Person:John Slafter (2)

Overview

The Memorial of John Slafter^S1 gives the following vitals about John Slafter:

John, (son of Samuel, John,) b. May 26, 1739; m. 1st, Elizabeth, dau. of Edmund and Mary (Farwell) Hovey of Mansfield, Ct., March 26, 1767; she was b. June 22, 1744, d. Jan. 6, 1811; m. 2d, Priscilla, daughter of Edmund and Ann (Huntington) Hovey, and widow of --- Whitaker, Oct. 5, 1815. She was a half-sister of his former wife, and was b. April 17, 1751; d. May 1, 1847, being a little past ninety-six years of age.

It further states that John Slafter died on 8 Oct 1819, at the age of eighty. The book gives a thorough account of John's life, as a good example of the "type of New-England pioneer, of which the family furnishes many examples."

Detailed Biography from Slafter Memorial^S1

[This whole chapter is entered verbatim from the book.] John Slafter was born on his father's estate, which comprised the south-west angle of Mansfield Four corners. His early education was such as could be afforded by the limited oppotunities of a new and thinly settled country.

Military Service in the "Old French War"

At the age of sixeen, on the breaking out of what is now called the "Old French War," he enlisted as "drummer boy" in a company of Lyman's Regiment, raised and commanded by Capt. Israel Putnam, afterward a Major-General of the Revolutionary Army. He belonged to the party of Bangers under Putnam and the partisan Rogers, which did excellent service in the campaign undertaken for the reduction of Crown Point in 1755. Discharged with the Provincial troops in the autumn, he returned to Connecticut, but the next year enlisted again in the 1st Regiment, 6th Company, Connecticut Volunteers, commanded by Capt. Aaron Hitchcock. He continued in the service, enlisting from year to year, and was at last present at the capitulation of the French at Montreal, Sept. 8, 1760. Three English armies, moving from different points, and from great distances, had most fortunately been able to reach the city at the same time, agreeably to the plan of the commander. Arriving on the 6th of September, on the morning of the 7th, preparations were going forward for a regular investment of the city. The Marquis Vaudreuil, the Governor of Canada, finding himself encompassed by powerful armies, immediately offered a capitulation. While several communications were passing between the commands, and doubt brooded over the issue, the most intense excitement pervaded the investing army. General Amherst was on the field, and the subject of this notice used to relate that he was so near to him, that he could observe the play of his features, as he gazed upon his watch, and waiting the moment after which, if his terms were not complied with, active operations would immediately commence. And when at length the signal was given that the French had surrendered, such a shout went up from the whole army, reiterated and prolonged, as made the welkin ring again. This was indeed one of the grandest events that had taken place on the Western Continent. An empire was on that day trasferred from the French to the English nation.

Settlement of Norwich

The town of Norwich (now of Vermont) was chartered by Benning Wentworth, governor of New Hampshire, July 4, 1761. Samuel Slafter, the father of John, being an original proprietor, and being at the first meeting chosen Treasurer of the Corporation, took a deep interest in the settlement of the town. At his suggestion his son John made a journey through the forest of New Hampshire, in 1762, to examine the territory, and report upon the advantages it might offer as a place of settlement. He found it pleasantly situated on the western banks of the Connecticut, with a good soil, but for the most part of an uneven, hilly surface. He reported it well watered, not only by the Connecticut, but by several small, sweet, clear streams, and by one more important one, called the Ompompanoosuc, an Indian name, signifying "the place of very white stones," whose waters emptied themselves into the Connecticut at the north-eastern part of the town. As he was inclined to engage in the settlement of the new town, the next year (June 7, 1763,) his father transferred to him, as a "token of his affection," all his rights "as proprietor of Norwich." He immediately set out for the new scene of his labors, in company with Mr. Jacob Fenton, his maternal uncle, and Mr. Ebenezer Smith, both of them original proprietors. They took with them a horse, and such implements as were indispensable in beginning a settlement. On arriving at their new possessions, they found themselves alone in an unbroken forest, where the echo of the woodman's axe had perhaps never yet been heard. He first commenced to fell the trees on the river lot, No. 17, which had been assigned to his father's right in the division of the proprietors, which was a mile and a quarter north from the southern boundary of the town. This lot, unlike most others, proved to be a high rocky elevation, reaching to the very shore of the river, difficult of cultivation, unsuitable as a homestead, and was immediately abandoned. A permanent settlement was fixed upon further up the river, opposite the farm of Mr. Timothy Smith, in Hanover, about four miles north of the present seat of Dartmouth College, and where the well-known "rope ferry" was for many years maintained. Here the first "clearing" was commenced, and the first human habitation in the town was constructed. The summer was passed in felling the forest, in burning the wood, and preparing the soil for future culture. In the autumn, when the cold season approached, and nothing more could be accomplished, he returned to his home in Connecticut, and this was repeated four summers, until he married and brought his young wife to his forest home.

An incident occurred during the first summer, worthy of record in itself, and important also as fixing the date of the first settlement of the town. On Wednesday, the 13th of July, Messrs. Slafter, Fenton and Smith left their homes to lend their services for a few days to some friends, who were making a setlement at Lebanon, six or eight miles below. Recent rains had swollen the Conecticut, and Mr. Fenton's horse, in crossing, was compelled to swim for a short distnce in the deepest part of the river, which was near the shore to which he was approaching. The horse was carried down the current, and passed under the trunk of a tree, which had fallen in the river, the roots still clinging to the shore. In passing under the trunk of the tree, while leaning forward to avoid being carried from his seat, his horse, rising at the instant, forced him with great violence upon the pommel of the saddle, causing a serious injury of the chest. It was soon found necessary for Mr. Fenton to return, and Mr. Smith and a young Mr. Hovey, who had joined them, accompanied him to his camp in Norwich. They remained with him, doing what they could for him, but the injury proved so serious that he died on Friday of the same week. On Saturday the two young men proceeded down the river on the Vermont side, and endeavored by hallooing, and discharging their muskets, to attract the attention of their friends at Lebanon, and thus communicate with Mr. Slafter, but in this they were unsuccessful. However, on their regaining the camp before night fall, they found that Mr. Slafter had already returned, and been apprised of the sad and unexpected event of his uncle's death. On Sunday morning, assisted by his companions, he proceeded to make preparations for the burial. They peeled the bark from a bass-wood of suitable size, and, with reverent hands and sorrowing hearts, placed their companion within its pure white inner surface, closing it up and mkaing it fast with thongs twisted from the tough bark of the young elm. On the bank of the Connecticut, near to its quiet waters, they placed him in the clean earth to await the resurrection day. A monument of stone was erected, and an inscription placed upon it by Mr. Slafter. This monument remained in its place about eighty years. At length it became broken and somewhat defaced. A portion of it is, however, still preserved, and is now in the posession of one of the grand-children of Mr. Slafter. The date of 1763 is so far preserved as to be clearly identified. The 1 is complete; the upper part of the 7 is gone, so is likewise the perpendicular part of the 6, but the 3 is distinct as when first chiseled upon the stone. This monument still bears testimony to the year in which this death occurred. But if this evidence were wanting, there is yet another record made at the time, which establishes the date of this ocurrence beyond the possibility of doubt. In the book of records of births and deaths in the town of Mansfield, Connecticut, is the following entry:

Mr. Jacob Fenton of Mansfield departed this life at Norwich in New Hampshre on ye 15th day of July, A.D. 1763.

The grantees of original proprietors held meetings from time to time, for some years after the incorporation of the town, to make such arrangement as the early settlement of the town, and division of their lands, required. These meetings were entirely distinct from the meetings of the "Town," and their doings were made the subject of a separate record, and are still preserved. At one of these meetings "of the Proprietors of the town of Norwich," held on the 17th day of September, 1770, the following vote was passed:

Voted, that Mr. John Slafter shall have the privilege of pitching seven rights in the lower meadow, on the Ompompanoosuc River; and also Capt. Hezekiah Johnson to pitch six rights in the lower meadow on said river; and Mr. Peter Thatcher to pitch one right and one-half in said meadow; and Mr. Daniel Waterman to pitch four rights in said meadow, on said river; and Mr. James Huntington to pitch one right in said meadow, as a consideration for first coming into the town, and for the burden of first settling said town, being proprietors or purchased.

The inscription upon the monument of Jacob Fenton, the date of his death recorded in the town of Mansfied, and the vote of the proprietors, plainly prove, first, that the settlement of the town was commenced in the summer of 1763; and, in the second place, that Mr. John Slafter was regarded, by the proprietors, in 1770, as the first among the first settlers of the town. This subject has been here referred to somewhat at length, as there seems to have been some confusion on this point introduced by the author "Sketches of the Coos Country."

Mr. Ebenezer Smith does not appear to have continued in his efforts at a settlement. Mr. Fenton died the first year, while Mr. Slafter passed the remainder of his life in Norwich, and must therefore be regarded as the pioneer in the settlement of the town.

Early Life in Norwich

He was married in Mansfield, Ct., in the spring of 1767, and a month after departed with his young wife to his home in the New Hampshire grants. A journey from Connecticut, with a family, was at that time an undertaking of no small moment. The distance was a hundred and fifty miles, mostly through the primitive forest, and the road, for fifty miles at least, was scarcely passable, except for footmen and pack-horses. Several families from the same neighborhood were at this time emigrating to the Coos Country, and they accordingly joined together, and "made up a pleasant party." It was decided to "navigate" the Connecticut rather than to encounter the difficulties of an "overland route." Having provided themselves with log canoes, they embarked with their "goods," probably at Windsor, Ct. They left Manfield on Thursday, the 23d of April, and arrived at their home in Norwich on the 10th of May. Against the current of the river, which was very strong at that period of the year, they were not able to make more than eight or nine miles a day. On Saturday evenings they moored their craft in some sheltered spot, where they remained till Monday morning, devoting the day to rest, dversifying its consecrated hours by reading together the Holy Scriptures, and singing sacred psalms.

In several places in the river the rapids, or falls, could not be passed, and they were obliged to unship their goods and carry them and their boats around, and reload before they could pursue their journey. It was, as we may well imagine, a joyful moment when they arrived at their destination, and were at home in their rude habitations. These were the same as had served during the preceding summers. But preparations had already been made, and before the frosts of winter approached, Mr. Slafter had built, on the banks of the Connecticut, a comfortable and subtantial dwelling. As mills for sawing timber had not then been erected within practical distance, the material was fashioned with the axe, without the use of plane or jointer. Small trees, of not more than a foot in diameter, were carefully hewed, halved together at the intersections, and placed upon a foundation, and tier upon tier added, until a suitable height had been attained for receiving the roof. This was formed by placing upon proper rafters, bound together at frequent intervals by ribs or small beams, the thick, impervious bark of the hemlock, or other trees. In this way a covering was made, giving complete protection from the rains of summer and the snows of winter. The floors were formed of plank, hewed and fitted with the axe alone. Their furniture was of the rudest kind. Their tables and chairs were puncheons of basswood, a split log having its faces a little smoothed with an axe, with leg inserted of suitable length. Such was the rude abode of a pioneer. And who shall say, that of a winter's evening, when under an intense cold, the expanding ice was heard opening its wide seams, reverberating far up and down the Connecticut, or when the north wind was raging furiously without, whistling its dreary dirge over the chimney top, and piling the falling snow in high banks about his cottage door, who shall say that as he sat, with his young wife, before his ample fireplace, with its blazing maple and hickory, that he did not enjoy as pure a happiness as, in after years, when in affluence, he occupied a spacious mansion, and saw his numerous herds and flocks, and his barns bursting with the harvest of his many productive acres?

click to enlarge

This house, a drawing of which, by Master Theodore S. Slafter, we have given, was built in the style of the more commodious and extensive houses of that day. Its chimney was an immense structure, in the centre of the house, having three ovens, where the family bread and meats were cooked for the table. About the year 1850 it was modernized by removing the chimney and erecting smaller ones, and by removing the "square roof" an replacing it by the more common "gable." The lofty elm represented in the drawing was planted by Mrs. Elizabeth (Hovey) Slafter, a little before, or soon after the erection of the house. In 1867 this tree measured, at one foot from the ground, 16 feet in circumference; at 6 feet the circumference was 10-1/2 feet; its branches began to spring at 14 feet from the base; the spread of the limbs, as measured on a line drawn through the centre of the trunk, was 80 feet, or 40 feet on each side. It is an unusually fine specimen of the noble elm, which is undisputably the queen of ornamental trees in New England.

Elected Service

The first meeting for the organization of the town was held in Mansfield, Ct. in 1761, and the annual meetings of the town were held there each year until 1768. At the meeting of 1765 he was chosen selectman for civil affairs. To this office he was repeatedly chosen, the last year he held the office being in 1805, just forty year after his first election to it. He was in some office, by the choice of his fellow-townsmen, in each of the first twenty-five years after the organization, with a single exception. On an average he was elected to one office evry year for the period of forty years, and to two offices every other year on an average for the same space of time.

He was entrusted, as one of a committee, by the grantees in 1765, with the duty of allotting and dividing the lands among the proprietors, and laying out highways for the convenience of the settlers, and in 1770 was again appointed to lay out the remaining undivided lands.

When the revolutionary war broke out, new and important responsibilities were laid upon him. He was appointed by the "Council of Safety" at Bennington, to take possession of, and confiscate the property of "tories." He was commissioned also to procure a quantity of snow-shoes, and hold them in readiness for scouting parties, when it should be necessary to send them out. He laid in powder and other amunition, and had provisions stored at his own house "against an alarm." He was one of the Committee of Safety in 1776. In 1782, when a difficulty arose between the inhabitants in the eastern and those in the western part of the state in regard to jurisdiction, he was appointed one of a committee to meet committees of other towns at Thetford, to acsertain whether a union of the territory west of the Connecticut river could be effected wth the state of New Hampshire, and on what terms, and to consult upon measures of defence against the enemy.

He was much employed in the administration of justice. As an arbitrator he was frequently called upon, in connection with one or two other persons, to settle disputes, and by the confidence reposed in his judgment, and his conciliating manners, he usually succeeded in establishing "justice" and "peace" where a civil magistrate would have inevitably failed.

In ecclesiastical affairs he held from the beginning a prominent position. We first find him charged with the duty of levying a tax for the support of the first minister. Soon after the erection of the first "meeting-house," he was appointed (in 1782) on a committee to act, as the agent of the town, in making a settlement with the building committee. And in 1801, when a severance of the pastoral relation of the Rev. Lyman Potter, after a long ministry, became necessary, he was called upon to conduct the delicate negotiation. He became a member of the church at its organization, in 1770, and was early elected a deacon, which office he discharged for many years, only withdrawing from it near the close of his life.

In looking over the records of the town, and of the original proprietors, we find him associated in some responsible way, by the suffrage of his fellow townsmen, with nearly every important measure relating to education, religion, or prudential affairs, for a period of more than forty years.

Pioneer Life in Norwich

In the settlement of the town there were difficulties to encounter which at this distance of time we cannot well appreciate. The early settler had not only to level the forest, and remove the heavy timber frm the soil by burning or otherwise, but he had to do everything with the simplest implements. There was no blacksmith or carpenter to call in for repairs. Even the mill for grinding the "family grist" was at first at Charlestown, a distance of forty miles, and afterwards at Hartland, about half that distance. This journey cost several days of severe labor, in navigating the Connecticut with their log canoes, with several "carrying places" to pass.

The first potatoes raised in Windsor county were the product of "quarter of a bushel" carried by Mr. Slafter on a foot journey from Charlestown to Norwich. After a few years these trials gradually diminished, but others soon took their place. When sheep were introduced they became the prey of wild beasts. To abate this nuisance the state offered a bounty of eight pounds for the destruction of a wolf or panther, and half the amount of that of the young of either of these animals. Mr. Slafter constructed pits for taking the wolf, which proved eminently successful. An excavation was made in the earth with walls inclining inward, and so deep that the animal could not leap from the bottom to the top. It was surrounded by a fence including a small additional space at one end, on which a lamb was secured, the fence being very high at the end where the decoy was fastened. The hungry wolf, frenzied by the scent of his fancied prey, leaping the fence where it was low, fell to the bottom of the pit, and being unable to extricate himself was compelled to await the approach of his captor in the morning. By this and other means of destruction, the farmers of Vermont removed this obstacle to the raising of sheep, for which this state has now become so distinguished.

Life During the Revolutionary War

On the breaking out of the revolutionary war the settlers of the New Hampshire grants were greatly alarmed by the expectation of Indian raids from the north. Memory summoned at once the names of myriads of kindred and neighbors on the frontiers of New England, who in the past had been victims of the scalping knife, or of the more cruel fate of a hopeless captivity. That these barbarities would be again enacted, there could be little doubt. Mr. Slafter did not therefore deem it prudent that his little family should remain, where, under the cover of the forest, the insidious approach of the Indian could not be foreseen, and which was sure to be followed by the most painful, if not fatal results. It was decided therefore that his wife and two children should retire for safety to Connecticut, where both his and her parents were ready to receive them under their hospitable roofs. On the 5th of July, 1776, the day after the declaration of Amercan Independence was read from the window of the old State House in Philadelphia, the three set forth on the lonely and even perilous journey. The distance was a hundred and fifty miles, mostly through the forests, with numerous streams to ford, and temporary, frail and dangerous bridges to pass. Mr. Slafter himself was compelled to stay behind to gather in the harvest; his noble wife was ready to undertake the journey alone for the safety of the dear ones committed to her care. The Mizpah of that morning prayer, "the Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another," as the patriarch stood up and gave his parting blessing to his little family, was tender, earnest and affecting. They were set across the Connecticut in their little canoe, and as carriages were impracticable and unknown to use in the forests of New Hampshire, the sturdy horse was brought up, caparisoned with saddle and pillion, and numerous packages of clothing, utensils and food for the way, strapped here and there as best they could be for poise and safety. Behind, on the pillion, was placed the little girl, eight years of age, and the little boy, not quite four on such a seat as could be arranged in front, and so they set forward on their weary journey. But the two that had been joined as one were not separated, but their hearts were still bound up in each other, her memory reverting to her happy home on the banks of the Connecticut, and he in imagination following her hour by hour through all the stages of that painful journey, and both hearts rejoiced together, and put up the oft repeated thanksgiving to God, that every hour placed their dear ones farther and farther from the threatened danger which they desired to escape. When Mr. Slafter returned to his deserted home, he made this entry: "Norwich, July 5, 1776, Elizabeth, Christiana and Farwell set out for Mansfield, driven off by the fear of Indians." The journey was safely accomplished, and on the 31st of October following she gave birth to a son, the only one of her children not born at her home on the banks of the Connecticut in Norwich.

In 1777, when General Burgoyne made his appearance at Crown Point, the frontiers of Vermont were seriously threatened, and, after the skirmish at Hubbardton, the inhabitants in the western part of the state were left without any protection. The general government had not the means, or was not disposed to offer any assistance. It became a matter of vital importance for the people of the "New Hampshire grants" to raise and support a regiment for their own protection. At this time the state was not fully organized. The civil power was lodged for the time being in the "Council of Safety," appointed by a convention held at Windsor, July 4, 1777. As it was not feasible for the "Council" to levy a tax upon the people generally, the plan was conceived and put into execution by them, of appointing "Commissioners of Sequestration," who seized the goods and chattels of all who had joined the common enemy, and, selling them at public auction, the proceeds were paid to the Treasurer of the Council of Safety, and from a fund thus formed a regiment of Rangers was supported, commanded by Col. Samuel Henrick. In pursuance of these measures Mr. Slafter was charged with the execution of the plan in a district of which the town in which he resided was a part, viz., Norwich, Thetford, Strafford, Hartford, and perhaps one or two other towns. While a consideratble revenue by his agency was thus obtained, he executed this unenviable office with so much prudence and moderation, that he did not gain the permanent ill will even of those who were the victims of this severe but necessary measure. He appears however, on one occasion, to have been in serious danger, though unconscious of it himself at the time. While collecting together the property of one of his "tory" neighbors, the owner was still concealed near the premises, and related afterward, that he levelled his gun at him and was ready to discharge it, but the thought providentially occurred to him, that in case of failure he should sacrifice his own life, as he observed that the Commissioner was himself armed.

The invasion of Vermont by a detachment of Burgoyne's army under Colonel Baum, which resulted in the battle of Bennington on the 16th of August, 1777, created a general alarm throughout the New Hampshire grants. The citizens flocked with patriotic zeal to the standard of Stark and Warner. Mr. Slafter left his fields, ripening for the harvest, and hastened to give every possible aid in his power, and is said to have acted as an Adjutant in Stark's regiment. He returned to his home after this battle, but again joined the army, and was present at the capitulation of Burgoyne on the 17th of October. He was accustomed to relate that in the French war the king's troops often played Yankee Doodle in derision, and that it gave him a peculiar gratification on this occasion to see his Majesty's troops march to the same tune and lay down their arms.

The town of Royalton, Vt., though chartered in 1779, had been settled some time previous to that period, and in 1790 had a thriving population, with well stocked farms and comfortable dwellings. On the 16th of October of that year a "raid" was made upon this little settlement by about three hundred Indians from Canada, commanded by Lieutenant Horton, a British oficer. Their object was plunder, and a malicious distubance of the unoffending inhabitants. Besides killing three of four persons, they burned twenty-one dwellings, sixteen barns filled with the year's harvest, destroyed about a hundred and fifty cattle, with many sheep and swine, and took away with them thirty horses, and twenty-six prisoners of war. They made a complete destruction of all the furniture and provisions which they could not carry away. The inhabitants who remained, being mostly women and children, were consequently left entirely destitute of food and shelter. As soon as the intelligence of this calamity to a neighboring settlement reached him, Mr. Slafter, true to the insticts of his generous nature, set about furnishing immediate relief. The family oven was heated, and the whole night was consumed in baking batch ater batch of bread, and at earliest dawn he packed it, together with cured meats from his cellar, upon his horse, and led him thus loaded through the forests, over hills and valleys, and streams, for a distance of fifteen or twenty miles, and at the termination of his weary march had the satisfaction, as a good Samaritan, of ministering to these unfortunate victims of Anglo-savage cruelty.

Donation to Dartmouth College

Mr. Slafter took a deep and practical interest in the subject of education. On the 13th of Dec., 1769, Dartmouth College was chartered by John Wentworth, Governor of New Hampshire, and its location was fixed at Hanover, only four miles from Mr. Slafter's residence. In addition to generous contributions for the erection of the first buildings, he transferred, on the 13th day of Nov., 1770, a tract of land to the Trustees of the College. After referring to the noble franchises and privileges of the Charter, and the generous donations of the Governor, he says, "In consideration of the extensive charity of the design, and in addition to said fund, I, John Slafter of Norwich, in the province of New York, have given, and granted, and by these presents do absolutely give, grant, consign, and confirm to the Trustees of said Dartmouth College, and to their successors in that trust, for the use and benefit of said College, one half of the hundred acre lot drawn to the original of Samuel Slafter, in the 2nd Division of the hundred acres in said Norwich, it being the 16th east of the four mile and a half highway, to have and to hold." This gift to the College must have comprised one-tenth of his landed estate.

Last Years

In private charity he was never found wanting. From his ample stock of provisions the destitute were not sent away unsupplied. The widow and the orphan found in him a sympathizing friend. In business his word was as sacred as his bond. In private and public duties he was prompt and efficient. And while he contributed largely to the happiness of others, Providence conferred upon him that most desirable of gifts, a serene, sunny old age. He was executor of his own will, and had the luxury of seeing his children and grandchildren in the rational enjoyment of his own accumulations. He gave a farm of ample dimensions to each of his four sons, and an equivalent sum of money to his only daughter. Soon after he reached fourscore years his constitution began to yield, and although on the Sunday preceding he was in his place in church, on Friday, the 8th of October, 1819, he passed to the "better land," and on Sunday he was placed in the little cemetery near the mouth of the Ompompanoosuc, and a simple stone marks the place of his rest.

Slafter home in Norwich, built 1786

John Slafter's signature, at 55 years of age

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 Slafter, Rev. Edmund Farwell. Memorial of John Slafter: with a genealogical account of his descendants, including eight generations. (Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States|Boston: Press of Henry W. Dutton & Son, 1869)
   pp. 30-40.

   at number 96. Most of the entries in the Slafter Memorial give only brief vitals, but here the author chose to give a thorough biography, stating "the account of Dea. John Slafter, the first settler of Norwich, Vt., is fuller than any others, but as he presents a fair type of the New England pioneer, of which the family furnishes many examples, the writer trusts to be excused for exceeding in this instance the limits of his general plan."