History of Royalton, Vermont, with family genealogies, 1769-1911, Part 55

Author: Lovejoy, Mary Evelyn Wood, 1847-
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Burlington, Vt., Free press printing company
Number of Pages: 1280

USA > Vermont > Windsor County > Royalton > History of Royalton, Vermont, with family genealogies, 1769-1911 > Part 55

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HISTORY OF ROYALTON, VERMONT

It is related of Elder Ames, that one time when he was to hold services at the schoolhouse, two disreputable men came into the room and took seats on either side of the desk. Soon after Elder Ames came in from the cemetery, took his seat undis- turbed between the two, and announced for his text, "He was crucified between two thieves."

Some of the members and supporters of the church were Dea. William Bingham, who married a sister of Elder Ames, Joab Young, Daniel Woodward, Sen., Dea. Ebenezer Woodward, Jeremiah Rust and wife, James Kenworthy and wife, Thomas and Mary Kenworthy, and Gardner Lyman, who was a zealous exhorter. The membership seems never to have been very large, though the attendance on the services was enough to fill the little schoolhouse. In the division of the ministerial money in 1831 it was given as twenty. The church was drawing its share of this fund as late as 1855.

Baptisms took place in the First Branch, close at hand. It is told of Mr. Young, that when he was baptized, he was so feeble that he had to sit in a chair by the stream.

After the removal of the Methodist church to South Roy- alton, the Christian church ceased to exist.

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.

There is no indication in the town records that any Catholic society or church existed in Royalton during the first century of its existence, though it is probable that there were, from time to time, residents in town of that persuasion. After the advent of the railroad a few Catholic families connected with the V. C. R. R. removed to Royalton.

Services were later held in South Royalton occasionally, but it was not made a mission until toward the end of the nineteenth century. From Rev. James L. Penders of Randolph it is learned that, for the benefit of the Catholic families living in South Roy- alton and surrounding towns, services were held "in the town of Sharon from the year 1884 to the year 1899, in which year Rev. E. C. Drowhin of Woodstock, Vt., who was appointed to the charge of the mission, made South Royalton as a center for the Catholics living in South Royalton, Royalton, Tunbridge, and Sharon. Rev. E. C. Drowhin had charge of this mission, 1899-1900, when Rev. Jos. Therieu of Windsor succeeded him, and had charge of the mission until the year 1903, when Rev. Jas. L. Penders of Randolph, Vt., who is the present pastor, took charge of the mission. At present services are held the first Sunday of the month in Hewitt's Hall, at 9 o'clock."

This denomination began drawing its share of the ministerial fund about 1900, and so continues to do. The number of Catho- lie families in town is comparatively small.

CHAPTER XXXII.

THE BANKS.

THE ROYALTON BANK.

Contributed by A. W. Kenney, Esq., Lakewood, N. J.

The first bank in Royalton was chartered by the General Assembly of said state, Nov. 30, 1853, under the name of "The Bank of Royalton," with a capital of $100,000, divided into 2,000 shares of fifty dollars each. Chester Baxter, William Skinner, Stoddard B. Colby, Solon Danforth, Daniel L. Lyman, William W. White, Russell Hyde, E. B. Chase, and Philander D. Brad- ford were named in the charter as commissioners to receive sub- scriptions for the capital stock of the bank, and the stock was subscribed in February, 1854.

The bank was organized March 10, 1854, by the election of William Skinner, Daniel L. Lyman, Solon Danforth, George Ly- man, E. D. Briggs, Perley C. Jones, and Ziba Sprague as its first board of directors. On March 24, 1854, William Skinner was elected president, and Newton Kellogg of Rutland, cashier, and the first bills of the bank were issued June 7, 1854.

Newton Kellogg resigned the office of cashier Oct. 2, 1854, and Lucius L. Tilden, then cashier of the White River Bank at Bethel, was elected his successor. January 9, 1855, the same board of directors was re-elected, excepting George Lyman, who was succeeded by Charles Baxter. Jan. 8, 1856, the same board was re-elected, excepting Hiram Moore was chosen in place of Chester Baxter. Perley C. Jones resigned the office of director September 23, 1856, and Aaron King was appointed by the other directors to succeed him. January 13, 1857, the board was still further changed by the election of Dudley C. Denison in place of E. D. Briggs. L. L. Tilden resigned the office of cashier March 3, 1857, and William H. Baxter of Barton was elected in his stead, but Mr. Tilden continued by the request of the directors to assist Mr. Baxter in the bank till April 1st following.

During the autumn of 1857 the bank suffered large losses by insolvent debtors, and the last of October it suspended the redemption of its circulating bills in Boston and at its counter. Jan. 12, 1858, Hiram Moore, Daniel L. Lyman, Ziba Sprague,

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Aaron N. King, Perley C. Jones, Asa W. Kenney, and William H. Baxter were elected directors, and Perley C. Jones was elected president, which office he continued to hold by re-election till January 9, 1866. The new board of directors without delay made great efforts to collect money enough on the overdue notes to the bank to enable it to resume business, which had been almost suspended from November 1st. Failing to raise money in this way, they borrowed it on their private note, and the bank was thus enabled to resume business and the redemption of its cir- culation Feb. 24, 1858.

Hiram Moore, one of the directors, died May 29, 1858. Janu- ary 11, 1859, the directors of the previous year were re-elected, except that Silas H. Clark succeeded William H. Baxter, and George W. Bradstreet took the place of Hiram Moore, deceased. Mr. Clark soon after resigned. August 2, 1859, William H. Bax- ter resigned the office of cashier to take effect on the 9th inst., and Asa W. Kenney was elected cashier, which office he continued to hold till "The National Bank of Royalton," which succeeded this bank, was closed in 1882.

In consequence of losses sustained by the bank in 1857, its capital was reduced by an act of the Legislature, Nov. 18, 1859, to $50,000. January 10, 1860, the number of directors was re- duced by a vote of the stockholders to five, and Perley C. Jones, Aaron N. King, Ziba Sprague, Asa W. Kenney, and R. H. Hyde were elected, but Mr. Hyde soon resigned. Jan. 8, 1861, the same board of directors was re-elected, except that R. H. Hyde was succeeded by Chester Downer, and this board was continued in office by re-election till Jan. 9, 1866. At the last mentioned date Chester Downer, Asa W. Kenney, Dudley C. Denison, Crosby Miller, and Phineas D. Pierce were elected directors, and continued to be re-elected directors till the close of the National Bank in 1882. Chester Downer was elected president of the bank Jan. 30, 1866, and was continued in that office by annual re- election till Jan. 17, 1879, when he was succeeded by Crosby Miller, who was re-elected to said office as long as the bank con- tinued.

The Comptroller of the Currency claimed that New England had received under the United States law for establishing na- tional banks more than her proportionate share of circulating notes, and would not grant leave for the conversion of this bank into a national bank, until the directors had executed a paper waiving all claim on behalf of the bank for circulating notes, which they did. On the 16th day of September, 1867, the bank was converted under the laws of the United States into "The National Bank of Royalton," No. 1673, and its capital was in- creased March 7, 1868, $50,000, making the whole capital $100,-

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000. After this the directors learned that by buying the notes in circulation of national banks which had failed or gone into liquidation, and surrendering them to the Comptroller at Wash- ington, they could obtain from him circulating notes to an equal amount for their own bank, and this they did, paying par and three or four per cent. premium for the broken bank notes, until they had obtained in this way $90,000, being their full quota of circulation.

On the night of April 26, 1870, the bank vault was blown open by burglars, and the walls of the banking house were badly damaged by the explosion, but they did not succeed in breaking the safe in the vault, and they carried off only about five dollars of nickels then lying in the vault. In consequence of the dam- aged condition of the vault and building the bank was removed May 14, 1870, to South Royalton, about two miles distant. Dur- ing the summer and autumn of 1871 the vault and banking house were repaired, and the bank was moved back to its old quarters Oct. 23, 1871. Phineas D. Pierce was elected vice-president of the bank Jan. 12, 1875, and was annually re-elected till the close of the bank.

Lyman A. Peck, a resident of Royalton, on the 8th day of October, 1877, broke into the banking house for the purpose of stealing money from the drawer of the counter, while the cashier was at dinner, but the money was safely locked in the vault so that he obtained none, but he was tried and sentenced to the state prison for five years for his luckless exploit. On the night of October 17, 1881, burglars again entered the bank and drilled through the outer brick wall of the vault to the heavy granite wall, and with powder or some other explosive, blew out a few bricks and broke the windows, but obtained no money.

For some time previous to this the local demand for loans was not enough to keep the money of the bank in use, and some foreign commercial paper was purchased on which considerable losses were suffered, and banking on such paper was so unsafe, that the directors deemed it best for the bank to go into voluntary liquidation. Jan. 10, 1882, the stockholders accordingly voted to close the bank. In less than six months thereafter all liabili- ties were paid, and the stock at par was paid back to the stock- holders. Afterwards they were paid by the bank $21,000 on the capital of $100,000, it being one and one-fifth per cent. more than par. The banking house was sold to the town of Royalton for the town clerk's office.

The following is a letter from the president of the bank : "Pomfret, Vt., March 25, 1889.

A. W. Kenney, Esq.,

Dear Sir:

Your favor of 21st inst. is rec'd and checks found enclosed as

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stated. I am much gratified that the old bank is fully closed up dur- ing our life time, and is closed so favorably.

I should have been much pleased to have had the full board of directors together when final action was had, and to have placed on record a vote recognizing your faithful service as cashier.

I think the stockholders are under great obligations to you and would all be glad of an opportunity to express their appreciation of your untiring service in their interest.

I take this occasion to express my own earnest thanks for your zeal and fidelity in the interest of the bank, and for your uniform consideration and courtesy to me personally as an officer.

Very truly yours,

Crosby Miller."

THE SOUTH ROYALTON BANK.

The South Royalton Bank was organized under the general banking law of Nov. 17, 1851. This law required securities in public stocks and real estate. Daniel Tarbell, Jr., was the prime mover in establishing the bank, as he was of almost every other enterprise in South Royalton for the first few years of its exist- ence. The modus operandi was to take deeds of farms in Roy- alton and adjoining towns, mortgage the land to the bank, and then turn the mortgages into the State Treasury. Some of the Royalton men thus deeding their farms were Lyman Benson, Elisha Flint, Cyrus Safford, Phineas Pierce, Joseph Johnson, Simon Sanborn, and Lorenzo Mosher. Mr. Tarbell mortgaged his own property heavily and turned in these mortgages.

According to a report of the Commissioner of Banks issued in 1852, the status of the South Royalton Bank on July 19th of that year was as follows :

"Resources :- Virginia Stocks, $50,000; Bonds and Mortgages, $11,400; Notes and Bills discounted, $58,315.04; Bills of solvent Banks, $931; Specie, $1,936.36; Due from Hanover Bank, N. Y., $9,600; Profits, $628.75; Total Resources, $132,816.75.

Liabilities :- Capital,-Virginia Stocks, $50,000; Capital, Bonds and Mortgages, $11,400; Circulation, $59,495; Due Thompson & Brothers, and Wetherbee & Co., $1,553.75; Due Depositors, $9,509.30; Due Farmers & Mechanics Bank, $99; Expense account, $473.80; Total Liabilities, $132,530.85. Surplus, $285.90.

No bad or doubtful debts are known to exist.

Six months interest, amounting to $1,500, has been collected on the Virginia Bonds, and a dividend of $2,000 was made July 1, 1852.

The indebtedness of the Directors, which the law requires the Commissioner to report, appears to be $12,787.

Bills for circulation, amounting to $61,400 have been received from the State Treasurer; of which $59,495 are in circulation, and $1,905 on hand.

D. Tarbell, Jr., President, Sam'l H. Stowell, Cashier.

Directors .- D. Tarbell, Jr., D. W. Cowdery, Chester Clark, Solomon Downer, and Edmund Weston; who have executed bonds for the re- demption of their bills, in case the public Stocks and Mortgages should prove insufficient.

SOUTH ROYALTON BANK

TERMIDWAY

THE BANK OF ROYALTON

Kay FIVE DOLLARS mane ebeanr. row May

South Royalton Bank Note loaned by Mrs. Kate Wilmot Bain. The Royalton Note loaned by Asa W. Kenney.

. ..

BANK OFFICIALS.

James Spencer Moore. Director of So. Royalton Bank. Phineas D. Pierce. Director of Royalton Bank.

Asa W. Kenney, Cashier of Royalton Bank. David Wickham Cowdery. Pres. of So. Royalton Bank.

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The Association was formed December 8, 1851, and the Bank was crganized under articles of agreement of that date, to continue in force until the 1st of January, 1872, with an authorized capital of $250,000. All monies received of individuals composing the Association, have been expended in the purchase of Virginia Bonds, at a premium of about six per cent. This stock is now worth about 12 per cent. in the market. By a vote of the Association, March 22, $25,000 was added to the capital, and $25,000 more by a vote of the 3d of July; of these two additions, only $11,400 appears to have been paid in at the time of the examination, and that in Bonds and Mortgages.

By the Articles of the Association, the Stock is pledged by the owner, for all debts due from him to the Bank, and loans are made on this security, reckoning the Stock at par. No restrictions have been imposed on Directors, Stockholders, or others, limiting the amount of their indebtedness, as in the case of chartered Banks. The law of 1840, prohibiting loans on pledge of Stock, and confining the indebted- ness of Directors to 5 per cent. and all others to 10 per cent. on the capital, has not been treated as applicable to Banks organized under the act of 1851.

This is the first experiment within the State, under the General Banking Law; and it must be regretted that the Association have at- tempted to set up a Bank, without so much as one dollar of working capital. It would, at least, have been more prudent, to have retained a portion of their cash in the vault of the Bank. No Bank can do a regular and permanent business on circulation alone; unless their facilities are much greater for circulation than most Banks enjoy. But there is nothing in the law, nor in the articles of Association, to pre- clude the Stockholders from devoting a portion of their future assess- ments to a permanent cash capital, to remain in the Bank, as a basis for the transaction of business. This should be done. Working Capi- tal will be found as necessary for this Bank, as for the chartered Banks; and may be dispensed with in one case, as well as the other.

The Virginia Bonds, on which $50,000 in bills have been issued, will bring $56,000 under the hammer; and the Mortgages are on im- proved farms, at three-fifths their value, exclusive of buildings. These securities, backed by the Directors' bonds, must insure the redemption of the bills, beyond all reasonable doubt."

In the Commissioner's report for the next year he stated that the profits were $1,648.09, the dividends in January, $3,000, in July, $3,864, the indebtedness of the directors, $72,560.85, and the bills in circulation amounted to $96,221. The officers were the same, except Azro D. Hutchins was now the cashier. The Commissioner, George C. West, reported very depreciatingly re- garding the bank, apparently going out of his way to heap scath- ing words upon the Free Banking System, and this bank in par- ticular. In fulfilling his duty he adverts to two writs, one against Mr. Tarbell, and the other against the bank, the latter served by the order of the Suffolk Bank of Boston. He ends, "Notwithstanding the dark clouds which seem to overshadow this Bank, I must renew my assurance, that the final redemption of its bills is substantially secured; and that there can be no rea- sonable apprehension of a failure on that score." That being the case it occurs to an impartial thinker at this late day to ask,

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Why then, so bitterly and scornfully denounce the system and the operations of this particular bank? Such a public attack could result in only one way-serious injury to the bank in ques- tion.

Mr. Tarbell, whose pen was dipped in keenest satire, on Nov. 2, 1853, printed in the "Green Mountain Herald," located at Randolph, the report of the Commissioner, and followed it with a reply, answering the strictures of Mr. West. Regarding the charge that bills were not redeemed on presentation, he said that few individuals presented bills for redemption, and in almost every instance their requests were honored, but certain banks, he understood, had engaged a notary to pick up the South Roy- alton Bank bills and present them for payment, and in such cases the bank suited its own convenience in redeeming them. This is given, as in part an explanation of the cause of the failure of the bank. Every one knows how important it is to the existence of any institution, that it retain the confidence of the public deal- ing with it.

The case of the Suffolk Bank of Boston is fully treated by Mr. Tarbell in his autobiography. His account of the matter in brief is, that the South Royalton Bank did not maintain a de- posit with the Suffolk Bank, and do business through this bank as a medium of exchange. When the South Royalton Bank was first organized it had some correspondence with this Suffolk Bank regarding the redemption of its bills, and offered to make ar- rangements for so doing in Boston, but when it learned that it must make a permanent deposit of $2,000 or $3,000, it took no further action in the matter. The last correspondence with this Suffolk Bank regarding the redemption of bills, which was pub- lished in the "Green Mountain Herald," Nov. 9, 1853, was dated July 17, 1852, so in the natural course of business the Suffolk Bank would have acquired a considerable amount of South Roy- alton Bank bills before they were presented for redemption, especially as they say, "the daily receipts of your bills are large." The cashier, S. H. Stowell, acting under instructions, no doubt, had asked for better terms of redemption than were tendered to the chartered banks, on the ground that their bills were better secured and safe-guarded.

Mr. Tarbell claimed that the Suffolk Bank was intentionally working against their interests, and gathered in $45,000 of their bills. It then sent an agent, Mr. Wyman, with this pile, expect- ing so large a sum could not be redeemed. Mr. Wyman tele- graphed to Norman Williams of Woodstock, a notary public, to come and protest the bills for non-payment. Mr. Williams could not reach South Royalton until the next day, and Mr. Tarbell had a writ made out charging the Suffolk Bank with malicious

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intent to break the bank without a cause. A writ of attachment was served on the bag of $45,000, and Mr. Wyman placed under arrest. The president of the Suffolk Bank was summoned. They were three days in securing counsel. They got possession of the bag by a replevin writ, and a bond for twice the amount claimed.

They then appeared at the bank to get the specie. They were informed that the bank would redeem the one-dollar bills. By the time they were counted out, re-counted by cashier Stowell, and the cash counted out, it was two o'clock, and the bank closed. The bills were exchanged for Chelsea or White River Bank bills, presented at those banks, the specie obtained, and the bank was ready the next day to redeem the two-dollar bills. No bill was protested, and the Suffolk Bank assured them that they would have no further trouble with them. The suit, however, which Mr. Tarbell brought against the Suffolk Bank was pressed, and the defendants won, the case was appealed, and the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the lower court, saying that "malicious intent" was not proved.

The stockholders were divided in their opinions as to the policy pursued by the officials of the bank, and as there was so much opposition from other banks, Mr. Tarbell finally resigned as president, and David W. Cowdery succeeded him. James Moore became one of the directors. Those opposed to the bank next got a bill through the legislature providing that, if any per- son who was on the bond of the bank should become dissatisfied, the bank should release him and supply a man in his place within ten days. Solomon Downer gave his notice, and, as that led to a feeling of insecurity, no one would take his place. The State appointed Heman Carpenter of Northfield as Receiver. Mr. Tar- bell claimed that the assets of the bank, represented by public stocks, sold in New York at a premium. Bills were brought to foreclose mortgages and bonds. Strenuous efforts were made to save the bank, but it became involved in numerous lawsuits, and it was impossible to rehabilitate it. Rufus H. Hyde, a director of the Orange County Bank at Chelsea, which bank was a cred- itor, pressed their claims, and to satisfy them the shareholders in several cases had to mortgage everything they had. Mr. Hyde got a decree of foreclosure on the bank, Feb. 7, 1855. The bank seems to have become extinct in 1856, but lawsuits and the settlement of claims continued for ten or more years. Mr. Tar- bell claimed that he lost $50,000 by the failure of this bank, which failure he attributed to unjust treatment by other banks, and not to any fault in its organization or methods of doing busi- ness.

Judging from the history of banking in the last half cen- tury, it would seem that the South Royalton Bank was estab-

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lished on a safe basis, and if it had not aroused opposition, or had been a trifle more tactful in its relation with other banks, it would, perhaps, have been able to close up its record with no serious loss to shareholders and those holding its bills. It is said that one of its shareholders committed suicide on account of melancholy at the loss of all his property.

The lack of a bank in town is seriously felt by business men. Its place has to be supplied in both villages by one or two who are able to accommodate applicants presenting checks and drafts, or else a journey to a neighboring town is necessary. The Na- tional White River Bank of Bethel has very recently made arrangements with Tarbell & Whitham to receive money on deposit, and to cash checks and drafts.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

TOWN PROPERTY.

By the terms of the charter granted to Royalton by the State of Vermont, there were five public rights, viz., the college right, the grammar school right, the first minister's right, the Gospel right, and the town school right, each containing 300 acres. The first was pitched by the prudential committee appointed by the proprietors, in the north end of the Simpson Lot, the second in the south end of the same lot, 100 acres of the third in E. 11 L. A., 200 acres of the third in W. 40 L. A., the fourth was pitched in Lot 3 L. A., and the fifth in E. 52 Town Plot.

Under the New York charter no provision whatever was made for public rights, and none in the deed of partition, unless the 1,000-acre lot was intended for such purposes. This lot is only incidentally mentioned in giving boundaries of each lot, as "one thousand acres laid out for Simpson." Careful research and inquiry has failed to reveal who or what this Simpson was. The settlers in Royalton previous to 1781 did not seem to have any right in it.

They had not long been organized as a town, when, on July 12, 1779, they voted to choose a committee to "Procuear one hundred acres of land for the first settled minister in this Town," and chose Comfort Sever, Medad Benton, and Esquire Morgan to procure the land "and see that the subscription" (the rest illegible). If this was done, the record of it was probably de- stroyed at the burning of Royalton. There is no record of the action of the proprietors in authorizing their committee, John Hibbard, Calvin Parkhurst, and Comfort Sever to buy for them thirty acres of Elisha Kent, June 6, 1780, for which they were to pay £100. The deed did not say for what purpose the pur- chase was made, but the committee was acting under the author- ity of the proprietors. This thirty acres seems to be identical with the thirty which the proprietors instructed the selectmen in 1781 to buy of Elisha Kent, giving him the Clapp lot in exchange. No record of this deed is found. This land lay on the west or south side of White river, between Daniel Rix and Medad Ben- ton.

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History of Royalton, Vermont, with family genealogies, 1769-1911, Part 55

Author: Lovejoy, Mary Evelyn Wood, 1847- Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Burlington, Vt., Free press printing company Number of Pages: 1280

Author: Lovejoy, Mary Evelyn Wood, 1847-
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Burlington, Vt., Free press printing company
Number of Pages: 1280