24 



CIVIL HISTORY OF VERMONT. 



Part II. 



CORRESPONDENCE WITH GOT. TRYOIf. 



PROCEEDINGS AT OTTER CREEK. 



and others ; and the other by the persons 

 excepted in the governor's letter.* In 

 these they proceed to show the legality of 

 their titles to their lands under the grants 

 of New Hampshire, and that their proceed- 

 ings, which had been declared to be dis- 

 orderly and riotous, were necessary and 

 justifiable in defending themselves and 

 property against the machinations of base 

 and sordid land-jobbers; and express an 

 earnest wish that His Excellency would 

 assist to quiet them in their possessions 

 " till His Majest}-, in his royal wisdom 

 shall be graciously pleased to settle the 

 controversy." 



These communications were forwarded 

 by Capt. Stephen Fay and his son Mr. Jo- 

 nas Fay, who were appointed agents on 

 the part of the settlers of the New Hamp- 

 shire Grants to deliver tliem to the gover- 

 nor of New York. They were kindly 

 received by His Excellency and laid before 

 the council. The council after mature 

 deliberation reported favorably, and re- 

 commended that His Excellency afford all 

 the relief in his power, by suspending till 

 His Majesty's pleasure should be known, 

 all prosecutions in behalf of the crown, on 

 account of crimes with which the settlers 

 stood charged, and recommend that the 

 owners of disputed lands, claimed under 

 New York titles, should suspend, during 

 the same period, all civil suits concerning 

 the same. This report of the council was 

 approved by the governor and was imme- 

 diately communicated to the people of the 

 Grants, by their agents. 



When intelligence of this result reach- 

 ed Bennington, it diffused universal joy 

 through tlie settlement. The remem- 

 brance of their former griefs and suffer- 

 ings, was, for the moment, swept away 

 in the overflowing enthusiasm for gover- 

 nor Tryon. On the loth of July, 1772, the 

 committee which had replied to the letter 

 of the governor of New York, together 

 with a vast concourse of people, assembled 

 at the meeting-house in Bennington, and 

 their agents then laid before them the re- 

 sults of their mission to New York. The 

 manner in which it was received may be 

 best understood from the report, made by 

 these agents shortly afler to governor 

 Tryon. 



" We, as messengers, laid before the 

 above committee an extract of the minutes 

 of His Majesty's Council of the province 

 of New York of the 2d instant, together 

 witli His Excellency governor Tryon's 

 letter of the same date, directed to the in- 

 habitants of Bennington, &,c. and afler 

 reading the same, the above committee 



* Those may be foi'nd in blade's Vt. Slate }^^p^r?, 

 page Hi and 25. 



and a numerous concourse of the inhabit- 

 ants of the adjacent country and other 

 spectators, gave a full and unanimous 

 vote in favor of the papers aforesaid; and 

 the thanks of the people were presented to 

 us for our diligence in procuring these pa- 

 pers. Peace was also recommended on 

 the whole New Hampshire Grants, by all 

 who v/ere present ; when the whole artil- 

 lery of Bennington, with the small arm3 

 were several times discharged in honor of 

 the governor and council of New York. — 

 Health to the king — Health to governor 

 Tryon — Health to the council of New 

 York — Universal peace and plenty, liber- 

 ty and prosperity, by sundry respectable 

 gentlemen, some of whom were from 

 neighboring provinces. 



Stephen Fay, 

 Jonas Fay." * 

 During these transactions at New York, 

 intelligence was brought to Bennington 

 that Mr. Kockburn, a noted surveyor in 

 the employment of New York claimants, 

 was engaged in laying out land in some 

 of the northern townships. Ethan Allen 

 collected asmall party, went in pursuit of 

 the surveyor, overtook him, broke his in- 

 struments and made him prisoner. He 

 was brought to Castleton, tried and sen- 

 tenced to banishment, and was to suffer 

 death if caught within the Grants, but at 

 this juncture hearing of the success of 

 the mission to New York, they rescinded 

 their harsh sentence, and dismissed the 

 surveyor. 



Durmg this expedition, Allen's party dis- 

 possessed the tenants of an intruder at the 

 lower falls onOtterCreek, where Vergennes 

 now stands. The lands here had been grant- 

 ed by New Hampshire in J761,and a settle- 

 ment commenced under said grant, and a 

 saw-mill erected as early as 1769. Short- 

 ly after, Col. Reed, claiming under a sub- 

 sequent grant from New York, forcibly 

 drove off the New Hampshire settlers and 

 put his own tenants in possession. They 

 had extended the settlement, erected sev- 

 eral log-houses and a grist-mill. These 

 were in turn ordered off by Allen, tiieir 

 houses burnt, their mill-stones broken 

 b}^ being thrown over the falls, and 

 Pangborn,the New Hami)shire proprietor, 

 again put in possession of his saw-mill. 



Intelligence of these transactions soon 

 reached governor Tryon, who, on tlie 

 Uth of August, 1772, addressed a letter 

 of sharp rebuke to the inhabitants of the 

 Grants and required them forthwith to 

 put Col. Reed's tenants " into rc-posses- 



* Thi'? <iocumctit may be found in the lUh No. 

 of the Hiatoiical Headings, piib!i»htd in the State 

 Banner of July 20, 1641, and was copied from lUo 

 original on tile at Alhany. 



