History of Rutland County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 79

Author: Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925. 1n; Rann, William S
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., D. Mason & co.
Number of Pages: 1170

USA > Vermont > Rutland County > History of Rutland County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 79

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666

HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.

From 1820 to 1840 the population of the town remained about the same ; there was a little falling off, but no essential difference. The active men then here consisted of the descendants of the pioneers, and of men who had more re- cently removed here. Among the then active men here were Jonas Clark, Hez- ekiah Haynes, Jonathan Morgan, Eli Oatman, Roswell Buel, David and Levi Mehurin, Stephen Keyes, Janz. and Stephen Barrett, Merritt and Horace Clark, Allen and Micah Vail, Luther Buxton, Anson Rogers, Alonzo Hyde, James Germond, Justus Barker, Thaddeus Terrill, Reuben Loomis, Smith Wait, John P. Taylor, Menira Caswell and Henry Gray.

That class of men seemed to have been the connecting link between the past and the present -that is, between the early settlement of the town and the present time. They were in the main, as well those named as others then living here and not named, a substantial class of men.

Janzaniah Barrett was for many years a merchant here. He owned and lived in the house now owned by M. E. Vail, esq., in which he and his family now reside. That house was built by Amasa Squires not long after 1800, and was for many years occupied as a hotel by Jeremiah Leffingwell and a Mr. Monroe. The store occupied by Mr. Barrett was the one until recently occu- pied by Mr. Vail, which has been taken down and removed. Mr. Barrett for many years did a large business.

Allen and Micah Vail removed from Danby to this town about the year 1810; raised up large families here, and during their residence here were among the leading and successful farmers.

Henry Gray was perhaps as long an active business man as any other man who has lived in the town since the days of John Burnam. Mr. Gray was an unusually energetic and persevering man. He suffered many losses by fire and other casualties, but was full of life, hope and animation - almost to the day of his death - which occurred in June, 1865, at the age of seventy-eight years. Two of his sons, William N. and Eugene W., and one daughter (wife of Henry Hoadley), live in Middletown.

In the financial revulsion of 1837 many farmers and others in Middle- town suffered severely. Many were largely in debt, the "credit system," which was then a system for everybody, proved disastrous to many honest and industrious men in Middletown. Soon after 1840 the business in the town seemed to be on the decline. Merritt Clark had removed to Poultney ; Hor- ace Clark, also Janzaniah Barrett, had gone out of the mercantile business ; the building of railroads through the State had come to be agitated, and it was becoming evident that no line of railroad would pass through Middletown ; large farmers were enlarging their borders, and small farmers were selling out and going West. The consequence was that from 1840 to 1850 the popula- tion fell off about two hundred, and up to 1860 there was no gain in popula- tion.

667

TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN.

The town is essentially an agricultural town and must continue to be so. There is no better soil for that purpose in Rutland country. Keeping a dairy is now the main business of most of the farmers. The Middletown Cheese Manufacturing Company was organized in the spring of 1864, and proceeded at once to erect buildings for the purpose of manufacturing cheese. The man- ufacturing room is twenty-six feet square ; the curing house is a two-story building, seventy-two feet long and thirty feet wide. The making of cheese commenced in the summer of 1864, and has been in successful operation ever since, and has much increased the farming interest and the value of real estate in the town. There is probably more cheese made in this town than in any other in the State of an equal number of acres. Most of the farmers in the county are in comfortable circumstances and general prosperity exists.

The following figures show the condition of the town as to its population in the years given : 1701, 699 ; 1800, 1,066; 1810, 1,207; 1820, 1,039; 1830, 919; 1840, 1,057 ; 1850, 875 ; 1860, 712; 1870, 777 ; 1880, 824.

In the Rebellion .- In the great struggle for the perpetuity of our national life this town gained a noble record ; it paid in bounties more than legally bound to, and when the war closed there was no war debt on the town. The amount paid was $6,609, and the number of enlistments, in proportion to the number subject to military duty, was large. Most of the volunteers were from the best families and nobly did their duty in the field. William Schollar was the first man enlisted in the town. He served in different organizations to the end of the war. But we must leave the enticing and deserving field of individual record and deeds of heroism, to state in brief the names of all those who en- listed in the town, and the organizations in which they served, as compiled by the adjutant-general of the State : -

Volunteers for three years credited previous to the call for 300,000 volun- teers of October 17, 1863 .- Alonzo Atwater, Henry Barce, Edwin R. Buxton, co. C, Ioth regt .; Samuel F. Buxton, co. I, 7th regt .; Royal L. Coleman, co. B, 9th regt .; Charles H. Dayton, co. C, 10th regt .; James Granger, co. M, 11th regt .; Adin H. Green, co. C, 10th regt .; Stephen A. Griswold, co. D, 7th regt .; Erwin Haskins, Francis H. Hoadley, William H. Hoadley, Edward Holton, Curtis Howard, co. C, 10th regt .; David E. Higgins, co. I, 7th regt .; George Kilbourne, co. C, IIth regt .; James Kilburn, co. M, 11th regt .; Henry J. Langsyne, Aranah Leffingwell, Harmon P. Leffingwell, John H. Lewis, War- ren McClure, co. C, 10th regt .; Merritt Perham, co. C, 2d regt .; William Schollar, co. C, 10th regt .; William H. H. Thompson, co. C, Ioth regt .; John Thornton, co. I, 5th regt .; Philander C. Wetmore, Robert Woodward, co. C, Ioth regt.

Credits under call of October 17, 1863, for 300,000 volnnteers, and subse- quent calls .- Volunteers for three years : James N. Buell, co. C, Iothi regt .; Dexter Crossman, co. D, 2d regt .; Lorenzo Ford, co. C, 10th regt .; Samuel J.

668

HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.

Hawley, co. B. 5th regt .; Alvah Hubbard, jr., co. C, 10th regt .; Daniel Hub- bard, Ist bat .; Orrin Huggins, Charles W. McClure, co. C, 10th regt.

Volunteers re-enlisted .- Harvey Guilder, co. I, 7th regt .; Merritt Perham, co. C, 2d regt.

Volunteers for nine months .- William Carnes, Eliphalet Eddy, co. B, 14th regt ; Charles H. Granger, Delett B. Haynes, co. K, 12th regt .; Erwin W. Hyde, John B. Louis, Homer H. Southwick, George Spaulding, Reuben R. Spaulding, co. B, 14th regt.

Furnished under draft. Paid commutation .- C. J. Clift, Barrett J. Gard- ner, Gamaliel Gardner, Amos Gates, jr., Abel Haskins, Irwin Haskins, Horace Hastings, Dyer Leffingwell, James S. Marshall, Henry M. McClure, Horace Rand, William B. Spaulding, Fayette Spaulding, Henry Streeter, Charles B. Vial, Harry Wetmore. Procured substitute, Jonathan Atwater, jr.

The present officers of this town are as follows: W. H. Haynes, town clerk ; C. J. Clift, A. Barker, J. Atwater, selectmen ; A. Y. Gray, treasurer ; M. N. Paul, constable ; H. R. Clift, William N. Gray, J. F. Haynes, listers ; A. A. Greene, D. C. Sears, G. Gardner, auditors ; D. Copeland, trustee of public money ; Frank Gray, Charles Eaton, E. Woodward, fence viewers; E. P. Semmons, M. E. Vail, Alonzo Hyde, sr., town grand jurors; Sidney Adams, inspector of leather ; Charles Schollar, pound-keeper ; A. A. Greene, agent ; A. L. Porter, M. E. Vail, Amos Buxton, school board ; highway surveyors (sixteen districts), A. W. Gilman, M. Atwater, J. Haynes, James Powers, H. R. Clift, H. Cairnes, J. Strong, George Leonard, Amos Buxton, John Aldour, Clark Moyer, D. A. Barker, H. Green, James Dudley, George Spaulding, C. J. Clift ; grand jurors, William N. Gray, M. Coy, E. B. Cook, Alonzo Hyde, E. Copeland, L. Copeland ; petit jurors, J. W. Fall, William Spaulding, G. Phillips, Amos Buxton, R. Buel, Joel Mason, E. Leffingwell.

Ecclesiastical .- The first church organized in Middletown was the Congre- gational, the first records bearing date of May, 1782 ; it is probable the church was formed in that year. The first record is dated Wells, and the church was known by the name of that town until Middletown was organized in 1784. The following were among the first members : William Frisbie, Stephen Wood, Joseph: Spaulding, Gideon Miner, Timothy Hubbard, Jonathan Brewster, Abel White, Increase Rudd, William Frisbie, jr., Elisha Gilbert, Jonathan Mehurin, Richard Haskins, Nathan Record, Reuben Searl, Thomas French and Benja- min Haskins. There were probably about the same number of females as males, but it is more difficult to designate them than the males.

The first log meeting-house was built near the southeast corner of the burial ground, some time before the fall of 1784, and the meeting for organizing the town was held in that house on the 17th of November, 1784. Jonathan Brew- ster was the leading man in the church, and a little later we find among its mem- bers, Lewis, Lampson, Joel and Gideon Miner, jr., Orson Brewster, Fitch Loomis,

669

TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN.

Joseph Spaulding, jr., Joseph Brown, Jesse and Ziba Caswell; others soon united. In 1796 a meeting-house was built on the " green," or common, per- haps a hundred feet south of where the present Congregational Church stands ; the society had been formed and purchased an acre of land for this purpose. Up to this time the log house had sufficed. The new house was erected by the united Baptists and Congregationalists. On the 26th of January, 1804, Orson Brewster and Gideon Miner, jr., were elected deacons of the church, and at the same meeting the society voted " to choose a committee of three to make proposals to Rev. Henry Bigelow for settlement." Mr. Bigelow was or- dained September 5, 1805, and became the settled minister. He remained with the church until his death, June 25, 1832, and the church prospered under his labors. Soon after his death a Rev. Mr. Stone preached about six months, and next, Rev. Guy C. Sampson, beginning some time in 1833, remained two years. Rev. John Avery was settled over the church in the spring of 1836 and was dismissed in the fall of 1841. The succeeding pastors have been : Rev. B. Reynolds, from September, 1842, to May, 1844; Rev. Mr. Payne, from December, 1846, about one year ; Rev. John H. Beckwith, from fall of 1848 to fall of 1855. Rev. Enoch Caswell, six months, in 1856; Rev. M. Martin, September, 1865, about one year ; Rev. G. Myrick, the present pastor, came in 1866. D. Leffingwell and D. C. Sears are deacons of the church, which has a membership of about eighty-eight. The Sunday-school superintendent is A. C. Leffingwell, and the school has an average attendance of about seventy.

Baptist Church ..- This is very near, if not quite, the oldest Baptist society in the State; it was organized in 1784, and from 1790 to 1802 was a large church. In the latter year about thirty-five members had leave to withdraw and form a church in Poultney. Caleb Smith appears to have been the lead- ing man in this church until his death in 1808. Among the first members were : Caleb Smith, Thomas McClure, John Sunderlin, Gamaliel Waldo, Hez- ekiah Mallary, Zacheus Mallary, Nathaniel Mallary, Daniel Ford, Asher Blunt, David Wood, Ephraim Foster, Josiah Johnson, Nathan Walton and Jonathan Haynes. This church was without a minister until 1790, during which period Rev. Hezekiah Eastman seems to have administered at communions and per- formed baptism. August 6, 1790, Rev. Sylvanus Haynes was called to the church and accepted ; he remained over the church until 1817, and his labors were prospered. To Mr. Haynes belongs the honor of being the first settled minister of the Baptist Church, and the first minister settled in Middletown. He preached in the log meeting-house and at private houses until what has since been known as the Congregational house was completed in 1796, when he preached in that until the Baptist house was built in 1806. After Mr. Haynes left Rev. Seth Ewens supplied the church about two years. Other ministers have been as follows: Rev. Isaac Bucklin, from 1821 to 1828; Revs. Mr. Fuller, Linus J. Reynolds and G. B. Day, each preached between 1828

670

HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.

and 1832 ; Rev. Mr. Soullard next for about three years, leaving in 1837 ; Rev. Mr. Haskell, six months; Rev. E. B. Bullard, 1839 for about two years ; Rev. Robert Myers, from 1841 about four years ; Rev. R. O. Dwyer from about 1846 about three years ; Rev. M. J. Smith in 1849-50; Rev. J. J. Peck next for two or three years ; Rev. Beriah N. Leach, from 1855 about five years ; Rev. Mr. Frenyear for a short time, and Rev. Thomas Tobin who con- tinued several years. The church has at present no settled pastor. A Sab- bath schoool was organized about 1821, and H. R. Clift is the present superin- tendent. A. Haynes is deacon.

Methodist .- Rev. Laban Clark, whose letter relating to the " Wood affair " we have quoted, was the first Methodist preacher in this town, officiating about here in 1801. As early as 1815 there was a class formed in " Burnam Hollow" in the west part of the town ; Cyril Leach was its leader. Preaching was oc- casionally enjoyed in the school-houses in that vicinity. The present Metho- dist society was originated in a class formed in the village by Anthony Rice, James Germond and wife, and Samuel Hathaway and wife; others were soon added and meetings were held in the school-house and in dwellings. In 1835 the society was formed, the following persons signing the agreement : Eli Oat- man, Samuel Young, Marcus Stoddard, Samuel Hathaway, Charles Lamb, James Germond, Nathaniel W. Martin, Justus Barker, John Gray.

In 1837 the meeting-house was erected, and dedicated in the following win- ter. The Sabbath-school was formed in April, 1842, with Lucius Abbott as superintendent. In 1838 this society was nearly as large as either of the older ones. John Fitch, a local preacher, came to Middletown in 1838, or earlier, and considerable of the time until his death in 1859 he supplied the church. In 1862 while Rev. H. D. Hitchcock was in charge, the church building was thoroughly repaired, a work in which Whiting Merrill was prominent. The present pastor is Rev. A. Osborn and the membership is twenty-two.

Catholic .- There is a Catholic society here, over which Father Glynn, of Fairhaven, officiates. The church comprises about twenty families and has a property valued at about $2,500.

The Medical Profession .- In a preceding chapter we have alluded to the early physicians of this town. The medical profession is represented here at the present time by Dr. Charles William Strobell, who was born in Hanover, Germany, October 20, 1856 ; began the study of medicine under the precep- torship of Dr. M. Goldsmith, of Rutland, and attended lectures at the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and the University of Vermont, at Burling- ton, graduating from the latter in 1882. He began practice in Middletown in September, 1882.

Dr. Arthur C. Norton was born at Arlington, Vt., September 28, 1859; graduated from the New York Homeopathic Medical College, New York city, in March, 1882 ; came to Middletown in November of the same year.

Leonidas Gray

AGray

671

TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN.

Municipal .- Under this heading there is little to be said in addition to the foregoing pages. The clearing, settling and early growth and business of Middletown village has been sufficiently described, with the disastrous effect upon it of the great flood of 1811, and other causes which have operated against its growth. Prominent among these should be mentioned the fact that its situation cuts it off from railroad communication with the outer world, thus drawing from it much of the mercantile business that might otherwise have reached its stores, to other more important centers, where railroads pass. This effect of railroad connections is always noticeable; some of the villages of a county must suffer at the expense of others. Still, there have always been en- terprising and thorough-going business men in this village, as well as energetic manufacturers, whose labors have been sufficient for the interests of the inhab- itants.

Chief among the present manufacturing establishments of the town (and indeed of the county) is the threshing-machine manufactory of A. W. Gray's Sons. The business was originated in a small way in 1865, by the late A. W. Gray, of whom a biography appears in later pages of this work. Mr. Gray possessed inventive genius, and in 1836 patented a corn-sheller which was an excellent machine. In 1844 he invented a horse-power, which he manufac- tured a few years to a limited extent, in a small shop, with one or two work- men. A little later he became interested in the inventing and perfecting of a nail-machine, which took his attention for several years, when he again turned his energies to the horse-power, in an improved form, which he perfected in 1856. In 1837 he purchased a building formerly used as a woolen factory in Middletown, and fitted it up for the manufacture of the machines About that time his oldest son, Leonidas Gray, became associated with him, and ten years later (1866) his younger son, A. Y. Gray, took an interest in the business. In 1875 the sons bought out their father and the firm took its present style. From the insignificant shop in which the first horse-powers were made, the es- tablishment has grown to a building three stories in height and ninety feet front, surrounded on three sides by smaller buildings and several large store- houses of two or three floors each. The demand for the machines rapidly in- creased from the first and now extends throughout North and South America, England, Germany, Turkey, Russia and other countries. About twelve hun- dred machines are made annually. Much of this great success is due to the remarkable business energy and capacity of the sons of the founder of the house.

On the 3d of April, 1884, the Gray National Bank was organized, the pres- ent officers of which are, - , president (this office was held by A. W. Gray at the time of his death, in October, 1885); A. Y. Gray, vice-president ; A. A. Greene, cashier. L. and A. Y. Gray are also interested in the First National Bank of Poultney, L. Gray being its vice-president.

672

HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.

Middletown Springs and Hotels .- The Montvert House was built in 1870, and is one of the outgrowths of the celebrated Middletown Springs. The house was erected by the Middletown Springs Company, a stock organization, who ran it three or four years. In June, 1880, L. and A. Y. Gray bought it and sold it to Jacob Eager, George Starkweather and Thomas Wilson, of New York. Wilson sould out to his partners the first year. It is now the property of Joseph Eager, with George McAvoy as manager. The springs, which have done so much to make Middletown a popular summer resort, and led to the building of this hotel, were re-discovered in 1868, and are located near the village and within a hundred feet of the north bank of the Poultney River. They were known prior to 1811 ; the river then ran where it now does; but the great freshet of that year deposited a great quantity of gravel over the springs, hiding them from view. In June, 1868, another remarkable freshet occurred here, which again changed the bed of the river and opened the springs. A. WV. Gray & Sons at that time owned the land there, and when Mr. Gray, sr., was examinining the work of the freshet, preparatory to making repairs, he discovered the springs, drank freely of the water and suffered considerably from nausea ; this convinced him that the waters were strongly impregnated with minerals. A man who had been badly poisoned with ivy was relieved by drinking the water, and many others with different ailments experimented with the water and usually with good effects. The fame of the springs spread rapidly and a good deal of excitement followed. This ran so high and the curative properties of the water became so highly extolled, that they were tried for almost every kind of disease ; their failure in many cases to cure caused a reaction, and many believed the springs a humbug. There is not a doubt but these waters are curative in many kinds of diseases ; but they will not cure everything.

Soon after June, 1868, other mineral springs were discovered a little north of the first, and two companies were formed, both of them shipping the water to other localities. In the fall of 1869 the two companies were consolidated into the Middletown Springs Hotel Company, which built the hotel, as stated. It is a magnificent house and has been liberally patronized in summer seasons. The expense of building and furnishing the house was in the neighborhood of $100,000. These springs may become still more famous in the future.

The Valley Hotel was built by Wait Rathbone in the early part of the cen- tury ; it was nearly carried away by the freshet of 1811. After passing through the changes incident to country inns, it has gone into the control of W. H. Haynes, who has kept it since June, 1882.

G. D. Adams has kept the Adams House since it was opened about 1870.

In the store occupied by D Leffingwell & Son, M. E. Vail did business from about 1831 to 1876. D. Leffingwell has been in trade here for eleven years in succession, and in 1881 his son, A. G. Leffingwell, joined him.

673

TOWN OF MOUNT HOLLY.

J. S. & W. E. Murdock began business in the spring of 1885, succeeding F. B. Barrett, who had traded there seven years.

D. Leffingwell has been postmaster since the spring of 1875, when he suc- ceeded W. S. Bassett ; the latter held the office sixteen years and was preceded by Harley Keyes. There have been numerous changes in the office, which need not be traced. D. Leffingwell, grandfather of the present official, had the office about seventy years ago and in 1821, when he died.

CHAPTER XXXI.

HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF MOUNT HOLLY.

T HIS town lies on the southeastern border of Rutland county, in latitude 43º 29' and longitude 4º 14' east from Washington ; it is bounded on the north by Shrewsbury and Plymouth ; east by Ludlow ; south by Weston and Mount Tabor, and west by Wallingford and Mount Tabor. It was not one of the original townships. In surveying the towns on the east and west ·sides of the Green Mountains, there was left between Ludlow on the east and Walling- ford on the west, a gore of land,1 which became known as " Jackson's Gore," from Abraham Jackson, one of the original proprietors and an early settler.

The present town of Mount Holly was incorporated at the October session of the Legislature of 1792, held in Rutland. The town as incorporated com- prised Jackson's Gore with all that portion of the town of Ludlow lying west of the highest ridge of what is known as " Ludlow Mountain," and on the west a tract one mile in width, or two tiers of lots, from the east side of the town of Wallingford.

The town lies in a sort of shallow basin, or depression, in the Green Moun- tains, and in the old days of stage coaching over the road from Burlington to Boston, afforded the best place for crossing the Green Mountains south of Montpelier. The land was originally heavily timbered with maple, beech, birch,

1 When the General Assembly, at its session of October, 17So, resolved to raise money to place Vermont on a war footing, for resistance to the decree of Congress abolishing its government, three ex- pedients were adopted, viz. : The confiscation and sale of the lands of all British adherents, thus rais- ing the sum of £430,000 ; second, the sale of all ungranted lands ; and third, the issue of money. Under the second expedient this gore was transferred to Abraham Jackson and twenty-nine associated residents of Wallingford. This charter of transfer is dated February 23, 1781, and reads as follows :-

" Resolved, That a certain tract or gore of land, lying and being situate on the east side of Walling- ford, containing by estimation nine thousand seven hundred acres, be granted to Abraham Jackson, esq., and his associates to the number of thirty. To be annexed to, and incorporated with the town of Wallingford."

The fees for this grant were nine pounds per right, realizing the sum of two hundred and seventy pounds.

674

HISTORY OF RUTLAND COUNTY.

spruce and hemlock, with a lesser quantity of fir, basswood, black and white ash, wild cherry and poplar. By far the greater portion of the old forests have fallen before the axes of the inhabitants.

The rock is mostly Green Mountain gneiss. In the extreme southern part limestone is found from which a good quality of lime was formerly made. The soil is largely a strong and somewhat heavy loam ; while clay beds are found in several localities, suitable for brick making. Brick were made in a yard near the site of the Mount Holly railroad station many years ago in quantities suffi- cient for the then comparatively small demands of this and neighboring towns.

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History of Rutland County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 79

Author: Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925. 1n; Rann, William S Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., D. Mason & co. Number of Pages: 1170

Author: Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925. 1n; Rann, William S
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., D. Mason & co.
Number of Pages: 1170