Connecticut Historical Collections

Bozrah, Monday, JuUj \b, 1799. On Mondn}', July 15ili, the inhabitaiils of ilie b.(iiitlRMn jiait of Lclinmm, and of the towns of Bozrah and Franklin adjuinin;^', cxpeneucrd the niostawiiil and devas- tating storm of wind, attended with iiail and lain, ihiinder and Jigiitning, probably ever known in our county. Ahont live o'clock, 1\ iNl. a dark angiy cloud giadiially arose from tlie south; it conlinneil iucrcasinj;- and ;^athcriiii,r Macknes.s and rapidily of motion as it rose. In about half an iionr after, a clmu! ol a brass or tlame color, seemed to roll ii|i in front (d' it, lik"e a colnnm of snmke, u liich presenily overspread it, growini^ bricfhtcrand appearing more wild anil a^Mlattd. i\\. dus time an (•xieiisi\-e black cloud before nn|M-iceivcd, rose alon^' from the N. W. lo S. W. similar to ihe tirst, and in a litlle time formed a juiiclion willi it, \\\u:i\ they directly shot iheir united summits high in the air, and the whole liemi^jdiere by six o'clock was covered with almost the darkness of night, emitting sharp forked' lighlning, followed wiili heavy thunder. A calm of a few miniucs succeeded, while ihe birds and beasis guided by instinct, fled for rcl'uge, as porlending iome great calamity. Tiic wind with a distinct roar soon began to blow with great violence, and iucieased almost lo a hurricane: when astonishing to behold, liail stones of a jirodigious size, two and thiee inches in diameter, were driven with almost the lorce of grape slidt, iijion every thing in its course ; they were at first scattering, but in a moment I'.ame thicker and larger, until tliey fell in a complete shower of ici', so great as to i)reveni an object Irom being dislinguislied at the distance of two or three lods. Directly, scarce an inch of glass wa.s left in the windows next the storm, and in some instances liie sashes were broken ; shingles were split and beat off the roofs of liouscs and barns, ami vegetation almost wholly laid waste by the fury of the hail ; while the wind oveiturncd irees, unroofed, removed, or destroyed barns and fences. Every thing seemed in confusion and uproai, and men and beasis weie siknt with astonishment. This scene lasted according todii- ferent jndginenls, ten, t'llict-n, ami lu cniy mnuiies, ihom;h mu--l agree that itu- greatest diM'hui:;<-'ol hailfcll in a shoricr iim.'. When llu- h.urcrastd, a shower of ram more iilnmdaut if possible, immcdialely fallowed ; and cullccling, ran Willi vndence, swept the hail into large waves, and ihe nuns iiili) lieajis, ami bme ihem away promiscuously lo the torrents and low ^numds, presiMiimg a most singular and melancholy sight. After an hour had abated, and the sun just setting, broke through the clouds and al- forded a prospect dreary and gloomy beyond deseiiption. Tlie earth seemed almost desolate and a waste. Tlie poor beasis were objects of the lirst attention; the cattle were found alive, though sadly bruised and woiimled, tin' bacd^s of cows were bloody, legs of horses cut and swollen! when the smaller animals sutfered much more: some pigs of four months old, with sheep, were killed, numbers of geese, turkies, &c. e.v- posed, wei-e beat to death : birds are daily found in large numbers, in the fields and gardens, dead and maimed : buildings and fences are seen bruised to such a degree that they will long remain standing proofs of the violence and size of the hail. * * * * ♦ * ♦ The horrors of the scene and the ravages of the storm are truly indescribable. Many of the sulferers can only compare them with their ideas of the day of judgment. The hail stones were so laige as to be taken for the falling of bricks liom the chimney upon the roofs of the houses. After the rain, which must liave washed them, they were carefully examined in dilleient places, and found to measure, some four and a half inches by live and a half in circumference, others six inches, some six inches by nearly seven ; they are generally compared by spectators to the full size of hen's and geese eggs. Banks of hail five or six inches deep remained on the Saturday and Sunday ibllowing, and some measured then three and. a half inches round ; they were generally moie llal than round, with ragged edges. T'lie course of the storm was ehietly froia the S. W. to the N. E. though sometimes the hail came from the south, and ihen again nearly from the west; windows were broken on. COLCHESTER. 303 three sides of liouses. It run much in veins, danxaging only some fields, and totally destroying oliiers adjoining. The hail extended nearly lour miles in wullh, where it was dreadful ; it grew wider in Franklin, which is to the east, and seemed to sjiend itself there, ending in rain beyond that place. It was doubtless the same cloud which passed over Litchfield county, &c. scattering its hail through the State, even to the mouth of the Connecticut River, wliich luiited with the other in the south, took this di- rection, and here spread its most distinguishing horrors. 'Tis considered almost miraculous by the people, that amidst all this distress, the lives of men and beasts have been wonderi'iilly preserved. Only two or three men have been knocked down, and one or two children, one of which, M years old, was so beaten as to be deprived of reason for two days." COLCHESTER. The settlement of Colchester began about 1701. In 1698 the Le- gislature enacted that a new plantation should be made at Jeremy's farm. It was determined that it should be bounded southerly on Lyme, westerly on ]\Iiddletown, and easterly on Norwich and I^eba- non. This was most commonly called the plantation at Twenty-mile river, and was originally within the limits of the county of Hartford. Some of tlie principal planters were the Rev. John Rulkley, Samuel Gilbert, Michael Taintor, Samuel Northam, John Adams, Joseph Pom- eroy, and John Loomis. Colchester is bounded n. by Hebron and Marlborough, w. by Chat- ham, E. by Lebanon, and s. by Ivist Haddam and Salem. Its aver- age length from east to west is about 1) miles, and its breadth about 4, comprising an area of about 43 stjuare miles. The face of the town- ship is generally uneven, being hilly, and in some places somewhat rough and stony. The prevailing soil is a gravelly loam, tolerably strong and fertile. Iron ore of the best quality has been recently found in this town ; the beds apparently are inexhaustible ; the best bed is about one mile N. \v. of the Congregational church. There are three houses of worship, -J for Congregalionalists and one for Baptists. Westchester society is possessed of a fimd suflicieni for the support of the ministry, and also a free grammar school for two thirds of the year. In the first located society, there is a pleasant village of perhaps 40 or 50 houses, having an elevated and healthful situation. The following en- graving shows the Congregational clim-ch and Bacon Academy, situated on the western side of the open green, in the center of the village. The small one story building with a cupola, seen on the left, is the conl'er- ence house, used for holding religious meetings. The school for colored children is seen nortli of the church, under the trees; the hill seen in the distance, is called Bulkley Hill, between which and the village is a deep valley. Bacon Academy is so called from Mr. Pierpont Bacon, its liene- factor and founder. It was established in 18U0, and possesses {jj, 35,000 in funds. Tlie Academy is built of brick, 75 feet by 34, three stories high, spacious and commodious. It is a free school for the inhabitants of the society, and is open for scholars from abroad upon very accom- modating and moderate terms. All the higher branches of an English education are taught, and the institution is accommodated with philosoph- ical apparatus of various kinds. There are usually about !<i00 scholars, 304 COLCHESTER. with four 01" five instructors. This institution has ever been considered one of the most respectable and flourishing academies in the state. It is 20 miles from ]\e\v London, 23 iVom Hartford, 15 from Norwich, and 10 from East Iladdam Landint Bacon Academy and Congrtgatiunal Church, Colchester. John Bulkley, the first minister in this town, was the son of the Rev. Gershom fiulkley. " His mother was the daughter of President Chauncy. He was graduated at Harvard College in 1699, and was ordained December 20, 1703. His death took place in June, 1731. " Mr. Bulkley was very distinguished as a scholar. While a mem- ber of college, he and Mr. Dunnner, who was a member of the same class, were considered as preeminent in genius and talents. The palm was given lo the lalier for (piicknoss, brillianry, and wit; but i\Ir. IJuik- Icy was regarded as his superior in solidity of judgment and strength of argument. He cariied his researches into the various de])artments ol the law, of medicine, and theology. His son, John Bulkley, who was also eminent for his learning, possessed a high reputation as a physician and lawyer, and when very young was appointed a judge of the supe- rior court of Connecticut. "IMr. Bulkley was classed by the Rev. Dr. Chauncy, in 1768, among the three most eminent for strength of genius and powers of mind, which New England had produced. The other two were Mr. Jere- miah Dummer and Mr. Thomas Walter. He published an election ser- mon in 1713, entitled ' the necessity of religion in societies.' In 1721 he published an inquiry into the right of the aboriginal natives to the lands in America. This curious treatise has within a few years bee/) reprinted in the collection of the Historical Society of Massachusetts. The author contendsj that the Indians had no just claims to any bnds, but such as they had subdued and improved by their own labor, and that the English had a perfect right to occupy all other lands wiiiioul COLCHESTER. 305