The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-02-17

Its Pioneers-Naming the Town-A Veteran
of the Civil war;
BY HON. HENRY G. MoDUFFEE.'

Robert Rogers, at the time OF the French
war in Canada. A tract OF land lying on
the Connecticut river was reserved by Ben
ming Wentworth, colonial governor OF New
Hampshire, for the Rangers, The territory
that Is now the town Of Bradford was with
in this reservation, and was designed for
Captain Moses H8zen who commanded
company Of the Ringers, aud his associates
In a petition Captain dazen sent TO the
governor for a charter IT. was called Waits
River Town, hut before the charter was
granted New York, by order in council OF
July 90 Ugh claimed the land aud no more
New Hampshire grants were issued. Had |
Captain Hazen pushed his claim, as some Of |
the other Rangers did, he would, doubtless, |
have come into possession OF the land; but |
he and his company were sent with Rogers |
to take possession of the French forts on |
the lakes, one of which was near Detroit |
A fter this was accomplished, Captain Ha- |
zen returned by way of Montreal where he
found rich and beautiful French lady,
whom he married. He remained in Can
ada for time, trusting to his friends, az he
said, to look after his township in Coos, the
name given by the Indians to large tract
Of land, including Newbury, Bradford, and
other town on the river, and signifying "the
pines" with which the region was covered.
Captain Hazen was afterwards general In
the Revolutionary War. He died in AL
bany, New York, about the year 1880.
Waits River Town took Its name from the
stream that runs from the northwest
necticut and was so named in honor Of one
| Captain Wait, who commanded another
company OF Rangers. Captain Wait was
one OF the party that was with Rogers when
he went from the head of Missisquoi Bay to
| st. Francis village, an Indian settlement,
where they burned the wigwams on the 9TH
| of October, 1859, and completely subdued
the savage tribe which had been cruelty
harrassing the frontier settlers in New Eng.
land for more than half century. The
fhan on hair mo RI N
now Charlestown-by Lake Memphrema-
cog and Connecticut river. to the upper end
| Of the Coos Meadows, at the mouth OF the
AmmOnoosuc, where they expected to find
sent with supplies, after remaining two
days left only a few hours before the party
arrived. The campfire was still burning,
but there wa, no food and the distress was
so great, 1t Is said, the powder horns, ball
pouches and other accoutrements were sue
cessively boiled and eaten. Being In will
derness and without any sustenance what
ever, the company separated into small par
ties, each to hunt for itself. 1t so happened
that Captain Wait killed a deer at the
mouth of this river, and after taking part
OF the meat for himself and his comrades,
he hung the remainder, in several pieces, on
tree upon which he carved his name. The
lives Of those who followed were, possibly,
thus saved, and in gratitude to Captain
Wait they gave his name to the river.
The first charter OF the town was issued
by Sir Henry Moore, governor Of New York,
, Nov. IT 1776, to John French and his asso-
ciates, and a warrant was issued the same
day to the Surveyor General for defining its
boundaries. In this charter, the name given
was Bradford, instead of W ats River Town,
as it had formerly been called. French
having died before the survey was made, a
new charter was granted May 3, ITO, to
William Smith and his associates and In
this, the present charter, the town is called
nj limo IN
Moore. 1t appears from deed and road
survey, recorded in the town records, that
the name Salem was given to the town for q
time, at least, by some of the inhabitants
1t is thought that on account OF the dis
agreement that arose between the Yer
monters and New York claimants in re
gard to their land, that there was a dissatis.
faction with the name of Mooretown, and
in 1888 the name was again altered to Brad
ford by the legislature OF Vermont. Why il
was called Bradford is not known. Some
have thought it was because there was q
! town named Bradford near Nswbury and
! Haverhill in Massachusetts. Others have
thought it was named in honor OF Governor
Bradford, who was chief magistrate oil
Massachusetts for many years and this lat
ter supposition Is probably correct.
In 1765 man by the name OF John Hos
mer, or Osmer, came to town and built a
cabin on the meadow near the mouth OF
Waits River, on the north bank, and not
far from the place where Captain West
killed the deer; but he could not have re.
NAMED very long, as there is nothing to
show that he ever claimed the land on
which his hut was built. Early the next
settled on the Upper Plain, and may be
rightly called the first settler in town.
Most OF the above facts are taken from q
, manuscript prepared many years ago by
John McDuffee for Thompson's History Of
= Vermont. but not received in time to be in.
| aartad In that pnhlipQfiOu. pQrta nf this
manuscript however, were used for DR.. Nc
Keen's History OF Bradford, and Miss Hem.
enwsy's History OF Vermont.
At late meeting OF Washburn Post, G
A. R., Comrade H. B. Martin presented to
III. Sedgwick, the famous commander of the
! Sixth Army Corps, who fell on the morning
Of May 9, 1864 at Spottsylvania. General
: Sedgwick was the author OF the historic
order, Put the Vermonters in front, keep
the column we'll closed up, and we shall gel
8 there" His death was keenly felt by the
Corps. When 1t was known that he was
slain, strong, brave men wept He was be
t loved in the whole Corps by rank and file
, General Grant declared that his death wa
equivalent to the loss of whole division Of
= the army The giver of his portrait was
? closely identified with the Sixth Corps from
its organization in the fall of '61 until the
: expiration OF his term OF service, October
n | 10, loOf. he WAS u Iu6iuDeT OF company d.
Sixth Regiment, Vermont Volunteers. Al
I the time the army broke camp, March /
1862, he was left behind, with others, sick
with humps, with the understanding thai
| he was to go to the general hospital in
Washington. But Martin was not made Of
that kind Of stuff; on the following morn
ing, learning that his regiment was in camp
ten mile away, he determined to go to IL in
stead Of to the hospital. He took his
musket and equipments (which made 9
] small load for mule) and started, arriving
] in camp just at night When he was dis
covered by his officers, they again ordered
him to the hospital, say ing that, in his con
dition, he could not 60 with them. Martin
however, refused, point blank, to obey or
ders. He said he came South to go where
ever his company went and he should dc
it or die; and from that day until the expira
n ton Of his term Of service he asked for nc
fnrlough, or to be excused from duty Blu,
one day. He went wherever his comrades
went. He was in all their battles, and
when he returned, he brought back to Yer