Connecticut Historical Collections

In 1686, many of the inhabitants of Roxbiiry, in IMassachusclts, ri,-- ceivcd Iroin the government of that colony, a grant of a tract of land ill the southern part of the colony, for a settlement, which was nanietl Woodstock.* 'I'his town was bounded by Woodward and Sallery's line, and was afterwards found to be within the limits of Conneclicut. It was tiist called INew Koxhury. In 1713, the line between Connecticut and IMassachusetts was sur- veyed, and upon certain conditions, it was agreed by Connecticut, that the towns settled by INIassachusetts should remain under its jurisdiction. This compromise produced general uneasiness and dissatisfaction with the inhabitants at the time, which instead of subsiding, as was expected, continued to increase, so that in May, 1747, they presented a memorial to the General Assembly of Connecticut, praying to be annexed to, or taken under the juristfiction thereof, whereby they might be restored to the chartered privileges granted to them, in common with the oilier citizens of this state. The General Assembly, afier iiaving appointed commissioners to attempt to settle this dispute, with others that might be appointed by Massachusetts, without effect, adopted a resolution, that as the agreement of 1713 had never received the royal conlivma- tion, it was not binding ; and that all the inhabitants who lived south of IMassachusetts, as ilefined by the charter, were entilleii to the privi- leges anil ought to be subject to the jurisdiction of the government of this state. In 1752, an act was passed, securing to the several religious societies of the aforesaid towns, all the rights and privileges of religious societies according to the laws of this colony. These proceedings on the part of Connecticut, produced a remonstrance to his majesty. This was op- posed by the agent of Connecticut, then in England, and the claims of the latter supported, which were finally recognized, and the boundary established accordingly in 1755. Wootlstock is bounded n. by the INIi^sachusetts line, e. by Thomp- son, w. by Union and Ashford, and s. by Pomhet and Ashford. It is 8 miles long, and u])wards of 7 in breadth. The surface of the town is characteristically hilly, but not mountainous or broken, and comprises very little waste laud, most or all of the eminences being capable of cul- ♦ Holmes' Annals, Vol. 1.. Dr. Holmes .states: "In .Tudge Sewalj's MS. Di;:ry I find this entry. — ' Iti'JO, Maich 18, I i,'ave New Ro.Ybnry the name ol' Wood.stuck', be- cause of its nearness to Oxford, for the sake of Cliieen lilizabetli, and the notable nitet- injjs thai have been held al the plaee bearing the name in England.' " 57 y 450 WOODSTOCK livation. The prevailin^f soil is a deep gravelly loam, which is stroiir; and fertile. It is best adapted to /^razinjr, but generally admits of til- laije; and considerable quantities ol' grain are annually raised, consisting principally of rye and corn, and it may be considered one of the richest agricultural towns in this part of the state. There are 4 woolen and 4 cotton iiictories in ibe limits oi" the town. There are also about DOO persons engaged in the shoe making business, principally in the western part of tlie town. The town is divided into three parts, \'vi. the ohi society of Woodstock, West Woodstock or New lloxbury, and jNIuddy Brook society or JNoiih Woodstock. There are six houses of worshi[) in the town, 4 C()nL:^(>^atiol1nI, 1 Jjapli>t, and 1 iMelliodisl, So\i(h view (if the Cdiii^r.'^^yiliuiuil C/.iirc/i, il'ooJ^tocl'. The altovo is a souih view of tlie ( \)nL:rt\^;iti(Mi:d church in the old soc-ieiy of Woodstock ; the At\uli'my is seen in the distance, in the cen- tral part of the engraving. 'J'his spot is elevated ground, rising consid- erably above the valley of the Quinnebaug. 'J'he villages of Thom)-)- son, North Killlngly, and Dudley in Massachusetts, on corresponding ehivations, are in fair view ; this |)lace is 41 miles from Hartford, ^vJ from Norwich, 3-2 fiom Providence, 12 from Brooklyn, and G from Thomi)son. The village of I\luddy Brook, or North \V,oodstock, is about three miles distant, situated in a beautiful valley, thiough which IMiiddy Brook, a fine mill stream, passes. The village is in two jjaris, in each of which is a Congregational chur(?^, upwards of one mile dis- tant from each other. Tiie houses in this village are more clustered than in any other part of the town, and viewed from the suirounding hills present an uncommonly beautiful appearance. I'he west part is laire corner '' Gen. William Eaton was a native of this town, and was born Feb- ruary 23d, 1764. At a very early period lie disclosed strong indica- tions of intellectual vigor, and of menial eccentricity. At the age of WOODSTOCK. 451 about 16 years, without the knoulcilge or consent of his parents, he went from home, ;iiul enhsted into the army. This was in 1780, near the close of the Revohitionary war; and young Eaton continued in tlie army until the close of the war, a considerable part of the time in the limnble station of a private soldier; but he attained the rank of a ser- geant. After the peace, in 1784, he conmienced the study of the Latin language, and the year after, was adn)itted a member of Dartmouth College, where he graduated in 1790, the period of his collegiate life having been protracted, from the circumstance of his having devoted a portion of his time to school keeping, which iiis want of pecuniary re- sources rendered necessary. " III OctdbLT, I7t»l. he was chosen clerk of the Tlouse of Deloijales ol' Vcrinont, re- sit! in f,' at llirit lime in liie luwu of Wiiuisor, wlieiehe liad been eiigajjed in school keeping. In iMiiich, 17i)'2, lie was appointed a caplain in ihe aiiny of the Uniied Stales; and whilst in this situation, he performed various services upon the western and southern fmnliers. Pie continued in the ainiy until 17'J7, when he was appointed consul to Tunis. lie continued in this dillicull (and it may be achled, pel ilous) situa- tion imtil 1S0:5, during which period, he discharged the consular lunclions with great linnness and ability. In 1801, Gen. l^alon letuined to America and visited Washing- ton, where he disclosed the fauKJUS enterpris(! which he had planned to restore the ex- bashaw of Tripoli, and having obtained the sanction of government, he embarked in July of the .same year, in the Argus sloop of war, with the intention of engaging in this bold and hazardous undertaking, and ariived at Alexandria in Egypt, on the '25th of Novemlier following. From Alexandria he proceeded tii (^airo, where he found the ex-bashaw, who approved of the enteipri-e, and after having made suitable ar- rangements, and recruited ahtuit 5(10 men, (11)0 of which only were ('hrislians,) it wa.s determined by Ivitoii and the e.v-bashaw to cr(jss the desert and seize the piovince and city of Derne. Afiei'a dillicull and faliguing journey, through a dreary desert, pre- -senting inniimeraljle obstacles, ihey arrived within the province of Derne, and soon attacked and captuied the city, having the as.sistance of the Flornet sloop of war. The hohlness and de>i)erate bravery of Gen. l-:alnn and his little parly, alarmed the reigning bashaw and his baibarian subjVcis, who.almost thought ihey were something more ihan liunian being.s; but the prtcMcss of Gen. l^aton was arrested by a peace which the American consul concluded with the bashaw. Alter this, Gen. Eaton re- turned to his native counlry, and was every where received with the most di^tinguish- ed applause, the "laieful tribute id' palrinlie and heroic achievements. Alter some lime lie fixed his esidcnce in Biimfiehl, Massachusetts, where he continued until his death in K^H. WhilM lieie he u.i.-, elected a representative of the town, m the legis- lature t>l' tht state. '•Gen. Ealon was a veiv e.vtraordinary character; he possessed much original genius, was bold in his coiiceplnms, ardent in his passions, determined in his resolu- tions, and indelatigably persevering m his conduct. He possessed considerable liter- ary acquirements,"and Ihe stvle of his writings was characteristic of his mind; bold, energetic and decisive. His courage was equalled only by his resolution, and the boldness of his enterprises, by his ability and peiseveranc'e to execute them."* The following inscription is from a monument in the yard on the north side of the church represented in the engraving. Memejao Mori. Here lies the body of the Reverend Mr. Amos Throope, late pastor of llie church ill Woodstock, who died Septemr. the 7th, Anno 1735, in the 3-lth year of his age and the 'Jill of his pastorate. O cruel Death to snatch from us below, One fit to live within the spheres on high, But since the great Creator orders so, Hear at his feet he doth submissive lie. * Pease and Nile.'s's Gazetleer. w 452 L I T C II F I F. I- n . LITCHFIELD COUNTY. TjItchfield County was incorporated as such in 1751, and a con- siderable j)art of it was more recently settled than any other part of the state. It is bounded n. by Jjerkshire county in Massachusetts, e. by Hartford and New Haven counties, s. by the counties of New Haven and Falrlield, and w. by the stale of New York. It has an average length from north to south of about 33 miles, and a breadth of about 27 miles, comjjrislng about 885 st]uare miles, being the largest county in the state. The ])rinclpal part of the county is elevated and mountainous. The prevailing soil is a gravelly loam, generally deep, and in many sections strong and fertile, and admirably adapted to gra- zing. The agricultural interests of the county are very respectable. The staple productions consist of cheese, butter, pork and beef. Con- siderable attention is -also jjaid to the raising of neat cattle and sheep. The manufacture of iron is carried on more extensively in this county than in any other section of the state. The following is a list of the towns in the county, \vith their |iopu- laliou in 1830. Litchfield, - - '1,1 r,G Kent, 2,001 Sharon, - 2,G15 Barkhamsled, - 1,715 New Hartford, 1,7 6 G Torrington, - 1,(;51 Bethlem, ^ - 90G New Millbrd,- 3,979 AVarren, - - 98G Canaan, - 2,301 Norlblk, - - 1 ,485