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Gc 974.302 B21p 1148185
M. L
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01092 5169
GENEALOGY 974.302 B21P
ANNIE M. POLLARD
THE HISTORY OF THE TOWN of
BALTIMORE, VERMONT
by
ANNIE M. POLLARD
BF
VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY Montpelier, Vermont
Copyright 1954 DOROTHY POLLARD BALLOU
1148185
This Book is Published as A Memorial to Our Mother Annie M. Pollard And it is Dedicated to the Early Families of Baltimore Whose Pioneering Spirit and Industry Were an Inspiration for her Book
Dorothy Pollard Ballou Mary Pollard Rich
FOREWORD
Although Annie Maydora Olney, oldest child of Fred and Edith Olney, was born in Chester, Vermont, and early attended public school there, much of her childhood was spent in Baltimore. Even as a child, she was interested in the town's early progress. She was fascinated by the cellar holes that marked the sites of early homes, abandoned because of fire or when a better habitation had been provided. She often listened as her father told of the early settlers on these farms.
The Baltimore years were interrupted when, after completing her schooling in the Old Stone Schoolhouse, Annie Olney returned to Chester to attend High School. After graduation, she taught for a few years in the public schools of Ludlow, Post Mills and White River Junction.
In 1902 she became the bride of Walter E. Pollard of Ludlow and they moved to Baltimore to live on what was then known as the William Davis farm.
With the energy of youth and with a natural enthusiasm for her tasks, Mrs. Pollard began early to serve her small community in various capacities. For many years she was School Director. Often she taught in the Baltimore school, where many Baltimore families remember her as teacher.
When Walter Pollard was elected Town Clerk, an office he was to hold for thirty-six years, Annie Pollard was named Assistant Town Clerk. During these years, affairs of town government became increasingly more difficult and highly organized. So it was that in 1933, when Mrs. Pollard was elected to represent the town of Baltimore in the House of Representatives at Montpelier, she was well-trained for the duties and responsibilities of her position.
During the six successive terms that she served as representative, Mrs. Pollard became recognized as an authority on rural education and the affairs of small-town government.
In 1910, when the town records were entrusted to the new Assis- tant Town Clerk, they could not have been placed in more apprecia- tive hands. Mrs. Pollard studied the old volumes eagerly and carefully and in her last years, when there was leisure time for it, The History of Baltimore resulted.
In assembling information for this book, the author was indebted to many people who generously gave information to supplement her own. The History is published here as it was written by Mrs. Pollard. No attempt has been made to change the contents or to supplement the material which she prepared. If errors are discovered we hope that the spirit in which the work was prepared will be remembered.
In the spring of 1946, Mr. and Mrs. Pollard left the Baltimore farm and moved to their house in North Springfield. Mrs. Pollard died suddenly September 22 of that same year. Except for a few months she had spent her entire married life in Baltimore.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
I. Baltimore in its First Year 3
II. The Story of the Schools 8
III. The Story of the Poor
21
IV. The Story of the Highways 27
V. The "Doin's" at Town Meeting
34
VI. Baltimore Destined to Remain Small 42
VII. The Story of Baltimore People
Ella Elizabeth Graves 44 Joseph Willard Leland 142
David Campbell 48 Jonathan Woodbury Family 143
The Chaplin Family 49
Boynton Family 150
Levi Davis Family 55
Joseph Atherton Family 154
William Davis Family
57
The Hastings Farm 164
George Davis Family 62
Benjamin Page 166
Francis Burnam 66
Amos Page Family 171
Manasseh Boynton
67
Waldo Cheney Farm 173
Amasa Gregory
69
Graves Family 176
Amos Bemis Family
76
Martin Genealogy
181
Reuben Bemis Family
81
The Woodwards 192
The Glynn Place 84
86
John Piper Family 198
Parkman Davis Family
91
Rodney Piper Family
201
John Woodbury Family
103
Eleanor Piper
203
The Houghton Family
108
Amos Piper Family
204
The Preston Families 112
Perry Bingham Piper Family
205
Benjamin Litch
123
John Willard Piper Family 207
Luke Harris
126
Carter Piper Family
207
Leland Family
132
Levi Piper Family 205
Early History of West District 121
Noah Piper Family 194
Edmund Batchelder Family
THE WALTER POLLARD PLACE
Built by William and Phebe Davis, 1827
The author came here as a bride and this was her home until a few months before her death.
HAWKS MOUNTAIN
"After a few years it became apparent that Hawks Mountain formed a barrier between the southeastern part of Cavendish and the rest of the town
ELLA GRAVES
The residue
was left to Springfield Hospital to be used for the sick people of Balti- more."
THE JEHIAL CONVERSE PLACE Built by Luther Graves before 1838 "Waldo Cheney sold the farm to Luther Graves in 1815 and it was owned by members of the Graves family for eighty-seven years."
OLD STONE SCHOOLHOUSE
"The desks were made of rock maple planks and the backs were per- pendicular to the seats. In those days the pupils' backs had to be adjustable rather than the desks."
BACK ROW: Annie Olney, Nettie Carrigan, Maggie Carrigan, Abbie Fairbanks, Lulu Smith, Eddie Coffin.
MIDDLE ROW: Guy W. Preston, Esther A. Chapman, Sadie Smith, Percival Smith or Percy E. Bridges, Ettie L. Bryant, Ernest A. Preston.
FRONT ROW: Lottie Bryant, Edith Preston, Sadie Bridges.
THE NEW SCHOOLHOUSE
"The fall term of school, 1894, was kept in the present building. ends the story of the Old Stone Schoolhouse."
Here
SUNDGREN PLACE
66 . . It seems reasonable to conclude that Amasa Gregory built the present house before 1828."
THE LELAND HOMESTEAD 1843
"Charles Leland, when an old man, liked to relate how he and his brother Oscar used to vie with each other to see who could bring in the biggest stone on his wheel barrow from the quarry back of the present buildings."
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THE DEAN PLACE (The Martin Homestead)
The Deans were living here during the First World War. Then they moved to Perkinsville. The farm was bought by Davidsons from New York and the old house was torn down.
THE DESMOND PLACE
"In 1778 Noah Piper obtained land in Baltimore. It is believed that the house now standing was the one built and occupied by Noah, and it bears the distinction of being the oldest house in town."
HENRY HAMMOND PLACE
66 David Chaplin, Jr. built set number four (in picture) where the buildings are now located. That house burned in 1904 and was rebuilt the following spring."
Cavendish
Perkinstitle
0
(106
BahQuorn Sch
B
E
Chanuthe).
Old
Shincracker
Kendricks Co
6SPRINGFIEL
AIRPORT
Bk Chandler Soli
Brooks
North Springfield
10
Great
Davidson Hill
cassetta
1
2
3
Mile
MAP OF BALTIMORE VERMONT, SHOWING LOCATION IN RELATION TO THE VILLAGES OF CAVENDISH, PERKINS- VILLE, NORTH SPRINGFIELD AND GASSETT'S.
THE HISTORY OF THE TOWN of BALTIMORE, VERMONT
Close to the side of Hawks Mountain Where the sun's rays brightly fall, Nestles a town Of some renown Because of its area small. A three-cornered clipping from Eden, A haunt for the birds and the flowers, No place is more blest In all East and West Than this land that we love to call ours.
A. M. P.
I. BALTIMORE IN ITS FIRST YEAR
Baltimore was originally a part of Cavendish; so to know the early history of Baltimore we have to refer to the early history of Cavendish.
Benning Wentworth, then Governor of New Hampshire, on behalf of King George the Third of England conveyed and granted to Amas Kimball and his associates all the land in what is now Cavendish and Baltimore, a tract about seven miles square, on Oct. 12, 1761.
The first town to receive its charter in Windsor County was Chester, then called Flamstead, in 1754. The first proprietors of Chester did not live up to conditions of the grant of 1754; so the second one was made in 1761. Also to seventeen other towns, including Cavendish.
A charter had to be obtained from New Hampshire and later from New York because of land difficulties. New York did not grant a charter until 1772. The original New York charter is in Cavendish town clerk's office. It has a seal about four inches in diameter attached to it made of bee's wax. The seal has figures of people in motion on one side and the seal of England on the other. It was written with a quill on a parchment made of sheep's skin.
There were 66 grantees, each of whom was to have 312 acres, and at least seven received grants on the Baltimore side of the mountain. Grantees had right of possession of the land but did not necessarily live on it and oftentimes sold their rights. The cheap good lands of Massachusetts were fast becoming occupied. Ambitious young men with a few hundred dollars of hard-earned savings could come to the Grants and buy a tract large enough for a farm when cleared, often about one hundred acres.
According to the records only one of the original grantees may have lived in Baltimore. Most of the grantees lived in Lunenburg, Mass. They held their first meeting in that town on Nov. 19, 1761. They voted a twenty-dollar bonus to the first five men actually to settle on the grant. Again in 1767 they voted a bonus to the first six settlers to clear and fence the land. This fact explains why so many of the first men actually to live in Baltimore came from Lunenburg, Mass., or neighboring towns.
Governor Wentworth had 500 acres in every township. In Cavendish his farm was in the southeast corner, now part of Bal- timore including Hammond's, Pollard's, Sundgren's, Foster's, the farm once owned by Glynn, and out the old road to Erwin Con- verse place, also the Dan Davis land that lies in Baltimore.
The Proprietors were especially instructed that All white or other pine trees within said town fit for masting out Royal Navy to be care- fully preserved for the purpose and none to be cut or felled without our special license for so doing first had and obtained. Also they were to pay an annual rent for 10 yr. of one ear of Indian corn per year if
4
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The History of
lawfully demanded, the first payment to be due Dec. 25, 1762; surely not a very excessive rent but still enough to prevent gaining a clear title.
After the expiration of the ten years, the rent was to be one shill- ing per annum, proclamation money, for every 100 acres settled, owned or possessed, and so in proportion for a greater or lesser tract to be paid at the Committee Chamber in Portsmouth. N. H.
After a few years it became apparent that the Hawks Mountain formed a barrier between the southeastern part of Cavendish and the rest of the town, cutting off about 3000 acres.
It might be well to explain at this time how this mountain re- ceived its name. The Crown Point road was built through the town of Cavendish about 1756. General Hawks was the British officer who had charge of this section, and Hawks Mountain was named from him as he and a group of men encamped on the moun- tain for a night.
We quote from a letter from Prof. Ernest W. Butterfield relative to this incident. "Maj. Hawks and other Indian fighters passed through Baltimore and over the mountain to avoid the swollen river, but for the stop of a single night it would not be necessary to build a camp. Hawks was out as others to scout for Indians, that is, to watch for early morning smokes from their camp fires. I think he had his camp by the great spring from which Encamp- ment Brook starts. This is almost on the Baltimore-Weathersfield line and back of it are the cliffs which would hide the smoke from his own fires. Then his scouts watched from the mountain top above this, which is in Baltimore. I have examined this spring and followed the old road to the saddle at the top of the mountain."
In 1790 a town meeting was held to see if the town would set off that part of Cavendish lying on the south side of the Hawks Moun- tain, so-called, with the inhabitants in it into a separate town. And also to see if the town would unite with the inhabitants of the south side of the mountain in petitioning the general assembly that that part of Cavendish lying on the south side of the mountain be in- corporated into a separate town.
The records of a meeting held Sept. 6, 1791, show that they voted to set off that part of Cavendish lying on the south side of Hawks Mt. into a separate town with all the privileges that other towns in this state enjoy except in choosing representatives.
The act of the legislature which made Baltimore into a town by itself reads as follows: An Act dividing the Town of Cavendish in the County of Windsor into Two Separate Towns in Oct. 19, 1793.
First: It is hereby enacted by the general assembly of the state of Ver- mont that that part of the town of Cavendish comprehended within the following lines, beginning at the north east corner of Chester from thence running westerly on the north line of said Chester three miles, thence turning and running northerly a direct course to the southerly end of Hawks Mountain so called till such line arrive at the eminence of said mountain-thence along the eminence or highest part of said
5
Baltimore, Vermont
mountain lengthwise thereof till it arrives at the westerly line of Weathers- field, thence southerly on the said line of Weathersfield till it arrives at the place of beginning and the same is hereby formed and incorpora- ted into a town by the name of Baltimore, and the inhabitants of said town shall have and enjoy all privileges and immunities that the in- habitants of other towns within this state exercise and enjoy excepting the privilege of electing a representative to the general assembly or state convention.
Second: It is hereby further enacted that the freemen's meeting of said town of Cavendish and Baltimore shall be holden at the usual place for holding town meetings in the town of Cavendish and such meetings shall be warned by the first Constable of Cavendish by posting a warn- ing in three of the most public places in each of said towns and the freemen of said town, when met, shall jointly choose one representative to represent them in the general assembly or state convention." This was an illegal arrangement as the constitution of the state of Ver- mont declared then as now that each and every town should have a representative.
The next thing for the town to do was organize. An official from out of town had to warn the first town meeting as no one in what is now Baltimore was qualified at that time to do so. The warning reads as follows:
State of Vermont, Windsor County, Being requested by more than seven of the freeholders, [which meant men who owned property of the town of Baltimore] to warn a town meeting. Within said town .
said this is therefor by the authority of the State of Vermont to request all the free holders and other inhabitants qualified by law to vote in town meeting in said town of Baltimore to meet at the dwelling place of Waldo Cheney in said Baltimore on the twelfth day of March next at ten o'clock before noon to vote on the following articles:
1stly. To choose a moderator to govern town meeting.
2ndly. To choose town clerk, selectmen, town treasurer, constable, listers, collector of rates and all other officers for said town for the year ensuing as the law directs.
3rdly. To see if the town will divide into school districts and choose persons in each district as school committee or agent.
4thly. To see if the town will raise any sum or sums of money for the purpose of procuring books for the use of said town and for any other purpose necessary for the said town.
5thly. To see what sum or sums of money the town will raise for the use of highways.
6thly. To see if the town will appoint any place for and provide a sign post for said town.
7thly. To do any other business thought necessary to be done when met.
Dated at Weathersfield the 20th day of Feb. Anno Domini 1794 Nathaniel Stoughton, Justice of the peace.
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The History of
The following is the record of the first town meeting held in Baltimore as made by Joseph Atherton the first town clerk.
The twelfth day of March 1794 met according to warning.
1stly. Chose Isaac Chamberlin Moderator.
2ndly. Voted Joseph Atherton town clerk.
3rdly. Waldo Cheney, Jonathan Woodbury, Joseph Atherton selectmen.
6thly.
Jonathan Woodbury town treasurer.
7thly. Samuel Davis constable.
8thly. Jonathan Burnam, 9thly. Francis Burnam, 10thly. Joseph
Atherton listers.
11thly. Jonathan Woodbury highway surveyor, 12thly, Francis Burnam, highway surveyor. 13thly. Samuel Davis collector, '14thly. Jonathan Woodbury sealer of weights and measures.
15thly. Isaac Chamberlin grand jury man, 16thly. town voted to divide into districts. 17thly. Noah Piper, 18thly. Amos Bemis and 19thly. Syrell Hutchins committee to divide the town into districts.
20thly. Voted to raise four dollars to purchase books for the use of the town.
21stly. Voted to raise twenty pounds (or one hundred dollars) for the use of highways in this town.
22ndly. Voted that Noah Piper's house door should be the sign post for the present.
23rdly. Voted that the committee to make their reports to the town the second Monday of May next.
24thly. Voted that the selectmen should lay out roads and lay before the town the second Monday of May next.
25thly. Voted that this meeting should stand adjourned to the second Monday of May next to the house of Waldo Cheney at one o'clock after- noon.
All the above named officers all qualified by taking the oath as the law before Esquire Stoughton.
May the twelfth met according to adjournment.
26thly. Voted to raise eleven pounds or about $55.00 for the use of schools this year.
27thly. Voted that this meeting should stand adjourned to the first Monday of June next then to be holden at this place at one o'clock afternoon. Then the records further reveal that the meeting was held according to adjournment.
28thly. Voted that there should be a road from Weathersfield line to Mr. Isaac Hildreth's and to Mr. Bemis' as was laid out. This road crossed Weathersfield line near Dan Davis' house and extended to Volney Foster's place also to George Cook's. A. M. P.
29thly. Voted that there should be a road from Noah Piper's to the town line near Samuel Martin's as was laid out. This road extended
7
Baltimore, Vermont
from the place where Oel Converse now lives to the Weathersfield line near the quarry house.
30thly. Voted that there should be a road from Mr. Bryant's field to the other road that leads from Noah Piper's to the town line near Samuel Martin's as was laid out. Mr. Bryant's field was directly back of where Arthur Basso now lives so the road extended from near the base of the mountain and connected with the present road near Mr. Shepard's sugar house.
31stly. Voted that Waldo Cheney should be a committee man to sit with Amos Bemis and Noah Piper to divide this town into school districts. The committee made their report to the town that the South District should be Isaac Chamberlin or Pollard's place. Francis Burnam on old road, Ezra Redfield on Hammond place, Levi Davis whose farm consisted of the big Pollard pasture and Dan Davis' Baltimore land, Samuel Davis on the Sundgren farm, and Isaac Hildreth on Volney Foster's place. These families all lived on the "Governor's farm so called," but after the Revolutionary War Gov. Wentworth lost all the land he had reserved for himself. The families of Reuben Bemis on the George Cook place and of Amos Bemis who lived on the hill beyond his brother Reuben were also included in the South District. All the other families in town con- stituted the North District. As yet in 1794 there was no road connecting the southeastern corner of the town with the road under the mountain, hence the unequal division of families.
32ndly. Voted to lay out a road from Noah Piper's to the south part of the town.
This completed what is now called the old road. There was no road connecting the Foster Place with the road under the mountain and no road as yet laid out from the Litch Lot to the Chester line.
These three meetings ended the town's business for the first year with $55 voted for the two schools, $100 for roads and $4 to pur- chase books.
8
The History of
II. THE STORY OF THE SCHOOLS
In the warrant for the first town meeting to be held March 1794 in what is now Baltimore we read the following:
3dly. To see if the Town will divide into School Destrects and choose persons in each Destrect as School Committee or Agents. In the record of that meeting we read 16thly. Town voted to divide into destrects.
In an adjourned meeting of that same year the town "voted Eleven pounds L. M. for the use of schools this year." At the second adjourned meeting of that first year the committee made their report to the town that the North District should be Ahimaaz Sherwin, Col. Joshua Martin, Waldo Cheney, Noah Piper, Jonathan Burnam, Joseph Atherton, Joseph Morse, Jonathan Woodbury, Peter Robinson, Ebenezer Allen, Moses Bates. South District should be Col. Isaac Chamberlin, Francis Burnam, Levi Davis, Ezra Redfield, Amos Bemis, Samuel Davis, Isaac Hildreth, Reuben Bemis.
It will be seen that this division included in the first-named divi- sion all the families living near the mountain as well as those living on the east side. The other district was much smaller. But in the very beginning there were no connecting roads between the two sections which may account for this unequal division of families.
In 1795 they chose three men in each district for school committee. In 1796 a special town meeting was called for Mon. the first day of August to act on the following articles:
2ly. To see if the Town will agree to Unite in one School and to Apint a place for the Senter and to make Som preperation for Building a School house this faull or to act anything that the Town May Think Proper with respect to Schools.
The report of that meeting states that they voted to "Come all into one School District," and a committee was appointed to find a center. It was voted that this committee should "go on and find a center and if that will do to Bild a house to set down a stake and if that wont do to find the Next Niest Spot".
At the next meeting held Aug. 29 they voted to accept the com- mittee's report as a center, and they chose a committee to agree with Mr. Houghton on what is now the Shepard place, for a piece of land containing two acres. It was then voted to take security of Mr. Houghton and lay out the land and divide it into three shares for chopping and "12ly Voted that the Committee see that the land be all chopt by the 15th of October next." This most peaceable and profitable meeting was then adjourned until the first Monday of October next at two o'clock afternoon. At this meeting it appeared the land had not been measured nor security taken of Mr. Houghton, and it was voted that this should be done by the tenth day of Oct. Adjourned until Tuesday of October 11th.
They met according to adjournment and "21ly voted to Divide into two school Destricts North and South," and also voted to pay
9
Baltimore, Vermont
Joseph Atherton sixteen shillings for services in finding a center of the town. Joshua Martin received seven shillings and six pence for like services.
This question of whether to have one or two schools was a matter for controversy during forty-two years. In 1797 the warning called "to see if the town will alter or Divide into school destricts for the Better Acomedations of sd. Town." They voted to divide into two districts and appointed a committee to draw the lines between the two districts. The South District remained practically the same, and North District was further enlarged by the Putnam land, Luke Harris and Daniel Smith farms. (Now Frank Kendall's, Slayton Kendall's and Olney Farms).
Apparently this division did not please every one because they held a special meeting January 24, 1798, and voted to divide the town into two separate districts; the east line of the Jonathan Burnam farm, now Dan Rich's, to the east side of Samuel Davis', now Sundgren's, to be dividing line. Two days later a warning was posted to see if the town would reconsider its vote in regard to dividing the town and "to see if the Town will agree to all come into one District and build a House in the senter as near as may be con- sistent." They met, passed over the articles and voted to divide the town into two districts as was divided last March, same as the first division made.
In 1798 it was voted North School District shall have liberty each man to "lay out his School money" as they shall think fit for the year. Just how did each man do that thing? Possibly no school was provided for that year. No other mention is made of schools or school money.
In the first book of land records we find that Jonathan Atherton in 1799 did grant, lease and landlet to the school committee a cer- tain piece of land for the use of the No. School District on the west line of Jonathan Burnam's land, now Dan Rich's, on the south side of the road near the brick yard. This piece was 40 by 50 feet and the town was to have and to hold the said land as long as the "'committy shall ceep a school house for the use of ceeping a destrict school from time to time and they may meet on the Sabbath or hold town meetings or Destrict meetings." The town could hold the land as long as "the building was used for school purposes and no longer and the destrict shall have liberty to moov the house in case the Destrict shall think it not best to ceep a destrict school in said House."
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