History of Addison County Vermont Collections – Page 3 of 23

Biography of Wyman Henry Merritt

MERRITT, WYMAN HENRY. – The surname Merritt is derived from the ancient Saxon manor and parish of Meriet, in Somersetshire, England. The family trace their pedigree in direct line back to Eadnoth the Statter, a high officer under Kings Edward, Harold, and William the Conqueror. The line, as taken from a carefully prepared genealogical record, is as follows: 1. Eadnoth the Statter; 2. Harding Fitz Eadnoth; 3. Nicholas Fitz Harding; 4. Henry Fitz Nicholas; 5. Nicholas De Meriet; 6. Hugh De Meriet; 7. Nicholas De Meriet; 8. John De Meriet; 9. Sir John De Meriet; 10. William De Meriet; 11. … Read more

Biography of Winter H. Holley

Holley, Winter H. (deceased), Bristol, was born in Bristol, Vt., June 15, 1798, and died June 10, 1877, after a long, useful, and busy life. He was a son of Colonel Robert and Hannah (Hewitt) Holley. His father was one of the early settlers of Bristol, a distinguished Revolutionary soldier, a prominent man both in the town and county, and the first representative from Bristol to the General Assembly of the State. Winter H. was married October 26, 1820, to Mary Seymour, a daughter of William and Susan (Rubilee) Seymour, of New Haven, Vt. She died March 14, 1886, having … Read more

Biography of William Silas Wright

Wright, William Silas, Waltham, was born in Weybridge, Vt., January 6, 1819. He was the fifth son of Daniel and Bathsheba (Frost) Wright, who settled in New Haven, Vt., in 1820, and at the age of sixteen years took a preparatory course at the Vergennes Classical Institute, and in 1838 entered Middlebury College, where he remained nearly two years, after which he returned to his father’s homestead in New Haven, and except the interval of four years (when he lived in Weybridge) he resided with his parents until the death of his father, and in 1867 removed to Waltham, Vt., … Read more

Biography of William M. Dean

Dean, William M., Monkton, was born in Monkton, Vt., in 1860. He is a general farmer, and was elected lister of the town in 1885. He was married in November, 1884, to Abie M. Palmer, a daughter of James and Lucinda (Martin) Palmer. William M. is a son of Marion and Loretta (Fuller) Dean. She was born in 1835 and Marion H. was born in 1833. They were married in 1854 and have had a family of four children — Ashbel A. (born in 1857), William M. (born in 1860), and Lewis F. (born in 1862). Ashbel A. was a … Read more

Biography of William Allis

William Allis, from Massachusetts, came to Addison in 1785, locating upon the farm now Owned by Edgar, son of the late Nathaniel Allis, who was his last surviving child. The present house was built by Nathaniel in 1831, succeeding the old log house.

Biography of Wilbur S. Holcomb

Holcomb, Wilbur S., Addison, was born in Starksboro, Addison county, Vt., on May 10, 1840. His parents were S. D. and. Cyntha (Husted) Holcomb. S. D. was born in Starksboro, Vt., on June 1, 1807. His father, Solomon Holcomb, was an early settler in Starksboro, Vt., and died there in 1843. S. D. when seventeen years of age settled on the farm which is now the home of his widow and son, where he spent the last of his days. He reared a family of five children to maturity, four of whom are now living. He was a successful farmer … Read more

Biography of Wheeler French

Wheeler French located in Addison in 1833, and his father, Nathaniel, was one of the early settlers in New Haven. George, son of Wheeler, now resides here, one of the ex-representatives of the town in the General Assembly.

Biography of Watson Wallace Ward

WARD, WATSON WALLACE, was born on the 8th of October, 1834, in Waltham, Vt. The first of his ancestors to emigrate to Vermont was his grandfather, Jesse Ward, who was born in Connecticut on the 20th day of July, 1763, and served three years in the Revolutionary War. He married Olive Nye, of Connecticut, in June, 1788, and some time before 1800 settled in the northern part of the town of Waltham, Vt. He was the father of five children – Chester, born on the 15th of January, 1789; Silas, born on March 11, 1791; Olive, born June 11, 1793; … Read more

Biography of Ward B. Hurlburt

Hurlburt, Ward B., Weybridge, was born in Ripton, Vt., November 19, 1842. He was a son of Hiram and Susan (Bullard) Hurlburt. Hiram Hurlburt was born in Woodstock, Vt. In early life he resided in Weybridge, Vt., where he was engaged in conducting a saw-mill ; was also engaged in the same business at Ripton, Vt. He went to California in 1850, where he remained until the time of his death, which occurred in 1861. Ward B. Hurlburt received his education in the public schools at Weybridge, Vt., and also at a select school at Vergennes, Vt. He taught school … Read more

Biography of Tyler Stickney

STICKNEY, TYLER, was born in Shoreham, Addison county, Vt., December 10, 1799. He was descended from William Stickney, who came to this country from England about 1640, from whom has descended a large family of men noted for sterling worth, energetic and persevering character and honorable integrity. His father was Tyler Stickney, who was a practicing physician in the town of Shoreham from 1798 for two or three years. He was one of the sixth generation from William, above named. Tyler Stickney married, March 13, 1828, Lora, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Wright) Treadway. She was born in Shoreham March … Read more

Biography of Simon Zelotes Walker

WALKER, SIMON ZELOTES, was born in Shoreham, Addison county, Vt., November 3. 1796, and was the eldest son of Russell and Anna (Chellis) Walker. Anna Chellis was a daughter of one of the Revolutionary soldiers, who served honorably as a quartermaster from the Battle of Bunker Hill until the end of the struggle. The ancestor of the subject of this sketch has been noticed properly in the preceding sketch of Russell Walker. Simon Zelotes Walker received his education in the common schools of Bridport and Schroon, which was amplified by extended reading and study in later years. While still a … Read more

Biography of Sheldon Smith

SMITH, SHELDON. The second family of permanent settlers in the town of Bridport, Addison county, Vt., was that of Samuel Smith, of New Jersey, who made the long journey from that State in what was termed a “Jersey wagon,” drawn by a yoke of oxen. They came to what is now Whitehall, N. Y., at the head of Lake Champlain, where they disposed of the team, no roads being then opened, and loaded their goods on a bateau and sailed down the lake, probably to some point within the present town of Panton. They subsequently came to Bridport, and Mr. … Read more

Biography of Samuel J. Benedict

Samuel J. Benedict is a son of John Benedict, an early settler in Weybridge, who died in Cornwall in 1873, aged eighty-seven years. S. J. Benedict has been in Addison thirty-four years, thirty-one of which on this place, which he sold to his son-in-law, Frederick P. Owen, in the spring of 1883.

Biography of Russell Walker

WALKER, RUSSELL. The father of the subject of this sketch was also named Russell, and was born on the 9th of April, 1771. His youth was spent among the Shakers at New Lebanon, N. Y., whence he came to Shoreham, Addison county, Vt., in 1794. On the 10th of September, 1795, he was married at his new home, and was engaged in farming on the place which is now owned by Orrin Cooper. In the year 1800 or 1801 he settled in the town of Bridport, Vt., on the farm which is now owned by Selden Walker. In 1806 he … Read more

Biography of Rufus Hazard

The origin of names is various; many are taken from trades or professions; many are mere nicknames. Probably the best are from places where families resided, and where they possessed property. It seems that the Hassards, or Hazards, took theirs from the places in which they first settled in England. The manor of Haroldesore, in the parish of Ingleborne, in the county of Devon, is in old deeds called the manor of Hardiswardshore, otherwise Hardwardshore, otherwise Hasworth, otherwise Hazard, in Lyons, Magna, Britannia, Devonshire. The family of Hassard, Hazard, or Hassart, is of Norman extraction, and is of considerable antiquity. At … Read more

Biography of Rollin C. Goodale

Goodale, Rollin C., Addison, was born in Westport, Essex county, N. Y., on December 18, 1836. He was a son of Jared, jr., and Phebe (Norton) Goodale. Jared Goodale, jr., was a son of Jared Goodale, sr., who was an early settler in the town of Addison, Vt., settling on the Goodale place, which is near Chimney Point. Rollin C. Goodale was educated in the cornmon schools at Westport, N. Y., and was brought up to farming. When fifteen years of age he was thrown on his own resources, with but fifteen cents in his pocket. He went to Pennsylvania … Read more

Biography of Rev. Richard Charles Hand

HAND, REV. RICHARD CHARLES. – Nathan Hand, grandfather of Richard C., was born on Long Island in 1747, married Anna, daughter of Isaac and Hannah Barnes, who was born July 18; 1749. He died May 26, 1811, aged sixty-four; she died July 14, 1812, aged sixty-three. They had nine children – five sons and four daughters – of whom Captain Samuel Hand was the eldest. He was born in East Hampton, Long Island, N. Y., October 13, 1769. He married Eliza Sill March 4, 1801, at Granville, Washington county, N. Y. She was born April 22, 1782, in Lyme, Conn. … Read more

Biography of Ozro Preston Gray

GRAY, OZRO P. Ozro Preston Gray was born in Bridport, Addison County, Vt., on September 18, 1806. Of the ancestors the following is known: His grandfather, Deacon Lamond Gray, was a descendant of Scotch ancestors who in 1612 settled in the North of Ireland, near Londonderry. In 1718 the family of which John Gray was the head, with some forty other families, emigrated through Boston to Worcester, Mass. In 1743 the family settled in Pelham, Mass., where Lamond Gray was born in 1753, the son of Daniel Gray. He was a well-educated man and taught school for a time in … Read more

Biography of Otis P. Lee

Lee, Otis P., Middlebury, was born in the town of Bridport, Addison county, Vt., on November 30, 1832. His parents were Prosper and Sabre (Power) Lee. Prosper Lee was born in Bridport, Addison county, Vt., about 1797, and was a son of Jeremiah Lee, one of the pioneers of the town of Bridport, Vt. Prosper Lee settled on the place now owned by Edward Shackut, where he spent the greater part of his days. He had a family of four children, two of whom are now living — Seraph F. (now Mrs. Robert Hemingway) and Otis P. Prosper Lee was … Read more

Biography of Oren K. Britell

Britell, Oren K., Weybridge, was born in Weybridge, Vt., on January 17, 1836. His parents were Orange and Mary Ann (Brainard) Britell, Orange Britell was born in Vermont in 1800, on the place which was first settled by his grandfather, Claudius Britell. Oren’s paternal grandfather, John Britell, was a native of Connecticut, who had a family of ten children. Three daughters are now living and are all residents of Western States. Orange Britell was a clothier by trade, and conducted that business in Weybridge village. His wife died in 1837. He then married his second wife, Diadama Gage, of Ferrisburgh, … Read more