USA > Vermont > Orleans County > The history of Orleans county, Vermont. Civil, ecclesiastical, biographical and military > Part 37
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CHARLES W. WALLACE,
age 19, born in Stowe, Me .; enlisted in East Hardwick, Oct. 2, '61; mustered in at Mont- pelier, Oct. 15, in Co. E, 6th Reg .; served with the company until taken sick and sent to the hospital; discharged Jan. 10, '63. He was not a resident of Greensboro.
GEORGE WITHERS,
age 23, born in Bath, N. H .; enlisted at Montpelier, May 7, '61, in Co. F. 2d Reg., mustered into the State service, May 20, at Montpelier, and into the U. S. service June 20, at Burlington ; was with the regiment and participated in all its engagements, until wounded in the arm by a minnie ball at Savage Station, June 29, '62. He was assist- ed one mile to the rear by George Flagg, a member of the company from Braintree, and left in a temporary hospital; was taken by the rebels next morning, was sent to Rich- mond; exchanged July 26, carried to the general hospital at West Philadelphia, died July 28, '62; was buried in Greenwood Cemetery.
GEORGE F. WOODMANCY, ,
age 18, son of E. Woodmancy, deceased, born in Greensboro; enlisted in Greensboro, Dec. 7, '63, mustered in at Brattleboro, Jan. 6, '64, in Co. F, 11th Reg .; immediately joined the company, and served with it until taken with the measles ; recovered in a short time, and performed duty until captured at the Weldon Railroad, June 23, '64, and sent to Andersonville ; was taken sick there with typhoid pneumonia, and after severe suffer- ing, died Sept. 9, '64. His body was buried there. He received, by town order, $ 381.63 bounty.
GEORGE S. WHITNEY,
age 19, enlisted Aug. 23, '64; mustered in at the same time, for Co. I, 1st Cav .; mustered out June 2, '65; received by town order a bounty amounting to $ 626.56.
ROBERT S. WHITE,
age 22, son of R. White, born in Craftsbury ; enlisted at Greensboro, Sept. 3, '62, Co. I, 15th Reg., and mustered in at Brattleboro, Oct. 22; served with the company until taken with the measles, April 14, '63, when in the general hospital at Alexandria, 6 weeks ; mustered out at Brattleboro, Aug. 5, '63.
EDWARD C. WARD,
age 24, son of Nathan Ward, born in Ceylon, Indian Ocean : drafted in Greensboro, July 28, '63, and mustered in at the same time for
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Co. D, 4th Reg .; was in the hospital nearly all his time of service ; but little is known of his proceedings ; was discharged June 27, '65. FRANKLIN WOODWARD,
age 19, son of J. Woodward, born in Peach- am ; enlisted in Greensboro, and mustered in at Brattleboro, Jan. 4, '64, in Co. F, 11th Reg .; at once joined the company, served with it till taken prisoner at the Weldon Railroad, June 23, '64; sent to Andersonville, died of starvation and exposure, some time in Sept., '64. He received a bounty, accord- ing to town orders, amounting to about $ 600.
JOSEPH R. WOODWARD,
age 20, son of J. Woodward, born in Peach- am; enlisted at Concord, N. H., in July, '62, mustered in Co. E, 5th N. H. Reg .; served with the company at Point Lookout, Mary- land, and in Virginia, until wounded at Petersburg, June 17, '64 ; sent to the hospital at White House Landing-died from wound.
HOLLAND.
BY MRS. GEO. A. HINMAN.
This township is situated in the N. E. corner of Orleans County ; bounded N. by the towns of Stanstead and Barnston, in Canada, and lies just south of the 45th deg. N. lat., and extends 7 miles, 13 chains, on Canada line, and 5 miles, 7 chains from north to south lines ; and is bounded E. by Norton in Essex County, S. by Morgan, and W. by Derby ; and lies in the calcareo-mica slate - region of Orleans County, though a bed of gneiss extends through the central part of the town, north and south, of about a half a mile in width.
The soil is very retentive, and excellent for grass, and all the cereal grains. It is prob- able the average yield of hay, wheat, and oats per acre, is, at present, greater in the town of Holland than in any other town in the County, notwithstanding the fact that much of all these products have been carried to other towns every year, and the soil thus impoverished.
The surface of the township is diversified by considerable elevations, and it lies on the slope of land on the east of Lake Memphre- magog, the eastern boundary being properly the eastern ridge of the Green Mountains,- though there is no elevation bearing the name of mountain, except Mount John, in
the S. E. part of the town. Neither is the surface at all broken, but the highest hills are susceptible of cultivation, and their soil as good as any in town. There are several small ponds in town. One is in the S. W. part, from which rises a stream emptying into Salem pond, after passing through a part of Derby and Morgan. Another branch of Clyde River, in the N. E. part of the town, and about Mount John, emptying into Sey- more Lake in Morgan, is called Mad Brook.
But the largest stream of water in town is Barlow River, which runs nearly west from Holland Pond, making, however, a little north, so as to keep most of the way in Can- ada, till it arrives near Beebe's Plain in' Stanstead, where it turns north and runs into Massawippi Lake. This stream supplies nu- merous mill-sites all along its course. There are 4 saw-mills in the town of Holland, on this river, all within less than a mile of each other, and chances for more. There are also many mills on it, in Canada. It supplies the water-power of Derby Line Village.
There is also a stream of water rising near the middle of the town, known as Mill brook, which empties into Barlow River before it reaches Derby Line Village. It was upon this stream that the first saw-mill was erected in town, and just above where Paran Hun- toon's mill now stands. There have also been built a grist-mill and starch-factory, at the same place, both of which were destroyed by fire.
The town was chartered, Oct. 26, 1789, to Timothy Andrews, and others.
The first proprietors' meeting of which any record can be found, was held at Greensboro, June 8, 1795, at the dwelling-house of Timo- thy Stanley. This meeting was adjourned to June 13; and on the 13th the meeting adjourned, to meet at Derby on the 29th, at the house of Isaac Hinman.
Many meetings were held at Derby, till on the 16th of November, following, a meeting was held at the house of Eben Strong, at which it was voted that Col. Benjamin Hin- man, Jonathan Gazley, Sheldon Leavitt, Tim- othy Andrus, William Sabine, jr., Daniel Holbrook, and Eben Strong, be allowed to pick lots of land, on condition that they each clear off 4 acres a year for five successive years,-they giving a bond of £100 each for the fulfillment of the condition,-one fifth of the bond to be collected for each year of
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failure, and the first year to end the first day of January, 1798, and so on.
The lots picked according to this vote were Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4 in the first range, by Col. Benjamin Hinman, Jonathan Gazley, and Sheldon Leavitt, respectively ; lot No. 6 in the 2nd range, by Eben Strong ; lots No. 5 and 7 in the 3d range, by T. Andrus and W. Sabine; and lot No. 6 in the 5th range, by Daniel Holbrook.
It is worthy of remark, that these picked lots proved no better than other portions of the town; and it is not known that the con- ditions on which they were picked, were ever complied with, or the bonds ever collected. Col. Benjamin Hinman did indeed employ Joseph Cowell to fell 8 acres of trees, in the attempt to fulfill his agreement; but, as the other proprietors neglected theirs, he neg- lected his also, and the land has not been cleared to this day. It is now covered by a second growth of maples-the other timber having been mostly cut-and forms the best sugar-orchard in town. Some 700 trees are tapped on little more than half of it, and the number fit for tapping, still increasing. It is now owned by Joseph Marsh.
The first settlement was made in the year 1800, by Edmund Elliott from New Hamp- shire, and Joseph Cowell from Connecticut. Mr. Elliott began where Robert Piper now lives, and Mr. Cowell on the lot next west. The next year, 1801, several families settled in town; among them were Eber Robinson, from Connecticut, who took up the lot adjoin- ing Mr. Elliott on the south, and Mr. Jesse Willey, who occupied the lot north of Mr. Elliott, and Mr. Goodenough, who settled on the lot north of Mr. Cowell, since known as the Ferrin place. In the Summer of this year, Adam and Jason Hinman took up lots in the S. W. part of the town :- Adam Hin- man the place now owned by William Arm- strong, and Jason Hinman the one now owned by, Isaac Marsh; but they did not permanently reside here till 2 years later, that is, in 1803. For several years additions were made every year to the number of inhabitants by new settlements.
The first child born in town was Royal, son of Joseph Cowell, born probably in 1801 or 1802. His death also was the first one in town, caused by drinking lye from ashes, when about 4 years old, -he mistaking it for maple sap. He was buried in the present
burying-ground, just north of Mr. Robert Piper's ; Mr. Cowell giving the land for a burying-ground, on conditions that the town should fence it, and place stones at the grave of his son.
The latter part of the condition has never been fulfilled, and the exact place of the grave is now probably not known.
Mr. Jesse Willey, of Derby, is probably the oldest person living, who was born in Hol- land. He was born in 1803. J. C. Robinson and Hiram Moon were born in 1804, and are still living, and have always lived in town. They are the oldest inhabitants who have lived all their lives in town. Lucy Hinman, widow of Jason Hinman, has lived in town longer than any other person. She came in 1801, with her father, Eber Robinson, and lived in town until just before her death, which was caused by an accident in March, 1870. She was 81 years of age.
There are no very striking adventures known to have happened to the early settlers of Holland. The affairs of the nation had become settled, after the Revolutionary War, before its early settlement, and things went on smoothly as in other places.
The whole country about, being new, how- ever, the early settlers were put to some inconvenience by the depredations of wild beasts. One adventure with a bear happened at the house of Mr. Cowell, in 1804. Mr. Cowell had erected an outer room of logs, in connection with his house, which was not completely covered, or roofed. Mrs. Cowell was accustomed to keep cooking utensils, &c., in it. On one occasion, she had left some scraps of tallow there, and a bear climbed over the logs into this room, and devoured them.
Mr. Cowell, thinking his neighbor bruin would be likely to repeat his visit the next night, as he had been so well treated the first time, placed some other eatables in the same room for him, and procured some of his neigh- bors to watch for his bearship's appearance. · Sometime in the latter part of the night he again entered the room, and commenced his repast. The watchers now appeared at the door, and one of them snapped his gun at his dark-haired neighbor. He, no doubt think- ing mischief was meant, climbed out over . the logs, as he came in, while another of the party ran round to that side of the room, with an ax, to stop him; but, not arriving in
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season for that, he ran along side of him to a log-fence, two or three rods distant. Here, as bruin showed no disposition to stop, and cultivate acquaintance, but mounted the fence, preparatory to an exit on the other side, he dealt him a blow with his ax, so lustily, in his side, that it slipped from his hand, and bruin walked off with it to the woods.
Thus far, the bear had appeared to have the advantage. Mr. Cowell had lost his scraps, &c., and Mr. Wilcox had lost his ax ; and neighbor bruin had carried them all off.
The party, reasoning, probably, that bruin could have no use for the ax, but would leave it the first favorable opportunity, procured a lantern, and followed him, by the blood he spilled by the way, to the woods, 20 or 30 rods distant, where they found the bear "stone dead;" the ax-handle protruding from his side, and the ax itself in contact with his heart.
The town was organized in March, 1805, by Timothy Hinman, Esq., of Derby.
Eber Robinson was first town clerk; and also one of the first selectmen, together with Joseph Cowell and Jesse Willey.
First freemen's meeting was held, 1st Tues- day of September, 1805. There were present Eber Robinson, Parmenas Watson, Luther Wilcox, Freeman Vining, Jesse Willey, Wm. Nelson, Asa Goodenough and John Worth.
In 1806 there were 17 present.
Eber Robinson was the first town repre- sentative, but in what year the town records do not show. The town was not represented in 1805 or 1806; and was seldom represented for many subsequent years, inasmuch as no state tax was assessed on unrepresented towns whose grand list was below a certain sum, and the grand list of Holland placed it in this category for many years.
EBER ROBINSON
was born Oct. 7, 1759, in Windham County Ct. When about 16 years of age, not being old enough to carry a musket, and having a strong desire for the independence of the then colony, he enlisted as a waiter in the continental army but as he advanced in years was promoted to office, and before the close of the war, was quartermaster.
He never boasted about his great military exploits, nor whined about his hardships and depreciated currency but was often heard to say that he was so lucky that he never was in any severe engagement, but at one time
in a small one was wounded in one of his feet with two almost spent balls at the same time which caused small pieces of bones to work out of his foot occasionally ever after. Yet, although wounded in his country's ser- vice, he never asked for a pension until by an act of Congress, all Revolutionary sol- diers were entitled to a pension, according to their rank and time of service.
He then applied and received a pension of $340 per year the remainder of his life.
At the close of the war, he returned home and settled in Tolland County. He was, while there, a merchant, sheriff and tavern- keeper, but was unsuccessful in business-lost what little property he possessed, and being proud and ambitious resolved to seek his for- tune in a new and to him unknown country.
In accordance with this resolution in the spring of 1802 he started with his four eldest children, three boys and a girl, for the " land of promise." Lucy, who subsequently mar- ried Jason Hinman, and the mother of G. A. Hinman was but 13 and rode on horseback from Somers Ct. to this town.
He arrived in town in July, and moved his children into a log-house with Edmund Elliott's family while he was building one of his own. He settled on a college lot adjoin- ing Mr. Elliotts in the south part of the town.
In the Fall he went after his wife and re- maining daughter. Here he and his family suffered the privations, and endured the hard- ships of the first settlers, having to make salts of lye at from two to three dollars per hun- dred to support his family.
His educational advantages were very much limited, his studies at school being mostly confined to the spelling-book, but being natually a good scholar, he was a good reader, writer, mathematician, and understood well the geography of the country. He filled with ability some of the most important offices in town-was the first town clerk, first selectman, first representative, and twice a member of the constitutional convention.
For a number of years after he came into town there were but few lawyers in the county and he was frequently employed to plead the cause of defendants, having for his opponent the late Wm. Baxter, of Browning- ton. His good understanding of law and shrewd management often made him a victor.
In the - Standard of April 20th, 1866, we find a partial history of Mr. Robinson
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which is supposed to be written by a politi- cal, and religious opponent, from which we make a short extract :
"EBER ROBINSON was a man of bright intel- lect, some culture, enterprising and ambitious. He loved distinction among his fellow citizens, and was for many years a leader, if the town ever had a leader, in politics and religion. In religion he was unquestionably the leader, and has left, by far, more results of his life than any other man. Indeed there was no other man in all the earlier history of Hol- land that was at all known by his Christian character. Mr. Robinson was a Methodist class-leader after a class was organized, and his house was the home of itinerant preachers, and he often conducted prayer-meetings in the absence of any preacher. He was, for his means, a liberal supporter of his church, and did a great deal to establish and main- tain religious worship. The town, and espec- ially the Methodist church, owe much to his labors."
In politics he was a Jeffersonian Democrat but hated slavery and toryism. He delivered the first Fourth of July oration ever delivered in town, about the year 1811. He died Oct. 28, 1838, aged 79 years, on the same farm on which he had lived 39 years.
JASON HINMAN
was born in 1782, in what was ancient Wood- bury but is now Southbury, Ct.
He was son of Col. Joel Hinman, an officer of the Revolution and brother of the late chief justice Hinman of Connecticut.
He was one of the eldest of a family of 15 children,-was fitted for college, but knowing it was the expect ation of his friends that he should practice law, ( and a great share of the county practice in those days was litiga- tion) he declined entering college, and leaving those advantages to his brothers, of whom several became distinguished barristers, he came himself to explore the new regions of northern Vermont, at the age of 19.
He walked the distance in company with a cousin, it being about 300 miles which he did several times during his first few years stay here, coming up and working summers, and going back to teach school winters.
Although his intentions when he first came were merely to stay here a few years and finally go to central New York, yet he never put his plan in execution, but spent his life here.
He was in many respects admirably adapt- ed to a pioneer life. He possessed a large, well developed muscular frame, was an acute observer, an independent, close thinker, and a logical reasoner, and although he had failed to receive a liberal education, yet he was possessed of great originality of character ; and he planned not merely to benefit himself, and the present generation but looked well to the future.
In all plans and efforts to secure and ad- vance the educational advantages of the town, he was intimately connected and active, he taught the first winter school that was taught. in town and several succeeding ones.
In political matters he was always greatly interested although he never attempted, in any way, to be a party leader. He had little to do in the party, or campaign work, of political elections, but his opinions were well known and he had a powerful influence with- out exciting against himself that opposition which an active electioneering habit is likely to incur.
He took the freeman's oath in 1806, was chosen town clerk in 1809, and held the office till 1824 ; was a member of the constitution- al convention in 1836 and in 1850 ; represen- ted the town in 1814, '23, '25, '36, '37, '38 and in '43.
These repeated elections, extending over a period of 36 years, in a town very evenly divided by parties, show at once his populari- ty and the estimation put upon his ability as a legislator.
Perhaps the remainder of his history will be as well given in a reminiscence written by a granddaughter.
MY GRANDFATHER.
Often, when care and labor are for a mo- ment suspended, there comes to me a half effaced vision of the gray-haired old man, who used to sit hour after hour, with book or paper in hand, utterly oblivious to all out- ward occurrences ; or who told stories of his past life, so wonderful to our childish minds.
He was one of nature's noblemen, who despised alike all the affectation-both of manners and speech, which most people think essential to respectability ; and as little did he care for elegance or fashion in his dress.
Once, when sent by his town, as represent- ative, he was met by a dandy, who looked sneeringly at his gray homespun suit, and, thinking to make a little sport at his expenso,
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asked if his town sent him there because they'd no smarter man. "O no," readily replied my grandfather, more amused at the dandy's appearance than the latter at his, " they have many smarter men, but none who wear such good clothes as I."
In early life, refusing the advantages of a college education, and a reasonable prospect of some degree of celebrity in public life, he turned his back on the comforts of home-I had almost said, on civilization, and walked from Southern Connecticut to Northern Ver- mont, then an unsettled wilderness.
As he cared little for comfort, and less for show, the necessary privations cost him little inconvenience. I can conceive, indeed, that the freedom of the forest was wonderfully delightful to him. To be utterly untrammeled by conventionalities,-to be free amid the beauties of unscarred nature,-even with the hard manual labor necessary,-these were enjoyments not to be despised.
With his own hands he cleared his farm, and built on his land a little log-house, and then he took to it an energetic young girl, of seventeen, to share his life's toils, and sorrows, and joys ; who, like himself, had come from the State of Wooden Nutmegs.
Children came quickly, as they used to in those times, and brought with them the neces- sity for greater toil and hardship. Sickness and death came, too, very often. Of the 14 children who were born to them, many died in infancy ; others, in the first dawn of man- hood and womanhood. When my grandfather died, only five were left.
My memories of him are very like my ideas of that sturdy patriot and beloved hero of our State-Ethan Allen. He possessed the same unyielding devotion to the demands of justice, the same independence and fearless- ness in his denunciations of any violation of those demands. He cared as little for man's approval, or disapproval, as for the idle breeze that fanned his cheek ; but he would sooner have cut off his right hand than to have knowingly injured the least of God's creatures, or the most despised by men. Indeed, the more despised any might be, and the lower their position, the keener was his sympathy for them, and the greater the respect and kindness which he would show them.
Some of my grandfather's relatives were wealthy and influential southern slaveholders. But neither wealth, position, nor relation-
ship could close my grandfather's lips on a subject in which principles of justice and mercy were involved-especially, on the sub- ject of African slavery, which, I believe, lay nearer his heart than any other. Never did those friends come to his house without being compelled to listen to all the arguments which his keen intellect could discover or invent, and all the denunciations which an unlimited supply of decidedly forcible language could express. Though these plain and unvar- nished declarations of truth never produced any visible change in their course, I can but think their consciences must have felt some severe twinges. as they listened to them ; and it has always seemed sad to me that he could not have lived a few years longer, that he might have seen that overthrow of slavery which he so ardently desired.
His tender-heartedness, which was, in part, the cause of his abhorrence of slavery, mani- fested itself also in his pity and generosity to the unfortunate, as well as in his kindness to dumb beasts.
It was said of him, that he would, at any time, go ten miles on foot, rather than oblige a horse to carry him; and a whip was his utter abhorrence. I doubt if he ever struck a living creature a blow. It might almost have been said of him, that he would have allowed his cats to accumulate till, like the rats of the miserly nobleman who dwelt in the castle on the Rhine, they would have devoured himself and all his substance, before he would have drowned a kitten ; or, would have made his Thanksgiving dinner on pota- toes and salt, through all time, sooner than have taken a turkey's life to increase its luxuriance.
Money-making, moreover, was as far out of his line, as was the desire for the elegancies which money will purchase. He gave to all .men freely, and, in business transactions, always gave "good measure, pressed down and running over." Many times have I watched him measuring out his farm products for purchasers, and never did he fail to heap the half-bushel.
Twice did his willingness to oblige, reduce him and his family to extreme poverty and suffering; yet, even then, I doubt not, he would willingly have given his last loaf of bread to any one who might have asked him.
He possessed a keen and active intellect, and an amount of information which, for one
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