Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1911-05-03
Vermont Pioneers
and Their Famiies.
by "SFIAWSIiIh"
Address All Communications and Queries to
VERMONT PIONEERS
Care of The Monitor, Barton, Vt.
Early History of Craftsbury.
Edited by "SHAWSHIh"

Early history OF NT6ItSDuTy.
Historical address delivered at
Craftsbury Common by Horace F.
Graham at the Tooth anniversary of
the settlement of the town of Crafts
bury. July 4th, 1889.
Continued from last issue.)
Joseph Scott, the father, served as
Sheriff fourteen years, as Judge of
Probate, as Representative, as a
member of the Council of Censors.
His son Joseph was Town Clerk for
many years, Representative and
member of the Council of Censors and
a man whom we all knew and loved.
Among the men who for the first
twenty years held the town Offices
were Ephraim Morse, Nehemiah
Lyon, Samuel French, Daniel Mason.
Daniel Dawson. Arba Nelson, Seth
In later years Alvah R. French filled
the office Of Assistant Judge. and was
a Member of the Council of Censors.
He was a man whose fine legal mind
and sound judgment fitted him for
what he was. The counselor and ar
bitter of his fellow townsmen for
many years and a pattern for the
youth. William J. Hastings and
Amasa P. Dutton have served as As
sistant Judges and Representative ;
Harvey Scott as Sheriff for eleven
years; Augustus Young as States
Attorney Judge of Probate, Senator
and Representative in Congress.
Royal Corbin and James A. Paddock
as Judges of Probate Nathan S. Hill as
States Attorney, and N. P. Nelson
and J. w. Simpson as representatives
and Senators.
The first postmaster of whom we
have any record was Augustus Young.
Our first Physician was James A.
Paddock, brother of the mother Of
Governor Erastus Fairbanks, who
came here in 1893 and married Angus.
ia, daughter of Colonel Crafts. He
died in 1909. One of his sons, James
A., graduated at Burlington and for
many years practised law and served
as Judge of the Supreme Court.
Since then among our physicians,
have been Doctor Scott. Ephraim
Brewster, father and son and Daniel
inently fitted him for the profession
he had chosen.
Among our poets were Elizabeth AL
len, and Ellen Hall Phillips. Those
who have won distinction abroad as
musicians are Albert Whitney, the in
strumen talist, James Whitney, the
tenor, and Ezra Bagley, the cornetist
The first woman to be admitted to
the Bar in the United States, Carrie
Burnham kilgore, was born and reared
in Craftsbury. At her admission at
Philadelphia, she received special
commentator from the Court for the
excellence of her examination.
In 1897, the Congregational church
was organized. 1t consisted of six
teen persons. Nehemiah Lyon was
chosen Deacon and the Rev. Samuel
Collins settled as pastor. Before Mr..
Collins came I am told that Mr..
Holmes had preached to the people.
Previous to this their old minister,
Mr.. Paine of Sturbridge, had visited
them. A space was cleared upon the
Common and there he preached to
them from the text, 'The wilderness
shall blossom as the rose Early
house was agitated and at last it was
with ten-foot posts. This was done
and it was occupied early in the year
1902. At a Parish meeting held in
March, 1901, it was voted to give Mr..
Collins the same salary as Mr.. Wor-
cester in Peacham is receiving and
this was done until 1904 when he was
dismissed.
AS the number of societies in
creased quite a strife arose among
them for the possession of the meet
ing house and it was finally voted to
allow the five denomina tons to use it
one week each in rotation. At the
raising of the present church in 1920
: a Mr.. Newell was killed and there
being no minister in town Mr..
Aiken, Baptist from Hardwick, was
sent for to preach the funeral ser
mon. His text was, eff a beam fall
upon man and kill him the Lord
hath sent it," The suitability of the
text aroused the wonder of the good
deacons, who immediat ely began a
search and, not finding it, visited Mr.
Aiken and asked where the text was.
He said, 81 do not remember, gentle
men, but it is somewhere in Jose
plus" From 1904 till 1922 the Con-
gregationalists had no settled minis
ter. During that time Salmon King
and James Hobart held revivals. In
1922 came William Arms Chaplin, the
father of Miss Jane Chaplin, the Mis-.
sionary to China. In 1910, the Rev.
Samuel r. Hall was installed, to
whose care Craftsbury owes much
both in the establishment of her
academy and the preservation of her
history.
Fourteen years after followed the
Rev. Austin o. Hubbard, next the
Rev. l.. |. Hoadley and then the Rev.
E. P. Wild, d. D.
The Methodist church was organ
lied in 1918, under the auspices of
such men as Wilbur Fisk. the founder
of the school and seminary at Middle
town, and Lorenzo Dow. 1t was unit
ed in a circuit with several other
towns till 1880 when it became sta
tion of itself. Among its clergy have
been, Schuyler Chamberlin. the AS
penwalls, Peter Merrill and many
other good men.
A Baptist society was formed in
1900 and Samuel Churchill was the
first pastor. In 1916, Daniel Mason,
one of the early settlers was ordained
pastor and SO remained till 1928 when
the church was disorganized.
In 1918 fho PaforDood prochvtor;