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HISTORY OF VERMONT
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Ira Allen
To whom Vermont owes as much as to any one man for the estab-
lishment of the State and its preservation during the early years of its
existence, came to the New Hampshire Grants as a surveyor. He soon
became one of the most influential of the leaders of the Green Mountain
Boys, took part in the Canadian campaign. He was active in the forma-
tion of the new State, devised the plan for the confiscation of the estates of
Tories, and was a leading spirit in assembling the forces which won the
battle of Bennington. With consummate skill he deceived the British in
regard to a possible alliance, thus protecting this region from invasion.
He was one of the leaders who labored long to secure Vermont's admis-
sion to the Union, and succeeded at last in this undertaking. Ira Allen,
with the vision of a statesman, saw the possibilities of Vermont industry,
agriculture and commerce, and he was one of the first manufacturers in
this State.
VERMONT
The Green Mountain State
BY
Walter Hill Crockett
author of
Vermont — Its Resources and Opportunities
History of Lake Champlain
George Franklin Edmunds
Volume One
The Century History Company, Inc.
New York
1921
THE NEW YORK
PUBLIC LIBRARY
569586A
AiTOR, LENOX AND
TtLDEN FOUNDATIONS
R 1931 L
Copyright 1921
BY The Century History Company
ALL rights reserved
Publication Office
8 West 47th Street, New York
U. S. A.
To THE Memory of
George Grenvillh Benedict
AND
Horace Ward Bailey
Who encouraged and aided the author
in his study of Vermont history,
these volumes are dedicated.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS
The Various Geological Periods as Shown in Vermont.
The Effects of Erosion.
Fossils in Vermont Rocks.
Changes Wrought During the Glacial Periods.
The Geological History of Lake Champlain.
The Formation of Granite, Marble and Slate.
CHAPTER n
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY
Conditions in the Year 1G09.
Samuel Champlain's Explorations.
He Joins a War Party of Canadian Indians on an Expedition
Against the Iroquois.
Discovers the Lake that Bears His Name.
Battle with the Iroquois.
Far-Reaching Effect of the Conflict.
CHAPTER HI
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT
The Algonquin and Iroquois Confederacies.
The Abnakis.
Vermont's Present Area Contested Ground.
Mohican Massacre in Pownal.
The Squakheag Tribe of the Connecticut Valley.
Occupation of The Coos Region.
King Philip Assembles a Conference of Indian Tribes at Vernon.
Specimens of Picture Writing.
Prehistoric Indians in Swanton.
The Missiassik Tribe.
Relics in Vermont Towns.
Indian Trails.
Indian Names.
CHAPTER IV
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND THE INDIAN RAIDS
Indian Migration from Southern New England.
Importance of the Abnaki Settlement on the Missisquol.
Gray Lock's Leadership.
His Raids in the Connecticut Valley.
X HISTORY OF VERMONT
Scouting Parties Sent out Against Indians.
Frencli Expeditions in tlie Champlain Valley.
New York Incursions into Canada.
The Burning of Deerfield.
Attacks on Scouting Parties of Captains Melvin and Hobbs.
Number Four Attacked.
A Connecticut River Fort Burned.
Robert Rogers Destroys tlie St. Fi-ancis Village.
CHAPTER V
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES
The Building of Fort St. Anne on Isle La Motte.
Marquis de Tracy's Expedition.
The Fort Abandoned.
French Attempts to Plant Colonies.
Grants of Land on Lake Champlain.
Extent of the Seigniories.
Conditions of the French Grants.
Settlement at Alburg.
Fort St. Frederic and Outlying Settlements.
Disputes between French and English Regarding Ownership.
CHAPTER VI
FORT DUMMER AND THE FIRST ENGLISH SETTLEMENTS.
The Northfleld, Mass., Settlements.
The Equivalent Lands.
The Building of Fort Dummer.
This Fortification as a Trading Post.
New Boundary Line Gives Fort to New Hampshire.
Contest Over Its Maintenance.
The First "White Child Known to Have Been Born in Vermont.
Forts Bridgman and Sartwell Built.
CHAPTER VII
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS
The Settlement of Number One, or Westminster.
First Inhabitants of Vernon.
First Clearings and Early Settlers at Putney.
John Kathan, the First Settler at Dummerston.
Settlements at Rockingham, Halifax and Newfane.
Building of Military Road from Crown Point to Number Four.
CONTENTS XI
CHAPTER VIII
NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS
Benning Wentworth and the Bennington Grant.
The Form of Charter Used.
Grants Made from 1750 to 1764.
Some Facts Concerning the Grantees.
Grants to Residents of New York, Some of Whom Were Quakers.
Official Pees and Perquisites.
Grants by New York Governors.
Confirmation of New Hampshire Charters.
CHAPTER IX
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS
Attractions Offered by the Lands of the New Hampshire Grants.
Settlement of Bennington, Guilford, Halifax, Newbury, Pawlet,
Pownal, Arlington, Hartford, Hartland, Marlboro, Norwich,
Shaftsbury, Chester, Guildhall, Manchester, Panton, Sharon,
Thetford, Windsor, Addison, Bradford, Uanby, Woodstock,
Pairlee, Middlebury, Newfane, Shelburne, Shoreham, Sunder-
land, Vergennes, Rupert, Castleton, Pittsford, Waltham,
Andover, Bridport, Clarendon, Dorset, Grafton, Lunenburg,
Strafford, Wells, Cavendish, Ferrisburg, Landgrove, New
Haven, Rutland, Pomfret, Poultney, Royalton, Sandgate,
Whitingham, Brandon, Colchester, Maidstone, Reading, Bur-
lington, Londonderry, Peru, Wallingford, Whiting, Windham,
Tinmouth, Baniard, Cornwall, Hinesburg, Jericho, Leicester,
Middletown, Monkton, Salisbury, Williston, Hubbardton,
; Peacham, Richmond, Weybridge, Orwell, St. Albans, Sudbury,
Barnet, Ryegate.
The Scotch Settlements, In Vermont.
Character of the Vermont Settlers.
The Connecticut Influence.
Methods and Customs of the Pioneers.
CHAPTER X
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP
Official Correspondence Between Governors Wentworth and Clinton.
Evidence Regarding the Boundary between New York and New
Hampshire.
Matter of Jurisdiction Referred to the Crown.
Activity of Lieutenant Governor Colden.
Arguments of Provincial Authorities.
Effect of the New England Spirit of Independence upon the
Controversy.
Order of the King in Council Establishing the Connecticut River as
the Eastern Boundary of New York.
Disputed Territory "Annexed" to New York.
XII HISTORY OF VERMONT
Lands Already Occupied Regranted.
Petition to the King Presented by New Hampshire Grantees.
Agents Sent to England.
Death of Samuel Robinson in London.
British Government Censures New York Governors.
CHAPTER XI
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY
New Counties Established.
First Open Opposition to New York.
Affair of the Breakenridge Farm.
Sheriff Ten Eyck's Unsuccessful Attempt to Evict Settlers.
Appearance of Ethan Allen.
Trial of Ejectment Suits at Albany.
Bennington People Adopt a Policy of Resistance.
New York Officials and Settlers Suffer.
Rewards Offered for Apprehension of Green Mountain Leaders.
Capture and Rescue of Remember Baker.
Plans to Attack Governor Tryon.
Cause of the Settlers Presented.
Meeting of Town Committees.
The "Beech Seal" Applied.
"Mobs" and "Rioters."
Certain Leaders Declared Outlaws.
Their Response.
New Royal Colony Proposed.
CHAPTER XII
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE
Conditions Preceding the American Revolution.
Conflicts with New York Provincial Officials.
The Rising Spirit of Opposition to British Policies Shown in
Public Meetings.
County Conventions Called and Sympathy with American Resist-
ance Expressed.
Attempt to Prevent Holding of Court at Westminster.
Armed Conflict and Bloodshed, and Two Men Mortally Wounded.
A Popular Uprising Follows the Affray.
Practical Ending of New York Rule in This Region.
Bold Resolutions Adopted by the People of Cumberland and
Gloucester Counties.
Volunteers Offer Services Following Battle of Lexington.
CHAPTER XIII
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA
Part Taken by Residents of Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys Interested.
CONTENTS XIII
Samuel Beach's Famous Journey Warning the Settlers to Rally
for Attack.
Rendezvous at Castleton.
Appearance of Benedict Arnold.
Expedition Assembled at Hand's Cove, in Shoreham.
Story of the Capture of the Fortress.
The Prizes of War.
Effect of the Capture.
Crown Point, Skenesborough and Fort George Taken.
Expedition of Allen and Arnold to St. Johns.
CHAPTER XIV
THE ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY
Friction Between Allen and Arnold.
Correspondence with Provincial Authorities and Continental Con-
gress.
Massachusetts Appoints an Investigating Committee.
Arnold Refuses to Recognize the Authority of Colonel Hinman, and
Resigns.
Many Protests Against Proposal of Congress to Abandon Ticon-
deroga.
Captured Cannon Transported to Boston by Colonel Knox.
CHAPTER XV
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN
Ethan Allen and Seth Warner visit Continental Congress and New
York Legislature.
Raising of Regiment of Green Mountain Boys Recommended.
Warner Chosen Leader.
Cumberland County Militia Organized.
Ethan Allen Urges Immediate Attack Upon Canada.
Conditions on Lake Champlain.
Schuyler Organizes an Expedition.
Remember Baker Killed.
Canadian Invasion Begun.
Ethan Allen Meets Canadians.
Unsuccessful Attempt to Take Montreal.
Allen's Capture and Imprisonment.
Siege and Capture of St. Johns.
Warner Repulses Carleton at Longueuil.
Montreal Evacuated.
Warner's Regiment Discharged.
Charges Against Colonel Enos.
Warner Responds to Appeal for Aid.
Benjamin Franklin Visits Canada.
Ira Allen Aids Montgomery.
The Retreat from Canada.
Illness and Death Among Troops.
Inhabitants of New Hampshire Grants Petition for Protection.
Washington Objects to Proposal to Abandon Crown Point.
The Bayley-Hazen Road Begun.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Ira Allen Frontispiece
Map of Taquahunga Falls Facing page 40
Isle LaMotte Scenes " " 80
Map of French Seigniories " " 120
Fort Dummer " " 140
Plan of Fort Dummer " " 160
Chorographical Map of North America " " 190
Map of French and English Grants " " 220
Governor Benning Wentworth " " 260
Bridge at Bellows Falls " " 280
Monument to Green Mountain Boys " " 300
Catamount Tavern, Bennington " " 350
Old Court House, Westminster " " 400
Glimpses of Ticonderoga and Crown Point " " 440
"Old Daye Press" " " 460
Facsimile of Ethan Allen Letter " " 480
Old Meeting House at Bennington " " 500
Old Tavern at Arlington " " 520
Lake Dunmore " " 550
PREFACE
Measured in terms of square miles, or in tables of
population, Vermont is a small State, containing an
area of less than ten thousand square miles; but if
notable deeds accomplished may be taken as a standard,
then the Green Mountain Commonwealth ranks among
the really great States of the American Union. The
story of Vermont is a marvelous one, filled with perils
and sacrifices, heroic deeds and stirring adventures.
Great men laid the foundations of the State, great men
have builded thereon, and their achievements have
given Vermont a name that is honored wherever it is
known. Because history is truth, it is often stranger
than fiction, and sometimes it is more romantic.
Like other mountain States, Vermont has been
inhabited by a people in whose hearts a passionate love
of liberty has been cherished. First among American
States to forbid human slavery, Vermont always has
stood for freedom under the law. Never a crown
colony, never yielding allegiance to any province. State
or kingdom, the little band of bold and resourceful
pioneers, dwelling in the shadow of the Green Moun-
tains, set up a repubHc and successfully maintained an
independent government for thirteen years, until Ver-
mont was admitted as the first State to be added to the
Union.
Certain States, like certain persons, possess an indi-
viduality that dififerentiates them from the common
type. Without asserting that Vermont is, or has been,
peopled by a race of supermen, it is a fact that it diflfers
XVI HISTORY OF VERMONT
in important particulars from other States, Believing
that the history of Vermont is of sufficient importance
to warrant relating in greater detail than has yet been
told, the author has undertaken to tell this story and
to call attention to circumstances in which it differs
from other Commonwealths, in the pages that follow,
hoping that its narration may arouse a deeper interest
in the past, present and the future of the Green Moun-
tain State. He realizes the magnitude of the task he
has undertaken, and feels the burden of the responsi-
bility he has assumed, in attempting to tell adequately
and accurately the story of Vermont. He lays no
claim to infallibility, but he has sought, diligently and
patiently, to consult all accessible sources of infor-
mation, and to sift out of the vast amount of available
material the important historical facts that deserve to
be remembered.
The number of historical and biographical works,
documents, letters, journals, and reports consulted, has
been so great that a recapitulation of the titles would
be wearisome.
To all who have assisted the author in the preparation
of these volumes, and the number is large, he takes this
occasion to render heartfelt thanks. Special acknowl-
edgment is due to the courteous officials of the Vermont
State and the University of Vermont Libraries, for
without the help of those institutions this History could
not have been written; to the Advisory Board, Hon.
Mason S. Stone of Montpelier, Hon. Frank L. Fish of
Vergennes, Hon. C. P. Smith of Burlington, Dr. H. C.
Tinkham of Burlington, and to the Hon. Horace W.
PREFACE XVII
Bailey of Newbury and Hon. G. H. Prouty of Newport,
whose death before the completion of the History was
keenly felt by the author; also to those who have con-
tributed special articles for this work, thereby adding
much to its value. The kindly interest and hearty
cooperation shown by Vermonters within and without
the State have lightened the author's burdens and are
gratefully acknowledged.
Burlington, Vt., June, 1921.
Chapter I
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS
THE first chapter of Vermont history was written
unnumbered centuries ago, in the rocks that form
the foundations of the Green Mountains. ^J'he
period of time that was consumed in the writing of that
chapter seems so long, when we attempt to apply the
measuring rod of our ordinary system of reckoning,
that the human mind with difficulty comprehends it;
and all the years included in the annals of mankind
upon this earth, when compared with this vaster span
needed for the making of the mountains, seems no
more than "a watch in the night."
The Green Mountain State ranks among the oldest
regions within the limits of what is now known as the
United States of America. While it is possible that
deep down under these lofty hills there may be rocks
belonging to the Archean, the very oldest geological
period, none of these ancient rocks have been found, and
the evidence obtained indicates that the foundations of
the Green Mountains were laid during the next period,
the Algonkian.
No man has read more carefully this first chapter of
our history than has Prof. George H. Perkins, the Ver-
mont State Geologist, and in a carefully written article
dealing with the geological history of the State, he has
said: "It is easy for anyone at all familiar with the
geological history of America to imagine something of
that which must have happened during all these ages,
when much the greater part of North America south of
Canada line was formed.
"We know that at the beginning of this long period
the Adirondacks were already raised, and that not very
HISTORY OF VERMONT
long after the Green Mountains were in existence, and
also that both these ranges were vastly greater than
now. The mass was larger and the peaks higher. It
is not too much to say that since these ancient mountains
were uplifted finally, they have lost half, perhaps more
than that, of their original bulk. Nothing is made more
plain to the student of geology than the economy of
Nature in using the same materials over and over again.
The sandstones and conglomerates of one period are the
solid strata of a preceding time. The rocks of the Green
Mountains are in part, just how large a part we do not
as yet know, made from materials derived from the
older Adirondacks. And old as they are, the Adiron-
dacks owe a part at least of the material which makes
up their mass to still older rocks. The sand which was
the broken debris of the Adirondack rocks, broken and
transported by the waves of the ancient Cambrian seas,
formed the red sand rock beds and quartzites of western
Vermont, and these more or less metamorphosed by the
conditions to which they were exposed, formed quartz-
ites, conglomerates, schists, etc., which are now a part of
the Green Mountain mass. These in turn, worn by
water, disintegrated by various atmospheric agencies,
were slowly through the ages reduced to sands and
clays, or by glacial action at the last, broken into boul-
ders, and lost more than we can estimate of what once
formed part of their solid mass, and thus have supplied
very largely the materials which cover the surface of
the State."
Following the Algonkian period came the Cambrian,
during which some of the boldest headlands on the east-
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS 5
ern shore of Lake Champlain were formed. These
include Mallett's Head, Rock Point and Red Rocks, in
the vicinity of Burlington. Such elevations as Cobble
Hill in Milton, Mutton Hill and Mount Philo in Char-
lotte and most of Snake Mountain in Addison are
examples of Cambrian rock. While fossils in this rock
are scarce in Vermont, in some sections many trilobites
have been found. These are comparatively rare fossils
of a very early time. Most of the Rutland county slate
deposits belong to the Cambrian period.
Next above the Cambrian comes the Ordovician
period, which is subdivided into Beekmantown, Chazy,
Black River, Trenton and Utica. During the general
Cambrian period the Northfield and some of the Rut-
land county slates were deposited.
The Beekmantown is seen at its best in Vermont at
Fort Cassin, at the mouth of Otter Creek, where mol-
lusks, especially cephalopods, are found in the rocks in
great numbers. This is a famous geological region and
many new fossils have been discovered here. Most of
the Chazy formation is limestone, but it includes some
sandstone, and it is seen to good advantage in the towns
of Grand Isle and Isle La Motte. At times it reaches
a thickness of nearly nine hundred feet. Some layers
contain few fossils, while others are almost wholly
made up of trilobites, cephalopods, brachiopods, corals,
sponges, etc. These fossil sponges, as seen in polished
dies of monumental stones from Isle La Motte quarries,
are very beautiful.
Black River limestone is not extensive in Vermont,
but is found in Isle La Motte, South Hero, and at inter-
HISTORY OF VERMONT
vals as far south as Benson. The fine grain and jet
black color of some of this stone, when polished, have
brought it into use as black marble.
The Utica is a soft, shaly rock, which easily wears
away under erosion. There is much of it in the north-
western part of the State. The whole of Alburg penin-
sula, the island of North Hero, and much of Grand
Isle are covered by the shales of this period, and much
of the soil of these towns is formed of decomposed shale.
Few fossils have been discovered in this rock. With the
Utica, the formation of stratified rocks ceased almost
entirely in the region now known as Vermont.
At the close of the Ordovician period the shore line
of Lake Champlain ran from Shelburne Point through
Rock Dunder, and Juniper Island to Appletree Point,
and thence to Colchester Point. All to the east of this
line was dry land.
During the Tertiary period there were swamps in
the western part of the State in which grew trees found
only in a climate warmer than that which now prevails
in Vermont. It is believed that the climate then was
as mild as that of the Carolinas today. The most inter-
esting evidence of this mild climate is found in the lig-
nite beds of Brandon. Occasionally lignite resembles
coal, and it has been burned as fuel when there was a
shortage of coal, but usually it has the appearance of a
dark hued, decayed wood. Embedded in this lignite are
found very rare specimens of fossil fruits. A collection
of Australian fruits in a Harvard University Museum
contains species closely resembling the Brandon fossils.
While it is reasonable to suppose that animal life, and
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS 7
other forms of vegetable life existed here during this
period, evidences of them have not been found.
The interval between the close of the Ordovician and
the opening of the Pleistocene period was of very great
duration, covering, probably, millions of years. It has
been called a period of quiet and gentle changes, and it
was followed in the Pleistocene by a period of "great
commotion and rapid transformation," to quote from
Prof. G. H. Perkins, during which the character of the
surface and the scenery of the State underwent a great
change. The sand and gravel banks, the clay deposits
and much of the rock formation of Vermont belong to
this period.
It was during the Pleistocene period that the prevail-
ing mild climate was transformed into an Arctic tem-
perature. North of the St. Lawrence River there
accumulated gradually vast masses of snow, thousands
of square miles in area and thousands of feet thick,
greater, probably, than any such accumulation ever
formed before or since that time. From this region of
perpetual snows there originated three enormous glaci-
ers. The first, a comparatively narrow one, called the
Cordilleran, covered the Pacific coast region. The
second and longest, covered much of central Canada
from Hudson Bay to the Cordilleran glacier, and
extended south through the Mississippi valley and into
the present State of Kansas. The third glacier, and
the one that properly belongs in this narration, origi-
nated in northern Labrador and extended over New
England and the region of the Great Lakes.
Slowly this vast river of ice, probably more than a
8 HISTORY OF VERMONT
mile in thickness, moved southward. Graduahy the
climate grew colder, and animal and plant life was
destroyed or driven southward. Relentlessly it moved
forward, crushing and grinding, pulverizing some rocks
to powder and polishing others smooth. The softer
rocks were deposited as clays, while some of the harder
rocks, when disintegrated, took the form of sand or
gravel, or were worn into smooth, round cobble-stones.
Large fragments of rock were broken from their native
ledges, carried hundreds of miles and deposited in the
form of boulders. Mountain tops and headlands were
worn down and the whole face of the landscape was
changed. The very highest peaks of the Green and
White Mountains were covered by this Labradorian
glacier. Professor Perkins, writing of this period,
alludes to "the utmost desolation that must have pre-
vailed," and says: 'T suppose that the present condi-
tion of Greenland, covered as it is by the ice cap, repre-
sents on a small scale, the conditions existing over north-
ern North America during the height of the ice age."
The melting of this glacier naturally created great
bodies of water, cutting new channels for rivers and
forming large lakes, or adding to the size of those
already existing. Many a rivulet that today seems a
misfit as it flows at the bottom of a deep and wide valley,
follows the bed of an ancient glacial stream. Water-
worn rocks, and potholes high up on the faces of clififs,
show the action of ancient seas or rivers countless cen-
turies ago.
The sand plains along the lower reaches of such
rivers as the Lamoille and the Winooski once were the
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS 9
deltas of these streams, when Lake Champlain extended
inland nearly or quite to the foot of the Green Moun-
tains. The channel of the Ottaquechee River was filled
with the sand and debris of the ice age so that the river
was compelled to find a new course, and this diversion
of the stream resulted in the erosion of what is known
as Quechee Gulf, from one-half to three- fourths of a
mile long, three hundred feet wide and nearly two hun-
dred feet deep. Prof. C. H. Richardson of Dartmouth
College says that the length of time necessary for such
erosion was not less than ten thousand years.
Williamstown "^Gulf, Brookfield Gulf, and the depres-
sion in Craf tsbury in which Elligo Pond is situated, are
other evidences of the work of glacial torrents. Many
of the small lakes and ponds of Vermont are of glacial
origin.
By the plowing and grinding of the glaciers, by the
subsequent melting of the vast masses of ice, and by the
decay of the unhar vested vegetation of thousands of
years, a soil of unusual thickness and fertility was de-
posited over the greater part of Vermont.
The Champlain valley between the Adirondack and
Green Mountain ranges was formed ages before the
glacial epoch. It was always long and narrow, but
varied in size. At times it is believed there was a con-
tinuous waterway between the Gulf of St. Lawrence and
New York Bay.
Sometimes the waters of Lake Champlain were salt
and sometimes they were fresh. At times the current
flowed north, and again it flowed south. Before the
*Gulf, as used in this sense, means a gulch.
10 HISTORY OF VERMONT
glacial period this lake was so narrow that it resembled
a river more than a lake, and the stream which drained
into the Hudson valley wore the deep channel, resemb-
ling a canyon in its deepest parts, that now exists near
the New York shore.
The Grand Isle county islands at one time probably
constituted a single land body and were raised out of an
ancient sea before the Green Mountains were completed,
and were divided later by erosion. Probably all the
bays of Lake Champlain are of glacial origin.
After the great ice sheet of the glacial epoch had
melted, the land was depressed and Lake Champlain
became an arm of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Probably
this arm of the sea did not extend south of the present
location of Ticonderoga, an uprising of the land between
the present sites of Whitehall and Troy having broken
the connection with the Hudson River. The skeleton
of a whale found near Charlotte, Vt., is a reminder of
the time when Lake Champlain was connected with the
Atlantic Ocean. This whale is said to have been similar
to the small white whale now found in the waters of the
Gulf of St. Lawrence.
When glacial Lake Champlain was largest, its tribu-
taries flowed at a higher altitude than that which they
now occupy. The Winooski River entered the lake near
the present location of Richmond and in time formed a
large delta. The Lamoille River created a wide delta
about Milton, northern Colchester and southern Georgia,
and entered the lake farther north than its present
mouth.
Glacial Lake Memphremagog probably exceeded by a
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS 11
considerable extent its present bounds. Doctor Hitch-
cock thinks that at one time the waters of Lake Mem-
phremagog were discharged through the depression in
which Elligo Pond is now located, into the Lamoille
River ; that the Lamoille found an outlet through Stowe
Strait into the Winooski River, while the latter stream
may have been discharged through Williamstown gap
into the White and Connecticut Rivers.
The three most important of Vermont's valuable stone
products are marble, granite and slate; and the oldest
of these rocks is slate, which belongs partly in the Cam-
brian and partly in the Ordovician period. In quiet,
deep water a fine sediment accumulated in beds of mud
and clay. This hardened into shale with layers approxi-
mately horizontal.
As a result of change in the level of the sea bottom,
and the superimposing of other material like limestone
upon the slate, strong pressure was brought to bear
upon it, heat and moisture being present. Thus slate
was formed. There are four slate areas in Ver-
mont, two of them being east and two west of the Green
Mountains.
Most, if not all, of the Vermont marbles — and there
are at least one hundred different varieties — belong to
the Ordovician period and to the subdivision called
Chazy. Marble has been defined as a rock consisting
mainly of crystalline particles of calcite, dolomite, or
both. White calcite marble is composed almost entirely
of carbonate of lime; white dolomite marble is formed
almost wholly of carbonate of magnesia. True marble
has been defined as metamorphosed limestone and lime-
12 HISTORY OF VERMONT
stone is formed from a deposit of calcium carbonate,
either as a result of the accumulation of vast numbers
of marine shells or the chemical precipitation from vege-
table growth. There was much submergence and eleva-
tion during the laying down of the marble deposits. As
a result of powerful contractions of the earth's crust,
at the close of the Ordovician period the sediments be-
came crystalline and were intensely folded. The calcite
marbles of western Vermont are regarded as limestones
of marine and mostly of organic origin, which have
been metamorphosed under great pressure.
Overlying the marble deposits of western Vermont
is a great mass of schist, a rough, slaty rock. These
schists were formed from clay deposits, brought down
to the sea by rivers flowing over granitic and other
rocks. When the calcareous sediments beneath were
metamorphosed into marble, the overlying deposits of
clay became mica schists, and the small beds of sand
became quartzite. In many places, during the lapse of
centuries, the schist was removed by a process of erosion.
In Clarendon deposits of marble and dolomite to-
gether measure 1,200 feet in thickness, and a fair
average of the thickness of the marble beds is said to
be 663 feet. The infinite patience of Nature, and the
almost incredible length of geological periods, is well
illustrated in the time necessary for the laying down of
marble beds six hundred or seven hundred feet in thick-
ness as a result of the accumulation of the shells of tiny
marine animals. The marble area of Vermont consists
chiefly of a long and comparatively narrow strip in the
western portion of the State.
THE MAKING OF THE MOUNTAINS 13
Most Vermont granite is a mixture of quartz, mica
and feldspar. The mica usually is black and of the
variety known as biotite, but the Bethel white granite
contains a white mica called muscovite.
Vermont granite generally contains very little iron.
The difiference in the various shades of gray is chiefly
due to a greater or less amount of black mica. Prof.
T. N. Dale is of the opinion that most of the Vermont
granites belong to the late Devonian or early Carbonif-
erous periods. All of the Vermont granites are of
igneous origin, being forced up from beneath as molten
masses, through schists or other older rocks. Mount
Ascutney shows evidences of volcanic action, there being
indications of two eruptions. The first eruption gave
rise to the main body of the mountain. According to
Prof. C. H. Richardson *'the granite flowed out over the
encircling limestone like molten lava, and calcined the
lime to a distance of more than five hundred feet." Little
Ascutney represents a second eruption. Barre granite
is of volcanic origin. Blue Mountain, a granite deposit
in Ryegate, and Orange Mountain, are modern repre-
sentatives of extinct volcanoes. Apparently the mica
schists and mica slates through which the granites of
Barre, Bethel, Hardwick, Ryegate, Woodbury, and
other localities were forced, are metamorphosed clayey
and sandy sediments, and the present granite surfaces
have been exposed in many instances by erosion.
Granite is more widely distributed throughout Ver-
mont than either marble or slate, but the deposits are
confined chiefly to the eastern portion of the State.
Chapter II
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY
IF any European visited the region now known as
Vermont during the century and more that elapsed
between the discovery of America by Christopher
Cokimbus in 1492, and the year 1609, no record has been
left to establish that fact, and the probabilities are all
against such a visit.
When Jacques Cartier, one of the famous mariners
of France, sailed up the St. Lawrence River, in 1535,
seeking a passage to the Indies, he visited the Indian
village of Hochelaga, the site of which is now occupied
by the city of Montreal, and while there ascended a
mountain nearby, later known as Mount Royal. From
this sightly elevation Cartier beheld a great expanse
of country, the unbroken forest, stretching in every
direction, being gorgeous, as one may believe, on that
October day with the brilliant colors of the autumn
foliage; and in the far distance, to the southward, it is
altogether probable that he saw some of the peaks of
the Green Mountains. A period embracing almost
three-quarters of a century was to elapse, however, be-
fore a fellow countryman of this ''master pilot of St.
Malo" was to discover the beautiful lake that was to
perpetuate his name, and the verdant shores that border
these pleasant waters.
Although it had been nearly one hundred and seven-
teen years since the first visit of Columbus to the New
World, white men had hardly established a foothold on
the American continent in the year 1609. Far to the
southward, the Spaniards had planted the first perma-
nent settlement in what is now the United States of
America, at St. Augustine, in Florida; and at a still
18 HISTORY OF VERMONT
greater distance to the westward the Spanish colors
floated over Santa Fe, in New Mexico. The French had
established two colonies, one at Port Royal, in Nova
Scotia, in 1605, and another at Quebec, in 1608. The
first permanent English colony had just been planted
at Jamestown, in Virginia, in 1608. In all the vast
region that lay between the Atlantic and the Pacific
seas, in all the thousands of miles that stretched from
the Arctic snows to the Gulf of Mexico, only these five
little settlements were the homes of white men in 1609.
All the remainder of the continent north of Mexico was
the home and the hunting ground of the red men, who
had occupied it for centuries so many that no historian
may hope to number them.
Six years earlier, in 1603, there had arrived in Canada
a man, who, for more than thirty years, was to be the
most notable representative of France in the New
World, Samuel Champlain. Born about the year
1567 in the little seaport town of Brouage, in the ancient
province of Saintonge, in western France, from a child
he had loved the sea. His first voyage was to Spain,
with an uncle, who held high rank in the Spanish navy.
In 1599 he had been given the command of a ship bound
for the West Indies and New Spain. He had spent two
years or more in that region, landing at Vera Cruz, visit-
ing Mexico City, stopping at Panama long enough to
observe the possibilities of a ship canal connecting the
two oceans, and proceeding as far as New Granada, in
South America. During his first year in Canada,
Champlain explored the Saguenay River, and a portion
of the River and Gulf of St. Lawrence. During three
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY 19
years, beginning with 1604, he explored and charted the
Atlantic coast from eastern Nova Scotia to southern
Massachusetts. In July, 1608, having returned from a
visit to France, Champlain laid the foundations of the
city of Quebec, which he made his headquarters during
the winter of unusual severity which followed.
While the year 1609 may not be counted among the
most notable in history, it was not lacking in events
of more than ordinary importance. Pastor John Robin-
son had led to Leyden the Pilgrims who had left
Scrooby, England, for Holland, from which country
they were to fare forth, in 1620, to establish a New Eng-
land on the Massachusetts coast of America. Prince
Maurice of the Netherlands, had defeated the Arch-
duke of Austria; the independence of the united prov-
inces of Holland was recognized; and a truce of twelve
years was declared. That year, 1609, marked the final
expulsion of the Moors from Spain, the construction of
the telescope by Galileo, and the publication of the
Douay version of the Bible.
In the spring of 1609, Henry Hudson, an English
navigator in the employ of the Dutch East India Com-
pany, sailed from Amsterdam for America. Skirting
the coast from Nova Scotia southward, he entered the
Kennebec River to make repairs upon his ship at the very
time that Samuel Champlain was starting on his expedi-
tion into the country of the Iroquois.
During the preceding year John Milton had been born
and William Shakespeare had published "King Lear."
Sir Walter Raleigh was a prisoner in the Tower of Lon-
don. Only four years had passed since the discovery
20 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of the Gunpowder Plot in England; and in the same
year, 1605, Bacon published his "Advancement of Learn-
ing." Queen Elizabeth had been dead only six years,
and a score of years had elapsed since the defeat of the
Spanish Armada.
James I was the ruler of Great Britain, Henry IV,
better known as Henry of Navarre, was monarch of
France, and Philip III sat upon the throne of Spain.
During the winter of 1608-9 Champlain had learned
from the Indians of a large lake lying to the south-
west, surrounded by a region of lofty mountains and
beautiful valleys. Having been urged to join a war
party of Hurons and Algonquins on an expedition
against their ancient enemy, the Iroquois, he yielded
to their solicitation in order that he might explore the
country which the Indians had pictured in such an allur-
ing manner.
After spending nearly a week in war dances and war
feasts, Champlain and his party, consisting of eleven
Frenchmen and a band of Montagnais Indians, left
Quebec, June 18, 1609. A little later the size of the
expedition was increased by the addition of Huron and
Algonquin warriors. At the mouth of the River of the
Iroquois, now known as the Richelieu, two days were
spent, and a disagreement having arisen over the plan
of campaign, a portion of the Indians refused to accom-
pany the expedition and returned to their homes.
On June 28, the party started southward. Champlain
and his countrymen, in a small shallop, left their allies
behind, owing to the superior sailing qualities of their
craft, and crossing the Basin of Chambly were surprised
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY 21
to find rapids that made navigation impossible. The
Indians had promised Champlain that he would find
an unobstructed course for the whole of the journey,
and he says in his Journal : "It afflicted me and troubled
me exceedingly to be obliged to return without having
seen so great a lake, full of fair islands and bordered
with the fine countries which they had described to me."
Upon reflection, however, he decided to go on with
two of his countrymen, who volunteered to accompany
him, together with sixty Indians in twenty-four canoes.
The party left the head of the Chambly Rapids on July
2, according to Champlain' s record, the arms, baggage
and canoes being carried around the most dangerous
part of the rapids. During the day a stop was made
for a brief hunting expedition at an island covered with
beautiful pines. Bourne, a translator of Champlain's
Journal, believes this island to have been St. Therese.
Proceeding a little farther, a camp was made for the
night, the construction of which the explorer describes
in detail in his personal narrative.
Following his own account of the journey we read
that on the next day, July 3, many pretty islands, low
and covered with forests and meadows, were passed —
islands upon which were found stags, fallow deer, fawns,
roebucks, and other animals — and the camp for the night
was made at the entrance to the lake. On July 4, a day
destined to become a notable anniversary in the new
country which he was exploring, Champlain entered this
noble lake to which he gave his name. As he advanced
southward, passing the large islands in its northern
waters, a wonderful prospect opened before him on this
22 HISTORY OF VERMONT
midsummer day. Seldom has an explorer been re-
warded by a fairer spectacle than this expanse of water,
broad enough and deep enough to float the armadas of
Europe, and guarded on either hand by a wall of moun-
tains. From the margin of the lake nearly to the sum-
mits of the Green and Adirondack peaks, stretched the
virgin forest; and at this season the songs of birds must
have greeted the ear, and the flowers at the margin of
the woodland must have delighted the gaze of the
traveller.
The Indian guides told Champlain many things —
That the larger islands of the lake "formerly had been
inhabited by savages, like the River of the Iroquois, but
they had been abandoned since they had been at war with
one another" ; that to the eastward was a region in-
habited by the Iroquois, consisting of "beautiful valleys
and open stretches fertile in grain * * * with a
great many other fruits."
One difficult passage in the explorer's description of
the country is his allusion to snow covered mountains to
the eastward, meaning the Green Mountains. One can
hardly imagine the summits of Mount Mansfield and
Camel's Hump white with snow in the month of July,
and if the season had been unusually cold an intelligent
observer like Champlain probably would have recorded
the fact. Whether he saw some peculiar cloud forma-
tion, or the whitened surface of a landslide may not
easily be determined. Possibly exaggeration was not
wholly absent from the narrative.
It is interesting to compare Champlain's description
of the Green Mountains with that of a party from
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY 23
Piscataqua which visited the White Mountain region in
1642, and told of summits above the clouds, covered with
snow throughout the year. Another comparison may
be made with a "Chorographical map" published about
1779. on which appears a brief description of the Adiron-
dack Mountain region, including a statement that
"through this tract of land runs a chain of mountains
which from Lake Champlain on one side and the River
St. Lawrence on the other side, show their tops always
white with snow." It is not impossible that these
travellers of an earlier day than ours perceived some
features of the landscape with the eye of imagination.
As Champlain and his party drew near to the region
where their enemies, the Iroquois, might be found,
greater precautions were taken to avoid discovery.
Travelling was done by night and during the day the
warriors withdrew to the seclusion of the forests for
rest and safety. If the explorer's dates are not con-
fused, he spent a good deal more time after entering the
lake, and before encountering the enemy on July 30, than
was necessary to traverse the distance between the pres-
ent sites of Rouses Point and Ticonderoga. No
record is left to account for nearly the whole month
of July. It is hardly to be supposed that this party on
an aggressive and warlike errand in a hostile country,
where the enemy might be encountered at any hour,
would pause for two or three weeks of hunting, or to
permit the French leader to explore the newly discovered
country. And if Champlain had interrupted this mili-
tary campaign to penetrate the surrounding region, it is
entirely reasonable to suppose that this careful narrator
24 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of events would have mentioned the fact in his Journals.
It is not easy to devise a satisfactory explanation for this
unaccounted period, nor is it safe, without further
evidence, to discredit Champlain's dates.
As the party was proceeding southward, about ten
o'clock on the evening of July 29, an Iroquois expedition
was encountered going northward, "at the end of a
cape that projects into the lake on the west side."
With loud outcries the opposing forces began to pre-
pare their arms for battle, but neither the hour nor the
place was favorable to the methods of warfare employed
by the American Indians. The Iroquois, therefore,
withdrew to land and constructed a barricade, while the
invaders drew their canoes together and fastened them
to poles in order that their forces might not be scattered.
When the Iroquois had put their forces into battle array,
they dispatched two canoes to the Algonquins to learn
if the latter wanted to fight. Being assured that nothing
else was desired they withdrew and waited for the morn-
ing, the remainder of the night being devoted to the
singing of war songs, to war dances, and to an exchange
of taunts and insults. During all this time Champlain
and his two countrymen remained concealed in the canoes
of the Algonquins.
At daybreak the attacking party went ashore, the
three Frenchmen wearing light armor, and each being
armed with an arquebus. The Iroquois advanced from
their barricade, with nearly two hundred warriors,
ready for battle, while the attacking party consisted, as
previously stated, of only sixty Indians and three Euro-
peans. Champlain says of the Iroquois that they "were
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY 25
strong and robust to look at, coming slowly toward us
wath a dignity and assurance that pleased me very
much." At their head were three chiefs, each being
distinguished by wearing three large plumes. As the
Algonquins advanced toward the enemy they opened
their ranks to enable Champlain to take the lead. When
he came within thirty paces of the Iroquois he halted,
aimed at one of the three chiefs, and brought two to the
ground, wounding also one of their companions so that
he died later. The arrows then began to fly from both
sides, Champlain's Indian allies shouting loudly in
exultation over the success of their leader. As Cham-
plain was loading his weapon again one of his country-
men fired a shot from the nearby forest. Unaccustomed
to these strange and deadly weapons, the Iroquois fled
into the depths of the woods with their wounded. Pur-
suing them, Champlain and his allies killed several more
of the enemy and captured ten or twelve prisoners.
Fifteen or sixteen of the Algonquins were slightly
wounded by arrow shots.
A considerable quantity of Indian corn and meal was
captured, in addition to such weapons as had been
abandoned by the fleeing Iroquois. After celebrating
the victory for three hours, the triumphant warriors
started on their return trip northward.
In his narrative of the battle Champlain says the
Iroquois were much astonished that their chieftains had
been so quickly killed, "although they were provided
with armor woven from cotton thread and from wood,
proof against arrows." This is said to be the first refer-
ence in American history to the use of cotton.
26 HISTORY OF VERMONT
There is a difference of opinion as to the scene of this
battle, but the best evidence available seems to indicate
what the majority of historians believe, that the conflict
took place not far from the point where nearly a century
and a half later, the fortress of Ticonderoga was built.
This brief conflict in the heart of the wilderness, on
the shores of a newly discovered lake, meant more than
a battle in which less than three hundred Indians and
three white men were engaged. It was the meeting of
a system of warfare which had prevailed on the Ameri-
can continent probably for thousands of years, with the
European system, and it was almost inevitable that fire-
arms should win over primitive bows and arrows, not
only on Lake Champlain, but throughout the Americas.
The Iroquois learned their lesson well, and not very
long thereafter they found a way to secure more modern
weapons and to learn how to use them. If news of the
battle had reached the courts of England and France as
speedily as reports of later battles in that same region,
it would have been considered only an insignificant
skirmish; and yet it exerted a powerful influence upon
the destiny of America, for it made the Iroquois, the
most powerful of Indian confederations, the foes of
France and the friends of England, and helped to make
this a country of English ideas and English speech. All
this was made possible to no inconsiderable degree by
the alliance which the great French pioneer made with
the enemies of the Iroquois.
After travelling eight leagues to the northward on
the day of the battle, the victors made their camp at the
close of the day, and here one of the prisoners was tor-
CHAMPLAIN'S DISCOVERY 27
tured and slain, greatly to the distress of Champlain.
The party proceeded directly to Canada, and there is no
record that Champlain again saw the beautiful lake
which was to be his noblest monument, or the region now
called Vermont, which he discovered, although there
is no direct proof that he set foot upon its soil. The
Indian warriors went their several ways, and Champlain
soon embarked for his native France, where he visited
the King at Fontainbleau, and told him of his adventures
in the wilderness.
At the time of his discovery of Vermont, Champlain
was about forty-two years old. The remainder of his
life, covering a period of twenty-six years, was devoted
to New France. He continued his explorations to the
westward, along the line of the Great Lakes, and served
his God and his King with unflagging zeal.
Champlain was, indeed, a knightly character, the
finest figure, all things considered, of all the men who
followed the fleur de lis of France into this Western
world. An indefatigable explorer, a brave soldier, a
wise administrator, a Christian gentleman, if Vermont
could have chosen her own discoverer, no finer type of
man than Samuel Champlain could have been selected
from all the captains of that age who sailed the Seven
Seas.
Chapter III
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT
THE earliest authentic information concerning
Indian affairs in eastern America indicates the
presence of two great native confederacies, the
Algonquin and the Iroquois, which were arrayed in hos-
tile camps. The former confederacy was the more
numerous, and controlled a greater area than the latter,
but the Iroquois represented a higher type of civilization,
were better organized, and were fiercer warriors than
their rivals.
The Algonquin confederacy stretched from New-
foundland to the Rocky Mountains, and from Churchill
River to Pamlico Sound. The northern division in-
cluded tribes occupying the territory north of the St.
Lawrence River and the Great Lakes. The north-
eastern division embraced the tribes inhabiting eastern
Quebec, the maritime provinces and eastern Maine.
The eastern division was made up of tribes dwelling
along the Atlantic coast as far south as North Carolina.
The central division included tribes residing in Wiscon-
sin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio, while the west-
ern division comprised three groups along the eastern
slope of the Rocky Mountains.
An important subdivision of the Algonquin nation was
known as the Abnakis, and with this group the Indian
history of Vermont is chiefly concerned. Strictly speak-
ing, the Abnakis were confined to a small territory in
Maine between the Saco and St. John Rivers. The
term, however, was applied loosely and often included
a considerable portion of the Eastern Indians. The
name is said to mean Eastlander, or people of the East.
The Abnakis were called Tarrateens by the early Eng-
32 HISTORY OF VERMONT
lish inhabitants. According to Professor Vetromile,
the Abnakis occupied the land from the shores of the
St. Lawrence to the Atlantic Ocean and from the mouth
of the Kennebec River to the eastern part of New Hamp-
shire. A map published in 1660 in "The History of
Canada," written by Reverend Father Ducreux, shows
the Abnakis occupying the region between the Kennebec
River and Lake Champlain.
At an early period the Abnakis became firm friends
of the French, who had sent missionaries among them,
and they were allies of that nation as long as France con-
trolled Canada. As the white population of New Eng-
land increased, the Abnakis gradually withdrew to
Canada, their principal settlements being at Becaucour
and Sillery, the latter places being abandoned later for
St. Francis, near Pierreville, Quebec.
Doctor Trumbull has estimated that at one time there
were 123,000 Indians in New England, but in the winter
of 1616-17, a virulent disease, thought by some to have
been yellow fever, because the victims turned yellow,
swept away, probably, more than half the total num-
ber. Whole tribes were either annihilated or reduced to
a mere handful. It is believed that soon after the land-
ing of the Pilgrims not more than twelve thousand
Indian warriors could have been assembled in all New
England, which would indicate a population approxi-
mately of fifty thousand.
The powerful Iroquois confederation and its allies
occupied a considerable portion of the valley of the St.
Lawrence, the basin of Lakes Ontario and Erie, the
southeastern shores of Lake Huron and Georgian Bay,
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 33
all of the present State of New York except the lower
Hudson valley, all of central Pennsylvania, a portion of
the shores of Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, the valleys
of the Tennessee and upper Savannah Rivers, the moun-
tainous parts of Virginia, the Carolinas and Alabama,
and a portion of eastern North Carolina and southeast-
ern Virginia.
The Iroquois confederacy included the Mohawk,
Oneida, Onondaga and Seneca tribes, and was often
called the Five Nations. After the admission of the
Tuscarora tribe, in 1722, the confederacy was known as
the Six Nations. According to the "Handbook of
American Indians," published by the United States
Bureau of Ethnology, "the date of the formation of this
confederation (probably not the first, but the last of a
series of attempts to unite the several tribes in a federal
union) was not earlier than about the year 1570." The
occasion is thought to have been wars with Algonquin
and Huron tribes. When first known to Europeans this
confederation occupied the territory extending from the
western watershed of Lake Champlain to the western
watershed of the Genesee River, and from the Adiron-
dack Mountains southward to the territory of the
Conestoga on the Susquehanna River. With the coming
of the Dutch the Iroquois secured firearms, v/hich had
made possible their defeat by Champlain, and thereafter
they extended their conquests rapidly.
In a speech delivered at Plattsburg, N. Y., in 1909, on
the occasion of the celebration of the tercentenary of the
discovery of Lake Champlain, Hon. Elihu Root referred
to the Algonquins and Iroquois as follows: "The
34 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Algonquin tribes that surrounded them (the Iroquois)
were still in the lowest stage of industrial life and for
their food added to the spoils of the chase only wild
fruits and roots. The Iroquois had passed into the
agricultural stage. They had settled habitations and
cultivated fields. They had extensive orchards of the
apple, made sugar from the maple, and raised corn and
beans, and squash and pumpkins. The surrounding
tribes had only the rudimentary political institution of
chief and followers. The Iroquois had a carefully de-
vised constitution well adapted to secure confederate
authority in matters of common interest, and local
authority in matters of local interest.
''Each nation was divided into tribes, the Wolf tribe,
the Bear tribe, the Turtle tribe, etc. The same tribes
ran through all the nations, the section in each nation
being bound by ties of consanguinity to the sections of
the same tribe in the other nations. Thus a Seneca Wolf
was brother to every Mohawk Wolf, a Seneca Bear to
every Mohawk Bear. The arrangement was like that
of our college societies with chapters in different colleges.
So there were bonds of tribal union running across the
lines of national union; and the whole structure was
firmly knit together as by the warp and woof of a textile
fabric.
"The government was vested in a council of fifty
sachems, a fixed number coming from each nation. The
sachems from each nation came in fixed proportions
from specific tribes in that nation ; the office was heredi-
tary in the tribe and the member of the tribe to fill it
was elected by the tribe. The sachems of each nation
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 35
governed their own nation in all local affairs. Below the
sachems were elected chiefs on the military side and
keepers of the faith on the religious side.
"The territory of the Long House covered the water-
shed between the St. Lawrence basin and the Atlantic.
From it the w^aters ran into the St. Lawrence, the Hud-
son, the Delaware, the Susquehanna, and the Ohio.
Down these lines of communication the war parties of
the confederacy passed, beating back or overwhelming
their enemies until they had become overlords of a vast
region, extending far into New England, the Carolinas,
the valley of the Mississippi; and to the coast of Lake
Huron. * * *
"Of all the inhabitants of the New World they were
the most terrible foes and the most capable of organized
and sustained warfare; and of all the inhabitants north
of Mexico they were the most civilized and intelligent."
Schoolcraft says: "To such a pitch of power had
the Iroquois confederacy reached on the discovery of
New York (and Vermont) in 1609, that there can be
little doubt that if the arrival of the Europeans had been
delayed a century later, it would have absorbed all the
tribes situated between the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the
mouth of the Ohio, if not to the Gulf of Mexico."
About a half century after Champlain's discovery of
Vermont the Iroquois are supposed to have reached the
summit of their power, at which time their numbers are
estimated at about sixteen thousand.
Cadwallader Colden of New York, whose name will
appear later in these pages, in his "History of the Five
Indian Nations," says that the Iroquois at an early
36 HISTORY OF VERMONT
period lived one liundred leagues above Three Rivers,
Canada, along the Ottawa River. Game becoming
scarce for the Algonquins they desired that some of
the young men of the Iroquois assist them in hunting,
and the latter gladly assented, hoping to gain some
knowledge of the chase. At first the young Iroquois
performed only drudgery, but later became expert hunt-
ers. According to Colden's narrative, the Algonquins,
on a certain hunting expedition, became jealous of the
skill of the new recruits, and killed them. The Iroquois
living on the St. Lawrence River, near the present loca-
tion of Montreal, became greatly incensed, emigrated to
the region south of Lake Ontario, and hostilities soon
began. At first the Iroquois defended themselves "but
faintly," but becoming accustomed to war they developed
great skill.
When the French arrived, the two Indian confedera-
tions were engaged in hostilities. It is known that when
Cartier visited Canada, in 1535, he found the Iroquois
at Hochelaga, on the present site of Montreal, but when
Champlain came they had vanished, and the Algonquins
occupied that region. That fighting had continued for
a long period is indicated by Champlain's account of the
proposed peace between the warring confederations in
1622, when it is related that the Indians declared that
"they were tired and weary of wars which they had had
for more than fifty years."
In an appendix to his "History of Montpelier," D. P.
Thompson wrote a valuable and an interesting article on
"The Aboriginal Inhabitants of Winooski Valley,"
which contains information that applies to a wider re-
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 37
gion than a single river valley. He asserted that when
the French and English began settlements in Canada
and in the northern part of the United States, they found
the Abnakis (or Algonquins) in possession of all the
New England States bordering on the Atlantic coast,
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, all of Lower Canada east
of and around the St. Lawrence up to, and some distance
above Montreal, and that part of Vermont east of the
eastern range of the Green Mountains. The old men of
the nation asserted that the western boundary of their
territory originally was, and rightfully should be, Lake
Champlain, the Iroquois having won a portion of what
is now Vermont by conquest. A map published by
Father Ducreux in his "History of Canada" in 1660,
gives Lake Champlain as the western boundary of the
Abnaki territory.
Both Thompson and Rowland Robinson have called
attention to the fact that the Indian names applied to the
lakes and rivers of Vermont are Algonquin names, a
fact of considerable significance. DeWitt Clinton, in
an address delivered before the New York Historical
Society, in 1825, said that "the supremacy of the
Iroquois probably prevailed at one time over the territory
as far east as the Connecticut River."
Thompson was of the opinion that the Iroquois prob-
ably occupied the region about one hundred years, when,
about 1640 or 1650, on account of the growing power
of the French in Canada, and the inclination of the tribes
to move westward, they relinquished their possessions
around Lake Champlain and the upper Hudson.
In the correspondence of Governor Tryon of New
38 HISTORY OF VERMONT
York with Lord Dartmouth, one of the British ministers,
in 1773, in which he alluded to a certain map, he said:
"All the country to the southward of the River St. Law-
rence originally belonged to the Five Nations or Iroquois,
and as such it is described in the above mentioned and
other ancient maps, and particularly Lake Champlain is
there called 'Mere des Iroquois,' Sorel River which leads
from the lake into the River St. Lawrence, 'Riviere des
Iroquois,' " and the tract on the east side of the lake,
Irocoisia.
Several writers speak of Vermont as the beaver hunt-
ing ground of the Iroquois. It is evident that for a
period the Iroquois exercised jurisdiction over a consid-
erable portion of what is now Vermont, but their hold
was weakened when the Father of New France fired his
arquebus in the fight at Ticonderoga in July, 1609; and
while the Iroquois later were able to menace the French
in Canada, their hold was weakened by the French
power, and finally abandoned. With the weakening of
the Iroquois control, the Abnaki Indians again came into
possession of the land.
For nearly eighty years the Caughnawaga Indians, a
tribe of Iroquois descent, on various occasions sought to
establish a claim to a large area of land in Vermont,
based on the Iroquois occupation. Their claims, made
to the Vermont Legislature, were to the efifect that their
hunting grounds in this State were included in these
bounds: "Beginning on the east side of Ticonderoga,
from thence to the Great Falls on Otter Creek (Suther-
land Falls), continuing the same course to the height of
land that divides the streams between Lake Champlain
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 39
and Connecticut River, thence along the height of land
opposite the Missisquoi, and thence to the Bay."
Holding that the treaty between France and Great
Britain in 1763, and the treaty between the United
States and Great Britain in 1783 extinguished all Indian
claims to the territory of Vermont, the Legislature de-
clined to vote money to the Indian claimants.
In 1779, the Stockbridge Indians, a tribe of Algonquin
affiliations, claimed a portion of Vermont, and this claim
was discharged by a grant of the town of Marshheld.
The township was soon sold, however, as the white set-
tlers came into the region so rapidly that Marshiield was
not considered a desirable hunting ground.
During the early period when New England and New
York were being settled, an Algonquin tribe called the
Mohicans (Mohican meaning Wolf) occupied both
banks of the Hudson River, their territory extending
north almost to Lake Champlain. This tribe must not
be confounded with the Mohawks of the Iroquois con-
federation, which was nearest to New England of any
of the Five Nations.
Ruttenber, in his "Indian Tribes of the Hudson
River," refers to the tradition that the country of the
Mohicans originally included parts of the present States
of Massachusetts, Vermont and New York. He says
the Mohicans occupied the valleys of the Hudson and the
Housatonic; the Soquatucks dwelt east of the Green
Mountains; the Horikans were located in the Lake
George district ; and the Nawaas were immediately north
of the Sequins in the lower Connecticut valley.
40 HISTORY OF VERMONT
At one time, apparently, the hunting grounds of the
Mohawks included what is now southwestern Vermont,
and the region, probably, was the scene of many conflicts
between the warring Mohawks and Mohicans during a
period including approximately, the years from 1540 to
1670.
The mountain passes leading from the Hudson valley
to Lake Champlain and the Connecticut River very likely
had been used as Indian trails from time immemorial.
The summer of 1668, according to tradition, saw a des-
perate conflict between the Mohawks and the Mohicans,
and the latter, driven up the Hoosac valley, are said to
have taken refuge in a narrow pass in the present town
of Pownal, beneath what is known as the Weeping
Rocks.
It is said that the Mohicans cherished the belief that
they would not be conquered until "the rocks wept," and
here, beneath the dripping rocks of this mountain pass
of Pownal, nearly all of the Mohicans were massacred.
The following year, 1669, the tables were turned, and the
Mohicans defeated the Mohawks. Title deeds are in
existence confirming patents of their hunting grounds
in the Walloomsac and Battenkill valleys.
It is said that Mohican warriors usually spent their
winters in the valleys of the Hoosac and Housatonic
Rivers, and that their campgrounds included the Wal-
loomsac and Battenkill passes of Manchester and Arling-
ton, and a camp near the junction of Washtub Brook
and the Hoosac River west of Kreigger Rocks, in
Pownal. Their planting grounds included the region
around the junction of the streams last mentioned, and
A Mao of
ntahu n
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 41
the land in the vicinity of the headwaters of the Wal-
loomsac and the Battenkill, respectively.
George Sheldon, the well-known Massachusetts his-
torian, is authority for the statement that a powerful
confederacy of tribes occupied the Connecticut valley
from the vicinity of Hartford, on the south, to Brattle-
boro, on the north, the Pocumtucks being the most
powerful tribe.
The Squakheags, living in the vicinity of Northfield,
Mass., occupied the northern portion of this confederacy,
their territory occupying a part of the Connecticut River
valley, now embraced in southern Vermont. It is be-
lieved that this tribe originally was a part of the Mohican
confederation of the Fludson valley, but was driven from
that region about the year 1610. The Squakheags
occupied both banks of the Connecticut River and their
northern boundary is said to have been Broad Brook,
which flows into the Connecticut near the northern line
of the present town of Vernon, Vt. The name of this
tribe is spelled in many different ways, the same thing
being true of many Indian names. The meaning of the
word is believed to have been a spearing place of salmon.
The islands in the river near the Squakheag territory,
and the mouth of the small streams flowing into the
Connecticut, were noted for good salmon and shad fish-
ing, and one of these little tributaries was called Salmon
Brook by the early settlers.
In language and appearance the Squakheags re-
sembled the tribes occupying the Merrimac valley, and
they were in close alliance with the Pennacooks. The
remains of villages and works of defence found on both
42 HISTORY OF VERMONT
sides of the river, and the large number of skeletons
discovered, indicate a considerable population. The
whole valley from the present site of Turners Falls,
Mass., to the northern limits of Vernon, Vt, was
occupied by Indian villages and smaller family groups.
The signs o-f these villages are the presence of such
domestic utensils as stone pestles, kettles, knives and
hoes; heaps of round stones showing evidence of the
action of fire and water, the stones having been thrown
red hot into wooden troughs to heat water, and left
where used as too cumbersome to remove; circular
excavations from five to sixteen feet in diameter, some-
times lined with clay, and used as underground granaries
or barns; a burial place, indicating the proximity of
wigwams; piles of stone chips, where arrow heads and
spear heads were made; cleared fields used for planting
grounds, and the site of a fort.
The most northerly of these Squakheag settlements
or villages was that which acknowledged the leadership
of the chieftain Nawelet, his territory extending from
Mill Brook, in Northfield, Mass., to Broad Brook, in the
northern part of Vernon, Vt. "From the size of his
possessions," says Temple and Sheldon's "History of
Northfield," "and the plain testimony of remains, it is
evident that this tract was inhabited by a numerous and
powerful tribe. Some were of gigantic stature — a
skeleton measuring six and one-half feet having been
disinterred. They were enterprising and warlike, as is
shown by their extensive planting fields, and the strength
and resources of their main fort. Their utensils indi-
cate considerable traffic with the whites, and they were
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 43
undoubtedly the last of the native clans to leave the
valley. Indeed they are found here as late as 1720, and
were then of a character to command the respect of the
English settlers."
A large village was located on the west side of the
river, near the present site of the railroad station at
South Vernon. About eighty rods north of the State
line, on a hill near the old Ferry Road, the remains of
about thirty Indian granaries were visible for many
years. The hills here and farther back of Wells' plain
afforded good lookouts and there were probably planting
grounds on Second Moose plain.
Near the Great Bend of the Connecticut, in Vernon,
was the chief seat of the tribe. The meadows afforded
good planting grounds which were easily tilled, and the
annual overflow of the river fertilized these intervals.
Several streams which enter the Connecticut here af-
forded excellent fishing. As the bend in the river made
defence easier it was a strategic location for an Indian
village, and it appears to have been one of the largest
ever occupied within the present limits of Vermont.
The principal fort, probably, was on a hill on the east
side of the Connecticut, in w4iat is now the town of Hins-
dale, N. H. Stone kettles, hatchets, pestles and other
utensils have been found on both sides of the river here.
About the year 1663 the Mohawks made an incursion
into the Connecticut valley, and having defeated the
Pocumtucks, attacked the Squakheags, capturing their
forts, destroying their villages and driving the people
from their homes. The tribe never recovered from the
effects of this blow. The Squakheags did not entirely
44 HISTORY OF VERMONT
abandon their territory. Probably the villages were
partly rebuilt, the planting grounds cultivated to some
extent, and the fisheries patronized, but the old-time
prosperity never returned.
During a part of King Philip's War, the territory
of the Squakheag Indians became an important center
of operations. In the autumn of 1675 a considerable
number of River Indians encamped in the pine woods a
little way above the present site of the railroad station
at South Vernon, Vt. For a short time Philip and his
band were here but they left soon for Albany.
In December the fort of the Narragansetts in Rhode
Island was destroyed by Massachusetts and Connecticut
troops, and this capture contributed to a great gathering
of Indian tribes at Squakheag, as the Narragansetts
who had hitherto held aloof from Philip now determined
to join forces with him.
Early in March, 1676, a large company of Ouaboags,
Narragansetts, some Grafton Indians and other war-
riors, also women, children and aged persons, arrived at
Squakheag. Philip had arrived about the middle of
February and made his camp in the Great Bend of the
Connecticut at Vernon.
During the entire period of the colonial history of
America there were few occasions when so many Indians
were assembled as were gathered here during the greater
part of March, 1676. There were Wampanoags, and
Narragansetts, Pocumtucks and Nonotucks, Agawams
and Quaboags, Nashaways and Squakheags, Naticks and
Hassanamesetts, making a total numbering at least 2,500
Indians, which occupied both banks of the Connecticut
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 45
River. Some of the most famous of Indian chieftains
were assembled here, inckKling Philip and his kinsman
Quinnapin, Canonchet and his uncle Pessacus, and other
tribal leaders of lesser fame. King Philip's headquar-
ters were on the Vermont side of the river. Mrs. Row-
landson, a captive in Philip's camp, in an account of her
captivity, mentioned her amazement ''at the numerous
crew of pagans" assembled here. During the gathering
plans were made to secure further recruits from the
Mohicans and Mohawks of the Hudson valley, and from
Canadian tribes, and to make a formidable attack upon
the English settlements farther down the valley.
Provisions becoming scarce, a party started out to
secure corn, and on this expedition the famous Narra-
gansett chieftain was captured by the English at Paw-
tucket, taken to Stonington, and executed. Philip re-
moved his headquarters to Mount Wachusett. About
May 1 the Indians assembled here separated into four
parties, leaving only one at Squakheag for planting and
fishing. Thus ended the most important Indian occupa-
tion of southern Vermont concerning which any records
exist.
With the defeat and death of Philip the River Indians
scattered. Some joined the Scaticooks in the Hudson
valley, while others found their way eventually to
Canada, where so many of the remnants of New Eng-
land tribes found a refuge, there to cherish bitter enmity
against the English settlers who had driven them from
their homes.
Two specimens of picture writing by the Indians have
been found in the Connecticut valley. The first, known
46 HISTORY OF VERMONT
as Indian Rock, was discovered on the south bank of the
West River, in the town of Brattleboro, about one hun-
dred rods west of the mouth of that stream. The figures
carved on this rock are small and crude. Six of them
probably represent birds, two may be intended for pic-
tures of snakes, and one has been likened to a dog, or
wolf.
The second specimen of picture writing was found
at Bellows Falls, near the foot of the waterfall on the
west side of the Connecticut River. It consisted of two
rocks on the larger of which were sixteen heads, rudely
carved. Near the center of the group was the repre-
sentation of the head and shoulders of a person, and
from the head extended six rays, or feathers. One
figure showed the head and shoulders, two rays extend-
ing from the head. The other figures represented only
heads without neck or shoulders, and from each of five
of the heads not previously mentioned two rays extended.
This carving was done on a surface six feet high and
fifteen feet wide. Near this rock was another and
smaller one containing a single head, fourteen inches
high and ten inches wide across the forehead, from
which seven rays extended.
These carvings are now almost entirely obliterated,
due to the building of a branch railroad to the paper
mills, the dumping of cinders and the blasting of the
channel of the river to facilitate the passage of logs.
There is no evidence to indicate the tribe or tribes re-
sponsible for this carving.
The site of the present village of Bellows Falls was
a favorite fishing resort for the Indians when white men
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 47
first came into the Connecticut valley, and above the
banks of the West River was an ancient Indian trail.
As both these regions were much frequented by Indians
the figures may have been cut by some native fisherman
encamped nearby.
The beautiful meadows of the Great Oxbow of the
Connecticut River at Newbury were occupied at differ-
ent times, probably, by various tribes. It is said that
following the defeat of the Mohicans by the Mohawks,
about 1628, some of the former tribes fled from their
homes around the headwaters of the Hoosac and
Housatonic Rivers, through the Battenkill Pass and over
the Green Mountains to the Connecticut River, where,
so the legend runs, the squaws cleared the Coos meadows,
and cultivated corn and beans.
The Indians of this region were known as Coosacs
or Coosucks, the name meaning, it is said, ''at the pine."
Schoolcraft says the Pennacooks occupied the Coos coun-
try from Haverhill to the sources of the Connecticut.
The occupation of this region does not seem to have been
continuous. Tradition says that the Mohicans who
came here returned later to their former homes. It is
recorded that in the spring of 1704 Caleb Lyman and
a few friendly Indians, having heard that a party of
Indians had built a fort and planted corn at Coos, set
out from Northampton, Mass., and during a thunder
storm, surprised the camp, killing seven Indians. The
survivors retired to Canada and joined the St. Francis
tribe, but the name of the Coosuck did not become extinct
for at least a century thereafter.
48 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Wells, in his "History of Newbury," says of the Coos
region: "It was, probably, neutral or disputed ground
between large tribes, visited by various bands or families
for the purpose of fishing or cultivating the meadows.
It was, perhaps, the residence, for many years at a time,
of some of these companies. But the testimony is so
vague, and the time so distant, that nothing positive
can be asserted. Those who have made a study of
Indian relics are of opinion, from the examination of
stone arrow and spear heads, that many of them came
from far distant parts of the country, even from beyond
the Mississippi, but whether through actual visits from
those remote tribes, or by purchase, cannot be known.
"The antiquity of these visits, or periods of habita-
tion, is attested by these relics of the stone age, articles
of greatest necessity, and therefore of greatest value in
Indian eyes. These have been found upon all the
meadows, and along the valley of Hall's Brook. But
the greatest quantity and variety, attesting their frequent
visits and long periods of residence, are found upon the
Oxbow and upon the ridge between it and Coos meadow.
These consist of arrow and spear heads, axes, chisels
and domestic utensils. A stone mortar and pestle were
found by the early settlers. The Great Oxbow seems
to have been a spot beloved by the Indians. The remains
of an Indian fort were found upon the Oxbow by the
settlers. * * * It is certain that a large part of the
Great Oxbow in Newbury and the Little Oxbow in
Haverhill (N. H.) had long been cleared and cultivated
by the Indians in their rude fashion. Of the other
meadows little is known, but it is supposed that they
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 49
were covered with woods, among which lay a great mass
of fallen timber, amidst which tall weeds and tangled
vines made, in many places, thickets which were almost
impenetrable. But there were cleared places in most, if
not all, and on Horse meadow was quite a large field."
Thompson, in his "History of Vermont," expresses
the belief that an Indian village was located in Newbury,
and says an Indian burial ground was found a short
distance below. Trees five or six inches in diameter
were found growing out of a mound in the Oxbow
meadow which contained Indian skeletons.
After the Pequawket tribe, which formed a part of
the Abnaki confederacy, was defeated near the present
site of Fryeburg, Me., in 1725, by the English under
Captain Lovewell, the survivors withdrew to the sources
of the Connecticut River, where they resided at the time
of the American Revolution.
The largest, the most important, and probably the
most ancient of Indian settlements of which we have
knowledge at the present time, were those situated with-
in the limits of the town of Swanton, only a few miles
from the Canadian border. About two miles below the
present village of Swanton, on the banks of the Missis-
quoi River, evidences have been found of a large Indian
village. About two feet below the surface may be
found great quantities of flint chippings, fragments of
pottery and native implements. L. B. Truax alone has
collected upwards of one thousand specimens from this
locality. In his opinion these relics indicate not only
occupation of Abnakis, but by Iroquois, and by a people
much older than either Algonquin or Iroquois.
50 HISTORY OF VERMONT
In the "Handbook of American Indians" this tribe is
called Missiassik, but there are many other spellings,
including Missiscoui and Missiskouy. They appear to
have been allied with the St. Francis Indians of Canada,
but as that tribe was a sort of catch-all for fragments
of not a few of the New England tribes it is difficult to
state their relationship to other Indian clans. They may
have been related to the Sokoki or Pequawkit Indians.
There is a tradition of the St. Francis tribe that many
years ago a bloody battle was fought on the Missisquoi
River near the head of what was known later as Rood's
Island, just below the site of what is marked on ancient
maps as an Indian castle. Many spear and arrow heads
have been found in this vicinity.
At an early date Jesuit missionaries made their home
among the people of this tribe and erected a chapel here,
it is supposed as early as the year 1700. Near the site
of this chapel a monument was erected, its dedication in
1909 forming a part of the Lake Champlain Tercen-
tenary exercises.
Chauvignerie, in 1736, gave the number of warriors
here as 180, which would indicate a population approxi-
mately of 800. Ira Allen, in his "History of Vermont,"
says: "On the Missisquoi River was a large Indian
town, which became greatly depopulated about 1730, by
a mortal sickness that raged among them; in conse-
quence of which they evacuated the place, according to
the tradition of the savages, and settled on the River St.
Francoise, to get rid of Hoggomag (the devil), leaving
their beautiful fields, which extended four miles on the
river, waste."
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 51
It is hardly probable that if the place was evacuated
in 1730 the population six years later was eight hundred,
but Allen, writing from memory, may have been mis-
taken in his date, which he does not attempt to fix with
absolute precision. It is certain, however, that the
Indians did return in considerable numbers and some re-
mained until the white men settled here. In 1757 the
official report of the French army at Lake St. Sacra-
ment (Lake George) included Abnakis of St. Francis
and Missiscoui.
Ancient maps show the presence of such a tribe near
the mouth of the Missisquoi River, and on some maps
there are indications that it may have extended over a
considerable region, including a portion of Canada.
These maps show the location of an Indian castle toward
the mouth of the river in the region now known as West
Swanton. Moreover, colonial records of New Eng-
land show that in this vicinity was located the castle of
a famous Indian chieftain, long the scourge of the Eng-
lish settlements of the Connecticut valley. Gray Lock,
after whom the highest mountain in Massachusetts is
named. His operations will be described in detail in a
subsequent chapter. Fragments of pottery and imple-
ments have been found at West Swanton. It is said
that for fifteen miles from the mouth of the Missisquoi
River along its banks, extending back for a distance of
a mile and a half from the stream, there is hardly a field
that does not show traces of Indian occupation.
Traces of a still more ancient Indian settlement were
found previous to the Civil War two miles north of the
village of Swanton, and not far from the Highgate line.
52 HISTORY OF VERMONT
On a sandy ridge, covered when the white men came
with a tall growth of pines, an Indian burial place was
found. How many forests grew to maturity and de-
cayed after these graves were made cannot be known.
Neither the Indians who lingered here after settlements
were begun, nor members of the St. Francis tribe from
Canada who have made visits here in recent years, re-
lated any traditions of an earlier race which occupied
this region.
At least twenty-five graves were opened, some of them
being not less than six feet below the surface, while others
were not more than two feet deep, but the drifting sand
of this locality makes it unsafe to assume that any of
the graves originally were shallow. Several skeletons
were found, and the indications were that the bodies
were buried in a sitting posture with their faces to the
east. These skeletons crumbled noticeably upon being
exposed to the air.
The sand under and immediately around the bodies
was colored a dark red, or reddish brown, except in two
instances, where the color was black. This color was
noticed to a depth of from four to six inches, and is sup-
posed to have been due to the presence of red iron oxide
or red hematite, small pieces of that mineral having
been found in several of the graves.
A few copper implements were taken from the burial
place, including a drill or awl and chisel-shaped object to
which fragments of wood adhered. This may have been
parts of a war club. Copper objects are rare among
Indian relics in this vicinity, and it is assumed that this
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 53
may have been brought from the Lake Superior region
as the result of barter between tribes.
Several stone tubes varying from six to sixteen inches
in length were discovered, the diameter being about one
and five-eighths inches. On one of these tubes the figure
of a bird with a leaf in its bill had been scratched. In
the collection of relics from these graves were about
thirty shell ornaments, also beads, the shells resem-
bling those of the Florida coast; a polished stone in
the shape of a bird, pierced with two holes, a shuttle and
a pipe made of soapstone; several flat plats of stone,
containing holes; two carvings of red slate, represent-
ing animals; one carving of pure white marble; a dis-
coidal stone like those found in the West; arrow heads,
spear heads and stone axes.
Other evidences of Indian occupation are to be found
in Swanton. L. B. Truax, who has made a careful study
of the Indian occupation here, has said: "The re-
sult of an active investigation and study of this region,
extending over a period of ten years, leads the writer to
the belief that the number of people inhabiting this re-
gion in the past has been very much underestimated by
writers and students."
Dr. David S. Kellogg, a thorough student of early
Champlain history, has said: "Later researches have
revealed the fact that this (Champlain) valley was once
quite thickly populated. I know of at least forty-five
dwelling sites, the greater portion of which I have located
and visited. The larger part of these are on, or near,
the lake itself; but there are also many on the rivers
and smaller streams and lakes, and some at a distance
54 HISTORY OF VERMONT
from any even moderately large body of water. The
evidence of former dwelling sites consists of stone imple-
ments and weapons and chippings scattered over small
areas — say of half an acre or more."
Doctor Kellogg says that from Colchester Point up
the Winooski River as far as Williston, the soil abounds
in celts, chippings and wrought flints. A sand ridge
near the present city of Plattsburg, N. Y., was an im-
portant prehistoric dwelling place, and a great village
was located here, as a vast number of weapons, flint
chippings and fragments of pottery indicate.
The vicinity of Ticonderoga, N. Y., and Orwell, on
the Vermont shore, directly opposite, was a notable
Indian resort, and in modern times the earth here has
been "black with flints." Doctor Kellogg has said:
"The native flint exists in great abundance, in the lime-
stone rocks of the locality; and so it was that for cen-
turies the Indians resorted to this region, lived there,
and made weapons and implements for their own use,
and for traffic with other savages passing by. I have
obtained 2,500 chipped stone implements from these
shores alone."
Peter Kalm, a Swedish naturalist who visited the
Champlain valley at an early period, under date of July
20, 1749, gave his impressions of the Indians frequent-
ing the Lake Champlain region as follows : "We often
saw Indians in bark canoes close to the shore, which
was, however, not inhabited; for the Indians come here
only to catch sturgeons, wherewith this lake abounds,
and which we often saw leaping in the air. These
Indians lead a very singular life. At one time of the
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 55
year they live upon the small store of maize, beans and
melons, which they have planted ; during another period,
or about this time, their food is fish, without bread or
any other meat; and another season they eat nothing
but stags, roes, beavers, etc., which they shoot in the
woods and rivers. They, however, enjoy long life, per-
fect health, and are more able to undergo hardships than
other people. They sing and dance, are joyful and
aKvays content ; and would not for a great deal, exchange
their manner of life for that which is preferred in
Europe."
A study of various town histories furnishes consider-
able information concerning the Indian occupation of
Vermont. Swift's "History of Middlebury" says:
"We find satisfactory evidence in the Indian relics found
in different towns that the county of Addison was the
established residence of a large population of Indians,
and had been for an indefinite period. The borders of
Lake Champlain, Otter Creek, Lemon Fair and other
streams furnished a convenient location for that pur-
pose."
Pavements of cobble stones six or seven feet wide
have been found at springs in Cornwall near Lemon
Fair River and tributary brooks, with evidences that
fires had been built on them. Elsewhere in Cornwall
have been found arrow and spear heads, a stone gauge,
and evidences of the manufacture of Indian implements.
A pot made of sand and clay, of curious workmanship,
and holding about twenty quarts, was discovered at Mid-
dlebury. Parts of a kettle, ornamented with flowers and
leaves, were found in an old channel of Middlebury
56 HISTORY OF VERMONT
River, where the water had washed the bank away.
There have been found in Middlebury arrows and ham-
mers of flint and jasper, a stone pestle, and evidences of
the manufacture of arrow heads and other stone imple-
ments. There are two places in Salisbury where Indian
fireplaces have been found, both being near the stream
that runs through the village. Many crude earthen
vessels, including a kettle holding three or four pails
of water, have been plowed up near the Middlebury
River. Wolf Hill appears to have been a favorite
Indian resort.
Evidences of the manufacture of Indian implements,
and stone hearths on which fires were built, have been
found in Weybridge. A considerable number of Indian
implements were found on the Weybridge farm once
owned by the father of Silas Wright, a well-known New
York statesman. Early settlers in this town found indi-
cations of the cultivation of land by the Indians, who,
it is said, also made maple sugar here.
In Bristol and in Monkton have been found evidences
of the manufacture of Indian implements, and there was
an Indian burial place in the vicinity of Monkton Pond.
An Indian fireplace has been discovered in Panton, and
on the headwaters of the White River, in Hancock, was
found a stone pestle, twelve inches long and two inches
in diameter, and a stone mortar eight inches square and
eight and one-half inches deep. Indian implements have
been turned up by the plow in Addison, Panton and
Waltham, and the presence of flint chips at Vergennes
indicates a place where stone implements or weapons
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 57
were made. Two copper arrow heads have been found
in Ferrisburg.
A large copper celt eight inches long, two inches wide,
weighing thirty-eight ounces, and apparently cast rather
than hammered, was found near the mouth of Otter
Creek. The large number of arrow and spear heads,
and other relics, discovered near the mouth of this
stream, indicates an Indian occupation covering a con-
siderable period. In the "History of the Catholic
Church in the United States" references are made to
missions on the Otter Creek as well as the Missisquoi,
the statement being made that the Abnaki Indians, driven
from Maine by the English, were found on the Otter
Creek and other Vermont streams from 1687 to 1760.
It is also asserted that a stone chapel, containing a bell,
was erected near Ferrisburg. The earliest references
to the traversing of Lake Champlain as a convenient
route to and from Canada shows that the mouth of Otter
Creek was a frequent stopping place, and the stone chapel
may have been located near this accessible spot.
In Bennington county, as already stated, evidences
have been found of Indian occupation in Pownal.
Relics found in Manchester show that at some time
Indians lived in that town.
In the "History of Indian Wars," written by President
D. C. Sanders of the University of Vermont, and
published in 1812, he said: "Indian cornfields are
plainly to be seen in various parts of Vermont. In the
intervales at Burlington several hundred acres together
were found by the American settlers entirely cleared, not
a tree upon them. * * * Arrow heads are to be
58 HISTORY OF VERMONT
found in almost every spot. They are very numerous
on Onion ( Winooski) River and in all the woods in Bur-
lington." He also tells of the washing away of a por-
tion of the river bank opposite Burlington, which dis-
closed an ancient burial place, where was found "a vast
quantity of bones of various sorts and sizes for more
than ten rods in extent."
A party of Scaticook Indians from New York en-
camped on the Winooski River in 1699 for a year's stay
for the purpose of hunting beaver. On their way they
met some "Boston," or Eastern Indians, "who told them
to keep off from their coasts, or they would kill them."
References in the "History of the Catholic Church in
the United States" to Indian occupation of and missions
in this State, associate the Winooski River with the
Missisquoi and Otter Creek, and the valley of this stream
was an ancient Indian highway.
Colchester Point seems to have been occupied at an
early period by Indians. After settlements were begun
in this vicinity Indians still lingered at the mouth of
the Lamoille River, and for some time the site of an
encampment and burial place was to be distinguished
here. In a large mound at the mouth of this stream
were found skeletons of persons buried in a sitting pos-
ture, also arrow heads and other relics. Evidences of an
Indian camp ground have been found in Colchester where
Mallett's Creek empties into Mallett's Bay, and here
a number of bone implements with stone points, knives,
pottery, etc., have been discovered. What is said to be
the finest specimen of an Indian jar found in New Eng-
land was discovered in Colchester, in 1825, under the
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 59
roots of a large tree. Its height is seven and one-half
inches; its inside diameter at the top, live inches; its
circumference around the largest part, twenty-seven
inches ; and its capacity nine pints.
An Indian jar nine and one-half inches high, seven
and one-half inches in diameter at the top, twenty inches
in circumference at the largest part, and holding fourteen
quarts, was found in Bolton about the year 1860. An-
other jar of a similar kind was found by a hunter at
Bolton Falls in 1895 in a cave-like shelter made by large
rocks. It is ten inches high, nine inches across the
opening, thirty-six inches in circumference at the largest
part, and holds twelve quarts. Prof. G. H. Perkins,
State Geologist, once counted more than three hundred
different patterns on a large series of fragments of pot-
tery ruins found on the shores of Lake Champlain.
During the digging of a cellar in Essex, in 1809, a hand-
somely wrought Indian pipe was found, which President
Sanders declared "must have lain in the hardpan for
centuries."
The site of an Indian encampment was found in 1809
in the town of Richmond, on the Huntington River,
about half a mile above its junction with the Winooski.
Its antiquity was indicated by the fact that a birch tree
more than three feet in diameter was growing out of the
mound. Many Indian relics were found here.
At the mouth of the La Plotte River, in Shelburne, a
square field of about twenty-five acres had been cleared
and cultivated before the coming of the white men.
When the first settlers arrived there was a growth of
trees, evidently about thirty years old, in this field, but
60 HISTORY OF VERMONT
no stumps of the original timber were found. The first
white settlers came to Shelburne about 1766, so that
field was abandoned, evidently, about 1735. Heaps of
stones were found, carried there for use at the camp
fires, as the soil was not stony. When the field was
cleared in 1803 many arrow heads and Indian imple-
ments were discovered.
Essex county was a favorite hunting ground of the
Indians, and the abundance of moose gave to Moose
River its name.
Mention has been made of the most important Indian
settlements in Franklin county, located in the town of
Swanton, but the occupation of this region was not
limited to Swanton. The shores of Franklin Pond bore
evidences of Indian encampments. The town of Frank-
lin was a summer hunting ground of the St. Francis
tribe. Moose and deer were driven from the hills ad-
jacent to Little Pond, into the marshes where they were
killed, and their flesh was dried in the sun for the winter's
supply of provisions. Richford was a winter hunting
ground. Moose, deer and bears were plentiful and the
meat of these animals was frozen. The town of Shel-
don was a favorite fishing and hunting resort of the St.
Francis Indians, and it was held tenaciously by them,
being yielded with great reluctance. Their attitude
toward the early settlers was sullen and they cherished
a deep-seated hatred, it is said, for the Sheldons, the
founders of the town. The Indians frequented Highgate
long after the town was settled by white men. Many
Indian implements were found near St. Albans Bay by
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 61
early settlers and tradition says this region was a
favorite place of resort for the Indians.
Champlain refers to the occupation of the islands of
Grand Isle county by the natives at a time previous to
his visit, before tribal wars had made occupation of that
region too dangerous for permanent abode. There is
a tradition to the effect that an Iroquois tribe invaded
this section, then occupied by a number of the Algonquin
group, and drove them from their homes. Several ref-
erences are found to an Indian settlement in South Hero,
near the sandbar which formed a natural bridge to the
mainland during low water. These Indians are sup-
posed to have been Loups, or members of the Wolf clan.
It is said that there was an Indian village at Alburg,
Some Indian relics have been found at North Hero.
L. B. Truax has said that probably there is not a farm
in Grand Isle county that does not contain some evidence
of ancient Indian occupation.
Indian tomahawks and other implements have been
found in the Lamoille River valley in Lamoille county.
There was a camp ground in Cambridge at a place called
Indian Hill, where many relics have been unearthed.
In Williamstown, in Orange county, the Indians culti-
vated corn in the valley and hunted and trapped fur bear-
ing animals. When the town of Barton, in Orleans
county, was settled, decayed cabins, or wigwams, were
numerous there. Members of the St. Francis tribe said
in 1824 that about fifty years earlier their ancestors
had lived there for about nine years. Troy was long
a place of rendezvous for Abnaki Indians.
62 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Lake St. Catherine and the Hubbardton Lakes, in
Rutland county, were favorite fishing resorts of the
Indians. Members of the Caughnawaga tribe fre-
quented Pittsford and other portions of the Otter Creek
valley. Every year they would ascend the river in large
numbers in their canoes, construct wigwams, and fre-
quent their favorite fishing and hunting grounds. Evi-
dences of Indian village life, including implements and
burial places, have been found at Wallingford.
Fragments of a rude sort of Indian pottery and Indian
implements have been found about two miles above
Montpelier, in Washington county. When General
Davis surveyed the boundaries of the town, he found
what appeared to be an Indian monument. Indian im-
plements have been discovered at the mouth of Mad
River. Waitsfield was once a hunting ground for the
St. Francis tribe, and here a tomahawk and a large num-
ber of beads were discovered.
Mention has been made of Indian occupancy at Ver-
non, in Windham county. Evidences are found of a
considerable Indian occupation in Rockingham. These
were particularly noticeable in the vicinity of Bellows
Falls, which was a noted fishing resort. Several Indian
skeletons have been exumed at Bellows Falls, the bodies
having been buried in a sitting posture.
Space forbids the mention of all evidences of Indian
occupation. No doubt such evidences have been found
in every township in the State. The Indian occupation
of Vermont, as we know it, seems to have been confined
to the borders of this State — the Squakheag territory,
extending into Vernon ; the Coos settlement at Newbury
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 63
and vicinity; the Missiassik village at Swanton; the
Mohican camp sites and planting grounds in the Batten-
kill and Walloomsac valleys. It is very evident, how-
ever, that this was not the extent of the Indian occupa-
tion of Vermont. There are evidences of Indian settle-
ments at the mouth of the Otter Creek, the Winooski
and other rivers, and along many of our streams. There
is abundant evidence of many Indian encampments, of
the manufacture of implements of war and domestic
utensils, and of the burial of the dead.
The western portion of the State seems to have been
an Iroquois hunting ground for a considerable period.
The forests contained an abundance of deer, moose,
beaver and other objects of the chase, while the lakes
and streams were filled with fish. The hunting and fish-
ing, therefore, attracted many Indians to this region.
There may have been a considerable Indian occupation
of Vermont prior to the rise of the powerful Iroquois
confederacy.
So far as we know there was no permanent occupation
of any considerable portion of Vermont in a manner
corresponding to the Iroquois occupation of parts of
New York State, but such occupation by Indians seems
to have been the exception rather than the rule. It must
be remembered that the Indians were a migratory people.
Their mode of living w^as so primitive that a removal
of habitation was a comparatively simple matter. With-
in certain prescribed limits they seem to have moved
freely from place to place, hunting in one section for a
few weeks, fishing in another locality for a longer or
shorter period, dwelling in one place long enough for
64 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the squaws to raise corn and beans, and abandoning it
for winter quarters elsewhere. They knew little of fixed
habitations as we understand the term.
It seems probable that the Indian population of
America always was much smaller than has been sup-
posed by persons who have given the subject no careful
study. The multitude of tribal names has been respon-
sible in part for an erroneous impression as to numbers.
Different names appear to have been used at different
times by different individuals, for the same people.
There were divisions and subdivisions of tribes, each
having separate designations, but not indicating, of
necessity, a large number of Indians. There were
frequent changes in tribal relations, so much so that the
shifting often is exceedingly difficult to follow.
A study of Indian occupation leads to the conclusion
that so far as Vermont is concerned the Indian popula-
tion generally has been underestimated, while the Indian
population of southern New England and other portions
of the country has been overestimated.
An interesting phase of Indian life was their roads,
or trails. This subject was discussed by Samuel Carter
in an address before the Pocumptuck Valley Memorial
Association, in which he said: "Between the frontiers
of New England and New France was a wilderness of
vast extent, characterized by great mountains, numerous
rivers, great lakes and dense forests, which were the
hunting grounds and battlefields of savages. The
Indians traversed it in all directions with the ease and
certainty with which we travel the roads which modern
civilization establishes for its convenience. The Indian
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 65
highways were the rivers and lakes ; and with the moun-
tains and hills for their landmarks the whole of this
wilderness was open to them, and the illimitable region
beyond. In the summer they skirted afoot the banks of
the stream, or traversed in their bark canoes the rivers
and lakes along whose frozen surface they travelled in
winter. Whenever navigation on a stream was inter-
rupted by falls, they made a detour around the obstruc-
tion, carrying their canoes and luggage with them.
These places were called portages or carrying places;
other portages existed at the passages between lakes, and
others again separated the upper waters of streams run-
ning in opposite directions.
"Lake Champlain, the westerly boundary of this
wilderness, was the all important division in the great
Indian thoroughfare between Canada and the English
colonies. The Connecticut River, a great and command-
ing central driftway through the wilderness, was an
important counterpart to Lake Champlain. * >«= *
On the easterly side of the Green Mountains the water
courses are tributaries of the Great River, as the Con-
necticut was familiarly called; on the westerly side of
the mountains they flow into the lake. Some of the more
important of them were well known Indian roads, and
used by the savages as the exigencies of hunting, fight-
ing or journeying gave occasion. But they had one
principal thoroughfare between the lake and the river,
which may be denominated the trunk line. This was the
Winooski River; and so commonly was it used by the
French and their Indian allies in their raids upon the
English, that it came to be called the 'French River.'
* * *
66 HISTORY OF VERMONT
''From the upper waters of the Winooski there was a
choice of ways to the Great River, to wit: southerly by
available branches of the Winooski and corresponding
branches of the White River, or easterly by the Wells
River ; the two ways forming with the Connecticut a kind
of delta. The easterly way afforded a direct access to
the planting grounds at the lower Cowass in the vicinity
of the present town of Newbury, and easy communica-
tion with the eastern Indians beyond ; the southerly way
reached farther down the Great River on the way to
the frontier settlements of the 'Boston Government.'
These two waterways, the White and Wells Rivers, lead-
ing up from the Connecticut toward the Winooski, need
to be well fixed in the mind."
The "Indian Road," so called, was the route from
Lake Champlain up the Otter Creek to its source, across
the ridge of the Green Mountains to the head waters of
the Black and West Rivers, and thence down the Con-
necticut. This trail was used, not only by war parties,
but was a favorite route for Indians coming from the
north to the trading post established later at Fort
Dummer.
What Mr. Carter called the "trunk line," the Winooski
valley, along which many sorrowing captives were car-
ried to Canada, ascended the Connecticut River, followed
the Third branch of the White River, thence crossed
the height of land to the source of Stevens Branch, which
was followed to the junction with the Winooski River,
the latter stream being the route to Lake Champlain.
The great trail from the Merrimac River to Lake
Memphremagog was the route chosen later for a line
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 67
of railroad. Another trail following the Connecticut
River northward, turned aside at the mouth of Wells
River and ascended the valley of that stream. In his
"History of Newbury," Wells says: "In various
places in this town where the woods have never been
cut down, are paths which may be clearly discerned for
long distances, which were here when white men came
to Coos, and are believed to be sections of prehistoric
trails. The settlers used these woodland paths in their
journeys, and they gradually became public roads."
In addition to the route from Canada to southern New
England by way of Lake Champlain, another important
trail passed through northeastern Vermont. From the
St. Lawrence River the Indians would come up the St.
Francis and Magog Rivers in canoes, pass through Lake
Memphremagog, and ascend the Clyde River to Island
Pond. A short portage led to the headwaters of the
Nulhegan River, by means of which the Connecticut
River could be reached.
The paths made by the Indians at the carrying places
on the Nulhegan route were plainly discernible when
the region was settled by the whites. It is said that
these trails could be seen in the town of Brunswick when
the Grand Trunk Railroad was built in 185L
The trail from Canada to the Penobscot region of
Maine followed the route mentioned by way of Lake
Memphremagog, Island Pond and the Nulhegan River
to the Connecticut, thence to the upper Ammonoosuc
and up that river to some point in the present town of
Milan, N. H., where it crossed to the Androscoggin,
68 HISTORY OF VERMONT
which was descended to the sea coast, the shore being
followed to Penobscot Bay.
Mrs. Sigourney, referring to the Indian inhabitants
of America, in one of her poems, said:
"Their name is on your waters,
You may not wash it out."
While many of the Indian names have vanished from
the geography of this region, some of them remain, and
others have been preserved. The late Rowland E. Rob-
inson, the well-known Vermont author, assisted by his
nephew. Dr. William G. Robinson, made a study of
Indian names in this State. Some of these names were
obtained by the author from John Wadso, an intelligent
member of the St. Francis tribe, and others were given
to his nephew by aged St. Francis Indians.
According to Robinson, the name Missisquoi origi-
nally was Masseepskee, The Land of Arrow Flints,
while the river now bearing the name was called
Azzusatuquake, the Backward-running Stream. The
Lamoille, or La Mouelle, River was Wintoak, or Marrow
River. The Winooski was Winooskie-took, or Onion
Land River, so called from the leeks or wild onions grow-
ing along the stream. The La Plotte River appears on
an old map as the Quineaska, and was called by the
Indians Quineska-took, from the name given to Shel-
burne Point, meaning Long Joint, as it was supposed to
represent a man's forearm.
Rock Dunder was Wujahose, The Forbidden, a refer-
ence to a spirit supposed to guard the rock. Grand Isle
was K'chenamehau, The Great Island. Split Rock was
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF VERMONT 69
called Tobapsqua, The Pass Through the Rock, and
Thompson's Point, Kozoapsqua, The Long Rocky Point.
Lewis Creek was Sungahnee-took, Fish-weir River, and
Little Otter was Wonaketookese, meaning Little Otter
River. The stream now called Otter Creek had two
Indian names, Wonakake-took, Otter River, and Pecouk-
took. Crooked River. The falls at Vergennes were
known as Netahmepuntook, The First or Lower Falls
of the River.
Neshobe, the original name of Brandon, indicated
Clear-running Water. Camel's Hump Mountain was
called Tah-wah-be-de-e-wadso, or Ladelle Mountain,
and Mount Mansfield was known as Moze-o-de-be-
wadso, or The Moose Head Mountain.
In addition to the Robinson list other names may be
added. Lake Champlain was called by the Iroquois,
Caniaderi-Guarunte, The Door of the Country; also by
the Abnakis, Petoubouque, The Waters that Lie Be-
tween, and Peta-pargow, The Great Water. Lake Dun-
more was Moosalamoo, The Lake of the Silver Trout.
The Connecticut River was Quinni-tukq-ut, or Quoneh-
tu-cut, The Long Tidal River. White River was called
Cascadnac, or Pure Water. Wells, the Newbury his-
torian, says that Coos was interpreted in a variety of
ways, including A Crooked River, A Wide Valley, A
Place of Tall Pines, and A Great Fishing Place.
Probably Lake Bomoseen was named for an Indian
chief, Bommozeen, who lived in the vicinity of Norridge-
wock, Me. Maquam is said to be a corruption of the
original name Bopquam. The name of the Taconic
Mountains comes from an Indian word meaning The
70 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Forest Plantation, or The Field in the Woods. Lake
Memphremagog is said to derive its name from the
Abnaki word, Mamhrahogak, Large Expanse of Water.
Chapter IV
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND THE INDIAN RAIDS
FOLLOWING the disastrous defeat of the alHed
Indian tribes of New England under the leader-
ship of King Philip, and the death of that famous
chieftain in 1676, there was an extensive migration from
southern New England of the survivors of these tribes,
some going to Canada, while others fled to the Hudson
River. The French had been successful, as a rule, in
establishing friendly relations with the Indians, more
successful than the English, and they welcomed the
refugees, realizing the value of such accessions. The
New York authorities also encouraged the New Eng-
land Indians to settle in that colony.
About 1676 fugitives from the Pennacook, Pocum-
tuck, Narragansett, Nipmuc, and Wampanoag tribes,
driven out of New England, founded the Indian village
of Scaticook, on the east bank of the Hudson, near the
mouth of the Hoosac River. The greater part of the
Pennacooks, however, fled to Canada. In 1683 the first
village of St. Francis was established at the falls of
the Chaudiere, in Quebec, by Indian converts from Sil-
lery, the latter place being abandoned soon after. In
1700 the village of St. Francis was removed to a loca-
tion near Pierreville, Que. This village became a rally-
ing place for many New England Indians, driven out by
the fortunes of war, or dissatisfied by the growing
strength of the English colonists. In 1725 the remnant
of the Sokaki and Pequamket tribes removed to St.
Francis, and later other bands of Indians followed.
Indeed, there seems to have been a pretty steady stream
of Indian migration to Canada for many years.
74 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The New York authorities sought to win away the
St. Francis Indians to Scaticook, while the French
attempted a counter attraction. The Canadian officials
were so successful that the Scaticook settlement, which
numbered about one thousand souls in 1702, had
dwindled to two hundred in 1721, and during the
French and Indian War the last of the tribe withdrew
to Canada.
It is not strange that these fugitives became embittered
toward the English settlers. They had seen their hunt-
ing grounds in New England appropriated for farms
and villages. They could not fail to observe their own
waning power, while the strength of the English waxed
greater with every passing year, and the situation was
one that, unchecked, indicated ultimate extermination for
the native tribes. Already they had suffered humiliat-
ing defeats at the hands of the colonists, and they were
ready to listen eagerly to the suggestions of the French
that they join that nation in an attempt to check, and
perhaps to destroy, the rapidly growing power of the
English.
A careful study of the Canadian incursions into
Massachusetts during the Colonial period tends to estab-
lish the fact, heretofore not given the importance that
it deserves, that one of the most important centers of
Indian hostility to New England, second only to the
St. Francis settlement, and, perhaps, at times equal to it,
was the native village near the mouth of the Missisquoi
River, described in a previous chapter. This village
was situated only a few miles south of the present inter-
national boundary line. Until the close of the French
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 75
and Indian War all the region around Lake Champlain
was controlled by the French, so that a raid from the
Missisquoi was considered a raid from Canada as truly
as one originating at St. Francis.
The date of the establishment of the Abnaki settle-
ment on the Missisquoi may not easily be determined,
but there are indications that it was soon after the migra-
tion of New England tribes to Canada began, following
the overthrow of King Philip. Peter Schuyler of
Albany, a commissioner for Indian affairs, in a letter
to Governor Dongan of New York, dated September 7,
1687, regarding some of the River Indians, who had
visited Montreal with a party of Abnakis, said :
"They putt our Indians upon the way hither giving
them provisions as much as carried them to a castle of
Pennacook Indians, where they wanted for nothing."
The greater part of the Pennacook tribe, which was
located in the Merrimac valley in southern New Hamp-
shire, fled to Canada in 1676, the year of King
Philip's defeat. While most of their emigrants are
supposed to have settled near Quebec, and later to have
removed to St. Francis, it is not impossible that some
of them may have settled on the Missisquoi River, as the
relation between the Missisquoi and St. Francis villages
seems to have been close. The direct route, and the
natural route, from Montreal to Albany was by way of
Lake Champlain. The Indian village of St. Francis at
this time was located in the Beauce district of the
Chaudiere valley, between the city of Quebec and the
Maine border, and was far away from the route to
Albany. There is nothing improbable in the assumption
76 HISTORY OF VERMONT
that a portion of the Pennacook tribe, or some of the
Indians who had recently fled from southern New Eng-
land to Canada, had established themselves near the
mouth of the Missisquoi as early as 1687.
In the ''Jesuit Relations" reference is made to a meet-
ing held at Quebec, October 10, 1682, at the house of the
Jesuit Fathers, at which many of the provincial officials
and leaders were present to take action "against the
secret machinations of the Iroquois," and to protect out-
lying Indian settlements. This determination was
reached: ''Consequently, the utmost efforts must be
made to prevent them (the Iroquois) from ruining the
natives as they have heretofore ruined the Algonquins,
Andastag, Loups, Abenaquis and others, whose rem-
nants we have at the settlements of Sillery, Laurette,
Lake Champlain and others scattered among us." This
would indicate that some of the fragments of Indian
tribes which sought refuge in Canada, located at Lake
Champlain very early, as soon as the location at Sillery.
The only Indian settlement on Lake Champlain of which
we have any positive and definite knowledge, is the one
near the mouth of the Missisquoi.
There are scattered references to the Missisquoi settle-
ment in the ''History of the Catholic Church in the
United States," as follows: "Fort St. Therese (on the
Richelieu River) was abandoned in 1690. It is about
this time that the Abnaki Indians appeared on the
Missisquoi River, on the Winooski and on Otter Creek,
having been driven from Maine by the English in 1680."
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 77
"From 1687 to 1760 we find them on the Missisquoi
River, on the Winooski and on the Otter Creek.
* * * Having been driven from Maine by the Eng-
lish in 1680, the Governor of Canada gave them the
country which extends from the River Chaudiere on
the St. Laurent, to the River RicheHeu and Lake Cham-
plain. * * * Catholicity flourished among the
Abenaquis for lengthened periods on the shores of the
Missisquoi and Winooski Rivers, Otter Creek, and other
places. * * * They (the Indians) had a permanent
chapel on the Missisquoi River, near Swanton, on the
Highgate side, for a good many years. * * * This
chapel was in existence in 1775. * * * Another
chapel built of stone and containing a bell existed near
Ferrisburg, and doubtless there were others throughout
the State."
Although unmistakable evidences of Indian settle-
ments have been found near the mouths of Otter Creek
and the Winooski River, evidence is lacking to prove
that either settlement was as important or as enduring
as that on the Missisquoi in Swanton.
In a letter to Dr. George McAleer of Worcester,
Mass., who has made a most exhaustive study of the
entire Missisquoi region in order to determine the deriva-
tion of the name, William Wallace Tooker, author of
the "Algonquin Series," and a well-known Indian
scholar, writes : "After the English forces from Fort
Richmond, under Capt. Johnson Harmon, attacked the
Abnaki Indians of Maine at Norridgewock, on the Ken-
nebec River, August 12, 1724, burnt their fort and vil-
lage, and slew Father Rasles, the French missionary
78 HISTORY OF VERMONT
there, the survivors migrated west to the head of Lake
Champlain, then under the control of the French colo-
nists of Canada."
Some other historians say these survivors went to the
St. Francis village, but the close relations between the
St. Francis settlement and that on the Missisquoi, make
it possible that the fugitives may have gone first to St.
Francis, and later to the Champlain village, or that some
historians, not realizing the importance of the Missisquoi
village, have assumed that the Indians went to St.
Francis because they went to Canada.
Doctor McAleer concludes ''that the territory now
known as Vermont, including Missisquoi Bay and
environs, was in early times under the domination of
the Iroquois.
"That they were supplanted by the Abenaquis.
''That the Abenaquis had for the time a large settle-
ment at Swanton Falls that was in existence some
seventy-five years or longer."
He also says that the Abnakis, or Abenaquis, "made
quite a large settlement during the early part of the
eighteenth century, if not earlier, on the Missisquoi
River at Swanton Falls, and which was there main-
tained for more than half a century."
It is stated in "Despatches and Orders of the King"
(of France), under date of May 24, 1744, that "The
establishment of the mission at Missiskoui may also
conduce to this end (the further settlement and develop-
ment of this region) by means of the spiritual aids which
the new settlers will derive from the said mission."
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 79
In "Instructions from the King," issued April 28,
1745, to Marquis Beauharnois, Governor General of
Canada, and to Intendant Hocquart, reference is made
to the protection of Fort Frederic and the mission at
Missiskoui, which "will be very advantageous to them
in case the English should attempt encroachments." It
is also announced that "His Majesty was pleased to hear
of the progress made by the village of Missiskoui and
the disposition displayed by the Indians composing it
on the occasion of the war."
This is a plain indication that the Indian village on the
Missisquoi rendered material aid to the French during
the colonial war beginning in 1744.
In the Canadian Archives is found a "speech of the
Missisquoi Indians at the North End of Lake Cham-
plain" to the Governor of Quebec, delivered September
8, 1766, in which it is stated that "We, the Missisquoi
Indians of St. Francis or Abnaki tribe, have inhabited
that part of Lake Champlain known by the name of
Missisquoi, time unknown to any of us here present."
White's "Early History of New England," in relating
an account of the attack on Fort Bridgman, in the pres-
ent town of Vernon, Vt., June 27, 1755, tells of the
adventures of Mrs. Jemima Howe and her seven chil-
dren, who were taken captives. One of these children
was an infant, and it is said that the babe was carried
"to a place called Messiskow, on the borders of the River
Missiscoui, near the north end of Lake Champlain upon
the eastern shore."
Doctor McAleer, commenting upon this episode, says :
"The place here called 'Messiskow' to which these cap-
80 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tives were taken was doubtless Swanton Falls, where
a very considerable number of these Indians lived for
many years, and where they erected a stone church, in
the belfry of which was the first bell that ever sum-
moned people to the house of worship in Vermont."
In a previous chapter a quotation was made from Ira
Allen's "History of Vermont," showing that the Indians
abandoned the Missisquoi village about 1730 on account
of an epidemic, and went to St. Francis. That they, or
others, must have returned, has been indicated by state-
ments quoted. Other proofs of a resumption of the
settlement are available.
In a "Journal of Occurrences in Canada," 1746, 1747,
found in "Documents Relating to the Colonial History
of New York," mention is made of a Mohawk attack
a league below Chambly. Lieutenant St. Pierre and a
detachment were sent to surprise the enemy, and "eight
Abenakis of Missiskouy followed this officer." It is
further stated that "a party of twenty Abenakis of
Missiskouy set out towards Boston," and brought in
some prisoners and scalps; that "a party of eight
Abenakis of Missiskouy has been fitted out who have
been in the vicinity of Corlard (Schenectady) and have
returned with some prisoners and scalps" ; that "a party
of Abenakis of Missiskouy struck a blow near Orange
(Albany) and Corlard and brought in some prisoners
and scalps."
The number of Indians in direct league with the
French in 1744, according to a statement prepared by
Governor Clinton of New York, included "the Missis-
queeks, 40," or about half the number (90) credited
upper picture, Lake Champlain scene
Middle picture, Residence of N. W. Fisk, Isle La Motte, where Vice
President Roosevelt received news of the assassination of
President McKinley
Lozvcr piciurc. Site of Fort St. Anne, Isle La Motte, the first white settle-
ment in Vermont
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 81
to the St. Francis tribe. Of course forty warriors
would include a total population in the Missisquoi vil-
lage of several times that number.
In a narrative of his captivity, Rev. John Williams,
taken prisoner by a party of French and Indians from
Canada in the capture of Deerfield, Mass., in 1704,
wrote :
''We went a day's journey from the lake (Champlain)
to a company of Indians," this being after they had
passed down the lake some distance from the mouth
of the Winooski River, and he added the information
that "we stayed at a branch of the lake and feasted two
or three days on geese killed there." It is not improb-
able that this stop was made at the Missisquoi village.
It is a considerable distance from the regular route to
Canada, west of the large islands of Grand Isle county,
to the mouth of the Missisquoi. From the earliest
knowledge of this region, the marshes at the mouth of
this river have been a favorite feeding ground for wild
geese on their way south in the autumn. Judge
Girouard has said: ''The early settlers relate that the
flocks of fowl at certain seasons near the bay (Missis-
quoi) were so large and dense that the sun would be
obscured during their flight, as though darkened by a
cloud."
From cover to cover it would be difficult to find in a
history of the United States, chapters more thrilling
than those which relate to the Indian raids upon the
New England colonies. For many years, particularly
near the borders of civilization, the settlers lived in con-
stant apprehension of Indian attacks, which came silently
82 HISTORY OF VERMONT
and swiftly out of the forests, sometimes when the men
were working in the fields, and the women and children
were engaged in household tasks of the little homes;
sometimes at dead of night, when the blood curdling
war whoop would arouse the sleeper to the horrors of
fire and massacre, and captivity for the survivors.
Of all the chieftains who led savage bands out of
Canada to fall upon the New England settlements, few
were more dreaded than Gray Lock. In connection
with the conflict in Maine known as Father Rasles'
War (1723-1726), Temple and Sheldon's "His-
tory of Northfield, Mass.," says of Gray Lock: "The
Indian chief most prominent in the exploits of this war
on our borders, and the leader in some daring and suc-
cessful expeditions, was Gray Lock, so called from the
color of his hair. He was a chieftain of the Waranokes,
who lived previous to King Philip's War, on the West-
field River, and removed thence to the Mohawk country.
He was now well advanced in age, but retained all the
daring and tact, and energy of his youth. He was well
known to the people of the river towns, and seems to
have been capable of inspiring regard by his friendly
offices and shrewdness in time of peace, as well as
awakening dread by his craft and cruelty in time of
war. * * *
"At the time of Queen Anne's War (1702-1713) he
was living near Mount Royal, and was known as a
French Indian that headed small parties fitted out to
prey upon the exposed towns on the Connecticut River.
In 1723, Gray Lock was living on the shore of Missis-
quoi Bay, at the northerly end of Lake Champlain. He
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 83
had built a fort on a small creek, and collected a con-
siderable band of followers. Some rich meadows here
afforded the squaws a chance to plant large fields of
corn. His method was to go forth with a force of trusty
savages, larger or smaller, according to circumstances,
build a camp at some convenient and secluded point
near the towns, and keep out spies and scouts in small
parties, who were ready to take scalps or captives, and
hurry away for Canada."
Trumbull's "History of Northampton," relates the
fact that in July, 1712, the last raid of Queen Anne's
War occurred. One of the two attacking parties was
led by Gray Lock, "the afterwards famous chief," who
left Canada July 13.
When, or under what circumstances. Gray Lock estab-
lished himself on the Missisquoi River, near its mouth,
does not appear to be a matter of record. Two reasons
may have led him to leave the vicinity of Mount Royal
for the Missisquoi country. One reason, probably, was
a desire to be in closer proximity to the English settle-
ments. Another reason may have been a wish to be
nearer the excellent hunting grounds of the region now
known as northern Vermont. The Waranokes were
famous beaver hunters, and as the Green Mountain coun-
try had been a favorite beaver hunting region of the
Iroquois, this fact may have been an inducement to
locate on the Missisquoi.
During the summer of 1723, Governor Dummer of
Massachusetts and the officers of the Hampshire county
militia, attempted, with the aid of Colonel Schuyler and
other Albany officials, to conciliate Gray Lock and other
84 HISTORY OF VERMONT
chiefs living near Lake Champlain. Belts and other
presents were sent to them, but having accepted from an-
other source a more valuable belt, Gray Lock always
was conveniently absent when the messengers arrived.
On August 13, 1723, Gray Lock, with a party of four
Indians, waylaid, killed and scalped two residents of
Northfield, Mass. Continuing to Rutland, Mass.,
Deacon Joseph Stearns and his four sons were attacked
as they were at work in the hayfield. Two of the sons
were killed and two were made prisoners. Meeting Rev.
Joseph Willard in the road, the Indians killed and scalped
him, and wath their prisoners made a quick retreat to
their castle on the Missisquoi. In order to secure an
alliance with the Caughnawagas, Gray Lock gave to
them the younger of his two captives.
About September 1, Gray Lock started on a fresh
expedition. His force consisted of about fifty men of
his own and the Caughnawaga tribes, and he was fur-
nished with guns and plenty of ammunition by Governor
Vaudreuil of Canada. On October 9, 1723, these
Indians made a sudden attack on Northfield, Mass.,
killed one man, wounded two persons, and captured one
prisoner.
The records show that on December 5, 1723, Capt.
Benjamin Wright of Northfield, a famous scout, peti-
tioned Governor Dummer for thirty-five or forty men
in order that he might proceed to the mouth of Otter
Creek and return by way of the White and Connecticut
Rivers, but the plan was not carried out. In the year
1724 Fort Dummer was built in the present town of
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 85
Brattleboro, as some writers say to guard against the
incursions of Gray Lock.
About June 11, 1724, Gray Lock and a party of eleven
left his fort for the south and were joined soon by two
bands, the first consisting of thirty, and the second of
forty men. On June 18, Gray Lock and his Indians
fell upon a party of hay makers at Northfield, Mass.,
killed one man and took two prisoners. A scout of
seventeen men pursued the Indians as far as the mouth
of Otter Creek. Gray Lock spent the summer and
autumn of 1724 in prowling around the settlements at
Deerfield, Westfield and Northampton, returning to his
Missisquoi camp early in November.
The statement concerning Gray Lock's location near
the mouth of the Missisquoi is substantiated by the writ-
ings of two Colonial leaders. Lieut. Col. John Stod-
dard, who selected the site of Fort Dummer, objected to
the suggestion made in January, 1725, that a large scout
should be organized to go directly to Gray Lock's fort,
"and attempt to destroy him and his clan outright."
Stoddard wrote on February 3 of that year: "I retain
my former opinion, if our people had gone to Gray Lock's
fort, which lyeth upon a small river that emptieth itself
into the Lake (Champlain) near the further end of it,
and had made spoil upon the Indians, those that escaped
would in their rage meditate revenge upon our commis-
sioners, either in going to or returning from Canada.
But an expedition thither in the spring, about the time
of their planting corn, may be attended with the like in-
convenience. * * * Parties should be raised to go
to the upper part of St. Francis River, where these
86 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Indians plant their corn, or towards the head of Conn.
River where they hunt, or to Ammonoosuck which is the
common road from St. Francis to Ammeriscoggan, and
so to the Eastern country, or to Gray Lock's fort, or
possibly to all of them."
In the latter part of March, 1725, Capt. Thomas Wells
of Deerfield, Mass., and a party of twenty men went on
a scout to the northward. On their return, April 24,
a canoe was overturned near the mouth of Miller's River
and three men were drowned. Dissatisfied with the re-
sult of this expedition. Governor Dummer proposed to
Capt. Benjamin Wright to raise and command a party
of rangers. Captain Wright replied on May 29, ex-
pressing his willingness to do what he could, and adding:
"It seems to me the most probable place to be attained,
and the most serviceable when done, is Meseesquick,
Gray Lock's fort." These letters appear to establish the
location of Gray Lock's fort on the Missisquoi beyond
question.
In two months Captain Wright had recruited fifty-
nine men, and the account of the expedition may be read
in "A true journal of our march from N-field to Mesix-
couk Bay under ye command of Benj. Wright Captain,
begim July 27, A. D., 1725." This journal indicates
that the rangers, having started the afternoon of July
27 from Northfield, Mass., went as far that night as
Pomeroy's Island, five miles above Northfield. The next
day they proceeded to Fort Dummer at Brattleboro,
where a stop was made for the mending of canoes, after
which the party went five miles beyond the fort, to
Hawley's Island. On the following day, July 29, they
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 87
came at night ''to a meadow 2 miles short of ye Great
Falls" (Bellows Falls). The next day they carried their
canoes around the falls and proceeded two miles farther.
Their journey was continued up the Connecticut, past
the mouth of Black River, and the mouth of White
River, encountering much bad weather, and so on as far
as the "Cowass" meadows and the mouth of Wells
River. Proceeding up Wells River to Groton Pond,
they crossed French (Winooski) River, evidently in
Marshfield. Continuing their march they came to an-
other branch of French River, probably in Calais, and
went six miles farther to a beaver pond, possibly one
of the Calais ponds, "out of which runs another branch
of ye said river," possibly the Worcester Branch.
Marching from this branch thirteen miles they
"crossed a vast mountain," which may have been Mount
Hunger, and camped for the night. The next day they
came to a fourth branch of French River, which may
have been the Waterbury River, or possibly the Winooski
itself. They travelled down this branch six miles and
crossed over the mountain six miles farther before mak-
ing a camp. If the Waterbury River was referred to
no mention is made of crossing the main stream. The
journal says: "We marched from here W. N. W. to
the top of a vast high mountain, which we called mount
Discovery, where we had a fair prospect of ye Lake."
Then they went down the mountain, travelling part of
the way along a brook. Probably the "vast high moun-
tain" was Camel's Hump, and the brook may have been
Huntington River. Going down the river they en-
88 HISTORY OF VERMONT
camped at the foot of a falls, probably at Winooski, as a
few miles brought them to Lake Champlain.
The expedition proceeded down the lake only six miles,
perhaps to Mallett's Bay, or Colchester Point. At this
place the journal says: "And ye northwest end of ye
Lake or bay being at a great distance, then we turned
homeward without making any discovery here of any
enemy." Gray Lock's fort was not destined to suffer
the fate that befell that of the Norridgewock Indians
at an earlier date, or that which Maj. Robert Rogers
meted out to the St. Francis village about thirty-five
years later. Mention is made in the journal of a fort
at the mouth of Wells River. The party arrived at
Northfield, on the return from this scouting expedition,
on September 2.
About August 18 Gray Lock left his village on the
Missisquoi with a band of one hundred and fifty Indians
with the double purpose of watching Captain Wright's
expedition, and harassing the towns in the Connecticut
River valley. Although some Indians were known to
have followed Captain Wright as far as Northfield, it
is probable that the greater part remained in the vicinity
of Lake Champlain, for Colonel Stoddard wrote at this
time: "If Capt. Wright could go immediately with 50
men to Otter Creek he might intercept some of those
parties."
Governor Vaudreuil died on October 25, and his
death, it is said, "broke the mainspring" of Indian hos-
tilities. Most of the Indians were weary of war, and
desired to return to their hunting and trapping. After
prolonged negotiations a treaty of peace was signed with
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 89
the Eastern Indians at Boston, December 15, 1725.
Gray Lock, however, refused to sign the treaty, and at
some time in 1726, he assembled a war party about the
mouth of Otter Creek with the intention of attacking the
Connecticut River towns, but the rekictance of other
Indians to cooperate, and the vigilance of the garrison at
Fort Dummer, were responsible for frustrating this
plan.
In the autumn of 1726 the Indian commissioners at
Albany sought to win Gray Lock over by gifts and good
will. On January 2, 1727, they sent a message to the
chieftain by Malalamet, his brother, inviting him to
come to Albany, but the message did not reach him.
Then they suggested to the New England authorities
that a suitable belt be forwarded them to send to Gray
Lock, and that he be invited to Albany to receive it,
adding : "He will hardly be persuaded to come into your
country, for he has done so much mischief on your fron-
tiers, that he doubtless has a guilty conscience."
Here the record of Gray Lock's hostilities ends.
Peace was established, and for eighteen years the Con-
necticut River settlements enjoyed freedom from border
warfare. Gray Lock must have been an old man at this
time, although his aggressive policy gave no indication
of feebleness of body or mind. More than fifty years
had elapsed since the death of King Philip, when the
chief of the Waranokes left his home Woronoco, in the
vicinity of Westfield, where he was the leader of his
tribe. There is no record to show his age, but half a
century of activity would indicate a career much longer
90 HISTORY OF VERMONT
than that which most leaders, whether savage or civilized,
enjoy.
The history of the Colonial period, therefore, shows
a fort in the southern border of the region later known
as Vermont, guarding the Massachusetts settlements of
the Connecticut River valley against the famous chief-
tain Gray Lock and his Indian warriors established in
a fort or castle at the extreme northern end of Vermont
— the outpost of the French and Indian alliance, pitted
against, and watched by, the outpost of the New Eng-
land colonists. Because the English and what they
stood for won in Vermont, in New England, and in
the United States of America, Fort Dummer is a familiar
name in history, and Gray Lock and his castle have been
lost in obscurity for well nigh two centuries. Neverthe-
less, Gray Lock and his Missiassik Indians deserve a
place in the early history of Vermont.
The raids of Gray Lock and his band were by no means
the only ones that followed the trails across the future
State of Vermont, or the waters along the borders.
For practically a century these expeditions crossed and
recrossed the Green Mountains, moving swiftly and
silently between Canada and the settlements of New
York and New England.
On January 30, 1666, Sieur de Courcelles, Governor
of New France, started from Fort St. Therese, on the
Richelieu River, with five hundred men, soldiers of
France and Canadian habitants, on an expedition into
the Mohawk country. Proceeding in a southerly direc-
tion over the ice-covered surface of Lake Champlain, he
approached the vicinity of what is now known as
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 91
Schenectady. Here some of the French troops fell into
an ambuscade, eleven soldiers were killed and several
were wounded. Having rested his men for three days,
the French commander returned with all possible speed
to Lake Champlain and Canada, being pursued as far as
the lake by the Mohawks. This expedition, designed to
quell the hostile Indians, failed to accomplish the desired
result, and another was considered necessary.
A fort having been constructed at Isle La Motte, a
force consisting of six hundred regulars of the Carignan-
Salieres regiment, six hundred habitants, and one hun-
dred Indians, assembled here, and on the mainland to
the west of the island.
Early in October the Mohawk country again was in-
vaded. The Indians had abandoned their villages upon
the approach of the French soldiers, but their houses and
many of their stores were burned. This expedition
secured a peace lasting nearly twenty years.
Following the accession to the British throne of
William and Mary in 1689, war broke out between Eng-
land and France, and the conflict extended to the Ameri-
can colonies. Governor de Callieres of Montreal sub-
mitted to the King of France a plan for the conquest of
New York. As a part of that plan, designed to check
the depredations of the Iroquois, a party of two hundred
and ten men was fitted out at Montreal in January,
1690. This expedition, led by Sieur de St. Helene and
Lieutenant de Mantet crossed Lake Champlain on the
ice, and on a bitterly cold winter night attacked Schenec-
tady. The small fort there was captured, the garrison
was massacred, the village was burned, and twenty-seven
92 HISTORY OF VERMONT
prisoners were taken. On the return trip the invaders
were pursued, and suffered great hardships, owing to
the fact that the provisions cached had spoiled, and the
soldiers were reduced to such straits that they boiled
their moccasins for food.
Near the end of March, 1690, a small detachment of
English and Indians, commanded by Capt. Jacobus de
Warm, was sent to Crown Point, from Albany, to watch
the enemy from Canada. A few days later, Capt.
Abram Schuyler, with a few Englishmen, some
Mohawks and Scaticooks, was ordered by the Albany
authorities to the mouth of Otter Creek, as a scouting
party to give warning of the approach of any hostile
force from the north. Schuyler proceeded into Canada
as far as Chambly, where he killed two persons and took
one prisoner.
As part of an elaborate plan for the invasion of
Canada by the Colonial troops of Massachusetts, Con-
necticut and New York, a force of eight hundred men
under Gen. John Winthrop was assembled at the south-
ern end of Lake Champlain, in August, 1690, but the
Indians failing to bring reinforcements, or furnish
canoes, the expedition was abandoned, greatly to the dis-
appointment of many of the people of the Colonies.
Capt. John Schuyler, being unwilling wholly to abandon
the project of a Canadian invasion, with twenty-nine
Englishmen and one hundred and twenty Indians, pro-
ceeded by way of Lake Champlain and the Richelieu
River to Laprairie, Canada, and on August 23 he
attacked the place, burning houses and barns, killing six
men, and taking nineteen prisoners. On August 24 he
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 93
camped at Isle La Motte and on August 25 stopped at
Sand Point, probably Colchester Point. The next stop
was at "the little stone fort," the exact location of which
is unknown, but as it was evidently a day's journey from
Sand Point, it may have been at the mouth of Otter
Creek, which appears to have been a regular stopping
place in traversing Lake Champlain.
On June 21, 1691, Maj. Peter Schuyler, a brother of
Capt. John Schuyler, left Albany, on a scouting expedi-
tion, and July 17, according to his journal, he reached
Ticonderoga with a force of two hundred and sixty Eng-
lish and Indians and on July 19 advanced to Crown
Point. On July 23, spies were sent out who advanced to
Regio, or Split Rock, the main body following as far
as the mouth of Otter Creek. The spies discovered
several camp fires of hostile Indians, and reported that
by their number there might be a "considerable army,"
and as a matter of precaution Schuyler built a small
stone fort breast high, possibly similar to the "little
stone fort" referred to the previous year.
The next day the hostile Indians had disappeared.
On July 26 they left the mouth of Otter Creek and pro-
ceeded "to a place called Fort Lamotte several years de-
serted," and on July 27 reached Chambly. He surprised
and captured Laprairie, defeating Governor de Callieres,
who lost about two hundred men killed and wounded,
Schuyler's loss being slight, and retreated in safety to
Albany.
These successes encouraged the Iroquois to harass the
Canadian settlements, and in order to check these depre-
dations, Count de Frontenac assembled a force of six
94 HISTORY OF VERMONT
hundred or seven hundred French and Indians, in Jan-
uary, 1693, and marching over the frozen surface of
Lake Champlain, he fell upon the Mohawk villages
beyond Schenectady. Many persons were killed and
more than three hundred prisoners were captured.
Major Schuyler, with a hastily assembled force, pursued
the French as far as the Hudson River, and recaptured
about fifty prisoners. The French suffered severe priva-
tions before they reached Canada.
The greater part of the raids, however, were directed
toward the settlements in New England. Toward eve-
ning, on July 14, 1698, a small party of Indians attacked
a number of persons who were working in the fields at
Hatfield, Mass., killing a man and a boy, and taking two
boys prisoners. One man escaped and gave the alarm.
The news was carried swiftly to Deerfield, where a party
of fourteen men was assembled, and mounting horses
they rode nearly all night until they reached the Great
Bend of the Connecticut at Vernon, opposite the mouth
of the Ashuelot River, a distance of twenty miles.
Concealing their horses, they formed an ambush, and
soon after daybreak the Indians were seen coming north
in two canoes. Firing on the savages, they killed two of
them, and the captive boys made their escape. One
member of the rescuing party, Nathaniel Pomeroy, of
Deerfield, was shot and killed, on an island in the Con-
necticut River, which is still known as Pomeroy's Island.
In 1702 hostilities were renewed between Great
Britain and France, and continued for nearly eleven
years. This conflict was known as Queen Anne's War.
Deerfield was the most northerly settlement of im-
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 95
portance on the Connecticut River, and in the winter of
1704 the Canadian authorities ordered an attack upon
this Massachusetts town. Maj. Hertel de Rouville,
commanding two hundred Frenchmen and one hundred
and forty-two Indians, was sent on this expedition.
Following Lake Champlain to the mouth of the Winooski
River, the party ascended that stream, crossed the Green
Mountains, descended the White River to the Connecti-
cut, and followed that stream to Deerfield.
Having watched for several hours, until the guard
fell asleep, the town was surprised shortly before day-
break on the morning of February 29, the depth of snow
permitting the attacking party to leap over the slight
fortifications. The place was captured without much
difficulty. Forty-seven of the inhabitants were killed,
one hundred and nineteen men, women and children were
captured, and the village was plundered and burned.
Among those captured was the village pastor. Rev.
John Williams, who has left a record of his capture and
imprisonment in a volume called ''The Redeemed Cap-
tive." Indian moccasins were substituted for the foot-
wear worn by the English prisoners, and plans were
made for a journey of three hundred miles to Canada,
the snow at the time being knee deep. On the way north
nineteen persons were killed and two starved to death.
These included infants, children and feeble women.
Soon after the party started Mrs. Williams was killed.
On the sixth day of the journey, Sunday, March 5,
the party rested, and Mr. Williams preached a sermon
to his fellow captives, taking as his text Sam. 1 :18, "The
Lord is righteous, for I have rebelled against his com-
96 HISTORY OF VERMONT
mandment; hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my
sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into
captivity." This is supposed to have been the first ser-
mon preached within what is now the State of Vermont
by a clergyman of the Protestant faith. The encamp-
ment is said to have been at the mouth of a river in the
town of Rockingham, since known as Williams River, in
honor of the captive preacher. The captors urged the
prisoners to "Sing us one of Zion's" songs, and up-
braided them because the dejected captives did not sing-
as loud as their masters.
The party proceeded as far as the mouth of the White
River, where it was divided, the greater portion going
farther up the Connecticut valley to the "Cowass" re-
gion; the other, of which Mr. Williams was a member,
following the White River to South Royalton, proceed-
ing thence up the First Branch through what are now
the towns of Tunbridge, Chelsea and Washington to
the height of land, thence down Stevens' Branch to the
Winooski River and to Lake Champlain, in Colchester,
from which place they proceeded over the ice of Lake
Champlain and the Richelieu River to Chambly, Canada.
Two days before the French, or Winooski, River was
reached, Mr. Williams was informed by his master that
he had killed five moose, which gives an idea of the
abundance of game in this region. After a journey,
probably, of twenty-five days, over what was truly a
"way of sorrow," the prisoners arrived at their destina-
tion.
Stephen Williams, a son of Rev. John Williams, was
a member of the party that proceeded up the Connecticut
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 97
River toward "Cowass." Before reaching that place
Indians were met who told of an English raid in the
vicinity, as a result of which the region was being de-
serted. The party remained for a month or six weeks
where its members met these Indians from up the river,
and suffered much from lack of provisions, being com-
pelled to eat roots and the bark of trees. After they
had started for Canada, Stephen was compelled to carry
heavy burdens.
Samuel Carter believes that these Indians made a
camp on one of the sources of the Winooski, probably
in Peacham, where they stayed until they had feasted
on some moose they had killed. From here Stephen's
master went to look for his family, and finding them
sent for Stephen, who went a day's journey to join them.
Carter is of the opinion that this Indian family was
located on Joe's Pond, in the eastern part of Cabot, and
that the hunting range may have included parts of
Cabot, Walden, Danville and Peacham. Stephen ar-
rived in Chambly in the month of August, about six
months after Deerfield was captured.
According to Penhallow's ''Wars of New England,"
word came to Northampton in the spring of 1704 that
a party of Canadian Indians had built a fort and planted
corn at Coos (Newbury). Thereupon Caleb Lyman
and five friendly Indians proceeded up the Connecticut
valley, and while a thunder storm was raging, he attacked
a wigwam containing nine Indians, killing seven.
According to Col. Frye Bailey and other early settlers,
Captain Wells and a small force proceeded to the mouth
of Wells River in 1704. Several men became ill of
98 HISTORY OF VERMONT
smallpox, and they spent at least a portion of the winter
here, building a small log fort. Some of the party, it
is said, died here. The river is said to have been named
for the commander v^ho, probably, was Capt. Jonathan
Wells.
In February, 1708, Capt. Benjamin Wright began his
career as an Indian fighter by leading a small party to
**Coasset" or ''Cowass," near the mouth of Wells River,
but no Indians were found. In May, 1709, Captain
Wright, with ten men, ascended the Connecticut River,
crossed the Green Mountains, and descended to Lake
Champlain by one of the well known Indian trails. It
is said that the party went within forty miles of Cham-
bly. Distances were not very accurately determined and
this may indicate that the party went as far as Isle
La Motte, or the outlet of Lake Champlain, or to the
vicinity of the Indian settlement near the mouth of the
Missisquoi.
On May 20, Captain Wright's party attacked two
canoes containing Indians, killing, as they supposed,
four savages, although only one scalp was secured. One
canoe with provisions and arms was captured. The
next day they seized and destroyed five canoes. On the
return trip they met some French and Indians on the
Winooski River, and killed, as they believed, four men,
although the French account states that only one man
was killed. In this encounter, Lieut. John Wells and
John Burt, of Wright's party, were killed and John
Strong was wounded, but was able to return to his home.
Thomas Baker, captured at Deerfield, February 27 ,
1709, was taken up the Connecticut River, and thence to
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 99
Canada by the Lake Memphremagog route. His cap-
tivity lasted a year, and during that time he became
familiar with the country occupied by his captors, its
rivers, and mountain passes. Early in 1712 he raised a
company of thirty-four men and proceeded to the region
known as Coos, and into New Hampshire, where some
Indians were killed, the party returning without sustain-
ing any loss. The Legislature of Massachusetts, by
special resolution, granted to each member of this expedi-
tion twenty pounds as a bounty for his part in the
exploit.
In 1711 a formidable attack on Canada was planned.
Four thousand men were to proceed by way of Lake
Champlain, and an expedition, 6,400 strong, sailed from
Boston for Quebec. The fleet was wrecked, with heavy
loss, and as the news reached the other army before it
left Lake George, the Lake Champlain campaign was
abandoned.
Reference has been made previously to raids made
in several Massachusetts towns by Gray Lock, the
famous Indian chief. After he had attacked a party
in the vicinity of Hatfield, a detachment of seven-
teen men was organized in that town and went as far
as the mouth of Otter Creek, as they supposed, in pur-
suit of Gray Lock, but the wily chieftain was lurking
in the vicinity of the Massachusetts settlements instead
of being on his way to his Missisquoi stronghold.
This scouting expedition was organized hastily, leav-
ing without proper equipment, and as a result its mem-
bers suffered great hardships. The "Massachusetts
Archives" quotes Dr. Thomas Hastings of Hatfield as
569SS6
100 HISTORY OF VERMONT
saying: "Saw most of ye men when they went forth;
they were lusty and in good plight, effective men; saw
them when they returned, and they were much emaciated,
and their feet so swelled and galled that they could
scarce travel on their feet — for some they were necessi-
tated to hire horses. Some one or more applied to me
to dress their feet and were under my care for a week
or more, in bathing and emplastering before they were
anything tolerably recruited." This gives a little pic-
ture of the hardships of the trail over the Green Moun-
tains to Lake Champlain, unless preparation was made
similar to that which enabled the Indians to make long
marches with comparative ease.
On October 7, 1724, Captain Kellogg of Northfield
wrote that he had a scout out under orders to go "up
ye Great River" (the Connecticut), forty miles, and
thence eastward to "Great Monadnock." During the
late summer and early autumn most of his force had
been employed in guarding the farmers during the har-
vest season. This task being accomplished, Captain
Kellogg sent out scouting parties, most of them going
into southern Vermont to guard against the ever-present
danger of incursions from Gray Lock and other enemies
from the north.
Captain Kellogg describes these expeditions in his
journal in the following manner: "The first scout on
November 30, 1724, went up on ye west side of Conn.
River, and crossing ye West River went up to ye Great
Falls (Bellows Falls), and returned, making no discov-
ery of any enemy. The second scout went up to West
River and followed up sd river 6 miles, and then crossed
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 101
the woods to ye Great Falls, and returned seeing no new
signs of ye enemy. The third scout went west from
Northfield about 12 miles, then northward crossing West
River, and steering east came to canoe place about 16
or 17 miles above Northfield. The fourth struck out
northward about 6 miles, then north across West River
and so to the Great Meadow, below ye Great Falls, then
crossed the Conn. River and came down on the east side.
This meadow is about 32 miles from Northfield. The
fifth, the men were sent up West River Mountain, there
to lodge on the top and view morning and evening for
smoaks, and from there up to ye Mountain at ye Great
Falls, and there also to lodge on ye top, and view morn-
ing and evening for smoaks. The sixth went up to
West River, which they followed 5 miles, then north
till they come upon Sexton's (Saxtons) River six miles
from the mouth of it, which empties itself at ye front of
ye Great Falls, and then they came down to the mouth
of it, and so returned. In addition we watch and ward
3 forts at Northfield continually, besides what those 10
men do at Deerfield, and ye people are uneasy that we
have no more men to keep ye forts than we have."
Temple and Sheldon's "History of Northfield" well
says of this modest record: "This journal, kept with
soldier-like precision, reads like the most ordinary mat-
ter of fact afifair, deserving no special attention and no
commendation, except evidence of a faithful discharge
of duty. But the labors it recorded, and the daring and
endurance of these handfuls of men, thus striking ofif
into the wild forest in the winter, fording bridgeless
streams, and climbing mountains slippery with ice and
102 HISTORY OF VERMONT
blocked up with snow, watching for the curling smokes
from the red man's camp and listening for the report of
his gun, were a most exciting romance, if they had not
been a terrible reality. By such vigilance and fidelity,
and wear of soul and body, was our village protected,
and our valley kept clean of blood."
Mention has been made of the proposal of Capt. Ben-
jamin Wright to attack Gray Lock's fort on the Missis-
quoi and of the failure to reach that stronghold. Late
in March, 1725, Capt. Thomas Wells of Deer field led
a scouting party northward on an expedition lasting a
month, but there is no record of anything of real value
accomplished.
For nearly two decades following the signing of the
treaty of peace with the Eastern Indians at Boston,
December 15, 1725, this valley enjoyed freedom from
conflict, and respite from the awful horror of the savage
peril that might emerge at any hour, from the northern
forests. During this interval of peace the boundaries
of the frontier had been pushed farther into the wilder-
ness, along either bank of ''the Great River," and ad-
venturous pioneers had begun settlements at Westmin-
ster and Putney, now Vermont towns, and at Keene,
Charlestown, and perhaps at Westmoreland, in the
province of New Hampshire.
War was declared between Great Britain and France
on March 15, 1744. On July 9, 1745, William Phipps
was captured by a small party of Indians as he was
hoeing corn in his field in the Great Meadows of Putney.
He was taken into the woods by two savages. One of
them having returned for something he had left, Phipps
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 103
struck down his keeper with his hoe, and taking the
disabled Indian's gun shot the other Indian as he re-
turned. Phipps then started for the fort, but was inter-
cepted by other Indians, who killed and scalped him.
As a result of this episode the woods were filled with
scouts and the towns were guarded by a company of
fifty-six men from July 12 to September 8.
On October 11a party of eighty French and Indians
attacked the fort at the Great Meadow, killed David
Rugg and captured Nehemiah How, both being residents
of Putney. The fort was not seriously damaged, but
all the cattle were killed. Soldiers from Northfield and
Fort Dummer pursued the enemy as far as Number
Four (Charlestown, N. H.) without overtaking them.
The garrisons at the river forts were strengthened as
winter approached.
A party of Indians appeared on June 24, 1746, in
the vicinity of Bridgman's fort, in the town of Vernon,
below Fort Dummer, and attacked some men who were
at work in a meadow below the fort. William Robbins
and James Barker were killed, Michael Gilson and
Patrick Ray were wounded, and Daniel How, Jr., and
John Beaman w^re taken prisoners. The same day a
party of Indians surprised a scout of twelve men com-
manded by Capt. Timothy Carter, while they were rest-
ing at Cold Spring, a little way below Fort Dummer,
capturing a part of their arms, although all the men
escaped.
The French and Indian expedition under Rigaud,
which captured Fort Massachusetts, situated between
the present sites of North Adams and Williamstown,
104 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in August, 1746, camped near the mouth of Otter Creek,
on the Poultney River, and at what is now North Pownal,
Vt., on the way to their destination.
On April 4, 1747, the post at Charlestown, N. H.,
known as Number Four, was attacked by a large party
of French and Indians under Debeline, the siege lasting
three days, but it was successfully defended. On May
15, a party of seven men went as far as Otter Creek on
a scouting expedition. Another scout of five men from
Connecticut River towns was out twenty-two days in
August, traversing the Black River region "to discover
motions of the enemy."
In February, 1748, the Massachusetts General Court
voted to increase the garrisons at Fort Massachusetts
and at Number Four to one hundred men each, and a
portion of these forces was to be employed constantly
*'to intercept the French and Indian enemy in their
marches from Wood Creek and Otter Creek."
On March 29, 1748, Lieut. John Sergeant, his son
Daniel, Moses Cooper, Joshua Wells, and another whose
name is not recorded, started from Fort Dummer for
Colrain, Mass., to cut ash timber for oars and paddles.
They had gone only about a mile down the river when
they fell into an Indian ambush. Lieutenant Sergeant
and Joshua Wells were killed. Cooper was mortally
wounded, but was able to reach the fort, and Daniel
Sergeant was captured.
The next day a party of seven men from Northfield
went up to Fort Dummer, and finding the bodies of
Sergeant and Wells, buried them. Capt. Josiah Wil-
lard, commandant at Fort Dummer, says of this period :
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 105
"I had but eight men left besides what were sick with
the measles, when the enemy made their attack on these
five men."
On May 13, 1748, Capt. Eleazer Melvin, with eighteen
of his best men, started from Fort Dummer on a scout-
ing expedition. That night the party encamped at the
fort in Westmoreland known as Number Two, pro-
ceeding the next day to Number Four, where the expedi-
tion was increased by the addition of sixty men under
Captains Stevens and Hobbs. Following the old Indian
trail up Black River, they crossed the Green Mountains
by the Mount Holly Pass, and descended to Otter Creek.
Here Captain Melvin crossed the stream and proceeded
toward Crown Point, while Captains Stevens and Hobbs
followed the east bank of Otter Creek.
Captain Melvin reached Lake Champlain a few miles
south of Crown Point, on May 24, and camped after
marching down the lake about three miles. Melvin's
bravery appears to have exceeded his discretion. Con-
tinuing his journey north the next morning he discovered
two canoes containing Indians, and fired several volleys
at them, although he was in plain sight of the French
fort at Crown Point. He now made haste to retreat
through the drowned lands, being pursued by one hun-
dred and fifty Indians. Discovering that the savages
were on his trail, Melvin followed the south branch of
Otter Creek, crossed the height of land and reached the
headwaters of a branch of the West River. The party
being weary and hungry and supposing that they had
eluded their pursuers, they stopped to rest, eat their lunch
and shoot salmon.
106 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Guided probably by the sound of the guns, the Indians
discovered Melvin and his men, and approaching steahh-
ily suddenly opened fire from behind logs and trees,
only a few rods away. Unable to rally his soldiers,
Captain Melvin fled, his belt being carried away by a
shot or a hatchet stroke. He reached Fort Dummer
before noon the next day. One of his men already had
arrived there and eleven more came in before nightfall.
Five men were killed. Sergeants John Howard and
Isaac Taylor, John Dodd, Daniel Mann and Samuel
Severance. Joseph Petty, wounded too severely to
travel, was left by a spring on a couch of pine boughs
"to live if he could" until help should return, but it did
not return in time to save him, only in time to bury
him, a service performed by another party for his com-
rades who were slain.
This conflict probably took place in Londonderry,
''thirty-three miles from Fort Dummer up West River."
As a result of this disaster a fast was proclaimed at
Northfield.
The detachment led by Captains Stevens and Hobbs
followed the Otter Creek a little way, then turned east,
hoping to reach White River. After following a stream
for five days, and crossing it thirty-five times in one
day, they learned that it was the Ottaquechee. From
the mouth of this stream they proceeded by rafts and
canoes to Number Four, having been absent two weeks
on the expedition. A few days later, Captain Stevens
and sixty men proceeded to Fort Dummer, where they
remained two weeks, returning with a stock of pro-
visions.
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 107
The day after Captain Stevens' return, fourteen men
on the way from Hinsdale, N. H., to Fort Dummer were
waylaid near the mouth of Broad Brook by a band of
Indians. John Frost, Jonathan French and Joseph
Richardson were killed and scalped. Seven men were
taken prisoners and four escaped.
Capt. Humphrey Hobbs, with forty men, left Number
Four on June 24, 1748, for Fort Shirley, at Heath,
Mass., on a scouting expedition. Two days later the
party halted about twelve miles west of Fort Dummer,
probably in the present town of Marlboro, for the mid-
day meal. A sudden attack was made by a consider-
able body of Indians, led by a chief named Sackett, said
to have been a half-breed descendant of a captive. For-
tunately Captain Hobbs had posted a guard which gave
warning of the approach of the enemy, and the Colonial
troops sought shelter behind trees, fighting the Indians
in their own fashion. The battle continued for four
hours.
At the end of this period, Sackett having been
wounded, the Indians retired, carrying ofif their dead
and wounded. It is said that when an Indian fell a
comrade would approach cautiously, keeping under cover
as much as possible, attach a tump line to the body, and
it would be drawn to the rear, moving along the ground
as though moved by some magic power. Hobbs lost
three men killed, Samuel Gunn, Ebenezer Mitchell and
Eli Scott, and four men were wounded. Fearing an-
other attack Hobbs and his men remained until night,
when, under cover of darkness, they retired about two
108 HISTORY OF VERMONT
miles, burying their dead and caring for the wounded.
The next day, June 27, they arrived at Fort Dummer.
On July 14, 1748, Sergt. Thomas Taylor, with six
soldiers and ten recruits, started from Northfield, Mass.,
for his post at Keene, N. H. When near Hinsdell's
fort, on the east side of the Connecticut River, less than
a mile below Fort Dummer, the detachment marched
into an ambush, carefully planned by a party of French
and Indians, that outnumbered Taylor's party at least
six to one. Asahel Graves and Henry Chandler were
killed and scalped, eleven men were captured, two escaped
to Hinsdell's fort and two crossed the river and found
refuge at Fort Dummer. Two Indians were killed.
Two of the prisoners, who were wounded, were
knocked on the head with war clubs, and killed. The
other prisoners were taken up the east bank of the Con-
necticut to the mouth of West River, where they crossed
the stream, ascended the West River valley, crossed the
mountain range, probably in the present town of Peru,
and descended the Otter Creek valley. Leaving the
river valley, the prisoners were taken across country to
Lake Champlain, about twelve miles below Crown Point,
reaching the lake, probably, at or near Ticonderoga.
The route to Canada was taken by way of the lake and
the Richelieu River.
A party of militia and soldiers from Hatfield, Deer-
field, Northfield, and other towns in the Connecticut
valley, one hundred and twenty-nine in all, set out in
pursuit. They buried the victims, but failed to overtake
the enemy. The garrison at Fort Dummer was
strengthened in August, 1748, and again from Novem-
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 109
ber 15, 1748, to March 1, 1749. A garrison of ten men
was kept at Fort Dummer during 1750.
Four men who were hunting on a branch of the Merri-
mac River on April 28, 1752, were surprised by Indians,
and two were captured, one of the captives being John
Stark. The prisoners were taken to Canada by the
Lake Memphremagog route.
There were not many Indian depredations in New
England between June, 1749, and May, 1754. When
the conflict generally known as the French and Indian
War began. Col. Israel Williams, commanding the north-
ern New Hampshire regiment, wrote to Governor Shir-
ley of Massachusetts, outlining a plan of campaign.
He suggested that at least fifty men should be stationed
at Fort Massachusetts, a part of them to be employed
to watch the roads from Crown Point. In his letter he
said : "The enemy generally when they leave that place
come by the southerly side of the Lake (Champlain) or
Drowned Lands, leave their canoes, and come down to
Hoosuck; or they may turn ofif to the east (into Ver-
mont) ; let which be the case, that fort is best situated
to send parties from for the purpose aforesaid to gain
advantage."
Colonel Williams refers to the forts north of the
Massachusetts border as follows: "As to ye forts
above ye Line, if New Hampshire would support them,
it might be well; but the advantage that would arise
to this government by doing it would not countervail
the expense, nor lessen the charge we must be at in de-
fending our frontiers on ye east side of ye River, where
they can be much easier and cheaper supplied with pro-
110 HISTORY OF VERMONT
visions. Notwithstanding the fort at No. 4, the enemy
can and will come down Black River, Williams River
or West River, go over east, or turn down south without
hazard, and return with like security the same way, or
go above."
Early on the morning of August 30, 1754, a band
of Indians appeared at Number Four, forcibly entered
the house of James Johnson, and captured Mr. Johnson,
Mrs. Johnson, their three children, a sister of Mrs. John-
son, Miss Miriam Willard, also Ebenezer Farnsworth
and Peter Labaree. Crossing the Connecticut, the party
proceeded up the Black River, camping the first night in
the southwest corner of the present town of Reading.
The following morning Mrs. Johnson gave birth to a
daughter, to whom was given the appropriate name of
Captive. After remaining at this camp for a day, a
litter was made on which Mrs. Johnson was carried. A
little later she was permitted to ride on a horse. As food
was scarce it became necessary to kill the horse, and
for several days the infant received its principal nourish-
ment from pieces of horse flesh, which it sucked. A
marker has been erected to commemorate the sufferings
of Mrs. Johnson. Captive Johnson and her parents
afterward returned from their captivity and the girl
later became the wife of Col. George Kimball of Caven-
dish.
Alarmed by this incursion, the few inhabitants of
Westminster removed to Walpole, N. H. In 1755 a
fort was built in the Great Meadow at Putney, to pro-
tect the people of that town, Westminster and West-
moreland, N. H. Bridgman's fort, built in Vernon
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 111
meadow, a little way below Fort Dummer, by Orlando
Bridgman, was burned by Indians early in October,
1747, several persons being killed, and others captured.
This fort was rebuilt on a larger scale, but it was erected
on low ground, and it was possible from a neighboring
eminence to see into the enclosure, and observe the move-
ments of the garrison. Evidently a watch was kept and
the signal for admittance was learned.
On the morning of June 27, 1755, Hilkiah Grant,
Benjamin Gaffield, and Caleb Howe accompanied by
Howe's two sons, left the fort to work in a cornfield
on the bank of the river. Returning at the close of the
day's labor, they were fired at from ambush. Howe
was shot, scalped, and left for dead, and his two sons
were captured. Gaffield was drowned in attempting to
cross the river, and Grant escaped.
The families in the fort had heard the firing and
awaited the return of the party from the meadow with
anxiety. Hearing the sound of footsteps and a rapping
outside, the occupants hastily opened the gate, the proper
signal having been given, and admitted, not members
of their families, but a band of hostile Indians. The
women and children, fourteen in all, were made prison-
ers and the fort was plundered and burned. The
prisoners were taken to Crown Point, a nine days' jour-
ney, and after resting there a week proceeded to the
Canadian settlement of St. Francis. Through the in-
fluence of Capt. Peter Schuyler and Maj. Israel Put-
nam, Mrs. Howe and three of her children were re-
deemed. Caleb Howe was found alive the morning
after the attack, and was taken to Hinsdell's fort, but
112 HISTORY OF VERMONT
died soon after his arrival there. Mrs. Howe was a
woman of great personal beauty, and was known as "The
Fair Captive." She was married three times. Her
first husband, William Phipps, and her second husband,
Caleb Howe, were killed by Indians. Her third hus-
band was Amos Tute, with whom she lived many years.
In 1757 Massachusetts raised a company of forty-
five rangers under Capt. John Burk, and they were
stationed at Hinsdell's fort. Much of their scouting
was along the West River and its branches, and fre-
quently they would ascend West River Mountain, to
watch for smokes from the enemy's campfires.
A party of Indians attacked the home of Capt. Fair-
bank Moore, on the West River, in Brattleboro, at mid-
night, March 6, 1758. Bursting open the door, they
killed and scalped Captain Moore and his son. Mrs.
Moore and her four children, the youngest only a few
weeks old, were taken prisoners, and the party on snow-
shoes crossed the Green Mountains to Fort Ticonderoga,
and from there proceeded to Montreal.
In the early autumn of the year 1759, General
Amherst, commanding the British troops in the Cham-
plain valley, exasperated by the fact that the St. Francis
Indians had made a prisoner of an officer sent with a
flag of truce, ordered Maj. Robert Rogers, the famous
scout, to take two hundred men and ''attack the enemy's
settlements on the south side of the St. Lawrence, in
such a manner as shall most efifectively disgrace and in-
jure the enemy and redound to the honor and success
of His Majesty's arms."
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 113
On the night of September 12, 1759, Major Rogers
started on his expedition. The French fleet was cruis-
ing on Lake Champlain, and it was with some difficulty
that Rogers and his men avoided the enemy. On the
fifth day out from Crown Point, while encamped on the
eastern shore of the lake, a keg of gunpowder acci-
dentally was ignited, and Captain Williams and forty
men, who were injured or sick returned, leaving one
hundred and forty-two men to continue the expedition.
After a terl days' journey, Rogers landed on the Cana-
dian shore of Missisquoi Bay, probably at what is now
the village of Philipsburg. The boats were concealed,
a sufficient supply of provisions was left to carry the
party back to Crown Point, and two trusty Indians re-
mained to watch the boats and supplies. On the second
day of his Canadian journey Rogers was overtaken by
his Indian guards, who informed him that four hundred
Frenchmen had captured the boats and half of that force
v/as following on his track.
Rogers determined to outmarch his pursuers, destroy
the St. Francis village, and return home by way of the
Connecticut River, having sent a few men back to Gen-
eral Amherst to inform him of the situation and to re-
quest that provisions be forwarded to Coos (now New-
bury) on the Connecticut River. For nine days the
party marched through a spruce bog, and on the tenth
day came to a river fifteen miles north of the village of
St. Francis. Leaving his detachment three miles from
the settlement, Rogers and two companions dressed in
Indian garb, approached the village. The Indians were
engaged, to use Rogers' expression, "in a high frolic."
114 HISTORY OF VERMONT
For this reason the attack was deferred until a half hour
before sunrise, the festivities having continued until four
o'clock on the morning of October 5.
Waiting until the merrymakers had fallen into a deep
sleep, Rogers attacked the village from three sides.
The wigwams were set on fire, two hundred out of a
population of three hundred were killed, and twenty
women and children were taken prisoners, most of whom
were released. At seven o'clock the battle was ended.
Six soldiers were wounded and one friendly Indian was
killed. Five English captives were released, and six
hundred scalps were found hanging upon poles over the
doors of the wigwams. In his journal Rogers remarked
that these Indians of St. Francis "had for a century past
harassed the frontiers of New England, murdering
people of all ages and sexes, and in times of peace when
they had no reason to suspect hostile intentions. They
had, within my own knowledge, during six years past,
killed and carried away more than six hundred persons."
It was determined to return to the post known as
Number Four. The party kept together for eight days,
and when they approached Lake Memphremagog, pro-
visions becoming scarce, they divided into companies
with guides, and were directed to assemble at the mouth
of the Ammonoosuc River. The enemy pursued and
captured seven men, two of whom escaped.
The officer ordered to proceed to the place agreed
upon with provisions remained only two days, and left
about two hours before the arrival of Rogers. Finding
a fresh fire burning, guns were fired, but the officer only
hastened his pace, thinking the enemy was approaching.
CHIEF GRAY LOCK AND INDIAN RAIDS 115
The soldiers were in a desperate condition, and
Rogers, leaving them to subsist as best they might on
ground nuts and lily roots, made a raft of dry pine trees
and with Captain Ogden and a captive Indian boy
paddled down stream, narrowly escaping being carried
over White River falls. The raft was lost and Rogers
then burned down trees, and burned them off at the
proper length for another raft, on which the three
floated to Ottaquechee Falls. They succeeded in getting
the raft over this waterfall, and floated down to Num-
ber Four. Here a party of wood cutters was found,
and a canoe loaded with provisions was sent immediately
up the river to the starving soldiers, reaching them ten
days after Rogers' departure. Two days later Rogers
went up the river with two canoes to meet his comrades.
After resting at Number Four those who were able
to march started for Crown Point, reaching that post
December 1, 1759. Forty-nine men, or one-third the
total force, died as a result of the hardships attending
this march through the wilderness.
Thus ended, with the practical annihilation of the St.
Francis tribe, the long period of border warfare, which
had been a scourge to New England, particularly to the
settlements in the Connecticut valley.
During the greater part of a century the soil of Ver-
mont and its navigable waters had been crossed and re-
crossed, traversed again and again, by Indian, French
and English war parties. Through the Green Mountain
forests, and along the rivers which flow down the moun-
tain slopes, had passed many bands of sorrowing cap-
tives, men and women and little children, led to a country
116 HISTORY OF VERMONT
where the speech and the customs were unfamiliar and
where they knew not what evil the future might hold in
store for them.
Today these savage forays, the war whoop at mid-
night, the torch and the tomahawk, the cruel journeys
over rough mountain trails, the fear of attack or
ambush, never entirely absent, seem like a terrible
dream; but for many a decade they were a very stern
reality to the pioneer settlers of New England.
Chapter V
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES
THE first settlement by white men within the limits
of what is now Vermont was made by the French,
at Isle La Motte, near the northern end of Lake
Champlain, in 1666, fifty-seven years after the great
explorer had discovered the lake to which he gave his
name. It is probable that this lake had been traversed
for years before the beginning of the Isle La Motte
settlement by missionaries sent to the Iroquois tribes,
and very likely encampments were made on Vermont
soil during these journeys southward. Isle La Motte,
Colchester Point and the mouth of Otter Creek seem
to have been favorite camp sites at a very early period.
A French document, dated March 8, 1688, declares that
for more than forty years several Frenchmen and some
Jesuit missionaries had resided in the Iroquois country.
Owing to the aggressiveness of the Iroquois in their
attacks upon the French in Canada, and a desire to have
military posts where stores for troops might be deposited,
it was decided in 1655 to build three forts on the Riche-
lieu River, designated on ancient maps as the River of
the Iroquois, because it led to the Iroquois country.
During the autumn of 1655, M. de Repentigny, a cap-
tain in the French service, was sent to Isle La Motte to
prepare a site for another fort, that should be the most
advanced of all the French fortifications. Pierre de St.
Paul, Sieur la Mothe (or la Motte), a Captain of the
Carignan regiment, with a few companies of soldiers,
was sent to this place in the summer of 1666 to build
the fort. It was completed in July of that year, shortly
before M. de Chazy, a young French officer, was killed
120 HISTORY OF VERMONT
by a Mohawk war party on Lake Champlain, near the
mouth of the river which bears his name. This fortifi-
cation was dedicated to St. Anne, the mother of the
Virgin, in whose honor a chapel was erected the same
year, 1666, which was the first edifice in Vermont,
erected for Christian worship, of which there is record.
Although the dates of the erection of chapels at the
mouth of Otter Creek and on the Winooski River are
unknown, it is probable that they were not built until
after the establishment of Fort St. Anne, and little is
known concerning their building.
It is a matter of record that the width of this fort
was ninety-six feet, but there is some doubt concerning
its length, one end of the site having been washed away.
The dimension that is known corresponded to that of
Forts Richelieu and St. Therese, built in 1665 on the
Richelieu River. If the length was the same, it was
one hundred and forty- four feet.
The Mohawks having broken their treaty with the
French, it was determined that the ofifenders should be
punished, and an expedition was organized in Canada
with orders to rendezvous at the new fort in Isle La
Motte, on September 28, 1666. Six hundred veterans
of the Carignan-Salieres regiment formed the nucleus
of the expedition. This was a famous regiment which
had been raised by Thomas Francis, Prince de Carignan,
and was commanded by Henry de Chapelas, Sieur
de Salieres, colonel of another regiment which was in-
corporated with that of Carignan, the name being
changed to Carignan-Salieres. This military organiza-
tion had participated in the war of La Fronde, had
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THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 121
served under Turenne at Auxerre, had been sent in 1664
to aid Emperor Leopold against the Turks, gaining dis-
tinction in the battle of St. Godard, and it had arrived
recently from Hungary. The first detachment of the
regiment arrived in Canada in June, 1665, with Marquis
de Tracy, to whom the King of France had issued a
patent of Lieutenant General, with a commission as
Viceroy in America. The remaining companies came
with Colonel de Salieres and the new Governor General,
M. de Courcelles.
Here, on this wilderness island, in the season when
the unbroken expanse of forest that extended from the
slopes of the Green and Adirondack Mountains to the
shores of Lake Champlain was turning to russet and
crimson and gold, were assembled in the farthest south-
ern outpost of the French dominions in Canada, six
hundred veteran soldiers, trained on the battlefields of
Europe, but ignorant of the tactics of the North Ameri-
can Indians. On the western shore of the lake, only
a little distance away, were encamped six hundred
habitants, or Canadian volunteers, and one hundred
Algonquins and Hurons. It was a curious combination
of opposite extremes in military organization. An
account of this foray into the Mohawk country has been
given in a previous chapter.
During the winter of 1666-67 many of the garrison
at Fort St. Anne were ill of scurvy, and at the request
of General de Tracy a priest was sent to Isle La Motte,
Father Dollier de Casson coming from Montreal on
snowshoes. He celebrated mass and officiated at the
burial of thirteen soldiers. Sixty men assembled daily
122 HISTORY OF VERMONT
for mass and prayers. Father de Casson remained at
the fort until the summer of 1667. Before the summer
was ended three Jesuit priests, Fathers Fremin, Pierron
and Bruyas, who had started for the country of the
lower Iroquois to restore the missions interrupted by
the wars, were detained at Fort St. Anne by the
threatening attitude of Indians known as the Loups
(Wolves), a part of the Iroquois nation, and while thus
detained they conducted a mission for the soldiers.
While at Isle La Motte, Father Pierron wrote a letter
dated August 12, 1667, describing his voyage to
America, and telling of the habits and customs of the
Indians. So far as known this was the first letter
written in Vermont. In June, 1668, Bishop Laval, the
first Bishop of Quebec and New France, journeyed
hither in a canoe and gave confirmation. This is said
to have been the first confirmation given within the
present limits of the United States.
Captain La Mothe was appointed Governor of Mon-
treal in 1670, and the fort probably was abandoned that
year. A few years later La Mothe was killed by the
Indians. He was not the founder of Detroit, and should
not be confounded with La Mothe de Cadillac, who took
a leading part in French afifairs in the West.
Father Kerlidou, who made a careful study of Fort
St. Anne and the early settlement on Isle La Motte, has
said: "Before leaving the fort the soldiers burned all
the palisades and barracks; they also took with them
everything which might be of use somewhere else."
The site of this ancient fort having been acquired by
the Roman Catholic diocese of Burlington, excavations
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 123
were made in the spring of 1896. Fourteen mounds
were opened, under each one of which was found the
ruins of a fireplace, full of ashes. Under one mound
was a brick oven. The foundations of buildings
sixteen by thirty-two feet in size, and others sixteen by
twelve feet, were uncovered. The relics brought to light
included coins, one bearing the date 1656, portions of
guns, bullets, gun flints, arrow heads, tomahawks,
Indian pottery, carpenters' tools, nails, pieces of burned
timber, broken dishes, cooking utensils, pipes, buttons,
knives, forks, and two solid silver spoons, one bearing
the name of L. Case.
Although Fort St. Anne was abandoned, Isle La
Motte, thereafter, was a favorite stopping place for
expeditions passing through the lake, as it may have
been centuries before the white men came, and probably
the site of this fort never wholly lapsed into wilderness
conditions. While it is true that this settlement cannot
be called permanent, it has the distinction of being the
earliest made by white men within the present limits
of Vermont, a fact sufficient to make it noteworthy.
The story of the attempt of the government of France
to plant colonies in the valley of Lake Champlain is a
record of failure rather than success, if considered
apart from military occupation. On May 20, 1676, the
King of France issued an order authorizing the grant-
ing of lands in Canada, which was considered by the
French officials to be sufficient authority to warrant the
granting of lands adjacent to Lake Champlain. A con-
siderable number of these grants were made between
the years 1733 and 1737, inclusive. These grants, or
124 HISTORY OF VERMONT
seigniories, were based on the old feudal system of
France, the seignior owing homage to the crown, and
the tenants rendering fealty to the seignior. This sys-
tem was not entirely abolished in Canada until 1854.
These French seigniories on Lake Champlain are
shown on what is known as the De Lery map, dated
October 10, 1748, these grants extending from Fort
Chambly, on the Richelieu River, to Crown Point and
including both sides of the lake. The survey of the
lake for this map was made in 1732. The grantees,
or seigniors, holding title to lands within the present
limits of Vermont were Sieurs La Fontaine, de Beauvais
fils, Contrecoeur, Contrecoeur fils, Douville, Raimbault,
de la Perriere, and Hocquart. Possibly the southern
portions of the grants made to Sieurs Foucault and
de Lusignan may have been on the Vermont side of the
present international boundary line.
It is evident that the De Lery map did not attempt
to outline the limits of these seigniories with any degree
of accuracy, and therefore it is impossible to give their
location with reference to present township boundaries
only in a very general way. The grant to the younger
de Beauvais probably included Highgate, part of Swan-
ton, and may have embraced parts of Sheldon and
Franklin. The La Fontaine grant evidently included a
part of the Alburg peninsula. The map makes North
Hero too large and Grand Isle too small. The grant
made to the elder Contrecoeur included the island of
North Hero.
The map would indicate that the Douville seigniory
included St. Albans, a part of Georgia, and probably
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 125
parts of Fairfield and Fletcher. The Raimbault
seigniory appears to have been the largest granted, as
shown by the De Lery map. Records show that this
seigniory was sold in 1766 by Sieur Jean Marie Raim-
bault, his wife and his daughter, to Benjamin Price,
Daniel Robertson and John Livingston for 90,000 livres
(about $18,000). This seigniory of La Maunadiere is
said to have a frontage of four leagues and a depth of
five leagues. If a league is equivalent to three miles,
then this seigniory had a frontage of twelve miles on
Lake Champlain and extended back from the lake a
distance of fifteen miles. It is expressly stated that the
River A la Mouelle (Lamoille) was within its limits,
and it probably included Milton, Westford, parts of
Georgia, Colchester, Fairfax, Fletcher and Underbill.
The La Perriere grant included Burlington, a part of
Colchester, and parts of Essex and Williston, being
divided by the "River Ouynouski" (Winooski), and
having a frontage of two leagues and a depth of three
leagues. The seigniory or lordship of Hocquart,
opposite Crown Point, as originally granted, April 20,
1743, had a frontage of one league on Lake Champlain
and a depth of five leagues. Another grant, made April
1, 1745, increased the bounds of the seigniory, so that it
had a frontage of four leagues, corresponding in size to
the seigniory of La Maunadiere. This lordship of
Hocquart is estimated to have contained about 115,000
acres. Probably it included the towns of Addison,
Panton, Waltham, Weybridge, New Haven, the city of
Vergennes, and parts of Ferrisburg, Bristol, Bridport,
Cornwall and Middlebury.
126 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The seigniory granted to Sieur Bedou on the west side
of the lake included Isle La Motte. This seigniory
originally was granted to M. Pean, Major of Quebec,
and later was transferred to Daniel Leinard, Sieur de
Beaujeau, who had a grant immediately north of this.
Some of the men to whom these grants were made
were eminent French officers. Captain La Perriere be-
came Governor of Montreal in 1752. Gilles Hocquart
was Intendant of Canada from 1728 to 1748. M. Pierre
Raimbault was Lieutenant General of the jurisdiction of
Montreal. M. de Beaujeau, who held Isle La Motte for
a time, succeeded M. Contrecoeur, another holder of a
Lake Champlain seigniory, in command of Fort
Duquesne, at the junction of the Allegheny and Monon-
gahela Rivers, and planned the ambuscade which re-
sulted in the defeat and death of General Braddock, at
the opening of the French and Indian War, but he won
victory at the cost of his life.
Some of the conditions of these French grants may be
shown in extracts from the grant to M. Hocquart. It
was declared to be "for the perpetual enjoyment by the
said Sieur Hocquart his heirs and assigns of said Trust
by terms of fief and Seignoirs, with High, Middle and
Low Justice, and Right of Hunting, Fishing and Trad-
ing with Indians throughout the extent of said Seigniory
without being obliged by reason of this to pay to His
Majesty nor to his Successors, Kings, any duty money;
* * * on condition also of preserving and causing
to be preserved by the Tenants the Timber of all de-
scriptions adapted for the construction of His Majesty's
Ships; of informing His Majesty of all Mines or
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 127
Minerals, if any be found in said Concession ; to improve
it and to hold and cause to be held fire and light there
by the Tenants, in default whereof it shall be reunited
to His Majesty's Domain; of allowing roads necessary
for public convenience and allowing also the beaches free
to all Fishermen, except those they may require for their
fishing; and in case His Majesty may have use here-
after, of any portions of said Tract; to erect thereupon
Forts, Batteries, Arsenals, Magazines, and other public
Works, and the fire wood necessary for the Garrisons
of said Forts, without being holden to any compensa-
tion/'
An order in council, issued by the King of France,
July 6, 1711, directed that these lands granted should
be cultivated by the inhabitants, and a similar order
was issued March 15, 1732. On May 10, 1741, an
ordinance was issued by the Governor and Intendant
of New France, "for a Reunion of divers Seigniories to
the Desmesnes of the French Crown." Other grants
were made later but there were few real settlements
beyond the range of the guns of some French fortress.
Various excuses were made by the owners of these
seigniories for failure to establish settlements, and
pleas were made for an extension of time. One pro-
prietor stated "that he could not find any farmers, up
to this time, to place in his seigniory, that if he should
find any he is ready to furnish them with axes and
picks for clearing, with one year's provisions; that he
will do his best to find some and that he intends to form
a demesne there." In a "Summary Remonstrance" the
Sieurs Contrecoeur, father and son, set forth "that they
128 HISTORY OF VERMONT
have done everything to settle their grants; that it was
impossible to find individuals to accept lands though they
offered them some on very advantageous terms and were
willing to give even three hundred livres to engage said
individuals * * * ; that they intend, moreover, to do
all in their power to find farmers to settle said Seigniories
and they hope to succeed therein."
Sieur La Fontaine oft'ered "to go this summer on the
Grant with three men to build there and begin clearances
and to give to those whom he will find willing to settle
there, Grain and even money, asking from them no rent,
in order to obtain from them by the allurement of this
gift what he cannot obtain from them by force." Sieur
Roebert set forth "that he had neglected nothing to in-
duce some young farmers to go and settle there by pro-
curing for them great advantages and many facilities."
But in spite of all the "advantages" and "facilities" and
"allurements," the young farmers valued their lives and
the lives of their families too highly to attempt to culti-
vate farms in the valley of Lake Champlain as long as
it continued to be the highway of war parties.
About 1731 a French settlement was begun in the
western part of the present town of Alburg. A grant
embracing this region had been made to Sieur Francis
Foucault, a member of the Supreme Council of Quebec,
and the charter was renewed and augmented in May,
1743, in recognition of the fact that M. Foucault had
complied with the conditions of the original grant by
establishing three new settlers the previous year, and
that he had built in 1731 a windmill of stone masonry
costing about $800. An entry in the journal of Capt.
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 129
Phineas Stearns, made in 1749, notes that "at the empty-
ing of the lake into Shamblee (Richelieu) River there
is a windmill, built of stone; it stands on the east side
of the water, and several houses on both sides built be-
fore the war, but one inhabited at present." M. Foucault
had taken steps to build a church twenty by forty feet
in size. This settlement is said to have been short lived,
as was one begun in 1741. Old maps show that the
point where this settlement was located was called Pointe
a la Algonquin. Later it was known as Windmill Point,
from the stone windmill erected here.
In the summer of 1749 Peter Kalm, a Swedish
scholar, passed through Lake Champlain on his way
from New York to Canada. In an account of his travels
he refers to the Alburg settlement as follows: "A
windmill built of stone stands on the east side of the
lake on a projecting piece of ground. Some French-
men have lived near it; but they left it when the war
broke out, and are not yet come back to it. * * *
The English have burnt the houses here several times,
but the mill remained unhurt."
In 1731 the French built a small stockaded fort at
Crown Point, near the southern end and on the western
shore of Lake Champlain, designed to accommodate
thirty men, which was named Fort St. Frederic. Three
years later a fortress was erected here large enough
to permit the garrison to be increased to one hundred
and twenty men. In 1742 this important fort was en-
larged and strengthened to such an extent that it was
considered the strongest French fortress in America,
with the single exception of Quebec.
130 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The settlement which sprang up around the fort
extended to the eastern or Vermont shore of Lake
Champlain, the lake being only two- fifths of a mile wide
at this point. Peter Kalm, in his travels, gave an
excellent description of Fort St. Frederic, as it appeared
in July, 1749. He observed that the soil about the fort
was very fertile "on both sides of the river," that por-
tion of the lake south of Crown Point being called a
river at that time. By way of comment he added that
'•before the last war (King George's War, 1744-48) a
great many French families, especially old soldiers, have
settled there; but the King obliged them to go into
Canada, or to settle close to the fort and to lie in it at
night. A great number of them returned at this time,
and it was thought that about forty or fifty families
would go to settle here this autumn."
As Kalm left the fort, sailing northward toward
Canada, he noted the fact that "the countr}^ is inhabited
within a French mile of the fort, but after that it is
covered with a thick forest." Capt. Phineas Stevens,
who made a journey to Canada in 1749, the same year
in which Kalm traversed the lake, wrote in his journal
that "there are eighteen houses near Crown Point, some
on each side of the water, but not all inhabited at
present."
Maj. Robert Rogers, the well-known Colonial scout,
in his journals tells of various expeditions to Lake Cham-
plain. Early in May, 1756, with a small party, he
reached the lake four miles south of Crown Point, and
marched "to a village on the east side, about two miles
distant from Crown Point, but found no inhabitants
THE FRENCH SEIGNIORIES 131
there." After lying in concealment there for about a
day and a half the party killed twenty-three head of
cattle. In August, 1756, having landed about eight
miles north of Crown Point, on the east side of the lake,
Rogers and his party "marched to a village lying east
of the fort," and took as prisoners a man, his wife and
daughter. Evidently the settlements had been extended
since Peter Kalm's visit. Fort Carillon, at Ticonderoga,
was laid out in 1753 and was completed in 1756. It is
probable that the east shore of the lake was occupied
to some extent w^hile the French held Fort Carillon.
The French grants on Lake Champlain, although not
occupied to any great extent by actual tillers of the soil,
w^ere the cause of diplomatic correspondence between
France and Great Britain, which continued until 1776,
when it must have become apparent, even in European
capitals, that the American people were likely to have
something to say concerning the disposition of the dis-
puted territory.
The British contended that all the region south of the
St. Lawrence River originally belonged to the Iroquois
tribes; that as early as 1683 the Iroquois by treaty with
the Governor of New York, submitted to the sovereignty
of Great Britain, and thereafter were considered sub-
jects of that nation; that by the terms of the Treaty of
Utrecht, France expressly recognized the sovereignty of
Great Britain over the Iroquois. Another argument
used was the purchase by Godfrey Dellius, from the
Mohawks, in 1696, of a large tract of land extending
from Saratoga along the Hudson River, Wood Creek
and Lake Champlain, this tract being supposed to ex-
132 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tend along the eastern shore of the lake twenty miles
north of Crown Point. This grant was repealed in 1699
as an extravagant favor to one man.
The French had the great advantage of the discovery
of Lake Champlain and the territory adjacent to it, by
Samuel Champlain, in 1609. A considerable portion of
the discussion on behalf of the British position was con-
ducted by Edmund Burke, a famous parliamentary
orator, and a friend of the American colonies, but diplo-
matic discussion became profitless when an independent
nation had set up a government in America. The
feudal system of land tenure which France attempted
to introduce was not adapted to the new country, where
individual and political freedom flourished like a plant
in its native soil. The English system, under which
every man might own his own farm, instead of being
one of many tenants, who must render homage at the
manor house, was vastly better adapted to the building
up of political virtue and political capacity than the
ancient seigniorial system.
Chapter VI
FORT DUMMER AND THE FIRST ENGLISH
SETTLEMENTS
THE first English settlements within the present
limits of Vermont, and the first permanent settle-
ments in the State, were made in the Connecticut
valley. There is no record of any exploration of this
valley north of Pasqiiamscut Falls (Turner's Falls,
Mass.) prior to the year 1669, when a committee of four
persons, appointed by the General Court of the province
of Massachusetts Bay, ascended the river as far as the
present town of Northfield, Mass. The following year
a party from Northampton "went upon discovery'' to the
same place, and in 1671 a tract of land on both sides of
the Great (Connecticut) River was purchased of the
Indians, the deed being signed by Massemet, Panout,
Pammook, Nenepownam, his squaw, Wompeleg and
Nessacoscom. According to Temple and Sheldon's
''History of Northfield," the northern limits of this pur-
chase on the west side of the Connecticut was Broad
Brook, sometimes called Wanasquatuk River, near the
northern limits of the present town of Vernon. The
town of Northfield, Mass., was laid out in 1672 by Lieut.
William Clark, William Allis and Isaac Graves. In
the spring of 1673 settlements were begun, and a stock-
ade was erected around a cluster of houses, or small
huts. A second purchase of three thousand acres was
made on the west side of the river the same year.
In the autumn of 1675 the Northfield settlement was
attacked by Indians, twenty-one out of thirty-eight per-
sons were killed, and the little village was destroyed.
Some years passed after this massacre before an attempt
was made to resettle Northfield, or Squakheag, as it was
136 HISTORY OF VERMONT
often called at that time. Then it was slowly occupied
once more by sturdy pioneers.
In August, 1688, six persons were murdered here by
Indians, and half the inhabitants thereupon abandoned
the frontier settlement. In a petition to the Massa-
chusetts General Court in June, 1689, the people of
Northfield declared: "We are reduced to twelve mean
families. Our small number, in a place so remote,
exposed us to ye rage of ye heathen, as it were, invit-
ing them to prey upon us. Our estates are exhaust by
maintaining garrison soldiers and being kept from our
labor. Our burdens of watching, warding, fencing,
highways — we for ourselves and them that are absent
— overbearing to us; besides all other hardships un-
avoidable in a new place. Our wives and children (that
we say not ourselves) ready to sink with fears."
With the outbreak of war between England and
France, with the General Court slow to aid the settlers
on the frontiers, and with the ever present danger of
Indian invasion, it was no longer possible to maintain a
settlement at Northfield, and it was abandoned in 1690.
The signing of the Treaty of Utrecht in the spring
of 1713, bringing with it peace between England and
France, and the expression of a desire on the part of
Indian tribes hitherto hostile for a cessation of hostili-
ties, again brought courage to New England pioneers,
and after an absence of twenty- three years the surviv-
ing proprietors of Northfield took steps to reclaim and
reoccupy their lands. Slowly the town was populated
once more, but there is no evidence to show that any
houses were built as far north as the southern boundary
FORT DUMMER 137
of Vermont, as it now exists, prior to the erection of a
fort within the present limits of the town of Brattle-
boro. The year 1723 saw another outbreak of Indian
hostilities, and in August, and again in October, raids
were made and settlers were killed by the savages.
The need of further protection became evident if the
settlements at Northfield and elsewhere in the Connecti-
cut valley were to be maintained. As a result the
Massachusetts House of Representatives voted on
December 27, 1723, "That it will be of great service to
all the western frontiers both in this and the neighbor-
ing government of Connecticut, to build a Blockhouse,
above Northfield, in the most convenient place on the
lands called the Equivalent Lands, and to post in it 40
able men, English and western Indians, to be employed
in scouting at a good distance up Connecticut River,
West River, Otter Creek, and sometimes eastwardly
above Great Monadnock, for the discovery of the enemy
coming towards any of the frontier towns; and that so
much of the said Equivalent Lands as shall be necessary
for a Blockhouse be taken up, with the consent of the
owners of said lands, together with 5 or 6 acres of their
intervail land, to be broke up or plowed for the present
use of the western Indians (in case any of them shall
think fit to bring their families thither)."
What were the Equivalent Lands ? When the bound-
ary between the colonies of Massachusetts Bay and
Connecticut was determined in 1713 it was found that
of the large grants made by Massachusetts, 107,793
acres really belonged to Connecticut. As some of this
territory was occupied by flourishing settlements, and
138 HISTORY OF VERMONT
there was vigorous objection to a change of jurisdiction,
it was agreed that Massachusetts should retain title to
the lands granted, and, in return, a grant should be
made to Connecticut of an equal number of acres "as
an equivalent to the said colony."
Gov. Joseph Dudley of Massachusetts, Gov. Gurdon
Saltonstall of Connecticut, Elisha Hutchinson and
Isaac Addington of Massachusetts, William Pitkin and
William Whiting of Connecticut, were appointed com-
missioners to locate these lands, and on November 10,
1715, they reported that they had laid out tracts "east
of Hadly town" (now Belchertown) and "north of the
first surveyed piece" (Pelham, etc.); also 43,943 acres
"Within the Limits of the 2d Province on Connecticut
River above the former settlements." This large tract
was situated within the present limits of three Vermont
towns. Putney, Dummerston and Brattleboro.
The Equivalent Lands were sold at auction April
24-25, 1716, at Hartford, Conn., to twenty-one persons
from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and London, Eng-
land, who paid the sum of £683, New England currency,
or "a little more than a farthing an acre," to quote an
old record. The money thus obtained was given to Yale
College. In the partition of these lands the tract which
is now a part of Vermont, already mentioned, became the
property of William Dummer, Anthony Stoddard, Wil-
liam Brattle and John White.
In process of time William Dummer became Lieu-
tenant Governor of Massachusetts, and acting as execu-
tive head of the colony he designated Lieut. Col. John
Stoddard of Northampton as a proper person to select
FORT DUMMER 139
the site for the new fort, and to superintend its erection.
In writing to Lieutenant Governor Dummer under date
of February 3, 1724, Colonel Stoddard remarked that
he had ordered moccasins and snowshoes made for the
expedition northward, a suitable preparation for a jour-
ney into the wilderness in winter, and announced that
he had committed the work of building the fort to
Lieut. Timothy Dwight. It was the expectation of
Colonel Stoddard that Lieutenant Dwight would leave
on the day the letter was written to take up the task
assigned to him, accompanied by twelve soldiers, four
carpenters and two teams; that the men would hew all
the timber needed for the fort and the houses before
their return; and that both fort and houses would be
framed and set up during the month of February.
Colonel Stoddard did not believe a stockade around the
blockhouse necessary, saying in a letter: "We intend
to make the fort so strong that the soldiers will be safe
even if the enemy get within the parade ground."
A little glimpse of the building of the fort is given
in another letter of later date, written by Colonel Stod-
dard, in which he said: "We agreed with carpenters
from Northfield (Stephen Crowfoot, Daniel Wright and
2 others) for 5 shillings per day, except Crowfoot, to
whom I promised 6 shillings, and they all allow that he
earned his money by doing so much more work than
all the others. The soldiers had a very hard service,
lying in the woods and were obliged to work early and
late : it is thought they deserve 2 shillings per day besides
the stated pay, and the carpenters something more. The
horses were worked very hard, and commonly had noth-
140 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ing to eat but oats, and I believe 2 shillings a day will
not be thought an excess for such service."
The fort, built of the yellow pine timber, which grew
in abundance on the lands adjacent to the river, was
nearly square, each side being about one hundred and
eighty feet (nearly eleven rods) in length, its height
being from twelve to fourteen feet. It was constructed
after the fashion of a log house, the timbers being locked
together at the angles. The wall of the fort formed the
rear wall of the houses erected within the enclosure, each
having a single roof fronting on the hollow square,
which served as a parade ground. These houses were
constructed so that they could be rendered defensible
by barricading doors and windows in the event that an
attacking party succeeded in bursting open the large
gate in the outer wall. A well within the fort supplied
water for drinking purposes, but the garrison usually
went to the river for water for washing, and sometimes
were fired upon from the opposite side of the stream.
Four small swivel guns called pateraros were furnished
as means of defence, and later a cannon known as "the
great gun" was added, which was fired as a signal of
danger.
The cost of the fort, which was completed in the sum-
mer of 1724, was £256. It stood on the west bank of
the Connecticut River, near the southern boundary of
what is now known as the town of Brattleboro. At the
present time the land where the fort stood is flooded
as a result of the building of the great dam at Vernon,
a few miles farther down the river. The name Fort
Dummer was given in honor of the acting Governor of
Fort Dummer at Brattleboro, First Permanent Settlement in Vermont
FORT DUMMER 141
Massachusetts, and the meadows in the vicinity of the
fort were known as the Dunimer meadows.
Timothy D wight, the builder of Fort Dummer, then
in his thirtieth year, was made captain of a company of
fifty-five men, who acted as the garrison. Before the
fort was completed, Capt. Joseph Kellogg was sent to
Albany, N. Y., to enlist the aid of the Mohawks in the
defence of this post. Considerable time and money were
spent in this endeavor, but it was difficult to attract many
of the Indians while hostilities were in progress, or to
keep those who came very long; but when peace pre-
vailed there was no difficulty in securing Indians in large
numbers. The muster roll of Captain Dwight's com-
pany about the time the fort was completed included the
names of twelve Indians, three of them being sachems.
The first name is that of Hendrick, a Mohawk chieftain.
Evidently this was the famous Mohawk leader and
friend of the English, sometimes called King Hendrick,
who participated in the campaign against the French
in 1755, and was killed at the battle of Lake George.
So anxious was the General Court of Massachusetts
to secure the aid of these Indian allies in the defence
of Fort Dummer, that a committee appointed to investi-
gate the matter reported "that two shillings per day be
allowed to Hendrick and Umpaumet, as they are
sachems and the first of that rank that have entered into
the service of this province; that none of the Indians
be stinted as to allowance of provisions; that they all
have the use of their arms gratis and their gims mended
at free cost; that a supply of knives, pipes, tobacco, lead,
shot and flints, be sent to the commanding officer of the
142 HISTORY OF VERMONT
fort, to be given out to them, according to his discretion ;
that four barrels of rum be sent to Capt. Jonathan
Wells, at Deerfield, to be lodged in his hands, and to
be delivered to the commanding officer at the Block
House as he sees occasion to send for it ; that so he may
be enabled to give out one gill a day to each Indian, and
some to his other men as occasion may require."
The companionship of the Indians was not always
a source of delight to the commanding officer, owing to
the fondness of the natives for liquors. In a letter from
Timothy Dwight to Col. John Stoddard, dated July 29,
1724, relating his trials, he says: ''I have given them
(the Indians) a dram this morning and they have been
here this hour begging for more, and they daily call upon
me for shirts, pipes, bullets and powder, flints and many
other things ; and the Court have granted all but powder,
and they don't send it, and I cannot discourse with them,
and they are mad at me for that ; and, unless the country
will provide stores and inform me I may dispose there-
of to them, I cannot live here, if it be possible to avoid
it."
Colonel Stoddard replied, August 6, 1724, saying:
"I am sensible of the trouble you meet with from the
humors of the natives. Your best way is, when you
have a supply of liquor, to give them ordinarily a good
dram each, in a day. And you may tell them for me,
that we give them drink for their comfort, not to unman
them, or make beasts of them; and that if they will not
be content with what we give them, they shall have none
at all."
FORT DUMMER 143
The General Court voted on June 3, 1724, that Doctor
Mather, Mr. Coleman, Mr. Sewell and Mr. Wadsworth
"be desired to procure a person of gravity, ability and
prudence," for chaplain at Fort Dumnier, their choice
to be subject to the approval of the Governor. Daniel
Dwight, a brother of Timothy Dwight, the officer in
command, was chosen, and his salary was fixed at £100.
In addition to his duties as chaplain he was directed to
"instruct the Indian natives residing thereabouts in the
true Christian religion." Apparently his term of serv-
ice was not long, nor does it appear that there were many
Indians in the vicinity to instruct.
The fort served its purpose well in protecting the
frontier, and from it went forth many scouting parties
to watch the Indian trails and to give warning of the
approach of the dreaded foe from Canada.
The year 1726 ushered in a welcome era of peace.
The military company at Fort Dummer was discharged,
and Capt. Joseph Kellogg was ordered to recruit a small
company for garrison duty. In June, 1727, Col. Samuel
Partridge, who had been in chief military command in
Hampshire county, informed the Governor that "con-
siderable numbers of Indians from their hunting come
in at Deerfield and Northfield, and the English trade
with them; and it is said that some of our men go out
and carry them strong liquor and make the Indians
drunk and get their furs for a small matter, so that when
they get out of their drink, and see that their furs are
gone, they are mad and care not what mischief they do:
a ready way to bring on outrages and murders, if not
the war again."
144 HISTORY OF VERMONT
These very sensible observations were followed by the
suggestion that trading with the Indians should be pro-
hibited or regulated. Captain Kellogg already having
suggested the importance of establishing a trading post,
and having requested that such a post might be estab-
lished at Fort Dummer, or further up the Connecticut
River, the General Court agreed to the proposition. In
1728 Fort Dummer was selected as a suitable place for
a "truck house," and Captain Kellogg, in command of
the post, was made truck master. He was well quali-
fied, for his new duties, having learned the manner in
which the French conducted their trade with the West-
ern Indians, during a long period of captivity in Canada.
This trading post at Fort Dummer speedily became
a popular resort. The Indians found that they could
trade here to better advantage than at the French trad-
ing houses. Consequently they brought deer skins,
moose skins, tallow, and other articles of commerce in
large quantities.
The fort being found too small for the increasing
traffic. Captain Kellogg was authorized in April, 1729,
to erect a building near the truck house "for the recep-
tion of the Indians," and he was directed to build a boat
for the transportation of supplies. In July, 1731, other
improvements were made, and a storehouse was erected.
The soldiers at Fort Dummer received forty shillings
per month, and Captain Kellogg was allowed four
pounds per month as commander of the fort, and one
hundred pounds per year as truck master. He held the
position until the year 1740. The garrison varied from
nine to twenty men, and for a period of about ten years.
FORT DUMMER 145
ending in 1744, six Indian commissioners were stationed
here in order that trade might be conducted to the best
advantage, three of them being members of the Scati-
cook tribe, and three representing the Caughnawaga
tribe. In October, 1737, five Massachusetts commis-
sioners, John Stoddard, Eleazer Porter, Thomas WalHs,
Joseph Kellogg, and Israel Williams, met representa-
tives of the Caughnawaga Indians at Fort Dummer for
the purpose of renewing a treaty. Speeches were made,
the King's health was drunk, and blankets and weapons
were exchanged. A present of £70, 10 shillings, was
made by the Colonial commissioners on this ceremonial
occasion.
Rev. Ebenezer Hinsdill was appointed chaplain at
Fort Dummer in 1730 and held the position until 1743.
It is related that he was much beloved both by the
Indians and the English. A number of the savages
usually assembled on Sunday to hear him preach. In
1743 he erected a fort in what is now Hinsdale, New
Hampshire, and together with Josiah Willard, com-
mandant at Fort Dummer, he was appointed an under
commissioner for the northern portions of Massa-
chusetts and the adjacent frontiers.
In 1737 the truck house at Fort Dummer was burned.
In 1740 extensive repairs were made on the fort, as it
had fallen into a defenceless condition. Two bastions
were erected at opposite angles, and four Province
houses, so-called, two stories in height, and "comfort-
able and convenient," were erected within the fort.
Several small houses were also erected. The fort was
picketed, posts twenty feet high being driven into the
146 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ground and then sharpened at the top. Openings were
left through which guns might be fired. Sentry boxes,
twenty-five feet from the ground, were placed at opposite
angles of the fort, and several guns were added to the
ordnance.
A plan of Fort Dummer is in existence, drawn by
Matthew Patten, and bearing date of August 26, 1749.
This showed the south side to be somewhat narrower
than the north side. At the northwest corner was
Major Willard's house, twenty-two by seventeen and
one- third feet, and projecting four and one-half feet
beyond the wall of the fort. Just east of the house was
a building forty by sixteen and one-half feet in size.
Beyond this was a straight wall seventy-eight feet in
length, extending to the Province house, twenty-two feet
by eighteen feet in size, and projecting a few feet
beyond the wall of the fort.
Inside the wall, and just west of the Province house,
were two small houses occupied by Colonel Willard and
Lieutenant Butler. The east wall of the fort ran diago-
nally from the Province house to the southeast corner.
This corner was cut ofif and a watch or sentry box was
located here. In the middle of the south wall was a
gate thirty- four feet from the southeast corner of the
fort. At the southwest corner was Colonel Willard's
house, twenty-two by thirty-two feet in size, and project-
ing a few feet beyond the wall. From the gate to
Colonel Willard's house was a distance of forty-two feet.
Inside the fort, near the south wall, were two houses,
marked Colonel Willard and Samuel Ashley, respect-
FORT DUMMER 147
ively. A little south of the center of the parade ground
was a citadel fourteen and one-half feet square.
For many years a controversy had existed between
Massachusetts and New Hampshire over the location of
the boundary line between the two provinces, different
opinions being held concerning the meaning of the
Massachusetts charter of 1692. Finally the dispute was
referred to the King for adjudication, and in a decree
dated August 5, 1740, His Majesty fixed the boundary
more than forty miles south of the line claimed by
Massachusetts, and fourteen miles south of the boundary
claimed by New Hampshire. This decree deprived
Massachusetts of six hundred square miles, a portion of
which had been occupied by her citizens for two gen-
erations, and it was the cause of much embarrassment
and no little bitterness.
The new boundary line was run in March, 1741, by
Richard Hazen under the direction of New Hampshire,
Massachusetts declining to participate in the survey.
This line cut off a portion of the town of Northfield,
Mass., four miles and one hundred and ninety-seven
rods wide, but the Northfield property holders were not
deprived of their holdings north of the new boundary.
Massachusetts continued to maintain Fort Dummer
until the outbreak of war between France and England
in 1744, although the fort w^as in New Hampshire terri-
tory, according to the King's boundary decision. At
that time Governor Shirley of Massachusetts appealed
to the Lord President of the King's Council and to the
Duke of Newcastle, one of the Secretaries of State, de-
claring that the provincial government did not consider
148 HISTORY OF VERMONT
it a duty to maintain a fort no longer its own and urging
that New Hampshire, to which it belonged, should pro-
vide for its maintenance. The Governor argued that
the fort should not be abandoned, although Massa-
chusetts, with many other posts to maintain, was not jus-
tified in expending money in its defence, as it was only
three or four days' march from Crown Point, a resort
for hostile French and Indians. The Massachusetts
House of Representatives declared that if the fort should
fall into the enemy's hands "the enhabitants from Con-
tocook to Connecticut River (would) be all drove from
their settlements, notwithstanding the forces that are
maintained by the province within those limits."
The King in Council, on September 6, 1744, ordered
that Fort Dummer should be maintained, directing the
Governor of New Hampshire to call the attention of
the provincial Assembly to the necessity of providing for
its maintenance, and warning them that failure to obey
this order would result in a restoration of the fort
and "a proper district contiguous thereto," to Massa-
chusetts. As a matter of precaution, however, Gov-
ernor Shirley was directed to point out to the Massa-
chusetts Assembly the necessity of maintaining Fort
Dummer until an answer should be received from New
Hampshire, and the King's pleasure in relation to the
matter should be made known. In this order Governor
Shirley was quoted as saying that Fort Dummer was
"of very great consequence to all His Majesty's sub-
jects in those parts."
Taking into consideration the necessity of maintain-
ing Fort Dummer for the protection of the frontier set-
FORT DUMMER 149
tiers in the Connecticut valley, the Massachusetts Legis-
lature voted to provide for the enlistment of as many-
officers and men as were stationed at the fort during
the last war, and added to its defences two swivel guns
and two four pounders.
Governor Shirley wrote to Governor Wentworth of
New Hampshire on February 25, 1745, acquainting him
with the order of the King and the action taken by the
Massachusetts Assembly, and requested him to provide
for the maintenance of Fort Dummer. On May 3, 1745,
the New Hampshire Assembly declared that "the fort
(Dummer) was 50 miles from any towns which had
been settled by the government or people of New Hamp-
shire; that the people had no right to the lands which,
by the dividing line, had fallen within New Hampshire,
notwithstanding the plausible arguments which had been
used to induce them to bear the expense of the line,
namely, that the land would be given to them or else
would be sold to pay the expense; that the charge of
maintaining the fort at so great a distance, and to
which there was no communication by roads would
exceed what had been the whole expense of govern-
ment before the line was established; that if they should
take upon them to maintain this fort, there was another
much better and more convenient fort at a place called
Number Four, besides several other settlements, which
they should also be obliged to defend; and, finally, that
there was no danger that these forts would want sup-
port, since it was the interest of Massachusetts, by whom
they were erected, to maintain them as a cover to their
frontiers."
150 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Governor VVentworth thereupon dissolved the As-
sembly and called another, renewing his recommenda-
tions for providing for Fort Dummer, and that body
made provision for the enlistment or impressment of
twenty men for six months to perform garrison duty at
the fort. Governor Shirley was notified of the action
taken and was requested to withdraw the Massachusetts
garrison. In view of the fact that the appropriation
voted by New Hampshire for the support of the soldiers
was less than half that allowed by Massachusetts, and
fearing that once having gained possession of the post
New Hampshire would neglect it. Governor Shirley
decided to fall back upon the King's order to retain the
fort until His Majesty's pleasure should be known.
Therefore he countermanded his order to deliver the
fortification to the New Hampshire authorities upon
demand, and the fort was maintained by Massachusetts
until 1747, when Governor Shirley again sounded Gov-
ernor Wentworth in regard to the taking over of the
post by New Hampshire. In October, 1748, Governor
Wentworth expressed his unwillingness to bear the ex-
pense, and Governor Shirley's next move was to submit
to the British authorities a claim against New Hamp-
shire for the maintenance of Fort Dummer.
The committee to which the matter was referred on
August 3, 1749, approved the claim of Massachusetts,
and Governor Wentworth was directed to recommend to
the provincial Assembly that provision should be made
for the permanent maintenance of the fort. Neverthe-
less, the burden of supporting the garrison continued to
fall upon Massachusetts. Fort Dummer was too im-
FORT DUMMER 151
portant a part of the Massachusetts system of defence
to permit any relaxation of the vigilance maintained at
that post. The six Indian commissioners, who had
found this frontier fort an agreeable place of residence
during the years of peace, left as soon as hostilities were
threatened.
In the spring of 1747 Lieut. Dudley Bradstreet was
sent to Fort Dummer with forty men, it being consid-
ered necessary to strengthen the garrison, and he re-
mained in charge of the post from April 15 until the
September following, when Col. Josiah Willard resumed
command. During the winter that followed Massa-
chusetts maintained garrisons of twenty men each at
Fort Dummer and at Number Four, the garrison at
Fort Dummer being increased to thirty men before the
season was far advanced. During the year 1748 Rev.
Andrew Gardner, a somewhat eccentric clergyman, offi-
ated as chaplain at Fort Dummer.
From September, 1749, to June, 1750, a garrison of
fifteen men, later reduced to ten, was maintained at
this fort. Col. Josiah Willard, for a long period the
commanding officer, died December 8, 1750, and he was
succeeded by his son. Major Josiah Willard, who had
commanded the garrison at Ashuelot. In February,
1752, the General Court of Massachusetts reduced the
garrison to five men. Major Willard remained in
charge with this slender force until September, 1754,
although the General Court voted in January of that
year that "from and after February 20th next, no fur-
ther provision be made for the pay and subsistence of
the five men now posted at Fort Dummer."
152 HISTORY OF VERMONT
New Hampshire refusing to provide for the support
of a garrison at this post, Massachusetts decided that it
could not afford to permit its abandonment, and it was
determined to strengthen the fort and furnish it with a
few pieces of Hght artillery. On September 19, 1754,
Nathan Willard was given command of the fort, and
for the greater part of the year following, the garrison
numbered eight men, several of them having their
families with them.
In August, 1755, Captain Willard presented a me-
morial to the Massachusetts Legislature stating that the
enemy were lurking continually in the woods near the
fort, that during the past summer nineteen persons living
within two miles of the fort had been "killed or cap-
tivated," and he had been unable to render aid, having
only five men under pay. He declared that he could
see no reason why the fort should not be captured if
an attack were made. As a result of this appeal the
Legislature directed that six men should be added to the
garrison, to serve until October 1 of that year. In
October, 1759, there was still a garrison at Fort Dum-
mer, although the soldiers at the other blockhouses on
the frontier had been dismissed, the French having been
expelled from the Champlain valley.
With the surrender of Montreal in 1760, the peril
of French and Indian attacks vanished. The frontier
fortress at Fort Dummer, which had proved such a
strong bulwark of defence to the settlements in the Con-
necticut valley, no longer was needed, and the great
pine timbers which had sheltered many garrisons from
a savage foe gradually sank into decay. Other portions
FORT DUMMER 153
of the State may have seen brief settlements at earHer
periods, but this was the first outpost in the Vermont
wilderness that held its own until the little clearing
around the military post merged into the cleared fields
of actual settlers, who were the pioneers of a new com-
monwealth among the Green Mountains.
The part that was played on this somewhat obscure
historic stage, in its forest setting, lacked neither in
variety nor human interest. From its walls went forth
brave men on perilous scout duty, to watch from lofty
mountain outlooks for the smokes of Indian camp fires.
Northward along Indian trails, centuries old, they
threaded their way, up the river valleys, through the
mountain passes, and down the streams on the farther
mountain slopes to Lake Champlain. Around the walls
of this fort the Indian warwhoop echoed, and almost
within its shadow men were slain and scalped. In inter-
vals of peace the Canadian savages came hither to barter
their peltry and other wares at this important trading
post. With the passing of the need of this and other
military outposts there dawned a new era upon the con-
tinent of North America, making possible not only the
State of Vermont, but also the nation known as the
United States of America.
It is not possible to state with positive accuracy the
name of the first white child born within the present
limits of the State of Vermont. Some historians have
awarded this distinction to John Sargent, Jr., born at
Fort Dummer December 4, 1732, but later investigations
show that such a claim is not well founded.
154 HISTORY OF VERMONT
While lands within the present town of Vernon were
included in the early Northfield Grants, there is no evi-
dence to prove that homes were established north of the
present State boundary line between Vermont and
Massachusetts, prior to the erection of Fort Dummer in
1724. It is said that in the same year in which Fort
Dummer was built, 1724, a settlement was made on the
banks of the Hoosac River, in the present town of
Pownal, by eight or ten burghers of Rennsselaerwyck,
headed by Juria Kreigger, who occupied without any
legal title the region near the junction of Washtub
Branch with the Hoosac River, about four miles east of
the line twenty miles from the Hudson River, which
forms the western boundary of Connecticut and Massa-
chusetts. It is probable that children may have been
born to these Dutch squatters before any white children
were born in the Connecticut valley, but no record has
been found to prove such a claim.
The first white child born in Vermont, so far as exist-
ing records show, was Timothy D wight, son of Timothy
Dwight, the builder and the first commander of Fort
Dummer, the date of his birth being May 27, 1726,
according to the Dwight family records. This child
grew to be a man six feet, four inches in height, possess-
ing great physical strength. He was graduated from
Yale College in 1744 and became a prosperous merchant
in Northampton, Mass. He served as Selectman, Regis-
ter of Probate, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas,
and for many years represented Northampton in the
General Court of the Colony. When the Revolutionary
War began he became a Loyalist, though not an active
FORT DUMMER 155
and bitter one, and in the spring of 1776, with his sister,
the widow of Maj. Gen. Phineas Lyman, of Colonial
war fame, he removed to Natchez, Miss., where he died
June 10, 1777, his sister having died two months earlier.
He left an estate of £4,567.
On November 8, 1750, Timothy Dwight had married
Mary, daughter of Rev. Jonathan Edwards, the famous
theologian. Thirteen children, eight sons and five
daughters, were born to them. The eldest son of this
couple was Timothy Dwight, who was president of Yale
College from 1795 to 1817. A daughter, Elizabeth, be-
came the mother of Theodore Dwight Woolsey, presi-
dent of Yale College, 1846-1871. Another descendant
of Timothy Dwight and Mary Edwards, his wife, was
Timothy Dwight, president of Yale College, 1886-1899.
Thus the first white child born in Vermont, concerning
whose birth records are available, became the ancestor of
one of America's most distinguished families.
In 1736 the western part of the present township of
Vernon, not included in Northfield, Mass., was granted,
together with what is now the Massachusetts town of
Bernardston, under the name of Falltown. This grant
Vv^as made by the province of Massachusetts to Samuel
Hunt and others who were descendants of the men who
were in the "Falls fight" at Turner's Falls, in 1676.
In 1738 Josiah Sartwell built a fortified residence,
known as Sartwell's fort, two miles south of Fort Dum-
mer, in the present town of Vernon, Vt. It was con-
structed of hewn timbers, was thirt3^-eight feet long and
twenty feet wide, the upper story projecting so that from
portholes the inmates could guard the approach to the
156 HISTORY OF VERMONT
fort. The walls were of hewn timbers, and there was
an outer door of hewn planks. Sartwell had obtained
from the General Court of Massachusetts a grant of
one hundred acres, laid out on the west bank of the Con-
necticut River. As a result of the boundary decision
by the King in 1740, this fort was included in the town-
ship of Hinsdale, N. H. The fort stood almost one
hundred years, and when it was taken down in 1837
many of its timbers were used in building a farm house.
Fort Bridgman, about four miles south of Brattle-
boro, in the town of Vernon, was erected by Orlando
Bridgman, probably in 1737, although it may have been
in 1738, the same year that Fort Sartwell was erected,
which it resembled in dimensions and style of building.
Reference already has been made to the burning of this
fort in 1747, to its rebuilding on a more extensive scale,
and to its capture and destruction by Indians in 1755.
These little wooden forts were very humble, unpreten-
tious fortifications, but without their protection the
frontiers of civilization could not have been pushed for-
ward from the province of Massachusetts, up the valley
of the Connecticut, to the intervale meadows of southern
Vermont, where, in the vicinity of these blockhouses, the
first farms Avere won from the forest in the region known
a few decades later as the Green Mountain State.
Chapter VII
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS
NATURALLY the earliest occupation of Vermont
was by means of military posts, the first
of these being erected by the French at Isle
La Motte, in 1666, and the second by soldiers repre-
senting the province of Massachusetts, at Fort Dum-
mer, near the present village of Brattleboro in 1724.
The first actual home building was begun in the Con-
necticut River valley, a few miles above the most
northerly of the Massachusetts settlements, at a time
when the region was supposed to be within the juris-
diction of that province. Although these first attempts
at building homes and cultivating fields were compar-
able to Judge Wendell P. Stafiford's characterization
of the building of Fort St. Anne, at Isle La Motte, "a
halting, hesitating step, a foot thrust out into the wild
and then withdrawn," it represented the next stage
beyond military occupation, the coming of the pioneer,
with all the hope and promise that such an enterprise
involved.
On January 15, 1735, the General Court of Massa-
chusetts ordered a survey of the lands between the Con-
necticut and Merrimac Rivers from the northwest corner
of Rumford, on the Merrimac to the Great Falls (Bel-
lows Falls) on the Connecticut; also the division of the
lands on the west side of the latter stream between the
Great Falls and the "Equivalent Lands" into two town-
ships six miles square, if the space would allow, and if
not into one township. This action was taken in re-
sponse to many petitions asking for the granting of
lands in this region. Eleven persons were appointed to
160 HISTORY OF VERMONT
have charge of the survey and the division of lands.
Township Number One, now known as Westminster,
was granted to persons from Taunton, Norton and
Easton, in Massachusetts, and to others from Ashford
and Killingly, in Connecticut.
The committee having the survey in charge were em-
powered to admit sixty settlers in each township, and
to require them to give bonds to the amount of forty
pounds each for the performance of their part of the
contract. Persons who had not received grants of land
for seven years past were given the first opportunity.
Each grantee was required to build a dwelling house
eighteen feet square and seven feet stud on their re-
spective home lots, "and fence in or break up for plow-
ing, or clear and stock five acres with English grass
within three years next after their admittance, and cause
their respective lots to be inhabited." The grantees
were also required within the space of three years to
build a meeting house and settle "a learned Orthodox
Minister."
Joseph Tisdale was empowered to call a meeting of
the grantees of Number One, in Taunton, January 14,
1737, and such a meeting being held, a committee was
appointed to visit the township and divide the lands. It
appears that Richard Ellis and his son Reuben built
a log house in Westminster (sometimes called New
Taunton) in 1734, and fitted five or six acres of land
for cultivation, being accompanied by Seth Tisdale and
John Barney. During the years 1739 and 1740 several
persons were engaged in laying out roads and in prepar-
ing the town for occupation. The records of a meeting
\a"^>'b"^*\ Built ell Ihr out S\ t Je \.
£
The Perade
Tlie Phisoqnomy of Fort Burner
CcllVWHIardi
hou^e Bui ft by
tht Pi-ovinct
Plan of Fort Diimmer
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 161
held July 8, 1740, indicate that a sawmill had been
built.
In 1742 the proprietors, finding that their grants were
within the jurisdiction of New Hampshire, according to
a decision rendered concerning the northern boundary
of Massachusetts, appealed to the General Court of the
latter province for directions as to the course to be fol-
lowed in securing thefr rights. In 1744 hostilities began
between France and Great Britain, and apparently the
settlement was abandoned for a time.
In 1751 several families from Northfield, Mass.,
moved into this town. On November 9, 1752, Governor
Wentworth granted this township as Westminster,
under the jurisdiction of New Hampshire, but the pro-
prietors who had purchased lands here under the Massa-
chusetts grant were given the privilege of establishing
their holdings as they were laid out in the original sur-
vey. Indian incursions began late in the summer of
1754, James Johnson and family being captured at Num-
ber Four (Charlestown, N. H.). As only a few
pioneers had settled at Westminster, and they were with-
out adequate defence, they removed to Walpole, N. H.,
immediately following the attack on Number Four, being
cared for at the home of Col. Benjamin Bellows until
October, when they returned to Westminster. The
situation, however, was a dangerous one, immediately
preceding and during the period of conflict known as
the French and Indian War, and the settlers who had
returned to Westminster did not find it prudent to re-
main there many months. With the declaration of
peace the danger of invasion from the north was removed
162 HISTORY OF VERMONT
and on June 14, 1760, the charter of the town was re-
newed, the proprietors being Josiah Willard, Jr., a son
of a former commander at Fort Dummer, and others.
Lands were allotted and before the close of 1766 about
fifty persons had settled here. In 1771 the population
had increased to four hundred and seventy-eight, and
Westminster was the most populous town in this region.
As early as 1740 Joseph Stebbins settled in what is
now Vernon. It is to be presumed that lands were
cleared and fields were cultivated in the vicinity of
Forts Sartwell and Bridgman. It is recorded that soon
after the French and Indian War began the settlers in
what is now Vernon sought shelter in the forts nearby,
or in Northfield, Mass. It is reasonable to suppose that
some settlements were made at an early date in Brattle-
boro, in the vicinity of Fort Dummer. In 1766 there
were a sufficient number of people in Brattleboro and
vicinity to organize a regiment.
In 1732 merchants of New London, Conn., sent men
to the Great Meadow, in what is now the town of Put-
ney, to cut mast timber from the magnificent growth of
yellow pines which occupied that portion of the Con-
necticut River valley. In 1733 seventy men came to
this spot to cut timber, and a shipload of it was pre-
pared. In 1742 or 1743 Nehemiah Howe of Grafton,
Mass., William Phips, and Daniel Rugg, of Leicester,
Mass., with their families, also Robert Baker and others,
made a clearing at the Great Meadows in Putney. In
the center of the clearing a fortification known as Fort
Hill was erected. Within two or three years a consider-
able stock of cattle had been gathered there. That the
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 163
fields were cultivated is shown by the fact that William
Phips was captured by the Indians July 5, 1745, while
hoeing corn on the Great Meadow. The fort here was
still occupied in the spring of 1746, but apparently it
was abandoned soon after that time.
In 1753, Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire
chartered the town of Putney to Josiah Willard and
others. It is not known precisely when the town was
reoccupied, but when the Averill family removed from
Westminster to Putney in 1755, they found three fami-
lies established there. During the year 1755 the in-
habitants of Putney, Westminster, and Westmoreland,
N. H., united in building a fort on the Great Meadow
in Putney for mutual protection. This fort was about
one hundred and twenty by eighty feet in size, and was
built of the excellent yellow pine timber of that region,
hewed six inches thick and laid up ten feet high. Like
the blockhouse at Fort Dummer, dwellings were erected
within the enclosure, the inner wall of the fort forming
the rear wall of the houses. Each house had a ''salt-
box" roof slanting upward to the top of the wall of the
fort. These houses numbered fifteen. Watch towers
were placed at the northwest and southwest corners of
the fort, and a great gate opened to the south toward
the Connecticut River. In the center of the enclosure
was a hollow square.
When the fort was completed several persons from
Westmoreland, N. H., joined the garrison. At this time
not more than half the Great Meadow was cleared.
The settlers were accustomed to work their fields in com-
panies of several persons, carrying their guns with them
164 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to guard against a possible surprise by French and
Indian enemies. No attack was made on this fort dur-
ing the French and Indian War, although Indians ap-
peared in the vicinity, and an unsuccessful attempt was
made to ambush the settlers.
In 1762 Lieut. Joshua Hyde purchased two thousand,
eight hundred acres in this town and removed his family
here. In 1764 Joshua Parker came from Canterbury,
Conn., and drove through the main street the first vehicle
that had appeared in Putney. Before the middle of the
year 1765 there were fifteen families in town. About
the year 1766 a sawmill and a gristmill were erected.
The town of Dummerston, named, as was Fort Dum-
mer, for Lieut. Gov. William Dummer of Massachusetts,
included within its limits a portion of the "Equivalent
Lands," which were parcelled out on the afternoon of
the first Wednesday of June, 1718, at the Green Dragon
Tavern, in Boston. Originally all the ''Equivalent
Lands" were known as Dummerston. In 1750 Joseph
Blanchard of Amherst, N. H., surveyed this region, and
the original proprietors holding a Massachusetts title
petitioned the Governor of New Hampshire for a grant
of it. Accordingly the "Equivalent Lands," together
with considerable additional territory, were divided into
the three townships of Fulham, Putney and Brattle-
borough. Later the name Fulham was changed to
Dummerston.
The first settler was John Kathan, who emigrated
from England to Massachusetts in 1729. He settled in
Dummerston in 1752, having associated himself with
others in the purchase of a part of the town from the
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 165
proprietors, and in 1754 he moved his large family to
their new home. According to an account written by
himself he did "actually clear and improve above 120
acres, and built a good dwelling house, barn and all
necessary offices, and also a sawmill and a potash
works." In order to protect his property he was "at
considerable expense in building a fort round his house,"
and was "under the disagreeable necessity of residing
therein during the course of a tedious and distressing
war."
Kathan's eldest daughter was captured by the Indians,
and for two and one-half years he did not know whether
she was dead or alive. At the end of that period she
returned home, having been ransomed by Col. Peter
Schuyler. Mary, the younger daughter, married John
Sargent, born at Fort Dummer, incorrectly styled by
some writers the first white child born in Vermont.
In 1752 ferries were established between Dummer-
ston and the New Hampshire towns of Westmoreland
and Chesterfield. Although the settlement here was
disturbed by the French and Indian War, it was not
abandoned. During the first years of Kathan's occupa-
tion of Dummerston he took his corn to Deerfield, Mass.,
to be ground, and he brought from Worcester, Mass.,
the first apple trees set out in town. The township was
laid out in 1767 by the heirs of Lieutenant Governor
Dummer.
As early as 1740 a settlement was made at Charles-
town, N. H., better known as Number Four. This was
an important military post during the period of Colonial
wars, and from this fort many a scouting party fol-
166 HISTORY OF VERMONT
lowed the Indian trails across the Green Mountains.
The first settlement in Springfield, on the Vermont side
of the Connecticut River, opposite Number Four, was
made in 1752 by John Nott, who built a log house on
the intervale meadow. During the next year, 1753,
eleven men settled here, although they had no legal title
to the lands they cleared, but they held their possessions
during the French and Indian War. The Governor of
New Hampshire granted this town in 1761, most of the
original proprietors being residents of Northampton,
Mass.
The town of Rockingham was granted by Governor
Wentworth of New Hampshire in December, 1752, and
its settlement was begun in 1753, when three men from
Northfield, Mass., began clearings. Within two years
they were compelled to return to Northfield, their situa-
tion being made perilous by the outbreak of the French
and Indian War. When peace was declared settlers
came in rapidly, and in 1771 an enumeration showed a
population of two hundred and twenty-five.
The shad and salmon fisheries at the Great Falls,
which had drawn hither the Indians from time imme-
morial, proved an attraction to the pioneers, and it is
related that in the early history of the town agriculture
was neglected for fishing. Only eight of the fifty-nine
grantees were actual settlers.
The most influential man among the original pro-
prietors of Rockingham was Col. Benjamin Bellows, in
whose honor the waterfall and village of Bellows Falls
were named. He was the founder of Walpole, N. H.,
and through his efforts the Rockingham charter was
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 167
granted. He secured considerable tracts of land in
several townships in New Hampshire and in the New
Hampshire Grants, so that he became the largest land
holder in that region, holding title at the time of his
death in 1777 to eight thousand or nine thousand acres.
The town of Halifax, the second granted under the
seal of New Hampshire within the present limits of
Vermont, was chartered May 11, 1750. Settlements
were begun in 1751, but the menacing attitude of the
Indians compelled the first settlers to withdraw until the
French had surrendered Canada to Great Britain.
The town of New fane was granted as Fane by Gov-
ernor Wentworth, June 19, 1753, to sixty-eight persons,
many of whom were residents of Shrewsbury, Mass.
During the year 1754 attempts were made to clear a por-
tion of the township and allot it, but the danger of in-
vasion from Canada made settlement impossible. As
a result the charter was forfeited, but it was renewed
in 1761. It appears, therefore, that prior to the passing
of French authority in Canada, in 1760, and the re-
moval of the danger of Indian invasion, actual settle-
ments had been made in eight of the towns now compris-
ing the State of Vermont, namely: Westminster, Ver-
non, Putney, Brattleboro, Dummerston, Springfield,
Rockingham and Halifax, but only in the towns of Put-
ney, Dummerston, and Springfield, and perhaps in the
vicinity of Fort Sartwell in Vernon and Fort Dummer
in Brattleboro, did the settlers remain throughout the
period of the French and Indian War. During the
fifteen years that followed, so great was the emigration
into the New Hampshire Grants, that the year 1775,
168 HISTORY OF VERMONT
made notable by the outbreak of the American Revolu-
tion, saw settlements begun in more than ninety town-
ships.
Midsummer of the year 1754 saw the withdrawal of
the French army from the valley of Lake Champlain,
the abandonment and partial destruction of the forts at
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and the occupation of
those important posts by British troops. Gen. Jeffrey
Amherst, the British commander, arrived at Crown
Point on August 4, and proceeded to lay out a new
fortress of great strength, at a cost of two millions of
pounds sterling. He also turned his attention to the con-
struction of a road from Crown Point over the Green
Mountains to Charlestown, N. H., or Number Four, the
most northerly of the British military posts in the Con-
necticut valley.
On March 4, 1756, the Governor of Massachusetts re-
quested the provincial Assembly to appoint fourteen
men to measure the distance between Crown Point and
Number Four, and to gain what knowledge they could
of the country. This request was heeded, and the route
was surveyed. Only a little more than a week after his
arrival at Crown Point, General Amherst wrote Gov-
ernor Wentworth of New Hampshire, telling him that
the construction of the road was begun, and explaining
the benefits to be derived from it. In this letter he
said: "Since I have been in possession of this ground
one of my particular attentions has been to improve the
advantages it gives me of most effectually covering and
securing this country and opening such communications
as will render the access between the provinces and the
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 169
army easy, safe and short; accordingly I sent to explore
the Otter River, in order to erect such posts on each side
of it as will obstruct all scalping parties from going
up that river to annoy any of His Majesty's subjects
that may now choose to come and settle between No. 4
and that. And for the easier communication of your
two provinces (New Hampshire and Massachusetts)
with this post, I have already for these some days past
had a number of men in the woods that are employed in
cutting a road between this and No. 4, which will be
finished before you receive this."
Unless the letter was delayed long in transmission,
General Amherst erred in his prediction regarding the
completion of what was known in later years as the
Military Road. In the building of this road three able
American officers were engaged. The work was begun
by Capt. John Stark of New Hampshire, who was des-
tined to win fame at a later day in another portion of
Vermont. With two hundred Rangers he began at
Crown Point, and opened a part of the road. In
October of the same year Maj. John Hawks, who had
defended Fort Massachusetts so heroically against a
French attack in 1746, was directed by General Amherst
to take axes for felling trees and implements for making
roads, and with about three hundred New England
troops to begin work where the Stark expedition had
abandoned the task. An old diary preserved in Deer-
field, Mass., shows that Major Hawks and his party left
Crown Point on Friday, October 26, 1759. Apparently
the Hawks expedition built the road up to or over the
summit of the Green Mountains, and a peak between
170 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the towns of Baltimore and Cavendish bears the name
of Hawks Mountain, Hawks having camped on the slope
of this eminence. Early in the year 1760, Lieut. Col.
John Goffe, a military leader of prominence, with a regi-
ment of eight hundred New Hampshire men, was ordered
to complete the road. Beginning at Wentworth's Ferry,
two miles above the fort at Number Four, a blockhouse,
which was enclosed with pickets, was erected near the
mouth of Black River. Forty-four days were spent in
cutting a road twenty-six miles long to the foot of the
Green Mountains, and twenty-six mile posts were
erected. Colonel Goffe's regiment reached Crown Point
July 31, 1760, with a drove of cattle, having completed
their task in time to embark with Haviland's army for
the final campaign against the French in Canada. An
epidemic broke out while the eastern section of this road
was being built, and several men died, and were buried
near the road in Springfield. Evidently it was unneces-
sary after the French had surrendered Canada to erect
the forts along Otter Creek, which General Amherst had
planned for the protection of the settlers from *' scalping
parties."
This Military Road, or Crown Point Road, seems to
have followed a part of the ancient Indian trail used
both by war parties and by traders who came to the
truck house at Fort Dummer, but avoided swamps and
low lands, keeping on the higher ground. Starting at
Chimney Point, opposite Crown Point, in the present
town of Addison, or at a point a little farther south,
the exact place of departure being somewhat in doubt,
the road passed through Bridport, touched the north line
THE FIRST HOME BUILDERS 171
of Shoreham, and running southeast crossed the Lemon
Fair River, proceeded through Whiting to Sudbury, to
Otter Creek, crossing that stream, and through the west-
ern part of Brandon. The road then followed near the
present highway west of Otter Creek in Pittsford to
Florence. Taking an easterly course to the ford over
the Otter known as Pitts' ford, the road turned south-
easterly, and proceeded by way of the terrace on which
the village of Pittsford is now located, a little west of
the village. Its course was between the present roads
from Pittsford to Rutland, thence to a ford at Rutland,
and passing south to Clarendon it proceeded in an east-
erly direction to Shrewsbury Center, through Mount
Holly and Plymouth, and perhaps a corner of Ludlow,
to Twenty-Mile Camp in Cavendish. From this camp
the road passed around Mount Gilead on the southwest
side, and passing near Amsden crossed the Weathers-
field line into Springfield, skirting the southern part of
Sketchewaug Mountain, and reaching the Connecticut
River near what is known as the Cheshire bridge.
A log camp built in Cavendish gave the names to
Twenty-Mile Camp and Twenty-Mile Stream. As set-
tlements sprang up along this route the more difficult
portions of the road were abandoned, but for many years
the old Crown Point Road was a favorite route of travel
from northern Vermont to Boston, and many taverns
were erected along this ancient highway.
Chapter VIII
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS
NEW Hampshire became a royal province in 1741,
thus making that year an important date in New
England history. Previous to that time the
Governor of Massachusetts had acted also as Governor
of New Hampshire.
The first royal Governor was Benning Wentworth, a
merchant of Portsmouth, a member of one of the most
distinguished families of the province, a popular citizen
who had represented his town in the provincial Assembly
several terms, and had been advanced to the post of
King's Councillor. He was the son of John Wentworth,
Lieutenant Governor of the province from 1717 to 1730,
and he was named for John Wentworth's mother, Mary
Benning. After graduating at Harvard, he was asso-
ciated in business with his father and his uncle. A man
of fine presence, he looked the part of a royal Governor,
and he dispensed generous hospitality in the spacious
mansion at Little Harbor, which he had caused to be
erected.
A touch of romance is given to his career by his
second marriage, which occurred in the Wentworth man-
sion on his sixtieth birthday, the bride being Martha
Hilton, his beautiful serving maid. This episode is
celebrated in verse by the poet Longfellow in his "Tales
of a Wayside Inn." In 1766 Governor Wentworth re-
signed, and in 1776 he died. This brief sketch will in-
troduce a man who occupies a conspicuous place in the
early history of the region now known as Vermont.
One of the outstanding features of the British occupa-
tion of America was the diligence with which that nation
pursued its projects of colonization. As the older colo-
176 HISTORY OF VERMONT
nies became settled in certain portions it was expected
that this policy would be carried forward by issuing
grants of land in unsettled portions to settlers who would
extend the frontiers of civilization. Although the evil
of land speculation sometimes interfered with the success
of colonization and delayed actual settlement, it did not
defeat it.
About eight years after his appointment as royal Gov-
ernor of the province of New Hampshire, Benning
Wentworth, in pursuance of the policy of subduing the
wilderness, made his first grant of land within the pres-
ent limits of Vermont on the eleventh day of January,
1749, and the new township was named Bennington, in
honor of the Governor who made the grant. This
town was supposed to be six miles square, and was
laid out by Matthew Clesson, Surveyor. It was granted
to Col.. William Williams, a prominent citizen of New
Hampshire, and fifty-nine others. In this town, as in
most of the towns granted under the authority of New
Hampshire, a tract of five hundred acres, accounted as
two shares, was set aside for Governor Wentworth, and
in many towns this tract is still known as "The Gov-
ernor's Right." In most instances provision was made
for one share for the Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel in Foreign Parts, one share for a glebe for
the Church of England, one share for the first settled
minister, and one share for the benefit of a school.
Among the grantees of Bennington were Theodore
Atkinson, secretary of the province, and some of the
members of the provincial Council, whom the Governor
usually remembered in making these grants. The name
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 177
of Samuel Robinson, the founder of Bennington, and ten
persons bearing the name of Williams, appear in the list
of grantees.
The form of charter used for Bennington was fol-
lowed substantially in all the other townships granted by
New Hampshire, and read as follows:
"George the Second by the Grace of God of Great
Britain, France and Ireland King Defender of the faith
&c—
''To All Persons to whom these Presents Shall come,
Greeting
"Know ye that We of our Especial Grace, Certain
Knowledge & pure Motion for the Due Encouragement
of Settling a New Plantation within our Sd Province
By and with the Advise of Our Trusty & well beloved
Benning Wentworth Esq our Governour & Com'ander
in Chieff of our Said Province of New Hampshire in
America And Of Our Council of the Said Province
Have upon the Conditions & reservations herein after
made Given & granted — And by these Presents for us
our heirs & Successors Do give And Grant in Equal
Shares unto our Loveing Subjects Inhabitants of our
Said Province of New Hampshire And his Majesties
Other Governm 'ts And to their heirs and Assignes for
ever whose names Are Entered on this Grant to be
Divided to and Amongst them into Sixty four Equal
Shares All that Tract or Parcell of Land Scituate Lying
& being within our Said Province of New Hampshire
Containing by Admeasurement Twenty three thousand
& forty Acres which Tract is to Contain Six Miles
Square & no more Out of which An Allowence is to be
178 HISTORY OF VERMONT
made for high ways & unimproveable Lands, by Rock,
Ponds Mountains & Rivers One thousand And forty
Acres free According to a Plan and Survey thereof made
by our Said Governour's order by Mathew Clesson Sur-
veyer returned unto the Secretarys office And hereunto
Annexed Butted and Bounded as follows viz — ". Then
follows a description of the boundaries of the town.
''Begining at A Crotched Hemlock Tree".
The Charter then continues : — "And that the same be
& hereby is Incorporated into a Township By the Name
of Bennington and the Inhabitants that do or Shall here-
after Inhabit the Said Township Are hereby Declared to
be Enfranchized with and Intituled to All & Every the
Previledges & Imunities that Other Towns within Our
Province by Law Exercize & Enjoy and further that
the Said Town as Soon as there Shall be fifty families
resident And Settled thereon Shall have the Liberty of
Holding two Fairs One of which Shall be held On the
first Monday in the Month of March and the Other on
the first Monday in the Month of September Annually
which fairs Are not to Continue And be held Longer than
the respective Saturdays following the Said Mondays
And that As Soon as the Said Town Shall Consist of
fifty Families A market Shall be Opened & kept one or
more Days in each Week as may be that most Advan-
tagious to the Inhabitants Also that the first Meeting
for the Choice of Town officers Agreeable to the Laws
of Our Said Province Shall be held on the Last Wed-
nesday of March next which Said Meeting Shall be noti-
fied by Call William Williams who is hereby also Ap-
pointed the Moderator of the Said first Meeting which
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 179
he is to Notify & Govern Agreeable to the Laws & Cus-
tom of our Said Province And that the Annual meeting
forever hereafter for the Choice of Such officers for
the Sd Town Shall be on the Last Wednesday of March
Annually — To Have & To Hold the said Tract of Land
as above Expressed togeather with All Previledges And
Appurtenances to them & their respective Heirs and
Assignes for ever upon the following Conditions viz —
"That every Grantee his heirs or Assignes Shall Plant
And Cultivate Five Acres of Land within the Term of
five years for Every fifty Acres Contained in his or their
Share or Proportion of Land in Said Township And
Continue to Improve & Settle the Same by Aditionall
Cultivations on Penalty of the forfeiture of his Grant
or Share in the Said Township and of its reverting to
his Majesty his hiers & Successors to be by him or them
regranted to such of his Subjects as Shall effectually
Settle & Cultivate the Same.
"That All white & other Pine Trees within the said
Township fit for masting our Royal Navy be carefully
Preserved for that Use And None to be Cut or felld
without his Majtys Especial Lycence for So doing first
had & Obtained upon the Penalty of the forfeiture of the
right of Such Grantee his hiers or Assignes to us our
hiers or Successers as well as being Subject to the
Penalty of Any Act or Acts of Parliament that now are
or hereafter Shall be enacted.
"That before any Division of the Said Land be made
to and Among the Grantees a Tract of Land as near the
Center of the Said Township as the Land will admit of,
Shall be reserved & Marked Out for Town Lotts one of
180 HISTORY OF VERMONT
which Shall be Alotted to Each Grantee of the "Con-
tents" of One Acre —
"Yielding & Paying therefor to us our Hiers & Suc-
cessers for the Space of Ten Years to be Computed from
the Date hereof the rent of one Ear of Indian Corn only
on the Twenty fifth Day of December Annually if Law-
fully Demanded the first Payment to be made on the
Twenty fifth Day of December next Ensueing the Date
hereof — "Every Proprietor Settler or Inhabitant Shall
Yield & Pay unto us our hiers and Successers yearly &
every Year for ever from & after the Expiration of Ten
years from the Date hereof Namly on the Twenty fifth
Day of December which will be in the year of Our Lord
1760 — One Shilling Proclamation Money for every
Hundred Acres he So Owns Settles or Possesses and so
in Proportion for a greater or A Lesser Tract of the
Said Land which money Shall be paid by the Respective
Persons above Sd their heirs or Assignes in our Council
Chamber in Portsmouth or to Such officer or officers as
Shall be Appointed to receive the Same and this to be in
Lieu of all other rents or Services whatsoever."
Bennington was the only township west of the Con-
necticut River granted by Governor Wentworth in 1749.
The next year, 1750, he granted only one township,
Halifax. In 1751 he granted the townships of Marl-
boro and Wilmington, and in 1752 an equal number,
Rockingham and Westminster. Seven townships were
granted in 1753, Brattleboro, Dummerston, Newfane,
Putney, Stamford, Townshend and Woodford. In
1754 three townships, Chester, Grafton, then known as
Thomlinson, and Guilford, were granted.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 181
No further grants were made until the close of the
French and Indian War, and only one township, Pownal,
was granted in 1760, the year that saw the passing of
French dominion in Canada. Beginning with 1761,
Governor Wentworth entered vigorously upon the policy
of granting lands west of the Connecticut River and that
year he chartered sixty-three new townships, the list
including Addison, Andover, Arlington, Barnard, Bran-
don (Neshobe), Bridgewater, Bridport, Brunswick,
Castleton, Cavendish, Clarendon, Cornwall, Danby,
Dorset, Fairlee, Ferdinand, Wenlock (annexed to
Brighton and Ferdinand), Glastenbury, Granby, Guild-
hall, Hartford, Hartland (Hertford), Leicester, Lud-
low, Maidstone, Manchester, Middlebury, Mount Tabor
(Harwick), New Haven, Norwich (Nor which). Pan-
ton, Pawlet, Peru (Brumley), Pittsford, Plymouth
(Saltash), Pomfret, Poultney, Reading, Rupert, Rut-
land, Salisbury, Sandgate, Shaftsbury, Sharon, Sher-
burne (Killington), Shoreham, Shrewsbury, Somerset,
Springfield, Stockbridge, Strafiford, Stratton, Sunder-
land, Thetford, Tinmouth, Tunbridge, Wallingford,
Weathersfield, Wells, Weybridge, Windsor, Winhall,
and Woodstock.
The grants made in 1762 were fewer, numbering only
nine, and the townships granted were Averill, Bloom-
field (Minehead), Bristol (Pocock), Charlotte (Char-
lotta), Ferrisburg, Hinesburg, Lemington (Limington),
Lewis and Monkton. Thirty-seven towns were granted
in 1763, including Barnet, Berlin, Bolton, Brattle-
borough, Burlington, Colchester, Duxbury, Essex, Fair-
fax, Fairfield (Smithfield), Georgia, Highgate, Hunt-
182 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ington (New Huntington), Jericho, Lunenburg, Mans-
field, Middlesex, Milton, Moretown, Newbury, Orwell,
Peacham, Ryegate, Shelburne, Sheldon (Hungerford),
St. Albans, St. George, Stowe, Sudbury (Dunbar),
Swanton, Topsham, Underbill, Waterbury, Westford,
Whiting, Williston and Worcester.
Five towns, Corinth, Dover, Hubbardton, Readsboro,
and Wardsboro, were granted in 1764. This gives a
total of one hundred and thirty-one townships granted
by Governor Wentworth in what is now Vermont be-
tween the years 1749 and 1764, inclusive. No grants
were made for five years during the French and Indian
War and during three of the years mentioned only one
grant was made each year. Although grants were made
during eleven of the sixteen years included in this period,
one hundred of these one hundred and thirty-one
charters were issued in the years 1761 and 1763.
Governor Wentworth became a very large landed pro-
prietor as a result of the granting of these towns. Three
of the one hundred and thirty-one townships chartered
were private grants to army officers in which the Gov-
ernor did not retain a right. In four townships the
Governor's rights amounted to eight hundred acres each
and in two towns to four hundred acres each. The total
amount of Governor Wentworth's grants to himself was
sixty-five thousand acres.
In addition to his personal holdings he dealt liberally
with his family and friends. Theodore Atkinson, his
father-in-law, a member of the Council, and for many
years secretary of the province, received fifty-seven lots,
in as many towns, the policy being to grant in this man-
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 183
ner only one lot in a town. Theodore Atkinson, Jr., re-
ceived sixteen lots. Ranking next to Secretary Atkin-
son in favors received, was Richard Wibird, a member
of the Council, who was given forty-eight lots. Mark
Himking Wentworth, a brother of the Governor, a mem-
ber of the Council, who had the agency for procuring
masts and spars for the British navy, and was largely
concerned in trade and commerce, was granted thirty-
seven lots. Other members of the New Hampshire
Council liberally remembered with land grants were
John Downing, Sampson Sheaffe, Daniel Warner, Wil-
liam Temple, Nathaniel Barrell, Joseph Newmarch,
James Nevin, Samuel Solley, Joseph Blanchard, and
Henry Sherburne, at one time Speaker, whose family
was connected with the Wentworths by marriage.
Other members of the Wentworth family, not already
mentioned, who received from one to twenty lots each,
included Samuel Wentworth of Boston, Major John
Wentworth, John Wentworth, Jr., Hunking Wentworth,
Hugh Hull Wentworth, Samuel Wentworth, Jr., Capt.
John Wentworth of Kittery, Samuel Wentworth of
Portsmouth, George Wentworth, Joshua Wentworth,
Daniel Wentworth, Foster Wentworth, Thomas Went-
worth and Ebenezer Wentworth.
A study of the lists of grantees in the one hundred
and thirty-one townships chartered by Governor Went-
worth reveals the names of many well known persons
and these include Thomas Pownall, royal Governor of
Massachusetts, 1756-1760, and later a member of the
British Parliament.
184 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Francis Bernard, royal Governor of New York, 1758-
1760, and royal Governor of Massachusetts, 1760-1764.
Meshech Weare, Speaker of the New Hampshire
Legislature, Justice and Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of New Hampshire, and President of New Hamp-
shire from 1776 through the Revolutionary War.
John Langdon, delegate to the Continental Congress,
a soldier of the Revolution, Governor of New Hamp-
shire and United States Senator.
John Stark, afterward a famous officer in the Ameri-
can Revolution.
Woodbury Langdon, delegate to the Continental Con-
gress and a Judge.
Dr. Josiah Bartlett, a New Hampshire signer of the
Declaration of Independence and a soldier with Stark
at Bennington.
Sir John Temple, titular Lieutenant Governor of New
Hampshire, and a son-in-law of Governor Bowdoin of
Massachusetts.
Timothy Ruggles, a Brigadier under General Amherst
and counted one of the ablest lawyers in Massachusetts.
Jonathan Edwards, the famous theologian, and Rev.
Eleazer Wheelock, founder of Dartmouth College.
Rev. Edward Holyoke, president of Harvard College,
Rev. Henry Caner, rector of King's Chapel, Boston,
Rev. Nathaniel Appleton, a member of the corporation
of Harvard College for sixty-two years.
Phineas Lyman, the real victor of the battle of Lake
George.
Josiah Willard, commandant at Fort Dummer.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 185
Robert Rogers, the well known scout and leader of
Rogers' Rangers.
Col. Ebenezer Hinsdale, Col. John Gofife, Capt. Ben-
jamin Sheldon, Capt. Nehemiah Lovewell and Benjamin
Melvin, well known Indian fighters.
The name of Samuel Adams, also appears, but it is
probable that it applies not to the well known Massa-
chusetts patriot but to a New Hampshire physician of
that name. Harrison Gray, a grantee, was Receiver
General of Massachusetts and father-in-law of James
Otis, the famous orator.
Among the grantees who afterward became active in
the New Hampshire Grants, or Vermont, were Samuel
Robinson, Moses Robinson, Jonathan Robinson, Jonas
Fay, Hilkiah Grout, Jonathan Hunt, Thomas Chitten-
den, Noah Chittenden, Jacob Bayley, Timothy Brown-
son, Samuel Safford, and Roger Enos.
The names of several women appear among the
grantees, one of them being Jemima Howe, widow of
Caleb Howe, mortally wounded in the Indian attack on
Fort Bridgman, who, with her seven children, were taken
to Canada.
It appears that Governor Wentworth not only granted
land in what is now Vermont to citizens of New Hamp-
shire and Massachusetts, but, strange as it may seem in
the light of subsequent events, to not a few residents of
New York. Among the grants made to New Yorkers
by Governor Wentworth were a considerable number to
various persons named Burling. The name appears in
a considerable number of Chittenden and Addison
county towns. Among the grantees of Colchester were
186 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ten persons named Burling. This was a well known
name in New York City, and a Burling slip is mentioned
in pre-Revolutionary annals. John and Thomas Bur-
ling were merchants on Cruger's wharf, New York, and
Samuel Burling was a merchant in the same city. Lan-
caster Burling was one of a committee of sixty in New
York to take action in matters growing out of the con-
troversy with Great Britain.
The Bogart family appears frequently in Governor
Wentworth's charters. There were fourteen grantees
of that name in the Essex charter. The name appears
in New York and New Jersey records, Nicholas H.
Bogart being a New York merchant and John Bogart.
Jr., an Alderman of Montgomerie ward. New York City.
Such well known names as Philip Scuyler (Schuyler)
and Cornelius Low appear in these lists. Continuing
an examination of the names of persons to whom town-
ships were granted in the region now known as Vermont,
it appears that Edward Agar was an apothecary of New
York City, Francis Panton of the same city was a barber,
Petrus Byvanck was one of the principal merchants of
New York, Benjamin Hildreth was a merchant of the
same city, as was Dirck Brinckerhofif, who sold hard-
ware and metals at the sign of "the Golden Lock."
Theodorus Van Wyck was a New York Alderman in
1758. The name Van Wyck appears in several of the
Vermont town charters, five of that name being grantees
of Berlin. Among these Wentworth grantees, whose
names appear in lists of New York freemen, are
Nicholas Bogart, Peter Knickerbocker, Daniel Latham,
Joseph Latham, Thomas Alsop and Cornelius DeGroot.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 187
Other New York names that appear in these charters
are Dyckman, Gouverneur, Lawrence, Lutwyche, Scher-
merhorn, Suydam, Swartwout, Ten Eyck, Underhill,
Vandusen and Van Zandt. The names of several Bur-
lings, Bogarts, and other New York grantees may be
found attached to petitions to the King, protesting
against the land policy of Lieutenant Governor Golden of
that province, and Edward Burling and John Burling
were members of a committee empowered to act in this
matter in November, 1766.
A careful study of the lists of the grantees shows that
in several townships, chiefly in the western part of what
is now the State of Vermont, apparently all the names
are those of New Yorkers, with the exception of a few
of Governor Wentworth's favorites. It is not easy to
demonstrate this beyond the shadow of a doubt, but
there is evidence to show that a large number of these
grantees were residents of New York, while the dis-
tinctive Knickerbocker names, and the family resem-
blance of still others to those of citizens of New York,
make it reasonably certain that whole townships, practi-
cally, in some instances, and at least parts of townships,
in other instances, were granted to New York men.
A study of the Wentworth charters shows that on
a single day, June 7, 1763, the Governor of New Hamp-
shire granted the townships of Colchester, Burlington,
Essex, Williston, Jericho, Bolton, New Huntington,
Duxbury and Waterbury. The territory granted in-
cluded both sides of the Winooski River from its mouth
beyond the point where this stream breaks through the
barrier of the Green Mountains, Richmond being formed
188 HISTORY OF VERMONT
later from parts of other towns. A similarity of names
among the grantees, and the fact that the grants were
made on the same day, leads to the conclusion that this
fertile valley was granted to a group of men in which
New York influences largely predominated. It is
evident^ moreover, that these New Yorkers recognized
the right of a New Hampshire Governor to grant lands
west of the Connecticut River.
In the "Documentary History of New York" may be
found lists of Quakers, published pursuant to an act
regulating the militia of the colony of New York.
These lists included New York City and Dutchess,
Queens and Suffolk counties, and were compiled in 1755
and 1756. In these lists of Quakers may be found a
considerable number of names which appear as grantees
in the Wentworth charters. The names of eighteen of
these Quakers appear in the Monkton charter, sixteen in
the Charlotte charter, twelve in the Ferrisburg charter,
nine in the Colchester charter, eight in the Shelburne
charter, and smaller numbers in other towns. There is
a similarity between other Quaker names, and names
found in these charters.
In the Quaker lists may be found such names as Bur-
ling, Ferris, Lawrence, Franklin, Field, Latham, Doty
and Underbill, which are familiar names in charters of
towns in the New Hampshire Grants. Some of these
Quakers were merchants and shopkeepers in New York
City, while others were farmers and laborers on Long
Island, or in The Oblong and other portions of New
York near the Connecticut border. The same Quaker
names appear as grantees in several towns, and it is in-
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 189
teresting to note that in the early part of Vermont's his-
tory some of these same townships contained substantial
colonies of Quakers.
Governor Wentworth was a thrifty individual, and
the issuing of town charters was attended with profit
to the grantor as well as the grantee. Apparently Gov-
ernor Wentworth's fees were not uniform. In some in-
stances they were one hundred dollars a township, and
in others they amounted to a larger sum, but as a rule
they were materially less than the fees imposed by New
York Governors. Elliott, in his "History of New Eng-
land," says that "Wentworth made grants to his friends
and to those who had money to pay the necessary costs
and fees." According to the Vermont Historical So-
ciety collections. Lieutenant Governor Golden received
for every thousand acres he patented the sum of $31.25.
Other provincial officials received the following sums as
fees: Secretary of the Province, $10; Clerk of the
Council, $10; Receiver General, $14.37; Attorney Gen-
eral, $7.50; Surveyor General, $12.50. This made the
total amount of fees for each thousand acres patented
by New York, $90.25.
This was a period of land speculation, a fact of which
Governor Wentworth, no doubt, was well aware. It is
possible that anticipating opposition from the New York
authorities, he may have taken measures to hasten the
granting of charters, and the securing of charter fees,
by disseminating information concerning this region
now known as Vermont, even in New York itself. This
suggestion, however, is regarded only as a guess, and
no facts have been found to substantiate it.
190 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Following the surrender of the French in Canada, in
1760, there was an active movement toward the lands in
what is now the State of Vermont, hitherto rendered
unsafe as homes for pioneers on account of the peril of
Indian raids, from the north.
The provincial officials of New York were not dis-
posed to permit all the lands between the Connecticut
River and Lake Champlain to be granted by New Hamp-
shire without opposition. The story of that opposition,
however, belongs in subsequent chapters. Elliott, in his
"History of New England," says the authorities of New
York perceived the movement of settlers into the New
Hampshire Grants, and decided to profit by it. Dun-
lap's ''History of New York" says : "There was now a
King's Lieutenant Governor who had succeeded to the
management of afifairs who had as keen a relish for
accumulation as Wentworth. * ^ * Mr. Colden,
when Surveyor General, had found out the value of the
lands between the Hudson or the lake (Champlain) and
the boundary line."
Although New York did not begin the granting of
land between the Connecticut River and Lake Champlain
until Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire had con-
cluded his policy of granting lands in that region, these
grants amounted to more than two millions of acres in
the aggregate, and the last of them were made after the
Revolutionary War actually had commenced.
The New York policy was begun by Lieutenant Gov-
ernor Colden. Cadwallader Colden was a man of
scientific and literary attainments, who had held the office
of Surveyor General of New York and member of the
tT.^^VTvei. I Printed bv Jolui £ Oant-AlbaB/
^'^fO^tatA^^^^^^f^^ ^^^„^/^ ^^^
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 191
provincial Council. In 1761 he was appointed Lieu-
tenant Governor of the province, which office he held
until 1775, during which period he served four times as
acting Governor.
No New York grants were made in this region until
after the order of the King in Council, issued in 1764,
sustaining the New York contention that that province
extended eastward as far as the Connecticut River so
that it included all of the present State of Vermont.
Lieutenant Governor Colden's first grant in this debat-
able region was made on May 21, 1765, when a tract of
twenty-six thousand acres was chartered as Princetown.
This tract originally was granted to twenty-six persons,
in shares of one thousand acres each, but within a few
weeks all but one of the grantees had conveyed their
holdings to three well known land speculators, James
Duane, a prominent New York lawyer. Attorney Gen-
eral John Taber Xempe and Walter Rutherford, son of
a Scottish nobleman. Princetown was about twelve
miles long, and three and one-half miles wide, was
situated in the Battenkill valley, and included portions
of the towns of Arlington, Sunderland and Manchester,
granted in 1761 by Governor Wentworth.
On October 30, 1765, a tract of ten thousand acres,
lying partly in the town of Arlington, Glastenbury,
Shaftsbury and Sunderland, was granted to James
Lapier. During the year 1765 Lieutenant Governor
Colden granted one hundred and fifty-one military
patents, covering one hundred and thirty-one thousand,
eight hundred acres.
192 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Sir Henry Moore was Governor of New York from
November 13, 1765, until his death, which occurred Sep-
tember 12, 1769. During the years 1766 and 1767 he
confirmed the New Hampshire charters of Flamstead
(Chester), Brattleboro, Hertford (Hartland), Putney,
Townshend and ThomHnson (Grafton), granted a tract
of five thousand acres in Athens, and issued eighteen
miHtary patents containing thirteen thousand, three
hundred and fifty acres, making an aggregate of char-
ters confirmed and patents issued amounting to one hun-
dred and forty-four thousand, six hundred and twenty
acres.
Lieutenant Governor Golden again became acting
Governor upon the death of Sir Henry Moore, and in the
month of November, 1766, he granted four townships,
Warrenton, including parts of Athens and Acton (an-
nexed to Townshend), fourteen thousand acres; Royal-
ton, thirty thousand acres ; Camden, thirty-five thousand
acres, in Jamaica, Wardsboro and Dover, to Robert R.
Livingston, Chief Justice of the province; and Kempton,
sixteen thousand acres in what is now Orange county.
From the beginning of the year 1770 until October 19
of that year, when the Earl of Dunmore became royal
Governor, Lieutenant Governor Golden granted the fol-
lowing townships : Middlesex, thirty-five thousand acres,
in Orange county ; Kent, twenty-six thousand acres, now
Londonderry; in Cumberland, now Whitingham, ten
thousand acres ; Bessborough, thirty-six thousand acres,
in St. Johnsbury and vicinity; Charlotte, twenty-five
thousand acres, in Chelsea and vicinity; Readsborough,
twenty-nine thousand acres, now Readsboro and Sears-
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 193
burg; Mooretown, twenty-five thousand acres, now
Bradford; Gageborough, twenty-four thousand acres,
now Vershire and vicinity; Kelso, twenty-one thousand
acres, in Tinmouth and vicinity; Newbrook, twenty-
three thousand acres, in Waterbury and vicinity ; Kings-
borough, thirty-five thousand acres, now Montpeher and
vicinity; Hulton, twelve thousand acres, now Shrews-
bury; Leyden, twenty-four thousand acres, now North-
field and vicinity ; Dunmore, thirty-nine thousand acres,
in Waterford and vicinity; Virgin Hall, twenty-six
thousand acres, in Andover and Weston; Hillsborough,
thirty-six thousand acres, in Danville and vicinity ; Kers-
borough, twenty thousand acres, in Orange county. In-
dividual grants were made of three thousand acres in
Orwell, ten thousand acres in or near Wardsboro, and
five thousand acres in Benson, in addition to twenty-
six military patents, comprising forty-three thousand,
seven hundred acres, making a total of six hundred and
three thousand, two hundred acres granted by Golden
during a little more than one year.
The towns granted by Governor Dunmore included
Socialborough, forty-eight thousand acres, in Rutland
and Pittsford; Monckton, twenty-three thousand acres,
in Whiting; Fincastle, eighteen thousand acres, in
Stockbridge; Halesborough, twenty-three thousand
acres, in Brandon; Deerfield, thirty-five thousand acres,
a portion of Burlington, Essex and Williston; Morris-
field, twenty-one thousand, nine hundred and forty
acres, in Cornwall and Middlebury ; Newry, thirty-seven
thousand acres in Sherburne and vicinity; Mecklen-
burgh, thirty thousand acres, in Ferrisburg and vicinity;
194 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Richmond, twenty- four thousand acres, in Wells and
vicinity; Kilby, thirty thousand acres, in Middlesex and
vicinity ; Leicester, thirty-five thousand acres, in Somer-
set and Woodford; Pratsburgh, thirty thousand acres, in
Highgate and S wanton. Governor Dunmore made in-
dividual grants of twelve thousand acres, in Poultney;
one thousand, eight hundred acres in Shaftsbury; three
thousand, two hundred and ten acres (in two parcels),
in Addison and Middlebury ; four thousand acres, chiefly
in Arlington; ten thousand acres in Addison; seven
thousand acres, in Panton and New Haven; ten thou-
sand acres, in Panton ; two thousand acres, in Highgate ;
fifty-one thousand acres, in Leicester, Salisbury and
Middlebury, said to be in reality a grant to Governor
Dunmore himself. Military patents covering fifty-five
thousand, nine hundred and fifty acres were issued by
Governor Dunmore, making a total of five hundred and
eleven thousand, nine hundred acres granted during that
portion of the year 1771 between February 28 and July
8.
During the years 1771 and 1772, Governor Tryon
granted townships, as follows: Durham, thirty-two
thousand acres, in Clarendon and Wallingford; Wind-
ham, thirty-five thousand acres, in Duxbury and vicin-
ity ; Truro, twenty-two thousand acres, in Orange and vi-
cinity ; Penryn, twenty-two thousand acres, in Calais and
vicinity; Norbury, thirty-two thousand acres, in Wor-
cester and vicinity, said to be in reality a grant to Gov-
ernor Tryon himself; Townshend, thirty thousand acres,
in St. Albans and vicinity (a grant to Lord George
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 195
Townshend & Co.); Minto, thirty thousand acres, in
Richmond and vicinity.
Individual grants were made by Governor Tryon of
ten thousand acres in Vernon and Guilford; one thou-
sand acres in Danby ; four thousand acres in Shoreham ;
four thousand acres in Hubbardton ; five thousand acres
in Ira; and one thousand acres in Whiting. Tryon's
military patents included fifty-five thousand, nine hun-
dred and fifty acres. The New Hampshire charters in
Corinth, Westminster, Windsor, Newbury, Weathers-
field, New fane, Reading, Springfield, Woodstock,
Cavendish and Saltash (now Plymouth) were confirmed
or regranted. This makes a total of five hundred and
forty-two thousand, four hundred and fifty acres granted
at this time.
Governor Tryon having been called to England, Lieu-
tenant Governor Colden once more became acting Gov-
ernor, and the granting of lands in the present State of
Vermont proceeded, the following townships being
created : Kellybrook, thirty thousand acres, in Fletcher
and vicinity ; New Rutland, twenty-three thousand acres,
in Sheldon; Sidney, twenty-three thousand acres, in
Cabot and vicinity ; Wickham, thirty-six thousand acres,
in Randolph and vicinity; St. George, thirty thousand
acres, in Coventry and vicinity; Bamf, thirty thousand
acres, in Burke and vicinity; Therming, twenty thou-
sand acres, in Canaan; Meath, twenty-five thousand
acres, in Fairfield and vicinity; Smithfield, twenty-five
thousand acres, in Waterville and vicinity.
Individual grants were made of twenty thousand
acres in Johnson and vicinity (to King's College) ;
196 HISTORY OF VERMONT
twenty- four thousand acres in Lincoln and Ripton;
twenty-eight thousand acres in Lincoln, Ripton and
Granville; ten thousand acres in Fairfield (in two par-
cels); two thousand acres in Pawlet; twenty thousand
acres in Ryegate; twenty- four thousand acres in Strat-
ton. Military patents for nine thousand, one hundred
acres were also issued by Golden, making a total of three
hundred and seventy-nine thousand, one hundred acres
granted.
After Governor Tryon's return in 1775 he granted the
township of Whippleborough, in Starksboro and vicinity,
containing forty thousand acres, and made an individ-
ual grant of twenty-three thousand and forty acres, in
Topsham, as late as June 12, 1776, making a total of
sixty-three thousand and forty acres.
This list, taken from a compilation in the ''Proceed-
ings of the Vermont Historical Society," includes grants
by Lieutenant Governor Golden of nine hundred and
sixty-five thousand, five hundred acres; by Governor
Moore, of one hundred and forty-four thousand, six
hundred and twenty acres; by Governor Dunmore of
four hundred and fifty-five thousand, nine hundred and
fifty acres; and by Governor Tryon of five hundred and
forty-nine thousand, five hundred and forty acres, or a
total of two million, one hundred and fifteen thousand,
six hundred and ten acres. Adding to this list three
hundred and three thousand, one hundred acres granted
by various Governors as military patents, the aggregate
amount of Vermont lands, granted by all New York
Governors, was two million, four hundred and eighteen
thousand, seven hundred and ten acres.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 197
A later compilation made by Hiram A. Huse, a
thorough student of Vermont history, for the "New
Hampshire State Papers," includes grants by Governor
Dunmore of the townships of Chatham, containing
twelve thousand, seven hundred and fifty acres, prin-
cipally in Dorset, and Eugene, containing fifteen thou-
sand, three hundred and fifty acres in Rupert and Paw-
let. Other grants were Chester, containing thirty-one
thousand, seven hundred acres, being for the most part
a confirmation of the New Hampshire grant of Flam-
stead; Kingsland, including the present town of Wash-
ington, which became the county seat of Gloucester
county; and Poynell, said to have been located between
Thetford and Norwich. The township of Jauncey-
borough was situated between Ryegate, Topsham and
Peacham. Mention is made of the town of Rhineland,
called Underbill, and the New York Council changed the
name of Fulham (Dummerston) to Galway.
On February 14, 1776, a grant was made to Robert
Rogers, the well known scout of the French and Indian
W^ar period, and to others, of land on Lake Memphre-
magog, "to be erected into the township of Rogers-
borough, in compensation for the township of Dunbar,
granted to Rogers in 1762 by New Hampshire, but
already occupied." Probably other townships in the
New Hampshire Grants were patented by New York.
A map showing some of the English (or New York)
grants, indicates that Pratsburgh was granted to Jeston
Homfrey & Co., Deerfield to Wells & Co., and Minto to
Andrew Ellit & Co. A strip of land several miles wide,
extending along Lake Champlain from a point a little
198 HISTORY OF VERMONT
north of the mouth of Otter Creek nearly to the mouth
of the Winooski River, was granted to non-commis-
sioned officers and soldiers. This map shows grants to
Captains Ross and McAdam within the present limits
of Chittenden county and grants to Colonel Montresor,
Captain Williams and Lieutenants Cuyler, Dambler,
Allen, Grant, and Duncan Campbell. The last named
officer was a member of the famous Black Watch regi-
ment and was fatally wounded in General Abercrombie's
unsuccessful battle with the French army at Ticon-
deroga, in 1758. There is a legend to the effect that
Campbell was warned in a dream that he would meet
his death at Ticonderoga.
Few settlements were attempted on the New York
grants. Some rather ambitious plans were made for
Kingsland, the shire town of Gloucester county, which
is now known as the town of Washington. At a meet-
ing of the governors of King's College, held in New
York February 17, 1772, the Mayor, the Attorney Gen-
eral and other well known men being present, it was
reported that the encouragement given by this corpora-
tion for the settlement of the township had proved in-
sufficient, and it was voted that an actual survey be made
of the whole tract; that one thousand acres be laid out
in square lots of ten acres each for a "Town Spott,"
the center lot to be an open square or green. Plans were
made for laying out streets, and streams and places fit for
water works were to be noted in the survey. The first
twelve settlers were to have a choice of the central ten-
acre lots, and one hundred acres each for farms outside
of the town plot. It was planned to reserve certain lots
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS 199
fronting on the central square for public buildings and a
church. All these plans for a city were destined to
failure, and only a log jail was erected, which gave the
name to Jail Branch, a tributary of the Winooski River.
To the confirmation of New Hampshire charters, or
regrants of the same, by the New York Council, already
mentioned, should be added the towns of Andover,
Averill, Barnet, Bridgewater, Clarendon, Fairlee, Ful-
ham (Dummerston), Guilford, Halifax, Hartford
(under the name of Ware), Leicester, Lemington,
Lunenburgh, Maidstone, Marlboro, Minehead (Bloom-
field), Norwich, Orwell, Peacham, Pom fret. Putney,
Rockingham, Ryegate, Sharon, Shrewsbury, Somerset,
Strafiford, Stratton, Thetford, Thomlinson (Grafton),
Topsham, Tunbridge, Wallingford, Westford, Wilming-
ton and Winhall.
The records of the New York Council show many
petitions for the confirmation of New Hampshire
Grants, and in some instances the petitions contain prac-
tically all the names of the Wentworth grantees except
those of political associates or personal friends of the
New Hampshire Governor. Some of the petitions show
the names of a portion of the New Hampshire grantees,
and in other instances only a few of the names mentioned
in the New Hampshire charter are to be found. The
records give the changes of names in the patents of some
of these towns. In some instances the names of
grantees under the Wentworth charters appear in the
charters of other towns regrantedby New York. In
the regrants of certain towns it is specified that the
shares of Benning Wentworth, and a few others, prob-
200 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ably friends of the Governor, shall remain vested in the
crovv'n.
The names of many well known New York families
appear in the New York grants of lands now a part of
Vermont, such as Van Cortlandt, Cruger, Delancey,
Livingston, Roosevelt, Schuyler, Stuyvesant, Ten Eyck,
John Jay, Isaac Low, and others. Among the compen-
satory patents issued is one to Israel Putnam, for Pom-
fret.
In only a few instances did New York names or New
York grants become embodied in the life of the people of
Vermont. As a rule the grants made by New York
were larger in area than those made by New Hampshire,
and the grantees for each township were fewer. The
average number of grantees in the townships granted
by New Hampshire was sixty- four, but the number
varied from forty-eight in Sudbury and Whiting, to
eighty-two in Topsham and ninety- four in Ryegate.
It is evident that there was much land speculation
both in New York and New Hampshire Grants, and some
of those engaged in these land transactions bore names
well known to the public. A respectable number of the
New Hampshire grantees, however, appear to have been
actual settlers, and not a few of these names are
familiar to Vermonters of the present day.
Chapter IX
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS
ALTHOUGH some slight attempts at settlement
within the present limits of Vermont had been
made in the Connecticut valley prior to the close
of the French and Indian War, the area under cultiva-
tion beyond the immediate protection of a few fortified
posts was so small as to be almost negligible. During
the fifteen years that intervened between the surrender
of Montreal and the beginning of the American Revolu-
tion a great transformation took place, particularly in
that portion of Vermont now comprised in the four
southern counties of the State, Bennington, Rutland,
Windsor and Windham, and extending farther north in
the Connecticut and Champlain valleys. Indeed, by far
the greater part of this transformation occurred during
the decade between 1765 and 1775. Up to 1760 the
history of Vermont is confined largely to attempts on the
part of New England settlers to protect their homes
from the incursions of cruel and crafty savages, who
descended upon them by way of the passes through the
Green Mountains. The period with which this chapter
deals is that which relates to the first really successful
attempts to conquer the Vermont wilderness.
With the coming of peace in 1760, which resulted in
the banishment of French authority from Canada, the
long standing peril of Indian invasion was removed.
Several thousand Colonial soldiers had rendezvoused at
Crown Point or Ticonderoga or had entered the Cana-
dian region through one of its Vermont gatew^ays.
Some of them had aided in building the Crown Point
Road over the Green Mountains. Many of them had
seen that the new region was very promising, surpassing
204 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in fertility the soil of the older New England colonies.
They had noted its goodly pines, and had observed that
it was well watered by numerous rivers and an abun-
dance of smaller streams.
There was a general feeling of restlessness abroad, a
desire on the part of not a few New Englanders for a
wider field of activity. The New Hampshire Grants
were not so far removed that transportation methods,
which had changed very little for thousands of years,
would be seriously taxed in travelling to this Promised
Land, thus affording an outlet for the spirit of ad-
venture. The new lands were cheap, they were good,
they were accessible, and not many years elapsed before
the ancient highways of war became thronged with
families seeking to establish homes in the primeval for-
ests that lay in the valleys of the Connecticut River and
Lake Champlain and on the far stretching slopes and
foothills of the Green Mountains. In boats that
ascended the Connecticut or descended Lake Champlain,
on sledges that traversed the frozen surface of lakes and
streams, on horseback and on foot along the Indian
trails worn deep by the travel of countless centuries,
these sturdy pioneers, stout of heart and strong of limb,
thronged into this new region. Beyond the perils and
privations of the present they saw the vision of future
years of plenty and prosperity, and they were content
to toil and even to suffer, if only their dreams might
come true.
In six Vermont towns, Bennington, Guilford, Hali-
fax, Newbury, Pawlet and Townshend, settlements were
begun in 176L
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 205
Bennington — In Bennington, the first town west of
the Connecticut River granted by Governor Wentworth,
the leader in promoting the settlement of the township
was Capt. Samuel Robinson, who had resided in Hard-
wick, Mass., for twenty-six years. He had served in
the French and Indian War as an officer in Colonel
Ruggles' regiment, and was now fifty-six years old. As
the story generally is told, Robinson and a party of
soldiers, returning from Lake George to Massachusetts,
followed the Walloomsac River, supposing it to be the
Hoosac, until they came to the region later known as
Bennington, where they camped for the night. It is said
that Captain Robinson was so well pleased with this
locality that he determined to settle there. It is entirely
possible, of course, that the Hardwick Captain may have
blundered upon Bennington as the result of losing his
way, but the significant fact should not be overlooked
that when the township of Bennington was chartered
early in the year 1749, and several years before his
military expedition to Lake George, Samuel Robinson
was one of the grantees. Naturally he would be inter-
ested in his own property, whether he visited the place
by accident or by design, and he liked Bennington so well
that when he returned home it is said he organized a
company and purchased the rights of other original pro-
prietors, many of whom lived in Portsmouth, New
Hampshire.
The first immigration consisted of six families, includ-
ing twenty-tw^o people. These families, four of them
from Amherst, Mass., and two others, those of Leonard
Robinson and Samuel Robinson, Jr., came on June 18,
206 HISTORY OF VERMONT
1761. Twenty or thirty additional families came dur-
ing the summer and fall, including those of Capt. Samuel
Robinson, John Fassett of Hardwick, and others
from Massachusetts and Connecticut towns. The first
child born in town, January 2, 1762, was Benjamin
Harwood, who lived until June 22, 1851. Samuel Rob-
inson was commissioned a Justice of the Peace by Gov-
ernor Wentworth on February 8, 1762, and is said to
have been the first person within the present limits of
Vermont to be appointed to a judicial office. As early
as 1766 a meeting house was erected, the first Protestant
house of worship to be built in Vermont, and the first
church edifice to be built in this State in connection with
a permanent settlement.
Apparently there was a strong religious motive in
the settlement of Bennington, connected with what was
known as the Separatist movement. Much formality
is said to have grown up in the churches of New Eng-
land, and as the result of the preaching of Whitefield
and others there had been a great awakening, so-called.
This had resulted in some dissensions in the Congrega-
tional Church, and there were factions known as New
Lights and Old Lights. The Separatist churches of
Hardwick and Sunderland, Mass., united as the Church
of Bennington. Then the church at Westfield, Mass.,
voted to unite with the Bennington church, and the
Westfield pastor. Rev. Jedediah Dewey, became the pas-
tor of these united churches, coming to Bennington in
1763. Many members of the First Church at Norwich,
Conn., withdrew, refusing to pay tax rates for the sup-
port of the minister, and as many as forty men and
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 207
women of the Separatist faith in Norwich were im-
prisoned in a single year for this refusal. Not a few of
the early settlers of Bennington came from Norwich and
vicinity, and the fact that the Connecticut laws bore
rather harshly upon those not of the Orthodox faith,
doubtless contributed somewhat to the settlement of this
town and possibly that of other Vermont townships.
The soil of Bennington was highly productive and the
new township flourished. Seth Warner came in 1765
and Samuel Safford erected mills here in 1766. In a
letter from Governor Hutchinson of Massachusetts to
Governor Pownal, then in London, dated at Boston July
1, 1765, it is stated that Bennington had sixty-seven
families and as many houses, some of the dwellings
being of a sort superior to those of common settlers.
Hiland Hall says that by the year 1765, "a large portion
of the town had become occupied by settlers from Massa-
chusetts and Connecticut, who had cleared much of the
land, erected dwelling houses and barns, with mills,
opened and worked highways and established schools for
the instruction of children and youth, and were living in
a comfortable and thriving condition." During the next
ten years the population increased rapidly, and accord-
ing to Rev. Isaac Jennings probably it had reached fifteen
hundred persons when the American Revolution began
in 1775.
GuiivFORD — Although land was cleared in Guiltord
by Jonathan and Elisha Hunt as early as 1758, the first
settlement was not begun until September, 1761, when
Micah Rice and family came into this town. Other
families soon followed, coming up the valley of Broad
208 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Brook after leaving the Connecticut River. The first
settlers were obliged to boil or pound their corn, or to
go fifteen miles to mill, carrying their grists upon their
backs.
Not being able to fulfill the conditions of the charter
requiring the grantees to settle, clear and cultivate five
acres for every fifty in the township, a renewal and ex-
tension was secured in 1761, and again in 1764. This
town was virtually a little republic, really subject only
to the British Parliament, which naturally did not inter-
fere with a frontier settlement in a remote portion of
New England. In 1772 the people of Guilford re-
nounced their New Hampshire charter and voted that
the town was in the province of New York.
Beginning in 1764, and continuing for several years,
the population of this town increased rapidly, so that
Guilford soon became the most populous town in the
New Hampshire Grants, although there was not a vil-
lage within its borders. In 1771 the population was
four hundred and thirty-six and in 1772 it is said to have
been five hundred and eighty-six. This increase con-
tinued until the population had reached two thousand,
four hundred and thirty-two when the first census was
taken in 1791, the year of Vermont's admission to the
Union.
HaIvIFax — An attempt made in 1751 to settle Hali-
fax, the second Vermont town granted by Governor
Wentworth, was frustrated by the hostility of the
Indians. Ten years later, in 1761, Abner Rice of Wor-
cester county, Massachusetts, settled here, and in 1763
other families came from Colerain and Pelham, Mass.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 209
The population increased slowly during the first five
years of the town's existence, but after 1766 it grew
rapidly, and in 1771 the New York provincial census
showed the population of Halifax to be three hundred
and twenty-nine.
Newbury — In his excellent "History of Newbury,"
F. P. Wells relates the fact that four officers who had
served in Col. John Gofife's regiment during the French
and Indian War, Lieut. Col. Jacob Bayley, Capt. John
Hazen, Lieut. Jacob Kent and Lieut. Timothy Bedel,
returning home after the surrender of the French at
Montreal, in 1760, on their way down the Connecticut
valley stopped several days at Coos, as the region in
the vicinity of the Great Oxbow at Newbury was called,
and carefully examined the surrounding country. Con-
vinced that it was a most desirable location, Bayley and
Hazen came up in 1761 and took the first steps necessary
to establish a settlement. Men were secured to cut the
hay on the fertile Oxbow meadows, and cattle were
brought here, three men remaining to care for them dur-
ing the winter.
A few families came to Newbury in 1762, but it was
not until 1763 that a town charter was secured from
Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire, through the
efforts of Jacob Bayley and John Hazen. Settlers began
to come into the town in considerable numbers in 1763,
and during that year the first apple trees in Newbury
were planted. Most of the early inhabitants came from
southeastern New Hampshire and from Newbury,
Mass.
210 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The nearest mill to which the first settlers could re-
sort was located at Number Four (Charlestown, N. H.),
more than sixty miles distant. There were no roads
through the wilderness, and grain was carried to mill
in canoes, the meal or flour being brought home during
the following winter over the frozen surface of the Con-
necticut River. The crank for the first sawmill at New-
bury was drawn from Concord, N. H., on a hand sled,
a distance of nearly eighty miles.
TowNSHEND — Col. Johu Hazcltiue secured the char-
ter of Townshend, and it is said he caused the names of
neighbors and acquaintances to be entered as grantees
without their knowledge. The records show that he be-
came the owner of sixteen rights for one shilling each.
In 1761 Colonel Hazel tine cleared land in the west part
of the town and built a log fort. During the same sum-
mer John and Thomas Baird settled in town, all return-
ing to Massachusetts in the autumn. This practice of
working in the new township during the summer and
returning to the old home for the winter was continued
by these pioneers until 1766. Other persons began
clearings during the years 1764 and 1765. The popula-
tion in 1771 was one hundred and thirty-six.
PawlET — This town was granted to Jonathan Wil-
lard and sixty-seven others. For many years Captain
Willard was a resident of Colchester, Conn., and owned
and operated a vessel trading between New England
ports and New York. Soon after the year 1750 he re-
moved to Albany, N. Y., where he conducted the only
English tavern in the town. After residing in Albany
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 211
eight years he removed to Saratoga, N. Y., and engaged
in the lumber business.
In 1760 Captain Willard visited the New Hampshire
Grants with two companions, and selected three town-
ships. Grants were secured in 1761 for Pawlet, Danby
and Mount Tabor, the last named town being chartered
as Harwick. It is said that Captain Willard entered the
names of his former Connecticut neighbors as grantees,
and purchased many of their rights for a mug of flip
or a new hat. Pawlet fell to Willard as his share of
of the purchase.
Simon Burton and William Fairfield came into Pawlet
in 1761, Burton making the first clearing. In 1762
Captain Willard came into the town with nine laborers
and several horses, and as a result of their operations
several acres of land were cleared and sowed to wheat.
Meeting with heavy losses in the lumber business, Wil-
lard returned in 1764 or 1765, bringing his family,
although he had purchased the land in Pawlet for pur-
poses of speculation. Several of the early settlers were
veterans of the French and Indian War. Settlement
was slow until after Burgoyne's defeat in 1777. In
1770 there were only nine families in town.
PowNAL — The settlement of only one Vermont town,
Pownal, was begun in 1762. As early as 1724 Dutch
squatters had entered this region, and when settlers hold-
ing title under a New Hampshire charter arrived they
found a few of these families in possession of farms,
claiming rights under the Hoosick patent granted by
New York. The first settlers holding New Hampshire
titles came from Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
212 HISTORY OF VERMONT
George Gardner, who came from Hancock, Mass., in
1765, is said to have attained the great age of one hun-
dred and fourteen years. He planted an apple nursery
at the age of eighty-five years and lived to see some
of the trees bear fruit.
Six townships, Arlington, Hartford, Hartland, Marl-
boro, Norwich and Shaftsbury, were settled in 1763.
ARI.INGT0N — The first dwelling erected in Arlington
was a log house, built in 1763 by William Searl. Sev-
eral other families came into this town the same year.
A rough road, running north and south, and passable
for ox teams, had been constructed. In the proprietors'
records of the town of Middlebury reference is made
to the cutting of a road from Arlington to Crown Point
in the autumn of 1764. In the spring of 1764 several
families came here from Connecticut, including those of
Remember Baker and Jehiel Hawley. Baker, who
achieved fame in later years as a leader of the Green
Mountain Boys, was a millwright. Hawley became a
large landed proprietor, his wife being a sister of Seth
Warner.
Hartp'ord — Practically all the grantees of Hartford,
with the exception of a few friends and relatives of
Governor Wentworth, were inhabitants of Connecticut.
Strenuous efforts were made to secure an early and a
rapid settlement of this township. In March, 1762, the
proprietors voted that a premium of sixpence should be
paid for each bushel of wheat, rye or Indian corn, raised
in Hartford during the year 1763.
There is some evidence to indicate that four families
of squatters settled here as early as 1761, but the pro-
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 213
prietors' records, and a petition to the New York govern-
ment for letters patent state that the settlement was
begun in 1763. The New York petition sets forth the
claim that ten persons entered the town and labored in
1763. Other settlers came the following summer. The
petition to which reference has been made, dated May,
1765, declared that ten more "this present spring" have
gone on to improve, and about ten others "intend to go
immediately." Most of the early settlers were Con-
necticut people, many of them coming from the town of
Lebanon.
Some of the best lands were purchased for one shilling
per acre. It is stated that "thousands upon thousands
of white pine trees were consigned to the fire or rolled
into the river because they were considered less valuable
than the land upon which they grew." The population
in 1771, according to New York census returns, was one
hundred and ninety. Probably at the outbreak of the
Revolutionary War there was a population of three hun-
dred.
HarTi^and — The settlement of Hartland (chartered
as Hertford) was begun by Timothy Lull, in May, 1763.
He came up the Connecticut River in a log canoe, bring-
ing his family and his household goods. At the mouth
of a large brook in this town he broke a bottle, which
contained, presumably, something stronger than Con-
necticut River water, and named the stream Lull's
Brook. Ascending this brook about a mile, he found a
deserted log house, and here he made his home. Most
of the first settlers came from Massachusetts and Con-
214 HISTORY OF VERMONT
necticut. The New York enumeration of 1771 gave this
town a population of one hundred and forty-four.
Marlboro — The first settlers of Marlboro were Abel
Stockwell of West Springfield, Mass., and Thomas
Whitmore of Middletown, Conn. Coming into this
township in the spring of 1763, one family settled in
the northern and one in the southern part of the town,
and they resided in Marlboro nearly a year before either
family knew of the presence of the other, each supposing
itself to be the only family in town. The settlement,
which had grown slowly, was considerably augmented in
1770 by emigrants from Massachusetts and Connecticut.
In 1771 the population of the town was fifty.
Many incidents are related of the hardships endured
by the early settlers. Samuel Whitney, a famous hunter
who lived in this town, became engaged in a hand-to-
hand struggle with a bear and carried a scar the re-
mainder of his life as a reminder of the terrible wound
he received. While he was ill of a fever the fuel supply
of the family became exhausted, and his daughter Betty,
aged thirteen years, yoked up the oxen, went into the
woods, cut a load of wood, drew it to the house, and
chopped it into firewood.
Norwich — Early in 1761 a petition was circulated
in eastern Connecticut, in the valleys of the Thames
River and its branches, the Shetucket and the Willi-
mantic, asking for four townships "at a place known as
Cahorse" (Coos) in the vicinity of what is now known
as Newbury. Col. Edward Freeman and Joseph Storrs
were appointed agents of a syndicate to carry this peti-
tion to Governor Wentworth at Portsmouth. The Gov-
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 215
ernor was not ready at that time to grant the very de-
sirable region at Coos, but the agents obtained a grant
of four townships, two on each bank of the Connecticut
River, about twenty-five miles south of the desired loca-
tion. The towns chartered were Norwich and Hartford
on the west bank, and Hanover and Lebanon on the east
bank of the river. The Norwich grantees were mostly
residents of Mansfield, Conn., and the neighboring towns
of Tolland and Willington.
In 1762 a portion of Norwich adjacent to the Con-
necticut River was divided into lots, and the proprietors
of the four towns voted to unite in ''clearing a road
from the old fort in Number Four on the east side of
the river as far up said river as a committee chosen
for the purpose may think proper." In 1763 a road was
opened as far north as the middle of the town of Han-
over.
Early in April, 1763, the proprietors of Norwich voted
to raise five pounds upon each proprietor's right, to be
divided among twenty-five men who should immediately
engage to settle twenty-five rights, beginning the en-
suing summer, and improving at the rate of three acres
annually for five years, failure to comply with these
terms calling for a repayment of the money advanced.
The required number having failed to present them-
selves, at a meeting held in May, 1763, it was agreed
that in case any number under twenty-five and not less
than fifteen should engage in the settlement as suggested
by January 1, they should be entitled to the money.
The first settlement in Norwich was made by John
Slafter, son of Samuel Slafter, one of the proprietors.
216 HISTORY OF VERMONT
and by Jacob Fenton and Ebenezer Smith of Mansfield,
both proprietors. Slafter had made a journey through
this region in 1762, and he found the location at Nor-
wich a desirable one. Soon after coming to town Fen-
ton was killed as the result of an accident. For four
years young Slafter cleared and fitted the new land, re-
turning each autumn to Connecticut to spend the winter.
In 1767 he married and in the spring of that year, with
his bride and several families from his neighborhood
who were going into the Coos country, a party was made
up for the journey of one hundred and fifty miles.
Leaving Mansfield on April 22, they could make no more
than eight or nine miles a day against the spring floods,
and they did not reach Norwich until May 10. In sev-
eral places it was necessary to unload the boats and
carry goods and boats around rapids or waterfalls.
Some pioneers came on horseback. Beyond Number
Four there was nothing but a crooked bridle path for a
road, and that was obstructed by fallen trees. There
were no bridges across the streams. Other settlers
came in the same manner. The wife, or the wife and
babes, were placed on the back of a horse with the cloth-
ing and bedding, and the man of the family walked.
In 1771 Deacon John Burnap and six children came to
Norwich, from Lebanon, Conn., carrying household
goods in packs on their backs.
Immigration was not large before 1767 or 1768, and
it is doubtful if the proprietors secured the minimum
number of fifteen settlers within the prescribed time
limit. As early as 1768 settlers had arrived in consider-
able numbers, and farms had been cleared two or three
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 217
miles back from the Connecticut River. Goddard and
Partridge's "History of Norwich" says: "Before 1770
a large and steady stream of immigration was pouring
into the new towns along the Connecticut River. The
woods were full of new settlers. On foot and on horse-
back, men, women and children thronged the rough and
narrow roads beside the river in the spring of every
year. Their canoes and boats dotted the river itself.
Late in winter or early spring many came by sleds or
sleighs down upon the firm ice that bridged the stream
from shore to shore.
"Rev. Mr. Sanderson in his 'History of Charlestown,
N. H.,' says that the town was crowded with companies
which had come there to take an outlook upon the new
lands of which they had heard marvelous tales from the
rangers and soldiers during the French and Indian
Wars. And it is not strange if the smooth and fertile
hillsides and rich intervales of Vermont did seem a
veritable land of Canaan to the immigrant accustomed
to the stony and sterile fields of eastern Massachusetts
and Connecticut.
"According to Mr. Sanderson, the traffic in supplies
for travellers and those newly arrived was a source of
much profit to the people of Charlestown. Not only
were the inns of the place frequently filled to overflow-
ing, but every private family had all they could victual
and lodge. * * *
"Never was a tract of country colonized and settled
by a more homogenous people. On both sides of the
river nearly all were emigrants from Connecticut, and
from that portion of Connecticut lying east of the Great
218 HISTORY OF VERMONT
River. By far the greater part came from a small group
of towns lying around Mansfield and Lebanon. A
radius of twenty miles extended in every direction from
the present town of Willimantic would cover pretty much
the whole ground. As regards Norwich, considerable
research among the oldest families has not revealed the
first one among the inhabitants of the town previous to
the year 1790 (then numbering more than 1,000 souls)
that in coming here did not leave a home in eastern Con-
necticut.
''Norwich and Hanover were largely settled by emi-
grants from Mansfield; Hartford, Lebanon and Pier-
mont from Lebanon, Conn. ; Thetford, Orford and Fair-
lee from Hebron; and Strafiford and Sharon from
Hebron and Goshen. * * * Qf Norwich itself,
after Mansfield and Preston, Tolland, Lebanon, Hebron,
Willington and Coventry were the principal mother
towns."
In 1771 Norwich contained forty families and two
hundred and six persons.
Shaftsbury — The first settlement in Shaftsbury was
made in 1763. A considerable number of settlers came
from Rhode Island and located in the northeast portion
of the town, the settlement being known as Little Rhode
Island. George Niles, one of the early settlers, lived to
be one hundred and five years old. Jonas Galusha,
afterward Governor of Vermont, came into town in
the spring of 1775.
As nearly as can be determined seven Vermont towns
were settled during the year 1764. The number in-
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 219
eluded Chester, Guildhall, Manchester, Panton, Sharon,
(probably) Thetford and Windsor.
Chester — This township was first granted by Gov-
ernor Wentworth as Flamstead, and later it was re-
granted as New Flamstead. Most of the original pro-
prietors were residents of Worcester, Mass., and neigh-
boring towns. The first settlement was made by
Thomas Chandler and his sons John and Thomas, in
1764. They were soon followed by seven men from
Worcester and Maiden, Mass., and Woodstock, Conn.
Some of the early settlers came from Rhode Island. In
1766 Governor Tryon of New York granted a charter
for this town which he called Chester, and under this
charter the lands of the town are now held. Chester
was made the shire- town of Cumberland county and en-
joyed that honor until 1772, when the county seat was
removed to Westminster. According to the New York
enumeration, the population in 1771 was one hundred
and fifty-two.
GuiivDHALL — Guildhall and the adjoining towns on
the Connecticut River, together with Brunswick and
Stratford, N. H., were known as the Upper Coos, to
distinguish this region from that around the Great
Oxbow at Newbury. The Indian trail from Maine to
Canada ran close to Guildhall. It is related that
Emmons Stockwell, returning from service in Canada
as a soldier in the French and Indian War, was
attracted by this portion of the valley of the Connecticut,
and organized at Lancaster, Mass., a party to settle this
region. There were five men in this party, including
Stockwell, some of them being residents of the Massa-
220 HISTORY OF VERMONT
chusetts town of Petersham. They took with them
twenty cattle and some horses. This year, 1764, they
planted seventeen acres of corn, the first grown in this
region by white men. It stood twelve feet high when
a frost killed it the twenty-seventh day of August. The
stock of cattle almost doubled the first year, but owing
to the destruction of the corn all the cattle perished the
first winter. Not discouraged by this loss, the settlers
secured more cattle from their former homes.
Temporary camps or cabins were built the first year,
but the following season more substantial dwellings
were erected. Other immigrants came in 1775. All these
early settlers were squatters, but after a controversy
lasting a considerable period, they were confirmed in
their possessions by the action of the Vermont Legisla-
ture.
Manchester — A party of explorers from Amenia,
Dutchess County, N. Y., while visiting the region now
known as Salem, N. Y., in 1763, ascended a mountain
which gave them an extensive view to the eastward.
Seeing from this point of vantage a pleasant valley, the
party visited it, and thus explored a portion of the pres-
ent town of Manchester. The visitors were favorably
impressed with this region, and bought nearly all the
rights of the proprietors, who were chiefly residents of
Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and held the lands
for purposes of speculation. The first settlement was
made during the summer or autumn of 1764. At that
time there was no settlement on the west side of the
Green Mountains north of Arlington. Nearly all the
(This Map is not dated, but was ordered by the Governor and Council
of New York in 1772)
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 221
early settlers were from Amenia, N. Y., a town largely
settled by New Englanders.
Panto N — A survey of Panton was made in 1762 by
Ebenezer Frisbee and others, of Sharon, Conn. In
April, 1764, the proprietors of this town offered a bounty
of seventy pounds to any number of the owners of rights,
not less than fifteen, who would go to this town and
make necessary clearings preliminary to settlement. It
appears that during the spring or summer of that year
Capt. Samuel Elmore, Zadock Everest, Samuel Chipman,
and others, to the number of fifteen, *'did go, and there
build, clear and fence," on fifteen of the town lots.
Work was begun on a sawmill in 1764, and it was com-
pleted the following year.
In 1766 Benjamin Kellogg and Zadock Everest
secured a surveyor and laid out seventy-six city lots, of
one acre each. Col. David Wooster, afterward an
American General during the Revolutionary War, held
a New York title to lands in this town. Peter Ferris
came from Dutchess county, N. Y., about 1766. Elijah
Grandey came from Connecticut in 1773, and Phineas
Holcomb from Dutchess county. New York, in 1774.
Sharon — Probably this town was settled in 1764,
although the date may have been 1765. The proprietors
offered a choice of lots to any five or more of their num-
ber who would "clear and soe three acres with English
grain," and build a house sixteen feet square within a
given period. Most of the early settlers came from Con-
necticut. This town was credited with sixty-eight in-
habitants by the enumeration of 1771.
222 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Thetford — The town lots of Thetford were sur-
veyed and a road was laid out in 1761. The first settle-
ment was begun in 1764 by John Chamberlain of Hebron,
Conn., from which town most of the early settlers came.
Other families followed in 1765. The land when cleared
was very productive, and moose, deer, beaver and fish
were plentiful.
Windsor — The first permanent settlement in Wind-
sor was made in 1764 by Capt. Steele Smith and family,
from Farmington, Conn. Plans were made at an earlier
date for drawing lots, laying out roads, building mills,
etc. In a petition to the New York provincial govern-
ment, asking for a regrant, dated October 29, 1765, it is
stated that about sixteen families had settled in Wind-
sor. The population in 1771 was two hundred and
three.
The records indicate that four towns in the New
Hampshire Grants were settled in 1765. These were
Addison, Bradford, Danby and Woodstock.
Addison — While serving as a soldier in General
Amherst's army, during the French and Indian War,
it was the custom of Benjamin Kellogg of Connecticut
to hunt deer within the present limits of the town of
Addison, to secure venison for the table of the British
officers at Crown Point. After the war had ended Kel-
logg returned to this region in 1762, 1763 and 1764 on
hunting expeditions. In the spring of 1765 Zadock
Everest, David Vallance and one other settler began a
clearing about three miles north of Chimney Point. In
September of this year Kellogg came up on his annual
hunting expedition, and John Strong of Salisbury,
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 223
Conn., accompanied him, seeking a location for a new
home. Selecting a place on the shore of Lake Cham-
plain, Strong built on the site of an old French house.
In February, 1766, Strong brought his family to
Addison, coming by way of Lakes George and Cham-
plain. During the same year several families came into
Addison and Panton by way of Otter Creek. Wild
animals were very troublesome, and it is related that
in September, 1766, while Strong was absent from home
on a trip to Albany, N. Y., to secure supplies, his family
had an unpleasant experience. A fire had been lighted,
as the evenings were cool, and a kettle of samp and a
pan of milk had been placed on the table for the family
supper. Just then the blanket that served for a door
was thrust aside and the head of a bear appeared. Mrs-
Strong caught up the baby, and hurrying the older chil-
dren up a ladder to the loft, she drew up the ladder after
her. The floor of the loft was made of small poles and
it was possible through the cracks to watch operations
below. Presently the bear and her two cubs entered the
room. After upsetting the milk the bear thrust her
head into the pudding pot, swallowed a large mouthful
and filled her mouth again before she discovered that
the pudding was scalding hot. With a furious growl
she struck the iron kettle, overturning and breaking it.
Then, sitting up on her haunches, her cubs sitting on
either side, she tried to get the hot pudding out of her
mouth. The sight was so ludicrous that in spite of the
danger the children in the loft overhead could not resist
the impulse to laugh at the curious spectacle. This
angered the old bear still more and she tried to climb
224 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to the loft, but after many fruitless attempts the animals
withdrew. When Mr. Strong returned home he made
a stout door of slabs, hung on wooden hinges, which
kept out other unwelcome visitors. This episode will
give an idea of the perils of frontier life in Vermont.
Bradford — The first settlement in Bradford was
made in 1765, the first settlers being squatters. In 1770
thirty landholders desiring a legal title, sent one of their
number, Samuel Sleeper, to New York with an oflfer to
William Smith, an influential citizen, that if he would
secure a royal charter, and give each of the landholders
a good title to one hundred acres in the new township,
he and such other proprietors as he might select,
should have the remainder of the lands. The charter
was secured and the name Mooretown was given pre-
sumably in honor of Sir Henry Moore, royal Governor
of New York. In the spring of 1771 a great freshet
occurred which destroyed much property in the Con-
necticut valley in this town, and as a result the more
elevated lands were sought by settlers.
Danby — On September 24, 1760, a meeting was
held at the house of Nathan Shepard, in Nine Partners,
Dutchess county, N. Y., which was attended by petition-
ers who asked Gov. Benning Wentworth of New Hamp-
shire for a grant of two townships. Samuel Rose was
appointed agent to go to Albany "and get what infor-
mation he could" relative to obtaining a grant for the
two townships, "in the western part of the province of
New Hampshire," to quote from records given in "Wil-
liams' History of Danby." Capt. William Lamson of
Albany was employed to procure the grant, but failing
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 225
to secure the desired results, on October 15, 1760, Jona-
than Willard was appointed the agent of the petitioners,
and he was sent to Portsmouth, N. H. His mission was
successful and he secured charters for Danby, Pawlet
and Harwick, known later as Mount Tabor. Apparently
the opinion was not very generally held in the vicinity
of Nine Partners that lands west of the Connecticut
River formed a portion of the territory of New York.
Surveys were made in 1762 and 1763, and in the
autumn of 1763 or in the spring of 1764 a road was laid
out from Bennington to Danby. The first settlement
was begun in the summer of 1765 by five men, two of
whom came from Nine Partners, N. Y., and two from
Rhode Island. Other settlers came in 1767, bringing
cattle and swine. About twenty families came in 1768.
A large number of the first settlers were Quakers and
in a letter Ethan Allen once alluded to "Quaker Danbe."
An eminence in town was called Dutch Hill, because
several families of Dutch extraction settled in its vicin-
ity. Wolves were troublesome in the early period of
the town's history.
Thomas Rowley, the poet of the Revolution, came
from Hebron, Conn., in 1768, and in 1769 he was elected
the first Town Clerk of Danby. Afterward he re-
moved to Shoreham.
Woodstock — In 1765, Timothy Knox, a student of
Harvard College, so the story runs, being disappointed
in a love aflfair, fled to what is now the town of Wood-
stock, and for three years lived a solitary life, following
the occupation of a trapper. The first permanent settler
was Andrew Powers, who came here in 1768. He was
226 HISTORY OF VERMONT
a native of Massachusetts, but had resided in Hartland
for a few years. James Sanderson came from Hart-
land in the autumn of 1768, drawing his property, his
wife and their six-weeks-old child on a hand sled.
Other settlers came about this time, but in 1771 there
were only forty-two inhabitants.
In 1766 settlements were made in Fairlee, Middlebury,
New fane, probably in Shelburne, in Shoreham and Sun-
derland.
Fairlee — In 1766 John Baldwin, who had come from
Hebron, Conn., to Thetford the previous year, settled in
Fairlee. In 1768 six other men made homes in this
town.
Middlebury — Several residents of Connecticut, most
of them from Salisbury, desiring to secure lands in the
New Hampshire Grants, made an agreement to act to-
gether in procuring a survey and applying for charters,
and John Everts of Salisbury was appointed their agent.
Securing the necessary assistance, he penetrated one
hundred miles into the wilderness beyond any settlements
before he found a sufficient tract of desirable land not
already surveyed or in process of being surveyed. It
is said to have been Everts' intention to apply for two
townships, but sufficient land for three was found on the
east side of Otter Creek. Beginning at the head of the
Great Falls (now in Vergennes) he surveyed New
Haven, Middlebury and Salisbury, the first and the last
being named for Connecticut townships, and Middlebury
being so named because it was situated between the two
other towns granted. The charters for the three towns
mentioned were obtained in 1761. There are indications
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 227
that the proprietors of Cornwall acted in some matters
with those of New Haven, Middlebury and Salisbury.
Elias Reed, the agent who secured the Cornwall charter,
resided at Salisbury, Conn., and Everts and Reed went
to Portsmouth at the same time to secure charters for
new townships.
In the spring of 1766 John Chipman of Salisbury,
Conn., with fifteen other young men, set out for the new
lands of the New Hampshire Grants, taking oxen
and a cart laden with farming tools and other necessary
articles. They found no house north of Manchester,
and probably no road beyond Sutherland Falls, where
the village of Proctor is now located. In some places
it was necessary for this pioneer band to cut a path.
The party followed the valley of the Battenkill to the
headwaters of Otter Creek, and at Sutherland Falls a
canoe was fashioned from a large tree. The ox-cart
was fastened to the stern of the canoe and was towed up
stream, while the oxen were driven along the bank. In
this manner the young men proceeded to the present site
of Vergennes, where the waterfall interrupted naviga-
tion.
Some of the party settled in Waltham and others in
Panton and Addison. Chipman returned to Connecticut
after a short stay in town, during which time he made
a clearing in the forest. Benjamin Smalley of Salis-
bury, Conn., who settled here in 1773, was the first man
to bring his family into town. The same year Chipman
returned, and Gamaliel Painter and several others
brought their families to Middlebury. Before the Revo-
lutionary War began thirteen families had settled here.
228 HISTORY OF VERMONT
At this time there were no mills nearer than Pittsford,
or Ticonderoga, N. Y.
Newfane — The first settlers of Newfane were Jona-
than Park, Nathaniel Stedman and Ebenezer Dyer, of
Worcester county, Mass., who came here in 1766. In
1772 the Governor of New York granted this town to
Walter Franklin and twenty others, most of them being
residents of New York. These grantees sold their
rights to Luke Knowlton and John Taylor of Worcester
county, Mass., and titles to lands in Newfane are derived
from this charter. The first settlers brought all their
provisions from Hinsdale, twenty miles distant, through
the wilderness. There were only six families in town in
1774.
ShElburne — The first settlers in Shelburne were
John Pettier and James Logan, and most histories say
they came to this town in 1768. Pottier was one of the
original proprietors, and is said to be the only one of
this group who ever came into the town. Logan and
Pottier were associated in getting out oak timber and
rafting it to the Quebec market. Early reports to the
effect that these men were murdered by British soldiers
for their money not far from the Canadian border, have
found a place in various historical sketches.
The Journal of William Gilliland, the founder of
Willsboro, N. Y., a town situated on the western shore
of Lake Champlain, nearly opposite Shelburne, seems to
discredit some of these generally accepted reports.
There is an entry under date of January 31, 1767, which
says : "This day some of our settlers went to see James
Logan, whether alive or dead, they crossed the lake in
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 229
a small birch canoe." Sometimes the lake at this point
did not freeze over until late in the winter.
The entry in the Journal indicates the possibility that
a rumor of the murder of Logan, or Logan and Pottier,
may have reached Willsboro, and that the canoe trip
may have been undertaken to obtain information regard-
ing the truth of such a report. No further reference
is made to Logan until March 19, when it is said that
Logan crossed the ice to Willsboro, having returned
from Canada two days previous to this date. Several
other references to Logan are made during the month
of March. This Journal proves that Logan was living
at Shelburne as early as January, 1767, which would in-
dicate that he had come to town as early as 1766. While
he may have been murdered later, the false rumor afloat
regarding his death may have been responsible for this
report.
The two settlements of Shelburne and Willsboro were
closely affiliated, neither having an outlet by roads.
Most of the early settlers were from Connecticut and
Massachusetts.
Shoreham — The charter of Shoreham is said to have
been obtained through the agency of Ephraim Doolittle,
a captain in General Amherst's army, who was engaged
in laying out the Crown Point Road, which passed
through Shoreham and Bridport, in each of which towns
Doolittle became the proprietor of six rights. In the
spring of 1766 Doolittle and twelve or fourteen com-
panions came from Worcester county, Mass., and built
a log house, living as one family, each man taking his
turn in performing the household tasks. A portion of
230 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the settlers left town, owing to the prevalence of fever
and ague. Some time elapsed before any families were
brought here, and only six families are known to have
lived here prior to the year 1775.
SundEri^and — The settlement of Sunderland was
begun in 1766. Among the early settlers were Gideon
Brownson of Salisbury, Conn., Timothy Brownson of
New Framingham, Conn., and several men from Guil-
ford, Conn. Other large accessions soon followed from
Massachusetts and Connecticut towns. A fifty-acre lot
was voted to Remember Baker to encourage the build-
ing of a gristmill and a sawmill.
Vergennes — Although Vergennes was not incor-
porated until 1788, the first settlement within its present
limits was made by Donald Mcintosh, a Scotchman, and
a veteran of General Wolfe's army. As early as 1764
work was begun on a sawmill, which was completed in
1765, and over the possession of which there was much
controversy. In 1769 John Griswold, his five sons, and
twelve families from Salisbury, Conn., settled here.
Rupert — Probably this town was named in honor of
Prince Rupert. The date of the first settlement is not
known but it was earlier than 1767. Jonas Powers was
the first settler. Others came into the Mettowee valley
not later than 1767 ; into the White Creek valley not later
than 1769; and into the Indian River valley not later
than 1771. The early settlers were mostly Connecticut
men, with a few from Massachusetts and New Hamp-
shire, Rhode Island and New York.
CasTlETon — In the spring of 1767, Amos Bird and
Noah Lee of Salisbury, Conn., attended by a colored
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 231
servant, set out for Castleton, Colonel Bird having pur-
chased many of the shares of the original proprietors,
who were chiefly residents of Salisbury. From Man-
chester to Clarendon it was necessary to follow marked
trees. The party passed along the northern border of
Castleton, ignorant of the fact that they were near their
destination. Proceeding to Crown Point, they went to
Ticonderoga and Skenesborough (Whitehall), reaching
Castleton by this roundabout route.
The first summer was devoted to exploring and sur-
veying the township. Bird Mountain received its name
from the fact that Colonel Bird, losing his way, was
compelled to spend a night on its summit. He peeled the
bark from trees and displayed the white surface to
scare away wild animals. Log cabins were built and
the party returned to Connecticut in the autumn. The
next year the same party of three came to Castleton.
Bird returned to Salisbury before winter, but Lee and
the colored man remained, suffering severe hardships.
Colonel Bird built a sawmill, and while engaged in the
task he contracted a fever. A physician was summoned
from Salisbury, Conn., who remained until the patient
was convalescent. On account of a relapse the phy-
sician was recalled but Colonel Bird died before his ar-
rival. It is said that the first boards from the new
sawmill were used to make the pioneer's coffin. A few
families arrived in Castleton in 1770. A road was sur-
veyed from the west line of Ira to Fair Haven in 1772,
following the course of the Castleton River.
PiTTsFORD — Most of the grantees of Pittsford were
residents of Massachusetts. Col. Ephraim Doolittle
232 HISTORY OF VERMONT
was the most active, and at one time he owned nearly
one-fifth of the township. There is said to have been
much speculation in town lots. The first settlers were
Gideon and Benjamin Cooley of Greenwich, Mass., the
former being a soldier who had visited the region during
the French and Indian War, and early in the year 1767
they built a log house and made a clearing. Other set-
tlers came soon, among them being Felix Powell, who
was to have the distinction of being the first settler in
the towns of Dorset and Burlington. The Cooley
brothers returned to Greenwich in the autumn, but came
back to Pitts ford the following spring and planted crops.
In 1769 Gideon Cooley brought his family here.
In 1770 seven families arrived in town. Others came
during the next few years, but the population did not in-
crease rapidly until 1774. Some of the settlers came
from Dutchess county, N. Y., but the greater part were
from Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Waltham — Although this town was not incorporated
until 1796, preparations for settlement within its present
limits were made in 1767 by a man named Barton, and
by others, but they returned the same year to Connecti-
cut. In 1768 Barton returned with his family. Being
opposed by New York partisans and by Indians his house
was burned and Barton was made a prisoner. Later he
returned to Waltham and was joined by other settlers.
The towns settled in 1768 included Andover, Bridport,
Clarendon, Dorset, Grafton, Lunenburg, probably Straf-
ford, and Wells.
Andover — The first attempt at the settlement of
Andover was made in 1768 by Shubail Geer and Amos
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 233
Babcock. They did not remain in town long, and no
further attempt at settlement was made until 1776.
Bridport — Most of the original proprietors of Brid-
port were residents of Massachusetts. Ephraim Doo-
little was active in the early settlement of this town, as
he was in that of several other towns. Before the end
of the year 1768 Philip Stone came here from Groton,
Mass., and made a home. About the same time two
families settled under New York titles and three under
New Hampshire titles.
For a long time the Crown Point Military Road was
the only road in this vicinity, Lake Champlain, however,
furnished a natural highway both summer and winter.
In times of need the settlers were able to obtain pro-
visions from the garrison at Crown Point.
Clarendon — The first settlement of Clarendon was
begun in 1768 by Elkanah Cook, and he was joined by
other pioneers during the same year. Most of the early
settlers were from Rhode Island. Disputes with New
York land claimants delayed the early settlement of the
town.
Dorset — The first settler in Dorset was Felix Powell,
who came here in 1768, having emigrated to Pitts ford
the previous year. Others came the same year, includ-
ing Abraham Underbill, member of a family whose name
appeared frequently among the proprietors of towns
granted by Governor Wentworth. Another early set-
tler was Cephas Kent, an inn keeper, whose tavern was
to figure prominently in early Vermont history.
Grafton — The family of a Mr. Hinkley, and two
other families came into Grafton in 1768 and began a
234 HISTORY OF VERMONT
settlement, but it was abandoned, and not until 1780 was
there a permanent settlement here.
Lunenburg — Probably the first settlement of Lunen-
burg was made as early as 1768, by Uriah Cross, Thomas
Gaston and Ebenezer Rice, in the valley of the Connecti-
cut River. The early settlers of the neighboring town
of Guildhall came from Lunenburg, Mass., and sup-
posed they were settling in the new town of Lunenburg.
When this town was first settled, moose and deer were
very plentiful, and salmon, some of them of great size,
were taken with the spear at the head of Fifteen Mile
Falls, in the Connecticut River.
Strafford — The early proprietors' meetings of the
town of StrafTord were held at Hebron, Conn. The first
settlers appear to have been James Pennock and Peter
Thomas, who came here in 1768. Several other persons
settled here the same year. Within the next few years
the number of inhabitants was considerably increased,
some coming from Connecticut and others from New
Hampshire. One of the pioneers was Frederick Smith
of Colchester, Conn., who had been employed by several
persons owning lands in the New Hampshire Grants to
look after their interests and visit their property.
WeIvIvS — Most, if not all, of the original proprietors
of Wells were residents of Connecticut. The first set-
tlement was made by Ogden Mallory in 1768. Daniel
and Samuel Culver came into town in 1771 and moved
their families here the following year. Most of the
early settlers came from Massachusetts and Connecti-
cut.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 235
During the year 1769 settlements were made in the
towns of Cavendish, Ferrisburg, Landgrove, New
Haven, Pomfret and Rutland.
Cavendish — Some of the proprietors of Cavendish
visited the town in 1762, and surveyed and allotted it.
The first actual settlement was made in 1769 by Capt.
John Cofifein, and other settlers came in 1771. Most of
the early inhabitants emigrated from Massachusetts.
Ferrisburg — A charter for the town of Ferrisburg
was granted in 1762 by Gov. Benning Wentworth, appli-
cation having been made by Benjamin Ferris. A sur-
vey and division of lots was made for the proprietors
by David and Benjamin Ferris, surveyors. The first
settlement was made in 1769 at the first falls of Otter
Creek, within the present limits of the city of Vergennes.
The first settlement within the present limits of Ferris-
burg was made by Charles Tupper, who came from Pitts-
field, Mass., just before the beginning of the American
Revolution. About the same time a man named Ferris
began a settlement at Basin Harbor, on Lake Cham-
plain.
Landgrove — The first settlers in what is now the town
of Landgrove were William Utley and family, who
came from Ash ford, Conn., in 1769, and settled with-
out obtaining any title to their lands. In coming to
their new home it was necessary to cut a road for
fourteen miles through the wilderness. For some time
Mr. Utley brought provisions for his family from a Con-
necticut River settlement thirty miles distant. In 1780
the town of Landgrove was granted to William Utley
and others.
236 HISTORY OF VERMONT
New Have:n — One of the townships for which John
Everts of Salisbury, Conn., obtained a charter from
Governor Wentworth, was New Haven, which he named
in honor of New Haven, Conn. Few of the original
proprietors became settlers, and some of the owners are
said to have forfeited their holdings rather than pay
their share of the incidental expenses which attended the
surveying and allotting of a township. A few settlers
came in 1769, among them being John Griswold and
his five sons, and twelve other persons came the same
year. The settlement of the town was hindered some-
what by contests growing out of the claims of Colonel
Reid under a New York grant.
RuTivAND — A charter for the town of Rutland was
secured by Col. Josiah Willard of Winchester, N. H.,
and the cost is said to have been about one hundred dol-
lars. The town was laid out along the old Crown Point
Road. The first grantee named in the charter was John
Murray, called the principal citizen of Rutland, Mass.,
and he may have given the name to the new township.
Most of the proprietors are said to have been residents
of New Hampshire.
James Mead and several other persons emigrated in
1764 from Nine Partners, N. Y., a town adjoining Salis-
bury, Conn., to Manchester, in the New Hampshire
Grants. In the autumn of 1764 Mead bought twenty
rights in the town of Rutland, and sold ten to Charles
Button of Clarendon. Before winter he built a log
house half a mile west of the present site of Center Rut-
land, near the bank of West Creek. In March, 1770,
Mead and his family, consisting of a wife and ten chil-
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 237
dren, came to Rutland. The log hut had no roof and
it was located too near the river for comfort at the time
of the spring freshets. Nearby was a wigwam occupied
by Indians, who generously granted its use to the new
comers, and proceeded to build another shelter for them-
selves. The Mead family occupied the wigwam until
late in the year, when a substantial log house was erected.
The Meads had an iron handmill, in which corn was
ground into a rather coarse meal. At least four fami-
lies had come into Rutland by the close of the year 1770
and in 1773 the town contained thirty-five families.
PoMF'RET — The charter of Pomfret was obtained from
Governor Wentworth by Isaac Dana of Pomfret, Conn.,
in 1761. Most of the proprietors were friends and
neighbors of Mr. Dana. In an attempt to secure settlers
the proprietors voted to offer a generous bounty to the
first ten of their number who would settle between March
and November, 1762, but no proprietor took advantage
of the offer. In 1769 several log cabins were built
and clearings were made in this town. In 1770 a
number of families came to Pomfret. Isaac Dana, the
leader in securing the grant of the township, died before
conditions warranted a settlement, but a son, two sons-
in-law and a grandson became settlers, and they were
the only grantees who came to Pomfret to reside.
Bartholomew Durkee brought his family here from
Pomfret, Conn., in March, 1770, the party coming on
foot over a snowshoe path, drawing their furniture upon
hand sleds. The settlement was largely increased during
the first two years of its existence. The settlers came
chiefly from northeastern Connecticut and southeastern
238 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Massachusetts, the largest number coming from Wood-
stock, Conn., and Bridgewater, Mass.
The town of Barnet was settled in 1770, but the story
of its settlement will be told in connection with that of
Ryegate, with which it properly belongs, owing to the
fact that both towns at first were settled chiefly by immi-
grants from Scotland.
The towns in which settlements were begun in 1771
included Poultney, Royalton, Sandgate, and probably
Whitingham.
P0U1.TNEY — Most of the grantees of Poultney are
said to have been residents of Litchfield county, Conn.,
and Berkshire county, Mass. The settlement of the
town was begun in 1771 by Ebenezer Allen and Thomas
Ashley, and several families came into the town before
the year ended. Heber Allen, a brother of Ethan Allen,
and one of the early settlers, was the first Town Clerk.
Both Ethan and Ira Allen owned lands in this town.
When Poultney was first settled the nearest mill was
at Manchester, thirty miles distant, but a mill was erected
soon at Pawlet, which shortened the distance nearly one-
half for the Poultney settlers. It is related that one
man living in Poultney carried one hundred pounds of
iron on his shoulders to Manchester, exchanging it for
meal, which he brought home in the same manner.
Royalton — The town of Royalton was granted by
New York to a group of men living in that province,
who were largely interested in land speculation in what
is now Vermont. The town was surveyed and allotted
in 1770. The first settler was Robert Havens, who
came from the neighboring town of Sharon in 1771.
CONQUERINCx THE WILDERNESS 239
Others came in 1772, and the population had increased
considerably before the outbreak of the American Revo-
lution.
SandgaTe — The town of Sandgate was chartered by
Governor Wentworth in 1761, but a settlement was not
begun until 1771, a man named Bristol being the first
settler. He was joined soon by Reuben Thomas, whose
son was the first child born in Sandgate.
Whitingham — This township was a New York
grant, made to Col. Nathan Whitney and others. Prob-
ably the first settlement ivas made in 1771, and the first
settler was Reuben Bratlin, who brought his family from
Colerain, Mass. The party drove a cow and carried
their cooking utensils on their backs. A small iron
kettle was used as a water pail, milk pail and for cook-
ing purposes. It was necessary in the early days of
Whitingham to go to Greenfield, Mass., to mill. One
of the first settlers in town went to Greenfield on foot,
bought a five-pail iron kettle and a half bushel of meal,
both of which he brought home on his back, a distance
of twenty miles, and all the food he had on his journey
was a little meal mixed with water.
The settlements begun in 1772 included Brandon, Col-
chester, Maidstone and Reading.
Brandon — The town of Brandon was chartered as
Neshobe. Many "pitches," or selections of homesteads,
were made before lots could be surveyed, the proprietors
voting that "each man shall hold his lot by pitching
until he can have opportunity to survey it." Only two
of the original proprietors, Josiah and Benjamin Powers,
settled in town. Amos Cutler came from Hampton,
240 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Conn., in the autumn of 1772, made a clearing and built
a cabin. In the spring of 1773 others came from Stam-
ford, Conn., and before the beginning of the Revolution-
ary War several persons arrived from Connecticut and
Massachusetts towns.
CoivCHESTER — The grantees of Colchester appear to
have been chiefly residents of New York. In the
autumn of 1772, Ira Allen and his cousin. Remember
Baker, both destined to play important parts in the early
history of Vermont, with five laborers, embarked at
Skenesborough (now Whitehall, N. Y.) and rowed down
Lake Champlain to the mouth of the Winooski River,
which they ascended as far as the lower falls, in the
town of Colchester. Here they found a New York sur-
veying party, which they captured, and returned after
receiving a pledge that the members of the party would
depart and never return.
After making some explorations and surveys, Baker
and one man returned to Skenesborough, and presum-
ably to Arlington, Baker's home. Allen and the other
laborers continued their explorations until they found
that they were short of provisions. They proceeded
through the wilderness to Pittsford, a distance of about
seventy miles, having but one dinner and three part-
ridges on the way. The party reached Pittsford on the
morning of the fourth day of the journey, being nearly
starved.
In the spring of 1773 Ira Allen and Baker returned
to the falls of the Winooski, Baker bringing his family
with him. A blockhouse of hewn timbers, two stories
high, with thirty-two portholes, was constructed on the
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 241
north side of the river, a few rods east of the present
highway bridge between Winooski and BurHngton, and
it was called Fort Frederick. A road was cut the same
year from Colchester to Castleton, a distance of about
seventy miles, by the Onion River Land Company, which
was composed of Ethan, Heman, Ira and Zimri Allen
and Remember Baker. The Aliens were brothers. The
road proceeded in a direct line to Shelburne Falls, on the
La Plotte River, and thence to the falls on Otter Creek
at what is now known as Vergennes, and near this place
the river was crossed. The company, it is said, pur-
chased a good deal of land in that vicinity from the orig-
inal proprietors.
In the spring of 1774 a clearing was made around
the fort in which Baker and his family resided, and
other clearings were made below the falls. One of the
early settlers, who came in 1775, was Joshua Stanton,
one of the grantees of Weybridge. There was a clear-
ing on the promontory known as Mallett's Head on the
shore of Mallett's Bay, where a Frenchman named Mal-
let resided. Nothing is known of his antecedents. He
died in 1789 or 1790, an old man, and it is said the clear-
ing around his house had the appearance of being very
ancient. It is supposed that he had settled there when
the French controlled Lake Champlain, and that he re-
mained after his countrymen had withdrawn from the
valley in 1759. His name is perpetuated by Mallett's
Bay.^
Maidstone — The grantees of Maidstone were Con-
necticut men, none of whom became settlers. Arthur
and Thomas Wooster are called the first settlers, having
242 HISTORY OF VERMONT
come into the town in 1772, but it is claimed that a Mr.
Marsdeen was here as early as 1770. Twelve settlers
came into town prior to 1774, When the first settlers
arrived the nearest mill, and the nearest place where
provisions might be secured, was Haverhill, N. H., fifty
miles to the south. The Connecticut River formed a
natural highway and a bridle path marked by blazed
trees, followed the valley.
READING — The first settlement in Reading was begun
in 1772 by Andrew Spear, who brought his family from
Walpole, N. H., and for several years this was the only
family in town.
Settlements were begun in 1773 in Burlington, Lon-
donderry, Peru, Ryegate, Wallingford, Whiting and
Windham.
Burlington — The names of the proprietors of Bur-
lington appear to have been chiefly those of New York
men, perhaps entirely so, with the exception of a few of
Governor Wentworth's favorites, to be found at the end
of almost every list of grantees attached to his charters.
The town was surveyed by Ira Allen in 1772. The first
settler was Felix Powell, who came here in 1773. He
had been one of the earliest settlers in Pittsford, and
the first settler in Dorset. In 1774 Powell bought a
tract of land of Samuel Averill, one of the original pro-
prietors, who lived in Litchfield county. Conn. This
tract was in the vicinity of Appletree Point, and extended
nearly to the Winooski River. A portion of the land
on the point was cleared and a log house was erected.
In 1774 land was purchased by settlers of Remember
Baker and the Aliens, and during that year and the next
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 243
clearings were made in the northern part of the town
on the intervale, and opposite Allen and Baker's set-
tlement in Colchester, near the lower falls of the Wi-
nooski. These settlements were abandoned during the
Revolutionary War.
Londonderry — The first settlement in Londonderry
was made in 1773 by settlers from New Hampshire,
some of them coming from the township of London-
derry, in that province. They were descendants of
members of a Presbyterian colony which emigrated to
America from the north of Ireland, about 1738. This
township was chartered by New York in 1770, under
the name of Kent, and later it was regranted by Ver-
mont.
PtRV — This town was chartered by Governor Went-
worth under the name of Bromley. The first settlement
was made in 1773 by William Barlow of Woodstock,
Conn. Most of the early settlers were from the vicinity
of Westminster, Mass.
Wai^lingford — Capt. Eliakim Hall and others of
Wallingford, Conn., secured a grant of this township in
1761 and the town was surveyed in 1770 by Remember
Baker and his assistants. They found a small clearing
occupied by Ephraim Seeley, who supposed he was in
Tinmouth. Abraham Jackson and family made the first
legal settlement in 1773, coming from Cornwall, Conn.
The town was settled slowly before the Revolutionary
War.
Whiting — At a proprietors' meeting, held at Wren-
tham, Mass., in October, 1772, John Wilson of Upton,
Mass., was authorized to make a survey of the town
244 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of Whiting, which he did before the end of the year.
In the summer of 1773 Wilson and several others settled
in the town. Probably not more than fifteen families
came into Whiting before the beginning of the Ameri-
can Revolution. Most of the early settlers came from
Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Windham — Edward Aiken, Jonas McCormick and
John Woodburn were the first settlers of Windham,
coming into the township in 1773. Aiken was taken ill
nine miles from the nearest neighbor. He was able to
send a message to his wife at Londonderry, N. H., and
taking her youngest child on horseback, she rode almost
one hundred miles, much of the way through the wilder-
ness, to reach her husband, whom she nursed back to
health. Aiken returned to his New Hampshire home
for the winter, but came back to Windham in the spring,
accompanied by a son of ten and a daughter of twelve
years. He left these children alone at his Windham
cabin and was absent for six weeks, returning from Lon-
donderry, N. H., with his family arid several other
families which settled in the new township.
TiNMOUTii — The exact date of the settlement of Tin-
mouth is uncertain. The town was organized March
8, 1774, and before that time a considerable number of
inhabitants had built houses for themselves here. It
is said by Thompson, in his sketch of the town, that the
first settlement was made about 1770, and that Thomas
Peck and John McNeal were among the first settlers.
The settlements begun in 1774 included Barnard,
Cornwall, Hinesburg, Jericho, Leicester, probably Mid-
dletown, Monkton, Salisbury, and Williston.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 245
Barnard — Jonas Call came into Barnard in 1777,
made a clearing, and left in the autumn. Several fami-
lies came into town in 1775, and they are generally recog-
nized as the first settlers.
CoRNWALiy — Nearly all the original proprietors of
Cornwall appear to have been residents of Litchfield
county. Conn. The settlement was begun in 1774,
fourteen "pitches" being made that year. Other settlers
followed in 1775. As in most Vermont towns, the
greater part of the settlers came from Massachusetts
and Connecticut. Twenty-six years after the arrival of
the first settler the town was fully settled.
HiNESBURG — This town was named for Abel Hine,
proprietors' clerk. Andrew Burritt was the only pro-
prietor who became a resident of the town. A consider-
able number of the grantees appear to have been New
York men. Isaac Lawrence of Canaan, Conn., and Abner
Chafifee came here before the American Revolution,
probably in 1774 or 1775. On June 10, 1775, the pro-
prietors voted Lawrence one hundred acres of land for
labor performed by him and expense incurred in building
roads.
Jericho — The settlement of Jericho was begun in
1774 by the families of Azariah Rood of Lanesboro,
Mass., Roderick Messenger of Claverack, N. J., and
Joseph Brown of Great Barrington, Mass. The settle-
ment was broken up during the Revolutionary War.
Leicester — The first settlement in Leicester was
made as early as 1774, and possibly in 1773. Jeremiah
Parker and Samuel Daniels of Massachusetts were the
first men to bring their families here. They had fitted
246 HISTORY OF VERMONT
and tilled the land for two or three summers previous
to this time. One of Parker's sons remained alone
through the winter to care for the cattle, with no neigh-
bors nearer than Middlebury and Pittsford.
MiDDLETowN — This townsliip was not incorporated
until 1784, but the first settlement within its present
borders was made shortly before the American Revolu-
tion, probably in 1774. Soon after this time mills were
erected.
MoNKTON — The original proprietors of Monkton
appear to have been chiefly New York men. The town
was settled in 1774 by Barnabas Barnum, John Bishop,
John and Ebenezer Stearns, but was abandoned during
the Revolutionary War.
Salisbury — John Everts of Salisbury, Conn., was
engaged by a number of persons in that town and vicin-
ity to go to Portsmouth, N. H., and secure from Gov-
ernor Wentworth charters for two townships in the New
Hampshire Grants. The intention, it is said, was to
locate these townships where Clarendon and Rutland are
situated. This region having been granted a few days
previous to Everts' application, and being acquainted
with the Otter Creek valley as far north as the location
of the present city of Vergennes, he decided to ask for
the grant of three townships instead of two. As a re-
sult of his application charters were secured for Salis-
bury, Middlebury and New Haven. Probably Salisbury
was named in honor of Everts' Connecticut home.
In the spring of 1774 Josiah Graves and his son Jesse
came here from Arlington, cleared a few acres of land,
and built a log house. In the winter of 1775 the Graves
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 247
family moved into town. Amos Story and his son Solo-
mon came here from Rutland in September, 1 774, erected
a small log house, and began the task of making a clear-
ing. A few weeks after beginning his labors. Story was
killed by a falling tree. Mrs. Story being a woman of
remarkable force of character and great physical
strength, decided to take up her husband's unfinished
task. She could wield an axe as well as a man, and in
the latter part of 1775 she moved to the log cabin in
Salisbury built by her husband, being accompanied by
her three sons and two daughters. Aided by her sons,
she cleared land and raised crops. During the Revo-
lutionary War her home was a place of frequent resort
for friends of the American cause.
WiivLiSTON — This town was named for Samuel Wil-
lis, one of the grantees. Samuel Willis, Jr., was a
Quaker of Hempstead, Long Island, in 1756. Presum-
ably the father also was of this faith. The first set-
tlers were Thomas Chittenden, destined to be the first
Governor of Vermont, and Jonathan Spafford, both of
Salisbury, Conn., who purchased a tract of land in the
valley of the Winooski River, comprising, it is said,
several thousand acres. Most of the early settlers of
Williston came from Connecticut or western Massa-
chusetts. The settlement was abandoned soon after the
beginning of the American Revolution.
The settlements begun in 1775 included Hubbardton,
Peacham, Richmond and Weybridge.
Hubbardton — This town was chartered to Thomas
Hubbard and others. The Aliens made surveys in town
and were large proprietors in the early period of the
248 HISTORY OF VERMONT
town's history. Samuel Churchill of Sheffield, Mass.,
bought three thousand acres of land in Hubbardton.
This tract was surveyed in 1774 and in 1775 he moved
his family here.
Peacham — The first meetings of the proprietors of
Peacham were held in Hadley, Mass., and it is probable
that a majority of the original proprietors lived in Had-
ley or its vicinity. Jonathan Elkins of Hampton, N. H.,
made a clearing in Peacham in 1775 or 1776, and a few
other settlers probably came here just before the begin-
ning of the Revolutionary War.
Richmond — This town was not organized until 1794,
but the settlement of the region included in the present
town limits was begun in 1775 by Amos Brownson and
John Chamberlain, with their families, in the VVinooski
valley. The settlement was abandoned during the Revo-
lutionary War.
WeybridgK — The settlement of Weybridge was begun
in 1775 by the families of Thomas San ford and Claudius
Brittell. About the same time the families of David
Stow and Justus Sturdevant came in boats up Otter
Creek and settled on the south side of the stream, in a
part of the town then in New Haven.
OrwKll — This town was one in which New York
men were the principal proprietors. John Carter
lived here several years before the beginning of the
American Revolution, and commenced a clearing in the
vicinity of what was known later as Mount Independence.
The exact date of settlement is unknown.
Saint Albans — The first settler of St. Albans was
Jesse Welden, a former resident of Salisbury, Conn.,
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 249
who came here from Sunderland. He settled on Ball
or Bald Island in Lake Champlain in 1774, and after-
ward located at St. Albans Bay. Three other men came
here before the beginning of the American Revolution
but the settlement was abandoned when hostilities
began.
Sudbury — A few settlers came into Sudbury before
the beginning of the American Revolution, but the exact
dates of settlement are unknown.
BarnET — The first settlers in Barnet were three
brothers, Daniel, Jacob and Elijah Hall, and Jonathan
Hall, who came into this town in 1770, this being the
first settlement within the present limits of Caledonia
county. Enos and Willard Stevens of Charlestown,
N. H., are said to have been the principal proprietors in
1770.
In the spring of 1774 Alexander Harvey and John
Clark, agents of a company of farmers in the Scottish
shires of Perth and Sterling, appointed to select and pur-
chase a tract of land in America for settlement, sailed
for New York, arriving at that port in July. From
New York they proceeded to Albany, going from there
to examine lands near Schenectady, but they were un-
able to purchase in that locality as large a tract as they
desired. Proceeding by way of Ballston, Saratoga,
Salem and Cambridge, N. Y., they crossed the Green
Mountains to Charlestown, N. H., and came by way of
Newbury to Ryegate, half of which town had been pur-
chased by a Scotch company, and arrived at Barnet
August 27, 1774.
250 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The agents examined land in the southwest part of
the town. Colonel Harvey's Journal recorded the fact
that they found six or seven settlers in that portion of
the town lying. in the Connecticut River valley, and a
few more in the western part of the town. Returning
by way of Albany to New York, they went to Philadel-
phia, examined land in the Susquehanna and Schuylkill
valleys, and returned to New York in October. There
they found Samuel Stevens, representing the proprietors
of Barnet. He had been employed by a land company
to explore the country from the White River to the
sources of the Winooski and Lamoille Rivers, in order
to find the best land for settlement. The agents offered
Stevens one shilling per acre. He demanded sixteen
pence, and on November 8 they compromised on four-
teen pence, purchasing a tract of seven thousand
acres in the southeastern part of the town, paying
£408, 6s, 8d.
John Clark sailed for Scotland in December, 1774.
Harvey bought tools and furniture for the company,
hired some persons to work, and with five fellow coun-
trymen he went to Hartford and New Haven, Conn.,
bought provisions, and the party came up the Connecti-
cut valley to Barnet. Land was cleared and the next
season crops were planted. Later five thousand acres
in dift'erent parts of Barnet were added to the company's
holdings. Harvey became a prominent man in Ver-
mont, and a body of water was named Harvey's Lake,
in his honor.
Rye:gaTe: — "Of the ninety-five grantees of Ryegate
not one became an actual settler, and in only one instance
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 251
did a son of a grantee settle in the town," says F. P.
Wells, in his '^History of Ryegate." The only one of
the grantees who ever visited the town was Joseph
Blanchard, an officer in the French and Indian War
and a surveyor, whose name appears as a proprietor in
the charters of twelve Vermont towns.
Most of the grantees of Ryegate were merchants and
business men, who lived near Portsmouth, N. H. All
their rights were sold by Col. Israel Morey of Charles-
town, N. H., to John Church of the same town for one
thousand pounds, and Church sold the southern half of
the township to Rev. John Witherspoon, D. D., presi-
dent of Princeton College. In order to make his title
perfectly secure, Mr. Church applied to the New York
authorities for a charter, which was granted to nineteen
men, all but two being residents of New York City.
They conveyed their title to Mr. Church, receiving five
pounds each for their services.
Ryegate and Barnet are the only Vermont towns which
were settled by colonies organized in other countries.
In the days when Vermont was being settled, there was
little opportunity for persons not connected with the
aristocracy to acquire land in Scotland. Conditions of
life were hard, and opportunities for betterment were
few. Returning soldiers told of the new country they
had seen in America, and they aroused a strong desire
to seek this land of opportunity, where ownership of
property was a possibility even for the humblest person.
Many towns in Nova Scotia, New York, Pennsylvania
and the South, were settled by associations or companies
organized in Scotland, says Wells.
252 HISTORY OF VERMONT
On February 5, 1773, at Inchinnan, in Renfrewshire,
Scotland, the Scotch-American Company was organized,
its articles of government being signed by one hundred
and thirty-seven persons. James Whitelaw and David
Allan were chosen commissioners. Whitelaw was a
young man, tw^enty-four years old, and an excellent sur-
veyor. Allan was ten years his senior and was reputed
to be a good judge of land values.
The original manuscript of Whitelaw's Journal is the
property of the Vermont Historical Society. From this
record it appears that the two commissioners left home
on March 19, 1773, and sailed from Greenock, March
25. On May 24 they arrived at Philadelphia. It is re-
lated that at the house where they stayed they acci-
dentally met President Witherspoon of Princeton Col-
lege, who informed them that he had a township of land
called Ryegate, in the province of New York, on the Con-
necticut River, which he w-as willing to sell if it w^as
found suitable. Very properly he urged the commis-
sioners to examine other tracts, and not to be too hasty
in making a bargain, advice creditable to a clergyman
and college president, who also possessed many of the
qualifications of a shrewd business man, found more
often in college presidents in modern times then in
Doctor Witherspoon's day.
After staying in Philadelphia for a few days, White-
law and Allan proceeded to New York, and thence to
Albany. From Albany they went to Schenectady and
Johnstown, where Sir William Johnson had lands to
sell. The next stage of the journey was through Sara-
toga, to the valley of the Battenkill, with a stop at Man-
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 253
Chester, Then following a trail, the Green Mountains
were crossed to Chester and the journey continued to
Charlestown, N. H. The next few days were devoted
to a stop at Ryegate and to the examination of lands
in that township. Mr. Whitelaw observed that all the
way from Ryegate to Charlestown, a distance of seventy-
two miles, the country was filled with new settlers.
The commissioners returned to New York by way of
the Connecticut valley, going thence to Philadelphia.
In pursuance of their duty they visited southern Penn-
sylvania, the Ohio country, Maryland, Virginia and
North Carolina. After all this journeying they re-
turned to Princeton and closed a trade with President
Witherspoon for half the town of Ryegate. At New
York arrangements were made to send a man with chests
of tools and provisions to Hartford and thence to Rye-
gate. Whitelaw and Allan left New York on October
19 and arrived at Newbury on the first day of November.
The southern part of the town fell to the Scotch-Ameri-
can Company, and in recounting its advantages of good
soil, good mill privileges, etc., Whitelaw added: "We
are within six miles of a good Presbyterian meeting."
Whitelaw's report to the company contained some
observations which furnish an excellent word picture of
conditions prevailing in the New Hampshire Grants just
before the outbreak of the American Revolution. In
the report he said : ''The ground here produces Indian
corn, and all kinds of English grain to perfection, like-
wise all garden vegetables in great plenty, and they
have very promising orchards of excellent fruit. Many
things grow here in the open fields, which the climate of
254 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Scotland will not produce, such as melons, cucumbers,
pumpkins and the like. Salmon and trout and a great
many other kinds of fish are caught in plenty in the Con-
necticut River. Sugar can be made here in abundance
in March and April from the maple tree, which grows in
great plenty. In short, no place which we have seen
is better furnished with food and the necessaries of life,
and even some of the luxuries, or where the people live
more comfortable than here.
''There is a good market of all the produce of the
ground at the following prices: Wheat from 3/6 to
4/6 (three shillings, sixpence, to four shillings, six-
pence) the English bushel. Oats and Indian corn from
1/6 to 2 shillings. Butter 6 d. the English pound.
Cheese A^A d. Pork 4}4 d., all sterling money. The
country produceth excellent flax, which sells when
swingled from AYz to 6 d. the pound. Considering the
newness of the country the people here are very pros-
perous, and we think that any who come here, and are
steady and industrious, may be in very comfortable cir-
cumstances within a few years. Clearing land seems
to be no great hardship as it is commonly done for from
5 to 6 dollars per acre."
The settlement of Ryegate began, according to the
usual reckoning, with the taking possession of the
southern portion of the town by Whitelaw and Allan, in
November, 1773, although Aaron Hosmer and Daniel
Hunt had lived in town some time without any title to
the lands they occupied. John Hyndman had also set-
tled there.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 255
Several recruits for the new colony arrived from
Scotland in May, 1774. In August David Allan re-
turned to Scotland, and on the first day of October, that
year, several families arrived from overseas. It is
thought that about forty emigrants from Scotland had
arrived in Ryegate early in the year 1775. The out-
break of the American Revolution naturally checked
immigration, which promised to be sufficiently large
to interfere with the cultivation of the lands of the
Right Honorable Lord Blantyre of Renfrew, from
among whose tenants many of the Scottish settlers of
Ryegate came.
The plans of the company for a city, with streets,
squares and market places, a city in which land owners
might reside while tenants cultivated their farms, was
not found to be well adapted to the New England mode
of life, and it was abandoned by force of necessity.
This company continued to exist until the year 1820.
James Whitelaw became Surveyor General of Vermont
and a prominent man in public afifairs. The name of
the county in which Barnet and Ryegate are situated
was named Caledonia in recognition of the Scotch set-
tlers of these towns, an element which still exists in
family names and racial characteristics in Caledonia
county.
President Witherspoon invested quite extensively in
Vermont lands, an investment which, it is said, eventu-
ally resulted in financial loss. In 1774 he purchased
six hundred acres of land in Ryegate for his oldest son,
John, who came to this town, probably in 1775, and
began to clear land. A little later he enlisted in the
256 HISTORY OF VERMONT
American army, served as aide on General Washing-
ton's staff, and was killed in the battle of Germantown.
Early in 1776 John Church sold to Doctor Wither-
spoon twenty-eight lots in Ryegate, containing two
thousand, seven hundred and sixty acres, and a little
later sold five thousand, two hundred and twelve acres
to John Pagan, a Glasgow merchant. Mr. Pagan
owned eight hundred and thirty-three acres in Newbury
and two thousand acres in Cavendish. Doctor Wither-
spoon owned twelve thousand, fifty-seven acres in Nova
Scotia. In 1792 he exchanged his Nova Scotia lands
for the Pagan holdings in Vermont. President Wither-
spoon visited Ryegate and Barnet several times, and
officiated here in the capacity of clergyman. He was
active in public affairs in New Jersey, and was one of
the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Including the few towns in which settlements were
begun before the outbreak of the French and Indian
War, it appears from what has been set forth regard-
ing the activities of the pioneers in the New Hampshire
Grants, that in approximately ninety towns now included
in the State of Vermont, attempts had been made at the
beginning of the American Revolution to build houses
and to clear farms. Some of these attempts were feeble,
and the opening of hostilities threatening a recurrence
of the old peril of attacks on outlying settlements, with
Indian incursions a possibility, not only checked the de-
velopment of the region, but also caused the abandon-
ment of many townships on thefrontier.
When the French and Indian War began, every foot
of what is now Vermont either was on the frontier, or
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 257
part of a wilderness lying beyond it. In 1775, the
frontier line had been pushed forward, so that about
one-third of the present State, measuring from the
Massachusetts boundary line to the Canadian border,
might have been included as a part of the settled com-
munities of New England.
Thompson, in his "History of Vermont," estimates
that at the beginning of the American Revolution the
population of the New Hampshire Grants was at least
twenty thousand, and that approximately thirteen thou-
sand persons had come into this region between the
years 1771 and 1775, notwithstanding the fact that the
controversy between the settlers and the New York
authorities Had had a tendency to discourage emigra-
tion.
A study of the history of more than four score settle-
ments made in the Green Mountain country before the
revolt against British authority was begun by the
American colonies, reveals a similarity of motives and
methods that help the reader to form a mental picture
of the conditions that prevailed during this pioneer
period. For it was distinctly a pioneer period. There
existed at that time a widespread desire to better in-
dividual conditions, either by means of settling upon
new lands or trafficking in them. It was a period of
land speculation, and the records of the time show that
the merchant, the lawyer, the doctor, the farmer, the
clergyman, even "the butcher, the baker and the candle-
stick maker," were interested in buying and selling lands.
The Vermont settlers included a large class of people
who loved the adventurous life of the wilderness, those
258 HISTORY OF VERMONT
who always saw something better and more alluring in
the distance, those who found existing conditions un-
profitable, and those who desired more land that they
might provide homes for their children near their own
dwellings. It was the old land hunger that drove men
and women and little children into the Vermont wilder-
ness, the same compelling force that has been such a
powerful motive in the shaping of events in the world's
history, and is still a most important factor in the affairs
of men.
The desire for greater religious freedom may have
brought some pioneers into this new country, but it does
not appear to have been one of the great motives that
actuated most of the early Vermont settlers. These
first Vermonters were a strong and vigorous people. By
a natural process of selection only those fitted to battle
with the wilderness, enlisted in this warfare. As a rule
the pioneers possessed good health and the power of
thinking clearly and honestly. They feared God, and
little else. They were ambitious, courageous and re-
sourceful. W. S. Rossiter, formerly an official of the
United States Census Bureau, who has made a careful
study of this pioneer period, has said: "It is probable
that no State in the Union was settled by choicer immi-
gration than that which passed up the Connecticut River
to the Green Mountains. Early immigration to the
colonies from England brought many persons, who,
although of excellent British stock, has passed through
a long period of privation, anxiety or bereavement. In
a large proportion of cases, their presence in the New
World was due to political or religious persecution. In
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 259
some respects such colonists could not be regarded as
ideal pioneers. A large proportion, indeed, was un-
accustomed to manual labor. The settlers of Vermont,
on the contrary, were all acclimated, hardy, accustomed
from childhood to the use of axe and gun, eager, and
full of ambitious purpose to found homes and com-
munities of their own. They were all of the same stock;
they possessed the same ideals; they were animated by
the same purpose. Of 85,072 population reported at
the census of 1790 (taken in Vermont in 1791), approxi-
mately 81,200 were of English origin and 2,600 Scotch.
These two elements thus comprised more than 98 per-
cent of the total population of the State at that period.
"It is not remarkable, therefore, that Vermont has
contributed an extraordinary proportion of the dis-
tinguished men of the United States, and to the upbuild-
ing and prosperity of innumerable communities through-
out the country. To the unusual quality of the original
settlers and their early trials and high ideals, is in a
large measure due the influence exerted by the State in
national councils disproportionate to her own moderate
interests in the national welfare."
Although the grants of land under which most of
the Vermont towns were settled were made by Gov-
ernor Wentworth of New Hampshire, a large propor-
tion of the grantees were residents of Connecticut and
Massachusetts, some of them, however, being inhabitants
of New York and New Hampshire. Practically the
same statement can be made concerning the early set-
tlers in Vermont. Connecticut contributed more pio-
neers than any other province, and Massachusetts ranked
2G0 HISTORY OF VERMONT
second, but there were some settlers from New York,
New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
The greater part of the Massachusetts settlers appear
to have come from the Connecticut River valley and
Berkshire county. A considerable number of the New-
York settlers, and some of the grantees, were residents
of, or lived in the vicinity of the narrow strip known as
The Oblong, which had been ceded to New York by
Connecticut, but continued to be closely affiliated with
New England people and in sympathy with New Eng-
land ideas.
It is asserted in a work entitled "Connecticut as a
Colony and a State," that "by the middle of the eighteenth
century Connecticut had begun to feel over populated."
Not only was there a strong movement toward the New
Hampshire Grants, but also toward the lands farther
west, which were held under grants made by the Con-
necticut charter. It is a fact not to be overlooked, how-
ever, that in the northwestern section of the province,
which was the most recently settled, the interest seemed
to exceed that in any other portion of Connecticut.
Salisbury, from which town there emigrated so many
persons, including a number of men afterward famous
as Vermont leaders, had been settled only a few years.
The pioneer spirit, however, seemed to be in the blood
of this people.
The preponderance of Connecticut influence stands out
clearly as one of the most striking characteristics of
early Vermont history. From Connecticut, more than
from any other source, were obtained laws, customs, the
idea of the town unit of civil organization, devotion to
Gov. Benning Wentworth
of New Hampshire
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 261
the cause of education, a deep religious sentiment, the
spirit of industry and thrift, — all those qualities and
virtues which unite to make the typical New Englander,
In the brief sketches of towns settled before the begin-
ning of the American Revolution some incidents have
been related, showing the hardships endured by the Ver-
mont pioneers. It was not a light task, thus to trans-
form a wilderness into a region of settled and well
ordered communities, a land of cultivated farms and
pleasant villages, with roads and schools and churches
and most of the blessings of civilization.
It is not to be supposed that these pioneers came into
the New Hampshire Grants ignorant of the dangers and
discomforts they were to face. They were willing to
endure hardship in order to establish homes and acquire
property on easier financial terms than could be obtained
in the older colonies. Probably a large proportion of
the settlers bettered their conditions by coming into the
new country, and hundreds of them lived to see the un-
broken forest transformed into a land of peace and
plenty, much like the old homes they had left in southern
New England.
Some of the methods and customs of the early set-
tlers in Vermont may not be lacking in interest. The
first task of the pioneer was the construction of some
kind of shelter, for wild beasts were plentiful. This
shelter may have been a rude lean-to with only a blanket
for a door, and with a hole in the roof to permit the
smoke to escape. More often, probably, a small house
of unhewn logs was constructed and perhaps occupied
before completion, the open spaces between the logs
262 HISTORY OF VERMONT
being filled with clay and mud, and the roof and gable
ends often were made of elm bark or rived splints
through which the storms would beat. At one end a
rough stone fireplace was built, which would take in
logs four feet in length. There may have been a door
of hewn slabs and probably there were two small win-
dows, possibly filled with oiled paper. The floor often
was made of hewn logs, for sawmills did not precede,
but followed in the wake of civilization. Sometimes
there was no floor but the earth, and, of course, no
cellar.
Log houses with only a back of stone for a fireplace
were likely often to be filled with smoke. Chimneys
were built of split sticks, cob house fashion, and plas-
tered inside with clay. It was diflicult to make a split-
log floor level, as may be imagined, and one side of the
table was likely to be higher than the other. This diffi-
culty, however, could be remedied easily by putting a
chip under one edge of the porridge dish. Wooden
benches sometimes sufficed for seats. Many early set-
tlers made tables, bedsteads and chairs with no tools but
an axe and an auger. By force of necessity men were
compelled to make many utensils such as ox-bows, whip
stocks, axe helves^ rude carts and sleds, sometimes
wooden plows and many other articles used on the farm
or in the household. A little later, when conditions of
life had become more like those of settled communities,
if a farmer wanted a plow, he would carry a bar of
iron to the blacksmith for the share, and the rest would
be made at home. The same rule applied to axes, hoes,
scythes, pitchforks, etc.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 263
After a shelter was constructed a clearing must be
made for the planting of a few crops between the
stumps. Corn was one of the staple crops, and beans,
pumpkins, turnips and parsnips were grown in consider-
able quantities. A few potatoes were raised and wheat,
barley and buckwheat were grown. As soon as possible
the settler secured a cow and a pig. In some instances
calves were not entirely weaned until autumn in order
that their bleating might draw the cows home at night.
Apple seeds were planted and soon orchards grew.
Samp and Indian meal mush in milk were common
articles of diet. It was often necessary at first to travel
long distances in order to get the corn ground, perhaps
forty or fifty miles, either on horseback or on foot. To
save these long journeys the pioneers sometimes made
use of w^hat was called a plumping mill. These mills
were very crude affairs. A hole was burned in a stump,
a weight was attached to a sapling, the shelled corn was
placed in the hollow of the stump, and the spring of the
sapling helped the operator in crushing the corn into
some semblance of samp or meal. Stone ovens were
constructed, often separate from the house. Oven wood,
small sticks split into thin pieces, were burned in the
oven until it was thoroughly heated, then the coals were
removed with a "fireslice," the oven swept with an "oven
broom," and the loaves of brown bread were placed on
the hot stones with a kind of wooden shovel. The seeds
were taken out of pumpkins w-hich were partly filled
with new milk, and then they were baked six or eight
hours in the oven; the baked pumpkin was eaten with
milk. The rivers swarmed with fish, and wild game
264 HISTORY OF VERMONT
was abundant. Wooden plates were used at first and
later pewter dishes and Queen's ware came into use.
Starvation was not far removed in the very early
pioneer days, and in more than one family children have
gone to bed at night crying for lack of food. One family
lived almost an entire season on ground nuts. One set-
tler eked out the food supply with clams, turtles and
woodchucks. Boiled wheat was used when other sup-
plies failed. In emergencies roots and herbs were re-
sorted to. In one family of eight, breakfasts were milk
with a little bread; dinners consisted of boiled herbs;
and for supper a large bowl of milk, containing about
three quarts, sweetened with maple sugar, was passed
around, each taking a sip. Mills ground slowly and
sometimes a boy would be sent to mill on horseback with
bags of grain, and leaving them would take another load
the second day, getting the first day's grist. Tea and
coffee were almost unknown, and corn, bean and barley
broths were much used. Even after the country was
settled and churches were built, people sometimes car-
ried cold boiled potatoes for lunch between the first and
second Sunday services.
The tallow candle was used for light. Fire was kept
by burying brands in the ashes, covering the fire up,
it was called. If the fire went out, flint and steel were
resorted to, sparks being struck over decayed wood that
would kindle easily. Often persons were obliged to
go long distances to borrow fire. Even in our own day
old people have been heard to ask a person travelling in
haste if he were going for fire, an expression handed
down from pioneer days.
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 265
As soon as farms were cleared and a regular system
of agriculture could be established, sheep were kept for
the wool they provided, and flax was raised in consider-
able quantities. Tow cloth, or linen, was spun and
w^oven into summer garments, and wool was carded and
yarn was spun and woven into heavier cloth. Carpets
were woven and women even made chairs and baskets.
Not many sheep were kept at first, owing to the number
of wolves in the nearby forests. Black and white wool,
mixed, woven double, made clothing that would stand
hard wear in the thickets and was warm enough for
any weather. Butternut bark and sumac berries were
used for dyeing. Overcoats were seldom worn. Women
worked at weaving for fifty cents a week. Calico cost
fifty cents a yard and six yards constituted a dress
pattern.
Some children, in the early days, went barefooted all
winter. A flank of a hide sometimes was used like a
moccasin. Boys often wore leggings instead of boots.
A pair of boots sometimes would last a man for years.
In summer both men and women have been known to
carry their shoes as far as the meeting house door on
Sunday before putting them on.
Contracts were made and notes given payable October
first in neat cattle, or in grain payable the first day of
January. Perhaps a few hundred dollars' worth of
cattle, passing from one individual to another, would
pay debts amounting to several thousand dollars.
The manufacture of "salts" was an important item
with the early settlers. This product was made by
burning to ashes hardwood trees, then an incumbrance
266 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to be rid of, and boiling the lye from these ashes to
such a consistency that when cold the product might
be carried in a basket. In this condition the "salts"
were sold to manufacturers of pearlash, an important
source of potassium compounds, used in making soap,
glass, etc. The market value ranged from three to five
and one-half dollars per hundred pounds, and this was
one of the few products that could be sold for cash, at
a time when barter was the ordinary medium of trade.
Much of this product was exported to England. Many
a family has been saved from great suffering if not
from actual starvation by the sale of "salts."
For the first frame barn in Hubbardton, boards were
drawn twelve and one-half miles on an ox-sled and the
nails used were picked up on the site of burned buildings
at Fort Ticonderoga. The shingles on the first shingled
house in the town of Halifax were attached with wooden
pegs. -^
Thus, in the space of a few decades, through great
tribulation, was wrought the transformation from a
region where savages had hunted and fished from time
immemorial, to a well established, prosperous State.
With a few omissions the summary of Saint Paul's de-
fence, made to the Corinthian Church, may be applied
to the pioneer settlers of Vermont : 'Tn perils of waters,
in perils by the heathen, in perils of the wilderness,
* * * in weariness and pain fulness, in watchings
often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold
and nakedness."
If much emphasis is placed upon the hardships en-
dured by the Vermont pioneers, it is not for the purpose
CONQUERING THE WILDERNESS 267
of picturing lives that were lived altogether in an atmos-
phere of gloom and misery. Human nature is much the
same, "yesterday, today and forever." It was natural
that young manhood and young womanhood, blessed
with health and strength and courage, should view the
future through optimistic eyes. There is a joy in con-
quest, whether it be the conquest of a kingdom or a few
acres of the wilderness. There is a keen delight in the
building of a home, whether that home be a cabin or a
castle. Thus, in the joys of home buildjng, in the win-
ning of farms from the forest, and in the anticipation
of better days in the future, some compensation was
found for the hardships and perils endured. Amid such
conditions was bred a race of men which has done
effective work in every State of the Union north of
Mason and Dixon's Line and west of Lake Champlain.
Chapter X
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP
FOR practically a quarter of a century, beginning
soon after the earliest settlements in what is now
the State of Vermont were commenced, and con-
tinuing until Vermont's admission to the Federal Union,
a bitter controversy, at times attaining the proportions
of border warfare, was waged over the question of own-
ership between holders of titles to lands in the region
known as New Hampshire Grants, issued by Governor
Wentworth, and those holding grants to the same lands,
issued by the provincial Government of New York.
The controversy was most active in the western por-
tion of this region, near the New York border, in the
present counties of Bennington, Rutland and Addison.
With few exceptions the early settlers held land titles
based on the grants made by Governor Wentworth.
They had purchased these lands in good faith, for the
purpose of establishing homes. After paying fees,
buying land, and undergoing the hardships incident
to subduing the wilderness, settlers holding New Hamp-
shire titles, in their poverty were asked, in effect, to buy
again the lands they had improved, and made valuable,
paying much larger fees, often to land speculators and
favored officials. This New York policy of refusing to
recognize the validity of the Wentworth grants was
considered rank injustice, and aroused the fighting spirit
of these sturdy New England pioneers.
For the beginning of this controversy it is necessary
to go back to the granting of Bennington, Governor
Wentworth's first township in the disputed territory, the
charter for which was issued June 11, 1749. On
November 17, of the same year. Governor Wentworth
272 HISTORY OF VERMONT
wrote to Governor Clinton of New York, alluding to
the command of the King, directing the Governor to
make grants of unimproved lands within his government
*'to such of the inhabitants and others as shall apply
for grants for the same, as will oblige themselves to
settle and improve, agreeable to His Majesty's instruc-
tions."
In his letter Governor Wentworth declared: "People
are daily applying for grants of land in all quarters of
this government, and particularly some for townships
to be laid out in the western part thereof, which will
fall in the neighborhood of your government. I think
it my duty to apprise you thereof, and to transmit to
Your Excellency the description of New Hampshire, as
the King has determined it in the words of my commis-
sion, which, after you have considered, I shall be glad
you will be pleased to give me your sentiments in that
manner it will affect the grants made by you or preced-
ing Governors, it being my intention to avoid as much
as I can consistent with His Majesty's instructions, in-
terfering with your government."
Governor Wentworth then asked how far the Gov-
ernment of New York extended north of Albany, and to
the eastward of Hudson River, north of the Massa-
chusetts line. He enclosed a copy of his commission,
which indicated that the western boundary of New
Hampshire was rather indefinite, as the province ex-
tended west, to quote from the charter, "till it meets
with our other governments."
The New York Council advised the Governor on April
3, 1750, to acquaint Governor Wentworth with the fact
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 273
"that this province is bounded eastward by Connecti-
cut River, h: * * ^j^g letters patent from King
Charles the Second to the Duke of York expressly grant-
ing all lands from the west side of Connecticut River to
the east side of Delaware Bay."
Governor Wentworth replied in a letter dated April
25, 1750, saying in substance that the establishment of
the Connecticut River as the eastern boundary of New
York would be entirely agreeable to him, "had not the
two charter governments of Connecticut and the Massa-
chusetts Bay extended their bounds many miles to the
westward of said river." To this he added, very per-
tinently, the opinion of the Council that New Hampshire
had an equal right to the same western boundaries. In
closing he expressed his desire not to encroach on any
other governments, asked by what authority Connecticut
and Massachusetts claimed "so far to the westward as
they have settled, and declared his purpose to desist
meantime from making any further grants on the west-
ern frontier likely to interfere with the New York gov-
ernment.
Governor Clinton's reply, dated June 6, 1750, was to
the effect that Connecticut's western boundary was
established as the result of an agreement between the
province and New York, made on or about the year
1684, and confirmed later by King William, the bound-
aries being marked in 1725. As to the Massachusetts
boundary. Governor Clinton wrote : "It is presumed the
Massachusetts government at first possessed themselves
of those lands by intrusion, and thro the negligence
of this government have hitherto continued their posses-
274 HISTORY OF VERMONT
sion the lands being private property." Governor
Clinton added the suggestion that Governor Wentworth
recall the grant made of the town of Bennington, say-
ing there was reason to apprehend that these lands, or
part of them, had been granted previously by New York.
Governor Wentworth responded on June 22 of the
same year, saying that the Council members were unani-
mously of the opinion that it was unwise to commence
a boundary dispute with New York until the opinion of
the King should be obtained. Governor Wentworth an-
nounced his intention to submit the matter to His
Majesty, and suggested that Governor Clinton follow a
similar course. Referring to the suggestion that the
grant of Bennington should be revoked, he added:
''There is no possibility of vacating the grant as you
desire, but if it falls by His Majesty's determination in
the government of New York, it will be void of course.
Both Governors thereupon agreed to submit the matter
of the disputed boundary to the King, and to furnish
copies of their statements to each other.
In a collection of New York documents of this period,
relating to the land controversy between New Hampshire
and New York, may be found a report of Attorney Gen-
eral Richard Bradley of the latter province, made to
Governor Clinton, bearing no date, but evidently sub-
mitted during the latter part of the year 1750, or the
early part of the year 1751. In this report it is urged
that it would be unjust to use the western boundary of
Connecticut as an argument for a similar line north of
that province, because that boundary was the result of a
special agreement. At considerable length he argues
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 275
that it is "extremely absurd" for Massachusetts to con-
tend that its charter extends the western boundary of
that province to within twenty miles of the Hudson
River.
All that he had to say regarding the very obvious fact
that the western boundary of Massachusetts was practi-
cally an extension to the northward of that of Con-
necticut, was that Massachusetts had intruded upon and
taken possession of such lands west of the Connecticut
River, ''without pretence of right."
To this report Surveyor General Cadwallader Colden
added some observations, dated October 14, 1751, includ-
ing the very practical suggestion that if the King would
assert his right to the lands as far east as the Con-
necticut River "against the intrusions of Massachusetts
Bay it would greatly increase his revenue arising from
the quit rent of lands." In Governor Wentworth's letter
to the British Lords of Trade he based the claim of New
Hampshire to a western boundary which should be the
twenty-mile line east of the Hudson River, upon the fact
that the provinces of Connecticut and Massachusetts
already had established such limits.
A committee of the New York Council, on November
14, 1753, made a report to Lieutenant Governor James
Delancey on the eastern boundary of the province, re-
hearsing the various stages of the controversy with
New Hampshire. The New York claim was based upon
the grant made by the Duke of York to Charles the
Second, in 1664, which included "all the Land from the
West side of Connecticut River to the East Side of
Delaware Bay." As to the claim that New Hampshire
276 HISTORY OF VERMONT
had as good a right to extend its western boundary as
far as the western boundaries of Connecticut and Massa-
chusetts, the Council disposed of this rather forceful
argument by declaring: "We apprehend that no good
title can be within His Majesty's dominions but under
valid grants of the crown, and know of no valid grant
that Massachusetts have to any soil or jurisdiction west
of Connecticut River. We are further of opinion that
the intrusions of the Massachusetts Bay within this
province could be no good reason for Governor Went-
worth to commit the like." By vote of the Council,
taken December 6, 1753, this committee report was
ordered to be transmitted to the British authorities.
For practically a decade following the transmission
of these reports to the British government by the Gov-
ernors of New Hampshire and New York, the matter of
the disputed boundary appears to have received scant
attention. This was due in part, no doubt, to the over-
shadowing importance of the French and Indian War;
but there appears to have been no very vigorous protest
on the part of New York while Governor Wentworth
was granting townships by the score in the disputed
territory during the two or three years immediately fol-
lowing the close of the war.
The matter of the boundary dispute between New
York and New Hampshire was treated very fully by the
late Hiland Hall in his "Early History of Vermont."
He called attention to the indefinite limits of the grant
made to the Duke of York on March 12, 1664. If it
had been intended to convey to the King's brother all
the territory from the source to the mouth of the Con-
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 277
necticut River, extending to and including the full length
of Delaware Bay, then it would have comprised a con-
siderable region already granted to others by the King,
for the charters granted to Connecticut and Massa-
chusetts extended the limits of those provinces westward
to the Pacific Ocean.
For nearly a century after the settlement of the bound-
ary between New York and Connecticut, the northern
boundary of New York was undefined, and it was not
until 1763 that the forty-fifth parallel of latitude, ex-
tending from the St. Lawrence River across Lake
Champlain to the Connecticut River, was declared to be
the southern boundary of Canada. Until the boundary
between New Hampshire and Massachusetts was estab-
lished in 1740, it had been considered that the northern
boundary of the latter province, like that of New York,
extended north to the very indefinite limits of Canada.
In writing other Colonial Governors for aid against
the French and Indians, Governor Sloughter of New
York said: "I doubt not that you are very sensible of
the many branches that have been copped ofif from the
government in the last reigns, and that it is now con-
fined to great narrowness, having only Hudson's River
and Long Island for the bounds." In 1720 a series of
questions was addressed by the Lords of Trade and
Plantations to Robert Hunter, Governor of New York
from 1710 to 1719, including a request for a statement
of the reputed boundaries of the province. In his reply,
he said, in part : "Its boundaries, east, a parallel twenty
miles distant from Hudson's River."
278 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Cadwallader Colden was more active, probably, than
any other New York official in the attempt to secure the
New Hampshire Grants as a part of the province, and
choice portions of this territory as the property of New
York citizens; and yet, when Surveyor General Cad-
wallader Colden, in 1738, was called upon to name the
boundaries of New York, he made no mention of the
Connecticut River.
When the boundary line between the provinces of
New Hampshire and Massachusetts was established in
1740 by royal decree, it was found that Fort Dummer,
on the west side of the Connecticut River, which had
been built and maintained by the government of Massa-
chusetts, was in the province of New Hampshire. The
Governor of Massachusetts complained that it was un-
just that the government of his province should be com-
pelled to maintain a fort that was situated within the
jurisdiction of another province. An order of the King
in Council followed, directing New Hampshire to garri-
son and maintain it, under penalty of forfeiting the fort
and the surrounding district to Massachusetts. New
Hampshire failed to comply with this order, and Massa-
chusetts felt under the necessity of maintaining Fort
Dummer for the protection of its citizens. The subject
being brought before the British Board of Trade, the
governmental department having charge of Colonial
matters, it was ordered that New Hampshire should re-
imburse Massachusetts for the maintenance of the fort.
Nothing can be clearer than that His Majesty's ministers
were not aware that the Connecticut River formed the
boundary between New York and New Hampshire.
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 279
A question having arisen in 1752 relative to the legal
effect of the boundary decision between Massachusetts
and New Hampshire upon the so-called "Equivalent
Lands," situated upon the west bank of the Connecticut
River, it was referred by the Crown to the Attorney
General, Sir Dudley Ryder, and to Solicitor General
Murray, better known in later years as the famous Lord
Mansfield, one of the greatest of English jurists. These
eminent lawyers decided that this region, as a result of
the boundary decision, "is become a part of New Hamp-
shire." It would be absurd to argue that these officials
of the Crown did not know the nature of the grant made
to the Duke of York. This decision was made after
Governor Wentworth had appealed to the British
authorities for a settlement of the boundary dispute with
New York, and after claims were made by Acting Gov-
ernor Colden and his Attorney General based upon the
assertion that the Connecticut River formed the eastern
boundary of New York.
The Lords of Trade, in recommending to the King,
on May 25, 1757, the establishment of a line twenty
miles from the Hudson as the boundary between New
York and Massachusetts, described it as running in a
northerly direction to a point twenty miles east of the
Hudson River "on that line which divides the province
of New Hampshire and the Massachusetts Bay." Lieu-
tenant Governor Delancey, writing to the British Board
of Trade, described this proposed boundary line as reach-
ing northerly to the line of New Hampshire.
Cadwallader Colden, who had become acting Governor
of New York upon the death of Lieutenant Governor
280 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Delancey, was succeeded in February, 1761, by Gov-
ernor Monckton. Just prior to the departure of Gov-
ernor Monckton for England on June 25, 1763, a com-
mittee of five members of the provincial Council, includ-
ing Judge Horsmaden, Oliver Delancey and Lord Stir-
ling, made a report to the Governor on the boundaries
of the province, which contained the following signifi-
cant statement: "We are humbly of opinion that it will
not be inconvenient to either province if His Majesty
should be pleased to order that some line which shall
be established as the division between them and the
province of Massachusetts Bay be continued on the same
course as far as the most northerly extent of either
province, with a saving to the inhabitants of New York
of such lands as are held by grants under the great seal
of the province eastward of Hudson's River beyond
the distance of twenty miles, etc."
The Council considered that the twenty-mile line
"would be an equitable boundary," between New York
and New Hampshire and advised Governor Monckton
that it would be proper to agree to such a line in order
to prevent further tumults and controversies on the
border. It is clear, therefore, that the New York offi-
cials were by no means unanimous in supporting Gov-
ernor Colden's position.
With the departure of Governor Monckton for Eng-
land, Lieutenant Governor Colden again became acting
Governor, and he took occasion very soon to combat the
ideas embodied in the report of the Council to his prede-
cessor relative to the boundary line between the prov-
inces of New York and New Hampshire. In a letter
c^
u
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 281
addressed to the British Lords of Trade, dated Septem-
ber 26, 1763, Governor Golden maintained that an exten-
sion of the western boundary hne of Gonnecticut could
not be adopted rightfully by Massachusetts.
In his letter Golden complained that "the Governor
of New Hampshire continues to grant lands far to the
westward of Gonnecticut River to numbers of people
who make a job of them by selling shares in the neigh-
boring colonies, and have even attempted it in the Gity
of New York, and perhaps with success. The quit
rents in New Hampshire, as I am informed, are much
lower than in New York, and this is made use of as an
inducement to purchase under New Hampshire rather
than settle under New York Grants."
This is a significant admission, and the writer pro-
duced another argument, supposed to have an important
bearing on the matter of revenues, when he said: "If
all the lands in the province of New York, from 20 miles
of Hudson's River to Gonnecticut River, were given up,
the crown would be deprived of a quit rent, amounting
yearly to a large sum, in my opinion greater than the
amount of all the quit rents of the whole that would re-
main and is now received." The amount of quit rents
received by New York from lands now included in the
State of Vermont must have existed in anticipation when
this letter was written, as it was not until May 21, 1765,
that Governor Golden issued his first patent for lands
within the present limits of the State.
Near the close of his letter the New York executive
embodied a paragraph, the importance of which cannot
well be over-estimated in the light of subsequent events,
282 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in which he said: "The New England Governments
are formed in republican principles and these principles
are zealously inculcated on their youth, in opposition to
the principles of the Constitution of Great Britain. The
government of New York, on the contrary, is established
as nearly as may be, after the model of the English Con-
stitution. Can it then be good policy to diminish the
extent of jurisdiction in His Majesty's province of New
York, to extend the power and influence of the others ?"
It_should be remembered in considering the influence
of the foregoing letter of Governor Colden, that William
Pitt had recently retired as Prime Minister after accom-
plishing a notable series of events which constitute one
of the most brilliant chapters in English history; and
that his ministry had been succeeded by a cabinet com-
posed of men of a much less liberal type, like the Duke
of Newcastle, the Earl of Bute and George Grenville.
It is altogether likely that Governor Colden's comparison
between the spirit of New York and that of New Eng-
land had much more to do with the decision of the dis-
puted boundary line than did the ancient grant to the
Duke of York.
Governor Colden issued a proclamation on December
28, 1763, "Commanding and requiring all judges, jus-
tices, and other civil officers within the same (province
of New York) to continue to exercise their respective
functions as far as the banks of Connecticut River, the
undoubted eastern limits of that part of the province
of New York, notwithstanding any contrariety of juris-
diction claimed by the government of New Hampshire,
or any grants of land westward of that river made by
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 283
said government." To this he added the injunction:
"And I do hereby enjoin the High Sheriff of the county
of Albany, to return to me or the commander-in-chief,
the names of all and every person and persons, who
under the grants of the government of New Hampshire,
do or shall hold the possession of any lands westward of
Connecticut River, that they may be proceeded against
according to law."
Following this proclamation. Governor Golden wrote
the British Board of Trade, on January 20, 1764,
elaborating his previous arguments, so often advanced,
relative to the western boundaries of Gonnecticut and
Massachusetts. He expressed his surprise that New
Hampshire had made a large number of grants in the
disputed territory after the matter had been submitted
to the British authorities for adjustment, and remarked
that these grants "had probably been still concealed from
the knowledge of this government, had not the grantees
or persons employed by them travelled thro all parts of
this, and in the neighboring province of New Jersey,
publicly offering the lands to sale, at such low rates as
evince the claimants had no intention of becoming set-
tlers, either from inability, or conscious they could derive
no title to the lands under the grants of New Hamp-
shire."
He argued that transportation would be easier to
Albany than to New Hampshire and that Albany
afforded superior markets. An item of information is
found in the letter to the effect that *'the revenue to the
Grown, if the lands are settled under this province, will
be greater than if granted under New Hampshire, in
284 HISTORY OF VERMONT
*
proportion to the difference of quit rent which I am in-
formed is 1 s sterlg. p 100 acres in that province and is
by His Majesty's instructions fixed here at 2/6 sterg."
This may have been an effective argument with the
Lords of Trade, but it ought not to have occasioned sur-
prise that lands patented by New Hampshire were more
salable than those which carried the burden of the New
York schedule of quit rents.
This letter was followed by another from Governor
Golden to the British Board of Trade, bearing date of
February 8, 1764. In the last mentioned communica-
tion allusion is made again to Governor Wentworth's
numerous land grants, and attention is called to what
evidently is intended to be the shocking information that
"a man in appearance no better than a pedlar has lately
travelled through New Jersey and this province, hawk-
ing and selling his pretended rights of 30 townships, on
trifling considerations. The whole proceedings of the
government of New Hampshire, in this case, if what is
told me be true, are shameful and a discredit to the
King's authority, under which they act."
Mention was made of the large number of reduced
officers and disbanded soldiers who were applying for
land grants, and attention was called again to the differ-
ence between the New Hampshire and New York rates
of quit rents, the Governor saying that "this difference
on a moderate computation may amount to one thousand
pounds sterling." To clinch the argument, he added:
"So that it is likewise much for the benefit of His
Majesty's revenue of quit rents that this dispute be
speedily put an end to."
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 285
Governor Wentworth issued a proclamation on March
13, 1764, in the nature of an answer to Governor
Colden's proclamation, which he considered "of a very
extraordinary nature"; and he proceeded to call atten-
tion to some important omissions relative to the bound-
aries of New York and Massachusetts. He observed
rather pertinently that "New York pretends to claim
even to the banks of the Connecticut River although she
never laid out and settled one town in that part of His
Majesty's lands since she existed as a government."
Governor Wentworth called attention to the fact that
from the grants he had made "a considerable revenue
is daily arising to the Crown."
Recognizing the fact that Colden's proclamation pos-
sibly might affect and retard settlement under the New
Hampshire charters, Wentworth assured the grantees
that the patent to the Duke of York was obsolete, citing
the boundaries of the Jerseys and Connecticut as illus-
trations, which provinces were included, at least in part,
in the grant to the King's brother. The northern
boundaries of New York were said to be unknown, but
the proclamation declared that as soon as they were
known "New Hampshire will pay a ready and cheerful
obedience thereunto, not doubting but that all grants
made by New Hampshire that are fulfilled by the
grantees will be confirmed to them if it should be His
Majesty's pleasure to alter the jurisdiction." Possibly
Governor Wentworth had reason to suspect that the
boundary dispute might not be decided in his favor. If
he harbored such a suspicion he was not deterred from
closing his letter in vigorous fashion, saying : "To the
286 HISTORY OF VERMONT
end, therefore, that the grantees now settled and settling
on those lands under His Late and present Majesty's
charters may not be intimidated, or any way hindered
or obstructed in the improvement of the land so granted,
as well as to ascertain the right & maintain the jurisdic-
tion of His Majesty's government of New Hampshire as
far westward as to include the grants made, I have
thought fit, by and with the advice of His Majesty's
Council, to issue this proclamation hereby encouraging
the several grantees claiming under this government,
to be industrious in clearing and cultivating their lands
agreeable to their respective grants." He required all
civil officers to be diligent in the exercise of their re-
spective offices "as far westward as grants of land have
been made by this government, and to deal with any per-
sons, that may presume to interrupt the inhabitants or
settlers on said lands as to law and justice doth apper-
tain. The pretended right of jurisdiction in the afore-
said proclamation (that of Governor Golden) notwith-
standing."
Golden wrote the Board of Trade again, on April 12,
1764, citing Wentworth's proclamation as an illustration
of the necessity "of coming to some speedy resolution"
in the matter of the disputed boundary. He had not
long to wait, for on July 20, 1764, there was issued an
order of the King in Gouncil, those participating being
the King, the Lord Steward, the Earl of Sandwich, the
Earl of Halifax, the Earl of Powis, the Earl of Har-
court, the Earl of Hillsborough, the Vice Ghamberlain,
Gilbert Elliot, Esq., establishing the Connecticut River
as the boundary between New York and New Hamp-
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 287
shire. The text of the order is as follows: "Whereas
there was this day read at the Board, a report made by
the Right Honorable the Lords of the Committee of
Council for Plantation Afifairs, dated the 17th of this
instant, upon considering a representation from the
Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations, rela-
tive to the disputes that have some years subsisted be-
tween the provinces of New Hampshire and New York
concerning the boundary line between those provinces,
His Majesty taking the same into consideration was
pleased with the advice of his Privy Council to approve
of what is therein proposed, and doth accordingly here-
by order and declare the western banks of the river Con-
necticut, from where it enters the province of Massa-
chusetts Bay, as far north as the forty-fifth degree of
northern latitude, to be the boundary line between the
said two provinces of New Hampshire and New York.
Whereof the respective governors and commanders-in-
chief of His Majesty's said provinces of New Hamp-
shire and New York for the time being and all others
whom it may concern are to take notice of His Majesty's
pleasure hereby signified and govern themselves accord-
ingly."
It had been an opportune time for Governor Colden
to press the claims of New York, with a British ministry
in power determined to tax the colonies, and displeased
with the growing spirit of freedom existing in New
England.
A meeting of the Governor and Council of New York
was held on May 22, 1765, and the following order was
issued : ''The Council taking into consideration the case
288 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of those persons who are actually settled under the
grants of the government of New Hampshire, on lands
westward of Connecticut River, and eastward of Hud-
son's River, which, by His Majesty's order in Council
of the twentieth day of July last are declared to be with-
in the jurisdiction of this province; and that the dis-
possessing of such persons might be ruinous to them-
selves and their families, is of opinion, and it is accord-
ingly ordered by His Honor the Lieutenant Governor,
with the advice of the Council, that the Surveyor Gen-
eral do not, until further order make return on any war-
rant of survey, already, or which may hereafter come to
his hands, of any lands so actually possessed under such
grants, unless for the persons in actual possession there-
of, as aforesaid; and that a copy hereof be served on
said Surveyor General."
This order appears to have been an act of wisdom
and justice, based upon a desire to deal fairly with those
who had settled in good faith upon lands granted by the
Governor of New Hampshire; but the records show that
on the day before this benevolent order was issued, on
May 21, 1765, Governor Colden made his first grant of
lands within the present limits of Vermont, and this
grant included a large number of farms already settled
under the Wentworth grants. This tract was patented
as Princetown, contained twenty-six thousand acres, and
included a comparatively narrow strip of the best lands
in the Battenkill valley in Arlington, Sunderland and
Manchester.
According to R. C. Benton, who, in his book "Ver-
mont Settlers and New York Land Speculators," has
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 289
made a very thorough and comprehensive study of this
period of Vermont history, the tract known as Prince-
town covered most of the settlements in ArUngton, all
those in Manchester, and probably some in Sunderland.
Approximately fifty farms, and the land on which
Remember Baker was building a sawmill and a grist-
mill, were taken summarily from the actual settlers, so
far as the grant of the Governor of New York could
take them. A few days after the grant was made the
nominal holders conveyed their rights to Attorney Gen-
eral John Taber Kempe, James Duane, a prominent
lawyer, and Walter Rutherford, men largely interested
in land speculation.
Improved lands in Bennington were sold on May 30
to a man named Slaughter, and the ejectment suit which
he brought figured prominently in the land controversy
a few years later. During the same year about ten
thousand acres of land in Bennington and Pownal were
sold to Crean Brush, a New York lawyer and land specu-
lator, who was prominent in early Vermont affairs prior
to the American Revolution. Before November 1, 1765,
it is said that Governor Golden had issued patents for
nearly all the improved lands in Bennington county, not-
withstanding the fair sounding order of the Council
adopted earlier the same year.
While the settlers on the New Hampshire Grants,
with few exceptions, were thoroughly in sympathy with
New England ideas and ideals, and not at all in sym-
pathy with the more aristocratic customs and policies
of New York, nevertheless, it is probable that the people
of this region would have accepted the governmental
290 HISTORY OF VERMONT
authority of New York without serious objection if the
titles to the farms they had cleared and cultivated had
been recognized as valid.
If Gov. Benning Wentworth never had the right to
grant lands west of the Connecticut River, then, as he
said in an early letter to Governor Clinton, such grants
would be void, and however great the hardship might
be to the settlers, they had no legal rights, being only
squatters. If, on the other hand, Governor Went-
worth's grants were legal and the decision of the King
in Council was in the nature of an annexation of terri-
tory, a matter of policy, permissible because New Hamp-
shire was a royal colony, and the King might do as he
pleased with his own, then the attempts to dispossess
the settlers on the Wentworth grants clearly were illegal
and a gross abuse of the fundamental rights of a free
people.
Lord Hillsborough, who was a member of the King's
Council which made the order establishing the Connecti-
cut River as the boundary between New York and New
Hampshire, and later was Secretary for the Colonies,
in writing to Governor Moore of New York, February
25, 1768, refers to an order "forbidding any grants to
be made of the lands annexed to New York by His
Majesty's determination between that colony and New
Hampshire." In a letter to Governor Colden, dated
December 9, 1769, Lord Hillsborough used almost
identical language, alluding to "the lands annexed to
New York by His Majesty's determination of the
boundary line between that colony and New Hamp-
shire." He wrote Governor Tryon of New York on
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 291
December 4, 1771: "I have long lamented the disorders
which have prevailed on the lands heretofore considered
as a part of New Hampshire but which were annexed to
New York by His Majesty's order in Council of the
20th of July, 1764." Lord Hillsborough wrote Gov-
ernor Tryon on April 18, 1772, concerning "that country
which has been annexed to New York by the determina-
tion of the boundary line" between that province and
New Hampshire.
Lord Dartmouth, who succeeded Lord Hillsborough
as Secretary of the Colonies, wrote Governor Tryon on
November 4, 1772, regarding "the district annexed to
New York by the determination of the boundary line
with New Hampshire." In a communication of the
British Board of Trade to the King, bearing date of
December 3, 1772, allusion is made to "the propriety of
or impropriety of re-annexing to New Hampshire the
lands west of Connecticut River." Sir William John-
son, a member of the New York Council, and well
known as Superintendent of Indian Affairs, wrote Com-
missary General Leake on August 16, 1765, regarding
"that part of New Hampshire lately made part of this
province."
There seems to be no reason to doubt that the present
State of Vermont was considered by the British govern-
ment to be a part of the province of New Hampshire
until, by order of the King in Council, July 20, 1764, it
was annexed to New York. This annexation was
ordered, apparently, because the ministry in power con-
sidered it good policy to encourage the New York rather
than the New England idea of government.
292 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The maps of the American Colonies used prior to the
Revolutionary War, which included the region known
as the New Hampshire Grants, show New Hampshire
as extending westward to Lake Champlain and to a line
extending south from the lake to the western boundary
of Massachusetts. Hiland Hall has said: "Not a
single map has been found which extends the province
(New York) eastward to Connecticut River, and all
concur in separating it from New England by a line
running from Long Island Sound parallel to the Hud-
son." It should be stated that the historian refers to
maps of a period before, or soon after the beginning of
the American Revolution. Maps published in 1776 and
1777 show' the Connecticut River as the eastern bound-
ary of New York. At that period the British authorities
held New England in less esteem than they did when
the order of the King in Council was issued in 1764, to
which reference has been made.
The authority of such eminent men as Sir Dudley
Ryder, Attorney General, Solicitor General Murray,
later known as Lord Mansfield, and two Secretaries of
the Colonies, Lord Hillsborough and Lord Dartmouth,
the former a member of the Council which reported the
boundary decision, indicate that the region between the
Connecticut River and Lake Champlain was not consid-
ered by the British Government a part of New York
previous to July 20, 1764. The Colonial maps lead to
the same conclusion. Well known business men of New
York City did not spend their money to secure Went-
worth grants if they had reason to suppose that New
York held the only valid title to such lands.
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 293
Naturally the settlers under the grants of Governor
Wentworth, constituting practically all the dwellers
within the limits of the present State of Vermont, were
both indignant and alarmed at the course pursued by
Governor Golden in granting to others the lands they
had purchased and cleared, and they proceeded to take
steps to defend their property. The early town records
of Golchester, kept by Ira Allen as proprietors' clerk,
contain a document which shows that Governor Golden,
on June 6, 1766, issued an order to the effect that all
persons holding grants under New Hampshire titles,
west of the Connecticut River, should "as soon as may
be," appear by themselves or their attorneys, and pro-
duce their grant, deeds and other papers relative to their
land holdings, before the Governor in Council. The
Colchester records further show that in response to this
order some well known Massachusetts men, Henry
Lloyd, Harrison Gray, John Searl, Sir John Temple,
Jacob Wendall, Nathaniel Appleton, William Brattle
and others, met on July 29, 1766, and appointed Giles
Alexander of Boston as their attorney to appear before
the Governor and Council of New York and endeavor
to obtain a confirmation of the grants made to them
under the seal of New Hampshire.
It appears from the town records of Maidstone that
a proprietors' meeting was held at Stratford, Conn., in
the autumn of 1766, at which time an agent was
appointed to attend a meeting of agents and proprietors
to be held at New York, December 10 of that year, for
the purpose of devising means for the protection of New
Hampshire titles.
294 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Meanwhile a petition was drawn up to be presented
to the King, which was signed by one thousand or more
of the New Hampshire grantees, or their representatives
or successors, which was dated "New England, 1766,"
and at the same time a power of attorney was given in
the following language: "We, the subscribers, pro-
prietors and claimants in and of sundry townships,
lately granted by Governor Wentworth, in the western
part of the then supposed province of New Hampshire,
do hereby fully impower our trusty friends and fellow
partners in those interests, Samuel Robinson, Esq.,
Ebenezer Cole, Jeremiah French, Benjamin Ferris,
Samuel Hunger ford, Ebenezer Fisk, John Brooks, John
Sherrer, Samuel Keep, Partridge Thatcher, Abraham
Thompson, Edward Burling, Benjamin Townsend,
Tunis Wortman, Peter Clapper, John Burling, Joseph
Hallet, Thomas Hicks, Esq.; and David Matthews,
Esq. ; for us and in our behalf and stead to take and pur-
sue all and every needful and proper measure and step
by application to His Majesty or otherwise, to obtain a
full confirmation to us of said lands, on such reason-
able terms as may be; hereby granting to them and to
any and every three or more of them, full powers of
substitution."
The first three members of this committee, Samuel
Robinson of Bennington, Ebenezer Cole of Shaftsbury
and Jeremiah French of Dover, were residents of the
New Hampshire Grants. Six members, Messrs. Hun-
ger ford, Fisk, Brooks, Keep, Thatcher and Thompson,
were Connecticut men. Ten members, Messrs. Ferris,
Sherrer, Edward Burling, John Burling, Townsend,
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 295
Wortman, Clapper, Hallet, Hicks and Matthews, were
residents of the province of New York. It is, indeed,
a most noteworthy circumstance that out of nineteen
men chosen as a committee to represent the thousand or
more New Hampshire grantees, their representatives
or successors, in petitioning the King for protection
from the encroachments of the Governor of New York,
ten members of that committee, or a clear majority,
should have been residents of this same province of New
York.
This petition to the King, dated November, 1766,
began as follows:
"To the King's Most Excellent Majesty,
"The Humble Petition of the Several Subscribers
Hereto, Your Majesty's Most Loyal Subjects, Sheweth
to Your Majesty;
"That we obtained at considerable expense of Your
Majesty's Governor of the Province of New Hamp-
shire, Grants and Patents for more than One Hundred
townships in the Western part of the said supposed
Province; and being about to settle the same, many of
Us, and others of Us, having actually planted Ourselves
on the same, were disagreeably surprised and prevented
from going on with the further intended Settlements
by the News of its having been determined by Your
Majesty in Council, That those Lands were within the
Province of New York; and by a Proclamation issued
by Lieutenant Governor Colden, in Consequence there-
of forbidding any further settlement until Patents of
Confirmation should be obtained from the Governor of
New York. Whereof We applied to the Governor of
296 HISTORY OF VERMONT
said Province of New York, to have the same lands con-
firmed to Us in the same Manner as they had been at
first granted to Us by the Governor of the said Province
of Nev^ Hampshire; when, to Our utter Astonishment,
We found the same could not be done, without our pay-
ing as Fees of Office for the same, at the Rate of Twenty
Five Pounds, New York Money, equal to about Four-
teen Pounds Sterling; for every Thousand Acres of said
Lands, amounting to about Three Hundred and Thirty
Pounds Sterling at a Medium, for each of said Town-
ships, and which will amount in the Whole to about
£33,000 Sterling, besides a Quit rent of Two Shillings
and Six Pence Sterling, for every Hundred Acres of
said Lands; and which being utterly unable to do and
perform. We find ourselves reduced to the sad Neces-
sity of losing all our past Expense and Advancements,
and many of us being reduced to absolute Poverty and
Want, having expended Our All in making said Settle-
ments."
The petition set forth that when these lands were
granted, "the same were and had been at all Times fully
understood and reputed to lie and be within the said
Province of New Hampshire." These grants were
made upon the payment as quit rent of one shilling proc-
lamation money, equal to nine pence sterling per hun-
dred acres; and these moderate terms, the petitioners
say, "induce Us to undertake to settle said Townships
throughout, and thereby to form a full and compacted
Country of People, whereas the imposing the said Two
Shillings and Six Pence Sterling per Hundred Acres,
will occasion all the more rough and unprofitable parts
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 297
of said Lands not to be taken up; but pitches, and the
more valuable parcels only to be laid out, to the utter
preventing the full and proper Settlement of said Coun-
try, and on the Whole to the lessening your Majesty's
Revenue."
The petitioners further declare that the claim that
these exorbitant fees were necessary "is without all
reasonable and equitable Foundation, and must and will
necessarily terminate in the totally preventing your Peti-
tioners obtaining the said Lands, and so the same will
fall into the Hands of the Rich, to be taken up, the more
valuable parts only as aforesaid, and these perhaps not
entered upon and settled for many years to come; while
your petitioners with their numerous and helpless
Families, will be obliged to wander far and wide to find
where to plant themselves down, so as to be able to live."
In closing, the petitioners request that their lands may
be confirmed and quitted to them on reasonable terms,
and add this observation: ''We shall esteem it a very
great Favor and happiness, to have said Townships put
and continued under the Jurisdiction of the government
of the said province of New Hampshire, as at the first,
as every Emolument and Convenience both publick and
private, are in Your Petitioners' humble Opinion, clearly
and strongly on the side of such Connection with said
New Hampshire Province."
At a meeting of agents and proprietors of New Hamp-
shire Grants, held in New York December 10, 1766,
nothing of importance seems to have been accomplished,
and another meeting of a similar nature was held at
the home of Benjamin Ferris, a Quaker, in that part
298 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of the province of New York, adjacent to Connecticut,
known as "The Oblong." At this meeting it was voted
to send an agent to England to appeal to the King for
relief. A similar course of action was determined upon
by the settlers of Bennington and vicinity, and it was
agreed that Capt. Samuel Robinson of Bennington
should act as the agent of the settlers and the grantees,
and that William Samuel Johnson, agent of the province
of Connecticut, should be asked to assist him.
The agents sailed on the same ship from New York
on Christmas day, 1766, and landed at Falmouth, Eng-
land, January 30, 1767, from which place they proceeded
to London. There had been a change in the British
ministry shortly before their arrival, and William Pitt,
Earl of Chatham, again was Prime Minister. This
ministry was well disposed toward the American
colonies. The petition of the settlers on the New
Hampshire Grants, to which allusion has been made,
elaborated somewhat by Mr. Johnson, was presented to
Lord Shelburne, Secretary of State for the Colonies, on
March 20, 1767. At the same time a petition was pre-
sented in behalf of the Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel in Foreign Parts, which obtained a share of
land in every New Hampshire charter, but none in
charters granted to New York. The Church of Eng-
land also received a share of land in each New Hamp-
shire Grant, but none from the New York authorities.
These grants probably had something to do with the
favor shown the cause of the petitioners by the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury.
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 299
Finding life in London expensive, and a decision in
the land controversy being delayed, Captain Robinson
determined to leave matters in the hands of Mr. John-
son, and to return home. Unfortunately, however, he
was stricken with smallpox, and died in London, October
27, 1767, and was interred in the burial ground attached
to Mr. Whitefield's church.
That the mission of Robinson and Johnson made a
strong impression upon the British ministry is shown in
the following extract from a letter of Lord Shelburne
to Governor Moore of New York, dated April 11, 1767:
"Lest there should be any further proceedings in the
matter, till such time as the Council shall have examined
into the grounds of it, I am to signify to you His
Majesty's commands that you make no new grants of
these lands and that you do not molest any person in the
quiet possession of his grant, who can produce good and
valid deeds for such grant under the seal of the province
of New Hampshire until you receive further orders re-
specting them.
"In my letter of the 11th Deer. I was very explicit
upon the point of former grants. You are therein
directed to 'take care that the inhabitants lying west-
ward of the line reported by the Lords of Trade as the
boundary of the two provinces be not molested on
account of territorial differences, or disputed jurisdic-
tion for whatever province the settlers may be found to
belong to, it should make no difference in their property,
provided that their titles to their lands should be found
good in other respects or that they have been long in
uninterrupted possession of them'.
300 HISTORY OF VERMONT
"His Majesty's intentions are so clearly expressed to
you in the above paragraph that I cannot doubt your
having immediately upon receipt of it removed every
cause of those complaints which the petitioners set forth.
If not it is the King's express command that it may be
done without the smallest delay. The power of grant-
ing lands was vested in the Governor of the colony orig-
inally for the purpose of accommodating, not distressing,
settlers, especially the poor and industrious. Any per-
version of that power, therefore, must be highly derog-
atory, both from the dignity of their stations and from
that disinterested character which a Governor ought to
support, and which His Majesty expects from every per-
son honored by him with his commission. The un-
reasonableness of obliging a very large tract of country
to pay a second time the immense sum of thirty-three
thousand pounds in fees according to the allegations of
this petition for no other reason that its being found
necessary to settle the line of boundary between the
colonies in question is so unjustifiable that His Majesty
is not only determined to have the strictest enquiry made
into the circumstances of the charge, but expects the
clearest and fullest answer to every part of it."
The vigorous tone of this letter left no shadow of
doubt as to the position of the British Government.
The petitioners were sustained in language so positive
that there could be no mistaking its meaning. To this
indignant rebuke Governor Moore made answer on
June 9, 1767, in a lengthy and somewhat evasive letter.
In it he alluded to the delay caused by the troubles grow-
ing out of the Stamp Act, and to his determination to
:Monnment Erected in Honor of the Green Mountain Boys at Rutland
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 301
issue no patents unless they were properly stamped. He
mentioned the order made requiring all persons holding
lands under New Hampshire Grants to appear in per-
son or by attorney and produce their documentary
evidence.
Governor Moore's letter showed that claims were
made under New Hampshire charters to ninety-six
townships, in response to an order issued by the New
York Council, following the boundary decision made by
the King in Council. Of this number it was decided
that twenty-one townships were within New York
jurisdiction before the boundary decision was made in
the controversy with New Hampshire, being within
twenty miles of the Hudson River, the waters of South
Bay and Lake Champlain. It was further claimed that
in none of these twenty-one townships, with the excep-
tion of Bennington, Pownal and Shaftsbury, had any
settlements been made, or improvements attempted, and
that the time limit for settlement having expired the
lands again became vested in the Crown.
The New York Governor declared that in order to en-
courage settlements in the upper Connecticut valley he
determined personally to take up a tract of land there
"which should be distributed out to poor families in small
farms on the condition that they should begin upon the
manufacture of pot ash and the culture of hemp." This
township, to which reference is made, was granted as
Mooretown, but is now known as Bradford.
The Governor asserted in his letter that fourteen
families had settled in his township and he expected a
considerable number of others soon. He also claimed
302 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to have ordered the erection of a sawmill and a grist-
mill, and to have directed that a church should be built
at his sole expense, a large farm set apart as a glebe,
a township laid out for the use of clergymen of the
Church of England, and another "for the use of the
college here." He denied having demanded fees from
Robinson or any other person, saying he had signed only
six patents since coming into the province for which
he had received fees. He asserted that the claim that
upwards a thousand families were settled on lands
west of the Connecticut River granted by New Hamp-
shire, was an untruth, and he expressed the belief that
not half or quarter of that number were to be found
there. In his opinion "the real land holders of the
greatest part of that country actually reside in Boston
and Connecticut governments."
Governor Moore made slighting references to Samuel
Robinson, agent in England for the settlers on the New
Hampshire Grants, saying of his military record that
"Robinson can plead but little merit from his service,
which I am told here was nothing more than that of
driving an ox-cart for the suttlers" ; and again he asked
how "should a man of one of the lowest and meanest
occupations at once set up for a statesman and form a
notion that the wheels of government are as easily
managed and conducted as those of a w^agon, take upon
him to direct the King's ministers in their depart-
ments?" On the following day, June 10, 1767, Gov-
ernor Moore wrote another letter to the Earl of Shel-
burne, in which he denied the charges made by the
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 303
Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts.
According to such excellent authorities as Hiland Hall
and R. C. Benton, Governor Moore's statement regard-
ing his benevolent operations in his new town of Moore-
town was untrue. There were not fourteen families
there in 1767. In 1771 there were only ten families in
the town, and it is asserted that the Governor did not
expend any money for them. He did not build mills, or
a church, or set apart a farm as a glebe lot. Even if all
these claims had been true, instead of untrue, they
would have furnished no answer to the petition to the
King conveyed by Samuel Robinson. Neither was it
true that a large part of the settlers, or any part of the
settlers on the New Hampshire Grants, were located
within less than twenty miles of Hudson River; and
so far as a twenty-mile line from Lake Champlain was
concerned, such a line had nothing whatever to do with
the controversy in question — no more than a twenty-
mile line from the Green Mountains.
If he did not demand fees from any person his agents
did make such demands, nor is there any proof that he
remitted any fees for the confirmation of New Hamp-
shire charters. Indeed, Governor Golden has said that
Governor Moore "refused to pass any (grants) with-
out his full fees were paid," a fact, says Golden, that
"gave great disgust to the people, and occasioned those
applications which have since been made to the King on
the subject."
The slur upon Captain Robinson's good name was
unworthy of any man, and particularly unworthy of the
304 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Governor of a royal province. The records show that
Samuel Robinson was Captain of a company of Massa-
chusetts militia in two campaigns, and saw service in
real warfare. It should be said to Governor Moore's
credit that he did not disregard the royal orders as did
some of his successors. Aside from six regrants con-
firming New Hampshire charters, he granted only one
tract of five thousand acres, and eighteen military
patents amounting to thirteen thousand, three hundred
and fifty acres.
Acting on a report of the Lords of the Committee of
Council for Plantation Affairs, an order of the King
in Council was promulgated on July 24, 1767, in which
the Governor of New York was strictly charged and
commanded upon pain of His Majesty's highest dis-
pleasure not to presume to make any grant of any part
of the lands previously granted by New Hampshire until
His Majesty's further pleasure should be known.
It is said that a majority of the Privy Council was
ready to confirm the New Hampshire land titles, but
Lord Northington, the president of the Council, objected
to immediate action, and the matter was delayed. Wil-
liam S. Johnson, the agent of Connecticut, who was
associated with Mr. Robinson in presenting the claims
of the New Hampshire grantees, in a letter to John
Wendell, written soon after Robinson's death, said,
"The real poverty of those who joined Capt. Robinson,
rendered them unable to give the cause that effectual
support, which was necessary to give it proper weight,
and render the application to the Crown as regular and
respectable as its importance and the usual course of
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 305
proceedings in cases of tliis kind justly required.
Money has, in fact, been wanting to do justice to the
cause. It came here rather in forma pauperis, which is
an appearance seldom made or much regarded in this
country; and is by no means an eligible light in which
to place an affair of this kind." Soon after the order
of July 24, 1767, was issued, the Chatham ministry went
out of power, but the ministry which succeeded it did
not approve the policy of the New York Governors in
granting lands previously granted by Governor Went-
worth.
In January, 1771, a petition to the King, asking to
be re-annexed to New Hampshire, was signed by fifty-
six residents of Westminster and twelve residents of
Rockingham. This petition declared that "their lying
in the province of New York was and is and forever
will and must be highly detrimental and disagreeable to
them, both in their property and good government, all
of which they judged Your Majesty and ministers of
State had been egregiously misinformed — and also that
those circumstances had been erroneously represented to
Your Majesty, that since Your Majesty's said orders to
annex the said district to New York their possessions
have been unexceptionally granted to other people under
the great seal of New York — that writs of ejectment
have been brought, their property wrested from them,
their persons imprisoned and their whole substance
wasted in fruitless lawsuits merely to the enrichment
of a few men in the province of New York, whose great
influence is the destruction of our hard honestly earned
property, that we were greatly and industriously cultivat-
306 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ing the wilderness, orderly obeying every law, rejoicing
in our safety and Your Majesty's auspicious govern-
ment until by this invasion of our property by many
who pretended Your Majesty's authority therein, we are
thrown in such evident distress, confusion and danger-
ous disorder as would touch your royal breast with com-
passion could our inexpressible misery be truly repre-
sented."
The British Board of Trade reported to the Privy
Council on July 5, 1770, their belief that the actual set-
tlers under grants from New Hampshire "ought to be
left in entire possession of such lands as they have
actually cultivated and improved." In regard to lands
proposed to be granted to claimants under New Hamp-
shire titles, but unsettled and unimproved, it was recom-
mended that action in these cases be suspended until the
country had been surveyed. The closing paragraph of
this recommendation shows that the abuse of power by
Colonial Governors was not unknown to the King's min-
isters. It was as follows: "We are of opinion that
the instructions to be given to the Governor of New
York in the latter case cannot be too explicit and pre-
cise in order to guard against those irregularities and
abuses which we are concerned to say have but too much
prevailed in the exercise of the powers given to His
Majesty's (Governors) in America, for the granting of
lands, to the great prejudice of His Majesty's interest,
to the discouragement of industry and in many instances
to the apprehension of the subject by the exaction of
exorbitant and unreasonable fees."
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 307
William Tryon, having become Governor of New
York in the summer of 1771, issued a proclamation
on the eleventh day of the following December, reiterat-
ing the right of that province to the region known as
the New Hampshire Grants, and setting forth the
familiar arguments based on the ancient grant to the
Duke of York.
A meeting of delegates from Bennington and adjacent
towns was held at Manchester on October 21, 1772, at
which time Jehiel Hawley of Arlington and James
Breakenridge of Bennington were appointed agents to
go to Lyondon and present to the King a petition for the
confirmation of their claims under the grants of New
Hampshire.
The British Board of Trade made a somewhat
elaborate report to the Lords of the Privy Council on
December 3, 1772, in the nature of a plan to settle the
ditticuities in the New Hampshire Grants, 'ihe report
took up the proposition to re-annex to New Hampshire
the lands west of the Connecticut River, declared a part
of New York by the order of the King in Council, July
20, 1764, and while that policy was not approved, the
report, it was said, "contains a variety of matter well
deserving your lordships' attention, and we think that
there is too good reason to believe that many of the
proprietors of lands in the townships granted by the
Governor of New Hampshire who have bona fide made
actual settlement and improvement thereon, have sus-
tained great injury and suffered great oppression by the
irregular conduct of the Governor and Council of New
308 HISTORY OF VERMONT
York in granting warrants of survey for lands under
such actual settlement and improvement."
The proposition is made in this report that each per-
son claiming possession of lands under New York Grants
within the limits of towaiships established by Massa-
chusetts, should receive a grant of an equal number of
acres in some other part of the district between the
Hudson and Connecticut Rivers. To officers and sol-
diers who had received grants from New York in the
district, it was proposed that an equivalent should be
granted in some other part of the district if the lands
had been actually settled and improved under some pre-
vious grant. Another proposal was to the effect that in
every township, whether granted by New Hampshire
or New York, a tract not exceeding five hundred acres
in area be reserved as a glebe for a Protestant minister,
and that a tract not exceeding two hundred and fifty
acres in area be reserved for a schoolmaster. It was
further recommended that of the residue of lands un-
granted, or without actual settlement or improvement,
conditions should be imposed requiring that each
grantee, over and above the usual quit rent of two-
sixths sterling per hundred acres, should pay a further
consideration of five pounds sterling for every hundred
acres. The report alluded to the difficulty of settling
these lands if the grants were ''to pass through all the
forms now adopted in New York upon grants of lands
and are to be subject to the payment of the fees at pres-
ent taken by the Governor and other officers of that
colony."
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP 309
The action of the New York officials was condemned
in the following vigorous terms :
"We have upon former occasions found it necessary
to take notice of the complaints which have been made
of the injustice and extortion of the servants of the
Crown in New York in this respect, and we have at all
times considered the liberty they have assumed to them-
selves of taking greater and other fees upon grants of
land, than what were established by the ordinance of the
Governor and Council of the year 1710, as most unwar-
rantable and unjust. By that ordinance the fees
allowed to be taken upon grants of land by the Gov-
ernor, the secretary and the surveyor are considerably
larger than what are at this day received for the same
service in any other of the colonies, nor are fees allowed
as we conceive to any other officers than those we have
mentioned. Of later times, however, the Governor, the
secretary and the surveyor have taken and do now
exact considerably more than double what that ordinance
allows, and a number of other officers do upon various
pretences take fees upon all grants of land, insomuch
that the whole amount of these fees upon a grant of one
thousand acres of land is in many instances not far
short of the real value of the fee simple, and we think we
are justified in supposing that it has been from a con-
sideration of the advantage arising from these exorbi-
tant fees that His Majesty's Governors of New York
have of late years taken upon themselves upon the most
unwarranted pretences to elude the restrictions contained
in His Majesty's instructions with regard to the quan-
tity of land to be granted to any one person, and to con-
310 HISTORY OF VERMONT
trive by the insertion in one grant of a number of names,
either fictitious or which, if real, are only lent for the
purpose to convey to one person in one grant from
twenty to forty thousand acres of land, an abuse which
is now grown to that height as well to deserve your lord-
ships' attention."
The advice is offered that "most positive instructions"
be given the Governor of New York that upon any re-
grant of lands no fee shall be taken by the Attorney
General, Receiver General or Auditors.
Lord Dartmouth reported to Governor Tryon on
April 10, 1773, the recommendations of the Board of
Trade, offered by the King. It was also directed that
''some short and effectual mode be established, by act of
legislature or otherwise, for ascertaining by the inquest
of a jury, the state of possession, settlement and im-
provement, upon all lands within the said district,
claimed under grants made by the governments of New
Hampshire or New York, and that all lands never
possessed, improved or granted be disposed of in such
manner as the King shall think fit."
Governor Tryon replied to Lord Dartmouth under
date of July 1, 1773, in a long communication. He ex-
pressed the belief that the recommendation of the Lords
of Trade could not be carried into eft'ect without the
action of the Legislature, and he made the rather re-
markable declaration: "I cannot flatter myself with
the slightest hope of procuring the concurrence of the
Assembly of this province in a scheme so repugnant to
the claims of persons who from their numbers and con-
nections have a very powerful influence."
A QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP - 311
He raised numerous objections to the plan of the
Board of Trade and made some propositions of his own
to the effect that all New York patents be declared valid;
that all New Hampshire patents be declared void; that
all occupants of lands under New Hampshire titles with-
in New York patents "have such liberal equivalents out
of the waste lands, and such other indulgences by a sus-
pension of quit rents as His Majesty shall think equit-
able," The settlers on the New Hampshire Grants
wanted not "indulgences," but justice, and Governor
Try on learned before many months had passed that
"liberal equivalents out of the waste lands" would not
be accepted by these pioneers for farms bought and
cleared and tilled.
It is apparent that, although British ministers repre-
senting opposing political parties were in power during
the period when the title to the New Hampshire Grants
was a matter of dispute which engaged the attention of
the King and his ministers, the settled policy of the
British authorities was to uphold the bona fide settlers
holding titles under the Wentworth grants. It was
never intended that these lands should be taken from the
actual settlers, and the Governors of New York were
forbidden repeatedly to make such grants, in terms as
forceful as the English language permitted. That they
disobeyed explicit orders of the Crown is a matter of
history. Alexander Wedderburn, Solicitor General of
Great Britain from 1771 until he was made Attorney
General in 1778, later Chief Justice of the Court of Com-
mon Pleas and Lord High Chancellor, in a letter written
December 27, 1775, to William Eden, referring to this
312 HISTORY OF VERMONT
subject, mentions the "abuse of an order of Council
which was never meant to dispossess the settlers in the
lands in debate between ye two provinces." This dis-
obedience brought down denunciation upon the heads of
the Governors of this province, but conditions in the
Colonies were so threatening at this period that the
British authorities hesitated to make an example of offi-
cials who, on general principles, were in sympathy with
the ideas of Old England rather than those of New Eng-
land. Had the honest intent of the British Government
been carried out, however, the long and bitter contro-
versy between Vermont and New York in all probability
might have been avoided.
Chapter XI
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY
THE settlement of the New Hampshire Grants had
not proceeded so far that much governmental
machinery was necessary when the order of the
King in Council was made known, establishing the Con-
necticut River as the eastern boundary of New York.
A mere handful of townships had organized local gov-
ernments. Settlements had been begun in several towns
but had not progressed to the point where municipal
authority could be established. Such court business as
the circumstances demanded was transacted at Ports-
mouth, N. H.
The first attempt on the part of the province of New
York to institute any form of government here was an
extension of the jurisdiction of the Sheriff of the county
of Albany to extend from Lake Champlain to the Con-
necticut River. In order to attend court, or to transact
business with the provincial authorities, it was necessary
to go to Albany or New York City.
As early as October, 1765, a petition was presented
Governor Colden, praying for the erection of five coun-
ties, as follows : First, the county of Colden, extending
from the Massachusetts border to the northern line of
Norwich, the county seat to be Colden in the town of
New Flamstead, later known as Chester; the second
county, known as Sterling, to include that portion of the
Connecticut valley on the west bank of the river north
of Norwich, and Newbury was to be the county seat;
the third county, to be called Manchester, extending
from a point twenty-six miles west of the Connecticut
River, on the Massachusetts boundary line as far as the
northwest corner of that province, and thence westward
316 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to the northern branch of the Mohawk River, Stillwater
being the county seat; the fourth county, to be called
Kingsbury, extending north of the third county as far
as the north end of Lake George, the county seat to be
Kingsbury; the fifth county, to be called Pitt, to extend
from the northern limit of the fourth county to the forty-
fifth parallel of latitude, the county seat to be situated
on Hospital Point, on the east side" of Lake Champlain,
not far from Crown Point.
The request embodied in the foregoing petition was
denied, it being asserted that the inhabitants were as
yet "wholly unacquainted with the laws of the province
and the modes of dispensing justice therein." How-
ever, on July 3, 1766, the county of Cumberland was
erected by New York, the lines running along the Massa-
chusetts boundary from the Connecticut River to the
southeast corner of Stamford, thence north about sixty
miles to the northeast corner of Rutland; thence easterly
to the northwest corner of Linfield, now Royalton, and
following the northern lines of Sharon and Norwich to
the Connecticut River. On June 26, 1767, this act of
the New York Legislature was declared void by the
King ; but the difficulties attendant upon the administra-
tion of justice being so great, a royal order was issued
on March 19, 1767, re-establishing the county of Cum-
berland, the boundaries being practically the same as
before.
On February 28, 1779, the New York Council erected
the county of Gloucester, which included that portion
of the present State of Vermont north of the county of
Cumberland and west of the Green Mountains, as far
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 317
north as the Canadian border, Newbury and Kingsland
being made the county seats. Although the latter place,
now known as the town of Washington, was a wilder-
ness, eight miles from any settlement, a log court house
and jail were erected there. The reasons advanced for
the erection of that county were that there were upwards
of seven hundred persons in that region, and that they
were "exposed to rapine and plunder from a lawless
banditti of felons and criminals, who fly thither from
other places."
In 1772 the county of Charlotte was erected. This
county, beginning at the Green Mountains, extended
along the north lines of the towns of Sunderland and
Arlington westward to the Hudson River, and included
both sides of Lake Champlain as far north as the Cana-
dian border. That portion of the present State of Ver-
mont, south of Charlotte county, and west of the Green
Mountains, was included in the county of Albany.
It has been pointed out already that the serious con-
troversy which arose between the settlers on the New
Hampshire Grants and New York may be traced
directly to the refusal of the provincial authorities of
New York to follow the plainly expressed desire and in-
tent of the British Government, by recognizing the
validity of New Hampshire land titles held by actual
settlers. Although these pioneers, with few exceptions,
were New Englanders through and through, and pre-
ferred democratic rather than aristocratic forms of gov-
ernment, it is hardly probable that there would have
been any revolt against the authority of New York if
318 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the settlers had been left in peaceable possession of the
farms they had wrested from the primeval forests.
The first conflict of authority over lands in what is
now Vermont occurred in Pownal in August, 1764, prob-
ably before any knowledge had reached the settlers of
the royal order, establishing the authority of New York
in this region. A letter from Sheriff Schuyler to Gov-
ernor Golden, dated August 17, 1764, shows that he
received news on the Friday preceding that date to the
effect that "the New Hampshire people" had ejected one
Hans Greiger, holding title under the "Hoosick patent,"
a New York grant, taking possession of his lands and
tenements; that they had driven off his cattle and com-
pelled him to pay forty-five dollars for their redemption,
and that they had taken "a parcel of Indian corn." It
was intimated that Peter Voss and Bastiane Deale ex-
pected to be ejected the following day, and the claim was
made that these possessions had been held by the three
men mentioned upward of thirty years, with the excep-
tion of the periods when they were driven off by the
Indians "during the last two wars."
The New York reports of the period show that
Sheriff Schuyler took two justices of the peace and "a
few other good people of this province" and arrived on
the scene on Saturday morning. Upon his arrival he
found that Voss and Deale had not been dispossessed of
their property, but expected a call from "the New Hamp-
shire people" the following Monday. They were not
disappointed, for early on Monday morning the two
men were ejected on the ground that they were within
the province and jurisdiction of New Hampshire.
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 319
Sheriff Schuyler was notified, but did not arrive until
after the dispossession had been accomplished. Making
haste he overtook the New Hampshire party about a
mile from the homes of Voss and Deale and placed under
arrest Deputy Sheriff Samuel Ashley, and Justice of the
Peace Samuel Robinson, also John Horsfoot and Isaac
Charles, who claimed to own, respectively, the lands held
by Voss and Deale. The four prisoners were committed
to Albany jail.
The New Hampshire statement regarding this episode
may be found in a letter written by Governor Went-
worth to Governor Colden, dated September 4, 1764,
which declared that several of the inhabitants of Pownal,
at a time when the deputy sheriff was executing "a legal
precept," were set upon by the Sheriff of Albany and
more than thirty armed men on horseback, and that a
deputy and three other of the principal inhabitants were
seized, carried to Albany and committed to jail. Gov-
ernor Wentworth observed that "it would be an act of
cruelty to punish individuals for disputes between two
governments," and suggested his willingness to submit
the matter of jurisdiction to the King.
This letter was submitted to the New York Council,
and that body advised Governor Colden to acquaint the
Governor of New Hampshire with the New York ver-
sion of the affair, and that he (Colden) could do nothing
more than to recommend that the bail demanded be
moderate, and let the matter take its natural legal course.
Later the four prisoners were released on bail, having
been indicted. A deposition of James Van Cortlandt,
taken March 4, 1771, stated that they had not then been
320 HISTORY OF VERMONT
brought to trial, and several years previous to this date
Samuel Robinson had died in London.
The first open resistance to the authority of New
York, following the annexation of the New Hampshire
Grants to that province by royal decree, occurred in
the autumn of 1769. Thirty years earlier, in 1739, a
tract of land containing twelve thousand acres, known
as the Walloomsack Patent, was granted to James
Delancey, Gerardus Stuyvesant, and others, the greater
part of which, beyond doubt, was within the present
limits of the State of New York. As was the custom
in some of the New York grants, an attempt was made
to secure only the most fertile land, instead of taking
a regular section, and this grant followed the windings
of the Walloomsac River in order to obtain the valuable
intervale lands in that valley. It was claimed by the
New York holders of the patent that it extended across
the southwest corner of Shaftsbury, and about three
miles into the northwestern part of Bennington. This
grant contained the usual provision that it should be
void if the grantees should not cultivate a certain pro-
portion of their lands within three years from the date
of granting, and there was not the necessary compliance
with this requirement.
So far as known this region never had been settled
by white men when Bennington was granted by Gov-
ernor Wentworth. James Breakenridge, under a New
Hampshire title, bought a farm in the northwestern
part of Bennington, adjoining the line Wenty mile's
from the Hudson River, claimed by New Hampshire,
prior to the King's order of 1764, as its western bound-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 321
ary, and upon this farm extensive and valuable improve-
ments had been made. This was considered a particu-
larly good opportunity for bringing a test suit in the
New York courts. A writ of ejectment was served and
commissioners were appointed for the purpose of divid-
ing this land among the New York claimants.
On October 19, 1769, the commissioners appeared
with surveyors in the vicinity of the Breakenridge farm.
Breakenridge and his farm hands were in a field gather-
ing corn. It is probable that the visit of the New York
party was not altogether unexpected, as a party of men,
a few of whom w^ere armed with guns, were assembled
at a convenient distance. In a deposition signed by
James Breakenridge and Samuel Robinson (the latter
being a son of the founder of Bennington) February
14, 1770, they gave their version of the affair to the
effect that John Munro, a well known New York parti-
san and a Justice of the Peace, notified Breakenridge of
the approach of the New York party, and their purpose,
and warned him not to stop them by force. Breaken-
ridge therefore requested his neighbors to withdraw
from the field, and they retired some distance.
After the surveyor had crossed the twenty-mile line
Breakenridge and Robinson went to him, asked him his
authority in the proceedings and requested him not to
run the line. This question and request were referred
to the commissioners, who were John R. Bleeker, Peter
Lansing and Thomas Hun. After a conference they
went to a neighboring house where the act of the
Assembly to divide the patents, and the order of the
patentees of this particular grant were shown. Break-
322 HISTORY OF VERMONT
enridge and Robinson replied that the commissioners
were without the limits of Albany county, and were in-
fringing- on a grant made by New Hampshire ; that they
understood that the King had forbidden the granting of
lands already granted, or interference with settlements.
Breakenridge again expressed a desire that no survey of
his property be made, saying that Robinson and himself
were appointed a committee for Bennington, were large
proprietors of lands in Shaftsbury, and as such would
forbid their running the lines, asserting that if it were
done it must be considered as on disputed lands.
According to this deposition the New York party re-
peatedly asked the Bennington men to break their chain
or compass, or tread on their chain, but this they stead-
fastly refused to do, desiring to avoid the breaking of
any law. Thereupon Breakenridge and Robinson left
the spot, returning to their homes and leaving the sur-
veyors on the field, and it was their opinion that all their
neighbors left at that time.
On December 12, 1769, Governor Golden of New
York issued a proclamation in which he asserted that the
surveying party on the Breakenridge farm was "inter-
rupted and opposed by a number of armed men, tumultu-
ously and riotously assembled, for the declared purpose
of preventing said partition, who, by open force, com-
pelled the commissioners' surveyor to desist from said
survey, and by insults and menaces so intimidated the
said commissioners that, apprehensive for the safety of
their persons, they found it necessary to relinquish any
further attempts to perform the trust so reposed in
them." It was further claimed that the principal
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 323
"authors of and actors in said riot" were James Breaken-
ridge, Jedediah Dewey (pastor of the Bennington
church), Samuel Robinson, Nathaniel Horner, Henry
Walbridge and Moses Robinson, and the Sheriff of
Albany county was ordered to arrest them and commit
them to jail. These men were indicted, but never were
arrested or tried for the alleged rioting.
As a sequel to the afifair at the Breakenridge farm, an
attempt was made by Sheriff Ten Eyck of Albany and
a posse to take possession of the house and lands of
James Breakenridge in Bennington. Having sum-
moned a posse comitatus by means of a general sum-
mons to the citizens of Albany, the party left that city
on the morning of July 18, 1771. The size of this posse
is variously estimated. Some of the affidavits of the
New York men who participated place it as low as one
hundred and fifty men. Ira Allen placed it as high as
seven hundred and fifty; Hiland Hall placed the number
at about three hundred. In this party were the Mayor
of Albany, several Aldermen and four eminent lawyers,
Mr. Silvester, Mr. Bleeker, Robert Yates and Chris-
topher Yates. A halt was made for the night at San-
coick, on the Walloomsac River near the village of
North Hoosick, N. Y., and on the following morning the
posse set out for the farm of James Breakenridge, several
miles distant.
Meanwhile the Bennington settlers had been warned
of the approach of the New York posse, and about
three hundred men assembled at the Breakenridge farm,
arriving several hours in advance of Sheriff Ten Eyck.
The Breakenridge family sought refuge with a neighbor.
324 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The house was prepared for defence by providing a
strong barricade for the door and loopholes in the walls,
and within a garrison consisting of an officer and
eighteen men was stationed. About one hundred and
twenty men were posted in a wood behind a ridge, where
only their heads and the points of their muskets could
be seen rather indistinctly through the trees. This
force was stationed near the road along which the
Sheriff's posse must march. The remainder of the
party of defenders was stationed behind a ridge in a
meadow, within firing distance of the house, but out of
sight of the New York party. These preparations
were made as the result of action previously taken,
whereby Mr. Breakenridge and Mr. Fuller, against
whom judgments had been rendered by the New York
authorities, were taken under the protection of the town
of Bennington, and a committee had been appointed to
see that their farms were properly defended when an
attempt should be made to evict them.
The garrison in the Breakenridge house had been fur-
nished with a red flag to be raised over the chimney
as a signal when help was needed. The forces had been
located so that the Albany posse would march into an
ambush, where it would be subjected to a cross-fire, pro-
vided fighting became necessary.
At a bridge over the Walloomsac, about half a mile
from the Breakenridge farm, Sheriff Ten Eyck's party
was halted by six or seven armed men. After a parley
it was agreed that a few men, headed by Major Cuyler,
might advance and consult with Mr. Breakenridge.
The latter informed the Albany officials that the town-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 325
ship had taken his farm under its protection, and in-
tended to keep it. Therefore Cuyler informed Breaken-
ridge that "whatever blood should be spilled in opposing
the King's writ would be required from his hands."
It was agreed finally that Breakenridge should con-
sult with his friends, and that the Mayor and his party
should return to the bridge, where, within half an hour
they should be informed of the result of the conference.
At the end of that period it was announced on behalf of
Breakenridge and his friends that possession "would be
kept at all events." Sherifif Ten Eyck then ordered his
posse to more forward, but only a few would accom-
pany him, about twenty or thirty, it is said, and those
obeyed with apparent reluctance.
When the Sherift' and his party approached the house
a parley was held with the leaders of the opposing force,
and Robert Yates, a lawyer, attempted to argue in be-
half of the New York position. The settlers acknowl-
edged that they were under the jurisdiction of New
York, but claimed that they had been unfairly used in
the matter of land titles, and said that word had been
received from their agent in England giving strong
assurances that a decision would be rendered soon in
their favor, and advising them in the meantime not to
relinquish possession of their property.
Perceiving that arguments were of no avail. Sheriff
Ten Eyck seized an axe and demanded entrance to the
Breakenridge house, threatening to force the door if
refused. The garrison replied: "Attempt it and you
are a dead man." The demand was repeated, only to
be answered by hideous groans from within. . At this
326 HISTORY OF VERMONT
point some of the party defending the settlers displayed
their hats on the muzzles of their guns, making the
force of the defenders appear more numerous than it
really was, while others presented their guns at the
Sheriff's posse.
Seeing that he had marched into an ambuscade, and
considering prudence the better part of valor, Ten Eyck
made a hasty retreat, fearing that bloodshed might re-
sult if he pressed the matter further. The Sheriff then
attempted to evict one Fuller, but most of his posse de-
serted, and the attempt was abandoned.
Ira Allen says that this episode "cemented the union
of the inhabitants, and raised their consequence in the
neighboring colonies." That the members of Sheriff
Ten Eyck's posse refused in any considerable numbers
to follow him in an offensive movement against the in-
habitants of Bennington, is proof that the great body of
New York people were not in sympathy with the policy
of evicting from their homes the settlers on the New
Hampshire Grants. Ira Allen expressed this idea when
he wrote: "The people on the Grants rightly consid-
ered their controversy was not with the great body of
the people, only with the Governor and Council, who
were but a small part of the community. This distinc-
tion was kept up during the whole dispute in all the
publications against the tyranny of the rulers of New
York."
Governor Dunmore issued a proclamation November
1, 1770, ordering the arrest of Simeon Hathaway, Moses
Scott, Jonathan Fisk and Silas Robinson, charging that
they were among the principal authors of and actors in
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 327
"the last mentioned visit." The Sheriff, aided by John
Munro, succeeded in arresting Silas Robinson early on
the morning of November 29. He attempted to make
no other arrests, but returned with great speed, fear-
ing that his prisoner might be rescued. Robinson with
fifteen others was indicted, but he was the only man
arrested, and after being confined in jail for nearly a
year he was released on bail.
The little company of farmers gathered in James
Breakenridge's corn field, on the border of the twenty-
mile line, on that October day in 1769, probably was as
peaceable a body of "rioters" as ever was assembled
anywhere; but the occasion is rendered notable because
it was the first open resistance offered to the attempt
of New York to deprive the settlers in what is now the
State of Vermont of their hard earned property. Men
actually assembled with arms in their hands as a pro-
test against the partition of a farm honestly bought
and diligently tilled; and among their leaders was the
parish clergyman, Jedediah Dewey, and Moses Robin-
son, later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Governor
and United States Senator. No doubt to the gentlemen
from Albany this very mild resistance of a few pioneer
farmers and their minister to the representative of a
powerful and aristocratic province seemed the height of
absurdity and folly ; but the resistance begun in Benning-
ton on that autumn day, against such tremendous odds,
was destined to continue until the right of the settlers
on the New Hampshire Grants should triumph over the
might of the officials and the great land holders of New
York.
328 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Several ejectment suits were brought at the June term
of the Circuit Court at Albany, in 1770, among them
being two for lands in Shaftsbury, claimed by Maj.
John Small, a reduced army officer, the defendants being
Isaiah Carpenter and Justin Olin. It is in connection
with these suits that Ethan Allen makes his first appear-
ance in Vermont history. There is some doubt as to
the time of his arrival here. Hiland Hall and the Allen
Memorial volume give the date as about 1769. In a
statement relative to an affair on Otter Creek, in 1773,
Allen declared that he had *'run these woods these seven
years," and some writers give 1766 as the date of his
coming to Vermont. It is by no means impossible that
he may have come into the New Hampshire Grants on
several occasions prior to his coming here to abide.
This supposition is rendered the more probable from the
fact that his cousin. Remember Baker, settled in Arling-
ton in 1764, and many early settlers came from that
part of Connecticut in which Allen resided.
The records show that Ethan Allen, eldest child of
Joseph and Mary Allen, was born at Litchfield, Conn.,
January 10, 1737. This record has been disputed, other
Connecticut towns contesting for the honor of being
Ethan Allen's birthplace, but in the absence of positive
evidence of their untrustworthiness, the records must
stand. Ethan was the eldest of eight children, and
when he was quite young the family removed to Corn-
wall, Conn. In the spring of 1755, Joseph Allen, who
had been an industrious farmer of moderate means, died.
Ethan, at that time, was a youth of eighteen years.
After the death of Joseph Allen the family removed to
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 329
Salisbury, Conn., where Ethan worked on a farm for
several years. Ira Allen, his brother, writing many
years after to Samuel Williams, the Vermont historian,
declared that at the time of his father's death Ethan
was fitting for college. Other authorities declare that
he studied to fit himself for college with a clergyman
named Lee, at Salisbury. His writings indicate that his
reading must have been somewhat extensive, and that
he was familiar with the general events of history.
W^hile a young man, Ethan Allen obtained an interest
in iron mines in the northern part of Salisbury, near
the Massachusetts line. On January 23, 1762, Ethan
Allen and Mary Brownson were married and soon after
removed to a home just over the Massachusetts border,
in the township of Sheffield. The first iron furnace in
Salisbury was built upon the outlet of Wanscopommuc
Lake, two miles east of "Old Ore Hill," so-called, by
Samuel and Elisha Forbes, Ethan Allen and a Mr.
Hazeltine. The articles of copartnership may be found
in the town records of Salisbury. This iron ore deposit
had a high reputation for the superior quality of the ore
produced. During the Revolutionary War cannon, can-
non balls and bomb shells were manufactured here for
the use of the Continental army; and the famous ship
Constitution, which figured prominently in the War of
1812, was equipped with cannon made at Salisbury.
Probably Allen accumulated some money in the iron
business, as he was able a few years later to obtain
rather extensive land holdings in Vermont.
It was the most natural thing in the world that a man
of Allen's adventurous temperament should have been
330 HISTORY OF VERMONT
interested in the settlement of the New Hampshire
Grants and in the stirring events that attended the con-
troversy with New York. One of his intimate personal
friends was Dr. Thomas Young, who lived in the dis-
trict known as "The Oblong," just over the New York
line from Salisbury. In the same region dwelt Benja-
min Ferris, a Quaker, who was a proprietor in several
of the townships granted by Governor Went worth. It
is not improbable that Allen may have known Ferris,
and that the latter, not being of a warlike nature, may
have been willing to dispose of some of his holdings in
the new country after the troubles over land titles be-
came serious.
As has been stated, this was an era of land specula-
tion, and Ethan Allen and his brothers became interested
in the buying and selling of lands in the region known
as the New^ Hampshire Grants. Ethan acquired hold-
ings in Poultney, Colchester, Essex, and Jericho, some
of which he purchased from the original grantees, in-
cluding Caleb Lawrence, Samuel Burling, Edward Agar
and the Bogarts, most or all of them being residents of
New York.
The Hartford Courant, in June, 1773, printed an ad-
vertisement of Ethan Allen & Co., which began with the
following announcement : "Lately purchased by Aliens
and Baker a large tract of land on both sides of the
mouth of Onion River and fronting westerly on Lake
Champlain, containing about 45,000 acres, and sundry
lesser parcels of land further up the said river." The
advertisement, in alluring terms, described the fertile soil,
the salubrious climate, the abundant water power, the
REvSISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 331
variety and value of the timber and the abundance of
fish and game, closing with the statement: "Whoever
inclines to be a purchaser may apply to Ethan, Zimri,
and Ira Allen on the premises, or to Heman and Levi
Allen in Salisbury."
In his "History of Vermont," Ira Allen states that
his brother, Ethan, was appointed agent by some of the
people of the New Hampshire Grants who were inter-
ested in preparing a defence against the ejectment suits
brought by New York claimants. The first step taken
by the new agent was to go to New Hampshire and
obtain copies of the royal orders and instructions
authorizing the granting of lands, also copies of town
charters issued by Governor Wentworth. His next step
was to go to Connecticut and secure the services of Jared
Ingersoll, an eminent attorney. Mr. Ingersoll had
accepted the office of stamp agent for Connecticut, under
the Stamp Act, upon the advice of Benjamin Eranklin,
but was compelled by force of public opinion to resign.
About this time he was appointed an Admiralty Judge.
Mr. Ingersoll accompanied Allen to Albany for the
trial of the ejectment suits, and Mr. Silvester of that
city was secured as associate counsel. Attorney Gen-
eral John Taber Kempe and James Duane appeared as
counsel for the plaintififs. The presiding judge was
Robert R. Livingston, and with him was associated
Judge George D. Ludlow. Judge Livingston was the
holder of a New York patent to thirty-five thousand
acres of land in the township of Camden, so-called, with-
in the present limits of Vermont, but this was land not
previously granted by New Hampshire. Mr. Duane,
332 HISTORY OF VERMONT
counsel for the plaintiff, however, was Judge Liv-
ingston's brother-in-law, and was largely interested in
lands, the title to which depended for its validity upon
the decision in this particular suit.
The first case was that against Josiah Carpenter.
The trial was held June 28, 1770, the plaintiff appear-
ing, to quote Ethan Allen's words, "in great state and
magnificence." The plaintiff claimed to hold the lands
in dispute under title of a soldier's grant made by Gov-
ernor Colden, and dated October 30, 1765. Mr. Inger-
soll, for the defendant, presented the royal orders
authorizing Governor Wentworth to make grants of
land in the province of New Hampshire; and produced
the charter of the township of Shaftsbury, bearing date
of August 20, 1761, almost four years earlier than the
date of the plaintiff's New York patent, and also pre-
sented the defendant's title to the land which he
occupied.
Judge Livingston refused to admit the defendant's
evidence, taking judicial notice that New York always
had extended to the Connecticut River, and holding that
no evidence had been given to the court showing that
New Hampshire ever had included the lands in question,
or ever had authority to grant such lands. The court
having held that the charter of Shaftsbury granted by
Governor Wentworth could not be received as legal
evidence, Mr. Ingersoll saw, to quote Ira Allen's words,
"that the cause was already prejudged." There was no
further attempt to defend the case, and judgment was
rendered for the plaintiff in all the ejectment suits en-
tered at this term of court. To quote again from Ira
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 333
Allen, ''Thus a precedent was established to annihilate
all the titles of land held under New Hampshire grants
west of Connecticut River."
During the evening following the day of the trial it
is related that Messrs. Kempe and Duane, counsel for
the plaintiff, and Goldsbrow Banyar, a holder of New
York titles to Vermont lands, exceeding in quantity six
townships, called on Ethan Allen, and during the con-
versation Attorney General Kempe suggested that it
would be well to advise the people settled on the New
Hampshire Grants to make the best possible terms with
their landlords, adding that might often made right.
Allen replied with the Delphic expression, ''The gods of
the valleys are not the gods of the hills." When Kempe
asked for an explanation of the saying Allen replied
that if the Attorney General would accompany him to
Bennington the phrase would be explained. Following
his advice to the settlers with more substantial argu-
ments, Kempe proposed, according to Ira Allen's "His-
tory of Vermont," to give Ethan Allen and other men
of influence in the New Hampshire Grants large tracts
of land to secure the friendship of the leading men
of the region, and to bring about the pacification of the
district. This proposal was rejected, as one might
naturally expect, for whatever may have been Ethan
Allen's faults, he was not the type of man to accept
bribes.
At the close of the Revolutionary War, John Munro,
an active New York partisan, living in Shaftsbury,
made application to the English commissioners for re-
imbursement for losses sustained during the war on
334 HISTORY OF VERMONT
account of his friendship for the British cause. His
lands in Vermont and New York had been confiscated
and, according to the poHcy of the British government,
he was entitled to compensation for his losses. The
commission granted redress for those in New York, but
refused to compensate him for his losses in Vermont
on the ground that his title was not good, the land in
question having been included in the grants made by
Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire. This de-
cision of a British tribunal afifords a notable illustration
of the quality of justice dispensed in Judge Livingston's
court in the case of Small vs. Carpenter, coming as it
did, from a source by no means prejudiced in favor of
the Vermonters. On account of his partisan decision.
Judge Livingston may be ranked with the New York
Governors who disobeyed the orders of the King's min-
isters in granting again lands previously granted and
occupied, as the persons chiefly responsible for the long
and bitter controversy between the men of the Green
Mountains and the government of New York.
When Ethan Allen returned to Bennington a conven-
tion was called to consider an extremely serious situa-
tion, threatening, as it did, the eviction of a great num-
ber of settlers. To acquiesce in the decision of the New
York court meant financial ruin. To resist the enforce-
ment of the decision practically meant revolution.
Nevertheless the one hundred men present adopted a
resolution not to surrender their lands until a final de-
cision had been rendered by the King, and voted that, if
necessary, force should be used to protect their rights
and property.
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 335
As a matter of necessity, committees representing
the towns in the vicinity of Bennington and in the settled
region to the northward, were called together in con-
ference to devise methods for the protection of their
homes from the New York officers and land claimants;
and gradually these meetings or conventions, few
records of which have been preserved, assumed a cer-
tain measure of authority over public afifairs, particu-
larly in relation to the land controversy. As the field
of operations enlarged, some kind of military organiza-
tion became necessary. As early as October, 1764, the
people of Bennington had organized a militia company,
and after it became evident that the New York authori-
ties intended to eject the settlers holding New Hamp-
shire titles, other companies were formed. These local
companies were organized into a military association, of
which Ethan Allen was elected Colonel Commandant,
and the Captains included Seth Warner, Remember
Baker, Robert Cochran and Gideon Warren. The Gov-
ernor of New York having threatened, it is said, to
drive into the Green Mountains those who opposed his
authority, this organization took the name Green Moun-
tain Boys, a name destined to become highly honored
and to live long in history.
The attempt to dispossess the settlers on the New
Hampshire Grants met with scant success. Early in
January, 1771, a deputy sherifif from Albany, accom-
panied by John Munro of Shaftsbury, and twelve other
men whom Munro had secured, having learned that
violent resistance was not unlikely, proceeded to the resi-
dence of Isaiah Carpenter to serve a writ of possession.
336 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The party found the door locked and were refused ad-
mission, the owner threatening to blow out the brains
of any' person attempting to take possession. The door
was forced, and Carpenter was seized with a loaded gun
in his hands. Two other New Hampshire claimants
were found in the house, and two guns were seized, one
being loaded with powder and kidney beans. Carpenter
was left in possession upon agreeing to make terms with
the holder of the New York title by May first of that
year, or to surrender possession. Apparently Carpenter
left, for it is recorded that Mayor Small's tenant did not
remain long, as he became alarmed, fearing for his per-
sonal safety.
On the same day that the writ of possession was
served on Isaiah Carpenter, the New York deputy,
accompanied by Munro and three other men, gained
entrance to the house of Samuel Rose, the officer being
admitted before his identity was known. Rose being
absent from home at the time. Mrs. Rose was left in
possession on condition that the property should be held
for the plaintiffs.
Early in the year 1771 the men of the New Hamp-
shire Grants began active measures of resistance to the
New York officers. One Samuel Willoughby, a Con-
stable of Albany county, having served a writ of eject-
ment upon the wife of Thomas French, in the absence
of her husband, was overtaken on May 16 by French
and certain other "rioters" of Princetown, a New York
grant in the valley of the Battenkill. These men were
armed with clubs and held a club over the head of
Willoughby, threatening to kill him unless he would
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 337
carry out the writ of ejectment. It is further stated
in an affidavit that the threat was made that Willoughby
should be tied to a tree and flogged if he did not leave
the place.
A few days later, on May 21, Samuel Pease, a Con-
stable from Albany, came with orders to arrest Thomas
French on a charge of rioting. When the town was
entered the Constable's party was met by "a number
of rioters," two of whom carried guns, the others being
armed with clubs, and a shot was fired at them out of
the woods. When French's house was reached a much
larger party of "rioters" was found, the members of
which vowed that the Constable should carry no man out
of town, but that if he did happen to carry one of them
to jail that building would not be allowed to stand three
weeks; and in addition to the foregoing threat they
cursed the "rascally Yorkers."
It appears that Constable Samuel Willoughby made
another attempt to serve executions, going to Benning-
ton, where he stayed the night of May 23. On the fol-
lowing morning he found that his horse had been shot
and killed. Justice of the Peace John Munro secured
affidavits concerning the "rioting," to which reference
has been made, and sent them to Goldsbrow Banyar at
Albany, hoping that the authorities might be able to do
something speedily to prevent "riotous behavior." In
a letter accompanying the affidavits he said: "Every
person that pretends to be a friend to this government
is in danger of both life and property." He observed
that every act of friendship shown to the people in that
region "seems to raise their spirits as if the whole gov-
338 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ernment were afraid of them. They assemble them-
selves together in the right time and throw down all the
Yorkers' fences, etc., as we are called, and drives the
cattle into the fields and meadows, and destroys both
grass and corn, and do every mischief they can think
of."
During the summer of 1771, William Cockburn, a
deputy of the New York Surveyor General, was sent to
survey the New York grant known as Socialborough
and divide it into lots. This township comprised the
New Hampshire grants of Rutland and Pittsford,
chartered by Governor Wentworth ten years earlier, and
occupied by settlers. In a letter written by Mr. Cock-
burn from Albany, to James Duane, the principal pro-
prietor of Socialborough, he related some of his experi-
ences. He had begun the survey but was stopped by
James Mead and Asa Johnson, acting in behalf of the
settlers in Rutland and Pittsford, and was threatened
with shooting. In his letter he said "Your acquaintance
Nathan (perhaps Ethan) Allen was in the woods with
another party blacked and dressed like Indians, as I was
informed." The people of Durham (Clarendon)
assured Cockburn that these men, probably Allen and
his party, intended to murder the surveyor and his asso-
ciates if they did not leave, and advised him to abandon
his task. He learned of a plan to convey his party to
Danby and so on to the south, adding, "by all accounts
we should not have been very kindly treated." For
that reason he informed Mr. Duane: "I found it vain
to persist any longer as they were resolved at all events
to stop us." When Cockburn gave assurance that he
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 339
would survey no more in those parts he was allowed to
proceed along the Crown Point Road, as he observes,
"with the hearty prayers of the women, as we passed
never to return."
Samuel Gardenier purchased of James Delancy of
New York City three hundred and ten acres of land in
what was known as the Walloomsack Patent, and found
one Ichabod Cross settled on a part of the property,
holding it under a New Hampshire title. Some ar-
rangement was made between Gardenier and Cross,
according to a deposition by Gardenier, whereby he
secured possession, but his neighbors evidently were in
sympathy with Cross, and frequently the new owner
found his fences thrown down. One morning in
August, 1771, about two hours before daybreak, Gar-
denier was called to the door and was surrounded by
eleven men, some of them disguised with blankets, like
Indians, others with handkerchiefs or women's caps on
their heads. They were armed chiefly with sickles and
clubs, one man having a pistol. After some discussion
Gardenier was given a fortnight to give up the papers
executed to him by Cross. He was threatened, accord-
ing to his version of the affair, that "if he did not do
as he was ordered, they would come the next time Devil
like and times should be worse for him."
Just before the two weeks' limit expired Gardenier
fled and thus escaped a visit from one hundred men.
Some of them were disguised with wigs, horses' tails,
women's caps, etc. They were armed with clubs, pis-
tols, guns and swords and searched the premises for
Gardenier. Later, his fences were broken down and
340 HISTORY OF VERMONT
some of them burned, his haystacks overturned in the
mud, and threats were made by the "rioters" that if any
of the settlers holding New Hampshire titles were sent
to jail, "they would raise a mob and go in a body to
Albany, break open the jail there and take them out of
jail."
The New York Council minutes for September 30,
1771, show that a deposition taken the second day of
September, of that year, declares that on the night of
August 2 a number of men came to the deponent's house,
turned the deponent, his wife and children out of doors,
and pulled the house to the ground. Seth Warner of
Bennington was said to be the "Captain of the mob."
The name of the deponent is not given, nor is his place
of residence mentioned.
Holders of military grants issued by New York in
the present town of Rupert attempted to occupy such
lands in June, 1771, but were driven off by a consider-
able number of men led by Robert Cochran of that town,
who became one of the active leaders of the Green Moun-
tain Boys. Two brothers named Todd had begun work
on a lot in the western part of Rupert, owned by
Robert Cochran under a New Hampshire title. Charles
Hutchison, formerly a Corporal in a Highland regiment,
began the construction of a log house in Rupert on land
previously granted by Governor Wentworth, and John
Reid had commenced the clearing of land in Pawlet, and
had erected a rude shelter.
On October 29, 1771, Ethan Allen, Remember Baker,
Robert Cochran and six others drove the Todds from
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 341
their work, informing them that they would permit no
man to settle there under a New York title.
Hutchison, in a deposition before Justice Alexander
McNaughton, described the visit of the same party in
the following words : "There assembled nine men who
call themselves New Hampshire men about the de-
ponent's house which he had built on said lot and the
deponent observing all having fire arms and attempting
to demolish his house he left his work, came and
eventually desired them to stop, whereupon one sirnamed
Allen, another Baker, and one Sevil, with Robert Coch-
ran and five other names unknown to the deponent said
that they would burn it, for that morning they had re-
solved to offer a burnt sacrifice to the gods of the world
in burning the logs of that house. That then they
kindled four fires on the logs of the house, said Allen
and Baker holding two clubs over the deponent's head
commanded him to leave that land and not say one word
to them. That if ever he returned he should be bar-
barously used. That the fires being kindled said Allen
and Baker insolently said to the deponent — 'Go your
way now and complain to that damned scoundrel your
Governor'."
According to the deposition, Allen and Baker poured
"horrible curses" upon the King, the Governor, the
Council, the Assembly and the laws, declaring that if
any Constable attempted to arrest them they would kill
him, and that if any of them were put in jail they would
break it down and rescue him. The deponent was in-
formed that the "rioters" boasted that on short warn-
ing they could raise many hundreds of New Hampshire
342 HISTORY OF VERMONT
men to prevent any Yorkers from settling on their lands.
The same day of the affair at Hutchison's, Reid's shelter
was destroyed, and the deposition stated that eight or
nine more New York families were driven off by New
Hampshire sympathizers.
It appears that John Reid was a Constable, and he
was directed by Justice McNaughton "forthwith to call
a competent number of His Majesty's good subjects in
your vicinity to arms," and apprehend the rioters.
Evidently Justice McNaughton did not have much con-
fidence in the prowess of Constable Reid, for the same
day he wrote Colonel Fanning, saying he had "issued
warrants to apprehend the New Hampshire rioters and
traitors, but their number and situation on the moun-
tains is such that I am of the opinion that no Sheriff
or Constable will apprehend them." Therefore he came
to the conclusion that it would be "highly necessary for
His Majesty's peace" that the Governor should offer a
reward "for apprehending those abominable wretches."
In compliance with an order of the New York Coun-
cil, dated November 27, 1771, Governor Tryon issued a
proclamation on December 9, offering the sum of twenty
pounds for the apprehension of Allen, Baker, Cochran,
Sevil and five other persons charged with felony and
rioting. A counter proclamation followed, aimed at
James Duane, a prominent New York attorney, active in
the proceedings against the settlers on the New Hamp-
shire Grants, and against Attorney General Kempe,
which was issued as a burlesque on Governor Tryon's
proclamation, the text of the document being as follows :
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 343
Twenty-five Pounds Reward
"Whereas, James Duane and John Kempe, of New
York, have by their menaces and threats greatly dis-
turbed the pubHc peace and repose of the honest peasants
of Bennington, and the settlements to the northward,
which peasants are now and ever have been in the peace
of God and the King, and are patriotic and liege subjects
of George III. Any person that will apprehend these
common disturbers, viz, James Duane and John Kempe,
and bring them to Landlord Fay's at Bennington, shall
have fifteen pounds for John (James?) Duane and ten
pounds for John Kempe, paid by
"Ethan Allen
Dated Poultney, "Remember Baker
February 5, 1772. "Robert Cochran''
It is evident that Governor Tryon's proclamation only
intensified the resentment felt against the New York
authorities. Justice of the Peace John Munro, writing
to Governor Tryon on February 17, 1772, told of the
formation of a militia company at Bennington, with
John (Seth?) Warner as its commander, and said that
on New Year's day the company was reviewed and "con-
tinued all day firing at marks." Commenting on the
state of public opinion, Munro observed: "I find that
every act of indulgence which the Government offers is
rejected with disdain, and by the best information I can
get they are determined to oppose the authority of this
Government assigning for reason that should they com-
ply it will weaken their New Hampshire title, and they
shall lose all their lands, for this reason they shall fight
'till they die'; however if this Bennington was well drest
344 HISTORY OF VERMONT
I presume all the rest will fall of course and that the
Government will be restored to peace." Doubtless there
were many others who were ready during the next ten
or fifteen years to join very heartily in Esquire Munro's
opinion that it would be eminently satisfactory to them-
selves and exceedingly helpful to their cause, ''if this
Bennington was well drest."
Sheriff Ten Eyck, in a letter to Governor Tryon, read
before the New York Council March 26, 1772, men-
tioned his inability to arrest any of the rioters and de-
clared that he found "the greatest appearance of a deter-
mined resolution not to submit to the Government."
Justice Munro was not ready to concede that the
arrest of the rioters was impossible, and with much care
he laid his plans for the capture of Remember Baker.
Two days before the arrest was made Bliss Willoughby,
under pretence of a friendly business call, went to
Baker's house, and observing that the Green Mountain
leader "was somewhat careless and secure," made his
report to Munro.
Baker lived about one mile east of the present village
of Arlington. A little before daylight, on the morning
of March 21, 1772, Justice Munro, Constable Stevens,
and a party surrounded Baker's house, and after a des-
perate struggle succeeded in overpowering Baker, and
after binding him he was placed in a sleigh and the party
started for Albany, Baker was severely wounded, one
thumb being cut off. Mrs. Baker received a severe
wound from a sword cut and their little son is said to
have been injured.
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 345
Two neighbors, Caleb Henderson and John Whiston,
attempted to stop the sleigh carrying Baker, but did not
succeed in releasing the prisoner, and Whiston was cap-
tured. Henderson escaped and gave the alarm, the
news being sent by messenger to Bennington. Munro
and his party, having driven about sixteen miles, stopped
at Sancoick, N. Y., to rest. This halt proved fatal to
Munro's plans to lodge in Albany jail one of the chief
rioters of the New Hampshire Grants. As soon as the
news of Baker's arrest reached Bennington ten men
mounted their horses and rode at great speed to the
ferry across the Hudson River at what is now the city
of Troy. Learning that Munro and his prisoner had
not passed there, the rescuing party turned back toward
Arlington, and proceeded six or seven miles before meet-
ing Baker and his captors. The approach of the Ben-
nington men struck terror to the hearts of most of the
New York party, and to quote from Munro's report,
"they all ran into the woods when they ought to have
resisted." Munro and two Constables were detained but
later were released. Baker was so exhausted from loss
of blood that it was necessary, after his wounds were
dressed, for one of the rescuing party to ride on the
same horse with him to keep him from falling. On the
way back they met another rescuing party, probably
from Arlington. Mr. Breakenridge's house in Ben-
nington was reached at two o'clock the next morning,
the party having travelled more than sixty miles in
twenty- four hours.
The attempt to imprison Baker, and the harsh treat-
ment inflicted upon him, still further embittered the
346 HISTORY OF VERMONT
people of the New Hampshire Grants against New York.
Writing soon after the Baker episode, Munro informed
the New York Governor that the rioters "are Hsting men
daily, and ofifer fifteen pounds bounty to every man that
joins with them, and thus strike terror into the whole
country ; that they have too many friends in the country
owing to self interest, and that he is afraid of the con-
sequences every moment, as he cannot find any Justice
or one officer now that will act or say against them."
To this the writer added the information that "he is
almost wore out with watching."
In view of the fact that Bliss Willoughby played the
part of spy upon Baker before Munro's attack upon him,
it is not altogether surprising to read in a communica-
tion from Governor Tryon to the New York Council a
report from Justice Munro to the efifect that on May
first Remember Baker and others went to Willoughby's
house "and cut him in a barbarous manner."
In April, 1772, news was received in Bennington to
the effect that Governor Tryon and a detachment of
British troops was proceeding by way of the Hudson
River to Albany "in order to subject or destroy the
Green Mountain Boys." This report was given credence
because regular troops had been used in the province
of New York to quell an outbreak regarding land titles.
The Committee of Safety met the officers of the Green
Mountain Boys and consulted regarding proper measures
to be taken. Ira Allen, writing of the effect of this
report upon the Committee of Safety, said: "They
found matters had come to a crisis that compelled them
either to submit and become tenants of the land jobbers
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 347
of New York, or to take the field against a royal Gov-
ernor and British troops ; either seemed like the forlorn
hope. Having reflected on the justice of their cause,
the hardships, expense of money and labor they had
been at in building and cultivation, they therefore unani-
mously resolved that it was their duty to oppose Gov-
ernor Tryon and his troops to the utmost of their power
(and thereby convince him and his Council that they
were punishable by the Green Mountain Boys) for dis-
obeying His Majesty's prohibitory orders of July,
1767."
Two cannon and a mortar were brought to Benning-
ton from a fort at East Hoosick (Williamstown), and
powder and ball were also supplied. Ira Allen is
authority for the statement that the older persons among
the people of the Grants advised sending a flag of truce
to the Governor to inquire if some compromise were not
possible. The militia objected to this plan on the
ground that such an act would indicate pusillanimity,
and would show a confidence in the Governor of which
he was unworthy.
Instead of sending a flag of truce to the Governor,
the military leaders sent to Albany a person not under
indictment as a rioter, to observe the Governor and his
principal officers, to obtain all possible information as
to the strength of the military force, their order of
marching and when they would leave Albany. Having
accomplished this he was to return, join six other good
marksmen, and they were to form an ambuscade in a
wood through which the royal troops must march.
Having observed the Governor, the marksmen were to
348 HISTORY OF VERMONT
fire at him, one after the other, until he fell from his
horse, then raise an Indian war whoop and retire. If
the enemy continued the march they were to attempt an-
other ambuscade and try to kill two or three of the chief
officers.
The messenger, on his return, reported that the British
troops which had received marching orders were to re-
lieve the garrisons at Oswego, Niagara and Detroit, and
that Governor Tryon was not with them. In comment-
ing on this episode Ira Allen said: "The Governor and
his land jobbers soon got information of this prepara-
tion ; and they were both intimidated and convinced that
the Green Mountain Boys would fight even the King's
troops if sent to decide the titles of land and to dis-
possess the inhabitants who rescued them out of a state
of nature. This alarm answered every purpose that a
victory possibly could have done, without shedding
blood."
This deliberate plan by a handful of pioneer settlers
to ambush the British troops and to kill the royal Gov-
ernor, seems almost incredible, but it is given on the
authority of one of the greatest of Vermont's early lead-
ers, who was familiar with all the public afifairs of that
period. It afifords a striking illustration of the des-
perate courage of the Vermont pioneers, and the length
to which they were willing to go to defend their property
from invasion and seizure.
Soon after the capture and release of Remember
Baker, Sergt. Hugh Munro secured the services of a
surveyor named Campbell and some chain bearers and
accompanied them to Rupert for the purpose of survey-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 349
ing a tract of land there. According to a New York
account the party was seized by Robert Cochran and
his associates, who conducted them to a tribunal "as if
they had really been malefactors" ; deliberated upon their
course, and decided to chastise them. Munro and the
chain bearers were beaten severely, and the deputy sur-
veyor was whipped, but less severely than his associates.
It is said that Cochran boasted that he was a son of
Robin Hood and would follow the mode of life of the
famous outlaw. The surveying party was conducted
several miles, and dismissed with the warning that a
repetition of this offense would be punished by death.
Ira Allen says that Munro was "an old offender."
After being tried he was ordered to be whipped on his
naked back. He was then tied to a tree and given three
separate whippings, and after each chastisement he
fainted. His wounds were dressed and he was banished
from the New Hampshire Grants. According to
Allen's account a convention of settlers had adopted a
resolution to the effect "that no officer from New York
be allowed to carry out of the district of New Hampshire
Grants any person without permission of the committees
of safety or the military commanders."
New York land surveyors were forbidden to run any
lines within the Grants, and transgressors of the rule
were to be punished according to the judgment of a
court chosen from the elders of the people or the mili-
tary commanders. Punishment sometimes consisted in
whipping the prisoner severely with beech twigs, not
easily broken, which left on the back of the offender
evidences of the punishment, which the Green Mountain
350 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Boys, with a grim humor, called the "Beech Seal." In
addition to the whipping, the penalty of banishment
sometimes was added.
After describing Hugh Munro's punishment, Allen
declared: "These severities were used to deter people
from endangering their lives and to prevent aid being
given to the land claimants of New York; they proved
to answer the purpose and the Green Mountain Boys
soon became the terror of their adversaries. When the
Sherifif's officers came to collect debts they were used
with civility, and the cause of the people was explained ;
in this way the strength of the enemy was weakened, and
the cause of the settlers gained strength and credit."
About this time Seth Warner and a companion named
Sherwood went to the house of John Munro to secure
Remember Baker's gun, which was not taken when
Baker was rescued from his captors. Munro refused
to deliver it, and seizing the bridle of Warner's horse
ordered a Constable and several bystanders to arrest
him. Warner drew his cutlass and struck Munro over
the head, felling the magistrate to the ground. Al-
though the blow was so severe that the weapon was
broken, the injury inflicted did not prove to be a dan-
gerous one, the weapon being dull. An illustration of
the temper of the inhabitants of the New Hampshire
Grants at this time is afforded by the action of the pro-
prietors of the town of Poultney, who voted Warner,
on May 4, 1773, one hundred acres of land in that town,
"for his valor in cutting the head of Esquire Munro, the
Yorkite."
m
o
CQ
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a
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 351
Evidently the news of the preparations made by the
people of Bennington to resist by force the rumored
attack by the King's troops, and the plan to shoot the
royal Governor, brought forcibly to the mind of Gov-
ernor Tryon the importance of making some effort to
conciliate the exasperated settlers on the New Hamp-
shire Grants, and on May 19, 1772, he addressed a com-
munication to "the Rev. Mr. Dewey, and the inhabitants
of Bennington, and the adjacent country on the east side
of Hudson's River." The Governor chided the people
for "the many violent and illegal acts" they had com-
mitted, hinted that a continuation of such a policy might
cause the interference of royal authority but expressed
a desire on his part and that of the Council to examine
into the grounds of their "behavior and discontent, with
deliberation and candor, and as far as in us lies to give
such relief as the nature of your situation and circum-
stances will justify." He promised full security and
protection to any persons whom they might send to
present their views, with the exception of Allen, Baker,
Cochran, Sevil and Warner. He suggested as suitable
persons Rev. William (Jedediah) Dewey, James Break-
enridge and Mr. Fay, particularly commending Mr.
Dewey. In the same letter he assured the people that
the decision of the King not to annex the Grants to
New Hampshire was final.
A reply signed by Rev. Jedediah Dewey and others,
dated June 5, 1772, was forwarded to Governor Tryon.
It expressed satisfaction at the opportunity afforded of
presenting the case of the people of Bennington and the
adjacent country before the Governor, set forth their
352 HISTORY OF VERMONT
rights to the lands they held, and rehearsed their griev-
ances. This reply included the following statement:
"We flatter ourselves, from the candor of Your Excel-
lency's favorable letter that you will be friendly disposed
toward us; and we most earnestly pray and beseech
Your Excellency would assist to quiet us in our posses-
sions till His Majesty in his royal wisdom shall be
graciously pleased to settle the controversy. Should
Your Excellency grant this our humble request, our sat-
isfaction would be inexpressible." The earnestness of
this appeal from the harassed settlers, determined at
all hazards to defend their homes, but expressing a
passionate longing for peace, is not lacking an element
of pathos.
Capt. Stephen Fay and his son Dr. Jonas Fay were
appointed agents to represent the settlers on the Grants,
and they proceeded to New York, where they related
their grievances to the Governor and Council. These
grievances were set forth in an able and forceful man-
ner in a communication which they presented, signed by
Ethan Allen, Seth Warner, Remember Baker and Robert
Cochran, who had been declared unacceptable as agents
to present the views of the settlers to the New York
authorities. This statement is a notable one, coming
as it did, from men who had had little or no literary
training. It contained a vigorous argument for the
rights of the settlers on the New Hampshire Grants, and
exhibited great boldness in maintaining these rights.
After describing the sufifering caused by the eject-
ment of settlers, the statement declared : "Things hav-
ing come to this pass, the oppression was too great for
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 353
human nature, under English Constitution, to grope
under. * =k * Laws and society compacts were
made to protect and secure the subjects in their peace-
able possessions and properties, and not to subvert them.
No person or community of persons can be supposed to
be under any particular compact or law, except it pre-
supposeth that that law will protect such person or com-
munity of persons in his or their properties ; for other-
ways the subject would, by law, be bound to be acces-
sory to his own ruin and destruction, which is incon-
sistent with the law of self preservation."
Protesting against the "set of artful and wicked men"
who had concealed the truth from the Governor, and
explaining that they were poor people, at a great dis-
tance from the seat of government, "fatigued in settling
a wilderness country," and having little opportunity of
presenting their grievances, the letter continues: "If
we do not oppose the Sheriff and his posse, he takes
immediate possession of our houses and farms ; if we do
we are immediately indicted rioters, * * * and it
comes to this at last, that we must tamely be dispossessed
or oppose officers in taking possession; and as a neces-
sary step, oppose taking of rioters, so called, or run
away like so many cowards, and quit our country to a
number of cringing polite gentlemen, who have, ideally,
possessed themselves of it already."
After relating the manner in which the New York
authorities had disobeyed the orders of the King relative
to regranting the lands already granted by New Hamp-
shire, the letter says : "They style us rioters for oppos-
ing them, and seek to catch and punish us as such, yet
354 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in reality themselves are the rioters, the tumultuous, dis-
orderly, stimulating faction, or, in fine, the land rob-
bers; and every violent act they have done to compass
their designs, though ever so much under pretence of
law, is, in reality, a violation of law. * * *
"We do not suppose, may it please Your Excellency,
we are making opposition to a government as such; it
is nothing more than a party, chiefly carried on by a
number of gentlemen attorneys (if it be not an abuse
to gentlemen of merit to call them so) who manifest a
surprising and enterprising thirst of avarice after our
country; but for a collection of such intrigues to plan
matters of influence of a party, so as eventually to be-
come judges in their own case, and thereby cheat us out
of our country, appears to us so audaciously unreason-
able and tyrannical that we view it with the utmost de-
testation and indignation, and our breasts glow with a
martial fury to defend our persons and fortunes from
the ravages of these that would destroy us; but not
against Your Excellency's person or government."
The letters from the settlers were referred to a com-
mittee of the Council, which reported the first day of
July. In this report emphasis was laid on the kindness
and forbearance shown, and the decision was reached
that "the right of the New York patentees was incon-
trovertible," and that the settlers had no real cause for
complaint. The committee concluded, however, that in
order to afiford all the relief possible, and in order to
show "Great tenderness for a deluded people," all prose-
cutions on behalf of the Crown should be suspended
until the King's pleasure should be known, and that
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 355
during the same period the recommendation should be
made to the owners of contested lands that they sus-
pend all pending suits growing out of land controversies.
This report having been adopted by the Council, the
agents returned to Bennington.
A public meeting was held at the meeting house in
Bennington on Wednesday, July 15, "a numerous con-
cource of the inhabitants of the adjacent country" being
present. The result of the mission to New York was
received with much favor, peace was recommended for
the whole of the New Hampshire Grants, and the agents
were given a vote of thanks for their diligence. The
cannon brought to Bennington to be used against Gov-
ernor Tryon's expected invasion was fired in his honor.
Captain Warner's company fired a salute of three vol-
leys, and healths were drunk in honor of the King, Gov-
ernor Tryon, the Council of New York, and the Hart-
ford Courant report says that to the other toasts was
added one to the confusion of Duane, Kempe, and their
associates. The large gathering on this occasion in-
cluded persons from neighboring provinces, which indi-
cates that some New York neighbors may have been
present to add to the harmony of the meeting.
Governor Tryon wrote again on August 11, 1772, to
the people of Bennington and vicinity, expressing his
satisfaction at "the grateful manner" in which the news
of the action of the Council had been received. In the
same letter, however, he expressed his displeasure at the
dispossession of several New York settlers in the Otter
Creek valley and demanded that the people of the Grants
reinstate, forthwith, families evicted.
356 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Ethan Allen, acting as clerk for a committee of the
inhabitants of Bennington and the adjacent region, on
August 25, 1772, replied at considerable length to Gov-
ernor Tryon's letter, setting forth that the New York
settlers, dispossessed on Otter Creek, had driven off set-
tlers holding title under grants from New Hampshire
before establishing themselves there. The letter de-
clared that this act was "a notorious breach of the Tenth
Commandment of the Decalogue, which says 'Thou
shalt not steal'." Allen argued that to reinstate the
New York settlers would be "apparently immoral, and
most flagrantly cruel and unjust." The letter further
declared that the people whom Allen represented in-
tended strictly and religiously to adhere to two proposi-
tions: "Firstly, the protection and maintaining our
property ; secondly, to use the greatest care and prudence
not to break the articles of public faith or insult govern-
mental authority."
Two days later, on August 27, a general meeting of a
committee representing the towns of Bennington, Sun-
derland, Manchester, Dorset, Rupert, Pawlet, Wells,
Poultney, Castleton, Pittsford and Rutland, was held at
Manchester, at which time Allen's reply to Governor
Tryon was read and approved. This reply was consid-
ered by the New York Council, "highly insolent, and
deserving of sharp reprehension," and the Council ad-
vised the Governor that the opposition had become so
formidable that the aid of regular troops was needed for
its effectual suppression.
Governor Tryon on October 7 wrote Lord Hills-
borough, asking in a vague and indirect way for the aid
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 357
of royal troops. He declared that the New Hampshire
proprietors who had offered to confirm their titles under
New York authority upon payment of half fees, "are
very importunate, and begin to be so much sowered and
disgusted that there is much reason to apprehend as they
find the Bennington people and the adjacent country
daily increase in strength and uninterrupted by Govern-
ment, they will soon reject any offers from this country,
and combine in opposition to this province; besides, the
partition line between this Government and Massa-
chusetts Bay being still unsettled, by the aid of those
borders the opposition may reasonably be expected to
be very formidable, too much so for militia forces to
encounter."
Lord Dartmouth replied to this communication in a
letter which was virtually a rebuke, declaring that the
military force "ought never to be called in to the aid of
the civil authority, but in cases of absolute and unavoid-
able necessity, and which would be highly improper if
applied to support possessions, which, after order issued
in 1767 upon the petition of the proprietors of the New
Hampshire townships, may be of very doubtful title."
When Ira Allen and Remember Baker, accompanied
by five men, made their first visit to the town of Col-
chester, they found at the lower falls of the Winooski
River a New York surveying party of eight men under
command of Benjamin Stevens, Deputy Surveyor of
Lands. According to evidence laid before the New
York Council by Stevens, the New York party were
without provocation stripped of their property and
effects, insulted and threatened, and the petitioner John
358 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Dunbar thrown into the fire, bound and burned, and
otherwise beat and abused in a cruel manner. Ira Allen
states that "they were released without any trial or cor-
poral punishment on account of the subsisting negotia-
tions and they promised not to return again."
Allen also relates in his "History of Vermont" that
during the friendly correspondence between Governor
Tryon and the people of Bennington and vicinity, Wil-
liam Cockburn, a New York surveyor, who had been
compelled to leave the vicinity of Rutland and Pitts ford
the previous year because he had attempted to make sur-
veys there, was privately sent to make additional sur-
veys within the Grants. By traversing the wilderness
Ira Allen was able to discover Cockburn's destination,
and Seth Warner, Remember Baker and a party went in
pursuit. The surveyor was found in Bolton. He was
tried by court martial, declared guilty, his surveying in-
struments were broken, and he was banished from the
district on pain of death if he returned. Allen says:
"The correspondence then going on between the Gov-
ernor (Tryon) and the people for the restoration of
peace and friendship, saved Mr. Cockburn a severe
whipping."
Capt. David Wooster, later a Major General in the
Continental army, held a New York grant for three
thousand acres in what is now the town of Addison,
located not far from the fort at Crown Point, N. Y.
Learning that several families had settled on land he
claimed to own, asserting their right to do so, by virtue
of a New Hampshire grant, he visited the place in Sep-
tember, 1772, providing himself both with writs of eject-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 359
ment and leases for those who would acknowledge him
as their landlord. These leases were rejected, Wooster
testifying in a deposition that the settlers, thirteen in
number, "declared they would support themselves there
by force of arms, and that they would spill their blood
before they would leave the said lands; whereupon the
deponent proceeded to serve two declarations of eject-
ment on two principle ringleaders, and thereupon some
of their party presented their firelocks at the deponent,
declaring it should be death for any man that served a
declaration of ejectment there, but the deponent being
well armed with pistols proceeded to serve said eject-
ments, notwithstanding they continued their firelocks
presented against him during the whole time. That
after the deponent had served the said ejectments,
they declared with one voice that they would not attend
any court in the province of New York respecting their
lands, and asked the deponent how he would get posses-
sion after he had got judgments against them, who re-
plied he should bring the High Sheriff to put him in
possession, to which they replied they would suffer no
Sheriff to come upon the ground, to which the deponent
replied that if they resisted the civil officer he would
apply for the assistance of the regular troops which
were hard by, as it was their duty to assist the civil
authority, and that it was high treason for them to fire
on His Majesty's troops, to which they answered that
if His Majesty's troops came to assist the civil officer
to put any men in possession there, they should have
hundreds of guns fired at them, and that they further
said it was the universal agreement of the people in
360 HISTORY OF VERMONT
that country, as the deponent understood in its whole
extent from north to south, to defend themselves by force
of arms, in opposition to every attempt in support of the
titles to lands there under the province of New York and
that they could raise multitudes of men for that purpose,
sometimes mentioning a thousand, sometimes two thou-
sand, and sometimes five hundred men."
Col. John Reid received from Governor Dunmore of
New York a grant of seven thousand acres of land
situated on both sides of Otter Creek in Panton and
New Haven, this land having been granted about ten
years earlier by Governor Wentworth. When Colonel
Reid came into his new possessions, he drove off settlers
holding lands under New Hampshire Grants, captured a
saw mill, one hundred and thirty saw logs and fourteen
thousand feet of pine boards, according to Ethan Allen's
letter to Governor Tryon, and by the aid of a man named
Buzzell, so terrified twelve inhabitants of New Haven
that they abandoned their possessions. Soon after the
original settlers rallied and were able to secure posses-
sion, but later they were attacked by Reid's steward
with an armed party and driven off.
Ethan Allen, Seth Warner, Remember Baker, and
more than one hundred armed men appeared at Reid's
settlement on August 11, 1773, and notified the Scotch
emigrants who had recently arrived there that the land
did not belong to Colonel Reid, and warned them to
depart. The huts of the settlers were burned and the
mill demolished, the millstones being broken.
Some of the affidavits furnished in connection with
this affair give a vivid description of the occurrence.
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 361
although couched in rather unusual language. On the
day following this Otter Creek episode James Hender-
son wrote to a Mr. Mackintosh at Crow^n Point as fol-
lows: "Our Houses are all Brunt Down. The Grist
mill is All Put Down. The Mill Stones Brock and
Throns in To The Crick, The Corn is all Destroed By
There Horses, and When it Was Proposed That We
Should Build houses and Keep Possion, They Threat-
ened to Bind some of us To a Tree and Skin us Alive.
Therefore we think its imposable To us To Live hear
in Peace." Evidently the conclusion reached was
abundantly justified by the facts, as cited.
According to the affidavits, after the millstones had
been broken and thrown into Otter Creek, Remember
Baker came out of the mill with the bolt cloth in his
hand, which he cut into pieces with his sword and dis-
tributed among his associates as trophies of victory.
Being asked for his commission, Baker held up his
mutilated hand showing where a thumb had been cut off
in the fight with Munro's party, and this he called his
commission.
Other depositions tell of burning houses, stacks of
hay and corn sheds; and that when Baker was asked
if he did not think the Governor and Council of New
York would take notice of "such doings," replied that
"he despised everything they could do; that their (his)
people could assemble a great number of men in arms
and that they could live in the bush and were resolved
never to allow any person, claiming under New York
to settle in that part of the province."
362 HISTORY OF VERMONT
It appears that the "New England Mob," as one de-
position described the party, was at the Otter Creek set-
tlement two days; that there were present one hundred
and ten persons, according to one deponent; that they
destroyed six houses, or huts, and the mill, broke the
millstones, and destroyed most of the wheat, corn and
hay "in a riotous and mobbish manner." It appears
that Ethan Allen commanded one party and Remember
Baker another, the latter arriving on the morning of
August 12.
Lieut. Adolphus Benzel, Inspector of Woods, Forests
and Unappropriated Lands on Lake Champlain and in
Canada, writing from Crown Point on September 27,
1773, informed Governor Tryon that John Readers had
been "most inhumanly beaten," first with a large hickory
stick and afterwards with birch rods on his bare back,
compelling him to beg for his life; and that Allen and
Baker were present at the flogging.
The New York officials did not make good progress
in their attempts to enforce their decrees. As early as
April 11, 1772, Justice of the Peace Benjamin Spencer
of Durham, a New York township, which included much
of the present town of Clarendon, informed Mr. Duane
that the settlement of the town had been hindered by
the riotous spirit of the New Hampshire men. In the
course of his letter he said: "You may ask why I do
not proceed against them in due course of law, but you
need not wonder when I tell you it has got to that ; they
say they will not be brought to justice by this province
and they bid defiance to any authority in the province.
* * * One Ethan Allen hath brought from Connec-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 363
ticut twelve or fifteen of the most blackguard fellows he
can get, double armed, in order to protect him, and if
some method is not taken to subdue the towns of Ben-
nington, Shaftsbury, Arlington, Manchester and those
people in Socialborough and others scattered about the
woods, there had as good be an end of the government."
Writing again to Mr. Duane in May, 1773, he informed
him that "the tumults have got to such a height, both
in Socialborough and from Bennington to Manchester,
that I cannot travel about to do any lawful business,
indeed I cannot with safety travel two miles from home."
A little later Justice Spencer formed a more intimate
acquaintance with Ethan Allen and his "blackguard
fellows" as the result of a visit. According to a deposi-
tion made by Spencer, corroborated by the statements
of others, on the night of Saturday, November 20, 1773,
the door of his house was broken down, and Ethan Allen,
Remember Baker and others entered the room where he
was sleeping, compelling him to dress and hastening the
process by a blow on the head with a gun. Spencer was
then taken to the house of Thomas Green, about two
miles distant, where he was kept under guard until the
following Monday morning. At that time, escorted by
a party estimated by Spencer to number from one hun-
dred and thirty to one hundred and fifty men, he was
taken back to his home. Upon their arrival Remember
Baker erected what was called the judgment seat, and
after Ethan Allen had addressed the assemblage, Allen,
Baker, Seth Warner and Robert Cochran took their
seats as judges. The prisoner was required to remove
his hat and stand before them. He was then charged
364 HISTORY OF VERMONT
with applying to the New York government for a title
to lands and with inducing other persons to do likewise ;
with consenting to act as a Justice of the Peace con-
trary to the orders and rules established by the settlers
of that region; with issuing a warrant against a New
Hampshire settler for a trespass ; and with using his in-
fluence to induce people to render obedience to the gov-
ernment and laws of New York. Baker and others, it
is said, insisted that the prisoner should be whipped, but
this was not done. Not having a New Hampshire title,
Spencer's house was adjudged a nuisance and was set
on fire. He declared in his deposition that the party set
the house on fire in two places "and soon after broke
and took the roof entirely ofT with great shouting of
joy and much noise and tumult." It was said that Allen
and Baker declared with curses that "they valued not
the government nor even the Kingdom."
Crean Brush, from the Grand Committee on Griev-
ances, reported to the New York Assembly on February
4, 1774, that a "number of lawless persons calling them-
selves the Bennington Mob" had seized, insulted, and
terrified magistrates and other civil officers, rescued
prisoners for debt, assumed military commands and
judicial powers, burned and demolished houses, beat and
abused the persons of many of His Majesty's subjects
and expelled them from their possessions, "and put a
period to the administration of justice, and spread terror
and destruction throughout that part of the country
which is exposed to their oppression."
It was recommended, therefore, that a proclamation
be issued offering a reward for the apprehension of the
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 365
ringleaders of the mob. This report being accepted by
the Legislature, Governor Tryon, on March 9, 1774,
offered rewards of one hundred pounds each for the
arrest of Ethan Allen and Remember Baker, and fifty
pounds each for apprehending Seth Warner, Robert
Cochran, Peleg Sunderland, Silvanus Brown, James
Breakenridge, and John Smith.
When the news of the action of the New York authori-
ties reached the Grants, a meeting of the committees of
the towns west of the Green Mountains was held on
March 1, 1774, at the residence of Eliakim Wellers, at
Manchester, and was adjourned to the third Wednesday
of March at the house of Capt. Jehiel Hawley, in Arling-
ton. A committee of seven was appointed to prepare
resolutions in answer to the action of New York. Hav-
ing prepared a report, it was signed by Nathan Clark,
chairman, and Jones Fay, clerk, and it was published in
the Connecticut Courant at Hartford, and in the Nezv
Hampshire Gazette at Portsmouth.
The resolutions called attention to the fact that all
the troubles and difficulties of the settlements had been
due to "an unequal and biased administration of law."
Objection was made to permitting the New York offi-
cials to set themselves up as "great sticklers for good
order and government," when they did not hesitate to
violate the orders of the King, and some of them had
acted as judges in cases in which they were personally
interested.
Declaring, their loyalty to the King, whom they recog-
nized as their "political father," they expressed their re-
liance upon him for the protection of the property; and,
366 HISTORY OF VERMONT
having purchased their property in good faith, they an-
nounced their determination to maintain these grants
"against all opposition" until His Majesty's pleasure
should be known. They declared that their only resist-
ance to government was *'the law of self preservation,
which the law of God and nature enjoins on every intelli-
gent, wise and understanding being." It was asserted
that attempts to indict their friends and neighbors as
rioters were "contrary to the good and righteous laws of
Great Britain."
Therefore, it was resolved by the convention: "That
as a country we will stand by and defend our friends and
neighbors so indicted at the expense of our lives and
fortunes. * ^ * That for the future every neces-
sary preparation be made, and that our inhabitants hold
themselves in readiness at a minute's warning to aid and
defend such friends of ours, who, for their merit to the
great and general cause are falsely denominated rioters ;
but that we will not act anything more or less than on
the defensive and always encourage due execution of
law in civil cases, and also in criminal prosecutions that
are so indeed."
On March 9, 1774, the same day that Governor Tryon
offered rewards for the apprehension of the leaders of
the men of the New Hampshire Grants, the New York
Legislature passed an act "for preventing tumultuous
and riotous assemblies in the places therein mentioned,
and for the more speedy and effectual punishing the
rioters," and its cause was said to be "a spirit of riot
and licentiousness" that had prevailed in parts of the
counties of Charlotte and Albany. Very stringent regu-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 367
lations were adopted, to be applied where three or more
persons were assembled "riotously and tumultously."
Any person hindering or obstructing the proclamation
to disperse any person improperly assuming judicial
power; confine, assault or beat a civil officer, or terrify,
hinder or prevent such officer from performing his
duties; burn or destroy grain, corn or hay in any en-
closure; with force demolish or begin to demolish any
dwelling house, barn, stable, gristmill, sawmill or out-
house, in either of the said counties, should be adjudged
guilty of felony and suffer death without benefit of
clergy.
It was further enacted that as Ethan Allen, Seth
Warner, Remember Baker, Robert Cochran, Peleg Sun-
derland, Silvanus Brown, James Breakenridge and John
Smith were the principal ringleaders in the riots and dis-
turbances, they should be ordered to surrender them-
selves within the space of seventy days after the first
publication of the order in the Nezv York Gazette and
Weekly Mercury. The penalty for failure to comply
with this order was that they be adjudged attainted of
felony, and suffer death without benefit of clergy.
Under ordinary circumstances the publication of such
a barbarous statute might be expected to produce a reign
of terror, but the people of the New Hampshire Grants,
and their outlawed leaders, went about their business
as usual. The story is told that after a price was set
upon his head, Ethan Allen rode into Albany in daylight,
alighted at a public house, called for a bowl of punch,
drank it, mounted his horse and rode away, although a
large crowd had assembled. While the story lacks posi-
368 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tive proof of its authenticity, Allen's boldness, and the
fact that the settlers on the Grants had many friends in
Albany, lends an air of plausibility to the tale.
The seven outlaws responded in a vigorous remon-
strance, which bears evidence of having been written
by Ethan Allen. The document opens with a declara-
tion that the cause of opposition to the government of
New York is a determination to defend the lives and
property of the settlers. It is stated that the settlers
will be orderly and submissive to government if the New
York patentees will remove their patents, if the settlers
are quieted in their possessions, and if prosecutions for
rioting are suspended, but adds significantly:
"Be it known to that despotic fraternity of law makers
and law breakers that we will not be fooled or fright-
ened out of our property. * * * If we oppose civil
officers in taking possession of our farms we are by
these laws denominated felons; or if we defend our
neighbors who have been indicted rioters, only for de-
fending our property, we are likewise adjudged felons.
In fine, every opposition to their monarchial government
is deemed felony, and at the end of every such sentence
there is the word death, the same as though he or they
had been convicted or attainted before a proper court
of judicature : The candid reader will doubtless observe
that the diabolical design of the law is to obtain posses-
sion of the New Hampshire Grants, or to make the
people that defend them outlaws and so kill them when-
ever they can catch them.
"Those bloody lawgivers know we are necessitated to
oppose their execution of laws when it points directly at
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 369
our property, or give up the same, but there is one thing
which is a matter of consolation to us, viz. : that printed
sentences of death will not kill us when we are at a
distance, and if the executioners approach us, they will
be as likely to fall victims to death as we; and that per-
son, or country of persons are cowards indeed if they
cannot as manfully fight for their liberty, property and
life as villains can do to deprive them thereof. * * *
"As to forming ourselves into military orders and
assuming military commands, the New York posses, the
military preparations, oppressions, etc., obliged us to it.
Probably Messieurs Duane, Kemp and Banyar of New
York will not discommend us for so expedient a prep-
aration, more especially since the decrees of the 9th of
March are yet to be put in execution ; and we flatter our-
selves upon occasion we can muster as good a regiment
of marksmen and scalpers as America can afiford; and
we now give the gentlemen above named together with
Mr. Brush and Col. Ten Broeck, and in fine all the land
jobbers of New York, an invitation to come and view
the dexterity of our regiment; and we cannot think of a
better time for that purpose than when the execution-
ers come to kill us. * * *
"But as the Magistrates, Sheriffs, Under-Sheriffs,
Coroners and Constables of the respective counties that
hold their posts of honor and benefit under our bitter
enemies, we have a jealousy that some of them may be
induced (to recommend themselves to those on whom
they are dependent, and for the wages of unrighteous-
ness offered by proclamation) to presume to apprehend
some of us, or our friends: We therefore advertise
370 HISTORY OF VERMONT
such officers, and all persons whatsoever, that we are re-
solved to inflict immediate death on whomsoever may
attempt the same. And provided any of us or our party
shall be taken, and we have not notice sufficient to relieve
them, or whether we relieve them or not, we are re-
solved to surround such person, or persons, whether at
his or their own house or houses, or anywhere that we
can find him or them, and shoot such person or persons
dead. And furthermore that we will kill and destroy
any person or persons whomsoever, that shall presume
to be accessory, aiding or assisting in taking any of us
as aforesaid ; for by these presents we give any such dis-
posed person or persons to understand that although
they have a license by the law aforesaid to kill us ; and
an 'indemnification' for such murder from the same
authority, yet they have no indemnification for so doing
from the Green Mountain Boys; for our lives, liberties
and properties are as verily precious to us, as to any of
the King's subjects, and we are as loyal to His Majesty
or his government, as any subjects in his province; but
if the governmental authority of New York will judge
in their own case, and act in opposition to that of Great
Britain, and insist upon killing us, to take possession of
our vineyards, come on, we are ready for a game of
scalping with them; for our martial spirits glow with
bitter indignation and consummate fury to blast their
infernal projections."
This declaration is remarkable for the vigor and
forcefulness of its English as well as for the boldness
and defiance of its tone. Probably no better illustra-
tion is to be found of the daring spirit, one might truth-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 371
fully say the reckless daring, which the people who set-
tled the Green Mountain region exhibited in their de-
fence of their rights and liberties and their passionate
love of freedom. In order that the people of neighbor-
ing colonies should understand the merits of the con-
troversy, Ethan Allen, in 1774, prepared a pamphlet of
more than two hundred pages, entitled "A Brief Narra-
tive of the Proceedings of the Government of New York
Relative to Their Obtaining the Jurisdiction of that Dis-
trict of Land to the Westward of Connecticut River"
and it was printed at Hartford, Conn.
Ira Allen says that "by this book and others the cause
of the people became of public notoriety through the
colonies, as the newspapers were in every part circulat-
ing these proceedings, which soured the minds of the
people much against the British Government, as it was
generally supposed that the Governor and Council of
New York were countenanced by Government."
Soon after the passage by the New York Legislature
of the act providing for the offering of rewards for the
apprehension of Ethan Allen and his associates, Benja-
min Hough, an Anabaptist preacher, who had secured
lands under the New York grant of Socialborough, re-
turned to the Grants, having accepted an appointment
as Justice of the Peace. On his petition the New York
Legislature had taken action against the so-called
"rioters," and had advocated the passage of the drastic
laws to which allusion has been made. On his return
he was served with a notice of the Manchester resolu-
tions of April 12, 1774, to the effect that until the King's
pleasure was known any person taking a commission
372 HISTORY OF VERMONT
from the government of New York would "be deemed
an enemy to their country and the common cause, and
warned against attempting to act as a magistrate." He
paid no heed to these warnings but was loud in his de-
nunciation of rioters. In order to make an example
that should serve as a warning to others, he was seized
by about thirty persons on the morning of January 26,
1775, placed in a sleigh and carried to Sunderland, where
he was kept in confinement until January 30, the delay
being due to the fact that Ethan Allen and Seth Warner
had been summoned from Bennington but had not
arrived. These two leaders and Robert Cochran, Peleg
Sunderland, James Mead, Gideon Sawyer and Jesse
Sawyer acted as judges. Ethan Allen accused the
prisoner of entering complaint to the New York authori-
ties concerning the punishment of Benjamin Spencer;
of discouraging the people from joining the cause of the
Green Mountain Boys; and of accepting the offer of
magistrate under the jurisdiction of New York. Hough
admitted these charges to be true. Thereupon he was
sentenced to be tied to a tree and to receive two hun-
dred lashes upon his naked back, and that as soon as he
was able to leave he should depart from the New Hamp-
shire Grants and not return, the penalty for violation of
the order being five hundred lashes. This penalty was
inflicted and after receiving treatment from a physician
he was sent on his way to New York, having received a
certificate signed by Allen and Warner to the effect that
he had received "full punishment" for crimes committed.
Not all the punishments decreed were of such severity
as that inflicted upon Hough. Dr. Samuel Adams of
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 373
Arlington had been a friend of the New Hampshire set-
tlers until about the end of the year 1773, when he began
to advise his neighbors to purchase lands under a New
York title. Refusing to heed warnings to desist from
his course, he armed himself with pistols and other
weapons and announced that he would silence any man
who attempted to molest him. He was soon arrested
and taken to the Green Mountain Tavern at Bennington.
Now the tavern had for a sign a stuffed catamount, sur-
mounting the signboard twenty-five feet from the
ground, the animal being represented in the act of show-
ing its teeth to New York. Doctor Adams, having
been heard by the Committee of Safety, was sentenced
to be tied to an arm chair and hoisted to the sign of
the catamount, there to be suspended for the space of
two hours. This sentence was carried into effect to the
amusement of a large number of spectators, and it is
said that "this mild and exemplary disgrace had a salu-
tary effect on the doctor and many others."
Judged by ordinary standards the course of the Green
Mountain Boys in resisting New York authority, in set-
ting up their own tribunals of justice, in inflicting the
"beech seal" and other punishments with great severity,
in evicting New York settlers and destroying their prop-
erty, was one of great violence and lawlessness, but con-
ditions were not ordinary but extraordinary. The land
trials at Albany in 1770 had demonstrated that justice
could not be obtained, that their property rights would
not be protected, that New Hampshire titles would not
be recognized in New York courts, notwithstanding the
fact that this policy was in direct violation of the orders
374 HISTORY OF VERMONT
of the British Government. Either the settlers under
New Hampshire titles must abandon all they possessed;
pay to the New York authorities exorbitant fees for new
grants which many of them were unable to do; or hold
their homesteads by force until, as they hoped, a final
decision in the matter should be rendered by the King.
The last of these methods was chosen, with a full
knowledge that in a measure, at least, it was a policy of
revolution; and subsequent events justified the course
adopted by the settlers. Under the circumstances this
policy was the only one that promised the possibility
of the protection of the rights of this people, and to the
ordinary observer the outlook for ultimate success must
have appeared exceedingly unpromising. Yet so effec-
tually did they intimidate the New York party that Ben-
jamin Hough declared under oath on March 18, 1775,
that "neither the said Sheriff (of Charlotte county) or
his oflficers dare to venture within the district where the
rioters live without express leave from the leaders of
the mob." Long before this Attorney General Kempe
had learned the meaning of Ethan Allen's phrase, "The
gods of the valleys are not the gods of the hills."
It is worthy of note, however, that, although violence
was used, in all this controversy no lives were taken.
In view of the extreme provocation, the injustice of the
New York ofBcials and the heavy odds against the New
Hampshire Grants, it may be considered remarkable
that their methods were not more violent.
It became increasingly evident that it would be
extremely difificult if not impossible to bring this district
under the authority of New York. As early as Sep-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 375
tember, 1769, twelve Connecticut clergymen, mission-
aries of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel
in Foreign Parts, which held a right of land in almost
every township granted by Governor Wentworth, peti-
tioned Sir William Johnson to use his influence to secure
the appointment of Partridge Thatcher as the first Gov-
ernor of the new government which it was expected
would be erected out of Governor Wentworth's Grants
west of the Connecticut River. Of course, nothing
came of this request as it does not appear that such a
plan was seriously considered at the time.
Ira Allen states in his "History of Vermont" that in
1774 a plan was formed by Ethan Allen, Amos Bird and
other prominent persons, aided by Col. Philip Skene, to
establish a new royal colony, which should include the
region known as the New Hampshire Grants and a por-
tion of the province of New York west of Lake Cham-
plain and north of the Mohawk River, extending to the
Canadian border, or the forty-fifth parallel of latitude.
Skenesborough, the county seat of Charlotte county, was
to be the capital of the new province. The plan in-
cluded the appointment of Colonel Skene as Governor.
He was a retired officer who had been granted a large
tract of land at the south end of Lake Champlain, where
a settlement of considerable importance had been estab-
lished.
The post of royal Governor was an honorable and
sometimes a lucrative one, and the prospect of obtaining
it appealed to Colonel Skene, who, at his own expense,
went to London to solicit the position. He secured the
appointment of Governor of the garrisons of Crown
376 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Point and Ticonderoga, which was considered the first
step in his campaign. He was next advised to secure
petitions to the King and Privy Council to the effect
that the estabhshment of such a colony would restore
harmony in this disturbed district and afford convenience
in the administration of justice in a department extensive
and remote from the seat of government. Resolutions
were adopted at Westminster, April 11, 1775, by com-
mittees representing Cumberland and Gloucester coun-
ties, asking that they "be taken out of so oppressive a
jurisdiction and either annexed to some other govern-
ment, or erected and incorporated into a new one."
n this movement had been inaugurated at some other
time than the outbreak of the revolt of the colonies
against Great Britain it might have afforded a con-
venient avenue of escape from a very difficult situation.
Ira Allen remarks that had Colonel Skene succeeded in
the establishment of a new royal colony in the region
"the people who had settled under the royal grants of
New Hampshire would have been quiet." The re-
verberation of the guns fired at Lexington and Concord,
however, shattered the fabric of Colonel Skene's dream
of a royal colony of which he should be the Governor.
When he returned a little later to America it was not as
ruler of a new province, but as a prisoner of war, in
custody of people determined to do their own governing.
The overshadowing importance of the war with Great
Britain checked the fierceness of the land controversy
with New York, and though it smouldered for years,
blazing up from time to time, never again was it des-
RESISTANCE TO NEW YORK AUTHORITY 377
tined to be fanned into as fierce a flame as that which
had been kindled during the period immediately preced-
ing the outbreak of the American Revolution.
Chapter XII
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE
THE conditions prevailing during the three or four
years immediately preceding the beginning of the
American Revolution differed radically in the
eastern and the western portions of the present State of
Vermont. In the western portion, the settled region of
which included what is now known as Bennington and
Rutland counties, a part of Addison county, and a few
isolated settlements in Chittenden county, the authority
exercised by the province of New York was very slight.
An occasional arrest was made by New York officers,
but to a considerable extent the towns in this section
were a law unto themselves. This does not mean that a
state of anarchy or disorder prevailed in the ordinary
affairs of life. Town officials and committees of safety
conducted such affairs of government as seemed to be
necessary. The opposition to New York, which prac-
tically nullified the authority of that province in the set-
tled region west of the Green Mountains, grew out of
the attempt of the provincial government to take from
the settlers lands granted under New Hampshire char-
ters, and to regrant them to others under a New York
patent. Because the inhabitants resolutely defended
their property rights and defied the New York officials,
the machinery of the provincial government could not
be put into operation where the Green Mountain Boys
held sway.
In the eastern portion of what is now Vermont, the
settled region included the present counties of Windham
and Windsor, known as Cumberland county, and a part
of Orange county, then included in Gloucester county,
which was sparsely settled. In the region lying between
382 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the Connecticut River and the Green Mountains, New
York had not attempted to deprive the pioneer settlers
of their lands and give them to others. Not a few of
the towns had obtained new charters from New York,
and here the machinery of provincial government was in
full operation. Courts had been established, county
officials appointed, and representatives elected to the
General Assembly. Communication was difficult across
the range of the Green Mountains, and the oppression
and injustice suffered by the people of Bennington and
vicinity did not prevail to any great extent in Cumber-
land and Gloucester counties. It was much more con-
venient for New York grantees to secure titles to lands
in the valleys of the Battenkill and Otter than in the
valleys of the Connecticut River and its tributaries. In
the first instance there was no mountain barrier to
cross, nor was it necessary to pass through Massa-
chusetts, a province in which dwelt many persons finan-
cially interested in the New Hampshire Grants. In one
portion of this region the inhabitants, smarting under
a sense of outrage, had been driven to the point of revo-
lution. In the other portion no accumulated grievances
had engendered a spirit of hate toward the New York
government.
The impression should not be gained, however, that
entire satisfaction was given by the new county govern-
ments of Cumberland and Gloucester. When the
former county was first erected in 1766, the act estab-
lishing it was vetoed by the King. In 1768 the Gov-
ernor and Council reestablished the county, a measure
of doubtful validity, and one that some of the people
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 383
feared might call forth a repetition of royal disapproval.
It must be remembered that the settlers in these East
Side towns were people of New England ideas and train-
ing and the New York method of appointing county
officers by the Governor and Council was not altogether
pleasing to men accustomed to the election of most of
their public servants. The county officials were too
numerous for a sparsely settled region and the burden
of maintenance was heavy. Complaint was made that
the jury service was excessive. Large fees were re-
quired for a confirmation of New Hampshire land titles.
All these matters combined to arouse some friction and
dissatisfaction.
In the spring of 1770, Joseph Wait, Benjamin Wait
(the founder of Waitsfield), Nathan Stone and Samuel
Stone, all of Windsor, were arrested on a precept from
the Inferior Court of Common Pleas, but they were
rescued by a body of armed men. In May of this year,
Sheriff Daniel Whipple of Cumberland county, with a
posse of twelve or fifteen men, went to Windsor to re-
arrest these persons. On the way they met a company
variously estimated from twenty-seven to forty persons,
armed with guns, swords, pistols and clubs, led by
Nathan Stone and Joseph Wait. Refusing to accede to
Sheriff Whipple's order to disperse, the rioters over-
powered the sheriff's posse, holding its members as
prisoners for several hours.
A party of about thirty men armed with walnut clubs,
and led by Nathan Stone, who carried a sword, entered
the court house at Chester, the county seat, on June 5,
1770. Stone, claiming to act in behalf of the public,
384 HISTORY OF VERMONT
demanded of the court its right to sit in a judicial
capacity, and denied the authority of New York to erect
Cumberland county. Stone and his companions also
requested that John Grout, who appears to have made
himself obnoxious to those not in sympathy with the
New York party, be- debarred from the practice of law.
This request being denied without the presentation of
further evidence, and the confusion and tumult being so
great that violence was feared, court was adjourned.
The same day two men proceeded to the house of the
Clerk of the court, and in the presence of some of the
judges took Grout as a prisoner. He was transported
to Windsor, where he was detained, an attempt being
made to secure his promise not to practice law in the
county. After six days of confinement, Grout made
his escape.
A party of seventy or eighty persons from New
Hampshire, on January 27, 1772, crossed the Connec-
ticut River to Putney, broke open the door of Jonas
Moore's house, and took certain effects of Leonard
Spaulding, which had been committed to Moore's keep-
ing, Moore having recovered judgment against Spauld-
ing. These and other episodes indicated considerable
dissatisfaction with the court.
Cumberland county was divided into eighteen dis-
tricts, and Crean Brush was appointed Clerk and Surro-
gate of the county. Brush was a native of Ireland, who
had emigrated to New York City. He had been licensed
to practice law, and had recently removed to Westmin-
ster. Chester not proving altogether satisfactory as a
shire town, the supervisors of Cumberland county, on
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 385
May 19, 1772, chose Westminster as the county seat.
Westminster, one of the first Vermont towns to be set-
tled, was the most populous town in the county when the
census of 1771 was taken. The village was situated
on a broad plateau overlooking the Connectictit River.
A street ten rods in width had been laid out, intended
as a training field as well as a roadway and in the
middle of the King's Highway, as the street was called,
the church had been erected. On the east side of the
street, near the church, a court house was built, follow-
ing the transfer of the county seat from Chester to
Westminster. The building was erected of hewn tim-
ber, was about forty feet square, and the gambrel roof
was surmounted by a cupola. Double doors were
placed at either end of a broad hall, ten or twelve feet in
width, which extended through the center of the build-
ing. In the north half of the lower story were two
rooms used as a jail, and across the hall were a kitchen
and barroom, under the supervision of the jailer. The
court room occupied the second story, which was an
unfinished room, the rough beams remaining exposed to
view. This building stood until 1806, when it was taken
down. Within its walls was held the convention which
declared on January 17, 1777, that the district known as
the New Hampshire Grants, "of right ought to be, and
is hereby declared forever after to be considered as a
separate, free and independent jurisdiction or State."
Later in the same year, in the same court house, was
held a convention of the friends of New York govern-
ment opposed to the formation of a new State.
386 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The opposition to British authority which began to
manifest itself actively throughout the American
colonies in 1774, did not show any noteworthy activity
that year in the region west of the Green Mountains,
for the very good reason that the controversy with New
York was so acute that it attracted the entire attention
of the people, although the letters and papers setting
forth the claims of the Green Mountain Boys at times
breathed a spirit of defiance to Great Britain.
Following the formation in New York City, on May
16, 1774, of a committee of correspondence of fifty
members, designed to learn the sentiments of the people
of the province concerning Great Britain's attitude
toward her American colonies, Isaac Low, its chairman,
addressed a letter of inquiry to the supervisors of Cum-
berland county. According to documents of that period,
this letter, "through ignorance or intention," was kept
a private matter until September. Rumors of the re-
ceipt of this letter began to be "whispered abroad," and
reaching the ears of Dr. Reuben Jones of Rockingham,
and Capt. Azariah Wright of Westminster, two ardent
Whigs, as the opponents of the British policy sometimes
were called, they took steps to give the widest possible
publicity to the report. As a result a meeting was
called in each town, and committees were appointed to
wait upon the Supervisors at their September session
to inquire as to the truth of the rumor that certain
papers had been received that ought to be laid before
the towns of the county. The Supervisors made many
excuses, "Some plead ignorance, and some one thing
and some another." The committee which called upon
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 387
them would not consent that any return should be made
to the New York committee until all the towns in the
county had received the letter. As a result of the cir-
culation of the letter from Mr. Low a county conven-
tion was called to meet at Westminster on October 19.
A request was made of Col. Thomas Chandler, Town
Clerk of Chester, by several inhabitants of that town,
''to call a town meeting to know the minds of the people,
whether they are willing to choose a committee to make
report to said Committee of Correspondence and whether
the people will stand for the privileges of North
America or whether they are willing to consent to re-
ceive the late acts of Parliament as just or whether they
view them as unjust, oppressive and unconstitutional."
At a town meeting held in Chester on October 10, five
persons were chosen to attend the county convention at
Westminster, and the following resolutions were
adopted :
"That the people of America are naturally intitled
to all the priviledges of free born subjects of Great
Britain, which priviledges they have never forfeited.
"That every man's estate honestly acquired is his own
and no person on earth has a right to take it away with-
out the proprietor consent unless he forfeit it by some
crime of his committing.
"That all acts of the British Parliament tending to
take away or abridge these rights ought not to be obeyed.
"That the people of this town will joyn with their
fellow American subjects in opposing in all lawfull ways
every incroachment on their natural rights."
388 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The Cumberland County Convention met in the court
house at Westminster on October 19 and was in session
two days. A record of this meeting was pubUshed in
Holt's New York Journal in June, 1775, by which it
appears that Col. John Hazeltine of Townshend was
chosen chairman. Mr. Low's letter, the Boston Port
Bill, the act laying a duty on tea, and other acts of the
British Parliament were read and debated. A commit-
tee consisting of John Grout of Chester, Joshua Webb
of Westminster, Dr. Paul Spooner of Hertford (Hart-
land), Edward Harris of Halifax and Maj. William
Williams of Marlboro, were appointed a committee to
consider the subjects debated and report to the meeting.
On the second day of the convention the committee
reported, stating that the people of Cumberland were
"situated here in a corner, at a considerable remove from
the populous civilized parts of the country," reviewing
the hardships experienced by the pioneers in settling the
country, and expressing surprise that by act of Parlia-
ment "all Americans are deprived of that great right of
calling that their own which they by their industry have
honestly acquired." The report further declared that
"He who has nothing but what another has power at
pleasure lawfully to take away from, has nothing that
he can call his own, and is, in the fullest sense of the
word, a slave — a slave to him who has such power."
Resolutions were prepared, declaring, "That as true
and loyal subjects of our gracious Sovereign, King
George the Third of Great Britain, &c., we will spend
our lives and fortunes in his service."
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 389
"That as we will defend our King while he reigns over
us, his subjects, and wish his reign may be long and
glorious, so we will defend our just rights as British
subjects against every power that shall attempt to de-
prive us of them, while breath is in our nostrils, and
blood in our veins.
"That considering the late acts of the British Parlia-
ment for blocking up the port of Boston, &c., which we
view as arbitrary and unjust, inasmuch as the Parlia-
ment have sentenced them unheard, and dispensed with
all the modes of law and justice which we think neces-
sary to distinguish between lawfully obtaining right for
property injured, and arbitrarily enforcing to comply
with their will, (be it right or wrong) we resolve to
assist the people of Boston in the defence of their liber-
ties to the utmost of our abilities.
"Sensible that the strength of our opposition to the
late acts consists in a uniform, manly, steady and deter-
mined mode of procedure, we will bear testimony against
and discourage all riotous, tumultuous and unnecessary
mobs which tend to injure the persons or properties of
harmless individuals; but endeavor to treat those per-
sons whose abominable principles and actions show
them to be enemies to American liberty, as loathsome
animals not fit to be touched or to have any society or
connection with."
The New York Committee of Correspondence was
thanked "for the notice they have taken of this infant
colony," and the chairman was directed to forward to
Isaac Low of New York the resolutions, which were
unanimously adopted, with an explanation of the delay
390 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in replying to his letter. A committee was chosen to
correspond with other committees of correspondence "of
this province and elsewhere," consisting of Joshua
Webb, John Grout, John Sessions of Westminster, Maj.
William Williams and Capt. Jacob (Joab) Hoisington
of Woodstock.
Lieut. Leonard Spalding of Dummerston was ar-
rested on October 28, on a charge of high treason, and
after being overpowered by a posse of three or four
men was committed to jail at Westminster. In the
"Relation" prepared by a committee of which Dr.
Reuben Jones was clerk, dealing with the Westminster
Massacre, it is stated that "one man they put into close
prison for high treason ; and all that they proved against
him was that he said if the King had signed the Quebec
bill, it was his opinion that he had broke his coronation
oath." The Quebec bill established the laws of France,
abolished trial by jury, denied the right of assembly and
established the Catholic religion. Among those respon-
sible for the arrest of Spalding were Sheriff William
Paterson, Crean Brush, Noah Sabin, and others.
On the day following the arrest a majority of the
people of Dummerston, or Fulham, as it was called at
that time, met on the green and chose a committee of
correspondence consisting of Solomon Harvey, John
Butler, Jonathan Knight, Josiah Boyden and Daniel
Gates, "to joyne with other towns or respectable bodies
of people, the better to secure and protect the rights
and privileges of themselves and fellow creatures from
the ravages and imbarrassments of the British tyrant
and his New York and other immesaries." Being
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 391
assisted by "a large concourse of their freeborn neigh-
bors and bretherin" of Putney, Guilford, Halifax and
Draper (Wilmington), the people of Dummerston for-
cibly released Lieutenant Spalding, after he had been
imprisoned eleven days. Dr. Solomon Harvey, one of
the Whig leaders, was Town Clerk of Dummerston, at
this time, and he entered upon the town records a de-
scription of the episode, which leaves no doubt regard-
ing the sympathies of the writer, which declares that,
"The plain truth is, that the brave sons of freedom
whose patience was worn out with the inhuman insults
of the imps of power, grew quite sick of diving after
redress in a legal way, and finding that the law was
only made use of for the emolument of its creatures the
immesaries of the British tyrant, resolved upon an
easyer method, and accordingly opened the goal (jail)
without key or lockpicker, and after congratulating Mr.
Spalding upon the recovery of his freedom, dispersed
every man in peace to his respective home or place of
abode. The afforgoing is a true and short relation of
that wicked affair of the New York, cut throatly,
Jacobitish, high church, Toretical minions of George the
Third, the Pope of Canada and tyrant of Britain." If
the zealous doctor was as resourceful in his choice of
remedies as he was in the selection of epithets, he must
have been a very skilful practitioner.
John Hazeltine, chairman of the first Cumberland
County Convention, on November 13, issued a call for
a second convention to be held at Westminster, notices
being sent to the various towns of the county. At a
meeting held at Chester on November 28, two delegates
392 HISTORY OF VERMONT
were elected and were instructed to endeavor to procure
from the convention a vote of thanks to the Continental
Congress "for their good services." They were also
directed to try to secure the adoption of instructions to
their representatives in the New York Legislature,
Crean Brush and Samuel Wells, to favor choosing
deputies to attend the Colonial Congress to be held in
Philadelphia the following May. On the same day a
meeting was held in Dummerston, which voted that the
town be assessed "in a discretionary sum of money,
sufficient to procure 100 weight of gunpowder, 200
weight of lead, & 300 flints, for the town use." This
tax was to be paid in potash salts.
A Congress, which was composed of delegates from
twelve American colonies, had assembled at Philadelphia
in September, 1774, and had voted to suspend commer-
cial relations with Great Britain until certain offensive
acts of Parliament were repealed. An association was
formed which delegates joined, and it was recommended
that all the colonies adopt the articles of agreement, one
article being a pledge to have no dealings or intercourse
with any colony in North America which should not
accede to the articles of association. This agreement
was adopted by all the colonies but New York, in which
a Tory majority controlled the Legislature.
The second Cumberland County Convention was held
at Westminster on November 30, and according to a
report made by Dr. Reuben Jones all the resolves of the
Continental Congress were adopted, the delegates agree-
ing "religiously to adhere to the non-importation, non-
consumption, non-exportation policy agreed upon at
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 393
Philadelphia, also to have no dealings with any Ameri-
can province that failed to accede to, or violated, such
agreement or association." A motion was made to
appoint a committee of inspection, "to observe the con-
duct of all persons" in regard to the resolutions of the
Continental Congress. Objection was made, it is said,
by a justice and an attorney, probably by Justice Samuel
Wells of Brattleboro, and John Grout, a Chester attor-
ney; and the appointment of such a committee being
"much spoken against," according to Doctor Jones' re-
port, "and looked upon by them as a childish, imperti-
nent thing, the delegates dare not choose one." The
people of Dummerston decided that they would have a
committee of inspection, and at town meeting a com-
mittee of seven men was chosen, headed by Dr. Solo-
mon Harvey. This committee removed two of the town
assessors from office, and disarmed one man who was
suspected of being a Tory.
Col. John Hazeltine sent out a call, on January 30,
1775, for a third Cumberland County Convention, to be
held at Westminster on February 7. On that date dele-
gates from twelve towns assembled, and Colonel Hazel-
tine once more was elected chairman. The committee
was in session three days. A committee of correspond-
ence representing twenty-one towns was chosen, to be
kept informed of the proceedings of the friends of lib-
erty in the colonies. This committee consisted of rep-
resentatives from Westminster, Putney, Dummerston,
Brattleboro, Guilford, Hinsdale (Vernon), Halifax,
Marlboro, Draper (Wilmington), Newfane, Town-
shend, Kent (Londonderry), Chester, Rockingham,
394 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Springfield, Weathersfield, Windsor, Hertford (Hart-
land), Hartford, Woodstock and Pomfret. Dr. Paul
Spooner of Hertford, Joshua Webb and Abijah Lovejoy
of Westminster, Dr. Solomon Harvey of Dummerston
and Capt. Francis Whitmore of Marlboro were ap-
pointed monitors to the committee of correspondence.
At this convention a protest to the New York Legis-
lature was authorized, objecting to the "great expense
and heavy burdens" imposed by the additional courts
lately established. Mention was made of the incon-
venience of calling from home at each quarterly session
of court more than seventy farmers to act as grand
and petit jurors, their compensation being insufficient
to pay their expenses. Complaint was made concern-
ing the wages of the county members of the Legislature,
and the excessive fees charged by attorneys, which were
declared to be "very burthensome and grievous." The
petitioners asked for fewer terms of court, a smaller
number of jurors, smaller court fees, and other reforms.
It will be seen from the reports of these Westminster
conventions, and the action of individual towns, that
the people of Cumberland county were generally in
hearty sympathy with the American colonies in their
opposition to the colonial policy of Great Britain. New
York, however, had refused to unite with the other
American colonies, in the non-importation agreement,
and this fact, together with the sympathy shown by
New York officials for the British Government, made
the rule of the province irksome to many of the towns
in the Connecticut valley. The Cumberland county
court officials, chosen by the New York Legislature, were
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 395
known to be in sympathy with the British policy rather
than that of the Continental Congress. This fact, to-
gether with the growing dissatisfaction with the burden
imposed by the sessions of the courts, led to a movement
to prevent the holding of the court.
In the report, or "Relation" prepared by the commit-
tee of which Dr. Reuben Jones was clerk, to which ref-
erence already has been made, it was stated that, "Some
of our court would boldly say that the King had a just
right to make the revenue acts, for he had a supreme
power; and he that said otherwise were guilty of high
treason, and they did hope that they would be executed
accordingly. The people were of opinion that such
men were not suitable to rule over them: and, as the
General Assembly of this province would not accede to
the association of the Continental Congress, the good
people were of opinion that if they did accede to any
power from or under them, they would be guilty of the
breach of the 14th article of that association, and may
justly be dealt with, accordingly, by all America. When
the good people considered that the General Assembly
were for bringing them into a state of slavery, (which
did appear plain by their not acceding to the best method
to procure their liberties, and the executive power so
strongly acquiescing in all that they did, whether it was
right or wrong;) the good people of said county thought
it time to look to themselves. And they thought that
it was dangerous to trust their lives and fortunes in the
hands of such enemies to American liberty; but more
particularly unreasonable that there should be any court
held; since, thereby, we must accede to what our Gen-
396 HISTORY OF VERMONT
eral Assembly had done, in not acceding to what the
whole continent had recommended ; and that all America
would break off all dealings and commerce with us, and
bring us into a state of slavery at once. Therefore in
duty to God, ourselves, and posterity, we thought our-
selves under the strongest obligations to resist and to
oppose all authority that would not accede to the re-
solves of the Continental Congress. But knowing that
many of our court were men that neither feared or re-
garded men, we thought that it was most prudent to go
and persuade the judges to stay at home."
Acting in accordance with this policy about forty
''good true men" went from Rockingham to Chester on
March 10 to urge Col. Thomas Chandler, the Chief
Judge, not to attend court. Judge Chandler agreed that
under existing conditions it would be for the good of
the county not to hold a session of court at that time.
He declared, however, that there was one murder case
that must receive attention, but if the people objected to
further court business no other cases would be heard.
One member of the party expressed the opinion that
Sheriff Paterson would bring armed men to Westmin-
ster, and that there would be bloodshed, but Judge
Chandler gave his word of honor that no arms should
be brought against the people of the county. He agreed
to go to the county seat on March 13, and the visiting
delegation informed him that they would wait on him
at that time if he had no objection. He informed them
that their company would be very agreeable and thanked
them for their civility, as they took their departure.
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 397
There was much discussion among the Whigs regard-
ing the best method of preventing a session of the court.
It was understood that Judge Noah Sabin, one of the
Associate Judges, and many of the minor court officers
were strongly of the opinion that court should be opened
as usual. One of the Judges, Col. Samuel Wells, was
attending the New York Legislature as one of the mem-
bers from Cumberland county. It was finally agreed
by the Whigs that the court should be permitted to
assemble, when reasons should be presented showing
why a session ought not to be held. A report having
reached Westminster on March 10 to the effect that the
court would take possession of the court house March
13, post a strong guard at the doors, and prevent the
opponents of the court party from entering, it was deter-
mined to take possession of the court house before
armed guards were stationed, "being justly alarmed by
the deceit of our court," as a contemporary record says,
and "determined that our grievances should be laid be-
fore the court before it was opened."
Williams in his "History of Vermont," written less
than twenty years after this period, said that at that
time "the courts of justice which were held under the
royal authority in all the adjacent provinces were either
shut up or adjourned without doing any business." As
it became evident that a determined effort would be
made to hold court, preparations were made by both par-
ties to bring men to Westminster. On Sunday, March
12, Sheriff Paterson went to Brattleboro and persuaded
about twenty-five men to accompany him to Westmin-
ster the following day to aid in preserving the peace and
398 HISTORY OF VERMONT
suppressing any tumult that might arise. The members
of this party carried only clubs as weapons, but they
were joined by others on the way, including fourteen
men with muskets.
On the afternoon of the same day that the Brattle-
boro party arrived, a party of Whigs came from Rock-
ingham. Calling at the home of Capt. Azariah Wright,
they found the house too small to accommodate them,
and adjourned to the log school house across the street
to consult as to the best manner to prevent the court
from sitting. Arming themselves with clubs from Cap-
tain Wright's woodpile, they proceeded toward the
court house, being joined on the route by some of the
people of Westminster, similarly armed.
It was about four o'clock in the afternoon when this
party, numbering approximately one hundred men, en-
tered the court house with the intention of holding it
until the court came in the following morning, in order
to forestall what was supposed to be the plan of the Tory
party, to take possession of the building and prevent the
Whigs from laying their grievances before the Judges.
Very soon after they had entered, about five o'clock,
according to a statement of the Judges, Sheriff Pater son,
at the head of a company of about sixty men, armed
with guns, pistols, swords and stones, appeared before
the court house, and halting about five yards from the
door, he ordered the men assembled within that edifice
to disperse. No answer being made the Sheriff read the
King's proclamation in a loud voice, and with an oath
declared that if they did not disperse in fifteen minutes
he would ''blow a lane" through them. Demanding en-
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 399
trance to the court house, he was refused "with threats
and menaces," according- to the statement of the Tory-
party. While refusing to disperse, the occupants of the
court house informed the Sheriff's posse that they might
enter if they would disarm, but not otherwise. One of
the Whig party went to the door and asked the men
assembled outside if they had come for war, assuring
them that he and his associates desired peace, and would
be glad to hold a parley with them. Samuel Gale, clerk
of the court, thereupon drew a pistol, and holding it up
exclaimed: "Damn the parley with such damned ras-
cals as you are ; I will hold no parley with such damned
rascals but by this," flourishing his weapon. Others
of the Sheriff's party used harsh language, and volun-
teered the cheerful information that the Whigs assem-
bled in the court house "would be in hell before morn-
ing." After a little the Sheriff's posse withdrew a
short distance and held a consultation. Three of the
occupants of the court house at this time went out and
endeavored to treat with their opponents, but the only
response made was that they would not talk with "such
damned rascals," and the court party soon withdrew.
Judge Chandler came into the court house about seven
o'clock in the evening, and he was asked if he and Judge
Sabin would consult with a committee in regard to the
expediency of convening court the following day.
Judge Chandler said he could not discuss "whether His
Majesty's business should be done or not, but that if
they felt themselves aggrieved, and would apply to them
in a proper way, they would give them redress if it was
in their power." Being reminded that he had promised
400 HISTORY OF VERMONT
that no arms should be brought, Judge Chandler replied
that they were brought without his consent, that he
would take them away, that the Whigs might remain
in the court house undisturbed until morning, when the
court would come in, without arms, and hear such griev-
ances as might be presented. The Judge then with-
drew. The Whigs went out of the court house, chose a
committee to draw up a list of subjects to be brought to
the attention of the court in the morning, and after the
report was read it was adopted without opposition.
Relying on the promise that they would not be disturbed
during the night in possession of the court house, a con-
siderable number of them went to their homes or to
neighboring houses for the night, leaving a guard in the
county building.
Sheriff Paterson, meanwhile, assembled as many Tory
sympathizers as possible, Norton's tavern, the inn
patronized by the Royalist party, being the rallying
place. Here they discussed the action of the "rebels,"
and drank deeply, it is said, of John Norton's liquors.
Leaving the town in small parties, and proceeding
stealthily, they arrived at the court house about eleven
o'clock at night. The sentry at the door gave the alarm
and the guard manned the doors.
Dr. Reuben Jones, one of the Whig party participat-
ing in the affair, in his "Relation" of the proceedings,
describes the episode as follows :
"Immediately the Sheriff and his company marched
up fast, within about ten rods of the door, and then the
word was given, take care and then fire. Three fired
immediately. The word fire was repeated. 'God damn
^
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o
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THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 401
you, fire' ; 'send them to hell,' was most or all the words
that were to be heard for some time; on which there
were several men wounded. One was shot with four
bullets, one of which went through his brain, of which
wound he died next day. Then they rushed in with
their gims, swords and clubs, and did most cruelly
mammoc several more; and took some that were not
wounded, and those that were, and crowded them all
into close prison together, and told them that they should
all be in hell before the next night, and that they did
wish that there were forty more in the same case with
that dying man. When they put him into prison, they
took and dragged him as one would a dog; and would
mock him as he lay gasping, and make sport for them-
selves at his dying motions."
In a statement, entitled "A State of the Facts," pre-
pared by the Judges and court officials on the day follow-
ing this contest, it was declared regarding the night
attack that the Sheriff "brought the said posse before
the court house again, and then again demanded en-
trance in His Majesty's name, but was again refused in
like manner as before. Whereupon he told them that
he would absolutely enter it, either quietly, or by force,
and commanded the posse to follow close to him, which
they accordingly did, and getting near the door he was
struck several blows with clubs, which he had the good-
ness in general to fend off, so far at least as not to receive
any very great damage, but several of the clubs striking
him as he was going up the steps, and the rioters persist-
ing in maintaining their ground, he ordered some of
the posse to fire, which they accordingly did. The riot-
402 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ers then fought violently with their clubs and fired some
few fire arms at the posse, by which Mr. Justice Butter-
field received a slight shot in the arm, and another of
the posse received a slight shot in the head with pistol
bullets; but happily none of the posse were mortally
wounded. Two persons of the rioters were dangerously
wounded (one of whom is since dead) and several others
of the rioters were also wounded, but not dangerously
so. Eight of the rioters were taken prisoners (includ-
ing the one which is since dead) and the wounded were
taken care of by Doct. Day, Doct. Hill and Doct. Chase,
the latter of which was immediately sent for on purpose.
The rest of the rioters dispersed, giving out threats that
they would collect all the force possible and would re-
turn as on this day to revenge themselves on the Sheriflf
and on several others of the posse."
As a result of this conflict, William French of Brat-
tleboro, shot with five bullets, died in jail before the
morning of March 14 had dawned, while his captors,
served with liquor by Pollard Whipple, who acted in the
dual capacity of jailer and bartender, mocked and
jeered at the sufferings of the dying man. Daniel
Houghton of Dummerston was mortally wounded, and
died nine days later. Most of the wounded were taken
to the home of Capt. Azariah Wright. Among the
most seriously injured were Jonathan Knight of Dum-
merston, shot in the right shoulder with a charge of
buckshot, a man named White of Rockingham, who was
seriously w^ounded by a bullet in one knee, and Philip
Safford of Rockingham, who received several sabre cuts
on the head inflicted by Sheriff Paterson.
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 403
On Tuesday morning, March 14, the Judges opened
court at the appointed hour, although great excitement
prevailed in the town, but the only business transacted
was the preparation of a statement regarding the mur-
derous affair of the night previous, which was signed
by Judges Thomas Chandler and Noah Sabin, Assistant
Justices Stephen Greenleaf and Benjamin Butterfield,
Justice of the Peace Bildad Andrews and Samuel Gale,
Clerk of the court. Adjournment was taken to three
o'clock in the afternoon at which time another adjourn-
ment was taken, this time to the second Tuesday in June.
No doubt the Cumberland county court expected the
tumult to subside before the time should come for the
summer term to convene, but before two months had
passed new conditions had arisen in America which put
an end to His Majesty's judicial system in a region
much more extensive than that embraced in the county
of Cumberland.
Immediately after this affray, known as the West-
minster Massacre, messengers were sent out in every
direction to carry the news and to summon aid. The
militant Dr. Reuben Jones rode bareheaded to Dummer-
ston. By Tuesday noon, March 14, more than four hun-
dred armed men had assembled in the broad street of
Westminster, nearly two hundred of them coming from
New Hampshire. Capt. Azariah Wright had called out
the militia of Westminster, Capt. Stephen Sargent led his
company from Rockingham, Capt. Benjamin Bellows
brought his company from Walpole, and others came
from Guilford. With the arrival of this force the
Whigs were able to release from the jail their associates
404 HISTORY OF VERMONT
placed under arrest when the court house was taken,
and the Judges, other court officials and adherents of the
Tory party were placed under arrest, being confined in
the court room with a strong guard. This chamber
showed plainly the nature of the conflict that had taken
place the night before. There were blood stains in the
hall and on the stairs, and the timbers showed the marks
of the bullets that had been fired. Visitors were per-
mitted to come in, four or five at a time, to observe the
imprisoned court officials.
As the Whigs continued to gather, their indignation
increased. Some advocated pulling down or burning
the court house. Others demanded that the Judges be
brought out and compelled to "make acknowledgment to
their satisfaction." Only the firmness of Captain Bel-
lows, a man of great influence and strength of character,
prevented the adoption of violent measures. On Wed-
nesday morning, March 15, Dr. Solomon Harvey of
Dummerston arrived with a considerable number of
men, and with four of Sheriff Paterson's posse, who
had been captured as they were going home. Accord-
ing to an account printed in Holt's Nezv York Journal,
''The roads and passages were guarded with armed
men, who indiscriminately laid hold of all passengers
against whom any of the party intimated the least sus-
picion, and the mob, stimulated by their leaders to the
utmost fury and revenge, breathed nothing but blood
and slaughter against the unfortunate persons in their
power."
A coroner's inquest was held on Wednesday to deter-
mine the cause of the death of William French, and it
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 405
was reported ''that on the thirteenth day of March
instant, WilHam Paterson Esq., Mark Langdon, Chris-
topher Orsgood, Benjamin Gorton, Samuel Night and
others unknown to them, assisting with force and arms,
made an assault on the body of the said Wm. French
and shot him through the head with a bullet, of which
wound he died, and not otherwise."
On Wednesday evening, Capt. Robert Cochran arrived
from Bennington with a band of about forty Green
Mountain Boys, fully armed. As the party marched up
the street Cochran asked those whom he supposed to be
Tories, why they did not take him and obtain the reward
of fifty pounds offered by Governor Tryon for his appre-
hension. He declared loudly his intention of seizing some
of the men who had aided Sheriff Paterson, and with a
zeal greater than his knowledge of Scripture he an-
nounced his purpose to ascertain "who was for the Lord
and who was for Balaam."
On Thursday morning, March 16, there had
assembled "five hundred good martial soldiers, well
equipped for war," to quote again from Dr. Reuben
Jones' "Relation." Others had assembled who were in
sympathy with the Whigs, but were unarmed. Some
of this company were from Massachusetts. The num-
ber assembled being so great, it was determined to
appoint a large committee, a part of which was made
up of persons not residing in Cumberland county. This
committee examined the persons accused of responsi-
bility for the massacre, so-called, and decided that they
should be confined in the Northampton, Mass., jail until
a fair trial could be secured. Others less guilty were
406 HISTORY OF VERMONT
compelled to give bonds with security to John Hazeltine,
to appear at the next court of oyer and terminer and
were then released. Judge Thomas Chandler, Deputy
Sheriff Beldad Easton, Capt. Benjamin Burt, Thomas
Sergeant, Oliver Wells, Joseph Willard and John Morse,
were released on March 17, after giving bonds to appear
at the time appointed for trial. Judge Noah Sabin,
Assistant Justice Benjamin Butterfield, Justice of the
Peace William Willard, Sheriff William Paterson,
Deputy Sheriff Richard Hill, Clerk Samuel Gale, Wil-
liam Williams, and a man named Cunningham were
ordered to be confined in the jail at Northampton, Mass.
No charges were found against Thomas Ellis, and he
was released. The prisoners were taken to North-
ampton, on Sunday, March 19, guarded by twenty-five
men commanded by Capt. Robert Cochran, and by an
equal number under command of Captain Butterfield of
New Hampshire. The prisoners were committed to jail
on March 23 and were confined there about two weeks.
A writ of habeas corpus issued by Chief Justice Hors-
manden permitted their removal to New York, where
they were released without being brought into court for
trial.
Two messengers sent from Brattleboro with news of
the conflict at Westminster arrived at New York on
March 21, and informed the Cumberland county mem-
bers of the Legislature, Col. Samuel Wells and Crean
Brush, what had occurred. Governor Colden sum-
moned his Council and the depositions of the messengers,
Oliver Church of Brattleboro and Joseph Hancock of
Hopkinton, Mass., were taken. These depositions
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 407
together with a message from Governor Golden, dealing
with "the dangerous state of anarchy and confusion
which has lately arisen in Cumberland county," were
sent to the Legislature on March 23. One week later,
on March 30, by a vote of fourteen to nine, in committee
of the whole house, it was advised that provision should
be made "to enable the inhabitants of the county of Cum-
berland to reinstate and maintain the due administration
of justice in that county, and for the suppression of
riots." The regular sessions having been resumed, on
motion of Crean Brush, and after an exciting debate,
the sum of one thousand pounds was appropriated, by a
vote of twelve to ten, "to be applied for the purposes
enumerated in the report."
The funeral of William French, the first victim of
the Westminster Massacre, was held on March 15, fol-
lowing the coroner's inquest. It was attended by the
militia of the surrounding country and this young man
of twenty-two was buried with military honors in the
Westminster burial ground, near the spot where the
body of the other victim of the Massacre, Daniel
Houghton, was to be laid a few days later. Over the
grave of William French was erected a stone bearing
the following inscription :
"In Memory of William French
Son to Mr. Nathaniel French Who
Was Shot at Westminster March ye 13th
1775 by the hands of Cruel Ministerial tools
of George Ye 3d in the Corthouse at 1 1
o'clock
at Night in the 22d year of His Age.
408 HISTORY OF VERMONT
"Here William French his Body lies
For Murder his blood for vengance cries
King Georg the third his Tory crew
tha with a bawl his head Shot threw
For Liberty and his Countrys Good
he lost his Life his Dearest blood."
In one corner of the old gravestone was a bit of lead,
supposed to be one of the bullets which entered French's
body. In 1877, on the occasion of the centennial of Ver-
mont independence, measures were taken for the erec-
tion of a monument over the grave of William French.
On September 17, 1902, a granite boulder, on which
had been placed a bronze marker, was dedicated on the
site of the old court house, by the Brattleboro Chapter,
Daughters of the American Revolution.
One of the points in dispute regarding the Westmin-
ster Massacre has to do with the weapons used by the
Whigs. Dr. Reuben Jones, in his "Relation," says that
when the Tories first approached the court house on the
afternoon of March 13, that "we in the house had not
any weapons of war among us, and were determined
that they (the Tories) should not come in with their
weapons of war except by the force of them." In the
statement prepared by Judge Chandler and his asso-
ciates, it was asserted that "the rioters" fired "some few
fire arms at the posse." In preparing his "History of
Eastern Vermont," B. H. Hall made a thorough investi-
gation of this matter. Theophilus Crawford testified
that the Whigs had not "so much as a pistol among
them," and related that one or two persons on the way
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 409
to Westminster were obliged to lay aside the weapons
they carried. Azariah Wright, a grandson of Capt.
Azariah Wright, informed Mr. Hall that "there were
no arms carried by the Liberty party except clubs which
were obtained by the Rockingham company at my grand-
father's woodpile," having obtained this information
from Solomon Wright, his father, a boy of twelve or
thirteen years at the time of the Westminster Massacre.
The affair at Westminster, in its inception and in its
execution, clearly foreshadowed the long struggle for
independence, so soon to begin. Only grievances so
serious that no remedy was left save revolution would
justify a forcible interference with the holding of the
courts. There is no reason to doubt that the people of
Cumberland county had just cause to be dissatisfied with
the judicial system provided by the royal province of
New York; but local grievances were overshadowed by
the larger issues which had stirred the American Colo-
nies so deeply, and it is probable that the oppressive
acts of the British Parliament had as much to do with
arousing the militant spirit of the men of Cumberland
county, who took possession of the court house at West-
minster on that March afternoon in 1775, as did abuses
in the local administration of justice.
The result of the shots fired by Sheriff Paterson's
posse in the midnight contest for the possession of this
frontier court house speedily became apparent. The
rapidity with which armed men poured into Westminster
from every quarter, eager to wreak vengeance upon
court officials and their partisans, has been likened to a
gathering of the Scottish clans. It represented a re-
410 HISTORY OF VERMONT
markably efficient mobilization for a sparsely settled
country, with few roads. Among the developments
arising from the Westminster Massacre were the prac-
tical ending of New York rule in Cumberland county,
a closer union of the eastern and western settlements
of the New Hampshire Grants, and the deepening and
intensifying of popular hostility to British rule which
was to blaze forth at Lexington less than five weeks
later.
It has been asserted that the deaths of William French
and Daniel Houghton at Westminster constituted the
first bloodshed of the American Revolution, but the facts
hardly seem to warrant this claim. Of its importance,
there can be no doubt. It represented deep-seated hos-
tility to the New York provincial government, and to
British authority, but it was not war in the sense in
which the conflicts between armed American citizens
and British troops at Lexington and Concord demand
the use of that term. It may be classed more properly
with the Boston Massacre of 1770 than with the battles
of Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill, being one of a
series of events that almost inevitably led to war, and
must be classed with the preliminary events of that great
conflict.
The uprising at Westminster against the authority
of the province and the Crown was approved generally
throughout Cumberland county, and in some of the
larger towns public meetings were held to express this
sentiment. Although the people of Guilford had voted
their willingness to remain subject to the laws of New
York, they directed the local Committee of Safety to
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 411
decide whether those who held commissions from Gov-
ernor Tryon should retain or resign them. Evidently
popular opinion was changing at this time, for on April
7 the town voted, ''That we recommend to all those
persons in this town who have received commissions
under Governor Tryon, that they resign said commis-
sions, or erase their names out of a certain covenant,
signed by the body of the people, to mitigate or soften
the minds of the people."
A meeting of committees representing the people of
Cumberland and Gloucester counties was held at West-
minster on April 11. Maj. Abijah Lovejoy of that
town was chosen as the presiding officer and Dr. Reuben
Jones of Rockingham was elected clerk.
The following resolutions were adopted:
"Voted as our opinion. That our inhabitants are in
great danger of having their property unjustly, cruelly
and unconstitutionally taken from them by the arbitrary
and designing administration of the government of New
York; sundry instances having already taken place.
"Voted, as our opinion. That the lives of those in-
habitants are in the utmost hazard and imminent danger,
under the present administration. Witness the mali-
cious and horrid massacre of the 13th ult.
"Voted, as our opinion. That it is the duty of said
inhabitants, as predicated on the eternal and immutable
law of self-preservation, to wholly renounce and resist
the administration of the government of New York, till
such times as the lives and property of those inhabitants
may be secured by it ; or till such time as they can have
opportunity to lay their grievances before His most
412 HISTORY OF VERMONT
gracious Majesty in Council, together with a proper
remonstrance against the unjustifiable conduct of that
government; with a humble petition, to be taken out of
so oppressive a jurisdiction, and, either annexed to some
other government, or erected and incorporated into a new
one, as may appear best to the said inhabitants, to the
royal wisdom and clemency, and to such time as His
Majesty shall settle this controversy.
"Voted. That Colonel John Hazeltine, Charles
Phelps, Esq., and Colonel Ethan Allen be a committee
to prepare such remonstrance and petition for the pur-
pose aforesaid."
Evidently the people of Cumberland and Gloucester
counties had reached the point where they desired, either
to be annexed to New Hampshire, or were ready to join
the inhabitants west of the Green Mountains in forming
the new province, of which Colonel Skene hoped to be
made Governor. The new note of hostility to the New
York Government, and the choice of Ethan Allen, who
had shown no little ability in penning remonstrances,
to aid in preparing a petition to the British Government
praying for relief from the irksome rule of New York,
shows how the Westminster Massacre was bringing to-
gether in sentiment the eastern and western portions of
the New Hampshire Grants.
Delegates from nine New York counties assembled in
New York City on May 23, 1775, and organized a Pro-
vincial Congress. On the following day John Williams
and William Marsh appeared as delegates from Char-
lotte county, and were admitted. They represented two
towns now included in New York, and the towns of
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 413
Arlington, Manchester, Dorset, Rupert, Pawlet and
Wells, now in Vermont. It is a noteworthy fact that
this is one of the few instances when the towns west of
the Green Mountains were represented in any New York
assembly. Dr. John Williams, however, was a resident
of White Creek, N. Y., and William Marsh afterward
became a Tory and his property was confiscated, so that
this region was not represented by the men who usually
acted and spoke in its behalf.
Cumberland county did not receive notice of the pro-
vincial Congress in time to send delegates, and on June
6 a county Congress assembled at Westminster, which
the records call "a full meeting." John Hazeltine was
chairman of the Congress and of the Committee of Cor-
respondence. The object of the meeting was said to be
"that the sense of the people in said county of Cum-
berland should be fully known with regard to the hostile
measures that are using by the British Parliament to
enforce the late cruel, unjust, and oppressive acts of the
said British Parliament through the British colonies in
America."
Resolutions were adopted as follows:
"That the late acts of the British Parliament passed
in order to raise a revenue in America are unjust, illegal
and diametrically opposite to the Bill of Rights, and a
fundamental principle of the British Constitution, which
is, 'that no person shall have his property taken from
him without his consent'.
"That we will resist and oppose the said acts of Par-
liament, in conjunction with our brethren in America,
at the expense of our lives and fortunes, to the last
414 HISTORY OF VERMONT
extremity, if our duty to God and our country require
the same.
"That we think it needless to pass many resolves
exhibiting our sentiments with regard to the unhappy
controversy subsisting between Great Britain and
America. Let it suffice therefore, that we fully
acquiesce with what our brethren have lately done at
New York, in their late association; and it is hereby re-
solved that the late association entered into at New
York is perfectly agreeable to the sentiments of the free
holders and inhabitants of this county, and that they
fully acquiesce in the same.
"That this county is at present in a very broken situa-
tion with regard to the civil authority. We therefore
sincerely desire that the advice of the honorable Con-
gress may be by our delegates transmitted to us, where-
by some order and regularity may be established among
us. We therefore should take it as a favor if the honor-
able Congress would particularly recommend to us in
this county some measures to be pursued by us, the in-
habitants of the same; for we are persuaded their advice
would have great weight to influence our people univer-
sally to pursue such measures as would tend to the peace,
safety, and good order of this county for the future.
"That we, the inhabitants of this county, are at pres-
ent in an extremely defenceless state with regard to
arms and ammunition. We sincerely desire the honor-
able Provincial Congress would consider us in this re-
spect and from their generosity and goodness would do
what in them lies for our relief in the premises. We
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 415
have many brave soldiers, but, unhappily for us, we have
nothing to fight with."
The boldness and determination shown in these reso-
lutions are proof that in no part of America was the
opposition to British oppression stronger than in the
New Hampshire Grants.
It is not easy to determine the number of men who
went to Boston from towns now included in Vermont,
as soon as the news of the battle of Lexington was re-
ceived, but it is a matter of record that several volun-
teered their services. Wells' "History of Newbury"
says that on the evening of the day on which the news
of the battle of Lexington reached that town, Nehemiah
Lovewell, Peter Johnson and Silas Chamberlin started
for the seat of w^ar. Messengers brought the news of
the battle to Rockingham, and parties of volunteers
hurried to Lexington and Cambridge, Mass., some on
foot and some on horseback. Men on both sides of the
Connecticut River were organized in a New Hampshire
regiment, which was commanded by Col. James Reed.
This regiment constituted a part of the force that held
the rail fence at the battle of Bunker Hill. A company
of Liberty men had been organized at Rockingham, with
Stephen Sargent as captain, some time between the years
1768 and 1774. Benjamin Everest of Addison repaired
to Ethan Allen's headquarters as soon as the news of
the battle of Lexington was received. Several of the
young men of Marlboro, among them Jonathan Warner
and Nathaniel Whitney, started for the scene of the con-
flict as soon as the news from Lexington was received,
and it is probable that similar conditions prevailed in
416 HISTORY OF VERMONT
many other Vermont towns, which have not been made
a matter of record.
Mr. King of Brattleboro and his two sons, William
and Gushing King, while hoeing corn, heard the news of
the battle of Bunker Hill two days after it occurred.
They stopped work, leaned their hoes against a
stump, went to Boston and enlisted in the American
army. These men served through the war and returned
seven years later to find their hoes where they had
left them in the summer of 1775. The first settlers of
Jamaica claimed that they heard the sound of the can-
non fired at Bunker Hill. It is known that on July 12,
1775, seven men from Townshend were serving under
General Washington at Roxbury, Mass.
At a town meeting, held at Marlboro, May 22, 1775,
to consider the impending war with Great Britain, the
following resolutions were adopted : "Resolved, we will,
each of us, at the expense of our lives and fortunes, to
the last extremity, unite and oppose the last cruel, unjust
and arbitrary acts of the British Parliament passed for
the sole purpose of raising a revenue.
"Resolved, we will be contented and subject to the
Hon. Gontinental Congress in all things which they shall
resolve, for the peace, safety and welfare of the Ameri-
can Colonies."
At a town meeting held in Mooretown, later known
as Bradford, May 1, 1775, it was voted "to raise a town
stock to be kept in the treasury, one pound of powder
and a dozen flints, to each man in said town of Moore-
town, from 16 years to 80."
THE WESTMINSTER MASSACRE 417
A meeting of freemen, freeholders and inhabitants of
the city and county of New York, was held April 29,
1775, shortly after the battle of Lexington, and the
following declaration or "general association," (in which
Bennington is inserted), was adopted and was trans-
mitted for signatures to all the counties of the province:
"Persuaded that the Salvation of the rights and liber-
ties of America deposed under God, on the firm union of
its inhabitants, in a vigorous prosecution of the measures
necessary for its safety and convinced of the necessity
of preventing the anarchy and confusion which attend a
dissolution of the Powers of Government, we the free-
holders and inhabitants of the town of Bennington, on
the New Hampshire Grants in the County of Albany and
province of N. York being Greatly alarmed at the
avowed design of the Ministry to raise a revenue in
America, and shocked by the bloody scene now acting in
the Massachusetts bay do in the most solemn manner
resolve never to bee Slaves; and do associate under all
the ties of religion, honour and love to our Country do
adopt, and endeavor to carry into execution whatever
Measures may be recommended by the Continental Con-
gress or resolved upon by our Provincial Convention for
of preserving our Constitution and opposing the execu-
tion of Several Arbitrary and oppressive acts of the
British Parliament, until a reconciliation between Great
Britain and America on Constitutional principles, which
we most ardently desire can be obtained; and that we
will in all things follow the advice of our general Com-
mittee Respecting the Purposes aforesaid, the preserva-
418 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tion of Peace and Good order, and the Safety of individ-
uals and Private Property."
There are records showing that the document was
signed in several towns in what is now the State of
Vermont, and presumably it was signed in other towns
concerning which no record now exists.
The Force Archives contain a list of twenty-one sign-
ers in Weathersfield, and in that town three persons
refused to sign. There were fifty-one signers in Spring-
field and the same number in Townshend, this number
being all the men in town on July 12, 1775. The orig-
inal copy of this "association" signed by thirty-eight
men of Bennington, is one of the prized possessions of
the Vermont Historical Society.
Chapter XIII
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA
HOSTILITY to British authority in New England
during the spring of 1775 was not confined to
the passage of resolutions, but rather showed
itself in a series of aggressive acts. The Massachusetts
Congress adopted a resolution on February 15, 1775,
directing a Committee to open correspondence with the
Canadians and northern Indians in the hope of keeping
them neutral in the impending contest. John Brown,
of Pittsfield, Mass., was chosen an agent to proceed to
Canada on this business, and he was provided with the
necessary letters and documents, signed by Samuel
Adams and Joseph Warren. He was ordered to "estab-
lish a reliable means of communication through the
Grants." Late in February he set out on his errand,
going first to Albany, N. Y., and thence to Lake Cham-
plain.
Brown secured as guides Peleg Sunderland, one of the
active leaders of the Green Mountain Boys, a veteran
hunter, acquainted with the St. Francis Indians and
their language; also Winthrop Hoyt, for many years a
captive in the Caughnawaga country. The journey
was exceedingly difficult. The ice in Lake Champlain
had broken up early that year. The lake and its
tributary streams were swollen, and much of the sur-
rounding country was flooded. Attempting to make the
trip in a boat, the craft was driven against an island,
where the party was frozen in for two days. The
Indians and Canadians were reached, at last, and were
found to be well disposed toward their New England
neighbors.
422 HISTORY OF VERMONT
While in Montreal, Brown wrote to Samuel Adams
and Joseph Warren, of the Boston committee of corre-
spondence, under date of March 24, in part as follows :
"One thing I must mention to be kept a profound secret.
The fort at Ticonderoga must be seized as soon as possi-
ble, should hostilities be committed by the King's troops.
The people on New Hampshire Grants have engaged to
do this business, and, in my opinion, they are the most
proper persons for the job. This will effectually curb
this Province and all the troops that may be sent here."
On March 29 he wrote to Adams and Warren from the
same place: "I have established a channel of corre-
spondence through the New Hampshire Grants, which
may be depended on."
If the Green Mountain Boys had "engaged to do this
business," the matter must have been discussed more
than two months before the fortress was taken, probably
at the time Sunderland was engaged as a guide. It was
a natural thing that the first thoughts of the people of
New England, with the possibility of an armed conflict
in mind, should turn to Ticonderoga, Crown Point, and
Lake George, where not a few of them had received
warlike training in a very practical military school.
It is not possible to say with absolute precision of
any man, or body of men, that he, or they, first sug-
gested the capture of these fortresses. It was the
obvious thing to do as a matter of safety, and must have
occurred to many people in this anxious period preced-
ing the actual outbreak of hostilities as a wise and
prudent policy; but John Brown and his friends on the
New^ Hampshire Grants appear to have as good a title
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 423
as any to the distinction of being among the earliest to
consider in serious fashion the capture of these British
posts.
Immediately after the battle of Lexington the prin-
cipal officers of the Green Mountain Boys and the lead-
ing citizens of the New Hampshire Grants met at Ben-
nington to discuss the situation. The peril of the set-
tlers in the valleys of the Otter Creek and Winooski
was discussed, and it was agreed that unless Ticon-
deroga and Crown Point were taken from the British,
these posts would be reinforced and strengthened, mak-
ing necessary the abandonment of the isolated farms in
the Champlain valley.
"While these matters were deliberating," says Ethan
Allen, in his Narrative, "a committee from the Council of
Connecticut arrived at Bennington, with advice and
directions to carry into execution the surprise of those
garrisons (Crown Point and Ticonderoga), and, if pos-
sible, to gain the command of the lake."
Capt. Benedict Arnold, of New Haven, Conn., on
April 26, met Col. Samuel H. Parsons, a member of the
Connecticut Assembly, on the way from Massachusetts
to Hartford, and mentioned the conditions existing at
Ticonderoga. The next day Colonel Parsons, Col.
Samuel Wyllys, and Silas Deane, a member of the Con-
tinental Congress, taking as associates Thomas Mum-
ford, Christopher Leffingwell, and Adam Babcock, met
in Hartford to consider the possibility of the capture
of the Lake Champlain fortresses. Having decided that
the project was feasible, they obtained three hundred
pounds from the colonial treasury upon promising to
424 HISTORY OF VERMONT
account for this sum to the satisfaction of the colony.
It should be remembered in this connection that Con-
necticut for all practical purposes was a self-governing-
province.
The idea that the people on the New Hampshire
Grants were the "most proper persons for this job"
seems to have been the opinion of these Connecticut
patriots, as well as that of John Brown, of Pittsfield.
The sinews of war having been secured, Noah Phelps
and Bernard Romans, an engineer, were directed to
proceed to the Grants and left on Friday, April 28.
Capt. Edward Mott, Epaphras Bull, and four others fol-
lowed the next day, and overtook Phelps and Romans
at Salisbury, Conn., where the party was increased to
sixteen and a quantity of powder and ball was pur-
chased. At Sheffield, Mass., two men were sent to
Albany, "to ascertain the temper of the people."
Travelling all day Sunday, a practice not customary in
those days, the Connecticut men arrived at Pittsfield on
Monday, May 1. Here they were joined by Col. James
Easton, an inn keeper, Captain Dickinson, and John
Brown, whose recent Canadian trip made him a valuable
associate.
It had been thought best, in order that suspicion
should not be aroused, to raise no considerable body of
men until the Grants were reached, but owing to the
scarcity of provisions in that region, and the poverty of
the Green Mountain settlers, upon the advice of Brown
and Easton a few men — about forty — were raised in the
hill country of the Berkshires. While these men were
being enlisted, Heman Allen was sent forward to
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 425
acquaint his brother Ethan with the project on foot. In
passing it should be said that the claim sometimes made
to the effect that John Hancock and Samuel Adams were
associated with the Connecticut leaders in organizing
this expedition does not appear to be well founded,
although it is probable that Adams was familiar with
the general plan.
After raising a small party of recruits, Easton and
Mott left Pittsfield for Bennington. On the way they
met a courier riding in haste — an express, to use the
phraseology current at that time — sent out to inform
them that a man had arrived from Ticonderoga who
said that the garrison at the fort had been reinforced,
and the soldiers were on their guard, and advising
against proceeding further with the expedition. Mott
and Easton refused to abandon the expedition, the for-
mer declaring that with the two hundred men they pro-
posed to raise he would not be afraid "to go round the
fort in open light," adding that the rumors of evil the
messenger brought "would not do to go back with and
tell in Hartford." At Bennington they found those of
their party who had preceded them unw^illing to place
any credence in the alarming rumor concerning Ticon-
deroga, Mr, Halsey and Mr. Bull stoutly asserting that
"they would go back for no story until they had seen
the fort themselves."
A council of war was summoned at the Catamount
Tavern in Bennington, famous as the favorite rendez-
vous of Ethan Allen and his associates. The leader of
the Green Mountain Boys needed no urging to under-
take this task. It was an enterprise that appealed
426 HISTORY OF VERMONT
powerfully to his adventurous and patriotic nature; and
no Scottish chieftain ever set out with greater ardor to
assemble his clansmen, than did Ethan Allen, as he
started northward to summon the sturdy pioneers, who
acknowledged his leadership. The Connecticut and
Massachusetts men, securing a small quantity of pro-
visions, followed Allen to Castleton.
Meanwhile Noah Phelps and Ezra Hickok had been
sent to reconnoitre at Ticonderoga. Williams' "His-
tory of Vermont" says that Phelps disguised himself as
one of the poor settlers living in the vicinity and went
to the fort under pretence that he wanted to be shaved,
inquiring for the barber. His awkward appearance and
simple questions made it possible for him to observe con-
ditions and depart unmolested, according to this early
historian. This story is also told in Thompson's "Ver-
mont."
Hinman's "Connecticut in the Revolution," however,
tells a different tale. According to this account Phelps
proceeded from the southern part of Lake Champlain
in a boat, stopping for the night at a tavern near Fort
Ticonderoga. He was assigned to a room adjoining one
in which the officers of the garrison were giving a supper
party, the festivities lasting until a late hour. The Con-
necticut spy, listening intently, heard the officers discuss
the unrest prevailing in the colonies, and the condition
of the fortress. Very early the next morning Phelps
gained admission to the fort for the purpose of being
shaved. While returning through the fort the com-
manding officer walked with this traveller, and discussed
with him the movements and purposes of the rebellious
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 427
subjects of the King. Observing that a part of the wall
was in a dilapidated condition Phelps remarked that it
"would afford a feeble defense against the rebels in case
of an attack." Captain Delaplace volunteered the in-
formation that a breach in the walls was not the greatest
misfortune, as all the powder was damaged, and that
before it could be used it was necessary to sift and dry it.
Phelps, being ready to depart, employed a boatman
to row him down the lake in a small boat, entering the
craft under the guns of the fort. Before he had gone
far he urged greater speed, and was asked to take an
oar, but declined, saying he was not a boatman. How-
ever, after rounding a point of land, which screened
them from sight of the fort, Phelps took an oar without
any invitation and rowed with such vigor that the boat-
man exclaimed, with an oath, "You have seen a boat
before now, sir." The suspicions of the man from the
fort were aroused, but Phelps being the larger and more
powerful of the two, prudence was considered "the better
part of valor," and no attempt was made to take the
mysterious stranger back to Ticonderoga, all of which
was related by the boatman to Phelps after the surrender
of the fort.
This latter account makes no mention of any disguise,
or any attempt to play the fool. The commanding
officer evidently supposed that he was conversing with
an intelligent and loyal British subject. It is by far
the more plausible story of the two. Phelps arrived
at Castleton the evening of May 9.
Almost immediately after the arrival of the Connecti-
cut and Massachusetts party at Bennington, the roads to
4-28 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Fort Edward, Lake George, Skenesborough, Ticon-
deroga, and Crown Point were guarded, and steps were
taken to summon the Green Mountain Boys for the cap-
ture of the two forts. Among the messengers sent out
by Allen to warn the men living on isolated farms that
their presence at Castleton was urgently needed, was
Samuel Beach, a blacksmith, and a prominent and active
member of this band which ruled the Grants. In his
"History of Shoreham" Goodhue says that "Beach went
on foot to Rutland, Pitts ford, Brandon, Middlebury,
Whiting, and Shoreham, making a circuit of sixty miles
in twenty-four hours." This is one of the remarkable
episodes of the American Revolution, and one that never
has received the publicity or the praise that it deserves.
The ride of Paul Revere was a holiday excursion com-
pared with the journey of Samuel Beach. Consider for
a moment the nature of the task. Every step must be
taken on foot, through a country practically without
roads, an expanse of forest broken only at long intervals
by a little clearing. The messenger must climb steep
hills, thread his way through the valleys, avoid swamps,
and cross unbridged streams. He must know where the
scattered homesteads lay, make many a detour to reach
them with no unnecessary loss of time, pausing to ex-
plain his errand. As night fell, still he must hold to a
course not easily followed by daylight, and pause to
arouse each family from sleep.
A journey of sixty miles on foot in a single day, over
good roads, with a summons to battle to deliver, would
be considered a feat of which a modern athlete might
boast ; but it is an insignificant performance when com-
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 429
pared with the exploit of this early Revolutionary
courier.
Mrs. Julia C. R. Dorr, the Vermont poet, has written
of the journey of Beach in a poem entitled "The
Armorer's Errand." She says of the hero:
"Blacksmith and armorer stout was he,
"First in the fight and first in the breach,
"And first in the work where a man should be."
Of the errand itself the poet writes:
"He threaded the valleys, he climbed the hills,
"He forded the rivers, he leaped the rills.
"While still to his call, like minute men
"Booted and spurred, from mount and glen,
"The settlers rallied. But on he went
"Like an arrow shot from a bow, unspent,
"Down the long vale of the Otter to where
"The might of the waterfall thundered in air ;
"Then across to the lake, six leagues and more,
"Where Hand's Cove lay in the bending shore,
"The goal was reached. He dropped to the ground
"In a deep ravine, without word or sound.
"And sleep, the restorer, bade him rest
"Like a weary child, on the earth's brown breast."
Headquarters were established at the tavern of Zadock
Remington, in Castleton, on Sunday evening. May 7.
On Monday one hundred and seventy men had gathered
there. That day the Committee of War met at the
farmhouse of Richard Bentley, Edward Mott acting as
chairman, and formulated a plan of campaign. After
430 HISTORY OF VERMONT
debating various possible methods of procedure, and
considering the manner of retreat in the event of a re-
pulse, it was voted that on the following afternoon, May
9, Capt. Samuel Herrick, with thirty men, should be
sent to Skenesborough to capture Major Skene, his
party, and last, but by no means least, his boats, which
should be brought during the night to Shoreham, for
use in transporting troops to Ticonderoga. The re-
mainder of the men at Castleton, then about one hun-
dred and forty, were to proceed to Shoreham to a point
opposite the fort. Captain Douglass was sent to Crown
Point to see if he could arrange, with the aid of his
brother-in-law, who lived there, some strategem for
renting the boats at the fort, belonging to the British
army. It was also voted that Col. Ethan Allen should
command the expedition against Ticonderoga, as the
promise had been made by Mott that the men should
serve under their own officers. Allen having received
his orders from the committee, left for Shoreham to
meet at Mr. Wessell's house, by agreement, some men
who were to come there.
The same evening there appeared at Castleton Col.
Benedict Arnold, who had received from the Massa-
chusetts Committee of Safety, at Cambridge, May 3,
authority to command a body of men to be raised in the
western part of the colony, not exceeding four hundred,
for the purpose of capturing Ticonderoga. He was to
have a sufficient armament and garrison to defend the
post, and take back to Massachusetts such stores and
artillery as might be useful to the army. Arnold, how-
ever, did not stop to raise the four hundred men author-
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 431
ized. There is a strong probability that he had heard
of the expedition under Connecticut auspices, and, fear-
ing that the fortresses would be taken without his aid,
made haste to the rendezvous at Castleton.
When Arnold arrived he was accompanied only by a
body servant. Without a soldier raised under his
Massachusetts commission, he demanded that the com-
mand of the expedition be turned over to him, assert-
ing that the force assembled had no proper orders. The
pioneers who had assembled in haste for the serious busi-
ness of capturing the King's forts were in no mood to
yield to such a demand. Mott, chairman of the Com-
mittee of War, at the time was a mile and a half away
with the Skenesborough party, but was sent for, and
on his arrival told the lone colonel that the soldiers
assembled were raised on condition that they should be
commanded by their own officers, and the whole plan
was explained to Arnold. Nevertheless, as Mott says,
he "strenuously contended and insisted upon his right
to command them and all their officers."
This demand created the greatest indignation among
the volunteers, and they threatened to abandon the expe-
dition then and there and leave for their homes. This
hasty action was prevented by the exertions of the offi-
cers, and, an incipient mutiny was quelled for a time.
Still determined to have the honor of the chief com-
mand, Arnold set out the next morning to find Allen.
The whole party followed fearing that their leader would
yield to the demand that he relinquish the command, but
Allen declined to accede to the request. Allen and
Easton assured the men that Arnold should not com-
432 HISTORY OF VERMONT
mand them, but that in any event their pay should be the
same. The response to this statement, according to
Mott, was that "they would damn their pay, and say
that they would not be commanded by any others but
those they engaged with."
Resuming the business of the expedition, the party
left Castleton, going by way of Sudbury to the old
Crown Point Military Road. This route they followed
through Whiting, and reached the lake shore at Hand's
Cove, in Shoreham, about two miles north of Ticon-
deroga, after dark on the evening of May 9. This route,
about twenty-five miles long, was taken rather than the
one through Benson, seven or eight miles shorter, be-
cause there was less probability of discovery. More-
over, the place where they reached the shore was a
wooded ravine, where they were concealed from view.
According to Allen's account he now had "230 valiant
Green Mountain Boys," and it is known that thirty-nine
or forty men had been raised in western Massachusetts.
Colonel Easton says there were about two hundred and
forty men. There is a little uncertainty, however, re-
garding the exact size of the force assembled.
The great need now was boats. The eflfort to secure
means of transportation by water had not been success-
ful, and when Hand's Cove was reached no boats were
in waiting. Captain Douglass had gone for a scow in
Bridport owned by a Mr. Smith. On his way he stopped
at the home of a Mr. Stone, in Bridport, to secure the
aid of a man named Chapman. The family had retired
for the night, but was aroused. Two young men, James
Wilcox and Joseph Tyler, sleeping in a chamber, over-
THE CAPTURE OE TICONDEROGA 433
heard the conversation and immediately decided to
secure, if possible, Major Skene's large rowboat off
Willow Point, on the Smith farm, in the northwest part
of Bridport, known to be in charge of a colored servant
who had a fondness for "strong waters." Dressing
hastily they took their guns and a jug of New England
rum as bait for the Negro, and enlisting the aid of four
companions they started on their errand. Arriving at
the shore, they hailed the boat, telling the story of being
on the way to join a hunting party at Shoreham. The
jug of rum was exhibited and they offered to help in
rowing the boat. The temptation proved sufficiently
alluring, the boat was brought over, and Jack and his
two companions proceeded on their way with the pas-
sengers, only to find that the hunting party at Shoreham
was the kind that made prisoners of war. About the
same time Captain Douglass arrived with a scow, and
a few small boats also had been collected.
The number of boats assembled was very inadequate
and morning was fast approaching. It was decided,
therefore, to wait no longer, but to proceed with the
means of transportation at hand. The impression gen-
erally given is that one trip was made to carry those
who captured the fort. Ira Allen declares, however, in
his history that "by passing and repassing they got over
about 80 men by the dawn of day." The exact number
participating in the attack, according to Ethan Allen,
was eighty- three. A landing was made about a half
mile from the fort.
Once more Arnold claimed the right to command.
"What shall I do with the damned rascal, put him under
434 HISTORY OF VERMONT
guard?" exclaimed Allen, in exasperation. Amos Cal-
lender advised that the two men enter the fort side by
side, and this course was agreed upon, Arnold marching
at Allen's left hand, according to Ira Allen's account
of the capture. William Gilliland, founder of West-
port, N. Y,, has also asserted that he was the means of
settling the dispute between Allen and Arnold.
Ethan Allen, however, was the commander, and the
authority was not divided with Arnold, or any other
man. James Easton was second in command, and Seth
Warner, who had been left behind at Hand's Cove, was
the third officer in rank.
The hour was now about four o'clock, and the day
was breaking. The men were drawn up in three lines
and, according to his own statement, Allen addressed his
little band as follows: ''Friends and fellow soldiers:
You have for a number of years past been a scourge and
terror to arbitrary powers. Your valor has been famed
abroad, and acknowledged, as appears by the advice and
orders to me from the General Assembly of Connecticut
to surprise and take the garrison now before us. I now
propose to advance before you, and, in person, conduct
you through the wicket gate; for we must this morn-
ing either quit our pretensions to valor, or possess our-
selves of this fortress in a few minutes; and, inasmuch
as it is a desperate attempt, which none but the bravest
of men dare undertake, I do not urge it on any contrary
to his will. You that will undertake voluntarily, poise
your firelocks."
Every gun was raised, Nathan Beeman, a lad living
opposite the fort, and familiar with all the surroundings,
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 435
acted as guide. Facing to the right, with Allen at the
head of the center file, and Arnold by his side, the little
force advanced to a wicket gate, which had been left
open wide enough for two men to enter abreast. The
men swarmed through rapidly, while some in their eager-
ness scaled the wall on either side of the gate. A sen-
tinel posted at the wicket snapped his fusee at Allen, but
the gun missed fire. Allen ran toward him and the sol-
dier retreated hastily through the covered way into the
parade, gave a shout, and ran under a bomb proof.
Edward Mott, in a letter to the Massachusetts pro-
vincial Congress, describing this scene, said: "Our
men * * * jj^ ^j^e most courageous and intrepid
manner darted like lightning upon the guards, so that
but two had time to snap their firelocks at us." The
New England soldiers rushed in quickly, formed in a
hollow square on the parade ground, and gave three
hearty cheers, which some persons have described as
Indian war whoops, thus arousing the sleeping garrison.
A sentry made a pass at one of the officers with a
bayonet, and inflicted a slight wound. Allen drew his
sword to kill the soldier, but changed his mind, dealing
a blow which cut the man on the side of the head, but
did not wound him severely, whereupon the sentry
dropped his gun and asked for mercy, which was
granted. Allen demanded of the frightened captive
where the quarters of the commanding officer, Capt.
William Delaplace, of His Majesty's Twenty-sixth regi-
ment, were to be found. A stairway in front of the
barracks on the west side of the garrison, leading to the
second story, was pointed out. Allen ascended this
436 HISTORY OF VERMONT
stairway, and in a stentorian voice threatened to sacri-
tice the wliole garrison unless the Captain came forth in-
stantly. Thereupon the surprised commandant appeared
at the head of the stairs clad in his shirt, with his
breeches in one hand. Allen demanded that the fort be
delivered instantly. The British Captain asked by what
authority the surrender of the fort was demanded, and
the Green Mountain leader replied: "In the name of
the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress."
"Damn it! What, what does this mean," stammered
Delaplace, but Allen interrupted him, and with a drawn
sword held over the head of the British officer called
for an immediate surrender of the garrison. With the
Americans already in possession there appeared to be no
opportunity of successful resistance, and the fort was
surrendered.
While the parley between Allen and Delaplace was
going on, acting under the orders of other officers, sev-
eral of the barrack doors had been beaten down and
about a third of the garrison was imprisoned. Accord-
ing to Colonel Easton's report there was "an inconsider-
able skirmish with cutlasses or bayonets, in which a
small number of the enemy received some wounds." All
this was accomplished in ten minutes, without loss of
life or the infliction of any serious wound.
Thus, on the very morning that the Continental Con-
gress was to assemble in Philadelphia, its authority was
invoked by the leader of a band of men, most of whom
acknowledged the jurisdiction of none of the thirteen
American colonies, to take possession of a fortress that
bulked large in the minds of the people of two continents.
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 437
Allen says of this occasion: "The sun seemed to
rise that morning with a superior lustre; and Ticon-
deroga and all its dependencies smiled on its conquerors,
who tossed about the flowing bowl, and wished success
to Congress, and the liberty and freedom of America."
Seth Warner and the remainder of the party left at
Hand's Cove soon arrived, and joined in the general
rejoicing.
The captured troops included Captain Delaplace,
Lieutenant Feltham, a conductor of artillery, a gunner,
two Sergeants, and forty-four rank and file, besides
women and children. The officers captured at Ticon-
deroga were sent to Connecticut in the charge of Messrs.
iiickok, Halsey, and Nichols, reaching Hartford, May
16. The other prisoners reached the same place two
days later in the charge of Epaphras Bull.
The ammunition and stores captured at Ticonderoga
included about one hundred and twenty iron cannon,
from six to twenty- four-pounders, fifty swivels of dif-
ferent sizes, two ten-inch mortars, one howit, one cohorn,
two brass cannon, ten tons of musket balls, three cart
loads of flints, thirty new carriages, a considerable
quantity of shells, one hundred stands of small arms, ten
casks of poor powder, a warehouse full of materials for
boat building, thirty barrels of flour, eighteen barrels
of pork, and a quantity of beans and peas. One of the
Ticonderoga cannon was known as "the Old Sow from
Cape Breton" and probably was one of the prizes taken
by the British at Louisbourg during the French and
Indian War.
438 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The first surrender of a British fortress, and of
British troops as prisoners of war, in the long struggle
lor American independence, including the first lowering
of His Majesty's colors, was made to Ethan AUen and
his Green Mountain Boys, and in the history of the mili-
tary affairs of the United States the capture of Ticon-
deroga heads the list as the first important aggressive
movement to be crowned with victory. It is true that
Ticonderoga at this time was a fortress "of broken walls
and gates," but it was by no means wholly indefensible.
Had life insurance policies been in vogue in this region
in the year 1775, the eighty-three men who proposed,
under prevailing conditions, to capture Ticonderoga
would not have been considered good risks. This fort
was one of the great prizes for which France and Great
Britain had contended, only a few years before, in a
series of campaigns. In the public mind it represented
the might and the power of Britain as surely as Gibral-
tar and Halifax have represented the strength of the
empire in a later day. The news of its capture by a
little band of untrained farmers was evidence to the
Mother Country that the rebellion was, indeed, a serious
matter. The tidings of Ethan Allen's victory cheered
every patriot heart throughout the length and breadth
of the American colonies, and its importance as an en-
couragement to those who sought to throw off the yoke
of British oppression cannot be over estimated. To the
general public it seemed that if Ticonderoga could be
taken, all things were possible.
The assertion is frequently made that Allen did not
demand the surrender of Ticonderoga in the historic
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 439
phrase, "in the name of the Great Jehovah and the Con-
tinental Congress," but rather in profane and vulgar
language. All the trustworthy evidence, however, goes
to show that the expression quoted actually was used.
Allen gives the phrase in his "Narrative," published at a
time when the great majority of the men who partici-
pated in the capture were living. It is given by his
brother, Ira Allen, who was one of the Ticonderoga
party, in a history written several years after Ethan's
death. It is quoted by Williams in his "History of
Vermont," published while survivors of the Ticonderoga
expedition were still living. It is also given by Good-
hue in his "History of Shoreham," and an aged survivor
of the immortal eighty-three told that author that Allen
used the words "in the name of the Great Jehovah and
the Continental Congress." Certainly this is better
evidence than can be adduced for any other version, and
ought to satisfy all fair minded critics until an equal
balance of testimony can be brought against it.
Immediately after the capture of Ticonderoga, John
Brown was sent as a messenger to acquaint the Conti-
nental Congress that in the name of that body this
British post had been captured. Just a week after the
surrender by Delaplace, Brown arrived at Philadelphia
with the rather startling information of the success
which had attended Allen's expedition. Apparently
Congress was not overjoyed at the news of this bloodless
victory. Such an important step as the capture of the
King's fortress of Ticonderoga almost took away the
breath of the members, and they adopted resolutions,
seeking to justify the act, by declaring that they had
440 HISTORY OF VERMONT
"indubitable evidence" of a design formed by the British
Government to invade this region, in which event the
stores and cannon would have been used against the
people of the colonies. It was directed that an inven-
tory be taken of the articles captured in order that, as
the resolution reads, "they may be safely returned when
the restoration of the former harmony between Great
Britain and the colonies so ardently wished for by the
latter, shall render it prudent and consistent with the
overruling law of self preservation." All of which indi-
cates how little the majority of the members of Con-
gress realized the nature and extent of the conflict upon
which the colonies had entered.
The first news of the capture of Ticonderoga to reach
the British authorities at Boston was communicated to
General Gage, commanding His Majesty's forces, by
means of a letter written by Dr. Joseph Warren to John
Scollay, dated at Watertown, Mass., May 17, a copy of
which was procured by Gage and forwarded to Lord
Dartmouth, at London.
The capture of Ticonderoga was not the full measure
of the American victory. As soon as Warner and his
belated troops arrived at the fortress they expressed a
desire for a share in the conquest. To Warner, there-
fore, was assigned the task of taking Crown Point,
which was garrisoned by a sergeant and twelve men.
In a report to the Massachusetts Committee of Safety,
written May H, Colonel Arnold tells of the return of a
party which had started to take Crown Point, having
met with head winds, and says the expedition was
"entirely laid aside." This statement clearly is untrue,
No. I represents the memorial liglit tower erected at Crown Point,
N. Y., by the States of Vermont and New York, in Commemoration of
the three hnndredth anniversary of the discovery of Lake Champlain by
Samuel Champlain. Nos. 2 and 3 are pictures of the ruins of the Crown
Point fortress erected by General Amherst. Nos. 4 and 5 show glimpses
of the fortress at Ticonderoga, N. Y., as restored by a modern architect
THE CAPTURE OK TICONDEROGA 441
for the best evidence goes to show that on the morning
of the very day on which this was written, May 11,
Crown Point was taken.
Allen had sent w^ord to Capt. Remember Baker, who
was at the Winooski River settlement, to bring his com-
pany, and Warner and Baker arrived before Crown
Point about the same time. Baker had met and cap-
tured two small boats on the way to St. Johns to give
notice of the capture of Ticonderoga.
The date of the taking of Crown Point seems to be
fixed beyond question, as May 11, by a report to Gov-
ernor Trumbull, the Council, and General Assembly of
Connecticut, dated at Crown Point May 12, and signed
by Seth Warner and Peleg Sunderland, in which they
say : "Yesterday we took possession of this garrison in
the name of the country — we found great quantities of
ordnance, stores, etc, — very little provision." The spoils
at this fort included nearly two hundred pieces of can-
non, three mortars, sundry howitzers, fifty swivels, etc.
Capt. Samuel Herrick, who had set out for Skenes-
borough with about thirty men, before the capture of
Ticonderoga was undertaken, reached that settlement in
safety and captured Maj. Andrew Philip Skene, son of
the would-be Governor Skene, about fifty tenants, and
twelve Negroes, also a schooner which was rechristened
the Liberty, and several boats. The care of the Skene
estate was entrusted to Capt. Noah Lee. Captains
Oswald and Brown, with fifty men enlisted under
Colonel Arnold's authority, arrivt^d at Skenesborough
about this time, and joined Herrick's party, reaching
Ticonderoga May 14.
442 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Amos Callender, of Shoreham, with a small party,
captured Fort George, at the southern end of Lake
George, without opposition, the fort being held by Cap-
tain Nordberg of the Sixtieth regiment and a very
slender garrison.
The day following the capture of Ticonderoga, Ethan
Allen notified the Albany Committee of Safety, not
hitherto counted among his friends and admirers, that
he had taken the fortress. He warned them of the prob-
ability that Governor Carleton of Canada would exert
himself to retake the post and added: "I expect imme-
diate assistance from you, both in men and provisions.
* * * I am apprehensive of a sudden and quick
attack. Pray be quick to our relief and send five hun-
dred men immediately; fail not." Writing to the Massa-
chusetts authorities the same day, he said: "I expect
the colonies will maintain this fort."
On May 12 Allen wrote to Governor Trumbull, of
Connecticut, opening his letter with this statement : 'T
make you a present of a Major, a Captain, and two
Lieutenants in the regular Establishment of George the
Third." Then he proceeded to tell of the plan to seize
the King's armed sloop, which was cruising on the lake,
and added, "I expect lives must be lost in the attack, as
the commander of George's sloop is a man of courage."
A council of war was held, says Ethan Allen in his
"Narrative," and it was decided that Arnold should
command the schooner captured at Skenesborough,
while Allen should command the bateaux, in an effort to
take the British sloop. The schooner sailed from Ticon-
deroga on Sunday, May 13, but owing to contrary winds,
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 443
Crown Point was not reached until Monday night, May
14. Arnold, chafing under the delay, with thirty men
embarked in a smaller boat and started for St. Johns,
leaving the command of the schooner to Captain Sloan.
While beating against the wind a mail boat from Mon-
treal w^as seized, and an exact list of all the King's troops
in the Northern department, amounting to seven hun-
dred, was captured. On Wednesday, with a good
breeze, the schooner made better time, and overtook
Arnold, who was taken on board.
When within thirty miles of St. Johns the wind fell
and the vessel was becalmed. It was now eight o'clock
in the evening, and unwilling to wait for a sailing breeze
Arnold ordered two small bateaux, manned by thirty-
five armed men, to be fitted out. By hard rowing all
night St. Johns was reached at six o'clock Thursday
morning.
The party stopped about half a mile south of the
town, concealing themselves in a small creek, and sent
forward one of their number to reconnoitre. While
waiting for an opportunity to fight British troops they
fought great swarms of gnats and mosquitoes, and
waited with impatience for their scout to return. When
he arrived he brought the information that there w^as no
suspicion of the approach of Arnold's party but that
news had reached St. Johns of the capture of Ticon-
deroga and Crown Point.
The party started at once for the fort and landed
about sixty rods from the barracks, marching briskly
upon the place. The small garrison retreated into the
barracks, but surrendered without opposition. A Ser-
444 HISTORY OF VERMONT
geant and twelve men were taken — one authority says
fourteen prisoners were captured — together with their
arms and some small stores, the King's sloop with a
crew of seven men, two brass six-pounders, and four
bateaux. Five bateaux were destroyed so that not a
single boat was left at St. Johns for the use of the
King's troops.
At this time a fine breeze from the north sprang up
and two hours after their arrival Arnold and his de-
tachment were able to weigh anchor and start on the
homeward trip aboard the sloop which was re-christened
the Bnterprise. The captain of the King's sloop had
gone to Montreal, and was expected every hour with a
detachment for an expedition to Ticonderoga and with
guns and carriages for the ship. At Fort Chambly,
thirteen miles to the north, a Captain and forty-nine men
were stationed, and it was thought likely that they might
reach St. Johns at any moment. Arnold, therefore, was
moved to write to the Massachusetts Committee of
Safety regarding his exploit, that "it seemed to be a
mere interposition of Providence that we arrived at so
fortunate an hour."
A few miles south of St. Johns, Arnold met Allen
and his party, going north. There is much discrepancy
regarding the size of Allen's force in accounts given
by different authorities. In one report Arnold says that
Allen had one hundred and fifty men, while in a later
one he reduces the number to eighty or one hundred.
Ira Allen says the party consisted of sixty men, while
an officer, whose name is not given, but who kept a diary
of the expedition, says Allen had ninety men. The two
THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 445
parties saluted as they met, three volleys being fired.
Allen and his companions went on board the sloop,
where they drank "several loyal Congress healths."
Allen was determined to proceed to St. Johns and
hold the ground gained. Arnold considered this "a
wild impracticable scheme," but as Allen persisted in
advancing, he was supplied with provisions. Continu-
ing northward, Allen encamped opposite St. Johns.
The next morning he was attacked by two hundred
regular troops under Captain Anstruser, a discharge of
grape shot being fired from six field pieces. Allen re-
turned the fire, but finding that the British force was too
large to resist with any hope of success he reembarked
in haste, leaving three men behind. It was planned to
lay an ambush for the enemy, but having been practically
without rest for three days and nights, the men were so
overcome by fatigue and sleep that it was necessary to
abandon the idea.
Arnold's party reached Crown Point May 18 and
Ticonderoga, May 19. Allen and his men arrived at
Ticonderoga on the evening of May 21.
The captured British sloop was fitted with six can-
non and ten swivels, and Major Skene's schooner with
four guns and six swivels.
The capture and destruction of the boats at St. Johns
was an important military movement, for it delayed any
attempt to recapture the Lake Champlain fortresses,
which were in no condition to withstand a serious attack
for many months following their capture.
Chapter XIV
THE ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY
No account of the capture of Fort Ticonderoga in
1775, and the events immediately foUowing the
surrender of that fortress, can be complete
that ignores the controversy that arose between Ethan
Allen and Benedict Arnold over the command of the
troops and the post. Undoubtedly, for many years fol-
lowing the War for Independence, Arnold was not given
the credit that was his due for the capacity and the
courage that he displayed; nor is it strange that his
traitorous conduct long blinded men to his deeds that
deserve admiration. On the other hand, there has been
a disposition on the part of some historians to belittle the
part taken by Allen, and to exalt Arnold at the expense
of the Green Mountain leader. This is particularly true
regarding the capture of Ticonderoga, where an attempt
is made to show that Arnold shared the command with
Allen, and there is a broad hint that Arnold was more
zealous than any other leader in the capture of the fort-
ress.
If any event of the American Revolution is well-
authenticated, it is that Ethan Allen was the commander
of the expedition that captured Ticonderoga, on May
10, 1775. It is proved by the official reports; by the
testimony of those participating in the battle; by the
newspaper accounts of the period; and last, but by no
means least, by the statement of Captain Delaplace, the
commandant of the captured fort, who was in a position
to know with certainty the identity of the officer to whom
he surrendered.
Arnold's efforts to secure the command, begun at
Castleton, and renewed before the attack upon the fort-
450 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ress, again were manifested soon after Ticonderoga was
taken. He challenged Allen's authority to command,
and insisted that the chief position was his by right.
This demand angered the soldiers to such a degree that
they paraded, ''and declared that they would go right
home, for they would not be commanded by Arnold,"
according to the testimony of an eye witness. The men
were pacified by a promise that there should be no change
in commanders, Arnold being informed that as he had
raised no men he could not expect to command those
raised by other officers. This was before the arrival of
the Massachusetts men who came with Captain Herrick
by way of Skenesborough. As Arnold insisted that he
was the only officer having "legal orders to show,"
Edward Mott, chairman of the Committee of War for
this expedition, wrote an order directing Ethan Allen to
keep (not take) the command of the garrison of Ticon-
deroga and its dependencies until he received further
orders from the colony of Connecticut or the Continental
Congress.
Arnold's regimental memorandum book shows that he
felt much chagrin at his failure to secure the command.
On May 11 Allen reported the capture of the fort to
the Massachusetts Congress, signing his name as "Com-
mander of Ticonderoga." Writing to Governor Trum-
bull, of Connecticut, on May 12, he signed the com-
munication as "at present commander of Ticonderoga."
Did he, at this time, consider his tenure of office in-
secure ?
Capt. Elisha Phelps, commissary of the Ticonderoga
expedition, a brother of Capt. Noah Phelps, writing to
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 451
the Connecticut Legislature, May 16, reported "a. great
quarrel with Col. Arnold who shall command the Fort,
even that some of the soldiers threaten the life of Col.
Arnold."
Barnabas Deane, in a letter written to his brother
Silas, June 1, tells of a recent visit to Crown Point, where
he found "a very critical situation," owing to the differ-
ences between Allen and Arnold, ''which had risen to
a great height." He said that "Col. Allen is cooled
down some since his unsuccessful attempt at St. Johns."
Mr. Deane declared that he and Colonel Webb, who
accompanied him, "had an arduous task to reconcile
matters between the two commanders at Crown Point,
which I hope is settled for the present. Col. Allen made
a public declaration that he would take no command on
himself but give it up entirely to Col. Arnold until mat-
ters were regulated and an officer appointed to take
command."
Deane reported that Arnold had been fired upon twice,
and that a musket had been presented at his breast by
one of the opposition party, with a threat to "fire him
through" if he refused to comply with orders given. It
was represented that some of the Connecticut people
were hostile to Arnold, whom Deane praised highly, say-
ing that had it not been for him "no man's person would
be safe that was not of the Green Mountain party." He
fails to add that there would have been no "Green Moun-
tain party" had it not been for Arnold's consuming
ambition to command an expedition which other men
had raised and financed. Deane appears to have been
strongly prejudiced against Allen and his associates, and
452 HISTORY OF VERMONT
he intimated in his letter that "their design appears to
me to hold those places (the forts) as a security to their
lands against any that may oppose them." Subsequent
events proved this ridiculous charge to be baseless.
On May 14 Arnold wrote to the Massachusetts Com-
mittee of Safety: "Mr. Allen's party is decreasing, and
the dispute between us is subsiding." It is probable that
many of the Green Mountain Boys left the fort soon
after its capture. On May 23 Arnold wrote: ''Col.
Allen's men are in general gone home." They had re-
sponded to an emergency call, leaving their families un-
protected. It was the season for plowing and planting,
and the extreme poverty of the people, to which allusion
already has been made, was an urgent reason why the
volunteers should leave the camp for the farm at the
earliest possible moment in order that the raising of
crops might not be delayed.
In writing to the Albany Committee of Safety from
Ticonderoga, on May 22, Arnold signed himself as com-
mander, and in a letter written the following day he
used the title of commander-in-chief. It is significant
that in a letter written at Crown Point, May 26, to the
Connecticut General Assembly, dealing with a missive
sent to the Indians by a council of officers, Allen signed
himself simply, "Colonel of the Green Mountain Boys."
Arnold was also at Crown Point that day, and was
issuing orders.
Writing to the Continental Congress from Crown
Point, May 29, Arnold says: "Some dispute arising
between Col. Allen and myself prevented my carrying
my order into execution until the 16th." In a letter
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 453
written the same day to the Massachusetts Committee
of Safety, he says: "Colonel Allen has entirely given
up command." Allen was at Crown Point on May 29,
as a letter written that day to the Continental Congress
shows.
As early as May 27 the Massachusetts Congress
alluded to fears expressed by Arnold that attempts were
being made to injure his character, and he was informed
that he would have an opportunity to vindicate his con-
duct. On June 1 the Massachusetts Congress expressed
regret that Arnold should make repeated requests that a
successor should be appointed, assured him that that
body had the greatest confidence in his "fidelity, knowl-
edge, courage, and good conduct," and advised him "at
present" to dismiss the thought of giving up the com-
mand of the Massachusetts forces on Lake Champlain.
On June 4 Allen, with Colonel Easton, wrote a letter
to the Canadians from Ticonderoga and signed himself
"at present the principal commander of this army."
This may have been simply a determination on the part
of Allen to make at least a show of reasserting his right
to command; or it may have been due to a weakening of
Arnold's authority, soon to be entirely overthrown.
About a week later, on the tenth day of June, eighteen
officers at Crown Point, including Colonel Easton, Maj.
Samuel Elmore, of Connecticut, Seth Warner, Remember
Baker, Ira Allen, and others, united in an address to the
Continental Congress regarding affairs, and named
Ethan Allen, Warner and Baker a committee to consult
with Congress. The document concludes as follows:
454 HISTORY OF VERMONT
"Colonel Allen has behaved in this affair (referring
presumably to the capture of Ticonderoga) very singu-
larly remarkable for his courage and must in duty
recommend him to you and to the whole Continent."
This address would seem to indicate that Allen had a
considerable following at that time among the officers
at the Lake Champlain forts.
Arnold wrote to the Continental Congress from Crown
Point on June 13, signing himself as commanding officer.
In his letter he discussed a proposed Canadian expedi-
tion, and added parenthetically and significantly, "no
Green Mountain Boys."
The Massachusetts Congress, on June 14, appointed
a committee consisting of Walter Spooner, Jedediah
Foster, and James Sullivan, to investigate conditions at
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, including Arnold's con-
duct. This committee was given power to discharge
Arnold, if, in its judgment, it was proper to do so.
Evidently charges of a serious nature had been brought
against Arnold to warrant an investigation of his con-
duct with power given to the committee to discharge
him. The provincial Congress had sent Col. Joseph
Henshaw to Hartford instructing him, in the event that
Connecticut had arranged for garrisoning Ticonderoga,
to go to the fort, with orders for Arnold to return to
Massachusetts, settle his account, and be discharged.
Colonel Henshaw learned that Connecticut had sent
Colonel Hinman with a thousand men to hold Ticon-
deroga until New York was ready to relieve him. Hen-
shaw did not go to Ticonderoga himself, however, but
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 455
sent a letter acquainting Arnold with the turn events
had taken.
When Hinman arrived at Ticonderoga Arnold re-
fused to recognize the Connecticut Colonel as his superior
officer. Instead, he transferred the command of Ticon-
deroga to Captain Herrick, from whom Hinman's men
were obliged to take orders. If they refused to submit
they were not permitted to pass to and from the garri-
son. Such was the condition of affairs which the
Massachusetts investigators found upon their arrival at
Lake Champlain. The committee reported, as a result
of its investigations, that a mutiny arose among some
of Arnold's men, "which seemed to be attended with
dangerous symptoms" ; but they were able, with the aid
of Judge Duer, of Charlotte county, to quell it.
Edward Mott, chairman of the Committee of War
which made the plans for the capture of Ticonderoga,
wrote Governor Trumbull, of Connecticut, at some
length regarding this incident. According to his
account the Massachusetts committee went to Crown
Point with orders that Arnold should turn over the com-
mand to Colonel Hinman, which he positively refused
to do. The committee thereupon discharged Arnold
from the service. The refusal to yield the command
to Hinman is corroborated by the committee's report to
the provincial Congress, which says: "Your Commit-
tee informed the said Arnold of their commission, and,
at his request, gave him a copy of their instructions;
upon reading of which he seemed greatly disconcerted,
and declared he would not be second in command to any
person whomsoever."
456 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Mott further reported that the committee were re-
fused the privilege of speaking to Arnold's soldiers ; that
Arnold and some of his men went on board the vessels,
threatening to go to St. Johns and deliver the boats to
the British; that Arnold disbanded all his troops but
those on the vessels ; that those who tried to communicate
with Arnold were ill treated, being fired upon with a
swivel gun and small arms after they came away from
the vessels in a bateau. Later, Mott secured permis-
sion from Colonel Hinman to make an attempt to settle
the difficulty. Colonel Sullivan, of the Massachusetts
committee. Lieutenant Halsey, Judge Duer, Mott, and a
party of men to row the boat, proceeded to Arnold's
vessels, as Mott tells the story, reaching there at eleven
o'clock in the forenoon. On going aboard they were
treated like prisoners, being guarded until evening by
men with fixed bayonets. It is recorded that Colonel
Sullivan "was much insulted while we were on board
the vessels, chiefly by Mr. Brown, one of Colonel Arnold's
Captains." After being released, a report of the indig-
nities inflicted was made to Colonel Hinman, who
ordered Lieutenant Halsey with twenty-five men to re-
turn to the vessels, get what men he could to join him,
and bring one or more vessels to the fort. The next
day the matter was settled.
Arnold resigned his command on June 24. In his
letter of resignation he said that the action of the pro-
vincial Congress in dealing with him was a most dis-
graceful reflection on him and the body of troops he
commanded. Soon after his resignation he returned to
New Haven, Conn.
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 457
It is not strange that Gen. Philip Schuyler was moved,
on July n, to write the Continental Congress concern-
ing this affair as follows: "The unhappy controversy
which has subsisted between the officers at Ticonderoga
relative to the command has, I am informed, thrown
everything into vast confusion. Troops have been dis-
missed, others refuse to serve if this or that man com-
mand. The sloop is without either Captain or pilot, both
of which are dismissed or come away. I shall hurry up
there much sooner than the necessary preparations would
otherwise permit, that I may attempt discipline amongst
them."
From such information as may be obtained it would
appear that Arnold did most of the commanding at both
Ticonderoga and Crown Point after the first few days
following the capture, until the Massachusetts com-
mittee appeared, refitting the captured boats, repairing
barracks, sending one party to the mouth of the
Winooski River, and another toward St. Johns. In all
of Allen's correspondence he appears to have made no
attack upon Arnold; but as much cannot be said for
Arnold, whose letters refer in uncomplimentary terms
to Allen and his Green Mountain Boys, as illustrated
by the remark in a letter to the Massachusetts Com-
mittee of Safety that "Colonel Allen is a proper man to
head his own wild people, but entirely unacquainted with
military service."
There is much to admire in the dashing bravery and
undoubted capacity shown by Benedict Arnold later in
this war. It is also true that his capture of the sloop at
St. Johns displayed skill and courage, and his conduct of
458 HISTORY OF VERMONT
affairs at the Champlain forts during parts of May and
June showed activity and ability of no mean order; but
the Ticonderoga chapter of Arnold's career, taken as
a whole, is a discreditable one. History is able to give,
and will give, the man his just due for his brilliant
exploits at Quebec, in the naval battle on Lake Cham-
plain, and at Saratoga, without the necessity of attempt-
ing to rob Ethan Allen of his well-earned laurels or to
defame the memory of the sturdy pioneers who rallied
to the standard of the Green Mountain leader in the
early days of May, 1775. The history of the Ticon-
deroga expedition shows Arnold's inordinate ambition;
his desire to secure the chief command, and the greatest
glory, no matter how irregular might be the means
employed; a disposition to bear false witness against his
rivals in his letters and reports; and insubordination
when deprived of power that foreshadowed his traitor-
ous conduct at West Point at a later day. These quali-
ties of the man cannot be excused or ignored unless one
prefers to offer an attorney's brief for Arnold, rather
than to present historical facts in an impartial manner.
With the capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point,
military operations on Lake Champlain practically were
at a standstill for several months. Soon after the news
of the taking of these forts was received, the Continental
Congress "earnestly recommended" the removal of the
military stores and ordnance to a post to be established
at the southern end of Lake George. This was a propo-
sition showing such an amazing lack of military fore-
sight, and one that aroused such a storm of protest
throughout New England, that it deserves more than
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 459
passing notice ; for it shows very clearly what the people
of that region, at that time, thought of the strategic
importance of Lake Champlain and its fortresses.
As early as May 27, 1775, the Massachusetts Con-
gress informed the Continental Congress that "if that
post (Ticonderoga) is abandoned the whole of Lake
Champlain will be abandoned to Canada, and the com-
mand of the water will amazingly facilitate all such
descents upon these colonies, whether greater or less,
which Administration shall see fit to order. But if that
post should be held by the Colonies, all such attempts for
the destruction of the Colonies may be vastly obstructed,
if not wholly defeated."
On May 29 the Massachusetts Congress sent a letter
to Governor Trumbull, of Connecticut, dealing with the
proposed abandonment of the Champlain forts, which
read in part, as follows : "We cannot conceal from the
General Assembly of your colony that we should be to
the last degree agitated if we really supposed that the
said resolution of the General Congress touching Ticon-
deroga and said posts on Lake Champlain, was their
ultimatum, and that they would not reconsider that reso-
lution. * * *
"The maintaining that post is not only practicable
and, under God, in the power of the colonies, but of
inexpressible necessity for the defence of the Colony of
New York and all the New England colonies. * * *
In the view of a post of observation, we beg leave to
observe that all movements from Canada, intended
against New England or New York, by the way of Lake
Champlain whether by scalping parties or large bodies.
460 HISTORY OF VERMONT
whether in the winter or open seasons of the year, may
ahnost certainly be discovered so seasonably as that the
blow may be generally warded off; whereas, if the post
at William Henry be the only one kept, it is probable
that three-fourths of the attempts on the frontier of
New York and New England by Champlain will never
be known until executed. * * * If we abandon the
post at Ticonderoga the enemy will infallibly seize it;
and in that case, what annoyance can we give Canada
by the way of Champlain by means of a fortified post at
William Henry? * * * We beg leave just to hint
that a fortified station on the easterly side of South
Bay, on Lake Champlain, opposite to Ticonderoga or
Crown Point, or still further on, affords great advantage
for the maintaining of Ticonderoga, and defending the
settlements on the easterly side of Lake Champlain, and
there is artillery enough to spare to other places; and
if we abandon the land between the Lakes George and
Champlain we shall give the enemy an opportunity to
build at or near the points; and by that means we shall
lose the whole of Lake Champlain, and the shipping we
now have on that lake, by which we can command the
whole of it and keep the enemy at a distance of a hun-
dred miles from our English settlements near Otter
Creek, etc. ; but if that fortress should be maintained
we shall have those very settlements to support it, which
will not be half the charge that it would be to maintain
a sufficient number of soldiers so far from their homes.
We have there four or five hundred hardy men with
families, who, if those grounds should be abandoned,
will be driven from their settlements and leave the
The "Old Daye Press" owned by the Vermont Historical
Society, on which was printed the first book pubh'shed in
North America, north of Mexico, and the iirst Vermont news-
paper.
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 461
Massachusetts and New Hampshire people naked, with-
out any barrier, and exposed to the Canadians and
savages, who will have a place of retreat at the point as
they had almost the whole of the last war. By abandon-
ing this ground we give up an acquisition which cost
immense sums of money, the loss of many lives, and
five campaigns.
"As to the expense of maintaining a fortress at Ticon-
deroga, this colony will not fail to exert themselves to
the utmost of their power."
The Massachusetts committee sent to investigate
afifairs at Ticonderoga and Crown Point during the
Allen-Arnold controversy informed Governor Trumbull,
of Connecticut, that in their opinion "the abandoning the
posts on Lake Champlain would probably prove the
utter ruin of the New England Governments."
A letter from the New Hampshire Congress to the
Continental Congress, dated June 2, says : "A late order
of your respectable Congress for the demolition of the
fortress of Ticonderoga, and removal of the artillery
from thence, has very much damped the expectation of
the people in this colony, arising from the security our
frontiers hoped to receive by the check the Canadians
and savages might receive in any incursion on us by a
good garrison there. * * * Our new settlements
extended on Connecticut River for a hundred miles, are
very defenceless in every respect, and under terrible
apprehensions from the accounts of the warlike prepara-
tions making in Canada against the colony." The letter
then asks that the order be reviewed and counter-
manded. The New York Congress was informed of
462 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the request made, and the statement is made that "we
esteem that fortress (Ticonderoga) to be a place truly
important to the welfare of all these Northern Colonies
in general and to this Colony in particular."
Naturally Ethan Allen was greatly disturbed by the
suggestion that the post which he and his men had taken
should be abandoned, and on May 29 he wrote the Con-
tinental Congress on this subject, saying: "1 am
* * * much surprised that your Honours should
recommend it to me to remove the artillery to the south
end of Lake George, and there to make a stand; the
consequences of which must ruin the frontier settle-
ments, which are extended at least one hundred miles to
the northwest from that place. Probably your Honours
were not informed of those settlements which consist
of several thousand families who are seated in that tract
of country called the New Hampshire Grants.
"The misfortune and real injury to those inhabitants
by making the south end of Lake George the northern-
most point of protection will more fully appear from the
following consideration, namely : It was at the special
request and solicitation of the Governments of the Prov-
ince of the Massachusetts Bay and Connecticut that
those very inhabitants put their lives into the hand of
their Governments, and made those valuable acquisi-
tions for the Colonies. By doing it they have incensed
Governor Carleton and all the ministerial party in Can-
ada against them ; and provided they should, after all
their good service in behalf of their Country, be
neglected and left exposed, they will be of all men most
consummately miserable."
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 463
Allen proceeded to point out the immense advantage
the possession of the lake would give if an aggressive
Canadian policy were pursued, thus "forming the
frontier near the country of the enemy."
Benedict Arnold also addressed the Continental Con-
gress on this important subject, in a letter dated May
29, in which he said: "I must beg leave to observe,
gentlemen, that the reports of Ticonderoga's being
abandoned have thrown the inhabitants here into the
greatest consternation. There are about five hundred
families to the northward of Ticonderoga, who, if it is
evacuated, will be left at the mercy of the King's Troops
and Indians, and who have, part of them, joined the
Army, and cannot now remain neuter, to whom a re-
move would be entire ruin, as they have large families
and no dependence but a promising crop in the ground.
I need not add to this, gentlemen, that Ticonderoga is
the key of this extensive country, and if abandoned,
the enemy, and to continued alarms, which will probably
leaves a very extensive frontier open to the ravages of
cost more than the expense of repairing and garrison-
ing it."
Perhaps the most vigorous of all the protests against
abandoning Ticonderoga was made by Joseph Hawley,
called the "Nestor of the Massachusetts patriots," who,
writing to Joseph Warren from Northampton, June 9,
said: "I heartily wish that every member of our Con-
gress, yea, every inhabitant of the Province, had a true
idea of the infinite importance and consequence of that
station (Ticonderoga). If Britain, while they are in
hostility against New England, hold that post, they will
464 HISTORY OF VERMONT
by means thereof be able to do more to vanquish and
subdue us from that quarter than they will be able to do
in all other parts of the Continent ; yea, more than they
could do in all other parts of the globe. If Britain
should regain and hold that place they will be able soon
to harass and waste by the savages, all the borders of
New England eastward of Hudson River and southwest
of Lake Champlain, and the River St. Lawrence, and
shortly, by the Lake Champlain, to march an army to
Hudson's River to subdue the feeble and sluggish efforts
of the inhabitants on that river, and so connect Mon-
treal and New York; and then New England will be
wholly environed by sea and land, east, west, north and
south. The chain of the Colonies will be irreparably
broken; the whole Province of New York will be fully
taken into the interest of the Administration; and this
very pass of Ticonderoga is the post and spot where all
this mischief may be withstood and arrested; but if that
is relinquished or taken from us, destruction must come
in upon us like a flood.
"I am bold to say (for I can maintain it) that the
General Congress would have not advised to so destruc-
tive a measure if they had recommended and prescribed
that our whole Army, which now invests Boston should
instantly decamp, and march with all the baggage and
artillery to Worcester, and suffer Gage's army to ravage
what part of the country they pleased. Good God!
what could be their plan. If they intend defence, they
must be unacquainted with the geography of the coun-
try, or never adverted to the matter. The design of
seizing that post was gloriously conceived; but to what
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 465
purpose did our forces light there, if they are now to
fly away from there. Certainly to no good purpose, but
to very bad and destructive purposes; for by this step
General Carleton is alarmed. Whereas if the step had
not been taken, his proceedings might have been slow
and with some leisure; but now, if he is worthy of com-
mand, he will exert himself to the utmost and proceed
with dispatch. If we maintain the post, the measure of
taking it was glorious. If we abandon it, the step will
turn out to have been a destructive one."
Congress, heeding the protests that were made, de-
cided to maintain the post at Ticonderoga, overwhelm-
ing evidence of its importance being furnished from
many sources.
In November, 1775, the task of transporting to Bos-
ton, for use in the siege of that town, some of the can-
non captured at Ticonderoga. was assigned to Col.
Henry Knox. The American army before Boston
lacked the heavy ordnance needed and no foundries for
making cannon were available. Late in November
Washington wrote General Schuyler that he was in very
great need of powder, lead, mortars, cannon, and nearly
all kinds of artillery stores, and urged that all that could
be spared from Ticonderoga be sent to him at Boston.
On November 27, Knox, who was at New York,
wrote to Washington "I shall set out by land tomorrow
morning for Ticonderoga, and proceed with the utmost
dispatch, as knowing our whole dependence for cannon
will be from that post." Knox caused forty-two
"exceedingly strong" sleds to be made, and with eighty
466 HISTORY OF VERMONT
yoke of oxen the guns were taken to Lake George, and
thence to Albany. While crossing the Hudson River
on the ice, one of the cannon fell into the stream, but it
was recovered the next day with the assistance of the
people of Albany. The route followed was by way of
Great Barrington, Mass., and Springfield, to Boston.
At the end of ten weeks Knox reached Boston with
fifty-five cannon, and received the congratulations of
General Washington.
An interesting incident of this expedition was the
meeting on a stormy winter night, in a little cabin on the
shore of Lake George, between Knox and a young
British officer who had been taken prisoner at St. Johns.
He was being taken to Lancaster, Pa., to be held for
exchange, and by chance on this night shared, not only
the same cabin, but the same bed with Knox. This
British captive was John Andre. Had Knox been per-
mitted to read what the future held in store for himself
and his companion, he would have learned that later in
this war just begun, there would fall to his lot the sad
duty of sitting as one of the judges at a court martial,
and condemning to death as a spy, implicated in
Arnold's treason, this charming young officer whose con-
versation he found so enjoyable.
Thus it will be seen that the capture of the post of
Ticonderoga made it possible to supply Washington with
the artillery so necessary for conducting a successful
siege. Without the guns from Ticonderoga it is at least
possible that the British would not have been driven
from Boston. Had Washington failed in this enter-
ALLEN-ARNOLD CONTROVERSY 467
prise, perhaps the American Revolution would have been
simply an American rebellion. But this possibility con-
stitutes one of the "ifs" of history.
Chapte^r XV
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN
ONE of the immediate effects of the outbreak of
hostilities between the American colonies and
Great Britain was an easing of the strained rela-
tions that had existed for several years between the
people of the New Hampshire Grants and the colony of
New York. On June 2, 1775, Ethan Allen wrote a long
letter to the New York provincial Congress, advocating
the immediate invasion of Canada, in which he expressed
the belief that he could raise "a small regiment of rang-
ers," chiefly in Albany and Charlotte counties, provided
New York would grant commissions and make the neces-
sary financial arrangements. Realizing, no doubt, the
peculiar position in which he was placed, an outlaw with
a price on his head, asking a place in the military service
of the government that had outlawed him, he added this
paragraph: "Perhaps your honors may think this an
impertinent proposal. It is truly the first favor I ever
asked of the government, and if it be granted I shall be
zealously ambitious to conduct for the best good of my
country and the honor of the government."
In compliance with the recommendation of a council
of officers, held at Crown Point June 10, Ethan Allen
and Seth Warner set out for Philadelphia bearing a
letter from Maj. Samuel Elmore of the Connecticut
forces, chairman of the council, addressed to the Presi-
dent of Congress, the advice of that body being desired
in regard to the peculiar position of the officers and men
at Ticonderoga. The records of the Continental Con-
gress show that on June 23 this letter was delivered to
Congress, and being informed that the bearers of the
letter. Colonel Allen and Capt. Seth Warner, were at
472 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the door, and had something of importance to communi-
cate, it was ordered that they be called in. Only a little
more than a month had elapsed since Congress had been
surprised and somewhat shocked, probably, by news of
the capture of the important posts of Ticonderoga and
Crown Point by these leaders of the Green Mountain
Boys. It requires no stretch of the imagination to be-
lieve that Allen and Warner were the objects of a lively
curiosity; and to believe, further, that such information
as these men had to offer was communicated chiefly by
Ethan Allen.
After Allen and Warner had withdrawn, the letter
they had brought and the information they had given
were taken under consideration, and it was resolved,
"That it be recommended to the Convention of New
York, that they, consulting with General Schuyler,
employ in the army to be raised for the defense of
America, those called Green Mountain Boys, under such
officers as the said Green Mountain Boys shall choose."
It is hardly to be supposed that the members of the Con-
tinental Congress were ignorant of the controversy that
had existed between the Green Mountain Boys and the
colony of New York. If this supposition is correct,
then Allen and Warner must have made a very favor-
able impression upon Congress, or their recent military
exploit must have made a profound impression upon that
body, to call forth such a recommendation.
In transmitting to the New York provincial Congress
the resolution above mentioned, President John Han-
cock observed: "As the Congress are of opinion that
the employing the Green Mountain Boys in the Ameri-
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 473
can army would be advantageous to the common cause,
as well on account of their situation as of their disposi-
tion & alertness, they are desirous you should embody
them among the troops you should raise." It was in-
timated that they would serve only under officers of their
own choosing. While many New Yorkers could testify
to the alertness of the Green Mountain Boys, to ask that
they be embodied as a part of the militia required a
somewhat sudden readjustment of opinion on the part of
members of the provincial Congress.
Apparently Allen and Warner had no hesitation in
proceeding from Philadelphia to New York City, ignor-
ing entirely the act of outlawry passed the previous year.
The letter of President Hancock and the resolution of
the Continental Congress which accompanied it, were
read in the provincial Congress Saturday, July 1, and
it was "ordered that Col. McDougall, Mr. Scott and
Col. Clinton be a committee to meet and confer with
Messrs. Ethan Allen and Seth Warner, and report the
same with all convenient speed." Speedy action does
not appear to have been convenient, and it was the fourth
day of July, just a year before the Declaration of Inde-
pendence was adopted, that consideration of this letter
and resolution was resumed. At that time the some-
what ominous announcement was made that "Ethan
Allen was at the door and desired admittance." It was
moved by Isaac Sears, known as the most active Whig
in New York City, that Allen "be permitted to have an
audience of this board." After debating the question
the motion was carried, nine counties with eighteen votes
being recorded in the affirmative, and three counties.
474 HISTORY OF VERMONT
casting nine votes, being recorded in the negative. The
counties opposing admission were New York, Albany
and Richmond, and their opposition is said to have been
due to the fact that many of their citizens held New
York titles to lands in the possession of the Green Moun-
tain Boys.
Allen and Warner being admitted, the former sub-
mitted a partial list of officers for a regiment of Green
Mountain Boys, consisting of seven companies. This
list was made up as follows: Field officers, Ethan
Allen, Seth Warner ; Captains, Remember Baker, Robert
Cochran, Michael Veal (Micah Vail), Peleg Sutherling
(Sunderland), Gideon Warren, Wait Hopkins, Heman
Allen; Adjutant, Levi Allen; Commissary, Elijah Bab-
cock; Doctor and Surveyor, Jonas Fay; First Lieu-
tenants, Ira Allen, John Grant, Ebenezer Allen, David
Ives, Jesse Sawyer.
This was a remarkable episode. Allen and Warner
were the most active leaders of the opposition to New
York authority in the New Hampshire Grants, and they
had succeeded thus far in nullifying the grants made
by New York Governors in the disputed territory. They
had forcibly ejected New York claimants, burned their
buildings, beaten their partisans with many stripes,
punished officials who tried to enforce the New York
authority, and at the very moment they were under sen-
tence of death imposed by the government of the prov-
ince. Notwithstanding these facts they had the audacity
to demand that the armed body which had been a terror
to New York officials be made a portion of the provincial
military service. A year previous to this date nothing
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 475
could have appeared more wildly improbable than a scene
like this.
Allen and Warner having retired without losing their
heads, either literally or figuratively, it was voted that in
consequence of a recommendation of the Continental
Congress, "a body of troops not exceeding five hundred
men, officers included, be forthwith raised of those called
Green Mountain Boys." It was provided that they
should elect all their own officers but field officers and
that General Schuyler obtain from them the names of
the persons most agreeable to them for field officers.
These officers were to consist of a Lieutenant Colonel, a
Major, seven Captains and fourteen Lieutenants, and
these troops were to be considered an independent body.
A letter written to the New York provincial Congress
by Ethan Allen on July 20, assured that body that he
would '*use his influence to promote a reconciliation
between the government and its former discontented
subjects on the New Hampshire Grants."
Due notice having been given, "the committees of the
several townships on the west side of the range of Green
Mountains" met at Dorset on July 27, at the inn of
Cephas Kent, where important history was to be made
at a later date, in order to nominate field and other
officers for the regiment recommended by the Continental
Congress and authorized by the New York provincial
Congress. Nathan Clark of Bennington was elected
chairman, and John Fassett of the same town was
chosen clerk.
Proceeding to the choice of officers, Seth Warner was
chosen Lieutenant Colonel by a vote of forty-one to five
476 HISTORY OF VERMONT
for Ethan Allen. Samuel Safford was the choice for
Major by a vote of twenty-eight to seventeen, and the re-
maining officers were selected ''by a great majority."
They were as follows: Captains, Weight (Wait) Hop-
kins, Oliver Potter, John Grant, William Fitch, Gideon
Brownson, Micah Vail, Heman Allen ; First Lieutenants,
John Fassett, Ebenezer Allen, Barnabas Barnum, David
Galusha, Jille Bleaksley (Blakeslee), Ira Allen, Gideon
Warren; Second Lieutenants, Johan (John) Noble,
James Claghorn, John Chipman, Philo Hard, Nathan
Smith, Jesse Sawyer, Joshua Stanton.
It was natural that Allen should feel disappointed and
humiliated at being defeated for the position of com-
manding officer of the Green Mountain Boys. He had
been their intrepid leader in defending their landed
possessions from the encroachments of the New York
claimants with sword and pen, and his exploit in captur-
ing Ticonderoga had made his name known beyond the
boundaries of the American colonies. His disappoint-
ment was expressed in a letter to Governor Trumbull
of Connecticut in the following words :
"Notwithstanding my zeal and success in my coun-
try's cause, the old farmers on the New Hampshire
Grants, who do not incline to go to war, have met in a
committee meeting, and in their nomination of officers
for the regiment of Green Mountain Boys who are
quickly to be raised, have wholly omitted me; but as the
commissions will come from the Continental Congress,
I hope they will remember me, as I desire to remain in
the service." He added in a postscript to the letter : "I
find myself in the favor of the officers of the army and
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 477
the young Green Mountain Boys. How the old men
came to reject me, I cannot conceive, inasmuch as I saved
them from the encroachments of New York."
That considerable feeling was aroused over the de-
feat of Allen is indicated by a letter written by General
Schuyler to the New York Congress on August 20, in
which he said: "Reports prevail that the controversy
between Allen and Warner is carried to such length that
few men will be raised." Jared Sparks asserted that a
quarrel arose between Allen and Warner, which caused
dissensions among the people and retarded the enlisting
of the regiment.
It is not easy, after the lapse of nearly a century and
a half, to determine the causes which led to the decisive
defeat of Ethan Allen. Vermonters of that early period,
a majority of whom had come from Connecticut, brought
with them from that colony a quality of caution and
conservatism, which is still a marked characteristic of
the people of the Green Mountain Commonwealth.
There was a quality of rashness in Allen that was to
show itself in his operations before many months had
passed, with which his associates no doubt were familiar,
which may account for the choice of the quieter and
more prudent Warner as the leader of the Green Moun-
tain Boys. This may be said by way of explanation
without minimizing in any degree the value of the serv-
ices which Ethan Allen rendered to Vermont.
New York did not propose to leave the choice of
officers for the Green Mountain Boys entirely to their
own selection, and the provincial Congress authorized
General Schuyler to appoint field officers, a Lieutenant
478 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Colonel and a Major for this new regiment. Schuyler
having declined to perform this task, the provincial Con-
gress, on September 1, 1778, proceeded, by a vote of
fifteen to six, to elect the men nominated at Cephas
Kent's Inn at Dorset — Seth Warner as Lieutenant
Colonel and Samuel Safiford as Major. Five votes were
cast against Warner and four votes against Safford.
The New York Congress adopted a resolution request-
ing Commissary Peter T. Curtenius to purchase coarse
green cloth in order to provide a coat for each member
of the regiment of Green Mountain Boys, red cloth for
facings, and to procure two hundred and twenty-five
coats of a large size. He was also ordered to purchase
material for two hundred and twenty-five tents for the
same regiment. The provincial Congress, on Septem-
ber 1, notified General Schuyler that it could see no
method for supplying the Green Mountain Boys with
arms or blankets. On August 23, Warner had visited
General Schuyler at Albany to consult with him regard-
ing clothing and blankets for his regiment, and as its
members could not take the field without some money
for the purchase of blankets, Schuyler advanced five
hundred pounds to Warner to be deducted from the regi-
mental pay. In a letter to the provincial Congress re-
lating his action in this matter General Schuyler
observed in regard to his determination not to appoint
field officers for the Green Mountain Boys: "The
peculiar situation of these people and the controversy
they have had with this colony, or with gentlemen in it,
renders that matter too delicate for me to determine."
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 479
On May 16, 1775, less than a week after the capture
of Ticonderoga by the Green Mountain Boys, and less
than a month after the battle of Lexington, the organ-
ization of a military force was begun in what is now the
eastern portion of Vermont, with the recruiting of a
company of minute men by Thomas Johnson, one of
the pioneer settlers of Newbury. The company as first
organized numbered forty-six, most of them being New-
bury men, although a few were enlisted from Barnet.
A letter dated at Westminster, June 9, 1775, signed
by William Williams, Benjamin Wait and Joab Hoising-
ton, and addressed to Hon. P. V. B. Livingston, presi-
dent of the New York provincial Congress, offered their
services in defence of the province and America. In
this letter they asked that Major Williams should be
appointed Colonel, Major Wait, Lieutenant Colonel, and
Captain Hoisington, Major, of a regiment of "good,
active, enterprising soldiers," which it was hoped might
be raised in Cumberland county.
Evidence of the apprehension of danger in the Con-
necticut valley is reflected in a letter written by Jacob
Bayley of Newbury, June 29, 1775, to inform the New
York provincial Congress that he could not occupy the
seat in that body to which he had been elected, saying:
"Considering our distance, and the danger we might be
in of a visit from Canada, thought best that I do not
yet attend until we were prepared to meet with an enemy
at home. I am taking what pains I can to be prepared
with arms and ammunition, but as yet to little purpose;
am still apprehensive of danger from Canada, and can-
not be absent."
480 HISTORY OF VERMONT
The Northfield, Mass., Committee of Correspondence,
writing to the Massachusetts Committee of Safety at
Cambridge, called attention to the fact that there were
two small cannon, four-pounders, belonging to the
colony, which has been left at Fort Dummer, and one
"double fortified" cannon, also a four-pounder, at the
same place, belonging to New Hampshire. It was sug-
gested that if these cannon were not needed on the east-
ern frontiers that they be conveyed to the army in Massa-
chusetts.
Col. Timothy Bedel of New Hampshire, with three
companies of rangers, left Haverhill on September 7 to
join General Schuyler. Several Newbury men enlisted
in the regiment. At the same time part of a company
marched under command of Captain Vail of the Green
Mountain Boys, this force having been raised by Lieu-
tenants Allen and Scolley. Col. Israel Morey, writing
the New Hampshire Committee of Safety from Orford,
said: ''Lieutenant Allen of the Green Mountain Boys
brought express orders for Colonel Bedel to march im-
mediately. I think he has acted himself much to his
honor in pushing the companies forward. Mr. Allen
has enlisted a company of about forty-five men nigh
here."
One of the strong men of the upper Connecticut valley
was Jacob Bayley of Newbury, a natural leader of men,
who had served with honor in the French and Indian
War. A letter written by him to the New York Con-
gress, under date of October 20, gives a little picture of
the sentiment of Gloucester county. A packet had been
sent to him, evidently containing for signature, blank
^^J
A,'>t/^^
%
.4.-
Facsimile of letter in which Ethan Allen announced the capture of
Ticonderoga. The original is owned by L. E. Woodhouse of Bur-
lington, Vt.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 481
forms of the Articles of Association adopted at New
York shortly after the battle of Lexington, these articles
expressing loyalty to the American cause. In his reply
Bayley said : "Long before we heard of a Congress at
New York, we all to a man signed an Association, agree-
able to the Continental one." In this letter he explains
that militia regulations are being carried out according
to the plans of the Continental Congress, and alludes to
local regulations made "at the command of the president
of our little Congress, assisted by the chairman of each
district committee."
A document found in the proprietors' records of New-
bury, in Jacob Bayley's handwriting, states that many of
the people in the Connecticut valley "being destitute of a
regular command," desired that he should take the com-
mand as a Brigadier General. In accordance with this
desire he called upon the regimental commanders upon
each side of the Connecticut River as far as the Massa-
chusetts line for a return of their several companies.
He recommended that each company have an alarm post,
and that each man equip himself with snowshoes. In
his opinion if an attack should be made by the enemy it
would be made at Otter Creek and Coos, and he advised
the troops "to look well to the passages into the upper
part of Windsor and Hartford." Wells, in his "His-
tory of Newbury," fixes the date of this document about
the end of 1775.
In November, 1775, Maj. Robert Rogers, a noted
leader in the French and Indian War, visited Newbury,
in the absence of General Bayley, and professing friend-
ship for the American cause, gained considerable in for-
482 HISTORY OF VERMONT
mation. It was learned, however, that he had visited
several prominent Tories, and that he held a command
in the British army. General Bayley, returning unex-
pectedly, attempted to secure the arrest of Rogers, but
the latter escaped, it is said, in the disguise of an Indian.
The Committee of Safety of Cumberland county, at
a meeting held October 18, 1775, elected as delegates to
the New York provincial Congress, Maj. William Wil-
liams and Dr. Paul Spooner, and at the same time the
committee recommended military officers as follows:
Col. James Rogers to be Brigadier for the Cumberland,
Gloucester and Charlotte brigade.
Upper Regiment — Capt. Joseph Marsh, First Colonel ;
Capt. John Barrett, Second Colonel; Lieut. Hilkiah
Grout, First Major; Capt. Joel Matthews, Second
Major; Timothy Spencer, Adjutant; Amos Robinson,
Quartermaster.
Lower Regiment — Maj. William Williams, First
Colonel; Maj. Jonathan Hunt, Second Colonel; Lieut.
John Norton, First Major ; Oliver Lovell, Second Major ;
Arad Hunt, Adjutant; Samuel Fletcher, Quartermaster.
Regiment of Minute Men — Capt. Joab Hoisington,
First Colonel; Seth Smith, Second Colonel; Joseph
Tyler, First Major; Joel Marsh, Second Major; Timothy
Phelps, Adjutant ; Elisha Hawley, Quartermaster.
Dr. Paul Spooner presented this list to the New York
authorities when he took his seat as a member in the
provincial Congress, December 20, 1775. Early in
December protests against some of the proposed officers
were made in Putney, Westminster and Fulham (Dum-
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 483
merston), on the ground that they were unfriendly to
the cause of American liberty.
Samuel Stevens wrote the New York Congress on
December 18, requesting that no commissions be issued
to militia officers until the public mind was clearer. In
his letter he asserted that two conventions had been held,
one in September, and another about three weeks pre-
vious to the date of his letter, and each convention had
nominated field officers, adding the observation: "If
they are all commissioned, about one-third of the men in
the county will be officers."
The New York Committee of Safety, on January 4,
1776, considered the list of field officers recommended
for Cumberland county, also petitions against certain
officers of the Lower Regiment, and ordered that com-
missions be made out for the Upper Regiment and the
Regiment of Minute Men, as recommended in the list
previously given.
It was ordered that a field meeting be held by the
county committee to nominate officers after "full and
sufficient notice" had been given. Dr. Paul Spooner
was granted leave of absence January 10, 1776, "to en-
deavor to restore unanimity and harmony" in Cumber-
land county, and the treasurer of the Provincial Con-
gress was directed to advance him twenty pounds on the
credit of the county for the expenses of the trip.
A letter from Benjamin Carpenter, chairman of the
Cumberland county committee, dated at Westminster,
February 1, 1776, in describing the results of a "pretty
full meeting" of the Committee of Safety of the county,
said : "We hope the dissensions and animosities which
484 HISTORY OF VERMONT
have heretofore been so prevalent in the county will, in
a great measure, subside." The nominations for field
officers for the Lower Regiment were as follows : First
Colonel, William Williams; Second Colonel, Benjamin
Carpenter; First Major, Oliver Lovell; Second Major,
Abijah Lovejoy ; Adjutant, Samuel Minor, Jr. ; Quarter-
master, Samuel Fletcher. These nominations were con-
firmed by the Provincial Congress, February 24. This
regiment consisted of companies from Brattleboro, Ful-
ham, Guilford, Halifax, Putney and Westminster.
The Committee of Safety of Cumberland and Glouces-
ter counties appointed a committee of three from their
numbers to nominate a Brigadier General and a Brigade
Major, and at a meeting held at Windsor, May 22, 1776,
Col. Joseph Marsh acting as chairman, Jacob Bayley
was nominated for Brigadier General and Simon Stevens
for Brigade Major.
At a meeting of the Cumberland County Committee
of Safety, convened at the court house at Westminster,
June 11, 1776, twenty towns were represented by thirty-
four delegates. In addition to the transaction of busi-
ness of a judicial and civil nature, provision was made
for the organization of minute men and the enlistment
of soldiers for the Canadian expedition. A meeting of
the Committees of Safety of the counties of Cumberland
and Gloucester was convened July 23, with eighteen
delegates representing fifteen towns.
It was resolved that two hundred and fifty-two men
be raised in the counties of Cumberland and Gloucester
"as scouting parties to range the woods," for the joint
defence of both counties, these men to be divided into
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 485
four companies. The pay of the officers and privates
was to be the same as that allowed Continental troops.
A bounty of twenty-five dollars was to be allowed each
non-commissioned officer and private upon his passing
muster. In lieu of rations there was to be allowed to
each Captain sixteen shillings, to each Lieutenant four-
teen shillings and to each non-commissioner officer and
private ten shillings per week. Each officer and private
was to furnish himself with a good musket or firelock,
powder horn, bullet pouch and tomahawk, blanket and
knapsack.
The companies of rangers in the two counties of
Gloucester and Cumberland were to be under the com-
mand of a Major to be appointed by the convention and
this commanding officer was to march to the relief of
any of the neighboring counties or States upon "a mutual
application" from the county committees of such coun-
ties or States, or upon application from the Continental
officer commanding in the Northern Department, but
the important reservation was made "that such Conti-
nental officers do not call those companies out of the
said three counties of Cumberland, Gloucester and Char-
lotte." The following day Joab Hoisington was elected
Major of the Rangers to be raised in Gloucester and
Cumberland counties. The Captains of the four com-
panies of Rangers were Benjamin Wait, John Strong,
Joseph Hatch and Elkanah Day. Captain Day re-
signed, and Abner Seeley was elected on October 23,
1776, to fill the vacancy.
A significant note of the weakening of the New York
ties in the counties of Gloucester and Cumberland is
486 HISTORY OF VERMONT
shown in resolutions adopted August 1, 1776, providing
that the militia of the counties of Charlotte, Cumber-
land and Gloucester should be formed into two separate
brigades, "Anything in the resolution of the Provincial
Congress of this colony (New York) on the 22nd day
of August last past to the contrary notwithstanding."
The Charlotte county men were to form one brigade,
and the men from Gloucester and Cumberland counties
were to form another. For the two counties last named,
Jacob Bayley of Newbury was chosen Brigadier Gen-
eral, and Simon Stevens of Springfield, Major of the
brigade.
The idea of invading Canada followed, almost imme-
diately, the capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point.
When Ethan Allen made his first journey to St. Johns,
after the capture of the King's sloop by Arnold, on
May 18, he forwarded a letter directed to "Mr. James
Morrison and the merchants that are friendly to the
cause of liberty in Montreal," asking for assistance and
cooperation. He requested that they send to him at St.
Johns, "forthwith and without further notice," pro-
visions, ammunition and spirituous liquors to the
amount of five hundred pounds.
Allen also opened correspondence with the Indians
at an early date. Writing from Crown Point on May
24, 1775, he addressed a letter "to our good brother
Indians of the four tribes, viz. : the Hocnawagoes, the
Swagaches, the Canesdaugans and the Saint Fransa-
was," (probably the Caughnawaga, the Oswegatchie,
the Canandaigua, and the St. Francis tribes, of New
York and Canada, respectively), and sent the message
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 487
by Capt. Abraham Ninhaus of Stockbridge, as "our
ambassador of peace."
In this letter Allen explained the nature of the conflict
between Great Britain and the American Colonies, and
added: "I was always a friend to Indians, and have
hunted with them many times, and know how to shoot
and ambush like Indians, and am a great hunter. I
want to have your warriors come and see me and help
me fight the King's regular troops. You know they
stand all along close together, rank and file, and my men
fight so as Indians do, and I want your warriors to join
wath me and my warriors, like brothers, and ambush
the regulars; if you will, I will give you money, blankets,
tomahawks, knives, paint, and anything that there is in
the army, just like brothers, and I will go with you unto
the woods to scout; and my men and your men will
sleep together and eat and drink together. "^ * *
But if you our brother Indians do not fight on either
side, we will still be friends and brothers; and you may
come and hunt in our woods, and come with your canoes
in the lake, and let us have venison at our forts on the
lake, and have rum, bread, and what you want, and be
like brothers."
In Allen's letter to the Continental Congress, written
May 29, he declared that if he had had five hundred men
with him at St. Johns he could have advanced to Mon-
treal. He added: "Nothing strengthens our friends
in Canada equal to our prosperity in taking the sover-
eignty of Lake Champlain; and should the colonies
forthwith send an army of two or three thousand men,
and attack Montreal we should have little to fear from
488 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the Canadians or Indians, and would easily set up the
standard of liberty in the extensive province of Quebeck,
whose limit was enlarged purely to subvert the liberties
of America. Striking such a blow would intimidate the
Tory party in Canada the same as the commencement
of the war at Boston intimidated the Tories in the
colonies. They are a set of gentlemen that will not be
converted by reason but are easily wrought upon by
fear. Advancing an army into Canada will be agree-
able to our friends, and it is bad policy to fear the re-
sentment of an enemy."
Congress was unwilling at this time to authorize such
an aggressive act as the invasion of Canada. Subse-
quent events, however, showed that Allen was right in
urging an immediate invasion of the province as a
prudent military movement. Jared Sparks, in his "Life
of Gouverneur Morris," calls attention to the fact, that,
although Allen's letter was not well received by Con-
gress, yet within two and one-half months an expedition
was sent into Canada "on grounds precisely similar to
those stated by Allen." He adds: "His advice, as
events turned out, although looked upon at the time as
wild and visionary, was the best that could be followed."
The British force under Carleton's command at that
time was small, and had Allen's advice been followed it
is probable that Canada could have been captured with
comparative ease.
Allen wrote to the New York Congress on June 2:
"I will lay my life on it that with fifteen hundred men
and a proper train of artillery, I will take Montreal.
Provided I could be thus furnished, and if an army
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 489
could command the field, it would be no insuperable diffi-
culty to take Quebeck." At this period the Canadians
were inclined to be friendly to the Americans, and Carle-
ton could not easily enlist men for his army.
William Gilliland, of Westport, N. Y., writing to the
Continental Congress on May 29, called attention to a
British post at Point au Fer, on the west side of the
lake, seven miles south of the Canadian boundary line,
w^here a large stone house was built during the summer
of 1774. There were strong ball proof brick sentry
boxes at each corner commanding every inch of ground
about the house. In these sentry boxes, and in the
large, dry cellar under the house, were forty-four port-
holes. Gilliland urged that by throwing up a breast-
work around the stone house and providing a few can-
non for defence, it might be used with great effect as a
fortification to check any British advance up the lake.
He added: "I must beg leave to observe to you that
there are now in these parts a very considerable number
of men under the command of Mr. Ethan Allen, as brave
as Hercules, and as good marksmen as can be found in
North America, who might prove immediately service-
able to the common cause were they regularly embodied
and commanded by officers of their own choice, sub-
ordinate to whoever has or may be appointed com-
mander-in-chief or to the instructions of the Grand Con-
gress. These men, being excellent wood rangers, and
particularly acquainted in the wilderness of Lake Cham-
plain, would, in all likelihood, be more serviceable in these
parts than treble their number of others not having these
advantages, especially if left under the directions of
490 HISTORY OF VERMONT
their present enterprising and heroic commander, Mr.
Allen."
Ethan Allen's strong desire to invade Canada is shown
in a letter which he wrote to Governor Trumbull of Con-
necticut, from Bennington, under date of July 12, in
which he said: "Were it not that the Grand Conti-
nental Congress had lately incorporated the Green
Mountain Boys into a battalion, under certain regula-
tions and command, I would forthwith advance them
into Canada and invest Montreal, exclusive of any help
from the colonies; though, under present circumstances
I would not, for my right arm, act without, or contrary
to orders."
Meanwhile conditions at Lake Champlain were slowly
shaping themselves for an aggressive movement,
although celerity of action was needed to ensure suc-
cess ; but speed could not be expected when the American
people were slow in reaching the conclusion that a
Canadian invasion was desirable.
Colonel Hinman of Connecticut, in command of
Ticonderoga, had not shown himself to be an efficient
or forceful officer. The Massachusetts committee, at
the time of their visit to the forts, had appointed Colonel
Easton as commander of their provincial troops at Lake
Champlain, under Hinman. John Brown was desig-
nated as Major, and Jonas Fay, as Surgeon. General
Schuyler was directed, by order of Congress, to assume
command of the district including Ticonderoga and
Crown Point, and when he arrived at the lake on July
18, he was greatly distressed over the conditions he
found. Provisions were short and Schuyler considered
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 491
that there had been "a very considerable waste or
embezzlement."
On the very day of Schuyler's arrival at Ticonderoga
he wrote Washington in disgust, and almost in derision,
of what he considered Hinman's incompetence. The
Connecticut Colonel evidently had simply waited for the
arrival of his superior officer, without taking any aggres-
sive attitude. Schuyler draws a graphic picture of his
arrival at the landing place at the north end of Lake
George at ten o'clock the night before, only to find the
guards sound asleep. An investigation showed a great
shortage of ammunition, not a nail or other materials
for boat building, and the fact that the troops were very
poorly armed.
Schuyler began work with vigor, repaired the saw-
mills, and endeavored to get together the supplies so
urgently needed. He complained that Connecticut had
made such generous allowance for her troops that the
fact was likely to breed dissatisfaction among the sol-
diers from other colonies. Fifty milch cows had been
sent up for the Connecticut regiment at a time when the
pasturage was very short for the working oxen and
fat cattle intended for beef for the troops, owing to
what Schuyler called "the severest drouth ever known
in this country." These cattle were ordered back to
New England.
Jeremiah Halsey had been appointed by Colonel Hin-
man "Commodore of all armed vessels and crafts on
Lakes Champlain and George," a high sounding title for
a fleet consisting of one schooner and one sloop. In a
letter to Benjamin Franklin, Schuyler wrote that when
492 HISTORY OF VERMONT
he arrived at Ticonderoga he did not find craft suffi-
cient to move two hundred men. Halsey was soon
superseded as "Commodore" by James Smith, of New
York, who took command of the sloop Enterprise,
which vessel, he said, was ''of very little use to the
service." James Stewart was given command of the
schooner Liberty.
Very soon after the capture of Ticonderoga and
Crown Point, and the expeditions of Allen and Arnold
to St. Johns, General Carleton, the British commander
in Canada, sent all the troops he could spare to fortify
St. Johns. From Quebec he had obtained all the ship
carpenters he could procure, and under the direction of
Capt. Zachary Taylor they had proceeded to build vessels
to replace the sloop and bateaux captured or burned by
Arnold.
Naturally General Schuyler feared an attack by way
of Lake Champlain and he informed General Washing-
ton that there was danger of an attack "from the Missis-
que Indians." In order to gain more accurate informa-
tion Maj. John Brown was sent from Crown Point July
24 with four men on a scouting expedition and arrived
in Canada on July 30, after a most fatiguing march, part
of the way through a vast swamp. Brown was pursued
and surrounded, but escaped by jumping out of a rear
window of a house. He was followed for two days,
but by the help of friendly Canadians he escaped. He
returned by way of Missisquoi Bay, where he obtained
a small canoe, and on August 10 reached Crown Point.
Brown reported that there were about seven thousand
troops in Canada. There were three hundred at St.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 493
Johns, fifty at Quebec, and the others were distributed
at various posts, including Montreal and Chambly. He
found the Canadians friendly, and in a report to Gov-
ernor Trumbull he declared: "Now, Sir, is the time to
carry Canada. It may be done with great ease and
little cost, and I have no doubt but the Canadians would
join us."
Schuyler bent his energies to the building of boats,
and on August 23 was able to report that he had craft
sufficient to move above thirteen hundred men with
twenty days' provisions. Two flat bottomed boats,
sixty feet long, had been built, each capable of carrying
five twelve-pounders; but, unfortunately, there was a
lack of gun carriages.
After much efifort troops were assembled for a Cana-
dian expedition. On August 25 an officer at Ticon-
deroga wrote that there were about twelve hundred men
at that post. In describing conditions he said that there
was an abundance of salt and fresh provisions and that
the soldiers were allowed each day a gill of rum and as
much spruce beer as they could drink, "so that they have
no occasion to drink the lake water, it being reckoned
very unhealthy." The idea that the lake water was
unhealthy, or poisonous, which prevailed for a consider-
able time, is said to have been due to the appearance at
certain times of a white scum on the surface, which gave
forth an offensive odor under the direct rays of the sun.
More than the spruce beer, however, was needed to
make the men healthy. Schuyler wrote to Washington
on August 6 that the troops "are crowded in vile bar-
racks which, with the natural inattention of the sqldiery
494 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to cleanliness had already been productive of disease."
On August 14, one hundred and forty-six men were sick
in Hinman's regiment, and forty-eight out of one hun-
dred and ninety-six in Colonel Easton's regiment. The
troops sickened rapidly. There was a lack of tents and
hospital stores, and Schuyler gave to the regimental sur-
geons the supply of wine which he had brought for his
own table, the General being accustomed to good living.
From July 20 to September 25, seven hundred and
twenty-six men were discharged on account of illness.
Before General Schuyler arrived at Ticonderoga,
Capt. Remember Baker had been employed on a scouting
expedition at the northern end of Lake Champlain. His
service in the French and Indian War, and his activity
as a leader of the Green Mountain Boys, had added
experience to a naturally bold and resolute character,
which fitted him well for such a task. The first scout-
ing expedition covered a period from July 13 to July 25,
during which two of his men were taken prisoners.
Either at this time or later Baker was employed by
General Schuyler on a scouting expedition to Canada,
"with express orders not to molest the Canadians or
Indians." As there is a record to show that Baker met
James Stewart, commanding the schooner Liberty, on
August 3, "at Vandelowe's, the Frenchman's," at the
northwestern extremity of Lake Champlain, it may be
presumed that this was Baker's second expedition into
the enemy's country. Some information on this subject
is given in a deposition of Peter Griffin, a soldier in
Colonel Easton's regiment, in which he tells of leaving
Crown Point on August 12, and falling in with Captain
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 495
Baker, Griffin and a St. Francis Indian, went on a scout-
ing expedition to St. Johns. Returning to Windmill
Point, in the present town of Alburg, Griffin set out for
Crown Point on August 24 and Baker proceeded down
the Sorel (or Richelieu) River, the outlet of Lake
Champlain, to Isle aux Noix, "and did determine to
intercept the scouts of the regulars there," according to
Griffin's deposition. Schuyler asserted later that this
expedition was undertaken without authority from him,
and that Baker was accompanied by five men.
According to Ira Allen's account of this affair. Cap-
tain Baker's purpose was to discover the movements of
the British troops at Isle aux Noix. Proceeding
cautiously, he landed in a bay four miles above that
island during the night, and in the morning went to a
point of land, from which he could see the island and
the river for some distance. Meanwhile, a party of
five Caughnawaga Indians discovered Baker's boat, and
started in it for St. Johns. Stationing his men behind
trees, Baker hailed the Indians as they approached, and
in a friendly manner asked that they give up the boat,
saying there was no war between the Indians and the
Americans. As they gave no indication of complying
with his request. Baker ordered them to return his boat,
threatening to fire on them if they refused. Perceiving
that one of the Indians in the boat was about to fire.
Baker sought to anticipate this action by firing first, but
his musket missed fire owing to the sharpness of his
flint, and putting his head from behind the tree, which
served as a protection, in order to hammer his flint, he
received a shot in the forehead which killed him in-
496 HISTORY OF VERMONT
stantly. Baker's men thereupon fired, killing two of the
Indians, and fled. The Indians returned, cut ofif the
head of their victim, and set it on a pole at St. Johns.
The British officers bought the head and interred it with
the body. It so happened that a part of Colonel Bedel's
New Hampshire regiment encamped at Winooski Falls,
the home of Captain Baker, on the night that word was
received of the death of this brave Green Mountain
leader.
General Schuyler was greatly agitated over this affair,
not so much at the death of Captain Baker, as he was
over what he called the latter's "imprudence," which he
feared would alienate the Indians, a Canadian corre-
spondent having informed him that some of the Caugh-
nawagas had joined the British troops at St. Johns, on
account of this skirmish. The Commissioner of Indian
Affairs explained the matter to a congress of the Six
Nations held at Albany early in September, "in order
to put out the flames which this unhappy affair could
not help kindling," according to a letter written by a
resident of Albany, in which he said that the affair "was
prodigiously misrepresented here at first."
The death of Baker occurred between August 24,
when Griffin, the soldier who accompanied him to St.
Johns, left for Crown Point, and August 31, when Gen-
eral Schuyler wrote the Commissioners of Indian Affairs
concerning the affray. Baker was only thirty-eight
years old at this time. Concerning his loss, Ira Allen
says: "Captain Baker was the first man killed in the
Northern department, and being a gentleman universally
respected, his death made more noise in the country than
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 497
the loss of a thousand men towards the end of the Ameri-
can war."
Gen. Richard Montgomery, second in command
under General Schuyler, arrived at Ticonderoga August
17, to organize an expedition for the invasion of Canada,
and on August 28 the first division of the army em-
barked at Ticonderoga, proceeding to Crown Point.
Here they remained until August 30, and that day went
as far as Westport, where they camped for the night at
the settlement of William Gilliland, who furnished some
of the boats for the expedition, and conducted General
Montgomery down the lake, with which the former had
become very familiar during a residence of ten years
on its shores. Gilliland had raised a company of minute
men, of which he was chosen Captain. Twenty of the
men had been recruited from the tenants on his estate
and fifteen had been enlisted in Shelburne on the eastern
shore of the lake, Moses Pierson, of that town, being a
Lieutenant in the company. The party proceeded as far
as the Four Brothers Islands on August 31, and the next
day reached Isle La Motte, stopping at a fine sandy
beach, after passing the high point of the island. Here
Montgomery waited for General Schuyler, who had
been detained by an Indian conference at Albany.
Schuyler arrived at Ticonderoga August 30, being much
indisposed, but he followed the army, arriving at Isle
La Motte on September 4. On the same day the army
proceeded to Isle aux Noix, in the Richelieu River, one
of the French strongholds taken by the British in 1760.
Schuyler issued a declaration to the people of Canada
on September 5, sending it out by Col. Ethan Allen and
498 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Major Brown, and advanced toward St. Johns. Fire
was opened from the fort, and as the troops landed to
intrench they were attacked from ambush by Indians
and regulars. The American loss was four killed, three
mortally wounded, and seven wounded, including two
officers. The enemy were repulsed with a loss of five
Indians killed and four wounded, and several British
soldiers wounded. Schuyler called a council of war,
on the morning of September 7, and it was decided to
return to Isle aux Noix to await the arrival of the artil-
lery. Here fortifications were thrown up and a boom
was placed across the channel of the river.
Schuyler was ambitious to lead the army of invasion
in person, but his condition of health made this impos-
sible. His illness resulting from a bilious fever and a
violent attack of rheumatism, compelled him to abandon
the expedition, and on September 16 he was put into
a covered boat and returned to Ticonderoga. About an
hour after his departure from Isle aux Noix he met
Col. Seth Warner with one hundred and seventy Green
Mountain Boys, this detachment being as he said, "the
first that had appeared of that boasted corps." This is
one of the little touches that indicates that General
Schuyler had not forgotten the days when the Green
Mountain Boys were used for purposes other than in-
vading a foreign country.
Ethan Allen had arrived in advance of Warner's regi-
ment. About September 20 another company of Green
Mountain Boys, numbering seventy men, joined their
comrades. About one hundred men of Colonel Bedel's
New Hampshire regiment arrived the night of Septem-
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 499
ber 16. When Colonel Bedel left Haverhill on Sep-
tember 7, he was accompanied by a portion of a com-
pany under command of Captain Vail of the Green
Mountain Boys, raised in part by Lieutenant Allen,
probably Lieut. Ira Allen.
Without any regular officer's commission, Ethan
Allen had accompanied the army to Isle aux Noix, at
the request of the officers, and had been sent out by
General Schuyler to the French-Canadian people "to
preach politics," as Allen expressed his mission, seeking
to win them to the American cause, to which, at first,
they were favorably disposed.
Allen set out from Isle aux Noix September 8 and
proceeded to Chambly. The Canadians there were
found to be of a friendly disposition, guarded him with
armed men night and day, and escorted him through the
woods. According to his report, "Many Captains of
militia and respectable gentlemen of the Canadians"
visited him and conversed with him. He sent a mes-
senger to the chiefs of the Caughnawaga Indians, de-
manding the reason why some of the numbers of that
tribe had taken up arms against the American colonies.
It is hardly to be supposed that this is the policy Gen-
eral Schuyler would have pursued, judging from the
nervousness and anxiety the commander of the North-
ern army displayed over the fatal "imprudence" of
Remember Baker. Instead of resenting this demand,
however, two chiefs were sent to Allen to explain that
such action was contrary to the orders given by the
tribal authorities. A general council was held, and a
500 HISTORY OF VERMONT
wampum belt and beads were sent to the Green Moun-
tain leader, which were delivered with due ceremony.
The principal difficulty that Allen encountered was the
impression that the American army was too weak to
protect the Canadians from the power of Great Britain,
and he summed up the temper of the people in these
words: "It furthermore appeared to me that many of
the Canadians were watching the scale of power," an
observation the wisdom of which subsequent events
abundantly justified. To overcome this attitude of in-
decision, Allen urged the importance of the capture of
St. Johns as speedily as might be possible, and returning
to Isle aux Noix on September 14 was able to deliver his
report to General Schuyler before the latter left on his
return to Ticonderoga. He also assisted General Mont-
gomery "in laying a line of circumvallation round the
fortress of St. Johns," to quote from his "Narrative."
About this time James Livingston, an influential
Canadian friend of the American colonies, wrote Gen-
eral Schuyler saying: "Yesterday morning I sent a
party each side of the river (Richelieu), Col. Allen at
their head, to take the vessels at Sorel, if possible, by
surprise." Evidently this was not possible. He added:
"We have nothing to fear here at present, but a few
seigneurs in the country, endeavoring to raise forces. I
hope Col. Allen's presence will put a stop to it."
Allen's activities continued after General Schuyler's
departure, and on September 20 he wrote General Mont-
gomery from St. Ours: "I am now in the parish of
St. Towrs (St. Ours), four leagues from Sorel, to the
south ; have 250 Canadians under arms ; as I march, they
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THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 501
gather fast. There are the objects of taking the vessels
in Sorel, and General Carleton; these objects I pass by
to assist the army in besieging St. Johns. If that place
be taken, the country is ours; if we miscarry in this, all
other achievements will profit but little. I am fearful
our army may be too sickly, and that the siege may be
hard ; therefore choose to assist in conquering St. Johns,
which of consequence conquers the whole. You may
rely on it that I shall join you in about three days with
five hundred or more Canadian volunteers. I could
raise one or two thousand in a week's time, but will first
visit the army with a less number, and if necessary will
go again recruiting. Those that used to be enemies to
our cause come cap in hand to me; and I swear by the
Lord I can raise three times the number of our army
in Canada, provided that you continue the siege; all de-
pends on that. * * >ic 'pj^g glory of a victory which
will be attended with such important consequences will
crown all our fatigues, risks and labours; to fail of
victory will be an eternal disgrace, but to obtain it will
elevate us on the wings of fame." The enthusiastic tone
of this letter would indicate that Colonel Allen himself
was somewhat elevated, in anticipation, "on the wings
of fame," by the reception accorded him by the Cana-
dian people.
General Montgomery wrote on September 19: 'T
have sent Colonel Allen to Chambly to raise a corps.
Thus far Allen's efiforts had been successful, and Gen-
eral Carleton wrote Lord Dartmouth that the American
emissaries "have injured us very much."
502 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Having passed through all the parishes on the Riche-
lieu River to its mouth, Allen followed the St. Lawrence
River to Longueuil, nearly opposite Montreal. On the
morning of September 24, he set out with a guard of
about eighty men for Laprairie, from which place he in-
tended to proceed to General Montgomery's camp. He
had advanced less than two miles from Longueuil when
he met Col. John Brown, who desired to have a private
conversation with him. Entering a house, a conference
was held, in which Brown proposed, according to Allen's
''Narrative," that if Allen would return to Longueuil,
procure canoes and cross the St. Lawrence River a little
north of Montreal, he (Brown) would cross a little south
of the town with nearly two hundred men, and they
could make themselves "masters of Montreal."
Allen's party consisted of about one hundred and ten
men, thirty English-Americans having been added to
his numbers. The greater part of the night was spent
in transporting the men across the river, only a few
canoes being available, and the stream being wide at this
point. Soon after daybreak on the morning of Septem-
ber 25, Allen posted guards with orders to permit no
persons to pass along the highway. Waiting until the
sun was two hours high for the signal that Colonel
Brown had landed on the other side of Montreal, which
was to be three huzzas on the part of his men, the un-
welcome truth dawned upon Allen that Brown had
failed to cooperate with him, and that he was in an ex-
ceedingly perilous position. He had canoes sufficient to
transport only a third of his men, and an attempt to
recross the river would be discovered, and the men left
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 503
behind almost certainly would be captured. Therefore,
he determined to defend himself to the best of his ability,
and dispatched two messengers asking for aid, one being
sent to Colonel Brown and another to Thomas Walker
at Assomption, who was a friend of the American cause.
Certain persons approached the guards, pretending to be
friends, but were made prisoners. Unfortunately for
Allen one of these escaped and exposed the weakness of
the attacking party.
There was a great tumult in Montreal when it was
reported that an American force was at the gates of the
city, according to Allen's ''Narrative," and General
Carleton is said to have made preparations to embark
on the British ships, with other government officials, but
the news brought by the spy who had escaped from
Allen's detachment, put a different aspect upon affairs.
Carleton assembled the inhabitants in the Champ de
Mars and a force was organized under Major Campbell
for the defence of the city. According to Allen, this
force "consisted of not more than forty regular troops,
together with a mixed multitude, chiefly Canadians, with
a number of English who lived in town, and some
Indians; in all to the number of five hundred." James
Livingston said General Prescott engaged a number of
people in the suburbs at a half a joe per man to go out
against Allen.
Encouraging his men to defend themselves bravely,
and expressing the hope that help would come soon.
Colonel Allen made the best possible disposition of the
few men under his command. Richard Young, with a
detachment of nine men as a flank guard, was posted
504 HISTORY OF VERMONT
under the cover of the bank of the river. The enemy
began the attack between two and three o'clock in the
afternoon, firing from buildings, behind woodpiles and
in ditches. The fire was returned, the engagement con-
tinuing for some time without decisive results. At
length about half the British force attempted a flank
movement on Allen's right, which he attempted to
check by ordering John Dugan, with about fifty Cana-
dians to make a stand at a ditch, and prevent the prog-
ress of the flanking movement. Instead of opposing the
enemy, Dugan's party on the right and Young's detach-
ment on the left, took to their heels, leaving Allen with
only about forty-five men, some of whom were wounded.
He retreated about a mile, being hard pressed by his pur-
suers. Of this experience Allen says: ''I expected in
a very short time to try the world of spirits; for I was
apprehensive that no quarter would be given to me, and
therefore had determined to sell my life as dear as I
could."
According to the Ainslie Journal the British loss in
this afifray was four killed and three wounded, two of
those killed being Major Garden of the Royal American
regiment and Alexander Patterson, a Montreal mer-
chant, who was mortally wounded.
Seeing that there was no chance of success against
such overwhelming odds, Allen called to an officer with
whom he had exchanged shots, a natural son of Sir
William Johnson, that he would surrender, provided he
would be treated with honor and assured of good quar-
ters for himself and men. This promise was made, and
was confirmed by another officer. The surrender was
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 505
made, and included thirty-one effective men and seven
wounded.
Shortly after he had handed his sword to the officer
whom he addressed, a naked, painted Indian, whose
features, Allen says, expressed "malice, death, murder,
and the wrath of devils and damned spirits," attempted
to shoot him. Seizing the officer to whom he had sur-
rendered, Allen used him as a shield, whirling round and
round, and protecting himself until help came.
The prisoners were taken to the barracks at Mon-
treal, a distance of two miles, or more. On the way
Allen conversed with some of the regular officers, who
expressed their pleasure at seeing him, to which Allen
replied that he would have preferred to meet them at
General Montgomery's camp. Arriving at headquar-
ters, Allen was brought before General Prescott. When
this officer learned that his prisoner was the man who
captured Ticonderoga, he flew into a towering rage,
shaking his cane over the head of the captive, and calling
him many abusive names. Allen was not the man to
endure such treatment with meekness, although a pris-
oner, and he shook his brawny fist in the face of General
Prescott, telling him "that was the beetle of mortality
for him if he dared to strike" ; that he would do well not
to cane him, for he was not accustomed to such treat-
ment.
Prescott then ordered a sergeant's command with
fixed bayonets to come forward and kill thirteen Cana-
dians included among the prisoners. As they were
wringing their hands in terror, Allen stepped in front
of the condemned men, and told General Prescott to kill
506 HISTORY OF VERMONT
him if anybody must be killed, as he was responsible for
their taking up arms. With an oath Prescott replied:
''I will not execute you now, but you shall grace a halter
at Tyburn." Allen was then taken on board a ship of
war, the Gaspee, and confined in irons. The few Ameri-
cans wounded were taken to a hospital and the other
prisoners were shackled together in pairs, like criminals,
and put on board vessels lying in the St. Lawrence
River.
Brook Watson, a British merchant, afterward Lord
Mayor of London, who had professed to be a friend of
the American cause, but whose friendship Ira Allen
doubted when he conducted him from Crown Point to
the Canadian border in June, 1775, wrote to John Butler
on October 19: "Colonel Allen, who commanded this
despicable party of plunderers (they were promised the
plunder of the town) was with most of his wretches
taken. He is now in irons on board the Gaspee. This
action gave a sudden turn to the Canadians, who be-
fore were nine-tenths for the Bostonians." This is
rather an illuminating description of the attitude of the
Canadian people.
The comments made by various American leaders on
Allen's ill-starred attack is not without interest.
Colonel Warner, writing to General Montgomery from
Laprairie, September 27, said: "His (Allen's) defeat
hath put the French people into great consternation.
They are much concerned for fear of a company coming
over against us. Furthermore, the Indian chiefs were
at Montreal at the time of Allen's battle, and there were
a number of the Caughnawaga Indians in the battle
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 507
against Allen, and the people are very fearful of the
Indians."
In writing to General Schuyler on September 20, Gen-
eral Montgomery lamented '*Mr. Allen's imprudence and
ambition, which urged him to this affair single handed,
when he might have had a considerable reinforcement."
General Schuyler, always rather inclined to be touchy
when the Green Mountain Boys were mentioned, wrote
to John Hancock, on October 15, saying: "I am very
apprehensive of disagreeable consequences arising from
Mr. Allen's imprudence. I always dreaded his im-
patience of subordination; and it was not until after a
solemn promise, made me in the presence of several offi-
cers, that he would demean himself properly, that I
would permit him to attend the army ; nor would I have
consented then had not his solicitations been backed by
several officers."
On October 26, General Washington wrote to General
Schuyler as follows : ''Colonel Allen's misfortune will,
I hope, teach a lesson of prudence and subordination to
others who may be too ambitious to outshine their gen-
eral officers, and, regardless of order and duty, rush
into enterprises which have unfavorable effects to the
publick and are destructive to themselves."
The truth of the old adage, "Nothing succeeds like
success," cannot be controverted, but the converse of
the saying is equally true. Because Allen failed, he has
been condemned with general unanimity of opinion for
his rashness, his overweening ambition, and his lack of
subordination. While there may be an element of jus-
tice in the verdict there is also the possibility that it
508 HISTORY OF VERMONT
contains no small degree of injustice. It is true that
Allen was impulsive, enthusiastic, somewhat inclined to
boast fulness, and probably by no means a stranger to
rashness. He had never had the benefit of training in
the army during the Colonial wars, like some of his con-
temporaries, but he had had the benefit of an experience
in the border warfare against New York that sharpened
his wits, and with his natural qualities of leadership he
might, under favorable circumstances, have been a
powerful aid to the American cause if his career in the
War for Independence had not been ended so soon after
its beginning. There are two or three important facts
in connection with this episode that historians generally
have overlooked. The first is, that, according to Allen's
story, the inception of the idea of attempting the capture
of Montreal should be credited to Col. John Brown
and not to Allen. Brown proposed the plan, and Allen
acquiesced in it readily, and, it may be presumed, joy-
fully.
Moreover, it is not unreasonable to presume that had
Brown kept his part of the compact, Montreal might
have been captured. Brown had a larger force than
Allen, and with Montreal in a state of terror, and at-
tacked on two sides, its capture would have been far
from difficult. Ira Allen's insinuation that there was
something dishonorable in Brown's action cannot be
accepted, in the light of Brown's subsequent patriotic
service, but his failure to notify Allen of his change of
plan was a neglect that proved costly.
Very likely Allen was ambitious, but admitting the
truth of this accusation, it may be observed with safety
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 509
that he was not an original sinner in that respect, and
the evil did not die with him. Naturally he desired to
restore the prestige damaged by his defeat for the posi-
tion of commander of the regiment of Green Mountain
Boys, and the taking of Montreal would have accom-
plished this purpose, and would have added new honors
to the fame already won.
If Montreal had been captured on this particular Sep-
tember morning, history would have had little to say of
Ethan Allen's rashness, and the exploit would have
ranked with his capture of Ticonderoga. If Allen is
justly charged with rashness, then he paid dearly for
his error, for presently he sailed out of the St. Law-
rence River, a prisoner loaded with irons; and at the
same time sailed out of the current of the events of the
American Revolution, which made great names for many
of the men who participated in that contest.
The capture of Fort Chambly situated about six miles
north of St. Johns, on October 18, by Colonel Brown
and James Livingston, with a force of about fifty Amer-
icans and three hundred Canadians, went far to ofifset
the efifects of the capture of Allen upon the fluctuating
temperament of the Canadian people. Boats had been
piloted past St. Johns in the darkness, bringing a few
nine-pounders, and with these such good execution was
done that Major Stafford surrendered, with eighty offi-
cers and men, and a quantity of provisions and ammuni-
tion.
The siege of St. Johns, conducted by General Mont-
gomery, did not make rapid progress. There was con-
siderable sickness among the American troops, and be-
510 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tween July 20 and September 25, sixteen men of
Colonel Warner's regiment were discharged on account
of illness. Soon after their arrival the Green Mountain
Boys and a detachment of Colonel Hinman's regiment
were commanded by Colonel Bedel of New Hampshire.
Col. Seth Warner was stationed at Laprairie the latter
part of September, and writing to General Montgomery
from that place on September 27, he said: "If I must
tarry here I should be glad of my regiment, for my party
is made up with different companies in different regi-
ments." He was also stationed at Longueuil, three
leagues east of Laprairie, and two miles from Montreal,
and evidently received his regiment, as official records
show that at Longueuil he commanded the Green Moun-
tain Boys and two companies of the Second New York
regiment.
The British forces at Montreal made frequent attacks
on Warner's position, and shots were exchanged almost
daily. On October 20, Montgomery wrote to Schuyler :
"Colonel Warner has had a little brush with a party
from Montreal. The enemy retired with the loss of five
prisoners and some killed. Some of the prisoners
(Canadians) are dangerous enemies, and must be taken
care of."
These attacks continuing, Warner made several ap-
plications to Montgomery for some field pieces, but
failed to receive them. At length the officers united in a
petition for two field pieces, and they arrived late on
Sunday evening, October 30. This was a fortunate
circumstance, for the very next day. General Carleton
and St. Luc la Corne, a leader of savage tribes, with Ca-
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 511
nadians, and one hundred Indians, in thirty- four boats,
attacked the Americans at Longueuil "with great resolu-
tion." (Some accounts say there were eight hundred
troops.) The purpose of the British forces was to
effect a landing, unite with Colonel McLean who had
collected a few hundred Scotch emigrants and taken post
at the mouth of the Richelieu River, and march to St.
Johns with the intention of raising the siege.
Perceiving the approach of the enemy, Warner, who
had about three hundred men under his command, dis-
patched Captain Potter's company to a point nearly
opposite Grant's Island, where after a short skirmish
they were able to prevent an attempted landing of
Indians, the savages losing four men killed and three
prisoners. Meanwhile a party of the enemy, taking ad-
vantage of wind and current, approached Longueuil,
expecting to make a landing, but a force posted by War-
ner at the river's edge opened so effectively upon the
boats with grape shot from the two field pieces and well
directed musketry fire, that Carleton believed reinforce-
ments must have been received, and he retreated to Mon-
treal. Not a man of Warner's party was killed or
wounded. About fifty of the attacking party were killed
and wounded, some reports making the list of casualties
still greater. Five Indians were slain. Three Cana-
dians and two Indians were taken prisoners. Colonel
McLean therefore abandoned his post at the mouth of
the Richelieu and returned to Quebec.
The following morning, November 1, Capt. Heman
Allen, an older brother of Ethan Allen, was sent to Gen-
eral Montgomery's headquarters at St. Johns with dis-
512 HISTORY OF VERMONT
patches and the three prisoners taken before his arrival,
with the welcome news. The American commander
sent a flag of truce to Major Preston, commandant at
St. Johns, accompanied by an account of the defeat of
General Carleton by Colonel Warner, and mentioning
the name of one of the prisoners taken, a man of impor-
tance. Major Preston requested that hostilities might
be suspended, and that the prisoner mentioned might
be permitted on his parole of honor, to come into the
fortress and remain two hours. The request was
granted and negotiations were begun which led to capitu-
lation on November 2. About five hundred regular
troops and one hundred Canadians were surrendered,
Lieut. John Andre being among the prisoners who were
ordered to Reading, Lancaster and York, Pa. A large
quantity of military stores was taken, including seven-
teen pieces of brass artillery and a considerable number
of iron cannon.
Thus Warner and his Green Mountain Boys not only
had valiantly repulsed a force twice their number, led
by the British commander in Canada, but the news of
their victory had proved to be the magic key which un-
locked the important fort at St. Johns, after a stubborn
resistance to its besiegers. It was an exploit that de-
serves far more credit than it has received.
Less than two weeks later, the Americans took posses-
sion of Montreal. The Indians and the Canadian
militia deserted, the townspeople were frightened, and
with less than one hundred and fifty soldiers the com-
mander could not hope to make an adequate defence,
therefore he made his plans for escape. On November
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 513
13, the American soldiers marched into the city. Carle-
ton had attempted to reach Quebec, but was wind bound
near Sorel, where the Richelieu River discharges the
waters of Lake Champlain into the St. Lawrence.
Meanwhile Colonels Brown and Easton had erected a
battery at Sorel, and a gunboat had arrived from St.
Johns, which interfered naturally with the progress of
the British commander toward Quebec.
Therefore Dr. Jonas Fay of the Green Mountain Boys
wrote a spirited letter demanding an immediate sur-
render of the fleet without any destruction of those on
shipboard, and declaring that the Americans were
strongly posted at Sorel. Col. James Easton signed the
letter and Lieut. Ira Allen, under protection of a white
flag, carried the message on November 15 to General
Carleton on his flagship in the St. Lawrence. He was
followed by Colonel Brown and Doctor Fay, with a
second flag, and a truce was concluded until the follow-
ing morning. During the night Carleton concealed in a
small birch canoe, under some straw, succeeded in get-
ting past Sorel, and so reached Quebec. The next day
the British fleet was surrendered and returned to Mon-
treal, where the fortunes of war made General Prescott
a prisoner. No longer could he shake his cane over
Ethan Allen or any of his fellow Americans, and curse
them as rebels.
Warner's regiment was honorably discharged from
the service by General Montgomery, November 20. In
Daniel Chipman's "Memoirs of Col. Seth Warner," it
is said that the reason for this discharge was that they
were "too miserably clothed to endure a winter campaign
514 HISTORY OF VERMONT
in that severe climate." General Schuyler complained,
however, in his correspondence with John Hancock that
the term of enlistment of Warner's men did not expire
until the end of December, and that they took advantage
of a promise made to the Connecticut troops by Mont-
gomery that all those who w^ould follow him to Mon-
treal should have leave to return, this promise being
made on account of hesitancy to advance further on
account of the approach of winter. General Sullivan,
in a letter to the New Hampshire Assembly, intimated
that the Green Mountain Boys under Warner thought
they had been ill used by General Montgomery.
Whether this refers to the delay in getting cannon for
use at Longueuil, or to some other cause, does not appear.
While General Montgomery and his army were con-
ducting the siege of St. Johns a further attempt upon
Canada was made by a force under the command of
Benedict Arnold, which left Massachusetts about the
middle of September, sailing to the mouth of the Kenne-
bec River. Proceeding up the valley of that stream they
crossed the carrying place to the head waters of the
Chaudiere and descended to the St. Lawrence valley,
arriving there early in November. The hardships and
suffering endured on this awful march through the wil-
derness were almost incredible. By the narrowest of
margins did the army escape actual starvation. Only
indirectly does the story of Arnold's Canadian journey
have a bearing upon Vermont history. The commander
of the detachment which brought up the rear of
Arnold's army was Lieut. Col. Roger Enos of the Con-
necticut regiment, who became a prominent citizen of
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 515
Vermont following the close of the American Revolu-
tion, and whose daughter Col. Ira Allen married several
years later.
Finding that there was a shortage of provisions, only
three days' supplies being left, and being one hundred
miles from the English settlements and fifteen days
march from the French-Canadian inhabitants, a council
of war was called, at which it was decided to turn back,
without orders to that effect. Colonel Enos proposed to
go forward without his men, but his officers protested
against such action.
This course on the part of Colonel Enos and his
officers brought forth severe censure. Washington ex-
pressed his surprise and by his direction Enos was placed
under arrest. A court of inquiry held at Cambridge,
Mass., November 29, 1775, was made up of Major Gen-
eral Lee, president. Brigadier General Greene, Brigadier
General Heath, Colonel Nixon, Colonel Stark, Major
Durkee, and Major Sherburne. This court decided as
follows: "The court are of opinion, after receiving all
the information within their power, that Col. Enos'
misconduct (if he has been guilty of misconduct) is not
of so very heinous a nature as was first supposed, but
that it is necessary for the satisfaction of the world
and for his own honor, that a court martial should be
immediately held for his trial."
The court martial was held at headquarters at Cam-
bridge, December 1, 1775, its presiding officer being
Brigadier General Sullivan. After deliberation the
court was unanimously of the opinion that Colonel Enos
"was under a necessity of returning with the division
516 HISTORY OF VERMONT
under his command, and therefore acquit him with
honor." In a statement issued April 28, 1776, General
Sullivan expressed the opinion, "that had Colonel Enos
with the division proceeded it would have been the means
of causing the whole detachment to have perished in the
woods for want of sustenance." A statement was also
issued "to the Impartial Publick" concerning Colonel
Enos' case, by General Heath, Col. John Stark, Samuel
H. Parsons and twenty-two other officers, vindicating
his character, and declaring him to be a "prudent, faith-
ful officer, and deserves applause rather than censure."
Colonel Enos on January 18, 1776, asked permission of
General Washington to resign his commission. The
afifair was one which aroused much controversy, but the
decision of the court martial must be considered the
fairest possible judgment of a disputed matter.
Although the progress of the American cause for a
time seemed very encouraging, following the taking of
St. Johns and Montreal, the conquest of Canada was far
from being an easy task. Quebec offered a stubborn re-
sistance. In the early morning hours of the last day of
the year 1775, in a blinding snow storm, an attempt was
made to take Quebec by assault. Ira Allen and Robert
Cochran, both officers from the New Hampshire Grants,
were selected by General Montgomery to make an attack
on Cape Diamond to draw the attention of the enemy
from other points. To them was also committed the
important duty of sending up sky rockets, which were a
signal for attacks by detachments led by Montgomery,
Arnold and Colonel Livingston. Delayed by the fierce-
ness of the storm, suspecting their Canadian guide of
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 517
treachery, they pressed on and carried out their instruc-
tions. The attempt to capture the city failed dis-
astrously. General Montgomery, one of the most capable
officers produced during the war, was mortally wounded,
and died in the arms of Capt. Aaron Burr. General
Arnold, who had joined forces with Montgomery, was
severely wounded and was carried from the field. Gen-
eral Morgan fought in the storm and the cold with his
detachment until half of his men were killed, and then
surrendered. The remainder of the American army re-
tired up the St. Lawrence River about three miles, and
there spent the remainder of the winter, enduring great
suffering and privation.
Gen. David Wooster succeeded to the command of the
American army in Canada upon the death of Mont-
gomery, and the task that confronted him was one that
might have taxed the capacity of a soldier possessed of
far greater natural ability for command than that with
which Wooster had been endowed. There was imme-
diate need of more men.
General Wooster wrote to Col. Seth Warner on Jan-
uary 6, 1776, telling him of the unsuccessful attack upon
Quebec and the death of General Montgomery, and say-
ing that "in consequence of this defeat our prospects in
this country are rendered very dubious, and unless we
can quickly be reinforced, perhaps it will be fatal, not
only to us, who are stationed here, but to the colonies in
general, especially to the frontiers," an argument which
appealed to the people of the New Hampshire Grants.
Wooster told of the tendency of the Canadians to ally
themselves with the winning cause, and added : "I have
518 HISTORY OF VERMONT
sent an express to General Schuyler, General Washing-
ton and Congress, but you know how far they have to
go, and it is very uncertain how long it will be before
we can have relief from them. You, sir, and the Green
Mountain corps are in our neighborhood; you all have
arms, and, I am confident, ever stand ready to lend a
helping hand to your brethren in distress. I am sensible
that there was some disagreement between you and Gen-
eral Montgomery. Poor man ! he has lost his life fighting
valiantly for his country; but why do I mention any-
thing about disagreement between you; I know that no
private resentment can hinder your exercising every
faculty to vindicate the rights and privileges for which
we are nobly contending; therefore, let me beg of you
to collect as many men as you can, five, six, or seven
hundred, and if you can, and somehow or other, convey
into the country, and stay with us till we can have relief
from the Colonies. You are sensible we have provisions
of all kinds in abundance, and the weather is not fright-
ful as many have imagined.
"You will see that proper officers are appointed under
you, and both officers and soldiers shall be paid as the
other Continental troops. It will be well for your men
to set out as fast as they are collected, not so much mat-
ter whether together or not, but let them set out, ten,
twenty, thirty, forty or fifty, as they can be first col-
lected, for it must have a good effect on the minds of the
Canadians, to see succor coming in. You will be good
enough to send copies of this letter or such parts of it
as you think proper, to the people below you. I cannot
but think our friends will make a push into the country.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 519
and am confident you will not disappoint my most fer-
vent wish and expectation in seeing you here, with your
men, in a very short time. Now is the time for you to
distinguish yourselves, of obtaining the united applause
of your grateful countrymen, of your distressed friends
in Canada, and your very great friend and servant."
The exigencies of war had made some sudden and
radical transformations. Between two and three years
previous to the penning of this appeal to Colonel War-
ner, Capt. David Wooster had taken a New York Sheriff
into the town of Addison, and had served writs of eject-
ment on the settlers under the New Hampshire charter,
claiming that his New York patent was the more valid
title. The Green Mountain Boys had proceeded to tie
the sheriff and the Captain to a tree and to threaten them
with the beech seal. And now the same man, promoted
to the rank of General, was appealing in the most cordial
terms to the Green Mountain Boys for aid. The episode
may well form a companion picture to Allen and Warner
appearing before the New York Assembly.
Schuyler wrote John Hancock on January 14, 1776,
"I have sent Colonel Warner to throw into Canada
whatever number of men he can procure upon what are
commonly called the New Hampshire Grants; and, in
order to encourage them to march without delay, I have
offered forty shillings, lawful money, as a bounty to the
men, and a month's pay to the officers, and an allowance
of one-sixth of a dollar per day from their leaving home
until they can receive Continental provisions."
There is evidence to show that Warner responded
promptly to the appeal made by Wooster. On January
520 HISTORY OF VERMONT
18, Washington wrote Schuyler, expressing the hope
that Arnold would be joined soon by "a number of men
under Colonel Warner, and from Connecticut, who, it
is said, marched off directly on their getting intelligence
of the melancholy affair." General Sullivan, on the
same day, wrote the New Hampshire Assembly:
"Colonel Warner, with his Green Mountain Boys,
marched immediately to join the party which they had
left." Schuyler wrote on January 22: "Colonel War-
ner succeeds fast in sending men to Canada." Writing
to Governor Trumbull of Connecticut on January 23,
1776, Schuyler said: "Part of the troops which I
directed Colonel Warner to raise are already so far
advanced that I believe they will reach St. Johns today
or tomorrow. I believe the whole under Colonel War-
ner's command will amount to seven hundred; he thinks
more."
Warner wrote Schuyler from Bennington on January
22 : "My prospect in raising men seems very encourag-
ing, one hundred and upwards I have sent forward; a
number more is to march soon. I have twelve com-
panies raising. * * * Two companies more I ex-
pect to raise." On March 5 only four hundred and
seventeen of Warner's men had arrived in Canada, and
both Schuyler and Wooster expressed dissatisfaction
that the number was not larger. It was also asserted
that upwards of one hundred New Hampshire men had
enlisted in Warner's regiment.
Schuyler had insisted that in order to get the bounty
offered to Warner's troops a regiment of seven hundred
and twenty men must march by February 1. Later he
>
<
o
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 521
agreed to furnish another bounty if the men who
marched after February 1 would "engage to remain in
the service in Canada, or procure others in their stead,
for the ensuing campaign, unless sooner discharged."
Warner's regiment was one of the first to arrive in
Canada to reinforce the troops stationed there, and it
participated in the operations around Quebec during the
months that followed. During this period many of
Warner's soldiers contracted smallpox and some of them
died.
Learning that affairs were going badly in Canada, the
Continental Congress appointed a commission to make
an investigation, hoping that the Canadian people might
still be won over to the American cause, and join the
army of invasion in opposition to British rule. This
commission consisted of Benjamin Franklin, Samuel
Chase, and Charles Carroll of Carrollton. They were
accompanied by Mr. Carroll's brother. Father John Car-
roll, later the first Roman Catholic Archbishop in the
United States, much being expected from his influence
with the Catholic population of Canada. Early in the
spring the party left Philadelphia and proceeded to
Albany, where the hospitality of General Schuyler's
home .was extended, the General making preparations for
the remainder of the journey. A bateau carried the
party through Lake George, and six yoke of oxen drew
the boat over the portage to Lake Champlain, where two
boats were provided, Ticonderoga being reached late in
April. These bateaux were thirty-six feet long, eight
feet wide, with square ends and rigged with a mast for
a blanket sail. An awning was used as a substitute
522 HISTORY OF VERMONT
for a cabin. Each boat was manned by thirty or forty
soldiers.
A stop was made at Crown Point, and another at the
house of Peter Ferris, on the east side of the lake, in
Panton, where the night of April 24, 1776, was spent.
Leaving at five o'clock the next morning a severe gale
was soon encountered, and it was necessary to stop in
what is now the town of Essex, N. Y., at the home of
one of William Gilliland's tenants. Proceeding on the
journey, Montreal was reached on April 29.
Travelling in an open boat, and sleeping under an
awning, or in a rude forest hut during April weather in
this north country, was not an agreeable experience for
Benjamin Franklin. He was then seventy years old
and was not in robust health, although the most impor-
tant part of his life work remained to be done. Father
Carroll was not able to aid the American cause as he
had hoped to do, and the commission accomplished
little, therefore the priest and Doctor Franklin left
Montreal on May 11, and returned by way of Lake
Champlain, reaching Ticonderoga early in June. The
other commissioners returned later. The reverses of the
American army and the lack of hard money were
obstacles too serious to permit the accomplishment of
any services of material importance by this, or any,
special commission.
During the winter Arnold continued the siege of
Quebec with only about four hundred men fit for duty.
Late in January, 1776, reinforcements arrived, recruit-
ing the strength of the besieging force to nine hundred
and sixty men, of whom less than eight hundred were fit
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 523
for duty. In a short time smallpox broke out, adding
greatly to the sufferings already experienced.
Gen. John Thomas arrived May 1 and took command
of the army before Quebec, which now numbered about
nineteen hundred men, and this force soon was increased
to three thousand soldiers. At this late period Congress
had seen the necessity of reinforcing the Canadian army.
General Sullivan was given command of the new
brigade, Stark and Wayne being among the officers.
The smallpox proved a more dangerous enemy than the
British soldiers. Of the three thousand men before
Quebec all but about nine hundred at one time were ren-
dered unfit for duty by the disease.
Finding the army in no condition for aggressive serv-
ice, lacking provisions, and learning that heavy rein-
forcements of British troops were expected soon. Gen-
eral Thomas retreated in haste to the mouth of the
Richelieu River, abandoning artillery, stores, baggage,
and some of the sick. Here he was stricken with small-
pox, and being removed to Chambly, died there on June 2.
The command now devolved upon Gen. John Sulli-
van. The British army, meanwhile, had been rein-
forced by the arrival of thirteen thousand men under
General Burgoyne. Schuyler had found it a difficult
matter to collect and forward by way of Lake Cham-
plain provisions for three thousand men. After Sulli-
van's arrival the army in Canada needed daily twelve
thousand pounds of pork and the same amount of flour.
The pork was obtained but the average daily shipment
of flour did not exceed two thousand pounds.
524 HISTORY OF VERMONT
A council of officers was called, which advised a re-
treat. On June 14, therefore, General Sullivan aban-
doned his position at Sorel, and set out for St. Johns.
The next day Arnold, who had been in command at
Montreal, left that city with his troops, marching across
country to Chambly. Burgoyne followed the retreating
Americans, but was ordered not to risk anything until
he was reinforced. Determined to save their remain-
ing artillery and stores, the Americans, many of them
still weak and ill from the effects of smallpox, plunged
into the water, and by sheer strength of muscle drew
more than one hundred heavily loaded bateaux over the
rapids of the Richelieu, working often up to their waists
in the water. Three vessels, three gondolas, and all the
boats that could not be brought away, were burned. As
the advance guard of the British army entered Chambly,
the American rear guard marched out.
The retreating army under Sullivan reached St. Johns
on June 17, about half of the troops being ill, and all of
them ragged and hungry. Taking such things as could
be transported, they applied the torch to the fort and
barracks, secured such boats as they needed, destroyed
all craft they did not need for the conveyance of the
troops, and pushed on to Isle aux Noix, reaching that
post on June 18. On this day Gen. Horatio Gates was
appointed to command the forces in Canada, an empty
honor indeed, and one which circumstances made it im-
possible to accept.
While at Isle aux Noix General Sullivan wrote to Gen-
eral Washington, saying: "I find myself under an
absolute necessity of quitting this island for a place
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 525
more healthy, otherwise the army will never be able to
return, as one fortnight longer in this place will not
leave us well men enough to carry off the sick, exclusive
of the publick stores, which I have preserved thus far.
The raging of the smallpox deprives us of whole regi-
ments in the course of a few days, by their being taken
down with that cruel disorder. But this is not all. The
camp disorder rages to such a degree that of the regi-
ments remaining, from twenty to sixty in each are taken
down in a day, and we have nothing to give them but
salt pork, flour and the poisonous waters of this lake. I
have therefore determined, with the unanimous voice of
the officers, to remove to Isle La Motte, a place much
more healthy than this, where I have some hope we shall
preserve the health of the few men we have till some
order is taken respecting our future movements."
Writing to Washington again from Isle aux Noix,
June 25, Sullivan said: *'I shall today remove from this
infectious place to Isle La Motte, which I should have
done before now, had not too many of our batteaus gone
forward with the sick to Crown Point." Another letter
contains the information that the sick sent from Canada
to Crown Point amounted to upwards of three thou-
sand men. According to a letter written by Dr. Samuel
J. Meyrick, surgeon of a Massachusetts regiment, the
sick left Isle aux Noix on June 20, and arrived at Crown
Point on June 25.
It was proposed that one thousand men should go
from Isle aux Noix to Isle La Motte, the greater part
of the way by land, while the remaining troops should be
transported to that place in bateaux. Isle La Motte had
526 HISTORY OF VERMONT
been a sort of half-way-house between Ticonderoga and
Canada since the invasion of the northern province was
begun, and provisions had been deposited there that had
never gone farther toward Canada. It is evident that
the stay of the army at Isle La Motte was not a long
one, for a letter from General Sullivan to John Hancock,
written from Crown Point on July 2, announced that
the Northern army had arrived at that place from Isle
La Motte on the previous evening. Bancroft says that
the voyage to Crown Point was made "in leaky boats
which had no awnings, with no food but raw pork and
hard bread or unbaked flour."
Col. John Trumbull, son of Governor Trumbull of
Connecticut, and later a famous painter, writing of this
period, said : "My first duty upon my arrival at Crown
Point was to procure a return of the number and condi-
tion of the troops. I found them dispersed, some few
in tents, some in sheds, and more under the shelter of
miserable brush huts, so totally disorganized by the
death or sickness of officers that the distinction of regi-
ments and corps was in a great degree lost; so that I
was driven to the necessity of great personal examina-
tion, and I can truly say that I did not look into tent or
hut in which I did not find either a dead or dying man.
I can scarcely imagine any more disastrous scene, except
the retreat of Bonaparte from Moscow. * * * j
found the whole number of officers and men to be five
thousand, two hundred, and the sick who required the
attentions of an hospital were two thousand, eight hun-
dred (2,800)."
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 527
As early as May 31, General Arnold had written
General Gates: "I am heartily chagrined to think we
have lost in one month all the immortal Montgomery
was a whole campaign in gaining, together with our
credit, and many men, and an amazing sum of money."
Now, at the end of another month, the situation seemed
still worse. An army of invalids had returned from an
unsuccessful invasion. One of the most promising
American officers, perhaps the most promising, with the
single exception of Washington, had fallen before the
walls of Quebec. Apparently the campaign had ended
most ingloriously. And yet, Sullivan's retreat had
been a masterly one. At least, the campaign had de-
layed the invasion of the American colonies by the
British forces in Canada, and had given the troops ex-
perience in warfare of a very practical nature. If the
American invasion had been begun a little earlier, in
accordance with the pleadings of Ethan Allen, or if the
campaign once begun had been pressed with greater
vigor, then, possibly, Canada might have become a por-
tion of the American nation when independence was de-
clared at Philadelphia on July 4, 1776.
The defeat of the American army was hard enough
to endure, but the ravages of disease made it a still more
pitiable object. When the sick were ordered from Isle
aux Noix to Crown Point, some regiments did not con-
tain a sufficient number of healthy men to row them
away, and other regiments were called upon to furnish
oarsmen. Sullivan wrote John Hancock on July 2:
"To give you a particular account of the miserable state
of our troops there (at Crown Point) and the numbers
528 HISTORY OF VERMONT
which daily keep dropping into their beds and graves,
would rather seem like the effect of imagination than a
history of facts." He adds: "I have ordered all the
sick to be removed at a distance from the other troops,
that the sight of such pitiful objects may not disperse the
rest."
John Adams described the Northern army at this time
as "disgraced, defeated, discontented, dispirited, undis-
ciplined, eaten with vermin, no clothes, beds, blankets,
nor medicines, and no victuals but salt pork and flour."
Although the army remained only about ten days at
Crown Point, being removed to Ticonderoga, they left
behind as a grim reminder of their encampment there,
three hundred freshly made graves. A hospital was
established at the head of Lake George, to which the
smallpox patients were removed.
About the time of the arrival of the army at Crown
Point, Governor Trumbull of Connecticut wrote John
Hancock that "the smallpox is a more terrible enemy
than the British troops, and strikes a greater dread into
our men who have never had it." A little later, on July
29, Governor Trumbull drew this picture of the army
on Lake Champlain: "There are now 3,000 sick and
about 3,000 well ; this leaves near 5,000 to be accounted
for; of these the enemy have cost perhaps LOOO — sick-
ness another LOOO — which leaves near 3,000; in what
manner they are disposed of is unknown. Among those
who remain there is neither order, subordination, or har-
mony, the officers as well as men of one colony insult-
ing and quarrelling with those of another. * * * ^
reform is absolutely necessary; the soldiers are ragged,
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 529
dirty, and many lousy; clothing greatly wanted — some
destitute of sufficiency to make themselves comfortable
and decent to appear."
Not only was the condition of the Northern army
miserable, and the country at large discouraged by the
failure of the Canadian expedition, but absolute terror
prevailed in the more northerly settlements of the New
Hampshire Grants. The situation was forcibly stated
by Governor Trumbull of Connecticut in a letter to the
President of the Continental Congress, in which he said :
"I have received information by several persons that
the inhabitants on the New Hampshire Grants, on the
northern frontier of the province of New York, are in
the highest consternation on the retreat of the army
from Canada, from an apprehended attack of the sav-
ages. Some of their settlements are breaking up, and all
are in danger of being soon deserted. Should they fall
back on the older plantations, the enemy would derive
great advantages from their improvements and build-
ings, to fall on and distress the frontiers; and the in-
convenience they may bring with them, and the terror
they will spread, may produce the most unhappy con-
sequences. May I not venture to suggest the expediency
of raising a battalion of troops, in the pay of the Con-
tinent, upon those Grants? The inhabitants, inured to
hardship, and acquainted with the country, may rival
the Indians in their own mode of making war, will sup-
port that frontier, and leave the more interior settle-
ments at liberty to assist in the general defence of the
Colonies. If they are not put under pay, their poverty
is such they can hire no laborers to carry on their farm-
530 HISTORY OF VERMONT
ing business in their absence. Should they go out as
militia without pay, the failure of one crop would effec-
tually break up their settlements."
This action on the part of Governor Trumbull may
have been in response to an appeal made to him by David
Galusha, chairman of a committee of people of the New
Hampshire Grants, and forwarded to Connecticut by
Capt. Samuel Herrick, in which it was stated that the
messenger would describe "the wretched situation the
northern frontiers on the New Hampshire Grants are
at present in." The letter continues: "We would
acquaint Your Honor that we view our present situation
to be distressing, and our present hope of relief very
uncertain. We are much concerned for the preserva-
tion of the lives of the inhabitants in particular, and
the safety of the county in general. We are not willing
to breed any confusion by proposing a method contrary
to rule, but are willing to furnish any number of troops
in our power on application." The advice and encour-
agement of Governor Trumbull was asked in the per-
ilous situation, a very natural proceeding, as a large
proportion of the settlers of this region, particularly in
the western portion, were emigrants from Connecticut,
and had kept in close touch with the people of that
province.
A petition from a committee representing the inhab-
itants of the New Hampshire Grants was presented to
General Sullivan by Col. Thomas Chittenden and Capt.
Heman Allen, saying: "We are greatly alarmed at the
retreat of our army out of Canada and the news of the
savages killing a number of our men on the west side
of Lake Champlain; in consequence of which events the
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 531
frontier settlements are removing their families into
the country; but the inhabitants thus remaining, being
greatly desirous that the frontier settlements should be
protected, and anxious to return and secure their crops,
we earnestly beg and entreat Your Honour to send a
guard to Onion River, or some other place which Your
Honour shall think most advantageous to the army and
inhabitants. We are much alarmed on account of our
unhappy situation, and would express our great concern
for the invaded liberties of the Colonies in general. We
have a number of good woodsmen, well acquainted with
firearms; and should Your Honour, in your wisdom,
think proper and give leave, we would immediately
raise a battalion of effective men for the defense of
the United Colonies, and the frontiers of New Hamp-
shire Grants in particular. And likewise earnestly de-
sire that Your Honour would give orders that our
frontier towns, which are destitute, may be supplied with
ammunition, as Your Honour shall think proper."
This petition was signed by Joseph Woodward, Josiah
Bowker, Zebulon Mead, John Smith, Jonathan Faucett
(Fassett), Charles Brewster, Thomas Tuttle, Thomas
Rice, Elkanah Cook, Joseph Smith, lieber Allen, John
Smith 2nd, James Claghorn and William Post, as a
Committee of Safety for several towns on the New
Hampshire Grants.
In transmitting the foregoing petition to John Han-
cock, General Sullivan observed that "Colonel Warner
offers to raise a regiment to protect that quarter (Onion
River). This I could not consent to, as I have no such
authority; but beg leave to recommend it to Congress,
as those men are much better calculated for this purpose
532 HISTORY OF VERMONT
than any others, as they have such a thorough knowl-
edge of the country."
General Sullivan declared that he had sent Colonel
Winds and one hundred and fifty men to take post at
Onion River until the pleasure of Congress could be
learned. He added : "The reason of my sending a chief
Colonel with so small a detachment is because he cannot
do duty anywhere else for fear of the smallpox; this
is also the case with most of the men who are with him."
In a letter to General Washington, dated July 2, Gen-
eral Sullivan said he had given every assistance in his
power to remove the inhabitants from the frontier, and
mentioned the stationing of Colonel Winds at Onion
River to guard that region until he could write Generals
Washington and Schuyler. He added: "Doubtless
they will make some order upon it, which I hope will be
that Colonel Warner, of the Green Mountains, shall
raise men for that purpose, as I think those men much
better calculated to defend that part of the country than
any others."
The people of Panton, on July 3, appealed to General
Gates, at Ticonderoga, for protection, and on the fol-
lowing day sent a letter of thanks to Gates for sending
Captain Hay to confer with them. The petitioners de-
sired that "the standing stock of our farms" should
be appraised, so that any losses might be borne by the
whole community, in proportion to the value of each
individual's property. A request was made that a fort
or forts might be erected into which the people of that
township might retire every night. They were ready
to put themselves under the command of any officer
that might be designated, until the crops were harvested.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 533
providing they were not called to go farther north than
Onion River, or farther south than Ticonderoga. It
is evident that General Gates made a good impression
upon the Panton committee, as the letter concludes as
follows: "Permit us to wish that Your Honour may
be long continued in the chief command over us, as the
easy access the distressed find to your ear is a convinc-
ing proof you will do everything in your power to ren-
der us as happy as the present situation of affairs will
admit of."
The Poultney Committee of Safety, of which Heber
Allen, a brother of Ethan and Ira Allen, was a member,
applied to General Gates, on July 29, by Lieut. Josiah
Grout, "for fifty weight of powder and one hundred and
fifty weight of lead, for a town stock," on the ground
that other frontier towns had applied for such aid from
the Continental stores. Their strength, patriotic senti-
ments and political conditions were succinctly stated in
these two short sentences: "We are upwards of fifty,
able to bear arms when called for. We are for liberty in
general, and don't know that there is one dam'd Tory
in this town."
A council of general officers, consisting of Generals
Schuyler, Gates, Sullivan and Arnold, transmitted to
Congress, on July 8, resolutions declaring that it was
advisable to raise six companies from among the inhab-
itants on the east side of Lake Champlain, each com-
pany consisting of one Captain, two Lieutenants, three
Sergeants, three Corporals and fifty privates. It was
stated that Colonel Warner and others had represented
that the people of the region mentioned would be com-
pelled to leave their homes unless a body of men should
534 HISTORY OF VERMONT
be stationed on the east side of the lake, north of the
settlements, "to prevent the incursions of the savages,"
and expressed a willingness to raise a body of men for
the Continental service.
Nathan Clark wrote General Schuyler from Man-
chester, July 16, enclosing the proceedings of the com-
mittees of the several towns on the New Hampshire
Grants, at which time officers were nominated to raise
the six companies previously suggested. The request
was made that Colonel Warner should command the
officers with Maj. Samuel Safford second in command.
The list of officers appointed to raise men for the sev-
eral companies included six Captains, Wait Hopkins,
Samuel Herrick, Jonathan Fassett, Ira Allen, Lemuel
Clerk (Clark), and Thomas Ransom.
News did not travel rapidly in those days, and when
some of the foregoing appeals were made it was not
known that on July 5, the day following the adoption
of the Declaration of Independence, upon recommenda-
tion of the Board of War, the Continental Congress had
voted to raise a regiment ''out of the officers who served
in Canada," and that the following officers should be
appointed : Colonel, Seth Warner ; Lieutenant Colonel,
Samuel Safford; Major, Elisha Painter; Captains, Wait
Hopkins, John Grant, Gideon Brounson, Ayiather
Angel, Simeon Smith, Joshua Stanton (Abner) Seeley,
Jacob Vorsboorong.
Ira Allen wrote to the New Hampshire Committee of
Safety, from Onion River, July 10: "I learn you are
alarmed at the retreat of our army out of Canada. Can
assure you the savages have killed and scalped a num-
ber of men by the river La Cole, on the west side of
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 535
Lake Champlain. When they will visit us or you is
uncertain. Advise you to look sharp and keep scouts
out, but not to move except some families much remote
from the main inhabitants. Last Saturday was at Crown
Point with General Sullivan. He assured me he would
do all in his power to protect the frontier settlements.
I proposed a line of forts by the river to Cohos (Coos).
He said he believed that to be the best place and made
no doubt but it would be done. He immediately ordered
Colonel Waits and two hundred men to this place, here
to remain and grant all protection to the inhabitants."
In a letter written to Governor Trumbull of Con-
necticut about this time, following an allusion to a peti-
tion from the inhabitants of Onion River, reference is
made to a communication from General Schuyler in
which it is stated that he (Schuyler) with Generals
Gates and Arnold, were to set out Tuesday morning.
The hope is expressed that ''their presence may have
a happy effect towards affairs in that quarter." This
would seem to indicate that Generals Schuyler, Gates
and Arnold had gone to Onion River.
Col. Joseph Wait wrote Colonel Hurd from Onion
River, on July 20, saying that when he was ordered
there with two hundred men he had expected to be sta-
tioned at that place until fall and to have built some
stockade forts along that river and down the opposite
side of the mountain range to Newbury; but other or-
ders having been issued, he expected to join the army
again in five or six days.
Eleven inhabitants of Onion River petitioned General
Gates, on August 6, asking for assistance, saying that
one family, consisting of five persons, had been cap-
536 HISTORY OF VERMONT
tured, and expressing a desire for a guard to permit the
harvesting of their valuable crops, or aid in the removal
of their families.
If Colonel Winds had been stationed at Onion
River earlier in the season he had not remained there
long, as he wrote General Gates from Shelburne, on
July 15, saying he was there by permission of General
Sullivan, with twenty-six men, and he had built a stock-
ade fort for the safety of himself and the inhabitants.
It is possible that the term Onion River was broad
enough to include the region as far south as Shelburne,
as a petition from the people of that town, dated July
19, 1776, mentions the fact that Colonel Winds and
fourteen men obtained leave from General Sullivan to
stop there, which obviated the necessity of the imme-
diate abandonment of the settlement upon the retreat
of the American army from Canada. Acting in con-
junction with Colonel Winds, the settlers built a stock-
ade fort, evidently at what is now known as Shelburne
Harbor, as the petition declared that "the place where
the fort stands is a very good harbor," and reference
is made to the fact that boats often are obliged to put
in there to avoid "sudden gusts in the summer." The
petition says: "We, the inhabitants, being but few in
number, and having considerable large crops of wheat
and other grain in the ground, besides stocks of cattle,
we hereby beseech that His Excellency would be gra-
ciously pleased, if he thinks it consistent with the good
of the service, to let some of the men who were there
go back again, or some others as a small guard." Among
the signers were Moses Pierson, James Logan and Lod-
wick Poter (probably Pottier).
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 537
Ten of the inhabitants sent a petition to Genefal
Gates, on August 6, 1776, telling of the capture by the
enemy of 'Xodowick Potter, one of our neighbors,"
who was carried away with his wife and children some
time the previous week, and urgently requested that a
guard be sent, for their protection, saying that the
gathering of a large harvest had just been commenced.
This was on the same day on which the inhabitants of
Onion River appealed to General Gates for a guard.
Not only the inhabitants of the Champlain valley, but
also the people of the Connecticut valley east of the
Green Mountains, were alarmed at the retreat of the
American troops from Canada. At a meeting held at
Dartmouth College, July 5, 1776, delegates were present
from Lyme, Hanover and Lebanon, on the east side of
the river and Thetford, Norwich and Hartford, on the
west side of the river. At this meeting it was voted to
raise fifty men exclusive of officers, to go to Royal ton
and fortify a post there, "and scout from thence to the
Onion River and Newbury," and to appoint a committee
of three to build and supply such post; to raise two
hundred and fifty men, exclusive of officers, to go to
Newbury, "to fortify, scout and guard them for three
months." Colonels Bayley, Johnson and Olcott were
appointed a committee to direct the affairs of the New-
bury department.
A letter from Colonel Plurd to the New Hampshire
Committee of Safety, dated July 7, 1776, contained the
following information : "By several persons I have met
with on the road coming from Coos, and by the last
intelligence I can collect, I find the inhabitants there,
especially those on and near the Connecticut River, from
538 HISTORY OF VERMONT
the Upper to the Lower Coos, are much more alarmed
and apprehensive of danger from the enemy than we
imagine; several families are already removed and re-
moving from thence."
The Continental Congress was not unmindful of the
appeals for aid for the northern frontier of New Eng-
land, and, as previously mentioned, it voted to raise a
regiment "out of the officers who served in Canada."
All, or nearly all of these officers, were men of the New
Hampshire Grants. This regiment, according to the
resolution authorizing its enlistment, was to be raised
on the same terms as that which Colonel Dubois had
been authorized to raise. These terms were that the
regiment was to be raised for three years, or during
the war; that the officers should be ''such as have served
with credit in Canada" ; that no officer was to be commis-
sioned until his company was raised and armed; and
that the arms for the soldiers were to be paid for "by
the Continent."
According to Matthew Lyon the authorization of the
Continental regiment to be commanded by Warner,
practically put a stop to recruiting for the six com-
panies authorized by General Gates, to be raised in the
New Hampshire Grants for the protection of the north-
ern frontiers, and which organization it had been
planned that Warner should command. Matthew Lyon
had been named as a Second Lieutenant in one of the
six companies and had raised some men, but finding
that only two companies and a part of another had been
recruited, and that the business was "falling into su-
pineness," he asked and received permission from Gen-
eral Gates to enter Warner's Continental regiment.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 539
Colonel Warner wrote from Albany to the President
of the Continental Congress, on October 4, protesting
against the delay in settling his accounts, evidently for
the Canadian campaign, and saying ''the repeated de-
lays I have met with are a great prejudice to the raising
of the new regiment for which I have orders. Some of
the men who were in service the last winter's campaign
are in great necessity for their pay."
Not much information is available concerning the
part taken by the regiment of Green Mountain Boys
during the later phases of the Canadian campaign. In
his "Memoirs of Col. Seth Warner," Daniel Chipman
says : "Warner took a position exposed to the greatest
danger and requiring the utmost care and vigilance.
He was always in the rear, picking up the wounded
and diseased, assisting and encouraging those who were
least able to take care of themselves, and generally kept
but a few miles in advance of the British, who closely
pursued the Americans from post to post. By calmly
and steadily pursuing this course, by his habitual vig-
ilance and care, Warner brought off most of the in-
valids, and with this corps of the diseased and the infirm,
arrived at Ticonderoga a few days after the main army
had taken possession of that post."
Colonel Bedel wrote to General Gates on July 13 that
he had just received intelligence from the frontier towns
on the Connecticut River, "that the inhabitants there are
in general in great terror on account of the savages, and
a great number of them have left their farms with their
families; some remain, making stockade forts round
their houses to defend themselves. And as the savages
from St. Francis &c. are the only ones near them at
540 HISTORY OF VERMONT
present, I am in a great measure, inclined to think that I
could in a short time raise such a number of them as
would be able to defend that part, as the savages from
other parts would never venture that way when they
found friendly savages protecting us."
The determination of a council of general officers,
held on July 7, to abandon Crown Point, aroused much
opposition, although a small force was maintained there
until autumn. On July 8, the day following the decision
to abandon Crown Point, Col. John Stark and twenty
other field officers, respectfully protested to General
Schuyler against such a policy, saying that Crown Point
could not be retaken ''without an amazing expense of
blood and treasure." In their opinion such a step would
open a plain and easy passage for the enemy "into the
heart of the four New England governments and fron-
tiers of New York" ; and also "must occasion the retir-
ing of hundreds of families from their farms and quit-
ting their crops of grain which would be much more
than sufficient to maintain themselves, and drive them
upon other towns, which must occasion a consumption
of whatever could be spared for the public source, if n3i
a famine amongst them."
Concerning this matter General Washington in a
forceful manner wrote to John Hancock on July 19,
saying: "I confess the determination of the council of
general officers on the 7th to retreat from Crown Point,
surprised me much ; and the more I consider it th^ more
striking does the impropriety appear. The reasons
assigned against it by the field officers in their remon-
strance coincide greatly with my own ideas and those of
Lake Dunmore and Aloosalamoo [Mountain
— -t
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 541
the other general officers I have had an opportunity of
consulting with, and seem to be of considerable weight
— I may add, conclusive."
Writing the same day to General Gates, Washington
called Crown Point "a key to all these colonies," and
added these significant words: "Nothing but a belief
that you have actually removed the army from Crown
Point to Ticonderoga, and demolished the works at the
former, and the fear of creating dissensions and en-
couraging a spirit of remonstrating against the conduct
of superior officers by inferiors, have prevented me, by
advice of the general officers from directing the post at
Crown Point to be held till Congress should decide upon
the propriety of its evacuation. * * * j niust, how-
ever, express my sorrow at the resolution of your coun-
cil, and wish that it had never happened, as everybody
who speaks of it also does, and that the measure could
yet be changed with propriety."
A rather sharp correspondence followed between
Washington and Schuyler concerning the practical aban-
donment of Crown Point by the American forces.
The story of the part taken by the people of the New
Hampshire Grants in the Canadian campaign would be
incomplete without reference to the military road which
Gen. Jacob Bayley attempted to build from the Con-
necticut River to Canada. Writing from Newbury,
November 24, 1775, to his brother-in-law. Col. Moses
Little, concerning Canadian affairs, General Bayley ad-
vocated the building of a road by which St. Johns might
be reached more easily, and in this letter alluded to the
fact that in October, 1773, Bayley, Little and "Esquire
542 HISTORY OF VERMONT
Stevens" sent out a surveying party, which marked a
road from Newbury to Missisquoi Bay, two-thirds of
the distance to St. Johns, according to Bayley's estimate.
Frye Bayley, Abiel Chamberlin and Silas ChamberHn
left Newbury on February 1, 1776, on snow shoes over
the proposed route for Montreal, bearing a letter to Gen-
eral Wooster. On the sixth day out they reached Mr.
Metcalf's, at or near what is now the village of S wanton,
and observed that this route was "the best country for
a road either of us ever saw." On the seventh day they
reached St. Johns, and on the eighth day they arrived
at Montreal, remaining there two and one-half days. A
stop was made at Mr. Metcalf's settlement on the way
back, and Newbury was reached on February 18. Gen-
eral Bayley wrote General Washington on April 15 at
some length concerning the proposed road, saying: "It
will appear that the cost of making the road will be
saved in the soldiers marching home from Canada, at
the close of the present campaign, as it will save six
days' pay and provisions for all that live eastward of
Connecticut River." He added: "If I can be of any
service to the American cause in cutting the proposed
road, or any other way, I am ready. I should think
one hundred picked men from this army or elsewhere
will be enough to be employed in that business."
It was estimated that the distance from Portsmouth,
N. H., to St. Johns was ninety-three miles shorter by
way of Newbury than by Charlestown, N. H. (Number
Four), and Crown Point; from Boston to St. Johns
eighty-two miles nearer by way of Newbury than by
way of Crown Point; from Hartford, Conn., to St.
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 543
Johns, eighty-six miles nearer by way of Newbury than
by way of Albany.
The reply of General Washington, dated April 29,
is of sufficient importance to give in full. He says : "I
received your favor of the 23rd instant, with Mr. Met-
calf's plan, and Captain Johnson's journal of the route
from Newbury to St. Johns. The representation that
was transmitted to me by the hands of Colonel Little, I
had sent to Congress. Mr. Witherspoon has been since
sent to examine or explore a route; but I hear he is still
at Cohoos. The time of the Congress is so taken up
with many objects of consequence that it is impossible
for them to attend to everything; and as it is of impor-
tance that every communication with Canada should be
made as free as possible, it is my opinion and desire
that you set about the road you propose as soon as pos-
sible. As you must be the best judge who to employ,
you will please to take the whole upon yourself. We
cannot, at this time, spare soldiers, you must therefore
engage such men as you know will do the business faith-
fully and well. As to their wages, you must agree with
them on the most reasonable terms, and I doubt not that
you will, in this and every other instance, serve your
country with integrity, honour and justice. As you go
on, you will, upon every opportunity, keep me advised,
and I will provide for the expense, which you will be
careful in making as light as possible."
P. S. '*l send you by Mr. William Wallace two hun-
dred and fifty pounds, lawful money, to begin with."
The Continental Congress voted, on May 10, 1776,
"That as the road recommended by General Washington
544 HISTORY OF VERMONT
to be opened between the towns of Newbury, on Con-
necticut River, and the province of Canada, will facili-
tate the march and return of the troops employed in that
quarter, and promote the public service, the General be
directed to prosecute the plan he has formed respecting
the said road."
Having received General Washington's orders on
May 17, General Bayley called together the Committees
of Safety of Haverhill, N. H., and Newbury, on May
18, and consulted with those committees regarding the
wages to be paid, and the amount was fixed at ten dol-
lars per month. On May 21 two men were sent out to
engage laborers for two or three months and the neces-
sary utensils and supplies were purchased in Hartford,
Conn. Having heard of the retreat from Quebec, Gen-
eral Bayley thought it might be advantageous to the
Continental army to cut a bridle path over which men
and cattle might pass, before the wagon road was com-
pleted, and on May 27 he ordered ten men to perform
this task.
Col. Thomas Johnson, with several men, was detailed
to blaze out the road. They were followed by James
Whitelaw of Ryegate, who surveyed the route, and Gen-
eral Bayley with his party of laborers performed the
work of road building. The road began in the north-
eastern part of the town of Newbury, at the present
location of Wells River village, and passed through the
towns of Ryegate, Barnet and Peacham. The construc-
tion work had been carried about six miles beyond
Peacham, probably to a point in the town of Cabot,
THE CANADIAN CAMPAIGN 545
when scouts came in with news that Canadian troops
were advancing along the trail blazed out for this road.
The road builders hastily abandoned their task and it
was not resumed until the summer of 1779.
The itemized account which General Bayley submitted
to General Washington showed that one hundred and
ten men were employed forty-five days each. With the
provisions furnished each man received daily half a
pint of rum. The total amount of the bill submitted
was nine hundred eighty-two pounds, six shillings, five
and a half pence, lawful money.
Committees of Safety from Bath and Haverhill,
N. H., and Bradford met at General Bayley's house to
make plans for the protection of the people of the
vicinity. The inhabitants of Peacham and Ryegate
came to Newbury for protection. Most of the settlers
from the Upper Coos region fled to Haverhill or to Con-
cord, N. H. Joseph Chamberlin, with a scout of ten
men, was sent out to look for the enemy, but no trace of
the Canadian soldiers was found, and the settlers soon
returned to their homes.
General Bayley desired to keep in the Continental
service sixty men enlisted by him for road building
operations, for guarding the frontiers and for scouting
purposes. The New Hampshire Committee of Safety,
on July 18, asked General Bayley, in the event that the
Continental troops were disbanded to enlist fifty men
under the pay of that colony, to serve until December 1.
The general result of the retreat from Canada was to
leave the people of the New Hampshire Grants in a
546 HISTORY OF VERMONT
condition of alarm, and this was particularly true of
that portion of the people occupying the northern fron-
tiers. Conditions, however, were to be worse before
they were materially better.
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