USA > Vermont > Windsor County > Hartford > Pictorial history of the town of Hartford, Vermont, 1761-1963 > Part 10
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III. Scouts and Rangers-Robert Rogers on his way down the Connecticut.
IV. British Regulars and Colonials on their way to New England Round a camp-fire they celebrate the Fall of Quebec.
V. Benning Wentworth's Wedding with Martha Hilton. Men from Connecticut come to ask for the Charter of Hartford and its sister towns.
VI. The coming of the First Settlers, Wrights, Tildens, Gillettes, Hazens, and Marshes.
VIII.
VII. A Sunday service in the open, Aaron Hutchinson preaches. Arrival of Eleazar Wheelock and thirty students of Dart- mouth on their way to Hanover-their welcome by people in Hartford.
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4
K
NISTONIDAL PAGEANT, HARTFORD.
IX. News of Bunker Hill-Town Meeting of June 19, 1775- Organization of the Town for defense-Drilling of the Hartford Volunteers.
X. The Republic of the Green Mountains (symbolic). Muster of Men for Bennington, August 14, 1777.
XI. Alarm of October 16, 1780-Phineas Parkhurst's Ride- March of the Minute Men.
XII. Social Life in the Early 19th Century-A Husking-Bee.
XIII. Finale-Ensemble of the Pageant-Citizens of the Future.
The following story concerning the pageant appeared in "The Vermonter" magazine dated August 1911. The article was written by Kate M. Cone of Hartford, Vermont.
"The site chosen for the Hartford pageant was on the southeast end of the ancient river terrace which overlooks White River Junction from the north. Its steep sides are well-wooded, with glimpses of Ascutney Mountain and neighboring hills through the trees. The pageant took place on an open spot of ground in front of a small pine grove. Back of the cleared space was the simulation of a river-bank edged with bushes. At the left was a small stage slightly elevated. Through the grove behind the river-bank a road
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was cut which, turning, led upon the scene at the right. The groups of actors entered by this road and so were seen approaching from a distance, an arrangement which added much picturesqueness. Most of the exits were made at the extreme left. The orchestra and the sides of the exit were concealed by a masking of small pines. What the audience saw was in effect a glade in the forest near the green bank of a river, such a spot as might have been found near the mouth of White River in Indian times or when white men first came here . .. Different villages and associations furnished the actors for the several scenes-Wilder the Indians, Hartford the Captives, West Hartford the Scouts, Quechee-to its everlasting credit be it said, for it was five miles from the pageant grounds- the sixty first settlers. The Y.M.C.A. boys were the Dartmouth students, the Loyal Club furnished the Husking-Bee, the West Lebanon Fortnightly the Wedding Guests and the Royalton Refu- gees, the White River Woodmen the British Soldiers and Provin- cials, the Hartford Woodmen the French Soldiers ... The Hartford Pageant was a great artistic success."
CENTER OF THE TOWN MARKER
On Wednesday, July 5th, 1911, the 150th anniversary of the granting of the Charter, a granite memorial was unveiled at the Center of the Town, with the Misses French and Collins assisting. This ceremony, along with the Hartford Pageant, made 1911 a memorable year in the Town's history. On this marker appears the following inscription :
THIS MEMORIAL MARKS THE CENTER OF THE TOWN OF HARTFORD DETERMINED BY SURVEY IN 1774 HERE WAS THE PARADE OR CONVENIENT GREEN ON WHICH WERE DRILLED HARTFORD'S SOLDIERS IN THE REVOLUTION HERE STOOD THE MEETING HOUSE BUILT BY THE TOWN IN 1784 USED FOR RELIGIOUS SERVICES UNTIL 1808 AND FOR TOWN MEETINGS UNTIL 1872 HERE ON MEETING HOUSE SQUARE WAS HELD THE ANNUAL JUNE TRAINING DAY UNTIL 1844 NEAR BY STOOD FREEGRACE LEAVITT'S TAVERN AND UNTIL 1840 THE TOWN CLERK'S OFFICE Erected by Thomas Chittenden Chapter DAR July 4, 1911
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UNVEILING OF CENTER OF TOWN MARKER- MISS COLLINS AND MISS FRENCH ASSISTING
FIRE DESTROYS UNION DEPOT
Daniel Houlihan, night ticket agent at the Union Depot in White River Junction, was startled when he discovered smoke seeping from the partition near the ceiling in his office. It was nearly four o'clock in the morning, Tuesday, November 28, 1911. Through most of the summer the depot had been undergoing repairs and repaint- ing and the project had just recently been completed. The depot presented a neat, clean, new appearance. About $15,000 had been invested in this work.
Mr. Houlihan summoned the night manager of the Depot Cafe and the two men, armed with chemical extinguishers, attempted to put out the fire. The blaze being between partitions was ex- tremely difficult to reach and, as smoke continued to pour from the walls of the room, a call was made for the assistance of the local fire department. The firemen laid two hose lines across the tracks from a nearby hydrant in the village and soon had a stream of water on the building. The Junction House owners sent over their
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RUINS OF UNION DEPOT
chemical equipment to assist in saving the building. It looked like a slow fire that would be easily put under control.
About six o'clock a flash of flame shot up through the roof. The flames then spread rapidly and the firefighters could see that any effort to save the building would be useless. All attention was then focused on controlling the spread of the flames to nearby buildings and into the village. Fortunately it was not a windy day.
The depot was a total loss. The telegraph office was moved into the telephone building where two lines were quickly put into opera- tion. The telegraph office was later moved into a car near the Passumpsic tracks. A train shed at the north end of the station was converted into a waiting room and ticket office, and the express office moved into vacant office space in the Junction House.
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ARZA WYMAN 833-1912
ARZA WYMAN GRAVE-CAMP GROUNDS
ARZA WYMAN
Deep in the woodland about two hundred feet north of the Advent Camp Meeting Grounds is a lonely single grave. This grave has a marker bearing the name "Arza Wyman-1833-1912-Co. G. 5th Vt. Vol."
A check of town burial records shows the name to be recorded as Arzell Wyman. His military records and records on file at the Vermont Soldiers' Home in Bennington, Vermont, show "Arzell" to be the correct spelling of his name. Mr. Wyman was a widower and had one son whose address was listed as "unknown" in the Bennington records.
Service records on Arzell Wyman show that he was born in Stockbridge, Vermont, January 17, 1833. He enlisted in the Civil War on September 15, 1861. His residence at that time was shown as Sherburne, Vermont. He was discharged September 27, 1864, after which he spent most of his life in the carpenter's trade. He died February 8, 1912.
Although he is buried in this isolated spot he is not forgotten. Each year, on Memorial Day, a flag is placed over his grave show- ing that his service to his country during the Civil War is still gratefully remembered.
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An article appearing in The Landmark, November 5, 1897, re- lates the story of another unusual burial spot :
"About a mile and a half below the Junction, in the Connecticut River is Johnson's island, named after one of the early pioneers of the region. He was drowned at the mouth of the White River some time in the 1770's and his body was afterwards recovered and buried on the island. A stone with inscription nearly effaced by the storms of a century or longer marked his grave and has been for years an object of historical interest. A recent visitor to the island could not find the stone or any traces of it. It is hoped that no person has wantonly destroyed this old relic of the past or carried it off as a curiosity."
INTER-STATE TRUST COMPANY
The Inter-State Trust Company was organized in 1912 by indi- viduals associated with the First National Bank of White River Junction. Its purpose was to provide additional mortgage loan
INTER -STATE TRUST COMPANY
OFFICE OF INTER-STATE TRUST COMPANY
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facilities for the community, as laws at that time did not favor real estate loans being made by national banks.
Its original capital was $25,000 but its growth has far ex- ceeded the expectations of its founders, who visualized an institu- tion with resources of possibly one-half million dollars. At present it has capital funds of $545,000 and deposits of $6,300,000.
Although the Inter-State Trust Company is by its charter em- powered to act as trustee, executor or guardian, its chief activity consists of receiving savings deposits and making real estate loans on property in Hartford and nearby towns. It has always been under local ownership and local management.
Until 1940 the Trust Company shared quarters with the First National Bank. In March of that year it purchased the building formerly used by the Hartford Savings Bank and Trust Company, which has been its home since that time.
Since the opening of the Trust Company the following persons have served as its officers :
Presidents
Robert E. Smith
1912-1917
Howard J. Miller
1918-1945
G. H. Miller
1946-1953
Everett J. Eaton
1953-
Treasurers
W. W. Russell
1912-1916
Chas. L. LeBourveau
1916-1948
Rollo L. Dimick
1949-1961
Stanley C. Wright
1962-
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION LOSES ITS WOODEN BRIDGE
During the first half of the nineteenth century there was no bridge connecting the village of White River Junction with "The Point". Anyone wishing to go to West Lebanon had to travel to White River Village (now Hartford), cross the river at that point, and then travel back to the Lyman bridge-making a trip of nearly four miles. As early as 1860 the residents began agitating for the town to build a bridge but the measures were voted down with the contention that White River Junction would never become large enough to warrant such an investment. Finally in 1866, George
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WHITE RIVER BRIDGE SHORTLY BEFORE ITS DESTRUCTION
Lyman and Asa T. Barron of White River Junction wrote to various bridge-building firms and individual contractors for estimates on a bridge over the White River at the Junction. The various bids were presented for consideration at the Town Meeting in 1867 and the voters agreed to the project.
The contract was awarded to James Tasker of Cornish, New Hampshire. Although the bid was in the neighborhood of $7,000, records concerning the bridge reveal that the cost-complete with litigation-amounted to $13,426.62. The original bridge did not have any walks for pedestrians, two covered walks being added at a later date.
The bridge served the White River residents for 45 years, its service coming to an abrupt ending in March of 1913. The White River, already swollen by the melting snow of spring, had reached unprecedented heights, and when it began to rain during the night of March 24, 1913, the residents of White River felt that trouble was imminent. At Sharon, Vermont, 10 miles up the river, 2,500,000 feet of logs, owned by the Champlain Realty Company, were being
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DANGER
RUINS OF BRIDGE ON RIVER BANK
held fast in a boom awaiting the annual drive to the International Paper Company mills in Bellows Falls. The logs were already straining at the chains and the floating logs were perilously near the point where the boom could no longer restrain them.
The rain continued for three days and three nights, the swollen river rising rapidly. Finally on March 28th, the boom could rise no further and the logs swept headlong over the top racing madly -a jumbled mass of destruction. Three bridges above White River Junction-the West Hartford bridge, the railroad trestle at Centre- ville, and the Hartford bridge were left unscathed. When they reached White River, the tangled logs hit the north end of the covered bridge with a tremendous force and with much creaking and snapping of timbers, and the flash of severed electric wires, the bridge swung around on its moorings completely and was slapped against the bank looking very much like a large whale stranded out of water.
Anticipating this development, the railroad company had loaded their iron trestle with heavy freight to fortify it against the blow.
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The logs swept down the river and around the corner into the Connecticut unobstructed. The old White River bridge was gone. The splintered hulk laid useless against the bank for weeks.
The Town brought suit against the Champlain Realty Company for damages. The story is summed up in the Selectmen's report for 1913, giving all the details. This report follows, copied verbatim, their well-worded summary providing all the historical data con- cerning this disaster.
REPORT OF SELECTMEN For the Year Ending December 31, 1913
To the Citizens of the Town of Hartford :
The loss by reason of the pressure of logs of The Champlain Realty Co., of our covered bridge at White River Junction during the high water of last March is the most serious damage our Town has sustained in many years. We first put all our attention to build- ing a temporary bridge and took counsel of men of long experience in just such emergencies. They all advised a bridge on piles. We went to Boston and got bids from three different firms, in addition to one by the H. P. Cummings Construction Co.
The Cummings Co. were the lowest and we awarded the contract to them at their bid of $5000, at which price they took the old bridge to pieces, used what they needed in building the temporary structure and piled the remaining timber on the meadow near by. After some inquiry we engaged as Engineer (with the approval of the State Highway Commissioner) J. P. Snow of Boston, formerly Chief Engineer of the Boston & Maine Railroad. Immediately after the special Town Meeting he began plans for a steel bridge and foundation.
The contract for the masonry was let to the lowest bidder, J. W. Buswell, of Salisbury, Mass., and the total cost of same to the Town is $12,841.70.
The contract for the steel work was let to the Canton Bridge Co., of Groton, N. Y., who were the lowest bidders; they build the bridge by the pound and we expect there will be no incentive to build it too light.
The Town has bought hard pine plank for the floor at a cost of $1187.00 laid down here; these planks are piled in good shape and will be thoroughly air dried when ready for use. It is our intention to cover the floor with concrete as soon as practicable.
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We gave the matter of raising the new bridge very careful study. After getting Mr. Snow's advice we consulted with the State High- way Commissioner and others, and finally decided that as a perma- nent improvement that would serve the Town for many years, it was not wise to raise it less than four feet. We accordingly did raise it four feet, and at that level the under side of the iron work will be nine inches above the highest water of last Spring. It necessitated raising the Engine House of Fire District No. 1, and we have paid $500.00 of that expense.
Regarding the loss of the old bridge, we have engaged as counsel, Young & Young of Newport, Vt., who will be associated with your Town Agent, J. G. Harvey, and D. A. Pingree, and have brought suit against The Champlain Realty Co. for $60,000 damages, attach- ing property assessed at over $80,000. We expect the case to be tried in June.
ROBT. E. SMITH GEO. H. FULLER ROBERT F. MEECH, Selectmen
Hartford, Vermont, January 31, 1914
The Town Report of 1915 reported the closing of the case as follows :
"Early in the year, we cleaned up the balance of expenses con- nected with the Town suit against the Champlain Realty Company, and effected a settlement in which they paid the Town $15,000."
FIRE DISTRICT NO. 2, HARTFORD, VERMONT
A petition was submitted to the Selectmen on December 14, 1914, to establish a fire district in the village of Hartford, Vermont.
On January 9, 1915, the Selectmen responded to the petition by defining the limits of the district and designating it as Fire District No. 2.
Appointing their first Chief Engineer in March of 1915, the following have served in that capacity since its beginning :
C. L. Parker, March 29, 1915, January 3, 1916.
A. J. Allard, January 3, 1916, January 12, 1920.
W. C. Morse, January 12, 1920, January 10, 1921.
A. D. Childs, January 10, 1921, January 9, 1922.
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FIRE STATION IN HARTFORD VILLAGE
Rudolph LeClair, January 9, 1922, January 8, 1923. Fred Bourlet, January 8, 1923, January 12, 1925. Vincent Coutermarsh, January 12, 1925, January 14, 1935. Cecil C. Stockwell, January 14, 1935, January 10, 1938. Harry Broggie, January 10, 1938, January 8, 1940. Floyd Coutermarsh, January 8, 1940, January 13, 1941. Bernard Roberts, January 13, 1941, January 10, 1944. Leon E. Stone, January 10, 1944, January 8, 1945. Samuel Pingree, January 8, 1945, January 12, 1948. Stanley Roberts, January 12, 1948, January 9, 1950. Fred Mossey, January 9, 1950, January 8, 1951. S. E. Pingree, January 8, 1951, January 11, 1954. John Martin, January 11, 1954, May 1, 1961.
On February 20, 1961 the townspeople voted to consolidate the district with Fire District No. 1 in White River Junction.
The White River Junction Fire District voted to accept the Hartford District on March 1, 1961.
The two districts were consolidated effective May 1, of that year.
With the discontinuance of the Hartford department the White River Junction department became responsible for coverage of the entire Township.
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HISTORY OF HARTFORD
CLEANING UP THE REAR OF THE CONNECTICUT RIVER LOG DRIVE
LOG DRIVE -1914
One of the sights sure to arrest the attention of native or traveler in the early days was the annual log drive. Teams loaded with sup- plies, hawsers or tentage, passing down a village street, announced the nearness of the drive. Men were stationed at points along the river, while the logs were coming down, to prevent formation of jams which would endanger bridges and dams and obstruct the channels. The drivers moved from log to log applying pressure to key logs to keep them moving.
After a while word would come that "the rear" was only a few miles upstream. This meant that most of the men, twenty or thirty horses, and a whole flotilla of boats and big rafts were on the way. They travelled only a few miles a day removing every last log that was stranded on meadows, islands, and dry channels. One raft would have several horses, another, bags of grain and bales of hay as well as food supplies and split dry wood for the kitchen stove. A scow with a house on it contained the kitchen. One boat had a forge and anvil and a much needed blacksmith. This was a community in itself, and one of the most picturesque sights of that day.
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FILMING OF ICE SCENE FOR "WAY DOWN EAST"
"WAY DOWN EAST"
In March of 1920, D. W. Griffith, movie producer, with his stars Lillian Gish and Richard Barthelmess, supporting cast, technicians, cameramen, and numerous props, moved into White River Junction to film the ice scenes for the movie version of "Way Down East." The stage play of this story ran 22 years and it was reported that Mr. Griffith paid $175,000 for the picture rights. The scenes made in White River were the climax of the play when Anna Moore (Lillian Gish) is driven from the farmhouse of Squire Bartlett, into a terrible winter storm, and his son pursues to bring her back. She falls in exhaustion upon the ice of the river, just as it is break- ing up. The company brought with them, a wind machine fashioned from an airplane propeller, a field kitchen, heavy woolen clothing for fifty people, 20 "dummies", and odds and ends from first aid material to metal tombstones. Scenes for a barn dance were made at the Estabrook farm in West Lebanon and ice scenes in White River, Hartford and Wilder. Sap-gathering scenes were made in Russtown and a village street scene was filmed near the fair-
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grounds. Many local adults and children appeared in various scenes. The finishing touches on the drama were made at the Griffith Studio located in Mamaroneck, New York. The photography was directed in such a manner that there were no familiar landmarks in the scenes to identify the location of the filming.
HOTEL COOLIDGE FIRE
White River Junction's largest fire within the history of the present fire department started shortly after five o'clock in the afternoon of January 29, 1925, destroying the old Junction House. The hotel had just recently been renamed "Hotel Coolidge". Assist- ance had to be summoned from several nearby towns. Lebanon, New Hampshire, responded with a pumper which was greatly needed as the water pressure in the Junction became very low after the fire had been in progress for several hours.
Built in 1879, the hotel was the second in the Junction. The first hotel, which burned in August of 1879, was the Grafton House which Samuel Nutt had brought to White River Junction from
JUNCTION HOUSE IN THE EARLY 1900'S
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Enfield, New Hampshire, in 1849, rebuilding it and renaming it the Junction House.
In 1924 the name of the Junction House was changed to Hotel Coolidge in honor of John Coolidge, father of President Calvin Coolidge.
RUINS OF COOLIDGE HOTEL
This hotel, owned by Nathaniel P. Wheeler, was a popular stopping place for business men and salesmen and was filled to capacity during the days of the Vermont State Fair.
The fire which destroyed the Coolidge Hotel, in addition to being the largest the present department has had to combat, is considered one of the worst in White River Junction history. The loss was estimated at $250,000.
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HISTORY OF HARTFORD
MAPLE STREET UNDERPASS AT HEIGHT OF 1927 FLOOD
1927 FLOOD IN THE TOWN OF HARTFORD
The flood descended very suddenly upon the village of West Hartford, Thursday evening, November 3. The water began rising rapidly about 6 o'clock and by 8 o'clock in the evening it was over the road. John Cloren's cottage was the first house to be swept away followed shortly afterward by the cottage of E. M. Barrows. This house hit the long covered bridge and both the house and bridge collapsed. A house owned by E. M. Barrows and occupied by E. C. Fisher soon followed and later John Harrington's and L. A. Pitkin's homes were washed away. Other houses were inundated and the contents ruined. Every dwelling and building near the river bank was carried away and the river changed its course running where these buildings once stood.
The iron bridge at Hartford was swept from its foundation, several houses were inundated, and roads near the village were rendered impassable.
In Quechee the bridge over the Ottauquechee was badly under- mined and the highways were washed so that they were almost
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HISTORY OF HARTFORD
impassable. A. G. Dewey and Harris-Emery Company were flooded and work was suspended.
Wilder, although receiving less damage than the other villages, was the scene of much concern as earth was washed from the end of the dam and it was feared that the dam might collapse.
It was late at night when White River Junction residents were alerted to the danger of the rising water by the fire alarm. Fire apparatus was removed from the fire station and shortly afterwards the rear of the fire station fell into the river. In many cases people were not aware of the danger until the water had surrounded their homes and rescue work was performed by men in boats being guided by ropes thrown from dry land to the houses. It was only by this means that the boats were kept from being swept away by the swift current.
The river climbed to the floor of the bridge and began pouring into the street on both sides. The buildings occupied by Dutton & Fellows, the Vermont Gateway Garage, A. H. Dutton, Brewster Photo Studio and L. L. Tinkham on the south side of the bridge were badly damaged. On the north side the water covered an area reaching nearly to the high school building. Swanson's Market was filled with water to the ceiling and all the contents were damaged. The grammar school building was undermined and water entered the building. Homes along the banks were seriously damaged and filled with filth and, when the river receded, the road leading to the bridge and many nearby streets were covered with a deposit of mud several feet deep. The local citizens set about clearing the streets ably assisted by a delegation of Dartmouth students.
Telegraph and telephone service was very limited and railroad service was at a standstill.
All through the township damage was tremendous and it was several months before life returned to normal and all services to the town were restored.
WEST HARTFORD LIBRARY
The original West Hartford library was opened in 1922 in a building bordering the river on the opposite side of the main high- way from the Congregational Church.
In November of 1927 West Hartford was one of the villages that suffered tremendous losses during the most devastating flood ever
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HISTORY OF HARTFORD
LIBRARY BUILDING IN WEST HARTFORD
recorded in the state of Vermont. Houses were swept from their foundations. The river changed its course. The small brick library building was completely destroyed by the raging current.
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