USA > Vermont > Bennington County > History of Bennington County, Vt. : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 31
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
Breyman advanced with his two pieces of artillery with infantry on either side until he was met by a body of the militia which had been collected and a stand made forty or fifty rods east of the present Walloomsac Depot. "Here he was attacked in front and flank, a most deadly fire being poured into his ranks from a wooded hill on his left. The action was very severe and contin- ued till after sunset, when many of Breyman's men being killed or wounded and his artillery horses shot down he abandoned his cannon and fled. Gen- eral Stark pursued his flying forces till the approaching darkness rendered it necessary to draw off his men to prevent their firing upon each other. "With one hour more of daylight," says Stark in his official report, " we should have captured the whole body." He further says, "we recovered four pieces of brass cannon, seven hundred stand of arms and brass banded drums, several Hes- sian swords, about seven hundred prisoners, two hundred and seven dead on the spot, the number of wounded is yet unknown. That part of the enemy that made their escape marched all night and were returned to our camp. Our loss was inconsiderable, about forty wounded and thirty killed."
The report of musketry and cannon was distinctly heard in the center of the town, and the old village was filled with women and children whose husbands and fathers were on the battlefield in deadly conflict with the enemy. The anxiety and dreadful suspense of that long day cannot be realized, and much less described; but a flood of gratitude and joy burst forth as the news came that the foe had been defeated and a glorious victory won. Bennington, in- deed, was called to deeply mourn, for among the killed were four of its most respected citizens, viz .: "John Fay, a son of Stephen, Henry Walbridge, brother of Ebenezer, Daniel Warner, cousin of the colonel, and Nathan Clarke, son of Nathan, and brother of Isaac. They were all in the prime of life, and all heads of families, leaving widows and children to mourn their sudden bereavement. The grief for their loss was not confined to their immediate relatives, but was general and sincere." Colonel Baum was mortally wounded as was also Colo- nel Pfister and both were taken prisoners to a house about a mile distant in Shaftsbury, opposite the present paper-mill of C. E. Welling. They both died in this house within a day or two, which was taken down in 1861, and were bur- ied on the bank of the river near by, though the particular spot is not known.
The victory is justly pronounced by Bancroft as " one of most brilliant and eventful of the war ; " another says, "the current of success was at once turned from the British to the American arms;" another, " the fate of Burgoyne and his army was, in effect, sealed at Bennington, and his final capture well assured." "General Washington, on being informed of the event, considered it as decid- ing the fate of Burgoyne, and dismissed all anxiety about his invasion." Its effect upon the enemy was most depressing. "Four days after the battle Bur- goyne wrote to the British minister a letter marked 'private,'" in which he says of it, that "had I succeeded, I should have formed a junction with St. Leger and been now in Albany."
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Next to General Stark Colonel Warner should receive the highest credit for the result of the day, though Colonel Herrick and all the officers and men de- served high praise for the adroitness and valor they exhibited in the various attacks and repulses. Warner's experience in the Continental army, and his acquaintance with the country and positions occupied by the enemy, well pre- pared him for "Stark's chief adviser in planning the attack on the enemy." On the 17th of October following, Burgoyne, from the crippled condition of his forces and the scanty means of supply for his men, mainly brought about by this battle, was obliged to surrender with his army as prisoners of war to the American forces at Saratoga.
"Copy of Captain Samuel Robinson's roll, August 16, 1777 .- Were in bat- tle Robert Cochran, Gideon Spencer, William Henry, Henry Walbridge, Rufus Branch, John Larned, Thomas Abel, Nathan Lawrence, Josiah Brush, David Fay (Fifer), Leonard Robinson, Daniel Biddlecome, Levi Hatheway, Abram Hatheway, Reuben Colvin, Eliphalet Stickney, Daniel Rude, Benjamin Holmes, James Marivater, Mr. Alger, Annice Fuller, Jonah Brewster, George Dale, John Marble, Ephraim Marble, Aaron Hubbell, Samuel Safford, jr., Aaron Smith, Ephraim Smith, Samuel Henry, Edward Henderson, Jonathan Haynes, Arch- elaus Tupper, Daniel Warner, Lieutenant Simon Hatheway, Aaron Miller, John Fay, Elijah Fay, Joseph Fay, John Clark, Jehosephat Holmes, Moses Rice, Ben- jamin Whipple, jr., Silas Robinson, Jolin Weeks, Moses Scott, Alpheus Hath- away, Solomon Walbridge, Ebenezer Brocket, Jehiel Smith, Asa Branch, Phin- ehas Wright, John Smith, Jesse Belknap, Silvanus Brown, John Forbes, Ste- phen Williams, William Post, David Safford, Jared Post, Jeremiah Bingham, Samuel Slocum, Josiah Hurd, Elijah Brewster, Solomon Leason, Thomas Sel- den, John Rigney, Elisha Smith, Solomon Safford, Joseph Roe, William Terrill, Noah Beach, Simeon Sears, David Robinson, Joseph Safford, Isaac Webster."
There were still more than five years of war with England to be endured, a period longer than the war of the late rebellion, and with the enemy in posses- sion of Lake Champlain; with the jealousy and rapacity of the New York gov- ernment, which still envied and claimed our possessions, together with the Tory element to contend with, which ever and anon showed its "hydra head," "the inhabitants of Bennington and its vicinity were kept in a state of almost con- tinual apprehension and alarm."
The Legislature of the State as already organized, was to meet at Ben- nington on the 4th of June, 1778. A few days before the time Colonel Ethan Allen who had been a prisoner in England over two years returned to Ben- nington. He was received with much rejoicing; among other demonstrations cannon was fired amid shouting by the large numbers who had gathered to greet him. Just at this time there was great excitement over the conviction of David Redding, a Tory, who had been tried for giving comfort to the enemy on the lake, and for secretly appropriating " for the use of the Tories a number 35
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of guns from the house of David Robinson, where they had been lodged for safe keeping." He had been sentenced to be hung on the 4th of June, but it was shown to the governor and council, then met, that he had been tried by six jurors only, and the council granted a reprieve until the next Thursday at two o'clock in the afternoon. A large number had gatliered to witness the execution, and were anxious to see it consummated. They were afraid some- thing might occur to hinder the carrying out of the sentence, and there were indications that the people, perhaps, would take the case into their own hands; "whereupon Ethan Allen, suddenly pressing through the crowd, mounted a stump and waving his hat, exclaiming 'attention, the whole' proceeded to an- nounce the reason for the reprieve, advised the multitude to depart peacebly to their homes and return the day fixed for the execution in the act of the governor and council, adding with an oath, 'you shall see somebody hung at all events, for if Redding is not hung I will be hung myself.' Upon this assurance the uproar ceased and the crowd dispersed." Redding was tried and convicted on the 9th by a jury of twelve, and his execution took place on the 11th of June, the time to which the reprieve extended. "The place of execution was in a field west of the road and opposite the tavern-house of . Landlord Fay,'" a little north of the " Governor Tichenor" place, now occupied by Mrs. George Lyman.
There has been but one other public execution in Bennington. Archibald C. Bates of Shaftsbury, was hung on the 8th of February, 1839 for the mur- der of his brother's wife in the preceding month of October. Ile shot and in- stantly killed her while she was holding a babe in her arms, of which crime he was convicted and afterwards confessed it. The nurse, with the little child of the murdered woman, was early upon the ground that she might witness the whole proceedings. The gallows stood in the lot on the west side of the road in Bennington Center, a little north of where the battle monument stands. That order and decorum in the fulfillment of the law should be maintained in every respect the militia were called out, commanded by Colonel John M. Pot- ter of Pownal, Captain William E. Hawks of North Bennington taking charge of the procession. The gallows was erected by or under the direction of Ben- jamin R. Sears, and the fatal drop was in charge of the county sheriff, Gurdon H. Smith of Manchester, who discharged his duty with singular conscientious- ness as a punishment necessary to be inflicted rather than an official act which would bring notoriety. There was no flaw or interruption in the arrange- ments, and at the appointed hour, with little or no sign to give warning to the multitude, the execution was effected, many witnessing it who had made up their minds to close their eyes at the moment and others were disappointed that they were looking at the time in another direction. Rev. E. W. Hooker, D. D. had often visited the prisoner in his cell for prayer and to impart spirit- ual advice. The prayer upon the gallows was made by the Rev. Mr. Hubbard
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of the Methodist Church, whose voice could be heard, it is said, the distance of more than a mile. Public sentiment lias so changed with reference to exe- cutions of this kind that they are now witnessed only by the proper officials, and enough of those particularly interested to render it sure the law has been duly enforced.
BENNINGTON CENTER AS IT WAS SIXTY YEARS AGO.
Sixty years ago the present village of Bennington, then contemptuously called "Algiers," and just beginning to be designated as the East Village, had increased in population during the previous fifty years very slowly. There may have been in 1829 two hundred or three hundred inhabitants, within the present limits of the village. Bennington Center, or "the hill," as it was termed, at this time was at the height, or had seen its days of greatest pros- perity and renown, if, in comparison with other parts of the town, business and numerical strength only are taken into consideration. It was here that the important secular business of the town and much of that of the State from its infancy had been transacted; that the first and only church for public worship was located, and where for sixty-five years the inhabitants from all parts of the town had gone up weekly for spiritual food and nourishment; that the court-house building for the business of the county was established, with a jail within its walls for the incarceration of criminals, and for years after this time where debtors were often confined for inability to meet their pecuniary obliga- tions; that the more prominent lawyers of the county resided, constituting with members from other towns, a legal bar second to none in the State; that schools were supported, bringing honor to the town, and giving educational ambition to the youth of both sexes; that a printing office, so rare an acqui- sition in a town at the time, was established, and where from the year 1783 the Vermont Gasette had been published ; that nearly all the stores and places for traffic, including wagonmaking and blacksmithing, were located ; that the stages, on the great mail route between Albany and Boston, across the moun- tain, carrying the United States mail, with coaches drawn by four horses, called for a relay, and passengers or guest accommodations at the State Arms House then kept by George Brannock, and at Hicks Hotel in the lower part of the village; and that it was necessary for the convenience and comfort of nearly the whole population of the town that frequent visits should be made to the only post-office and to other places, for business or the interchange of thought and feeling upon matters intimately connected with the interests of the town, both moral and social.
The court-house on the upper hill, in which Chief Justice Williams pre- sided with such aptitude for the speedy transaction of business, with General Henry Robinson as clerk, was located a few feet south of the residence of the late A. M. Huling, then the Cushman Tavern, and was destroyed by fire in Oc-
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tober, 1846. Here the town meetings were held, and at this time party politics often ran high, and with the efforts made, when parties were nearly equally di- vided, to carry an election, frequently the excitement was great. The street between the court-house and the State Arms House opposite was the arena for much electioneering and the scene of fist fights, and sometimes of the throw- ing of stones by some who would let their passions run away with their better judgment, or were under the influence of drink.
By the laws of the State every able-bodied male citizen between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years were liable to perform military duty, and was required to meet, duly armed and equipped, on certain days during the year, or at the call of the proper military official on special occasions. A certain day in June was one of the stated periods, fixed by law, when the militia of the county would meet in front of the State Arms House, under the regularly ap- pointed regimental, field, staff, commissioned and non-commissioned officers, for drill, discipline, inspection and review. It was a high time, and one in which the people turned out almost en masse making it a holiday occasion, usually bringing thelr dinners and lunches for men, women and children. The streets were generally lined with peddlers selling fruits, watermelons, and large supplies of baker's gingerbread, in the shape of large cards, the thought of which would sharpen the appetite and make the mouths of the youth "to water." How many of both men and children could be seen wending their way homeward after the pleasures and fatigue of the day with a large melon or card of the gingerbread under their arm. These trainings were invariably accompanied by several wagons, in which were borne barrels of cider on draught, to warm up or cool off the customers, as they might happen to be in condition.
There was, in addition to the regular militia who carried muskets, a com- pany of artillery, dressed in showy uniforms, carrying swords, and who during a portion of their drill would draw the "old brass" cannon through the village with drag ropes, firing often and sometimes making a rattling of window-panes from the concussion produced.
There was also a cavalry company, under the command of Henry Scott for years, which wore a uniform cap and a sword, and had pistols or short firearms, which were carried in a "holster" attached to the saddle in front. The " bugle" was blown for years by Seth Dunn, whose soul-stirring notes would thrill the whole community as he would lead the company in their rid- ing practice, through the streets or distant parts of the town. There was no music but martial for the foot companies, which was of the best and soul inspir- ing, and which aided the multitude in keeping up the spirit which had been instrumental in gaining the nation's independence. Eleazer Sibley was a re- markably good snare drummer, and was often accompanied upon the base drum by his cousin John. These with Uncle Jim Wittum, who had the repu-
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tation of having split a fife while blowing it at the battle of " Lundy's Lane," in the War of 1812, would furnish such music as it seemed could hardly be im- proved. Companies from other towns brought their selected corps of music, vieing with each other in their skill and proficiency. Here too, yearly, when the 4th of July came round, the boys and youth would always be prepared with cannon and cartridges, to parade the streets as soon as the clock would strike twelve at midnight, after watching through the evening of the 3rd. One or both of the cannons, " Dread" and "Trainor," would be in use, accompanied by the ringing of the village bells, and the noise would often bring to the doors or windows night-caps or white dresses, with the request that the firing must or should be stopped, or the cannon be moved farther on. Sometimes the request would be made in such a spirit that it would be thought best to give one or two more salutes, and in other cases it would be in such a kind and persuasive tone that the patriotic band would pass along without firing. And so of the 16th of August, which was also made a day of great rejoicing, though it was usually set apart and appropriated by the citizens for celebra- tions, when addresses and orations would be delivered and toasts given, to- gether with a display of martial music, and the firing of cannon.
North and a little west of the Cushman Tavern, and as it would seem ex- tending into the street, was a block of buildings fronting both south and west, a portion of which was used as the Vermont Gasette printing office, and a book- store and bindery kept by Solomon Clark. In this block also was the hat and cap store of Cushman and Corey, who manufactured their own goods, as was generally the case by dealers at this period, and whose trade extended into the towns in this vicinity, where nothing of the kind was done. There is not a vestige of these buildings left to mark the spot where they stood. North of here lived B. R. Sears, a carpenter by trade, who, with Elisha and Hiram Waters, in the south part of the village, each with their shops well manned and equipped were ready for anything in their line that might be wanted. In the construction of the residence of the late B. R. Sears were used some of the timber and lumber from the first building erected for a church, which were taken from the forest over one hundred and twenty- five years ago. North of here was where Bisbee and Farwell carried on the butchering business, the only establishment of the kind in town, most of the animal food being slaughtered by farmers, and served out to their neighbors from their farm homes. Nearly opposite lived Henry Fassett, in the rear of whose house was the site of the old " Continental storehouse."
The " State Arms House," which still stands as in those days, outwardly, kept by George Brannock, has been charged within, and the outbuildings en- tirely removed or materially altered. The old "tavern shed" on the north, facing the road toward the east, where there were gatherings on June training days, of the active and athletic who were wont to try their skill at wrestling,
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and where the amateur " Barnum's" exhibited their shows and wonders, has long since been removed. At this time a caravan, which had been advertised as " the largest traveling one in America," was exhibited. The shed had per- haps thirty feet of open space in front, and poles were set up and canvass drawn around them, making the grounds, with the shed, thirty by fifty feet more or less. People came from all directions, and the show consisted of a horned horse, black bear, zebra, babboon, camel, an ostrich, a snake, some monk- eys and a Shetland pony upon which rode a monkey with a cap on its head, while the pony was led about the inclosure.
On the site now occupied by Tarrant Sibley lived William Haswell, so long the town clerk of Bennington, but whose good wife did much of the writing and business of the office. A little north lived Anthony Haswell, who is re- membered by some as the carrier of the Vermont Gasette at this time, going weekly on horseback, with his saddle bags, through the county, and delivering it to subscribers in many of the towns. South of the State Arms House, on the road running west, was located the boot and shoe shop where Childs and Forbes made work for nearly the whole village, though at this time men were employed by some families to make shoes at their homes, whose occupation was designated as " whipping the cat." There was also shoemaking done in the lower part of the village. Just west was C. S. Pool a harnessmaker, one of three or four in this business, the famous drummer, who on " June training days" would amuse the multitudes by the dexterity with which he could han- dle and throw about and catch his drum-sticks, still keeping perfect time with the music of the fife. Captain David Robinson occupied the house on the cor- ner above, where when in practice he also had his law office, and which home he gave to the first church for a parsonage, which is now the residence of Rev. M. L. Severance.
The Lyman Patchin store was next south of the court-house, where a large mercantile business was done, and in which business he became a wealthy man for the times. Both the store and his residence were burned to the ground several years since and there is nothing left to obstruct the wind from sweep- ing over the now cultivated grounds. The location of the old "pillory" had been by the side of the road, about half way between the old store and the north line of the Patchin lot which reached to the court-house. The "whipping post" stood a little north of opposite of where the pillory had been located, in front of Judge Jonathan Robinson's house, but had at this time been re- moved. Martin S. and Elijah Norton occupied near here a stone blacksmith shop, where a large business was done, and opposite to which was the Pickett store then kept by Brown & Fay for general mercantile trade, including drugs. The law office of Governor John S. Robinson was just north as was also his residence. On the brow of the hill, looking upon the lower part of the village, stood the grand old house of General David Robinson, built in 1795, which is
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affron
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now in good condition, and owned and occupied by his grandson, George W. Robinson, whose information with reference to incidents and localities in the history of the town is, perhaps, not equaled by any living person. The build- ing carries us back nearly a century, and suggests that there was culture and an appreciation of art and convenience in those far off days when there were means to make them available. At this time General David, who was in the battle of Bennington and over seventy years old, was often seen upon horseback, riding at a fast rate, and frequently upon an animal considered un- safe for many younger persons, with his long cue. streaming in the air. On the opposite side of the street there had recently been built the brick bank and dwelling house for the occupation of S. C. Raymond, who came from Man- chester to manage the old first bank in Bennington and which proved a fail- ure, though it made money for business purposes more plenty for a time. Some of the old bills of the bank, which should have been destroyed, were found as late as during the rebellion, and being filled out at convenience by the soldiers, were circulated and used as money in the army at the South. The ruse did not long succeed as the Yankees were not asleep long at a time. One of the buildings still standing in connection with which there are so many fond memories and associations is the old "brick academy," then in a flourish- ing condition. James Ballard, a principal of the academy, had about this time, on account of some difficulty with the school committee, rallied a party of friends and erected the seminary buildings lower down in the village and was carrying on an opposition school, which increased the number of students at- tending each. The cabinet business was carried on in the building lately oc- cupied by A. B. Gardner for a law office by Mr. Kendrick or F. W. Coffin, sending their wares through this and the adjoining towns. Sanford & Brown were successfully prosecuting the mercantile business in the store now kept by Charles R. Sanford ; Gay R. Sanford of the firm, was connected with the manufacture and sale of clocks in Connecticut, and also was manufacturing tin- ware quite extensively in a shop opposite the present residence of his son, Charles R. His peculiar genius for trade and traffic, with stories told the boys who were hanging about the shop, led them to imagine the assortment taken out by the peddlers was not really complete without a fair proportion of "wooden nutmegs and pumpkin seeds." Diagonally opposite, on the corner south of the church, was the store of Franklin Blackmer, who was prosecuting a good mercantile business. It was a place of resort in the evening for the "sitters" of the village to talk over the occurrences of the day. Among the half dozen or more of those usually present were Major Aaron Robinson, Cap- tain Plinny Dewey, Asahel Hyde, and Jonathan Hunt from " Algiers," famil- iarly known as Jack Hunt, who was as regular, perhaps, with his lantern in hand, as any other of the members.
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