USA > Vermont > Rutland County > History of Rutland County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 37
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" That a party of the said rioters came to the deponent's house on the night of Saturday, the 20th instant, as the deponent is informed, and broke open the doors and sacked the house for the deponent, which they did not find as he was gone to Crown Point, to take Stephen Weakly upon writs issued against him at the suit of Samuel Green and one Sprague. That upon the deponent's return home with the said Weakly in custody, another party of the said rioters took the deponent, obliged him to discharge the said Weakly, and one Smith and others of the said rioters the next day declared they would pull down Green's house and give him the beach seal. (Meaning that they would flog him unless he consented thereto) which he accordingly did.
"They then obliged this deponent to give the said Weakly six shillings current money of New York, for taking him the said Weakly into custody, and declaring for the debts due from him, the said Weakly to the said Green and Sprague as aforesaid, and afterwards made this deponent promise that he would never serve as an officer of justice or constable to execute any precept under the province of New York, and then gave him a certificate in the words and figures following to wit :-
" ' PITTSFORD, Nov. 24, 1773.
"'These are to satisfy all the Green Mountain Boys that Charles Button had his trial at Stephen Mead's, and this is his discharge from us.
" ' PELEG SUNDERLING,
" 'BENJ. COOLEY.'
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TOWN OF RUTLAND.
Which certificate they declared would be a sufficient permit or pass among the New Hampshire claimants, Green Mountain Boys and further the deponent saith not.
CHARLES BUTTON." " 1773.
(See also history of the town of Clarendon).
Button came from Connecticut, and lived on Mill River in Clarendon. The Benjamin Spencer mentioned was one of the earliest settlers in that town ; un- der date of April, 1772, he wrote from Durham to James Duane, among other letters relative to the prevailing troubles, as follows :-
"Sir: The people of Socialborough decline buying their lands, saving four or five, and say they will defend it by force - the people that settled under Lydius' title, and those that have come in this spring, have agreed for their lands. The New Hampshire people strictly forbid any further survey being made of Socialborough, or any settlements being made only under the New Hampshire title; which riotous spirit have prevented many inhabitants settling this spring. You may ask why I do not proceed against them in a due course of law-but you need not wonder, when I tell you that it hath got to that, the people go armed, and guards yet in the road to examine people what their business is and where they are going, and if they do not give a particular account, they are beaten in a shameful manner ; and it is got to that, they say they will not be brought to justice by this province, and bid defiance to any authority in the province. We are threatened at distance of being turned off our lands or our crops being destroyed. I have this opportunity of writing by way of Major Skeene, and have not the opportunity of informing you of the number of lots, and men's names that you may draw the deeds, but will send them the first opportunity, as it will take some time to view the lots and give a particular account ; I hope the survey of our patent may not be stopped on account of this tumult, as we shall labor under a great disadvantage if our lands are not divided this spring. I look upon it to be dangerous for Mr. Cockburn to come into the country until these people can be subdued, he may come here by way of Maj. Skeene, but he cannot do any work only what he doth for us; if he attempts any further, I am afraid of the consequences, but if he does not care to come, I desire that some person may be employed hereabout that we may know where our land is, which I should be glad you would in- form me of, as soon as possible. One Ethan Allen hath brought from Con- necticut, twelve or fifteen of the most blackguard fellows he can get, double armed in order to protect him, and if some method is not taken to subdue the towns of Bennington, Shaftsbury, Arlington, Manchester and those people in Socialborough, and others scattering about the woods, there had as good be an end of government. I am with all due regard
" Your humble servant,
" BENJAMIN SPENCER."
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HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.
The above two documents allude to what were but mere examples of scores of similar occurrences for the protection of the rights and homes of the settlers of Vermont, as the reader of this work has learned. But nothing has ever been powerful enough to stay the progress of settlement in America, and the pio- neers came into Rutland with a steadily growing influx that was only partially retarded by the Revolutionary War.
Among the thirty-five families which had settled in the town prior to 1774, were those of John Smith and Joseph Bowker, both of whom were men of prominence. Joseph Bowker and his wife, Sarah, were among the organizing members of the first Congregational Church formed here in October, 1773, and his name appears frequently in the early town records. It is believed that he came from Sudbury, Mass., but the exact date of his arrival in this town is lost. He then enjoyed the title of " Captain " and was elected moderator of the first meeting of proprietors of Rutland of which there is an existing record - the second Tuesday in October, 1773. The first vote at this meeting was "that Capt. Boker be a Comt'ee man with the old comtee to find the sentor of the town." This meeting was " held to the Meeting House in said Rutland." Joseph Bowker soon became a general office-holder for the town, county and State; one of the Committee of Safety, town, treasurer (1784), selectman, town representative, member of the governor's council, etc., and finally judge of pro- bate and the County Court, and chief judge of Special Court, appointed by the first Legislature. About 1780 Mr. Bowker, John Smith, Henry Strong and James Claghorn built a saw-mill on Moon's Brook, about eighty rods from the north and south road at Rutland. Indeed, during the whole of the period of his life in this town Mr. Bowker seems to have been a man of great activ- ity, conspicuous in the public service as connected with the war, and promi- nent in all things. From a paper read by Henry Hall before the Vermont Historical Society in 1863, we take the following extract, showing the nature of some of Mr. Bowker's services for the State, and the pay received there- for : -
" State of Vermont, to Joseph Bowker, Dr.
Nov. 1777, to attending vendue one day, 6s.
July, 1778, to attending vendue one day, 4s.
To writing three leases, 3s.
To one day in leasing Rockwell's lot,. 25.
To cash paid Gideon Cooley for boarding and transport-
ing the families of Perry and Shorey to the lake,. ... £2 6s. Sept., 1778, to cash paid Daniel Washburn for boarding
the family of Robert Perry five weeks, £ 2 To journey of myself and horse to Tinmonth and attend- ing the trial of John McNeal,. 9s.
Jan., 1780, to journey to Manchester of myself and horse, 38 miles, I3s. 4d.
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TOWN OF RUTLAND.
To eight days service drawing a lottery , £2 9s. To two dollars paid to Widow Weller, for house room
and firewood, I2s.
To six bushels Indian corn for use of State, 18s.
To journey to Sunderland to attend the council, 42 miles, 13s.
To one day's services, . 7s.
To one day of myself and horse to Castleton, 9s.
To one day weighing bread and forwarding provisions, 4s.
To one day of man and horse to transport provisions to Pittsford, 9s.
To cash paid Nathan Pratt for transporting Tory women to the lake, £2 2s. 2d.
April, 1780, to paper to Capt. Parmlee Allen, £5
3s. 2d."
On the 20th of October, 1779, Mr. Bowker received from the State treas- urer £8 8s, "for examining accounts of a committee to build a fort at Pitts- ford," and on the 22d of February, 1781, 6s., " for examining a muster roll." The following item in his account throws some light on the dealings of loyal settlers with the Tories : -
"CLARENDON, Jan. 21, 1778.
" Received of Joseph Smith, commissioner of Sequestration, four pounds one shilling and five pence, L. M., for my time settling with the committee to try Tories. JOSEPH BOWKER."
Bowker's charges for his services seem insignificant at the present day ; but money was a scarce article during that period ; State orders and individual paper constituted a large part of the circulating currency. Bowker made his purchase of one hundred and fifty acres in Rutland in 1774, which appears to have been his only real estate operation ; this fact may account for his exemp- tion from outlawry on the part of the New York government, to which many of his neighbors were subjected. His farm, according to Mr. Hall, was situated on the east side of Main street, extended one hundred rods south from about Green street, to and including part of Handpole or Moon's Brook ; half a mile east of the road he located his dwelling, fronting the south and about half way down the pleasant slope. He died in the summer of 1784 and is supposed to have been buried in the old ground at Center Rutland, then the only burial place in the town ; but no stone marks the place of his rest.
John Smith came from Salisbury, Conn., in 1774 and settled on the farm now owned by F. B. and J. Q. Smith ; in the year 1780 we find that Samuel Smith sold to John Smith, his son, for sixty-four pounds 1,020 acres, " in the township of Rutland, on Otter Creek, in the province of New York." The names of Thomas Blanchard, John Dandly and Oliver Colburn are mentioned in the deed as the original proprietors of the tract. In 1774, according to the records, John Smith " surveyed to himself a lot lying east of the 15 rights." An attempt
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HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.
was made on the part of some of the New York claimants to gain possession of his farm ; but he resisted them with force, was sentenced to death for the offense, without trial ; but he was not arrested. He was the first town clerk of Rutland and the first representative in the General Assembly. He had five sons and one daughter, their names being John, Daniel, Joel, Silas, Elijah and Sarah, all of whom lived on the tract of land owned by their father. He bore the title of " Captain," and with his two sons, John and Daniel, took part in the battle of Bennington.I The grandson, John, familiarly known as Deacon John Smith, died in this town in 1860, at the age of seventy-eight years. Sev- eral of the descendants of this pioneer are still living in the county. Captain John Smith died July 24, 1806, aged seventy-seven years, and his wife, Phoebe, died August 4, 1803, aged sixty-eight. His son John died November 22, 1825, at the age of seventy, and the son Silas died August 16, 1801, aged forty-three years. Elijah had a son named Elijah W. Grove L., Frank and John Smith were sons of the latter.
Having now devoted considerable space to these first settlers of the town, let us very briefly note the arrival of the numerous pioneers who took up their homes here previous to the beginning of the present century, who bore the trials of the Revolution and successfully contested with unprincipled enemies for possession of their lands, and laid broad the foundations of the present pros- perity of the town.
Ichabod Walker came to Rutland from Massachusetts soon after 1770 and settled near the site of the old court-house on Main street. His name appears as a purchaser of land here ; but he left the place early in the Revolutionary struggle and after its close settled in Clarendon.
Gideon Walker, from Coventry, Mass., settled first in the town of Claren- don in 1768, and four or five years later came to Rutland and located on Ot- ter Creek on the present Baxter farm, where he owned 100 acres. At the time of the evacuation of Ticonderoga his wife and four children fled to New Providence (now Cheshire), Mass., where they remained for a time with Lewis Walker, a cousin of Gideon, who afterwards settled in Clarendon. Daniel Walker, a brother of Gideon, settled in Clarendon at about the same time with his brother. Gideon lived to an advanced age and left numerous descendants who now live in Addison county.
Nathaniel Chipman was one of the very early settlers and occupied a con- spicuous position in the young community. He was the first judge of the Supreme Court, a talented lawyer and an able statesman. His eminent qualifi-
1 It is related by descendants of the family that on one occasion Daniel Smith and thirteen others were sent northward on a scouting expedition. In Shelburne they camped over night in a deserted log house, and before morning were surprised and surrounded by a band of Indians and Tories num- bering fifty-seven. The little party, however, kept up a brisk fire all night, and with excellent effect ; in the morning the besiegers were surrounded and captured and taken safely to Bennington. The old musket used on this occasion hy Daniel Smith is in possession of his descendants.
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TOWN OF RUTLAND.
cations were recognized in many ways by his constituents. His brothers Dan- iel and Darius were also eminent attorneys and pioneers in this region. (See Chapter XVII.)
Nathan Tuttle came to the town before the Revolution and at one time owned a very large tract of land southwest of Rutland village. He suddenly and unaccountably disappeared in the summer of 1777. His name appears as moderator of the second proprietors' meeting, of which there are existing rec- ords, in November, 1773.1 At this meeting he was made a " committee to in- spect deeds presented, lay out lots," etc.
Benjamin Blanchard was one of the early settlers, but we cannot give the date of his arrival. He was a millwright, or carpenter, and built the mill, or a portion of it, for Colonel Mead at Gookin's Falls. Mead told him if he would give forty days' work on the mill, he should have 100 acres of land south of the corners at West Rutland. This transaction probably occurred in 1772, as the records show that he had land of Mead in that year. He did the work and lived and died on the farm ; so, also, did his son Benjamin, and his grand- son of the same name. Chalon Blanchard, son of the third Benjamin, died on the farm in 1883. The elder Benjamin died in 1801, aged seventy-five, and his wife Ruth, in 1824.
James Claghorn was an associate of James Mead and one of the pioneers of considerable prominence. It is on record that he surveyed to himself in 1774, 100 acres northeast of a lot bought by him of William Roberts. He was a selectman in 1779, and in that year it is recorded that he sold to James Mead sixty acres of land on Otter Creek. He died in 1813, at the age of seventy- four ; his wife died in the same year.
Jolin Johnson came into the town from Connecticut in April, 1773, and lived where Nahum Johnson now lives, and died there ; he previously settled where J. M. Dewey now lives, on Otter Creek. Cyrus L. and Nahum are his sons. The elder John Johnson was a prominent man and held the office of selectman for several years. Zina Johnson was also a pioneer and located near West Rutland, on the road to Clarendon Springs. He had sons, Harry, a lawyer, and Oliver, who died on the homestead before his father's death.
1 One account of his death was as follows : " For a few weeks after the battle of Hubbardton and before the battle of Bennington, most of the Whigs having fled or taken protection under Burgoyne, the Tories in this county were entirely lords of the ascendant. Tuttle, who staid here but refused to take protection, on one occasion being, as was frequently the case, partially intoxicated, met a party of Indians and Tories, of whom were Solomon Johns and Gustavus Spencer, of Clarendon. An alter- cation ensued; they threatened him and he, returning the most provoking retorts, daring them to put their threats into execution, till Johns actually ran him through with his bayonet, killing him on the spot. The party then tied stones to his body and threw it into Otter Creek below Gookin's Falls. They then went up to Joseph Keeler's, and told him what they had done, enjoining secrecy during Johns' life. What had become of Tuttle was not generally -known for several years. After the war Johns was killed in Canada by the falling of a tree - the manner of his death being considered a Provi- dential retribution for the murder of Tuttle. When the news of this was received here Keeler pub- lished the particulars of Tuttle's death."
320
HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.
Deacon Wait Chatterton settled in Rutland before 1773 (it has been claimed as early as 1771, but this is probably an error), locating on the farm recently occupied by W. H. Johnson. His wife was Susannah Dickinson and they had seven children, all of whom lived in the town in early years ; but most of the descendants have disappeared from this region. Wait Chatterton was a proni- inent citizen, and especially so in the early Congregational Church. His tonib- stone in the West Rutland burial ground bears as part of the inscription : - " who after a life of eighty years amid the most eventful interests of the church and the country, having borne a patriot's toils, discharged the duties of a citi- zen and enjoyed the hopes and privileges of the Christian, was gathered to his final rest, April 16, 1837." His wife died in 1832. Wait 2d was also a prominent man in the community, and lived and died on the homestead ; he held many town offices. James was another son of Wait Ist, and a respected citizen.
Rev. Benajah Roots was a prominent figure in the Rutland community from soon after 1771 to the time of his death in March, 1787. He was the first settled pastor over the Congregational Church, organized in 1773. In the preface to his first sermon (which was printed) he said he then knew of but one settled Congregational minister in the whole region of country between Mas- sachusetts and Canada, and the Hudson and Connecticut Rivers. He came from Simsbury, Conn., and was a graduate of Princeton College. It is believed that he engaged to preach for five years, the consideration being the lot of land reserved for the first settled minister ; though this in reality became his prop- erty at the time of his installation, by virtue of his accepting the church office. This lot was situated in the northeast part of the town, and was never of much valne to him ; but he purchased other lands and dealt in real estate to some considerable extent. The lot on which he subsequently lived, with 100 acres on the opposite side of Otter Creek and 400 acres of wild land, were purchased by him for £195 before he came to the town. In February, 1784, he sold to Samuel Murdock a tract " which is the third division upon the Right of the first settled Minister, the original grantee, Benajah Roots." There was some dis- satisfaction in the small congregation after Mr. Roots had preached about five years, because he asked for more compensation, which led to the employment for at least a part of the time, of other ministers. In the year 1784 it was voted by the proprietors, " to levy a tax of two pence on the pound of the grand list of A. D. 1774, in Order to satisfy Mr. Roots for preaching of late, to be collected September next." That there was some feeling of antagonism to the preacher is indicated by the fact that this vote was soon reconsidered and the tax reduced to one penny. But he officiated more or less in the church until his death; was a man of much strength of character and with natural gifts above the average.
Roswell and William Post were prominent in the town from 1780 to 1790,
B. R. Sicura
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TOWN OF RUTLAND.
and settled here among the earliest immigrants ; they were probably brothers. There was also a Jared Post who was a contemporary with the two named and may have been another brother. Roswell Post was selectman in 1780 and held the office in several other early years, while William was moderator of most of the proprietors' meetings down to 1790; and the names both appear fre- quently in records of land transfers, committees for public duties, and else- where.
Jonathan Reynolds came to the town at an early day and purchased two hundred and seventy-five acres of land of James Mead in the Otter Creek val- ley, the farm, or a portion of it, being now known as the Griggs farm. Mr. Reynolds was a lieutenant in the Revolutionary Army and was known as a great hunter and trapper. He died in 1840, when he was one hundred years old, lacking sixteen days. In the old North Cemetery a stone bears the record of the death of " Joshua Reynals," who died in 1818 at the age of seventy-five years. According to the Vermont Historical Magazine, he lived at the North (or Merriam's) Mills. We are not aware that the two were relatives. There was a large number of descendants, who lived on the road from West Rutland to Sutherland Falls. Morris and Bradley Reynolds live in that vicinity.
Benjamin Capron settled in the town in the early years, and had a family of ten children ; he located on the turnpike east of the village. Among his children were Benjamin, jr., who died in August, 1859, and Azor, also de- ceased. His wife was a daughter of Lemuel Haynes. Laban and Benjamin, sons of Azor, now live in this town, the former on the homestead. Theron and William T. Capron are sons of Benjamin, jr., and there are numerous other de- scendants in the county.
Daniel Greeno settled here before the Revolution, coming from Boston. He located in the northeastern part of the town where Eugene Thomas now owns ; his title being defective, he removed to where Amasa Greeno now lives. He was several times driven from his home during the Revolution, taking refuge in Bennington. He was at the latter place during the battle and shoul- dered his gun and fought for freedom ; his wife remained there several weeks after the battle to aid in caring for the wounded. Mr. Greeno kept a tavern many years where Amasa now resides ; he had ten children, all of whom lived to maturity and had families. Of Amasa's children, Amasa A., Benjamin R., Betsey L., and Medora V. H. Pond now live in the town. (See biography of B. R. Greeno in this work).
Amos Hines and Benjamin Farmer, jr., were among the very early settlers and located, the former on the present Russell Place and the latter near the Mendon line. Benjamin Farmer, sen., settled near his son when he was eighty years old, and died there ten years later. Amos Hines died in 1805 at the age of fifty-seven, and is buried in the old North Cemetery.
Ashbel Cook, who was born May 3, 1741, came to Rutland from Walling- 21
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HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.
ford, Conn., in 1778, bringing with him his family. Of his children Orel Cook was born soon after his father's removal here, on the 25th of June, 1778. Ash- bel Cook was a tailor and worked at that trade in Rutland ; he must have been about the first tailor in the town. It is said that his wife Rachel cooked for Ethan Allen, Seth Warner and their men for two or three days while they were preparing for the expedition to Ticonderoga; she would boil two or three entire sheep at a time for the party. Her name was Rice before her marriage, and two of her brothers were killed in the Indian massacre at Royalton. She died in Troy, N. Y., in 1841, at the great age of one hundred years and nine . days. Ashbel Cook died December 16, 1801. Orel Cook, sen., engaged in the hat manufacture before his marriage and continued to about 1839, keeping during a portion of the time quite a number of workmen in the business. John Cook was his fifth child, born in March, 1819, and learned his father's trade. In 1839 he went to Troy and carried on the business, returning to Rutland in 1851. From about 1870 he was in trade here, and in 1882 built his block op- posite the Berwick House. Orel Cook, jr., brother of John Cook, became a prominent man in the community and an estimable physician. He began practice here about 1845 or 1846; was a member of the House of Representa- tives, and otherwise honored by his fellows. He was born in 1813, and died April 8, 1884.
Timothy Boardman came from Middletown, Conn., to Rutland in 1782, and located on what has always been known as " Boardman Hill," where Sam- uel Boardman now lives. In the year 1790 he built the house now occupied by Patrick Kinney. In 1783 he returned to Connecticut, married Mary Ward, and immediately came back with his bride. During the Revolutionary War he served in the navy, was captured in the West Indies and kept a prisoner for six months. He resided on the old homestead until his death, April 3, 1839, at the age of eighty-six ; he was prominent in the church and was long known as " Deacon." One of his sons was Elijah, who was also a deacon in the church for fifty years; he lived on the homestead, and died there in 1883. Charles G. is another son, and is deceased.
Joseph Kimball settled early where Ira Hawley now resides. His daugh- ter Betsey married Abijah Hawley. The farm has always remained in the family.
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