismission  by  letter ;  the 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


one  in  1848,  to  the  church  in  Worcester, 
in  which  he  held  the  same  office  a  number 
of  years,  and  died  in  1872;  the  other  to 
the  church  in  Thetford.  Dea.  Denny, 
after  his  return  to  this  church  in  Aug. 
1850,  served  for  some  time.  Wm.  Winch 
was  chosen  July,  1848,  and  is  now  the 
senior  deacon  of  the  church.  There  is  no 
record  of  tlie  election  of  Leonard  Harring- 
ton, who  served  several  years  previous  to 
his  removal  to  the  church  in  Waitsfield. 
Lorenzo  Belknap  was  elected  Aug.  8,  1864, 
and  Daniel  Chandler,  at  present  one  of  the 
acting  deacons,  July,  1880. 

Clerks  of  the  Church. — Samuel  Whitney, 
Chas.  C.  Closson,  John  L.  Buck,  Calvin 
Granger,  John  L.  Buck,  J.  H.  Benton, 
Truman  S.  Kellogg,  Ambrose  Smith,  Sam- 
uel Denny,  Wm.  S.  Hazen,  M.  McClearn, 
.J.  H.  Orcutt. 

The  church  has  enjoyed  only  two  ex- 
tensive revivals ;  one  during  the  winter 
of  1835-36,  which  resulted  in  more  than 
doubling  the  membership,  the  other  in 
the  winters  of  1841,  '2.  The  total  mem- 
bership is  372;  present  membership,  126. 

Though  there  had  been  something  of  a 
Sabbath-school,  or  better,  perhaps,  Bible 
classes,  connected  with  the  church  for  sev- 
eral years,  the  school  was  not  regularly 
organized  until  Dec.  1836,  when  Samuel 
Denny  was  chosen  superintendent,  since 
which  the  school  has  been  well  sustained, 
but  never  was  more  flourishing  than  now, 
when  it  numbers  156;  and  at  least  three 
who  here  first  professed  their  faith  in 
Christ,  have  become  ministers  of  the  Gos- 
pel:  Rev.  Daniel  Parker  [see  page  644], 
Rev.  C.  M.  Winch,  who  is  now  pastor  of 
the  church  at  Hartland,  and  Rev.  Geo.  W. 
Winch,  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church  in  Enfield,  Conn.,  and  two  others 
who  united  with  this  church  by  letter, 
have  become  clergymen,  and  are  laboring 
in  the  West.  This  church  was  formerly 
aided  by  the  Vt.  D.  M.  S.,  the  last  record 
of  such  aid  being  in  Nov.  1855. 

This  review  may  at  first  present  some- 
thing of  discouragement ;  to  some  it  may 
seem  as  though  Christian  effort  here  has 
been  useless,  or  at  least  very  inefficient ; 


that  after  60  years  of  labor  there  is  so  small 
a  church  numerically  to  show.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  the  fruits  of  any  moral 
or  religious  undertaking  are  never  all  to 
be  seen.  "  One  soweth  and  another  reap- 
eth."  Aside  from  the  influence  on  this 
community  in  sustaining  a  Christian  church 
60  years,  the  full  value  of  which  eternity 
alone  will  reveal,  the  church  has  been 
continually  exerting  a  wider  influence  in 
sending  forth  to  other  parts  of  the  land 
those  nurtured  in  its  bosom.  Who  will 
attempt  to  estimate  the  good  it  has  thus 
been  continually  doing?  Such  country 
churches  as  this,  gaining  slowly  if  at  all, 
yet  constantly  holding  on,  are  like  those 
mountain  springs  which  are  continually 
sending  forth  their  sparkling  streams  to 
irrigate  and  fertilize  the  valleys  below, 
thus  making,  what  would  otherwise  be  a 
barren  waste,  a  fruitful  garden.  No  cause 
of  discouragement  here,  then,  but  rather 
of  devout  gratitude  that  this  church  is  as 
strong  as  it  is  to-day,  while  it  has  done 
what  it  has  for  others. 

THE   EPISCOPAL   CHURCH. 

BY  REV.  FRANKLIN    W.  BARTLETT, 

The  Parish  of  St.  Mary's  was  first  or- 
ganized in  1 85 1,  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Josiah  Perry,  who  died  after  four 
or  five  months  of  faithful  service.  We 
ascertain  from  the  records  that  an  associa- 
tion was  created  April  10,  1 851,  to  form 
a  parish  in  Northfield,  for  the  purpose  of 
supporting  the  gospel  ministry  and  main- 
taining public  worship,  in  conformity  with 
the  constitution  and  canons  of  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church  in  the  Diocese  of 
Vermont.  The  name  adopted  was  St. 
Mary's  Parish,  Northfield.  The  Articles 
of  Association  were  signed  by  Samuel  W. 
Thayer,  Jr.,  Edward  H.  Williams,  H.  H. 
Camp,  James  C.  B.  Thayer,  F.  E.  Smith, 
E.  G.  Babcock,  W.  H.  Cornwell,  Perley 
Belknap,  James  Moore,  H.  L.  Briggs, 
Isaiah  Shaw,  J.  H.  Glennie,  Benj.  Crid- 
land,  J.  N.  Mack,  Riverius  Camp,  Jr., 
Ozro  Foster,  O.  H.  Finley,  Peyton  Booth, 
John  Pollock  and  D.  P.  Burns.  Nearly 
all  of  these  have  since  removed,  or  are 
deceased. 

The  first  service  was  conducted  in  a  pri- 


NORTHFIELD. 


657 


vate  school-house,  at  present  occupied  as 
Judge  Carpenter's  office.  The  parish  or- 
ganization was  maintained  ;  but  after  Dr. 
Perry's  death  no  services  were  lield  until 
the  winter  of  1856-7,  when  clergymen  from 
different  parts  of  the  State  officiated,  and 
worship  was  conducted  at  the  Center  vil- 
lage. There  were  then  but  four  commu- 
nicants. Tlie  summer  following  a  change 
was  made  to  the  Depot  village,  and  to  the 
edifice  ever  since  occupied.  It  had  for- 
merly belonged  to  the  Congregationalists, 
but  was  purchased  for  its  present  purpose 
and  removed  from  the  Center  village  to  its 
present  eligible  site  at  the  corner  of  Main 
and  Elm  streets.  After  its  removal,  it  was 
opened  for  divine  service  on  Christmas 
day,  1857,  by  the  Rt.  Kev.  John  Henry 
Hopkins,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  a.ssisted  by  the 
Rector  of  Montpelier,  who  came  accom- 
panied with  his  choir  and  about  30  of  his 
congregation.  On  the  following  day, 
(Saturday)  the  house  was  solemnly  conse- 
crated. The  Rev.  Messrs.  F.  W.  Shel- 
ton,  Josiah  Swett,  Gemont  Graves,  and 
Wm.  C.  Hopkins  participated  in  the  ser- 
vice. Toward  the  parish  Mr.  Swett  had 
evinced  great  interest  and  zeal,  and  had 
raised  money  for  it  in  other  parts  of  the 
diocese.  The  Vestry  subsequently  passed 
a  resolution  acknowledging  their  obliga- 
tions to  him.  From  this  time  the  church 
was  served  by  the  4  clergymen  just  named 
and  by  the  Rev.  Messrs.  C.  R.  Bachelder, 
A.  Oliver,  M.  A.  Herrick,  and  T.  L.  Ran- 
dolph. A  Sunday  School  was  organized 
by  the  last  named,  in  Jan.  1858.  The 
Church  had  been  hitherto  under  the  gener- 
al supervision  of  the  Clerical  Convocation 
of  Vermont,  but  on  Feb.  17,  1858,  a  call 
was  extended  by  the  Vestry  to  the  Rev. 
Wm.  C.  Hopkins,  a  deacon,  the  youngest 
son  of  the  Bishop.  The  latter,  as  his  eccle- 
siastical superior,  having  given  his  consent, 
Mr.  H.  entered  on  his  duties,  Easter  day, 
Apr.  5,  1858.  The  free  seat  system  was 
advocated  by  him,  and  on  May  23,  the 
Vestry  passed  a  resolution  declaring  it  de- 
sirable, but  it  was  not  then  made  the  rule. 
Mr.  Hopkins  was  ordained  a  priest  Sept. 
30,  1858.  On  New  Year's  day,  1862,  the 
Vestry  made  the  pews  unconditionally  free, 

83 


and  have  never  since  rented  them.  On 
Sept.  25,  1862,  the  (Governor  appointed 
Mr.  Hopkins  chaplain  in  the  army.  The 
Vestry  passed  resolutions  of  congratula- 
tion, and  consented  to  part  with  him  for 
a  time,  but  asked  him  to  continue  their 
rector.  It  was  so  arranged.  The  Rev. 
J.  Isham  Bliss  (now  professor  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Vermont  and  officiating  in  mis- 
sion stations,)  conducted  services  for  the 
next  6  months.  Meantime,  the  Rector 
wrote  from  Pensacola,  Fla,,  under  date  of 
Feb.  27,  1863,  resigning  the  rectorship, 
but  the  \'estry  declined  to  accept  the  resig- 
nation. The  Rev.  Gemont  Graves  (now 
of  Burlington)  became  minister-in-charge 
in  May,  1863,  and  continued  such  one 
year.  Charles  Fay,  D.  D.  (now  of  Chica- 
go, then  of  St.  Albans,)  officiated  on  Sun- 
days in  the  following  summer,  and  ser- 
vices were  thereafter  conducted  by  Dan- 
forth  H.  Brown,  as  lay  reader.  The  res- 
ignation of  Mr.  Hopkins  as  rector  was  ac- 
cepted Nov.  27,  1864,  with  expressions  of 
great  regret.  He  had  been  an  active  and 
laborious  pastor,  and  was  greatly  beloved. 
During  his  absence  from  his  charge  he 
had  continued  to  manifest  his  interest  by 
sending  gifts  of  money  for  the  church  from 
himself  and  his  regiment,  the  7th  of  Vt. 
Vols.  The  Presbyter  John  B.  Pitman, 
formerly  of  Fishkill,  N.  Y.,  (now  of  Ma- 
lone,  N.  Y.,)  became  rector  in  the  spring 
of  1865.  His  resignation  was  accepted 
Nov.  13,  1866.  The  able  and  learned 
Edward  Bourns,  LL.  D.,  the  President 
of  Norwich  University,  was  engaged  to 
conduct  services  until  a  rector  could  be 
procured.  He  was  made  minister-in-charge 
Easter,  1867,  and  continued  his  official  re- 
lations until  Roger  S.  Howard,  D.  D.,  pre- 
viously of  St.  James,  Woodstock,  became 
rector,  in  the  summer  of  1869.  Dr.  How- 
ard was  at  the  same  time  President  of  the 
University. 

During  this  period  a  chancel  was  added 
to  the  church  at  considerable  cost,  in  fulfil- 
ment of  assurances  made  Dr.  H.  before 
his  acceptance.  A  very  handsome  stained 
glass  window  was  placed  over  the  altar  by 
Mr.  J.  C.  B.  Thayer  as  a  memorial  to  his 
deceased  wife.     Dr.  Howard  resigned  the 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


rectorship,  May,  1872.  The  Rev.  Amos 
D.  McCoy,  a  clergyman  of  fine  talents  and 
a  remarkably  good  reader,  officiated  for  a 
short  time,  but  his  state  of  health  did  not 
admit  of  protracted  mental  exertion.  He 
retired,  and  a  vacancy  followed.  Dr. 
Malcolm  Douglass,  who  had  succeeded  Dr. 
Howard,  as  President  of  the  University, 
frequently  officiated  at  St.  Mary's.  The 
Rev.  G.  C.  V.  Eastman  was  next  elected 
rector,  and  entered  upon  his  duties,  Jan. 
30,  1873.  He  resigned  Apr.  5,  1875.  I^''- 
P.  D.  Bradford  and  Dr.  George  Nichols 
conducted  the  services,  as  lay  readers  until 
the  appointment  of  the  Rev.  Wm.  Lloyd 
Himes,  deacon,  in  the  .spring  of  1876,  who 
resigned  the  parish  to  take  effect  Easter 
1877,  having  meantime  been  advanced  to 
the  sacred  order  of  priests.  There  fol- 
lowed an  interval  of  several  months  lay- 
reading.  The  present  Rector,  Franklin 
Weston  Bartlett,  formerly  of  the  diocese 
of  Pennsylvania,  entered  upon  the  charge 
Christmas  day,  1877,  just  20  years  since 
the  church  was  opened  by  Bishop  Hopkins. 
The  interior  of  the  church  has  been  re- 
cently improved,  and  some  gifts  have 
been  made  for  the  chancel  by  individuals. 
Among  these  is  an  altar  cross  to  the  mem- 
ory of  the  late  Gen.  Alonzo  Jackman,  who 
was  a  faithful  and  devout  Christian,  and 
for  several  years  senior  warden  of  St. 
Mary's. 

CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  NORTHFIELO. 

BY  KEV.  Z.  DRUON,  V.  G. 

This  place  received  occasional  visits 
from  the  Rev.  Fathers  O'Callaghan,  Daly, 
Drolet,  Maloney  and  Coopman,  O.  M.  I., 
before  any  permanent  mission  was  estab- 
lished. Father  R.  J.  Maloney  purchased 
an  old  meeting-house  in  1855 — the  old 
Yellow  L'nion  Meeting-house — which  was 
the  first  meeting-house  built  in  the  town. 
See  page  649.  He  had  it  removed  to  a 
lot  which  had  been  given  by  the  late  Gov. 
Paine  for  the  benefit  of  the  Catholics,  and 
which  has  been  and  still  is  used  as  a 
burying-ground.  Rev.  Z.  Druon,  then  of 
Montpelier,  attended  this  parish  every 
other  Sunday  from  1856  till  1864.  Father 
Druon  commenced  remodeling  extensively 
the  old  church  in  1863,  which  was  finished 


by  Rev.  F.  Clavier,  and  dedicated  in  Oct. 
1870,  under  the  patronage  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist.  This  church  was  burned  by  light- 
ning— entirely  consumed,  July,  1876:  the 
loss,  however,  mostly  covered  b\  insur- 
ance. Father  Clavier  also  purchased, 
immediately  after  his  appointment  as  pastor 
of  Northfield  Catholic  parish,  a  fine  resi- 
dence, on  which,  in  1875,  '^^  built  a  large 
chapel  adjoining  his  own  house  for  week 
day  services.  It  is  used  now  on  .Sundays 
as  a  temporary  church  till  the  new  church 
can  be  erected.  Rev.  Z.  Druon. 

Aug.  21,  1876. 

The  Bishop  of  Burlington  writes  :  "  The 
present  pastor  of  Northfield,  Rev.  John 
Galligan,  came  to  reside  in  that  village 
Oct.  1876,  and  the  present  handsome 
church  edifice  which  he  erected  was  ble.ssed 
on  Oct.  24,  1877." 

The  newspaper  record  of  the  time  :  "  The 
Catholic  church,  of  wood,  51.^x125;  a 
125-foot  spire  ;  which  will  seat  about  600  ; 
cost  about  $10,000  ;  upon  V^ine  street ;  was 
blessed  according  to  the  Roman  ritual ; 
high  mass  by  Father  Casey,  of  St.  Albans. 
Te  Deum  by  choir,  and  sermon  by  Rev. 
Father  Cunningham,  of  Middlebury,  his 
text  being  from  Psalms  :  '  I  love  the  house 
of  God  and  the  place  where  his  glory 
dwelleth.'  A  collection  of  $300  was  then 
taken.  A  large  number  of  prominent 
clergymen  were  present  from  various  parts 
of  the  State.  The  church  numbers  from 
600  to  700  communicants,  and  is  in  charge 
of  the  Rev.  John  Gallagher,  for  10  years 
priest  of  the  parish  at  VVaterbury. 

JUDGE    ELIJAH  AND  GOV.   CHARLES  PAINE, 

who  were  not  Northfield  men  by  birth, 
and  one  not  even  by  residence,  but  who 
did  more  for  the  town  in  its  early  settle- 
ment and  aftergrowth  than  any  other  cit- 
izens. Judge  Elijah  Paine,  the  leading 
spirit  among  all  the  settlers  in  this  vi- 
cinity, did  not  live  in  our  town,  but  on 
our  very  borders,  just  over  in  Williams- 
town,  which  town  has  already  the  honor  of 
having  his  biography — written  up  by  the 
Paine  family,  recorded  upon  her  page  of 
history  in  this  work,  vol.  11,  p.  11 50 — but 
it   is  our   privilege,  and   a  very  pleasant 


NORTHFIELD. 


659 


duty,  to  record  his  interests,  and  his  heart 
was  always  largely  with  Northfield.  He 
built  the  first  grist  and  saw-mill  and 
factory  in  this  town.  Full  of  energy  and 
enterprise,  just  the  man  to  clear  up  a  new 
country,  he  had  much  to  do  with  the  be- 
ginnings of  Northfield,  and  induced  many 
others,  sturdy  and  responsible  settlers,  to 
come  into  this  town.  His  factory,  says 
Mr.  Gregory,  which  he  built  in  Northfield 
when  a  wilderness,  180x42  feet,  with  6 
sets  of  woolen  machinery,  cost  $50,000 : 
employed  from  175  to  200  workmen,  and 
indirectly  several  hundred  more. 

The  proprietors  of  Northfield,  at  a  meet- 
ing held  at  Burch's  Inn,  in  Hartford,  Vt., 
2d  Tues.  of  Nov.  1784,  voted  he  should 
have  the  privilege  of  pitching  200  or  400 
acres  of  land  in  Northfield  at  his  option, 
on  condition  he  would  build  a  good  saw- 
mill in  said  Northfield  within  18  months, 
and  a  grist-mill  in  a  year.  He  built  the 
mills,  in  what  is  now  called  the  mill  woods 
on  the  road  to  Williamstown,  and  the  re- 
mains are  lying  in  the  water  near  the 
bridge  that  crosses  over  to  the  poor  farm. 
The  ravine  is  one  of  the  wildest  and  most 
romantic  places  we  know  of,  and  the  very 
last  place  (with  our  abundance  of  water- 
power),  that  would  be  selected  at  the 
present  day  for  that  purpose.  For  many 
years  this  place  was  the  only  one  in  town 
where  milling  was  done.  Customers  who 
came  quite  a  distance  frequently  brought 
their  grists  upon  their  backs,  or  on  horse- 
back. Vehicles  were  few  in  those  days. 
Occasionally  a  "one-horse  shay  "  was  seen, 
and  the  early  settlers  did  not  think  it  l)e- 
neath  their  dignity  to  goto  mill  or  meeting 
in  an  ox-cart. 

Judge  Paine  cleared  the  first  land  in 
Northfield,  near  his  mills,  which  was  sub- 
sequently owned  and  occupied  many  years 
by  John  Averill,  and  then  by  D.  T.  Av- 
erill. 

The  Judge  had  rare  executive  ability, 
and  could  manage  a  gang  of  men  with 
success,  making  everything  count  to  his 
advantage  and  profit.  He  kept  from  1400 
to  1500  sheep,  and  worked  his  wool  into 
flannel  and  broadcloths.  In  the  haying 
season  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  to  see 


30  or  40  men  in  the  field,  all  steady  at 
work,  for  the  owner  was  around  with  his 
eyes  open,  seeing  that  they  earned  their 
wages.  Many  clever  anecdotes  are  told  of 
him.  His  punctuality  was  proverbial.  On 
a  time  when  the  inmates  of  his  house  had 
all  retired,  he  remembered  he  had  not 
paid  a  note  due  Mr.  Ainsworth,  of  Wil- 
liamstown, on  that  day,  and  going  to  the 
chamber  door  he  cried  out,  "John,  John, 
get  up  and  harness  my  horse."  Before 
twelve  at  midnight  the  note  was  paid. 
Upon  Mr.  Ainsworth's  saying,  "  You  need 
not  have  taken  the  trouble  to  come  to-night, 
to-morrow  would  have  answered,"'  the 
Judge  replied,  in  his  quick,  nervous  style, 
' '  Did  1  not  promise  to  pay  it  to-day  ? " 

Hon.    Daniel    Baldwin    lived    in     Ber- 
lin,  on  Dog  river,  when  a  lad,  and  went 
to  mill  on  horseback  in  the  "Mill  woods," 
when  but  few  buildings  had  been  erected 
on  the  route.     When   he  had  become   a 
merchant  in  Montpelier,  Judge  Paine  call- 
j  ed  upon  him  for  the  loan  of  $1,000  for  a  few 
!  days.     He  said  that  amount  was  due  him 
j  at  Washington  for  his  services  as  United 
States  Judge,  and  he  had  expected  it  every 
day  for  some  time,  and  would  return  it  as 
:  soon  as  he  could  get  it  from  the  go\'ern- 
ment.     Baldwin  told  him  he  would  loan  it 
to  him  if  he  could  be  sure  and  have  it  at 
a  given  time,  as  he  should  then  want  it  to 
I  buy  goods  with  in   Boston.     The  Judge 
promised  that  he  should  have  it.  and  re- 
I  ceived  it,  but  not  hearing  anything  from 
i  him  up  to  the  day  previous,  Baldwin  made 
I  arrangements  to  go  after  his  goods,  think- 
ing he   would  call  on  the   Judge  on  his 
wav,  and  get  his  money.     But  as  he  was 
about  taking  the  stage,   he  looked  out  of 
his   store,    and   saw    the  Judge    hurrying 
along,  to   be    "  on   time."      He   had   the 
money,   and  made  explanation  :    He  had 
waited  for  it  until  the  day  before,  but  not 
receiving   it,    as   expected,    he    went    to 
Woodstock  some  40  miles  and  obtained 
it.     He  paid  Baldwin  according  to  agree- 
ment by  going  without  sleep,  riding  all 
night,  traveling  not  far  from  80  miles  in 
order  to  keep  his  word  good,  so  punctual 
was  he  in  his  business  transactions. 

Men  are  now  living  in  Northfield  who 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


can  well  remember  the  time  when  a  log 
cabin  was  put  on  wheels,  improvised  by 
Gov.  Paine,  and  drawn  to  Burlington, 
July  12,  1840,  in  the  days  of  "  Tippecanoe 
and  Tyler  too."  It  was  a  unique  affair, 
and  attracted  immense  attention  by  its 
novelty,  and  one  of  our  most  esteemed  cit- 
izens remembers  tapping  a  barrel  of  cider 
and  dispensing  it  to  the  distinguished 
crowd  who  rode  inside  of  this  rustic  ve- 
hicle. We  take  an  extract  from  an  article 
written  by  De  Witt  C.  Clark,  editor  of  the 
Burlington  Times,  giving  a  graphic  de- 
scription of  the  celebration.     He  says  : 

But  what  attracted  most  our  attention, 
next  to  the  imposing  display  of  numbers, 
was  a  beautiful  log  cabin  from  Northfield, 
mounted  on  wheels  and  drawn  by  12  su- 
perb grays,  decorated  with  flags  and  fes- 
toons. This  team,  we  are  told,  belongs 
to  an  honest  yeoman  in  Brookfield,  and  is 
ordinarily  engaged  in  transporting  produce 
to  Boston  ;  but,  said  the  patriotic  owner, 
this  is  the  proudest  load  that  ever  my  team 
was  attached  to,  and  to  the  country  the 
most  profitable.  Without  rein  or  check, 
these  noble  steeds  promptly  responded  to 
the  "Gee  up!"  "Whoa,  Dobbin!"  of  the 
brave  mountaineer  who  directed  them, 
and  when  we  saw  them  proudly  treading 
our  streets  and  doubling  the  shortest  cor- 
ners, with  a  rural  tenement  large  enough 
for  a  country  school-house,  we  could  not 
help  exclaiming,  in  the  language  of  the 
old  song : 

I'vf  often  thought,  if  I  were  asked 

Whose  lot  I  envied  most. 
What  one  I  thouglit  most  lightly  tasked. 

Of  man's  unnumbered  host, 
I'd  say  I'd  be  a  mountain  boy. 
And  drive  a  noble  team,  wo-hoy! 

Wo-hoy!  I'd  cry. 

Now  by  yon  sky 
I'd  soonerdrive  those  steeds 

Than  win  renown, 

Or  wear  a  crown, 
Won  by  victorious  deeds. 

The   cabin   itself   was  a  very  fine  one, 

constructed  of  peeled  logs,    20x10  feet, 

covered  with  bai'k,   fitted  up  with  paper 

curtains,    a    rough     door,  and   a   leather 

string,  which  hung  out.     The  antlers  of  a 

noble  stag  graced   one   peak,    while   the 

outer    covering   of    some    unlucky   coon 

stretched  upon  the  gable  bespoke  the  fate 

of  sub-treasurers  and  cornfield  poachers. 

This    tenement,  too,  was   well  filled  with 

the  early  tenants  of  log  cabins,  and  bore 

this  significant  motto  :      "The   people  are 

coming  !  "     Exclamations  were  heard  from 

every  rank  by  the  surrounding  thousands. 


with  three  times  three  for  old  Washington, 
Paine  and  the  Northfield  cabin. 

GOV.    CHARLES    PAINE. 

[For  his  early  life  see  Williamstown,  in 
vol.  II.] 

[From  Mr.  Cxregory's  History  of  Northfield. J 

"  To  Hon.  Charles  Paine  we  ai^e  in- 
debted, first,  for  our  beautiful  Depot  vil- 
lage, which  was  the  center  of  the  first  rail- 
road projection  in  our  Green  Mountain 
State.  This  being  the  headquarters  for  the 
"Vermont  Central,"  the  shops  were  here 
located  by  his  influence,  and  had  Provi- 
dence lengthened  his  life  to  this  day,  we 
can  imagine  what  great  prosperity  would 
have  blessed  our  town.  Well  may  North- 
field  consider  Charles  Paine  her  great  ben- 
efactor. No  other  man  in  Vermont  could 
have  interested,  like  him,  Peter  C.  Brooks, 
Harrison  Gray  Otis,  and  others,  men  of 
great  wealth,  to  favor  the  project  of  build- 
ing a  railroad  in  this  Mountain  State  at 
that  time.  Having  been  the  Chief  Magis- 
trate of  Vermont,  and  becoming  acquaint- 
ed with  these  leading  minds,  while  in  col- 
lege, he  carried  an  influence  that  but  few, 
if  any,  could,  and  which  brought  him  di- 
rectly into  intimate  relations  with  the  best 
men  in  New  England,  and  the  road  was 
built. 

Many  citizens  of  Northfield  will  remem- 
ber with  what  rejoicing  ground  was  broken 
near  the  depot  by  Gov.  Paine,  for  the  Vt. 
Central  Railroad,  the  spade  he  used  being 
still  preserved  by  the  railroad  officials. 
This  was  Jan.  8,  1847,  and  the  first  train 
came  into  Northfield  depot,  Oct.  11,  1848, 
at  20  minutes  past  9  o'clock,  p.  m.,  con- 
ducted by  Charles  Paine  Kiinball. 

[Nov.  4,  1848.  The  Governor  made  the 
first  excursion  on  his  new  railroad,  which 
is  thus  described  in  a  letter  to  his  wife  the 
next  day  by  Gen.  D.  W.  C.  Clarke  : 

An  hour  ago  I  returned  from  Northfield. 
from  tlie  excursion  on  the  Central  Railroad, 
yesterday.  We  left  Montpelier — the  Gov- 
ernor, and  about  200  members  of  the 
Legislature,  Secretary  of  State,  and  other 
dignitaries-  a  few  minutes  after  7  o'clock, 
yesterday  morning,  and  at  half-past  nine 
left  Northfield,  in  a  special  ti^ain  for  Leba- 
non, 53  miles — the  whole  length  of  the 
Central  road  now  opened.     In  two  hours, 


NORTHFIELD. 


66i 


ten  minutes,  we  found  ourselves  at  Leba- 
non. We  remained  a  little  more  than  an 
hour,  undergoing  the  hospitality  of  Mr. 
Campbell, — the  great  Bridge-Making  En- 
gineer, who  built  the  bridge  across  the 
Hudson  at  Troy — and  arrived  at  North- 
field,  again,  a  little  after  3  o'clock,  p.  M., 
having  travelled  from  Montpelier  about 
1 16  miles. 

No  persons  were  admitted  to  the  special 
train  provided  l^y  the  Governor  for  this 
Legislative  excursion,  excepting  specially 
invited  ;  and  very  few  special  invitations 
were  extended.  Ex-Governor  Eaton, 
Professor  Benedict,  Mr.  Brainerd  of  St. 
Albans,  Mr.  Upham,  and  a  few  others. 
There  were  about  250  on  the  train,  and 
probably,  two-thirds  of  them  had  never 
before  seen  a  railroad.  This  class  of  leg- 
islators ( ?)  was  very  inquisitive  about  the 


whole  matter,  asking  a  thousand  questions 
that  a  well-informed  boy  might  as  well 
have  answered.  .  .  .  But  I  only  want 
to  tell  you  about  my  participation  in  the 
excursion  :  In  the  cars  between  Northfield 
and  Bethel,  I  wrote  off  a  song  for  the  occa- 
sion, which,  for  its  local  allusions  and  hits, 
was  received  with  great  good  feeling,  and 
which  Mr.  Houghton,  Mr.  Shafter  and  I 
had  to  sing,  tolerably  often,  before  we  got 
back  again.  I  really  don 't  think  it  worthy 
of  publishing  abroad.  But  Fred  Houghton 
made  a  copy  which  will  probably  appear  in 
the  Tuesday's  Boston  Atlas.  I  say  this  to 
you,  ...  to  invoke  your  charity  for 
me,  and  my  vanity,  or  good  nature  in  con- 
senting to  have  it  printed.  But  I  did,  and 
"  there  is  the  end  on't." 

Caroline  (the  Governor's  sister,)  is  now 
on  a  visit  to  the  Governor's.     .     .     .    She 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


wanted  to  go  with  us  on  our  excursion  over 

Because  he  has  a  rough  old  way 

the  road,  but  as  there  were  no  other  ladies 

In  that  old  pate,  'tis  said. 

on  the  train,  she  declined. 

Of  doing  things  when  he  takes  hold; 

They  call  it  "  going  ahead!  " 

A  long  and  glowing  description  of  the 

Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

new  railroad,  and  the  first  great  excursion 
ride  of  the  Vermont  Legislature  upon  it, 

For  Belknap,  high  and  low ! 

Fie  goes  ahead  because,  you  see. 
He's  got  a  head  to  go! 

appeared  in  the  Thursday  issue  of  the  Bos- 

^ 

In  section  3,  it  is  declared. 

ton  Argus,  following,  if  we  rightly  remem- 

That that  'ere  long  man,  Moore, 

ber,  filling  a  page  or  more  of  the  Argus, 

Who  straddles  this  old  iron  horse. 

and  with  the  impromptu  song  born  of  the 

And  brings  us  through  secure, 
Shall  be  the  Chief  old  Engineer, 

ride — which  it  was  stated  in  the  pajDer  was 

By  special  legislation. 

sung  some  thirty  times  aboard   the  train, 
going  and  returning,  at  the  flush  feast  of 

Of  this  'ere  J'int  Assembly  here.— 

As  ZACH  shall  of  the  nation! 

Hurrah!  Hurrahl 

Belknap — his  grand  dinner  to  the  Legisla- 

Let's make  the  echoes  roar! 

ture — which  was  sung  more  and  more  up- 

Though  other  roads  are  safe  enough. 

The  Central  Road  is  Moore! 

roarously  as  on  waxed  the  hour. 

In  section  4,  it  is  set  down. 

"THE    RAILROAD   SONG. 

That  "mong  these  monntain  ridges. 

WRITTEN   BY  GEN.    CLARKE  ABOARD  THE  CARS 

The  name  of  Campbell  shall  resound : 

BETWEEN   NORTHFIELD   AND  BETHEL. 

The  Hero  of  the  Bridges! 

ri/^e— "Dearest  Mae." 

And  that  the  ni.an  to  carry  out 

We  took  ail  early  start  to-day. 

A  project  very  mighty. 

And  hraved  a  rough  old  ride. 

And  show  that  "it  is  bound  to  go,"' 

To  reach  the  place  wliere  Paine,  tliey  say, 

Is  that  'ere  same  "  Old  whitey!  " 

Wins  jieople  to  his  side ; 

Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

Tlie  iron-horse  was  breatliing  gas 

Let's  keep  the  chorus  humming! 

In  tlie  "sequestered  vale," 

For  word  has  passed  along  the  line- 

And  every  one  ambitious  was 

That  same  old  "  Campbell's  coming! " 

To  ride  upon  a  rail  1 

Hurrah!  Hurrah  1 

As  an  amendment  to  the  bill 

For  Governor  I'aine,  theRail-er! 

It's  moved  to  add  a  section, 

He  builds  his  roads  o'er  rocks  and  hills. 

Which  has  a  tendency  to  raise 

And  goes  for  General  Taylor! 

A  rather  sad  reflection : — 

It  is  that  Governor  Paine  do  seek— 

Hurrahl  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

(Why,  what's  the  man  about?) 

If  It  don't  beat  all  natur'! 

To  keep  the  family  on  earth— 

To  see  the  "wisdom  and  the  virtu'" 

The  race  must  not  run  out! 

Of  our  great  Legislatur' 

Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

A  riding  through  the  hills  and  vales. 

For  Paine,  the  bachelor .' 

From  Northfield  to  the  river. 

The  wonder  groweth  every  day. 

On  Governor  Paine's  new-fashioned  rails! 

What's  he  unmarried  for? 

Inever!  did  you  ever? 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  &c. 

Amendment  2d  is  proposed:— 

It  is  to  make  provision 

I  tell  you  what  it  is,  old  boys, 

That  shall  our  thanks  to  Campbell  sliow 

This  ride  we  are  not  loth  in, 

With  very  nice  precision. 

Especially  when  we  do  the  thing 

He  has  a  head  that's  great  to  plan. 

Free  gratis  and  for  nothin'! 

A  will  that  never  flinches: 

And  when,  besides,  the  dinner  comes 

We  wish  you'd  find  a  bigger  man 

On  just  such  terms  again. 

Than  CAMPBELL,  of  his  Inches. 

I'd  like  to  know  who  will  not  sing. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

Hurrah  for  Governor  Paine! 

For  "Whitey,"  brave  and  true! 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  *c. 

His  heart  goes  fitly  with  his  head? 

I  wish  to  introduce  a  bill— 

So  say  I— what  say  YOU  ? 

I  otfer  it  quite  humbly. 

And  move  Its  passage  through  these  cars. 

Now  if  the  President  will  rise. 

By  this  'ere  J'int  Assembly:— 

And  put  the  thing  to  vote. 

Section  1  provides  tliat  Paine 

I'd  like  to  know  your  sentiments 

Shall  have  the  right  to  go 

Upon  this  bill  I've  wrote; 

With  his  old  Railroad  where  he  will; 

And  so,  to  end  the  matter  well. 

He'll  do  it  whether  or  no ! 

Before  we  take  a  glass. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  &c. 

I  hope  you  all  will  answer  "  Aye!  " 

And  let  the  old  bill  pass. 

The  id  section  has  a  clause, 

Hurrah?  Hurrah! 

As  sharp  as  any  cat's, 

Please  put  this  vote  again  ; 

That  when  old  Belknai'  comes  along. 

All  you  who  are  affirmative. 

We'll  raise  our  cotton  hats, — 

Hurrah  for  Governor  PaInbI 

NORTHFIELD. 


663 


1  think  I  may  declare  the  vote — 

I'll  do  It  if  you  will. 
And  now  announce  to  this  J'int  House 

The  passage  of  the  bill; 
It  is  before  the  Governor— 

We  care  for  no  Veto — 
If  Governor  Paine  won't  sign  the  act, 

Our  COOLTDGE  will,  we  know! 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  &c. 

It  now  is  moved  that  we  adjourn. 

And  in  the  usual  way; 
For  plain  it  is,  at  this  late  hour. 

We  break  up  "  without  day;'' 
And  when  we'reach  our  homes  again. 

We'll  tell  the  wondrous  tale. 
How  Paine  has  rode  this  J'int 

Assembly  on  a  rail! 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  &c. 

As  for  the  title  of  our  i)ill, 

It  is  decreed  to  be:— 
"  An  act  to  lighten  public  cares, 

And  aid  festivity."' 
So  now  farewell  to  Governor  Paine, 

To  Belknap,  Campbell,  Moore  I 
This  J'int  Assembly  is  dissolved; 

''Tv/a.s  liquor fied  before! 

Farewell!  Farewell!] 

Gov.  Paine  felt  an  interest  in  education 
and  religion.  He  donated  the  land  on 
which  was  built  our  Academy,  and  $500  in 
money,  and  gave  the  institution  an  excellent 
apparatus.  His  executors  donated  (that 
is  he  gave  in  his  will),  the  Catholic  church 
the  land  for  their  church  and  cemetery. 
He  gave  the  land  for  Elmwood  cemetery, 
according  to  his  expressed  desire  before  he 
went  to  Texas,  and  he  built  the  church  in 
the  Depot  village,  now  occupied  by  the 
Congregational  society, from  his  own  funds, 
wishing  to  have  a  convenient  place  for  the 
people  to  attend  meeting.  By  all  which 
we  see  the  de.sire  of  his  heart  for  the  wel- 
fare of  his  race. 

The  Rev.  Ezra  Gannett,  D.  D.,  of 
Boston,  remarked,  in  preaching  his  funeral 
sermon : 

The  early  life  of  Charles  Paine  was 
passed  under  circumstances  suited  to  pre- 
pare him  for  the  part  he  afterwards  filled. 
Born  almost  on  the  commencement  of  a 
century  remarkable  for  its  control  of  me- 
chanical agencies,  and  the  development  of 
popular  institutions,  he  entered  on  the 
period  of  his  vigor  at  a  time  for  the  favor- 
able e.xercise  of  his  peculiar  abilities.  His 
father,  the  late  Judge  Paine,  was  one  of 
the  most  honorable  citizens  of  the  State, 
and  merited  the  respect  which  was  award- 
ed him.  The  influence  of  his  home  doubt- 
less laid  the  foundation  of  that  character 
which  in  subsequent  life  raised  the  son  to 


a  not  less  conspicuous  position.  Amidst 
the  green  hills  of  his  birthplace  he  breath- 
ed the  air  of  a  manly  freedom  and  a  vir- 
tuous energy.  Nature  spoke  to  him  in 
her  clear  and  sweet  tone,  and  he  listened 
in  the  uncorrupted  delight  of  youth.  Sur- 
rounded by  a  yeomanry  that  have  ever 
maintained  a  frank  independence,  in  union 
with  honest  industry,  intelligent,  brave 
and  hospitable,  free  from  the  vices  of 
suburban  communities,  and  strong  in  their 
local  attachments,  he  acquired  the  traits 
which  ripened  into  a  wise  and  noble  man- 
hood. The  love  of  his  native  State,  the 
inborn  passion  of  every  son  of  Vermont, lost 
none  of  its  fervor  as  his  judgment  grew 
more  mature.  He  loved  her  mountains 
and  her  streams,  her  history  and  her 
people!  At  the  age  of  17  he  became  a 
member  of  Harvard  college.  It  was  there 
my  acquaintance  with  him  began,  and 
there  that  the  bonds  of  friendship,  which 
4  years  of  various  fortunes  served  but  to 
strengthen,  were  knit  between  him  and  his 
fellow-students  !  Among  them  was  not 
one  who  regarded  him  with  any  other  feel- 
ings than  those  of  respect  and  esteem. 
Thirty-five  years  after,"  added  Mr.  Gan- 
nett, "  they  first  met  in  the  halls  of  Cam- 
bridge ;  nearly  one-half  of  the  surviving 
members  of  his  class  were  assembled,  by 
his  invitation,  around  the  board,  which 
was  spread  with  an  ample  hospitality.  I 
recall  that  scene  with  special  interest,  for 
it  shows  me  the  host  and  friend  happy  in 
the  sympathy  of  an  occasion  which  he 
made  delightful  to  others.  I  see  his  erect 
form,  his  open  face,  his  princely  demeanor. 
1  hear  his  words  of  cordial  greeting,  and 
feel  no  painful  obligation,  since  1  am  sure 
of  his  enjoyment  of  the  re-union,  for 
which  we  were  indebted  to  him,  whose 
hand  we  shall  never  grasp  again,  for  the 
ineffable  recollections  of  that  day. 

Governor  Paine  was  not  a  man  of  pro- 
fessions. His  words  were  not  many,  and 
they  never  were  uttered  to  secure  admira- 
tion or  to  forestall  an  impartial  judgment. 
It  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  he  said 
little  on  the  subject  of  religion.  But  such 
actions  as  speak  more  loudly  than  words 
attest  both  the  reality  and  the  character  of 
his  faith.  This  edifice  is  a  memorial  of 
the  value  he  set  on  the  institution  of  public 
worship,  and  an  unsectarian  administra- 
tion of  religious  truth.  On  this  point  he 
was  strenuous  and  consistent.  The  most 
emphatic  disapproval  of  dogmatic  exclu- 
siveness  which  he  could  have  left,  as  well 
as  the  most  decisive  testimony  to  his  faith 
in  the  great  Christian  truths,  is  given  in 
the  paper  by  which  he  makes  a  final  dis- 
position of  his  property. 

This  remarkable  document  contains  also 


664 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


unimpeachable  proof  of  that  disinterested 
concern  for  the  good  of  others,  and  that 
desire  to  see  all  classes  of  the  people  en- 
jo3ing  the  means  of  knowledge,  virtue  and 
happiness,  which  I  think  gave  to  his  char- 
acter its  largest  claim  on  our  fond  remem- 
brance. As  a  testamentary  provision,  I 
should  not  be  surprised  to  learn  that  it  is 
without  a  parallel.  Brief  but  distinct  in 
its  language,  it  is  as  peculiar  for  the  mod- 
esty as  for  the  liberality  which  it  evinces. 
Leaving  all  details  to  the  friends  in  whom 
he  reposes  the  utmost  conlidence,  and 
avoiding  any  suggestion  that  might  have 
the  effect  of  connecting  his  name  with  the 
uses  to  which  his  bequests  may  be  put,  he 
only  rec^uires  of  those  whom  he  appoints 
as  trustees  that,  after  assisting  such  per- 
sons as  they  may  think  have  any  claim 
arising  from  consanguinity,  friendship,  or 
obligation  incurred  by  him,  they  'use  and 
appropriate  whatever  property-  lie  may  die 
possessed  of  for  the  best  good  and  welfare 
of  his  fellow-men,  to  assist  in  the  improve- 
ment of  mankind  ;  recommending  that  they 
do  it  without  sectarianism  or  bigotry,  ac- 
cording to  the  intention  of  that  God  whose 
will  is  found  in  the  law  of  the  Christian  re- 
ligion, in  which,"  he  adds,  '  I  believe  and 
trust.'  What  could  be  more  characteristic 
or  admirable? 

The  manuscript  from  which  I  have  quoted 
bears  a  date  somewhat  distant  from  the 
present  time.  But  if  evidence  were  need- 
ed that  he  retained  the  same  feelings  to 
the  close  of  his  life,  it  is  furnished,  to  say 
nothing  of  other  facts,  by  an  incident 
which  I  am  permitted  to  relate.  A  short 
time  before  his  departure  for  Texas,  Mr. 
Paine  was  reminded  by  a  friend  that  he 
had  never  made  an  explicit  declaration  of 
his  religious  belief,  and  was  requested  to 
say  what  doctrinal  tenets  he  had  adopted. 
After  a  moment's  hesitation,  he  took  from 
his  pocket  a  slip  of  paper  bearing  the  stains 
of  age  and  use,  which  he  gave  to  his  friend, 
and  said,  '  There  is  my  creed  :' 

"Abou  Ben  Adlieni— may  liis  tribe  increase- 
Awoke  one  niglit  from  a  deep  dream  of  peace. 
And  saw  within  the  moonliKlit  in  liis  room. 
Making  it  rich,  and  like  a  lily  in  bloom. 
An  angel 'writing  in  a  book  of  gold. 
Exceeding  peace  had  made  Ben  Adhem  bold, 
And  to  the  presence  in  the  room  he  said, 
•What  writest  thou?'   The  vision  raised  its  head." 

"  And  witli  a  look  made  all  of  sweet  accord. 
Answered,  'The  names  of  those  who  love  the  Lord.' 
'  And  is  mine  one?'  said  Abou.    'Nay,  not  so,' 
Replied  the  angel.    Abou  spoke  more  low. 
But  cheerily  still,  and  said, '  I  pray  thee,  then, 
Write  me  as  one  that  loves  his  fellow  men.' 
The  angel  wrote  and  vanished.    The  next  night 
It  came  again,  with  a  great  wakening  light. 
And  showed  the  names  whom  love  of  God  had  blest, 
And  lo!  Ben  Adhem's  name  led  all  the  rest." 

This  admirable  sermon  concludes:  "A 
o-loom  hangs  over  the  village  in  the  warm 
summer's  day.  The  sky  is  clear,  and  the 
air  is  healthful ;  yet  every  aspect  of  nature 


is  sad,  and  the  scene  around  us  impresses 
us  like  a  funeral  monument.  And  such  it 
is.  Our  hearts  cast  their  own  shadows 
upon  the  landscape.  We  have  come  to 
lay  the  remains  of  him  whom  we  loved  in 
the  grave.  He  died  far  away  from  us,  and 
far  from  the  spots  that  were  dear  to  him. 
but  we  could  not  leave  his  dust  in  that  dis- 
tant land.  The  hope,  tenderly  expressed 
in  their  first  anguish  of  bereavement,  is 
realized  : 

That  noble  form,  so  proud,  so  calmly  bold. 
Shall  make  its  last  sad  resting  place  amid 
The  scenes  he  long  had  loved  and  cherished. 
Within  the  State  o'er  which  lie  was  a  Ruler. 

Here  will  we  lay  his  mortal  frame  in  the 
grave  which  he  would  have  chosen,  in 
front  of  the  temple  which  he  built  to  the 
glory  of  God,  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
proofs  of  what  he  had  done  for  man.  The 
associations  of  this  hour  shall  henceforth 
invest  the  spot.  Business  and  travel  shall 
own  its  sanctity,  and  time  shall  guard  it 
with  watchful  reverence." 

Hon.  Heman  Carpenter  said  in  his  eulo- 
gy on  him,  at  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of 
Northfield,  upon  receiving  intelligence  of 
his  death  ; 

"  By  his  iniiuence  and  his  energy  the 
charter  of  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad 
was  obtained,  and  to  him  we  are  indebted 
for  the  accomplishment  of  this  stupendous 
work  !  There  is  his  Moiimnent  I  And 
when  we  are  dead  and  forgotten,  then 
fresh  in  the  memory  of  the  future  will  be 
his  name,  as  long  as  the  iron  horse  shall 
traverse  our  State,  his  name  will  be  cher- 
ished by  the  honest  and  hardy  sons  of  the 
Green  Mountain  State.  He  also  gave  an 
impetus  to  other  railroads. 

"To  me"  (said  Mr.  Carpenter)  "this 
dispen.sation  of  Providence  is  overwhelm- 
ing. Language  fails  to  express  the  deep 
emotions  that  thrill  through  every  nerve. 
He  was  my  friend  when  I  needed  a  friend. 
For  17  years  I  enjoyed  his  intimate  and 
uninterrupted  acquaintance  and  confidence. 
I  see  him  now  as  I  last  saw  him,  when  a 
few  friends  took  him  by  the  hand  and  bade 
him  good  bye,  with  tears  in  their  eyes,  as 
he  left  the  station  here  in  the  cars  for  his 
journey  South.  The  words  of  one  of  the 
friends,  as  the  train  left,  have  made  an  im- 
pression upon  my  mind  that  time  will  nev- 
er efface.  '  That  car  carries  more  men 
from  Northfield  than  it  will  ever  bring 
back.'  That  was  the  fearful  belief  of  us  all 
when  he  left,  and  sadly  true  it  has  proved 
indeed.  It  carried  the  living  man,  it  can 
only  bring  back  his  earthly  remains.  It 
carried  him  in  whom  human  nature  can 
stand  up  before  all  the  world,  and  say 
'  He  was  a  man  !'  " 


NORTHFIELD. 


665 


Hon.  John  Wheeler,  of  Burlington, 
formerly  President  of  the  University,  said 
of  Gov.  Paine  : 

"On  his  return  from  college  he  showed 
no  inclination  for  professional  study,  but 
asked  to  enter  upon  the  employment  of 
practical  life,  both  to  lessen  the  labors  of 
his  father,  and  to  advance  his  interests. 
This  he  was  allowed,  without  much  thought 
tliat  he  would  do  otherwise  than  soon  grow 
weary  of  it,  and  call  for  a  dilferent  mode 
of  employment.  'I  was  greatly  surprised,' 
said  his  father,  'at  the  readiness  with 
which  he  took  hold  of  labor,  the  energy 
with  which  he  followed  it,  and  the  capaci- 
ty and  completeness  with  which  he  finish- 
ed it.  1  found  he  could  do  as  much  and 
as  well  as  1  could  in  my  best  days.'  Those 
of  us  who  live  in  Vermont  know  that  such 
a  parent  could  scarcely  give  higher  praise." 

Charles  Paine  was  elected  Governor  of 
Vermont  in  1841  and  1842, — in  the  lan- 
guage of  Hon.  E.  P.  Walton  : 

"  The  youngest  man,  1  think,  in  the 
gubernatorial  office  in  the  State,  I  am  sure 
there  never  was  any  man  who  more  highly 
esteemed  the  claims  of  age  and  wisdom 
and  experience,  or  was  more  ready  to  dis- 
tinguish and  encourage  whoever  among 
the  young  gave  hopeful  promise  of  an  hon- 
orable and  successful  public  career. 

"  What,  then,  shall  I  say  to  you  who 
have  known  him ;  to  you,  who  have  been 
the  witnesses  of  his  life  ;  to  you,  who  have 
esteemed  him  beyond  all  other  men  ;  to 
you,  who  feel  that  you  have  lost  more 
than  a  father  or  a  friend — both — lost  all  ? 
I  can  only  say  it  is  right  now  for  you  to 
weep.  Grief  is  the  necessary  burden  of 
this  day,  and  of  many  days  to  you  ;  but 
when  the  fountain  of  your  tears  shall  fail, 
when  you  shall  become  weary  and  worn, 
because  of  your  great  grief,  then  will  it  be 
fit  for  you  to  rejoice  that  one  has  lived  so 
briefly,  yet  so  well,  and  so  honorably,  so 
unremittingly,  and  so  successfully  labored 
in  important  services  for  his  neighbor- 
hood, his  State  and  his  country — that  you 
feel  his  death  is  an  irreparable  loss,  and  a 
public  calamity.  Weep  now.  It  is  good 
to  weep.  ..... 

"  His  ambition  in  that  great  undertaking, 
(building  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad) 
was  of  a  character  which  the  world  justly 
esteems  to  be  noble ;  he  aimed  to  win  for 
himself  an  honorable  public  name,  by  ren- 
dering a  great  public  service.  However 
much  of  direct  personal  advantage  he  nat- 
urally and  properly  may  have  expected  from 
it,  I  am  sure  his  chief  purpose  was  to  win  an 
honorable  name.  In  the  brightest  days,  he 
looked  joyfully  to  this  reward,  and  in  the 


darkest,  when  every  other  hope  seemed  to 
fail,  this  remained  to  solace  him.  It  was 
on  one  of  these  darkest  days,  and  at  a 
time  when  courage,  hope  and  health  were 
all  failing,  that  he  said  to  me,  in  his  famil- 
iar mode  of  conversation,  '  Well,  Walton, 
whatever  may  become  of  the  corporation, 
they  cannot  rob  us  of  the  road  !  It  is 
done  ;  it  will  be  run  ;  and  the  people  will, 
at  any  rate,  reap  the  blessings  which  we 
designed.  Oh  !  if  it  were  not  for  that,  1 
really  believe  I  should  die.'  " 

In  Governor  Paine's  first  message  to  the 
General  Assembly,  in  1841,  there  is  one 
topic  presented  for  their  consideration  that 
1  wish  to  preserve.     (Mr.  Gregory.) 

"  Education  is  a  subject  which  cannot 
fail  to  command  your  earnest  attention. 
It  is  true  that  no  community  can  boast  of 
more  widely  and  universally  diiTused  in- 
struction than  ours,  and  it  might  therefore 
appear  useless  to  urge  the  topic  upon  your 
consideration.  But  we  must  continually 
bear  in  mind  that  it  is  not  the  result  of  ac- 
cident that  the  people  of  this  State,  with 
so  few  exceptions,  can  all  read  and  write, 
and  have  enjoyed  the  benefit  of  at  least  a 
good  English  education.  They  owe  their 
happy  and  enviable  condition  in  this  re- 
spect entirely  to  the  unceasing  solicitude 
and  wise  legislation  of  our  forefathers. 
While  our  State  was  yet  almost  a  wilder- 
ness, those  who  themselves  felt  the  want 
of  education  were  most  careful  that  their 
children  should  not  be  grown  up  in  igno- 
rance, and  the  efforts  they  made  to  estab- 
lish and  support  common  schools  and  sem- 
inaries for  the  higher  branches  of  learning, 
must  forever  command  our  gratitude  and 
admiration." 

Such  sentiments  are  "like  apples  of 
gold  in  pictures  of  silver,"  and  show  the 
character  of  the  man.  He  took  an  inter- 
est in  the  education  of  all  our  people,  and 
did  not  fail  to  speak  an  encouraging  word 
when  it  would  do  good.  He  took  an  in- 
terest also  in  agriculture.  Desiring  to 
improve  the  stock  of  cattle  in  this  vicinity, 
he  imported  a  full  blood  Durham  into 
town,  and  for  many  years  the  milking  qual- 
ities of  the  dairy  were  improved  to  a  good 
degree.  It  was  by  his  influence  that  the 
Washington  County  Agricultural  Fair  was 
held  one  year  in  Northfield,  on  what  is 
now  called  Central  street ;  and  it  was  one 
of  the  most  successful  fairs  ever  held  in 
this  county.  He  loved  good  cattle,  and 
good  horses. 


666 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


He  built  and  kept  in' good  [order  a  fish 
pond  near  his  hotel,  where  he  lived,  and 
took  great  delight  in  feeding  the  fish  from 
his  hand.  Gov.  Paine's  celebrated  fish 
pond,  iox8  rods,  was  one  of  the  curiosi- 
ties of  the  Depot  village. 

He  built  the  hotel  in  the  Depot  village, 
and  before  its  alteration  the  cars  came 
across  the  common  from  both  directions, 
and  would  stop  at  the  south  end  of  the 
building  for  refreshments.     In  the  clays  of 


William  Rogers  and  E.  A.  Webb  it  was  a 
popular  resort,  and  in  good  times,  when 
the  Vermont  Central  and  Northfield  were 
in  their  davs  of  prosperity,  it  was  no  un- 
common thing  to  have  from  50  to  100 
guests  at  this  house  at  a  time. 

Vkkjiomt  Cextkal  Kailkoad  Co.,      1 
In  DiRECTORis'  Meeting,  Aug.  25,  185.3.  j 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  has  with  deep 
sorrow  received  intelligence  of  the  death  of 
the  Hon.  Charles  Paine,  late  President  of 


NORTHFIELD. 


667 


this  Company,  and  in  consideration  of  his 
indefatigable  and  important  services  in 
originating  and  sustaining  the  corporation, 
and  of  his  honorable  character  as  its  chief 
officer,  we  deem  the  event  a  suitable  one 
for  the  official  action  of  the  Board. 

Resolved,  That  in  token  of  our  individual 
respect  and  regard,  and  the  high  estima- 
tion in  which  we  hold  the  character  and 
memory  of  the  deceased,  we  will  in  a  body 
attend  his  funeral  obsequies. 

Resolved,  That  the  President  be  em- 
powered and  requested  to  furnish  free 
passes  to  the  relatives  and  friends  of  the 
deceased,  for  the  purpose  of  attending  his 
funeral  atNorthfield,  on  the  ist  inst. 

E.  P.  Walton,  Jr.,  Clerk. 

The  following  were  the  committee  for 
Gov.  Paine\s  funeral :  Samuel  W.  Thayer, 
Jr.,  JohnGregory, Moses  Robinson,  Heman 
Carpenter,  Perley  Belknap,  Elijah  Smith, 
Jr.,Northfield,  Dec.  16,  1853. 

A    handsome    oranite    monument    was 


placed  over  the  Governor's  remains  in  our 

beautiful  Elmwood,  by  the  generosity  and 

munificence    of  his   friend,    Benjamin   P. 

Cheney,    Esq.,    of  Boston,  at   a   cost  of 

$1,000,  on  which  we  read   the  following 

epitaph  : 

"Happy  in  his  parentage,  a  youth  of  preparation 

Was  followed  by  an  eai'ly  maturity  of  usefulness, 

Invigorated  by  many  virtues,  and  adorned 

By  many  manly  acts; 

Devoted  to  his  native  State,  he  applied 

His  talents,  his  wealth,  and  his  strength  to  the 

Advancement  of  her  great  public  works, 

And  the  encouragement  of  her  institutions  of  learning. 

Having  bestowed  upon  Vermont  benefits  of  which 

The  value  cannot  yet  be  justly  appreciated. 

He  considered  the  wants  of  the  world  and  the  age. 

And,  while  seeking  a  path  which  should  unite 

The  Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  coast,  lie  died 

In  a  distant  land,  far  from  those  who  loved  hiui. 

Having  merited  well  of  the  Commonwealth 

And  his  kind,  his  remains  were  here  interred, 

Hallowe'i  by  public  honors,  and  private  tears." 

[Gov.  Paine,  after  a  sickness  of  26  days, 
died  at  Waco,  Texas,  July  6,  1853,  age  54. 


ELMWOOD   CEMETERY 


BY  DR.  PHILANDER  D.  BRADFOIID 


Within  the  corporate  limits  of  the  vil- 
lage of  Northfield,  just  north  of  the  same, 
upon  a  beautiful  piece  of  table  land,  is 
situated  Elmwood  Cemetery. 

The  ground  originally  comprised  an 
area  of  6  acres  and  36  rods,  and  was  do- 


nated to  the  people  of 
Northfield  by  their  late 
benefactor,  ex  -  Governor 
Charles  Paine. 

April  I,  1854,  many  of 
the  citizens  of  the  town 
met  in  the  office  of  Hon. 
Heman  Carpenter,  to  ef- 
fect an  organization  under 
the  general  statutes,  sub- 
sequently known  as  "The 
Northfield  Cemetery  As- 
sociation." Hon.  Heman 
Carpenter  was  chairman, 
and  George  Nichols  clerk. 
A  committee  of  five 
were  appointed  to  prepare 
articles  of  agreement,  and 
a  code  of  by-laws.  At  an 
adjourned  meeting,  April 
8,  the  committee  present- 
ed a  code  of  by-laws, 
which  were  adopted,  and 
an  organization  was  per- 
fected by  electing  a  president,  clerk,  treas- 
urer, and  five  curators. 

Governor  Paine  having  deceased,  his 
administrators,  James  C.  Dunn,  of  Bos- 
ton, and  Miss  Caroline  Paine,  of  New 
York,  agreeable  to  his  e.xpressed  wish,  ex- 


668 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ecuted  a  deed  of  the  above  mentioned  land 
to  the  Northfield  Cemetery  Association. 
The  deed  contains  the  following  words : 
"  In  consideration  of  one  dollar  and  good 
will  paid  to  our  full  satisfaction,  we  grant, 
confirm,  and  convey  to  the  Northfield 
Cemetery  Association  the  following  des- 
cribed land,  etc.,  for  the  burial  of  the 
dead,  and  for  no  other  purpose."  The  cu- 
rators proceeded  at  once  to  inclose  the 
grounds,  lay  out  lots,  avenues,  walks,  and 
open  areas,  causing  the  lots  to  be  num- 
bered, and  a  chart  to  be  made  of  the  same. 
But  death  was  faster  than  they,  on  the  26th 
of  the  same  month,  even  before  the 
grounds  were  inclosed,  the  remains  of 
Daniel  Stevens  were  buried  there,  his  be- 
ing the  first  grave  in  the  cemetery.  In 
October,  1855,  an  act  was  passed  by  the 
Legislature  of  Vermont  incorporating  the 
Northfield  Cemetery  Association.  The 
act  provided  that  the  affairs  of  the  Associa- 
tion should  be  managed  by  trustees  in 
number  not  less  than  five,  nor  more  than 
seven,  and  that  they  should  elect  from 
their  number  a  president,  clerk,  and  treas- 
urer. The  corporation  were :  Royce 
Jones,  William  Rogers,  H.  M.  Bates, 
William  C.  Woodbury,  George  Nichols, 
J.  C.  Cady,  P.  D.  Bradford,  J.  C.  B. 
Thayer,  Perley  Belknap,  Heman  Carpen- 
ter, E.  A.  Webb,  E.  G.  Babcock,  G.  N. 
Cady,  Calvin  Cady,  and  W.  F.  Wood- 
worth.  In  November,  1866,  the  Legisla- 
ture passed  an  act  in  amendment  of  an  act 
of  1855,  "called  an  act  incorporating  the 
Northfield  Cemetery  Association,"  author- 
izing the  Association  formed  under  the 
General  Statutes  to  accept  the  charter 
passed  at  the  session  of  1856,  and  that  all 
rights,  both  in  law  and  equit}-,  be  secured 
to  and  enjoyed  by  the  association  formed 
under  the  General  Statutes  that  are  secured 
to  and  enjoyed  by  the  members  of  the  as- 
sociation formed  under  the  act  aforesaid. 
Aug.  12,  1857,  the  association  voted  to 
accept  the  charter  and  amendment,  and 
organized  under  the  act  of  1855,  by  elect- 
ing five  trustees,  viz :  William  C.  Wood- 
bury, E.  A.  Webb,  George  Nichols,  L.  D. 
Gilchrist,    and   Jefferson    Marsh.      E.    A. 


Webb  was  elected  president,  George  Nich- 
ols, clerk  and  treasurer. 

In  November,  1867.  an  act  was  passed 
by  the  Legislature  in  amendment  of  an  act 
passed  November,  1855,  changing  the 
name  of  the  Northfield  Cemetery  Associa- 
tion to  "  Elmwood  Cemetery";  also  au- 
thorizing the  trustees  to  contract  with  in- 
dividuals for  the  perpetual  care  and  im- 
provement of  any  lot  or  lots  in  said  cem- 
etery. In  November,  1876,  the  Legisla- 
ture passed  an  act  in  amendment  of  the 
foregoing,  giving  full  power  and  control  to 
the  trustees  as  to  the  burial  of  the  dead : 
also  full  power  to  control  and  prevent  the 
burial  and  removal  of  bodies  buried  in  said 
cemetery,  as  fully  and  to  the  same  extent 
that  selectmen  have  in  the  burial  grounds 
of  the  State,  and  to  the  extent  necessary 
to  protect  said  cemetery  from  encroach- 
ment or  trespass  by  any  person  or  per- 
sons. The  cemetery  contains  at  the  pres- 
ent time  (1878)  the  remains  of  575  per- 
sons. It  has  long  been  apparent  that  the 
grounds  were  not  adequate  to  the  increas- 
ing and  prospective  wants  of  the  commu- 
nity, and  the  ^trustees  added  to  the  same 
in  1877  by  the  purchase  of  additional  land. 

The  site  selected  for  this  cemetery  is 
beautifully  adapted  for  that  purpose,  and 
shows  the  good  judgment  and  taste  of  the 
donor.  It  is  withdrawn  a  little  distance 
from  the  busy  thoroughfare,  yet  easy  of 
access,  and  affords  a  pleasant  walk,  which 
appears  a  favorite  one  with  citizens  and 
strangers.  If  the  character  of  a  people  for 
refinement  and  religion  is  indicated  by  the 
care  of  and  taste  displayed  in  beautifying 
the  burial  places  of  the  dead,  it  is  a  matter 
of  congratulation  that  our  cemetery,  with 
its  beautiful  monuments,  its  mementoes  of 
affection,  and  numerous  emblems  of  the 
Christian  hope  lighting  up  the  darkness  of 
this  world,  contrasts  so  strongly  with  the 
cheerless  and  unattractive  burial  grounds 
of  50  years  ago.  If  this  cemetery  shall  be 
beautified  in  years  to  come  as  it  may  be 
beautified,  if  art  shall  vie  with  nature  in 
adding  to  its  attractions,  if  affection,  not 
avarice,  take  the  lead  in  questions  of  ex- 
penditures, it  will  soon  become  one  of  the 


NORTHFIELD. 


669 


most  attractive  spots  with- 
in the  limits  of  our  Green 
Mountain  State. 

The  Association  at  its 
annual  meeting,  the  first 
Tuesday  in  May,  1878,  re- 
elected the  former  trus- 
tees, viz.  :  P.  D.  Brad- 
ford, J.  H.  Orcutt,  CD. 
Williams,  J.  C.  Gallup, 
and  E.  G.  Pierce,  who  sub- 
sequently elected  P.  D. 
Bradford,  president,  C. 
D.  Williams,  clerk  and 
treasurer,  G.  B.  B.  Den- 
ny, auditor,  and  James 
Evans,  sexton. 

In  connection  with  and 
belonging  to  said  cem- 
eterv,  is  a  substantial  and 
commodious  tomb,  men- 
tion of  which  should  not 
be  omitted.  At  the  annu- 
al town  meeting  in  the 
spring  of  1867,  the  select- 
men were  instiiicted  by  a 
vote  of  the  town  to  build  a  , 
tomb  for  temporary  deposit  of  the  dead, 
to  be  located  at  such  place  as  would  best 
accommodate  the  town.  During  the  fol- 
lowing summer  the  selectmen,  (Marvin 
Simons,  William  Winch,  and  Dr.  Samuel 
Keith,)  agreeable  to  instructions,  caused 
said  tomb  to  be  constructed  at  an  expense 
of  $1,200,  and  located  it  within  the  cem- 
etery grounds,  the  Association  donating 
the  site.  The  front  of  the  tomb  is  of 
hewn  granite  from  Berlin  quarry,  with 
panels  of  serpentine  from  Roxbury  quarry. 


donated  by  the  late  Thomas  L.  Salisbury. 
It  is  surmounted  by  a  heavy  marble  cross, 
(the  emblem  of  the  Christian's  faith,) 
upon  which  is  the  monogram  I.  H.  S. 

This  tomb,  bordering  upon  the  highway 
at  the  head  of  North  street,  has  been 
found  of  great  convenience  in  the  winter 
season,  and  for  both  usefulness  and  artis- 
tic beauty  reflects  great  credit  upon  the 
town,  and  especially  upon  the  member  of 
the  Board  (Dr.  Keith)  who  had  charge  of 
its  construction. 


CENTER   CEMETERY. 

Sept.  18,  1S23,  Ezekiel  Robinson,  Oli- 
ver Averill,  Joseph  Keyes,  Harry  Emer- 
son, and  Nathan  Green  bought  of  E.  Tay- 
lor, Jr.,  and  G.  R.  Spalding  i  acre  of  land 
west  of  where  the  yellow  meeting  house 
stood  for  a  burying-ground,  paying  $60. 
It  was  laid  out  in  lots  11^x25  feet,  with  a 
drive-way  running  through  from  east  to 
west.  The  lots  were  sold  at  75  cents 
each,  and  in  1829,  had  all  been  disposed 
of  except  two  lots  in  the  southwest  corner, 


which  were  reserved  as  a  burial  place  for 
strangers. 

Several  additions  have  been  made  to  the 
"lot ;  that  of  Jonathan  Briggs  on  the  east, 
where  the  first  meeting  house  was  built, 
and  last  on  the  west  one  acre  and  127 
rods  bought  of  Timothy  Reed,  Sept.  30, 
1874,  for  $204.45. 

Soon  after  this  cemetery  was  ready,  the 
dead  buried  on  "  Richardson's  Meadow," 
west  of  the  railroad,  were  taken  up  and 
interred  here.     From  181 1  to  1823,  Rich- 


6/0 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ardson's  meadow  was  the  general  burial 
place  in  the  vicinity.  Some  few  were  ear- 
ned to-  the  East  Hill  burying  ground,  and 
some  to  the  west  of  Depot  village,  in  a 
burial  place  near  F.  A.  Preston's  farm. 
Nature   has   done    much    to   make  this 


ground  "  beautiful  for  situation."  The 
improvement  began  in  the  front  part  of 
of  the  cemetery  is  praiseworthy,  and  it  is 
hoped  will  be  continued  until  the  whole 
enclosure  shall  present  an  agreeable  ap- 
pearance. 


HON.    MOSES   ROBINSON, 

A  son  of  one  of  the  first  settlers — see 
page  617  for  biography  of  himself  and  the 
Robinson  family,  and  page  646  of  early 
anecdotes.  Mis  father  opened  a  lot  on  his 
land  for  the  first  burying  ground  in  town, 
as  we  understand,  vvitliout  charge  for 
burial  to  any  one. 

East  Hill  Ce.metery  is  sitnated  at 
the  four  corners  on  the  East  Hill,  near  the 
first  settlement  of  the  town,  in  what  is  call- 
ed the  Robinson  district.  It  was  the  first 
burying  ground  in  Northfield,  and  for  a 
number  of  years  the  only  one.  The  land 
belonged  to  the  farm  of  Amos  Robinson, 
and  no  organization  as  we  can  learn  was 
ever  formed  to  control  it.  All  who  de- 
sired it  for  the  burial  of  their  friends  had 
the  privilege,  and  here  many  of  the  early 
settlers  rest  from  their  labors.  Among 
the  prominent  men  that  are  here  interred 
are  Amos  Robinson,  Nathaniel  Robinson, 
Abraham  Shipman,  Thomas  Averill,  and 


Jesse  Averill,  Lebbeus 
Bennett,  Parley  Tyler, 
William  Jones,  and  Sam- 
uel Buzzell,  with  their 
wives  and  many  of  their 
children. 

GOULDSVILLE  CEMETERY. 
This  burying  ground, 
located  in  the  center  of  the 
village,  shows  care  and  at- 
tention in  the  laying  out 
of  the  lots,  and  keeping 
them  clear  from  weeds  and 
briers.  A  distinguished 
traveler  once  remarked : 
"  Show  me  the  cemeteries 
and  churches  of  a  town, 
and  I  will  tell  you  the 
character  of  the  people." 
The  Falls  village  burial 
ground  association  was 
organized  according  to  chapter  81  of  Re- 
vised Statutes.  The  first  meeting  was 
held  at  the  school-house  in  district  No.  13, 
December,  1848,  at  which  a  constitution 
was  adopted,  A.  S.  Braman,  moderator; 
Marvin  Simons,  clerk ;  Leander  Foster, 
James  (iould,  Samuel  Smith,  Lotan  Lib- 
bey,  Anson  Munson,  executive  committee. 
The  land  for  the  cemetery  formerly  be- 
longed to  the  farm  of  Luther  S.  Burnham  ; 
was  bought  and  laid  out  in  79  lots,  sold  at 
$4  each.  The  grounds  have  since  been 
enlarged  by  about  half  an  acre. 

Ord.  Sergt.  Luke  W.  Kendall,  Co.  F,  4th 
Vt.,  was  shot  through  the  head  in  the 
battle  of  the  Wilderness.  His  regiment 
had  never  fought  without  him,  and  he  never 
received  a  scratch  until  his  fatal  wound. 
He  had  re-enlisted  for  3  years ;  left  a  wife. 

Edmund  Pope,  Jr.,  enlisted  in  1861  ; 
taken  prisoner  at  Wilson's  Raid,  June  19, 
64;  died  in  Dec,  on  board  a  transport,  on 
his  way  home. 


NORTHFIELD. 


671 


LONGEVITY   OF   NORTHFIELD. 


BY   DR.  P.   D.  BRADFORD. 


N'a/nes  of  all  persons  (as  far  as  can  be  ascertained^ ,  %uho  have  lived  and  died  in  io7un 

over  JO  years  of  age. 

Whole  number  of  males,  143;  females,  100;  total,  243.  Aggregate  ages  of  males, 
12,249:  of  females,  9,090;  total,  21,339  y^-  Average  ages  of  males,  85  yrs.  7  m.  26 
days  ;  of  females  90  9-ro  yrs.     Average  ages  of  both  sexes.  87  yrs.  9  m.  23  days. 

Thomas  Averill, 
David  Denney, 
Prudence  Wise  Jones, 
Aquilla  Jones, 
Hannah  Shaw  Hedges, 
Thomas  Averill. 
Amasa  Tubbs, 
Mrs.  Hill  Tubbs. 
Gilbert  Hatch, 
Elizabeth  Averill, 
Ezekiel  Robinson, 
Amos  Robinson, 
Elizabeth  R.  Averill, 
Jerusha  R.  Richardson, 
Samuel  Richardson, 
Thomas  Coburn, 
Polly  G.  Cochran, 
Reuben  Smith. 
Hannah  Robinson, 
Elijah  Smith, 
Amos  Averill, 
Paul  Richmond. 
Mrs.  Keyser. 
Abraham  Shipman, 
Mary  M.  Smith, 
William  Cochran, 
William  Wales, 
Azubah  H.  Frizzle, 
Ebenezer  Frizzle, 
David  Hedges, 
Dinah  D.  Robinson, 
Nathaniel  King, 
Thomas  L.  Mayo, 
William  Gold, 
John  Plastridge, 
Polly  Loomis  Averill, 
Joel  Winch, 
Lemuel  Pope, 
Daniel  Stevens, 
Polly  Nichols  Smith, 
Lydia  Heath, 
Betsey  Gallup, 
Perley  Tyler, 
Betsey  R.  Tyler, 
Polly  Fish  VVorthington, 
Lewis  Hedges, 
Lavina  Chamberlin. 
Mrs.  Lewis, 
Theophilus  Golild, 
Joseph  Grant, 
Esther  Grant, 
Amasa  Alger, 
NathanierB.  Ashcroft, 
John  Fisk, 


CAPT.   JESSE  AVERILL.      See  page  618. 


Mrs.  Ebenezer  Fox, 
Ebenezer  Fox, 
Calvin  Cady, 
Betsey  M.  Cadv, 
Mrs.  Maith  Howe, 
Stillman  Allen, 
William  A.  Gallup, 
Isaac  Kinsman, 
John  Leonard, 
Anson  Adams, 
Nathaniel  Fisk. 
]3etsey  Fisk, 
Sarah  Fisk, 
David  Fisk, 
Amos  Howes, 
Libbeus  Bennett. 
Daniel  Worthington. 
William  Hedges, 
William  Keyes, 
Mrs.  Wm.  Noyes  King, 
Joel  Brown. 
Seth  P.  Field, 
Silas  Braley, 
Hannah  Reed  Davis, 


loi 

85 
81 

73 
76 

83 
72, 

84 
82 

76 
87 

71  I 
74 

73: 

721 

83 
91 

73  \ 
73  1 
91 
70  \ 
76, 
81  i 

75 


David  Plastridge, 
Henry  Knapp, 
Stephen  Thrasher, 
John  Preston, 
Eunice  C.  Preston, 
Almos  Wheeler, 
Rachel  A.  Wheeler, 
Betsey  Martin  Fisk, 
James  Heath, 
James  Loomis, 
David  Partridge, 
Michael  Welch, 
Willard  Alger, 
Margaret  Mowcroft, 
Eleazer  Loomis, 
Lois  Rice, 
Silas  Rice, 
Aniarvale  LaDuke, 
Fanny  LMall  Richmond, 
Simeon  Curtis, 
Rebecca  Pope, 
Betsey  C.  Pitkin, 
Lucy  R.  Trow,* 
Asahel  Blake, 


73 
72 

79 
95 
87 
75 
82 

84 
85 
7S 
73 
84 
71 
75 
81 

89 
93 
76 
90 
72 

84 
90 

74 
76 


672 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Polly  Latham, 

James  Latham, 

Ezra  Latham, 

John  Greene, 

Benjamin  Porter, 

James  Pike, 

Laura  S.  Randall, 

Sally  S.  Thrasher, 

Jedediah  Paeon, 

Marian  Belknap, 

Joseph  S.  Daniels, 

Abijah  Howe, 

Samuel  Richmond, 

Mrs.  M.  R.  Plastridge, 

John  F.  Nye, 

Nora  Hannon, 

Daniel  Hannon, 

Mrs.  H.  D.  Balch, 

Lydia  W.  Smith, 

Nanc}-  Ouimby, 

Susan  Adams, 

Richard  Hedges, 

Julia  T.  Hedges, 

Adolphus  Denny, 
John  Mosely, 

Samuel  Maxham, 

Nancy  L.  Field, 

Elijah  Hedges, 

Polly  T.  Hedges, 

Samuel  Buzzell, 

Samuel  Adams, 
Elijah  Burnham, 
Roswell  Alger, 
Betsey  French, 
Ora  Nichols, 
Mrs.  McCarty, 
James  Johnson, 
George  Rice, 
■  Esther  Rice, 
Tyler  Ladd, 
William  Mowcroft, 
Huldah  V^arney, 
Jonathan  Rich, 
Dennis  Canady, 
Daniel  Stevens, 
Mrs.  Johnson, 
Silas  Jackson, 
Lyman  Cochran, 
Jonathan  Pitkin, 

Churchill, 

Noyes  Tower, 
Jemima  Thompson, 
Mrs.  Rich, 
Joseph  Chamberlin, 
Nancy  H.  Chamberlin, 
Richard  Hedges, 
Rhoda  R.  Hedges, 
Abigail  D.  Foster, 
Mary  LaDuke, 
Edward  Bean, 
Harriet  G.  Dodge, 
Susan  Kent, 
Amos  Rice,- 
Ziba  Rice, 
James  Steele, 
Esther  S.  Steele, 


79  DK.    BEXJAMIX 

85 

80  lames  Webster. 


PORTER.     See  page  63: 


James  Webster, 
81    Simon  Eggleston, 

81  Mrs.  Holden, 

7'^    Sarah  Allen  Curtis, 

78  Betsey  P.  Houghton, 
83    Polly  Latham,' 

82  James  Latham, 

86  Oliver  Averill, 

74  John  Greene, 

75  Roswell  Carpenter, 

75  Roswell  Carpenter,  Jr. 
71    Lovisa  Carpenter. 

71  Azuba  Simons, 

70    Thomas  N.  Courser, 

87  Anna  R.  Smith, 
70    Dyer  Loomis, 

79  Jesse  Averill, 

88  Betsey  L.  Ashcroft, 

72  Betsey  W.  Kathan, 
78  Susan  C.  Eastman, 
95    Edward  Eastman, 

76  Joel  Parker, 

83  Hannah  Gilson  Parker. 

84  Ezekiel  Stanton, 
90    Joel  Coburn, 

88  !  Anson  Farnham, 

76  I  Polly  Farnham, 
87  I  Abbie  Tvler, 

83  !  N.  A.  Whittaker, 
72  I  Elijah  Ellis, 
83  j  Mrs.  Elijah  Ellis, 
87  I  James  Wiley, 

77  I  Mary  B.  Tyler, 
7^  {  Betsey  F.  Mayo, 
75    Isaac  Libby, 

75  Joseph  B.  Newton, 
82  Rachel  B.  Newton, 
77    Jacob  Amidon, 


74  j  Nathan  Ring,  84 

81  I  James  Nichols,  77 

95  I  Nathaniel  Richardson,  86 

73  I  Adin  Smith,  78 
85  Zebedee  Briggs,  7^ 
85  Solomon  Dunham,  75 
90    Mrs.  James  Pike.  84 

Q  Died  in  1880  a)id  1881. 

80   John  Gregory,  71 

76    Betsey  W.  Kathan,  76 

84  Samuel  Emerson,  76 
71  Ozias  Silsbury,  76 
7-},    Thomas  Emerson,  76 

79  Ansel  Shaw,  77 
88   Jacob  Loomis,  77 

74  Moses  Robinson,  77 

88  Abigail  Alger,  78 

76  Harriet  Hoyt  Sylvester,  79 
87  Calista  Vinton  Porter,  79 
94    Charles  Simons,  79 

89  Rebecca  W.  Coburn,  80 
99  Mary  Wales,  80 
72)  Louisa  Jones  Rice,  80 
93    Joseph  Moffitt,  83 

80  Josiah  Lane,  85 

77  John  Averill,  86 

85  Amelia  Kathan  Nve,  86 
84  Elmira  C.  Nye,  '  86 
80  Stephen  Burbank,  86 
83    Silas  Sheldon,  87 

75  Melinda  F.  Davis,  88 
70  Allen  Balch,  91 
75  M.  R.  Burbank,  92 
75  Zervia  S.  Williams,  91 
77    Mrs.  A.  Dumas,  93 

74  Mrs.  E.  E.  Corliss,  96 

75  John  Leahy,  100 


NORTHFIELD. 


673 


LEWIS    COLLEGE. 


NORWICH    UNIVERSITY. 

BY   HEV.  F.   "W.  BARTLETT. 

The  early  history  since  its  foundation  in 
1S34,  may  be  found  in  the  history  of 
Norwich,  where  it  was  located  until  after 
the  burning  of  the  "  South  Barracks"  in 
the  spring  of  1866.  The  next  fall  it  re- 
moved to  Northfield,  the  citizens  thereof 
having  raised  $16,500  for  the  purpose. 
Rev.  Edward  Bourns,  LL.  D.,  had  been 
president  for  15  years. 

On  removal,  the  institution  first  occupied 
the  upper  part  of  Paine's  building,  i.  e.,  from 
Sept.  13,  1866,  to  the  Commencement  in 
July,  1868.  Capt.  S.  W.  Shattuck  became 
president /;v;  tempore  in  1866,  Dr.  Bourns 
remaining  as  professor  of  languages  until 
his  death,  in  July,  1871.  Maj.  Thomas 
W.  Walker,  U.  S.  A.,  became  president 
in  1867,  Rev.  R.  S.  Howard,  D.  D.,  in 
1869,  Rev.  Malcolm  Douglass,  D.  D.,  in 
1872,  Rev.  Josiah  Swett,  D.  D.,  in  1875, 
Capt.  Chas.  A.  Curtis,  U.  S.  A.,  in  1877, 
Hon.  Geo.  Nichols,  M.  D.,  in  1880.  Dec. 
31,  1880,  the  trustees,  having  been  em- 
powered by  the  Legislature,  changed  the 
name  to  Lewis  College. 

This  was  done  chiefly  in  recognition  of 
the  offer  of  Col.  Chas.  H.  Lewis,  LL.D., 

85 


i  of  Boston,  an  alumnus,  to   render  it'the 
I  needed  financial  support,  on  certain  con- 
[  ditions,  which  were  accepted  by  the  trus- 
!  tees.      With    no   endowment,    there    had 
been  of  late  years  a  long-continued  strug- 
gle for  existence.     Col.  Lewis  was  at  the 
same    time    elected    president,    and    Dr. 
Clarence  L.  Hathaway,  M.  S.,   vice  presi- 
dent. 

The  college  has  conferred  the  following 
degrees  since  its  foundation  :  Bachelor  of 
Arts,  III;  Bachelor  of  Science,  140  ;  Bach- 
elor of  Philosophy,  2  ;  Civil  Engineer,  3  ; 
Master  of  Arts,  80 ;  Master  of  Civil  En- 
gineering, 13 ;  Doctor  of  Medicine,  3 ; 
Doctor  of  Divinity,  16;  Doctor  of  Laws, 
14;  Doctor  of  Philosophy,  2. 

The  faculty  of  professors  and  instructors 
have  numbered  60,  of  which  there  grad- 
uated from  Bowdoin  College,  i  ;  Brown 
University,  i  ;  Cambridge,  Eng.,  i  ;  Co- 
lumbia, 2  ;  Dartmouth,  2  ;  Harvard,  i  ; 
Michigan,  i  ;  Middlebury,  i ;  N.  Y.  City 
College,  I  ;  Norwich  University,  29 ;  Trin- 
ity, Dublin,  2  ;  Union,  i  ;  University  of 
Vermont,  i  ;  LTpsala,  Sweden,  i  ;  U.  S. 
Military  Academy,  2  ;  Williams,  i. 

Under  the  presidency  of  Col.  Lewis 
there  have  been  the  following  professors 


674 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


besides  the  lecturers  :  Clarence  L.  Hath- 
away, M.  S.,  M.  D.,  Prof,  of  Anatomy, 
Physiology  and  Hygiene :  Charles  Dole, 
A.  M.,  English,  History  and  Political 
Science;  William  M.  Rumbaugh,  C.  E., 
Drawing,  Architecture,  Civil  and  Topo- 
graphical Engineering;  Franklin  W.  Bart- 
lett,  A.  M.,  Latin  and  Greek:  John  B. 
Johnson,  A.  B.,  Mathematics,  Miningand 
Mechanical  Engineering:  Frederick  W. 
Grube,  A.  M.,  Modern  Languages;  Asa 
Howe,  C.  E.,  M.  D.,  Engineering,  Field 
Work. 

Military  science  has  been  taught  and 
military  discipline  enforced  from  the  out- 
set ;  and  accordingly  many  graduates  and 
past  cadets  have  entered  the  army  in  time 
of  war,  and  not  a  few  have  risen  to  dis- 
tinction as  officers  or  engineers.  The  roll 
of  honor  includes  the  names  of  12  general 
officers,  40  colonels  and  a  great  number  of 
other  officers,  among  whom  some  shed 
their  blood  for  their  country. 

Recently  eftbrts  have  been  made  to  bring 
the  college  more  prominently  before  the 
public  as  a  school  of  practical  science. 
The  publication  of  the  old  college  paper. 
The  Reveille,  has  lately  been  revived  by  the 
cadets.  The  number  of  students  is  in- 
creasing. 

REV.    EDWARD   BOURNS,  LL.  D. 

BY  KEV.  MALCOLM   DOUGLASS,  D.  D. 

Edward  Bourns  was  born  in  Dublin,  Ire- 
land, Oct.  29,  1801.  His  father's  ancestor 
was  a  Scotchman,  whose  name  was  thought 
to  have  been  originally  Burns,  who  went 
to  Ireland  about  the  time  of  James  I.,  and 
settled  in  Derry.  His  mother  bore  the 
name  of  King.  His  two  grandmothers 
were  sisters,  Medlicott,  by  name ;  and  his 
great  grandmother  was  a  Kirkpatrick  from 
Scotland.  He  was  educated  by  Dr.  Mil- 
ler, of  Armagh,  entered  Trinity  College, 
Dublin,  and  won  his  degree  of  B.  A.  July 
9,  1833.  He  passed  the  theological  exam- 
inations, June,  1834.  Both  before  and  after 
this  date  he  was  engaged  as  a  writer  and 
reviewer  by  the  well  known  publishers, 
Thomas  Tegg  &  Son,Cheapside,  London. 
He  did  not  at  once  take  orders,  but  en- 
gaged as  tutor  in  a  private  family  in  Eng- 


land. In  August,  1837,  he  landed  in  this 
country.  He  soon  after  opened  an  English 
and  Classical  School  in  Philadelphia,  where 
he  became  acquainted  with  the  Rev.  Dr. 
William  H.  DeLancey,  Provost  of  the 
Pennsylvania  University.  After  the  con- 
secration of  Dr.  DeLancey  as  Bishop  of 
Western  New  York,  and  his  removal  to 
Geneva,  in  1838,  Edward  Bourns  was  at- 
tracted to  Geneva.  In  1 839,  he  received  the 
degree  of  M.  A.  from  Geneva  College,  then 
presided  over  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Benjamin 
Hale.  In  the  same  year,  he  was  made  ad- 
junct professor  of  the  Latin  and  Greek 
languages.  In  1841.  he  received  the  de- 
gree of  LL.  D.  from  the  same  college.  In 
the  same  year  on  the  7th  of  March,  in 
Trinity  Church,  Geneva,  he  was  ordain- 
ed Deacon  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  ;  and  in  the  year  following,  March 
12,  at  Zion  Church,  Palmyra,  N.  Y.,  he 
was  ordained  Priest.  In  1845,  he  re- 
signed the  Professorship  and  went  to 
Brooklyn,  L.  I.,  where  he  continued  to  give 
instruction  in  the  languages,  until  he  was 
called,  in  Sept.  1850,  to  the  Presidency  of 
Norwich  University,  Vt.  He  held  this  office 
until  1865  ;  and  from  1850,  discharged  also 
the  duties  of  Professor  of  Latin  and  Greek 
until  shortly  before  his  death,  which  was 
caused  by  paralysis  and  occurred  July  14, 
1871. 

Dr.  Edward  Bourns  was  no  ordinary 
man.  In  the  midst  of  pressing  cares,  fre- 
quent infirmities,  and  peculiar  embarrass- 
ments, the  intrinsic  force,  native  shrewd- 
ness and  genial  kindness  of  his  nature, 
notwithstanding  a  vein  of  constitutional 
caution  and  reserve,  made  him  felt  and  re- 
spected and  greatly  endeared  to  many. 
The  trials  of  Norwich  University  in  his 
time  were  peculiar,  and  arose  chiefly  from 
the  lack  of  an  early  and  wise  plan  of  foun- 
dation by  generous  endowments.  Yet 
perseveringly  and  staunchly  he  stood  by, 
through  evil  report  and  good  report.  He 
braved  with  wonderful  elasticity  and  spirit 
the  frosts  and  freshets  and  droughts  of 
neglect  and  almost  literary  banishment  and 
pecuniary  hardship.  In  the  most  loyal, 
unselfish  spirit,  he  resigned  his  Presidency 
of  N.  L^.,  after    15  years  of  service,  and 


NORTHFIELD. 


67s 


still  faithfully  continued  in  her  service,  en- 
dured her  transplanting  from  Norwich  to 
Northfield,  and  became  rooted  in  the  new 
place,  winning  the  esteem  and  confidence 
of  all  the  people  on  every  hand.  Against 
increasing  infirmities  his  well-proved  spirit 
bore  up  to  the  last,  scorning  the  thought 
of  surrender ;  bearing  him  up  by  the  long 
training  of  habit  to  give  instruction,  and 
to  sacrifice  himself,  and  to  rally  his  powers, 
when  it  was  marvelous  that  he  could  even 
prolong  existence.     He  died  in  harness. 

Let  us  draw  an  illustration  of  his  char- 
acter from  the  trees  of  a  forest.  There, 
in  the  admirable  variety  of  nature,  there 
are  certain  types  and  characteristics  which 
distinguish  one  tree  from  another,  and  in 
which  their  respective  excellences  and 
good  qualities  lie.  So  it  is  also  with  men, 
and  it  was  eminently  so  with  this  man. 
His  character,  like  that  of  certain  grand 
families  of  trees,  was  conspicuous  amongst 
the  many  men  of  ability,  education  and 
practical  sense  with  .whom  he  constantly 
mingled.  It  was  moulded  and  grew  up 
under  a  combination  of  influences  which 
helped  to  make  the  man.  On  his  father's 
and  his  mother's  mother's  side  he  might 
be  said  to  have  inherited  the  characteris- 
tics of  the  Scottish  Larch,  which  now 
clothes  the  heathery  Scottish  highlands 
and  rugged  hills.  In  hardihood  under 
adverse  storms,  in  patient  endurance 
against  the  wintry  sleet  and  driving  hail, 
in  the  qualities  which  fit  that  tree  to  bear 
transplanting,  to  redeem  the  sterile,  rocky 
wastes,  and  give  them  a  new  value ;  in 
these  respects,  this  representative  tree  may 
well  illustrate  some  of  the  marked  charac- 
teristics of  this  man.  He  came  in  the 
prime  of  his  young  manhood  to  a  country 
before  unknown  to  him  and  strange,  and 
was  transplanted  into  its  soil.  As  he  stood 
upon  the  deck  of  the  vessel  which  bore  him 
from  his  native  shores,  he  resolved  at  once 
and  always  to  lay  aside  in  obscurity  the 
traditions  of  his  native  land,  and  accept  in 
good  faith  and  generously  the  traditions  of 
the  land  of  which  he  intended  to  be  an  ac- 
knowledged citizen.  And  under  difficulties 
which  few  can  understand,  he  succeeded  in 
making  himself  useful  and  a  blessing,  and 


in  moulding  for  good  the  character  of  many 
American  youth,  who  now  live  to  remem- 
ber him  with  pleasure  and  gratitude. 

But,  again,  on  his  mother's  father's  side 
he  inherited  also  something  of  the  capacity, 
strength  and  robustness  of  the  Irish  oak. 
This  is  a  tree  distinguished  for  its  genuine 
toughness  of  grain,  and  practical  power ; 
and  its  ability  to  furnish  sound  timber  for 
traffic,  constructions,  and  the  welfare  of 
men  and  communities.  And  this  tree  may 
also  represent  in  some  sort  the  character- 
istics of  this  man.  If  you  regard  him  as 
to  his  physical  mould,  it  is  easy  to  see  that 
if  he  had  been  brought  up  to  cultivate 
chiefly  his  bodily  powers,  he  would  have 
been  gigantic  even  amongst  our  most  pow- 
erful men.  He  was  somewhat  bent  from 
long  sedentary  life,  but  when  standing 
fully  erect  his  height  was  but  little  short  of 
six  feet  and  three  inches,  with  a  frame- 
work— a  breadth  of  shoulder,  a  develop- 
ment of  muscle,  and  massive  loins — in 
equal  proportion.  His  physical  courage 
was  perfect.  For  although  diffident  to  an 
extreme,  and  reluctant  to  a  fault  to  dis- 
play himself,  no  truer,  braver  heart  could 
anywhere  be  found  when  the  time  for  ac- 
tion came  ;  no  sympathy  more  ready  than 
his  with  the  oppressed,  no  freer  outspeak- 
ing of  views  than  his,  no  contempt  of  hum- 
bug and  pretension — of  mere  glitter  and 
show — more  thorough  than  his.  Take 
him  all  in  all  as  he  was,  even  as  developed 
by  purely  literary  and  professional  pur- 
suits, by  the  life  and  service  of  the  parish 
minister,  by  the  trials  of  the  academic 
professor  and  president,  by  the  confine- 
ment of  books  and  writings,  and  the  inter- 
course of  educated  men  ;  notwithstanding, 
mentally  and  physically,  the  Scottish  larch 
and  the  Irish  oak  will  not  badly  represent 
him. 

Dr.  Bourns  was  a  man  of  learning  and 
acumen.  His  Alma  Mater,  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Dublin,  was  second  to  none  in  the 
United  Kingdom  in  scholarly  training  and 
classical  learning.  Here  he  won  honora- 
ble prizes,  and  in  his  library  were  books 
marked  with  the  printed  seal  of  the  col- 
lege recording  the  occasions  upon  which 
he  won  them  in  scholastic  competitions. 


676 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


He   earned  by   long   practice   a  right   to 
speak  and  to  teach  as  it  were  ex  cathedra. 
He  was  also  a  voluminous,  careful  and  ex- 
haustive reader.     Yet  never  at  any  time  in 
his  sermons  or  addresses,  in  conversation 
or  in  discussions,  did  he  ever  betray  the  con- 
sequence of  the  pedant,  or  assume  to  be 
other  than  a  sincere  enquirer  after  truth. 
He  was  fond  of  accuracy ;  willing  to  be 
restrained  by  well-grounded  principles  and 
laws ;    ready   to   surrender  cheerfully   his 
opinions  and  theories,  if  found  to   be  un- 
tenable, but  not  otherwise.     No  man  could 
discern  better  than  he  the  weak  points  of 
a  coxcomb   or    hypocrite ;    and    no   man 
could  with  keener  humor  and  presence  of 
mind  foil  the  advances  of  intrusive  persons 
and  turn  the  tables  upon  them.     Yet,  with 
a  facility  of  extempore  speech,  and  a  native 
readiness  that   but  for  his  diffidence  and 
physical  hindrances  would  have  placed  him 
amongst   our   foremost    public   .speakers, 
and    with  a  keen    and    humorous    moth- 
er-wit sufficient  for  three  ordinary  men,  he 
guarded    the  portals  of  his  lips  with  the 
extremest    care  from  hasty,  unbecoming, 
or  careless  words.     He    never  passed  the 
bounds  of  perfect  propriety,  modesty  and 
good  sense,  in  public  or  in  private.     He 
sometimes  felt  himself  obliged  to  show  a 
presuming,  pertinacious  or  priggish  person 
that   he    had   the   advantage  of  him  and 
would  keep  it.     But  he  never  told   tales 
out  of  school,  or  treated  the  character  and 
actions  of  any  scholar  or  any  person  but 
with  the  most  dehcate  reserve.     He  stood 
in  all  these  respects  upon  his  sacred  honor. 
His  reticence  under  the  most  trying  cir- 
cumstances and  in  regard  to  those  who 
had  caused  him  great  anxiety,  was  mar- 
vellous and  instructive. 

Would  that  our  limits  permitted  us  to 
illustrate  that  readiness  and  keenness  of 
humor  which  those  who  knew  him  will 
easily  remember.  We  heard  him  once 
make  the  following  characteristic  speech, 
on  a  certain  commencement  evening  at 
Norwich  ;  when  the  cadets  were  assembled 
with  a  serenading  band  of  music,  and  the 
Doctor  was  importuned  for  a  speech.  He 
opened  the  window  and  was  heard  to  say : 
"  Y'oung  gentlemen,  I  thank  you  for  this 


admirable  music.  I  have  heard  you  praised 
greatly  this  day  by  our  accomplished  visi- 
tors, and  I  think  myself  that  you  have 
done  very  well  indeed.  I  cannot  help 
thinking  that  if  you  are  such  fine  birds  now 
when  you  are  half-fledged,  what  will  you 
be  when  you  are  in  full  feather  I"  When 
the  clergy  of  the  diocese  of  Vermont, 
after  the  death  of  Bishop  Hopkins,  held  a 
preliminary  meeting  to  review  the  names 
of  candidates  to  fill  the  vacancy,  the  Doc- 
tor while  praising  highly  the  timber  of  Ver- 
mont, ingeniously  argued  that  a  Vermont 
sapling,  which  had  been  transplanted,  de- 
veloped and  finished  under  other  and  most 
favorable  skies,  was  ceten's  par/dus  better 
furnished  than  one  could  otherwise  be  for 
this  responsible  service. 

Dr.  Bourns  worked  faithfully  in  his  cler- 
ical life.  He  was  an  excellent  sermonizer, 
and  extemporized  passages  and  paragraphs 
with  the  greatest  facility  as  he  was  preach- 
ing. It  may  be  remembered  that  at  a  cer- 
tain Convocation  of  the  clergy  in  Rutland 
years  ago,  the  question  under  discussion 
was.  How  may  sermons  be  made  more 
effective  in  drawing  the  laity  ?  The  Doctor, 
when  asked  his  opinion,  answered  that  the 
clergy  "  should  prepare  better  sermons." 
"They  should  use  more  art,"  he  said; 
"  not  art  in  the  sense  of  artifice,  but  high, 
sacred  art  in  building  up,  constructing, 
the  sermon,  and  preaching  It." 

As  a  theologian,  he  was  no  mere  theo- 
rist, but  sound,  practical,  consistent,  and 
conservative.  He  was  not  by  nature  en- 
thusiastic ;  and  he  sometimes  distrusted 
those  who  were,  if  he  failed  to  discern  the 
stability  of  the  foundation  upon  which  they 
built.  He  deeply  felt  the  value  of  energy 
and  practical  common  sense  in  carrying 
out  the  great  work  of  the  Church,  and 
showed  his  sincere  missionary  spirit  by 
doing  under  great  disadvantages  what  he 
could  in  the  paths  of  clerical  work.  Before 
he  went  to  Norwich  many  clergyman  re- 
ceived his  assistance  in  the  pulpit.  In 
Norwich  he  held  service  in  the  chapel, 
afterwards  in  a  parish  church.  For  i6 
years  he  crossed  the  Connecticut  River 
weekly  to  minister  to  the  little  parish  in 
Hanover,  without  other  compensation  than 


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677 


the  small  means  of  the  Diocesan  Board  of 
Missions  could  furnish  him.  At  North- 
field,  he  served  for  several  years  as  rector 
of  St.  Mary's  Parish.  In  the  beautiful 
cemetery  of  that  village  will  be  found  his 
monument  and  his  grave. 

When  one,  a  professor  in  the  Universi- 
ty, and  one  of  its  first  two  graduates  ;  one 
who  had  become  endeared  to  Dr.  Bourns 
by  the  mutual  trials  and  sympathies  of 
many  years  of  academic  life  together; 
when  this  good  and  true  man,  this  Chris- 
tian brother.  Gen.  Alonzo  Jackman,  ap- 
proached him  a  few  days  before  his  death, 
and  asked  the  question,  "Is  the  sky  all 
clear  between  you  and  your  God  ?"'  "Yes," 
was  the  emphatic  response  ;  and  after  a 
pause,  "  yes,  it  /s  clear." 

GEN.    ALONZO   JACKMAN,  LL.  D. 
BY  REV.  FRANKLIN  W.  liAKTLKTT. 

The  name  of  Alonzo  Jackman  occupies 
an  illustrious  place  in  the  annals  of  Ver- 
mont, and  on  account  of  his  distinguished 
services,  as  an  educator  and  a  soldier,  as 
well  as  his  virtues  as  a  man,  lie  deserves  a 
longer  biographical  notice  than  our  limits 
permit.  He  was  born  in  Thetford,  Mar. 
20,  1809,  the  second  son  of  Joseph  and 
Sarah  (Warner)  Jackman,  who  were  in- 
dustrious and  worthy  people.  When  near- 
ly 3  years  old,  his  father,  a  farmer,  died  of 
an  injury,  and  his  mother  was  left  in 
straightened  circumstances,  with  three 
children,  Enoch,  Alonzo  and  Joseph. 
Shortly  after  that,  they  removed  to  Straf- 
ford, and  the  next  year,  18 13,  to  New  Bos- 
ton, in  the  town  of  Norwich ;  and  that 
summer,  the  young  lad  commenced  attend- 
ing school.  One  day,  he  had  a  narrow  es- 
cape from  drowning  in  the  swollen  brook 
near  by.  The  same  year,  he  was  very  low 
of  a  fever,  and  not  expected  to  live.  He 
had  early  religious  impressions  ;  for  when 
he  was  only  5  years  old,  he  believed  he  saw 
a  vision  of  the  Lord  walking  on  the  sky. 
In  1814,  while  his  mother  was  at  Enfield, 
N.  H.,  a  few  weeks,  to  learn  the  art  of 
making  oil-cloth,  he  was  placed  in  the  care 
of  a  Mrs.  Sawyer,  who  instilled  into  his 
young  mind  a  knowledge  of  the  Bible. 
Many  years  afterwards,  the  mature  man 
looked  back  to  that  period  as  having  had 


an  important  influence  on  his  subseqent 
life.  In  1815,  he  lived  in  the  same  house 
with  a  Smith  family;  and  their  boy,  Jo- 
seph, who  afterwards  became  the  Mormon 
Prophet,  was  his  play-fellow.  In  1816, 
Mrs.  Jackman  was  married  to  Eli  Clark, 
who  took  a  farm  to  carry  on  by  the  halves, 
and  the  two  older  boys  worked  as  steadily 
on  it  as  if  hired  men.  Alonzo  cut  wood 
for  the  family  bare-footed,  with  a  warmed 
board  between  his  feet  and  the  snow. 
One  day  when  Enoch  and  he  were  cutting 
from  the  same  log,  the  latter  sat  down  to 
rest,  when  Enoch's  axe  glanced  and  cut 
his  brother  slightly,  nearly  from  hip  to  knee. 
In  1820,  these  two  boys  left  home,  never 
to  return  again,  except  on  a  visit,  their 
mother  having  given  them  the  parting  ad- 
monition, "Go  for  3'ourselves  and  remem- 
ber there  is  a  God."  Alonzo  went  to 
work  with  a  farmer,  James  Powell,  for 
board,  clothing  and  schooling.  He  re- 
mained one  year.  While  there  he  heard 
much  religious  discussion,  and  commenced 
reading  the  Bible  through  by  course,  in 
order  to  know  the  truth  more  perfectly. 
In  182 1,  he  commenced  work  for  another 
farmer,  about  half  a  mile  from  his  birth- 
place. Here  he  was  to  have  board,  cloth- 
ing and  3  months  at  school.  He  did  his 
part  faithfully,  but  was  unjustly  treated, 
and  some  of  the  winters  was  allowed  but 
little  time  at  school,  a  disadvantage  in 
early  years,  which  he  always  afterwards 
felt.  Having  worked  here  6  years,  he  left 
with  $4,  and  two  days  provisions.  His 
brother  Enoch  accompanied  him,  and  the 
two,  with  $12.47  between  them,  went  on 
foot  down  the  Connecticut  river  until  they 
reached  Middletown,  Mar.  16,  with  25 
cents  left.  They  crossed  over  to  Chatham, 
now  Portland,  where  they  secured  work  in 
the  sandstone  quarries,  near  which  his 
brother  still  resides.  He  attended  school 
in  the  winter. 

In  1828,  young  Jackman  went  to  New 
York  and  engaged  as  seaman  before  the 
mast,  on  a  new  ship,  the  St.  John,  bound 
for  Mobile,  and  from  there,  as  he  sup- 
posed, to  Liverpool.  This  expectation 
was  not  realized,  and  he  returned  by 
another  ship   to  New  York  and  thence  to 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Portland,  where  he  worked  in  the  quar- 
ry during  the  season,  and  then  went  to  Ver- 
mont, where  he  visited  and  helped  his 
mother,  spending  the  winter  at  school. 
In  the  spring  of  1S30,  he  was  again  at 
work  in  the  quarry,  and  the  next  winter 
attended  the  high  school  at  Portland. 
About  this  time  he  decided  to  be  a  Chris- 
tian. One  wakeful  night  he  revolved  the 
subject  in  his  mind  and  firmly  resolved  to 
give  himself  wholly  to  the  service  of  God. 
He  joined  the  Methodist  class  in  March, 
1 83 1,  and  the  following  summer  was  bap- 
tized by  immersion.  The  year  183 1  was 
employed  like  the  year  before,  partly  in  the 
quarry  and  partly  at  school. 

In  1832,  the  two  brothers  left  Portland 
for  Ohio;  but  Enoch,  when  they  had 
reached  Troy,  N.  Y.,  could  be  persuaded 
to  go  no  further.  After  a  few  weeks  in 
the  stone  cutter's  business,  they  left  for 
New  York,  where  they  got  employment  on 
a  steamboat  for  a  short  time,  and  then  re- 
turned to  the  quarries.  Alonzo,  however, 
did  not  abandon  the  idea  of  going  west  to 
settle.  In  October,  he  left  for  Ohio.  He 
traveled  in  various  parts  of  the  state,  look- 
ing for  a  farm  ;  Ijut  he  finally  shipped  on  a 
steamboat,  engaged  in  the  iron  trade,  be- 
tween Cincinnati  and  Wyandotte,  Va. 
He  was  next  employed  on  a  New  Orleans 
and  Mobile  boat.  In  May,  1833,  he  again 
went  to  work  in  the  Portland  quarry. 

The  scanty  opportunities  which  he  had 
snatched  for  reading,  and  his  short  seasons 
of  school  life  had  given  him  a  desire  to 
pursue  a  regular  course  of  study.  He  con- 
sidered whether  to  accept  an  agency  for  a 
line  of  steamers,  go  to  farming  in  Ohio,  or 
to  get  an  education.  He  decided,  left 
Portland,  and  about  Dec.  i,  1833,  enteied 
Franklin  Seminary  at  Norwich,  Vt.  The 
next  year,  the  principal,  Mr.  Buck,  re- 
moved his  school  to  New  Market,  N.  H., 
and  young  Jackman  went  with  him,  and, 
while  prosecuting  his  studies,  rendered  as- 
sistance in  teaching  mathematics,  his  fa- 
vorite branch.  In  the  summer  of  1835,  he 
taught  the  same  branch  while  pursuing  his 
studies  in  an  academy  at  Kingston,  N.  H., 
and  also  on  its  removal  in  the  autumn  to 
Rochester,    N.    H.      Norwich    University 


had,  in  the  meantime,  been  chartered  and 
opened.  He  decided  to  enter  it,  and  did 
so  in  December  of  that  year,  having  passed 
his  examination  for  admission  to  the  Sen- 
ior class.  He  graduated  at  the  first  com- 
mencement, Aug.,  1836,  with  the  degree 
of  B.  A.  Being  the  only  graduate  that 
year  he  stands  at  the  head  of  the  alumni. 
Soon  afterwards  he  was  elected  to  the 
chair  of  mathematics.  In  the  next  sum- 
mer vacation,  he  visited  in  New  England, 
New  York  and  Canada.  In  1838,  on  ac- 
count of  the  uneasiness  caused  by  the  pro- 
jected Canada  rebellion,  he  was  employed 
to  drill  troops  at  Enosburgh,  Berkshire 
and  Sheldon.  On  returning  to  open  the 
spring  term  of  1839,  Zerah  Colburn,  Pro- 
fessor of  Languages,  had  died,  and  the 
charge  of  the  whole  institution  rested  upon 
Captain  Partridge  and  himself.  In  Feb., 
1840,  Josiah  Swett,  who  had  been  Jack- 
man's  room-mate  and  graduated  a  year 
after  him,  became  professor  of  ancient  lan- 
guages, and  that  summer  these  two  profes- 
sors established  a  paper  at  Norwich,  devo- 
ted to  military  science,  national  defence, 
and  the  interests  of  the  militia.  It  did  not 
prove  a  financial  success  ;  and  one  reason 
may  have  been  that  it  stood  aloof  from 
politics  during  the  great  excitement  of  the 
presidential  campaign  of  that  year.  Pro- 
fessor Jackman  contributed  a  series  of  ar- 
ticles on  tactics  valuable  for  their  clear- 
ness and  precision.  Some  time  during  the 
publication  of  this  paper,  both  editors  re- 
signed their  professorships  and  removed 
to  Windsor,  where  they  opened  a  school, 
which  they  called  the  New  England  Semi- 
nary. They  were  both  Methodists,  but 
after  much  reading  and  discussion  conclud- 
ed to  enter  the  communion  of  the  Episco- 
pal church,  and  received  confirmation  from 
Bp.  Hopkins,  in  1843. 

While  at  Windsor,  Jackman  had  as 
mathematical  treatise  printed  on  the  sub- 
ject of  "  Series,"  in  which  his  investiga- 
tions were  carried  beyond  the  ability  of 
the  ordinary  student.  Having  conducted 
the  school  for  3  years,  he  and  his  friend 
Swett  returned  by  invitation,  in  1844,  to 
the  University,  and  resumed  their  profes- 
sorships under  the  new  president.  Gen.  T. 


NORTHFIELD. 


679 


1845,  the  two  friends  left  for  Claremont, 
N.  H.,  proposing  to  set  up  a  school ;  but 
finding  the  project  unpromising,  they 
abandoned  it.  Jackman,  at  the  solicitation 
of  the  president  and  the  trustees  of  N.  U., 
again  went  on  duty  in  the  fall  term. 

In  1846,  he  wrote  and  published  an  arti- 
cle on  the  subject  of  an  oceanic  magnetic 
telegraph.  He  gave  in  detail  plans  for  the 
construction,  materials  and  manner  of  lay- 
ing a  telegraphic  cable  across  the  Atlantic. 
In  lecturing  to  his  school  on  magnetism, 
he  had  expressed  the  belief  that  if  the  nec- 
essary expense  could  be  met,  a  telegraph 
might  be  thus  extended  across  the  ocean. 
In  1846,  the  Hon.  Amos  Kendall,  then 
president  of  a  Telegraph  Co.,  at  Washing- 
ton, I).  C,  communicated  to  a  Philadel- 
phia paper  the  difficulties  of  crossing,  with 
the  telegraph,  large  bodies  of  water.  Prof. 
Jackman,  happening  to  see  this  article, 
wrote  Mr.  Kendall,  and  explained  how  the 
difficulties  could  be  surmounted.  Receiv- 
ing no  reply,  he  was  induced  to  write  out 
for  publication  the  article  to  which  we  have 
referred,  that  no  other  person  might  have 
the  credit  of  solving  the  problem  which 
he  had  worked  out  in  this  field  of  science. 
Accordingly,  he  wrote  a  paper,  answering 
all  objections,  providing  against  all  the 
difficulties,  and  including  all  the  necessary 
particulars  of  construction  and  the  method 
of  laying  an  oceanic  telegraphic  cable. 
This  was  about  12  years  before  the  first 
Atlantic  cable  was  successfully  laid.  He 
sent  the  article  to  periodicals  in  Washing- 
ton, New  York,  Philadelphia  and  Boston  ; 
but  editors  refused  it,  considering  the  plan 
visionary.  He  then  sent  it  to  the  Verntoni 
Mercury  of  Woodstock,  where  it  appeared 
in  the  number  dated  Aug.  14,  1846.  He 
forwarded  copies  to  prominent  men  in  the 
United  States,  England,  Canada  and 
France.  It  seems,  therefore,  that  the 
credit  is  due  him  of  having  matured  a  suc- 
cessful plan  for  this  gigantic  enterprise. 
The  cable  as  it  was  laid  was  of  the  same  gen- 
eral description  with  that  which  he  had  pro- 
posed, difl^ering  in  some  minor  details, 
among  which  was  the  use  of  gutta-percha 


insulation. 

Prof.  Jackman  was  well  versed  in  tactics, 
and  had  a  reputation  as  an  excellent  drill- 
master.  This  led  to  his  being  appointed 
Brigade  drill  master  by  the  Governor  of 
New  Hampshire,  with  the  rank  of  Major. 
He  drilled  the  officers  of  the  brigades  of 
that  state   at  certain   times    in    1847,  '48. 

Returning  to  Norwich  from  a  drill,  he 
had  held  at  Exeter,  N.  H.,  he  suffered  from 
a  severe  attack  of  typhoid  fever,  from 
which  he  narrowly  escaped  death.  This 
is  one  of  the  many  times  when  he  was 
near  death,  either  by  accident  or  sickness. 

In  Aug.,  1849,  he  obtained  3  years  leave 
of  absence  from  the  University,  and  in 
October,  sailed  from  Boston  for  California 
by  way  of  Cape  Horn.  His  object  was  to 
see  the  country  and  to  add  to  his  resources. 
He  reached  San  Francisco  March  13, 
1850.  Within  a  few  weeks  he  took  out  a 
claim  in  the  gold  region.  The  prospect 
seemed  fair ;  but  it  was  desirable  to  turn 
the  course  of  the  river,  and  Jackman  was 
elected  the  Engineer.  He  was  100  miles 
from  a  civilized  center,  and  had  to  work  at 
a  disadvantage  ;  but  his  ingenuity  and  ac- 
quirements came  to  his  aid.  He  accom- 
plished the  work  he  had  undertaken,  and 
Californians  pronounced  it  the  greatest 
achievemeut  in  engineering  in  the  state. 
He  did  not  find  much  gold,  however.  When 
the  rainy  season  was  approaching,  he  sold 
out,  and  the  same  autumn  went  to  Oregon, 
and  took  out  a  claim  of  320  acres,  not  far 
from  Pacific  city,  now  included  in  Wash- 
ington Territory.  When  Pacific  County 
was  organized,  June  2,  185 1,  and  county 
officers  elected,  Mr.  Jackman  was  made 
Probate  Judge  and  School  Superintendent. 
In  December,  he  quit  Oregon,  with  some 
of  his  farm  products  on  board  a  bark  bound 
for  San  Francisco,  expecting  to  realize  a 
goodly  sum  of  money  for  them.  The  pas- 
sage was  rough,  and  his  property  was  ren- 
dered worthless  by  leakage  of  the  vessel. 
While  in  this  city,  he  learned  that  a  large 
amount  of  gold  had  been  realized  from  his 
old  mining  claim  since  he  left  it. 

He  returned  to  Norwich  Apr.  ro,  1852, 


68o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


intending  to  settle  up  his  affairs  and  re- 
turn to  his  western  farm.  Dr.  Bourns,  at 
this  time  President  of  N.  U.,  induced  him 
to  teach  until  the  next  commencement. 
Meantime,  the  reports  he  heard  from  the 
West  dissuaded  him  from  returning  thith- 
er, and  he  consented  to  remain  with  Dr. 
Bourns  and  assist  him  not  only  in  teach- 
ing, but  in  paying  the  indebtedness  of  the 
institution.  In  1857,  the  N.  U.  cadets 
were  organized  under  the  militia  law,  as  an 
infantry  company,  and  Prof.  Jackman  was 
commissioned  Captain,  and  in  1S59,  when 
officers  of  the  2d  Regt.  were  ordered  to 
meet  at  White  River  Junction  for  choice 
of  regimental  officers,  he  was  chosen  and 
commissioned  Colonel.  The  next  fall,  he 
held  an  officers'  diill  there,  and  a  regi- 
mental muster  at  Bradford.  The  same 
year  the  Vermont  militia  were  consolidated 
into  one  brigade  and  Col.  Jackman  was 
made  Brigadier  General.  He  was  very 
painstaking  and  thorough  in  his  instruc- 
tions and  drills ;  and  was  himself  skilled 
in  the  use  of  fife  or  drum. 

At  the  beginning  of  our  late  civil  war, 
he  received  a  telegram  from  Gov.  Fair- 
banks, summoning  him  to  meet  him  at  St. 
Johnsbury  with  Gens.  Baxter  and  Davis. 
The  Secretary  of  War  had  called  for 
troops.  A  long  consultation  was  held, 
and  an  extra  session  of  the  legislature  was 
called.  Several  companies  were  detailed 
and  equipped.  The  governor  offered  the 
general  any  position  in  his  power  to  grant, 
if  he  wished  to  go  to  the  front ;  but  ex- 
pressed the  preference  that  he  should 
remain  where  he  was,  and  qualify  men  for 
duty.  He  rendered  service  as  an  officer 
during  this  period ;  inspected  and  got  in 
readiness  the  old  militia,  organized  new 
companies  and  regiments  ;  sent  out  cadets 
to  drill  companies  in  different  parts  of  the 
State,  as  he  was  notified  of  their  formation, 
and  regimental  officers  from  different  States 
went  to  him  for  instruction  at  Norwich. 
At  the  time  of  the  raid  on  St.  Albans,  he 
took  the  cadet  corps  to  Derby  Line,  in 
response  to  an  order  from  the  governor, 
with  authority  to  take  command  of  any 
forces  he  might  find,  and  to  organize  more 
if  needed.     As  no  danger  had  been  appre- 


hended the  militia  had  been  disbanded ; 
but  the  cadets  were  always  ready,  and  were 
en  route  by  rail  2  hours  after  the  order  was 
received. 

Honor  is  due  the  general  for  the  results 
of  his  work  on  behalf  of  his  State  and  the 
Union  during  these  years ;  his  industry 
was  untiring ;  and  his  clear,  precise,  thor- 
ough instructions  to  officers  and  men  were 
of  great  value  to  them  in  the  service. 

On  March  13,  1866,  the  N.  U.  "  South 
Barracks  "  building  was  burned,  whereby 
Drs.  Bourns  and  Jackman,  who  had  paid 
up  the  indebtedness,  lost  heavily.  The 
latter  now  thought  of  leaving  to  seek  a 
support  elsewhere  ;  but  the  friends  of  the 
institution  were  anxious  that  he  should 
remain  to  aid  in  establishing  it  in  a  new- 
place,  and  to  this  he  consented,  with  the 
understanding  that  he  should  not  be  re- 
sponsible for  its  finances  or  government ; 
and  he  removed  with  it  to  its  new  loca- 
tion in  Northfield,  and  remained  connected 
with  it  until  his  death  Feb.  24,  1879.  He 
had  attended  to  his  duties  as  professor  the 
previous  week,  and  been  at  church  the 
day  before.  He  died  from  an  affection  of 
the  heart. 

He  had  been  a  close  student,  often  so 
absorbed  when  studying  as  to  be  oblivious 
of  what  was  passing.  His  delight  was  in 
mathematics,  in  which  he  excelled,  and  he 
was  conversant  with  natural  science.  His 
culture  lay  mostly  in  these  channels  and  in 
military  science.  The  degree  of  LL.  D. 
was  conferred  upon  him  in  1862.  He 
wrote  some  mathematical  works  which  he 
never  published,  and  demonstrated  the 
problem  of  squaring  the  circle  to  his  own 
satisfaction  and  to  that  of  some  other  emi- 
nent professors — that  old  problem  which 
had  vexed  mathematicians  for  centuries. 

In  person.  Gen.  Jackman  was  of  sturdy 
compact  frame,  though  of  somewhat  less 
than  medium  height ;  his  complexion 
slightly  dark,  his  eye,  dark  grey  and  keen  ; 
the  countenance  indicating  both  benevo- 
lence and  decision  of  character.  He  was 
was  very  methodical,  earnest,  and  hon- 
est ;  had  great  endurance  and  strength 
of  body,  and  mind ;  under  the  trials  of 
life  was  submissive  and  patient,  and  was  a 


NORTHFIELD. 


68 1 


devout  and  faithful  Christian,  and  in  this 
respect  has  left  an  example  which  will  not 
soon  be  forgotten.  For  several  years  he 
was  Senior  Warden  of  St.  Mary's  church, 
Northfield  ;  and  bequeathed  at  his  death 
his  small  estate  to  the  poor. 


He  was  married  to  Miss  Charlotte  Saw- 
yer of  Royalton,  Jan.  i,  1856.  They  had 
two  children  :  Alonzo,  born  in  1857,  and 
died  1859;  Helen,  born  i860,  and  died 
1S77  ;   Mrs.  Jackman  died  1874. 


.XOI^THFIELD    GRADED   AND    HIGH    SCHOOL. 


DESCRIPTION  BY  .TAMES  N.  JOHNSON,  KSi(^ 

The  Northfield  graded  and  high  school, 
the  most  important  public  school  in  the 
valley  of  Dog  river,  was  established  nearly 
in  its  present  form  in  1870.  The  high 
school  is  the  successor  of  the  Northfield 
institution  formerly  the  Northfield  acad- 
emy— chartered  by  the  Legislature  in  1846. 
Previous  there  had  been  no  regular  high 
school  in  this  valley.  Gov.  Paine  donated 
the  grounds  for  the  academy  site  in  1850, 
upon  an  eminence  between  the  river  and 
the  Central  Vermont  railroad,  and  not  far 
from  the  geographical  center  of  the  village 
of  Northfield. 

Through  the  exertions  of  Gov.  Paine, 
Heman  Carpenter,  John  L.  Buck,  James 
86 


Palmer,  George  R.  Cobleigh,  Benjamin 
Porter,  Leander  Foster,  and  c]uite  a  num- 
ber of  other  public-spirited  citizens,  a  sub- 
scription of  about  $2,400  was  raised  for 
erecting  the  school -building,  and  another 
to  pay  for  furniture  and  apparatus.  About 
a  hundred  men  signed  the  main  subscrip- 
tion. Gov.  Paine  giving  $500 ;  Heman 
Carpenter,  $100;  Wm.  Nichols  and  James 
Palmer,  $75,  each;  H.H.Camp,  James 
Moore,  H.  R.  Campbell,  P.  Belknap  &  Co., 
N.  C.  &  C.  S.  Munson,  Dr.  S.  W.  Thayer, 
George  M.  Cady,  James  Gould,  Thomas 
Connor,  R.  H.  Little,  $50,  each;  J.  C. 
Cady,  $40;  William  Rogers,  $35;  E.  A. 
Webb,  $30;  N.  W.  Lincoln,  Elijah  Smith, 
Stephen  Cochran,   A.  Wetherbee,  G.   P 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


Randall,  C.  S.  Dole,  Leander  Foster,  $25, 
each;  George  K.  Cobleigh,  William  R. 
Tucker, A.  S.  Braman,  H.  Nye,  Theophilus 
Cass,  $20,  each;  H.  L.  Briggs,  $12.50. 

At  the  first  meeting  of  the  trustees, 
Mar.  6,  1847,  Charles  Paine,  John  L. 
Buck,  Leander  Foster,  James  Gould,  Jas. 
Palmer  and  Heman  Carpenter  present, 
John  L.  Buck,  Esq.,  was  chosen  presi- 
dent, James  Gould  vice  president,  and 
Heman  Carpenter  secretary  and  treasurer. 
Judge  Carpenter  filled  his  offices  till  1868. 
The  building  was  erected  in  1851,  by  Wm. 
H.  H.  Dunham  and  E.  K.  Jones;  cost 
about  $2,600  ;  dedicated  and  school  opened 
Sept.  i85i,with  C.  C.  Webster,  A.  M., 
principal.  It  flourished  well.  Rev.  R.  M. 
Manly  succeeding  as  principal  in  1852-3. 
In  1854,  the  name  of  the  school  was 
changed  by  the  Legislature  to  Northfield 
Institution.  The  principals  since  have 
been  John  H.  Graham,  A.  R.  Bissell, 
George  Brooks,  J.  G.  Mclutire,  George F. 
Beard  and  Charles  G.  Tarbell,  able  teach- 
ers, and  the  school  well  patronized  in  their 
time.  Having  no  separate  fund,  it  de- 
teriorated somewhat  during  the  War  of 
the  Rebellion. 

After  the  decease  of  Northfield's  bene- 
factor, Governor  Charles  Paine,  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions  were  unanimously  adopt- 
ed by  the  Board  of  Trustees,  Jan.  30, 
1854: 

Whereas,  The  Trustees  of  Northfield 
Academy  have  heard  with  deep  grief  the 
melancholy  intelligence  of  the  death  of  the 
Hon.  Charles  Paine,  one  of  the  Trustees 
of  this  Institution 

Resolved,  That  in  his  death  this  Institu- 
tion has  lost  one  of  its  first  friends,  and 
one  whose  aid  contributed  largely  to  the 
establishment  and  .success  of  the  same. 

Resolved,  That  the  friends  of  this  Insti- 
tution will  ever  hold  in  grateful  remem- 
brance the  many  public  and  private  virtues 
of  our  deceased  friend,  and  the  services  he 
has  rendered  the  cause  of  education  in  our 
midst,  and  the  advancement  of  the  growth 
and  prosperity  of  our  State. 

This  Institution  will  perpetuate  its  or- 
ganization, the  following  named  gentle- 
men being  the  present  Trustees :  P.  D. 
Bradford;  president ;  Lorenzo  Belknap, 
vice  president ;  J.  H.  Orcutt,  secretary  and 
treasurer;   P.  D.  Bradford,  George   Nich- 


ols, J.  H.  Orcutt,  L.  Belknap,  George  M. 
Fisk,  executive  committee. 

Perley  Belknap,  P.  D.  Bradford,  J.  C. 
Cady,  Lorenzo  Belknap,  George  Nichols, 
J.  H.  Orcutt,  W.  S.  Hazen,  E.  K.  Jones, 
J.  C.  B.  Thayer,  George  M.  Fisk,  Charles 
Dole. 

In  1870,  the  village  school  district  made 
a  permanent  arrangement  with  the  trus- 
tees of  the  institution  to  repair  the  build- 
ing, and  occupy  it  for  a  graded  and  high 
school,  free  for  all  pupils  of  the  village, 
which  was  accomplished  through  the 
friends  of  popular  education,  notably : 
Hon.  Heman  Carpenter,  James  N.  John- 
son, Rev.  William  S.  Hazen,  Thomas  L. 
Salisbury,  A.  S.  Braman  and  J.  H.  Rich- 
ardson. The  school  opened  in  Sept.  1870, 
with  331  pupils.  Marshal  R.  Peck,  A.  B., 
principal.  He  remained  2  years,  and 
should  ever  be  gratefully  remembered. 
Principals  since  have  been,  A.  R.  Savage, 
Eben  C.  Smith,  A.  W.  Blair  and  W.  W. 
Prescott,  all  efficient,  as  also,  many  lady 
teachers  in  the  graded  departments.  It 
received  its  charter  fiom  the  Legislature  in 
1872. 

The  old  building  was  accidentally  burned 
Jan.  13,  1876,  and  the  following  season 
the  present  building,  60x90  feet,  with  7 
main  rooms,  was  erected,  at  a  cost  of  about 
$11,000,  by  J.  C.  Rice,  upon  the  same  site. 

The  school  at  present  stands  well  among 
similar  institutions  of  the  State.  It  costs 
from  $2,500  to  $3,000  a  year  to  run  it. 

Directors  for  1882.— P.  D.  Bradford, 
president,  Chas.  A.  Edgerton,  secretary, 
Geo.  H.  Crane,  William  B.  Mayo,  H.  L. 
Kenyon. 

SUICIDES. 

Whole  number  of  suicides  in  town,  25  : 
by  hanging,  9,  by  drowning,  6;  by  poison- 
ing, 4  ;  by  cutting  their  throats,  4:  by 
shooting,  2. 

Males,  6  by  hanging,  4  by  drowning,  3 
by  cutting  their  throats,  2  by  poison,  2  by 
fire-arms;  total,  17.  Females,  3  by  hang- 
ing, 2  by  drowning,  2  by  poison,  i  by  cut- 
ting throat :  total,  8. 

Attempted  suicides  6;  3  by  cutting  their 
throats,  2  by  hanging,  i  by  poison. 

Males,  2  by  cutting  their  throats  ;  fe- 
males, 2  by  hanging,  i  by  cutting  her 
throat,  I  by  poison. 


NORTHFIELD. 


683 


&£A^c:s^^ 


REV.    JOEL    WlXCil.    FIRST 
MASONIC. 

The  first  record  of  De  Witt  Clinton 
Lodge,  No.  15,  F.  &  A.  M.,  was  Nov.  8, 
1848,  working  under  a  dispensation  from 
the  Grand  Lodge  of  Vermont.  This  rec- 
ord does  not  show  where  they  met,  but  it 
is  believed  they  held  their  meetings  in  L 
W.  Brown's  hall  at  the  Center  village. 
The  officers  were:  Joel  Winch,  W.  M.  ; 
H.  W.  Carpenter,  S.  W.  :  Walter  Little, 
J.  W.  ;  Elijah  Smith,  Jr.,  Secretary. 
Date  of  Charter,  Jan.  18,  1849. 

Charter  Members. — H.  W.  Carpenter, 
Joel  Winch,  Samuel  L.  Adams,  Oramel 
Williams,  Walter  Little,  Joshua  Lane,  Jo- 
seph Bean,  John  Fisk,  Zeno  Crocker,  S. 
B.  Holden,  Philip  Staples,  John  Leonard, 
and  Jesse  Averill. 

Rev.  John  Gregory  received  the  first  de- 
gree in  August,  1849. 

Past  Masters. — Joel  Winch,  Joel  Winch, 
Jr.,  A.  V.  N.  Carpenter,  A.  H.  Proctor, 
David  L.  Howe,  E.  G.  Babcock,  C.  N. 
Carpenter,  James  P.  Warner,  J.  G.  Som- 
erville,  Geo.  W.  Kingsbury,  Henry  Ferris, 
J.  L.  Mack. 

Officers  for  1882. — W.  l\L  Rumbaugh, 
W.    M.;    L.    A.    Howes,    S.    W. ;    Ozro 


Frank  H.  Bascom, 
Towne,  (t.  C.  V. 


Winch,  J.  W.;  J. 
C.  B.  Thayer,  trea.  ; 
H.  L.  Kenyon,sec.  : 
W.  O.  Whitmarsh, 
S.  D.  ;  G.C.  Bates, 
J.  D.;  £.  Ingalls, 
S.  S.  :  Wm.  Lu- 
ther, J.  S.  ;  D. 
Thomas,  Marshal  : 
A.  McGillvary,  Ty- 
ler. 

M  O  U  N  T     Z  I  O  N 
COMMANDERY,  No. 

9,  Knight  Templars . 
A  dispensation  was 
granted  b  \-  the 
Right  E \\\'\ n e]n'_t 
Grand  Commander 
to  the  following  Sir 
Knights:  J.  L. 
Mack,  Joel  Winch, 
Henry  D.  Bean. 
Stephen  Thomas, 
L.  Bart  Cross,  Emory 
Eastman,  George  W. 
Tilden,  Charles  E.  Abbott,  J.  M.  Poland, 
and  Allen  McGilvary,  to  open  a  Com- 
mandery  of  Knights  Templars  at  North- 
field,  and  to  confer  the  orders  of  knight- 
hood. 

The  first  meeting  under  this  dispensa- 
tion was  held  Apr.  9,  1873,  A.  O.  755, 
and  the  following  officers  were  appointed  : 
Jona  L.  Mack,  Eminent  Commander : 
Henry  D.  Bean,  Generalissimo;  Frank  H. 
Bascom,  Captain  General ;  George  C.  \'. 
Eastman,  Prelate ;  Charles  E.  Abbott, 
Senior  Warden  ;  Allen  McGilvary,  Junior 
Warden  ;  Joel  Winch,  Treasurer;  J.  Mun- 
roe  Poland,  Recorder;  Emory  Town, 
Standard  Bearer ;  L.  Bart  Cross,  Sword 
Bearer  ;  George  W.  Tilden,  Warder. 

A  charter  was  granted  them  bv  the 
Grand  Commandery,  June  10,  A.  D.,  1873, 
A.  O.  755,  and  Aug.  27,  of  the  same  year, 
they  were  formally  constituted  with  ap- 
propriate ceremonies  by  the  Right  Emi- 
nent Grand  Commander,  Joseph  L.  Per- 
kins, and  other  grand  officers.  This  inter- 
esting occasion  was  graced  by  the  presence 
of  Burlington  Commandery,   No.   2,  and 


684 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  street  parade  of  the  two  commanderies 
is  remembered  as  beautiful  and  imposing. 
Lily  of  the  Valley,  Conclave  No.  5, 
Knights  of  the  Red  Cross  of  Constantine. 
A  charter  ha\ing  been  granted  to  Henry 

D.  Bean,  George  C.  V.  Eastman,  Joel 
Winch,  George    W.    Kingsbury,    Charles 

E.  Abbott  and  Allen  McGilvery,  by  the 
Grand  Imperial  Council  of  the  State  of 
Michigan,  to  form  and  hold  a  Conclave  of 
the  Red  Cross  and  Appendant  Orders  at 
Northfield,  in  the  State  of  Vermont,  the 
above-named  Sir  Knights  on  the  ninth 
day  of  April,  A.  D.,  1875,  A.  O.  1562,  or- 
ganized Lily  of  the  Valley,  Conclave  No. 
21,  Knights  of  the  Ked  Cross  of  Constan- 
tine, by  electing  Henry  D.  Bean,  M.  P., 
sovereign;  George  C.  V.  Eastman,  vice- 
roy ;  Allen  McGilvery,  sir  general ;  Chas. 
E.  Abbott,  Jr.,  general ;  Joel  Winch,  treas- 
urer; George  W.  Kingsbury,  recorder. 

A  convention  of  the  several  Conclaves 
of  the  Order  in  this  State  met  at  Burling- 
ton, Apr.  30,  1875,  and  organized  the 
Grand  Imperial  Council  of  Vermont  under 
the  direction  of  Sir  D.  Burnham  Tracy, 
33  °,  Grand  Sovereign  of  Michigan.  The 
organization  being  completed,  the  above- 
named  charter.  No.  21,  issued  by  the 
Grand  Imperial  Council  of  Michigan,  was 
surrendered  for  endorsement,  and  was  re- 
issued by  the  new  Grand  Council  as  No.  5 
on  its  roll  of  subordinates,  by  the  author- 
ity of  which  charter  Lily  of  the  Valley 
Conclave  has  continued  to  convene  reg- 
ularly for  the  transaction  of  the  business  of 
the  Order  until  the  present  time. 

Masonic  Relief  Association  of  Vt., 
established  in  Nortlifield,  its  principal  of- 
ficers citizens  of  this  town,  was  organized 
in  Feb.  1875,  Hon.  George  Nichols,  pres- 
ident; J.  L.  Mack,  vice  president ;  G.  B. 
B.  Denny,  secretary,  and  J.  C.  B.  Thaver, 
treasurer,  and  the  same  gentlemen  con- 
tinue to  hold  these  several  offices  at  the 
present  time  (1878.) 

odd  fellowship. 

In  the  fall  or  winter  of  1849  and  '50, 
Brothers  Dr.  Samuel  W.  Thayer,  J.  C.  B. 
Thayer,  Dr.  Edward  A.  Williams,  Isaac 
L.  Stevens,  and  Thomas  J.  Nutter  sent  a 


petition  to  the  Grand  Master,  asking  to  be 
instituted  as  a  Lodge,  which  request  was 
granted,  and  Mar.,  1850,  the  grand  officers 
visited  Northfield,  and  instituted  the 
Lodge,  with  the  above  named  brethren  as 
charter  members,  and  the  same  evening 
T.  A.  C.  Beard,  S.  S.  Cady,  James  Pai- 
mer,  and  J.  S.  Abbott  also  became  mem- 
bers, making  10  in  all.  The  first  Xol)le 
Grand  was  Dr.  S.  W.  Thayer,  and  the 
first  Vice  Grand  J.  C.  B.  Thayer,  and  Dr. 
Edward  H.  Williams  the  first  Secretary. 

Prosperity  attended  the  Lodge,  and  at 
tlie  end  of  three  months  they  had  30,  and 
at  the  end  of  two  years  60  members,  with 
but  one  death;  but  in  May,  1852,  their 
hall  was  burned,  with  all  tlieir  books  and 
Lodge  property,  except  the  secretary's 
book ;  loss  in  regalia,  library,  &c.  was 
$350;  no  insurance,  and  a  debt  of  $150, 
without  a  penny  to  pa\  ;  no  Lodge  room, 
and  members  scattered,  and  had  it  not 
been  for  the  faithfulness  of  those  who 
loved  Odd  Fellowship,  it  must  have  gone 
down  never  to  rise  again. 

The  first  meeting  after  the  fire  was  held 
in  the  hall  of  the  Northfield  House.  After 
a  time  a  hall  was  procured  on  Central 
Street;  the  next  hall  was  in  Union  Block. 

Prosperity  again  dawned,  Jan.  i,  1859, 
they  had  in  the  treasury  $508.29,  free  from 
debt ;  but  sickness  and  death  made  inroads 
upon  them  soon  again,  and  their  treasury 
was  depleted ;  and  about  this  time  the 
railroad  works  were  removed  to  St.  Albans, 
and  as  a  matter  of  course  many  of  the 
members  went  with  them  ;  those  left  be- 
came disheartened,  and  the  good  work 
ceased  for  the  time,  after  paying  all  their 
debts. 

But  in  the  summer  of  1871,  Past  Grand 
Master,  P.  D.  Bradford,  proposed  a  meet- 
ing of  the  faithful  at  his  ofiice,  when  a  pa- 
per was  drawn  up,  signed  by  a  goodly 
number,  petitioning  the  Grand  Master  to 
be  again  recognized.  The  request  was 
granted ;  on  the  evening  of  Aug.  i,  1871, 
the  grand  officers  came  to  Northfield,  and 
restored  the  Lodge  to  life.  After  a  few 
months  they  began  to  recuperate,  and  have 
gained  steadily  in  funds  and  members  until 
the   present   time,  with   a   good  working 


NORTHFIELD. 


685 


Lodge,  and  a  determination  to  make  it  a 
success.  So  that  to-day  [1878]  they  have 
100  members,  $1200  hi  the  treasury,  free 
from  debt. 

The  amount  of  relief  paid  by  the  Lodge 
cannot  be  told,  as  the  records  were  burn- 
ed. But  since  1871,  they  have  paid  $150 
for  funeral  expenses,  have  buried  5  broth- 
ers, and  200  have  been  admitted  to  this 
institution  since  its  first  organization. — [j. 
G.  1878. 

Present  Officers,  1S82.— P.  D.  Bradford, 
N.  G.;  O.  D.  Edgerton.  V.  G;  J.  K. 
Edgerton,  S.  ;  E.  Huntley,  T. 

Eureka  Encampment  of  the  Patriar- 
chal Branch  of  Independent  Order  Odd 
Fellows  was  institutel  Jan.  7,  1874,  and 
now  numbers  32  members,  have  $100  in 
bank,  with  good  furniture  and  fixtures,' 
and  are  free  from  debt.  They  meet  first 
and  third  Mondays  of  each  month,  at  7.30 

p.  M. 

Odd  Fellows  Relief  Association — 
organized  in  Northfield,  Feb.  2,  1875. 
Hon.  P.  D.  Bradford  was  elected  presi- 
dent, and  O.  D.  Edgerton,  Esq.,  clerk. 
Since  then  188  have  become  members, 
and  it  is  permanently  established  as  one 
of  the  institutioas  of  Northfield  that  is 
destined  to  do  great  good.  Its  principles 
are  the  same  as  those  of  the  Masonic  Re- 
lief Association,  and  we  refer  the  reader 
to  the  comments  made  upon  the  latter  in- 
stitution as  appropriate  for  both.  [1878.] 
No  change.     [1882. J 

COL.    ALBERT    STEVENS. 
(FROM  KEV.  MR.  BARTLETT.) 

Albert  Stevens,  son  of  Daniel  Stevens, 
was  born  in  Hartland,  Apr.  23,  1804.  He 
lived  there  till  1820,  when  father  and  son 
left  to  find  a  lot  of  wild  land  owned  by  the 
former  in  Northfield.  On  the  way  they 
met,  in  a  chaise,  the  late  Judge  Paine, 
dressed  in  old  English  style,  with  knee- 
breeches.  They  built  a  shanty  far  in  the 
woods,  and  cut  away  the  timber.  In  the 
fall  they  built  a  large  log-house,  with 
boards  laid  on  to  keep  off  the  storm  till  it 
could  be  finished.  One  morning  when 
Albert  awoke,  he  found  the  snow  had 
drifted  heavily  over  his  bed,  and  on  it 
were  the  tracks  of  animals,  such  as  sables 


and  weazels.  Trees  were  marked  by  the 
axe  to  help  find  the  way,  and  when  belated 
at  night  one  of  these  had  to  be 'found  in 
the  dark.  Then  one  of  the  party  would 
remain  at  it  till  some  other  should  be 
found  nearer  home.  Once  a  pair  of  oxen 
strayed  away,  and  Albert  traveled  a  month 
in  search,  going  first  to  Hartland,  where 
they  were  bought.  They  were  found  in 
Calais,  where  they  had  been  raised.  Mrs. 
Stevens  visited  the  family  in  the  fall,  bring- 
ing her  own  handiwork  in  winter  clothing. 
She  came  to  remain  in  182 1.  There  was 
a  hollow  tree  on  the  land  27  feet  in  cir- 
cumference, into  which  Mrs.  .S.  took  six 
ladies  who  came  to  take  tea  with  her.  It 
was  afterwards  used  as  a  stable  for  young- 
cattle,  etc.  Albert  worked  hard,  and 
helped  to  clear  about  25  acres.  He  left  in 
1823,  and  went  to  Warren  for  about  2 
years,  then  returned  and  settled  on  50 
acres  adjoining  his  father's  lot.  While 
there  he  husked  corn  for  Judge  Paine 
where  the  fountain  now  is  on  the  common. 
It  was  all  forest  where  Central  street  now 
is,  only  one  house  between  the  P'actory 
village  (now  Depot  village),  and  the 
Center,  which  was  then  mostly  woods. 
Only  one  house  was  on  Cady  hill,  that  of 
Nathan  Green,  one  on  Water  street,  and 
none  in  Factory  village  except  those  con- 
nected with  the  factory.  A  small  store 
was  at  the  Center.  Worship  was  held 
only  at  two  farm-houses.  There  was  no 
meeting-house  till  a  year  or  two  later,  this 
name  being  then  exclusively  given  to  all 
places  of  worship  except  Roman  Catholic 
and  Episcopal  churches. 

Mr.  Stevens  chopped  wood  for  25  cts.  a 
cord,  and  hewed  timber  8  x  8,  which  he 
sold,  delivered,  for  a  cent  a  foot  running 
measure.  In  1826,  he  was  married  to 
Dorothy  Stevens,  of  Warren ;  lived  on 
clearing  till  1829,  when  he  removed  to 
Eden  and  worked  8  years  as  carpenter 
and  millwright ;  built  a  meeting-house  in 
Eden,  and  one  in  Potton,  P.  O.  About 
1832,  became  sergeant  of  militia  in  La- 
moille County,  and  was  afterwards  pro- 
moted through  other  offices  till  he  was 
made  colonel.  He  went  to  Plattsburgh, 
N.  Y.,  in   1842.     When  work  commenced 


X 


686 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


on  the  Vermont  Central  R.  R.,  he  returned  carpenters  of  the  place  were  unable  to  do. 
to  Northfield,  where  he  has  lived  since.  |  Col.  Stevens  has  had  three  children: 
He  has  been  bookseller  since  1857.  When  i  William  A.,  born  1827,  died  1855  ;  Mary 
73  years  old,  he  was  asked  and  consented  j  Ann,  born  1829,  married  1849,  and  died 
to  do  a  difficult  job  of  "  setting  out  "  for  a  ,  1869  ;  Edwin,  born  1837,  died  1863  ;  wife 
new  building  in  Sutton,  P.  O.,  which  the  1  died  1841. 


DOG    RIVER   VALLEY   ASSOCIATION. 

In  the  summer  of  1873,  a  meeting  was 
called  to  take  into  consideration  the  pro- 
priety of  forming  an  association  to  benefit 
the  farmers  of  Northfield,  and  it  resulted 
in  the  formation  of  the  above  named  soci- 
ety. Oct.  1st  and  2d  of  the  same  season, 
the  first  fair  was  held,  on  Frank  W.  Gold's 
trotting  park,  known  as  the  "  Dog  River 
Valley  Fair,"  which  was  so  great  a  success 
that  they  have  been  continued  each  year 
since.  It  proved  that  the  resources  of 
Northfield  and  vicinity  were  equal  to  the 
occasion.  Calling  in  the  aid  of  Williams- 
town,  Brookfield,  Braintree,  Roxbury  and 


Berlin,  the  Fair  was  as  good  as  any  ever 
held  in  the  County.  Every  department 
was  well  represented,  and  Floral  Hall  was 
the  center  of  attraction  not  surpassed  by 
any  in  the  State,  and  elicited  applause 
from  thousands  of  people. 

The  officers  were  :  John  Gregory,  pres- 
ident ;  Frank  W.  Gold,  Northfield,  Geo. 
Crane,  Williamstown,  W.  C.  Clark,  Brook- 
field,  William  Orcutt,  Roxbury,  and  C.  E. 
Andrews,  Berlin,  vice  presidents;  James 
Morse,  secretary;  J.  F.  Davis,  auditor ; 
William  Winch,  treasurer. 

After  serving  as  president  three  years, 
Mr.  Gregory  declined  a  re-election,  and  J. 


NORTHFIELD. 


687 


H.  Orcutt  was  chosen  to  fill  that  position, 
which  he  has  creditably  held  since.    C.  D. 
Williams  is  now  the  acting  secretary. 
Present  Officers. — Royal  W.  Clark,  pres- 


ident;  George  Denny,  vice  president;]. 
K.  Edgerton,  secretary ;  Christopher  Dole, 
treasurer. 


■pmfEni^eoNJy 


were  elected  direc- 
tors, and  George 
Nichols,  president ; 
since  then,  F.  L. 
Ely,  cashier,  having 
deceased,  Chas.  A. 
Edgerton,  Jr.,  was 
appointed  in  his 
place. 

The  NORTHFIELD 

Savings  Bank  was 
incorporated  in 
1867.  By  close  at- 
tention to  its  inter- 
ests, and  an  eco- 
nomical administra- 
tion of  its  affairs, 
in  1 1  years  it  vies 
in  importance  and 
stability  with  older 
institutions    in    our 


'Oi-o,  kJtc  cl..^, 


BANKS. 

The  NORTHFIELD  Bank  was  chartered 
by  an  act  ot  the  Legislature,  Nov.  23, 
1854,  with  a  capital  of  $100,000.  The 
first  meeting  for  the  election  of  ofiicers 
was  held  Jan.  9,  1855;  directors:  Calvin 
Ainsworth,  Perley  Belknap,  Reuben  Peck, 
John  B.  Hutchinson  and  Alvin  Braley. 
The  .same  day  Calvin  Ainsworth  was  elected 
president  by  the  directors,  and  H.  M. 
Bates,  cashier. 

In  1865,  at  a  stockholders"  meeting,  it 
was  voted  to  organize  the  Northfield  Na- 
tional Bank,  under  the  laws  of  the  United 
States.  H.  C.  Ely  was  appointed  assist- 
ant cashier  in  Nov.  1864. 

1878,  Jan.  8,  at  the  annual  meeting, 
Geo.  Nichols,  John  Lamson,  Charles  A. 
Edgerton,  J.   C.   Gallup  and  J.   C.  Cady 


State.  Officers  for 
1S77-78  :  George 
M.  Fsk,  president ; 
George  H.  Crane, 
vice  president ;  Jas. 
C.  B.  Thayer,  trea.  : 
Carlos  D.  Williams, 

secretary;  board   of  directors,    Orvis    D. 

Edgerton,   Jasper  H.    Orcutt,  Andrew  E. 

Denny,  John  P.  Davis,  Edwin  K.  Jones. 

Amount  of  deposits,  $151,861.17. 

[From  Mr.  Gregory's  account  in   1878. 
For  sketch  of  Mr.  (i.,  see  page  622.] 

Banks — eontpleted  by  Joseph  K.  Edgerton. 
NORTHFIELD  Bank  was  organized  in 
1852,  under  the  general  banking  law  of 
the  State,  but  did  not  go  into  business 
until  after  it  had,  in  1853,  received  a  char- 
ter from  the  Legislature.  Its  first  presi- 
dent was  Calvin  Ainsworth  ;  second,  Perley 
Belknap  ;  third,  Alvin  Braley ;  fourth,  Geo. 
Nichols.  The  first  cashier  was  H.  M. 
Bates  ;  second,  John  B.  Hutchinson  ;  third, 
Arthur  Ropes  ;  fourth,  Henry  G.  Ely,  Fred 
L.  Ely;  fifth,  Charles  A.  Edgerton,  Jr. 


X 


688 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


GOOD   TEMPLARS. 

GOULDSVILLE  LODGE,  No.  1 66. — The 
pioneer  Lodge  of  the  town,  formed  Dec. 
20,  1 87 1,  with  13  charter  members,  the 
number  just  sufficient  to  obtain  a  cliarter. 
July  31,  1872,  the  Lodge  had  a  member- 
ship of  100.  Oct.  II,  1872,  notice  of  the 
death  of  Charles  Grant, — the  first  death  of 
a  member.  Mar.  18,  1873,  E.  N.  Chandler 
was  instantly  killed  by  an  engine  ;  also  died 
the  same  month,  Sherman  Gold,  a  charter 
member,  a  life-long  temperance  man  ;  and 
the  same  spring,  Myra  Bowen,  a  worthy 
member,  died ;  Jan.  1876,  Joseph  Gould, 
an  esteemed  charter  member ;  December, 
Ella  Simons  and  Mrs.  Harriet  Thrasher, 
sisters. 

The  highest  number  of  members  at  any 
one  time  has  been  139;  the  lowest  since 
the  first  quarter  68  ;  and  the  present  mem- 
bership is  74,  in  good  standing,  doing  a 
good  work.  The  Lodge  is  free  from  debt, 
and  money  in  the  treasury.  As  an  auxili- 
ary of  the  Lodge,  there  is  a  Juvenile  Tem- 
ple, of  over  40  members,  mostly  children 
between  the  ages  of  5  and  16,  doing  a  good 
work  for  temperance,  and  in  connection 
with  the  Lodge,  may  be  considered  one  of 
the  permanent  institutions  of  the  place. 

List  of  Past  Worthy  Good  Tctiiplars. — 
H.  H.  Perkins,  George  Carter,  A.  F.  An- 
drews, Charles  F.  Beard,  H.  S.  Thrasher, 

D.  R.  Fisk,  Charles  Mcintosh,  H.  L.  Rich, 

E.  F.  Sisco,   H.  P.  Flint,  D.  R.  Fisk,  A. 
Rich,  S.  F.  Gibbs,  Charles  Benedict. 

Mountain  Gem  Lodge,  Independent 
Order  of  Good  Templars,  organized  Mar. 
20,  1873,  at  South  Northfield,  the  second 
Lodge  of  Good  Templars  in  the  town  ;  has 
numbered  •  among  its  members  the  best 
citizens  of  that  part  of  the  town,  and  has 
always  exerted  a  good,  general  moral  in- 
fluence with  temperance  sentiments.  It 
started  with  28  charter  members  ;  officers  : 
W.  W.  Holden,  worthy  chief  templar; 
Dora  L.  Holden,  worthy  vice  templar; 
E.  K.  Jones,  worthy  secretary  ;  Harriet  E. 
Jones,  worthy  assistant  secretary  ;  Geo.  H. 
Denny,  worthy  financial  secretary  ;  Martin 
Cobleigh,  worthy  treasurer;  Wm.  Slade, 
worthy  chaplain;    Frank   S.    Mead,    past 


worthy  chief  templar  ;  F.  A.  Jones,  worthy 
marshal ;  Olive  A.  Howe,  worthy  deputy 
marshal;  Matilda  J.  Howe,  worthy  right 
hand  supporter ;  Delia  Mead,  worthy  left 
hand  supporter;  Elra  M.  Slade,  worthy 
guard;  O.  A.  Slade,  worthy  sentinel. 

The  Worthy  Chief  Templars  since  the 
organization  of  the  Lodge :  W.  W. 
Holden,  Thomas  Slade,  E.  K.  Jones, 
Martin  Cobleigh,  E.  Kimball,  Allen  Slade, 
Herman  T.  J.  Howe,  Dan.  Derby,  Frank 
W.  Gold,  Fred  A.  Jones,  Jeff.  E.  House, 
Albert  Steele,  Elra  M.  Slade,  S.  P.  Or- 
cutt  and  F.  E.  Steele. 

Worthy  Vice  Templars,  Dora  L.  Holden, 
Elva  M.  Steele,  Harriet  E.  Jones,  Carrie 
Cobleigh,  Celia  Gold,  Nellie  Kimball, 
Emma  A.  Wright,  Aurora  M.  Edson,  Clara 
Cobleigh,  Anna  Fuller,  Etta  Briggs,  Susie 
Jones,  Abbie  Kimball,  Anna  Jones  and 
Roxana  Orcutt. 

The  Lodge  deputies  have  been  :  Thos. 
Slade,  W.  W.  Holden,  S.  P.  Orcutt  and 
Dan.  Derby. 

The  following  have  been  delegates  to 
the  Grand  Lodge  :  W.  W.  Holden,  E.  K. 
Jones,  S.  P.  Orcutt,  Thomas  Slade  and 
Dan.  Derby. 

The  Lodge  now  numbers  about  50  mem- 
bers. It  is  numerically  the  smallest  Lodge 
of  the  town,  but  it  has  always  numbered 
among  its  members  more  of  the  eligible 
inhabitants  of  its  jurisdiction  than  either 
of  the  other  Lodges ;  and,  although  its 
field  of  labor  has  not  been  as  hard  as  the 
others,  yet  it  has  done  a  good  work. 

Sons  of  Temperance.  Central  Divis- 
ion, No.  80,  instituted  Feb.  16,  1858,  had 
its  day  of  w^orking  good  in  Northfield  in 
the  cause  of  temperance.  The  best  minds 
in  this  town  were  its -warmest  supporters. 
But,  like  other  benevolent  associations  for 
the  suppression  of  vice,  it  declined,  and 
gave  way  to  more  preferable  organiza- 
tions, but  its  existence  was  a  blessing  to 
many,  and  it  deserves  honorable  mention 
in  our  temperance  record.      It  died  out. 

Carswell  Temple  of  Honor,  was  in- 
stituted Dec.  28,  1868;  the  expense  of 
running  it  seemed  too  high  for  those  in 
moderate  circumstances. 


NORTHFIELD. 


NoRTHFiELD  LoDGE,  No.  175,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Good  Templars,  was  or- 
ganized in  the  village  of  Northfield,  at 
Concert  Hall,  Apr.  3,  1873,  by  Col.  John 
B.  Mead,  of  Randolph,  Grand  Worthy 
Chief  Templar,  assisted  by  Rev.  E.  Folsom, 
Deputy  Grand  Worthy  Chief  Templar  for 
Washington  County,  and  by  large  delega- 
tions from  the  Lodges  at  Gouldsville  and 
the  South  Village. 

Over  100  names  were  on  the  application 
for  a  charter,  and  80  presented  themselves 
for  initiation  on  the  evening  of  institution. 
Starting  with  so  large  a  membership,  com- 
prising many  of  our  best  citizens  and  rep- 
resenting all  branches  of  industry,  it 
stepped  at  once  into  the  front  ranks  among 
the  lodges  of  the  State,  and  in  Jan.  1875, 
it  had  a  membership  of  201,  making  it  the 
banner  lodge  of  the  County  and  of  the 
State,  which  position   it   has   since    held. 

87 


The  largest  membership 
was  in  Aug.  1877,  when  it 
numbered  290  members  in 
good  standing.  At  the 
occasion  of  its  fifth  anni- 
versary the  report  shows 
that  there  had  been  in- 
itiated into  the  lodge  over 
500  members.  One-half 
that  number  have  severed 
their  connection  with  the 
lodge  by  removals,  with- 
drawals, etc.,  leaving  the 
,2;  present  number  250.  In 
v^l^  Jan.  1875,  this  lodge,  as- 
Nj^  sisted  by  the  cotemporary 
lodges  of  the  town,  enter- 
tained the  Grand  Lodge  of 
the  State,  and  in  January, 
1879,  will  agam  have  the 
same  pleasure.  The  offi- 
cers at  the  organization  of 
the  lodge  were  :  Frank 
Plumley,  worthy  chief  tem- 
plar ;  Altha  Dutton, worthy 
vice  templar ;  Ladoit  Der- 
by, worthy  secretary ;  Mrs. 
L.  W.  Avery,  worthy  fi- 
nancial secretary;  L.  W. 
Avery,  worthy  treasurer; 
J.  F.  Davis,  worthy  chap- 
lain; S.  B.  Spaulding,  worthy  marshal; 
Hattie  Clifford,  worthy  deputy  marshal ; 
Lizzie  Knapp,  worthy  guard  ;  H.  W.  Davis, 
worthy  sentinel ;  Mrs.  L.  L.  Plumley, 
worthy  right  hand  supporter  ;  Clara  Max- 
ham,  worthy  left  hand  supporter;  A.  R. 
Savage,  lodge  deputy. 

Succeeding  Worthy  Chief  Templars. — 
Rev.  R.  A.  Greene,  Frank  Plumley,  J.  F. 
Davis,  O.  D.  Edgerton,  Dr.  P.  D.  Brad- 
ford, L.  W.  Avery,  W.  H.  H.  Claflin,  Dr. 
W.  H.  Bryant,  C.  M.  Johnston  and  F.  R. 
Bates. 

Representatives  to  Grand  Lodge — 1874, 
A.  R.  Savage,  Frank  Plumley;  1875,  W. 
H.  H.  Claflin,  Ella  Dutton;  1876,  O.  D. 
Edgerton,  Mrs.  L.  W.  Avery,  Washington 
Coburn ;  1877,  J.  F.  Davis,  C.  M.  John- 
ston, Mrs.  Carrie  Smith  ;  1878,  Rev.  A.  B. 
Truax,  Dr.  W.  H.  Bryant,  Mrs.  W.  H.  H. 
Claflin. 


690 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Members  of  the  Lodge  honored  by  the 
Grand  Lodge — 1874,  F.  Plumley,  alternate 
delegate  to  right  worthy  grand  lodge ; 
1874,  A.  R.  Savage,  district  deputy  for 
Washington  County;  1875  and  since,  F. 
Plumley,  grand  worthy  secretary,  by  an- 
nual elections;  Mrs.  F.  Plumley,  assistant 
grand  secretary  two  years;  1876,0.  D. 
Edgerton,  member  finance  committee  3 
years;  1876,  Mrs.  L.  W.  Avery,  delegate 
to  right  worthy  grand  lodge  ;  1877,  C.  M. 
Johnston,  assistant  grand  secretary  ;  1877, 
O.  D.  Edgerton,  delegate  to  right  worthy 
grand  lodge ;  1877,  J.  F.  Davis  and  Dr. 
P.  D.  Bradford,  state  deputies;  1878,  O. 
D.  Edgerton,  state  deputy;  1878,  Rev. 
A.  B.Truax,  grand  worthy  chaplain  ;  1878, 
Frank  Plumley,  chairman;  and  O.  D. 
Edgerton,  served  upon  special  mission 
committee. 

Without  giving  this  lodge  more  credit 
than  is  its  due,  it  may  justly  be  said  it  has 
done  and  is  doing  a  good  work  in  the  tem- 
perance reformation  of  the  town.  The 
lodge  and  its  members  very  properly  feel  a 
just  pride  in  the  position  it  has  taken  in 
the  councils  of  the  Grand  Lodge,  where 
its  influence  is  by  no  means  inconsiderable. 

The  Degree  Temple,  Independent 
Order  of  Good  Templars. — In  1873,  the 
Degree  members  of  Gouldsville,  Mountain 
Gem,  Roxbury,  Brookfield  and  Northfield 
Lodges  organized  Union  Degree  Temple, 
No.  12,  with  the  following  officers  :  A.  R. 
Savage,  degree  templar ;  Helen  Flint,  de- 
gree vice  templar;  L.  N.  Miller,  degree 
secretary;  Mrs.  L.  W.  Avery,  degree 
financial  secretary;  J.  F.  Davis,  degree 
treasurer;  A.  W.  Edson,  degree  chaplain; 
H.  A.  Vose,  degree  Marshal;  Mary  Don- 
ovan, degree  guard ;  C.  Simonds,  degree 
sentinel;  Mrs.  L.  N.  Miller,  degree  assist- 
ant secretary  ;  Clara  Havens,  degree  dep- 
uty marshal ;  Mrs.  L.  W.  Avery,  degree 
right  hand  supporter;  Mrs.  I.  G.  Foster, 
degree  left  hand  supporter. 

For  a  time  the  meetings  were  held  al- 
ternately with  the  five  lodges  joined  in  its 
institution,  but  after  a  while,  owing  to 
the  inconvenience  of  traveling,  its  meet- 
ings were  permanently  established  at  Good 
Templars'  Hall  with  Northfield  Lodge.   On 


account  of  the  same  reasons  for  the  change 
of  place  of  meetings,  most  of  the  members 
of  the  other  lodges  withdrew,  and  the 
Temple  is  now  confined  largely  to  North- 
field  Lodge.  There  have  been  about  150 
members  in  all,  of  which  there  now  re- 
mains about  60.  The  Temple  is  inter- 
mediate between  the  subordinate  and 
Grand  Lodges,  and  when  well  sustained 
and  worked,  it  is  quite  as  enjoyable  as  any- 
thing in  Good  Templary. 

Northfield  Juvenile  Temple,  No.  i  . 
— Not  least  among  our  valuable  institu- 
tions, and  means  of  doing  good,  is  North- 
field  Juvenile  Temple,  No.  i.  Some  of 
our  i^eople,  realizing  the  benefit  of  a 
thorough  temperance  education  for  our 
children,  met  Apr.  3,  1875,  i"  Good  Tem- 
plar's Hall,  with  Miss  Lucy  Bradshaw,  of 
Montpelier,  then  State  Superintendent  of 
Juvenile  Temple,  who  organized  the  first 
Temple  in  the  State,  with  53  members,  15 
honorary  and  38  children.  Rev.  R.  A. 
Greene  was  chosen  Superintendent,  and 
held  that  office  nearly  2  years,  as  long  as 
he  remained  in  town,  when  Mrs.  L.  E. 
Pope  was  appointed,  and  served  5  months, 
until  she  resigned.  Mrs.  C.  M.  Persons 
was  appointed,  and  has  held  the  office  the 
last  year,  and  is  doing  a  noble  work. 
Their  pledge  is:  "I  do  most  solemnly 
promise  that  I  will  never,  so  long  as  I  live 
make,  buy,  sell,  or  use  as  a  beverage,  any 
spirituous  or  malt  liquors,  wine,  beer  or 
cider.  1  also  promise  to  abstain  from  the 
use  of  tobacco  in  any  form.  I  also  prom- 
ise that  I  will  never  take  the  name  of  God 
in  vain,  or  use  profane  or  wicked  words. 
I  also  promise  to  do  all  1  can  to  lionor  this 
pledge  by  a  good  example,  and  that  1  will 
obey  the  laws  of  the  Juvenile  Templars. 

This  Temple  has  increased  in  numbers 
and  usefulness,  and  now  has  more  than 
150  members,  working  zealously  for  Tem- 
perance.— J.  Gregory,  1878. 

1875-80,  F.  Plumley,  G.  W.  Sec.  of  Gr. 
Lodge  of  Vt.,  delegate  from  Gr.  Lodge  to 
R.  W.  Gr.  Lodge,  New  York,  1880,  and 
Topeka,  Ka,n.,  1881.  1882,  Dr.  N.  W. 
Gilbert,  W.  C.  T.  of  Northfield  Lodge,  and 
A.  F.  Andrews,  of  Gouldsville  Lodge.  Mt. 
Gem  lodge  is  dead. — F.  Plumley. 


NORTHFIELD. 


GEN.    ALONZO   JACKMAN,    :.L.    D. 
GEOLOGY. 

[A  paper  ori  the  Geology  of  this  town, 
by  Professor  Jackman,  late  of  the  Norwich 
University,  from  John  Gregory's  History 
of  Northfield — the  portrait  to  accompany 
it  in  this  work  being  contributed  by  Mr. 
Atkins  of  the  Ar^i/s.^ 

Remark. — In  accordance  with  the  char- 
acter of  this  book  as  a  history  of  North- 
field,  the  following  article  is  presented  in 
historical  form.  It,  therefore,  enters  into 
the  bearings  of  the  subject  through  the 
successive  periods  of  remote  years,  and  at 
the  same  time  whatever  is  introduced  per- 
tains to  Northfield.  For  the  chronological 
order,  reference  will  be  made  to  Dana's 
Geology. 

From  a  long  series  of  critical  observa- 
tions upon  the  stratified  rocks  of  the  earth's 
crust,  and  a  close  study  concerning  their 
contained  fossils,  geologists  have  pretty 
uniformly  come  to  the  following  conclu- 
sion, viz.  : 

That  there  was  a  time  when  no  living 
substance  existed  upon  the  globe ;  when 
all  the  earth  was  under  water  ;  and.  during 
ages  of  this  chaos,  the  oceanic  currents  at 
some  places  wore  away  the  earth's  crust. 


and  the  resulting  detritus,  mixed 
with  volcanic  discharges,  was 
spread  out  at  other  places  upon 
the  ocean  l:)ed,  thereby  forming 
immense  stratified  deposits  to 
unknown  depths.  This  duration 
of  time  is  called  the  Azoic  Period, 
toward  the  close  of  which  the 
dry  land  began  to  appear,  as 
"  mere  islets  in  the  great  conti- 
nental sea.'"  (Dana,  p.  jj.) 
After  this  there  was  a  time  when 
life,  in  its  simplest  forms,  began 
in  the  great  deep.  And  during 
the  progress  of  ages  the  ocean 
became  filled  with  animal  life,  as 
radiates,  mollusks,  articulates, 
and  vertebrates,  and,  in  the  same 
manner  as  above  stated,  vast 
stratified  deposits,  including  fos- 
sils, accumulated  to  the  depth  of 
some  seven  miles.  (Dana,  p. 
144.)  Further,  the  earth  rose 
gradually  above  the  water,  the 
dry  land  l^ecame  covered  with  vegetation, 
and  animal  life  everywhere  abounded.  This 
portion  of  time  is  called  the  Paleozoic 
Period.  After  this  there  was  a  Mesozoic 
Period,  whose  deposits  are  some  2  miles 
deep.  (Dana,  p.  198.)  And  after  this 
there  was  a  Conozoic  Period,  vthose  de- 
posits are  some  ih  miles  deep.  '  (Dana,  p. 
244.)  And  then  came  the  Age  of  Man, 
which  is  now  in  progress. 

During  the  time  pertaining  to  each  of 
the  above  grand  periods,  the  earth  was 
many  times  convulsed,  when  its  crust  in 
some  places  was  raised  to  mountain  masses, 
and  at  other,  places  depressed  to  sea- 
basins,  thus,  in  a  manner,  separating  those 
grand  periods  into  several  sub-divisions ; 
but  the  grand  divisions,  at  their  closing 
epochs,  were  more  emphatically  marked, 
as  if  disturbed  by  special  upheavals  of  such 
magnitude  that  at  each  time  nearly  all  an- 
imal life  upon  the  globe  became  extinct, 
then  the  following  period  received  a  new 
order  of  beings  upon  a  higher  scale  of  life. 
In  this  manner  the  earth  progressed,  up- 
ward to  the  Age  of  Man,  and  onward  to  the 
condition  in  which  we  behold  it.    (Dana.) 


X 


692 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


At  the  times  and  places  of  these  terres- 
trial disturbances,  mentioned  above,  the 
volcanic  heat  became  so  intense  as  to 
metamorphose  those  stratified  deposits : 
the  sand  into  granite,  the  clay  into  roofing 
slate,  and  the  coral-reefs  and  shell-banks 
into  marble,  etc.  (Dana,  p.  312.)  Further, 
when  these  deposits  were  being  broken 
up  by  upheavals,  the  oceanic  currents, 
charged  with  gravel-drift,  ground  off  their 
ragged  edges,  and  moved  the  detritus  to 
other  places  of  deposit.  Thus,  the  conti- 
nents, from  period  to  period,  rose  grad- 
ually above  the  water.  And  now  we  see 
the  earth  with  its  stratified,  out-cropping 
rocks,  well  water-worn,  even  to  the  top  of 
our  highest  mountains. 

Large  portions  of  the  earth's  surface  are 
observed   to  be  covered   with  unstratified 
deposits,    which   are   confusedly   mingled 
with  gravel  and  boulders  ;  and,  sometimes, 
these  deposits  are  in  hillocks  of  small  wa- 
ter-worn stones  ;  as  may  be  seen  in  Depot 
village,   in  the   vicinity  of  School  street. 
Also,  on  the  tops  of  our  highest  mountain- 
peaks,  we  often  see  large  granite  boulders, 
and  other  rocks,  which   must   have  come 
from  great  distances ;  and,  apparently,  at 
a  time  not  very  remote  in  the  past.     Now 
the  "  Glacier  theory"  fails  to  account,  con- 
sistently,   for  all   these  appearances ;  for, 
were  there,  west  of  the  Green  Mountains, 
a  glacier,  or  ice-flow,  from    the   North,  it 
would  naturally  pass  through  the   Hudson 
Valley  opening ;  but,  to  suppose  that  this 
glacier  would  turn    eastward,    climb    the 
western   front  of   the    Green    Mountains, 
and,  as  the  "drift  marks"  indicate,  cross 
Vermont  the  rough  way  over  hills  and  val- 
leys, in  nearly  a  horizontal  path,  is  to  sup- 
pose what  involves  a  dynamical  absurdity. 
If,  now,  we  try  the  theory  that  there  was  a 
flood   like   the  one   described  in  Genesis 
(Chap,  vii),  all  appearances  at  once  wheel 
into  a  consistent  line  of  argument  and  are 
compatible  with  a  complete  solution  of  the 
mysterious  problem  ;  for  such  a  flood  would 
in  the  polar  regions  raise  from  their  ancient 
beds  large  masses  of  ice,  which   had  re- 
ceived from  mountain  ravines  gravel  and 
boulders,  by  means  of  thaws  and  glaciers. 
Also,  from  the  frozen  tops   of  mountains. 


the  ancient  masses  of  accumulated  ice 
would'float,  thereby  tearing  off  their  rocky 
scalps.  These  icebergs,  moved  by  wind 
and  current,  would  drift  toward  the  equa- 
tor, and  on  the  thawing  passage  drop  their 
rocky  freight  upon  the  submerged  land. 
Further,  icebergs,  drawing  a  greater  depth 
of  water,  would  lodge  on  submerged 
mountain  ridges,  and  there  remain  until 
sufficiently  reduced  to  be  pushed  over  by 
the  elements,  thereby  making,  in  their 
rocky  tops,  the  "drift  marks,"  which  are 
distinctly  seen  on  the  heights  about 
Northfield.  As  our  admitted  flood  should 
subside,  hillocks  of  water-worn  stones 
would  be  formed  by  the  thawing  of  strand- 
ed icebergs.  Also,  sandy  terraces,  similar 
to  those  near  the  Methodist  camp-ground, 
the  fair-ground,  and  the  cemetery,  would 
be  formed.  (Such  terraces  have  hitherto 
been  placed  by  geologists  in  a  "Cham- 
plain  Period.")  In  fact,  to  account  for 
the  appearances  every  where  seen  upon  the 
earth's  surface,  it  seemingly  requires  what 
is  identically  the  "flood."  But  whence 
came  the  water  to  make  such  a  flood  ?  It 
came  in  from  the  ocean,- when  "  all  the 
fountaius  of  the  great  deep  were  broken 
up,^'  as  a  consequent  result  of  the  ocean 
bed  being  upheaved  and  the  dry  land  de- 
pressed. Thus  the  whole  earth  became 
again  submerged,  as  it  was  in  the  Azoic 
Period.  Further,  the  subsidence  of  the 
flood  was  caused  by  the  same  agency,  in 
returning  the  continents  and  ocean  beds — 
possibly  in  part — to  their  former  conditions. 
And  all  this  is  in  complete  accordance  with 
admitted  principles  in  the  science  of  Ge- 
ology. 

The  "mere  islets"  of  the  Azoic  Period 
in  the  ancient  ages  of  the  world,  were  the 
first  dry  land,  (Dana,  p  T]),  but  the  next 
land  which  rose  out  of  the  sea  was  the 
Green  Mountains,  (Dana,  p  92),  which  is, 
therefore,  about  the  oldest  dry  land  upon 
the  globe.  When  the  Green  Mountains 
began  to  show  themselves  above  the  water, 
the  Paleozoic  formation  had  in  its  struct- 
ure only  the  Potsdam  and  Trenton  de- 
posits, (Dana,  p  80,  91),  which  now  rest 
on  the  mountain.  As  ages  advanced  the 
mountains  gradually  rose  out  of  the  ocean 


NORTHFIELD. 


693 


to  completion,  thereb}-  bringing  to  the  sur- 
face, in  the  order  of  their  formation,  the 
successive  Paleozoic  strata,  thus  causing 
an  increase  of  dry  land.  Hence,  from  the 
mountain  top  eastward,  these  successive 
strata  have  an  eastern  dip,  a  western  out- 
crop, and  a  strike  generally  parallel  to  the 
Green  Mountain  range.  These  several 
outcrops,  in  the  order  of  their  formations, 
have  those  of  the  upper  formations  consid- 
erably to  the  east  of  those  belonging  to 
the  lower  formations.  Further,  in  the 
process  of  their  rising,  the  Green  Moun- 
tains were  so  irregularly  pushed  up  that 
their  stratified  structure  received  many 
cross-breaks  and  contortions.  The  ocean 
currents  then  scooped  out  these  cross- 
breaks  and  wore  oiT  their  rough  projections, 
thus  grinding  down  Vermont  into  a  grand 
system  of  high  mountains  and  deep  val- 
leys. In  this  condition  the  Green  Moun- 
tains finally  came  up  out  of  the  sea,  and 
now  present  themselves  as  a  kind  of  High 
Backbone  Ridge,  with  large  vertebral 
knobs,  and  long  rib-like  spurs,  extending 
eastward  to  the  Connecticut  valley,  and 
between  these  spurs  flow  the  vein-like 
streams,  as  Black  river,  Quechee  river. 
White  river,  etc. 

To  get  a  better  idea  of  the  stratified 
formations  in  the  Green  Mountain  struc- 
ture, conceive  an  explorer  to  walk  from 
the  mountain  top  eastward  through  North- 
field,  and  to  observe  the  rocks  he  passes. 
This  person  would  first  walk  on  the  upper 
surface  of  some  Paleozoic  formation,  down 
its  dipping  slope  into  Mad  River  valley, 
near  Waitsfield.  Here  he  would  meet  the 
high,  out-cropping  front  of  the  next  form- 
ation above,  which  he  would  climb  and 
having  arrived  at  its  top,  where  it  is  called 
"  Bald  Mountain,"  he  would  find  himself 
2636  feet  above  tide-water ;  but,  on  Waits- 
field  Mountain,  at  the  highest  point  in  the 
road  between  Waitsfield  and  Northfield,  he 
would  stand  2135  feet  above  tide-water, 
and  upon  a  slaty  formation  of  hard  green- 
ish stone  highly  charged  with  quartz.  He 
would  next,  on  the  upper  surface  of  this 
formation,  pass  down  its  dipping'  slope 
into  Dog  River  valley  at  Northfield,  where 
he  would  find  himself  728  feet  above  tide- 


water, and  638  feet  above  the  surface  of 
Lake  Champlain.  The  hill  north-west  of 
Elmwood  Cemetery,  1359  f^^*'  ^^^^  that 
just  south  of  South  village,  1900  feet  above 
tide-water.  Also,  he  would  notice  a  stra- 
tum of  light-greenish,  talcose  slate-rock, 
well  charged  with  quartz  grit,  and  locally 
called  "jenkstone."  It  splits  freely  into 
desirable  thicknesses,  breaks  handsomely 
into  rectangular  forms,  and  is  doubtless  a 
good  building  stone.  For  proof  see  Mr. 
Jenks'  dwelling-house.  Next  in  order  he 
would  notice  a  stratum  of  lightish-gray  mi- 
caceous sandstone,  locally  called  "whet- 
stone ledge,"  from  which  whetstones, 
hones,  and  the  like,  are  manufactured  by 
Wood  &  Son,  and  they  are  said  to  be 
good.  Proceeding  onward,  he  would  meet 
the  high,  out-cropping  front  of  the  famous 
slate  formation,  from  which  the  noted 
roofing  slate  are  taken  by  Adams  &  Co. 
Having  climbed  this  high  front — called 
Paine  mountain — and  standing  on  its  top, 
he  would  find  himself  2435  feet  above  tide- 
water, or  1707  feet  above  the  depot,  and 
he  would  also  get  a  magnificent  view  with 
a  clear  sweep  around  the  whole  circum- 
ference of  the  distant  horizon.  Thence, 
proceeding  onward  upon  the  upper  surface 
of  this  formation,  he  would  pass  down  its 
dipping  slope  into  Berlin  Pond  valley, 
where  he  would  meet  the  out-cropping 
front  of  a  dark  slaty  limestone  formation. 
Thence,  proceeding  over  this  elevation, 
he  would  descend  into  Williamstown  val- 
ley, and  so  on  he  could  travel  up  and  down 
to  the  Connecticut  valley,  and  to  the  sea. 

At  first  sight  this  traveler  would  think 
that  the  rocky  stratification  over  which  he 
passed  stood  nearly  perpendicular  to  the 
horizon ;  but,  on  closer  inspection,  he 
would  discover  that  what  he  took  for  strat- 
ification was  the  slaty  cleavage  of  the 
rock,  which  is  always  nearly  perpendicular 
to  the  bed  of  stratification.    (Dana,  p.  36.) 

Now  the  town  of  Northfield  is  on  an 
eastern  spur  of  the  Green  Mountains,  and 
at  the  centre  of  the  State ;  for,  by  actual 
estimation,  from  maps  and  various  sur- 
veys, the  center  of  the  town  and  the  center 
of  the  State  are  both  found  to  be  upon  the 
same  town  lot.     (Lot  No.  9  in  range  5. 


X 


694 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


See  town  map.)  Tlie  town  being  thus  on 
the  Green  Mountains,  Northfield  farmers 
cultivate  about  the  oldest  land  in  the 
world  where  terrestrial  life  first  began.  In 
fact, 

"The  dust  we  tread  upon  was  once  alive,"— jS(//-o«. 

Dog  river  runs  through  the  eastern  part 
of  the  town  in  a  direction  a  little  east  of 
north,  taking  in  on  both  sides  quite  re- 
spectable tributaries,  which  drain  the  sev- 
eral minor  valleys  of  the  town.  Thus,  by 
the  river,  its  tributaries,  and  their  great 
number  of  feeding  springs,  the  town  is 
well  watered.  Instead  of  the  surface  soil 
rising  abruptly  from  the  banks  of  the  river 
and  brooks,  these  streams  are  skirted  by 
handsome  narrow  meadows  and  terraced 
flats,  from  whose  outer  limits  the  ground 
rises  into  the  highlands  in  such  manner 
that  nearly  all  the  surface,  even  to  the 
tops  of  the  highest  hills,  is  susceptible  of 
cultivation.  There  is  very  little  waste 
land  in  Northfield.  On  the  river  the  soil 
is  generally  light  and  sandy,  but  back 
from  the  river,  on  the  upland,  the  soil  is 
dark,  strong  and  good,  suitable  for  all  the 
crops  generally  raised  in  the  State.  The 
native  timber  growth  of  the  town  consists 
of  fir,  spruce,  hemlock,  maple,  birch,  a.sh, 
elm,  and  the  like. 

BUSINESS   IN  NORTHFIELD — 1 882. 

BY  .Jo,SEl"II    K.   EGEKTON. 

Dog  River  runs  through  the  town  in  a 
northerly  direction,  aftording  many  valua- 
ble water  privileges,  most  of  which  are  now 
improved.  The  East  Branch  runs  from 
Bennett's  Pond,  which  is  on  the  highland 
near  the  VVilliamstown  line.  From  this 
pond,  when  the  water  is  high,  a  stream 
runs  north  to  Berlin  Pond.  Just  below 
the  eastern  outlet  Mr.  Edward  H.  Howes 
has  a  saw-mill.  The  first  mill  built  on  that 
site  was  put  up  by  Aquillo  Jones ;  soon 
after  Judge  Paine  built  the  first  mill  in 
town,  which  was  on  the  same  stream, 
about  one  mile  below.  About  2  miles 
further  east,  and  near  South  Northfield, 
this  stream  unites  with  a  brook  which  runs 
from  a  large  pond  in  East  Roxbury.  A 
few  rods  north  of  this  junction,  Geo.  H- 
Fisher  has  a  shingle  mill  and  carriage- 
shop,  and  Warren  C.  Briggs  has  a  black- 


smith shop  and  knife  factory,  both  deriving 
power  from  the  same  water-wheel.  About 
20  rods  north  of  these  shops  is  a  large 
building  occupied  by  Martin  Cobleigh  and 
Geo.  W.  Kingsbury,  for  the  manufacture 
of  doors,  sash  and  blinds,  they  having  also, 
across  the  road,  another  large  building- 
used,  in  connection  with  this,  as  a  paint- 
shop.  A  few  rods  further  down  the  stream 
is  a  two  story  building,  about  40x60,  occu- 
pied by  L.  N.  Howe  as  a  chair  factory; 
adjoining  this  is  the  grist-mill  of  Thomas 
Slade ;  further  down  the  stream,  a  few 
rods,  is  a  small  factory  used  by  S.  D. 
Dodge  for  cloth-dressing  and  wool-carding, 
and  a  little  below,  W.  W.  Holden  has  a 
shop  for  the  manufacture  of  coffins,  cas- 
kets and  chairs,  the  aforesaid  comprising 
all  manufacturing  establishments  now  in 
operation  at  So.  Northfield. 

About  one  mile  from  the  South  village, 
N.  W.,  the  east  branch  unites  with  the 
river,  the  main  branch  of  which  runs  from 
Stump  Pond,  which  is  partly  in  Roxbury 
and  part  in  Northfield.  Just  below  the 
outlet  of  this  pond,  G.  B.  Andrews  has  a 
grist-mill,  to  which  a  \arye  part  of  the  in- 
habitants of  Roxbury,  and  many  of  North- 
field,  carry  their  grain  to  be  ground.  A 
few  rods  north,  Joseph  C.  Rice  has  a  saw- 
mill, and  just  below  that  stands  the  car- 
riage-shop of  Gilbert  R.  Andrews.  About 
half  way  from  Andrews*  mill  to  the  Har- 
low Bridge  are  the  ruins  of  a  saw-mill, 
where  in  former  years,  a  large  amount  of 
lumber  was  manufactured.  No  further  use 
is  made  of  the  river  as  motive  power  till 
we  reach,  nearly  4  miles  further  north,  the 
location  of  Judge  Paine \s  first  woolen  fac- 
tory. The  brick  building  now  standing 
there  is  occupied  by  A.  F.  Spalding  as  a 
machine-shop  and  for  the  manufacture  of 
pumps  ;  by  Newell  &  Colby  for  the  manu- 
facture of  chair  stock  and  fork  handles ; 
by  Henry  R.  Bean  for  the  manufacture  of 
fork  and  broom  handles ;  and  by  Brown, 
Denny  &.  Harris  for  the  manufacture  of 
lumber,  they  having,  also,  a  grist-mill  and 
saw-mill  in  an  adjoining  building ;  about 
30  feet  north  is  a  large  building  used  for 
the  manufacture  of  slate,  power  being  car- 
ried thereto  from  the  brick  building,  above 


NORTHFIELD. 


695 


named,  by  belting.  About  \  mile  further 
down  the  stream  is  the  woolen  factory 
built  in  1864,  by  George  M.  Fisk,  now 
occupied  by  A.  Howarth  &  Son  as  a  flan- 
^nel  factory,  employing  about  30  hands; 
adjoining  this,  and  using  the  same  power, 
is  the  extensive  machine-shop  and  foun- 
dry, built  in  by  Perley  Belknap,  and 

now  occupied  by  the  Ely  Foundry  Co., 
and  giving  employment  to  about  30  men  ; 
about  \  mile  further  on  is  the  grist-mill  of 
Lewis  Wood  &  Son  ;  a  half-mile  below  we 
find  the  ruins  of  a  mill,  and  near  to  that 
the  first-class  brick  building  owned  by  Jo- 
seph W.  Gould,  and  occupied  by  him  for 
the  manufacture  of  woolen  flannels.  Mr. 
Gould  has  one  of  the  very  finest  establish- 
ments of  the  kind  to  be  found  in  the  coun- 
ty, and  gives  employment  to  about  100 
people.  On. Cox  brook,  which  runs  into 
Dog  River  at  Gouldsville,  is  a  very  fine 
saw-mill,  owned  by  John  Hornbrook ;  on 
Jones  Brook,  which  runs  in  further  up 
the  river,  H.  M.  Cutler  has  a  large  lum- 
ber mill ;  on  Stevens  Brook  W.  A.  Rice 
has  a  saw-mill ;  and  on  Rocky  Brook,  Geo. 
F.  Glidden  has  a  large  saw-mill.  By 
steam,  the  Ely  Foundry  run  their  ma- 
chinery in  low  water  times,  and  the  Adams 
Slate  Co.  rvm  a  derrick  by  steam-power, 
for  raising  stone  from  their  quarry. 

GEO.    H.    RICHMOND. 

has  also  a  steam  engine,  used  for  power  to 
run  his  printing  presses,  and  to  heat  the 
building  occupied  by  him.  Mr.  Rich- 
mond publishes  The  Northfield News ,  a  pa- 
per started  by  him  in  1878,  now  having  a 
circulation  of  1 200,  and  also  The  Vermont 
Farmer,  circulating  2400  copies  weekly, 
which  was  removed  to  Northfield  from 
Montpelier  in  188 1.  He  prints,  also.  The 
Reveille,  a  monthly  periodical,  published 
by  the  cadets  of  Lewis  College  ;  and 
The  iMonthly  Reporter,  published  by  C. 
F.  Buswell  of  Montpelier.  In  the  same 
building  is  "The  Northfield  Insurance 
Agency,"  managed  by  Joseph  K.  Egerton. 
Just  south  of  the  News  Block,  above  men- 
tioned, is  the  extensive  marble  works  of 
F.  L.  Howe  &  Co. ;  30  feet  further  south 
is  Central  Block,  now  occupied  by  Boyn- 
ton  &   Moseley,  for   the   sale  of  meat  & 


provisions ;  George  Nichols,  drugs  & 
medicines ;  A.  E.  Denny,  groceries  & 
hardware;  C.  Denny  &  Co.,  dry  goods; 
Stebbins  &  Richmond,  groceries  &  provis- 
ion •  G.  II.  Crane,  dry  goods;  Fred  Down- 
ing, saloon  ;  Edwin  Porter,  drugs  &  med- 
icines ;  S.  P.  Grow,  boots  &  shoes:  J.  N. 
Johnson,  lawyer ;  F.  R.  Bates  &  F.  Plum- 
ley,  lawyers  ;  C.  W.  Locklin,  dentist ;  the 
third  story  of  the  building  in  two  very  fine 
halls,  is  occupied  by  the  Masons  and 
the  Odd  Fellows.  West  of  Central  block  is 
Concert  hall,  capable  of  seating  500,  and 
over  that  the  Universalist  church  ;  further 
west,  a  few  feet,  is  Eagle  block,  occupied 
by  Geo.  B.  B.  Denny,  for  the  sale  of  cloth- 
ing ;  W.  A.  Blake,  groceries ;  Kenyon  & 
Soper,  groceries,  crockery  &  fancy  goods  ; 
S.  F.  Judd,  groceries;  E.  O.  Thurston, 
watches  &  jewelry  ;  D.  Bacon,  flour,  meal 
&  groceries ;  Hazleton,  Kimball  &  Deer- 
ing,  meat  &  produce ;  Mrs.  Jones,  milli- 
nery;  W.  C.  Woodbury  &  F.  N.  Carpen- 
ter, barbers.  Union  block,  just  opposite 
on  the  south,  is  occupied  by  J.  C.  B. 
Thayer,  for  the  sale  of  clothing ;  by  the 
Northfield  Savings  Bank,  of  which  J.  C. 
B.  Thayer  is  Treasurer;  Edgerton  Broth- 
ers, for  the  sale  of  merchandize  of  every 
description;  E.  G.  Pierce,  groceries  ;  Geo. 
M.  Fisk,  lawyer;  O.  S.  Cook,  leggins  & 
mittens;  L.  S.  Wellington  &  D.  P.  Holt, 
boots  &  shoes.  East  of  Union  Block  is  R. 
M.  Mcintosh,  photographic  rooms,  occu- 
pied also  by  N.  W.  Gilbert,  dentist. 
West  of  Union  Block  is  Stevens  Block, 
occupied  by  A.  Stevens,  for  the  sale  of 
books  &  stationery;  T.  C.  Patterson, 
boots  &  shoes ;  Rene  S.  Fletcher,  milli- 
nery; north  of  Stevens  Block  is  the  R.  R. 
Depot,  one  room  of  which  is  occupied  by 
the  Northfield'  National  Bank;  another 
room  by  E.  G.  Sanborn,  for  a  boot  &  shoe 
store;  and  one  by  Mrs.  M.  S.  Gilchrist, 
for  the  sale  of  millinery  goods ;  also,  the 
express  &  telegraph  office,  by  C.  A.  Webb. 
Opposite  the  Depot,  east  across  the  pub- 
lic square,  which  is  about  200x400  feet,  is 
the  Northfield  House,  built  by  George  M. 
Fisk  about  2  years  since,  on  a  part  of  the 
ground  covered  by  the  hotel  burned  in 
1879.     It  is  now  kept  by  W.  H.  Morris, 


696 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


^^ 


See  page  695  and  634. 


who  keeps  also  a  livery  stable  ;  and  adjoin- 
ing this  hotel,  on  the  south,  is  the  post- 
office.  A  few  rods  south,  on  main  street, 
is  the  Avery  Hotel  and  Livery  Stable,  kept 
by  L.  W.  Avery  ;  about  .j  mile  further  south 
is  the  tannery  owned  and  occupied  by  Den- 
ny &  Smith  ;  a  little  further  south,  in  what 
was  formerly  the  Center  village  of  the  town, 
is  the  general  store  of  John  P.  Davis,  and  a 
blacksmith  shop  and  carriage  shop  run  by 
R.  T.  Eastman ;  and  a  broom  factory  by 
Thomas  Averill.  On  the  west  side  of  the 
river,  opposite  the  Depot,  is  the  C.  O.  D. 
store  by  Darius  Thomas;  a  blacksmith 
shop  by  A.  Fuller;  a  coffin  and  carriage- 
shop,  owned  and  occupied  by  G.  W.  Ma.x- 
ham.  A  short  distance  west  is  the  carriage 
and  machine  shop  of  D.  Bacon;  easterly 
across  the  R.  R.  track,  is  the  carriage  shop 
of  A.  Mead ;  the  blacksmith  shop  of  A. 
Gosley  &  Son  ;  the  carriage  shop  of  A.  O. 
Chase ;  the  paint  shop  of  W.  R.  Bean ; 
and  the  blacksmith  shop  of  Ai  Smith. 
South  a  short  distance,  is  the  carriage 
shop   of  J.    B.    Shortridge  ;    across   the 


river,  is  the  harness  shop 
of  C.  B.  Gold;  and  fur- 
ther on  a  few  feet,  is 
Paine's  block,  occupied  by 
S.  W.  Steele  &  Son,  tin- 
ware &  stoves;  J.  G.  Co- 
burn,  harnesses  ;  E.  Hunt- 
ley, paints  &  paper;  J.  L. 
Abbott,  coffins  and  cas- 
kets; N.  Huntley,  tin- 
ware &  stoves.  The  up- 
per part  of  the  building  in 
two  large  halls,  is  occupi- 
ed by  the  Good  Templars 
and  the  New  England 
Guards.  A  little  further 
east,  is  the  paint  shop  of 
S.  F.  Gibbs ;  the  black- 
smith shop  of  J.  R.  Davis  ; 
and  the  carriage  shop  of 
A.  C.  Chase. 

At  Gouldsville  is  the 
general  store  of  A.  F.  An- 
J^^*^  ^c^  drews  ;  the  grocery  and 
«7^^  ^ 0€^  provision  store  of  C.  F. 
Hurley ;  harness  shop  of 
A.  H.  Brown;  and  black- 
smith shop  of  Greenwood  ;  a  considerable 
business  is  done  in ,  the  manufacture  of 
whetstones  by  L.  Wood  &  Son  and  by 
Geo.  S.  Richards. 

Northfield  Circulating  Library  contains 
about  I, GOO  volumes. 

There  are  in  town  two  well  equipped 
Fire  Engine  companies,  of  50  men  each, 
and  a  Hook  &  Ladder  company  of  20  men. 
In  the  quarrying  and  manufacture  of 
slate  stone  a  very  large  amount  of  money 
was  formerly  invested.  Eleven  quarries 
were  opened,  at  an  expense  of  more  than 
$200,000,  nearly  all  of  which  would  now 
with  good  management  yield  large  profits 
to  the  manufacturers.  The  supply  of  slate 
is  inexhaustible,  and  in  quality  equal  to 
the  best  in  the  world. 

The  Adams  Slate  Co.  have  been  working 
their  quarry  successfully  since  1869;  in 
1 88 1,  employing  40  men  and  sending  out 
of  town  100  car  loads  of  slate.  At  the 
present  time,  this  Co.  is  at  work  in  the 
Morris  quarry,  and  expect  in  1882,  to  dou- 
ble the  amount  of  their  business. 


NORTHFIELD. 


697 


There  is  in  town  a  very  extensive  gran- 
ite ledge,  which  was  formerly  worked  in  a 
small  way.  It  is  very  favorably  located  for 
quarrying,  but  wholly  neglected. 

There  have  been  17  saw-mills  in  North- 
field.  Of  this  number  7  are  now  in  oper- 
ation. At  different  times  9  grist-mills 
have  been  run,  and  there  are  now  4  in 
town.  Of  woolen  factories  the  town  has 
had  5,  of  these  3  are  now  at  work.  Of 
wood-shops  the  town  has  had  a  large  num- 
ber, the  largest  of  which,  that  of  the  Vt. 
Manufacturing  Co.,  which  had  been  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
chairs  for  years,  was  burned  in  1877. 

Brick-making  was  formerly  an  important 
branch  of  industry  in  Northfield,  but  al- 
though there  is  a  plentiful  supply  of  mate- 
rial, very  favorably  located  for  the  busi- 
ness, nothing  has  been  done  in  that  line 
for  many  years. 

NORTHFIELD   GRADUATES. 

Universiiy  of  Vermotit. — Class  of  1850, 
John  H.  Buck  and  Edwin  Porter.  Class 
of  i860,  Geo.  N.  Carpenter  and  Geo. 
Bates.  Class  of  1868,  George  Cochrane. 
Class  of  1870,  Geo.  W.  Winch. 

Non  Graduate. — Fred  Ely. 

Dartmouth  College. — Class  of  1863,  Isaac 
Newton  Jenks,  born  in  Northfield,  June 
17,  1839  ;  read  law  in  New  York  city. 
Dartmouth  allumni. — 1878,  F.  W.  Gregg  ; 
1879,  J.  N.  Jenks,  C.  C.  Davis,  K.  Derby, 
C.  D.  Edgerton,  H.  B.  Thayer;  1880,  B. 
F.  Armitage. 

Non  Graduates,  Dartmouth. — C.  A. 
Edgerton,  Jr.,  class  of  '79. 

Under  Graduates. — C.  W.  McClearn, 
class  of '82;  C.  A.  Braley,  '83;  C.  M.^Da- 
vis,  '84. 

Middletown  University. — Geo.  C.  Smith, 
graduated. 

Non  Graduates. — Frank  A.  Winch, 
Geo.  H.  Richmond. 

George  Gallup,  John  W.  Gregory,  grad- 
uates of  Law  School  University  of  Michi- 
gan. 

Norwich  University. — Asa  Howe,  class 
of  1869;  Charles  Dole,  Henry  J.  Howe, 
1870;  Walter  Dole,  Chas.  E.  Tarbell, 
1871  ;  Wm.  G.  Owen,  1872,  F.  L.  Kim- 
ball, 1873;  Frank  R.  Bates,  C.  M.  John- 


ston,   1874;     Robert    A.    Silver,     1876; 
George  Thomas,  1877;  Henry  C.  Dole. 
Lewis  College. — 1881,  M.  D.  Smith. 

THEODA   p.    HOWE 

was  born  in  Cambridge,  Mass.,  Nov.  20, 
1 8 13.  Her  parents  removed  to  Norwich, 
Vt.,  when  she  was  quite  young,  and  to 
Northfield  in  1835,  where  she  was  mar- 
ried to  Wm.  R.  Tucker.  She  died  in 
1845,  leaving  a  son  and  daughter,  both  re- 
siding now  (1882),  in  Washington,  D.  C. 
Her  first  articles  for  publication  were  written 
at  Norwich  when  she  was  only  a  child,  for 
the  Vertnont  Enquirer,  a  paper  published 
at  that  place.  For  several  years  she  was  a 
contributor  to  various  Vermont  and  Boston 
journals.  As  her  writings  were  never 
collected  in  book  form,  this  piece  given  is 
the  only  one  at  hand,  and  is  hardly  a  fair 
specimen  of  her  poetry  :  [See  Poets  and 
Poetry  of  Vermont,  where  the  same  is 
published.] 

TO   AN   ANTUMN   BOUGH. 

Bright  autuniu  leaves,  when  you  I  see. 

No  visions  dread  my  bosom  swell ; 
You  wake  no  saddened  thoughts  for  me, 

Though  ray  sad  fate  you  seem  to  tell. 

But  late  I  saw  the  forest  green 

Slight  waving  in  the  summer  air. 
But  now  the  changing  tints  are  seen. 

Which  only  autumn  forests  wear. 

And  you  have  faded  not  more  fast 
Than  she  who  loved  sweet  autumn's  gloom ; 

Her  moments  here  will  soon  be  past. 
With  you  she  soon  will  find  a  tomb. 

This  bough  by  some  kind  hand  was  sought, 
To  soothe  her  on  her  couch  of  pain. 

And  from  the  favorite  grove  was  brought, 
Which  she  can  never  see  again. 

Now  would  she  rest  mid  sylvan  bowers, 
Where  murm'ring  pines  their  branches  wave; 

Better  are  withered  leaves  than  flowers 
To  strew  upon  her  early  grave.  t.  P.  H. 

PERLEY   BELKNAP. 

Simeon  Belknap,  a  native  of  Connecti- 
cut, who  had  purchased  a  tract  of  land  in 
Randolph,  returning  from  which  to  his 
former  home,  was  one  of  those  who  was  so 
unfortunate  as  to  be  taken  and  carried 
away  captive  from  the  sacking  and  burning 
of  Royaltoh,  by  Lieutenant  Horton  of  the 
British  army,  in  1780.  He  was  taken  to 
Canada  and  held  a  prisoner  of  war  for  2 
years,  when  he,  with  some  of  his  compan- 
ions, managed  to  escape  and  return  to  the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


States ;  after  which  he  settled  on  his  Ran- 
dolph estate,  where  his  son  Perley  was 
born  in  1807. 

Perley  married  Huldah,  daughter  of  Dr. 
John  Edson  of  that  town,  and  while  still 
engaged  in  the  foundry  business  there,  at 
the  earnest  solicitation  of  Gov.  Paine, 
embarked  in  a  similar  enterprise  in  North- 
field,  in  connection  with  some  other  par- 
ties, whose  interests  in  the  business  he 
soon  purchased,  however,  and  removed  to 
this  town  for  permanent  residence  about 
the  year  1849.  He  bought  the  water  pow- 
er below  the  old  Paine  factory,  where  he 
established  his  foundry,  and  afterwards  a 
machine  shop,  and  taking  into  partnership 
his  brother-in-law,  John  H.  Edson,  they 
employed  from  30  to  50  men  for  many 
years.  The  business  of  the  machine  shop 
was  largely  the  manufacture  of  water 
wheels  and  circular  saw  and  clapboard 
mills,  which  were  sold  in  large  numbers, 
and  sent  to  all  parts  of  this  country,  and 
some  to  foreign  lands.  He  also  had  a 
grist-mill,  built  a  woolen-mill  for  other 
parties  to  operate,  wherein  the  spindles 
and  shuttles  are  still  running  at  the'pres- 
ent  time. 

Mr.  Belknap  was  a  director  in  the  North- 
field  Bank  from  the  time  of  its  incorpora- 
tion until  he  was  elected  its  President,  a 
position  to  which  he  was  successively  re- 
elected for  12  or  15  years.  He  has  never 
held  any  important  civil  office,  having 
steadily  declined  to  put  himself  in  the  way 
of  political  preferment,  which  used  some- 
times to  be  suggested  to  him  by  his  friends. 
He  has  been  a  large  owner  of,  and  dealer 
in,  real  estate,  consisting  of  business 
blocks,  mills,  houses,  farms,  &c.,  some  of 
which  are  still  in  his  possession,  though 
he  has  partially  retired  from  active  busi- 
ness life. 

Mr.  Belknap  is  a  very  genial,  compan- 
ionable man. 

The  above  was  contributed  by  Dr.  Gil- 
bert. 

LITERARY   CLUBS — 1882. 

There  have  been  several  Shaksperian 
clubs  within  the  last  12  years.  The  most 
recently  organized  and  the  only  one  now 
holding    meetings  is    called    the    Salvini 


Shaksperian  Club.  It  has  16  members; 
Rev.  F.  W.  Bartlett,  president.  Meet- 
ings, fortnightly. 

The  Conversational  Club  is  also  now  in 
operation,  for  social  and  intellectual  im- 
provement, and  discourses  on  practical, 
literary  and  scientific  subjects ;  member- 
ship limited  to  sixteen.  Rev.  F.  W.  Bart- 
lett is  president;  Rev.  Wm.  S.  Hazen, 
vice  president;  C.  A.  Edgerton,  Jr.,  sec- 
retary ;  Professor  Charles  Dole,  treas- 
urer.    Meetings,  every  two  weeks. 

The  Northfield  Debating  Club  holds  also 
its  sessions  every  week,  the  members  pre- 
siding in  rotation  ;  secretary,  W.  F.  Ba- 
ker ;    12  members. 

THE   HEALING   WATERS. 

BY  F.  W.  BARTLETT. 

[The  following  song,  to  tlie  air  of  "  Sparliling  and 

Brigiil,"  was  composed  wlien  on  a  visit  to  a 

mineral  spring  in  Northern  Vt.] 

Come  let  us  abide  near  the  fountain  side, 

The  streamlet  of  lieallh  and  beauty, 
Where  the  spring  sprites  dwell  in  the  charming  dell 

To  dispense  their  golden  booty; 
For  the  precious  grains,  from  the  eartli's  rich  veins. 

Crown  with  gems,  bright  in  their  glory. 
The  goblet  of  healtli,  and  of  joy  and  wealth. 

Never  dreamed  of  in  mythic  story. 
Chorus.— Then  here's  to  thee,  so  true  and  free. 
Thy  Health — for  ours  is  owing 
To  the  magic  grains,  whicli,  in  our  veins. 
Are  all  of  thine  own  bestowing. 

Let  the  Bacchanal  dare  to  love  the  glare 

Of  his  fire-water,  red  and  glowing. 
Where  the  pale  fiend  lurks,  and  his  mischief  works, 

In  the  seeds  of  death  he  is  sowing; 
But  give  us  the  joy  witliout  alloy. 

Which  flows  from  the  cup  of  healing. 
As  with  finger  of  light,  the  spring  fay  bright 

Is  the  pathway  of  hope  revealing. 
Chorus.— Then  here's  to  thee,  etc. 

Plumley  :  additional  and  correction  of 
page  646,  not  received  in  time,  by  our  go- 
ing to  press  a  day  before  the  time  named. 
First,  the  name  of  Mr.  Plumley's  wife  be- 
fore marriage  was  Lavinia  L.  Fletcher ; 
and  not  Lamina,  as  before  printed  from 
the  Northfield  History  of '78. 

In  1876,  Mr.  Plumley  was  elected  State's 
attorney  for  Washington  County  on  the 
Republican  ticket,  and  again  in  1878,  hold- 
ing the  office  4  years,  and  during  that 
time  successfully  prosecuting  many  impor- 
tant State  cases  ;  among  others,  Royal  W. 
Carr,  and  Almon  and  Emeline  Meeker  for 
murder. 


iNORTHFIELD. 


699 


SOLDIERS   OF   THE   WAR   OF    1861. 

COMPILED  MAINLY  FUOM  THE   ADJ.   GENERAL'S  RErORT,  BY  ASA  HOWE,  M.  D. 
FIRST    REGIMENT — THREE    MONTHS — FIELD   AND   STAFF    OFFICERS. 


Names. 
Levi  H.  Stone, 
Wm.  H.  Boynton, 
Charles  A.  Webb, 


Charles  H.  Joyce, 

Charles  H.  Joyce, 
Charles  C.  Canning, 
James  P.  Stone, 


Charles  G.  Fisher, 

Charles  G.  Fisher, 
Charles  G.  Fisher, 

Philander  D.  Bradford, 

Edwin  C.  Lewis, 

William  C.  Hopkins, 


30  do  do 

32  Jan    28  62    Jan     28  62 
24  Dec    14  61     Dec    14  61 

FOURTH    REGIMENT- 


Com.  Mustered.                                           Remarks 

Apr    2661  May     261  Chaplain;  mustered  out  Aug.  15,61. 

29  Apr   23  61  May  24  61  Capt.  Co.  F.                  do 
22            23  61  Aug  15  61  Jan.  1882,  Maj.  i6th  Inf.  U.  S.  A. 

SECOND    REGIMENT — THREE    MONTHS. 

30  May  21  62     May  21  62     Lieut.  Col.;  major,  June  6,  61  ;  resigned 
Jan.  6,  63. 

Major;  pro.  lieut.  col.  May  21,  62. 
1st  lieut.  Co.  I;  resigned  Feb.  8,  63. 
2d  lieut.  Co  I  ;  prin.   musician  June  20, 
61  ;  res.  Jan.  6,  63. 

THREE   YEARS. 

26  June  12  64    Sept     i  64     Capt.  Co.  I  ;  must,  out  July  13,  65  ;  pri- 
vate Co.  K,  Aug.  61. 
26  Apr    19  64  1st  lieut.  Co  I ;  wounded  June  23,  64. 

26  Dec    14  62    Dec    14  62     2d  lieut.  Co.  F. 

FIFTH    REGIMENT— THREE   YEARS. 

Dec     3  62    Dec    17  62     Surgeon;  resigned  Mar.  i,  63. 

SIXTH    REGIMENT — THREE   YEARS. 

20  Oct      961     Oct     15  61     2d  lieut.  Co.  G;  resigned  June  4,  62. 

SEVENTH  REGIMENT — THREE  YEARS. 

28  Sept  25  62    Oct       9  62     Chaplain  ;  resigned  Oct.  9,  65. 

Capt.  Co.  D ;  private  Co.  K,  61  ;  must- 
out,  1st  lieut.  Co.  E,  Mar.  14,  66. 

Capt.  Co.  E  ;  ist  lieut.  Co.  K,  Feb  i,  62  ; 
must,  out  Mar.  14,  66. 

Capt.  Co.  K ;  mustered  out  Aug.  30,  64. 

EIGHTH    REGIMENT — THREE   YEARS. 

22  Aug  15  63    Dec      5  63     Capt.  Co.  C  ;  serg't.  maj.,  62  ;  July  2,  64, 
Capt.  and  A.  C.  S.,  U.  S.  Vols. 

ELEVENTH    REGIMENT,   ISt  HEAVY    ARTILLERY,  FROM    DEC.    lO,   1863,  THREE   YEARS. 


Wesley  C.  Howes, 

21   Mar 

163 

John  L.  Moseley, 

22  Nov 

2363 

Jan     2 1  64 

David  P.  Barber, 

34  Feb 

162 

Feb    12  62 

Geo.  N.  Carpenter, 


Silas  B.  Tucker, 
Sidney  Bliss, 


28  July    14  63    Aug    10  61 
19  June    4  65 


Ransom  A.  Wells,  21   May  23  65 


Darius  Thomas, 
Catlos  D.  Williams, 


George  Nichols, 

C.  W.  Carpenter, 
Denison  S.  Burnham, 

Names. 
Howe,  Charles  G. 
Jacobs,  Alfred 
Jacobs,  Alonzo 
Kinsley,  Michael 
Mllo,  John 
Milo,  John,  Jr., 
Moors,  Abbott  A. 
Patterson,  Lester  S. 
Putnam,  Jonas  A. 
Shirley,  John 
Smith,  Edward  F. 
Smith,  Gilbert  O. 


Capt  Co.  C  ;  pro.  Capt.  Co.  C,  Dec  2,  64. 
ist  lieut.   Co.  K ;    private   Aug.  5,  62  ; 

must,  out  June  24,  65. 
2d  lieut;  Co.  M  ;  private  Co.  I,  July  15, 

62  ;  must,  out  June  24,  63  ;   ist  serg't. 

Co.  I. 

TWELFTH  REGIMENT — NINE  MONTHS. 

35  Sept  II  62    Oct      4  62     Capt.  Co.  F;  mustered  out  July  14  63. 
19  Mar   10  63    Mar    10  63     ist  lieut.   Co.   F  ;  private  Co.   F,  Aug. 
19,  62  ;  must,  out  July  14,  63. 
THIRTEENTH    REGIMENT — NINE    MONTHS. 

35  Sept  24  62    Oct     10  62     Surgeon  ;  must,  out  July  21,  63. 

FIFTEENTH    REGIMENT — NINE    MONTHS. 

36  Sept  II  62    Oct     22  62     Capt.  Co.  C  ;  resigned  Jan.  15.  63. 
32  Nov  18  62    Nov   18  62     1st  lieut.;  trans,  to  Co.  C,  Jan.  9.  63. 

Age.     Enlisted.     Reg.  Co.  Remarks. 

31   Aug  25  64    3  Bat     Must,  out  June  15,  65. 

Died  at  Danville,  Va.,  Sept.  20,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  20,  65.  [24,  65. 

Pro.  Corp.  Oct.  25,  64 ;  trans,  to  Co.  A,  June 
Trans,  to  Co.  A,  June  24.  65. 

do 
Wagoner  ;  reduced  ;  must,  out  June  15,  65. 
Died  Dec.  25.  63. 
Transferred  to  Co.  A,  June  24,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Died  at  Danville.  Va.,  Oct.  8,  64. 
Died  Feb.  1,64. 


45  Nov 

1463 

II    I 

33  Dec 

26s 

II    I 

18  Dec 

S63 

II    I 

45  Nov 

1963 

II   K 

18  Nov 

14  63 

II   K 

36  Oct 

2463 

3  Bat 

18  Dec 

4  63 

II    I 

40  Dec 

26:; 

II    1 

36  Aug 

16  64 

3  Bat 

18  Dec 

4  63 

II   H 

32  Dec 

563 

II    I 

700 

\K 

<Mo\r  Hisroi 

Names. 

Ak--. 

KnlUsl..! 

U.K.  10. 

Stockwcll.  Klilui  V. 

20 

IVe      2  63 

II    I 

Stone,  William 

;>4 

Sept  21  03 

;  Hat 

\Vhitt;ika-.  Ira  T. 

■»s 

Dec     2  6] 

11    1 

Woodbury,  Albert  W 

K^ 

Sept   u)  0'', 

^,  Ivit 

Woodworth,  Albert 

4^; 

Dec     2  6} 

ii    I 

Woodworth.  Charles 

iJi 

Dec      1 65 

II    1 

VOIUNTKKKS    1 

F.iK-h,    lleurv  C 

7    I 

McKay,  Luther  W. 

jj 

Sept     ',  04 

-    K 

S.inford,  John  A. 

10 

lio 

-    K 

Reni.Hrks. 

Deserted  ]u\\  26,  64 ;  returned  May  10,  65, 
under  President's  proclamation  ;  dishonor- 
ably discharged  May  23,  Ot;. 

Mustered  out  June  15,  0^. 

Transterred  to  Co.  A.,  June  24,  65 

Mustered  out  June  it;,  (iq. 

Died  (.)ct.  2S,  64,  of  wounds  rec'il.  in  action. 

Died  Aug.  2S,  O4. 

UK    O.NK    VKAR. 


Mustered  out  Aug.  i,  65. 
Mustercil  out  July  iS,  65. 

VOI.UN  rKK.RS    KK-KN1.1SI'K.1>. 


Barrett,  Marcellus  M.     18  Feb    2502      4    K 


Bruso,  John  B. 
Chickering,  Charles  l\ 
Coburn.  John 
Connor,  Thomas 
Coburn,  James  M. 
Cronan,   Thomas 
Deval,  Peter 
Donpier,  Isaiah 
Donpier,  Theophilus 
Dulow,  Peter 
Emerson,  Jonathan  t>. 
Glazier,  Frank 
Gourlev.  Ceorge 
Harrison,  Hugh 
Hodi;don,  Wilbur 
Hurley,  John  H. 
Knapp,  Mason 
Libby,  Charles 

Locklin,  Erastus  M. 
Marsell,  Frank 
^^a.\t^eld,  Geo.  C. 
Ma.\ham,  Dscar 

McGillivrv.  Allen 


jS  Dec 

2  ',  t>2 

7 

K 

2 1    fan 

.^  62 

7 

K 

iS   Feb 

14  62 

- 

K 

-7   Tan 

2  t)2 

- 

K 

iS  Mar 

24  62 

4 

K 

kS  Sept 

3  (^1 

4 

K 

iS  Dec 

.2  61 

K 

22  Dec 

2361 

- 

K 

24  Nov 

20  61 

7 

K 

33   hxn 

4  62 

- 

K 

2S  Dec 

14  (1 1 

7 

K 

10  Sept 

6  6\ 

4 

K 

19  Dec 

761 

K 

;o  Mar 

362 

7 

G 

18  Feb 

1262 

- 

K 

25  Nov 

2361 

/ 

K 

40  Dec 

761 

K 

18  Jan 

062 

7 

K 

20  Feb 

14  02 

- 

K 

18   Jan 

25  62 

- 

K 

18  Feb 

1762 

4 

K 

2^  Nov 

2761 

s 

V. 

=5.  65- 
^S.  65. 


Feb 


Filer  ;  re-en.  Mar.   28,  04  ;  trans,   to  Co.    D, 

Feb.  25,  05. 
Ko-en.  l-eb.  1  5,  64. 

do 
Pro.  Corp.;  re-enlisted  Feb.  it;,  64. 
Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  tx^. 
Re-en.  Mar.  28,  t>4';  tr.  to  Co.  D,  Feb. 
Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63;  tr.  to  Co.  D,  Feb. 
Re-en.  Feb.  1 5,  64. 
Wagoner  ;  re-enlisted  Feb.  16,  04. 
Re-en.  Feb.  20,  64. 
Pro.  Corp.;  re-en.  Feb.  20.  64. 
Corp.;  pro.  serg't.;  re-en.  Feb.  14,  64. 
Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  tr.  to  Co.  D,  Feb.  21;,  65. 
Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  id,  64  ;  des.  Sept.  27,  04. 
Pro.  Corp.;  re-en.  F'eb.  it;,  64. 
Serg't.;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Re-enlisted  F'eb.  i?,  64. 
Pro.  Corp.;  re-en.  Feb,  15,  O4  ;  mustered  out 

M;»y  18,  65. 
Re-en.  Feb.  15,  64  ;  dis.  June  23,64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  15,  64;  pro.  corp.  Nlav  U),  65. 
Re-en.  Mar.  28.  64  ;  tr.  to  Co.  D,  Feb.  25,  05. 
Wagoner  ;  re-en.  Jan.    5,  64  ;  ilietl   at   Salis- 
bury, N.  C,  on  or  about  Jan.  25,  65. 
Re-en.  Feb.  17,  64;  pro.  corp.   Mar.   31,  65: 

must,  out  May  18,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  1 5,  6:, ;  discharged  Feb.  6,  65. 
Serg't.;  re-en.  Feb.  15,  64  ;  des.  Sept  27,  64. 
Pro.  serg't.;  re-en.  Jan.  23,64  ;  tr.  to  V.  R.  C. 

Apr.  26,  65  ;  must,  out  July  20,  65. 
Re-en.  Feb.  15,  64  ;  dis.  May  31,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  died  July  21,  64. 
Re. en.  Dec.  15,  6^  ;  tr.  to  Co.  D,  Feb.  25,  65. 
Re-en.  Feb.  15,  04  ;  des.  Sept.  27,  64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  20,  64  ;  pro.  torp.  Feb.  28,  6s. 
Pro.   cor]\;  rc-cn.   Dec.    it;,  63,  and  diecl  of 

wounds  received  in  action  June,  64.  [18,65. 
Pro.  Corp.;  recn.  Feb.  16,  64  ;  must,  out  May 
Pro.  serg't.  June   20,  62  ;  re-cn.  Dec  1 5,  63  ; 

killed  near  Cold  Harbor,  June  r,  64. 
Re-en.  PVb.  13,  04  ;  pro.  Corp.;  May  10,  65. 
Re-en.  Dec.  i  s,  Oj, ;  promoted  ior|ioral. 
N.WAi.  Crfpit.— Walter  L.  Murphy  and  Frederick  C.  Williams. 
Veteran  Reserve  Corps.— .-\brahani  Ford  ;  miscellaneous,  not  credited  by  name,  5  men. 

VOLUNTEERS    FOR    NINE    MON  rUS. 

Aldrich,  Charles  W. 
Alexander,  Lewis  L. 
.-\msden,  ^L^rceIlus  R. 
.■\rchibald,  Henry 
Barton,  Wallace  B. 
Bates,  Geo.  D. 
Benway,  Eli  W. 


Merriam,  Edwin  R. 

20 

Sept 

461 

4 

K 

Morris,  John  H. 

21 

Nov 

25  61 

K 

Morse,  Henry  .\. 

20 

May 

20  61 

- 

F 

Newell,  William 

44 

Dec 

10  61 

7 

K 

Rolph,  Augustus  0. 

•9 

Aug 

14  61 

6 

H 

Rumncv,  Charles 

-4 

Aug 

28  61 

4 

K 

Savia.  Frank 

20 

Feb 

5  "- 

K 

Smith,  James 

26 

Dec 

30  61 

- 

K 

Smith,  Peter 

-3 

Sept 

"13  61 

4 

K 

Waterman,  George 

R. 

2; 

Feb 

14  02 

- 

K 

Wilson,  George  F. 

20 

Sept 

16  01 

(1 

G 

Woodburv,  Nathan 

K. 

21 

Dec 

761 

- 

K 

Young,  Willi;\m  P. 

iS 

Aug 

2761 

4 

K 

18    Aug    2!   62 

12 

F 

21   Aug  23  62 

12 

F 

38  Sept  II  62 

15 

C 

35  Aug  23  62 

12 

F 

21   Aug  21  62 

12 

F 

21   Sept  II  62 

15 

C 

35  Aug  20  62 

12 

F 

Pro.  corp.  Mar.  10,  63. 
Discharged  Dec.  6,  62. 

Discharged  Jan.  20,  63. 


NORTH  FIELD. 


701 


Naiiici. 
Krooks,  Josiah  I'. 
Hrown,  W.  C  ]',.  Jr. 
Urown,  William  1''. 
I'liriiliam,  I>(.nison  .S. 
I'liriiliain,  (jcorge  M. 
15iiz/(;li,  Saiiiiicl  IJ 
C.iDniiig,  William 
Car|)cntcr,  C.  N. 
Car))entcr,  Darwin  K. 
Cliurcliill,  Henry  P. 
Clark,  A/ro 
Cohurii,  Washington 
Copci'ind,  Joiin  W. 
Culver,  Klislia  VV. 
I)avcn]jort,  Kobcrt 
Denny,  Ceorge  I'.   I!. 
Denny,  Homer 
Dodge,  Horace  15. 
Kastnian,  K.  T. 
P^inerson,  Samuel  O. 
Feleli,  Wallace 
p'orrl,  Jacob  W. 
Ford,  Wm.  J. 

Hassam,  Nelson 
Hayford,  lulward  I'. 
Hoiden,  Lyman 

Howe,  Lyman  N. 
Howes,  Iviwarfl   11. 
Jacobs,  Alfred 

King,  Samuel  1>. 

Kinsley,  Michael 

Knowles,  I'Vanklin 

Latham,  Alinon 

Latham,  Kli  L. 

Leahey,  James 

Lewis,  John  G. 

Lil>bey,  Lotan 

Lloyfl,  I^vcn  K. 

Miller,  Fred  M. 

Miner,  I'Vancis  C 

Moulton,  Andrew  J. 

Rollins/)!!,  Matthew 

Sheldon,  Martin 

Smith,  fiilbert  O. 

Smith,  Jehial  C 

•Smith,  Vernon  W. 

.Sjjaulding,  Alfred  F. 

Steele,  Fred  W. 

Stevenson,  Alexander 

Stevenson,  Wm. 

Stock  well,  Llihu  T. 

Stone,  William 

Taggard,  John  G. 

Tennev,  Rollin  Q. 

'J'homas,  Darius 

Wainwright,  R.  lulsoi 

Webb,  Alfred  W. 

Webster,  Cornelius 

Webster,  Frederick 

Whittakcr,  Ira 


Ane.     EiillHl4.'<l.     K< 
23  Aug   iS  62 
26  Aug   uj  62 

23  Sept  /I  fJ2 
32  do 
22  do 
42  A  ug  20  62 
22  Aug   22  62 

.See  list  of  officers. 

,.     21   Scjjt   1 1  62 
32  do 

42  do 

44  Aug  22  62 

22  do 
2  5          do 

.37  '1" 

21  Aug  21  62 
iH  Aug   20  62 

34  Sept  1 1  62 

35  ^^\'^  --  ''>- 
.).5  '•" 
30          do 
18  Aug    25  62 

24  Aug    21  62 

36  .Sept  22  62 
36  Aug  21  (,2 
41  do 

i.S  Aug    22  62 

44  Aug  2362 
20  Aug  21  62 
36  do 

26  do 
41  do 

18  do 
20  Aug    22  62 

23  Aug  20  62 

45  Aug   21  62 

27  Aug   22  62 

19  Aug  21  62 

29  Sej)!  1 1  62 

25  Aug   20  62 

26  do 

30  Sept  1 1  62 

31  Aug   20  62 

24  Aug   22  62 

20  do 
26  Sept  1 1  62 
24  Aug   22  62 

18  Se])t  1 1  62 
20  do 

19  Aug  20  62 

3.3  •''<=Pt  '  I  ^>^ 
39  Aug  20  62 


F 
F 
C 
C 
C 
F 
F 
C 
C 
5  C 
5  C 
2  F 
2  F 
5  C 
5  C 
2  J<' 
2    F 

5  (• 

5  C 

5  C 

2  1- 

2  F 

5  C 

2  F 

2  F 

5  ^^ 

2  F 

2  F 

2  F 

5  <-■ 

5  C 

5  C 

5  C 

2  F 

2  F 

2  F 

2  F 

2  F 

5  C 

2  F 

5  C 

5  C 

2  F 

2  F 

2  F 

5  C 

2  F 

5  C 

5  C 

2  F 


Ht'iiiarks. 
Wagoner. 
I'ro.  1st  serg't.  Mar.  10.  63. 

I'ro.  2d  lieut.  Co.  H,  Nov.  18,  62 
I'ro.  1st  sergeant. 


Corjjoral. 

Corporal. 
Musician. 
Discharged  Aug.  11,63. 


Discharged  Feb.  9,  63. 
Musician  ;  discharged  P'eb.  9,  63. 


Discharged  Feb.  18,  63. 


29  Aug   22  62 

18  Oct      I  62  13 

18  Aug  19  62 
21  .Sept  2  62 
45  .Sept  1 1  62 

VOI.UNTKEKS    FOR    THREE    YEARS   CREI) 
VOI.U.NTEERS    OI- 

21   .Sept  19  6r  Cav  C 

36  Dec    14  61  7    K 

25  Sept    2  6i  4    K 

21   Aug  14  61  6   H 

19  June  20  62  9   I 

21  June  12  62  9    I 

22  Aug  27  61  4    K 


Musician  ;  dischargefl  Mar.  29,  63. 
Discharged  Nov.  13,  62. 
Corporal. 
Corporal. 


Corporal. 

Discharged  Feb.  4,  63. 


Died  Oct.  14,  62. 
Commissary  Sergeant. 
Captain,  Sejjt.  r  i,  62. 


Aldrich,  Harlan  V. 
Allard,  Prosper 
Allen,  Harrison 
Amerdf)n,  Newman 
Averill,  Charles, 
Averill,  P'ranklin 
Hadger,  Kneeland 


Died  May  29,  63. 


ITED    TREVIOU-S   TO   CALL   OK    300,000  : 
•   OCT.    17,   1863. 

Corporal. 

Discharged  Feb.  25,  63. 

Died  Dec.  19,  1861. 

Missing  in  Action,  F\-b.  2,  64. 
Pro.  .sergeant ;  re-en.  Dec.  15,  63. 


702 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Balch,  Henry 
Balch,  William  D. 
Bates,  Geo.  C. 
Battist,  John 
Bennett,  Chauncey 
Benton,  Harvey 
Blake,  Asahel,  Jr. 
Bliss,  Sidney 
Blodgett,  Lorenzo  W. 
Blodgett,  Blaney  S. 
Blodgett,  Orrin'O. 
Blodgett,  Stephen  B. 
Blood,  Charles  W. 
Bradford,  Philander  D. 
Brigham,  Daniel  A. 
Bruso,  John  B. 
Burnes,  John  S. 
Buzzell,  Ezekiel  I. 
Canning,  Charles  C. 
Carnell,  Frank 
Carpenter,  Geo. 
Cass,  Lewis  O. 
Clark,  Israel  B. 
Clark,  John 
Clark,  Stephen  A. 
Coburn,  James  M. 
Coburn,  John 
Coburn,  Ramsford 
Cochran,  \Vm.  O. 
Cram,  Geo. 
Cram,  Horatio  N. 
Cronan,  Thomas 
Davenport,  C.  W. 
Davenport,  Edwin 
Davenport,  Wm.  W. 
Densmore,  Albert  E. 
Densmore,  Edwin  R. 
Deval,  John 
Deval,  Peter 
Donpier,  Theophilus 
Dow,  Augustus 
Duval,  Carlos 
Emerson,  Geo.  H. 
Emerson,  Jonathan  C. 
Fisher,  Charles  G. 
Fisk,  Gilbert  E. 
Fisk,  Van  Loran 
Fisk,  Wm.  P. 
Fitzgerald,  John 
Fowler,  Lucius  L. 
Gittey,  Andrew 
Glazier,  Franklin 
Gregory,  Joseph 
Gourley,  George 
Hall,  Randall  L. 
Howes,  Eugene 
Hayden,  Albey 
Heath,  Nathan  C. 
Hodgdon,  Wilbur 
Houston,  Oscar  A. 
Howard,  Alvin  A. 
Howe,  David  L. 

Howe,  Wm.  I. 
Howes,  Seymour 
Howes,  Wesley  C. 
Hunt,  Washington 
Hurley,  John  H. 
Jones,  Merrill  C. 
Joyce,  Charles  H. 


Afje.     Enlisted. 

Reg,  Co. 

iS   Sept 

2261 

6   G 

43  Feb 

I  62 

7    K 

23  Mar 

I  62 

8    B 

35  July 

21  62 

II    I 

35  ^ept 

16  6r 

CavC 

45  Jan 

15  62 

7    K 

44  Aug 

862 

II    I 

19  Aug 

562 

ri    I 

44  Aug 

14  61 

6  H 
4   K 

20  Sept 

261 

4   K 

18  Sept 

561 

4   K 

21   Feb 

362 

7    K 

18  June 

I  61 

U 

28  Dec 

2361 

7    K 

41   Dec 

20  62 

7    K 

21  Aug 

14  61 

6  H 

32  May 

761 

2   D 

18  Aug 

2661 

4   K 
8    B 

23  Sept 

761 

4    K 

27   Aug 

962 

II   H 

22  Aug 

I  62 

II   H 

21   Sept 

15  61 

CavF 

i8  Mar 

2462 

4    K 

18  Feb 

14  62 

7    K 

27  July 

1662 

II     I 

27  Feb 

14  62 

7   K 

24  Feb 

4  62 

8   G 

18  June 

1262 

9    I 

18  Sept 

361 

4   K 

32  Aug 

14  61 

6  H 

35  Aug 

262 

II    I 
II    I 

20  Dec 

361 

7    K 

26  July 

.562 

II    I 

44  Jan 

20  62 

7    K 

18  Dec 

261 

do 

24  Nov 

29  61 

do 

39  Sept 

661 

4   K 

23  Sept 

18  61 

CavC 

21   Sept 

761 

4    K 

28  Dec 

14  61 

7    K 

26  Aug 

2661 

4   K 

18  Sept 

18  61 

Cav  C 

23  Sept 

761 

4   K 

18  Aug 

962 

do 

43  Jan 

2562 

7    K 

21   Dec 

10  61 

7    K 

30  July 

2362 

II    I 

19  Sept 

661 

4   K 

29  Aug 

29  61 

do 

19  Dec 

761 

7    K 

23  Oct 

76. 

CavC 

18  Aug 

29  61 

4    B 

25  June 

I  61 

3    F 

23  Dec 

3061 

7    K 

18  Feb 

1262 

do 

31   Dec 

2661 

do 

20  Nov 

2761 

do 

44  July 

3062 

II     I 

iS  Aug 

29  61 

4    K 

25  Aug 

I  62 

II    H 

21   Dec 

661 

7    K 

25' Sept 

18  61 

CavC 

25  Nov 

23  6t 

7    K 

20  Nov 

2761 

do 

Remarks. 
Discharged  June  30,  62. 
Died  Oct.  12,  62. 
Recruit;  discharged  Sept.  19,  63. 

Serg't. ;  reduced  to  ranks  ;  dis.  Jan.  16,  64. 
Discharged  Oct.  15,  62. 
Trans,  to  invalid  corps,  March  15,  64. 
Pro.  corp.  Dec.  26,  63. 


Died  March  5,  62. 
Discharged  Dec.  19,  62. 

Surgeon. 

Discharged  Dec.  9,  62. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Discharged  Oct.  24,  62. 

Discharged  Jan.  16,  63. 

Serg't.;  pro.  ist  lieut.  Co.  I,  Jan  28,  62 


Pro.  Serg't.  Feb.  21,  64  ;  dis.  May  5,  64. 

Sick  in  general  hospital,  Aug.  31,  64. 
Serg't.;  pro.  2d  lieut.  Co.  F,  Oct.  4,  62. 
Recruit ;  re-enlisted  Mar.  28,  64. 
Recruit;  pro.  corp.;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15.  64. 

Recruit;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Transferred  to  invalid  corps. 
Promoted  corporal. 
Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 
Discharged  Dec.  31,  62. 


Discharged  Feb.  25,  63. 

Discharged  Oct.  15,  62. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  20,  64. 

Musican  ;  pro.  principal  musician  Mar.  i,  62. 

Discharged  Apr.  12,  62. 

Discharged  Feb.  13,  63. 

Corporal  ;  pro.  serg't.;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Pro.  2d  lieut.  Co.  F,  Dec.  14,62. 

Missing  in  action,  July  3,  63. 

Died  Dec.  28,  63. 

Prisoner  of  war  since  June  23,  64. 

Died  Sept.  i,  62. 

Died  Oct.  6,  62. 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63;  pris.  June  23,  64. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Trans,  to  Veteran  Reserve  Corps,  Mar.  4,  64. 

Discharged  Oct.  19,  62. 

Wagoner  ;    must,  out  July  27,  64. 

Died  Aug.  13,  62. 

Pro.  Corp.;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Died  Oct.  13,  62. 

Discharged  Aug.  17,  63. 

Corporal ;  pro.Q.  M.  S.  Dec.  26,  63 ;  sick  in 

general  hospital,  Aug.  31,  64. 
Discharged  Dec.  7,  62.  [Aug.  31,  64. 

Pro.  corp.  Aug.  7,  64  ;  sick  in  general  hospital 
Serg't.;  pro.  2d  lieut.  Co.  E,  Mar.  i,  63. 
Died  June  26,  62. 
Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Promoted  Q.  M.  S.  March  i,  63. 
2d  lieutenant  colonel. 


NORTHFIELD. 


703 


Joyce,  Wm.  C. 
King,  Lorenzo  H. 
Labaree,  Henry  D. 
Larrabee,  Henry  D. 
Lewis,  Edwin  C. 

Libby,  Charles 
Locklin,  Erastus  M. 
Locklin,  Myron  A. 
Marsh,  Frederick  N. 
Marsh,  Owen 
Maxham,  Orrin 
Maxham,  Oscar 
May,  Thomas  L. 
McCarty,  Henry 
McCarty,  James 
McGillvary,  Allen 
McKay,  Luther  W. 
McMullen,  Robert 
Morris,  John  H. 
Morse,  Henry  A. 
Mosley,  John  L. 
Murphy,  Wm.  P. 
Murphy,  William 
Newell,  William 
Norton,  John 
O'Connell,  James 
Parker,  Brainard  M. 
Parker,  Solon 
Persons,  Leonard 
Ralph,  Alonzo  D. 
Ralph,  Augustus  O. 
Regner,  Joseph  D. 
Regner,  Nelson  L. 
Robinson,  Archibald 
Rock,  Joseph 
Rolston,  Charles  S. 
Rumney,  Charles 
Rumney,  George  IL 
Russell,  Sylvanus  M. 
Sanborn,  David  L. 
Sanborn,  Ira 
Silver,  John  Q. 
Smith,  Adin  D. 
Smith,  Alexander 
Smith,  Gilbert  O. 
Smith,  James 
Sprout,  Eli 
Sprout,  Geo.  W. 
Stevens,  Oliver  B. 
Stockwell,  Jackson 
Stone,  James  P. 
Sturtevant,  Charles  O. 
Sturtevant,  Wm.  H. 
Sullivan,  John 
Taggard,  Alonzo  W. 
Thresher,  Horace  W. 
Townsend,  Joseph  W. 
Tucker,  Silas  B. 
Wakefield,  Leroy 
Wakefield,  Luther 
Waterman,  Geo.  R. 
Waterman,  Geo.  S. 
Welch,  John 
Wells,  Joseph 
Wells,  Ransom  A. 
Wheeler,  Wm.  B. 
Willey,  Geo.  N. 
Williams,  Amplius 


•I   Sept  15  61 


Age.     Enlisted.      Keg.  Co. 

CavF 

do 

4   K 

II     I 

6   G 


43  July  16  62 

22  Dec  17  63 

18  Jan  9  62 

26  Feb  14  62 

34  July  16  62 

18  Sept 
21   Oct 


30  61 
7  61 


^1      V^Cl  /     Ul 

23  Nov  27  61 
19  Sept  12  61 

■>/)     Ancr    9-7  f}'? 


24  Aug  27  62 
39  Feb  3  62 
33  Feb  I  6: 
19  Sept  -  '^- 


561 


iy    ocjJL      ^  ui 

24  Aug  26  61 

21  Nov  25  61 

20  May  20  61 
Feb      I  62 

19  Aug  28  61 
42  Dec  7  61 
44  Dec  10  61 
44  Aug    14  61 

22  Nov  23  61 

23  Sept  23  61 

18  Dec  31  61 
42  July  23  62 
22  Sept  2  61 

19  Aug  14  61 

25  Aug  662 
30  Sept  16  61 

21  Dec  10  61 
18  Oct      7  61 

22  Sept    7  61 

24  Aug  28  61 
21  July  26  62 
18  Aug  13  62 

32  Sept  21  61 
28  Aug  14  61 

33  Aug  I  62 

36  Sept  7  61 

37  Aug  662 
18  Sept  18  61 

26  Dec  30  61 
18  Aug  24  61 
44  June  4  62 
32  Aug  I  62 


25  Oct 
32  Jan 
42  Dec 
29  Nov 
21  July 
37  Dec 


761 
262 

28  61 

29  61 

30  62 
13  61 


21  Aug  26  61 

35  Sept  16  61 

27  Feb  14  62 

27  Jan  19  62 

42  May  31  62 

21  July  15  62 

22  Sept  19  61 
24  Jan  8  62 
32  Oct  7  61 


7    K 

do 

II    I 

7  K 

6  B 

8  E 
do 

Cav  C 
II    H 

7  K 
do 

4    K 
do 
7    K 
2    F 


do 

6  H 

7  K 
Cav  C 

8  G 
II     I 

4   E 

6  H 
II  I 
Cav  C 

7  K 
6  G 
4   K 

do 
II     I 

do 
Cav  C 

6  H 
u    H 

4  K 
II  I 
Cav  C 

7  K 
4   B 

9  I 
II    H 

do 

Cav  C 
7  K 
7  K 
do 


II     I 

7  K 
II    I 

4  K 
Cav  C 

7  K 
Cav  C 

7    K 


7    K 
6   F 


Reiuaiks. 
Serg't.;  reduced  to  ranks  ;  re-en.  Dec.  30,  63. 

[Aug.  31,  64. 
Pro.  Corp.  Dec.  26,  63  ;  sick  in  gen.  hospital, 
Dis.  for  pro.  in  colored  regiment,  Aug.  3,  64 ; 

recruit. 
Promoted  corporal  ;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Re-en.  Feb.  15,  64;  dis.  June  23,  64  ;  recruit. 
Serg't.;  red.;  sick  in  gen.  hospital,  Aug.  31,64. 

Died  Dec.  29,  61. 

Died  Feb.  63  ;  corporal. 

Wagoner  ;  re-enlisted  Jan.  5,  64. 

Re-en.  Feb.  24,  64  ;  pro.  corp.  March  i,  64. 

Discharged. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  17,  64. 

Discharged  Sept.  i,  63. 

Deserted  Sept.  10,  63. 

Sergeant ;  re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Pro.  sergeant ;  re-en.  Jan.  23,  64. 

Pro.  capt.  Co.  E,  Nov.  23,  63. 

Corp  ;  reduced  to  rank  ;  pris.  June  23,  64. 

Died  Dec.  3,  62. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Trans,  to  invalid  corps. 

Corporal  ;  discharged  Feb.  25,  63. 

Corporal  ;  promoted  sergeant  major. 

Killed  in  action  June  14,  63. 

Musician  ;  discharged  Mar.  30,  63. 

Died  Nov.  29,  61. 

Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63. 

Musician 

Discharged  Jan.  2,  64. 

Discharged  Feb.  25,  63. 

Trans,  to  invalid  corps,  Sept.  1,63. 

Died  June  6,  62. 

Re-en.  Dec.  15,  63  ;  pris.  of  war  June  23,  64. 

Tians.  to  invalid  corps,  Mar.  15,  64. 

Pro.  Corp.  Nov.  14,  62  ;  died  Aug.  21,  64. 

Sick  in  general  hospital,  June  30,  64. 

Discharged  Sept.  21,  62. 

[May  5,  64. 
Re-enlisted  Feb.  10,  64  ;  killed  at  Wilderness, 
Sick  in  general  hospital,  Aug.  31,  64. 
Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  Mar.  29,  64. 
Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 

Wagoner  ;  discharged  Aug.  4,  63. 
Musician  Oct.  i,  62. 

2d  drum  major. 

Discharged  April  i,  62. 

Died  May  11,  63. 

Died  Sept.  4,  62. 

Discharged  Feb.  25,  63  ;  corporal. 

Discharged  Feb.  25,  63  ;  corporal. 

Died  Feb.  8,  62. 

Trans,  invalid  corps,  Feb.  15,  64. 

Pro.  corporal ;  re-en.  Feb.  15,  64. 

Died  Oct.  7,  62. 

Cor.  prom,  serg't.  Dec.  26,  63. 
Wagoner  ;  discharged  Oct.  31,  62. 
Died  Mar.  20,  62. 
Discharged  Jan.  26,  63. 


704 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 
Williams,  Franklin 
Wilson,  George  F. 

Wilson,  Milo 
Woodward,  Samuel  P. 
Woodbury,  Charles  E. 
Woodbury,  George 
Woodbury,  Nathan  K 
Wright,  Joseph  N. 
York,  Alonzo 
Young,  Geo.  S. 

CREDITS    UNDER.  CALL 

Amsden,  Marcellus  R. 
Avery,  Lorenzo  B. 
Barton,  John,  Jr. 

Barton,  William 

Bates,  Orrin 

Benway,  Eli  W. 
Brigham,  Don  A. 
Burnes,  John  S. 
Buzzell,  Samuel  D. 
Coburn,  Washington 

Dickinson,  Zerah  H. 
Dole,  Heman 
Dutton,  John 
Duvall,  John 
Gardner,  Charles 
Hill,  Playstone  J. 


Af<e.      Kulisleil. 

1 8  Jan      9  62 
20  Sept  16  61 


Co.  HeuKtrks 

K     Died  Sept.  13,  62. 

G     Corp.;  pro.  serg't.  June  20,  62  ;  re-en.  Dec.  15, 
63  ;  killed  near  Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 


36  Aug  9  62 
18  Nov  25  61 
18  Aug  28  61 

21  Dec  7  61 
33  Aug     9  62 

-3  July  1°  61 

22  Nov  29  61 


Prisoner  since  June  23,  64. 

Died  Dec.  2,  62. 

Reduced  to  ranks  ;  corporal. 

Re-enlisted  Feb.  15,  64. 
Cav  C    Recruit. 
3    K     Wagoner;  died  Sept.  15,  62, 
7    K     Died  Feb.  25,  63. 

OF  OCr.   17,  1863,  FOR  300,000   VOLUNTEERS,  AND  SURSEQUENT  CALLS 
VOLUNTEERS    FOR   THREE   YE.\RS. 


39  Dec  3  63 
20  Aug  19  64 
20  Nov  19  63 


18 


do 


II  I 
3  Bat 
II    K 

do 


45  Nov  30  63    II     I 


39  July 
19  Aug 
34  Dec 
43  Oct 
45  Dec 

2364 
2663 

563 
2863 

563 

II    B 
3  Kat 
II     I 
3  Bat 
II    I 

35          flo 

do 

18  Dec 

26s 

II    H 

45  Dec 

263 

II     i 

45  Nov 

1263 

II    K 

19  Nov 
25  Nov 

1463 
3063 

do 
II    I 

Sick  in  general  hospital  Aug.  31,  64, 
Mustered  out  of  service  June  15,  65. 
Prisoner  since  June  23,  64 ;  trans,  to  <'o.  A, 

June  24,  65. 
Prisoner  since  June,  24, 64  ;  died  at  Andersoa- 

ville,  .Sept.  5,  64. 
Sick  in  general  hospital  Aug.  31,  64  ;  trans. 

to  Co.  A,  June  24,  65. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  25,  65. 
Pro.  C.  Jan.  i,  65  ;  mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Trans,  to  Co.  A,  June  24,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 
Sick  in  general  hospital,  Aug.    31,  64  ;  trans. 

to  Co.  A,  June  24,  65. 
Died  Dec.  25,  63. 

Taken  pris.  June  23,  64  ;  died  in  rebel  prison. 
Died  July  20,  64. 
Discharged  Apr.  14,  64. 

Artificer,  Jan.  i,  65  ;  tr.  to  Co.  A,  June  24,  65. 
Deserted,  July  26,  64. 


(For  the  Gazetteer.) 
VERMONT   IN   THE   REVOLUTION. 

BY  DR.  N.  W.   GILBERT. 

'  Glory  to  old  Vernioiit !  she  stands 
Where  freedom's  star  has  never  set; 

Though  dim  its  light  ou  other  lands. 
It  shines  upon  her  mountains  yet." 

Thus  sang  the  bard,  and  thus  I  sing, 

In  this  my  hnmble  offering. 

And  yet  it  has  been  charged  that  she, 
When  war  his  deadly  witcli  broth  brewed- 

When  states  were  struggling  to  be  free- 
Assumed  a  threatening  attitude; 

An  attitude,  in  fact,  which  was 

Unfriendly  to  the  patriot  cause. 

But  what  is  patriotism,  if 
'Tis  not  persistent,  bold  defence 

Of  native  mountain,  plain  and  cliff. 
By  beating  back  and  driving  thence, 

Each  foreign  or  domestic  foe, 

Who  would  our  freedom  overthrow? 

And  when  the  States  "  cried  havoc,  and 

Let  slip  the  cruel  dogs  of  war," 
Vermont's  devoted,  patriot  band. 

Already  was  contending  for 
That  which  was  vital  and  supreme — 
For  principles  she  could  but  deem 

As  far  superior  to  those 

Which  caused  the  hearts  of  men  to  thrill, 
Who  fought  against  invading  foes. 

At  Lexington  and  Bunlier  Hill, 
As  were  our  mountains  higher  than 
Was  Bunker  Hill,  when  war  began. 


For  they  were  fighting  to  resist 
A  trifling  tax,  which  was  assessed 

Upon  them,  and  I  here  insist 
They  were  not  hopelessly  oppressed; 

Save  in  a  moral  sense,  which  must. 

Or  may,  their  cause  have  rendered  Just. 

Our  fathers,  on  the  other  hand, 
A  demon's  clutches  would  unclasp; 

For  roof  and  altar,  house  and  land. 
Were  being  wrested  from  their  grasp; 

And  by  the  self-same  parties  who 

Have  conjured  up  this  bugaboo 

Of  lack  of  loyalty;  who  claim 
Our  fathers  would  to  us  bequeath 

A  traitor's  heritage  of  shame. 
I  hurl  the  falsehood  in  their  teeth. 

And  brand  it  as  alike  untrue. 

Unjust  and  most  ungenerous  too. 

Vermont  disloyal!  yet  witlistand 
The  shock  of  many  a  ponderous  blow 

From  either  side;  on  either  hand 
A  wily  and  inveterate  foe; 

Tlie  British  lion's  lordly  roar 

Resounding  througli  her  northern  shore, 

AVhlie  from  the  west  and  south  there  came 
A  horde  of  thieves  and  plunderers. 

With  only  their  highwayman's  claim, 
"  Your  money  or  your  life,  good  sirs" — 

And  Congress,  too— from  which  should  come 

Relief— to  her  was  deaf  and  dumb. 

What  marvel  she  should  entertain- 
Before  her  waning  sun  should  set — 
From  Haldimand  and  Lord  Germain, 
Proposals  of  armistice?    Yet 


NORTHFIELD. 


705 


'Twas  nothing  but  a  truce,  as  she 
Was  still  determined  to  be  free. 

On  either  hand  an  enemy. 
Refusing  still  her  rights  to  yield. 

Her  prowess  and  diplomacy 
Were  seen  and  felt  in  court  and  field, 

While  thus  alone,  in  sovereign  sway. 

She  stood,  and  held  the  world  at  bay. 

Not  only  so,  witli  towering  crest. 
Her  narrow  boundaries  she  increased, 

By  making  conquests  on  the  west. 
And  conquests  also  in  tlie  east; 

And  these  were  won  without  the  aid 

Of  musket  or  of  glistening  blade. 

Her  court  at  Charlestown  being  held — 
Her  western  boundary  near  Malone— 

Her  foes  were  thus  at  length  compelled 
Her  power,  if  not  her  rights,  to  own ; 

A  power  too  which  she  dared  maintain 

Until  her  rights  she  sliould  regain. 

Nor  was  she  false  to  freedom  when 
Herself  the  hunted,  threatened  prey 

Of  freedom's  friends;  for,  even  then. 
She  was  not  idle  in  the  fray; 

But  points  to  deeds  of  valor  done 

At  old  "  Fort  Ti,"  and  Bennington. 

My  native  State!  thy  history  is 

To  me  a  heritage  of  pride— 
Which  is  not  dimmed  by  rivalries— 

AVhose  lustre  may  not  be  denied; 
For  he  who  runs  so  plainly  reads 
The  tale  of  thy  heroic  deeds. 

I  sit  beneath  thy  mountains'  shades. 

And  muse  upon  thy  glories  now; 
I  wander  tlirough  thy  glens  and  glades. 

Or  stand  upon  Algonquin's  brow. 
And  look  around  on  shore  and  wave. 
Where  never  trod  the  foot  of  slave. 

And  on  thy  verdant  slopes  I  see 
The  stamp  of  freedom  still  impressed— 

A  prophecy  of  what  shall  be 
When  human  nature  has  been  blest 

With  deeds  of  love,  wliose  shimmering  sheen 

No  mortal  yet  has  ever  seen. 

Dr.  Norman  W.  Gilbert,  born  in 
Morristown,  1830,  married  Sarah  Atwel!, 
of  Waterbury,  1854,  studied  dentistry  in 
Lowell,  Mass. ;  1858  settled  in  Northfield  ; 
1867  removed  to  Montpelier ;  1873  to  Bos- 
ton, where,  in  January,  1877,  Mrs.  Gilbert 
died,  and  soon  after  the  doctor  returned 
to  Northfield.  He  is  a  graduate  of  the 
Boston  Dental  College. 

UNIVERSALIST   CHURCH    RECORD   CON- 
TINUED. 

BY  CHARLES  DOLE. 

Mr.  Matlack  was  followed  by  the  Rev. 
R.  A.  Greene,  who  remained  with  the  so- 
ciety 5  years,  doing  good  and  acceptable 
work,  when,  receiving  a  call  from  Lowell, 
Mass.,  the   society  reluctantly   consented 


to  his  removal  to  what  seemed  to  be  a 
wider  field  of  usefulness.  The  year  suc- 
ceeding Mr.  Greene's  departure  the  socie- 
ty was  without  a  regular  pastor.  During 
this  year  the  Rev.  John  Gregory  preached 
for  a  few  months.  The  remaining  part  of 
the  year  the  services  were  conducted  by 
clergymen  from  neighboring  societies. 
Rev.  Wm.  M.  Kimmell,  of  Ohio,  a  young 
man  of  Christian  worth,  was  then  invited 
to  become  the  pastor  of  the  church.  He 
accepted,  and  for  2  jears  did  good  and 
faithful  service,  closing  his  labors  March 
I,  1880. 

The  church  was  at  this  period  encum- 
bered with  quite  a  large  debt,  which  had 
been  accumulating  for  a  number  of  years. 
It  was  not  only  a  source  of  much  trouble, 
but  seriously  impaired  the  usefulness  of 
its  work,  and  its  removal  became  a  ques- 
tion of  serious  importance.  This  was  by 
the  Rev.  Walter  Dole,  who  gave  his  ser- 
vices for  one  year,  that  all  the  money  paid 
in  during  the  year  might  apply  on  the 
church  debt.  Mr.  Dole  was  a  graduate  of 
Norwich  University  and  the  Meadville 
Theological  School.  This  was  his  first 
year  of  active  service  in  the  work  of  the 
Christian  ministry  preparatory  to  ordina- 
tion. At  the  end  of  the  year,  he  was  reg- 
ularly ordained,  and  accepted  a  call  from 
the  Universalist  church  at  Enfield,  N.  H. 
During  this  year's  work  he  had  removed 
the  debt  that  had  been  the  source  of  much 
trouble,  and  thus  merited  and  received  the 
sincere  thanks  and  good  will  of  all  mem- 
bers of  the  church  and  society. 

At  this  date,  Jan.  1882,  the  society  is  in 
a  prosperous  condition,  with  the  Rev.  L 
P.  Booth  as  its  pastor,  who  succeeded  the 
Rev.  Walter  Dole,  May  i,  1881. 

THE   HARLOW   BRIDGE   TRAGEDY. 

Never  was  there  a  tragedy  in  Vermont 
which  equaled  the  one  that  took  place 
Dec.  II,  1867,  at  "Harlow  Bridge."  It 
occurred  just  after  noon,  and  sent  a  thrill 
of  horror  over  the  land.  About  100  me- 
chanics and  laborers  employed  in  rebuild- 
ing the  "  Harlow  Bridge"  on  the  Vermont 
Central  railroad,  about  2  miles  from  the 
depot,    were   boarding  at  the   Northfield 


89 


7o6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


House.  That  day  they  took  their  dinner 
there  as  usual,  and  this  repast  finished,  the 
last  meal  that  many  of  them  were  ever 
again  to  partake,  about  60  of  them  got  in- 
to a  passenger  car,  and  started  back  for 
their  work.  The  train,  consisting  of  one 
car  and  locomotive  and  tender,  was  in 
charge  of  Francis  B.  Abbott,  for  15  years 
a  faithful  hand  in  the  employ  of  the  road. 
He  was  requested  to  hurry  up,  so  as  to  get 
back  an  !  take  the  others,  and  the  train 
started,  backing  up.  Intent  only  upon 
obeying  orders,  and  forgetting  all  else, 
he  ran  at  a  speed  reprehensible  under  the 
circumstances.  A  number  on  the  train 
felt  that  they  were  going  to  destruction, 
but  nothing  was  done  to  stop  it,  and  then 
came  the  culmination  of  this  horrid  disas- 
ter, which  carried  mourning  and  desolation 
into  so  many  families.  It  is  said  that  the 
fireman  spoke  to  the  engineer  about  slack- 
ing his  speed,  and  at  last  hurled  a  stick  of 
wood  at  his  head,  to  awake  him  from  his 
reverie,  telling  him  to  reverse  his  engine, 
which  he  did,  but  too  late.  The  passenger 
car  first  plunged  into  the  frightful  abyss. 
Going  down  about  25  feet  it  struck  upon 
the  bank,  which  projected  something  like 
a  shelf,  and  then  broke,  one  part  of  it 
stopping  there,  and  one  going  to  the  bot- 
tom, over  60  feet  further.  The  tender 
followed,  crushing  in  among  those  who 
remained  with  that  portion  of  the  car 
which  lodged  on  the  bank,  where  the 
greatest  mortality  occurred,  those  going 
to  the  bottom  escaping  comparatively 
easy.  Across  those  on  the  shelf  a  large 
timber  had  fallen,  and  on  this  the  tender, 
pinning  them  to  the  earth  and  crushing 
out  their  very  life.  The  reversing  the  en- 
gine suddenly  prevented  that  from  follow- 
ing, although  it  had  gone  so  far  that  a  per- 
pendicular line  dropped  from  the  flange 
ot  the  driver,  carried  it  4  feet  beyond  the 
abutment.  Affrighted,  the  engineer 
jumped  from  his  post,  but  seeing  his  en- 
gine did  not  go  over  he  at  once  regained 
his  position,  and  thus  prevented  the  ma- 
chine from  tearing  down  the  road  with  the 
velocity  of  a  scared  bird,  with  no  one  to 
control  it. 

Killed :  Almon    VVetherbee,  foreman  of 


bridge  gang  ;  Christopher  Devine,  laborer ; 
Patrick  Garvin,  laborer  ;  Edward  Sweeney, 
trackman  ;  Timothy  McCarty,  trackman  ; 
Louis  Rock,  bridge  builder,  citizens  of 
Northfield,  and  9  others  killed,  most  of 
whom  lived  in  Canada. 

Wounded:  George  Randall,  telegraph- 
ist; Horace  Kingsbury  and  J.  Mulcahey, 
citizens  of  Northfield,  and  35  from  this 
State  and  Canada. 

COL.    FRANCIS    V.    RANDALL 

was  born  in  Braintree,  in  Orange  County, 
Feb.  13,  1824.  His  father,  Gurdon  Ran- 
dall, was  of  English  origin,  born  in  Con- 
necticut, and  emigrated  with  his  father's 
family  to  the  new  State  of  Vermont  in 
1803,  when  about  9  years  old;  was  re- 
puted a  man  of  excellent  parts,  and  suc- 
ceeded in  acquiring  more  than  an  ordina- 
ry education  for  those  times,  and  studied 
medicine,  which,  however,  he  never  prac- 
ticed, it  not  being  congenial  to  his  tastes. 
He  had  a  natural  aptitude  for  mechanics, 
and  had  the  reputation  of  building  as  good 
grist  and  saw-mills  as  the  best.  He  mov- 
ed from  Braintree  to  Northfield  in  1832, 
where  he  lived  mostly  until  he  died  in 
1861.     [See  page  645.] 

Col.  Randall's  mother  was  Laura  Scott 
Warner,  the  daughter  of  Luther  Warner, 
a  near  relative  of  Col.  Seth  Warner.  She 
was  born  in  Putney,  and  movfd  to  Brain- 
tree with  her  father's  family  when  a  small 
girl.  She  died  in  Northfield  in  1880.  No 
more  need  be  said  of  her  than  that  she 
raised  a  large  family  of  children  under 
somewhat  adverse  circumstances,  and  did 
it  well.  She  was  emphatically  a  good 
wife  and  mother. 

Col.  F.  V.  Randall  was  the  second  of  a 
family  of  9  children,  and  being  thus  one  of 
the  oldest,  in  those  rugged  times  had  to 
lend  a  hand  in  assisting  in  the  support  of 
the  family,  and  at  20  years  had  had  no 
school  opportunities  beyond  the  district 
school,  with  such  additional  aid  as  his 
father  could  find  occasional  opportunities 
to  give.  At  his  20th  birthday  his  father 
informed  him  that  his  means  would  not 
admit  of  his  helping  him  to  obtain  an  ed- 
ucation, and  that  all  he  could  do  would  be 


NORTHFIELD. ' 


707 


to  give  him  the  year  of  his  unexpired  mi- 
nority, which  he  did.  From  that  time  he 
worked  and  kept  school  a  few  months  at  a 
time  until  he  had  earned  money  to  take 
him  through  a  term  at  the  academy,  ex- 
pended it  for  that  purpose,  and  then  earned 
more,  and  so  on,  as  many  another  boy  has 
done  before  and  since. 

At  about  the  same  time,  he  entered  as  a 
student  at  law  in  the  office  of  the  Hon. 
Heman  Carpenter,  of  Northfield,  and  im- 
proved all  of  his  vacations  in  this  way. 
While  studying  with  Judge  Carpenter,  he 
boarded  in  his  family,  and  a  part  of  the 
time  did  chores  to  pay  for  his  board.  In 
1847,  being  23  years  old,  he  was  admitted 
to  Washington  County  Bar,  and  went  im- 
mediately into  a  large  and  successful  prac- 
tice, which  he  only  abandoned  to  go  into 
the  army  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Rebellion. 
I  think  Washington  County  Court  docket 
shows  that  but  one  or  two  lawyers  in  the 
county  had  a  larger  practice  than  he  did  at 
that  time. 

He  first  commenced  practice  in  North- 
field,  where  he  remained  until  1857.  From 
1853  to  1857  he  was  postmaster  there. 
While  in  practice  there,  Albert  V.  H. 
Carpenter  was  his  law  partner  for  awhile, 
and  afterwards  Cok  Chas.  H.  Joyce.  In 
1857,  he  sold  out  at  Northfield  with  the  in- 
tention of  moving  West,  and  moved  to 
Roxbury,  where  he  had  some  real  estate 
interest,  intending  to  remain  long  enough 
to  close  his  business  preparatory  to  going 
West. 

Just  before  the  fall  election  it  was  pro- 
posed to  him  by  leading  members  of  the 
Democratic  party,  to  which  he  belonged, 
to  run  for  town  representative.  He  in- 
formed them  that  his  residence  in  town 
had  hardly  been  a  year,  the  constitutional 
time  required,  and  that  if  elected  he  prob- 
ably could  not  hold  his  seat.  The  town 
was  very  closely  divided  in  its  vote  politi- 
cally, and  it  was  thought  as  things  then 
stood  that  he  was  the  only  Democrat  who 
could  win,  and  that  it  would  be  more  grat- 
ifying to  succeed  at  the  polls  than  to  be 
defeated,  even  if  his  seat  should  be  success- 
fully contested,  and  so  he  was  nominated. 
The  first  ballot  showed  a  tie  between  him 


and  his  whig  opponent,  but  on  a  subse- 
quent ballot  he  was  declared  elected,  and 
received  his  credentials  and  took  his  seat. 
It  was  however  contested,  and  having  re- 
tained it  in  the  controversy  till  toward  the 
close  of  the  session,  he  was  ousted.  Dur- 
ing this  time  he  was  on  several  important 
standing  and  other  committees ;  was  the 
Democratic  candidate  for  Speaker,  run- 
ning against  Senator  Edmunds .  The  next 
year,  having  remained  in  Roxbury,  he  was 
again  elected  representative  by  a  large  ma- 
jority, and  his  seat  was  not  contested.  In 
i860  he  moved  to  Montpelier,  the  better 
to  pursue  his  largely  increasing  law  prac- 
tice. 

In  1858,  the  legislature  having  organized 
a  militia  brigade  in  the  State,  consisting  of 
a  regiment  from  each  congressional  dis- 
trict, Gen.  Alonzo  Jackman  was  appointed 
Brigadier  General,  and  in  making  up  his 
stalif.  Col.  Randall  was  made  Brigade  Judge 
Advocate,  and  in  that  year  the  brigade 
mustered  at  Montpelier,  and  Col.  Randall 
was  present  in  his  official  capacity.  When 
three  years  after  the  town  of  Montpelier 
raised  a  company  for  the  2d  Vt.  Regt.  in 
the  Rebellion,  this  was  remembered  by 
some,  and  after,  at  a  war  meeting  during 
the  extra  session  of  the  legislature,  it  was 
found  that  more  than  enough  men  for  the 
company  had  enlisted  in  a  single  evening. 
Col.  R.  was  asked  to  take  charge  of  and 
drill  them.  He  reluctantly  consented  to 
do  so,  and  when  finally  on  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  company,  he  received  every 
vote  for  captain,  he  was  persuaded  to  ac- 
cept the  position,  with  the  expectation 
and  belief  that  the  war  would  not  continue 
6  weeks.  With  that  company  he  served 
as  captain,  having  been  with  it  at  the  first 
Bull  Run  battle,  and  all  the  battles  that 
followed  till  the  close  of  McCIellan's  Pen- 
insula Campaign,  when  he  was  made  Col. 
of  the  13th  Regt.,  and  served  with  that 
during  its  term  of  service.  The  Governor 
then  offered  him  the  command  of  the  17th 
Regt.,  then  being  recruited,  which  he  ac- 
cepted, assisting  in  filling  up  the  regiment, 
and  serving  with  it  to  the  end  of  the  war. 
Col.  Randall  was  the  only  man  from  the 
State  who  was  colonel  of  two  regiments. 


V 


7o8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


In  the  winter  of  1S63-4,  after  the  Pres- 
idenfs  call  for  300,000  men,  known  as  the 
call  of  October  17,  1863,  at  the  request  of 
Gen.  Washburn,  then  Adjutant  General, 
and  charged  with  the  raising  of  men.  Col. 
Randall  was  detailed  to  assist  by  address- 
ing war  meetings  in  diiTerent  parts  of  the 
State,  his  appointments  to  speak  being 
made  by  Gen.  Washburn  in  those  local- 
ities where  recruiting  was  hardest  and 
where  they  were  most  behind.  Many 
amusing  anecdotes  are  told  of  the  shifts 
which  the  Colonel  made  to  induce  men  to 
enlist,  which  space  will  not  permit  us  to 
insert.  But  during  that  winter  he  spoke 
at  about  50  war  meetings  all  over  the 
State,  and  at  no  place  where  he  spoke  did 
they  fail  to  fill  their  quota,  and  generally 
before  the  meeting  was  closed. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  he  returned  to 
Montpelier,  where  for  about  6  or  8  years 
he  pursued  his  law  practice  with  much 
success  ;  but  the  interruption  of  the  4  or  5 
years  that  he  was  out  of  practice  during 
the  war  diminished  his  interest  in  his  pro- 
fession, and  for  several  years  he  has  not 
made  it  a  leading  business,  having  done 
very  little  at  the  law,  but  has  cultivated 
his  farm  without  engaging  much  in  other 
business.  F.  v.  R. 

PAPER   ON    EARLY   METHODISM   IN  NORTH- 
FIELD. 

BY  REV.  J.  K.  BARTLETT. 

The  earliest  records  now  known  on  the 
history  of  Methodism  in  this  section,  are 
those  of  the  Barre  Circuit  from  1804 ;  quite 
incomplete,  but  show  the  class  in  North- 
field  possessed  some  20  or  more  members 
at  that  time.  The  list  reads:  William 
Keyes,  Betsey  Keyes,  William  Ashcroft, 
William  Smith,  Abel  Keyes,  Esther  Keyes, 
Mary  Smith,  Susanna  Latham,  Joseph 
Nichols,  Weltha  Nichols,  Lydia  Robinson, 
Betsey  Robinson,  Cynthia  Nichols,  Polly 
Smith,  Isaiah  Bacon,  Ruth  Bacon,  Anan- 
ias Tubbs,  Hannah  Tubbs,  Simeon  Fisk, 
Betsey  Fisk.  In  1812,  three  classes  were 
reported.  Jason  Winch  leader  of  one 
with  9  members,  William  Keyes  leader  of 
another  with  23  ;  and  the  third  having  no 
stated  leader,  but  6  members,  and  two  on 
trial;  Asa   Winch  recorded   as   an    "  ex- 


horter  "  and  resident  at  Northfield.  This 
town  was  included  in  Barre  circuit  until 
1826,  when  Brookfield  circuit  was  organ- 
ized, including  Brookfield,  Northfield, 
Williamstown,  Roxbury  and  Randolph. 

Doubtless  all  the  preachers  appointed 
on  Vershire  circuit  from  1796  to  1803,  in- 
clusive, and  on  Barre  circuit  from  1804  to 

1825,  visited  Northfield  in  the  course  of 
their  labors  at  stated  intervals  to  preach ; 
and  quarterly  meetings,  which  in  the  early 
da\s  were  attended  from  all  parts  of  the 
circuit,  were  held  here  from  time  to  time. 
The  first  one  recorded  here  was  May  23, 
1807  ;  the  collections  reported  $78.48  for 
the  quarter,  and  the  summary  for  the  year  " 
$148.45.  This  was  disbursed  :  to  E.  Sa- 
bin,  presiding  Elder,  $24.72  ;  for  commun- 
ion wine,  $4.68  ;  to  Philip  Munger,  $54.67  ; 
for  his  expenses,  $3.82;  and  the  same  to 
Jonathan  Cheney,  do.  The  preachers  af- 
terwards received  (during  the  remainder 
of  the  Conference  year)  $13.35  additional, 
in  which  was  included  a  note  from  the 
class  in  Orange  for  one  dollar.  Following 
the  organization  of  Brookfield  circuit   in 

1826,  this  town  remained  therein  until  it 
became  an  appointment  by  itself.  The 
Vermont  Annual  Conference  has  held  its 
sessions  here ;  June  24,  1852,  the  8th  an- 
nual session.  Bishop  Levi  Scott  presiding  ; 
Apr.  16,  1862,  the  i8th  annual  session. 
Bishop  O.  C.  Baker  presiding ;  Apr.  20, 
1871,  the  27th  annual  session.  Bishop  E. 
S.  Janes  presiding. 

THE   OLD    YELLOW   MEETING-HOUSE, 

(page  649  and  658) ,  seems  to  be  the  butt  for 
joke  and  mistake,  though  pa.ssed  out  of  exist- 
ence. First,  page  649,  a  superfluous  "was" 
crept  in,  and  did  not  get  excluded.  Line 
2d,  inclosed  paragraph  after  ' '  Impromptu  " 
should  read:  "that  was  soon  however 
burned."  Again,  the  old  yellow  meeting- 
house was  not  burned  at  all .  Father  Druon 
has  just  sifted  the  conflicting  accounts, 
and  given  us  the  reliable  one.  "Gov. 
Paine  had  given  land  to  the  Catholics  for 
a  church  if  occupied ;  if  not,  they  lost  it ; 
hence,  when  they  bought  the  old  meeting- 
house, they  had  to  move  it  ih  mile  to  the 
given  site,  which  so  racked  the  frame,  and 
it  was  so  much  too  small,  though  they  re- 


NORTHFIELD. 


709 


modeled  it  and  got  along  with  it  some  3 
years,  Father  Druon  then  commenced  to 
build  a  new  church  directly  in  front  of  the 
old,  and  the  new  frame,  partly  inclosing 
in  the  rear  the  old  one ;  which  as  the 
new  progressed  was  cut   away  part  at  a 


time,  and  when  the  new  one  was  finished, 
the  last  fragment  of  the  old  house  had  been 
removed,  and  so  no  part  of  it  was  in  fact 
burned ;  but  the  new  one,  which  was  the 
second  church,  was  burned  by  lightning 
in  1876. 


NATHANIEL  CARPENTER,  OF  MIDDLESEX. 

BY  HON.  IlEMAN   CAKPENTEB,  OF  NORTHFIELD. 

Nathaniel  Carpenter,  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  Middlesex,  was  born  in  Cov- 
entry, Conn.,  Sept.  20,  1766.  He  was 
one  of  a  family  of  12  children.  His  father 
and  family  moved  to  Sharon,  Vt.,  about 
1775.  His  oldest  brother,  Jonas  Carpen- 
ter, was  in  the  American  army,  and  was  at 
the  taking  of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown.  He 
married  for  his  first  wife  Susanna  Shep- 
herd, of  Sharon,  and  by  this  marriage  had 
3  children :  Lavinia  was  born  June  21, 
1788,  and  died  Aug.  21,  1865:  Stephen 
was  born  May  23,  1790,  and  died  Dec.  30, 
1803;   Alanson  was  born  Jan.   30,  1793, 


and  is  now  living  in  Fremont, 
Ohio.  Their  mother  died  May 
29,  1794.  Said  Nathaniel  mar- 
ried for  his  second  wife,  Abigail 
(Morse)  Waterman,  March  26, 
1797.  They  had  by  their  mar- 
riage 9  children :  Christopher, 
Susan,  Wooster,  Nathaniel  M., 
Don  P.,  Heman,  Otis  H.,  Fi- 
delia, and  Albert  V.  H.,  four  of 
which  are  now  living — Alanson, 
Nathaniel  M.,  Heman,  and  Al- 
bert V.  H.  The  father  of  these 
children  held  many  prominent 
offices  in  said  town  of  Middlesex, 
and  he  and  his  son  Alanson  were 
in  the  battle  of  Plattsburg  in  the 
war  of  181 2. 

Nathaniel  Carpenter  died  at 
Middlesex,  Nov.  25,  1840;  his 
wife  Abigail,  Sept.  21,  1842,  and 
is  buried  in  Middlesex,  aged  65 
years,  9  months,  and  19  days. 

The  mother  of  these  9  chil- 
dren was  born  in  Royalton, 
daughter  of  Nathaniel  Morse. 
At  the  burning  of  Royalton  by 
the  Indians,  her  mother  was  flee- 
ing on  horseback  from  the  inva- 
ders, with  her  in  her  arms,  and 
was  captured  and  seated  on  a  log,  the  In- 
dians brandishing  their  tomahawks  over 
their  heads.  They  left  them,  but  took  the 
horse,  burning  dieir  house  and  barns,  and 
the  contents,  including  several  fat  oxen  in 
the  barns. 

Alanson,  the  youngest  by  the  first  wife, 
read  law  and  located  at  Chateaugay,  Frank- 
lin Co.,  N.  Y.  He  was  custom-house  offi- 
cer at  that  place  for  many  years.  He  now 
resides  in  Fremont,  Ohio. 

Christopher  studied  medicine,  and  grad- 
uated at  the  medical  school  in  Burlington, 
and  located  at  Bangor,  N.  Y.,  where  he 
died.  He  had  a  very  extensive  ride,  and 
was  very  successful  in  his  practice. 


yxo 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Wooster  studied  medicine  with  his 
brother,  and  graduated  at  Burlington  or 
Castleton  medical  college,  and  located  at 
Lisbon,  St.  Lawrence  Co.,  N.  Y.  He  had 
a  large  and  successful  practice,  but  died 
poor,  having  become  involved  in  debt  in 
his  efforts  to  build  and  complete  a  stone 
church  in  the  small  village  where  he  resid- 
ed, which  was  dedicated  to  "The  Church," 
as  he  called  it,  of  which  he  was  a  zealous 
communicant. 

Don  P.  was  a  farmer,  but  held  many 
ofifices  in  his  native  town ;  was  a  member 
of  the  Legislature  in  1848,  and  twice  elect- 
ed side  judge  of  the  county  court. 

Nathaniel  M.  was  a  farmer,  and  now 
lives  in  Middlesex. 

Otis  H.  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  and 
at  the  breaking  out  of  the  gold  fever  in 
California,  he  with  a  party  went  over  land 
to  the  gold  regions  of  that  State,  and  on 
the  way  suffered  all  but  death.  Having 
gathered  a  competence,  he  returned  and 
settled  in  Manitowoc,  Min.,  where  he  died. 

Albert  V.  H.  fitted  for  college  at  the 
Washington  Co.  Grammar  School,  read 
law  in  the  office  of  his  brother  in  North- 
field ;  set  up  in  Strafford,  Orange  Co., 
where  lie  remained  two  or  three  years,  and 
returned  to  Northfield.  He  was  a  well- 
read  lawyer,  and  a  good  advocate,  but  if 
beaten  in  a  case  that  he  thought  he  ought 
to  have  won,  he  became  disgusted  with 
the  profession,  for  the  lack  of  "  pluck," 
and  turned  his  attention  to  railroading. 
He  was  station  agent  at  Rouses  Point  a 
while,  and  at  Montpelier,  and  at  Toledo, 
Ohio,  and  is  now,  and  for  nearly  twenty 
years  has  been  general  ticket  agent  of  the 
Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  Railway,  embrac- 
ing nearly  4,000  miles  of  road.  His  resi- 
dence is  at  Milwaukee,  Wis.  He  is  well 
known  throughout  the  North  West,  and 
many  Vermonters  will  remember  the  kind 
greeting  they  have  received  from  him,  and 
the  friendly  aid  he  has  extended  to  them. 

PERRY   MARSH     . 

was  born  in  Petersham,  Mass.  Aug.  7, 
1796.  His  parents  removed  to  Calais, 
Vt.,  when  he  was  about  4  years  old,  draw- 
ing the  subject  of  our  sketch  on  a  hand- 
sled  from  Montpelier  to  their  new  home  in 


that  town.  When  Perry  was  still  a  boy, 
he  enlisted  as  a  fifer  in  the  war  of  1812. 
At  the  close  of  the  war  he  returned  to  his 
home  and  to  civil  pursuits,  residing  in 
Calais  until  1836,  when  he  came  to  Mont- 
pelier and  engaged  to  some  extent  in  the 
manufacture  of  pianos,  which  he  continu- 
ed several  years,  and  then  removed  to 
Stowe ;  from  which  place,  near  20  years 
ago,  he  came  to  Northfield.  He  was  then 
approaching  his  three  score  years  and  ten, 
and  has  passed  here,  in  a  quiet,  unobtru- 
sive fashion,  his  declining  years,  during 
which  he  has  become  widely  known 
through  his  favorite  pastime  of  playing  his 
fife.  He  was  a  good  player  of  some  other 
wind  instruments,  but  especially  attached 
to  this,  an  account  of  which,  immediately 
after  his  death,  Sunday,  Feb.  4,  1882,  Dr. 
Gilbert  wrote  the  following  tribute  to  : 

THE   OLD   FIFER. 

BY  DR.  N.  W.  GILBERT. 

Did  ever  you  hear  the  old  fifer  play 

The  martial  music  he  loved  so  much — 
The  shrill  notes  which,  for  mauy  a  day, 

Have  answered  oft  to  the  magic  touch 
Of  his  wrinkled  fingers,  long  and  lean, 

Yet  losing  none  of  iheir  old-time  skill 
In  conjuring  up  from  the  realms  unseen 

The  fairy  forms  of  the  master's  will? 

I  say  that  his  fingers  were  lean  and  long. 
But  the  finger  of  time  had  made  them  so, 

As  they  were  supple,  and  full  and  strong 
In  the  halcyon  days  of  the  long  ago; 

For  now  it  is  threescore  years  and  ten— 
The  time  allotted  to  human  life— 

Since  Uncle  Perrj — a  strli)ling  then- 
Began  to  play  the  inspiring  fife. 

Or  rather,  since  he,  at  about  sixteen— 
Already  well  tutored  and  drilled  therefor— 

His  knapsack  on,  with  his  tin  canteen, 
Marched  off  to  play  in  impending  war. 

His  tin  canteen,  but  he  never  would  sip 
From  the  poisonous  fluid  the  government  then 

Unwisely  held  to  the  thirsting  lip. 
And  the  hungry  palate,  of  brave  young  men. 

Where  strife  was  raging  and  hearts  beat  high, 

M^ith  dauntless  courage  tliat  would  not  yield, 
He  helped  to  win,  on  the  fourth  of  July, 

The  bloody  encounter  on  Chippewa's  field; 
Then  chasing  tlie  foe  to  Niagara's  sliore. 

He  there  still  mingled  his  patriot  strain 
With  the  booming  of  guns  and  the  cataract's  roar. 

At  the  subsequent  battle  of  Lundy's  Lane. 
When  war  was  over,  the  fifer  returned 

From  scenes  of  carnage  and  scenes  of  strife. 
But  still  in  his  bosom  there  glowed  and  burned 

A  quenchless  love  for  his  martial  fife. 
In  age  or  in  youth  it  was  ever  the  same — 

He  awaited  the  cars  in  his  rustic  seat, 
To  carol  his  welcome  to  all  who  came. 

And  repeated  his  airs  In  the  neighboring  street. 


NORTHFIELD. 


711 


On  an  empty  box  by  the  grocery  store 

He  sat  iu  tlie  sun  and  fifed  away, 
As  if  he  imagined  himself  ouce  more 

Encouraging  men  to  the  deadly  fray; 
Or  as  if,  perchance,  in  a  milder  mood. 

He  wondered  If  ever  grim  war  would  cease; 
And  whether  his  art  would  still  be  woofcd 

In  the  tranquil  reign  of  the  Prince  of  Peace. 

When  age  and  feebleness  held  him  fast, 

Three  days  before  the  grim  visitor  came 
To  bring  him  the  summons  which  comes  at  last, 

He  called  for  liis  fife,  as  the  flickering  flame 
Flashed  up  once  more,  and  his  heart  grew  strong. 

His  fingers  resumed  their  cunning  and  skill. 
The  notes  were  clear,  which  he  couldn't  prolong. 

And  now  they  are  silent;  his  pulse  is  still. 

The  railroad  vehicles  come  and  go, 

The  old  sledge  hammer  still  sounds  the  wheels. 
But  Uncle  Perry  sleeps  under  the  snow; 

And  the  heart  instinctively,  pensively  feels 
The  force  of  the  truth  that  'tis  all  men's  doom 

That  mortals  approach  to  the  "farther  shore;" 
The  spring  shall  come  and  the  flowers  shall  bloom. 

But  the  merry  old  fifer  may  come  no  more. 

MAJOR   CHARLES   A.    WEBB,    U.  S.  A., 

son  of  Edward  A.  Webb,  now  of  Chicago, 
III.,  bom  in  Montpelier,  Dec.  29,  1838, 
was  removed  to  Northfield  at  10  years  of 
age.  He  assisted  his  father  in  his  store 
and  tin-ware  business,  and  later  in  the 
management  of  the  "Northfield  House," 
of  which  his  father  was  proprietor.  He 
joined  the  old  New  England  Guards,  com- 
manded by  Capt.  S.  G.  Patterson,  at  its 
organization,  and  in  April,  1861,  entered 
the  service  as  I  St  Lieut.  Co.  F,  ist  Vt.  Reg., 
3  months ;  was  commissioned,  Aug.  '61, 
Capt.  13th  Reg.  Inf. — Gen.  Sherman's  old 
regiment — and  for  gallant  conduct  at  Vicks- 
burgh,  breveted  Major,  Sept.  21,  '66; 
transferred  to  22d  Reg.  Inf.,  and  com- 
missioned Major  of  the  i6th  Inf.  Mar.  4,  '79. 

Following  close  the  termination  of  the 
rebellion,  he  was  for  a  time  engaged  in  the 
campaigns  against  the  Indians.  Recalled  to 
garrison  life,  was  stationed  at  several  East- 
ern forts, Fort  Mackinaw,  on  Lake  Superior, 
Fort  Wayne,  etc.  Upon  the  breaking  out 
of  disturbances  in  the  Ute  reservation,  re- 
sulting in  the  "  Meeker  massacre,"  he  was 
ordered  from  Fort  Riley,  Kansas,  to  the 
scene  of  hostilities,  and  from  there  trans- 
ferred to  Texas.  His  long  experience  in 
Indian  warfare  peculiarly  fitted  him  for 
border  service.  As  a  military  officer  he 
exhibited  marked  ability. 

In  1879,  while  stationed  at  Fort  Mack- 
inaw, he   married  Mrs.  Rose  Disbrow,  a 


lady  of  culture  and  social  accomplish- 
ments, who,  with  an  infant  daughter  of 
four  months,  survives  him.  He  died  from 
congestion  of  the  lungs,  at  Fort  McKavett, 
Texas,  at  midnight,  Jan.  31,  1882,  in  his 
44th  year. 

Many  in  Northfield  and  vicinity  will  re- 
member Charley  Webb,  and  regret  his 
very  unexpected  death.  Under  a  south- 
ern sky,  away  from  friends  and  all  the 
loved  places  of  his  youth,  he  finds  his  last 
resting-place. — Northfield  News. 

DR.    BRADFORD'S   CABINET. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  unique  private 
cabinets  in  the  State.  First,  here  is  the 
ballot-box  used  at  the  first  town  meeting 
in  Northfield,  and  the  communion  table  of 
"the  Old  Yellow  Meeting-house"  (See 
page  648,  654),  oval,  one-leaf,  of  cherry; 
and  two  turn-up  tables — a  chair  and  table 
combined — in  vogue  some  60  to  70  years 
ago,  a  convenient  and  pretty  piece  of  fur- 
niture ;  as  a  chair,  the  oval-board  of  your 
centre-table,  when  you  have  finished  your 
tea  and  want  the  room  it  occupies,  turned 
back,  forms  a  stout  warm  back  to  a  com- 
fortable chair,  that  under  the  board  of  the 
table  has  been  doing  the  office  of  support- 
ing your  supper  table  till  you  were  ready 
for  your  rest  by  the  evening  hearth.  We 
rather  coveted  one  of  the  Doctor's  turn-up 
tables.  It  is  the  first  thing  we  should 
pick  from  his  "  antiquettes,"  unless  it  were 
some  of  the  old  painted  deft  and  china 
with  which  one  of  the  ' '  turn-ups  *'  is  loaded 
down — odd  pitchers,  quaint  little  cups, 
cunning  creamers,  teapots,  and  sugar- 
bowls  ;  plates — pewter,  wood  and  earthen. 
We  pass  the  good  show  of  pewter — platter, 
porringer  and  tankard  for  white  earthen — 
once  was — a  greenish-yellow  white  now, 
very  old  plate  with  perforated  rim,  various- 
shaped  little  holes  four  or  five  deep  in  the 
rim,  running  around  it  in  a  wreath  ;  or  for 
one  of  the  pretty  pitchers,  with  raised 
groups  of  figures  on  either  side.  Many  a 
little  bric-a-brac  lies  on  these  and  the  tables 
around  the  room — a  mouse-trap,  half  the 
size  of  a  woman's  hand,  averred  "200 
years  old,  and  caught  the  first  mouse  that 
ever  lived  in  Connecticut,"  antique  wed- 
ding slippers — the  Doctor's  mother's,   80 


712 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


years  old  and  more  ;  knee-buckles,  button- 
moulds,  spoon-moulds,  the  great  horn- 
spoon:  Mrs.  John  Averiirs  wrinkled,  old 
3-quart  wooden  pail — crackly  paint — faded, 
crinkled,  wood  beginning  to  crumble,  "  200 
years  old ;  the  old  earthen  pepper-box, 
with  cork  in  the  bottom  and  top  that  does 
not  fall  off;  a  small  reed  for  weaving  hair- 
sieves;  a  minute  hair-sieve.  Ah,  me  !  the 
little  necessaries  once,  a  few  years  ago  the 
"nothings  of  the  garret,"  the  pet  of  the 
cabinet  now.  "That  old  flint  gun  went 
through  1812;"  that  drum  was  "captured 
from  the  British  in  the  battle  of  Bunker 
Hill,  went  through  the  Revolutionary  war, 
the  war  of  181 2,  and  the  last  war,  and  good 
for  another  fight." 

There  are  three  cases  of  minerals  ;  one 
large  case  of  lovely  specimens  in  coral 
from  the  West  Indies ;  one  or  more  tables 
with  West  India  curiosities  ;  carved  sailor- 
work  in  wood,  done  at  sea,  etc. ;  foreign 
curiosities,  loaned  or  placed  in  the  cabinet 
by  Mrs.  H.  H.  Walling,  the  Doctor's  step- 
daughter;  .sea-feathers  or  ferns — of  coral — 
sea -spiders  clinging  to,  on  the  walls; 
centre-table  of  the  cabinet  laid  with  old 
blue  and  parti-colored  crockery,  Chinese 
umbrella  over — on,  old  tin  candelabra, 
with  eleven  candles ;  opposite  wall  with 
hanging  cui^board ;  bottled  curiosities — 
horrible  lizards !  a  tape-worm  no  feet — It 
is  a  Doctor's  cabinet — a  hideous  young 
alligator  under  the  table  ;  yonder,  far  more 
agreeable  drawers,  with  about  700  Indian 
relics,  arrow-heads,  spear-heads,  gouges, 
battle-axe,  etc.,  from  Orange  Co.  mostly, 
and  from  Michigan ;  belt  of  wampum  in 
the  window ;  not  to  mention  spinning- 
wheels,  cards,  and  the  necessary  imple- 
ments for  home  manufacture  of  wool  and 
flax. 

I  also  noticed  a  piece  of  old  English 
plate  and-glass,  a  table-castor,  its  base 
decorated  with  pretty  raised  flowers  in  the 
silver,  that  belonged  to  the  late  Rev.  Dr. 
Edward  Bourns  —  was  his  mother's ;  a 
West  India  sword  of  intermingled  shark- 
teeth  and  fibre  of  wood  ;  wooden  trenchers, 
tin  dinner-horn,  large  ball-head  andirons, 
the  pleasantly-remembered,  old,  perforated 
tin   lantern   swinging   overhead,  like   one 


my  father  carried  when  I  was  a  child.  We 
have  no  more  time  to  rummage,  but  I  wish 
every  town  in  the  State  had  some  cabinet 
for  both  its  natural  and  its  old-time  curi- 
osities. 

MOSES   LANE — SUPPLEMENT    TO   P.    633. 

From  1878  to  1881,  he  was  Engineer  in 
charge  of  constructing  the  new  system  of 
water  supply  for  New  Orleans,  the  sewerage 
system  of  Buffiilo,  of  Pittsfield,  Mass.  ;  was 
a  member  of  the  commission  appointed  by 
the  city  of  Memphis  after  the  yellow  fever 
scourge,  to  perfect  the  drainage.  The 
whole  city  sewerage  plan  was  changed, 
and  Memphis,  in  the  opinion  of  eminent 
engineers,  made  one  of  the  healthiest 
cities  of  the  Union.  He  was  consulting 
engineer  for  St.  Louis  and  Boston ;  in 
Boston  the  originator  of  the  great  plan  of 
sewerage  being  perfected  there,  which  has 
attracted  the  attention  of  eminent  engi-' 
neers  throughout  the  world.  Mr.  Davis, 
assistant  to  Mr.  Lane,  made  out  the  plans, 
but  for  the  grand  idea  was  indebted  to 
Mr.  Lane.  He  suffered  an  apoplectic 
stroke,  and  died  two  weeks  after,  Jan.  25, 
1882.  He  leaves  a  widow,  three  daugh- 
ters and  one  son.  He  was  a  natural  gen- 
tleman, always  courteous  and  agreeable, 
and  one  of  the  oldest,  best  known  and  es- 
teemed members  of  the  American  Society 
of  Civil  Engineers. — Milwaukee  and  Re- 
fiiiblican  Neius. 

Authorship. — History  of  Northfield,  by 
Hon.  John  Gregory,  8  vo.  pp.  319;  Re- 
view of  Bp.  Hopkins  againt  Universalism, 
pp.  314 ;  Handbook  of  Design,  by  Gurdon 
P.  Randall,  architect  and  lecturer;  In- 
struction to  Town  Clerks,  by  Hon.  George 
Nichols  ;  Sermon  by  Rev.  A.  Smith,  1862  ; 
A  rhyming  geographical  thick  pamphlet, 
by  Rev.  Chas.  O.  Kimball ;  T/ie  Star  of 
Ven>to)it  and  CJi.  Messenger  from  1853, 
published  by  W.  Woodworth ;  R.  M. 
Manly  published  the  Vt.  Ch.  Messenger. 
Oilman  gives  The  Hatchet,  Jan.  1874; 
The  Thunderbolt,  Apr.  1875;  The  North 
Star,  I  copy,  Apr.  1878 ;  The  Amateur 
Herald,  May,  '78,  2  Nos.  Rev.  Guy  C." 
Sampson,  temperance,  anti-slavery  lec- 
turer and  editor,  who  lived  here  some 
years,  we  reserve  notice  of  for  Woodstock. 


PLAINFIELD. 


713 


PLAINFIELD. 

BY  DUDLEY  B.   SMITH,  M.  D. 

Plainfield  is  a  small  township,  which 
contained,  before  the  annexation  of  Goshen 
Gore,  about  9,600  acres.  Its  surface  was 
uneven,  but  no  more  so  than  the  average 
of  Eastern  Vermont.  It  contained  but 
little  waste  land,  and  was  upon  the  whole 
a  productive  tpwnship. 

Goshen  Gore,  by  Plainfield,  was  about 
3^  miles  long  by  i^  wide,  lying  east  of 
Plainfield,  and  containing  3,000  acres. 
But  very  little  of  it  is  suitable  for  tillage. 
At  one  time  it  contained  several  families, 
but  now  has  none.  It  formed  a  part  of 
the  town  of  Goshen  until  1854. 

It  was  annexed  to  Plainfield  in  1874.  It 
was  embraced  in  the  Yorkist  town  of 
Truro,  and  its  highest  mountain,  which  is 
called  from  that  circumstance  Mt.  Truro, 
was  measured  by  the  writer,  and  found  to 
be  2,229  f^^^  above  Plainfield  station,  or 
about  2,984  feet  above  the  sea. 

Winooski  river  tiows  about  li  mile 
through  the  north-western  corner  of  the 
town.  Soon  after  it  passes  the  line  into 
Plainfield,  it  runs  through  and  over  a  ledge 
of  rocks,  making  an  excellent  mill  priv- 
ilege, around  which  has  grown  up  the  vil- 
lage of  Plainfield. 

By  the  canal  survey  of  1826,  this  stream 
at  the  west  line  of  Plainfield  was  152  feet 
above  Montpelier,  546  above  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  and  636  feet  above  the  ocean.  By 
the  railroad  survey,  the  station  at  Plain- 
field  is  264  feet  above  the  meadow  near 
the  mill-pond  at  Montpelier,  or  about  755 
feet  above  the  ocean. 

The  Great  Brook  rises  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  town,  and  in  Harris  Gore, 
passes  into  Orange  and  returns,  flowing 
northerly  through  the  town,  and  enters 
the  Winooski  in  Plainfield  village.  Gun- 
ner's Brook  is  a  small  stream,  that  rises  in 
the  southern  part  of  the  town,  and  empties 
into  Stevens'  Branch  in  Barre  village. 

In  the  southern  part  of  the  town  on  the. 
banks  of  the  Great  Brook,  is  a  medicinal 
spring,  which  is  very  efiicacious  in  the  cure 
of  cutaneous  and  other  diseases.     Its  vir- 


tues are  largely  owing  to  the  presence  of 
sulphuretted  hydrogen  gas. 

The  town  of  Truro,  which  was  chartered 
by  New  York,  contained  22,000  acres.  Its 
form  resembled  a  carpenter's  square,  each 
limb  being  a  little  over  3  miles  wide,  and 
on  its  outer  or  longest  side,  nearly  6  miles 
long.  The  northern  part  of  what  is  now 
Barre  formed  the  southern  limb.  The 
eastern  part  of  Plainfield,  with  a  corner  of 
Orange,  the  eastern  or  northern  limb.  The 
western  part  of  Plainfield,  with  Montpelier 
and  East  Montpelier,  was  embraced  in  the 
town  of  Kingsboro,  and  contained  30,000 
acres,  and  was  chartered  to  John  Morin 
Scott. 

In  1773,  Samuel  Gale  commenced  the 
survey  of  one  or  both  of  these  townships, 
and  this  was  the  first  party  of  white  men 
known  to  have  passed  through  Plainfield. 
[For  a  biography  of  Gale  see  Hall's  His- 
tory of  Eastern  Vermont,  p.  643.]  In  Ira 
Allen's  History  of  Vermont  he  says  :  "  In 
the  summer  of  1773,  Ira  Allen,  learning 
that  the  land  jobbers  of  New  York  were 
engaged  in  surveying  near  the  head  of 
Onion  River,  started  with  a  party  from 
Colchester  in  pursuit  of  them.  He  passed 
through  Middlesex,  Kingsboro  and  More- 
town  to  Haverhill,  when  learning  of  the 
whereabouts  of  the  surveyor,  he  returned 
and  found  his  lines,  which  ^'^  followed  to 
near  the  north-east  cqrner  of  Montpelier, 
where  he  found  the  surveyor  had  just  de- 
camped, having  been  warned,  he  supposed, 
by  a  hunter  Allen  had  met.  According  to 
Allen's  field  book  the  surveyor's  camp  was 
on  a  meadow  near  the  north-east  corner  of 
the  old  town  of  Montpelier.  Kingsboro 
was  the  Yorkist  name  for  Washington. 
Moretown,  or  Moortown,  is  now  Bradford, 
and  not  the  present  town  of  that  name. 

Allen  then  passed  through  Barre  and 
Washington  to  Bradford,  and  returning 
with  a  knowledge  of  where  the  surveyor 
was  to  be  found,  passed  through  Plainfield 
on  his  return.  As  the  line  between  Truro 
and  Kingsboro  passed  nearly  through  the 
center  of  Plainfield,  a  large  part  of  Gale's 
surveys  must  have  been  in  this  town. 
John  Morin  Scott,  the  grantee  of  Kings- 
boro, was   a   member   of  the   New   York 


90 


X 


714 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Legislature  in  the  Revolution,  and  on  ac- 
count of  his  ownership  of  this  town,  was 
made  a  member  of  the  New  York  council 
of  safety,  to  represent  this  section  of  Ver- 
mont. He  received  $49.91  of  the  $30,000 
which  was  paid  by  Vermont  to  New  York 
to  indemnify  the  New  York  claimants. 

In  Aug.  1788,  James  Whitelaw,  of  Rye- 
gate,  James  Savage,  of  New  York,  and 
William  Coit,  of  Burlington,  caused  the 
tract  of  land  lying  between  Barre  and 
Marshfield,  Montpelier  and  Goshen  Gore, 
to  be  measured  and  the  bounds  marked, 
and  at  that  time  or  before,  it  received  the 
name  of  St.  Andrew's  Gore. 

They  also  measured  a  gore  near  Cam- 
bridge, of  10,000  acres,  one  near  Calders- 
burg,  now  Morgan,  of  1,500  acres,  some 
islands  in  Lake  Champlain,  containing 
1,500  acres,  also  islands  in  Otter  Creek, 
containing  30  acres,  making  23,030  acres, 
or  about  the  usual  size  of  a  township,  St. 
Andrew's  Gore  being  reckoned  at  10,000 
acres.  These  tracts  were  never  incorpo- 
rated into  a  town;  like  Goshen,  which 
was  composed  of  widely  separated  por- 
tions. The  different  parts  of  Whitelaw's 
grant,  as  it  was  called,  had  no  connection 
with  each  other. 

The  charter  of  these  lands  was  granted 
Oct.  23,  1788.  In  1788,  '90  and  '92, 
Whitelaw,  Savage  and  Coit  deeded  their 
claims  to  Ira  Allen,  of  Colchester,  brother 
of  Ethan,  and  to  Gamaliel  Painter,  of 
Middlebury,  the  chief  founder  of  Middle- 
bury  College.  Allen  and  Painter  gave  a 
verbal  agency  to  Col.  Jacob  Davis,  of 
Montpelier,  who,  upon  this  authority,  in 
May,  1793,  began  giving  warrantee  deeds 
of  these  lands  in  his  own  name.  The 
following  letter  i';  recorded  in  the  Plain- 
field  land  records  : 

MiDDLEHURY,  Apr.  5,    I795. 

S/r: — On  my  return  from  your  home,  I 
called  on  General  Allen.  He  seems  to 
think  that  it  would  be  altogether  guess- 
work to  divide  the  land  without  seeing  of 
it,  but  agreed  that  I  might  sell  adjoining  to 
the  land  sold  sufificient  to  make  up  my 
part  reckoning  of  it  in  quantity  and  qual- 
ity. And  I  wish  you  to  sell  to  any  person 
that  wants  to  purchase  and  make  good  pay. 
You  know  my  want  in  regard  to  pay  better 


than  I  can  write,  and  for  your  trouble  in 
■the  matter,  I  will  make  you  satisfaction. 
I  am,  sir.  Your  most  obedient, 

Humble  servant, 
Gama.  Painter. 

This  letter  proves  that  Allen  and  Painter 
then  recognized  Davis  as  their  agent  to 
sell  and  to  convey ;  for  no  deeds  had  then 
been  given  by  Allen  or  Painter  to  any  one, 
under  their  own  signature  and  seal.  One 
of  the  old  settlers  claimed  tliat  once  when 
Ira  Allen  was  in  Plainfield,  he  asked  him 
to  give  him  a  deed  of  a  lot  that  he  had 
bargained  for  of  Davis,  and  that  Allen 
said,  "  Let  Davis  give  the  deed,  he  has 
the  rest." 

At  last  differences  arose  between  Davis 
and  Allen,  and  in  1799,  Davis  ceased  to 
act  as  their  agent,  and  sued  Allen  before 
the  county  court  at  Danville,  and  in  1804, 
recovered  $2,500  on  this  suit,  and  a  part 
of  the  town  was  set  off  to  him  on  this  ex- 
ecution, and  Davis  from  Burlington  jail- 
yard  conveyed  it  over  again  to  those  to 
whom  lie  had  previously  given  deeds. 
About  the  same  time  the  University  of 
Vermont  recovered  $15,000  of  Ira  Allen, 
and  the  remainder  of  the  town  was  set  off 
to  them.  To  strengthen  their  title,  Davis 
and  the  settlers  twice  allowed  nearly  all 
of  the  town  to  be  sold  for  taxes,  once  on  a 
State  tax,  and  once  on  a  U.  S.  tax,  each 
man  bidding  off  his  own  farm. 

In  1802,  Ira  Allen  quit-claimed  his  rights 
in  this  town  to  Heman  Allen,  of  Col- 
chester. This  was  some  2  years  before 
the  lands  were  set  off  to  Davis  snd  the 
Univensity  on  executions  against  Ira  Allen. 
Davis  and  the  settlers  held  their  own 
against  Heman  Allen  until  Aug.  31,  1807, 
when  Allen  purchased  the  claim  of  the 
University,  and  five  days  after,  deeded  the 
whole  to  James  Savage,  of  Plattsburg, 
N.  Y.  Three  days  after  this.  Savage  gave 
Allen  a  power  of  attorney  to  dispose  of 
these  lands.  This  gave  Allen,  in  the 
name  of  Savage,  an  opportunity  to  com- 
mence suits  of  ejectment  against  the  set- 
tlers before  the  U.  S.  Courts  at  Windsor 
and  Rutland.  For,  by  the  constitution, 
citizens  of  one  state  may  sue  citizens  of 
another  in   the  U.   S.  Courts.     Probably 


PLAINFIELD. 


715 


the  transfer  to  Savage  of  this  claim  was  a 
sham,  to  enable  Allen  to  bring  his  suits 
where  the  covirt,  and  especially  the  jury, 
would  not  have  so  much  sympathy  for  the 
settlers  as  they  would  in  the  county  where 
they  resided.  This  trick,  if  trick  it  was, 
decided  the  contest.  In  1808,  Allen,  in 
the  name  of  Sa\age,  got  a  decision  of  the 
circuit  court  in  his  favor.  By  a  law  of 
1785,  a  person  making  improvements  on 
lands  to  which  he  supposed  he  had  good 
title,  had  a  claim  for  his  betterments,  and 
for  one-half  of  the  rise  in  value  of  the 
property  while  in  his  possession,  that  there 
would  have  been  had  there  been  no  im- 
provements. The  settlers,  therefore,  did 
not  have  to  pay  very  much  more  for  their 
lands  the  second  than  the  first  time  of 
purchase  ;  often  not  more  than  one-fourth 
of  its  value  at  that  time.  The  price  paid 
to  Davis  for  land  from  1793  to  1799  av- 
eraged about  $1.25  per  acre.  The  price 
paid  to  Allen  in  1808,  for  the  second  pur- 
chase, averaged  a  little  less  than  $3  per 
acre. 

Davis  died  within  the  limits  of  Burling- 
ton jail-yard  in  18 14,  having  been  sent 
there  for  debt  about  the  year  1802.  As 
this  was  several  years  before  the  Plainfield 
suits  were  decided,  it  could  not  have  been 
on  account  of  them  that  he  was  sent  there. 

It  is  the  opinion  of  Hon.  C.  H.  Heath 
and  others  who  have  investigated  the 
matter,  that  as  the  laws  are  now  adminis- 
tered, the  settlers  would  have  saved  their 
lands  by  a  suit  in  chancery ;  but  at  that 
time  very  little  was  done  in  this  court,  the 
powers  of  which  have  now  grown  to  be  so 
extensive. 

It  is  a  singular  coincidence,  perhaps  an 
example  of  retributive  justice,  that  in  the 
same  year  that  Jacob  Davis  died  in  the 
jail-yard  at  Burlington,  Ira  Allen  died  in 
poverty  at  Philadelphia,  where  he  had 
gone  to  escape  being  imprisoned  for  debt 
in  the  .same  jail. 

In  the  autumn  of  1791,  Seth  Freeman, 
of  Weldon,  N.  H.,  and  Isaac  Washburn, 
of  the  adjoining  town  of  Croydon,  came 
into  town  by  the  way  of  the  East  Hill  in 
Montpelier.  When  they  came  to  what  is 
now  the   Four   Corners    near   L.    Cheney 


Batchelder's  house,  Washburn  decided 
that  there  should  be  his  pitch.  They 
camped  for  the  night  by  the  side  of  a  hem- 
lock log  in  the  hollow  between  the  south 
district  school-house  and  Lewis  Durfee's. 
Freeman  chose  this  location.  The  next 
year  they  returned  and  made  these  pitches. 
When  a  man  made  a  clearing  before  the 
land  was  surveyed,  it  was  usual  when  the 
lines  were  run  to  survey  him  out  a  farm 
that  would  include  all  of  his  clearing  with- 
out regard  to  the  regular  lot  lines,  and 
such  a  piece  of  land  was  called  a  "  pitch." 

Before  the  town  was  surveyed  by  Jacob 
Davis  in  the  spring  of  1793,  there  were  five 
such  pitches  made.  They  were  Hezekiah 
Davis'  pitch,  304  rods  long,  31  wide, 
whicli  adjoined  his  farm  in  Montpelier, 
Joseph  Batchelder's  pitch  of  650  aqres, 
mostly  lying  in  the  S.  W.  corner  of  the 
town,  Theodore  Perkins'  pitch  of  100 
acres,  Isaac  W'ashburn's  pitch,  320  acres, 
Seth  Freeman's  pitch,  300  acres. 

There  was  also  a  gore  between  Free- 
man's pitch  and  the  5th  range  of  lots,  34 
to  40  rods  wide.  They  all  lay  in  the  S.  W. 
corner  of  the  town.  The  clearings  of 
1792  were  made  by  men  living  in  shan- 
ties, who  abandoned  the  town  in  the  fall. 
In  1793  they  returned,  and  perhaps  some 
of  them  brought  their  families ;  but  they 
all  removed  in  the  fall  excepting  the  fam- 
ily of  Theodore  Perkins,  and  Alden  Free- 
man, a  widower,  who  boarded  with  them. 

Theodore  Perkins  and  his  wife,  Martha 
Conant,  were  from  Bridgewater,  Mass. 
They  removed  to  Pomfret,  Vt.,  and  from 
there  to  Plainfield,  Mar.  10,  1793,  on  to  a 
clearing  said  to  have  been  begun  by  Ben- 
jamin Nash.  The  town  being  surveyed 
soon  after,  this  clearing  received  the  name 
of  Perkins' pitch.  July  8,  Perkins  built  a 
log-barn ;  but  his  house  seems  to  have 
been  built  before  he  moved  into  town.  In 
Dec.  1793,  Alfred  Perkins  was  born — 
the  first  birth  in  town.  The  last  that  was 
known  of  him  he  was  living  in  the  State  of 
New  York. 

In  the  spring  of  1794,  Isaac  Washburn's 
family  moved  into  town,  bringing  with 
them  Polly  Reed,  who  afterwards  married 
Benjamin  Niles,  and  was  grandmother  to 


7i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  present  Geo.  Niles  She  went  over 
to  Perkins'  house,  and  was  the  first  woman 
Mrs.  Perkins  had  seen  for  several  months. 
Whatever  scandalous  stories  may  have 
been  told  by  or  of  the  fair  sex  of  Plain- 
field  since  that  time,  that  winter  it  was 
certainly  free  from  gossiping  and  tattling. 
Nov.  1794,  Perkins  sold  his  claim  to 
Joshua  Lawrence,  who  procured  a  deed  of 
it  from  Jacob  Davis.  Perkins  removed  to 
Montpelier,  and  in  1798  went  to  Kentucky 
to  look  after  a  tract  of  several  thousand 
acres  of  land  that  had  fallen  to  him.  He 
wrote  home  that  his  title  was  good,  and 
that  he  was  coming  after  his  family.  Noth- 
ing more  was  ever  heard  from  him.  His 
friends  think  he  was  murdered.  His  widow 
removed  to  Lyme,  N.  H.,  in  1800. 

Theodore  Perkins  left  four  sons  and  one 
daughter:  Thomas,  who  died  at  Lyme, 
N.  H.,  in  1871  ;  Martin  P.,  who  lived  at 
Shipton,  Canada;  Elinas  P.,  lived  in 
Scituate,  Mass. — one  of  his  sons,  Thorhas 
Henry,  is  a  broker  in  Boston.  The  wife 
of  Rev.  A.  S.  Swift,  formerly  in  charge  of 
the  Congregational  church  in  Plainfield, 
was  Theodore  Perkins'  grandaughter. 

The  Perkins  house  was  on  the  flat,  east 
of  the  Joshua  Lawrence  house,  and  south 
of  the  present  road. 

Seth  Freeman  made  a  pitch  of  300  acres, 
and  purchased  lot  No.  i,  in  the  fourth 
range,  which  made  him  a  farm  of  430 
acres.  This  he  divided  among  his  broth- 
ers, apparently  as  he  thought  they  needed 
and  deserved.  He  was  one  of  the  two 
men  who  purchased  their  land  of  Davis, 
who  did  not  have  to  buy  it  again  of  Allen, 
having  gained  it  by  possession,  and  was 
for  a  time  called  rich,  but  became  poor 
and  moved  away  before  his  death. 

He  was  not  the  oldest  of  the  family,  but 
like  Abraham  was  the  head  of  it.  Unlike 
that  patriarch,  however,  he  cannot  be  the 
founder  of  a  nation,  for  he  left  no  children. 
His  father,  Ebenezer,  lived  with  him. 

Alden  Freeman  was  the  oldest  of  the 
family.  He  married  for  his  second  wife, 
Precilla,  daughter  of  Isaac  Washburn, 
which  was  the  first  marriage  in  town.  He 
lived  at  first  on  the  Courtland  Perry  place, 
(lot  I,  range  4,)    but  removed  to  the  N. 


W.  corner  of  Freeman's  pitch,  where  he 
built  the  Thompson  house,  now  in  ruins 
and  owned  by  Alonzo  Batchelder. 

He  had  a  large  family ;  Sally,  widow  of 
Thompson  and  of  Larabee,  of  Barre,  and 
Lucy,  widow  of  Lawson,  of  Barre,  and 
mother  of  George  Lawson,  were  his 
daughters. 

Ebenezer  Freeman  Jr.  lived  on  the  Court- 
land  Perry  farm.  In  his  barn  was  kept 
one  of  the  first  schools  in  town, — perhaps 
quite  the  first.  He  was  the  father  of  the 
late  Mrs.  Freeman  Landers. 

Edmund  Freeman  lived  on  the  S.  W. 
corner  of  Freeman's  pitch, — the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  son  Edmund. 

Isaac  Freeman  built  the  house  now 
owned  by  Elias  Gladding,  in  1806.  It  is 
on  the  N.  W.  corner  of  the  Freeman  lot 
(No.  I,  range  4).  He  taught  the  first 
school  in  town.  Mrs.  Daniel  A.  Perry  is 
his  daughter.  He  died  in  1813,  and  his 
widow  married  his  brother  Nathan,  who 
owned  the  S.  E.  corner  of  Freeman's 
pitch,  next  to  Barre  line,  and  to  J.  Wesley 
Batchelder's  farm.  Isaac  Freeman,  Mrs. 
N.  W.  Keith,  and  Mrs.  Carrol  Flood  are 
his  children. 

The  Batchelder  brothers,  Joseph,  Moul- 
ton  and  Nathaniel,  came  from  Lyndeboro, 
N.  H.  Nathaniel  lived  and  died  in  Barre, 
and  was  the  grandfather  of  the  late  J. 
Wesley  Batchelder,  of  Piainfield.  Lieut. 
Joseph  Batchelder,  then  42  years  of  age, 
commenced  his  clearing  in  the  S.  W.  cor- 
ner of  the  town,  in  1792,  and  moved  his 
family  permanently  on  to  it  in  1794. 

Nathaniel  Clark  had  commenced  a  clear- 
ing in  Montpelier,  on  the  farm  lately  owned 
by  his  son  George.  Neither  knew  of  the 
neighborhood  of  the  other  until  Clark  one 
day,  hearing  the  sound  of  chopping,  start- 
ed toward  it,  and  found  Batchelder  with  a 
company  of  stalwart  boys,  who  had  already 
made  a  large  slash. 

Lieut.  Joseph  Batchelder  had  two  daugh- 
ters, of  whom  Mary  or  Polly  was  born  in 
Plainfield,  July  26,  1795,  and  was  the  first 
girl  and  the  second  child  born  in  town. 
She  married  Henry  Parker,  of  Elmore. 
The  other  daughter,  Nabby  or  Abigail, 
married  Joseph  Glidden,  of  Barre. 


PLAINFIELD. 


717 


The  Lieutenant's  sons  were  :  Nathaniel, 
Isaac,  Joseph,  Jr.,  Alpheus,  William  and 
Josiah.  Of  these  Nathaniel  lived  for  a 
time  on  Batchelder's  pitch,  near  the  Four 
Corners,  next  to  Montpelier.  He  after- 
wards lived  on  the  spruce  flats  in  East 
Montpelier,  but  died  at  Seneca  Falls, 
N.  Y.,  in  1843.  The  late  Mark  Batchel- 
der  and  Mrs.  Sally  McClure  were  his  chil- 
dren. 

Alpheus  lived  near  his  father.  Ambrose 
Batchelder,  now  of  Barre,  is  his  grandson. 
Isaac  also  lived  on  Batchelder's  pitch 
for  a  time,  and  had  a  son,  Josiah,  2d,  who 
was  the  father  of  the  late  Harvey  Batch- 
elder,  of  Plainfield. 

William  forged  a  note,  intending  to  take 
it  up  before  it  became  due,  but  failed  to  do 
so.  He  was  arrested,  and  when  the  offi- 
cers were  taking  him  to  Barre,  cut  his 
throat  at  Joseph  Glidden's,  and  only  lived 
a  few  days  after.  I  should  not  have  men- 
tioned this,  had  not  the  family  been  so 
numerous  that  the  disgrace  if  divided 
among  them  will  not  be  much  for  each  one 
to  carry. 

Josiah  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  man 
in  Plainfield  who  paid  taxes  on  interest 
money.  He  got  thoroughly  rid  of  that  in- 
cumbrance, however.  He  was  the  "  Siah  " 
Batchelder  who  lived  and  died  at  Daniel 
Lampson's. 

Joseph  Batchelder,  Jr.,  lived  for  a  time 
on  that  part  of  Batchelder's  pitch  after- 
wards owned  by  Abram  Mann.  His  chil- 
dren were :  Alice,  wife  of  Stephen,  and 
mother  of  H.  Ouincy  Perry  ;  Joseph  Batch- 
elder,  the  3d ;  Nancy,  wife  of  Levi  Bart- 
lett ;  Fanny,  wife  of  Jonathan  Blaisdell,  of 
Albany ;  Abigail,  wife  of  Asa  Foster,  of 
Marshfield ;  Judith,  wife  of  Wm.  B.  Foss, 
and  Elijah  A.  Joseph,  the  3d,  was  killed  by 
his  horse  running  away  on  the  Lampson 
Hill,  in  1841.  He  was  living  at  that  time 
on  the  Ebenezer  Freeman  place.  His 
children  were :  Elvira  (Mrs.  Arouette 
Gunnison),  Charles  T.,  L.  Cheney,  Eras- 
tus  B.,  Adeline  (Mrs.  K.  P.  Kidder,  of 
Burlington),  Sewell,  killed  by  accident  in 
1856,  near  the  place  where  his  father  was, 
Alpheus,  Harriet  (Mrs.  Ira  Nichols),  and 
Wheeler  J. 


The  Lieutenant's  brother, Moulton  Batch- 
elder,  about  the  year  1795  settled  upon 
that  portion  of  Batchelder's  pitch  now 
owned  by  the  family  of  Wm.  B.  Foss.  He 
began  work  upon  it  in  1794,  his  family 
living  in  the  Wheaton  district  in  Barre, 
and  he,  passing  to  and  fro  by  the  guid- 
ance of  marked  trees.  His  children  were  : 
Nathaniel,  called  the  Captain  ;  James,  born 
in  Barre,  but  at  his  death  the  oldest  resi- 
dent, but  not  the  oldest  person  in  Plain- 
field  ;  Jeremiah,  called  Jerry,  of  Barre ; 
Jonathan  M.,  called  Jack,  who  died  on  the 
old  farm ;  Olena,  wife  of  Sewell  Sturte- 
vant,  the  veteran  schoolmaster  of  Plain- 
field  and  Barre. 

Capt.  Nathaniel  had  tliree  children, 
now  residents  of  Plainfield:  Alonzo  J., 
Elvira  (Mrs.  Mack),  and  Bridgman. 

James  had  3  children  :  James  Merrill, 
Daniel,  and  Mariam,  (Mrs.  Boyce,  of 
Waitsfield.) 

Jonathan's  children  were  :  Ira,  Harrison, 
Adeline  (Mrs.  Levi  Martin),  Susan  (Mrs. 
Arthur  Colburn),  Mary  (Mrs.  Wheeler), 
and  Moulton,  now  of  Lowell,  Mass. 

Isaac  Washburn  had  one  daughter,  Pre- 
cilla,  and  4  sons:  Isaac,  Jr.,  Miles,  Asa 
and  Ephraim. 

Isaac,  Jr.,  lived  with  his  father,  and 
opened  the  first  tavern  in  town.  It  stood 
at  the  Four  Corners,  near  L.  C.  Batch- 
elder's present  residence,  and  was  a  large, 
two-story  house,  never  entirely  finished. 

A.sa  lived  north  of  his  father's,  at  the 
top  of  the  hill,  on  the  place  now  owned  by 
Nathan  Skinner.  It  was  the  northern  part 
of  the  Washburn  pitch.  He  married  Polly, 
daughter  of  Esek  Howland. 

Miles  first  .settled  on  lands  of  his  own  in 
1798,  when  he  bought  of  Esek  Howland 
the  southern  part  of  lot  3,  range  2,  where 
he  built  the  first  blacksmith  shop  in  town. 
It  stood  near  the  angle  of  the  road  that 
now  leads  from  Willard  Harris'  to  the 
Barre  road.  In  1803,  he  sold  this  farm 
and  built  a  house  and  shop  in  the  village, 
on  the  north  bank  of  the  Great  Brook, 
near  the  present  tannery.  This  was  the 
first  shop  in  the  village.  Gamaliel  Wash- 
burn, of  Montpelier,  was  his  son.     Miles 


7il 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


died  at  New  Bedford  in  1823.  He  was  for 
many  years  constable  of  the  town. 

Ephraim  built  a  barn  west  of  his  father's, 
towards  East  Montpelier.  He  was  en- 
gaged to  be  married  to  a  daughter  of 
Esek  Howland.  To  get  money  to  build  a 
house,  he  went  to  sea,  and  the  ship  was 
never  heard  from.  It  was  supposed  to 
have  been  wrecked,  and  that  all  on  board 
perished. 

The  Washburns  were  not  able  to  pay 
for  their  lands  twice,  perhaps  not  once, 
and  in  1812,  Isaac,  Jr.,  and  his  father  sold 
their  farm  and  went  to  Lisle,' N.  Y.,and 
from  thence  to  Indiana,  but  never  again 
possessed  much  property.  Asa  Washburn 
followed  them  soon  after.  Of  the  four 
families  who  commenced  the  settlement  of 
the  town.  Perkins  soon  moved  away  ;  but 
some  member  or  members  of  each  of  the 
others  came  to  be  a  public  charge. 

Elijah  Perry,  of  Middleboro,  Mass., 
bought  100  acres  of  Batchelder's  pitch  next 
to  lot  I,  range  3.  June,  1823,  hi.s  daugh- 
ter, Sally,  committed  suicide  by  hanging, 
the  only  suicide  ever  committed  in  town. 
He  was  a  brother  of  Elder  James  Perry. 
His  son  Daniel  was  the  father  of  John 
Perry,  of  Rosette,  wife  of  Charles  T. 
Batchelder,  and  Harriet,  wife  of  Daniel 
Batchelder. 

The  five  pitches  of  the  town  all  lie  in  its 
south-western  corner.  The  remainder  of 
the  town  was  divided  by  the  survey  of 
1793  into  9  ranges — the  first  range  lying 
next  to  Montpelier.  Each  range  is  160 
rods  wide  excepting  the  9th,  which  is  next 
to  Goshen  Gore,  and  is  about  90  rods 
wide.  The  first  four  ranges  being  short- 
ened by  the  pitches,  contain  but  6  lots 
each,  lots  No.  i  in  these  ranges  lying  next  to 
the  pitches,  their  south-western  lines  are 
irregular.  No  two  lots  in  town  whose 
number  is  one,  are  of  the  same  size.  In 
range  5  they  commence  to  narrow,  until 
in  the  9th  they  come  to  a  point  at  the 
corner  of  the  town.  All  the  lots  adjoin- 
ing Marshfiekl  are  no  rods  wide. 

THE   ORKJINAL   SETTLERS 

upon  each  lot  in  town ;  also  the  present 
owner  of  a  part  of  the  same,  not  with  the 
same,  bounds  then  as  now,  for  the  farm  of 


Allen  Martin  was  the  last  one  in  town, 
sold  before  1800,  that  preserved  its  bound- 
aries unchanged. 

Lois  in  Range  i. — No.  1  was  first  owned 
by  Samuel  Nye,  of  Falmouth,  who  sold 
the  southern  portion  to  Hezekiah  Davis. 
It  is  now  owned  by  Nathaniel  M.  Clark, 
whose  wife  is  a  grand-daughter  of  Davis. 

Elijah  Nye,  of  Falmouth,  Ms,,  settled 
upon  No.  2.  He  sold  to  John  Chapman 
in  1808  and  moved  to  Calais.  His  daugh- 
ter Nabby,  born  Sept.  28,  1796,  was  the 
3d  child  born  in  town.  This  lot  was  di- 
vided into  the  Thomas  Whittrege  or  Dennis 
Vincent  farm,  and  the  Holmes  or  Dix  farm. 

Lot  No.  3  was  purchased  by  John  Chap- 
man, of  Montpelier.  When  St.  Andrew's 
Gore  was  incorporated  into  a  town,  he 
gave  a  set  of  record  books  to  the  town  to 
have  the  name  changed  to  Plainfield.  He 
was  originally  from  a  town  of  that  name. 
The  northern  part  of  this  lot  he  sold  to 
Benjamin  Niles,  Jr.,  father  of  Albert,  and 
grandfather  of  George  Niles. 

The  southern  part  Chapman  sold  to 
Levi  Willey,  of  Deerfield,  Mass.  This  is 
the  lower,  or  old  Ozias  Dix  farm. 

About  1811,  Willey,  after  a  visit  to 
Montreal,  was  taken  sick  with  the  small 
pox,  of  which  he  died.  His  attendants 
buried  him  near  the  top  of  the  hill,  close 
to  a  large  stone  near  Montpelier  line  ;  then 
killed  his  dog,  and  the  alarm  in  time 
abated. 

The  southern  part  of  No.  4,  now  owned 
by  Ira  Grey,  was  cleared  by  Benjamin 
Whipple.  He  was  town  representative, 
and  held  other  offices  in  town,  and  was 
much  respected.  He  removed  to  Middle- 
sex, Vt. 

John  Mellen  cleared  portions  of  lots  4, 
5  and  6,  including  the  meadow  now  owned 
by  Prentiss  Shepard ;  but  he  lived  on  the 
eastern  part  of  these  lots,  where  Willard 
S.  Martin  now  lives.  The  late  John  Mellen 
was  his  son. 

Benjamin  Lyon  settled  in  the  corner  of 
the  town,  on  portions  of  lots  5  and  6, 
which  is  now  called  W.  S.  Martin's  Enoch 
Cate  place. 

Range  2 — lot  I  was  nearly  obliterated  by 
Washburn's  pitch,  and  was  never  by  itself 


PLAINFIELD. 


719 


a  farm.  Its  form  is  like  a  Carpenter's 
square,  each  limb  being  about  30  rods 
wide  and  half  a  mile  long. 

Lot  2,  now  owned  by  Mrs.  Bridgman 
Batchelder,  was  settled  by  Thomas  Vin- 
cent, of  New  Bedford,  in  1796.  He  was  a 
prominent  business  man,  was  the  ist  town 
clerk,  4  years  representative,  and  became 
the  richest  man  in  town.  He  was  a  very 
zealous  member  of  the  Methodist  church. 
He  died  in  1848,  aged  79. 

Lot  3.  The  southern  part  was  settled 
by  Esek  Howland,  in  1797,  who  built  a 
log-house,  but  was  unable  to  pay  for  it, 
and  sold  the  next  year  to  Miles  Wash- 
burn. When  Harvey  Bancroft  was  fatally 
injured,  Howland  was  with  him,  and  car- 
ried him  on  his  back  100  rods  to  the  house. 
Mrs.  William  C.  Bartlett  is  his  grand- 
daughter. The  northern  part  was  settled 
in  iSor,  by  Ebenezer  Bennett.  He  es- 
tablished the  first  tannery  in  town,  be- 
tween the  Ezekiel  Skinner  house  and  the 
little  rivulet,  now  often  dry,  just  north  of  it. 

Lot  4  clearing  was  begun  by  Asa  Co- 
burn,  who  sold  to  John  and  Thomas 
Vincent,  and  removed  to  Cabot,  but  had 
to  pay  Allen  for  it  in  1808.  John  was  a 
less  active  business  man  than  his  brother, 
but  was  much  respected,  and  was  3  years 
representative.  His  children  were  :  John, 
Dennis,  Stephen,  of  Chelsea,  and  Desire 
(Mrs.  Coolidge  Taylor.) 

Lot  5.  The  south-western  part  was  first 
owned  by  Chester  House,  then  by  Benja- 
min P.  Lampson,  who  built  what  is  now 
S.  B.  Gale's  farm-house.  Charles  McCloud 
settled  upon  what  was  recently  Allen 
Martin's  farm.  His  house  was  in  the 
pasture  north  of  Martin's  house.  This  is 
the  north-western  part  of  lots  5  and  6. 

Robert  Mellen  was  a  brother  of  the 
first  John  Mellen.  He  owned  the  eastern 
part  of  lot  6 ;  also  lot  6  in  the  3d  range,  and 
in  fact  nearly  all  of  what  is  now  Plainfield 
village.  In  Sept.  1805,  as  he  was  riding 
home  from  North  Montpelier,  he  fell  from 
his  horse,  near  the  present  residence  of 
Alvin  Cate,  badly  injuring  his  ankle.  As 
they  were  carrying  him  home  on  a  litter 
made  of  a  straw  bed,  he  said,  "You  will 
have  to  bring  me  back  in  a  few  days,"  and 


they  did  so,  burying  him  in  the  graveyard 
there.  The  Mellens  were  from  the  old 
town  of  Derry,  N.  H.,  and  they  were  one 
of  the  Scotch  Irish  families  who  came 
from  Londonderry,  in  Ireland.  Robert 
Mellen's  house  was  where  the  Methodist 
parsonage  now  is,  and  his  log-house  was 
the  first  house  built  in  the  village. 

Range  3 — lot  i  was  first  owned  by  Lieut. 
Joseph  Batchelder,  but  was  first  settled 
upon  by  Jonathan  White,  of  Montpelier, 
who  afterwards  lived  in  various  parts  of 
the  town.  It  is  now  owned  by  Nathan 
Skinner. 

Lot  2  was  first  settled  by  Cornelius 
Young,  near  where  Willard  Harris  now 
lives.  His  father,  Ebenezer  Young,  broke 
into  a  store  at  North  Montpelier,  and  was 
sent  to  the  state  prison  at  Windsor. 

At  the  time  of  the  Plattsburg  invasion, 
Cornelius  borrowed  a  famous  fleet  horse  of 
Willard  Shepard,  Esq.,  and  passing  every- 
thing on  the  road,  was  present  at  the 
battle.  When  the  British  retreated,  he 
followed  after,  and  seeing  three  of  them 
leave  their  horses,  he  dashed  in  among 
them,  pistols  in  hand,  and  compelled  the 
whole  three  to  surrender  to  him  alone. 
At  least  one  of  them  was  an  officer,  and 
his  sword,  brought  home  by  Young,  is 
now  in  the  possession  of  Dudley  Perkins. 

His  last  days  were  less  glorious.  He 
was  appointed  a  custom  house  officer,  and 
had  various  encounters  with  smugglers,  in 
one  of  which  at  Cabot,  vitriol  was  thrown 
upon  him,  spoiling  his  clothes,  but  not 
injuring  his  person.  His  ignorance  of  the 
law  caused  him  to  commit  some  illegal 
acts  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  and 
the  resulting  lawsuits  ruined  him  pecun- 
iarily and  morally.  He  removed  to  the 
State  of  New  York,  and  for  some  felony 
was  sent  to  Clinton  prison. 

Lot  3.  The  south  part  was  first  pur- 
chased by  JosiAH  Freeman,  and  is  now 
owned  by  Elijah  A.  Batchelder.  The  north 
part  was  first  leased  by  James  Perry  ;  now 
by  Daniel  Batchelder. 

Lot  4  was  settled  by  Dea.  Nehemiah 
Mack,  whose  house  was  in  Ira  F.  Page's 
pasture,  east  of  his  house  now  occupied 
by  his  son  Dan.  Page.      Russell  Young, 


720 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


brother  of  Cornelius,  owned  45  acres  next 
to  Lampson's.  He  went  to  New  York, 
and  was  drowned  in  North  river  when 
trying  to  escape  from  the  police. 

Lot  5.  The  western  part  was  settled  by 
Joseph  Lampson,  who  was  for  many 
years  constable  of  the  town.  He  was  a 
weaver,  a  large  part  of  the  cotton  cloth 
used  in  town  being  woven  by  him.  Dan- 
iel and  Benjamin  P.  were  his  sons ;  Mrs. 
James  Batchelder and  Mrs.  Jeremiah  Batch- 
elder  his  daughters.  His  farm  is  now 
owned  by  Charles  Bancroft. 

Lot  6  is  in  the  village,  and  was  pur- 
chased of  Robert  Mellen  by  Charles 
McCloud,  2d,  and  mills  erected  in  1798, 
which  were  burned  the  same  year,  and  re- 
built by  McCIoud.  The  first  framed  house 
in  the  village  was  built  by  him,  where  the 
Methodist  church  now  stands,  and  is  the 
old  house  back  of  it  now  owned  by  Wm. 
Bartlett. 

The  first  store  was  a  gmall  one,  opened 
by  Joseph  Kilburn,  in  1803  or  '4,  on  the 
Silas  Willis  place,  near  the  Great  Brook. 
The  building  was  owned  by  Elias  Kings- 
ley,  the  miller,  and  when  sold  to  Ira  Day, 
of  Barre,  in  1807,  there  was  a  kiln  for 
making  earthen  ware  between  that  and 
the  brook.  The  next  store  was  opened  by 
Philip  Sparrow  about  1804,  upon  the  place 
where  Andrew  Wheatley  built  the  large 
brick  store  on  the  north  side  of  the  Meth- 
odist church  common. 

Silas  Williams  built  and  opened  the 
first  tavern  in  the  village,  which  is  now 
the  southern  part  of  S.  B.  Gale's  house. 

Shubael  Wales,  from  Randolph,  fath- 
er of  George  C.Wales,  built  the  first  cloth- 
ing works,  below  the  mills,  in  1805  or  '6. 

Am  ASA  Bancroft,  in  1809,  built  the 
first  trip-hammer,  south  of  the  Great  Brook 
and  just  above  the  present  tannery.  He 
was  a  son  of  Lieut.  John  Bancroft,  an  of- 
ficer in  the  Revolution. 

There  have  been  three  distilleries  in  the 
village— one  on  School  street,  in  Mrs. 
Chamberlain's  garden,  one  on  High  street, 
in  Wm.  Park's  garden,  and  one  east  of 
S.  B.  Gale's  house. 

The  cemetery  in  the  village  was  at  first 
just  S.  W.  of  the  railroad  station.  Among 


those  buried  there  was  Parnel.  daughter  of 
Joseph  Lampson.  She  was  the  betrothed 
of  Geo.  Rich,  who  disliked  the  place,  and 
gave  the  land  for  the  present  cemetery, 
and  those  interred  in  the  old  one  were  re- 
moved in  1814. 

Range  4. — lot  i,  was  settled  by  the  Free- 
mans,  as  mentioned. 

Lot  2.  Clearing  began  by  John  Nye,  of 
Falmouth,  but  first  settled  upon  by  Rich- 
ard Kendrick.  The  eastern  part  is  now 
owned  by  H.  O.  Perry;  the  western  by 
Hartwell  Skinner  and  Enos  P.  Colby's 
estate. 

Lot  3.  The  southern  part  was  settled 
by  David  Kinney,  and  is  now  owned  by 
Edward  Bartlett.  The  northern  part  at  a 
later  date  was  settled  by  Jonathan  White, 
and  is  now  occujMed  by  Solomon  Bartlett. 

Lot  4,  now  owned  by  Curiis  Bartlett, 
was  settled  by  Willard  Shepard,  of 
Sharon,  about  1796.  The  first  spring  he 
had  a  yoke  of  oxen  and  was  out  of  hay. 
He  took  his  oxen  and  sled,  went  to  the 
Four  Corners  near  Freeman's,  thence  to 
Montpelier,  and  up  Worcester  Branch  2 
miles,  where  he  got  a  load  of  Col.  Davis. 
By  the  time  he  got  home  nearly  one-half 
of  it  had  been  shaken  and  pulled  off  by  the 
bushes,  which  so  disgusted  him  with  that 
business  that  during  his  long  life  he  never 
after  bought  a  load  of  hay. 

He  had  a  small  fiock  of  sheep  which  he 
kept  near  the  house  for  safety.  One  night 
he  heard  the  wolves  howling,  and  in  the 
morning  found  they  had  killed  every  sheep. 

He  took  a  prominent  part  in  town  af- 
fairs, and  did  a  large  part  of  the  business 
of  justice  of  the  peace.  He  removed  to 
the  farm  partly  in  East  Montpelier,  now 
owned  by  his  son  Prentice,  where  he  died. 

Lot  5  is  divided  by  the  Great  Brook. 
.The  eastern  portion  was  settled  by  Nathan 
Jones.  The  lot  is  now  partly  owned  by 
N.  C.  Page  and  George  Huntoon. 

Lot  6,  now  owned  by  Orrin  Cree,  was 
cleared  by  John  Chase,  who,  unable  to 
pay  for  it  the  second  time,  went  West,  but 
returned  and  died  in  Calais. 

Range  5 — lots  i  and  2,  were  settled  by 
Judge  Bradford  Kinne,  about  1795. 
The  northern  part  he  deeded  to  Philoman 


PLAINFIELD. 


721 


and  Stephen  Perkins  in  1803,  but  they  oc- 
cupied it  in  1801.  This  part  is  now  owned 
by  A.  Gunnison;  the  southern  by  J.  Batch- 
elder.  Judge  Kinne  was  born  in  Preston, 
Conn.,  but  moved  here  from  Royalton, 
Vt.  He  was  the  most  prominent  man  in 
town,  and  with  good  advantages  might 
have  become  a  distinguished  lawyer.  The 
story  is  well  known  of  his  defending  Fisher 
in  the  suit  of  Cairnes  v.  Fisher,  for  assault, 
at  the  Caledonia  County  Court,  where  he 
directed  his  client  to  cry,  when  he  himself 
did.  Kinne  made  a  pathetic  appeal  to  the 
jury  in  favor  of  his  client,  who  was  a  poor 
man,  assuring  them  that  "every  dollar 
they  took  from  him,  they  took  from  the 
mouths  of  babes  and  sucklings,"  at  which 
dismal  prospect  Kinne  burst  into  tears, 
and  was  followed  by  such  a  tremendous 
boo-hoo  from  Fisher,  that  the  damages 
were  assessed  at  a  trifling  sum,  although 
the  assault  was  a  severe  one.  He  re- 
moved on  to  the  Washburn  pitch  in  1812, 
where  he  died  in  1828,  aged  64.  Brad- 
ford Kinne  Pierce,  the  distinguished  Meth- 
odist clergyman,  is  his  grandson. 

Lot  3  was  settled  by  James  Perry.  He 
was  one  of  the  first  deacons  of  the  Con- 
gregational church,  but  became  a  Metho- 
dist preacher.  His  farm  is  now  owned  by 
his  grandson,  Daniel  A.  Perry.  The 
northern  part  of  this  lot  was  settled  by  Ja- 
cob Perkins,  about  1799.  ^t  is  now  owned 
by  Emmons  Taft,  who  married  his  daugh- 
ter. 

Capt.  Jonathan  Kinne  was  born  in 
Preston,  Conn.,where  he  married,  and  mov- 
ed to  Bethel,  Vt.  He  lived  there  10  years. 
In  1793,  he  commenced  clearing  lot  No. 
4,  living  in  a  shanty  through  the  week  and 
going  to  Seth  Freeman's  on  Sundays.  He 
lived  thus  for  two  summers,  and  built  a 
framed  house  in  1794,  the  first  in  town, 
which  stood  nearly  opposite  to  H.  Q. 
Perry's  present  residence.  He  moved  his 
family  here  in  Feb.,  1795.  The  death  of 
their  little  boy,  Justus,  Mar.  6,  1796,  was 
the  first  death  in  town.  He  was  the  first 
minister  in  town,  and  preached  for  the 
Congregational  church  many  years.  He 
died  at  Berlin,  in  1838.  His  son,  Dea. 
Justus  Kinney,  lives  upon  this  farm. 

91 


No.  5,  is  lease  land.  The  southern  50 
acres  was  leased  by  Dea.  George  Ayers, 
who  was  the  progenitor  of  all  of  that  fami- 
ly in  this  town.  This  place  is  now  occu- 
pied by  Ira  Stone.  The  middle  50  acres 
of  this  lot  was  first  leased  by  Elder  James 
Perry's  son,  Elijah.  The  northern  50  acres 
was  leased  by  Aaron  Whittlesey.  The 
last  two  portions  are  now  leased  by  Levi 
Bartlett's  estate. 

Lot  6  is  lease  land.  The  eastern  por- 
tion was  first  leased  by  John  Moore,  now 
by  Hiram  G.  Moore.  The  western  portion 
was  first  leased  by  Levi  Bartleit,  now  in 
part  by  Lee  Batchelder. 

The  southern  ■  100  acres  of  lot  7  was 
settled  by  Asa  Bancroft,  of  Warmouth, 
Mass.,  about  1797.  About  the  year  1801, 
as  he  and  his  wife  were  coming  home,  one 
evening,  from  Jeremy  Stone's  the  wolves 
began  to  assemble  in  their  rear.  His  wife 
was  on  a  horse  carrying  their  infant  son, 
Tyler.  They  hurried  on  as  fast  as  possi- 
ble, but  the  wolves  came  so  near,  that  they 
abandoned  to  them  a  piece  of  fresh  meat 
that  Mrs.  Stone  had  given  them,  and 
reached  home  safely,  the  wolves  howling 
about  the  house  as  soon  as  they  entered 
it.  Mr.  Bancroft  was  frequently  elected 
to  town  offices,  and  died  in  1856,  aged  87. 
His  children  were,  Tyler,  William,  John, 
Eunice  (Mrs.  Ira  F.  Page)  and  Mrs.  Reu- 
ben Huntoon.  When  it  began  to  be  ru- 
mored that  the  settlers'  titles  were  not 
good,  he  went  to  Jacob  Davis',  who  gave 
him  security  on  other  property,  and  sent 
word  by  him  to  the  other  settlers,  that  if 
they  were  frightened  he  would  secure  them. 
This  quieted  their  fears,  and  only  one  or 
two  went. 

No.  8  was  settled  by  John  Moore. 
His  son,  Heman  Allen  Moore,  born  here, 
was  elected  a  representative  to  congress 
from  Ohio,  in  1844,  but  died  the  next  year. 
Wm.  Huntoon  now  owns  this  farm. 

Range  6,  lots  i,  2  and  3,  were  settled 
by  Joseph  Nye,  of  Falmouth,  Mass. 
Several  members  of  this  family  settled  in 
Plainfield,  or  owned  land  in  it.  They 
were  of  Welch  descent,  and  when  they  first 
came  to  Falmouth  wrote  their  name  Noye. 
Joseph    Nye    was   representative   5  years. 


X 


722 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


justice  of  the  peace  a  long  time,  &c.  His 
son,  Vinal,  died  many  years  since,  leaving 
several  children,  Irving,  George,  Alanson, 
and  Mary,  wife  of  Edward  Bartlett.  Jo- 
seph's daughter,  Sally,  married  Nathaniel 
Townshend,  Cynthia,  Daniel  Gunnison, 
Augusta,  Elijah  A.  Batchelder.  Lots  i 
and  2  are  mostly  owned  by  Dudley  B. 
Smith.     Seth  F.  Page  lives  upon  No.  3. 

No.  4  was  settled  by  Elder  James  Perry's 
son  Stephen,  in  1818,  who  built  the  plas- 
tered house  standing  upon  it,  now  owned 
by  Alba  F.  Marty n. 

No.  5,  the  southern  part  now  owned  by 
A.  F.  Martyn,  was  settled  by  Joseph  F. 
Ayers,  who  moved  to  Thetford,  and  thence 
to  Manchester,  N.  H.  The  northern  part, 
now  owned  by  Nathaniel  Townsend,  was 
settled  by  Gideon  Huntington,  father  of 
Amasa,  and  of  Mrs.  Leonard  Moore,  and 
uncle  to  David  and  Samuel  Huntington, 
of  Marshfield. 

No.  6  was  settled  by  Frank  Crane  and 
Joseph  Deering.  It  is  now  mostly  owned 
by  N.  Townsend. 

Harvey  Bancroft,  from  Ware,  now 
Auburn,  Mass.,  settled  upon  lot  7,  in  the 
6th  range,  part  of  lot  7  in  the  7th  range, 
and  a  part  of  lot  6  in  the  8th  range,  next 
to  the  Bancroft  pond.  He  was  clerk  under 
the  attempted  organization  of  St.  An- 
drews Gore  as  a  town.  His  house  was 
opposite  to  the  burying -ground  near 
Newcomb  Kinney's.  While  clearing  some 
land,  about  20  rods  easterly  of  Benjamin 
F.  Moor's  present  residence,  he  fell  a  tree 
upon  a  small  one,  which  fell  across  another. 
The  small  one  flew  up  striking  him  on  the 
chest.  He  died  July  8,  1797,  a  few  days 
after  the  injury,  aged  27.  He  left  a  wife 
and  two  small  children.  One  died  young, 
the  other  was  Dr.  Nathaniel  Bancroft. 
His  widow,  Polly  Carrol,  married  Sanford 
Kinne,  a  brother  of  Jonathan  and  of  Brad- 
ford Kinne.  Sanford  purchased  nearly  all 
the  land  formerly  owned  by  Harvey  Ban- 
croft, but  upon  the  death  of  his  wife,  in 
1 8 14,  he  went  West,  and  his  fate  is  un- 
known.    Newcomb  Kinney  is  his  son. 

No.  8  was  settled  by  Ezra  Bancroft, 
father  of  Horace  Bancroft,  now  of  Barre, 
but   it    was   first   owned    by  his    brother, 


Aaron,  of  Boston.  It  is  now  occupied  by 
Duron  Norcross. 

Range  7,  lots  i,  2,  3  and  4,  were  pur- 
chased of  Davis  by  Enos  Colby,  of  Hawk, 
N.  H.  He  made  a  clearing  and  built  a 
house  in  1800,  some  fourth  of  a  mile  west 
of  the  Great  Brook,  on  land  now  owned 
by  C.  H.  Heath.  He  stayed  in  it  one 
night,  and  then  went  back  to  N.  H.,  leav- 
ing it  in  care  of  Moulton  Batchelder.  One 
Currier  without  leave  moved  into  the 
house,  and  was  sued  off  by  Heman  Allen, 
who  found  when  too  late  that  Currier  was 
not  holding  under  Colby,  who  thereby  got 
it  by  possession  against  Allen.  Lots  i 
and  2  are  now  mostly  owned  by  his  grand- 
son, Moses  Colby.  No.  i  is  only  20  rods 
wide  ;  3  and  4  are  partly  owned  by  Henry 
Camp,  whose  wife  is  Colby's  grand- 
daughter. 

Lot  5  is  mostly  lease  land,  and  portions 
of  it  were  rented  to  Eli  Boyd,  Isaac  Perry, 
James  Perry,  Jr.,  and  the  N.  E.  corner 
next  to  Moses  Bancroft's  was  sold  to 
Patrick  Reed.  It  is  now  leased  to  Nathan 
Hill,  Seneca  S.  Bemis  and  Lyman  Moore. 

No.  6  was  probably  first  owned  by 
Harvey  Bancroft.  It  was  on  the  north- 
east corner  of  this  lot  that  he  was  at  work 
when  fatally  injured.  It  is  now  owned  by 
Joel  Sherburn,  Baxter  Bancroft  and  Henry 
Moore. 

No.  7  was  first  owned  by  Harvey  Ban- 
croft and  Charles  Bancroft.  Lee  Martin's 
farm  is  a  part  of  it. 

No.  8  was  settled  by  Zopher  Sturte- 
VANT,  of  Worcester,  Mass.  He  was  per- 
suaded by  his  friend  Harvey  Bancroft  to 
come  up  and  buy  a  farm  next  to  him.  He 
returned  to  Mass.  to  earn  money  to  pay 
for  it,  and  while  there  heard  of  Bancroft's 
death.  Sewell  Sturtevant  was  his  son.  It 
is  now  occupied  by  Newcomb  Kinney. 

Range  8 — lots  i  and  2,  were  purchased 
and  settled  by  Stephen  Perkins,  who 
built  a  saw-mill  in  1812-13.  He  also  had 
one  set  of  mill-stones.  In  the  summer  of 
1S57,  the  banks  by  the  side  of  the  dam 
gave  way,  and  the  pond  of  about  7  acres 
was  discharged  in  a  short  time,  carrying 
off  every  bridge  on  the  Great  Brook.  It 
was  repaired,  but  gave  way  again  before 


PLAINFIELD. 


m 


the  pond  was  quite  filled.  It  was  again 
repaired  more  thoroughly,  and  held  until 
a  heavy  rain  in  the  spring  of  1869  carried 
off  the  new  dam  and  all  the  bridges  below. 
It  was  repaired,  and  when  the  pond  was 
about  half  filled  it  burst  through  the  quick- 
sands under  the  dam,  and  no  more  efforts 
to  repair  it  were  made.  R.  L.  Martin  then 
put  in  a  steam-mill,  which  was  burned  in 
1871,  and  he  removed  the  remains  of  it  to 
Harris  Gore.  Dudley  Perkins  and  Silas 
Worthen  occupy  portions  of  these  lots. 

No.  3  was  settled  by  Ralph  Chamber- 
lain, of  Hanover,  N.  H.,  and  is  now  owned 
by  his  grand.son,  Jeremy  Stone  Chamber- 
lain. Plainfield  Sulphur  Springs  are  on 
this  lot. 

No.  4  was  settled  by  David  Benedict, 
of  Randolph,  who  sold  the  southern  part, 
now  owned  by  Scott  and  Smith,  to  Amasa 
Bancroft,  and  the  northern  part,  now 
owned  by  Goodrich,  to  Robert  Carson. 
Feb.  29,  18 16,  an  old  house  on  this  lot, 
occupied  by  Moses  Reed,  and  used  for  a 
school-house,  caught  fire,  and  a  little  son 
of  Reed  was  burned  to  death.  David, 
Patrick  and  Woodman  Reed  were  his 
sons ;  Joanna  (Mrs.  William  Parks)  his 
daughter. 

No.  5  was  settled  by  Charles  R.  Wool- 
son,  who  sold  the  northern  part  to  his 
wife's  father,  Moses  Bancroft,  of  Ward, 
Mass.,  in  Nov.  1796.  Woolson  was  not 
able  or  willing  to  pay  for  his  land  the  sec- 
ond time,  and  removed  to  New  York, 
where  he  became  rich.  His  son  Ephraim 
getting  homesick,  returned,  and  bought 
back  the  old  farm,  on  which  he  died.  It 
is  now  owned  by  Erastus  Batchelder. 
Mary,  wife  of  S.  O.  Goodrich,  and  Sarah, 
wife  of  Joseph  Lane,  are  Ephraim's  daugh- 
ters. 

Moses  Bancroft  had  4  sons :  John, 
Charles,  Chester  and  Baxter.  John  had 
2  sons  :  Lewis,  of  Calais,  and  Preston,  of 
Marshfield.  Charles  had  a  son  Charles, 
and  Mrs.  Wm.  Skinner  and  Mrs.  Lewis 
Wood  are  his  daughters.  Baxter  had  but 
one  child,  Mo.ses. 

Baxter  has  resided  in  Plainfield  longer 
than  any  other  person — 84  years.  He  says 
that  as  late  as  Oct.  1804,  neither  his  father 


nor  any  of  the  neighbors  had  chimneys  to 
their  houses.  Stones  were  laid  up  into 
some  form  of  a  chimney  for  a  few  feet,  and 
the  smoke  allowed  to  go  out,  if  it  would, 
through  a  hole  in  the  roof.  The  roof  for 
years  was  made  of  large  pieces  of  elm 
bark,  tied  on  with  strings  of  the  same. 
Sometimes  a  storm  in  the  night  would 
blow  ofif  these  pieces,  and  his  father  would 
get  up  and  tie  them  on  again.  It  would 
often  get  on  fire,  and  once  the  house 
burned  down. 

One  summer  thev  had  nothing  to  eat  but 
milk  for  a  long  time,  until  Willard  Shep- 
hard  gave  them  a  bushel  of  rye  very  badly 
sprouted,  but  some  of  this  ground  and 
cooked  tasted  the  best  of  anything  he 
ever  ate. 

The  senior  Moses  had  a  brother,  Lieut. 
John  Bancroft,  a  Revolutionary  soldier, 
who  began  a  clearing  on  Prentice  Shep- 
hard's  farm  (lot  5,  range  i),  but  soon  re- 
moved to  the  village.  Amasa  Bancroft 
was  his  son.  C.  Watrous  and  Carlos  Ban- 
croft, of  Montpelier,  were  his  sons. 

No.  6  contains  the  Bancroft  Pond,  and 
was  purchased  by  Harvey  Bancroft. 

No.  7  was  settled  by  Charles  Bancroft, 
and  is  now  owned  by  Gardner  Heath. 

No.  8  is  mostly  a  swamp. 

Range  9.  Lot  i  is  no  rods  long,  and 
7  rods  wide  at  one  end,  and  a  point  at  the 
other.  It  was  never  sold  by  the  original 
proprietors. 

No.  2  was  a  part  of  Stephen  Perkins' 
purchase,  and  is  now  owned  by  his  grand- 
son, Emory  F.  Perkins. 

No.  3  was  settled  by  David  Reed,  of 
Hanover,  N.  H.,  in  1809,  and  is  now  own- 
ed by  David  Perkins. 

David  Reed  and  Ralph  Chamberlain 
married  sisters  of  Israel  Goodwin,  who 
lived  many  years  in  this  town,  but  remov- 
ed to  East  Montpelier.  T.  Goodwin 
Reed  is  David's  son. 

No.  4,  now  owned  by  Erastus  Batchel- 
der, was  settled  in  1796,  by  James  Bout- 
well,  of  Barre,  a  relative  of  Col.  Levi 
Boutwell,  of  Montpelier. 

Oct.  9,  1804,  snow  fell  to  a  great  depth, 
some  3  or  4  feet.  One  Richardson,  of 
Orange,  started   a  bear  out   of  his    corn- 


X 


724 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


field,  and  followed  it  to  Capt.  BoutwelFs 
and  returned.  Boutwell,  Robert  Carson, 
and  Jeremy  Stone,  pursued  it  to  the  round 
mountain,  north  or  east  of  Pigeon  pond, 
where  they  treed  her.  Boutwell  fired, 
wounding  it  in  the  neck,  it  ran  by  Carson 
who  fired  and  missed.  Stone  followed 
after  with  an  ax,  having  no  gun,  setting  on 
the  dogs.  Stone  soon  saw  the  bear  re- 
turning, perhaps  to  defend  her  cubs,  and 
got  upon  a  rock,  and  when  the  bear  at- 
tempted to  get  on,  tried  to  split  its  head 
open  with  the  ax,  but  the  bear  instantly 
knocked  it  from  his  hand,  mounted  the 
rock,  pushed  Stone  off  from  it  into  the 
snow,  and  then  over  on  to  his  back, 
getting  top  of  him.  Stone  put  up  his  hand 
to  push  its  head  away  from  his,  when  his 
little  finger  went  into  the  bear's  mouth, 
which  began  to  chew  it.  At  this  moment, 
Boutwell,  who  had  reloaded  and  come  up, 
fired,  the  bear's  head  being  only  a  few 
inches  from  Stone's,  and  bruin  fell  dead. 

Another  time  Boutwell  went  up  on  to 
the  high,  round  topped  hill  north-east  of 
his  house,  after  partridges.  He  found  a 
bear  up  a  tree.  His  gun  was  loaded  with 
shot  and  he  had  no  ball.  He  drawed  the 
shot  and  whittled  a  beach  plug,  with  the 
end  pointed,  and  loaded  with  this.  The 
first  shot  had  no  effect,  but  the  second 
killed  the  bear. 

He  was  captain  of  the  first  militia  com- 
pany in  town ;  was  one  of  the  selectmen 
from  1799,  until  his  death,  in  1 813,  of 
typhoid  fever,  at  that  time  very  prevalent 
and  fatal.  He  was  a  man  whose  character 
was  almost  above  reproach  ;  but  his  dog 
was  even  more  strict  in  his  faith  and  prac- 
tice than  his  master.  The  dog  had  learn- 
ed to  observe  the  Sabbath,  as  intelligent 
dogs  in  Christian  families  often  do,  and 
never  attempted  to  follow  his  master  on 
that  day.  Once  when  Boutwell  was  on 
his  way  to  church,  he  met  a  party  in  pur- 
.suit  of  a  bear,  and  they  wished  for  the 
dog,  which  was  a  famous  hunter.  Bout- 
well went  back  with  them  to  the  house, 
and  ordered  the  dog  to  follow  them,  but  it 
refused.  He  called  it  to  follow  him,  but 
it  would  not.  He  then  took  off  his  Sun- 
day clothes  and  put  a  gun  on  his  shoulder. 


when  the  dog,  probably  thinking  that  it 
was  not  Sunday  after  all,  followed.  Bout- 
well was  justly  punished  for  his  duplicity 
by  not  getting  the  bear.  The  dog  after- 
ward followed  a  deer  into  the  woods,  and 
was  never  seen  again. 

Lot  5  was  first  purchased  of  Heman 
Allen  by  Eathan  Powers,  who  hired  men 
to  cut  and  burn  wood  for  the  ashes.  Syl- 
vester Grinnel,  a  quaker,  first  resided  up- 
on it. 

Lot  6  was  settled  by  Moses  Bancroft's 
son,  John.  Charles  Morse  owns  a  portion 
of  it. 

No.  7  was  settled  by  Jeremy  Stone,  of 
Ward,  Mass.,  in  1796.  He  chose  this 
place  because  he  expected  it  would  be  near 
a  good  road.  The  legislature,  in  1797, 
appointed  a  committee  to  work  a  road  from 
Chelsea  court  house  to  Danville  court 
house.  This  committee  reported  to  the 
county  court  at  Chelsea,  in  1799,  that  they 
had  built  the  road  through  Washington 
and  Orange.  A  little  work  was  done  on  it 
in  Goshen  gore,  near  Plaiufield  line,  and 
the  work  abandoned.  Ira  Stone,  Rev. 
Jesse  Stone  of  Maine,  and  Jeremy  Stone 
are  his  sons ;  Mrs.  Hial  P.  Chamberlain 
and  Mrs.  Marian  Stone  Tarbell,  his  daugh- 
ters. His  farm  is  now  owned  by  Ira  Rob- 
inson. 

Lot  8  was  settled  by  Daniel  Rice,  of 
Barre,  in  1825.  Dudley  Marshall  now  re- 
sides upon  it. 

According  to  Thompson's  Gazetteer,  the 
town  was  organized  Apr.  4,  1796,  under 
the  name  of  St.  Andrew's  gore,  and  Har- 
vey Bancroft  elected  town  clerk.  This  is 
probably  true,  but  it  was  illegal,  a  gore 
not  having  the  power  to  form  a  town  or- 
ganization. Nov.  6,  1797,  the  gore  was 
incorporated  into  a  town  by  the  name  of 
Plainfield,  and  the  town  meeting  held  at 
James  Perry's,  in  Mar.,  1798,  is  the  first  of 
which  there  is  now  any  record,  but  was  not 
the  first,  because  called  by  Joshua  Law- 
rence, James  Perry,  Moulton  Batchelder, 
as  selectmen  of  Plainfield.  At  this  meet- 
ing, Thomas  Vincent  was  elected  town 
clerk.  Town  meetings  after  this  were  held 
at  Capt.  Jonathan  Kinne's  until  1823, 
when  they  were  held  in  the  village. 


PLAINFIELD. 


725 


In  1798,  ''99  and  1800,  the  road  tax  vo- ' 
ted    was    4   days   work  for  each  poll.     In 

1798,  the  General  Assembly,  at  the  request 
of  the  town,  voted  a  tax  of  one  cent  per 
acre,  which  was  to  be  used  to  build  roads. 
In  1807.  another  of  three  cents  per  acre 
was  laid  upon  Plainfield.  At  that  time, 
improved  lands  were  listed  at  $1.75  per 
acre,  unimproved  not  at  all.  Polls  at  $20, 
a  yoke  of  oxen  $10,  houses  worth  less  than 
$1000,  2  per  cent,  over"$iooo,  3  per  cent. 
Interest  money  6  per  cent. 

The  first  road  in  town  was  worked  from 
Seth  Freeman's  north  westerly  to  Hezekiah 
Davis'  in  Montpelier,  as  early  as  1794,  but 
no   highways   were   laid   out   until    June, 

1799,  when  this  and  several  others  were 
laid. 

In  1798  and  99,  the  town  sent  no  repre- 
sentative, probably  because  a  town  with  a 
grand  list  of  less  than  $3,200  was  not 
"  doomed"  to  pay  a  state  tax,  if  it  sent  no 
representative. 

Thomas  Vincent  was  a  federalist.  All 
the  other  representatives  were  republicans, 
until  the  reorganization  of  the  parties 
under  Jackson  and  Adams.  After  that 
they  were  all  democrats  except  John  Vin- 
cent, antimason,  until  the  formation  of  the 
antislavery  party,  which  elected  D.  A. 
Perry.     Frank  Hall  was  the  only  whig. 

In  Sept.  1801,  Isaac  Tichenor  received 
10  votes  for  governor — all  that  were  cast. 
In  1802,  Isaac  Tichenor  had  25,  Jonas 
Galusha  23,  which  was  the  largest  vote 
cast  for  several  years. 

PHYSICIANS. 

The  first  physician  in  town  was  Am- 
herst Simons,  from  Windham,  Ct.  He 
studied  with  Dr.  Glysson,  of  Williams- 
town,  and  came  'to  Plainfield  in  1801. 
For  many  of  the  last  years  of  his  life  he 
was  blind. 

Dr.  Ebenezer  Conant  studied  with 
Dr.  Robert  Paddock,  of  Barre,  and  came 
to  Plainfield  in  1809.  In  1832  he  remov- 
ed into  Marshfield,  about  2  miles  from 
Plainfield  village,  near  Perkins'  mill,  but 
returned  to  Plainfield  after  a  few  years, 
where  he  died. 

Dr.  Nathaniel  Bancroft  was  brought 
to  Plainfield   by  his  father,   Harvey  Ban- 


croft, from  Ward,  Mass.,  when  an  infant. 
When  12  years  old  he  went  to  Montpelier, 
where  he  attended  school,  and  at  last  stud- 
ied medicine  with  Dr.  Lamb.  About  1822, 
he  came  to  Plainfield  to  practice,  where  he 
remained  until  185 1,  when  he  went  to 
Ohio,  where  he  stayed  2  years,  thence  to 
Belvidere,  111.  His  pungent  and  witty 
sayings  are  still  often  quoted  by  his  old 
friends  in  Plainfield. 

Dr.  Daniel  Kellogg  came  to  Plain- 
field  in  1834,  and  built  the  brick  house 
east  of  the  hotel.  His  health  failing  he 
removed  to  Berlin  in  1836,  where  he  soon 
died. 

Dr.  Jared  Bassett  came  to  Plainfield 
in  1839,  and  removed  to  Northfield  in 
1843,  and  thence  to  Chicago. 

Dr.  Daniel  Bates  was  here  from  1845 
to  185 1. 

Dr.  Stephen  Bennett  from  185 1  to 
1856,  when  he  removed  to  Ohio. 

Dr.  Phineas  Kellogg,  of  iJrookfield, 
commenced  practice  htre  in  1851.  He 
died  of  diphtheria  Apr.  10,  1862,  age  39. 

Dr.  Walter  S.  Vincent,  of  Chelsea, 
now  of  Burlington,  had  his  residence  here 
for  several  years,  but  a  large  part  of.  the 
time  he  was  surgeon  in  the  Union  army  in 
the  war  of  the  rebellion. 

Dr.  Dudley  B.  Smith,  of  Williams- 
town,  came  to  Plainfield  in  1856,  and  Dr. 
W.  F.  Lazell,  of  Brookfield,  came  in  the 
fall  of  1867.     They  remain  here  now. 

LAVi^YERS. 

The  first  lawyer  in  town  was  Charles 
RoBY,  who  came  about  the  year  1812 — 
not  long  after  the  result  of  the  Allen  law- 
suit had  put  a  mortgage  on  nearly  every 
farm  in  town.  Probably  the  people  had 
no  desire  or  money  for  any  more  lawsuits 
at  that  time,  as  he  left  soon. 

In  1828,  Azel  Spalding,  of  Montpe- 
lier, now  of  Kansas,  was  here  one  year. 

In  1833,  Sylvester  Eaton,  of  Calais, 
came  and  stayed  until  1838. 

Stillman  H.  Curtis  was  here  from 
1838  to  1843. 

J.  A.  Wing  was  here  from  1836  to  1852, 
when  he  went  on  to  his  farm  on  Maple 
Hill,  in  Marshfield,  where  he  stayed  about 


726 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


3   years,    then  moved  to  Plainfield,    and 
from  here  to  Montpelier  in  1857. 

In  1S43  Lewis  Chamberlain  came. 
He  died  in  Aug.  1863,  of  dysentery,  which 
was  very  prevalent  and  fatal  at  that  time, 
there  being  18  deaths  from  that  disease,  16 
of  which  were  within  or  near  the  village. 

Charles  H.  Heath  came  here  in  1859, 
and  removed  to  Montpelier  in  1872. 

S.  C.  Shurtleff  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  law  here  in  1864,  and  removed  to 
Montpelier  in  1877. 

O.  L.  Hoyt  came  here  in  1873,  and 
still  remains. 

the  first  church 
was  organized  Nov.  13,  1799,  at  Jonathan 
Kinne"s,  under  the  name  of 

the   church    of    CHRIST    IX    PL.\INFIELD. 

The  council  called  to  organize  this 
church  was  composed  of  Rev.  Richard 
Ransom  of  Woodstock,  Rev.  John  Ran- 
som of  Rochester,  Rev.  James  Hobart  of 
Berlin,  Dea.  William  Wood  of  Wood- 
stock, Capt.  Peter  Salter  of  Orange.  Dea. 
Judah  Willey,  Henry  Taft  and  Joseph 
Sterling,  of  Barre,  were  invited  to  join  the 
council.  The  members  embodied  into  a 
church  were  only  six  :  Capt.  Jonathan 
Kinne,  James  Perry,  James  Boutwell,  Mrs. 
Esther  Perry,  Deborah  Boutwell,  Judith 
Batchelder.  Others  joined  soon  after. 
In  June,  1801,  they  passed  this  vote  : 

"  Whereas  some  members  of  the  church 
are  dissatisfied  with  the  articles  of  faith. 
Therefore,  Voted  that  the  aggrieved  mem- 
bers have  liberty  to  select  such  articles  as 
they  are  satisfied  with,  which  when  select- 
ed shall  be  considered  the  church  articles 
of  faith,  not  to  prevent  any  from  believing 
them  as  they  now  are." 

This  compromise  did  not  prevent  the 
Methodist  portion  of  the  church  from 
seceding  in  June,  1802,  and  forming  anoth- 
er church.  Those  who  left  to  join  the 
Methodist  were,  Dea.  James  Perry,  Esther 
Perry,  Bradford  Kinne,  Ebenezer  Free- 
man, Esther  Freeman,  John  Chase,  and 
Richard  Kendrick.  Those  who  remained 
with  the  original  church  were,  Dea.  Nehe- 
miah  Mack,  Moses  Bancroft,  Sally  Ban- 
croft, James  Boutwell,  Deborah  Boutwell, 
Jonathan    Kinne,    Lydia    Kinne,    Sanford 


Kinne,  Polly  Kinne,   Zopher  Sturtevant, 
Polly  Sturtevant,  David  Bancroft. 

The  same  year  Charles  R.  Woolson 
was  unanimously  expelled  from  the  church 
for  "  neglect  of  family  prayer,  and  public 
worship  on  Sunday  and  church  meetings." 
Moulton  Batchelder  having  joined  the 
Methodists,  on  Sunday,  Jan.  22,  1 8 16,  the 
following  sentence  of  excommunication 
was  read  before  the  assembled  congrega- 
tion : 

'•  Whereas  our  brother,  Moulton  Batch- 
elder,  has  violated  his  solemn  covenant 
obligations  by  neglecting  the  stated  meet- 
ings of  the  church  on  the  Sabbath  and  at 
other  times,  and  going  after,  as  we  think, 
false  teachers,  and  embracing  dangerous 
errors  and  sentiments,  derogatory  to  the 
character  of  an  infinitely  wise  and  holy 
God,  We  now,  under  the  pressing  obliga- 
tion of  duty  we  owe  to  our  Lord  and  Sav- 
ior Jesus  Christ,  have  undertaken  this 
painful  and  bitter  labor,  and  we  hope  in 
faithfulness  and  praj'er,  but  without  suc- 
cess. Therefore,  according  to  the  rule  of 
Christ's  family,  we  are  under  the  painful 
necessity  of  saying  unto  you,  and  that  in 
this  public  manner,  that  for  these  reasons, 
the  door  of  our  fellowship  and  commun- 
ion is  closed  against  you,  and  you  are  no 
longer  to  be  considered  of  this  church  and 
body  ;  but  as  an  unprofitable  branch,  and 
therefore  are  now  severed  from  this  body. 
It  is  our  humble  prayer,  that  God  will 
bless  this  our  unpleasant,  but  plain  duty 
to  you,  and  open  your  understanding  that 
you  may  see  your  error,  and  give  you  re- 
pentance, that  you  may  enjoy  his  favor  at 
last,  and  be  gathered  with  all  of  the  re- 
deemed from  among  men.  to  inhabit  the 
new  Jerusalem,  where  Jesus  Christ  is  the 
joy  and  the  light  thereof." 

I  do  not  give  these  facts  to  increase  the 
self-complacency  of  those  at  the  present 
time,  who  are  inclined  to  plume  themselves 
upon  their  own  superior  liberality,  and 
tolerance  of  differences  of  opinions.  Such 
should  consider,  that  people  who  thought 
their  peculiar  tenets  of  such  vital  impor- 
tance, that  they  incurred  the  dangers  and 
hardships  of  a  settlement  in  New  England 
to  establish  them,  could  not  be  expected 
to  see  the  result  of  their  labors  impaired  or 
destroyed,  with  indifference  or  equanimity. 

Jonathan  Kinne  preached  to  the  church 
until  1826;  but  was  not  ordained  because 
he  disbelieved  in  infant  baptism. 


/ 


PLAINFIELD. 


727 


Nathaniel  Hurd  was  the  acting  pastor  in 
1826.  [For  his  biography  see  Tinmouth, 
vol.  III.]  He  was  succeeded  by  John  F. 
Stone. 

In  1829,  Joseph  Thatcher  became  the 
tirst  settled  minister.  He  removed  to 
Barre  in  1834,  and  was  succeeded  by  Mr. 
Hadley  in  1836,  by  John  Orr  in  1839,  Sam- 
uel Marsh  in  1842,  Calvin  Granger  in  1846, 
and  A.  S.  Swift  in  1849, — none  of  whom 
were  settled  ministers,  however. 

Rev.  Joel  Fisk  was  settled  as  pastor  in 
May,  1855,  and  died  Dec.  16, 1856.  Soon 
after  Rev.  Horace  Herrick  became  acting 
pastor,  who  was  succeeded  in  1861,  by 
Rev.  C.  M.  Winch,  who  remained  until 
Nov.,  1868,  when  he  was  succeeded  by 
Horace  Pratt,  who  removed  in  1871. 

After  an  interval  of  nearly  2  years, 
Charles  Redfield  became  acting  pastor, 
and  in  1877,  C.  E.  Ferrin  was  settled, 
and  remained  until  his  death,  in  188 1. 

The  deacons  have  been  James  Perry, 
Nehemiah  Mack,  George  Ayers,  Dan. 
Storrs,  Justus  Kinney,  Emmons  Taft. 

Their  first  meeting-house  was  built  in 
1819,  the  second,  on  the  same  site,  in 
1854.  Until  the  building  of  a  church  their 
meetings  were  usually  lield  at  the  dwelling 
house  of  Jonathan  Kinne. 

THE   METHODIST    CHURCH 

has  no  early  records  in  Plainfield,  and  I 
am  obliged  to  glean  this  account  from  va- 
rious sources.  The  first  Methodist  ser- 
mon preached  in  Plainfield  was  by  the 
Rev.  Nicholas  Sneathen-  or  "  Suethen," 
as  his  family  write  it — a  very  able  man, 
who  was  chaplain  of  Congress  in  181 2.  He 
came  to  Seth  Freeman's,  made  known  his 
name  and  occupation,  and  succeeded  in 
attaching  nearly  all  of  the  people  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  town  to  the  Methodist 
church,  including  Dea.  James  Perry,  who 
afterwards  became  a  Methodist  preacher, 
the  first  probably  that  resided  in  town. 

A  church  was  organized  in  1 801,  or  '2. 
It  formed  a  part  of  Barre  circuit.  The 
first  Methodist  minister  stationed  at  Plain- 
field  that  I  can  learn  of  was  David  Kil- 
burn,  who  was  here  in  1812  and  1825. 

Rev.  Thomas  C.  Pierce,  who  was  mar- 
ried   to   Judge    Kinne's   daughter,    Sally, 


lived  upon  the  Asa  Washburn  place  in 
1820.  This,  with  15  acres  of  land,  was 
given  to  the  Methodist  church  for  a  par- 
sonage by  Judge  Kinne.  It  was  after- 
wards sold  and  the  parsonage  in  the  vil- 
lage bought. 

Rev.  John  Lord  was  stationed  here  in 

1823;  Harvey  in   1827,   '28;    R.    H. 

Deming, '30, '31  ;  John  Nason,  '33,  '34; 
N.Stone,  '35;  David  Wilcox,  '36,  'T,y  \ 
Jacob  Boyce,  '38  ;  Daniel  Field,  '39;  J.  L. 
Slason,  "40:  John  W.  Wheeler,  '41  ;  Rich- 
ard Newell,  '42,  '43;  Otis  M.  Legate,  '44; 
H.  P.  Gushing,  '45,  '46;  J.  W.  Perkins, 
'47,  48 ;  Homer  T.  Jones,  '49,  '50 ;  Mul- 
fred  Bullard,  '51  ;  Peter  Merrill,  '52,  '53; 
Alonzo  Hitchcock,  '54,  '55,  '62,  '63  ;  W.  J. 
Kidder,  '56,  "57 ;  Edmund  Copeland,  '58, 
'59,  '69,  '70 ;  P.  P.  Ray,  '60,  '61  ;  Joshua 
Gill,  '64,  '65  ;  S.  B.  Currier,  '66,  '67  ;  Andes 
T.  Bullard,  '68;  Thomas  Trevillian,  '71; 
Joseph  Hamilton,  '72,  ^jT)^  '74 i  Joseph  O. 
Sherburn,  '75,  '76;  W.  H.  Dean,  'jj,  '78; 
Elihu  Snow,   '79,  '80,  '81. 

Before  the  erection  of  a  church  their 
meetings  were  usually  held  at  Elder  James 
Perry's,  or  at  Lieut.  Joseph  Batchelder's. 
In  18 19  a  house  was  built  for  the  Metho- 
dist society  in  the  village,  with  an  agree- 
ment that  when  they  had  no  preacher, 
"any  other  Christian  denomination,  such 
as  Calvinists,  Anti-Baptists,  Freewill  Bap- 
tists, Friends,  so  called,  Universalists,  etc., 
who  had  a  preacher,  might  occupy  it." 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  contrib- 
utors to  the  building  of  this  church  : 

Thomas  Vincent,  $100  ;  Moulton  Batch- 
elder,  $100;  Harvey  Pitkin,  $75;  John 
Vincent,  $60 ;  Seth  Cook,  $50 ;  Bradford 
Kinne,  $50  ;  Amherst  Simons,  $50  ;  Seth 
Freeman,  $50  ;  Asa  Bancroft,  $30 ;  Eben 
Dodge,  Jr.,  $25  ;  John  Moors,  $25  ;  Eben- 
ezer  Lyon,  $25  ;  Matthew  Jack,  $25  ;  Na- 
than Freeman,  $25  ;  Benjamin  F.  Lamp- 
son,  $25  ;  Laomi  Cree,^$25  ;  Enoch  Gate, 
$25  ;  Ebenezer  Freeman,  $20  ;  Samuel  Wil- 
son, Jr.,  $20;  Benjamin  Whipple,  $20; 
Earl  Gate,  $15;  James  Batchelder,  $15  ; 
Joseph  P.  Page,  $12  ;  William  Moors,  $10  ; 
Friend  M.  Morse,  $10;  Solomon  Bartlett, 
$10  ;  Duron  Whittlesey,  $10 ;  Andrew  Jack, 
$iq;   Nehemiah    Mack,   Jr..    $5;    Charles 


728 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Patterson,  $5 ;  Allen  Martin,  $5 ;  Eben 
Martin,  $5  ;  Richard  Kendrick.  $3 ;  Elisha 
Mack,  $2;  total,  $947.  $100  was  paid  for 
the  site,  leaving  the  cost  of  the  house 
about  $850. 

In  1852,  this  was  sold  to  the  Baptists 
and  removed,  and  another  built  at  a  cost 
of  a  little  less  than  $1,600. 

The  Vermont  Annual  Conference  was 
held  at  Plainfield  in  1855,  Bishop  Edward 
R.  Ames  presiding. 

The  present  number  in  full  member- 
ship, 132;  probationers,  14. 

FRO.VI   REV.    J.    R.    BARTLETT,  OF    BARRE. 

Rev.  Nicholas  Snethen,  who  is  men- 
tioned as  the  first  Methodist  preacher  who 
visited  Plainfield,  was  the  pioneer  Metho- 
dist preacher  in  this  State.  His  appoint- 
ment to  Vermont  was  in  1796,  and  as  he 
labored  in  this  State  but  one  year,  it  must 
have  been  at  that  time  that  he  appeared  in 
Plainfield.  The  records  of  "  Vershire  cir- 
cuit," which  was  the  name  of  the  appoint- 
ment in  the  earliest  days,  are  probably  not 
now  in  existence;  but  those  of  "  Barre 
circuit,"  formed  in  1804,  are  still  preserv- 
ed, and  state  that  the  first  "quarterly 
meeting"  for  Barre  circuit  was  held  in 
Plainfield,  Aug.  4th  and  5th,  1864,  and  in 
Plainfield  a  little  later.  The  records  give 
Bradford  Kinne,  Richard  Kendrick  and 
Ebenezer  Freeman  as  leaders,  17,  16  and 
ir  members,  respectively,  and  four  "on 
trial."  Mr.  Kinne  was  also  a  local  preach- 
er, and  a  very  active  man  in  the  church, 
and  the  Rev.  Bradford  Kinne  Pierce,  D.  D., 
now  the  editor  oi  ZioiCs  Herald,  published 
in  Boston,  was  named  for  him,  being  the 
son  of  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Pierce,  and  there- 
fore the  grandson  of  Mr.  Kinne,  who  is 
mentioned  in  the  foregoing  sketch  as 
"Judge  "  Kinne. 

This  town  was  included  in  Barre  circuit 
until  1838,  and  hence  was  visited  by  the 
appointees  to  that  circuit  at  stated  inter- 
vals as  a  regular  preaching  place.  The 
names  given  in  the  foregoing  sketch  as 
Methodist  preachers  stationed  here,  are, 
in  several  instances  at  least,  of  appointees 
to  Barre  circuit,  there  being  each  year 
two  or  three  such  appointees,  and  one  of 


them  usually  resident  at  Plainfield.  On 
and  after  the  conference  of  1838,  this  sta- 
tion lost  its  identity  with  Barre  circuit, 
and  the  preachers  were  appointed  directly 
to  Plainfield.  The  complete  list  of  Meth- 
odist preachers  on  Vershire  circuit  to  1804, 
and  on  Barre  circuit  from  that  time  to  1838, 
may  be  found  in  the  history  of  Barre. 
The  condition  of  this  church  has  been  par- 
ticularly prosperous  during  the  last  three 
years,  about  one-third  of  its  present  mem- 
bership having  been  added  during  that 
time. 

Barre,  Feb.  3,  1882. 

THE   BAPTIST   CHURCH 

was  organized  Oct.  17,  1809,  at  the  school- 
house  near  Dea.  James  Perry's  (South 
district.)  The  members  were:  James 
Boutwell  and  wife,  who  withdrew  from  the 
CongregationaJist  church  for  that  purpose, 
Jacob  Perkins,  Stephen  Perkins  and  his 
wife  Nancy,  John  Bancroft  and  his  wife 
Phoebe.  Elder  Jabez  Cottle  and  Elder 
Elijah  Huntington  were  the  clergymen 
present. 

At  the  next  meeting  Philip  Wheeler 
made  a  profession  of  religion,  and  joined 
the  church .  He  became  pastor  afterwards, 
living  near  the  center  of  Montpelier,  but 
in  1826,  sold  his  farm,  and  a  house  was 
built  for  him  near  the  Plainfield  Springs. 
In  a  few  years  after  this,  Stephen  Perkins 
refused  to  commune,  for  the  reason  that 
Elder  Wheeler  had  said  that  "he  would 
not  baptize  a  person  that  he  knew  intend- 
ed to  join  another  church."  Soon  after 
this,  he  and  his  brother  Jonathan  with- 
drew froni  the  church.  The  result  of  this 
dissension  was,  that  Elder  Wheeler  soon 
closed  his  pastoral  labor  with  this  church, 
and  removed  into  Marshfield,  one  half 
mile  east  of  Plainfield  village,  where  he 
died. 

After  Elder  Wheeler's  dismissal,  they 
were  supplied  at  intervals  by  different  cler- 
gymen, none  of  them  living  in  town  ex- 
cept Rev.  Friend  Blood. 

In  1852,  the  Baptist  churches  in  Plain- 
field  and  Marshfield  united,  and  Abraham 
Bedel  became  their  pastor,  residing  in 
Plainfield.  The  Methodist  church  was 
purchased,   removed   and    repaired.     Mr. 


/ 


PLAINFIELD. 


729 


Bedel  was  succeeded  in  1S58  by  Mr.  Kel- 
ton,  he  in  1859  by  S.  A.  Blake,  and 
he  in  1S60  by  N.  W.  Smith,  who  removed 
in  1862.  After  that  they  had  only  occa- 
sional preaching,  and  in  1871  their  church 
was  sold  and  converted  into  stores. 
THE   RESTORATIONIST   SOCIETY 

was  organized  in  1820,  but  had  only  occa- 
sional preaching  until  in  1840,  Rev.  L.  H. 
Tabor  came  to  Plainfield,  and  a  church 
was  erected  costing  $1,770  above  the 
foundations,  exclusive  of  furniture  and  the 
bell,  the  whole  amounting  to  about  $2,300. 

Mr.  Tabor  remained  3  years  only.  The 
pulpit  was  afterwards  supplied  a  part  of 
the  time  by  Mark  M.  Powers,  of  Washing- 
ton, and  Rufus  S.  Sanborn,  of  Barre. 
They  were  succeeded  in  1854  by  William 
Sias,  who  remained  one  or  two  years. 

Rev.  Joseph  Sargent  resided  here  in 
1858  and  1859,  Rev.  Thomas  Walton  in 
i860  and  1861,  after  which  they  had  no 
stated  preaching  until  in  1872,  Rev.  Les- 
ter Warren  commenced  to  preach  one  half 
of  the  time.  He  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 
George  Forbes  the  next  year.  In  1876  L. 
S.  Crossly  removed  here,  and  remained 
one  year,  since  which  they  have  been  sup- 
plied a  part  of  the  time  by  non-resident 
preachers. 

SCHOOLS. 

In  1787,  the  General  Assembly  enacted 
a  school  law  that  authorized  towns  and 
school  districts  to  build  schoolrhouses  and 
support  schools  by  a  tax  on  the  grand  list. 
A  majority  of  a  town  might  do  this,  but  it 
required  a  two-thirds  vote  of  a  school  dis- 
trict, and  neither  a  town  or  school  district 
could  tax  the  property  of  non-residents  for 
this  purpose.  This  law  provided  that 
schools  might  be  supported  by  subscrip- 
tion, and  the  district  collector  had  the 
same  power  and  duties  in  collecting  a  sub- 
scription that  he  had  in  collecting  a  tax. 

In  1803,  Plainfield  was  divided  into  5 
school  districts.  The  town  never  voted  a 
tax  for  schools,  and  probably  none  of  the 
districts  did  for  several  years.  The  north- 
west, or  village,  district  schools  were  sup- 
ported by  subscription  until  1809.  They 
commenced  to  build  a  school-house  in 
1803,  finishing  it  in  1804.     It  stood  just 


east  of  the  present  hotel,  in  James  Martin's 
garden.  This  was  the  first  built  in  town, 
and  was  paid  for  by  a  tax,  one-third  payable 
in  money  and  two-thirds  in  wheat.  This 
house  having  been  burned  in  the  winter  of 
1806-7,  another  was  built  in  1807,  over 
by  the  present  residence  of  Geo.  C.  Wales, 
near  the  railroad  bridge.  In  1826,  this 
district  formed  a  unison  with  an  adjoining 
district  in  Marshfield,  and  a  school-house 
was  built  near  Marshfield  line  north  of  the 
river.  In  1866,  this  district  built  another 
school-house  near  the  old  one,  at  a  cost  of 
$6,000,  exclusive  of  the  site. 

The  South,  or  Freeman,  district  did  not 
have  the  first  school-house  in  town ;  but 
they  had  the  first  school-house  quarrel.  It 
had  been  decided  to  build  a  school-house 
at  the  Four  Corners,  east  of  Seth  Free- 
man's, to  which  the  Freemans  were  op- 
posed. The  boys  of  Elder  James  Perry 
and  of  Philemon  Perkins,  and  others,  made 
arrangements  to  raise  it  secretly  at  mid- 
night. The  Freemans  learned  of  the  plot, 
and  appeared  to  help  uninvited  ;  but  they 
spelled  the  word  raze.  The  result  was, 
nothing  was  done  at  that  time,  but  after- 
wards, in  the  fall  of  1805,  the  house  was 
built  there. 

Plainfield  village  is  at  the  extreme  north- 
ern part  of  the  town,  and  as  incorporated 
in  1867,  includes  a  portion  of  the  town  of 
Marshfield.  In  1812,  it  contained  about  a 
dozen  families,  in  1881  about  80. 

The  first  mills  were  burned  the  same 
year  they  were  built.  The  village  suffered 
no  more  serious  loss  by  fire  until  May  16, 
1877,  when  the  saw  and  grist-mills,  4 
dwelling-houses,  2  shops  and  4  barns  were 
burned.  James  Richards  was  convicted 
of  being  the  incendiary,  and  is  now  in 
prison. 

The  great  freshet  of  Oct.  1869,  carried 
off  the  saw  and  grist-mills,  the  clothing- 
works,  machine-shop,  blacksmith-shop, etc. 

Railroad  trains  commenced  to  run  from 
Montpelier  to  Plainfield  for  traffic,  Sept. 
17,  1873  ;  to  Wells  River,  Nov.  24,  1873. 

It  is  said  that  a  mail  route  was  estab- 
lished from  Montpelier  to  Danville,  via 
Plainfield,  in  1808,  and  a  post-office  was 
probably  established  at  Plainfield  at  that 


92 


730 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


time ;  but  so  little  did  it  affect  the  daily 
life  of  the  people,  that  no  one  knows  who 
was  the  first  postmaster. 

As  late  as  1823,  the  fees  of  the  post- 
master at  Plainfield  were  only  $10.76;  at 
Marshfield,  $3.48;  Cabot,  $6.81  ;atMont- 
pelier,  $138.81.  As  postage  wasthenvery 
high,  and  the  fees  of  the  small  offices  about 
one-half  of  the  gross  income,  the  amount 
of  mail  matter  must  have  been  small.  The 
mail  was  carried  on  horseback  until  1827, 
then  in  a  wagon  until  1830,  when  a  coach 
was  put  on,  which  was  almost  as  much  an 
object  of  curiosity  and  pride  as  was  the 
advent  of  the  cars  in  1873. 

TOWN   REPRESENTATIVES. 

Bradford  Kinne,  1800,  '2,  '3,  '4,  '5,  '7. 
\S, '9, '10,  '11,  '12,  '13,  '16,  '21;  Thomas 
Vincent,  1801,  '22,  "25,  '26;  Jonathan 
Kinne,  1806;  Joseph  Nye,  1814,  '15,  '17, 
'18,  '24  ;  Benjamin  Whipple,  1819,  '20,  '23  ; 
Jeremy  Stone,  1827,  '28;  Israel  Goodwin, 
1829,  '30,  31  ;  John  Vincent,  1832,  '33,  '34  ; 
Baxter  Bancroft,  1835,  '36;  James  Palmer, 
1837,  '38,  '41  ;  Harvey  Bancroft,  1839,  '4°  i 
Mark  M.  Page,  1842;  Ezra  Kidder,  1843, 
'44,  '50,  '60,  '61  ;  Nathaniel  Townsend, 
1845,  '46;  Reuben  Huntoon,  1847  ;  Daniel 
A.  Perry,  1848,  '55;  Francis  Hall,  1849; 
Lewis  Chamberlain,  1851,  '52;  John  Mel- 
len,  1853,  '54;  E.  Madison  Perry,  1856, 
'57  ;  Dennis  Lane,  1858,  59;  Sullivan  B. 
Gale,  1862,  '63;  Willard  S.  Martin,  1864, 
'65;  Levi  Bartlett,  1866;  Julius  M.  Rich- 
ards, 1867;  Justus  Kinney,  1868;  Chan- 
ning  Hazeltine,  1869;  Joseph  Lane  (bien- 
nial), 1870;  L.  Cheney  Batchelder,  1872; 
Stephen  C.  Shurtleff,  1874;  Nathaniel 
Townsend,  Jr.,  1876;  Frank  A.  Dwinell, 
1878;  Dudley  B.  Smith,  1880. 

DELEGATES    TO    CONSTITUTIONAL 
CONVENTIONS. 

Lovel  Kelton,  1 8 14 ;  John  Vincent,  1822  ; 
Nathaniel  Bancroft,  1828;  James  Palmer, 
1836;  Nath'l.  Sherman,  1843, '50;  Reuben 
Huntoon,  1870. 

STATE   SENATORS. 

Nathaniel  Bancroft,  1847,  '48  ;  Charles 
H.  Heath,  1868,  '69,  '70. 

JUDGES   OF   COUNTY   COURT. 
Bradford  Kinne,    181 1,   '12,   '13;   Israel 
Goodwin,  1834,^35;   Lewis  Chamberlain, 


1855,   '56;   Willard   S.    Martin,  1874,  '75, 
'76,  V7- 

TOWN   CLERKS. 

Thomas  Vincent,  1798,  ^99,  1800;  'i,'2, 
'3,  '9,  '10,  'II,  '12,  '14;  Bradford  Kinne, 
1804,  '5>  '6,  '7,  '8,  '13,  '15,  '16;  Silas  Wil- 
liams, 1817  to  '33;  James  Palmer,  1834  to 
'41  ;  Ezra  Kidder,  1842  to  '51  ;  Mark  M. 
Page,  1852  to  '60;  Phineas  Kellogg,  1861, 
'62;  Walter  B.  Page,  1863  to  '76;  Mason 
W.  Page,  1877;  Frank  A.  Dwinell,  1878. 

TREASURERS. 
Moulton  Batchelder,  1798,  '99,  1800; 
Thomas  Vincent,  1801,  '08,  '09,  '10,  '11, 
'12,  '14;  Ebenezer  Freeman,  1802;  Brad- 
ford Kinne,  1803,  '04,  '05,  '06,  '07,  '13, 
'15,  '16;  Silas  Williams,  1817  to  '33; 
James  Palmer,  1834  to  '41  ;  Ezra  Kidder, 
1842  to  '51  ;  Mark  M.  Page,  1852  to  '60; 
S.  B.  Gale,  1861  to  '70;  Ira  F.  Page,  1871 
to  '74  ;  Dudley  B.  Smith,  1875  ;  F.  A.  Dwi- 
nell, 1877  to  '81. 

1ST   SELECTMEN. 

Joshua  Lawrence,  1797;  Thomas  Vin- 
cent, 1798,  '99,  1800,  '01,  '02,  '03,  'lo,  '11, 
'12, '14,  '18;  James  Boutwell,  1804,  '05. 
'06,  '07,  '08,  '09;  B.  Kinne,  1813;  Asa 
Bancroft,  1815, '16, '17  ;  Willard  Shephard, 
1819;  John  Vincent,  1820;  Benjamin 
Whipple,  1821,  '22,  '23, '24, '25  ;  Jeremy 
Stone,  1826,  '35,  '36;  Andrew  Wheatley, 
1827, '28, '29 ;  Jabez  L.  Carpenter,  1830; 
Elijah  Perry,  1 831, '32, '33  ;  Ba.xter  Ban- 
croft, 1834;  Mark  M.  Page,  1837  to '41  ; 
James  Palmer,  1842,  '43;  Levi  Bartlett, 
1844;  Nathaniel  Sherman,  1845;  Nathan- 
iel Townsend,  1846,  '58;  E.  Madison  Per- 
ry, 1847,  '48,  '49;  Daniel  A.  Perry,  1850; 
Amherst  Perkins,  1851  ;  Joel  Sherburn, 
1852, '53;  Dudley  Perkins,  1854;  Allen 
Martin,  1855;  Ira  Stone,  1856;  Harrison 
Ketchum,  1859,  '60;  Charles  T.  Batchel- 
der, 1861  :  L.  Cheney  Batchelder,  1862,  81  ; 
Joseph  Lane,  1863,  '64,  '65,  '75  to  '79; 
Willard  S.  Martin,  1866,  '71,  '72;  Heman 
A.  Powers,  1867;  Orrin  W.  Cree,  1857, 
'68,  '70;  Thomas  P.  Bartlett,  1869;  Jere- 
my S.  Chamberlain,  1873,  '74'  '^o- 

OLD    PEOPLE 
Who  have  died  in  Plaittfield. 
Mrs.  Joseph  Lampson,  95  ;   Mrs.   Isaac 
Mann,  94;  Moses  Bancroft,  87;  Mrs.  M. 


PLAINFIELD. 


73^ 


Bancroft,  92  ;  Jonathan  Perkins,  89  ;  Spen- 
cer Lawrence,  81-^  Mrs.  Spencer  Lawrence, 
89 ;  Asa  Bancroft,  88 ;  Jane  (Cams) 
Hatch,  88 ;  Mrs.  Jacob  Perkins,  89 ;  Ly- 
dia  (Cams)  Perkins  (Mrs.  Jonathan),  83; 
Chauncy  Bartlett,  86 ;  Mrs.  C.  Bartlett,  85  ; 
Edmund  Freeman,  Charles  Bancroft,  84 ; 
Mrs.  N,  Townsend,  83  ;  Levi  Bartlett,  80  ; 
Benjamin  Niles,  84 ;  Nathaniel  Sherman, 
80;  Mrs.  N.  Shern-^an,  81  ;  Eliza  (Cams) 
White,  80;  David  Reed,  82;  Mrs.  D. 
Reed,  81  :  James  Allen,  84;  Roderic  Tay- 
lor, 83  ;  John  P.  Avers,  82  ;  James  Batch- 
elder,  81;  Allen  Martin,  82;  Isabella 
(Nash)  Powers,  80 ;  Coolige  Taylor,  83 ; 
C.  W.  Alvord,  82  ;  Asa  Fletcher,  82 ;  Mrs. 
A.  Fletcher,  85 ;  Daniel  Lampson,  80 ; 
James  Perry,  80 ;  Isaac  Mann,  Nathan 
Hill,  82. 

OLD    PEOPLE    LIVING. 

Daniel  Spencer,  91  ;  Susan  Collins,  88; 
Baxter  Bancroft,  87 ;  Mrs.  B.  Bancroft, 
82;  Mrs.  John  P.  Ayers,  86;  Eben  Mar- 
tin, 85  ;  Mrs.  Nathan  Parker,  85  ;  Justus 
Kinney,  83;  Mrs.  J.  Kinney,  80;  Susan 
Corliss,  82 ;  Mrs.  Roderic  Taylor,  81  ; 
William  Parks,  81  ;  Benjamin  F.  Moore, 
81  ;  Alex  Woodman,  80;  Mrs.  Levi  Bart- 
lett, 80  ;  Nathan  Hill,  82. 
MASONIC. 

Rural  Lodge. — The  records  of  this 
Lodge  having  been  lost  or  destroyed,  no 
extended  history  can  be  written  of  it  or  of 
its  early  members.  The  only  authentic 
papers  belonging  to  it  are  the  original  by- 
laws in  manuscript  form,  from  which  we 
learn  that  a  charter  was  granted  by  the 
Grand  Lodge  at  its  annual  session  in 
Montpelier,  Oct.  12.  1825. 

Charier  Members. — Horace  Pitkin, 
Marshfield  ;  Alden  Palmer,  Montpelier  ;  Ja- 
bez  L.  Carpenter,  Plainfield  ;  Stephen  Pit- 
kin, William  Martin,  Marshfield  ;  William 
Billings,  Nathaniel  C.  King,  Montpelier; 
Charles  Clark,  Calais  ;  Nathaniel  Bancroft, 
Silas  Williams,  Jr.,  A Simons,  Plain- 
field  ;  Merrill  Williams,  Montpelier ;  Har- 
vey Pitkin,  Edwin  Pitkin,  James  Pitkin, 
Daniel  Spencer,  Marshfield ;  Nathaniel 
Davis,  Robert  Nesmith,  Montpelier  ;  James 
English,  Marshfield. 

The  organization  of  the  Lodge  was  kept 


up,  and  some  work  done,  until  the  annual 
session  of  the  Grand  Lodge  in  1830,  when 
they  are  supposed  to  have  surrendered 
their  charter.  Only  two  of  the  charter 
members  are  known  to  be  living,  Daniel 
Spencer  of  Plainfield,  at  the  advanced  age 
of  91  years,  and  Nathaniel  C.  King,  of 
Montpelier. 

Wyoming  Lodge,  No.  80. — Wyoming 
Lodge,  F.  &  A.  M.,  No.  80,  was  chartered 
by  the  Most  Worshipful  Grand  Lodge  of 
Vermont,  June  11,  A.  D.  1868. 

Charter  Members. — Charles  H.  Heath, 
Leroy  H.  Hooker,  Stephen  C.  Shurtleff, 
Nathan  Skinner,  Dudley  B.  Smith,  Jas. 
M.  Perry,  Channing  Hazeltine,  J.  M. 
Richards,  William  Armstrong,  A.  H. 
Whitcomb,  Walter  B.  Page,  Mark  M. 
Page,  R.  H.  Christy,  Byron  Goodwin, 
Fitch  E.  Willard,  W.  S.  Little,  Ezekiel 
Skinner,  Samuel  Simpson,  Martin  V.  B. 
Hollister,  D.  M.  Perkins,  Samuel  Wilson, 
Horace  Hill,  Reuben  Huntoon,  Lewis  H. 
Cunningham,  N.  Davis,  Jr.,  Mason  T. 
Page,  Silas  E.  Willis,  Willard  Harris, 
James  Pitkin,  Luther  G.  Town,  Solomon 
L.  Gilman,  Nathaniel  Sherman,  Daniel 
Spencer,  Nathaniel  Davis,  Horace  H. 
Hollister,  Nathaniel  C.  Page,  C.  W.  H. 
Dwinell,  E.  O.  Hammond,  Eben  D.  Ste- 
vens. 

First  officers:  Charles  H.  Heath,  W. 
M.  ;  Loren  H.  Hooker,  S.  W.  ;  Stephen 
C.  Shurtleff,  J.  W. 

Officers  for  i?>Zi-2:  W.  R.  Gove,  W. 
M.;  John  W.  Fowler,  S.  W, ;  Dan.  W. 
Moses,  J.  W. 

REV.    C.    E.    FERRIN,   D.  D. 

Alirirtged  from  a  sketch  in  tlie  Vermont  Chronicle  by 
Rov.  a.  D.  Bakber. 

Clark  E.  Ferrin  was  born  in  Holland, 
Vt.,  July  20,  1818.  He  grew  up  there  on 
the  farm  with  his  father  till  he  was  of  age, 
teaching  a  common  school  in  the  winter 
from  the  time  he  was  17,  and  aiding  his 
father  in  the  support  of  the  family.  In 
the  fall  after  he  had  attained  his  majority 
he  went  to  Brownington  Academy,  of 
which  Rev.  A.  C.  Twilight  was  preceptor, 
and  began  fitting  for  college.  At  Brown- 
ington he  not  only  set  his  face  collegeward 
but  heavenward,  experiencing  that  change 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


of  which   our   Lord  said  to   Nicodemus, 
"  Except  a  man  be  born  again  he  cannot 
see  the  kingdom  of  God.''     Remaining  at 
Browington   about    a    year,    he    went   to 
Derby,  finished  his  preparation  and  enter- 
ed  the  University   at   Burlington   in  the 
class  of  1841 .    Though  at  a  disadvantage  by 
lack  of  early  opportunities,  by  diligent  ap- 
plication he  gained  upon  the  class  during 
the  course,  and   graduated   in    1845,  with 
the  last  third.     The  fall  after  he  taught  the 
Academy  at  Marshfield,  and  from   thence 
went  to  Macon,  Ga.,  where  he  taught  for 
2  years.      From   Macon   he  went   to   the 
theological  seminary  at  Andover,  Mass., 
completing  the  course  in  the  class  of  1850. 
The  spring  before  he   graduated  at  An- 
dover  he   visited   Barton,   Vt.,  preaching 
there,  and  receiving  a  call  to  the  pastorate 
of  the  Congregational  church.     Accepting 
this  call,  he  was  ordained  and  installed  at 
Barton,  in  1857,  Rev.   O.   T.  Lamphear, 
a  college  classmate,  then  at  Derby,  preach- 
ing the  installation  sermon  from  Exodus 
IV:  14,  "I  know  that  he  can  speak  well." 
Another,  a  seminary  classmate.  Rev.  Mr. 
Dean,    gave   the   charge    to    the   people. 
Zealous   and   faithful   at    Barton,  he   was 
after  nearly   3    years   attacked   with  that 
facial  neuralgia,  which  rendered  his  after 
life  one  of  almost  continued  pain,  and  often 
for  months  and  years  at  a  time  one  of  in- 
tense   suffering.      His   enemy  compelled 
him  to  suspend  his  ministry  at  Barton  and 
seek   dismission   from   his  charge.     This 
was   granted   by   council.     Dismissed,  he 
sought   for   a   time   renewed   health    and 
strength  in  farm  labors.     Assoonas  health 
permitted,  he  took  up  the  ministry  again, 
received  a  call,  and  was  installed  pastor  of 
the  Congregational  church  in  Hinesburgh 
'  in  1855.     At  this  second  installation,  an- 
other of  his  classmates,  Rev.  N.  G.  Clark, 
then  professor  in    the    University  at   Bur- 
lington,   preached    the    sermon,    and   an- 
other classmate.   Rev.   A.   D.    Barber,  of 
Williston,  gave  the  Right  Hand  of  Fellow- 
ship.    Here,  after  no  very  long  time,  he 
began  to  suffer  again  from  the  assaults  of 
his    adversary,    neuralgia,    but    for    long 
years,  though  in  real  suffering  and  much 
of  the  time  in  keen  distress  by  day  and  by 


night,  he  persisted  in  doing  a  manly  work, 
building  with  one  hand  for  Christ  and  his 
church,  and  resisting  the  enemy  of  his 
peace  and  strength  with  the  other.  Here, 
indeed,  he  fought  a  good  fight,  yielding 
only  after  many  years.     In  the  winter  of 

1874  he  went  to  Philadelphia,  and  sub- 
mitted to  the  severe  surgical  operation  of 
removing  a  part  of  the  facial  nerve.  This 
gave   only   partial   relief.     In   the  fall  of 

1875  he  took  a  voyage  to  Europe,  visiting  . 
London  and  Paris,  seeking  aid,  but  finding 
little.  Having  failed  now  for  some  time  in 
strength,  but  not  in  heart  to  labor,  he  re- 
signed his  pastorate.  His  resignation  was 
after  long  waiting  and  hope  of  the  church 
and  parish  for  his- recovery,  accepted,  and 
he  was  dismissed,  havingbeen  pastorabout 
24  years.  Remaining  in  the  parsonage  at 
Hinesburgh,  and  experiencing  some  relief 
with  returning  strength,  he  was  able  at 
length  to  take  up  again  the  work  he  loved 
so  well.  This  he  did  at  Plainfield,  where 
he  was  installed  pastor  Feb.  13,  1878, 
Rev.  W.  S.  Hazen,  of  Northfield,  preach- 
ing the  sermon,  from  I.  Cor.  1:23,  "We 
preach  Christ  and  Him  crucified,"  one  of 
his  classmates,  again  a  member  of  the 
Council,  presided  and  offered  the  installing 
prayer.  In  this  his  third  and  last  pastor- 
ate, our  brother  labored  continuously  and 
successfully,  though  his  old  enemy  still 
pursued  him.  He  ceased  his  labors  and 
entered  into  rest,  after  a  sickness  entirely 
prostrating  him    of  about  5  weeks,  June, 

1 88 1.  His  experience  during  this  last 
trial  was  full  of  the  peace  of  God.  "  I  am 
surprised,"  he  wrote,  telling  us  the  result 
of  the  first  council  of  physicians  called  to 
consider  his  case.  "The  fullness  with  which 
I  can  say,  '  Thy  will,  not  mine,' surprises, 
almost  troubles  me." 

Mr.  Ferrin  left  a  wife,  3  sons  and  2 
daughters  ;  all  fitted  for  usefulness,  and  of 
fine  promise  ;  all  were  present  at  the  time 
of  his  death.  His  oldest  son,  reaching 
home  but  a  few  days  before,  is  Professor 
William  Ferrin,  of  Pacific  University,  at 
Forest  Grove,  Oregon.  The  oldest  daugh- 
ter is  the  wife  of  Rev.  John  Cowan,  of 
Essex. 

At  the  funeral,  ten  neighboring  ministers 


PLAINFIELD. 


733 


were  present,  the  deacons  of  the  church 
from  WilUston  and  Montpelier,  and  a  good 
delegation  trom  Hinesburgh  and  other 
towns.  His  children  conducted  the  ser- 
vices at  the  house,  Prof.  Ferrin  reading 
select  passages  of  Scripture,  Rev.  Mr. 
Cowan  offering  prayer,  and  all  the  family 
uniting  in  singing  the  hymn,  "Rock  of 
ages  cleft  for  me."  The  service  was  beau- 
tiful, tender  and  touching.  The  casket 
was  borne  by  his  brother  ministers.  At 
the  church,  Rev.  C.  S.  Smith  read  the 
Scripture,  Rev.  J.  H.  Hincks  offered 
prayer,  his  two  classmates.  Rev.  J.  G. 
Hale  and  A.  D.  Barber,  spoke ;  Mr.  Hale, 
of  Mr.  Ferrin  as  a  man,  of  his  place  in 
college  and  in  the  ministry,  and  Mr. 
Barber  of  him  as  a  Christian  pastor. 


Mr.  Ferrin,  besides  his  work  as  min- 
ister, was  a  most  respected  and  highly 
useful  citizen.  He  represented  the  town 
of  Hinesburgh  in  the  legislature  one  or  two 
sessions,  was  a  faithful  and  influential 
member  of  the  corporation  of  the  Univer- 
sity for  more  than  20  years.  He  received 
the  honorary  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity 
from  Middlebury  College  at  the  commence- 
ment, a  year  ago,  and  was  a  man  such  that 
the  family,  the  church  and  the  State  can 
alike  trust. 

[Mr.  Ferrin  compiled  from  the  papers 
of  the  venerable  Erastus  Bostwick  the  his- 
tory of  Hinesburgh  for  Vol.  i.  in  this 
work,  and  in  Vol.  iii.  wrote  the  biograph- 
ical sketch  of  the  Rev.  O.  T.  Lamphear  in 
the  history  of  Orleans  County.] 


SOLDIERS    ENLISTED   FOR    PLAINFIELD   IN   THE    WAR    OF   THE   REBELLION. 


Names. 

Ayers,  George  A. 
Ball,  Henry "L.  C. 
Blaisdell,  George, 
Bradford,  Amos  C. 
Bradford,  John  M. 
Buxton,  Chas.  B. 


Reg.  Co. 

2    F 


9    I 
4   G 
2    F 
do 
4   A 


Bell,  Joel 

CavH 

Bartlett,  Mark 

12   D 

Boles,  David 

4   G 

Cummins,  John  D. 

do 

Cole,  Parker 

CavC 

Carr,  Jason 

12   D 

do 

2  Bat 

Clark,  Nathaniel 

12   D 

Dolan,  Bernard 

4    B 

Duke,  Edward  V. 

4  G 

Downs.  John  H. 

9    I 

Edmons,  Douglass 

CavF 

Fraqua,  Peter 

Farrar,  D.  W. 

2  Bat 

Farr,  Benjamin  A. 

4   E 

Gale,  Sullivan  F. 

13  c 

Gunnerson,  Daniel 

12    D 

Haywood,  Wm.  H. 

CavF 

Hill,  David 

9    I 

Lapieu,  Louis 

2    D 

Lupien,  Lewis 

CavK 

Leazer,  Buzzell 

3    H 

Leazer,  Joseph 

9    I 

Lemwin,  Peter 

I  Bat 

Ladd,  Andrew  J. 

CavC 

Lease,  Joseph  N. 

4   D 

Lease,  Julian  C. 

do 

Lease,  Rufus 

do 

Lemwin,  Rock 

17    E 

Lupien,  0.  Liva 

CavK 

Mustered. 

June  20  61 
July  9  62 
Sept  20  61 

do 

do 
Dec  31  62 


Aug  29 
Oct 

Jan  20 
Sept  20 
Dec  25 
Oct  4 
Aug  27 
Oct  4 
Feb  15 
Feb  25 
July  9 
Sept  26 
Nov  25 
Aug  13 
Feb  14 
-Oct  10 
Oct  4 
Sept  26 
July  1 1 
Apr  22 
Dec  3 
July  16 
July  1 1 
Feb  28 
Dec  25 
Dec  31 


64 
62 

65 
61 

63 
62 
64 
62 
65 
65 
62 
62 

63 
64 

65 
62 
62 
62 
62 
62 

63 
61 
62 
62 
63 
63 


3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 

I  y 
9  m 

ly 

3y 
3y 

9  m 

ly 

9  m 

ly 
ly 
3y 
3y 
3y 
ly 
ly 

9  m 
9  m 

3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 


do  3  y 

do  3  y 

Mar    3  64  3  y 

Dec  31  63  3y 


Deserted  Dec.  25,  62. 
Died  Nov.  29,  61. 

Discharged  Aug.  26,  63. 

Pris.  June  23,  64 ;  died  at  Andersonville, 

Ga.,  Oct.  6,  64. 
Enlisted  for  Barre,  Aug.  26,  61. 


Discharged  Apr.  17,  62.  [Church. 

Killed  in  action  May  5,  64,  at  Craig's 

Died  June  13,  65. 


Promoted  corporal. 
Deserted  Nov.  i,  63. 


Sergeant. 

Deserted  Feb.  29,  64. 
Discharged  May  9,  63. 
Discharged  Sept.  62. 
Promoted  corporal. 
Re-enlisted  3d  Battery. 
Deserted  Sept.  28,  62. 
Mustered  out  Oct.   10,  64. 
Discharged  April  19,  64. 
Died  July  8,  64,  of  wounds  received  in 
action  June  23,  64,  Welden  Railroad. 

Died  June,  64. 

Died  at  Burlington,  Mar.  7,  64. 

Died  at  Andersonville,  Sept.  3,  64. 


734 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Reg,  Co.       Mustered.     Terra, 


4   G 
CavD 

12    U 

4  A 

4  G 

2    A 

4  G 

do 

Cav  K 

lo    I 

2  Bat 

do 

12    D 

do 
do 
4   F 
4  G 


62 
61 


Mann,  John  C. 
Mears,  Horace  B. 
Morse,  Marshal  C. 
Nye,  Ervhi 
Nasmith,  K.  R. 
Paronto,  Gideon 
Perry,  Edwin  R. 
Perry,  Willard  M. 
Paronto,  Napoleon 
Porter,  Geo.  W. 
Rollins,  Charles 
Rollins,  Orvis 
Reed,  Clark 
Reed,  Roswell 
Richards,  Linus 
Rathbury,  Ira  P. 
Spencer.  Ira  D. 
Scott,  George 
Scott,  Orange 
Shepherd,  Dennison 
Shepherd,  John 
Shorey,  Joseph 
Simons,  Louis 
Skinner,  Ezekiel 
Stearns,  James  E. 
Stearns,  Lowell 

Taylor,  Stephen 
Valley,  Felix 
Wilson,  Calvin  O. 
Woodcock,  C.  A. 
Webster.  Nathan  L. 

Willey,  Geo.  W. 
Whicher,  Geo. 

Total,  68,  of  whom  there  were  5  deserted,  i  killed  in  action,  2  died  of  wounds,  11 
died  of  disease,  12  discharged  before  enlistment  expired,  yj  served  their  term,  or  were 
discharged  at  the  close  of  the  war. 

Furnished  undtr  draft — Paid  commutation,  Solomon  Bartlett,  Jacob  Batchelder, 
Martin  B.  Bemis,  John  D.  Cummings,  Lucius  M.  Harris,  Jirah  S.  Lawrence,  Alba  F. 
Martyn,  Erasmus  McCrillis,  Philander  Moore,  Charles  Morse. 

Procured  substitute — Edwin  B.  Lane. 


2  H 
7  K 
4  G 
2  F 
4  G 
do 
4  A 
4  K 


Sept  20  61 
Sept  26  62 
Oct  4  62 
Dec  31  63 
Jan  20  65 
Apr  12 
Sept 

do 
Dec  31  63 
Jan  5  64 
Aug  27  64 
Aug  13  64 
Oct  4  62 

do 

do 
Feb  14  65 
Jan  20  65 
Sept  22  62 
■June  20  61 
Feb  21  62 
Sept  20  61 
Sept  22  62 
Sept  61 
Sept20  61 
Jan  6  64 
July  17  63 

June  20  61 
Oct  1062 
July  9  62 
Sept  22  62 
Dec  31  63 


2  S  S  E  Jan   5  64 
2  Bat  Aug  19  64 


3y 
3y 

9  m 

3y 
ly 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
ly 
ly 
9m 

9  m 
9  m 

I  y 
ly 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 
3y 

3y 

9  m 

3y 
3y 
3y 

3y 
ly 


Discharged  Apr.  21,  62. 
Discharged  Sept.  18,  63. 

Discharged  May  12,  65. 

Died  June  17,  62. 

Discharged  Oct.  8,  62. 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 

Deserted  Sept.-  19,  64. 

Prisoner  July  9,  64;  died  March,  65. 


Sergeant. 
Died  May  2,  63. 


Discharged  Oct.  21,  62. 
Died  Nov.  4,  6r. 
Re-enlisted. 
Discharged  April  21,  62. 

Re-enlisted. 

Discharged  .Sept.  63, 

Promoted  corporal. 

Wounded  ;  ambulance  train  captured  ; 

never  heard  from  afterwards. 
Re-enlisted  Jan.  64. 


Died  Feb.  23,  65. 

Prisoner  June  23,  64;  died  Dec. 

soon  after  being  exchanged. 
Died  Feb.  14,  64. 


23,  64, 


Revolutionary  soldier s- 
Moses  Reed. 


-Lieut.  Joshua  Lawrence,  John  Bancroft,  Solomon  Bartlett, 


FUNERAL   HYMN   FOR   GARFIELD. 

KY  MRS.   E.   E.  YAW. 

(Written  for  the  memorial  services  at  Plainfield, 
Sept.  21,  1881.) 

Years  a-gone,  a  cry  of  woe 

Rose  to  Heaven  an  April  day. 
As  beneath  a  murderer's  hand 

Our  martyred  Lincoln  bleeding  lay. 
Revive  the  story  of  that  crime. 

How  all  nations  mourned  with  us, 
Bowing  witli  uncovered  l»eads. 

Weeping  o'er  his  honored  dust. 

And  to-day.  In  grief  again — 

Lord  of  nations.  Lord  of  might— 
We  come  to  tliee  with  cries  of  pain; 

Shine  upon  our  dreary  night. 
Ah,  our  tears  they  fall  lil«e  rain 

That  the  honor  nobly  gave, 
Placing  Garfield  at  the  nation's  head, 

Led  so  close  beside  a  grave. 


Lay  him  softly  in  his  narrow  bed. 

Cover  him  with  garlands  fair. 
Gentle  zephyrs,  requiems  sing; 

Angels  watch— leave  him  tliere. 

The  services  were  in  charge  of  the  pastor. 
Remarks  were  made  by  O.  L.  Hoyt,  E.  N. 
Morse,  Dr.  D.  B.  Smith,  Godwin  Reed, 
Ira  Stone,  Joseph  Bartlett,  Allan  Ferrin 
and  H.  O.  Perry. 

Mary  E.  Davis,  also,  born  in  this  town, 
has  published  a  book  of  verse,  of  which, 
had  a  volume  been  placed  at  our  command, 
in  time,  we  should  have  given  a  review. 


ROXBURY. 


735 


ROXBURY. 

BY  MUS.   SARAH  BRIGHAM  MANSFIELD. 

Located  in  the  south  part  of  Washing- 
ton County,  17  miles  south-westerly  from 
Montpelier;  bounded  N.  by  Northfield, 
E.  by  Brookfield,  S.  by  Braintree  and 
Granville,  and  W.  by  Warren  ;  was  grant- 
ed Nov.  6,  1780,  and  chartered  to  Hon. 
Benjamin  Emmonds  and  others  August 
6,  1781  ;  23,040  acres,  situated  on  the 
height  of  the  land  between  Winooski  and 
White  rivers.  The  village  is  at  the  sum- 
mit, the  highest  point  of  land  on  the 
Central  Vt.  R.  R.  There  are  no  large 
streams.  Three  branches  of  Dog  river 
flow  north  into  the  Winooski ;  one  rising 
on  the  East  Hill,  flows  south,  passing  a 
branch  of  Dog  river  at  the  Summit,  one 
running  north,  the  other  south,  the  latter 
into  White  river. 

Many  years  ago,  one  Capt.  Ford,  who 
owned  a  manufacturing  establishment  at 
Randolph,  and  wished  a  greater  supply  of 
water,  came  to  the  Summit,  and  turned 
the  course  of  the  stream  going  north  into 
the  one  flowing  south,  deriving  great  ben- 
efit therefrom,  but  of  short  duration.  The 
trick  was  detected  by  mill-owners  north, 
and  he  was  obliged  to  undo  his  work,  and 
let  the  river  take  its  natural  course. 

There  are  two  natural  ponds  in  town, 
one  just  south  of  the  village  and  one  on 
East  Hill.  Both  have  at  one  time  been 
homes  for  the  "beaver,"  where  they  built 
dams  and  carried  on  business  beaver  style  ; 
but  long  ago  they  deserted  their  old 
haunts,  and  the  pond  that  once  reached  to 
where  the  village  now  is,  is  fast  disappear- 
ing, and  a  few  years  hence  will  no  doubt 
be  terra  fir  ma. 

The  surface  is  uneven,  but  the  soil  is 
fertile.  There  are  some  fine  dairy  farms 
along  the  river,  and  the  hill  farms  are  well 
adapted  to  wheat  raising.  The  timber  is 
mostly  hard  wood,  with  some  spruce,  hem- 
lock and  fir.  Rocks,  argillaceous  slate, 
soapstone  and  marble. 

There  were  three  divisions  of  land  in 
this  township;  the  ist  div.,  the  north  half 
of  that  portion  of  the  town  lying  east  of 
this  valley;  the  2d  div.,  the  south  half; 
the  3d  div.,  the  western  side  of  the  town. 


The  1st  and  2d  contain  100  acres  ;  the  3d, 
136. 

The  first  road  laid  in  town  was  in  1 799, 
from  Warren  line  down  to  the  first  branch 
of  White  River,  to  the  north  line  of  Kings- 
ton (now  Granville) .  Next,  on  the  hill 
west  of  said  branch,  from  Kingston,  until 
it  joins  the  branch  road  toward  Warren. 
The  third  road  led  from  Samuel  Richard- 
son's house  by  John  Stafford's  and  Wil- 
cox's to  Warren  ;  Samson  Nichols  survey- 
or. In  1802,  the  road  through  the  mid- 
dle of  the  town,  from  Northfield  to  Brook- 
field,  was  laid  out,  6  rods  wide.  A  road 
was  surveyed  from  Northfield  to  Brook- 
field  through  the  east  part  of  the  town,  in 
1802.  In  1806,  the  road  was  laid  from 
Samuel  Smith's  on  East  Hill,  by  Wm. 
Gold's  to  east  part  of  the  town.  These 
are  a  few  of  the  first  roads  surveyed  in 
town. 

The  first  town  meeting  was  held  at  the 
house  of  Jedediah  Huntington  ;  the  warn- 
ing was  dated  at  Williamstown,  Mar.  12, 
1796,  signed  by  Joseph  Crane,  justice  of 
the  peace,  and  the  meeting  was  held  Mar. 
25,  1796;  when  following  the  town  officers 
were  elected  in  Roxbury  :  Joseph  Crane, 
moderator;  Thomas  Huntington,  clerk: 
Samuel  Richardson,  Isaac  Lewis,  Jedediah 
Huntington,  selectmen;  David  Cram, 
treasurer :  Jonathan  Huntington,  consta- 
ble ;  David  Cram  and  Thomas  Hunting- 
ton, listers ;  Samuel  Richardson  and 
Christopher  Huntington,  highway  survey- 
ors. The  sum  total  of  the  grand  list  at 
this  time  was  ^165  and  15s.  Zebediah 
Butler  was  first  town  representative ;  he 
resided  south  of  what  is  known  as  E.  K. 
Young's  place. 

The  first  warning  for  freeman's  meeting 
was  in  1797. 

Record  of  t]ie  7neetiiig:  The  freemen  of 
Roxbury,  all  to  a  man,  met  at  the  house 
of  Jedediah  Huntington,  in  said  town,  ac- 
cording to  warning,  when  the  freeman's 
oath  was  duly  aduiinistered  by  the  town 
clerk  to  the  following  men  :  Christopher 
Huntington,  Roswell  Adams,  Isaac  Lewis, 
David  Cram,  John  Stafford,  Benoni  Web- 
ster, Jedediah  Huntington,  Perus  Hunt- 
ington, Benjamin  Hunter,  Jr.,  Daniel  Cor- 
bin,  Chester  Batchelder. 

The  freemen  voted  as  follows  :  For  Gov., 


736 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Isaac  Tichenor  9,  Nathaniel  Niles  4,  Paul 
Brigham    i  :    Lieut.   Gov.,   Paul    Brigham 

10,  Nathaniel  Niles  3;  Treas.,  Samuel 
Mattocks  14  ;  for  counsellors,  Elisha  Allen 

11,  Cornelius  Lynde  10,  Elias  Stevens  9, 
Jonas  Galusha  2,  Joel  Marsh  9,  Reuben 
Hatch  2,  Martin  Chittenden  2,  Joseph 
Hubbard  i,  Ebenezer  Walbridge  4,  John 
French  6. 

Thomas  Huntington,  town  clerk. 

Freeman's  oath  had  previously  been  ad- 
ministered to  Samuel  Richardson,  Thomas 
and  Jonathan  Huntington.  There  were 
just  14  voters  in  town,  at  that  time.  In 
Mar.,  1799,  voted  that  from  Apr.  i  to  May 
20,  it  shall  not  be  lawful  for  sheep  or  swine 
to  run  at  large  on  the  commons  or  high- 
ways, and  if  willfuly  or  negligently  allowed 
to  run,  the  owners  thereof  shall  pay  double 
damages.  When  there  were  neither  high- 
ways or  commons, even  passable  for  swine  or 
sheep  !  They  also  voted,  at  the  same  time, 
that  Joseph  Newton  should  have  approba- 
tion to  retail  liquors  to  travellers  the  ensu- 
ing year.  For  all  their  privations  or  hard 
struggles,  these  early  settlers  seemed  to 
have  a  vein  of  drollery  and  fun  underlying 
all.  In  1802,  they  called  a  meeting  to  see 
if  the  town  would  vote  to  set  the  small 
pox  in  town.  Not  wanting  it,  voted  to 
dissolve  the  meeting.  Sept.  12,  1803, 
called  a  meeting  to  see  if  the  town  would 
vote  to  set  up  inoculation  of  small  pox  in 
towji ;  did  not  want  it,  and  dissolved  the 
meeting.  In  1806,  voted  to  raise  7  mills 
on  a  dollar  for  the  purpose  of  buying  sur- 
veying implements.  Chose  Samuel  Rob- 
ertson surveyor  for  the  town — to  have  the 
use  of  the  instruments  for  doing  the  sur- 
veying for  said  town.  A  compass  and 
chain  was  bought,  a  very  good  one  for 
those  times,  and  is  still  the  property  of  the 
town.  In  18 II,  voted  to  set  off  the  east 
part  of  the  town  to  Brookfield.  Voted  to 
petition  the  general  assembly  at  their  next 
session  to  be  annexed  to  Jefferson  Co., 
(now  Washington).  To  be  stingy  and 
small  with  their  neighbors  did  not  seem  to 
be  a  fault  with  them. 

On  record,  Jan.  26,  1799, -'I,  Samuel 
Richardson,  in  consideration  of  the  love 
and  good  will  I  bear  to  my  well  respected 
friend,  Polly  Corbin,  gave  her  a  deed  of  20 
acres  of  land. " 


First  land  tax  in  town  :  Petitioned  to  the 
legislature  for  a  land  tax  in  1796.  The 
legislature,  then  in  session  at  Windsor, 
raised  a  tax  of  one  cent  on  an  acre  of  land 
in  said  town.  The  "delinquents''  lands 
to  be  sold  the  8th  clay  of  May,  1798,  at 
David  Cram's  dwelling-house,  by  David 
Cram,  constable. 

July  31,  '98,  vendue  sale  of  lands  at  Jed- 
ediah  Huntington's,  by  Abel  Lyman,  col- 
lector. 

First  deed  upon  the  land  recoris  :  from 
Asa  Huntington  to  Daniel  Kingsbury,  da- 
ted at  Brookfield,  Sept.  3,  1794,  recorded 
Mar.  24,  1796. 

In  June,  1812,  called  a  meeting  to  see 
if  the  town  would  provide  arms,  amunition 
and  equipments  for  the  soldiers  who  have 
this  day  volunteered  in  the  service  of  their 
country  as  minute  men.  Voted  that  the 
monthly  pay  of  each  minute  man  should  be 
raised  three  dollars  per  month,  while  in 
actual  service,  payable  in  grain  or  neat 
stock.  Voted  to  deposit  magazine  and 
public  arms  at  the  dwelling-house  of  Elijah 
Ellis,  the  town  having  received  gun  pow- 
der and  lead.  In  1816,  voted  to  set  off  4 
tiers  of  lots  on  east  side  of  town,  to  form 
a  separate  town  with  part  of  Brookfield. 
Passed  the  same  vote  in  1827,  and  seems 
to  have  been  dropped  there,  as  there  is  no 
farther  recoid  of  the  matter. 

Christopher  Huntington  was  the  first 
settler.  He  came  to  the  east  part  of  the 
town,  and  built  the  first  house,  where  O. 
A.  Thayer  now  lives.  He  came  from 
Mansfield,  Conn.,  where  his  children  were 
born,  but  had  resided  in  Norwich  a  short 
time  before  coming  here.  He  also  preach- 
ed the  first  sermon  in  town,  to  a  small  but 
no  doubt  appreciative  audience.  He  -was 
a  Universalist  minister,  and  as  the  town 
became  settled,  preached  in  various  places. 

Mr.  Huntington  drew  his  goods  into 
town  on  a  hand-sled  on  bare  ground,  and 
with  the  other  early  settlers,  endured  pri- 
vations hard  to  realize  from  the  stand- 
point of  to-day.  His  daughter,  Lydia, 
died  Jan.  23,  1792,  at  the  age  of  17,  the 
first  death  in  town.  Mr.  Huntington  re- 
moved to  Canada  in  1804.  The  Mr. 
Huntington  vvbo  recently  died  in  Canada, 
bequeathing  $25,000  to  the  State  of  Ver- 
mont, is  said  to  be  one  of  his  sons. 
Another  son  was  several  years  a  Baptist 
preacher  in  Braintree. 


/ 


ROXBURY. 


1Z7 


SAMUEL    RICHARDSON 

was  the  first  to  settle  in  the  west  part  of  the 
town.  He  was  born  in  Stafford,  Conn., 
June  13,  1750,  and  was  a  veteran  of  the 
Revolutionary  War,  having  "been  out'' 
nearly  half  the  war^  His  wife,  Susanna 
Pinney,  was  born  July,  1749.  After  their 
marriage,  they  came  to  Randolph  and  set- 
tled. When  the  Indians  burned  Royal- 
ton,  they  passed  through  Randolph  and 
burned  the  house  next  to  theirs,  but  it  be- 
ing somewhat  retired,  they  probably  did 
not  discern  it.  Mr.  R.  came  to  this  town 
in  1790,  and  built  a  small  log-house  near 
where  the  watch  factory  now  stands,  and 
returned  home  to  come  back  again  in  the 
early  spring  with  his  son,  Uriah,  whom 
tradition  has  it,  brought  a  five-pail  iron- 
kettle  on  his  back  through  the  deep  snow, 
with  marked  trees  for  roads.  A  niece  of 
his  has  injured  the  story,  by  declaring  her 
ancestor  to  have  been  a  brave  lad  and  a 
willing  one,  but  that  he  was  not  a  Hercu- 
les, and  it  was  really  a  seven-pail  brass- 
kettle.  Well,  even  that  seems  almost  in- 
credible, considering  the  distance,  and 
roads.  After  the  sugar-making  was  well 
begun,  Mr.  Richardson  returned  to  Ran- 
dolph, leaving  his  son  alone  in  the  wilder- 
ness for  6  weeks.  No  one  to  speak  to,  no 
daily  or  weekly  paper ;  but  the  solemn 
hoot  of  the  owl,  the  lonesome  winds 
through  the  trees,  the  howling  of  the  hun- 
gry wolves  about  his  cabin,  as  he  said, 
made  weird  music,  not  exactly  conducive 
to  sleep.  But  his  father  came  with  the  rest 
of  the  family  as  soon  as  snow  was  gone. 
There  are  said  to  have  been  several  reasons 
why  Mr.  Richardson  moved  into  this  wild- 
erness. One,  he  was  greatly  averse  to  his 
children  marrying,  and  his  sons  were  be- 
coming sturdy  young  men,  and  his  daugh- 
ters tall  and  handsome.  And  he  was  not 
the  only  one  who  seemed  to  realize  the 
fact.  Beaux  would  drop  in  of  an  evening  ; 
the  little  by-play  on  the  old  settle  by  the 
fireplace — naming  the  rosy-cheeked  apples, 
and  comparing  them  to  the  not  less  rosy 
cheeks  of  the  maidens,  going  on  under 
pater  familias'  eye,  not  unnoticed  ;  no  sym- 
pathetic chord  in  his  heart  vibrating  to 
the  echo  of  "long  ago,"  when  he  leaned 


over  the  gate,  and  made  love  to  the  fair 
Susanna  after  escorting  her  home  from 
spelling-school,  away  down  in  old  Con- 
necticut. To  keep  the  necks  of  his  off- 
spring out  of  the  "noose,"  he  reflected  the 
surest  way  was  to  get  them  where  beaux 
and  belles  were  not,  and  removed  his  fam- 
ily to  the  wilderness  ;  but  even  there,  four 
of  them  out-generalled  him  at  last.  His 
eldest  daughter,  Sarah,  and  Chester  Batch- 
elder,  Jan.  27,  1799,  by  Israel  Converse, 
justice  of  the  peace,  were  made  one,  and 
this  was  the  first  marriage  in  town.  Hannah , 
taking  courage  from  the  example  of  her 
elder  sister,  married  Peter  S.  P.  Staples. 
Lydia  married  Charles  Cotton,  hesitating- 
ly, not  swiftly,  as  lovely  maidens  should 
be  expected  to  wed — her  lithe  form  had 
lost  some  of  its  willowy  grace,  her  cheek 
its  first  youthful  bloom  ;  she  was  a  bride  of 
45  summers.  Samuel  married  Sally  Ellis. 
Half  his  children  were  gone,  but  by  the 
care  and  admonitions  of  this  tender  sire, 
half  his  family  were  still  preserved,  four 
perpetually  saved  from  marriage  fate. 

That  the  "females"  of  this  unmated 
half  of  the  Richardson  family  were  able  to 
care  for  themselves,  and  give  a  helping 
hand  to  the  weak  of  the  stronger  sex,  the 
following  proveth  :  "Tim"  Emmerson 
had  a  large  amount  of  grain  to  be  harvest- 
ed, and  no  help  to  be  had  at  any  price ;  it 
was  already  over-ripe ;  Susan  and  Mary 
Richardson,  who  were  noted  for  thrift,  and 
disliked  to  see  anything  go  to  waste,  offer- ' 
ed,  if  their  brother  would  accompany  them, 
to  give  the  poor  man  a  lift.  The  men 
folk  smiled  as  the  resolute  damsels  came 
into  the  field,  but  as  the  golden  grain  fell 
before  their  gleaming  sickles,  and  was  dex- 
terously bound  and  placed  in  stooks  by 
their  deft  hands,  the  men  hung  their  di- 
minished heads,  and  the  perspiration 
coursed  down  their  brown  cheeks  as  they 
vainly  strove  to  keep  pace  with  their  fair 
reapers.  Before  night  tradition  saith  each 
masculine  had  fallen  meekly  to  the  rear. 
Mary  and  Susan  sheared  their  own  sheep, 
and  if  occasion  required,  could  chop  off"  a 
2  foot  log  as  soon  as  most  men. 

Susan  Richardson  was  once  going  home 
from  "squire"  Robertson's,  through  the 


93 


738 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


woods.  She  heard  a  strange  cry  as  of 
some  one  in  distress.  It  was  growing 
dusk,  the  sound  came  nearer  and  nearer ; 
she  could  see  it  was  gaining  upon  her  at 
every  step.  She  was  a  very  courageous 
person,  not  easily  scared,  but  as  those 
quick,  sharp  screams  fell  upon  her  ears, 
the  grass  didn't  grow  under  her  feet  until 
she  reached  the  clearing ;  but,  once  out 
of  the  woods,  she  gathered  her  sheep  into 
a  place  of  safety  before  she  sought  shelter 
for  herself.  It  was  found,  the  next  day,  a 
catamount  had  followed  her ;  his  tracks 
were  plainly  visible  in  the  soft  earth.  It 
had  followed  her  to  the  edge  of  the  woods, 
which  reached  nearly  to  her  house.  At 
another  time,  she,  with  a  friend  who  was 
visiting  her,  went  to  a  neighbor's  for  an 
"  afternoon  tea."  It  was  late  before  they 
got  started  for  home,  and  all  the  way 
through  the  woods.  They  heard  the  dis- 
mal howling  of  wolves.  Susan  knew  the 
sound  very  well,  but  her  friend,  unused  to 
pioneer  life,  had  no  idea,  and  wondered, 
as  Susan  took  her  babe  from  her  arms  and 
hurried  rapidly  forward.  When  they  reach- 
ed the  clearing,  and  Susan  had  gathered 
in  her  sheep,  and  they  were  safe  in  the 
house,  she  told  her  friend  it  was  wolves 
they  had  heard,  and  they  would  surely 
have  got  her  baby  had  they  not  quickened 
their  pace. 

A  grand-daughter  of  Mrs.  Richardson's 
told  me  another  little  incident  that  occur- 
red when  she  was  a  child  of  twelve.  Her- 
self and  a  younger  brother  were  in  the 
woods  gathering  flowers,  they  had  wander- 
ed some  ways  farther  than  they  were 
aware,  the  sister  was  wakened  to  a  realiz- 
ing sense  of  it  when  she  spied,  but  a  few 
feet  from  them,  a  large  white-faced  bear, 
erect  on  his  hind  paws,  coming  towards 
them.  Not  wishing  to  frighten  her  broth- 
er, who  was  very  timid,  and  fearing  he 
would  be  overcome  with  terror,  she  took 
him  by  the  hand  and  strove  to  hurry  him 
away;  but  no,  just  a  few  more  flowers,  he 
said.  He  was  determined  not  to  go  home. 
"  See  there,"  said  she,  pointing  to  the 
bear,  who  stood  contemplating  the  situa- 
tion. The  boy  beheld,  and  gave  so  terrific 
a  scream,  that  the  bear  turned  and  fled  as 


fast  as  his  clumsy  limbs  could  carry  him, 
preferring  to  go  without  his  supper  to  mak- 
ing it  off"  a  boy  who  could  scream  so  loud. 

Another  reason  given  (to  return  to  Mr. 
Richardson's  reasons  for  coming  to  this 
town),  was  that  when  the  bass  viol  was 
carried  into  church  at  Randolph,  it  was 
more  than  his  orthodox  nerves  could 
stand,  and  he  preferred  the  primeval  forest, 
"God's  own  temple,"  with  the  birds  to 
sing  anthems  of  praise,  and  no  profane, 
new-fangled  instrument,  made  by  the  hand 
of  man,  with  which  to  worship  God  for 
him.  He  was  a  Congregationalist  deacon, 
and  his  wife  was  a  member  of  the  Baptist 
church.  They  lived  in  their  log-house 
only  about  a  year,  and  then  moved  farther 
up,  where  they  built  the  first  framed  house 
in  town — where  Julius  Kent  now  lives — 
many  years  afterwards  sold  to  Jonathan 
Burroughs,  and  moved  near  the  village, 
and  is  the  frame  of  Mrs.  Martell's  house. 

Mr.  Richardson  built  a  saw  and  grist- 
mill above  where  Mr.  Kent  now  lives,  and 
a  larger  house  leading  to  the  S.  E.  Spaul- 
ding  place.  A  grand-daughter  of  theirs, 
who  is  now  79  years  of  age,  and  who  spent 
much  of  her  childhood  with  them,  tells  me 
Mr.  Pinney,  the  father  of  her  grand- 
mother Richardson,  was  high  in  the  es- 
teem of  King  George,  and  was  commis- 
sioned by  him  to  attend  to  a  great  deal  of 
business  for  His  Majesty  in  New  England. 

GEORGE  the  Third,  by  the  Grace  of  GOD 
of  Great  B?'itain,  France  and  Ireland, 
KING,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  &c. 
To  all  to  whom  these  Presents  shall  come. 
Greeting. 

Know  Ye,  That  We  have  assigned, 
constituted  and  appointed,  and  by  these 
Presents  do  assign,  constitute  and  appoint 
Our  trusty  and  well  beloved  Subject,  Isaac 
Pinney,  Esq,,  to  be  Judge  of  Our  Court  of 
Probate,  to  be  holden  within  the  District 
of  Stafford,  in  our  Colony  of  Connecticut, 
in  JVew  England,  with  the  Assistance  of  a 
Clerk,  to  hold  our  said  Court  of  Probate  of 
Wills,  granting  of  Administration,  ap- 
pointing and  allowing  of  Guardians,  with 
full  Power  to  act  in  all  Matters  proper  for 
a  prerogative  Court. 

In  Testimony  ivhereof.  We  have  caused 
the  Seal  of  Our  said  Colony  to  be  hereunto 
afiixed.  Witness,  Jonathan  Trumbull, 
Esq.,  Governor  of  our  said  Colony  of 
Connecticut ,  and  with  the  Consent  of  the 


ROXBURY. 


739 


General  Assembly  of  the  same  in  Hart- 
ford, this  first  Day  of  June,  in  the  13th 
Year  of  Our  Reign,  Anitoqi/e  Dotnini,  One 
Thousand  Seven  Hundred  and  Seventy- 
three.     By  His  Honor's  Command, 

JON'A.  TRUMBULL,  Gov. 
George  Wyllys,  Sec'y. 

At  one  time  he  received  important  mes- 
sages from  the  King,  and  although  he  had 
six  clerks,  he  took  his  daughter,  afterward 
Mrs.  R.,  from  school  as  his  private  secre- 
tary. His  daughters  were  all  taught  the 
science  of  medicine,  and  Mrs.  R.  attended 
to  the  sick  in  this  town  before  other  phy- 
sicians came  in,  and  some  afterwards, 
going  about  on  horseback,  with  a  heavy 
riding  dress  for  unpleasant  weather.  She 
never  shrank  where  duty  called,  and  not 
expecting  other  recompense  than  the  grat- 
itude of  those  she  served ;  for  in  those 
primitive  days  the  few  inhabitants  were 
not  burdened  with  riches,  and  were  neigh- 
borly to  each  other. 

One  fall,  seeing  the  destitution  around 
them,  Mr.  R.  took  a  yoke  of  oxen  to  Wil- 
liamstown,  exchanged  them  for  potatoes, 
and  divided  them  among  the  destitute, 
taking  his  pay  in  work  as  they  could  do  it. 
Mrs.  Richardson  at  this  time  gave  her 
family  two  meals  per  day,  with  a  cup  of 
milk  for  supper,  giving  what  they  saved  by 
so  doing  to  the  needy  ones. 

Living  on  the  road  that  crossed  the 
mountain  to  Warren,  the  glimmer  of  light 
from  their  windows  was  often  a  most  wel- 
come sight  to  the  benighted  traveler.  A 
man  overtaken  by  night,  with  intense  cold 
and  darkness,  crawled  on  his  hands  and 
knees  for  miles,  fearing  he  should  lose  the 
track  that  led  to  their  house,  knowing  if 
he  did  he  must  perish.  Large,  warm 
hearts  these  people  had,  with  a  hand  ever 
out  reached  to  help  any  poorer  than  them- 
selves. Their  noble  charities,  their  ex- 
emplary Christian  characters  amid  all  the 
struggles  and  hardships  of  pioneer  life, 
are  most  worthy  of  imitation.  They,  with 
their  children,  all  of  whom  reached  ma- 
turity, now  rest  in  the  old  burying-ground, 
near  the  residence  of  O.  A.  Staples. 

DAVID   CRAM, 

one  of  the  next  to  come  into  town,  was 
from  Lyndsboro,  N.  H.     His  son,  Philip, 


born  Mar.  18,  1795,  was  the  first  male 
child  born  in  town.  Lydia  Huntington, 
daughter  of  Jedediah  H.,  got  four  days 
start  of  him,  so  the  honor  of  being  the  first 
child  born  in  town  rests  upon  her.  Whether 
she  is  living,  I  am  unable  to  say ;  but 
Philip  Cram  married  Abigail  Heath,  of 
Randolph,  and  is  now  living  in  Brook- 
field. 

Daniel  Corbin  came  from  Randolph 
about  this  time,  and  Isaac  Lewis,  David, 
Robert  and  Jonathan  Cram  located  on 
farms  now  owned  by  Messrs.  Chatterton, 
Bowman  and  Orra  Boyce. 

Benoni  Webster  came,  in  1798,  I  think, 
from  Connecticut,  and  located  on  the  place 
now  occupied  by  James  Steele.  Mr.  Web- 
ster came  from  Connecticut  with  an  ox- 
team,  rather  a  slow  mode  of  conveyance 
for  the  distance,  but  "  patience  and  perse- 
verance" were  household  words  in  those 
days.  The  "blue  laws''  did  not  allow 
people  to  be  moving  on  Sunday  in  the  old 
state,  and  Mr.  Webster  was  stopped  in  a 
small  village  to  give  an  account  of  him- 
self. He  declared  it  was  against  his 
principles  to  be  traveling  on  the  Sabbath, 
but  his  wife  had  been  exposed  to  the 
small  pox,  and  he  was  in  great  haste 
to  get  to  his  journey's  end.  He  was 
allowed  to  pass  on.  His  oldest  son, 
Charles,  born  in  Connecticut,  married 
Eleanor  P.  Ryder,  and  settled  in  the  east 
part  of  this  town,  where  his  second  son, 
Aaron,  now  resides,  and  is  the  only  one  of 
the  family  in  the  State. 

Charles  Webster  was  killed  by  being 
thrown  from  his  carriage  in  1834.  Benoni 
Webster,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  is 
still  living,  at  an  advanced  age,  in  North- 
field.  He  was  born  in  a  barn,  not  a  mod- 
ern affair,  but  an  old  log-barn.  Whether 
he  was  cradled  in  a  manger,  tradition 
saith  not.  One  of  the  children  being  so 
ill  he  could  endure  no  noise,  to  secure  him 
the  quiet  needed  to  save  his  life,  the  rest 
of  the  family  moved  into  the  barn,  with 
the  exception  of  one  to  nurse  the  sick 
child,  and  there  they  remained  until  he 
was  restored  to  health,  which  was  over  a 
year. 


740 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


JOEL    HILDRETH 

came  to  this  township  in  the  autumn  of 
1797,  from  Cornish,  N.  H.,  and  boarded 
with  a  family  who  lived  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  G.  L.  Walbridge,  while  he  built 
his  log-house  on  the  place  now  owned  by 
Mr.  George  Williams,  who  purchased  of 
Mr.  Hildreth's  grand-son,  Samuel  A.  Hil- 
dreth,  a  few  years  since.  One  morning 
soon  after  Mr.  Hildreth  was  settled  in  his 
cabin,  he  heard  a  rooster  crow  to  the  east- 
ward, and  as  the  ringing  notes  came  across 
the  wooded  valley,  it  fell  upon  his  ears 
like  music.  He  followed  that  "  crow"  for 
four  or  five  miles,  and  at  last  found  his 
new  neighbors  in  Northfield,  near  where 
William  Winch  now  resides. 

Mr.  Hildreth.  with  his  tnisty  rifle,  was 
a  terror  to  the  denizens  of  the  forest,  hav- 
ing, to  use  his  own  words,  "  unbuttoned 
many  a  bear's  shirt  collar."  Upon  one  oc- 
casion returning  late  in  the  evening  from 
his  day's  work,  he  heard  a  bear  clambering 
down  a  tree  close  at  hand.  He  could  hear 
his  claws  clinging  in  the  bark,  and  could 
just  discern  in  the  darkness  the  dim  out- 
lines of  his  unwieldy  figure.  He  was  alone 
in  the  forest,  a  great  ways  from  home ; 
thoughts  of  the  dear  ones  there  awaiting 
him  nerved  his  arm.  He  dealt  the  bear 
a  powerful  blow  with  his  ax,  and  fled. 
Returning  next  morning  to  the  "scene  of 
carnage,"  they  found  he  had  decapitated  a 
huge  hedge-hog,  and  pinned  him  to  the 
tree  with  his  ax.  Mr.  Hildreth  resided 
on  the  place  he  had  cleared  up  until  his 
death  in  1844. 

WILLIAM    GOLD, 

known  as  Deacon  Gold,  came  to  town  with 
Samuel  Robertson,  and  after  working  for 
him  one  year,  bought  a  piece  of  land,  a 
mile  east  of  Dog  river,  and  built  a  log- 
cabin.  This  is  where  he  had  a  famous 
bear  fight.  The  bears  had  been  making 
havoc  with  the  Deacon's  cornfield,  and  he 
swore  a  "pious  oath"  [made  a  pious  re- 
solve would  be  better  for  a  deacon] ,  the 
thieves  should  be  captured.  A  trap  was 
devised  that  none  but  a  very  wise  bear 
would  fail  of  walking  straight  into,  for  a 
taste  of  the  tempting  bait.  The  bear  that 
came  was  not  a  wise  one,  for   when    the 


Deacon  appeared  on  the  ground  next 
morning,  bright  and  early,  sure  enough 
there  was  a  great  surly  fellow,  with  one  of 
his  hind  paws  fast  in  the  trap.  The  Deacon 
seized  a  club  and  ru.shed  forward,  old 
bruin  equally  ready  and  delighted  with  an 
interview,  striking  the  club  from  his  hand 
like  a  flash,  cordially  clasped  the  Deacon 
in  his  furry  arms,  and  had  about  squeezed 
the  life  out  of  him,  when  the  hired  man, 
Paddleford,  came  to  the  rescue  with  an 
axe.  "Don't  cut  the  hide!"  gasped  the 
Deacon,  as  bruin  clasped  him  in  a  still 
more  fervid  embrace.  The  hide  was  cut 
in  several  places  before  the  poor  Deacon 
was  released,  who,  though  "  pure  grit," 
came  out  of  the  combat  in  a  sadly  demol- 
ished condition,  and  carried  the  marks  ot 
bear  teeth  and  claws  to  his  grave. 

From  yohn  Gregory's  History  of  Northfield. 
DEA.    WILLIAM    GOLD, 

born  in  Springfield,  Mass.,  Oct.  30,  1780; 
came  to  Roxbury  in  1801,  and  settled 
upon  one  of  the  highest  mountains  in  that 
town.  He  was  a  deacon  of  the  Baptist 
church.  Any  one  at  this  day  looking  the 
mountain  land  over  where  he  located,  can 
see  under  what  discouraging  circumstances 
this  early  settler  was  placed. 

In  1847,  he  removed  to  Northfield.  He 
married  Annevera  Dewey,  who  was  born 
in  1780;  had  7  children:  Annevera,  Wil- 
liam, Sherman,  Buel,  Joseph,  Mary, Sophia, 
all  born  in  Roxbury.  Deacon  Gold  died 
in  1859;  Mrs.  Gold  in  1856. 

JOHN   B.    CRANDALL 

moved  into  town  in  1804;  was  eccentric, 
quite  a  pettifogger,  and  always  called 
"Judge."  One  time,  having  a  lawsuit, 
he  became  disgusted  with  his  counsel,  con- 
sidered an  able  lawyer,  paid  him  off"  and 
dismissed  him  before  the  suit  was  fairly 
commenced,  plead  his  own  case,  and  won 
it.  Another  time  he  went  to  Waitsfield  to 
take  charge  of  a  lawsuit.  Knowing  his 
opponent,  an  attorney  from  Montpelier,  to 
be  extremely  fastidious  in  his  tastes  and 
manner  of  dress,  he  chose  the  other  ex- 
treme, an  awfully  shabby  coat,  and  trow- 
sers  that  suggested  the  idea  that  some 
time  in  an  earlier  stage  of  existence  they 


ROXBURY. 


741 


had  been  the  property  of  a  Methodist 
preacher — they  had  certainly  done  a  great 
deal  of  knee  service — a  dilapidated  hat,  a 
boot  on  one  foot,  an  old  shoe  on  the  other, 
completed  his  outfit.  The  fine  gentleman 
strutting  back  and  forth  in  dignity,  won- 
dered why  Mr.  Crandall  did  not  arrive, 
when  some  one  turning  to  Mr.  C,  intro- 
duced them.  The  Montpelier  attorney 
looked  at  Mr.  C,  surprise  and  contempt 
expressed  in  every  feature.  "  What,  that 
creature  P""  he  at  last  blurted  out ;  "why, 
he  don't  know  enough  to  say  boo  to  a 
goose."  The  "  Judge  "  drew  his  grotesque 
figure  to  its  full  height,  made  a  low  bow, 
and  said  "  boo  !  "  very  emphatically  in  the 
face  of  the  offended  lawyer,  which  brought 
down  the  house,  and  the  sleek  gentleman 
was  yet  more  discomfited  when  he  lost 
his  case,  and  the  "Judge"  won  the  laurels 
he  had  anticipated. 

Mr.  CrandalPs  widow  married  Jonathan 
Lamson,  of  Fayston,  where  she  died  a  few 
years  since,  at  the  advanced  age  of  108. 
(See  History  of  Fayston.) 

LEWIS   CHATFIELD 

came  to  town  in  1810,  and  settled  on  the 
farm  now  occupied  by  his  son,  Lewis.  He 
was  a  man  of  peculiarities,  but  sterling 
worth.  He,  like  many  of  the  early  set- 
tlers, had  a  hard  struggle  to  feed  and 
clothe  his  family.  One  winter  he  fortu- 
nately captured  a  huge  bear,  whose  meat 
and  lard  kept  grim  want  from  the  door  till 
spring.  He  made  a  business  of  hop  rais- 
ing the  last  40  years,  and  through  indus- 
try and  frugality,  acquired  a  competence. 
He  died  in  1880,  aged  94. 

BILLA   WOODARD 

came  from  Tolland,  Conn.,  in  1802;  set- 
tled on  East  Hill,  and  was  for  many  years 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  saddle-trees, 
and  the  only  one  in  New  England  for  a 
long  time  in  that  business. 

HON.    CHARLES   SAMSON 

came  here  in  1810.  Z.  S.  Stanton,  in  his 
Historical  Centennial  Address,  thus  speaks 
of  him  : 

He  accompanied  his  father,  Benjamin 
Franklin,  who  wasa  veteran  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, and  participated  in  the  battle  of  Lex- 
ington and  Bunker  Hill. 


Mr.  Samson  bought  the  place  where 
L.  A.  Rood  now  lives.  The  previous  oc- 
cupant was  Dr.  Stafford,  who  kept  a  tav- 
ern, and  the  first  in  town.  Charles  Sam- 
son settled  where  Mr.  Wetmore  lives.  He 
has  been  closely  identified  with  the  affairs 
of  this  town  ever  since,  and  is  still  per- 
mitted to  be  with  us.  He  has  represented 
the  town  in  the  legislature  of  the  State  for 
13  sessions,  and  has  held  many  other  im- 
portant positions  in  the  town  and  county. 
It  was  owing  to  his  exertions  that  Roxbury 
was  transferred  from  Orange  to  Washing- 
ton County,  in  1820.  In  those  days  the 
main  road  through  the  west  part  of  the 
town,  which  was  also  the  stage  road,  led 
from  where  A.  J.  Averill  now  lives  past 
where  the  residences  of  W.  I.  Simonds  and 
S.  G.  Stanton  now  are,  and  intercepted 
the  mountain  road  near  where  Mrs.  Brack- 
ett  now  lives,  thence  up  where  the  present 
road  is  as  far  as  the  old  mill  above  Royal 
Batchelder's  house,  and  then  past  the  pres- 
ent residence  of  O.  A.  Staples,  down  to 
the  "  Branch  road,"  where  Samuel  Ed- 
wards now  lives.  From  here  it  followed 
its  present  course.  There  was  also  a  road 
through  the  eastern  part  of  the  town,  and 
also  the  central  part,  where  E.  K.  Young 
now  resides.  Elijah  Ellis  lived  where 
Mrs.  Brackett  now  does.  He  built  the 
house  at  this  place,  and  it  was  the  first 
house  built  in  town  that  was  arranged  for 
the  use  of  stoves,  I  am  informed.  He  had 
no  fireplace  or  "stack  of  chimneys,"  as 
they  were  called,  and  people  thought  it  a 
great  departure  from  the  old  ways.  He 
built  the  first  clover-mill  that  was  erected 
in  this  town,  on  the  site  now  occupied  by 
S.  N.  Miller's  carriage-shop.  He  also 
erected  a  saw-mill  at  this  place. 

BENONI   WEBSTER, 

(BY  A.  WEBSTER.) 

A  native  of  Connecticut,  brought  his  fam- 
ily to  Roxbury  in  the  spring  of  1797.  He 
had  previously  lived  in  Hartland,  Vt.,  a 
few  years. 

He  settled  in  the  N.  E.  part  of  the  tbwn 
on  lot  No.  3,  of  the  Lst  range,  now  owned 
by  James  Steele,  which  he  had  bought  in 
1796,  then  an  unbroken  wilderness.  His 
first  house  was  logs,  roofed  with  bark,  and 
floored  with  split  bass  wood,  smoothed  with 
an  axe.  In  18 10,  he  built  a  large  framed- 
house,  making  the  rooms  about  2  feet 
higher  than  it  was  usual  to  make  them  at 
that  time,  so  that  "Uncle  Sam  Metcalf  (of 
Royalton),  could  stand  up  in  them  with 
his  hat  on."  The  doors  were  also  made 
unusually  high,  so  that  his  wife's  tall  rela- 


742 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tions  could  come  in  without  stooping,  as 
he  said.  He  was  the  first  to  plant  fruit 
trees  in  town,  a  large  apple  orchard,  and 
pear  and  plum  trees  in  the  garden  being 
among  his  earlier  improvements. 

It  is  said  that  at  the  time  of  the  mem- 
orable great  November  snow-storm,  the 
effects  of  which  may  still  be  seen  in  our 
forests  in  bent  and  distorted  trees,  while 
the  family  were  at  dinner,  the  young  apple 
trees  were  discovered  to  be  breaking  down 
beneath  the  fast  accumulating  snow,  and 
the  boys  left  their  bowls  of  "  hominy  and 
milk"  to  shake  the  apple  trees,  which  were 
saved  only  by  repeating  the  shaking  at 
short  intervals  through  the  afternoon  and 
evening. 

In  1804,  his  entire  stock  of  cattle,  con- 
sisting of  a  yoke  of  4-years-old  oxen  and  of 
2  cows,  were  bitten  by  a  mad  dog  that  came 
along,  and  all  died  and  were  buried  in  one 
hole  together. 

Mr.  Webster  died  Jan.  8,  1823,  aged  60 
years,  9  months,  21  days,  leaving  a  wife, 
who  died  in  1838,  aged  66  years,  and  6 
sons  and  4  daughters,  all  of  whom  lived  to 
have  families  of  their  own.  Of  these  but 
two,  Edmund  Webster,  of  Randolph,  and 
Benoni  Webster,  of  Northfield,  are  known 
to  be  now  living ;  but  the  descendants  of 
the  third  and  fourth  generations  are  widely 
scattered  through  the  country  from  New 
Hampshire  in  the  East  to  California  in  the 
West,  and  from  Minnesota  in  the  north  to 
Texas  in  the  South  ;  but  one  family,  that 
of  the  writer,  being  left  in  Roxbury. 
Charles  webster. 

BY  A.   WEBSTER. 

Charles,  oldest  son  of  Benoni  and  Sally 
Metcalf  Webster,  was  born  June  5,  1790, 
at  Lebanon  Parish,  Conn.,  and  came  to 
Roxbury  with  his  father  when  7  years  old, 
and  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  district  No.  i  and  the  home  college  by 
his  father's  hearth,  reading  by  the  light  of 
the  open  fire  during  the  autumn  and  winter 
evenings.  It  was  his  custom  to  keep  a 
supply  of  birch  bark  to  furnish  light  when 
the  usual  fire  was  insufficient. 

Being  the  oldest  boy  and  large  of  his 
age,  he  was  his  father's  chief  assistant  in 
clearing  away  the  forest  and  making  a  cul- 


tivated farm.  One  of  his  recreations  at 
this  time  was  fishing  in  the  stream  that 
runs  through  the  valley  half  a  mile  north  of 
his  father's  farm,  where  the  brook  trout 
were  so  abundant  that  he  often  hired  one 
of  the  Adams  boys  to  help  him  carry  his 
fish  up  the  hill,  home. 

The  wolves  made  havoc  with  the  sheep 
of  the  neighborhood,  and  he  and  the  Gallup 
boys  devised  a  plan  to  capture  them.  They 
built  a  conical  pen  of  saplings,  about  6  feet 
high,  and  placed  in  it  a  couple  of  lambs  to 
entice  the  wolves  into  the  trap,  shrewdly 
calculating  while  it  would  be  easy  for  the 
wolves  to  run  up  the  inclined  sides  and 
leap  down  into  the  pen,  it  would  not  be  so 
easy  for  them,  after  gorging  with  mutton, 
to  leap  out. 

Sanguine  of  success,  they  visited  the 
trap  every  morning,  expecting  to  find  a 
large  pack  of  fierce  wolves  safely  corraled 
and  howling  with  rage.  This  for  several 
mornings.  At  length,  one  morning  when 
they  came  to  inspect,  beginning  to  wonder 
why  the  wolves  were  so  slow  in  getting  in  ; 
the  trap  seemed  to  be  empty.  No  lambs 
appeared  skipping  around  within,  and  after 
a  close  examination,  there  appeared  only  a 
few  bones  and  shreds  of  wool.  The  wolves 
had  doubtless  climbed  upon  the  shoulders 
of  each  other  and  got  out.  Their  two  lambs 
were  gone  for  nought.  Not  to  be  foiled  in 
this  way,  the  boys  immediately  built  a 
much  stronger  and  higher  pen,  but  the 
wolves  were  not  heard  from  afterwards,  and 
it  was  supposed  they  left  the  place  in  dis- 
gust. 

He  commenced  teaching  school  when 
quite  young,  and  followed  it  for  fourteen 
winters,  acquiring  such  a  reputation  as  a 
teacher  and  disciplinarian  that  his  services 
were  often  sought  for  in  schools  where 
other  teachers  had  failed. 

On  one  occasion,  it  is  said  that  some 
large  boys  burned  his  ferule,  and  made 
other  preparations  for  carrying  him  out, 
as  they  had  a  previous  teacher.  The 
game  commenced  promptly,  but  a  leg 
hastily  wrenched  from  a  bench  did  such 
effective  service  that  there  was  no  further 
use  for  instnuTients  of  discipline  during 
that  term. 


ROXBURY. 


743 


In  Aug.  1823,  he  married  Eleanor  P. 
Ryder,  and  settled  on  his  farm  in  East 
Roxbury,  half  a  mile  below  the  mills  where 
his  son,  Aaron,  now  resides,  where  he 
lived  till  the  next  spring,  when,  having 
bought  a  part  of  the  farm  of  his  father's 
estate,  he  moved  on  to  it,  and  lived  there 
until  the  spring  of  1830,  when  he  returned 
to  his  first  farm,  where  he  lived  until  his 
death,  Nov.  5,  1834. 

About  1830,  he  raised  from  his  famous 
"  Wild  Air"  mare  twin  colts,  of  which  he 
was  proud  ;  but  one  of  which,  a  noble  and 
powerful  animal,  but  skittish  and  uncon- 
trollable when  frightened,  was  the  occasion 
of  his  instantaneous  death,  by  being  thrown 
from  his  wagon  in  the  night,  near  the  Peck 
farm  in  Brookfield.  He  had  often  ex- 
pressed a  presentiment  that  he  should  die 
by  accident,  and  was  the  last  of  three 
cousins,  the  oldest  sons  of  three  sisters,  to 
be  killed  instantly  by  accident. 

SPAULDING   FAMILY. 

Darius  Spaulding  was  from  Plainfield, 
Conn.,  married  Hannah  Ingraham  from 
Providence,  R.  I.  They  had  a  number  of 
children  when  they  came  here,  in  1799. 
Mr.  Spaulding  came  in  the  fall,  slashed  a 
piece,  built  a  log-house,  and  moved  his 
family  the  next  spring.  Nearly,  and  per- 
haps all  the  Spauldings  in  town  at  the 
present  day,  and  they  are  very  numerous, 
are  descendants  of  Darius  and  Hannah 
Spaulding.  They  reared  a  family  of  8 
sons  and  3  daughters. 

Gilbert,  the  eldest,  married  Renda  Mc 
Clure,  moved  to  New  York,  and  died  at 
the  ripe  age  of  90.  He  was  a  gieat  chop- 
per, even  for  those  days,  when  all  were 
supposed  to  know  how  to  wield  an  ax.  It 
is  said  8  cords  only  made  him  a  fair  day's 
work,  nothing  at  all  to  boast  of. 

Darius  Jr.  married  Betsey  Spaulding, 
and  they  lived  and  died  at  a  good  old  age, 
in  Roxbury.  Two  of  their  sons  still  live 
in  town,  Charles  and  Samuel. 

John,  the  3d  son  of  Darius  Sen.,  mar- 
ried Betsey  McClure,  of  Stafford,  Conn. 
They  commenced  keeping  hotel  in  1822, 
near  where  Julius  Kent  now  lives.  They 
had  also  a  saw  and  grist-mill. 

Mr.  Burnham,  merchant  at  Roxbury  vil- 


lage, says,  when  a  small  boy,  he  went  there  ^ 
with  his  grist,  and    Mrs.    Spaulding   who 
was  an  energetic  little   woman,  took   his 
grain,  carried   it  into  the  mill,  ground    it 
and  brought  it  back  to  him. 

Mr.  Spaulding  built  the  Summit  House 
in  1830,  where  he  remained  until  a  few 
years  previous  to  his  death,  in  1864.  His 
widow  is  still  living,  hale  and  happy,  loved 
and  respected.  Her  friends  celebrated 
her  90th  birth-day  the  9th  of  last  Sept. 
[1881.]  She  has  had  5  children,  all  of 
whom  are  living,  Erastus  N.  Billings,  Mrs. 
P.  Wiley,  Mrs.  Brackett  and  Mrs.  A.  N. 
Tilden.  All  living  in  their  native  town, 
clustered  about  their  aged  mother. 

Philip  married  Polly  Nichols,  of  North- 
field,  is  now  living  in  Hermon,  N.  Y.,  84 
years  of  age. 

Erastus,  the  4th  son,  built  the  house 
where  Dea.  Edwards  now  lives,  and  kept 
a  hotel  there  several  years.  He  married  a 
widow,  Whitcomb,  by  name,  from  Waits- 
field.  They  removed  to  DeKalb,  N.  Y., 
where  he  died  a  short  time  since,  at  an  ad- 
vanced age. 

Allen  was  their  first  child,  born  in  this 
town  in  1804,  and  married  Hannah  Sam- 
son in  1828  ;  moved  on  to  the  Rood  place, 
and  kept  a  small  store  3  years  ;  then  built 
a  store  in  the  village,  which  he  occupied 
for  10  years,  near  the  R.  R.  crossing, 
where  Geo.  Butterfield  now  resides.  He 
represented  the  town  4  years.  He  enlist- 
ed, in  '61,  in  Co.  H,  6  Vt.  Reg.,  as  major; 
was  appointed  sergeant  with  captain's  pay. 

At  one  time  during  the  war,  he  was  or- 
dered to  take  a  small  squad  of  men,  and 
go  in  search  of  cattle  for  beef,  as  it  had  been 
a  long  time  the  regiment  had  subsisted  on 
salt  meat  and  "hard  tack."  They  travelled 
till  nearly  night  before  they  got  track  of 
what  they  were  in  quest  of,  and  they  found 
themselves  25  miles  from  camp  in  the  en- 
emy's territory.  Being  told  a  woman  near 
by  owned  a  fine  flock  of  sheep,  he  took  a 
couple  of  men  and  called  on  her.  She 
with  her  two  daughters  sat  on  a  rustic  seat 
in  a  beautiful  garden,  surrounded  with  the 
appearances  of  wealth  and  luxury.  He 
made  known  his  errand,  when  out  of  her 
mouth  poured  a  torrent  of  oaths  and  the 


744 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


coarsest  invectives  that  he  had  ever  heard 
a  woman  utter,  abusing  him  and  the  Union 
army  in  general.  A  servant  rode  up  on  an 
elegant  horse,  and  dismounting,  asked  his 
mistress  "  if  she  knew  she  was  addressing 
Union  officers?"  She  said  she  knew  it 
very  well.  The  Major  informed  her  he 
came  to  buy  her  sheep,  but  as  she  had 
none  to  sell  to  "  Union  men,"  he  should 
take  them  without  if  they  suited  him,  and 
ordering  one  of  his  men  to  mount  the 
horse  her  servant  had  just  dismounted 
from,  they  rode  otf",  amid  the  hysterical 
screams  of  the  mother  and  daughters. 
They  camped  for  the  night  on  an  old  planta- 
tion, about  2  miles  from  there,  but  had 
pickets  out  to  keep  an  eye  on  the  move- 
ments of  the  enemy.  After  all  was  quiet 
at  the  plantation,  200  mounted  darkies 
came,  and  attempted  to  retake  the  widow's 
property,  but  at  the  first  crack  of  a  rifle, 
they  "  skedaddled."  The  Major  got  back 
to  camp  with  25  head  of  fat  cattle,  and  pre- 
sented the  beautiful  pony  to  the  Colonel. 

At  another  time  there  were  100  men 
sick,  and  the  surgeon  said  they  would  all 
die  unless  they  had  milk.  The  Major  was 
ordered  to  take  10  men  and  go  and  buy 
milk  for  the  sick.  They  went  to  a  planta- 
tion where  100  cows  were  kept,  just  as 
they  were  coming  off  the  ranche  to  be 
milked.  They  asked  to  buy  milk  for  sick 
soldiers.  The  surly  old  fellow  said  he  had 
"  no  milk  to  sell  Union  soldiers."  The 
Major  went  back,  got  a  permit  from  the 
Provost  Marshal,  and  was  there  early 
the  next  morning;  selected  10  fine  cows, 
and  in  spite  of  the  old  gentleman's  pro- 
testing, drove  them  to  camp.  The  sick 
had  milk  freely,  and  when  they  were  or- 
dered to  Florida,  in  6  weeks  from  that 
time,  every  man  but  one  was  able  to  go. 
The  Major  turned  over  his  dairy  to  the 
Provost  Marshal,  according  to  army  regu- 
lations, and  the  surly  old  fellow  who  would 
not  sell  milk  to  sick  soldiers,  never  re- 
covered his  lost  kine. 

So  carefully  did  Major  Spaulding  look 
after  the  interests  of  the  soldiers,  he  was 
called  the  father  of  the  regiment.  He  is 
now  living,  hale  and  hearty,  at  the  age  of 
']'],  and  the  oldest  person  living  but  one 


who  was  born  in  town,  and  has  lived  there 
the  most  part  of  his  life. 

SAMUEL   ROBERTSON, 

(BY  OUAMEL   RICHARDSON.) 

Son  of  Patrick  and  Elizabeth  Robertson, 
natives  of  Scotland,  was  born  in  New 
London,  Ct.,  Aug.  18,  1775.  He  lost  his 
father  when  quite  young.  His  mother 
married  again,  and  lived  in  Stafford,  Ct., 
where  he  lived  till  he  came  to  this  town. 
Aug.  1 80 1,  he  married  Persis  Richardson, 
of  Tolland,  Ct.,  and  the  next  March  they 
moved  here,  on  to  the  place  now  owned 
by  John  Cumins,  on  East  Hill.  Their 
first  business  after  getting  settled  was 
sugaring.  They  made  16  pounds,  their 
stock  of  sugar  for  that  year. 

There  were  only  five  or  six  families  in 
that  part  of  the  town.  Mr.  Samuel  Rich- 
ardson had  a  few  years  before  begun  a  set- 
tlement in  the  extreme  west  part  of  the 
town,  and  that  at  this  time  was  the  "center" 
of  civilization,  and  here  Mr.  Robertson 
taught  a  school  during  the  winter  of 
1802  and  '3.  The  school-house  was  the 
first  framed  building  in  town,  and  stood 
very  nearly  where  the  Royal  Batchelder 
house  now  does.  He  had  68  scholars, 
and  the  room  being  small,  they  were 
packed  like  "  herrings  in  a  box,"  and  came 
from  five  or  six  miles  around  in  different 
directions.  He  lived  some  3  miles  dis- 
tant, and  walked  to  and  from  his  school 
each  day  through  the  deep  snows,  with  no 
track  most  of  the  way  except  what  he  made 
himself.  He  taught  here  two  or  three 
succeeding  winters,  and  during  the  time 
moved  into  the  school-house  he  had  occu- 
pied, and  lived  there  a  few  years,  when  he 
bought  the  land  now  owned  by  Hira  G. 
Ellis,  and  made  a  permanent  settlement, 
clearing  up  the  forests  and  erecting  com- 
fortable buildings.  His  house  was  on  the 
old  road  leading  by  where  Dea.  W.  I. 
Simonds  and  S.  G.  Stanton  now  live.  He 
moved  his  buildings,  about  1834,  down  on 
to  the  county  road,  where  they  now  stand. 
Here  he  lived  until  within  12  years  of  his 
death. 

He  possessed  a  vigorous  mind,  and  was 
very  fond  of  investigation  and  argument, 


ROXBURY. 


745 


especially  on  religious  subjects.  His  house 
was  known  far  and  wide  as  the  "minister's 
tavern,"  and  ministers  of  all  "evangelical 
sects"  usuall}'  made  it  their  home  when 
in  that  vicinity,  and  nothing  suited  him 
better  than  to  have  some  stiff  Baptist  or 
Calvinist  stop  over  night.  On  all  such  oc- 
casions, as  soon  as  supper  was  over,  chores 
done  and  candles  lighted,  the  gauntlet  was 
sure  to  be  thrown  down,  and  then  came 
the  "  tug  of  war" — generally  the  old  clock 
in  the  "  square  room"  struck  twelve  before 
the  battle  ceased,  and  then  only  from  ex- 
haustion, and  never  because  either  party 
considered  themselves  vanquished.  He 
was  a  great  reader,  and  never  failed  or 
feared  to  express  his  opinion  on  any  sub- 
ject up  for  public  discussion,  and  never 
failed  to  cast  his  vote  every  year  after  he 
attained  his  majority  until  his  death.  He 
was  once  in  the  state  of  New  York,  teach- 
ing, when  an  election  occurred,  and  altho' 
but  a  temporary  resident  of  the  state,  so 
great  was  his  interest  in  the  election,  he 
purchased  a  piece  of  land  for  the  sole  pur- 
pose of  being  qualified  to  vote  (a  property 
qualification  being  then  necessary  in  that 
state). 

He  held  many  town  offices  in  the  early 
part  of  his  life,  but  was  rather  too  pro- 
nounced and  positive  in  his  opinions  of 
men  and  measures  to  be  "popular"  in  po- 
litical circles.  He  took  an  active  part  in 
the  first  temperance  movement  which  agi- 
tated New  England.  He  had  previous  to 
that  time  been  a  temperate  user  of  ardent 
spirits,  but  when  the  subject  was  presented 
to  him,  he  at  once  gave  it  his  unqualified 
support,  and  conferring  "  not  with  flesh 
and  blood,"  he  banished  every  drop  from 
his  house,  and  going  farther,  he  abandon- 
ed the  use  of  tobacco,  breaking  a  habit  of 
30  years  standing. 

There  is  an  anecdote  about  his  using 
tobacco  :  Some  60  years  ago,  Moses  Claf- 
lin,  a  simple  man  who  lived  in  this  town, 
who  occasionally  made  his  home  with  Mr. 
R.,  one  evening  sat  by  the  fire  in  a 
"  brown  study,"  and  Esq.  Roberston  sat 
opposite,  quietly  chewing,  and  now  and 
then  spitting  into  the  broad  fireplace.  At 
last  Moses  looked  up  and  asked,  "Squire, 


what  did  you  learn  to  chew  tobaker  for?" 
Mr.  Roberston  replied,  "  Oh,  so's  to  be  a 
gentleman."  Moses  studied  the  matter  a 
moment  and  with  great  gravity  replied, 
"  W'al,  ye  did'nt  make  out,  did  ye?" 

Mrs.  Roberston  died  Dec,  1859,  after  a 
married  life  of  almost  60  years,  during 
which  she  had  borne  her  full  share  of  the 
duties  and  cares  of  their  lot. 

Twice  after  they  came  to  Vermont  she 
made  the  journey  to  the  home  of  her 
youth  in  Connecticut  on  horseback,  a  feat 
our  lady  equestrians  of  to-day  would  hardly 
care  to  undertake. 

Ever  after  the  death  of  his  wife,  Mr.  R. 
seemed  to  lose  his  hold  of  things  earthly, 
and  to  be  quietly  waiting  for  the  realiza- 
tion of  the  faith  which  had  been  an  anchor 
to  him  and  his  comjianion  during  their 
long  pilgrimage  together.  He  was  a  life- 
long Christian.  He  maintained  his  mental 
faculties  to  a  remarkable  degree  up  to 
within  a  few  weeks  of  his  death,  and  was 
during  his  latter  years  very  cheerful,  very 
grateful  for  kindnesses  he  received,  and  at 
last  passed  away  as  an  infant  sinks  to 
slumber,  beloved  by  all  who  knew  him, 
Sept.  6,  1872,  aged  97  years,  19  days. 

Seth  Richardson  came  here  in  1802; 
settled  near  Braintree,  in  the  south  part  of 
the  town;  died  May  25,  1829,  and  Sarah, 
his  wife,  died  July  i,  1836.  Their  chil- 
dren were:     Phila,  Hannah,  Joel,  Alva. 

JosiAH  Shaw  came  to  town  in  1800; 
lived  in  the  East  part,  and  was  quite  a 
prominent  man.  Henry  Boyce,  son  of  Dr. 
Boyce,  was  also  a  prominent  man  in  the 
East  part  of  the  town.     He  died  in  i860. 

Jonathan  F.  Ruggles  was  a  resident 
of  the  east  part  of  the  town,  and  perhaps 
no  man  enjoyed  in  a  greater  degree  the 
confidence  of  his  fellow-townsmen,  there 
being  no  office  of  importance  but  he  had 
at  some  time  filled.  He  died  in  North- 
field. 

alvin  brigham 
came  here  when  a  young  man,  about 
the  year  1823,  from  Fayston.  He  was 
born  in  Old  Marlborough,  Mass.,  and  a 
brother  of  Elisha  Brigham  (for  whose  bio- 
graphical sketch  see  Fayston,  this  vol.) 
Alvin   Brigham  married   Flora  Baxter,  of 


94 


746 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Fayston.  They  moved  on  to  the  present 
Wetmore  place.  He  was  a  man  scrupu- 
lously honest,  a  leader  in  the  church,  and 
for  many  years  leader  of  the  choir.  They 
had  9  children. 

The  eldest  son,  Ozro,  fell  in  the  last 
war.  Don,  the  youngest  son,  served 
through  the  rebellion,  but  died  a  short 
time  after  his  return.  Bravely  like  a  true 
soldier  he  yielded  up  his  young  life  with- 
out a  murmur,  when  life  was  fairest ;  ere 
the  clouds  had  dimmed  the  horizon  of  his 
sky,  bade  them  all-  his  dear  ones — a 
smiling  "good-bye,"  and  went  out  into 
the  great  "  unknown." 

Two  other  children  died  during  an  ep- 
idemic of  fever — Flora  Ann,  i8,  and  Al- 
phonso,  14  years  of  age.  One  son  and 
three  daughters  now  reside  in  Lowell, 
Mass.,  and  the  second  son,  William,  lives 
in  the  edge  of  Northfield.  Mr.  Brigham 
was  a  great  sufferer  for  several  years  be- 
fore his  death.  When  the  summons  came, 
and  told  he  might  live  an  hour,  he  said, 
"O!  can  I  wait  so  long  before  I  shall.be 
with  my  Father?"  He  died  in  1871  ;  his 
wife  survived  him  only  a  few  months. 

EBENEZER    L.    WATERMAN 

is  one  of  the  early — not  earliest — settlers. 
He  came  from  Connecticut,  as  did  most  of 
them,  but  when  he  was  very  small.  He 
has  been  a  great  musician  in  his  day,  and 
people  are  scarce  in  Central  Vermont  who 
have  not  heard  of  "  LIncle  Eb."  Waterman 
and  his  violin.  And  even  now,  when  he 
is  between  80  and  90  years  of  age,  the 
young  people  delight  to  gather  in  "  Uncle 
Eb.'s"  ample  kitchen,  and  "  tri^D  the  light 
fantastic  toe,"  or  listen  to  the  still  sweet 
strains  of  his  old  violin.  At  the  age  of  45  he 
married  a  wife  of  18.  They  had  6  children. 
Bert  Waterman,  leader  of  the  Howard 
Opera  House  Orchestra  at  Burlington,  is 
his  only  living  son,  and  probably  has  not 
his  peer  in  the  State  as  violin  player. 

ORCUTT  FAMILY. 
Capt.  Job  came  from  Stafford,  Conn.,  in 
1803;  was  a  carpenter  by  trade.  He  set- 
tled on  the  high  lands  then,  and  for  many 
years,  the  centre  of  the  town.  He  had  7 
sons  and  4  daughters. 


Samuel  M.  Orcutt,  with  whom  he 
spent  his  declining  years,  was  one  of  the 
stirring  business  men  of  those  times,  hold- 
ing various  important  ofifices  from  time  to 
time.  He  was  town  clerk  for  20  years, 
and  town  meetings  were  held  at  his  house 
for  a  long  time.  At  the  time  of  the  "  in- 
vasion "  at  Plattsburgh  in  1812,  he  went 
out  as  Captain  of  Roxbury  Co.  (said  com- 
pany including  every  man  in  town  except- 
ing Samuel  Richardson,  who  much  re- 
gretted that  he  was  too  aged,  and  Job 
Orcutt,  a  lame  man.)  Capt.  Samuel  Or- 
cutt married  Mary  Buel,  of  Lebanon,  Conn., 
and  the  bride  came  to  her  new  home  on 
horseback.  They  reared  a  family  of  7 
boys  and  2  girls.  The  eldest  daughter 
married  Wm.  Gold,  of  Northfield,  where 
she  now  resides. 

Samuel  A.  received  an  injury  while 
assisting  at  a  "raising,"  from  a  falling 
timber,  from  which  he  never  recovered. 
He  died  in  1835. 

Benjamin  F.  went  to  Michigan  just  pre- 
vious to  the  Mexican  war ;  enlisted  and 
served  through  the  war  ;  returned  to  Kal- 
amazoo, Mich.,  where  he  was  eletted 
county  sheriflT,  and  filled  that  office  many 
years.  When  the  rebellion  broke  out,  he 
again  enlisted,  and  went  out  as  Lieut.  Col. 
of  the  25th  Mich.  Reg't.,  serving  under 
Gen.  Sherman  until  the  war  was  over, 
when  he  returned  to  Kalamazoo,  and  was 
again  elected  high  sheriff,  and  Dec.  12, 
1867,  was  fatally  shot,  while  on  official 
duty,  by  a  desperado  who  was  trying  to 
assist  prisoners  to  escape  from  the  jail. 
He  died  in  the  prime  of  a  noble  manhood, 
^ged  53.  James,  3cl  son,  died  when  quite 
young. 

Orrin  has  lived  in  town  most  of  the 
time  since  his  birth.  He  has  been  sheriff 
and  deputy  25  years;  postmaster  26  years, 
occupying  that  position  at  the  present 
time. 

Wm.  B.  has  always  resided  in  his  native 
town ;  has  3  times  represented  the  town  in 
the  legislature,  and  2  years  been  county 
judge. 

Stephen  P.  remained  at  the  old  family 
homestead  many  years,  but  now  resides  in 
Northfield.     The  aged  mother  spent  her 


ROXBURY. 


747 


last  days  with  him,  dying,  at  the  age  of 
96,  in  1879.  Jasper  H.  was  the  7th  son. 
He  moved  to  Northfield. 

SCHOOL    DISTRICTS. 

No.  I  district,  in  the  east  part  of  the 
town,  was  set  off  in  1801,  then  known  as 
Daniel  Kingsbury  district,  afterwards  as 
Wales  district,  No.  i.  In  1802  a  district 
was  set  off  in  the  N.  W.  part  of  the  town, 
where  Samuel  Richardson  now  lives,  known 
as  N.  West  district.  No.  2.  In  1805,  an- 
other district  was  formed  in  the  S.  E.  part 
of  the  town,  known  as  David  Cram's  dis- 
trict. No.  3.  The  same  year  it  was  voted 
all  the  inhabitants  not  in  regular  districts 
should  form  one  district.  No.  4.  There 
have  been  alterations  from  year  to  year 
and  new  districts  organized.  There  are 
now  II  districts  and  logood  school-houses 
in  town. 

The  number  of  scholars  in  1807  were 
108;  1811,  104;  1816,  157;  1831,431; 
1849,418;  1850,  351;  i860,  336;  1880, 
251  ;  the  average  since  18 16  to  1881,  340 
scholars  yearly. 

EARLY  TAVERNS  AND  LATER  HOTELS. 

The  first  tavern  in  town  was  where 
Conway  now  lives,  what  is  known  as  the 
"Rood  place,"  John  Stafford,  proprietor. 
The  next  was  kept  by  Darius  Spaulding, 
where  Frank  Snow  now  lives.  John  Spaul- 
ding kept  the  third  hotel,  opposite  where 
Mr.  Pearsons  now  lives,  on  the  mountain 
road. 

In  East  Roxbury,  Stillman  Ruggles, 
E.  B.  Pride,  Samuel  P.  Wales,  Shubael 
Wales,  Alpheus  Kendall,  kept  a  public 
house  on  the  Samuel  Edwards  place. 

The  Summit  House,  built  in  1822,  by 
John  Spaulding,  and  occupied  by  him, 
has  been  kept  by  Stephen  Fuller,  Chester 
Clark,  Page  J.  C.  Rice,  E.  G.  Sanborn, 
Van  Ness  Spaulding,  Edwin  Ferris,  James 
P.  Warner,  Thomas  Wilson,  E.  N.  Spaul- 
ding, Spaulding  &  Colby,  Spaulding  & 
Nichols,  Warner  &  Spaulding,  Mrs.  J.  P. 
Warner,  present  proprietor,  and  D.  A. 
Spaulding. 

EARLY   MERCHANTS. 

The  first  in  town  was  Asa  Taylor,  near 
where  E.  N.  Spaulding's  steam-mill  stands. 


The  next  was  Robertson  &  Orcutt,  who 
also  had  a  potash  run,  and  manufactured 
salts.  Allen  Spaulding,  Orrin  Orcutt,  were 
the  next  in  order  among  the  first  settlers. 
Partridge  built  the  store  where  the  post- 
office  now  is,  and  occupied  it  for  several 
years.  Then  Brackett  &  Thorp,  E.  N. 
Spaulding,  Benjamin  Spear,  Seth  Holman 
and  J.  A.  White,  Union  Store. 

CEMETERIES. 

In  1804,  the  town  laid  out  three  bvu-ying- 
grounds  ;  one  in  the  west  part  of  the  town, 
on  Uriah  Richardson's  farm,  near  where 
O.  A.  Staples  now  lives;  one  in  the  east 
part  of  the  town,  on  the  road  from  Roxbury 
to  Braintree,  near  where  Mr.  Bowman  now 
lives,  and  one  in  the  centre  of  the  town, 
on  the  Billa  Woodard  farm.  Some  years 
later  another  was  located  on  the  Haynes 
farm — the  lot  given  by  the  Haynes  family, 
and  the  only  one  in  use  at  the  present 
time  in  the  west  part  of  the  town.  There 
was  also  one  laid  out  in  the  east  part  of 
the  town,  near  the  Henry  Boyce  place, 
about  the  same  time.  Albert  Averill  has 
been  sexton  for  many  years. 

EPIDEMICS. 

This  has  ever  been  called  a  healthful 
locality,  and  with  good  reason,  yet  at  dif- 
ferent times  it  has  been  visited  by  epidem- 
ics. The  dysentery  swept  through  the 
town,  carrying  off  many  victims,  in  1823. 
The  diphtheria  has  appeared  at  different 
times  in  epidemic  form,  and  desolated 
many  homes. 

PHYSICIANS 

who  have  lived  here  :  John  Stafford  was 
the  first.  How  well  versed  in  the  science 
of  medicine  he  may  have  been  there  is  no 
record ;  but  there  is  no  doubt  but  he  dealt 
out  "pills  and  potions"  to  the  early  set- 
tlers with  a  generous  hand,  to  say  nothing 
of  cupping,  blistering  and  bleeding. 

Next  came  Dr.  David  McClure,  from 
Stafford,  Conn.,  the  father  of  Mrs.  John 
Spaulding,  who  remained  in  town  during 
the  rest  of  his  life. 

Dr.  Hunter  lived  several  years  where  E. 
L.  Waterman  now  lives,  and  was  consid- 
ered a  skillful  physician,  as  was  Dr.  Boyce, 
of  the  East  part,  who  practiced  there  at  the 
same  time. 


748 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


For  several  years  there  was  no  physician 
in  town.  Dr.  White  came  for  a  few 
months,  in  1868,  and  Dr.  S.  N.  Welch  in 
1870,  and  remained  a  few  years,  building 
the  house  where  Mr.  Frink  now  lives,  and 
he  had  a  very  good  practice. 

Dr.  George  Maloy,  of  Montpelier,  was 
the  next.  He  was  a  student  of  Dr.  Wood- 
ard,  of  Montpelier,  but  remained  only  a 
few  months. 

Dr.  Ira  H.  Fiske  came  from  Hardwick 
in  1878,  and  is  the  only  physician  in  town 
at  the  present  time,  and  is  the  only  hom- 
oeopathic physician  that  ever  settled  in 
town,  and  has  been  very  successful. 

MANUFACTORIES. 

Samuel  Richardson  built  the  first  saw 
and  grist-mill  in  town,  i-i  miles  from  the 
village,  on  the  Warren  road.  He  after- 
wards built  another  on  the  west  branch  of 
Dog  River,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  vil- 
lage. Elijah  Ellis  built  a  saw  and  clover- 
mill  in  1818,  where  S.  N.  Miller's  carriage 
shop  now  is.  The  clover-mill  was  swept 
away  by  freshet  in  1830;  the  saw-mill  had 
the  same  fate  in  1832 ;  latter  was  rebuilt. 

John  McNeal  erected  a  frame  for  a  saw- 
mill in  the  "  four  mile  woods,"  on  a  branch 
of  Dog  River,  in  1825,  Samuel  Orcutt  fin- 
ished it,  and  it  done  good  business  until 
1830;  it  was  swept  away  by  a  freshet, 
which  seemed  the  common  fate  of  mills  of 
those  days.  David  Wellington  built  a 
saw-mill  in  1825,  near  where  E.  N.  Spaul- 
ding's  steam-mill  now  stands. 

Charles  Colton  put  a  grist-mill  into  the 
same  building  shortly  afterwards.  Amos 
Wellington  built  a  saw-mill  on  the  West 
hill  in  1839,  now  owned  by  Asahel  Flint. 
Josiah  Shaw  built  a  clover-mill  on  east 
branch  of  Dog  River,  in  the  East  part  of 
the  town. 

John  M.  Spaulding,  in  1822,  built  a  saw- 
mill near  the  Richardson  grist-mill,  and 
another,  several  years  afterwards,  in  the 
village,  now  owned  by  J.  G.  Hall. 

John  Prince  built  a  saw-mill,  in  1849, 
near  where  Spaulding's  mill  now  stands, 
and  also  manufactured  butter-tubs,  now 
owned  by  E.  P.  Burnham  for  a  clap-board 
mill. 

Samuel  Robertson  and  Leicester  Davis 


erected  a  building  in  1820,  on  the  farm 
where  W.  I.  Simonds  now  lives,  for  the 
purpose  of  manufacturing  wooden  bowls 
and  plates.  But  it  did  not  prove  a  success 
and  was  given  up  in  a  few  years.  Jotham 
Ellis  built  a  mill  in  18 —  for  manufacturing 
wooden  boxes,  clothes-pins,  turning  bed- 
posts, &c.  Later  it  was  used  by  Siloam 
Spaulding  for  a  carriage  shop,  and  by 
Philander  Wiley  for  turning,  &c. 

Stillman  Ruggles  built  a  carriage  shop 
in  the  east  part  of  the  town  in  1830,  and 
carried  on  the  carriage  business  until  1850. 
Samuel  Ruggles  and  S.N.  Miller  carried 
on  the  same  business  there  afterwards. 

S.  N.  Miller  commenced  carriage-mak- 
ing near  the  Elijah  Ellis  saw-mill  in  i860, 
and  still  continues  at  the  business  there. 

Howard  Warriner  had  a  cabinet-shop  in 
the  south-east  part  of  the  town,  and  Mr. 
Wright  built  a  saw-mill  on  the  same  stream 
west  of  Warriner's  shop. 

Luther  and  David  Ellis  built  a  saw-mill 
on  the  middle  branch  of  Dog  river  in  1850  ; 
Laban  Webster  &  F.  A.  Wiley  on  middle 
branch  of  Dog  river  in  1869;  Ebenezer 
Brackett  in  the  south  part  of  the  town  in 
1848;  sold  to  Thomas  Gushing,  of  Dover, 
N.  H.  A  vast  amount  of  bridge  timber, 
plank  and  ties  were  sawed  here  for  the  Vt. 
Central  when  being  built.  E.  N.  Spaul- 
ding and  Samuel  R.  Batchelder  built  a 
steam-mill  in  the  south-west  part  of  the 
town  in  1849.  Henry  Smith  built  a  saw- 
mill on  "Tracy  Hill"  in  1823;  burned  in 
1835;  Joseph  Wardner  a  saw  and  grist- 
mill in  the  east  part  of  the  town,  now 
owned  by  Jacob  Wardner,  and  Bezaleel 
Spaulding  a  saw-mill  on  his  farm  in  1848. 

Benjamin  H.  Warriner  built  a  shop  near 
the  "old  Hutchinson  place"  in  1829,  for 
the  manufacture  of  sleighs,  chairs  and 
furniture  of  all  kinds,  and  in  1835  P"t  in 
machinery  for  manufacturing  window-sash, 
blinds,  etc. 

James  Cram  built  a  saw-mill  on  the 
brook  above  the  Hutchinson  place  m  1830. 

Daniel  Kingsley  commenced  wool  card- 
ing in  1800,  in  the  east  part  of  the  town. 

Harrison  and  Charles  Fields  built  a 
steam  saw-mill  about  a  mile  below  E.  N. 
Spaulcfing's  in ,  and  after  carrying  on 


ROXBURY. 


749 


an  extensive  business  for  two  years,  moved 
it  to  Richmond. 

E.  N.  Spaulding's  steam  saw-mill,  built 
in  1866,  has  turned  off  yearly  an  average 
of  1,500,000  feet  of  lumber.  He  has  also 
manufactured  croquet  to  a  considerable 
extent. 

William  Bruce  &  Sons  built  a  steam- 
mill  in  the  south  part  of  the  town  in  1877. 
It  was  burned  in  1880,  and  rebuilt.  This 
mill,  as  well  as  E.  N.  Spaulding's,  has  fur- 
nished employment  for  a  great  many  hands. 
Ira  Williams  &  Victor  Spear  are  now 
erecting  a  steam  saw-mill  in  the  south-east 
part  of  the  town. 

Dan  Tarbell  erected  a  steam  saw-mill 
near  the  railroad  crossing  in  the  village  in 
1 88 1,  not  yet  thorougly  completed. 

Charles  Samson  owned  a  distillery  and 
manufactured  potato  whisky  on  the  west 
hill,  near  what  is  now  called  "Wetmore 
place." 

Biila  Woodard  manufactured  saddle- 
trees several  years,  and  Eleazer  Woodard 
later  carried  on  the  same  business. 

Ephraim  Morris  &  Nathan  Kendall 
owned  a  tannery  at  the  foot  of  East  Hill, 
on  land  now  owned  by  Wm.  B.  Orcutt. 
They  carried  on  the  business  only  a  few 
years . 

In  1853,  immense  veins  of 

VERD   ANTIQUE   MARBLE 

were  discovered.  A  large  building  was 
erected,  with  steam  power  for  working  the 
marble.  It  was  found  to  be  very  beauti- 
ful, and  capable  of  receiving  a  high  polish. 
Monuments,  tables,  mantels,  etc.,  man- 
ufactured were  extremely  beautiful,  but  the 
company  became  involved  jn  debt,  and 
the  property  was  sold  in  1856,  to  pay 
'liabilities.  It  was  purchased  by  an  asso- 
ciation under  the  name  of  "  Verd  Antique 
Marble  Company,"  for  the  amount  pre- 
viously expended.  It  was  then  managed 
by  a  joint  stock  company,  but  finally  sus- 
pended business  in  1857. 

THE   WATCH   FACTORY 

was  built  in  1867.  It  is  located  in  a  lovely 
and  picturesque  place,  a  short  distance 
west  from  the  depot.  12  hands  are  now 
employed  there.  Aug.  i,  1879,  a  partner- 
ship was  formed,  under  the  title,    "J.  G. 


Hall  Mfg.  Co.,"  between  J.  G.  Hall  and 
his  son,  F.  W.  Hall,  for  the  manufacture 
of  watchmakers' tools,  principally  a  "  Stak- 
ing Tool,"  the  invention  of  J.  G.  Hall, 
which  meets  with  a  ready  sale,  owing  to 
.the  very  fine  workmanship  and  correctness 
exercised  in  their  manufacture,  they  being 
worthless  unless  exact.  These  tools  are 
in  use  in  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union, 
and  also  in  Canada,  France  and  England. 
They  also  manufacture  a  variety  of  small 
tools  for  watch-repairers'  use.  The  Co. 
had  a  sample  of  their  tools  on  exhibition 
at  the  State  Fair  in  1880,  receiving  the 
only  gold  medal  awarded  in  Mechanics' 
Hall. 

THE   FIRST   MAIL    ROUTE 

through  Roxbury  was  up  the  first  branch 
of  White  river  from  W.  Randolph,  through 
Braintree  and  Kingston  (now  Granville), 
up  the  old  road  to  John  Spaulding's  hotel, 
near  the  Royal  Batchelder  place.  John 
Spaulding  was  postmaster.  Guy  Edson 
carried  the  first  mail  in  1826.  It  being 
known  the  mail  was  to  arrive  at  such  a 
time,  there  was  a  great  gathering  and  re- 
joicing, and  a  little  new  rum  as  a  matter 
of  course.  The  route  continued  down  the 
old  road  east  to  Elijah  Ellis'  (now  Mrs. 
Brackett's) ,  thence  north  by  the  old  Joseph 
Hixon  place,  Samuel  Robertson's,  John 
Paine's,  Nathan  Haynes',  and  then  on  to 
the  hill  near  where  Clark  Wiley  now  lives, 
to  Northfield.  The  mail  run  that  way 
until  about  1830.  In  1828,  the  county 
road  from  Northfield  line  to  Granville, 
through  Roxbury  village,  was  surveyed  by 
David  M.  Lane,  county  surveyor.  In 
1830,  John  Spaulding  having  built  the 
Summit  House,  where  the  village  now  is, 
the  mail  commenced  running  on  that  road, 
with  a  daily  stage  of  4  or  6-horse  coach 
for  some  years  ;  then  the  stage  and  mail 
went  from  West  Randolph  through  East 
Roxbury  to  Northfield,  and  the  mail  was 
carried  to  West  Randolph  and  back  with  a 
horse  and  gig  until  the  railroad  was  built 
in  1848.  The  cars  came  to  Roxbury  40 
days  before  the  road  was  completed  to 
Northfield,  making  it  a  very  lively  busi- 
ness place.  Teams  from  as  far  as  Bur- 
lington for  freight,  6  and   8-horse    teams. 


75° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


making  it  very  profitable  for  inn-keepers 
those  days. 

OUR    LARGE   CATAMOUNT. 

A  large  catamount  was  killed  in  town  in 
1823.  Allen  Spaulding gives  this  account. 
He  had  been  calling  on  his  sweetheart, 
who  lived  near  the  "  Leonard  place."  The 
fair  Hattie  was  the  best  of  company,  and 
he  could  hardly  credit  his  senses  when  he 
started  for  home  and  saw  the  rosy  morn- 
ing peeping  over  the  eastern  hills.  Ashe 
was  making  rapid  strides  on,  he  noticed 
the  huge  track  of  some  animal  in  the  new 
snow,  and  the  track  seemed  a  new  one. 
He  examined  it  closely,  and  came  to  the 
conclusion  it  was  a  bear  track,  and  thought 
he  would  get  help  and  capture  him.  Jo- 
seph Batchelder  and  himself  followed  the 
trail  all  day,  but  without  once  getting  a 
glimpse  of  "  the  bear,"  and  Batchelder 
gave  it  up  in  disgust.  Spaulding,  how- 
ever, renewed  the  pursuit  the  next  morn- 
ing, accompanied  by  Capt.  Young,  who 
had  quite  an  exalted  opinion  of  his  own 
prowess  and  skill  in  hunting,  of  bears,  es- 
pecially. They  struck  a  new  track  in  the 
light  snow,  and  followed  it  to  a  ledge  op- 
posite the  old  steam-mill.  Matters  were 
becoming  quite  interesting,  but  "Capt. 
Sip."  declared  "by  the  gods  he  never 
was  afraid  of  a  bear,  and  if  Spaulding 
would  go  one  way  he  would  go  the  other, 
and  start  him  out,"  but  he  took  another 
look  at  the  huge  track,  and  his  ardor 
cooled  a  little.  He  concluded  they  had 
better  keep  together.  They  had  not  pro- 
ceeded far  when  they  heard  a  fierce  growl 
and  a  bound,  and  saw  the  leaves  flying  in 
every  direction,  but  by  the  time  they  had 
got  around  the  ledge,  the  animal  was  out 
of  sight,  making  20  feet  at  a  leap.  Spaul- 
ding thought  it  could  never  be  a  bear,  but 
"  by  the  gods  it  zj,"  persisted  Capt. 
Sip.,  "  and  a  regular  old  long  fellow,  too." 
They  followed  on  till  dusk,  and  gave  up 
the  chase  for  that  day.  The  next  morn- 
ing tracks  were  seen  near  Billa  Woodard's, 
on  East  Hill,  and  James  McNeil,  Charles 
Ellis,  Ira  Spaulding  and  Orrin  Orcutt 
started  in  pursuit.  Charles  Ellis  getting 
a  glimpse  of  the  hunted  animaPs  tawny 
coat,  declared,   "the  dog  had  a  fox  up  a 


tree."  They  soon  found  they  had  a  rather 
different  foe  to  meet,  and  that  without 
rifles.  They  had  only  shot-guns  loaded 
with  slugs  to  contend  with  a  huge  cata- 
mount, but  they  gave  him  a  salute  from 
two  or  three,  breaking  his  shoulder,  and 
down  the  fierce  animal  came,  about  20  feet, 
caught  on  a  limb,  ran  up  again,  turning  on 
his  pursuers  with  open  mouth,  preparing 
for  a  spring.  One  of  the  party  gave  him  a 
charge  of  "chain-links"  in  the  open 
mouth,  when  he  turned  and  jumped  the 
other  way,  tearing  huge  splinters  from  a 
fallen  tree  and  the  earth  up  around  him  in 
every  direction  in  his  death  agonies.  He 
was  the  largest  catamount  ever  killed  in  the 
State  previous  to  the  one  killed  in  Barnard 
the  present  season.  They  were  of  the 
same  length  and  height,  but  the  last  killed 
was  several  pounds  heavier.  He  was  sold 
at  auction  to  Orrin  Orcutt,  prepared  for 
and  kept  on  exhibition  until  every  one  had 
seen  him  in  this  vicinity,  and  then  sold  to 
Mr.  Ralph,  of  Warren,  a  man  in  poor 
health  and  indigent  circumstances,  who 
made  quite  a  fortune  taking  him  about  the 
country. 

About  this  time  there  was  also  a  moose 
killed  near  the  old  pond,  the  man  who  was 
so  fortunate  being  very  destitute.  The 
meat  (he  was  a  large  fellow),  was  a  per- 
fect "  God-send  "  to  his  family. 
CHURCH    HISTORY 

is  very  meagre  here.  There  have  been  no 
records  kept  of  the  early  churches.  The 
Methodist  and  Calvinist  Baptist  seem  to 
have  been  first  organized.  The  first  min- 
ister publicly  ordained  in  town  was 
jOPHIR  shipman. 
The  charter  of  the  town  allowed  the  first 
ordained  minister  a  lot  of  land,  and  Rev. 
Lyman  Culver  was  privately  ordained,  and 
claimed  the  lot,  it  is  said,  but  there  was 
great  dissatisfaction.  Mr.  O.  Richardson 
says  they  came  to  his  uncle,  Samuel  Rob- 
ertson, in  the  night  to  let  him  know  it, 
and  he  went  to  Northfield  after  12  o'clock 
at  night,  and  the  next  day  Rev.  Ophir 
Shipman  was  ordained. 

BAPTISTS. 

Rev.    Lyman   Culver   was    one  of    the 
earliest   Baptist   preachers    (probably  the 


ROXBURY. 


751 


first),  and  resided  in  town  several  years. 
Friend  Blood  and  Jehial  Claflin  preached 
considerably  from  1835  to  '45.  A  good 
old  Baptist  lady  was  "  churched '''  for  com- 
muning with  the  Methodists,  and  she  with 
several  others  joined  the  Congregational- 
ists  about  this  time. 

There  was  a  Calvinistic  Baptist  church 
in  town  many  years,  but  I  find  no  record 
of  it  now.  Mrs.  Woodard  is  the  only 
member  of  the  Baptist  church  left  in  town. 
A  great  revival  was  brought  about  in  that 
church  in  this  manner.  A  little  girl  over- 
heard her  mother  and  a  neighbor  talking 
of  the  necessity  for  a  Christian  life,  and 
the  beauty  and  purity  of  a  true  Christian 
character,  and  was  so  deeply  impressed 
that  she  went  to  praying  earnestly  in  se- 
cret, and  came  out  a  shining  light,  leading 
others  of  her  companions  to  do  likewise, 
until  it  spread  into  the  most  extended  re- 
vival ever  in  town. 

METHODISTS   IN   ROXBURV. 

As  early  as  1813,  how  much  earlier  I  am 
unable  to  say,  the  Methodists  held  their 
meetings  at  Eleazer  Woodard's  and  David 
Young's.  Benjamin  F.  Hoyt  preached  in 
1813,  Joel  Winch  from  1820  to  '30,  E.  J, 
Scott  in  1830,  '2^,  John  Smith,  called 
Happy  John,  in  1834,  and  Hollis  Kendall, 
a  native  of  Roxbury,  preached  here  sev- 
eral years.  He  moved  to  Maine,  and  died 
there  a  few  years  since.  Ariel  Fay  and 
John  Mason  preached  here  at  different 
times.  None  of  these,  with  the  exception 
of  Hollis  Kendall,  lived  in  town.  Those 
early  Methodists  are  nearly  all  gone  to 
their  reward.  Phineas  Wiley,  or  "  Father  " 
Wiley,  as  he  was  called  for  years,  died  in 
188 1.  I  think  he  was  the  last  member  of 
the  first  Methodist  church  formed  in  town. 
The  first  meeting  house  was  built  in  1837, 
a  union  church. 

CONGRfiGATIONALISTS. 
Of  the  Congregationalist  ministers  who 
preached  here  in  the  early  times  were  Rev. 
Mr.  Hobart,  of  Berlin,  Elijah  Lyman,  of 
Brookfield,  Ammi  Nichols,  of  Braintree, 
as  early  as  18 14,  and  meetings  were  held 
at  Samuel  Robertson's  and  at  the  old 
school-house  that  stood  north  of  where 
O.  A.  Staples  now  lives. 


THE  FREE  CONGREGATIONALIST  CHURCH 
was  organized  about  1837,  by  Rev.  Ammi 
Nichols,  of  Braintree,  and  what  remained 
of  the  Methodists  and  most  of  the  Baptist 
church  joined  with  them,  but  they  never 
had  a  settled  minister*  until  1865,  when 
Rev.  A.  Ladd  was  ordained  and  installed 
pastor,  and  remained  here  until  the  au- 
tumn of  1879.  They  built  a  pleasant  and 
convenient  house  of  worship  in  1871. 
Samuel  Edwards  and  W.  I.  Simonds  are 
the  only  deacons  ever  chosen,  both  of 
whom  now  officiate. 

A  Christian  Church  was  organized  in 
the  east  part  of  the  town  in  1868.  Rev. 
Henry  Howard  is  present  pastor  (1882). 

Rev.  Edward  Brown,  Universalist, 
lived  in  town  several  years,  where  John 
Baird  now  resides,  and  preached  a  part  of 
the  time. 

The  different  religious  organizations  of 
this  town  have  been  :  Congregationalist, 
Methodist,  Episcopal,  Free  Will  Baptist, 
Calvinist  Baptist,  Christian,  Universalist 
and  Spiritualist. 

Golden  Weddings.— I  learn  of  two 
having  been  celebrated  in  this  town,  that 
of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  James  Wiley,  in  1871, 
and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Otis  Batchelder  in  1880. 

accidental  and  sudden  deaths  and 
suicides. 

BY  ZED.  S.  STANTOK,  ESQ. 

Joseph  Batchelder  drowned  July  14, 
1822. 

Uriah  Richardson  died  from  injuries  re- 
ceived while  chopping,  Jan.  21,  1831. 

Alvah  Henry,  killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree 
June  28,  1831. 

Mrs.  Belcher,  suicide  by  hanging,  about 
1831. 

Charles  Webster,  killed  by  being  thrown 
from  a  wagon,  Nov.  5,  1834. 

Shubael  Wales,  suicide  by  shooting. 
Mar.  18,  1843. 

David  Dexter,  supposed  to  have  wan- 
dered away  in  a  state  of  insanity  and  died 
of  exposure,  about  1843. 

Royal  Flint,  frozen  to  death,  Jan.  22, 
1846. 

A  man  named  Jackson  was  killed  by  the 
prem.ature  discharge  of  a  blast,  at  the  time 


752 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


the  Central  Vermont  Railroad  was  in  pro- 
cess of  construction,  Jan.  25,  1846. 

An  Irisliman,  name  unknown,  died  of 
exposure  in  the  summer  of  1847. 

A  young  man,  name  unknown,  was 
drowned  in  wliat  is  now  known  as  Hall's 
Pond,  about  1848. 

Lewis  Hutchinson,  killed  by  the  fall  of  a 
tree,  Jan.  26,  1850. 

Charles  Green,  suicide,  by  shooting,  in 

1854. 

Lutheria  Spaulding,  aged  5  years,  killed 
by  falUng  beneath  a  loaded  wagon,  Aug. 
5,  1854. 

Joseph  Paine, 

Peter  S.  P.  Staples,  found  dead  in  the 
woods,  Sept.  27,  1856. 

John  Campbell,  died  by  poison  taken 
accidentally,  Apr.  13,  1861. 

Delia  Green,  found  dead,  Aug.  17, 
1867. 

A.  E.  Stockwell,  a  railroad  brakeman, 
killed  Nov.  12,  1870. 

Peter  Shinah,  killed  by  cars  June  29, 
1870. 

Isaac  A.  Flint,  suicide  by  cutting  his 
throat,  about  1870. 

Mrs.  Plurinna  Erskine,  suicide  by  hang- 
ing, Sept.  8,  1872. 

Buel  Gold,  suicide  by  hanging,  Aug. 
29,  1876. 

Clarence  Tracy,  a  child,  death  caused 
by  scalding,  Sept.  26,  1876. 

A  Central  Vermont  Railroad  brakeman 
named  Sharrow,  killed  by  falling  beneath 
the  cars,  Feb.  5,  188 1. 

A  wood  chopper  named  Fox,  killed  by 
a  falling  tree,  Feb.  21,  1881. 

OLD   PEOPLE   OF   ROXBURV,  LIVING  1 882. 

Betsey  G.  Spalding 90 

J.  L.  York 84 

Jotham  Ellis Ti 

Samuel  Edwards 72 

Sylvester  E.  Spalding 72 

Paulina  E .  Spalding 70 

Allen  Spalding 'j'] 

Seth  Bruce 83 

Polly  Gould 78 

Moses  L.  Metcalf 84 

Saul  Morgan 81 

John  T.  Rood 81 

Clark  Wiley 70 

George  B.  Stanton 72 

Nancy  Hutchinson 73 

Jonas  G.  Sanders 72 


Milly  Ellis -j-j 

Ervilla  Steel 75 

George  Erskine 78 

Hiram  Walbridge 76 

E.  L.  Waterman 83 

Adaline  Batchelder "jt, 

Maria  Davis 70 

Sarah  Flint 74 

Sarah  E.  Woodward 70 

Peter  Provo 78 

Adaline  Provo 78 

Betsey  Rich 85 

Orrin  B.  Clark 75 

Sophia  Wiley 75 

Oramel  Williams 82 

Aphia  Williams 80 

Hannah  Knowles ']'] 

Han  nah  York 78 

Sally  Fletcher 71 

Almond  Mclntire 74 

Edmond  Darling 70 

Alvira  Darling 'jt, 

Lucy  Steel 76 

Mary  Boyce 78 

Aura  Woodward 70 

ROXBURY    BOYS   ABROAD. 

Andrew  Stanton,  a  graduate  of  Tufts 
College,  is  now  "  principal"  in  the  academy 
at  Stoughton,  Mass.  Will  Snow  gradua- 
ted at  Hanover,  and  is  now  a  civil  engi- 
neer in  Montana. 

There  are  a  good  many  graduates  of  the 
Normal  school  in  town.  Will  Simonds  was 
one,  who  is  now  teaching  near  Chicago, 
111. 

Lucius  Jenney  went  from  this  town, 
about  20  years  ago,  to  Middlesex,  and 
from  there  to  Omaha,  Neb.,  and  now  oc- 
cupies the  position  of  R.  R.  Master  on 
the  Union  Pacific  R.  R. 

Benj.  J.  Ellis  went  from  here  when  a 
very  young  man,  enlisted  and  served 
through  the  Mexican  war ;  after  its  close 
went  to  Chicago,  111.,  and  took  up  the  pro- 
fession of  law.  He  has  assisted  in  organ- 
izing and  sustaining  several  mission 
schools,  some  of  them  now  flourishing 
churches,  and  he  often  supplies  the  pulpit, 
as  well  as  pleads  at  the  Bar. 

S.  G.  Stanton  went  to  Nebraska  in  1879, 
and  is  engaged  in  building  a  railroad  on 
the  Union  Pacific.  Mr.  Stanton  was  an 
active  business  man. 

Mr.  O.  Richardson  moved  to  Belling- 
ham,  Mass.,  in  '78.  Is  engaged  in  the 
mercantile  business.     He  had  been  organ- 


ROXBURY. 


753 


ist  and  leader  of  the  choir  at  the  Union 
church  for  20  years  when  he  left  town. 
He  was  an  adopted  son  of  Samuel  Rich- 
ardson, with  whom  Mr.  R.  spent  his  de- 
clining years. 

John  Webster,  of  east  part  of  town, 
went  to  California  in  '57,  has  been  success- 
ful in  business,  and  amassed  c|uite  a  for- 
tune, z.  s.  s. 

Will  R.  Mansfield,  at  the  age  of  20, 
took  his  small  valise  in  hand  and  started 
for  the  "far  west."  He  stopped  a  few 
weeks  in  Nebraska  as  telegraph  operator 
on  the  B.  &  M.  R.  R.  He  then  accepted 
the  position  of  baggage-master  and  tele- 
graph operator  on  a  new  branch  of  the 
Atchison,  Topeka  &  Sante  Fe  R.  R., 
through  New  Mexico,  and  served  2  months, 
when  he  was  invited  to  dine  with  an  old 
Spaniard  at  Los  Vegas,  for  whom  he  had 
done  some  slight  service,  and  started  to 
return  to  Grenada,  Col.  in  the  caboose 
that  was  sent  ahead  of  President  Hayes 
and  his  escort,  on  their  way  from  Califor- 
nia, to  see  that  the  road  was  clear.  The 
party  in  the  "  caboose"  had  been  "looking 
upon  the  wine  when  it  was  red,"  and  when 
the  "caboose"  gave  a  great  bound,  and 
any  sober  person  must  have  known  there 
was  some  obstruction,  they  declared  there 
was  "nothing  wrong,"  nor  would  they 
stop  to  see  whether  there  was  or  not. 
So  this  Vermont  boy  turned  the  brake, 
caught  a  lantern  and  jumped  off,  and  upon 
examination,  several  feet  of  rails  were 
gone,  and  he  had  nothing  to  do  there  in 
the  wilds  of  N.  M.  but  wait  for  the  train, 
and  this  was.  not  a  pleasant  task  as  the 
coyotes  began  to  gather  from  every  direc- 
tion. This  was  his  first  experience  of  the 
kind,  and  grim  terror  seized  him,  quick  as 
a  flash,  he  sprang  up  a  telegraph-pole  close 
at  hand,  and  sitting  astride  the  cross-bar, 
watched  the  howling  pack,  thinking  all  the 
while  what  an  excellent  mark  he  would  be 
for  an  Indian,  and  it  was  far  from  being  an 
agreeable  thought.  At  last  the  train  came 
up  and  he  clambered  down  from  his  perch, 
gave  a  great  shout  at  the  wolves  and  swung 
his  lantern  to  stop  the  train.  The  wolves 
scattered,  and  the  train  had  to  stop  for  re- 
pairs.    For  this  act  of  faithfulness,  he  was 


promoted  at  once  to  conductor,  and  has 
occupied  that  position  until  the  present 
time.  s.  B.  M. 

roxbury''s  military  record. 

BY   ZED   S.   STANTON,  ESQ. 

Among  the  early  settlers  of  Roxbury 
were  doubtless  several  who  served  during 
the  Revolutionary  War,  but  just  what 
number  it  is  impossible  to  determine. 
Samuel  Richardson,  the  first  settler  in  the 
westerly  part  of  this  town,  was  a  veteran 
of  that  war,  having  served  one-half  the 
time  during  the  entire  contest.  He  came 
to  Roxbury  in  1790!  Mr.  Richardson  was 
born  at  Stafford,  Conn.,  June  15,  1750, 
and  died  at  Roxbury,  in  1822. 

Capt.  Benjamin  Samson,  who  came  here 
in  1810,  was  also  a  Revolutionary  soldier, 
and  participated  in  the  battles  of  Lexing- 
ton and  Bunker  Hill.  He  rang  the  church 
bell  to  arouse  the  minute  men  on  Lexing- 
ton green,  on  the  memorable  19th  of  April, 
1775- 

BATTLE   OF   PLATTSBURG. 

On  the  morning  of  Saturday,  Sept.  10, 
1 8 14,  a  company,  consisting  of  all  the 
able-bodied  men  in  town,  under  command 
of  Capt.  Samuel  M.  Orcutt,  left  Roxbury 
for  the  purpose  of  assisting  in  repelling  the 
British  invasion  of  our  Northern  borders. 
All  the  following  Sunday  those  who  were 
left  at  home  heard  the  distant  roar  of 
cannon,  and  supposed  that  their  loved 
ones  were  engaged  in  battle  with  the 
foreign  foe.  But  the  men  of  Roxbury  did 
not  arrive  at  Plattsburg  until  Monday 
evening,  Sept.  12,  and  the  fighting  was 
then  over.  They  returned  to  their  homes 
Friday,  Sept.  16,  18 14. 

roxbury   company   for   PLATTSBURG. 

Capt.  Samuel  M.  Orcutt;  Lieut.  Gilbert 
R.Spalding;  Ensign  Billa  Woodard  ;  Ser- 
geants Joel  Hildreth,  Enos  Young,  Jona- 
than Cram,  Charles  Samson;  Corporals 
James  Woolfe,  Philip  Cram,  Dan  Lord, 
John  Paine  ;  Drummer  Jonathan  Nutting  ; 
Fifer  Bezalleel  Spaldmg. 

Privates  Benj.  Samson,  Darius  Spal- 
ding, Robert  Cram,  Samuel  Ford,  Aiding 
Loomis,  Ambrose  Hutchinson,  John  Bald- 
win, Truman  Peterson,  John  M.  Spalding, 


95 


754 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Gideon  Flint,  Peter  S.  P.  Staples,  Abra- 
ham Z.  Haynes,  John  Wilcox,  Timothy 
Emerson,  Joseph  Hixon,  Samuel  Robert- 
son, Darius  Spalding,  Elisha  Wilcox,  Eli- 
jah Ellis. 

There  is  on  file  in  the  Adjutant's  Gen- 
eral's office  at  Montpelier  an  affidavit  made 
by  the  captain  and  ensign  of  said  company, 
Mar.  6,  1850,  stating  the  main  facts  in  re- 
gard to  the  company  going  to  Plattsburg, 
and  also  that  parties  from  other  towns 
joined  their  company,  and  that  none  of 
the  officers  or  men  of  said  company  ever, 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  said  captain  or 
ensign,  received  any  compensation  for 
their  services  on  that  occasion.  Of  this 
company  of  men  only  one  is  now  living 
(Feb.  6,  1882),  that  one  being  Philip 
Cram,  who  resides  in  Brookfield. 

ROXBURY  SOLDIERS  IN  THE  WAR  OF  '6l. 

Chauncey  M.  Allen,  C,  ist  Vt.  Cavalry; 
mustered  out  Nov.  18,  '64. 

Corp.  Frank  O.  Allen,  B,  4th;  must,  out 
Apr.  12,  '65. 

Franklin  Anos,  H,  6th  ;  dis.  Mar  25,  '65. 

James  Bailey,  H,  6th;  died  Oct.  22,  '62. 

Henry  M".  Barrington,  I,  9th,  died  Oct. 
6,  '62. 

Byron  A.  Batchelder,  K,  3d;  died  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  May  30,  '64. 

Harrison  Bean,  I,  i  ith  ;  mustered  out  June 

24.  '65. 

Allen  J.  Bennett,  C,  ist  Vt.  Cav. ;  dis. 
Nov.  21,  62. 

John  Benjamin,  C,  ist  Vt.  Cav.  ;  sick  and 
absent  from  regt.  Nov.  18,  '64,  is  last 
report  on  Adjutant  General's  report. 

Joseph  Benjamin,  H,  6th  ;  dis.  June  i,  '63. 

Beman  H.  Campbell,  H,  6th;  must,  out 
May  22,  '65. 

Marshall  Chaffee,  H,  6th;  dis. May  15, '63. 

Frank  Clukey,  K,  7th  ;  died  July  22,  '62. 

Anson  P.  Coburn,  I,  nth;  mustered  out 
June  24,  '65. 

Patrick  Clukey,  G,  8th  ;  mustered  out  June 
22, '64. 

Andrew  J.  Cross,  ist  S.  S.,  F;  trans,  to 
invalid  corps  Sept.  i,  '63. 

Henry  A.  Cross,  K,  7th;  died  at  Carrol- 
ton,  La.,  Nov.  30,  '62. 

Martin  Cross,  K,  3d  ;  must,  out  July  27,  '64. 


Joseph  Currier,  G,  8th  ;  mustered  out  June 

28,  '65. 
Thomas  Daniels,  H,  6th;  killed  at  battle 

of  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  16,  '62. 
Capt.  David  B.   Davenport,  H,  6th;  died 

Sept.  20,  '62. 
Henry  D.  Davenport,   H,  6th;  dis.  Nov. 

30,  '62. 
Peter  Deott,  K,4th  ;  deserted  Dec.  10, '62. 
Lieut.  Eri  L.  Ditty,  H,  6th  ;  mustered  out 

June  26,  '65. 
John  Q.  A.  Ditty,  F,  2d;  trans,  to  invalid 

corps  July  30,  '63. 
Ralph  Ditty,  F,  2d  ;  must,  out  June  29,  '64. 
John  W.  Dunton,  K,  7th  ;  dis.  Feb.  25,  '63. 
David  Ellis,  E,  3d  ;  must,  out  July  27,  '64. 
Lorenzo  Ellis,  I,  nth  ;  mustered  out  June 

24,  '65. 
Samuel  R.  Ellis,  H,  6th  ;  dis.  July  7,  '62. 
John  M.  Ferris,  B,   6th  ;   must,    out  June 

26,  '65. 
Lieut.  Amasa  W.  Ferry,  F,  2d  ;  discharged 

Jan.  4,  '65. 
Gideon  E.  Fletcher,  I,  9th;  deserted  July 

20, '62. 
Royal  Flint,  H,  6th  ;  died  June  15,  '62. 
Victor  Goodrich,  F,  2d  ;  killed  at  battle  of 

Bull  Run,  July  21,  '61. 
Dan.  A.  Grant,  H,  6th;  dis.  Nov.  16,  '62. 
Willis  Grant,  H,  6th  ;  transferred  to  invalid 

corps  Dec.  i,  '63. 
James  Hall,  K,  7th  ;  died  July  24,  '62. 
Samuel  A.  Hayward,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav. ;  dis. 

July  24,  '62. 
Walter  R.  Hayward,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav  ;  must. 

out  Aug.  9,  '65. 
James  C.    Hutchinson,  H,    2d;    killed  at 

Charlotte,  Va.,  Aug.  16,  "64. 
Corp.    Stearns    S.    Hutchinson,    F,    2d; 

must,  out  June  29,  '64. 
Stephen  H.   Jones,  G,  8th  ;  mustered  out 

June  28,  '65. 
Leland  Kimball,  K,  8th ;  died  at  New  Or- 
leans, La.,  Sept.  16,  '62. 
Mason  Knapp,  K,  7th  ;  re-enlisted,  is  the 

last  entry  of  Adjutant  General's  report. 
Carlos  Lafaty,  K,  7th ;  dis.  Sept.  27,  '64. 
Joseph  Lavalle,  H,  6th  ;  mustered  out  June 

26, '65. 
Henry  Lock,  H,  6th  ;  mustered  out  Aug. 

2,  '65. 


ROXBURY. 


755 


Alexis  Martell,  I,  nth  ;  mustered  out  June 
24,  '65. 

Frank  E.  Martell,  H,  6th;  mustered  out 
July  7,  '65. 

Corp.  Samuel  Maxham,2dS.  S.,  E;  killed 
at  battle  of  Wilderness,  May  6,  "64. 

Henry  Morfit,  K,  7th  ;  died  at  New  Or- 
leans, La.,  Nov.  16,  '62. 

Russell  Morfit,  K,  7th  ;  died  at  Fort  Pick- 
ens, Fla.,  May  5,  '63. 

Capt.  Patrick  Murphy,  H,  6th  ;  mustered 
out  June  26,  '65. 

Lieut.  Thomas  Murphy,  H,  6th  ;  mustered 
out  Oct.  28,  '64. 

William  Murphy,  H,  6th  ;  died  Oct.  25,  '62. 

Carlos  Nedo,  K,  7th  ;  dis.  Sept.  27,  '64. 

Langdon  H.  Nichols,  C,  istVt.Cav;  died 
July  27,  '62. 

Abial  Patch,  H,  6th  ;  dis.  Dec.  28,  '63. 

Calvin  B.  Phillips,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav. ;  dis- 
charged May  22,  '62. 

Edmund  Pope,  Jr.,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav.  ;  died 
Dec.  14,  '64. 

James  Putney,  H,  6th ;  mustered  out  June 
26,  '65. 

William  Ouimby,  K,  7th ;  died  at  New 
Orleans,  Oct.  16,  '62. 

Felix  Quinn,  I,  9th  ;  must,  out  June  13,  '65. 

Eli  Rich,  K,  3d  ;  died  Nov.  i,  '62. 

John  E.  Rich,  K,  7th  ;  died  July  18,  '62. 

Geo.  C.  Richardson,  H,  6th;  died  at  Fred- 
erick City,  Md.,  Dec.  g,  '62. 

Harrison  A.  E.  Richardson,  H,  6th  ;  must, 
out  Oct.  28,  '64. 

Lafayette  Richardson,  H,  6th;  discharged 
Nov.  24,  '62. 

Samuel  Richardson,  H,  6th  ;  died  at  Rox- 
bury,  Jan.  15,  '63. 

Corp.  Ira  Royce,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav. ;  dis. 
Nov.  22,  '62. 

Thomas  P.  Rundlett,  E,  ist  Vt.  Cav;  dis. 
May  22,  '62. 

Joseph  Shiney,  H,  6th  ;  mustered  out  June 
26, '65. 

Joseph  Simonds,  H,  6th  ;  des.  July  24,  '65. 

John  Slocum,  H,  6th  ;  mustered  out  June 
26,  '65. 

Corp.  Emery  L.  Smith,  G,  6th;  dis.  Oct. 
31,  '64. 

Otis  Snow,  K,  3d ;  died  Aug.  19,  '62. 

Lieut.  Allen  Spalding,  K,  6th ;  resigned 
July  13,  '64. 


Sergeant  Dennison  F.  Spalding,  K,  6th  ; 

must,  out  May  18,  '65. 
Israel  Steele,  K,  7th  ;  dis.  Oct.  20,  '62. 
Stillman  S.  Stephens,   K,   7th;  died  July 

17,  '62. 
Sergeant  Edward  F.  Stevens,  F,  istS.  S.  ; 

mustered  out  Sept.  13,  '64. 
Benjamin  F.    Stone,    I,    9th;    discharged 

June  27,  '65. 
Joseph  Veo,  G,  6th  ;  mustered   out   Oct. 

28,  '64. 
Lucius  W.  Wales,  H,  6th  ;  killed  at  Lee's 

Mills,  Apr.  16,  '62. 
Samuel  Wales,  Jr.,   K,  3d;  trans,   to  in- 
valid corps  Sept.  i,  '63. 
Ezekiel  D.   Waterman,   K,   3d ;   killed  at 

battle  of  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  16,  '62. 
Henry  Waterman,  C,  ist.  Vt.  Cav.;   died 

at  Washington,  D.  C,  Aug.  9,  '65. 
Stillman  Waterman,  H,   6th  ;   discharged 

March  31,  '62. 
Stillman  Waterman,    1,    9th;    discharged 

Jan.  15, '63. 
Joseph  White,  H,  6th  ;  died  Oct.  22,  '62. 
Loren  J.  Wiley,  K,  7th ;  must.  outMay  '65. 
Wallace  Wolcott,  H,  6th  ;  dis.  Mar.  25,^63. 
Augustus  Bresette,  3d  Vt.  Bat. ;  must,  out 

June  13,  '65. 

Vobinteers  that  re-enlisted. — Paul  Burke, 
Carlos  Lafaty,  Henry  Locke,  Frank  E. 
Martell,  Carlos  Nedo,  Edmond  Pope,  Jr., 
Dennison  Spalding. 

Veteran  Reserve  Corps. — John  W.  Dun- 
ton. 

Also  two  men  were  credited  to  Roxbury, 
but  not  by  name. 

Furnished  nnder  draft  and  paid  com- 
mutation.— Edwin  W.  Ellis,  Edwin  Ferris, 
A.  H.  Fisk,  Lemuel  A.  Rood,  Luther 
Tracy,  Rodney  Wiley. 

Procured  Substitute. — Nathan  W.  Cady. 

Entered  Service. — Samuel  A.  Richard- 
son, H,  6th  ;  dis.  Aug.  2,  '65. 

Besides  the  above-named  soldiers,  there 
were  several  other  residents  of  Roxbury 
who  enlisted,  credited  to  other  towns,  viz.  : 
George  R.  Waterman,  F,  ist;  must,  out 
Aug.  15,  '65  ;  Franklin  Knowles,  C.  15th  ; 
Charles  A.  Fisk,  F,  17th  ;  Orza  Boyce,  B, 
4th  ;  George  H.  Pearsons,  D,  9th  ;  Samuel 
Shepherd,  I,  56th  Mass.  Vols.  ;  died  June 


756 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


27,  '64;  Francis  F.  Young,  Mass.  Vols.  ; 
Sergeant  Jones-  W.  Ferris,  K,  3d  ;  severely 
wounded  at  the  battle  ot  Lee's  Mills,  Apr. 
16,  '62,  and  discharged  Aug.  i,  '62. 

When  the  war  closed,  Roxbury  had  a 
surplus  of  23  men  in  excess  of  all  calls  for 
troops  that  had  been  made,  a  much  larger 
number  in  proportion  to  the  population 
than  any  other  town  in  the  State. 

ROXBURY   LONGEVITY. 

Persons  70  years  of  age  and  over,  who  Mve 
died  in  Roxbury, 

1855  Mary  Spaulding 100 

2846  Benjamin  Samson 90 

18 19  Moses  Woodward 74 

1813  Pavid  McClure 80 

1822  Samuel  Richardson 71 

1868  Thompson  Jenney 85 

1832  Jane  Hixon 75 

1872  Samuel  Robertson 97 

1879  Persis  Robertson 76 

1855  Dorcas  Prescott 72 

1835     Darius  Spaulding 74 

1844    Joel  Hildreth -]"] 

1864  Polly  Hildreth 94 

1872  Arathusa  Hildreth 79 

1862  Samuel  Edwards 84 

1869  Lydia  Edwards 85 

1869  Benga  Edwards 87 

1859  Betsey  Edwards 75 

1850  Henry  Lcck 75 

1856  Obedience  Lock 71 

1842  Elijah  Ellis 79 

1852  Mary  Ellis 88 

1861  Gideon  Ellis 89 

1878  Mehitable  Ellis 87 

1880  Sally  Allen 89 

1841     Mrs.  Samuel  Richardson 91 

1869  Silas  Spalding 88 

1865  John  M.   Spaulding 76 

1850     Ruth  Sargent 86 

1856  Nathan  Haynes 78 

1857  Hannah  Haynes 86 

1864  Abraham  J.   Haynes 76 

1872  Daniel  Haynes 88 

1859     Polly  Paine 72 

1861  Asa  S.  Simonds 71 

i860  Hannah  Simonds 70 

1876  Charles  Samson 86 

1865  Sally  Samson 76 

1858  Benjamin  Samson •]•] 

1879  Roxana  A.  Batty 'j'j 

1873  Anna  Gray  Stanton 80 

1873  Hannah  Merrill 75 

1870  Alvin  L.  Brigham 71 

1875  Eleanor  Spaulding 84 

1862  Samuel  Richardson 79 

1865  Lucy  Richardson 76 

1875  Barton  Tracy 72 

1880  Enos  K.  Young 72 


Silas  B.  Spaulding 81 

Samuel  Ford 76 

Sarah  Batchelder 86 

Lydia  Beckwith 86 

Hannah  Staples "]•] 

Capt.  Job  Orcutt 75 

Mary  Orcutt 74 

Samuel  M.  Orcutt 74 

Mary  B.  Orcutt 95 

Billa  Woodward 72 

Mary  Woodward 69 

Borga  Wiley 87 

James  Wiley 83 

Phineas  Wiley 91 

David  Wiley 82 

Hannah  Wiley 76 

John  Williams 72 

Mabel  Williams 75 

Otis  Batchelder 91 

Alva  Richardson 76 

Dennis  Crimims 80 

Chester  Batchelder 69 

Eunice   Williams 72 

Elias  Rich 87 

James  Butterfield 76 

Susannah  Richardson 84 

Sarah  Batchelder 87 

Betsey  Spalding 82 

Jemima  Silver 75 

Phineas  Flint 82 

Seth  Richardson 70 

Sarah  Richardson 'jj, 

William   Knowles 94 

Burton  Skilleger 78 

Nabby  Ford 85 

Arny  Wilson 81 

Samson  Bates   70 

Anna  Hatch 80 

Mary  Bealey 76 

Darius  Hatch 81 

Hepsobath  Cady 81 

Lurinda  Flint 81 

William   Hutchinson 89 

Aaron  Webster 85 

Abigail  Cram 80 

Francis  Clukey 70 

Jemima  Webster. 88 

William  B.  Tyler 78 

Fanny  Jones 78 

Phila  Darling 76 

Calvin  Cady 74 

Daniel  C.  Rich 71 

Lamos  McGregor 78 

Louis  Loomis 75 

Aaron  Spencer 84 

Polly  Lyndes  (colored,) (Si 

Stephen  Rumney 75 

Sally  Wardner 78 

Margaret  Martin 90 

Eunice  Kent 80 

Samuel  Steele 83 

Joel  Wardner 83 

John  B.  Crandall 70 

Enos  Young 80 


ROXBURY. 


757 


1866  Sally  Steele 72 

1821  Elizabeth  Abbott T] 

i860  Lydia  Cotton 71 

1854  Robert  Cram 78 

1868  Jacob  Loomis 70 

1849  Mercy  Ruggles T}, 

1877  Azubah   Hatch 70 

1876  William  Ruggles 71 

1879  Lewis  Chatfield 94 

Annie  Blanchard 78 

1876  Lewis  Cram 75 

1869  Sila's  Braley 81 

1870  Oliver  French 83 

1866  Mrs.  S.  Braley 79 

1861  Bealey  H.  Gibson 76 

1842  Elijah  Ellis 79 

1834  Mary  Ellis 88 

1865  Isaiah  Shaw 82 

1830  Mrs.  Wardner 72 

1848  Betsey  Boyce 74 

1824  John  Gibson ^ 76 

1841  James  Steele 76 

1847  Jedediah  Smith 85 

1855  Esther   Smith 89 

1878  Adah  Hackett 86 

1861  Mary  Bealey 76 

1854  Gideon  Flint 74 

1862  Mrs.  Gibeons 80 

Mrs.  Crocker 85 

Ranson  Beckwith 80 

Samuel  Lyndes 80 

1879  Lucy  R.  Howe 82 

1 879  Lovina  Ferry 79 

O.  W.  ORCUTT. 


TOWN   MEETINGS. 

Held  at  Jedediah  Huntington's  dwelling- 
house  in  1796,  '97,  '98.  At  Samuel  Rich- 
ardson's, 1799,  1802.  At  Christopher 
Huntington's  1800,  1801.  At  David 
McClure's,  1803,  '5,  '6.  At  Samuel  Rob- 
ertson's, 1804.  At  Leonard  Smith's,  1807, 
'8,  '9,  '10.  At  BlUa  Woodward's,  181 1, 
'12,  '13,  '14,  '15,  '16.  At  Samuel  M.  Or- 
cutt's  1817,  '18,  '19,  '20,  '21,  '22,  '23,  '24, 
'25,  '26,  '27,  '28,  '26,  '30,  '31,  '32,  '33,  '34, 
'35.  '36,  'yj,  '38'  '39.  '40,  '41-  At  Luther 
Ainsworth's,  Mar.,  1842.  At  John  M.  Spaul- 
ding's,  Sept.,  '42,  '43,  '44,  '45,  '46,  '47, 
'48,  '49.  At  Union  Meeting  House,  1850, 
51,  '52,  '53,  '54.  Sept.,  '54,  at  new  town 
house,  1854  to  1881. 

MODERATORS. 

Joseph  Crane,  1796;  Thomas  Hunting- 
ton, 1797  ;  Samuel  Richardson,  1798,  1801, 
'2,  '3,  '5,  '7,  '8,  '9,  '13;  Jedediah  Hunting- 
ton, 1799;  Isaac  Lewis,  1800;  Darius 
Spaulding,  Job  Orcutt,  1809;  Zeb.  Butler, 


1804;  Rodolphus  Willard,  1810;  Samuel 
Robinson,  1811,  '12,  '17,  '18,  '19,  '20,  '21, 
'23,  24;  J.  F.  Ruggles,  '18,  '14,  '15,  '16,  '22, 
'25,  "26,  '28,  '30;  Charles  Sampson,  1827  ; 
Shubael  Wales,  1829,  '31,  '34,  '35,  '36; 
Joel  Hildreth,  1832;  Nathan  Morse,  1833; 
Stillman  Ruggles,  1837,  '38,  '40;  Allen 
Spaulding,  1839,  '4''  '42»  '5I) '52, '53, '54, 
'57,  '58;  Henry  S.  Boyce,  1843,  '44,  '46, 
'47,  '48,  '55,  '56,  '59,  '60;  O.  Richardson, 
i86i-'68;  Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  1868;  Billings 
Spaulding,  1869;  Samuel  G.  Stanton, 
1870,  '74,  '75,  "it,  278  ;  Oramel  Richard- 
son, 1871,  72,  ""]■>),  '76;  Zed  S.  Stanton, 
1879,  '80,  '81. 

TOWN   CLERKS,    1 796- 1 88 1. 

Thomas  Huntington,  1796,  '97,  '98,  '99, 
1800,  'i.  Darius  Spalding,  1802,  '3,  '14, 
'15.  Samuel  Robertson,  1804,  '5,  '6,  '7. 
James  Bancroft,  1808,  '9,  '10,  '11,  '12. 
Samuel  M.  Orcntt,  1813,  '17,  '18,  '19,  '20, 
'21,  '22,  '24,  '25,  '26,  '27,  '28,  '29,  '30,  '31, 
■32,  '33.  '34,  '35'  '36,  'n,  '38.  John  F. 
Persons,  1816.  Jehial  Allen,  '39,  '40,  '41, 
'42.  Allen  Spalding,  1843,  '44»  '45'  '46, 
'47,  '48.  Allen  K.  Jeney,  1849,  '5°'  '5^' 
'52,  '53,  '55.  (Jeney  died  in  Aug.,  '55.) 
A.  N.  Tilden,  1854.  Ormal  Richardson, 
1855.     A.  N.  Tilden,  1856  to  1881. 

SELECTMEN. 

Samuel  Richardson,  1796  to  1803,  '7,  '8  ; 
Isaac  Lewis,  1796,  1800;  Jedediah  Hunt- 
ington, 1796,98,99;  Christopher  Hunt- 
ington, 1797;  David  Cram,  1797;  Roswell 
Adams,  1798,  1800,  'i,  '3,  '4, '5 ;  John 
Stafford,    1799,    1806;    Darius    Spalding, 

1801  ■  to  1806,  '9, '10;  Perez  Huntington, 

1802  ;  Lemuel  Smith,  1803  to  '8  ;  Jonathan 
F.  Ruggles,  1806,  '7,  '8,  '19,  '20,  '21  ; 
Samuel  Richardson,  1808;  Joel  Hildreth, 
1809  to  '13,  '14,  '15,  '25,  '26;  Robert  Cram, 
1809  to  '13,  '14,  '24,  '25;  Samuel  M.  Or- 
cutt, 181 1  to  '15,  '21,  '22,  '23,  '25,  '26,  '27, 
'29,  '30,  ^2,2)  to  '38  ;  Isaih  Shaw,  1813,  '15, 
'18,  '26,  '27,  '28, '36,  'n,  '47;  Uriah  Rich- 
ardson, 1813;  John  Paine,  1815,  '16,  '17, 
'22;  Nathan  Morse,  1816,  '17,  '22,  '23,  '28, 
'29,  '30,  '33,  '34,  '35  ;  Charles  Sampson, 
1816,  '17,  '20,  '21,  '27,  '28,  '29,  '38,  '47, 
'48;  Samuel  Robertson,  1818,  '19,  '23; 
Elijah  Ellis,    1818,  '19, '20;  Billa  Wood- 


758 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ward,  1824;  David  Young,  1824,  '31,  '32; 
James  Burnham,  1830;  Amos  Wardner, 
1831,  '32;  Daniel  Loomis,  1831  ;  Henr}' 
Smith,  1832;  Jonathan  Wiley,  1833,  '34; 
Bezaleel  Spalding,  1835  ;  Jared  Hildreth, 
1836,  ''27;  Robert  Cram,  1838,  '39;  John 
Cross,  1838,  '39,  '40,  '41  ;  Darius  Hatch, 
1839;  Thomas  R.  Shaw,  1840  to  '44,  '46; 
Enos  K.  Young,  1840,  '41,  '42;  Jehial 
Allen,  1842;  Wm.  W.  Woodward,  1843, 
'44;  Benjamin  Edwards,  Jr.,  1843,  '44, 
'45,  '56,  '57,  '58:  H.  S.  Bo3'ce,  1844,  '49, 
'50;  Wm.  P.  Royce,-  1845,  '59-  '60,  '64, 
'65;  Samuel  Edwards,  Jr.,  1846,  '50,  '52, 
'53,  '61,  '62;  Alvin  Braley,  1846,  '47,  '48, 
'61;  Stephen  Pierce,  1848;  Dexter  Samp- 
son, 1849,  '51,  '54,  '61,  '62,  '63;  Wm.  B. 
Orcutt,  1849,  '50  '55;  Elijah  Winch,  1851, 
'58,  '60;  S.  M.  Hildreth,  1851,  '58,  '63, 
'66,  '67,  '71  ;  Geo.  M.  Sampson,  1852,  '53 ; 
Edmond  Pope,  1852,  '53,  '55,  '29,  '61,  '62, 
'64,  '66;  S.  G.  Stanton'  1869;  C.  H.  Mer- 
rill, 1854;  Stillman  Ruggles,   1854;  Wm. 

B.  Orcutt,  1855;  Charles  B.  Fiske,  1855, 
'66,  '67,  '68  ;  Clark  Wiley,  1856,  '57,  '58, 
'72,  177;  James  Cram,  1856,  '57;  E.  N. 
Spalding,  i860;  C.  Richardson,  1864,  '65, 
'68;  S.  P.  Orcutt,  1865;  Cyrus  Howard, 
1868,  '69,  '81  ;  S.  G.  Stanton,  1869  to  '74, 
'78;  Enos  K.  Yonng,  1869,  '70;  Isaac  A. 
Flint,  1870,  '71  ;  Storrs  S.  Clough,  1872, 
'75  to  '79;  Geo.  L.  Walbridge,  1873,  '74; 
Charles  Adams,  1873,  '74;  Billings  Spaul- 
ding,  1874, '81  ;  A.  J.  Averill,  1875, '76; 
D.  L.  Nichols,  1875  ;  Charles  N.  Eaton, 
1876;  Gideon  Edwards,  1879;  ^-  ^^ 
Stanton,  1878,  '79;  C.  M.   Adams,  1879; 

C.  H.  Eaton,  1879:  Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  Arza 
Boyce,  L.  J.  Wiley,  1880;  L.  J.  Wiley, 
J.  B.  Spaulding,  1880. 

TOWN   TREASURERS. 

David  Cram,  1796;  Isaac  Lewis,  1797, 
'98, '99;  Thomas  Huntington,  1800,  '01  ; 
Darius  Spalding,  1802,  '15;  Samuel  Rob- 
ertson, 1803  to  1808,  '28  ;  James  Bancroft, 
1808  to  '13;  Samuel  M.  Orcutt,  1813,  '14, 
'17  to  '28,  '29;  John  T.  Pearsons,  1816; 
Asa  S.  Simonds,  1830  to  '61  ;  Billings 
Spanlding,  1861  to  '68,  '69,  to  '74;  Wm. 
B.  Orcutt,  1868;  A.  N.  Tilden,  1874  to 
1881. 


OVERSEERS   OF   POOR. 

Selectmen  in  1808;  Jonathan  F.  Rug- 
gles, Elijah  Ellis,  Samuel  Robertson  over- 
seers, 1813;  Robert  Cram,  Billa  Wood- 
ward, Isaiah  Shaw,  1820,  37 ;  Robert 
Cram,  182 1  ;  selectmen  overseers  of  poor, 
1822,  23,  24;  Samuel  Robertson,  1825, 
26;  Samuel  M.  Orcutt  and  Nathan  Morse, 
1827;  Billa  Woodward,  1830;  Nathan 
Morse,  1828,  29,  35,  36;  Allen  Spalding, 
1835,  41,  42,  44,  45,  51,58;  Darius  Hatch, 
1843,  4o>  46,  39,  38 ;  Silas  Braley,  1833, 
32,  47,  31  ;  Allen  Spalding,  1848,  49,  50; 
Asaph  Silsbury,  1851  ;  H.  M.  Nichols,  1853, 
55,  52;  Edmond  Pope,  1856;  Edmond 
Lack,  1857;  Benj.  Edwards,  Jr.,  1860,54; 
Wm.  B.  Roys,  1861,  62;  E.  P.  Burnham, 
1863,  64,  65,  66 ;  Sylvester  Ellis,  1867,  68  ; 
Alphonso  Ladd,  1869,  70,  71,  72;  Orza 
Boyce,  1873,  74'  75  ;  C.  L.  Ellis,  1876,  77  ; 
Charles  Adams,  1878,  79,  81  ;  Salmon 
Williams,  1880. 

CONSTABLES   AND  COLLECTORS  OF   TAXES. 

Jeduthan  Huntington,  1796;  David 
Cram,  1797,  '98,  1817  to  20;  Isaac  Lewis, 
1799;  Perus  Huntington,  1800;  Benjamin 
Huntington,  1801  ;  David  McClure,  1802; 
Chester  Morris,  1803  to  1808;  Roswell 
Walter,  1808;  Rhodolphus  Willard,  1809; 
Darius  Houghton,  1810;  Ezra  Child, 
1811;  John  B.  Crandall,  1812;  Charles 
Bancroft,  1813;  Joel  Hildreth,  1814,  '15; 
Charles  Sampson,  1816;  John  Paine, 
1820;  Henry  Boyce,  1821  to  1830;  Allen 
Spalding,  2830,  '33 ;  Erastus  Spaulding, 
1 83 1,  '32;  Amos  Wardner,  1834  to  1837; 
Henry  S.  Boyce,  1838  to  1841  ;  Dexter 
Sampson,  I841,  '42;  Elijah  Winch,  1843; 
E.  B.  Pride,  1844,  '45  ;  Samuel  Ruggles, 
1846  to  1850,  '55  ;  Ebenz.  Ainsworth, 
1861  ;  S.  P.  Orcutt,  1852,  '53  '59;  Daniel 
D.  Hackett,  1855  ;  Orin  W.  Orcutt,  1856, 
'76,  '78 ;  Benjamin  Edwards,  1857,  '58 ; 
W.  J.  Simonds,  i860,  '62,  '63;  Langdon 
R.  Nichols,  1861  ;  H.  G.  Ellis,  1864  to 
1870;  Charles  Spalding,  1870,  '71;  Sam- 
uel M.  Hildreth,  1872;  Zed.  S.  Stanton, 
1873,  '74'  '75'  '77  '1  ^^""O  J-  Boyce,  1879, 
'80,  '81. 

LISTERS. 

David  Cram,  1796,  1806;  Thomas  Hunt- 
ington,   1796,  '98;  Jedediah  Huntington, 


ROXBURY. 


759 


Samuel  Richardson,  1797;  Isaac  Lewis, 
1797,  '98;  John  Stafford,  1798,  '99,  1808; 
Chester  Batchelder,  1799:  Perus  Hunting- 
ton, 1799,  1802;  Uriah  Richardson,  1800, 
1807,  '12.  ''17;  Joseph  Adams,  Darius 
Spaulding,  1800 ;  David  McClure,  Benja- 
min Huntington,  Daniel  Freeman,  1801  ; 
David  Nutting,  Joseph  Converse,  1802; 
Samuel  Smith,  1803,  '5;  Clark  Stone, 
Charles  Fitts,  1803;  Joel  Hildreth,  1804, 
'5,  '6;  Charles  Stone,  1S04;  Zeb.  Butler, 
1804;  Jonathan  F.  Ruggles,  1805,  '9,  '10, 
'16,  '17,  '22,  '24,  '27,  '30:  Samuel  Robin- 
son, 1806,  '21,  '22,  '24,  ''27;  Samuel  M. 
Orcutt,  1807,  '12,  '17,  '18,  '19,  '34,  '38; 
Robert  Cram,  1807,  '8;  Lorin  Green, 
1808;  Charles  Bancroft,  1809;  Ephraim 
Morris,  1809:  Salmon  Cross,  1810;  James 
Bancroft,  1810,  '11,  '12;  Gilbert  R. 
Spaulding,  181 1,  '15  ;  Anson  Adams,  1812  ; 
Enos Youngs,  Bezalel Spaulding,  i8i3,'i5  ; 
Darius  Hatch,  1813,  '14,  '15;  John  Paine, 
1814,  '19,  '20,  '26,  '30;  Thomas  Davis, 
1814;  Billa  Woodward,  1815,  '20,  '23, 
'28;  Ira  Hunter,  1818;  Henry  Boyce, 
1818, '23;  Amos  Wardner,  1819;  Charles 
Samson,  1822,  '23,  ''30,  '32,  ''^;^,  '36,  ';^y, 
'38,  '47,  '48,  '51  ;  Nathan  Morse,  1826, 
'27,  '28,  '32,  '36,  '37,  '42,  '43;  James 
Burnham,  1825,  '26,  '29 ;  Elijah  Ellis, 
1827;  Silas  C.  Briggs,  1828;  Daniel  Flint, 
Shubael  Wales,  1829;  Erastus  Spalding, 
Henry  S.  Boyce,  183-1,  '55,  '56;  Silas 
Hall,  1830;  Isaiah  Shaw,  1832,  '^y^  '42 
'43  ;  David  Withington,  William  Ruggles, 
1833;  John  Walbridge,  1834;  Stillman 
Ruggles,  1834,  '36,  '40,  '54 ;  Alvin  Braley, 
1838,  '43,  '44,  '46,  '48,  '59,  '61  ;  Benj. 
Edwards,  Jr.,  1838,  '49,  '50,  '53,  '54,  '59; 
Samuel  M.  Hildreth,  1839, '40,^41,  '5i.'7i  ; 
Eleazar  Woodward,  Consider  Hyland, 
1839;  Wm.  Woodward,  1840;  Philip 
Cram,  1841,  '48,  ''49;  Benoni  Webster, 
1841,  '47  ;  Samuel  Edwards,  Jr.,  1841,  '57, 
'60;  Allen  Spaulding,  1842,  '46,  '47,  '60; 
Luther  Ainsworth,  1844  i  Thomas  R.  Shaw, 
1844,  '45,  '46,  '49 ;  Hibbard  A.  Pefry, 
1850;  Wm.  W.  Woodward,  1850;  Ed- 
mond  Pope,  185 1,  '52,  ''56,  '65;  Elijah 
Winch,  1845,  '57>  '62,  '63;  Stephen 
Pierce,  1845  5  Asaph  Silsbury,  1851  ;  Alvin 
L.    Brigham,     1852;     Stillman    Ruggles, 


1853;  Wilson  I.  Simonds,  1854, '66, '81  ; 
Seth  M.  Bailey,  1855;  E,  P.  Burnham, 
1855,  '56.  '61,  '62;  Clark  Wiley,  1858;  R. 
S.  Glidden,  Dexter   Samson,  1858;  Wm. 

B.  Orcutt,  1859,  '64,  '65  ;  Joseph  B.  Ed- 
wards, 1859;  Alphonso  Ladd,  1862;  Phi- 
lander Wiley,  1862,  '63,  '72,  '73;  Azro 
A.  Simonds,  J863 ;  Buel  Gold,  1865,  '67, 
'74,  '75;  A.  A.  Smith,  1864,  '65;  C.  B. 
Williams,  Cyrus  Howard,  1866 ;  Samuel  G. 
Stanton,  1867;  Jason  W.  Powers,  1868; 
Ralph  W.  Rood,  Aaron  Webster,  1868; 
Charles  Spaulding,  1869,  70;  Billings 
Spalding,  1869;  Isaac  A.  Flint,  1869; 
Clark  Wiley,  1870,  71  ;  Storrs  S.  Clough, 
1870,  71;  Frank  T.  Snow,  1872;  Arza 
Boyce,  1872,  '78,  '81  ;  J.  E.  D.  Hildreth, 
1873,  '74;  David  B.  Adams,  1873;  David 
H.  Stanton,  1873,  '75;  J.  P.  Warner, 
1875;  Horace  A  Thayer,  1876;  Zed.  S. 
Stanton,  1876,  'yy;  Henry  M.  Spalding, 
1876;  Charles  Adams,  D.  L.  Nichols, 
1877,  '78;  Clark  Flint,  1879,  '80,  '81  ;  E. 

C.  Bowman,  J.  E.  D.  Colby,  1879;  Geo. 
W.  Williams,  James  Steel,  1880. 

TITHINGMEN,   1805-40. 

Silas  Spalding,  Job  Orcutt,Chester  Batch- 
elder,  Caleb  Stowe,  Waterman  Spalding, 
David  G.  Nutting,  Enos  Young.  Roswell 
Adams,  Elijah  Ellis,  Jas.  Y.  Wolf,  John 
Bald  win,  Wm.  Gold,  Jacob  Wardner,  Sam'l. 
Richardson,  Willard  Smith,  JohnM.  Spal- 
ding, Asahel  Blake,  Darius  Houghton,  Uri- 
ah Richardson,  Sam'l.Wright,Benoni  Web- 
ster, Jacob  Loomis,  Silas  Braley,  Nathan 
Morse,  Adin  Smith,  H.  M.  Nichols,  Eleazer 
Woodward,  Benjamin  Edwards,  Stillman 
Ruggles,  Alvin  L.  Brigham,  Daniel  Flint, 
James  Pike,  Samuel  Ford,  Alva  Richard- 
son, Cyrus  Flint,  Nathan  Emerson. 

TOWN   AGENTS. 

John  B.  Crandall,  1815,  1816;  Henry 
Boyce,  18 17  ;  Charles  Samson,  1829  ;  Amos 
Wardner,  1833;  Nathan  Morse,  1834; 
Silas  Braley,  1842,  '44;  Allen  Spalding, 
1 841, '47, '49, '54,  '60,  '61;  Alvin  Braley, 
1844,  '46,  '48,  '50,  '51,  '52,  '53,  '55,  '56, 
'59,  '62,  '63  ;  Edmond  Pope,  1864;  De.xter 
Samson,  1867,  '68;  James  P.  Warner, 
1872;  Samuel  G.  Stanton,  1875;  Wil- 
liam   B.    Orcutt,    1869,    "76;    Erastus   N. 


760 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Spalding,  ''']'],  '71,  '70,  '58,^57;  Samuel  G. 
Stanton,  '78,  '65  ;  S.  S.  Clough,  '79>  ''Th'' 
'74;  Orrin  W.  Orcutt,  '80,  '81. 

SCHOOL   SUPERINTENDENTS. 

Joseph  Silsbury,  1851,  '52,  '48;  Aaron 
Webster,  '50,  '52  ;  Stephen  Pierce,  '46,  '47, 
'49  ;  Allen  W.  Jenny,  '55  ;  Hira  G.  Ellis,  '56 ; 
Samuel  G.  Stanton,  '57;  F.  V.  Randall, 
'58,  '57  ;  Aaron  Webster,  '58  ;  O.  Richard- 
son, '59;  Austin  A.  Smith,  '60,  '61  ;  Jas. 
F.  Button,  '48;  Buel  Gold,  '62;  H.  G. 
Ellis, '63;  Aldin  Ladd,  '64,  '65;  S.  G. 
Stanton, '66,  '67,  '70,  ""ji,  'ti\  Wm.  L. 
White,  '68,  '67 ;  Andrew  Stanton,  '''J2)  '• 
D.  L.  Nichols,  '74,  '75,  '76,  '78;  Zed  S. 
Stanton,  77,  79,  '80,  '81. 

JUSTICES   OF   THE   PEACE. 

Charles  Samson,  1850,  '51/52,  '53'  '54> 
'38,  '40,  '44,  '45,  '47,  '27,  "31/33.  49  .4,1, 
39,  20,  28,  25,  26,  24,  22,  23,  48,  33,  34, 
30,  55,  46,  21  ;  Byer  Edwards,    1850,   51, 

52,  53,  54,  58,  61,  62,  40,  43,  44,  45,  47, 
41,  46,  49,  48 ;  Philip  Cram,  1850,  51,  48, 
49,46;  Buel  Gold,  1850,  51,64,65,66, 
67,  68,  74,75;  Elijah  Winch,  1850,51,  52, 

53.  57.  58,  62,  44;  Stephen  Pierce,  1851, 
52,  44,  45,  47,  49,  48,  46;  Hiram  Wal- 
bridge,  1852,  53,  54,  55,  69,  70,  74,  75  ; 
Asaph  Silsbnry,  1852,  53,  49  ;  Alvin  Braley, 
1853,  54,  44,  45,  47.  49.  46;  Stillman 
Ruggles,  1854,  55,  44.  47.  49.  48,  1,1,  35. 
46  ;  Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  1855,  56;  Calvin 
Murray,  1855,  56;  E.  P.  Burnham,  1855, 
56,  59,  60,  61,  63;  A.  B.  Hutchinson, 
1855,  56;  Edmond  Pope,  1856,  61,  62, 
63;  Sewell  Hutchinson,  1856,  57;  I.  M. 
Hildreth,  1842,  43,  44,  45.  47,  57.  49-  48 ; 
W.  I.  Simonds,  1857,  58;  Solomon  Ferry, 
1857,  58;  Sylvester  Motifit,  1857,  58;  O. 
W.  Orcutt,  1859,  60,  61 ;  Samuel  P.  Wales, 
1859,  60;  Austin  A.  Smith,  1859,  60,  61  ; 
Cyrus  Howard,  1859,  60,  64,  65,  66,  67, 
68;  Horace  M.  Nichols,  1861,  62,  63,  64 
65,  66,  40,  43.  44,  45.  47,  41,  46,  48,  39. 
49;  Clark  Wiley,  i860,  61  ;  James  Steele, 
1862,63,64;  Samuel  G.  Stanton,  1862, 
64,  65,  66,  67,  68;  Dexter  Samson,  1862, 
63;  Jehial  Allen,  1839,  40,  41,  42;  E. 
Brackett,  1840,  41,  42;  Wm.  Ruggles, 
1838,  40,  47,  39,  49,  48 ;  Wm.  W.  Wood- 


ward, 1838,  45,  47,  49,  48,  35 ;  E.  B. 
Pride,  1840,  47 ;  Robert  Cram,  1838,  43, 
45,  47.  39.  23,  25,  24,  26,  22 ;  John  Cross, 
1838,  39,  41,  35,  49;  H.  S.  Boyce,  1838, 
42,  43,  44,  45,  47,  41,  49,  39,  46,  48 ;  Al- 
len Spalding,  1842,  43,  44,  45,  47,  41,  49, 
40,  48,  35;  Darius  Hatch,  1838,  39,  40, 
42,  43,  44,  45,  47,  49,  41,  48,  46;  Samuel 
M.  Orcutt,  1822,  39,  38,  40,  44,  27,  28,, 
31,  iTy,  34,  41,  49,  32,  35,  36,  24,  26,  46, 
20,  22,  30,  33,  34,  35,  23,  25,  26,  28,  21  ; 
Luther  Ainsworth,  1842,  43,  45,  47,  49, 
48,  46;  Samuel  Ruggles,  1840,  44,  49; 
Jared  Hildreth  1838,  42  ;  A.  P.  Walcott, 
1842,43;  Jared  Keith,  1841,  42,  43,44; 
Thomas  R.  Shaw,  1848,  42,  49 ;  Isaiah 
Shaw,  1834,  41,  42,  43,  20,  30,  28,  24,  25, 
23,  22;  Jonathan  F.  Ruggles,  1827,  31, 
33,  34,  13,  28,  16,  20,  30,  35,  22,  23,  24, 
25,  26,  28,  9,  10,  II,  12,  14,  15,  17,  18, 
19,  21;  Daniel  Loomis,  1849;  Henry 
Smith,  1833,  34;  James  Cram,  1849; 
Amos  Wardner,  1834,  35  ;  Daniel  Kings- 
bury, 1827;  Uriah  Richardson,  1817,  20, 
27,  26,  22,  23,  24,  25,  28,  18,  19,  21  ; 
Nathan  Morse,  1831,  33,  28,  30;  H.  G. 
Ellis,  1863,  64;  W.  S.  Roys,  1863,  64; 
Ralph  W.  Rood,  1866,  67,  68 ;  Emery  P. 
Cram,  1866;  Asahmel  FUnt,  1866,  67,  68, 
72,  i^,,  80,  81  ;  Oramel  Richardson,  1868  ; 
Salmon  Williams,  1868,  72,  73,  78,  79,  74, 
75;  Erastus  N.  Spalding,  1870;  Storrs  S. 
Clough,  1870,  74,-  75  ;  Charles  Spalding, 
1870;  John  F.  Roys,  1870;  Charles  I. 
Holden,  1870;  Gideon  Edwards,  1870; 
J.  F.  Pearsons,  1871;  Jothan  Ellis,  1876, 
111  74,  75  i  Azro  A.  Simonds,  1871  ;  A.  J. 
Averill,  1873;  Orza  Boyce,  1873;  C.  L. 
Ellis,  1873,  76,  IT  \  James  Burnham,  1831, 
32  ;  Aaron  Webster,  1876,  n  ;  Luther  G. 
Tracy,  1876,  -j-j  \  Hira  G.  Ellis,  1876,  n, 

78,  79;  C.  H.  Eaton,  1878,  79;  E.  E. 
Bowman,  1878,  79;  George  B.  Hall,  1878, 

79,  80,  81  ;  Alphonso  Ladd,  1880,  81  ;  A.  L. 
Nichols,  1880,  81  ;  L.  F.  Wiley,  1S80,  81  ; 
Darius  Spalding,  1804,  5,  14,  15,16,  13,  9, 
10,  II,  12,  14,  17,  18,  19;  James  Pike,  1839; 
Samuel  Robertson,  1820,  9,  10,  16;  Be- 
noni  Webster,  1846,  48,  49;  Zeb.  Butler, 
1803,4;  Roswell  Adams,  1803,  4;  Rho- 
dolphus  Willard,  1810,  11,  12,  13;  John 
Freeman,  1795. 


ROXBXJRY. 


761 


TOWN    REPRESENTATIVES. 

Rhodolphus  Willard,  1809,  '10,  '11,  '12; 
Darius  Spalding,  1813,  '15,  '16;    Jonathan 

F,  Ruggles,  1817;  Charles  Samson,  1818, 
'19,  '20,  '21,  '24,  '25,  '28,  '37,  '38,  '39,  '41  ; 
Robert  Cram,  1822,  '23;  Isaiah  Shaw, 
1826,  '27,  '31,  '32,  '33,  '40;  Nathan  Morse, 
1829,  '34,  '35,  '36;  Allen  Spalding,  1842, 
'43,  '52,  '53;  Thomas  R.  Shaw,  1846; 
Benjamin  Edwards,  Jr.,  1847;  Dexter 
Samson,  1849,  '5°)  Henry  S.  Boyce, 
1851  ;  Elijah  Winch,  1854;  Alvin  Braley, 
1855,  '56;  Edward  Pope,  1857;  F.  V. 
Randall,  1858;  Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  1859,  '60; 
Seth  M.  Bailey,  1861  ;  Chester  Clark,  1862  ; 
Seth  M.  Bailey,  1863;  Edmond  Pope, 
1864,  '65  ;  Austin  A.  Smith,  1866;  Samuel 

G.  Stanton,  I867,  '68,  '69;  Erastus  N. 
Spalding,  1870, '71  ;  1872,  no  elections; 
Enos  K.  Young,  1874,  '75  ;  A.  N.  Tilden, 
1876,  77;  Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  i878-'8i. 

ASSISTANT  JUDGES   OF   COUNTY   COURT. 

Charles  Samson,  1842,  '43;  Nathan 
Morse,  Alvin  Braley,  1858,  '59. 

Wm.  B.  Orcutt,  1874,  '75  ; 

Sheriff,— O.  W.  Orcutt,  1865,  '66. 

DELEGATES    TO    CONSTITUTIONL    CONVEN- 
TIONS. 

Darius  Spaulding,  1814;  Jonathan  P. 
Ruggles,  1822;  Nathan  Morse,  1828,  '35; 
Henry  S.  Boyce,  1842;  Thomas  R.  Shaw, 
1849;  Samuel  U.  Hildreth,  1870. 

POSTMASTERS. 

First  postmaster,  John  M.  Spaulding, 
from  1826  to '49;  O.  W.  Orcutt,  1849  to 
'53;  Billings  Spaulding  and  A.  N.  Tilden, 
1861  to  '63;  Julius  Spaulding,  1865  to  '66; 
Orin  W.  Orcutt,  1866  to  the  present  time. 

East  Roxbury. — Shubael  Wales,  1830 
to  '42;  Stillman  Ruggles,  1841  to  '43; 
Samuel  Ruggles,  1843  to  '52  ;  Jacob  Ward- 
ner,  in  1852,  and  present  incumbent. 

Merchants  : — Among  others  beside  what 
I  have  previously  named,  I  remember 
Woodward,  Thresher,  A.  N.  Tilden,  Ed. 
Ferris,  J.  Riford,  Mansfield,  I.  Brigham, 
E.  P.  Burnham,  A.  N.  Tilden  &  Son,  the 
two  last  firms  at  present  doing  good  busi- 
ness. Asa  Taylor  was  the  first  to  keep 
store  in  town. 

E.  N.  Spaulding's  steam-mill  burned 
down  in  November,  since  I  wrote  up  the 

96 


manufacturing  business,  and  another  one 
was  well  under  way  here  yvhen  I  came  from 
Roxbury.  Stephen  Butterfield  has  been 
station  agent  and  telegraph  operator  nearly 
the  whole  time  since  the  railroad  came  to 
Roxbury.  E.  N.  Spalding  is  a  promi- 
nent business  man,  dealing  heavily  in 
lumber.  Will  Spalding,  his  son,  is  now 
"  dispatcher  "  in  an  office  in  Boston. 

Thanks  are  especially  due  O.  W.  Orcutt, 
Aaron  Webster  and  Zed  Stanton,  Esq. 
I  have  received  considerable  information 
from  three  grand-daughters  of  Samuel  Rich- 
ardson— Mrs.  York,  Mrs.  Woodard  and 
Mrs.  Youngs ;  also  from  O.  Richardson,  a 
former  resident  of  this  town.  Many  have 
no  doubt  felt  interested  who  have  devoted 
no  time,  therefore  much  will  be  left  out, 
inevitably,  which  cannot  fail  of  being  a 
source  of  regret  to  their  posterity ;  for, 
however  this  may  seem  to  us  of  to-day,  to 
whom  much  of  this  history  is  familiar, 
future  generations  will  peruse  it  with  the 
greatest  interest,  and  every  incident  of  the 
hardships,  privations  and  heroism  of  .the 
pioneers,  related  at  many  firesides  by  our 
children's  children.  s.  B.  M. 

ROXBURY  CENTENNIAL  CELEBRATION. 

The  day  chosen  for  the  Celebration  fell 
on  Tuesday,  fair  and  fine  as  one  could  wish. 
The  procession  of  citizens  and  visitors 
formed  at  the  town-house,  and  led  by 
Northfield  Cornet  Band,  drum  corps,  mil- 
itia, old  folks'  temperance  organization, 
grange  and  civilians,  marched  to  a  charm- 
ing little  grove  near  the'  depot,  where  a 
stand  had  been  erected  for  music  and 
speakers,  tables  laid  for  an  old-fashioned 
dinner  in  a  little  vale  just  below,  tended 
by  young  ladies,  picturesque  in  short 
waists,  enormous  pufled  sleeves  and  narrow 
gored  skirts,  guiltless  of  trimmings.  Among 
the  visitors  who  were  assigned  seats  of 
honor  upon  the  stand  were  Philip  Cram, 
the  first  child  born  in  Roxbury,  from 
Brookfield ;  Mrs.  Orcutt,  widow  of  Sam- 
uel Orcutt,  and  mother  of  those  residing 
in  Roxbury  and  Northfield  of  that  name, 
the  oldest  person  present,  being  94  years 
of  age.  There  were  39  persons  over  70, 
30  of  them  being  over  80. 


762 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


HISTORICAL   ADDRESS, 

(BY   Z.   S.   STANTON,    E.SQ.) 

Delivered  at  Roxbury,  Aug.  22,  1876, 
Maj.  Allen  Spaulding,  president  of  the  oc- 
casion ;  a  large  concourse  of  citizens 
and  visitors  present ;  from  which  we  ex- 
tract the  portions  pertaining  strictly  to  the 
history  of  the  town  not  already  covered  by 
the  papers  of  Mrs.  Mansfield,  given  : 

"  Many  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  town- 
ship were  veterans  of  the  Revolution. 
Doubtless  the  tract  of  land  now  known  as 
the  town  of  Roxbury  was  never  the  per- 
manent home  of  the  Indians.  Yet  it  may 
be  inferred  from  the  geographical  position 
of  this  portion  of  our  State,  that  the 
Indians,  in  their  predatory  excursions 
against  the  colonial  settlements  of  New 
England,  passed  through  here.  The  Iro- 
quois, Cossuck  and  St.  Francis  tribes  fre- 
quented this  portion  of  our  State  at  various 
times  while  on  their  hunting  excursions, 
and  doubtless  the  smoke  of  their  camp- 
fires  wended  up  from  this  little  valley  many 
times.  In  the  fall  of  1780,  the  town  of 
Royalton  was  pillaged  and  burned  by  a 
band  of  Indians  from  Canada,  who  on 
their  return  passed  through  the  west  part 
of  Brookfield,  and  probably  the  east  part 
of  this  town.  Arrow-heads  and  other  relics 
have  been  found  here  at  various  times, 
which  prove  conclusively  that  the  red  man 
was  here  at  a  time  previous  to  any  white 
man's  emigration  to  this  township.  Nov. 
6,  1780,  this  township  was  granted,  and  it 
was  chartered  by  the  Governor,  Council 
and  General  Assembly  of  the  State,  Aug. 
5,  1 78 1,  to  Benjamin  Emmons  and  64 
others,  nearly  all  of  whom  were  residents 
of  Windsor  County.  I  think  two  of  these 
persons  afterwards  resided  in  this  town. 
Among  the  names  of  those  to  whom  this 
township  was  chartered,  I  find  those  of 
Thomas  Chittenden,  Paul  Spooner,  and 
others  prominent  in  the  early  history  of 
Vermont.  Besides  the  land  chartered  to 
those  men,  there  was  chartered  one  right 
for  the  use  of  a  seminary  or  college,  one 
for  the  use  of  a  county  grammar  school, 
one  for  the  purpose  of  the  settlement  of  a 
minister  of  the  gospel,  one  for  the  support 
of  the  social  worship  of  God,  and  one  for 
the  support  of  an  English  school  or  schools 
in  this  town.  The  proprietors  of  this 
township  held  their  first  meeting  at  the 
house  of  Benjamin  Burtch,  an  innholderin 
Hartford,  County  of  Windsor,  Nov.  20, 
1783;  Hon.  Paul  Spooner,  moderator, 
and  Briant  Brown,  clerk.  A  committee, 
cotisisting  of  Briant  Brown,  Esq.,  Capt. 
John  Strong,  Elisha  Gallup,  Abel  Lyman 
and  Asa  Taylor  were  chosen  to  examine 


this  township,  and  to  lay  out  100  acres  to 
each  proprietor  as  a  first  division,  with  the 
allowance  of  five  per  cent,  for  highways. 
They  were  also  instructed  to  procure  a 
surveyor,  chainmen  and  provisions.  They 
held  an  adjourned  meeting  Dec.  25  the 
same  year,  and  voted  to  lay  a  tax  of  10  s. 
lawful  money,  on  each  proprietor's  right  or 
share  of  land,  for  the  purpose  of  paying 
the  expenses  of  surveying.  This  tax  was 
to  be  paid  in  money,  wheat,  beef  or  pork, 
at  cash  price.  They  chose  Capt.  John 
Strong  collector,  and  Major  Joel  Mathews, 
treasurer.  They  also  voted  a  tax  of  2  s. 
lawful  money,  on  each  proprietor's  right  or 
share  of  land  in  this  township,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  'defraying  charges  that  had  arisen 
in  procuring  the  charter.  It  is  impossible 
to  ascertain  just  how  many  meetings  were 
held  by  the  proprietors  of  this  township, 
or  when  the  survey  was  made.  I  think, 
however,  that  the  survey  was  not  made  at 
this  time,  and  possibly  not  until  several 
years  later.  There  was  a  proprietors' 
meeting  held  at  the  house  of  Asa  Edgerton, 
in  Randolph,  Aug.  6,  1788;  Major  Elijah 
Paine,  moderator,  and  Deacon  David 
Bates,  clerk.  A  vote  similar  to  the  one 
taken  at  Hartford,  with  the  addition  of  an- 
other division,  was  passed.  It  is  possible 
that  the  survey  of  the  township  was  made 
previous  to  this  time,  but  I  have  no  author- 
ity for  saying  so.  Each  proprietor  had 
one  lot  in  each  division.  On  the  21st  day 
of  May,  1789,  the  first  settlement  was 
made  in  this  township. 

Mr.  Huntington,  the  first  settler,  was  an 
elderly  man,  and  was  accompanied  by 
several  children,  some  of  whom  had  ar- 
rived at  maturity  at  that  time.  Three  of 
his  sons,  Jedediah,  Thomas  and  Jonathan 
were  quite  prominent  in  town  affairs  when 
the  town  was  organized.  I  am  not  able  to 
say  who  the  next  settlers  of  this  township 
were,  but  soon  after  Huntington  and  Rich- 
ardson came  here,  Mr.  Isaac  Lewis  settled 
in  this  town-hip,  and  Messrs.  David, 
Robert  and  Jonathan  Cram  located  on  the 
farms  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Messrs. 
Chatterton,  Bowman  and  Clough.  [See 
previous  account  of.] 

Jacob  Wardner  came  to  this  town  in 
1801,  and  built  a  log  house  on  the  farm 
now  owned  by  H.  A.  Thayer.  The  next 
year  he  moved  his  family  to  this  place. 
He  was  a  German,  and  was  born  on  board 
a  vessel  while  his  parents  were  emigrating 
to  this  country,  and  he  used  to  boast  that 
he  '  never  was  born  on  the  face  of  God's 
earth.' 

Samuel  Robinson  and  Samuel  M.Orcutt 
were  at  one  time  associated  in  mercantile 
business,  and  occupied  the  room  now  used 


ROXBURY. 


763 


by  J.  F.  Pearson  as  a  harness  shop.  This 
was  the  second  store  kept  in  town.  They 
did  a  good  business,  and  to  use  my  in- 
formant's own  words,  'There  was  not  so 
many  Bostons  then  as  now ;  then  the 
Granger  did  not  trouble  the  merchant, 
and  the  potato  bug  did  not  bother  the 
Granger ;  then  the  merchants  drew  their 
molasses  without  the  help  of  patent  gates, 
and  sold  new  rum  without  a  license.'' 

Elijah  Ellis  lived  where  Mrs.  Brackett 
now  does.  He  built  the  house  at  this 
place,  and  it  was  the  first  house  builfin 
town  that  was  arranged  for  the  use  of 
stoves,  I  am  informed.  He  had  no  fire- 
place or  '  stack  of  chimneys,'  as  they  were 
called,  and  people  thought  it  a  great  de- 
parture from  the  old  ways.  Ellis  also  built 
the  first  clover-mill  in  town.  [See  Mrs. 
Mansfield's  record.] 

About  this  time  Moses  Woodard  lived 
where  Peter  Gilbert  now  does,  whose  son 
was  the  noted  manufacturer  of  the  frames 
of  saddles.  There  was  a  tavern  kept  here 
for  some  time,  and  the  place  was  known 
as  the  center  of  the  town.  Below  Wood- 
ward's, on  the  road  leading  to  where  the 
village  now  is.  lived  James  Bancroft,  who 
was  for  many  years  town  clerk,  and  has 
left  upon  the  town  records  some  splendid 
specimens  of  penmanship,  that  might  well 
serve  for  copies  for  many  at  this  day. 
There  were  in  18 10  but  three  houses  where 
the  village  now  is — the  house  of  Mr.  Bur- 
roughs, near  where  Mrs.  Martell lives,  and 
two  others,  near  where  Charles  Leonard 
now  resides.  At  this  time,  18 10,  there 
was  a  considerable  portion  of  the  town 
settled. 

After  the  return  of  our  volunteers  from 
Plattsburgh,  with  the  exception  of  town 
meetings  and  trainings,  the  town  was  com- 
paratively quiet.  These  trainings  were 
held  at  various  places,  sometimes  at  Billa 
Woodard's  and  Capt.  Orcutt's,  on  the  east 
hill,  and  often  near  the  tavern  of  John  M. 
Spaulding.  Mr.  Spaulding  kept  this  tav- 
ern, and  was  also  proprietor  of  a  saw-mill 
and  grist-mill  at  this  place.  Then  one  day 
in  each  week  was  set  apart  for  the  grind- 
ing of  salt.  Coarse  salt  was  the  only  kind 
of  that  commodity  that  could  be  obtained, 
and  as  the  thrifty  housewives  then,  as  now, 
took  great  pride  in  making  good  butter, 
they  had  of  necessity  to  grind  their  salt  at 
the  grist-mill.  Mr.  Spaulding  built  the 
hotel  in  the  village  in  1830.  He  was  an 
energetic  business  man,  and  accumulated 
a  handsome  property  for  those  honest  days. 
For  many  years  the  towti  meetings  were 
held  at  dwellings  in  various  parts  of  the 
town.  I  find  by  consulting  the  town  rec- 
ords that  these  meetings  were  held  at  the 
houses  of  the  following-named  gentlemen, 


in  the  order  that  they  occur :  Jedediah 
Huntington,  Samuel  Richardson,  Chris- 
topher Huntington,  Lemuel  Smith,  Ichabod 
Munsel,  Billa  Woodard,  Samuel  M.  Orcutt 
and  Luther  Ainsworih.  After  this  they 
were  held  at  the  village,  in  the  meeting- 
house and  hotel  hall,  until  the  town-house 
was  built,  in  1854. 

The  verd  antique  marble  was  discovered 
in  Roxbury,  1833,  by  a  gentlemen  named 
McCain. 

No  State  in  the  Union  has  a  better  rec- 
ord in  connection  with  the  war  of  the  re- 
bellion than  Vermont — and  no  town  in  the 
State  has  a  better  one  than  Roxbury.   With 
a  population  of   1060,  Roxbury  gave  the 
Union  army  95  brave  soldiers,  8  of  whom 
re-enlisted.     Co.  H,  6th  Vt.  Regt,,  under 
command  of  Capt.  D.  B.  Davenport,  was 
recruited  in  this  town  in  the  fall  of  1861. 
Besides  this  company  there  were  residents 
of  this   town    in    many    other    regiments. 
Twenty-six  of  these  died  in  the  service  of 
their  country.         ..... 

Besides  these,  there  were 
of  those  who  enlisted  from  other  places, 
but  who  were  residents  of  this  town,  two 
that  died — Homer  Pearson  in  a  rebel  pris- 
on, at  Salisbury,  N.  C,  and  Samuel  Shep- 
herd, who  was  a  member  of  a  Massachu- 
setts regiment,  in  the  service.  In  all,  29 
men  of  this  town  fell  in  the  defense  of  hu- 
man liberty.  I  wish  that  this  town  might 
imitate  the  action  of  other  towns,  and 
erect  a  monument  to  the  memory  of  these 
martyrs. 

So  far  as  manufacturing  is  concerned, 
Roxbury  has  done  but  little,  and  doubtless 
the  wealth  that  is  obtained  here  must  come 
through  the  hard  hand  of  the  farmer.  Mr. 
Shubal  Wales,  who  kept  tavern  at  East 
Roxbury  many  years  ago,  was  also  propri- 
etor of  clothing  works  at  that  place,  but  it 
was  not  a  very  extensive  concern. 

The  people  here  have  to  a  considerable 
extent,  been  dependent  upon  itinerant 
preachers.  After  Mr.  Huntington  remov- 
ed to  Canada,  the  settlers  at  East  Roxbury 
secured  the  services  of  Elder  Seaver.  of 
Williamstown,  and  meetings  were  held  in 
the  school  house.  Elder  Hovey  also  held 
meetings  there,  and  soon  after  a  Calvinist 
Baptist  church  was  formed.  There  has 
been,  I  think,  a  church  organization  there 
ever  since.  Their  present  church,  the  First 
Christian,  was  organized  in  Feb.,  1863. 
Rev.  Henry  Howard  is  now  their  pastor. 
The  union  house  of  worship  was  built  in 
this  village  in  1839.  Previous  to  this,  the 
meetings  were  held  in  school  houses,  and 
sometimes  in  barns.  Considerable  excite- 
ment was  occasioned  at  the  time  the  first 
minister  in  town  was  ordained.  In  those 
days,  there  were  many  lay  preachers,  and 


764 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


one  of  these,  a  man  named  Culver,  was 
privately  ordained  and  laid  claim  to  this 
lot,  together  with  all  the  improvements 
that  had  been  made  upon  it.  The  select- 
men of  the  town  objected  to  this,  but  Cul- 
ver would  not  yield,  and  then  they  endeav- 
vored  to  have  a  preacher  named  Smith, 
better  known  as  "  Happy  John,"  ordained. 
He  declined,  and  Ophir  Shipman  was  next 
appealed  to.  He  consented,  and  was  the 
first  regularly  ordained  minister  in  Rox- 
bury.  He  held  the  value  of  the  land  with- 
out improvements.  The  result  of  this 
strife  was  the  destroying  of  the  Baptist 
church  at  this  place. 

My  fellow  townsmen,  in  conclusion,  let 
me  say  that  I  would  that  this  task  of 
chronicling  a  history  of  our  town  might 
have  been  performed  by  abler  hands  than 
mine.  With  the  short  time  alio  ted  me  I 
could,  of  course,  give  nothing  but  a  rough 
sketch  of  those  incidents  brought  most 
vividly  to  my  notice.  I  trust  they  are  in 
the  main  correct.  My  thanks  are  due 
those  who  have  so  kindly  furnished  me 
with  material,  and  I  hope  the  day  is  not 
far  distant  when  a  fuller  and  more  com- 
plete history  may  be  written.  If  you  de- 
rive half  the  pleasure  in  listening  to  this 
that  I  have  in  learning  of  those  pioneers  in 
our  town,  I  shall  be  satisfied.  I  think  we 
are  too  apt  in  this  fast  age  not  to  look 
back  to  the  lives  and  deeds  of  those 
who  have  gone  before.  Said  Edmund 
Burke,  "A  people  who  do  not  look  back 
to  their  ancestors  will  not  look  forward  to 
their  posterity,"  and  still  there  are  many 
to-day  if  called  upon  to  give  the  maiden 
name  of  their  grandmother  would  be  una- 
ble to  do  so.  To  know  more  of  those 
whose  places  we  now  fill,  to  learn  of  their 
virtues,  to  know  wherein  they  erred,  is  our 
right  and  duty.  In  our  little  mountain 
town,  away  up  among  the  Green  Moun- 
tains, we  have  no  great  history  to  write  of, 
no  mighty  deeds  of  valiant  men  to  chroni- 
cle, no  biography  of  some  brilliant  person 
who  has  gone  from  here  and  startled  the 
world  with  his  genius,  for  no  native  of 
Roxbury  has  been,  to  my  knowledge,  a 
member  of  Congress  or  of  the  State  Prison 
either,  but  simply  a  story  of  hardy  men  and 
brave  women  seeking  and  making  their 
homes  among  these  hills.  There  are 
times  when,  perhaps,  we  may  wish  for  a 
more  genial  clime  and  a  more  fertile  soil, 
but  none  of  us  after  living  here  a  series  of 
years  will  fail  to  love  these  hills,  for  it  is  our 
home.  When  we  consider  the  changes  that 
have  been  wrought  in  our  State  and  nation 
during  the  past  century,  we  know  that  our 
little  town  has  kept  pace  with  the  rest. 
How  diiTerent  the  scene  of  to-day  and  the 
one   Samuel    Richardson  gazed   on   when 


first  he  came  here.  Atour  feet  still  murmurs 
that  little  mountain  stream  that  sparkled 
in  the  autumn  sunlight  of  86  years  ago, 
but  how  changed  is  the  rest.  Then  it 
was  an  unbroken  forest,  with  naught  but 
wild  beasts  for  inmates  ;  now  it  is  teeming 
with  the  marks  of  improvement.  The  iron 
horse  is  going  at  lightning  speed  through 
our  valley ;  step  to  yonder  telegraph  office 
and  in  a  moment's  time  a  thought  of  yours 
may  be  flashed  to  the  Golden  Gates  of  the 
Pacific,  or,  sent  beneath  the  ocean's  bed, 
may  be  heard  on  another  continent ;  on  our 
hillsides  are  evidences  of  great  improve- 
ments, machinery  supplants  labor,  and  the 
products  of  other  climes  may  be  ours  at 
prices  almost  nominal.  Forth  from  these 
hillsides  come  a  thousand  sparkling  streams 
with  water  pure  and  clear  as  our  lives 
should  be ;  across  these  hills  the  strong, 
invigorating  air  is  ever  waving,  giving 
health  and  happiness,  and  here  in  our 
peaceful  homes  ought  to  be  found  hearts 
grateful  to  the  Giver  of  all  these  blessings. 
But  the  tottering  forms  of  these  aged  ones 
who  have  assembled  here  to-day,  tell  us 
plainly  that  it  is  but  a  brief  happiness  we 
have  to  enjoy  here,  and  that  with  each  re- 
turn of  this  golden  harvest  time,  new 
mounds  will  have  been  made  in  our  valleys 
and  on  our  hillsides,  marking  the  spot 
where  some  one  is  resting  from  his  labors, 
and  may  God  grant  that  when  the  last 
summons  shall  come,  and  the  places  we 
now  occupy  shall  know  us  no  more,  that 
our  lives  shall  have  been  such  as  to  bear 
well  the  scrutiny  of  the  Great  Hereafter. 

A   CENTURY   OLD   STORY. 

BY  MRS.  SARAH  BItlGIIAM   MANSFIELD. 
(Read  at  the  Roxbury  Centennial.) 

Ah;  what  more  inspiring  tlieme 
For  poet's  pen  or  poet's  dream 
Tlian  to  go  baclf  an  luindro(i  years— 
To  dream  of  all  the  hopes  and  fears. 

The  heart-throbs  and  the  pain 
Of  those  who  lived,  and  loved,  and  died — 
Who  felled  the  forests,  dark  and  wide — 
Who.  with  nnswerving,  constant  toil, 
Cleared  these  broad  acres,  tilled  the  soil, 

Themselves  a  home  to  gain. 

A  hundred  years,  or  less,  ago 
Deep  waters  had  their  ebb  and  flow; 
The  willow  bowed  its  graceful  head 
Above  the  water-lily's  bed. 

Where  stands  this  village  now. 
The  bear  and  wolf  roamed  without  fear. 
With  now  and  then  a  moose  or  deer, 
And  the  primeval  forests  rang 
With  shrieks  of  panther— the  birds  sang 

Their  loftiest,  sweetest  strains,  I  trow. 
• 
The  red  man  oft-times  wandered  through 
These  dim  old  woods;  ahl  brave  and  true 
Were  they  who  mid  th'  green  hills  of  Vermont 
Sought  and  found  homes;  my  word  upou't, 

A  uobler,  truer  race 


ROXBURY. 


765 


Than  those  old  yeomen  ne'er  were  seen ; 
Though  brown  of  cheek,  nor  graceful  mien 
Had  they,  their  record  shows 
A  list  of  deeds  tliat  brighter  glows 
As  years  come  on  apace. 

In  a  sweet  glade,  beside  a  wood, 

A  century  gone,  a  cabin  stood; 

A  purling  bi'ook  trilled  joyously  along. 

And  bird-notes  echoed  back  the  song. 

While  little  children  fair 
Joined  in  the  chorus  at  their  play ; 
What  wonder  that  their  hearts  were  gay— 
From  the  dread  war  papa  had  come. 
To  spend  his  days  in  peace  at  home; 

How  light  seemed  every  carel 

'Twas  springtime;  adder-tongues  were  up; 
'Nealli  the  dry  leaves  the  arbutus'  cup; 
Rude  troughs  still  caught  the  flowing  sweet 
From  the  rock  maple;  tiny  feet 

Made  fairy  footprints  all  around. 
One  little  lad,  with  crisp  brown  curls, 
And  full  white  brow,  fair  as  a  girl's. 
Will)  dusk-bright  eyes,  brim  full  of  glee, 
Pet  of  that  humble  home  was  he — 

Humble,  yet  with  love  crowned. 

"  O,  let  me  mind  the  fire,"  he  cried,  "  to  day, 
And  watch  the  sap,  to  see  it  boil  away ; 
You  go  to  dinner,  one  and  all — 
Please  let  nie  stay;  I'm  not  so  very  small, 

I'll  have  you  all  to  know; 
I'm  a  big  boy,  'most  eight  years  old. 
And  not  a  bit  afraid;  now  do  not  scold, 
For  won't  I  make  the  kettle  singl  — 
And  don't  forget  my  lunch  to  bring— 

I'm  starved  almost!— now  go." 

And  so  they  left  him,  bright-eyed  Ned; 
"  He'll  keep  all  right,  we  know,"  they  said, 
"  And  feel  as  proud  as  any  king— 
The  little,  pompous,  silly  thing. 

To  think  such  work  is  play." 
And  while  they  dined,  the  mother  brought 
A  dainty  lunch  of  trout  they'd  caught. 
And  good  sweet  bread,  both  brown  and  white: 
'•Now  haste  thee,  husband,  from  my  sight, 

Nor  linger  by  the  way ; 
"My  heart  is  sad — oh  I  strangely  sad— 
For  fear  of  harm  to  the  dear  lad ; 
I  know  he's  brave— as  brave  as  good — 
But  wild  beasts  lurk  in  the  deep  wood — 

Oh  I  haste  thee  to  our  child." 
"Fie  I  fie  I  upon  thy  woman's  fears; 
The  boy  is  safe— dry  up  thy  tears; 
And  when  he  comes  with  me  to-night, 
Thou'lt  smile  upon  this  foolish  fright — 

Hi  loves  the  deep  woods  wild." 
Yet,  as  his  hurried  steps  drew  near, 
Why  blanched  his  cheek  with  sudden  fear? 
Ah!  what  was  there  his  keen  eye  scanned? 
Prints  of  moccasined  feet  on  every  hand, 

With  the  bare  ones  of  little  Ned; 
An  arrow  and  a  wooden  spoon- 
But  where  the  boy  they  left  at  noon? 
The  frantic  father  called  in  vain; 
Sad  echo  answered  back  the  strain — 

Forever  lost!  it  said. 
On  through  the  forest,  dark  and  wild. 
The  frenzied  father  sought  his  child ; 
Through  mountain  gorge,  o'er  hill  and  dale, 
Till  steps  grew  slow,  cheeks  wan  and  pale. 

He  sought,  but  never  found. 


Spring,  summer,  waned,  and  autumn  came, 
Rich  with  ripe  fruits  and  golden  grain; 
But  from  that  pleasant  cabin  home 
The  light  and  joy  for  aye  had  flown-;- 
N'o  little  narrow  mound, 

Rose-strewn,  where  they  could  go  and  weep. 
And  know  their  darling  was  asleep 
Beneath  the  flowers ;  no  such  relief 
Had  tliose  poor  hearts;  in  silent  grief 

They  passed  each  weary  day. 
White  grew  the  mother's  raven  hair. 
Deep  care  lines  011  the  brow  once  fair. 
Watching  and  waiting  all  in  vain; 
The  dear  one  came  not  back  again — 

He  was  lost  to  them  for  aye. 

The  stolen  child  was  agrand-uncleof  the  writer. 

OUR    ROXBURY   VISIT. 

When  in  print  so  far  as  with  Middlesex, 
we  had  no  certain  historian  for  Roxbury 
engaged,  but  learning  by  chance  corres- 
pondence that  Mrs.  Sarah  Brigham  Mans- 
field was  residing  at  Roxbury,  made  her  a 
visit  with  much  confidence,  we  had  found 
the  best  person  in  the  town  to  write  out 
the  historic  record  of  Roxbury.  While 
visiting  Mrs.  Mansfield,  we  also  made  a 
little  trip  into  the  Mad  River  Valley,  that 
we  had  never  dreamed  of  as  so  pretty ; 
heard  Rev.  P.  B.  Fisk  in  his  address  at  the 
Fair  at  Waitsfield,  and  visited  the  birth- 
town  of  the  Brigham  family  and  Mrs. 
Laura  Brigham  Boyce.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Mansfield  pointed  out  many  an  old  site 
named  in  our  Fayston  history,  fresh  from 
the  press  ;  now  Mr.  M.,  the  old  home  site 
of  his  father,  which  strangely  the  writer 
had  somehow  overlooked. 

Riley  Mansfield,  born  in  Winchen- 
don,  Mass.,  came  from  there  when  19 
years  old,  with  an  ox-team,  by  marked 
trees,  through  the  heart  of  the  Vermont 
wilderness,  and  located  in  the  valley  of 
Fayston,  clearing  himself  a  farm  and 
rolling  up  the  logs  for  his  first  log-house.' 
He  lived  in  this  town  till  his  death,  and 
raised  a  large  family,  and  was  one  of  the 
principal  landholders  of  his  day,  as  the 
Fayston  records  attest.  His  farms  and 
mortgages  on  farms  covered  much  of  the 
territory  of  the  town  ;  but  he  was  no  op- 
pressor. A  neighbor  under  einbarrass- 
ment  came  to  him  one  day,  and  said,  "I 
want  you  to  buy  that  50-acre  lot  of  mine. 
If  I  can  turn  it  into  money,  I  can  save  my 
farm  and  myself  from  ruin."     "I  will  take 


766 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


it,"  said  Mr.  M.,  and  paid  him  his  price  for 
the  land.  The  man  afterwards  said  to 
him,  "You  saved  me  and  my  family  from 
utter  failure."  A  little  later,  hard  times 
again  came,  and  the  neighbor  was  again  in 
deep  gloom.  How  he  could  meet  his 
taxes  he  did  not  know.  He  had  some 
fine  sheep,  but  sheep  were  down  in  the 
market ;  no  one  wanted  to  buy  for  half 
their  worth.  The  melancholy  man  came 
down  one  afternoon  to  see  if  Mr.  M.  would 
not  buy  his  sheep.  Mr.  M.  was  absent. 
He  told  his  story  to  Mrs.  M.,  and  said  he 
knew  of  no  one  else  who  would  give  him 
the  worth  of  his  sheep,  but  he  thought 
that  Mr.  M.  might,  and  let  him  have  the 
money.  Mrs.  M.,  sorry  for  the  man,  and 
knowing  the  neighborly  spirit  of  her  hus- 
band, told  him  that  she  thought  Mr.  M. 
might  buy  the  sheep,  and  she  would  tell 
him  when  he  came  home,  and  she  thought 
he  would  be  up  there  that  night.  The 
man  left  a  little  encouraged.  Mr.  M.  did 
not  return  till  late.  Mrs.  M.  told  him,  but 
it  was  lo  o'clock  before  he  had  his  chores 
done,  and  he  put  off  going  up  till  the  next 
morning.  He  went  up  then,  but  the  man 
had  hung  himself  in  the  night.  His  wife 
said  to  Mr.  M.,  "  Had  you  come  up  last 
night,  it  would  have  saved  his  life."  Mr. 
M.,  although  no  ways  obligated,  always 
regretted  that  he  had  not  gone  up  that 
night,  late  as  it  was. 

He  brought  apple-seeds  from  New  Hamp- 
shire, and  planted  orchards  around  his  old 
homestead  63  years  ago  ;  trees  yet  remain 
there  that  sprang  from  the  seed  he  planted 
then.  Mr.  M.  removed  from  where  he 
first  settled  to  a  farm  on  Mill  brook,  where 
he  made  his  home  the  last  25  years  of  his 
life.  His  first  home  was  adjoining  the 
old  Brigham  farm  on  Fayston  hill.  His 
house  was  within  20  rods  of  where  George 
Boyce  now  lives.  He  sold  to  Mr.  Brig- 
ham  and  Mr.  Griggs  a  part  of  their  farms 
(old  Stephen  R.  Griggs  was  the  one  who 
committed  suicide). 

From  Obituary. — "Riley  Mansfield,  of 

Fayston,  died  Jan.    14, ,  aged  nearly 

J"]  years  ;  another  of  our  oldest  and  most 
respected  citizens  is  gone,  almost  the  last 
of  the  pioneer  men  who  came  to  our  town 


in  its  early  settlement,  or  before  it  had  be- 
come largely  settled  or  improved.  He 
came  56  years  ago,  and  helped  by  his  life- 
long industry  to  make  the  wilderness  to 
blossom  as  a  garden.  At  23,  he  was  con- 
verted at  a  camp-meeting,  and  united  with 
the  Methodist  church,  of  which  he  was  a 
member  at  time  of  his  death.  In  1822  he 
married  Betsey  Chase,  who  died  Mar.  11, 
^y2>-  Of  ^  large  family,  but  one  son,  Martin 
Mansfield,  is  now  living.  He  was  respect- 
ed for  his  sterling  worth ;  there  lives  no 
man  who  will  say,  '  Uncle  Riley,'  as  he 
was  called  by  all  his  neighbors,  ever  know- 
ingly cheated  him  one  cent.  Of  his  sudden 
death  he  seemed  to  have  a  premonition. 
He  began  to  feel  unwell  Wednesday  after- 
noon, and  died  on  Friday  near  midnight. 
About  an  hour  before  he  died,  he  dressed 
himself  and  laid  down  again  on  his  bed, 
apparently  comfortable,  and  died  as  an  in- 
fant hushed  to  sleep  in  its  mother's  arms." 

After  his  death  it  was  found  he  had 
written  in  his  diary  the  Sabbath  evening 
before,  the  following : 

"Jan.  9,  Sabbath  Evening. 
Now  we  know  not  what  is  before  us  ;  we 
frequently  hear  of  people  being  found  dead, 
and  as  you  all,  my  dear  children,  are  away 
from  me,  the  thought  came  to  me  that  I 
might  never  see  any  of  you  again.  Oh, 
what  a  feeling  came  over  me !  I  felt  that 
I  could  not  go  to  bed  without  writing  a 
few  words  of  entreaty  that  you  would  not 
let  the  busy  scenes  and  cares  of  this  life 
hinder  you  from  preparing  for  the  life  to 
come.  Oh,  do  think  of  the  life  that  never, 
never  ends!  Think  what  folly  it  is  to 
make  overmuch  provision  for  the  flesh  only 
to  be  enjoyed  a  few  days!  It  is  the  height 
of  folly  for  people  to  live  as  most  do,  and 
for  professors  of  religion  to  live  as  all  the 
world  do,  laying  up  treasures  on  earth. 
What  I  wrote  on  the  other  page  (of  this 
diary),  was  after  I  was  ready  to  go  to  bed, 
but  after  these  thoughts  came  to  me,  I 
made  another  fire  and  sat  down  and  wrote 
this,  hoping  you  might  find  it,  and  hoping 
it  might  have  some  influence  on  your  lives. 
It  may  be  your  loving  father's  last  request." 

It  was  his  last  request  to  his  children, 
for  he  never  beheld  their  faces  again,  his 
death  on  the  next  Friday  night  being  so. 
unexpected,  they  were  not  sent  for  until 
all  was  over. 


ROXBURY. 


767 


BETSEY   CHASE, 

who  lived  on  Waitsfield  Mountain,  mother 
of  Mrs.  Riley  Mansfield,  of  Fayston  (see 
previous,  page  — ),  used  to  tell  many  tales 
of  almost  incredible  hardships  and  priva- 
tions. Her  husband,  Thomas  Chase, 
served  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  she 
cared  for  her  little  family  as  best  she  could, 
as  they  were  very  poor,  in  the  springtime 
subsisting  upon  milk  and  leeks  (wild 
onions),  and  such  small  game  as  she  could 
get,  being  an  adept  in  the  use  of  a  rifle  or 
shot-gun.  At  one  time,  when  the  army 
was  in  desperate  need  of  recruits,  and  they 
were  pressed  into  the  service  with  but  very 
little  ceremony.  When  it  was  known  offi- 
cers were  in  town  for  that  purpose,  many 
poor  fellows,  who  much  preferred  to  re- 
main by  their  own  firesides  to  enduring 
the  perils  of  war,  would  hide  until  the  en- 
listing officers  had  left  town.  They,  learn- 
ing this,  devised  a  plan  to  catch  them  by 
letting  loose  their  cattle  in  the  night,  and 
concealing  themselves  to  watch  for  the 
men  to  come  out  and  care  for  them.  Sev- 
eral times  one  night  Mrs.  Chase  heard  the 
tinkling  of  her  old  cow-bell  in  her  corn- 
field, and  each  time  marched  resolutely  out 
and  drove  old  "Crmnpie"  into  the  yard, 
making  all  fast,  and  returned  to  the  house, 
to  have  the  same  repeated,  until  the  re- 
cruiting officer  and  men  with  him  wearied 
out  (at  last,)  made  themselves  and 
their  errand  known,  and  when  told  her 
husband  was  already  in  the  service,  were 
somewhat  chop-fallen,  but  declared  she 
was  a  brave  woman,  fit  to  be  a  soldier's 
wife.  She  was  a  strong,  robust  woman, 
and  never  seemed  to  know  the  meaning  of 
the  word  fear.  She  often  said  she  would 
as  soon  meet  the  devil  in  the  dark  as  a 
man.  Whether  this  was  a  bit  of  sarcasm 
on  the  "  sterner  sex"  she  never  explained. 
Some  of  her  superstitious  neighbors  called 
her  a  "witch,"  for  her  prophecies  often 
came  true,  and  they  feared  nothing  so 
much  as  her  displeasure,  "lest  some  evil 
should  come  upon  them."  This  rather 
pleased  her  than  otherwise,  as  in  this  way 
she  kept  some  disorderly  neighbors  very 
submissive.  She  died  in  Waitsfield,  April, 
1852,  aged  over  90  years. 


The  account  of  Riley  Mansfield  and 
Thomas  and  Betsey  Chase  belong  to  the 
towns  of  Fayston  and  Waitsfield,  but  hav- 
ing been  overlooked  at  home,  we  include 
them  with  this  near  neighboring  town, 
and  the  more  easily,  as  Mrs.  Mansfield  has 
most  cordially  and  permanently  connected 
herself  here  as  the  historian  of  the  town, 
though  the  family  have  now  all  removed 
from  Roxbury  and  reside  at  Fairhaven. 

MR.  buknham's  reminiscences.  . 
Deer. — Mr.  E.  P.  Burnham,  merchant 
at  the  village,  told  us  he  can  remember 
some  50  years  ago,  when  the  deer  used  to 
herd  together  in  spruce  thickets  on  these 
mountains  in  the  winter,  and  when  the 
snow  melted  in  the  March  days,  and  froze 
at  night,  making  a  crust,  the  hunters 
would  be  out  the  next  morning  for  the 
deer.  He  says  he  has  been  on  these 
mountains  many  times  when  the  deer  were 
so  thick  you  could  not  count  their  tracks — 
the  tracks  were  like  a  thousand  sheep  in 
the  snow.  The  hunters  frequently  shot 
and  brought  in  several  deer  at  a  time.  He 
distinctly  remembers  when  they  brought 
in  five  at  one  time. 

He  was  graphic  in  his  remembrances  of 
Crandall,  of  whom  Mrs.  Mansfield  has 
some  anecdotes  on  the  foregoing  pages. 

"Some  50  years  ago,"  says  Mr.  B., 
"  there  lived  in  this  town  a  man  by  the  name 
of  John  B.  Crandall,  but  who  was  named 
and  called  by  all  his  townsmen  Judge 
Crandall,  a  drinking,  miserable  being,  but 
a  man  with  natural  talent.  He  would  get 
into  debt  and  get  sued,  and  defend  himself 
in  the  courts.  He  managed  his  own  case 
and  plead  his  own  cause  before  the  jury, 
and  usually  with  success.  Judge  Weston 
brought  a  suit  for  debt  against  him  one 
time,  however,  in  Randolph,  when  Cran- 
dall thought  he  would  have  some  help, 
and  engaged  one  of  Judge  Weston's  stu- 
dents to  help  defend  him.  When  the 
cause  came  on,  the  student  arose  to  argue 
CrandalPs  case,  but,  awed  by  the  presence 
of  his  master,  began  to  hesitate.  Crandall 
stood  it  for  a  moment.  He  had  an  invet- 
erate habit  of  spitting  when  excited.  For 
a  moment  he  sat  spitting,  when,  arising, 


768 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL    MAGAZINE. 


drawing  his  ragged,  slightly  liquorfied  form 
up  to  its  full  height,  he  spit  once,  twice, 
thrice.     Said   he,    'Sit  down!  sit   down! 

You  are  afraid  of  the  d d  cuss  ;  let  me 

try  him!'  He  did  try  him,  and  won  his 
case  out  and  out  with  the  jury,  to  the  great 
amusement  of  all  who  heard  the  defense. 
He  had  a  family.  His  own  boys  took  after 
him  in  drinking,  but  had  none  of  his  power 
of  wit  and  argument.  I  think  they  were 
more  like  their  mother,  who  was  a  famous 
talker,  but  not  well  balanced.  Some 
neighbors  in  of  an  evening,  the  old  lady 
would  sit  and  tell  over  her  wise  things ; 
the  old  man,  under  the  influence  of  liquor, 
in  his  chair  sit  and  doze,  and  when  she 
had  chatted  away  and  told  her  long  yarns 
till  late,  arouse  himself  up  and  say,  '  A 
dumb  fool  always  knows  the  most.'" 

The  poor  old  man,  of  marked  ability, 
but  a  wreck  from  his  bad  habit,  died  at 
last,  and  his  curious  old  wife  and  his  un- 
educated sons  following  in  his  steps,  that 
never  were  any  benefit  to  the  community ; 
but  in  the  thud  generation,  under  the  in- 
fluence of  a  better  education,  the  ability 
of  the  grandfather  again  cropped  markedly 
out.  His  grandsons  have  the  strong  nat- 
ural ability  without  the  dissipation  of  their 
grandfather  or  fathers,  and  make  fine  men. 

THE  9OTH   BIRTHDAY   PARTY 

of  Mrs.  Betsey  C.  Spalding,  of  which 
Mrs.  Mansfield  has  briefly  spoken,  was, 
indeed,  a  very  unique  and  pleasant  gather- 
ing, and  as  the  oldest  birthday  party  ever 
celebrated  in  Roxbury,  should  perhaps 
have  a  little  more  notice.  Her  five  chil- 
dren, all  living,  were  present :  ErastusN., 
Billings,  Mrs.  Brackett,  Mrs.  P.  Wiley, 
Mrs.  A.  N.  Thompson,  her  daughter-in- 
law  and  her  sons-in-law,  and  the  grand- 
children in  part :  Mrs.  L.  P.  Thompson, 
from  Clarence,  la.  ;  Mrs.  Arthur  Bradley,  of 
Maiden,  Mass. ;  William  Wiley,  of  White 
River  Junction  ;  Charles,  of  St.  Albans  ; 
Edwin  and  Delia  Wiley,  Clinton  Brackett, 
George  Tilden,  with  their  husbands  and 
wives  and  four  great-grandchildren,  "un- 
cles, cousins  and  aunts."  Over  the  front 
door  was  "  Welcome! "  in  cedar;  within, 
the  mammoth  cake  on  the  table,  "a  pyr- 


amid of  snowy  whiteness,  crowned  with  an 
exquisite  white  rose  with  silver  leaves,"  a 
rose-pyramid  rising  beside,  the  gift  of  the 
great-grandchildren,  of  ninety  rosebuds, 
rare  specimens,  just  bursting  into  beauty, 
that  filled  the  room  with  their  delicious 
perfume;  over  the  wall  above,  "  1791  and 
i8gi  ; "  another  table — an  elegant  bouquet 
of  hot-house  flowers  from  St.  Albans 
friends,  a  mound  of  asters,  artistically  ar- 
ranged, very  handsome,  from  Mrs.  E.  P. 
Burnham,  with  letters  of  regret  from  friends 
who  could  not  come,  on  the  table.  The 
photographer  was  there,  and  views  taken 
of  the  family  gathered  about  the  aged 
mother  in  front  of  her  house.  Then  there 
was  the  bountiful  supper  in  the  town-hall, 
five  long  tables,  the  central  one  laid  with 
the  mother's  old-fashioned  mulberry  ware 
and  silver  of  "  ye  olden"  solidity  and  style  ; 
and  after,  the  birthday  address  by  Rev. 
Eli  Ballou,  of  Bethel,  who  referred  to  Mrs. 
Spalding's  coming  to  Roxbury  when  the 
town  was  but  a  wilderness,  being  one  of 
the  first  settlers.  He  spoke  feelingly  of 
the  kind,  loving  mother  she  had  been,  how 
deserving  of  all  their  love  and  respect ; 
this  occasion  would  remain  a  bright  spot 
in  their  memories.  Mrs.  S.  was  born  in 
Strafford,  Ct.,  married  John  Spalding  at 
20,  and  came  to  Roxbury. 

NORA,    BLOSSOM    OF   THE   MAY. 
BY  A.  WEBSTER. 
Where  departed  kindred  sleep, 
And  tlie  living  came  and  weep. 
Laid  we,  on  a  vernal  day, 
Nora,  blossom  of  the  May. 
Seven  summers'  suns  and  flowers, 
Seven  autumns'  russet  bowers. 
Eight  sweet  springtimes,  fair  and  guy. 
Saw  our  blossom  of  the  May. 
Mild  was  slie,  and  sweetly  fair. 
Azure  eyes  and  nut-bi'own  hair; 
Voice  that  rivaled  warblers'  lay. 
Had  our  blossom  of  the  May. 
Earth  is  sad  now  she  is  gone. 
Heaven  anotlier  charm  has  won; 
Where  to  meet,  we  hope  and  pray, 
Nora,  blossom  of  the  May. 
Best,  sweet  blossom,  rest  in  peace, 
Where  all  pains  and  sorrows  cease; 
In  our  liearts  shall  ue'er  decay, 
Nora,  blossom  of  the  May. 
Nora,  blossom  of  the  May, 
Pride  of  her  parental  spray. 
Sweetly  bloomed  and  passed  away, 
Nora,  blossom  of  the  May. 


WAITSFIELD. 


769 


WAITSFIELD. 

BY    REV.    P.    B.  FISK. 

[Note.— The  writer  desires  at  tlie  outset,  to  ac- 
knowledge gratefully  the  assistance  he  has  received 
from  several  of  his  fellow-townsmen,  and  especially 
to  give  the  credit  due  to  the  late  Jennison  Jones,  Esq., 
for  his  MS.,  in  whicli  most  of  the  facts  and  dates  prior 
to  1850,  were  faithfully  recorded.] 

The  township  owes  its  name  to  Gen. 
Benjamin  Wait — the  first  settler  and  lead- 
ing proprietor  of  the  town.  It  is  situated 
in  the  south-western  part  of  Washington 
Co.,  bounded  by  Moretown,  Northfield, 
Warren,  and  Fayston.  Its  post-office  is 
20  miles  (more  or  less)  from  the  capital  of 
the  State,  and  lies  snugly  embedded  just 
in  the  "Fork  of  the  Y"  of  the  Green 
Mountain  range.  The  valley  of  the  Mad 
river,  running  from  south-west  to  north- 
east intersects  it,  the  serpentine  course  ot 
the  stream  both  beautifying  the  scenery, 
and  enriching  and  devouring  by  turns  the 
meadows  through  which  it  winds  its  way. 
At  the  bottom  of  the  deeply  cut  channel 
of  the  river  may  be  seen  the  trunks  of  old 
trees,  partly  washed  out,  projecting  from 
the  banks,  which  must  have  been  a  hun- 
dred years  old  before  they  were  overthrown. 
They  are  buried  at  a  depth  of  about  10 
feet  in  pebbles,  gravel,  and  surface  soil. 
Moreover,  60  years  ago  there  was  a  heavy 
growth  of  timber  standing  on  this  soil. 
Probably  this  original  forest  was  over- 
thrown by  the  river,  and  the  soil  after- 
wards deposited,  for  the  channel  of  the 
stream  is  by  no  means  permanent.  Since 
the  remembrance  of  the  writer  it  has  worn 
to  the  east  or  west  as  many  as  15  rods. 
The  uplands  are  under  cultivation  as  well 
as  the  interval  land,  and  though  broken 
are  strong ;  for  the  most  part,  they  make 
ample  returns  to  the  dairyman  and  the 
shepherd.  In  spite  of  all  these  drawbacks 
the  land  is  so  productive  that  real  estate 
brings  a  high  price  ;  and  it  was  well  said 
by  Mr.  Jones  in  his  sketch,  that  the  town- 
ship was  capable  of  supporting  a  much 
larger  population  than  it  has  ever  seen. 
No  better  crops  are  produced  than  by  these 
farmers  of  Waitsfield,  who  take  proper 
pains  with  their  work.  The  forests  which 
remain  are  a  mi.xture  of  hard  and  soft 
wood,  maple  and  spruce  predominating. 


The  landscape  is  set  off  finely  with  a  scal- 
loped border,  by  the  line  of  green  hills, 
which  completely  inclose  it  as  far  as  the 
eye  can  see  ;  leaving,  apparently,  no  outlet 
even  for  the  river ;  and  a  few  points,  like 
those  of  "Bald"  mountains  and  "Old 
Scrag,"  on  the  east  and  south  ;  Lincoln, 
with  its  slides,  and  Camel's  Hump  on  the 
west,  and  Mansfield  far  in  the  north. 

On  either  side  of  this  valley  several  fair 
sized  brooks  flow  down  from  the  hillsides, 
turning,  or  capable  of  turning,  many  busy 
wheels  as  they  go.  Of  these  the  largest 
are  Mill  and  Shepard's  brooks  on  the  west, 
and  Pine  brook  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river.  White  cottages  are  to  be  seen  on 
either  side  the  valley,  and  about  there 
plenty  of  the  evidences  of  thrift  and  com- 
fort— often  of  taste  and  refinement ;  and 
the  roads  at  all  seasons  are  remarkably 
good  through  this  whole  valley.  The 
landscape  is  pronounced,  even  by  strangers, 
to  be  picturesque  and  charming  beyond 
many  others  in  Vermont,  none  of  which 
are  wanting  in  rural  attractions. 

Mad  river  received  its  name  doubtless 
from  the  fact  that — the  mountain  slopes 
being  so  near  and  steep — the  surplus  water 
is  almost  immediately  thrown  off  into  the 
brooks,  and  by  them  poured  out  into  the 
river,  which  of  course  rises  like  sudden 
anger  overflowing  its  banksj  and  devouring 
them  at  will. 

Waitsfield  is  almost  precisely  at  the 
geographical  center  of  the  State  of  Ver- 
mont, and  tradition  has  it  that  the  commis- 
sioners to  locate  the  State  Capital  "  stuck 
their  stake "  almost  precisely  where  the 
village  now  stands.  But  Gen.  Wait  de- 
clared "  he  wouldn't  have  his  meadow  cut 
up,"  and  so  he  saved  the  town  from  that 
honor. 

INCORPORATION. 

The  charter  is  dated  Feb.  25,  1782,  or  5 
years  after  Vermont  declared  herself  a  free 
and  independent  State,  signed  by  the  ven- 
erable Thomas  Chittenden,  governor  at 
the  time.  It  was  then  a  part  of  Chittenden 
County  until  1811,  when  embraced  in  the 
new  county  called  Jefferson,  formed  after- 
wards, called  Washington.  The  township 
was  .supposed  to  include  a  tract  of  23,030 


97 


770 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


acres.  In  1788,  it  was  found  to  contain 
13,850  acres,  or  plus  840  acres.  Tlie  de- 
scription in  the  charter  runs  : 

6  miles,  1 26  chains  on  tlie  northerly  side  ; 
5  miles,  27  chains  on  the  easterly  side ;  6 
miles  on  the  southerly  side  ;  6  miles,  67 
chains  on  the  westerly  side. 

PROPRIETORS   AND   THEIR   DOINGS. 

The  grant  of  the  township  was  made 
"to  Benjamin  Wait,  Roger  Enos,  and 
their  associates,  to  the  number  of  seventy." 
It  was  designed  to  have  been  divided  into 
75  equal  shares  (five  of  which  were  to  be 
set  apart  for  public  use),  containing  318 
acres  each — two  lots  of  150  acres  each  in 
the  1st  division,  and  one  lot  of  18  acres  in 
the  2d  division.  The  survey  of  the  ist 
division,  viz.  :  of  that  part  lying  west  of 
the  mountain,  was  made  in  1788,  and  this 
survey  and  plot  was  accepted  by  the  pro- 
prietors. But  as  the  lots  began  to  be 
taken  up  and  cleared,  it  was  found  the 
survey  was  very  inaccurate.  The  2d  range 
of  lots  from  the  Moretown  line  are  actually 
180  rods  wide  ;■  the  5th  range  only  about 
120  rods  wide;  the  6th  range  180  rods, 
again  ;  also  measuring  the  other  way,  there 
is  a  discrepancy,  so  that,  for  example,  lot 
No.  107,  first  occupied  by  Mr.  Salma 
Rider,  contains  200  acres;  lot  No.  127, 
first  occupied  by  Mr.  John  Burdick,  only 
115  acres. 

This  inaccuracy  in  the  ist  division  made 
trouble  in  the  survey  of  the  2d  division, 
which  was  to  consist  of  70  lots,  of  18  acres 
each.  This  survey  was  made  by  Stephen 
Maine  in  1795,  and  the  work — as  far  as  he 
was  really  responsible  for  it — was  done 
well ;  but  the  gore  proved  to  be  about 
twice  as  wide  as  Mr.  Strong  had  put  it 
down.  Mr.  Maine  relied  implicitly  on  the 
field-book  and  plot  of  Mr.  Strong,  and 
made  out  his  plot  of  the  small  lots  before 
he  entered  upon  the  survey,  and  actually 
surveyed  and  marked  the  bounds  of  nearly 
half  the  lots  before  he  discovered  the 
mistake. 

Gen.  Wait,  one  of  the  commissioners, 
was  then  consulted,  and  he  was  ordered 
to  proceed  with  his  work  as  he  had  begun, 
which  he  accordingly  did,  and  the  lots 
contain  about  36  acres  instead  of  18.     The 


errors  of  Mr.  Strong's  survey  were  at  the 
time  charged  against  his  chain-men ;  but 
Mr.  Jonathan  Marshal,  late  of  Bethel,  one 
of  the  party,  relates  that  "they  kept  their 
big  jug  near  Mad  river,  and  carried  a  small 
jug  with  them  on  their  routes.  In  sur- 
veying the  4th  range,  the  small  jug  gave 
out,  and  they,  having  run  back  20  rods  to 
avoid  an  impassable  ledge,  forgot  to  make 
allowance  for  it  in  their  haste  to  get  back 
again.''  So,  probably  ' '  strong  water  "  was 
the  cause  of  the  discrepancy. 

Five  shares  were  granted  for  public  pur- 
poses ;  one  each  to  the  University  of  Ver- 
mont, the  County  Grammar  School,  the 
town  schools,  the  support  of  preaching, 
and  the  first  settled  minister. 

Subtractions. — In  1822,  "four  tier  of 
lots,  including  the  small  lots  of  the  2d  di- 
vision, on  the  easterly  side  of  the  town," 
were  set  off  to  Northfield  by  the  Legisla- 
ture. The  tract  lay  on  the  Northfield  side 
of  the  mountain,  and  in  all  business  mat- 
ters, except  town  business,  the  inhabitants 
naturally  gravitated  toward  that  village. 
In  1846,  6  lots  more,  aggregating  2,400 
acres,  making  in  all  8,310  acres  taken  from 
the  original  grant,  were  added  to  North- 
field,  leaving  a  trifle  more  than  two-thirds 
of  the  original  36  square  miles  to  Waits- 
field.  The  line  between  the  two  towns  is 
now  "placed  as  near  the  top  of  the  mountain 
as  it  could  be  without  dividing  lots. 

The  first  proprietors'  meeting  was  held 
in  Windsor,  June  30,  1788,  adjourned  to 
meet  at  Timothy  Lull's,  in  Hartland,  Nov. 
4,  1788.  It  is  probable  that  the  adjourned 
meeting  was  held,  but  the  record  does  not 
decide  it  so.  The  next  date  upon  the 
records  is  "Woodstock,  June  2,  1789," 
when  a  tax  was  voted  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  obtaining  the  charter  and  making 
the  survey.  The  names  of  those  who 
voted  the  tax  are  given,  together  with  the 
number  of  "rights"  which  each  repre- 
sented : 

Zebulon  Lee,  17  rights;  Benjamin  Wait, 
5  ;  Joel  Matthews,  3 ;  John  Marsh,  5 ; 
Ezra  Jones,  3  ;  Wm.  Sweetzer,  3  ;  Anthony 
Morss,  I  :  Reuben  Skinner,  3 ;  or  eight 
men  representing  40  shares  out  of  the  70. 
The  remaining  30  shares  were  sold  Sept. 


WAITSFIELD. 


771 


23,  1789,  for  taxes,  at  auction,  bringing 
"^i,  IDS.  per  lot."  The  most  of  them 
were  bid  off  by  Gen.  Wait,  who  seems  to 
have  become  from  that  time  the  "  major- 
ity" of  the  proprietors.  The  records  of 
the  proprietors  are  exceedingly  meagre, 
and  most  likely  inaccurate,  perhaps  owing 
to  the  custom  of  "adjourning  15  minutes 
to  meet  at  this  place,"  just  after  organiza- 
tion, the  interval  being  long  enough  to 
allow  the  clerk  (to  say  nothing  of  the  rest 
of  the  assembly),  time  to  muddle  his  brains 
with  toddy. 

In  1790,  a  petition  was  presented  to  the 
Legislature  "for  a  tax  of  2d.  per  acre,"  to 
be  expended  in  building  roads,  bridges 
and  mills  in  the  town.  This  being  grant- 
ed, it  was  equally  divided  between  the 
mills  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  roads  and 
bridges  on  the  other.  In  consequence,  a 
saw-mill  and  grist-mill  were  speedily  put 
in  running  order  at  the  south-west  corner 
of  the  town,  by  John  Heaton,  known  as 
"Green's  Mills,"  or  the  "Mill  Village," 
and  later  as  "Irasville."  Before  this  the 
people  had  a  large  birch  stump  which  they 
used  for  a  mortar  to  pound  hominy  in, 
and  were  obliged  to  carry  their  wheat  as 
far  as  Hancock  to  reach  a  regular  grist- 
mill. 

THE   FIRST   ACTUAL   SETTLEMENT 

was  made  by  Gen.  Wait  and  family,  in 
1789.  His  house  was  erected  on  the 
meadow  near  the  spot  where  his  remains 
are  buried.  At  that  time,  there  was  no 
other  dwelling  within  10  or  12  miles  in  any 
direction.  Northfield  already  had  a  small 
settlement.  Roxbury  was  occupied  the 
same  year,  and  Moretown  the  next.  Fays- 
ton  was  an  unbroken  wilderness  for  more 
than  7  years  after  Gen.  Wait  came  to 
Waitsfield.  The  town  was  not  formally 
organized  until  5  years  afterward,  or  in 
1794. 

In  1795,  the  first  representative  was 
elected,  there  being  then  27  legal  voters  in 
town.     This  representative  was  naturally 

GEN.    BENJAMIN   WAIT, 

of  whom  personally  a  few  words  ought  to 
be  spoken  at  this  point.  He  was  a  native 
of  Sudbury,  Mass.,  being  born  Feb.  13, 
1736.     In  the   language   of  "Thompson's 


Vermont"  (p.  178)  :  "  He  possessed  a 
firm  and  vigorous  constitution,  and  early 
manifested  a  disposition  and  talent  for 
military  enterprise.  At  the  age  of  18,  he 
entered  the  service  of  his  country  under 
the  brave  Gen.  Amherst.  In  1756,  he  was 
taken  by  the  French,  carried  to  Quebec, 
and  from  thence  sent  as  a  prisoner  to 
France.  On  the  coast  of  France,  he  was 
retaken  by  the  British,  and  carried  to  Eng- 
land. In  the  spring  of  1757,  he  returned 
to  America,  and  in  1758,  assisted  in  the 
capture  of  Louisburgh.  During  the  two 
succeeding  years,  he  aided  in  the  reduction 
of  Canada.  After  the  submission  of  Can- 
ada, he  was  sent,  by  the  commandant  of 
Detroit,  to  Illinois  to  bring  in  the  French 
garrisons  included  in  the  capitulation.  He 
performed  this  difficult  service  with  singu- 
lar perseverance  and  success.  At  25  years 
of  age,  he  had  been  engaged  in  40  battles 
and  skirmishes,  and  his  clothes  were  sev- 
eral times  perforated  with  musket  balls, 
but  he  never  received  a  wound.  In  1767, 
he  removed  to  Windsor,  in  this  State,  and 
constituted  the  third  family  in  the  town- 
ship. He  acted  a  decided  and  conspicu- 
ous part  in  favor  of  Vermont  in  the  contro- 
versy with  New  York.  In  1776,  he  en- 
tered the  service  of  the  United  States  as 
captain,  and  fought  under  the  banners  of 
Washington  till  the  close  of  the  war,  during 
which  time  he  had  been  raised  to  the  rank 
of  colonel.  After  this  he  was  made  a 
brigadier  general  of  militia,  and  was  for  7 
years  high  sheriff  of  the  county  of  Wind- 
sor. 

After  he  came  to  Waitsfield,  he  made 
profession  of  religion,  and  lived  an  exem- 
plary life  to  the  last. 

He  is  said  to  have  been  of  more  than 
medium  height,  stout,  of  very  light  com- 
plexion, and  until  the  day  of  his  death, 
singularly  erect,  whether  sitting,  standing 
or  riding.  One  incident  will  illustrate 
something  of  his  usual  manner.  His  son, 
at  that  time  a  man  of  middle  age,  having 
been  bitten  by  a  rabid  dog,  was  urged  in 
vain  by  his  friends  to  go  at  once  to  a  com- 
petent physician.  His  delay  was  occa- 
sioned by  the  pressure  of  his  work,  and 
the  distance  which  he  must  put  between 


772 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL    MAGAZINE. 


himself  and  home.  At  that  time  there 
was  no  reliable  physician  nearer  than 
Woodstock.  The  father  becoming  very 
anxious  about  his  son,  appeared  on  horse- 
back, and  with  another  horse  saddled,  at 
his  son's  house,  without  previous  notice, 
and  said,  "  Young  man!  mount  this  horse 
and  go  to  Woodstock  with  me  !  There  is 
a  man  to  take  care  of  your  farm,"  pointing 
to  a  man  who  came  with  him.  The  son 
obeyed  without  argument,  and  was  res- 
cued, though  not  without  plain  symptoms 
of  hydrophobia,  and  a  tedious  summer  of 
practical  imprisonment,  from  which  he 
once  broke  away,  but  was  persuaded  and 
carried  back  by  his  resolute  father,  who 
did  not  leave  him  alone  much  of  the  time. 
Gen.  Wait  lived  to  the  age  of  86  years. 
His  death  occurred  suddenly  and  unex- 
pectedly, at  the  house  of  a  friend,  June  28, 
1822.  He  started  out  that  morning,  say- 
ing that  he  had  business  to  do,  which 
would  take  him  to  the  Center  and  around 
by  the  lower  "bridge.  That  after  doing 
this,  he  intended  to  call  at  John  Burdick's, 
and  that  after  this  journey  was  finished  he 
should  be  ready  to  go.  Arriving  at  the 
latter  place,  he  complained  of  feeling  un- 
well, and  expired  before  his  family  could 
be  notified.  His  remains  were  deposited 
in  the  grave-yard  on  the  meadow  just  back 
of  the  village  school-house.  A  marble 
monument  marks  the  spot,  which  was  paid 
for  by  subscription  of  the  citizens,  but 
which  never  satisfied  them  and  ought  never 
to  have  been  accepted.  Of  his  descend- 
ants, only  a  grand-daughter,  Mrs.  Harriet 
Carpenter,  and  some  of  her  children  and 
grandchildren  remain  in  town. 

In  1797,  the  number  of  legal  voters  had 
increased  from  27  to  61.  The  checklist 
of  that  year  having  been  preserved,  we  are 
able  to  state  that  only  three  of  these  were 
living  in  1850,  while  the  number  of  inhabi- 
tants had  increased  to  1048,  the  remainder 
after  a  large  district  had  been  set  off  to 
Northfield.  The  vote  for  governor  that 
year  amounted  to  182.  The  grand  list  was 
$2691.68.  In  1869,  there  were  1005  in- 
habitants ;  the  vote  for  governor  was  186  ; 
the  grand  list  is  $3536.63  ;  but  the  basis  of 
the  grand  list  having  been  materially  modi- 


fied, these  figures  do  not  properly  indicate 
the  growth  of  the  town.  Previous  to  1842, 
land  was  listed  at  6  per  cent.  ;  buildings 
at  4  per  cent.,  and  stock  at  rates  according 
to  age  and  value.  Now  the  whole  prop- 
erty is  listed  at  one  per  cent.  Only  10  of 
the  family  names  mentioned  in  the  voting 
list  of  1797  are  now  to  be  found  in  town ; 
five  of  these  in  the  north  district.  In 
1850,  there  were  living  21  men  and  several 
women,  whose  ages  ranged  from  78  to  88 
years.  Of  these  only  1 1  family  names  re- 
main. The  names  which  for  many  years 
predominated  were  Joslin  and  Jones,  the 
former  from  Weathersfield,  the  latter  from 
Claremont,  N.  H.,  with  a  liberal  seasoning 
also  of  Smiths,  Stoddards  and  Barnards, 
natives  of  Shelburne  and  Deerfield,  Mass. 
At  the  present  time  (1869,)  the  Vt.  Reg- 
ister represents  Waitsfield  as  having  i 
attorney,  4  physicians,  2  clergymen,  8 
merchants,  i  hotel-keeper,  i  artist,  9  man- 
ufacturers of  all  crafts. 

The  chief  business  of  the  town.speople 
is  farming.  The  chief  products  or  ex- 
ports are  butter  and  cheese,  maple  sugar, 
(100,800  lbs.  of  sugar  were  made  in  1868,) 
wood,  good  horses,  and  cattle.  There 
are  two  villages  in  the  town,  one  of  which 
monopolizes  about  all  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness, being  so  situated  as  to  make  itself 
the  natural  center,  not  only  of  Waitsfield 
but  of  Fayston,  and  to  a  considerable  ex- 
tent of  Warren.  They  have  a  daily  mail 
from  Middlesex,  and  several  teams  are 
running  continually  to  and  from  the  rail- 
road, carrying  lumber  and  bringing  mer- 
chandise. 

The  Congregational  church  stands  on 
an  eminence  neither  out  of  nor  in  the  vil- 
lage. The  old  brick  church  is  the  only 
church  edifice  in  the  village  proper.  The 
Methodist  society  propose  to  erect  a  new 
church  by  its  side  in  due  time. 

The  Hon.  Roderick  Richardson  once 
offered  the  town  a  beautiful  piece  of  land 
fronting  on  both  the  principal  streets,  for 
a  public  park  and  village-hall  site,  if  they 
would  improve  it  suitably.  But  with  the 
same  foresight  which  characterized  Gen. 
Wait  in  refusing  the  State  house  when  offer- 
ed,- the  town  let  the  opportunity  pass,  and  a 


WAITSFIELD. 


m 


dwelling-house  and  garden  now  occupy  the 
situation.  May  the  time  come  when  the 
citizens  of  this  town  shall  have  higher  and 
more  tasteful  ideas  than  to  say,  as  one  once 
said  to  the  writer,  "  I  had  rather  see  a  hill 
of  potatoes  in  my  front  yard,  any  time, 
than  a  bunch  of  flowers." 

There  are  no  men  of  immense  fortunes 
in  town,  but  a  number  who  have  become 
wealthy  in  the  popular,  Vermont  sense, 
by  cultivating  their  farms,  and  by  mercan- 
tile employments.  There  are  scarcely  any 
families  who  are  not  able  to  live  comfor- 
tably. 

WAR   RECORD. 

In  the  "  memorial  record  of  Waitsfield," 
prepared  with  great  care  by  Rev.  A.  B. 
Dascomb,  the  number  of  our  soldiers  stands 
as  follows :  No.  credited  to  the  town  by 
government,  95.  No.  of  different  individ- 
uals who  served,  87.  Died  from  sickness, 
10.  Killed  in  action,  8.  Several  died 
after  discharge  from  disease  contracted 
and  wounds  received  in  service. 

The  record  of  the  standing  of  these  men 
at  their  discharge  or  death  is  as  follows : 

The  list  of  their  names  in  the  order  of 
enlistment,  with  their  ages  and  rank  at 
discharge,  is  as  follows  : 

C.  M.  Benedict,  age  20,  private. 
L.  D.  Savage,  23,  private. 

A.  H.  Sellock,  19,  private. 
H.  P.  Stoddard,  24,  private. 
H.  F.  Dana,  24,  private. 

F.  T.  Dana,  20,  private. 
L.  Ainsworth,  30,  captain. 
M.  Basconner,  27,  private. 
H.  N.  Bushnell,  23,  captain. 

B.  D.  Campbell,  18,  private. 
H.  F.  Dike,  18,  private. 

E.  H.  Fuller,  21,  corporal. 
Horace  B.  Stoddard,  19,  private. 
J.  Harriman,  29,  private. 
Manly  N.  Hoyt,  30,  private. 
J.  F.  Jones,  47,  private. 

G.  S.  Kneeland,  24,  corporal. 
J.  P.  Newcomb,  18,  private. 

E.  R.  Richardson,  24,  sergeant. 

D.  P.  Shepherd,  27,  corporal. 
M.  C.  Shepherd,  18,  private. 
L.  M.  Spaulding,  19,  private. 
S.  S.  Spaulding,  21,  corporal. 


L.  T.  Stoddard,  18,  corporal. 

S.  Stoddard,  22,  private. 

J.  E.  Tucker,  20,  private. 

L.  C.  Peabody,  31,  captain. 

Henry  C.  Shaw,  M.  D.,  30,  surgeon. 

A.  Baird,  18,  private. 

O.  C.  Campbell,  30,  2d  lieutenant. 

J.  H.  Elliot,  34,  private. 

H.  R.  French,  32,  private. 

W.  H.  H.  Greenslit,  26,  private. 

G.  B.  Hall,  18,  corporal. 

P.  Haffman,  23,  sergeant. 

J.  H.  Ouigley,  28,  sergeant. 

T.  Sanders,  29,  corporal. 

H.  A.  Luce,  23,  private. 

D.  Foster,  21,  captain. 
Almon  Walker,  45,  private. 
A.  D.  Barnard,  20,  private. 

F.  O.  Bushnell,  22,  corporal. 
H.  A.  Dewey,  30,  private. 

J.  Dumas,  Jr.,  22,  private. 

E.  A.  Fisk,  20,  private. 
D.  Gleason,  42,  private. 

D.  Grandy,  24,  private. 

E.  A.  Hastmgs,  23,  private. 
J.  Hines,  24,  private. 

Z.  H.  McAllister,  21,  private. 

A.  D.  Page,  21,  private. 

E.  F.  Palmer,  26,  2d  lieutenant. 

D.  Parker,  21,  private. 

L.  B.  Reed,  21,  private. 

O.  C.  Reed,  23,  private. 

J.  W.  Richardson,  43,  private. 

L.  Seaver,  17,  private. 

D.  S.  Stoddard,  23,  corporal. 
T.  Stoddard,  18,  private. 

C.  G.  Thayer,  20,  private. 
J.  M.  Thayer,  21,  private. 
H.  M.  Wait,  22,  private. 

E.  Whitcomb,  19,  private. 
O.  C.  Wilder,  34,  captain. 
L.  C.  Berry,  21,  private. 

G.  M.  Jones,  19,  private. 
H.  Jones,  yj,  private. 

E.  E.  Joslyn,  19,  corporal. 
J.  L.  Maynard,  29,  private. 
T.  T.  Prentiss,  19,  private. 
J.  N.  Richardson,  18,  corporal. 
L.  S.  Richardson,  20,  private. 
S.  L.  Kneeland,  18,  private. 
J.  W.  Parker,  17,  private. 
J.  Sterling,  19,  private. 


774 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


W.  H.  Stoddard,  i8,  private. 

V.  B.  Mix,  1 8,  private. 

J.C.  Williams,  20,  private. 

A.  B.  Durkee,  21,  private. 

J.  P.  Davis,  40,  private. 

W.  E.  Dana,  18,  private. 

G.  P.  Welch,  21,  private. 

T.  Burke,  21,  private. 

J.  H.  Somerville,  21,  private. 

E.  L.  Allen,  19,  private. 

E.  McCarty,  20,  private. 

E.  A.  Burns.  18,  private. 
Captains,  4 ;  2d  lieutenants,  2 ;  ser- 
geants, 3:  corporals,  11;  privates,  50; 
sharp  shooters,  7;  cavalry  men,  4;  bat- 
tery men,  2 ;  Signal  corps,  i  ;  surgeon, 
I  ;  hospital  steward,  i  ;  musicians,  i  ;  in 
the  navy,  i. 

Of  those  who  were  natives  of  this  town, 
who  went  into  the  army  from  other  places, 
there  are,  2  ist  lieutenants,  i  cavalry- 
man, and  12  privates. 

Most  of  these  belonged  to  the  famous 
"Vermont  Brigade"  of  the  "6th  corps," 
who  have  received  from  a  grateful  country 
the  honor  which  they  thoroughly  earned 
in  many  a  march  and  battle. 

The  amount  of  money  expended  by  the 
town  in  procuring  men  for  the  army  ser- 
vice :  Paid  for  bounty  to  nine  months' 
men,  $575  ;  to  i  year's  men,  $2,700;  to 
3  years'  men,  $6,202  ;  to  substitutes,  $700  ; 
subsistence  for  volunteers,  $18.10;  trans- 
portation for  same,  $38.50;  services  of 
selectmen  and  agents,  $199.53;  total, 
$10,433.13. 

The  history  of  the  13th  regiment  (of  9 
months'  men)  who  did  good  service  in 
guarding  the  Occoquan  during  the  winter 
of  '62-'63,  and  also  at  the  battle  of  Get- 
tysburg, where  they  constituted  part  of 
Gen.  Stannard's  command,  has  been  pleas- 
antly told  by  Lieut.  E.  F.  Palmer,  in  a 
neat  little  work  entitled,  "Camp  Life." 

TEMPERANCE. 

Though  it  deserves  to  be  said  that  the 
early  settlers  of  Waitsfield  were  remark- 
ably moral,  and  many  of  them  pious  men, 
yet  they  were  accustomed  to  partake  of 
the  intoxicating  cup  at  will,  and  some  of 
them  a  great  deal  too  freely  to  be  called  at 
that  time  temperate   men,   and  accidents 


resulting  from  intoxication  and  brawls 
were  of  altogether  too  frequent  occurrence, 
and  those  who  sold  grew  rich,  while  those 
who  drank,  many  of  them,  "  ran  down." 

In  1821,  at  a  "raising,"  one  of  the  men, 
Wheeler  by  name,  became  intoxicated, 
and  in  wrestling,  or  "  trying  tricks,"  fell, 
and  was  carried  home  insensible,  and  found 
upon  examination,  to  have  expired,  after 
being  laid  on  his  bed. 

This  accident  startled  the  whole  com- 
munity, and  the  faithful  pastor  improved  it 
by  preaching  a  bold  teetotal  sermon  at  his 
funeral,  from  the  text,  "  Except  ye  repent, 
ye  shall  all  likewise  perish." 

Soon  after,  Dea.  Moses  Fisk  sent  out 
invitations  to  the  raising  of  a  barn,  with 
the  proviso  that  no  liquor  would  be  fur- 
nished. There  was,  of  course,  a  large 
gathering,  with  the  ill-concealed  design  of 
forcing  the  Deacon  "  to  cave  in."  Matters 
proceeded  as  usual  in  such  cases,  until  the 
moment  for  raising  the  ridge-pole,  or 
' '  rum-pole,"  as  it  was  called.  The  order 
was  given  to  take  it  up.  The'  men  bent 
to  the  task,  but  strange  to  say,  suddenly 
found  themselves  devoid  of  all  strength, 
and  after  several  trials,  and  much  sham 
accusation  of  each  other  for  not  lifting, 
gave  it  up,  saying  they  could  do  nothing 
more  until  strengthened  by  liquor.  It  was 
late  in  the  afternoon,  and  the  master- 
workman  became  so  nervous  that  he  finally 
begged  of  the  Deacon  to  allow  him,  at  his 
own  expense,  to  provide  a  treat.  This 
was  refused,  and  the  Deacon,  a  man  of 
candor  and  decision  worthy  of  a  pioneer, 
made  a  short  address,  thanking  his  neigh- 
bors for  what  they  had  done,  repeating 
his  conviction  that  drinking  was  altogether 
a  sin  and  an  injury  to  the  whole  commun- 
ity," referring,  with  emotion,  to  Wheeler's 
death,  and  then  saying,  "  It  will  be  a  se- 
rious inconveniencce  to  me  if  this  barn  is 
not  finished.  I  cannot,  however,  do  what 
my  conscience  forbids  me  to  do,  and  if 
this  frame  cannot  go  up  without  rum,  every 
stick  of  the  timber  shall  rot  on  the  ground 
where  it  lies." 

After  a  moment's  pause,  some  one  said, 
"  The  deacon  is  a  good  fellow,  and  lets  up 
with  it,"  and  they  went  ahead  with  such 


WAITSFIELD. 


775 


eagerness  that  in  a  short  time  the  work 
was  done,  without  any  accident  or  broil, 
and  the  people  went  home  all  of  them  well 
satisfied,  and  the  most  of  them  convinced. 
Though  it  is  true  that  afterwards  several 
"  raisings"  were  scenes  of  riot  and  acci- 
dent, yet  many  were  teetotal  gatherings. 
Some  who  were  weakly  on  the  right  side 
were  strengthened,  and  those  who  did  pro- 
vide rum  for  such  occasions,  only  aided  the 
temperance  movement  by  furnishing  fur- 
ther demonstration,  that  the  use  of  rum 
was  evil,  and  only  evil.  The  earliest  move- 
ment looking  towards  organization  was  the 
formation  of  a  temperance  society  about 
1828;  the  members  of  which  pledged 
themselves  "  to  report  faithfully  every 
month  what  kind  and  quantities  of  liquors 
they  drank,  with  the  dates  and  the  com- 
pany." This  became  at  least  the  occasion 
of  a  reform  in  a  few  men,  while  others 
even  withdrew  from  the  society,  loving 
darkness  rather  than  light.  A  member  of 
that  society  who  "  never  had  anything  to 
report  from  first  to  last,"  said  to  the  writer : 
"  At  that  time  I  would  no  more  have  signed 
a  teetotal  pledge  than  I  would  have  sold 
myself  for  a  slave."  A  teetotal  pledge 
was,  however,  signed  by  a  number  of  the 
people,  and  a  society  maintained  for  some- 
time before  the  "  Washingtonians  "  ap- 
peared, and  the  people  as  a  majority  have 
adhered  to  the  subsequent  measures  of 
reform  which  have  been  inaugurated  in  the 
State,  the  old  license  and  late  prohibition 
statutes.  The  Good  Templars  have  dealt 
with  rumsellers  with  a  spirit  worthy  of  the 
children  of  those  who  sleep  in  the  old  cem- 
etery on  the  hill. 

SCHOOL    DISTRICTS. 

The  inhabitants  of  Waitsfield — though 
for  the  most  part  uncultivated  men  and 
women — were  by  no  means  people  of  grov- 
elling ideas.  They  understood  the  advant- 
ages of  free  schools,  and  soon  after  the 
organization  of  the  town,  four  school  dis- 
tricts were  laid  out,  in  which  (at  least  in  a 
few  years)  schools  were  regularly  main- 
tained. These  were  the  North  (No.  i). 
The  East  and  Center  together,  the  village, 
and  one  mill-village  district.  At  the  pres- 
ent time  the  number  of  districts  is  seven, 


though  they  at  one  time  numbered  ten.  The 
diminution  is  owing  mainly  to  the  union 
of  districts,  the  village  now  sustaining  a 
graded  school.  The  number  of  scholars 
is  far  less  now  than  it  must  have  been  30 
years  ago.  The  early  settlers  and  their 
children,  too,  raised  up  large  families,  and 
were  a  good  example  of  those  spoken  of  by 
one  of  the  sons  of  Waitsfield  : 

•'  For,  111  their  ssveet  simplicity,  tliey  liolil 
A  child  is  better  than  a  ijag  of  gold." 

At  the  present  time  there  are  but  the  few- 
est few  of  large  families,  and  these  are 
become  a  by-word. 

Several  noted  men,  among  whom  is  Pres- 
ident Kitchell  of  Middlebury,  began  their 
public  career  as  teachers  in  these  district 
schools.  It  has  been  customary  also  for 
many  years  to  secure  an  undergraduate  of 
some  college  as  teacher  of  a  "  fall  school "  ; 
but  those  who  would  obtain  a  classical 
education  are  obliged  to  go  out  of  town 
for  it. 

In  the  records  of  the  North  district, 
(No.  I,)  we  find  some  curious  specimens 
of  voting  and  recording,  which  serve  at 
once  as  exponents  of  the  parliamentary 
training  of  the  clerk — of  the  poverty  and 
trials  of  the  people — and  for  the  diversion 
of  those  who  have  enjoyed  the  better  ad- 
vantages for  which  the  untaught  fathers 
laid  the  foundation : 

Dec.  22,  1797.  Article  2d  was  put  to 
vote  to  see  if  the  District  would  hire  Mr. 
S.  Smith,  to  keep  school,  and  engage 
him  10  bushels  of  wheat,  and  passed  in  the 
negative. 

Sept.  25,  181 2.  Voted  to  have  three 
months  schooling  the  ensuing  winter,  and 
that  the  committee  be  instnicted  to  procure 
a  teacher  capable  of  teaching  reading, 
writing,  arithmetic,  grammar  and  geogra- 
phy, provided  such  an  one  can  be  got  for 
any  other  pay  than  money.  (This  was 
during  the  "second  war,"  so  styled.) 

The  school-house,  where  this  business 
was  transacted,  was  built  of  logs,  badly 
lighted,  and  with  a  huge  old  fireplace  at 
one  end,  in  which  to  consume  enormous 
quantities  of  green  wood  during  the  cold 
winter  days  without  much  hope  of  giving 
an  even  temperature  to  the  room.  Often 
30  cords  of  wood  were  burned  in  a  single 
winter.     Yet  here  were  trained  up  a  com- 


776 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


pany  of  men  and  women  who  have  no- 
bly served  their  generation.  They  had 
no  mathematics  beyond  the  four  funda- 
mental rules  and  the  "  rule  of  three,"  yet 
some  of  them  became  by  their  own  native 
wit  leaders  in  public  business,  and  teach- 
ers of  considerable  merit.  One  of  them 
pressed  on  until,  in  middle  age,  by  the 
light  of  a  chip  fire,  he  had  mastered  Cicero 
and  Virgil,  having  no  Lexicon  but  that  in 
the  old  Latin  Reader,  and  no  teacher  ex- 
cept occasionally  the  "  master"  who  came 
from  college  to  teach  the  winter  school. 
It  should  be  said,  however,  that  he  had 
text  books  that  were  half  "  pony  "  at  least. 

This  man  (Ithamar  Smith,  now  deceased) 
was  especially  thorough  in  his  explanations 
to  his  pupils  when  a  teacher.  One  of  these 
explanations  was  so  simple  and  perfect, 
that  we  must  not  pass  it  by.  He  studied 
intensely  one  evening  to  find  some  actual 
demonstration  of  the  rule  that  "  the  area 
of  a  circle  is  equal  to  that  of  a  parallelo- 
gram, the  length  of  which  is  equal  to  half 
the  circumference,  and  the  width  to  half 
the  diameter  of  the  circle."  He  finally  hit 
upon  this.  Taking  a  pie  to  school  for  his 
dinner  and  cutting  it  fine,  he  laid  the 
pieces  together  "crust  to  point."  The 
reader  will  perceive  that  one  half  the  crusts 
made  the  length  of  the  parallelogram,  the 
width  of  which  was  the  length  of  a  piece 
of  pie,  or  half  the  diameter  of  the  pie. 
No  better  demonstration  could  be  made 
than  this. 

Another  of  these  almost  self-taught  men 
was  once  assisting  a  company  of  survey- 
ors, and  when  they  ran  oft  the  lots  in  dia- 
mond form,  "  because  the  lay  of  the  land 
made  it  easier  to  do  so,"  he  declared  they 
were  cheating  the  owner.  They  looked 
down  upon  him  from  their  scientific  heights, 
and  haughtily  demanded  the  proof.  He 
quietly  took  a  straw,  and  bending  it  into  a 
square — having  hold  of  the  opposite  cor- 
ners— said  "call  that  a  square  lot."  Then 
drawing  out  a  little  on  the  corners,  which 
he  held,  so  as  to  make  a  diamond  of  it,  he 
said,  "you  say  there  is  just  as  much  land 
there  now?"  They  replied  "of  course 
there   is."       Drawing   it    up  until    there 


was  nothing  left,  he  asked  triumphantly, 
"  now  is  there?" 

There  have  been  too  many  instances  of 
rebellion  among  scholars,  and  dismissal 
of  teachers  who  lacked  muscle ;  and  in  a 
proportion  with  the  frequency  of  these 
things,  a  lower  grade  of  scholarship  in  all 
the  schools. 

INCIDENTS. 

Many  of  the  early  inhabitants  were  cer- 
tainly very  credulous  and  superstitious.  A 
daughter  of  Mr.  Samuel  S.  Savage, 
"  dreamed  three  nights  in  succession,  that 
there  was  a  large  pot  of  Captain  Kidd's 
money  buried  near  a  ledge  of  rocks,  a  few 
rods  east  of  the  house."  This  occurred 
not  far  from  the  year  1800.  It  never  en- 
tered the  heads  of  any  of  the  family,  or 
tlieir  neighbors,  to  ask  how  Capt.  Kidd 
should  chance  to  be  burying  money  200 
miles  and  more  inland,  when  only  savages 
inhabited  all  the  wilderness ;  but  they 
"had  heard  it  said  that  whatever  was 
dreamed  three  nights  in  succession  always 
came  to  pass,"  and  so  Mr.  S.  commenced 
digging  for  the  money.  The  same  tradi- 
tion enjoined — as  indispensable  to  success 
— that  no  word  should  be  spoken  during 
the  process,  and  that  some  one  should  sit 
by  and  read  the  Bible  all  the  while.  So 
Nancy  sat  on  the  rock  reading,  and  Sam, 
the  son,  was  sometimes  with  them.  After 
digging  several  days,  "  in  stabbing  down 
his  crowbar,  he  hit  the  identical  pot.  He 
distinctly  heard  the  money  chink,  held  his 
bar  on  it  that  it  might  not  escape  him,  and 
beckoned  to  Sam  to  come  and  dig  it  out." 
Unfortunately,  however,  he  could  not  make 
Sam  understand,  and  at  length  Sam 
spoke !  Instantly  the  pot  of  money  moved 
away,  and  he  could  never  find  it  again. 
The  most  ridiculous  part  of  the  matter,  is 
the  fact  well  attested,  that  Mr.  Savage  be- 
lieved all  this,  as  long  as  he  lived,  and  was 
never  ridiculed  out  of  it. 

Somewhat  in  the  same  line  (though  more 
successful)  was  the  dream,  thrice  repeated 
the  same  night,  of  a  Mr.  Rice  (late  Dea. 
Rice  of  Granville,)  then  in  the  employ  of 
Gen.  Wait,  (not  far  from  179S,)  that  he 
went  to  "  the  cove,"  (now  part  of  the  mill 
pond   at  the  village,)  and  saw  a  moose, 


WAITSFIELD. 


m 


which  he  shot  and  killed,  and  that  a  man 
came  along  just  then  with  a  sled,  and  car- 
ried the  game  in  for  him.  When  he  arose, 
having  told  this  to  the  family,  Mrs.  Wait 
took  down  the  old  "Queen's  arm"  and 
handed  it  to  him  with  the  powder-horn  and 
bullet  pouch,  when  he  repaired  to  the  spot, 
saw  the  moose,  brought  him  down  with  a 
single  bullet,  and  returned  with  his  booty 
on  the  sled  of  the  man  from  Warren,  all 
according  to  programme.  This  large  story 
is  too  well  attested  to  leave  any  room  for 
contradiction. 

The  writer  has  many  an  instance  in  mind 
of  the  scrupulous  care  with  which  these 
grandmothers  made  sure  of  the  "signs" 
in  all  important  domestic  matters,  such  as 
picking  the  geese  and  "setting"  all  sorts 
of  bipeds,  making  soap,  butchering,  taking 
a  journey,  commencing  a  piece  of  work, 
and  one  even  believed  "it  would  spoil  a 
hasty  pudding  to  stir  it  against  the  sun." 

It  seems  strange  that  sturdy  men  and 
women,  who  were  not  afraid  of  bears  and 
wolves,  and  who  could  ride  on  horseback 
"  double,"  and  each  carry  a  child  to  meet- 
ings— who  were  possessed  of  such  ster- 
ling common  sense  in  most  matters — should 
be  so  completely  under  the  powers  of  such 
petty  superstitions. 

ACCIDENTS. 

It  is  sometimes  remarked  that  "  dead 
trees  fall  silently  and  in  still  weather." 

This  was  illustrated  in  the  case  of  Wm. 
Joiner  in  1805.  He  was  riding  on  horse- 
back through  a  piece  of  woods  near  the 
house  now  owned  by  Dea.  David  Phelps, 
when  the  trunk  of  a  decayed  tree  fell  across 
his  path  in  such  a  way  as  to  scratch  the 
pommel  of  his  saddle,  and  instantly  kill 
his  horse,  while  he  remained  entirely  un- 
injured. There  have  been  10  cases  of 
accidental  deaths  since  the  organization  of 
the  town : 

In  1810,  Lewis  Taylor,  age  10,  was 
drowned  in  the  flume  of  a  grist-mill ;  Enos 
Wilder,  age  35,  killed  by  a  tailing  tree, 
and  Gilbert  Wait,  Jr.,  age  3,  killed  by 
falling  through  an  aperture  in  the  chamber 
floor. 

In  181 5,  a  child  of  Daniel  Skinner  was 
smothered  in  bed. 


In  1820,  a  child  of  Ezra  Jones  fell  from 
the  arms  of  a  girl  who  was  tossing  it  in 
sport,  and  was  killed. 

In  1821,  Wm.  Wheeler,  age  55,  was 
killed  by  "  trying  tricks"  at  a  raising. 

In  1822,  Joseph  L.  Carpenter,  age  14, 
was  killed  by  the  falling  of  a  tree. 

In  1830,  John  Kimball,  age  3,  was 
drowned  in  a  channel  washed  out  by  the 
flood,  which  had  previously  swept  away 
the  dwelling ;  Eliza  A.  Stoddard,  age  6, 
killed  by  the  kick  of  a  horse. 

In  1833,  Mrs.  Simeon  Pratt,  age  38, 
supposed  to  have  died  in  a  fit. 

In  1836,  Luther  Fairbanks,  age  30, 
drowned  while  bathing. 

In  1842,  child  of  C.  Joyce,  smothered  in 
I  he  bed. 

In  1848,  John  O.  Shaw,  age  11,  was 
hung  in  a  school-house  window  when  trying 
to  climb  in. 

In  1850,  James  D.  Bushnell,  age  21, 
drowned  while  bathing. 

In  1865,  Howard  Bruce,  age  4,  drowned 
in  a  spring. 

There  have  also  been  several  cases  of 
sudden  deaths  from  occult  diseases,  and  4 
cases  of  suicide. 

RELICS   OF   INDIANS. 

This  territory  was  once  occupied  as 
hunting  grounds  by  a  portion  of  the  "  St. 
Francis"  tribe  of  Indians,  if  the  traditions 
of  a  relic  of  the  tribe  can  be  relied  upon. 
Many  traces  have  been  discovered  of  their 
occupancy,  which  seem  to  show  that  they 
had  vacated  the  valley  only  a  few  years 
before  the  coming  of  Gen.  Wait. 

In  1808,  Samuel  Barnard,  while  at  work 
in  his  sugar-place,  found  a  two-gallon 
brass  kettle  turned  upside  down  on  a  rock. 
The  kettle  only  a  few  years  ago  was  in  use 
in  his  family.  Another  was  found  not 
long  after  on  the  lot  lying  east  of  Mr. 
Barnard's,  and  not  very  far  from  the  spot 
where  the  first  one  was  found. 

In  1822,  as  Ebenezer  Barnard  (son  of 
Samuel),  and  Rufus  Childs,  were  clearing 
a  part  of  this  same  sugar-place,  they  found 
a  gun  and  pistol,  tomahawk,  and  about  a 
quart  of  beads,  made  of  something  resem- 
bling brown  earthen  ware.  The  stocks  of 
the  gun  and  pistol  were  rotten,  but  the 


778 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


barrels,  though  rusty,  were  good,  and  have 
done  good  service  since.  The  gun  was 
found  sticking  out  of  the  ground,  and  in 
digging  to  see  if  some  chief  had  been 
buried  there,  the  pistol  and  beads  were 
found  at  a  depth  of  about  2  feet. 

GAME. 

For  many  years  after  the  settlement  of 
the  town,  the  deer  were  quite  plenty  in  the 
forests,  as  well  as  trout  in  the  streams. 
The  bears  and  wolves  proved  a  serious 
annoyance  to  the  settlers.  Neither  fields 
of  grain  nor  flocks  of  sheep  were  safe  un- 
less watched  continually.  But  bruin  soon 
became  very  cautious. 

In  the  year  1804,  Dea.  Moses  Fisk  shot 
and  killed  a  large  bear  Sabbath  night, 
that  was  about  to  spring  at  one  of  his 
sheep,  in  a  pasture  very  near  his  house. 
It  was  jokingly  said  that  "the  bear  had 
too  much  confidence  in  the  Deacon  to 
suppose  he  would  shoot  him  Sunday,  and 
so  exposed  himself  carelessly."  The 
Deacon  was  an  excellent  shot,  and  it  is 
said  that  he  brought  down  six  bears — sev- 
eral of  them  under  hazardous  circum- 
stances, and  that  he  never  missed  but  one 
that  he  fired  at.  He  also  killed  many 
deer,  one  of  them  with  an  axe,  at  a  lime 
when  the  snow  was  very  deep,  with  a  little 
crust  on  the  top,  and  the  writer  has  the 
antlers  upon  his  carving  knife  and  fork. 
His  wife,  also,  shot  an  insatiable  hawk, 
that  "  did  not  come  when  the  Deacon  was 
at  home,"  and  it  is  probable  that  both  did 
no  more  than  their  share,  but  other  facts 
and  names  are  lost. 

In  1797,  the  wife  of  Dr.  Pierce,  living 
near  Moretown  line,  saw  a  deer  pursued  by 
the  hunters  approaching  the  house.  Judg- 
ing that  he  would  pass  through  a  narrow 
gap  between  the  fence  and  the  house,  she 
caught  up  an  axe  and  stationed  herself  by 
the  corner  of  the  house,  and  when  the  deer 
made  its  appearaixce,  actually  inflicted  a 
mortal  wound  upon  him  ;  but  as  soon  as 
she  had  done  so,  became  aifrighted  and 
fled  to  her  chamber,  "and  almost  went 
into  hysterics." 

In  the  spring  of  1821,  a  wolf  was  dis- 
covered near  the  house  of  James  Joslin, 
and  was  turned  back  into  a  strip  of  woods. 


where  he  was  speedily  surrounded  by  the 
yeomanry,  who  rallied  at  short  notice,  and 
at  length  shot  by  Dea.  Moses  Fisk.  The 
bounty  of  $20  was  given  to  the  minister. 
Rev.  A.  Chandler,  and  with  it  he  made 
himself  a  life  member  of  the  Bible  Society. 
In  March,  1855,  another  wolf  was  sur- 
rounded and  killed  in  the  same  forest. 
The  writer  was  one  of  the  boys  who  waded 
through  the  deep  snow  to  assist  in  his 
capture,  and  had  the  privilege  of  sending 
one  bullet  after  him,  with  perfect  safety  to 
the  wolf.  He  was  first  discovered  by 
Pardon  Bushnell,  Esq.,  making  for  the 
East  mountain,  and  first  surrounded  in 
the  piece  oi  woods  lying  between  the  river 
and  the  old  common.  It  is  not  a  little 
remarkable  that,  after  breaking  out  of  this 
ring,  he  should  have  been  secured  at  all, 
and  that  in  less  than  four  hours  after ; 
weight,  87  lbs.  Several  marksmen  lay 
claim  to  the  honor  of  bringing  him  down. 
It  probably  belongs  to  Cheney  Prentice, 
Esq.  It  was  sold  for  $5,  and  bounty,  at 
auction,  and  the  same  distributed  (by  vote 
of  the  captors),  to  the  poor  of  the  town. 

FIRES. 

There  have  been  15  fires  in  town  which 
amounted  to  total  loss  of  the  buildings, 
and  in  most  cases  an  almost  total  loss  of 
contents.  They  may  be  classified  thus : 
distilleries,  2,  prior  to  1818;  stores,  i; 
shops,  4;  barns,  2;  dwellings,  6.  Of  the 
causes  of  fire,  it  may  be  said  that  the  store 
was  set  on  fire  late  in  the  evening,  while 
the  clerk  was  drawing  some  alcohol  to 
cook  eggs  with,  for  a  few  select  com- 
panfons.  In  several  cases  the  dwellings 
were  set  on  fire  from  ashes  left  in  wooden 
vessels  ;  in  others,  the  cause  remains  un- 
known. One  barn  was  burned  by  light- 
ning. Only  once  (1846),  have  two  such 
casualties  occurred  the  same  year. 

The  first  fire  of  all  occurred  in  1794,  and 
in  the  coldest  of  the  winter.  It  was  the 
dwelling-house  of  Daniel  Taylor,  the 
Elder,  and  was  situated  on  the  meadow 
now  owned  by  Comstock  Prentice,  Esq. 
The  story  of  the  fire  is  so  pleasantly  told 
in  rhyme  by  Mr.  Smirh  before  mentioned, 
that  we  give  it  entire,  only  adding  that  the 
settlers  did  all  thev  could  for  the  families. 


WAITSFIELD. 


779 


while  one  went  to  Shelburne,  Mass.,  and 
procured  supplies  which  could  not  be  had 
nearer,  and  which  were  gladly  given  by 
the  former  neighbors  of  the  two  families  : 

THE   BURNINCi    HOUSE. 

Among  the  many  fictions  new 
This  story  old  is  sti-ictly  true ; 
To  snatcli  it,  fading,  if  I  can. 
From  darli  oblivion,  is  my  plan. 

When  Waitstield  mostly  was  a  wild. 

As  I— an  aged  man — a  child, 

When  woods  were  'round  the  dwelling  near, 

And  huntsmen  shot  the  bounding  deer. 

When  flowed  Mad  River  full  of  trout. 

And  boys  could  fish  a  plenty  out. 

My  father  left  a  distant  town 

To  settle  near  the  river  down. 

No  land  had  he  but  forest  wild. 

No  home  to  shelter  wife  or  child : 

My  Uncle  Taylor  kindly  shared 

With  us  the  house  he  had  prepared ; 

Two  rooms,  with  roof  of  bark,  it  had. 

And  sheltered  cousins  very  glad; 

Nine  little  children  were  we  all. 

The  oldest  being  only  small. 

Our  liappy  quiet  did  not  last 

Till  the  first  Sabbath  eve  was  past; 

The  men  that  evening  were  away. 

The  children  mostly  sleeping  lay; 

Some  flax,  in  bundles  very  dry. 

Was  o'er  the  entry  lying  high ; 

My  motlier  near  with  candle  came, 

And  lucklessly  it  caught  the  flame; 

Her  shriek  I  still  remember  well. 

Such  shrieks  as  sudden  panic  tell. 

In  vain  she  tried  to  stop  the  fire; 

She  only  made  it  blaze  the  higher. 

The  rapid  flames  began  to  pour 

Bright  blazes  on  the  entry  floor. 

And  through  that  fiery  entry  lay 

The  only  cliance  to  flee  away. 

Just  time  the  mothers  had  to  throw 

Their  naked  children  on  the  snow. 

Then  count  them  rescued  o'er  and  o'er. 

Lest  there  were  missing  one  or  more— 

When  did  a  mother  ever  yet. 

In  fright  or  haste,  her  child  forget?— 

Poor  "  Penny  "  met  a  harder  doom. 

And  puss  within  that  burning  room. 

Without  intent  were  blankets  four  • 

Snatched  with  the  children;  nothing  more. 

Their  garments  all  were  left  to  share 

The  fate  of  other  comforts  there. 

Tlie  absent  fathers  saw  the  flame. 

And  with  some  neighbors,  breathless  came— 

Too  late,— they  sped  but  to  behold. 

With  joy,  the  children  in  the  cold. 

Stay,  reader!  hear  my  story  through, 

Since  all  I  have  to  tell  is  true! 

While  high  the  fire  terrific  blazed. 

The  people  o'er  the  river  gazed, — 

"What  could  tliat  light,  portentous,  mean. 

Above  the  trees  at  distance  seen  ?  " 

Off  sped  the  men  the  cause  to  see. 

And  ofler  aid  if  need  should  be; 

The  women  grouped  and  talked  with  fear, 

Expecting  direful  news  to  hear. 

"  His  children  left  alone,"  they  said, 

"  Have  tired  the  house  above  their  head." 

But  when  my  sorrowing  motlier  came. 


And  not  a  child  .was  left  in  flame. 
Although  in  bitterness  she  cried. 
And  seemed  as  if  she  might  have  died. 
They  thought  the  trouble  very  small. 
Since  house  was  nothing— life  was  all! 
Now  let  us  make  the  moral  out 
(For  facts  their  moral  have,  no  doubt) ; 
Think,  when  misfortune  gives  you  paiu. 
It  might  be  worse,  and  not  complain. 

FLOODS. 

In  July,  1830,  the  rivers  overflowed  the 
whole  valley,  sweeping  away  every  bridge 
in  town,  and  doing  incalculable  damage 
to  the  crops,  and  not  a  little  to  the  mills. 
The  grist-mill  was  left  on  an  island,  by 
the  gulling  of  the  flood.  The  dwelling  of 
a  Mr.  Kimball  was  swept  away,  but  the 
family  escaped.  This  house  stood  on  the 
bank.  Mr.  K.  had  lately  buried  his  broth- 
er, with  whom  he  was  in  company.  He 
used  to  say,  that  in  the  night  he  awoke 
and  listened  to  the  roar  of  the  water,  and 
the  thought  once  arose  that  he  ought  to 
get  up  and  see  if  all  was  safe ;  but  he  had 
so  little  apprehension  that  he  did  not 
arise.  In  a  few  moments,  he  saw  his 
brother  standing  by  the  side  of  the  bed, 
and  bidding  him  get  up  and  flee.  He  de- 
clared he  was  wide  awake,  and  saw  the 
form  vanish  away.  He  arose,  and  finding 
there  was  danger,  removed  his  family ; 
and  as  he  stepped  out  on  the  door-stone, 
last  of  all,  the  house  began  to  settle  away, 
and  in  a  moment  or  two,  went  over  into 
the  flood. 

In  July,  1850,  another  flood  swept 
through  the  valley,  doing  not  so  much  dam- 
age as  before,  yet  enough  to  make  it  re- 
membered well.  In  July,  1858,  there  was 
another  of  a  singular  character,  as  all  the 
damage  was  done  by  the  brooks  on  the 
west  side,  or  by  the  river  swollen  by  their 
torrents.  It  would  seem  as  if  a  huge  cloud 
must  have  emptied  itself  all  at  once  upon  the 
hills  of  Fayston,  although  there  were,  in- 
deed, heavy  rains  at  the  same  time  in  the 
east  part  of  the  town.  The  thunder- 
shower  (for  such  it  was,)  lasted  only  a  few 
hours.  It  was  the  21st  birthday  of  the 
writer,  and  he  remembers  very  well  how, 
for  over  half  an  hour,  a  sheet  of  water 
poured  from  the  I'oof  breaking  into  drops, 
or  pailfuUs,  about  one  foot  below  the  ends 
of  the  shingles.     "  Shepard's  Brook  "  (the 


78o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


most  northerly  of  the  streams  having  its 
rise  in  Fayston,)  swept  out  for  itself  vari- 
ous new  passages,  and,  in  one  case,  up- 
rooted and  pushed  for  over  a  mile  into  the 
river  and  across  it,  upon  the  meadow 
nearly  half  an  acre  of  heavy  timber.  A 
Mr.  Learned,  living  near  the  mouth  of  the 
brook  was  reading  his  paper  in  the  even- 
ing, when  he  "  heard  something  bumping 
against  the  floor,"''  and  on  going  to  the 
cellar  found  it  to  be  his  meat-barrel  float- 
ing about.  The  water  was  then  running 
across  his  lower  doorstep,  and  the  roaring 
of  the  brook  showed  its  furry,  while  exam- 
ation  proved  that  there  was  no  way  of 
escape  from  the  house.  Though  several 
buildings  were  swept  away,  this  house  the 
most  beleagued  of  all,  was  spared. 

Dea.  Parker  relates  that  at  5  o'clock 
there  was  not  a  foot  of  water  in  the  brook, 
and  at  10  o'clock  he  stood  and  saw  his 
barn  carried  away  by  the  flood.  A  num- 
ber of  farms  suffered  severely  by  the  wash- 
ing away  of  the  soil. 

In  October,  1869,  another  flood  swept 
through  this  valley,  reaching  within  a  little 
over  a  foot  of  the  high  water  mark  of  1830. 
The  town  were  obliged  to  raise  an  extra 
tax  of  60  cents  on  the  dollar  to  meet 
the  damages.  The  crops  of  corn  which 
were  not  already  housed  were  swept  away, 
and  the  breaking  out  of  the  river  at  the 
west  end  of  the  dam  above  the  grist  mill 
seriously  endangered  the  village,  and  car- 
ried away  a  shop  belonging  to  J.  W.  Rich- 
ardson, Esq.  It  will  be  remembered  that 
the  water  rose  at  three  separate  times, 
being  highest  on  Monday,  the  4th  of  Oct., 
but  nearly  as  high  on  Monday  the  nth, 
and  high  enough  to  awaken  much  anxiety 
on  Wednesday,  the  13th.  Pine  brook 
made  a  clean  sweep  of  her  7  bridges,  and 
many  other  bridges  in  the  town  followed 
suit.  This  high  water  was  predicted  by 
astronomers  in  the  month  of  June,  and 
their  calculations  did  not  fail  except  by  less 
than  24  hours. 

Also  quite  frequently,  when  the  river 
breaks  up  in  the  spring,  the  ice  will  clog 
up,  and  the  meadows  will  be  flooded,  wash- 
ing away  fences  and  sometimes  the  soil  it- 
self.    And   the   poorer   class   of  bridges, 


built  in  an  early  'day,  were  often  carried 
off"  in  this  way,  but  for  many  years  no  riv- 
er bridge  has  been  thus  lost.  Mad  river 
without  this  turbulence,  would  be  like  the 
play  of  Hamlet  with  Hamlet  left  out. 

ECCLESIASTICAL. 

In  1794,  a  town  committe  was  appointed 
to  "layout  a  meeting-house  and  yard." 
The  site  chosen  was  what  is  still  known 
as  "  the  common" — an  elevated  plain  near 
the  center  of  the  original  township.  It 
consisted  of  about  9  acres,  and  the  title 
was  conveyed  to  the  town  in  1796.  Five 
acres  was  the  gift  of  Ezra  Jones,  Esq.,  on 
condition  that,  "  if  the  town  moved  the 
centre  ( ?)  from  that  place"  the  title  should 
be  void.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  the  "  new 
meeting-house"  at  the  river  village  was  oc- 
cupied, and  the  town  voted  to  hold  town- 
meetings  at  the  river,  the  heirs  took  posses- 
sion of  their  portion.  The  remaining  four 
acres,  purchased  for"_^i,  los.,"  of  a  Mr. 
Savage,  are  still  common.  The  forest 
which  covered  this  lot  was  chopped  by  a 
"Bee,"  in  1797,  and  the  ground  was  then 
let  out  in  parcels  to  be  cleared,  each  work- 
man having  the  right  to  take  two  crops  of 
grass  for  his  remuneration  upon  the  lot  set 
apart  as  a  common.  The  burial  ground 
was  not  fenced  until  1809. 

The  first  proposal  as  to  building  a  house 
of  worship,  was  to  erect  one  jointly  with 
the  school-district  on  the  east  side  of  the 
common,  with  the  understanding  that  when 
both  parties  were  better  able,  the  district 
should  buy  out  the  town,  and  the  town 
should  build  a  regular  church  edifice.  After 
the  trame  was  up  and  partly  covered,  the 
district  receded  from  the  engagement ;  and 
in  due  time,  the  frame  was  removed  to  the 
valley,  where  it  has  been  used  as  store  and 
dwelling-house  until  the  present  time — 
known  as  the  "Lewis  Holden"  house. 

This  apparent  drawback  was  after  all  a 
stimulous  to  the  religious  interests  of  the 
town.  It  hastened  the  erection  of  a  suita- 
ble meeting-house — an  imposing  structure 
of  the  olden  style,  bearing  date  1807,  alto- 
gether innocent  of  paint  inside,  and  for 
some  years  of  stoves ;  but  extravagant  in 
the  amount  of  7.X9  glass,  which  rattled  away 
at  every  suggestion  of  a  breeze.     It   had 


WAITSFIELD. 


781 


the  usual  high  pulpit,  towering  over  the 
"deacon's  seat," — the  capacious  gallery, 
and  for  many  years  the  ample  sabbath  as- 
sembly. On  the  Society's  record,  we  read 
among  other  recommendations  of  a  com- 
mittee, that  a  certain  proportion  of  the 
money  derived  from  the  sale  of  the  pews 
should  be  paid  at  the  beginning,  as  it 
would  be  needed  for  nails,  glass,  "  and 
rum  for  the  raising." 

CONGREGATIONAL. 

The  Congregational  church,  which  con- 
troled  this  house,  was  organized  with  1 1 
members  in  1796.  Rev.  Ebenezer  Kings- 
bury, of  Jericho,  officiating.  Others  were 
gradually  added  to  it,  and  it  became  strong 
enough  in  1801  to  settle  a  pastor;  and 
from  that  time  has  been  the  strongest  re- 
ligious body  in  the  town. 

Rev.  William  Saulsbury,  the  first  pastor, 
was  a  young  man,  well  educated,  and  able 
in  the  pulpit,  but  singularly  wanting  in 
those  qualities  which  secure  the  respect 
and  affection  of  the  people  when  outside 
the  pulpit.  He  received  the  "minister's 
lot"  as  a  settlement  portion,  and  $166.67 
the  first  year,  it  being  agreed  that  the 
salary  should  be  increased  as  fast  as  the 
grand  list  on  the  society's  roll  increased, 
until  it  should  amount  to  $266.66.  The 
ordination  services  took  place  in  a  booth 
built  for  the  occasion,  on  the  site  chosen 
for  the  meeting-house.  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman, 
of  Brookfield,  preaching  the  sermon  from 
I.  Tim.  4:  16. 

During  the  68  years  since  the  ordina- 
tion of  Mr.  Saulsbury,  19  ministers  have 
at  different  times  had  charge  of  this  church. 
Of  these,  the  longest  pastorate  was  that  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Chandler,  20  years ;  the  next 
longest,  that  of  Rev.  Charles  Duren,  lo 
years,  and  next,  that  of  Mr.  Saulsbury,  9 
years. 

LIST   OF   MINISTERS. 

Rev.  William  Saulsbury,  i8of-'9;Am- 
ariah  Chandler,  i8io-'3o;  Guy  Sampson, 
i83i-'3r  ;  Joseph  Marsh,  i832-'34;  B.  F. 
Read,  i835-'35  ;  S.  G.  Tenney,  i835-'37  ; 
A.  Flemming,  1837-38 ;  Preston  Taylor, 
i839-'42;  Calvin  Selden,  1843-4;  James 
Hobart,  i845-'49;  Charles  Duren,  1849- 
'54  ;L.  H.  Stone,i855-'56;  Andrew  Royce, 


i8s6-'57  ;  C.  W.  Piper,  i857-'57  ;  C.  S. 
Smith,  i858-'58;  Robert  Stuart,  1858-59; 
Mr.  George  Pierson,  i859-'6o ;  Rev.  A. 
B.  Dascomb,  i86o-'67 ;  J.  H.  Babbitt, 
1 868. 

Five  men  have  commenced  their  minis- 
try with  this  people.  None  have  finished 
their  ministry  here.  But  the  impression 
of  the  character  and  doctrine  of  Mr. 
Chandler  is  not  yet  obliterated.  A  fact 
which  shows  how  good  it  is  for  a  people  to 
keep  a  good  and  faithful  pastor,  and  that 
the  length  and  the  success  of  a  pastorate 
bear  some  relation  to  each  other. 

THE  DEACONS  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

John  Barnard,  i796-'i3;  Moses  Fisk, 
1801-47;  David  Phelps,  1813-23;  Jede- 
diah  Bushnell,  i825-'66;  Ithamer  Smith, 
1830-48  ;  Isaac  Hawley,  i836-'48  ;  Lyman 
Fisk,  1844—  ;  David  M.  Phelps,  i866-'69  ; 
Henry  N.  Bushnell,  1866 —  ;  Edward  A. 
Fisk,  1866—. 

There  have  been  several  seasons  of  re- 
vival among  this  people, — the  most  marked 
(considering  their  permanent  fruits,)  be- 
ing that  in  1817-18,  under  Mr.  Chandler's 
preaching,  and  that  in  1865-6,  under  Mr. 
Dascomb's.  In  each  case  35  members  at 
one  time, — and  most  of  them  by  profes- 
sion, and  others  at  intervals  afterwards. 
It  deserves  to  be  said  that,  while  this 
church  may  not  have  accomplished  more 
than  the  average  of  country  churches,  it 
has  done  much  good  in  training  up  those 
who  have  labored  much  in  other  places. 
Those  who  have  gone  out  as  laymen  to 
strengthen  other  churches  would  make,  in 
point  of  numbers,  a  large  parish,  and  in 
point  of  influence  a  strong  one,  while  it 
can  show  a  longer  roll  of  professional 
men — nearly  all  ministers — than  the  ma- 
jority of  Congregational  churches  in  Ver- 
mont. Its  membership  from  the  first  until 
now  amounts  to  500.  The  Congregational 
Society  was  formed  under  the  old  law. 
All  the  voters  in  town  were  members  of  it, 
unless  they  individually  withdrew,  by  cer- 
tifying to  the  town  clerk  "  that  they  did 
not  agree  in  religious  opinion  with  a  ma- 
jority of  the  society."  This  statute  was 
repeated  at   Woodstock  in    1807,  and  in 


782 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


consequence,  the  society  dissolved  and 
formed  a  voluntary  association,  assuming 
all  the  rights  and  immunities  of  the  old 
one.  In  1845,  a  new  meeting-house  was 
built  in  the  outskirts  of  the  village,  and 
dedicated,  Rev.  Mr.  Gridley  of  Montpelier, 
preaching  the  sermon  from  Haggai  2  :  9. 

The  question,  whether  to  "repair  or 
build  at  the  river,"  was  one  that  divided 
the  feelings  of  the  people  seriously.  By 
vote  of  the  society,  it  was  at  length  sub- 
mitted to  the  judgment  of  three  men,  viz  : 
John  L.  Buck,  and  two  others,  beside, 
the  agreement  being  that  their  decision 
should  be  accepted  as  final.  They  decid- 
ed naturally  enough  that  the  society 
"  should  build  at  the  river."  The  results 
of  this  difficulty  were  that  the  new  house 
was  located  just  out  of  the  village  instead 
of  in  it,  on  elevated  ground,  toward  the  old 
common ;  so  that  the  people  who  have  to 
walk  to  church,  find  it  quite  a  task  to 
climb  up  from  the  village,  and  on  week 
days,  men  drive  by  to  the  grist-mill  and 
the  postoffice,  not  always  getting  back  to 
the  meeting  they  should  attend,  or  at  least 
not  until  late,  and  evening  meetings  must 
go  begging  at  private  houses. 

This  partiality  for  the  consecrated  spot 
also  led  at  length  to  the  building  of  a  small 
edifice  out  of  the  ruins  of  the  old  one,  as  a 
sort  of  union  house,  "to  be  used  for  fu- 
nerals, evening  services,  &c." 

After  the  building  of  the  new  church, 
the  society  became  greatly  reduced.  For 
various  causes,  one  after  another  withdrew 
their  names  from  the  roll ;  preaching  was 
sustained  by  subscription  only,  and  there 
were  only  about  12  men  who  could  be  de- 
pended upon  to  bring  up  arrears.  These 
were  obliged  to  pay  a  sum  equal  to  five 
times  all  their  other  taxes  combined,  for 
years.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  these 
were  earnest  and  pious  men ;  and  it  is 
pleasant  to  record  the  fact  at  length  they 
have  seen  better  times.  Much  credit  is 
due  to  Rev.  A.  B.  Dascomb  for  his  patient 
continuance  with  this  people  in  times  when 
i  t  was  exceedingly  difficult  to  raise  a  salary, 
he  having  come  to  them  when  they  were 
lowest,  and  bv  the  blessing  of  God,  leav- 


ing them   in  6  years,  able  and  willing  to 
give  a  pastor  a  good  support. 

METHODIST. 

The  first  Methodist  preaching  in  the 
town  was  probably  about  1804,  and  doubt- 
less a  class  was  formed  soon  after.  The 
town  was  first  embraced  in  the  Montpelier 
circuit,  as  were  also  the  towns  of  Middle- 
sex, Moretown,  Warren  and  Fayston. 
Their  first  church  edifice  was  erected  in 
the  mill  village  in  1833,  "^'^^  remodeled,  a 
spire  added,  and  painted  in  1852.  In 
1845,  ^^^^  circuit  was  abolished,  and  Waits- 
field  and  Warren  became  a  station.  In 
1868,  Waitsfield  became  a  separate  charge. 
The  names  of  those  who  have  been  preach- 
ers, with  the  dates  of  their  pastorate,  as 
far  as  they  can  be  ascertained,  are  as 
follows  : 

Rev.  Wilder  Mack,  Abel  Heath,  John 
Cummings,  Nathan  Howe ;  John  Nason, 
1835  ;  Moses  Sanderson,  I.  D.  Rust,  Cyrus 
Liscomb,  H.  J.  Wooley,  Wm.  Blake,  O.  M. 
Legate,  Harvey  Hitchcock,  H.  T.  Jones, 
D.  Willis,  P.  N.  Granger,  A.  J.Copeland, 
C.  W.  Kellogg,  W.  J.  Kidder,  P.  Merrill, 
N.  W.  Scott,  H.  Webster,  C.  S.  Buswell, 
L.  Hill,  B.  P.  Spaulding;  N.  M.  Granger, 
1868  ;  F.  M.  Miller,  1869.  The  present 
number  of  members  is  62,  and  probation- 
ers 8. 

A  good  little  anecdote  is  told  of  the 
times  of  Elder  Mack.  There  was  strong 
prejudice  at  that  time  in  all  the  land 
against  this  denomination,  over  and  above 
the  objection  that  it  was  dividing  the 
feelings  and  interests  of  the  people.  One 
Sabbath,  Dr.  Stoddard  and  wife,  who 
lived  at  the  extreme  south  of  the  valley, 
were  unable  to  attend  meeting.  The  chil- 
dren, however,  went,  and  learning  before 
they  arrived  at  home  that  Elder  Mack  was 
going  to  preach  at  the  school-house  in 
their  neighborhood,  they  rouguishly  re- 
ported to  their  parents  that  "  there  was  to 
be  a  lecture  at  the  school-house  that  even- 
ing." So  the  mother  (who  would  not  have 
j  countenanced  a  Methodist  meeting  by  any 
I  means) ,  went  with  the  children  to  the 
I  lecture.  Finding  it  was  not  their  own 
!  minister,  but  supposing  it  was   some  one 


WAITSFIELD. 


783 


with  whom  he  had  exchanged,  she  became 
intensely  interested  in  the  discourse.  On 
their  return,  the  eldest  son  asked,  "  Moth- 
er, what  ism  do  you  call  that,  Congrega- 
tionalism or  Methodism,  or  what?  "  "I 
call  it  '  gospelism,'  "  was  her  frank  reply  ; 
and  then  she  was  informed  that  she  had 
listened  to  Elder  Mack.  Of  course  the 
son  was  rebuked  for  concealing  the  fact, 
but  whether  it  tended  to  relieve  her  of  her 
prejudices,  or  not,  we  do  not  know.  Her 
husband,  however,  though  a  most  exem- 
plary and  strict  man,  lived  and  died  be- 
lieving himself  "a  reprobate" — a  belief 
that  Methodism  might  probably  have  cor- 
rected, had  it  been  understood. 

There  have  been  several  religious  awak- 
enings in  the  history  of  this  church,  the 
most  marked  of  which  was  in  1835,  when 
many  were  numbered  as  believers.  Of 
this  class,  one  has  become  a  useful  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel  (Alonzo  Hitchcock), 
and  several  others  were  most  exemplary 
Christians  while  they  lived. 

UNIVERSALIST. 

This  society  was  formed  Dec.  30,  1830. 
Quite  a  number  of  the  prominent  men  in 
town  entertained  this  doctrinal  belief,  and 
soon  after  the  dismis.sal  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Chandler  from  the  pastorate  of  the  Con- 
gregational church,  they  organized  by 
electing  Roderick  Richardson,  moderator; 
Cyron  Burdick,  clerk  ;  R.  Richardson, 
Daniel  Thayer  and  Matthias  S.  Jones,  pru- 
dential committee. 

Rev.  Mr.  Fuller  was  their  first  preacher, 
and  his  first  services  were  held  as  early  as 
1826.  They  were  held  in  school-houses, 
barns,  or  wherever  it  seemed  best  or  was 
necessary  to  hold  them.  It  was  claimed 
once  (though  some  of  the  leading  Uni- 
versalists  did  not  countenance  it),  that 
they  had  a  right  to  the  use  of  the  Congre- 
gational meeting-house  at  least  one-fourth 
of  the  time.  This  caused  considerable 
discussion  and  trouble,  and  at  length 
brought  about  an  arbitration,  in  which 
several  distinguished  lawyers  were  em- 
ployed and  several  days  consumed.  Their 
decision  was  emphatically  against  the  claim 
of  the  Universalists,  who  abided  by  it  like 
men.     Six  years  later,  the  society  (in  con- 


nection with  the  Baptists),  erected  the 
brick  church  in  the  village,  a  good  sub- 
stantial structure  with  about  250  sittings. 
Of  this  the  society  owned  nearly  three- 
fourths,  but  the  agreement  was  that  every 
man  who  owned  a  pew  would  occupy  the 
house  one  Sabbath  in  the  year  for  such 
religious  worship  as  was  agreeable  to  him- 
self. 

The  names  of  the  different  preachers 
were  as  follows :  Rev.  John  E.  Palmer, 
1826-1837,  (occasionally)  ;  Rev.  Edward 
Brown,  1838-1840  (statedly)  ;  Rev.  John 
E.  Palmer,  1844-1848  (pastor)  ;  Rev.  T. 
C.  Eaton,  Rev.  G.  S.  Gurnsey,  1844- 
1856  (occasionally)  ;  Rev.  C.  C.  Thornton, 
1856-1862  (pastor)  ;  Rev.  John  Gregory, 
1862-1869  (occasionally). 

During  the  pastorate  of  Mr.  Thornton, 
a  Sunday  school  and  Bible  class  was  sus- 
tained, and  the  congregation  was  com- 
paratively large. 

BAPTIST. 

A  Baptist  church  of  1 1  members  was 
organized  May,  1835,  R^^'-  John  Ide,  of 
VVaterbury,  assisted  at  its  formation,  the 
Methodists  opening  their  meeting-house  for 
the  services.  He  also  preached  during  that 
year  one  fourth  of  the  time.  Rev.  Wm. 
M.  Guilford  preached  over  half  the  time 
during  1836,  and  after  an  interval.  Rev. 
Friend  Blood  became  pastor.  His  term 
commenced  in  1838,  or  1839,  ^.nd  con- 
tinued until  Rev.  P.  Amsden  afterwards 
preached,  and  the  church  attained  consid- 
erable strength,  but  declined,  and  was 
practically  broken  up  in  the  exciting  times 
of  Millerism. 

The  records  were  unfortunately  lost  in 
the  burning  of  the  house  of  Roswell  Rich- 
ardson, who  was  clerk  of  the  church  from 
its  organization  to  its  extinction.  Quite  a 
number  of  the  members  afterwards  joined 
both  the  Congregational  and  Methodist 
churches. 

It  is  said  of  Rev.  Mr.  Blood,  that  in 
preaching,  he  was  very  dull  for  the  first 
two  hours,  but  eloquent  and  powerful  for 
the  third  hour. 

EPISCOPAL. 

In  1853,  while  the  Universalists  were  not 
occupying  their  house  of  worship,  an  eflfort 


784 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


was  made  by  Hon.  R.  Richardson,  Jr.,  and 
others,  to  establish  Episcopal  worship, 
which  resulted  in  the  repair  of  the  house, 
the  formation  of  a  church  of  52  members, 
and  the  installation  of  Rev.  John  E. 
Johnston  as  pastor.  These  services  were 
continued  until  1H55,  when  Mr.  Johnston 
removed,  and  Mr.  Richardson  took  up  his 
residence  in  Montpelier. 

Rev.  J.  H.  Hopkins,  Jr.,  afterwards  en- 
deavored to  look  up  the  lost  sheep,  and 
Rev.  Mr.  Hazzard  labored  earnestly  with 
them  for  a  time  ;  but  the  society  has  now 
very  few  members  remaining,  and  no  stated 
services.  It  depends  upon  the  Northfield 
rector  for  occasional  ministrations. 

WESLEY  AN. 

In  1853,  Rev.  Lyman  Prindle  came  into 
town,  and  preached  at  the  L^nion  house,  on 
the  old  common.  In  a  short  time,  a  so- 
ciety was  formed,  and  he  was  engaged  as 
its  pastor.  His  labors  were  continued 
without  interruption  until  i860,  when  he 
was  succeeded  by  Rev.  L.  C.  Partridge, 
who  supplied  until  1S61,  when  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  John  Dolph,  1862;  then 
Mr.  Prindle  returned  and  preached  until 
1864. 

The  church  at  first  consisted  of  10  mem- 
bers. In  1854,  16  were  added.  In  1855, 
15.  The  whole  number  was  44.  An  in- 
teresting Sabbath  school  was  maintained 
during  all  this  time,  and  the  average  con- 
gregation was  about  100. 

The  organization  is  still  maintained, 
but  no  Sabbath  services  are  held  by  it. 
"  The  distinctive  features  (in  the  words  of 
a  member)  were  to  take  higher  and  more 
radical  ground  on  the  reforms  of  the  day 
— slavery,  temperance,  and  secret-oath- 
bound  societies." 

REPRESENTATIVES . 

Benjamin  Wait,  1795-1799,  1801,  02; 
Stephen  Pierce,  1800,  11,  14;  Bissel  Phelps, 
1803,07;  Amasa  Skinner,  1808-10,  12, 
13,  15;  Edmund  Rice,  1816;  Matthias  S. 
Jones,  1817-20,  24-26  ;  Ralph  Turner, 
1821,  22,  23;  Jennison  Jones,  1827,  28; 
Jason  Carpenter,  1829,  30,  31,  34,  35, 
36;  Thomas  Prentice,  1832,  33  ;  Roderick 
Richardson,  1837,  38,  39,  50,  51  ;  Hiram 
Jones,  1840,  41,  42;     1843,    "o  choice,  9 


ballots,  '44  do,  16  ballots,  1845,  do,  14  bal- 
lots, 1849,  do,  4  ballots,  1852,  do  7  ballots, 
1853,  do,  3  ballots;  1861,  do,  9  ballots; 
Ithamar  Smith,  1846,47;  Benjamin  Reed, 
1848,  54,  55,  67,68;  Ira  Richardson,  1856, 
66;  Lyman  Prindle,  1857,  58;  Pardon 
Bushnell,  59,  60;  J.  H.  Hastings,  1862, 
63  ;  D.  M.  Phelps,  1864,  65  ;  Hiram  Carle- 
ton,  1866. 

PHYSICIANS 

who  have  practiced  in  town  (in  the  order 

of  their  coming,)  Stephen  Pierce, died; 

William  Joslin, ,  died;  Fred  T.  Miner, 

,  removed  ;  Orange  Smith, ,  died; 

G.  N.  Brigham, ,  removed  ;  E.  G.  Jud- 

kins, ,  died;   Geo.  W.  Nichols, , 

removed;  E.  G.  Hooker,  W.  A.  Jones, 
J.  M.  VanDeusen. 

CLERGYMEN 

who  were  raised  up  in  town .  Those  marked 
with  a  star  are  now  dead ;  those  with  a 
dagger,  deposed : 

Perrin  B.  Fisk,*  Baptist,  last  residence 
in  Wardsboro,  Vt.,  Joel  Fisk,*  Congre- 
gational, Plainfield,  Harvey  Fisk,*  Con- 
gregational, New  York  City,  brothers  ; 
Henry  Jones,*  Congregational  ;  Ezra 
Jones,  Presbyterian,  New  York;  Matthias 
Joslin,*  Congregational,  Missionary  to  the 
Indians;  Chandler  Wilder,  Congregational, 
Vermont ;  Hiram  Freeman,  Wisconsin ; 
Alonzo  Hitchcock,  Methodist,  Montpelier; 
Pliny  F.  Barnard,  Congregational,  Wil- 
liamstown;  *Rufus  Child,  Congregational, 
Berlin;  Lucius  Barnard, f  Congregational, 
New  York;  Perrin  B.  Fisk,  2d.,  Congrega- 
tional, Peacham;  Silas  Jones,  Methodist; 
Harvey  Bates,  L'nitarian,  Massachusetts. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  men  well 
known  in  the  State  who  were  born  and 
raised  up  in  Waitsfield  :  Gurley  Phelps, 
M.  D.,  Jaftrey,  N.  H. :  Edwinjones,  M.  D., 
deceased;  Henry  Shaw,  M.  D.,  deceased 
(surgeon  1863)  ;  Walter  A.  Jones,  Waits- 
field  ;  Ezra  Bates,  M.  D. ;  Norman  Durant, 
attorney,  deceased  ;  Luther  L.  Durant,  at- 
torney, Montpelier ;  Hon.  Geo.  N.Dale, 
attorney,Island  Pond;  Hon.Chas.  H.Joyce, 
attorney,  Rutland ;  Edwin  F.  Palmer,  at- 
torney, Waterbury  ;  Hon.  Roderick  Rich- 
ardson, deceased  ;  Hon.  Roderick  Richard- 


WAITSFIELD. 


785 


son,  Jr.,  Montpelier ;  Hon.  Hiram  Jones, 
Waitsfielcl ;  Hon.  Calvin  Fullerton,  Waits- 
field  ;  Hon.  Ira  Richardson,  Waitsfield ; 
Hon.  J.  H.  Hastings,  Waitsfield. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  those 
who  have  practiced  law  in  town,  and  have 
had  more  or  less  influence  upon  its  history  : 
Hon.  William  Pingry,  Perkinsville ;  Ben- 
jamin  Adams,    Esq.,    deceased;     M.    H. 

Sessions,  Esq.,  Hale,  Bane,  A. 

V.  Spaulding,  Esq. ;  C.  F.  Clough,  Esq., 
Hiram  Carleton,  Esq. 

PROMINENT   MEN. 

Jennison  Jones,  Esq.,  was  born  in 
Claremont,  N.  H.,  Jan.  i,  1777,  and  re- 
moved in  early  life  to  Waitsfield,  where  he 
resided  until  his  death.  He  enjoyed  only 
the  common  school  advantages  of  those 
days,  but  was  one  of  those  "  self-made 
«nen"  for  which  this  country  has  been 
noted.  As  a  young  man  he  was  a  very 
successful  teacher.  He  filled  nearly  every 
town  office  with  perfect  acceptance  when 
in  the  prime  of  life,  represented  the  town 
in  i827-'28,  and  was  especially  interested 
in  the  history  of  the  town,  and  accurate  in 
dates  and  figures.  This  sketch  of  Waits- 
field (as  will  be  seen  from  the  introductory 
note),  has  been  prepared  with  ease  by 
reason  of  his  labors  and  writings.  He 
married,  Dec.  26,  1802,  Miss  Philany 
Holmes,  and  reared  a  large  family.  He 
died  Dec.  22,  1852,  at  the  age  of  75. 

Ithamer  Smith,  Esq.,  was  born  in 
Shelburne,  Mass.,  June  6,  1787,  and  came 
with  his  parents  to  Waitsfield  in  1893.  Al- 
lusion to  his  talents  and  a  specimen  of  his 
poetry  appears  elsewhere  in  these  pages. 
He  was  a  leading  anti-slavery  man,  and  his 
experience  was  that  of  too  many  who  so 
early  espoused  the  cause  of  justice  and  hu- 
manity. Good  men  did  not  see  as  he  saw, 
and  were  tardy  to  come  up  to  his  ground, 
and  designing  men  scorned  him  and  his 
cause,  which  made  him  sometimes  almost 
bitter  against  them  all.  He  removed  to 
New  York  State  in  1856,  and  died  at  the 
residence  of  his  daughter,  in  Feb.  1862. 

Among  his  children  (who  all  obtained 
at  least  an  average  education) ,  we  notice 
Chauncey,  an  attorney,  and  once  partner 
of  Hon.  Edward  Everett,  in  Boston. 


Luther  L.,  a  successful  teacher  in  the 
southern  part  of  Massachusetts,  and  now 
a  resident  of  New  York. 

Frank  B.,  a  graduate  of  U.  V.  M.  in  the 
class  of  '63,  now  a  civil  engineer  in  the  in- 
terior ;  and  Abigail  H.,  wife  of  Rev.  Chas. 
Cavern,  of  Lake  Mills,  Wis. 

Hon.  Jason  Carpenter  was  born  Aug. 
15,  1772,  at  Coventry,  Ct.  Like  many  of 
his  contemporaries,  his  school  days  were 
few,  but  his  education  practical.  He  came 
to  Waitsfield  in  1818,  and  was  identified 
with  its  business  and  interests  for  the  rest 
of  his  active  life.  He  served  as  judge  of 
probate  for  the  County  2  years,  and  as 
representative  from   1829  to  '31,  and  from 

'34  to  '36,  inclusive.     He  married, 

18 — ,  Miss  Betsey  Ingraham,  by  whom  he 
had  6  children,  of  whom  one  finds  mention 
in  another  place,  the  wife  of  Hon.  Hiram 
Jones  ;  while  the  record  of  another,  Charles, 
as  a  most  successful  teacher,  though  cut 
off  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness ;  and  of 
another,  George  H.,  as  a  successful  busi- 
ness man  in  Racine,  Wis.,  must  not  be 
passed  in  silence. 

Matthias  S.  Jones,  Esq.,  was  born  in 
Claremont,  N.  H.,  Apr.  12,  1778,  and  re- 
moved to  Waitsfield  at  an  early  date.  He 
was  one  of  the  more  prominent  men  of 
the  town,  filling  in  turn  the  most  impor- 
tant offices  in  the  gift  of  his  townsmen ; 
was  justice  of  the  peace  more  than  30 
years,  and  town  clerk  for  half  that  period, 
and  represented  the  town  in  1825,  '26, '27. 
He  was  twice  married — Aug.  28,  1807,  to 
Miss  Betsey  Joyslin,  of  Waitsfield,  and  May 
26,  1836,  to  Miss  Mary  Prentice,  of 
Weathersfield.  His  death  occurred  June 
25,  1 85 1.*  He  reared  a  comparatively 
large  family — all  children  of  the  first  mar- 
riage— of  whom  are  L.  W.  Jones,  Esq.,  a 
successful  merchant  of  Waitsfield,  and  a 
man  of  decided  public  spirit. 

Edwin  Jones,  M.  D.,  who  was  born 
June  3,  1825,  at  Waitsfield,  studied  for  a 
time  with  Dr.  D.  C.  Joslin,  of  Waitsfield, 
and  attended  one  course  of  lectures  at 
Woodstock,  graduating  at  length  at  Pitts- 
field,  Mass.,  and  practicing  at  Orange,  Vt., 
for  three  months,  and  at  Vershire  and  Straf- 
ford the  remainder  of  his  life.     He  mar- 


99 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ried,  Oct.  i8,  1852,  Miss  Mary  A.,  dau.  of 
Rev.  Elisha  Brown,  of  Montpelier,  and 
precisely  2  years  later  died  at  Strafford, ' 
a  bereavement  not  only  to  those  who  knew 
him  as  a  relative  and  friend,  but  to  those 
who  had  learned  to  know  him  as  a  beloved 
physician. 

Hon.  Hiram  Jones,  another  son,  who 
was  born  June  26,  1808,  and  whose  oppor- 
tunities for  acquiring  an  education  were 
confined  to  the  common  schools  of  his 
native  town,  and  who  made  such  improve- 
ments of  these  scanty  means,  that  he  was 
called  into  places  of  public  trust  at  an 
unusually  early  age.  Besides  almost  con- 
tinually serving  as  justice  of  the  peace, 
and  frequently  holding  other  offices  of  pub- 
lic trust,  he  represented  the  town  in  1840, 
'41-42,  and  was  assistant  judge  of  the 
county  court  from  1855  to  1857.  (Died  in 
1872.)  He  married  Oct.  6,  1835,  Laura 
L.,  daughter  of  Hon.  Jason  Carpenter. 
Six  children  were  the  issue  of  this  mar- 
riage, of  whom  Walter  A.,  is  a  resident 
physician  of  his  native  town,  and  George 
M.  lost  his  life  in  the  first  battle  of  the 
Wilderness, — the  only  one  in  which  he 
was  engaged.  His  enlistment  was  just  at 
the  time  Gen.  Grant  took  command  in  the 
2d  Reg.  U.  S.  S.  S. 

Hon.  Roderick  Richardson,  Sr.,  was 
born  in  Tolland,  Conn.,  in  1779,  and  in 
early  life  removed  to  Waitsfield.  By  trade 
he  was  a  saddler.  He  was  for  many  years 
postmaster  of  the  town,  and  the  owner  of 
the  principal  store ;  was  assistant  judge  of 
Washington  Co.  court  2  years.  The  date 
of  his  marriage  to  Miss  Anna  Davis  we  are 
unable  to  ascertain.  Two  sons  and  two 
daughters  were  born  to  him,  the  youngest, 
Hon.  Roderick  Richardson,  Jr.,  who 
as  a  man  of  enterprise  and  wealth  was  for 
many  years  a  leader  in  the  business  of 
Waitsfield.  He  was  born  Aug.  7,  1807, 
at  Hartford,  Conn.,  but  obtained  all  his 
schooling  at  the  common  school  in  Waits- 
field; was  representative  in  1S37-3S,  '39, 
50-51,  and  senator  from  Washington 
county  4  years;  assistant  judge  of  Wash- 
ington county  for  one  year ;  elected  by  the 
joint  assembly,  and  declined  a  re-election. 
He   is   an   earnest    Episcopalian,    having 


united  with  that  church  not  far  from  1853  ; 
at  the  present  time  is  senior  warden  of 
Christ  Church  in  Montpelier;  one  of  the 
standing  committee  of  the  diocese  of  Ver- 
mont, and  a  delegate  to  the  Triennial 
Convention  of  the  Episcopal  church  of 
the  United  States  at  the  sessions  of  1862, 
'65,  '68.     [See  Montpelier,  546.] 

Roderick  Julius  Richardson,  son  of 
the  above,  was  born  in  Waitsfield,  May 
31,  1840;  graduated  at  Norwich  Univer- 
sity, and  was  made  paymaster  in  the  U.  S. 
Navy,  Sept.  1861.  Being  ordered  to  the 
"  Harriet  Lane,"  he  was  captured  with  the 
remainder  of  her  crew  off  Galveston,  Tex., 
Jan.  10,  1863  ;  was  paroled  that  spring,  and 
participated  in  the  capture  of  New  Orleans, 
the  first  siege  of  Vicksburg ;  went  through 
the  Mississippi  River  Campaign ;  was  in 
the  "  South  Atlantic  Squadron"  at  Charles- 
ton, S.  C,  and  in  the  "North  Atlantic 
Squadron"  on  board  the  Steamer  "Wa- 
bash "  before  the  Wilmington  fight,  and 
participated  in  search  for  the  "  Alabama" 
and  "Florida."  In  1865,  he  received  his 
discharge,  and  was  elected  cashier  of  the 
First  National  Bank,  Montpelier,  and  is 
now  a  commission  merchant  in  Boston. 
He  was  married  Jan.  5,  1865,  to  Miss 
Faddie  Ware,  of  Boston. 

B.  H.  Adams,  Esq.,  was  born  in  Tun- 
bridge,  in  1810,  and  after  receiving  the 
usual  common  school  education,  studied 
law,  and  opened  an  office  in  Waitsfield, 
where  he  practiced  until  his  death,  whicii 
occurred  in  Oct.  1849.  The  writer  re- 
members him  as  he  appeared  at  leisure  in 
the  store  a  year  or  so  before  his  death. 
He  was  a  man  of  medium  height  and 
rather  robust  in  appearance,  of  light  com- 
plexion and  pleasing  address.  It  is  said 
that  he  never  made  a  plea  of  any  extended 
length,  but  rarely  failed  to  make  a  deep 
impression  on  all  those  who  heard  him. 
"  He  was  a  rare  man,"  says  one  who  was 
conversant  with  him,  "gifted,  eloquent, 
persuasive,  powerful,  genial,  generous, 
benevolent  to  a  fault,  the  best  advocate  I 
ever  saw  or  heard."  A  full  history  of  the 
man  would  of  course  present  other  than 
the  professional  side  of  his  character,  and 
would  be  obliged   to   state   what   we   are 


WAITSFIELD. 


787 


sorry  to  say  is  too  common  in  the  liistory 
of  talented  men,  that  while  they  rule  their 
fellowmen  by  their  great  abilities,  they  are 
too  often  the  slaves  of  intemperance  or 
gaming.  The  ready  wit  with  which  he 
sometimes  secured  a  favorable  verdict 
when  he  had  by  far  the  hardest  side,  is 
well  remembered,  and  could  we  afford 
space  for  story-telling  of  this  kind,  we 
should  provoke  many  a  hearty  laugh  from 
the  reader. 

Orange  Smith,  M.  D.,  was  born  Jan. 
27,  1796,  at  Brookfield.  He  was  a  grad- 
uate of  Randolph  Academy,  and  of  the 
medical  department  of  the  U.  V.  M.  He 
also  studied  medicine  with  Daniel  Wash- 
burn, M.  D.,  and  attended  lectures  for 
some  length  of  time  at  Dartmouth.  He 
commenced  at  Starksboro  ;  soon  removed 
to  Williston,  and  after  one  year  of  practice 
there  removed  to  Waitsfield,  and  contin- 
ued in  practice  there  until  near  the  time  of 
his  death,  in  1863.  Besides  being  a  good 
physician,  he  was  a  very  public  spirited 
man,  and  one  whose  influence,  especially 
in  religious  matters  was  not  small.  He 
entered  into  the  practice  of  Dr.  Miner, 
who  was  about  to  remove  from  town,  and 
for  some  time  lived  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  T.  G.  W.  Farr,  Esq.,  but  subsequently 
removed  to  the  village.  He  married  (Mar. 
2,  1825,)  Miss  Lucy  Hatch  of  Brookfield, 
by  whom  he  had  three  children,  only  one 
of  whom  (Charles  D.  Smith,  Esq.,)  is 
now  living. 

MEETING   AT   WAITSFIELD  ON  THE   ADMIS- 
SION  OF   TEXAS. 

"The  undersigned  respectfully  request 
all  the  inhabitants  of  Waitsfield  to  meet 
at  the  brick  Meeting  house  on  Thursday, 
the  17th  day  of  August  inst.,  at  three 
o'clock  P.  M.,  for  the  purpose  of  expres- 
sing their  views  in  relation  to  the  propri- 
ety of  having  Texas  annexed  to  the  Uni- 
ted States  as  a  slave  holding  territory. 
We  consider  this  a  subject  of  great  impor- 
tance, and  earnestly  invite  a  general  atten- 
dance. 

Waitsfield,  August  7th,  1837. 


Wm.  Bragg, 
Zana  Moore, 
Jenison  Joslin, 
Horace  S.  Jones, 
Hiram  Joslin, 


Jonathan  H.  Brown, 
Rod'k  Richardson, 
D.  C.  Joyslin, 
Azro  D.  Rice, 
John  W.  Steele, 


James  C.  Fargo,         W.  M.  Guilford, 
Stephen  P.  Joslin,      Dan.  Richardson, 
Samuel  Chipman,       H.  Cardell, 
Matthias  S.  Jones,     J.  B.  Bisbee, 
Robert  Leach,  Roswell  Morris, 

S.  H.  Cheney,  Benjamin  Reed,  Jr., 

Orange  Smith,  Lsaac  Hawley, 

L.  W.  Truman,  Wells  Hitchcock, 

Wm.  M.  Pingry,         Harry  Jones, 
R.  Richardson,  Jr.,    Charles  Jones. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  the  preamble 
and  Resolutions  together  with  the  proceed- 
ings of  this  meeting,  signed  by  the  chair- 
man and  Sec,  be  forwarded  to  each  of 
the  pol.  presses  at  Mont,  for  publication, 
also  to  each  of  our  Senators  and  Reps,  in 
Congress. 

Whereas,  it  is  the  priviledge  of  the  citi- 
zens of  a  republican  goverment  to  assemble 
together  for  the  purpose  of  expressing  their 
sentiments  on  all  subjects  in  which  they 
are  interested,  and  it  becomes  their  duty 
so  to  do,  when  questions  of  great  moment 
are  proposed,  especially  when  in  the  de- 
cision of  those  questions  the  rights  and  lib- 
erties of  American  citizens  are  involved. 
And  whereas  slavery,  in  the  language  of  a 
distinguished  senator  from  Virginia,  is  a 
"moral  and  political  evil,  an  evil  in  the  eye 
of  religion,  philanthropy  and  reason,"  and 
is  opposed  to  both  the  letter  and  spirit  of 
the  Declaration,  "  that  all  men  are  created 
equal ;  that  they  are  endowed  by  their 
Creator  with  certain  unalienable  rights, 
that  among  these  are  life,  liberty,  and  the 
pursuit  of  happiness,"  and  is  a  gross  viola- 
tion of  that  divine  law  which  commands 
"whatsoever  ye  would  that  others  should 
do  unto  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them."  And 
whereas,  the  annexation  of  Texas  to  this 
country  would  have  a  tendency  to  perpet- 
uate the  system  of  slavery,  and  endanger 
the  liberties  of  our  country  by  subjecting 
us  to  discord  at  home  and  conflict  abroad  : 

Therefore  resolved,  that  however  much 
we  may  differ  with  regard  to  the  immediate 
abolition  of  slavery  now  existing  in  the 
United  States,  we  are  of  one  mind  on  the 
question  of  adding  thereto  by  annexing 
Texas  or  any  other  slave  holding  territory 
to  our  Government. 

Resolved,  That  we  are  opposed  to  the 
annexation  of  Texas  to  the  United  States 
at  the  present  time,  under  any  circumstan- 
ces whatever,  and  that  we  will  use  our  ut- 
most exertion  in  a  lawful  and  constitutional 
manner,  to  prevent  such  a  result. 

Resolved,  That  we  are  in  favor  of  equal 
rights,  and  would  gladly  welcome  the  time 
when  the  enjoyment  of  political,  civil  and 
religious  liberty  shall  be  co-extensive  with 
the  vast  family  of  man. 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
press  to  advocate  and  contend  for  the  doc- 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


trine  of  equal  rights,  and  oppose  the  asso- 
ciation with  our  government  of  any  terri- 
tory whose  constitution,  or  constitutions, 
are  based  upon  any  other  principle. 

Resoleed,  That  every  consistent  person 
that  is  opposed  to  slavery  in  the  abstract, 
must  necessarily  be  opposed  to  annexing 
Texas  to  this  government,  and  that  it 
should  be  the  study  of  the  American  peo- 
ple how  best  to  rid  themselves  of  the  evil 
under  which  they  are  now  labouring,  in- 
stead of  making  addition  thereto. 

Resolved,  That  our  Senators  and  Rep- 
resentatives in  Congress  be  requested  to 
oppose  to  the  utmost  of  their  power,  every 
attempt  to  annex  Texas  to  the  United 
States." 

[The  foregoing  was  contributed  by  Chas. 
A.  Smith,  of  Barre,  a  grandson  of  Orange 
Smith,  of  Waitsfield.  Orange  Smith  draft- 
ed the  above  resolutions.] 

David  Carlisle  Joyslin,  M.  D.,  was 
born  at  Springfield,  Vt.,  May  15,  1799, 
pursued  a  classical  course  at  Randolph 
Grammar  School  ;  graduated  at  Castleton 
Medical  College  in ;  commenced  prac- 
tice in  Waitsfield  in  18 — .  His  practice 
has  been  extensive  and  successful,  not  in 
Waitsfield  only  but  also  largely  in  Warren 
and  Fayston.  At  present  he  has  laid  aside 
the  regular  practice  of  his  profession,  and 
is  more  engaged  in  practical  farming.  He 
married  Oct.  26,  1852,  Miss  Jane  E.  Car- 
penter, a  great  grand-daughter  of  Gen. 
Wait,  by  whom  he  has  had  three  children, 
of  whom  only  one  is  now  living.  Dr. 
Joyslin  died  in  1874. 

Hon.  Ira  Richardson  was  born  in 
Waitsfield  Oct.  6,  1816,  and  enjoyed  the 
usual  advantages  of  its  common  schools; 
represented  the  town  in  1856,  and  again  in 
1866,  and  served  as  assistant  judge  of 
Washington  county  in  i868-'69.  For 
many  years  his  health  was  exceedingly 
poor,  yet  he  has  done  a  great  deal  for  the 
business  of  the  town  by  engaging  in  mer- 
cantile and  manufacturing  pursuits,  as  well 
as  farming.  He  is  the  owner  of  mills  that 
turn  off  a  large  quantity  of  lumber,  chiefly 
clapboards,  and  of  a  tannery.  He  mar- 
ried April  6,  1843,  Harriet  F.  Chapman, 
and  has  raised  up  a  family  of  sons  who  are 
now  in  active  bu.siness. 


Hon.  Jonathan  Hammond  Hastings, 
was  born  in  Waitsfield,  Feb.  12,  1824,  and 
has  been  a  resident  of  the  town  until  the 
present  time,  and  for  many  years  entrusted 
with  a  portion  of  the  town  business.  He 
filled  the  office  of  deputy  sheriff  and  con- 
stable for  10  years  from  1846,  to  the  entire 
satisfaction  of  the  people;  in  i856-'7  was 
high  sheriff  of  the  county  ;  represented 
the  town  in  general  assembly  in  i862-'63, 
and  was  elected  senator  in  1869.  He  has 
also  been  connected  with  the  Waterbury 
bank  as  director  for  13  years.  He  married 
Nov.  I,  1848,  Miss  Ellen  M.  Merriam  of 
Johnson,  by  whom  he  has  had  6  children. 

EDWIN   F.    PALMER,    ESQ., 

of  Waterbury,  was  born  in  Waitsfield, 
Jan.  22,  1836.  In  his  boyhood,  he  exhib- 
ited more  than  usual  capacity  as  a  scholar, 
and  began  a  course  of  classical  study  while 
still  a  youth,  reciting  to  Rev.  Charles 
Duran, pastor  of  the  Congregational  church, 
and  afterwards  pursuing  his  course  at  the 
Northfield  Institute ;  and  graduating  with 
honor  at  Dartmouth,  in  1862 ;  and  becom- 
ing a  member  of  the  college  church  during 
his  course  of  study.  He  then  studied  law 
with  Hon.  Paul  Dillingham,  and  has  prac- 
ticed in  Waterbury  since,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  6  months  service  in  the  custom- 
house at  Island  Pond,  and  9  months  ser- 
vice as  2d  Lieut  of  Co.  B,  13th  Vt.  ;  during 
which  time  he  kept  a  diary,  and  on  his  re- 
turn, published  a  neat  little  work  entitled 
"  Camp  Life,"  which  is  prized  by  his  com- 
rades and  their  friends,  as  an  accurate  and 
pleasant  history  of  their  campaign.  He 
was  married  June  15,  1865,  to  Miss  Addie 
D.  Hartshorn. 

REV.    AMARIAH   CHANDLER, 

was  a  native  of  Shelburne,  Mass.,  a  gradu- 
ate of  U.  V.  M.,  and  a  theological  pupil  of 
Rev.  Dr.  Packard  of  Shelburne,  Mass. 
He  was  settled  in  Waitsfield  in  x8io,  and 
dismissed  in  1830.  During  all  this  time, 
he  was  a  faithful  pastor,  a  kind  sympa- 
thizing friend,  and  a  man  of  courage  and 
power  in  every  direction.  Several  times 
in  this  sketch,  we  have  had  occasion  to  re- 
fer to  him,  and  the  savor  of  his  name  is 
still  sweet  in  all  this  region.     He  was  both 


WAITSFIELD. 


789 


eloquent  and  witty,  but  he  used  the  latter 
mainly  as  a  weapon  of  defense.  Woe  to 
the  man  that  attempted  to  oppose  or  en- 
trap him  in  any  matter,  a  very  few  meas- 
ured words  would  shut  his  month.  His 
gentleness  could  not  be  exceeded,  but  he 
had  the  most  perfect  contempt  for  all  dis- 
play. He  was  short  and  stout  in  person, 
and  in  habits  quite  refreshingly  rustic. 
The  best  picture  that  could  be  made  of 
him,  would  be  a  delineation  of  that  scene 
at  his  own  door,  (after  he  had  removed  to 
Greenfield,  and  received  rather  thanklessly 
the  degree  of  D.  D.)  when  a  dapper  young 
man  approached  him,  as  he  was  washing 
his  bare  feet  at  the  pump  after  a  morning's 
labor  in  his  field,  and  inquired  for  '"Mr. 
Chandler."  "  I  am  Mr.  Chandler,"  was 
his  quiet  reply.  "But!  mean  Rev.  Mr. 
Chandler,"  said  the  stranger.  "Yes,  sir, 
that  is  my  name."  But  still  obtuse,  the 
young  theologue  persisted  in  saying,  "but 
I  mean  Rev.  Amariah  Chandler,  D.  D." 
"  Yes,  sir,  they  sometimes  call  me  all  that," 
said  the  doctor,  quietly  enjoying  the  dis- 
comfiture of  one  who  mistook  him  for  a 
boor. 

The  writer  remembers  of  his  rising  to 
preach,  (when  on  a  visit  to  his  daughter 
only  a  few  years  ago,)  and  saying  meas- 
uredly,  "  The  sermon  I  am  about  to  preach 
will  perhaps  be  remembered  by  some  of 
you  who  are  here  to-day.  If  you  do  not 
remember  it,  it  will  make  no  diflference  to 
you.  If  you  do,  it  will  make  a  great  dif- 
ference with  me,  for  I  shall  be  glad  to 
know  that  you  remember  so  well." 

In  his  later  days,  he  preached  a  sermon 
in  which  he  acknowledged  some  change  of 
views  on  doctrinal  subjects.  This  sermon 
the  writer  has  not  been  able  to  lay  hold  of 
now,  but  from  his  recollections  of  it, 
(having  read  it  when  a  boy)  he  believes  it 
to  have  shown  Mr.  Chandler  to  be  precise- 
ly with  the  majority  of  Congregational 
ministers  at  the  present  time  ;  and  though 
it  created  some  discussion,  and  met  with 
disapproval  from  some  of  his  people  whom 
he  had  trained  so  well  to  think  and  judge 
for  themselves,  yet  we  suspect  it  would 
prove  to  be  a  crowning  glory  to  him,  as 
showing  that  he  was  an  inquirer  after  truth, 


even  at  three-score-and-ten,  and  certainly 
the  humility  and  candor  of  it,  in  frankly 
expressing  his  almost  lifelong  mistake  as 
he  then  thought  it,  was  noble. 

When  he  reached  his  70th  birth-day, 
he  resigned  his  pastoral  charge,  saying  to 
his  people,  that  he  did  not  intend  to  leave 
them,  and  was  ready  to  minister  to  them 
still,  but  he  meant  to  put  it  out  of  his  pow- 
er to  pastor  them  when  he  should  become 
childish.  Thus  the  matter  stood  until  his 
death.  It  would  probably  have  been  hard 
to  have  convinced  his  people  that  there 
was  any  danger  of  his  getting  childish 
after  that. 

We  cannot  help  .saying,  O  that  he  had 
remained  in  Waitsfield,  while  he  lived ! 
The  people  were  very  loth  to  part  with 
him  in  1830,  but  they  did  not  fully  realize 
what  they  were  losing,  or  they  would 
have  utterly  refused  to  let  him  go,  and  re- 
sisted until  they  had  compelled  him  to 
remain. 

Rev.  Perrin  B.  Fisk,  son  of  Moses, 
was  born  July  6,  1792,  and  in  youth  and 
early  manhood  followed  the  trade  of  a 
saddler,  residing  at  Montpelier,  where  he 
married  (May,  1815),  Miss  Azuba  Blais- 
dell.  His  talents  were  rather  above  the 
point  of  mediocrity,  but  he  had  small  op- 
portunities for  study.  After  his  conversion 
he  became  very  anxious  to  do  more  good, 
and  in  a  short  time  was  led  to  change  his 
views  upon  the  subject  of  baptism,  in 
consequence  to  leave  the  Congregational 
for  the  Baptist  church,  by  which  order  he 
was  immediately  licensed  to  preach,  and 
was  at  length  settled  in  Wardsboro,  as 
pastor  of  the  Baptist  church.  The  late 
Rev.  P.  H.  White  was  at  this  time  one  of 
the  young  men  who  sat  under  his  preach- 
ing. His  remembrance  of  the  man,  as 
given  to  the  writer,  was  of  a  corpulent  and 
jolly  man,  who  enjoyed  to  sit  on  the  store 
steps  and  smoke  and  tell  stories,  both  of 
which  he  could  do  well.  As  a  preacher, 
he  was  able  to  compare  fairly  with  the  av- 
erage men  of  his  denomination.  He  was 
the  father  of  three  children,  two  of  whom 
were  sons.  Moses,  the  eldest,  was  a 
shrewd  and  smart,  but  unprincipled  young 
man,  who  lived  fast,  and  died  early,  leav- 


79° 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ing  a  young  widow  and  babe,  both  of 
whom  are  now  dead,  and  Thomas  was 
sheriff  in  Washington  Co.,  N.  Y.,  from 
the  time  he  was  21  until  he  led  his  men 
through  the  bloody  campaigns  of  the 
Potomac  as  lieutenant  and  captain  of  ar- 
tillery. 

Rev.  Joel  Fisk,  brother  of  the  above, 
was  born  Oct.  26,  1796,  and  lived  at 
Waitsfield  until  the  age  of  20,  when,  be- 
coming pious,  he  gave  himself  up  to  the 
work  of  the  ministry,  and  at  length  grad- 
uated at  Middlebury,  in  1825;  studied 
theology  with  Rev.  Charles  Walker,  of 
Pittsford,  and  at  the  age  of  30,  was  or- 
dained pastor  of  the  Congregational  church 
in  Monkton.  He  was  almost  reprimanded 
while  in  college  for  his  persistence  in  re- 
vival work,  and  this  fact  is  a  true  exponent 
of  his  whole  professional  life.  He  labored 
successively  and  successfully  in  the  follow- 
ing places,  viz.  :  New  Haven,  Vt.,  Essex, 
N.  Y.,  Montreal  and  Phillipsburgh,  C.  E. 
(as  it  then  was),  Irasburgh  and  Plainfield, 
Vt.,  where  he  died  Dec.  16,  1856.  He  was 
devoted  to  his  work,  searching  in  his 
style,  and  a  man  of  decided  literary  taste. 
He  married,  Oct.  15,  1826,  Miss  Clarinda 
Chapman,  by  whom  he  had  7  children, 
of  whom  are  Harvey,  of  the  celebrated 
firm  of  Fisk  and  Hatch,  in  New  York  City, 
and  Pliny,  president  of  the  American  Pot- 
tery Co.,  of  Trenton,  N.  J. 

Rev.  Harvey  Fisk,  brother  of  the  two 
last  noticed,  was  born  Apr.  12,  1799,  and 
had  in  early  life  the  reputation  of  being  a 
smart,  wild,  but  very  truthful  boy.  At  the 
ao-e  of  14  he  was  apprenticed  to  the  late 
Gen.  E.  P.  Walton,  of  Montpelier,  to  learn 
the  printer's  trade.  Here  he  made  friends 
and  acquired  much  useful  knowledge,  but 
withal,  had  such  a  vein  of  fun  and  frolic 
and  an  aptness  at  practical  joking  in  him, 
that  he  provoked  the  momentary  indigna- 
tion, as  well  as  the  regard,  of  those  who 
knew  him.  Having  become  a  Christian 
here,  he  gave  himself  up  to  the  work  of 
the  ministry,  graduating  at  Hamilton  Col- 
lege in  the  class  of  '26,  and  at  Princeton 
Theological  Sem.  Subsequently,  during 
his  studies,  he  worked  his  way  with  the 
composing  stick,  ,and   was   the   compiler. 


and  for  some  time  the  publisher,  of  the 
"American  Sunday-School  Union,"  and 
the  compiler  and  publisher  of  the  "Union 
Question  Books"  for  Sunday-schools.  He 
died  very  suddenly  at  New  York  City,  after 
less  than  a  year  of  ministerial  labor.  He 
married,  Feb.  17,  1829,  Anna  M.  Plumb, 
by  whom  he  had  one  son,  Harvey  Jon- 
athan, who  is  at  present  an  accountant  in 
Detroit,  Mich.,  thus  maintaining  his  wid- 
owed mother. 

Rev.  Pliny  Fisk  Barnard  was  born  in 
Waitsfield,  Nov.  9,  1820  ;  pursued  a  course 
of  classical  study  at  Jericho  and  Mont- 
pelier;  graduated  at  Dartmouth  in  1843; 
at  Bangor  Theological  Seminary  in  1846; 
was  settled  over  the  Congregational  church 
in  Richmond,  Me.,  in  1847,  and  after  a 
pastorate  of  9  years,  removed  to  Williams- 
town,  Vt.,  where  he  continues  to  exercise 
the  pastoral  ofilce  with  much  acceptance. 
He  married,  Nov.  4,  1846,  Julia,  daughter 
of  Rev.  James  Hobart,  of  Berlin,  by  whom 
he  has  had  7  children. 

Rev.  Perrin  B.  Fisk,  son  of  Deacon 
Lyman,  and  grandson  of  Deacon  Moses, 
was  born  July  3,  1837  ;  studied  at  Barre 
Academy  and  at  Bangor  Theological  Sem- 
inary, where  he  graduated  in  1863,  and 
was  immediately  settled  as  pastor  of  the 
Congregattonal  church  at  West  Dracut, 
Mass  ;  in  1865  was  dismissed,  and  removed 
to  Rockport,  where  he  -supplied  the  First 
church  during  the  European  tour  of  Rev. 
W.  H.  Dunning,  the  pastor;  1866,  was 
settled  as  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church  in  Peacham,  Vt.,  where  he  still 
resides  ;  served  as  chaplain  of  the  Senate 
of  Vermont  in  1869;  otherwise  chiefly  dis- 
tinguished as  the  author  of  this  sketch  of 
Waitsfield.  In  1863,  he  was  married  to 
Miss  Harriet  L.  Bigelovv,  of  Waitsfield, 
a  great-great-grand-daughter  of  Gen. Wait. 

Rev.  Alonzo  Hitchcock  was  born  at 
Waitsfield,  Nov.  29,  1814;  pursued  h's 
studies  mainly  with  a  resident  clergyman, 
and  has  been  stationed  in  the  following 
M.  E.  churches,  viz. :  Albany,  St.  Johns- 
bury,  East  Walden,  Bethel,  Gaysville, 
Randolph,  Corinth,  Bradford,  Proctors- 
ville,  Plainfield,  Cabot,  E.  Burke,  Middle- 


WAITSFIELD. 


791 


sex,  and  is  now  acting  as  agent  of  the 
Methodist  Conference  Sem.  at  Montpelier. 

Matthias  Joslin  was  born  in  Waits- 
field,  Aug.  19,  1806,  and  finished  his  lim- 
ited education  at  Royalton.  In  1S30,  he 
entered  upon  missionary  work  as  a  teacher 
among  the  Choctaws.  He  had  charge  of 
the  boys'  school  at  Mayhew  until  the  re- 
moval of  the  tribe  by  government  to  the 
new  country  assigned  them  west  of  the 
Mississippi,  which  took  place  in  1832. 
Mr.  Joslin  then  returned  to  Waitsfield, 
and  remained  during  the  summer  and  fall. 
In  September  he  married  Miss  Sophia  M. 
Palmer,  and  with  her  returned  to  the 
Indian  country,  residing  at  Dwight among 
the  Cherokees,  and  when  he  was  about  to 
return  to  his  contemplated  field  among 
the  Choctaws,  was  removed  by  death, 
Nov.  21,  1833,  after  an  illness  of  only  ii 
days.  He  was  a  good  man  and  his  end 
was  peace.  [Mr.  Joslin's  widow  married 
a  Mr.  Newton,  and  is  now  living  at  San 
Antonio,  Texas. — E.  A.  F.] 

Ira  Bushnell,  son  of  Dea.  Jedediah 
Bushnell,  was  born  June  11,  1826;  fitted 
for  college  at  Johnson,  and  graduated  in 
Burlington  in  1856.  He  was  a  yoinig  man 
of  deep  piety,  and  of  much  promise,  who 
had  consecrated  himself  to  the  work  of  the 
ministry.  But  being  not  the  readiest, 
though  one  of  the  most  persistent  of  stu- 
dents, and  a  very  athletic  young  man,  who 
had  been  accustomed  to  labor  on  a  farm, 
his  health  during  his  college  course  was 
undermined.  Soon  after  he  graduated,  he 
was  attacked  with  hemorrhage  of  the  lungs, 
and  gradually  wasted  away  until  June  16, 
1858,  when  he  died. 

GuRLEY  A.  Phelps,  M.  D.,  was  born 
in  Waitsfield,  June  30,  1822 ;  pursued  a 
course  of  classical  study  at  Montpelier  and 
of  professional  study  at  Castle  ton,  and  the 
College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  in 
New  York.  Took  up  his  residence  in 
Jaflfrey,  N.  H.,  where  he  has  had  an  exten- 
sive practice,  and  attained  a  wide  reputa- 
tion as  a  skillful  physician.  He  married 
April  10,  185 1,  Miss  Adaliza  Cutter,  who 
deserves  mention  as  a  poetess  of  much 
merit.  Some  time  after  her  death  he  was 
married   again    (Nov.    3,    1858,)  to  Miss 


Nancy  P.  Stoughton.  He  united  at  an 
early  date  with  the  Congregational  church, 
and  the  testimony  of  those  who  know  him 
best  is,  that  he  is  both  the  Christian  gen- 
tleman and  the  beloved  physician. 

There  are  quite  a  number  of  other  noted 
men  who  were  reared  in  this  town ;  edu- 
cated in  her  common  schools  and  whose 
purposes  for  life  were  undoubtedly  formed 
for  the  most  part  while  residents,  a  part  of 
whom  entered  into  their  business  or  began 
to  study  their  profession  while  here.  We 
are  able  in  this  number  to  mention  Hon. 
Geo.  N.  Dale,  at  present  president  pro. 
tem.  of  the  Vermont  senate,  and  Col.  C. 
H.  Joyce  of  Rutland,  both  of  whom  grew 
up  to  manhood  in  Waitsfield ;  Norman 
Durant,  Esq.,  whose  promising  life  was 
lost  in  the  search  for  gold  in  California  in 
1850,  and  Luther  L.  Durant,  (brother 
of  the  above,)  at  the  age  of  8  years  be- 
came a  resident  of  Waitsfield,  and  may, 
therefore  be  said  to  have  received  his  early 
education  in  that  town.  And  this  with  an 
occasional  term  at  the  select  school  com- 
prised all  his  course  of  general  study.  At 
his  majority  he  entered  the  office  of  B.  H. 
Adams,  Esq.,  of  Waitsfield,  and  com- 
menced the  study  of  the  law,  completing 
his  course  with  C.  W.  Upham  of  Barre. 
He  then  practiced  at  Waitsfield  from  1852 
to  October,  1855,  when  he  was  invited  by 
Hon.  Paul  Dillingham  to  enter  into  part- 
nership at  Waterbury  for  5  years,  and  at 
its  close  had  hardly  opened  an  office  him- 
self before  the  same  offer  was  repeated  and 
accepted,  which  being  fulfilled  in  Decem- 
ber, 1866,  he  removed  to  Montpelier  and 
formed  partnership  with  Col.  F.  V.  Ran- 
dall. The  court  docket  shows  that  their 
practice  must  now  be  very  extensive,  in- 
deed. Reference  to  his  initials  will  bear 
out  the  pleasantry  that  he  has  the  title  as 
well  as  the  practice;  while  at  Waitsfield 
(viz.,  in  1853)  he  married  Miss  Julia  M. 
Tenneyof  Dalton,  N.  H.,  with  whom  he 
still  lives,  and  by  whom  he  had  2  children. 

The  father  of  these  two  successful  men 
passed  away  in  1868 ;  a  much  esteemed 
citizen  and  devoted  Christian,  and  a  genial 
and  intelligent  man.  The  mother  still 
resides  at  Waitsfield. 


792 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


We  may  also  mention  Hon.  G.  D.  Rice, 
of  Wisconsin,  and  Hon.  Edmund  Rice, 
both  of  whom  were  reared  and  had  en- 
gaged in  business  in  Waitsfield  before 
they  became  pioneers  in  the  West,  and 
whose  subsequent  record  we  have  much 
reason  to  be  proud'  of,  and  Hon.  Ww. 
PiNGRY,  who  spent  a  number  of  his  best 
years  in  town  as  an  attorney,  and  who  had 
a  commanding  influence  in  the  town  while 
he  remained. 

We  must  crave  the  forbearance  of  our 
friends  in  advance,  on  account  of  the  al- 
most certainty  that  some  names  which 
ought  to  be  noticed  will  be  overlooked, 
and  defend  ourself  slightly  by  remarking 
that  quite  a  number  of  the  circulars  we 
sent  out  to  obtain  accurate  information 
have  not  come  back  to  us  again.  We 
have  no  reason  to  suppose  that  our  work 
will  amount  to  more  than  a  beginning,  for 
the  history  of  AVaitsfield  is  making  yet, 
and  in  closing  this  sketch,  which,  though 
more  laborious  than  we  anticipated,  has 
yet  afforded  us  much  pleasure,  as  treasuring 
up  much  that  ought  to  be  saved,  but  that 
would  in  a  few  years  have  been  lost.  We 
ask  our  young  friends  especially  to  make 
such  use  of  the  means  of  education,  take 
such  a  stand  on  all  the  questions  of  the 
day,  and  ground  themselves  upon  such 
noble  principles,  that  whoever  takes  up 
the  historic  pen  we  are  now  about  to  lay 
down,  shall  be  able  to  say  at  least  that 
the  old  stock  has  not  degenerated.  In 
some  particulars  it  will  be  difficult  indeed 
for  them  to  obtain  a  better  record  than 
that. 

WAITSFIELD,  1869-1S82. 

BY  DEA.  E.  A.  FISK. 

In  the  preceding  pages.  Rev.  P.  B. 
Fisk  has  brought  the  history  of  Waitsfield 
down  to  1869. 

Since  that  date,  events  have  occurred 
which  ought  not  to  be  left  unrecorded. — 
Two  tasteful  and  commodious  churches 
have  been  erected  in  our  village  ;  the  rire- 
fiend  has  broken  loose  and  destroyed  more 
property  than  during  all  the  previous  his- 
tory of  the  town ;  a  radical  change  has 
been  made  in  our  common  school  system. 


and    there  are  many   minor  events   which 
should  not  be  omitted. 

CHURCHES. 

In  1S70,  the  Methodist  church  was  built 
at  a  cost  of  about  $7500,  On  the  base- 
ment floor,  is  a  large  room  for  Sabbath 
schools,  lectures,  &c.,  besides  smaller 
rooms  for  other  purposes ;  while  above,  is 
the  audience  room,  capable  of  seating 
about  300  persons.  It  is  a  good  church, 
tasteful  and  convenient,  and  reflects  great 
credit  upon  the  builders,  who  overcame 
many  difficulties  in  its  erection. 

It  was  dedicated  in  Feb.,  1871.  The 
following  is  a  list  of  the  pastors  of  the  M. 
E.  church  since  1869:  Rev.  J.  Hamilton, 
1S70-71  ;  Rev.  E.  Folsom,  1871-74;  Rev. 
J.  A.  Sherburne,  1874-77;  Rev.  C.  H. 
Leverton,  iSyy-yS;  Rev.  Geo.  L.  Wells, 
1878-81  ;  Rev.  C.  P.  Taplin,  1881  to  the 
present  time. 

In  1874,  the  Congregational  church, 
which  stood  upon  the  edge  of  a  plateau, 
east  of  the  village,  was  taken  down,  and  a 
new  church  built  in  the  village,  using  the 
materials  of  the  old  as  far  as  practicable. 

Rev.  J.  H.  Babbitt  pastor  of  the  church, 
was  the  architect,  and  every  jDart  of  the 
structure  bears  witness  of  the  care  and 
skill  with  which  his  labors  were  performed. 
Several  good  judges  have  said  that  there 
are  very  few  churches  in  the  rural  towns  of 
Vermont  that  will  compare  with  it.  This 
church,  likewise,  has  its  audience  room 
above,  and  convenient  rooms,  for  other 
purposes,  on  the  ground  floor.  Cost 
about  $8600,  exclusive  of  several  hundred 
dollars  in  gratuitous  labor.  The  building 
committee  were  able  to  report  every  dol- 
lar of  expenses  provided  for  soon  after  the 
dedication  of  the  church  in  July,  1875; 
and  what  is  better,  the  building  of  this 
church  was  not  the  cause  of  the  least  divis- 
ion or  hard  feeling  among  the  members  of 
the  society,  as  is  too  often  the  case. 

Rev.  J.  H.  Babbitt  continued  to  be  the 
pastor  of  the  Congregational  church  till 
Dec,  1876,  when,  much  to  the  regret  of 
his  parishioners,  he  resigned,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  Stephen  H.  Robinson, 
who  was  ordained  in  Sept.,  1877,  and  is 
the  pastor  at  the  present  time. 


WAITSFIELD. 


793 


In  Sept.,  1881,  Pliny  B.  Fisk,  a  member 
of  this  church,  who  graduated  at  U.  V. 
M.,  and  studied  at  Yale  Theo.  Sem,,  was 
ordained  here  as  an  evangelist  to  labor  on 
our  Western  frontier. 

UNIVERSALIST. 

This  society  has  had  occasional  preach- 
ing since  1S69,  and  for  a  year  or  two  pre- 
vious to  1875  they  held  regular  services. 
Rev.  John  Gregory,  of  Northfield,  and 
Rev.  W.  H.  Walbridge,  occupying  the 
pulpit  on  alternate  Sabbaths.  Some  time 
in  1874,  Mr.  Walbridge  was  ordained 
here,  but  at  the  close  of  the  year,  removed 
to  Stowe. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  legislature  of  1870,  passed  an  act 
enabling  a  town  to  abolish  its  school  dis- 
tricts, and  bring  the  schools  under  the  di- 
rect supervision  of  the  town.  In  accord- 
dance  with  this  act,  Waitsfield,  at  its 
annual  meeting  in  1871,  voted  to  adopt 
the  town  system  of  schools.  It  was  a  new 
measure  in  this  State,  and  was  regarded 
by  many  of  its  friends  as  an  experiment, 
which  they  undertook  with  many  fears, 
and  in  the  face  of  a  strong  opposition. 
Two  years  later,  the  town  voted  to  contin- 
ue it  by  a  very  small  majority ;  but  after 
ten  years  of  trial,  its  success  was  such, 
that  when  the  proposition  was  made  to  re- 
turn to  the  district  system,  nearly  three 
fourths  of  the  votes  cast  were  against  it. 
Schools  are  maintained  in  the  same  places 
as  formerly,  with  the  exception  of  a  very 
small  one  which  has  been  dropped  from 
the  list. 

The  school  year,  however,  has  been 
lengthened  from  two  terms,  or  24  weeks, 
to  3  terms,  or  30  weeks  in  all.  There  has 
also  been  greater  permanence  of  teachers, 
and  the  school-houses  are  much  improved. 
It  is  but  just  to  add  that  the  efficient  su- 
pervision of  Dr.  W.  A.  Jones,  for  7  years 
past  the  chairman  of  the  board  of  school 
directors,  has  done  much  toward  the  pros- 
perity of  our  schools. 

TEMPERANCE. 

A  Good  Templars  Lodge  was  organized 
in  1868,  and  has  held  weekly  meetings  to 
the  present  time.  By  this  means,  some 
who    were    intemperate    have   reformed ; 


many  young  persons  have  become  thor- 
oughly established  in  temperance  princi- 
ples, and  public  sentiment  on  the  subject 
has  greatly  improved. 

FIRES. 

It  is  mentioned  by  Rev.  P.  B.  Fisk, 
that  from  the  settlement  of  the  town  to  the 
time  of  writing  his  history,  15  fires  had  oc- 
curred ;  but  from  that  date  to  the  present 
time  there  have  been  12  fires  of  consider- 
able dimensions,  besides  two  cooper-shops 
and  several  sugar-houses.  In  three  cases 
an  entire  set  of  farm  buildings  were  de- 
stroyed ;  in  one,  a  house  and  small  barn 
in  the  village ;  in  four  or  five  cases  houses 
were  burned,  and  on  four  occasions  a 
barn  or  barns  were  consumed,  and  in  two 
of  these,  cattle  were  burned. 

As  early  as  1877,  it  began  to  be  suspect- 
ed that  all  these  fires  were  not  accidental. 
In  April  of  that  year,  unoccupied  build- 
ings belonging  to  Mr.  John  Towle  were 
burned,  and  this  was  followed  in  about  a 
month  by  the  destruction  of  Geo.  Folsom's 
barns  and  18  cows,  and  the  next  night 
L.  K.  Hooker's  house  and  barns  were 
burned.  The  latter  could  be  accounted 
for,  but  the  others  could  not. 

Next  in  October,  1878,  Mr.  T.  G.  W. 
Farr's  house  and  barns  were  burned  under 
circumstances  that  were  very  mysterious, 
to  say  the  least.  There  appeared  to  be  no 
way  to  account  for  it  except  as  the  work 
of  an  incendiary,  and  yet  it  hardly  seemed 
possible  that  any  one  could  be  so  bold  as 
to  set  a  fire  early  in  a  moonlight  evening, 
in  the  position  where  it  was  first  observed. 

In  October,  1879,  on  the  exact  anniver- 
sary of  the  fire  at  Mr.  Farr's,  another  large 
fire  occurred  which  was  equally  inexplica- 
ble. Several  barns  belonging  to  Mr.  L. 
R.  Joslyn  were  burned.  A  pair  of  4-years 
old  oxen  weighing  over  4,000  pounds,  and 
that  had  just  taken  the  first  premium  at 
the  State  Fair,  were  also  destroyed.  This 
fire  was  the  scene  of  desperate  but  success- 
ful effort  to  save  Mr.  Joslyn's  house  and 
other  buildings.  After  exhausting  the 
supplies  of  water  near  at  hand,  a  line  of 
men  was  formed  reaching  to  the  river  a 
third  of  a  mile  away,  and  thus  buckets  of 
water  came  to  hand  so  rapidly  that  by  the 


794 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


aid  of  a  small  force-pump  and  a  favorable 
wind  the  fire  was  stayed.  About  a  week 
after  this  Mr.  R.  H.  Barnard's  barns  were 
burned  early  one  morning.  It  then  seemed 
certain  that  some  one  living  among  us  was 
the  author  of  this  destruction,  but  the 
evidence  against  any  one  was  so  meagre 
that  no  arrests  were  made.  The  next 
week,  however,  occurred  the  largest  fire  of 
all,  and  it  proved  to  be  the  final  one  of 
this  series. 

All  of  Mr.  E.  W.  Bisbee's  buildings 
(just  in  the  edge  of  Moretown,)  were  de- 
stroyed, and  a  man  was  seen  running  away 
from  the  barn  just  before  the  fire  broke 
out.  A  court  of  investigation  was  held, 
and  the  evidence  pointed  in  a  certain 
direction  so  strongly  that  the  person  im- 
plicated finally  confessed  to  having  set  six 
fires  during  two  or  three  years  previous. 
We  will  not  attempt  to  immortalize  his  name 
by  recording  it  here,  but  will  simply  say 
that  he  is  now  serving  out  a  sentence  of 
25  years  at  Windsor. 

Since  then  we  have  had  no  fires  of  any 
importance,  but  those  times  of  excitement 
and  fear  made  so  strong  an  impression 
upon  the  people  of  Waitsfield  that  even  at 
the  present  time  they  can  scarcely  be  re- 
called without  a  shudder. 

It  is  sometimes  said  that  lightning  never 
strikes  twice  in  the  same  spot,  but  Mr. 
O.  H.  Joslin  had  a  barn  burned  by  light- 
ning in  1868,  and  again  in  1876  another 
built  upon  the  site  of  the  old  one  was 
burned  by  the  same  cause,  and  a  year  or 
two  after  a  tree  very  near  where  these 
barns  were  burned  was  struck,  and  a  cow 
standing  under  it  knocked  kown ;  also  a 
tree  standing  in  Mr.  Joslin's  pasture  has 
been  twice  struck  by  lightning,  it  being 
set  on  fire  the  last  time. 

There  has  been  a  very  noticeable  im- 
provement in  the  character  of  farm  build- 
ings in  this  town  during  the  last  few  years. 
One  large  barn  is  now  the  order  of  the 
day,  instead  of  the  cluster  of  small  ones 
that  one  used  to  see.  This  plan  has  been 
followed  almost  without  exception  where 
barns  have  been  burned,  thus  giving  us  an 
example  of  the  way  in  which  good  may 
come  out  of  evil.     And  many  others  are 


rebuilding  upon  the  same  plan,  so  that  ac- 
cording to  present  appearances  it  will  take 
but  a  few  years  longer  to  work  a  complete 
revolution  in  the  appearance  of  barns  in 
this  town. 

INSTANCES   OF   LONGEVITV. 

The  records  show  the  death  of  so  many 
aged  persons  in  town  since  1867,  that  some 
statement  in  regard  to  it  seems  to  be  de- 
manded. During  that  period  33  persons 
have  died  at  an  age  exceeding  80  years. 
Of  this  number,  18  were  more  than  85, 
and  8  more  than  90  years  old.  The  names 
and  ages  of  the  latter  are  as  follows  : 

Henry  Dewey,  aged  96,  died  in  1875  ; 
Mrs.  Elizabeth  Barrett,  94,  in  1873 ;  Job 
House,  94,  1874;  Miss  Charlotte  Smith, 
93,  in  1882;  Thomas  Prentiss,  92,  1877; 
Daniel  Skinner,  91,  1877  ;  Avery  Sherman, 
99,  1873;  Michael  Ryle,  90,  1880. 

Mr.  Thomas  Prentiss,  whose  name  ap- 
pears in  this  list,  was  a  great  reader,  and 
until  a  short  time  before  his  death  there 
were  very  few  persons  in  town  who  kept 
themselves  better  informed  concerning  the 
events  of  the  times,  political  and  general, 
or  whose  opinions  in  regard  to  the  same 
were  more  intelligent  and  discriminating. 

PHYSICIANS. 

Dr.  D.  C.  Joslin  died  in  1874;  Dr.  E. 
G.  Hooker  remained  here  till  1881,  and 
acquired  an  extensive  practice,  but  has  re. 
moved  to  Waterbury ;  Dr.  C.  F.  Camp 
came  here  in  1881  ;  Dr.  J.  M.  VanDeusen 
(homoeopathist),  is  still  with  us. 

LAWYERS. 

Hiram  Carleton  removed  in  1876,  and 
John  W.  Gregory  came  here  in  1879. 

MEMBERS   OF   LEGISLATURE. 

Representatives. — 1870,  Hiram  Carleton, 
chosen  by  a  unanimous  vote  of  the  town  ; 
1872,  H.N.  Bushnell ;  1874, M.  E.  Hadley  ; 
1876,  '78,  L.M.Tyler;  1880,  W.  A.  Jones. 

Senators. — J.  H.  Hastings,  of  this  town, 
was  State  Senator  in  1869  and  1870,  and 
Ira  Richardson  in  1876,  the  latter  dying 
during  his  term  of  office. 

R.  J.  Gleason  has  been  town  clerk  for 
more  than  25  years,  and  postmaster  since 
the  first  election  of  Lincoln. 


WAITSFIELD. 


795 


TOWN   CLERKS. 

Moses  Heaton,  from  March,  1794,  to 
March,  1796;  Benjamin  Wait,  Jr.,  1796 to 
1802;  Salah  Smith,  1802  to  '4,  '5  to '7 ; 
Ezra  Jones,  1804  to  '5,  '7  to  'lo  ;  Edmund 
Rice,  I8I0  to  '16,  '26  to  '2-]  ;  Matthias  S. 
Jones,  1816  to  '26;  Jennison  Jones,  I827 
to  '28;  Lewis  Holden,  I828  to  '36;  Wm. 
M.  Pingry,  I836  to  '4I ;  Orange  Smith, 
I84I,  '43,  '45  to  '46;  Jonathan  Morse,  I843 
to  ''45  ;  Cyrus  Joslin,  I846  to  '48 ;  Cyrus 
Skinner,  I848  to  the  time  of  his  death  in 
I855;  R.  J.  Gleason,  June  22,  1855,  to 
March,  I882.  Mr.  Gleason  was  appointed 
by  the  selectmen  to  fill  the  vacancy  oc- 
casioned by  the  death  of  Mr.  Skinner,  and 
has  been  elected  by  the  town  at  every 
annual  meeting  since  that  time. 

ACCIDENTAL   DEATHS. 

At  least  two  have  occurred  since  Rev. 
Mr.  Fisk  made  out  his  list  in  1869. 

Mary  Ann  Riley,  a  child  of  James  Riley, 
aged  4  years,  was  killed  by  a  cart-body 
falling  over  upon  her,  Sept.  16,  1876. 

Seth  Chase,  aged  10  years,  a  son  of 
Timothy  Chase,  who  was  Hying  at  Thomas 
Poland's,  was  drowned  in  Mad  River  while 
bathing,  June  5,  1881. 

REV.    PLINY   FISK    BARNARD. 

Mr.  Barnard  was  dismissed  from  the 
church  in  Williamstown  in  1870,  and  was 
soon  settled  over  the  Congregational  church 
in  Westhampton,  Mass.,  where  he  remain- 
ed 3  years,  when  he  was  dismissed,  and 
after  a  few  months  became  acting  pastor  of 
the  Congregational  church  in  Westminis- 
ter, where  he  remained  till  1880,  when  he 
removed  to  Ashburnham,  Mass.,  where  he 
resides  at  the  present  time,  (1882)  but  has 
preached  for  the  past  year  at  South  Royal- 
ston,  Mass. 

REV.    PERRIN    B.    FISK, 

was  dismissed  from  the  Congregational 
church  in  Peacham  in  1870,  and  removed 
to  Lyndonville,  where  he  remained  until 
Dec,  1874.  During  his  ministry  at  that 
place,  a  church  was  organized,  and  a  house 
of  worship  and  a  parsonage  built.  The 
plans  for  these  buildings  originated  largely 
with  Mr.  Fisk,  and  his  cares  were  greatly 
increased    by    his    supervision    of    their 


building,  but  when  completed  they  were 
very  highly  spoken  of  by  the  best  judges. 
After  leaving  Lyndonville,  Mr.  Fisk  re- 
moved to  Springfield,  this  State,  and  re- 
mained-as  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church  in  that  place  2  years,  when  he  was 
dismissed  and  accepted  a  call  to  the  Con- 
gregational church  in  Lake  City,  Minn., 
where  he  now  resides. 

REV    HENRY    PARKER 
(BY  C.  J.  SAUGENT,  OF  WAKREN.) 

was  born  in  Waitsfield.  His  parents  were 
Stephen  C.  and  Angeline  Parker.  In  his 
younger  days  he  was  a  clerk  in  stores  at 
Warren,  Brookfield  and  in  Minneapolis, 
Minnesota,  and  from  there  he  went  to 
Meadvllle  College,  Penn.,  in  I874,  where 
he  graduated  in  I877,  and  then  went  to 
Ouincy,  Mass.,  and  toother  places  preach- 
ing on  trial,  and  finally  settled  in  Nashua, 
N.  H.,  with  a  large  salary.  He  is  a  fine 
speaker  and  a  deep  thinker,  of  the  Uni- 
tarian theology. 

Ellen  H.  Sampson,  daughter  of  Rev. 
Guy  C.  Sampson,  was  born  in  this  town, 
as  she  wrote  the  Compiler,  from  Lapeer, 
Mich.,  in  I858.  Miss  S.  has  been  many 
years  a  poetical  correspondent  for  several 
of  the  current  papers  and  magazines.  Her 
father,  a  well-known  anti-slavery  and  tem- 
perance editor  and  lecturer,  died  in  the 
West  some  years  since.  He  edited  a  tem- 
perance paper  for  some  time,  published  at 
Woodstock,  which  town  will  doubtless 
have  some  more  definite  account  of  him 
and  his  family. 

From  the  Vermont  Record. 

Amariah  Chandler  was  born  in  Deer- 
field,  Mass.,  Oct.  27,  1782,  the  youngest, 
and  last  survivor,  of  9  children  of  Moses 
and  Persis  (Harris)  Chandler,  both  of 
them  natives  of  Lancaster,  Mass.  When 
about  5  years  of  age  he  removed  to  Shel- 
burne,  Mass.,  where  he  lived  till  manhood. 
He  fitted  for  college  with  Rev.  Theophilus 
Packard,  of  Shelburne,  entered  the  junior 
class  in  the  University  of  Vermont  in  1805, 
and  was  graduated  in  1807.  At  the  time 
of  his  death  he  was  the  oldest  alumnus  of 
the  University. 

He  read  theology  with  Rev.  Theophilus 
Packard  about  a  year,  was  licensed  by  the 
North  Hampshire  (now  Franklin)  Asso- 
ciation, Nov.  8,  1808,  and  was  ordained 
pastor  of  the    Congregational   church   in 


796 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Waitsfield,  Vt.,  Feb.  7,  1810.  Rev.  Elijah 
Lyman,  of  Brookfield,  preached  the  ser- 
mon, from  Luke  2  :  34.  He  was  dismissed 
Feb.  3,  1830,  and  became  stated  supply  of 
the  Second  Congregational  church  in  Hard- 
wick,  to  which  he  preached  nearly  10 
years.  During  that  time  a  revival  took 
place,  and  40  were  added  to  the  church. 
He  was  installed  pastor  of  the  First  Con- 
gregational church  in  Greenfield,  Mass., 
Oct.  25,  1832.  Rev.  Bancroft  Foster 
preached  the  sermon.  In  1846,  he  re- 
ceived the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  the  Uni- 
versity of  Vermont.  In  1853,  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention 
of  Massachusetts.  His  sermon  before  the 
Legislature  of  Vermont  in  1824,  was  pub- 
lished, as  were  also  several  others  of  his 
occasional  sermons  and  some  miscellaneous 
pamphlets.  They  are  evidently  the  pro- 
ductions of  a  mind  of  great  native  strength. 
He  died  in  Greenfield,  Oct.  20,  1864. 

He  married,  Oct.  2,  1808,  Abigail 
Whitney,  of  Shelburne,  Mass.,  by  whom 
he  had  4  sons  and  4  daughters.  She  died 
June  19,  1833,  and  he  married,  Nov.  17, 
1840,  Mary  (Nims)  Roberts,  widow  of 
Horace  Roberts,  Esq.,  of  Whitingham, 
Vt.  She  died  Mar.  i,  1852,  and  he  mar- 
ried, Oct.  2,  1855,  Mrs.  Eliza  (Bixby) 
Gleason,  widow  of  Solomon  Gleason,  of 
Coleraine,  Mass,  p.  h.  w. 

Coventry,  Vt.,  Nov.  26,  1864. 

ROSWELL   G.    HORR, 

Congressman,  was  born  in  Waitsfield, 
but  left  when  about  2  years  old.  He  is 
now  serving  his  second  term  at  Washing- 
ton, as  member  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives from  Michigan,  and  has  the  name 
of  being  the  "wittiest"  man  in  Congress. 
During  the  campaign  of  1880,  he  re-visited 
Waitsfield,  and  made  an  address  at  short 
notice,  which  was  enthusiastically  received. 


MILITARY,  CONCLUDED   FROM.  PAGE   778. 

The  Memorial  Record  of  Waitsfield,  Vt., 
prepared  by  Rev.  A.  B.  Dascomb.  Pub- 
lished by  vote  of  the  town.  Montpelier: 
Printed  at  the  Free/nan  Steam  Printing 
Establishment,  1867. 
[Extract  from,  of  interesting  facts  not 
given  in  Mr.  Fisk's  paper :] 

Luther  Ainsworth  enlisted  August  14, 
1861,  in  Co.  H,  6th  Vt.  Reg.;  mustered 
in  2d  Lt. ;  promoted  Feb.  18,  '62,  to  ist 
Lt. ;  Sept.  20,  '62,  Capt. ;  killed  May  4, 
'63,  near  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  while  lead- 
ing his  men  in  a  charge  upon  the  enemy. 


He  was  shot  throug  the  abdomen,  dying  a 
few  hours  after  he  was  wounded.  His 
homeless,  orphaned  children  draw  a  pen- 
sion of  $20  per  month. 

Albert  D.  Barnard  enlisted  in  Co.  B,  13th 
Reg  ,  Aug.  25,  '62;  mustered  in  Oct.  10, 
'62  ;  discharged  with  his  company  at  Brat- 
tleboro,  July  21,  '63,  in  a  state  of  exhaus- 
tion; fever  set  in;  died  Aug.  12.  '63,  aged 
21  years. 

Mitchell  Basconner  enlisted  Aug.  14, 
'61,  in  Co.  H,6th  Reg. ;  mustered  Oct.  15, 
'61  ;  killed  at  Lee's  Mills,  Apr.  16,  '62. 

Charles  M.  Benedict  enlisted  May  7, 
'61,  in  Co.  F,  2d  Reg. ;  mustered  in  June 
20,  '61  ;  deserted  Aug.  30,  '62. 

Leonard  C.  Berry  enlisted  in  Co.  H,  2d 
U.  S.  Sharpshooters,  Dec.  14,  '63;  must- 
ered in  Dec.  18,  '63;  was  in  hospital  at 
Washington  3  months  with  a  wound  ;  trans- 
ferred to  Co.  H,  4th  Reg.,  Feb.  25,  '65  ; 
mustered  out  July  13,  '65  ;  wounded  June 
16,  '64,  in  the  arm. 

Henry  N.  Bushnell  enlisted  Aug.  14, 
'61,  as  a  member  of  Co.  H,  6th  Reg.  ; 
mustered  in  as  Sergt.,Oct.  15,  '61  ;  receiv- 
ed a  commission  as  2d  Lieut.,  May  4,  '63  ; 
as  1st  Lieut.,  May  15, '64;  as  Captain,  Oct. 
29,  '64 ;  on  detached  service  in  Division 
Sharpshooters  4  months  ;  5  months  served 
as  1st  Lieut.  Co.  C,  6th  Reg.  With  others 
of  his  company  from  this  town,  he  was  in 
all  the  battles  in  which  the  regiment  was 
engaged — about  25  engagements — cover- 
ing 50  days'  fighting ;  in  his  4  years'  ser- 
vice was  sick  less  than  a  week,  and  never 
wounded,  save  very  slightly ;  mustered  out 
June  26,  '65. 

Bertram  D.  Campbell  enlisted  in  Co.  H, 
3d  Reg.  June3,'6i  ;  mustered  out  Aug., '61  ; 
enlisted  again  ii.  Co.  H,  6th  Reg. ;  thrown 
out  by  the  surg.  ;  re-enlisted  in  Co.  G,  mus- 
tered in  Oct.  15,  1862.  Toward  the  close 
of  the  summer  compaign,  sent  to  hospital 
at  Philadelphia ;  discharged  honorably 
Oct.  22,  '62,  receiving  a  pension  of  $6  per 
month.  Aug.  9,  '64,  again  enlisted  for  the 
town  of  Barton,  in  Co.  C,  ist  Vt.  Cav.  ; 
mustered  in  Aug.  11,  '64.  In  the  battle 
at  Winchester,  Sept.  19,  '64,  shot  through 
the  abdomen  and  died  in  a  few  moments. 


WAITSFIELD. 


797 


He  was  buried    near   a   white   church,  i^  1 
mile  east  of  Winchester. 

Oliver  C.  Campbell,  brother  of  Bertram 
D.,  enlisted  in  Co.  I,  gth  Reg.,  June  9, 
'62  ;  promoted  2d  Lieut.  July  9,  '62  ;  taken 
prisoner  with  his  Regiment  at  Harper's 
Ferry,  Sept.  14,  '62  ;  paroled,  was  sent  to 
Chicago;  Dec.  i,  resigned  his  commis- 
sion ;  re-enlisted  July  9,  '63,  in  the  Veter- 
an Reserve  Corps;  promoted,  ist  serg.  at 
the  organization  of  the  company,  and 
served  at  Rutland,  Concord,  N.  H.,  Bos- 
ton, Ms.,  till  Nov.  15,  '65,  was  discharged. 

Wesley  E.  Dana  enlisted  in  Co.  F,  17th 
Reg.,  Jan.  2,  '64;  discharged  July  17,  '65  ; 
was  wounded  at  Spottsylvania  by  a  ball 
passing  through  the  neck. 

Foster  S.  Dana,  brother  of  the  above, 
enlisted  July  2,  '61,  in  Co.  H,  3d  Reg.; 
mustered  in  July  16,  '61  ;  mustered  out 
July  27,  ''64 ;  was  on  duty  every  day  of  his 
3  years'  service,  though  twice  wounded, 
once  at  Lee's  Mills,  and  again  at  Spottsyl- 
vania, Va. 

Three  other  brothers  of  the  above,  C. 
S.,  Edwin  H.,  and  S.J.  Dana,  enlisted 
and  served  in  the  army.  All  six  returned 
safely,  after  being  honorably  discharged, 
having  performed  12  years  of  service. 

Albee  H.  Dewey  enlisted  in  Co.  B,  13th 
Reg.,  Aug.  25,  '62;  was  mustered  in  as 
Sergt.,  Oct.  10,  '62 ;  re-enlisted  in  the 
Signal  Corps,  Oct.  23,  '63;  Jan.  i,  '64, 
sent  to  Newbern,  N.  C.  ;  soon  after  placed 
in  command  of  a  signal  station  at  Fort 
Gaston ;  Sept.  26,  attacked  by  yellow 
fever ;  died  the  28th,  aged  32  ;  buried  in 
the  Soldiers'  Cemetery  at  Newbern. 

Hiram  F.  Dike  enlisted  Aug.  14,  '61,  in 
Co.  H,  7th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct.  15,  '61  ; 
promoted  Corp.,  Mar.  12,  '62;  missed  in 
action  at  Banks'  Ford,  May  4,  '63 ;  sup- 
posed to  be  dead. 

Alba  B.  Durkee  enlisted  in  Co.  I,  9th 
Reg.,  Dec.  21,  '63;  mustered  in  Jan.  6, 
'64;  died  Sept.  25,  '64. 

Isaac  H.  Elliot  enlisted  in  Co.  I,  9th 
Reg.,  June  26,  '62;  mustered  in  July  9, 
'62 ;  taken  prisoner  at  Winchester,  Sept. 
3,  '62 ;  held  by  the  enemy  20  days ;  dis- 
charged Sept.  25,  '62,  by  reason  of  ill- 
health. 


Edward  A.  Fisk  enlisted  Aug.  21,  '62, 
in  Co.  B,  13th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct.  10, 
'62  ;  mustered  out  July  21,  '63. 

Heman  R.  French  enlisted  June  23,  '62, 
in  Co.  I,  9th  Reg.  ;  mustered  in  July  9, 
'62 ;  taken  prisoner  with  his  regiment  at 
Harper's  Ferry,  Sept.  14,  '62;  promoted 
hospital  steward,  Feb.  4,  '65 ;  mustered 
out  June  13,  '65. 

Ephraim  H.  Fuller  enlisted  in  Co.  H, 
6th  Reg.,  Aug.  14,  '61  ;  mustered  in  Oct. 
15,  '61,  as  corporal;  discharged  Oct.  28, 
'64;  wounded  at  Lee's  Mills,  Va.,  Apr.  16, 
'62,  in  both  thighs  ;  draws  a  pension  of  $4. 
per  month. 

William  H.  H.  Greenslit  enlisted  June 

20,  '62,  in  Co.  I,  9th  Reg.  ;  mustered  in 
July  9,  '62;  committed  suicide  Aug.  21, 
'62,  at  Winchester,  Va. 

Manley  N.  Hoyt  enlisted  in  Co.  G,  6th 
Reg.,  Oct.  7, '61  ;  mustered  in  Oct.  15, '61  ; 
died  July  18,  '62,  at  Philadelphia,  of 
chronic  diarrhea,  aged  31  years. 

George  M.  Jones  enlisted  in  the  2d  Reg. 
U.  S.  S.  S.,  Co.  H,  Nov.  28,  '63  ;  muster- 
ed in  Dec.  18,  '63  ;  killed  at  the  battle  of 
the  Wilderness,  May  6,  '64,  while  assisting 
a  wounded  comrade  from  the  field.  He, 
like  the  others  from  this  town  killed  in  that 
battle,  was  struck  in  the  head  and  killed 
instantly. 

John  F.  Jones  enlisted  Sept.  10,  '61,  in 
Co.  G,  6th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  as  Sergt., 
Oct.  15,  '61;  discharged  Apr.  17,  '63,  on 
account  of  sickness  ;  re-enlisted  in  Massa- 
chusetts ;  after  a  few  months'  service,  sick- 
ened, and  died  Nov.  28,  '64. 

Eugene  E.  Joslin  enlisted  in  the  2d  Reg. 
of  U.  S.  S.  S.,  Co.  H,  Nov.  28,  '63  ;  muster- 
ed in  Dec- 18,  '63  ;  promoted  Corp.,  Nov. 
I ,  '64 ;  afterwards  Sergt. ;  transferred  to 
Co.  H,  4th  Reg.,  Feb.  25, '65  ;  discharged 
July  13,  '65  ;  wounded  in  the  shoulder  at 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  May  6,  '64. 

Seymour  L.  Kneeland  enlisted  Nov.  28, 
'63,  in  1st  Cav.  Reg.,  Co.  C;  mustered  in 
Dec.  25,  '63;  transferred  to  Co.  A,  June 

21,  '65  ;  mustered  out  Aug.  9,  '65  ;  taken 
prisoner  Dec.  19,  '64,  on  picket  duty  near 
Woodstock,  Va.,  by  scouts  of  the  12th  Va. 
Cav.;  kept   at  Staunton,    Va.,    12    days; 

taken  to  Richmond  and  confined  in  Libb 


ygS 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Prison.  His  food  was  the  usual  scant  al- 
lowance of  corn  bread  and  poor  bacon — 
just  enough  to  hold  flesh  and  spirit  to- 
gether ;  was  paroled  Mar.  9.  '65  ;  exchang- 
ed about  a  month  after. 

James  L.  Maynard  enlisted  in  Co.  H, 
2d  Reg.,  U.  S.  S.  S.,  Nov.  28,  '63;  mus- 
tered in  Dec.  iS,  '63  ;  killed  May  6,  '64,  at 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness  ;  shot  through 
the  head.  Like  the  others  from  this  town 
killed  in  that  battle,  his  body  was  not  re- 
covered. 

Ziba  H.  McAllister  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62, 
in  Co.  B,  13th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct.  10, 
'62;  mustered  out  July  21,  '63;  re-enlisted 
in  Co.  C,  ist  Vt.  Cav.,  Nov.  30,  '63; 
mustered  in  Dec.  25,  '63;  mustered  out 
Aug.  9,  '65,  having  been  transferred  to  Co. 
A,  June  21,  '65  ;  wounded  Oct.  7,  '64,  in 
the  side  and  back,  while  on  duty  in  the 
Shenandoah  Valley,  Va. 

Irenas  P.  Newcomb  enlisted  in  Co.  H, 
6th  Reg.,  Aug.  14,  '61  ;  mustered  in  Oct. 
15,  '61  ;  died  at  Hampton,  Va.,  of  typhoid 
pneumonia,  Apr.  9,  '62,  aged  18  years  and 
8  months  ;  buried  there. 

Edwin  F.  Palmer  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62, 
in  Co.  B,  13th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  asSergt., 
Oct.  10,  '62;  promoted  2d  Lieut.,  Nov.  4, 
'62;  mustered  out  July  21,  '63.  Lieut. 
Palmer  kept  a  record  of  his  army  life,  and 
has  since  published  it  in  a  neat  book  form, 
entitled  "  Camp  Life,"  containing  224  pp. 
The  book  is  a  history  of  his  company,  in 
which  there  were  23  men  from  this  town ; 
also  of  the  13th  Reg.  and  2d  Brig.  It  is  a 
graphic  portrayal  of  the  discomforts,  vveari- 
ness,  danger,  with  the  occasional  relief  of 
comfort,  rest  and  pleasure,  incident  to 
soldiers'  life. 

Dexter  Parker  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62,  in 
Co.  B,  13th  Reg.  ;  mustered  in  Oct.  10, 
'62 ;  in  the  battle  of  Gettysburg  was  se- 
verely wounded  in  the  hand  ;  mustered  out 
July  21,  '63;  draws  a  pension  of  $4  per 
month. 

Lorin  B.  Reed  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62;  in 
Co.  B,  13th  Reg.;  mustered  in  Oct.  10, 
'62  ;  musician  in  the  brigade  band  ;  died  of 
measles  in  hospital  at  Wolf  Run  Shoals, 
'May  30,  '63,  aged  21  years,  11  months. 

Oscar  C.  Reed  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62,  in 


Co.  B,  13th  Reg.  ;  died  of  fever  in  hospital 
near  Fairfax,  Va.,  Dec.  26,  '62,  aged  24. 
His  body,  and  that  of  his  cousin,  Lorin  B. 
Reed,  were  brought  home  for  burial. 

Edwin  R.  Richardson  enlisted  in  Co.  H, 
6th  Reg.,  Aug.  14,  '61  ;  mustered  in  Oct. 
15,  '61  ;  promoted  Corp.,  Feb.  8,  '62  ;  pro- 
moted Sergt.,  July  10,  '63;  ist  Sergt., 
June  5,  '64  ;  re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  '63  ;  killed 
at  Charlestown,  Va.,  Aug.  21,  '64;  shot 
through  the  head,  and  died  immediately. 
His  body  was  brought  home  for  burial. 

Loren  S.  Richardson  enlisted  Nov.  28, 
'63  ;  mustered  in  as  a  recruit  in  Co.  H,  2d 
Reg.  of  U.  S.  S.  S.,  Dec.  18,  '63;  trans- 
ferred to  Co.  H,  4th  Reg.,  Feb.  25,  '65; 
mustered  out  July  14,  ^6^  ;  wounded  se- 
verely in  the  shoulder,  at  Cold  Harbor, 
June  ID,  '64. 

Lucius  D.  Savage  enlisted  in  Co.  F,  2d 
Reg.,  May  20,  '61  ;  in  the  battle  of  Savage 
Station,  June  29,  '62,  wounded  and  per- 
manently disabled  in  the  right  knee,  and 
taken  prisoner;  released  July  25,  '62  ;  dis- 
charged Nov.  29,  '62  ;  receives  a  half  pen- 
sion, $4  per  month. 

Dr.  Henry  C.  Shaw  went  out  from  this 
town  as  Assistant  Surgeon  of  the  2d  N.  H. 
Reg. ;  serving  out  his  time,  3  months,  re- 
turned as  Assistant  Surgeon  in  5th  Vt. 
Reg. ;  died  of  fever  at  Alexandria,  Va., 
Sept.  7,  '62,  aged  30.  His  remains  were 
brought  home  for  interment. 

Lucius  S.  Shaw,  Esq.,  brother  of  Dr. 
Henry  C,  while  practicing  law  in  Law- 
rence, Kansas,  enlisted  in  the  2d  Kansas 
Reg.;  was  promoted  Lieut.,  and  killed 
Sept.  3,  '61,  aged  31,  by  an  accident  on 
the  Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  Railroad, 
caused  by  the  burning  of  a  bridge.  His 
body  lies  beside  that  of  his  brother. 

Daniel  P.  Shepard  enlisted  Aug.  14,  ''61, 
in  Co.  H,  6th  Reg. ;  mustered  Corp.,  Oct. 
15,  '61;  afterwards  served  as  teamster; 
re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  '63  ;  mustered  out  June 
26,  '65  ;  wounded  in  the  leg  at  Lee's  Mills, 
Va.,  Apr.  16,  '62. 

Mason  C.  Shepard,  brother  of  Daniel 
P.,  enlisted  Aug.  14,  '61,  in  Co.  H,  6th 
Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct.  15,  '61  ;  re-enlist- 
ed Dec.  15,  '63;  transferred  to  Co.  G, 
Jan.  I,  '65  ;  transferred  back  May  18,  '65  ; 


WAITSFIELD. 


799 


in  hospital  several  months ;  mustered  out 
June  26,  '65  ;  wounded  in  the  breast  and 
face  at  Lee's  Mills,  April  16,  '62. 

Lewis  M.  Spaulding  enlisted  Aug.  14, 
'61,  in  Co.  H,  6th  Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct. 
15,  '61  ;  re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  '63  ;  killed  at 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  May  5,  '64. 
A  ball  pierced  his  head  while  charging  the 
enemy  with  the  Vermont  troops,  and  he 
died  instantly. 

Solon  S.  Spaulding,  brother  of  Lewis 
M.,  enlisted  Aug.  14,  '61,  in  Co.  H,  6th 
Reg. ;  mustered  in  Oct.  15,  ''61  ;  promoted 
Corp.;  re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  '63  ;  discharged 
June  12,  '65,  with  health  impaired  by  long- 
continued  sickness. 

Harlan  P.  Stoddard  enlisted  in  Co.  E, 
2d  Reg.,  May  i,  '61;  in  the  battle  at 
Savage  Station,  wounded  by  the  passage 
of  a  ball  through  the  pelvis,  and  taken 
prisoner;  discharged  July  30,  '63.  His 
wound  he  will  probably  never  recover 
from.  He  receives  a  full  pension,  $15  per 
month.  Three  of  his  brothers  followed 
him  into  the  U.  S.  service. 

Horace  B.  Stoddard  enlisted  in  Co.  F, 
2d  Reg..  Sept.  '61  ;  a  few  months  before 
the  expiration  of  his  time  of  service,  while 
at  his  post  in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness, 
was  sti'uck  by  a  ball  in  the  head,  and  it  is 
supposed  died  instantly.  His  body,  and 
that  of  his  brother,  L.  Thompson  Stod- 
dard, were  not  recovered. 

L.  Thompson  Stoddard  enlisted  in  Co. 
B,  13th  Reg.,  Aug.  25,  '62  ;  mustered  out 
July  21,  '63;  re-enlisted  in  Co.  C,  17th 
Reg.,  Jan.  5,  '63  ;  mustered  in  Corp. ;  car- 
ried the  State  colors  till  cut  and  torn  in 
pieces  by  shot  and  shell ;  at  the  time  of 
the  explosion  of  the  mine  at  Petersburg, 
was  wounded  in  the  shoulder  while  trying 
to  get  back  to  the  Union  lines,  and  taken 
prisoner ;  spared  the  horrors  of  long  con- 
finement in  Southern  prisons  ;  died  8  days 
after  the  explosion,  Aug.  7,  '64,  while  in 
the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

Lyman  Stoddard  enlisted  Sept.  20,  '61  ; 
mustered  in  Oct.  15,  '61,  as  a  member  of 
Co.  G,  6th  Reg.  ;  re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  '63 ; 
mustered  out  June  26,  '65  ;  two  brothers 
also  served  in  the  army  for  other  towns, 
Daniel  and  Franklin  Stoddard. 


Cyron  G.  Thayer  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62, 
in  Co.  B,  13th  Reg.  ;  died  May  20,  '63,  of 
measles,  age  21. 

James  M.  Thayer,  brother  of  Cyron  G., 
enlisted  ;  mustered  into  the  same  company 
at  the  same  time  ;  discharged  for  sickness 
Jan.  22,  '63 ;  has  since  died. 

Orcus  C.  Wilder  enlisted  Aug.  25,  '62, 
in  Co.  B,  13th  Reg. ;  mustered  Capt.  Oct. 
10,  '62  ;  mustered  out  July  21,  '63.  Capt. 
Wilder  and  the  20  men  or  more  in 
his  company  from  Waitsfield,  were  hotly 
engaged  in  the  batde  of  Gettysburg,  though 
none  were  killed.  This  was  all  the  fighting 
they  saw  during  their  g  months'  service. 

OUR    ENLISTMENTS   IN   OTHER   TOWNS. 

Young  men  who  grew  up  among  us  and 
are  known  to  all . 

Matthias  J.  Bushnell,  age  26,  enlisted  in 
ist  Wis.  Cav.,  Co.  B,  Aug.  24,  '61  ;  mus- 
tered in  Corp.  ;  killed  in  a  small  engage- 
ment with  the  rebels,  near  Madison,  Ark., 
Aug.  3,  '62,  while  guarding  a  wagon  train. 
All  who  were  with  him  were  killed  or  taken 
prisoners. 

Hiland  G.  Campbell,  age  26,  enlisted  for 
the  town  of  Warren,  as  a  recruit  for  the  3d 
Vt.  Battery.  In  Oct.  kicked  by  a  horse, 
and  injured  in  the  thigh  ;  remained  in  hos- 
pital ;  discharged  ;  receives  a  pension  of  $8 
per  month  ;  bounty  $733.34,  Government 
and  town. 

Israel  Childs,  a  former  resident  of  the 
town  for  many  years,  enlisted  early  in  the 
war,  in  the  30th  Wis.  Reg.,  and  served  3 
years,  a  part  of  the  time  in  the  frontier 
service. 

Chester  S.  Dana,  age  33,  enlisted  for 
Fayston  ;  bounty  $200,  from  Government. 

Edwin  H.  Dana,  age  32,  enlisted  for 
Waterbury ;  was  wounded  at  the  battle  of 
Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  '64  ;  draws  a  pension 
of  $6  per  month  ;  bounty,  $300  govern- 
ment, and  $300  town. 

Samuel  J.  Dana,  age  29,  brother  of  Edwin 
H.  and  the  three  before  named,  enlisted 
for  Fayston ;  wounded  by  a  shell  at  Get- 
tysburg; bounty  from  government  $25. 

William  W.  McAllister,  age  20,  enlisted 
Aug.  8,  '64,  in  3d  Vt.  Light  Artill.,  on  de- 


8oo 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


tached  service  at  Rutland,  Vt.,  and  Fair- 
haven,  Ct.,  6  months,  the  remainder  of  the 
time  at  Petersburg,  Va.i  discharged  June 
15, "65 ;  bounty,  $500. 

Harlen  G.  Newcomb,  age  24,  enlisted 
Aug.  19,  '62,  in  Co.  K,  145th  N.  Y.  Vols. ; 
mustered  in  on  Staten  Island  ;  fall  of  the 
next  year,  while  in  hospital,  detailed  as 
nurse;  Mar.,  '64,  transferred  to  Co.  I, 
107th  N.  Y.  Vols.  ;  next  month  joined  the 
company  at  Shelbyville,  Tenn.,  detailed  at 
Div.  Head  Quarters,  Sept.,  '64,  after  sur- 
render of  Atlanta ;  rejoined  his  company, 
May  23,  '65 ;  discharged  June  19,  '65 ; 
bounty,  $175,  from  government,  state,  and 
town. 

Daniel  Russ,  age  29,  enlisted  June  23, 
'62,  in  Co.  I,  9th  Reg.  Vt.  Vols. ;  taken 
prisoner  and  paroled  at  the  surrender  of 
Harper's  Ferry,  Sept.  15,  '62;  detailed  as 
clerk  in  dispensary,  April  15,  '63;  in  hos- 
pital from  Sept.  '63,  till  Jan.  12,  ''64,  when 
he  rejoined  his  company  ;  promoted  Sergt. 
Mar.  26, '64;  1st  Sergt.,  Mar.  '65;  dis- 
charged by  order  of  the  President,  June  8, 
'65,  at  Manchester,  Va.  ;  bounty,  $100. 

James  C.  Russ,  brother  of  Daniel,  en- 
listed in  Co.  A,  42d  Wis.  Vols, ;  dis- 
charged June  28,  '65. 

Frank  E.  Spaulding,  aged  26,  enlisted 
in  Sheldon,  Sept.  61,  in  Co.  K,  6th  Reg. 
Vt.  Vols. ;  discharged  June  30,  '62,  for 
disability. 

George  E.  Spaulding,  aged  18,  brother 
of  Frank  "E.,  Solon  S.  and  Lewis  M.,  en- 
listed in  Co.  G,  loth  N.  Y.  Vols,  for 
Albany ;  served  from  April  till  Aug.  '65  ; 
bounty,  $600,  from  town. 

Charles  D.  Tewksbury,  aged  23,  enlisted 
Sept.  17,  '61,  in  Co.  B,  52d  111.  Vols.  Inf. ; 
mustered  in  at  Geneva,  111.,  Oct.  25,  '61, 
as  Corp.;  promoted  Sergt.,  May  16,  '62; 
re-enlisted  as  veteran  Dec.  25,  '63;  pro- 
moted 1st  Sergt.  Apr.  ''64;  mustered  out 
July  6,  '65,  at  Louisville,  Ky.,  receiving  a 
lieutenant's  commission ;  received  $502 
bounty  from  government,  and  $1  from 
Bureau  Co.,  111. ;  was  wounded  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Shiloh  in  the  head  ;  in  hospital  only 
long  enough  to  have  his  wound  dressed 
during  his  4  years'  service  ;  traveled  with 
his  regiment   over   6,000  miles,   1,600  of 


which  he  marched  on  foot ;  after  that, 
started  off  under  Gen.  Sherman,  and 
marched  around  to  Savannah,  and  up  to 
Washington. 

Isaac  Norton  Tewksbury,  uncle  of  Chas. 
D.,  native  of  Waitsfield,  and  more  than  20 
years  resident,  served  in  a  Mich.  Reg. ; 
killed  in  the  battle  of  Pittsburg  Landing, 
aged  52. 

Other  persons,  natives  of  Waitsfield, 
have  doubtless  served  in  the  army,  but  the 
compiler  has  failed  to  learn  the  facts  in 
regard  to  them. 

AFTER   THE   CRUCIFIXION. 

BY  MRS.  T.  E.  FISHER. 

"  Jesus  has  died  upon  the  cross!" 

Oh  bow  the  tidings  fell 
With  stunning  weiglit  on  those  who  loved 

The  "  Hope  of  Israel!' 

A  few  had  owned  Him  as  the  Clirist. 

The  "  very  Clirist,"  and  they 
Had  lett  tlieir  all  to  follow  Hiiu 

Upon  His  blessed  way. 

But  Oh,  they  had  not  understood 

How  dark  that  way  must  be, 
They  knew  not  that  tlie  Sou  of  God 

Could  die  upon  the  tree. 

And  when  they  saw  Him  on  the  cross, 

Hope  was  not  wholly  gone. 
They  thought  by  some  mysterious  power 

God  might  save  His  Sou. 

But  when  He  bowed  His  godlike  head 

And  yielded  up  the  ghost. 
When  He  had  died  as  dies  mere  man, 

They  gave  up  all  for  lost. 

Oh,  who  can  paint  the  bitter  grief 
That  wrung  their  hearts  that  hour, 

The  deep,  unutterable  despair 
That  crushed  them  with  its  power. 

Had  He  deceived  them  ?    Could  it  be 

The  Shiloh  had  not  come? 
Their  brows  were  pale  Willi  grief  and  diead. 

Their  ashy  lips  were  dumb. 

Three  days  His  body,  cold  and  still. 

Within  the  grave  had  lain. 
When  thrilled  their  hearts  the  joyful  words, 

"Jesus  has  risen  again  1" 

Jesus  has  risen  again;  no  more 

Anguish  and  doubts  and  fears. 
Glad  joy  lights  up  the  wondering  eyes 

So  lately  dimmed  by  tears. 

He  is  the  Lord  I  the  mighty  God  1 

The  Jesus,  the  Saviour  lives! 
And  O,  new  proof,  He  is  the  same, 

Their  unbeliet  forgives. 

Jesns  has  risen  from  the  dead! 

No  more  we  fear  to  die. 
Because  Thou  livest  we  shall  live, 

O,  Son  of  God  Most  High. 


WARREN. 


80 1 


WARREN. 

BY  CHAItLES  W.  HEMENWAY,   OF  LUDLOW. 

This  township  lies  in  lat.  44°,  6';  long. 
40°,  ir,  in  the  south-west  of  Washington 
Co.  The  town  formerly  belonged  to  Ad- 
dison Co.,  and  was  annexed  to  Washing- 
ton Co.  by  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  Oct. 
28,  1829.  The  charter  was  granted  Nov. 
9,  I780,  to  John  Throop  and  associates. 

GRANTEES   AS   DRAWN   WITH   NO.    OF   LOT. 

John  Marcy,  Jr.,  lot  2I  ;  Oliver  Barker, 
I9 ;  Stephen  Marcy,  I7 ;  Nathaniel  and 
ElishaFrisbee,  I5  ;  Oliver  Farnsworth,  I3  ; 
Nathan  Hale,  11;  Seth  Austin,  9 ;  Ruggles 
Kent,  7 ;  Joseph  Marcy,  5 ;  Joel  Roberts, 
3  ;  Abraham  Baldwin,  1 ;  Loudan  Gallop, 
2 ;  Hezekiah  Spencer,  4 ;  Jonas  Fay,  6 ; 
Jonathan  Bruce,  8 ;  William  Gallop,  lo ; 
Elisha  Hawley,  I4;  Benijah  Child,  16; 
Stephen  Jacobs,  18;  Timothy  Andrus,2o; 
Miles  Beach,  22 ;  Jonathan  Pierce,  23 ; 
Bartholomew  Durkee,  27;  Wm.  Strong, 
29;  Wm.  Ripley,  3I ;  First  settled  minis- 
ter, I2;  English  school,  25;  Asa  Whit- 
comb,  33  ;  Uriah  Tracy,  35  ;  Lemuel  Hop- 
kins and  Oliver  Wolcott,  Jr.,  37;  Noah 
Hatch,  39;  Moses  Seymour  and  Alex. 
Catline,  49 ;  Thomas  Chamberlin,  4I  ; 
Chauncey  Smith,  44;  Elihu  Kent,  42; 
John  Jacob,  40 ;  George  Swan,  38 ;  Ben- 
jamin Kent,  36  ;  Gurshon  Olds,  34  ;  Thad- 
deus  Leavitt,  32  ;  Thaddeus  King,  30  ;  Wm. 
Roberts,  28 ;  William  Marsley,  26;  John 
Throop,  24 ;  Joseph  Kimball,  45  ;  John 
Whitcomb,  47  ;  Parmela  Jacobs,  49 ;  Chap- 
man Whitcomb,  51  ;  County  Grammar 
School,  53  ;  Asahel  Smith,  55  ;  Anthony 
Whitcomb,  57  ;  Timothy  Child,  59  ;  Chaun- 
cey Goodrich,  61 ;  Jedediah  Strong,  62 ; 
Daniel  Adams,  63 ;  David  Fuller,  60 ; 
Thomas  Tolman,  58  ;  support  of  the  min- 
istry, 56;  Wm.  Lyon,  54;  David  Wilcox, 
52  ;  John  Trumbull,  50  ;  Thomas  Branard, 
48  ;  James  Thomson,  64  ;  Joel  Ballou,  65 
Ebenezer  Swan,  66 ;  College  right,  67 
Geoige  Dunkins,  68  ;  Samuel  Marcy,  69 
Dudley  Baldwin,  70  ;  seventy  division  lots 
lotted,  Nov.  4,  I789. 

The  lots  were  drawn  by  70  slips  num- 
bered from  1  to  70,  put  into  a  hat,  with  70 
other  slips  with  the  names  of  one  of  the 


grantees,  or  of  a  public  right,  to  be 
drawn,  on  each,  put  into  another  hat,  and 
both  hats  shook  to  the  satisfaction  of  all 
present,  when  a  paper  was  first  drawn 
from  the  hat  with  names,  and  then  a  paper 
from  the  hat  with  the  number  of  the  lots. 
The  town  is  bounded  N.  by  Waitsfield  and 
Fayston,  E.  by  Roxbury,  S.  by  Granville, 
Addison  Co.,  andW.  by  Lincoln,  Addison 
Co.  By  act  of  Legislature,  I824,  four  tiers 
of  lots  were  set  off  from  Lincoln  to  Warren. 
There  were  two  divisions  of  land  in  town 
of  70  lots  each. 

The  soil  of  the  township  is  very  good, 
and  the  most  part  of  it  quite  free  from 
stone.  It  is  well  adapted  to  raising  corn, 
potatoes  and  English  grain.  The  face  of 
the  land  is  rather  hilly.  The  ledges  are 
chiefly  a  sort  of  mica  slate.  There  is 
some  limestone,  but  it  is  not  plenty. 
There  have  never  been  but  two  kilns  burn- 
ed in  town — those  at  a  somewhat  remote 
period,  the  ruins  of  which  are  still  seen. 
There  are,  also,  some  fine  specimens  of 
crystal  quartz  here. 

Mad  river  runs  nearly  through  the  centre 
of  the  town,  and  has  several  tributaries. 
Stetson  brook  runs  through  Stetson  Hol- 
low, and  empties  into  Mad  river  about  2 
miles  above  Warren  village.  Lincoln 
brook  heads  on  Lincoln  mountain,  and 
runs  through  Warren  South  Hollow,  and 
empties  into  Mad  river  about  half  a  mile 
above  the  village.  Minor  brook  rises  on 
Roxbury  mountain,  flows  westerly,  and 
empties  into  Mad  river  at  the  village. 
Ford  brook,  from  Lincoln  mountain,  flows 
easterly,  and  empties  into  the  river  at  the 
lower  end  of  the  village.  Clay  brook, 
heading  on  Lincoln  mountain,  runs  east- 
erly through  Grand  Hollow,  and  empties 
into  the  river  some  2  miles  below  the  vil- 
lage. Shepherd  brook,  from  Roxbury 
mountain,  runs  westerly,  and  empties  into 
the  river  2  miles  below  the  village.  Thus, 
the  town  is  well  watered,  and  these  streams 
abound  with  trout.  There  are  many  good 
mill  privileges  also  on  these  streams. 

The  town  was  organized  Sept.  20,  I798, 
Ezra  Miller,  moderator;  Samuel  Laird,  first 
town  clerk  ;  Ruel  Sherman,  Joseph  Ray- 
mond,   Seth    Leavett,  selectmen ;  Samuel 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Laird,  John  Sherman,  Joseph  Raymond, 
listers;  Ruel  Sherman,  collector;  John 
Woodard,  grand  juryman  ;  and  Joseph  W. 
Eldridge  was  the  first  representative  in 
ISlo.  The  first  physician  was  Dr.  Fish  ; 
,the  first  merchant,  Watrous  Mather  ;  first 
lawyer,  A.  P.  Huntoon  ;  and  the  first 
tavern-keeper,  Amos  Rising. 

It  is  quite  impossible  at  the  present  day 
(o  form  a  just  conception  of  the  labor  and 
hardships  these  earlier  settlers  encounter- 
ed, leaving  the  comforts  and  conveniences 
of  older  towns,  and  moving  with  their 
families  into  a  mountain,  wilderness  town, 
and  into  houses  that  were  insufficient  to 
protect  them  from  the  winds  of  winter,  and 
with  but  scanty  fare  for  large  families  ;  but 
with  untiring  zeal  they  felled  the  dense 
forest  trees.  The  grand  old  maples  and 
hemlocks  grouned  beneath  the  woodman's 
axe,  and  they  soon  had  sufficient  land 
cleared  to  raise  the  grain  for  their  fami- 
lies, and  before  this  was  done,  they  must 
have  made  long  foot-journeys,  or  on  horse- 
back, to  distant  towns  for  grain — to  Waits- 
field,  over  the  Roxbury  mountain  to  Rox- 
bury,  and  thence  to  Randolph,  some  30 
miles  distant,  and  even  at  times  to  Wind- 
sor, some  65  miles  distant,  and  that  by 
bridle-path  and  marked  trees,  fording 
streams. 

Seth  Leavett  chopped,  cleared  and  cul- 
tivated the  first  acre  in  town.  The  first 
house  was  built  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  Judge  LTpham. 

Cynthia,  daughter  of  Ruel  and  Olive 
Sherman,  was  the  first  child  born  in  town, 
Oct.  I7,  1797.  She  married  Robert  Leach, 
and  was  living  in  Randolph  in  IS70. 

Lucius  Leavett  was  the  first  male  child 
born  in  town.  Mar.  5,  I798.  The  first 
marriage  was  that  of  John  Wilcox,  of 
Roxbury,  and  Abigail  Steel,  of  Warren. 
The  first  person  buried  in  town  was  Chloe 
Sherman,  wife  of  Ruel  Sherman.  The 
graveyard  at  the  river  was  laid  out  Apr.  1 , 
IS26  ;  children  of  Oliver  Porter  were  the 
first  buried  in  it. 

David  Ralph  built  the  first  house  on  the 
river  at  the  village,  where  Morris  Sterling 
now  lives,  and  I  think  that  a  part  of  the 
old  house  is  now  standing.     A  man  by  the 


name  of  Stetson  built  the  second  house, 
near  where  George  Bragg  now  lives.  Rich- 
ard Sterling  built  the  first  tavern,  Isaac 
Ralph  built  the  first  store,  and  Otis  Wilson 
carried  on  the  first  tannery.  The  first 
school-house  was  built  in  I805,  in  district 
No.  I,  where  the  school-house  now  stands. 
There  are  9  school  districts,  and  most  of 
the  school-houses  are  very  good.  The  av- 
erage term  of  school  is  6  months  a  year. 

At  the  freeman's  meeting,  Sept.  2,  I800, 
I2  took  the  freeman's  oath.  The  first 
vote  for  governor  stood  for  Isaac  Tichenor, 
I2  votes,  and  for  lieut.  governor,  Paul 
Brigham,  I3;  Samuel  Mattocks,  treasurer  ; 
councillors:  Benj.  Swan,  1  vote;  Stephen 
Bradley,  lo  votes  ;  Nathaniel  Niles,  lo  ; 
John  Burnham,  lo  ;  Samuel  SaiTord,  lo  ; 
John  Willard,  lo:  Jonas  Galusha,  lo  ; 
Stephen  Paul,  lo  ;  Peter  Olcutt,  lo  ;  John 
White,  lo;  Daniel  Wright,  lo  ;  Oliver 
Gallop,  lo  ;  Timothy  Stanley,  lo. 

AARON   RISING   GOING   TO   MILL. 

Mr.  Rising  related  to  me  that  when  16 
years  old,  the  family  having  had  nothing 
to  eat  but  pumpkin  and  potatoes  with  milk 
for  2  weeks,  they  made  some  salts,  and 
sent  him  to  Randolph  for  grain.  His 
brother  gave  him  25  cts.  to  buy  his  din- 
ner. He  went  to  Waitsfield,  and  crossed 
the  mountain  to  Roxbury.  The  road 
through  the  woods  was  a  bridle-path,  and 
the  roots  of  the  trees  so  thick  the  horse 
had  to  step  pretty  long  sometimes.  He 
stopped  at  Roxbury  for  dinner,  but  find- 
ing they  had  nothing  to  eat  but  potatoes 
and  milk  there,  and  that  he  would  have  to 
wait  for  the  potatoes  to  be  cooked,  he 
pushed  on  to  Braintree,  finding  nothing 
but  potatoes  and  milk  there  again,  and  de- 
ferred dining  until  he  should  reach  Ran- 
dolph. Having  arrived,  he  went  straight 
to  the  mill.  The  miller  weighed  his  salts, 
and  let  him  have  3  bushels  of  grain,  and 
paid  him  the  balance  due  in  money.  He 
would  not  let  him  have  more  grain,  saying 
that  he  must  divide  among  the  people  or 
they  would  starve. 

Our  "boysent  to  mill,"  said  he  turned  out 
his  horse  to  feed  while  his  grist  was  being 
ground.     They  had  plenty  to   eat   there, 


WARREN. 


803 


but  he  was  so  bashful  he  did  not  dare  to 
ask  for  anything.  He  was  very  hungry, 
but  hoped  when  he  got  back  to  Braintree 
he  could  get  some  potatoes  and  milk,  at 
least.  He  reached  Braintree,  and  then 
concluded  to  go  on  to  Roxbury,  as  he 
could  stay  there  over  night,  and  by  start- 
ing early  in  the  morning,  reach  home  in 
time  for  the  family  to  bake  for  breakfast  ; 
but  when  he  arrived  at  Roxbury,  the  in- 
habitants had  gone  to  bed,  and  not  seeing 
any  lights,  it  made  him  homesick,  and  he 
concluded  to  go  on  a  little  farther  to  a  Mr. 
Sampson's,  who  lived  up  close  under  the 
mountain.  When  he  got  up  to  Sampson's, 
it  was  so  dark  there  he  could  not  stay 
there  possibly,  and  he  kept  on.  He  was 
very  tired  and  hungry,  but  he  led  the  old 
mare  along  with  the  3  bushels  of  meal  on 
her  back.  When  he  got  about  half  way 
up  the  mountain,  he  heard  a  wolf  howl 
behind  him,  and  pretty  soon,  another  one 
answer  ahead  of  him  ;  soon,  another  one 
in  the  north,  then  in  the  south.  He 
stopped  to  rest  the  old  mare  and  himself. 
He  was  so  hungry  and  tired,  he  thought 
that  if  he  had  got  to  live  to  be  an  old  man, 
and  always  fare  as  hard  as  now,  that  he 
did  not  much  care  if  the  wolves  did  take 
him  ;  that  they  would  tear  him  to  pieces 
in  about  two  minutes,  he  considered,  and 
it  would  be  over  with  ;  but  he  started 
along  pretty  soon.  He  could  hear  the 
wolves  in  the  bushes  close  by.  They  did 
not  howl  now,  for  they  could  see  him,  and 
were  only  watching  when  to  spring  upon 
him.  He  scrambled  up  on  to  the  old 
mare's  back.  He  thought  that  he  would 
let  them  take  her  first.  It  soon  began  to 
grow  a  little  light.  He  kept  urging  the 
old  mare  along,  and  when  he  got  out  of 
the  woods,  it  was  so  light  the  wolves  left 
him.  He  got  home  about  sunrise.  He 
dragged  the  meal  into  the  house,  and  went 
up  stairs  to  bed,  so  tired  and  exhausted 
that  he  could  hardly  get  up  there.  When 
breakfast  was  ready,  he  was  called  up,  but 
when  they  gave  him  a  piece  of  bread  only 
about  half  as  large  as  his  hand,  andasmall 
quantity  of  milk,  he  said  the  tears  rolled 
down  his  cheeks,  and  it  was  harder  than 
all  he  had  endured  ;  but  they  told  him  that 


it  was  more  than  the.  "galls"  had,  and 
that  they  must  be  very  saving,  for  they  did 
not  know  when  they  should  get  any  more. 
Mr.  Rising  lived  to  become  quite  wealthy, 
but  was  blind  for  the  last  few  years  of  his 
life.  He  narrated  these  facts  to  us  in  his 
85th  year.  He  was  blind  at  this  time,  but 
his  memory  was  very  good. 

WARREN  BOYS  AND  THE  BEARS. 

Some  over  40  years  since,  Christopher 
Moore,  17  years  of  age,  and  De  Estings 
Billings,  about  the  same  age,  set  a  bear- 
trap  some  3  miles  from  the  village,  on  the 
farm  now  owned  by  Milo  Bucklin  ;  and  on 
going  to  the  spot  the  next  day,  found  a 
two-year  old  bear  in  the  trap.  Thinking 
it  would  be  nice  to  take  the  bear  down  to 
the  village  alive,  they  each  cut  a  good 
switch,  and  gave  the  bear,  who  was  first 
disposed  to  fight,  such  a  thorough  whip- 
ping he  curled  down.  They  did  not  re- 
lease him  from  the  trap  and  so  run  the 
risk  of  losing  him,  but  one  took  up  the 
bear  in  his  arms  and  the  other  the  trap, 
and  both  together  they  carried  the  bear  and 
trap  about  half  a  mile  to  the  road,  where 
they  had  a  cart  in  waiting  ;  but  they  had 
to  lav  the  bear  down  several  times  and  re- 
peat the  whipping  before  they  got  to  the 
cart,  and  they  got  their  faces  and  arms 
scratched  some  ;  but  they  took  him  to  the 
village  alive. 

Warren  can  boast  of  strong  men.  One, 
Oliver  Slack,  used  to  gather  his  sap  here 
by  hand  with  a  hoop,  with  two  five-pail 
iron  kettles,  one  in  each  hand. 

REV.    NATHANIEL   STEARNS, 

a  Methodist,  was  the  first  minister  settled 
in  town.  Rev.  Mr.  Wheelock,  Congrega- 
tionalist,  was  expecting  to  be  settled  first, 
but  the  Methodists,  thinking  that  the  privi- 
lege equally  belonged  to  them  to  settle  the 
first  pastor,  and  thereby  to  obtain  for  their 
minister  the  right  of  land  by  charter  to  the 
first  clergyman  settled,  went  in  the  night 
for  Elder  Stearns,  and  installed  him  first. 
He  was  secured  a  salary  of  $100  a  year, 
paid  in  grain. 

WARREN  RIVER   MEETING  HOUSE   SOCIETY, 

was  organized  Jan.  19,  1838,  and  a  com- 
mittee chosen  to  build  the  house,  40x50 


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VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE 


ft.,  of  fair  proportion,  finished  plain  but 
well  ;  Daniel  Ralph  built  the  house.  Rev. 
E.  Scott,  M.  E.,  from  Montpelier,  preach- 
ed the  dedication  sermon,  and  the  M.  E. 
Conference  sent  ministers  here  for  several 
years.  The  house  is  a  union  building, 
and  the  different  denominations  have  had 
stated  times  to  preach  ;  the  Episcopal 
Methodist,  the  ist  Sabbath  in  every  month 
and  every  other  2d  Sabbath  ;  the  Univer- 
salist  the  3d  Sabbath  in  every  month  ;  the 
Protestant  Methodist,  the  4th  Sabbath  in 
the  first  9  months  in  the  year  ;  the  other 
denominations  to  occupy  the  remainder  of 
the  time.  The  other  denominations  in 
this  vicinity  are  Baptist,  Congregational- 
ist,  Adventist,  Seventh  day  Adventist, 
and  Spiritualists.  Much  of  the  time  no 
regular  preaching  has  been  sustained  in 
the  union  meeting  house. 

Rev.  J.  Waldron  came  here  in  1S71,  to 
preach  for  a  year,  and  staid  2  years.  He 
was  from  St.  Lawrence  Co.,  N.  Y.,  and 
was  liked  very  much.  Rev.  Mr.  Burgin, 
the  next  pastor,  came  from  Lincoln,  and 
staid  2  years. 

The  church  at  East  Warren  was  built  in 
1834.  It  is  also  a  union  building,  but  the 
people  are  mostly  Methodists  in  that  vicin- 
ity ;  and  there  is  a  M.  E.  Church,  a  branch 
of  the  church  at  Waitsfield,  here.  Rev. 
J.  Boyce,  from  Waitsfield,  preached  here 
half  of  the  time,  for  there  has  never  been 
a  settled  minister  there.  I  have  tried  to 
find  the  church  records,  but  cannot. 

REV.    JOSHUA   TUCKER, 

was  born  in  Salem,  Mass.,  June  14,  i<Soo. 
In  1826,  he  married  Anna  S.  Cook,  of 
Chelsea,  Mass.  He  received  his  theologi- 
cal education  in  New  Hampshire,  and 
commenced  to  preach  at  the  age  of  28. 
In  1830,  he  was  ordained  at  Washington, 
and  was  pastor  of  Washington  and  of  Ver- 
shire  until  1833,  when  he  removed  to  Chel- 
sea, but  remained  pastor  of  Washington, 
Vershire  and  Williamstown  until  1839.  He 
then  removed  to  Warren,  where  he  preached 
2  years.  Since  then  he  has  lived  at  difterent 
times  in  the  towns  of  Lincoln,  Washington, 
Huntington,  Starksboro,  Middlesex, 
Northfield  and  Hydepark  ;  from  Hydepark 
he  removed  for  the  third  time  to  Starksboro, 


where  he  now  resides.  He  gave  up  preach- 
ing about  a  year  ago  from  ill  health.  He 
preached  the  gospel  50  years,  had  11  chil- 
dren, 7  now  living  ;  died  in  Lincoln,  aged 
78.  His  wife  is  now  (1881)  living  in 
Starksboro. 

REV.    JAIRIUS   EATON, 

came  to  this  town  from  Enosburgh,  in 
1854,  and  preached  here  ever  after  part  of 
the  time,  until  his  death,  Dec.  25,  1861. 
He  was  a  Wesleylan  Methodist. 

JOSEPH  W.  ELDRIDGE,    ESQ., 

born  in  Stonington,  Ct.,  May  17,  1777, 
married  at  Brooklyn,  Ct.,  Jan.  30,  1804, 
to  Betsy  Tyler,  daughter  of  William  Tyler, 
and  grand-daughter  of  Gen.  Putnam.  Mr. 
Eldridge  moved  into  town  early  ;  was  town 
clerk  14  years,  and  the  first  post  master, 
which  office  he  held  30  years.  He  was  the 
first  representative  from  this  town  to  the 
legislature,  and  married  the  first  couple  in 
town.  He  came  into  town  himself  before 
he  was  married,  and  went  back  to  Connec- 
ticut after  his  wife.  Mrs.  Eldridge  made 
her  bridal-journey  to  her  new  home  in  the 
wilderness  of  Warren,  on  horse  back. 
She  was  a  member  of  the  Congrega. 
tional  church,  and  an  exemplary  Christian. 
Their  door  and  purse  were  always  open 
for  the  benefit  of  the  gospel.  The  minis- 
ters always  found  a  home  with  them.  He 
had  nearly  lived  man's  allotted  time  when 
he  was  suddenly  called.  He  stepped  out 
to  speak  to  a  neighbor  passing  his  house, 
tripped  on  a  small  stick,  fell  upon  his 
hands  and  knees,  broke  a  blood  vessel  in 
falling,  and  lived  only  36  hours  after  ;  aged 
65  years,  1842.  Mr.  Eldridge's  first  wife 
died  in  1831  ;  in  1833,  he  married  Mrs. 
Deborah  Durkee,  who  died  in  1869. 
DEACON   JAMES   ALLEN, 

born  in  Walpole,  N.  H.,  May  28,  I787, 
married  Achsah,  daughter  of  David  and 
Effie  Young,  in  I807,  and  moved  into  this 
town,  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  John 
Cardell,  in  I810.  He  soon  bought  the  farm 
now  owned  by  Sylvester  Wheeler.  It  was 
a  wilderness  farm  then,  and  there  was  only 
a  path  by  marked  trees  by  which  he  went 
to  his  land  to  chop.  He  was  a  very  in- 
dustrious   man,    and     when    it    was    not 


WARREN. 


805 


weather  to  work  out  doors,  he  made 
spinning-wheels  for  the  wives  and  daugh- 
ters of  the  settlers.  Mrs.  Allen  had  a 
great  fear  of  the  Indians,  although  she  had 
never  seen  one.  One  day,  when  Mr.  Allen 
was  out  at  work,  near  night  a  ragged, 
rough-looking  man  came  into  the  house, 
set  down  his  gun,  and  told  her  he  wanted 
some  supper  and  to  stay  all  night.  She 
said  he  could  have  some  .supper,  but  she 
could  not  keep  him  over  night.  She  says 
she  flew  around  pretty  lively,  thinking  this 
was  an  Indian,  any  way,  and  that  her  time 
had  come.  Mr.  Allen  came  in  soon,  and 
told  the  man  he  would  show  him  where  to 
go  to  find  lodging.  As  they  started  out, 
Mrs.  Allen  took  her  babe  in  her  arms  and 
followed  at  a  distance,  fearing  the  sup- 
posed Indian  would  kill  her  husband  ;  but 
the  man  proved  to  be  a  Mr.  Atwood,  from 
Hancock,  who  had  been  out  hunting  and 
lost  his  way. 

Mrs.  Allen  united  with  the  Baptist 
church  when  only  16,  and  has  lived  a 
praiseworthy  life.  Soon  after  Mr.  Allen 
came  into  town  he  was  chosen  deacon  of 
the  Baptist  church  at  Waitsfield,  which  had 
a  branch  in  Warren,  and  held  the  office 
till  his  death  in  I876,  aged  89. 

JOSEPH   A.    CURTIS, 

born  in  Hanover,  N.  H.,  Nov.  1787,  was 
married  in  I807  to  Amelia  Bissell,  and 
moved  to  this  town.  Soon  after  he  was 
appointed  judge  in  the  county  court,  and 
has  been  State  senator.  He  was  reputed 
here  a  very  good  scholar.  He  died  in  I867. 

WILLIAM   CARDELL, 

born  in  Southwick,  Mass.,  May  3,  1788, 
removed  to  Munroe,  N.  Y. ;  was  married 
Sept.  23,  1810,  to  Elizabeth,  daughter  of 
John  and  Elizabeth  Peers.  He  came  into 
the  east  part  of  the  town  and  settled  in 
181 7,  but  soon  sold  out  his  land  for  store 
goods,  in  which  he  was  unfortunate,  and 
lost  nearly  all  his  property.  He  then 
bought  a  tract  of  land  in  that  part  of  the 
town  called  South  Hollow,  comprising  sev- 
eral farms  now.  He  was  a  great  worker, 
cleared  many  acres  of  land,  and  made  the 
mountain  road  to  Lincoln  for  50  cts.  per 
rod.     While   making  the  road,  he  had  a 


cabin  built  on  runners,  in  which  to  cook 
and  sleep,  that  he  moved  along  as  fast  as 
the  road  was  completed. 

He  also  kept  a  tavern  and  toll-gate  sev- 
eral years,  and  was  a  merchant  some  time. 
When  he  came  into  town  he  had  about 
$1,000,  but  owing  to  his  misfortune,  had 
only  about  $200  when  he  bought  in  South 
Hollow,  and  by  his  unremitting  toil  and 
economy,  amassed  a  large  property,  and 
was  the  wealthiest  man  in  town  at  his 
death.  He  has  three  sons  living  in  town, 
and  one  in  Boston,  Mass.,  all  being 
wealthy.  He  sold  his  farm  in  South 
Hollow  at  length,  and  moved  into  the  vil- 
lage, where  he  died  Nov.  2,  1870,  aged  82 
years.  He  was  many  years  a  member  of 
the  M.  E.  church. 

COL.    STEPHEN   L.    SARGENT, 

born  in  Windsor,  Jan.  19,  1789,  came  to 
this  town  with  his  father,  Moses  Sargent, 
when  13  years  of  age.  There  were  only 
12  families  in  town  when  he  came.  He 
lived  on  the  same  farm  that  his  father 
settled  on,  and  married  Bridget  Shaw,  of 
Hartland.  They  have  3  sons  and  2  daugh- 
ters. Col.  Sargent  went  with  some  20 
volunteers  to  Plattsburgh,  N.  Y.,  but  did 
not  arrive  until  the  battle  was  over.  In 
1820,  he  was  commissioned  lieut.  colonel; 
in  1822,  colonel  of  the  4th  reg.  ist  brigade, 
4th  division  of  Vt.  militia.  He  was  a 
prompt,  faithful  officer.  He  gave  me  these 
facts  when  past  85  years  of  age,  and  his 
mind  at  this  time  was  remarkably  clear. 
I  am  indebted  to  him  for  more  information 
about  the  early  settlers  than  any  one  else 
in  town.  He  was  the  oldest  Free  Mason 
in  town ;  was  a  member  over  50  years, 
and  was  buried  under  the  Masonic  order. 

DEXSLOW   UPHAM, 

born  in  Weathersfield  in  1800,  moved  into 
town  in  1818.  He  married,  Aug.  1823, 
Ada  H.  Richardson,  daughter  of  James 
Richardson.  Mr.  Upham  is  a  man  of 
good  education  and  sound  judgment.  He 
surveyed  and  lotted  the  2d  division  of  land 
in  town,  and  was  appointed  a  judge  of  the 
county  court  in  i853-''54;  elected  State 
senator  in  1864-^65.  Mr.  Upham  has  a 
very  pleasant  family,  and  whoever  calls 
there  is  always  treated  very  hospitably. 


8o6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


RICHARD   STERLING 

moved  from  South  Woodstock,  Feb.  22, 
1 82 3.  He  lived  on  the  place  now  owned 
by  G.  W.  Cardell,  14  years  ;  kept  tavern 
4  years  of  the  time,  then  moved  to  Grand 
Hollow.  He  was  born  in  Lyme,  Ct.,  Dec. 
21,  1777.  At  the  age  of  5  years  his  father 
removed  to  South  Woodstock,  Vt.  When 
Richard  Sterling  came  to  Warren,  there 
were  but  three  houses  in  the  village.  He 
kept  the  first  tavern,  was  never  absent 
from  a  town  meeting,  and  voted  for  every 
President  after  he  was  21.  He  died  July 
23,  1872,  aged  94  years,  7  mos.  2  days. 

HIRAM    BRADLEY, 

came  from  Pomfret  here  in  1824.  He  was 
an  educated  man,  and  a  teacher  in  his 
early  life,  but  was  very  much  broken  down 
in  his  old  age.  Mrs.  Bradley,  his  wife,  is 
one  of  those  old  ladies,  we  seldom  meet, 
so  pleasant  and  so  social,  with  a  well  cul- 
tivated mind ;  though  over  70  when  we 
last  saw  her,  she  conversed  upon  any  sub- 
ject introduced,  with  ease. 

AMOS    RISING, 

born  in  Southwick,  Massachusetts,  1769, 
moved  to  Warren  in  I799 ;  had  3  children  : 
his  oldest  daughter  now  living  in  Warren, 
aged  86 ;  his  son  is  a  lawyer  in  the  West. 
She  now  lives  on  her  father's  old  place, 
where  he  first  settled,  her  name  is  Mrs. 
Lorenzo  Nichols.  He  died  I845,  aged  65. 
His  brother,  Tehan  Rising,  came  to 
Warren  in  I800.  He  had  6  children,  only 
one  lived  to  grow  up.  Aaron  Rising 
came  to  Warren  in  I802.  They  were  all 
influential  men,  and  helped  build  up  the~ 
town. 

LONGEVITY  OF  WARREN  TO  JAN.  1877. 
Mrs.  Wm.  Porter,  100  years,  6  months 
and  3  days  ;  Olive,  widow  of  Timothy 
Vinson,  92  years  ;  Eliza  Parsons,  91  ;  Mrs. 
Richard  Sterling,  89 ;  Joseph  Lovett,  87 ; 
Capt.  Timothy  Dolbear,  86  ;  Mrs.  Gard- 
ner Campbell,  86 ;  Jonathan  Grow,  86 ; 
Jarius  Eaton,  85  ;  Ruel  Sherman,  84;  John 
Cardell,  84;  Mrs.  Joseph  Lovett,  84; 
Moses  Sargent,  83  ;  Mrs.  Amelia  Curtis, 
83  ;  Mrs.  Aaron  Rising,  82  ;  William 
Cardell,  82  ;  Mrs.  Abigail  Stevens,  81  ; 
Philemon  Metcalf,  81  ;  Mrs.  Alfred  Nich- 


ols, 80  ;  Ira  Putnam,  79;  Mrs.  Ebenezer 
Bennett,  79  ;  Jacob  Stevens,  79  ;  James 
Richardson,  79;  Abraham  Van  Deusen, 
78  ;  Robert  Kelsey,  78  ;  Joseph  Hewett, 
yS  ;  Mrs.  James  Richardson,  78 ;  Daniel 
Jones,  78;  Wm.  Bragg,  77;  Mrs.  Wm. 
Bragg,  77  ;  Mrs.  Edward  Hall,  77  ;  Wm. 
Porter,  77  ;  James  Holden,  76  ;  Mrs. 
Daniel  Jones,  76  ;  Mrs.  Daniel  Brown,  75; 
Mrs.  Otis  Bucklin,  75;  Ezra  Church,  75  ; 
Samuel  Bagley,  74  ;  Mrs.  Wm.  Porter,  74  ; 
Mrs.  E.  P.  Landon,  7^  ;  Joseph  A.  Curtis, 

73  ;  Thomas  Sargent,  y;^  ;  Daniel  Brown, 

72  ;  Moses  Hall,  72;  Joshua  Davis,  71  ; 
Daniel  Howe,  71  ;  Charlotte  Buck,  70  ; 
Harriet  Dickinson,  70  ;  Gardner  Camp- 
bell, 70  ;  Alvin  Porter,  70  ;  Mrs.  Hannah 
Pike,  S7 ;  Col.  Sargent,  87;  Sylvester 
Upham,  75  ;  Mrs.  Phebe  LTpham,  70  ; 
Mrs.  Lavina  Geer,  78  ;  Mrs.  David  Ban- 
ister, 75  ;  Mrs.  Henry  Dana,  77  ;  Mr.s 
Wm.  Cardell,  84  ;  Artemas  Banister,  75  ; 
Hiram    Bradley,  82 ;    Marcena  Greenslit, 

74  ;  Benjamin  Powers,  82  ;  Amos  Bagley, 

76  ;  Lovina  Brigham,  72  ;  John  Patrol, 
82  ;  Dolly  Dimmick,  83  ;  Joseph  Hewitt, 

77  ;  Lydia  J.  Hewitt,  81  ;  Horace  Powers, 
84 ;  Sarah  Gifford,  85  ;  Joseph  Vickery, 
80  ;  James  Allen,  89  ;  Samuel  C.  Turner, 

73  ;  Hannah  Miller,  88  ;  Esther  Moore, 
80;  RhodaDutton,  81  ;  Simeon  Pratt,  87; 
Erastus  Buck,  82  ;  Rufus  Thayer,  7;^  ; 
Samantha  Lamb,  70;  Daniel  Ralph,  71  ; 
Betsey  Ainsworth,  75  ;  Samuel  Crosier, 
81;  Clarisa  Arnold,  72;  Andrew  Arnold,  72. 

In  Warren,  Sept.  I7,  Mrs.  Hannah 
Billings,  wife  of  Mr.  Rufus  Billings,  aged 
80  years.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Billings  lived  to- 
gether nearly  60  years,  and  in  the  com- 
munity where  she  died,  38.  She  was  the 
mother  of  I4  children,  I2  of  whom  lived 
to  have  families,  9  survived  her,  and  7  at- 
tended her  funeral.  She  could  number  65 
grand-children  and  20great-grand-children. 

MANUFACTURES. 

Warren  Wooden  Bowl  and  Chair  Stock 
Factory,  situated  on  Mad  river,  at  the 
further  south  end  of  the  v^illage,  was  built 
by  Carlos  Sargent,  in  I809,  who  put  in  a 
forge  and  manufactured  edge  tools  several 
years,  and  sold  to  Thomas  Heyward,  who 
manufactured   wooden    bowls,    fork-stails 


WARREN. 


807 


and  hoe-handles  till  the  fall  of  1868,  when 
R.  N.  and  D.  D.  Hemenway,  of  Ludlow, 
bought  the  shop,  and  commenced  there, 
Nov.  20,  that  season,  the  turning  of  wooden 
l)owls,  with  whom,  Apr.  1,  I869,  C.  W. 
Hemenway,  another  brother,  bought  in  an 
equal  share,  and  helped  to  manufacture 
bowls  and  chair-stock  until  Apr.  1,  I874, 
when  he  sold  to  R.  N.  and  D.  D.,  and  re- 
turned to  farming  in  Ludlow,  and  the  broth- 
ers, R.  N.  and  D.  D.,  continued  the  busi- 
ness until  the  fall  of  I878,  when  the  shop 
was  burned,  after  which  they  sold  the 
privilege  to  John  Bradley,  who  has  since 
built  a  shop  on  the  old  foundation. 

Henry  Austin  manufactured  clapboards 
on  Mad  river,  about  3  miles  above  the 
village,  for  several  years,  and  then  sold 
out  and  went  West.  Alex.  Stetson  and 
a  Mr.  Hanks  manufactured  clothes-pins  a 
short  time  ;  then  Mr.  Hanks  started  a  shop 
of  his  own,  but  did  not  run  it  long.  Geo. 
S.  Hanks  built  a  shop  also  at  the  north 
end  of  the  village,  on  Ford  brook  at  the 
falls,  for  the  manufacture  of  rolling-pins, 
clothes-pins  and  clapboards  for  a  time, 
and  Walter  Bagley  manufactured  clap- 
boards in  South  Hollow  several  years. 

Samuel  Austin  run  a  distillery  many 
years  since  in  town.  His  customers  would 
carry  their  molasses  (maple)  and  get  their 
rum.  One  day  a  goverment  officer  visited 
him,  and  finding  that  he  had  no  license,  it 
cost  his  brother,  Daniel  Austin,  $150.00  to 
settle.  The  old  still  in  now  in  Christopher 
Moore's  possession. 

VILLAGE. 

Warren  has  quite  a  village.  There  are 
some  50  dwelling-houses,  1  church,  1 
school-house,  a  very  good  one ;  3  stores, 
2  boot  and  shoe  .shops,  1  tannery,  5  black- 
smith shops,  2  clap-board  mills,  2  saw- 
mills, I  grist-mill,  3  carriage  shops,  1  har- 
ness-shop, 1  tin-shop,  2  cooper-shops,  2 
clothes-pins  shops,  1  gunsmith,  1  millin- 
ary  shop,  a  tavern  and  post-office. 

Mad  River  runs  through  the  village. 
The  water-power  here  is  very  good.  A 
stage  runs  to.Roxbury,  7  miles,  the  near- 
est railroad  station,  and  back  3  times  a 
week.   [Data  of  I877  ;  there  is  now,  1881, 


a  daily  stage  from  Warren  to  Roxbury.] 
In  other  parts  of  the  town,  there  are  2 
carriage-shops,  2  saw-mills,  1  clap-board 
mill,  a  shingle  factory,  1  black  smith  shop, 
and  several  cooper  shops. 

TOWN    CLERKS. 

Samuel  Laird,  1799;  Thomas  Jerrolds, 
I800-6;  Joseph  W.  Eldridge,  I807-20; 
James  Richardson,  I82I,  22,  24;  Simeon 
Buck,  I823;  Jared  W.  Shepherd,  I825- 
28 ;  Sylvanus  Payne,  I829-37  ;  Franklin 
A.  Wright,  I838-47 ;  Darius  S.  Parker, 
I848-54;  D.  D.  Hyzer,  1855-63;  James 
Cardell,  1 864-80. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

Joseph  W.  Eldridge,  I8I0-I6 ;  Amos 
Rising,  I8I6-24,  25,  26  ;  Tehan  Rising, 
I8I9;  James  Richardson,  I823 ,  James 
Butterfield,  I827  ;  Joseph  A.  Hyzer,  I828, 
32  ;  Moses  Sargent,  I829,  30,  3I  ;  none 
1^»'^33'  34»  53  '>  Artemus  Cushman,  I835, 
36,  42  ;  William  Cardell,  I837,  38  ;  Wil- 
liam B.  Taylor,  I839  ;  Franklin  A.Wright, 
I840,  4I,  54,  55  ;  Thomas  Sargent,  I843  ; 
Lewis  Cardell,  I844 ;  Moses  Ordway, 
1845,46;  Denslow  Uphani,  I847  ;  Wil- 
liam Rankin,  I848,  49 ;  Gideon  Good- 
speed,  I850,  5I  ;  P.  P.  Raymond,  I852  ; 
Rev.  Jarius  Eaton,  I856,  59,  60 ;  Pierce 
Spaulding,  I857.  58;  Daniel  Ralph,  1861, 
62  ;  Rev.  John  Dolph,  1863,  64 ;  Edwin 
Cardell,  IS65,  66  ;  Otis  Bucklin,  I867,  68  ; 
James  Cardell,  I869,  70,  7I ;  G.  W.  Car- 
dell, I872-75  ;  D.  D.  Hemenway,  I876; 
Milo  Bucklin,  I877,  80,  81  ;  Sylvester 
Banister,  I878,  79. 

CONSTABLES. 

James  Richardson,  I799,  I'^Hi  I2,  I3  ; 
Elias  Miller,  I800,  1  ;  George  Lattimer, 
IS02,  3,  4;  Calvin  Gilbert,  I805,  6,  7; 
Amos  Rising,  I808,  I4,  I5,  16,  18,  I9,  20, 
2I,  22,  23,  24,  25,  26,  27;  William  Kent, 
I809,  lo  ;  Giles  Eldridge,  I8I7  ;  Oramel 
Williams,  I828,  29,  30 ;  Thomas  Sargent, 
I83I,  36,  52,  53  ;  Lewis  Bagley,  I832  ;  P. 
D.  Bagley,  I833,  34,  35  ;  Gideon  Good- 
speed,  I838,  39,  43,  44,  45,  46,  47,  48,  49, 
50,  5I  ;  Pierce  Spaulding,  1854,  55,  56  ; 
Wm.  H.  H.  Hall,  I857,  58,  59;  John 
Thayer,  I860,  61  ;  Edwin  Cardell,  I862- 
80. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Physicians  : — Dr.  Fish,  Asahel  Kend- 
rick,  D.  C.  Joyslin,  Dr.  Peabody,  N.  G. 
Brigham,  J.  M.  Van  Deusen,  and  E.  W. 
Slayton. 

Attorneys: — A.  C.  Huntoon,  John 
H.  Senter. 

POST   MASTERS. 

East  Warren. — Joseph  W.  Eldridge, 
George  Lathrop,  Wm.  Tillotson,  Lorenzo 
Nichols,  Nahum  Nichols. 

At  the  River. — Parker  Putman,  D.  S. 
Parker,  D.  D.  Hyzer,  H.  Fifield,  J.  G. 
Sargent,  G.  W.  Cardell,  Edwin  Cardell. 

JUDGES  OF  THE  COUNTY  COURT. 

Joseph  A.  Curtis,  first ;  F.  A.  Wright, 
1850  ;  Denslow  Upham,  I852-54. 

MEMBERS    OF     CONSTITUTIONAL     CONVEN- 
TIONS. 

J.  W.  Eldridge,  I8I4  ;  Amos  Rising, 
I822  ;  J.  A.  Hyzer,  I828  ;  Artemas  Cush- 
man,  I836;  Gideon  Goodspeed,  I84S ; 
Denslow  Upham,  1850. 


STATE   SENATORS. 

Artemus  Cushman,  I840  ;  F.  A.  Wright, 
1846,  47,  56;  Joseph  A.  Curtis,  Denslow 
Upham,  1852,  64. 

Census: — 1800,  58;  1810,  229;  1820, 
320;  1830,  766;  1840,  943;  1850,  962, 
i860,  1041 ;   1870,  1008;   1880,  951. 

Grand  List: — 1870,  $2,699.44;  1880, 
$2,494.64. 

MILITARY. 

Revolutionary  Soldiers  : —  Moses 
Sargent,  Richard  Shaw,  William  Porter, 
and  John  Greenslit.  John  Greenslit  died 
in  the  war. 

Soldiers  of  1812: — Thomas  Jerrolds, 
Jesse  Stewart,  Justin  Jacobs,  Oliver  Per- 
sons, Samuel  Hard,  and  Gardner  Camp- 
bell were  in  the  war  of  1812.  Jerrolds 
and  Stewart  died  in  the  war ;  George 
Dimick  was  in  the  Mexican  war. 


WAR   OK   THE    REBELLION. 


SECOND    REGIMENT. 


Names. 

Reg.  Co. 

Ase. 

Enlisted. 

Worcester,  Almon  C.  Jr., 

2    F 

24 

May    7  61 

Burbaiik,  Morgan  A. 

do 

24 

do 

Ainsworth,  Geo.  A. 

do 

19 

do 

Cass,  Elisha 

do 

21 

do 

Mills,  Hiram  F. 

do 

23 

do 

Worcester,  Earl  C. 

do 

do 

Quimby,  Wm.  H.  E. 

do 

22 

do 

Hewitt,  Grin  O. 

2   H 

24 

Aug  20  61 

third  regime 

Billings,  Wm.  W. 

3  H 

21 

July    9  61 

Eldridge,  James  E. 

3    F 

19 

June    I  61 

Porter,  Rufus  W. 

3   G 

23 

July  12  61 

Parker,  Ransom 

3    F 

21 

Sept  16  61 

62. 


Frawley,  James 
Quinn,  Timothy 

Hall,  Wm.  H.  H. 
Sterling,  Stephen  D. 
Kelsey,  Oscar  G. 
Shepherd,  Daniel  P. 
Bucklin,  Merrill  R. 
Shattuck,  Nathaniel 
Parker,  George 
Banister,  Sylvester 
Goodspeed,  Elisha 
Mathers,  George 
McAllister,  John 
Mills,  Charles 
Moore,  William  F. 
Moore,  Winslow  S. 
Newton,  Chester  F. 
Persons,  Frederick  D. 
Persons,  Harrison  W. 
Porter,  Seth  L. 


5  D 
do 


Serg't.;  promoted  2d  lieut.  Aug.  4 
Corporal ;  discharged  Dec.  22,  62. 
Trans,  to  invalid  corps,  Nov.  20,  63. 
Discharged  Nov.  12,  61. 
Died  June  16,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 
Transferred  to  invalid  corps  July  1,63, 
Died  Jan.  9,  62. 


Mustered  out  July  24,  64. 

Pro.  2d  It.  Co.  H,  iithreg.  Aug.  10,62 

Discharged  Feb.  22,  63. 

Died  Mar.  7,  62. 

FIFTH    regiment. 

18     Feb  28  65     Mustered  out  June  29,  65. 
35     Feb  27  65  do  do 


sixth  regiment. 

6  G 

Captain. 

6  H 

37 

Aug  14  61 

Serg't.;  reduced  to  ranks  June  2,  63. 

6   G 

21 

Sept  12  61 

Sergeant ;  died  June  9,  62. 

6  H 

27 

Corporal ;  reduced  to  teamster;  re-en 

6  G 

19 

do 

do          died  Aug.  17,  62. 

do 

20 

Aug  15  61 

do          died  Apr.  19,  62. 

6   H 

20 

do 

do          reduced  to  ranks. 

6   A 

28 

Oct    14  61 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 

6  G 

34 

Sept  12  61 

Discharged  Oct.  20,  66. 

6  H 

20 

Aug  14  61 

do          Apr.  17,  62. 

do 

22 

do 

do          Feb.  ID,  62. 

6  G 

21 

Sept  14  61 

do          July  22,  62, 

do 

23 

do 

do          Jan.  8,  62. 

6  H 

Yc 

do 

Pro.  Corp.;  re-en.  Dec.  15,  63. 

do 

25 

do 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 

6   G 

18 

Oct     I  61 

do          M  ar.  29,  64. 

do 

40 

do 

Discharged  J  lay  28,  62. 

do 

19 

Sept  10  61 

do          June  19,  62. 

WARREN. 

805 

Nhiik-s. 

Hcg.  Co 

Age, 

Eiilisled. 

Keniaiks. 

Rising,  William  H. 

6   H 

42 

Aug  14  61 

Pro.  Corp.;  re-enlisted  Dec.  15, 

63- 

Spaulding,  Cliarles  E. 

6   G 

33 

Sept  18  61 

Discharged  Nov.  27,  62. 

Stoddard,  Lyman 

do 

i8 

Sept  20  61 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 

Trask,  Frank  A. 

do 

27 

Sept  12  61 

Promoted  cor]3oral. 

Dumas,  Oliver 

do 

26 

do 

Re-enlisted  Dec.  15,  63. 

Poland,  Benjamin 

do 

42 

Sept    7  64 

Mustered  out  June  19,  65. 

Dimick,  Darwin  E. 

6   H 

29 

Mar    3  65 

do          June  26,  65. 

Pierce,  George  H. 

do 

20 

do 

do                  do 

Persons,  Orson  F. 

do 

19 

Feb  21  65 

do                  do 

SEVENTH    REGIMENT. 

Davis,  Benjamin  L. 

7   K 

44 

Jan    13  62 

Discharged  Oct.  15,  62. 

Parmenter,  Rufus  A. 

do 

19 

Dec    8  61 

Re-en.  Feb.  15,  64;  died  Apr.  i 

6,64. 

Buzzell,  James  M. 

do 

19 

Feb  27  65 

Mustered  out  Aug.  4,  65. 

EIGHTH   REGIMENT. 

Leavitt,  Nehemiah 

8   C 

21 

Nov  21  61 

Pro.  serg't. ;  discharged  Sept.  4, 

63. 

Spear,  Augustus  C. 

8   G 

26 

Dec  31  61 

Discharged  June  6,  62. 

Bucklin,  Mason  C. 

8   A 

19 

Dec  II  63 

Bucklin,  Milo 

do 

20 

Dec  14  63 

Sick  in  general  hospital,  Aug.  3 

I,  64. 

Cass,  James 

do 

18 

Dec  II  63 

Dumas,  Morris 

do 

27 

Dec  18  63 

Kingsbury,  Ezra 

8 

Waldron,  Don  G. 

8 

Aldrich,  Charles  W. 

8   B 

19 

Mar  20  65 

Mustered  out  June  28,  65. 

NINTH    REGIMENT. 

Minor,  Asahel 

9     I 

40 

June  24  62 

Serg't.;  reduced  to  ranks  Nov. 

II,  63. 

Brown,  Henry 

9   D 

22 

June    562 

Sick  in  general  hospital,  Aug.  3 

I,  64. 

Lovejoy,  Albert  J. 

9     I 

18 

June  27  62 

Discharged  Aug.  4,  63. 

TENTH    REGIMENT. 

Brown,  George 

10    B 

18 

Julv  21  62 

Mather,  James  M. 

do 

21 

July   18  62 

Wd.;  in  general  hospital  Aug.  2 

;i,  64. 

Mathews,  George 

do 

20 

■        do 

ELEVENTH    REGIMENT. 

Miller,  James  E. 

n    L 

30 

June  ID  63 

Sergeant ;  prisoner  since  June  2 

■3>  63. 

Eldridge,  Joseph  W. 

II    H 

21 

Aug  14  63 

do          pro.  Corp.  Jan.  21,  64 
serg't.  May  6,  64  ;  died  June 

. ;  pro. 
24,  64. 

VOLUNTEERS    FOR    NINE 

MONTHS. 

Thayer,  Aretus 

13    B 

22 

Sergeant ;  mustered  out  July  21, 

,63. 

Dolph,  John 

13    B 

32 

Aug  25  62 

Corporal  ;                     do 

Austin,  Samuel 

13  H 

32 

do 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Billings,  Orlando 

13    B 

25 

Sept   862 

do 

Bowen,  John 

do 

42 

do 

do 

Davis,  Myron  M. 

do 

20 

do 

Discharged  Feb.  4,  63. 

Dimick,  Walter  C. 

do 

44 

do 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Hartwell,  James  K. 

do 

36 

do 

do 

Heath,  Eaton  A. 

do 

18 

do 

Mix,  De  Estings  S. 

do 

19 

Dec  12  63 

do 

Smith,  Thomas  C. 

do 

29 

Aug  25  62 

do 

Stearns,  Oscar  A. 

do 

20 

do 

do 

Stevens,  Almus 

do 

30 

do 

do 

Trask,  George  J. 

do 

18 

do 

Trask,  Horace 

do 

45 

do 

Discharged  at  Brattleboro,  Jan. 

31.63. 

Trask,  William  H. 

do 

18 

do 

Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 

Wilson,  James  H. 

do 

20 

do 

Killed  at  Gettysburgh,  July  3,  6; 

3- 

Mason,  Oilman 


Bowen,  John 

Barton,  Joseph  C. 
Bagley,  Walter  A. 

Dutton,  Edwin  P, 
Eaton,  Orville  M. 


SEVENTEENTH    REGIMENT. 

17    G     22  Mustered  out  July  14,  65. 

SHARP-SHOOTERS — FIRST    REGIMENT. 


I     F     43     Dec  10  63 


2    H 

do 


do 
do 


32 
44 


19 


Dec  II  63 

Nov  24  63 

Dec    7  63 
Dec  II  63 


Died  June  15,  64,  of  wounds  rec'd.  in 

action  May  12,  64. 
Died  Aug.  26,64,  of  wds.  rec.  May  31,61. 
Des.  June  8,  64  ;  returned  Dec.  31,  64 ; 

tr.  to  Co.  H,  4th  Vt.  vols.  Feb.  25,65. 
Tr.  to  Co.  H,  4th  Vt.  vols.  Feb.  25, 65. 
do 


8io 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


SECOND   VT.    BATTERY    LIGHT   ARTILLERY. 

i8     Aug    8  64     Mustered  out  July  31,  65. 

18     Aug  12  64     Tr.  to  1st  Co.  heavy  artillery  Mar.  i,  65. 


Petty,  George  A. 
Stoddard,  Franklin 

THIRD   VT.    BATTERY    LIGHT   ARTILLERY. 

Campbell,  Hiland  G.  25     Sept    264     Mustered  out  June  15,  65. 

Furnished  Under  Draft;  Paid  Commutation. — Francis  A.  Allen,  Milo  Bncklin, 
Benjamin  S.  Edgerton,  Burnhani  Ford,  George  N.  Hanks,  John  M.  Hanks,  Samuel  McAllister, 
Henry  Moore,  2d,  Daniel  W.  Nichols,  Charles  Porter,  Hiram  J.  Pratt,  Thomas  J.  Sargeant, 
Stedman  C.  Tucker,  Henry  H.  Van  Deusen. 

Procured  Substitutes. — Charles  W.  Bragg,  Daniel  McAllister,  Jr. 

Soldiers  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  Buried  in  Town. — J.  W.  Eldredge,  Merrill 
Bucklin,  Orrin  O.  Hewett,  James  E.  Miller,  Earl  C.  Worcester,  Benj.  S.  Edgerton,  Chester 
F.  Newton,  Aretus  Thayer,  James  Wilson,  Willard  Thayer. 

Organized  Militia,  4TH  Reg.  2D  Brigade. — H.  W.  Lyford,  captain ;  Edwin  Cardell, 
1st  lieutenant ;  Orland  Billings,  2d  lieutenant. 


Edward  Eldridge,  son  of  Joseph  W., 
is  quite  a  prominent  man  in  Warren ;  is  in 
very  good  circumstances ;  owns  several 
farms,  and  has  held  most  of  the  town  of- 
fices. He  had  a  son  killed  in  the  late  war 
by  the  name  of  Joseph  Eldridge  ;  also  a  son- 
in-law,  Benjamin  Edgerton. 
OLD   PEOPLE 

now  living  in  town  over  70  years  of  age  : 
Mrs.  Ryan,  who  claims  to  be  100;  Mrs. 
Laurena  Persons,  94 ;  Achsah  Allen,  93  ; 
Mrs.  Sarah  Vinson,  84;  Mrs.  Lucretia 
Bradley,  82 ;  Amasa  Pearsons,  86 ;  Asahel 
Young,  87;  Mrs.  A.  Young,  79;  Mrs. 
Dolly  Hubbell,  79  ;  Alva  Stetson,  71  ;  Mrs. 
Polly  Austin,  75 ;  Mrs.  Mary  Rice,  75 ; 
Michael  Ford,  82;  Mrs.  M.  Ford,  78; 
Edward  Munn,  83  ;  Roxy  Munn,  76;  Mrs. 
Rufus  Brown,  70;  Wm.  Page,  83;  Dens- 
low  Upham,  81;  Mrs.  D.  Upham,  79; 
Carlos  Sargent,  76;  Wm.  Mather,  71; 
Mrs.  Abel  Martin,  73 ;  Hazen  Lyford,  71  ; 
Phelps  Jones,  74 ;  David  Hubbell,  T] ; 
Azariah  Hanks,  80;  Mrs.  A.  Hanks,  76; 
Lewis  Cardell,  78  ;  Mrs.  Louis  Van  Deusen, 
80;  Mrs.  James  Parker,  76;  L.  W.  Free- 
man, 70 ;  Mrs.  Freeman,  ']■}, ;  Hosea  New- 
comb,  ^(>\  Mrs.  Laura  A.  Miller,  76;  Mrs. 
Susan  C.  Senter,  -Ji ;  Sewell  C.  Billings, 
76;  Mrs.  S.  C.  Billings,  76;  A.  Worcester, 
75  ;  Mrs.  Julia  Harmon,  83  ;  A.  H.  Dutton, 
75  ;  Gideon  Goodspeed,  73. 

Potato  Hill,  as  it  generally  stands  on 
the  maps,  is  the  high  peak  between  Warren 
and  Lincoln,  the  highest  point  being  in 
Lincoln,  but  not  far  from  the  Warren  line. 
It  is  a  little  south  of  Lincoln  mountain,  at 
about  the  same  height  from  the  sea  level. 


MX.    ALGONQUIN. 
BY  D.  C.  GEER. 
Around  this  mountain  hangs  a  legend, 

Hangs  a  legend  old  and  wild. 
Of  the  bright-eyed  Watonieta, 
An  Algonquin's  only  child. 

How  an  Iroquois  warrior 
Wooed  and  won  "  the  dusky  dove;" 

How  his  father,  the  great  sachem, 
Did  not  of  their  love  approve; 

How  he  spurned  his  father's  counsel. 

And  increased  his  savage  ire — 
Left  the  Iroquois'  wigwam. 

Sat  beside  Algonquin's  fire; 

How  one  day  his  father  found  him 

Hunting  on  you  mountain's-side, 
And  in  wrath  the  chief  commanded 

Him  to  leave  his  gentle  bride ; 

How  the  son  opposed  in  anger; 

How  the  father  drew  his  knife. 
And  as  speeds  the  feathery  arrow. 

Sped  the  young  Iroquois'  life. 

On  this  mountain  watched  the  maiden. 
For  her  brave,  now  cold  and  dead. 

Keeping  there  her  lonely  vigil. 
With  the  same  rock  for  her  bed. 

Still  she  waited — yet  he  came  not— 

Until  winter's  icy  hand 
Chilled  the  current  of  her  young  life, 

Bore  her  to  the  hunting  laud, 

Where  they  roam  the  fields  Elysian, 
Where  they  climb  the  mountains  fair, 

Where  they  fish  in  shining  rivers. 
Where  they  hunt  the  elk  and  hare. 

This  is  what  tradition  teaches 

Of  this  mountain,  old  and  wild; 
Of  the  bright-eyed  Watometa, 

An  Algonquin's  lovely  child. 

As  a  tribute  to  this  maiden. 

Sleeping  in  oblivion's  night; 
Shall  we  not  point  westward,  saying. 

That's  Algonquin's  dizzy  height? 

The  last  Bear  seen  in  Warren  was  a 
huge  one,  shot  the  past  summer, — almost 
as  much  a  trophy,  not  quite,  as  the  Bar- 
nard catamount. 


WARREN. 


8ii 


In  Jan.  1824,  Mrs.  Hiram  Bradley  and  a 
Mrs.  Howe  were  coming  from  Pomfret, 
where  they  had  been  on  a  visit,  and  as 
they  came  into  Granville  wood,  found  the 
water  had  flooded  the  road.  They  drove 
into  the  water  and  upset.  Mrs.  Howe 
told  Mrs.  Bradley  to  throw  her  little  son 
of  2  years  out,  that  he  could  swim  like  a 
duck ;  but  Mrs.  B.  declined,  and  Mrs. 
Howe  went  back  to  Mr.  Rice's  after  help. 
Mrs.  Bradley  got  her  horse  out  where  it 
could  stand,  and  held  her  child  in  her 
arms  from  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  until 
9  p.  M.,  when  a  man  came  along  with  a 
team  and  took  her  in.  Her  clothes  were 
frozen  on  her,  and  she  came  very  near 
dying  from  the  effect. 

Mrs.  C.  E.  Greenslit  tells  one  of  her  fath- 
er's stones — written  for  one  of  her  boys  to 
speak  at  school : 

MY   mother's   tray. 

BT  MKS.  CARRIE  E.   GREENSLIT. 

Long  years  ago,  when  the  land  was  new, 
And  good  things  scarce  and  nice  tilings  few, 
Among  the  treasures  of  tliat  early  day. 
My  mother  had  an  old-fashioned  tray. 
Red  outside,  but  as  clean  within 
As  the  heart  of  man  when  cleansed  from  sin. 

Week  by  week,  and  day  by  day. 
The  children  were  fed  from  that  very  tray ; 
The  great  brown  loaves  were  mixed  in  that. 
And  tlie  butter  received  its  sail  and  spat; 
But  grief  will  come  to  all  some  day. 
And  it  came  at  last  to  my  motlier's  tray, 

"  Boys,"  she  called,  "  come  in  here,  now. 
And  take  this  mess  to  the  sheep  and  cow." 
'Twas  steep  and  slippery  down  to  the  barn. 
And  I  left  her  twisting  her  stocking-yarn. 
"Now,"  thinks  I.  "  I  will  have  some  fun. 
For  I  shall  ride  and  you  shall  run." 

So  I  seated  myself  in  the  famous  tray. 
And  very  soon  we  were  on  our  way: 
Faster  and  faster  the  stumps  went  by; 
Steer  or  stop  it?  no,  not  I; 
Over  tlie  wall  in  my  Gilpin  flight— 
And  I  split  the  tray  from  left  to  right. 

Quick  as  a  wink,  I  raised  the  tray. 
For  well  I  knew  what  my  mother'd  say; 
All  out  of  breath,  with  my  ride  and  run — 
"  Mother,  just  see  wliat  the  buck  has  done!" 
"  Confound  that  buck  I  "  my  mother  said ; 
"  I  wish  to  the  land  the  thing  was  dead!  " 

Well,  she  never  knew  till  I  grew  a  man. 
For  boys  can  keep  secret,  I  know  they  can; 
And  she  missed  and  mourned  for  many  a  day 
The  loss  and  use  of  her  cherished  tray ; 
And  I  got  me  a  sled  to  slide  down  hill. 
Something  that  would  not  split  and  spill. 


WARREN  PAPERS. 

BY  C.  J.  SARGENT. 

In  the  year  1800,  12  men  took  the  free- 
man's oath  here  :  Simeon  Wilcox,  Ruel 
Dolbear,  John  Sherman,  Joshua  Richard- 
son, James  Richardson,  Amos  Rising, 
Jonathan  Shattuck,  Wm.  Kent  and  Jonas 
Rice. 

FIRST   SELECTMEN. 

Simeon  Wilcox,  1800;  Paul  Sherman, 
1801,  '02,  '03;  James  Richardson,  1804, 
'06;  Timothy  Dolbear,  1807,  '08,  'lo; 
Joseph  Raymond,  1809;  Joseph  Eldridge, 
181 1,  '12,  '13,  '16,  '17,  '23,  '28,  '29  ;  Amos 
Rising,  1814,  '15;  Calvin  Gilbert,  1818, 
'19;  Wm.  Kent,  1820;  Benjamin  Buck, 
1821;  Joseph  Hyzer,  1822,  '27;  Winan 
Gleason,  1824;  Zerah  Munsil,  1825,  '26; 
Joseph  Curtis,  1830;  Asahel  Miner,  1831  ; 
Wm.  Bragg,  1832,  '33;  Franklin  Wright, 
1834,  '35,  '36;  Moses  Ordway,  1837  ;  Ben- 
jamin Souther,  1838  ;  Wm.  B.  Tyler,  1839  ; 
A.  Cushman,  1840,  41  ;  D.  Upham,  1842, 
'43;  Pierce  Spaulding,  1844;  H.  Kimball, 
1845;  Lewis  Cardell,  1846;  Moses  Shurt- 
liff,  1847;  Azariah  Hanks,  1848,  '49,  '57, 
'58;  H.  Gleason,  1850,  '52,  '53;  Daniel 
Ralph,  1854,  '55;  Gideon  Goodspeed, 
1856;  Jarius  Eaton,  1857;  Wm.  Kelsey, 
1859;  Charles  Green,  i860;  Charles  Pike, 
1861,  '62,  '66-'7o ;  Huzzial  Gleason,  1863, 
'64;  H.  W.  Lyford,  1865;  H.  G.  Van 
Deusen,  1870;  N.  L.  Dickenson,  1871-76, 
'78  ;  James  G.  Sargent,  1876, '77;  L.  E. 
Hanks,  1879,  '^°'  '^i- 

TOWN   TREASURERS. 

Thomas  Jerrolds,  1800;  Samuel  Laird, 
1801  ;  James  Richardson,  1802,  '3,  '4,  '15, 
'16,  '17;  Jonathan  Shattuck,  1805-13; 
Wm.  B.  Tyler,  1813,  '14,  '4i-'46;  Joseph 
Eldridge,  1818,  ^9,  '35-40;  William 
Bragg,  1820-24;  William  Kent,  i824-'3o; 
Franklin  Wright,  1830-35;  Ashel  Kend- 
rick,  1846;  Denslow  Upham,  1847-51; 
Nathan  Kimball,  1851,  '53, '54;  Lorenzo 
Nichols,  1852;  Cephas  Ransom,  1855; 
Daniel  Ralph,  1856, '57,  '63-74;  Sylves- 
ter Banister,  1874-81. 

The  TURNPIKE  from  Warren  to  Lincoln, 
over  Lincoln  mountain,  was  for  10  to  15 
years  kept  with  toll-gates  ;  12^0.  for  pass- 
ing with  a  team,  25c.  for  round  trip. 


8l2 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ACCIDENTAL   DEATHS. 

Dennison  Sargent,  from  Woodstock,  in 
the  employ  of  William  Cardell,  went  into 
the  mill  where  emplo_ved,  one  morning,  and 
down  below  to  cut  the  ice  from  the  water- 
wheel.  Some  one  raised  the  gate  while 
he  was  there,  and  he  was  carried  under 
the  wheel,  down  the  raceway,  and  under 
the  ice  below  the  mill.  Mr.  Cardell  won- 
dered where  Sargent  was  during  the  day, 
and  some  one  looked  below  the  mill,  and 
discovered  the  body  in  the  ice. 

Lewis  Sargent,  of  East  Warren,  while 
shingling  a  building  in  Roxbury,  fell  from 
the  roof  to  the  ground,  and  injured  his 
spine.  He  lingered  several  months,  and 
then  died. 

Oliver  Porter,  living  in  the  west  part  of 
the  town,  fell  from  the  high  beams  in  his 
barn  on  to  a  flax  hatchel,  and  it  injured 
him  so  he  died  in  a  few  days. 

Ira  Whitcomb,  while  in  the  employ  of 
Christopher  Moore,  was  kicked  in  the 
bowels  by  a  colt  he  was  leading  to  water, 
and  died  in  a  few  days. 

Aurin  Ralph,  while  at  work  on  the  roof 
of  his  mill,  in  the  south  part  of  the  town, 
fell  to  the  rocks  below  the  mill,  and  was 
instantly  killed. 

Dana  Davis,  while  at  work  in  Fayston 
chopping  in  the  woods,  felled  a  tree,  and 
it  lodged  on  another  one,  and  while  chop- 
ping that,  he  was  caught  when  it  fell,  and 
one  leg  was  smashed.  Eftbrts  were  made 
in  vain  to  staunch  the  blood,  but  he  bled  to 
death  in  about  20  hours. 

Horace  Poland,  while  at  work  in  the 
woods,  broke  one  leg,  and  was  injured 
other  ways.  He  lived  several  weeks  and 
then  died. 

Stephen  Sterling  was  sawing-  clapboards 
in  Lincoln,  and  went  out  into  the  mill- 
yard  to  roll  down  some  logs ;  they  lodged, 
and  he  went  in  front  to  start  them,  but  be- 
fore he  could  step  out,  was  caught  and 
crushed  by  the  logs  rolling  on  to  him.  He 
was  a  native  of  Warren,  and  was  buried 
here. 

Victor  Mix  went  to  Canaan  to  lumber, 
and  while  rafting  logs  on  the  pond,  slipped 
between  them  and  was  drowned. 


Mr.  Pelton,  living  near  the  town  line 
between  Waitsfield  and  Warren,  felt  so 
bad  when  the  high  water  cut  through  his 
meadow,  that  he  committed  suicide. 

Otis  Bucklin  died  very  suddenly  of  heart 
disease.  He  ate  his  supper  as  usual,  and 
went  out  in  the  dooryard,  and  was  giving 
his  hired  man  some  orders  about  the  work, 
and  dropped  dead. 

The  Natural  Bridge  of  Warren  is 
a  very  interesting  natural  curiosity.  It  is 
in  the  south  part  of  the  village,  on  the 
premises  of  Don  C.  Geer.  It  is  a  natural 
bridge  of  stone,  about  20  feet  in  height, 
with  an  arch  12  feet  in  height,  and  artists 
have  taken  views  of  it  that  have  been  sold 
through  the  country. 

Patents. — Don  C.  Geer  obtained,  a 
patent  on  a  knob  latch  in  Sept.  3,  1878. 
It  is  called  "Geer's  Patent  Reversible 
Gravitating  Knob  Latch."  It  is  a  great 
improvement  on  spring  latches.  Clark  E. 
Billings,  born  in  Warren,  is  a  natural 
mechanic,  and  does  various  kinds  of  work 
on  wood  and  iron ;  is  a  first-class  gun- 
smith, and  has  obtained  patents  on  a  num- 
ber of  carpenters'  tools,  and  on  several 
tools  combined  in  one  ;  also  a  patent  on  an 
apple-quarterer,  and  on  a  double-acting 
knob  latch. 

Sons  of  Warren — Cyrus  Royce  grad- 
uated at  the  Unitarian  College  in  Mead- 
ville,  Penn.,  and  is  a  Unitarian  preacher 
in  Massachusetts.  Hartwell  Davis  went 
to  Minnesota,  and  succeeded  well  as  a 
railroad  man  and  business  manager,  and 
amassed  quite  a  fortune. 

John  Senter  is  a  self-made  man.  He 
has  obtained  his  education  almost  wholly 
by  himself;  studied  law  and  been  admitted 
to  the  bar,  and  makes  a  success  of  his 
business.  He  is  on  the  Board  of  Educa- 
tion, and  holds  other  olifices. 

Clarence  J.  Sargent,  son  of  Jonas  G. 
Sargent,  who  came  from  Randolph  to 
Warren  in  1844,  is  also  noted  as  a  success- 
ful music-teacher,  having  given  ovpr  10,000 
lessons  on  the  piano,  organ  and  in  har- 
mony during  the  last  8  years ;  at  present, 
1882,  has  a  class  of  108  scholars,  in  his 
little  territory  embracing  several  counties. 


WATERBURY. 


813 


WATERBURY. 


BY   KEV.  C.   C.  PARKER. 


The  Early  History  of  Waterbury.  A 
Discourse  delivered  Feb.  loth,  1867,  by 
Rev.  C.  C.  Parker,  Pastor  of  Congrega- 
tional Church.  Water bitry:  Waterbury 
Job  Printing  Establishment ,  1867. 

Ps.  77tli,— 5th.— I  liave  considered  tlie  days  of  old. 
the  years  of  Ancient  time. 

There  are  few  sentiments  more  universal 
and  rational,  than  that  which  manifests  it- 
self in  a  desire  to  know  the  past  and  es- 
pecially the  history  of  the  persons  and 
places  with  which  we  are  or  have  been  in- 
timately connected.  To  gratify  this  senti- 
ment, your  attention  is  asked  to  the  follow- 
ing Sketch  of  the  Early  History  of  Water- 
bury. 

There  is  no  evidence  that  the  Indian 
ever  made  his  home  within  the  borders  of 
our  town.  The  first  settlers  found  no  indica- 
tions of  clearings  or  dwellings,  and  the  relics 
of  the  Indians  found  here  have  been  few. 
But  though  the  Red  Man  probably  never 
dwelt  here,  (i)  our  valley  lay  in  his  great 
thoroughfare  from  the  valley  of  the  Cham- 
plain  to  the  valley  of  the  Connecticut,  and 
indeed  from  the  valley  of  the  St.  Lawrence 
to  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic.  As  power- 
ful tribes,  hostile  to  each  other,  dwelt  on 
either  side,  doubtle.ss  many  a  war  party 
went  forth  to  fight,  passing  through  our 
valley,  and  returned,  exulting  with  victory, 
or  sullen  with  defeat.  Doubtless  these 
hills  have  echoed  the  warwhoop  of  many 
such  a  party,  and  the  song  of  their  war- 
dance.  It  is  certain  that  the  300  French 
and  Indians  under  De  Rouville,  who  de- 
stroyed Deerfield,  Mass.,  in  March,  1704, 
passed  through  this  valley,  both  when  they 
went  on  their  bloody  errand,  and  when 
they  returned  with  their  1 12  captives.  It 
may  add  somewhat  to  our  interest,  as  we 
read  the  sad,  thrilhng  story  of  the  suffer- 
ings and  adventures  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Wil- 
liams and  his  captive  associates,  to  remem- 
ber that  they  made  their  forlorn  and 
gloomy  journey  to  their  long  captivity, 
over  the  spot  where  we  now  cultivate  our 
beautiful   fields   and    dwell   in   our    quiet 


The  notcb  hi  tliis  paper  are  niarliod  by  figures,  viz. 
(1.)  (2,)  (3,)  Ac.    See  Appendix. 


homes.  Through  this  valley  also  passed 
and  repassed  the  Indians  who  burnt  Royal- 
ton,  and  took  its  inhabitants  captive  in 
1780.  The  hill  in  the  north  part  of  the 
town,  over  which  ran  the  old  road  to 
Stowe,  was  originally  called  Indian  Hill, 
some  say  because  the  Indians  who  burnt 
Royalton  camped  there  for  a  short  time. 
(2)  The  falls  in  the  Winooski  were  called 
Indian  Falls  by  the  early  settlers  ;  tradition 
here,  as  in  so  many  other  like  localities, 
saying  that  a  disappointed  Indian  maiden, 
in  her  despair,  threw  herself  from  the 
highest  point  of  the  rocks  to  the  chasm 
below.  Though  the  Indian  never  dwelt 
here,  the  whole  region  unquestionably,  was 
familiar  to  him,  not  only  as  lying  in  his 
great  war-path,  but  as  favorite  ground  for 
hunting  and  fishing. 

The  town  was  chartered  by  Benning 
Wentworth,  Gov.  of  New  Hampsh'e,  June 
7,  1763.  The  war  between  the  English  and 
French  was  just  ended,  and  the  Canadas 
had  become  a  part  of  the  British  posses- 
sions. Vermont  ceased  to  be  border-war 
territory,  and  the  obstacle  to  its  settlement 
was  removed.  Numerous  towns  in  this 
part  of  the  State  were  chartered  about  the 
same  time  with  Waterbury, — Burlington, 
Colchester,  Essex,  Williston,  Bolton,  Dux- 
bury,  Moretown  and  Charlotte,  were  cliar- 
tered  the  same  day, — Jericho,  Underhill, 
Middlesex  and  Berlin  the  day  following. 
But  as  nearly  the  whole  of  Vermont  was 
then  an  unbroken  wilderness,  few  settle- 
ments were  made,  so  far  north  as  these 
towns,  before  the  Revolution.  The  few 
that  were  made  were  then  broken  up,  and 
were  not  recommenced  until  the  war  closed. 
— This  accounts  for  the  wide  space  between 
the  charter  and  first  settlement  of  nearly 
all  the  towns  in  this  part  of  the  State. 

Waterbury  was  chartered  to  several  in- 
dividuals in  Connecticut  and  New  Jersey. 
It  quite  probably  took  its  name  from  Wa- 
terbury, Conn.,  as  many  of  the  proprietors 
lived  in  that  vicinity,  and  as  these  two  are 
the  only  towns  of  that  name  to  be  found, 
so  far  as  I  know.  The  first  meeting  of 
the  proprietors  was  held  in  New  Milford, 
Conn.,  in  1770 — some  of  the  subsequent 
meetings   were    held    at   Newark,    N.    J. 


8i4 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


After  the  Revolution  the  meetings  were 
held  in  Sunderland,  Arlington,  and  Ben- 
nington of  this  State.  The  warrant  for 
the  meeting  in  Bennington  was  issued  by 
Isaac  Tichenor,  then  justice  of  the  peace — 
subsequently,  so  long  governor  of  the 
State. 

The  town  was  not  surveyed  until  about 
1782.  At  that  time  Col.  Partridge  Thatch- 
er, of  New  Milford,  Ct.,  one  of  the  pro- 
prietors, and  the  moderator  of  their  first 
meeting,  and  also  of  the  meeting  in  Ar- 
lington, came  on  with  surveyors  and  ran 
out  the  town.  They  built  their  camp  a 
few  rods  to  the  rear  of  Messrs.  Case  & 
Thomas'  steam-mill,  between  the  railroad 
and  brook.  This,  without  doubt,  was  the 
first  tenement  for  a  human  being  built  in 
Waterbury.  From  Col.  Thatcher  the 
stream  that  enters  the  river  near  where  his 
camp  stood,  was  called  Thatcher  Branch. 
As  we  always  desire  to  know  the  end  of 
those  in  any  important  sense  identified 
with  the  place  where  we  live,  I  will  add 
that  it  is  said  that  Col.  Thatcher  contract- 
ed a  disease  from  his  exposures  in  the 
forests  of  our  town,  from  which  he  died 
soon  after  returning  to  Connecticut. 

The  first  settler  of  Waterbury  was  James 
Marsh,  a  native  of  Canaan,  Ct.  He  had 
been  a  soldier  in  the  French  war.  In  the 
early  part  of  the  Revolutionary  war  he  sold 
his  place  in  Canaan  and  moved  to  Corn- 
wall, Ct.  Soon  after  this  he  was  drafted 
as  a  soldier  in  the  Revolution.  Having  a 
large  family  of  small  children,  and  his  wife 
being  very  feeble,  he  hired  a  young  man 
as  a  substitute,  paying  him  $100.  To  pay 
this  sum,  and  with  the  hope  of  escaping 
service  as  a  minute  man,  to  which  he  had 
been  enrolled,  he  sold  his  place  in  Corn- 
wall and  bought  a  right  of  land  in  Bath, 
N.  H.,  and  one  in  Waterbury.  The  right 
in  Waterbury  was  purchased  of  a  Mr. 
Steele,  of  New  Milford,  and  deeded  in 
1780.  Soon  after  this  he  moved  to  Bath 
and  commenced  a. settlement,  in  the  mean- 
time having  buried  his  wife  and  married 
again.  After  living  there  some  2  years, 
he  found  the  title  to  his  land  in  Bath  was 
bad,  and  he  resolved  to  begin  a  settle- 
ment in  Waterbury,  having  the  assurance 


that  several  others  would  begin  settle- 
ments about  the  same  time.  In  the  spring 
of  1783  he  came  on,  selected  his  right, 
which  covered  much  of  the  site  of  the 
present  village  (3) — cleared  a  small  piece 
of  land  between  the  graveyard  and  the 
river,  and  having  planted  it  with  corn,  re- 
turned. In  the  fall  he  came  and  harvested 
his  crop,  putting  it  into  a  rude  crib  for 
next  year's  use.  The  next  spring  he  came 
with  his  family  to  the  old  fort  in  Corinth, 
where  he  left  his  wife  and  five  of  his  eight 
children,  and  came  on  to  Waterbury  with 
the  remaining  three,  viz.  :  Elias,  James 
and  Irene,  making  the  journey  on  snow- 
shoes,  and  drawing  his  provisions  and 
effects  on  a  hand-sled.  He  took  possession 
of  the  surveyors'  cabin. 
•  To  his  dismay  he  found  the  corn,  so 
carefully  stored  the  fall  before,  was  nearly 
all  gone.  Bears,  Indians  or  travelers,  had 
taken  well  nigh  the  whole.  We  can 
hardly  conceive  a  condition  more  sad  and 
dismal.  Relying  upon  his  supply  of  corn, 
he  had  taken  little  provision  with  him, 
and  there  was  none  in  the  shape  of  grain 
short  of  a  return  to  Corinth.  Hunting 
and  fishing  were  his  only  resource.  The 
last  of  May,  having  made  an  additional 
clearing,  and  nearly  finished  planting  his 
corn,  he  left  his  children  and  returned  to 
Corinth  for  the  remainder  of  his  family, 
expecting  to  be  absent  one  week,  and 
leaving  provision  barely  for  that  time. 
The  children,  as  I  have  remarked,  were 
Elias,  a  lad  of  about  15  years,  and  who 
subsequently  owned  the  place  where  Miss 
Electa  Corse  now  resides,  and  whose  re- 
mains lie  unmarked  in  our  graveyard ; 
Irene,  a  girl  about  12  years  old,  who  mar- 
ried a  Mr.  Coleman,  of  Underbill,  and  who 
died  there  in  1826,  and  James,  a  small 
boy,  who  lived  for  many  years  in  the  south 
part  of  Jericho,  and  who  died  there,  Feb., 
1865,  nearly  90  years  old.  After  their 
father  had  left,  the  children  found  they 
must  put  themselves  on  short  allowance  to 
bring  the  week  through.  The  week  ended, 
and  so  did  their  provisions,  but  the  father 
did  not  return.  Their  only  reliable  means 
of  subsistence  then  was  the  wild  onions  or 
leeks  which  grew  in  abundance  on  the  in- 


WATERBURY. 


8iS 


tervale.  To  relieve  themselves,  they  re- 
solved to  go  down  to  the  Falls  to  catch  fish, 
having  been  told  they  were  abundant 
there.  In  attempting  to  cross  Waterbury 
river  on  a  button-wood  pole,  the  only 
means  of  crossing  then,  the  sister  fell  into 
the  stream,  and  came  near  being  drowned. 
After  rescuing  her,  they  returned  to  their 
desolate  cabin,  and  to  the  sorry  food  of 
wild  onions.  Thus  they  passed  another 
week,  but  no  father  came.  Thinking  they 
must  certainly  perish  if  they  remained 
longer,  they  left  for  their  nearest  neigh- 
bor, Mr.  Jesse  McFairlane,  who  had  set- 
tled that  spring  on  the  Jones  farm  in 
Richmond.  On  their  way  down,  a  huge 
bear  met  them  near  the  present  residence 
of  Capt.  H.  Sherman,  l5ut  their  hunting 
dog,  which  had  been  left  with  them,  soon 
worried  him  up  the  side  of  the  mountain, 
and  they  passed  on  in  safety  to  Mr.  Mc- 
Fairlane's,  where  they  were  most  kindly 
received  and  cared  for.  They  were  so 
nearly  starved,  that  it  was  some  time  be- 
fore it  was  safe  for  them  to  eat  a  full  meal. 
After  about  three-  weeks'  unavoidable 
absence,  the  father,  with  the  mother  and 
the  rest  of  the  family,  returned.  Driven 
almost  to  desperation  by  his  delays,  and 
filled  with  the  deepest  anxiety,  he  thinks 
his  worst  fears  are  realized  as  he  enters  his 
cabin  and  finds  it  desolate,  and  the  cold, 
gray  ashes  on  the  rude  hearth  tell  him  it 
has  been  desolate  for  several  days.  Surely 
his  children  have  perished  in  the  woods  or 
have  been  devoured  by  the  wild  beasts. 
A  young  man  who  had  accompanied  them 
from  Corinth  was  immediately  sent  to  Mr. 
McFairlaine's  to  see  if  the  children  were 
there.  They  were  found,  and  before  night 
the  family  were  all  together  again.  The 
son  James,  who  so  long  survived  the  rest 
of  the  family,  and  from  whom  these  par- 
ticulars were  learned,  said  the  meeting  of 
the  family  was  one  never  to  be  forgotten. 
The  father  had  been  up  the  stream  to  look 
at  his  traps,  at  the  beaver-dams,  of  which 
he  said  there  were  then  three  between  the 
river  and  the  site  of  the  present  mills. 
Returning,  he  met  his  son,  bounding  with 
boyish  glee  through  the  woods  to  meet 
him.      Clasping   him    in    his   arms,    with 


tears  streaming  from  his  eyes,  he  exclaim- 
ed, "Bless  the  Lord!  my  children  are 
alive — my  children  are  alive!"  and  such 
was  his  excess  of  joy  at  seeing  them  alive, 
that  it  was  many  hours  before  he  could 
cease  weeping. 

During  this  first  summer,  this  family 
lived  many  weeks  on  wild  onions,  cooked 
in  the  milk  of  their  one  cow,  the  father 
often  gone  for  many  days,  in  the  fruitless 
endeavor  to  procure  provision.  The  only 
occasional  relief  they  had  until  their  corn 
was  harvested,  was  in  the  killing  of  a 
moose  or  bear,  which  in  summer  could 
rarely  be  done.  That  summer  Mr.  Marsh 
built  his  log-house  on  his  clearing,  a  little 
to  the  west  of  the  graveyard  hill,  and 
moved  into  it.  His  crop  of  corn  raised 
near  the  river  was  fine,  but  after  he  had 
secured  some  20  bushels  of  it,  a  flood  came 
and  destroyed  the  remainder.  So  that  for 
nearly  2  years  they  lived  much  of  the  time 
on  the  flesh  of  the  moose,  deer  and  bear. 
Much  of  the  little  grain  they  had,  which 
was  procured  in  the  settlements  in  Rich- 
mond, Williston  and  Jericho,  and  brought 
home  on  the  back,  was  paid  for  with  the 
skins  of  these  animals  and  those  of  the 
beaver. 

In  the  spring  of  1785,  Mr.  Marsh  was 
made  glad  by  the  coming  of  the  second 
settler,  Ezra  Butler.  But  as  Mr.  Butler 
left  in  the  fall  and  did  not  return  until  the 
next  spring,  for  nearly  2  years  Mr.  Marsh 
with  his  family  was  alone  in  this  wilder- 
ness. After  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Butler  with 
his  family,  a  year  and  a  half  more  elapsed 
before  another  settler  came.  March  29, 
1788,  Mr.  Marsh  went  to  Richmond  to 
meet  and  conduct  to  Waterbury  its  third 
settler,  Caleb  Munson.  In  the  afternoon 
he  crossed  the  river  to  Mr.  Brownson's,  to 
run  some  pewter  spoons.  Before  he  had 
finished  his  work  it  began  to  be  dark,  and 
as  the  weather  was  mild  and  the  river  be- 
ginning to  break  up,  he  was  urged  to  re- 
main for  the  night.  But  he  expressed  a 
strong  desire  to  spend  the  evening  with 
the  family  who  were  to  be  his  new  neigh- 
bors, and  taking  a  long  pole,  he  started  to 
return.  A  cry  of  distress  was  soon  heard 
at  the  river,  but  before  help  could  arrive. 


8i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


he  had  disappeared  under  the  ice.  His 
pole  was  lying  across  the  hole  into  which 
he  had  fallen,  but  somehow  his  grasp  upon 
it  was  lost,  and  the  current  being  strong, 
he  was  carried  down  the  river,  and  his 
body  was  not  found  until  several  days 
after.  He  was  buried  at  Richmond — only 
two  of  the  family,  the  oldest  son  and 
daughter,  could  attend  the  funeral/  Their 
neighbor,  Mr.  Butler,  accompanied  them, 
and  it  is  said,  he  and  the  son  alternated  in 
carrying  the  daughter  much  of  the  way  on 
their  backs,  the  snow  being  too  deep  for 
her  to  walk. 

The  whole  story  of  Mr.  Marsh  is  a  sadly 
interesting  one.  On  account  of  pecuniary 
misfortunes  elsewhere,  he  came  into  the 
wilderness  of  our  town  with  a  large  fam- 
ily, and  almost  destitute  of  any  means  ot 
support,  except  such  as  his  hands  could 
supply  from  day  to  day  from  the  forests 
and  the  streams.  Here  they  lived  for  two 
years,  with  no  family  nearer  than  lo  miles 
down  the  river  and  about  7  miles  up  the 
river  (Thomas  Mead's,  in  Middlesex.) 
Hardly  can  privations  and  hardships  sur- 
pass what  they  endured,  especially  during 
the  dreary  winters  of  these  two  years. 
Often  they  were  so  near  starving,  that 
when  the  children  saw  their  father  return- 
ing from  his  long  hunt,  with  a  quarter  ot 
moose  or  deer  on  his  shoulder,  with  knife 
in  hand  they  would  rush  to  meet  him,  and 
each  slashing  a-slice  for  himself,  and  cast- 
ing it  on  the  coals  for  a  moment,  would 
eat  it  as  in  the  desperation  of  starvation. 
He  came  to  his  mournful  end  just  as  set- 
tlers were  beginning  to  come  into  town, 
and  his  own  privations  were  giving  place 
to  the  comforts  of  home.  He  seems  to 
have  been  a  hardy,  resolute  man.  Bravely 
bearing  up  against  a  host  of  difficulties, 
and  yet  at  times  well  nigh  crushed  beneath 
their  burden,  tears  often  starting  from  his 
eyes  as  he  looked  upon  his  family  and 
thought  of  their  desperate,  forlorn  condi- 
tion. Though  he  was  removed,  his  family 
was  cared  for,  his  children  becoming  re- 
spectable, and  some  of  them  influential 
members  of  society  in  this  and  neighbor- 
ing towns. 

After  contemplating  so  long  this  gloomy 


picture,  it  is  pleasant  to  turn  to  a  brighter 
page.  The  second  settler  of  Waterbury, 
as  has  been  already  remarked,  was 

EZRA    BUTLER, 

afterwards  so  well  known  as  a  minister  of 
the  Gospel,  a  judge  on  the  bench,  and  as 
the  governor  of  the  State. 

Mr.  Butler  was  the  son  of  Asaph  Butler, 
and  was  born  in  Lancaster,  Worcester  Co. 
Mass.,  Sept.  24,  1763.  He  was  the  fifth 
of  seven  children,  four  sons  and  three 
daughters.  In  his  7th  year,  his  father 
moved  to  West  Windsor,  Vt.,  where  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Jane 
McAllister,  soon  died,  and  where  he  spent 
the  next  7  or  8  years,  mainly  in  the  family 
of  his  elder  brother,  Joel  Butler.  When 
about  14  years  of  age,  he  went  to  live  with 
Dr.  Stearns,  of  Claremont,  N.  H.,  as  a 
laborer  on  his  farm,  and  with  the  excep- 
tion of  6  months  in  his  17th  year,  when  he 
was  a  soldier  in  the  army  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, he  continued  in  the  service  of  Dr.  S., 
having  almost  the  entire  management  of 
his  farm,  until  he  was  of  age.  In  1785, 
having  spent  a  few  months  previous  in 
Weathersfield,  he  came  to  Waterbury  in 
company  with  his  brother  Asaph,  next 
older  than  himself.  They  came  to  Judge 
Paine's,  in  Williamstown,  with  an  ox- 
team.  The  rest  of  the  way  they  came  on 
snow-shoes,  drawing  their  effects  on  a 
hand-sled,  the  snow  being  3  or  4  feet  deep, 
and  reached  W.  the  20th  of  March.  It 
must  have  been  a  joyful  day  to  the  Marsh 
family  when  these  two  young  men,  with 
their  hand-sled,  hauled  up  before  their 
door.  Their  loneliness,  in  part  at  least, 
was  ended.  Mr.  Butler  and  his  brother 
immediately  made  their  pitch,  near  where 
Mr.  C.  C.  Corse  now  resides,  and  made  a 
small  clearing,  planted  it  to  corn,  and  re- 
turned to  Weathersfield,  where  in  June  of 
that  year,  Mr.  Butler  was  married  to  Miss 
Tryphena  Diggins.  He  soon  returned, 
and  finding  the  title  to  the  land  on  which 
he  had  pitched,  bad,  he  selected  another 
right  a  little  below  the  village,  made  a 
clearing,  built  a  log-house  very  near  the 
present  residence  of  Deacon  Parker,  and 
in  September  of  1786,  moved  into  it  with 


WATERBURY. 


817 


his  wife  and  child,  and  on  that  place  (now 
mainly  owned  by  the  State  for  the  Reform 
School),  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his 
eventful  life.  He  and  his  wife  made  then 
journey  from  Weathersfield  on  horseback, 
much  of  the  way  by  a  bridle-path,  and  in 
this  way  brought  some  of  their  eflfects 
deemed  most  necessary  in  the  matter  of 
housekeeping.  The  brother  who  first 
came  with  him  settled  in.  Richmond,  and 
twenty  or  thirty  years  after  moved  to  the 
West. 

Mr.  Marsh  had  subsisted  his  family,  to 
a  great  extent,  by  hunting  and  fishing,  and 
into  this  pioneer  life,  Mr.  Butler  was  soon 
initiated.  Their  meat  was  that  of  the 
moose,  the  deer  and  the  bear,  and  in  their 
pursuit  they  were  often  led  far  from  home, 
into  the  wilderness  of  neighboring  towns 
and  far  up  the  mountain  sides,  not  unfre"- 
quently  camping  out,  the  cold  winter 
nights,  to  renew  the  chase  in  the  morning. 
If  faint  with  weariness  and  hunger,  they 
were  ready  to  despair,  and  to  return  with 
empty  hands,  the  thought  of  a  starving  wife 
and  children  put  new  vigor  into  their 
limbs,  new  resolves  into  their  hearts,  and 
nerved  them  with  the  energy  of  despera- 
tion. Food  they  must  have  or  perish  in 
its  pursuit.  It  was  a  battle  for  life  for 
themselves  and  their  families,  and  bravely 
they  fought  it.  It  was  a  life  full  of  thrilling 
incidents  and  adventures,  with  which,  had 
the  story  of  them  been  treasured,  a  vol- 
ume might  be  filled.  By  these  hardships 
the  constitution  of  Mr.  Butler  was  seri- 
ously impaired  before  he  was  30  years  old. 

As  Mr.  Marsh  was  drowned  before  the 
next  settler  arrived,  Mr.  Butler  was  prop- 
erly regarded  as  the  pioneer  man  of  the 
town.  Though  a  young  man,  he  took  a 
prominent  part  in  all  private  enterprises 
and  public  movements.  He  built  the  first 
framed  house  in  the  town — so  long  occu- 
pied by  his  son,  Russell  Butler,  now  owned 
by  Deacon  Erastus  Parker.  To  him  was 
issued  the  warrant  to  call  a  meeting  of  the 
freemen  of  Waterbury,  in  1790,  to  organ- 
ize the  town,  and  at  that  meeting  he  was 
chosen  town  clerk.  From  this  time  the 
official  life  of  Mr.  Butler  was  a  remarkable 
one.      From    this   humble   beginning   he 

103 


went  through  almost  every   grade  to  the 
chief  magistracy  of  the  State. 

From  1794  to  1805,  with  the  exception 
of  1798,  he  represented  the  town  in  the 
General  Assembly.  In  1807,  he  was  chos- 
en both  as  a  representative  and  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Council ;  and  by  the  record  of 
votes,  s  'ems  to  have  acted  part  of  the 
time  in  one  bjdy  and  a  part  in  the  other. 
(4)  In  1808,  he  was  again  elected  to  the 
Council,  and  with  the  exception  of  1813 
and  1814,  when  he  was  in  Congress,  he 
was  annually  re-elected  to  this  body  until 
1826.  In  1803,  he  was  elected  assistant 
judge  of  Chittenden  County  Court,  Water- 
bury  at  that  time  belonging  to  that  county, 
and  was  re-elected  to  that  office  the  two 
following  years.  In  1806,  he  was  elected 
chief  judge  of  that  court,  and  continued  to 
hold  that  office  until  181 1.  In  181 1,  Jeff- 
erson, now  Washington  County,  was  or- 
ganized, and  Judge  Butler  was  elected 
chief  judge  of  that  County  court  and  except 
the  2  years  when  in  Congress  (1813  and 
'14)  and  1818,  he  held  that  office  until 
1825,  when  the  judicial  system  of  the  State 
was  changed  to  substantially  its  present 
form,  when  .Judge  Butler  was  chosen  first 
assistant  judge  of  the  court.  In  1806,  he 
was  chosen  a  member  of  the  Council  of 
Censors,  and  in  1822,  a  member  of  the 
Constitutional  Convention.  In  1804,  and 
again  in  1820,  a  presidential  elector.  In 
1 812,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  Con- 
gress on  the  Republican  general  ticket 
along  with  James  Fisk,  Wm.  Strong,  Wm. 
C.  Bradley,  Richard  Skinner  and  Charles 
Rich.  In  1 814,  the  candidates  of  the  Fed- 
eral party  were  elected,  entirely  changing 
the  delegation  of  Vermont.  In  1826,  he 
was  elected  Governor  of  the  State,  and  re- 
elected the  following  year,  and  each  time 
without  an  organized  opposition.  Imme- 
diately after  his  second  election,  he  de- 
clined another  election,  and  at  the  close  of 
that  term,  retired  from  official  life,  having 
been  in  office  without  interruption,  from 
the  organization  of  the  town  in  1790,  often 
holding  two  or  more  important  offices  at 
the  same  time. 

In  addition  to  these  civil   and   political 
offices,  he  was  a   committee  with    Elijah 


8i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Paine  and  James  Wliitelaw,  to  fix  the  site 
for  the  first  State  House  in  Montpelier, — 
a  commissioner  in  1807,  with  Samuel 
Shaw,  John  Cameron,  Josiah  Wright  and 
Elihu  Luce  to  determine  the  place  and 
plan  for  the  State  Pris^on,  and  subsequently 
a  commissioner  to  locate  the  State  Arsenal. 
He  was  a  trustee  of  the  University  of 
Vermont,  from  181Q  to  1816.  Indeed, 
there  was  hardly  an  office  of  honor  or  trust 
in  the  gift  of  the  people  or  Legislature  that 
he  did  not  fill.  In  this  respect,  the  career 
of  Gov.  Butler  from  an  unlettered  pioneer 
—  (his  schooling  was  limited  to  6  months 
in  his  boyhood,) — from  a  hunter  and  trap- 
per up  through  almost  every  grade  of  office 
to  the  chief  magistracy  of  the  State,  is  a 
remarkable  one  and  has  few  parallels  in 
history.  These  honors  and  trusts  he  won 
by  his  sterling  sense  and  honesty,  and  by 
his  great  energy  and  strength  of  will. 
Everybody  felt  that  whatever  trusts  were 
reposed  in  him  were  safe — that  whatever 
was  given  him  to  do,  would  be  done,  and 
so  they  always  found  it. 

Mr.  Butler  had  a  religious  as  well  as  pol- 
itical history,  and  the  former  was  as 
marked  and  positive  as  the  latter.  When  he 
came  to  Waterbury,  he  was  an  irreligious 
and  profane  young  man,  and  not  a  little 
disposed  to  quarrel  with  certain  great  doc- 
trines ;  and  so  he  continued  for  some  3  or 
4  years.  The  story  of  his  conviction  and 
conversion  is  an  exceedingly  interesting 
one.  At  a  time  of  the  profoundest  indif- 
ference in  regard  to  religious  things,  when 
he  did  not  know  of  a  religious  man  in 
town,  and  before  there  liad  been  a  gospel 
sermon  preached  in  it,  his  attention  was 
called  to  the  subject  of  personal  religion  in 
the  following  singular  manner.  I  give  it 
substantially  in  the  words  of  one  who  re- 
ceived it  from  his  lips: — "Being  obliged 
to  work  hard  during  the  week,  and  there 
being  no  public  worship  in  town  which  he 
could  attend,  if  he  desired,  he  was  in  the 
habit  of  spending  much  of  the  Sabbath  in 
sleep.  On  a  certain  Sabbath,  awaking 
from  his  sleep,  he  found  his  wife  reading  a 
pamphlet,  and  proposed  to  read  it  aloud 
for  the  benefit  of  both.  The  beginning  and 
end  of  the  pamphlet   were   gone,  and  he 


never  knew  whence  it  came,  what  was  its 
title,  or  who  its  author.  But  he  found  it 
treated  of  a  subject  which  in  former  times 
had  given  him  great  perplexity,  viz.  : — how 
a  man  could  be  blameable  for  a  disposition 
which  he  did  not  create.  He  would  admit 
the  justice  of  God  in  punishing  overt  acts, 
but  not  wrong  propensities.  The  author 
he  was  reading  made  it  appear  that  we  are 
justly  condemned  for  wrong  dispositions, 
as  well  as  wrong  actions.  After  reading 
awhile,  he  exclaimed  to  his  wife,  '  If  this 
is  true,  we  are  undone.''  In  a  moment  all 
the  convictions  he  had  formerly  had  re- 
turned upon  him  and  he  was  cast  into  the 
deepest  anxiety.  After  days  of  profound- 
est darkness  and  sharpest  distress,  border- 
ing on  despair,  he  was  brought  into  the 
clear  light  and  liberty  of  the  Gospel.  His 
feet  having  been  set  in  the  way  of  life,  he 
walked  circumspectly  in  that  way  to  the 
end."  His  was  the  first  conversion  in 
Waterbury.  A  few  days  after  his  conver- 
sion. Rev.  Mr.  Call,  a  Baptist  clergyman 
from  Woodstock,  came  along  and  preached 
the  first  sermon  preached  in  Waterbury. 
About  a  year  after  this  he  was  baptized  by 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Call,  and  united  with  the 
Baptist  church  in  Bolton.  At  the  organ- 
ization of  the  Baptist  church  in  Waterbury, 
in  1800,  or  1801,  Mr.  Butler  was  ordained 
as  its  pastor,  and  amid  the  multitude  of  his 
civil  offices,  he  continued  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  this  office  until  within  a  few  years 
of  his  death,  and  that  without  salary  or 
remuneration.  In  all  the  conflicts  of  party 
politics  and  all  the  labors  and  perplexities 
of  official  life,  it  is  said  the  meekness,  dig- 
nity and  propriety  of  the  gospel  ministry 
never  forsook  him.  He  walked  uprightly 
and  with  a  serious  Christian  deportment 
amid  them  all.  Well  may  his  children 
venerate  his  name  and  the  community  hold 
it  in  lasting  remembrance. 

His  form  was  slightly  stooping,  his  com- 
plexion dark  and  sallow,  and  his  whole  ap- 
pearance quite  unprepossessing ;  but  his 
penetrating  black  eye  and  the  calm  tones  of 
his  voice  quickly  told  of  intellect  and  will 
of  no  common  order.  He  died  July  12, 
1838,  in  the  75th  year  of  his  age. 

The  third   settler  was  Caleb   Munson 


WATERBURY. 


819 


He  moved  from  Torrington,  Ct.,  in  the 
spring  of  1788,  and  settled  up  the  river, 
near  where  Mrs.  Amy  Woodward  resides. 
He  subsequently  moved  across  the  river. 
About  the  same  time  Mr.  Richard  Holden 
settled  on  the  place  where  Dr.  Fales  re- 
sides ;  Amos  Waters  on  the  interval  now 
owned  by  Sylvester  Henry,  and  Reuben 
Wells  on  the  street  near  the  present  resi- 
dence of  Mr.  Bebee.  In  1788,  Mr.  Stiles 
Sherman  and  Jonathan  Wright  came  into 
town.  Mr.  Sherman,  from  Hoosic,  N.  Y., 
made  his  pitch  and  built  a  log  cabin  on  the 
place  where  he  so  long  lived — the  place 
recently  owned  by  Mr.  L.  Bebee,  now 
owned  by  Messrs.  Thompson — and  the 
next  year  moved  on  with  his  family.  In 
1790,  March  2d,  Jason  Cady  moved  into 
town  from  Shelburn,  Mass.,  and  settled 
near  the  arch  bridge.  He  and  Mr.  Sher- 
man soon  opened  their  log-houses  for  the 
entertainment  of  travelers  (5).  About  this 
time  or  earlier.  Dr.  Daniel  Bliss,  the  first 
physician,  settled  near  Waterbury  river 
bridge.  The  same  year,  Jona.  Wright,  (6) 
from  Williamstown,  Mass.,  built  a  house 
near  the  residence  of  Albert  Dillingham, 
being  the  first  that  settled  away  from  the 
river,  unless  a  Mr.  Smith  had  settled 
earlier  on  the  hill  near  the  residence  of 
Geo.  Stearns.  In  1791,  there  were  93  in- 
habitants in  town.  In  1793,  when  Eben- 
ezer  Corse,  father  of  E.  W.  Corse,  moved 
into  Duxbury,  there  were  15  families  in 
Waterbury.  In  addition  to  those  above 
named,  Mr.  John  Craig  had  settled  near 
where  Mr.  Remington  lives — the  farm 
owned  by  Geo.  W.  Randall  and  occupied 
by  Wm.  Humphrey.  Col.  Kennan,  who 
became  one  of  the  prominent  men  of  the 
town,  had  made  an  opening  and  built  a 
house  where  Mr.  E.  Moody  now  resides — 
a  Mr.  Isaac  Wilson  was  living  near  the 
site  of  the  Waterbury  hotel.  Elias  Marsh 
was  married  and  lived,  as  has  been  re- 
marked, near  the  residence  of  Miss  E. 
Corse.  Philip  Bartlett,  who  had  married 
the  widow  of  Mr.  Marsh,  was  living  on 
the  Hawley  place,  now,  October,  1867, 
owned  by  Mr.  H.  Carter.  The  road, 
which  originally  ran  across  the  interval 
near   the    river,   had    been   opened   sub- 


stantially   on   the   present   line   of    Ma'n 
street. 

Dr.  Daniel  Bliss,  the  first  physician  of 
the  town,  and  represented  as  an  excellent 
man,  was  the  first  representative. 

From  about  1793,  the  town  was  settled 
very  rapidly,  so  that  in  1800  it  had  644 
inhabitants,  having  gained  551  in  the  pre- 
vious 9  years.  Among  those  who  came 
into  the  town  during  this  period,  were 
Dea.  Asaph  Allen  and  Mr.  David  Austin, 
both  coming  in  1796.  Dea.  Allen  was  a 
native  of  Bernardstown,  Mass.  He  set- 
tled on  the  stream  a  little  east  of  the 
Centre,  where  Mr.  Demeritt  now  lives, 
where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  long 
life,  being  one  of  the  first  to  settle  in  that 
part  of  the  town.  Mr.  Austin  came  from 
Connecticut,  and  settled  on  the  place  now 
owned  by  Mrs.  Job  Dillingham.  Previous 
to  this  time,  though  the  town  had  been 
settled  more  than  lo  years,  and  the  in- 
habitants had  now  become  quite  numerous, 
there  had  been  no  regular  meetings  on  the 
Sabbath  ;  indeed,  no  meetings  at  all,  ex- 
cept as  a  missionary  or  minister  passing 
through  might  preach  an  occasional  ser- 
mon. These  two  men,  having  had  their 
discipline  in  the  straight  and  orderly  ways 
of  Connecticut  and  Western  Massachu- 
setts, could  not  consent  to  live  and  bring 
up  their  families  in  this  semi-heathen  way. 
They  immediately  set  themselves  to  work, 
in  connection  with  a  few  others  of  like 
mind,  and  soon  established  regular  meet- 
ings on  the  Sabbath,  and  from  that  time, 
so  far  as  I  can  learn,  there  has  been  no 
interruption  of  public  worship  on  the  Sab- 
bath to  the  present  day. 

In  the  year  1800,  in  connection  with  the 
labors  of  Rev.  Jedediah  Bushnell,  then  a 
Missionary  trom  Connecticut,  subsequently 
for  many  years  pastor  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church  in  Cornwall,  Vt.,  and  of 
others,  occurred  the  first  general  revival  in 
town.  As  the  result  of  this  and  at  nearly 
the  same  time,  the  Congregationalists,  Bap- 
tists and  Methodists  organized  churches. 
The  Congregational  church  was  organized 
by  Mr.  Bushnell,  July  loth,  1801.  Not 
far  from  that  time,  probably  a  little  earlier, 
Gov.  Butler  was  ordained  as  a  gospel  min- 


820 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ister  and  chosen  pastor  of  the  Baptist 
church.  As  the  early  records  of  that 
church  and  also  of  the  Methodist  church 
are  not  to  be  found,  little  can  now  be 
learned  of  their  early  history.*  At  the 
organization  of  the  Congregational  church, 
the  following  persons  constituted  its  mem- 
bers :  Asaph  Allen,  David  Austin,  Hugh 
Blair,  Edward  Bates,  Moses  Bates,  David 
Town,  Amos  Slate,  Samuel  Slate,  Thomas 
Kennan,  Zebulon  Allen,  Mary  Austin,  Jane 
Blair,  Ruth  Rich,  Lydia  Town,  Esther 
Slate  and  Bathsheba  Slate, — lo  males  and 
6  females.  Thomas  Kennan  and  David 
Town  were  received  on  profession  and 
were  baptized.  The  organization  was 
completed  by  choosing  Asaph  Allan  mod- 
erator, and  Thomas  Kennan  clerk.  In 
November  following,  Mr.  Allen,  who  had 
been  a  deacon  in  his  native  town,  was 
elected  the  first  deacon  of  the  church,  and 
in  December  David  Austin  was  elected  as 
the  second  deacon. 

December  22,  1802,  the  church  voted  to 
call  Rev.  Jonathan  Hovey  to  settle  over 
them  in  the  gospel  ministry.  On  account 
of  certain  difficulties  raised  by  the  town 
with  reference  to  the  minister's  right  of 
land,  Mr.  Hovey  was  not  ordained  until 
September  1,  1803.  Mr.  Lyman  of  Brook- 
field  preached  the  sermon,  the  services 
being  held  in  a  building  erected  for  a 
county  grammar  school,  and  which  stood 
a  little  back  of  the  Congregational  church. 
Mr.  Hovey  labored  with  the  church,  before 
and  after  his  ordination,  about  5  years. 
He  was  dismissed  for  want  of  adequate 
support,  Dec.  31,  1807.  Mr.  Hovey  was 
born  in  Mansfield,  Ct.,  1756.  His  first 
profession  was  the  law,  which  he  practiced 
a  while  in  his  native  town  and  then  in 
Randolph,  Vt.  He  was  nearly  40  years 
old  when  he  entered  the  ministry.  His 
first  settlement  was  at  Waterbury.  After 
leaving  Waterbury  he  was  settled  in  Pier- 
mont,  N.  H.,  where  he  remained  until 
1817;  his  last  labors'  were  in  Wolcott, 
N.  Y.,  where  he  died  in  1827,  aged  71 
years.  He  possessed  a  clear,  strong  mind, 
— was  more  remarkable  for  sternness  and 
rigor,  than  for  benignity  and  affability, — 

See  AppeiKiix  -. 


had  more  power  to  convince  than  to  win, — 
to  gain  respect  than  affection.  While 
in  Waterbury,  he  lived  mainly  in  the 
Kneeland  district  in  the  house  where  Mr. 
A.  Murray  now  resides,  which  house  he 
built.  His  meetings  were  alternately  in 
his  own  neighborhood,  in  barns  and  private 
houses  and  in  the  school-house  at  the 
Street,  or  "  at  the  River,"  as  the  village 
was  then  termed.  From  the  dismission  of 
Mr.  Hovey,  for  the  space  of  18  years,  the 
Congregational  church  was  destitute  of  a 
pastor  and  of  the  stated  preaching  of  the 
gospel.  During  this  time,  meetings  were 
regularly  held  on  the  Sabbath,  Dea.  Allen 
taking  the  charge  and  Gen.  Peck,  a  promi- 
nent citizen  of  the  town,  father  of  the  late 
Hon.  L.  B.  Peck,  ordinarily  reading  the 
sermons.  Thus  the  fire  was  kept  alive  on 
the  altar  through  all  those  long  dreary 
years,  until  a  better  day  dawned. 

In  1802,  the  first  successful  merchant  of 
Waterbury,  Mr.  Amasa  Pride,  established 
himself  in  the  place  and  opened  a  store. 
A  Mr.  Farnsworth  and  a  Mr.  Yeomans, 
the  latter  frnm  Alstead,  N.  H.,  and  who 
died  in  this  place  in  1803  or  4,  had  opened 
small  stores,  but  had  done  little  business. 
Mr.  Pride  was  a  native  of  Newington,  Ct., 
but  was  then  from  Brookfield,  Vt.  He 
was  a  young  man  almost  destitute  of 
means ;  but  by  his  good  sense,  energy, 
enterprise  and  integrity,  he  became  for 
wealth,  character,  public  spirit  and  influ- 
ence, a  leading  man  in  the  community.  He 
outlived  for  many  years  nearly  all  his  asso- 
ciates, and  died  August,  1872,  aged  86 
years.  In  1805,  Dan  Carpenter,  a  young 
lawyer  from  Norwich,  opened  the  first  law- 
office  in  town.  Mr.  Carpenter  immediately 
became  a  prominent  citizen  in  the  town 
and  a  leading  lawyer  and  a  prominent  man 
in  all  the  region.  He  was  identified  with 
the  history  of  the  village  and  town  for 
nearly  50  years.  There  was  hardly  an 
honor  which  his  fellow  citizens  could  bestow 
or  a  trust  they  could  repose,  which  he  did 
not  receive  at  their  hands.  For  14  or  15 
years  he  represented  the  town  in  the  legis- 
lature, and  for  many  years  was  a  judge  of 
the  County  court.  Judge  Carpenter  died 
December,  1852,  aged  "]"]  years. 


WATERBURY. 


821 


About  the  same  time  that  Judge  Carpen- 
ter came,  Mr.  Roswell  and  Mr.  Cephas 
Wells  took  up  their  residence  in  town,  and 
were  numbered  among  its  valuable  citizens. 
About  the  same  time  Mr.  Paul  Dillingham, 
father  of  Gov.  Dillingham,  settled  near  the 
Center.  (8)  But  time  would  fail  in  men- 
tioning names  worthy  of  record.  At  this 
time  the  town  was  settled,  more  or  less, 
through  nearly  its  whole  extent.  Mr. 
Bickford  was  the  first  settler  on  Indian 
Hill,  followed  soon  after  by  Mr.  Isaac 
Parker,  father  of  Dea.  E.  Parker.  Mr. 
Silas  Loomis  was  the  first  on  Looniis  Hill. 
He  commenced  where  his  son  Elam  now 
lives,  in  1797,  having  resided  in  the  south 
part  of  the  town  one  season  previous.  (9) 

The  first  school  house  was  built  at  a 
very  early  day,  and  stood  near  where  the 
railroad  crosses  Stowe  Street, — and  in 
this  house  nearly  all  the  meetings  of  the 
Village  were  held. — About  1801,  a  building 
for  a  County  grammar  school,  to  which 
allusion  has  been  made,  was  put  up  and 
covered, — the  expense  being  defrayed  by 
private  subscription ; — but  the  town  de- 
clining to  do  anything,  as  a  town,  to  aid  in 
its  completion,  the  building  was  sold, 
moved  across  the  street  and  turned  into  a 
hotel,  which  was  subsequently  burned. 
Regarded  from  our  present  point  of  view, 
the  action  of  the  town  in  refusing  to  aid 
this  enterprise,  whatever  may  have  been 
its  immediate  cause,  was  most  unfortunate. 
The  influence  for  good  upon  all  the  best 
interests  of  the  town,  which  such  a  school 
as  was  contemplated  would  have  had,  can 
hardly  be  overestimated.  From  nothing 
has  the  town  suffered  more,  for  the  last  40 
years,  than  from  the  want  of  such  a  school. 
It  is  now  its  gi'eat  imperative  want.  Sure- 
ly, in  its  short  sighted  action,  the  town 
knew  not  what  it  did — what  a  power  for 
good  it  was  putting  from  it. 

The  first  school  taught  in  town  was  a 
private  school,  taught  by  the  daughters  of 
Mr.  Reuben  Wells.  They  were  very  small 
in  stature,  and  though  young  ladies,  were 
sometimes  mistaken,  by  strangers,  for 
children,  of  which  amusing  incidents  are 
told.  Their  father  was  the  first  tanner  in 
town.     Seth  Chandler,   brother-in-law   of 


Dr.  Bliss,  was  the  first  blacksmith  ;  he 
lived  near  the  present  residence  of  C. 
Haskins,  and  was  killed  by  the  fall  of  a 
tree,  while  clearing  land  near  his  house. 
A  Mr.  Warren,  grand-father  of  Rev.  Dan- 
iel Warren,  is  said  to  have  done  the  first 
carpenter  work  in  town.  A  grist  and  saw- 
mill were  put  up  about  1792,  by  Mr.  John 
Carpenter,  from  New  Milford,  Ct..  Mr. 
Munson,  Mr.  Cady,  and  Mr.  Knapp  doing 
the  work.  Mr.  Mason  was  the  first  miller. 
These  mills  were  on  or  very  near  the  site  of 
the  saw-mill  in  Mill  Village.  Polly  Butler, 
eldest  daughter  of  Gov.  Butler,  born  Oct. 
23,  1788,  was  doubtless  the  first  person 
born  in  town.  The  first  male  child  was- 
probably  Tilman  Wright,  who  died  in 
1842.  The  first  marriage  was  that  of  Mr. 
Philip  Bartlett  and  Mrs.  Marsh.  Dr.  Seth 
Cole,  who  so  long  practiced  in  Richm.ond, 
was  the  second  physician  in  town.*  Rich- 
ard Holden,  Caleb  Munson  and  E.  Butler 
were  the  first  selectmen — Caleb  Munson 
first  treasurer — Elias  Marsh  first  constable 
— Phineas  Waters  first  highway  surveyor 
and  fence  viewer. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  in  the  history  of 
the  town  that  it  had  no  meeting-house 
until  1824.  Considering  the  importance 
and  population  of  the  town,  and  the  fact 
that  3  churches,  with  such  fair  promise, 
were  organized  so  early,  probably  a  par- 
allel to  it  cannot  be  found  in  the  State. 
Ordinarily  in  the  history  of  New  England 
towns,  one  of  the  earliest  facts  recorded  is 
that  of  building  a  house  for  the  worship  of 
God.  The  history  of  Waterbury  in  this 
respect  is  peculiar.  For  40  years  after  the 
settlement  of  the  town,  and  for  23  after 
the  organization  of  its  3  churches,  the  Ark 
of  God  had  no  resting-place.  The  meet- 
ings were  held  in  school-houses,  private 
houses  and  barns.  Several  efforts  were 
made  to  build  a  union  house,  and  com- 
mittees were  appointed  to  locate  it.  Twice 
the  stake  was  stuck — once  on  the  brow  of 
the  hill  near  Lucius  Marshall's  ;  once  near 
the  east  store  at  the  Centre — but  for  some 
cause,  both  projects  fell  through. 

On  a  certain  day  in  the  spring  of  1823, 
Judge  Carpenter  and  Mr.   Pride   met,  and 
See  Appendix  2. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


their  conversation  turned  upon  the  matter 
of  a  meeting-house.  They  had  taken 
active  parts  in  the  previous  undertakings, 
and  felt  tliat  it  was  a  great  reproach  to  the 
town  and  a  sad  detriment  that  it  had  no 
place  for  public  worship ;  they  resolved 
that  it  should  be  so  no  longer,  though 
neither  of  them,  then,  was  a  professor  of 
religion.  That  day  they  laid  the  matter 
before  their  neighbor,  Roswell  Wells,  and 
found  from  him  a  hearty  response,  and 
before  the  day  closed,  these  three  men  had 
combined  together,  and  the  matter  of 
building  a  meeting-house  was  settled.  If 
need  be,  they  had  resolved  to  do  it  at 
their  own  expense  (lo). 

The  house  was  erected  and  finished  in 
1824,  and  was  dedicated  to  the  worship  of 
God  near  the  close  of  that  year,  Mr. 
Chandler,  of  Waitsfield,  preaching  the 
sermon. 

The  building  of  this  house  marks  an  era 
in  the  history  of  the  Congregational  church 
and  of  the  town.  All  honor  to  the  mem- 
ory of  the  men  who  set  the  work  forward, 
and  with  resolute  hearts  and  open  hands 
carried  it  to  completion. 

The  house  thus  built  was  not  long  un- 
occupied. Soon  after  its  dedication,  a 
young  man,  just  graduated  from  Bangor 
Theological  Seminary,  stopped  for  the 
night  at  the  hotel,  then  kept  by  Mr.  Pride. 
Learning  that  Rev.  Mr.  Blodgett,  of  Jer- 
icho, with  whom  he  had  been  acquainted, 
was  to  preach  on  the  ensuing  Sabbath,  he 
concluded  to  stop  and  hear  him.  Mr. 
Blodgett  did  not  come,  and  the  young 
man  was  asked  to  supply  the  pulpit.  He 
consented,  and  thus  the  Rev.  Daniel 
Warren  preached  his  first  sermon,  and 
began  his  13  years'  work  in  Waterbury. 
All  were  pleased.  He  was  asked  to  re- 
main, and  in  a  few  months  he  had  a  unan- 
imous call  to  settle  over  them,  and  was  or- 
dained pastor  of  the  church  Dec.  7,  1825. 
From  that  period  everything  has  worn  a 
new  aspect  in  town.  Mr.  Warren  was 
dismissed  June  26,  1838  (u).  There  were 
two  revivals  during  his  ministry,  extend- 
ing through  the  town — one  in  i826-'7  ;  the 
other  in  1835-6  (12).  In  1832  and  1833, 
the  Baptists  and  Methodists  built  meeting- 


houses at  the  Center.  During  this  period, 
in  1836,  the  Methodist  church  at  the  vil- 
lage was  organized.  Their  house  of  wor- 
ship was  erected  in  1841.  The  Free-Will 
Baptists  built  their  house  on  Waterbury 
river  5  or  6  years  later. 

With  the  building  of  the  houses  of  wor- 
ship we  cease  to  have  to  do  with  early  set- 
tlement and  settlers  of  Waterbury,  and  the 
work  we  proposed  is  done.  I  have  spoken 
of  the  sufferings  of  the  first  settler  and  his 
family.  They  were  peculiar,  but  all  the 
early  settlers  endured  hardships  difficult 
for  us  to  conceive.  The  labor  of  clearing 
the  forests  from  the  hills  and  meadows, 
now  so  smooth  and  easily  tilled,  was  im- 
mense. Their  houses  were  rude  log-cabins, 
often  with  hewn  plank  floors  and  windows 
equally  primitive ;  their  furniture  was  the 
rudest  and  scantiest.  Their  roads  were 
rough,  unwrought  paths,  the  natural  ob- 
stacles very  great.  They  had  no  mills ; 
the  nearest  for  several  years  were  in  Jer- 
icho, some  15  miles  away,  to  which  often 
they  carried  their  grists  on  their  backs. 
Much  of  the  corn  used  was  ground  in  what 
were  called  plumping-mills,  a  contrivance 
made  by  burning  and  cutting  a  hole  into  a 
solid  stump,  and  pounding  it  there  with  a 
weight  attached  to  a  spring  pole,  arranged 
after  the  fashion  of  a  well-sweep.  At  the 
close  of  the  day,  it  is  said,  the  sound  of 
these  mills  could  often  be  heard  through 
the  whole  settlement,  preparing  for  the 
meals  of  the  coming  day.  Their  food  al- 
ways was  the  plainest  and  simplest ;  often 
for  the  want  of  this  with  their  large  fam- 
ilies they  suffered  exceedingly. 

As  from  year  to  year,  with  glad,  if  not 
thankful  hearts,  we  come  around  the  festive 
board,  it  may  interest  us  and  do  us  good 
to  know  how  the  first  Thanksgiving  was 
kept  in  Waterbury.  On  that  day,  1786, 
the  year  that  Mr.  Butler  moved  into  town, 
he  called  on  Mr.  Marsh,  and  said  to  him, 
"  This  is  Thanksgiving  day  ;  how  shall  we 
keep  it?"  Mr.  Marsh,  in  his  wilderness 
life,  had  lost  the  run  of  such  days,  and 
this  was  news  to  him.  He  replied  that 
his  family  were  almost  destitute  of  food, 
and  he  was  in  a  sad  condition  to  keep  such 
a  day.     Mr.  Butler  proposed  that  they  try 


WATERBURY. 


823 


their  fortune  at  moose-hunting.  For  such 
an  enterprise  Mr.  Marsh  was  always  ready. 
After  a  few  hours'  hunt,  a  moose  was 
found  cropping  the  wild  grass  near  Alder 
brook,  the  stream  that  runs  from  the 
Center  and  empties  into  Waterbury  river. 
He  was  quickly  dispatched,  and  each  with 
a  quarter  on  his  shoulder  made  haste  to 
his  home,  and  that  night,  with  their  house- 
holds, they  ate  a  most  bounteous,  joyful 
Thanksgiving  supper.  With  all  our  abun- 
dance and  variety  in  our  pleasant,  cheer- 
ful homes,  it  is  doubtful  whether  this  day 
has  ever  been  kept,  with  truer  joy  or  more 
unfeigned  thankfulness,  than  in  these  log- 
cabins,  on  this  moose  meat,  it  was  first 
kept  by  these  hardy  pioneers  of  the  wil- 
derness. 

Amid  countless  hardships  and  priva- 
tions the  first  settlers  laid  the  foundations 
of  this  community.  It  was  not  all  done 
as  we  could  have  wished — not  all  with  the 
wisest  forecast  of  the  future.  But  they 
did,  nevertheless,  a  great  and  stern  work; 
into  that  work  we  have  entered.  They 
sowed,  often  in  sadness ;  we  reap  in  joy. 
Their  work  is  done ;  ours  is  yet  on  our 
hands.  These  hills  and  these  valleys,  the 
fertile  soil  of  which  they  laid  open  to  the 
sun,  with  the  river  that  winds  among  them 
and  the  grand  settings  of  the  mountains, 
were  beautiful  to  them.  They  are  beauti- 
ful, exceedingly  beautiful  to  us.  Verily 
the  lines  are  fallen  to  us  in  pleasant  places. 
We  have  a  goodly  heritage.  As  we  con- 
sider the  days  of  old,  and  talk  of  the  years 
of  ancient  times,  and  of  what  our  fathers 
did,  let  it  be  our  purpose,  our  high  re- 
solve, by  fostering  every  worthy  interest 
and  enterprise,  and  by  the  exercise  of 
every  manly  and  Christian  virtue,  to  trans- 
mit the  heritage  we  have  received,  en- 
hanced and  beautified  with  every  excel- 
lence, to  the  generations  to  come.  The 
task  God  has  given  us  will  be  quickly 
done.  Let  us  do  it  with  fidelity,  that  God 
maybe  honored,  the  community  benefited, 
and  our  names  held  in  afi:ectionate  remem- 
brance. 

[Mr.  Parker's  excellent  little  pamphlet 
is  still  extant.  We  obtained  a  fresh  one 
(complimentary),  from  Russell  Butler, 
Esq.,  but  this  week. — Ed.] 


MR.  janes'  paper. 

[The  following  supplementary  to  and 
continuation  of  Mr.  Parker's  "Early  His- 
tory" was  written  principally  by  the  late 
Hon.  H.  F.  Janes,  by  request,  about  the 
year  1872,  and  consequently  cannot  apply 
to  the  last  decade  of  our  town's  history 
which  since  the  death  of  Mr.  Janes  must 
be  supplied  by  others.         R.  Butler.] 

In  February,  1867,  the  Rev.  C.  C.  Par- 
ker, pastor  of  the  Congregational  church, 
delivered  an  interesting  discourse  to  his 
society  on  the  early  history  of  Waterbury, 
in  which  the  hardships  and  the  privations 
of  the  pioneers,  who  penetrated  so  far  into 
the  wilderness,  and  successfully  opened  a 
way  for  the  advance  of  civilization,  was 
graphically  delineated.  It  did  not,  how- 
ever, purport  to  be  a  complete  history  of 
the  town.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that 
he  could  not  have  completed  the  work,  but 
on  account  of  his  removal  from  the  State 
and  his  duties  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel, 
he  could  not  with  propriety  undertake  the 
task  of  finishing  the  work  so  ably  begun  ; 
thus  leaving  with  others,  less  competent, 
the  duty  of  adding  a  few  things  deemed 
necessary  for  a  more  full  history  of  the 
place. 

The  town  of  Waterbury  is  pleasantly 
situated  in  the  valley  between  the  Green 
Mountain  range  on  the  west  and  a  spur  of 
that  mountain  called  the  Hog  Backs,  on 
the  east,  and  embraces  nearly  all  the  set- 
tleable  land  between  those  two  elevations. 
There  is  not  a  lot  of  land  but  that  is  or 
may  be  profitably  cultivated,  and  the  soil 
on  the  upland  is  excellent  for  grazing  and 
grain.  The  extensive  intervals  on  the 
Winooski  and  other  streams  are  not  sur- 
passed by  any  in  the  .State.  The  rivers 
and  their  tributaries  aff"ord  privileges  for 
numerous  mills  and  manufactories,  and  an 
abundance  of  water  for  domestic  and  agri- 
cultural purposes.  It  is  in  lat.  44°  23'  and 
long.  4°  17',  bounded  N.  by  Stowe,  E.  by 
Middlesex,  S.  by  the  Winooski  River, 
which  separates  it  from  Duxbury  and  part 
of  Moretown,  and  W.  by  Bolton,  and  is 
12  miles  west  from  Montpelier  and  24  S.  E. 
from  Burlington. 

The  charter  is  dated  June  7,  1763,  and 
was  granted  by  Gov.  Wentworth  of  New 


824 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Hampshire,  to  Joseph  Abbott,  John  Dick- 
inson, Hezekiah  Thompson,  Joseph  Os- 
born,  James  Scudder,  James  Corey,  Nathl. 
Sahiion,  Daniel  Lacey,  Jonathan  Stiles, 
Patridge  Thatcher,  Daniel  Bedford,  Isaac 
Ball,  Lopher  Squire,  John  Marsh,  3d, 
Isaac  Woodrough,  Wm.  Connet,  Nathl. 
Wade,  James  Osborn,  Samuel  Ballard, 
Hon.  James  Neven,  Esq.,  Benj.  Williams, 
Ezekiel  Worthen,  Barnardus  Van  Neste, 
David  Meeker,  Jr.,  Heron  Ball,  John 
Boyles,  John  Mills,  John  Stiles,  Esq.,  W. 
Pierson,  Nathl.  Bond,  Esq.,  Meseck  Ware, 
Esq.,  Ichabod  Dean,  Joseph  Badgeley, 
Joseph  Neomoseck,  Esq.,  David  Ball, 
John  Page,  Esq.,  Willard  Mills,  Jeremiah 
Pangborn,  David  Potter,  Ebner  Frost, 
Thomas  Gardner,  Ebenezer  Price,  Ken- 
eday  Vance,  Charles  Gillhouse,  Thomas 
Miller,  Thomas  Willis,  Nathaniel  Potter, 
Jonathan  Crane,  Esq.,  Elias  Bedford,  Jesse 
Clark,  Therry  Baker,  Joseph  Meeker,  Da- 
vid Baker,  Wm.  Pierson,  Jr.,  Jesse  Morse, 
Nathl.  Baker,  Job  Nixon,  Joseph  Crane. 
William  Wilcox,  Jeremiah  Mulford,  David 
Baker,  James  Puflasey,  Manning  Fores, 
and  Jonathan  Dayton. 

The  charter  limits  v/ere  6  miles  square, 
containing  23,040  acres,  but  it  has  since 
been  considerably  enlarged  by  territory  an- 
nexed from  Middlesex  on  the  east  and 
Bolton  on  the  west ;  was  laid  out  and  sur- 
veyed in  three  divisions.  The  1st  division 
lots  contained  100  acres,  the  2d,  31,  and 
the  3d,  124 ;  leaving  undivided,  47  acres  to 
each  right.  The  intention  of  the  propri- 
etors evidently  was  to  give  each  share  31 
acres  of  interval  on  the  Winooski  river, 
and  for  that  purpose  commenced  the  sur- 
vey of  the  first  division,  on  what  then  was 
supposed  to  be  the  east  Une  of  Bolton,  far 
enough  north  to  leave  on  the  river  side  of 
the  base  line  of  that  division  sufficient  land 
for  that  object.  But  afterwards,  on  run- 
ning out  the  2d  division,  it  was  found  in- 
sufficient, and  the  balance  of  the  small  lots 
was  laid  in  the  central  part  of  the  town. 
The  3d  division  was  laid  north  of  the  ist, 
extending  nearly  to  Stowe  line.  The 
Governor's  right  of  500  acres  was  surveyed 
in  the  S.  E.  corner  of  the  town.  Part  of 
the  undivided  was  situated  between  the  3d 


division  and  the  south  line  of  Stowe,  and 
the  balance  adjoined  the  Governor's  right. 
Subsequently  it  was  ascertained  that  the 
surveyor  of  the  ist  division  made  a  mis- 
take in  his  starting  point,  and  run  the  width 
of  two  lots  in  Middlesex.  The  error  was 
corrected,  and  these  lots  were  subsequently 
plotted  on  the  true  line  of  Bolton.  Win- 
ooski Falls  are  on  this  territory,  but  as  they 
were  then  supposed  to  be  in  Bolton,  they 
were  called  Bolton  Falls,  a  name  they  still 
retain  in  many  historical  publications, 
though  situated  some  distance  within  the 
geographical  boundaries  of  Waterbury. 

FORMATION  OF  THE  VALLEYS — LAND 
SURFACE,  GEOLOGY. 

Judge  Thompson,  in  his  history  of 
Montpelier,  with  much  plausibility  main- 
tains that  at  a  time  not  very  remote  the 
altitude  of  Lake  Champlain  was  consider- 
ably higher  than  at  present.  "  That  there 
was  a  branch  lake  extending  from  Middle- 
sex Narrows  upwards,  covering  all  the 
lowlands  of  that  and  the  surrounding 
towns,  and  that  there  was  an  intermediate 
lake,  covering  the  lower  grounds  of  Water- 
bury,  parts  of  those  of  Duxbury,  Middle- 
sex and  Moretown,  and  settling  up  the 
valley  of  Mad  river  into  Waitsfield,  making 
this  lake  at  Waterbury  somewhat  deeper 
than  the  one  above,  as  may,  indeed,  be 
found  indicated  by  the  greater  height  of 
the  sand-hills  east  of  Waterbury  village." 
Without  entering  into  the  speculations  of 
geologists  and  others  on  that  subject,  it 
may  with  seeming  propriety  here  be  stated 
some  "testimony  of  the  rocks,"  tending 
strongly  to  establish  the  theory  of  Mr. 
Thompson.  In  many  places,  high  up  on 
ledges,  are  grooves  or  indentaiions,  evi- 
dently made  by  the  action  of  water.  They 
all  are  on  the  western  dip  of  the  ledges, 
are  regular  in  cut  and  very  smooth.  But 
a  case  more  striking  and  almost  irresist- 
ible in  proof  is  that  of  a  pot  hole  in  the 
solid  rock,  some  hundred  feet  above  the 
bed  of  the  river,  on  the  sharp  ridge  of  a 
high  ledge,  directly  in  the  line  of  the  farms 
of  S.Henry  and  H.  F.  Janes.  This  ex- 
cavation is  round  and  regular  in  shape,  is 
30  inches  deep,  and  nearly  the  same  in 
diameter,  and  so  like  a  cooking  utensil 


WATERBURY. 


825 


that  it  is  often  called  the  "Indians'  Pot." 
The  ledge  on  the  western  side  is  nearly 
perpendicular,  and  at  its  base  stands  an 
ash  tree,  40  to  50  feet  high,  the  top  of 
which  does  not  reach  to  this  excavation. 
In  ages  past  there  must  have  been  at  this 
place  a  great  msh  of  water  and  splendid 
falls. 

Not  many  townships  in  Vermont  are  so 
peculiar  in  formation  as  Waterbury.  The 
central  part  and  more  than  half  of  the  en- 
tire surface  is  comparatively  level ;  a  little 
dishing, — on  the  east  and  western  borders 
rising  gradually,  and  resembling  in  profile 
an  amphitheater.  The  farms  on  these 
elevations  afford  a  fair  view  of  nearly  the 
whole  town,  presenting  a  landscape  beau- 
tiful and  charming,  especially  in  early 
summer  when  the  fields  are  fresh  and  in 
bloom,  and  in  autumn  when  ripe  and 
"  white  unto  the  harvest." 

With  few  exceptions,  the  geological  for- 
mations are  not  dissimilar  to  surrounding 
towns.  Pres.  Hitchcock,  State  geologist, 
in  his  report  of  October,  1859,  states  that 
"  there  are  out-crops  of  copper,  but  that 
they  have  not  been  fully  developed  by 
mining,  but  thinks  it  not  improbable  that 
mines  in  the  town  may  become  sources  of 
wealth  from  the  amount  of  copper  obtained 
therefrom."  He  also  states  that  "  there 
are  several  small  deposits  of  soapstone, 
but  none  sufficiently  extensive  to  induce  a 
great  investment  of  capital  to  work  them." 
In  the  same  report  interesting  facts  are 
given  in  relation  to  the  alluvial  terraces 
upon  the  Winooski  and  other  streams. 
Wlien  making  the  railroad  through  the 
Hog  Backs,  some  exceedingly  handsome 
specimens  of  quartz  crystals  were  found 
imbedded  in  the  rocks  near  the  dividing 
line  between  this  and  the  town  of  Middle- 
sex. Probably  more  could  be  obtained 
by  a  small  outlay  in  blasting  the  ledge. 

RIVERS   AND   STREAMS. 

Winooski  River,  the  largest  stream  and 
the  southern  boundary  of  the  town,  has  a 
smooth  current  from  Middlesex  narrows  to 
the  falls  three  miles  below  the  village.  In 
Thompson's  Gazetteer  of  Vermont,  the 
following  description  of  the  falls  and  the 
place  is  given  :     "  The  stream  has  worn  a 


channel  through  the  rocks,  which  in  times 
past,  undoubtedly  formed  a  cataract  of  no 
ordinary  height  below,  and  a  considerable 
lake  above.  The  chasm  is  at  present 
about  100  feet  wide  and  nearly  as  deep. 
On  one  side  the  rocks  are  nearly  perpen- 
dicular, some  of  which  have  fallen  across 
the  bed  of  the  stream  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  form  a  bridge,  passable,  however,  only 
at  low-water.  On  the  same  side  the  rocks 
which  appear  to  have  been  loosened  and 
moved  by  the  water,  have  again  rested  and 
become  fixed  in  such  a  position  as  to  form 
several  caverns  or  caves — some  of  which 
have  the  appearance  of  rooms  fitted  for 
the  convenience  of  man.  Several  musket 
balls  and  flints  were  found  in  the  extreme 
part  of  this  cavern,  a  few  years  since, 
which  make  it  evident  that  it  was  known 
to  the  early  hunters."  On  the  upper  sec- 
tion ot  these  falls,  Benjamin  Palmer,  soon 
after  the  commencement  of  settling  of  the 
town,  constructed  a  dam  across  the  river 
and  erected  a  saw-mill ;  but  in  a  few  years 
they  were  carried  away  in  a  freshet  and 
never  rebuilt.  The  main  water  power 
has  not  yet  been  brought  into  use.  The 
place  is  much  visited  by  admirers  of  grand 
scenery. 

Waterbury  River,  the  second  in  mag- 
nitude, has  its  source  in  Morristown,  and 
takes  a  southerly  direction  through  Stowe 
and  the  westerly  part  of  this  town,  and 
enters  the  Winooski  about  a  mile  below 
the  village.  On  this  river  is  much  good 
interval  land,  several  mill  privileges,  and 
a  number  of  valuable  farms.  Upon  the 
borders  of  this  stream  and  on  the  surround- 
ing hills,  lay  the  principal  hunting  ground 
of  the  pioneers  of  the  town.  There  they 
shot  the  deer  and  the  moose,  and  there 
also  they  trapped  the  beaver.  The  former 
they  killed  only  out  of  necessity,  their 
flesh  for  food,  their  hides  for  the  making 
of  moccasins  and  thongs  to  string  their 
snow  shoes.  The  latter  were  trapped  for 
their  skins, — the  fur  of  beaver,  at  that 
time,  constituting  the  only  article  of  traffic 
which  brought  its  equivalent  in  cash. 
They  slew  no  innoxious  animal  wantonly 
for  mere  sport. 

The  third  stream  in  size,  called  Thatch- 


104 


826 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


ERS  Branch,  rises  in  Stowe,  and  runs 
through  the  town  near  its  center,  and  falls 
into  the  Winooski  at  the  lower  end  of  the 
village.  This  stream,  though  not  large, 
has  on  it  a  number  of  falls  affording  good 
mill  privileges,  most  of  which  are  occu- 
pied, and  a  large  part  of  the  manufacturing 
done  in  town  by  water-power  is  on  this 
branch.  On  it  many  of  the  early  settlers 
located,  and  all  the  farms  by  them  started 
in  the  wilderness  are  now  valuable  and  in  a 
high  state  of  cultivation. 

Alder  Brook  also  has  its  source  in 
Stowe,  and  runs  along  the  center  of  the 
town  into  the  Waterbury  River,  near  the 
Free  Will  Baptist  meeting-house.  On  it, 
Stephen  Jones,  one  of  the  early  settlers, 
built  a  saw-mill  more  than  50  years  ago. 
The  falls  are  rather  picturesque.  Leander 
Hutchins  formerly  had  a  starch  factory 
here.  The  ownersli^p  of  the  saw-mill  was 
changed  from  time  to  time,  but  continued 
up  to  the  present.  The  road  to  Stowe 
crosses  the  pond  just  above  the  mill.  The 
land  above  the  falls  is  mostly  level,  good 
and  very  handsome  ;  below  more  uneven, 
but  productive.  On  the  west  side  of  Wa- 
terbury River  are  two  streams,  on  each  of 
which  are  several  mill  privileges.  Cotton 
Brook,  the  upper  one,  rises  on  the  high 
land  in  Bolton,  and  enters  Waterbury 
River  near  D.  Conant's  ;  on  this  brook  is 
one  saw-mill.  The  other  comes  from 
Ricker  mountain,  and  falls  into  the  river 
about  a  mile  above  Randall's  mill ;  on  this 
brook  are  two  saw-mills. 

hunters'  stories. 
Many  a  winter  evening  has  been  made 
interesting  to  the  young  by  the  stories  of 
the  old  in  the  "winter  of  their  years"  of 
the  hunting  excursions  in  these  then  "  wild 
woods,"  but  now  "teeming  fields,"  so 
vivid  and  lifelike  in  description,  that  the 
listener  could  but  enter  into  its  spirit  and 
see,  or  seem  to  see,  how  carefully  and 
with  the  utmost  secrecy  he  set  his  traps 
for  the  beaver,  even  to  the  washing  away 
his  footprints  in  the  sand.  How  cautiously 
he  wended  his  way  through  the  tangled 
woods,  his  trusty  dog  close  behind  (the 
hunting  in  those  days  being  still,  and  not 
in  the  noisy  chase),  peering  in  all  direc- 


tions for  game.  How  when  nearing  the 
more  common  haunts  of  the  deer,  some 
accidental  noise,  perhaps,  only  the  break- 
ing of  a  dry  twig,  starts  him  from  his  lair, 
but  too  late  for  escape,  as  his  first  move- 
ment was  seen  by  the  quick  eye  of  the 
hunter — a  sharp  crack  of  his  gun,  and  the 
deer  fell  lifeless. 

On  one  occasion,  the  hunter  became  so 
excited  when  aiming  at  a  moose,  that  the 
report  of  his  rifle  was  not  heeded,  and 
he  thought  it  had  missed  fire,  and  in  his 
vexation  at  the  supposed  result,  was  tempt- 
ed to  break  the  old  thing  on  a  tree  by 
which  he  stood.  He  was  happy,  how- 
ever, on  examination,  to  find  that  his  gun 
was  true  as  ever,  that  it  did  not  miss  fire, 
but  had  done  good  execution  ;  the  moose 
had  received  a  mortal  wound,  and  expired 
after  running  but  a  few  rods. 
roads. 
The  town  is  intersected  by  a  good  many 
roads  and  cross-roads  requiring  rather  a 
heavy  tax  to  make  and  repair,  and  to  build 
bridges  over  the  various  streams.  The 
first  road,  or  rather  an  apology  for  one, 
built  through  the  town,  was  on  the  river 
through  the  Hog  Backs  to  Middlesex. 
This,  probably,  was  never  traveled  with  a 
wheel  carriage,  but  answered  for  single 
horses  or,  perhaps  a  yoke  of  oxen,  to  drag 
their  grain  to  mill  on  their  primitive  drags, 
rudely  constructed  out  of  a  crooked  crotched 
tree.  That  part  of  this  road  or  pathway 
lying  above  the  present  village  was  soon 
discontinued  and  the  travel  turned  to  the 
other  side  of  the  river.  As  settlers  in- 
creased, and  of  necessity  obliged  to  go 
further  back  into  the  woods,  paths  had  to 
be  cut  out  for  their  accommodation  in  va- 
rious directions.  Many  of  these  paths, 
ultimately,  were  recognized  as  highways, 
though  not  the  most  judiciously  located 
for  the  public  to  travel.  The  old  hill  road 
was  the  first  made  through  to  the  northern 
settlements,  and  a  long  time  the  only  one 
much  traveled  to  Stowe  and  on  to  Lamoille 
River.  The  land  on  this  road  is  very 
good,  and  every  lot  was  taken  up  and  set- 
tled upon  it  at  an  early  day.  But  in  conse- 
quence of  a  far  more  level  one  east,  and 
leadino-    throu":h    the  center    village,    the 


WATERBURY. 


827 


hill  road  now  is  but  little  traveled  except 
by  those  living  on  it.  The  road  up  Water- 
bury  River  to  Stowe  on  the  path  of  the 
old  hunters,  was  made  as  settlers  advanced 
up  the  stream.  The  number  of  bridges 
and  the  gullies  occasioned  by  the  strong 
and  rapid  current  of  the  river,  make  this 
road  rather  an  expensive  one  to  keep  in 
repair.  Within  a  few  years  past,  travel 
on  it,  both -for  business  and  pleasure,  has 
greatly  increased. 

HIGHWAY,    PLANK   ROAD    AND    RAILROAD. 

The  most  important  and  most  traveled 
highway  through  the  town  is  the  stage 
road  from  the  depot  in  the  village  by  the 
center  to  Hydepark.  On  this  the  U.  S. 
mail  is  transported  once  a  day  each  way, 
and  the  numerous  excursionists  to  Mt. 
Mansfield  and  other  summer  resorts,  re- 
quiring extra  stages  much  of  the  time. 
The  large  amount  of  merchandise  for  the 
towns  of  Lamoille  Co.  is  mostly  freighted 
over  this  road.  There  are  branch  roads 
to  all  parts  of  the  town,  and  several  out  of 
it.  One  in  the  east  to  Stowe,  one  through 
the  notch  to  Middlesex,  and  good  farms  on 
each.  The  roads  crossing  the  Winooski 
on  the  two  arch  bridges,  one  up  to  More- 
town,  one  down  to  Richmond,  and  one 
south  through  Duxbury  to  Waitsfield,  are 
a  good  deal  traveled,  the  latter  especially, 
and  is  second  in  travel  and  freight  only  to 
the  mail  route  to  Hydepark — Morristown, 
1882.  A  few  years  since,  a  charter  was 
obtained  for  a  plank-road  to  Stowe.  The 
stockholders  made  the  road,  and  it  was 
traveled  2  or  3  years,  but  it  proved  unre- 
munerative  to  the  owners,  and  they  surren- 
dered it  to  the  towns.  The  railroad  enters 
the  town  on  the  border  of  Middlesex, 
passes  through  the  village,  and  a  mile  be- 
low, crosses  on  the  long  bridge  into  Dux- 
bury.  It  is  so  located  that  business  and 
intercourse  among  neighbors  is  attended 
with  but  little  inconvenience  ;  the  deep  cut 
at  the  crossing  of  the  Stowe  road  is 
bridged,  but  not  so  high  as  to  make  a  hard 
draft  over  it.  The  bridge  over  Thatcher's 
branch  is  elevated  sufficiently  for  an  under 
one  for  common  use.  Just  below  the 
channel  of  the  river  was  turned  for  some 
distance,  at  great  expense,  and  a  half  mile 


down  is  the  long  bridge  over  which  the 
road  leaves  the  town.  The  citizens  of  the 
place  subscribed  liberally  for  stock,  but  it 
proved  almost  an  entire  loss,  except  to 
those  owning  real  estate,  which  was  en- 
hanced in  value  by  the  completion  of  the 
road. 

TURNPIKE,  AND   WHAT   BECAME   OF   IT. 

In  the  year  1805,  the  Legislature  granted 
a  charter  for  a  turnpike  from  Montpelier  to 
Burlington.  The  stock  was  taken  and  the 
road  built.  It  entered  the  town  of  Water- 
bury  at  the  upper  end  of  the  village,  and 
thence  through  the  town  to  Bolton.  The 
great  freshet  in  the  summer  of  1830,  swept 
away  all  the  bridges  on  the  road  and  other- 
wise very  much  damaged  it ;  so  much  so 
that  the  proprietors  hesitated  about  repair- 
ing it,  as  it  never  paid  large  dividends. 
Thomas  and  Hezekiah  Reed,  brothers,  and 
enterprising  young  men  of  Montpelier, 
offered  the  nominal  sum  of  $10  the  share, 
which  cost  originally  $175.  Their  offer 
was  accepted  ;  they  rebuilt  the  bridges  and 
put  the  road  in  good  repair.  Before  the 
canal  was  made,  opening  a  water  com- 
munication by  the  way  of  the  Hudson 
river  to  Lake  Champlain,  goods  from 
Boston  and  other  Atlantic  towns  were 
nearly  all  brought  to  this  place  with  ox  or 
horse-teams,  by  way  of  Montpelier,  each 
team  drawing  but  little  over  half  a  ton, 
and  requiring  from  two  to  three  weeks  to 
make  a  trip.  But  afterwards,  at  a  cheaper 
rate,  freight  took  the  water  route  by  way 
of  Burlington,  throwing  a  large  additional 
amount  of  teaming  and  travel  on  to  the 
turnpike,  rendering  it  profitable  to  the 
Reeds.  The  Vermont  Central  Railroad, 
by  its  charter,  was  obligated  to  pay  the 
owners  of  the  turnpike  for  their  franchise. 
They  compromised,  took  the  turnpike  and 
applied  the  tolls  to  its  own  benefit,  but 
when  the  cars  commenced  running,  it  was 
abandoned  to  the  towns.  The  somewhat 
increased  highway  taxes  of  Waterbury 
were  compensated  for,  however,  by  having 
a  free  road. 

EARLY   OCCUPIED    FARMS. 

Much  the  largest  part  of  business  done 
in  the  town  is  farming,  the  land  being  well 
adapted  to  that  purpose,  the  meadows  for 


828 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


growing  corn,  oats  and  grass,  the  upland 
for  wheat  and  grazing.     Within  the  past 
20  or  30  years,  agriculture  has  greatly  im- 
proved, and  many  young  men  who  started 
poor,  by  industry  and  good  management, 
have  paid  for   their    land,  and    now   have 
large  and  valuable  farms,  are  entirely  clear 
from  debt,  and  possess  sufficient  personal 
property  to  support  them  tlirough  life.     It 
has  previously   been   stated   that   on    the 
rivers  and  their  tributaries  are  many   ex- 
cellent farms,  but  little  or  nothing  relating 
to  their  location,  their  present  owners,  or 
who  began  them.     A  short  historical  ac- 
count of  a  few  of  the  earliest  started,  can 
hardly   be  otherwise    than    interesting  to 
many,  especially  to  those  of  an  antiquarian 
cast  of  mind.     On  the  meadow  above  the 
Winooski  falls,  John  Craig,  about  1788, 
commenced  clearing,  and  erected  a  humble 
residence.     In   a  few   years,   he  sold   his 
possession  and    moved  to    Ohio.     It  was 
purchased  with  considerable  surrounding 
land,  by  Joseph  Palmer,  an  energetic  bus- 
iness man,  and  somewhat  noted  in  his  day 
as   a   skillful   bridge   builder.     After   the 
death  of  Palmer,  it  was    divided   up,  and 
the  three  valuable   farms  now  owned   by 
Luther  Davis,  Joel  Remington  and  Geo. 
W.   Randall  were  made  of  this    tract   of 
land.     On  the  tract  of  land  above  Randall, 
Stiles  Sherman  located  on  coming  to  town, 
and  resided  the  remainder  of  his  lifetime, 
where  for  many  years  he  kept  a  house  of 
entertainment    for    travelers,    where     he 
reared   a   large   family    of    children,    and 
where  he  died  at  a  ripe  old  age,  much  re- 
spected.    Part  of  the   farm  is  now  owned 
by   his  son,  Heman   Sherman — 1870,   but 
the  larger  part  of  it  by  Joseph  Thompson. 
At  the  mouth  of  Waterbury  river,  on  the 
east  side,  is  the   place   where   Dr.   Daniel 
Bliss,     the   first  physician,    and    the  first 
representative   of  the  town,  resided,  and 
where  Seth  Chandler,  the  first  blacksmith, 
had  his  shop,  and  where   not  a  long  time 
after,  he  was  killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree. 
The  farm  is  now  owned  by  Mr.  McAllister. 
The  next  east  is  where  Amos  Waters  com- 
menced as  early  as  1788.     It  soon  passed 
into  the  hands   of  Sylvester  Henry,  Esq., 
deceased.     Mr.  Henry  added  considerable 


land,  and  at  his  death  it  was  a  large  and 
valuable  farm.  By  will  he  divided  it  with 
his  four  sons,  James  M.,  Sylvester,  Jr., 
Samuel  and  Luther.  Most  of  it  at  the 
present  time  is  owned  and  occupied  by 
Sylvester. 

Adjoining,  and  within  the  boundaries  of 
the  village,  is  the  old  Gov.  Butler  place,  of 
between  200  and  300  acres,  about  130 
acres  of  which  constitute  the  farm  of  the 
State  Reform  School.  Seven  acres  with 
the  old  house,  the  first  framed  one  in  the 
town,  is  now  owned  by  Mr.  Colby,  of  the 
United  States  Navy.  Some  4  acres  at  the 
mouth  of  Thatcher's  branch,  on  which 
stood  the  surveyor's  camp,  built  as  early 
as  1782,  is  owned  by  Russell  Butler,  the 
youngest  son  of  Gov.  Butler.  The  bal- 
ance, with  the  exception  of  a  few  acres  of 
wood  land  on  the  northern  part,  constitute 
a  part  of  the  farm  of  H.  F.  Janes. 

The  tract  of  land  pitched,  and  a  short 
time  occupied  by  James  Marsh,  and  on 
which  he  erected  his  cabin,  has  been  much 
divided — part  taken  for  the  village  cem- 
etery and  building  purposes.  Much  so 
with  the  Cephas  Wells  farm.  The  low 
and  rich  meadow,  in  about  equal  parts,  is 
owned  at  the  present  time  by  Elisha  Moody 
and  Geo.  W.  Randall. 

But  a  small  part  of  the  large  farm,  so 
long  owned  and  occupied  by  the  late  Amasa 
Pride,  is  now  in  his  family.  The  home- 
stead, and  30  to  40  acres  of  land,  are  yet 
owned  by  his  widow,  and  Mr.  Caldwell, 
who  married  the  daughter  and  only  sur- 
viving child  of  Mr.  Pride.  This  residence 
is  pleasantly  situated  directly  in  front  of 
the  depot  common. 

The  large  hotel,  the  railroad  buildings, 
the  foundry,  several  stores,  the  stage  office, 
a  number  of  mechanic  shops  and  dwelling- 
houses  are  on  a  part  of  the  original  farm. 

The  tract  of  land  on  which  Gov.  Butler 
and  his  brother,  Asaph,  first  commenced 
work  in  town  is  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
village.  The  Butlers,  after  occupying  it  a 
short  time,  gave  it  up,  and  it  was  taken  by 
Richard  Holden,  who  resided  on  it  several 
years.  Holden  sold  the  farm  to  the  late 
Judge  Dan.  Carpenter,  and  Carpenter  to 
Gen.  John   Peck.     By  additions  and  im- 


WATERBURY. 


829 


provement,  it  was,  at  the  death  of  Mr. 
Peck,  the  largest  and  most  valuable  one  in 
town.  The  administrator  of  Peck  sold  the 
place  to  D.  G.  Shipley,  recently  deceased. 
The  elegant  mansion  and  part  of  the  farm 
are  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Dr.  H. 
Fales,  wIto  married  the  only  daughter  of 
Mr.  Shipley.  The  farm  of  C.  C.  Shipley 
is  part  of  the  original.  The  balance,  with 
the  exception  of  what  has  been  taken  for 
building  purposes,  is  a  part  of  the  farm  of 
J.  Batchelder.  On  the  large  meadow  above 
the  village,  Caleb  Munson,  the  third  set- 
tler, made  his  pitch.  He  was  soon  suc- 
ceeded by  Amasa  Marshall.  Since  the 
death  of  Mr.  Marshall, it  has  passed  through 
several  hands  and  been  much  split  up.  The 
railroad  passes  through  this  meadow.  The 
farm  on  Thatcher's  branch,  at  the  present 
time  owned  by  Eugene  Moody,  was  begun 
by  Oliver  C.  Rood.  Soon  after  the  first 
settlement  in  the  town,  he  came,  young, 
vigorous,  and  of  great  physical  endurance, 
and  at  the  time  very  useful  in  clearing  up 
land,  in  building  bridges,  in  making  roads, 
and  in  the  performance  of  all  kinds  of 
work  requiring  skill  and  energy, — at  an 
early  day  built  the  grist  mill  afterward 
rebuilt  by  W.  W.  Wells.  Rood  lived  on 
the  farm  many  years.  It  passed  from  him 
to  his  sonTin-law,Albro  Atkins,  from  Atkins 
to  the  late  Judge  E.  S.  Newcomb,  and 
from  him  to  the  present  owner. 

Jonathan  Wright,  in  1788,  on  the 
same  stream  above  the  Rood  place,  built 
his  cabin  and  cut  the  first  tree  on  the  ex- 
cellent tract  of  land  he  had  selected  for  a 
farm.  Here,  himself  and  his  wife  resided 
the  remainder  of  their  long  lives.  Their 
son,  Tilman,  said  to  have  been  the  first 
male  child  born  in  town,  succeeded  his 
father  in  the  ownership  and  occupancy  of 
the  farm  during  his  life,  and  by  his  ad- 
ministrator it  was  sold  to  the  Hon.  James 
Green,  deceased.  It  is  yet  in  the  family 
of  Mr.  Green,  and  has  been  much  im- 
proved. Stephen  Guptil's  farm  was  owned 
and  occupied  by  the  late  Jared  George, 
probably  as  far  back  as  1798.  In  the  barn 
of  Mr.  George  religious  meetings  were  oc- 
casionally held  during  several  years.  The 
good  farm  of  Levi  Graves  was  made  up  of 


portions  taken  from  others,  and  first  com- 
menced by  the  late  Samuel  Button. 

It  is  difficult  at  this  time  to  ascertain 
with  certainty  who  was  the  first  beginner 
on  the  farm  of  Harvey  Eddy.  It  is  safe  to 
say,  however,  that  it  was  one  of  the  first 
started  in  that  part  of  the  town,  and  has 
been  owned  by  many  different  individuals  ; 
a  long  time  by  David  Adams,  and  by  Wm. 
Eddy,  who  conveyed  it  to  his  son,  Harvey 
Eddy.  On  it  is  considerable  fertile  mead- 
ow, and  is  cjuite  pleasant  in  location.  Some 
miles  further  up  the  branch  is  situated  the 
handsome  and  productive  farm  on  which, 
as  before  stated,  Dea.  Asaph  Allen,  in 
1796,  began  his  residence  in  town.  It 
passed  into  the  hands  of  his  son,  Eliakim 
Allen,  who,  after  occupying  several  years, 
conveyed  it  away,  and  it  is  now  out  of  the 
Allen  family. 

In  town  are  many  more  farms  nearly  or 
quite  as  productive  as  those  named.  Most 
of  them  are  on  the  upland,  and  were  com- 
menced at  a  later  date.  For  the  raising  of 
stock  and  for  dairy  business,  they  yield  a 
profit  that  ought  to  be  satisfactory  to  the 
owners.  But  few  of  them  are  now  in  the 
hands  of  beginners  or  of  their  descend- 
ants. The  only  exception,  probably,  is 
that  of  Silas  Loomis,  yet  owned  and  occu- 
pied by  his  son,  Elam  Loomis.  The 
Clough  place,  on  what  is  called  Indian 
Hill,  and  where  Isaac  Parker  began,  is 
one  of  the  best  grazing  farms  in  the  vi- 
cinity. The  farm  of  Raymond  Huse,  on 
Alder  brook  below  the  falls,  is  a  valuable 
one.  As  early  as  1794  or  '5,  Joseph  Fisk 
began  a  clearing  on  the  south  part,  and 
his  son,  Benjamin,  a  while  after  on  the 
west  part  of  it.  West,  and  adjoining,  is 
the  place  where  Joshua  Hill,  about  1791, 
began  his  farm,  and  on  which  he  lived 
many  years.  Hill  kept  tavern  here  some 
years,  when  the  principal  travel  north  was 
over  the  hill  road.  On  this  road,  near  the 
south  line  of  Waterbury,  Colonel  George 
Kennan  kept  a  tavern  some  years.  The 
buildings  are  gone,  and  there  is  nothing 
remaining  to  determine  its  precise  loca- 
tion. Nearly  all  the  farms  off  from  the 
rivers  have  large  maple  orchards,  from  the 
sap  of  which  sugar  and  syrup  are  made 


830 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


sufficient   for   family  use,    and   much   for 
exportation. 

LAND   TITLES. 

But  little  litigation,  growing  out  of 
original  titles,  has  occurred  in  this  town. 
It  does  not  appear  that  any  of  the  grantees 
or  their  heirs  settled  on  their  lands.  But 
in  most  cases  there  is  no  trouble  in  tracing 
titles  back  to  the  original  proprietors.  A 
few  may  rest  on  vendue  sales  for  non- 
payment of  taxes  or  the  statute  of  Hmit- 
ation.  If  sold  for  taxes,  they  were  gen- 
erally redeemed  ;  one  event  in  redeeming, 
so  brave,  that  it  will  bear  relating  here  : 

Col.  Sumner,  of  New  Hampshire,  owned 
several  lots  of  land  which  had  been  sold 
for  taxes,  and  the  time  of  redemption  was 
nearly  out.  David  H.,  his  son,  a  lad  then 
about  14  years  of  age,  was  furnished  with  a 
purse  of  hard  money,  put  on  the  back  of 
his  trusty  old  mare,  and  sent  to  redeem 
his  land.  The  distance  was  some  75  miles, 
most  of  the  way  through  woods  almost 
pathless.  The  boy  arrived  at  Col.  Davis', 
in  Montpelier,  just  as  the  sun  was  setting. 
After  baiting  his  horse,  he  remounted,  and 
proceeded  down  the  river  for  Waterbury. 
It  had  become  dark,  and  the  road  or  path- 
way difficult  to  travel.  At  the  foot  of  rock 
bridge,  so  called  (the  place  described  by 
Mr.  Thompson  in  his  history  of  Mont- 
pelier, where  Thomas  Davis,  a  boy  of  16, 
so  heroically  got  down  the  first  wagon  that 
entered  that  town),  David's  horse  sud- 
denly stopped.  _  He  could  not  urge  it 
forward.  It  was  very  dark,  but  carefully 
looking  ahead,  he  saw  a  large  bear  stand- 
ing erect  in  the  middle  of  the  path.  Though 
courageous,  he  was  frightened.  What  boy 
or  man  would  not  have  been?  He  con- 
sidered, however,  his  safety  was  in  stick- 
ing to  the  back  of  his  trusty  mare.  The 
bear,  after  sufficiently  examining  them, 
left  for  the  more  thick  woods,  and  his 
mare  then  willingly  ascended  the  ledge, 
and  they  passed  on  to  the  fording  place 
in  the  river,  crossed  it,  and  arrived  at  Mr. 
Holdenls,  the  collector,  near  the  middle  of 
the  night,  and  just  in  time  to  redeem  the 
land.  One  hour  more  would  have  been 
too  late.  This  boy  lived  to  a  great  age, 
and,  as  was  reasonably  expected,  became 


an  energetic  business  man,  highly  respect- 
ed, and  of  much  influence. 

FLOODS. 

There  have  been  but  few  floods  since 
the  settlement,  raising  the  water  much 
above  the  ordinary  spring  and  fall  freshets. 
That  of  July,  1830,  was  much  the  largest 
that  has  occurred.  The  rain,  for  nearly 
two  days  preceding,  fell  in  torrents,  and 
the  adjacent  highlands  being  mostly  clear- 
ed and  turfed  with  grass,  the  water  flowed 
into  the  streams  with  but  little  absorption 
in  the  soil.  The  Winooski,  with  additions 
from  tributaries,  accumulated  a  volume  of 
power  .sufficient  to  take  in  its  course  large 
trees,  logs,  bridges  and  floating  field  crops, 
so  obstructing  the  passage  through  the 
falls,  causing  the  water  to  set  back,  and 
forming  quite  a  lake  above,  all  of  ten  feet 
higher  than  any  former  flood.  Most  of 
the  streets  at  this  time  were  under  water, 
which  at  no  other  time  has  occurred.  The 
damage  in  the  aggregate  was  considerable, 
but  not  heavy  individually.  D.  G.  Shipley 
probably  suffered  the  most,  having  had,  in 
addition  to  his  crops,  a  barn  full  of  hay 
carried  away,  and  his  meadow  injured  by 
detrition  of  soil.  Occasionally  the  lowest 
terraces  have  been  overflowed  in  the  sum- 
mer season  by  heavy  rain ;  but  the  fer- 
tilizing deposits  were  equivalent  to  the 
waste  of  the  growing  crops.  Bridges  have 
been  carried  away  at  different  times,  owing 
rather  to  want  of  thoroughness  in  con- 
struction than  to  the  floods.  The  villages 
are  so  elevated  that  the  highest  rise  of 
water  seldom  reach  the  streets. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  town  in  its  corporate  capacity,  has 
never  granted  any  money  for  the  support 
of  schools.  In  the  second  warning  for 
the  annual  March  meeting,  1791,  there 
was  an  article  inserted,  "  To  see  if  the  town 
would  take  any  measures  for  the  promotion 
of  schools."  Committee,  John  Craig,  Reu- 
ben Wells  and  Caleb  Munson,  appointed 
to  divide  the  town  into  two  districts,  for  the 
benefit  of  schools.  At  the  next  meeting 
held  in  April  of  same  year,  Waterbury 
River  was  made  the  dividing  line  of  the 
two  districts.  The  only  action  upon  that 
article  at  the  meeting  was  to  divide  the 


WATERBURY. 


831 


town  into  two  school  districts,  leaving  it 
to  them  to  manage  the  subject  as  they 
should  deem  advisable.  Subsequently, 
from  time  to  time,  the  districts  have  been 
divided  and  sub-divided  so  that  at  the 
present  time  there  are  18  school-districts 
in  town,  and  as  many  school-houses.  The 
town  has  a  small  fund,  or  annual  income 
arising  from  rents  on  public  lands,  interest 
on  the  U.  S.  surplus  money,  and  the  State 
school  tax,  total  between  $1000  and  $1100, 
which  is  divided  to  the  several  districts,  a 
small  amount  for  each,  and  necessarily 
requiring  a  heavy  additional  tax  for  the 
building  of  school  houses  and  paying 
teachers.  The  district  in  the  principal 
village  has  lately  established  a  graded 
school,  and  voted  a  tax  of  50  cents  on  the 
dollar  of  their  grand  list  for  its  support. 
It  is  now  in  operation  in  a  good  house, 
and  under  competent  teachers. 

WATERBURY    CENTER   VILLAGE. 

The  Village  at  the  Center,  divided  by 
Alder  brook  near  the  middle,  is  pleasant 
and  beautiful  in  all  its  surroundings.  On 
the  north  side  are  several  handsome  dwel- 
lings, the  Methodist  chapel,  in  the  hall  of 
which  town  meetings  are  holden  alternate 
years,  i  store,  the  district  school  house,  i 
tavern,  a  blacksmith  shop  and  a  few  other 
shops.  The  Center  burying  ground  is  on 
this  side  of  the  stream.  On  the  east  side 
are  more  private  dwellings,  all  neat  and 
comely  in  appearance.  Also,  the  Baptist 
meeting  house,  of  wood  in  good  taste,  i 
store,  in  which  the  town  clerk's  office  and 
the  Center  post  office  are  kept,  and  two 
or  three  mechanic's  establishments. 

THE   GREEN   MOUNTAIN   SEMINARY, 

a  Freewill  Baptist  institution,  is  located  at 
the  Center  village,  on  the  east  side.  It 
was  chartered  Oct.,  1862,  to  D.  L.  Frost 
and  other  12  corporators.  The  trustees 
were  authorized  to  confer  "  degrees  on  male 
and  female  pupils  as  are  usually  conferred 
by  the  best  Colleges,  Academies  and 
Seminaries ;  also,  on  male  pupils  a  di- 
ploma of  honor."  The  corporation  had 
no  endowment  to  start  npon,  and  were 
under  the  necessity  of  relying  entirely  on 
private    subscriptions   for    the   means    to 


erect  their  seminary  building,  and  to  pro- 
vide a  suitable  apparatus.  By  the  energy 
and  perseverance  of  the  trustees,  and  the 
liberality  of  the  citizens  of  the  vicinity, 
they  succeeded.  It  is  truly  said  in  their 
first  report  that  their  "  Seminary  building 
is  one  of  the  finest  structures  in  the  State, 
and  surrounded  by  natural  scenery  unsur- 
passed in  its  magnificence  and  grandeur. 
Mount  Mansfield,  Camel's  Hump,  and  all 
the  spurs  of  the  Green  Mountains,  from 
Addison,  through  Chittenden,  Washing- 
ton and  Lamoille  counties,  stand  out  in 
bold  relief  in  full  view  from  the  Seminary.'' 

VILLAGES — BUSINESS   IN   R.   R.    VILLAGE. 

In  the  town  are  two  large  villages  and 
three  small  ones.  Much  the  largest  one 
is  on  the  Winooski  river,  nearly  midway 
between  Middlesex  and  Bolton.  It  is 
more  than  a  mile  in  length  east  'and  west, 
and  north  on  the  Stowe  road ;  half  that 
distance  in  width,  not  including  Mill  vil- 
lage. Mr.  Marsh  and  Mr.  Butler,  the  first 
and  second  settlers,  commenced  here,  and 
laid  the  foundation  of  a  community,  which, 
ever  since,  has  had  a  steady,  prosperous 
and  healthy  growth.  It  now  (1870),  has 
a  population  of  about  800,  and  a  grand 
list  of  $4,000.  Has  four  churches,  in  each 
of  which  are  regular  services.  The  largest 
and  first  built,  in  1824,  is  the  Congrega- 
tional ;  the  second,  of  brick,  is  the  Meth- 
odist, built  in  1841  ;  the  third,  the  Second 
Advent  chapel ;  the  fourth,  the  Roman 
Catholic.  In  this  village  is  Waterbury 
First  National  Bank,  two  hotels,  one  com- 
modious and  handsome,  on  the  site  of  the 
one  previously  burned,  owned  and  kept  by 
W.  H.  Skinner:  the  other,  owned  and  oc- 
cupied by  J.  Brown.  There  is  also  M.  E. 
Smilie's  large  brick  foundry,  built  by  D. 
Adams  on  the  site  of  his  wooden  one, 
there  recently  burned  ;  Geo.  C.  Arms'  ex- 
tensive marble  works,  and  three  large 
brick  stores — one  on  the  corner  of  Stowe 
and  Main  street,  built  by  Leander  Hutch- 
ins,  now  owned  by  his  son-in-law,  C.  N. 
Arms,  and  occupied  by  Wyman  and  Smith, 
merchants.  The  other  two  are  on  the 
opposite  side  of  Main  street — one  erected 
by  Wm.  Carpenter,  in  which  two  of  his 
sons  are  dealing  in  crockery. 


832 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Business  Firms. — "Ready-made  cloth- 
ing, medicines,  &c.,"  Geo.  W.  Kennedy's 
office  and  the  village  library  are  in  this 
store. 

A  three-story  building,  erected  by  the 
late  A.  S.  Richardson,  owned  by  Clough 
and  Randall.  In  it  is  the  law  office  of 
Palmer  and  Clough,  a  tailor's  and  jewel- 
er's shops  ;  a  grocery  in  the  basement,  and 
a  family  living  in  the  upper  part. 

The  large  wooden  block  on  the  corner, 
opposite  C.  N.  Arms'  brick  store,  built  by 
I.  G.  Stimson  (the  larger  part),  and  C. 
Graves,  on  the  foundation  of  Stimson's 
store  burned  a  few  months  before.  The 
part  of  the  block  built  by  Stimson,  owned 
by  L.  H.  Haines,  contains  the  store  of 
Richardson  and  Fullerton,  of  Arms  and 
Haines,  traders  in  flour,  grain,  nails,  tea, 
etc. ;  the*post-office,  Moody's  book  and 
stationary  store,  and  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  reading-room.  The 
part  built  by  Mr.  Graves  is  owned  by  him, 
in  which  he  manufactures  tinware,  and  has 
a  stove  and  hardware  store. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  street  is  the 
cabinet-shop  of  George  W.  Atherton,  the 
fine  store  of  M.  M.  Knight,  rebuilt  a  few 
years  since  by  J.  B.  Christy  on  the  same 
spot  where  stood  his  former  one,  there 
recently  burned ;  the  furniture  shop  of 
A.  A.  Atherton  and  Son ;  in  the  same 
building  the  groceries  of  F.  Taylor  and 
W.  Ashley  ;  and  adjoining,  the  apothecary 
store  of  Frink  and  Remington. 

Brown  and  Atkins,  successors  of  I.  C. 
and  S.  Brown,  wholesale  and  retail  deal- 
ers in  grain,  general  groceries,  etc.,  are 
doing  an  extensive  business  near  the  depot 
[Arms  &  Haines,  successors]. 

MANUFACTORIES. 

The  village  has  a  supply  of  such  me- 
chanics as  are  commonly  found  in  country 
towns.  L.  Parmely,  on  Main  Street,  oppo- 
site of  the  bank,  for  a  number  of  years  has 
been  engaged  in  the  shoe  trade  ;  and  Geo. 
W.  Lease  in  harness-making.  Waterbury 
Manufacturing  Co.,  successors  of  Case  & 
Thomas,  is  opposite  of  the  State  Reform 
School.  It  was  incorporated  in  1869,  with 
a  working  capital  of  $30,000.  The  busi- 
ness of  the    company    is    mostly    making 


cane-seated  chairs,  doors,  window-sash 
and  blinds.  They  also  do  a  large  amount 
of  planing,  wood-turning  and  scroll-saw- 
ing. They  employ  about  30  hands,  and 
occasionally  a  number  of  the  Reform  School 
[1870]  boys  in  addition.  The  Company 
deal  to  some  extent  in  pine  lumber. 

MILL  VILLAGE 
took  its  name  from  its  being  the  location 
of  the  first  grist  and  saw-mills  built  in 
town.  It  is  situated  on  the  Stowe  road, 
at  the  lower  falls  on  Thatcher's  Branch. 
There  is  here,  within  the  distance  of  a 
fourth  of  a  mile,  a  succession  of  falls,  af- 
fording three  good  mill  privileges,  all  of 
which  are  occupied.  At  the  first  is  the 
large  brick  grist-mill,  built  a  few  years 
since  by  the  late  Wm.  W.  Wells,  Esq., 
and  now  owned  by  his  heirs.  It  stands  on 
or  near  the  spot  of  the  one  built  in  1792. 
It  has  always  done  a  large  custom  business. 
A  few  rods  up  stream,  A.  H.  Selleck  &  Co. 
have  a  woolen  factory,  where  they  card 
wool  and  manufacture  to  some  extent. 
They  have  recently  put  in  machinery  for 
turning  small  boxes.  At  this  place  were 
the  first  clothing  works  in  town ;  owned 
and  operated  by  sundry  individuals  and 
companies  ;  at  a  very  early  day  by  Jotham 
Robbins,  subsequently  a  short  tune  by 
Jared  Perkins,  who  became  a  Methodist 
preacher,  a  presiding  elder  and  member  of 
Congress  from  New  Hampshire.  Since 
Perkins,  by  Thomas  and  Thompson,  by 
Thompson,  Seabury  and  Blanchard,  and 
others  constantly  until  it  came  into  the 
hands  of  the  Sellecks. 

A  short  distance  above  the  factory,  is 
the  saw-mill  and  mechanics  shop  owned  by 
N.  A.  Rhoades.  There  has  been  at  this 
place  a  saw-mill  ever  since  the  first  set- 
tlement of  the  town.  Over  40  years  ago, 
P.  Brown,  a  tanner,  built  at  these  falls  a 
mill  for  grinding  bark,  and  put  in  a  few 
vats  for  tanning,  in  connection  with  his 
principal  yard  in  the  other  village.  Here, 
too,  Thomas,  Thompson  and  Seabury  for- 
merly had  a  woolen  factory,  burned  some 
years  past  and  never  rebuilt. 

At  the  south  end  of  Mill  Village  on  the 
west  side  of  the  stream,  Samuel  Dutton 
many  years  since  started  a  tannery  on  a 


/ 


WATERBURY. 


833 


small  scale,  intended  principally  for  his 
own  convenience  in  his  trade  as  shoe- 
maker. It  passed  from  him  to  his  sons, 
Thomas,  David,  and  Harper,  and  from 
them  to  Wm.  W.  Wells,  who  greatly  en- 
larged and  improved  the  works ;  Wells 
sold  to  R.  Blush,  and  in  a  few  years,  while 
owned  by  Blush,  the  works  were  burned. 
The  real  estate  and  few  out-buildings  not 
consumed  by  fire,  were  purchased  by  Syl- 
vester Henry,  who,  with  his  son,  rebuilt  on 
the  old  site  extensive  works,  making  it 
one  of  the  largest  and  best  establishments 
of  the  kind  in  the  State.  The  tannery  is 
rented  for  a  term  of  years  by  C.  C.  Warren, 
who  works  it  mostly  by  steam,  and  in  the 
amount  of  tanning  he  is  exceeded  by  few, 
and  by  none  with  the  same  number  of 
hands  employed,  in  the  State  of  Vermont. 

CoLBYViLLE  is  in  the  same  school  dis- 
trict as  Mill  Village,  the  school-house  being 
midway  between  the  two.  This  village  is 
sufficiently  elevated  to  give  a  fine  surround- 
ing view,  and  is  really  a  pleasant  location. 
On  the  lower  fall,  Enoch  Bean,  near  the 
beginning  of  the  present  century,  put  in 
operation  a  carding-machine,  and  a  num- 
ber of  years  carded  the  wool  for  nearly  all 
the  people  in  this  and  the  surronnding 
towns.  About  the  same  time,  O.  C.  Rood 
put  up  here  a  potato  whisky  distillery,  and 
run  it  as  long  as  self  interest  or  a  true 
sense  of  moral  propriety,  in  his  judgment, 
rendered  it  advisable.  In  1855,  E.  P. 
Butler  and  E.  Parker  purchased  the  place, 
and  on  the  same  falls  erected  a  factory  and 
commenced  making  starch  from  potatoes. 
On  the  upper  falls  Mr.  Butler  built  a  saw- 
mill, which  to  the  present  time  has  been 
in  operation.  Grow  Butler,  son  of  the 
owner,  was  drowned  in  the  flume  of  the 
mill  while  helping  his  father  in  making 
some  repairs,  and  George  Rood,  son  of 
O.  C.  Rood,  was  instantly  killed  here  by  a 
log  rolling  on  him  when  unloading  a  sled. 
After  Butler  and  Parker  discontinued  mak- 
ing starch,  the  building  was  used  by  S.  S. 
Spicer  as  a  tannery,  but  only  for  a  short 
time,  as  it  was  soon  burned  and  tanning 
never  resumed  here.  The  village  at  this 
time    has  about  a  dozen  dwelling-houses 

IDS 


and  a  few  mechanics''  shops.  The  beauti- 
ful mansion  of  George  J.  Colby,  probably 
is  the  best  arranged  and  most  tasteful  in 
finish  of  any  one,  outside  of  Montpelier, 
within  in  the  county.  But  what  gave 
name  and  prominence  to  the  village  was 
the  manufacturing  establishment  of  Colby 
Brothers  and  Co. 

The  business  of  the  Colby  Brothers, 
established  in  1857,  in  its  various  branches 
embracing  the  growing  and  peeling  of 
willows,  and  the  manufacturing  them  into 
various  useful  wares  ;  the  making  of  the 
machines  for  peeling,  and  also  clothes 
wringers.  Children's  cabs,  etc.,  in  all 
the  branches  of  their  business,  was  a  new 
enterprise  for  this  part  of  the  country,  and 
is  entitled  to  special  notice,  for  its  impor- 
tant effect  on  the  prosperity  of  the  place  for 
several  years.  But  for  a  material  financial 
error  involved  in  an  expensive  lawsuit,  and 
the  unequal  railroad  exactions  for  freight, 
this  business  might  have  continued  to 
contribute  to  the  prosperity  and  welfare 
of  the  town. 

Colby  Brothers  &  Co.,  manufacturers  of 
children's  carriages,  velocipedes  and  Colby's 
patent  wringers,  afford  an  example  of  what 
may  be  done  by  persistent  effort  and  en- 
terprise, with  little  capital  or  encourage- 
ment. 

In  1856,  the  older  brothers,  George  J. 
and  Edwin  A.  Colby,  came  from  Bolton 
and  purchased  a  shop  and  about  30  acres 
of  land,  on  which  2  or  3  acres  of  willows 
had  been  planted  by  Dea.  E.  Parker,  the 
former  owner.  The  shop  was  furnished 
with  machinery,  and  for  a  year  or  two  the 
Colbys  hired  this.  The  senior  brother 
was  23,  and  the  other  21,  and  the  only 
business  with  which  they  were  familiar 
was  farming.  They  peeled  their  first  crop 
of  willows  in  1857,  and  at  once  began  mak- 
ing custom  work  and  machines  invented  by 
George  for  peeling  willows.  Next  year  they 
employed  a  first-class  willow-worker,  Mr. 
Laudt,  who  is  now  a  stockholder  with 
them,  and  began  making  willow  cabs.  At 
first  they  bought  the  wheels  in  Massachu- 
setts, but  soon  manufactured  them  them- 
selves. 


834 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


In  i860,  through  new  partners,  the  cap- 
tal  was  increased  to  $1 1,000,  and  the  firm 
became  Howden,  Colby  &  Co.  The  same 
year  they  began  the  manufacture  of  clothes 
wringers,  also  an  invention  of  the  senior 
brother.  These  are  said  to  be  the  first 
made  with  frames  of  galvanized  iron,  and 
were  almost  the  first  to  find  extensive  sale. 
In  1864,  with  additional  partners,  the  cap- 
ital was  increased  to  $28,000,  and  the 
name  of  the  firm  was  Colby  Bros.  &  Co. 
1865,  a  joint  stock  company  was  formed, 
and  the  capital  increased  to  $75,000,  The 
firm  have  now  (1871),  a  capital  of  $86,000, 
with  15  buildings,  extending  over  40,000 
sq.  ft.  Besides,  the  Company  have  pur- 
chased and  built  some  dozen  houses  for 
dwellings.  Over  $50,000  of  the  capital  is 
employed  in  the  cab  manufacture,  and 
about  $30,000  in  making  wringers.  About 
50  hands  are  required  on  the  cabs,  which 
have  a  market  value  of  nearly  $100,000, 
and  vary  in  price  from  $3  to  $100.  They 
go  to  all  parts  of  this  country  and  to  foreign 
lands,  and  are  not  surpassed  in  beauty  of 
finish  and  in  durability. 

FIRE    DISTRICT. 

In  1855,  the  selectmen,  on  application 
of  the  required  number  of  freeholders, 
laid  out  a  fire  district  of  a  square  mile, 
comprising  most  of  the  River  Village  and 
a  part  of  Mill  Village  ;  organized  Aug.  14. 
Before  this,  there  had  been  no  systematic 
organization  of  a  fire  department  in  the 
place.  The  citizens  had  voluntarily  asso- 
ciated, and  by  subscription  purchased  a 
medium  sized  engine  and  a  limited  supply 
of  hose.  This  engine  not  being  sufficient, 
directly  after  the  great  fire  of  1858,  the 
district  voted  a  tax  of  100  per  cent,  on 
their  grand  list,  and  purchased,  at  the  cost 
of  $1500,  exclusive  of  hose,  a  second  and 
larger  one.  The  district  has  2  engines, 
about  1000  feet  of  hose,  and  a  fire  compa- 
ny of  50  men,  and  the  old  engine. house 
being  too  small,  was  disposed  of  and  a  new 
one  built  the  past  year,  [1871]  60  by  40 
feet,  two-story,  with  a  hall  in  the  upper 
story,  50  by  40  feet,  for  lectures,  concerts 
and  purposes  not  inconsistant  to  good 
morals.  The  building  with  the  ground  on 
which  it  stands,  cost  $3600. 


FIRES. 

The  first  building  burned  is  believed  to 
have  been  a  tan-shop  of  Cephas  Wells, 
opposite  Fireman's  Hall.  The  school- 
house  in  the  first  school  district  was  burned 
about  18 10,  and  in  18 16  the  dwelling- 
house  of  D.  C.  Deming. 

In  the  Spring  of  1822,  the  large  hotel  of 
Amasa  Pride,  on  the  corner  of  Stowe  and 
Main  Street,  where  Col.  Geo.  Kennon,  at 
an  early  day,  commenced  keeping  tavern, 
was  burned.  It  was  a  heavy  loss  to  Mr. 
Pride,  but  he  immediately  rebuilt.  Sayles 
Haw  ley  and  others  succeeded  as  proprie- 
tors. It  was  kept  as  a  public  house  until 
after  the  building  of  the  railroad. 

The  tan  works  of  M.  and  J.  H.  Lathrop, 
back  ot  Luther  Davis'  house,  were  burned 
in  1834,  never  rebuilt;  also  in  1838,  the 
woolen  factory  of  Thompson  and  Seabury, 
in  Mill  Village,  not  rebuilt ;  and  none  of 
the  foregoing  were  insured.  In  1840,  or 
'41,  the  large  store  of  J.  B.  Christy,  and 
in  1856,  that  of  J.  G.  Stimson,  were 
burned,  and  both  immediately  rebuilt. 
Their  losses  were  partly  covered  by  insur- 
ance. 

The  largest  and  most  destructive  fire  in 
town  was  that  of  Oct.,  1858,  at  which  time 
was  burned  the  spacious  hotel  of  E.  and 
W.  Moody,  in  one  wing  of  which  was  the 
Bank  of  Waterbury ;  the  stores  of  Wm. 
W.  Wells,  and  that  of  D.  M.  Knights; 
the  large  grocery  establishment  of  I.  C. 
and  S.  Brown;  the  stage  barns  and  the 
livery  stables  of  Bruce  and  Ladd ;  and 
some  other  less  valuable  buildings, — 
whole  amount  $30,000,  but  partially  in- 
sured. The  place  has  since  bee'n  rebuilt, 
enlarged  and  improved. 

D.  Adams'  foundry  and  the  Railroad  de- 
pot were  burned  a  year  or  two  since,  and 
have  been  rebuilt,  enlarged  and  greatly 
improved.  There  has  also  been  some 
other  fires  in  difl;"erent  parts  of  the  town  of 
a  later  date.  Two  or  three  old  saw-mills, 
a  few  dwelling-houses  and  shops  have 
been  burned,  but  none  of  great  value. 

FATAL    CASUALTIES 

have   been    numerous.      In    1788,    James 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


83s 


Marsh,  the  first  settler,  was  drowned,  as 
see  before.  In  1806,  Seth  Chandler  was 
killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree ;  later  a  son 
of  Joel  Rice  by  the  kick  of  a  horse ;  the 
father  of  Mr.  Rice  several  years  previons 
had  been  killed  in  Claremont,  N.  H.,  un- 
der circumstances  most  heartrending.  He 
went  out  to  stir  up  his  burning  log-piles, 
where  he  was  clearing  land,  and  was  caught 
between  two  logs  that  held  him  fast  in  the 
burning  heap.  He  succeeded  in  alarming 
his  wife,  but  she  was  unable  to  extricate 
him,  and  he  perished  in  the  flames  before 
her  eyes. 

Lemuel  Atherton  was  killed  in  moving 
a  building  not  far  from  the  time  of  Joel 
Rice. 

In  the  summer  of  1822  Henry  Ricker,  a 
young  man,  was  drowned  while  bathing  in 
the  river. 

In  1837,  George  Rood  was  killed  by  a 
log  rolling  on  him  while  unloading  a  sled 
in  the  mill-yard  of  E.  P.  Butler. 

Grow  Butler  was  drowned  about  1847, 
in  the  flume  of  this  mill.  Joseph  Otis,  a 
man  over  70,  was  killed  at  FalPs  hill  a  few 
years  since  by  the  up.setting  of  his  wagon 
loaded  with  lumber.  Ira  and  George 
Sherman,  father  and  son,  were  both  killed, 
but  at  different  times,  by  railroad  trains. 
W.  S.  Frink  in  1865,  was  killed  by  fall  of 
a  tree. 

Over  thirty  years  ago,  the  two  only 
children  of  the  late  Deacon  U.  Thomas 
were  killed,  one  by  the  kick  of  a  horse, 
and  the  other  by  scalding.  Three,  all  the 
sons  of  R.  Thorndike,  George,  the  oldest, 
in  the  spring  of  1868,  by  fracture  of  skull 
while  coasting ;  William  and  Henry,  the 
other  two,  both  drowned  in  the  spring  of 
1 87 1,  by  upsetting  a  boat.  Other  acci- 
dental deaths  have  occurred,  mostly  of 
children,  and  so  remote  as  to  be  indis- 
tinctly remembered.  A  child  of  Col.  H. 
Peck  drowned  many  years  since.  A  little 
boy  of  H.  Sherman  was  scalded,  and  one 
of  A  Atkins  killed  by  the  kick  of  a  horse. 
Several  men  and  boys  not  named,  also, 
have  been  killed  by  railroad  trains,  nearly 
all  the  employes  of  the  road. 


FIRST   APPENDIX. 

Waterbury,  Vt.,  March  4,  1867. 
Rev.   C.  C.  Parker,  Dear  Sir: — We, 
the   undersigned.  Citizens  of  Waterbury, 
interested    in    preserving   everything   that 
will  throw  light  upon  the  early  History  of 
our  Forefathers — everything  that  will  tend 
to  perpetuate  the  Memories  of  those  Heroic 
Men — having    heard   your  very  able  dis- 
course on  the  Early  History  of  this  Town, 
and  wishing  to  preserve  it,  for  while  it  res- 
cues from  oblivion  the  works  of  others,  at 
the  same  time  it  shall  stand  a  memento  to 
remind  us  of  your  own  long  and  successful 
labors  among  us,  do  hereby  request  you  to 
prepare  it  for  publication. 
H.  F.  Janes,  M.  E.  Smilie,  Paul  Dilling- 
ham, Erastus  Parker,  C.  N.  Arms,  E.  F. 
Palmer,  William  Carpenter,  Russell  But- 
ler, L.  Hutchins,  Cecil  Graves,  Francis 
Graves,  O.  W.  Drew. 

Waterbury,  March  5,  1867. 
Gentlemen  : — The    Discourse   on   the 
Early  History   of  Waterbury,  which   you 
ask  for  publication,  will  be  put  at  your  dis- 
posal.    If  it  shall  save  from  oblivion  any 
important  name  or  event,  the  main  purpose 
of  its  preparation  will  have  been  answered. 
It  will  be  an  additional  gratification,  that 
thus  my  name  will  be  associated  with  yours 
and  with  the  place  where  so  many  of  the 
pleasantest  years  of  my  life  have  been  spent. 
With  sincerest  regards,  I  am 
Most  truly  yours, 

C.  C.  Parker. 
Messrs.  Janes,  Hutchins,  Drew,  Carpen- 
ter, Parker,  Dillingham,  Arms,  Smilie, 
Palmer,  C.  Graves,  F.  Graves,  and  R. 
Butler. 

Note. — The  publication  of  this  discourse 
has  been  delayed  by  the  author's  change 
of  residence  and  occupation,  leaving  no 
time  for  its  revision,  till  recently  ;  and  by 
the  introduction  of  new  matter,  which  had 
to  be  submitted  to  his  approval  by  corres- 
pondence. 


(i)  The  once  famous  Capt.  Joe  and  his 
spouse  Molly,  two  Indians  of  the  Coossuck 
tribe,  and  of  whom  Thompson,  in  his 
"  Civil  History  of  Vt."  gives  an  interesting 
account,  once  made  a  visit  or  stop  of  some 
weeks  in  this  town.  This  was  probably 
in  1787  or  8,  and  the  place  very  near  where 
T.  Wade  now  lives.  Only  two,  and  those 
very  rude  habitations  of  civilization,  ex- 
isted in  town  at  that  period.  Joe  and 
Molly  called  several  times,  at  the  cabin 
of  Mr.  Butler,  for  cooking  utensils  and  for 
some  kinds  of  food,  for  which    they   ex- 


836 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


pressed  their  gratitude.  Joe  died  in  New- 
bury, Vt.,  in  1819,  after  having  been  some 
years  a  pensioner  of  the  State. 

(2)  The  fact  of  tapped  maple  trees,  be- 
ing found  on  this  hill,  is  supposed  to  be 
the  only  evidence  of  Indians  having  camped 
here.  The  trees  were  not  tapped  at  the 
season  of  the  year  the  Royalton  raid  oc- 
curred, which  was  in  October.  If  the  trees 
were  tapped  by  Indians,  it  was  doubtless 
at  some  other,  and  probably  earlier  period. 

(3)  This  statement  is  probably  accord- 
ing to  the  family  tradition,  but  is  believ^ed 
to  be  incorrect,  as  Mr.  Marsh,  a  son  of 
the  pioneer,  some  20  years  ago  asserted  a 
claim  to  a  large  part  of  this  village,  found- 
ed on  this  alleged  right  of  his  father.  But 
after  examination  of  the  records  by  the 
lawyers,  the  claim  was  abandoned,  though 
at  first  it  caused  quite  a  sensation  among 
the  citizens. 

(4)  The  Councilors  being  elected  by 
general  ticket,  and  the  votes  for  Council- 
ors being  counted  by  committee  of  the 
General  Assembly,  Mr.  B.  might  have 
acted  in  the  Assembly  till  the  official  an- 
nouncement of  his  election  to  the  Council 
— probably  not  after. 

(5)  Mr.  Sherman  was  not  only  one  of 
the  worthy  pioneers,  but  was  esteemed  one 
of  the  most  enterprising,  public-spirited, 
substantial  citizens.  Having  built  a  suit- 
able house,  and  for  that  time  a  large  one, 
he  opened  it  as  a  tavern,  and  kept  it  open 
to  entertain  travelers,  many  years.  He 
died  at  a  ripe  old  age,  on  the  same  farm 
which  he  took  in  the  state  of  natural  for- 
est, and  left  in  a  good  state  of  improve- 
ment. By  their  kind  and  unwearied  at- 
tentions to  the  sick  and  the  needy,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Sherman  rendered  inestimable 
services  to  their  widely-dispersed  neigh- 
bors. Long  may  they  be  held  in  grateful 
remembrance. 

(6)  Mr.  J.  Wright,  a  brother-in-law  of 
Mr.  Sherman,  another  of  the  pioneers 
coming  into  Waterbury  the  same  year, 
was  one  of  those  sturdy,  resolute  men  of 
whom  not  a  few  followed  in  the  early  years 
of  our  town.  He  also  was  a  man  of  con- 
siderable note  in  his  time  ;  lived  to  an  ad- 
vanced age,  and  died  where  he  first  settled 
some  half  century  prior.  Mr.  Sherman 
and  Mr.  Wright  were  the  fourth  and  fifth 
in  the  order  of  time,  to  seek  their  fortune 
and  homes  for  life,  in  this  particular  and 
delightful  vale  of  the  Winooski. 

(7)  Gen.  Peck  came  from  Calais,  after 
a  short  residence  there,  to  Waterbury,  but 
was  a  native  of  Massachusetts.  His  intel- 
ligence and  good  common  sense,  and  his 


social,  genial  and  dignified  manner,  soon 
secured  him  the  esteem  of  all,  as  a  man 
the  people  would  honor.  Many  of  the 
offices  of  the  town  were  conferred  on 
him.  He  was  twice  elected  its  representa- 
tive. In  1818,  he  was  elected  chief  judge 
of  the  County  court.  He  was  high  sheriff 
several  years.  In  18 18,  his  name  was 
placed  on  the  general  ticket  for  members 
of  Congress,  nominated  by  the  legislative 
caucus,  but,  through  the  powerful  but  per- 
sonal opposition  of  Mr.  Van  Ness,  who 
supported  Ezra  Meach,  Gen.  Peck  was  de- 
feated. He  held  the  office  of  assessor  of 
U.  S.  taxes,  an  appointment  by  the  U.  S. 
government.  As  Brig.  Gen.  of  Vt.  Mili- 
tia, he  was  with  his  command  at  the  battle 
of  Plattsburgh,  Sept.  11,  1814. 

He  was  elected  to  the  State  Council  in 
1826,  served  through  the  session  of  that 
year,  and  died  December  following,  aged 
55,  at  Burlington,  Mass.  Having  been  to 
Boston  on  business,  and  returning  home  he 
was  suddenly  prostrated  by  sickness  and 
died  before  any  of  his  family  could  see  and 
minister  to  him.  His  funeral  was  at- 
tended in  Waterbury  by  a  large  concourse 
of  people,  anxious  to  testify  their  respect 
to  the  remains  of  him  whom  they  had 
honored  while  living. 

(8)  Dea.  Paul  Dillmgham,  a  native  of 
Worcester  Co.,  Mass.,  born  Oct.,  1759, 
served  3^  years  in  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, afterwards  settled  and  lived  in  Shutes- 
bury,  Mass.,  from  which  town  he  came  to 
Waterbury,  arriving  Mar.  5,  1805,  and  set- 
tled a  little  north-east  the  Center  Village. 
He  continued  on  the  same  farm  to  the 
time  of  his  death,  July,  1848,  at  the  age  of 
nearly  80  years.  Dea.  D.  reared  a  large 
family  of  children,  of  whom  8  were  living 
when  he  moved  into  W.  Three  sons, 
Gov.  Dillingham,  (then  in  his  6th  year,) 
Holtonand  Geo.  W.,  are  now  living.  Job, 
an  elder  brother,  a  highly  esteemed  citizen, 
and  long  an  exemplary  member  of  the 
church  of  which  his  father  was  a  worthy 
deacon,  and  of  which  his  brother  George 
was  also  deacon  at  a  later  period,  died 
Nov.,  1866,  aged  81  years. 

(9)  Mr.  James  Bryant  commenced  on 
the  farm  now  owned  by  Lewis  Clark, 
north-east  the  Centre  Chapel,  in  1793  ;  Ste- 
phen Jones  settling  3  or  4  years  later  on  a 
lot  next  north  of  his.  Mr.  Geo.  Scagel 
began  in  1794,  where  Noah  Robinson  re- 
sides, and  lived  there  to  the  time  of  his 
death  at  an  advanced  age.  Capt.  Jones 
also  lived  to  an  advanced  age.  Both  these 
last  named  were  many  years  influential 
members  of  the  Methodist  church  and  well 
known  citizens.  Mr.  Bryant  died  many 
years  previous. 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


^37 


Joshua  Hill,  one  of  the  first  to  settle  in 
town,  began  on  that  place  long  known  by 
his  name,  probably  in  1791  ;  lived  there 
more  than  30  years,  but  moved  to  another 
part  of  the  town  some  years  before  his 
death,  at  a  rare  old  age.  Mr.  Basford  was 
probably  the  fii'st  to  settle  on  Waterbury 
river,  in  that  beautiful  vale  above  the  mills. 
He  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Calkins,  the 
father  of  a  large  family,  the  most  of  his 
children  being  sons,  several  of  whom  built 
tenements  around  the  mills  which  were 
originally  built  by  one  of  them,  Rev.  Chas. 
Calkins.  These  mills  were  built  about  45 
years  ago,  or  about  30  years  subsequent  to 
the  first  saw  and  grist-mill  on  Thatcher's 
brook,  (the  name  by  which  this  stream 
was  known  as  early  as  1795,)  on  which 
Mill  Village  now  stands. 

About  1802  or  1803,  Timothy  Claflin, 
from  Croyden,  N.  H.,  moved  on  to  the 
farm  north  of  the  Loomis  farm,  now  owned 
by  Geo.  Miles.  About  1805  or  6,  Abel  De- 
Wolf,  from  Conway,  Mass.,  moved  on  to 
the  farm  now  owned  by  Daniel  Stevens. 
In  1807  or  8,  Capt.  John  DeWolf  moved 
on  to  farm  now  owned  by  Alfred  Demerit, 
built  a  log-house  and  a  very  nice  framed 
barn,  which  is  now  standing.  Daniel  H. 
Nelson  made  a  beginning  on  the  north  lot 
in  Waterbury,  in  1798.  Simeon  Woolson 
commenced  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  C. 
S.  Wrisley,  next  south  of  the  Loomis 
farm,  about  1798.  Stanton  Frink  com- 
menced on  the  farm  where  his  daughter, 
Mrs.  Smith,  now  lives,  about  1798.  David 
Atkins  commenced  on  the  farm  now  owned 
in  part  byWm.  Kneeland,in  1796.  Israel 
Thatcher  commenced  on  the  Godfrey 
place,  so  called,  about  the  year  1808,  and 
removed  to  western  New  York  about  18 12. 
There  had  been  a  small  improvement  on 
the  Broderick  farm  previous  to  1808,  when 
Robert  Broderiek  moved  there  and  lived 
there  till  Aug.,  1866,  when  he  died.  Sol- 
omon Newcomb  moved  on  to  the  farm 
now  owned  by  Joseph  Wheeler,  Feb., 
1809,  and  lived  there  till  his  death  in 
1845  i  there  were  no  buildings  of  any  kind 
on  the  farm  nor  any  land  cleared.  Otis 
Whitney  commenced  on  the  Colby  place, 
so  called,  in  1807  or  8.  Robert  Parcher 
commenced  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  C. 
C.  Robinson,  the  first  in  that  region. 

(10)  The  following,  mainly  copied  from 
attested  records,  will  give  the  reader  a 
satisfactory  understanding  of  the  public 
proceedings  leading  to  the  building  of  the 
first  meeting-house  in  Waterbury. 

A  form  of  agreement  for  a  building  as- 
sociation was  drafted  by  H.  F.  Janes, 
Esci-,  and  was  signed  by  38  substantial 
citizens — among  them  were  men  of  various 
creeds.     As  the  re.sult  of  this   association 


was  important,  marking  an  era  in  the 
history  of  the  town,  a  copy  of  this  agree- 
ment and  the  signatures  is  given  as  follows  : 

"  We,  the  subscribers,  inhabitants  of 
Waterbury  and  vicinity,  do  hereby  volun- 
tarily associate  and  agree  to  form  a  society 
by  the  name  of  Waterbury  Meeting  House 
Society,  in  Waterbury,  for  the  purpose  ot 
building  a  Meeting  House  in  said  town  of 
W.,  according  to  the  first  section  of  an  Act 
entitled  an  Act  for  the  support  of  the 
Gospel,  passed  Oct.  26,  1798.  And  it  is 
hereby  e.xpressly  understood  that  no  tax 
or  assessment  is  to  be  imposed  on  the  list 
of  the  polls  and  ratable  estate  of  the  per- 
sons hereby  associating,  nor  any  member 
of  said  Society  be  compelled  to  pay  any 
more  towards  the  building  of  said  Meeting 
House  than  he  voluntarily  consents  to. 

In  Witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto 
severally  set  our  names. 

Dated  Waterbury,  this  4th  day  of  April, 
A.  D.,  1823. 

Stiles  Sherman,  Enoch  Bean,  Amos 
Deming,  Roswell  Wells,  Heman  Sherman, 
Sylvester  Henry,  James  Smalley,  Henry 
F.  Janes,  Samuel  Dutton,  Amasa  Pride, 
Samuel  Parcher,  Horace  Atkins,  William 
Eddy,  Mason  Carpenter,  Samuel  Bryant, 
Purchis  Brown,  Nathan  T.  Barron,  Le- 
ander  Hutchins,  David  Dutton,  Ezra  P. 
Butler,  Oliver  Strickland,  Chas.  R.  Cleaves, 
George  Atkins,  Asa  Austin,  O.  W.  Drew, 
Henry  Atkins,  Cephas  Wells,  Jotham 
Robbins,  Avery  Sherman,  Jesse  Calkins, 
Jason  Cady,  Jr.,  Dan  Carpenter,  O.  C. 
Rood,  Warren  Murray,  James  Richardson, 
Jared  George,  Sales  Hawley,  Seth  Munson. 
Waterbury,  May  5,  1823. 

Waterbury  Meeting  House  Society  met, 
agreeable  to  previous  notice,  at  the  School 
House  in  the  first  School  District  in 
Waterbury,  and  proceeded  to  choose  Dan 
Carpenter,  moderator ;  Henry  F.  Janes, 
clerk;  and  P.  Dillingham,  Jr.,  clerk  pro 
tern. 

On  motion,  Henry  F.  Janes  and  O.  W. 
Drew  were  appointed  a  committee  to  re- 
port By-Laws  for  the  Society  by  the  next 
meeting  of  the  same. 

On  motion.  Resolved  that  a  Committee 
of  five  be  appointed  to  examine  the  places 
in  contemplation  for  setting  the  Meeting 
House,  the  sum  for  which  the  land  can  be 
obtained,  to  make  a  plan  of  a  house,  the 
probable  expense  of  building  the  same  and 
the  terms  and  manner  of  payment,  and 
make  report  to  this  "Society  at  their  next 
meeting. 

And  on  nomination,  Amasa  Pride,  Syl- 
vester Henry,  Horace  Atkins,  Roswell 
Wells  and  Dan  Carpenter  were  appointed 
a  Committee  for  the  purpose  aforesaid. 
When  on  motion  voted  that  this  meetinof 


838 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


stand  adjourned  to  Thursday,  the  15th 
day  of  instant  May,  at  this  place  on  6 
o'clock  P.  M.  A  true  record  of  the  pro- 
ceedings. Attest, 

H.  F.  Janes,  Clerk. 

At  the  next  meeting  of  the  Society,  the 
Committee  reported  By-Laws,  after  des- 
ignating the  name  of  the  Society,  the  Offi- 
cers and  their  duties.  Article  6th  reads  as 
follows  : 

The  First  Congregational  Society  in  the 
town  of  Waterbury  shall  have  the  right  to 
the  use  and  occupancy  of  the  Meeting 
House  when  built,  in  all  cases  when  want- 
ed by  said  Society  for  religious  meetings. 
But  when  not  wanted  by  said  Society  for 
the  purpose  aforesaid,  any  other  Christian 
Denomination  shall  have  right  to  occupy 
said  house  for  social  worship,  by  making 
application  to  some  person  to  be  appoint- 
ed by  the  Society  for  that  purpose,  in  said 
Waterbury,  and  when  more  than  one  de- 
nomination shall  apply  for  the  use  of  said 
house  at  the  same  tmie,  the  first  applying 
shall  have  the  first  right. 

Article  7th.  The  Meeting  House  shall 
be  opened  for  Funerals  at  all  times,  both 
on  the  Sabbath  and  other  days,  and  the 
friends  of  the  deceased  shall  have  liberty 
to  invite  a  minister  of  any  denomination 
to  attend  and  preach  on  such  funeral  oc- 
casion as  they  may  think  proper.  These 
articles  were  adopted. 

At  this  meeting,  held  May  15,  1823, 
the  plan  of  the  house  reported  by  the 
Committee  was  adopted;  also  the  loca- 
tion, though  that  was  afterwards  changed 
by  general  consent. 

The  terms  of  payment  for  pews  were 
also  adopted  at  this  meeting,  and  a  vote 
passed  to  proceed  immediately  to  the  sale, 
by  bidding  for  choice  of  pews,  the  appraised 
price  having  been  previously  affixed  to  each 
one  on  the  plan.  The  names  of  purchasers 
were  then  written  on  each  as  sold.  At  the 
next  meeting  of  the  Society,  held  June  3d, 
1823,  Roswell  Wells  was  chosen  Treasurer. 
Voted  to  choose  a  committee  of  three  to 
superintend  the  building:  Amasa  Pride, 
Roswell  Wells  and  Dan  Carpenter  were 
chosen  said  committee.  The  sale  of  pews 
was  then  proceeded  with  in  the  same 
manner  as  at  the  previous  meeting.  There 
was  another  meeting  for  the  sale  of  pews, 
June  17,  1823. 

After  these  several  sales,  five  or  six 
pews  remained  unsold,  the  appraised  value 
of  which  amounted  to  between  $280  and 
$290.  These  pews  the  committee  took  at 
their  appraisal,  in  addition  to  those  they 
had  individually  bought.  Mr.  Pride  deed- 
ed the  land  for  site  in  consideration  of 
$150.     He  also   deeded  a   piece   of  land 


near  to  this  for  a  mere  nominal  sum,  to 
enlarge  the  burying-ground. 

After  the  dedication  of  the  house,  Rev. 
Charles  Calkins  supplied  the  pulpit  most 
of  the  time  previous  to  Mr.  Warren's 
coming  into  town. 

(11)  Rev.  J.  F.  Stone  was  installed  Jan. 
6,  1839;  dismissed  June  9,  1847.  Rev. 
A.  G.  Pease  began  to  labor  with  the 
church  the  first  of  Aug.  1847;  was  in- 
stalled Sept.  5,  1849;  dismissed  Jan.  26, 
1S53.  Rev.  C.  C.  Parker  began  his  labors 
the  first  Sabbath  in  June,  1853;  was  in- 
stalled Jan.  7,  1854;  dismissed  Jan.  16, 
1867,  the  dismission  taking  effect  after  the 
second  Sabbath  in  March  following. 

(12)  These  were  probably  the  most 
general  and  extensive  revivals,  particularly 
the  last,  in  the  history  of  the  town,  and 
their  results,  both  as  respects  the  number 
of  individuals,  and  the  marked  and  per- 
manent influence  upon  the  character  of 
the  subjects,  and  their  influence  on  com- 
munity generally,  are  widely  felt  to  this 
day.  Different  denominations  united  in 
frequent  meetings  in  harmony  and  com- 
munion of  Christian  fellowship,  each  re- 
ceiving considerable  accessions  to  their 
numbers.  In  the  last-mentioned  revival 
the  village  was  chiefly  interested.  Elders 
Pier  and  Foster  taking  a  prominent  part 
in  the  services  of  the  large  meetings  held 
on  almost  every  evening  of  the  week. 


SECOND  APPENDIX. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

Daniel  Bliss,  1792  ;  none,  1793,1831,  '35, 
'49,  '50,  '55  ;  Ezra  Butler,  1794-98, '99- 
1805,^07  ;Geo.  Kennan,  1798,  i8o5-o6,'o8, 
'10;  Asaph  Allen,  1809;  John  Peck,  181 1, 
'18.;  Sylvester  Henry,  i8i2-'i3;  Dan  Car- 
penter, 1814-18,  i8i9-''27,  '29;  Amasa 
Pride,  i827-'28,  '32;  Charles  R.  Cleaves, 
1830;  Paul  Dillingham,  Jr.,  i833-''34,  ''■yj- 
'40 ;  ThaddeusClough,  1836,  '46-'47  ;  Wm. 
W.  Wells,  1840,  '63-'64;  Eliakim  Allen, 
1841  ;  Henry  Douglass,  1842-43  ;  William 
Carpenter,  1844-45  i  Chas.  C.  Arms,  1848  ; 
Calvin  Blodgett,  1851-52;  O.  C.  Howard, 
1853;  Henry  F.  Janes,  1854,  '61,  '62; 
James  Green,  1856;  John  D.  Smith,  1S57- 
'58;  James  M.  Henry,  1859-60;  William 
Wells,  1865-66  ;  Ezra  B.  Fuller,  1867-^69  ; 
Frank  E.  Ormsby,  i869-''7o-'72 ;  George 
W.  Randall,  i872-'74;  John  B.  Parker, 
1874-76;   Wm.  P.  Dillingham,   1876-78; 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


839 


L.  H.  Haines,    iS/S-'So;   E.    F.    Palmer, 
i88o-'82. 

OFFICES   HELD   BY   WATERBURY   CITIZENS. 

Governors,  Ezra  Butler,  1826,  '27  ;  Paul 
Dillingham,  1865,  '66.  Lieut.  Governor, 
P.  Dillingham,  1862,  '63,  '64.  Councillors, 
Ezra  Butler,  1807,  '08,  '09,  '10,  '11,  '12, 
'15-25;  John  Peck,  1826;  H.  F.  Janes, 
1830,  '31,  '32,  '^2,  '34.  Senators,  Paul 
Dillingham,  1841,^42, '61  ;Wm.  Carpenter, 
1848,  '49;  James  Green,  1854,  '55;  Wm. 
W.  Henry,  1865,  '66,  '67.  Represent- 
atives in  Congress,  Ezra  Butler,  i8i3-'i5  ; 
H.  F.Janes,  1834-37;  Paul  Dillingham, 
1843-^47;  L.  B.  Peck,  native  of  W.,  '48- 
'52.  Constitutional  Convention,  Richard 
Holden,  1793;  Dan.  Carpenter,  1814; 
Ezra  Butler,  1822;  Luther  Cleaves,  1828; 
Paul  Dillingham,  Jr.,  1836;  William  Car- 
penter, 1843;  Eliakim  Allen,  1850;  Paul 
Dillingham,  1857.  Judges  of  County 
Court,  Ezra  Butler,  i8o3-''2  5,  except  the 
years  1813,  '14  and  '18  ;  John  Peck,  1818  ; 
Dan.  Carpenter,  from  1827-34;  Henry 
Douglass,  1846,  '47;  E.  S.  Newcomb, 
1856, '57.  Council  of  Censors,  Ezra  Butler, 
1806;  H.  F.  Janes,  1848;  Wm.  W.Wells, 
1855.  High  SheriiTs,  John  Peck,  1811, 
'12,  '19,  '20,  '21,  '22,  '23;  I.  C.  Brown, 
1859,  '60.  State  Treasurer,  H.  F.  Janes, 
1838-40.  Senators,  Jos.  Moody,  1853; 
Wm.  P.  Dillingham,  1880. 

PHYSICIANS. 

Daniel  Bliss,  Seth  Cole,  Calvin  Deming, 
Wm.  Hollovvay,  Joseph  Lewis,  William 
Paddock,  Stephen  Pierce,  O.  W-  Drew. 
H.  H.  Basford,  C.  C.  Arms,  T.  B.  Downer, 
Chas.  H.  Cleveland,  Edward  Mullikeri, 
Horace  Fales,  J.  B.  Woodward,  Lucius 
Kneeland,  H.  Janes,  E.  J.  Hall,  W.  S. 
Vincent,  J.  E.  Frink,  L.  H.  Thomas, 
homosopatist ;  B.  F.  Conant,  eclectic; 
Wm.  L.  White. 

Physicians  in  1882. — H.  Fales,  E.  G. 
Hooker,  H.  Janes,  M.  Lamb;  eclectic, 
G.  O.  Washburne ;  homoeopathi.st,  A. 
Morgan;  dentist,  L  T.  Wheelock. 

ATTORNEYS. 

Dan.  Carpenter,  H.  F.  Janes,  Paul  Dil- 
lingham, R.  C.  Smith,  John  Dean,  Jr., 
George  Gale,  Jared  S.  Demmon,  William 


Richardson,  J.  G.  Sherburne,  L.  Henry, 
L.  L.  Durant,  Edwin  Dillingham,  C.  F. 
Clough,  Geo.  W.  Kennedy,  E.  F.  Palmer, 
T.  J.  Deavitt,  William  P.  Dillingham, 
Melville  E.  Smilie,  H.  N.  Deavitt?  Geo. 
W.  Morse. 

CLERGYMEN. 

Advent,  1859,  Daniel  T.  Taylor,  D. 
Bosworth,  Hector  Canfield,  W.  H.  Swartz. 
Baptists,  1800,  E.  Butler;  1827,  Samuel 
Seabury,  John  Ide,  Aaron  Angier,  Julius 
P.  Hall,  S.  Gustin,  ].  ].  Crissey,  S.  F. 
Brown,  Payson  Tyler,  G.  W.  Bixby,  L.  B. 
Hibbard,  A.  N.  WoodruiT.  Free  Will 
Baptists,  Samuel  Lord,  Ira  Gray,  E.  B. 
Fuller,  N.  W.  Bixby,  T.  R.  Dunn,  Cowell, 
R.  M.  Minard.  Universalist,  1832-34, 
Thomas  Browning. 

Methodist  Ministers  stationed  at 
Waterbury  street,  from  1835-67:  Rev. 
Orris  Pier,  2  years;  R.  M.  Little,  i  year; 
B.  M.  Hall,  2  years;  P.  P.  Harrower,  2 
years;  J.  W.  B:  Wood,  i  year;  George 
Whitney,  i  year;  Chas.  H.  Leonard,  i 
year;  John  D.  White,  2  years;  W.M. 
Chipp,  I  year  ;  J.  F.  Craig,  i  year  ;  Hawley 
Ransom,  2  years ;  John  Kiernan,  i  year ; 
D.  P.  Hulbard,  2  years  ;  Albinus  Johnson, 
I  year ;  William  A.  Miller,  2  years  ;  Thos. 
Dodgson,  I  year;  J.  Phillips,  i  year; 
Israel  Luce,  2  years ;  Richard  Morgan,  i 
year;  B.  Hawley,  2  years;  D.  B.  Mc- 
Kenzie,  3  years ;  H.  W.  Worthen,  1867; 
since  1867,  H.  W.  Worthen,  E.  C.  Bass, 
A.  B.  Truax,  W.  Underwood,  H.  A.  Bush- 
nell,  A.  L.  Cooper,  Wm.  L  Johnson. 

Methodist  Ministers  stationed  at 
Waterbury  Center,  or  who  have  preached 
there  during  the  above  period  :  Revs.  H. 
Foster,  M.  Townsend,  Daniel  F.  Page, 
Thomas  Kirby,  Aaron  Hall,  Miles  Fishj 
Samuel  Hewes,  Alexander  Campbell,  John 
Haslam,  J.  S.  Mott,  C.  F.  Ford,  R.  Mc- 
Elroy,  J.  A.  Canoll,  C.  C.  Bedell,  S.  M. 
Merrill,  W.  H.  Tiffany,  A.  L.  Cooper, 
H.  N.  Munger,  A.  Cox,  Robinson,  L 
Luce,  W.  R.  Puffer,  George  Whitney,  J. 
M.  Puffer. 

Baptist  Ministers,  1881,  '82 — Calvin- 
ist  Baptist  at  Centre,  Geo.  W.  Wilkins ; 
Free-Will  Baptist,  S.  D.  Church;  and 
Methodist  at  Centre,  Peter  Merrill ;  Con- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


gregational,  S.  H.  ^Vheeler;  Roman  Cath- 
olic, J.  Galligan. 

MERCHANTS   AND   TRADERS   FROM   THE 
FIRST   SETTLEMENT. 

Tim.  Yeomans,  Farnswortli,  Hartwell, 
A.  Pride,  Lebbeus  Sherman,  Sherman  & 
Pinny,  Luther  Cleaves,  Charles  Cleaves, 
Cleaves  &  E.  Carpenter,  D.  Carpenter  & 
Cleaves,  L.  Hutchins  &  Co.,  Hutchins  & 
Pride,  Carpenter,  Cleaves  &  Co.,  A.  S. 
Richardson,  Hutchins,  Wells  &  Co.,  D.& 
W.  Carpenter,  L.  &  George  W.  Hutchins, 
George  W.  Hutchins  &  Co.,  Lyon,  Arms 
&  Co.,  P.  Lyon  &  Co.,  Farmers  &  Me- 
chanics (at  Centre),  A.  B.  Prior,  Goss  & 
Hutchins,  J.  G.  Stimson,  B.  F.  Goss,  Goss 
&  Delano,  S.  C.  Hutchins,  Stimson  & 
Arms,  J.  B.  Cristy,  James  Cristy,  C. 
Graves,  iron  and  hardware;  E.  G.  Scott 
&  Co.,  protective  union  store  ;  A.  B.  Braley, 
drugs  and  medicines;  W.  H.  Woodward, 
drugs  and  medicines  and  books  ;  Dana  & 
Brooks,  clothing;  J.  D.'  Smith  (Center), 
D.  Tarbell  &  Co.,  Foster  &  Co.,  S.  D. 
Sturtevant,  C.  Blodgett,  Chandler  &  Stur- 
tevant,  Chandler  &  Lamson,W.  H.Wood- 
ward, C.  N.  Arms,  J.  G.  Stimson,  C.  & 
J.  S.  Graves,  hardware;  Benjamin  Barrett 
(Center),  Goss  &  Knight,  J.  F.  Lamson, 

D.  M.  Knights,  J.  F.  Henry,  drugs  and 
medicines;  Barrett  &  Gilman  (Center), 
Wells  &  Arms,  W.  W.  Wells  (Center), 
Leland  &  Ashley,  J.  M.  Henry  &  Sons, 
J.  F.  Henry  &  Co.,  W.  J.  Sawin,  Howden, 
Colby  &  Co.,  N.  K.  Brown,  books;  A. 
Lyon  (Centre),  A.  H.  Wells,  clothing; 
L.  H.  Haines,  M.  M.  Knight,  W.  H. 
Ashley,  Gros,  F.  C.  Stone  &  Co.,  Haines 
&  Richardson,  J.  W.  Moody,  books  ;  Wy- 
man  &  Smith,  Geo.  Simpson,  jeweler; 
Henry,  Johnson    &   Co.,    Henry   &    Co., 

E.  D.  Scagel,  drugs  and  medicines. 

METHODIST   CHURCH. 

This  church  was  organized  by  Elder 
Stebbins,  it  is  said,  about  the  year  1800, 
consisting  of  the  following-named  indi- 
viduals :  Thomas  Guptil,  first  class-leader, 
and  wife,  John  Henderson  and  wife,  Tim- 
othy Parcher  and  wife,  John  Jones,  David 
Straw  and  wife,  John  Hudson  and  wife, 
Joseph  Fiske  &  wife  and  Simeon  Woolson 
&wife.    The  year  following,  Stephen  Jones 


and  wife,  George  Scagel  (subsequently 
many  years  class-leader),  and  wife,  and 
Lemuel  Lyon  and  wife  were  added  to  the 
class.  These  last  three  men  were  long- 
time, prominent  members.  At  later  pe- 
riods, Moses  Nelson,  Nathan  Nelson, 
Samuel  Bryant,  Benjamin  Fiske  and  others 
united  and  became  active  members.  This 
church  has  given  to  the  ministry  of  the  de- 
nomination four  of  its  young  men,  two  of 
whom,  Orrin  Gregg  and  Araunah  Lyon,  are 
now  in  the  ministry ;  Chester  Lyon  is  not 
living.  In  1836  a  new  chmxh  was  formed 
in  the  village ;  among  the  first  and  prom- 
inent members  may  be  named  :  John  La- 
throp,  Paul  Dillingham,  C.  C.  Arms,  Wm. 
Carpenter,  A.  A.  Atherton  and  A.  S. 
Richardson. 

THE  BAPTIST  CHURCH, 
formed  in  1800,  was  constituted  of  few 
members.  The  following  are  the  names 
of  some  of  them  :  Ezra  Butler  and  wife, 
Mrs.  Densmore,  Mrs.  Silas  Loomis.  Dea. 
David  Atkins,  Edmund  Town,  Orrin  At- 
kins and  Mercy  Nelson  (afterwards  Mrs. 
Green),  Mrs.  E.  Town,  Mrs.  Atkins- and 
Mr.  Densmore  soon  afterunited.  At  later 
periods.  Deacon  Paul  Dillingham,  Deacon 
Chester  Whitney  and  Guild  Newcomb 
joined.  But  in  1819,  Aug.  6,  the  church 
was  re-organized,  or  a  new  one  formed, 
consisting  of  the  following-named  mem- 
bers :  Ezra  Butler,  pastor  ;  Paul  Dilling- 
ham and  Chester  Whitney,  deacons  ;  Try- 
phena  Butler,  Polly  W.  Whitney,  Anna 
Peck,  Isaac  Stevens,  Richard  Kneeland, 
Guild  Newcomb,  E.  Town,  Robert  Brod- 
erick,  John  Atkins,  Temperance  Atkins, 
Mercy  Green,  Mary  Hart,  Hannah  Dilling- 
ham, Sally  Broderick,  Betsey  Parcher, 
Silena  Brown.  In  the  year  following, 
1820,  22  members  were  added.  Among 
them  the  names  of  the  following  male 
members  appear  :  Job  Dillingham,  Seth 
Town,  Isaac  Marshall,  Jr.,  Arad  Worces- 
ter, C.  C.  P.  Crosby  and  William  Smith. 
The  house  of  worship  built  in  1S32  was 
removed,  and  a  new  one  built  in  1859  or 
i860. 

THE   FREE-WILL   BAPTIST   CHURCH 

was  organized  about  the  year  181 7  or  '18, 
and  included   the   following   named,    and 


\ 


WATERBURY, 


841 


perhaps  other  individuals  :  Samuel  Lord, 
Deacon  Conant,  S.  Gaskell,  Asa  Town 
and  wife,  Ira  Town  and  wife,  Deacon 
Abner  Fuller,  John  Cotton  and  wife,  and 
Elisha  Town.  Elder  Bowles  took  part  in 
the  services.  Elder  Lord  was  ordained  at 
this  time,  or  soon  after,  pastor.  Elder 
Lord  was  born  in  Barnsted,  N.  H.,  1779; 
began  to  preach  when  quite  young  in  his 
native  town ;  afterwards  moved  to  Ver- 
mont, living  several  years  in  Walden,  and 
from  that  place  came  to  Waterbury  in 
181  r,  where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his 
life  of  70  years.  Unassuming  in  his  de- 
portment, he  was  more  desirous  of  doing 
good  than  gaining  applause. 

THE    ADVENT   CHURCH 

was  formed  in  May,  1858  ;  about  40  united 
in  this  organization.  The  services  were 
conducted  by  Elder  Joshua  V.  Himes,  who 
had  previously  held  a  series  of  meetings, 
continuing  several  weeks,  in  the  hall  of 
the  Washington  House.  The  Advent 
meeting-house  was  dedicated  in  the  winter 
of  1859. 


MILITARY. 
WAR   OF    THE   REBELLION. 

Eli  Ashley,  age  24,  I  9. 

Jerome  Ayers,  18,  B  10,  com  2d  Lt,  June  15, 

65;  wd  July  I,  64,  July 9, 64,  Sept.  19,64. 
Alfred  Y.  Ayers,  19,  D  10  ;  prisjune  12,64  ; 

died  at  Salisbury. 
Asa  C.  Atherton,  24,  I  13,  sergt ;  dis  Jan. 

15.  63. 
D.  A.  Bickford,  18,  A  8  ;  died  Oct.  6,  62. 
Robert  S.  Bickford,  21,  B  10. 
Riley  M.  Bickford,  24,  D  2. 
H.  R.  Bickford,  40,  D  10  ;  died  Dec.  i,  64. 
Edmond  C.  Bragg,  22,  G  2  ;  killed  at  Cold 

Harbor,  June  3,  64. 
James  Bragg,  28,  G  2  ;  deserted  Oct.  2,  64. 
Alonzo  Bragg,  26,  B  10. 
James  Briggs,  40,  B  10;  dis  May  15,  65. 
W.  F.  Brink,  20,  D  2 ;    re-en  Dec.  21,  63. 
Christopher  B.  Brown,  22,  D  2. 
George  Brown,  28,  Cav.  C. 
C.  A.  Brown,  Cav.  C ;  pro  sgt  Nov.  i,  64. 
George  Brown,  38,  B  10;    died  at  Ander- 

sonville,  July  26,  64. 
Thomas  Bruitnell,  18,  I  9  ;  corp  ;  reduced. 

106 


Wm.  Bruitnell,  19,  D2;  wdat  Fred'ksbgh. 

H.  S.  Burley,  39,  B  10;  died  of  wn'ds  at 
Cold  Harbor,  June  20,  64. 

C.  E.  Bancroft,  32,  I  13  ;  com  ist  Lt  Sept. 
23,  62  ;  resigned  Jan.  8,  63. 

C.  W.  Brink,  26,  I  13;    disch  Jan.  31,  63. 

Dennis  Bissonnette,  30,  K  17;    wounded. 

Oscar  Camp,  28,  G  8. 

Frank  Carpenter,  17,  D  2. 

Michael  Carr,  18,  Cav.  G  ;  re-en  Dec.  28, 63. 

Justin  Carter,  23,  B  10  ;  com  2d  lieut.  Jan. 
63;   resigned  Feb.  4,  64. 

George  Center,  24,  D  2  ;  corp ;  wounded 
at  Fredericksburgh  ;  trans  to  inv.  corps. 

Chas.  N.  Collins,  16,  D2  ;  died  Dec.  17,  61. 

Ezra  W.  Conant,  19,  B  10  ;  wdNov.  27,  63. 

E.  C.  Crossett,  18,  B  10;  wd  ;  dis  Feb. 
16,  65. 

W.  H.  Crossett,  i8,  B  10;  wd ;  re-en  in 
Regs. 

Martin  Cane,  18,  B  10;  died  at  Danville 
Jan.  29,  65. 

Patrick  Carver,  20,  D  5. 

Amos  Chase,  44,  C  1 7  ;  lost  arm  at  Weldon 
R.  R.,  Sept.  30,  64. 

George  H.  Colby,  19,  2,  D  ;  corp  ;  re-en 
Dec.  21,  63;  wn'ded;  disch.  Feb.  5,  65. 

James  B.  Cave,  31,  13,  E;    re-en,  17,  E. 

Jos.  B.  Conant,  21,  C  15  ;  died  Apr.  12,  63. 

James  Crawford,  22,  I  13. 

S.  E.  Cree,  21,  I  13. 

Ransom  Chaffee,  25,  A  2  ;    drafted. 

William  Clark,  24,  D  2. 

Albert  Deline,  25,  D  2. 

John  Deline,  25,  E  7  ;  dis  Oct.  15,  62. 

Charles  Dillingham,  24,  D  2  ;  com  capt. 
May  22,  61;  maj.  8th,  Jan.  18,  62;  Lt.- 
col.  Dec.  24,  62;   resigned  Dec.  12,  63. 

Edwin  Dillingham,  23,  B  10;  capt  Aug.  4, 
62;  maj.  Jan.  17,  64;  killed  at  Winches- 
ter, Sept.  19,  64. 

Daniel  Dalley,  B  10;  transferred  to  D. 

Ed.  H.  Dana,  32,  B  10;    wd  Nov.  31,  64. 

Richard  Dodge,  40,  K  17. 

Thomas  F.  Dwyer,  30,  B  10. 

Oliver  W.  Davis,  28,  C  15. 

Joseph  H.  Demeritt,  21,  I  13. 

H.  A.  Demmon,  42,  I  13  ;  trans  to  C  Oct. 
II,  62. 

Henry  Dillingham, — ,E  17  ;di'dj'ly  13,  64. 

G.  W.  Farnham,  23,  D  2  ;  des  before  leav- 
ing State. 


842 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Patrick  Flaherty,  34,  D  2  ;  dis  Dec.  18,  62. 
Wilber  Foster,  21,  D  2;  dis  Oct.  20,  62. 
J.  D.  freeman,  21,  B  10;  wd  July  9,  64. 
Augustus  Fisher,  22,  I  13. 
Daniel  N.  French,  28,  I  13. 
Martin  E.  French,  — ,  I  13  ;  wounded. 
Benjamin  Gonio,  A  7 ;  des  Sept.  27,  64. 
Isaac  Godfrey,  22,  B  10 ;  vvd  at  Cedar  Cr'k, 

Oct.  19,  64. 
Jacob  Godfrey,  19,  B  10;  dis  May  13,  65. 
T.  C.  Godfrey,  31,  D  2;  dis  June  2,  62. 

Rein,  23,  C  17. 

Warren  C.  Oilman,  29,  D  2 ;  corp ;  red'cd 

to  ranks. 
Chas.    C.   Gregg,  21,  D   2;    com  2d  lieut 

May  22,  61  ;  dis  service  July  22,  62. 
Allen  Greeley,  20,  B  10;    died  July  i,  64; 

wounded  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va. 
Quincy  A.  Green,  — ,  B   10;    wd  at  Cold 

Harbor ;  pro  sergt  April  11,  65 . 
Almon  D.  Griffin,  — ,  ist  S  S  F  music. 
Emery  Guptil,  18,  D  5  ;  re-enlis'd  ;  wn'ded. 
Joseph  Gabarie,  ^2i  ^  I7- 
Hamilton  Glines,  40,  B  10;    wnVl  at  Cold 

Harbor,  Va.  ;  died  June  18,  64. 
Lyman  Godfrey,  25,  C  15  ;  re-en  into  17  C  ; 

died  at  Salisbury,  Oct.  2,  64. 
Nobles  Godfrey,  25,  C  17. 
William  Goodwin,  34,  K  17. 
Edmond  Guinan,  — ,  3d  Battery. 
Charles  C.  Guptil,  21,  I  13;  re-en  3d  Bat; 

sgt ;  red  Sept.  i ,  64 ;  pro  corp  Oct.  i ,  64. 
Lorenzo  B.  Guptil,  22,  I  13;    re-en  17  K; 

corporal. 
Milo  K.  Gray,  22,  I  13. 
H.  H.  Griswold,   19,1   13;    corp  ;  red'cd  ; 

pro  sergt ;  re-en  17  E  ;  sergt. 
Darius  A.  Gray,  21,  E  6;   drafted. 
Ira  S.  Gray,  24,  D  5  ;  killed  at  Savage  Sta- 
tion, June  29,  62. 
Horace  Griffith,  18,  K  17. 
Chas.  A.  Hutchins,  — ,  E  17;   re-en  Feb. 

15,  64. 
William  H.  Hutchins,  19,  K  17. 
George  Hakey,  18,  K  17. 
Fred  A.  Hart,  25,  D  2. 
Willis  Hawley,  18,  K  17;   corporal. 
George  S.  Henry,  19,  K  17;   corporal. 
J.  Edwin   Henry,  25,  K  17;    com  2d  lieut 

Sept.  22,  64;  kdatPetersb^gh,  Apr.  2,65. 
Isaac  Harris,  Jr.,  35,C  15  ;  dis  June  19,  63. 
Leonard  Hart,  — ,  C  15. 


Chas.  O.  Humphrey,  23,  I  13  ;    corporal. 

Frank  S.  Henry,  20,  K  17. 

William  Hall,  26,  D  2  ;  re-en  Dec.  21,  63  ; 

deserted  Feb.  7,  64. 
Alonzo  Hart,  37,  D  2  ;  dis  Feb.  10,  63. 
Frank  Hart,  18,  D  2;    re-en  April  19,  64; 

corporal. 
Martin  L.  Henry,  19,  Cav  C  ;  re-enls'td  4th 

Hancock  Corps. 
Wilbur  E.  Henry,  20,  K  17;    pro  2d  lieut 

July  2,  65. 
Wm.  W.   Henry,  30,  D  2  ;  com   ist  lieut 

May  22,  61  ;  maj  loth,  Aug.  26,  62  ;    It. 

col  Oct.  17,  62  ;  col  April  26,  64 ;  brevet 

brig  gen  March  9,  65  ;  wd  Cold  Harbor 

May,  64;  res  Dec.  17,  64. 
Daniel  J.  Hill,  31,  Cav  C ;   sergt;    wd  at 

Getty sburgh  ;   trans  to  invalid  corps. 
George  W.  Hill,  44,  G  4;  dis  June  3,  62. 
Julius  F.  Hill,  S  S  2 ;  trans  to  Inv.  Corp. 
James  O.  Hovey,  20,  D  2  ;  re-en  Dec.  21  63. 
George  Hubbard,  22,  D  2  ;  re-en  Jan  i,  63  ; 

killed  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12,  64. 
Robert  Hunkins,  22,  D  2;  re-en  Jan  31, 

63 ;  killed  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64. 
Mason  Humphrey,  N.   H.   5  ;   com  ;  killed 

at  Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  June  64. 
Frank  Huntley,  18,  D  2  ;  corp  ;  deserted  at 

Antietam,  Sept.  62. 
Benjamin  L.  Hawley,  22,  H  17. 
H.  D.  Hutchins,  D  2. 
Henry  Janes,  29,  comsurg3d,  June  24, 61  ; 

surg  U  S  V,  March  26,   63 ;  brcv  lieut 

col  U  S  V,  March  13,  65. 
John  Jerome,  32,  B  10;  dis  April  16,  63; 

re-en  K  17. 
Allen  Jewett,  18,  G  4;  dis  March  2,  62. 
Marcellus  B.  Johnson,  21,  G  4;  died  Oct. 

7,  62,  of  wd  rec'd  Sept.  15,  62,  at  South 

Mountain. 
John  P.  Jones,  18,  E  8;   re-en  Jan  5,  64; 

promoted  corporal  July  5,  '64. 
William  Jones,  25,  E  8  ;  missed  in  action 

June  14,  63. 
Daniel  Jones,  29,  E  11;  lost  arm  at  Win- 
chester, Sept.  19,  64. 
James  W.  Jones,  35,   B    10;   wd,  and  dis 

May  15,  65. 
Edwin  Joslyn,  1 7,  S  S  E  2  ;  died  July  1 1 ,62. 
Edward  Kirby,  22,  A  7  ;  must  out  August 

30,  64. 
Leander  Kirby,  18,  H  13. 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


843 


John  D.  Kellogg,  I  13  ;  dis  Nov.  28,  62. 
Charles  B.  Lee,  32,  B  10;  died  in  63. 
Sayles  Locke,  28,  D  2  ;  died  Apr.  26,  62. 
James  Linnehen,  44,  D  5 ;  mustered  out 

June  29.  65. 
A.  J.  Loomis,  34,  B  10. 
Charles  Lapage,  K  17. 
James  Madigan,  18,  I  9;  des  Jan.  19,  63. 
Henry  L.  Marshall,  24,  B  10 ;  corp ;  wd  at 

Cold  Harbor,  June  i,  64. 
Ira  A.  Marshall,  38,  D  2 ;  dis  July  16,  62. 
Paul  W.  Mason,  Jr.,   18,  C  Cav ;  lost  arm 

at  Gettysburgh. 
Dexter  Moody,  27,  B  10. 
Hartwell  Moody,  31,  D  2. 
Samuel  Morey,  23,  D  2. 
Michael  Morrisey,  18,  G  2;  re-enlisted  in 

Cowan's  Battery. 
Lucian  M .  Murray,  2 1 ,  G  4  ;  died  Nov.  8, 62 . 
John  Martin,  21,  Bat  3. 
Dennis  Martin,  18,  H  6;  re-en  Mar.  1,64. 
Pliny  H.  Moflfatt,  21,  C  Cav;   re-en  Dec. 

28,  63  ;  pro  sergt  Nov.  19,  64;  pro  com 

sergt  Jan.  21,  65  ;  transferred  to  Co.  D. 
James  W.  Marshall,  35,  I  13 ;  corporal. 
Thomas  Morway,  29,  H  13. 
Patrick  Martin,  H  6. 
Charles  Moody,  21,  K  17. 
John  McCaffery,  A  6. 
Walter  H.  Nelson,  18,  B  10;  wd  Nov.  27, 

63,  June  I,  64. 
John  O'Connor,  18,  I  4. 
Pat.  O'Connor,  16,  K  17;  music. 
Tabor  H.  Parcher,  24,   B    10;    corp;   dis 

July  6,  64. 
Edwin  Parker,  18,  B  10;  corporal. 
Henry  F.  Parker,  21,  D  2  ;  dis  May  29,62. 
Edward  N.  Phelps,  22,  I  9  ;  corp  reduced  ; 

transferred  to  Veteran  Corps. 
Henry  C.  Phillips,  26,  C  Cav  ;   sergt  red  ; 

promoted  sergt. 
Carlos  Prescott,  23,  D.  2  ;  dis  July  24,  62  ; 

died  of  disease  contracted  in  service. 
Leroy  Prescott,  19,  I  13. 
L.  L.  Pollard,  25,  G  3 ;  drafted. 
Homer  Ruggles,  27,  F  i  ;  re-en  in  Cav  C ; 

wd  ;  pro  corp  Nov.  18,  61  ;  sergt. 
George  G.  Rice,  18,  10  G;  died  at  Alex- 
andria, before  joining  regt. 
Winslow  C.  Rollins,  26,  D  2,  des  from  gen 

ho.spital  1865. 
George  Ray,  D  5. 


Alva  Rowell,   26,   I    13 ;   re-en ;  killed  at 

Wilderness. 
Curtis   C.    Sleeper,   19,  C  2 ;    discharged 

Nov.  I,  62  ;  wd  June  29,  62. 
Timothy  T.  Sleeper,  32,  D   2;  corp ;  dis 

Feb.  5,  63  ;  died  Oct.  11,  63,  of  disease 

contracted  in  service. 
Charles  Smith,  45,  B  10 ;    transferred  to 

Invalid  Corps,  July  i,  63. 
Clifford  Smith,   21,  A  7;   re-en;  deserted 

Sept.  27,  64. 
Geo.  E.  Smith,  19,  D  2  ;  wd  at  Wilderness. 
Jerry  Smith,  26,  A  7;  re-en,  and  desertetl 

Sept.  27,  64. 
William  H.  Stimson,  24,  C3,  Jan.  29,  62  ; 

dis  Feb.  3,  63 ;  wd  June  29,  62. 
Horatio  G.   Stone,  19,  D  2  ;  died  of  wds 

received  at  Wilderness,  May  4,  64. 
John  Stone,  M  Cav  ;  saddler. 
Willard  S.  Stone,  24,  D  2  ;  killed  at  Wil- 
derness, May  5,  64. 
John  W.   Sawyer,  29,   B  10 ;  deserted  at 

Brattleboro,  May  23,  64. 
Calvin  E.  Seaver,  27,  I  13  ;  wd  at  Gettys- 
burgh, July  3,  63. 
Herschall  F.  Smith,  26,  I  13. 
William  C.  SmitSi,  18,  I  13. 
William  D.  Smith,  22,  I  13. 
Orvand  A.  Stone,  32,  I  13. 
John  R.  Slocum,  9. 
Wayland  A.  Strong,  22,  K  17. 
Frank  Stearns,  18,  C  17;  died  Jan.  6,  64, 

of  wds  received  in  action  May  12,  64. 
Edward  Taylor,  18,  B  10. 
Lucian  D.  Thompson,  31,   B    10;  com  2d 

lieut  Aug.  4,  62  ;   ist  lieut  Co.  G,  Dec. 

27,  62;  capt  Co.  D,  June  17,  64;  killed 

at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  64. 
George  Tatro,  28,  B  10  ;  died  Dec.  28,  64. 
Burton  C.  Turner,  18,  D  2  ;diedNov.  5,  64. 
Chauncy  Turner,  20,  D  2  ;  drafted. 
Joseph  Tate,  D  5. 
John  Toban,  D  5. 

Edward  Wells,  25,  5  ;  band  ;  dis  Feb.  20,62. 
Edwin  H.  Wells,  22,  K  17. 
Henry  Wells,  25,  A  7 ;  died  Aug.  9,  62. 
William  Wells,  23,  C  Cav ;  com  ist  lieut 

Co.  C,  Oct.   14,   61  ;   capt  Nov.  18,  61 ; 

maj  Oct.   30,  62  ;  col  June  4,  64 ;  brev 

brig  gen  Feb.  22,  65  ;  brig  gen  May  19, 

65  ;  brev  maj  gen ;  wd  July  6,  62,  Sept. 

I3>  63. 


844 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL    MAGAZINE. 


George  I  Wilson,  D  2. 
Henry  M.Wood,  18,  E,  8  ;  died  Sept.  13,63. 
Wm.  M.  Wood,  19,  E8 ;  died  July  14,  63. 
Sidney  H.  Woodward,   18,    B   10  ;  wd  at 

Cold  Harbor,  June    i ,  65  ;  pro  corporal 

Apr.  I,  64. 
Benjamin  F.  Wright,  18,  D  2. 
George   S.  Woodward,  22,  C  Cav ;  killed 

Apr.  3,  63. 
Ira  S.  Woodward,  18,  B   10;   wd  at  Cold 

Harbor,  June  3,  63. 
Wm.  Woodard,    19,    B    10;    wd   at  Cold 

Harbor,  June  r,  64. 
Chas.  B.  Wooster,  23,  K  3  ;  dis  Oct.  30,  62. 
Hiram  P.  Wright,  28,  C  Cav ;  wd  himself. 
Jacob  Wrisley,  19,  D  2  ;  re-en  Jan.  21,  64. 
Liberty  White,  44,  B  10;  trans  to  In.  Corps. 
Alexander  Warden,  21,  D  2;  discharged; 

re-enlisted  into  5th. 
Wm.  C.  Woodruff,  26,  I  13. 
Wm.  A.  Wooster,  24,  I  13. 
Charles  S.  Wrisley,  28,  C  15. 
John  W.  York,  21,  D  2  ;  re-en  color  bearer 

for  Gen.  Wright  commanding  6th  corps. 
Hiram  Young,  44,  B  10 ;  committed  suicide 

June  26,  64. 
Jos.  E.  Young,  36,  B  10;  wd  at  Spottsyl- 

vania. 
Geo.  W.  York,  33,  K  2  ;  drafted  ;   died  of 

wds  received  at  Wilderness,  May  5,  64 

PArERS   FURNISHED   BY   RUSSELL    HUTLER.   ESQ. 

LEADING   TOPICS   FIFTY   YEARS   AGO. 

Upon  the  review  of  the  events  of  about 
half  a  century  ago,  we  lind  some  remark- 
able coincidences.  Within  a  very  few 
years  before,  and  subsequent,  was  a  time 
of  extensive  religious  revivals  in  many 
parts  of  our  country  and  in  this  town. 
At  about  the  same  time,  temperance,  anti- 
slavery,  and  anti-masonry  became  subjects 
of  great  public  interest,  and  whether  these 
were  all  kindred  in  character  with  the  reli- 
gious movement  or  not,  they  all  seemed  to 
be  supported  on  the  principle  of  public 
morals.  Each  had  its  period  of  novelty 
and  excitement,  each  its  time  of  calm  dis- 
cussion, and  each  its  decline  in  the  public 
interest.  What  is  most  remarkable  is 
their  near  contemporariness.  Perhaps  no 
time  in  history  before  or  since,  have  all 
these   subjects    simultaneously   so    deeply 


engaged  the  public  mind,  nor  is  it  proba- 
ble they  will  ever  again  so  occupy  the 
public  mind  of  our  community,  till  some 
generations  have  passed  away  and  new 
combinations  of  circumstances  occur.  The 
public  mind  acting  as  a*  whole  is  subject  to 
the  same  laws  as  the  individual  mind ; 
when  it  has  thoroughly  canvassed  a  sub- 
ject and  formed  a  deliberate  decision,  it  is 
disposed  to  rest  in  that  decision  as  entirely 
satisfactory,  if  no  new,  valid  opposite  evi- 
dence is  adduced.  The  man  who  has 
viewed  the  temperance  or  the  slavery  ques- 
tion in  their  diiferent  aspects,  and  made 
his  verdict  deliberately,  does  not  care  to 
review  or  pass  through  his  experiences  a 
second  time.  r.  b. 

ANTI-SLAVERY. 

The  New  England  Anti-Slavery  move- 
ment, led  by  William  Lloyd  Garrison,  was 
formally  organized  in  Boston,  Jan.  6,  1832, 
and  followed  by  a  National  Anti-Slavery 
Society  in  Philadelphia,  December  I833. 
Anti-slavery  principles  soon  found  friends 
and  advocates  in  Waterbury,  and  by  the 
circulation  of  papers  and  the  labors  of  lec- 
turers, became  a  strong  moral  force  in  the 
community.  The  movement  was  opposed 
for  a  time  as  a  disturbing  element  in  politics, 
though  not  then  a  party  organization,  as 
it  became  to  some  extent,  later.  As  evi- 
dence of  the  zeal  and  liberality  of  Water- 
bury  Abolitionists,  it  may  be  stated  that 
upon  a  call  of  the  State  Society  for  pecu- 
niary aid,  in  1839,  0"s  of  the  delegates 
pledged  $100  from  Waterbury  and  Dux- 
bury,  to  be  raised  within  the  year.  This,- 
was  one  twentieth  of  the  amount  asked 
from  the  State,  and  was  the  highest  sum 
pledged  by  any  town.  When  the  paper 
was  circulated  in  Waterbury,  two  individ- 
uals subscribed  $100  each,  while  smaller 
contributions  in  both  towns  increased  the 
sum  to  nearly  $500,  more  than  one-fifth  of 
the  entire  sum  called  for.  At  that  time 
$100  contributed  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
helping  to  create  public  sentiment  in  behalf 
of  a  philanthropic  cause,  was  a  large  sum  ; 
and  the  citizens  whose  liberality  deserves 
mention  in  a  history  of  these  times  are 
Amasa  Pride  and  Erastus   Parker.     They 


^  ■  \ 


WATERBURY. 


845 


were  men  ever  ready  to  help  a  cause  that 
they  beUeved  worthy  of  support. 
All  the  subscriptions  were  paid. 

ANTI-MASONRY. 

After  a  lapse  of  50  years  since  the  origin 
of  Anti-masonry,  and  40  years  since  its 
disappearance  in  political  discussions, 
most  people  of  the  present  time  are  little 
acquainted  with  its  history.  With  no  pur- 
pose of  discussing  its  merits,  or  demerits, 
we  cannot  as  chroniclers  of  the  town  do 
less  than  to  refer  to  this  chapter  of  its  po- 
litical history,  no  more  to  be  suppressed  or 
omitted  than  any  other  matter  equally  po- 
tent in  its  influence  on  the  public  mind. 

Anti-masonry  as  a  question  of  morals, 
human  rights,  or  political  expediency,  had 
no  little  influence  upon  the  affairs  of  its 
period.  So  long  time  has  passed,  that  the 
reader  will  wish  for  some  account  of  its 
rise,  growth  and  decadence. 

Anti-masonry,  as  known  in  this  century 
and  in  this  country,  originated  in  Western 
New  York,  in  the  autumn  of  1826.  It  was 
currently  reported  in  the  summer  of  that 
year,  that  William  Morgan  of  Batavia,  a 
brick-layer  and  stone  mason,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  David  C.  Miller,  a  printer  of  the 
same  place,  was  about  to  publish  a  book 
disclosing  the  secrets  of  the  Masonic  Or- 
der. It  was  well  known  that  Morgan  was 
a  Mason.  These  reports  caused  an  imme- 
diate excitement  among  the  Masons,  and 
an  effort  was  made  to  suppress  the  book, 
first  by  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  obtain 
the  manuscript.  Following  this,  the  print- 
ing office  took  fire  in  a  way  indicating  the 
work  of  an  incendiary.  Miller  was  arrested 
Sept.  X2,  on  a  warrant  issued  by  a  justice 
in  Le  Roy  ;  and  on  the  night  of  the  same 
day,  after  9  o'clock,  Morgan  disappeared. 
He  has  not  been  seen  by  family  or  friends 
since.  Many  circumstances  of  his  abduc- 
tion, and  the  route  over  which  he  was 
taken,  have  been  proved  in  courts  of  jus- 
tice, but  with  no  positive  evidence  of  his 
final  disposal.  The  general  belief  is  that 
no  mortal  man  has  seen  him  alive  since  the 
night  of  Sept.  19,  1826. 

When  the  fact  and  these  circumstances  of 
his  abduction  became  known,  the  excite 


ment  was  inten.se.  As  there  had  long  been 
among  the  uninitiated  a  sort  of  mysterious 
awe  of  the  Order  numbering  in  its  ranks  so 
many  eminent  men,  these  startling  devel- 
opments, following  in  close  succession, 
tended  still  further  to  increase  the  mystery. 
The  governor  of  New  York,  if  not  the  offi- 
cial head,  was  of  high  rank  in  the  Order ; 
and  as  the  investigation  proceeded,  it  was 
found  that  most  of  the  important  offices  of 
counties  and  towns  were  filled  by  masons. 
Judges,  sheriffs  and  justices  of  peace  had 
in  a  manner  control  of  courts.  These  dis- 
closures intensified  the  excitement  where 
it  began,  and  extended  it  far  and  wide  in 
other  states. 

The  extent  and  power  of  the  Anti-Ma- 
sonic party  can  hardly  be  realized  by  those 
who  have  not  seen  the  public  mind  arous- 
ed upon  a  subject  affecting  the  vital  inter- 
ests of  the  people. 

We  have  given  this  summary  sketch  of 
the  formation  of  the  Anti-Masonic  party, 
avoiding  all  particulars  not  essential  for 
an  understanding  of  the  public  mind. 
There  were  suspicions  and  even  charges 
that  the  secrets  of  the  order  interfered 
with  the  purposes  of  justice.  If  this  were 
true,  the  remedy  lay  in  selecting  others 
than  Masons  to  make  and  administer  the 
laws. 

We  may  presume  this  to  be  the  funda- 
mental idea  of  political  Anti-Masonry. 

If  the  exclusion  of  Masons  from  office 
were  necessary  to  secure  justice  in  what 
was  known  as  the  Morgan  trials,  it  was 
thought  that  similar  cases  might  exist  out- 
side of  the  "infected  district"  of  New 
York.  This  principle  of  excluding  Ma- 
sons from  office  was  naturally  denounced 
as  illiberal  and  proscriptive ;  but  Anti- 
Masons  met  this  charge  with  the  state- 
ment that  all  parties  are  in  their  nature 
proscriptive.  They  became  powerful  in 
many  States,  and  in  our  own  State  and 
town  were  dominant  for  several  years. 
The  reader  is  referred  to  the  history  of 
several  northern  States  from  1828  to  1835  ; 
to  legislation  upon  extra  judicial  oaths ; 
and  the  action  of  various  Masonic  bodies  ; 
for  the  action  of  the  order  in  this  county, 
to  the  recent  history  of  Montpelier. 


846 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Comparing  it  with  the  present  condition 
of  masonry,  he  will  wonder  at  its  recuper- 
ative power,  and  iind  the  event  worthy  his 
study. 

MILLERISM. 

About  1839,  William  Miller,  the  great 
preacher  of  the  Second  Coming  of  Christ, 
delivered  a  course  of  lectures  in  Water- 
bury.  From  diligent  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, particularly  of  Daniel  and  the 
Revelations,  he  became  convinced  that 
Christ's  second  coming  and  the  end  of  the 
world  would  occur  in  1843. 

Mr.  Miller  appeared  to  be  a  man  of  ex- 
tensive reading,  at  least  in  matters  relating 
to  his  subject ;  and  his  zeal  and  apparent 
candor  gave  weight  to  his  arguments.  The 
subject  was  not  a  new  one  to  careful  read- 
ers of  the  Bible ;  but  his  presentation  of 
it,  with  a  definite  time  for  its  occurrence, 
was  both  new  and  startling.  Multitudes 
flocked  to  hear  him.  The  train  of  his 
reasoning  was  unusual,  and  few  men  were 
prepared  to  meet  him  on  ground  with 
which  he  was  so  familiar.  [Ludlow  his- 
tory has  an  interesting  paper  on  two  of  its 
citizens  who  took  up  his  challenge  for  pub- 
lic discussion  and  met  him  ;  see  hereafter 
in  the  Windsor  County  Vol. — Ed.]  Mr. 
Miller's  hearers  were  numbered  by  thou- 
sands, and  he  gained  many  followers. 
Though  the  great  event  predicted  so  con- 
fidently did  not  occur,  his  presentation  of 
Adventism  did  not  pass  away  without  influ- 
ence upon  the  evangelical  churches  of  that 
or  the  present  day.  Many  good  church 
members,  shaken  in  their  former  faith  and 
disappointed  in  their  expectations,  sought 
a  substitute  as  best  they  might.  Few,  if 
any,  lapsed  into  unbelief,  though  without 
doubt  the  religious  views  of  many  were 
greatly  modified.  To  us,  a  history  of 
Waterbury  would  seem  incomplete  without 
recognition  of  the  Second  Advent  move- 
ment and  its  effect. 

The  preaching  and  publication  of  Mr. 
Miller's  views  had  been  so  wide-spread, 
that  large  numbers  of  believers  were  look- 
ing for  the  great  event.  In  Waterbury, 
scores  watched  and  waited  for  the  second 
coming  of  the  Lord.  We  are  not  surprised 
at  the  excitement  that  attends  the  burninji 


of  a  vessel,  a  theatre,  or  a  city  ;  yet  many 
cannot  realize  how  large  numbers  of  peo- 
ple should  be  so  intensely  wrought  upon 
by  the  expectation  of  an  event  of  whose 
approach  there  were  no  visible  signs. 
After  the  lapse  of  forty  years,  when  nearly 
all  of  those  who  were  so  moved  by  Mr. 
Miller  have  passed  away,  many  may  won- 
der at  the  credulity  of  sensible  and  intelli- 
gent persons  who  accepted  his  interpreta- 
tion of  prophecy.  It  is,  however,  a  matter 
of  history. 

LYCEUM    AND   LIBRARY. 

The  coming  of  the  Colby  family  into 
town  was  an  acquisition  to  society  in 
other  than  business  relations.  The  senior 
brother  immediately  became  interested  in 
planning  a  lyceum  for  the  entertainment  and 
culture  of  the  young.  He  was  seconded  by 
the  active  labors  of  his  mother,  sister,  and 
brothers.  Their  efforts  resulted  in  large 
and  enthusiastic  gatherings,  with  many 
participants  in  the  exercises  which  were  so 
varied  as  to  sustain  a  constant  interest  in 
their  weekly  meetings.  There  were  occa- 
sional lectures  from  entertaining  and  com- 
petent speakers ;  carefully  prepared  de- 
bates, declamations  by  the  youngsters ; 
and  most  interesting  of  all,  the  papers 
which  were  supported  by  contributions 
from  all,  and  read  by  ladies. 

The  lyceum  became  a  complete  success, 
and  continued  so  several  years.  One  or 
two  seasons  created  such  2.  furor  scribendi , 
and  such  a  demand  for  reading,  that  an 
association  was  formed,  and  a  selection  of 
books  made  by  a  competent  committee. 
About  500  vols,  were  purchased.  At  the 
end  of  2  years,  the  lyceum  celebrated  its 
success  by  a  public  entertainment  and  pic- 
nic on  the  banks  of  the  Winooski,  march- 
ing to  the  ground  in  a  grand  procession, 
with  an  array  of  banners,  bearing  the 
assumed  names  of  the  principal  writers  for 
the  paper.  Among  the  exercises  was  the 
reading  of  one  of  Julia  Wallace  Hutchins' 
poems  by  Rev.  C.  C.  Parker,  of  blessed 
memory,  not  long  since  passed  to  his  re- 
ward of  heavenly  rest. 

The  library  was  increased  to  over  600 
volumes,  and  for  10  or  12  years  was  highly 
esteemed  ;  but  after  the  novelty  of  the  first 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


847 


few  years  had  worn  away,  the  very  inex- 
pensiveness  of  its  advantages  seemed  to 
diminish  its  usefulness,  since  some  esti- 
mate value  only  by  cost.  Yet  even  now 
after  25  years,  there  are  several  hundred 
of  the  books  in  the  care  of  George  W. 
Kennedy  as  assistant  librarian.  This, 
together  with  the  Agricultural  Library, 
aided  by  the  town  or  public-spirited  indi- 
viduals, might  form  the  basis  of  a  new  one 
which  would  be  of  great  value  to  the  town. 
This  much  for  the  lyceum  and  library 
of  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago.  The  writer 
feels  that  their  influence  on  the  intelligence 
and  culture  of  our  people  should  not  be 
forgotten. 

[Julia  Wallace,  author  of  "Earth's 
Angels,"  written  some  25  or  30  years  since, 
often  reprinted,  a  favorite  with  the  public, 
is  a  native  of  Duxbury,  which  adjoins  Wa- 
terbury.  The  years  of  her  childhood  were 
spent  at  the  paternal  home,  on  an  isolated 
mountain,  afar  from  neighbors,  very  soli- 
itary. 

Bred  with  the  elements,  in  her  first  poe- 
try— for  a  Montpelier  paper — she  sings  of 
sunset  skies,  "painted  and  gilded,"  "the 
broad  arch  where  starry  armies  throng" — 
she  tells  us  what  she  "  loves" — 

"  The  liglitnlDg's  flash,  its  dazzling  chain 
When  tlie  black  thunder  cloud  is  rent  in  twain ; 
The  storm's  dark  drapery  in  sombre  Cold 
Glittering  with  sparkles  of  electric  gold. 

The  vivid  flash,  the  broad  bright  flash,  I  love 
Showing  the  earth  beneath,  the  heavens  above. 
As  if  the  flame-winged  messengers  of  power 
Glance  on  their  errands  through  the  tempest-hour." 

We  heard  her  recite  this  old,  old  poem. 
We  heard  her  describe  this  mountain 
home  most  graphically  a  few  days  since  : 
"  No  Duxbury  house  in  sight,  but  over  the 
river,  Waterbury  village  beyond,  that 
looked  like  a  Paradise  ;  Governor  Butler's 
house  and  farms ;  Governor  Dillingham's 
residence  ;  the  beautiful  cemetery  ;  all  dis- 
tinctly seen  from  our  little  house  on  the 
Duxbury  mountain.  You  must  have  my 
"  Earth's  Angels"  for  Duxbury, — that  be- 
longs to  Duxbury,  which  has  her  history, 
— though  no  one  has  yet  arisen  to  write 
it ;  but  there  will." 

By  our  author's  rule,  "  Athenwood"  be- 


longs to  Waterbury.  It  was  written  here, 
read  at  that  old  Lyceum  so  pleasantly  de- 
scribed by  our  venerable  historian,  Mr. 
Butler,  and  we  think  we  must  break  in  on 
his  pages  and  lay  it  here  at  the  foot  of 
the  old  "  Lyceum  and  Library."] 

ATHENWOOD. 

A  LEGKND  OF  ST.  MINNIE. 

Were  you  ever  in  Montpelier? 

Not  that  fine  old  town  of  France, 
But  a  fair  Green  Mountain  village. 

Young  for  legend  or  romance. 

Brave  and  hardy  are  the  people 
Of  our  Northern  State  frontier; 

So  aflirnicd  a  bold  invader,* 
And  the  knowledge  cost  him  dear. 

Firm  in  Doric  strength  and  beauty 

Stands  their  Capitol;  its  dome 
Looking  down  upon  a  river 

Something  like  the  stream  of  Rome. 

Winding  through  the  verdant  valley, 

Like  a  shaken  silver  chain. 
Flows  the  mountain-born  Winooski 

To  the  beautiful  Champlain. 

But  we  follow  not  Iiis  current, 

For  the  theme  will  bid  us  stay 
'Mong  the  hills  that  nurse  his  torrent. 

Near  the  Capitol,  to-day. 

Just  across  the  sparkling  river. 
Where  yon  hill-road  winds  away, 

Lightly  lifts  the  graceful  elm-tree 
Many  a  slender,  waving  spray. 

Where  the  tiny  song-birds  rally, 
Chirping  from  their  leafy  screen, 

And  the  mountain  breezes  dally, 
Coming  down  a  bright  ravine. 

There,  above  the  village  murmur. 

And  the  din  of  mill  and  forge, 
Stands  an  artist's  quiet  dwelling. 

In  the  green  and  narrow  gorge. 

On  a  sultry  day  of  summer 

Sank  beneath  the  wayside  tree. 
One  who  sighed,  in  foreign  accent, 

"Mary  Mother,  pity  me!  " 

'Twas  a  sad  and  weary  w.)man, 

With  a  child  of  tender  years; 
On  her  feet  ilie  soil  of  travel. 

On  her  face  the  stain  of  tears. 

Surely  she  can  toil  no  farther 
'Neath  the  bright,  uupitj  ing  sky; 

But  for  that  sweet,  patient  infant, 
It  were  well  that  she  should  die! 

Hers  had  been  a  happy  bridal 

In  a  distant  father-land; 
Hers  a  husband,  brave  and  noble. 

Firm,  yet  gentle,  hopeful  bland. 

Tyranny  proclaimed  him  rebel, 
For  a  patriot  heart  had  he; 

They,  in  want,  had  fled  from  peril- 
He  was  buried  in  the  sea. 


'  Sir  John  Burgoyne. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


In  her  land  of  cross  and  convent. 
Sweet  Madonna, pale  and  fair, 

Shrine  of  saint  or  tomb  of  martyr. 
Wins  tlie  striclien  soul  to  prayer. 

Now  she  scans  that  peacefnl  cottage- 
Gray  its  walls  and  sloping  eaves — 

Lifting  up  its  modest  gables. 
Carved  in  pendant  oaken  leaves; 

Rustic  porch,  with  open  portal, 

Arched  windows,  diamond  pane- 
Sure  it  bore  no  slight  resemblance 
To  some  humble  rural  fane. 

Was  it  not  a  wayside  chapel. 

Built  in  form  of  holy  cross? 
Was  it  hermitage?  or  dwelling? 

Long  slie  mused,  and  much  at  loss. 

Till  an  organ-tone  came  swelling 

On  the  silent  summer  air; 
Quick  she  mounts  the  rocky  terrace. 

Lifts  her  child  from  stair  to  stair. 

In  the  softly  shaded  parlor 

Minnie  had  sat  down  to  play 
Hopeful  hymns  that  cheered  her  husband- 

These  should  while  the  hours  away. 

On  she  played  and  sang,  unheeding 
Her  who  on  the  threshold  stood, 

Dreaming  of  an  old  cathedral 
Far  beyond  the  ocean-flood. 

Through  the  curtain  came  the  sunlight 

With  a  crimson-tinted  ray; 
So  it  fell,  from  storied  window. 

Where  in  youth  she  kneeled  to  pray. 

Near  her  stood  a  slender  table. 
Fair  the  Parian  vase  upon't. 

Quaintly  carved  from  antique  sculpture- 
Was  it  not  a  marble  font? 

On  the  walls  hung  glowing  pictures— 
"Autumn  scenery,"  richly  wrought. 

Graceful  forms  and  gentle  features— 
Not  the  haloed  head  slie  sought. 

When  the  soaring  anthem  ended, 
Timidly  she  moved  to  say, 
"Lady,  please,  is  it  a  chapel? 
I  have  need  to  rest  and  pray." 

Oh,  not  utterly  mistaken 
Was  that  simple,  fervent  heart; 

Less  than  only  Heaven's  own  altar 
Is  the  shrine  of  Love  and  Art. 

Minnie  placed  a  couch  with  pillows, 
Offering  rest  and  sweet  relief; 

Spoke  as  woman  speaks  to  woman 
In  her  trial-hour  of  grief. 

Bringing  food,  the  cup  of  water. 
Covering  for  the  sunburned  cliild. 

Laughed  the  winsome  little  creature- 
Sweet  the  wayworn  pilgrim  smiled. 

"  Now  my  weary  heart  is  lighter; 
Mary  Mother  lieard  my  plaint — 
If  I  found  no  priestly  altar. 
Surely  I've  not  missed  a  saint." 


BIOGRAPHICAL  LETTER  FROM  A.  G.  PEASE. 

Born  at  Canaan,  Conn.,  February,  18II  ; 
the  family  moved  to  Charlotte,  Vt.  Nov., 
1826  :  My  father,  Salmon  Pease,  was  born 
at  Norfolk,  Conn.,  June  14,  1783.  My 
mother,  Matilda  Huntington,  was  born  at 
Ashford,  Conn.,  Dec.  30,  1780  ;  there  were 
9  sons  and  one  daughter,  four  of  the  sons 
and  the  daughter  still  living.  I  graduated 
at  the  University  of  Vermont  in  I837  ;  at 
Andover,  1841  ;  ordained  and  settled  at 
Pittsford,  June,  1842 ;  married  to  Anne 
Page,  daughter  of  Dea.  William  Page  of 
Rutland,  Oct.  18,  1842;  went  to  Water- 
bury,  July,  1847;  installed  1849;  went  to 
Norwich,  July,  1853;  installed  January, 
1855  ;  I  .supplied  at  Poultney  and  Royal- 
ton,  from  October,  1845,  when  I  left  Pitts- 
ford,  until  going  to  Waterbuiy.  After 
leaving  Waterbury,  I  preached  3  months 
by  invitation  in  the  first  Congregational 
church  in  Quincy,  111. 

My  health  failed  the  summer  of  1855, 
and  I  have  had  no  charge  since.  We  have 
had  5  daughters,  of  whom  3  are  living, 
and  3  sons,  all  living. 

Rutland,  Sept.  17,  1876. 

BIOGRAPHICAL  LETTER  FROM  REV.  CHAS. 
CARROLL  PARKER. 

Was  born  in  Underhill,  Sept.  26,  1814; 
son  of  Edmond  (b.  in  Richmond,  N.  H.), 
son  of  Reuben,  son  of  Benjamin,  son  of 
John,  son  of  John,  son  of  Dea.  Thomas 
Parker,  who  settled  in  Reading,  Mass., 
about  1635,  where  the  four  preceding  were 
born ;  name  of  mother,  Hepzibah  Curtis, 
daughter  of  John  Curtis,  of  Dudley,  Mass.  ; 
lived  with  father  until  nearly  twenty-one, 
working  on  his  and  neighboring  farms ; 
went  to  school  3  months  in  summer  from 
five  to  nine,  and  3  months  in  winter,  from 
seven  to  eighteen ;  began  to  teach  school 
at  nineteen,  and  taught  the  8  following  win- 
ters ;  fitted  for  college  at  Jericho  Academy, 
Bradford  Academy,  and  under  the  private 
instruction  of  Rev.  Samuel  Kingsbury, 
then  acting  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
chuixh  in  Underhill ;  entered  college  in 
1837;  graduated  Aug.  4,  1841,  with  no 
pecuniary  help  from  first  to  last;  was  prin- 
cipal of  the  boys'  high  school  in  Burlington 


\ 


WATERBURY. 


2  years  after  graduating  ;  united  with  Con- 
gregational church,  Burlington,  Jan.  i, 
1843;  entered  Union  Theological  Sem- 
inary, N.  Y.,  fall  of  1843,  and  remained  i 
year ;  was  again  principal  of  boys'  high 
school  until  fall  of  1845  i  was  then  agent  of 
the  University  in  raising  the  $50,000  fund 
until  the  spring  of  1847  :  resumed  study  of 
theology  in  Burlington,  and  was  licensed 
to  preach  the  Gospel  by  Winooski  Asso- 
ciation at  Williston,  Oct.  11,  1847  ;  preach- 
ed my  first  sermon  in  native  parish  at 
Underhill,  first  Sabbath  in  November  fol- 
lowing ;  began  to  preach  in  Tinmouth  in 
January,  1848  ;  was  ordained,  and  in- 
stalled pastor  of  that  church  October  4th, 
following. 

In  the  spring  of  1853,  I  received  an  in- 
vitation to  preach  in  Waterbury  ;  was  dis- 
missed from  the  church  in  Tinmouth,  May 
18,  1853  ;  was  installed  pastor  of  Congre- 
gational church  in  Waterbury,  June  7, 
1854.  In  June,  1863,  I  was  elected  Cor- 
responding Secretary  of  Vermont  Domestic 
Missionary  Society,  but  the  Council  de- 
clined to  advise  my  dismissal  that  I  might 
accept  the  office.  In  the  fall  of  1866,  was 
elected  principal  of  the  Ladies'  Seminary 
in  Gorham,  Me.,  and  was  dismissed  by 
Council,  Jan.  16,  1867,  and  accepted  the 
position  at  Gorham. 

In  June,  1868,  I  resigned  the  place  in 
the  seminary,  and  accepted  a  call  to  the 
pastorate  of  a  Congregational  church  in 
Gorham,  and  was  installed  Aug.  19,  1868; 
resigned  the  pastorate  in  Gorham,  July, 
1 87 1,  and  was  dismissed  Sept.  22.  In 
Nov.  1 87 1,  I  received  a  call  to  the  pastor- 
ate of  the  Congregational  church  in  Orient, 
L.  I.;  also  to  that  of  the  Presbyterian 
church  in  Passippamy,  N.  J.,  and  accepted 
the  latter  ;  was  installed  by  Presbytery  of 
Morris  and  Orange,  Mar.  27,  1872,  in 
which  office  I  still  remain  (1876). 

Was  married  Nov.  28,  1844,  to  Eliz- 
abeth McNiel  Fleming,  of  Burlington,  and 
have  one  son  and  three  daughters.  My 
pastoral  and  ministerial  relations  have  been 
very  pleasant  and  so  remain.  I  have  been 
a  corporator  of  the  University  of  Vermont 
since  1862. 

107 


REV.  JONATHAN  COPELAND, 

was  born  in  Smithville,  Chenango  Co.,  N. 
Y.,  Feb.  20,  1816;  the  eldest  of  9  chil- 
dren, 4  sons  and  5  daughters.  His  father, 
David  Copeland,  was  a  native  of  Brooklyn, 
Conn. ;  his  mother,  Martha  Shepard,  of 
Pittsfield,  Mass.  After  their  marriage, 
they  remained  some  time  in  Smithville, 
then  returned  to  Brooklyn,  and  soon  after- 
wards became  residents  of  Norwich,  Conn., 
where  they  lived  until  1825,  when  they  re- 
moved to  Rochester,  where  they  are  still 
living,  at  a  very  advanced  age.  The  fath- 
er, a  mason  by  trade,  his  family  dependent 
upon  his  daily  toil,  was  able  to  give  his 
children  but  a  limited  common  school  edu- 
cation, and  the  sons  were  set  at  work  with 
their  father  as  soon  as  they  were  able  to 
use  the  tools. 

Jonathan  was  converted  in  his  i8th  year, 
and  united  with  the  church  with  which  his 
parents  were  connected,  the  Presbyterian, 
and  soon  after  was  impressed  to  become  a 
minister  of  the  gospel.  His  father,  una- 
ble to  help  him  to  an  education,  did  not 
encourage  it,  but  his  pastor  did,  and  he 
laid  down  his  tools  to  study,  resuming 
them  at  vacations ;  and  by  his  trade, 
teaching  school  some,  and  by  his  musical 
talent,  carried  himself  through  preparation 
for  college,  (Union  college,)  which  he  en- 
tered in  1837,  and  to  the  close  of  his  last 
year  in  the  Theological  Seminary,  which 
he  entered  3  months  before  graduating  at 
college.  At  the  end  of  2  years  in  the 
Seminary,  he  was  licensed  to  preach  by 
the  Cayuga  Presbytery,  and  called  to  the 
Presbyterian  church  in  Holley,  Orleans 
Co.,  N.  Y.,  where  he  preached  his  first 
sermon  May  14,  1843,  ^"d  was  installed  in 
November.  This  large  and  flourishing 
field  he  held  15^  years,  when  against  the 
wishes  of  his  people,  he  was  dismissed  to 
take  charge  of  the  Presbyterian  church  of 
Champlain,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  installed 
Feb.,  1859;  dismissed  Oct.,  1866,  re- 
mained another  year.  The  year  previous, 
107  new  members  were  added  to  this 
church,  and  this  last  year  there  were  fre- 
quent additions. 

In  Oct.,  1867,  he  accepted   a  call   from 
the  Congregational  church  of  Waterbury, 


850 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  soon  afterwards  removed  here.  He 
was  twice  solicited  to  be  installed  pastor, 
but  declined  from  personal  preferences. 
Though  coming  from  the  Presbyterians, 
among  whom  he  was  converted,  educated, 
licensed  and  installed,  and  with  whom  he 
had  labored  for  more  than  20  years,  he 
very  readily  conformed  to  Congregational 
usages,  found  a  pleasant  home,  cordial  re- 
lations with  the  ministers  and  churches, 
and  ever  labored  harmoniously  and  heart- 
ily with  them  ;  and  had  Providence  so  or- 
dered, would  have  spent  his  remaining 
days  happily  in  that  connection.  While 
in  Waterbury,  a  parsonage  was  purchased 
by  the  society,  the  house  of  worship  twice 
improved  and  beautified,  and  the  commu- 
nicants increased  ;  the  number  bemg  larg- 
er, notwithstanding  numerous  removals, 
at  the  close  than  at  the  beginning  of  his 
labors  with  the  church.  He  at  present  re- 
sides in  Rochester,  N.  Y.,  and  is  regularly 
employed  in  preaching  in  that  vicinity. 

He  was  married  Jan.  30,  1844,  to  Kezia, 
daughter  of  John  and  Kezia  Clark,  of  Nis- 
kayuna,  Schenectady  Co.,  N.  Y.  They 
have  had  three  sons,  Clark,  Edward  and 
William,  all  now  in  business,  and  four 
daughters,  three  now  living,  and  their 
children  are  all  members  of  the  church. 

CALKINS   FAMILY. 

John  P.  Calkins,  of  New  London,  Conn., 
moved  to  Canaan,  N.  H. ;  and  from  there 
came  to  Waterbury,  and  settled  on  the 
River  about  1796.  He  had  8  sons  and  3 
daughters.  The  facts  in  this  notice  the 
writer  has  from  a  descendant,  who  with 
nearly  all  of  the  Calkins  name,  went  to  the 
older  Western  states,  where  several  have 
won  distinction  in  educational,  profession- 
al, and  business  positions. 

Sarah,  eldest  daughter  of  the  family, 
married  Rev.  Thomas  Kennan. 

Hubbard,  the  eldest  son,  died  in  Ohio, 
about  40  years  ago. 

Harris,  second  son,  settled  in  Waterbu- 
ry, where  he  died,  leaving  two  sons  and  a 
daughter.  The  younger  son.  Dr.  Calkins 
of  Boston,  and  the  daughter  are  living. 

Clarissa  died  in  Ohio,  at  the  age  of  89. 

Charles,  born  in  New  London,  had  6 
children,  5  of  whom  were  living  in  1879 


It  is  from  the  oldest  son  that  we  have 
the  principal  facts  relating  to  the  family. 
His  father  was  briefly  noticed  in  Mr.  Park- 
er''s  Early  History,  as  supplying  the  pulpit 
of  the  first  meeting-house  in  Waterbury 
several  months  after  its  dedication,  and 
previous  to  the  coming  of  Rev.  Dr.  War- 
ren. 

Mr.  Calkins  died  near  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
in  1877,  aged  94;  Mrs.  Calkins,  who  be- 
longed to  the  New- Hampshire  family  of 
Gilmans,  a  few  years  before  her  husband, 
at  the  age  of  86.  Charles  G.  Calkins,  the 
eldest  son,  has  given  many  interesting 
details  of  his  own  family  and  that  of  his 
sister  Eliza,  Mrs.  Winchester  of  Detroit, 
who  has  9  grown-up  children  living.  Of 
his  own  family,  one  son  has  served  as  an 
officer  in  U.  S.  Navy,  another  as  editor  of 
a  daily  paper  in  Covington,  Ky.  George, 
the  son  next  younger  than  Charles  ,  living 
in  1879,  in  Elyria,  Ohio,  blind  and  deaf, 
has  a  son  who  is  a  wealthy  resident  of 
Cincinnati. 

William  was  a  teacher  in  Waterbury, 
and  we  think  in  Burlington,  aboul  25  years 
ago.  The  writer  remembers  him  well.  A 
son  of  his  has  long  been  a  prominent  citi- 
zen of  Ticonderoga,  N.  Y.  ;  another  son 
is  a  successful  lumber  merchant. 

Charles  Oilman  Calkins,  son  of  Rev. 
Charles  Calkins,  after  giving  brief  notices 
of  each  of  his  father's  brothers  and  sisters 
(as  above  related)  so  far  as  known  to  him 
at  the  time  of  his  writing,  April,  1879, 
concludes  his  account,  thus:  "  So  there 
are  living,  George,  aged  92,  Jesse  84,  and 
Jedediah  82,  and  his  wife ;  and  but  few 
years  ago,  Clarisa  died  aged  89,  Charles 
94,  and  my  mother  86.  Six  in  all  had 
lived  many  more  years  together,  or  not  far 
separated  than  is  usual  in  families.  In- 
deed, I  have  been  disposed  sometimes  to 
prepare  a  sketch  styling  them  the  Centen- 
nial family.  The  descendants  are  nume- 
rous and  far  scattered,  and  I  know  but  few 
of  them  recently.  They  are  mainly  out- 
side of  Congress  and  of  the  State  prison. 
The  name  is  becoming  numerous  and  far 
spread.  They  all  so  far  as  I  can  learn 
have  many  of  the  traits  of  our  family.  Of 
personal   resemblances     there   have   been 


WATERBURY. 


851 


several  striking  instances.  Longevity, 
large  families,  muscular  vigor,  while  there 
has  been  a  large  tendency  to  clerical  and 
professional  occupations." 

KENNAN   FAMILY. 

Among  the  early  settlers  we  must  not 
omit  to  notice  was  the  family  of  George 
Kennan,  whose  name  appears  as  one  of 
the  town  officers  as  early  as  1794,  when  he 
served  as  moderator  and  selectman,  and 
again  in  1797  and  1804,  and  was  justice  of 
the  peace  many  years.  His  son  George  was 
constable  in  1802;  and  selectman  in  1809. 

Thomas,  another  son,  assisted  in  the 
organization  of  the  first  Congregational 
church  as  clerk  of  the  meeting  ;  afterwards 
became  a  minister  of  that  denomination. 
He  married  Sarah,  eldest  daughter  of  John 
P.  Calkins. 

Another  son  of  this  family  was  Jairus, 
who  fell  an  early  victim  to  his  love  of 
knowledge  a  few  years  after  his  graduation 
in  1804,  as  a  member  of  the  first  class  of 
the  University  of  Vermont.  At  the  semi- 
centennial anniversary  of  the  University 
in  1854,  the  late  Charles  Adams,  Esq.,  of 
Burlington,  paid  the  following  tribute  to 
his  memory,  in  response  to  the  sentiment, 
"  The  First  Graduating  Class  of  50  years 
ago"  :  "  There  were  four  of  us  who  grad- 
uated fifty  years  ago.  Three  are  present 
on  this  occasion.  The  joy  of  our  meeting 
is  chastened  by  the  reflection  that  our 
other  classmate,  Jairus  Kennan,  is  no  more. 
He  was  feeble  while  in  college,  and  having 
long  struggled  with  disease,  has  gone,  as 
we  trust,  to  a  higher  and  a  better  world. 
Jairus  Kennan  was  not  an  ordinary  man. 
He  loved  knowledge,  and  nothing  could 
repress  his  ardor  in  the  pursuit.  His  in- 
tellectual powers  were  of  a  high  order,  and 
he  cultivated  them  with  untiring  devotion. 
He  was  distinguished  for  warmth  of  feel- 
ing and  kindness  of  manner,  and  had  he 
lived,  would  have  taken  high  rank  as  a 
philanthropist.  Poor  in  purse  and  poorer 
in  health,  he  was  above  adverse  circum- 
stances, and  alone  and  unaided  pursued  a 
quiet  course  to  the  highest  development  of 
mind  and  heart.  He  was  a  bright  exam- 
ple of  what  energy  and  ambition  may 
accomplish." 


JOSEPH   Vi^ARREN, 

editor  of  the  Buffalo  Courier,  died ,  18 — , 

in  that  city,  of  congestion  of  the  lungs,  after 
an  illness  of  only  one  day.  Mr.  Warren 
was  born  in  Waterbury,  July  24,  1829,  and 
graduated  at  the  University  of  Vermont, 
in  the  class  of  185 1.  He  immediately  en- 
tered the  profession  of  journalism,  as  as- 
sistant editoi'  of  the  Country  Geutleman, 
at  Albany,  N.  Y.  In  1853,  he  became  as- 
sociate editor  of  the  Buffalo  Courier,  be- 
coming its  editor-in-chief  in  1858,  and  re- 
taining that  position  until  his  death.  Since 
the  death  of  Dean  Richmond,  in  1866,  IVTr. 
Warren  had  been  the  recognized  leader  of 
the  Democratic  party  in  Erie  county,  and 
leader  and  counsellor  of  that  party  in  Wes- 
tern New  York  and  the  State.  Through 
his  efforts  the  State  Asylum  for  the  insane 
was  located  at  Buffalo,  and  he  served  on 
its  board  of  managers  and  as  chairman  of 
the  executive  committee  till  within  a  month 
of  his  death.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
committee  on  location  of  the  State  Normal 
School  at  Buffalo,  and  a  member  of  the 
board  of  trustees.  He  was'  one  of  the  pro- 
jectors of  the  Buffalo  fine  arts  academy, 
and  was  largely  interested  in  the  project  of 
the  Buffalo,  New  York  and  Philadelphia 
Railroad.  He  was  a  former  president  of 
the  Buffalo  Young  Men's  Association,  and 
a  member  of  the  council  of  the  Medical  de- 
partment of  the  University  of  Buffalo  for 
the  last  6  years.  He  was  president  of  the 
New  York  State  Associated  Press  at  the 
time  of  his  death.  He  was  long  a  mem- 
ber of  Ancient  Land  Mark  Lodge  of  Ma- 
sons. He  leaves  a  wife  and  one  son. — 
Burlington  Free  Press. 

DAN   CARPENTER, 

(BY   HON.  PAUL   DILLINGHAM.) 

son  of  Simeon  Carpenter  and  Anna  Bur- 
ton, was  born  in  Norwich,  Vt.,  Nov.  21, 
1776,  where  he  lived,  was  educated,  stud- 
ied law,  and  was  admitted  to  the  Bar,  in 
Windsor  County,  in  the  spring  of  1804. 
During  the  summer  of  that  year  he  came 
into  what  is  now  Washington  County,  and 
settled  at  Waterbury.  At  that  time  the 
towns  in  Mad  River  valley  together  with 
Duxbury,  Waterbury,  Stowe  and  Mans- 
field belonged  to  Chittenden  County  ;  there 


85: 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


was  no  lawyer  in  either  of  them,  and  none 
nearer  than  Williston.  Mr.  Carpenter's 
choice  was  a  fortunate  one  for  him,  for 
there  had  been  for  several  years  a  growing 
desire  that  a  reliable  lawyer  should  settle 
in  that  vicinity,  and  he  opened  his  office 
for  business  as  early  as  Oct.  i,  1804.  He 
was  a  sound  lawyer — a  man  of  most  ex- 
cellent practical  judgment,  and  he  proved 
almost  at  once  that  he  was  a  safe  adviser. 
Having  fixed  upon  Waterbury  as  his  future 
home,  he  at  once  became  identified  with 
all  its  interests,  and  was  soon  a  leading 
man  in  all  its  affairs.  At  Norwich,  Jan. 
27,  1805,  he  was  married  to  Betsey  Par- 
tridge, daughter  of  Elisha  Partridge  and 
Margaret  Murdock,  born  Jan.  23,  1783. 
They  commenced  housekeeping  in  the 
spring  following,  in  a  one-storied  house, 
convenient  for  a  small  family,  and  in  the 
year  181 5,  built  and  finished  the  two-story 
front,  where  his  grandson,  Frank  Carpen- 
ter, now  lives.  They  had  8  children,  four 
of  whom  died  in  early  infancy — and  four 
lived  to  be  settled  in  life,  one  son,  William, 
born  Oct.  25,  '1805,  and  three  daughters, 
Sarah  P.,  born  May  18,  1807  ;  Eliza,  born 
Dec.  II,  1810,  and  Julia,  born  Dec.  3, 
1812;  Julia,  the  wife  of  Paul  Dillingham, 
is  now  the  sole  survivor;  they  were  mar- 
ried Sept.  5,  1832.  Sarah  P.  Carpenter 
Dillingham,  died  Sept.  20,  1831. 

When  Mr.  Carpenter  began  business  in 
Waterbury,  justice's  jurisdiction  was  only 
$13  ;  this  threw  a  heavy  business  onto  the 
County  courts,  and  his  income  was  large 
for  quite  a  number  of  years.  He  had  no 
competition  till  18 17,  when  Henry  F.  Janes 
came  into  the  town.  Mr.  Carpenter  had 
a  fine  person,  nearly  six  feet  high,  slim, 
straight  as  an  arrow,  and  lithe,  and  grace- 
ful in  every  movement ;  in  manner  he  was 
of  the  old  school,  respectful,  courteous 
and  kind  to  every  one.  He  rapidly  grew 
into  favor,  and  strong  attachments  grew 
up  between  him  and  a  great  porportion  of 
his  townsmen.  He  was  a  conscientious 
man,  very  kind  to  the  poor,  and  forbearing 
to  his  every  debtor.  The  estimation  in 
which  he  stood  in  town,  county  and  state, 
is  best  evidenced  by  the  following  facts  : 
In  his  town  he  was  chosen  town  clerk  in 


March,  1808,  and  held  that  office  by  suc- 
cessive elections,  (save  one  year)  till  1829, 
when  he  declined  to  hold  that  office  longer. 
He  was  first  selectman  during  most  of  the 
same  years.  In  1817,  he  was  chosen  rep- 
resentative to  the  General  Assembly,  and 
with  the  exception  of  1818,  he  represented 
the  town  till  1827.  In  the  fall  of  1827,  he 
was  chosen  first  assistant  judge  of  Wash- 
ington County  Court,  and  held  that  office 
by  successive  elections  for  8  years,  when 
he  declined  further  service.  In  1824,  he 
was  one  of  the  State  electors  of  president 
and  vice  president,  and  by  his  associates 
was  deputed  to  carry  and  deliver  the  votes 
of  the  State  in  the  City  of  Washington. 
From  April,  I823,  he  had  a  junior  partner 
in  his  law  business,  Paul  Dillingham,  Jr. 
The  firm  was  Carpenter  &  Dillingham, 
and  continued  till  he  became  judge,  when 
the  business  was  given  to  Mr.  Dillingham. 
From  1820,  he  had  a  mercantile  interest 
in  Waterbury,  in  company  with  Charles  R. 
Cleaves.  In  February,  1824,  he  purchased 
Mr.  Cleaves'  interest  in  this  business,  to- 
gether with  all  his  real  estate,  and  his  son 
William  Carpenter,  became  his  partner. 
During  the  summer  of  1834,  they  erected 
the  brick  store,  where  his  grandson,  W. 
E.  Carpenter,  now  lives  and  does  business. 
He  retired  from  active  business,  and  de- 
voted the  remainder  of  his  life  to  the  care 
of  the  property  he  had  accumulated. 

He  died  Dec.  2,  1852.  His  memory  is 
cherished  by  many  now  living.  His  wife 
survived  him  many  years,  living  to  the  age 
of  92.  William  Carpenter  died  March 
17,  1881. 

PAPER  FliOM  HON.  PAUL  DILLINGHAM. 
HON.    WILLIAM    WELLINGTON    WELLS, 

son  of  Roswell  and  Pamelia  White  Wells, 
was  born  in  Waterbury,  Oct.  28,  1805,  and 
died  at  the  same  place,  April  9,  1869.  He 
graduated  from  the  University  of  Vermont 
in  the  class  of  1824,  and  read  law  in  the 
office  of  the  late  Charles  Adams,  Esq.,  in 
Burlington.  He  was  admitted  to  practice 
at  the  Chittenden  County  Bar,  but  before 
he  began  the  practice  of  his  profession 
(for  which  he  was  thought  to  be  particu- 
larly well  suited  both  by  nature  and  educa- 


^        \ 


WATERBURY. 


853 


tion,;  owing  to  the  death  of  his  father,  he 
was  obliged  to  return  to  Waterbury  and 
administer  the  estate  of  the  deceased.  He 
soon  became  so  much  interested  in  busi- 
ness pursuits  that  he  abandoned  the  idea 
of  a  professional  life,  and  identified  him- 
self with  the  interests  of  both  his  family 
and  his  town.  For  several  years  he  had  a 
large  interest  in  a  prominent  dry-goods 
house  in  Burlington.  He  was  afterward  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  Hutchins,  Wells  & 
Co.,  at  Waterbury.  At  the  latter  place, 
he  also  erected  a  tannery,  and  for  many 
years  carried  on  an  extensive  business. 
Later  on,  he  came  into  the  ownership  of 
the  grist-mill  just  north  of  Waterbury 
village,  (and  near  the  tannery  before  men- 
tioned,) and  converted  it  into  a  first-class 
flouring  mill,when  for  many  years  he  carried 
on  an  extensive  business.  He  also  carried 
on  a  dry  goods  store  at  Waterbury  Center, 
several  years. 

Mr.  Wells  represented  Waterbury  in  the 
Legislature  in  1840,  '63  and  '64,  where  he 
took  an  active  part  in  legislative  matters. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Eleventh  Council 
of  Censors  in  1855,  and  town  treasurer 
and  selectman  several  years. 

He  was  a  valuable  member  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  lived.  A  ripe  scholar 
himself,  he  was  deeply  interested  in  the 
schools  of  the  town, — feeling  that  in  them 
was  to  be  acquired  such  knowledge  and 
discipline  as  should  fit  the  young  for  intel- 
ligent and  useful  lives. 

He  was  equally  interested  in  whatever 
was  for  the  general  interests  of  the  town — 
and  in  furthering  these  he  was  not  wont  to 
inquire  what  his  share  of  the  expenditure 
should  be,  but  rather  how  much  was  nec- 
essary to  effect  the  purpose,  and  this  much 
he  contributed  most  gladly. 

From  his  youth  up  he  was  a  radical  tem- 
perance man.  He  was  Grand  Scribe  of 
the  Grand  Division  of  the  Sons  of  Tem- 
perance in  Vermont  for  8  years,  and  also 
Grand  Worthy  Patriarch  of  the  Sons  of 
Temperance  of  Vermont  for  some  time. 
He  worked  ardently  to  accomplish  every 
purpose  he  determined  upon,  contributing 
liberally  both  of  time  and  money  to  any- 
thing of  a  public  nature.     He  was  no  office 


seeker  or  office  shunner,  but  was  careful  to 
honor  any  office  which  he  held.  He  was 
deeply  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the 
country,  and  when  the  late  rebellion  broke 
out,  and  during  its  continuance,  he  gave 
himself  almost  entirely  to  the  country's 
service,  with  an  enthusiasm  and  hopeful- 
ness that  was  an  inspiration  to  all  around 
him.  As  chairman  of  the  board  of  select- 
men during  the  greater  part,  if  not  all,  of 
its  continuance,  he  was  the  strongest 
among  the  strong.  There  was  no  call  for 
soldiers  but  what  was  filled  promptly.  He 
fully  believed  that  it  was  for  the  town's 
best  interest  to  "  pay  as  it  went,"  and  was 
such  a  strengthener  to  the  weak,  that 
Waterbur}-  was  substantially  free  from 
debt  at  the  close  of  the  war. 

Mr.  Wells  lived  in  the  faith  that  work 
was   honorable,  and   his  whole    life    con- 
formed to  his  faith  ;   his  boys,  too,  having 
been  reared  in  it,  have  cheerfully  and  faith-  . 
fully  followed  him  in  his  faith  and  practice. 

Mr.  Wells  was  married  to  Miss  Eliza 
Carpenter,  second  daughter  of  Judge  Dan 
Carpenter,  Jan.  13,  1831.  This  choice 
of  a  wife  was  a  most  fortunate  one  for 
him,  as  his  subsequent  life  demonstrat- 
ed. They  buried  two  children  in  in- 
fancy, but  reared  7  sons  and  i  daughter. 
Four  of  the  sons  were  engaged  more  or 
less  in  the  conflict  for  the  Union,  and 
one  of  them,  William,  attained  the  rank 
of  Brevet  Major  General  of  Volunteers. 
Roswell,  the  eldest,  is  in  business  at 
Waupun,  Wis.  William  is  Collector  of 
Customs  for  the  District  of  Vermont,  re- 
siding at  Burlington.  Curtis  is  Cashier  of 
the  Waterbury  National  Bank.  Edward, 
Henry  and  Fred  are  members  of  the  firm 
of  Wells,  Richardson  &  Co.,  of  Burling- 
ton, (wholesale  dealers  in  drugs  and  medi- 
cines) .  Charles  is  employed  in  the  Customs 
Department  of  the  Government,  residing 
at  St.  Albans,  and  Sarah  C,  is  the  wife  of 
James  W.  Brock  of  Montpelier,  (1882). 
During  the  war  and  since,  these  sons  of 
Mr.  Wells  have  demonstated  the  great 
truth  that  intelligent  labor  faithfully  pur- 
sued, wins. 

Mr.  Wells'  impulses  were  generally 
working  good  results.     He  was  an  honest 


854 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


man  in  all  his  relations  to  life.  Hating 
dishonesty,  despising  cant  and  abhorring 
hypocrisy,  he  passed  a  life  which  left  ev- 
idences that  our  little  part  of  the  world 
was  better  for  his  having  lived.  He  died 
respected  by  all,  and  mourned  by  many.     ' 

Mrs.  Wells  died  Aug.  5,  1873.  She 
was  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
church,  Waterbury. 

[We  asked  Gen.  Wells  for  his  war  record 
for  Waterbury  in  our  Gazetteer  in  1876, 
choosing  it  from  his  own  pen.  The  fol- 
lowing brief  paper  is  his  return]  : 

William  Wells,  born  in  Waterbury,  Vt., 
Dec.  14,  1837,  entered  the  service  as  a 
private  soldier  in  Co.  C,  ist  Regiment 
V'ermont  Cavalry,  in  1861  ;  was  promoted 
to  1st  Lieutenant,  Captain,  Major,  Colonel, 
Brev.  Brig.  General,  Brig.  Gen.  and  Brev. 
Maj.  Gen.  Vols. ;  was  mustered  out  of 
service  Jan.  16,  1866;  represented  Water- 
bury ni  the  Legislature  1865  and  1866; 
was  Adjutant  and  Inspector  General  of 
Vermont  from  the  ist  of  Oct.  1866,  to 
May  I,  1872,  when  he  was  appointed  Col- 
lector of  Customs  for  the  District  of  Vt., 
which  position  he  now  holds.  w.  w. 

From  the  Burlington  Free  Press,  1872. 

Gen.  Wells,  born  in  1837,  had  been 
engaged  in  business  with  his  father,  till 
shortly  before  the  war  broke  out.  He 
went  into  the  service  as  ist  Lieutenant  of 
Co.  C,  of  the  1st  Vermont  Cavalry,  was 
promoted  to  be  Captain  before  the  regi- 
ment reached  the  field,  and  was  made 
Major,  Oct.  30,  1862.  He  was  wounded 
in   action,   at   Hagerstown,   Md.,  July  6, 

1863,  and  Sept.  13,  1863,  at  Culpepper, 
by  the  explosion  of  a  shell,  which  also 
wounded  Gen.  Custer.  He  was  promoted 
to  the  Colonelcy  of  the  regiment,  in  June, 

1864,  commanded  and  fought  the  regiment 
during  its  arduous  service  in  the  Shenan- 
doah Valley  during  that  summer  and  fall, 
till  he  was  placed  in  command  of  a  brigade 
of  Cavalry.  February  22,  1865,  he  was 
promoted  Brigadier  General  for  gallant 
and  meritorious  service,  and  May  19,  1865, 
was  appointed  Brigadier  General. 

He  commanded  a  cavalry  brigade  at 
Winchester  and  at  Cedar  Creek,  in  which 
battle  his  old  regiment,  the  ist  Vermont, 
took  23  pieces  "of  artillery — the  heaviest 
capture  ever  made  by  one  regiment  in  the 
war — and  was  in  command  under  Sheridan 
throughout  the  rest  of  the  war,  up  to  the 
surrender  of  Lee  at  Appomattox  Court 
House.  After  that  he  was  in  command  of 
a  division  near  Washington,  till  mustered 
out  of  the  service.     He  came  home  a  Bre- 


vet Major  General  of  Volunteers,  and  with 
as  clean  and  honorable  a  record  as  any 
soldier  that  Vermont  sent  to  the  war. 

In  1866,  Gen.  Wells  was  elected  Adju- 
tant and  Inspector  General  of  Vermont, 
.succeeding  Gen.  P.  T.  Washburn  in  that 
office,  which  he  has  held  up  to  his  present 
appointment, — [Collector  of  Customs  for 
the  District  of  Vermont  at  Burlington.] 
For  several  years  past  Gen.  Wells  has 
been  a  resident  of  this  city,  Burlington, 
and  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Henry  &  Co., 
wholesale  drug  merchants.  His  personal 
standing  is  high,  as  a  man  of  integrity, 
good  sense,  correct  habits,  and  unblemish- 
ed character,  and  his  appointment  will  be 
generally  accepted,  throughout  the  State, 
as  one  eminently  "fit  to  be  made." 

The  General  holds  the  honor  of  having 
received  the  greatest  number  of  promo- 
tions of  any  Vermont  officer  during  the 
war.  He  enlisted  from  his  native  town, 
Waterbury. 

LOCATION  OF  THE  REFORM  SCHOOL. 

[Reasons  for  the  location  at  Waterbury — from  the 
First  Reform  School  Report.] 

Omitting  details  and  particulars,  it  is 
sufficient  to  say  that  we  found  the  condi- 
tions we  had  prescribed  for  a  location,  best 
answered  at  Waterbury,  on  the  spot  where 
the  institution  stands. 

These  conditions  were,  first,  not  far  from 
100  acres  of  good  land  suitably  divided  as 
desirable  into  about  equal  parts  of  tillage, 
meadow,  pasture  and  woodland.  Next, 
that  the  farm  should  all  be  in  sight  of  the 
house,  and  be  taken  in  at  a  glance  from 
any  point  within  it,  a  very  important  con- 
dition, which  is  perfectly  answered  in  the 
spot  we  have  chosen.  The  boys  wherever 
they  are  at  work  on  the  farm,  are  never  out 
of  sight  or  hearing.  As  a  matter  of  secu- 
rity, convenience  and  advantage  for  an  es- 
tablishment like  ours,  the  value  of  this  fea- 
ture can  hardly  be  overestimated.  Besides 
the  utility  and  practical  advantage,  it  adds 
very  much  to  the  beauty  of  the  situation, 
imparting  a  sense  of  unity  and  complete- 
ness, and  more  of  the  feeling  of  home. 
We  did  not  overlook  the  influence  of  nat- 
ural security  in  fixing  upon  the  spot  we 
were  to  call  our  home.  We  rejected  situ- 
ations, whatever  might  be  their  advantages 
in  other  respects,  that  were  desolate,  iso- 


.^S^"^ 


WATERBURY. 


855 


]ate.  distant,  cut  off  from  human  society 
and  neighborhood,  easy  access  of  friends 
and  visitors,  and  from  the  free,  warm  and 
strong  pulsations  of  the  great  social  heart ; 
we  resolved  if  possible  to  place  ourselves 
in  a  situation  where  nature  and  man  could 
exert  their  best  influence  upon  us. 

Hence  as  a  third  condition,  we  deter- 
mined that  our  location  be  near  the  rail- 
road, and  not  more  than  one  mile  from  a 
depot,  and  we  concluded  that  a  thriving 
business  village,  and  a  live  depot,  were 
much  to  be  preferred  to  a  place  of  little 
business,  and  a  depot  where  ready  convey- 
ance for  visitors  could  not  be  found.  We 
thought  it  very  desirable,  (and  have  found 
it  so)  that  we  should  be  within  easy  walk 
of  the  station,  and  the  churches  and  busi- 
ness centre  of  the  town.  Finally,  if  the 
place  answering  these  conditions  should  be 
near  the  centre  of  the  State  it  would  be  so 
much  the  better  for  that. 

These  conditions  we  found  more  nearly 
fulfilled  in  our  present  site  than  any  other 
that  was  brought  to  our  notice.  The  scen- 
ery is  beautiful,  the  land  fertile  and  easy  of 
cultivation  and  of  access  in  all  parts. 
There  is  also  an  abundant  supply  of  water 
brought  from  the  hill  in  the  rear  by  an 
aqueduct  to  the  house  and  barn.  In  these 
respects,  the  site  is  unequaled,  and  its  re- 
lation to  the  road,  the  depot  and  the  vil- 
lage is  all  that  could  be  desired.  It  has 
besides,  the  advantage  of  centrality  in  the 
State. 

HANNAH     GALE, 

daughter  of  Peter  and  Hannah  Gale,  was 
born  in  Waterbury,  Dec.  28,  1824.  She 
was  married  to  Samuel  S.  Luce,  of  Stowe, 
in  1847.  In  1857,  they  removed  from 
Waterbury  to  Galesville,  Wis.,  where  Mr. 
Luce,  carpenter  and  architect,  superintend- 
ed the  building  of  the  University.  In 
i860,  he  began  to  publish  and  edit  The 
Galesville  Transcript.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Luce 
are  both  good  writers  of  prose  and  poetry. 
They  have  three  children.       R.  butler. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Luce  have  published  to- 
gether a  volume,  small  12  mo..  208  pp. 

Poems.     By  S.  S.  &  H.  G.  Luce.     Trem- 
pealeau :  Chas.  A.  Leith,  publisher,  1876. 


OUR   OWN   GREEN    HILLS. 

BY  HANNAH  GALE  LUCE. 

The  Switzer  loves  those  Alpine  peaks. 
Where  sweep  the  clouds  along, — 

So  worship  we  our  own  green  hills, 
And  clierish  them  in  song. 

And  were  I  in  a  foreign  land, 

'Mid  classic  halls  of  Rome, 
I'd  turn  from  all  to  fondly  gaze 

Upon  my  mountain  home. 

I'd  see  among  my  native  hills 

The  cottage  'neath  the  trees— 
The  tall  elms  waving  gracefully 

To  music  In  the  breeze. 

The  bright  Winooski  flowing  near. 
Through  waving  meadows  green — 

The  lilacs  where  the  robins  sing. 
When  earliest  flowers  are  seen. 

The  distant  church  spire  bathed  in  light. 

Like  shaft  of  burnished  gold— 
The  green  where  roseate  children  play, 

As  in  the  days  of  old. 

Old  Mansfield  rears  his  nigged  face. 

Upturned  to  meet  the  sky; 
And  south,  the  '•Couching  Lion"  lifts 

His  beetling  crags  on  high. 

Full  many  an  ancient  legend  wild 

I've  heard  the  aged  tell, 
Of  precious  ores  in  caverns  hid, 

And  kept  by  mystic  spell. 

An  Allen's  dust  reposes  now, 

Near  by  the  quiet  lake; 
No  more  those  brave  "  Green  Mountain  boys' 

The  forest  echoes  wake.. 

But  treasured  be,  in  every  heart. 

The  love  it  bears  for  them— 
Each  mountain  seems  their  monument — 

The  winds,  their  requiem. 

Yes,  dear  to  us  our  mountains  green— 

The  home  of  virtues  rare — 
And  dear  their  noble-hearted  sons. 

And  daughters  good  and  fair. 

When  ray  freed  spirit  seeks  a  home 

Above  all  earthly  ills, 
Here  may  my  humble  grave  be  found. 

Amid  our  verdant  hills  I 

THE   VILLAGE   DOCTOR. 

BY   SAMUEL  PLAYTON  LUCE. 

I  see  him  still,  us  erst  of  yore. 

With  furrowed  cheek,  and  whitened  brow; 
Though  he's  been  dead  of  years  a  score, 

I  see  him  stand  before  me  now. 
I  seem  to  see  his  withered  form 

Bestride  his  faithful  white-faced  mare, 
With  old  brown  saddle-bags  behind. 

Whose  odor  'twas  a  grief  to  bear. 
With  chronic  cough  I  hear  him  pass- 
He  digs  his  steed  with  vigorous  heel. 
Whose  callous  sides,  from  daily  thumps. 

Had  long  since  lost  the  power  to  feel. ' 
The  constant  grin  upon  his  face — 

His  light  "  te  he!  "  at  human  pain. 
As  oft  he  wrenched  the  oftending  tooth, 

Our  memory  ever  will  retain. 


8s6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


But  deeply  down  witliin  liis  breast, 

Beneath  a  mail  like  Milan  steel, 
'Twas  said  by  tliose  wlio  knew  him  best, 

"The  doctor  has  a  heart  to  feel." 
'Twas  in  tlie  old  Green  Mountain  State, 

'Mid  deep,  dread  winter's  drifting  snow, 
The  evening  hour  was  waxing  late, 

Some  forty  years  or  more  ago. 
We  sat  around  the  ample  hearth. 

Where  maple  logs  were  blazing  bright; 
Glad  songs  arose,  and  social  mirth. 

Upon  that  dismal  winter  night. 
The  storm-cloud  hung  on  Mansfield's  brow— 

The  wind  blew  piercingly  and  chill ; 
Fierce  through  the  leafless  branches  shrieked. 

And  roared  along  the  fir-clad  hill. 
The  deep'ning  snow,  that  all  day  long 

Had  fallen  silently  and  fast. 
Now  densely  filled  the  frosty  air, 

And  piled  in  drifts  before  the  blast. 
And  still  we  sat— the  hours  sped — 

The  storm  increased  with  fearful  might;— 
"I  hope,"  our  tender  mother  said, 

"  N'o  one's  abroad  this  dreadful  night." 
Our  mother's  voice  had  liariily  ceased, 

When  sudden  through  the  opening  door. 
O'er  drifts,  the  quaint  old  doctor  sprung. 

And  forward  fell  upon  the  floor. 
'  brow  was  crusted  o'er  with  ice, 

And  crisp  and  frozen  was  his  cheek ; 
His  limbs  were  paralyzed  with  cold; 

For  once,  the  doctor  could  not  speak. 
With  genial  warmth,  and  tender  care. 

He  soon  revived,  and  said :    "  Come,  Bill, 
Be  kind  enough  to  get  my  mare,— 

1  must  reach  Martin's,  on  the  hill." 
Then  on  again,  o'er  trackless  snow. 

Against  the  biting  winter  blast. 
Without  the  hope  of  worldly  gain. 

Through  mountain  drifts,  the  doctor  passed. 
Far  up  the  winding  mountain  road. 

Through  forest  dark  and  blinding  snow, 
He  reached  the  desolate  abode 

Of  sickness,  poverty  and  woe. 
Long  years  have  passed ;  yet  oft  I  ask, 

As  howls  the  tempest  in  its  might. 
While  sitting  by  the  evening  fire, 

"What  faithful  doctor  rides  to-niglit?" 
Yes,  faithful;  though  full  well  I  know 

The  world  is  sparing  of  its  praise; 
And  these  self-sacrilicing  men 

But  seldom  tempt  the  poet's  lays. 
And  yet,  1  trust,  when  at  tlie  last 

They  leave  the  world  of  human  strife, 
Like  him  "  who  loved  his  fellow-men," 

Their  names  shall  grace  the  "  Book  of  Life." 
Jan.  1871. 

[The  original  of  "The  Village  Doctor" 
was  Dr.  T.  B.  Downer,  who  for  many 
years  practiced  in  Stowe ;  but  in  middle 
life  removed  to  Waterbury  Centre,  and 
practiced  a  number  of  years  after.  He 
held  several  town  offices,  and  was  well 
known  in  Waterbury  forty  years  ago.  I 
knew  him  well  forty  and  fifty  years  ago. 

R.  BUTLER.] 


HON.    HENRY    F.    JANES. 
BY  EDWIN  F.  PALMER,  ESQ. 

Mr.  Janes  was  born  at  Brimfield,  Mass., 
Oct.  18,  1792,  and  died  at  Waterbury,  June 
6,  1879.  He  was  the  third  son  of  Solomon 
and  Beulah  Fisk  Janes,  whose  family  con- 
sisted of  4  boys  and  4  girls,  he  surviving 
them  all,  although  the  others  lived  to  a 
great  age.  In  early  childhood  he  moved 
with  his  father's  family  to  Calais,  this 
State,  where  his  boyhood  was  passed  ;  and 
which  town  was  re])resented  in  the  Legis- 
lature for  several  years  by  his  brother, 
Pardon.  The  Janeses  were  among  the 
pioneers  of  Vermont. 

Jonathan  Janes,  an  uncle  of  Henry  F., 
was  prominent  in  the  organization  of  the 
town  of  Richford,  March  30,  1799,  and 
elected  its  first  representative,  and  three 
times  after  in  succession ;  and  was  also 
judge  in  Franklin  County.  Hon.  Henry 
F.  Janes  studied  law  at  Montpelier.  While 
living  there  he  went  with  the  company 
from  that  town  to  the  battle  of  Plattsburgh. 
He  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion at  Waterbury  in  1817,  where  he  lived 
62  years  ;  without  avarice  acquired  a  com- 
petent fortune  ;  and  without  lust  for  power, 
or  a  resort  to  sinister  means,  but  solely 
through  the  solidity  of  his  judgment  and 
the  unquestioned  probity  of  his  character 
early  attained  a  commanding  influence  in 
his  town,  his  county  and  State.  He  was 
married  in  1826,  to  Miss  Fanny  Butler,  a 
daughter  of  Gov.  Butler.  Mrs.  Janes,  in 
whom  was  the  gentlest  refinement  without 
the  least  affectation,  or  love  of  display, 
inheriting  the  religious  traits  of  her  father, 
was  greatly  beloved  and  esteemed  by  all 
who  knew  her.  She  was  born  in  the  year 
1800,  and  survived  her  husband  2  years 
and  a  few  months. 

Soon  after  settling  in  Waterbury,  Mr. 
Janes  was  appointed  postmaster,  and  con- 
tinued to  hold  this  position  till  about  1829. 
He  was  one  of  the  State  councillors,  5 
years,  commencing  1830;  a  member  of 
Congress,  3  years,  commencing  1834; 
State  treasurer,  3  years,  commencing  1838  ; 
one  of  the  Council  of  Censors  in  1848; 
and  was  elected  several  times  to  the  Legis- 
lature, his  first  election  being  in  1854. 


WATERBURY. 


857 


Mr.  Janes  was  far  removed  both  by  na- 
ture and  the  whole  education  of  his  long 
life  from  those  well  described  by  the  phrase, 
^'  potins  callidi  qtiain  sappientcs,^'' — crafty, 
not  wise  ;  nor  did  he  belong  to  that  class 
of  public  men  well  delineated  by  Burns  in 
his  poem  on  Charles  James  Fox, 

"  How  vvisdoiii  and  folly  iiRet,  luix,  am)  unite: 

How  virtue  and  vice  blend  tlieirblaCK  and  tlieir  wliile." 

No  man  ever  saw  more  clearly  than  he, 
that  in  the  very  nature  of  God's  moral 
government  nothing  is,  or  can  be  even 
expedient,  that  is  not  inti^insically  just; 
and  no  man  ever  pursued  more  willingly 
or  tenaciously  what  his  conscience,  illum- 
ined by  a  powerful  judgment,  taught  him 
was  just. 

DR.     HENRY   JANES, 

was  born  in  this  town  Jan.  24,  1832.  He 
is  the  son  of  the  late  Hon.  Henry  F.  Janes, 
and  on  his  mother's  side,  a  grandson  of 
Gov.  Butler. 

We  find  the  following  truthful  sketch  of 
Dr.  Janes  in  the  "  Biographies  of  the 
members  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  Medical 
Association,"  published  at  Washington, 
D.  C.,  1877: — condensed. 

The  Doctor  received  his  academical  edu- 
cation at  Morrisville  and  at  St.  Johnsbury 
academies,  [etc].  His  medical  studies 
were  commenced  in  1852,  at  Waterbury, 
under  Dr.  J.  B.  Woodward.  He  attended 
his  first  course  of  medical  lectures  at 
Woodstock  College,  in  1852,  and  two 
courses  subsequently  at  the  College  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons,  in  New  York, 
where  he  graduated  M.  D.,  in  1855,  and 
was  appointed  assistant,  and  afterwards 
house  physician  in  Bellevue  Hospital,  New 
York  City.  In  1856,  he  went  into  practice 
at  Chelsea,  Mass.  ;  in  1857,  he  returned 
to  Waterbury,  where  he  soon  acquired  a 
good  professional  business;  in  1861,  en- 
tered the  army,  Surgeon  of  the  3d  Vt. 
Regt.  ;  1863,  commissioned  Surgeon,  U. 
S.  Army;  1865,  breveted  Lieut.  Col. ;  the 
greater  part  of  his  military  service  spent 
in  hospital  duty  ;  the  fall  of '62,  in  charge  of 
a  hospital  at  Burkettsville  ;  in  1863,  in  the 
winter,  at  Frederick,  Md.  ;  in  the  spring,  of 
the  hospitals  of  the  6th  Army  Corps  ;  sum- 
mer and  fall,  of  the  army  hospitals  in  and 
about  Gettysburg,  and  the  Letterman  Gen- 
eral Hospital,  in  which  were  about  2000 
severely  wounded,  from  the  Gettysburg 
battle-field,  with  a  view  of  studying  the 
results  of  treatment  of  fracture  and  ampu- 

108 


tations ;  winter  and  spring  of  1864,  of 
South  Street  General  Hospital,  Phila  ;  sum- 
mer of  '64,  in  charge  of  the  hospital 
steamer,  (of  Maine)  ;  fall  of '64,  till  the  close 
of  the  war,  in  charge  of  Sloan  General 
Hospital,  at  Montpelier  ;  and  left  the  army 
in  1866,  after  spending  the  remainder  of 
the  year  in  New  York,  making  a  special 
study  of  injuries  to  the  bones  and  brain, 
and  returned,  in  '67,  to  Waterbury,  where 
he  has  been  actively  engaged  in  practice 
until  the  pi-esent  tune,  excepting  in  '74, 
a  portion  of  which  he  was  traveling  in 
Europe.  His  practice  is  large  in  the  treat- 
ment of  nervous  diseases,  surgery,  and  con- 
sultations with  neighboring  physicians.  In 
'69  and  '70  he  published,  in  the  Transac- 
tions of  Vermont  Medical  Society,  a  paper 
on  the  treatment  of  gunshot-fracture,  es- 
pecially of  the  femur.  In  '71,  '72,  '73, 
papers  on  some  of  the  incidents  following 
amputations;  in  '74,  amputations  at  the 
knee-joint ;  in  ''yj,  wrote  a  paper  on  spinal 
hemiplegia.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Wash- 
ington County  Medical  Society,  and  of  the 
American  Medical  Association ;  of  the 
Vermont  State  Medical  Society,  of  which 
he  was  president  in  1870,  and  which  he 
represented  at  the  meetings  of  the  Ameri- 
can Medical  Association  in  '60,  ''66,  '7 1  ,'80  ; 
of  the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society,  and 
an  honorary  member  of  the  California  State 
Medical  Society. 

In  1880,  when  the  Legislature  was  about 
to  elect  trustees  of  the  University  of 
Vermont,  the  members  of  the  medical  pro- 
fession, among  them  Dr.  Carpenter  of  Bur- 
lington, insisted  they  were  entitled  to  be  re- 
presented on  that  board  with  the  other  pro- 
fessions. They  put  forward  Dr.  Janes ; 
and  he  was  elected  unanimously  to  that 
position.  He  is  also  at  this  time  one  of  the 
medical  committee  of  the  Mary  Fletcher 
Hospital,  Burlington — and  it  is  no  exagge- 
ration to  say,  no  man  in  this  State  stands 
higher  in  his  profession  to-day  than  Dr. 
Janes.  .  E.  f.  p. 

DR.    HORACE   FALES. 

Dr.  Fales,  born  in  Sharon,  Feb.  16, 
1823,  received  his  education  at  Kimball 
Union  Academy,  Meriden,  N.  H. ;  gradu- 
ated at  Woodstock  Medical  College,  1848, 
and  the  same  year  located  to  practice  in 
this  town.  In  1851,  he  was  married  to 
Miss  Henrietta  A.  Sheple,  daughter  of 
David  A.  Sheple.  During  these  34  years, 
he  has  had  a  large  and  lucrative  practice, 


858 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


and  is  exceedingly  skilful.  He  brings  to 
bear  with  rare  tact  the  learning  of  the 
books  to  a  given  case ;  and  few  doctors 
ever  approached  the  sick  room  whose  man- 
ner and  words  were  better  adapted  to  in- 
spire courage  in  the  invalid,  and  to  divert 
for  the  time  his  mind  from  his  own  aches 
and  pains.  In  his  long  practice  he  has 
won  many  warm  friends  here. 

MR.    RUSSELL   BUTLER, 

the  youngest  of  Gov.  Butler's  family,  was 
born  Feb.  17,  1807,  in  this  town;  and  has 
resided  here  for  the  greater  part  of  his  life. 
He  was  fitted  for  college  at  the  academy 
at  Montpelier,  and  entered  the  University 
of  Vermont  in  1825.  He  was  compelled 
to  quit  the  University  after  2  years,  on  ac- 
count of  ill  health  ;  but  he  has  been  a  stu- 
dent and  a  great  lover  of  books  from  his 
youth.  Although  Mr.  Butler  has  ever 
peremptorily  refused  political  honor,  which 
his  friends  would  willingly  have  conferred 
on  him,  he  has  always  taken  a  deep  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  the  country  and  this  com- 
munity ;  and  his  influence  has  ever  been 
on  the  side  of  the  right,  good  government, 
education  and  religion.  The  purity  of  his 
life,  his  morals,  or  even  his  motives,  we 
have  never  heard  questioned.       e.  f.  p. 

MK.   BUTLER'S    I'APKKS— CONTINUED. 

HENRY    FAMILY. 

Sylvester  Henry  came  to  this  town 
early  in  the  present  century,  and  for  many 
years  held  a  prominent  position.  He  was 
several  years  one  of  the  board  of  select- 
men, represented  the  town  in  the  General 
Assembly  2  years,  and  was  several  years 
justice  of  peace.  He  was  a  man  of  much 
reading  for  the  times,  and  of  excellent 
judgment,  particularly  in  property  values. 
At  his  decease,  he  left  a  large  landed  es- 
tate. 

Mrs.  Henry's  maiden  name  was  Sybil 
Proctor.  She  was  a  woman  of  usefulness  ; 
all  the  neighborhood,  in  sickness  or  dis- 
tress, appreciated  her  skillful  nursing  and 
helpful  hand. 

This  couple,  together  with  their  4  sons 
and  4  daughters,  made  up  a  family  in  re- 
spect to  family   coincidents,  remarkable. 


Two  of  the  sons  reared  families  of  the  same 
number,  one  having  the  same  proportion 
of  sons  and  daughters. 

James  M.,  the  eldest  son,  was  born  in 
Waterbury  in  1809  ;  attended  school  in  his 
native  district ;  but  an  unusually  strong 
desire  for  knowledge  led  him  to  read 
much  and  closely  observe  men  and  things. 
He  was  eminently  qualified  to  judge  human 
character.  Such  a  mind,  schooled  in  the 
rough  experiences  of  life,  led  him  to  ac- 
cept men  as  they  were,  without  attempting 
the  herculean  task  of  making  them  what 
they  should  be.  To  this  may  be  attributed 
his  peculiar  influence  on  the  opinions  of 
men,  especially  in  politics.  If  he  entered 
the  domain  of  religion  or  morals,  it  was 
the  better  to  enforce  his  public  policy. 
The  interests  of  one's  country  are  certainly 
higher  than  those  of  individuals,  or  even 
the  local  affairs  of  a  community. 

He  did  not  find  the  severe  labors  of  the 
farm  sufficiently  remunerative  to  make  the 
business  attractive.  He  thought  that  it 
was  the  work  of  the  brain  that  achieved 
success  and  fortune.  After  some  years  of 
reverses  and  unsettled  habits,  he  happily 
fell  in  with  the  temperance  reformers,  and 
brighter  prospects  dawned  on  his  future. 
At  this  time  better  influences  took  posses- 
sion of  his  nature,  gained  the  mastery 
over  the  power  of  habit,  and  asserted  the 
power  of  the  will.  It  is  a  critical,  but  a 
grand  period  in  life  when  a  noble  man- 
hood triumphs  once  for  all  over  a  habit 
which  has  long  seemed  an  invincible  foe. 
A  good  degree  of  success  attended  his 
business  enterprises.  He  was  twice  elect- 
ed to  the  General  Assembly,  and  had  pre- 
viously been  justice  of  peace  several  years. 
He  died,  aged  about  55. 

Gen.  W.  W.  Henry,  eldest  son  of 
James  Henry,  is  U.  S.  Marshal  for  the 
District  of  Vt.,  and  years  ago  represented, 
first,  Washington,  then  Chittenden  Co.,  in 
the  Vt.  Senate,  and  was  2  years  presi- 
dent of  the  board  of  aldermen  in  Burling- 
ton. 

John  F.  Henry,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y., 
from  a  moderate  beginning  in  Waterbury, 
has  grown  into  a  very  extensive  trade  in 


WATERBURY 


859 


drugs  and  medicines.  He  has  once  or 
twice  run  for  the  office  of  mayor  of  the 
city,  and  is  said  to  have  run  above  the 
party  strength. 

Sylvester,  2d  son  of  Sylvester,  had  6 
sons  and  2  daughters — a  family  the  same 
number  as  his  father's  and  brother's.  He 
accumulated  a  large  property ;  was  several 
times  elected  constable  ;  three  of  his  sons 
served  in  the  army.  He  died  in  1871, 
aged  about  58. 

Luther,  4th  son  of  Sylvester,  was  born 
in  Waterbury  in  1826.  At  the  age  of  14, 
his  father  died,  in  his  will  having  appoint- 
ed the  selectmen  as  guardians  of  this  son, 
thus  showing  his  confidence  in  their  in- 
tegrity and  capability. 

He  completed  his  school  life  at  Newbury 
Seminary;  when  about  21,  is  said  to  have 
entered  into  some  speculations  in  patent 
rights  which  proved  very  unsuccessful ; 
about  this  time,  began  the  study  of  law 
with  Hon.  Paul  Dillingham;  was  admitted 
to  the  Washington  Co.  Bar  in  May,  1849  '1 
not  discouraged  by  his  first  financial  ven- 
ture, he  had  learned  caution  and  wisdom. 
Of  his  professional  capabilities,  said  L.  L. 
Durant,  in  an  address  before  the  Wash- 
ington Co.  Bar : 

"As  a  lawyer,  he  was  never  deemed 
learned  in  the  books  ;  but  in  a  knowledge 
of  men  and  things,  he  was  not  to  be  ex- 
celled. With  keen  discrimination  and 
quick  discernment,  he  readily  grasped  the 
strong  points  of  a  case,  and  bringing  all 
his  efforts  to  bear  upon  them,  could  not 
easily  be  led  away.  He  was,  so  to  speak, 
a  natural  lawyer,  as  all  who  entered  the 
lists  with  him  can  testify." 

Mr.  Henry  took  an  active  interest  in 
building  the  bridge  that  connects  Water- 
bury  and  Duxbury,  and  in  opening  a  new 
street  to  it.  He  also  made  strenuous 
efforts  to  get  the  Newbury  Seminary  re- 
moved to  Waterbury,  and  made  an  able 
argument  in  favor  of  the  measure. 

He  was  twice  married ;  the  first  time  to 
Flora  Taplin  ;  the  second,  to  Katherine  E. 
Royce.  Three  children  survive  him.  He 
died  Jan.  i,  1867,  aged  40. 

LEANDER   HUTCHINS 

was  born  in  Montpelier,  June  27,  1798, 
where 'he  lived  till  21,  after  which  he  passed 


some  3  years  in  the  Western  and  South- 
ern States,  engaged  in  trade,  and  in  1822, 
came  to  Waterbury,  and  entered  into  part- 
nership with  Amasa  Pride  and  Roswell 
Wells,  under  the  name  of  L.  Hutchins  & 
Co.  The  firm  began  business  on  the  cor- 
ner now  occupied  by  C.  E.  Wyman,  in  a 
small  wooden  building,  which  Mr.  Hutchins 
replaced  about  1 2  years  later  by  the  one  now 
standing.  He  put  up  in  1826  a  dwelling- 
house  adjoining  Knight's  Block  on  the 
east.  In  that  year,  the  firm  was  changed 
to  Hutchins  &  Pride;  and  later,  to  Hutch- 
ins, Wells  and  Co.  In  1835,  it  became 
L.  &  Geo.  W.  Hutchins.  Some  3  years 
after  the  name  of  Geo.  W.  Hutchius  ap- 
pears alone.  About  1845,  Mr.  Hutchins 
built  and  stocked  a  starch-factory  near  the 
Centre  Village  ;  burned,  not  rebuilt ;  [see 
fires.]  Previous  with  the  late  Hon.  H.  F. 
Janes,  he  bought  the  extensive  wild  lands 
of  Vermont  owned  by  the  Boardman  Bros, 
of  New  York,  for  whom  he  had  been 
agent ;  much  of  this  land  was  not  disposed 
of  at  the  decease  of  the  purchasers.  For 
a  few  years  he  owned  and  personally  man- 
aged a  farm  on  the  old  hill  road  to  Stowe, 
a  mile  or  two  from  Waterbury  village. 

Hf  married  Jan.  30,  1826,  Martha  Pride, 
who  died  in  December,  1834,  leaving  two 
daughters,  Mrs.  C.  W.  Arms  and  Mrs.  Dr. 
Woodward,  who  survive  both  parents.  In 
1837,  he  married  Martha  W.  Atkins,  who 
is  now  living. 

Mr.  Hutchins  died  Feb.  17,  1879,  aged 
80  years.  After  a  residence  of  nearly  60 
years  in  Waterbury,  actively  engaged  in 
business  dealings  with  its  citizens,  his  rec- 
ord is  that  of  a  prudent,  reliable  business 
man,  and  valuable,  discreet  friend,  con- 
servative on  all  subjects  of  public  interest, 
whether  politics,  morals  or  religion.  He 
united  with  the  Congregational  church  in 
1835  or  '36,  and  during  the  later  years  of 
his  life  was  one  of  its  principal  supporters, 
as  he  was  one  of  its  wealthiest  members. 
Somewhat  reserved  in  manner,  he  was 
genial  with  his  friends,  and  often  indulged 
in  sallies  of  humor.  He  had  a  great  aver- 
sion to  display  and  ostentation,  as  shown 
in  his  whole  manner  of  life,  and  seemed 
to  have   no  particular   taste  or  fancy  for 


86o 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


political  preferment,  though  far  from  indif- 
ferent to  the  character  and  principles  of 
those  who  controlled  and  directed  public 
aifairs ;  and  for  some  12  years,  he  per- 
formed the  duties  of  treasurer  to  the  town, 
and  when  the  bank  of  Waterbury  was  or- 
ganized, he  was  chosen  president,  for 
which  position  he  was  eminently  qualified, 
and  held  this  office  20  years  or  more, 
when  he  requested  to  be  relieved  from  its 
responsibility. 

MOODY   FAMILY. 
From  a  sketch  in  tlie  "  Watclinian." 

Joseph  Moody  and  his  wife  Avis,  came 
to  Waterbury  from  Vershire  in  1834,  with 
6  sons  and  3  daughters :  Daniel  is  now 
79;  Nathaniel,  75;  William,  died  in 
1865,  age  57;  Elisha,  68;  Joseph,  67; 
George  W.,  59;  Betsey,  71  ;  Avis,  died  in 
1843,  at  24;  Angelina  is  54.  The  pres- 
ent average  height  of  the  brothers  is  6  ft. 
I  inch,  weight  225  pounds.  Joseph  Moody 
Sr.,  weighed  308  pounds,  his  wife  228. 
Joseph  Moody,  Jr.,  was  State  Senator  in 
1853,  went  West  in  '54;  located  at  St. 
Anthony,  and  subsequently  at  Sauk  Rap- 
ids, Minn.,  where  he  is  a  successful  oper- 
ator in  real  estate,  and  is  a  county  justice. 
The  other  brothers  have  remained  resi- 
dents of  Waterbury.  Joseph  Moody,  Sr., 
and  after  him  his  sons,  were  well  known 
in  the  State  as  stock  or  cattle  buyers,  and 
have  been  active  farmers  and  operators 
where  money  was  to  be  made.  Remin- 
iscences of  their  trading  days  are  a  con- 
stant source  of  entertainment  at  the  vil- 
lage rendezvous.  George,  by  virtue  of  his 
imposing  corporation,  is  titular  governor, 
and  Elisha  the  wag  of  the  town.  Politi- 
cally, Nathaniel  is  the  only  republican 
among  the  brothers  ;  the  others  were  war 
democrats,  and  now  affiliate  with  the  dem- 
ocratic party ;  but  politics  are  not  always 
inherited,  the  sons  of  the  brothers  are  re- 
publicans. Justin  W.,  a  son  of  William, 
has  been  for  a  long  time  the  efficient  post- 
master, and  Eugene,  son  of  George,  an 
active  worker  in  the  party,  as  well  as  one 
of  the  most  thriving  young  farmers  in  the 
town  or  county. 


DR.    OLIVER   W.    DREW 

came  to  Waterbury  about  1820,  from 
South  Woodstock,  where  his  father  was  a 
physician.  He  lived  and  practiced  medi- 
cine here  about  55  years,  after  which  he 
and  Mrs.  Drew  went  to  live  with  their  only 
daughter,  who  had  married  a  clergyman 
and  lived  in  Acton,  Mass. 

As  a  man,  a  physician,  a  citizen,  a  friend, 
and  a  professor  of  religion,  he  was  sensible 
and  practical,  trustworthy  and  conscien- 
tious in  all  duties.  He  was  three  times 
married ;  first  to  Miss  Arms,  by  whom 
he  had  two  children,  a  daughter  who  died 
young  and  suddenly,  and  Frederick,  who 
became  a  doctor  and  settled  at  Ft.  Riley. 
His  second  wife,  Miss  Woodward,  was  a 
sister  of  the  late  Dr.  Woodward  of  Mont- 
pelier,  formerly  of  Waterbury.  His  third 
wife  survives  him.  Dr.  Drew  died  in  Mas- 
sachusetts about  1878,  and  his  remains 
were  brought  to  Waterbury  for  burial. 

RICHARD   HOLDEN. 

Prominent  among  the  very  early  settlers 
of  the  town,  as  early  as  1788,  was  Richard 
Holden.  He  was  moderator  of  the  meet- 
ing when  the  town  was  organized  (1790)  ; 
chosen  first  selectman  at  this  meeting,  as 
he  was  in  1791  and  several  years  after  [see 
list  of  selectmen] ,  and  for  many  years  held 
the  office  of  justice  of  peace;  and  1793, 
was  sent  to  the  Constitutional  Convention. 
His  family  occupied  a  respectable  position 
in  the  social  circles  of  that  period.  The 
sons  and  daughters  were  well  educated  for 
the  times,  limited  as  were  the  opportuni- 
ties of  education.  The  oldest  son,  Guy 
C,  was  a  teacher  of  the  district  school  in 
1810,  '12.  The  writer  has  seen  a  receipt 
of  payment  as  teacher,  signed  by  him  and 
bearing  the  last  above  date.  Two  years 
after,  Holden,  with  a  group  of  small  boys, 
was  listening  on  the  hill  side  to  hear  the 
cannon  the  day  before  the  battle  of  Platts- 
burgh,  but  on  the  day  of  the  battle,  Sunday, 
Sept.  II,  1814,  there  was  no  need  of  listen- 
ing to  hear  the  broadside  discharges  of 
artillery  in  the  lake  action,  to  which  a 
hundred  of  Waterbury  boys  were  witnesses. 
In  1794,  the  representative  to  the  General 


WATERBURY. 


86 1 


Assembly  of  Vt.,  took  with  him  this  rather 
singular  certificate  : 

"Waterbury,  Oct.  6,  1794. 
This  may  certify  that  Mr.  Ezra  I3utler, 
who  was  duly  elected  as  member  to  attend 
the  General  Assembly  for  the  town  of 
Waterbury  for  the  year  ensuing,  has  for 
about  three  years  made  a  profession  of 
religion,  and  therefore  has  declined  taking 
an  oath  in  the  common  form,  but  choses 
whenever  that  he  was  elected  into  any  town 
office,  to  take  the  affirmation. 

Richard  Holden, 
Jjtstice  of  Peaces 

Some  62,  possibly  64  years  ago,  the 
Holden  family  migrated  to  Northern  New 
York.  Giles  H.,  the  2d  son,  and  most  of 
the  family,  settled  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Genesee  river,  a  post  of  entry  6  miles 
north  of  Rochester,  Holden  being  col- 
lector and  keeper  of  the  lighthouse  in  1829, 
as  he  had  been  some  years  before  and  was 
after  that  date  some  years.  At  the  date 
named  they  were  comfortably  situated,  and 
it  is  believed  were  some  time  after. 

PAUL     DILLINGHAM. 

BY   B.   r.   FIFIELD,   ESQ. 

Paul  Dillingham,  son  of  Paul  and  Han- 
nah (Smith)  Dillingham,  was  born  in 
Shutesbury,  Mass.,  Aug.  10,  1799.  His 
father  served  the  country  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  first  in  the  Mass.  militia  6 
months,  then  in  the  Continental  Army  3 
years,  June,  1777,  to  1780,  his  regiment 
being  connected  with  that  part  of  the  army 
which  was  under  tlie  more  immediate  com- 
mand of  Gen.  Washington.  His  grand- 
father, John  Dillingham,  served  in  the 
"Old  French  War,"  and  was  killed  in 
September,  1759,  ^"  the  battle  preceding 
the  surrender  of  Quebec  to  Wolfe.  He 
was  thus  descended  from  brave  and  patri- 
otic ancestors,  and  as  it  will  be  seen,  pres- 
ently, transmitted  the  same  noble  qualities 
to  his  sons. 

When  about  6  years  old,  he  removed 
with  his  parents  to  Waterbury,  which  has 
ever  since  been  his  home.  In  1818,  '19, 
he  attended  the  Washington  County  Gram- 
mar School  at  Montpelier,  then  under  the 
tuition  of  Seneca  White,  a  recent  graduate 
of  Dartmouth  ;  and  in  1820,  commenced 
the  study  of  law  with  Hon.  Dan  Carpenter 


of  Waterbury.  He  was  admitted  to  the 
Washington  County  Bar  at  the  September 
term,  1824,  and  from  that  date  was  in  the 
active  practice  of  his  profession  until  1875. 
As  a  jury  lawyer,  he  long  stood  among  the 
first  in  Vermont. 

He  was  town  clerk  of  Waterbury  from 
1829  to  "44;  representative  to  the  Legis- 
lature in  1833,  '34,''37>  '38.  '39:  State's 
attorney  for  Washington  County  in  1835, 
'36,  ''yj ;  a  member  of  the  Constitutional 
Convention  1836,  '57,  '70;  State  Senator 
of  Washington  County  1841,  '42,  '61  ; 
and  in  1843,  was  elected  member  of  Con- 
gress, where  he  served  two  terms,  and  was 
on  the  committee  on  the  Judiciary.  In 
1862,  '63,  '64,  he  was  Lieutenant  Gover- 
nor, and  in  1865,  '66,  Governor  of  the 
State. 

Mr.  Dillingham  was  a  Democrat  by  birth 
and  education,  and  always  acted  with  the 
democratic  party;  not,  however,  without 
many  inward  and  some  outward  protests 
against  its  subserviency  to  slavery.  But 
after  the  attack  on  Fort  Sumter,  he  knew 
no  party  but  the  country,  nor  did  he  spare 
any  exertion  in  the  maintenance  of  the 
country's  cause.  During  the  presidential 
campaign  of  1864,  he  was  a  frequent 
speaker  at  popular  meetings,  not  only  in 
Vermont,  but  in  New  Hampshire  and  New 
York.  He  gave  two  sons  to  fight,  one  of 
them  to  die,  for  the  country.  Charles,  his 
oldest  son,  recruited  Co.  D,  of  the  2d 
Regt.,  in  May,  1861,  and  was  in  the  ser- 
vice till  the  winter  of  1863,  '64,  when  he 
was  honorably  discharged,  being  then 
Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  8th  Regt.  Ed- 
win, his  second  son,  [See  sketch  of  Major 
Edwin  Dillingham  in  paper  that  follows.] 

The  Governor  reared  a  family  of  7  chil- 
dren, 3  daughters  and  4  sons.  One  of  the 
daughters,  wife  of  J.  F.  Lamson,  Esq.,  of 
Boston,  died  in  1875.  One  remains  un- 
married, and  the  other  was  the  wife  of 
Senator  Carpenter  of  Wis.  ;  his  son,  Wm. 
P.  Dillingham,  is  practicing  law*  in  this 
county,  and  is  developing  many  of  the 
traits  of  character  which  have  rendered  his 
father  so  distinguished.  Charles  resides 
at  New  Orleans,  La.,  and  Frank  at  Mil- 
waukee, Wis. 


862 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL    MAGAZINE. 


The  many  public  positions  held  by  Mr. 
Dillingham,  both  by  the  choice  of  his 
neighbors,  as  well  as  of  the  whole  people 
of  the  State,  indicate  the  confidence  the 
public  have  had  in  his  integrity,  as  well  as 
his  ability,  and  that  it  was  well  deserved 
is  proved  by  this  fact  alone  ;  for  while  the 
State  is  sparsely  populated,  and  the  people 
as  a  rule  are  poor,  or  simply  independent, 
they  are  intelligent,  exceedingly  jealous  of 
their  rights  and  proud  of  their  public  men, 
and  thus  it  has  seldom  happened  that  high 
public  places  have  been  unworthily  con- 
ferred. 

But  Mr.  Dillingham's  fame  rests  yet 
more  in  his  professional  life.  I  first  knew 
him  in  1856.  He  was  then  in  the  very 
vigor  of  manhood  and  in  the  full  tide  of 
professional  success,  and  his  reputation 
was  that  of  the  very  first  jury  advocate  in 
the  State. 

At  this  time,  Lucius  B.  Peck,  Timothy 
P.  Redfield  and  Stoddard  B.  Colby,  to  say 
nothing  of  numerous  other  lawyers  of 
superior  ability,  were  in  full  practice  at 
Washington  County  Bar,  and  it  can  easily 
be  seen  how  a  natural  rivalry  among  men 
of  so  much  talent,  not  unfrequently  brought 
out  exhibitions  of  eloquence  and  intellectual 
strength,  which  gave  to  this  bar  a  position 
equal,  if  not  superior,  to  any  other  in  the 
State. 

Often  at  this  time  was  the  court  house 
packed,  and  an  interested  and  appreciative 
audience  would  stay  for  hours  to  listen  to 
the  grapple  of  these  men  in  legal  debate. 
The  great  reputation  that  Mr.  Dillingham 
then  had  as  a  jury  advocate,  of  course 
made  him  the  subject  of  general  observa- 
tion, and  particularly  was  this  so  among 
students  and  the  younger  members  of  the 
bar ;  but  ij;  is  quite  difiicult  to  present  any 
picture  of  him  that  will  do  him  adequate 
justice.  He  must  have  been  seen  and 
heard  wlien  his  blood  was  young,  to  be 
appreciated,  and  yet  they  who  saw  and 
heard  him  were  often  sorely  puzzled  to  find 
out  or  account  for  that  mysterious  power 
which  gave  him  such  wonderful  mastery  in 
jury  advocacy,  that  the  traditions  of  his 
great  efforts,  evanescent  as  such  things 
are,  will  last  for  half  a  century.     Among 


the  things  which  certainly  contributed  to 
it,  was  an  exceedingly  fine  presence.  He 
was  fully  6  feet  in  height,  and  weighed 
perhaps,  something  over  200  pounds. 
Physically,  well  rounded,  though  not  corp- 
ulent, his  step  was  elastic  and  his  bearing 
kindly,  warm-hearted,  frank  and  manly, 
and  his  intercourse  with  his  fellow-men 
carried  with  it  that  insinuating  address 
which  invited  respectful  familiarity  and 
cordial  friendship.  There  was  nothing  of 
the  aristocrat  about  him  :  nothing  distant 
or  reserved,  and  yet  there  was  a  dignified 
simplicity  which  always  commanded  re- 
spect. His  dark  hazel  eyes,  too,  beamed 
with  sympathy  and  kindliness,  and  his 
gestures,  movements  and  address  were 
natural,  easy  and  unaffected ;  and  above 
all  was  his  voice,  musical  and  sweet  as  a 
flute  in  its  lower  cadences  ;  but  in  passion 
or  excitement,  rising  in  its  notes  clear  and 
ringing,  it  resounded  like  the  music  of  the 
bugle. 

In  addition  to  these  things,  he  was  in 
the  enjoyment  of  excellent  health  and  a 
happy,  genial  temperament,  which  made 
everything  sunshine  about  him.  All  these 
advantages  were  nature's  gifts,  and  they 
were  never  tampered  with  or  impaired  by 
any  vice  or  bad  habit.  And  these  gifts, 
too,  are  not,  and  cannot  be  acquired.  He 
who  is  so  fortunate  as  to  possess  them, 
must  thank  his  Maker,  not  himself.  With 
these  gifts  he  coupled  an  instinctive  knowl- 
edge of  the  human  heart,  acquired  by  long 
experience  at  the  bar,  and  familiar  inter- 
course and  sympathy  with  his  fellow-men. 
He  never  was  a  law  student  in  the  highest 
sense  of  the  term  ;  never  the  mere  book- 
worm which  David  Paul  Brown  pronounces 
"a  mere  donkey;"  never  dealt  with  the 
sharjD  analysis  and  the  keen  intellectual 
dissection  of  great  subjects,  but  his  mind 
teemed  with  brilliant  conceptions,  glitter- 
ing generalities,  happy  conceits,  apt  il- 
lustrations and  appropriate  anecdotes, 
which  were  interspersed  so  ingeniously 
through  the  argument  as  the  discussion 
went  on,  that  great  audiences  have  stood 
upon  their  feet  by  the  hour  to  listen  to  the 
magic  of  his  eloquence. 

The   writer  of  this    sketch   once   heard 


WATERBURY. 


863 


him  in  a  pauper  case,  where  the  question 
of  legal  settlement  turned  upon  the  ap- 
parently insignificant  fact  whether  a  fam- 
ily removed  in  the  spring  or  autumn  of 
1816  from  one  town  to  another;  and  one 
witness,  an  old  lad}',  remembered  it  was 
in  autumn,  because  the  family  went  on 
foot,  the  children  were  barefooted,  the 
ground  was  frozen,  and  their  feet  bled  by 
contact  with  the  hard  earth.  She  remem- 
bered, too,  that  they  cracked  butternuts 
which  lay  under  the  trees  at  this  time  of 
the  year.  Seizing  upon  these  incidents  as  a 
text,  his  vivid  imagination  quickly  sketched 
a  picture  of  the  privations  and  suffer- 
ing of  the  early  pioneers  in  the  State,  so 
full  of  tenderness  and  pathos,  that  when 
he  dropped  back  into  his  seat,  panting 
with  emotion,  there  was  scarcely  a  dry  eye 
in  the  jury-box,  and  when  the  jury  went 
out,  it  took  them  less  than  ten  minutes  to 
vindicate  the  testimony  of  the  old  lady 
who  remembered  the  frozen  ground  and 
the  little  children  with  their  bleeding  feet. 

It  may  be  thought  that  in  this  he  was 
simply  acting.  But  it  was  not  so.  It  was 
genius,  a  native  instinct  which  directed 
him  as  certainly  to  the  incidents  and  char- 
acteristics of  a  case  which  could  be  used 
for  effect  as  the  magnetic  needle  is  directed 
toward. the  pole.  He  made  his  client's 
case  his  own,  and  threw  into  it  all  the  zeal 
and  earnestness  of  his  nature. 

In  every  controversy  there  is  something 
of  right  on  each  side,  and  to  a  person  of 
his  natural  genius  and  emotional  nature, 
it  was  not  difficult  to  quickly  convince 
himself  that  the  right  always  largely  pre- 
dominated on  his  side,  so  that  his  advocacy 
always  had  the  appearance  of  the  utmost 
sincerity,  the  utmost  candor.  Himself  a 
member  of  the  Methodist  church,  and  a 
careful  student  of  biblical  -history,  there 
was  an  undertone  of  moral  sentiment  con- 
tinually cropping  out  and  constantly  re- 
turning, illustrated  and  enforced  by  apt 
quotations  from  the  Scriptures,  and  this, 
coupled  with  his  high  reputation  for  in- 
tegrity, gave  his  utterances  extraordinary 
weight  and  effect. 

When  in  his  best  mood,  he  played  upon 
the  strings  of  men's  hearts  with  the  facility 


that  a  skilled  musician  plays  upon  the 
strings  of  a  guitar,  and  made  them  respond 
to  emotions  of  laughter,  anger,  sympathy 
or  sorrow  whenever  he  pleased  and  as  best 
suited  the  purposes  of  his  case.  By  pure 
animal  magnetism,  he  subjected  inferior 
wills  to  the  superior  strengtli  and  power  of 
his  own,  and  having  control,  he  moulded 
and  shaped  them  to  his  wishes  with  the 
ease  that  the  potter  moulds  the  clay.  And 
this  was  just  as  likely  to  arise  in  a  small 
case  as  in  a  large  one.  It  was  antagonism 
that  roused  him.  It  was  when  his  brother 
Colby  had  ridiculed  his  case,  and  con- 
vulsed the  jury  with  laughter  by  the  hour, 
that  all  his  faculties  were  brought  into  full 
play,  and  then  it  was  an  intellectual  treat 
to  see  him  recapture  the  jury  and  win  back 
the  lost  cause,  and  revel  in  the  victory  with 
the  gaiety  of  a  troubadour. 

Mr.  Dillingham  never  by  a  professional 
act  degraded  his  profession.  He  loved  it, 
and  practiced  it  because  he  loved  it.  He 
withdrew  from  practice  about  1875,  after  a 
period  of  professional  labors  of  half  a  cen- 
tury. He  is  now  in  the  83d  year  of  his 
age,  and  is  exceedidgly  well  preserved  for 
such  advanced  years.  An  hour  with  him 
now  in  social  intercourse  is  a  rare  enjoy- 
ment. With  nothing  to  regret  in  the 
past,  and  a  Christian's  hope  of  the  future, 
his  present  condition  exhibits  a  restfulness 
and  placidity  which  fittingly  crowns  a  life 
of  labor  not  spent  in  vain. 

From  Chaplain  E.  M.  Havnes'  History  of  the  Tenth 
Rfgiuient,  (187(i). 

MAJOR   EDWIN   DILLINGHAM, 

second  son  of  Hon.  Paul  DilHngham  and 
Julia  Carpenter,  was  born  in  Waterbury, 
May  13,  1839.  The  first  years  of  his  life 
were  passed  at  the  home  of  his  parents, 
aniidst  some  of  the  most  delightful  natural 
scenery  in  the  State.  Here  the  mountains 
are  ever  green  in  their  towering  magnifi- 
cence to  the  sky.  Almost  every  field  is 
laced  and  ribboned  by  tireless,  sparkling 
streams  ;  the  soil,  rich  and  stubborn  in  its 
fertility,  yields  its  fruits  only  to  the  steady 
persistence  of  a  hardy  race  ;  and  here,  al- 
most in  sight  of  the  State  Capitol,  and 
within  the  immediate  circle  of  its  legisla- 
tive  and    social    influences,   and    always 


864 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


under  the  more  refining  elements  of  a 
Christian  home,  the  years  of  boyhood  and 
youtli  were  numbered.  Like  other  boys, 
we  presume  he  passed  them  quietly,  not 
varying  much  from  the  round  of  spoits 
and  duties  of  New  England's  revered 
manual  for  the  training  of  her  sons,  al- 
though other  homes  have  not  been  so 
richly  endowed  by  Christian  example.  His 
opportunities  for  an  education,  we  are  in- 
formed, were  respectable  and  diligently 
improved.  Always  found  at  his  task,  he 
won  the  admiration  of  his  teachers  ;  ever 
kind  and  of  a  happy  spirit,  he  was  loved 
by  his  fellow-students.  Enjoying  the 
highest  advantages  afforded  by  the  com- 
mon schools  and  academies  of  his  native 
State,  he  here  received  all  the  instruction 
deemed  absolutely  essential  to  entering 
successfully  upon  his  professional  studies. 
He  chose  the  profession  of  the  law,  and 
commenced  his  preparation  for  the  bar  in 

1858,  in  the  office  of  his  brother-in-law, 
the  Hon.  Matthew  H.  Carpenter,  now  a 
senator  in  Congress,  in  the  city  of  Mil- 
waukee, Wis.,  where,  however,  he  re- 
mained but  a  few  months.  Upon  leaving 
the  office  of  Mr.  Carpenter,  he  entered  the 
Law  School  at  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  graduated  with  honor  in  the  autumn  of 

1859.  H^  finally  finished  his  law  studies, 
preparatory,  in  the  office  of  Dillingham  and 
Durant,  in  his  native  town,  his  father 
being  the  senior  member  of  the  firm,  and 
then  Lieutenant  Governor,  and  afterwards 
Governor  of  the  State.  In  Sept.  i860,  he 
was  admitted  to  practice  at  the  Washing- 
ton County  bar  ;  and  it  is  said,  "though 
the  youngest,"  was  considered  "  one  of  its 
most  promising  members."  Subsequently, 
he  became  the  law  partner  of  his  father, 
and  thus  established  in  his  profession,  and 
thus  associated,  he  continued  until  July, 
1862.  We  have  often  heard  him  speak  of 
this  arrangement  as  one  most  suited  to  his 
tastes,  and  doubt  not  that  it  was  one  of 
great  promise  and  profit.  It  may  be  that 
he  had  expected  to  reap  much  from  the 
great  ability,  experience  and  wide  reputa- 
tion of  his  father  as  an  advocate  and  states- 
man, and  so  enrich  his  own  mind  for  the 
largest  duties  of  his  calling,  either  in  its 


immediate  sphere,  or  else  fit  himself  for 
the  demands  of  a  wider  field,  and  prepare 
to  win  the  honor  to  which  the  young  am- 
bition may  justly  aspire.  But  whatever 
schemes  of  this  kind  he  might  have  enter- 
tained, they  were  not  destined  to  be  re- 
alized ;  even  if  they  did  float  dimly,  yet 
with  golden  wings,  before  his  mind,  his 
nature  was  not  one  to  remain  undisturbed 
by  the  dark  war-cloud  that  had  for  two 
terrible  years  stretched  from  the  Gulf  to 
the  northern  boundaries  of  his  native 
State.  Its  mutterings,  mingling  with  the 
cries  of  the  slain  of  his  own  kinsmen  and 
companions  in  peace,  were  notes  of  sum- 
mons. Though  the  silver  lining  of  other 
dark  clouds  had  betokened  promise,  this 
had  turned  to  blood,  and  he  would  go  and 
do  battle  for  his  country.  Forgetting 
party  affinities,  and  severing  dearer  and 
sweeter  ties,  he,  with  thousands  more, 
would  make  the  sacrifice  of  his  young  life 
upon  the  nation's  altar.  But  to  write  all 
that  was  noble  of  this  officer,  would  be  but 
to  repeat  what  has  been  in  a  thousand  in- 
stances already  made  historic,  and  for  him, 
we,  his  compatriots  and  subordinates  in 
rank,  because  he  has  taken  a  higher  com- 
mission, have  but  to  record  the  epitajDhs 
of  the  brave ! 

Upon  the  President's  call  for_3oo,ooo 
troops,  issued  in  July,  1862,  he  actively 
engaged  in  recruiting  a  company  in  the 
western  part  of  Washington  County,  of 
which  he  was  unanimously  chosen  captain. 
These  recruits  finally  became  Co.  B,  of  the 
loth  Reg.  Vt.  Vols.,  and  were  really  the 
first  raised  for  that  regiment ;  but  in  con- 
sequence of  a  company  organization  then 
existing,  though  formerly  designed  for  the 
9th  Regiment,  he  was  obliged  to  take  this 
position  in  the  loth.  Soon  after  the  reg- 
iment was  fairly  in  the  field,  he  was  de- 
tailed as  Assistant  Inspector  General  on 
the  staff" of  Brigadier  General  Morris,  then 
commanding  the  ist  Brigade,  3d  Division, 
3d  Army  Corps,  Army  of  the  Potomac. 
He  acted  in  the  capacity  oi  aui-de-camp  to 
this  officer  during  the  battle  of  Locust 
Grove,  Nov.  27,  1863,  and  while  carrying 
an  order  to  his  own  regiment,  his  horse 
was  shot   under  him   and   he  was  taken 


WATERBURY. 


86s 


prisoner.  Then  he  was  marched  most  of 
the  way  to  Richmond  and  incarcerated  in 
Libby  prison,  where  he  was  kept  for  four 
long  months  in  durance  vilest.  In  March 
following,  he  was  paroled  and  soon  ex- 
changed, when  he  immediately  returned 
to  the  field  and  to  his  old  command.  Gen. 
Grant  was  at  this  time  making  his  cel- 
ebrated campaign  from  the  Rapidan  to 
Petersburg,  and  consequently  rendered  ap- 
proach to  the  immediate  scene  of  opera- 
tions extremely  difficult.  Still,  troops  of 
every  arm  of  the  service  were  being  hurried 
forward,  and  Capt.  Dillingham  was  put  in 
command  of  a  battalion  of  exchanged  pris- 
oners and  enlisted  men,  which  he  led  to 
the  front,  fighting  some  of  the  way.  He 
dismissed  his  men  to  their  respective  com- 
mands, and  reported  for  duty  at  Cold 
Harbor,  June  3,  1864. 

Col.  Jewett  had  resigned.  Lieut.  Col. 
Henry  and  Major  Chandler  had  been  pro- 
moted respectively  to  the  first  ranks  in  the 
command.  Capt.  Frost,  the  ranking  line 
officer,  was  breathing  his  last  the  hour  he 
arrived ;  one-third  of  the  regiment  were 
lying  dead  on  the  field  and  wounded  in 
the  hospital,  and  the  rest,  begrimmed  with 
dirt  and  powder,  within  close  range  of  the 
enemy,  wej^e  looking  down  into  the  Chick- 
ahominy  swamp,  within  steeple  view  of 
Richmond.  Col.  Henry  had  been  wound- 
ed on  the  first  instant,  and  Lieut.  Col. 
Chandler  soon  afterwards  became  sick, 
and  Capt.  Dillingham  took  command  of 
the  regiment,  although  he  held  it  but  a 
short  time,  Lieut.  Col.  Chandler  returning 
to  duty.  The  remaining  awful  days  until 
the  1 2th,  was  his  second  battle  with  his 
regiment.  June  17,  1864,  he  was  com- 
missioned Major,  and  went  with  the  troops 
to  James  river  and  Bermuda  Hundreds, 
where,  with  a  large  part  of  the  corps,  they 
were  ordered  into  action  by  Gen.  Butler. 
But  Gen.  Wright  delayed  obedience  to  the 
order,  and  his  corps  was  finally  extricated 
by  Gen.  Meade,  after  remaining  under  a 
most  distressing  artillery  fire  from  the 
enemy's  battery  for  several  hours.  From 
this  time  until  his  death  he  was  constantly 
with  the  regiment,  and  some  of  the  time 
in  command. 


July  6,  1864,  the  3d  Division  of  the  6th 
Corps  was  -detached  from  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac,  and  the  two  remaining  divisions 
soon  afterwards,  and  were  sent  into  the 
Shenandoah  Valley,  under  Gen.  Sheridan. 
Arriving  at  Frederick  City,  Maryland,  on 
the  8th,  he  was  second  in  command  at  the 
battle  of  Monocacy,  fought  on  the  9th, 
Lieut.  Col.  Chandler  being  detailed  to 
command  the  skirmish  line,  and  Colonel 
Henry  in  command  of  the  regiment.  After 
marching  untold  leagues  from  Frederick  to 
the  Relay  House,  to  Washington,  up  the 
Potomac  to  Leesburg,  over  into  the  Shen- 
andoah Valley,  through  Snicker's  Gap, 
where  we  had  a  skirmish  with  the  enemy 
over  and  in  the  river  on  the  18th,  back  to 
Georgetown  by  way  of  Chain  Bridge,  again 
up  the  Potomac  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the 
Monacacy,  thence  to  Frederick,  Harper's 
Ferry,  Winchester  and  Strasburg,  back  to 
Harper's  Ferry,  by  way  of  Charleston — 
over  600  miles  since  we  had  set  foot  in 
Maryland,  July  21.  It  was  now  Aug.  22. 
On  the  2 1st,  the  whole  corps  was  attacked 
vigorously  by  the  enemy;  drawing  in  the 
pickets  in  front  of  the  2d  Division,  while 
the  troops  were  lying  quietly  in  camp  or 
preparing  for  Sunday  morning  inspection. 
Here,  for  the  first  time,  young  Dillingham 
was  ordered  to  lead  his  command  to  battle. 
The  regiment,  however,  was  not  prom- 
inently engaged,  and  he  had  no  opportuni- 
ty to  distinguish  himself.  When  asked 
how  he  felt,  invested  with  the  full  command 
at  such  a  time,  he  replied  :  "  I  felt  as  if  we 
•should  make  a  good  fight,  but  I  rather 
wished  that  Henryhad  been  there."  From 
this  time  he  commanded  the  regiment 
until  he  fell  at  the  glorious  field  of  Winch- 
ester, Sept.  4,  1864. 

We  may  not  here  describe  that  battle. 
It  was  a  decisive  victory  for  our  arms  and 
the  country.  It  was  a  golden  victory.  It 
lifted  higher  the  national  banner  than  any 
other  battle  of  the  year  north  of  Atlanta. 
But  the  eye  of  prescience  could  have  dis- 
cerned a  thousand  emblems  of  mourning 
stretched  beneath  its  starry  folds,  and  seen 
the  tears  of  as  many  Northern  homes  falling 
for   their   dead,    yet    re-consecrating   the 


109 


866 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL   MAGAZINE. 


flag!  One  was  mourned  in  Waterbury! 
Major  Dillingham  had  fallen ! 

Washington  County  Court  was  in  ses- 
sion, and  attorneys  were  contending  by 
peaceful  process  for  the  civil  rights  of  a 
few  clients.  In  Virginia,  its  youngest  and 
most  promising  member,  who  had  thrown 
his  sword  into  the  vaster  scale  of  justice, 
was  contending  for  the  civil  rights  of  the 
nation.  Under  orders  to  charge  the  en- 
emy, whose  front  was  ablaze  with  cannon 
and  abatised  with  fixed  bayonets,  he  was 
firmly  pacing  back  and  forth  along  his 
battle  line,  steadying  its  formation  and 
awaiting  the  final  signal  to  advance.  Those 
who  saw  him  say  that  he  heeded  not  the 
the  missiles  of  death  that  fell  thick  around 
him  and  his  brave  men.  Keenly  he  eyed 
the  foe — anxiously  he  awaited  the  onset. 
To  him  it  never  came.  About  noon,  while 
in  this  position,  he  was  struck  by  a  solid 
twelve-pound  shot  on  the  left  thigh,  and 
borne  bleeding  and  dying  to  the  rear.  In 
two  hours  he  was  no  more.  The  regiment 
charged  and  nobly  avenged  the  death  of 
its  Major,  but  he  had  gone  another  way. 
Though  he  never  recovered  from  the 
nervous  shock  produced  by  this  wound, 
he  did  not  lose  consciousness  until  his 
noble  spirit  departed.  He  conversed  oc- 
casionally with  those  around  him.  Among 
his  last  vvords  was  the  utterance:  "I 
have  fallen  for  my  country.  I  am  not 
afraid  to  die."  The  first  were  inspired  by 
patriotism,  the  last  by  Christianity !  His 
remains  were  borne  to  Waterbury  and  in- 
terred, where  the  spirit  of  honor  watches 
over  the  treasured  dust ;  and  when  the 
history  of  Vermont's  noble  men  is  written, 
the  names  of  her  heroes  fairly  recorded, 
we  shall  read  high  upon  the  scroll  the  name 
of  Major  Edwin. Dillingham.       e.  m.  h. 

A  member  of  the  "  Tenth,"  from  the  bat- 
tle field  writes:  "  While  the  fight  was  still 
roaring  up  over  the  hill  he  died,  and  this 
was  the  end  of  a  beautiful,  harmonious 
life.  Young,  handsome,  brilliant,  brave 
amid  trials,  cheerful  amid  discouragements, 
upright,  and  with  that  kindness  of  heart 
which  ever  characterized  the  true  gentle- 
man, blended  with  firmness  and  energy  as 
a  commander,  he  was  ever  respected  by 


all  of  his  command,  and  loved  by  all  of  his  i 

companions.  • 

"  A  fairer  and  a  lovelier  gentleman  • 
The  spacious  world  cannot  again  afford." 

We  shall  long  mourn  him  in  our  camp."  1 

He  fell,  as  a  soldier  should  fall, 

At  the  head  of  his  own  gallant  band ;  ; 

He  died,  as  a  soldier  should  die,  ■; 

In  defence  of  his  own  native  land. 

He  fell  'mid  the  battle's  loud  roar,  J 
Where  the  stars  and  the  stripes  proud  did  fly : 

His  life  to  his  country  lie  gave —  ; 

"  'Tis  sweet  for  one's  country  to  die."  !. 

He  fell  in  the  springtime  of  life,  ; 

His  country  from  traitors  to  save,  i 

While  the  bugle,  the  drum  and  the  fife  ; 

Fired  the  hearts  of  the  true  and  the  brave.  \ 

He  died  while  the  victor's  shoul  ' 

Rang  clear  on  the  mountain  air. 
While  the  foe  in  disordered  rout 

Were  fleeing  in  wildest  despair.  t 

Vermont  her  proud  record  shall  make. 

And  add  to  her  long  roll  of  fame,  ' 

With  the  Aliens  and  Warners  she'll  place  '' 

Young  Dillingham's  glorious  name.  ■' 

The  closing  tribute  to  our  young  hero  ] 
is  from   the  pen  of  J.  A.  Wing,  Esq.,  of 

Montpelier.  ' 

One  of  the  largest  and  most  beautiful  • 
monuments  of  the  State,  in  which  elegance  '; 
and  simplicity  combined,  has  been  erected  '• 
by  the  Governor  at  the  grave  of  his  son.  ' 
It  is  of  the  Sutherland  Falls  quarry,  finest  ! 
Vermont  marble,  the  cutting  and  erecting  ''■ 
by  a  townsman,  Geo.  C.  Arms,  of  Water- 
bury. I 

Philander  A.  Preston,  born  in  Water-  ^ 

bury,  Nov.  27, 1833,  enlistedin the  Vt.  Cav.,  j 

Sept.  I,  '61  ;  with  his  regiment  till  July  6,  ' 

'63,  when  wounded  and  in  hospital  till  De-  y 

cember  ;  returned  to  duty  ;  Jan. '64, re-enlist-  ] 

ed  ;  taken  prisoner  June  27,  at  Stony  Creek  \ 

Station,  Weldon  R.  R.  ;  taken  to  Ander-  > 

sonville,  Sept.   10;    removed   to    Charles-  -_ 
town ;   then   to   Florence,    where   he  was 

literally  starved  to  death ;    died  Jan.    or  : 
Feb.  '65,  aged  32  ;  left  a  wife  and  one  son. 

The  eighth  annual  re-union  of  the  Tenth  ! 
Vermont  Regimental  Association  was  held  j 
at  Waterbury,  Sept.  4,  1873.  The  asso-  j 
elation  went  in  procession  to  the  cemetery  i 
to  pay  honors  toMaj.  Dillingham,  Thomp- 
son, and  other  Waterbury  patriots  there  • 
interred. 


WATERBURY. 


867 


SOLDIERS   BURIED   IN  TOWN. 

BY  HON.  WM.  P.   DILLINGHAM. 

Revolutionary  Soldiers  who  are  buried 
in  Waterbury: — Capt.  Thomas  Jones, 
Aaron  Wilder,  Ezra  Butler,  Zachariah  Bas- 
sett,  Moses  Nelson,  David  Town,  John 
Hudson,  D.  Sloan,  Benjamin  Conant,  Paul 
Dillingham,  Asaph  Allen,  Isaac  Marshall, 
Thomas  Eddy,  Alphas  Sheldon,  Joseph 
Hubbard,  Stephen  Jones,  Asa  Poland, 
George  Kennan. 

Note. — This  list  is  made  from  consulta- 
tion with  aged  persons.  In  regard  to  those 
of  1812,  any  list  I  could  make  would  be  so 
defective  as  to  mislead  rather  than  be  a 
help.  More  than  40  men  went  out  and 
most  of  them  are  buried  here,  and  yet  I 
have  obtained  only  a  dozen  of  the  names. 

Soldiers  in  the  War  of  1861  who  are  bii- 
riedat  Waterbury : — Major  Edwin  Dilling- 
ham, Capt.  Lucien  D.  Thompson,  Lieut. 
J.  Edwin  Henry,  Lieut.  Dow  E.  Stone, 
Surgeon  James  B.  Woodward,  Alba  Dut- 
ton,  C.  E.  L.  Hills,  Almon  C.  Thomas, 
Tilton  Sleeper,  Carlos  Prescott,  Charles 
Lee,  Henry  Lee,  Joseph  B.  Conant,  Clar- 
ence K.  Mansfield,  Wm.  Wallace  Whitney, 
Frank  Stearns,  Henry  Dillingham,  H. 
R.  Bickford,  Tabor  H.  Parcher,  Ira  S. 
Woodward,  George  S.  Woodward,  H.  S. 
Burleigh,  Augustus  Steady. 

Note. — This  list  is  not  complete,  but  as 
nearly  so  as  time  will  permit  us  to  make. 

[This  list  was  only  asked  from  Mr.  Dil- 
lingham two  days  before  going  into  print. 
We  had  overlooked  not  having  it.     Ed.] 

ORIGIN   of   the   reform    SCHOOL. 

Gov.  Dillingham  in  his  first  annual  mes- 
sage to  the  Legislature,  that  of  1865,  rec- 
ommended the  establishment  of  a  State 
Reform  School.  On  this  suggestion  an 
act  was  passed  at  the  session  of  that  3'ear 
to  establish  the  Vermont  Reform  School, 
that  authorized  the  governor  to  appoint  a 
board  of  three  commissioners  to  purchase 
a  farm  not  exceeding  200  acres  of  land. 

The  governor  appointed  Rev.  A.  G. 
Pease,  Rev.  L.  A.  Dunn,  and  Charles 
Reed,  Esq..  members  of  the  Legislature 
that  year.  They  received  their  commis- 
sions  Nov.  24,   and  entered  on   the   pre- 


liminary duties  of  such  a  board,  visiting 
reformatories  in  other  States  to  acquire 
needful  information  relating  to  requisi- 
tions and  management  of  such  institutions. 
This  was  also  preparatory  to  selecting  a 
suitable  location  for  a  reform  school.  In 
their  report  the  next  year  to  the  governor, 
they  relate  their  proceedings  and  conclu- 
sions on  the  subjects  of  their  inquiries ; 
also  the  requisitions  in  the  location,  and 
the  reasons  which  determined  them  in 
favor  of  locating  in  Waterbury,  which 
have  been  already  stated  in  these  papers, 
page  854. 

THE  BURNING  OF  THE  REFORM  SCHOOL 

building  Dec.  12,  1874,  was  a  calamity  to 
many  individuals,  and  in  some  respects,  to 
the  public.  The  loss  of  public  and  private 
property  was  large  ;  while  160  inmates  es- 
caped with  little  but  their  lives  in  the  dead 
of  a  December  night,  from  their  comfort- 
able home  to  undergo  months  of  depriva- 
tion of  their  former  comforts. 

The  loss  of  personal  property  in  the 
building  was  little  known  ;  and  probably 
few  ever  knew  the  loss  of  the  State,  in 
other  ways  than  the  cost  of  the  building. 
It  is  well  known  to  the  tax-payers  of  the 
State  that  the  fire  led  to  the  removal  to 
Vergennes.  However  much  the  citizens 
of  that  ancient  city  may  congratulate  them- 
selves upon  the  event,  and  the  maneuvers 
leading  to  it,  few  disinterested  persons 
have  ever  had  reason  to  be  proud  of  the 
success  of  the  means  that  led  to  its  accom- 
plishment. The  careful  examinations  of 
reformatories  in  other  States,  and  inqui- 
ries into  the  necessary  requisitions  in 
choosing  the  location  of  such  institutions, 
were  narrated  in  the  first  annual  report  of 
the  trustees ;  and  their  reasons  for  the 
selection  of  the  site  of  the  first  location  of 
the  school  in  Waterbury,  are  believed  to 
have  been  satisfactory  to  the  great  majority 
of  the  people  of  the  State.  If  those  rea- 
sons were  good  then,  they  were  no  less 
forcible  after  the  fire,  but  rather  more  so, 
the  surroundings  being  the  same,  and  in 
addition,  the  foundation  and  much  available 
material  remaining  which  could  be  appro- 
priated  to  the  rebuilding,    a    foundation 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


already  being  laid  ;  a  large  outlay  for  that 
purpose  would  have  been  avoided.  But 
whatever  reasons  might  be  assigned  for 
rebuilding  on  the  old  site,  the  Legislature, 
especially  the  lower  house,  seemed  indis- 
posed to  regard  them,  while  the  senate  by 
a  very  small  majority  concurred  in  the  re- 
moval, even  after  the  passage  of  the  act 
authorizing  the  governor  to  purchase  cer- 
tain designated  real  estate  in  Vergennes 
for  the  locating  the  reform  school,  it  was 
reported  he  had  serious  doubts  of  the  pro- 
priety of  doing  what  the  act  authorized  for 
purchase  of  that  real  estate. — R.  butler. 

CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   WATERBURY. 

1876. — This  mission,  before  it  became  a 
parish  with  a  residing  pastor,  was  attended 
occasionally,  first  by  Father  O'Callaghan 
from  Burlington,  then  successively  by  Rev. 
J.  Daly,  Rev.  Father  Drolet,  the  Reverend 
Oblate  Fathers,  from  Burlington,  Rev.  Z. 
Druon  and  Rev.  Joseph  Duglue,  the  two 
last  clergymen  living  then  at  Montpelier. 
It  was  in  1857,  that  the  old  church,  dedi- 
cated to  St.  Vincent  Ferrier,  was  built  on 
the  hill  on  the  east  side  of  the  railroad,  at 
a  little  distance  from  the  depot.  It  was 
enlarged  about  10  years  afterwards  by 
Father  Duglue.  The  present  pastor,  the 
Rev.  John  Galligan  was  appointed  to  take 
charge  of  his  congregation  in  the  year 
1869.  He  soon  purchased  a  fine  residence 
in  Winooski  turnpike  street,  and  this  year 
(1876,)  he  bought  the  adjoining  lot  where 
stands  the  Adventist  meeting-house,  which 
he  is  now  enlarging  and  converting  into  a 
church.  Rev.  Z.  Druon. 

1882. — The  Church  of  Waterbury  was 
dedicated  to  Almighty  God  under  the  voca- 
ble of  St.  Andrew,  the  Apostle,  Nov.  30, 
1876.  Waterbury  is  now  attended  regu- 
larly on  every  other  Sunday  by  Rev.  J. 
Galligan.  Bishop  De  Goesbriand. 

Patrick  Bryan,  the  first  Catholic  in  town, 
a  tailor,  came  from  Burlington  from  18 15 
to  '20  ;  settled  and  worked  at  his  trade.  He 
had  a  large  family,  and  brought  another 
tailor  from  Burlington  here,  Michael  Con- 
nor, a  Catholic  ;  both  spent  their  lives  here. 
Mr.  Connor  had  several  sons  in  the  war. 
R.  Butler. 


SOME   DAY. 

There  will  be  a  hush  in  a  darkened  room 
Where,  heeding  not  the  stilly  gloom, 
A  pallid  form  will  lowly  lie. 
Beneath  the  folds  of  snowy  drapery. 
Pale  hands  clasped  o'er  a  pulseless  breast, 
Cold  white  lips  in  silence  pressed, 
Eyes— that  have  closed  in  sleep  for  aye; 
There  will  be  footsteps'  muffled  tread. 
And  voices  whisper,  "she  is  dead," 

Some  day. 
Others  tears  and  others  woes 
Shall  not  disturb  my  deep  repose; 
Perhaps  some  loving  hand  may  press 
My  marble  form  in  tenderness, 
And  twine  the  myrtle  with  flowers  fair. 
To  deck  my  rest,  as  I  slumber  there. 
But  naught  to  me  will  that  pressure  be, 
Of  beauty,  or  fragrance  of  rarest  flowers. 
The  light  or  shadows  of  passing  hours — 

Some  day. 
1  shall  not  heed  as  they  bear  me  on. 
With  solemn  tread,  to  the  churchyard  lone; 
Or  hear  the  tone  of  the  deep-toned  bell. 
Breaking  with  mournful  ebb  and  swell; 
As  they  lower  me  down,  I  shall  feel  no  fear, 
The  requiem's  strains  I  shall  not  hear,— 
Or  even  the  shock  of  the  yellow  clay. 
As  with  hollow  sound  on  my  coflin  lid, 
It  falls  and  covers  my  narrow  bed, 

Some  day. 
Summer  aiid  winter  will  come  and  go. 
With  their  floral  wreath  and  robes  of  snow. 
And  the  phantom  train  of  years  go  by. 
But  I  shall  not  heed  them  where  I  lie. 
The  violet  there,  with  its  eyes  of  blue, 
May  weep  o'er  my  grave  its  tears  of  dew. 
The  wild  bird  sing  his  sweetest  lay. 
Yet  the  heart  beneath  lie  cold  and  still; 
Will  not  respond  with  its  wonted  thrill. 

Some  day. 
Only  a  lock  of  silken  hair. 
Little  mementoes  here  and  there, 
Only  a  ceasing  of  care  and  .-trife, 
AlasI  alasl  is  it  all  of  life? 
Ah,  no!  there  is  somewhere  a  fairer  shore, 
Wliere  friends  long  parted  shall  meet  once  more, 
A  beauteous  land  in  the  far  away. 
Where  light  and  joy  will  ever  remain. 
And  the  soul  its  long-lost  treasure  regain. 

Some  day. 
Then  why  should  we  fear.  Oh  Death,  thy  clasp. 
Or  shrink  at  the  touch  of  thy  icy  grasp? 
Since  thou  art  the  angel  that  opens  the  gate 
Of  that  city  bright  where  our  loved  ones  dwell. 
We  will  place  these  hands,  without  one  thrill, 
Into  thine  own,  so  cold  and  chill; 
Come  le.ad  us  to  that  realm  of  day. 
Where  never  a  sigh  is  heard,  or  knell. 
But  where  the  pure  and  beautiful  dwell 

Forever. 
Waterbury,  Vt.,  March,  1872.  m.  m.  n. 

[A  poem  we  clipped  from  the  Burliiig- 
toit  Free  Press  ten  years  since,  and  re- 
served till  we  might  reach  the  history  of 
Waterbury,  not  anticipating  any  difficulty 
in  finding  the  author ;  but  our  inquiry  is 
to-day,  who  wrote  it? 


WATERBURY. 


DR.    C.    C.    ARMS, 
[From  the  Vermont  Watchman.] 

was  a  physician  liere  20  years.  He  came 
from  Stowe,  where  he  first  practiced  his 
profession  a  short  time.  He  was  married 
not  long  before  coming  here,  Nov.  16, 
1833,  to  Lucia  Mills,  born  in  Windsor, 
Dec.  5,  1805.  They  had  two  daughters 
and  one  son,  one  daughter  died  in  child- 
hood, one  in  yonng  womanhood.  Dr. 
Arms,  Sr.,  died  Apr.  15,  1854,  age  51  ; 
Mrs.  Arms  Mar.  20,  1882.  Mrs.  Arms 
spent  the  most  of  her  days  after  her  hus- 
band's death  in  Waterbury,  and  left  behind 
her  a  life  marked  by  a  quiet  but  positive 
exercise  of  the  cardinal  virtues  of  woman- 
hood. Her  only  son.  Dr.  Charles  Carroll 
Arms,  encouraged  by  his  resolute  mother, 
made  his  way  through  college,  graduating 
at  Dartmouth  in  the  class  of  '65,  acquired 
his  profession,  and  now  in  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
sustains  a  good  reputation  as  a  man  and  a 
physician.  It  was  his  privilege  to  be  with 
his  mother  at  her  death. 

DR.  F.  p.  DREW, 

Only  son  of  Dr.  Oliver  W.  Drew — see 
page  860 — born  in  Waterbury,  pursued 
classical  studies  in  the  University  at  Bur- 
lington, and  his  professional  studies  in  the 
Medical  College  at  Woodstock,  and  in  the 
College  of  Surgeons  of  New  York,  where 
he  graduated  in  the  spring  of  1857,  and  in 
the  summer  of  that  year  entered  upon  his 
profession  in  Attica,  Fountain  Co.,  Ind. ; 
in  the  fall  of  1859  iTioved  to  Junction  City, 
Kansas,  and  continued  the  practice  of  his 
profession  nearly  2  years ;  was  appointed 
Post  Surgeon  at  Fort  Riley,  in  the  dis- 
charge of  which  office  he  continued  until 
his  death  from  pneumonia  during  the  war, 
we  believe,  at  the  age  of  35,  leaving  a 
young  widow.  He  married  Dec,  1861,  to 
Nelly  Chaney,  of  Attica,  Ind.  The  Re- 
publican  C/m'on,  Junction,  Kansas,  said  of 
him  at  the  time  of  his  death  :  "  By  several 
years  of  medical  practice  in  the  vicinity  of 
Junction  City  and  Fort  Riley,  and  as  army 
surgeon  at  the  Fort,  he  had  acquired  a 
high  and  increasing  reputation.  To  a 
mind  well  disciplined  by  scientific  culture, 
he  added  the  gentle  culture  and  the  kind 


sympathy  which  flow  from  a  generous 
heart.  His  own  ease,  his  health,  even,  were 
of  no  account  compared  to  what  he  es- 
teemed the  claims  of  duty  to  the  suffering." 
His  father's  death  did  not  occur  till 
some  years  after  that  of  his  son.  The  fa- 
ther had  three  wives  ;  first,  Lucretia  Arms, 
second,  Margaret  Woodward,  third,  Olivia 
L.  B.  Atherton.  The  first  was  the  mother 
of  his  two  children.  The  family  are  all 
now,  but  the  third  Mrs.  Drew  and  daugh- 
ter, Mrs.  Wood,  dead. 

BUTLER  SKETCHES  -CONTINUED. 

EARLY    FAMILIES. 

We  have  briefly  sketched  three  or  four 
early  families  of  our  town  ;  if  space  permit- 
ted, we  might  notice  some  others,  perhaps 
as  worthy  of  such  distinction  in  the  Gazet- 
teer. Without  attempting  i)articulars  in  re- 
gard to  most  of  them.  Stiles  Sherman  had  a 
family  of  12  children,  several  of  them  died 
young;  only  one  survives,  Mrs.  Bebee  of 
Burlington  ;  she  was  the  youngest  daugh- 
ter. Seth  Chandler  Sherman  was  the 
youngest  son.  He  took  the  honors  of  the 
graduating  class  of  1829,  in  the  Vt.  Uni- 
versity. A  few  years  after  he  setttled  in 
Quincy,  111.,  and  lived  there  many  years, 
and  was  much  respected.  He  died  two  or 
three  years  since,  and  with  his  companion 
was  buried  in  the  same  grave.  The  oldest 
brother,  when  young,  settled  in  Central 
New  York.  Heman,  the  next  older  brother 
of  Chandler,  died  a  few  years  since  in 
Ogdensburgh,  N.  Y.,  and  was  buried  in 
this,  his  native  town.  An  older  sister  mar- 
ried Elam,  a  brother  of  the  late  Judge  Dan 
Carpenter.  He  died  young,  and  his  widow 
afterwards  married  Luther  Cleaves.  This 
family  consisting  of  a  son,  Sherman  Car- 
penter, and  two  sisters  with  their  parents, 
moved  West  many  years  ago,  and  lived  in, 
or  in  the  vicinity  of  St.  Louis,  where  Mrs. 
Cleaves  died  perhaps  20  years  ago,  having 
lived  some  years  in  her  second  widowhood. 
Thus  might  other  similarly  interesting 
sketches  of  families  be  made.  We  will 
only  give  the  names  of  many,  as  they  oc- 
cur in  our  recollection.  There  were  Wil- 
sons, Perrys,  Hills,  Parchers,  Guptils, 
Atkins,  several  families,  Cadys,  Wrights, 


870 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Fisks,  Hawleys,  Roods,  Robbins,  Stevens, 
Austins,  Aliens,  Scagels,  Jones,  Parkers, 
Murrays,  Woodward,  severallarge  families, 
Greggs,  three  families.  Smiths,  two  of 
Pecks,  John  and  Hiram,  Henrys,  several 
Shermans,  Kneeland,  Palmers,  Thomp- 
sons, Richardsons,  Georges,  Eddys,  Bry- 
ants, Towns  and  Demmons,  and  still  others 
whose  names  were  familiar  as  household 
words  50  years  ago.  Of  the  recent  names 
of  business  men  or  others,  there  are, 
omitting  professionals,  Seabury,  Selleck, 
Knight,  Wyman,  Richardson  and  Fuller- 
ton,  Arms,  Haines,  Bruce,  Warren,  Ran- 
dall, Brown,  Hopkins,  Clark  and  Freeman, 
Stockwell,  Davis,  Cooley,  Crossetts,  Rem- 
ington, Cole,  Atherton,  Muzzey,  King, 
Morse,  Picketts,  Moodys,  Evans,  Taylors, 
Griggs,  Watts,  Collins,  Foster,  Jackman, 
and  others. 

LARGE   MEN. 

Some  half  century  and  more  since, -our 
town  could  boast  of  numbering  among  its 
inhabitants  several  families  whose  name 
stood  high  in  the  alphabet,  but  who,  in 
their  corporal  dimensions,  stood  quite  as 
high,  and  in  their  circular  measurements 
quite  respectable ;  indeed,  they  would 
hardly  fall  short  of  the  more  recent  Moody 
families.  The  Atkinses  were  numerous 
as  well  as  of  powerful  frames,  altitude 
over  6  feet,  weight  over  200,  and  some  of 
them  were  men  of  wit,  as  most  were  of 
genial  humor  and  good  mental  endow- 
ments. Any  jokes  at  Henry's  or  Albro's 
expense  were  sure  to  be  promptly  paid  in 
ready  coin. 

Horace  and  Henry  were  carpenters  and 
joiners,  and  the  builders  of  the  first  meet- 
ing house  in  town.  Capt.  George,  the 
militia  captain,  was  with  his  company  at 
the  battle  of  Pittsburgh.  David  was  one 
of  the  town  officers  in  early  days,  and,  as 
well,  a  good  deacon,  I  doubt  not,  as  he 
married  my  father's  sister,  and  belonged 
to  his  church.  John  was  a  man  of  some 
peculiarities  ;  it  was  said  gathered  sap  with 
one  pail  only,  most  sugar  makers  use  two 
if  without  a  team . 

Jerum  Atkins,  his  son,  has  a  biogra- 
phy we  would  take  pleasure  in  giving  the 
reader  were  it  possible    to  do  justice  in 


the  brief  space  allotted  to  this  closing  part 
of  the  history.  Suffice  it  to  say  of  him, 
from  mere  childhood  he  had  a  remarkable 
inclination  for  mechanism,  and  soon  after 
developed  an  inventive  genius  of  superior 
order.  He  worked  with  Henry  Carter,  a 
millwright,  some  years,  and  went  West  at 
about  the  age  of  19,  where  he  became 
somewhat  famous  as  the  inventor  of  the 
first  grain-raker  attachment  to  McCormick's 
celebrated  reaper.  This  was  an  important 
invention,  to  the  great  grain  growing  region, 
especially,  but  owing  to  want  of  means, 
and  want  of  health,  he  was  obliged  to  di- 
vide the  value  of  his  invention  with  some 
one  able  to  manufacture  and  introduce  the 
raker  into  market.  By  injudicious  man- 
agement, after  many,  had  been  disposed  of, 
a  change  of  manufacturer  ruined  the  credit 
of  the  article,  and  others  took  advantage 
of  this  mismanagement  of  his  manufacturer 
and  reaped  the  profits  of  the  invention. 
The  history  of  Mr.  Atkins  is  too  long  for 
these  pages,  and  many  interesting  particu- 
lars must  be  omitted. 

GEORGE   W.    RANDALL, 

was  born  in  Waterbury  in  1826.  Few 
men  have  had  more  varied  experiences, 
and  the  events  of  his  youth,  and  adven- 
tures in  two  trips  to  California  have  trained 
him  to  self-reliance  and  readiness  in  emer- 
gency. From  poverty  he  has  risen  to 
wealth,  and  conducts  an  extensive  business 
with  little  help  from  clerks,  tlis  farming 
and  lumbering  enterprises  give  employment 
to  many  ;  and  some  of  his  feats  in  filling 
orders  for  dimension  timber  upon  short 
notice,  are  surprising.  His  bills  of  lum- 
ber sent  to  .several  different  States,  amount 
to  many  thousands  of  dollars  annually. 

OUR   MERCHANT   FIRMS 

have  not  very  much  changed  in  the  last  10 
years .  I  n  the  te n  preceding  there  were  more 
changes  in  manufacturing,  business  and 
merchant  firms.  The  Colby  business, 
somewhat  divided  up,  a  part  going  to  Mont- 
pelier,  a  part  to  the  state  of  Michigan,  and 
a  part  remaining.  Mr.  B.  F.  Goss,  who 
had  been  a  merchant  here  20  or  30  years, 
moved  to  Vergennes,  Mr.  J.  G.  Stimson, 
who  commenced  trade  here  in  1844,  went 


/' 


WATERBURY. 


871 


to  Norwich,  his  native  town,  we  think. 
Both  these  men  were  prominent  in  busi- 
ness, in  politics,  and  in  church,  and  will 
long  be  remembered  by]our  older  citizens. 
Mr.  Goss  became  very  successful  in  his 
new  business,  the  manufacture  of  kaolin, 
in  a  town  adjoining  Vergennes.  [See 
Montpelier,  p.  471.]  Of  business  changes 
at  the  Centre,  we  note  that  of  Mr.  Stock- 
well  succeeding  Mr.  Hayes ;  Clark  and 
Freeman  continue.  William  Cooley  con- 
tinues his  creamery. 

It  would  seem  hardly  excusable  in  us  to 
pass  the  names  of  Messrs.  Goss  and  Stim- 
son,  after  their  long  residence  here,  and 
having  such  social  and  business  relations 
with  us  as  they  had,  without  somewhat 
more  notice.  Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Goss 
[Frank  Goss,  see  family  of  Samuel  Goss, 
history  of  Montpelier.]  were  genial  in 
their  manners,  public  spirited,  sympathiz- 
ing in  all  the  vicissitudes  of  life  and  liberal 
to  all  benevolent  enterprises. 

Mr.  Stimson  was  with  us  a  man  thor- 
oughly schooled  in  business  ;  he  was  in 
early  life,  we  think,  in  partnership  in  trade 
with  Senator  Morrill.  His  oldest  son, 
William,  served  in  the  recent  war,  and  has 
since  been  in  mercantile  business  in  New 
York.  His  second  son  is  a  doctor  in  Con- 
necticut ;  third,  probably  with  his  parents. 
The  youngest  is  a  missionary  in  some  for- 
eign land,  and  is  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth  ; 
also  a  theological  graduate. 

Mr.  Stimson  has  built  two  stores  here, 
and  given  much  for  benevolent  objects  and 
the  church  of  which  he  was  a  member. 

THE   LAST   FIKE   IN   THIS   PLACE, 

of  considerable  account,  was  in  the  night, 
of  July  27,  187S,  in  a  central  part  of  the  vil- 
lage, when  4  Stores,  some  of  them,  in  part, 
occupied  as  dwellings,  were  consumed. 
The  owners  were  M.  M.  Knight,  J.  A. 
Burleigh,  F.  B.  Taylor  and  M.  O.  Evans. 
In  the  first  was  a  large  stock  of  dry  goods  ; 
total  losses  about  $25,000,  insured  about 
two-thirds  or  three-fourths.  These  stores 
in  1879  were  all  replaced  by  two  brick 
blocks,  creditable  to  the  builders  and  to 
the  village. 

One  of  the  heaviest  individual  losses  by 


fire,  that  ever  occurred  in  our  town,  was 
that  of  Dr.  Fales,  May  15,  1877.  The  fire 
was  not  discovered  till  several  barns  and 
sheds,  with  ten  or  a  dozen  head  of  cattle 
and  three  or  four  horses,  were  past  being 
rescued.  The  fire  rapidly  approached  the 
house,  and  the  firemen  were  unable  to  save 
it  on  account  of  the  insufficient  supply  of 
water.  This  house  which  had  been,  for 
sixty  years,  one  of  the  most  conspicuous 
in  town,  has  since  been  replaced  by  a  much 
more  valuable  one  of  brick.  Dr.  Fales 
was  insured  to  considerable  amount. 

LONGEVITY. 

The  widow  of  Judge  Carpenter  died  aged 
93  ;  a  Mrs.  Woodward,  about  95  ;  Elizabeth 
Corlis,  94;  Mr.  Heaton,  96;  Daniel  Stow- 
ell,  about  92 ;  John  Montgomery,  living, 
85 ;  Enoch  Coffran,  living,  87 ;  Moses 
Nelson,  living,  85  ;  Nancy  Frink,  86 ;  Mrs. 
Daniels,  89  or  90;  Mr  Janes  died  aged  87^  ; 
Mrs.  Janes,  3  months  of  82  years ;  John 
Seabury,  87  ;  L.  Hutchins,  about  80. 

1880. — Zenas  Watts,  who  has  been  en- 
quiring after  the  ages  of  the  old  people  in 
town,  says  he  has  learned  of  41  persons 
whose  average  age  is  over  83  years.  Of 
this  number  5  are  females  over  90  years. 
Governor  Dillingham  is  83  ;  John  Mellen, 
86;  Elias  Parcher,  86;  Mrs.  Spelacy,  86; 
Betsey  Brown,  86;  Jerry  Brown,  82. 

TOVi^N  CLERKS. 

Ezra  Butler,  1790-97,  98,  99,  1800; 
Ebenezer  Reed,  1797;  Roswell  Wells, 
1801-6;  Abel  Dewolf,  1806;  Dan  Carpen- 
ter, 1 807- 1 0-12-29;  John  Peck,  1810,  ii; 
Paul  Dillingham,  1829-44;  William  Car- 
penter, 1844-51  ;  John  D.  Smith,  1851-74; 
Frank  N.  Smith,  1874-82. 

THE   BANK   OF   WATERBURY. 

The  act  of  the  Legislature  chartering  the 
Bank  of  Waterbury,  was  approved  Dec.  5, 
1853,  and  the  commissioners  appointed 
were  :  Wm.  W.  Wells,  Paul  Dillingham, 
W.  H.  H.  Bingham,  V.  W.  Waterman, 
T.  P.  Redfield,  Rolla  Gleason  and  Dan. 
Richardson.  The  bank  commenced  busi- 
ness Apr.  18,  1854,  with  the  following  di- 
rectors :  Leander  Hutchins,  Paul  Dilling- 
ham, Wm.  W.  Wells,  Orrin  Perkins  and 
V.   W.    Waterman ;    Leander    Hutchins, 


8/2 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


president,  and  Samuel  H.  Stowell,  cashier ; 
paid  up  capital,  $80,000.  At  different 
times  the  following  persons  were  elected 
directors  to  succeed  others  resigned,  etc. : 
Samuel  Merriam,  B.  F.  Goss,  J.  H.  Has- 
tings, A.  R.  Camp,  H.  A.  Hodges,  O.  W. 
Drew,  C.  N.  Arms  and  Healy  Cady.  Benj. 
H.  Dewey  succeeded  S.  H.  Stowell  as 
cashier,  Mar.  6,  1856,  and  served  until 
May  I,  1865,  when  James  K.  FuUerton 
was  appointed.  Sept.  i,  1865,  the  bank 
re-organized  under  the  National  Bank  Act 
as  the  Waterbury  National  Bank,  with  a 
paid  up  capital  of  $100,000,  divided  into 
2, 500  shares  of  $40  each.  Officers:  Leander 
Hutchins,  president;  James  K.  FuUerton, 
cashier  ;  directors,  Leander  Hutchins,  Paul 
Dillingham,  O.  W.  Drew,  J.  H.  Hastings, 
H.  A.  Hodges,  C.  N.  Arms  and  Healy 
Cady.  Mr.  Hutchins  served  as  president 
until  Jan.  13,  1874,  when,  declining  a  fur- 
ther election,  Paul  Dillingham  was  chosen. 
Mr.  FuUerton  was  cashier  until  Apr.  i, 
1870,  when  Curtis  Wells  was  appointed. 
At  different  elections  the  following  persons 
were  chosen  to  fill  vacancies  in  the  board 
of  directors :  Nathaniel  Moody,  Wm.  P. 
Dillingham  and  W.  H.  H.  Bingham,  and 
Jan.  9,  1877,  Wm.  P.  Dillingham  was 
elected  vice  president.  At  the  present  time 
the  capital  of  the  bank  is  $100,000  ;  surplus 
fund,  $30,000;  number  of  stockholders, 
138.  W.  p.  DILLINGHAM. 

WATERBURY   MEN   ABROAD. 

Waterbury  has  sent  many  of  her  sons, 
or  of  her  former  residents,  to  other  states. 
A  few  of  them  merit  some  mention.  Two 
assisted  in  forming  the  constitution  of 
Wisconsin,  George  Scagel  and  George 
Gale,  both  natives  of  this  town.  Mr.  Gale 
founded  a  village  and  a  university,  and  was 
a  judge  of  one  of  the  higher  courts. 

S.  C.  Sherman  was  many  years  a  prom- 
inent citizen  of  Qnincy,  111.  Several  have 
been  among  the  comparatively  early  cit- 
izens of  Chicago,  and  some  have  long  been 
residents  in  Louisiana.  Our  boys  may  be 
found  in  various  parts  of  New  York  state 
and  in  the  city,  in  most,  or  all  of  the  New 
England  states,  in  Ohio,  Illinois,  Iowa, 
Michigan,  California,  and  other  states  in 
every  direction,  many  of  them  being  suc- 


cessful farmers,  merchants,  doctors,  min- 
isters, lawyers,  editors,  inventors  and  man- 
ufacturers, and,  indeed,  in  most  avoca- 
tions of  life,  Waterbury  is  represented 
creditably  abroad  as  well  as  at  home. 

MRS.  FANNIK  BUTLER  JANES, 

widow  of  the  late  Hon.  Henry  F.  Janes, 
died  in  Waterbury,  Nov.  5,  1881.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  Governor  Ezra  Butler, 
the  first  permanent  settler  in  Waterbury, 
born  Feb.  i,  1800,  in  the  house  on  the 
Burlington  road,  now  occupied  by  E.  H. 
Wells.  There  in  her  childhood  davs  she 
had  given  refreshment  to  the  soldiers  going 
to  the  battle  of  Plattsburg,  and  her  ears 
had  listened  to  the  cannon  thunder  of  that 
combat.  Before  her  father's  door  Gov- 
ernor Van  Ness  had  halted  to  introduce 
LaFayette.  In  1826,  she  married  Mr. 
Janes.  In  sight  of  her  birthplace,  beneath 
the  shade  of  the  two  great  elms  on  the 
site  of  her  son's  new  residence,  their  mar- 
ried life  was  wholly  spent.  The  great 
elms  were  little  trees  then,  a  child  could 
clasp  them.  She  passed  her  declining 
years  peacefully  with  her  son,  Dr.  Henry 
Janes,  and  a  brother,  Russell  Butler,  Esq., 
survives  her.  In  these  centennial  years 
we  think  our  nation  is  growing  old  until 
we  stand  by  the  graves  of  the  aged  ;  then 
we  are  impressed  with  our  country's  youth, 
for  how  much  of  its  history  one  such  life 
can  span ! 

THE   STAR   OF   NATIONS, 

Is  the  title  to  an  unfinished  religious  poem 
of  length,  that  Mrs.  Julia  Wallace  Hutch- 
ins has  long  had  under  way  : 

O,  Morning  Star,  in  tlie  Old  World's  east, 

Bevoud  tlie  storm-cloud's  wreatli, 
Wlien  tlie  tliunder  lowers  on  the  Himalay, 

And  tlie  earthquake  sleeps  beneatli, 
How  dark  would  be  the  coining  hour, 

Th}'  single  ray  withdrawn, 
Till  the  thunder  wake,  till  the  tempest  break. 

In  the  day  of  Esdrajlon; 
Till  the  rocks  be  rent,  and  the  wrath  is  spent, 
O,  Star  of  Hope,  shine  on.  J.  M    w. 

The  space  is  filled  left  for  Waterbury,  it 
was  thought  we  would  only  have  material 
for,  when  our  compositors  had  set  all  the 
copy  in,  and  had  to  enter  Woodbury ;  but 
we  will  give,  in  3d  appendix  later,  a  few 
more  papers  received  since,  than  can  be 
entered  here. 


WOODBURY. 


873 


WOODBURY. 

14Y  HON.  FEUNANDO  C.  I'UTNAM. 

The  early  history  of  Woodbury  is  some- 
what obscure  from  the' absence  of  any  re- 
cord of  its  organization.  In  1804,  there 
was  a  deed  recorded  by  Wm.  West,  town 
clerk,  by  which  it  may  be  inferred  that  the 
town  had  been  organized. 

First  settlement  was  commenced  in  the 
east  part  of  the  town,  and  settlements  were 
continued  to  the  east  and  southern  parts 
of  the  town  several  years, — or  until  1809 
or  10,  when  Nehemiah  and  Nathan  Jack- 
son, two  strong,  athletic  men,  moved 
from  Randolph,  and  settled  on  the  west 
side  of  the  mountain.  The  first  saw-mill 
was  built  in  the  south  part  of  the  town, 
near  the  Sabin  pond,  on  a  stream  running 
from  Dog  pond.  Soon  after,  there  was  a 
saw  and  grist-mill  built  half  a  mile  south  of 
the  Center,  on  a  stream  running  from  Long 
pond . 

Polly  Sabin  was  the  first  female  child 
born  in  town,  Frederick  Ainsworth  the  first 
male  child.  Wm.  West  was  doubtless  the 
first  town  clerk,  and  one  of  the  first  justices 
of  the  peace;  Elisha  Benjamin  the  first 
representative. 

Comfort  Wheeler,  settler  and  Revo- 
lutionary soldier,  little  is  known  of  his 
early  life,  or  when  he  was  engaged  in  the 
service  of  his  country  ;  but  it  is  told  of  him 
when  recruiting  service  was  going  on  in 
Massachusetts,  he  was  considered  quite  too 
small  to  enter  the  army,  but  securing  a 
block,  he  placed  himself  in  the  midst  of 
the  crowd  on  this,  and  when  the  recruiting 
officer  observed  him,  he  said  of  the  boy, 
if  he  had  so  much  energy  as  that,  he  would 
take  him.  His  last  years  were  made  com- 
fortable by  a  pension. 

Capt.  Joel  Celley  among  the  early 
settlers,  a  man  of  energy  and  persevering 
effort,  did  much  to  give  character  to  the 
town ;  was  representative  several  years, 
and  held  many  town  offices.  He  was  a 
shrewd  farmer,  and  was  reported  to  have 
one  of  the  best  farms  in  the  county. 

Jabez  Town  came  here  when  the  town 
was  yet  young,  and  resided  for  years  in  a 
log-house,  and   maintained  his  family   by 


hard  labor ;  was  a  shoemaker,  and  made 
boots  of  a  superior  quality,  which  afforded 
him  some  income  ;  but  after  the  invention 
of  a  last-machine  by  his  son,  Abner  Town, 
yet  a  minor,  the  sales  of  his  lasts  gave  him 
a  good  income,  which  furnished  him  ample 
means  for  the  remainder  of  his  life. 

CHARTER. 

August  16,  1781,  the  Legislature  of  Ver- 
mont granted  a  charter  of  the  town  of 
Woodbury  to  William  Lyman,  Esq.,  and 
Col.  Ebenezer  Wood,  and  their  associ_ates 
as  follows  : 

Joshua  L.  Woodbridge,  Seth  Murray, 
Elihu  Murray,  Israel  Chapin,  John  Stone, 
Benjamin  Sheldon,  Samuel  Cooke,  Elisha 
Porter,  John  C.  Williams,  Thomas  Hunt, 
Nathaniel  Edwards,  Ezra  Phillips,  Nahum 
Edgar,  Asahel  Pomeroy,  Park  Woodward, 
John  Woodward,  Asa  Woodward,  William 
Potter,  Benedict  Eggleston,  Thos.  Wood- 
ward, Joseph  Clark,  Henry  Champion,  Jr., 
Epaphroditus  Champion,  Thomas  Miller, 
Joel  Day,  Anne  Hathaway,  William  Gould, 
Nathaniel  Chipman,  Stephen  Pearl,  Joseph 
Jay,  Thomas  Tolman,  Oliver  Wright, 
Daniel  Wright,  Samuel  Clark,  Stephen  Jen- 
kins, Zebina  Curtiss,  Abel  Adams,  Moses 
Gifford,  Thomas  Chittenden,  Timothy 
BrownsOn,  John  Fassett,  Jr.,  Noble  Ever- 
ett, Jonathan  Brace,  Gustavus  Walbridge, 
Rodolphus  Walbridge,  Caleb  Benjamin, 
John  Knickerbocker,  Daniel  Benjamin, 
Howel  Woodbridge,  Samuel  Bishop,  Noah 
Smith,  Daniel  Smith,  Israel  Smith,  Chloe 
Smith,  Simeon  Hathaway,  Shadrack  Hath- 
away, Jale  Hathaway,  Jonathan  Burrill, 
Enoch  Woodbridge,  John  Burnham,  Timo- 
thy FoUett,  Silas  Robinson. 

A  copy  of  the  charter  and  original 
grantees  was  obtained  from  the  State  rec- 
ords as  recorded  in  the  first  Book  of  Char- 
ters of  Lands,  pages  166,  169,  dated  at 
Montpelier,  "31st  day  of  May,  A.  D. 
1805."  Signed  by  David  Wing,  Jr.,  Sec- 
retary of  State. 

Certified  as  follows : 

"  This  may  certify  that  the  above  and 
foregoing  is  a  true  Copy  of  the  Original 
Charter  of  Woodbury. 

Attest,     Eliph.  Huntington, 

Proprietors'  Clerk." 


874 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


This  town  was  called  Woodbury,  for  the 
name  of  Col.  Ebenezer  Wood,  one  of  the 
original  proprietors. 

The  first  action  of  the  original  proprie- 
tors was  to  lay  out  the  town  into  three  di- 
visions, of  which  there  is  no  record  of  the 
time,  or  by  whom  it  was  done,  as  will 
appear,  as  the  notice  of  the  first  meeting 
of  the  proprietors  was  signed  by  Reuben 
Blanchard,  a  justice  of  the  peace  of  Peach- 
am,  dated  Aug.  8,  1804,  to  be  held  at  the 
dwelling-house  of  Daniel  Smith,  in  Wood- 
bury, Oct.  8th,  after.  At  said  meeting 
Daniel  Smith  was  chosen  proprietors'  clerk, 
and  it  was  voted  to  lay  out  the  whole  of 
the  undivided  lands  into  lots  of  100  acres 
each,  in  the  same  form  in  which  the  first 
division  was  laid,  and  John  W.  Chandler 
and  James  Whitelaw  were  chosen  a  com- 
mittee to  make  said  allotment.  The  above 
meeting  A^as  adjourned  to  Nov.  20,  and 
again  adjourned  to  May  25,  1805,  when 
Eliphalet  Huntington  was  chosen  proprie- 
tors' clerk  ;  Daniel  Smith  having  previously 
moved  out  of  town ;  and  it  was  voted  to 
accept  the  plan  and  field  book  of  the  west- 
erly part  of  the  town  reported  by  their 
committee,  and  it  was  voted  to  assess  a 
tax  of  $2.60  on  the  2d  and  3d  division 
rights,  to  defray  the  expenses  of  sui-veying 
and  lotting  the  2d  and  3d  division  of  said 
town,  and  other  incidental  expenses,  and 
Jonathan  Elkins,  Esq.,  was  chosen  col- 
lector. This  meeting  adjourned  to  June 
4th,  following.  At  this  time  the  allotment 
of  the  2d  and  3d  division  having  been 
completed,  Mary  Kenaston,  an  indifferent 
person,  was  chosen  to  draw  the  lots  of  said 
divisions;  James  Whitelaw,  Esq.,  was 
chosen  a  committee  to  look  up  and  procure 
the  records  of  the  former  proceedings  of 
the  proprietors  of  Woodbury  relative  to 
their  former  divisions.  Notice  of  the  next 
meeting  was  signed  by  Jabez  Bigelow,  a 
justice  of  the  peace  of  Ryegate,  dated  July 
26,  1805,  to  be  holden  on  the  first  day  of 
October,  following ;  at  said  meeting,  the 
proprietors'  clerk  reported  that  the  original 
plan  and  draft  of  the  first  division  of  lots 
in  the  town  of  Woodbury  cannot  be  found, 
though  considerable  pains  had  been  taken 
to  obtain  the  same,  and  a  new  one   was 


submitted  and  accepted,  and  it  was  voted 
"  that  it  shall  hereafter  ever  be  considered 
the  draft  of  the  said  first  division  as  be- 
fore stated."  Jonathan  Elkins,  Esq.,  of 
Peacham,  was  appointed  collector  to  collect 
the  $2.60  on  each  right  of  the  2d  and  3d 
division,  unless  paid  immediately  to  him 
at  Peacham,  the  same  would  be  sold  at 
public  auction  for  said  tax  and  costs,  which 
sale  was  at  the  dwelling-house  of  Joshua 
Kenaston's  in  Woodbury,  on  the  first  day 
of  October,  A.  D.  1805  ;  attested  by  Jon- 
athan Elkins,  Jr.,  collector.  At  this  .sale 
John  W.  Chandler  of  Peacham,  purchased 
about  50  lots  for  the  sum  of  $3.32  per  lot, 
being  the  amount  of  the  tax  and  costs 
which  he  and  his  heirs  have  since  sold 
from  $50  to  $200  per  lot ;  the  aforesaid 
first  division  was  surveyed  by  one  Cham- 
berlain into  lots  of  100  acres  each,  being 
in  all  91  lots,  commencing  to  number  at 
the  S.  E.  corner  of  the  town,  counting 
east  and  west,  each  lot  being  known  by  its 
number  and  survey.  The  balance  of  said 
town  was  surveyed  by  Nathan  Janes,  being 
designated  as  "  Janes'  survey,"  containing 
133  lots  of  100  acres,  each  commencing  to 
number  at  the  S.  E.  corner  of  the  2d  and 
3d  division,  counting  east  and  west,  same 
as  in  the  first  division. 

The  first  settler  in  the  town  was  Gideon 
Sabin,  who  located  in  the  east  part,  in  the 
year  1795,  or  '96,  and  was  followed  the 
same  year  by  Joseph  Carr,  and  soon  after 
by  William  West,  all  locating  in  the  east- 
erly part  of  the  town  ;  and  according  to 
the  best  information  to  be  obtained,  the 
next  who  located  in  town  was  in  the  year 
1801,  when  Benjamin  Ainsworth  and  John 
Bettis  located  in  the  south  part  of  the 
town.  The  first  12  settlers  are  as  follows  : 
Gideon  Sabin,  Joseph  Carr,  Wm.  West, 
Benjamin  Ainsworth,  John  Bettis,  Ephraim 
Ainsworth,  Thomas  Ainsworth,  Ezekiel 
Ball,  Daniel  Rugg,  Ferdinand  Perry, 
Daniel  Smith,  and  Samuel  Mackres. 

The  first  town  meeting  on  record  was 
Mar.  4,  1806,  when  said  officers  were  chos- 
en: moderator,  Samuel  Mackres;  Wm. 
West,  town  clerk  and  treasurer ;  select- 
men, Samuel  Mackres,  Joshua  Kenaston, 
and  Smith   Ainsworth;  constable,   Benja- 


WOODBURY. 


875 


min  Ainsworth  ;  listers,  David  Rugg,  Josh- 
ua Kenastonand  Smith  Ainsworth  ;  grand- 
juror,  Joshua  Kenaston.  At  a  subsequent 
meeting,  there  was  a  committee  appointed 
to  look  up  the  early  records  of  the  town ; 
but  their  labors  were  unavailing,  and  they 
were  discharged,  The  oldest  deed  now  on 
our  records  is  dated  Oct.  10,  1804,  attested 
by  Wm.  West,  town  clerk. 

The  first  birth  in  Woodbury  was  Polly 
Sabin ;  the  second,  Timothy  Thomas ; 
the  third,  Peter  Sabin.  The  first  death, 
that  of  an  infant  child  of  Gideon  Sabin. 
The  first  grown  person  dying  in  town  was 
the  wife  of  Ezekiel  Ball.  The  first  mar- 
riage was  John  Thomas  to  Ruamy  Ains- 
worth, married  by  William  West,  Esq., 
justice  of  the  peace. 


The  first  settlements  being  made  on  the 
east  side  of  the  town,  adjoining  Cabot,  the 
inhabitants  went  there  to  get  their  logs 
sawed  and  grain  ground,  and  also  their 
store  goods  and  mail,  and  which  has  been 
continued  to  the  present  time,  it  being 
their  nearest  business  place  ;  but  soon  after 
settlements  were  commenced  in  the  south 
part  of  the  town.  In  1806,  Anthony  Bur- 
gess built  a  saw-mill  on  a  stream  which  has 
its  rise,  or  is  the  outlet  of  Dog  pond,  and 
empties  into  Sabin's  pond,  this  mill  being 
near  the  pond.  This  stream  is  about  3 
miles  in  length.  For  many  years  there 
has  been  4  saw-mills  on  it,  all  kept  in  run- 
ning order.  In  1818,  Phineas  K.  Dow 
built  a  saw  and  grist-mill  near  the  center 
of  the  town,  on  a  stream  which  has  its  rise 
in  Long  pond,  emptying  into  the  Sabin 
pond,  near  the  other,  which  mill  under  his 
supervision  did  a  fair  business  many  years. 
He  also  built,  soon  after,  a  saw-mill  on  a 
stream  running  from  East  Long  pond  in- 
to Nichols  pond.  Some  portion  of  the 
time  since  there  has  been  10  saw-mills, 
which  number  is  now  reduced  to  6,  three 
of  them  recently  built  on  improved  plans. 
There  is  one  grist-mill,  which  is  located 
at  South  Woodbury.  There  are  in  town  a 
wheelwright  shop,  which  has  an  enviable 
reputation,  doing  a  successful  business, 
sales  amounting  to    near   $10,000  per   an- 


num ;  a  sash,  blind  and  door  shop,  and  a 
last-factory,  the  latter  having  been  estab- 
lished nearly  50  years,  is  now  doing  a  good 
business — the  best  ever  done,  employing 
both  steam  and  water  power.  There  are 
also  3  lumber  mills,  which  do  an  extensive 
business,  one  at  the  Centre,  one  at  South 
Woodbury  village,  and  one  in  the  east  part 
of  the  town  ;  also,  at  So.  Woodbury  there 
is  a  machine  shop,  which  manufactures  J. 
W.  Town's  patent  last-machines,  also  job 
work  on  a  small  scale. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  first  school  taught  in  the  town  of 
Woodbury  was  by  Sally  White,  in  the 
year  1808. 

The  first  record  we  find  was  in  181 2, 
when  three  districts,  which  had  been  formed 
out  of  the  new  territory,  and  were  desig- 
nated as  the  northwest,  southeast,  and 
northeast  school  districts  ;  but  there  had 
been  short  terms  of  school  before  this  date 
in  all  of  these  districts,  commencing  at 
the  northeast  district,  now  No.  i  ;  this 
portion  of  the  town  being  first  settled ; 
next  southeast,  No.  2  ;  northwest,  No.  4. 
There  was  in  18 12,  in  district  3,  T},  schol- 
ars;  in  1820,  dist.  6,  176;  1830,  dist.  9, 
299;  1840,  dist.  11,363:  1850,  dist.  11^, 
(fractional  dist.,)  350;  i860,  dist.  11,330; 
1870,  dist.  10,  308. 

Six  of  the  districts  have  good  school- 
houses  built  upon  improved  plans  ;  ^some 
very  recently,  others  have  have  been  re- 
paired, so  that  they  are  comfortable. 

SCHOOL   SUPERINTENDENTS. 

F.  C.  Putnam,  Jason  Hatch,  A.  W.  Nel- 
son, Sidney  O.  Wells,  Hiram  Wells,  Albert 
P.  Town,  Rufus  Lawson. 

REPRESENTATIVES . 

Elisha  Benjamin,  1812;  no  record  in 
town  or  House  Journal,  1813  ;  John  Bruce, 
18 14,  15,  16;  Nathan  B.  Harvey,  1817; 
Benjamin  Fowler,  1818,  19,  23,  ,24,  25,  27, 
28;  Joel  Celley,  1820,  21,  22,  26,  29,  30; 
Ebenezer  Bruce,  1831  to  35,  38;  Luther 
Morse,  1835  ;  Asaph  Town,  1836,  yj ,  55  ; 
Abner  Town,  1839,  4°'  45  !  ^'"'^  McLoud, 
1841,  to  45,  46,  52  ;  Michael  Jackson,  1847, 
48;  Benjamin  Wells,  1849,  50;  Stephen 
C.  Burnham,   1851,  53;     Isaac  Wells,  Jr., 


876 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


1854,  56;  Hiram  Putnam,  1857,  58;  Orson 
Putnam,  1859,  60;  J.  W.  Town,  1861,  62; 
Allen  W.  Nelson,  1863,  64;  Joel  C.  Har- 
vey, 1S65;  Roland  B.  Bruce,  1866;  Al- 
pheus  S.  Wheatle}',  1867,  68;  Nathaniel 
C.  McKniglit,  1869,  70,  71  ;  Sidney  O. 
Wells,  1872,  72>- 

TOWN    CLERKS   FROM    1806  tO   1 872. 

William  West,  1806-10;  Joshua  Kenas- 
ton,  1810,  II,  13,  14";  Elisha  Benjamin, 
1812,  15;  Jabez  Town,  1816,  17,  18,  19- 
23,  25-32;  Nathan  B.  Harvey,  1818;  Joel 
Celley,  1823,  24;  Asaph  Town,  1832-49; 
William  McGregor,  1849-52;  Allen  W. 
Nelson,  1852  to  the  present  time,  Dec, 
1872. 

First  Justices  of  the  Peace  :  Wil- 
liam West,  Daniel  Smith,  Samuel  Mackers. 

postmasters. 

Woodbury:  Daniel  Poor,  Elias  S.  Drew, 
John  B.  Bliss,  Asa  Preston,  William  B. 
McGregor,  Abner  Town,  A.  W.  Nelson, 
Ethan  N.  Ainsworth  and  Albert  P.  Town. 

South  Vlu-iodbnry:  Joel  W.  Celley  and 
Orwell  D.  Town. 

COUNTY   OFFICERS. 

Ebenezer  Bruce,  assistant  judge,  W. 
Co.  Court,  1844,  45  ;  Ira  McLoud,  high 
sheriff,  W.  Co.  Court,  1849,  51  ;  Asaph 
Town,  senator,  W.  Co.,  1851,52;  Fer- 
nando C.  Putnam,  assistant  justice,  W. 
Co.  Court,  1867,  68. 

In  Jan.,  1876,  there  was  formed  a  Con- 
gregational church  of  28  members,  the 
present  membership  of  which  is  54.  It 
seems  to  promise  well  for  the  future,  and 
there  is  a  flourishing  Sabbath  school  con- 
nected with  it.  At  South  Woodbury  there 
has  been  a  union  church  built,  an  elegant 
building,  but  the  same  difficulty  hangs  over 
this  that  has  troubled  the  builders  of  other 
churches,  there  remains  a  troublesome 
debt  on  the  builders. 

There  is  no  library  in  town,  but  the 
town  has  paid  considerable  attention  to 
education.  There  are  many  good  school- 
houses,  and  teachers  of  the  better  class 
are  generally  employed. 

Three  young  men  have  graduated  from 
Burlington:   Hon.    Charles    H.    Heath,  a 


lawyer  in  Montpelier,  and  Ernest  C.  Ben- 
jamin, a  teacher  of  the  high  school  in  Bar- 
ton. Geo.  W.  Kenaston,  who  graduated 
at  Dartmouth,  is  in  Ohio,  engaged  in 
teaching. 

FREEWILL   BAPTISTS. 

It  appears  the  first  settlers  were  Freewill 
Baptists,  and  were  connected  with  a  church 
in  Cabot  until  1820,  or  22,  when  through 
the  efforts  of  Elder  Ziba  Woodworth,  of 
Montpelier,  they  had  a  church  formed  in 
town.  David  Herrick  and  wife,  Elisha 
Benjamin  and  wife,  Mrs.  Robert  Bradish, 
Gideon  Burnham  and  wife,  Thomas  Ains- 
worth and  wife,  John  Bettis  and  wife,  Mrs. 
John  Thomas,  Nathan  Jackson  and  wife, 
and  Nehemiah  Jackson  and  wife  were  the 
principal  members,  located  in  different 
parts  of  the  town.  There  were  two  dea- 
cons, David  Herrick  and  Nehemiah  Jack- 
son. The  church  was  re-organized  about 
1850;  most  of  the  old  members  having 
now  died  or  moved  away.  Elder  Isaac 
Swan  was  settled  as  their  pastor.  I  will 
mention  here  the  names  of  Elder  Gideon 
Sabin  and  Elder  Ephraim  Ainsworth,  who 
are  said  to  have  been  of  that  .faith ;  but 
Elder  Sabin  never  united  with  the  church, 
and  Elder  Ainsworth  died  before  the  church 
was  organized.  Elder  Sabin  was  the  first 
settler  and  first  preacher.  Elder  Ainsworth 
was  well  advanced  in  life  when  he  came; 
but  both  lived  out  their  alloted  time,  and 
died  in  the  town. 

METHODISTS. 

In  1 81 6  there  was  a  class  formed  by 
Elder  Amasa  Cole  ;  John  Goodell  and  wife, 
Capt.  Joel  Celley  and  wife,  Anna  Goodell, 
and  Squire  Jennings  and  wife  were  some 
of  the  members  ;  but  the  first  record  proof 
is  found  in  I847,  when  the  first  class  num- 
bered 26  members  ;  the  West  Woodbury 
class,  10.  John  Tibbetts  was  leader,  and 
Asaph  To\vn,  Esq.,  steward,  which  office 
he  held  until  his  death,  in  Jan.  1871. 

CHRISTIAN    CHURCH. 

The  first  church  of  this  order  in  these 
parts  seems  to  have  been  composed  of 
members  from  four  towns,  Cabot,  Marsh- 
field,  Calais  and  Woodbury,  and  was  organ- 


WOODBURY. 


877 


ized  about  1820,  with  40  or  50  members, 
and  in  a  few  years  run  up  to  60  or  70. 
Meetings  were  held  a  share  of  the  time  in 
Woodbury,  Elder  John  Capron,  of  Marsh- 
field,  J.  R.  Pettengill  and  R.  Thompson 
being  the  first  preachers.  Subsequently, 
through  the  efforts  of  Elder  Samuel  Thur- 
ber,  a  church  was  formed  in  town  whose 
members  exceed  that  of  either  of  the  other 
churches.  The  meetings  of  the  first  church 
were  held  at  the  dwelling-house  of  Thos. 
Harvey,  he  and  his  wife  being  prominent 
members  ;  afterwards,  meetings  were  held 
at  the  Harvey  school-house,  which  is  in 
the  east  part  of  the  town,  and  where  the 
members  nearly  all  resided.  Elder  Orrin 
Davis,  of  Calais,  has  preached  a  portion  of 
the  time  for  several  years  since  to  this 
society  :  also  Elder  Silas  Wheelock,  of  the 
same  town,  has  supplied  the  desk  some, 
but  for  the  last  4  years,  Elder  Jerome 
D.  Bailey,  resident  of  this  town,  has 
preached  at  the  town-house  and  Harvey 
school-house  from  one-fourth  to  three- 
fourths  of  the  time. 

In  1826,  the  Freewill  Baptists  numbered 
at  least  40  members,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  Methodists  numbered  about  half  the 
above  numbers. 

Within  the  recollection  of  the  writer, 
there  have  been  four  distinct  organizations 
of  religious  societies  in  town,  viz. :  Chris- 
tians, Freewill  Baptists,  Methodists  and 
Universalists. 

In  1810,  there  was  a  revival  in  this  town, 
but  no  very  definite  information  can  be 
obtained  in  regard  to  its  extent.  In  182 1, 
or  1822,  there  was  a  general  revival,  prayer- 
meetings  being  held  in  nearly  every  house 
in  town.  Again  in  i'826,  of  some  magni- 
tude, and  in  1842  and  '43,  a  very  general 
one  spread  over  this  town,  as  it  did  all 
over  this  section  of  the  State.  The  exact 
number  of  converts  at  any  of  the  above 
revivals  is  not  known  to  the  writer. 

SABBATH-SCHOOLS.' 

The  first  was  organized  in  1842,  with  a 
library  of  ,124  volumes,  and  Asaph  Town 
was  the  first  superintendent ;  Arad  Jack- 
son, John  Voodry,  Willard  Streeter,  Eliza 
Town,    Phebe    Town,    Betsey    Herrick, 


Dorcas  A.  Lyford,  first  teachers,  with  36 
scholars ;  Asaph  Town,  chairman,  David 
Herrick,  Jr.,  secretary,  Curtis  Osgood, 
treasurer. 

A  Sabbath-school  was  organized  at  the 
center  of  the  town  in  1848  ;  Albert?.  Town, 
present  superintendent ;  volumes  in  library, 
200  ;  6  teachers  and  30  scholars. 

The  first  Sabbath-school  at  East  Wood- 
bury was  organized  in  1838;  Wm.  Harvey 
superintendent,  until  his  death  in  1843. 
It  was  re-organized  in  1865  ;  Lewis  Hop- 
kins superintendent.  The  school  has  con- 
tinued until  the  present  time,  '71,  with  an 
average  of  35  to  40  scholars,  the  present 
superintendent  being  Thomas  Harvey,  Jr. 

But  little,  however,  will  be  said  of 
churches,  as  I  have  no  records  to  refer  to, 
and  the  history  of  church  edifices  in  this 
town  does  not  embrace  a  very  remote 
period.  From  the  early  days,  meetings 
have  been  held  here  in  school-houses,  four 
or  five  of  which  were  quite  commodious. 
In  the  year  1840,  the  town  built  a  town- 
hall  or  town-house,  which  has  been  used 
for  holding  meetings  up  to  the  present 
time.  In  1870,  the  people  here  thought 
well  to  erect  a  church,  and  through  the 
influence  of  several  of  our  best  inhabi- 
tants, a  subscription  paper  was  circulated, 
and  a  Union  church  society  formed,  with 
F.  C.  Putnam  president,  and  S.  O.  Wells 
secretary,  and  a  capital  stock  of  $5,000. 

At  the  first  society  meeting,  Henry  C. 
Wells,  Ira  G.  Jewell  and  Edmund  E.  Ball 
were  chosen  building  committee,  and  m 
the  spring  of  1871,  work  was  commenced 
on  the  church,  which  is  now  completed,  at 
a  cost  of  $6,000.  In  size  the  church  is 
44x60,  with  projections  in  front  and  rear 
for  spire  and  pulpit,  and  is  finished  inside 
with  ash  and  black  walnut,  the  54  slips, 
circular,  radiating  from  the  pulpit,  and 
will  seat  324  persons.  The  spire  is  120 
feet  high,  surmounted  by  cardinal  points 
and  vane.  The  edifice  is  called  one  of  the 
best  wooden  churches  of  its  size  in  the 
State.  It  has  also  a  vestry,  with  chairs  to 
seat  3C0  persons,  and  seats  that  will  swell 
the  amount  to  probably  500  persons.  It 
is  located  in  the  village  of  South  Wood- 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


bury,  and  makes  a  very  respectable  addi- 
tion to  the  appearance  of  this  quiet  village. 

The  township  is  diversified  and  some- 
what broken.  In  the  western  part  there 
is  a  mountain  range,  commencing  in  Calais, 
extending  through  the  town,  and  ending 
near  the  Lamoille  river  in  Hard  wick.  On 
the  western  slope  of  this  mountain  there 
are  many  productive  farms.  The  soil  is 
good,  and  produces  excellent  crops  of  hay 
and  all  the  small  grasses  and  corn  in  favor- 
able seasons. 

There  is  a  beauty  in  this  mountain  range 
which  attracts  the  notice  of  the  passing 
stranger  ;  some,  if  report  be  true,  who  have 
traveled  in  Europe  say  there  is  a  striking 
resemblance  to  Switzerland  scenery.  The 
mountain  is  not  so  high  as  to  make  it  dif- 
ficult of  ascent,  yet  sufficiently  high  to 
show  what  mighty  throes  there  must  have 
been  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth  to  cast  up 
such  vast  piles  of  massive  rocks.  In  win- 
ter, the  evergreens  standing  in  mantle  of 
snow,  give  it  a  sombre  appearance ;  in 
summer,  the  green  verdure,  stretching  out 
green  branches  by  interlocking  them,  seem 
to  strive  to  cover  up  the  craggy  rocks  ;  but 
when  autumn  comes,  and  frosts  nip  the 
verdure,  and  the  mountain's  brow  is  re- 
splendant  in  a  pleasing  variety  of  colors, 
who  has  a  taste  for  the  beautiful  cannot 
fail  of  emotions  of  pleasure  ;  but  where  this 
beauty  is  mirrored  by  a  pond,  sleeping  in 
quiet  at  its  base,  it  is  delightful,  and  the 
longer  any  one  gazes,  in  a  clear,  autumnal 
day,  the  more  he  is  enchanted  ;  few  objects 
in  nature  can  surpass  the  beauty  of  this. 

Two  miles  east  of  this  range,  there  is  an- 
other mountain  standing  alone,  called  Rob- 
inson mountain,  and  sometimes  Foster 
mountain,  because  an  enterprising  farmer  of 
that  name  felled  the  huge  trees  which  cov- 
ered it,  and  converted  it  into  a  luxurious 
pasture.  This  mountain  is  rich  in  granite 
and  talcose  slate,  the  granite  preponder- 
ing.  For  centuries  has  the  gray  old  moun- 
tain rested  in  quiet,  but  it  is  expected  the 
quiet  will  soon  be  disturbed  by  the  rattle 
of  the  machinery  hammers  of  the  work- 
men, who  have  begun  the  business  of  re- 
ducing some  of  this  vast  pile  of  rocks  to 
such  forms  as  are  required  for  monuments 


and  other  purposes  for  which  granite  is 
used.  The  quality  of  the  granite  has  been 
ascertained  to  be  superior,  as  it  is  free 
from  all  foreign  substances  which  causes 
some  of  the  State  granite  to  change  its 
color  when  exposed  to  atmospheric  influ- 
ence and  moisture.  From  the  base  of  the 
mountain  are  scattered  for  miles  around 
large  and  small  boulders  with  the  corners 
worn  off,  exhibiting  the  mighty  force  which 
must  have  been  in  exercise  to  have  tum- 
bled them  along,  and  an  annoyance  to  the 
ploughman  ;  but  the  land  makes  excellent 
and  enduring  pasturage,  as  well  as  pro- 
ducing abundant  crops  of  hay.  In  some 
sections  of  the  town  there  is  good  and  pro- 
ductive land,  which  well  repays  the  tillers' 
toil,  and  those  owning  these  lands  have 
generally  secured  an  ample  supply  of  this 
world's  goods. 

There  are  some  23  ponds,  large  and 
small,  in  this  township,  most  of  which 
were  well  supplied  with  trout,  which  were 
the  first  settlers'  pork  barrel.  And  when 
they  wearied  of  trout,  the  deer  and  moose 
offered  an  agreeable  change,  or  an  oc- 
casional round  of  bear  meet ;  for  bears,  too, 
would  sometimes  come  forth  from  their  re- 
treats to  feast  on  the  yellow  corn  and  fat 
mutton.  Bears  love  good  mutton,  but 
frequently  they  paid  for  the  temerity  by 
stepping  into  a  huge  steel  trap  which  was 
sure  to  hold  them,  or  coming  in  range  of  a 
gun  so  placed  when  they  came  in  contact 
with  a  line  attached,  it  would  explode, 
and  instead  of  a  square  meal  of  corn,  the 
brute,  unconscious  of  his  danger,  would 
yield  his  flesh  and  pelt  to  repay  the  debt 
he  owed  for  corn.  And  about  these  ponds 
and  streams  there  was  then  an  abundance 
of  animals  whose  pelts  were  secured  for 
furs.  Col.  Jonathan  Elkins,  mentioned  in 
the  history  of  Peacham,  and  the  famous 
Indian  Joe,  spoken  of  in  the  history  of 
some  of  tlie  towns,  were  often  hunting  on 
these  grounds  for  beaver,  otter,  mink, 
muskrat,  sable,  and  an  animal  called  by 
the  inhabitants  fisher-master,  or  black  cat, 
from  its  color.  Those  employed  in  build- 
ing dams,  might  take  a  lesson  from  our 
beaver  dams,  some  of  them  still  stand- 
ing, notwithstanding  the  ingenious  build- 


WOODBURY. 


879 


ers  have  long  since  ceased  to  make  re- 
pairs. 

The  first  settlers  in  town  were  :  Joseph 
Carr  and  Gideon  Sabin.  Reports  vary 
as  to  this,  some  saying  they  came  to- 
gether ;  others,  that  Joseph  Carr  came  first, 
felled  the  first  trees,  and  was  subsequently 
joined  by  Gideon  Sabin,  who  was  a  mighty 
hunter,  before  whose  unerring  aim  the 
game  was  quite  sure  to  fall.  His  was  a 
complex  character,  composed  of  the  qual- 
ities of  hunter,  preacher  and  farmer.  The 
early  settlers  have  often  heard  his  stento- 
rian voice  when  he  called  his  faithful  dogs. 
Hunting  was  his  delight  as  long  as  he  was 
able  to  pursue.  Reynard,  deer  and  bear 
have  often  been  bagged  by  him. 

REVOLUTIONARY   SOLDIERS. 

There  were  three  Revolutionary  soldiers 
who  made  their  homes  here,  whose  last 
years  were  made  comfortable  from  the 
pension  bestowed  on  them  by  government, 
which  were  richly  deserved  for  the  toils 
and  sufferings  of  those  early  days,  for 
which  they  were  paid  in  continental  money 
which  became  worthless. 

JOSEPH    BLANCHARD 

was  born  in  Concord,  N.  H.,  where  his 
ancestors  resided,  and  where,  when  the 
dark  clouds  of  despotism  were  hanging 
like  a  gathering  storm  over  this  country, 
the  patriotism  of  young  Blanchard  com- 
pelled him  to  enter  the  ranks  of  those  who 
went  forth  to  protect  their  dearest  rights 
from  being  snatched  from  them.  He  was 
for  years  in  those  stirring  scenes  which 
called  for  men  of  true  worth  to  fight  the 
battles  of  liberty,  and  his  mind  formed  in 
the  positive  school  of  the  times,  when  a 
tory  was  the  object  of  extreme  hatred,  led 
him  to  be  most  decided  in  his  likes  and 
dislikes.  He  was  a  fast  friend  or  a  bitter 
foe ;  a  man  of  a  large  heart  and  a  quiet 
disposition,  but  when  roused  by  opposi- 
tion to  some  of  his  cherished  views,  the 
spirit  of  early  life  developed  itself  strongly. 
He  left  a  n.umerous  progeny,  a  very  large 
proportion  of  whom  have  well  sustained 
the  character  of  their  progenitors  in  in- 
tegrity and  uprightness. 


DAVID   RUGG 

came  into  town  when  it  was  yet  almost  an 
unbroken  wilderness,  and  made  a  home 
for  himself  and  family.  He  also  went 
forth  early  at  his  country's  call,  and  con- 
tinued during  the  war  of  the  Revolution. 
He  was  at  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  and 
among  those  behind  the  breastwork  made 
of  rail  fence  and  newly-mown  grass.  He 
said  he  was  near  Gen.  Putnam  during  the 
fight,  who  encouraged  his  men  by  some  of 
his  oflf-hand  speeches,  and  they,  partaking 
of  his  spirit,  fought  with  desperation. 
When  Washington  took  command  of  the 
forces,  he  was  still  in  the  service,  and 
when  Arnold  was  about  to  betray  West 
Point,  he  was  called  with  a  few  others  to 
skirmish  with  the  vessel  which  brought 
Andre  on  his  mission  to  purchase  West 
Point  of  the  traitor  Arnold,  and  when  they 
were  about  to  fire  from  the  ship,  he,  with 
his  fellows,  retreated  behind  a  large  pine 
tree  standing  on  the  shore.  On  that  cold, 
stormy  night,  when  Washington  and  his 
division  were  enabled  to  cross  the  Dela- 
ware and  march  to  Trenton,  Mr.  Rugg 
was  among  his  soldiers  who  went  forth 
from  their  gloomy  abodes  to  victory ; 
and  when  the  storm  of  war  was  gathering 
about  Yorktown,  he  was  still  in  the  army 
of  Washington,  and  witnessed  his  final 
departure  from  his  disbanded  army,  and 
returned  to  Massachusetts,  and  gave  his 
last  $70  of  the  depreciated  currency  of  the 
time  for  a  mug  of  flip.  His  pension  came 
just  in  time  to  save  him,  whose  early  life 
had  been  devoted  to  the  service  of  his 
country,  from  a  pauper's  home,  and  saw 
him  standing  in  all  the  dignity  of  the  true 
patriot  and  conquerer. 

LONGEVITY   OF   WOODBURY. 

Persons  iv/io  have  died  of  70  years  and 
■upwards. 

Gideon  Sabin,  age  74,  Lucy  Sabin  82, 
Comfort  Wheeler  91,  David  Chase  71, 
Caleb  Putnam  86,  Susannah  Putnam  94, 
Silas  Chase  70,  Sarah  Chase  70,  Eleareda 
Blake  76,  Nancy  Ainsworth  74,  Jeremiah 
Blake  93,  his  wife  88,  Abram  Hinkson  89, 
Acsah  Hinkson  81,  Daniel  Smith  90,  Nancy 
Smith  80,  Ezra  Chase  79,  Oliver  King  78, 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Sarah  King  80,  Anna  Ellis  89,  Joseph 
Blanchard  ^T,  Phebe  Blanchard  72,  Phebe 
Celley  72.  Elias  Heath  71,  Lucy  Heath  71, 
Mark  Nelson  85,  Sarah  Nelson  81,  Isaac 
Hill  Ti,  Katherine  Hill  86,  John  Cristy  -]"], 
Lambert  Sprague  83,  William  Celley  79, 
Isaac  Wells  74,  Mariah  Daniels  70,  Daniel 
Haskell  'j'})^  Daniel  Lawson  84,  Jabez  Town 
81,  Lucy  Town  78,  James  Nelson  76, 
Apollos  Wheeler  91,  Hannah  Wheeler  70, 
Calvin  Ball  70,  Amos  Lakeman  88,  Luther 
Ball  75,  Joseph  Morse  83,  Kent  Drown  80, 
David  Colwell  83,  Elizabeth  Colwell  81, 
Lucy  Buzzell  89,  James  Wheeler  'J'},,  Han- 
nah Wheeler  ']'] ,  Rufus  Wheeler  70,  John 
Goodell  87,  Jonathan  Lawson  74,  wife  70, 
Simeon  Chase  93,  Elias  Heath  78,  Simeon 
Edson  78,  Nehemiah  Jackson  79,  Mary 
Jackson  82,  Thomas  Bradish  71,  Hannah 
Bradish  80,  Robert  Bradish  83,  Abigail 
Bradish  81,  Martin  Lawson  76,  Samuel 
Burnham    86,  Mary  Burnham  86,  Aaron 


Powers  80,  John  Thomas  85,  Rueamy 
Thomas  87,  Ephraim  Ainsworth  84,  wife 
84,  John  Baptist  100,  Eunice  Baptist  91, 
Thomas  Ainsworth  91,  Hannah  Ainsworth 
81,  James  Alexander  90,  Amy  Alexander 
70,  David  Rugg  100,  Lucy  Rugg  80, 
Ferdinand  Perry  90,  Thomas  Ainsworth 
81,  Caleb  Noyes  75,  Jacob  Bedell  76, 
Thomas  Bedell  80,  Benjamin  Smith  80, 
Holden  Wilbur  80,  Joseph  Carr  80,  Nancy 
Carr  80,  Samuel  Mackrus  80,  Hyranus 
Farr  70,  Sally  Batchelder  85,  John  Weeks 
87,  Phebe  Hopkins  75,  William  Keniston 
72,  Thomas  Harvey  86,  Schuyler  Wells  76, 
Isaac  Wells  92,  Nathan  Jackson  •]•],  Eliza- 
beth Jackson  86,  Gideon  Burnham  ']'], 
Susannah  Burnham  88,  Sarah  Cudworth 
70,  John  L.  Bruce  75,  Sylvester  Jennings 
84,  Sally  Rideout  80,  Willard  RideoutSs, 
Sally  Danforth  80,  Eliza  Danforth  84, 
Benjamin  Barrett  93,  Jacob  Grossman  "j"] , 
Asa  Phelps  80,  Maria  Bliss  81. 


MILITARY   RECORD   OF    THE   TOWN   OF   WOODBURY. 


SOLDIERS   OF    lS6l — 65. 


NaiiK'S. 
Ainsworth,  Albert 
Ainsworth,  Alfred 
Ainsworth,  Henry  A. 
Ainsworth,  Wm.  VV. 
Ainsworth,  Llewellyn   M. 
Ainsworth,  Eugene  D. 
Ainsworth,  Jefferson 
Ainsworth,  Ira 
Barrett,  Ira 
Barrett,  Cephas  T. 
Barrett,  Geor2;e 
Bill,  Silas 
Burnham,  Horace 
Bigelow,  George 
Bailey,  Nathaniel 
Brown,  Elijah  S. 
Blake,  Stephen  D. 
Burnham,  Edwin 
Bliss.  Warren  E. 
Batchelder,  Ira  F. 
Batchelder,  Alonzo  J. 
Bruce,  Horatio  I. 
Batchelder,  Nathan  E. 
Burnham,  Albert 
Bailey,  Fdwin  M. 
Blake,  Maranda  R. 
Barrett,  Benjamin  J. 
Bedell,  John  P. 
Benjamin,  Thomas  W. 
Barrett,  Levi 
Bailey,  Richard  M. 
Barrett,  Charles  A.  J. 
Barrett,  Geo.  W. 


BY  0.  D 

.  TOWN 

Reg.  Co.    • 

Elll 

stecL 

6  G 

Oct 

261 

x  Bat. 
9I 

Aug 
June 

2264 
1662 

do 

Dec 

1863 

IX    L 

Dec 

2163 

II   I 

Nov 

23  63 

8  F 

4  E 

5  E 

Mar 
Feb 
Dec 

17  05 

7  61 

2  F 

May 

20  61 

8  E 

De6 

16  61 

9  I 

C  Cav. 
6  H 

4  H 
2  F 
II  I 

do 

July 

Jan 

July 

Aug 
May 
Dec 

Nov 

I  62 

4  64 

II  63 

^i  61 

761 

2363 

4  G 
II   I 

Sept 
Aug 

4  61 
462 

4H 

Mar 

562 

S  S 
4H 
do 

13  H 
2  Bat. 

Sept 
Sept 
Sept 
Aug 
Nov 

2761 

761 

761 

19  62 

21  61 

F  Cav. 

Dec 

1663 

II   I 

Aug 
Dec 

19  61 
362 

8  E 

Dec 

18  61 

9  I 

Dec 

II  61 

8  E 

Dec 

2  61 

II  I 

Aug 

1564 

Remarks. 
Discharged  July  25,  62. 
Mustered  out  May  17,  65. 
Corpora!  ;  Mustered  out  June  13,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  13,  65. 
Corporal  ;  Mustered  out  Mar.  i,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 

do  do     25,  65. 

do  July  13,  65. 

Corporal  ;  Killed  June  14,  63. 
Discharged  Mar.  27,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  28,  65. 
Corporal  ;  Discharged  May  15,  64. 

do       Mustered  out  Aug.  9,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 
Killed  May  15,64"^, 
Died  Feb.  3,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Corporal  ;  Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Sergeant;  Mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Re-enlisted,  Mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Died  of  wounds  June  21,  64. 
Mustered  out  Sept  30,  64. 
Re-enlisted,  Mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
2d  Lieut. ;    hon.  discharged  Mar  3,  65. 
Died  Sept  13  64. 

Re-enlisted,  Mustered  out  Jan  29,  65. 
Mustered  out  Jan  24,  65. 
Died  October  4,  63. 
Mustered  out  May  31,  65. 
Discharged  Sept  14,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 


WOODBURY. 


;i 


Names.  Res-  Cd. 
Batchelder,  Frank  4  E 

Batchelder,  John  D.  ill 
Batchelder,  Charles  M.  do 

Bigclow,  Rufus  8  E 

Bigelow,  John  B.  6  H 

Bancroft,  Chas.  F.  4  H 

Batchelder,  Ziba  3  H 

Clapp,  Oliver  1 1    L 

Collins,  Thomas  11    I 

Cud  worth,  Edwin  13   H 
Cudworth,  Franklin  4  11 

Cameron,  Araph   P.  11   A 

Carr,  Harlow  9  I 
Celley,  Edwin  H.  2  H 

Cole,  Joseph  B.  13  H 

Carr,  Chester  1 1   I 

Cameron,  Clerren  1 1   H 

Carr,  Samuel  B.  ill 

Danforth,  Francis  11   I 

Drenon,  John   S.  11    L 

])ow,  William  II.  3   H 

Drenon,  Frank  J.  1 1   L 

Eastman,  Horace  B.  3  G 

Eastman,  Gibson  11   I 

Eastman,  Merrill  Y.  3  G 

Eastman,  Curtis  O.  11   I 

Farnsworth,  Cyrus  4  H 

Farnsworth,  Nathaniel  L.  4  H 

Fisk,  Elisha  C.  11   A 

Farr,  Benjamin  A.  1 1   E 

Farr,  Wm.  Hyranus  3  G 

Graves,  Hiram  2  K 

Goodell,  Lewis  11   I 

Goodell,  Henry  2  D 

Goodell,  Lewis  F.  2  C 

Goodell,  Tohn  A.  8  E 

Goodell,  Wm.  M.  11    I 
Goodell,  Leroy  do 

Goodell,  Henry  M.  do 

Hall,  Horace  6  G 

Hall,  Aaron  P.  2D 
Hall,  James  K.  do 

Hall,  Marvin  J.  do 

Holmes,  Horace  B.  2  H 

Holmes,  Almon  H.  3  K 

Holmes,  George  P.  8  E 
Holmes,  Ira  do 

Hammond,  Chas.  E.  ^5  ^ 

Haskell,  Landas  W.  11    I 

Hopkins,  Daniel  E.  2  Bat. 

Hinkson,  Ezra  A.  4  G 

Holmes,  Clark  J.  11   I 

Hopkins,  Charles  4  H 

Hopkins,  Wm.  J.  9  I 
Holmes,  Lyman  B.  3  K 

Jackson,  Marcus  N.  ill 
Jackson,  Orra  W.  do 

Jackson,  Samuel  do 

King,  David  G.  8  E 

Labarron  Frank  8  E 

Laird,  John  '  4  H 

Lawson,  Norman  C.  2  H 

Leonard,  Orlando  L.  4  G 

Ladd,  James  4  B 

Lyford,  J.  Monroe  C  Cav. 
Laird,  Lemuel  4  H 

Lyford,  Aura  3  K 

Lawson,  Truman  11  I 


Enlisted. 
Feb  I  65 
Nov  21  61 
Dec  5  63 
Mar  6  65 
July  2561 
Sept  61 
July  3  61 
May  23  63 
Aug  13  62 
Aug  19  62 
Sept  4  61 
Aug  9  62 
May  30  62 
July  25  63 
Sept  7  62 
Aug  1 1  62 
Aug  9  62 
Nov  30  63 
Aug  1 1  62 
July  1 1  62 
June  1 1  61 
May  14  63 
June  I  61 
Aug  6  62 
June  II  61 
Aug  862 
Dec  II  63 
Aug  25  61 
Aug     7  62 


Feb 
Dec 
Dec 

Nov 
May 

July 

Feb 
Dec 
Dec 


1465 

7  61 

1463 

21  63 

7  61 
2563 
14  65 

8  63 
563 


July  15  62 
Oct  3  61 
May  9  61 
Aug  7  62 
Aug  II  62 
Aug  20  61 
July  10  61 
Nov  29  61 
Dec  7  61 
Sept  7  62 
June  31  62 
Dec  2  61 
Sept  4  61 
July  19  62 
Aug  29  61 
May  29  62 
July  10  61 
Nov  22  63 
Dec  I  63 
Dec  I  63 
Dec  7  61 
Apr  22  64 
Sept  24  61 
Aug  21  61 
Aug  22  6i 
Aug  22  61 
Sept  12  61 
Mar  62 
July  10  61 
Dec     I  61 


Renjjirks. 
Mustered  out  July  i.  65. 
Died  Feb  27,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
do  do      25,  65. 

do  do      26,  65. 

Corporal;  Died  in  Hospital  first  winter. 
Died  Feb  13,  62. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Sergt.  ;   Died  Mar  30,  63. 
Corporal  ;  Mustered  out  Jan  21,  63. 
Died  of  wounds  May  11,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Discharged  April  10,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 
do  do    21,  63. 

Deserted  July  26,  64. 
Died  Sept  24,  64. 
■  Deserted  Nov  2,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  25,  65. 
Lieut.,  pris'r  i  yr.  disch'ged  May  15,  65. 
Corporal  ;   Mustered  out  July  27,  64. 
Corporal  ;  Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Sergt.  ;  re-en.,  Mustered  out  July  7,65. 
Died  Jan  10,  63, 
Discharged  June  3,  62. 
Sergt. ;  Mustered  out  June  29,  65. 
Mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Sergt. ;  re-en.,  mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Corporal  ;  discharged  Nov  25,  63. 
Mustered  out  July  13,  65. 
Discharged  Aug  9,  65. 

do  do     24,  64. 

Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 
Corp.;  re-en.,  mustered  out  June  19,  65. 
Died,  wounded  June  6,  64. 
Mustered  out  May  25,  65. 
do  June  24,  65. 

Discharged  first  year. 

do         Nov  19  62. 
Discharged  Dec  15,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  29,  64. 
Killed  in  Wilderness  May  5,  64. 
Discharged  Jan  i,  63. 

do         Sept  12,  64. 
Deserted  Jan  27,  63. 

do         Mar  5,  63. 
Corp.  ;  Re-en.   deserted  June  28,  64. 
2d  Lieut.;  mustered  out  Aug  5,  63. 
Sergeant  ;  do  June  24,  65. 

Sergt.;  re-en,  mustered  out  July  31,  65. 
Discharged  Jan  6,  62. 

do         June  27,  63. 

do  April  3,  62. 

do  Oct  22,  62. 

Deserted  Jan  27,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 

do         do  do 

Died  Aug  8  64. 
Discharged  Aug  2,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  25  65. 
Discharged  Jan  30,  62. 

do         April  16,  64. 

do         Sept  19,  62. 

do  do    19,  62. 

Mustered  out  Nov  18,  64. 
Wounded  at  Freders'g  and  discharged. 
Discharged  Dec  13,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  24,  65. 


882 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Names. 
Labairon,  Robinson 
Lilley,  Patrick 
Lyford,  Henry 
Morse,  Benjamin  F. 
Morse,  Joseph  Jr. 
McLoud,  Brooks  I). 
McLoud,  Edward  T. 
Morse,  Franklin  B. 
Mack,  Wm.  H.  H. 
Morse,  John  Orlando 
Mack,  Justus  W. 
McKnight,  Carroll  A. 
Mack,  Orson  M. 
Nelson,  Orrin 
Nelson,  Edmond  H. 
Nelson,  Geo.  H. 
Nichols,  Don  P. 
Pierce,  Ezekiel 
Powers,  David 
Richard,  Eli 
Richard,  Henry 
Stowe,  Theodore 
Trow,  Loren  D. 
Thomas,  Wm.  W. 
Tucker,  Harvey  D. 
Trow,  Geo.   C. 
Vaughn,  Isaac  C. 
Voodry,  Geo.  B. 
Voodry,  Henry  C. 
Voodry,  Josephus 
Vaughn,  Alvin  P. 
Wells,  Irvin  N. 
Wheeler,  Wm.  C. 
Withani,  Thomas 
Willey,  Ransom  A. 
Wells',  Wm.  R. 
White,  Geo.  A. 
Weeks,  Chas.  E. 
Wheeler,  John  Q. 
Witham,  Moses 
Whitney,  Curtis  B. 
Way,  Jacob 
Witham,  Aaron 

Paid  Commutatfon. — Geo.  C.  Bemis,  Augustus  A.  Bliss,  Edwin  Bruce,  Roland  B.  Bruce. 
Alonzo  A.  Clark,  .Samuel  Daniels,  John  A.  Goodell,  Ira  G.  Jewell,  Stephen  Leavitt,  Martin 
Lyford,  Corliss  G.  Osgood,  Benjamin  F.  Rideout,  Willard  Strague,  True  A.  Town,  Vergil  B. 
Webster,  Sidney  O.  Wells,  George  White,  Augustus  O.  Wilber. 

This  town  not  only  furnished  more  men  than  required  to  fill  its  quota  without  any  public 
meetings  to  stimulate  enlistments,  and  without  paying  any  of  the  large  bounties  which  most 
of  the  towns  in  the  State  were  compelled  to,  but  furnished  several  men  for  Hardwick,  Cabot, 
Marshfield,  Calais,  East  Montpelier,  Elmore  and  a  few  other  towns.  We  claim  for  Wood- 
bury an  excellent  and  honorable  war  record.  I  think  it  will  be  found  that  there  were  more 
men  went  to  the  war  from  here  than  any  town  in  the  State  with  the  same  number  of  in- 
habitants. I  have  not  recorded  any  more  on  this  list  which  we  are  not  entitled  to,  and  none 
but  what  at  the  time  of  their  enlistment  were  residents  of  our  town. 

By  the  request  of  Hon.  F.  C.  Putnam,  I  have  given  this  list.  o.  D.  T. 


Ues.  Co. 

Enlisted. 

8  E 

Dec 

I  6i 

9  I 

July 

I  62 

6  G 

Oct 

15  61 

8  E 

Dec 

9  61 

2   H 

Aug 

20  61 

2    H 

Aug 

20  61 

Unas'ned 

Dec 

363 

8  E 

Dec 

361 

8F 

Mar 

1565 

9  I 

Dec 

463 

9  I 

June 

2662 

II   A 

Aug 

18  62 

8  F 

Mar 

1564 

4  G 

Feb 

1862 

8  E 

Dec 

761 

2   D 

Dec 

1262 

4  D 

Aug 

17  61 

13  H 

Aug 

19  62 

2   D 

Dec 

1263 

13  H 

July 

19  62 

2    D 

Dec 

1263 

13  H 

Aug 

19  62 

3  H 

June 

I  61 

II   I 

Nov 

2363 

II  A 

Aug 

762 

2   H 

Sept 

18  61 

2  Bat. 

Nov 

19  61 

2   F 

Mav 

20  61 

3  K 

Feb 

862 

3  G 

June 

I  61 

9l 

June 

1862 

U  S  M  C 

June 

2263 

II   I 

May 

2763 

2   K 

Dec 

1967 

II   I 

July 

25  62 

II   I 

Aug 

I  62 

2    H 

Aug 

20  61 

6  H 

July 

II  63 

C  Cav. 

Oct 

761 

9  I 

June 

1S62 

II   I 

Aug 

3064 

8  A 

Aug 

2664 

9l 

May 

2862 

Remarks. 
Corp.  mustered  out  June  14,  65.  Re-en. 
Discharged  April  25,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  26,  65.     Re-en. 
Sergt.  ;  Mustered  out  June  22,  64. 
Mustered  out  Sept  13,  64. 
Killed  in  Wilderness  May  5,  64. 
Died  at  Brattleboro  Jan  13,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  22,  64. 
do  do     25,  65. 

Died  Nov  27,  64. 
do    Oct  25,  62. 
Dis'dOct  27, 64.  Deserted  Co  H  13  reg. 
Mustered  out  June  28,  65. 
Died  soon  after  exchanged.      Prisoner. 
Discharged  Feb  20,  63.     Lost  Limb. 
Mustered  out  July  15,  65. 
Deserted  April  19,  62. 
Mustered  out  July  21,  63. 
Mustered  out  May  13,  65. 
Musician  ;  died  Feb  26,  63. 
Corp.  ;  mustered  out  July  5,  65. 
Sergt.  ;  Mustered  out  July  21.  67. 
Mustered  out  at  Montp'r.     Inv.  Corps. 

do         Dec  31,  64. 
Discharged  Feb  15,  64. 
Mustered  out  Sept  10,  64. 
Corp.  ;  discharged  Oct  26,  62. 

do     Mustered  out  Jan  29,  64. 

do     Killed  Oct  19,  64,  at  Cedar  Creek 
Discharged  Sept  20,  62. 
1st  Sergt.,  1st  Lieut.  ;  Resig'd  May  2,65 
Discharged  Sept  2,  63. 

do  April  13,  64. 

Prisoner  and  died  at  Florence,  S.  C, 
Mustered  out  Jan  24,  65. 

do  do         do 

Killed  at  Frederick'gh  May  12,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  26,  65. 
do  Nov  18,  64. 

Deserted  June  1 5,  63. 
Mustered  out  June  25,  65. 
Deserted  Oct  8,  64. 
Mustered  out  June  13,  65. 


JOSHUA   M.    DANA, 

was  born  Dec.  12,  1805,  at  West  Lebanon, 
N.  H. ;  he  was  the  grandson  of  William 
Dana,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  Lebanon, 
and  son  of  Wm.  Dana,  Jr.  He  lived  at 
Lebanon  till  he  was  about  12  years  old; 
then  his  father  moved  to  Montpelier,  where 


he  lived  a  few  years,  and  after  moved  to 
Calais.  He  spent  most  of  the  time  in 
Montpelier  and  Calais,  for  several  years. 
About  1856,  he  bought  land  in  Woodbury, 
and  began  clearing  it ;  built  a  house,  barn, 
etc.  In  September,  1858,  he  was  married 
to  Miss  C.  C.  Bennett,  daughter  of  Mr. 


WORCESTER. 


883 


Nicholas  Bennett  of  East  Montpelier,  and 
went  to  Woodbur}'  for  a  permanent  home, 
where  he  resided  until  his  death,  July 
3,  1878. 

His  widow  and  son,  Charles  H.  Dana, 
are  still  living  on  the  farm  he  cleared  for 
their  home.  He  was  an  honest  man,  a 
good  citizen,  and  beloved  by  his  friends. 

His  remains  were  interred  in  the  "  Cutler 
burying  ground,"  at  East  Montpelier. 

H.    M.    D. 

[  He  was  a  somewhat  extensive  contribu- 
tor for  the  Montpelier  papers.  In  the 
WatcJwian  I  find  papers  on  farming,  in 
the  Argils  and  Patriot,  "  Early  Incidents 
in  the  history  of  Lebanon,"  (N.  H.) — 
"  An  Indian  Scare,"  etc., — so  traditionally 
good  and  well  told,  we  regret  the  history 
of  both  Calais  and  Woodbury  had  not 
been  written  up  while  he  was  alive  to 
have  assisted.  Woodbury  is  15  miles  from 
Montpelier ;  Mr.  Dana  would  come  out 
a-foot  to  his  sister's  here,  and  return  again 
on  foot  to  the  last  year  of  his  life.  On 
one  of  these  visits.  Thanksgiving,  1876, 
his  sister,  Miss  Hannah  M.  Dana,  who 
lives  in  the  first  cottage  under  the  cliff. 
Elm  Street,  gave  him  a  gold  pen  he  was  to 
use  in  writing  to  her,  and  he  writes  :  "  Jan. 
first,  eighteen  hundred  seventy-six."  We 
glean  from  to  keep  a  picture,  of  this  old 
and  quaint  Washington  County  writer's 
Woodbury  home,  as  drawn  by  himself.] 

(  When  he  got  home.) 

The  boy  had  been  good 

And  fed  all  the  stock. 
Had  brought  in  all  the  wood. 

And  wound  up  the  clock. 

Three  cows  that  are  good, 

Three  heifers  the  same — 
Three  steers  to  draw  wood. 

And  four  calves  that  are  tame  ;, 

Two  sheep  we  can  boast. 
Two  leaders,  with  others  behind; 

To  bake,  boil,  or  roast, 
Or  for  wool  they  'r  the  kind. 

And  then  Charley's  hens 
The  corn  they  devour; 

Makes  them  look  like  fat  Cochins- 
Fit  to  eat  any  hour  I 

•  •#*♦»* 

Threescore  and  ten  I 

Only  think  of  my  age, 
In  the  tramps  I  have  been 

I  shall  no  more  engage. 

Joshua  M.  Dana. 


WORCESTER. 

BY  CHARLES   C.    ABBOTT. 

This  town  in  the  N.  W.  of  Washington 
Co.,  lat.  44°  24',  long.  4°  25',  is  bounded  N. 
and  W.  by  Elmore  and  Stowe,  in  Lamoille 
Co.,  S.  by  Middlesex,  and  E.  by  Calais. 
Who  were  the  first  white  men  that  visited 
the  town  is  unknown.  The  French  and 
Indians  passing  from  Canada  to  the  older 
settlements  on  the  Connecticut  river,  are 
said  to  have  had  their  trail  through  this 
town,  but  have  left  no  record  of  their 
names  or  of  the  place  where. 

The  town,  with  its  present  name  and 
limits,  was  chartered  June  8,  1763,  by 
Gov.  Wentworth  of  N.  H.,  to  grantees: 
Joshua  Mason,  Thomas  Burgee,  Robert 
Burgee,  John  Davidson,  Robert  David- 
son, Samuel  Halstead,  Joshua  Halstead, 
\Vm.  Davidson,  Benjamin  Betts,  Samuel 
Betts,  Abraham  Betts,  Ichabod  Betts, 
John  Betts,  Grant  Striker,  Henry  Dickin- 
son, Anthony  Baker,  Joshua  Hutchins, 
Samuel  Dodge,  Job  Bacon,  Wm.  Gibbons, 
Wm.  Pusey,  James  Gibbons,  Wm.  Ash- 
bridge,  David  Bacon,  Manning  Bull, 
Thomas  Shroves,  Joseph  De  Camp,  Lam- 
bert DeCamp,  John  Hand,  Robert  Stan- 
bury,  Joshua Underhill,  Samuel  DeCamp, 
John  Nefus,  Josiah  Stanbury,  Moses  Lit- 
tle, Wm.  Trundenborough,  Ephraim  Cut- 
ler, John  DeCamp,  Ebenezer  Cutler,  Jo- 
seph Young,  David  Cutler,  David  DeCamp, 
Daniel  Marsh,  Isaac  Burger,  Jacob  Noe, 
Isaac  Noe,  Jr.,  John  Turner,  George 
Woods,  John  Gifford,  Benjamin  Ogden, 
Crowley  Barrow,  Thomas  Young,  Wm. 
Mitchel,  Charles  Wiggins,  John  Hofnall, 
John  Cockle,  Henry  Franklin,  Hon.  James 
Nevin,  Nathaniel  Barrell,  Esq.,  Joseph 
Newmarsh,  Esq.,  Col.  Samuel  Barr,  and 
Maj.  Joseph  Blanchard.  The  charter  was 
for  6  miles  square,  to  be  divided  into  69 
rights,  or  lots  of  4  divisions  each.  The 
1st  division  i  acre,  the  2d  div.  3  acres, 
the  3d  div.  38  acres,  the  4th  7  acres.  The 
I  acre  lots  were  laid  out  in  the  center  of 
the  town  and  are  comprised  in  the  farm 
now  owned  by  Wm.  H.  Kellogg;  the 
7  acre  lots,  around  this  one,  mostly  on 
the  west ;  the  38  acre  lots  on  the  west 
side  of  the  town,  adjoining   Stowe.     The 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Governor's  right  in  the  S.  W.  corner,  and 
the  300  acre  lots  comprised  the  rest 
of  the  town.  There  is  now  no  record 
of  any  meeting  of  the  original  grantees  to 
be  found,  nor  any  conveyances  from  them  ; 
and  there  was  much  litigation  in  regard  to 
land  titles  in  the  early  history  of  the  town. 
Much  of  the  land  is  now  held  under  titles 
from  "  tax  collectors,"  having  been  sold 
for  taxes. 

The  surface  of  the  town  is  very  uneven, 
and  the  western  part  is  intersected  by  the 
eastern  range  of  the  Green  Mountains. 
There  are  four  principal  peaks  in  this 
town,  from  which  are  extensive  and  very 
fine  views  of  the  surrounding  country  and 
villages,  especially  from  Mount  Hunger, 
in  the  S.  W.  part  of  the  township,  the 
summit  of  which  is  rocky  and  almost  en- 
tirely devoid  of  vegetation,  and  permits  an 
unobstructed  prospect  in  all  directions. 
[For  its  history,  see  Middlesex,  229-231.] 

The  meadows  on  the  North  Branch, 
and  on  the  larger  brooks,  are  fertile  and 
easy  of  cultivation.  The  uplands  are  well 
adapted  to  stock  raising  and  dairy  pur- 
poses, to  which  a  large  share  of  the  farm- 
ers give  their  attention. 

The  town  is  watered  by  the  North 
Branch,  a  mill  stream  from  Elmore,  flow- 
ing southerly  through  the  length  of  the 
town,  emptying  into  the  Winooski  in 
Montpelier.  There  are  also  large  brooks, 
some  of  which  serve  for  mill  purposes  ;  the 
largest.  Minister  brook,  was  named  from 
its  mouth  being  in  the  lot  granted  to  the 
first  settled  minister.  But  one  natural 
pond  is  in  the  town  limits,  Worcester  pond, 
near  the  eastern  line  and  "  Eagle  Ledge" 
road.  It  contains  some  8  acres,  and  has 
furnished  many  pickerel  and  trout  to  the 
settlers.  The  streams  all  furnished  at  an 
early  day  an  abundance  of  trout,  and  are 
still  the  yearly  resort  of  the  disciples  of 
"  Izaak  Walton"  from  neighboring  towns, 
who  eagerly  explore  every  stream  where  a 
"speckled  beauty"  is  supposed  to  lurk. 
A  deep  pool,  that  is  worn  in  the  rock  by 
action  of  a  waterfall,  in  a  rocky  ravine  just 
above  the  house  of  Thomas  Reed,  has 
long  been  a  favorite  resort  for  trying  to 
ensnare   some    of  the    larg;e    trout    which 


make  the  pool  their  home.  Now  and  then 
one  is  captured,  but  generally  the  wary 
fish  is  not  lured  from  its  lurking  place,  and 
the  fisher,  sometimes  spending  hours  in 
his  labor,  leaves  the  spot  with  his  basket 
as  light  as  when  he  came ;  but  perhaps 
thinking  himself  repaid  for  his  visit  by  a 
view  of  the  wild  and  beautiful  scenery  of 
the  place. 

Gold  has  been  found  in  some  localities, 
more  especially  in  the  bed  of  Minister 
brook.  A  few  years  since  a  stock  com- 
pany was  formed  under  a.  State  charter, 
called  the  Minister  Brook  Mining  Com- 
pany, and  the  bed  of  the  brook  and  lands 
bordering  on  it  were  leased.  Other  com- 
panies have  at  intervals  "prospected"  the 
brook  since,  with  just  what  results  is  not 
generally  known. 

FIRST   SETTLEMENTS. 

The  first  settlers  of  the  town  were  John 
Ridlon  and  George  Martin,  who  came  from 
Kennebec,  Me.,  in  1797,  and  commenced 
a  settlement  on  the  i-acre  lot,  laid  out  in 
the  center  of  the  town  on  "  Hampshire 
hill."  They  erected  a  house  of  split  bass- 
wood  logs,  and  cleared  some  10  or  12 
acres.  It  is  said  they  soon  left,  and  the 
farm  where  they  first  commenced  was  not 
permanently  settled  until  several  years 
after.  They  must  have  come  back  again 
soon  and  settled  on  the  Branch,  where 
L.  M.  Hutchinson  now  lives,  as  both  tra- 
dition and  the  land  records  indicate  they 
lived  there  in  1803,  and  made  the  first 
permanent  settlement  there. 

Ridlon  was  elected  to  the  Constitutional 
Convention  in  18 14,  and  perhaps  died  in 
this  town.  It  is  not  certain  what  became 
of  Martin.  The  oldest  inhabitants  have 
no  knowledge  of  him.  We  find  in  1805, 
John  Ridlon  conveyed  a  portion  of  this 
land  to  Ansel  Bates,  by  whom  it  was  after- 
ward conveyed  to  Cyrus  Brigham,  who 
lived  on  it  many  years.  The  records  show 
Martin  in  connection  with  Ridlon,  and 
Benjamin  Saunders  held  an  interest  in  the 
place,  as  a  quit-claim  deed  from  John  Fay, 
of  Burlington,  to  Samuel  B.  Stone,  who 
hved  here  in  1805,  dated  Feb.  7,  1802, 
specifies,  "Mr.  Stone  is  to  indemnify  said 


WORCESTER. 


88  s 


Fay  against  all  claim  which  said  Ridley, 
Geo.  Martin  and  Benjamin  Saunders  may 
have  in  the  land  by  reason  of  a  former 
deed  of  the  same."  Ridlon's  name  is  on 
the  record,  as  also  Ridler  and  Ridley.  It 
must  be  that  the  first  land  records  were 
lost  or  burned  with  the  town  records,  as 
these  deeds  referred  to  are  not  found  on 
the  record  now  in  the  town  clerk's  office. 
There  must  have  been  several  families  in 
town  in  1800,  as  "  Deming's  Catalogue" 
gives  25  inhabitants  that  year. 

Matthias  Ridlon,  son  of  John,  owned  a 
lot  of  land  soon  after  this  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  town,  where  Elias  Bascom 
afterward  settled.  He  probably  did  not 
live  on  it,  but  with  his  father;  in  1812, 
they  lived  where  Henry  E.  Hunt  now 
lives.  Matthias  enlisted  in  the  war  of 
1812,  and  died  at  home  soon  after  he  came 
from  the  army  ;  Guy,  son  of  Carpus  Clark, 
also  enlisted  in  that  war  and  died  in  the 
army. 

The  town  was  in  1797  an  evergreen 
forest,  interspersed  with  hard  timber  on 
the  lower  lands.  But  openings  soon  ap- 
peared, as  other  settlers  followed  close 
after  Ridlon  and  Martin. 

The  town  was  organized  Mar.  3,  1803. 
Duncan  Young  with  his  family,  himself, 
wife,  2  daughters,  2  sons,  Daniel  and  John, 
came  from  Calais  in  1802,  and  settled  on 
right  No.  13,  where  S.  M.  Seaver  now 
lives,  but  stayed  only  two  or  three  years, 
and  removed  to  Montpelier.  His  oldest 
son,  David,  was  a  resident  of  this  town  in 
after  years,  and  was  the  father  of  J.  M. 
and  P.  D.  Young,  who  yet  live  here,  and 
Mrs.  Martin  C.  Brown.  From  1802  to 
'12,  we  find  from  the  land  records,  resi- 
dents :  Henry  Goodale.  James  Green  from 
Waterbury,  Carpus  Clark,  Elisha  B.  Green, 
(who  built  the  first  saw-mill  on  the  present 
site  of  H.  T.  Clark's  mill,)  Daniel  Colby, 
Uriah  Stone,  and  Amasa  Brown. 

John  Young,  son  of  Duncan,  was  the 
first  town  clerk ;  James  Green,  representa- 
tive in  1808  ;  other  town  officers  unknown, 
as  the  town  records  before  18 16  fwhen  it 
lost  its  organization,)  were  deposited  for 
safe  keeping  at  Burlington,  where  they 
were  burned.     The  land  records  go  back 


to  1803  ;  from  them  and  tradition  we  have 
gathered  this  period  of  our  history. 

The  first  deed  on  record  is  from  Joseph 
and  William  Hutchins  to  John  Shurtleff, 
all  of  Montpelier,  in  the  County  of  Cale- 
donia, June  4,  1803,  claiming  the  right  of 
John  Turner  (original  proprietor,)  which 
embraced  the  300-acre  lot  No.  14,  on  the 
branch,  adjoining  Middlesex  line.  A  few 
years  after  the  same  was  sold  tor  taxes, 
and  Cyrus  Brigham  bought  the  part  where 
L.  M.  Hutcliinson  now  lives.  At  the  date 
of  the  first  deed,  Worcester  was  in  Chit- 
tenden Co.  ;  at  the  time  of  the  tax  sale  in 
Jefferson  Co.  ;  the  first  deed  on  record  to  a 
resident,  is  from  Ebenr.  Rice  of  Montpel- 
ier, to  John  Young,  July  8,  1803,  convey- 
ing a  part  of  the  land  now  the  farm  of  S. 
M.  Seaver.  In  1805,  a  large  number  of 
rights  were  sold  for  a  tax  by  the  Legislature 
to  build  roads  and  bridges,  and  25  rights 
unredeemed,  were  conveyed  by  the  collec- 
tor, Charles  Bulkley,  to  the  highest  bidder, 
to  be  sold  in  the  same  way  in  1809,  and 
181 2.  The  land  records  the  first  10  years 
are  largely  made  up  of  these  "  tax  sales." 
In  1813,  public  notice  was  given  of  a  land 
ta.x  by  Carpus  Clark,  ist  constable;  in 
181 1,  his  name  is  on  the  record  as  justice 
of  the  peace,  and  of  Carpus  Clark,  John 
Ridlon  and  Elisha  Green,  as  commission- 
ers to  lay  out  a  road  tax,  and  in  18 12 
Carpus  Clark  and  Daniel  Colby  were  select- 
men, appears  from  record  of  a  lease  of  the 
minister  land  by  them  to  Elisha  B.  Green 
for  $5  annual  rent  till  a  minister  should  be 
settled.  (See  lists  of  town  officers.)  These 
with  the  town  clerks  are  all  the  officers  we 
can  trace  to  1821. 

Most  of  the  settlers,  without  much  means, 
who  came  because  land  was  cheap,  till 
they  could  make  a  clearing  and  raise  a 
crop,  had  to  make  "  many  a  shift"  for  the 
bare  necessaries  of  life.  Some  left,  and 
but  few  came  in  to  take  their  places.  How- 
ever, those  who  remained  paved  somewhat 
the  way  for  those  who  should  come  after, 
and  kept  up  their  courage  with  hopes  of 
better  times  till  18 12  to  16,  when  they  had 
to  encounter  several  cold  suinmers,  frosts 
cutting  off  their  crops  and  discouraging 
the  bravest  hearts,  till  the  summer  of  1816 


886 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


came,  so  cold  as  some  who  were  chil- 
dren then,  say,  "as  to  freeze  their  steer's 
horns  off."  There  were  frosts  every  montli 
through  that  summer.  That  season,  utterly 
discouraged,  most  of  the  inhabitants  left 
the  town.  No  town  meeting  was  held,  and 
Worcester  lost  its  organization. 

In  1818,  there  was  but  one  family,  that 
of  Amasa  Brown,  Esq.,  left  in  town.  It 
was  a  standing  jest  for  some  years,  that 
Mr.  Brown  threw  his  family  on  the  town 
at  this  time,  for  their  support.  Wild  game 
was  plenty,  deer  abundant,  bears  frequent- 
ly seen ;  the  latter  have  strayed  this  way 
in  later  years;  they  have  been  "wary 
bears,"  it  is  not  known  that  more  than  two 
or  three  were  ever  killed  here.  Three 
moose  were  shot  here  in  the  early  days ; 
one,  where  the  Methodist  meeting-house 
stands,  by  Micah  Hatch  of  Middlesex, 
which  was  sent  to  Boston  Museum,  where 
its  skin  probably  remains  to  this  day. 
Another  was  killed  on  the  old  Templeton 
farm,  and  one  on  the  Thomas  Reed  farm. 

A  once  large,  deserted  beaver  settlement 
was  seen  a  few  years  ago,  on  the  meadow 
now  covered  by  the  mill-pond  of  Moses 
P.  Wheeler. 

On  the  first  road,  from  Middlesex  Center 
over  "  Hampshire  Hill"  to  Elmore,  and 
known  then  as  the  smugglers'  road,  was  the 
clearing  on  the  one  acre  lots,  and  the  first 
basswood  log-house,  used  by  the  smugglers 
of  those  days  as  a  rendezvous  for  their  cat- 
tle and  horses.  In  1812,  there  was  no 
other  road  through  the  town,  and  but  a 
pathway  had  been  marked  and  cut  from 
Montpelier,  penetrating  the  southern  part 
of  the  town  near  the  branch  ;  comfortable 
roads  were  reserved  for  later  times,  and 
milling  done  at  Montpelier,  or  in  some  of 
the  older  settlements  south  of  us.  The 
town  contained  neither  store  or  tavern 
during  its  first  organization. 

Mr.  Brown  having,  perhaps,  more  means 
than  his  neighbors,  remained  in  town, 
himself  and  wife  and  4  sons  and  7  daugh- 
ters. His  sons  were  Milton,  Amasa,  Jr., 
Cyrus  and  Martin  Chittenden,  the  last  re- 
ceiving his  name  from  having  been  born 
on  the  same  day  that  Martin  Chittenden 
was  elected  governor,  Oct.  21,  18 13.     His 


birth,  also,  is  the  first  recorded  in  town, 
and  he  is  still  living  here. 

Milton  Brown  was  the  first  constable 
under  the  second  organization,  a  justice  of 
the  peace  many  years,  town  representative 
7  years,  a  councillor  in  1835,  and  superin- 
tendent of  the  Vermont  State  Prison  4 
years. 

In  1850,  he  removed  to  Montpelier; 
was  admitted  to  the  Washington  County 
Bar,  and  died  July  3,  1852.  Amasa,  the 
second  son,  studied  theology  at  Newton, 
Mass.,  Theo.  Sem.,  and  is  a  Baptist  min- 
ister, residing  at  Newton,  N.  H.  Cyrus, 
the  other  son,  is  a  lawyer  and  resides  in 
this  town,  being  the  only  member  of  the 
bar  ever  residing  here. 

One  of  the  daughters  married  Oliver 
Watson,  May  29,  1817,  the  first  recorded 
marriage  in  town.  Judge  Edwin  C.Watson, 
of  Hartford,  and  Dr.  Oliver  L.  Watson,  of 
West  Topsham,  are  their  sons,  born  in 
Worcester.  Mr.  Watson  and  wife  cel- 
ebrated their  golden  wedding. 

Between  i8i8and  1820,  Wm.  Arbuckle, 
Thayer  Townsend,  Job  Hill  and  Jesse 
Flint  came  into  the  town.  Mr.  Arbuckle 
lived  in  a  small  log  house  on  Amasa 
Brown's  land.  Mr.  Townsend  settled  on 
the  hill  on  the  "  Closson  "  farm,  where 
Wm.  Brvice,  Jr.,  now  lives;  Job  Hill,  on 
the  place  where  Leonard  Hamblet  lives. 
In  the  fall  of  1820,  Allen  Vail  prepared  a 
place  for  his  family  ;  also  Thomas  Reed, 
Jr.,  from  Londonderry.  Mr.  Reed  moved 
his  family  to  Middlesex  early  in  1820,  to 
Mr.  Benjamin  Baldwin's,  Mrs.  Reed's 
father,  who  lived  near  Christopher  C. 
Putnam's  present  residence.  Mr.  B.  had 
at  this  time  built  a  saw-mill  where  Put- 
nam's mill  now  is,  the  second  in  town. 
Reckoning  from  the  time  Mr.  Reed  com- 
menced work  on  his  farm,  his  was  the 
third  or  fourth  family  here. 

One  or  two  others  must  have  come  the 
same  year,  but  I  have  not  learned  who 
they  were.  Mr.  Vail  had  2  sons  and  6 
daughters.  He  settled  where  H.  A.  Han- 
cock now  lives,  but  soon  on  the  next  lot 
north,  and  built  a  saw-mill  where  Mr. 
Putnam's  "Worcester"  mill  stands.  Mr. 
Reed  built  on  the  farm  on  which  himself 


WORCESTER. 


and  wife  still  live,  it  being  nearly  58  years 
since.  They  must  be  by  far  the  most  per- 
manent residents  of  the  town.  During 
the  next  3  years  the  population  increased 
quite  fast,  and  some  commenced  building 
frame-houses.  The  lumber  for  the  first 
ones  was  sawed  at  the  mill  of  Mr.  Bald- 
win, in  Middlesex,  by  which  it  seems 
the  first  mill  built  where  Clark's  mill  now 
is  must  have  fallen  into  disuse,  but  mills 
were  soon  put  in  operation  here.  At  the 
close  of  1 82 1,  thei'e  were  three  frame- 
houses — Thayer  Townsend's,  the  first  on 
the  hill  near  Calais  line,  where  he  first  set- 
tled. Dodge  Hayward's,  on  the  Dea.  Poor 
place,  where  Cyrus  Brown  now  lives,  and 
Thomas  Reed's,  where  he  still  resides. 

Others  who  came  to  town  from  1820  to 
'23  or  '24,  were  David  Poor,  Capt.  Artemas 
Richardson  and  wife,  Franklin  Johnson, 
Oramel  L.  Smith,  Cyrus  Crocker,  J.  P.  B. 
Ladd,  Jonas  and  Nathan  Abbott,  Eben- 
ezer  S.  Kellogg  and  wife,  Joel  H.  Tem- 
pleton  ffnd  family,  Eleazer  Hutchinson 
and  family,  from  Norwich  ;  Dea.  Matthias 
Folsom  and  wife  and  David  Folsom  and 
Amos  Rice  and  wife,  from  Dover,  Vt. ; 
Leonard  Hamblet,  from  Dracut,  Mass., 
found  mentioned  in  the  town  records,  with 
others  whose  names  we  have  not  learned. 
All  named  were  prominent  citizens  and 
have  died  in  town,  except  Jonas  Abbott, 
who  is  still  living,  and  Mr.  Kellogg,  who 
died  the  present  year  (1871),  in  Hanover, 
N.  H. 

We  have  now  come  to  where  we  have 
the  town  records  for  a  guide.  March  14, 
1 82 1,  a  call  for  a  meeting  of  the  legal 
voters  was  made  by  Joseph  Wing,  justice 
of  the  peace  of  Montpelier ;  held  at  the 
dwelling-house  of  Amasa  Brown,  March 
28,  182 1,  Allen  Vail  moderator,  and  Amasa 
Brown  town  clerk ;  who  was  sworn  to  the 
faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  said  of- 
fice in  the  presence  of  the  meeting  by 
Joseph  Wing,  Esq.  Allen  Vail,  Amasa 
Brown,  Job  Hill,  were  chosen  selectmen ; 
Allen  Vail,  treasurer ;  Milton  Brown,  first 
constable  and  collector  of  taxes ;  Allen 
Vail,  Amasa  Brown,  Jesse  Flint,  listers ; 
Job  Hill,  grand  juror;  Jesse  Flint,  high- 
way surveyor;  Abraham  V.  Smith,  Wm. 


Arbuckle,    Jesse    Flint,     fence    viewers ; 
Amasa  Brown,  pound  keeper. 

Voted,  that  Mr.  Brown's  barn  be  con- 
sidered as  the  Pound  ;  made  choice  of  Job 
Hill,  sealer  of  weights  and  measures; 
Hezekiah  Mills,  hay  ward  ;  Oliver  Watson, 
committee  to  settle  with  the  treasurer ; 
Abraham  V.  Smith,  school  trustee. 

We  cannot  forbear  pausing  to  wonder  if 
Mr.  Watson  found  the  duties  of  his  office 
very  burdensome?  As  there  was  no  over- 
seer of  the  poor  chosen  at  that  meeting, 
Apr.  20,  another  meeting  was  held,  at 
which  it  was 

Voted,  to  raise  8  mills  on  the  dollar  on 
the  list  to  defray  the  necessary  expenses 
of  the  town  ;  and  to  form  the  town  into 
one  school  district ;  and  raise  one  cent  on 
the  dollar  of  the  list  for  the  support  of 
schools  for  the  year  ensuing;  and  to  have 
a  highway  tax  assessed  on  the  list,  to  be 
made  the  year  ensuing,  and  that  9  hours 
be  considered  as  a  day's  work. 

Worcester  was  ahead  of  the  ten-hour  law. 

There  are  those  still  living  in  town  who 
attended  the  first  school,  in  the  winter  of 
182 1  and  22,  Allen  L.  Vail,  Cyrus  and 
Martin  C.  Brown,  Mrs.  Olive  Brown 
Johnson,  and  perhaps  one  or  two  others, 
who  remember  that  school  in  the  old  log- 
house  on  the  Hutchinson  farm,  near  Mr. 
Phineas  A.  Kemp's  present  residence. 
Job  Hill  was  the  teacher,  and  the  school 
was  much  larger  in  proportion  to  the  num- 
ber of  families  than  are  the  present  schools. _ 
The  next  school  was  taught  by  Betsey 
Cutler,  in  a  log  dwelling-house  near  where 
S.  M.  Seaver  now  lives.  The  first  school- 
house  was  built  about  this  time,  of  logs, 
near  the  late  Samuel  Andrews'  house. 

From  1823,  the  increase  of  population 
was  more  rapid  than  it  had  been  the  two 
or  three  years  preceding.  The  openings 
in  the  forest  became  more  numerous  ;  the 
fields  of  grass,  grain  and  potatoes  more 
widely  extended  ;  the  cattle  and  sheep  in- 
creased, and  the  first  comers  could  begin 
to  realize  some  of  the  hopes  which  had  sus- 
tained them  through  years  of  privation. 

In  1823,  a  road  was  surveyed  and  worked 
up  the  Branch  through  the  town,  so  as  to 
be  passable.  Its  survey  was  by  Jesse 
Elm  on  and  Danforth  Stiles,  a  committee 
authorized  by  the  Legislature  of  1822,  the 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


first  road  recorded  in  town.  Others  soon 
began  to  branch  off.  Up  Minister  brook, 
up  the  brook  towards  Calais,  on  to  the 
hills  where  the  settlers  had  built  their 
dwellings,  on  Hampshire  hill ;  and  new 
dwellings  were  built,  and  from  what  can  be 
learned  of  the  older  cit'zens,  it  would  seem 
that  the  social  nature  of  the  early  inhabi- 
tants was  better  cultivated  and  developed 
than  it  is  at  the  present  day.  Neighborly 
visits  were  prized  in  proportion  to  the  dif- 
ficulties in  making  them.  People  seemed 
more  dependent  on  each  other  for  those 
necessaries  to  make  Hfe  pleasant.  Meet- 
ings also  were  better  attended,  and  gener- 
ally much  more  highly  prized  than  now  ; 
and  much  of  the  restraints  of  social  inter- 
course, under  which  the  people  of  this  day 
labor,  was  then  unknown.  All  were  poor  ; 
and  all  were  ready  and  willing  to  help  each 
other. 

From  the  second  organization  of  the 
town  until  1835,  town  meetings  were  held 
at  Amasa  Brown's  (afterwards  at  Milton 
Brown's)  house,  except  two  in  1823,  which 
were  held,  by  vote  of  the  town,  in  Mr. 
Brown's  shop.  At  a  meeting  called  for 
the  purpose,  held  Mar.  26,  1834,  it  was 

Voted,  that  town  meetings  in  future  be 
held  at  the  Plaistered  School-house,  nigh 
Milton  Brown's  in  said  Worcester. 

The  next  and  subsequent  meetings  were 
held  at  that  place.  (Dis.  No.  2,)  until 
1841  ;  a  vote  being  taken  in  March,  1840, 
to  hold  them  hereafter  in  the  school-house 
in  district  No.  i.  That  house  was  at  the 
"corner,"  and  stood  on  the  spot  where 
Ferris  Leonard's  house  was  lately  burned. 
The  old  school-house  now  stands  nearly 
opposite  the  present  town  clerk's  office, 
and  is  used  for  a  blacksmith  shop.  When 
the  first  meeting-house  was  built,  a  hall 
was  built  in  the  basement,  which  the  town 
bought  for  a  town  hall ;  and  Jan.  26,  1846, 
it  was 

"  Voted,  That  town  meetings  hereafter 
shall  be  held  at  the  new  town  house  in 
Worcester,"  which  was  built  in  1845,  ^"d 
since  that  time  town  meetings  have  been 
held  in  the  spacious  town  hall  under  the 
Congregational  meeting-house. 


SCHOOLS. 

We  have  no  records  of  before  the  second 
organization.  After  that,  the  people  at 
once  gave  the  subject  their  earnest  atten- 
tion.    It  was 

"  Voted^'xnh.-'^xW,  1821,  to haveone school- 
district";  March,  1823,  to  divide  the  town 
into  three  school  districts ;  and  March, 
1824,  a  committee  of  three  was  appointed 
to  re-district  the  town,  and  the  same  day 
the  town  was  divided  into  four  school  dis- 
tricts : 

District  No.  i  :  Eleazer  Hutchinson,  Da- 
vid Poor,  J.  P.  B.  Ladd,  Artemas  Rich- 
ardson,   Hammet,  (probably  Leon- 
ard Hamblet)  J.  Hubbard,  O.  L.  Smith, 
Oliver  Watson,  Hezekiah  Mills, Por- 
ter, Wm.  Arbuckle,  W.  Foster,  J.  Hill, 
Jonas  Abbott. 

District  No.  2  :  A.  Rice,  Amasa  Brown, 
J.  Robinson,  Allen  Vail,  Eben.  S.  Kel- 
logg, Ophir  Leonard,  John  Clark,  Frank- 
lin Johnson,  Ashley  Collins,  A.  V.  Smith. 

District  No.  3  :  Benson.  A.  A. 

Brown, Hinkson,  (probably  Wm.,) 

Thomas  Reed,  Jr.,  Tristram  Worthen. 

District  No.  4. — Jesse  Flint,  Matthias 
Folsom,  Samuel  Upham,  J.  Griffin,  E. 
Clough,  Nathan  Abbott,  Wm.  Bennett, 
A.  Bennett,  Flint  Gove,  Frizzle  Perrin, 
David  Folsom.  The  report  was  signed  by 
Amasa  Brown  for  committee. 

The  first  record  of  number  of  families 
and  scholars  was  made  March,  1829,  and 
returned  by  the  district  clerks  were  :  Dis- 
trict No.  I,  13  families,  },■},  scholars;  dis- 
trict No.  2,  9  families,  22  scholars;  dis- 
trict 3,  6  families,  18  scholars;  district  4, 
15  families,  41  scholars;,  not  in  limits  of 
any  district,  i  family  and  4  scholars  ;  total, 
44  families  and  1 18  .scholars. 

At  the  present  time  there  are  9  districts 
and  one  fractional,  belonging  to  a  Mid- 
dlesex district.  The  last  returns  were 
Apr.  I,  1878  ;  families,  191  ;  scholars,  271. 

•  There  are  9  school-houses  in  town,  in 
which  are  schools  from  10  to  12  weeks, 
summer  and  winter. 

POUNDS. 

The  town  has  owned  two  Pounds.  The 
first,  a  log  one,  built  according  to  a  vote  of 
the  town,  1822,  "That  a  pound  be  built 


WORCESTER. 


by  every  man  turning  out  the  15th  of  June 
next."  It  was  located  on  the  east  side  of 
the  road,  on  the  meadow  south  of  Henry 
E.  Hunt's  barn.  The  story  is  told  that 
this  pound  after  awhile  got  out  of  repair 
and  the  gate  fallen  down,  so  there  was 
free  ingress  and  egress  ;  and  the  cattle  of 
the  neighborbood,  taking  advantage  of 
the  situation,  found  a  warm  yard  in  which 
they  could  lie.  In  course  of  time,  the 
ground  within  the  enclosure  became  en- 
riched, and  Mr.  C,  who  lived  near  by, 
thinking  it  would  bear  good  corn,  plough- 
ed up  the  enclosure,  planted  it  and  fenced 
up  the  gateway.  The  corn  grew,  and 
there  was  a  prospect  of  a  big  yield  ;  .but 
his  hopes  were  destined  to  be  blasted. 
When  it  was  just  right  tn  roast,  somebody 
(supposed  to  be  the  "hatters")  harvested 
it  in  the  night,  leaving  Mr.  C.  nothing  for 
his  pains. 

The  second  was  built  in  1836,  the  town 
appropriating  $30.  It  was  walled  with 
stone,  hewed  timbers  on  the  top  ;  a  little 
south  of  the  first,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
road,  near  the  "town  brook."  It  was 
used  occasionally,  as  was  the  first,  to  get 
up  quarrels  and  lawsuits  among  the  neigh- 
bors until  about  1850;  the  stone  of  which 
it  was  made  was  used  to  repair  the  high- 
way. 

Since  that  time,  various  barnyards  have 
been  constituted  pounds  from  year  to  year, 
by  vote  of  the  town,  but  no  case  of  im- 
pounding an  animal  has  occurred  for  many 
years. 

March  2,  1847,  the  town  was  called  on 
to  vote  license  or  no  license,  and  in  that 
year  and  three  following  years,  the  vote 
stood:  1847,  license,  55,  no  license,  29; 
1848,  yea,  58,  nay,  40;  1849,  yea,  28,  nay, 
53;  1850,  yea  51,  nay,  38. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  selectmen  of  Wor- 
cester, Mar.  15,  185 1, 

Voted,  to  license  Henry  B.  Brown  to 
sell  pure  alcohol,  brandy  and  wine,  for  the 
time  of  one  year  from  this  date,  under  the 
following  restrictions,  viz.  :  ist,  the  said 
Brown  shall  at  all  times  keep  a  just  and 
accurate  account  of  all  purchases  and  sales. 
2d,  to  sell  only  as  a  medicine.  3d,  to  sell 
none  to  be  drank  in  or  about  the  store. 
4th,  allowed  to  sell  to  none  who  are  in  the 


habit  of  using  it  as  a  beverage,  without  a 
certificate  from  a  physician.  Edwin  C. 
Watson,  Abel  Whitney,  Horace  Carpenter, 
selectmen. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  board  of  selectmen 
of  Worcester,  Mar.  19,  1852, 

Voted,  to  grant  Cyrus  Brown  license  to 
keep  a  pul^lic  inn  and  sell  therein  victuals, 
all  kinds  of  fruits,  small  beer  and  cider  for 
the  term  of  one  year  from  this  date.  Frank- 
lin Johnson,  Samuel  P.  Alexander,  Joseph 
Ford,  selectmen. 

Tithingmen  were  occasionally  chosen  at 
the  early  town  meetings,  David  Poor  in 
1822,  but  they  soon  appear  to  have  gone 
out  of  fashion. 

The  first,  or  old  burying-ground  was 
across  the  road  from  the  present  one. 
There  is  no  record  of  the  old  ground. 
The  second  one  was  laid  out  under  a  vote 
of  the  town  passed  in  March,  1831  ;  i 
acre ;  .surveyed  by  Milton  Brown.  The 
first  bodies  buried  in  it  were  those  removed 
from  the  old  ground. 

In  1873,  the  town  purchased  about  3^ 
acres  of  P.  A.  Kemp,  Esq.,  for  $300,  en- 
closing the  old  ground  on  three  sides, 
which  was  surveyed  and  laid  in  lots  and 
driveways  by  James  K.  Tobey,  Esq.,  of 
Calais.  It  contains  in  all  303  lots,  and 
the  whole  together  makes  a  commodious 
and  beautiful  cemetery,  of  which  the  town 
may  justly  be  proud. 

March,  1831,  the  town  voted  not  to  tax 
Abner  Dugar  for  the  time  being,  he  being 
blind. 

Before  the  farms  were  cleared,  lumber- 
ing and  shingle-making  were  much  in 
vogue,  but  the  land,  as  soon  as  cleared 
and  planted,  produced  large  crops  of  po- 
tatoes ;  so  it  used  to  be  said,  with  the 
Worcester  people,  lumber,  shingles  and 
potatoes  were  considered  as  "legal  ten- 
der." Since  the  early  saw-mills  were  built, 
there  have  been  several  in  operation  during 
the  whole  time.  The  old  "  up  and  down" 
saws  have  all  given  place  to  the  improved 
"circular"  mills,  of  which  the  town  now 
has  five,  with  several  others  just  over  the 
border. 

Immense  quantities  of  logs  are  cut  in 
Worcester  every  year,  which  are  sawed, 
planed  and  matched  for  market.     At  first 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


there  was  an  abundance  of  pine  trees, 
which  have  disappeared,  and  spruce,  hem- 
lock and  several  kinds  of  hard  wood  now 
furnish  the  material  for  lumber. 

It  is  related  of  some  of  the  earlier  in- 
habitants, when  the  town  was  in  large  part 
owned  by  non-residents,  they  were  in 
the  habit  of  buying  of  the  proprietors,  for 
a  trifle,  the  pine  trees  which  had  fallen 
down  on  their  lands,  and  getting  them  man- 
ufactured into  lumber,  or  making  shingles 
for  sale.  To  make  the  business  more 
profitable,  it  is  said  that  some  felled  such 
fine  trees  as  they  wished  to  buy,  and  suf- 
fering them  to  lie  a  year  or  two,  included 
them  in  the  windfalls,  and  sometimes  did 
not  even  wait  for  the  trees  to  grow  old 
before  hauling  them  to  mill.  At  one 
period,  a  large  portion  of  the  lands  were 
held  by  Alex.  Ladd,  who  lived  in  New 
Hampshire,  and  titles  being  uncertain, 
other  parties  sought  to  acquire  a  right  in 
the  same  lands  by  "squatting,"  which  led 
to  much  litigation  in  regard  to  the  pos- 
session. A  large  portion  of  the  inhabi- 
tants were  at  one  time  engaged  for  one 
party  or  the  other  in  their  endeavors  to 
hold  the  land.  The  controversy  culminat- 
ed in  what  is  known   as   the  lumber  war. 

As  the  story  is  told  by  those  conversant 
with  the  matter,  some  parties  had  bought 
the  pine  trees  on  a  portion  of  the  disputed 
territory  in  the  north  part  of  the  town,  and 
commenced  to  cut  and  draw.  The  agents 
for  tlie  other  parties  claiming  the  lands, 
set  to  work  to  prevent  this.  They  felled 
trees  across  the  roads,  cut  up  the  logs, 
and  used  all  means,  except  personal  vio- 
lence, in  their  power  to  hinder  the  work. 
One  man  is  said  to  have  ruined  a  nice  ax 
in  cutting  out  the  iron  pins  of  a  sled  during 
the  darkness  of  the  night,  and  as  the  ex- 
citement increased,  the  friends  of  either 
party  came  to  their  assistance,  until  quite 
a  company  was  arrayed  on  either  side. 
They  held  the  ground  night  and  day  for 
several  days,  and  there  was  much  hard 
words  and  loud  talk.  But  during  the  whole 
excitement,  it  is  said,  there  was  only  one 
clinch,  and  in  that  struggle,  the  man  who 
came  uppermost  m  the  fall  was  compelled 
to  call  lustily  to  his  triends  to  "  take  that 


man  off  from  him,"  while  himself  was  yet 
at  the  top.  The  first  party  succeeded  in 
getting  out  a  portion  of  their  logs,  and 
the  dispute  was  eventually  settled  by  the 
courts.  The  lumbering  job  was,  however, 
done  at  a  loss  in  a  pecuniary  view  to  those 
engaged  in  it. 

Mr.  Ladd,  by  his  agent,  Judge  Loomis, 
of  MontpeHer,  had  put  one  Gilman  Par- 
nienter  on  to  the  lot  of  land  in  the  S.  E. 
corner  of  the  town,  where  James  M.  Gould 
now  lives,  to  hold  possession  against  a 
Mr.  Spear,  who  also  claimed  it.  Mr. 
Parmenter  built  a  log  shanty,  and  moved 
in  before  he  had  put  the  roof  on  it.  One 
day,  when  Mr.  Parmenter  was  gone  from 
home,  leaving  his  wife  to  keep  possession, 
some  of  Mr.  Spear's  agents  attempted  to 
get  possession  by  climbing  into  the  en- 
closure, but  Mrs.  Parmenter,  comprehend- 
ing the  responsibility  resting  on  her,  was 
equal  to  the  emergency.  Hastily  placing 
a  ladder  against  the  wall,  she  seized  the 
tea-kettle,  which  was  full  of  boiling  water, 
and  with  this  weapon  ascended  the  ladder, 
and  made  such  good  use  of  it,  that  the 
intruders  were  compelled  to  hastily  re- 
treat, leaving  the  plucky  woman  in  pos- 
session of  the  premises.  The  matter  of 
title  to  this,  as  well  as  the  aforementioned 
lands,  was  finally  settled  by  the  courts  in 
Mr.  Ladd's  favor. 

HAT   MANUFACTORY. 

When  the  town  was  new  and  fur-bearing 
animals  plenty,  a  hat  manufactory  was 
established,  and  the  business  of  hat- 
making  carried  on  several  years.  The 
building  was  on  the  farm  now  owned  and 
occupied  by  George  D.  Tewksbury.  Hat- 
making  was  carried  on  several  years  by 
Edmund  Blood,  who  came  from  Bolton, 
Mass.,  went  into  the  heart  of  the  wilder- 
ness, off  from  any  road,  put  up  a  factory, 
boarding-house,  and  other  necessary  build- 
ings, gathered  his  help,  some  say  from  75 
to  100,  and  went  to  work  making  hats  for 
the  gentry.  The  road  at  this  time  was 
over  the  river  west  from  the  building. 
Judging  from  the  stories  told,  we  think 
his  hands  employed  were  a  great  element 
in  the  social  part  of  community  and  in 
town-meetings. 


WORCESTER. 


Just  what  year  Mr.  Blood  came  here, 
we  do  not  know,  but  find  he  purchased 
the  land  in  1828.  He  died  previous  to 
Apr.  1831,  as  we  find  by  the  records,  and 
the  hat  business  was  not  continued  long 
afterwards.  The  old  hat  factory  was  taken 
down  in  1849  by  A.  L.  Vail,  and  the  ma- 
terials used  in  the  erection  of  a  dwelling 
house  in  the  village.  Mr.  Andrew  A. 
Sweet,  of  Montpelier,  could  probably  tell 
the  story  of  the  hat  business  better  than 
any  other  man  living. 

Tanning  was  carried  on  several  years. 
In  1849,  Ebenezer  Frizzell  came  from 
Berlin,  and  bought  of  John  Clark  the  mill 
and  water  privilege  where  H.  T.  Clarke's 
mill  now  stands,  and  built  a  tannery. 
Edwin  C.  Watson  was  associated  with 
Mr.  Frizzell  a  short  time  in  the  business, 
which  they  afterward  sold  to  Simon 
Wheeler,  of  Plainfield.  During  quite  a 
number  of  years,  Mr.  Wheeler  and  Nathan 
W.  Frye,  from  Woburn,  Mass.,  carried  on 
the  business,  employing  several  hands. 
About  1 861,  the  tannery  was  burned,  and 
was  never  rebuilt. 

The  knitting  business  was  a  source  of 
considerable  income  to  many  families  for 
several  years.  It  was  commenced  by  Mrs. 
Artemas  Richardson,  and  when  she  moved 
away,  was  continued  by  Mrs.  Frances  E. 
Celley,  chiefly  for  the  firm  of  H.  B.  Claflin 
&  Co.,  of  New  York,  and  kept'many  women 
and  children  industrious,  returning  an  in- 
come of  several  thousands  of  dollars. 

Exporting  raspberries  was  for  a  few 
seasons  carried  on  quite  extensively.  From 
1866  to  about  '74,  it  was  an  income  to  the 
women  and  children.  From  2  to  8  tons 
per  season  were  shipped  from  here  to  the 
Boston  market,  mostly  by  Templeton  & 
Vail,  merchants,  for  4  to  6  cents  per  lb. 

There  are  (1878)  in  town  some  170 
dwelling-houses,  2  meeting-houses,  i  store, 
I  hotel,  the  Worcester  House,  5  saw-mills, 
3  blacksmith-shops,  i  grist-mill,  9  school- 
houses,  I  post-office,  a  town  clerk's  office 
and  town  hall.  There  are  also  a  "  Grand 
Army  Post,"  a  "  Grange  of  the  Patrons  of 
Husbandry,"  and  a  "  Lodge  of  Good 
Templars."  The  village  has  some  forty 
dwelling-houses. 


POST   OFFICE, 

for  statistics,  we  are  indebted  to  Hon. 
Charles  Lyman,  formerly  of  Montpelier, 
and  for  mahy  years  chief  of  the  dead  letter 
department  of  the  P.  O.  Department, 
Washington.  An  office  was  established 
here  Jan.  5,  1828.  The  inhabitants  had 
before  procured,  what  little  mail  matter 
they  received,  at  Montpelier. 

Amos  Rice  was  appointed  first  postmas- 
ter, Jan.  5,  1828;  Amos  Rice,  Jr.,  Mar.  5, 
1828;  Rufus  Reed,  Jr.,  Jan.  31,  1831  ; 
Samuel  Andrews,  Nov.  2,  1832;  Jonas 
Abbott,  April  i,  1847;  Oliver  A.  Stone, 
Sept.  18,  1853  ;  Thaddeus  B.  Ladd,  Aug. 
25,1854;  Charles  C.  Abbott,  April  13, 
1861,  who  is  the  present  incumbent— 1879. 

John  Rice,  son  of  Amos  Rice,  was  the 
first  mail  carrier ;  and  it  has  been  stated 
that  at  the  first  he  carried  the  mail  in  his 
hat — now  there  are  some  300  copies  of 
newspapers  and  magazines  taken  in  town. 
After  a  good  road  was  worked  through 
the  town  to  Elmore,  the  mail  was  carried 
through  here  to  the  towns  north  ;  and  sub- 
sequently the  route  from  Montpeher  and 
the  south,  to  St.  Albans,  was  through  this 
town,  and  continued  so  until  the  Central 
Vt.  R.  R.  was  built.  We  now  have  a  daily 
mail  (Sunday  excepted,)  by  stage  from 
Montpelier  to  and  from  Morrisville. 

TOWN  CLERKS. 

John  Young,  1803,4;  Samuel  B.  Stone, 
1805;  Carpus  Clark,  1806-10,  also  1812 
and  part  1813  ;  Cyrus  Brigham,  181 1  ;  part 
1813,  all  1814-15  ;  none  i8i6to2o;  Amasa 
Brown,  182 1,  2d  organization;  Artemas 
Richardson,  1822;  Ebenezer  S.  Kellogg, 
1823,  4,  5;  Ophir  Leonard,  1826,  7,  8; 
Nathan  Adams,  1829,  30;  Amos  Rice, 
1831-40,  1842-46,  1 5  years  ;  Daniel  Adams, 
1841  ;  Samuel  Andrews,  1847-54;  Thad- 
deus B.  Ladd,  1855-60 ;  Job  E.  Macomber, 
1861-64,  part  1865  ;  Charles  C.  Abbott, 
since  Nov.  4,  I865,  deceased  in  1881. 

TOWN   REPRESENTATIVES. 

James  Green,  1808  ;  Carpus  Clark,  1809- 
II,  13;  Elisha  B.  Green,  1812;  Cyrus 
Brigham,  1814,  15;  none,  1816-22;  Allen 
Vail,  1822,  3;  Amos  Rice,  1824;  Samuel 
Hubbard,  1825;  none,  1826;  Nathan 
Adams,  1827,  8  ;  Milton  Brown,  1829-32, 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


34.  37 ■>  5°  i  Daniel  Adams,  1833;  Joel 
Newton,  1835,6;  Jacob  Cushman,  1838, 
9  ;  Karris  Leonard,  1840,  i  ;  Moses  Folsom, 
1842,3;  none,  1844,  5;  Allen  L.  Vail, 
1846,  72,  73;  none,  1847;  George  W. 
Leavitt,  1848;  Nathaniel  A.  Kelley,  1851, 
2 ;  Phineas  A.  Kemp,  1853,  69-72  ;  none, 
1854;  Rodney  Jones,  1855;  Chauncey 
Hunt,  1856,  7;  Horatio  Templeton,  1858, 
9;  Thomas  Hutchinson,  i860,  61  ;  Edwin 
C.Watson,  1862,  3;  Job  E.  Macomber, 
1864,  5;  Mark  P.  Ladd,  1866;  Heman  A. 
Hancock,  1867,  8  ;  none,  1874,  5  ;  Horace 
P.  Darling,  1876,  7;  Augustus  A.  Bliss, 
1878,9. 

There  have  been  many  exciting  contests 
over  the  election  of  representative ;  but 
probably  only  one  "contested"  in  the 
Legislature,  which  was  in  1814  or  1815. 
The  story  of  that  is  thus  told  :  Early  in 
the  season  a  careful  canvass,  probably  not 
made  public  at  the  time,  showed  that  there 
were  just  9  voters  in  town.  At  freeman's 
meeting  two  candidates  were  presented, 
Cyrus  Brigham  and  Amasa  Brown.  A 
short  time  previous  to  the  first  Tuesday 
in  September,  however,  two  brothers 
named  Goodell  had  signified  their  inten- 
tion of  going  West,  and  actually  did  leave 
the  town,  as  was  supposed  by  some  for 
good.  They  were  strong  Brigham  men, 
and  their  absence  was  viewed  with  much 
complacency  by  Mr.  Brown  and  his  friends. 
Freeman's  meeting  day  came,  the  voting 
commenced,  and  the  appearances  were 
that  Mr.  Brown  would  win  ;  until,  unex- 
pectedly to  some,  the  Messrs.  Goodell  ap- 
peared on  the  scene,  having  come  from 
Stowe,  over  the  mountain  through  the 
forest,  and  offered  their  votes.  The  con- 
stable, who  was  a  "Brown  man,"  refused 
to  receive  their  votes,  however,  claiming 
as  they  had  left  town  they  were  not  legal 
voters.  Mr.  Brigham  took  their  votes 
and  put  them  in  his  pocket.  Counting 
them,  Mr.  Brigham  had  5  votes  and  Mr. 
Brown  4.  If  they  were  rejected,  Mr. 
Brown  had  a  majority.  Both  men  made 
their  appearance  at  the  Legislature  when 
it  convened,  and  the  matter  was  left  to 
that  body  for  a  decision.  Mr.  Brigham 
held  his  seat. 


PHYSICIANS. 

The  first  resident  physician  was  Dr. 
James  S  Skinner.  Just  when  he  came  we 
do  not  know  ;  probably  about  1830.  The 
records  show  he  bought  a  place  there. 
Jan.  1833,  he  was  married  to  Julia  Ann, 
daughter  of  Allen  Vail,  Esq.,  and  soon 
after  removed  to  Michigan,  where  he  still 
resides.  He  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  Ira 
R.  Rood,  who  had  lived  here  several  years 
before  studying  medicine.  Dr.  Rood  mar- 
ried Jane,  daughter  of  Samuel  and  Jane 
Andrews,  Sept.  7,  1834.  He  practiced  his 
profession  here  until  1846,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Wisconsin  and  died  there.  Dr. 
Buckley  O.  Tyler  was  the  next,  coming 
in  1848  or  '9.  During  the  interval  be- 
tween Dr.  Rood  and  Dr.  Tyler  the  people 
were  obliged  to  go  to  Montpelier  for  a 
physician,  as  they  also  had  been  previous 
to  Dr.  Skinner's  coming  to  town. 

Dr.  Thaddeus  B.  Ladd  bought  out 
Dr.  Tyler  in  185 1.  He  was  born  in  town, 
being  a  son  of  J.  P.  B.  Ladd,  and  grad- 
uated at  Woodstock  in  1850,  in  the  same 
class  with  Dr.  George  Nichols,  present 
Secretary  of  State. 

Dr.  Ladd- was  a  man  of  excellent  judg- 
ment, and  bid  fair  to  rise  to  eminence  in 
his  chosen  profession  during  the  few  years 
of  his  active  labor.  In  1854,  a  spinal  dif- 
ficulty developed  itself,  and  for  seven  long 
years  he  was  a  great  sufferer  from  that 
disease,  which  brought  him  to  his  grave. 
He  was  postmaster  and  town  clerk  several 
years ;  was  born  Aug.  9,  1826;  married 
Harriet  N.,  daughter  of  Rev.  Carey  Rus- 
sell, December  5,  1850,  and  died  Decem- 
ber 13, 1861. 

LuciAN  Vail  Abbott,  son  of  Deacon 
Jonas  Abbott,  was  born  May  24,  1832.  At 
19,  he  commenced  the  study  of  medicine 
with  Dr.  Ladd,  and  graduated  at  Wood- 
stock, June,  1854,  with  the  highest  honors 
of  his  class.  He  did  not  live  to  practice 
his  profession,  consumption  claiming  him 
as  a  victim.     He  died  May  26,  1855. 

Dr.  Job  E.  Macomber,  a  graduate  of 
Castleton,  commenced  here  in  1856,  and 
practiced  10  years  in  this  town.  He  was 
born  in  East  Montpelier ;  married  Marsell 
L.,  youngest  daughter  of  J.  P.  B.  Ladd, 


WORCESTER. 


893 


June  12,  1858;  removed  to  Montpelier  in 
1866,  where  he  still  resides. 

Dr.  Oliver  L.  Watson,  son  of  Oliver 
Watson,  born  in  this  town  May  i,  1828, 
succeeded  Dr.  Macomber,  continuing  only 
part  of  a  year,  when  he  sold  out  to  Dr. 
Harris.  Dr.  Watson  married  Nancy  L., 
daughter  of  Leonard  Darling,  Aug.  18, 
1852.     He  now  resides  in  W^est  Topsham. 

Dr.  N.  M.  Harris  was  a  son  of  Daniel 
Harris,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  east 
part  of  this  town,  and  was  born  in  Calais, 
coming  to  this  town  with  his  father  when 
quite  young.  He  married  Mary  E.  Frink, 
of  Milford,  Mass.,  and  they  are  now  (1879) 
living  on  the  same  place  where  his  father 
first  settled  in  town.  In  1876,  he  sold  his 
practice  to  Dr.  Chauncey  N.  Hunt,  who 
is  the  now  practicing  physician.  Dr.  Hunt 
is  a  son  of  Chauncey  Hunt ;  born  in  this 
town  Apr.  17,  1851  ;  graduated  at  Burling- 
ton, 1875,  and  was  married  to  Jennie  F., 
daughter  of  A.  S.  Emery,  Sept.  28,  1875. 
Dr.  Watson  and  Dr.  Harris  both  also 
graduated  at  Burlington. 

NEIGHBORHOODS. 

Hampshire  Hill,  so  called,  being  mostly 
settled  from  New  Hampshire — many  from 
Acworthand  Alstead.  It  is  the  geograph- 
ical center  of  the  town,  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountain  range,  and  comprises  school 
district  No.  8,  with  a  few  families  in  No.  2. 
The  first  beginning  was  made  on  the  south 
end  by  Artemas  Richardson,  F.  Johnson 
and  E.  S.  Kellogg.  Before  1830,  the  New 
Hampshire  people  came,  and  the  hill  was 
settled  as  far  north  as  it  ever  has  been. 
Joel  Newton,  John  Brigham,  Wm.  H.and 
John  H.  Cooper,  Daniel  A.  and  David  L. 
Frost,  Daniel  Adams,  Aaron  Kemp,  Joseph 
Evans,  Ophir  Leonard,  Nathl.  S.  Morley, 
Alex.  Dingwall  and  Horace  H.  Collier, 
and  perhaps  others  we  do  not  remember, 
were  the  first  to  make  permanent  homes 
on  the  hill ;  substantial,  honored  citizens. 
A  few  of  their  descendants  still  live  on  the 
places  their  fathers  cleared. 

"Minister  Brook,"  now  school  dis- 
trict No.  4,  was  early  settled  from  various 
localities.  O.  L.  Smith,  Cyrus  Crocker, 
Jonas  Abbott,  Matthias  Folsom,  Daniel 
and  Richard  Colby,  Samuel  Upham,  Ed- 


ward and  John  Clough,  Joel  H.  Temple- 
ton,  Abraham,  Ephraimand  Jesse  Abbott, 
Luther  Hunt  and  others  were  among  its 
early  settlers. 

West  Hill,  district  No.  7,  had  David 
Folsom,  B.  F.  Stone,  William  and  Samuel 
Hall  and  others.  The  east  part  of  the 
town  from  Putnam's  Mills  to  Calais,  and 
so  north,  had  for  early  settlers:  Gilmore 
Parmenter,  Caleb  Ormsby,  Elias  Bascom, 
Asa  Fisher,  Gload  Dugar,  Thayer  Towns- 
hend,  Benj.  Lathrop,  Daniel  Harris,  J.  P. 
B.  Ladd,  Jacob  Baldwin  and  others. 

Wm.  Hinkson  and  Tristram  Worthen, 
with  their  families  of  6  children  each,  set- 
tled in  the  extreme  north  part  of  the  town. 
There  were  probably  many  among  the 
early  inhabitants  whose  names  we  have 
not  learned.  Those  who  came  before 
Amasa  Brown,  from  1797,  and  left  before 
1818  or  '19,  as  far  as  we  know,  never  re- 
turned. Mrs.  Olive  Brown  Johnson,  a 
daughter  of  Amasa  Brown,  who  came 
here  with  her  father  in  1812,  has  given 
the  writer  some  information  in  regard  to 
those  who  came  here  during  the  first  or- 
ganization, and  where  they  were  located 
previous  to  their  leaving  town.  Accord- 
ing to  her  recollection,  Cyrus  Brigham 
then  lived  on  the  Whitney  farm,  where 
L.  M.  Hutchinson  now  lives,  a  man  named 
Farnsworth  on  the  Leonard  Hamblet  place, 
Daniel  Colby  where  Mr.  Seaver  now  re- 
sides. The  Dea.  Poor  place  was  then 
called  the  Lyon  place,  but  no  one  lived 
there.  Two  families  by  the  name  of  Green 
(Elisha  and  James,  probably)  lived  on  the 
place  where  P.  A.  Kemp  now  lives,  Carpus 
Clark  on  a  part  of  the  Brown  farm  now 
owned  by  Chauncey  Hunt,  John  Ridlon 
where  Henry  E.  Hunt  resides,  and  Henry 
Goodell  on  Mr.  H.  A.  Hancock's  farm, 
and  in  1818-19,  Mr.  Brown's  family  had 
no  neighbors  nearer  than  the  Stiles'  place 
in  Middlesex,  where  C.  L.  Hunt  now 
lives. 

Ohio  was  being  opened  up  to  settlers, 
and  the  good  stories  coming  from  there 
induced  those  discouraged  here  to  seek 
that  more  favored  region.  Nearly  all 
mentioned  as  living  here  at  that  time  em- 
igrated to  Ohio. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Mr.  Brown  was  born  in  Templeton, 
Mass.,  Apr.  23,  1770;  about  1792,  was 
married  to  Sybil  Stoddard,  of  Winchendon, 
Mass. ;  born  June  20,  1772.  Feb.  1807, 
they  removed  from  Massachusetts  to  Mont- 
pelier,  residing  there  until  April,  1812, 
when  they  came  to  Worcester,  and  settled 
on  the  place  where  they  continued  as  long 
as  they  lived.  When  they  settled  here,  a 
clearing  of  some  10  or  12  acres  had  been 
made  and  a  log-house  built.  The  house 
had  one  glass  window  only  at  this  time, 
and  stood  where  the  ell  part  of  the  present 
house  stands. 

Mr.  Brown  purchased  his  place  of  Elisha 
B.  Green.  There  were  then  no  bridges 
across  the  river  between  Montpelier  and 
Worcester,  and  as  the  road  then  went,  it 
crossed  the  river  twice  near  where  Leonard 
Hamblet  lives,  so  people  had  to  cross  on 
the  ice  in  winter  and  ford  the  stream  in 
the  summer.  Mrs.  Johnson  says,  wlien 
she  was  about  g  years  of  age,  in  March, 
1815,  her  father  went  to  Montpelier  with  a 
horse  and  sleigh,  taking  her  with  him. 
After  transacting  his  business,  he  started 
to  return  home,  and  it  being  a  thawing 
time,  the  river  had  become  swollen  so  the 
water  ran  over  the  ice  at  the  crossings. 
They  made  the  first  crossing,  but  when 
they  came  to  the  second,  the  water  was 
running  so  deeply  and  swiftly  above  the 
ice  it  seemed  impossible  to  cross.  Mr. 
Brown  told  his  little  danghter  he  saw  no 
way  except  to  commend  themselves  to  the 
care  of  God  and  make  the  attempt.  It  was 
just  as  unsafe  to  try  to  return,  and  telling 
her  to  cling  tight  to  the  sleigh,  he  went  up 
the  stream  as  far  as  possible  and  plunged 
in.  The  current  was  so  strong,  the  sleigh 
was  carried  down  below  the  horse,  which 
compelled  him  to  keep  his  head  nearly  up 
the  stream,  the  water  filling  the  sleigh. 
When  they  reached  the  other  shore  they 
were  some  rods  farther  down  the  stream 
than  where  they  entered  it.  When  again 
on  firm  ground,  Mr.  Brown  stopped  and 
thanked  God  that  they  had  been  pre- 
served, and  then  proceeded  homeward. 

When  Mr.  Brown  was  left  by  all  his 
neighbors  in  full  possession  of  the  town, 
he  took  advantage  of  tlie  situation  to  im- 


prove his  own  pecuniary  interests.  He 
had  at  this  time  a  few  sheep,  a  yoke  of 
oxen  and  three  cows.  Having  the  whole 
range  of  the  cleared  land  on  which  to  keep 
his  stock,  he  went  to  Montpelier  and  hired 
four  or  five  more  cows,  for  which  he  paid 
$4  per  year  each  beside  their  keeping,  and 
together  with  his  own  turned  them  on  the 
town.  He  found  a  ready  sale  for  all  his 
butter  among  the  families  in  Montpelier  at 
13  c.  per  pound  ;  fed  the  milk  to  his  hogs, 
raising  pork  for  sale,  and  so  prospered  in 
worldly  affairs,  turning  the  misfortunes  of 
his  less  enduring  neighbors  to  his  own 
benefit.  In  1818  or  19,  Mrs.  Brown's 
father  died  in  Massachusetts,  and  Mr. 
Brown  was  sent  for  to  help  in  settling  the 
estate.  He  made  the  journey  on  horse- 
back, of  which  he  said,  when  traveling 
through  New  Hampshire,  he  stopped  over 
night  at  a  tavern  where  quite  a  company 
was  collected.  During  the  evening  as  the 
different  persons  were  engaged  in  telling 
stories  in  regard  to  their  several  localities, 
Mr.  Brown  sat  and  listened  without  saying 
anything,  until  some  one  of  the  company 
turned  to  him  with  the  remark,  that  he 
believed  they  had  all  told  where  they  be- 
longed but  him.  He  replied  that  he  lived 
in  Worcester,  Vermont.  Oh !  said  the 
other,  I  have  heard  of  Worcester.  I  have 
heard  that  all  the  inhabitants  of  that  town 
except  a  Mr.  Brown  left  the  place,  and 
that  he  has  thrown  his  family  on  the  town. 
The  story  you  have  heard  is  true,  said  Mr. 
B.  My  name  is  Brown,  and  there  is  no 
other  family  living  in  Worcester  but  my 
own.  As  Mr.  Brown's  place  was  about 
half  way  from  Montpelier  to  Elmore,  he 
had  frequent  applications  from  travellers 
for  refreshments.  These  applications  be- 
came so  numerous,  that  in  18 15  or  16, 
according  to  the  recollections  of  Mrs. 
Johnson,  he  concluded  to  open  a  tavern, 
and  entertain  travellers.  Accordingly,  to 
give  notice  to  the  public,  he  put  up  a 
"sign,'' and  opened  the  first  tavern  ever 
kept  in  Worcester.  His  sign  was  a  smooth 
board,  on  which  he  marked  in  large  letters 
with  red  chalk,  "Good  Cider  For  Sale 
Here,"  and  he  nailed  it  up  in  front  of  his 
log  house.     Travellers  were  entertained  in 


WORCESTER. 


this  log  tavern  until  1824  or  25,  when  he 
built  a  large  two-stor}-  house,  the  one  now 
standing,  for  a  tavern. 

In  February,  1817,  Benjamin  Upton  and 
wife  of  Bakersfield,  came  to  visit  Mr. 
Brown's  family,  Mrs.  U.  being  Mr.  B.''s 
sister.  It  was  an  almost  unbroken  forest 
between  Elmore  and  Worcester,  the  road 
barely  passable  with  teams ;  most  of  the 
travel  being  on  horseback.  Mr.  Upton 
and  wife  arrived  at  Mr.  Olmstead's  in  El- 
more, near  noon,  where  they  stopped  to 
refresh  themselves  and  horse,  and  inquire 
about  the  road.  They  were  told  that  they 
could  probably  go  through  without  trouble, 
and  started  about  3  o'clock,  p.  m.  The 
road  was  quite  good  for  a  mile  or  two, 
where  some  of  the  inhabitants  had  been 
drawing  wood,  but  they  soon  came  where 
there  was  no  track,  and  it  became  impos- 
sible to  proceed  except  by  Mr.  Upton's 
treading  down  the  snow  ahead,  and  then 
leading  on  the  horse,  making  very  slow 
progress.  As  night  approached,  Mr.  Up- 
ton and  his  horse  became  weary  ;  the  pros- 
pect of  getting  through  the  woods  that 
night  grew  less  and  less.  They  thought 
they  had  got  about  half  way.  Mr.  Upton 
told  his  wife  he  saw  no  way  but  to  leave 
her  with  the  team,  while  he  would  go 
through  to  Mr.  Brown's  for  help  to  break 
the  road.  She  consented,  and  her  hus- 
band wrapped  her  up  as  well  as  he  could, 
taking  off  his  overcoat  and  putting  it  on 
her,  and  wrapping  a  bed-quilt  they  had 
for  a  sleigh  robe  about  her,  he  bade  her 
good  night  and  started.  He  reached  Mr. 
Brown's  about  midnight,  almost  completely 
exhausted  ;  aroused  them,  and  made  known 
the  situation.  Mr.  Brown,  his  two  boys, 
and  Oliver  Watson,  who  soon  after  mar- 
ried Mr.  Brown's  daugliter,  started  out. 
They  turned  out  the  oxen  and  some  young 
cattle,  put  a  boy  on  the  horse,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  break  a  path,  driving  the  oxen 
unyoked,  and  the  young  cattle  before  them, 
the  boy  and  horse  bringing  up  the  rear. 
About  daylight,  Mr.  Brown,  who  was  ahead, 
came  in  sight  of  the  horse  and  sleigh  with 
Mrs.  Upton  sitting  upright  as  Mr.  Upton 
had  left  her  the  night  before.  He  spoke 
to  her  but  received  no  answer ;    again,  no 


response  ;  becoming  alarmed,  wentup  close 
to  the  sleigh,  and  put  his  hand  on  her 
shoulder,  calling  her  by  name.  This 
started  her  up.  She  was  asleep  ;  she  was 
told  help  was  at  hand.  She  had  slept 
most  of  the  night.  Finding  they  were 
only  a  little  way  in  the  woods,  they  took  the 
team  back  to  Mr.  Olmstead's,  so  Mr.  Brown 
and  Mrs.  Upton  returned  there,  she  stay- 
ing until  the  next  day,  the  interval  being 
spent  by  Mr.  Brown's  folks  in  breaking 
out  the  road.  Early  next  morning,  Mr. 
B.  and  his  sister  again  started  from  Elmore, 
and  about  3  o'clock  p.  m.,  arrived  at  Mr. 
Brown's  house,  finding  Mr.  Upton  recov- 
ered from  his  exhaustion  and  glad  to  receive 
Jiis  wife  safe  again.  They  doubtless  re- 
membered their  visit  that  winter  to  Wor- 
cester as  long  as  they  lived. 

Mr.  Brown  and  wife  both  died  compara- 
tively young,  on  the  same  place  on  which 
they  first  settled.  She  died  March  6,  1826, 
aged  54  years,  and  he  June  i,  1827,  aged  57. 

FRANKLIN   JOHNSON, 

born  in  Leominster,  Mass.,  1797,  came 
from  there  Apr.,  1820,  in  company  with 
Capt.  Artemus  Richardson  and  Amos  Mer- 
riam ;  and  the  three  together  purchased 
the  300  acre  lot,  No.  31,  situated  on  the 
south  end  of  Hampshire  hill,  and  reaching 
Minister  brook.  They  divided  the  right, 
Mr.  Merriam  taking  the  north,  known 
afterwards  as  the  "Adams  farm,"  Mr. 
Richardson  the  middle  lot,  known  as  the 
Farris  Leonard  farm,  and  Mr.  Johnson  the 
south  lot,  where  he  continued  to  reside 
until  his  death.  That  spring,  they  each 
chopped  5  acres  on  his  lot.  In  June,  Mr. 
Richardson  and  Mr.  Merriam  returned  to 
Massachusetts,  and  left  Mr.  Johnson  to  see 
to  the  land.  He  stayed  through  the  sum- 
mer, and  burned  the  choppings  on  all  three 
places  ;  then  worked  at  clearing  his  own, 
and  building  him  a  log  shanty.  Just  be- 
fore "Thanksgiving,"  he  returned  to  Mas- 
sachusetts and  spent  the  winter.  In  April, 
1 82 1,  he  came  back  to  Worcester.  Mr.  J. 
started  Fast  day,  and  arrived  in  W.  Fast 
day  also,  being  just  one  week  on  the  ro^. 
When  he  left  Leominster,  the  farmers  were 
plowing  and  sowing  their  fields  ;  when  he 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


arrived  in  Worcester,  the  snow  was  4  feet 
deep.  As  soon  as  the  snow  was  gone,  he 
commenced  work  on  his  land,  and  also 
built  him  a  larger  log-house.  Mr.  Rich- 
ardson came  back  soon  after  Mr.  Johnson, 
bringing  his  wife  with  him,  but  Mr.  Mer- 
riam  did  not  return,  having  sold  his  land 
to  Ebenezer  S.  Kellogg  of  Brookfield. 
Mr.  Johnson  said,  when  building  his  house 
that  summer,  he  got  in  a  great  hurry  to 
complete  it,  and  when  shingling  thought 
he  would  not  stop  for  Sunday,  as  there 
were  no  neighbors  near  enough  to  be  dis- 
turbed. In  the  morning,  he  went  to  work, 
and  laid  10  or  12  shingles,  but  said  "  such 
echoes  as  the  hammer  awoke  I  never  heard. 
It  seemed  as  if  the  sound  must  be  heard 
all  over  town ;  and  I  concluded  to  wait 
until  Monday  before  I  shingled  any  more." 
During  this  summer,  Mr.  Kellogg  worked 
on  his  land,  and  as  his  family  were  in 
Brookfield,  he  stayed  with  Mr.  Johnson. 
Mr.  J.  was  courting  Pamelia  Brown,  and 
would  sometimes  be  gone  evenings,  leav- 
ing Mr.  K.  to  keep  house  alone,  and  he 
being  naturally  timid,  did  not  like  this  ar- 
rangement. One  Sunday  night,  Mr.  John»- 
son  went  to  Mr.  Brown's,  leaving  Mr.  Kel- 
logg alone.  About  10  o'clock,  Johnson 
hearing  a  loud  hallooing  in  the  woods, 
went  out  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  Mr. 
K.  soon  emerged  above  the  house,  swing- 
ing a  fire  brand.  He  had  heard  a  bear 
about  the  shanty,  and  was  not  going  to 
stay  there  alone.  Mr.  Johnson  said  when 
he  first  came  to  Worcester,  tlie  trout  were 
so  plenty  he  could  catch  enough  in  the 
brook  in  ten  minutes  any  day  to  make  a 
good  meal.  He  cleared  up  his  land,  made 
improvements  in  building,  raised  up  his 
family,  and  ended  his  days  there.  He 
married  Pamelia  Brown,  Sept.  8,  1822, 
who  died  Jan.  23,  1834;  and  he  married 
2d,  Jan.  4,  1835,  Olive  Brown,  a  sister  of 
his  first  wife,  who  is  still  living  on  the  same 
farm.  Mr.  Johnson  united  with  the  Con- 
gregational church  in  1826.  He  bore  his 
share  in  the  toils  of  the  new  settlement, 
and  in  the  town  business ;  was  a  good 
neighbor  and  citizen,  and  died  respected 
bv  his  townsmen,  Dec.  8,  1868,  aged  71 
years. 


ORAMEL    L.    SMITH, 

a  brother  of  Col.  Harvey  Smith  of.Thet- 
ford,  and  uncle  to  Hon.  O.  H.  Smith  of 
Montpelier,  was  born  in  1783,  where,  I  am 
unable  to  state,  but  he  lived  in  Thetford 
while  quite  young,  the  writer's  father  and 
Mr.  Smith  being  boys  together  there.  He 
was  married  at  Thetford  to  Polly,  daughter 
of  lliaddeus  Ladd,  who  had  a  large  fami- 
ly, mostly  girls. 

The  story  is  told,  that  when  some  two 
or  three  of  Mr.  Ladd's  girls  had  been  mar- 
ried, Mrs.  Smith  being  among  the  num- 
ber, a  neighbor,  who  was  not  on  very  good 
terms  with  Mr.  Smith  and  one  or  two 
other  men  who  had  married  the  Ladd 
girls,  made  the  remark  that  he  thought  the 
devil  had  a  grudge  against  Mr.  Ladd  and 
was  paying  him  in  soiis-in-law.  Mr.  Smith 
and  his  wife  came  to  Worcester  in  1822  or 
23,  and  commenced  a  settlement  on  the 
Minister  brook,  west  of  the  "  corner,"  and 
lived  and  died  there.  They  had  3  girls, 
the  two  oldest,  Mary  and  Jemima,  born  in 
Thetford,  the  youngest,  Frances,  in  Wor- 
cester. The  eldest  died  unmarried,  Je- 
mima married  Herman  JFoster,  and  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Smith  lived  with  them  at  the 
time  of  their  death .  The  youngest  was  the 
wife  of  Capt.  Edward  Hall  of  the  8th  Vt. 
Regt.,  wounded  at  Cedar  Creek,  Oct.,  '64, 
who  died  of  his  wounds  at  Winchester  a 
few  days  after.  The  daughters  are  all  now 
dead. 

Uncle  Lyman,  as  Mr.  Smith  was  famil- 
iarly called,  was  an  active  man  in  his  day, 
and  somewhat  given  to  the  use  of  intoxi- 
cating drink  ;  his  naturally  irritable  dispo- 
sition was  made  more  irritable,  and  he  had 
very  much  trouble  with  his  neighbors  ;  for 
a  series  of  years  was  almost  constantly  in- 
volved in  law-suits.  Probably  he  was 
plaintiff  or  defendant  in  more  law  cases 
than  many  others  together  in  town ;  and 
almost  always  was  on  the  losing  side. 
He  was  harassed  by  creditors  almost  con- 
stantly. It  is  said  he  concluded  after 
awhile  he  could  not  afford  to  quarrel  so 
much,  and  was  more  peaceably  inclined  in 
his  later  years. 

Mr.  Hutchinson's  place  joined  his  on  the 
north,  Mr.  H.  having  another  lot  a  mile  or 


WORCESTER. 


897 


so  south  they  were  clearing,  and  to  cross 
Mr.  Smith's  farm  to  reach  the  south  lot, 
Mr.  S.  had  a  log-bridge  across  the  brook 
south  of  his  house  ;  Mr.  Hutchinson's  folks 
availed  themselves  of  it  going  to  and  from 
work.  Uncle  Lyman,  not  feeling  friendly 
at  that  time,  forbade  their  passing  over  the 
bridge.  One  morning  old  Mr.  Hutchinson 
and  one  of  the  boys  started  for  the  south 
lot  to  work,  intending  to  cross  the  bridge; 
but  Mr.  Smith  came  hurriedly  out  as  the 
others  were  crossing,  and  succeeded  in 
pitching  the  elder  Mr.  H.  into  the  brook. 
A  lawsuit  resulted,  in  which  Uncle  Lyman 
was  beat  as  usual.  During  his  later  years, 
he  gave  up  his  business  cares  to  his  chil- 
dren, and  lived  more  quiet.  Mrs.  Smith, 
the  opposite  of  her  husband,  was  a  kind 
neighbor  and  excellent  nurse,  and  often 
was  called  up  by  her  neighbors  in  sickness  ; 
and  in  those  years  when  there  was  no  phy- 
sician in  town,  she  practiced  midwifery, 
and  even  after  a  regular  physician  had  loca- 
ted here,  she  was  called  upon  for  that  ser- 
vice. Both  Mr.  S.  and  wife  died  at  the  age 
of  71  ;  he  in  1854,  she  in  1858. 

JOHN  AND   DODGE   HAYWARD, 

formerly  of  Thetford,  commenced  a  settle- 
ment on  Minister  brook  in  1821,  where 
Joel  H.  Templeton  afterwards  lived  and 
died ;  but  Dodge  soon  after  went  to  the 
Dea.  Poor  place,  and  both  soon  left  the 
town. 

OLIVER    WATSON, 

born  in  1786,  came  here  from  Montpelier ; 
was  a  joiner  by  trade,  and  an  extra  work- 
man, making  that  his  life  business.  He 
married  Esther,  oldest  daughter  of  Amasa 
Brown,  May  29,  1817  ;  this  is  the  first  re- 
corded marriage  in  town.  Their  oldest  son 
represented  the  town  and  was  assistant 
judge  of  the  TTounty  court  2  years.  Mr. 
W.  was  for  many  years  very  deaf.  He 
died  in  1870,  at  84  years.  His  widow  went 
to  live  with  her  son.  Judge  E.  C.  Watson 
of  Hartford, and  died  there,  but  was  brought 
to  Worcester  for  burial. 

JESSE   FLINT, 
of  Montpelier,  bought  a  lot  here  in  1815, 
but  I  do  not  know  that  he  came   here  to 
live  before    1820   or  21.     He   lived   for  a 


short  time  in  a  log-house,  or  shop,,  which 
had  been  used  for  a  comb  shop,  near  S. 
M.  Seaver's  present  residence,  until  he 
could  build  a  shanty  on  his  own  land. 
His  land  was  on  the  hill  where  F.  C.  Har- 
riman  now  lives.  Mr.  Flint  was  prominent 
in  town  matters,  but  probably  moved  away 
about  1830,  (as  we  find  by  the  land  records, 
he  sold  his  farm  then)  and  went  to  Middle- 
sex to  reside.  He  has  children  now  living 
there.  At  the  time  of  Mr.  Plint's  settle- 
ment, he  cut  a  road  through  the  woods 
from  the  Branch  road,  commencing  near 
where  William  Maxham  now  lives,  going 
up  the  hill  by  W.  P.  Gould's,  and  so  on, 
probably  where  the  road  now  goes,  to  his 
log-house-on  the  hill.  Mr.  Jacob  Baldwin, 
who  then  lived  with  his  father,  Benjamin 
Baldwin,  near  "Putnam's  mill"  in  Middle- 
sex, and  who  now  lives  in  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois, in  a  recent  letter  says,  "In  June,  1822, 
in  company  with  Silas  Baldwin,  I  went  up 
to  the  place  where  Joel  Templeton  died. 
The  branch  road  did  not  go  where  it  now 
does,  but  farther  west,  and  up  a  very  steep 
hill,  and  came  into  the  present  road  a  lit- 
tle north  from  the  Maxham  road.  Flint 
had  begun  up  there,  and  cut  a  road  from 
the  foot  of  the  hill  west  across  the  flat,  up 
the  hill  by  where  J.  P.  B.  Ladd  began  af- 
terwards ;  and  on  to  his  place  at  the  end 
of  the  road.  He  was  the  first  man  on  the 
hill ;  had  his  pick,  and  settled  on  the  poor- 
est farm  there.  From  Flint's,  we  went 
by  marked  trees  to  Jesse  Abbott's,  (where 
Harrington  now  lives)  and  down  to  the 
brook  where  John  and  Dodge  (Hayward) 
had  begun,  and  Joel  H.  Templeton  after- 
wards lived  and  died.  There  was  no  road 
in  there,  Oxilyone  from  Mr.  Amasa  Brown's 
log-house,  west  up  by  where  Artemas 
Richardson  had  begun.  Mr.  Franklin 
Johnson  went  up  the  same  road  to  his 
place,  on  which  he  had  built  a  log-house." 
Richard  and  Daniel  Colby,  Mr.  B.  says, 
had  come  in  and  cut  down  a  small  piece, 
built  a  small  shanty,  planted  a  few  pota- 
toes, and  were  lazying  round,  smoking 
their  pipes ;  had  killed  an  owl  or  two. 
They  probably  did  not  stay  many  years  ; 
"lazying  round"  did  not  procure  a  very 
good  living:  in  those  times. 


113 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


SaiTjuel  Upham  from  Brookfield,  bought 
the  place  where  the  Haywards  commenced, 
and  moved  there  in  1823.  He  was  a  black- 
smith, built  a  shop  on  his  place,  and  did 
what  work  he  could  get.  Some  think  this 
was  the  first  blacksmith  shop  in  town. 
Mr.  Upham  moved  away  in  1825,  having 
sold  his  place  to  Joel  H.  Templeton.  Judge 
Zenas  Upham  of  Brookfield  is  a  son  of 
Samuel  Upham. 

THE   ABBOTTS. 

During  the  early  years  there  were  on 
Minister  brook  and  west  of  it  seven  men 
named  Abbott.  Jesse,  Abraham,  Ephraim, 
Asa  and  Titus,  five  brothers  ;  Nathan  and 
Jonas,  also  brothers,  and  cousins  of  the 
former.  Jesse,  Abraham  and  Ephraim 
Abbott  married  three  sisters,  named  Buz- 
zell.  There  were  nine  of  the  Buzzell  girls, 
and  beside  those  who  married  the  Abbotts, 
two  married  Levi  and  Silas  Pratt,  two 
brothers ;  two,  also,  David  and  Calvin 
Pratt,  brothers,  and  cousins  to  Levi  and 
Silas ;  one  married  James  Philbrick  and 
one  Major  Goodwin. 

THOMAS    HUTCHINSON, 

with  his  father  and  brothers  came  from 
Norwich,  and  settled  near  the  mouth  of 
Minister  brook,  where  he  continued  to  re- 
side until  1867,  when  he  removed  to  the 
place  where  his  son,  L.  M.  Hutchinson,  now 
lives.  Mr.  H.  by  industry  and  economy 
made  for  himself  and  family  a  good  home. 
He  was  for  years  a  member  of  the  Congre- 
gational church,  but  in  some  of  the  church's 
action  in  regard  to  certain  members — being 
dissatisfied  with  the  course  taken,  he  with- 
drew for  a  time  from  the  meetings  ;  for 
this  he  was  dropped  from  the  church  roll. 
He  afterwards  came  back  and  became  an 
active  supporter  himself  with  it  again  as  a 
member  of  the  church,  though  never  con- 
necting. July  2,  1835,  li^  was  united  in 
marriage  to  Almira  Sumner,  and  together 
they  traveled  life's  pathway  41  years.  Mr. 
Hutchinson  was  a  man  of  great  energy  and 
perseverance  in  carrying  out  his  plans,  and 
as  his  views  of  town  matters  did  not  always 
coincide  with  others,  there  would  some- 
times come  a  struggle,  which  did  not 
always   tend    to  promote  friendly  feeling. 


He  bore  his  share  of  public  burdens,  and 
performed  all  his  duties  faithfully ;  was 
representative  2  years.  Mr.  Hutchinson 
died  Oct.  4,  1876,  age  64,  and  his  wife 
Sept.  30,  1877,  age  60. 

The  northeast  part  of  the  town  was  set- 
tled last.  An  effort  was  often  made  for  a 
road  through  that  part  of  the  town  from 
Moses  P.  Wheeler's  mill,  north  through 
the  eastern  part  of  Elmore  to  Wolcott 
village.  A  petition  was  made  for  a  court's 
committee ;  the  result  only  a  large  bill  of 
costs  for  the  petitioners  to  pay.  The  road 
was  opposed  by  the  central  and  western 
part  of  both  Elmore  and  Worcester  on 
account  of  the  expense,  and  it  would  divert 
travel  from  the  old  county  road.  But 
about  i860  another  petition  to  the  court 
obtained  a  committee  to  examine  the 
premises  again,  and  the  road  known  as 
the  Eagle  Ledge  road  was  made,  which 
opened  the  way  for  many  settlers  in  that 
part-  of  the  town,  and  some  good  farms 
have  been  cleared  ;  and  a  more  easy  access 
to  large  tracts  of  timber  lands,  and  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  inhabitants  in  that 
section  depend  on  the  lumber  business  for 
their  livelihood.  "Wheeler's  mill"  in 
Worcester,  and  "  Slayton's."  just  in  El- 
more, annually  cut  out  large  quantities  of 
lumber. 

A  night's  experience. 
Mrs.  Alma  P.  Howieson,  wife  of  James 
Howieson,  who  lived  in  this  section,  relates 
to  us  :  "  In  the  spring  of  1864,  myself  and 
family  came  to  Vermont  first,  where  we 
had  one  family  of  relations,  a  brother  of 
my  husband,  living  in  Worcester.  We 
came  to  this  place,  and  purchased  a  piece 
of  wild  land,  and  commenced  a  farm,  in- 
tending to  settle  i?ermanently,  but  2  year's 
later  my  husband's  brother,  a  "  millwright," 
hired  with  a  company  in  New  York  to  go 
south  and  build  a  mill  in  Georgia.  He 
went,  and  came  North  for  more  efficient 
laborers  ;  and  with  others  took  my  husband 
and  three  sons,  leaving  me  to  look  after 
things  at  home  ;  I  had  two  little  girls  and 
my  eldest  son's  wife  with  two  small  chil- 
dren, in  my  family.  My  men  folks  left  the 
nth    of  Oct.     One    week  after,  mv  little 


WORCESTER. 


8-year  old  girl  fell  and  broke  her  arm,  which 
kept  me  pretty  closely  confined  some  time  ; 
but  I  had  a  short  web  of  flannel  I  wanted 
to  get  wove,  and  had  heard  of  a  woman  in 
Calais,  living  near  Mr.  Snow's,  who  was  a 
weaver  ;  so  thought  to  go  over  and  get  my 
work  done.  The  weather  had  been  rough, 
but  cleared,  leaving  about  2  inches  of  snow 
on  the  ground.  It  was  the  4th  of  Dec. ; 
the  sun  shone  pleasantly  for  that  time  of 
year.  I  took  my  youngest  little  girl  with 
me  and  started  by  a  cut  across  the  woods 
into  Calais,  to  Mr.  Elias  Snow's  place, 
intending  to  make  a  short  visit  there  and 
return  in  the  evening  by  the  road ;  it  was 
3  miles  round;  but  "over  the  hill,"  only 
5ths  of  a  mile.  Having  been  this  way 
several  times,  I  had  no  difficulty  in  finding 
my  way,  besides  a  slight  path,  now  mostly 
blotted  out  with  leaves,  there  was  a  line  spot- 
ted through  on  the  trees,  any  one  at  all  vers- 
ed in  wood  craft,  could  follow.  I  left  home 
about  10  o'clock,  a.  m.,  telling  my  daugh- 
ter-in-law I  would  be  back  before  dark ; 
she  was  timid  and  did  not  like  to  stay 
alone.  I  had  a  pleasant  walk  through  the 
woods,  accompanied  by  my  "  house-dog" 
and  large  black  cat,  which  persisted  in 
following,  in  spite  of  my  efforts  to  scold 
him  back.  He  followed  until  I  came  into 
Mr.  Snow's  clearing,  when  he  retreated 
into  the  sugar-house  at  the  edge  of  the 
woods.  I  found  the  old  people  well,  and 
arranged  with  them  to  get  their  neighbor 
to  do  my  work,  and  after  resting  awhile 
was  about  to  return,  but  the  old  people 
proposed  I  should  remain  until  3  o'clock, 
when  the  boys  would  be  back  from  their 
work,  and  one  of  them  would  go  and  help 
me  up  the  hill  with  my  little  one.  As  the 
hill  was  steep  and  long,  I  was  willing  to 
accept  their  offer.  The  kind  old  lady  filled 
a  three-quart  pail  with  milk  to  take  to  the 
little  folks  at  home.  Thinking  I  would 
have  time  to  get  home  after  3  o'clock,  I 
was  willing  to  wait,  but  it  had  been  thaw- 
ing all  day,  and  when  the  sky  overspread 
with  clouds  and  a  drizzling  rain  commenc- 
ed, conscious  it  would  be  dark  early,  I 
did  not  dare  wait  longer  for  the  boys,  and 
taking  the  pail  in  one  hand  and  the  little 
one  in  my  arms,  I  set  out  for  home.    I  had 


not  climbed  more  than  half  way  up  the 
hill  before  the  rain  changed  to  sleet,  and 
the  wind  rising  drove  the  storm  sharply 
into  my  face.  Taking  off  my  vail  I  tied 
it  over  my  little  one's  face,  and  hugging 
her  close,  toiled  up  the  steep  hill  in  the 
storm,  which  increased  every  moment. 
On  the  summit  I  rested  against  a  tree  to 
regain  strength.  My  path  was  entirely 
effaced  by  the  thaw  and  storm  ;  but  I 
found  the  spotted  line,  and  soon  started  as 
the  night  was  fast  closing  in.  Pressing 
forward,  I  thought  in  a  few  minutes  to  be 
clear  of  the  woods,  but  after  proceeding 
quite  a  distance  came  to  a  tree  directly 
across  my  path  ;  and  looking  about,  I  had 
missed  the  way.  I  went  back  to  where  I 
first  found  the  line,  and  setting  down  the 
pail  of  milk,  which  had  become  burden- 
some, made  another  trial  to  follow  the 
marked  trees ;  it  was  getting  too  dark  for 
that,  and  I  took  as  straight  a  course  as  I 
could,  hoping  to  come  into  the  clearing 
somewhere,  knowing  I  could  then  find  my 
way  in  the  darkness,  even.  The  storm 
now  ceased  suddenly  as  it  had  commenced, 
but  the  wind  increased  to  a  perfect  hurri- 
cane, blowing  down  trees,  the  limbs  falling 
in  showers  about  me  in  a  manner  I  never 
before  witnessed,  nor  since  ;  and  this  with 
the  coming  darkness  increased  my  anxiety 
to  get  clear  of  the  woods.  I  urged  my- 
self on,  I  rushed  through  the  underbrush, 
over  the  trunks  of  old  fallen  trees,  tear- 
ing my  clothes,  and  lacerating  my  hands 
hands  and  face,  on  and  on  in  my  endeav- 
ors to  gain  the  clearing.  From  the  in- 
clemency of  the  weather  at  this  season,  I 
supposed  I  must  perish  if  I  remained  in 
the  woods  such  a  night ;  but  at  last  I  sank 
exhausted  on  the  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree, 
crying  aloud,  lost !  lost !  without  a  ray  of 
hope,  hearing,  which  my  little  girl,  Carrie, 
commenced  to  cry  to  go  home ;  which 
once  more  aroused  me,  I  must  not  give  up. 
Carrie  needed  my  care  ;  the  little  sick  girl 
at  home  needed  me ;  their  father  and 
brothers  1500  miles  away  ;  and  my  daugh- 
ter-in-law who  could  not  speak  one  word 
of  English,  she  too,  depended  on  me.  I 
must  make  one  more  effort  to  preserve  my 
life,  if  possible.     I  took  in  the  situation. 


900 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


It  was  a   matter   of  endurance ;     could  I 
bear  up  under   the   strain   of  walking  all 
night,  and  carrying  that  child  in  my  arms 
without  getting  tired  out,  and  freezing  to 
death?     I    must  make  the  trial.     In   the 
dim  twilight  I  could  see  a  little  ways  around 
me.     I  selected  "*  a  beat."      My  first  care 
was  for   my   little   one,  and   taking  of  a 
flannel  under-skirt,  I  wrapped  it  carefully 
around  her.     The    wind  lulled  and    went 
moaning  away   over   the   hills ;     the    rain 
again    descended  in    torrents.      It   was  a 
perfect  down-pour.     I  was  soon  drenched 
to  the  skin,  although  I  had  a  double  woolen 
shawl  and  a  worsted  hood  on.     Sometimes 
I   would  sit  down  for  a  little  while  on   a 
moss-covered  log  at  one  end  of  my  beat, 
but  would  commence  to  grow  chilly,  which 
warned  me  to  be  moving.     Let  me  tell  you 
whence  my  strength  came  :     I  had  invoked 
the  aid  of  my  Heavenly  Father  to  support 
me  through  this  trying  ordeal,  and  quick 
-  as  thought  the  answer  came,  "  Be  not  dis- 
mayed ;     Lo,  I   am  with  you  alway,   even 
unto  the  end."     Before  I  had  been  all  ex- 
citement;   not  afraid   of  wild  beasts,  or 
anything  the  woods  contained,  but  of  the 
cold   and   fatigue  the  long   night  held  in 
store.      Now    this  vanished ;    my    nerves 
became  steady ;    my  strength  seemed  re- 
newed ;  I  walked  my  lonely  beat  with  as 
firm  a  tread   as  any  sentinel  could  while 
guarding  his  army  against  the  foe.     The 
rain   continued  what  seemed  a  very  long 
time  ;    though  it  ceased  about  midnight ; 
then  it  grew  still  colder  and  commenced 
snowing,  and  my  little  dog  gave  vent  to 
to  his  anger  or  distrust  by  barking  vehe- 
mently.    I  tried  to  quiet  him,  seating  my- 
self for  a  moment  on  my  log  seat,  with  my 
babe  on  my  lap,  one  hand  hanging  beside 
me ;  a    fuzzy  head    thrust  up    against  my 
hand  frightened  me.      I  attempted  to  rise, 
but  the  animal  pounced  upon  my  lap  press- 
ing its  wet    back  against  my    face.      The 
night  dark  as  Eurebus,  I  could  see  noth- 
ing, but  immediately  knew  my  cat,  which 
followed  me.     He  stopped  about  an  hour 
longer;   then  left   for    home.     The  weary 
night  came  to  a  close  at  last.     I  could  see 
in   what   direction    to     go,    and     steering 
straight  for  Worcester  mountains,  knowing 


it  would  bring  me  to  some  clearing  where 
I  could  shape  my  course.     I  had  just  fairly 
come  out  of  the  woods  when   I   was   met 
by   one    of   my    nephews,    who    took  the 
little  girl.     I  attempted  to  follow  him  to  a 
house  near  by  ;   my  strength  failed  me  and 
I  had  to  be  supported  by  another  person. 
My  will-power  deserted  me  as   human  aid 
came  to  my  rescue.      But  about  noon,  I 
was  able  to  walk  home,  and  soon  recovered 
from  my    hard    night's    work.      My  son's 
wife  finding  I  did  not  come,  at  8  o'clock 
lighted  her  lantern  and  leaving  her  chil- 
dren  asleep,    told  the   sick  girl  she   was 
going  to  find  mother.     She  went  to   my 
brother's,  and  made    them  understand   I 
Was  in  the  woods.      My  brother  was  away 
from   home,  but  two  of  the   boys  took  a 
lantern  and  started  for  Mr.  Snow's  to  see 
if  I  had  left  there.     But  the  trees  falling 
so  fast  and  their  lantern  having  been  blown 
out,  they  beat  a  hasty  retreat,  telling  my 
son's  wife  they  would  go  in  the  morning. 
She  returned  to  her  children,  and  spent  the 
night  in  weeping,  expecting,  as  she  often 
tells  me,  I  should  be  found   dead  in  the 
woods.     My  brother's  wife  sent  one  of  her 
boys  "  as  soon  as  peep  of  day,"  to  use  her 
words,  to  Mr.  Snow's  ;  who,  finding  the  pail 
of  milk,  knew  I  must  be  lost,  and  gave  the 
alarm,  and  before  I  got  clear  of  the  woods 
the  whole  neighborhood  were  out  hunting 
for  me. 

I  was  47  years  old  that  month,  and  the 
child  I  carried  in  my  arms  for  over  14 
hours,  was  2^  years  old  that  day  ;  but  that 
child  was  the  magnet  that  held  me  to  life. 
To  this  day  I  look  back  with  a  shudder  to 
that  dismal  vigil  in  the  woods,  and  thank 
my  Father  in  Heaven,  who  gave  me 
strength  to  bear  up  and  save  my  own  life 
and  that  of  my  child. 

CASUALTIES. 

For  some  of  these  we  are  indebted  to  a 
*'  Record  of  Births,  Marriages  and  Deaths, 
by  Simon  C.  Abbott;"  published  in  1858 
by  the  town. 

A  youth  named  Martin  was  drowned  at 
an  early  day,  while  attempting  to  cross  the 
river,  on  the  farm  where  L.  M.  Hutchinson 
now  lives.  He  was  probably  a  son  of 
George  Martin,    one    of  the  first   settlers 


WORCESTER. 


901 


who  lived  there.  This  death  is  thought  to 
be  the  first  in  town.  It  is  quite  likely  he 
was  buried  on  the  high  knoll  west  of  Mr. 
Hutchinson''s  house,  as  were  some  others, 
there  being  some  graves  to  be  seen  there, 
when  Mr.  Abel  Whitney  lived  there. 

A  son  of  S.  P.  Alexander,  of  6  years, 
was  drowned  Sept.  1849,  on  the  farm  of 
S.  M.  Seaver.  His  father  being  at  work 
over  the  river,  his  boy  set  out  to  go  in 
search  of  him,  and  when  missed  by  the 
family,  search  was  made,  and  he  was 
found  in  the  river. 

George  C.  Hancock,  son  of  Crismon 
Hancock,  was  drowned  in  the  "  Branch," 
July  31,  1857,  aged  14. 

Charles  Hall,  a  son  of  Samuel  Hall,  was 
drowned  in  "Minister  Brook,"  July,  186-, 
by  the  washing  away  of  a  bridge  on  which 
he  was  standing,  caused  by  a  sudden  rise 
of  the  water  during  a  thunder-storm. 

Moses  Rood,  3d,  son  of  Moses  Rood, 
Jr.,  formerly  of  Barre,  Jan.  27,  1829,  had 
his  thigh  fractured  by  the  fall  of  a  tree. 
Feb.  2,  mortification  ensued,  rendering 
amputation  necessary,  under  which  he 
died. 

Asel  Bradstreet,  a  child  of  2  years  of 
J.  P.  B.  Ladd,  was  scalded  by  the  over- 
turning of  a  kettle  of  hot  water  upon  him, 
and  lived  three  weeks  after  the  accident. 

Jedediah  P.  B.  Ladd,  the  father,  re- 
ceived his  death-blow  by  falling  from  a 
bridge  near  his  residence.  He  was  crowd- 
ed off  by  an  ox-team  he  was  driving  over 
the  bridge  while  repairing  it,  and  fell  22 
feet,  striking  upon  a  solid  rock.  His 
thigh  was  badly  fractured,  and  he  sus- 
tained internal  injuries  of  so  serious  a 
nature,  though  assistance  was  at  once 
rendered  and  medical  aid  procured,  and  it 
was  hoped  he  might  recover,  after  linger- 
ing in  great  pain  until  the  third  day,  sur- 
rounded by  his  weeping  family,  death 
closed  his  mortal  career.  Mr.  Ladd  came 
to  Worcester  about  1823,  with  Jonas  Ab- 
bott, from  Thetford.  He  married  Eliza 
Baldwin,  daughter  of  Benjamin  Baldwin, 
and  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Thomas  Reed.  Mr. 
Ladd  was  a  brother  of  Mrs.  O.  L.  Smith, 
and  first  settled  on  the  hill  near  Jesse 
Flint's,  and  where   Willis  P.    Gould  now 


lives,  making  the  first  clearing  there  about 
1825.  He  removed  to  the  eastern  part  of 
the  town,  and  commenced  anew  again  on 
the  place  where  Ira  W.  Brown  now  lives  ; 
from  there,  removed  in  1833  to  the  place 
first  settled  by  Allen  Vail,  Esq.,  where  he 
resided  at  the  time  of  his  death.  The  wife 
of  the  writer  of  this  is  a  daughter  of  Mr. 
Ladd.  He  died  Sept.  19,  1844,  at  42 
years  of  age. 

Sept.  19,  1833,  Elisha  Hutchinson,  son 
of  Eleazer,  a  citizen  of  Worcester,  was 
killed  in  Montpelier  by  a  stone  thrown 
from  a  blast  on  the  site  of  the  State  House  ; 
age  33  years. 

James,  son  of  Thomas  Reed,  a  boy  of 
14,  was  killed  June  30,  1844,  while  peel- 
ing hemlock  bark  with  his  father  and 
brother  on  the  farm.  A  tree  which  had 
been  peeled  started  to  slide  down  the  hill, 
and  caught  the  boy  between  itself  and  an- 
other log,  crushing  out  his  life  on  the  spot. 

Lewis  Wright  died  Oct.  14,  1868,  aged 
63.  He  fell  in  a  barn  on  which  he  was  at 
work,  on  the  S.  M.  Seaver  place.  He  was 
an  upright  Christian  man,  much  respected 
by  all  who  knew  him. 

Joel  H.  Templeton  was  thrown  from  his 
wagon  when  near  his  home,  and  received 
injuries  from  which  he  died  in  about  a 
week,  Sept.  18,  1852,  aged  62.  He  came 
to  Worcester  from  East  Montpelier  in 
1825,  and  was  a  prominent  man  in  town 
aifairs  for  many  years.  He  was  the  father 
of  Horatio  Templeton,  Esq.,  his  widow, 
Mrs.  Abigail  Templeton,  still  residing  in 
town,  upwards  of  80  years  of  age  (1871). 

Isaac  Spofford,  while  wrestling,  had  a 
bone  fractured  in  his  neck,  which  caused 
paralysis  below  the  point  of  fracture,  and 
resulted  in  his  death.  He  lived  30  days 
after  the  accident,  unable  to  move  himself, 
and  died  Aug.  25,  185 1,  aged  30  years. 

Jan.  21,  1876,  Joel  O.  Durfey,  son  of 
Rev.  Milo  Durfey,  while  drawing  logs  and 
rolling  them  on  the  bank  of  the  river  near 
Edmund  Utton's,  was  caught  under  a  log 
and  crushed  to  death. 

At  an  early  day,  a  man  and  his  wife 
named  Culver,  traveling  through  the  town, 
stopped  on  Clapp  hill  to  feed  their  horses. 
The  man  went  to    the  back   side   of  the 


902 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


wagon  for  some  grain,  the  horses  becom- 
ing frightened,  ran  violently  down  the  hill, 
and  tlie  woman  was  thrown  out  and  her 
neck  broken. 

Levi  Worthen,  son  of  Tristram  Worthen, 
one  of  the  first  settlers  in  the  north  part  of 
the  town,  went  toYork  State  hunting  deer. 
One  day  he  was  out  with  a  companion  in 
the  forest,  and  in  their  wanderings  became 
separated.  His  companion  saw  him  through 
the  bushes,  and,  mistaking  him  for  a  deer, 
fired,  and  Mr.  Worthen  was  killed.  His 
body  was  brought  to  Worcester  for  burial. 

1865,  a  child  of  B.  F.  Johnson  was 
scalded  by  sitting  down  in  a  pail  of  hot 
water. 

Oct.  14,  1868,  Lewis  Wright,  while  at 
work  on  a  barn  for  Mr.  D.  H.  Massey,  fell 
some  8  or  10  feet  to  the  ground,  striking 
on  his  head,  and  causing  his  death  in  four 
or  five  days,  aged  63  years. 

Alonzo  Jones,  Jr.,  accidentally  shot 
himself  while  out  hunting,  and  died  Oct. 
25,  1854,  a  day  or  two  after  the  accident, 
aged  16  years. 

MURDERS. 

About  1862  or  '63,  a  young  married 
woman  named  Loomis  was  murdered  on  the 
Eagle  Ledge  road,  her  body  being  found 
in  the  woods  a  little  way  from  the  house  of 
her  husband's  brother.  Circumstances 
led  to  the  arrest  of  this  man,  Austin 
Loomis,  and  also  of  Royal  Carr,  a  neigh- 
bor. After  a  long  and  tedious  trial,  Mr. 
Loomis  was  acquitted,  and  Mr.  Carr  con- 
victed of  manslaughter,  and  was  sentenced 
to  the  state  prison  for  10  years.  After 
serving  about  9  years,  he  was  released, 
having  gained  one  year  by  good  conduct 
in  the  prison.  In  December  of  the  pres- 
ent year  (1878)  Carr  was  again  arrested 
for  the  murder  of  a  half-breed  Indian. 
Wm.  W.  Murcommock,  in  the  edge  of 
Calais,  with  whom  he  was  hunting,  and  is 
now  lodged  in  jail  at  Montpelier  awaiting 
his  trial  for  that  offence.  [Since  executed 
at  Windsor,  Apr.  29,  1881.] 

Apr.  24,  1867,  Patrick  Fitzgibbons,  a 
resident  of  this  town,  was  stabbed  and  in- 
stantly killed  in  Montpelier  by  some  un- 
known person. 


SUICIDES. 

The  following  persons,  citizens  of  this 
town,  have  committed  suicide  by  hanging  : 
Ophir  Leonard,  Mar.  1841,  aged  68  years  ; 
David  Foster,  Dec.  1849,  aged  6g ;  Mark 
P.  Ladd,  Aug.  1867,  aged  50  (died  in 
Richmond)  ;  Russell  Coller,  Dec.  1866, 
aged  40  (in  Calais)  :  Samuel  Kelley,  Apr. 
1871,  aged  78;  M.  Newell  Kent,  Oct. 
1876,  aged  y] . 

_  OLD    PEOPLE. 

Mr.  Howe  Wheeler  and  his  wife  Ama 
moved  into  this  town  from  Calais,  and  died 
here;  he,  Feb.  18,  1870,  aged  92  years,  i 
month,  19  days;  she.  Mar.  3,  1870,  aged 
91  years,  7  months,  10  days.  They  had 
been  married  over  70  years.  The  oldest 
person  now  living  in  town  is  Mrs.  Esther 
Hamblet,  widow  of  Jonathan  Hamblet, 
and  mother  of  Leonard  and  Edward  M., 
who  now  live  in  this  town.  She  came 
with  her  husband  from  Dracut,  Mass., 
about  1823,  and  has  lived  here  since  that 
time.  [Has  since  died,  aged  96  years  and 
3  days.]  Of  those  in  this  town  80  years  of 
age  and  over  at  the  time  of  their  death, 
were  : 

Caleb  Barnum,  8oyrs,  died  Mar.  i,  1843. 

Lemuel  Blanchard,  92,  Sept.  3,  1855. 

Mehitable  Spear,  83,  Aug.  9,  1846. 

Jonathan  Hamblet,  86,  March  3,  1859. 

Allen  Vail,  80,  May  22,  i860. 

Peter  Seaver,  81,  June  23,  i860. 

Aaron  Kemp,  80,  Oct.  2,  1864. 

Martha  Rice,  87,  Aug.  12,  1865. 

Gload  Dugar,  90,  Oct.  16,  1865. 

Norah  Butler,  80,  Dec.  12,  1867. 

Howe  Wheeler,  92,  Feb.  18,  1870. 

Ama  Wheeler,  91,  March  3,  1870. 

Oliver  Watson,  84,  Sept.  1870. 

Thomas  McCurdy,  81,  May  18,  1870. 

Lydia  Richardson,  92,  June,  1871. 

Daniel  Abbott,  82,  March  27,  1872. 

Stephen  Harrington,  80,  Sept.  7,  1873. 

Philip  Hardy,  87,  Jan.  30,  1874. 

John  Brigham,  82,  June  29,  1875. 

George  Gould,  85,  July,  1876. 

Silas  Fifield,  87,  Dec.  14,  1876. 

Oct.  7,  1868,  the  wife  of  Martin  Costello 
gave  birth  to  three  children,  two  boys  and 
a  girl.  All  lived  until  Apr.  18, 1869,  when 
the  trirl  died. 


WORCESTER. 


903 


Census. — 1800,25;  1810,41;  1820,44; 
1830,432;  1S40,  587;  1850,  702;  i860, 
685 ;  1870,  775. 

BEARS 

have  been  seen  in  town  even  within  a  few 
years,  yet  it  is  not  known  that  more  than 
two  or  three  were  ever  killed.  Since  the 
writer  moved  here  (in  1849)  there  have 
been  several  "bear  hunts,"  but  bruin  has 
always  come  out  ahead  of  the  hunters. 
Some  stories  of  them  have  been  handed 
down.  John  M.  Young,  now  living  here, 
a  nephew  of  the  hero  of  the  story,  relates  : 
John  Young,  the  iirst  town  clerk,  while 
living  in  this  town,  where  Mr.  Seaver  now 
lives,  who  had  a  nice  pig  in  a  log-pen  near 
his  house,  one  day,  working  in  his  clear- 
ing near,  heard  an  outcry  from  his  pig- 
pen, and  hastening  to  see  what  was  up, 
found  a  large  bear  within  after  his  porker. 
Not  choosing  to  lose  his  winter  meat,  he 
charged  the  intruder  with  a  heavy  lever, 
with  which  he  had  been  at  work,  when  the 
bear  put  himself  on  his  haunches  in  the 
most  approved  attitude  of  self  defence, 
and  when  Mr.  Young,  a  very  muscular, 
powerful  man,  delivered  a  blow  aimed  at 
his  head,  by  a  dexterous  swing  of  his  paw, 
caught  the  weapon,  and  hurled  it  some 
distance  away ;  and  then  thinking  "dis- 
cretion is  the  better  part  of  valor,"  beat  a 
hasty  retreat  to  the  woods,  and  Mr.  Young 
saved  his  pig. 

On  the  present  premises  of  Henry  E. 
Hunt,  in  the  early  day,  when  neighbors 
were  few  and  the  man  away  from  home,  a 
beae  came  one  time  to  survey  the  place. 
The  first  the  family  knew  of  his  presence, 
he  placed  his  fore-paws  on  the  window 
sill  and  thrust  his  nose  in  to  see  what  was 
inside.  The  woman  and  children  were 
badly  frightened,  but  bruin,  after  leisurely 
surveying  the  room,  withdrew,  doing  no 
other  damage. 

Mr.  N.  S.  Morley,  who  settled  on  Hamp- 
shire Hill  in  1829  or  30,  watched  with  his 
neighbors  several  nights  for  a  large  bear 
that  visited  his  cornfield,  and  at  last  shot 
him. 

Mr.  Jacob  Baldwin,  in  the  account  of 
his  visit  on  Minister  Brook  in  June,  1822, 
said  :     "The  Hay  wards  (John  and  Dodge) 


had  begun  there  and  chopped  a  piece  the 
year  before  and  built  a  log  shanty.  When 
they  burned  their  chopping,  they  also 
burned  their  house.  When  I  was  there, 
their  pork  barrel  and  sugar  barrel  stood  in 
the  small  brook  which  runs  by  the  place. 
They  had  put  up  some  posts,  laid  on  some 
poles  and  covered  it  with  bark,  and  had  a 
fire  against  a  log  to  cook  by.  They  had  a 
straw  bed  on  a  bedstead,  and  three  of  us 
slept  on  the  bed.  John  slept  on  the  soft 
side  of  a  spruce  board  on  the  ground  be- 
fore the  fire.  One  night  a  bear  came 
along,  and  one  of  the  dogs  put  after  him ; 
the  other  did  not  dare  leave  the  shanty, 
but  barked  so  we  could  not  sleep.  The 
old  hound  was  out  most  all  night  after  the 
bear." 

CHURCHES. 

Who  preached  the  first  sermon  in  town 
is  not  now  known.  Rev.  James  Hobart 
and  Rev.  Chester  Wright,  of  Montpelier, 
held  meetings  here  at  an  early  date.  Mr. 
Hobart  told  the  later  inhabitants  that  he 
preached  the  funeral  sermon  of  the  Martin 
boy  who  was  drowned  soon  after  the  town 
was  settled. 

THE   CONGREGATIONAL   CHURCH 

was  formed  in  1824.  The  original  mem- 
bers were  :  Ebenezer  S.  Kellogg  and  wife 
Roxana,  Wm.  T.  Hutchinson,  Mary  Hutch- 
inson, Jonas  Abbott,  Allen  Vail,  David 
Poor  and  wife  Abigail,  Artemas  Richard- 
son and  wife  Eliza  S.,  Amos  Rice  and  wife 
Martha. 

The  church  was  organized  by  Rev.  Jas. 
Hobart,  and  he  was  by  a  vote  of  the  church 
chosen  moderator,  holding  that  place  for 
several  years  afterwards.  The  first  meet- 
ing after  organizing  was  Feb.  29,  1824, 
when  Artemas  Richardson  and  Eliza  Rich- 
ardson were  baptized  by  Mr.  Hobart. 
From  this  time  Rev.  Mr.  Hobart,  and  Rev. 
Chester  Wright,  of  Montpelier,  preached 
for  the  church  occasionally,  as  also  did 
Rev.  Geo.  Freeman,  Rev.  Mr.  Stewart, 
Rev.  Mr.  Thompson,  Rev.  Mr.  Wheelock, 
whose  names  we  find  on  the  records  to  1839, 
and  when  there  was  no  minister,  some  one 
of  the  brothers  would  read  a  sermon. 

Additions  were  made  to  the  church  from 


904 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


time  to  time,  Jan.  8,  1832,  30  uniting  with 
it.  Tlie  articles  of  faith  and  covenant 
were  revised  in  1831,  and  again  in  1848. 
Rev.  John  Foster  was  settled  as  first  pastor 
Nov.  13,  1839.  Ordaining  council,  Rev. 
A.  Hazen,  Berlin ;  Rev.  P.  Taylor,  Waits- 
field  ;  Rev.  B.  W.  Smith,  ist  church,  Mont- 
pelier;  Rev.  S.  Kellogg,  2d  church,  Mont- 
pelier ;  Rev.  J.  F.  Stone,  Waterbury  ;  Rev. 
S.  Delano,  Sec.  Vt.  D.  M.  Society ;  A 
Hazen,  moderator;  J.  F.  Stone,  scribe. 
While  the  settlement  of  Mr.  Foster  was 
negotiated,  the  subject  of  temperance  arose, 
and  the  church  came  near  being  divided. 
Mr.  Foster  refused  to  be  settled  unless  the 
church  would  declare  in  favor  of  temper- 
ance, and  a  council  was  called  Oct.  31, 
1839,  to  organize  a  temperance  church. 
The  council  met  Nov.  6,  and  investigating 
the  matter,  gave  the  church  some  good 
advice,  recommending  it  to  declare  itself  a 
strict  temperance  church,  and  deciding  the 
petition  asking  to  be  organized  again  that 
way,  ought  not  to  be  granted.  The  church 
adopted  the  recommendation,  and  Mr. 
Foster  was  ordained. 

He  was  required  to  quit-claim  to  the 
town  for  the  use  of  schools  the  lot  of  land 
set  to  the  first  settled  minister,  which  had 
long  before  this  been  leased  by  the  town, 
and  was  improved  land.  A  large  minority 
of  the  church,  still  dissatisfied  in  regard  to 
the  temperance  matter,  kept  agitating  it, 
and  trouble  ensued.  Mr.  Foster  sent  in 
his  resignation  as  pastor,  and  a  council 
met  March  18,  1840,  which  voted  unan- 
imously, "That  unless  by  9  o'clock  to- 
morrow morning  a  number  of  the  church 
sufficient  to  sustain  the  pastor  shall  be 
found  prepared  to  take  such  ground  in  re- 
lation to  those  subjects  upon  which  the 
church  is  divided,  as  shall  in  the  judgment 
of  the  council  render  it  practicable  for  the 
pastor  to  continue  his  labors  in  this  place 
with  the  prospect  of  usefulness  and  com- 
fort, the  following  shall  be  the  result : " 
This  was,  that  the  pastoral  relation  should 
be  dissolved.  The  church  voted  to  meet, 
and  did  meet;  next  morning,  21  of  the 
male  members  united  in  an  agreement  "  to 
stand  by  the  pastor,"  and  declared  their 
adhesion  to  the  principles  upon  the  subject 


of  temperance  expressed  in  the  recom- 
mendation of  the  council  of  Nov.  6,  1839, 
two  before  having  voted  to  rescind  the 
temi^erance  resolution.  Since  that  time 
the  church  has  been  a  temperance  church. 
Mr.  Foster  withdrew  his  resignation,  and 
continued  pastor  until  from  ill  health  he 
resigned ;  dismissed  by  a  council,  July  6, 
1 84 1.  Until  1S44,  the  church  was  without 
a  regular  minister,  but  continued  to  hold 
"  reading"  meetings. 

In  1844,  Rev.  Carey  Russell  came  from 
Hartford,  and  preached  here,  except  one 
year,  until  1852,  and  a  meeting-house  was 
built,  the  location  of  which  again  divided 
the  church,  and  a  large  number  left  its 
communion  ;  were  cut  oft",  and  a  bitter  feel- 
ing was  engendered,  which  did  not  wholly 
subside  for  years.  Council  after  council 
was  called  to  settle  difficulties  and  advise 
on  the  location  of  the  house. 

The  records  of  this  period  are  largely 
made  up  of  the  doings  of  these  councils. 
The  church  voted,  June  28,  1844,  "to 
build  a  house  of  worship,"  and  a  subscrip- 
tion was  started.  July  6,  "  voted  to  locate 
the  house  on  the  west  side  of  the  road  near 
the  burying-ground."  The  meetings  were 
held  at  this  time  in  the  school-house  in 
district  No.  2,  just  north  of  the  present 
Methodist  meeting-house.  From  this  time 
there  appears  to  have  been  continual  strife, 
until  at  length  the  matter  was  for  a  time 
compromised  by  the  Methodists,  by  the 
erection  of  a  union  house  at  the  "Corner," 
March  25,  1846,  when  the  church  "  voted 
to  hold  their  meetings  in  the  meeting- 
house so  much  of  the  time  as  the  Congre- 
gationalists  own  in  said  house,  not  to  ex- 
ceed one-half  of  the  time." 

Those  members  living  in  the  northerly 
part  of  the  town,  however,  feeling  their 
interests  were  not  properly  regarded,  soon 
asked  for  a  council,  the  recommendation 
of  which  was,  "  That  the  church  secure  a 
house  to  be  controlled  exclusively  by  them- 
selves, which  led  to  their  buying  out  other 
parties  in  the  union  house.  Still  'those  in 
the  north  part  of  the  town  were  no  better 
off",  and  several  withdrew  from  the  meet- 
ings, and  united  with  others  in  forming  a 
Methodist  church.     Some  years  later,  mu- 


WORCESTER. 


90s 


tual  confessions  were  made,  they  were  re- 
stored to  the  church,  and  took  letters  to 
the  Methodist  church,  thus  establishing  ec- 
clesiastical relations  between  the  churches. 
After  buying  the  meeting-house,  the 
church  and  society  were  heavily  in  debt, 
and  Feb.  28,  1848,  they  "voted  that  Rev. 
C.  Russell  should  visit  other  churches  and 
solicit  aid  in  paying  for  the  church,"  which 
he  did,  and  procured  $291.97,  and  the 
house  was  paid  for,  and  the  church  have 
since  occupied  it  as  a  place  of  public  wor- 
ship. 

Rev.  C.  M.  Winch  commenced  preach- 
ing for  the  church  Mar.  3,  1853,  and  was 
ordained  pastor  June  28,  and  dismissed 
Sept.  26,  1861,  since  which  the  ministers 
have  been  :  Rev.  J.  F.  Stone,  part  of  one 
year ;  Rev.  David  Perry,  40  years  ;  Rev.  A. 
F.  Shattuck,  i  year;  Rev.  Mason  Moore, 
I  year;  Rev.  Wm.  Schofield,  third  pastor, 
from  June  1873  to  May  1876;  ordained 
Feb.  24,  1874;  dismissed  May  2,  1876; 
Rev.  R.  D.  Metcalf,  i^  year;  and  since 
Jan.  1878,  Rev.  P.  H.  Carpenter,  who 
united  by  letter  from  the  Methodist  church 
in  this  town.  Jan.  21,  1879,  a  council 
convened,  and  Rev.  Mr.  Carpenter  was 
installed  pastor  of  the  church,  he  being 
the  fourth  pastor.  Besides  these  stated 
ministers,  students  from  theological  sem- 
inaries have  supplied  this  church  under 
the  Vermont  Domestic  Missionary  Society, 
which  has  always  helped  sustain  preach- 
ing here.  The  society  have  had  two  bells 
in  their  meeting-house,  both  procured  by 
subscription.  The  first,  through  Dea.  C. 
C.  Closson, cost $125 ;  broken, about  1865 ; 
the  present  one  from  the  foundry  of  Jones  & 
Co.,  Troy,  N.  Y. ;  weight,  646  lbs. ;  cost, 
$287.00.  Hon.  T.Fairbanks,  of  St.  Johns- 
bury,  and  Capt.  A.  Richardson's  family, 
of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  contributed  to  procure 
with  some  in  Montpelier. 

Original   members,     12;    admitted    by 

profession  since ,  145  ;  by  letter,  61  ; 

whole  No.  2i8;  dismissed  by  letter,  97 ; 
died,  52  ;  excommunicated,  28  ;  dropped, 
3;  restored  on  confession,  12  ;  present  no. 
50;  non-residents,  22;  Dec.  1878,  resi- 
dent members,  28. 


NOTICES  OF  DEACONS  AND  ORIGINAL  MEM- 
BERS. 

Deacons. — Ebenezer  S.  Kellogg,  chosen 
Feb.  28,  1824;  Allen  Vail,  David  Poor, 
Mar.  9,  1826 ;  David  Poor,  Nathan  Adams, 
Jonas  Abbott,  Oct.  7,  1835;  Charles  C. 
Closson,  July  5,  185 1  ;  Samuel  Andrews, 
April  23,  1871;  Ebenezer  R.  Kellogg, 
Sept.  6,  1872. 

EBENEZER    S.    KELLOGG 

came  from  Brookfield  in  the  spring  of  1822, 
and  bought  the  place  of  Amos  Merriam,  on 
Hampshire  hill,  now  occupied  by  Mr.  Law- 
rence. He  sold  here  and  bought  on  Min- 
ister brook,  where  he  cleared  up  a  farm 
and  raised  a  large  family  of  children,  some 
of  which  are  yet  living  in  town. 

About  1859,  he  sold  his  second  farm  and 
removed  to  the  village,  and  kept  a  hotel 
for  awhile.  He  lived  in  Worcester  until 
1868,  when  he  went  to  Hanover,  N.  H., 
to  live  with  his  youngest  son,  Ebenezer  R. 
Kellogg,  where  he  died  in  1872.  Mrs. 
Roxana  Reed  Kellogg,  his  widow,  still  lives 
there  with  her  son. 

DEA.    ALLEN  VAIL, 

says  his  obituary,  "died  in  Worcester, May 
22,  i860,  aged  81  years.  He  was  born  in 
Lynn,  Conn.,  1779;  moved  with  his  father 
to  Pomfret,  Vt.,  in  1782,  where  he  lived 
much  respected  till  1821,  when  he  came  to 
Worcester  with  a  large  family.  There 
were  only  five  families  in  town  when  he 
came  here,  and  up  to  this  time  there  had 
been  no  religious  meetings  on  the  Sabbath 
here,  or  district  school.  He  immediately 
conferred  with  some  two  or  three  others, 
and  they  commenced  meetings  on  the 
Sabbath,  in  the  barn  of  Amasa  Brown,  in 
the  spring  of  1822,  by  singing,  prayer,  and 
reading  of  sermons,  and  the  people  all 
turned  out  to  meetings  in  the  winter,  com- 
ing in  with  their  families  on  ox  teams.  In 
early  childhood,  the  deacon  had  a  faithful 
and  pious  mother,  and  in  1807,  was  led  to 
seek  his  soul's  salvation.  As  an  officer  in 
the  church,  he  never  refused  to  bear  his 
own  burdens  nor  the  burdens  of  the  church. 
No  matter  the  weather  or  his  business,  he 
was  always  ready  to  serve  the  church  bus- 
iness or  devotion.  He  was  repeatedly  sent 
by  the  citizens  of  the  town,  also,  as  their 


114 


9o6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


representative  to  the  Legislature.  He  re- 
mained a  model  member  of  this  church  up 
to  May  30,  1847,  when  he  removed  his  re- 
lation to  the  church  in  Montpelier,  of 
which  he  was  an  honored  member  at  his 
death." 

He  lived  in  Montpelier  from  1847  until 
just  previous  to  his  death,  he  came  back 
to  Worcester  to  the  residence  of  his  eldest 
son,  Allen,  where  he  died. 

Allen  L.  Vail,  his  eldest  son,  has  been 
representative  of  his  town,  also  a  constable 
26  consecutive  years ;  and  one  of  his 
daughters  married  Dr.  Skinner,  the  first 
physician  here,  and  now  lives  in  Michigan. 

DAVID    POOR 

and  his  wife  Abigail,  came  from  Berlin  and 
settled  in  this  town  in  1822,  first  occupying 
the  same  farm  on  which  he  lived  for  many 
years  afterward.  His  land  comprised  the 
greater  part  of  the  territory  on  which  the 
village  now  stands,  and  which  he  sold  in 
small  parcels  as  were  wanted  for  building 
lots.  He  was  one  of  the  first  deacons  of 
the  Congregational  church,  and,  except  a 
few  years  when  he  returned  to  Berlin  to 
live,  1832  till  the  spring  of  1835,  continued 
in  the  ofiice  until  his  death  in  1863,  age 
65.  Dea.  Poor  was  a  man  of  firm  religious 
principles,  honest  in  his  dealings  with  his 
neighbors,  and  gave  liberally  of  his  sub- 
stance for  the  support  of  his  church  and 
charitable  purposes.  Dea.  Poor  had  two 
wives  ;  he  married  second.  Miss  Clara  Car- 
penter, who  died  in  1865. 

DEA.    JONAS   ABBOTT, 

born  in  Henniker,  N.  H.,  Feb.  11,  1802, 
removed  with  his  father  to  Thetford,  Vt., 
in  1803  ;  lived  there  until  of  age,  and  be- 
came interested  in  religion  under  the 
preaching  of  Rev.  Asa  Burton,  D.  D., 
pastor  there.  He  came  to  Worcester  with 
J.  P.  B.  Ladd  early  in  1823,  and  settled  on 
the  Minister  brook  about  one  mile  from 
the  "  Corner."  He  resided  on  his  farm 
until  1844,  when  he  moved  to  the  "Cor- 
ner," kept  a  small  store,  and  did  shoe- 
making  many  years.  In  his  later  years  he 
was  more  engaged  in  mercantile  business, 
in  which  he  failed.  Jan.  16,  1826,  he 
married    Minerva    E.    Vail,    daughter   of 


Allen  Vail,  Esq.,  who  is  yet  Hving.  Dea. 
Abbott  died  Apr.  5,  1875,  aged  -j-i,. 

DEA.    NATHAN  ADAMS 

came  here  in  1824,  from  Alstead,  N.  H. ; 
bought  his  land  of  E.  S.  Kellogg,  and  was. 
one  of  the  first  permanent  settlers  on 
Hampshire  Hill.  He  removed  from  town, 
near  1844,  to  the  "  West." 

DEA.    CHARLES   C.    CLOSSON, 

born  in  Thetford,  Oct.  15,  1799,  when  a 
young  man  went  to  Northfield  and  cleared 
a  farm,  and  acquired  a  considerable  prop- 
erty. In  March,  1848,  he  moved  here  on 
to  the  Closson  farm,  living  there  until 
1867,  and  was  one  of  the  largest  paying 
members  of  the  church  for  many  years. 
He  was  one  of  a  family  of  13  children,  12 
of  whom  lived  to  have  families  of  their 
own,  and  all  but  one,  members  of  Con- 
gregational churches,  that  one  being  a 
deacon  of  a  Baptist  church.  One  sister, 
wife  of  Daniel  Abbott,  and  the  writer's 
mother,  lived  in  this  town  many  years, 
and  died  here. 

Dea.  Closson  had  three  wives ;  his  first, 
a  Miss  Davis,  of  Fairlee ;  the  second, 
Marcia  Gurley,  of  Berlin ;  the  third,  Mrs. 
Harriet  Dunham,  of  Northfield,  who  still 
survives  him.  In  1867,  he  removed  to  a 
place  he  bought  of  E.  C.  Watson,  near 
Clark's  mill ;  lived  there  some  4  years,  and 
then  where  S.  M.  Seaver  now  lives,  where 
he  died  Mar.  10,  1872,  aged  72. 

DEA.    SAMUEL   ANDREWS, 

born  in  New  Hampshire  about  1797,  mar- 
ried Jane  Blanchard  in  18 18,  and  resided 
in  New  Boston,  N.  H.,  till  he  came  here. 
He  first  lived  on  the  brook  between  A.  P. 
Slayton's  mill  and  Wm.  P.  Moore's  pres- 
ent residence  about  3  years,  when  he  bought 
Rufus  Reed's  place  near  the  village,  and 
went  to  blacksmithing,  and  was  many 
years  the  only  blacksmith  in  town;  but  for 
the  last  20  years  of  his  life,  labored  when 
able  on  his  small  farm.  He  was  post- 
master and  town  clerk  several  years  ;  also 
a  justice  of  the  peace.  Conscientious  in 
all  his  dealings,  firm  in  what  he  believed 
to  be  right,  constant  in  all  his  duties  both 
to  the  public  and  to  the  church,  of  which 
he  was  a  member  from  1832  to  his  death, 


WORCESTER. 


907 


Oct.  8,  1878,  at  81  years.  He  and  his 
wife  lived  together  upwards  of  60  years. 

DEA.  EBENEZER  R.  KELLOGG, 

born  in  this  town  Dec.  31,  1830,  son  of 
E.  S.  Kellogg,  now  resides  at  Hanover, 
N.  H. 

WILLIAM    T.    HUTCHINSON 

came  with  his  father  from  Norwich  about 
1822  or  '23,  and  settled  on  the  farm  where 
Phineas  A.  Kemp  now  lives.  He  removed 
to  the  West  about  1846.  Artemas  Rich- 
ardson and  wife,  Eliza  S.,  came  from  Leo- 
minster, Mass.,  and  made  a  settlement  on 
Hampshire  Hill,  on  the  Karris  Leonard 
farm,  in  1821.  Mr.  R.  came  the  year  be- 
fore and  located  his  land,  and  chopped  a 
few  acres,  returning  to  Massachusetts  to 
spend  the  winter.  He  was  born  Feb. 
1790;  was  a  combmaker  by  trade,  and 
worked  at  that  business  many  years.  When 
quite  young,  he  was  chosen  captain  in  the 
militia,  and  was  ever  known  in  this  town 
as  "Captain"  Richardson.  He  was  one 
of  the  first  abolitionists  in  the  community, 
and  never  swerved  for  office  ;  thus  was  not 
so  often  on  the  winning  side  in  political 
matters  as  some  of  his  neighbors  of  the 
dominant  parties,  but  lived  to  see  his 
principles  adopted  by  the  nation.  He  was 
a  genial  companion,  and  loved  to  tell  a 
good  story,  although  it  was  not  always  of 
his  own  triumph.  Mrs.  Richardson  car- 
ried on  the  knitting  and  crocheting  busi- 
ness several  years,  making  a  large  amount 
of  work  for  the  women  and  children  in 
this  and  neighboring  towns.  She  has 
been  one  of  the  most  active  and  consistent 
members  of  the  church.  She  and  Mrs. 
Kellogg  are  the  only  survivors  of  the  orig- 
inal members.  Mr.  Richardson  died  here 
in  1865,  aged  75.  Mrs.  R.  lives  with  her 
children  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Amos  and  Martha  Rice  came  from  Dover 
about  1823.  He  purchased  -some  land, 
which  he  cleared,  and  by  the  hard  labor  of 
many  years,  made  into  one  of  the  best 
farms  in  town.  He  died  here,  and  his 
son-in-law,  Crismon  Hancock,  resided  here 
many  years.  Mr.  Rice  was  town  clerk, 
justice  of  the  peace,  the  first  postmaster, 
etc.  He  died  Oct.  20,  1854,  at  75  years. 
Mrs.  Rice  died  Aug.  12,  1865,  aged  87. 


A   FREEWILL   BAPTIST   CHURCH 

was  organized  June    15,    1826,   by   Elders 
Ziba  Woodworth  and  Josiah  Weatherly. 

First  f/ie/nbers. — David  Folsom,  Mat- 
thias Folsom,  Wm.  Bennett,  Lydia  Ben- 
nett, Polly  Smith,  Jesse  Abbott,  Sarah 
Abbott,  Levi  Pratt,  Edward  Clough,  Jr., 
Wm.  Arbuckle,  Polly  Arbuckle,  Abraham 
Abbott,  Abigail  Abbott,  Ruth  Clough,  2d, 
Abigail  Bussell,  Nathan  Abbott,  Eliza 
Folsom,  Ruth  Clough,  Fanny  Flint,  Clar- 
issa Peck,  Lucy  Clough,  Mehitable  Folsom, 
Barney  Sanders,  Betsey  Sanders,  Ephraim 
Abbott,  Susan  Abbott,  Jane  Hunt,  Cath- 
arine Abbott,  Rachel  Pratt.  Matthias 
Fhnt  was  deacon,  and  Wm.  Bennett 
church  clerk ;  and  meetings  were  held  in 
Jesse  Flint's  house  and  O.  L.  Smith's 
house,  and  also  in  the  school-house  in  Dis. 
No.  4,  which  was  then  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  Horatio  Templeton.  Mr.  Wood- 
worth  and  a  Mr.  Chatterton  from  Middle- 
sex, preached  for  them  some,  and  May, 
29,  1840,  Elder  Moses  Folsom  became 
their  pastor,  during  which  time  grevious 
differences  arose ;  the  church  preferred 
charges  against  their  pastor,  "for  consent- 
ing to  conversation  upon  subjects  unprofi- 
table" before  a  committee  from  the  Con- 
gregational church.  Elder  Folsom  was 
dismissed  June  3,  1846.  After  him.  Rev. 
Lucius  F.  Harris  was  pastor  for  2  years, 
or  until  1848.  "Sister  Ruth  Clough"  was 
the  first  person  added  to  this  church  after 
its  organization,  July  9.  Its  whole  num- 
ber of  members  was  93.  It  lost  its  or- 
ganization soon  after  Elder  Harris  ended 
his  ministrations  ;  and  but  one  now  of  its 
members  is  living  in  town,  and  who  has 
not  united  with  any  other  church,  Mrs. 
Elizabeth  Folsom,  widow  of  Dea.  Folsom, 
who  lives  with  her  son-in-law,  Horatio 
Templeton,  and  is  upwards  of  80 ;  and  it 
cannot  be  now  easily  known,  the  records 
do  not  know,  where  the  organization  was. 
According  to  the  recollections  of  some, 
it  was  in  the  old  block  school-house. 
Meetings  were  held  there,  also  at  the 
house  of  Oramel  L.  Smith,  whose  wife  was 
one  of  its  first  members ;  also  were  held 
in  the  Templeton  school-house,  and  at 
other  private  houses  on  Minister  brook. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


DEA.    MATTHIAS   FOLSOM, 

born  in  Gilmanton,  N.  H.,  Oct.  4,  1791. 
In  1792,  removed  with  his  parents  to  Tun- 
bridge,  Vt.,  and  lived  there  until  31  years 
of  age,  when  he  came  to  Worcester,  Oct., 
1822.  He  was  in  the  war  of  18 12-15,  and 
near  its  close  came  home  to  Tunbridge, 
where  he  was  married  to  Elizabeth  Stevens, 
Feb.  5,  1815.  He  moved  with  his  family 
into  a  small  shanty  on  the  farm  of  Jesse 
Flint,  till  he  could  make  a  home  for  them, 
where  he  had  bought  on  the  Minister 
brook,  where  he  lived  till  he  removed  to  a 
place  near  the  village,  where  he  spent  the 
remainder  of  his  days.  He  was  a  man 
faithful  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  religious 
obligations. 

He  had  a  habit  of  using  quaint,  or  odd 
expressions,  which  were  sometimes  very 
amusing  to  those  who  heard  them.  It  is 
said  he  was  one  winter  hired  to  teach  school, 
and  on  commencing  his  school,  the  open- 
ing address  was,  "  Boys  and  girls,  I  have 
come  to  keep  school.  Silver  and  gold 
have  I  none,  but  I  have  an  abundance  of 
learning,  and  such  as  I  have  give  I  thee," 
and  as  he  was  in  earnest,  he  probably  suc- 
ceeded in  imparting  to  his  puplis  of  his 
"abundance." 

He  was  an  active  member  of  the  church 
while  its  meetings  were  sustained ;  and 
when  they  were  discontinued  he  became  a 
constant  attendant  of  the  Congregational 
church,  not  only  on  the  Sabbath,  but  at 
the  prayer-meetings  also,  helped  by  his 
presence  and  prayers  ;  and  thus  continued 
as  long  as  his  health  permitted.  His  last 
sickness  was  short,  and  his  end  peaceful. 
"Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  in  the 
Lord." 

A   PROTESTANT   METHODIST   CHURCH 

was  organized  in  1832,  but  soon  became 
extinct.  Rev.  Mark  P.  Ladd,  for  many 
years  a  resident  of  the  town,  was  a  min- 
ister of  that  denomination,  and  combined 
farming  and  preaching  in  his  life. 

THE   METHODIST   EPISCOPAL   CHURCH 

in  Worcester  was  formed  from  i84i-'46. 
The  names  of  the  first  members  I  have 
not  been  able  to  ascertain.  The  society 
was  formed  Mar.  17,  1848.     The  meeting 


at  which  it  was  organized  was  held  at  the 
school-house  in  district  No.  2,  and  was 
signed  by  A.  M.  Kelley,  Crismon  Han- 
cock, Amos  Rice,  Leonard  Hamblet,  Daniel 
A.  Frost,  John  Clark,  David  Hancock, 
Alex.  Dingwall,  2d,  John  Brigham,  Alex. 
Dingwall,  ist,  Abel  Whitney,Aaron  Kemp, 
Milton  Brown,  David  L.  Frost,  William 
H.  Cooper,  Farris  Leonard. 

At  the  annual  meeting,  Jan.  28,  1847,  it 
was  "  voted  to  instruct  the  committee  to 
hire  preaching  after  the  expiration  of  Rev. 
Mr.  Guernsey's  time"  (Mr.  Guernsey  died 
Mar.  17,  1847),  and  to  hold  the  meetings 
at  the  usual  place.  After  Mr.  Guernsey's 
death.  Rev.  Sumner  Tarbell  was  hired, 
and  preached  some  2  years. 

Mar.  1848,  a  church  society  was  formed, 
with  the  powers  and  privilege  by  chap.  81, 
of  the  Revised  Statutes  of  Vermont,  offi- 
cers of  which  were  :  Milton  Brown,  pres- 
ident; Wm.  H.  Cooper,  secretary;  John 
Clark,  collector ;  Abel  Whitney,  John 
Brigham,  Crismon  Hancock,  trustees; 
John  Brigham,  Milton  Brown,  Abel  Whit- 
ney, standing  committee. 

Several  meetings  were  held  previous  to 
March,  1850,  to  devise  ways  to  finish  pay- 
ing for  the  meeting-house  and  furnishing 
the  same,  which  was  finally  accomplished. 
The  church  has  continued  to  hold  its 
meetings  in  this  house  since  its  comple- 
tion. 

The  names  of  those  admitted  in  full  in 
1848  were:  Wm.  H.  Cooper,  Abigail  L. 
Cooper,  Aaron  Kemp,  Dolly  Kemp,  Betsey 
Kemp,  Elvira  A.  Frost,  John  Brigham  and 
Eunice  Brigham.  There  have  been  sev- 
eral revivals  in  this  church  since  its  form- 
ation, and  many  have  been  added  to  it. 
It  now  has  98  members.  Many  have  gone 
out  from  this,  as  well  as  from  the  other 
churches,  to  other  places,  and  especially 
to  the  West.  Rev.  Sumner  Tarbell  closed 
his  labors  with  this  church  in  the  spring 
of  1850,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 
Harvey  Webster,  who  labored  here  two 
years.  Since,  the  ministers  have  been : 
Lorenzo  B.  Pettengill,  i  year;  Daniel  A. 
Mack,  I  year;  Aaron  Ball,  i  year  and  part 
of  another ;  Joseph  House,  2  years  and 
part  of  another ;   Freedom   Hill,    i   year ; 


WORCESTER. 


909 


Ira  Lebarron,  i  year;  Geo.  F.  Wells,  i 
year  ;  Reuben  W.  Harlow,  2  years  ;  C.  P. 
Taplin,  2  years ;  James  S.  Spinney,  2 
years;  A.  Z.  Wade,  2  years;  P.  H.  Car- 
penter, 3  years  ;  Dyer  Willis,  i  year ;  James 
S.  Spinney,  second  time,  2  years;  Geo. 
L.Wells,  3  years;  J.  M.  Rich,  present 
pastor. 

JOHN   BRIGHAM 

was  born  at  Alstead,  N.  H.,  Apr.  1793, 
and  came  to  Worcester  when  a  young 
man,  being  one  of  the  first  permanent  set- 
tlers on  Hampshire  Hill.  His  wife  was 
Eunice  (Clark)  Hutchinson,  to  whom  he 
was  married  July  22,  1835,  by  Rev.  Chester 
Wright,  of  Montpelier.  After  their  mar- 
riage, they  always  resided  on  the  "  Hill," 
and  Mr.  B.  cleared  up  a  farm,  bearing  all 
the  toils  and  privations  incident  to  new 
settlements.  They  were  members  of  the 
Congregational  church  many  years.  With- 
drawing from  that  in  consequence  of  in- 
ternal difficulties  in  it,  they  were  among 
the  founders  of  the  Methodist  church,  and 
were  of  its  niost  constant  and  active  mem- 
bers. Mrs.  Brigham  died  in  Worcester, 
Mass.,  Mar.  13,  i860,  where  she  had  gone 
to  visit  a  daughter.  Mr.  Brigham  died  at 
his  home  in  this  town,  June  29,  1875, 
coming  to  his  grave  "  In  a  full  age,  like  as 
a  shock  of  corn  cometh  in  his  season." 

The  Methodist  society  have  a  good 
metal  bell  on  their  meeting-house,  and 
also  own  a  parsonage. 

SIMON    C.    ABBOTT, 

the  compiler  of  "A  Record  of  the  Births 
and  Deaths  in  Worcester,"  published  in 
pamphlet  by  the  town,  was  born  in  Thet- 
ford.  May  28,  1826,  and  from  his  youth 
evinced  a  fondness  for  study.  At  twenty, 
he  entered  a  printing-office,  and  was  in 
that  business  till  compelled  by  sickness  to 
relinquish  it.  J.  W.  Wheelock,  then  of 
the  Freeman,  in  a  notice  of  him  after  his 
death,  says  : 

He  was  by  trade  a  printer ;  served  his 
apprenticeship  in  the  office  of  the  old 
Fat/lily  Gazette,  at  Bradford ;  worked  at 
several  places  in  this  State  and  Massachu- 
chusetts,  spending  those  intervals  of  time 
in  which  feeble  health  unfitted  him  for 
labor,  at  his  home  in  Worcester.  No  se- 
rious alarm  was  felt  concerning  him  until 


last  summer  (1857), when  he  returned  from 
Massachusetts,  to  die  at  home.  The  seeds 
of  disease,  long  since  sown,  had  ripened 
into  consumption.  He  was  a  young  man 
of  more  than  ordinary  intellectual  attain- 
ments, possessed  of  an  uncommonly  re- 
tentive memory,  and  books  and  papers 
were  his  constant  companions.  His  con- 
tributions to  the  press  ever  evinced  sound 
common  sense,  and  a  deep  research  into 
the  thoughts  of  others.  His  character 
was  unsullied,  and  so  mild  and  urbane  in 
his  disposition,  it  is  doubted  whether  he 
had  an  enemy  in  the  whole  world. 

MILITARY. 

In  its  early  militia  affaiis,  Worcester 
and  Middlesex  were  combined,  there  not 
being  enough  men  of  military  age  in  this 
town  to  form  a  full  company.  Eliab  Ripley 
and  Wm.  H.  Cooper,  of  this  town,  and 
Christopher  C.  Putnam,  Esq.,  of  Middle- 
sex, were  elected  captains.  The  June 
trainings  were  held  alternately  in  each 
town  about  30  years  ago  (now  over  40). 
Several  cases  of  delinquencies  in  equip- 
ments having  been  reported  by  the  captain 
to  the  judge  advocate,  William  Upham, 
Esq.,  a  young  lawyer  then  of  Montpelier, 
accompanied  by  Justice  Ware,  came  to 
Worcester  to  investigate  the  matter.  The 
delinquents  were  summoned  to  appear 
before  the  justice  at  the  inn  of  Milton 
Brown,  at  which  place  the  court  was  to  be 
held.  They  accordingly  appeared,  with 
Homer  W.  Heaton,  Esq.,  and  Milton 
Brown,  Esq.,  as  counsel,  and  when  the 
court  was  opened,  a  jury  was  asked  for  by 
the  defendants,  and  of  course  granted. 
Two  panels  of  jury  were  summoned,  and 
for  some  three  days  they  sat,  calling  one 
case  after  another.  When  one  case  was 
given  to  the  jury,  the  other  panel  was 
called,  until  all  the  17  cases  were  disposed 
of.  Defendants  and  spectators  seemed  to 
consider  the  whole  matter  as  a  source  of 
fun,  and  the  juries  did  not  pay  very  strict 
heed  to  the  charges  of  the  justice,  and  were 
frequently  sent  out  to  change  their  verdict. 
Judge  Ware  was  also  annoyed  by  the 
noise  made  by  the  spectators,  many  of 
whom  were  boys  ;  and  once  when  he  called 
to  the  officer  to  still  the  noise,  that  function- 
ary proceeded  to  the  open  window,  and 
gravely  commanded  a  flock  of  geese  under- 


9IO 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


neath  the  window  to  stop  their  noise,  as 
they  were  disturbing  the  court.  The  trials 
were  finally  ended,  all  the  defendants  ex- 
cept one  being  declared  innocent  of  the 
charges  against  them.  Judge  Ware  said 
he  was  going  into  another  town  to  see 
what  they  would  do  there,  but  he  had  one 
compliment  to  leave  for  the  people  of 
Worcester,  which  was,  that  they  had  man- 
aged this  thing  the  d d\st  of  anything 

he  ever  saw. 

soldiers'  record. 
This  town  was  not  settled  at  the  time  of 
the  Revolutionary  War,  and  no  soldiers 
went  from  this  town  to  the  War  of  1812  ; 
but  some  who  enlisted  and  served  in  it 
have  been  for  many  years  residents.  Sam- 
uel Andrews,  now  living  here,  served  in 
the  army  one  year  at  the  first  of  the  war, 
and  again  enlisted  during  the  war.  Samuel 
Kelley,  Matthias  Folsom,  Joel  H.  Tem- 
pleton,  Jasper  Stoddard  are  such,  and  per- 
haps others  of  whom  we  have  not  known. 
All  of  them  are  dead  except  Mr.  Stoddard. 

WORCESTER   SOLDIERS   OF    l86l-''65. 

Alonzo  P.  Benson,  11  I,  sergeant;  wd.  at 

Winchester;  discharged. 
Charles  L.  Benson,  11  I ;  2d  lieut.  ;  must. 

out  June,  65. 
Jefferson  T.  Benson,  8  A  ;  trans.  Vet.  Res. 

Corps,  June.  64. 
Lucius  M.  Benson,  8  A  ;  died  in  Louisiana, 

July  31,  62. 
Madison  J.  Benson,  17  E. ;  corp. ;  sergt. ; 

wounded  ;  discharged. 
Nelson  E.  Benson,  6  H  ;  discharged. 
Wm.  H.  Burroughs,  ill;  died  Feb.  20,  64. 
Robert  Royce,    11  I,  mus.  out  May,  65. 
Geo.  W.  Brigham,  6  F,  mus.  out  Oct.,  64. 
Silas  H.  Brigham,  11  I,  mus.  out  July,  65. 
Francis  E.  Buck,  6  H,  disch.  June,  65. 
Albert   C.    Grain,    ist   Co.    Front.    Cav., 

blacksmith  ;    mus.  out  June,  65, 
Ichabod  D.  Cheeney,  ist  Regt  Cav.,  trans. 

vet.  res.  corps,  April,  64. 
Isaac  F.  Clark,  11  I,  artificer. 
Chester  Carr,  11  I,  deserted. 
George  B.  Clogston,  6  H,  disch.  July,  62. 
Henry  C.  Clogston,  8  E,  disch.  July,  62. 
Aaron  K.  Cooper,  8  A,  lieut.  ;    killed  at 

Cedar  Creek,  Oct.  19,  64. 


Geo.  C.  Corbin,  ill,  disch.  Apr.  64;  died. 
Wm.  A.  Cooper,  13  C,  sergt.  ;  lieut.  ;  mus. 

out  July,  63. 
James  S.  Caswell,  13  C,  mus.  out  July,  63. 
Geo.  W.  Collier,  6  F,   drafted ;    mus.  out 

June,  65. 
John  C.  Davis,  6  H. 
Alex.  Dingwall,  Jr.,.  13  C. 
Orrin  Daley,  6  F,  drafted  ;  wd  at  Winches- 
ter ;  discharged. 
Daniel  Dingwall,  3d  Vt.  Bat.  ;    must  out 

June,  65. 
Edward  P.  Folsom,  6  H,  corp. 
Milan  L.    Frost,  13  C,   died  in  Virginia, 

Mar.  6,  63. 
John  George,  8  E,  discharged. 
Levi  George,  8  E,  do. 

Nathan  H.  Gushea,  11  I,  mus.  out  June,  65. 
Rufus  L.  George,  2d  Co.  Front.  Cav.,  dis. 

June,  65. 
Chauncey  E.  Harris,  3  sergt. ;  wd  in  hand  ; 

discharged, 61. 

Charles  Hall,  8  E. 

Edward  Hall,  8th  regt.  E,   capt. ;  died  at 

Winchenden,  Va.,  of  wds  rec'dat  Cedar 

Creek,  Oct.  28,  64. 
Martin  G.  Hamblet,  3  K  ;  des.  Jan.  27,  62. 
Wm.  B.  Hancock,  6  H  ;  corp. ;  wd  at  Lee's 

Mills ;  discharged. 
Simeon  Hatch,  6  H. ;  mus.  out  June,  65. 
Lucius  W.  Hayford,  6  H.  ;    trans,  to  Inv. 

Corps ;  discharged. 
Edward  Hinkson,  11  I,  pro.  Corp.;    mus. 

out,  65. 
Edwin  Hinkson,  11  I,  died  March  28,  63. 
William  Hinkson,  5  D,  disch.  Oct.,  62. 
Mark  Hinkson,  Regular  Army. 
Lyman  B.  Hinkson,  13  H  ;  mus.  out  July,  63. 
Calvin  C.  Hinkson,  11  L,  S  S.  ;  killed  near 

Cold  Harbor,  May  21,  64. 
Clark  J.  Holmes,  11  I,  deserted. 
Roger  Hovey,  8  A.  ;    pro.  corp. ;    re-en  ; 

wounded;  mus.  out  65. 
Lemuel  M.  Hutchinson,  8  A. ;    Capt.  Co. 

E,  when  mustered  out  65. 
Crismon  Hancock,  11  I ;  mus.  out  July,  65. 
Wm.  H.  Howieson,  11  I  ;  pro.  corp  ;  Q.M.  ; 

mus.  out  Aug.,  65. 
Seaver  Howard,  17  D. 
Nelson  M.  Harris,  ist  Front.  Cav. ;  must. 

out  June,  65. 
Gilbert  Hill,  drafted  ;  paid  commutation. 


WORCESTER. 


911 


Truman  P.  Kellogg,  8  E  ;  lieut.  ;    died  at 

New  Orleans. 
Julius  P.  Kellogg,  8  E,  disch'd  June,  65. 
Kneeland  Kelton,  2  F ;    prisoner  in  Rich- 
mond ;  exch'd ;  mus.  out  Oct.  23,  64. 
William  Kelton,  2  F  ;  killed  at  Wilderness, 

May  S,  64. 
John  A.  Kelton,  2  F ;  discharged. 
Melvin  P.  Kent,  8  A ;   pro.  corp. ;  re-en. 
Edward  E.  Miles,  3d  Vt.  Bat.  ;    mus.  out 

June  65. 
Marshall  B.  Miles,  3  Bat.  ;  wagoner;  mus. 

out  Julj',  64. 
Robert  Needham,  11  I,  mus.  out  June,  65. 
Geo.  H.  Poor,  8  E  ;    died  of  wds  in  La., 

Sept.  29,  62. 
David  B.  Poor,  2d  Bat. ;   mus.  out  July  65. 
Julius  L.  Poor,  8  E  ;    wd  at  Cedar  Creek; 

mus.  out,  65. 
Samuel  Pratt,  13  C;    mus.  out  July,  63. 
Calvin  W.    Richardson,    13  C ;    mus.  out 

July,  63. 
Plummer  H.  Richardson,  13  C;    mus.  out 

July,  ('3- 
Alonzo  L.  Richardson,  6  E  ;  drafted  ;  wd  ; 

mus.  out  June,  65. 
Franklin  A.   Sanford,  8  E ;    wd  Apr.  63 ; 

trans,  vet.  corps. 
Andrew  J.  Slayton,  13  H;    disch. 
Thomas  J.  Slayton,  13  H,    do. 
Theodore  Slayton,  8  E ;  died  in  La. 
Charles  Smith,  8  E  ;  discharged. 
Robinson  Templeton,   11    I;   lieut.;    pro. 

capt. ;  then  major,  May  23,  65. 
James  A.  Templeton,    ist  Cav.   C;  mus. 

out  Aug.  65. 
John  S.  Templeton,  13  C;  disch. 
Horatio  M.  Templeton,  paid  commutation. 
Franklin  J.  Taylor,  13  C  ;  re-en.  lost  a  leg 

before  Petersburg,  and  discharged. 
John  W.  Utton,  6  H  ;  discharged. 
Edmund  Utton,  6  H;    wd  at  Lee  Mills; 

discharged. 
Sidney  A.  Watson,  11  I ;    disch.  July,  65. 
Walter  F.  Waterman,  6  F  ;  mus.  out  Oct. 

28,  64. 
Charles  A.  Watson,  13  C;  wounded. 
Oliver  Wheelock,  9  I ;  mus.  out  June,  65. 
Albert  J.  Wheelock,  6  B;    drafted;    mus. 

out  June,  65. 
Bradbury  W.  York,  ist  Front.  Cav.;  mus. 

out  June,  65. 


James  S.  Nelson,  11  I ;  mus.  out  June,  65. 
John  R.  Wilson,   11  I;  pro.  corp.,    Jan. 

64;  lieut.,  Dec.  64;  mus.  out  June,  65. 

Amount  of  bounties  paid  by  the  town 
to  soldiers,  $5,175.00;  13  men,  $25  each  ; 
12  men,  300  each  ;  2  men,  $600  each. 

THY   WILL   BE   DONE. 

BY  MRS.    E.   D.    GRAY. 

[Mrs.  Gray  is  a  daughter  of  the  late  Ebenezer  S. 
Kellogg;  born  In  this  town,  June  9,  1840.  She  has  been 
afflicted  by  a  rheumatic  difficulty  which  has  made  her 
nearly  helpless  for  some  years.] 

O!  Thou,  before  whose  chastening  rod  I  bow. 
May  I  a  humble  suppliant  come  before  thy  throne. 

And  may  these  lessons,  sent  in  pitying  love, 
Teach  me  to  say.  Thy  will,  not  mine,  be  done. 

The  way  seems  dark,  and  rough  and  long. 
And  I  would  gladly  lay  this  burden  down ; 

Tills  weary  frame  would  seek  a  refuge  In  the  grave; 
Help  me  to  say.  Thy  will,  not  mine,  be  done. 

Clouds  in  my  path  have  risen  one  by  one. 
And  like  a  shroud  have  wrapped  me  in  their  gloom; 

I've  looked,  aye,  looked  in  vain,  for  one  that's  silver 
lined — 
Oh  I  can  I  say.  Thy  will,  not  mine,  be  done? 

Yes,  trusting,  my  appointed  time  I'll  wait. 
Patient  until  the  summons  calls  me  home; 

Ready  to  do,  or  suflfer,  as  Thou  seest  best. 
And  saying,  not  my  will,  but  thine,  be  done. 

We  give  the  following  notice  of  our  his- 
torian, by  his  pastor,  somewhat  condensed  : 

CHARLES    C.    ABBOTT 

was  born  in  Thetford,  July  27,  1831,  and 
died  in  Worcester,  Feb.  18,  1881,  in  his 
50th  year.  He  was  son  of  Daniel  and 
Hannah  (Closson)  Abbott,  the  5th  in  a 
family  of  7  children,  but  two  of  whom  sur- 
vive. He  came  to  Worcester  with  his 
father's  family  in  1848;  in  1852,  married 
Miss  Marcia  E.  Ladd,  who,  with  7  chil- 
dren, survives  him.  He  was  for  25  years 
a  great  sufferer  from  spinal  and  rheumatic 
complaint  much  of  the  time,  not  being  able 
to  go  about  without  the  aid  of  a  crutch 
and  cane ;  but  notwithstanding  his  bodily 
affliction,  had  a  clear,  well-disciplined 
mind,  which  fitted  him  for  usefulness,  and 
was  noted  for  thorough  integrity  in  all 
business  affairs,  and  held  many  offices  in 
town ;  was  postmaster  his  last  20  years  of 
life,  and  town  clerk  15  years,  to  the  great 
satisfaction  of  the  people,  and  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Congregational  church  25  years, 
in  whom  the  Christian  graces  were  de- 
veloped in  a  marked  degree.  For  some 
years  before  his  death,  one  could  not  long 


912 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


be  in  his  presence  without  feeling  they 
were  in  the  presence  of  a  godly  man,  rich 
in  humility  of  spirit  and  patience  in  afflic- 
tion ;  and  in  all  the  trials  and  cares  to 
which  his  business  life  exposed  him,  he 
was  charitable  to  all,  and  adopted  a  system 
of  benevolence,  giving  the  tenth  of  his 
small  income  for  the  support  of  the  Gospel 
and  for  benevolent  purposes.  It  was  his 
theory  that  the  Lord  could  make  ninety 
cents  go  as  far  as  a  dollar,  and  he  rested 
in  the  promises  of  the  Gospel  with  great 
peace  of  mind.  Truly,  "  The  memory  of 
the  just  is  blessed."    p.  h.  carpenter. 

TOWN   OFFICERS   1879-81. 

Clerk,  Treasurer,  Posttnaster . — Charles 
C.  Abbott,  i879-'8o;  Rev.  P.  H.  Carpen- 
ter, town  clerk,  1881  ;  H.  D.  Vail,  treas- 
urer, and  postmistress,  Maria  E.  Abbott. 

Selectmen. — 1879,  J-  ^-  Kelton,  D.  H. 
Massey,  Aden  Miles;  1880,  '81,  M.  M. 
Harris,  F.  E.  Templeton,  L.  M.  Hutch- 
inson. 

Constable. — A.  A.  Bliss,  1879;  H.  Tem- 
pleton, 1880,  '81. 

Overseer  of  Poor  and  Town  Agent. —  E. 
M.  Hamblet,  1 879-^8 1. 

Superintendent  of  Schools. — Rev.  P.  H. 
Carpenter,  1879,  '80,  and  H.  W.  Collier, 
1881. 

Merchant.— Yi.  D.  Vail. 

Clergy. —  Congregational,  Rev.  P.  H. 
Carpenter;  Methodist,  Rev.  J.  M.  Rich, 
1879,  Rev.  A.  W.  Ford,  1880,  '81. 

[Francis  Wooster,  with  E.  L.  Hall,  an 
old  California  miner,  commenced  gold 
mining  in  Worcester  in  1875,  on  a  small 
stream  called  Minister  Brook,  and  took 
about  $700  worth  of  gold  from  this  mine, 
enough  to  pay  their  expenses,  besides 
building  a  1000  feet  of  sluice-boxes  and 
in  other  ways  preparing  for  1S76.  During 
the  past  winter  they  have  formed  a  com- 
pany for  carrying  on  their  work  more  ex- 
tensively, and  will  employ  a  large  number 
of  hands.  They  have  leased  nine  farms 
lying  on  the  same  stream,  for  ten  years. 
—  U  Pitchman ,  1875. 

We  would  like  for  our  general  supple- 
ment volume  a  complete  history  of  Wor- 
cester gold  mining,  Winooski  river  pearls, 
etc. — Ed. 


Worcester  item  in  the  papers  during 
the  war : 

Charles  Kent  has  sent  ten  sons  and  sons 
in-law  into  the  army.  One  of  them  fell 
bravely  fighting  at  Petersburg,  one  of  them 
died  in  hospital,  one  is  in  Sloan  hospital, 
and  the  rest  are  now  at  the  front.  What 
father  can  boast  of  more  patriotic  sons  ?] 


ADDITIONAL   ITEM   FOR   WOODBURY. 

Hon.  F.  C.  Putuam  furnishes  the  fol- 
lowing from  the  town  records  : 

Caledonia  Co.,  .ss.      ? 
Woodbury,  Oct.  5th,  1809.  \ 

The  respondent,  David  Carr,  son  of  Jo- 
seph and  Mary  Carr,  now  in  court,  pleads 
guilty  to  the  indictment :  It  is,  therefore, 
ordered  and  adjudged  that  he  be  taken 
forthwith  to  a  suitable  place,  and  there  be 
tied  up  and  receive  ten  stripes  on  his 
naked  back,  and  pay  costs  of  prosecution ; 
and  that  he  be  recorded  in  the  town  re- 
cords a  th/ef.  And  it  was  done  on  the 
same  day  and  date  above  mentioned. 
Attest,      Wm.  West,  Town  Clerk. 

[Joseph  Moore,  died  in  Woodbury,  July 
10,  1877,  aged  82  years.  He  was  a  soldier 
of  1812,  serving  through  the  war,  three 
years,  and  was  the  only  man  in  Woodbury 
that  ever  drew  a  pension  for  services  in 
this  war.  He  married  in  1815,  Sally, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  Ainsworth. 

Lambert  Sprague,  died  in  this  town, 
July  8,  1864,  aged  83  years. 

Thomas  Bradish,  Jan.   17,   1865,  aged 

71- 

Edwin  McCloud,  a  recruit  under  the 
last  call  from  the  town  of  Woodbury,  died 
in  the  hospital  at  Brattleboro  Jan.  13,  1864, 
aged  17  years. 

Died  at  the  Base  Hospital,  i8th  army 
Corps,  Point  of  Rocks,  Va.,  Nov.  27,  1865, 
of  typhoid  fever,  John  Orlando  Morse, 
a  member  of  Co.  I,  9th  Regt.  Vt.  Vols., 
son  of  Ira  and  Huldah  Morse  of  Wood- 
bury, aged  18  years  and  6  months. 

Died  at  U.  S.  General  Hospital,  Wil- 
mington, N.  C,  Orrin  Nelson,  Co.  G, 
4th  Vt.  Reg.,  formerly  of  Woodbury,  aged 
18  years. 

D.  D.  With  AM,  of  Woodbury,  was  in- 
stantly killed  by  a  tree  he  was  falling, 
Sept.  19,  1857,  aged  3^;  left  a  wife  and 
two  children.] 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


913 


COUNTY  PAPERS   AND  ITEMS. 


Waterbury  Appendix  Third. 

EZRA   butler's   ORDINATION. 

At  an  ecclesiastical  council  held  at  Wa- 
terbury Feb.  18,  1 80 1,  at  the  request  of 
the  church  of  Bolton,  by  their  letters  mis- 
sive for  the  purpose  of  counseling  or  assist- 
ing them  in  setting  apart  Brother  Ezra 
Butler  to  the  work  of  the  ministry. 

Chic7r/ies  present  •  Monkton,  Elder  Isaac 
Sawyer,  Ashbel  Fuller,  Asa  Moore  ;  Corn- 
wall, Elder  Ephraim  Sawyer  ;  Amos  Marsh  ; 
Westford,  Elder  Thomas  Brown,  Libbeus 
Burdick ;  Fairfax,  Elder  Joseph  Call. 

Opened  by  prayer. 

1.  Chose  Elder  E.  Sawyer,  Moderator. 

2.  Chose  Elder  Call,  Scribe. 

3.  Invited  and  received  brethren  into 
Council,  viz :  Samuel  Webster,  Reuben 
Smith,  Hubbard  Burdick  and  John  Hoyt. 

4.  Examined  into  the  state  of  and 
standing  of  the  Church,  together  with  the 
reasons  of  their  desiring  Brother  Butler  to 
be  set  apart ;  having  received  satisfactory 
answers  proceeded, 

5.  To  call  on  Brother  Butler  to  relate 
the  reasons  of  his  hope,  second  his  call  to 
the  ministry,  thirdly  his  ideas  of  doctrine 
and  church  disciphne ;  after  deliberate 
cosultation, 

6.  Voted  a  good  degree  of  satisfaction, 
and  conclude  it  duty  to  proceed  to  ordain  ; 
the  order  of  the  day  as  follows :  Elder 
EphrainT  Sawyer  to  preach  the  sermon ; 
Elder  Isaac  Sawyer  to  make  the  ordaining 
prayer ;  Elder  Call  to  give  the  charge ; 
Elder  Brown  to  give  the  right  hand  of  fel- 
lowship. 

Ephraim  Sawyer,  Moderator, 
Joseph  Call,  Clerk. 

This  was  the  first  ordination  of  any  min- 
ister in  Waterbury.  He  was  also  the  first 
convert,  [see  his  biography  previous]  and 
Elder  Call  preached  the  first  sermon  in 
this  town. 

PECK  FAMILY. 

In  another  part  of  this  Waterbury  his- 
tory there  is  honorable  mention  of  Gen. 
John  Peck,  but  nothing  of  his  family.  A 
man  so  prominent  and  popular  might  be 
expected  to  have  family  relations  of  whom 
the  reader  may  be  pleased  to  know  some- 
thing, though  it  be  but  little.  Mrs.  Peck, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Anna  Benedict, 
was  worthy  any  man's  affectionate  esteem, 
and  this  was  mutually  cherished  beyond  a 
doubt.     She    was   no   less   a   remarkable 


woman  than  he  was  remarkable  as  a  man 
and  citizen.  They  had  one  daughter,  who 
died  quite  young.  Their  oldest  son,  Lucius 
B.,  who  was  born  in  Waterbury,  Nov.  17, 
1802,  was  widely  known  in  the  maturity  of 
manhood  throughout  the  State  as  an  em- 
inent lawyer,  advocate  and  member  of 
Congress.  He  was  mainly  educated  and 
his  character  formed  in  this  his  native 
town.  He  was  known  here  as  a  boy, 
sober,  thoughtful  as  a  youth,  rarely  en- 
gaging in  the  sports  and  usual  vivacious 
activities  of  boyhood.  This  sedate,  com- 
posed and  contemplative  manner  of  de- 
portment adhered  to  him  through  life. 
There  was  next  to  nothing  of  playful  ac- 
tivity and  wide  awakefulness  which  char- 
acterized his  only  brother,  Cassius.  Their 
temperaments  were  widely  different,  as 
their  destinies  in  life.  Their  purpose  and 
pursuits  different  as  fame  and  wealth.  If 
eminence  at  the  bar  was  the  aim  of  one, 
the  visions  of  wealth  were  that  of  the 
other.  Cassius  was  4  years  younger  than 
Lucius ;  established  himself  in  the  retail 
dry  goods  trade  in  the  city  of  New  York 
about  1 83 1,  and  after  a  few  years'  busi- 
ness, died.  His  death  was  sudden,  and 
what  is  remarkable,  this  was  the  case  of 
the  deaths  of  all  the  family,  none  of  them 
living  to  old  age.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Peck 
both  died  a  little  over  50  years,  Lucius, 
64,  and  Cassius,  not  much  over  30  years. 

RICHARD   KNEELAND, 

who  was  favorably  known  to  our  residents 
in  the  second  and  third  decades  of  the  cen- 
tury, in  early  life  lived  in  Boston,  where  he 
learned  his  trade  of  joiner  by  the  long  ap- 
prenticeship then  necessary  to  entitle  to  a 
trade  reputation,  when  a  trade  was  some- 
thing of  a  service.  Mr.  Kneeland  reared 
a  family  of  some  8  or  10  children.  Two  of 
the  sons  have  represented  other  towns  in 
the  Legislature,  one,  we  believe,  the 
youngest,  received  a  collegiate  and  medi- 
cal education,  but  lived  to  practice  his  pro- 
fession only  a  few  years,  dying  young. 
The  oldest  daughter,  a  very  estimable  wo- 
man, never  married,  but  at  least  three  we 
can  recollect  were  well  married,  and  two 
are  now  living,  also  two  sons.     Mr.  Knee- 


115 


914 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


land  lived  to  the  age  of  90,  and  died  in  this 
town,  1867.  He  was  always  called  squire, 
was  a  man  of  extensive  reading,  and  had  a 
peculiar  cast  of  mind,  and  was  peculiar  in 
his  religious  views. 

OLIVER   ROOD. 

Cotemporary  with  Squire  Kneeland  was 
Oliver  Cromwell  Rood,  a  man  of  remark- 
able physical  energy  and  executive  talent 
in  matters  he  engaged  in.  He  married  a 
daughter  of  George  Kennan,  elsewhere 
mentioned  in  this  history.  Mr.  Rood  had 
perhaps  a  half  dozen  children,  several  of 
whom  we  remember  as  good  scholars  in 
the  old  schooldays  of  our  youth.  Mr. 
Rood  had  a  rather  varied  fortune  in  life, 
and  one  habit,  almost  universally  preva- 
lent in  his  day,  he  lived  to  overcome, 
much  to  the  comfort  of  his  later  years. 
His  children,  so  far  as  recollected,  became 
respectable  in  life.  One  of  them,  George, 
came  to  an  untimely  death,  as  before  noted. 


FROM   MRS.    JULIA   WALLACE    HUTCHINS. 

TO  A  ROBIN  BUILDING  ON  A  POBTICO  OF  A  CHAPEL. 

Bird  of  the  air,  wliy  coniest  tliou  liere 

Witli  tliy  wild  aud  tiiuid  lieart, 
Thy  nest  to  build,  aud  thy  young  to  rear. 

With  the  sculpture- work  of  art? 

The  orchard  tree  is  with  blossoms  white, 

'Twere  a  fragrant  spot  to  rest; 
And  tlie  locust  leaves  from  the  passers'  sight 

Would  shelter  thy  radiant  breast. 

The  willows,  bending  low  to  screen 

The  flash  of  a  thousand  rills, 
And  tlie  matted  boughs  of  the  evergreen 

Are  forever  on  our  hills. 

The  maple  leaves  are  broad  and  bright, 

Aud  they  yield  a  grateful  shade ; 
Then  why  on  this  sunlit  wall  so  white 

Is  thy  love-wrought  dwelling  made? 

I  know  to  me  it  is  not  clear 

Who  shall  tliy  instinct  scan. 
But  I  smile  to  see  thou  hast  no  fear 

Of  the  lordly  creature— man. 

When  the  peal  of  the  Sabbath  bell 

Calls  human  hearts  to  prayer, 
Thouhoverest  still  o'er  tliy  chosen  cell, 

Though  gathering  steps  are  there. 

Bird  of  the  spring,  thou  hast  sought  our  fane, 

But  darker  wings  than  tliine 
Are  waving  where  time  liath  left  a  sting 

On  altar,  and  tomb  and  shrine. 

For  the  bittern  calls  from  the  stagnant  marsh 
Where  once  ran  a  sparkling  flood. 

And  the  owl  and  the  raven,  with  voices  harsh, 
Where  the  ancient  idols  stood. 


But  ours  is  a  brighter  faith  than  theirs. 

Who  knelt  at  the  idol  shrine; 
And  our  matin  hymns  should  swell  with  praise, 

Bird  of  tlie  air,  like  thine. 

A  blessing  on  these  hallowed  walls 

Where  thou  hast  sought  to  rest; 
May  peace  be  slied  like  the  dew  that  falls 

On  Hermon's  mountain  crest. 

Should  worldly  thought  on  our  worship  jar. 

Or  cares  disturb  our  bliss; 
Should  pride  arise  with  its  blight  to  mar. 

May  we  remember  this — 

Earth  had  a  Heavenly  Wanderer  once. 

And  pensively  He  said. 
The  birds  of  the  air  had  nests, 

"But  He  not  where  to  lay  His  liead." 

From  the  Vertjwnt  Watchnia7i,  with  items 
from  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Henry : 

Rev.  Andrew  Royce,  was  born  in  Mar- 
low,  N.  H.,  June  2,  1805.  At  the  age  of 
27,  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  but  soon  gave 
up  the  practice  of  law,  studied  theology  and 
was  ordained  as  an  evangelist,  Nov.  23, 
1836.  He  preached  first  at  Williamstown, 
Vt.  He  was  installed  pastor  of  the  Con- 
gregational church  at  Barre,  Feb.  22,  1841, 
where  he  remained  16  years,  eminently 
successful,  and  receiving  into  the  church 
104  members  by  profession  and  28  by  let- 
ter, and  as  a  citizen  was  identified  in  all 
movements  for  the  popular  good. 

Through  his  untiring  efforts  the  Acad- 
emy in  Barre  was  erected,  and  the  subse- 
quent prosperity  of  the  village  is  owing  in 
a  great  measure  to  the  flourishing  school 
of  which  he  may  truly  be  called  the  foun- 
der. But  his  arduous  and  unceasing  labors 
proved  too  heavy  ;  in  1858,  he  had  a  stroke 
of  paralysis,  and  had  to  suspend  his  labor 
for  some  months ;  partially  recovered,  he 
commenced  to  labor  in  Shelburne  and  Fer- 
risburgh  for  a  time,  and  then  undertook 
the  charge  of  the  small  parish  at  Greens- 
boro, laboring  there  less  than  2  years,  when 
being  attacked  with  paralysis,  he  removed 
to  Waterbury  and  spent  the  last  few 
months  of  his  life.  He  died  in  this  village 
Oct.  15,  1864,  just  entering  upon  his  60th 
year ;  when  many  look  forward  to  vigorous 
action,  he  has  passed  away. 

But  his  life  work  was  well  done,  though 
finished  at  an  earlier  hour  than  those  that 
labor  less  heartily ;  and  he  has  left  behind 
him  a  good  name  and  useful  life  as  a  last- 
ing monument  in  the  hearts  of  the  many 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


91S 


who  knew  and  loved  him.  He  left  a 
widow  and  8  children ;  but  two  of  the 
daughters  died  the  following  year. 

WINOOSKI   RIVER   FALLS   IN  WATERBURY. 

A  description  of  the  same  fVom  The  Rural  Magazine 
or  Vermont  Repository,  yo\.\.  pa^e  199,  of  Samuel 
Williams,  of  Rutland,  January,  1795.  See  also  des- 
cription from  Zadock  Thompson's  Gazetteer,  p.  825. 

Observations  7iiade  on  the  Falls  of  Onion 
River,  at  IVaterbury,  coninwnty  called 
Biitton  Falls,  May  12,  1793,  by  the  Hon. 
S.  Hitchcock  and  Col.  Davis. 
The  river  above  the  falls  is  about  15 
rods  wide,  and  flows  along  very  pleasant 
banks  on  both  sides.  On  these  banks  are 
large  intervales.  In  a  very  short  distance 
the  river  contracts  or  narrows  to  about  20 
feet.  For  about  6  or  7  rods  the  whole  of 
the  water  falls  with  great  velocity  along 
the  rocks,  in  romantic  meanderings,  into 
a  kind  of  basin  formed  by  rocks  on  every 
side.  The  falls  in  this  distance  are  about 
ID  or  12  feet.  From  the  basin  the  water 
disappears,  and  flows  under  the  rocks  to 
the  distance  of  about  60  feet,  and  then 
gushes  out  with  great  violence.  From  the 
head  of  the  falls  to  the  bottom  is  about  16 
rods,  on  each  side  of  which  the  channel  is 
bounded  by  a  solid  rock,  and  appears  to 
have  been  worn  out  of  the  rock  by  the 
water.  This  channel  is  from  40  to  50  feet 
in  width.  The  height  of  the  bank  on  the 
south  side,  computed  from  low  water,  is 
about  150  feet;  on  the  north  side  it  was 
estimated  at  about  90.  The  falls  along 
the  channel  are  about  25  or  30  feet. 

In  some  part  of  the  falls,  where  the 
water  in  high  floods  has  worn  over  the 
rocks,  are  seen  large  basins  curiously 
formed  in  the  solid  rocks,  of  10  or  12  feet 
in  depth,  and  of  three  or  four  feet  in  di- 
ameter. The  height  of  the  waters,  from 
the  appearance  of  the  timber  lodged  on 
the  sides  of  the  rocks,  must  formerly  have 
been  50  feet  higher  than  what  it  now  is. 
At  the  bottom  of  the  falls  the  river  imme- 
diately widens  to  about  25  or  30  rods,  and 
flows  gently  on  in  a  beautiful  stream. 

DR.    CHARLES   C.    ARMS 

was  the  third  son  of  Jesse  Arms,  an  early 
settler  of  Duxbury,  one  of  the  foremost 
men  of  that  town,  as  Dea.  Ira  Arms,  the 
eldest  son,  was  after  him  for  majiy  years. 


A  part  of  the  time  of  his  practice  here  he 
was  a  partner  with  Dr.  Drew,  his  brother- 
in-law.  He  attained  a  high  reputation  as 
a  skillful  surgeon.  He  built  the  house  now 
occupied  by  Dr.  Washburne,  which  some 
30  years  ago  or  more  was  considered  one 
of  the  best  in  the  village.   [See  page  869.] 

Correction  for  page  868  :  My  recollection 
of  Mr.  Bryan's  coming  into  town  is  it  was 
between  the  years  18 15  and  20,  more  defi- 
nitely perhaps,  i8i6toi8i8.  I  have  no 
recollection  from  what  town  in  America  he 
came  to  this  place,  but  presume  he  had 
been  but  a  short  time  in  the  country  when 
he  came  to  Waterbury.  He  immediately 
opened  a  tailor's  shop,  and  a  Miss  Scagel, 
ot  a  Methodist  family,  whom  he  afterwards 
married,  worked  in  the  shop,  either  as  ap- 
prentice or  assistant.  Many  years  after, 
when  he  had  been  married  and  settled  on  a 
farm  near  the  center  of  the  town,  and  had 
given  up  his  trade  or  partially  so,  he  intro- 
duced Mr.  O'Conner,  a  tailor  from  Burling- 
ton, to  business  in  this  village,  O'Conner 
then  being  a  young  man.  He  did  a  good 
business  at  his  trade  many  years,  and  final- 
ly died  in  the  place.  Some  time  not  dis- 
tant from  O'Conner's  coming,  either  before 
or  after,  I  have  no  definite  dates,  an  Irish- 
man and  Catholic,  by  the  name  of  Clarke, 
came  to  town  next ;  these  were  the  first 
three  Catholics  of  whom  I  have  recollection 
as  residents.  After  these,  and  especially 
after  the  building  the  railroad  commenced, 
they  came  in  large  numbers.  Father 
O'Calligan,  the  priest,  visited  these  families 
occasionally,  probably  more  than  40  years 
ago.  And  it  was  said  that  he  gave  Clarke 
a  cow,  or  money  to  buy  one,  as  he  was  in 
very  destitute  circumstances.  R.  B. 

[Since  the  foregoing  was  in  type  we  have 
the  following  information  from  a  son  of 
Patrick  Bryan,  the  only  representative  of 
the  family  living  now  in  Waterbury  :  "  My 
father  was  born  in  London,  and  learned 
his  trade  there.  His  parents  were  Irish, 
as  his  name  indicates.  He  came  from 
London  to  Quebec,  and  from  there  directly 
to  Waterbury  about  18 14  or  '15.  His  fam- 
ily were  6  sons  and  two  daughters.  The 
dauditers,  in  succession,  married  the  same 


9i6 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


man,  a  son  of  one  of  the  large  Atkins  fam- 
ilies. Neither  of  them  lived  more  than  a 
few  years  after  marriage."  "I  did  not 
particularly  inquire  after  the  brothers  (says 
my  informant,  who  reports  to  me  from  the 
son  at  Waterbury),  but  my  impression  is, 
two  of  them  went  West  and  one  to  Can- 
ada, perhaps  15  to  20  years  ago,  and  one 
of  them  died  here  a  few  years  since.  The 
father  and  mother  and  one  or  two,  if  not 
all  of  the  children  who  have  died  here, 
were  buried  in  Burlington.  Mr.  Bryan 
did  not  remain  at  the  village  long.  He 
soon  purchased  and  moved  to  a  farm  near 
the  Centre.  Many  years  ago  his  house 
was  a  resort  for  Irishmen,  and  Catholic 
meetings  were  held  there ;  but  after  the 
coming  of  Mr.  O'Connor  to  the  village, 
meetings  were  held  at  his  house  part  of 
the  time.  I  think  none  of  the  O'Connor 
boys  were  enlisted  in  the  war  from  this 
town,  but  they  very  likely  may  have  been 
in  the  war,  having  enlisted  for  other  towns.] 

CASUALTIES   CONTINUED. 

Among  which  may  be  reckoned  the  sin- 
gular occurrence  at  the  liquor  agency 
several  years  ago.  Two  intoxicated  men 
demanded  liquor,  and  threatened  the  agent 
who  was  in  feeble  health.  It  became  nec- 
essary to  call  the  aid  of  a  neighbor  to 
remove  the  principal  offender.  Though 
this  was  done  with  the  least  possible  vio- 
lence, the  man  died  in  a  few  minutes,  as  if 
in  a  fit.  Great  excitement  followed  among 
the  man's  friends  ;  and  finally  the  man  who 
had  the  offender  in  hand  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  demanded  the  disinterment  of  his 
body,  and  that  a  post  mortem  examination 
should  be  had.  The  result  proved  the 
man  free  of  any  blame  for  rough  handling 
the  deceased. 

THE   MEAKER    MURDER. 

About  2  years  ago,  Apr.  27,  1880,  a 
most  cruel  murder  was  perpetuated  in  Wa- 
terbury, though  none  concerned  in  the 
crime,  nor  the  victim,  were  residents  of  this 
town.  It  was  planned  in  Duxbury,  at  the 
home  of  criminals,  but  executed  in  our  town. 
In  the  arrangements,  some  originality  of  in- 
vention is  seen,  but   it  involves  too   many 


details  and  too  much  exposure  to  observa- 
tion, to  make  it  easy  of  concealment. 

Little  Alice  Meaker,  the  victim,  was,  if 
we  remember  aright,  a  half-sister  of  Mr. 
Meaker,  an  orphan,  or  half  orphan,  and  a 
pauper  in  another  town,  the  overseer  of 
which  had  agreed  to  pay  a  certain  sum  in 
money  to  Meaker  to  take  Alice  to  support 
during  her  minority.  Mrs.  Meaker  dis- 
liked, or  had  become  tired  of  the  child, 
and  planned  to  get  rid  of  her  by  a  cruel 
crime.  She  and  her  son  got  a  team  at  Mr. 
Bates'  stable  in  Waterbury,  and  a  supply 
of  poison  of  Mr.  Carpenter,  a  druggist 
here.  The  Meaker  mother  and  son,  and 
Alice,  left  "Waterbury  village  between  9 
and  10  in  the  evening,  to  go  some  5  or  6 
miles  up  Waterbury  River,  and  on  their 
way  administered  the  poison,  probably 
finding  compulsion  necessary. 

If  particulars  are  here  omitted,  the  read- 
er may  imagine  how  they  proceeded  and 
some  of  the  incidents  of  that  awful  ride. 
By  some  means,  the  child  came  to  her 
death,  was  concealed  in  a  hole  in  the 
ground  partly  filled  with  water,  dug  proba- 
bly by  road  makers,  and  being  ready  made, 
was  taken  by  the  Meakers.  The  disap- 
pearance of  the  child  immediately  raised 
suspicion  in  the  neighborhood  ;  the  result 
was  Sheriff  A therton  succeeded  in  drawing 
out  from  young  Meaker  the  fate  of  the 
child,  and  the  disclosure  of  the  place  of 
concealment,  which  was  verified  by  Ath- 
erton  and  Meaker  going  to  the  place  and 
finding  the  body,  and  their  taking  it  to 
Meaker's  house,  the  young  man  telling  his 
mother  he  had  told  the  story,  to  the  con- 
sternation of  the  mother.  The  result  is 
they  are  now  under  sentence  of  death,  from 
which  they  can  have  little  hope  of  escape. 

Errata. — Page  850,  middle  of  2d  column, 
25  years  ago  should  read  1821,  and  same 
paragraph,  after  merchant,  should  read 
merchant  of  Chicago ;  near  the  top  same 
column,  Rev.  Dr.  Warren  should  be  Rev. 
Mr.  ;  and  at  the  foot  of  the  Moody  column, 
page  860,  should  have  been  added  Calvin 
B.  Moody,  youngest  son  of  George,  is  a 
graduate  of  Middlebury  college,  and  now 
a  Congregational  minister.  r.  b. 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


917 


PAPER   FOR   MORETOWN. 

FROM  GEORGE  BULKLEY. 

The  first  town  meeting  in  Moretown  was 
held  Mar.  22,  1792,  and  Seth  Munson  was 
elected  town  clerk  ;  in  1794,  Joseph  Hasel- 
tine ;  1796,  John  Burdick ;  1797,  Joseph 
Haseltine  ;  1800,  Wright  Spalding;  1801, 
Roswell  Smith;  1805,  Abner  Child;  1816, 
Theophilus  Bixby ;  1818,  Paul  Mason; 
1822,  Ebenezer  Johnson;  1832,  Lester 
Kingsley  ;  1881,  James  Haylett. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

The  first  Freeman's  meeting  was  Sept. 
2,  1794,  and  Lester  Moseley  was  elected 
representative;  1795,  8,  11,  Joseph  Ha.sel- 
tine ;  1796,  1803,  Wright  Spalding;  1801, 
2,  Seth  Munson;  1805,  14,  33,  Cephas 
Carpenter;  1809,  Seth  Munson ;  1815,  16, 
Seth  Munson;  1820,  Rufus  Clapp ;  1821, 
22,  Paul  Mason ;  1823,28,  29,  John  Fos- 
ter; 1824,5,  Barnabas  Mayo ;  1826,  27, 
David  Belding ;  1830,  Harvey  W.  Carpen- 
ter; 1831,  Stephen  Pierce;  1832,  44,  Cal- 
vin Clark;  1834,  5,  Wm.  Harris;  1836,  7, 
9,  Ira  Carpenter;  1838,  Joseph  Sawyer; 
1840,41,  Lester  Kingsley;  1842,  43,  M. 
B.  Taplin ;  1845,  Daniel  Harris;  1846, 
Barnabas  Mayo ;  1847,  Richard  H.Kim- 
ball; 1848,  D.  P.  Carpenter;  1849,  50, 
Dennis  Child;  1851,  2,  Uriah  Howe; 
1853,  Leonard  R.  Foster;  1854,  Osgood 
Evans;  1855,  Joseph  N.  Savage;  1856, 
Henry  Kneeland ;  1857,  8,  John  C.  Clark; 
1859,  60,  Carter  Haskins ;  1861,  70,  Lo- 
renzo D.  Hills;  1862,  3,  Austin  G.  Pren- 
tiss; 1864,  Geo.  Bulkley;  1865,  6,  Hiram 
Hathaway;  1867,  8,  Freeman  Parker; 
1869,  Benj.  A.  Holmes;  1872,  James 
Stewart;  1874,  6,  Goin  B.  Evans;  1878, 
George  Howes;   1880,  Russell  Sawyer. 

As  far  back  as  my  memory  extends,  Ira 
Carpenter  was  post  master,  then  Dr. 
Kingsley,  then  Nathan  R.  Spaulding,  then 
Geo.  M.  Fletcher. 

Cornelia  J.  Child,  (page  609,)  was 
the  daughter  of  Eber  Carpenter  Child, 
who  died  in  Moretown  a  few  years  since, 
aged  76.  Cornelia  is  the  wife  of  Allen  C. 
Baker,  and  has  6  children.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Baker  are  school  teachers,  and  now  reside 
in  Alabama.  Mrs.  Celia  R.  Baxter. 


PETER    JOHONNOTT   AND   FAMILY,    BARRE. 

BY  R.  R.  CROSBY. 

Peter,  Sr.,  born  at  Boston,  Mass.,  July 
20,  1772,  died  at  Richmond,  111.  (Solon 
village),  Aug.  29,  1865.  He  was  a  vol- 
unteer from  Barre  to  the  Battle  of  Platt.s- 
burgh,  Sept.  1814;  residence,  Barre;  mar- 
ried first,  at  Suffield,  Oct.  20,  1796,  Ruth 
Sheldon,  b.  in  Suffield,  Conn.,  Dec.  31, 
1778;  died  at  Barre,  Oct.  31,  1807;  sec- 
ond, married,  at  Barre,  June  26,  1808, 
Sarah  Wheaton,  b.  in  Leicester,  Mass., 
Apr.  27,  1775;  died  at  Barre,  Aug.  29, 
1854;  children : 

Peter  Johonnott,  Jr.,  b.  atSuffield, Conn., 
Mar.  6,  1798,  died  at  Montpelier,  Vt.,  Jan. 
29,  1967;  married  Mar.  13,  1825,  Nancy 
Blanchard,  b.  at  Barre,  Feb.  23,  1802,  d. 
at  Montpelier,  July  4,  1872  ;  children  : 

Albert  Johonnott,  b.  Jan.  18,  1826; 
residence,  Montpelier;  married.  May  31, 
1853,  Mary  J.  Parker,  b.  in  Plainfield, 
N.  H.,  Aug.  29,  1827;  children: 

Arthur  Peter  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre, 
Feb.  27,  1854,  married  at  Montpelier, 
1879,  Cora  King,  b.  at  East  Montpelier ;  d. 
April  17,  1881;  I  child,  b.  April,  1881. 
Ellen  M.  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre,  Oct.  20, 
1855;  married,  at  MontpeUer,  George 
Kellogg,  b.  in  Boston,  Mass.;  i  child,  b. 
in  Montpelier. 

Emily  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre,  Oct.  27, 
1827;  residence,  Richmond,  111.  Aaron 
M.  Pettengill  (her  husband),  b.  in  Barre, 
June  10,  1825;  married  at  Barre,  Apr.  10, 
1850 ;  their  daughter,  Ada  N.  Pettengill, 
b.  in  Barre,  May  4,  1851,  married  Roswell 
H.  Peck  at  Richmond,  111.,  Dec.  12,  1876; 
residence,  Montpelier;  children:  Julia 
Emily,  b.  May  5,  1879,  Wm.  Martin,  b. 
Dec.  14,  1880. 

Ellen  M.  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre,  July 
20,  1829,  d.  Apr.  20,  1830;  Martha  Jo- 
honnott, b.  in  Barre,  June  4,  183 1,  resi- 
dence Montpelier;  Fred  Johonnott,  b.  in 
Barre,  Jan.  15,  1835,  residence  Burling- 
ton ;  Harriet  Glover  (his  wife) ,  born  in 
Boston,  Mass.,  Sept.  20,  1842,  married  at 
Barre,  May  17,  1865;  3  children:  Fred, 
Frank,  Martha. 

Ruth  Johonnott,  b.  in  Suffield,  Conn., 
Jan.  27,  1801,  d.  at  Richmond,  111.,  Mar. 


9i8 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


20,  1874;  m.  July  30,  1837,  at  Saugetuck, 
Mich.,  to  John  C.  Wooster,  b.  in  Oxford, 
Conn.,  Aug.  2,  1809;  d.  at  Solon,  111., 
Sept.  23,  1877. 

Asa  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre,  Sept.  11, 
1802,  married  Harriet  M.  Chesley,  at 
Boston,  Mass.,  Apr.  1836;  residence, 
Richmond,  111;  Mary  Fuller,  his  2d  wife, 
widow  of  Loyal  Wilson,  b.  Dec.  5,  1813, 
in  New  Hampshire,  married  Jan.  16,  1851  ; 
children :  Rensselaer,  b.  in  Richmond, 
111.,  Dec.  5,  1851,  married  Clara  Turner; 
Byron,  b.  in  Richmond,  June  29,  1854,  d. 
Apr.  4,  1856;  Frank,  b.  in  Richmond, 
July  27,  1857. 

Edwin  Sheldon  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre, 
Mar.  5,  1805,  d.  in  Richmond,  111.,  Aug. 
10, 1847  ;  married,  at  West  Hartford,  Conn., 
Marietta  Steele  Crosby,  b.  Jan.  12,  181 1  ; 
died  at  Grant,  111.,  Jan.  6,  1841  ;  married, 
Feb.  15,  1831  ;  children:  Robert,  b.  in 
Burlington,  Nov.  2,  1833;  residence, 
Richmond,  111. ;  wife,  Frances  A.  Rice,  b. 
in  Fall  River,  Mass.,  June  16,  1841,  mar- 
ried at  Bliven's  Mills,  111.,  Mar.  15,  1859; 
residence,  Richmond,  111.;  children:  Ma- 
rietta S.,  b.  at  Bliven's  Mills,  June  15, 
i860;  Louise  R.,  b.  May  12,  1862;  Ger- 
trude Crosby,  b.  Mar.  19,  1864;  Henry 
Wooster,  b.  Oct.  i,  1866;  Louis  Bliven, 
b.  Feb.  26,  1873;  Frances  Katharine,  b. 
Apr.  I,  1875  ;  Helen  Josephine,  b.  Jan.  4, 
1878. 

Gertrude  Crosby  Johonnott,  b.  in  Sauga- 
tuck,  Mich.,  Apr.  16,  1836,  married  San- 
ford  Fillmore  Bennett,  b.  in  Eden,  N.  Y., 
June  21,  1836;  residence  at  Richmond, 
111. ;  married  Mar.  15,  i860,  at  Richmond  ; 
He  is  a  physician,  the  author  of  "  Sweet 
Bye  and  Bye  ; "  children  :  Edwin  Richard- 
son, b.  in  Elkhorn,  Wis.,  July  30,  1861  ; 
Robert  Crosby,  b.  May.  21,  1866;  May 
Ruth,  b.  May  16,  1869. 

Edwin  Sheldon  Johonnott,  Jr  ,  b.  Dec. 
29,  1838,  at  Grant,  111.,  married,  Aug.  16, 
1866,  Laura  Frances  Brown,  b.  in  London, 
Eng.,  Mar.  2,  1847  ;  residence,  Richmond, 
111.  ;  children :  Edwin  Sheldon,  b.  in 
Richmond,  Nov.  9,  1868;  Eben  Crosby, 
b.  Apr.  16,  1870;  Ruth  Mary,  b.  Apr.  16, 
1872;  Wm.  Bradford,  Sept.  11,  1873. 


Leonard  Johonnott,  son  of  Peter,  Sr., 
b.  in  Barre,  Aug.  5,  1809;  residence,  Bur- 
lington ;  married  at  Lyndeborough,N.  H., 
Oct.  13,  1841,  Harriet  Felicia  Page,  b.  in 
Burlington,  Dec.  3,  1817,  dau.  of  Colonel 
Lemuel  and  Clarissa  (Whitney)  Page ; 
children  all  born  in  Burlington. 

Lemuel  Page  Johonnott,  b.  Dec.  20,1842, 
married  Emma  Barnes,  of  Burlington ; 
children,  all  born  in  Burlington :  Mary 
Harriet,  b.  Feb.  1868;  Laura,  b.  Jan.  17, 
1870;  Maud  Louisa,  Leonard  J. 

Henry  Whitney  Johonnott,  b.  Aug.  26, 
1844,  d.  Feb.  II,  1849. 

Horace  Lane  Johonnott,  b.  Nov.  26, 
1846,  married  Emily  Wheaton.  b.  in  Barre, 
June,  1876. 

Sarah  Johonnott,  b.  in  Burlington,  Aug. 
20,  1848,  married  Fred  Bowles,  formerly 
of  Burlington,  now  of  Chicago ;  died  in 
Chicago,  111.,  Mar.  29,  1876;  left  one  dau. 
Jennie  ;  and  an  infant  child  of  a  few  weeks 
was  brought  home  with  her  in  the  same 
casket ;  buried  at  Burlington. 

Henry  Whitney  Johonnott,  b.  Sept.  12, 
1850,  resides  in  Philadelphia. 

Albert  Johonnott,  son  of  Peter,  Sr.,  b. 
in  Barre,  Mar.  24,  1812,  d.  May  2,   1813. 

Louisa  Johonnott,  b.  at  Barre,  Sept.  13, 
1814;  residence,  Richmond,  111. ;  married, 
at  Barre,  Oct.  16,  1836,  Rensselaer  R. 
Crosby,  b.  Jan.  8,  1809,  at  West  Hartford, 
Ct. ;  residence,  Richmond,  111. 

Sarah  Maria  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre, 
July  20,  18 17,  died  in  Burlington,  Mar.  9, 
1853;  married  at  Barre,  June  25,  1845, 
Thomas  Jefferson  Blanchard,  b.  Apr.  19, 
1818,  at  Barre;  his  son,  Albert,  b.  in 
Burlington,  May  7,  1846,  d.  Sept.  6,  1877, 
in  Barre. 

Mary  Ann  Johonnott,  b.  in  Barre,  Dec. 
14,  1820,  married,  Dec.  4,  1853,  Andrew 
Bourne,  b.  in  Redfield,  N.  Y.,  Jan.  31, 
1820 ;  residence,  Woodstock,  McHenry 
Co.,  111.;  children:  Harry  Peter,  b.  in 
Richmond, 111.,  Jan.  8,1856 ;  Willis  Reuben, 
b.  Nov.  28,  1857,  d.  May  i,  1881,  at 
Kenosha,  Wis.,  by  accident. 

Early  Patents. — The  Mirror  of  the 
Patent  Office  in  the  United  States,  quar- 
terly, vol.  I,  No.  I,  that  gives  the  patents 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


919 


taken  out  in  1827,  gives  22  states  repre- 
sented, Vermont  standing  the  loth  in  the 
largest  number,  viz.  :  10  patents  in  the 
State  in  1827,  and  total  to  1828,  18  pat- 
ents on  record  in  the  patent  office  at 
Washington,  of  which  four  were  taken  in 
Addison  Co.,  five  in  Windham  Co.,  three 
in  Washington  Co.,  two  in  Windsor  Co., 
etc.:  "Building  bridges,  patent  for,  to 
Napthalia  Bishop,  Barre,  Vt.,  Jan.  11, 
1819;"  "Cotton,  etc.,  machine  for  spin- 
ning. G.  Brewster,  G.  Trumbull  and  J. 
Matthews,  Barre,  Vt.,  Jan.  16,  1812;" 
"Cheese-press,  J.  Bigelow,  Montpelier, 
Vt.,  Jan.  25,  1816." 

THE   WHEAT  AND   THE   TARES. 

Composed  upwards  of  fifty  years  ago  by 
Rev.  Wm.  Farwell,  of  Barre,  a  Univer- 
salist  clergyman  of  some  distinction  at 
that  time,  and  who  was  a  pupil  of  the  pio- 
neer of  that  faith,  the  Rev.  John  Murray. 
The  copy  was  made  by  a  son  of  the  writer 
of  the  verses.  Col.  Lemuel  Fai^well,  of 
Barre,  who  died  many  years  ago  in  that 
town.  They  were  written  by  him  from 
memory,  and  given  to  Edmund  Doty,  of 
Montpelier,  in  1821,  from  whose  daughter 
I  received  them  20  years  ago.  They  are 
purely  of  Vermont  origin,  originally  in- 
tended for  a  hymn,  and  though  I  have  not 
heard  the  tune  for  a  great  number  of  years, 
it  is  as  familiar  to  my  ear  as  any  in  the 
Psaltery. —  {Vermont  Record  of  20  years 
since.] 

'Twason  the  green  banks  of  Eupbrates's  stream 
Jelioval),  omniscient,  all-wise  and  supreme. 
First  stationed  our  Father  in  Eden's  green  bower. 
And  Eve,  his  companion,  a  delicate  flower; 
He  sow'd  their  young  bosoms  with  seed  in  their  youth. 
With  reason,  benevolence,  virtue  and  truth,       [sown, 
And  on  the  same  ground  where  the  choice  wheat  was 
The  tare  by  the  tongue  of  the  serpent  was  thrown. 
'Tis  plain  to  be  seen  thus  the  heart  is  the  ground 
Where  truth  and  deception  are  both  to  be  found; 
These  are  the  two  seeds  which  the  human  heart  bears, 
And  all  that  is  meant  by  the  Wheat  and  the  Tares. 
The  servants  of  old  saw  not  in  their  day, 
Kow  God  his  great  goodness  to  man  would  convey; 
They  saw  not  the  depth  of  that  wonderous  Flan 
Which  wisdom  hath  drawn  for  the  welfare  of  man. 

The  servant  saw  tares  with  the  wheat  bearing  fruit, 
Said,  Let  us  go  pull  up  each  Tare  by  the  root;— 
The  mild  voice  of  wisdom  said,  no,  forbear, 
Lest  that,  by  so  doing,  the  wheat  you  Impair: 
Let  both  grow  together  till  ripe  in  the  field, 
That  man  may  partake  of  W\^  fruits,  they  both  yield. 
That  by  their  effects  he  may  well  ascertain  [pain. 

That  truth  yields  him  pleasure,  while  falsehood  yields 


Man  early  imbibed  false  notions  of  God; 
Supposed  him  a  tyrant,  and  vengeful  his  rod; 
The  hand  ol  tradition,  e'er  since  man  begun 
Hath  borne  the  delusion  from  father  to  son  : 
The  Father  of  Mercy  His  bosom  unfurled, 
Sent  Christ  to  bear  witness  of  Him  to  the  world; 
Invested  with  virtue  and  wisdom  to  prove 
That  God  is  eternal,  unchangeable  love. 

The  Jews  disbelieved  and  quickly  began 
To  seek  the  sweet  life  of  that  innocent  Man; 
Condemned  him  unjustly  to  hang  on  the  tree. 
And  beai  the  keen  anguish  of  death's  agony; 
The  earth  was  convulsed,  her  bosom  distressed. 
The  Heavens  in  mourning  appeared  to  be  dress'd 
The  Stars  and  palama,  and  Sol's  rolling  flame. 
All  sank  from  beholding  the  death  of  the  Lamb. 

His  healing  the  sick,  his  raising  the  dead, 

His  feeding  the  hungry  with  meat,  drink  and  bread, 

His  casting  out  devils,  restoring  the  blind, 

All  prove  Him  who  sent  him  a  Friend  to  mankind. 

The  love  that  inspired  him,  whilst  he  was  on  Earth, 

Was   stronger,  ten    thousand    times  stronger    than 

death ; 
Love  prompted  to  finish  the  task  that  was  given. 
Raised  from  the  dead  to  the  mansions  of  heaven. 

By  this  we  discover  that  mankind  shall  have 
A  lasting  existence  beyond  the  cold  grave; 
Removed  from  a  state  of  corruption  like  this. 
To  dwell  in  perfection's  soft  bosom  of  bliss,— 
The  Old  Dispensation  pass'd  oflf  and  the  New 
Unveiled  a  scene  of  bright  glory  to  view; 
The  banner,  bright  banner,  of  truth  was  unfurled, 
The  Ensign  of  Peace  and  good  will  to  the  World. 

The  harvest  appeared,  the  fields  were  all  white. 

The  reapers  came  forth  at  the  first  dawn  of  Light; 

The  reapers  are  those  whom  our  God  doth  inspire, 

To  gather  up  falsehood  and  burn  it  with  fire: 

The  Spirit  of  Truth  is  the  sickle  so  keen, 

The  luminous  flame  is  the  Aire  which  we  mean; 

The  temple  of  friendship  and  love  is  the  i)lace 

For  the  mind,  when  refined, ^of  the  whole  human  race. 

[We  have  but  a  few  papers  more  in 
hand  as  yet  for  this  town.  We  have  re- 
quested a  full  second  chapter  for  Barre, 
especially  in  regard  to  the  early  settlers, 
and  think  to  have  it  for  the  supplementary 
part  of  our  next  volume ;  and  there  will 
also  be  space  in  the  supplement  for  mat- 
ters of  interest  in  other  towns  of  this 
County,  not  yet  included  ;  and  every  party 
who  may  have  such  facts  or  papers  to  con- 
tribute are  invited  to  send  them  in,  either 
through  their  town  historian,  or  directly  to 
the  editor  in  the  course  of  the  next  few 
months.  We  have  arranged  our  papers 
beyond  for  this  volume.  We  can  only  now 
fill  a  few  more  pages  :  but  anon,  if,  as  we 
look  for,  we  are  helped  to  complete  our 
record  for  the  Gazetteer,  we  will  have  the 
history  of  the  Barre  circuit  and  the  Meth- 
odist church  promised  by  Rev.  J.  R.  Bart- 
lett ;  and  papers  for  other  towns.] 


920 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL   MAGAZINE. 


Berlin. — A  song  found  in  the  carpet- 
bag of  the  late  Maj.  R.  B.  Crandall.  It  is 
a  piece  of  more  than  usual  merit,  and  the 
premonition  of  his  own  death  in  the  last 
verse,  must  be  touching  to  all  the  friends 
of  this  gallant  and  accomplished  officer  : 

THE  WHITE-CROSS   BANNER. 

BY  MAJ.  K.  B.  CRANDALL, 

Huzza  for  the  Banner  that  bears  the  White  Cross  1 
Huzza  for  the  Flag  ever  foremost  in  fight.' 

On  tlie  storm-tide  of  battle  it  ever  shall  toss. 
Till  the  foes  who  oppose  it  are  scattered  in  flight. 

The  soldiers  who  follow  the  Banner  of  Light 
Are  true  in  devotion  and  strangers  to  fear; 

For  God  and  for  Country,  for  Union  and  Right, 
They  will  fight  to  the  last,  and  then  die  with  a  cheer. 

OhI  many's  the  time  in  the  good  Jays  of  yore 
When  the  Cross,  all  resplendent  in  glory,  hath  shone, 

But  never  since  Christ  it  to  Calvary  bore. 
Hath  it  emblemed  a  cause  more  true  than  our  own. 

Young  sister,  art  thou,  O,  Banner,  war-born. 
To  our  country's  proud  ensign,  the  cherislied  star- 
flag; 
Our  affection  for  both  is  only  less  warm 
Than  the  hate  that  we  feel  for  the  South's  dastard 
rag. 
Brigade  of  Vermont,  dost  remember  the  d.iy 
When  on  Marye's  stern  heights,  through  smoke  and 
the  gloom. 
How  the  Cross,  on  its  bright  field  of  blue,  flashed  its 
way — 
Our  hope  amid  death,  but  to  traitors  a  doom. 

Brave  sons  of  New  York,  and  ye  strong  men  of  Maine, 

How  many  a  dying  eye  has  been  turned 
From  your  ranks  to  that  flag  which,  through  glory  and 
pain. 
You  followed,  tho'  lightnings  of  death  'round  you 
blazed. 

Oh!  patriot  hearts,  that  have  throbbed  by  our  side, 
As  we've  followed  that  flag   on  fierce  tields  full  a 
score ! 

Oh!  glorious  hearts,  that  have  bled  and  then  died, 
Your  comrades  are  bearing  that  flag  as  of  yore. 

OhI  cause,  that  is  worthy  of  lives  such  as  these. 
Oh:  cause,  that  is  worthy  of  all  we  can  give. 

We  swear  to  uphold  thee;  tho'  rivers  and  seas 
Shall  pour  from  our  veins,  the  Republic  shall  live. 

Then  anew  gird  your  loins,  shake  out  to  the  sun 
The  bonnie  blue  flag,  the  White  Cross  adorning; 

Sound  the  clarions  of  war,  be  the  battle  begun. 
And  the  night  of  our  land  shall  be  changed  into 
morning. 

But,  oh!  if  I  fall  in  a  cause  so  sublime, 

I  shall  join  the  brave  souls  that  already  have  bled; 
Tell  parents  and  friends  to  let  the  bells  chime 

In  slow,  plaintive  strains  for  her  sons  that  are  dead. 

Brandy  Station,  Mar.  7,  1864. 

[The  bat  tie-flag  of  the  2d  division,  6  th  corps,  the  field 
Is  of  l)lue,  with  a  white  cross  in  the  center.] 

[The  Song  was  set  to  music  by  N.  L.  Phillips  of 
Barre,  some  16  or  18  yrs.  since.  Mr.  Phillips,  noticed  in 
Montpelier  history,  page  591,  is  a  musical  composer; 
has  written  several  songs  and  ballads,  no  notice  of 
whom  in  Barre,  this  volume,  is  one  of  the  omissions 
there  to  be  yet  redeemed.] 


Cabot. — The  foliovvlhg  legacies  have 
been  left  to  the  Congregational  church  in 
this  town  for  the  support  of  preaching  and 
incidental  expenses:  i866,  Nathaniel  Co- 
burn,  $500;  1867,  John  R.  Putnam,  $100, 
Dea.  Edward  G.  Haines,  $200,  A.  P. 
Perry,  $400,  Ira  Fisher,  $600. 

CALAIS  POEMS. 

INCIDENTS   IN  THE   HISTORY  OF  VERMONT. 

Written,  and  sung  by  J.  M.  Dana,  a  long  time  resi- 
dent of  this  town,  before  the  Freemen  of  Calais, 
Sept.  1,  1840. 

Air:— "'We'll  settle  on  the  Banks  of  the  Ohio." 


When  our  fathers  left  their  native  climes  and  came 
among  these  hills. 

They  were  pleased  with  these  green  mountains  with 
the  values  and  the  rills; 

They  began  to  settle  here,  a  hundred  years  ago  or 
more. 

Yes,  Fort  Dumnier  sure  was  built  in  seventeen  hun- 
dred and  twenty  four. 

In  seventeen  hundred  and  twenty  fou:. 
Fort  Dummer  was  the  door; 

Vermont  was  not  then  known  in  seventeen  hundred 
and  twenty  four. 

To  these  hills  so  green  and  pretty.  New  Hampshire 

laid  a  claim ; 
And  she  made  large  grants  of  land  to  the  settlers  of 

the  same. 
But  New  York  conceiving  she  had  the  better  right  to 

sell, 
Began  contending  with  New  Hampshire,  and  the  issue 

is  to  tell. 

Yes,  the  story  is  to  tell- 
How  the  savages  did  yell — 
And  how  many  lives  they  took  where  we  peaceably 

now  dwell. 

To  the  English  crown  the  parties  referred  the  case  for 
time. 

Decision  formed  York  East  unto  the  Connecticut  line 

But  New  York  was  still  dissatisfied  and  called  out  her 
men — 

And  the  future  State  turned  out  under  ETHAN  AL- 
LEN then. 

Under  Ethan  Allen  then. 

They  would  face  the  Lion's  deu; 

The  green  mountain  boys  were  noted  for  their  strength 
and  courage  then. 

I,  Ethan  Allen,  ask  of  you   Ticonderoga"s  Fort, 

'  By  what  authority  your  claim,'  to  him  was  the  re- 
tort; 

'  In  the  name  of  the  Great  Jehovah  and  of  Congress'  I 
am  sent. 

We  surrender  then  to  you  and  our  massacre  prevent, 
Yes,  our  massacre  prevent. 
Not  because  our  powder  's  spent. 

But  because  of  those  green-mountain  boys  that  Con- 
gress has  you  sent. 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


921 


In  seventeen  hundred  eigh'y,  tliree  hundred  persons 

mostly  blacked 
Commenced    tlie   work    of    plunder  and     Royalton 

attack'ed. — 
They  killed  all  their  cattle,  with  all  their  sheep  and 

hogs, 
Burnt  buildings  and  made  captives,— Oh,  what  cruel, 

saucy  dogs! 

Yes  ,wliat  cruel  saucy  dogs, 
Vermont  lias  no  such  rogues. 
But  we  met  the  same  at  Plattsburgh  and  they  're  all 

beneath  the  sods. 

They  had  no  form  of  government  among  the  hills  of 
yore. 

But  the  hard  fists  of  the  yankees  which  their  foes  could 
never  bear; 

In  seventeen  hundred  seventy  seven  their  first  conven- 
tion cut 

An   independent  government,  and  made  their  first 
debut. 

Yes,  they  made  their  first  debut, 
Called  New  Connecticut, 

And  sometimes  it's  called  Vermont  from  tlie  green  hills 
and  the  hut. 

The  green  mountain  State  Vermont  had  four  claims 

upon  it  now, 
Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  said  she  must  unto 

them  bow; 
New  York  also  said  then  her  claim,  should  not  abate. 
But  Vermonters  said  unto  New  York  we  think  you'd 

better  wait, — 

Yes,  we  think  you'd  better  wait 
And  secure  a  better  fate, 
Than  to  meet  old  Ethan  Allen  here,  for  then  'twill  be 

too  late. 

'  He's  the  bravest  of  the  brave,— he  asks  nothing  but 
tlie  right. 

And  if  refused  his  honest  claim,  he's  ready  then  to 
figlit;' 

While  thus  he  aided  government,green-mountain  boys 
were  true. 

They  were  fighting  some  at  Guilford  and  at  Benning- 
ton for  you, — 

Yes,  at  Bennington  from  you 
The  British  soldiers  flew. 

These  green  mountaiu  boys  there  beat  ihem,  and  700 
of  them  slew. 

In  seventeen  hundred  eighty,  an  attempt  was  made 

to  bring 
Vermonters  to  the  British  rule  and  subject  to  the  king, 
While  Allen,  joined  with  VVarner,  negociated  well. 
How  these  heroes  cheated  Briton  then  remains  as  yet 

to  tell,— 

But  I'm  now  about  to  tell 
When  my  Lord  Cornwallis  fell. 
These  hill-boys  thought  their  home-made  laws  would 

suit  them  quite  as  well. 

Have  you  ever  seen  the  man  who  drew  his  goods  him- 
self by  hand. 
From  Montpelier  into  Calais  and  the  first  beginning 

planned. 
He  still  resides  in  town  much  respected  by  us  all. 
His  name  Abijah  Wheelock  the  first  settler  we  call, — 
The  first  settler  we  call. 
But  this  is  not  quite  all, — 
An  honest  man  we  think  he  is  as  any  since  the  fall. 

His  wife  came  in  on  snow-shoes  eleven  miles  or  more. 
The  snow  from  two  to  three  leet  deep,  and  some  say 
even  four, 


With  an  infant  in  her  arms  and  some  other  luggage  too, 
A  task  which  few  young  women  now  in  town  have 
strength  to  do. 

No,  they  have  not  strength  to  do 
What  their  mothers  did  pursue 
In  the  good  old  fashioned  days  of  yore  which  time 
takes  our  view. 

In  seventeen  hundred  eighty  nine  new  Vermont  agreed 

to  pay. 
Thirty  thousand  dollars  cash  from  New  York  to  get 

away ; 
She  became  an  independent  State,  our  Union  then 

began. 
She  was  voted  such  by  Congress  seventeen  hundred 

ninety  one— 

In  seventeen  hundred  ninety  one. 
With  Chittenden  her  son, 
Vermont  assumed  her  place  in  seventeen  hundred 

ninety  one. 

In  seventeen  hundred  and  ninety  one  the  roads  were 

very  poor, 
Thro'  the  woods  on  foot  we  traveled  with  our  marked 

trees  on  before. 
But  when  winters's  snows  came  on,  say  four  feet  or 

more  it  fell. 
Such  music  with  the  deer  we  had  as  no  one  now  can 

tell,— 

No  there's  no  one  now  can  tell. 
How  the  hounds  would  scream  and  yell. 
When  they  drove  their  game  up  to  us  and  at  our  feet 

it  fell. 

Vermont's  first  Inhabitants  ahardy  set  of  men, 
Hewed  the  lofty  maples  down  with  some  fighting  now 

and  tlieu ; 
Their  wives  would  use  the  sickle  and  the  rake  when  in 

the  field. 
And  the  husbands  oftentimes  to   the  women  had  to 

yield,— 

Yes,  the  husbands  had  to  yield. 
(Not  for  work  done  in  the  field,) 
But  the  number  of  the  skeins  of  yarn  their  wives  quite 

often  reeled. 

In  the  good  old  days  of  pumpkin  pies  and  checkered 

aprons  too. 
The  farmers  wore  their  home-spun  coats,  and  linen 

frocks  would  do, 
The  women  made  their  cloth  so  stout  'twas  not  called 

poor  or  thin. 
And  'twas  really  entertaining,  to  see  them  card  and 

spin,— 

Yes,  to  see  them  card  and  spin, 
Mid  their  weaving,  warping  din, 
01  the  times  gone  by  have  charmed  me,  so  I  wish 

they'd  come  again. 

Great  Britain's  on  our  north,  yet  we  never  mean  to 

fear. 
On  the  East  a  sister  State  known  as  Granite  New 

Hampshire, 
On  the  South  is  Massachusetts  and  New  York  is  on  the 

West, 
But  ot  all  the  States  around  her  Vermont  is  still  the 

best,— 

Yes,  Vermont  is  still  the  best, 
For  in  evergreen  she's  drest. 
Like  the  country  maid  with  milk,  green  becomes  us 

much  the  best. 

Sir  Geo.  Prevost  at  Plattsburgh,  tho'  in  a  sister  state, 
Said  Vermont  has  sent  her  boys  to  fight,  deteat  Is  sure 
our  fate. 


116 


922 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


To  his  fourteen  thousand  men  he  sai'l  we  leave  this 

ground  of  Platts, 
Don't  you  see  them  Vermont  boys  have  come  with 
green  sprigs  in  tlieir  liats, — 

With  green  sprigs  in  their  hats, 
They  're  ready  for  combats, 
I  had  ratlier  fight  tlie  devil  tlian  tliese  Vermont  demo- 
crats. 

Commodore  Downle  now  came  up  for  battle  but  in 

vain, 
McDonough  whipped  blm  well   on  our  little  Lake 

Champlain. 
He  made  for  home  'tis  hoped  and  has  not  again  been 

seen. 
Since  the  eleventh  of  September,  eighteen  hundred 

and  fourteen, — 

In  eighteen  hundred  and  fourteen, 
A  treaty  made  between, 
Stop'd  our  fighting  on  the  water  and  our  merchantmen 

are  seen. 

Tlie  many  ponds  in  Vermont  are  well  stored  with  fish, 
You  can  take  the  salmon  trout  or  the  pickerel  if  you 

wish. 
Should  you  prefer  the  scaly  perch,  the  sucker  or  the 

dace. 
You  can  take  a  back-load  of  tliem  out  almost  at  any 

place,— 

Yes,  almost  at  any  place. 
If  you've  the  fishing  grace 
If  not  you  may  not  have  a  bite  'twill  alter  some  the 

case. 

Our  farmers  cultivate  the  soil  not  as  they  did  of  old. 
For  then  they  could  not  get  such  plows  as  in  Vermont 

are  sold. 
The  hoe,  the  horse-rake,  spring-steel  fork,  the  scythe, 

the  snath,  the  ax. 
We  have,  and  when  we  use  them  well  a  good  round 

price  we  tax,— 

Yes,  a  good  round  price  we  tax. 
For  to  none  we  turn  our  backs. 
In  the  chopping,  mowing,  pitching  line,  we're  speaking 

now  of  facts. 

Just  one  word  more  we  wish  to  say  should  you  pass 

thro'  the  State, 
You'll  find  these  tough  Vermouters  work  both  early, 

sure  and  late. 
But  if  one  calls  to  see  our  friends  from  distance  or  near 

home. 
The  best  they  have  enough  of  it— you're  welcome  when 

j'ou  come. 

Yes,  you're  welcome  when  you  come, 
We're  not  disposed  to  gum. 
We'll  take  some  good  old  cider  now— my  friend,  won  t 

you  have  some? 

The  happiest  people  In  the  world  on  Vermont  hills 

are  found. 
Their  charity  begins  at  home,  extends  to  all  around, 
[Should  fortune  smile  or  even  frown  or  trouble  ere 

confront,] 
On  these  green  hills  there  is  a  balm  you'll  find  It  In 
Vermont, 

You'll  find  it  in  Vermont, 
The  green  mountain  state  Vermont, 
Spontaneously  it  grows  among  the  green  hills  of  Ver- 
mont. 

[See  Woodbury,  pp.  882,  883.] 


MEMORIAL. 

BY   MKS.    lUKNE   D.    DWINELL. 

An  elegy  on  the  death  of  Sergeant  Wy- 
MAN  R.  BuRNAP,  who  died  of  wounds  re- 
received  in  battle,  Sept.  21,  1.864. 

To  free  our  country  from  the  tyrant's  thrall, 
We  mourn  to-day  a  patriot  brave; 

To  lift  from  oflf  her  face  that  dark'ning  pall. 
Has  made  for  him  that  soldier's  grave. 

Full  oft  that  voice  in  "  gone-by  "  days 
Has  thrilled  the  sense  to  concord  sweet; 

Those  brightened  hours,  in  after  lays. 
The  soldier's  tent  no  more  may  greet. 

To  thee,  dear'Lord,  the  costly  sacrifice. 

We  yield  our  brother,  child  and  friend; 
Where  "dust  to  dust  "  now  sleeping  lies, 
Let  holy  angels  guard  and  tend. 
East  Calais,  Jan.  1, 1865. 

AP.IJAH  WHEELOCK, 
[by  JULIUS  S.  WHEELOCK,   OF  BERLIN.] 

was  born  in  Charlton,  Mass.,  in  1764.  He 
was  a  son  of  David  Wheelock,  who  was 
one  of  the  original  proprietors  of  Calais. 
He  gave  his  son  Abijah  a  deed  of  lot 
No.  I,  in  the  second  division  of  the  town- 
ship of  Calais,  dated  Charlton,  Mass., 
April  17,  1788.  David  Wheelock  was  a 
son  of  Benjamin,  son  of  Benjamin,  son  of 
Ralph,  who  was  born  in  Wales  County, 
Salop,  in  1600;  was  educated  at  Cam- 
bridge University,  where  he  took  his  de- 
grees in  1626  and  31  ;  came  to  this  coun- 
try in  1637;  first  located  at  Watertown, 
Mass.,  but  removed  in  1638  to  that  part  of 
Dedham  which  became  Medfield.  He 
represented  Dedham  in  1639  and  40;  was 
made  clerk  of  the  court  in  1642,  in  place  of 
Edward  Allyen,  deceased ;  was  the  first 
representative  of  Medfield,  in  1653,  63,  4, 
and  6 ;  was  the  father  of  Benjamin,  Sam- 
uel, Record,  Experience,  Gersham  and 
Eleazer,  and  perhaps  others.  He  died  Jan. 
II,  1684. 

Eleazer  was  the  father  of  the  2d  Ralph, 
born  in  1682,  who  was  the  father  of  Rev. 
Eleazar,  founder  and  first  president  of 
Dartmouth  college.  Ralph  Wheelock  was 
the  father  of  the  race  of  that  name  in  this 
country,  as  there  is  no  record  of  any  other 
one  coming  to  this  country  between  1620 
and  1693,  when  emigration  to  New  Eng- 
land stopped,  when  William  and  Mary  as- 
cended to  the  throne  of  England. 


COUNTY  PAPERS  AND  ITEMS. 


923 


MISS   ELLEN   O.    PECK, 

"  daughter  of  the  late  Addison  Peck,  of  East 
Montpelier,  has  become  an  industrious 
contributor  to  the  '  Cottage  Hearth,' 
Boston,  'New  England  Journal  of  Edu- 
cation," 'Mrs.  Slade\s  Magazine'  and 
'  Good  Times.'  Among  her  press  ar- 
ticles may  be  named  '  The  Early  Home 
of  Governor  Peck,'  and  of  her  poems,  her 
poetical  address  read  before  the  alumni  of 
the  Vermont  Methodist  Seminary,  1876." 
We  hope  to  receive  "  The  Early  Home  of 
Gov.  Peck,"  etc.,  with  other  papers  from 
East  Montpelier,  for  the  general  supple- 
ment.— Ed. 

SEPTEMBER   SUNSET. 

BY  MISS  MARY  E.  DAVIS. 

Lo!  the  evening  spreads  her  banners 

In  the  far  and  radiant  west. 
Where  the  crimson  feet  of  sunset 

Linger  on  the  mountain's  crest; 
Wliile  llie  sun,  that  sliiuing  monarch, 

Of  the  fast  departing  day. 
Gathers  up  liis  robe  of  glory 

While  he  passes  thus  away. 

Back  upon  the  sky  of  azure 

Steals  a  bright  and  rosy  hue. 
Fringing  all  those  clouds  of  purple. 

Sailing  through  the  boundless  blue; 
And  far  east,  where  blushing  morning 

Breaks  the  silver  glow  of  night, 
Even  there  the  snow-white  cloudlets 

Catch  the  melting,  trembling  light. 

Wliile  o'er  plain  and  wood  majestic, 
Touched  with  Autumn's  "mellow beam," 

And  the  hills,  still  bright  with  verdure, 
Rising  'mid  the  vales  serene. 

As  I  watch  the  radiance  glowing 

All  around  my  cherished  home, 
Thoughts  of  wonder,  thoughts  adoring. 

Thrilling  o'er  my  spirit  come. 
01  if  earth  may  wear  such  beauty — 

Earth  so  stained  with  crime  and  siu. 
What  must  be  that  glorious  City, 

Where  no  sin  can  enter  in. 

Miss  Davis  was  born  in  Plainfield,  this 
county,  but  now,  and  has  for  many  years 
past  resided  at  East  Montpelier,  and 
we  reserved,  when  we  compiled  the  paper 
for  the  Montpeliers,  a  notice  of  her  and 
her  poetical  volume,  except  the  brief  notice 
in  Mr.  Gilman's  bibliography  for  Mont- 
pelier, for  Plainfield,  which  in  making  up 
Plainfield  we  overlooked  till  too  late,  but 
for  a  closing  note.  The  above  lines,  sent 
to  us  some  years  since  by  the  author, 
are  all  that  we  now  have  in  hand  of  her 
writings. — Ed. 


UNDER   THE  APPLE   BOUGHS. 

BY  EDNA  M.  SNoWS. 

He  lies  'neath  the  spreading  apple  boughs, 

My  little  brother  Jim; 
No  care  from  the  busy  world  around 

Casts  its  shadow  over  him. 
The  golden  sheeu  of  his  tangled  curls 

'Mid  the  clover  blossoms  gleams; 
He  Is  floating  out,  on  the  tide  of  sleep, 

To  the  happy  sea  of  dreams. 

Dreaming  there,  with  his  bare,  brown  feet 

Kissed  by  the  August^sun; 
I  think  of  the  brave  and  earnest  paths 

Our  little  boy  may  run — 
Toilsome  and  rough  to  the  idle  throng 

Who  shrink  from  the  summer's  beat; 
Of  noble  toil  for  those  who  tread 

AVlth  true  and  patient  feet. 

I  know  there  are  snares  for  heedless  steps 

In  the  luring  haunts  of  sin; 
There's  fruit  so  fair  to  the  passing  gaze, 

But  ashes  and  dust  within. 
And  I  kiss  the  sleeper's  trustlul  lips, 

With  a  swift  and  silent  prayer 
That  the  God  of  his  childhood's  love  and  faith 

Be  his  leader  everywhere. 

— Prom  "  The  Little  Corporal.'''' 


EMERY    G.    JUDKINS,  M.  D., 

[FROM  OBITUARY  BY  S.  A.  SABIN.] 

Died  in  Waitsfield,  June  29,  of  diphtheria, 
after  a  sickness  of  but  5  days,  aged  33. 
He  was  born  in  Unity,  N.  H.,  received  his 
early  education  in  this  town,  was  appoint- 
ed at  19  to  the  United  States  Coast  Sur- 
vey, and  served  one  year  under  Capt.  Cram. 
He  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Nathaniel 
Tolls,  of  this  town,  and  graduated  at 
Dartmouth  College  in  1852,  one  of  the  first 
in  his  class.  He  immediately  received  an 
appointment  in  the  Hospital  at  Blackwell's 
Island,  where  he  remained  one  year,  when 
he  returned  to  this  town,  and  entered  upon 
the  practice  of  his  profession;  in  1861, 
was  appointed  acting  assistant  surgeon  in 
the  United  States  Navy,  and  served  in  that 
capacity  until  the  spring  of  1862,  when  he 
removed  to  Waitsfield,  where  he  had  an 
extensive  practice  and  many  friends,  and 
will  be  remembered  by  many.  Having 
known  Dr.  Judkins  from  early  youth,  and 
having  been  for  several  years  most  inti- 
mately connected,  the  writer  feels  by  his 
death  he  has  lost  a  valuable  friend,  and 
the  medical  profession  an  honorable  mem- 
ber.    He  leaves  a  young  wife. 


924 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


MEMORIES. 
BY  MRS.  LAURA  BRIGHAM  BOYCE. 

From  our  historian  of  Fayston  to  her 
sister,  Mrs.  Sarah  Brigham  Mansfield,  our 
historian  of  Roxbury,  on  the  occasion  of 
her  silver  wedding,  celebrated  at  Roxbury 
a  few  years  since.  Mrs.  Boyce  and  Mrs. 
Mansfield  being  the  only  two  sister  his- 
torians in  the  Gazetteer,  we  will  thus  give 
to  them  the  compliment  of  the  closing 
column  in  this  County. 

Are  you  thinking  to-night,  O  sister  mine. 

Of  the  years  so  long  ago  ? 
Of  the  visions  that  danced  in  your  merry  head 
As  we  lay  at  night  in  tlie  trun<ile  bed? 
Of  the  tales  we  told  as  we  sank  to  rest, 
"With  our  heads  upon  our  pillow  pressed? 

In  such  rest  as  children  know : 

Are  you  thinking  to-night,  O  sister  mine, 

Of  the  old  white  rock  on  the  lea? 
Where  we  "  kept  house  "  in  the  summer  days, — 
Went "  visiting  "  with  such  old,  old  ways, 
One  would  have  deemed  we  were  grand-dames  sure. 
With  faces  drawn  in  such  look  demure. 

While  eyes  danced  in  hidden  glee. 

Are  you  thinking  to-night,  O  sister  mine, 

Of  the  orchard,  and  its  spring. 
With  its  sparkling  water  pure  and  cold? 
The  mossy  green  that  its  banks  enfold, 
And  the  "  spring  tree  "  bending  o'er  it  too, 
As  if  its  shadow  it  loved  to  view. 

Like  a  vain  and  girlish  thing. 

Are  you  thinking  to-night,  O  sister  mine, 

Ot  the  happy  autumn  days? 
When  we  gathered  apples  in  merry  glee 
From  the  spreading  boughs  of  the  white  "  full  tree,' 
'Neath  the  old  "  stoop-tree"  that  bent  so  low, 
And  that  was  Sarah's  tree,  you  know; 

While  only  a  little  ways 

Above  it  stood  our  "  Mother's  tree  "; 
The  white  •'  full  tree  "  is  living  to-day. 
And  "  Mother's  tree  "  will  blossom  in  May? 
But  where  are  now  that  merry  band. 
Who  gathered  fruit  with  dextrous  hand. 

And  laughed  in  their  childish  glee? 

Scattered  and  sundered  far  and  wide ! 
Broad  lakes  and  prairies  lie  between, 
Those  wanderers  and  the  mountains  green. 
And  in  the  churchyard  'neath   the  hill 
Others  are  lying  pale  and  still 

In  their  cold  graves  side  by  side. 

And  now  of  all  that  merry  crew 
We  three,  alas  I  arc  left  hei-e  alone; 
And  we  so  staid  and  sober  have  grown. 
That  we  scarce  remember  the  wild  ways 
We  had  in  our  childhood's  olden  days. 

Nor  half  of  the  pranks  we  knew. 

Ah  well!  timefliesl  proverbial  of  truth; 
And  twenty-five  years  have  borne  away 
Some  friends  who  loved  us  in  youth's  bright  day; 
Summer  is  ne'er  what  the  springtime  seemed— 
The  hopes  we  cherished,  the  dreams  we  dreamed. 

Are  gone  with  our  vanished  youth. 


We  are  growing  old,  O  sister  mine! 
There  are  lines  of  care  on  cheek  and  brow, 
And  children  who  call  us  mother  now 
Are  more  like  the  selves  we  used  to  be 
Twenty-flve  years  ago.  than  you  or  me 

As  we  are  to-day  in  look  or  sign. 

How  the  time  goes  on!  but  yesterday 
As  it  seems  to  me  since  you  were  w  ed — 
'Tis  twenty-flve  years!  where  have  they  fled? 
We  have  hardly  marked  them  in  their  flight, 
Yet  by  this  festive  scene  to-night 

We  know  they  have  passed  away. 

And  so  the  years  must  still  go  on. 
And  may  your  years  that  lie  before 
Have  joy  and  love  and  peace  in  store ; 
May  Heaven's  rich  blessings  on  you  rest. 
And  all  your  coming  years  be  blest 

Till  your  last  year  is  done. 

REV.  WILLIAM   SCALES, 

died  in  Lyndon,  Jan.  24,  1864,  aged  58 
years,  3  months  and  27  days.  He  was  a 
son  of  William  and  Rebecca  CSmith) 
Scales,  and  was  born  in  Lebanon,  N.  H., 
Sept.  28,  1805.  In  early  life  he  removed 
to  Cabot,  and  was  there  brought  up.  He  was 
graduated  at  Middlebury  in  1832,  and  im- 
mediately entered  the  Seminary  at  Ando- 
ver,  but  in  1835,  he  left,  on  account  of  ill 
health,  and  spent  about  two  years  princi- 
pally in  teaching ;  then  returning  to  the 
Seminary,  he  was  graduated  in  1837. 

His  first  settlement  was  at  Lyndon, 
where  he  wns  ordained  pastor  Dec.  27, 
1837.  Rev.  Chester  Wright  of  Hardwick, 
preached  the  sermon.  He  was  dismissed 
June  16,  1841,  and  went  immediately  to 
Rochester,  where,  after  two  years  of  ser- 
vice as  stated  supply,  he  was  installed  July 
12,  1843.  Rev.  James  Meacham  of  New 
Haven,  who  had  been  his  classmate  at 
Middlebury,  preached  the  sermon.  From 
this  pastorate  he  was  dismissed  Aug.  3, 
1847.  He  then  became  stated  supply  of  the 
Congregational  Church  in  Brownington, 
being  at  the  same  time  preceptor  of  the 
academy  at  that  place.  Here  he  remained 
4  years.  In  the  fall  of  185 1,  he  removed 
to  Conneaut,  Ohio,  and  there  remained, 
sometimes  teaching  and  sometimes  preach- 
ing, till  May,  1855,  when  he  returned  to 
Lyndon,  and  became  stated  supply.  He 
continued  in  that  relation  till  his  death, 
with  an  interruption  of  2  or  3  years  by  pro- 
tracted ill  health.  The  last  sermon  he  de- 
livered was  from  Deut.  30  :  19 ;  a  text  which 
his  subsequent  short  sickness  and  death 
rendered  singularly  appropriate.      P.  H.  w. 


CONTENTS.  925 


CONTENTS. 


Washington  County  Introductory  Chapter.— By  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham,  i — 
23 ;  Randall  Paper,  16-18. 

BARRE. 

Carpenter  Papers. — Early  History,  23,  24;  Town  Officers,  Col.  Benjamin 
Walker,  Maj.  Nathan  Harrington,  Hon.  James  Fisk,  Hon.  Warren  Ellis,  Dea.  Jonas 
Nichols,  Capt.  Joseph  Watson,  Hon.  Denison  Smith,  Denison  K.  Smith,  27-31. 

Chas.  a.  Smith  Papers,  Barre  Academy,  The  National  Bank,  Norman  W. 
Braley,  M.  D.,  24,  25  ;  Masonic  papers,  (by  or  from)  yj ,  38  ;  The  first  Granite  shop 
in  Barre,  39;  Soldiers  of  1861,  43-47. 

Priest  Paper. — Goddard  Seminary,  26,  27. 

Bliss  Paper. — The  Universalist  Church,  Rev.  Wm.  Farwell,  Rev.  John  E. 
Palmer,  30,  31. 

Wood  Papers. — Early  business.  Roads,  Stage  coaches  and  old  time  teams; 
Stock  and  farming.  Early  postmasters.  First  merchants.  Hotels,  Landlords,  Promi- 
nent men.  Dr.  Paddock,  Dr.  Van  Sicklen,  Dr.  jjurnham.  Lawyers,  Soil,  Game,  Barre 
Village,  Cemetery,  Library,  Newspapers,  Manufacturers,  Fire  Company,  Cornet  Band, 
Barre  Boys  West,  Longevity,  Old  people,  31-37;  Plattsburgh  Company,  Barre  Com- 
pany Volunteers  in  the  war  of  1812,  41,  42  ;    Judge  Chapin  Keith  and  Family,  47-49. 

Carleton  Paper,  40. 

William  Clark,  William  A.  Dodge,  40,  41. 

Holden  Papers. — Town  Officers,  38 ;   Safford  &  Holden  Mf'g  Co.,  51. 

E.  L.  Smith  Paper. — Barre  Quarries,  38,  39. 

Parker  Paper. — Quarry  and  works,  39. 

Claflin  Paper. — War  Report,  42. 

D.  P.  Thompson  Paper. — Calvin  J.  Keith,  47,  48. 

Watchman  Paper. — Joshua  Twing,  48,  49. 

Cogswell  Paper,  49. 

Bartlett  Paper. — List  of  M.  E.  Preachers  in  Barre,  51. 

Telegraph  Office. — Samuel  Goodell,  52. 

Crosby  Paper. — Johonnott  Family  Geneology,  917. 

Palmer. — Hymn,  919. 

BERLIN. 

Nye  Papers. — First  Things,  Dr.  Heaton,  Dr.  Jacob  Miller,  Dr.  John  Winslow, 
Dr.  Orin  Smith,  54;  Jacob  Fowler,  Hezekiah  Silloway,  Hon.  Salvin  Collins,  John 
Taplin,  Capt.  James  Hobart,  55-57 ;  Zachariah  Perrin,  Eleazer  Hubbard,  David, 
Elijah  and  Solomon  Nye,  Joshua  Bailey,  Capt.  James  Sawyer,  Jabez  Ellis,  William 
Flagg,  Jacob  Black,  Capt.  James  Sawyer,  Jabez  Ellis,  Capt.  Daniel  Taylor,  Capt.  Jas. 
Pearley,  Stephen  Pearson,  Joel  Warren,  Abel  Knapp,  Major  Jones,  Major  Benjamin, 
Elisha  Andrews,  Safford  Cummings,  Col.  Johnson,  57-60  ;  Simeon,  W^m.,  Israel,  Henry 
Dewey,  Dea.  Cummings,  Russell  Strong,  Nathaniel  and  Dea.  Jonathan  Bosworth,Asa 
Andrews,  Joseph  Arbuckle,  Porter,  Rev.  VVm.,  Rev.  Truman,  Geo.  K.,  Henry  M.,  Porter 
K.  and  Wm.  B.  Perrin,  Chauncey  L.  Knapp,  Judge  J.  C.  Knapp,  Chauncey  Nye,  Rev. 
G.  C.  Moore,  60-64;  Congregational  Church,  Rev.  James  Hobart,  Rev.  Austin  Hazen, 
64-66;  Methodist  Church,''67  ;  Soldiers  of  1812,  1861  ;  Major  Crandall,  68  ;  Hon.  D.  P. 
Thompson,  69;  Great  Wolf  Hunt,  70;  Berlin  Pond,  72;  Henry  Luther  Stuart,  Hon. 
Chas  I3ulkley,  ^jt^-^  Berlin  Street,  Stevens'  Branch,  Dog  River,  74,  Song,  720. 

CABOT. 
Fisher  Papers. — Grantees,  Surveys,  Hazen  Road,  Whitcomb's  Rangers,  Benj. 
and  Nathaniel  Webster,  Lieut.  Heath,  Lieut.  Lyford,  Yellow  House  and  Smuggling, 
Doings  and  Votes  1788  to  1806;  John  W.  Dana,  74-81  ;  Cabot  Village,  The  Centre, 
East  Hill,  Wm.  Osgood,  David  Haines,  Lower  Cabot,  Moses  Stone,  Hector  McLean, 
Soutli  Cabot,  East  Cabot,   South-west  Hill,  West  Hill,   Petersville,  Market  Road, 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Freighting,  First  Things,  81-87;  Graveyards,  Schools,  Ponds,  Mineral  Spring,  Going 
to  mill.  First  wagon,  stove,  clock,  carpet,  Distilleries,  Post-office,  Telegraph,  87-93 ; 
Congregationalists,  Rev.  Moses  Ingalls,  Rev.  Levi  H.  Stone,  93-97;  Baptists,  94-97; 
Methodists,  98-101  ;  The  Advent  Church,  Physicians,  Epidemics,  Native  Clergy, 
Lawyers,  College  Graduates,  Literature,  Masonic,  101-103;  Town  Officers,  County 
Officers,  103-105;  Bear  Story,  Temperance  Societies,  Good  Templars,  105-109;  Na- 
thaniel Webster,  Lieut.  Lyford,  Dr.  Scott,  Joseph  Fisher,  Elihu  Coburn,  Col.  Stone, 
Hon.  John  W,  Dana,  Leonard  Orcutt,  Dea.  Marsh,  Dea.  Fisher,  Joseph  Lance,  John 
Damon,  Zerah  Colburn,  Hon.  John  McLean,  Thomas  Lyford,  109-116;  Military  Rec- 
ord, Cabot  Monument,  Lieut.  Col.  Kimball,  1 16-128. 

Congregational  Bequests — 920.        Rev.  Wm.  Scales,  924. 

CALAIS. 
ToBEY  AND  Robinson  Papers. — Ponds,  Mountains,  Grantees,  Name,  Propri- 
etors' doings.  Town  organized.  First  officers,  settlers,  schools  and  districts,  roads, 
128-137  ;  Slayton,  Hathaway,  Palmer,  Goodell  Families  ;  Barnabas  Doty,  Elijah  White, 
139-143;  First  Meeting-house  Society,  143,  144;  Revolutionary  Soldiers,  of  the  War 
of  1812,  Pittsburgh  Vols.,  Soldiers  of  1861-65,  147-151  ;  Kent  Family,  158;  Thomas 
West,  Moses  Stone,  Samuel  Twiss,  Robinson  Family,  Zoeth  Tobey,  168-170;  Town 
Officers,  County  Officers,  Grand  List  Records,  172-177. 

Wheelock  and  Davis  papers. — The  Christians,  144,  145. 

Warren  Paper. — Universalist  Church,  145-147. 

GiLMAN  Papers. — Dr.  John  M.  Gilman,  Israel  E.  Dwinell,  Rev.  C.  L.  Goodell, 
Col.  Caleb  Curtis,  Dr.  Chas.  Clark,  Face,  Name  of  Township  and  Items,  Gilman  Fam- 
ily, 151-157- 

Eaton  Paper. — Jacob  and  Judge  Nathaniel  Eaton,  160. 

Dwinell  Papers. — Capt.  Joshua  Lilley,  Shubael  Wheeler,  Capt.  Samuel  Rich, 
Israel  Dwinell  Family,  Alden  Family,  Jona.  Herrick,  Doctors  of  Calais,  Collegiates, 
East  Calais  Fire,  Remarkable  Preservation,  161-165. 

Tucker  Paper. — Longevity,  Old  People  Living,  165-167. 

Morse  Paper. — Accidental  Deaths,  Murders,  167;  Manufactories,  170,  171; 
Golden  Weddings,  172.         Poems,  Abijah  Wheelock,  920,  922. 

FAYSTON. 

Mrs.  Laura  B.  Boyce  Papers. — Description  of  Early  History,  Boyce  Family, 
Indian  Scare,  Wm.  Newcomb,  Brigham  Family,  177-183, 186 ;  Jotham  Carpenter,  Porter 
Family,  Eli  Bruce,  G.  N.  Brigham,  M.  D.,  Silas  and  Benjamin  Fisher,  Joseph  Marble, 
Freshets,  183-187;  Longevity,  Town  Officers,  188;  Samuel  Dana,  197. 

Anna  Bragg  Paper. — Miss  Susan  Griggs,  190. 

Stoddard  Paper. — Soldiers  of  Fayston,  194-197. 

Poems  from  Mrs.  Laura  B.  Boyce,  Dr.  G.  N.  Brigham,  Mrs.  Celia  B.  Brigham, 
Elisha  A.  Brigham,  U.  J.  Baxter,  Sarah  Brigham  Mansfield,  Ziba  W.  Boyce,  Mrs.  D. 
T.  Smith,  Mrs.  S.  Minerva  Boyce,  Sabrina  Baxter,  Emogene  M.  Boyce  and  D.  S. 
Stoddard,  187,  89,  94,  96. 

MARSHFIELD. 

Mrs.  Hannah  C.  Pitkin's  Papers. — Stockbridge  Indian  grant,  First  settlers.  Early 
freemen,  First  religious  meeting,  197-201  ;  Schools,  First  things,  Congregational 
Society,  Bears,  Deer,  Nigger  Head  and  pond  river  falls,  Mill-sites,  Orchards,  P'arming, 
Seasons,  Fires,  Casualties,  Fine  barns.  Town  officers.  Taverns,  Stores,  Doctors, 
Longevity,  Mills,  Library,  201-206  ;  Methodist  church,  Stephen  Pitkin,  209-212  ;  Dea. 
Spencer,  Caleb,  Joshua  and  Hon.  Stephen  Pitkin,  Capt.  Stephen  Rich,  Capt.  Jonah  and 
Hon.  Horace  Hollister,  202,  213;  Rev.  Marcus  M.  Carleton,  Soldiers  of  1812,  Jesse 
Webster,  215,  216;  Railroad,  Poetry,  218. 

Miss  Bullock  Paper. — Christian  church.  Advent  and  Baptist  church,  207,  08. 

Scott  Paper. — Universalist  Society,  208. 

Mrs.  Solomon  Wells  Paper. — Hon.  Wm.  Martin,  213. 

Judge  Putnam  Paper. — Jacob  Putnam,  214. 

Mrs.  H.  L.  Goodwin  Paper. — Jonathan  L.  Goodwin,  215. 

Gen.  Pitkin  Paper. — Soldiers  furnished  for  the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  217. 

Forbes  Paper — (218.)  Town  history  not  included  by  Mrs.  Pitkin,  Lewis  Barnes, 
Ira  Smith,  219-222. 

MIDDLESEX.- 

Herrick  Papers. — Grantees,  Thomas  Mead,  Town  organized,  Samuel  Mann, 
Samuel  Haskins,  Lovewell  Warren,  Hon.  Seth,  Jacob  and  Eben'z.  Putnam,  William 


CONTENTS.  927 


Holden,  Jeremiah  Leland,  Joseph  Chapin,  Nathaniel  Carpenter,  Capt.  Robert  Mc- 
Elroy,  Jesse  Johnson,  Ephraim  Willey,  Rufus  Chamberlain,  Merchants,  Churches, 
222-26;  Micah  Hatch,  Solomon  Lewis,  Ezra  Cushman,  Capt.  Zerah  Hills,  Col.  Hutch- 
ins,  225,  226;  Carrying  their  Visitors  Home,  234;  Stephen  Herrick,  246;  Soldiers  of 
1861-65;   of  1812,247-251. 

Vaughn  Papers. — Early  town  business.  Natural  curiosities,  Middlesex  Narrows, 
Mills,  Freshets,  Animals,  Mineralogy,  Magnetic  variation.  Animals,  County  Member- 
ship, Population,  Grand  List,  Schools,  Town  officers,  Postmasters,  Doctors,  Clergy, 
Rev.  Stephen  Herrick,  Nathan  Huntley,  Elder  Benj.  Chatterton,  226-229,  231-238; 
Settlements  in  the  early  part  of  the  town.  Money  Diggers,  Coldest  night.  Fires,  Sap 
feeder,  240-243;  Burying-grounds,  Cemeteries,  Longevity,  Case  of  putrefaction.  Sud- 
den deaths,  243-246;  Revolutionary  pensioners.  Soldiers  of  the  war  of  61  buried  in 
town,  247. 

Chapin  Paper. — Mountains  of  Middlesex,  229. 

HoLDEN. — Bear  Story,  239. 

Poems. — Mrs.  Alma  R.  Vaughn,  250. 

Errata 246;  also  Mrs.  Richardson's  3d  not  2d  marriage. 

MONTPELIER. 

Walton  Papers. — Grants,  proprietors,  251,  257  ;  First  settlers,  259  ;  First  things, 
261  ;  Vital  statistics,  epidemics,  263;  Organization,  265  ;  Habits  of  the  first  settlers, 
266;  Prices  of  labor,  stock,  exports,  imports,  grand  list,  political  history,  268,  269; 
Representatives,  citizens  who  have  held  U.  S.  offices.  State  offices.  County  offices, 
manufacturers,  272,  3,  4  ;  Attorneys,  physicians,  merchants  and  traders,  277,  8  ;  Banks 
and  Insurance  Companies,  281,  2  ;  State-houses,  County  buildings,  hotels,  283  to  287  ; 
1st  and  2d  Congregational  church.  Free  Will  Baptist  church,  Universalist,  Unitarian, 
Protestant  Episcopal  church.  Catholic,  288,  9;  Libraries  and  Debating  Societies, 
Washington  County  Grammar  School,  Lhiion  Graded  School,  Newspapers  and  Authors, 
290,  I  ;  Military — Minute-men,  Governor's  Guard,  War  of  1812,  Earned  Lamb,  Sylvestar 
Day,  Gustavus  Loomis,  Sylvester  Churchill,  Capt.  Cyrus  Johnson,  Lieutenants  West, 
Putnam,  Eddy,  Richardson,  etc..  War  of  the  Rebellion,  295  to  299  ;  Public  enterprise, 
Winooski  Turnpike,  Projected  canals,  299,  300-307;  Railroad  enterprises,  301  ;  Wm. 
K.  Upham,  Maj.  Chas.  C.  Upham,  Mrs.  George  Langdon ;  Hon.  Joseph  Howes  and 
wife,  477  ;  Capt.  Nathan  Jewett,  Col.  E.  P.  Jewettand  portraits,  483,  484;  Hon.  John 
Spaulding,  487  ;  Maj.  R.  W.  Hyde,  488,  and  portrait ;  Gov.  Asahel  Peck,  495,  and  por- 
trait;  Hon.  Geo.  Worthington,  498;  Maj.  A.  L.  Carleton  and  portrait,  500;  George 
Langdon  and  portrait,  603;  George  W.,  Charles,  and  J.  Warren  Bailey  and  portrait, 
504,  505  ;  Hon.  R.  W.  Keith  and  portrait,  510;  Dea.  C.  W.  Storrs,  512,  portrait,  591  ; 
James  G.  French;  Luther,  Charles  and  Timothy  Cross,  515,  and  portrait;  Abraham 
G.  D.  Tuthill ;  Joshua  Y.  Vail ;  Cyrus,  John  and  Zenas  Wood,  and  portraits,  517,  520, 
550;  James  R.  Langdon  and  portrait,  544;  Hon.  John  A.  Page  and  portrait,  548; 
Hon.  Nelson  A.  Chase,  546;  Union  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  550;  Thomas  W. 
Wood,  portrait  promised,  552;  Gen.  P.  P.  Pitkin  and  portrait,  554;  Hon.  Joseph 
Poland  and  portrait,  566;  Wm.  W.  Cadwell,  557;  Marcus  D.  Gilman,  558;  Hon.  E. 
P.  Walton,  portrait,  541,  542;;  George  C.  Shepard,  567. 

Oilman  Papers. — Postmasters,  Newspaper  Record,  307  ;  Bibliography,  313-324; 
Hon.  E.  P.  Walton,  538;  M.  D.  Oilman's  portrait,  558;  residence,  571. 

HusE  Papers. — Vermont  State  Library,  324;  Rev.  F.  W.  Shelton,  419;  Hon.  C. 
W.  Willard  and  portrait,  492;  Luther  Newcomb,  Esq.,  510;  Homer  W.  Heaton,  543. 

Cutting  Papers. — The  State  Cabinet,  326;  Memorial  Address  of  the  Vt.  Fire 
Ins.  Co.  on  the  death  of  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin,  517. 

Bancroft  Papers. — Number  of  deaths  in  town  yearly,  longevity  of  Montpelier, 
326,  327  ;  accidents,  330  ;  suicides,  crimes,  fires,  330-338  ;  floods,  338  ;  Revolutionary 
soldiers,  Mexican  war.  List  of  men  furnished  by  the  town  to  the  last  war,  341,  350; 
St.  John  the  Baptist  Benevolent  Society,  356;  Commissioned  Officers,  520;  Military 
Necrology,  523  ;  Soldiers  buried  in  Montpelier  cemeteries,  524  ;  in  National  cemeteries, 
Anecdotes  and  Incidents  of  Soldiers,  525  ;  Notes  and  Necrology  of  citizens,  526,  530; 
Fire  Department,  549;   Old  People  of  1881,  556;  Portrait  of  Aaron  Bancroft,  475. 

Atkins  Papers. — The  "  Argus  and  Patriot,"  portrait  of  the  Editor,  310;  Christ 
Church  [Atkins  and  Huse]  view,  410;  view  of  Bethany  Church,  387;  "Argus  and 
Patriot"  building,  465. 

Cave  Papers. — Masonic,  Knights  of  Honor,  Odd  Fellows,  Brooks  Post,  355. 

Wing  Papers. — Members  of  Washington  County  Bar,  356 ;  Vt.  Bar  Association, 
J.  A.  Wing,  portrait,  358;  Burning  of  the  State  House,  338;  Biographical  sketch, 
poems,  545  ;  President  Monroe's  visit,  selected. 


VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 


Dr.  Putnam  Papers. — Medical  Men  of  Montpelier,  358  ;  Dr.  J.  Y.  Dewey  and 
portrait,  478;  Dr.  F.  W.  Adams,  479;  Dr.  C.  B.  Chandler,  Dr.  C.  M.  Rublee,  481  ; 
Dr.  W.  H.  H.  Richardson,  482;  Dr.  N.  C.  King  and  portrait,  582;  Portrait  of  Dr. 
Sumner  Putnam,  480. 

Bridgman  Papers. — Lorenzo  and  Peggy  Dow  and  portraits,  363. 

Bartlett  Papers. — Methodism  in  Montpelier,  view  of  church  edifice,  374  ;  "The 
Vermont  Christian  Messenger,"  353,  382  ;  Rev.  Elisha  J.  Scott,  Rev.  Alonzo  Webster, 
D.  D.,  Rev.  W.  D.  Malcom,  355. 

Sherburne  Paper. — Vermont  Methodist  Seminary  and  view,  384,  385. 

Poland  Papers. — "  The  Voice  of  Freedom,"  "  The  Green  Mountain  Freeman," 
311  ;  Congregational  Church  Papers,  387  ;  Sabbath-School  Record,  394;  Samuel  Wells, 
484;   Portrait,  556;   Interior  of  Bethany,  568;  Residence,  569. 

Wright  Papers. — Rev.  Chester  Wright  and  portrait,  388 ;  The  Church  of  the 
Messiah,  408 — view,  566;  "The  Christian  Repository,"  409  ;  Col.  Levi  Boutwell  and 
portrait,  494;  Hon.  Charles  Reed  and  portrait,  513;  Hon.  Daniel  Baldwin  and 
portrait,  516. 

BuCKHAM  Papers. — Rev.  Wm.  H.  Lord,  D.  D.,  and  portrait,  392;  Montpelier 
Graduates  of  U.  V.  M.,  551. 

Catholic  Papers. — Walton's  account,  289 ;  Bancroft,  356;  View  of  church, 
Bishop''s  account,  and  of  Rev.  Z.  Druon,  St.  Augustine's,  422  ;  Rev.  Jeremiah  O'Calli- 
ghan.  Rev.  H.  Drolet,  Rev.  Z.  Druon,  422,  423;  Rev.  Joseph  Duglue,  424 — portrait 
in  view ;  The  Interior  of  St.  Augustine's,  St.  Michael's  School,  424,  errata  for  574. 

Hopkins  Papers. — The  Baptist  church — supplemented  by  the  pastor,  425  ;  The 
Old  Village  Sexton,  475;  Col.  Boutwell  Anecdotes,  563;  Geo.  W.  Barker,  566;  Col. 
Abel  Carter,  Gamaliel  Washburn,  567 ;  The  Old  Brick  church,  568 ;  Description  of 
Bethany  church,  569;   (Editor's)  notice  of  the  Colonel,  570;  Early  choristers,  571. 

Hadley  Paper. — Organists  and  Musicians.  428. 

FiFiELD  Papers. — Hon.  Lucius  B.  Peck,  463  ;  Hon.  Timothy  P.  Redfield,  540. 

Redfield  Papers. — Stoddard  B.  Colby,  468;    Hon.  Roderick  Richardson,  546. 

Shepard  Papers. — Capt.  Lemuel  Brooks,  Mrs.  Rhoda  Brooks,  Thomas  Brooks, 
476;  Jonathan  Shepard  and  portrait,  477  ;    Geo.  C.  Shepard's  residence,  477. 

Howard  Paper. — Rev.  Elisha  Brown  and  portrait,  498. 

Clauk  Paper. — Charles  Clark,  M.  D.,  511,  and  portrait,  278. 

Merrill  Papers. — Town  Officers,  i860  to  1882,  549. 

Ripley  Note. — Pioneer  Abolitionists,  550. 

The  portraits  donated  by  parties  named  on  page  591,  592. 

SELECTIONS   MADE   FROM   PARTIES   WHO   ARE   DEAD. 

D.  P.  Thompson's  Papers. — Col.  Jacob  Davis,  429;  Mrs.  Rebecca  Davis.  Hon. 
David  Wing,  431  ;  Elder  Ziba  Woodworth,  432  ;  Dr.  Edward  Lamb,  433  ;  Col.  James 
H.  Langdon  and  wife,  434,  435 — for  portraits,  see  frontisplates ;  Hon.  Jeduthan 
Loomis,  436;  Hon.  Timothy  Merrill,  437;  Hon.  Ferrand  F.  Merrill,  Hon.  Araunah 
Waterman,  438;  Hon.  Cyrus  Ware,  440;  Capt.  Timothy  Hubbard,  441  ;  Gen.  E.  P. 
Walton,  442 — notice  of  Mrs.  Walton  and  portraits  added  ;  Dr.  James  Spaulding,  445  ; 
Hon.  Samuel  Prentiss  and  portrait,  447  ;  Mrs.  Prentiss,  451  ;  Hon.  Joseph  Reed,  552  ; 
Hezekiah  H.  Reed,  453;  Hon.  William  Upham,  454 — Mrs.  Upham,  re-written  and 
portraits  added  ;  Col.  Jonathan  P.  Miller,  457  ;  Sketch  of  Thompson,  acknowledgment 
to  Thompson,  sons  of  Thompson,  69 — previous  part  of  vol — 462,  537 — this  part.  [See 
Walton's  credits,  263,  266,  etc.]  Accidents,  fires,  floods,  credit,  341  ;  Fire  depart- 
ment, 549;  Fourth  of  July,  1807,  554;  First  Election  Day  in  Montpelier,  555. 

Fanny  W.  Nutt. — The  Two  Crowns,  380. 

Rev.  Elisha  J.  Scott's  Adieu  to  Earth,  383. 

Lord  Papers. — Extracts  from  Fiftieth  Anniversary  Sermon,  390,  91  ;  Bethany 
Dedication  Sermon,  396;  Art  and  Nature — Vermont  in  Summer,  407;  Extract  from 
funeral  discourse  of  Mrs.  James  R.  Langdon,  503  ;  Words  at  Eastman's  funeral,  507  ; 
Prayer  and  dedication  at  the  dedication  of  Green  Mount  Cemetery,  533,  536. 

Shelton  Papers. — Historical  Sermon,  and  poems  contributed  by  Mrs.  Shelton, 
412,  420,  21  ;  Address  at  dedication  of  Green  Mount  Cemetery,  530. 

Pearson  Catalogue. — Marcus  Tullius  Cicero  Wing,  432. 

Goss  Papers. — Ode  on  the  death  of  Washington,  469  ;  Fugitive's  Directory,  470 ; 
Sketch  of  Samuel  Goss,  from  obituary  in  the  PVatc/unan,  and  from  family  papers ; 
Frank  Goss,  Mrs.  Lucy  A.  (Goss)  Cobb,  O.  H.  Smith,  from  obituary  papers  from 
Mrs.  O.  H.  Smith,  470,  471. 

WiLLARD  Papers. — James  T.  Thurston,  468 ;  Joseph  W.  Wheelock,  490. 


CONTENTS. 


929 


ADDITIONAL   PAPERS. 

Mahlon  Cottrill,  Jed  P.  C.  CottriW—lVaic/iman  File,  493,  494;  Cottrlll 
Family,  portraits,  282,  520. 

Carlos  Bancroft,  Arthur  D.  Bancroft,  497;  portrait  of  Carlos  Bancroft,  280. 

Capt.  Isaac  Ricker,  474.    Watrous  Family,  497,  498. 

R.  H.  Whittier,  portrait,  335;   Watchman,  504;    The  Dodge  Family,  501. 

Charles  G.  Eastman  and  portrait,  family,  poems,  506-510 ;  Green  Mount  Cem- 
etery Hymn,  536. 

Green  Mount  Cemetery,  532-539.     Hon.  Nicholas  Baylies,  544. 

Spaulding  Family. — Mrs.  Spaulding,  Watchman ;  Charles  C.  Spaulding,  Bur- 
lington Free  Press  and  Rntland  Herald;  James  Reed  Spaulding,  U.  V.  M.  obituary, 
557,  558- 

CuRTis  A.  CoBURN,  Lieut.  Abbott,  Lieut.  Stetson,  559 ;  Charles  W.  Lyman, 
559,  Watchman  file. 

Graduates. — Middlebury,  Dartmouth,  Amherst,  Harvard,  Yale,  etc.,  551,  2,  3; 
Golden  Weddings,  253;  Mrs.  Gov.  Ransom,  557;  A  Soldier's  Letter,  559. 

HOBART  Letter. — Central  Vermont  Railroad  at  Montpelier,  and  Montpelier 
Branch,  561. 

Telegraph  and  Express  Office,  562  ;  Montpelier  and  Wells  River  Railroad,  563. 

Street  Views. — New  Central  Vermont  Depot,  560;  Vermont  Mutual  Fire  Insur- 
ance Go's  Building,  561;  Pavilion  Hotel,  562;  Watchman  and  J^ournal  Building, 
Rialto  Block,  563  ;  Washington  County  Court  House,  564 ;  Argus  and  Patriot  Build- 
ing, 565  ;  Church  of  the  Messiah,  566;  Residence  of  Geo.  C.  Shepard,  567;  Interior 
of  Bethany  Church,  568  ;  Residence  of  Joseph  Poland,  569 ;  Baptist  Church,  570 ; 
State  Capitol,  y^  ;  First  and  second  State  House,  282. 

EAST  MONTPELIER. 

Kelton  Papers. — Organization,  first  town  officers,  first  things,  population,  de- 
scription of  township,  industries,  East  Village,  North  Village,  schools,  574 ;  Libraries, 
church  edifices,  religious  societies.  Freewill  Baptists,  Univer.salists,  Methodists,  576; 
Christians,  epidemics,  the  early  settlement,  577;  Samuel  Rich,  578;  Benjamin  I. 
Wheeler,  Jerahmel  B.  Wheeler,  Maj.  Nathaniel  Davis,  579;  Isaac  Gray,  Samuel 
Templeton,  582  ;  longevity  list  of  the  dead,  584. 

D.  P.  Thompson  Papers. — Gen.  Parley  Davis,  579 — portrait,  574;  Clark  Stevens 
and  portrait,  580 ;  poetry  of,  586. 

Dr.  Putnam  Paper. — Dr.  Nathaniel  King  and  portrait,  582. 

Bancroft  Papers. — Longevity  list  of  the  living,  584 ;  Soldiers  of  East  Mont- 
pelier, 587  ;  Roll  of  Honor,  590. 

Truman  C.  Kelton  Papers. — Suicides  and  casualties,  584 ;  Town  officers,  586. 

Gilman  Paper. — Sylvanus  Shepard,  586. 

MORETOWN. 

Currier  Papers. — First  History,  Organization,  Freshets,  593-595 ;  Mineral 
Springs,  Business  Statistics,  597;  Methodist  History,  Catholic  Church,  601,  602; 
Prominent  Sons  of  Citizens,  602. 

D.  P.  Thompson  Paper, — 595. 

Papers  from  a  lady  in  Moretown — First  School-house,  store,  distillery,  etc.,  Col. 
Ezekiel  Clapp,  Dr.  Pierce,  Dr.  Kingsley,  Dr.  Haylett,  Statistics,  Congregational 
Church,  597-599. 

C.  A.  Smith  Paper. — Religious  History,  599,  600. 

Cooper  Paper. — Rev.  Lemuel  C.  Powers,  601. 

Druon  Paper. — Catholic  Record  for  Moretown,  602. 

BuLKLEY  Paper. — Longevity,  602;  Representatives,  916. 

Goss  Papers. — Additional  Longevity,  603 ;  Military  Record,  609. 

Dillingham  Paper. — Hon.  Matthew  Hale  Carpenter,  604. 

Poems  from  Mrs.  Celia  B.  Brigham,  Cornelius  J.  Child,  608,  609;  Evans  Family, 
603;  Hopy  Holt,  608.         Representatives,  etc.,  by  George  Bulkley,  917. 

NORTHFIELD. 

Gregory  Papers. — Proprietors,  First  Town  Meeting,  Harmony  in  Politics,  Town 
Officers,  Post-office,  CaiTier,  Lawyers,  Doctors,  Record  of  Thompson's  Gazetteer,  612. 
617;  Amos,  Col.  Ezekiel,  Dr.  Nathaniel  and  David  Robinson;  Thomas,  Col.  Oliver, 
Capt.  Jesse  and  John  Averill ;  Elijah  Smith,  Sr.  and  Jr.,  Gilbert  Hatch,  Eleazer 
Loomis,  Aq.uillo  Jones  and  Family,  Abraham  and  EliphusShipman,  617-620;  Eleazer, 
Sr.  and  Jr.,  Ambrose,  James,  Wm.,  Joseph  and  Hon.  George  Nichols  ;  Jason  and  Rev. 

117 


930  VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 

Joel  Winch  ;  Ariel  and  Jos.  K.  Egerton ;  Wm.,  Tamasin  and  Rev.  Nathan  B.  Ashcroft ; 
Joel  and  Rev.  Joab  Simonds  ;  James  and  Elethen  Paul ;  Lebbeus  Bennett,  Amos  Howes, 
Annanias  Tubbs,  David  and  Richard  Hedges  ;  Thos.  Slade,  Parley  and  Daniel  Tyler ; 
David,  Adolphus,  Dea.  Samuel  and  Joseph  Denny ;  Oliver,  George  K.  and  Martin 
Cobleigh,  Jos.  Smith,  Jr.,  Solomon  Dunham,  Hons.  Nathan  Morse,  Lucius,  Edson, 
Anson  and  Samuel  L.  Adams  ;  John  Emerson,  Ethan  Allen,  Sherman  Golds,  James 
Latham,  Sr.  and  Jr.,  and  Ezra;Capt.  Starkweather,  Dea.  Reuben  Smith,  William, 
Abel,  Capt.  Joseph  and  Hon.  Elisha  W.  Keyes ;  Rev.  Hosea  Clark,  Elijah  Burnham, 
Joel  and  Isaac  W.  Brown,  620-630 ;  Dr.  Claggett,  Harry  Emerson,  Abijence  Ains- 
worth,  Stanton,  John,  Nathaniel,  Samuel  Richardson:  John  H.  Buck,  Dr.  Benjamin 
and  Dr.  Edwin  Porter;  Roswell  Dewey,  Dr.  Jeptha  White,  Dr.  Wm.  J.  Sawin,  John 
P.  Davis,  Rev.  Samuel  Whitten,  David,  Joshua,  Josiah  and  Moses  Lane;  Hon.  Alvin 
Braley,  Benjamin,  John,  Nathaniel,  David  and  George  M.  Fisk ;  Daniel  Worthington, 
Col.  Joyce,  Rev.  John  Gregory,  O.  D.  and  Chas.  A.  Edgerton ;  Halsey  R.  Brown, 
Lester  Martyn.  Dea.  Nathaniel  Jones,  James  N.  Johnson,  Dr.  P.  D,  Bradford,  Hon. 
J.  H.  Orcutt,  Hon.  Heman  Carpenter,  J.  C.  B.  Thayer,  R.  M.  Mcintosh,  Roswell 
-  Carpenter,  Dr.  M.  McClearn,  Simon  Eggleston,  Almon  Wetherbee,  Silas  Sheldon, 
Dea.  Cady,  630-640  ;Wm.  and  Ithamar  Allen.  Abijah  and  Isaac  B.  Howe,  Justus,  Luther 
S.  and  Rev.  J.  H.  Burnham  ;  Marvin  Simonds,  Freedom,  Edson,  Wm.  R.  Tucker  ;  Jasand 
Joseph  Gould ;  Walter  Little,  West  Hill,  Wm.  and  Stephen  Cochran;  Dea.  Daniel 
Parker,  Capt.  Henry  Knapp,  Samuel  U.  Richmond,  Dr.  N.  W.  Gilbert,  Hon.  David 
W.  Hadley,  Gurdon  Randall,  Allen  Balch,  Adin  Smith,  Wm.  A.  Gallup,  Sewall  Davis, 
Jona.  Bragg,  James  Steele,  Warren  Rice,  David  R.  Tilden,  Frank  Plumley,  640-646; 
Religious  Societies,  The  Union  Meeting-House,  648;  Universalism,  651;  Freewill 
Baptist  Church,  652;  The  Christian  Church,  654;  Judge  Elijah  and  Gov.  Charles 
Paine,  658-667;  Masonic,  683  ;  Dog  River  Valley  Association,  Banks,  Good  Templars, 
686-691  ;  The  Harlow  Bridge  Tragedy,  705. 

Carpenter  Paper. — Some  of  the  Early  Anecdotes  of  the  Town,  646;  Nathaniel 
Carpenter,  of  Middlesex,  709.      ^  Q)  Lr 

Stevens  Paper. — Methodism  in  Nbrthfield,  649.         Kidder  Paper,  651. 

Henderson  Paper. — Rev.  Nathaniel  and  Mrs.  King,  653. 

Hazen  Papers, — Congregational  Church,  654. 

Rev.  F.  W.  Bartlett  Paper. — The  Episcopal  Church,  656  ;  Norwich  Univer- 
sity, 673  ;  Gen.  A.  Jackman,  677  ;  Col.  Albert  Stevens,  685  ;  Literary  Clubs,  poem,  698. 

Druon  Paper. — Catholic  Church,  658,  708. 

Bradford  Papers. — Elmwood,  Centre,  and  Gouldsville  Cemeteries,  Longevity 
Record,  667-673;  Suicides,  682;  Graduates,  697;  Dr.  Bradford's  Cabinet  [Ed.],  711. 

Douglass  Paper. — Rev.  Edward  Bourns,  LL.D.,  674. 

Johnson  Paper. — Northfield  Graded  and  High  School,  681. 

Egerton  Papers. — Banks,  completed,  687  ;  also  previous  business  and  statistical 
papers;  Business  in  Northfield,  1882,  694. 

Plumley  Paper. — The  Lodges  and  Good  Templars'  statistics  was  completed 
by,  698.        Jackman  Paper. — Geology,  691. 

Howe  Papers. — Theoda  P.  Howe,  697 ;  Soldiers  of  1861,  699. 

Gilbert  Papers. — 697;  Poems,  704.  710. 

Dole  Paper. — Universalist  Record  Continued,  705. 

Col.  Randall  Paper. — Randall  Family,  706. 

Rev.  J.  R.  Bartlett  Paper. — Early  Methodism,  708. 

Northfield  News. — Maj.  Charles  A.  Webb,  711  ;  Moses  Lane,  712. 

Portraits  and  Engravings. — Hon.  P.  D.  Bradford,  M.  D.,  637;  Gov.  Paine,  661  ; 
Paine  Monument,  666;  Elmwood  Cemetery,  667;  Elmwood  Tomb,  669;  Hon.  Moses 
Robinson,  670;  Capt.  Jesse  Averill,  671  ;  Dr.  Benjamin  Porter,  672;  Lewis  College, 
673  ;  Graded  and  High  School,  681  ;  Rev.  Joel  Winch,  683  ;  Rev.  John  Gregory,  686; 
Hon.  Geo.  Nichols,  687  ;  Frank  Plumley,  689;  Gen.  Alonzo  Jackman,  691  ;  Geo.  M. 
Fisk,  Esq.,  696. 

PLAINFIELD. 

Smith  Papers. — Description  of  and  early  history.  Gen.  Davis  and  Ira  Allen 
controversy  about  rights,  713,  715  ;  ist  settlers  on  each  lot,  715-725  ;  Roads,  Politics, 
Doctors,  Lawyers,  The  First  church.  Christian,  The  Methodist  church.  The  Baptist 
church.  The  Restorationist  Society,  Schools,  Freshets,  725-730;  Town,  County  and 
State  officers.  Longevity,  730;  Masonic  731  ;  Soldiers  of  1861-65,  Til^  734- 

Rev.  J.  R.  Bartlett  Paper. — Early  Methodists  in  Plainfield,  728. 

Rev.  A.  D.  Barber  Paper. — Rev.  C.  E.  Ferrin,  731. 

Mrs.  E.  Yaw. — Garfield  Hymn,  734.         Poem,  Mary  E.  Davis,  923. 


CONTENTS.  931 


ROXBURY. 

Mrs.  Sarah  B.  Mansfield  Papers. — Description  of  township,  First  town  mat- 
ters, First  settler,  735,  736;  Samuel  Ricliardson,  David  Cram,  Benoni  and  Charles 
Webster,  Joel  Hildreth,  Wm.  and  Dea.  Wni.  Gold,  John  B.  Crandall,  Lewis  Chat- 
field,  Billa  Woodward,  Hon.  Charles  Sampson,  737-741  ;  Spaulding  Family,  743; 
Alvin  Brigham,  Eben'r.  L.  Waterman,  Orcutt  Family,  745-747;  School  districts, 
Taverns,  Early  Merchants,  Cemeteries,  Epidemics,  Physicians,  Manufacturers,  Verd 
Antique  Marble,  Watch-factory,  First  Mail  route.  Our  large  Catamount,  737-750; 
Rev.  Ophir  Shipman,  Baptists,  Methodists,  Congregationalists,  Christians,  etc., 
Golden  weddings,  750-751  ;  Old  people,  Roxbury  Boys  abroad,  752. 

Webster  Paper. — Benoni  and  Charles  Webster,  741,  742. 

Richardson  Paper. — Samuel  Robertson,  744. 

Stanton  Papers. — Sudden  deaths.  Suicides,  751  ;  Military,  Record,  Plattsburgh 
Volunteers,  Soldiers  of  1861,  753-756;  Centennial  address,  761,  762. 

Orcutt  Papers. — Roxbury  longevity.  Town  meetings.  Moderators,  Town  clerks, 
Selectmen,  Town  treasurers.  Listers,  Overseers  of  poor,  Constables  and  collectors  of 
taxes,  Tithingmen,  Town  agents.  School  superintendents.  Justices,  Representatives, 
Delegates  to  Constitutional  Convention,  Postmasters,  Merchants,  756-61. 

Poems. — Mrs.  Sarah  B.  Mansfield,  764;  A.  Webster,  768;  Edna  Snow, 

Our  Roxbury  Visit. — Mansfield  Family,  Betsey  Chase,  Mr.  Burnham's  Remin- 
iscences of  John  B.  Crandall,  The  90th  Birthday  party  of  Mrs.  Betsey  C.  Spaulding, 
765-769.         Poem  by  Mrs.  Boyce  to  Mrs.  Mansfield. 

WAITSFIELD. 

Rev.  Perrin  B.  Fiske  Papers. — Origin  of  name.  Description  of.  Incorporation, 
Proprietors,  First  settlement.  Gen.  Wait,  Business,  Meeting-houses,  769-773  ;  War  rec- 
ord. Temperance,  School  districts,  772i-7^  i  Ithamer  Smith,  776,  78,  85  ;  Money-digging, 
Accidents,  Indian  relics.  Games,  Fires,  Floods,  776-780  ;  Congregational,  Methodists, 
Universalists,  Baptists,  Episcopal,  Clergymen,  Physicians,  Representatives,  380-85  ; 
Jennison,  Matthias  S.,  Dr.  Edwin,  Hon.  Hiram  Jones,  785,  786;  Hon.  Jason  Carpen- 
ter, 785  ;  Hon.  Roderick,  Sr.,  Jr.,  Roderick  Julius,  Hon.  Ira  Richardson,  B.  H. 
Adams,  Dr.  Orange  Smith,  Dr.  David  C.  Joyslin,  Hon.  Jona.  Hammond  Hastings, 
Edwin  F.  Palmer,  Esq.,  Rev.  Amariah  Chandler,  Rev.  Perrin  B.,  Rev.  Joel,  Rev. 
Harvey,  Rev.  P.  B.  Fisk,  785-90;  Rev.  P.  F.  Barnard,  790,  795,  (by  Dea.  Fisk)  ; 
Rev.  Alonzo  Hitchcock,  Ira  Bushnell,  Dr.  G.  A.  Phelps,  Hon.  George  N.  Dale,  Col. 
Charles  H.  Joyce,  Norman  and  Luther  Durant,  785-92. 

Dea.  E.  A.  Fisk  Papers. — Churches,  Schools,  Temperance,  Fires,  Longevity, 
Physicians,  Lawyers,  Representatives,  Senators,  Town  clerks,  Accidental  deaths.  Rev. 
Perrin  B.  Fisk,  795  ;  Roswell  G.  Horr,  796. 

Sargent  Paper. — Rev.  Henry  Parker,  795.         Emery  Judkins,  923. 

Pliny  White  Paper. — Rev.  Amariah  Chandler,  795,  96. 

Dascomb  Paper. — Military  record,  concluded,  796. 

Poem. — Mrs.  Teresa  E.  Fisher,  800.         Ellen  Sampson. — Note,  795. 

WARREN. 

Hemenway  Paper. — Grantees,  Description  of  township,  Aaron  Rising's  Story, 
Bear  Story,  801-03 ;  Rev.  Nathaniel  Stearns,  Meeting-house  Society,  Rev.  Joshua 
Tucker  Rev.  Jairus  Eaton,  Joseph  Eldridge,  Dea.  James  Allen,  Joseph  A.  Curtis, 
William  Cardell,  Colonel  Stephen  L.  Sargent,  Denslow  Upham,  Richard  Sterling, 
Hiram  Bradley,  Amos  Rising,  Longevity,  803,  806;  Manufactures,  Village,  Town 
Iterks,  Representatives,  Constables,  Postmasters,  County  judges,  Members  of  Con- 
situtional  Convention,  State  Senators,  Military,  Edward  Eldridge,  Old  People, 
806-10.  Poems:  From  Don  C.  Geer,  and  Mrs.  E.  Greenslit,  810,  811. 

Sargent  Papers. — First  Selectmen,  Town  treasurer,  The  turnpike.  Accidental 
deaths.  Natural  bridge  of  Warren,  Patents,  Sons  of  Warren,  John  Senter,  Clarence 
J.  Sargent,  811-13. 

WATERBURY. 

Parker  Papers. — Early  History  of  Waterbury,  James  Marsh,  first  settler,  813, 
14;  Ezra  Butler,  second  settler,  815-18;  Other  first  settlers,  818,  19;  Religious  Record, 
Amasa  Pride,  merchant,  Dan.  Carpenter,  lawyer,  etc..  Schools,  First  Things,  819-23; 
Biographical  Letter,  848. 

Janes  Papers. — Description  of  the  Township,  Grantees,  Charter  Limits,  Geology, 
Rivers,  Hunters'  Stories,  Roads,  Railroad,  Turnpike,  Early  occupied  farms,  with  past 
and  present  business  on,  823-28  ;  Jonathan  Wright,  Land  Titles,  Floods,  Schools, 
Centre  Village,  Green  Mountain  Seminary,  Villages,  Business  in  Railroad  Village, 
Mill  Village,  Colbyville,  Fires  and  Fire  District,  Fatal  Casualites, 828-35. 


932  VERMONT  HISTORICAL  MAGAZINE. 

First  Appendix,  835-38 ;  Second  Appendix,  Representatives,  Offices  held  by  Cit- 
izens, Physicians,  Attorneys,  Clergymen — Advent,  Methodist,  Baptists ;  Merchants 
and  Traders  ;  Freewill  Baptist  and  Advent  Church,  Soldiers  of  1861,  838-841. 

Butler  Papers. — Leading  Topics  Fifty  Years  ago,  Anti-Slavery,  Anti-Masonry, 
Millerism,  Lyceum  and  Library,  844-47  ;  Calkins  Family,  Kennan  Family,  850-51; 
Location  of  the  Reform  School,  Origin  of  and  Burning  of  the  Reform  School,  854,  867  ; 
Hannah  Gale,  Village  Doctor,  855,  56;  Henry  Family,  Leander  Hutchins,  858-60; 
Dr.  Oliver  W.  Drevv,  860,  and  Dr.  F.  P.  Drew,  869 ;  Richard  Holden,  860 ;  Early 
Families,  Large  Men,  Geo.  W.  Randall,  Our  Merchant  Firms,  The  last  fire  in  this 
place,  Longevity,  Town  Clerks,  Waterbury  Men  Abroad,  869,  872 ;  Ordinatiori  of 
Rev.  Ezra  Butler,  Peck  family,  Richard  Kneeland,  Oliver  Rood,  Rev.  Andrew  Royce, 
713,  14;  Dr.  Arms,  Patrick  Bryan,  Casualties  continued,  Meaker  murder,  915,  16. 

Mrs.  Julia  Wallace  Hutchins. — Notice  and  poems,  847,  914. 

Pease  Letter. — Biographical,  848.        Copeland  Letter. — Biographical,  849. 

Gov.  Dillingham  Papers. — Dan.  Carpenter,  851  ;  Hon.  William  Wellington 
Wells,  852. 

Gen.  Wells  Paper,  854. 

Poems  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  S.  S.  Luce,  855. 

Palmer  Papers. — Hon.  Henry  F.  Janes,  Dr.  Henry  Janes,  Dr.  Horace  Fales, 
Russell  Butler,  856-58. 

Fifield  Paper. — Governor  Paul  Dillingham,  861. 

Haynes  Paper. — Major  Edwin  Dillingham,  863. 

Wm.  p.  Dillingham  Papers. — Soldiers  Buried  in  Town,  867 ;  Bank  of  Water- 
bury,  871. 

"  The  Burlington  Free  Press.''"' — Joseph  Warren,  851  ;  Gen.  Wells,  854;  "  Some 
Day,"  by  M.  M.  N.,  868. 

'■'■The  Vermont  Watchman. '''' — Moody  Family,  860;  Philander  A.  Preston,  866; 
Dr.  C.  C.  Arms,  869;  Mrs.  Fanny  Butler  Janes,  872. 

WOODBURY. 

Putnam  Papers. — First  Settlement,  First  Birth  in  Town ;  Comfort  Wheeler, 
Capt.  Joel  Cilley,  Jabez  Town,  Charter,  Grantees,  Gideon  Sabin,  Organization,  Mills, 
Schools  and  Superintendents,  Representatives,  Town  Clerks,  First  Justices,  Post- 
masters, County  Officers,  873-76 ;  Freewill  Baptists,  Methodists,  Christians,  Uni- . 
versalists,  Sabbath-Schools,  Union  Society  and  Church,  1877  ;  Description  of  the 
Township,  Joseph  Carr,  Revolutionary  Soldiers,  Joseph  Blanchard,  David  Rugg, 
Longevity,  878-80.         Town  Paper. — Military  Record,  i86x-'65,  880. 

Dana  Paper. — Joshua  M.,  882.         Additional  Items,  912. 

WORCESTER. 

Abbott  Papers. — Grantees,  Charter  limits.  Lots  and  divisions,  Surface,  Soil, 
Gold,  John  Ridlon  and  first  settlers.  Organization,  First  town  officers.  Tax  sales, 
Cold  season.  Organization  lost,  883-86;  Milton  Brown  family  sole  inhabitants,  886, 
93-95  i  Wm.  Arbuckle,  Thayer  Townshend,  Job  Hill,  Jesse  Flint,  and  others,  first 
of  second  settlers ;  Reorganization,  and  first  officers  of,  887  ;  9-hour  law.  Schools, 
Roads,  Pounds,  Liquor  license,  Burying-ground,  Lumbering  and  Shingle-making, 
Lumber-war,  Hat  manufactory.  Tannery,  Knitting  business.  Exporting  raspberries, 
887-91  ;  Post-office,  Town  clerks,  Town  representatives  and  contests  for;  Physicians, 
Hampshire  Hill,  Minister  Brook,  and  West  Hill  settlers,  Franklin  Johnson,  Oramel 
L.  Smith,  John  and  Dodge  Hay  ward,  Oliver  Watson,  Jesse  Flint,  The  Abbotts, 
Thomas  Hutchinson,  891-98  ;  A  night's  experience  in  the  woods.  Casualties,  Murders, 
Suicides,  Old  people,  Census,  Bears,  898-903  ;  Congregational  church.  Rev.  C.  M. 
Winch  and  clergy  of  the  Congregational  church,  Dea.  Eben'r  S.  and  Dea.  Eben'r  R. 
Kellogg,  Dea.  Vail,  Allen  L.  Vail,  Dea.  Poor,  Dea.  Abbott,  Dea.  Adams,  Dea.  Clos- 
son,  Dea.  Andrews,  William  T.  Hutchinson,  905-7 ;  Freewill  Baptist  church,  Elder 
Moses  Folsom,  Elder  Lucius  F.  Harris,  Dea.  Folsom,  907-08  ;  Protestant  Methodists, 
Methodist  Episcopal  church.  Rev.  M.  Guernsey,  Rev.  Sumner  Tarbell  and  list  of 
Methodist  clergy  in  Worcester,  John  Brigham,  908,  09 ;  Simon  C.  Abbott,  Military, 
Soldiers  of  1812,  Soldiers  of  1861-65,  909-11.  Poem  from  Mrs.  E.  D.  Gray,  911. 

Carpenter  Papers. — Charles  C.  Abbott,  Town  officers,  1879-81,  911,  12. 

Gold,  Kent  family.  Soldiers,  912. 

Errata. — Page  192,  verse  I,  line  6.  should  read  for.  he  could  just  remember  her  and  7,  and  the 
sweet  pale  face.    He  could  just  remember  lier  he  said  and  the  sweet,  pale  face,  etc. 

Page  62a,  Joseph  K.  Egertoii,  line  12,  read  removed  to  Norwich,  for  Northfield. 

Isaac  B.  Howe  has  died  since  the  Gregory  sketcli  was  given  of  him,  page  641;  Nathaniel  Carpenter  of 
Middlesex  paper,  page  709,  line  (j,  Jonas  Carpenter  should  read,  James  Carpenter;  page  910,— The  old  Fifer, 
line  6,  verse  1,  should  read.  Yet  losing  none  of  their  oid-time  sl^ill,  and  verse  6.  line  2d:  He  sat  in  the  sun 
and  piped  away.  Page,  734.  2d  column,  7th  line  from  the  bottom,  Godwin  sliould  be  Goodwin.  Page,  763, 
col  1  line  5:  not  so  many  Bostons  should  read,  not  so  many  Boston  drummers.  Page,  763,  col.  2,  line  11 
McCain  should  be  McCaine.  Page  761,  769,  Waitslield,  By  Rev.  P.  B.  Fisk,  should  rather  have  been  credited 
to  Rev.  Perrin  B.  Fisk,  as  there  are  two  clergymen  from  WaitsOeld  by  the  name  of  Rev.  P.  B.  Fisk. 


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