18 



GAZETTEER OF VERMONT. 



Part III. 



BKNNINGTON. 



BENNINGTON 



sephFay. Theodore S. Fay of New York, 

 a /popular writer of the day, and secreta- 

 ry of Leajation at Berlin, is a grandson of 

 Joseph Fay. David Fay, another son of 

 Stephen, was United States Attorney for 

 the Vermont district under Mr. Jefferson, 

 and afterwards judge of the supreme 

 court. IsoMc Tlch".nor came to Benning- 

 ton in 1777, as a deputy commissary of 

 purchases under the United States — was 

 a member of the assembly in 17dl, and 

 for several successive years ; afterwards 

 was a niember of the council, judge of 

 the supreme court from 1791 to 17M.3, a 

 senator in Congress in 171*6, governor of 

 the state from 17!)7 to 18U7, and also in 

 1809, and again a senator in Congress 

 from 1814 to^lSiO. He died in 1810 at 

 the age of 85. The family of Saffords 

 were also leading men. Samuel Safford 

 was major in Col. Warner's Continental 

 regiment, and served through the war. 

 He was afterwards a prominent and use- 

 ful man in civil life. The first represen- 

 tatives of the town in the general assem- 

 bly, chosen the first Tuesday of March, 

 1778, were Nathan Clark and John Fas- 

 sett. Nathan Clark was the first speaker 

 of the house. He had been a leading- 

 man in committees of safety and conven- 

 tions for several years. The representa- 

 tives chosen on the first Tuesday of Sept. 



1778, were John Fassett and Ebenozer 

 Walbridge. The latter was colonel of 

 the militia about this time, and after- 

 wards became brigadier general. He 

 was an active and prominent man. 



Bennington, by theN. Y. organization, 

 was included in the county of Albany. In 



1779, when Vermont became organized, 

 it was made a half shire town of Ben- 

 nington county, and has continued such 

 ever since. A court house and jail were 

 built here at an early day. There have 

 been two public executions in this town, 

 one of David Redding- for " enemical 

 conduct" in 1778; and the other of Ar- 

 chibald Bates for murder in Feb., LSrSO.^ 



About one quarter of the township is 

 mountainous. The residue is feasible up- 

 land, with a considerable quantity of allu- 

 vial. The soil is rich and productive, 

 perhaps equal to any in the state. Wheat 

 was formerly raised in abundance, but for 

 many years has been an uncertain crop, 

 and has ceased to be cultivated, except in 

 very small quantities. The productions 

 are principally corn, rye, oats, haj', but- 

 ter, cheese, beef, pork, and poultry, which 

 generally find a ready market among the 

 manufacturing and mechanical population 

 of the town; for Vi^hich reason the busi- 

 ness of wool-growing has not been ex- 



* For particulars see part Bccond, page 121. 



tensively introduced. Bennington is con- 

 nected with Troy, the head of the Hud- 

 .son steam boat navigation, by a good 

 macadamized road, the distance being 30 

 miles. The Walloomscoik and its branch- 

 es furnish water power, which is improv- 

 ed to a considerable extent ; whence have 

 sprung up several manufacturing villa- 

 ges, which with the old village will re- 

 quire separate notices. 



Bennington Centre^ or the old village of 

 Bennington, has seventy-five dwelling 

 houses and about four hundred inhabit- 

 ants. The public buildings -are a Con- 

 gretional meeting house, a court house 

 and jail, and two academies. It has also 

 the post office, a bank, three taverns, five 

 stores, seven law oilices, a printing office, 

 and mechanics shops, of various descrip- 

 tions. It is a place of considerable capi- 

 tal and business ; but like most old villa- 

 ges in New England, having been begun 

 on high ground, a portion of tiie business, 

 of wliich it would otherwise have been 

 the centre, has dejjartcd to more fortu- 

 nate locations on the streams. This vil- 

 lage was the centre of operations of the 

 people of this state, against the Yorkers, 

 and also against the connnon enemy, dur- 

 ing the revolution. The councils of the 

 leaders were held at the Green Mountain . 

 tavern, kept by Stephen Fay ; the sign to 

 whicli was the stuffi'd skin of a cntamount, 

 placed on a post twenty-five feet high, 

 with its jaws distended, and teeth grin- 

 ning towards New York.* Here were 

 determined the most important public 

 concernments; and here decided the fate 

 of those accused of offences against the 

 people, ftlany a luckless Yorker had rea- 

 son to rue the day he was summoned to 

 trial at the sign of the catamount ; and 

 many an unfortunate tory has departed 

 from its council room, thankino- his stars 

 that he had been suffered to escape with 

 his life, though at the expense of a con- 

 fiscation of his property. The house is 

 now occupied as a private dwelling by 

 Samuel Fay, Esq. a descendant of the 

 first proprietor. The battleground is sit- 

 uated about 7 miles northv/est of this vil- 

 lage, on the Walloomscoik river, in the 

 town of Hoosic, New York. 



Tiie Congregational meeting house is a 

 fine wooden building, and was erected in 

 1804. Until about the j'oar li-'^O, it was 

 the only house for public worship in town. 

 Now there are seven others. The first 

 emigrants to Bennington were Congre- 

 gationalists ; and it is related of Samuel 

 Robinson, the principal proprietor, that 

 when persons came to town to purchase 

 land, it was his practice to invito them to 



*See part second, page 31, 



