USA > Vermont > Lamoille County > Morristown > History of Morristown, Vermont > Part 11
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Benjamin H. Sanborn, for years a well known figure in the publishing world, was a native of Morristown and an active factor in its life during his school days. Like many other Vermont lads he went to Boston to seek his fortune, and obtained a position with the publishing house of Robert S. Davis & Co. In 1883 he became a member of the firm of Leach, Shewell, and Sanborn, and fifteen years later withdrew from it, and organized the firm of Benj. H. Sanborn and Co., with which he was connected until his retirement from active business, in 1912. Mr. Sanborn showed his continuing interest in the school by
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presenting it with a flag and by offering the prizes given for years in connection with the Sanborn Prize Speaking.
Jesse Eugene Thompson was born in Jericho, Vt., in 1853, but his parents moved to Morristown when he was a boy, and he completed his studies at Peoples Academy in 1875. He studied at the Medical School in Burlington and received his degree of M. D. from the City of New York Medical College. For forty years he was a promi- nent physician in Rutland, Vt., specializing in diseases of the eye and ear. He died in Rutland, in 1922, one of the most beloved and respected citizens of that city.
Another successful physician is Willis A. Tenney, who was graduated from the Medical College of the University of Vermont in the class of 1877, and has made a large place for himself in the life of the people of Granville, N. Y.
Roger W. Hulburd entered Peoples Academy from the neighboring town of Waterville, completed his studies in 1876, and was graduated from the University of Vermont in 1882. He was principal of Lamoille Central Academy several years before taking up his life work as lawyer. He was Lieutenant-Governor of Vermont from 1917 to 1919, and was generally recognized as one of the best orators and after dinner speakers in the state.
Had anyone prophesied as to the future of the mem- bers of the class of 1881 he probably would not have selected Charles Waterman as the one to attain the highest position, yet such was the change which the years brought. Born in Waitsfield, Vt., in 1851, he studied here and received his degree from the University of Vermont in 1885. He taught several years and then was graduated from the University of Michigan Law School. He settled at Denver, Colo., and became a member of the law firm of Wolcott, Vaile, and Waterman. As council for the Great Western Sugar Co., the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific R. R., the Denver and Rio Grande R. R., the Great Western R. R., and other corporations he amassed a for- tune which enabled him to retire from active practice and enter politics. In 1927 he was elected Senator from Colorado, which position he held until his death, in 1932. His love for his native state was shown by his making the University of Vermont the ultimate recipient of the bulk of his property.
Alice H. Bushee, P. A. 1886, is one of the students of whom her Alma Mater is proud. After graduation
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from Mt. Holyoke College, she taught in Spain at the Colegio Internacional. She was then invited to Wellesley College, where she is chairman of the Spanish Department. She is a corresponding member of the Spanish-American Academy of Science and Arts in Cadiz. Her election in 1924 to the Hispanic Society of America, a distinguished international organization limited to 100 members who are outstanding in their various fields, is a tribute to her work as a scholar and teacher. In addition to her work as teacher, Miss Bushee has contributed to various leading magazines and written a Spanish textbook for college students.
Thomas C. Cheney is a descendant of Nathan Gates, one of the early settlers at Cadys Falls, and has proved to be a most helpful citizen in both town and state. He was graduated from Peoples Academy in 1886 and from the University of Vermont in 1891, and began the study of law in the office of Powers and Gleed, and was admitted to the Lamoille County Bar in 1895. He entered into partnership with George M. Powers, a relationship which lasted until the latter was made Judge. Mr. Cheney has probably had a longer direct connection with the Legisla- ture at Montpelier than any other man in the state. From 1894 to 1898 he was Assistant Clerk of the House of Representatives and Clerk for the next eight years. The four years following he was Speaker of the House and from 1915 to 1923 he was Legislative Draughtsman. He
gave up the practice of law for the insurance business, and is a director of the Vermont Mutual Fire Insurance Co., and Chairman of the New England Advisory Board of Insurance Agents. He has served as Trustee of the University of Vermont for several years.
Another student of that period was Carroll B. Mer- riam, whose father, E. B. Merriam, went to Topeka, Kans., and became a prosperous banker. The son followed his father's business and in the recovery efforts introduced by the Roosevelt administration in 1933, Mr. Merriam was made head of the Deposit Liquidation Board.
Bert E. Merriam, a native of Elmore, was graduated from Peoples Academy in 1889. For years he was engaged in school work, but with the outbreak of the World War he volunteered for Y. M. C. A. work overseas and continued with that organization after 1918, serving for several years past at Manila, Philippine Islands.
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Fred B. Thomas, born in Stowe, was a graduate of Peoples Academy in 1892 and of Norwich University in 1898. £ He studied law in the office of George W. Wing of Montpelier.
He was Collector of Customs at St. Albans, Vt., until 1934, when he returned to Randolph, Vt., to resume the practice of law. At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War he enlisted and during the World War he was Colonel of the First Vermont Infantry, which was redesignated the Fifty-Seventh Pioneer Infantry and remained until that organization was broken up for replace- ment purposes. He served throughout the war and has been Department Commander of the American Legion of Vermont.
Bert L. Jennings of Elmore, P. A. '94, has held pas- torates in several important Methodist churches, among them in Worcester, Mass., and in Venice and in Sinis, Calif.
Hollis Gray of Cambridge, P. A. '94, worked his way up to the presidency of the Winooski Savings Bank, one of the oldest institutions of that kind in the state.
C. Francis Blair, of the class of '95, is a prominent lawyer in Buffalo, N. Y., and a Trustee of the University . of Vermont.
Hugh Tyndall, of the class of '05, is a successful sur- geon, who has been connected for several years with St. . Mary's Hospital, Hoboken, N. J.
Harold H. Fisher, P. A. '07, engaged in the teaching profession until the outbreak of the World War when he served overseas. Then he was one of the group of men who administered relief in famine stricken Russia under the direction of Herbert C. Hoover. Upon his return to the United States he became Vice-Chairman of the Hoover War Library at Leland Stanford University and Associate Professor of History in that institution. He is also Curator of the American Relief Archives and has charge of the research work on the Russion Revolution and has published two volumes on that subject.
H. Clifford Bundy, P. A. '09, is chief surgeon of the Bangor & Aroostook Railroad at Milo, Maine.
Lillian Thompson, née Fisk, has won on enviable repu- tation as a portrait painter. While in Washington, D. C., several of the prominent people of that city posed for her. She afterwards went to Japan and for several years has resided in Paris.
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Ruth Mould, née Greene, P. A. '12, studied and taught art before her marriage to Willis Mould, P. A. '11, who is manager of the Johnson branch of the Eastern Magnesia Talc Co. She has participated in several art exhibitions and has a reputation more than local for her portraits in oils and crayons, landscapes, and block prints.
William M. Meacham, P. A. '15, after teaching in various schools in Vermont, was called to the head of the Farm and Trades School on Thompson's Island, Boston, Mass.
These men and women are only a few of the Alumni of Peoples Academy, who, in all walks of life, have been an honor to themselves and to the school.
THE MORRISTOWN CENTENNIAL LIBRARY
Whatever the education and culture of the early settlers of Morristown may have been, the toil and hard- ship of their life here made books and reading matter a luxury, and it is probable that few books except the Bible were found in their homes. That they did not forget them, however, is shown by the following article found in the Constitution of the Congregational Society, adopted in October, 1823: "That a library shall be attached to this Society as soon as a majority of the members shall judge it practicable, when a Constitution shall be formed for that purpose."
There is no record of any further action on the part of the Society, but a Sunday School library in connection with each of the different churches was established at an early period, and ministered to the needs of the younger members of the community.
When Peoples Academy was established, a library was collected for use there and the early records of the institu- tion point with pride to the additions made and its excellence.
These collections were not public libraries, however, and it was not until 1885 that there was any general agita- tion for one. Then there appeared items in the local newspaper setting forth the advantages of such an institu- tion. In that year there came to Morrisville a woman who was not only interested in this project, but capable of executing it. There is no more fitting place in which to pay tribute to the influence of Mrs. Laura Gleed in the community than here.
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Laura Kinney Gleed was a native of Bethlehem, N. H., the daughter of William Kinney of the place, but after her marriage to Mr. Henry Fleetwood, in 1863, she went to St. Johnsbury to live, and it was here she married Mr. Philip Gleed, in 1885. Upon coming to Morrisville, she identified herself actively with its life and development. An Episcopalian by birth and belief, she adopted the church of her husband and loyally supported all its activities. She was interested in the material progress of the place, such as better sidewalks and better lighting of the streets, but she was concerned even more with its cultural development. For that reason she hailed the Woman's Club as a means by which women everywhere might broaden their outlook. She was not only the founder of the local club, but for years she was its presi- dent. For most people, however, the printed page is the great educator and Mrs. Gleed soon began an active cam- paign to crystalize sentiment in favor of a public library, giving freely of her time and effort until the project was completed. A survey of the books purchased to launch . the undertaking testifies to the soundness and excellence of her literary taste. Any sketch of Mrs. Gleed, however brief, would be incomplete without mention of another dominant characteristic, her hospitality. Her home was always open to the school, the church, or the club, and she loved to gather her friends about her own table for the interchange of ideas. Her death occurred in 1912, but during the quarter of a century she spent here she left a distinct imprint upon the life of the town, and the Woman's Club and the public library are her best memorials.
The Centennial year of the town seemed a favorable time to launch her campaign for the money necessary to start the undertaking. Letters to former residents and interviews with local people brought in the sum of $350 in sums varying from one to fifty dollars. Then Mrs. Gleed applied to Mrs. H. O. Cushman of Boston, daughter of Hon. Luke P. Poland, who began the practice of law in Morrisville, and received from her the generous sum of $1.000. Thus encouraged, a special town meeting was called, at which the town voted to appropriate $1,000, the interest of which should be paid on January first each year. The Resolution of Thanks adopted at that time mentions as donors, besides Mrs. Cushman, J. C. F. Slay-
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ton of Boston, E. B. Merriam of Topeka, Kans., R. E. Jennings of New Jersey; the Rev. W. A. Robinson of Homer, N. Y., Mrs. Emily Montgomery, formerly mission- ary to Turkey, Dr. W. H. Stowe of Palmer, Mass., the Rev. George W. Bailey of Springfield, Vt., B. F. Sanborn of Boston, C. S. and J. W. Gleed of Topeka, Kans., Mrs. Gov. Fairbanks of St. Johnsbury and, Col. D. J. Safford of Augusta, Me.
The Morristown Centennial Library Association was formed the same month, with Allen B. Smith of the Corners its first president. According to its constitution any person of lawful age who is a resident of the town is a member of this Association which meets annually and elects two trustees who hold office for five years. The management of the library is in the hands of this Board of Trustees. Of the money raised $400 was set aside as a permanent fund and the remainder invested in books and the simple furniture required. On April 19, 1891, the library opened for use in the right-hand room in the so-called "Matthews Block," the small building just below the Drowne block.
That the institution met a recognized need is shown by the librarian's report at the second annual meeting of the Association, when there were 518 borrowers and, although it was open only on Tuesdays and Saturdays, 5,081 books were circulated. It at once outgrew its quarters and was moved in June, 1892, to the second floor of the bank building, and. a reading room was provided in connection with it. In addition to the interest on the town order already mentioned, the town appropriated $125 for some years, and the balance needed to run it was raised by entertainments. People became more interested and the second year the G. W. Clark fund of $200, later raised to $300, was added to the endowment. In 1901 the D. J. Safford fund of $500, in 1906 the Lucene Louisa Slayton fund of $500, in 1913 the E. J. Hall fund of $368.91, in 1923 the Wheelock fund of $500, in 1925 the Willard Stowe fund of $5,800, and in 1928 the Lucretia Campbell fund of $6,560.61 were added to the permanent endowment.
It was always the purpose of the Association to have it serve the community in every way, and, according to the constitution of the Association, its object is "to dis-
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MORRISTOWN CENTENNIAL. LIBRARY
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seminate useful knowledge and to contribute in every proper way to the literary, moral, and educational welfare of the community."
Before long the pleasant rooms over the bank were outgrown, and as early as 1910 we find in the minutes of the Association discussion of methods for securing a new building. Mrs. Gleed went about that task in her characteristically vigorous fashion and obtained from the Carnegie Library Foundation a grant. In 1911 the town voted not less than $500 for the maintenance of the library in case the gift of a building could be secured and the year following the village voted $200 annually to supple- ment the town appropriation, so that $7,000 was obtained from the Foundation. In 1912 the Kelsey lot was pur- chased as a site, its proximity to the schools making it especially desirable for the purpose. In 1912 and 1913 the present building was erected and opened for use in July, 1913.
The improved facilities and increased income made possible an increase in service to the community. It is now open six days in a week, instead of two, more books and magazines are available, and it is the meeting place of the Woman's Club and other organizations.
CHAPTER VIII TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION
INDEPENDENT and self-supporting as these early set- 1 tlers were, they had to have some means of carrying on intercourse with their fellow pioneers, but the road over which Jacob Walker carried his grist to Cambridge and brought back his needed supplies might more cor- rectly be termed a trail.
The first road in town worthy of the name was sur- veyed under date of June 11, 1800. So for nearly ten years the settlers had made their own way in a very literal sense. This first road from the Stowe line to the northern boundary of the town, going past Jacob Walker's and through the Corners, was known as the "North and South" road in the records. Another referred to as the "East and West" road began on the Sterling line and extended in a southeasterly direction for seven miles. This may have been the one which intersected the North and South road at the Corners, ran past the Hadley place, the Farr place, and the Wheeler Cemetery. A study of the earliest maps of the town bears out the truth of the traditions that many roads formerly existed which have long since been abandoned.
People speak of the building or opening of the Ran- dolph Road or the LaPorte Road and do not always remember that the process of road building and main- tenance was quite different then from what it is today. It was a neighborhood affair, with the school district as the administration unit. Within a certain section one man was appointed highway surveyor, and it was his job to work as overseer while the remaining citizens of the district under his direction "worked out their road tax." This was done in the spring or early summer, and the modern engineer would find little scientific knowledge of grading or drainage displayed.
The spirit of that carly method has been caught and expressed by Daniel Cady, in his poem, entitled
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"WORKING ON THE ROAD" IN VERMONT
Surveyors, yes ; highway surveyors- That's what the statutes used to call 'em, But looking back, that legal title Appears too all-fired long and solemn; They didn't handle much surveying, But 'bout the time the pie plant blowed, They'd get the men and boys together And go to fooling with the road.
'Twas great to see the "workers" gather With plows, whips, jugs, stoneboats and shovels; The 'Squire was always on the docket, And all the Baxters, Bucks, and Lovells; They'd bring the same old wooden scraper That wouldn't hold but half a load -- But what the Dickens did it matter To Freemen working on the road?
They'd hitch a plow to Barret's oxen And give the roadsides ripping battle; Then spread the sod upon the roadway And make it soft for sheep and cattle ; And every ten or fifteen minutes You'd hear that Highway Boss explode- "Stick in a waterbar: Gol Darn It Can't any of you fix a road ?"
They always "worked" the sandy stretches, But might as well have hoed the ocean; They brushed and stoned the Perkins clay bank Year after year with deep devotion ; They 'lowed they'd build no "railroad 'bankments," However swift the river flowed- They knew they'd be there in a twelve-month A-working on the same old road.
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The following page from an account book of 1881 shows the financial side of the enterprise:
May 16 George Atwood work on road, self, team, and hired man $3.75
May 17 George Atwood self and man $2.50
May 16 C. W. Boardman work on road $1.06
May 16 Nathan Cross work on road
.53
May 16 Heman Cole work on road self, team, and man $3.75
May 17 Heman Cole work on road self, team, and man 1/2 day $1.25
Heman Cole Plough 11/2 days .75
Heman Cole, Log for sluice .60
May 16
Daniel Cole work on road
$2.63
May 16
V. W. Rand work on road 11/2 days $1.87
V. W. Rand work on road 2 days $2.50
May 16 WV. D. Thomas work on road 1 day $1.25
May 17 M. C. Mower work on road 3 days $3.75
M. C. Mower work on sluice 1 day $1.25
In the winter the roads were made passable after the heavy storms by ploughing out the snow. Where it had accumulated to any depth, it was necessary to make "turn outs" where teams might pass each other. Under this method there would be a period in the spring when travel was almost impossible, and in 1888 the town purchased and put into use the first roller. The advantage of roll- ing over ploughing, as stated in the local newspaper, was that it made it "easy to turn out with teams and there is usually a solid bottom till late in the spring."
The advent of the automobile has made desirable the policy of scraping the roads throughout the winter on the main traveled thoroughfares.
Communication with the remote world outside was an even more difficult undertaking, In an article written for the local newspaper several years ago, the daughter of Jacob Walker states that about 1803 her father built a potash and took the product, pearlash, by team to the mouth of the White River, where he exchanged it for hard- ware, salt, calico, and those other necessities which had to be imported. Other tradesmen probably traded with other centers.
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In 1849 the Central Vermont Railroad was built to Waterbury, and that became the source through which the local merchants obtained their stock of goods. The build- ing of the LaPorte Road, much more level than the old North and South road, had simplified the problem a great deal, but the hauling of all supplies eighteen miles was a laborious proceeding, and the town hailed the prospect of more direct contact with the outside world, and was ready to do its part to establish such connections.
At first it seemed that this union might come by way of Waterbury. There was talk of building a railroad from that place to Morrisville, and in 1866 at a special town meeting the selectmen were authorized to subscribe $10,000 for shares in the Mount Mansfield Railroad Com- pany. It seems there may have been some doubt in the minds of the citizens whether it would be a going concern, for they specified that the money should not be expended for surveying, but for actual construction of the road between Stowe and Morrisville. There was also a grow- ing sentiment for a railroad across the state to connect Portland, Maine, and Lake Champlain. In 1867 a conven- tion was held at Montpelier to discuss such a plan, and among those present was George J. Slayton of Morrisville, who conceived the idea of such a road down the Lamoille Valley to the lake. He interested Col. E. B. Sawyer, editor of "The Lamoille Newsdealer," in the plan, and Mr. Sawyer gave it publicity in the columns of his paper. At St. Johnsbury a group of men, the most prominent of whom was Horace Fairbanks, later to be Governor of the state, was pushing the project. In spite of scepticism and opposition its promoters worked unceasingly, and in December, 1869, the first dirt was dug for the Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad.
To hasten construction and to raise funds, several different organizations were formed, and the road from Cambridge Junction to Hardwick was financed by the Lamoille Valley Railroad Co., of which Hon. Waldo Brig- ham of Hyde Park was president. At a town meeting, held on February 12, 1868, it was voted to accept the act of the Legislature enabling the towns to aid in the con- struction of the railroad, and also "that the Commissioners to be named by said town subscribe for five hundred fifty shares of the stock in the name of the town, said shares being one hundred dollars each, and the inhabitants also
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voted that the said commissioners be instructed to subscribe for ten thousand more shares of the stock in said railroad, the shares being one hundred dollars, amounting to one hundred shares of said stock whenever the liability of the town shall cease to build a road from Waterbury to Mor- ristown which $10,000 was voted by said town." V. W. Waterman, George W. Hendee, and A. B. Smith were elected the commissioners to act for the town.
It was more than seven years before the road was completed. The last rail was placed in the town of Fletcher on July 17, 1877. A special train left St. Johns- bury that morning and met another train from Swanton, and Gov. Horace Fairbanks, president of the road, drove a silver spike, the last act in uniting the Connecticut River and Lake Champlain. The road had reached Morrisville by December 28, 1872, and the following extract from "The Lamoille Newsdealer" describes the event:
"Last Saturday a large number of citizens gathered at Morrisville to witness the arrival of the first locomotive, and see the track-layers iron the road. £ The work was accomplished about 4:30 P. M., when the engine 'St. Johnsbury', with the supply train attached, on which was quite a crowd, backed down to the depot and was greeted by three hearty cheers, and responded with a whistle that echoed far up and down the valley and filled the people with enthusiasm."
Governor Hendee sent the following dispatch:
"Morrisville, Dec. 28, 1872
"Hon. Horace Fairbanks:
"At 4:30 this P. M. our town was joined to the com- mercial world by 'new ties' and the iron rail at 5:15. The noble engine, 'St. Johnsbury', ran majestically to our depot amid great excitement and cheering. Our entire com- munity send greeting and wish you a long life of happi- ness, for to you more than any other do they feel indebted for this great event and the consequent prosperous future that is to follow.
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