USA > Vermont > Lamoille County > Gazetteer and business directory of Lamoille and Orleans counties, Vt., for 1883-84, pt 1 > Part 27
USA > Vermont > Orleans County > Gazetteer and business directory of Lamoille and Orleans counties, Vt., for 1883-84, pt 1 > Part 27
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
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 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39
About 1802, Joseph Marsh and Timothy Goodrich;, both from Addison county, made the first settlement in the western part of the town. A log cabin was built by Jabez G. Fitch near the upper falls, and in this cabin Goodrich resided, having as boarders Marsh and his family, and some other persons, who like himself, were employed by Fitch in clearing and building. Timothy Woodbridge, from Waltham, Vt., came in the autumn of 1802, and purchased lots No. 23, 24 and 47. He was a son of Hon. Enoch Wood- bridge, of Vergennes, and married Lydia Chipman, daughter of Darius Chip- man, and neice of Hon. Nathaniel Chipman, one of the first settlers of Mid- dlebury, Vt. After a few years he sold his first purchase and bought a part of lot No. 156, on which he made a clearing and built a cabin, but in 1807, he sold out and left the town. Amherst Stewart pitched on lot No. 3, resided there a few years, then removed to Brownington. John Wells, Jr., began on what is now known as the Peabody farm. He was the first justice of the peace appointed in the town. Perez Gardner, from St. Johnsbury, came in 1802, and pitched on parts of lots No. 9 and 10. During this year the first hay made in Coventry was cut on lot No. 7, where Quincey Wellington, a son-in law of Samuel Cobb, had begun a clearing. He abandoned it the next year and it returned to wilderness, and so remained till 1817, when
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Zebulon Burroughs reclaimed it, enlarged the clearing and erected buildings. In June, 1802, John Ide, Jr., began a clearing, either on lot No. 55, or 56. both of which he had purchased for $500.00. For many years he was a leading man in the town and did much to give it form and character.
The settlers thus mentioned constituted the adult population of the town- ship in March, 1803, when it was deemed expedient that the town be regu- larly organized. Accordingly, application was made to Luke Chapin, Esq., of Newport, who issued a warrant for a town meeting to be held at the residence of Samuel Cobb, Thursday, March 31, 1803. The meeting was duly convened, when the town was organized by the election of the follow- ing officers : John Wells, Jr., moderator ; Joseph Marsh, clerk; Timothy Woodbridge, constable ; Samuel Cobb, treasurer ; Samuel Cobb, Daniel B. Smith, and John Ide, Jr., selectmen ; Perez Gardner, John Wells, Jr., and Joseph Marsh, listers ; Joseph Marsh, Samuel Cobb, John Wells, Jr., and Samuel B. Smith, highway surveyors ; and Perez Gardner, grand juror. The first justice of the peace was John Wells, Jr., in 1802. Joseph Marsh was the first representative, in 1803.
The town slowly increased in population till, in 1821, there were about 300 inhabitants, many of whom were in comfortable circumstances. But capital and enterprise were sadly lacking. At that date there were only two saw-mills, and those quite dilapidated, and no grist-mill deserving the name, no store, mechanic's shop, public house nor house of worship. There was no semblance of a village except at the Center, where there were four or five dwellings and a school-house, and the roads for forty rods each way laid one rod wider than through the rest of the town. All the trade went to Barton, Brownington, or Derby, occasioning great inconvenience and labor, and much loss of time. But in 1822, Calvin Harmon and his brother Daniel W., located where the village now is and immediately commenced operations on an extended scale. A store was built and stocked with mer- chandise and a saw-mill erected on the site of the present mill. A postoffice was also established during this year, commencing business May 22, with Isaac Parker, postmaster. In January, 1823, the first school-house was built in the village, by voluntary contribution and labor of the inhabitants. The first cooking-stove was brought to the town by Rev. Lyman Case, March 10, 1823.
The first birth in the town took place July 28, 1801, when a daughter was born to Tisdale Cobb. Her original name was Harriet Fitch, bestowed on account of a promise of Jabez G. Fitch to give a lot of land to the first-born child; but he failed to fulfill his promise, and the name was changed to Bet- sey. In the summer of 1803, a saw-mill, the second in the town and much better than the first, was built on the upper falls of Black river, by Jabez G. Fitch. This and the adjacent cabin of Goodrich and Marsh constituted a center of civilization in the western part of the town, as the Cobb settlement did in the eastern part. The first freemen's meeting was held September 6, 1803, when sixteen votes, the unanimous vote of the town, were given for
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Isaac Tichenor for governor. In 1804, the first birth of a male child, the first marriage, and the first death took place. The birth was that of George B., son of John Ide, Jr., February 17th. The marriage was that of Silence Cobb to Col. David Knox, March rith, solemnized by Elijah Strong, Esq., of Brownington. The death was that of Mrs. John Farnsworth, December 4th. £ In October and November, 1805, the first public roads were laid out. Until that time the roads were mere paths cut through the woods, with refer- ence mainly to private convenience, and no wider than was absolutely neces- sary for a single team, and not always as wide as that. When John Farnsworth came into town with his ox-cart, the whole population had to perform extra work on the road from Brownington, to allow the passage of so wide a vehi- cle. In June, 1806, the first road from east to west was laid out. It extended from the upper falls of Black river, through the center "to the west side of Jotham Pierce's opening." The first law suit in Coventry took place in the winter of 1805. It was held at the house of D). B. Smith, Esq., who was the magistrate in the case. William Baxter, Esq., of Brownington, was plaintiff and attorney, and Joseph Marsh, Esq., of Coventry, was defendant and attorney. The action was founded on a note payable to Perez Gardner, and the defense was that the note was given for beef which proved not to be sweet. But the plaintiff proved that Marsh took the beef " for better or for worse," so the defense failed. In 1813, Abithar Dean, Jr., made eight sleighs, the first that were made for use in the town. The first cap- ital operation in surgery was performed February 27, 1825, by Dr. F. W. Adams, of Barton, who amputated Jonathan Baldwin's leg, which had been crushed the day before by a falling tree. Within less than a year from that date Dr. Adams amputated three other legs in Coventry ; one of Francis Sis- coe, a lad whose ankle had been crushed ; one of Isaac Baldwin, on account of a fever sore ; and one of Nathaniel Dagget, February 14, 1826, on account of a white swelling. The first lawyer was Samuel Suniner, from St. Albans, who established himself here November 13, 1828. The person who attained the greatest age was Timothy W. Knight, who died in June, 1882, aged ninety-six years. One of the first frame buildings erected was a barn built by Ebenezer M. Gray, the first shoemaker in the town, in 1812, which is still stand- ing, in good repair. The nails used in its construction cost twenty-four cents per pound, and were paid for with butter at eight cents per pound. The first hotel was kept by Heber Hamilton, on the site now occupied by the dwelling of W. W. Frost.
John Mitchell, born at Boston, in 1780, came to this town in 1801, and located upon the farm now owned by Samuel Parker. Here he worked summers and returned to Westmoreland winters, until 1804, when he mar- ried Sarah Walker and came to Coventry in January, 1805. From Brown- ington Mrs. Mitchel came on horseback. When within a mile of her new home, while fording a brook, she fell from the horse into the water. Not- withstanding the cold, the lady was obliged to retain her wet garments until
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a fire could be kindled in the log house whereby to dry them, for all her other clothing had been left behind in Brownington. This was rather a cool reception to her wilderness home, though she and her husband passed many happy years therein. Two of their family of three children are now living, Warren, of Coventry, and Nancy W., of Brownington. Mr. Mitchel died in 1867, aged eighty-seven years.
Ebenezer Willson, one of the early settlers of Coventry, was born at Keene, N. H., in 1786, and when quite a young man assisted his father, Aaron Will- son, in erecting the first grist-mills in Glover, Vt. When "Runaway pond" burst through its banks and emptied its waters into the valley below, these mills, together with other improvements were swept, away causing the finan- cial ruin of his father. After this disaster he returned to his native place, but soon located in Westminster, Vt., at which place he married Lucy, daughter of Colonel Ichabod Ide, she being a cousin of the first Baptist minister in Coventry, the Rev. John C. Ide, whose son, Rev. George B. Ide, attained great prominence as an eloquent and talented preacher in the Baptist church. In 1820, Mr. Willson, with his young family, removed to Coventry, where he engaged in house-building, which, along with other mechanical occupations, employed his time during a long series of years. His skill as a mechanic was of great value to the early settlers, as he could construct or repair anything made of wood from a violin to an ox-sled. Later on he removed to the vil- lage of Barton Landing, where he died at the advanced age of 92 years, form- ing one of a trio of aged men, consisting of himself, Judge Parker, and Col. Cyrus Eaton, who, having been warm friends in their younger days, lived in close companionship until the snows of ninety winters whitened their scanty locks. Death found him ready for the change, and he passed away in 1878, respected and esteemed by all his neighbors and friends.
Joseph Day and his son Luke, from Vergennes, Vt., made the first settle- ment upon the farm now owned by Andrew L. McFarland.
Deacon Perez Gardner, from St. Johnsbury, Vt., made the first settlement upon the farm now owned by Ralph Burroughs.
William and Anna Esty, from Westmoreland, N. H., came to Coventry in 1803, and located on road 37. William died in 1843, aged eighty-three years. Their family consisted of eight children, six sons and two daughters.
Deacon Jonathan True, from Andover, Mass., was among the early set- tlers. He married Mary Cram and reared a family of eight children, Reuben, Daniel, Bartlett, Levi, Moses, Rhoda, Hannah, and Nancy, of whom Moses is the only one now living. George W., son of Daniel, and Silas R., son of Bartlett, reside in Coventry.
Samuel Boynton, son of Joseph Boynton, was born at Westmoreland, N. H., in 1777, where he resided until 1805, when with his wife, Clarissa Gleason, he came to Coventry and purchased of Daniel Smith the farm now owned by his son, Ira Boynton, on road 29. There was a small frame house and a frame barn on the place. The barn is still in a good state of preservation.
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Frederick W. Heermon, a German, while on a visit to England in 1776, went aboard a man-of-war, when, with six others, he was pressed into the British service and brought to America. When near Portland he deserted and joined the Americans, serving until the close of the war. In 1808, he came to Coventry and located upon the farm now owned by his son, Hartson W. Heermon.
Isaac Baldwin, born in Westminster, Vt., in 1780, came to Coventry in 1808, and made the first settlement upon the farm now owned by Henry F. Black, upon which he resided until his death, in 1838.
Thomas Guild, a native of Swanzey, N. H., born in 1786, married Keziah Foristall, of Troy, N. H., and came to Coventry in 1808, making the first settlement upon the farm now owned by Job Guild, on road 43. He reared a family of seven children, of whom Dan, of Northfield, Vt., Job, of this town, Ezra, of Coventry, and Sarah K. Alden, of Irasburgh, are still living. When Mr. Guild came here he brought a back-load of boots and shoes to sell, and was probably the first dealer in town.
Isaac Parker, born in Cavendish, Vt., in 1790, came to Coventry in 1808, and located upon the farm now owned by Clark Morse, there being at that time only a small clearing made on the place. Mr. Parker graduated from Middlebury college with Silas Wright, married Arabella Cobb, daughter of Samuel Cobb, and reared a family of eleven children, nine of whom are living, and died July 30, 1882, aged ninety-two years
Timothy W. Knight, born in New Hampshire in 1786, came to Coventry in 1809, and located upon the farm now owned by - Bailey, where he resided until 1825, when he located where his daughter, Mary Niles, now resides. He died in June, 1882, aged ninety-six years.
Dea. Ebenezer M. Gray, son of Joseph, was born in Townshend, Vt., in 1781. He learned the shoemaker's trade when quite young, and followed boating summers, and worked at his trade winters until 1810, when he came to Coventry and made the first settlement upon the farm now owned by G. H. Gorham. Here he made a small clearing and erected a rude log cabin and returned to Westmoreland, where, in the following year, he married Lavina Reed and came back to Coventry. They reared a family of six chil- dren, four of whom, Nathaniel W., Lavina Fairbrother, Azro, and Hubbard, are living. Mr. Gray was a prominent citizen, a deacon of the Methodist church, and held many of the town offices. He was the first shoemaker in the town, and did all the work for four adjoining towns for many years. His death occurred May 27, 1854, at the age of seventy-three years.
Zebulon Burroughs, a native of New Hampshire, was born August II , 1794. He immigrated to Caledonia county with his father, and in 1811 . came to Coventry and purchased the farm now owned by his son, Albert W. He married Martha Reed, by whom he reared a family of ten children, seven of whom attained an adult age, and five are still living. His death occurred in 1879, at the age of eigthy years.
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Winslow Berry, born at Westminster, Vt., in 1789, came to Coventry in 1816, and purchased a hundred acre lot on road 32, where he died at the age of thirty-nine years, leaving a family of five children to the care of his eldest son, Jesse, who was then fifteen years of age. Jesse remained here until 1851, when he removed to Barton Landing, where he died a few years later. Mrs. Job Gould, of Barton Landing, and Kenelin W. Berry, who oc- cupies the homestead in this town, are the only surviving ones of the family.
William Flanders, son of Philip Flanders, was born in Salem, Mass., in 1805, and while yet a small boy moved with his father to Brownington, where he resided until 1819, when they came to Coventry and located upon the farm now owned by B. W. Flanders. There was a frame house on the farm, built by Jotham Pierce, which is still standing. Philip resided here until his death, when the farm passed into the hands of William, who made it his home until 1875, when he removed to Barton Landing, where he died September 27, 1882.
Timothy Black, from Westminster, Vt., came to Coventry in 1822, and purchased the farm now owned by Mrs. Black, on road 22. He married Al- mira Baldwin and reared seven children, three of whom, Henry F., Ellen A. Huntington, of Randolph, and Ann E. Babcock, of New York City, are liv- ing. His death occurred in 1856.
Thomas Wells came from New Hampshire in 1807, and was one of the early settlers of Troy, locating about a mile west of North Troy, upon the farm now owned by H. C. Wilson, whose wife is a niece of Mr. Wells. He represented Troy in the legislature several times, and held other offices. His son, Thomas, Jr., was born in Troy, and in 1840, came to this town and purchased a hundred acre lot overlooking South Bay on road 21, which now forms a part of his home farm of 225 acres. At the age of forty-three years he enlisted and served his country in Co. H, 15th Vt. Vols. His grandfather, Samuel Wells, was a captain in the Revolutionary war, and died in Boston, about 1828.
Dea. Loring Frost, born in Brattleboro, Vt., December 24, 1793, married Abigail M. Bosworth, of Beekmantown, N. Y., November 24, 1817, and came to Coventry in the winter of 1822-'23, where he engaged in teaching school, and passed the remainder of a long life. He organized the first Sabbath school in Orleans county.
Asa Ryther came to this town February 12, 1839, and settled on road 9, where he died February 12, 1859, just twenty years from the time he located there. Only one of his children, Charles V., is now living.
Daniel P. Walworth was born in Caanan, N. H., March 25, 1808. In 1829, he located in Washington, Orange county, as a clerk, and after two years became a partner in the firm of Dickinson & Stone. In 1834, he sold his interest there and came to Coventry, opening a general store at Coventry village, where he remained in trade, excepting two years, until 1876. Since that time he has not been actively engaged in business. He represented the
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town in 1870-'74, has been selectman and justice of the peace several years, and is the present town agent, having held that position a number of years. He married Mary Bartholomew, the union being blessed with three children, though only one, Jennie E., is now living.
Hon. Elijah Cleveland, son of Elijah P. Cleveland, was born in Hanover, N. H., June 29, 1795, and immigrated with his father to Waterford, Vt., when five years of age, where he remained until 1816, then removed to Pas- sumpsic village and remained until 1825, when he came to Coventry and en- gaged in mercantile pursuits. He kept a store twenty-five years, built the first grist-mill of importance, where the present mill stands, and operated the first starch factory for several years. He was one of the charter members of the Passumpsic railroad company, and in 1848, was elected a director of the same, which office he held twenty-five years, and in 1854, was appointed sec- retary of the company, which office he still holds. He was also president of the Bank of Orleans, at Irasburgh, ten or twelve years, succeeding Ira H. Allen to that position. He was several times elected a judge of the county court, and held most of the town offices, was one of the presidential electors when Zachary Taylor was elected, was a member of the State senate two years, and is now a wonderfully well preserved man of eighty-eight years. Our engraving represents him at the age of fifty-five years, when he was presi- dent of the bank and actively engaged in the railroad enterprise. Two sons, Henry C., occupying the old homestead, and Charles B., of Newport, are his only children now living, he having buried one son.
Rev. Pliny Holton White was a man too well known, not only in this town, but throughout the State, to need an extended notice in this short sketch of the good old town of Coventry. As a writer and historian he ranked high and was widely known ; but as a true man and a Christian, his memory ranked still higher in the hearts of his townsmen. His forcible pen was never idle, and to his excellent and ably written history of Coventry, in Miss Hemen- way's Gazetteer, we are largely indebted for the materials of this sketch of the town. He covered all the points and exhausted all the materials per- taining to the history of his adopted town, and no man was better fitted for the task, or could have performed it in a more satisfactory manner. He was born at Springfield, Vt., October 6, 1822, the son of John and Bethia Holton White. At the age of three years he was left fatherless and in poverty, and before he was fifteen was made an orphan. He had always a predisposition to learning, and a great thirst for knowledge. His early education was received at Limerick (Me.) Academy, where he was a student from his eighth to his fifteenth year. He then spent a few years as a clerk in a store at Walpole, N. H., his leisure hours being assiduously devoted to reading and study, developing those peculiar traits of industry that characterized his after- life. He studied law with Hon. William C. Bradley, at Westminster, Vt., and having access to his well selected library, he was afforded excellent op- portunities for the cultivation of his taste for reading and literature, and the
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well known historical tastes of his instructor probably gave direction and de- velopment to his own natural inclination toward historical inquiry, wherein he became so justly celebrated. November 24, 1843, he was admitted to the Windham county bar, and practiced his profession from April 15, 1844 until 1851, when he became editor of the Brattleboro Eagle. He severed his connection with that paper in December, 1852, and in January, 1853, he, removed to St. Johnsbury, engaging as a clerk in the establishment of Messrs. Fairbanks, in whose employ he remained until August, 1857. From St. Johnsbury he went to Amherst, Mass., where he was connected, from Au- gust 15, 1857, to May 7, 1858, with the publication of the Hampshire and Franklin Express. Having for a long time privately pursued theological studies, he was licensed to preach, and preached his first sermon at West- minster, Vt., April 18, 1858. After preaching a few Sabbaths each at Ber- nardson, Mass., and Putney, Vt., he came to this town and commenced his labors as acting pastor of the Congregational church, August 8, 1858, and was ordained February 15, 1859, Rev. George N. Webber preaching the ser- mon. He continued its pastor until his death, April 24, 1869. Mr. White also held several public positions connected with the general assembly. He was second assistant clerk of the house of representatives in 1851 ; was ap- pointed secretary of civil and military affairs under the first administration of Gov. Fairbanks, in 1852 ; represented the town of Coventry in 1862-'63 ; in November, 1862, he was appointed a member of the board of education, and held the office for successive years until 1868 ; was chaplain of the sen- ate in 1864-'65, and'66 ; superintendent of the recruiting service in Orleans county from 1863, to the close of the war ; and was superintendent of schools in St. Johnsbury in 1857, and in Coventry from 1862 to 1864. Mr. White was also a valued correspondent of all the papers of Vermont, and, in 1866, was elected president of the Vermont Historical Society, a position ably filled until his death.
The military history of the town takes its date from September, 1807, when a company of militia was organized, and had its first training. Ebenezer Hosmer, was chosen captain ; Jotham Pierce, lieutenant ; and Tisdale Cobb, ensign. This organization was maintained till the destruction of the militia system by the statute of 1844. In 1856, a statute was enacted permitting of volunteer and uniformed companies, and under that statute a company, which took the name of "The Frontier Guards," was organized, December 16, 1857. The officers elected were Azariah Wright, captain ; Hartford Han- cock, Angustine C. West and John H. Thrasher, lieutenants; and Dr. D. W. Blanchard, clerk. When the war of 1861, came upon us, the officers of this company, and many of its members, did good service, either as recruit- ing agents or as soldiers, or in both capacities. About the old guard, as a nucleus, was formed another company of "Frontier Guards," which, under that name, went into service with full ranks, and formed a part of the Third Vermont Regiment.
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The Congregational church, located at Coventry village, was organized by Rev. Seth Payson, with seventeen members, October 2, 1810, Rev. Lyman Case being the first pastor. The church building was erected in 1829, a wood structure capable of seating 400 persons. It original cost was $2,750.00, though it is now valued, including grounds, at $6,000.00.
The Methodist Episcopal church located at Coventry village, was organized by Rev. W. R. Puffer, in 1877. The building was erected during that year, a wood structure capable of seating 300 persons, and is valued at about its original cost, $2,400.00. The first pastor was Rev. O. D. Clapp. The so- ciety now has forty-two members, with Rev. Lucius E. Taylor, pastor.
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TOWN OF CRAFTSBURY.
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CRAFTSBURY.
RAFTSBURY lies in the southern part of the county, in lat. 44° 39', and long. 4° 32', bounded northeasterly by Albany, southeasterly by Greens- boro, southwesterly by Wolcott, and northwesterly by Eden. It contains an area of about six miles square, or 23,040 acres, granted by the State to Ebenezer Crafts, Timothy Newell, and sixty-two associates, November 6, 1780, and chartered by the name of Minden, August 23, 1781. The name of Minden was retained until October 27, 1790, when it was altered to Craftsbury, in honor of Ebenezer Crafts, the first settler in the county and one of the principal grantees.
The surface of the town is much broken into hills and valleys, though not to such an extent as to retard the cultivation of the soil, which varies from alluvial meadows to clay and gravel, there being almost as many grades and varieties of soil as there are farms in the township. Taken all in all, how- ever, it is considered a good farming and dairying town, susceptible of pro- ducing good crops of all the grains and grasses indigenous to northern Ver- mont. The territory is well watered by numerous streams and ponds, there being five of the latter, as follows : Elligo, lying partly in Greensboro and partly in this town. It is about two miles long and half a mile wide, and has two outlets, one to the north and the other to the south. The northern outlet constitutes one of the head branches of Black river ; the southern, after passing through Little Elligo pond, communicates with the Lamoille in Hardwick. The scenery about Elligo pond is romantic and beautiful. The eastern shore presents abrupt, and, in some places, perpendicular rocks of considerable height, while the western rises gradually, and is covered with a luxurious growth of forest trees which contrast finely with the naked cliffs of the opposite shore. Near the center of the pond are two small islands. It was formerly a favorite hunting-ground of the St. Francis Indians, to whom is due its name, Elligo Scoolon, which is sometimes improperly written Elligo Scotland. The others are Great Hosmer, lying partly in Albany, Little Hosmer, and two other small ponds. Black river, having its source as above mentioned, forms, with its numerous tributaries, the principal water-course. It was called by the Indians Elligo-sigo. Its current is in general slow, the whole descent from its source to Lake Memphremagog, including the falls at Irasburgh and Coventry, being by actual survey only 190 feet, hence it affords but few good mill sites in its whole course. Wild branch, a tributary of the Lamoille, rises in Eden and flows through the western part of this township. The valley of Black river, in this town, is a muck bed averaging
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