USA > Vermont > Rutland County > Pittsford > History of the town of Pittsford, Vt., with biographical sketches and family records > Part 35
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458
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
to Canada in 1775, and was also in the battle of Bennington. He was in the army three years, and during the latter part of this period he was a lieutenant. He married, March 9, 1780, Rebecca Keeler, who was born in Ridgefield, Conn., Angust 26, 1756. They located in Pittsfield, Mass., but removed to Chittenden, Vt., in the early settlement of that township. Their children were Samuel, Lovisey, Betsey, Joseph, Clarinda, William Henry, Rebecca and Pamelia. The father died April 6, 1813 ; the mother died May 1, 1832.
William Henry Harrison, the sixth child of Samuel, was born Feb. 22, 1790, and married Sally Bogue, Feb. 1, 1822. They resided in Chittenden till 1858, when Mr. Harrison bought the Sheldon place in Pittsford village-formerly the Millard place. The family resided here till the death of Mr. Harrison, January 20, 1866. Mrs. Harrison and her daughter, Nancy Columbia, now reside in Holley, N. Y.
Carlos A. Hitchcock, son of Lyman, was born in Pittsford, Nov. 2, 1820. While a young man, he met with an accident which deprived him, to some extent, of the use of his hands, thus incapacitating him for many kinds of manual labor ; but by study and close application to business, he has become one of the best financiers in the town. For several years he has held the office of constable and collector of taxes, and at the present time is a member of the General Assembly of the State. He married Caroline (Hall) Tottingham, March 9, 1859, and located in a house which he purchased of Ira Hitch- cock in Hitchcockville. In 1867, he purchased of the heirs of William H. Harrison the Sheldon place in the Village. Soon after he made this purchase he repaired and improved the buildings, so that he now has a very desirable abode.
Charles A. Hitchcock, son of Ira, was born June 22, 1827, and married, Nov. 10, 1859, Laura A. Rice, of Rutland, who was born August 8, 1839. In the spring and summer of 1850, he built a house some two or three rods east of his father's
459
M. C. BOGUE-ROLLIN S. MEACHAM.
residence, and in this he lived till the death of his mother-in- law, when he removed to his father's house. After the death of his father, December 7, 1870, he returned to the house he first occupied.
Marcus Cook Bogue, son of Alexander, was born at Can- ton, St. Lawrence County, N. Y., July 8, 1827. He acquired a good English education, and his tastes led him to qualify himself for mercantile business. On the 29th of November, 1849, he married Sarah Giddings, who was born in Rutland, August 27, 1828, and they located in West Rutland, where he followed his favorite occupation as a merchant, and resided there till October 1, 1859, when he removed to this town and located on the Townsend place, which he had purchased of James T. Gorham. Mr. Bogue traded there with good success till the spring of 1867, when, his health becoming somewhat impaired by close confinement to business, he sold his location to Rollin S. Meacham, and bought of Jeremiah Powers the old Hopkins farm, and devoted his time to farming. The fol- lowing winter he had a severe illness, which incapacitated him for very active labor, but he continued to superintend his farm- ing operations till the spring of 1870, when he sold his farm to Samuel B. Loveland, and removed to Sioux City, Iowa, where he again resumed his former occupation as a merchant.
Rollin S. Meacham is a descendant of Isaac Meacham, who was born in Williamstown, Mass., April 3, 1766, and married, in 1799, Phebe Thompson, who was born in Pawlet, Vt., May 27, 1777. They located in Benson, and had the following children, viz .: Ansel M., Alanson, Alonzo, Aurelius A., Rosalia and Almeda Lorett. Phebe, the mother, died in Stockholm, N. Y., in 1839 ; Isaac, the father, died in Brandon, May 15, 1844.
Alanson, the second son, was born in Benson, October 24, 1801, and married, January 11, 1829, Hannah Patterson, who was born in Potsdam, N. Y., May 15, 1807. They located
460
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
in Potsdam, and had several children-Pulaski, Ozro, Rollin S., Jannette and Maria Antonette. Rollin S. was born in Brandon, Vt., (to which town his parents had removed,) Sept. 25, 1833, and spent much of his early life in a store. He married Mary E. W. Gorham, of Pittsford, September 28, 1859, and has resided a large proportion of the time since his marriage in this town. In 1864, he entered the army as com- missary clerk, but returned to this town in 1866, and the following year bought of M. C. Bogue the store and residence at Mill Village, which he still occupies.
Elhanan W. Nichols located in this town in 1859. He is the son of Asa Nichols, who was born in Connecticut, married, June 2, 1803, Rachel Lamson, and settled in Crown Point, N. Y., where were born the following children, viz .: Fanny, Eliza, Ransom, Alonzo, Mary, Elhanan, Cynthia and Catha- rine. Rachel, the mother, died May 23, 1856 ; Asa, the father, died April 23, 1866. Elhanan, the third son, was born in Crown Point, became a shoemaker, married Hannah - May 9, 1837, and located in Stockholm, N. Y., where he resided till he came to this town. He resided a few years in the Angier house, where Mrs. Hannah Nichols died in 1862, and Mr. Nichols married Delia S. Godfrey, December 14, 1864. For the last few years he has worked at house painting.
" At the annual meeting in March, 1850, the votes upon the question of License or No License were taken, sorted, counted and declared to be as follows:
The No. of Votes for License 73.
The No. of votes for No License 183."
" At Freemen's meeting held on the first Tuesday of Sep- tember, 1850, the following persons were admitted and sworn as Freemen, viz .: James B. Gilbert, Herman B. Preston, Patrick W. Kellogg, David A. Richardson, Egbert Rand, Thomas F. Palmer, Ogden A. Penfield, George W. Dunklee, Francis Thomas, and Benjamin S. Cooley."
461
EXTRACTS FROM RECORDS.
In March, 1852, the Town " voted to appoint a committee of two whose duty is to procure a suitable fire-proof Safe for the Town, in which to preserve their records."
" Voted, That the Selectmen be instructed to appoint and license one and only one Agent to purchase at the expense of the Town, and sell intoxicating Liquors for medicinal, chemical and mechanical purposes only, in pursuance of Sec. 4, of Chap. 87, of Compiled Statutes of Vt."
In conformity to the above vote the Selectmen appointed and licensed Jeffrey A. Randall, Agent for the sale of intoxi- cating liquors during one year, commencing the eighth day of March, 1852.
At the annual meeting in March, 1853, Mr. Lothrop offered the following resolution, viz .: "Resolved, that a committe of 5 be appointed to purchase a Farm, Stock and Tools for the Town, and that they be instructed to buy as soon as practable some one of the Farms that have been offered the Town, unless there should be others offered them for the Town that in their judgment would be more for the interests of the Town to purchase ; which resolution was adopted.
Chose S. H. KELLOGG, H. F. LOTHROP, T. F. BOGUE, JEREMIAH POWERS, J. M. GOODNOUGH,
The above Committee.
Voted to appropriate the United States deposite, or Surplus money, not already appropriated, towards the purchase of the Farm and Stock aforesaid."
At the next March meeting the committee reported, "That they had purchased* the home farm of James R. Smith, together with his farming tools, sugar apparatus and stock, amounting in all to about $4586.75, viz .: Farm and Tools $3800, Stock $786.75.
* The date of this purchase was Feb. 18, 1854.
462
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
In the years 1853 and '54, the citizens of the town were called to act upon a subject which caused considerable excite- ment, and aroused considerable animosity between prominent men in different parties.
That section of the Rutland & Burlington Railroad which passes through this town was completed in the fall of 1849, and an engine, with a train of cars from Burlington, came into Pittsford for the first time, on the 19th of October. The next day the train proceeded as far as Rutland.
The depot in this town was built in 1850, and it was neces- sary for the town to construct one road from the depot across the Creek to the north-and-south road on the west side, and another from the depot to the stage road on the east side of the Creek; and the location of these roads was a matter about which the people were divided in opinion. In 1851, the selectmen of the town, consisting of Isaac C. Wheaton, Asa Nourse and Asher Burditt, on petition, laid out a road from the depot westward across the Creek to a point on the north- and-south road near the residence of David Hall. But this route met with so much opposition that the building of the road was not then put under contract. The subject continued to be agitated, however, and the leaders of the different parties used every appliance to establish their favorite routes. On the 9th of February, 1853, a new board of selectmen, consisting of H. F. Lothrop,* Orin Thomas and S. P. Griswold, in their official capacity laid out a road from the depot in a northwest- erly direction, running along the side of the bank in close proximity to the railroad track some distance, then crossing it, bearing westerly and crossing the Creek a few rods north of the mouth of the Stevens brook, entering the north-and-south road near Benjamin Stevens' north barn. On the 17th of June, the same year, the aforesaid selectmen laid out another
* Mr. Lothrop's name does not appear upon the record of the proceedings of the Selectmen.
463
ROAD CONTROVERSY.
road from the depot in a southerly direction, along the side of the bank to the foot of the Town Hill, so called. And the selectmen went still farther and put the building of these roads under contract; also the construction of a bridge over the Creek; and the work upon these was commenced and carried on to some extent. But a large proportion of the citizens of the town were not satisfied with these proceedings, and felt that the roads were not being built where the public good required. Accordingly, they applied to the County Court for an injunction, staying the further prosecution of the work till the controversy in relation to the two routes could be legally settled. A writ of injunction was issued and served, but the selectmen, disregarding it, continued the work. The Court, on petition, appointed a committee, consisting of Harvey Shaw, Silas W. Hodges and John Buckmaster, to examine the ground and to lay out the road in such place as they should find the public good required. This committee came to Pittsford, went over the different routes, and after having candidly heard all parties interested, decided that the public good would be better subserved by building the road first laid out by the selectmen in 1851; and they therefore relaid the road substantially in the same place.
The Court, at the September term, was petitioned for a committee to discontinue the roads which had been laid out by the selectmen on the 9th of February and the 17th of June. The Court appointed Francis Slason, Alanson Allen and Jus- tin Jennings a committee to examine the subject embraced in the petition, with power to discontinue the roads if they should be satisfied the public good did not require them. This com- mittee, after a thorough investigation and candid hearing of the parties, reported to the Court, on the 29th of October, that in their opinion the public good did not require the two roads which had been laid out by the selectmen in 1853, and that they had discontinued them.
464
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
This settled the long-standing road controversy, and after the excitement of the time had passed away, and men had had time for calm reflection, we believe that all parties were satis- fied that the road, as finally established, was in the right place. Soon after it was laid out by the Court's committee, the build- ing of it and of the bridge was put under contract by the selectmen, and they were, in due time, completed ; and though the road is not, in all its parts, above high-water mark, yet it is an important thoroughfare, and has thus far cost the town but little for repairs.
Suits were commenced against the town for compensation for labor performed after the service of the writ of injunction on the roads laid out by the selectmen in 1853, and on the bridge, but in each case a verdict was given for the defendant. And, as the town had "Resolved that the Treasurer be instructed not to pay any of the orders drawn, or that may be drawn by the Selectmen for 1853, on account of any expenses in laying out and making either of the roads that have been discontinued by a Court committee during the year 1853, or any land damages or expenses of building bridges on the same," those who had claims for such services or damages had to remain uncompensated.
The result of the first experiment with a Town farm for the support of the poor of the town, is shown by the following report* of the Auditors :
"The overseer has paid out for the support of the poor and for carrying on the Town farm as per his report, the sum of $766.26
30.00
For his services as overseer
Making the current expenses for the year $796.26
The produce sold from the farm amounts to $458.49
Which leaves a balance due overseer of $337.77
* This report was made at the annual meeting in March, 1855.
465
EXPERIMENT WITH A TOWN FARM.
Value of stock, hay, grain and provisions on the farm at the commencement of the year was $988.00
The above named articles remaining on the farm at the present time are estimated at $1034.00
Which leaves a balance of stock &c., in favor of the town of $46.00
Subtracting the sum of $46 from $337.77 due the overseer, leaves for the expenses of the poor, over and above the productions of the farm, the sum of $291.77"
" A further statement of the Auditors is as follows: The inter- est on the money invested in the Town farm, the produce, stock, provisions, &c., for the use of the said farm, at the commencement of last year is $288.00
Add the expenses over the produce 291.77
Leaves the current expenses for the year $579.77'"
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466
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
CHAPTER XIV.
Immigrants or Settlers and their Locations continued; War of the Rebellion; Call of the President for Seventy-five Thousand Men; Volunteers from this Town; Subse- quent Calls for Men and the Quotas of this Town; Bounties paid by the Town ; Roll of the Volunteers and Drafted Men ; Personal notices. 1860-1870.
Wallace E. Bresee, son of Jacob, was born in Pittsford, June 18, 1837, married, Jan. 1, 1860, Mary C., born March 10, 1833, daughter of Siloe Dunklee, and located on the home farm, where he now resides.
Chester G. Thomas, son of Augustus, located here in 1860. He was born in Chittenden, March 24, 1834, and married, December 18, 1860, Martha Pray, who was born in Salisbury, June 16, 1830. They located on a part of the Hendee farm. Mr. Thomas purchased this of Samuel Hendee, April 8, 1858.
Michael O'Donnel located here in 1860. He was born in Limerick, Ireland, in 1805, came to America in June, 1846, and married, in August, 1849, Mary Mehen, who was also born in Limerick. Mr. O'Donnel worked several years on the railroad. He bought the farm he now owns of Patrick Riley, in Septem- ber, 1860, and the following year he located on it. He has built a new barn and remodelled and improved the house.
Michael Duffy became a resident of this town in 1860. He was born in Ireland, in 1801, came to America in 1833, mar- ried Mary McCalley, and located in Brandon. In 1860, he removed to this town, where he still resides.
Francis Alexander located here in 1860. He is the eldest son of Henry Alexander, and was born in Salisbury, October
467
M. MULLIGAN-N. KELLOGG-W. R. HALL.
13, 1835. When he was ten years of age his parents removed from Salisbury to this town, and he accompanied them and resided with them the most of the time till July 4, 1860, when he married Emily A. Stocker, and " set up house-keeping."
Matthew Mulligan, son of John, was born in the County of Clare, Ireland, in 1834, came to America in 1850, and to Pitts- ford in 1855. He married, Nov. 24, 1861, Mary McColley. who was born in the County of Latrem, Ireland, in 1840, For the most of the time since residing in Pittsford, Mr. Mulli- gan has been a laborer on the railroad track.
Newton Kellogg, son of Samuel H., was born December 28, 1819, and in early life possessed a frail constitution which did not permit him to enter upon any very laborious occupa- tion. He was a clerk in a store for some years, a part of the time for Mr. Simonds in this town, and a part for Mr. Barrett of Rutland. He married Julia Page, of Rutland, May 30, 1855, and resided in that town till October 11, 1861, when he purchased of Thomas F. Bogue the Jenner place, and after repairing the house built by Isaac Leonard, who had owned the place, he removed to Pittsford and occupied this place. While his home was here, he went to Rutland daily and con- tinued to perform the duties of Teller of one of the Banks, or of clerk for the State Treasurer. He sold his Pittsford prop- erty to Willard Humphrey, May 11, 1863, and removed to Rutland. He is now residing in this town.
William R. Hall, son of Royal, was born Nov. 16, 1839, married, Nov. 14, 1861, Frances Caroline, daughter of Elias T. Adams, and located on the home farm with his parents. His time is mostly devoted to the farm, though he devotes con- siderable attention to hunting and fishing.
Henry Kingman was born in Rutland, April 21, 1828, and resided in Rutland or Pittsford the most of the time till 1854, when he married, October 28, Electa M. Mitchell, who was born in Chittenden, October 20, 1831, and he located in Mount
468
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
Holly. In 1861, he purchased a house-lot near the Baptist church, upon which he removed the store that had been occu- pied by R. R. Drake. This he converted into a dwelling house and occupied it with his family. Within a few years he has enlarged and improved his house, and purchased additional lands, so that he now has a convenient home and a desirable estate. He has been for several years engaged in the express business, and has conveyed the mails to and from the depot.
Moses P. Humphrey, son of Joseph, was born in Rutland, December 17, 1809, married Nancy P., daughter of Martin Leach, Sen., September 2, 1835, and settled in Rutland. On the 22d of June, 1861, he purchased of Mrs. Stella Humphrey the Leach farm, which the latter inherited from her deceased husband, Ashbel Humphrey. He removed hither, this year, with his son Martin, who was born November 29, 1838, and who married Huldah Locklin, February 23, 1860.
Austin A. Hewitt located here in 1861. He is the son of Israel Hewitt, was born in Pittsfield, and married, March 29, 1861, Jane M. Dominy, who was born in West Chazy, N. Y. They have resided in this town the most of the time since their marriage. Mr. Hewitt, in his younger days, had a disease in the hip which produced a shortening of one limb, and this some- what impairs his locomotion, though he is very active, and few men can perform more labor at the carpenter and joiner's trade than he.
James Falloon is a son of Jeremiah, who was born in Ireland, married, in 1834, Mary Gauley, and immigrated to this country in 1838. They located in Moretown, N. Y. Their children were Eliza, Jeremiah, James, Mary, Dorson and Esther. Jeremiah, the eldest son, was born in Waterford, N. Y., came to Pittsford in 1857, married Mary Keef in June, of that year, and resided temporarily in different places till 1864, when he purchased of Francis Thomas a small place, near what is known as Sand Hill. Soon after he made this
469
C. BRADLEY-O. T. BATES-R. F. BURDITT.
purchase he enlisted in the army, and died in Texas, Sept. 13, 1855 .. James, the second son, was born also in Waterford, December 15, 1841, married Bridget Carrigan, June 25, 1861, and located in Pittsford in the fall of that year. In 1867, Mr. Falloon bought the southeast part of what was the Cox farm, and upon this he now resides.
Cornelius Bradley, son of John and Catharine (Long) Bradley, was born in Limerick, Ireland, Nov. 15, 1843, came to America in 1859, and to Pittsford in 1860. He married Mary McKearin, Sept. 5, 1862, who was born in Latrem, Ireland, April 18, 1845. Mr. Bradley enlisted in the army for nine months service, under the call of the President, and at the expiration of his term, returned to this town, where he has since resided. For one or two years he labored on a farm, but more recently he has been employed as section hand on the railroad.
Oliver T. Bates, son of Hiram, was born in Fairhaven, Nov. 13, 1831, came to Pittsford with his father's family in 1843, married Eliza A. Lindsley, June 5, 1862, and resided one or two years on the Worden place, but is now living on the home farm with his parents.
Richard Floyd Burditt, son of Jonathan, was born May 17, 1832, and married, December 25, 1862, Nancy Ann Howland, who was born October 10, 1834. They located on the home farm, which is owned by him and his brother Charles.
A. M. Caverly located here in the spring of 1863. The earliest of the Caverly family, of whom we have any knowl- edge, was "Sir Hugh Caverly," who lived in England, in the fourteenth century. "Caverly, Sir Hugh, the first who used guns for the service of England, died in 1389."*
Nearly two and a half centuries later we hear of, second, " Charles Caverlie." This passenger was shipped in England,
* Historical Grammar, p. 212.
470
HISTORY OF PITTSFORD.
"to be transported to St. Christophers, embarqued in the Matthew of London, Richard Goodlad, mr. p. Warrant from ye Earle of Carlisle-May 21, 1635-age 17."
Third, " George Caverlie." This boy was shipped " to be transported to the Bermoodes, or Summer Islands, embarqued in the True-love de London, Robert Dennis, mr., being exam- ined by the minister of Gravesend concerning his conformity to the orders and discipline of the church of England, as it now stands established, and took the oath of allegiance-age 14 years."
The descendants of Sir Hugh Caverly are found in Croy- don,* England, and hence, Philip, the first of the family in this country, so far as we know, probably came. Philip first appears upon record as a member of a jury of inquest impan= elled at Portsmouth, N. H., in 1680.t
Two years later, this same Philip Caverly witnessed a Power of Attorney, given by "Joseph Juell and Isabel Juell" to one Samuel Reed, of Mendon, Mass., to sell land in Ports- mouth. Here the name Caverly was written thus: Cavrly, without the e.
The following, copied from the "Records of the births, marriages and deaths, in Portsmouth," probably refer to a son and daughter of the aforesaid Philip Caverly :
" Moses Caverly and Margaret Cotton both of this town were marryd 30 Jan'y 1714."
" Elizabeth Caverly"-" Tho. Wilkinson of London in Great Britain and Elizabeth Caverly of Portsmouth w'r mar- ry'd Aug'st, 1715."
Moses and Margaret Caverly had three sons, viz .: Moses, Jr., Thomas and Nathaniel. The father and son, Thomas, removed to Barrington, and now sleep at the old "French Mill" place, with marble slabs at the heads of all that rest
* A town about ten miles south of London.
t Colonial Records.
471
CAVERLY FAMILY.
there. Nathaniel married and removed to Township Number Four (now Charlestown), where he died. Moses, Jr., the eldest son, married a Johnson, of Portsmouth, about the year 1741, and resided there till 1770 or '71, when he removed to Bar- rington. He had five sons, Charles, Philip, John,* William and Charles 2d ; and one daughter, Abigail, all of whom were born in Portsmouth.
Charles, the oldest son of Moses, Jr., was a soldier in the French war. IIe enlisted from Portsmouth, April 19, 1760, in the company commanded by Capt. Ephraim Berry, and was stationed several months with his company at Crown Point, N. Y. This company was ordered to Canada, and in advanc- ing from Crown Point towards St. Johns, the first military post in Canada, one of the horses in the boat jumped into the water, and in order to rescue the animal, young Caverly plunged int , the water after him, and it is supposed that he was wounded in his struggles with the beast, as he sank and was drowned.t
Philip Caverly, the second son of Moses, Jr., was born March 23, 1745, removed, with his father and the rest of the family, to Barrington, married Bridget Pendergast,# and resided there till his death, April 1, 1813. During the time of the Revolutionary war, he took an active part in opposing the arbitrary acts of the British. His name occurs upon the " Test Papers" from his adopted town, as one who joined the " American Association," and in 1777, he entered the army and was on duty several months in the State of Rhode Island. After the war, his time was devoted to farming, and he owned one of the best farms in that part of Barrington which is now included in Strafford, and had considerable property invested
* John, born in 1752, married and settled in Barrington, where he died in 1842, leaving children. William died early, and left no children. Charles, 2d, married and settled in Newport, Maine, where he died at an advanced age, leaving many descendants.
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