USA > Vermont > The Lake Champlain and Lake George valleys, Vol II > Part 2
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43
East of Colchester is the interesting township of Essex, also situ- ated on the Winooski River. Like its western neighbor it was a favorite locality among the Indians. There are several sandy knolls in Essex where flint chips, bits of pottery and even implements have
424
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
been found, sometimes to a depth of several inches. Governor Went- worth issued the town's charter in 1763, but the first English settle- ment of which there is any record occurred twenty years later, in 1783. Town government was organized in 1786, and most of the settlers were from Connecticut and Massachusetts. We know that money was extremely scarce in these early years for records indicate that wheat was used as lawful tender for town services. Although at one time or another various products have been manufactured here, the township has had a greater reputation in agriculture. From a pop- ulation of 354 in 1790 and 729 in 1800, the development of Essex was quite regular and in 1880 there were 2,III residents. Today the population is 2,876.
The reason why this township continued to grow instead of declin- ing after its initial spurt, as did so many communities in Vermont, is that when the railroad era arrived, the Central Vermont lines erected an important junction here at Essex Junction, originally called Hub- bell's Falls from an early settler. E. J. Phelps, who was destined to be Cleveland's representative in England in 1885, had an unfortunate experience at this place on one occasion. Leaving Burlington one morning, with Boston as his intended destination, he became very badly confused by conflicting directions and wrought up by long delays. Finally he ended up in Burlington again. It was not easy for him to forget or forgive, and his vindictive spirit sought revenge by including in a poem those well known words :
I hope in hell Their souls may dwell Who first invented Essex Junction.
Although we can sympathize with the frustrated traveler, he was unkind and unjust to this community, and it hardly deserves the apparently eternal opprobrium reserved for it by this barbed poem. From one who has lived in this pleasing village, as was my fortune for one year, there can be nothing but respect for, and appreciation of, the early founders of the township.
Essex Junction is the industrial center of the town. At an early date mills sprang up on the Winooski, including a lucrative hemp manufacturing plant. This, however, was swept away by the freshet of 1830. Almost a hundred years later it was my fate to witness another flood at the same place, with trees, barns, furniture and all
425
CHITTENDEN COUNTY
kinds of supplies being swept relentlessly in the direction of Lake Champlain. To one who has seen the Winooski only at normal depth, the height of the waters at flood time, and the damage created, would seem quite incredible. The manufacture of bricks, since 1867, has had a place of importance in this village, which today has a population of 1,62I.
The eleven counties of which I write all have famed areas of great natural beauty. There is no iron-clad method of comparing the diverse varieties of scenery. Each resident and each tourist has his own particular preferences. Yet before any person states dogmat- ically his conclusions, he should gaze upon the Winooski Valley in the springtime, when the leaves are new on the trees and the grass is of its richest green. More than one has gone to scoff only to return with hymns of praise.
Hinesburg is east of Charlotte in the southern section of Chitten- den County, having as neighbors on the south the Addison County townships of Monkton and Starksboro. It was chartered by Gover- nor Wentworth in 1762, and named in honor of Abel Hine, a promi- nent grantee. Unlike many other townships its boundaries have never since been altered. Early settlement was slow, however, and only two pioneers came before the Revolution. The grantees themselves, most of whom were from Litchfield County, Connecticut, apparently made no effort to make a settlement in their own right, being interested in their lands as speculative enterprises, solely. Finally, after the war, settlement began in earnest and in 1787 town government was organ- ized. Mills were established and agriculture was also a source of economic advancement. By 1790 there were 454 residents; while in 1800 there were 933. The maximum was reached in 1850 with 1,834, as compared with 1,019 in 1930. Among the early records of the township is a resolution which not only is interesting because of the civic problem it presented, but also because of its connection with Ira Allen. Adopted on January 4, 1790, it read: "Voted that we will choose a committee to refer a complaint to the commissioners appointed by the Legislature at their last session for the purpose of settling and adjusting the account of Ira Allen, esq., late surveyor- general, for an exorbitant charge against this town by sd Allen for cutting roads and preambleateing the town lines."
East of Hinesburg, and bordering on the northeast corner of Addison County, is the odd-shaped mountainous township of Hunting-
426
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
ton. Unlike its western neighbor, it did not retain its boundaries as originally stated in Wentworth's grant of 1763. At first it was known as New Huntington, but in 1795 it became Huntington. The first mills were grist and lumber plants, and even today lumbering shares with dairying the honor of constituting the economic support of this community. Huntington contains precipitous mountains, the best known of which is Camel's Hump. The first settlement was made in 1786 by Jehiel Johns, who came with his wife from Manchester in March of that year by way of Otter Creek, Lake Champlain and the Winooski River, but who originally was from Dutchess County, New York. One of the interesting things about Huntington is the epitaph of Johns' widow, which is peculiarly Puritan in its cheerless philosophy :
First of my sex brought to this town, To keep a house was I; Here by my partner I'm at rest, For we were born to die.
In 1790, town government was organized. Huntington's popula- tion grew to 167 in 1790, and 405 in 1800, while it reached its maxi- mum of 929 in 1830, as compared with 621 of the present day.
Jericho is a township, southeast of Essex, and almost resembles a triangle in shape. It has many interesting attributes. Its name car- ries our thoughts back to Biblical Jericho and the story of the good Samaritan; and here we are certain that our kindhearted Vermonters would not pass by on the other side if they found a fellow-human in trouble. The surface of the land is uneven, the scenery beautiful, while the soil is sometimes good, sometimes bad, and sometimes indif- ferent. The first settlers arrived in 1774; town government was organized in 1786; while the population grew to 381 in 1790, and reached its peak of 1,837 in 1850, as compared with 1,091 at present.
Among the early settlers was one named Joseph Brown. He befriended and fed a man by the name of Gibson, who repaid him by betraying him to the Indians. It seems that one day while Gibson was hunting alone he was captured by the savages. Thinking only of his own wretched hide, he offered to lead them to a whole family if they would set him free. They agreed, and Gibson led the way to the house of his friend, with the result that the Browns were carried away to Canada where they were forced to remain until 1783. On their return to Jericho they found their home in ashes, but resolutely
427
CHITTENDEN COUNTY
built another. For three weeks they lived solely on juice obtained by wetting and pressing cornstalks.
There is also another story of a hunter and his dogs who suc- ceeded in treeing three bears in one tree at nightfall. An enterprising and obliging neighbor, armed only with a pitchfork, finally volun- teered to ascend the tree and dislodge the beasts. He managed to climb unmolested to a point where he could reach them and succeeded in forcing them down. Two of the bears were pounced upon and killed by the men and the dogs, but the third was able to escape into the surrounding gloom.
Another interesting fact about Jericho is that it was the home of W. A. Bentley, the "Snowflake King," who was the world's greatest authority on snowflakes, and who assembled the finest collection of their enlarged photographs ever known. My most intimate acquaint- ance with Jericho also had a flavor of snow. On one occasion, when I was coach of the Essex Junction High School baseball team, an attempt was made to subdue the sons of Jericho on the diamond of that town. Whether victory or defeat resulted I do not know; but I do remem- ber large, soft snowflakes floating majestically down into the rich, green grass to melt upon the earth's warm bosom.
Northeast of Colchester, and bordered by Lake Champlain on the west and by Franklin County on the north, is the township of Milton, named in honor of John Milton, the great English poet. It lies in the valley of the Lamoille River and has a fine reputation for its dairy industry. The township was chartered in 1763 by Governor Went- worth; but no settlement was made within its borders until 1782. This fact is surprising, because Milton should have attracted settlers before most of its neighbors. In any case, the town was organized in 1788, and the population grew to 282 in 1790, 786 in 1800, 1,548 in 1810, and finally reached its maximum of 2,451 in 1850. Since that time it has shrunk to 1,663. At first, the main business of the early settlers seems to have been the production of timber for the Canadian market, while later considerable was shipped to New York. In fact the destruction of forests was so thorough that the streams shrank, destroying many water privileges. Two early town reso- lutions may be of interest. On October 7, 1796, it was "Voted Not to Set of aney Part of Milton to be annected to Colchester," and on March 6, 1797, it was also "Voted that Samuel Levitt Build-
428
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
ings may stand in the highway if not incroch their upon." As has been previously intimated, the early townships tended to rid them- selves of their social problems by warning the indigent, the unfortu- nate, and the indolent out of town, the pioneers evidently feel- ing that they were confronted with enough problems without being bothered with these. This social policy was apparently heartily
(Courtesy of the Burlington Chamber of Commerce)
BURLINGTON CITY HALL PARK IN 1865
approved of by Milton, if the number of people warned out of the town between 1812 and 1825 is a sure indication.
Surrounded by the townships of Williston, Jericho, Bolton, Hun- tington and Hinesburg in the southeastern section of Chittenden County is Richmond. In fact this township, as established by the Vermont Legislature, was created out of its neighbors' territory, with the exception of Hinesburg. The first settlers arrived in 1775, but left in the same year, not returning until 1784. The town government was organized in 1795. Rich soil made Richmond a fine
429
CHITTENDEN COUNTY
farming community, while the presence of the Winooski River cer- tainly did not delay settlement. By 1800 it had a population of 718, which is exactly the total as indicated in the census of 1930 for the village of Richmond. At present the population of the entire town- ship is 1,315. Perhaps the most interesting attraction here is the Old Round Church, which was completed in 1813, and which claims to be the first community church in the country.
Next we come to the tiny township of St. George, surrounded by the larger communities of Williston, Shelburne, and Hinesburg. As originally chartered in 1763 it was to have an area of 23,040 acres, but when the various towns were surveyed there was not enough land to go around and St. George was the one destined to suffer. At pres- ent it is the smallest town in the county with an area of only 2,200 acres, less than one-tenth of its former size. It was named George in honor of the King of England, but why Saint was prefixed, or why George was retained despite the war with the hated House of Han- over, there is no logical explanation. The surface of the township was uneven, but the soil was good, and the settlers tended to turn to dairy- ing. There is no village, however. Although town government was organized in 1813, inhabitants have been few, the population seesaw- ing from 57 in 1790, to 65 in 1800, to 28 in 1810, and to 120 in 1820, while as late as 1880 it had decreased to 93. In 1930, there were 84 residents.
Shelburne is located next to Lake Champlain, directly north of Charlotte. From an early date it occupied a place of importance in the economic life of Chittenden County. With Charlotte and Col- chester, it ranked as one of the three first permanent settlements, although its major economic pursuit was trade, as compared with the emphasis on agriculture in Charlotte and on manufacturing on the Winooski. The very first settlers were traders, who came here as early as 1768. They were two Germans, John Potter and Thomas Logan, who soon became actively engaged in rafting oak timber to Quebec. On one occasion, an officer at Montreal sent a sergeant and two privates to escort them through Indian settlements to Shelburne. The guards, however, became very much interested in the money belonging to their charges and two of them murdered the Germans. Later, the one who had had no active part in the crime confessed the deed, with the result that his two friends were executed while he him-
430
A
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
self received a lesser punishment. With the end of the two Germans, Shelburne did not cease to be actively interested in trade, however, and some of the largest boats ever built for the navigation of Lake Champlain were constructed in Shelburne Harbor for the Champlain Transportation Company. The township is also blessed with fine scenery and good soil.
Among England's noblemen who espoused the cause of the Ver- monters in the conflict with New York over land claims was the Earl of Shelburne. It was in his honor that this town was named when the charter was granted by Wentworth in 1763. Moses Pierson formed the first permanent settlement here in 1769, and built a blockhouse. A sawmill was erected at Shelburne Falls by Ira Allen in 1785. The first town meeting was held in 1787, and the population reached 389 in 1790, 723 in 1800, and attained its maximum of 1,257 in 1850, as compared with 1,006 today.
It is said that the La Platte River, which crosses the town and empties into Shelburne Bay, received its name from an event which happened here during the Revolution. On one occasion a large party of Indians concealed their canoes under a line of willows extending along the mouth of the river, while they set off on a plundering expe- dition elsewhere. During their absence their canoes were discovered · by some white men who riddled them with holes and then returned them to their former position before making an ambush. When the red men returned they met a hail of bullets and rushed to their canoes only to learn too late they could choose only between drowning and gunfire.
Members of the Pierson family were forced to leave their home for awhile in 1777, but returned later in that year to thresh some wheat and take it away. It became known, however, that Tories and Indians were lurking around the vicinity, and in January Colonel Thomas Sawyer of Clarendon set out to Pierson's aid with a party of soldiers. The enemy disappeared temporarily from view, but only long enough for one Tory to skate to Canada and return with reën- forcements. Finally, on the night of March 12, 1778, the expected battle took place. During the fight the house was set on fire. There was no water with which to extinguish the flames, but there was some home-made beer which Mrs. Pierson had been brewing the day before. After a hole was made in the roof the beer was poured on the
431
CHITTENDEN COUNTY
fire, and the house was saved. Saved also were the settlers. Although they later evacuated their frontier home they returned in 1783, and Pierson lived here until his death in 1805.
As was the case in so many other communities, smallpox presented a problem to the pioneers, and we find that in 1787 it was "Voted that the small-pox be admitted in the town by anocculation for the term of six months, or to the first of April next, under the inspection and direc- tion of the selectmen agreeable to law."
South Burlington was originally a part of Burlington, and its early history was that of the parent township. It was born in 1864 by act of the State Legislature, and approved by the people in 1865. The first census after the division gave South Burlington a population of 79I, as compared with 1,203 today. Lime-kilns represented a major economic interest here.
Northeast of Jericho is the township of Underhill, the only sub- division of Chittenden County that borders on Lamoille County. This mountainous township was chartered by Governor Wentworth in 1765, but was not settled until 1786. The price paid for it was $230.40, as originally created. Lumbering and agriculture were the main eco- nomic pursuits. As time went on dairying developed to a considerable extent. In 1790 the population was only 65, and in 1800 only 212, but in 1870 there were 1,655 residents, as compared with 781 today. Perhaps the most interesting figure in the history of this town was Lieutenant-Colonel Luther Dixon. During the War of 1812, he was in command of a force of Vermont militia at Plattsburgh. It will be recalled that Governor Martin Chittenden was far from ardent in support of the war with England, and that he ordered the militia to return home. This led to a vigorous protest which the Vermont offi- cers sent back to the Governor, and instead of obeying orders the force remained at Plattsburgh until danger was past for that year. In this opposition to Chittenden, Dixon took the leading part. Among the signers of the remonstrance, his name was first and fore- most. It was also Dixon who ordered the flogging of the unfortu- nate agent who delivered Chittenden's message. Naturally the Governor was highly displeased, to put it mildly. After Dixon returned home there continued to be considerable bitterness between factions. Suit was brought against him for the flogging, and he was forced to pay one thousand dollars. There was considerable approval
432
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
of his action, or at least little disposition on the part of some of the people to see him suffer thus for his misdirected zeal, and two or three attempts were made in the Vermont Legislature to reimburse him, although they were doomed to failure.
On the northern border of Chittenden County, between Underhill and Milton, is another irregular, mountainous town called Westford. Its soil is good and its scenery beautiful. Governor Wentworth issued its charter in 1763, but the grantees were interested in the territory only as a speculative enterprise and probably none of them ever vis- ited their lands. In the years that followed, there was considerable controversy and litigation over property rights. The first settlement in the township occurred in 1787, while the first pioneer to reside on the site of Westford Center came in 1795. His name was Elisha Baker, and he operated a sawmill on the river. A forge was also erected here, making iron from a mixture of ore mined in Colchester, and a harder ore from New York sources. When Colchester's ore supply was exhausted, however, this business was suspended. This township, which was finally organized in 1793, had a population of 63 in 1790, and increased rapidly to 648 in 1800, and in 1810, 1, 107, as compared with 698 in 1930. When, in 1849, California represented in the public mind a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, Westford was unusually tempted, and it has been stated that in proportion to the size of the township, more young men left this community to hunt for gold than migrated from any other town in Vermont.
The township of Williston is bounded on the north by the Winoo- ski River and on the east by the town of Richmond. When it was chartered by Governor Wentworth in 1763, it was named in honor of one of the grantees, Samuel Willis. Later part of its soil was taken to form Richmond, while it was given a section of Burlington. The first settlers were Thomas Chittenden and Colonel Jonathan Spaf- ford, who arrived here in 1774. Chittenden was born in 1730, at East Guilford, Connecticut. Although brought up on a farm, he enlisted when eighteen years of age as a sailor on a merchant vessel scheduled for a trip between New London and the West Indies. At that time, France and England were at war, and it happened that a French man-of-war captured the ship, after which Chittenden and the other prisoners were landed on one of the West Indies. Finally, after much suffering, the youth found a chance to work his way home. He
433
CHITTENDEN COUNTY
was married in 1749. The next twenty-four years of his life were spent in Salisbury, Connecticut, where he became a leading figure. It was 1774 when he came to Vermont and built a hut covered with bark and hemlock boughs along the Winooski. He had a family of ten children, and made his way with them through the woods to Cas- tleton when the British advanced. Until his return to Williston in 1787, he lived most of the time in Arlington. He was elected the first Governor of his adopted State, in 1778, and held this office until 1797, with the exception of one year. There is no question but that he was one of the greatest men ever associated with Vermont. He was content to engage in agricultural pursuits. He was unaffected, loved the simple life, and distrusted etiquette. He was not hampered by selfish ambition. He was cautious, independent, and a keen observer of men. He was a man of rugged honesty and of justice. The people of Vermont trusted him with a boundless faith, which was the main reason why again and again they chose him to guide the Ship of State through treacherous seas. He was every inch a man and never descended to the wiles of the demagogue. Williston and Chittenden County have reason to be proud of him. The township, which was organized in 1786, had a population of 471 in 1790, 836 in 1800, and about 1,600 in 1825, as compared with 961 at the time of the last census.
Winooski's early history has already been related in connection with Colchester. Its recent story belongs primarily to the age of indus- try and will be told in later chapters. In between there was an import- ant evolution, reaching from the forge of Ira Allen to the large plants of the American Woolen Company, the Porter Screen Company, and the Vermont Furniture Manufacturing Company of the present day. The woolen industry dates from 1837, while ash and basswood goods were shipped to all parts of the United States and more screens were produced here than by any other single concern in the world. Today there are few Vermont communities as highly industrialized as Winoo- ski. On the outskirts of the city, which has a population of 5,308, is St. Michael's College, established in 1904 by the Fathers of St. Edmund and incorporated in 1913. Far younger than the nearby University of Vermont, it nevertheless faces the future with expectation.
This ends the story of the development of the towns and cities of Chittenden County, but Buel's Gore deserves some reference. This
C & G-28
434
LAKE CHAMPLAIN AND LAKE GEORGE VALLEYS
small piece of land south of Huntington and wedged in between Addi- son County and Washington County, was granted by Vermont in 1780 to Elias Buel and associates. 1789 was the date of the first settle- ment. At that time it occupied a greater area than at present, but was curtailed by the annexation of part of its territory by Hunting- ton. Town government was never organized, the population being only 18 in 1850, while thirty years later it was but 24. Between 1920 and 1930 it declined from 14 to 4.
CHAPTER VI
Clinton County
Clinton County was a small part of the gigantic county of Albany which, from 1683 to 1772, included our other ten counties as well. From 1772 to 1784 it was a part of that subdivision of Albany County which was known as Charlotte. In 1784 when the name of Washington was substituted for Charlotte for patriotic reasons, the status of present-day Clinton County was unchanged. In 1788, how- ever, it was detached and formed into a separate political organiza- tion. As then created, it included not only our Clinton County of today but also the counties of Essex and Franklin as well. In 1799, Essex County was set off. Two years later a large part of present-day St. Lawrence County was added, but this accession of territory was to be of short duration, for St. Lawrence County was organized in its own right in 1802. Finally, Clinton County was reduced to its pres- ent limits in 1808, by the creation of Franklin County.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.