The Rutland weekly globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-05-19
INCIDENTS IN THE HISTORY OF WAL
LINGF0RD.
no III
BY J. Z. Hit.

FACTS, RECORDS AND TRADITIONS.

strife Of colonial claimants to their lands,
which threatened to arrest them from their
homes, inclined them that way, as under
the garb of that peaceful sect, they might
escape some Of the abuse and extortlon OF
land iobbers on the one hand, and the ever
lasting bounding of Ethan Allen and the
leaders of the Screen Mountain boys'-who
we're ever urging the settler to arm and re-
sist all claims whatsoever-on the other
To this state of things there were sew
eral notable exceptions, for as the war
cloud burst upon the country we fnd some
half dozen or more residents of this town
enlisted in Col. Seth Warmers regiment,
and fighting first at Hubbardton and then
at Bennington and afterwards at Stillwa-
ter. among whom were Capt. Stephen Clark
and Ichabod Goodyear Clark, the grand
father and great uncle of p. G.. Clark.
VIM. Fox the grandfather of DR.. VIM. Fox
Of this town and DR.. G.. II. Fox of Rut-
land, Jonathan DJty, Caleb Eddy, Joseph
r indall and perhaps o'hers.
had many more inhabitants and the DOM
inant religion was the Baptist denomina-
ton Then was erected the first Baptist
church of Wallingford, large log house
that stood near where Elakim Ballou now
lives. From this church n road led east
to the "ministors lot where the Rev. Hen
ry Green was settled as the first settled
minister of the town. The church and the
Elder Green house have long since disap-
peared, aud even the memory of the church
remains only in the minds of the very old
est inhabitants now living
The farm on which this church was
erected was the one once owned by Mat
thew Lyon, who bought the place OF Amos
Ives Aug. Och, 1875, consideration one
hundred and forty pounds, thirteen shil-
lings and four pence. The deed Gays;
Il Amos Ives Of Walliugford in Charlotte
county and province of New York and
'leceived of Matthew Lyon of Walling
ford in the county and province aforesaid"
So it appears that Lyon was resident of
| WalliDgfDr1 nj that time. lie probably
come here in IVA. AS he was one of the
early settlers of WallingfOrd, and one of
the thirty individuals to whom jackson
Gore" NOV the central part of Mt. Holley)
was granted. The act Of the assembly said
ito Abram jackson and his associates"
| and it was for their services as pioneers in
the early settlement of this country. Lyon
sold that place Christmas day HI to Ella
kim Richmond. for three hundred and
twenty pounds and ten shillings. The deed
is acknowledged May LIST, 1878. before Jer-
emiah Clark counselor" at Arlington.
He sold bis right in "Jackson's Gore" to
| Jethro jackson for twelve pounds July 10 h
| 1881. This deed says Il Matthew Lyon of
Arlington" and is acknowledged before
Thomas Chittendon Gov" He probably
resided most of the time from "A to 81
in Wallingford. We find evidence that
he was here as late as 1884, probably only
temporary. At that time he made acknowl-
ed1ement to a deed of ninety acres of land
that he had previously sold to Capt. Ste
phen Clark.
TIE TORY KILLED on GREEN HILL.
That Tory WAS killed in Wallingford
| just east from the Benz amin Bradley house
| (now owned by Hon. ID. Il. Nicholson) is
| quite certain, yet as far as the writer is in
| formed the account of it was never in print.
The writer has had the relation of this
tragic event from several of the older in
habitants of the town, as they received it
| from the actors in the tragedy. The &C.
count here related is that given by Capt.
Simon Cook, now living in town at the ad-
vaneed age of eighty-five.
| The captain always had a Denchant for
military life, he having been a soldier of
the war of 1879 and in his day been quite
prominent in the local militia; his mind
being fixed more especially on such mat
tiers it would be expected that his relation
would be the most accurate.
no rx.rttn hara hail Ia, Hn.
taken notes of this narration by the captain
at three different times, with an interval OF
ten years between the first and last time and
the story as told by him is always the same.
1t is as follows;
Soon after the battle of Hubbardton
Col. Seth Warner come 10 Wallingford and
staid all night at the Bradley house and
went from there TO Manchester, recruiting
his regiment, soon after this some tories
from Arlington came to WallngfOrd.
They were first discovered just at night
fall crossing the Bull bridge to the east,
said bridge being where South Wallingfoid
village is now located.
.]cdedah jackson who lived near where
p. G. Clark now lives, was at that time
captain and he being informed that some
tories were coming down upon the east side
the Otter Creek, fastened on foot to CLAIR
endon where there was collection or arms,
and got "baCk load of muskets and hay
ing collected his company he proceeded to
intercept the tories, who had encamped
about forty rods east from the Bradley
house, their campfire being plainly vis-
bic from said house Jackson surrounded
the camp with mis- men and waited patiently
until day break aud then as the Tories arose
he called upon them TO surrender. One
| hp ho1 ham opfine,
showed fight and drew up his gun to fire
but Capt. Jackson was too quick for him
and shot him dead. The rest surrendered
and were sent under guard to Manchester.
and delivered to Col. Warner who was there
stationed. The body of the dead Tory was
brought down to the Bradley house, and al
forwards buried in the soft sandy soilat the
north line of the farm, some twenty rods
north of said house. Afterwards other bodies
were buried in the same location. Ten
years later Bradley gave half acre off his
farm and Mr.. Miller gave half acre off
his adjoining it, and this acre was the orig
inal of our present beautiful cemetery, and
the slain Tory was the first body laid in the
yard.
This occurred only few days before
John Irish was killed in Tinmouth, and
probably that event completely eclipsed this
rs tne hclor III inc iIish 'Idseuy were al
residents here, while the young man slain
in WalliDgford belonged in Arlington.
The account was often related by Mrs.
Chatterton, the old lady who died here a
few years ago almost centennarisn.
THE MYSTERY OF THE BONES.
The early settlers of Wallingford found
the skeleton of man upon the ground just
I east of the residence of Isaac Munson, neal
what is now the south west corner of the
school yard. The bones had long LAID
where they were found, and with them was
a rusty gun barrel the wooden stock OF
which had all decayed, 1t was surmised
that this was the body of a soldier of the
French and Indian war. Who he was, or how
he come TO bis death whether by treach