USA > Vermont > Addison County > History of Addison county Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 85
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716
HISTORY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
Colonel Sardis Dodge, one of the leading farmers of the town, now owns the school lot and is a son of Asa. L. B. Dodge, of this town, is a grandson, and son of Jedediah R.
Silas Wright came to the town with his father's family in 1797, and settled on a farm north of the Lemon Fair River, now occupied by Edward Child. His descendants now living in Weybridge are Samuel O. Wright, grandson ; Loyal L., grandson of Silas Wright, sr. (father of Silas), lives just across the line in Cornwall; George Wright, son of Loyal, lives with Deacon Samuel O. Wright, and has a son and two daughters. Daniel L. Wright is a son of Silas, sr., and has a son named Silas living with him. Philo Elmer, of this town, is son of a daughter of Silas Wright, sr. Silas Wright, jr., became one of the leading men of his time. After graduating from college in 1815 he began teaching, and studying law. He finally settled in Canton, N. Y .; was made surrogate of his county in 1820; was postmaster seven years; became a mem- ber of the State Senate in 1823, and four years later was sent to Congress. In 1829 he was made comptroller of the State and was elected to the United States Senate in 1833; this office he held eleven years, and was one of the leading members. In 1844 he was elected governor and nominated for a sec- ond term, but failed of election. Several nominations for high offices were declined by him. He died in August, 1847.
Asaph Drake was born May 27, 1775, and came to Weybridge in 1793 from Massachusetts, settling at Belding's Falls, and began work for David Belding, finally taking the daughter of the latter (Louisa) for his wife; she was born May 13, 1770, and their marriage occurred December 15, 1796. They had nine children, six sons and three daughters, as follows: Elijah G., Lauren, Isaac, David B., Mary L. B., Sylvia L., Cyrus B., Polly A., and Solomon. Colonel Isaac Drake, of Weybridge, is the only son now living ; the other liv- ing children of Asaph Drake are Polly A. and Sylvia L. The descendants of David Belding before mentioned are all descendants of Asaph Drake, through Colonel Isaac Drake's mother.
Colonel Isaac Drake was born March 8, 1802, in Weybridge. He was elected town clerk in 1840 and held the office twelve years, when he resigned. He derives his military title from the office of colonel in the State militia.
Joseph Kellogg settled before 1800 on the hill east of Colonel Drake's, but has no descendants now in town.
Zillai Stickney settled about one and a half miles from Middlebury, on the old turnpike to Vergennes. He had a large family and was a prominent early citizen. He held the office of constable upon the organization of the town in 1789.
Abel Wright, one of the first board of selectmen, lived in the house now occupied by H. B. Hagar; none of his family remains in the town. Joseph Plumb, another of the first selectmen, lived in various localities, and at one time
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TOWN OF WEYBRIDGE.
owned a farm at the mouth of the Lemon Fair; he removed to Bangor, N. Y., early in the century.
Joseph McKee was the first owner of Belding's Falls, and lived there at a very early date. He sold the property to David Belding and left the town afterward. He was the third selectman of 1789.
Asaph Hayward came to Weybridge in 1805 and bought the farm next south of Colonel Isaac Drake's present residence. Mr. Hayward was father of Joseph, who died in this town in 1865. Asaph D., another son of Asaph, born in Bridport in 1823, became a prominent citizen of Weybridge and held nu- merous offices.
Another early settler of this town who contributed to its growth and pros- perity was Dr. Zenas Shaw, who located near the site of the Wright Monu- ment. He died in 1842. His son, Fordyce M., is a farmer of the town and occupies the place formerly owned by Asaph Drake.
Toshaw Cherbino, a native of France, came here early and spent the remain- der of his life. His son, Jerome B., still lives here and is a prominent breeder of Merino sheep.
Columbus Bowdish (now written Bowditch) came here from Bennington in 1814, and died here in 1865.
Hiram Hurlburt came here from Woodstock at an early day and was one of the pioneers of 1849 to California, where he died in 1861. His son, Captain Ward B. Hurlburt, is still a resident of Weybridge.
Benjamin Hagar settled and died on the farm now occupied by Henry B. Hagar, his great-grandson.
William Cotton came to the town in 1812, settling in the west part. He died in 1855. J. F. and Horace, residents of the town, were his sons.
Organization and Records .- The pioneers of Weybridge were shorn of their rights to some extent, rendering their surroundings and circumstances less fortunate than those of many of their neighbors in the county, through the loss of considerable of their lands, as before explained, which left them only about one hundred and eighty acres to each share; but this fact was not al- lowed in any way to detract from the energy and industry with which they set about improving their homes. Details of the labors of the pioneers in this town are extremely meager. We find in records of an adjourned meeting of proprietors, held at Sheffield August 23, 1774, the following as the third vote : " That one hundred acres, or thereabouts, be laid out to the right of Dr. Sam- uel Lee, where one Thomas Sanford now lives." This is the only recorded mention of the first settler, and just when he came here is not known ; he was from New Jersey. Claudius Britell lived one year in Bridport before his set- tlement in Weybridge. When he came here he purchased the lands of Thomas Sanford and occupied them, probably in 1775 or 1776. Sanford moved down the creek and lived north of John Child's present dwelling house; this was his
46
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HISTORY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
place of residence at the time he was taken prisoner and carried to Quebec, as narrated on a previous page. After the war he again settled on lands on the west side of the creek, below. the mouth of the Lemon Fair River about half a mile.
The proprietors of Weybridge held a meeting on the 2d of February, 1762, and chose John Pell as their clerk. They met again on the 9th of March, in the same year, and appointed town officers. From that time they continued to meet either at Sheffield, or Great Barrington, or Salisbury, for the transaction of their Weybridge business, until 1776. Their next meeting was held in Ben- nington on the 15th of October, 1783, and adjourned to Pownal January 8, 1784; adjourned thence to Bennington March 6, 1784; adjourned to Octo- ber 27, 1784, and again to June 1, 1785.
The first proprietors' meeting held in Weybridge was October 2, 1786. Thomas Jewett was chosen moderator ; Joseph Cook, clerk; Samuel Clark, collector; Joseph Cook, treasurer ; adjourned to meet at the house of Samuel Clark, in Weybridge, January 3, 1787. Another meeting was held at the dwelling house of Samuel Jewett, in Weybridge, September 9, 1788. At this meeting it was "voted one acre as a first division to each proprietor, and one hundred acres to each proprietor as a second division." There was subse- quently a third division of about seven acres to each proprietor's right or share, making about one hundred and eight acres in all, to each of the seventy shares. The proprietors had much difficulty in learning how much of their chartered premises was left to them, after the lines on the south and west of the town were established ; and there was more trouble to get the town divided into lots and to secure good titles ; this latter was finally accomplished, mainly through vendue sales for taxes, executed by Zillai Stickney, the first constable of the town. The first highway in the town was surveyed by Joel Linsley on the 12th and 13th of September, 1784, and extended from the Cornwall line to Otter Creek. The first school-house in the town stood on the hill on the road to Middlebury, about two and a half miles from that village ; it was built in 1789- 90. Weybridge was organized in 1789, and the following officers elected : Samuel Jewett, town clerk; Zillai Stickney, constable; Abel Wright, Joseph Plumb, and Joseph McKee, selectmen ; Aaron Parmalee, justice of the peace. Two years after the organization (1791) the first census of the town showed the population to be 175, which number was increased in 1800 to 502. The pioneers in Weybridge, in common with those of many other towns in the county, gave up the early years of their labor to clearing their farms and cul- tivating the land as fast as it could be made ready. The valuable timber was cut into lumber to a considerable extent, the sale of which supplied one means of livelihood. Lumber was drawn to distant markets, even as far as Troy, N. Y., previous to the opening of the Champlain Canal in 1823, after which time a nearer market was found for it, as well as for all other surplus products on the
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TOWN OF WEYBRIDGE.
lake shore. An account of the principal events connected with the War of 1812, as far as they related to this vicinity, has been given in an early chap- ter and in the history of Middlebury ; it will, therefore, suffice to state that the inhabitants of this town were not behind their neighbors in volunteering to repel the expected invasion of the British. The abundant water power existing in this town gave early prominence to various manufacturing enterprises on Otter Creek. The earliest of these were, of course, various saw-mills -those prime necessities in the building up of new communities. The first saw-mill in town was built on Belding's Falls in 1791, by Joseph and Eleazer McKee. In 1794 David Belding, Ebenezer Scott, and Asaph Drake built a grist-mill at the same place. A year later a small furnace was established by the same men, or a part of them ; but it was not operated for very long. Solomon Bell and his sons built, in 1793 or '94, a saw-mill on the falls about a mile below Middlebury Falls (known as Weybridge Upper Falls or Paper Mill Village). Dennis Bell operated this mill as early as 1800, and after his death it was car- ried on by William D. Bell, who is still living; the mill was subsequently burned. Guy Woodruff, from Connecticut, came here in 1804 and built a trip-hammer shop for the manufacture of scythes. He also carried on black- smithing in later years, to near his death in 1856. The old building in which the trip-hammer was located is still standing near the bridge. Early in the century Ira Stewart had an oil-mill at these falls. It was owned later by Tim- othy Flannagan, in whose hands it was burned at the time of the destruction of the paper-mill. In the same building were a grist-mill for grinding feed, and a candle-wick and cotton-batting factory. Daniel Henshaw built a paper- mill here in early years; this was burned, after being operated a number of years by Nathaniel Gibson. Another mill was erected a little farther up the stream by Jonathan Wheelock, who ran it a number of years, when it suffered the fate of its predecessor. He rebuilt on the same site, and this third mill was destroyed by fire. All of these industries were on the Weybridge side of the creek, which is at the present devoid of manufactures. A large pulp-mill is in operation on the opposite side of the falls, of which a description has been given in the preceding history of Middlebury. The manufacturing interests at the Lower Falls will be noticed a little further on. These industries, with the general success of the farming element in the town, sufficed to give the com- munity an advanced position in early years, which it has not lost in later times, except in the decline of manufactures incident to their centralization in large cities and villages. The farmers of the town have joined in more recent years with their neighbors in this county in the development of the sheep-breeding and wool-growing industry, and now it forms the most prominent feature of the agricultural element. The growth of this industry cannot be traced in de- tail, nor is it necessary; but among those most conspicuous in it at the present time may be mentioned Drake & Child (Isaac Drake and J. A. Child), L. Silas
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HISTORY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
Wright, L. J. Wright, A. J. Stow, Samuel James and his son John A. James, and J. B. Cherbino. G. E. Child is a dealer in sheep (not thoroughbred) and owns a ranch in Colorado. All of these gentlemen, and others, have contrib- uted largely to the high reputation gained by Addison county as the foremost Merino sheep-growing district of the country.
In the War of the Rebellion .- The town of Weybridge contributed with characteristic patriotism and liberality to the aid of the government, when it was threatened by internal enemies. Money was voted in general accordance with the action of other towns, for the payment of liberal bounties, and the quotas under the various calls for volunteers were promptly filled. The fol- lowing list shows the enlistments from the town in Vermont organizations, as compiled by the adjutant-general of the State.
Volunteers for three years credited previous to call for 300,000 volunteers of October 17, 1863:
H. M. Adams, A. Austin, F. Austin, W. E. Bogart, W. T. Cole, C. N. Crane, C. N. Dickinson, E. E. Grinnell, N. C. Hayes, T. M. Hunter, L. D. Huntley, O. L. Hurlburt, W. B. Hurlburt, P. Irish, G. D. Jackman, M. T. Lam- son, G. McCue, E. B. Parkhill, G. Sherbevo, F. M. Sherman, D. Steele, F. D. Sturtevant, W. H. Sturtevant, C. Thomas, H. H. Wilder, E. Yerter.
Credits under call of October 17, 1863, for 300,000 volunteers, and subse- quent calls:
Volunteers for three years .- J. Bovia, J. Burns, jr., R. Currin, J. Leno, J. H. Little, E. Martin, A. Mills, E. L. Moody, S. C. Sturtevant.
Volunteers for one year .- G. Butterfly, C. C. Ingalls, S. Johnson.
Volunteers re-enlisted .- H. Ayers, E. E. Grinnell, J. Walker.
Enrolled men who furnished substitute .- J. Bowdish, J. Cherbino. Not credited by name .- One man.
Volunteers for nine months .- M. L. Boies, A. J. Childs, E. H. Fish, J. Hodges, W. Hodges, J. W. Kinsley, S. P. Merrill, jr., C. C. Nichols, G. B. Robbins, N. P. Sherman, W. C. Sturtevant, H. Tyler, M. L. Warner, B. N. Whitman.
Furnished under draft .- Paid commutation, C. Dodge.
Procured substitute .- J. A. Child, J. S. Cole, H. B. Dodge, L. A. Wright.
MUNICIPAL HISTORY.
There is but one village in the town-that located at the lower falls on Otter Creek in the northern part of the town, and known severally by that name and by the name of the town itself. A post-office has been established here since before 1830, the first postmaster having been Orange Britell, who received his appointment through the influence of Silas Wright while the lat- ter was in Congress. Mr. Britell was succeeded by Cyrus L. Sprague, who served several years and was succeeded for a year or two by his son, Madison
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TOWN OF WEYBRIDGE.
Sprague. Loyal Huntington is the present postmaster, but the business of the office is managed by Martin E. Sprague. The locating of a village at this point may be credited to the existence of the excellent water power here. Samuel Meeker settled on the village site before 1797; he was a Quaker, and the first settler here. He and his sons built a dam across the creek, and a saw- mill. Other Quakers located here, and the place became quite generally known as "Quaker Village." Asa Staples settled here, and Mr. Weeks, early in the century. The old dam and mill of Mr. Meeker went to ruin long ago, and were succeeded by others. The saw-mill has been operated by Hayward & Roscoe (A. D. Hayward and E. M. Roscoe) since 1870; they also carry on the cream- ery located here. Their mill cuts about five hundred thousand feet of lumber annually and has a much greater capacity. L. J. Hall owns the grist-mill. This was built in 1811 by Israel Marsh. Mr. Hall has owned it about fifteen years; it is operated by George Sneden. These gentlemen also carry on a mercantile business. Enoch Sprague, a soldier of the War of 1812, from this town, built the hotel here soon after the close of the war and kept it many years. He was followed about 1840 by Charles Moody, who was in the house several years. Since that, various persons have kept the house. Silas L. Sprague, son of Enoch, was a merchant here for nearly fifty years and one of the prominent citizens. He died in December, 1879. At the time of his death he was a merchant of longer standing than any other in Addison county. He built his store in 1840 and also erected the "old red store" on the hill some six- ty years ago. He also ran the grist-mill and saw-mill for many years. Martin E. Sprague, son of Silas, began business as a merchant in 1881.
Present Officers of the Town - John A. James, town clerk ; Isaac Drake, assistant town clerk ; J. A. James, L. S. Wright, Martin Sturtevant, selectmen ; Isaac Drake, treasurer; Martin Sturtevant, overseer of the poor; E. H. Fisk, constable ; A. D. Hayward, E. W. Miller, L. O. Thompson, listers; E. S. Wright, J. A. Harrington, auditors ; A. D. Hayward, trustee of surplus fund ; J. F. Cotton, G. L. Harrington, town grand jurors; W. C. Sturtevant, Martin E. Sprague, Henry A. Boies, fence viewers ; H. B. Hagar, inspector of leather ; Henry A. Boies, inspector of wood, lumber, and shingles; G. L. Harrington, agent for law-suits ; W. B. Hurlburt, superintendent of schools. There are six school districts and a school-house in every district.
ECCLESIASTICAL.
Congregational Church. - Religious services were held in this town very soon after its organization, and one of the first preachers here was Rev. Joseph Gilbert. Rev. Mr. Johnson preached here and taught a school as early as 1793. He was succeeded by Rev. Mr. Frost, who preached a year. The first Congregational Church was organized on the 20th of June, 1794, with fifteen members. In 1802, by the combined efforts of the society and citizens, the
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HISTORY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
first church edifice was erected at a cost of about $2,500. Beginning with Feb- ruary 10, 1806, Rev. Jonathan Hovey was settled over the church until De- cember 9, 1816. Others who have served the church as pastors are Revs. Eli Moody, Harvey Smith, and Jonathan Lee. Rev. Prof. John Hough, Rev. Prof. Wm. C. Fowler, Rev. Prof. Albert Smith, Revs. Benjamin Larabee, L. L. Til- den, Jed. Bushnell, T. A. Merrill, E. H. Lyme, Prof. Boardman, and Samuel W. Cozzens and others have acted as stated supplies. There has been no set- tled pastor for a number of years, the pulpit being supplied largely by profess- ors in Middlebury College. The first church building was used until 1847-48, when the present structure was erected. The church property has a value of about $5,000. The deacons are Samuel O. Wright and Samuel James; Sun- day-school superintendent, Mrs. H. B. Hagar; membership about eighty.
Methodist Episcopal Church. - This society was organized by its first pas- tor, Rev. Samuel Cockren, with a class of thirty members, in May, 1805. From this grew a prosperous society, and in 1835 a neat church was erected, costing $3,000. A portion of the time in later years no regular pastor has been sup- ported here. At the present time Rev. Elizabeth Delevan officiates.
Wesleyan Methodist. - A church of this denomination was formed here in 1843 with sixty-six members, and in 1847 a chapel was erected. Regular services have been maintained here most of the time since, and Rev. Mr. Wright is at present in charge. The society is small.
Many of the inhabitants of this town, particularly in the southeastern part, have found it convenient to attend the Middlebury churches, which has served. to weaken the local organizations.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF WHITING.
W HITING, one of the southern tier of towns of the county, is bounded north by Cornwall; east by Salisbury and Leicester; south by Sudbury, in Rutland county, and west by Shoreham and Orwell. It was chartered by Benning Wentworth, the royal governor of New Hampshire, under King George III, August 6, 1763, to forty-eight grantees.
The usual restrictions and reservations were mentioned in the charter, and the usual court favorites were remembered. The charter also says that the new town contained "by admeasurement 14,424 acres, butted and bounded " as fol- lows: "Beginning at the northwest corner of Leicester and thence extending north 85° west, to the west line of Bridport, to a stake and stones; thence south by the lines of Bridport and Shoreham six miles and one hundred and twenty
723
TOWN OF WHITING.
rods to a stake and stones ; thence south 85° east, by the north side line of Sud- bury, to the northeasterly corner, thereof; and thence north 4º west six miles and 120 rods, to the place of beginning."
Owing to the limited knowledge of the territory's geography at that time, and the changes that have been made in town boundary lines since, however, this record would give little accurate information to the modern reader. To the fact that five of the grantees bore the name of Whiting the town owes its title. Most of the grantees were residents of Massachusetts, and, as was the case in many other " New Hampshire Grants," doubtless had little intention of ever actually settling on their land, but merely interested themselves in the enterprise as speculators, and hence the trouble which subsequently sprang up between settlers and proprietors.
The surface of Whiting is quite level and comparatively free from ledges to obstruct cultivation of its soil, which varies considerably in different parts of the town. Otter Creek, forming a large part of the eastern boundary of the town, is the only stream of importance. It receives a small tributary from the south, while the western part of the town is drained by small branches of the Lemon Fair, which unite just over the line in Shoreham. In the southwestern part of the township is found a deep loam, cut occasionally by slate ridges, with a moderately rolling surface. The southeastern point, known as “ Green Island," forms valuable meadows. A large part of this tract has a deep muck soil, while the residue is composed of marl interspersed with small tracts of loam. Throughout the central part of the town the soil is of a clayey formation, interspersed with loam and marl. In the eastern portion of this tract, however, there is a wide belt of deep muck lying between the intervals of the creek and the hard land, which is very valuable for the large amount of hay it produces, though much labor has been expended to bring it into its present condition. Owing to a heavy swamp lying east of the thoroughfare, which extends north- ward from Whiting village, and the stiff clay on the west, the land is unfit for purposes of high cultivation. The northwestern part of the town is more un- even, and is cut by a ridge of limestone extending south from Cornwall. The land is valuable here, its soil being made up of loam, slate, clay, and marl. The northeastern section, extending from the west bank of Otter Creek to just west of the road we have mentioned, is principally owned by F. G. Douglass, mem- ber of the State Board of Agriculture, and A. H. Hubbard. This is also valu- able land, the soil being made up of muck, loam, and marl, while a large part is intervale.
The original timber in the southwest part of the town was beech, birch, maple, elm, and basswood, interspersed with black and white ash and butternut. In the southwestern part grew beech, maple, hard and soft pine, hemlock, black ash, and cedar. In the northern part of the town the hard land produced beech, maple, basswood, elm, black and white ash, pine, and hemlock; on the swamp land grew pine, cedar, black ash, tamarack, and balsam. Many of these
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HISTORY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
varieties have entirely disappeared, while comparatively little of either variety remains.
Proprietors' Meetings .- The first meeting of the proprietors of which we have any record was held at Wrentham, Mass., October 6, 1772, nine years after the charter was granted. Daniel Ide was chosen moderator and Benja- min Day clerk. It was then voted that "half of forty-eight rights, in quantity and quality, [be given] to fifteen of the first settlers of said town," on consider- ation that they get thirty-three other settlers to locate here within a period of five years, and John Wilson was appointed as a committee of one to procure the said fifteen settlers. A committee was also appointed to lay out said town- ship, and not delay the time longer than the month of June next following. From the following certificate it appears that Wilson fulfilled his part of the agreement, viz .:
" These may certify that legal measures have been taken and certain pitches made in the township of Whiting, and confirmed by said proprietors of Whit- ing, the return made by John Wilson to me the subscriber.
" November 2, 1772.
DANIEL POND, Proprietors' Clerk."
The second proprietors' meeting was held at the house of Jonathan Fassett, of Pittsford, Vt., May 27, 1783, when Elihu Smith was chosen moderator and Samuel Beach clerk. No one was allowed to vote without showing the clerk his deed or power of attorney. They then proceeded to vote that "they cheque out and make a draft of the first division lots," claiming that Wilson had forfeited his right to his title by not furnishing the stipulated number of settlers. At this point the following petition from settlers under the Wilson title was presented to the moderator :
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