The War of 1812
The
following
short article was co-written by
Woody McLellan in his publication called the Centennial of the
Village of Champlain (1873-1973).
CHAMPLAIN AND THE WAR OF 1812
During
the
first hundred years of its
existence, Champlain was very much in a "war zone" ¾ either actual or potential.
Point
au
Fer, south of Rouses Point, was
occupied by a British garrison until 1796, who claimed all of our area
and
repeatedly warned the citizens to vacate their lands.
War
seemed
inevitable in 1807, after the attack
by the British on an American war vessel. A Committee of Safety
appealed to
the Governor for protection, who quickly authorized the storing in
Champlain of
a quantity of arms and ammunition for the use by the citizens, should
the need
arise. These arms remained in the community until 1813, when they
were turned
over to the arsenal at Plattsburgh.
Pliny
Moore's
diary contains numerous
references to "training and trooping" during this period.
And until
the conclusion of the final peace, the diary gives much light on the
military
activities in the area. His home, being the largest in the
community, was
used by both American and British officers as their headquarters.
Here
are
samplings from his diary: Gen. Pettit
here; Gen. Dearborn; Gen. Fasset; Gen. Wilkinson; Gen. Winder; Gen.
Izard; Gov.
Provost; Gen. Brisbane; also numerous other officers. Of
particular interest
are the entries merely marked "VDK," which indicated conferences
between the American leaders and Eleazer Williams of Hogansburg, who
organized
a "Corps of Observation" or spy ring of Iroquois Indians.
Military
activities are
also numerous:
June
3,
1813: Battle of Lt. Sidney Smith &
loss of 2 armed Sloops. July 31: British at Plattsburgh.
Aug. 3: Block Houses
burnt by British. Sept. 7: British squadron sailed up the
lake. (These last
three entries refer to the daring raid on Plattsburgh, Swanton, Chazy
and
Champlain by the British Col. Murray.) Sept. 20: The Army
passed into
Odletown Battle. Sept, 21: Counter Marched. (A defeat for the
Americans.) ¾ Mar. 30, 1814:
Gen. Wilkinson's Battle of Lacolle. Mar. 31: Gen. Wilkinson
returned to Champlain. (Another defeat.)
July 25: A man shot for desertion. Aug. 28: British Indian Force came
into
Champlain. Aug. 29: All peaceable except for one drunken
Indian. Sept. 4:
British Army, about 14,000, passed on to Chazy with 16 pieces
cannon. Sept. 6: Battle at Beekmantown. Sept. 11: Battle of
the Fleets. McDonough took the
Ship, the Brigg and 2 Sloops. Sept. 13: British Army passed (in
retreat)
except one Brigade at Champlain. Sept. 25: British Army left
Champlain. Feb.
22, 1815. Celebration of Peace.
During
the
Canadian Rebellion of 1837 the
community again prepared for trouble, as the "rebels" used the United
States as places of refuge.
Finally,
during
our Civil War, troops were
stationed along the border, as war seemed near several times with
Britain. And with the Confederate raid on St. Albans from
Canadian soil in 1864,
Committees of Safety were for the last time organized by our citizens.
Hugh McLellan as Champlain’s Town
Historian
Many
newspaper
articles about the history of
Champlain and events surrounding historical celebrations were saved by
Hugh
McLellan over the years. Hugh was instrumental in bringing
awareness of
Champlain’s history to the townspeople. By 1931, Hugh had been
living in
Champlain for 12 years and was active in many organizations related to
Champlain’s history. He would continue this activity to at least
1958 when he
was 85 years old. His son Woody continued on with this enthusiasm
for
Champlain’s history.
The
June
18, 1931, North Countryman had
an article about the preparation for Champlain’s Fourth of July
celebrations.
Malcolm McLellan was in charge of printing material about the
celebrations.
CHAMPLAIN FOURTH OF JULY PLANS
NOW ABOUT COMPLETED
Two
baseball
games, an eight mile marathon,
track and field events and a block dance will be features of the Fourth
of July
celebration at Champlain for which the committees, made up of business
and
professional men of the village, are planning the most ambitious
program
attempted in this section in years. A big display of fireworks
will also be
arranged for, and a tug-of-war, a four-mile bicycle race and a strong
man's
running race, in which the contestants will carry 250-pound bags of
sand on
their backs, are also down on the bills as celebration attractions.
While
all
details have not yet been arranged,
preparations for the big event are going forward rapidly and features
are being
added daily to the long list of events already on the program. So
far as is
known, the celebration at Champlain will be the only one held in this
immediate
section and it is believed that big crowds will be drawn to the village.
The
baseball
games, scheduled for Nye Field,
will
bring
the
Rouses Point and Champlain business men's teams together in
the
forenoon and the Champlain "Border Hawks" and the Rouses Point teams
in the afternoon session. The marathon will be run in the
forenoon over a
course along the state road from the ball grounds to the Windsor Corner
in
Rouses Point and return. Track and field events will be run off
in both the
forenoon and afternoon and the block dance will take place on Main
street in the evening. The Night Hawk Orchestra, a Champlain
organization, will
furnish the music for the dancing.
Arthur
Atwood
will act as master of ceremonies,
while Mayor Arsene Tremblay will be the official in charge during the
day.
Foster Strickland is in charge of street decorations; Bill Paquette, of
the
ball games; Orville Dunn, of the track and field events; Malcolm
McLellan, of
printing and publicity; Phil Agel, of programs and prizes; Henry
Hebert, of
concessions and Ernest Mellon and Jas. Gload, of the block dance.
A prize of a
suit of clothes will go to the winner of the marathon.
Hugh
also
helped to organize Champlain’s
historical society as this September 17, 1931, edition of the North
Countryman indicates. Hugh was probably able to supplement
his historical
collection through people giving or loaning him their historical
material.
CHAMPLAIN VILLAGE AND TOWN TO HAVE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The
village
and town of Champlain is to have an
historical society as a result of a meeting held by interested
residents of the Border Village at the home of Hugh McLellan on last
Wednesday evening. Its
purpose will be to collect and record information and data of
historical value
and to publish such matter of the kind as may be deemed of sufficient
interest. Mr. McLellan was chosen president and historian of the
society and
Oscar Bredenberg, secretary-treasurer.
While
the
newly formed organization already has
a large collection of old and valuable documents to draw from, it will
welcome
everything in the way of old newspapers, letters, books, or other
matter
pertaining to local history. Meetings will be held once each
month at which
papers and reports will be read and discussed covering the various
occurrences
which have helped to make, the history of the village and town.
The
charter,
members of the society are: Hugh
McLellan; C. Woodberry McLellan; John Linder; W. F. Branch; Oscar
Bredenberg;
Arthur Atwood; Arsene Tremblay and Dr. G. R. Allen.
The
October
1, 1931, edition of the North
Countryman described Hugh’s involvement in a historical meeting at
the
Champlain church.
CHAMPLAIN CHURCH GATHERING
TOLD OF TOWN'S HISTORY
Old
Home
Week services were held in all of the
Champlain churches last Sunday and brought out large congregations of
villagers
and a very considerable number of former Champlainers who are home for
the
celebration and community exhibit. Rev. A. J. V. Durban preached
the morning
sermon at the Presbyterian Church and extended a hearty welcome to the
present
and former parishioners who gathered at the church.
At
four
o'clock in the afternoon an informal
gathering, also in the church, was addressed by E. C. Everest, of
Plattsburgh,
a former resident of the village and a descendant of one of Champlain's
oldest
families, who traced the history of the village through several
generations in
a most interesting manner. Frank Whiteside
and Hugh McLellan told something of the village in its early days and
the
latter exhibited many old photographs and manuscripts of historical
interest.
The Ladies' Aid Society of the Church served light refreshments.
The Misses
Mary Whiteside
and Alice Dudley and Hugh McLellan made up the committee in charge of
the day's
activities.
Hugh
was
also very interested in Abraham
Lincoln. Hugh’s father, Charles Woodberry McLellan, had been a
friend of Lincoln while living in Springfield, Illinois, in the late
1850s. Later in the 1880s,
Charles started to collect Lincoln memorabilia and had one of the
largest
collections in the nation, which was stored in his vault in the cottage
of the
Pliny Moore house. In the early 1920s, Hugh and his brother
Malcolm sold the
collection to John D. Rockefeller who donated it to Brown
University. Hugh
still continued to collect Lincoln material for years to
come.
The
February
1, 1938, edition of the North
Countryman described a talk that Hugh gave to the Kiwanis Club in
Rouses
Point about Abraham Lincoln.
KIWANIANS HEAR TALK ON LINCOLN
BY H. McLELLAN
Hugh
McLellan,
Champlain historian, talked on
Abraham Lincoln as the principal speaker at the regular weekly meeting
of the
Rouses Point Kiwanis Club at the Windsor Hotel Tuesday. He was
introduced by
James Codding and the response was made by Dr. R. L. Wooton.
Nineteen
members
were present at the meeting
and there were two guests besides Mr. McLellan, Dwight Hitchcock, who
came with
Clifford LaPlante, of Champlain, and Benjamin Copeland, of this
village, who
was a guest of the club. Chas. T. Eldridge was the censor and Dr.
C. A.
Stewart won the door prize. The latter, a St. Valentine's Day box
of candy,
was donated by Maynard P. Wilson.
Mr.
McLellan's
talk, while brief, was unusually
interesting. He read two little known letters written by Lincoln,
one before
and one during the Civil War. Several old newspapers and two
autograph albums
from the speaker's collection were passed around for examination by the
members.
Jack
Ross
read a letter from former president
Ray Chesney, who now resides at New London, Conn. Orville Dunn,
who presided,
announced that a joint meeting with the Plattsburgh Kiwanis Club will
be held
here on March 15th.
Hugh
McLellan
was probably the most
accomplished historian Champlain has ever had. Between 1915 and
the mid-1930s,
he collected and transcribed over 3000 papers of Pliny Moore’s and also
collected
other historical material. He was able to publish this material
with his own
press and also gave many speeches to various clubs and functions over
the
years. By 1945, Hugh was 72 years old and probably had not been
doing as much
with his papers as he had in the 1930s. He probably spent most of
his time now
working to catalog cemetery stones in the hundreds of cemeteries in
Clinton County, northern Vermont and southern Quebec. The
February 22, 1945, North
Countryman described Hugh’s work with the cemeteries when he gave
a speech
at the Champlain Literary Club.
HUGH McLELLAN IS SPEAKER
AT LITERARY CLUB MEETING, FEB. 13
The
Champlain
Literary Club held its regular
monthly meeting at the home of Mrs. Blair Hawkes on Tuesday evening,
February
13, with Hugh McLellan, local historian and owner of the Moorsfield
Press, as
the principal speaker.
Mr.
McLellan
talked interestingly of his work
in cataloging tombstones in North Country cemeteries and its importance
historically, and in tracing genealogies of families who reside in this
section. He read copies of several amusing epitaphs that he had
taken from
some of the older stones.
Mrs.
Ferdinand
St. Maxens served as co-hostess
with Mrs. Hawkes.
Champlain’s Sesquicentennial Plaques of
1938
In
1938,
Champlain celebrated the 150th
anniversary of its founding by Pliny Moore. A huge celebration
was planned
that included the unveiling of a large bronze plaque, dedications of
six
smaller historical plaques given to the town by the State of New York,
historical
speeches by Pliny Moore relatives and state dignitaries and a town
dinner.
Hugh was instrumental in gathering the historical information that was
placed
on the plaques. His papers also show that he was involved with
the planning of
the celebrations and correspondence with the dignitaries.
By
August,
the town was almost ready for the
celebration that was planned for Saturday, August 20. The August
4, 1938, North
Countryman described the preparations. Hugh had determined
the wording and
designed the plaque that was placed in front of the Village Hall at the
corner
of Main and Church Streets.
Champlain to Celebrate Year of Founding, 1788
The
Sesquicentennial
of the founding of the
Town of Champlain and the arrival of the first settlers is to be
celebrated at
Champlain on Saturday, August 20th. A committee, headed by Mayor
Arsene
Tremblay, is progressing with a program which should prove to be of
interest to
every resident of the North Country.
A
bronze
plaque, commemorating the events of
150 years ago, will be erected. It is to be mounted on a granite
boulder in
front of the Village Hall in Champlain and dedicated with appropriate
ceremonies.
Furthermore, the State of New York is presenting six markers, to be
erected at
selected points of historical interest. These will describe the
following:
The
First
School — where Dr. William Beaumont
taught 1807‑10.
The
Birthplace
of Jehudi Ashmun — first
colonization agent from the United States to the Republic of Liberia
1822‑1828.
The
East
Battery of Gen. George Izard's
Artillery in 1814.
The
Camp
Ground of the British Army, 1814.
The
Old
Burying Yard, where lies the remains of
Lt. Col. Forsythe, killed at Odelltown, June 28, 1814.
The
Site
of the First Sawmill and Habitation —
erected 1788.
The
ceremonies
will begin with the unveiling of
the tablet at the Village Hall in the afternoon. The actual
unveiling will be
performed by Miss Eunice Burton, of New York City, great-great-great
granddaughter of Judge Pliny Moore, and by George Ashline, a direct
descendent
of Pryx Asselin, one of the Canadian refugees who located in the town
after the
American Revolution. The plaque will read as follows:
1788
1938
To
Commemorate
the Founding
of
the
TOWN
OF
CHAMPLAIN
March,
7,
1788
And
the Arrival
of the First Settlers
Pliny
Moore
Joseph
Rowe
William
Beaumont
Elnathan
Rogers
Samuel
Ashmun
Caleb
Thomas
May
23, 1788
Also
As
a
Tribute
To
Those
Canadians,
Early
Inhabitants
of
the Town,
Who
Supported the
American Cause
In
the Revolution
Erected
by
the
Citizens
of Champlain
Aug.
20,
1938
In
the
evening, a dinner will be served in the
Village Hall to which the public is invited. Tickets are $1. each
and may be
procured from Mrs. Mary Deal, Mrs. Lola Nason, or John Fallon.
Reservations
should be made well in advance, in order to facilitate the arrangements
for the
committee. During the dinner there will be Revolutionary War
songs by a
quartet, and a tableau, “Episode from the First School,” with costumes
and
authentic books from that period. The principal speaker will be
Dr. Alexander
C. Flick, Historian of the State of New York. Also among those
present will be
prominent state and local officials from nearby communities.
An
exhibit
of early historical material will be
on display in the Village Hall, including the earliest known painting
of
Champlain, 125 years old; numerous photographs, Judge Pliny Moore's
early
papers, Indian relics, etc.
The
committees
in charge are as follows:
Arsene
E.
Tremblay, honorary chairman.
Rev.
A.
J. V. Durbin, chairman.
Hugh
McLellan,
historian and markers.
Mrs.
Mary
Deal, Mrs. Lola Nason and John
Fallon, invitations and tickets.
Walter
B.
Spelman, dinner program.
Clarke
Washburn,
decorations.
Mrs.
George
Glode, banquet.
Oscar
E.
Bredenberg, publicity
C.
W.
McLellan, secretary.
CHURCHES JOIN IN CHAMPLAIN'S SESQUICENTENNIAL
Interest
in
the 150th anniversary of the birth
of Champlain has extended to the churches and the various congregations
of
Champlain. With the prospect of many out-of-town visitors for the
"Old
Home" week-end of August 20, the church authorities will emphasize the
early development of the church, the courage of its leaders, and the
fine type
of Champlain's pioneer men and women. Rev. A. J. V. Durbin, of
the
Presbyterian Church, promises a sermon of the style of 1830.
Added
to
the list of speakers is the name of
Edmund Seymour, of Chazy and New York. Mr. Seymour is a former
president of
the Lake Champlain Association and also of the Bison Society of America.
Invitations
to
attend have been extended to
Mrs. Ernest J. Robinson, president of the D.A.R. of Clinton County;
Orville Glode, County Commander of the American Legion; the Honorable
Bertrand H.
Snell, Member of Congress; Benjamin Feinberg, State Senator; E. J.
Roach, State
Assemblyman; Dr. Charles A. Stewart, Mayor of Rouses Point, and Kenneth
Knapp,
Mayor of Mooers.
The
program
of the celebration follows:
Saturday, August 20, 1938:
3:00
P.M.
‑ Dedication of Memorial Plaque
at Village Hall.
3:30
P.M.
‑ Erection of six State Markers
on sites of historical interest.
6:30
P.M.
‑ Banquet and program with
music in Village Hall.
Sunday, August 21, 1938:
Sesquicentennial
Services
in the churches for
“Old Home” guests.
The
State
of New York has completed the six
markers which have already arrived. Furthermore, the finance
committee, the
chairman of which is Phil Agel, reports that the subscriptions have
passed the
half way mark. All persons interested in the commemoration should
give their
subscriptions to the chairman at Champlain.
“SCHOOL IN 1807”
At “Sesqui” Banquet
“What
territory
lies east of New Hampshire?”
“How
do
you spell "conscience"?”
“What
is
the surveyor's unit of measure”
“Recite
the
Twenty-third Psalm.”
These
are
some of the questions asked at Dr.
Beaumont "School" as it existed in 1807 and as it will re-exist on
August 20, 1938. The actual textbooks used at that early time
will be
demonstrated and Dr. Beaumont himself may be present in "dramatis
personae."
The
life
and career of Dr. William Beaumont,
early teacher in Champlain's first school, are an inspiration.
Reading by
candle light in the pioneer home in New, Lebanon, Conn.; studying
medicine at
night while teaching in Champlain; twenty-eight years as surgeon in the
United
States Army; the series of experiments and research studies in
medicine; the
honorary degree by Columbia University, and the publication of the
“Physiology
of Digestion” — these are the milestones of Champlain's greatest
schoolteacher.
The
preparations
for Champlain’s celebration
were finally complete as the August 18, 1938, edition of the North
Countryman noted. Hundreds of invitations had been mailed to
people around
the country that had either lived in Champlain previously or had
relatives who
did. Several descendents of Pliny Moore attended this
celebration. Over 150
people planned to attend a dinner in the Village Hall and hear Hugh
McLellan
give a talk about the historical background of Champlain. The
historian of the
State of New York also planned to give a speech.
Sesquicentennial Program Completed For
Saturday's Observance at Champlain
The
completed
preparations for the
Sesquicentennial Celebration of the founding of the town of Champlain
and the
arrival of the first settlers indicate that the day will be remembered
as one
of the outstanding occasions of the North Country.
In
response
to the hundreds of invitations
which have been sent to former residents in all parts of the country,
the
reservations for the dinner and evening program are being received from
far and
near. Among the more distant guests are Mrs. Edna McDowell
Barcklay, of
Lincoln, Nebraska; Miss Margaretta Brown,
of
Winnetka,
Illinois;
Mr. and Mrs. Claude Bailey,
of
Burnt
Hills,
N.Y.; Dr. and Mrs. Hackett, of Leonia, N. J.; James A.
Hagerty,
New York Times correspondent, and Mrs. Hagerty; Mr. and Mrs. John
Staley, of
Albany, as well as many others from Washington, D.C., Brooklyn, N. Y.,
Montreal, Plattsburgh, Fort Covington, Bryn Mawr, Pa., and elsewhere.
The
arrangements
for the dinner were
necessarily limited to 150 guests and all indications are that the
capacity of
the Village Hall will be taxed to its utmost. It was stated
yesterday that all
reservations for the dinner have been taken up. Among the
notables present
will be Arsene E. Tremblay, Mayor of the Village of Champlain; Hon.
Emmett J.
Roach, Member of Assembly; Leslie G. Ryan, Supervisor of the town of
Champlain;
Dr. Edward J. Alexander, director of the New York State Historical
Association;
Dr. Alexander C. Flick, Historian of the State of New York; Edmund
Seymour,
New
York
banker,
and Egbert C. Everest, of Plattsburgh.
Initiating
the
evening's program, little Miss
Eunice Burton,
"the
girl
of
1788," will greet Dr. Flick, historian of 1938. The
dinner in the Village Hall will begin at 7 o'clock and will open with
an
invocation by Rev. Robert Duford and a word of welcome by Mayor
Tremblay.
During the dinner music will be furnished by Hudson's string trio.
Mr.
Seymour,
as toastmaster, will introduce the
various speakers of the evening. Hugh McLellan will deliver a
talk on the
"Historical Background of the Town of Champlain"; Mr. Everest will
talk on "Early History and Reminiscences," and Dr. Flick will deliver
an address, his topic being "The History of Clinton County and Lake
Champlain."
A
tableau
will be presented on the stage,
depicting a school of 1807 in Champlain. An interesting feature
of the tableau
is that the books, maps and other material used are all authentic
originals of
the 1800 period. Old songs will be presented by a quartette, and
group singing
will close the program.
On
exhibition
during the dinner will be Indian
relics, the original survey of the Pliny Moore Grant of 1785,
day-books,
journals and diaries of 1785‑1788; early paintings, portraits and
photographs, original letters of Jacques Rouse, Laurent Olivier, Pryx
Asselin,
Dr. William Beaumont, Judge Moore and other early settlers, as well, as
many of
the prominent people who were intimately connected with the early
settlement including
John Jacob Astor, General George Izard, General Wade Hampton and others.
In
the
afternoon, at 3 o'clock, the citizens
and their guests will formally dedicate the bronze tablet, which will
be
mounted on a granite boulder in front of the Village Hall. The
principal
address will be given by Dr. Alexander. Mayor Tremblay will
accept the tablet
in behalf of the village.
Immediately
following
the unveiling ceremony, a
pilgrimage to historical sites will be made and six historical markers,
the
gift of the State of New York, will be dedicated by appropriate
ceremonies.
Among those who will speak at this time are Hon. Ezra Trepanier, Dr.
George R.
Allen, Oscar Bredenberg, Hugh McLellan and others.
A
sound
amplifying system will make the words
of the various speakers and the concert available to the large
attendance which
is anticipated.
The
committee
in charge reports enthusiastic
response from the public. The exhibit of old photographs in
Hogge's store is
attracting a great deal of attention, with amusing endeavors by
old-timers to
identify the portraits and old landmarks.
The
granite
boulder, on which the tablet will
be mounted, has been presented by John Scales, of Scales' Point, and is
now in
position in front of the Village Hall. The boulder weighs more
than two tons.
Special
programs
are being arranged in the
different churches for Sunday, August 21st, and many other attractions
over the
weekend are being arranged.
Besides
the
dinner and speeches, various
historical plaques were to be erected. The largest one was placed
in front of
the Village Hall. Today it is still present. Smaller
historical plaques,
common thoughout the state, were placed at the various points of
interest under
Hugh’s direction.
The
August
18, 1938, edition of the North
Countryman noted the plaque placed in honor of Colonel Benjamin
Forsyth who
was killed by the British in Odelltown, Quebec, in 1814. He was
brought back
to Champlain and died in the basement of the Pliny Moore house.
He was buried
in the Old Cemetery. Interestingly, the plaque was not placed
near the Old Cemetery but instead was placed at the entrance to the
Glenwood Cemetery which is up the
road. The plaque stood here from 1938 until the summer of 2001
when I noticed
it was moved to the yard of a house where the cemetery had been.
I was told by
Marshall Maynard of the Glenwood Cemetery that in 1938, Oscar
Bredenberg’s wife
did not want the plaque placed in her yard so it was instead placed up
the
road. Today, the plaque is in the correct location.
TO MARK GRAVE OF COL. FORSYTHE AT
CHAMPLAIN SESQUI.
One
of
the six historical markers to be erected
by the State of New York in connection with Champlain’s
Sesquicentennial on
Saturday, August 20th is to honor Col. Benjamin Forsyth who died in
Champlain
on June 28, 1814 as the result of gunshot wounds sustained in a fight
with the
British earlier on the same day at Odelltown, Que.
Col.
Forsyth's
remains lie in an marked grave
in what was known as the "Old Burying Yard." This plot of ground
is
on the west side of Oak street and is now occupied by the residences of
Blair
Hawkes and Oscar Bredenberg. The old cemetery ceased to exist in
1866 when the
present Glenwood Cemetery was laid out.
Also
during
the celebrations, photographs of
early Champlain were displayed in the Hogge drug store. Many of
the village
residents contributed to the display. It was noted that the old
bank building
was shown with only one story on it. This is the building
adjacent to the
Session House at the bridge. Similar photographs of the building
are shown in
this book. Perhaps Hugh contributed some of these photographs
then. The August
18, 1938, North Countryman described the exhibit.
DISPLAY OF EARLY PHOTOGRAPHS
IN CHAMPLAIN STORE
One
of
the most interesting of the exhibits in
connection with the Champlain Sesquicentennial is in the windows of the
Hogge
drug store where more than 150 photographs, some of them as much as 70
years
old, are on display. The exhibit is causing a good deal of
interest and
comment and hundreds of people stop daily to recall events of years ago
and to
attempt to pick out faces that were familiar in the village a
half-century and
more ago.
The
oldest
picture in the display, according to
Wm. Hogge, who arranged the exhibit, was taken about 70 years
ago. To noon
Wednesday there were 161 pictures in all and more were being added
constantly.
The photographs are the property of villagers who have loaned them for
the
purpose and to whom they will be returned.
Included
among
the pictures are many that show
the main street of the village as it appeared during various periods
during the
past 60 years. Among them is an old one of Father Chagnon, early
pastor for of
St. Mary's Church, another of Rev. Wm. Frasier, a former Presbyterian
minister
in the village. There are several pictures taken at the unveiling
of the
Champlain monument and an old one showing the Champlain bank when it
was a
one-story building. A picture of the Angell & Spellman store
is included
in the display and one of the "haunted house," which used to stand on
the road between the village and what is now the Meridian.
The
Sesquicentennial
celebration was held on
Saturday, August 20, and also on Sunday. A week later, the August
25, 1938, North
Countryman described in detail how the celebrations went.
Several Pliny
Moore relatives were involved in the celebrations besides Hugh
McLellan.
Eunice Burton and her grandfather, Edmund Seymour, were both involved
with the
dinner celebrations.
Sesquicentennial at Champlain on Saturday
Drew Large Crowds
Champlain's
Sesquicentennial
held on Saturday
of last week, attracted large crowds throughout the day and evening and
was one
of the most successful events of the kind held in this section in
years. Many
former residents of the village were back for the ceremonies and more
than 150
persons attended the banquet held in the community hall at night.
One
of
the highlights of the ceremonies was the
unveiling and dedication of a memorial tablet in front of the village
hall by
Eunice Burton, of New York, great-great-great-granddaughter of Judge
Pliny
Moore, one of the founders of the town, and Lionel Ashline, a
great-great-great-grandson of Prisque Ashline, another pioneer settler.
The
dedication
took place at 3 o'clock in the
afternoon at ceremonies in front of the hall and with Walter B.
Spelman, of Chicago, presiding. Following an invocation by the
Rev. Paul Thomas, of the Methodist Church, the tablet was unveiled and
presented to the village by Phil Agel and
accepted by Mayor Arsene Tremblay for the community. Dr. Edward
P. Alexander
made a historical address, which was exceedingly interesting, and the
benediction was given by the Rev. Robert Heron, of Christ and St.
John's
churches. The 26th Infantry Band, of Plattsburgh Barracks, gave a
concert
under the direction of Sergeant K. H. Hodgeman, leader.
Historical
sights
in and about the village of
Champlain were marked with appropriate tablets presented by the
Education
Department of the State of New York. Dedicatory remarks were made
by the Hon.
Ezra Trepanier, Hugh McLellan, Rev. Robert Heron, Hugh M. Flick, Oscar
E.
Bredenberg and Dr. George R. Allen. Sites marked were those of
the first
sawmill, erected in 1788 by Pliny Moore and Elnathan Rogers; the East
Battery, of the American Army's artillery under Maj.-Gen. George Izard,
erected in
1814; the camp ground of the British Army in 1814; Champlain's first
school;
the original burying ground and the birthplace of Jehudi Ashmun.
The
following
program was presented at the
banquet in the evening:
Greetings
—
Young Ladies of 1788 — Joan Durbin,
Sydney Ann Allen, Constance Spelman, Mary Helen Adams.
Invocation
—
Rev. Robert O. Duford, Champlain.
Welcome
—
Arsene E. Tremblay, Mayor of
Champlain.
"The
Occasion"
— Edmund Seymour, New York City.
Address
—
Mrs. Edith McDowell Barclay.
"Historic
Background"
— Hugh
McLellan.
Champlain's
First
School, And Episode, 1809 —
Electa, Alice
Bartlow;
Noahdiah[sic], John Whitman; Mehitabel, Jeanette Coonan; Sophronia,
Elizabeth
Bredenberg; Orson, Gerald Coonan; William Beaumont, schoolmaster,
Walter B.
Spelman.
"Early
Settlers
and Reminiscences" — Hon.
Egbert C. Everest, of Plattsburgh.
Music
—
Trio — Fred C. Hudson, cello; Lucy A.
Hudson, violin; Margery Strong, piano.
"The
North
Country" — Dr. Alexander
C. Flick, Albany, State Historian.
“America
the
Beautiful”
Benediction
—
Rev. Arthur J. V. Durbin,
Champlain.
Committees
in
charge of the Sesquicentennial
were:
Honorary
Chairman,
Mayor Arsene E.
Tremblay.
Executive
Chairman,
Rev. Arthur J.
V. Durbin
Historian,
Hugh
McLellan
Secretary,
Woodberry
McLellan
Financial,
Philip
Agel
Special
Committees
—
Invitation,
Mrs.
Elmer Deal
Tickets,
John
Fallon
Boulder,
Oscar
E. Bredenberg
Public
Address,
John Craig
Banquet,
Mrs.
Lola Deal Nason
Decoration,
G.
Clarke Washburn
Program,
Walter
B. Spelman
General
Committee
—
Victor E. Bredenberg,
William
Bullis, John Coonan, Orville R. Dunn, Edmund A. Gallant, Mrs. George
Gload,
Clifford C. LaPlante, Israel Monnette, William O. Roberts, Ralph L.
Robie,
Charles E. Southwick, Richard L. Wootton.
The
September
8, 1938, edition of the North
Countryman had more information about the historical marker in
front of the
Village Hall as well as the six historical markers placed around the
village.
Hugh had determined the wording on all of the plaques.
Memorial Tablet and Historical Markers
Are Erected At Champlain
Perhaps
the
most interesting event on the very
elaborate program presented at the Champlain Sesquicentennial on August
20,
1938, in honor of the founding of the town 150 years before, was the
dedication
of the memorial tablet attached to a huge boulder permanently placed in
position in front of the Village Hall. While hundreds of persons
saw the
dedication and heard the dedicatory remarks of the speakers, there were
many
who did not have the opportunity to read the inscription on the
tablet. It
follows:
1788
1938
To
Commemorate
the Founding
of
the
TOWN
OF
CHAMPLAIN
March,
7,
1788
And
the Arrival
of the First Settlers
Pliny
Moore
Joseph
Rowe
William
Beaumont
Elnathan
Rogers
Samuel
Ashmun
Caleb
Thomas
May
23, 1788
Also
As
a
Tribute
To
Those
Canadians,
Early
Inhabitants
of
the Town,
Who
Supported the
American Cause
In
the Revolution
Erected
by
the
Citizens
of Champlain
Aug.
20,
1938
Inscriptions
on
the six historical markers
placed at sites in and near the village are as follows:
"Near
this
Site the First Saw Mill Was
Erected In 1788 by Pliny Moore and Elnathan Rogers"
"East
Battery.
On this Hill Was Encamped
the Artillery of the American Army Under Gen. George Izard, 1814."
"Camp
Ground
of the British Army, 1814.
Opposite is the Farm of Pliny Moore, Built in 1808; and Used by the
Commissary"
“In
the
First School, Which Stood Near This
Site, Dr. William Beaumont, Surgeon and Physiologist, was Schoolmaster,
1807—10”
“Site
of
the Burying Yard in Which Was Interred
Lt.-Col. Benjamin Forsyth, Killed at Odelltown, L. C., June 28, 1814”.
"Site
of
the Birthplace of Jehudi Ashmun,
April 21, 1794, First Colonization Agent At Liberia, Africa, 1822‑1828".
In
the
same September 8, 1938, edition of the North
Countryman, it noted that the Town of Champlain extended from the
St.
Lawrence River to Vermont when Pliny Moore organized it in 1788.
Over the
years, however, as more people settled the area, smaller towns such as
Mooers,
Chazy, Rouses Point, and Ellenburg were formed from the Town of
Champlain.
Town of Champlain Once Extended to St.
Lawrence
The
town
of Champlain, when it was organized in
1788, was very much larger than it is at the present time; in fact it
claimed
what is now a part of Vermont and extended west to the St. Lawrence
River.
Clinton,
the
second county be formed after the
Revolutionary War, was taken from Washington County the first to be
established, on March 7, 1788. At that time it embraced all of
the land on
both sides of Lake Champlain as claimed by the State of New York.
The claim
east of the Lake was abandoned upon the recognition of Vermont as an
independent state in 1791.
At
the
time of its formation, and for several
years afterward, Clinton included what is Clinton, Essex Franklin and
parts of
St. Lawrence counties. Then it had four towns: Champlain, Crown
Point, Plattsburgh and Willsborough. The Town of Champlain,
besides claiming Alburgh and Isle la
Motte extended west to the St. Lawrence River, and included what is now
Chazy,
Altona, Mooers Ellenburg, Clinton, Chateaugay, Burke, Malone and many
others
since formed in the territory it then embraced.
Hugh
McLellan,
Champlain historian, has early
charts of the town showing it as it was first laid out by its
founders. These
were among the many interesting and valuable documents that were
exhibited at
the Sesquicentennial in August.
Views of the Historical Plaques — Past and
Present
Hugh
McLellan
designed six historical plaques
that were placed at important locations around Champlain in 1938.
He also
designed another plaque that commemorated the founding of the Town of
Champlain by its first group of settlers on May 23, 1788. Today,
the plaque is on a rock
at the corner of Main and Church Streets in Champlain.
On
the
plaque are several important names:
Elnathan Rogers married Pliny’s sister Olive. William Beaumont is
the doctor
that Beaumont Hall at Plattsburgh State is named after. He
studied the
digestive process. Samuel Ashmun is the father of Jehudi Ashmun,
the founder
of Liberia, Africa, for freed slaves.
The
following
are pictures of the plaques taken
during the celebrations in 1938 as well as current photographs of the
same
plaques. It is nice to know that the plaques have survived intact
for over 60
years.
1788
1938
TO
COMMEMORATE THE FOUNDING
OF
THE
TOWN
OF CHAMPLAIN
MARCH
7, 1788
AND
THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST SETTLERS
PLINY
MOORE
JOSEPH ROWE
WILLIAM
BEAUMONT
ELNATHAN ROGERS
SAMUEL
ASHMUN
CALEB THOMAS
MAY
23, 1788
ALSO
AS A TRIBUTE TO
THOSE
CANADIANS, EARLY INHABITANTS
OF
THE TOWN,
WHO
SUPPORTED THE AMERICAN CAUSE
IN
THE REVOLUTION
ERECTED
BY THE CITIZENS OF CHAMPLAIN
AUGUST
20, 1938
Colonel
Benjamin
Forsyth also has a historical
marker. He is still buried in the Old Cemetery in an unmarked
grave. His
marker has an interesting story associated with it.
Although
Forsyth
was buried in the Old Cemetery, the historical marker
was placed in 1938 at the entrance to the Glenwood Cemetery down the
road. In the 1860s, most of the people in this cemetery had been
moved to the new cemetery but since Forsyth’s grave was unmarked, he
was
probably not moved.
The
site
of the cemetery was behind Oscar
Bredenberg’s house in 1938. It is said that his wife did not want
a historical
marker placed in her yard. A compromise was made and the marker
was moved down
the road and placed in front of the Glenwood Cemetery. Hugh would
have been
very aware of this.
The
following
speech was read at the dedication
of Forsyth’s historical plaque:
One of the
markers to be erected by the State of New York in connection with
Champlain’s
sesquicentennial on Aug. 20th, is one honoring Colonel Benjamin
Forsyth, who
died in this village, June 28, 1814. His remains lie in an
unmarked grave in
what was known as the “Old Burying Yard”. This plot of ground is
on the west
side of Oak Street, and is now occupied by the residences of Blair
Hawkes and
Oscar Bredenberg. The old cemetery ceased to exist in 1866, when
it was moved
to the present Glenwood Cemetery.
Col.
Forsyth
was mortally wounded at Odelltown, P.Q., June 28,
1814. His commanding general had ordered a small party of
Americans to attack a larger party of British and then to beat a hasty
retreat,
leading the pursuing party into an ambush which had been formed.
In the Raleigh, N.C. Register of July 15, 1814, we find this account:
“At
a
short distance
from the road, Colonel Forsyth lay with a party of riflemen in
ambush. It is
said that the Colonel had also been ordered to retreat if discovered by
the enemy
while advancing; and that, had the orders been obeyed, a strong
detachment then
moving in the skirt of the wood would have gained the enemy's rear and
captured
them. But unfortunately for the service as well as himself, Col.
Forsyth, as
soon as the enemy came up, gave them battle. They suspected the
ambuscade,
returned two fires and then retreated. At the first fire, Col.
Forsyth fell.
He received a shot through his breast and shortly thereafter
expired. Col.
Forsyth was a brave and intrepid soldier. On our part, except the
Colonel, two
only were wounded, and none killed. Of the killed and wounded of
the enemy we
are not informed.”
Forsyth's
exploits
were not confined to this
locality. From 1800 on, he had had intermittent military service
in the
regular Army. He had also served two terms in the North Carolina
Assembly. In
Sept. 1812, he led a raid on Ganonoque, Onto, destroying military
stores and
taking some prisoners. Later, in Feb, 1813, while commandant of
the post at
Ogdensburgh he led a raid on Elizabethtown, Ont, capturing 57 prisoners
and a
quantity of military stores, returning without the loss of a single
man.
However, in a few days, the British retaliated by attacking Ogdensburgh
with 1200
men, and forced Forsyth to retreat to Black Lake. Nothing
daunted, Forsyth
appeared shortly thereafter at the capture of Fort George in Canada.
“For
distinguished
services” Major Forsyth was
first given the brevet rank of lieutenant colonel, and was later (April
15,
1814) commissioned lieutenant colonel of the 26th. Infantry. It
is interesting
to note that this same regiment is now quartered at Plattsburgh
Barracks.
Col.
Forsyth's
death was so greatly lamented
that on March 24, 1817, the Common Council of the City of New York
directed
that the name of Second Street in that City, be changed to Forsyth
Street in
his honor. The State of North Carolina honored Forsyth by
presenting his only
son with a sword and by voting $250 annually for 7 years for his
education.
This son graduated from Annapolis, received his commission and was lost
at sea
in the wreak of the Hornet in 1829. In 1849, by act of the
General Assembly of
the State of North Carolina, Stokes County was divided and out of it
was
created the County of Forsyth in honor of its native son, “who fell on
the
northern frontier in the late war with England.”
A
second
plaque has been dedicated in honor of
Jehudi Ashmun. This plaque was dedicated 21 years later in
1959. It is
located on the grounds of the elementary school in Champlain.
Most
of
the historical markers that Hugh had
commissioned for the 1938 Sesquicentennial celebration exist except for
one.
The “East Battery” was a location that the American Army encamped at in
1812. It
was near the corner of Pine and Spruce Streets. The encampment is
now (and was
in 1869) surrounded by numerous houses that line the hill adjacent to
St.
Mary’s Church.
An
article
about the Sesquicentennial
celebration gave the inscription that was on the missing marker:
"East
Battery.
On
this Hill Was Encamped the Artillery of the American
Army Under Gen.
George Izard, 1814."
In
Pliny’s
Will, he noted that he wanted a
church built at the site of the former East Battery. Hugh was
able to determine
the location of the East Battery based on Pliny’s description and early
maps of
Champlain. He read the following at the dedication of the marker:
It
is
from the Will of Judge Pliny Moore that
we are able to locate quite accurately the site of the East Battery,
and of the
Artillery Encampment of the American Army, commanded by General George
Izard in
1814.
I
will
read that portion of Judge Moore’s Will
which has given us this information.
"I
give
and devise to the first
Congregational Church & Society in Champlain one acre of land for
the
purpose of erecting a Meeting house & other buildings for the
accomodation
of People attending meeting to cover their horses in bad weather on any
part of
my land within half a mile of the village & not on the low ground
where the
buildings in the village are
“it
should
be built on the hill a little south
of the East Battery near where the Artillery were incamped
“it
is
my purpose should life & health be
continued to me an other year to designate a Site on that hill with a
proper
space for a Green and open a Street from the Corbin Barn (which stood
near the
present store of Ralph Lewis), through the Brick Yard (between Mr.
Tremblay’s
blacksmith shop and the brick Row), up to a street from the highway on
the hill
(Church Street) beyond my son Noadiahs house by the south fence of a
small
pasture he has enclosed straight through to the highway leading to
Chazy (This
cross street that on which we are gathered today).
General
Izard,
with a force of about 4,500 men,
was in command of the Northern Frontier, with headquarters at Chazy,
and his
outpost at Champlain. Much against his own judgment, he was
withdrawn from
this position in the latter part of August. In a letter to the
Secretary of
War, on August 20, 1814 (just 124 years ago today), he wrote” I
must not be
responsible for consequences of abandoning my present strong position”.
The
British
Army occupied Champlain the day
following General Izard’s departure.
More
information
about the location of the East Battery was found in
Hugh’s Moorsfield Press publication on the history of the church
by Charles Freeman Nye. Hugh also noted the current names of the
streets in
1938.
A
very
early map of the Village of Champlain indicates the "Corbin
Barn" on the lot occupied successively by Dunning
& Dickinson, William Broder, James DeF. Burroughs and now by Ralph
E.
Lewis' hardware store; and the "Brick Yard" as extending along the
south side of Cedar Street, from Hormidas Tremblay's Shop to the "Brick
Row." It is therefore evident that Judge Moore’s suggestion
was to build
the church on Third Street, (sometimes designated as Pine Street),
opposite the
northern end of Center Street, (sometimes designated as Spruce Street);
and to
approach it by the continuation of the eastern crook of Cedar Street,
(sometimes designated as Second Street), from Main Street, through the
"Brick Yard" and up the hill to Third Street.
