Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1894-08-24
TOWN OF THE PAST.
GOldsmIth's S'DeserIed VnInge'' Du-
Plicated in VermOht-An Interest
Ing Letter.

GOIdsmIth's ''Deserted villages Du-
PIicated In VermOnt-An Interest
Ing Letter.
THE Century, for May last contained
quite an interesting and humorous letter
from Prof. w. H. Bishop of Yale college,
descriptive of his attempts to procure an
| abandoned farm for a summer residence
Among the places referred to by him
was the village eff Nottingham, Wind
ham county, the story about that village
being one of the most interesting parts
OF the article, which appeared entire in
exchanges. Some of the,statements relat-
ing to that village having been ques-
toned by various papers, Maj. Valentine
recently visited the place, and in letter
to Prof. Bishop, says: II was well ac-
quainted with Charles Chase, a lawyer,
born, reared and now living there, who
accompanied us over what was once a
village. We went through the matter
very thoroughly. Mr.. Chase is a man
about 40 years old, intelligent and knows
what anybody knows, either by tradition
or otherwise, about this village of the
past. 1t once contained in the vicinity
of 300 inhabitants. We found founda-
tons of one old mill site and one site of
the dense forests were cut down and
burned into ashes from which were
made pearl-ash, hence the mandatory.
Also this was great centre of lime in
dustry, made from surrounding lime rock
and shipped to Boston.
Three churches once stood, two on
the common and one about mile away;
one academy, three stores, two hotels.
Two churches, stores, hotels and the
academy surrounded what was once a
common. We found signs Of founda-
tons of twenty-four dwelling houses,
some of which were almost Obliterated
and would be unnoticeable to one not
searching for them. and, indeed, but for
Mr.. Chase's knowledge in the matter l
should have overlooked many of them.
There are now eleven occupied build
ings, one district school house and two
buildings abandoned. These occupied
buildings have been occupied during the
remembrance of those in the vicinity, so
that the theory that people moved from
their houses and then returned to them
is not correct. All these dwelling
houses and sites together make 81.
There are known to have been many
buildings whose sites are now filed up
and plowed in, and are part of corn or
poratoe fields, pasture or moving land.
Mr.. Chase and a gentleman residing in
one of the eleven houses think that ,once
there were from 20 to 80 more dwelling
houses than we can now find sites for,
which would make 60 to 10 dwellings.
Five persons to dwelling would be a
small estimate for those days of large
families. One village street was over a
mile long, the others half or three quar-
tiers of a mile.
ga man living in one of the houses,
who came there in 1850, says that when
he first came there to live, the lime in
dustry was a great industry, and some
days as high as 200 teams would come to
the stores to deliver lime and other ma
terial for shipment to Boston, and return
with dry goods and groceries. The de-
sertion of this village began about 1910.
In 1860 the desertion was about COM
plete, but buildings were yet standing,
AS late as 1881, there was a centennial
celebration on the site of the old village.
At that time one church was in fair
state of preservation and used on that
occasion, as well as a dozen or more
dwellings, three stores and two church
es, but soon after that what remained
was so far gone, that their boards were
sometimes fire was set to what was left
of the tumbled down structures.
"Within the last ten or fifteen years
there has grown up tlourishing village
within mile and half of the old vii
lage; at least one large house of the old
village was moved down from the hill,
and a bell that is now in the Baptist
church of the present village, pealed
forth from the belfry of one of the
churches on the hill.
"Whitingham is now a fourishing
town, nice new buildings are being cree
ted, but there is no evidence that the
people on the hill moved down to make
the present village of Nottingham, and
certainly no evidence that any of them
ever moved back to occupy the aban-
doned buildings. The most of them
went to other Places many to the West.
One prominent merchant on the hill,
Asahel Booth, went to Bennington, and
so they scattered. Twenty years ago
the old town was like GOldsmith's de-
serted village, but now it can hardly be
called so, because the remains of the old
houses are all gone, except the eleven,
which in all probability were never un-
occupied since they were first built.
The two old hotels are still standing and
occupied by families. At one period
this village was one of the largest in the
State of Vermont. l have gone through
this thoroughly, as 1 felt real interest
liz the matter, more, doubtless, than you
will feel. You made some statements
which, as l remember, were substantial
ly correct"