Born in Westford, MA, Captain Proctor was a Revolutionary soldier and served as the company’s Second Lieutenant on the Lexington Alarm of April 17,1775. He was part of a brave group of “minute-men” that fought in the opening battle of the American Revolution. Forty-one years old at the time and father of seven children, Proctor eventually served under General Washington.
Moving to Cavendish Vermont in 1783, Proctor built a log cabin in the western part of the township and brought his family to their new homestead in the winter of 1784. Next to the homestead, he constructed a home and tavern, near where the Methodist Church now stands. The house stood where the present highway runs. Part of the house was moved, and then torn down to make way for the elementary school. The remaining part of the house was moved to the current location and became known as the Page House. In 1787, he built what is known today as the “Jenny House,” where he and his wife Mary Proctor lived for over 30 years. The house, built of wood, is famous for its fancy hand-carved decorations around the roofline, on the corner posts and around the center doorway.
Proctor and Salmon Dutton, the latter who had come to Cavendish in 1781, had much in common. They served in the Westford militia and were friends for many years. In 1784, Dutton was appointed surveyor for the toll road that was to be built between Cavendish and Ludlow to the west. The planned turnpike would become the only road connecting Duttonsville and Proctorsville. This toll road in 1798 became part of the Green Mountain turnpike that connected Bellows Falls and Rutland. The route from Cavendish south went over Dutton Hill to Gassetts and Chester, VT.
A break between the two families arose over the road and its operation. The Proctors were determined not to pay tolls to Dutton for the use of the Cavendish section of the road. The Proctor men built a “shun-pike,” which passed directly south from Proctorsville to Gassetts. This shunpike became the present highway for the Sate of Vermont. Because of the road, the Dutton and Proctor families, as well as the villages of Duttonsville and Proctorsville, feuded for 75 years.
The marriage of Redfield Proctor and Emily Dutton in 1858 joined the leading families of the two villages and promised to put an end to the former rivalry. As Redfield said of his first son, Fletcher Dutton Proctor, "if the old names and blood had the old inclination left to stir up strife, it would have created a fearful internal commotion." In fact, the merger of these families proved to be a propitious event for Vermont, since three governors and a United States Senator came from this Dutton-Proctor line.
In February 20, 1907, Proctorsville formally gave notice to the Town of Cavendish that it wished to be incorporated. Today Proctorsville is a village within the township of Cavendish.
Leonard Proctor and other family are buried in the Proctor Cemetery, just off Main Street in Proctorsville.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Descendant of Dr. Asaph Fletcher
CHS genealogist, Linda Welch, sent this picture of Dr. Asaph Fletcher's descendant.
Kentucy Derbry Party to Benefit LPC-TV
CHS is working with LPC-TV to establish a digital history center for the Black River Valley. Please support the upcoming Kentucky Derby Gala.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Cavendish Semiquincentennial: Salmon Dutton
Salmon was born in Westford, Mass in 1743 and married Sarah Parker. At the time of his marriage he was employed as a land surveyor. In 1768 he served in the French and Indian Wars under Captain Leonard Whiting, who would later move to Cavendish. Also a veteran of the Revolutionary War, he was a member of Colonel William Prescott’s regiment. Once located in Cavendish, he was chosen as an officer for the town’s militia.
When the Duttons moved to Cavendish, in 1781, it was a good fit since most of Sarah Dutton’s brothers and sisters were already here. Like Coffeen before him, Dutton was a Universalist and found freedom of his religion here in the sparsely settled land. He was exempted from the Cavendish Church Tax because he “did not belong to the sect of the preacher.” He and his sons, and many others in 1802, dissented from the action of the town in voting four cents on the dollar to build the church. In 1812, Salmon subscribed $7,500 (one-third money and two-thirds labor or materials) to build the “Cavendish Academy.”
Dutton first settled on what we now refer to as “White’s Hill,” not far from where the Cavendish Depot stood next to the railroad tracks. At one time, the toll road, or turnpike, turned off the Cavendish Gulf Road and went over this road, then called Dutton Hill. The community below, he named Duttonsville.
In 1788, Dutton built a house on what we is now the Cavendish Green. This building was the village tavern and also offered guest rooms. When the stagecoach reached the top of Dutton Hill (now White’s Hill) on the Green Mountain Turnpike, the driver would blow several toots on his horn, according to the number of passengers he carried, to alert the Innkeepers so that the proper number of places might be set at the table.
Salmon died in Cavendish on May 27, 1824 at 80 years of age. His grave is in the Cavendish High Street Cemetery and gravestone inscription reads: “In memory of Salmon Dutton who died May 27 a.d. 1824 in the 81st year of his age. His only aim as life’s brief span he trod. The good of man and glory of his God. He was the original owner of this ground and Of that on which is the adjacent village now stands and was the founder of same.” Sara died on March 7, 1831 (age 83 years) and is buried next to her husband. Her gravestone inscription reads, “They aim like his who sleepeth by thy side, To whom in life thou wast a faithful bride.”
Next week’s post will feature Leonard Proctor and the Shunpike.
When the Duttons moved to Cavendish, in 1781, it was a good fit since most of Sarah Dutton’s brothers and sisters were already here. Like Coffeen before him, Dutton was a Universalist and found freedom of his religion here in the sparsely settled land. He was exempted from the Cavendish Church Tax because he “did not belong to the sect of the preacher.” He and his sons, and many others in 1802, dissented from the action of the town in voting four cents on the dollar to build the church. In 1812, Salmon subscribed $7,500 (one-third money and two-thirds labor or materials) to build the “Cavendish Academy.”
Dutton first settled on what we now refer to as “White’s Hill,” not far from where the Cavendish Depot stood next to the railroad tracks. At one time, the toll road, or turnpike, turned off the Cavendish Gulf Road and went over this road, then called Dutton Hill. The community below, he named Duttonsville.
In 1788, Dutton built a house on what we is now the Cavendish Green. This building was the village tavern and also offered guest rooms. When the stagecoach reached the top of Dutton Hill (now White’s Hill) on the Green Mountain Turnpike, the driver would blow several toots on his horn, according to the number of passengers he carried, to alert the Innkeepers so that the proper number of places might be set at the table.
Salmon died in Cavendish on May 27, 1824 at 80 years of age. His grave is in the Cavendish High Street Cemetery and gravestone inscription reads: “In memory of Salmon Dutton who died May 27 a.d. 1824 in the 81st year of his age. His only aim as life’s brief span he trod. The good of man and glory of his God. He was the original owner of this ground and Of that on which is the adjacent village now stands and was the founder of same.” Sara died on March 7, 1831 (age 83 years) and is buried next to her husband. Her gravestone inscription reads, “They aim like his who sleepeth by thy side, To whom in life thou wast a faithful bride.”
Next week’s post will feature Leonard Proctor and the Shunpike.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Scribbler II: Spring 2011 Newsletter
250th (Semiquincentennial) Anniversary Activities
The following activities are being planned by the Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) for the town’s yearlong celebration of the signing of the Charter that created Cavendish.
• Quilt: Various members of the community are making squares that depict aspects of current life as well as historical people and events. The quilt will be one display starting with Old Home Day weekend.
• Cavendish Semiquincentennial Book: CHS is an integral part of the town’s anniversary committee and is responsible for several sections of this book-Cavendish Historical Timeline and the Anniversary edition of the Cavendish Business Directory.
• Town Play: CHS is helping to write this year’s play, depicting the town’s history, which take place August 27 and 28
• June 5 (Sunday): Museum opens for the season and will be open on Sundays from 2-4pm until October closing.
• June 12 (Sunday): Screening of the film “Life in Windsor County” with Bruce McEnaney, Vice President of CHS and one of the interviewees featured in the film.
• July 2 (Saturday): Old Home Day, Cavendish Pictorial Display; Museum Plant sale; Cavendish Green activities including a live auction
July 3 (Sunday): Cavendish Pictorial Display
July 17 (Sunday): Phineas Gage-His Importance Then and Now, includes a walking tour of sites pertaining to the accident with Margo Caulfield, Co-Director of Chronic Conditions Information Network, who has worked in traumatic brain injury (TBI) for over 25 years.
August/September (Dates to be determined)
- Tours of Dutton, Revolutionary and Center Road Cemeteries
- Early Cavendish Tour
- Cavendish Players will present a production about early Cavendish history
- Building of Long House
Starting in May, CHS’s Cemetery crew will be working in the oldest Cavendish cemeteries and will be cleaning the War Memorial.
More information about events and activities can be found at the CHS blog and on the Cavendish Update.
Young Historians Helping with Japanese Relief Effort
This year, the Cavendish Town Elementary School (CTES) Young Historians have been studying the 1940’s. They learned what an important role children played during that time period, whether it was helping to spot for enemy aircraft, planting Victory Gardens, holding scrap drives or making pins to support the war effort.
In response to the tsunami and earthquake in Japan, the Young Historians demonstrated a similar sense of helping as their predecessors by making origami cranes and white and red bracelets. The cranes are part of a program by Osh Kosh by Gosh. For every crane made, they will donate clothing for a child in Japan. The bracelets are being sold at Crows Corner Bakery and at the school. The students have chosen to send to Shelter Box USA. This organization responds instantly to disasters by delivering boxes of aid to those who are most in need. The box includes a tent for a family of 10, cooker, blankets, water purification, tool kit and other items survivors need to rebuild their lives in the days, weeks and months following a disaster.
Cemetery Restoration Continues
With the arrival of spring, it’s now possible to once again enter the cemeteries. Work will begin shortly on the righting of stones and cleaning markers. CHS continues to seek volunteers who would like to assist with this effort. All volunteers will be taught and equipped in the appropriate way to clean stones. Even after this year’s particularly cold and snowy winter, you can see the work completed last year. If interested in being part of this project, please contact Margo Caulfield at 802-226-7807 or e-mail margoc@tds.net Donations can be designated for the cemetery project.
Genealogy: Bates Family
Linda Welch has completed an extensive draft of the Bates Family genealogy. This includes information about James Hale Bates who built Brook Farm-also known locally as the Bates Mansion at Brook Farm. If you would like to review this draft in PDF format, please e-mail margoc@tds.net
Cavendish Timeline 1835- 1880
1835: Proctorsville Woolen Manufacturing Company, started by Jabez Proctor, employed 35 workers, making cassimere cloth by 1842.
1840: Cavendish population 1,427
1844: Universalist Church (Old Stone Church) built in Cavendish. This was the beginning of “snecked ashlar” buildings in the town. This construction technique refers to walls constructed with exterior and interior surfaces composed of mortared stone slabs arranged vertically on edge, tied together with smaller horizontal slabs called "snecks." The space between the wall surfaces was filled with rubble stone. Oral tradition suggests that Scottish stonemasons working in Canada were responsible for introducing the technique into Vermont. Examples of “snecked ashlar” construction are present throughout the town: Glimmerstone (Main Street); Black River Health Center; Roundy Farm (corner of Wiley Hill Road and High Street in Cavendish); Saydek home adjacent to the Town Office; the Black River Bank building on Depot Street in Proctorsville and several homes on Twenty Mile Stream Rd. The stone for the various buildings was mined in Cavendish.
1848: Phineas Gage, a foreman, was working with his crew excavating rocks in preparing the bed for the Rutland and Burlington Railroad in Cavendish. An accidental explosion of a charge he had set blew his tamping iron through his head. It entered under the left cheekbone and exited through the top of the head. His recovery from this injury and the impact on his life was the first well-documented case of traumatic brain injury in the medical literature. It was also the first understanding that different parts of the brain have different functions and effects on personality. With this knowledge, the first brain tumor removal operation became possible in 1885.
1848: The Rutland Railroad runs through both villages, connecting Burlington and Boston.
1850: Cavendish population 1,576
1858: Emily Dutton marries Redfield Proctor, ending a 75-year feud between the villages of Cavendish and Proctorsville. The merger of these families proved to be important to Vermont, since three governors and a United States Senator issued from this Dutton-Proctor line.
• The Proctorsville Library Association formed. Redfield Proctor elected librarian and clerk. The Hon. Richard Fletcher, of Boston Mass made a donation of books the following year.
1860: Irish railroad workers, who settled in Cavendish, form the Catholic Church in Proctorsville.
• Cavendish population 1,509
1867: Fitton Mill (Spring Mill) established and soon became the largest mill in the area. The Mill complex was destroyed by arson in 1875. Remains of the Mill can be seen in the area just before the Cavendish Gorge.
1869: At a special town meeting held October 18, 1869, the town accepted of the gift of Hon. Richard Fletcher, of Boston, Mass., of 2,600 volumes and the interest accruing on $2,000, for the permanent establishment of a library, which was named in honor of the generous donor. The question of the location of the library caused a great deal of jealousy among the people of the villages of Cavendish and Proctorsville, the inhabitants of the latter desiring the establishment of a branch in that village, which was at first refused by a vote of 138 against, to 119 in favor. Tile library was first established at the house of Luke Parkhurst, then town clerk. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
• The flood of 1869 destroyed New City. This area was located four miles from Cavendish village near Weathersfield. As early as 1856, woodenware was manufactured there. Newspaper accounts indicate that some form of settlement was in place by 1845. The 1855 Dotton map shows three building, with one marked ‘sawmill.” New City is an example of an area that, according to the usual pattern of New England settlement, would not be inhabited. It was ignored in the early days. Far from other settlements, deep in a narrow valley, subject to flooding, it does not make sense to live there unless an economic situation provides incentive. Only prosperity would allow investors to develop the normally undesirable spot. The promise of good waterpower during a boom time must have caused the essential optimism to seek a “New City.” This area was an example of 19th century waterpower manufacturing boom and related domestic sites that are no longer operating or even standing. With the elimination of a boom time that demanded cut lumber and woodenware, there was no other reason for industrial operations. CHS Archives.
1870: Cavendish registered the highest population in its history with 1,823 people.
1875: Baptist Church (now the Historical Society Museum) and Alonzo Mills are burned.
1877: The Proctorsville Woolen mill is reorganized and becomes the second largest mill in Vermont under the management of Taft, Burbank and Murdock. It was known as the Crescent Mill.
1880: Cavendish population 1,276 This significant decline can be attributed to several factors-the westward expansion and lack of work.
Cavendish During the Civil War
On April 13, 1861 the first shots of the Civil War rang out with the firing on Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC. President Lincoln appealed to the states for soldiers to suppress the rebellion. Governor Erastus Fairbanks replied that Vermont would do its "full duty" to help preserve the Union. As you’ll see in the information below, at a Cavendish town meeting on April 30 of that year, Cavendish took up the matter of supporting the “Cavendish Light Infantry.” Governor Ryland Fletcher, who presided over the meeting was the 24th Governor of the state from 1856 to 1858. Governor Fletcher was born in Cavendish.
In addition to working on his father's farm, he taught in the district school during the winter months. At age eighteen, he joined the state militia, attaining the rank of Brigadier-General. In 1854 he was elected Lieutenant Governor as the nominee of the Whig, Free Soil, and Liberty Parties, and in 1855 he was reelected-this time on the Republican ticket with Governor Stephen Royce. In 1856, he undertook a successful campaign for governor as the Republican nominee, and he was reelected in 1857. Fletcher strongly favored biennial rather than annual gubernatorial elections and was a tireless worker in the anti-slavery and temperance causes. After leaving office, he served in the Vermont legislature and was a member of the State Constitutional Convention in 1870. He died and was buried in Proctorsville, Vermont. Note: Ryland Fletcher is buried in the Cavendish Cemetery on High Street and not in Proctorsville as noted in the National Governors Association’s website
Prior to the War, Cavendish became part of the eastern trunk of the Underground Railroad between Brattleboro and Montpelier. In 1857, famous abolitionist John Brown came to Cavendish in hopes of securing some of the $20,000 the Vermont Legislature had approved to support anti slavery settlements in Kansas. Although Fletcher was governor at this time, his request for funds was denied. An account of Brown’s visit in the May 7, 1869 edition of the Rutland Herald, was described as follows:
"... Hair closely cut, beard neatly shaven, tight, stiff stock around his neck, no collar, or dickey, closely fitting swallow-tailed coat ..." the newspaper described. "As soon as it was known that 'John Brown' was stopping in our village, all manifested a desire to see and hear the man ... Notice was given that he would meet the people at the school house, and at the appointed hour an audience assembled.
"We introduced the modest and unassuming old man ... He went on and told the tale of his struggles with the despotism of slavery ... We little thought then how soon 'John Brown's body' would be mouldering in the ground, but his soul was even at that hour 'marching on.'"
In the War of the Union. — The first action taken by the town in reference to the late civil war was at a town meeting held April 30, 1861, Governor Ryland Fletcher presiding. It was then voted to raise $2,000 to liquidate all obligations incurred by Captain Tuttle in raising the Cavendish Light Infantry, and to pay the board of the men and furnish support to their families. Another loan of $3,000 was authorized in August, 1862, to pay bounties for nine months' volunteers, and in November of the following year a bounty of $200 was offered for volunteers, which was subsequently increased to $300, and another loan of $4,000 negotiated. During the latter part of 1863 the bounty was increased to $500, to make it possible to fill the town quota, and the selectmen were authorized to raise $10,000 to pay the expense of future calls for volunteers. In January, 1865, another loan of $7,000 was made, and in 1867 $15,000 was borrowed to pay the balance of the war debt. From a compilation made by the Hon. Calvin French we give the following figures : Cavendish furnished to the armies of the Union twenty men in response to the first call for troops for three months' service. In the Second, Eleventh, Fourth, Seventh aud Fifth Vermont Regiments, forty-two men for three years' service. These volunteers received no bounties Forty-two men were furnished under the nine months call. For subsequent calls fifty-three men were furnished for three years, and thirty for one year, making a grand total of 187 volunteers furnished by the town, whose terms of service would amount to 3521^ years for one man. Of these 125 volunteers received bounties amounting to $43,550, the others being recruited before it was necessary to offer a bounty. As early as 1867 a movement was inaugurated to erect a soldiers' monument in Cavendish, but it was not successful. In May, 1883, the present secretary of war, Redfield Proctor, presented his native town with a fine white marble monument, suitably inscribed and surmounted with an eagle. The town at this time appropriated $1,000 to grade the lot and pay the expense of the dedication of the monument. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
Cavendish Historical Society Board
Dan Churchill
Jen Harper
Gloria Leven
Bruce McEnaney
Mike Pember
Gail Woods
BECOME A MEMBER, RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP, DONATE
If you have not joined the Cavendish Historical Society, need to renew your membership, and/or would like to be a volunteer, please complete the form below and sending a check, payable to CHS, to CHS, PO Box 472, Cavendish, VT 05142. All contributions are tax deductible.
Name: _______________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________
Phone Number: _____________________ E-Mail: ____________________________
Membership Level
__ Individual Member $10 ___ Senior Member 65+ $ ___ Sustaining Member $500
__ Household Member $15 ___ Contributing Member $250
Volunteer
___ I would be interested in serving, as a volunteer .I would be interested in serving on the following committee(s):
__ Program Planning __ Fundraising __ Building (Museum)
__Archives _ Budget --–– Cemetery __ Young Historian Program
Donations are always welcome and can be designated as follows:
__ For general purposes __ Educational Programs __Publications
__ Archeological Activities __ Museum & Archival __ Special Events
__ Rankin Fund __ Williams Fund __ Young Historians
__ Other (please specify) __ Cemetery Restoration __ 250tAnniversary
The following activities are being planned by the Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) for the town’s yearlong celebration of the signing of the Charter that created Cavendish.
• Quilt: Various members of the community are making squares that depict aspects of current life as well as historical people and events. The quilt will be one display starting with Old Home Day weekend.
• Cavendish Semiquincentennial Book: CHS is an integral part of the town’s anniversary committee and is responsible for several sections of this book-Cavendish Historical Timeline and the Anniversary edition of the Cavendish Business Directory.
• Town Play: CHS is helping to write this year’s play, depicting the town’s history, which take place August 27 and 28
• June 5 (Sunday): Museum opens for the season and will be open on Sundays from 2-4pm until October closing.
• June 12 (Sunday): Screening of the film “Life in Windsor County” with Bruce McEnaney, Vice President of CHS and one of the interviewees featured in the film.
• July 2 (Saturday): Old Home Day, Cavendish Pictorial Display; Museum Plant sale; Cavendish Green activities including a live auction
July 3 (Sunday): Cavendish Pictorial Display
July 17 (Sunday): Phineas Gage-His Importance Then and Now, includes a walking tour of sites pertaining to the accident with Margo Caulfield, Co-Director of Chronic Conditions Information Network, who has worked in traumatic brain injury (TBI) for over 25 years.
August/September (Dates to be determined)
- Tours of Dutton, Revolutionary and Center Road Cemeteries
- Early Cavendish Tour
- Cavendish Players will present a production about early Cavendish history
- Building of Long House
Starting in May, CHS’s Cemetery crew will be working in the oldest Cavendish cemeteries and will be cleaning the War Memorial.
More information about events and activities can be found at the CHS blog and on the Cavendish Update.
Young Historians Helping with Japanese Relief Effort
This year, the Cavendish Town Elementary School (CTES) Young Historians have been studying the 1940’s. They learned what an important role children played during that time period, whether it was helping to spot for enemy aircraft, planting Victory Gardens, holding scrap drives or making pins to support the war effort.
In response to the tsunami and earthquake in Japan, the Young Historians demonstrated a similar sense of helping as their predecessors by making origami cranes and white and red bracelets. The cranes are part of a program by Osh Kosh by Gosh. For every crane made, they will donate clothing for a child in Japan. The bracelets are being sold at Crows Corner Bakery and at the school. The students have chosen to send to Shelter Box USA. This organization responds instantly to disasters by delivering boxes of aid to those who are most in need. The box includes a tent for a family of 10, cooker, blankets, water purification, tool kit and other items survivors need to rebuild their lives in the days, weeks and months following a disaster.
Cemetery Restoration Continues
With the arrival of spring, it’s now possible to once again enter the cemeteries. Work will begin shortly on the righting of stones and cleaning markers. CHS continues to seek volunteers who would like to assist with this effort. All volunteers will be taught and equipped in the appropriate way to clean stones. Even after this year’s particularly cold and snowy winter, you can see the work completed last year. If interested in being part of this project, please contact Margo Caulfield at 802-226-7807 or e-mail margoc@tds.net Donations can be designated for the cemetery project.
Genealogy: Bates Family
Linda Welch has completed an extensive draft of the Bates Family genealogy. This includes information about James Hale Bates who built Brook Farm-also known locally as the Bates Mansion at Brook Farm. If you would like to review this draft in PDF format, please e-mail margoc@tds.net
Cavendish Timeline 1835- 1880
1835: Proctorsville Woolen Manufacturing Company, started by Jabez Proctor, employed 35 workers, making cassimere cloth by 1842.
1840: Cavendish population 1,427
1844: Universalist Church (Old Stone Church) built in Cavendish. This was the beginning of “snecked ashlar” buildings in the town. This construction technique refers to walls constructed with exterior and interior surfaces composed of mortared stone slabs arranged vertically on edge, tied together with smaller horizontal slabs called "snecks." The space between the wall surfaces was filled with rubble stone. Oral tradition suggests that Scottish stonemasons working in Canada were responsible for introducing the technique into Vermont. Examples of “snecked ashlar” construction are present throughout the town: Glimmerstone (Main Street); Black River Health Center; Roundy Farm (corner of Wiley Hill Road and High Street in Cavendish); Saydek home adjacent to the Town Office; the Black River Bank building on Depot Street in Proctorsville and several homes on Twenty Mile Stream Rd. The stone for the various buildings was mined in Cavendish.
1848: Phineas Gage, a foreman, was working with his crew excavating rocks in preparing the bed for the Rutland and Burlington Railroad in Cavendish. An accidental explosion of a charge he had set blew his tamping iron through his head. It entered under the left cheekbone and exited through the top of the head. His recovery from this injury and the impact on his life was the first well-documented case of traumatic brain injury in the medical literature. It was also the first understanding that different parts of the brain have different functions and effects on personality. With this knowledge, the first brain tumor removal operation became possible in 1885.
1848: The Rutland Railroad runs through both villages, connecting Burlington and Boston.
1850: Cavendish population 1,576
1858: Emily Dutton marries Redfield Proctor, ending a 75-year feud between the villages of Cavendish and Proctorsville. The merger of these families proved to be important to Vermont, since three governors and a United States Senator issued from this Dutton-Proctor line.
• The Proctorsville Library Association formed. Redfield Proctor elected librarian and clerk. The Hon. Richard Fletcher, of Boston Mass made a donation of books the following year.
1860: Irish railroad workers, who settled in Cavendish, form the Catholic Church in Proctorsville.
• Cavendish population 1,509
1867: Fitton Mill (Spring Mill) established and soon became the largest mill in the area. The Mill complex was destroyed by arson in 1875. Remains of the Mill can be seen in the area just before the Cavendish Gorge.
1869: At a special town meeting held October 18, 1869, the town accepted of the gift of Hon. Richard Fletcher, of Boston, Mass., of 2,600 volumes and the interest accruing on $2,000, for the permanent establishment of a library, which was named in honor of the generous donor. The question of the location of the library caused a great deal of jealousy among the people of the villages of Cavendish and Proctorsville, the inhabitants of the latter desiring the establishment of a branch in that village, which was at first refused by a vote of 138 against, to 119 in favor. Tile library was first established at the house of Luke Parkhurst, then town clerk. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
• The flood of 1869 destroyed New City. This area was located four miles from Cavendish village near Weathersfield. As early as 1856, woodenware was manufactured there. Newspaper accounts indicate that some form of settlement was in place by 1845. The 1855 Dotton map shows three building, with one marked ‘sawmill.” New City is an example of an area that, according to the usual pattern of New England settlement, would not be inhabited. It was ignored in the early days. Far from other settlements, deep in a narrow valley, subject to flooding, it does not make sense to live there unless an economic situation provides incentive. Only prosperity would allow investors to develop the normally undesirable spot. The promise of good waterpower during a boom time must have caused the essential optimism to seek a “New City.” This area was an example of 19th century waterpower manufacturing boom and related domestic sites that are no longer operating or even standing. With the elimination of a boom time that demanded cut lumber and woodenware, there was no other reason for industrial operations. CHS Archives.
1870: Cavendish registered the highest population in its history with 1,823 people.
1875: Baptist Church (now the Historical Society Museum) and Alonzo Mills are burned.
1877: The Proctorsville Woolen mill is reorganized and becomes the second largest mill in Vermont under the management of Taft, Burbank and Murdock. It was known as the Crescent Mill.
1880: Cavendish population 1,276 This significant decline can be attributed to several factors-the westward expansion and lack of work.
Cavendish During the Civil War
On April 13, 1861 the first shots of the Civil War rang out with the firing on Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC. President Lincoln appealed to the states for soldiers to suppress the rebellion. Governor Erastus Fairbanks replied that Vermont would do its "full duty" to help preserve the Union. As you’ll see in the information below, at a Cavendish town meeting on April 30 of that year, Cavendish took up the matter of supporting the “Cavendish Light Infantry.” Governor Ryland Fletcher, who presided over the meeting was the 24th Governor of the state from 1856 to 1858. Governor Fletcher was born in Cavendish.
In addition to working on his father's farm, he taught in the district school during the winter months. At age eighteen, he joined the state militia, attaining the rank of Brigadier-General. In 1854 he was elected Lieutenant Governor as the nominee of the Whig, Free Soil, and Liberty Parties, and in 1855 he was reelected-this time on the Republican ticket with Governor Stephen Royce. In 1856, he undertook a successful campaign for governor as the Republican nominee, and he was reelected in 1857. Fletcher strongly favored biennial rather than annual gubernatorial elections and was a tireless worker in the anti-slavery and temperance causes. After leaving office, he served in the Vermont legislature and was a member of the State Constitutional Convention in 1870. He died and was buried in Proctorsville, Vermont. Note: Ryland Fletcher is buried in the Cavendish Cemetery on High Street and not in Proctorsville as noted in the National Governors Association’s website
Prior to the War, Cavendish became part of the eastern trunk of the Underground Railroad between Brattleboro and Montpelier. In 1857, famous abolitionist John Brown came to Cavendish in hopes of securing some of the $20,000 the Vermont Legislature had approved to support anti slavery settlements in Kansas. Although Fletcher was governor at this time, his request for funds was denied. An account of Brown’s visit in the May 7, 1869 edition of the Rutland Herald, was described as follows:
"... Hair closely cut, beard neatly shaven, tight, stiff stock around his neck, no collar, or dickey, closely fitting swallow-tailed coat ..." the newspaper described. "As soon as it was known that 'John Brown' was stopping in our village, all manifested a desire to see and hear the man ... Notice was given that he would meet the people at the school house, and at the appointed hour an audience assembled.
"We introduced the modest and unassuming old man ... He went on and told the tale of his struggles with the despotism of slavery ... We little thought then how soon 'John Brown's body' would be mouldering in the ground, but his soul was even at that hour 'marching on.'"
In the War of the Union. — The first action taken by the town in reference to the late civil war was at a town meeting held April 30, 1861, Governor Ryland Fletcher presiding. It was then voted to raise $2,000 to liquidate all obligations incurred by Captain Tuttle in raising the Cavendish Light Infantry, and to pay the board of the men and furnish support to their families. Another loan of $3,000 was authorized in August, 1862, to pay bounties for nine months' volunteers, and in November of the following year a bounty of $200 was offered for volunteers, which was subsequently increased to $300, and another loan of $4,000 negotiated. During the latter part of 1863 the bounty was increased to $500, to make it possible to fill the town quota, and the selectmen were authorized to raise $10,000 to pay the expense of future calls for volunteers. In January, 1865, another loan of $7,000 was made, and in 1867 $15,000 was borrowed to pay the balance of the war debt. From a compilation made by the Hon. Calvin French we give the following figures : Cavendish furnished to the armies of the Union twenty men in response to the first call for troops for three months' service. In the Second, Eleventh, Fourth, Seventh aud Fifth Vermont Regiments, forty-two men for three years' service. These volunteers received no bounties Forty-two men were furnished under the nine months call. For subsequent calls fifty-three men were furnished for three years, and thirty for one year, making a grand total of 187 volunteers furnished by the town, whose terms of service would amount to 3521^ years for one man. Of these 125 volunteers received bounties amounting to $43,550, the others being recruited before it was necessary to offer a bounty. As early as 1867 a movement was inaugurated to erect a soldiers' monument in Cavendish, but it was not successful. In May, 1883, the present secretary of war, Redfield Proctor, presented his native town with a fine white marble monument, suitably inscribed and surmounted with an eagle. The town at this time appropriated $1,000 to grade the lot and pay the expense of the dedication of the monument. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
Cavendish Historical Society Board
Dan Churchill
Jen Harper
Gloria Leven
Bruce McEnaney
Mike Pember
Gail Woods
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If you have not joined the Cavendish Historical Society, need to renew your membership, and/or would like to be a volunteer, please complete the form below and sending a check, payable to CHS, to CHS, PO Box 472, Cavendish, VT 05142. All contributions are tax deductible.
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Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Genealogy: Bates Family
Linda Welch, CHS genealogist, has completed an extensive draft of the Bates Family genealogy. This includes information about James Hale Bates who built Brook Farm-known locally as the Bates Mansion at Brook Farm. If you would like to review this draft in PDF format, please e-mail margoc@tds.net
Friday, April 15, 2011
Cavendish Semiquincentennial: Civil War Era
On April 13, 1861 the first shots of the Civil War rang out with the firing on Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC. On April 15, President Lincoln appealed to the states for soldiers to suppress the rebellion. Whereas the laws of the United States have been for some time past and now are opposed and the execution thereof obstructed in the States of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas by combinations too powerful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings or by the powers vested in the marshals by law:__Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, . . . hereby do call forth, the militia of the several States of the Union to the aggregate number of 75,000 in order to suppress said combinations and to cause the laws to be duly executed.__. . . I appeal to all loyal citizens to favor, facilitate, and aid this effort to maintain the honor, the integrity, and the existence of our National Union, and the perpetuity of popular government, and to redress wrongs already long enough endured."
Governor Erastus Fairbanks replied that Vermont would do its "full duty" to help preserve the Union. As you’ll see in the information below, at a Cavendish town meeting on April 30 of that year, Cavendish took up the matter of supporting the “Cavendish Light Infantry.” Governor Ryland Fletcher, who presided over the meeting was the 24th Governor of the state from 1856 to 1858.
Governor Fletcher was born in Cavendish. In addition to working on his father's farm, he taught in the district school during the winter months. At age eighteen, he joined the state militia, attaining the rank of Brigadier-General. In 1854 he was elected Lieutenant Governor as the nominee of the Whig, Free Soil, and Liberty Parties, and in 1855 he was reelected-this time on the Republican ticket with Governor Stephen Royce. In 1856, he undertook a successful campaign for governor as the Republican nominee, and he was reelected in 1857. Fletcher strongly favored biennial rather than annual gubernatorial elections and was a tireless worker in the anti-slavery and temperance causes. After leaving office, he served in the Vermont legislature and was a member of the State Constitutional Convention in 1870. He is buried in the Cavendish Cemetery on High Street.
Prior to the War, Cavendish became part of the eastern trunk of the Underground Railroad between Brattleboro and Montpelier. In 1857, famous abolitionist John Brown came to Cavendish in hopes of securing some of the $20,000 the Vermont Legislature had approved to support anti slavery settlements in Kansas. Although Fletcher was governor at this time, his request for funds was denied. An account of Brown’s visit in the May 7, 1869 edition of the Rutland Herald, was described as follows:
"... Hair closely cut, beard neatly shaven, tight, stiff stock around his neck, no collar, or dickey, closely fitting swallow-tailed coat ..." the newspaper described. "As soon as it was known that 'John Brown' was stopping in our village, all manifested a desire to see and hear the man ... Notice was given that he would meet the people at the school house, and at the appointed hour an audience assembled.
"We introduced the modest and unassuming old man ... He went on and told the tale of his struggles with the despotism of slavery ... We little thought then how soon 'John Brown's body' would be mouldering in the ground, but his soul was even at that hour 'marching on.'"
In the War of the Union. — The first action taken by the town in reference to the late civil war was at a town meeting held April 30, 1861, Governor Ryland Fletcher presiding. It was then voted to raise $2,000 to liquidate all obligations incurred by Captain Tuttle in raising the Cavendish Light Infantry, and to pay the board of the men and furnish support to their families. Another loan of $3,000 was authorized in August, 1862, to pay bounties for nine months' volunteers, and in November of the following year a bounty of $200 was offered for volunteers, which was subsequently increased to $300, and another loan of $4,000 negotiated. During the latter part of 1863 the bounty was increased to $500, to make it possible to fill the town quota, and the selectmen were authorized to raise $10,000 to pay the expense of future calls for volunteers. In January, 1865, another loan of $7,000 was made, and in 1867 $15,000 was borrowed to pay the balance of the war debt. From a compilation made by the Hon. Calvin French we give the following figures : Cavendish furnished to the armies of the Union twenty men in response to the first call for troops for three months' service. In the Second, Eleventh, Fourth, Seventh aud Fifth Vermont Regiments, forty-two men for three years' service. These volunteers received no bounties Forty-two men were furnished under the nine months call. For subsequent calls fifty-three men were furnished for three years, and thirty for one year, making a grand total of 187 volunteers furnished by the town, whose terms of service would amount to 3521^ years for one man. Of these 125 volunteers received bounties amounting to $43,550, the others being recruited before it was necessary to offer a bounty. As early as 1867 a movement was inaugurated to erect a soldiers' monument in Cavendish, but it was not successful. In May, 1883, the present secretary of war, Redfield Proctor, presented his native town with a fine white marble monument, suitably inscribed and surmounted with an eagle. The town at this time appropriated $1,000 to grade the lot and pay the expense of the dedication of the monument. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
Governor Erastus Fairbanks replied that Vermont would do its "full duty" to help preserve the Union. As you’ll see in the information below, at a Cavendish town meeting on April 30 of that year, Cavendish took up the matter of supporting the “Cavendish Light Infantry.” Governor Ryland Fletcher, who presided over the meeting was the 24th Governor of the state from 1856 to 1858.
Governor Fletcher was born in Cavendish. In addition to working on his father's farm, he taught in the district school during the winter months. At age eighteen, he joined the state militia, attaining the rank of Brigadier-General. In 1854 he was elected Lieutenant Governor as the nominee of the Whig, Free Soil, and Liberty Parties, and in 1855 he was reelected-this time on the Republican ticket with Governor Stephen Royce. In 1856, he undertook a successful campaign for governor as the Republican nominee, and he was reelected in 1857. Fletcher strongly favored biennial rather than annual gubernatorial elections and was a tireless worker in the anti-slavery and temperance causes. After leaving office, he served in the Vermont legislature and was a member of the State Constitutional Convention in 1870. He is buried in the Cavendish Cemetery on High Street.
Prior to the War, Cavendish became part of the eastern trunk of the Underground Railroad between Brattleboro and Montpelier. In 1857, famous abolitionist John Brown came to Cavendish in hopes of securing some of the $20,000 the Vermont Legislature had approved to support anti slavery settlements in Kansas. Although Fletcher was governor at this time, his request for funds was denied. An account of Brown’s visit in the May 7, 1869 edition of the Rutland Herald, was described as follows:
"... Hair closely cut, beard neatly shaven, tight, stiff stock around his neck, no collar, or dickey, closely fitting swallow-tailed coat ..." the newspaper described. "As soon as it was known that 'John Brown' was stopping in our village, all manifested a desire to see and hear the man ... Notice was given that he would meet the people at the school house, and at the appointed hour an audience assembled.
"We introduced the modest and unassuming old man ... He went on and told the tale of his struggles with the despotism of slavery ... We little thought then how soon 'John Brown's body' would be mouldering in the ground, but his soul was even at that hour 'marching on.'"
In the War of the Union. — The first action taken by the town in reference to the late civil war was at a town meeting held April 30, 1861, Governor Ryland Fletcher presiding. It was then voted to raise $2,000 to liquidate all obligations incurred by Captain Tuttle in raising the Cavendish Light Infantry, and to pay the board of the men and furnish support to their families. Another loan of $3,000 was authorized in August, 1862, to pay bounties for nine months' volunteers, and in November of the following year a bounty of $200 was offered for volunteers, which was subsequently increased to $300, and another loan of $4,000 negotiated. During the latter part of 1863 the bounty was increased to $500, to make it possible to fill the town quota, and the selectmen were authorized to raise $10,000 to pay the expense of future calls for volunteers. In January, 1865, another loan of $7,000 was made, and in 1867 $15,000 was borrowed to pay the balance of the war debt. From a compilation made by the Hon. Calvin French we give the following figures : Cavendish furnished to the armies of the Union twenty men in response to the first call for troops for three months' service. In the Second, Eleventh, Fourth, Seventh aud Fifth Vermont Regiments, forty-two men for three years' service. These volunteers received no bounties Forty-two men were furnished under the nine months call. For subsequent calls fifty-three men were furnished for three years, and thirty for one year, making a grand total of 187 volunteers furnished by the town, whose terms of service would amount to 3521^ years for one man. Of these 125 volunteers received bounties amounting to $43,550, the others being recruited before it was necessary to offer a bounty. As early as 1867 a movement was inaugurated to erect a soldiers' monument in Cavendish, but it was not successful. In May, 1883, the present secretary of war, Redfield Proctor, presented his native town with a fine white marble monument, suitably inscribed and surmounted with an eagle. The town at this time appropriated $1,000 to grade the lot and pay the expense of the dedication of the monument. History of Windsor County, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, 1891
Friday, April 8, 2011
Cavendish Semiquincentennial: Revolutionary War
The first settlers in Cavendish Capt. Coffeen and his wife Susanna, arrived in 1769. During the Revolutionary war years 1775-1783, Susanna was the only woman that remained in Cavendish. In 1777, Coffeen’s grain and grass fields, as well as fledgling young orchard, were destroyed when 300 New England troops were stationed on his farm, while working on the Crown Point Road. Later in the year, after the surrender of Crown Point and Ticonderoga, militia, whose terms had expired or where discharged for misconduct, again encamped at Coffeen’s as they made their way home. The tavern house, which Coffeen had established, was immediately filled to overflowing. Those who could not get lodging inside, built fires with the boards that Capt. Coffeen had procured for building a large barn and house. They stripped his home of nearly everything it contained and the turned their horses into his grain. They justified their actions by declaring that the enemy would do it themselves within 48 hours. Capt. Coffeen’s sent his family to relatives in Rindge, NH. For the remainder of the summer, his house became a camp for the vagrant soldiery, several of whom died under his roof.
In this same year, Coffeen was chosen to represent Vermont at the Windsor Convention to form a Constitution for the new State of Vermont in June of that year.
In this same year, Coffeen was chosen to represent Vermont at the Windsor Convention to form a Constitution for the new State of Vermont in June of that year.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Cavendish Semiquincentennial: Cavendish Militia
In a new settlement like Cavendish, one of the first order of business would be to establish a militia for self-defense. Every able-bodied man would be a member, with one elected as Captain. These groups were also called “training bands.” John Coffeen was captain of the first Cavendish Militia and during the Revolution was at the head of a troop of Rangers.
When the Revolution came, these military companies were called into action. Oliver Tarbell was captain of one of the “train bands” and the company met at the Tarbell farm. In addition there were “alarm-lists,” which enumerated all the men between 14 and 65 years of age, who were liable to be called upon in an emergency. Up until 1847, all able-bodied men between 18 and 45 years of age, by law, were enrolled in the militia and were required to do military duty. Every man was required to keep arms and equipment as needed for actual service, and for so doing, his poll was exempt from taxation.
When the Revolution came, these military companies were called into action. Oliver Tarbell was captain of one of the “train bands” and the company met at the Tarbell farm. In addition there were “alarm-lists,” which enumerated all the men between 14 and 65 years of age, who were liable to be called upon in an emergency. Up until 1847, all able-bodied men between 18 and 45 years of age, by law, were enrolled in the militia and were required to do military duty. Every man was required to keep arms and equipment as needed for actual service, and for so doing, his poll was exempt from taxation.