NPS Form 10-900-b OWBiNo. 1024-0018 (June 1991) ;{ I United States Department of the Interior t> t "' National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form This form is used for documenting multiple property groups relating to one or several historic contexts. See instructions in How to Complete the Multiple Property Documentation Form (National Register Bulletin 16B). Complete each item by entering the requested information. For additional space, use continuation sheets (Form 10-900-a). Use a typewriter, word processor, or computer to complete all items. X New Submission __ Amended Submission A. f^ame of Multiple Property Listing HISTORIC RESOURCES OF THE MAD RIVER VALLEY B. Associated Historic Contexts (Name each associated historic context, identifying theme, geographical area, and chronological period for each.) Community Development of the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 Agriculture in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 Industry and Commerce in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 C. Form Prepared by__________________________________________________ ,.... Multiple (see continuation sheet) University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program organization Vermont Division for Historic Preservation ______ date 1989/1992____ Wheeler House, University of Vermont (802) 656-3180 street & number 109 State Street _____________________ telephone (802) 828-3226 Burlington 05405 city or town Montpelier_________ state Vermont_________ zip code 05609-1201_____ D. Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I hereby certify that this documentation form meets the National Register documentation standards and sets forth requirements for the listing of related properties consistent with the National Register criteria. This submission meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60 and the SecretarvpjLjhe Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation. (O See continuation sheet for additional com me/its.) _____________________ September 30, 1992 Signature and titfe of certifying official Date Vermont State Historic Preservation Office____________________________ State or Federal agency and bureau I hereby certify that this multiple property documentation form has been approved by the National Register as a basis for evaluating related properties for listingjnfthe Historic Resources of the Mad River Valley_______________ Vermont Name of Multiple Property Listing State Table of Contents for Written Narrative Provide the foilowing information on continuation sheets. Cite the letter and the title before each section of the narrative. Assign page numbers according to the instructions for continuation sheets in How to Complete the Multiple Property Documentation Form (National Register Bulletin 16B). Fill in page numbers for each section in the space below. Page Numbers E. Statement of Historic Contexts E 1 - E 23 (If more than one historic context is documented, present them in sequential order.) F. Associated Property Types F 1 - F 6 (Provide description, significance, and registration requirements.) C 1 G. Geographical Data H. Summary of Identification and Evaluation Methods H 1 - H 2 (Discuss the methods used in developing the multiple property listing.) I. Major Bibliographical References 11-13 (List major written works and primary location of additional documentation: State Historic Preservation Office, other State agency, Federal agency, local government, university, or other, specifying repository.) Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This information is being collected for applications to the National Register of Historic Places to nominate properties for listing or determine eligibility for listing, to list properties, and to amend existing listings. Response to this request is required to obtain a benefit in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 470 et sec/.). Estimated Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this form is estimated to average 18.1 hours per response including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining data, and completing and reviewing the form. Direct comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of this form to the Chief, Administrative Services Division, National Park Service, P.O. Box 37127, Washington DC 20013-7127- and the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reductions Project (1024-0018), Washington, DC 20503 NP8 Form 1(WO&« QMS Approval Mo. 10244016 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet HISTORIC RESOURCES OF THE MAD RIVER VALLEY C 1 Section number ___ Page ___ Contributors FORM PREPARED BY: Community Development of the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 Agriculture in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program with the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation Sheryl Adler Letitia Richardson Richard Casella Elizabeth Rosin Suzanne Jamele Kristine Wilson MaryAnn Nabor Mark Wolfe Project Advisor: Elsa Gilbertson Industry and Commerce in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 Property Type: Village Architecture Conservation and Education Service University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program Thomas D. Visser Mark Wolfe Revisions: Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, 1992 NP8 Form 10-800* OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 (MS) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet HISTORIC RESOURCES OF THE E 1 MAD RIVER VALLEY Section number ___ Page ___ HISTORIC CONTEXTS E1 - E10 Community Development of the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 E11 - E15 Agriculture in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 E16 - E23 Industry and Commerce in the Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 NJJFom, 1MO<* United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuationuunimuauon aneei^hAot HISTORICRIVER RESOURCES VALLEY OF THE 0^*! _ ^. _u-fc E _. 1 A Community Development of the Section number ————— Page Mad River Valley, 1 789-1942 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OF THE MAD RIVER VALLEY, 1789-1942 * The towns of Fayston, Moretown, Waitsfield, and Warren are located in the Mad River Valley of central Vermont. While the town of Moretown was a royal charter made in 1763, the other three towns were chartered by the Republic of Vermont in 1780 and 1782, during the Revolutionary War. Settlement did not commence until well after the war was over. Moretown was chartered June 7, 1763, and was intended to contain six square miles to be divided into three parts, and further divided into 71 shares. A tract near the center of town was set aside for one-acre town lots, one for each of the 64 proprietors, with rent set at one ear of indian corn per year, payable on Christmas Day. The remaining parcels were drawn by lot. The first settler in Moretown was Seth Munson, who cleared some land on the Winooski River, where he was joined in 1790 by Ebenezer Haseltine. By 1791 there were twenty-four people living in Moretown. Waitsfield was chartered February 25, 1782, and the land granted to Benjamin Wait, Roger Enos, and their 68 associates, with five additional lots set aside for public use. The proprietors held several organizational meetings before Wait moved to the valley with his family in 1789, becoming the first town residents. By 1791 the town had 61 residents divided between thirteen families, eleven of which contained veterans of the Revolutionary War. Fayston was chartered only two days after Waitsfield on February 27, 1782. Its first settler was Lynde Wait, who began farming on Bragg Hill in 1798, and by 1800 Fayston had eighteen residents. While there was some discussion in the early years of the 19th century with regard to Waitsfield annexing Fayston, it never occurred. By 1810 Fayston had a population of 149, and the population continued to climb until soon after the Civil War. The town of Warren had a fitful start. Although John Thorp and sixty-seven other men had obtained a land grant on November 9, 1780, they fell short of the amount of land necessary to incorporate. The town was finally chartered on October 20, 1789, after including land from Warren's Gore in what was then Essex County. Settlers made their homes in Warren in the mid-1790s, generally in the eastern part of the NPS Form 10-900* 0MB Approval No. 10244016 (846) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 2 Community Development of the __________________________________Mad River Valley, 1789-1942 town. The first town meeting was held September 20, 1798, and by 1800 there were 58 inhabitants. Some of these early residents discovered Native American artifacts, indicating that they were not the first people to live in the valley. Wheat, barley, rye, corn, oats, flax, buckwheat, potatoes and hay were the major crops raised by the early settlers. Butter, cheese, maple syrup, ashes and salts of lye were also local products. These settlers transported their grain by canoe on the Winooski River to be milled downstream in Burlington, or made their own "plumping mills" by making a hole in a large stump to hold the grain, which was then pounded with a chunk of wood attached to the end of a bent sapling. A gristmill and a sawmill were built in Irasville, a village in southern Waitsfield, in the early 1790s and others followed in the villages of Moretown, Warren, and Waitsfield. Whiskey distilleries were also developed in the early years in these towns, and general stores quickly provided a ready market for barter with local goods. Other industries were established, generally along the Mad River and its tributaries, which provided the necessary power. On the west side of the valley in Waitsfield a blacksmith shop was in operation on Shepherd's Brook as early as 1798. A starch factory was built there in 1849, and a sawmill also operated at the site. Above the Brook to the north was a talc mine. Above Carding Mill Brook near the Fayston town line was a small chair factory, established before 1850. The east side of the valley had its share of industry as well.