Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1904-11-25
BUILDING OF Fl. DUMMER
STORY OF FIRST WHITE SET.
ELEMENT IN VERMONT.


An Enterprise Of Neoessity-Con'
struotion and Dimensions - Ths
Builders - First Offioers-Fortifi
cations-Experienoes with Indians
One hundred and eighty years age
Sunday Union, carpenters and sol.
diers from Springfield and North.
field. under the direction of Lieut.
Timothy Dwight of Northampton
grandfather of the first President
Dwight of Yale college, braved the
dangers of primeval wilderness
and built blockhouse, known as
Fort Drummer, and the first settle.
ment of white men In Vermont.
The fort was located in what Is
now part Of the town of Brattle-
boro, and some ridges OF earth
marking the course OF entertainments
raised about the blockhouse in aid OF
its greater security are the only
landmarks of that daring enterprise
of almost two centuries ago. A
marker, erected by the Brattleborc
chapter of the Daughters of the
American Revolution, also points out
this memorable spot in the history
of the Green Mountain state. Ne
cessity impeded the enterprise. and
the pathetic and tragic incidents
which those early pioneers under
went make them deserving Of a
noteworthy place in the hero list OF
New England history.
Mortified, which has been made
famous by the late Evangelist d. l.
Moody, was the last settlement on
the Connecticut river north OF
Springfield in February, 1924, when
the party of ~ soldiers and three
carpenters penetrated the Indian
infested country A site on the
bank of the river where the valley
between Wantastiquet mountain on
the New Hampshire side and the
rugged Vermont hills is narrow had
been selected for the fort.
Work upon the blockhouse was
begun Feb. 3, 1924. OF the personnel
of the carpenters and soldiers who
built the blockhouse little has been
recorded. OF the carpenters, one OF
them, it is related, was an Indian
from Springfield named John Crow
foot, who, for some reason or other.
was Dttit =" N''eS '''ShN $1,000
the others.
The fort was in shape an oblong,
running northeast and southwest,
with a corner cut off on. the top of
the river bank. There a watch box
was located that the occupants of
the fort might command, or, at least,
make dangerous, the passage by the
fort in canoes. Yellow pine timber.
which covered the meadow, was
used in the building of the fort. In
side of the walls were a number OF
small buildings surrounding and
facing a parade ground, and so con-
structed that the back wall of each
was a part of the wall of the fort
with a single roof sheltering all. The
walls of the fort were about 20 rect
high, and the big pine timbers
hewed square. were firmly locked
together at the corners.
At the northwest side the fort
was about $50 feet long, the south
west ll2 feet. the southeast 106 feet
and the northeast so feet. The short
side, on the bank of the river was
20 feet wide. 1t was the intention
of the builders of the fort to make
the houses inside the fort protec-
ton in case the enemy succeeded in
getting within the walls.
The inner walls of the houses
were built like the walls of the fort,
with single roofs sloping from the
walls of the fort inward, and the
doors and windows opening WITHIN
the fort were so arranged that they
could be barricaded.
There was an underground pas
sage from the fort to the bank of the
river and history records that the
garrison obtained water for washing
from the river and that they, were
frequently fired upon by hostile saw
ages on the other side of the stream.
The bullets, it is said, We're geher-
ally wasted and this statement is
brought out by the fact that since
that time many bullets have been
found lodged in the river bank.
The fort was completed in. the fol-
owing summer and was called Fort
Dummer in honor of Lieut.-Gov
william Drummer, acting governor OF
he province of Massachusetts pay
Lieut. Dwight was in command OF
he fortress. The other officers were:
lieut.. Elisha Searle, Northampton;
Sergt. John McRanney Springfield;
Sergt. John Burke, Hatfield; Sergt
Robert Cooper, Mortified; Sachem
Hendrick. a Maqua Indian; Sachem
Ampumet, a Hudson river lhdlan
Of the SO privates who garrisoned
he fort seven were from Spring
ield, five from Windsor, four from
Suffield and the rest from othe'
places in this vicinity.
II was considered in those days
hat the fort was we'll fortified. IL
lad one great" gun for alarms,
which could be heard at distance,
md four small swivel guns for the
lefense of the houses.
There were numerous causes
which led to the settlement OF fort
hummer. BY the treaty OF peace
igned, April II, 1713, and proclaimed
n Berlin in October of the same
ear the frontier settlers were given
little breathing spell. The settlers
,egan to penetrate further west
yard into Massachusetts and agrl-
ulture began to revive. Inc peo-
lie of Mortified who had peen
riyen from their homes began 10
eturn and in 171S there were gu
antilles in the town. ,,,
BY an arrangement between M Vas
achusetts and Connecticut Varlot'
,arcels of land lying north or exist
na settlements in Massachusetts
we're given to Connecticut in eX-
bange for land of which Connectl-
Mt had been deprived by ratiflca-
ion of the boundary between tne
wo colonies. These were caheu,
Equivalent lands and one OF tne ese
onsisted of a section of about 44,ooo
ores on the west bank Of the Con-
ecticut river, within the bounds OF
he present towns of Vernon, Brat
leboro. Dummerston and Putney'
It. 90 Oh. hest |
Lying alongside some OF tne us
shing privileges In the uIea. to