STATE OF

VERMO N T.

T

SITUATION, EXTENT, &c.

HIS State is fituated between 42° 44′ and 45° N. latitude, and 10 35′ and 3° 30′ E. longitude from Philadelphia; its length is about one hundred and fifty miles, and its breadth about feventy: it is bounded on the north by Lower-Canada, eaft by Connecticut river, which divides it from New-Hampshire, fouth by Massachusetts, and weft by New-York; the Green Mountain runs from fouth by north through it, and divides the State nearly in the middle.

This tract of country, called Vermont, before the late war,, was claimed both by New-York and New-Hampshire; and these interfering claims have been the occafion of much warm altercation, the particulars of which it would be neither entertaining nor useful to detail. These claims were not finally adjusted till fince the peace. On the commencement of hoftilities between Great Britain and her colonies, the inhabitants of this district, confidering themselves as in a state of nature, and not within the jurisdiction either of New-York or New-Hampshire, affociated and formed for themselves a conftitution, under which they have continued to exercise all the powers of an independent state, and have profpered. On the 4th of March, 1791, agreeably to act of Congress of December 6th, 1790, this State became one of the United States, and constitutes the fourteenth, and not the least respectable pillar in the American Union.

AIR AND CLIMATE.

The climate of this State is in a very confiderable degree favoura ble both to man and vegetation. The winter feafon commonly lasts from the beginning of November to the middle of April, during which the inhabitants enjoy a ferene sky and a keen cold air. Snow begins to fall, commonly, by the ift of November; but the perma nent fnows do not fall till about the 10th of December, which pre

vent

vent the ground freezing to any confiderable depth.-In April the fnow is gradully diffolved by the warm influences of the fun, which moistens and enriches the earth, and vegetation advances with furprifing rapidity.

FACE OF THE COUNTRY.

This State, generally speaking, is hilly, but not rocky; northward to the Canada line it is flat the country at large is well watered, having Michifcoui, Lamoille, Onion, and Otter Creek rivers, which run across it from east to west into Lake Champlain; Weft, Sexton's, Black, Waterquechee, White, Ompompanoofuck, Weld's, Wait's, Paffumfick, and feveral smaller rivers, which run from weft to east into Connecticut river. Over the river Lamoille is a natural ston bridge, feven or eight rods in length. Otter Creek is navigable for boats fifty miles; the banks of this river are excellent land, being annually overflowed and enriched. White river takes its name from the peculiar whiteness of its water, caused by the clear white ftones and gravel which conftitute the bed of this river quite to its fource. This peculiarity deceives people in regard to its depth. It rifes in the center of the state, flows through a rich tract of country free from swamps, and empties into the Connecticut four miles below Dartmouth College, and is from one hundred to one hundred and fifty yards wide, fome distance from its mouth. Ompompanoofuck is a fhort, furious river, not more than forty or fifty yards wide, emptying into the Connecticut at Norwich. Weld's is also a short and rapid river, forty yards acrofs. Paffumfick is one hundred yards. wide, and noted for the quantity and quality of the falmon it produces on this river, which is settled twenty miles up, are some of the best townships in the State.

Lakes Memphremagog, Willoughby and Bombazon, are also in this State. The former is the refervoir of three confiderable ftreams, Black, Barton, and Clyde rivers. One of these rises in Willoughby lake, and forms a communication between that and lake St. Peter's, in the river St. Lawrence; iffuing from Willoughby's lake, it empties into Memphremagog, and thence, by the name of St. Francis, empties into the St. Peter. This river is not all the way navigable, otherwife it would afford a communica tion of very great importance to the northern part of this State, as the fettlers might tranfport their produce with great ease to MonVOL. II.

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treal or Quebec. Willoughby's lake furnishes fish resembling bafe, of an excellent flavour, weighing from ten to thirty pounds. They form a moft delicious feaft for the new fettlers: people travel twenty miles to this lake to procure a winter's ftock of this fish. Lake Bombazon, in the county of Rutland, gives rife to a branch of Poultney River.

Befides these rivers and lakes there are feveral other springs, ponds, and other collections of water, which are, in general, remarkably clear, and afford abundance of trout, perch, and other fresh water fish.

The principal mountain in this State is the one we have already mentioned, which divides the State nearly in the center, between Connecticut river and lake Champlain. The afcent from the east to the top of this mountain is much easier than from the weft, till you get to Onion river, where the mountain terminates. The height of land is generally from twenty to thirty miles from the river, and about the fame diftance from the New-York line. The natural growth upon this mountain is hemlock, pine, fpruce, and other evergreens; hence it has always a green appearance, and on this account has obtained the defcriptive name of Ver Mons, or Green Mountain. On fome high parts of this mountain fnow lies till May, and fometimes till June. This chain of mountains paffes through Maffachusetts and Connecticut, and terminates in New-Haven.

Another noted mountain in this State is Afchutney, bordering on Connecticut river, in the townships of Windsor and Weathersfield, and Upper Great Monadnock, quite in the north-east corner of the State.

It is remarkable, that the hills and mountains are generally covered on the east fides with what is called hard wood, fuch as birch, beech, maple, afh, elm, and butternut; and the weft fide is generally covered with evergreens.

SOIL, PRODUCTIONS, &c.

The foil of Vermont affords the best of pafturage; fome of the finest beef cattle in the world are driven from this State; horfes alfo are raised for exportation. The natural growth upon the rivers is white pines of feveral kinds, intermingled with low intervales of beech, elm, and white oak. Back from the rivers the land is thickly timbered with birch, fugar maple, afh, butternut, and white oak of an excellent quality: a great part is well adapted for tillage, and the foil is natural for wheat, rye, barley, oats, flax, hemp, &c.

Indian corn, back from the river, is frequently injured by the frost; but on the river it is raised in as great perfection as in any part of New-England, owing in a great measure to the fogs arifing from the river, which either prevent or extract the froft: these fogs begin as foon as the corn is in danger from frofts, and laft till mild weather commences. Fruit trees, in the northern counties of this State, do not profper,

CIVIL DIVISIONS, &c.

This State is divided into seven counties, viz. ADDison, BenNINGTON, CHITTENDON, RUTLAND, ORANCE, WINDSOR, and WINDHAM'; the four first of these are on the weft fide of the Green Mountain, and the three latter on the east.

Thefe counties are divided into upwards of two hundred townfhips, which are generally fix miles fquare; in every township is a referve of two rights of land, of three hundred and fifty acres each, one to be appropriated for the support of public schools, the other to be given in fee to the first minifter who fettles in the township. A part of the townships was granted by the govern ment of New-Hampshire, and the other by that of Vermont. In thofe townships granted by the former, a right of land is referved for the fupport of the gospel in foreign parts; in those granted by the latter, a college right, and a right for the support of county grammar fchools, are referved: in thefe refervations liberal provifion is made for the fupport of the gofpel, and for the promotion of common and collegiate education.

CHIEF TOWNS AND CURIOSITIES,

In a new and interior country, large, populous towns are not to be expected. Bennington, fituated near the S, W. corner of the State, is one of the largeft; it contains a number of handsome houfes, a congregational church, a court house and gaol. A famous battle was fought in or near this town, during the late war in 1777, between Brigadiergeneral Starke, at the head of eight hundred undisciplined militia, and a detachment of General Burgoyne's army, commanded by Colonel Baum; in this action, and the one that fucceeded it, in the fame place, and on the fame day, between a reinforcement of the British, under Colonel Breymen, and General Starke, who was re inforced by Colonel Warner, with a continental regiment, were taken four brafs field pieces, and other military ftores, and seven hundred prifoners. The overthrow of thefe detachments was the first

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link in a grand

chain of causes, which finally proved the ruin of the royal army. This is one of the oldest towns in the State, being first fettled about the year 1764, and was till lately the feat of go

vernment.

*

Windfor and Rutland, by a late act of the legiflature, are alternately to be the feat of government for eight years. The former is fituated on Connecticut river; the latter lies upon Otter Creek: both are flourishing towns. Guilford, Brattelborough, Putney, Westminster, Weathersfield, Hartland, Norwich, and Newbury, are confiderable towns, lying from fouth to north, on Connecticut river. Newbury, is the fhire town of Orange county, which comprehends about three-eighths of the whole State; it has a court-house, and a very elegant meeting-house for Congregationalists, with a steeple, the first erected in the State. Newbury court-house stands on the high lands back from the river, and commands a fine view of what is called the groat Ox Bow, which is formed by a curious bend in the river; it is one of the most beautiful and fertile meadows in NewEngland; the circumference of this bow is about four miles and a half; its greatest depth is seven-eighths of a mile, containing about four hundred and fifty acres: at the season when nature is dressed in her green attire, a view of this meadow from the high lands is truly luxuriant.

Shaftsbury, Pownal, Manchester, Clarendon, Poultney, Pawlet, Danby, and Charlotte, are confiderable and flourishing towns, weft of the mountain. In the town of Orwell is Mount Independence, at the southern extremity of lake Champlain, oppofite to which is Ticonderoga, in the State of New-York,

There is a very remarkable ledge of rocks in the town of Bradford, in the county of Orange; it lies on the weft bank of Connecticut river, and is as much as 200 feet high; it appears to hang over and threaten the traveller as he paffes: the space between this ledge and the river is fcarcely wide enough for a road.

In the township of Tinmouth, on the fide of a finall hill, is a very curious cave; the chafm at its entrance is about four feet in circumference: entering this you defçend one hundred and four feet, and then opens a fpacious room, twenty feet in breadth, and one

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* General Bayley and Colonel Thomas Johnfon enterprised the first fettlements into this part of the country, about the year 1762. At this period there was no road nor human inhabitant for feventy miles down the river, nor for as many miles eastwardit is now thickly inhabited by thriving farmers.

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