Bell, William D., Weybridge, was born in Weybridge, Vt., on October 2, 1808, and was the only son of Dennis and Huldah (Nash) Bell. Dennis was born in Connecticut, and came with his father, Solomon Bell, to Weybridge before the beginning of this century. They built the first dam across Otter Creek, at the Middlebury lower falls. They originally owned the water privilege, and built a saw-mill and conducted a cloth-dressing establishment for many years. Dennis Bell was married in 1801 to Huldah Nash, of New Haven. Just before his marriage he built a house which is still standing, and which was occupied by him during his life. He had a family of four children born to him, three daughters and one son, who is now the only living one in the family. He was a successful business man and esteemed by every one who knew him. He died in 1812 in the forty-fourth year of his age. William D. received his education in the public schools of Weybridge, and at the academy at Middlebury, Vt. He was brought up to farming, and assisted his mother in the care of her family. He was married on January 1, 1839, to Rosamond A. Johnson, who was a daughter of Samuel Johnson, a former and well-known resident of Salisbury; Vt. After his marriage he settled on the place which he still occupies, and which was originally built by his brother-in-law, ” Bill Thayer.” They have had a family of six children born to them — Julia, Charles N. (who is a lawyer and resident of St. Paul, Minn.), Nellie E., Frank C. (who is a land agent and farmer at Valley Spring, Dak.), William W. (now engaged in ranching at Dakota), and Edward J. (now a contractor in St. Paul, Minn.).
