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Gc 974.302 W67m 1851854
M. L.
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
2
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01100 6191
sind in Covers
$2070
Con
ERMONT
LEEDOM
AND UNITY
1163~1961
THE WILLISTON STORY-
Vt.
BY
1763-1961
F. KENNON MOODY
AND
FLOYD D. PUTNAM
Printed by THE ROSCOE PRINTING HOUSE ESSEX JUNCTION, VERMONT
1961
Copyright C 1961 BY
F. KENNON MOODY AND
FLOYD D. PUTNAM
1851854
The Williston Story has its setting in the "pleasant and quiet village of Williston, eight miles from Burlington, and two miles from the Vermont Central Railroad. .. In regard to health, the place is very desirable; the village is entirely free from haunts of idleness and dissipation, and the location is, in every respect, favorable to good order, to mental improvement, and moral cul- ture."
(From the Biennial Catalogue of the Williston Academy. Burlington, Free Press Steam Job Printing Office, 1866.)
Dedicated to The Pupils of the Williston Central School Past, Present and Future
Table of Contents
Introduction
5
Names and Charters 9
Town Boundary Difficulties 12
Williston Organized
14
Glimpses of Early Williston
19
Political Life
22
Religious Life
26
The Four R's
34
Governor Thomas Chittenden
39
Industry and Agriculture
40
"There Was a Tavern in the Town"
47
Transportation
48
"The Cursed Rebellion"
56
Concerned Citizens 60
"Miscellaneous Facts.
67
' ... And Folklore"
72
Appendix A -The Charter 78
B - Minutes of First Town Meetings
81
C - Representatives to Legislature
83
D - Honor Roll
84
E - Census of 1800
85
F - Footnotes
87
Introduction
Although Williston has had a long, and at times exciting, history, attempts to record that history have been few and far between. In the second quarter of the nineteenth century, Daniel Chipman recorded the role played by Thomas Chittenden in the organizing of the State of Vermont. In this treatment, Williston was mentioned only as the residence of Chittenden during his period of prominence. Again Williston was given a brief nod in histor- ical writing with the publication of Hemenway's Gazetteer (1868). Rann, in his History of Chittenden County (1886), also gives a somewhat superficial treatment of Williston's history and its significance. Zadok Thompson, History of Vermont (1842), gives a brief treatment of Williston's history and contemporary situation. All of these treatments could be called superficial, and less than objective, in their selection of material to be treated.
In anticipation of the 150th Anniversary of the signing of the town's charter, a historical booklet was prepared by the Williston Historical Committee. This booklet devoted a large portion of its pages to an excellent sketch of the life of Thomas Chittenden. Another item of real value in its pages was a brief geneological sketch of some of the early families that had lived in Williston.
At the town meeting on March 3, 1959, article thirty-three of the warning read : "Will the town vote a tax on the Grand List to pay for completing and publishing the Town History, and if so, how much?" It was voted by the town to underwrite such "completing and publishing" although a definite amount, on the Grand List, was not set. The amount of money to be used, and the manner in which it was to be used, was left to discretion of the Selectmen of the Town of Williston - Paul DuFresne, Walter Doenges, Clarence LaCasse. The kindness and cooperation of these men have made the publication of this book possible.
The purpose of this book is not to reprint material that has been competently covered in other historical treatments. There- fore, the reader is referred to the other books mentioned if he
wishes a study of Thomas Chittenden. Chittenden shall enter this study only as he touches upon, or illuminates, the life of the town as a whole. Limits of time, space and finances have also prevented the including of any geneology. Perhaps a companion booklet in the future will deal with this subject.
An attempt has been made to give a systematic and brief treatment of the total history of the Town of Williston. Materials used have, of necessity, been almost all secondary materials. There seems to be an almost complete absence of original documents (e.g. diaries, letters, ledgers, pictures) concerning the early period of Williston's history. However, primary materials have been used whenever they have been available. Footnote references, inserted after the text of the book, provide such authenticity as exists herein and a guide for persons wishing to pursue the sub- ject further.
In arranging and compiling the subjects to be dealt with in this paper, two problems presented themselves. It will be good for the reader to be aware of these, and the manner in which the writers attempted to deal with them. First, the majority of ma- terial contained here deals with the first hundred years of Williston's existence. This overbalance is due to several factors : one, the interest of the authors in this earlier period; two, the feeling that such early material is more inaccessible to the average reader than material which is chronologically later ; three, the need to record and clarify events in the past which are important but vague. The second problem is the seeming over-emphasis on the religious element in Williston's early history. Again this might be due to the interest of the authors but another reason seems the chief one here. In the period of its early history, Williston's political boundaries were synonymous with its religious boundaries. In the life of the early settler, religion and politics were inextric- ably joined. Also, it is only from the journals of early itinerant ministers that we are able to catch a glimpse of life in early Williston. For these reasons, the treatment of the material in The Williston Story might have more significance for the reader.
Many people have made this book possible. Interested in-
dividuals secured the financial support of the town in Town Meeting. The selectmen gave support and encouragement. Dr. Wood, of the Vermont Historical Society, deserves our apprecia- tion for having read the manuscript and making suggestions for its improvement. Several of the townspeople were kind enough to read portions of the manuscript and make significant sugges- tions. Innumerable others offered encouragement and support during the time that writing was underway. To all these go our thanks and appreciation. During this time The Williston Story has strengthened our ties to, and deepened our love for, the Town of Williston. We hope that as you read The Williston Story, it will do the same for you.
September, 1960
F. D. P. F. K. M.
Page Nine
Names and Charters
The township of Williston, as viewed in the year 1960, offers no hint of the fact that its first legal existence lasted only one year and forty-four days. On June 7, 1763, Governor Benning Went- worth of New Hampshire granted to Samuel Willis and sixty-four others, 23,040 acres of land.1 This tract was described in the charter as follows :
"Beginning on the southerly or southeasterly side of the Onion or French River, at the easterly or northeasterly corner of Burlington and runs by said river so far as to make six miles on a perpendicular to the upper line of Burlington aforesaid; then south by parallel to the upper line of said Burlington six miles; then westerly to a tree standing six miles from the river upon a line with head line of Burlington ; then northerly or northeasterly as Bur- lington runs to the bound at the river began at ... . '
This grant was issued by Governor Wentworth under an assumption that he had jurisdiction over the land known as the "New Hampshire Grants." However, the State of New York appealed to His Majesty; King of England, asking that the western bank of the Connecticut River be established as the eastern bound- ary of New York.2 In reply his Majesty decreed on July 20, 1764, that "the western bank of Connecticut River, from where it enters Massachusetts Bay, as far north as the 45th degree of north latitude, be the boundary line between the said provinces of New Hampshire and New York."3 The government of New York interpreted this decree as saying that all previous grants of land in the disputed area, made by Benning Wentworth, were void.4 With this in mind they ordered that all grantees, "Samuel Willis and sixty-four others" included, surrender their charters and repurchase their titles under grants from New York.5 Thus on July 20, 1764, the legal proprietorship of the town of Williston came into question.
However, there is no evidence that a command from the capital at Albany carried any weight, either with the inhabitants of Williston or with its absentee landlords and proprietors. A few Willistonians, chiefly Thomas Chittenden and Jonathan Spafford,
Page Ten
did retire to Arlington to help Ethan Allen carry on his running battle with the province of New York. The 23,040 acres comprising Williston remained in a legal cloud until October 28, 1790, when the State of Vermont paid to the State of New York thirty thousand dollars for the clear titles to the lands east of Lake Champlain and west of the Connecticut River.6
The charter which had been granted to Samuel Willis and company, was in all probability a "form" charter similar to all the others that had been granted by Benning Wentworth. A true copy of this charter can be found in the appendix of this book. A complete list of the grantees can be found in the pamphlet published by the Williston Historical Committee in 1913.
An interesting side-light into the early history of Williston is provided by W. S. Rann in his history of the county. He quotes Russell Taft, a native of Williston, that ". .. no doubt the name of Williston was intended for Burlington, as it was chartered on the same day with Burlington, which was granted to Samuel Willis and others, there being four of that name among the grantees."7
Whatever the mistakes involved in its naming, Williston was typical of the many grants made by Benning Wentworth - being composed of 23,040 acres and being divided into a total of seventy- one shares.8
Though the town was re-organized both in land-lines and religious groups, such re-organization did not affect the previous assignment of land as set forth in the charter. One can hardly imagine the confusion that would be present today if the settlers had not decided to settle their land titles in the early nineteenth century. A meeting was called July 28, 1802, to choose "a com- mittee to examine into all the records of the former proceedings of said proprietors, as far as the same may be found," and to make a report of the ownership situation within the township.9 Noah Chittenden, Jonathan Spafford, and Joshua Chamberlin were chosen to constitute such a committee.10
After due deliberation it was decided that a new survey was needed. Such a survey was made, accepted and placed in the records. The fact that Williston was the most prosperous town in
Page Eleven
the county at this time helps to explain the fact that a "heavy" tax of four cents on each acre of land was levied to defray the expenses of the survey, map and records.11 However, such an effort brought forth many new problems, the main problem one being a surplus of 282 acres - a situation immediately remedied by a further division by the selectmen.12
Although a comparatively short period of time had elapsed since the granting of the charter, even the ownership of the special "lease lands" was beginning to become confused. In the original charter provision had been made concerning several special grants. Governor Benning Wentworth was to receive a "tract of land to contain five hundred acres as marked 'B. W.' in the Plan, which is to be accounted two of the within shares." One whole share was to be set aside for the "Incorporated Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." One share was for a "glebe" to the Church of England "as by Law Established." Another share was to be for the first "settled" minister of the Gospel, while a final share went for the benefit of a school in "said town."13
In 1913, local historians raised the question of what had hap- pened to the lands belonging to Benning Wentworth. It is evident that Lady Wentworth disposed of her husband's lands. She sold the 500 acres to Benjamin Sumner of Claremont, New Hampshire, for ten pounds. Sumner, in turn, sold the lands to Elisha Root of Montague, Massachusetts, in 1794, for $1,150.00.14 To the collector of historical "gems," it is interesting to note this connec- tion between the town of Williston and the heroine of Long- fellow's poem. Eventually, by various marriages, the land passed into the possession of the Talcott family and was sold by them to its present owner, Carl Urie.
The share for the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, evidently was not located in one spot but was distributed in several parcels over the township.15 Approxi- mately one half of the land involved in this share was included in the area of Williston incorporated into the township of Richmond in 1794. During the period preceeding the War of 1812 the town fathers had some reservations about sending local monies to Eng-
Page Twelve
land. Therefore the selectmen undertook to lease this share of the grant themselves. It was their thought to lease the lands "for $15.83 from date hereof so long as grass grows and water runs."16 Evi- dently their plans went wrong, for the Society for the Propaga- tion of the Gospel in Foreign Parts recovered the control of these lands and eventually deeded them to the Episcopal Diocese of Ver- mont for its use. The Episcopal Diocese has, even today, an agent in Burlington who collects the rents from these various pieces of lease land.17
The share reserved for the Church of England is more com- monly known as "glebe land." Such lands in Williston were also in the share of Williston that was incorporated into the town- ship of Richmond in 1794. The part remaining in Williston has been, since November 5, 1805, leased by the selectmen and the money used for the support of the schools.18
The situation concerning the share for the first "settled" minister of the Gospel was also somewhat confused. In all probability, Reverend Aaron C. Collins considered the share of the settled minister to be his own and accordingly disposed of it when released from his contract with the Congregational Society in Williston. We can assume such, since Mr. Collins was indeed the first "settled" minister hired by the Society in Williston- coming into their employ in 1800.19 By the time of the new land survey in 1804, we note that Elisha Wright owned ninety-eight acres of this grant - the only portion which is indicated as having been sold.20
The only other reserved share of the original grant, that reserved for the support of the schools, has always been used for that purpose.21
Town Boundary Difficulties
As you will remember, the first mention of the boundary lines of Williston township in the charter made the boundaries depend-
Page Thirteen
ent upon the location of a certain tree in the southwest corner of the town. Remembering the non-importance of lumber in early Vermont, one might imagine that any boundary difficulties might early arise over the location of that certain tree. However, such was not the case. The first difficulty in connection with the boundaries of Williston arose over the location of a "house for Publick Worship."
On the first Friday in October, 1788, the third article of the warning for town meeting read: " ... to see if the Town will agree to find the center of sd. Town & build a House for Publick Worship."1 The center of town, they assumed, would be the best location for such a building since it would then be equidistant from all parts of the township.2 However good their logic, the facts presented a problem. As one would expect in an early settlement of 23,040 acres, the life of Williston had centered itself around two locations-one being at the center of the present village (where the road from North Williston connects with the road to Lake Iroquois), the other being located at the present site of the village of Richmond.
This created a problem since all of the population of Williston were assumed to be members of the same "ecclesiastical society," which was to be the proprietor of the proposed meeting house. Dis- agreements on location continued until some settler got a brilliant idea : it is recorded in the town records that the settlers "voted unanimously that his Excellency Thomas Chittenden Esq. be requested and Impowered by Himself or attorney to apply to the Assembly at their session January next to obtain a Division of this town in two separate Ecclesiastical Societies."3
The "West Society" became the present town of Williston while the "East Society" was located in the future site of the present village of Richmond. The first meeting of the West Society was held March 23, 1791.4 However, the problem of having two "ecclesiastical societies" in one township continued until 1794 when the second boundary difficulty was solved. On October 27, 1794, the town of Richmond was formed by annexing parts of Jericho, Huntington, Bolton, and Williston. At the same
Page Fourteen
time by the same act of the State Assembly, Williston was com- pensated for her loss of land. The eastern boundary of Burling- ton was moved, placing all land east of Muddy Brook in the town- ship of Williston.5
Though the only actual changes of boundary in the town- ship of Williston came about through the formation of the township of Richmond, two other attempts to change the bound- aries are recorded, but both failed. On October 25, 1781, a petition of "Colonel Robert Johnson, et.al.," was filed asking for a chartered township "in the vicinity of Williston, Richmond, Hinesburgh and Huntington."6 The proposed township would cover portions of the four towns already mentioned plus small portions of Jericho and Bolton. No record can be found that the Legislature took any action on the petition. The only other attempt to change the boundary of Williston had come in 1771, when the Legislature was petitioned for a charter concerning the proposed "town of Deerfield" to be located in the vicinity of Williston.7 This attempt also failed.
Williston Organized
The charter provided by Benning Wentworth for the establish- ment of Williston was a standard form used in practically all such grants under his administration. Such a document was a simple form with all the phrases printed in and blanks left for descriptions, signatures, seals, and dates peculiar to the township being granted. As the form for Williston was filled in, it pro- vided that "the first meeting for the choice of town officers agreeable to the laws of said province, shall be holden on the 19th day of July next; which said meeting shall be notified by Doctor Samuel Allen, who is hereby appointed the Moderator of the said first meeting."1
The usual procedure for such township grants was to hold a proprietors' meeting for the purpose of dividing the land into
Page Fifteen
individual property rights; such lands when granted were given as a block to be owned jointly by the proprietors.
Until recently (summer of 1959) the general belief was that, although Williston was chartered on June 7, 1763, it was not organized until March 28, 1786. If accepted, this belief raises innumerable questions. Why was the first meeting not held on the day stated in the charter ? Who was the eminent Doctor Samuel Allen ? What catastrophe caused postponement of town organization for a period of twenty-three years? Historians have usually pointed to the Revolution as the cause of such tardiness. Yet such an explanation still left a very pertinent question un- answered -- why were there no records left to explain the obvious fact that, although men had lived in Williston, they had not organ- ized the town?
Further research in the town hall safe has located manuscripts whose dates are easily correlated with the dates given in the town charter. The charter called for a town meeting twelve days after the presentation of the charter signed by Benning Wentworth. In Volume I of the town records there appears a single page re- cording the first and second town meetings on its obverse and reverse sides, respectively.2 Although one might easily question the authenticity of such manuscripts, there is no reason to believe that they are not true copies, if not the originals themselves. Be- cause of their historical significance they are included in the ap- pendix as they appear in the town records.
The next available records are dated exactly twenty-three years later in March 27, 1786.3 As we mentioned earlier, some writers attribute this interval to the Revolutionary War. How- ever, in doing so they fail to explain the fact that in this "lost" period of town history there stands at least one provable fact: on July 24, 1776, Thomas Chittenden appeared in the town of Dorset for the Constitutional Convention, having been elected by the people of Williston to represent them there.4
A single event does very little to explain the lapse of such a long period of time. Nowhere, however, is there an explan- ation of why the first town meeting was held in Huntington nor
Page Sixteen
why a man from Jericho was asked to erect boundary markers along the Winooski River. The repetition of the various articles during the second year in the minutes would lead us to believe that the instructions or orders were not carried out during 1763-64. The only feasible explanation of the early location of town meeting in Huntington might be found in an explanation of the "Williston Leg."5 This was a piece of land in the southwest corner of Williston-separating the Huntington and Hinesburgh boundaries. Probably Nathaniel Williams' farm cut the boundaries of Hunt- ington and Williston at this spot.
Williston was fortunate in its early history to be able to avoid the conflicts that often arose between the "proprietors" and the actual "settlers." This is probably due to the fact that, for the most part, the proprietors were men who wanted merely to spec- ulate with their land and not actually settle it. In the town meet- ing records available for 1763-64, 1786, and 1787, there appear no names of the original proprietors.6
The best way in which to see the organization of the town taking place is to examine the town meeting records in these first years in order to see what the settlers considered important. On March 28, 1786, the settlers assembled in Williston for the annual town meeting. John Chamberlin was chosen moderator ; John Donnelly, Town Clerk; and Joel Brownson, Constable.7
Aside from the election of public officials, which took place annually, the most important matter discussed in these early years of town meeting was the erection of "a House for Publick Wor- ship."8 At first glance such an item would be more properly dis- cussed under the religious life of the community. However, such a project had both religious and political implications for the life of early Williston.
Once built, the meeting house would serve both as a place for religious meetings and also for other purposes. As one early writer notes, "in it took place both religious and social worship."9 This use of the word "worship" with the social prefix is a rare and interesting usage. It serves to show the place of their religious professions in the lives of these early settlers. It is both a com-
Page Seventeen
pliment and a guide to their integrity to note that this meeting house was to be used not only for "publick worship" but for other "publick" meetings, including those of a political nature.
Once the disagreement concerning the location was settled, the actual work of raising materials and monies was discussed in town meeting."10 By the year 1798 the meeting house first mem- tioned in 1788 was a reality.11 Though Williston seemed a prosperous community at this time the building of its first "publick" building was an event of major importance.
Accordingly, the town was divided into three or four "classes," the actual number being somewhat vague in the records.12 It was to be the purpose of these classes to take responsibility for raising their share of the cost of the building. The leaders realized that money was still a rare and precious commodity on this raw frontier and thus provided other ways for these determined and God-fearing people to pay their pledges. In a record of an adjourned meeting of March 7, 1796, we find a complete list of prices allowed for labor of men, four cattle teams, or a good span of horses.13
A good portion of the actual money was achieved by sale of the pews. Once sold, these pews became the personal property of the buyer and often were placed under lock and key by their owners. Similar situations in New England had given rise to the expression "you're in the wrong pew." The pews were auctioned off-the highest bidder taking first choice, the next highest bidder second choice, etc. A chart, showing the pew arrangements of this meeting house is found in the town records and offers some excellent guides to the relative economic status of the early settlers.14
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