Part III. 



GAZETTEER OF VERMONT. 



159 



6ANDGATE. 



SAXTON's RIV£R. — SEARSBURGH. 



SHAFTSBURY. 



Saltash. — Name altered to Plymouth, 

 February 23, 1797. See Plymouth. 



Sandgate, a post town in the western 

 part of Bennington county, is in lat. 43° 

 10' and long. 3° 54', and is bounded north 

 by Rupert, east by Manchester, south by 

 Arlington, and west by Salem, N. Y, It 

 lies 20 miles north from Bennington, 31 

 southwest fromRutland,andwas chartered 

 Aug. 18, 17G1. The settlement was com- 

 menced in 1771 by a Mr. Bristol. The reli- 

 gious denominations are Congregational- 

 ists and Methodists. The su^rface of this 

 townsliip is very broken and mountain- 

 ous. Tlie most considerable elevations 

 are Shettarack and Bald Mountain in the 

 northwest corner. Spruce and a part of 

 Equinox mountain in the northeastern 

 part. Red mountain in the southeast part 

 and Swearing hill in the southwest part. 

 The streams are all small, consisting of 

 several branches of the Battenkill, and of 

 White creek, and the mill privileges are 

 few. The town is divided into 9 school 

 districts, and contains 1 store, 1 grist, 1 

 fulling and 3 saw mills, and 1 woollen 

 factory . Statistics of 1840. — Horses, 1G9 ; 

 cattle, S35; sheep, 8,437; swine, 593; 

 wheat, bus. 612; oats, 8,'i25 ; rye, 3,138; 

 buck-wheat, 1,387; Indian corn, 3,427; 

 potatoes, 23,278 ; hay, tons, 3,14.5; sugar, 

 lbs. 5,725 ; wool, 17,020. Population, 

 777. 



Saxton's River, is formed in Grafton 

 by the union of several streams from 

 Windham, and running an easterly course 

 about ten miles tiirough the south part of 

 Rockingham, falls into Connecticut river 

 in the northeast corner of Westminster, 

 about one mile below Bellow's Falls. It 

 derives its name from a Mr. Saxton, who 

 unluckily fell into it while crossing it on 

 a log, for the purpose of surveying the line 

 between Rockingham and VVestminster, 

 but was not drowned, as stated in our 

 former edition. 



Searsburgh, a post town in the east- 

 ern part of Bennington county, is in lat. 

 42^" 45' and long. 4° 6', and is bounded 

 north by Somerset, east by Wilmington, 

 south by Readsborough, and west by 

 Woodford. It lies 11 miles east from 

 Bennington and 17 west from Brattlebo- 

 rough. It was granted and chartered to 

 William Williams and others, Feb. 23, 

 1781, containing 10,240 acres. Deerfield 

 river enters this township from Somer- 

 set, and, after passing across the north 

 east corner, crosses the east line into 

 Wilmington. It lies mostly upon the 

 Green Mountains, and the greatest part 

 of it is incapable of being settled. Hay- 

 stack mountain lies partly in the north- 

 east corner. Statistics of 1840, — Horses, 



19; cattle, 98; sheep, 77; swine, 27; 

 wheat, bus. 8 ; oats, 390 ; rye, 24 ; buck- 

 wheat, 70 ; potatoes, 2,240 ; hay, tons, 

 J 58; sugar, lbs. 5,640; wool, 234. Popu- 

 lation, 120. 



Seymour Lake. Sec Morgan. 



Shaftsbury, a post town in the wes- 

 tern part of Bennington county, is in lat. 

 42'' 58' and long. 3*^ 54', and i.s bounded 

 north by Arlington, east by Glastenbury, 

 south by Bennington, and west by Cam- 

 bridge, N. Y. It lies 97 miles southwest- 

 erly from Montpelier. It was chartered 

 Aug. 20, 1761, containing by charter 23,- 

 040 acres. The settlement of this town 

 was commenced about the year 1763. 

 Among the early settlers may be men- 

 tioned Messrs. Cole, Willoughby, Clark, 

 Doolittle, Waldo, and several families of 

 Mattisons. The Hon. Jonas Galusha, 

 late Governor of Vermont, came into this 

 town in the spring of 1775. During the 

 revolutionary war he was made captain 

 of one of the two companies of militia in 

 this township, and the other was com- 

 manded by Captain Amos Huntington. 

 Capt. Huntington was taken prisoner at 

 the battle of Hubbardton, and sent to Can- 

 ada, after which the two companies were 

 united under the command of Capt. Galu- 

 sha, who fought at their head in Benning- 

 ton battle. The town was organized 

 some time before the revolution, and 

 Thomas Mattison was first town clerk, 

 which office he held more than 40 years. 

 The Baptists are the most numerous reli- 

 gious denomination, and they have two 

 societies. The town gives name to the 

 Baptist association in this section of the 

 state, it being called the " Shaftsbury as- 

 sociation," and is one of the first formed 

 in the state. The Rev. Caleb Blood was 

 for many years a zealous and successful 

 preacher of the gospel here. He removed 

 to Boston about the year 1807. Rev. Isa- 

 iah Mattison has been settled over one of 

 the Baptist churches more than 40 years, 

 and still continues his faithful labors. 

 Rev. Joseph W. Sawyer is minister of the 

 other church. The Universalists have no 

 settled minister. Dr. Daniel Huntington 

 was for many years the only practising 

 physician. This township lies between 

 the Battenkill and Walloomscoik rivers, 

 and consequently has no large streams. 

 Some tributaries of each of these rivers 

 rise here, which afford several mill privi- 

 leges. West mountain lies partly in this 

 township and partly in Arlington. It ex- 

 tends into SJiaftsbury about 3 miles, and 

 is about 2 miles in width. This moun- 

 tain is timbered with chestnut, oak, ma- 

 ple, birch, &c. The soil is generally of 

 a good quality, and in the southwestern 



