It
I




WiLLLLAAXL.(;LIEME.-NTS-'
AIAERICAN HIISTORY




tI


























iHistory of Barton LandingI
I         AN


I 
i


Read before the ORLEANS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCrII~r
August 27, I892.
B Y
Also " THE LANDING PLACE" by D. W. HILDRETH
AND
An account of the UNVEILING OF "MEMORIAL ROCK,"
Compiled from the records by
JOHN M. CURRIER, M. D., SE~CRETARY.
NEWPORT
PU)3LISHBD BY THE SOCIETY
I893.




164


w                                                     -A-59




4     t,,   I ,iI
I,,,,    I
F
r q,
o" 
I P) * .
Ll'   ""   I
o.,,, i




History of Barton Landing.
AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE
THE QRLEANS COUNTY lIISTORIC.AL SOCIETY, AUGUST 27, 1892.


Two words con joined, furnish the name of
a pleasant and enterprising village,-Barton
Landing. The words came unsought, and
united fell into use with a natural fitiness and
adaptation and are both significant and historic. The first. is the surnanme of a brave
and distinguished officer of the American Revolution-General William Barton  This town
is fortunate in the besto; al of a baptismal
appellation, which so long as retained and
spoken, must ex necessitate revive the memories of the Provincial militia and the minute
men who were always the vanguard of freedom, and of one who fought because he I)elieved it was right. and with heart, brain and
conscience thoroughly imbued with a sense of
dutv 9nd lovaltv to freedoim. won distinction
Ia a saidler, and merittd, and becalne trus lIc
by Washington and loved by LaFayette.
William Barton, as the old record informs
us was born at three o'clock in the morning
May 26th, 1747, in the town of Warren ]i. I.,
which less than a year previous to his birth
had been a p'lrt of the town of Providence.
His father, Benjamin Barton, was deacon of
the Calvinistic Congregational Church in
Providence and had succeeded to the honot'
and emoluments of Constable of Warren.
The people of that day were exceedingly punctilious in matters of etiquette, in the early records and in their intercourse with each other,
the title of Mr. by which Benjamin Barton
was always scrupulously addressed, ald by
which Clergymen, l)eacons and Constables
were designated, was considered one of honor and distinction. A Colonial writer speaks
of a Constable, "as the right arm of the King


himself, a functionary treated with awo" and
oheyed with (efierence. Whoever resisted his
power resisted ti:e 'ordinance of God." The
name, Barton, was an old and respected one
in Colonial history, a coat of arms was preserved, whlich denote(1 an ancestry of conseque;nce and renown in Englkand. Others of
the family name had served with distinction
in the Colonial wars. William Barton, certainly, had no cause to complain of his lineaage. He was baptise(t on the next (lay following his birth with significant llnctuflity,
in accordance with.he spirit of that peiiod,
and as the first bo)rn of a deacon, that interesting ceremony was not deltayed. The boy
attended the common schools, but being an
expert and daring, madcnp, the hard and se1',re (lciipcjiine of the tchotol d;d not prevent
him from frequent absences, and being foremost in acts of daring and hazardous experiments, he muchl preferred to row a boat scouring the coast for tnany miles on a starless
night or to ho1le the tiller when the waves were
the wildest, than submit to thle rcstraints of
study  I suspect he was not of the kind ac_
counted a prodigy of goodness and of whom
many a spinster predicted an early pernature
death, but rn:ther of a roystering turn. of
whom anxious mothers were extremely suspicious and warned their cllildren to avoid
such companionsiip fearing the contagious
influence of evil comnmunictions.  In thiat
staid and sober village hcl was regarded as fa:st,
and his progress in that direction was too rapid for his father's pulrse, and at the age of
twelve he was bound out to learn a trade, a
mtanner of procedure which was then ccnsid



2


ered a sovereign specific for evil tendencies.
The harsh discipline of an apprenticeship was
what the lad needed. and soon wrought a
change but could not repress entirely the innate elements of a born leader. At the age
of sixteen he became enrolled in the militia,
and on becoming of age he commenced business for himself and became a worthy and
prosperous manufacturer of hats. Tie village of lis birth and parentage was romantic,
picturesque and singularly beautiful in situation, as pretty a village with its long straight
street shaded with a profusion of cherry trees,
as ever laid itself down to rest by the 'ever
murinuring sea.' At the age of majority in
response to the wishes of a pious loving mother and in obedience to his own convictions,
he became a member of the church of his native village which was situated upon a commanding eminence overlooking the bay. The
people were called to church on the Sabbath
day by the beat of a drum, and the same instrument was used to call them together on
other days. and for other purposes. It beat
for town meeting, the assembling of the militia, and in cases of alarm. There wasa particular beat for each of those occasions, so
that it may be said, there was the drum ecclesiastical, the drum military, and the drum civil. At the age of twenty-two he was happily
married, his circumstances comfortable and
his prospects for the future satisfactory. In
common with all citizens he manifested a deep
and absorbing interest in the various contentions of the colonies with the mother country.
He was vigorous in speech in condemning the
course of the British Parliament; for ten years
of earnest discussion, but temperate remonstrance, he had speculated upon the possibility, for five years, when the spirit of indignant
and resolute resistance to oppressive legislation, had becone fused and welded into a condition of public sentiment partaking of the


sound, every sight, the arrival of every post
rider, but deepened and intensified the significance, and all quietly organized, watched and
waited. March, 1774, the people of Providence in attestation of their sympathy with
the inhabitants of Boston in their determined
resistance to the oppressive acts of Parliament resolved into a Tea Party. Accordingly the town crier, bell in hand at twelve o'clock
noon, marched through the town and in stentorian tone announced that at five o'clock in
the afternoon a "quantity of IndiaTea would
be burne(I in the market place." "All true
friends of their country,lovers of freedom and
haters of shackles and hand-cuffs are hereby
invited to testify their good disposition by
bringing in and casting into the fire, a needless herb which for a long time hath been highly detrimental to our liberty, interest and
health." In response thereto, a large concourse assembled, when about three hundred
pounds of tea was burned, amidst the shout
of the populace, the tolling of bells, beating
of drums and screeching of fifes, a tar barrel, copies of Lord North's speeches and some
Tory newspapers were added to the holocaust.
Barton as a son of liberty and habited as an
Indian went along the streets with brush and
lampblack and neatly obliterated the word
Tea from the shop signs.
While he made hats he talked in a determined and independent way. and voiced sentiments which his majesty,George the Third,
denounced as rank treason, ald as indicative
of his position, and as the cardinal doctrine
of his political creed and faith, he cut out
from the columns of the Providence Mercury and placed in a conspicuous place in his
ashop the resolve of the first indepedent legislature of America, assembled Oct. 1774, in
the old meeting house on Concord Common.
"Resolved that no danger shall affright, no
difficulties intimidate us, and if in the support


qualities of independant national life and pur- of our rights, we are called to encounter even
pose, he had believed in the probability, and death, we are yet undaunted, sensible that he
for a year previous to the never-to-be-forgot- can never die too soon, who lays down his
ten midnight ride of Paul Revere, he lh id ac- life in support of tie laws and liberties of his
cepted as an ahsolute certainty, an appeal to Country." In June, 1774, the R. I. Assembly,rms.                                    voted that one-fourth of the militia of the
In the nervous tension of that period, every colony be enlisted ns minute men and Mr.




3
William Barton was commissioned a recruit- 1777, they embarked, they proceeded with
ing officer and he became a mtnute man who muffled oars in silence, in the intense darkwas supposed to have his gun wi.h him, at ness which usually precedes a thunderstorm,
church, at home, at his place of business, across the bay towards Bristol Ferry, to Warready to start at a minute's notice.     wick Neck from whence they designed to
Upon learning the result of the battle of cross o er to Rhode Island. Before the deBunker Hill he took no time to consider or plirture from Warwick Neck. which was on
arrange his business,but slinging his gun over the 9th day of July about nine o'clock in the
his shoulder, mounted his horse, and went to evening he appointed to each man his place;
Boston, arriving there on the second day af- silently the little heroic band gathered about
ter the battle, when he offered himself as a their commander to receive his last orders.
voluteer, and entered the service as a Corpo-  They were told first, that they were to preral under the immediate command of Gen. serve the strictest order, second, not to have
Putnam, and, by a rapid but regular advance- the least idea of plunder, third, to observe
ment was promoted to the rank of Captain; the most profound silence, and fourth, to take
while in this service, working at intrench- nospiritous liquors with them. Hethenmost
ments under the guns of the British Aamy, earnestly commended all to the protection of
intercepting foraging parties and in various Him who is the disposer of all events. In
engagements, he obtained a knowledge of uil- the forward boat Col. Barton posted himself
itary duty, and by his personal courage and with a pole ten feet long and a handkerchief
qualities as an officer, merited and won the attached to the end, so that his boat mignit be
favorable notice of Washington who ever af- known. They passed three British frigates
terward regarded him with esteem. But such and so ne.sr that they heard the sentinels, cry
as he were needed nearer his home, where of "all is well." By skillful maneuvering he
the British war vessels had blockaded the eluded observation and gained the shore. He
Rhode Island coast and threatened to make a left a man to auard each boat and dividing his
descent upon Newport and Providence, and party into five divisions, marched to the house
he was assigned to an important and inde- which was one mile distant. Silently and
pendent command as Colonel at Newport and cautiously they reached the house, Que;m. the
Bristol, R. I. He rendered signal service in negro body servant kept close in the track of
protecting the coast line, and while in this his master  Conceive the situation;at a short
service he meditated long upon the possibili- distance was a body guard, and the Bay was
ty of the capture of the British General Pres- lined with British ships. The British senticott, learning from spies employed by him- nel to his surprise found his arms pinioned to
self, where Gen. Prescott was quartered on his side, his musket seized and himself ii) a
Rhode Island about one mile from the shore, stern voice threatened with instant death if
he confided the design only of a secret expe- he made the least noise. Learning from the
dition, which he represented as hazardous, to affrighted guard the situation of the British
five officers and requested their co-operation, General's room, after having placed his men
which was willingly pledged.             to guard against an escape, Col. Barton with
Five whale boats were provided and order- his negro servant reached the door which was
ing his regiment to be paraded, lie addressed fastened, the negro whose head was hard as
his men, saying that he desired forty volun- a cannon ball made one plunge, and burst
teers for an expedition against the enemy, through the door, Col. Barton sword in hand
and requested those who were willing to risk rushed into the room and perceiving a person
their lives to advance two paces to the front, sitting on the side of the bed, rubbing his
without a moments pause the whole regiment eyes, clapped his hand on his shoulder and
advanced and selecting the forty, he affection- asked if he was General Prescott and receivately thanked them all for their willingness ing answer that he was, told him that he was
to volunteer upon so desperate an undertaking. a prisoner and must go immediately with him.
The next evening, on the fourth day of July, The British General demurred somewhat, and




4


on the repetition of a sterner command to
start immediately, somewhat hastily inquired,
"my God, Sir, must I go naked?" was again
required to go, and in his night clothing, he
tramped barefooted to the shore. The march
to the boats was a hasty one, and the phrase
that there "is but one step from the sublime
to the ridiculous" was well illustrated, the
British General was marched between Col.
Barton and a Captain, with an arm around the
neck and shoulder of each of his attendant
guards, on the way to the boats they had to
pass through a patch of blackberry bushes,
which scratched his aristocratic legs, and as
the sharp thornes in a democratic way drew
patrician blood the ha,;ghty General made
streuous efforts to rise higher between his attendants, and looked about as if meditating
an attempt for liberty, but the command of
silence reiterated in a loud stern voice, and a
hasty glance at the keen determined eyes of
the Continental Colonel, accompanied with
the flashing of a drawn sword in the hands of
a cool, determined officer, convinced the captured General that ' discretion was the better
part of valor" and additional proof, if any
was needed, was furnished in the resolute behavior of his captors, one of whom, pistol in
hand, at a glance he recognized as a former
prisoner whom he had sentenced to a hundred
Li shes on his bare back, and the no less sugge-tive action of a humorous subaltern in his
rear, who with the point of a bayonet, in an
admonitory manner, qnickened his lagging
footsteps, and General Prescott rather anxiously inquired if they intended personal injury, and piteously said "he hoped they would
not hurt him." -'Oh no," replied Col. Barton,
'you shall not be hurt while under my care,
but I have vowed to take you dead or alive,
and as sure as there is a God in Heaven I shall
take a breathing mortal or the dead carcass of
a British General within the American line:i."
On arriving at the boats, Col. Barton threw
his military cloak over tile shivering form of
his prisoner who remarked, "you have made
a d-  d bold push to-night," and no sooner
(lid they push from the shore, than the signal
of alarm arose from the British troops, the
tiring of cannon and the glare of bursting
rockets and amid the noise of cannon, the


blaze of beacon lights and streaming rockets,
they pursued their way, near the war vessels
under the stern of one and the bowsprit of
another where the boatswains whistle and the
roll of the drum was summoning all hands on
deck, but favored by the intense darkness that
preceqles the dawn, that hardy band of patriots at sunrise, found safety and shelter under
the guns of an American fort. Col. Barton
escorted his prisoner to comfortable quarters;
on the march thither through the streets of
the town, the captive Britisli officer received
an ovation not particularly of a triumphal
character. Men,women and children were out
in tie streets, and the roguish urchins with
mck sorro v put their handkerchiefs to their
eyes making most grotesque faces, and the
doors andl door-posts of influential tories were
very appropriately draped with crape, while
loud huzzas greeted the brave captors. For
this exploit Col. Barton received from Congress a vote of thanks and the gift of an elegantly inscribed sword. A ballad was composed by one of Ilis admirers entitled, 'Brave
Barton," o:e of the verses being as follows:
"Thus did they cross and march away,
Where Prescott's hosts encamped lay,
On hostile measures bent:
Young David took the bloody Saul,
And sentry, and back to the boat they went."
Sublsequeutly the British made an attack
upon the village of Warren,the news of which
was brought to Col. Barton. Hastily mounting his horse, he galloped away ahead of his
troops, and arriving in advance, I!e saw one
of the British soldiers setting fire to the meeting house, and setting up a tremendous haloo
the fellow fled and the marauders commenced
their retreat.  Duriing the retieat of the
British troops, their commanding officer being in the rear, Col. Barton infuriated that
his native village was attacked, hailed him
calling him a coward and daring him to colIe
out and fight him: "come back you (1-  d
coo ard, I am the man who took Prescott and
by       I'll hack yon to pieces in less time
thlan it took to take him." This is sa:id to have
beel the only time he ever indulged in profanity; like hils great commander Waslhilngton
he never swore but once.  Subseqtuently at




5


an engagement at Bristol Ferry. he received
a very serious gun shot wound in the thigh
which caused his resignation and retirement
from service. Upon the arrival of the French
fleet under Count Rochambeau, he entertained at his house both the Admiral and the
gallant LaFayette. At the conclusion of the
war he was elected a member of the State
Legislature, and was a revenue officer.  In
1794, Col. Barton as one of the grantees of
this town, which was christened with hisi
name, came here and cleared some land and
erected a frail log house without floor or chinmney and containing but one room. The clearing was in lot 6, range 7, near the Mansfield
place. In the summer of 1796, he built the
first saw mill in town, near where the railroad crosses the river at the Mansfield farm.
As his family never came here to reside, I am
of the opinion that he intended to speculate,
and make sales of his allotted lands. Subsequently he became involved in a longal;d bitter litigation with Jonathan Allyn in relation
to some land titles, which was finally decided
against him; he was so much impressed with
the idea of the injustice of the result, that lle
refused to pay the cost of suit and was committed to the jail in Danville, Vt., where he
lay imprisoned( for fourteen years when he
was relieved by the liberality of LaFayette in
1825, who on his visit to this state, at that
time learned with indignation that the brave
Gen. Barton was a prisoner three hundred
miles away from home, that he had pledged
his word never to pay what he considered
an unjust debt, and expressed great surprise
that neither the government nor any individual had volunteered to release the aged
veteran, without the sacrifice of his word.
And tile gallant and chivalrous Frenchman
placed a sufficient sum of money in the hands
of Gen. Fletcher, of Lyndon, to procure his
release from imprisonment. He returned to
Rhode Island, but the charm of life was broken and a gradual decline seemed to come over
his health and faculties: the silver cord was
loosed and he passed to rest Oct., 1831,aged 85.
The word "Landing," has a deeper significance and relates to a period of time antecedent to the landing of the Puritans in Plyin

far back as the year 1535, the date of commencement of French discovery and occupation in North America. In the solemn and
continuous march of historical occurrences,
it was only the other day, that is, in the month
of March in the year of Grace 1535, that
Jacques Cartier, Seaman and privateer of the
surf-beaten coast of St. Malo, Chevalier and
Gentleman at Arms in the Court of Francis
the First of France, with three small vessels
and a retinue of needy adventurers which had
been let loose from the galleys and prisons of
France, ascended the great ocean river, which
he christened the St. Lawrence, to a populous
Indian village named Hochelaga; here Donnaconner, an Algonquin chief, conducted him
to the top of a mountain, upon which lie bestowed the name Mount Royal-Montreal, and
showed him the country south and east for
many miles in extent, and told him il wild
pantomimic expressive gesture and harsh guttural language, of great rivers and inland
seas. of smaller rivers and their nunerous
branches and tributary springs, and of a vast
forest whlere were trees, remarkable for height
and beauty of foliage, numerous in class and
genera, extending from the great northern
river to the stormy and rock bound coast of
New England; its wooded mountains threaded by flashing cascades and clothed in the
myriad tints and shades of an Indian summer,
that peculiar phenomenon witnessed here in
its greatest glory and beauty, when the earth
whirling along its appointed circuit strikes
and passes through the great meteor stratum
and falls within the influence of an aerial gulf
stream of mellowness of air, sight and sound
and all nature appears somnolent as if to prepare itself by rest, against the blasts and icebound fetters of winter, where the golden foliage of the elm, the various hues of the maple, displaying concurring shades of red and
crimson, the pale and yellow sober vesture of
birch and beech, contrasts with the eternal
somber green of the spruce and pine, all uniting in exquisite harmony to form an enchanting panorama of brilliant painting, fresh from
the limning hand of Omniscience, obedient
to the wonderful alchemy of nature and transfiguring the landscape of autumn; when "The


outh Harbor and without doubt extending as great sun looked with the eye of love upon




6


the golden vapors around him," and where its
last receding beams portrayed a vision of an
half opened gateway to another world of
greater b-autv and glory, where the rivers are
crystal and the deepening shadows of twilight never gather, ere it melted into the silver radiance of a starry night  A scene like
this transcendently lovely in beauty and expanse compelled the admiration of the rough
soldier of fortune and of the untutored Indian, who frncied he saw the benign smile of
his good Deity, Coutantowait, and enforced
silence by its grandeur and majesty. Again
speaking the chieftain pointed out the dark
outline of the Green Mountain Range, the
sharp peak of Jay Mountain and the rounded
top of Owl's Head, beneath which lay the
gleaming waters of Memphremagog and beyond which under the shade of mighty forests
were the summer hunting grounds of his tribe,
where roamed the moose, deer and black bear,
and beside pond, lake and river were found
the beaver and other fur-bearing animals.
This territory he called Iroquousia now known
as Vermont.
At the commencement of the fifteenth century, the aboriginal occupancy of the Eastern provinces of Canada and northern and
eastern New England was of the Algonquin
race and lineage, though they were also known
and designated as the Abenaquis, St. Francis
and Coosuck Indians. There is abundant evidence that these Indians in their annual migrations from place to place for the purpose
of hunting, fishing and trapping had communication and interchange with those dwelling
upon the New England sea-shore, and that
there were three long established trails or
routes of Indian travel in the eastern and middle portions of Orleans Connty.  The first
was from Memphremagog Lake by way of
Clyde River to Island Pond, the second was
from the Lake by way of Barton River across
the great water-shed which divides the waters of the St. Lawrence from those of the
Connecticut, to the head wte as of the Passumpbic River, tnd the third was from Sherbrooke to Norton Pond, thence by Ferrens
and Clyde Rivers to Island Pond. The objective point, south, being the greater highway along the Connecticut, the route north


of Memphremagog Lake from the St. Lawrence being by way of the St. Francis and
Magog Rivers to the Lake. It does not appear that in the country lying between the St.
Lawrence River and the Ox Bow meadows of
Newbury and IIaverhill, there was any considerable or continuous occupation of this part of
the state by the Indians. An Indian route being thus estabiished it is not difficult to locate
an Indian landing place, where the rapids of
a stream interposed an obstacle to canoe navigation and compelled a portage.
The existence o(f an Indian Landing on Barton River northerly of the site of the village
of Barton Landing, is well attested by the
knowledge and assertions of the early settlers
of this part of the County, as well as by what
was learned by them from occasional parties
of Indians, remnants of the once powerful
tribe of St. Francis, encamping on the adjoining land, in the early part of this century
and late as the commencement of the second
quarter of this century.
When the advancing tide of English settlement in 1760 had reached as far as Charlestown, Number Four, now Claremont, N. H.,
this route was used by Indian war-parties on
the way to attack the frontier settlements,
south, and some of the spoils and English captives of these expeditions vw ere without doubt
conveyed along this route, and it is;eyond
question that the advance scout, frontiersmen
and i anger, the avant courriers of civilization
were well acquainted with and used this Indian trail. In the spring of 1752, John Stark, a
ranger, afterwards Gen. Stark, while hunting
in Rumney, N. H., was surprised by the Indians and taken captive to St. Francis and escaped the following summer. On his return
he published a rude outline map, showing the
rivers Clyde and Barton. In 1759, Major Rogers, on his return from his ill-fated expedition against the St. Francis Indians, divided
his forces at Indian Point, in Derby, and directing one detachment under Captain John
Stark to proceed by way of Clyde River, he
led his remaining troops up Barton River; this
fact argues that he had previous kniwledge
of the topography of this section and that il
his attempt to baffle the pursuit of the infuriated Indians, so brave and skitllul a ea(d



7


er would not have experimented upon the dangers of an unknown way. Joel Priest was one
of the Rangers under the command of Major
Rogers, and afterwards served in the Revolutionary War. He was also one of the early
settlers of the town of Brownington and deceased in that town 98 years of age.
The old 'Indian Trail" then established, we
locate decisively the Indian Landing. Northerly from the village of Barton Landing on
the easterly bank of Barton river, about ten
feet fron the highway bridge and the junction
of two rivers. we must place and designate
the "historical spot." Here, then, at this surpassingly beautiful place, where the lovely valley trends to the east and north, fortified and
adorned by the graceful slopes and gradations
of the surrounding hills, are represented two
epochs in history, the one of wild and savage life, the other of peace, plenty, cultivated
farms, the peopled village and cultured
thought. And more strikingly and fittingly
represented are they, by the memory of the
dark and shaded Indian trail, and beside it
and along its course the iron track of interstate commerce which in one continuous line
connects the shores of Puget Sound with the
great trade center and commercial capital of
New England.
With this history in mind there lingers
about the place the vivid and poetic charm of
aboriginal life, mystery and tradition, and all
the breadth and color which in poetry and fiction have often elevated the common-place
into the romantic. Here has come the Indian
when the surrounding hills and valleys were
clothed in the verdure of a primeval forest,
in his smoothly gliding picturesque bark canoe along the sinuous curves of the winding
river bearing his arms, a rude war club
wrought and ornamented with great ingenuity of barbaric device, a skillfully shaped and
polished bow, and arrows pointed with flints
and sharp bones, clothed in the undressed
skins of animals, ornamented with a necklace
of the claws of the bear and his head crowned
with eagle's plumage, here has gleamed the
evening camp-fire, its glowing beams touching here and there the delicate outlines of the
river's bank, half enshrouded in the evening
shadows, and here on the peeled bark of the


birch, the Indians' papyrus, he rudely sketched
with native plumbago obtained from the rocky
cliffs which day and night for a thousand years
or more have kept watch and ward over Willoughby'b cleft gorge, ruder hieroglyphics,
which he left in a cleft stick for the guidance
of the succeeding party, and perhaps, the
large tender eyes of a stag or doe peering out
curiously from the leafy covert, when the air
was full of the spicy fragrance of wild fruity,
the aromatic breath of the pines, and a thousand subtle odors which pass unnoticed by day
and diffuse themselves with manifold intensity by night, and the moonlight seemed to endow everything upon which it reposed with
solemnity and romance, and here perhaps some
Uncas, his profile stamped in clear relief, as
he meditated upon the narrowing and lessen_
ing area of his ancient hunting ground, and
mournfully anticipated the clearing of the
woodland, the level miles of vel et-like turf
fields of grain curling and singing at the
touch of the evening breeze, neat homes, and
the village beyond the hill,
"With graceful hand outspread
And arm upon a rock declined,
The eagle tuft that graced his head
Slow nodded to the evening wind:
In attitude he seemed to dwell
Upon the legend loved so well.
The night birds cry gave sudden thrill,
The lodge fires gleamed aslant the hill
A wild haloo went down the shore
And called him back to life once more."
And here came the wild hunter and ranger
clad in moccasins and shirts of leather who
emulated the Indian in his keen study of nature, his caution and his impassiveness, who,
far away from the centers of civilization,
more familiar with the manners of the wigwam than of the town, brave, fanciful, generous, always ready for change and new adventures, living in careless excitement, sank at
last to rest in some green glade of the forest
far away from home and kindred "unwept,
unhonored and unsung."
Here came Stark who had studied the wilderness and learned the life of the woods,and
schooled and disciplined in border warfare
led the provincial troops on to victory at Bennington, following these the early pioneer,
his chief wealth, his musket and around doz



8


en of barefooted healthy children, the daring
smuggler,the ringing blows of the woodman's
axe, and the slow moving plow.
In 1808, in consequence of the Embargo
Act which closed the Atlantic ports, the Landing was used for the storage and shipping
from thence to Quebec and Montreal of large
quantities of salts and pearlashes, the channel
of the river to the lake being cleared out somewhat for that purpose and this navigation continued until June, 1810, when tie breaking
out of Runaway Pond filled up the river-bed
and rendered further navigation inipracticaable.
In 1813 or 1814 the 'smuggler's road" led
from the Landing easterly over the crest of
the adjacent hill, which was then at least thirty feet higher than now and the "Smuggler's
Camp" was midway between the hill and the
Landing. It is said this road continued aft:r
reaching Willoughby Falls along Wil'oughby
River to Willoughby Lake and Long Pond in
Westmore, where in the recesses of the forest, and at an old Indian encampment there
was a noted retreat of smugglers. On the
farm now owned by Ira Sturtevant was a
space in the woods, enclosed by a log fence
where cattle were kept en route to Stanstead.
The morality of smuggling has been much
discussed.  While all must admit that the
means necessary to the support of a paternal
government must be rigorously collected and
each citizen must cheerefully bear his share
of the burdens imposed, in return f, r the benefits of protection by law conferred, yet our
ancestors and early settlers, who sawt but little money and handled less, who N\ ere compelled to adopt and rely upon a barter system,
when salts and pearlashes were a legal tender
for all debts public as well as private, impoverished by the expenses of a war in opposition to the excise laws of the mother country
intended to force into an artificial and unuatural channel. the industry and commerce of
the colonies, engaged in privateering and other enterprizes of like character. which appeared necessary to the general. elfare, and
which were in no way repugnant to the moral sense of goor' church-men and ardent patriots, and they became a nation of law-breakers. Smuggling was deemed an honora:ble


occupation, and the daring and successful
smuggler was often exalted into a hero. Ninetenths of the colonists were smugglers, one+fourth part of the signers of the Declaration
of Independence, were bred to commerce aid
a contraband trade  John Hancock was the
prince of contraband traders, and was on trial
for smuggling with John Adams as his counsel at the very time Lexington Green was dyed
with the bl(,ood of the militia and minute-men.
Good old J.nathau Trumbull (Brother Jonathan) Governor of Connecticut and a steadfast supporter of the Blue Laws, if not misrepresented by tradition, was not averse to
the illegitimate traffic, and there is a letter extaut from Alexander Hamilton, in which he
gives directions how to avoid customs regulations.  The belief was general that every
violation of an excise law was an advance toward freedom.  What wond;er then, that in
the war of 1812 in view of such prevalent doctrines and of such worthy exemplars, to the
poor and struggling settler, the alluring vision of British gold obscured latentpatr;otism,
for the very man who gloried in the exploit
of out maneuvering a custom  officer, would
and did cheerfully shoulder his musket and
volunteer to go to Plattsburgh. Customs officers were looked upon as aristocrats and oppressors and but few willingly engaged in the
pursuit and capture of his neighbor. for an
offense which was not set down in the Decalogue.
In the month of March, 1814, a company of
smugglers, returning in the night time from
Canada with a load of articles, were intercepted by the customs officers, on the hill immediately east of Willoughby Falls and a hard
battle ensued and several were seriously
vwounded,one of the officers receiving so severe
a beating that his life was for some time after
despaired of   The wmugglers b ling  the
stronger party broke away and succeeded in
securing a portion of their goods.. The officers recovered a part and arrested two, who
were taken as prisoners to the tavern of Jonathan Robinson in this town and from which
they escaped the following day. A neighbor
rode into thIe yard and leaving his horse unhitched went into the house, the imprisoned
rushed out and jumping into the sleigh, lashed




9


the ho, se into a run, and with shouts of de- I harvest, were occasions for the gathering of
risive laughter and sundry gyrating motions all related by consanguinity and affinity, from
of the fingers at the nose. escrped across the the aged grandparents to the youngest reline.                                    cruit in any army of grand-children.  The
The early settlers of this town and village, fattest turkey was reserved for the minister
were thrifty. industrious and intelligent men I who would as soon have expected the sky to
and wvomen  Prudence, industry and integri- fall. as to have been neglected and who ret    c,, \el the cardinal virtueb sought, inculca- ceived it with a grandeur of mien typical of
ted and enforced. 'hey were forced to work an exalted christian birth and station, and a
the livelong day for a bare and coarse sub- brace of fowls was given to the poorer and
sisteince and though long continued from ear- less fortunate neighbors.
ly dawn,ill after dark, it was nearly all of a  Their raisings, logging bees, training days.
kind that stimulated intelligence.  The cobbler merry-makings, quiltings, apple parings and
used hi* brain as well as his lapstone, the jhuskings are very much out of date. andgoldblacksmith was an artisan and often a leader en in tle remembrance of other days, past and
in the church choir an;, a speakerin town and and gone never to be recalled.
school-meetings, the carpenter waa a crafts-  It is supposed and believed, that there are
man; with poor tools unaided by machinery. external proofs that at a not very distant gehe wvv's compelled to hew out his fidelliig- ological period, t!.e area of Lake Memphreplace, wi'd he built it plainly and well: the magog was very much more extensive than at
honoe and man wcie built up together, and Ir reset), and ilcluded therein, not only the
each wa,, strong and true.               lands adjacent to Black, Barton and Clyde
' he farmer was highi~ ay surveyor, Select- Rivers. but also Island Pond in Essex Counman, Legislator and Justice of the Peace, in ty. Salenm ind Hinman Ponds in Derby, Seyall functions performing the various duties mour Lake in Morgan. Willoughby Lake, Belle
apper:tainin to each with the same steadiness W ater and Runaway Ponds, formerly known


of purpose and fidelity to principle as shown
in the management of his farm. As Legislator broa(i minded and scrupulously economical in public expenditure, and as a Justice of
the Peace holding with even hand the scales
of justice, and rendering with great common
sense and conscientiousness his opinions regarding equity and good conscience, rather
than being bound by precedent or technical
distinctions. The housewife systematic arnd
skillful, spun, wove and colored the cloth with
which the family were clad, and as the  el)
was woven. thrift, intelligence and wifely and
motherly devotion made part of tile warp and
woof. Eacl man and woman was the creator
and builder of a grand social and moral atmosphere, as well as of a home, of kindliest
and ennobling influences long to be remembered and cherished. There was no comfortable subsistence without true manhood and
true womanhood.
Thanksgiving days, when our grandmothers with a culinary skill that was most wonderful, furnished tables groaning under the
display and abundance of garden, orchard and


as Long Pond, and all the lesser bodies of water in the connected water system of Orleans
County.  Consequently the territory now
known as Barton Landing was an ancient
Lake bed and the geologist can now find indications of the formation of Lake terraces
along the Barton Biver, showing a periodical
subsidence of the waters of a pond or lake,
but history affords nothing tending to show
any violent outflow with the exception of the
breaking out of Runaway Pond, or an Indian
tradition of a like occurrence within the limits of tile town of Charleston.
At the commencement of the 1820, upon
the lands now designated as Barton Landing
there was not an inhabitant. It was an uncleared forest, for the greater part consisting
of low swampy lands, with groups of pine
trees on the dryer and more elevated portions,
and groups of deciduous trees, birch, beech,
elm and maple on the surrounding hills. Upon the hill immediately east of Willoughby
Falls was a group of pines, tall, majestic and
towering above the surrounding forest growth
from thirty to forty feet, one of which was




IO


six feet in diameter, and which was reserved
in several successive conveyances of the land
upon which it stood, and was called the
"Owens Pine." There was no cleared land
here, with the exception of the "old County
road" so called, from Barton village to Brownington, Coventry Center and Newport, and
which at the Brown farm intersected with the
Irasburgh and Brownington road, which
passed westerly from the Brown farm by the
Barrows, )odge and Locke farms to Irasburgh Commonl, and also excepting a small
clearing at the "Landing" of about half an
acre at the Indian and Smugglers' camping
ground. The old County road south of the
village,started from the old stage road from
Barton to St-istead. passed the fair ground
and thence down the hill in the pasture now
owned by Judge Austin, thence along Main
street and diverging between the houses of
Mrs. Drew and Heber Parker, passed over
the round topped hill west of Maple street to
the Landing. Lots ten and eleven originally
drawn to the right of Daniel Owen, comprises the larger part of the territory of Barton
Landitng village.
In 1820, Major Roger Enos built a,aw mill
on Barton river where the repair shop of
S. Burbank now stands.  In 1827, Paul McNeal and David McNeal purchased of Joseph
Owen the whole of lot No. eleven, an(l erected thereon two log houses. that belonging to
Paul McNeal was but a few feet east of the
house now owned by Dean Regers, the other
the property of David McNeal was situated
on the old County road in the Austin pasture
near the spings ot water therein. These log
houses contained each but two rooms, the
ground floor, and the attic, reached by a ladder The fire-places in each were alike and
consisted of a large flat stone resting upon
the floor, upon which the fire was built and
another flat stone stood edgewise against the
side wall The chimneys \\ ere constuctcd as
follows: a hole was bored diagonally into a
log in the side of the house over the fire-place
a round stick placed therein and extending
upwards was fastened to a beam, upon the
stick a board or plank was placed and upon
this a chimney was built consisting of round
sticks of wood placed cross wise or cob-house


and mixed with clay-mortar. Another loghouse stood in the garden plot in front of the
widow Drew's house, and constructed like the
others, except that the chimney consisted of
a long oox open at both ends and extending
from above the fire through the roof, and
fastened at the rafters, and this was occupied
by Ebenezer l)orr who worked in the saw
mill. The McNeals had each a clearing of
from one to two acres contiguous to their
houses, and there was one of about the same
extent from the mill northerly to the Landing.
In June, 1828, Jobiah Dean, a native-born
of Smithfleld, R. I., then a resident of Dudley,
Mass., came here and purchased of Paul and
David McNeal one hundred acres of land,paying therefore the sum of six hundred dollars
in hard cash. Mr. Dean then 58 years of age,
and by trade all edge tool maker, who had become weary of a factory life, was desirous, it
would seem, of making a home for himself
and family some degrees nearer the northpole, where the popular idea was that "to tickle the soil with a hoe" was all that was necessary to insure a bountiful harvest. He was,
in the vernacular of that day, a "fore-handed
man" and in a new settlement he who bought
a farm without the usual accompaniment of a
mortgage at once took rank as a man of
wealth. In March following, he came here
with his family. The journey was accomplished in thirteen days, the last halfday consumed in getting from Barton village to this
place. They started with two teams, the first
a two horse team. in which was transported
the lather and his two eldest sons, and the
household furniture together with the driver,
the other was a one horse sled, with a cotton
cloth canopy, containing the remaining seven
members of the family quite closely packed.
Upon their arrival at the house of Paul McNeal, they found that it had been used during
the winter to shelter sheep, but the mother,
with characteristic vim and pluck soon had
the hose cleaned, the floor washed, commenced housekeeping, and accommodated the
family as best they could in a house about 15
feet square. This house and its surroundings
was quite a contrast to the brown stone house
which they had owned before their departure
from Dudley, and situated in an active manu



II
facturing village.                        George Deanl now living in Coventry, Vt.
Upon awakening the next morning and be-  Levi Dean     4.  4    s     i.
ginning to stir about, the children were very  Jennie Dean.. A  A Sutton,  "
much surprised to hear the sound of a bell and  Josiah Dean Jr., moved to Sutton, Vt, and
upon inquiry. learnei that about two miles died in 1892. Louisa, who married W. P.
distant through the woods there was a flour- Wiggins and is at present living in this town,
ishing village. and an academy of one hum- Rebecca, who married Samuel Bartlett, of
dred or more students, and that they had Sutton, Vt. Lucy, who married Gray, of Milheard the measured cadences of an academy ford, Mass., Dolly, who was the second wife
bell. During the next summer he built a sub- of Samuel Bartlett.  Noah, now living at
stantial house,which nw constitutes the main Lyndonville, Vt., now 72 years of age, and
part of Dean Rogers house, and of the same but seven years of age when the family came
style of architecture as at present, and during to this town, and to whom the writer is unthe same season he erected a potashery across der great obligations for the history of Barthe present highway and inmmediately oppo- toi Lauding. At t:le time Mr. Dean moved
site his house, and commenced to purchase here, Eben Devereaux had commenced the
ashes and to reduce them to black salts. The manufacture of spiiinig wheels and bedsteads
making of ashes was a slow and laborious (op- in part of the Enos saw mill, lie lived in alog
eration. A piece of woods '\ould be fellcd, house near where Mrs. Waitey Leonard now
Ihen the logs all cut into suitbl)le lengths and resides. In the summer of 1829, Paul McNeal
drlawni together into a pile and buled. tlen built a frame house, which is now owned by
another pile would be made in the same place 1. M. Conner. Joseph Colley, born in New
and burned, and this N\ould b, repeated until Hampshire, came to Barton in 1821, being
the growth of an acre or more would be re- then nine years of age, he came to the Barduced to ashes. and then gathered and sold. ton Landing in 1830, ani worked for Joseph
At the work, a very hard working athletic Dean. The second frame house was built by
man with his oxen making long days labor, Jesse Cook, in 1833, upon the site of the prescould realize fifty cents per day.  ''llis in- ent hotel, and where he kept tavern.  Mr.
dustry was quite general and was the only one Cook was an active, enterprising man, and
which promised a: return of money. At the during the year following, in company with
time Mr. Dean came here and for two years Josiah Dean, elected two lime kilns at Wilthere ifter the river was crossed by means of loughby Falls and manufactured lime of an
two rafts just below the present iron bridge. excellent quality, and furnished the lime used
When in 1831 a bridge of log abutments was in the erection of the Academy stone boardmade, which was carried away by a freshet. ing house at Brownington village, young Noah
then an interim  of another year when the Dean driving the ox team conveying the lime
rafts were used. Then another and more sub- to Browv nmigton.   In 1833, the present highstantial bridge was built,              way irom Barton Landing to Brownington
The children of Josiah Dean and wife who village was surveyed and opened for public
came here in 1829, were Waity, who marri, d travel and a bridge was built across the river
John Leonard, Ruham:a, who married Joseph at Willoughby Falls. Mr. Cook was a mason
Colley, Thomas Jefferson who was a, sailor and and clothier by trade. In 1834,he commenced
in company with Ebenezer Peck, who first set- the manufacture of cloth in the Enos saw mill,
tied on the Daniel Brown farm, went upon a an enterprise which was continued for a short
whaling voyage from Marblehead, Mass., and time, and in 1835, with the aid and assistance
never returned, both being drowned, Richard of Lewis Stimpson. who came here that year
Madison who worked in the Eaton saw mill from Melbourne, Canada, and had been astufor 22 years, moved to Sutton, Vt., and de- dent at Brownington Acaedmy, he had a brick
ceased in 1880,                         yard where the Congregational Church now




I2
stands and manufactured brick. Mr. Cook "The Lord my shepherd is I'll not want. He nmaketh me down to lie
was an energetic and public-spirited citizen,     eth me down to lie
In pastures green. He leadeth me, the great xwaquite independent in thought and sentiment,        ters by
kind,:nd nourtou. s to all who believed other- The sweet old words, the sweet old tune that bore


a
v
f
I
v
I
i
I


vise, but claiming a right to think and act  their spirits higher
for himself. A Universalist il r eligious be- Than all the tortured music of the cultured modief, his daily life was such as to convince      choir
all with whom he came in contact, of his honesty of purpose and regularity of life  He  In 1831, the old County road was changed so
was also a Free-Mason in that exciting period as to pass by the present grist mill and along
followin the abduction of Morgan, though the river hank. The fourth frame house was
highly respected amnon, his neighbors, his built by Joseph Colley, in 1833 and afterwards
fr;equent anti regular absences ill the night- owned and occupied by Luther Spencer, and
time occasioned unjust and acrimonious crit- now owned by 0. P. Dunham. The same year
icism. which was not lessened by the reticence a log house near the Grimes place was built
of himself and his family as to his motih es and occuiied by Jonathan Newton. The fifth
and puroes oni such occasHions. He dona- frame house was built by William Colley, in
ted the lta nd for a public burying ground in 1833, a shoemaker by trade, and as an inducethis village. He remained here until his death ment to the commencement of that industry,
which occurred May 26th, 1843.           Jesse Cook presented him all the land from
The first marriage was that of Paul McNeal the bridge to the mill on that side of the highand Laura Cook. danuhrter of Jese (oo(k. and way, the ell of the house was occupied by
the first death that of Robert Cass.     William and Joseph Colley as a shoe shop.
In 1831, the river road from Barton village and afterwards by Noah Dean in the same
was extended to this place. In 1832, the Vil- kind of business.  This ell was afterwards
lage School District wvas organized and the occupied by E E. Stafford as a store previous
first school-house was built in what is now to the building of his business block which
the garden of N. P. Sawyer, itwasaone-story was   burned in Sept., 1891, and this house was
building, the seats being upon either side, one tile same owned and occupied by Mr. Stafford.
above the other in three tiers,,and the teach-  The sixth frame house was built by Martin
er's desk at the end opposite the door. This Pomeroy, in 1833, occupied by Joseph Stafbuilding was afterwards moved across the ford in 1840, and stood where the house now
road and now forms a part of the house owned oned by H. W.Haselton stands.
and occupied by I)Da:el Skinner.  The first  The seventh frame house was built by
teacher was Miss Martha Wright who after- Joseph Colle, in 1836. since known as the
wJionephlacey, ino ow.snece knyiorgw~nasthe




wards married Stillman Seaver. The schoolhouse was also used for religious meetings,
and alternately by those professing the somewhat antagonistic creeds and beliefs of thiBaptists, Methodists and Univer.,alists, and
here doubtless came stern expounders of faith
and creed, who each in turn with apostolic
zeal hammered both book and desk with mighty blows, and either argued stoutly on the final perseverance of the saints, or relieved in
turn the fears of the doubting, with tidings of
grace unbounded and free to all, and where
has risen in accents of praise, the paraphrase
of the grandly beautiful Psalm:


wilson place, now owned by George Smith.
In 1837. a house wns built by Benjamin
Forbes. a blacksmith, known as the Bigelow
house which was destroyed by fire in 1876, and
was situated on the land now occupied by
H  M  Whipple's business block, about the
same time there was a blacksmith shop where
Brown & Skinner's storehouse is located.
In 1840, the shed and ell of the Josiah Dean
house, was moved across the road, and with
some additions converted into the house now
occupied by Dr. E. G. Stevens.
In 1839, Jesse Cook built the house now
owned by Joseph Bartlett.  This was also




I3


purchased in 1840 by Cyrus Eaton, who lived
there while a resident here.
In 1841, Harris Smith succeeded Cook in the
tavern, and had for sale in a room in the tavern a stouck of goods which he brought with
him from Sheffield, pfnd the next year ie built
a store upon the ground occupied by the
Webster store, and engaged in business with
Albert S. Eaton.


inconsistent with a firm and unvaried religious belief. During the later years of his life
he was a farmer to a limited extent.  His
youth and manhood were passed in this village. He had witnessed the transformation
from an almost uncleared forest area to a
village growth of action and enterprise, and
had shared in the vicissitudes, labors, hopes
and fears of an advancing civilization.  He


In 839. John Little became the owner of deceased at the age of seventy-five years.
the Enos saw mill. and put in a run of gran- Ilis life, though not in a popular sense a disite stones. this mill becoming known as tie tinguished one, was such that, in the perform"pudding mill."                          ance of duty as it came to him, he was a facIn 1841, Mr. Eaton cdused the grist mill to tor sn(t co-worker in the growth, material as
be built, and during that year built the saw  well as social and moral, of a community.
mill now owned by E. L. Chandler.          Luther spencer was born in Brownington,
In 1843, the Lewis Stimpson iouse was Vermont, and was a son of Erastus Spencer,
built by W. P. Wiggins. Mr. Wiggins was one of the earliest settlers of that town. a
born in a log house on the Abel Humphrey, farmer and an unostentatious man, a good
farm.                                    citizen and an accommodating neighbor, but
In cotrast to these, a growth of fifty years as firm and unyielding (the characteristic
shows about 130 dwelling house>. and since, creed and faith of a Puritan ancestry) as the
last September, an actual expenditure of at everlasting hills. The high moral and religleast $40,000 in the erection of new buildings, ious shade- of his character were known and
and a population of absut 600           read of all men, aud which, added to the ex

It is to be regretted that at this time we
are unable to furnish in detail hkeLches of the
lives of the early settlers in this part of the
town, as such, when fairly and correctly written, afford a better portraiture of a period in
town history than any other class of conlposioi.. A few sketches, however, hastily prepared, afford glimpses of personal character,
istics. and of a period concerning which much
has been lost, and what remains is necessarily
fragmentary and traditional and rests in the
fading memories of the old men and women
of the present, the more immediate descendants of our pioneers.
Joseph Colley, born in the state of New
Hampshire, came to this town when nine years
of age, and nine years later, to the infant bet
tlement of Bartop Landing.  He was a worthy shoemaker, public spirited, and contributed to the growth of the place. For twenty
years he was a peddler and was well known
to all the housewives of Orleans County. If
I remember correctly, he carried and exposed
for sale calicoes, cotton cloth and Yankee notions. A member of the M. E. Church, his
life and general habits of thought were not


treme rigidity of his religious notions, contributed to an independence and general seriousness that indicated to an indifferent obseiver a complete self-satisfaction that rejected and treated with disdain any adverse
criticism. As illustrative of this, the following anecdote is related: Being an excessive
user of t'obacco, an irreverent neighbor, in
tne course of a somewhat acrid religious discussion, said, "Why, you use tobacco!" To
which Mr. Spencer, with some dignity of
manner, replied, "I buy my tobacco; I pay
for it; it is mine. If I use it that is my business "  His son, Joseph H., was a Barton
Landing boy and attended the district school
in the first school-honse.  A good scholar,
apt at declamation, his rank as a scholar was
good; of a sunny disposition and with a love
of the humorous, he was a favorite among
his playmates and companions-not essentially a "chip of the old black," I suspect.
'I he gentle disposition of a mother had toned
down somewhat the stern, unyielding nature
of his father, and the union contributed to
the product of a character which, though firm
and steady in moral and religious convictions,




I4


was generous and sympathetic. On arriving
at manhood, believing in the better possibilities promised in the western states, he went
to Northport, in the state of Minnesota, and,
deciding soon upon what kind of business he
would engage in, he took a course of instruction at a commercial college in Chicago, at
the close of which he was prepared to become
an accurate and accomplished book-keeper in
all its branches of business.
He was engaged in that business during the
memorable political, campaign of 1860. He
was an ardent admirer of Abraham Lincoln,
and upon the breaking out of the War of the
Rebellion, was prepared to sustain him in his
efforts to put down treason, to the extent of
his disposition and ability. Consequently, he
was the first man to enlist in the state of his
adoption and became a member of the 1st
Minn. Vols. His regiment was present at
the first battle of Manassas Junction and lost
heavily in that engagement. His business
qualities and qualifications for the position
having become known, upon the reorganization of the Signal Service, he was transferred
to that department and continued in that ser

vice, an important, responsible and arduous
employment.
He was not only enrolled, but by force, it
would seem, of a natural adaptation to that
work, won, and merited, promotion. He became an instructor and a member of the Examining Board in that branch of army service.
He was detailed to most important work and
was a member of the staff of differentbrigade
and corps commanders.  The signal service
under his immediate supervision and the
faithful field work performed was the subject
of special orders of honorable mention by
Generals Stone, Banks, Shields and Pope. He
was stationed afterward at Washington as
Chief Signal Officer of the Army of the Potomac.
At the close of the war he retired with the
rank of Captain.  Upon his return to Minnesota, he resumed business and deceased a few
years later.
One of many, he served with honor and
distinction, and the dlistinguished services
rendered reflected honor and credit upon his
native village.


THE LANDING PLACE.
By DAVJID HILL.
(D. W. Hildreth, Barton Landing, Vermont.)


I.
The hour has come. The curtains wide,
Roll back, each half on either side.
What is the view? 'Tis nothing less
Than one long reach of wilderness
With tangled swamps in summer's green,
A deep, dark river in between,
Uneven hights of wooded hills,
Long alder-skirted brooks, and rills,
And not one single rood of land
To greet the eye on either hand.
The time is-day; and over all
The sunlight bright is seen to fall.


Act first begins. High up in air
Between the earth and heavens blue,
The marsh-hawk, and buzzard, too,
Gyrate around serenely there.
Beneath, through branches, in and out,
The nimble squirrel frisks about.
A panther near is seen to cling
On maple branch, prepared to spring
Into a herd of feeding deer
Unconscious of the danger near.
The wolf is slunk into its lair:
The bark of fox, and growl of bear,
Is mingled with the solemn drum




I5


Of partridge, and the log-cock's thrum.
Silent beside the flowing river,
Where shadows fall and sun-beams quiver,
The wild moose stands,-he sniffs the airHe turns-he flees-we know not where.
Into the river's mucky bank
The muskrat hides in shadows dank.
The beavers and the otters glide
Through waves that part on either side,
And fright the wood-duck with her brood,
As down they dive beneath the flood.
The song of birds is in the air;
But-list! another sound is there.
Unlike the splash the beavers made,
It is the dip and splash of blade;
And soon around the river's bend,
In quest of this secure retreat
Near where these flowing rivers meet,
Long Indian boats are seen to trend.
Right here those boats they safely moor,
Then sullen seek the silent shore;
Their wigwams rise-their campfires gleamThe trout are taken from the stream,
And soon the odor of repast
Is out upon the breezes cast;
They eat-they sleep-they wait the morn
To rise-divide-and journey on.
Why come these redmen from the north,
These fierce Algonquins, rude in dress?
Why, spring and fall, go back and forth
Through Magog's* dreary wilderness?
Lie they encamped in wild array,
Armed, equipped for bloody strife,
With gleaming tomahawk and knife,
En-route to cut, and scalp, and slay
The pale-face living far away?
What do they here? Is it to war
With feudal tribes, they journey far?
No,-like Lyford, hunter buld,
Who one time ranged these wooded hills,
And trapped these lakes, and ponds, and
rills
A Nimrod pioneer of oldThey choose the lakes and ponds around
For fish and game that there abound.
Here they encamp-here they divideUp these two valleys, long and wide,
They pass, to where each lake and pond
Is hidden by the hills beyond.
They trap-they fish; when winds grow chill,




And frosts have tipped each vale and hill,
And trees are bare-they journey back
Along each well-remembered track —
Back through these valleys wide they come,
And on to their St. Francis home.
This was their route-no doubt their feet
Once trod the soil in this retreat.
II.
Behold! with changes ever new,
Act second now rolls into view.
Here are the hills, the swamp, the stream,
The river and the sunlight's gleam.
The marsh-hawk and the buzzard still
Sail over forest, vale and hill;
But that which was one endless wood,
Unbroken save by Indian trail,
Hold cabins now where wigwams stood,
And roads half fenced by slash and rail;
Beside which, open fields are seen
With grass, and black stumps in between.
New sounds are heard-the hunter's gunThe low of cattle in the runThe ax resounding in and out
Among the trees-the settlers shoutAnd to the east, by Kendall's rillt
The squeaking wheal of "pudding mill."
But let us turn from field and wood
To where the river rolls away
Down toward the confines of the bay.
What secrets slumber in that flood!
Oh! that some spirit from its bed
Might rise, like Lazaras from the dead,
And to our startled ears unfold
The secrets which those waters hold.
How hearts might throb, and pulses beat,
At deeds too frightful to repeat!
Perchance it, too, might tell the tale
Conlected with that * -shirt of mail.".
Enough! we know-we plainly trace
How Indian warriors long ago
In their long journeys, to and fro,
Made this one point their landing-place.
Here passed their captives to the fate
Of slaves, or martyrs to their hate.
Here, too, the Rangers, in their dress
Of buckskin leggings, coonskin caps,
Fringed hunting shirts, and other traps
Well suited to the wilderness

-The land along Barton river was once known as
the "Magog country."


tKnown to-day as the Day brook.
tFound in Irasburg in the spring of I827.




The redman's most relentless foeWell armed with knife,and fierce with fist,
Whose smooth-bore flint-locks seldom
missed,
Behold! those men passed to and fro.
Then, too, one early autumn's day,
Came Rogers with his band of men
From that St. Francis slaughter-pen
Round Indian point, and lake, and bay,
Past Duncansboro's~ muddy banks,
With death and hunger on their flanks,
We see them come-now they divideStark, with his men, go up the Clyde,
While Rogers takes this rougher track
Of hills, toward waters of Bell Lac. I
Ah! true it is, to look around,
Our eyes behold historic ground.
Now look again. The silvered gleam
Within the depths of Barton stream,
Is stirred no more with bark canoe
With trophies of the fight or chase;
Strange barks are seen entirely new,
And paddled by another race.
Great rafts of starch, boatloads of stone,
Pot-ashes, grain, and goods unknown,
Are borne each day at man's behest
Along this river's waveless breast
Here-loads of grist, o'er waters still,
Are boated from West Derby mill.
There-but, wait! those boats that make
Along the banks, shut out of sight
By trees, and darkness of the night,
Are smugglers from across the lake.
While some, by secret paths unknown
To all, save to themselves alone,
Drive herds of beeves, unfettered-looseTo Canada for British use,
These outlaws in return aspire
To smuggle cloth, and steel, and wire.
They hug the shore-right here they land,
A bold, determined, lawless band.
Lo! as I look-behold! those men
Stand 'round me now, as they stood then.
III.
Act third before us now appears


With all the whirl and change of years.
Where once the tangled swamp-trees grew,
Broad open meadows rise to view.
A stately village now is seen
Where once the log-walled cabin stood;
Tall grass is waving freshly green
Where once was endless tracks of wood.
The broad highways, the lawns, the parks.
Lake steamers, sail-boats, fancy barks,
Long railways winding through the land,
Electric wires on every hand,
Great business plants, and marts of trade,
Each pompous show, and grand parade,
Would those old pioneers dumfound
Could they rise up and look around.
Yet, so it is; as nations rise,
We see the march of enterprise.
Alas I the river flowing near,
How it has changed year after year!
The savage, smuggler, settler, all
Have left it to its solemn fate;
Like streams near some old castle wall,
It flows, but shorn of regal state.
Now, beaver, otter, sable, deer,
And moose are gone. Ducks linger here
As sad reminders of the past.
By sawdust choked, and filling fast
With drift-wood, mire, and rankling weeds,
In which all water vermin breeds,
Bank-washed, stagnant, bridged across.
Its sunken bed half filled with mossHow changed and how unlike that river
In which the sun-beams used to quiver.
To-day, we hardly find a trace
Of that old time-worn landing-place.
Methinks, when like some giant wall
Long Pond, one day, came rushing down,
It was a sable funeral pall
To close this river's brief renown.
Now, all has changed in form and namne;
But-look! one feature is the same:
The marsh-hawk and the buzzard still
Sail over forest, vale and hill.


~Original name of Newport, Vt.
11A sheet of water in Barton known to-day as Crystal Lake.




PROCEEDINGS
— OF THE —
ORLEANS COUNTY MISTORICAL SOCIETY,
AUGUST 27, 1892, AT BARTON LANDING


The Sixth Annual Meeting of the Society
was held at Barton Landing, on Saturday,
August 27, 1892.  It was designed at this
meeting to commemorate the landing place
of the Indians as they passed along this route
through this section of the country, not only
after New England was begun to he settled
by the whites, but in pre-historic times. The
waters of Barton River up to the foot of the
lower falls was used also by the white settlers
and travelers along this route, and the same
landing place was also used by them. This
landing early gave the name of Barton Landing, first to the locality, and later, when the
settlers began to build there. to the village
that sprang up and continues to grow in size
and importance. Through the enterprise of
the citizens of Barton Landing, and particularly to Hon. B. F. D. Carpenter, a large
granite boulder* was placed at the spot where
the landing was made, and suitably engraved
to designate the locality. This rock the Orleans County Historical Society were to have
the honor to dedicate at this annual meeting.
The weather being rainy and cold, the exercises were varied somewhat from what was
contemplated. It was planned to have the exercises commence at 10 o'clock, a. m., and
have coffee made over a camp-fire on the banks
of Barton River, at the original Landing,
where the boulder was placed, but it was
thought best on account of the rainy weather
*Dr. John M. Currier, of Newport, the Secretary
of the Society, has the credit of suggesting marking the locality with an engraved granite boulder.


to defer the exercises until afternoon and
hold them in the Congregational Church,
and serve the coffee in the vestry.  A long
table was spread and quite a large party enjoyed their social lunch there at the appointed hour.
At one 'clock the meeting was called to
order by the President, E. A. Stewart.
Prayer was offered by the Rev. J. K. Fuller,
Pastor of the Congregational Church, followed with music by the quartet. t
An original poem was delivered by D. W.
Hildreth, entitled "The Landing Place." Music by the quartet.  The Historical Address
was delivered by Hon. B. F. D. Carpenter.
The exercises at the Church were then closed
with music by the quartet.  The attendance
was very large, all the seats being filled.
The audience then went down to the "Memorial Rock," the veritable "Barton Landing,"
about one-third of a mile north of the present village which received its name from that
locality and the early use made of it.
The "Landing"$ is located on the point of
land at the confluence of the Barton and Willoughby Rivers, on the'east side of the former and south side of the latter.  The public
bridge spans Barton River at this point with
tThe choir consisted of Mrs. Hugh Buchanan,
soprano; Mrs. D. W. Hildreth, alto; M. M. Taplin,
tenor; Harry Perley, bass; and Mrs. M. M. Taplin,
organist.
tThis spot was located by a committee appointed
by the Historical Society consisting of B. F. D. Carpenter, D. W. Hildreth, and George Nye. They obtained reliable evidence of the location of the
"Landing" from the traditions of the early settlers.




i8


the east abutment only a few feet above the
mouth of Willoughby River, along the southern bank of which the public highway passes
from the bridge towards the village. The
scenery about here is beautiful. Both rivers
pass through level meadows of tillage land,
only a few feet above their placid waters.
A few rods south is situated the lower falls
of Barton River over which no boats or canoes could pass.  On the south side of the
highway near the end of the bridge stand two
thrifty elm trees about twenty feet apart; to
the south of these stands a large thrifty butternut tree on land owned by Lewis Forbes,
of Brownington, who gave his permission to
the erection of the boulder. Under the shadows of these three trees, on the east bank of
Barton River only a few feet from the shore,
is placed the Memorial Rock. A fine view of
the whole scene is obtained in passing along
the railroad west of the river.  Another fine
view is obtained from the highway, which is
so near that the inscription can be read as
one passes along. Visitors at this lovely spot
constantly hear the murmur of the waters
over the falls, which undoubtedly served to
guide those who passed along this route, to
the proper Landing or embarking place.
After the audience arrived at the boulder,
Mrs. Martha A. Allbee read, and the choir
sang the following original
DEDICATORY HYMN:
Great God, to Thee we bring
A tribute of our praise,
For all the blessings Thou didst send
Upon a vanished race.
Long years have passed away
Since warriors, brave and strong,
Sought refuge on these lovely shores,
And reared their light wigwam.
The mountains guarded well
The valley of their choice;
And all the works which nature wrought
With silent tongues rejoice.
The river sang Its songs
O'er rocks and pebbles rare,
Murmuring by the goldenrod
To Magog's waters fair.
They built their birch canoes,
Sped o'er its rippling waves,
Propelled by stalwart arms and strong,
Long since in unknown graves.


I
I
II
I


On, on, past willow shrines
That lined the grassy shores,
The alders nodded to the pines,
And whispered tales of yore.
They landed where the falls
Awoke the green woods wild;
The dewdrops sparkled 'neath the sun
And wild flowers bloomed the while.
The rock it resteth where
Three elms in grandeur stood,
Waving their leafy branches o'er
A restful solitude.
On yonder hill there grew
A group of forest trees;
One stands with plumed head in air,
And dallies with the breeze.
The wind bowed low its head,
The hurricane blew wild,
But its strong arms withstood the blast,
And nature sweetly smiled.
How grand in her wild array
When footsteps pressed her sod,
The birds they sang their joyful strainThe ferns looked up to God.
To-day we dedicate
This sacred place to Thee,
And crown it with immortal love,
And hallowed memories.
The Boulder was then unveiled by Waldo
Leonard, a grandson of Noah Dean, one of
the early settlers of Barton, and presented by
Judge O. H. Austin as follows:
Mr. President,-To me has.been assigned
the plasant duty of presenting to the Orleans
County Historcal Society, the simple and rustic memorial stone, which is now uncovered
by the grandson of one of the pioneers of
this village.
We wish to pass the title to the society you
represent, that our pleasant memorials of
this day may ever be associated with your
work, and your visit among us.
Here where the Indian rovers rested, as
they came from their more northern hunting
and fishing grounds, to seek the laughing waters above, we have placed our memorial
stone, possibly our "Ebenezer" stone, to remind ourselves and our children and all who
pass this way. that our home is where nature
indicated to her own children the natural
stopping places, and we have also followed
her directions.




19


Our "Landing" has been by many associated with landing of smugglers, or the later
landing of suckers, for the delectation of our
neighbors' tables: The excellent address of
Mr. Carpenter, to which we have just listened,
has clearly established our right to the name
on higher grounds, and we are grateful for it
all. We shall take more pride in our village,
our chosen home; we will remember that they
who first came here had to row  up stream,
they did not drift hither.  There is fitness
therefore in the motto of our high School,
"Row, not Drift." And if we have any right
to this pleasant valley, at the junction of the
rushing Willoughby with the steadier going
Barton, it must be because we are willing
when need be, to pull up stream.  We are
bound to do good work, or in all fairness to
give back to the fishes these streams, and to
the wild beast and Indians these meadows and
hillsides.
Accept our rustic memorial, with our most
cordial good wishes for all the good work of
this Society, in preserving the history of our
early settlers, and encouraging a love for our
good county.
The president responded as follows:
Judge Austin and Friends,-In behalf of the
society I represent I gratefully accept this
gift. It is a pleasant task we have to-day.
In a historical sense we may truly say, "A duty has been performed." This landing place
of the Indian and pioneer, so long neglected,
has at last received a fitting memorial. This
granite boulder, taken from your own native
hills, has written upon it as with the point of
a    a diamond, engraven in the rock forever, a
fact of history of great import to the people
of this beautiful, and thriving village.
And none too soon has this been done. I
have an impression that this historic spot as
a locality was fading from the minds of men.
Fifty years ago as I roamed over these hills
and through these valleys from my dear native Brownington, the reason for the peculiar name of this village was oftened talked
about. Then there was no meeting place
here except the old school-house, primitive
enough, standing near what is now one of
the railroad sheds; and this place as a town
was not much to speak of.  But as it in

creased its business and multiplied its stores
and factories the old landmarks were being
forgotten. The object of this meeting will
be accomplished if the knowledge of this historic spot shall be restored to the thoughts
of the men of this community.
We therefore dedicate this landmark by
this enduring memorial; and when future
generations as they pass and repass this spot
shall ask, "what means this stone?" What
we do here and now will afford a complete and
satisfactory answer. The words chiseled upon this rock, the record of this meeting, and
your words and recollections who are here today, transmitted to your children and children's children, will bring back the answer
that this spot marks the beginning of a new
point in history, that this landing place was
first had by the pioneers of what has become
a large and prosperous community.
The Memorial Boulder is a rough granite
rock with its angles worn off in its migrations
during the glacial period.  It was obtained
from a moraine east of the village. The lettering was done on the rough unpolished surface by one of the workmen of Gates & Coolidge, of Barton Landing.  The inscription
reads as follows:
INDIAN
AND
PIONEER
LANDING


DEDICATED AUG. 27,


1892,


RELIOS MENTIONED.
H. K. Dewey exhibited the original charter
of the town of Barton. Also several copies
of very early Vermont Registers and Almanacs. He exhibited a copy of "Original Prose
and Poetry: embracing a variety of Novel,
Moral, and Political Subjects," by N. Boyn



20


ton, Derby, Vermont. Published by N. Boynton in 1856, 253 pages.
Mrs. 0. H. Austin exhibited a block tin teapot that was used in the family of Judge
Willard, of Barton Landing.
Mrs. A. C. Joslyn presented a copy of
"Christian Hymns and Spiritual Songs," printed about 1770. A piece of the wedding silk
dress of Lucy Pierce, in which she was married about 150 years ago.  She was grandmother to Mrs. Joslyn.  Also a piece of needle work made by Miss Lucy Robinson of Norwich, Connecticut, at 12 years of age, who
afterwards married Jason Hinman. of of Holland, Vt, and the mother of Mrs. Joslyn.
Mrs, Sally M. Quimby, of Derby, presented
a copy of "A Reply to Mr. Balfour's Essays,
touching the State of the Dead, and a Future
Retribution," by Charles Hudson,Woodstock,
Vt., printed by David Watson, 1829, bound
in ash boards. Also a copy of "Sequel to the
English Reader," by Lindlay Murray, Woodstock, Vt., 1821, bound in leather and ash
boards.
Mrs. Holbrook Wood presented a copy of
"The Panoplist, and Missionary Magazine
United," for the year ending June 1, 1809,
Vol I, New Series.
F. W. Baldwin exhibited a copy of "Biography of Revolutionary Heroes: Containing
the Life of Brigadier General William Barton," by Mrs. Williams, Providence: 1839
pp. 312.
NEW MEMBERS ELECTED
C. S. Skinner, Rev. J. K. Fuller, D. C
French, F. C. Brown, D. W. Hildreth, I. D. R'
Collins. George Nye, M. M. Taplin, Mrs.
A. D. Chandler Mrs. Martha Allbee.
ACCOUNT OF RELICS FOUND.
About the middle of July, 1892, Mr. Frank
Biddell, of Newport, Vt., went down Lake
Memphremagog and camped a few days on
Bell Island. While there he found on the exposed rocks at the south end of the Island,
three copper implements. One was a fishhook, the other two were knives. They were
all made of native copper, and rudely constructed. The fish-hook was two and onefourth inches long, and three-sixteenths inch

es in diameter; the shank was roughened for
securing it to the line; the hook described an
irregular circle of three-fourths of an inch,
and the end was not barbed, but was sharpened to a point.  The knives were in the
shape of the household meat chopping knife,
with a shank on either end turned up at nearly right angles to the blades for hafting.
The blad 's were slightly convex on the cutting edge, and originally were quite sharp.
One of the knives had a blade four and onefourth inches long, three-fourths inch wide
in the widest place,and one-eighth inchthick;
one of its shanks was one and three-eighths
inc'hes long and one fourth inch thick, the
other was one inch long and one-fourth inch
thick; the ends of both shanks were blunt
pointed.  The other knife was five inches
long,one inch wide,and one-eighth inch thick;
one shank was blunt pointed, two and oneeighth inches long, and one-fourth inch thick;
the other shank was two inches long and
about one-fourth inch thick at the blade, and
gradually tapering to a sharp point.  Both
shanks started in one-half inch from either
end. These implements were rudely beaten
out of pieces of native copper, plainly showing that they had been formed by much hammering; although they have been much corroded by long exposure, their temper is still
so hard that they will sink into green hard
wood without turning the edge.
These three copper implements make six in
all that I have heard of being found in the
Memphremagog Valley.    One was a spear
point, now in the Smithsonian Institution at
Washington, and the other two are still in
private collections, one of which was described in the Proceedings of the Orleans
County Historical Society in 1889.
OFFICERS FOR THE ENSUING YEAR.
The officers for the ensuing year are:
E. A. Stewart of Newport, president; Charles
Carpenter of West Charleston, first vice-pres,
ident; C. H. Jones of Barton Landing, second vice-president; John M. Currier of Newport, secretary; C. F. Ranney, B. F. D. Carpenter and John M. Currier, publication committee.
















I




I




I




UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
3  0502921 9097




'I,