AN INFORMAL HISTORY OF WATERFORD, VERMONT by the Bicentennial historical Committee reformed of late as the Waterford History Group
A TABLE OF CONTENTS ( as of July 10, 1976 ) I. Old-Fashoned Housekeeping... Ella Duse II. The Waterford Memorial Library... Florence Fleming III. First Town Officers of Waterford, Vermont... Helen M. Knight IV. The Post Offices of Waterford... Dorothy P. Morrison V. Early Town Government... Eugenia Powers VI. "Grave" News... Mary Young VII. Some Waterford Historic Sites-(Map and List)... Betty Waters
from "An Informal History of Waterford, Vt; History of Newbury, Vt; and [footnoted] sources. Richard 1 Silvester came to New England from Northover, Somerset County, England with the Winthrop Fleet with a group under Rev. John White, sailing from Devon on May 30, 1630. He had an allotment of land at Dorchester and applied for the status of freeman Oct. 19, 1630 [POM]; became a freeman April 1, 1634 [InfHistWfd]. In 1636 he exchanged his Dorchester holdings for an allotment in Weymouth where he was fined and disfranchised March 13, 1638/9 for joining in an attempt to organize a church which was not authorized by the authorities [POM] He held the view that all baptized persons should be admitted to communion without further trial; at Quarter Court held in Boston March 5, 1638, he was fined 12 shillings for selling "strong water"; and on June 4, 1639 he was fined 10 "for speaking against the law about hogs, and against a 'perticular magistrate'" [Hist.Scituate]. He sold his house and lot on Sept. 23, 1640 and removed to Marshfield, where he bacame a town officer [POM] and appointed to enforce the regulation about hogs there [Hist.Scituate]. He m. Scituate 1663 Naomi Torrey [Hist.Nby]. Richard 1 died in 1663 and his wife, Naomi, became executrix [InfHistWfd]. His will, probated Sept. 24, 1663 bequethed to wife, Naomi; sons, John, Joseph, Israel, Richard, and Benjamin; and daughters, Lydia, Dianah, Elizabeth, Naomi, and Hester [POM]. Naomi's estate was probated Nov. 26, 1666 [POM]. Children, all but Peter 2 survived them [POM]: i. Lydia, 2 b. Dec. 8, 1633; m. Scituate Sept. 4, 1652 Nathaniel Rawlings [POM]. He d. 1662 [InfHistWfd]. ii. John, 2 b. March 14, 1634. iii. Peter, 2 b. ab. 1636 [InfHistWfd]; bur. Aug. 30, 1642. iv. Richard, 2 b. ab. 1639 [InfHistWfd][fath.will].
v. Joseph, 2 b. Apr. 12, 1642. vi. Elizabeth, 2 b. Jan. 23, 1643; m. Scituate Jan. 24, 1658 John Lowell. vii. Dinah, 2 [fath.will]. viii. Naomi, 2 c. Apr. 14, 1650. ix. Israel, [fath.will] b. ab. 1651 [Hist.Nby (written ab. 1900 by A. H. Silvester of Worcester, Mass.)] x. Hester, 2 c. March 26, 1654. xi. Benjamin, 2 c. May 17, 1657. In 1642 Richard 1 's six year old son Peter 2 was left at home with an older and younger brother while his parents went to church. The older boy was outside, and Peter 2 "seeing his father's fowling piece, took it and laid it on a stool, as he had seen his father do, put up the cock, and put down the hammer. He then blew into the mouthpiece on the other end, as he had also seen his father do. With that stirring, the piece being charged, went off" and killed him. Upon Richard 1 's return home the three year old younger brother showed his father how it happened. In 1650 Richard 1 sold his farm in Weymouth and his, and several other families, removed to the freerer colony of Plymouth at Scituate. Here he bacame Surveyor of Highways on June 6, 1654 and Constable on June 8, 1655. Richard 1 'continued to be plagued with difficulties. March 1660 his daughter Dinah 2, then age 19, was brought before the court of Plymouth. She was charged with accusing the wife of William Holmes of witchcraft. The court caused Dinah 2 to retract and apologize, thus averting a situation such as existed in Salem 30 years later. Richard 1 and his wife, Naomi, had apparently been caring for cattle and other property for their daughter, Lydia 2 after her first husband died in 1662. Lydia 2 and her second husband took court
action against Naomi after Richard 1 died in 1663, asking 50 damages, "for unjustly detaining of cattle and other goods delivered to said Richard 1 and Naomi afor the behoof of their daughter Lydia 2 ". Abuse of their mother so incensed Naomi's children Dinah 2, Naomi 2, and John 2 that on Oct. 31, 1666 they were tried for rescuing her from the hands of William Ford, Constable. He was awarded 40 shillings; no mention was made of a resolution to the family quarrel. Israel 2 had 11 children, of whom Peter 3, b. Scituate Apr. 15, 1687; m. 1712 Marie Torrey lived in Scituate some years after his 1712 m.; purchased land in Leicester around 1730/35 [Hist.Nby], becoming selectman in 1737 [InfHistWfd]; and d. there early in 1745 [Hist.Nby]. had 7 children, of whom Levi 4 b. Jan. 12, 1723 m. Dec. 5, 1745 Ruth Merritt; they rem. from Leicester, Mass. to Newbury, Vt. as settlers; he was appointed Field Driver there in 1764, his duty being "to impound all animals running at large on the public roads of on common lands without consent of owners. He received one shilling each for cattle and horses, and three-pence for each sheep or swing, to be paid by their owners before being taken from custody". He was elected Surveyor of Highways in 1765 and served in local service in the Revolution as a scout under Capt. Jacob Hall in 1781. Sometime before 1800 he built a house on Kent's Meadow. When and where he d. is unk. His sister, Hannah, 4 b. Scituate Apr. 2, 1716 m. June 19, 1740 Samuel Tucker of Spencer, Mass. They res. Scituate; but, rem. to Spencer about 1752 and their son, Samuel, b. Leicester Jan. 8, 1749; rem. Newbury, Vt. ab. 1787 and d. there June 10, 1813 [Hist.Nby.p714]. Of Levi 4 's children,
i. Levi, 5 served in the Revolution about a year in Bedel's N. H. regiment. During the last years of the war, he acted as a messenger between the disaffected in Coos and the British in Canada. He was one of the party that captured American Col. Thomas Johnson and attempted to capture Gen. Jacob Bayley; but, was a man of good standing in Newbury long after the war. Nothing is known locally of his family; but was believed by the late (as of 1902) Dea. Swasey to have rem. to New York state. ii. Ruth[p705]/Lucy[p576,quoting her 1837 widow's pension application], 5 b. 1751 m. 1st Feb. 22, 1772 Thomas Hibbard of Newbury (b. England; d. Cambridge, N. Y. July 1, 1800); she m. 2nd Jan. 10, 1801 Mark Sanborn of Haverhill[p705]/Bath[p576] who d. July 26, 1821. iii. a daughter, 5 who m. a Bayley. iv. Peter, 5 rem. from Newbury to Barnet, Vt.; took the freeman's oath there Jan. 29, 1785; became a lister; and married Abigail, dau. [InfHistWfd] or adopted dau. of Barnet's first Town Clerk & Constable, Stevens Rider (no record of her there, nor is she listed in his will). Stevens Rider was a 7th generation descendant of several Mayflower passengers [GSMDapprovedLines]. Peter 5 and his family rem. to Waterford where he was elected Selectman when the town was organized in 1792. He d. in 1816 [HistNby says 1810] no gs or dr found in either town.
6a. According to the 1902 History of Newbury, most of his children settled in the vicinity of Waterford, Vt "where many descendants remain". No dr or gs is to be found for either Peter, 5 or his wife, in Barnet or Waterford. Abigail was an adopted daughter of Stevens 7 Rider, first Town Clerk and Constable of neighboring Barnet, Vt.; he was a 7th generation descendant of several Mayflower passengers. Peter 5 and Abigail had the following children: i. Abigail, 6 b.ab. 1788; d. March 19, 1866 [gs]; m. Dr. John Keach (b.ab. 1787; d. March 5, 1874 [gs]); both bur. on the Smith lot in the Passumpsic Cem. ii. Peter, 6 b. April 23, 1791 [bc]; settled in Waterford; m. Dec. 30, 1813 Pasha/Patience Goodell (b. Oct. 17, 1796). iii. Betsey, 6 b. July 15, 1792 [bc]; m. ab. 1813 Moody Beard (b. Newbury) son of John & Ruth (Bedel) Beard. iv. Levi, 6 b. Jan. 23, 1794 [bc]; d. Barnet Nov. 29, 1870; m.1st June 25, 1817 Anna Maxwell (b.ab. 1795; d. Aug. 31, 1826) daughter of William & Margaret (Bryant) Maxwell of Barnet. Levi m.2nd Tryphosa Harvey (b. April 16, 1806; d. Oct. 23, 1856), they filed marriage intentions Dec. 3, 1826. All three buried in West Waterford Cem. Seven children: 1. Ann M., 7 b.ab. 1824; d. Feb 23 1854; she had m. a Mr. Farnsworth; buried with her parents in West Waterford Cem. 2. Charles A., 7 b. Waterford Aug. 21, 1828; res. St. Johnsbury and was in the meat and grocery business there 1871-95. 3. Willard, 7 b.ab. March 1817; d. Sept. 1829; buried with parents in West Waterford Cem.
6b. v. Polly, 6 b. Jan. 23, 1796; m. Ephraim Harrington. vi. Anna, 6 b. Oct. 17, 1797; m. Barnet Jan. 17, 1822 Moses Strew. vii. Abner, 6 b. Oct. 21, 1799; settled in Coventry, Vt.; m. Thirza Park. viii. Ruth, 6 ix. John, 6 m. Andrew Martin/Masters. settled in Albany, Vt.; m. Abigail Bugbee. x. Lydia, 6 History of Newbury, p.705 gives her husband's name as "Hibbard Quimby"; with no further information. In the West Waterford Cemetery are found: "Mrs. LYDIA / wife of / Hubbard Quimby / died Aug. 6, / 1839 / AE 32 yrs" => b.ab. 1807; to it's left, "Chloe Amanda, dau. / of Hubbard & / Lydia Quimby / died Nov. 23, / 1839 / AE. 5 yrs." => b.ab. 1834; and to Lydia's right, a bush-covered rotted stump with a bit of soapstone sticking out - whether part of a headstone or a footstone to the next row, is unknown. The only Hubbard Quimby on whom we have definate knowledge, was the son of Daniel & Margaret (Hubbard) Quimby (b.ab.1792[gs]) m. May 4, 1819 Mehitable Haseltine (b.ab.1802[gs]) by Silas Davison [BVRmc(7:286)]. Both lived into the 1870s and are buried together in the Pleasant View Cem., Barnet [gs(pv:126)]. Hubbard Quimby: BVRgr(PV:126): "d. Jan 04 1874 AE 81" => b.ab. 1792. Mehitable Quimby: BVRdc(1:58): "b. Barnet; d. Barnet July 29 1870 AE 76y 2m 8d" => b.ab. May 21 1794 vs. May 17 1800 on her BVRbc(9:484). BVRgr(PV:126): "d. July 28 1870 AE 70" => b.ab. 1800.