USA > Vermont > Windham County > Whitingham > Some facts about the early history of Whitingham, Vermont > Part 2
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Limits following, that is to say. Beginning at a Hemlock Tree and a Beach Tree growing close together having two large stones laid between them, standing in the Line run for the Bounds of the Province of the Massachusetts Bay and which Beach Tree is marked with these words. The Corner of Cumberland, and runs thence North ten degrees East six Miles: then North eighty degrees West six Miles, then South ten degrees West six Miles to the aforesaid Line run for the Bounds of the Province of the Massa- chusetts Bay, and then along the said Line South ten degrees East six Miles to the said Place of beginning, and to grant to the Inhabitants of the same such Powers and Privileges as the Inhabi- tants of other Townships in our said Province of New York have and do enjoy: Know Ye therefore that of our especial Grace, certain knowledge and Meer Motion, We do by these Presents create, erect and constitute the said Tract of Land, hereby granted, and all other the Lands included within the Bounds and Limits last Mentioned and every Part and Parcel there- of one Township forever, hereafter to be con- tinue and remain, and by the Name of WHIT- INGHAM forever, hereafter to be called and known, and for the better and more easily carry-
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ing on and managing the public affairs and Busi- ness of the same Township our Royal Will and Pleasure, and we do hereby for us and our heirs and successors give and grant to the Inhabitants of the said Township all the Powers, Authorities, Privileges and Advantages heretofore given and granted to or legally enjoyed by all, any or either our other Townships within our said Province. And we also ordain and establish that there shall be forever hereafter in the said Township two Assessors, one Treasurer, two Overseers of the Highways, two Overseers of the Poor, one Col- lector and four Constables, elected and chosen out of the Inhabitants of the said Township yearly and every year on the first Tuesday in May at the most publick Place in the said Town- ship by the majority of the Freeholders thereof then and there met and assembled for that Pur- pose ; hereby declaring that wheresoever the first election in the said Township shall be held, the future elections shall forever thereafter be held in the same Place as near as may be and giving and granting to the said officers, so chosen, Power and Authority to exercise their said several and respective offices, during one whole year from such election, and until others are legally chosen and elected in their Room and stead as fully and
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amply as any the like officers have or legally may use or exercise their offices in our said Province : And in case any or either of the said officers of the said Township shall die or remove from the said Township before the time of their annual service shall be expired, or refuse to act in the Offices for which they shall respectively be chosen, then our Royal Will and Pleasure fur- ther is, and we do hereby direct, ordain and require the Freeholders of the said Township to meet at the Place where the annual Election shall be held for the said Township, and choose other or others of the said Inhabitants of the said Township in the place and stead of him or them so dying, removing or refusing to act, within forty days next after such contingency and to prevent any undue election in this case, We do hereby ordain and require that upon every Vacancy in the Office of Assessors, the Treas- urer, and in either of the other offices, the Assess- ors of the said Township, shall within ten days next after any such vacancy first happens, ap- point the day for such Election, and give publick Notice thereof in writing under his or their hands by affixing such notice on the Church Door or other most publick Place in the said Township at the least ten days before the day
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appointed for such Election, and in default thereof, We do hereby require the Officer or Officers of the said Township or the survivor of them, who in the order they are hereinbefore mentioned shall next succeed him or them so making Default, to appoint the day for such Election, and give notice thereof as aforesaid, hereby giving and granting to such Person or Persons as shall be so chosen by the majority of such of the Freeholders of the said Township as shall meet in manner hereby directed shall have, hold, exercise and enjoy the office or offices to which he or they shall be so elected and chosen from the time of such election until the first Tuesday in May then next following, and until other or others be legally chosen in his or their place and stead, as fully as the Person or Per- sons in whose Place he or they shall be chosen might or could have done by virtue of these Presents. And we do hereby will and direct that this Method shall forever hereafter be used for the filling up all vacancies that shall happen in any of the said Offices between the annual Elec- tions above directed. Provided always and upon Condition nevertheless that if our said Grantees, their heirs or assigns, or some or one of them shall not within three years next after the date
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of this our present Grant settle on the said Tract of Land hereby granted, so many Families as shall amount to one Family for every thousand acres of the same Tract, or if they, our said Grantees or one of them, their or one of their heirs or assigns shall not also within three years to be computed as aforesaid plant and effectually at the least three acres for every fifty acres of such of the hereby granted Lands as are capable of Cultivation; or if they, our said Grantees or any of them, they or any of their heirs or assigns or any other Person or Persons by their or any of their Privity, Consent or Procurement shall fell, cut down or otherwise destroy any of the Pine Trees by these Presents reserved to us, our heirs and Successors, or hereby intended so to be, without the Royal License of us, our heirs or Successors for so doing first had and obtained ; that then and in any of these Cases this our pres- ent Grant and everything therein Contained shall cease and be absolutely void, and the Lands and Premises hereby granted shall revert to and vest in us, our heirs and Successors, as if this, our present Grant had not been made, anything hereinbefore contained to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding:
Provided further and upon Condition also
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nevertheless, and We do hereby for us, our heirs and Successors direct and appoint, that this our present Grant shall be registered and entered on Record within six months from the date thereof in our Secretary's Office in our City of New York in our said Province in one of the Books of Patents there remaining and a Docquet there- of shall be also entered in our Auditor's Office there for our said Province and that in default thereof this our present Grant shall be void and of non Effect, any thing before in these Presents contained to the contrary thereof in any wise notwithstanding, and We do moreover of our especial Grace, certain Knowledge and Meer Motion Consent and agree that this our present Grant being registered, recorded and a Docquet thereof made as before directed and appointed shall be good and effectual in the Law to all Intents, Constructions and Purposes whatsoever against us, our heirs and Successors notwith- standing any misreciting, misbounding, misnam- ing or other Imperfections or Omissions of in or in any wise concerning the above granted or hereby mentioned or intended to be granted Lands, Tenements, Hereditaments and Premises or any part thereof.
In Testimony Whereof We have caused these
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our Letters to be made Patent and the Great Seal of our said Province of New York to be here- unto affixed.
Witness our said trusty and well beloved Cad- wallader Colden, Esquire, our said Lieutenant Governor and Commander in Chief of our said Province of New York and the Territories de- pending thereon in America at our Fort in our City of New York the twelfth day of March in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hun- dred and seventy and of our Reign the Tenth.
Second Skin, the word any in the twenty- fourth being first interlined .- Clarke.
In the preceeding Certificate and Letters re- corded for Nathan Whiting and others, page 52 Line 15 the word "thereof" is interlined. Ex- amined and compared this 15 March, 1770, By me.
GEO. BANYER, D. Sec'ry. Recorded in Book 15, page 51 &c.
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PLAN OF WHITINGHAM AT TIME OF CHARTER MARCH 12, 1770.
Draper
124 chains
178 chains
178 chains
Lieut. Etherington 1,000 acres
chaing
169-2
2,000 acres
Lieut. Carleton
Capt. Walker 3,000 acrhs
177
Lieut. Nordbergh 2,000 acres
Fitch's 6,900 acres
125 chains
Halifax
North 10° East, 6 miles
310-2
Lieut. Gamble 2,000 acres
Lieut. Eddington 2,000 acres
Capt. Whiting 3,000 acres
178 chains
Treo
65 chains
118} chains
118} chains
178 chains
480 chains
Tree Corner of Cumberland
Province of Massachusetts Bay
Thus was Whitingham chartered and sur- veyed, more carefully than any surveying has since been done until recently. In surveying
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these lands more than fifty acres in each thou- sand were allowed for "highways" or "bad and unprofitable acres," so that the entire 23,040 acres were covered or six miles square. These grantees were officers in the French and Indian wars. Thomas Etherington received a part of the thirty thousand dollars paid by Vermont to New York as a compromise for grants made in Vermont, but whether it was for the grant in this town or not I do not know, nor have I learned what, if anything, Lieut. James Edding- ton, Lieut. John Nordbergh or Lieut. Dennis Carleton did in relation to their grants, but the "land grabbers" not of New York, seized a large part of them. 1417498
Samuel Darby built a house and had posses- sions on T. Etherington's patent as early as 1776 and November 5 of that year gave Silas Hamil- ton authority to sell the same .- Green Leaves, page 102.
With or without right, Silas Hamilton was living in that part of the town soon after the charter was granted, and probably built a house there that year. He built the first hotel in town on the place known as the Addison Eames place. About the year 1780 he and seven associates petitioned for a grant of three thousand acres,
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to the authorities of Vermont, and their petition was granted as follows :
(L. S.)
THE GOVERNOR; COUNCIL AND
STATE OF VERMONT - GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE FREE- MEN OF VERMONT.
To all people to whom these presents shall Come, GREETING :
Know Ye that whereas it has been represented to us by our worthy friend Silas Hamilton and associates, that there is a certain tract of Vacant land within this State, which has not been here- tofore granted, which they pray may be granted to them, we have therefore thought fit for the due encouragement of settling a new plantation within this State and other valuable considera- tions us hereunto moving and do by these Pres- ents in the name and by the authority of the free- men of Vermont give and grant unto the said Silas Hamilton and the several persons here- after named his associates, viz .: Thomas Sterns, John Butler, James Roberts, Abner Moor, James Angel, Charles Dodge, and Eliphalet Hyde, bounded as follows, viz .: Beginning at the southeast corner of Wilmington and the northeast corner of Whitingham beach tree marked P. P. M. thence bounded on Wilming-
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
ton north eighty degrees west 176 chains and 25 links to a small maple tree marked P. P. M. thence south 10 degrees west 171 chains and 25 links to a large beach tree marked M. E. 111 thence south eighty degrees east 176 chains and 25 links to a large hemlock tree on Halifax line, thence bounded on Halifax line north 10 degrees east 171 chains and 25 links to the first mentioned bounds, containing three thousand acres.
And the said tract of land is hereby declared to be joined to the Township of Whitingham or entitled to receive equal privileges and immuni- ties in connection with said town as other cor- porated Towns within this state do by law exer- cise and enjoy. To have and to hold the said granted premises with every appurtenance and privilege to them and their respective heirs and assigns as above described to their free and full enjoyment forever.
In Testimony whereof we have caused the seal of this State to be affixed this 15th day of March, A.D., 1780, and in the third year of the independence of this State.
THOMAS CHITTENDEN.
JONAS FAY, Sec'y.
This was evidently intended to cover the same territory as the grant to Lieutenant Nordbergh
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and Etherington, though the distance given is a little less.
The State asked for this grant six thousand shillings, but June 8, 1780, reduced the price to three thousand, money made good as in 1774. This is now known as Hamilton's Grant. Feb- ruary 23, 1781, the General Assembly of Ver- mont passed a resolve that a grant of land be made to Robert Bratton and seven associates in the northeast corner of Whitingham of five thousand acres .- Jillson's address.
If this is not a mistake in copying it certainly is in statement for the grant was made for two thousand acres, November 22, 1782, and in the northwest corner, and covered the lands form- erly granted to Lieut. Carleton, and to Bratton and six associates. The petition called for 5,000 acres, but before the grant was made, October 22, 1782, a grant covering the grant to Capt. John Walker, was made as follows :
"TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1782.
Resolved that there be and is hereby granted and conferred to Messrs Samuel Wells, Jona- than Hunt and Arad Hunt three thousand acres of land lying in Whitingham with the usual
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
allowances for highways in such proportion as they heretofore claimed the same under a grant from the late government of New York, for such fees the Governor and Council shall judge reasonable, upon this condition that the said Grantees convey to each settler now actually dwelling on said land, one hundred acres to be laid out in such form as the committee herein- after named shall direct, and to include the im- provements made by such settler within four- teen days after such settler shall have paid or secured to be paid to the said grantees to the satisfaction of said Committee such sum or sums of money as said committee shall judge just.
Provided That the said grantees shall not be holden to convey as aforesaid except as to such settlers who shall pay or secure the payment as aforesaid within one month after such committee shall have determined the price to be paid by them and notice thereof given to them respec- tively, said land hereby granted bounded as fol- lows, viz .: Beginning at the northwest corner of a tract of land granted by the late government of New York to Lieut. Thomas Etherington, and runs thence north 80 degrees west 178 chains, thence south 10 degrees west 177 chains, thence south 80 degrees east 178 chains, thence north
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10 degrees east 177 chains to the place of begin- ning, and further Resolved that Col. Zadock Granger and Capt. Whittemore of Marlborough and Luke Knowlton, Esq., of New Fane or such other person or persons as the parties shall mutually agree on shall be a committee for the purpose aforesaid."
John Walker seems by some kind of arrange- ment to have transferred his three thousand acres to Col. Samuel Wells of Brattleboro and he in turn to Jonathan and Arad Hunt of Ver- non, then called Hinsdale. It would be interest- ing to know whom these settlers were.
March 6, 1774, when Col. Wells owned this grant he mortgaged it to William Wincher of New York, and September 8, 1774, he deeded lot No. 1 of this grant to Hezekiah Leffenwell, who in two days mortgaged it back to Wells. See Cumberland Deeds.
Why, if Samuel Wells owned the Walker grant should he ask a grant from Vermont, then in a new and uncertain state, and with uncertain authority; and why did he ask a grant of land he had already sold, unless he had taken back the Leffenwell lot? But he had not, for Leffen-
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
well sold it, and the title is regular down to this date.
What, if anything, was done under the com- mission I am not informed.
There was a supplementary grant to the Hunts as follows :
(L. S.) 1 THE GOVERNOR, COUNCIL AND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF VERMONT.
To all persons to whom these presents shall Come, GREETING:
KNOW YE THAT Whereas Jonathan Hunt and Arad Hunt, Esquires, our worthy friends, have by petition requested and obtained a grant of land within this State for the purpose of Settle- ment, we have therefore thought fit for the due encouragement of their laudable designs and in consequence of their faithful performance of the conditions of the grant of land aforesaid, and do by these presents and in the name and by the authority of the freemen of the State of Ver- mont, give and grant unto the aforesaid Jonathan Hunt and Arad Hunt their heirs and assigns forever the lots or pieces of land hereafter bounded and described as follows, to wit :
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
Three lots in the Township of Whitingham, being a part of three thousand acres granted to Capt. John Walker, a reduced officer, said lots containing one hundred and ninety-six acres in each lot and are numbered two, three and five as expressed in a certain indenture of release made to the said Jonathan Hunt and Arad Hunt by Samuel Wells and is contained in a grant made by the Legislature of this State to Messrs Samuel Wells and the aforesaid Jonathan and Arad Hunt on the 22d day of October, 1782, of three thousand acres of land in the aforesaid Whitingham, the aforesaid three lots of land containing in the whole six hundred acres or thereabouts, reserving to the use of the public the usual allowance for highways.
To have and to hold the aforesaid Lots and Pieces of land as above described, with all the privileges and appurtenances belonging thereto to the above said Jonathan Hunt and Arad Hunt and each of their respective heirs and assigns forever, they doing and performing the settle- ment and duty required by Law on other Grants made by this State.
In Testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the Seal of this State to be affixed this 25th day of October, 1787.
THOMAS CHITTENDEN.
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
In 1796 a tract of land was granted to Green, Moulton and others, as Whitingham Gore, as follows :
(L. S.) - J MEN OF THE STATE OF VERMONT. GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE FREE- THE GOVERNOR, COUNCIL AND
To all People to Whom these presents shall Come, GREETING :
KNOW YE that whereas, that whereas our worthy friend, Mr. Amos Green and Company to the numbers of sixteen have by petition re- quested a grant of unlocated land within this State for the purpose of settlement, we have therefore thought fit for the due encouragement of their laudable designs and for other valuable causes and considerations as hereunto moving, do by these presents in the name and by the authority of the freemen of the State of Vermont give grant unto the said Amos Green & Com- pany the tract of land hereafter bounded & de- scribed to be divided into equal shares as fol- lows, viz: Samuel Moulton, Thomas Day, Sam- uel Day, James Howard, Seth Howard, Benja- min Nelson, Benjamin Blodgett, Benjamin Blodgett, Jr., Samuel Nelson, Solomon Moul-
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ton, Asaph White, William Nelson, Thomas Blodgett, Abishai Blodgett and Daniel Wallace reserving three hundred acres out of said tract of land for the following public use, viz: One hundred acres for the use and benefit of a college within this State, one hundred acres for the use and support of a school or schools within said tract & one hundred acres for the use and sup- port of the first settled minister of the gospel within said tract of land to be disposed of for the sole and exclusive purposes aforesaid in such way and manner as the Proprietors or inhabi- tants of said tract shall judge proper the same to remain unalienable & the rents, profits and moneys arising therefrom shall be appropriated to the several uses aforesaid, and the said three hundred acres shall be divided into three equal parts & be so laid out within said tract as to be equal in quality and in such situation as will best answer the purposes for which they are reserved -which tract of land hereby given and granted as aforesaid is bounded and described as follows, viz:
BEGINNING at the southwest corner of Whit- ingham at a maple tree standing in the North line of the State of Massachusetts being 24 perches west of the West bank of Deerfield
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
River & running South 81 degrees & 30 minutes 290 chains to a spruce tree marked O, then North 8 degrees 30 minutes East 174 chains and 50 links to a maple tree marked, standing in the South line of Col. Fitches Grant, then North 81 degrees and 30 minutes 290 chains to a stake & stones, then South 8 degrees and 30 minutes West 174 chains & 50 links to the bounds begun at, containing five thousand & sixty acres & eighty perches. Bounding South on the State of Massachusetts Bay, East on Col. Whiting's pat- ent, North on Col. Fitches patent and West on Readsborough and that the same hereby is incor- porated into a district by the name of WHITING- HAM GORE and that the inhabitants that do or shall hereafter inhabit said district are declared to be enfranchised and entitled to all the privi- leges and immunities of citizens and exercise all legal power & authority in support of their inter- nal rights as fully and amply and (?) other in- corporated districts within the State do by law exercise and enjoy.
To HAVE AND TO HOLD the said granted premises as expressed in the aforesaid grant with all the privileges & appurtenances thereunto be- longing & appurtaining to them & their respec- tive heirs & assigns forever upon the following
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conditions, viz. : that each proprietor of the said district of Whitingham Gore, his heirs or assigns shall plant & cultivate five acres of land & build a house at least eighteen feet square on the floor or have one family on each respective right with- in the term of four years from the time of sur- veying the out lines of said Gore on the penalty of the forfeiture of each respective right or share of land not so settled & improved as aforesaid and the same to revert to the freemen of this State to be by their Representatives regranted to such persons as shall appear to settle and culti- vate the same that all pine timber suitable for a Navy be reserved for the use and benefits of the freemen of this State:
In Testimony Whereof we have caused the seal of this State to be affixed at Rutland this 20th day of October, Anno Domini, 1796 & the 20th year of our independence.
WITNESS our well beloved Thomas Chitten- den, Esquire, Governor of our said State, Cap- tain General & Commander in Chief of all the Militia of the same.
THOMAS CHITTENDEN.
By his Excellency's Command TRUMAN SQUIRE, Secretary.
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
This piece of land was evidently intended to cover the grant of Lieut. Eddington, Lieut. Gamble and the land to the West-but the meas- ure lacks about 50 rods of reaching the entire length of the premises.
Probably a petition had been presented for this grant as early as September, 1783, in peti- tions to the legislature describe this as land granted to Green and Moulton.
A petition dated Sept. 29, 1783, set forth that the subscribers were settlers of the town of Whit- ingham, that they presented a petition dated Sept. 22, 1778, for land granted by New York to Col. Fitch and his associates, they now renew their request for said land containing about six thousand acres, bounded east on the east line of Whitingham, north on land formerly granted to Capt. Walker and one Nordbergh by two New York patents and south on Col. Whiting's grant and a grant formerly made to Lieut. Gambell York patents.
Your petitioners some of us moved here near or quite ten years ago.
Reciting their great hardship in making roads
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WHITINGHAM, VERMONT
and bridges, and signed by Leonard Pike, Nathan Green, Elijah Pike, Levi Shumway, James Reed, Amos Green, Bille Clark, Jesse Groves, Jona Thompson, Joshua Coleman, Nathaniel Streeter, John Marks, John Rugg, Fitch Lamphire, Joseph Doubleday, Jonathan Shumway, John Nelson.
This was not granted to them. It was the major part of the grant to Nathan Whiting and others when Whitingham was chartered and is known as Fitches Patent.
There was another petition dated Oct. 2, 1783, claiming that the petitioners since the year 1772, had entered upon and settled a tract of land in the township of Whitingham containing about 3,000 acres.
This is Whiting's grant and they bound it on the west by Lieut. Gambell's New York Patent since granted by this State to Amos Green and others and ask for a reasonable consideration signed Amasa Shumway, Eliphalet Gustin, Jr., Chandler Lamphere, Eliphalet Gustin, James Mullett, Eleazer Gleason, Benajah Lamphire, Levi Shumway, Benjamin Crittenden, Jonathan Edgcomb.
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