USA > Vermont > Grand Isle County > History of Franklin and Grand Isle counties, Vermont : With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and pioneers. > Part 12
USA > Vermont > Franklin County > History of Franklin and Grand Isle counties, Vermont : With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and pioneers. > Part 12
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But the mere granting of Alburgh by Governor Chittenden did not occasion this occupation by British troops, for the territory was claimed by Vermont adverse to New York, and the officers of Canada were fa- vorably disposed to the people of this state, and gave them needed as- sistance; but it was when Vermont had been admitted as one of the United States, and sought to organize Alburgh as a town by electing officers, that the trouble with Canada was commenced, and afterward throughout the region. The various acts of aggression and retaliation, however, were occurrences particularly of Franklin and Grand Isle counties, although the latter had not then been created. In addition to the garrisons heretofore referred to, the British likewise had on the lake an armed schooner, with a full complement of sailors, gunners and ma- rines, which was stationed at Windmill Bay, between Alburgh and Point au Fer, and its commander had supervision of all boats passing through the lake in any direction.
The first collision between the Vermont authorities and the British appears to have occurred during the month of June, 1792; and it also appears that the British had some sort of an organization in the district of Alburgh, or Caldwell's Manor, for one Patrick Conroy assumed to act as justice of the peace in the town, without authority or warrant from Vermont. Upon learning this the attorney-general of the state made representation of the fact to Elijah Paine, justice of the Supreme
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Court, and the latter issued a warrant to Stephen Pearl, sheriff of Chittenden county, directing him to apprehend Conroy and summon him to appear before the court at Burlington. The warrant was given to Enos Wood of North Hero, deputy sheriff of Chittenden county, for service and execution. And it further appears that Wood had a writ of attachment in favor of "Widow Grant, wife of the late Major Grant," against Patrick Conroy, by which he was commanded to levy on his goods and chattels to the amount of fifty pounds. Wood proceeded to Con- roy's home and there found one Minard Yeomans, by whom he was told that Conroy had gone to Missisquoi Bay. He then informed Yeomans that he proposed to attach Conroy's cattle in pursuance of the writ, but Yeomans forbade the proceeding and called on the people in the house for pistols to resist the attempt. Then Wood and his companions, Ben- jamin Butler and Captain Nathan Hutchins of North Hero, and Nathan- iel Wood of Georgia, took the cattle, and Yeomans as well, and started to return to the ferry at the head of the town. Yeomans was released on promising good behavior, and at once notified Captain Savage of the British garrison, which officer directed him to report the affair to Cap- tain Dechambault, commander of the British sloop; which being done, that officer sent a party of soldiers after the Vermont party and over- took them at the tongue, where they were about to cross over on the ferry to North Hero. The British made prisoners of all four of the Americans, taking the two Woods and Butler to St. Johns, but releas- ing Captain Hutchins on the ground that he had no part in the affair. The prisoners were placed in the guard house at St. Johns and kept there some days before being released.
About the same time, on the 12th of June, 1792, Benjamin Marvin was arrested by a party of British headed by Patrick Conroy, for no other reason than his being a justice of the town under the Vermont authority. He was subsequently paroled and released, but not until his commission as justice had been taken from him. And Joseph Mott, the Vermont constable at Alburgh was taken in the same manner, charged with acting under the state government. Both of these men were ordered to leave Alburgh within two months; and the officers at Point au Fer told Marvin that he had orders to arrest and take into cus- tody all persons or officers acting under any power other than Great
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Britain. On the same day Captain Timothy Allen, of South Hero, was stopped by the commander of the Maria, the British sloop, subjected to examination and then allowed to pass on. Major Jacob Smith, of South Hero, made affidavit to the same facts testified to by Captain Allen.
The occurrence of these events became known to Governor Chitten- den and he directed an investigation by a committee. The report of that committee will show the situation of affairs on the frontier; there - fore, that the present reader may have an understanding of the subject, we make free with Ebenezer Marvin's narration of the occurrence, as follows: "The committee to whom were referred the communications of his excellency the Governor, respecting the disturbances at Alburgh, in June last, beg leave to state the following facts: That Alburgh is a tongue of land connected with the eastern shore of Lake Champlain and lies on the south (should be north) side of this and the United States. The British had, at the time of the late peace, and still have a post at Point au Fer, on the western side of Lake Champlain, some miles south of the line of the United States. The British have another post at a place called Dutchman's Point, on Grand Isle, (North Hero) about half a mile south of Alburgh. The garrison at Point au Fer have never prevented the civil officers of the state of New York from exercis- ing their offices, but have uniformly declared that they had nothing to do with the inhabitants, except within three hundred yards of the gar- rison. The garrison at Dutchman's Point have never interfered in any way with the inhabitants, or done anything beside keeping their own sentries. The people of Alburgh, from the first settlement of the place until June last, have been without the exercise of any government, either civil or military, when they met in town meeting and organized themselves, and chose town officers under the authority and laws of Vermont; when the inhabitants of the town generally took the free- man's oath, and the officers took the oath of allegiance, and government has since been regularly administered, except in the instance mentioned in the communications of his Excellency, on the 8th of June last and from that time until the 12th day of the same June, the British officers of the garrison at Point au Fer interrupted the officers of this state in the execution of their offices, by imprisoning them, taking from them property which they had taken by virtue of writs issued by the author-
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ity of this state and taking their writs from them, etc." The report closes with commendation of Governor Chittenden's course in the mat- ter, both in his letters to Canada and to the president of the United States; and recommends that the governor procure affidavits sufficient to prove to the president that Alburgh is not (October 20, 1794,) occu . pied by British troops, nor under their protection, to convince the pres- ident that the government of Vermont had not, as was charged in cer- tain quarters, wantonly attempted to disturb the peace of the Union, or interrupt any negotiation between the United States and any other power.
But the reader must not understand from the extract above that the British troops had been withdrawn from the vicinity of Alburgh and North Hero at the time Councillor Marvin's report was made, for such was hardly the case. What that report undoubtedly meant to state was that the British were not there through any secret understanding with the Vermont authorities, nor as the result of any connivance with the Vermonters. Some persons, enemies of Vermont, were constantly re- porting such statements to Congress and the president, and the latter was in frequent communication with Governor Chittenden relative thereto; and the proofs adduced and forwarded to the president were for the purpose of convincing him that Vermont was acting in entire good faith towards the United States, and that her people were actual sufferers by the British presence on their soil. Without doubt Vermont could and would gladly have sent a force to Alburgh and driven out the invaders, but deferring to President Washington's wishes and re- quests, the power of the Green Mountain Boys was not invoked to that end.
Vermont was charged with endangering the peace of Great Britain and the United States in 1794; a matter concerning which the "Gov- ernor and Council " says : "The British posts in the United States were steadily maintained, to the annoyance of our government and people, but the discussion between the United States Secretary of State and the British minister was temperate until 1794. In Vermont the statu quo was maintained on both sides without any serious difficulty until the same year, the British troops holding their posts, and Alburgh going on peaceably as an organized Vermont town. But the two nations
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were drifting rapidly to a dangerous point. On the 10th of February, 1794, Lord Dorchester publicly declared that he would not be surprised if there should be a war with the United States in the course of that year ; and the movements of the British troops in Canada and events in the United States favored this opinion. On the 16th of April, in a message to the Senate nominating John Jay as envoy extraordinary to Great Britain, President Washington said that the aspect of affairs was serious, and that such a mission, 'while it corresponds with the solem- nity of the occasion, will announce to the world a solicitude for a friendly adjustment of our complaints, and a reluctance to hostility.' On the 9th of May of that year Congress authorized the president to detach 80,000 troops from the militia for service in any emergency. Such be- ing the aspect of affairs, it is not surprising that the British on the bor- der were more than usually insolent-their chief had encouraged that ; and it is creditable to Vermont that neither its governor nor people gave any provocation for it, but patiently awaited the action of the na- tional authorities." Of the militia for emergency service, Governor Chittenden responded to the president's requisition by ordering out a detachment of three regiments of state militia, numbering 2,129 men in all, to be held in readiness as minute men. On the 30th of May pre- ceding, Major-General Ira Allen, anticipating an outbreak, had ordered out the militia of Alburgh and the adjacent islands, now forming Grand Isle county, which of course surrounded the British garrison on North Hero, but there was no collision of troops. During the same year, too, the British not only amassed troops on the frontier, but built two ships of war for lake service, and mounted them with a full complement of guns. The indignities and insults to American subjects were contin- ued. Royal Corbin was a merchant of Alburgh, and was not permit- ted to pass either up or down the lake, not even to go to Isle La Motte, without special permit from the officers on the Maria. On the 12th of August, two men in a boat approached the shore designing to land their cargo, consisting of forty bushels of salt and a puncheon of rum, for Mr. Corbin's store, but the British fired at the boat from the ship and port at Point au Fer. This not stopping the men, a ship boat was sent in pursuit, which compelled the Corbin boat's return and its cargo confis- cated. These facts were represented to Governor Chittenden by the
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statement of Mr. Corbin himself, and the affidavits of Samuel D. Searle and Roswell Mills. Another of the atrocities of the period was that of the occasion of four English subjects going to the home of John McCall in the town of Sheldon, and committing an assault on that person ; for which offense the perpetrators were arrested and fined, but on account of which fining the English authorities complained that Vermont was brutally maltreating her subjects.
After the appointment of John Jay as minister to Great Britain, the seat of negotiations was transferred from this country to England; and, as the result of his mission, a treaty was finally agreed upon, but not before General Anthony Wayne had an opportunity of administering severe punishment to the Indians and Canadian provincial troops in a sharp fight on the Maumee, on the 20th of August, 1794. In this battle was one company of Vermont men, but none of them from this north- ern region. John Jay's treaty of amity, commerce and navigation was concluded November 19, 1794, and proclaimed February 29, 1796. By the second article of the agreement, the British ports in the United States were to be evacuated on or before the first day of June, 1796, which was ultimately complied with. Thus ended an embryo war, which, in Vermont, was confined to events enacted wholly in Franklin and Grand Isle counties.
The amicable adjustment of existing difficulties between the United States and Great Britain was followed in due time by the withdrawal of the British troops from the states, and a friendly relation between the countries was once more established. The effect of the treaty proved most beneficial to the people of Franklin and Grand Isle counties, for in them occurred most of the disturbances in Vermont. The result was the complete establishment of all necessary institutions throughout the towns, all of which within a very few years thereafter became organized. Settlement could now be made without the fear of interruption. In 1791 the population of the towns comprising Franklin county was only 1,472, while that of the islands was 1,292.
By 1800 the former had in- creased to 6,426, and the latter to 3,787. The chief occupation of the people was agriculture, but to make their lands available for this pur- suit, forests were cut down and lands cleared. The principal manufac- ture was timber, which was shipped or rafted by the lake to Canada,
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and there found a ready sale for cash or exchange for such commodities as could not well be made in this northern region of the state. Also pot and pearl ashes were staple productions of the Vermonters, and these, too, found a good market in the province. Thus, by a continual exchange in trade and manufactures, a strong friendly relation was built up between the residents on each side of the line, to sever which, as they were soon called upon to do, was a great sacrifice both in trade losses and friendship, and a few years later they were again at war.
But the friendly relations that characterized the lives and dealings of the people in this special region did not extend to or exist between the governments, for Great Britain was jealous of the rapidly increasing power of the United States, and saw in that growth a corresponding de- crease in her own strength among the nations of the earth. During a period of several years preceding the second war, the objectionable and odious acts of Parliament were the subjects of much anxiety and regret, and aroused feelings of animosity against Great Britain on this side of the Atlantic. Besides the offensive acts of Parliament, the English offi- cers claimed the right to search American vessels, seize all who were suspected of being subjects of the king, and force them into their serv- ice. Under cover of this claim the greatest outrages were perpetrated, and by it many loyal persons were pressed into the service of Great Britain, against the well established proof of their identity. These and other equally insulting and injurious occurrences at last forced Con- gress to act; the result was that on the 22d of December, 1807, that body passed the " embargo act," and on March 12, 1808, still another, called the "land embargo." The first had no material effect upon the welfare of the people of this locality, but the latter prohibited commer- cial intercourse with Great Britain and her dependencies. This last was a general act, extending throughout the country, but in no locality did its provisions fall more heavily than upon the people in northern Vermont, whose very comfort depended largely upon the trade relations existing between the people there and in the province ; and they were not slow in expressing disapproval of Congress' action, which was done, in many instances, by calling town meetings, preparing and adopting resolutions, and transmitting them to Congress. Party feeling, too, ran high, and for the time the Federalists were in the ascendency, while the
18
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following of the Democratic and Republican party, (then meaning the same), was correspondingly diminished. But the necessaries of life the people must have, and through the customary and established channels; therefore, notwithstanding the interdiction by Congress, many persons resorted to the act of smuggling commodities from over the border. This was carried on to such an extent that Collector Penniman was taxed to the utmost of his energy to prevent it, but without the desired result. As a consequence that officer, upon the advice of Asa Aldis and C. P. Van Ness, addressed the secretary of the treasury to the effect that it was impossible to execute the law without employing military force. This alarming intelligence coming to President Jefferson, he at once issued a proclamation, addressed particularly to the people of this region, commanding them to cease combining against the government for disobedience of its laws, and disperse to their places of abode. But it is quite evident that the president was misinformed concerning the situation, for it does not appear that there was any combination of the people to violate or resist the laws of Congress : and against the impu- tation of such the town of St. Albans addressed the president, denying the extremity of the situation, or the existence of any combination of "insurgents," or "insurrectionists," but that " if individuals, finding themselves and their families on the verge of ruin and wretchedness, have attempted to evade the embargo restrictions, and have actually accomplished their purpose, this could never furnish a just cause for proclaiming to the world that insurrection and rebellion were chargea- ble on the good people of this district ; and with confidence your me- morialists declare their belief that nothing more than this had taken place."
Notwithstanding this protest, and similar ones from other towns, the power of the military was invoked to assist the custom officers in execut- ing the laws. General Levi House ordered out a detachment of the first regiment of his Franklin county brigade, and stationed them at Wind- mill Point, in Alburgh, for the special purpose of preventing several rafts of lumber from passing into Canada. The rafts, however, did pass the guard, sailing under the cover of darkness, assisted by favorable winds. This escape raised the question of the efficiency of Franklin county's militia, and on the 3 Ist of May, a detachment of 150 Rutland
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county militia was called to the place on the same service, and were soon reinforced by a detachment of United States artillery. Thereupon all but seventy-five of the Franklin county men were discharged, to the great indignation of themselves and their brigade. On the 17th of June, 18.08, a convention of the commissioned officers of the brigade was held, at which was adopted an address to the public, declaring that they had acquitted themselves with honor, "though they could not command the wind and the waves," and that the ordering of Rutland county mi- litia to stations within the limits of the brigade was an "open, direct, and most degrading insult." However, by October following, all the Vermont militia had been withdrawn, and their places filled by United States troops. Concerning the events of this period, Walton says : "The resort to force by the government served on the one hand to in- crease the fervor of the Federal party and give them the victory at the ensuing election of state officers ; and on the other hand it stimulated the smugglers to desperate and deadly resistance, such as would neces- sarily have called for the interposition of force. They met force by force repeatedly, but the most lamentable example occurred August 3, 1808. A party of twelve of the Vermont militia had captured a noto- rious smuggling vessel called the Black Snake, then moored in the Wi- nooski River, and as they were taking it down the river to the lake, the smugglers repeatedly fired upon them, killing Ellis Drake of Claren- don, and Asa Marsh of Rutland, and wounding Lieutenant Daniel Far- rington of Brandon, who commanded the party. Just before the last gun was fired, Captain Jonathan Ormsby of Burlington joined the gov- ernment party to aid in arresting the murderers, and was killed with Marsh. The sergeant commanding the remainder of the militia imme- diately seized all the smugglers except two, who escaped but were sub- sequently arrested. A special term of the Supreme Court was held at Burlington, commencing on the 23d of August ; on the 26th the grand jury returned true bills against Samuel I. Mott of Alburgh; William Noaks, Slocum Clark, and Truman Mudgett of Highgate; Cyrus B. Dean and Josiah Pease of Swanton; David Sheffield of Colchester, and Francis Ledyard of Milton. Mott, Dean and Sheffield were convicted. Dean was sentenced to death on October 8th, but was respited until November IIth, when he was executed. New trials were granted to
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Mott and Sheffield, both of whom, with Ledyard, were convicted of manslaughter at the January term, 1809. All three were sentenced to stand one hour in the pillory, to be confined ten years in the state prison. In addition Mott and Sheffield received fifty lashes. All were subsequently pardoned by the governor.
The presence of United States troops on the border, together with the vigilance of the custom officials, had the effect of substantially stopping smuggling operations, but the process was still indulged in to a limited extent by certain parties, and conducted so covertly as to escape the ยท notice of the officers. At the same time the action of the president in sending troops from the other states to guard against violations at home, where were organized militia, was the occasion of much adverse criticism on the part of the Federalists, who used the fact as an argu- ment by which they hoped to show to the people, and thus increase their strength, that the Federal government had little or no confidence in Vermont and its institutions, and thereby create more widespread opposition to the policy of the president in enforcing the embargo laws. In January, 1809, the secretary of war caused circular letters to be sent to the several governors, one to Governor Tichenor of Vermont, by which it was requested that he should select some officer of "the mili- tia, of known respect for the laws, in or near to each port of entry within the state, with orders, when applied to by the collector of the district, to assemble immediately a sufficient force of militia, and to employ them efficaciously to maintain the authority of the laws respecting the embargo," etc. Yet, in this letter the secretary seems to have known that the embargo act was unpopular with the Federalists and others of the people, but he appears also to have viewed its enforcement as a nec- essary evil, and one which was of a temporary nature, and would soon be abolished. In consequence of this communication, Governor Tiche- nor made a visit to this northern region with a view to learning the true situation of affairs and the necessities of the occasion; and as well to augment the political power of his own party, for he was known to pos- sess strong Federalistic leanings, and therefore opposed to the govern- ment policy.
During this year, 1809, Vermont again came under the cloud of sus- picion, in that her authorities were once more charged with negotiating
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with the British officers in Canada. The ground of this charge was to the effect that Governor Tichenor, under pretense of corresponding with the governor-general of Canada relative to the apprehension of counter- feiters, was secretly making terms with that government for an alliance in the event of another war between the countries, of which war there were then existing certain unmistakable indications, and its outbreak was only a question of time. And about this same time the governor general of Canada had a secret emissary in New England to learn the sentiment of the people of the several states, with a view of learning whether an alliance could be made with any party of them in the event of war. The disclosures afterward made to the president developed the fact that this emissary had reported to the governor- general that, should war be declared, Vermont could be relied upon in supporting the cause of Great Britain. This, of course, in no way implicated Vermont in any ques- tionable transactions; it was simply the opinion of an individual, but based upon what he supposed to be the prevailing sentiment of the peo- ple of that state. That John Henry was mistaken in his conclusions was clearly demonstrated by the active part taken by the loyal men of Vermont during the period of the war, and that notwithstanding the opposition and obstructive measures offered by the Federalists, who, perhaps, were the dominant party at the time.
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