Fart III. 



GAZETTEER OF VERMONT. 



63 



DEERFIELD RIVER. 



den gore was annexed to this townsliip, 

 and since that time, one half of Deweys- 

 burgh, the other half being anne.xcd to 

 Peacham, so tliat it now contains about 50 

 square miles. Sargeant Morrill commenc- 

 ed chopping in this town in 1784. In 1765, 

 or '6, the settlement was commenced by 

 about 50 emigrants from New Hampshire 

 and Massachusetts, who entered on the 

 lands as " squatters." In October, 17c6, 

 the legislature granted the township, as 

 above stated, reserving to the settlers the 

 lands on which they had located, not ex- 

 ceeding 320 acres each. In the following 

 winter 40 families more joined the set- 

 tlement, and for two or three years the 

 settlement was so rapid that, in 1781), the 

 number of families was estimated to be 

 200. The consequence of such an influx, 

 was an extreme scarcity, and much suf- 

 fering for the want of provisions. The 

 first mills in this town were a saw and 

 grist mill, erected in 1787, by David 

 Whitcher. The same year, March 20, 

 the town was organized. Abraham Mor- 

 rill was the first town clerk and the first 

 representative. In 17'J0, improvements 

 had been commenced on nearly all the 

 lots in town. The religious societies are 

 Methodists, Congregationalists and Bap- 

 tists, each of which has a commodious 

 house of worship, situated in the village. 

 The Congregational church was organiz- 

 ed August 9, 1792, and has had tiie ser- 

 vices of the following ministers. The 

 Rev. John Fitch, from October 30, 1793, 

 to October 1, 181(3; Rev. Jeremiah Flint, 

 from July 31, 1817, to March, 1818; Rev. 

 Edward HoUister, from March 26, 1823, 

 to May 7, 1826; Rev. E. J. Boardman, 

 from January 3, 1827, to October 29, 1833; 

 and Rev. David A. Jones, from March 25, 

 1835, to April, 1839. The Rev. R. C. 

 Hand is the present minister of this 

 church. The eastern part of this town- 

 ship is elevated about 200 and the western 

 about 800 feet above Connecticut river. 

 The soil is free from stone, is easily culti- 

 vated, and is perhaps equal, in richness 

 and adaptation to agriculture, to any in 

 the state. It is watered by numerous 

 streams of pure water, which arise in the 

 higher lands of Wheelock, Walden and 

 Cabot. Joe's pond lies mostly in the 

 western part of the township and covers 

 about 1000 acres. It discharges its wa- 

 ters into the Passumpsic by Merritt's 

 river, or Joe's brook. At its outlet a 

 large never failing sheet of water falls 

 over a limestone ledge, 75 feet in 12 rods. 

 Here are grist, saw, clapboard and shin- 

 gle mills. Below these, on this stream, 

 are here, two woollen factories, two grist 

 mills, and several saw mills. In the 



north part of the town are Sleeper's river 

 and the Branch, on which are 5 grist and 

 saw mills. Large quantities of butter, 

 pork and wool, are here produced for 

 market. Danville village is very pleas- 

 antly situated nearly in the centre of the 

 township, on elevated land and in the 

 midst of a beautiful farmino- country, and 

 contains 600 inhabitants. The public 

 buildings arc, a Congregational, a Metho- 

 dist and a Baptist meeting house, a court 

 house and jail, and an academy, all in a 

 neat and modest style. The village enclo- 

 ses an open square of several acres. The 

 academy was incorporated in 1840, and 

 named Philips academy, in honor of Paul 

 D. Philips, who endowed it with $4,000. 

 The building was erected by the inhabit- 

 ants and cost $4,000. A weekly paper, 

 called the ^^ J\'orth Star," has been pub- 

 lished in this village by Ebenezer Eaton 

 for 35 years. Stutislics of 1840. — Horses 

 722 ; cattle,3,403 ; sheep, 14.982 ; swine 

 2,264; wheat, bn. 6,355; barley, 1,304 

 oats, 41,198; rye, 27 ; Ind. corn, 5,883 

 potatoes, 160,062; luly, tons, 8,311 ; sugar, 

 lbs. 62,467; wool, 26,834. Pop. 2633. 



Deerfikli) River, rises in the north 

 part of Stratton, and runs south through 

 Somerset into Searsburgh, thence south- 

 east into Wilmington, thence southwes- 

 terly through the corner of Whitingham, 

 and leaves the state after running three 

 or four miles on the line between Whi- 

 tingham and Readsborough. After en- 

 tering Massachusetts, it takes a southeas- 

 terly course and falls into Connecticut 

 river, between Greenfield and Deerfield, 

 about 18 miles below the south line of 

 Vermont. It runs about 28 miles in Ver- 

 mont, and waters about 320 square miles^.- 

 Its whole length is about 50 miles 



Derby, a post town in the northeast 

 part of Orleans county, is in lat. 44" 58' 

 and long. 4" 50', and is bounded north by 

 Stanstead, in Canada, east by Holland^ 

 south by Salem, and west by Memphre- 

 magog lake which separates it from New- 

 port. It extends 7.| miles on Canada 

 line, and 5 miles and 7 chains on Holland 

 line, and is 52 miles northeasterly from 

 Montpelier. It was chartered to Timo- 

 thy Andrus and his associates, Oct. 29, 

 1779, containing 23,040 acres. The first 

 settlement was made here in 179.5, by 

 Alexander Mogoon, Henry Burrel, and 

 the Hon. Timothy Hinman. Much praise 

 is due to the latter for his persevering in- 

 dustry in making roads and furnishing 

 other facilities for the settlement of the 

 country, but no peculiar circumstances 

 are known to have attended it. Emi- 

 grants from Connecticut and other places 

 soon made it a flourishinor town. It was 



