USA > Vermont > Addison County > Gazetteer and business directory of Addison County, Vt., for 1881- 82 > Part 9
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In 1880, Bridport had a population of 1, 167, was divided into nine school districts, and contained nine common schools, employing one male and
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
eleven female teachers at an aggregate salary of $1,320.60. There were 315 pupils attending common school, while the entire expense of the schools for the year ending October 3 1st, was $1,851.70.
BRIDPORT, a post village and the only settlement deserving the title of "ville," is located a little west of the centre of the town, and contains one hotel, two stores, two churches (Cong. and Meth.), two blacksmith shops, one harness shop, boot and shoe shop, and about thirty-five dwellings.
WEST BRIDPORT (p. o.), a small hamlet on the lake shore opposite Crown Point, contains perhaps a dozen scattered dwellings.
For a period of seven years after the grant of the town, it remained an un- broken wilderness, with no human being to disturb its solitude. Early in 1768, an effort was made towards forming a settlement, but the troubles and danger attending the prosecution of the Land Title Controversy prevented at that time a culmination of the project. But later in the year Philip Stone, from Groton, Mass., then twenty-one years of age, purchased a lot of land and commenced a clearing about one-half mile south of Port Franklin Ferry, the first permanent settler in the territory.
The next settlers were the families of Smith, Richardson, Towner, Chip- man, and Plumer.
Samuel Smith and family were the second permanent settlers in the town. In the fall of 1770, they started from New Jersey in a "Jersey wagon " drawn by a yoke of oxen, which conveyance they used till they arrived at Skeenes- boro, now Whitehall, where they disposed of it and made the rest of the journey in a batteau down the lake, landing in Panton, and located upon land subsequently owned by Nathan Spaulding, November 9, 1770. Here they remained until 1773, when they removed to Bridport. Soon after their removal here, such disquietude and uncertainty prevailed between the colo- nists and New York, that most of the families who had come to Bridport removed to safer localities, some few, however, remained, and among the num- ber was the family of Mr. Smith. But after the approach of Burgoyne, in 1777, most of these removed, leaving only the Smith family and one or two others.
In 1772, after a bounty had been placed upon the heads of Ethan Allen and his associates, by the New York government, he in company with Eli Roberts, of Vergennes, called at the house of Mr. Richards one day, and were there joined in the evening by six British soldiers from Crown Point, all intent upon the capture of Allen. But as he and his companion were well armed, they concluded to defer their capture till they should have retired to rest. Their plans, however, were frustrated by Mrs. Richards, who placed A'len's and Roberts' guns and hats near an open window, whence they made their escape unobserve:l. The soldiers were very angry with Mrs. Richards, accusing her of assisting the " outlaws ;" but she claimed to have done it to preserve the safety of her house, and thus escaped their vengeance. Shortly after Mr. Smith came, in 1773, the house of Mr. Stone was visited by a band
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
of Indians in search of plunder. Mr. Stone had barely time to escape to the forest. The savages stripped the house of everything of value it contained, killed the pig, etc., and departed. In 1775, a Tory who was a tenant in the house of a Mr. Prindle, set fire to the building and left, implicating Mr. Stone in the robbery and burning. Mr. Stone, who had hid in the bushes near his house, was fired upon by the British, captured and taken to Ticonderoga, where he remained three weeks. Of the families which had remained in the neighborhood previous to the approach of Burgoyne's army, in 1777, on receiving news of the probable event, all, or nearly so, left for Rutland and Bennington, and it is not known that more than two or three remained in the neighborhood till Carleton's raid in 1778. Among these, however, were Nathan and Marshall Smith and a young man by the name of Ward. These were captured by the British in their log house on the farm now owned by Marshall Smith, November 4, 1778, and taken to Quebec. After a weary nineteen-months' imprisonment in Canada, they succeeded in making their escape, and after being once recaptured, finally reached the forts at Pittsford. On their weary journey thither, they stopped one night in Bridport, staying in the abandoned house of Asa Hemenway, the only one that had escaped the ravages of the enemy. Nathan spent some three years in the neighbor- hood of Tinmouth, and in the spring of 1784, married Mrs. Wait Trask, formerly Miss Wait Allen, and removed to Bridport, and settled upon the land he was improving at the time of his capture in 1778, and upon which he died some fifty years after. Many of his descendants still reside in the town. Several families had already returned to their improvements and many others followed soon after, so that the population at the taking of the first census, in 1791, was 449.
The town was organized March 29, 1784, and John N. Bennett chosen town clerk ; Marshall Smith, constable ; John Barber, Moses Johnson, Dan- iel Hoskins, Isaac Barrows, and Marshall Smith, selectmen. The first justice was Nathan Manly, in 1786 ; first representative, Philip Stone, in 1788; first birth, Robert Hamilton, Jr., Oct. 26, 1772 ; first marriage, Philip Stone and Miss Ward, Nov. 25, 1773 ; the first deed recorded bears date May 20, 1766, from Ephraim Doolittle to Daniel Hemenway; the first town meeting was held at the residence of Samuel Stone, May 20, 1783; the first death was - - Tarbox, though there is nothing to mark the spot of his burial or to show the time of his death. In the cemetery near the church is a stone bear- ing the following : "Isaac Richmond died April 28, 1786." The first store was kept by James Barbour, where Edgar Grosvenor now resides ; the first grist- mill was located upon the farm now owned by Frank S. Shackett, and opera- ted for a time by Isaac Hamblin, though it is not certain that he built it ; the first saw-mill was built by Thomas Baldwin, on the farm now owned by Olive Frost ; the first hotel was kept by Zeria Smith. where Josiah Allen now lives-so we have been credibly informed.
David Pratt, from Salem, Mass., came to Bridport in 1777, and located
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
upon the farm now owned by Oren W. Pratt. At this time there was no road through the township, and Mr. Pratt felled the first trees on what is now the cemetery at the village. He was a carpenter by trade and built nearly all the first framed buildings in town.
Asa Hemenway was born in Shrewsbury, Mass., in 1750, and was present at the battle of Bunker Hill. He came to Bridport in 1780, and acted as clerk and surveyor for the original proprietors, and subsequently commenced the first settlement on the farm now owned by Asa Hemenway, Jr. He rep- resented the town in the General Assembly at Rutland, Vergennes, and Mont- pelier. After a few years' residence on the above mentioned farm he removed to the one now occupied by Romain Hemenway, where he built the house now standing on that place, in 1800, which was the first building in the town to acquire the dignity of papered walls.
Elijah Grosvenor came to this town about 1780 or 'go, from the State of New York, and located where Frank P. Wood now lives. He was a mason by trade, and assisted in the construction of the old Middlebury jail. Descend- ants of his several sons and daughters are now living in Bridport and the sur- rounding towns.
James Barbour, from Worcester, Mass., located in Bridport in 1782. He made the first Thanksgiving party ever held in the town, and to which the whole population were invited, the said population then consisting of six fam- ilies. Mr. Barbour and wife were Christians of the pure old Puritan stock, and consequently very staid and sober. On one occasion, Bascomb Graves reported that he saw Mr. Barbour and his wife out in their yard "pulling hair with all their might, and the old man had a butcher's knife in his hand." The church concluded that for so grave an offence they should be called to ac_ count. Accordingly they were arraigned before a meeting of the dignitaries, when the testimony developed the fact that it was the hair of a butchered hog they were pulling. Several of Mr. Barbour's descendants now reside in the town.
Benjamin Miner, an old Revolutionary soldier, came to Bridport from New Jersey, in 1786, locating upon the farm now owned by Champlin C. Miner, where he died in 1835, aged ninety-three years. Benjamin, Jr., was born in Stonington, Mass., in 1767, and came with his father to this town, where he held the office of justice of the peace from 1809 to the time of his death in 1851. He also represented the town in the General Assembly during the years 1820, '21, '22, and '25, and also in the Constitutional Convention in 1830. In connection with his duties as justice he married nearly one hun- dred couples, and always made a practice of giving the fee to the bride.
David Doty was born in New Providence, N. J., in May, 1758, and came to Bridport in 1785, Married Hannalı Smith in 1787, and located upon the farm now owned by Sheldon Smith. But not liking the clay soil of this farm, he removed, in 1790, to the farm now owned by his son, Capt. David F. Doty, who is now eighty-three years of age.
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
Adonijah Rice, the first male child born in Worcester, Mass., came to Bridport in 1786, and located upon the farm now owned by A. H. Rice.
Payne Converse came from Massachusetts, married Sally Gale, and made the first settlement on the farm now owned by J. Randall.
Ephraim Stone, from Groton, Mass., made the first settlement on the farm now owned by Aikins Dukett, in 1787, where he resided until his death, in 1841, aged 78 years. His son Philip, born in 1803, now resides on road forty-one.
Daniel Hamblin came to this town from Guilford, Conn., when there were but two families in the township. After the war broke out he returned to Guilford, enlisted, and served till the cessasion of hostilities, when he soon after returned to Bridport and located upon the farm now owned by J. T. Fletcher.
Isaac Barrows, from Connecticut, was the first settler on the farm now owned by F. G. Converse, on road forty-eight. He boarded with Philip Stone's family, six miles distant, where he returned every night. Bears were plenti- ful, and on these daily journeys he killed several.
Deacon Lamond Gray was a descendent of Scotch ancestors, who, in 1612, settled in the north of Ireland, near Londonderry. In 1718, the family, of which John Gray was the head, with some forty other families, emigrated through Boston to Worcester, Mass. In 1743, the family settled in Pelham, Mass., where Lamond was born in 1753, the son of Daniel Gray. He was well educated, and for a time taught school in that vicinity. May 26, 1778, he was married to Isabel Hamilton, widow of Lieut. Robert Hamilton, by whom she had two children, Robert and Isabel, the latter after- wards becoming the wife of Capt. Jeremiah Lee, of Bridport. After his marriage, Mr. Gray remained in Pelham about ten years, when, in company with his father, and brother Jeremiah, he came to Brid- port, and purchased two tracts of land of one hundred acres each. One of the tracts so purchased included the land now owned by Asa Rice, about a mile south of the village, and ran eastward to the wooded hill. The other hundred acres included the farm where Prosper Lee lived his lifetime. The first year they put in a crop of wheat, and the next, the troubles attending the Shay's rebellion of Massachusetts having subsided, Daniel and Jeremiah returned to Pelham, leaving Lamond on their clearing, and subsequently conveyed to him their title to the two hundred-acre tracts. Thus Lamond Gray became one of the early settlers of Bridport, where he continued to dwell till his death, in 1812, aged fifty-nine years. Being a scholarly man and a good pen- man, he was elected town clerk in 1790, and held the position many years, and was also a deacon of the Congregational Church. He had a family of three children, Joel, Daniel and Mary. Daniel graduated from Middlebury College in 1805, and soon after married Susannah Rice, by whom he had one child, Ozra P., born in 1806. Ozra learned the tanners' trade when eighteen years of age, which business he subsequently carried on at Crown Point for a
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
period of thirty-three years, when he returned to Bridport, in 1865, where he still resides. In 1809, Daniel's wife died, and in 1811, he married Amy Bos- worth, by whom he had sons, as follows: Rev. Edgar H., now of Cali- fornia ; Melvin L., of St. Louis, Mo .; Daniel Manlius, of Columbus, Ohio; Fabius C., who died at Gallatin, Tenn., in 1847; Oscar B., of New York city, and Amander Gray, who died near San Antonio, Texas, in May, 1859. Daniel died in 1823, aged thirty-seven years.
Stephen Baldwin, from New Jersey, a Revolutionary pensioner, came to Bridport at an early date. His three sons, Martin, Stephen, Jr., and Obed- iah, served in the war of 1812. Three of Stephen, Jr's, children, Elizabeth, Abigail and Ezra, are now living,
Barnabas Myrick came to Bridport from Shrewsbury, Conn., in 1790, and located upon the farm now owned by Halsey C. Elitharp. He was captain of a company during the war of 1812, and participated in the battle of Plattsburgh. Mr. Myrick was a very popular man among his townsmen, whom he represented in the Legislature, served as sheriff, and held various other offices of trust. His life was unfortunately brought to a close by the falling of a tree, March 24, 1823. Two only of eleven children are now living.
Samuel Buck was born in Milford, Conn., Oct. 29, 1767, and came to Brid- port in 1790, locating upon the farm now owned by Joseph R. Crane, and afterwards kept a store where A. A. Fletcher's house now stands. Mr. Buck, though possessed of considerable intelligence, had never been fortunate enough to have any educational advantages, and knew nothing of the science of pen- manship. In making entries on his books he used hieroglyphics of his own manufacture instead of English letters. One of his customers, it is related, upon settlement for goods, found himself charged with a cheese, which he denied having bought. Mr. Buck was obstinate, but when the customer mentioned the purchase of a grind-stone, he exclaimed, "Oh ! yes, that's so. You see this ring here ? Well, I put that down for a grind-stone, but forgot to put the hole in it."
David Burwell, from New Jersey, came to Bridport in 1791, locating upon the farm now owned by J. T. Fletcher. He was a weaver by trade, which occupation he followed as long as age permitted him to labor.
Thomas Baldwin, also from New Jersey, located in 1788, upon the farm now owned by H. C. Burwell.
Jakamiah Johnson came from the same place as above, locating upon the farm now owned by Lyman H. Johnson, in 1794. His widow, Anna, at the age of ninety-one, now resides in the town, the oldest person in the township.
Mitchell Kingman came from Canaan, Conn., about 1795, and located upon the farm now owned by Albert Stickle, in Addison, where he remained one year, then removed to Bridport upon the farm now owned by his son, J. M. Kingman.
Rev. Phineas Randall, a Congregationalist minister from Stowe, Mass.,
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TOWN OF BRIDPORT.
came to this town in 1795. Here, and in adjoining.towns, he preached sev- eral years, then settled in Weybridge, where he married Phoebe Goodyear, in 1798.
Henry Hall, from Rhode Island, made the first settlement on the farm now owned by Henry F. Hall, in 1790.
James Hamilton was born in Barre, Mass., and came to Bridport in 1795, locating upon the farm now owned by his son, Amos Hamilton, and the house he now occupies was built the first year of his father's residence here. Michael and John Hamilton, brothers of James, came during the same year. Michael settled upon the farm now owned by Charles A. Landers, John upon the one now in the hands of his son, J. O. Hamilton. In 1804, John built a portion of the house now occupied by J. O., and which is still in very fair condition. John, Jr., born here in 1796, still resides on road thirty-seven. He is 2 cooper by trade, and manufactured the first machine-made pails in the State.
Isaac Pettibone, with his father, emigrated from Norwalk, Conn., to the eastern part of Middlebury, and subsequently, in 1795, removed to Bridport, settling upon the farm now owned by E. Jewett. Isaac was a hatter by trade, which occupation he followed here many years.
Rev. Increase Graves was the first settled minister and received the minis- terial lot allowed by charter, the same being the farm now occupied by H. N. Sollace. Calvin Sollace was born in Walpole, N. H. He was a graduate of Middlebury College, studied law in Middlebury, and commenced practice in Bridport in 1814, and subsequently served as judge six years .:
Jacob Stiles, from New Jersey, made the first settlement on the farm now owned by Marion A. Pettibone.
Samuel Bixby came to this town from Thompson, Conn., in 1792, and set- tled upon the farm now owned by Elmer H. Bixby.
Nathaniel Elitharp was the first settler on the farm now owned by Darius Brooks, locating here about the year 1792.
William Braisted, from Sussex County, N. J., first located upon the farm now owned by William R. Braisted, in 1786.
Phineas Kitchel, born in Hanover, in October, 1763, removed to Bridport in 1798, locating upon the farm now owned by John Melvin. Here he car- ried on his trade of weaver, to which he finally added blacksmithing and car- riage making. He died in 1853, aged ninety years. Joseph, son of Phineas, born in 1794, died in 1852.
Benjamin Skiff came with his father from Sharon, Conn., in 1805, and purchased the farm now owned by his son Abel P. Here he kept a hotel forty years. Abel, who is now eighty years of age, devotes his time to the culture of peaches, quinces and pears.
Parris Fletcher, from South Woodstock, Vt., came to Bridport in 18ro, where he subsequently carried on the saddlery business, in connection with a general store. He was chosen one of the directors of the Bank of Middle- bury, and subsequently president, which office he retained till 1877, when he resigned. He died February 28, 1880, aged nearly eighty-six years.
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TOWN OF BRISTOL.
The Congregational Church of Bridport, located at the village, was organ- ized by Rev. Lemuel Haynes, of West Rutland, June 30, 1790, with twelve members. February 26, 1794, Rev. Increase Graves was installed the first settled minister. The first house of worship was a log structure, built during the year of organization. The present commodious brick building, capable of seating 550 persons, was erected in 1852, costing $9,000. The society is now in a flourishing condition with 178 members, a Sabbath school numbering 140 pupils, and owns church property to the amount of $11,800. The pres- ent pastor is Rev. James F. Eaton.
The Methodist Episcopal Church, located at the village, was organized in 1800. In 1853, they had sixty members in their society, which now num_ bers sixty-six. The church building was erected in 1821, built of wood, and will accommodate 180 persons. There is also a good Sabbath school kept up, having an average attendance of about ninety pupils. The present pastor is Rev. John M. Pascoe.
The Baptist Church, located about a mile east of the lake, was organized in 1804.
RISTOL, a mountainous town in the northeastern part of the county, lies in lat. 44° 7' and long. 3° 59', nearly thirty miles southwest from Montpelier, and the same distance southeast from Burlington, bounded north by Monkton and Starksboro, east by Starksboro and Lincoln, south by Lincoln and Middlebury, and west by New Haven. It was chartered by Benning Wentworth, the colonial governor of New Hampshire, June 26, 1762, under the name of Pocock, in honor of a distinguished English Admiral of that name, to Samuel Averill and sixty-two associates, the said charter con- taining the usual reservation of public land for the use of schools and for the propagation of the Gospel, and under the restrictions incident to the Went- worth charters. It originally contained twenty-three thousand six hundred acres ; but by an act of the Legislature, passed November 18, 1824, four thousand four hundred acres lying in the eastern part of the town were an- nexed to the territory of Lincoln, so that it now has an area of only nineteen thousand two hundred acres. On October 21, 1789, the Legislature passed an act changing the name of the town from Pocock to the one it now bears.
Bristol may be regarded as having a generally uneven surface, consisting of hills and valleys, alluvial flats, elevated plains, gentle acclivities and lofty mountains. The whole eastern part of the territory lies upon a spur of the Green Mountain range, causing a large portion of the lands in that section to be utterly worthless for agricultural purposes, yet valuable on account of the timber it bears. At about the center of the east line of the town this eleva- tion is cut by a ravine, or pass, called " The Notch," through which flows the New Haven River. North of the Notch the mountain has an elevation of 3,648 feet, and from its peculiar form is given the appropriate title of Hog Back. South of the Notch it is known as South Mountain. In the eastern
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TOWN OF BRISTOL.
part of the town, following the river, is a tract of very level country called Bristol Flats, while northeast of this the surface may be said to be moderately even, or rolling, rising at times to hills of quite extensive proportions. On the north line of the town, and extending south on both sides of Hog Back, is a cedar swamp, containing several hundred acres, well covered with cedar, tamarac, black and white ash, interspersed with some small pines, birch and maple. The whole surface of the town was originally covered with a heavy growth of pine, maple, ash, beech, birch, hemlock, elm, etc., and much of the same growth is now standing in certain localities.
The country is watered by the New Haven River, which enters the town from Lincoln at about the centre of the east line, continues a westerly course through the Notch until it reaches the centre of the town, when it turns south some distance, and finally turns westerly again, passing into New Haven. Baldwin Creek enters the northwestern part of the town from Starksboro, flows a westerly and southerly course and is discharged into New Haven River a little east of the village of Bristol. Beaver Brook, a small stream from the north, unites with Baldwin Brook. O'Brien Brook rises in the southwest part of the town, flows a westerly and northerly course and unites with New Haven River. These constitute the principal streams, though there are several of minor importance. They afford many excellent mill-sites, some of which have long since been made available. There are also two ponds of water in the town, one of considerable size and the other small. The former, Bristol Pond, is about one and one-half miles in length, and three-quarters of a mile in breadth, located a little west of the foot of Hog Back and extending just over the line into Monkton. It has a muddy bottom and is surrounded by extensive marshes. Its waters were well stocked with pickerel in 1824. The other pond is situated on the east side and near the summit of South Mountain, covering a area of some ten or twelve acres. It has also a very muddy bot- tom and is quite shallow.
During the great flood of July, 1830, which caused so much destruction in this and neighboring towns, Bristol suffered greatly, though no lives were lost. Soon after crossing the line of Lincoln into Bristol, the New Haven River receives the waters of Baldwin Creek, which unites with it at the Notch. The road below the mouth of the creek, which, during a period of thirty years had received no material damage, was now totally removed, and with it trees, together with the soil that had sustained them. Rocks, also, weighing twenty-five or thirty tons, were hurled from their beds and removed some distance by the resistless fury of the torrent. Ten bridges were swept away, which, together with roads, etc., that were destroyed, were valued at $24,000, while the loss of private property would amount to much more. The scars left by that one night's fury now are discernable, and the traces will still remain when centuries have intervened. In many places, slides were occa- sioned on the river-banks to an enormous height. Through the whole town, the channel of the river was worn to on unnatural width; the soil driven off
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TOWN OF BRISTOL.
left huge rocks beneath, naked ; so that now, when in midsummer the river is at its lowest ebb, instead of a beautiful stream stealing along without a murmur, the surface of which flings back the depending pictures of spires of corn growing on the extreme verge of the shore, one views a wide, sterile bed of rocks, in the midst of which the diminutive stream skulks along, mut- tering and repining at its monstrous channel.
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