Part III. 



GAZETTEER OF VERMONT. 



137 



PEACHAM. 



PEACUAM. 



1776, that an army might be sent through 

 for the reduction of Canada. But this 

 was only a feint for dividing the enemy 

 and preventing their sending their whole 

 force up the lakes. Hazen cut, cleared 

 and made a passable road for 50 miles 

 above Peachain, through the towns of 

 Cabot, Walden, Hard wick, Greensbor- 

 ough, Craftsbury, Albany and Lowell, 

 and erected several block-houses. This 

 road was a great benefit to the settlers of 

 this country after the war, and, in many 

 places, it is still called the " i/«rc/i Road." 

 The present road from Peacham to Low- 

 ell, occupies the same ground over wiiich 

 the Hazen road passed. Hazen marched 

 to the south in the fall, abandoning all 

 the block-houses, except the one 12 miles 

 above Peacham, and committing this to 

 the care of a sergeant's guard. In tlie 

 spring of 1780, Capt. Aldrich came to 

 Peacham and built a small picket around 

 the house of Jamep Bailey, and the block- 

 house above was abandoned. In the fall 

 Aldrich marched his nren to the soutli, 

 leaving the inhabitants to look out for 

 themselves. Col. Thomas .Johnson, of 

 Newbury, who had engaged to erect mills 

 in Peacham, arrived at Jonathan Elkins' 

 witli the mill stones, on the evening of 

 the 7th of March, 1781. About one o'- 

 clock next morning a party of the enemy 

 from Canada came upon thmn, and made 

 prisoners of Col. Johnson, Jacob Page, 

 and Col. Jonaliian Elkins, of Peacham, 

 who was then a youth. They were all 

 carried to St. Johns. Col. Johnson re- 

 turned on parole, Mr. Page was sent to 

 Montreal, and Col. Elkins to Quebec, and 

 the two latter imprisoned. In the fall, 

 wlien the British fleet sailed from Quebec, 

 Col. Elkins was sent a prisoner to Eng- 

 land with about 150 more who were dis- 

 tributed througliout the fleet and obliged 

 to do duty. When the fleet arrived at 

 Plymouth, England, the prisoners were 

 confined in Mill prison, where they re- 

 mained until they were exchanged for 

 Cornwallis' troops, in 1782, when Col. 

 Elkins returned again to Peacham. Ca])t. 

 Nehemiah Lovewell was stationed with 

 his company in Peacham during the sum- 

 mer of 1781. In September, he sent a 

 scout of four men up the Hazen road, 

 who were ambushed and fired upon by the 

 Indians. Two were killed and scalped, 

 and the other two taken, and on the tenth 

 day, after they left Peacham, the}' were 

 prisoners in Quebec with Col. Elkins. 

 There were no soldiers kept at Peacham 

 in 1782, and two Messrs. Baileys of this 

 town were carried prisoners to Canada. 

 Peacham was organized March 18, 1783^ 

 and James Bailey was first town clerk. 

 Ft. hi. 18 



The greater part of the people of this 

 town are Congregationalists. A Congre- 

 gational church was organized here April 

 14, 1794, consisting of 12 members. Oc- 

 tober 30, 1799, they settled the Rev. 

 Leonard Worcester for their pastor, and 

 he has continued his connection with the 

 church ever since, though, on account of 

 age and infirmity, ho has ceased to preach. 

 At the time of Mr. Worcester's ordination 

 the church consisted of 40 members. The 

 most remarkable revival, which has taken 

 place, was in 1617 and '18, in conse- 

 quence of which there was an addition to 

 the church of 225 members. The whole 

 number admitted since its organization is 

 611, and the present number 266. From 

 a bill of mortality kept by Mr. Worcester, 

 it appears that the whole number of deaths 

 in this town, from the 30th of October, 

 1799, to September, 1824, was 406- The ' 

 greatest number in any year was 59, and 

 the least 6. Mrs. Hunt, the oldest person 

 who has died in this town, was aged 96. 

 Caledonia county grammar school was 

 established here by act of the legislature, 

 October 27, 1795. The building was 

 erected, and the school commenced in 

 August, 1300. The institution is under 

 the direction of nine trustees. Tiie school 

 has been prosperous. The average num- 

 ber of scholars from 30 to 40. Onion 

 river pond, so called from its giving rise 

 to one of the principal branches of Onion 

 or Winooski river, lies in the western part 

 of the town, and covers aljout 300 acres. 

 There are seviTal other small ponds, 

 which are not worthy of particular notice. 

 There are two con'jideraljle streams pass- 

 ing off" to the east into Steven's branch, 

 which aflibrd numerous mill privileges. 

 A ridge of land passes through the west- 

 ern part, but there is no very considera- 

 ble elevation in this town. The western 

 part is a hard soil, hut the eastern is rich 

 and pleasantly diversified witli hills and 

 vallies, being inhabited by a great num- 

 ber of respectable and wealthy farmers. 

 There is, in the eastern part of the town, 

 a natural bog meadow, containing an in- 

 exhaustible quantity of shell marl, from 

 which lime has been manufactured to 

 considerable extent. The color of the 

 marl is a bluish white. There is also a 

 plenty of limestone, from which lime is 

 made. One of the most remarkable oc- 

 currences in this town, was the loss of a 

 man's great toe, by frost, in the month of 

 June. Mr. Walker, the gentleman who 

 sustained the loss, was 84 years old, and 

 was frozen, in consequence of being lost 

 in the woods, and lying out through the 

 night of the 8th of June, 1816. There is 

 a small village, situated on aii elevated 



