USA > Vermont > Early history of Vermont, Vol. III > Part 1
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24
Go 974.3 W645e v.3 1790973
M. L.
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01085 9384
480
EARLY HISTORY
.
-OF-
VERMONT.
1. BY LA FAYETTE WILBUR,
OF JERICHO, VT.
VOLUME III.
Val. 3
"Great things thro' greatest hazards, are achieved, And then they shine."
JERICHO, VT. ROSCOE PRINTING HOUSE. 1902.
480
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F
Wilbur, La Fayette, 1834-
$43 .96
Early history of Vermont. By La Fayette Wilbur ... Jeri- cho, Vt., Roscoe printing house, 1899-1903. 4 v. plates, port. 21}cm.
1. Vermont -- Ilist .- To 1701.
Library of Congress F52.W66
- Copy 2.
99-3875 Revised
1790973
F 843,96
Entered according to act of Congress, 1902 by LAFAYETTE WILBUR, In the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. D. C.
'Twas blow for blow, disputing inch by inch. For one would not retreat nor t'other flinch .- Byron.
Now no more the drum Provokes to arms, or trumpet's clangour shrill Affrights the wives, or chills the virgin's blood : But joy and pleasure open to the view Uninterrupted - Philips.
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PREFACE.
In continuing the Early History of Vermont in this third volume, we pass for a time from the con- sideration of war and from the troublesome scenes of Vermont's early settlers, and the struggles inci- dent to pioneer life, to the consideration of the arts of peace. When the controversy of New York had ceased and an amicable adjustment of the sub- jects of contention, that have been so fully por- trayed in the preceding volumes, had been reach- ed, the leading minds of the State at once began to inquire what should be done to advance the interests of the young and growing State, that it might take a position of influence among the Fed- eral States of the Union, and that her people might keep pace with the advancing state of civilization. The leading men of Vermont during the time of the struggle for an independent posi- tion, showed they were persons of courage and ability with practical experience, and equal to any men of the nation in managing the affairs of the State and fostering her material interests. Ver- mont being an inland State, the attention of her citizens were turned to the subject of increasing facilities of communication in the State, and the improvement of her water-ways, not only within the State, but to establish facilities of communica- tion with other States and foreign nations. These
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EARLY HISTORY
subjects and internal improvements generally are considered in Chapter I.
Many years after the Revolution had closed, General Lafayette, who did so much to enable the American Colonies to establish their independence, visited America and paid a visit to Vermont. The subject of his visit, and also the visit of President. Monroe and Henry Clay to Vermont, are consid- ered in Chapter II. The unfriendly conduct of the British towards the United States, undoubtedly, growing out of the loss of the Colonies to them, causing disturbance on the Northern Frontier, claims the attention of the reader in Chapter III.
The Internal affairs of the State and of the United States, so far as they concern Vermont, are considered in Chapters IV., V., and VI. The causes of the second war with Great Britain and the his- tory of that war, so far as it affected our State, are considered in Chapter VII., VIII., and IX.
There were but few Indians who made the wilderness of Vermont their place of abode; they used the lands of Vermont as their hunting grounds, but from 1798, until 1874, from time to time they persistently urged the Vermont Legisla- ture to grant them compensation for their hunt- ing grounds. These claims are considered in Chapter X.
The place of holding the Sessions of the Legisla- ture, the description of the Capitol buildings, Li- brary and Supreme Court rooms are given in Chapter XI.
In the two following Chapters, the sketches of the lives of the early Vermonters, commenced in the
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second volume, are continued. The description of these characters show that many of the early set- tlers in Vermont were men of more than common courage, ability, and unswerving patriotism. The last Chapter gives a further list of State officials. When one looks back and studies the lives of those who were prominently instrumental in establish- ing Vermont's independence, and then making her one of the States of the American Union, and aid- ing in developing her resources and making her sec- ond to no other State, in proportion to her pop- ulation and size, every citizen of the State may well feel proud of Vermont and her pioneers.
LAFAYETTE WILBUR.
Jericho, Vt., January 1, 1902.
NO UNIFY
He lives in fume that died in virine's cause.
Oh. peace! thou source and soul of social life; Beneath whose calm, inspiring influence Science his view enlarges, Art refines, And swelling Commerce opens all her ports: Blest be the man divine who gave us thee !- Thomson.
"Breathes there a man with soul so dead. Who never to himself bath said- "This is my own- my native land !"
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I. (Page 1.) INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
CHAPTER II. ( Page 40.)
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS TO THE STATE IN ITS EARLY DAYS.
CHAPTER III. (Page 76.)
'DISTURBANCES AND BRITISH AGGRESSION ON THE NORTHERN FRONTIER FROM 1791 TO 179S AND VER- MONT'S PART THEREIN.
CHAPTER IV. (Page 108 )
ACCEPTANCE AND RESIGNATION OF OFFICIAL PO- SITIONS-EXTRADITION OF FUGITIVES FROM JUSTICE -COLONIZATION SOCIETY-SLAVERY.
CHAPTER V. (Page 131.)
INCIDENTS, LEGISLATION AND INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF VERMONT FROM 1791 TO 1808.
CHAPTER YI. (Page 149.)
INCIDENTS, LEGISLATION, EMBARGO, SMUGGLING AND INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF VERMONT FROM 1808 TO 1836.
CHAPTER VII. (Page 173.)
BRITISH AGGRESSION AND CAUSE OF THE WAR OF 1812 AND VERMONT'S ATTITUDE RESPECTING IT.
CHAPTER VIII. (Page 196.) VERMONT IN THE WAR OF 1812-1814. .
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ERRATA.
On page 8, line 14, word "ertificate" should read "certificate " On page 47, line 1, word "horses" should read "shores." On page 74. line 8, name "Edward" should read "Lewis.". On page 114, line 2, word "era" should read "area." On page 161, line 25. word "branch" should follow "each." On page 194, line 1, word "were" should read "was."
On page 238, line 13, word "minutable" should read "immutable."
On page 250, line 14. word "silence" should read "silencing."
On page 259, line 10, word "partis" should read "parties."
On page 264, line 20, letters "ce" should be joined with "for" in same line.
On page 3!4, last line, the date "1768" should read "1798."
On page 373, in line 8 from bottom, "principles" should read "princi- pals.
On page 384, "+ resigned November, 1890" should be erased.
CE On page 382 of Volume II. in line 6 from the bottom, the name "Ben- nington" should read "Brattleboro."
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CHAPTER IX. (Page 225.) WAR OF 1812-1814 .- CONTINUED. CHAPTER X. (Page 284.) CLAIMS OF INDIANS TO LAND IN VERMONT. CHAPTER XI. (Page 315.)
THE PLACE OF HOLDING THE LEGISLATIVE SES- SIONS, THE CAPITOL AND LIBRARY BUILDINGS, AND SUPREME COURT ROOMS.
CHAPTER XII. (Page. 340.)
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF PIONEERS OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS AND VERMONT.
CHAPTER XIII. (Page 359.)
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF PIONEERS OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS AND VERMONT .- CON- TINUED.
CHAPTER XIV. (Page 380.)
LIST OF TREASURERS, SECRETARIES OF STATE, AUDITORS OF ACCOUNTS, SPEAKERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, CLERKS OF THE HOUSE, SEC- RETARIES OF THE SENATE, AND LEGISLATIVE SES- SIONS IN VERMONT SINCE 1777.
CHAPTER I.
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
IN the admission of Vermont as one of the 0
members of the Federal Union, the calami- ties of war and warlike preparation and the ex- citement of controversy, had passed, which was welcome, and propitious to the pursuit of private business and the prosecution of public concerns. The State government was placed in the hands of men whose talents and virtues the people had the utmost confidence in-the control of men of un- doubted courage and capacity. Governor Chit- tenden, as a magistrate and as a man, had long been endeared to the people of the State, and his characteristics were such as a new State required. The great need for the security and advancement of the people was the improvement of the natural and civil advantages which were already in their possession. The resources of the State were to be developed. New towns were to be granted, roads to be laid out and worked, manufactures and commerce to be fostered, and schools and learning encouraged. Were the people equal to the task ? A disinterested Virginian, who visited Vermont in the summer of 1791, wrote to a friend in Benning- ton in September of that year and gave a descrip- tion of Vermont and its people, as follows, viz :-
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"Before I left Virginia, I had conceived but a very indifferent opinion of the Northern States, and especially of the State of Vermont. I had formed the idea of a rough barren country, inhab- ited by a fierce, uncivilized, and very unpolished people. I made my tour up Connecticut River, east of the Green Mountains, near the northern boundary of your State, and returned on the western side, by the lake, through Bennington. I must confess I was surprised and astonished be- yond measure, to find a fertile, luxuriant soil, cul- tivated by a virtuous, industrious and civilized set of inhabitants; many of whom lived in taste and elegance, and appeared not unacquainted with the polite arts. The rapid progress in popu- lation and improvement, and the many surprising incidents that have taken place since the short pe- riod of your existence as a State, will furnish ma- terial for some able historian, to give the world a history that shall be both entertaining and in- structive."
This writer might have also, in truth, referred to extraordinary opportunity of extending and developing her manufacturing interests by reason of her water power facilities along her rivers. The attention of Ira Allen, Levi Allen, and other lead- ing Vermonters was early turned toward the proj- ect of improving the waterway between Lake Champlain and the river St. Lawrence by cutting a canal. It is stated in Ira Allen's history of Ver- mont that Lake Champlain is a noble sheet of wa- ter and so deep that ships of war have sailed in it. Itissprinkled with many beautiful, fertile and well
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inhabited isles, but it is to be lamented that the wealth of its waves should be merely confined to the fishermen, when they might be converted to the noblest purposes of trade and useful naviga- tion, for the mutual benefit of millions, by a nav- igable cut to the river St. Lawrence. In conse- quence of an application made by Ira Allen of this State to Governor Haldimand, Governor of Can- ada, in 1784 and 1785, General Haldimand thought so highly of the proposition that he ap- pointed Captain Twist, the engineer of that prov- ince, to make a survey and estimate the expense of the canal. The captain began his survey at the rapids of St. Johns and carried it on along the side of the river Sorel to Chamblee. His estimate of the expense sufficient to bear vessels of two hun- dred tons burthen was £27,000 sterling. He said it was impossible to calculate the advantages of the undertaking in a commercial point of view; such an undertaking would promote agriculture, population, arts, manufactures, handicrafts, and all the business of a civilized State.
Ira Allen, in an interview with his Grace, the Duke of Portland, laid down the advantages that would mutually result to the two countries, if such a communication should be carried into ef- fect, but his Grace objected to his government pay- ing any share of the expenses. He expressed a readiness to receive, and to consider proposals for carrying the project into execution. Allen offered to cut the canal at his own expense on condition that he should be secured for the money expended by an order from government by the assignment
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of a tonnage on vessels navigating the lake; and that shipping built in the lake by the citizens of Vermont, should be permitted to pass to and from the open sea, paying such tonnage as may be deemed reasonable on passing Quebec; that the manufactures, raw material, and produce of Ver- mont, should be permitted to pass to the open sea; and that the manufactures, etc., of Great Britain should be permitted to be imported or ex- ported in the shipping of Vermont, free, by Act of Parliament or the Legislature of Lower Canada. And he presented to his Grace many advantages that would result to both governments from such an arrangement, which were set forth as follows :-
"That contiguous to said Lake was a fertile country abounding in lumber, iron ore, marble, &c .; that the soil produced wheat, Indian corn, peas, barley, hemp, grass, &c., in great abun- dance; that the country was erected into a settle- ment after the conquest of Canada, by the late Lord Amherst, in 1761, and is now estimated at a population of 150,000 souls. That Great Britain, through the medium of the said canal and navi- gation, would, in fact, reap the advantage of the trade of Vermont, and of the northern part of the State of New York, which parts, contiguous to Lake Champlain and Iroquois, would then find it their interest to become a part of the State of Ver- mont.
That such reciprocal navigation and interest in the canal, would cement and promote friendship betwixt the people of the two Canadas, and those near the Lake and the Iroquois, and would tend
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very much to strengthen the treaty made. betwixt Great Britain and the United States of America in 1794, under which treaty British ships are permit- ted to navigate Lake Champlain for commercial purposes. That in case of war betwixt any pow- ers, except those of Great Britain and America, the commerce of said Lake might be conveyed to Europe in Vermont or British bottoms, free from capture, high insurance, or expense of convoy. Hence the enterprising inhabitants of Vermont would find it their interest to support the govern- ment of Great Britain in Canada, whilst the re- mainder would be satisfied with the canal and commerce. In peace or war, it would render the price of salt, English goods, &c., cheap, and in time of war, the exports of Vermont would bear a high price, in consequence of the ease and safety of transportation. The people of Vermont thus situ- ated, would be averse to war; they would, in fact, be a neutral body betwixt two great na- tions; whilst their Representatives in the Legisla- ture of the United States would oppose every idea of hostilities between Great Britain and the United States, on principles of mutual interest; thus the most permanent contracts established, and the blessings of peace and prosperity the rewards.
"The said canal would extend navigation 180 miles into a fertile country, abounding in all kinds of iron ore, suitable to make pig iron, bar iron and steel, marble, white and clouded, copper and lead mines, fir-trees, ash, white and red oaks, ce- dar, and various other trees. There are also a, va- riety of rivers, with proper falls to erect iron-foun-
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dries, refineries, saw mills, &c., where pig and bar iron are made; deal boards, marble slabs, &c., may be saved by water. Masts spars, staves, &c. furnished in abundance; of the preceding articles but little use is made for exportation. Wheat, rye, barley, Indian corn, oats, beans, pease, hemp, flax, beef, pork, butter, and cheese, are produced, in great abundance. The farmer in clearing the tim- ber from his lands, can furnish great supplies of charcoal to serve furnaces, refineries, &c., and fur- nish large quantities of ashes to make pot and pearl ashes; these articles may be furnished cheap by the farmer, which would pay him, in many in- stances, for clearing his lands, instead of burning the timber on the ground to clear his lands.
"A ship canal would be the means of importing salt, and exporting the preceding articles cheap; the remittances that would be made on these raw materials would enable the merchant to make punctual remittances; it would draw commerce from the east, that now centers at Boston, New- bury Port, Portsmouth, &c., and add to the popu- lation of Lake Champlain. These measures would almost, beyond calculation, increase the commerce at both ends of said Lake. Admit that heavy arti- cles would principally pass the ship canal, vet when the reader takes into consideration the length of the river St. Lawrence, the frozen sea- son, that goods are seldom imported but once a year to Quebec, that spring and fall shipments are seasonably made to New York, the necessity of making early remittances, etc., the proprietors of the canal from Hudson's River would be benefit-
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ted by said ship canal, in consequence of the exten- sion of business. One circumstance that would tend much to draw commerce from the east to said Lake is, that it is customary for the merchant and farmer to move most of their heavy goods and produce by sleighs, in the frozen season; that the changeable weather on the sea coast at Bos- ton, etc., spoils the sleigh path, so that about one journey in three are lost, while the more temper- ate and healthy climate of Vermont insures good sleighing for two months."
Ira Allen had such an interest in the construc- tion of the ship canal that about the year 1795 he went to England to obtain a grant from the British Parliament and for the purpose of pur- chasing military stores in Europe for the use of the militia of Vermont, and in this business as- sumed to act, to a certain extent, officially as the agent of the State of Vermont. In fact he was clothed with no official power. This claim was put forth when he got into trouble with the Brit- ish government. Allen purchased the arms in En- gland as a private enterprise, and undertook to ship them to Vermont with the design of reim- bursing himself by making sale of them to the Ver- mont militia. They were seized by the British, and the seizure of the arms was defended in the British Admiralty Court on the ground that they were to be used, not in Vermont, but for an armed insurrection in Ireland. To rebut this unfounded claim, that was ruining Allen, he claimed his in- instructions were such that he was warranted in purchasing the arms for Vermont. It was a fact
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that Vermont in 1794, passed an act for the reor- ganization of the militia, in accordance with the national militia act, and provided that all persons subject to military duty should supply themselves with arms and equipments, and on the 19th of May, 1794, President Washington made a requi- sition upon the States for troops, and on the 21st of June, Governor Chittenden ordered 2139 Ver- mont troops to be organized, armed, equipped and held in readiness to march at a moment's warn- ing. There was an urgent demand for military supplies in Vermont, and the resort to Europe was the best way of getting them. It was also a fact that Governor Chittenden gave Allen a ertif- icate under the seal of the State, bearing date Oc- tober 27th, 1795, stating that Hon. Ira Allen of Colchester, in the State of Vermont, has a disposi- tion to go to Europe, setting forth important of- fices he had held and positions of responsibitity he had filled. This certificate was exhibited before the High Court of Admiralty in London in his de- fence in said proceedings in Admirality. It was claimed by Allen that these circumstances war- ranted him in claiming that he procured the arms under the instructions of Governor Chittenden. This version was a constrained one. He in fact purhased them at his own risk ; and the ship canal also was a private enterprise to be undertaken by Allen himself, or by an incorporated Company in case a charter could be procured.
Ira Allen in an address to the Governor and Council and House during the October session of the Legislature of 1800, said that in 1795, he
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went to Europe, and applied to the Duke of Port- land, one of his Britannic Majesty's principal Sec- retaries of State, for a ship canal from Lake Champlain to River St. Lawrence; his Grace and the Prime Minister, Mr. Pitt, were in favor of granting such ship canal as being interesting to the mercantile interests of Great Britain and that bankers and merchants in London assured him they would cause stock in such company to be subscribed to complete it. Allen in the address urged the State of Vermont to authorize him to apply for the support of the Executive of the United States and the resident British Minister, in favor of the project, and claimed that a saving of more than 200,000 dollars a year would be made to the people of Vermont. He also addressed a letter to Governor Ga- lusha on October 6, 1809, on the subject of the ship canal and said, "This being a National and State question for public benefit, I hope that polit- ical parties will unite for mutual advantages and that the authority of the Legislature will be sent me by post, on which I shall repair to Washing- ton, and by the assistance of the Executive of the United States, their Minister in London, with the assistance and influence of the British Minister with the British Government, and writing to my friends in London, I have no doubt of ob- taining a grant for a ship canal and sufficient funds to complete the same. I consider this a fav- orable time to accomplish this object, which I have been more than twenty years in pursuit of."
Although the building of the ship canal was not
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undertaken by Vermont and that Allen did not succeed in sufficiently enlisting the British Gov- ernment to carry forward the worthy enterprise, it called forth the earnest zeal of a progressive, no- ble Vermonter in its favor.
Vermont being an inland State there was a ne- cessity for avenues of transportation out of the State, and especially to the seaboard, and public attention began to be turned with interest and zeal to opening a waterway between Lake Cham- plain and Hudson River. A discussion of this en- terprise first appeared in the Vermont Gazette of September 6, 1790, as follows :-
"A correspondent from the county of Rutland informs, that the plan of opening a water commu- nication between Lake Champlain and Hudson's River, has become a subject of much conversation in that section and the northern counties of this State. A company of gentlemen in that part of the coun- try have agreed to make an excursion a few weeks hence, for the purpose of examining the ground be- tween Fort Anne and Hudson's River, and deter- mining the practicability of the scheme, by actual mensuration, if necessary. Our correspondent adds, that the practicability cannot be doubted, if a stream of water can be found sufficient to supply a canal, capable of being brought onto the highest ground in the course. Wood Creek is boatable from Lake Champlain to Fort Anne, fifteen miles, except the Falls at Whitehall, which may easily be locked; from Fort Anne to the Hudson is twelve or fourteen miles through a level country.
"The advantages to be derived from the accom-
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plishment of such an undertaking, to the fertile country adjacent to Lake Champlain, are almost inconceivable great; and the addition of 150 miles inland navigation, through the most fertile and thriving country in this part of America, to the present commercial advantages of New York, will give them a decided superiority in trade to any. place in the Union. It is apprehended, should the execution of the scheme be found possible, by ac- tual survey, the expensiveness of the undertaking will be no obstacle to its accomplishment. It is an object worthy the attention not only of indi- viduals, but the legislatures both of New York and Vermont."
Previous to this time however, about 1784, William Gilliland of Willsboro, N. Y., had written that, "The region of both sides of Lake Cham- plain, is now a well inhabited country, and the lands amazingly advanced in value even at pres- ent. How much more valuable will they become when an inland navigation will be made from sea to sea? "
In March, 1792, Gen. Philip Schuyler of New York, aided by Elkanah Watson, procured from New York the charter of the Western and North- ern Inland Navigation Lock Companies, which E. P. Walton of Vermont declared were the precursors of both the present Erie and the Champlain Canals. At this time the people in eastern Vermont were contemplating the improvement of Connecticut River for navigable purposes, and at the October session of the Legislature of 1791, an article of business was assigned for the session, as follows:
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"10th, That the Legislature take into consideration the expediency of opening a communication be- tween the waters of Lake Champlain and Hudson River-and also rendering the navigation of Con- necticut River more easy and advantageous." This article was referred to a committee of seven from the House, joined by one from the Council, who made report in respect to the Champlain Canal that was supposed to be favorable to the project, but it was tabled and nothing further was done with it that session. At the same session the House passed a bill entitled, "An Act granting to Will- iam Page and Lewis Morris and their Associates, their heirs and assigns forever, the exclusive privi- lege of Locking Bellows Falls." This act fixed the tolls for 32 years; provided at the end of that pe- riod, and every ten years thereafter, the Supreme Court might reduce the tolls, but not so as to pre- vent the proprietors from receiving twelve per cent per annum on their actual expenditure; and made it the duty of the Governor to issue a char- ter to the grantees and to incorporate them into a . body politic, by the name of the company for ren- dering Connecticut River navigable by Bellows Falls. The Governor did not issue the charter and incorporate them, but an act of incorpora- tion of the same company was passed at the Octo- ber session of the Legislature in 1792. Under the act of New York of March 1792. work was com- menced on the Champlain Canal in 1793, at Whitehall and elsewhere on the line, but was soon discontinued on account of the defalcation of some of the stock holders and it was beyond the means
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