USA > Vermont > Windsor County > Royalton > History of Royalton, Vermont, with family genealogies, 1769-1911 > Part 40
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The method of choosing the town officers was to be by bal- lot or such other method as the voters should agree upon. The number and nominations for grand and petit jurors was to be agreed upon between the selectmen, constable or constables, and magistrates of the town present, and the election was to be by the voters. Compensation to officers of the town was left to the will of the inhabitants. Every officer was to be duly sworn, and a record was to be made by the town clerk. Any person not exempted by law from serving was required to accept an office to which he was chosen, and to take the oath prescribed after notification, or else pay a fine not exceeding thirteen dol- lars, unless he could make it appear that he ought to be excused.
In the town meeting March 21, 1791, the following vote was passed : "Voted That for ye future every man have liberty to cover his head at town meetings except when they address ye moderator." What would these men, who, doubtless, compelled by cold to pass this vote contrary to their ideas of what was re- spectful on the occasion, think of some of our state legislatures, 23
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where the members sit with feet on the table, read and talk, and fill the air with tobacco smoke, while a session is in progress, and the galleries are occupied by ladies ?
In accordance with the liberty of choice granted by law, at the March meeting, 1799, it was voted to elect the town clerk, selectmen, treasurer, listers, and constables by each "mention- ing to the Town Clerk the name of the person he would have to fill each office & that all ye other Town officers be chosen by nomination." This custom was followed for several years. Some- times they would vote to elect by "going round," and after electing one officer in that way, they would reconsider the mo- tion. Nominations were frequently made by a committee chosen for the purpose. Sometimes they elected by "handy vote," which was probably a showing of hands. There were two ways of "going round," one, to name their choice orally, and the other, to vote by ballot.
The practice of not voting a tax at the March meeting, thus necessitating an extra meeting for that purpose, and another custom of having adjourned meetings to hear reports of the auditors and committees appointed to examine accounts, do not seem to have been due to lack of foresight on the part of the voters of the town, but rather to the provisions of the law gov- erning town meetings in those years.
The town did not seem inclined at first to grant compensa- tion to town officers. Perhaps there was too much rivalry, and there were enough who would gladly take the office without pay. Gradually the custom grew up of paying the selectmen and list- ers, and later, other officers. Occasionally this custom was broken by a vote not to pay certain officers. Selectmen were first paid in 1794.
There is not much doubt that there was considerable laxity in conducting town business in the earliest days, but this soon ceased with new legislation, and longer experience, and a more careful scrutiny of accounts by the proper authorities and by the voters themselves.
It was not much, if any, before 1846 that the custom of having reports printed and circulated was adopted. These first reports were on single, rather large, sheets of paper printed on one side, giving the matter usually brought before the voters for approval or rejection. There were then regular auditors. About 1850 the single sheet was folded and sewed, and a small pamphlet was issued, which custom has continued to the present time, only for many years the report has had a proper cover.
The following resolution was adopted in March, 1853:
"Resolved that the Selectmen of Royalton and their successors in office are hereby directed to make out a true statement of all the ex- penses of said town, stating the items thereof, & procure the printing
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of at least five hundred copies & lodge the same with the Town Clerk of said Town on or before the 25th day of February annually & the Town Clerk when called on shall deliver to each legal voter in said town one copy of said Report free from charge."
The selectmen were evidently remiss in carrying out this resolution. At the next March meeting another resolution was passed, which was:
"Resolved, That the Selectmen of the town of Royalton be required to furnish at the Freeman's Meeting in September next that printed Report of the items of the Expenses of the town which it was their duty to have furnished on the 7th of March, 1854."
The voters had spoken and the report was furnished.
A different moderator was chosen at nearly every meeting for the first few years, but later one person served for a longer period, either by successive elections or at intervals. The town has not lacked talent fitted for such service, and has seemed inclined to pass the honor around. Among those who acted as moderator many times are Elias Stevens, Jacob Smith, Daniel Rix, Jr., Elisha Rix, Charles M. Lamb, and Dudley C. Denison. Mr. Denison was voted $50.00 in 1899, in recognition of his long and faithful service to the town in this capacity.
TOWN RECORDS.
It is probable that the records of the earliest meetings were kept on loose sheets of paper, and in consequence were lost. If Comfort Sever had the custody of some of the records, as most likely he did have, then that fact will account for the preserva- tion of considerable material from the general destruction of October 16, 1780. His house was beyond the range of the In- dian devastation of that day. The Charter was required by law to be recorded in the first pages of the Proprietors' book, and that book is a regularly bound volume. The earliest land rec- ords of the town, though sewed together, are without a cover, and perhaps never had one. The same is true of the first family records.
In 1793 a committee was chosen to examine the town rec- ords and see if they were kept in a regular manner, and in 1798 another committee was elected to examine the Proprietors' rec- ords, to see if they stood regular. At a meeting held on the second Tuesday of April, 1803, John Billings, Zebulon Lyon, and Jacob Smith were chosen a committee "to purchase a book and agree with the Town Clerk to record therein all the deeds that are not now recorded in a bound volume." This committee paid the clerk seventeen cents for recording each deed, and his bill was $43.83, making 257 or 258 deeds not before recorded. The book cost $2.50. This was probably Book A of land deeds. These
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records had not been separated from the family records before this time.
Again in 1806 a committee was chosen to examine the rec- ords and report their condition. The report, which was to have been given at the next March meeting, is not found.
In the negotiations between the proprietors of Bethel and Comfort Sever in relation to the two tiers of land taken from Royalton, it is stated that Mr. Sever had received a letter from the "town clerk of Royalton" in 1777, which letter was on file in Bethel records. That indicates that town officers were regu- larly elected as early as 1777, and probably before that time.
The first recorded clerk for the town was Comfort Sever, who served from 1779 to 1788. He was followed by Abel Stev- ens, who held the office from 1788 until 1805. Both Mr. Sever and Mr. Stevens held their offices until removal from town. Their hand-writing is legible, but both, as well as Elias Stevens, who was the Proprietors' clerk, had a tendency to overcapitalize, and their records lack the order and beauty that characterize the work of the next town clerk, Jacob Safford. A sample page of his penmanship is shown in one of the cuts. He served from 1805 to 1829. The last record that he made was the boundary of Royalton village. He had been absent for two meetings, but had evidently transcribed the records of the clerk pro tem. He did not relinquish his task until illness compelled him to do so. The village boundary was recorded March 20, 1829, and on the 25th of April, at an adjourned meeting, this resolution was passed :
"Resolved, that the Town now proceed to the election of a Town Clerk for the year ensuing to fill the vacancy occasioned by the much regretted death of Jacob Safford who has so long and faith- fully performed the duties of that office to the public's satisfaction."
Dr. Richard Bloss was elected to the vacancy, and held the office until 1839. He was re-elected, but was excused at his own request, and Calvin Skinner 2nd was chosen in his place. Mr. Skinner has the honor of having served longer than any other incumbent, his period of service continuing until 1875. He was then seventy-one years of age, and had been clerk thirty-six years.
Horace P. Allen was elected clerk in 1875, and held the position until his death in 1894. While he was clerk he em- ployed some of his spare time in a careful examination of the older records, and made extracts with a view of using them in a future history of the town. Some of this matter was kindly turned over for use in this book, by his son, Parkhurst P. Allen of Boston.
William Skinner was appointed in 1894 to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Mr. Allen. He held the office until
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March, 1909, when he declined to serve longer, and William F. Harvey was elected. Mr. Harvey removed from town the next fall, and the selectmen prevailed upon Mr. Skinner to take the office until the next March meeting, when he was unanimously re-elected.
The records of the town will compare favorably with those of other Vermont towns in general, as regards legibility, pen- manship, spelling, and neat, systematic arrangement. The earli- est unbound sheets are badly mutilated and faded, and steps should be taken to have them preserved from further decay. The lack of an index for family records from the earliest date to the present time is one that should be soon remedied, as the necessity for consulting such records is constantly increasing.
TOWN BY-LAWS.
There is frequent reference after 1800 to the by-laws of the town, but none was put on record until 1835, when the clerk was instructed to make a record of the revised by-laws. They refer to the restraining of stock from running at large, and were in accord with an act passed by the Assembly Feb. 28, 1797. They are as follows :
"It is hereby enacted by the inhabitants of the town of Royalton in legal March meeting assembled, that no horses colts or any horse kind or any sheep or mules or swine shall be suffered to run at large on the common, or highways within the town of Royalton, and if any horses, colts, or any horse kind or any sheep, swine or mules shall be suffered to run at large or be found out of the inclosure of the owner or keeper thereof, any person being an inhabitant of sd town may take up and empound the same, and all the proceedings in rela- tion to the same, as to the duty of the pound keeper, the mode of notice and relief, shall be agreeable to the provisions of an act relating to pounds, estrays, and stolen goods, passed May 2, 1797."
The following is the list of selectmen who have served the town from 1779 to 1911, with the exception of the year 1789, the record of which is lost:
Isaac Morgan, 1779; Timothy Durkee, 1779; Comfort Sever, 1779- 85, 1790-92; Daniel Rix, 1780-82; Medad Benton, 1780; Lieut. Calvin Parkhurst, 1781-86; Zebulon Lyon, 1783; Silas Williams, 1784-86, 1790-91, 1801; Elias Stevens, 1784-85, 1787-88, 1792-95, 1798-1802, 1813-17; Daniel Tullar, 1784-85, 1806-07; David Fish, 1786; Abel Stevens, 1787, 1792, 1802; Benj. Parkhurst, 1787-88; Daniel Clapp, 1790-91; Thos. Bingham, 1793; Luther Fairbanks, 1793; Isaac Skinner, 1794-98, 1800, 1805-07, 1813-16; Nathan Paige, 1794, 1803-05; Benj. Day, Jr., 1795; Elka- nah Stevens, 1796-97; John Billings, 1797-98, 1800-02, 1804; John Flint, 1799, 1803; Samuel Curtiss, 1799-1804; Rodolphus Dewey, 1803, 1808- 12, 1817-18; Jacob Smith, 1805-14; Daniel Rix, Jr., 1808-12, 1814-17, 1833; Nathan Safford, 1818; Stephen Freeman, 1818-22, 1824; Elisha Rix, 1819-22, 1827-28, 1842-43; Darius Horton, 1819; Nathan Kimball, 1820, 1825-26; Jacob Collamer, 1821-22; Asa Dewey, 1823; Harry Bingham, 1823-26, 1828-29, 1834, 1845, 1847-48; William Pierce, 1823; Oel Billings,
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1824-26; Oliver Willes, 1827, 1830; Jonathan Kinney, 1827, 1833, 1845; Thomas Russ, 1828-29, 1841-42; Calvin Parkhurst, 1829-31; Gideon Bing- ham, 1830; Nath. Sprague, 1831; David Wheelock, 1831, 1835-36; John Francis, 1832-33; John Billings, Jr., 1832; Jireh Tucker, 1832; John Marshall, 1834, 1844; Jona. Kinney, Jr., 1834; Truman H. Safford, 1835-37; Phineas Pierce, 1835; John Coy, 1836-38; Oramel Sawyer, 1837-38; Elisha Wild, 1838-39; Luther Howe, 1839; Job Bennett, 1839, 1858-59; Daniel Woodward, 1840; Coit Parkhurst, 1840, 1843; Charles Clapp, 1840-41; Lyman Benson, 1841-42; Forest Adams, 1843-45, 1849, 1852; Levi Rix, 1844; John L. Bowman, 1846; Harvey Shipman, 1846-48; Edwin Pierce, 1846; Cyrus Hartshorn, 1847-50, 1852-54; George W. Bradstreet, 1849; Austin Brooks, 1850; Thomas Fay, 1850-52, 1861-62; I. P. Morgan, 1851; James Davis, 1851; Horatio Freeman, 1853; Heman Durkee, 1853-54; Ira Belding, 1854-57; James Davis, 1855, 1863-65; Ebenezer Atwood, 1855-57, 1863; William Skinner, Sen., 1856; H. P. Allen, 1857-60; Charles W. Bliss, 1858-59; John B. Durkee, 1860-61, 1883-85, 1897; George A. Bingham, 1860; Isaac S. Shepard, 1861-62; Martin T. Skinner, 1862-64, 1884-86; George S. Beedy, 1865-66; Charles D. Lovejoy, 1865-67, 1881-82; Eli S. Hackett, 1866-68; Charles A. Lyman, 1867-69, 1879-81; Charles Fay, 1868-71, 1882; Phineas D. Pierce, 1869-70; William Benson, 1870; Eben Winslow, 1871-73, 1880-82;
J. W. Bailey, 1871-73; Charles West, 1873-75; Edson Bixby, 1874-78; H. T. Gifford, 1876; John A. Slack, 1876; William Skinner, Jr., 1877-79; John F. Shepard, 1879; Joseph W. Waldo, 1882-84; S. C. Drew, 1883; Selden S. Brooks, 1885-87, 1899-1900; John H. Hewitt, 1886-88; Calvin P. Goff, 1887-89; Norman W. Sewall, 1888-90, 1898; Charles B. Vial, 1889-91; George Ellis, 1890-92; Marillo M. Whipple, 1891-93; J. O. Bel- knap, 1892-94; James M. Hinkley, 1893-95, 1909-11; Daniel W. Bliss, 1894- 96; Harry A. Bingham, 1895-96; John A. Button, 1896-98, 1901; C. C. Southworth, 1897-99; Elmer E. Doyle, 1900-05; George K. Taggart, 1901- 03; Walter E. Webster, 1902-04; Hiram C. Benson, 1904-07; Charles E. Black, 1905-07; G. D. Harrington, 1906-08; Hiram E. Russ, 1907-11; George L. Dutton, 1908-11.
Royalton's town representatives in the General Assembly have been as follows:
1778, Joseph Parkhurst; 1779, none; 1780, Calvin Parkhurst; 1781, Comfort Sever; 1782, Calvin Parkhurst; 1783, Elias Stevens; 1784, Silas Williams; 1785, Elias Stevens; 1786, Calvin Parkhurst; 1787, Elias Stevens; 1788-89, Calvin Parkhurst; 1790, Daniel Tullar; 1791-95, Elias Stevens; 1796, Abel Stevens; 1797, Dr. Silas Allen; 1798, Jacob Smith; 1799, Elias Stevens; 1800, Jacob Smith; 1801, Abel Stevens; 1802-03, Elias Stevens; 1804-05, Nathan Paige; 1806, Elias Stevens; 1807- 12, Jacob Smith; 1813-14, Rodolphus Dewey; 1815, Daniel Rix, Jr .; 1816, Elias Stevens; 1817, Daniel Rix, Jr .; 1818, Rodolphus Dewey; 1819, Moses Cutter; 1820, Rodolphus Dewey; 1821-22, Jacob Collamer; 1823- 24, Rodolphus Dewey; 1825, Oel Billings; 1826, Nathan Kimball; 1827, Jacob Collamer; 1828-29, Harry Bingham; 1830, Jacob Collamer; 1831, William Woodworth; 1832, Calvin Parkhurst; 1833, Nathaniel Sprague; 1834, Samuel Selden; 1835-37, Oramel Sawyer; 1838-39, David Wheelock; 1840-41, Truman H. Safford; 1842-43, John L. Bowman; 1844, Harry Bingham; 1845, John L. Bowman; 1846-47, Romanzo Walker; 1848, James Davis; 1849, Daniel Woodward; 1850-51, John Coy; 1852, Azro D. Hutchins; 1853, Rufus Kendrick; 1854-55, Daniel L. Lyman; 1856-57, Ebenezer Atwood; 1858-59, Minot Wheeler; 1860- 62, Dudley C. Denison; 1863-64, John S. Marcy; 1865-66, Martin T. Skinner; 1867, Henry H. Denison; 1868-69, William Goff; 1870-71, Dr. Cyrus B. Drake; 1872-73, Edward Foster; 1874-75, Ebenezer Winslow;
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1876-77, Martin T. Skinner; 1878-79, Martin S. Adams; 1880-81, Charles West; 1882-83, none. After thirty-eight ballots an adjournment was taken sine die. 1884-85, George Ellis; 1886-87, John F. Shepard; 1888- 89, William Skinner; 1890-91, William C. Smith; 1892-93, Charles A. Lyman; 1894-95, Anson P. Skinner; 1896-97, D. C. Stearns; 1898-99, John H. Hewitt; 1900-01, Norman W. Sewall; 1902-03, Dr. Edgar J. Fish; 1904-05, R. B. Galusha; 1906-07, Dr. D. L. Burnett; 1908-09, John B. Goodrich; 1910-11, George Ellis.
Royalton has had as town treasurers Comfort Sever, 1779-80; Daniel Rix, 1781-84; Zebulon Lyon, 1785-89, 1799; Isaac Skinner, 1790- 93; Elkanah Stevens, 1794-95; Jacob Smith, 1796-98, 1800-14; Moses Cutter, 1815-27; Nathaniel Sprague, 1828, 1834; Oramel Sawyer, 1830-33; Curtis Fowler, 1834-36; Joseph A. Denison, Jr., 1837-47; Forest Adams, 1848-70; A. W. Kenney, 1871-73; Ebenezer Winslow, 1874-1909; A. G. Whitham, 1909 -.
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CHAPTER XXII.
THE TOWN'S POOR.
If, in the earliest history of the town, there were needy people in it, they seem to have been cared for without formal action by the inhabitants. It was customary in those days to "warn out of town" those who were likely to become charges, and thus lessen the number of paupers. The first record of this sort is dated Mar. 13, 1783, when constable Zebulon Lyon performed this duty, and again on the 17th, and the third time on the 22nd of the same month, acting under the instructions of the selectmen.
The first person for whom the town paid recorded bills was Abial Craw of Ellington, Conn. On Oct. 20, 1795, the town voted to those caring for Mr. Craw in his lameness a sum not exceeding nine pounds. This necessity of caring for Mr. Craw led to a suit with the town of Ellington, Conn., which appears to have refused to pay the bills incurred by Royalton, amount- ing to £94.6.4. This must have been a long and expensive case. Zebulon Lyon was first employed by the town as their agent, then Daniel Gilbert. Mr. Gilbert was invited on May 28, 1799, to come into a special town meeting and report on the Craw case. It ought to have been a favorable report, as his bill for the serv- ice rendered was $78.67. The report was not recorded. From subsequent incidental references it would seem that the town won its suit.
Private individuals and the selectmen cared for transients and trusted to the town to reimburse them. In 1802 the ac- counts against the town for the care of the poor brought in by individuals, including doctors, was $76.47. One death was re- ported, that of Mr. Herrick. The church realized its obligations to its unfortunate fellow man, and in 1800, Nov. 11, it voted to look after the poor, all sharing according to their list.
It was in the March meeting of 1805 that the town followed the example of other towns, and voted to set up the poor to the lowest bidder. To us of the present day such a custom seems most revolting and cruel. There was one argument in its favor, and that was that it was cheaper. If it is said that it gave a
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chance to relatives to care for their friends for a small remuner- ation, when, otherwise, their means would not allow of assuming this burden, the facts show that in most cases the poor were not bid off by their relatives, and they were not sure of staying in a place more than one year at a time.
The first sale in this town took place on the third Tuesday in April, 1805. Think of the unfortunate ones in their poverty- stricken condition, anxiously waiting to learn where their lot would be cast for the next twelve-month! The moderator of the meeting was the "vendue master." Perhaps bidders were slow, loath to be responsible for the new step. The auctioneer himself bid off Elnathan Taylor and wife for the sum of $58, except in case of sickness. Mr. Taylor's daughter, Lois, went to Daniel Rix for the sum of $3, and we must conclude that she was able to nearly earn her support. Isaac Skinner took James Haven and wife for the sum of $7. Here are seven persons known to have been town charges that year. The following year the same course was adopted. The poor of the previous year had new homes. There were two sisters who were separated. It was stipulated that the poor were to be returned as well "cloathed" as when received, and the bidder was to be entitled to their services. One good feature of this course is that due care seems to have been used in knowing that those who made bids were responsible, worthy citizens, and that the indigent people under their charge would receive good care. Some who have traditions of this custom in their families say that the poor were well cared for.
The next year they first voted to dispose of the needy in the same way, and then reconsidered and chose Jacob Smith, Daniel Tullar, and Isaac Skinner the first overseers of the poor in Royalton. An incident occurred the following year, which shows that however much the custom just referred to was worthy of censure, at heart the people were not unkindly, and would even extend their generosity beyond the practice of the present day. Cyril Green petitioned the town as follows:
"To the Civil Authority and Selectmen and the Inhabitants of the town of Royalton greeting.
Gentlemen it is with the utmost Regret that your Petitioner Ad- dresses you; But necessity obliges me to have Recourse to my Fathers and friends. It is almost two years that I have been in a very low state of health and been (un) able to do any labor. Have applied to a number of Physicians but to no purpose yet they generally agree that if I should repair to the salt water and there be able to tarry a space of time I should in their opinion get my health restored and as I can be of no advantage but a burthen to my family which will otherwise be pro- vided for through the clemency of my friends, therefore your Petitioner humbly requests you that you would in your wisdom and mercy pro- cure him a small sum in money for the above purpose he further prays that you would consider that his illness was not procured by intem-
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perance but in hard labor in seeking to procure subsistence for his family.
Gentlemen that the giver of all gifts would move your hearts to relieve my distressed condition is the Prayer of your humble Petitioner. Cyril Green."
His prayer was granted. Mr. Green came here from Bethel in 1798, and was last listed in 1807. He petitioned for aid in 1808. That year they auctioneered the poor again. The bill for the year amounted to $164.33 for the care of six persons. Three overseers were chosen this year, though why so many were needed is not clear. The law passed in 1797 relating to town officers left it optional with the towns to say whether the select- men should act as overseers of the poor or whether they would elect separate officers to look after the indigent.
In 1812 the cost of caring for the poor was $389.97. The town had hired a farm for one family for which it paid $50. This year they chose a committee of five, comprising Gen. Elias Stevens, John Billings, Samuel Curtis, Rodolphus Dewey, and Stephen Freeman, to "ascertain the best and most convenient place for building a work or poor house and Report a plan for the building of the same, and to call a meeting if deemed ad- visable." As no meeting was called, and there is no further mention of this matter, it doubtless was not thought best to provide such a house. The following year the expenses were much less. The town required all those caring for the poor to pay all bills except doctors' bills in case of extra sickness.
Seven men, most, if not all, with families were warned out of town the fall of this year by order of the selectmen. Five of these had a tax list ranging from $33.58 to $74.50, and owned a few acres of improved land. In the previous year ten had been thus warned. During five preceding years, omitting 1807, fifty- three warnings had been served, and were a source of income to the constable, Ebenezer Parkhurst. The town seemed to have a lenient mood in 1807. No doubt many of these people re- mained in town, in fact some of their honored descendants are here today. The selectmen did their duty, however, in serving the warnings, as that would free the town from responsibility in case any of those thus warned should apply for aid.
The overseers exercised stricter watch over those who bid off the poor as the years went on, being instructed by the voters to see that the unfortunate ones were properly fed, clothed, and provided with fire. More care, also, was taken to select suitable persons for this purpose, so that the needy were as well cared for as could be expected with such a system.
In 1816 there was a reported cost for keeping the poor of $469.46. The next year it was voted to bid off the poor as before, but one month later they re-considered and decided to
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