News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1908-04-08
NATHANIEL GILBERT
Ca otured by indians-SoId Into the
British Army-A Soldier OF 1912.

|
The following interesting historical
article, printed in a recent issue of til,
Randolph Herald and News, is of con
siderable local interest, as the subject Of
the sketch, Nathaniel Gilbert, was grand
father of our townsman, William Gil
bert, and therefore has many decendenti
in this town. including Mrs. Harrison
Dodge and Mrs. w. w. Delano of this
village. A valuable relic of the Indian
massacre, referred to in the article is
now in the possession of Mrs. Edith
Dodge Davis. 1t is a pewter platter,
which was hid in the house at the time
of the capture of Nathaniel:
In an old hand-sewed leather wallet, as
strong and serviceable now as the day it
was made close to a hundred years ago,
Henry G. Gilbert preserves curious and
ancient document-the discharge of his
grandfather, Nathaniel Gilbert, from the
service of the British army on the 2lst
day of June, 1854
An eventful life had this Nathaniel Gil
bert, who was born in Connecticut, but
when lad of Is, his father having died,
was brought to Royalton by his uncle,
Capt. Daniel Gilbert, to give the labor of
his strong young arms in exchange for
the privileges of his uncle's home. He
was there, sharing the hardships and
sometimes pleasures of this little commu-
nifty of early settlers, when, before dawn
of Oct. IS, 1880, came the dreadful It'd
ings of the near approach of band of
300 Indians from Canada, burning and
nill1Uinu and 1nauinu a trail nf cp,nlya
and ruin as they came.
The settlers prepared to flee !; and as
Captain Gilbert was getting his family
ready to start he sent his nephew over
hill to warn a household that the news
might not otherwise reach until too late.
The boy departed on his errand, but
though terror lent him fleetness of foot
his uncle did not dare to await his return
and hurried his family out of the way of
the savages, who were already at their
destroying work in the settlement before
Nath MEL came back. Running towards
his uncle's cabin, he failed to notice that
the horses outside were not the familiar
animals of his kinsmen and neighbors,
and burst through the door to fall, not
into the hands of friends, but of captors
The long, toilsome march to Canada,
was made with the Indians and their cap
tives. At the end of the journey, Ma
thaniel had the good luck to find friend |
in matronly squaw who adopted him as
a promising Young brave for a paleface,
and under her protection he romped and
grew up with the copper-hued youths of
the forest. Arrived at the age of II, he
was given the option of permanent adop-
tion into the tribe or of enlistment in the
British army. He chose the latter and
the Indians thau sold him for 6 half
Joe" eight dollars) to the British, whose
ranks were largely recruited in this way.
For two years he wore the red coat of
the kings soldier, but at the end of that
time the disbandlng of the regiment
brought his grateful discharge in the fol
lowing terms:-
:" His Majesty's Provincial regiment,
called the I'd Battalion, Kings Royal
Regiment of New York, whereof Sir John
Johnson, Knight, Bart, is lieutenant-col-
mel commandment. These are to certify