Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1893-06-16
BRATTLEBOR0.
Where the Name Came From.

Col. william Brattle, Teacher. Preacher
Lawyer, Military Man and LoyNlist, Is
Here ImmOrtalized---a Good Lesson
for the school children TO Read.
A correspondent who read with interest
the article printed in The Phoenix three
weeks ago, describing what is now the viii
lage of Brattleboro as it was in 1902, asks
where the town got its name, and, if from
Col. Brattle, as usually understood, to
know something Of his history. The an
swer is of sufficient interest to print in
stead of sending by private letter
The name of Brattleboro came from
VIM. Brattle of Boston, Mass, commonly
known as "Colonel Brattle." His connec-
ton with the town was through the
Equivalent lands the history of which
has been fully given in the series of his
torical articles printed from time to time
in The Phoenix. In granting lands to set
tiers and others the province of Massachu-
sets Bay made grants which were found
to be within the colony of Connecticut.
To rectify this it was agreed that the col
ony of Connecticut should have 107, 1893
acres of other land as an equivalent. Part
of this quantity of equivalent land was
laid out by a committee where Belcher-
town, Pelham and Greenwich, Mass, now
are, while another committee in 17l5 laid
out 9,943 acres in this vicinity. The
north line of this tract was about what now
! is the north line of Putney, and the south
| line was about the south line of BTattle-
boro. A straight line from the northwest
corner of Putney to the southwest corner
of Brattleboro would nearly represent the
westerly boundary. All the equivalent
| lands were sold by auction in April 171G
at Hartford for e6S3 New England curren-
cy. They were bought by IL persons, two
of whom were Gurdon Saltonstall and his
wife of New London, Conn, and one was
William Brattle of Cambridge, Mass, a
tutor in Harvard college, and afterward a
clergyman, whose death took place in 1T17,
! leaving his share in the lands to his son,
also named William.
The proprietors of the equivalent lands
met at the Green Dragon tavern in Boston
in June, 171S, to organize and divide the
lands In the allotment the tract where
we now live fell to VIM. Drummer, lieuten-
ant-governor, VIM. Brattle (the SOM after
ward Colonel Brattle, Anthony Stoddard,
Esquire, and John White, gentleman, all
of Boston, and ii was all called Dummers-
ton in honor of Lieutenant-GovernorD Dunn
mer. Charters for the towns of Brattle-
boro, Fullum. now Dmnmerston, and Put
ney were taken out Dec. &, 1853.
William Brattle, who had then become
Col Brattle and had married Katharine,
daughter of Governor Salstonstall, acted
as agent for the other owners and for him
self in taking out the charters. He took
his shares for himself, and those he chose
in Brattleboro, and his name was given to
the town. The shares of Gov. Drummer
and Anthony Stoddard were located in
Fullum, and those of the heirs of John
White in Putney. The bounds of Brattle-
borough in this first charter were: BE
ginning at the mouth of Venter's Brook
so called where it empties itself into Con-
necticut River and runs from thence six
miles or Whereabouts to the South East cor
ner of Marlborough, thence five miles
North ten degrees East by Marlborough
aforesaid to stake and stones in said Line.
Thence East ten degrees South to Connect
icue River aforesaid, then down said River
to the bounds first mentioned at Nenter's
Brook This brook is the small one form
ing the cascade and running through the
meadow into the river north of Broad
brook. Brattleboro contained about Il, 800
acres and the shares of the grantees were
800 acres each, except that of Oliver Will
lard, who had then cleared Fort Drummer
meadow, containing POO acres, which was
=
the town was dense forest, and none of the
other grantees ever became settlers in ii.
There were two brothers, Thomas Brat
tie, a merchant, and William Brattle, a
minister and scholar, who were men of
prominence in Boston and Cambridge in
the last part of the seventeenth century.
VIM. Brattle, junior, who gave the name
to Brattleboro, was born in Cambridge in
1902 was graduated at Harvard studied
theology and became preacher, but after
ward took up the practice of the law and
was for many years member of the legis-
lature and the governors council. He was
evidently a man of versatile attachments,
for he also practiced medicine extensively
and was prominent in the military affairs
of the province, becoming a captain of ar
tillery and afterward major general of mil
itia. He possessed attractive manners,
and was fayorite with the governor, and
popular among people. His social connec-
tons, and especially his attachment to
Gen. Gage, led him to side with the Brit
ish however, when the troubles between
the colonies and the mother country came
on, and when the kings troops evacuated
Boston he went with them to Halifax and
died there in 1776.
1t would be gratifying to local pride it,
instead of Tory, the man who gave Brat
tleboro its name had been fervid patriot
spilling his blood on the winning side, but
facts are facts, and we may solace ourselves
with the consideration that he was a man
of high personal character, whose mistake
was in thinking it better to live with the
king than to die with the rebels. The
family gave the name to Brattle Square
and to the street of the same name, which
is one of the best known in Boston.
A Lesson on combinations.