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Dutton family

1770 - 1840

Nathan Dutton

Nathan Dutton was born about 1780. He was living in Jaffrey NH when on 20 May 1804 he married Sally Baldwin, also of Jaffrey. Sally was born about 1779.
Known children, and there were probably others:
  1. William Turner, b. Aug 7, 1804 at Jaffrey NH; marriages:
    1. 24Feb. 1828 Lydia Johnson in Goshen
    2. 13 Dec. 1849 Pamela Gage in Goshen.
  2. Jane - adult in 1938 and unmarried
  3. Eliza B - b. 27 Nov. 1815. As "Betsey" she married 3 Dec. 1849 William Brown in Brandon. Both resided in Brandon. Betsey died on 7 Dec. 1878. Her husband died on 15 Nov. 1880. Both are buried in Forestdale.
  4. Lovina E, m. 5 Sept. 1848 to John W. Parker.
  5. Nathan B. Dutton, b. May 25, 1841, m. 20 Sept. 1850 Hannah Briggs, d. 26 May 1866, buried in Forestdale.
Land Transactions:
On Apr. 13, 1838 Nathan Dutton received $400 from his daughter, Jane Dutton of Leicester, for 100 acres of the land thta Nathan lived on, plus all lother land he owned in Leicester. The conditions of the transaction were that: "Jane Dutton is to maintain the said Nathan Dutton and his wife Sally Dutton comfortable through life and to support all the children of the said Nathan Dutton until they arrive at age and to furnish a home for all the girls the lawful sisters of the said Jane Dutton."
Shortly after this agreement was reached, Nathan died at the age of 58 on 18 April 1838 and was buried in a family burial ground on his farm in Leicester. The following month his wife Sally reaffirmed the agreement with her daughter Jane.
On 9 January 1847 Sally began to distribute her estate among some of her children. To her daughter Eliza, for $300, she sold 21 acres of land in Leicester. This transaction meant that Sally conveyed all her right to what had been called the "Walker Share" formerly owned by her husband. The same day Lovina Dutton sold to her sister, Eliza, for $100, "one acre of land to be taken off from the West end of a piece of land this day deeded to me the said Lovina Dutton and the aforesaid Eliza Dutton by our respected mother Sally Dutton and being the land on which her dwelling house now stands. "
The two sisters at the same time for $50 leased to their mother "all of that piece of land this day deeded to us by our mother Sally Dutton. Eliza and Lovina agreed that Sally Dutton should use and occupy the premises in all respects for the remainder of her natural life.
Additionally, on 16 April, 1847, Sally's son, William T. Dutton, for $50 sold land in Leicester. being the remainder of the land which Sally had sold to Lovina.
Sally died on 6 June, 1847, and was buried next to her husband.
The following year, sons William and Nathan B. divested themselves of the 43 acres that they had received from their mother. Now living in Brandon, they sold the property for $150 to Maria Squires of Branding, "excepting only from the above conveyance a small lot enclosed by a stone wlal and occupied for a burying ground or graveyard."
Nathan Bigelow Dutton Nathan Bigelow Dutton born on May 25, 1821, son of Nathan Dutton and his wife Sally. (Sarah?) Married Hannah C. Briggs born 12 May 1832, daughter of James and Drusilla Briggs of Brandon, Vt. 3 children died in infancy or early childhood. Surviving children:
  1. Jennie Louisa Dutton was born on Feb 17, 1856 in Brandon VT
  2. Clara M Dutton born Sept. 27, 1859 in Brandon VT
  3. Ella Dutton was born Dec. 7, 1862 in Brandon VT
In 1860 Nathan, also known as "Bigelow," 39, and Hannah, 28, were living in Brandon where he worked for the railroad. The household included 2 daughters, Louisa J, age 4 and Clara M, age 8 months. On 18 Aug. 1861, a son, Nathan B, was born to them but died of whooping cough two months later. The following year, on 7 Dec. 1862, their last child, Ellen E. ws born at Brandon.
Civil War Experiences

In 1862, Nathan, along with many others from Brandon, heeded President Lincoln's call and joined his fellow Vermonters in the Union cause in the Civil War, or as it was called then, the "1861 War".

Nathan first enlisted from Brandon as a private and wagoner in Company "G" 12th Vermont Infantry Regiment on 19 August 1862. The 12th Regiment was organized in response to President Lincoln's call of 4 Aug. 1862 for 300,000 militia for 9 months service. It included 10 companies of Vermont volunteer militia. The regiment was organized in obedience to the state constitution, the privates electing the company officers and these electing the field officers.

The regiment went into camp at Brattleboro, VT on 25 Sept. 1862 and was mustered into the U.S. service on Oct. 4 and left for the field on Oct. 7. It went into camp on Capitol Hill, Washington, on Oct. 10, being attached for three weeks to Derrom's Brigade of Casey's Division.

On Oct. 30, the 12th moved to Virginia's Munson's Hill. The following day it went to Hunting Creek. The regiment remained at "Camp Vermont" near Hunting Creek until Dec. 12, 1862. While there, they successfully defended against the attmpt by Gen J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry to capture the supplies and garrisons at Fairfax Court House.

Bigelow wrote the following from Fairfax, where he was on duty:

Father & Mother & dear Friends
I seat myself to rite you a few lines to lett you know how I am. I am pretty well now but hae been some sick but am better and hope these few lines will find you enjoing the same blessings.
It is a very stormy day here today. It snows hard all day so that I have not done any thing besides feed the horses. That is anuf for such a day as this. This is the first stormy day that there has been but what I have had to harness my team and go somewhere but yesterday I started 4 teams aftyer forage.
You may tell Hannah that I have not got a letter from Lovina yet.
I have not had a fight with the rebels yet nor haven't seen a gret manny of the cretures yet but may before long. There is so much mud for they can't get here unless they waid in mud. There is no neus here. We have a very good plaice for a camp but it ain't like a house after all. We are all pretty well in this tent now there is some cases of the measels & jaundise but I have been lucky.
I should like to come home if I could but don't see any chance for it now. Hope I shal live to meet you again in Brandon. There is some talk that our time is out in may but I don't put much faith in it but hope it is so for the time seems long. All I have to think about home & friends.
Well I must close for it is getting cold in the tent so good bye, write, give my love to all this from your son who thinks of you often.
Nathan B Dutton
to James Briggs

The 12th regiment guarded the railroad until May 18. It was then stationed at Bristoe's and Catlett's Station until June 1, and then at Union Mills, VA until the 25th. In July the regiment guarded the train that brought prisoners to Baltimore. From there they went to Vermont, arriving at Brattleboro on July 9, and mustered out and disbanded on July 14. Three days later, Nathan was discharged, having served 10 months and 5 days. The service of the 12th was such that it suffered no losses in battle, but did lose 67 men due to disease.

Nathan returned home to his family in Brandon and to meet for the first time his young daughter, Ellen, who had been born in his absence on Dec. 7, 1862.

Nathan remained at home only a few months. As winter approached, he journeyed south from Brandon to Pittsford VT where he re-enrolled on Dec. 7, 1863 in Company "C" 11th (1st artillery) Regiment of Vermont Volunteers. The term of enlistment was for three years or the duration of the war. He mustered into service as a Private on 12 Dec. 1863 at Brattleboro, Vt. in company "C" commanded by Capt. William Goodrich. They left for Washington DC the same month. The designation of the regiment was changed to the 1st Heavy Artillery on 10 Dec. 1862.

During the summer of 1863 and late into the year, the 1st Artillery, 11th Vermont Volunteers was stationed in three forts due north of Washington DC: Fort Slocum, where the regimental headquarters was stationed; Fort Massachusetts (later Fort Stevens) at the village of Brightwood, four miles from Washington, and Fort Totten, near Rock Creek Church. Fort Slocum, an immensely strong fort. lay between Stevens and Totten. As an additional recruit, Nathan joined his unit at Fort Slocum where he was directed to be a teamster.

The barracks built the year before were now inadequate for the augmented regiment. New wooden barracks were built, each 100 ft long, some of them inside the forts, and a new hospital building was erected, which in size and convenience compared well with some of the general hospitals in the vicinity of Washington. The regiment settled down for the winter of 1863-64 in as wholesome and comfortable quarters as were ever possessed by any regiment in the army. Such was the environment into which Nathan was assigned.

Unfortunately for him, life took an abrupt turn for the worse. 1st Lt. Charles W. Clark, the Regimental Quartermaster recounted on 19 Jan. 1866 the misfortune that befell Nathan:

"Private Dutton while ... in the line of his duty ... on or about the 17th day of january 1864 at Fort Slocum D.C. while driving a team in my charge as Regtl. Quartermaster was accidently thrown from the wagon and a wheel of the same passed dorectly over his body near the small of his back injuring him to the extent that he was unable to do duty."
Nathan wasa taken to his quarters and treated by the surgeon until on or about the first of May 1864 when he was taken to Fort Slocum Hospital in Maryland. He was there a short time and then taken to Harwood Hospital near washington DC where he spent a few days. Then he was removed to Germantown Hospital at Germantown PA and remained about 5 weeks. Nathan transferred from there to the hospital at Montpelier VT where he entered on June 18, 1864. He remained there until abotu 12 March 1865. From that time, he was at Fort Foot Hospital near Washington DC, sick with the injury in his back. His spine received an infection, "swollen, exercised with constant pain, also has chronic diarrhea, discharges occuring from 6 to 8 per day" He was "wholly unable to labor to obtain his subsistance has cough pains in his left side & through his shoulders and cannot lay on his left side."

Nathan never returned to active service and was transferred from company "C" now commanded by Capt. Silas B. Tucker to Company "B" in the same regiment, commanded by Capt. George A Bailey in Aug. 1865. Nathan was honorably discharded at Fort Foot, Maryland, on Aug 25, 1865.

Nathan applied for a disability pesion on Oct. 4, 1865. On tht same date, Cyrus Porter, and examining surgeon, reported:

"I certify that I have carefully examined Nathan B. Dutton ... an applicant for an invalid pension, by reason of alleged disability resulting from injury from wagon, run over. In my opinion the said nathan B. Dutton is one half incapacitated for obtaining his subsistence by manual labor from the cause above stated." On 8 Mar. 1866, Nathan received approval for a "one third" disability for the "injury to back alone."

Unfortunately, the application for the invalid pension was still pending when Nathan died at home in Forestdale on May 26, 1866. Nathan's tombstone displays Hannah's feeling for her departed soldier husband:

Not on the Battle Field
Where many fall in pride
But in our own dear home
My soldier husband died.

Hannah Briggs Dutton With Nathan's death, Hannah now qualified for a widow's pension under the Congressional Act of 14 July 1862. Now 34, nd still a Brandon resident, Hannah submitted her application three days after Nathan's death on May 29, 1866.
On July 25, 1866 Congress passed another act granting renumeration for widows who had children. On Dec. 10, 1866, Hannah submitted a claim for a pension increase because she had 3 daughters under the age of 16 years. Both of Hannah's claims were approved. She received a widow's pension of $8 per month begining 26 Aug. 1865 and $2 per month for each of her three children commencing on 25 July 1866.

On Nov. 4, 1866, Hannah had her three daughters baptized by J. Newton Fairbanks in St. Thomas' Church in Brandon.
Hannah died on Sept. 20, 1900 at age 68. She and Nathan are buried in the Forestdale Cemetery.

(Hannah's uncle Ansell Briggs joined a wagon train and migrated to Des Moines Iowa and became the 1st governor at Des Moines. Population of Iowa stayed at 800 for about 10 years.)

Jennie Louisa Dutton Jennie L. Dutton was born in Brandon VT on Feb. 18, 1856, daughter of Bigelow Dutton and Hannah Briggs. She was living in Brandon when she married Philo Kilborn Rickert on Dec. 30, 1871. Philo was the son of James Rickert and Jane Ducher and had participated in the Civil War as a Private in company D, 2nd NY Veteran Cavalry from Aug. 1863 until Jan 20, 1864. Jennie and Philo lived in Brandon (probably Forestdale) until at least 1891. Philo was employed as a carpenter.
5 children were born during this time:
  1. Harlow Dutton - b. Aug. 18, 1874
  2. Grace Captiolia - b. April 9, 1877
  3. Beatrice Lynn (Bessie) - b. Sept 11, 1879
  4. Earl Dunmore - b. Jan 13, 1883
  5. Paul Thayer - b. Dec. 8. 1890
Sometime in the early 1890s, Jennie and her family relocated to the Laconia NH area with the hope of finding work in the Laconia mills. Philo and Harlow found work. Grace worked briefly in the mill, and married one of her co-workers, Adelbert Stevens, who was from Maine. Bessie fell in love with a circus aerialist, and ran away to marry him. She became part of his trapeze act.
Harlow died in Laconia on 1 Mar. 1895 and Philo on Nov. 1 1898. The youngest boy, Paul, also fell ill at that time but recovered. Jennie gathered up her two young sons and returned to Forestdale, VT.
Jennie joined her two sisters, Clara and Ellen, and cooked for the mill hands at the Newton & Thompson sawmill on Sucker Brook on the east side of Lake Dunmore, VT. Later, she built a tea house (called "Aunt Jennie's) south of the sawmill near the scenic waterfalls called the Llana Cascades and served the summer visitors. Jennie ran the teahouse for many years and was well known and loved around Lake Dunmore.

Jennie died in 1934. Her son Paul had the following memorial carved in her honor on the rock face of the entrance to Llana Falls:
Matthew V8: Jennie Dutton Rickert, Aunt Jenny, 1856-1934
All that I am and all that I ever hope to be I owe to my mother.

Clara M. Dutton Clara M. Dutton married Mitchell LaRock in Forestdale. They had 5 children:
  1. Walter -- married Genevieve Boulder, 4 children
  2. Emma -- married Andrew Twombley, 1 son
  3. Hattie --- married George Hornbeck, 3 boys
  4. Albert --- married Grace Blair, 10 children
  5. Charlie --- married Peg Devenae - adopted 1 child
Ella Dutton Ella Dutton married Dolph LaRock. They had 2 children:
  1. Grace - married Floyd Hayes, 1 daughter Ellen
  2. Flora - married Reed.