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VTGenWeb Stannard |
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This page was previously maintained by Ann Mensch for VTGenWeb. Many of the links need updating and will be updated in time. +
Brief
History of Goshen Gore / Stannard + +
1867 History of Stannard, by
Hamilton Child +
§
General
Stannard's House in Milton, VT
§ + Stannard Historical Society
(Stannard, VT) VITAL RECORDS Early Birth,
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CENSUS
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1790 Census
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Brief History of Goshen Gore / Stannard Primary
Source: The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: A Magazine,
Embracing a History of Each Town, Civil, Ecclesiastical, Biographical and Military,
Vol. 1. Edited by Abby Maria Hemenway, "Goshen Gore,"
By Joseph Clarke, Burlington, Vt : Miss A. M. Hemenway, 1867,
(pp. 434-435).
There were two Gores in Caledonia county by this name. The largest
contained 7339 acres; was situated in the northwest part of the county,
bounded north by Wheelock, east by Danville, south by Walden, and west by
Greensboro. The smaller Gore contained 2828 acres, and was located in
the southwest corner of the county. The smaller Gore, sometimes
referred to as "the less," was set off to Washington County.
These Gores derived their name from the town to which they formerly
belonged. By a singular act of the legislature, these two Gores, in
Caledonia county, and one still larger in Addison county, 70 miles distant,
containing 13,000 acres, were incorporated into a town by the name of Goshen;
chartered February 1, 1792, to John ROWELL, Wm. DOUGLASS, and 65 others, and
re-chartered to the same, on November 1, 1798.
The inhabitants of the part of the town in Addison county, organized March
29, 1814. The Gores in Caledonia county were severed from the town of
Goshen by the legislature in 1854. The larger of the Gores in Caledonia
county was referred to as "Goshen Gore, near Hardwick" and
"Goshen Gore by Wheelock" to distinguish it from the smaller
Gore. There were frequent petitions by the inhabitants of the larger
Gore in this county to become organized into a town, the first being
presented to the legislature in 1835. The larger Goshen Gore was organized,
in 1867, and was called Stannard by the time the 1870 U. S. Census was
taken.
The first settlements in the land which became known as Stannard were made by
Elihu SABIN and Warren SMITH in 1802. SMITH did not settle
permanently. SABIN built a frame house which he occupied until his
death some 41 years later. Other settlements were made soon after that
of SABIN, by Reuben SMITH, Elisha SHEPARD, Reuben CROSBY, Thomas RANSOM,
Azariah BOODY, Ephraim PERRIN and Andrew BLAIR. Improvements were made
about the same time by several other transient residents.
Although the settlement of the place was at comparatively a later date, the
hardships incident to new settlements had to be encountered. Supplies
of grain and necessaries had to be procured in a measure from adjoining
towns; the method of transportation frequently upon their backs, and the
method of payment, often by a day's work. The frosty season of 1816,
and others which occurred previously, was severely felt. Mary SABIN was
the first child born. Freeman SMITH was the first male child, and
Edmund BARKER and Betsy SABIN, the first couple married in Stannard.
By about 1867, the western portion of Stannard, towards the Lamoille river,
comprised about two-thirds of the territory, and had been improved by
resident occupants. There were reportedly over 40 families in Stannard
by 1867. Two or three farms on the eastern extremity, adjoining
Danville, had been under improvement since 1805; James CLARK and Thomas YOUNG
made the first improvements there.
The eastern portion, though well timbered, was chiefly unimproved and
mountainous. A pond, covering about 80 acres, in the northern part, the
outlet of which found its way to the Connecticut River, was the site of a steam
saw mill erected, in 1856, by T. G. BRONSON. BRONSON died in 1857, and
the mill passed into the hands of others--HAWKINS & ROSS were the
proprietors in 1867. At that time, nearly 1,000,000 feet of lumber was
manufactured at this mill annually, which was principally drawn to St.
Johnsbury, and used in the manufactory of E. & T. FAIRBANKS. About
a mile west of this pond is/was "Beaver Meadow," also called
"Blueberry Meadow." A stream once called "Gore
Brook" arises from this meadow and empties into Lamoille River.
The first saw mill was built by G. W. COOK, on a stream which is the outlet
of a pond in Wheelock. This mill was burnt, and another built by
William SHURBURN on the same spot. The second was burned, and the third
was built by Enoch FOSTER in 1833, which was still in operation in
1867. Another mill was built in 1840, by Levi UTLEY, in the Gore brook,
leading from Beaver Meadow.
In 1867, the first meeting house, first public house, first grist mill, first
physician, and the first lawyer, remained among the things that had not yet
existed within Stannard.
The first school was kept by Barilla MORSE, in Reuben CROSBY's barn, in
1812. Judith CHASE, Betsy SABIN and Lucretia WASHBURN were the next
succeeding teachers. Mrs. Andrew BLAIR sent her girl to the first
school, and paid the tuition with a pink silk handkerchief.
"Schoolmarm know'd I had it, and she wanted it to make her a
bonnet." (Reportedly, "Good old Mrs. Ann BLAIR's
testimony.) The first frame school house was built in 1823. In
1834, a second school district was formed.
A Freewill Baptist Church was organized in Goshen Gore in August, 1841, and
the Elder John Garfield ordained pastor. It consisted originally of 12
members; growing to over 50 members by the late 1860s. In 1855, H. W.
HARRIS became their minister; he was succeeded by Elder Geo. KING, who was
ordained pastor of the church in 1857. After Elder KING left, the
church was supplied by itinerant ministers. Primary
Source: Part
First. Gazetteer of Caledonia and Essex Counties, VT., 1764-1887,
compiled and published by Hamilton Child, "Town of Stannard." Syracuse, N. Y. : The
Syracuse Journal Company, Printers and Binders, May, 1867, (pp. 306-309).
STANNARD, the smallest township in the
county, lies in the western part of the same, in lat. 44° 33' and long. 4° 46', bounded
northeast by Wheelock, southeast by Danville, southwest by Walden, and
northwest by the Orleans county line.
It has an area of about 7,339 acres. Until August 19, 1867, this town was
known as Goshen Gore, deriving its name from the town to which it formerly
belonged. By a singular act of the
legislature, this Gore, with another now set off to Washington county, and
one in Addison county, seventy miles distant, were incorporated into a town
by the name of Goshen, chartered February 1, 1792, to John ROWELL, William
DOUGLASS and sixty-fives others, and was re-chartered to the same November 1,
1798. And again, the gore now the
township of Stannard, was severed from the town of Goshen by the legislature
in 1854. Frequent petitions were sent
to the legislature by its inhabitants to have it organized as a town. Finally these petitions were granted,
August 19, 1867. The town received its
name in honor of General Stannard. The western portion of the town,
towards the Lamoille river, and comprising nearly two thirds of the
territory, is improved by resident occupants.
The eastern portion is mostly unimproved land, heavely covered with a
growth of hard and soft wood timber.
In the northeastern part there is a pond covering about seventy-five
acres, the outlet of which finds its way to the Connecticut river. T. C. BRONSON erected a steam saw-mill near
the outlet of this pond, in 1856, which did an extensive business for some
years. About 300 rods west of this
pond is a meadow, supposed to have been caused by beavers building a dam
across a small stream that has its rise here. In 1880 Stannard had a population of 252
souls. In 1886 the town had two school
districts and two common schools, employing one male and three female
teachers, to whom was paid an average weekly salary, including board, of
$7.25 and $5.58, respectively. There
were ninety-eight scholars, eight of whom attended private schools. The entire income for school purposes was
$326.93, while the total expenditures were $342.73, with Mrs. E. BRADLEY,
superintendent. STANNARD
(p. o.) is a small but pleasant hamlet, with two churches , a town hall, one
saw-mill and about a dozen dwellings.
But little manufacturing is done in town, the chief occupation being
farming. The first tree was cut in what is now
Stannard by Warren SMITH. This tree
stood a few rods south of where T. C. BATCHELDER now lives. Mr. SMITH never settled in the town. Elihu SABIN built a log house here in the
fall of 1802, and lived in it until 1809, when he built the framed house now
occupied by T. C. BATCHELDER, on road 16.
This was the first framed house built in town. Sabin lived in town about forty-one years,
and was buried in a small yard on the farm formerly cleared and owned by
him. Other settlers arrived soon after
SABIN, among whom were Reuben SMITH, Elisha SHEPARD, Reuben CROSBY, Thomas
RANSOM, Asariah BOODY, Ephraim PERRIN and Arthur
BLAIR. Mary, daughter of Elihu SABIN, was the
first white child born in town. Edmund
BAKER and Betsey SABIN were the first couple married here. The first saw-mill was built in the
northwestern part of the town, on a stream which is the outlet of Wheelock
pond in Wheelock. It was built by
George W. COOK, was operated only a short time when it was burned. Another was soon erected on the same spot,
by William SHERBURN, which was also destroyed by fire, and a third mill was
built by Enoch FOSTER. This mill was
of short duration, however, it being torn down. In 1840 Levi UTLEY built one on what was
then known as Gore Brook, now called Stannard brook, which was operated for
several years. The first school was
kept by Barilla MORSE, in the fall of 1812, in a barn. The first school house was built in 1823,
on road 13. In 1834 a second district
was formed. Elihu SABIN, before mentioned as being
the first permanent settler in the town, was born at Dudley, Mass., in
1772. He was known as a trustworthy
man, talented for his day and opportunities, commanding the respect of all
who knew him. He was for about twenty
years a justice of the peace, and held other offices of trust. He died July 9, 1843. He was one of the twenty-six children of
Mr. and Mrs. Gideon SABIN. Ephraim PERRIN was one of the early
settlers here. He came from
Connecticut in 1807, and lived alone in a log house for eight years. The house he constructed was by the side of
a large rock, which served the double purpose of a fire place and one end of
his apartment. Later his affairs
prospered and he married Polly CHEEVER, and built a framed house. This wife died in a few years, and he
married a second, Maria CUTLER, and reared a large family. He died in 1859. Elisha SHEPARD was a native of
Connecticut. He came to this town
about 1804. His son Moses D. was born
January 5, 1805. He was by occupation
a farmer. He married, in 1831, and
reared a family of seven children, three of whom are living, and one, Calvin
J., in this town. Frank A. PAIGE was a son of James. He was born in Walden, Vt., February 9,
1834, and when two years old he moved with his parents to Hardwick. Here he lived until the breaking out of the
war, when he enlisted in Co. I, 19th Vt. Vols., serving three years. He married, October 17, 1866, Helen WALKER,
and three children have been born to them. Joseph CLARK was born in Peacham, Vt.,
September 14, 1807. When quite young
he entered a printing office at Wells River, learning the printer's
trade. He afterwards followed this
vocation in Stanstead, P. Q., and also at White
River Junction, Vt. In 1837 he came to
this town, settling on the farm now owned and occupied by his son, Joseph
H. He died in 1867. Edward CLARK, M. D., was born in
Peacham, Vt., a son of Edward, Sr. He
was a graduate of Dartmouth college, Hanover, N. H., graduating in 1822. He at once went to Greensboro, Vt., and
commenced practice. He married
Caroline HALE and reared a family of five children, as follows: Eliza A., Laura C., Egbert W., now of this
town, Caroline S. and Lydia M. He died
July 15, 1842. James BATTEN was a native of Topsham,
Vt. He moved to this town about
1858. On July 16, 1861, he was
mustered into Co. K, 3d Vt. Vols., and was killed by a gunshot wound at the
battle of Lee's Mills, April 16, 1862.
Three of his sons were in the army. Alfred CHASE, son of David, was born in
Rumney, N. H., July 14, 1800. He moved
to this town about 1825, first settling near road 6. He married Persis HEDGES and reared two
children, Almon H., born January 1, 1833, and Hannah E., born September 15,
1835. Almon H. married Elizabeth SMITH
and lives on road 17. Benjamin BLODGETT was born in Vershire,
Vt.., March 4, 1772. He lived in Vershire
about twenty-five years, when he married Polly GREENLEAF, of Connecticut, and
moved to Bath, N. H. He reared a
family of eight children. His wife
died November 11, 1825, after which he married Sally UTLEY. He died February 10, 1858. Only one of his children is living, Joseph
F., born August 16, 1803. The latter
lived in Bath, N. H., until 1837, when he moved to this town, first locating
on road 10. He was twice married,
first to Rosanna UTLEY, and second to Abigail SAWYER. Of his six children only two are living,
Sally, wife of Nathan MOORE, of Monroe, N. H., and William H., in this town. Charles WEED, a native of Amesbury,
Mass., was born in 1749. He took an
active part in the Revolutionary war, participating in the time-honored
conflict on Bunker Hill. He married
Dorothy Goodwin, and reared a family of three sons and two daughters. About the year 1805 he moved to Topsham,
Vt. The children were Charles, Jr.,
Joseph, Isaac, Judith and Marion. He
died about 18030, and his wife survived him until about 1838. All of their children were born in
Amesbury, Mass. Joseph Married Marion
CURRIER, and died in Topsham, leaving a family of seven children. Isaac married Sally JONES, of Topsham, and
moved to this town in 1840. They
reared a family of thirteen children, five of whom are living, as
follows: Daniel J., Olive, Sarah,
Ephraim G. and Gustie. The Freewill Baptist church.--Most of
the early settlers of this town were of the Freewill Baptist persuasion, and
organized the church here in August, 1841.
Rev. John GARFIELD was their first settled pastor, although services
were conducted by a minister by the name of BLOOD previous to the
organization of the church. At its
original organization the society consisted of twelve members, but it soon
increased to over forty. In 1850 this
church resolved itself into a society for the purpose of aiding superannuated
ministers and poor widows and orphans, and to do all they could for their aid
and support. The Union Baptist church, located at
Stannard village, was organized by its present pastor, Rev. G. B. WHEELER,
December 23, 1884, with seventeen members.
The present edifice, built of wood, in 1885, is capable of seating 150
persons, and is valued, including grounds, etc., at $1,500. The Sunday school has an average attendance
of thirty. The Union Advent Christian church was
organized by its first pastor, Rev. J. H. SMITH, October 4, 1885, with eleven
members. The building is capable of
seating 125 persons. The society now
has seventeen members, with Rev. J. H. SMITH, pastor. A well attended Sunday school is held
regularly. Biographies Elihu
SABIN |