Norton
lies in the extreme northwestern corner of the county, in lat. 44º
58', and long. 5º, 6’, and is bounded north by the Canada line, east
by Averill, south by Warner's Grant*,
Warren's Gore** and
***Avery's
Gore, and west by Holland, in Orleans county. When the town was
chartered, or to whom, we are unable to state, for the charter was destroyed
by fire many years ago. It matters little, however, when this charter was
granted, for its conditions must have necessarily been violated as the
town had no settler previous to 1860.
The surface
of the land is rough and uneven and heavily timbered. The soil is said
to be good and durable. Two ponds of considerable extent lie in the northern
part of the township. The outlet of Norton pond is the head branch of Coatacook
river, which unites with the Massippi, in Askot, and then unites with the
St. Frances, at Lennoxville. Farrands river, also, heads here and runs
south.
In 1880,
Norton had a population of 239. The town system of schools was adopted
at the organization of the township, and now it has two common schools,
with sixty scholars, which were taught during 1886 by three female teachers,
to whom was paid an average weekly salary, including board, of $6.00. The
entire income for school purposes was $57.77, while the total expenditures
amounted to $400.60, with W.H. Bishop, superintendent.
Norton
Mills (p. o.), located in the northern part of the town, on the G.T. railroad,
is the only village in the, township. It has a store, steam mill, and about
thirty dwellings. Woodard & Lyster's steam saw-mill is located in the
eastern part of the town on road 2, near the town of Averill. It was built
by R.M. Woodard and W.L. Ball. It was commenced October 1, 1874,
and finished in April, 1875. Shortly after it was finished Mr. Woodard
bought out his partner and was its proprietor until August, 1885, when
a half interest was sold to P.R. Lyster. The mill is operated by steam,
furnishing employment for about seventy men, and cutting about 25,000 feet
of lumber per day. The mill cuts dimension timber, clapboards, shingles,
lath, etc.
Cameron's
saw-mill is owned and operated by D. H. Cameron. The mill is located about
one-half mile from the boundary line, in the town of Barford, P.Q., although
the lumber is drawn to this town before it is loaded on the cars. The mill
was built in 1879, by F.B. Cleveland. Mr. Cameron bought it in 1882. The
mill furnishes employment for seven men, cutting about 7,000 feet of dimension
timber per day. Water-power is used. A.M. Stetson's steam saw-mill
is located on road 2. It was built by George B. James, in 1873-74, and
has been owned by Mr. Stetson since the failure of Mr. James. It
employs about seventy fine men and cuts over 10,000,000 feet of lumber
per annum. It was built at an expense of nearly $90,000.00.
The first
permanent settler in Norton was Samuel Cleveland. He came here from Canada
in 1860 and erected a saw-mill, forming a co-partnership with John Thornton
and a Mr. Remick. The mill was operated by them only a short time,
when it was sold to C.W. Pierce, George B. James, A.M. Stetson and J. Wilder,
who assumed the name of Norton Mills Company. In 1868, Mr.Stetson
and Mr. Wilder withdrew from the firm, and the mill was operated two years
by Pierce & James. In 1870, Mr.James bought out his partner and
was sole proprietor until 1874, when he became financially embarrassed
to such an extent that he was obliged to suspend business. A short time
previous to his failure he built the large steam mill now owned by A.M.
Stetson. In 1867, Mr. James commenced clearing land, and from
that date up to 1874, the time of his failure, he had cleared over 1,000
acres, upon which he raised large quantities of oats, rye, potatoes, etc.
The town
was organized March 6, 1885, when the following officers were elected:
William G. Nelson, moderator; Albert McLean, clerk; W.G. Nelson, Hazen
E. Ames and L.F. Jones, selectmen; Albert McLean, treasurer. The road from
this town to Canaan was built in 1867, by the Norton Mills Co. The first
store was opened by the Norton Mills Co., in the building now occupied
by A. McLean & Co.
Robert
J. and William Carpenter were sons of Willett Carpenter. They were
natives of Brunswick. Robert came to this town in November, 1865, as a
surveyor of timber for the Norton Mills Co. His brother William came
in the fall of 1870. They are both still living in this town. Robert
J. is a shipper of lumber, and William is the proprietor of the Stetson
House.
The town
has no church. Most of the inhabitants are of the Roman Catholic faith,
and belong to the church at Barnstead, P.Q.
| *WARNER'S
GRANT, a tract of 2,000 acres, lying in the
northwestern part of the county, is bounded north by Norton, east by Warren
gore, south by Morgan, in Orleans county, and west by Holland and Morgan,
in Orleans county. It was granted
October 20, 1787. It contains no stream
of importance, and is uninhabited.
**WARREN
GORE is an uninhabited tract of 6,380 acres,
lying in the northwestern part of the county, and belonging to the town
of Warren, in Washington county. It is bounded north by Norton, east by
Avery's Gore, south by Morgan and Bristol, and west by Warner's grant.
The records do not show when this territory was granted, but it was probably
chartered with the town of Warren, October 20, 1789. On the line between
this gore and Norton is a considerable pond, the waters of which flow to
the north into Masuippe river, in Canada.
***AVERY'S
GORE is located in the northwestern part of
the county, and is bounded north by Norton, east by Lewis, south
by Bristol, and west by Warren Gore. It was granted January 27, 1791,
to Samuel Avery, and contains 10,685 acres. It is mountainous and uninhabited. |
(Source for
Gores in Essex Co.:
Gazetteer of Caledonia and Essex Counties,
VT.; 1764-1887, Compiled and Published
by Hamilton Child; May 1887, Page 490)
(Source:
Gazetteer
of Caledonia and Essex Counties, VT.; 1764-1887,
Compiled and Published by Hamilton Child; May 1887, Page 482-483)
This excerpt
was provided by Tom Dunn.
|
