USA > Vermont > Lamoille County > Johnson > History of the town of Johnson, Vt. 1784-1904 > Part 2
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OF JOHNSON, VERMONT
pearlash, by soaking in water, then pouring off the water into bottles, ready for use.
While flax was one of the staple products, a large quantity of sur- plus seed was raised every year, and it was utilized by some one who established here a mill for grinding the seed and extracting the oil. This must have been quite a help to the farmers who raised the flax and thus had a market for their surplus seed. We find mention made of the oil- mill in the town records of 1813.
Farmers kept sheep as soon as circumstances would allow, both for their meat as food, and their wool as clothing. Spinning and weaving of wool were common household employments. The first carding had to be done by hand, but at an early day Joseph Waterman introduced a carding machine which was a great help. He afterwards sold it to Dow & Gloyd of the woolen factory, and in later years William Mc- Clerathan at East Johnson did the carding. All the yarn used in the family foot-wear was spun at home, afterwards knit into stockings, gloves, and mittens by the deft hands of the women and girls. They were obliged to make the cloth for all their warm wearing apparel. Yarn was spun, colored and woven for flannel dresses and other gar- ments, also bed-blankets, flannel for sheets, blue and white coverlets and frocking. If a nice piece of dress goods was wanted the flannel was taken to the factory of Dow & Gloyd, and there pressed by machinery for a small sum. Cloth for men's trousers was taken there to be fulled.
Simeon Lyman seems to have started the woolen factory industry, aside from the wool-carding, as we find from the Land Records that in 1816 Joseph Waterman deeded to Simeon Lyman a "Privilege of Water at the lower falls on the North Branch of the River Lamoille to be taken from the mill-dam or saw-mill flume sufficient to carry a Fulling mill, napping and shearing machine, and machinery for cutting dyewood, together with the buildings now erected for fulling and cloth-dressing."
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN
About 1835 Andrew Dow and his brother-in-law, Gloyd, bought and enlarged the woolen factory, putting in spinning machines and looms as time went by. On the posters sent out, advertising the new firm and its business, it was announced that the factory was "built on the Gihon that runneth westward from Eden!" See Genesis, 2nd chapter, thirteenth verse. That was the way the Branch received its Scriptural name. Gloyd soon retired from the firm, and in 1838 Stephen Dow became a partner with his brother Andrew. Later An- drew Dow retired from the firm and removed to Hinesburgh, his place in the firm being taken by Isaac L. Pearl. Stephen Dow sold out, and Orange Buck became a partner with Pearl, they operating both the woolen-mill and the grist-mill. Willard Hadley was miller for them, and one of his characteristic sayings was that "the firm fed the hungry at one end of the mill-dam, and clothed the naked at the other"; When this partnership was ended, Mr. Buck taking the grist-mill, the woolen factory was operated by I. L. Pearl & Co., which firm has continued for nearly two score years.
Perkinsville, now called East Johnson, owes its location to the wa- ter power on the Gihon River, and received its name from a man named Thomas Perkins, who built and ran a foundry for several years on the site where Hayford Brothers now manufacture butter boxes and other wooden ware. He started the business in the '30's. Previous to that, Archibald Ferguson built a saw mill where W. H. Stearns' store-house is. These industries were the nucleus around which the village of Perkinsville was built, other mills being added from time to time. John Stearns started the manufacture of rakes there, more than fifty years ago. His son, W. H. Stearns, carries on the business in an enlarged form, putting out 50,000 rakes annually. John Stearns' younger brother, Otis W., commenced manufacturing butter tubs at Perkinsville, later removing the industry to the upper mill-site in Johnson village,
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when the firm became widely known as O. W. Stearns & Son. Their sales extended to the far West. The "Son" has been Lieut .- Governor.
Thomas Perkins' foundry was burned, and he moved to southern Vermont and started another village in the town of Weathersfield, to which he also gave the name of Perkinsville. When the vil- lage in Johnson had a post-office granted to it, before the days of rural free delivery, the name was changed to East Johnson, to prevent con- fusion of mail-matter.
There were one or more distilleries in town where potato-whiskey was made, as early as 1813. Later on, Joseph Waterman began the manufacture of potato starch where E. E. Holmes' shop now stands, and did a large business for many years. Chas. Leland made starch for several years at the water power site between Johnson village and East Johnson.
Several industries have centered, at different times, about the upper mill-dam, where the tub factory buildings are now clustered. Simpson Bell had a tannery there in 1813. Later on, one Ryder made carriages there, and A. W. Caldwell, who built the Langdell house, also built a furniture shop near the aforesaid mill-dam. This shop was burned in December 1838. An elderly man tells of going to the fire in company with his father and brother, and how they stood in line with the men and helped pass pails of water. 'The end wall of the building fell out on the ice, and, boy-like, exploring among the ruins, each picked up and carried home two nails, as souvenirs of a great event in their young lives.
Such a commotion as it made in that pious household! Such a lec- ture on the sin of stealing as their good mother gave to those boys! The nails were taken from them, each two wrapped in a separate paper and marked "R's S's theft," and, "J's S's theft," and the boys were compelled to carry them to Mr. Caldwell and confess their sin.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN
Granted that nails in those days were all laboriously pounded out on an anvil by hand, and that they cost fifteen cents a pound, it still seems to us at the present day an aggravated case of what is known as the "New England Conscience."
Marshall Hosmer commenced chair making in 1839 in the L part of the Warren house on Railroad street, and he and his father worked at the business there for many years. There was a hat factory where Geo. Conger's house now stands, where Geo. Sheldon made "fashionable Hats, Brush and Plain Hats, Beaver, Otter, Neutre, Muskrat and Cony Naps, Satin Beaver and Wool Hats."
This was his advertisement in the Johnson newspaper of that day. Felt hats being unknown in those days, "stove-pipe" hats were the only headgear worn on formal occasions, and as boys even down to ten or twelve years of age wore hats of the same shape as their fathers, the hat-making industry was a busy one.
Tanning leather was a profitable business and a very necessary industry for the settlers. Any leather not needed for the home mar- ket found ready sale elsewhere. In addition to the tanneries already here, Dexter Whiting, who moved to Johnson from New Boston, N. H., in 1832, built one on the farm where Geo. Whiting lives, where for many years he carried on a very profitable business. The bark-mill was driven by the water-power of the tiny stream which flows near the road lead- ing north from the village, the mill-pond being beside the road, just below the farm-buildings. The large wooden overshot wheel that ran the mill was still in place there as late as the '90's.
Ready-made boots and shoes were unknown, and itinerant cobblers went from house to house with their kit of tools, making foot-wear for the family. This was called "whipping the cat." Women went about in families as tailoresses, also, ready-made clothing not having been thought of.
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Butter-making was carried on in a primitive fashion. The milk was set in big brown-earthen pans, and the cream was churned in a wooden dash-churn, often a tedious process. The butter was worked by hand, made into balls, and bartered for goods at the local store. Where several cows were kept, the farmers got into the way of pack- ing their butter in tubs, and marketing it in the fall. Some men with stout teams loaded their sleds with butter, cheese, pork, dried apples, poultry, and general farm produce, as soon as sledding came in the early winter, drove to Boston, and marketed their stuff. They brought back supplies for their families, also freight for the mer- chants. Several teams would go back and forth in company, the trip each way occupying several days.
On one of these trips in the '30's, a severe snow storm set in, and though the teams were expected to reach home on Saturday night, the roads were so bad that they were only able to get to Hydepark, too late, and their horses too tired to go the five miles farther. So all put up at the tavern, and all but one came home with their loads on Sunday morning. Deacon Harris Whiting could not reconcile it with his con- science to drive his load home on the Sabbath, though anxious to be with his wife and little children. So he remained at the tavern, at- tended the two church services customary in those days, with Sunday school sandwiched between, very likely also a Sunday evening prayer meeting, and at daylight on Monday morning set out for home. In after years his widow used to relate this incident with pardonable pride.
As a whole, the early settlers of the town were a religious people. Church services were held at private houses, later at the schoolhouses, and Churches were organized as soon as the number of attendants would warrant. By the time there were two church edifices in town, in 1832, every Sunday morning long strings of teams could be seen coming from every direction to the house of God. A score of teams where now there is one, but this is partly due to the great number of farms that
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN
have been abandoned to pasturage and woodland, so that there is not half the farming population that there was then. There were school districts fifty years ago where the little school-house was full to over- flowing every winter with big girls and little girls, little boys and big boys. Some of the latter came to school professedly and really for the sole purpose of "putting out the master," and they sometimes did it, too. Many of those school-houses are today abandoned for lack of scholars. Few large families of children are found among the native Americans of today. In 1850, when the population of the town was 1,381, the number of children in town of school age was 488. In 1900, with a population of 1,391, there were only 286! These figures are their own commentary on the "race suicide" which President Roosevelt so wisely deplores, and we can only conjecture how small will be the ratio of school children in another fifty years. At the same time, our schools are second to none in this section, and since the town system came into use, the town, as a whole, has been very liberal in furnishing up-to-date buildings, and employing teachers who ad- vocate up-to-date methods. The graded school building was erected in 1895 at a cost of $7,500. Alterations and repairs since, bring it up to nearly $10,000.
Neighborhood prayer meetings were a feature of the early days of the town, and a great factor for good, in a time when regular church services were unattainable. At one of these a peculiar incident oc- cured. The log cabin in which the meeting was held was on the farm now occupied by Wm. Cunningham, and the site of the old cellar was plainly to be seen within the last half century.
Deacon Taylor and Deacon Clark, two good men whose memories are still fragrant in the town, were both at the meeting. Deacon Tay- lor, who was a very even-tempered man, arose and spoke upon the joys of a religious life, every day the same calm peace and hope. As he sat down, Deacon Clark, an impulsive man, jumped to his feet. "I like
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that," he said, "I wish I could feel so, too, but I can't. Some days I'm so happy I'm clear up on the housetop," raising his arms above his head. "And maybe the very next day, without any cause whatever, I'm clear down cellar," bringing his weight down solidly. He was a large, heavy man, and happened to be standing on the trap-door to the cellar, which gave way at this juncture and made his words come literally true.
Of this same Deacon Clark, who lived where Leroy Scribner lately lived, and is buried on the same farm, it is told that one Sunday morn- ing, just as people were beginning to gather for church, he drove into the village with his ox-cart piled high with bags of grain en route to the grist-mill. Seeing people in their best clothes going towards the church, he asked if there was a funeral.
"No, just the regular church services. What are you up to?"
"To-day isn't Sunday!"
"Of course it is."
"And I'm goin' to mill with all this grist, s'posed it was Saturday. Oh dear! I've got to hurry back home and tell wife and the girls, for they're up to their elbows in the Saturday bakin', and everything." And turning his team around with a great deal of "whoa! hish! haw Bright !" he made his shame-faced way home as fast as slow oxen could go, having to meet all his neighbors dressed in their Sunday best on their way to church.
Our village has been fortunate in never having any very extensive fires, especially as we have never had any organized fire protection until within the last twelve years.
Sometime in the thirties, a barn belonging to Mr. Samuel Mer- riam and standing near where Seth Hill now lives, was struck by lightning and burned. Mr. Merriam had led his horse out of the barn but a few minutes before.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN
Not far from that time, a small building by the Branch, just above the iron bridge, was burned. It had been used as a tailor's shop. The burning of Mr. Caldwell's first furniture shop has been mentioned else- where.
Mr. Merriam's store, on the site of B. S. Fullington's house was burned in the spring of 1849. It was only by the most strenuous ex- ertions on the part of both men and women that the surrounding build- ings were saved.
The largest and most spectacular fire the village ever witnessed was that of the woolen factory in the spring of 1871. The fire-bell rang continuously for an hour, calling in help for miles around, and only heroic efforts on the part of stalwart men, and the near proximity of the Branch, saved the Baptist Church and other buildings from im- mediate destruction. But for the fact that rain wet the roofs in the path of the storm of sparks and cinders, half of the village would have been in ashes, for a brisk east wind carried pieces of burning shingles away beyond the village's farthest limits.
One Sunday in the summer of '72, word came into the Congrega- tional Church that W. H. Moulton's water-tubing factory, where Stearns' tubshop now is, was on fire. A young minister candidating there was in the midst of an eloquent sermon, but he joined the congre- gation in a grand stampede for the fire, to save what property they might from the flames and protect near-by buildings. The fire was a fierce one, but the minister was one of the foremost in fighting it, even getting his hair on fire once. But the church service was not resumed.
Two or more dry-houses near Stearns' tub-shop have been burned, but the flames have been kept from spreading to the main building.
'The burning of the old mill-house one night in the summer of 1906, gave the Sterling Hose Company about their first opportunity to fight a real fire and they did it well. They had been called out to subdue incipient fires many times, but this fire had so much the start that
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their efficiency in protecting surrounding property was amply dem- onstrated.
The village of Johnson was incorporated in 1894, the first meet- ing being held November 5 of that year. In 1900 the population was 587, but is probably considerably more than that now.
The electric light plant was built and is owned and operated by the village corporation, and it began running Jan. 15, 1895. The original cost was $7,800.
The public water supply system was completed about November Ist of the same year. Its cost, including the building of the hose-house, cost of hose-cart and hose was about $12,000.
The Johnson Public Library was started in 1895, with a nucleus of a few old books left from a former Circulating Library, and a small subscription raised among the citizens. To this was added what was called "$100 worth of books," donated by the State in accordance with an act of the Legislature of 1894. From time to time gifts of books have been received from various sources, and the Oread Literary Club have had several entertainments to raise funds for purchasing books.
The town has each year at the March meeting, voted $50 toward the support of the library, never more. It goes without saying that this amount would not pay for the services of a librarian, let alone buy- ing more books. For the last seven years the Oread Literary Club have taken care of the library without expense to the town. It has now over a thousand volumes, but having no other available quarters than Corporation Hall, the great need is for a new library building.
It is to members of the Oread Literary Club that this Town His- tory is due. With thanks to those who have assisted in its preparation by furnishing pictures, information, and so forth, we close this paper.
MATTIE WHITING BAKER,
CLARA RIDDLE FARRINGTON, ASENATH SAWYER HILL.
Committee of
Preparation.
E
CHAPTER 2.
PAPERS PUBLISHED IN JOHNSON.
The Lamoille River Express was established at Johnson, June I, 1838, J. W. Remington, publisher, Chas. G. Eastman, editor. Its motto was "Everything for the cause, nothing for men."
From a perusal of the first year's numbers we glean many facts regarding the town at that date, but nothing like as many as we should had it been conducted as a local paper is now. We sneer at the petty gossip of country journalism, its accounts of trivial happenings and unimportant incidents, but a hundred years hence such a paper will be a mirror of its day. Very seldom do we find a town item in these old papers, except under the head of "Marriages" and "Deaths," and are therefore surprised to read under date of May 26th, that "Oliver Allen treated his boarders to home-grown lettuce."
The paper is nearly half filled with advertisements, several firms in Burlington advertising groceries, patent medicines, New England rum, wines, whiskey, gin and brandy, as well as farming tools, salt, hardware, etc. Among the local advertisers are Samuel Merriam, goods, several tailors, among them S. N. Tracy, lawyers, Pike & Mar- tin, and Salmon Wires, P. T. Sweet, stoves and hardware, Andrew and Stephen Dow, wool-carding and cloth-dressing, A. W. Caldwell, fur- niture, and in August Marshall Hosmer announces that he has "opened a chair-factory on Johnson Flat." That was the name of the village in those days, in contradistinction to the "Plot" in the north part of the town. Geo. L. Warner advertises the Johnson Book-store where are kept schoolbooks, Bibles and hymnbooks, all kinds of blank books and
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blank forms, and a long list of patent medicines. For that matter, sev- eral varieties of patent medicines are advertised for sale at the news- paper office, a novel way of "combining instruction and amusement."
The reading matter is largely upon the political issues of the day and what was called "news" in those times, Congressional doings three weeks old. State, district and county politics are well aired, and there are numerous extracts from opposition journals, with Eastman's sar- castic and biting comments thereon. There is an occasional story of the sort that begin, "A maiden sat in her desolate chamber, despair was written upon her lofty brow," etc. There is often a short poem, some- times one of Eastman's. "Ada" is a frequent contributor, and one of her poems begins,
"Oh! I've been to the West, to the far, far West."
We naturally think of the Pacific coast, but her concluding stanza tells us what the "far, far West" was then.
"Then adieu to Ohio, but give me my home
Where the Green Mountain summits I see."
In March, 1839, in consequence of an arrangement entered into with the Democratic party of Orleans County who contemplated establishing a paper at Craftsbury, the name of the paper was changed to the "Ver- mont State Paper and Lamoille and Orleans Co. Democrat." It must be remembered that the Republican party of today is nearly synonymous with the Democratic of that time, and our Democrats, with the old time Whigs. The term "Republican Democrat" is used occasionally in the paper.
May 28th, 1839, Eastman makes announcement of a campaign paper, the Scorpion, which he was to publish soon. "Mud-slinging" in politics was not unknown then, and we can imagine what a stinging paper he issued.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN
"Smilie and Bank Reform.
Office of the State Paper, Johnson, May, 1839. It is proposed to issue from this office, commencing about the middle of June, twelve numbers of a sheet to be entirely devoted to the politics of the State, entitled,
THE SCORPION.
'I wish you joy of the worm.'
The Scorpion is intended to accomodate democratic town committees and other individuals who may wish to circulate a cheap extra paper a few months before the annual election. It will contain all the political matter of the State Paper, and some original. Town committees, it is expected, will order to one address the number of copies they wish. Any individual can do the same, ordering one or more copies.
Gentlemen to whom this is sent are requested to use their influence to aid the undertaking. Especially do we invite all who are opposed to partial legislation, and the chartering of corporations irresponsible to the people, to give us their aid in the great contest into which the freemen of this state are preparing to enter for the overthrow of a state dynasty that has, for years, fattened upon the hearts' blood of the laboring classes. There never was a time when the democracy of the state could have higher and more sustaining hopes. 'Tis the Sun of Austerlitz! Forward! Let every nerve be strained, every muscle braced for the struggle. Young men! the staff of the Republic! gird on your armor! and as your fathers fought to be free from foreign tyranny so do you fight to be free from that great political blood-sucker, Partial Legislation. The tattoo has sounded! Form! To battle! Ho! To battle!"
The terms of subscription follow.
The State Paper passed into Wires & Co.'s hands, and was changed to the "Lamoille Banner." After three years it expired. In 1840 Jo- seph Poland started the "Lamoille Whig." After two years he changed the name to the "Lamoille Standard," and a year later sold out to W. B. Hyde who started a paper called the "Family Visitor," and issued 25 numbers when his paper came out under the name of the "Investigator." There were but six numbers of that issued when it was discontinued.
From No. 17 of the "Family Visitor," published in November, 1843, we make a few extracts.
There is a report of a County Temperance meeting at the Congre- gational meeting house in Johnson, Joseph Poland, President.
Prayer was offered by Rev. John Gleed.
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WINTER VIEW FROM THE EAST OF THE ACADEMY Pencilling by S. L. Wiswall, 1847. The Azariah Waterman house
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OF JOHNSON, VERMONT
Among the Resolutions offered was this, "That the clergymen of the different towns in the county be requested to deliver a temperance lecture, or see that it is done, in every school district within their field of labor."
The "Young Men's Lyceum" is announced to meet at the Academy. Question for discussion,
Would the establishment of a tribunal for the settlement of inter- national disputes be practicable ?
DISPUTANTS.
Affirmative.
C. E. Bowen A. Hinds L. M. Knight
Negative. L. T. Flint
W. B. Hyde
H. M. Safford
Dissertation by L. T. Flint.
Declamation by G. W. Hawley.
Wm. C. Doane, Sec.
There is a call for a Lamoille Co. Liberty Convention at Hyde- park. It says:
"Come not by twos and threes, but by scores and fifties-much to be done the coming year in the county for the slave-will depend on the numbers and action of the meeting at Hydepark. Come early, dinner and horse baiting with you, prepared to stay till the evening meeting adjourns. Don't forget to bring your wives, sisters and daughters with you. They are more efficient laborers than men.
In behalf of the Co. Committee,
A. W. CALDWELL."
CHAPTER 3.
-
REPRESENTATIVES FROM JOHNSON IN THE STATE LEGISLATURE.
Legislature met at Rutland 1784.
Legislature met at Bennington 1787.
Legislature met at Westminster 1788.
Legislature met at Bennington 1789.
1789. Noah Smith of Bennington, Legislature at Bennington.
1790. Jonathan McConnell.
1791. Jonathan McConnell, Legislature at Bennington.
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