Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1905-08-11

OF jeremiah Willard. hut hardly man
has become familiar with the interests 1
of Coos County in New Hampshire aud
Essex County in Vermont, during the .
past half century, without meeting this
peculiar man. !
1t is more than century since his
father Harden Willard came to Maid |
stone, Vermont. aud married Lucy,
daughter of Daniel Schulf. For some
years thereafter they appear TO have
juurneyed over quite an extensive terri
tory, through great forests aud across
the lakes from village to llage 10y the
most primitive methods of tramsporta-
ton. They were the parents of thirteen
children, one of whom was jeremiah,
born in 1928, while they We're living in
that region of marvellous natural beauty
where are the lakes of central New
York. Fenimore Cooper was then pub
fishing his novels, and in reading them
one can imagine what scenes the young
lad beheld us he traverSed these water
ways and mountain paths.
While ne was yet a young boy the
family had returned to Essex County,
and during the period between his
thirteenth and his seventeenth years
! jeremiah worked on the farm If David
| HYDE in Brunswick for three dollars Il
month. While working here he broke
the tip of an anger with which he was
boring pump logs and was compelled to
| lose his wages for more than two weeks
to pay for it. He managed to save a
| few dollars out of his small income, and
then he walked to Boston. thence to
Hartford, Conn, and back to Boston
again, in the vicinity of which he lived
for several years, taking charge of a
large estate in East Newton for the
greater part OF the tlihe.
During this period Lydia G. Holbrook
wet.t from Lexington to Lowell, Mass.
to work in the cotton mill. She was ;
daughter of Thomas llolbrok, and
sister of Arthur I. lIolbrook, the preseu
senator from Essex County, and pos
sessed the good sense and integrit,
common to the family. From Lowell
she went as one of the hundred opera
, tives who started the first mill in Man
, chester, n. II. The acquaintance be
tween she and jeremiah Willard ha,
been continued and on Christmas Da,
1918 they We're married.
At the time of the discovery of gol,
in California, Mr.. Willard crossed tn
continent on an expedition lasting SOM
two years, which was filled with TIN
adventures natural to it, and from whicI
he returned with something saved.
In 1886 he bought the farm in Maid
stone where Henry Booth now lives, anr
IN 1898 he built at North Stratford, y
H., the hotel which bore his name till i
was destroyed 10y fire in 1895. He wa
, proprietor of the Willard House but
few years, yet it seemed to be his natura
headquarters and his genial presence wa
associated with it all the time during
which it was managed by ,Jennison s
Crane, Willard & Stevens, the Baileys
L. ii. Folsom, Ezra Moses and W. NJ
, Buck and he sat but a few feet from
, the great Rochester lamp when it fell
starting the fire in the office, and the
5 old gentleman had quite struggle tC
= rescue the young son Of Mr.. Buck, VIII,
not realizing his danger was anxious tC
save some of his things. The loss Of
this old hostelry was deeply felt by Mr.
Willard, and he never appeared so mucI
at home elsewhere.
? Soon after he built the Willard House
he bought the farm in Brunswick OF
which he had worked when IL boy, anC
this, now owned 10y his son, A. +. Viii
lard, by cultivation and the saving and
adding thereto of large tracts of timber
land, has become one of the fines
properties in the Upper Connecticut
Valley. .",'.-
For some thirty years Mr.. Willar,
had his residence on Main street at No
Stratford, and was engaged in numbering
operations and dealt in timber, lands il
: Bloomfield, Guildhall and Stratford, ant
in these transactions he was very sue
cessful.
The experiences of his life develope,
uncommon traits of character. From
childhood he expected to work hard fol
necessities only. He never went to
public school, but by observation an
application taught himself the essential
to successful business, and being able t,
: do this, he was inclined to think
similar training would be more bene
fetal to the young men of today thai
devotng so much time exclusively to
preparatory education. By his name
and squarely, and to seek transaction
of clear, definite nature, rather tina,
anrora in a a;rc If a lonbtfnl or oo,u