Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1903-03-19
EARLY INDUSTRIES.
With Changes in Ownership at the
GristmiII Since 1880

4 AFt&tUlttl OlnCG l00O
Some years ago writer in summing up
/ Randolph's advantages rendered the fol-
! lowing opinion :-s1Although there has
the town sufficient workmen in iron,
wood, leather, tin, cloth, wool, ETC., and
| traders for the necessities of this and
adjoining towns, agriculture, including
horticulture and stoek-raising, has been
the chief interest and occupation OF the
people, and in that they have almost
| Invariably been successful. There are
very few, il any, towns in the state or
whole country that in climate, soil, water
power, building materials, minerals, med
icinal springs, curative plants and the
like, are so well adapted to supplying all
the wants Of man and beast as Randolph"
Nevertheless, in spite of the general
agricultural tendency there were not want
ing early attempts at manufacturing in
such strikingly dissimilar lines as wool
and iron, and finally the establishment in
a small way Of the woodworking indus
tries that have been such powerful factors,
in the prosperity of this village and of the
whole township.
About 1910 a man by the name OF Dan
Parker built a forge for making bar iron
at West Randolph and operated it with
ten men, among them Amasa Allen and
Tom Wood. The ore was obtained from
the Dow Herrick farm, now known as the
Manchesters' Valley farm. but the iro1
made from it proved defective and ore was
then drawn from Haverhill, n. H., which
| increased the cost Of production so much
that the business became Improbable and
was abandoned.
There have been at various times carding
and wooden cloth factories in town, the
largest of which was built by Messrs.
| Ford on the Branch and was destroyed by
the food of 1880. About the same time
Messrs. Hobart and Mashburn were car
| rying on a wooden mill on a brook between
this village and Randolph Center, the
brook near j. G. Mann's farm, but 1t was
soon after discontinued and converted
into carriage and sleigh factory.
gristmill was built on this brook near
Capt Aaron Storrs' dwelling, called in
later years the George Tilson place, and a
few rods up the stream was a sawmlll,
with still another so rods beyond. In 1923
Capt. Charles Bracket built gristmill
near the latter sawmill, but there not
| being sufficient water at all seasons of the
year to run il, the mill was at last shut
down and the grinding ceased forever.
When the great flood OF 1880 brought
destruction to the Ford wooden mill, VIII
liam Ford took the matter very much to
heart After his factory had gone floating
down the swollen branch il is said that he
rode down from his home towards Brain
tree and drawing rein at the top Of hull
overlooking the scene gazed at the ruin
the food had wrought and. turning, went
away never to enter the village again. n.
had lost heavily and those interested IN
his enterprise had lost with him, which
altogether was a little more than his
proud spirit could bear.
In that year Mr. Ford sold to Amplius
Blake OF Chelsea for $4,000 all lands pur-
chased of Seth Chase, Phineas Moulton,
Curtis, Cutler a. Chase, Jonathan Jones,
O. I.L Gar1 10
Ford, Lebaeus Egertol and Joseph Sails
bury, with mills, factories, machinery,
houses, barns, granary, stores and hay
scales, and also all mills and privileges
which he had before purchased OF Lazarus
Riford. In these days that amount OF
property for that. amount of money would
cause real estate agency to have recourse
to smelling salts till the force OF the shock
had SOMEWHAT abated.
In 1898, for $4,000, Amplius Blake
| decided to Thomas Jones the large brick
| tavern WIN. Bass house, and out build
ings, brick store, two small dwelling
houses, gristmill, dam, water privilege ana
land connected herewith.
In 1853, William Chapman came mere
| from Nova Scotia and bought for $500 all
the land and real estate, including. grist-
mill. carding mill and water privilege,
! owned by Jones and managed and occu-
pied by Amplius Blake. Three years later
Chapman sold the property 10 WllllhH
Mann, still a resident of this village, who
paid $500 for it and disposed of a half
interest to his brother, Warren, for $3.50.
In those days the farmers were not the
heavy buyers of grain and feed stuffs that
they are today, and the miller's toll OF
one-sixteenth, for lack of purchasers, used
to accumulate in the upper part OF the
mill until the timbers had to be shored up
TO prevent the floor giving away. When
this point was reached the stock would be
disposed of to a Boston buyer at any price
to get rid OF it, The farmers, far from
being purchasers OF corn and cotton-seed
meal, were raising all the grain they
needed to feed their stock with some to
sell besides.
The Mann brothers, however, were the
first millers to bring in carload OF gram
from the West, whereas nowadays 1t takes
about 300 carloads a year to supply the
demand, and il anything should happen
to cut off this stream of outside fodder the
distress in this fertile state would rival
that of the India famine.
In 1865, after nine years as mlllers, the
Mann brothers sold out to Joel Whiting
for Is. 500. and in 1869, Mr.. Whiting sold TO
r. II. Robinson and II. p. Sanford for
$4,000. In 1876, the firm became ii. 7.
Sanford & Co, A. A. Sanford being assoc
ciated in the business, and upon the death
of Mr.. A. A. Sanford took the name OF IL.
p. Sanford alone.