Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid - 1780

1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic by 78 people | Log in to rate

Ranked #342 in How-To, #3,550 overall

1780 - Garner Rix, The story of a real boy who lived in Colonial Times

Garner Rix was just 12 when he moved with his father, pregnant mother, two sisters and three brothers from a farm in Connecticut to a log cabin on the banks of the White River, a place that would one day be called Royalton, Vermont.

He helped his father dig stumps and built bridges and roads.

Garner Rix was captured by the British and Mohawks during the Royalton Raid. The Mohawks took him to Montreal and sold him to a French woman who kept him safe until he could walk home a year later.

He went on to clear his own land, build a house, a mill and more roads and raise his own family.

He lived in an exciting time and saw more of the world than most boys of his time would ever have wanted to but took that experience and turned it into wonderful tales by the fireside with his grandchildren at his knee.


Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid



Halt by the Wayside
Currier & Ives

Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid Table of Contents 

Garner Rix and his family in 1780

Explore the way of life of a Vermont pioneer family at the end of the 18th Century as they turn wilderness into a thriving-self sufficient farm. Learn about transportation, clothing, wild and domestic animals, plants grown, communication and cultural clashes. Bring these times to life with hands-on projects and suggestions for integrating this theme into all areas of the curriculum.

This Unit Study on the life of a Vermont family in the 1780's is adaptable for all ages making it wonderful for any grade level, homeschool family or just anyone interested in exploring history.

Photo Credit: Incident in Cherry Valley
from Wikipedia Commons.

Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid

The Rix Family came from Connecticut before the Royalton Raid 

Goodbye to Grandparents

The Rix Family moves up the Connecticut River to Vermont

Early Settlers of Vermont
Following the Connecticut River Valley Northward

Buy at AllPosters.com

Early Settlers of Vermont Following the Connecticut River Valley Northward
Garner was born on July 31, 1767 in Preston, New London, Connecticut. He grew up on the farm near his grandparents, aunts, uncles and lots of cousins. He was the oldest son of Daniel and Rebecca (Johnson) Rix. When Garner was about 12 years old his family packed up their things and moved up the Connecticut River to their new home in Royalton, Vermont. That year his older sister, Susanna, was 14. She probably was a great help to their mother in caring for the younger children: Joseph 9, Rebecca 7, Daniel 4, and Little Elisha just 2 years old. In this, the spring of 1779, their mother, Rebecca, 37, was pregnant with Jerusha.

oxen

Photo Credit: Pair of Devons hooked to traditional New England ox cart.
From BerryBrook Ox Supply

Probably Daniel, 40, had gone up earlier to scout out the land and build a cabin leaving Rebecca to run the farm with the help of her children. Susanna would have been old enough to cook, clean, weave, tend the kitchen garden and take care of the younger children. Garner was old enough to handle all the chores, take care of the fields and bring in the wood. There is no record of exactly when they moved but it is safe to assume that they had gone early in the spring in order to plant the spring crops. Beginning in December 1779, Daniel held many town offices and was in charge of building the first three bridges across the White River.

Who were the members of Garner Rix's family? 

They were all born before the 1780 Royalton Raid

Daniel Rix was Garner's father. He was born September 24,1738 in Preston, Conn. He died on March 23, 1823 in Royalton, Vt. at age 85.

Rebecca (Johnson) Rix was Garner's Mother. She was born about 1742 in Connecticut. and she died in Royalton the same year as her husband age 81. They were married on October 28, 1762 in Preston, Connecticut. All of their children except Jerusha were born in Connecticut.

Garner Rix Their children were:
Susanna RIX b: 30 JUN 1765
Garner RIX b: 31 JUL 1767
Joseph Johnson RIX b: 31 AUG 1770
Rebecca RIX b: 10 MAY 1772
Daniel RIX b: 22 APR 1775
Elisha Lee RIX b: 4 MAR 1777
Jerusha RIX b: 23 AUG 1780 in Royalton, Vt.

This is the only photograph of Garner Rix. It was passed down to me in a family album.

Photo Credit: 18th Century Family from Edupics.com.
Photo Credit: Garner Rix from the family photo album

.

Living in Connecticut in 1700's: Historical Fiction 

Fiction to fill out the lives of Garner Rix and his family in the 18th Century

1700's Farming

Photo Credit: Threshing Grain
from Benjamin Butterworth (ed.), Growth of Industrial Art,
Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1892, 23



Each of these books gives us a glimpse into the lives of families like the Rix's living on farms in Connecticut during the 1770's.

Pretend that you are one of the Rix's. Make a quill pen and use beet juice from canned beets to write about your experiences traveling up the river from Connecticut to Vermont. What animals did you see along the banks? What was it like to sleep out under the stars? What did you miss from your home in Connecticut?

1780 World Map 

18th Century World Map

1780 World Map

What were the political divisions of the world in 1780?

As the American Revolution progressed the map was changing. You can own a map of the world in 1780 and use it to discover political differences in other parts of the world that will lead you to events happening throughout the world at the time of the Royalton Raid..

One can only wonder how much Garner Rix and his family knew about world events outside the town at a time when most people traveled by foot.
Historic World Map - 1780
Historic World Map - 1780. Available laminated.

Major Events at the turn of the 18th Century in Vermont 

1770 -1810 Events

Vermont Timeline

1770 - Green Mountain Boys organized to protect New Hampshire Grants

1775 - Ethan Allen captures Fort Ticonderoga

1776 - 1783 -Many Native Americans side with British against American colonists

1777 - Vermont declares itself a republic in Windsor adopting the 1st Constitution with universal male suffrage, public schools, and abolishing slavery

1779 - Property rights established for women

1780 - Last major Indian raid, led by the British, in Royalton

1783 - Peace Treaty ended the Revolutionary War and 80,000 Loyalists emigrated north to Canada

1791 - Vermont becomes 14th state

1791 - University of Vermont chartered

1791 - Population of Vermont is 85,341

1810 - Population of Vermont is 217,895
Vermont History Timeline: Vermont Important Dates and Events
Offers a chronological timeline of important dates and events in Vermont History. Access Vermont timeline, early history, state facts, state history firsts, and famous people.

NH, NY or Vermont 

Vermont was not yet a state in 1780 at the time of the Royalton Raid

What to call this area claimed by both New York and New Hampshire

Vermont

Click on the map to see this map up close. Note that Royalton is labeled Lynfield on this 1783 map. Starting in the south follow north along the course of the Connecticut River. Lynfield, now Royalton is northwest along the White River just past Sharon.

18th Century Vermont Map
How did Vermont Get to Be?: The Growth of a Regional Identity By Daniel Gade
A distinctive regional name was adopted quite deliberately. The two early territorial designations of "New Hampshire Grants" (later shortened to "The Grants") and "New Connecticut" were viewed as unsuitable in framing a separate geographic identity. "Verdmont" was proposed as the new name as early as 1763 in a supposed Gallic allusion to the Green Mountains that quietly mirrored the anti-British sentiment of the period.

The awkward "d" in that manufactured word was soon discarded, and the more felicitous present spelling was accepted in 1777. The first usage of the name Vermont on a map dates from 1780, although not until 1794 did such a map appear that corresponded to present borders.

Transportation in 1780 

How did Garner Rix's family get around?

In most parts of the states, roads were nearly nonexistent at first, and it wasn't until the 1880s that there was sufficient civilization to raise the speed of travel beyond the average walking speed.

Vermont in 1780 

A Brief History of Early Royalton before, during and after the Royalton Raid

Chartered by the Province of New York

Province of New York

The town of Royalton is the only town in Windsor County to receive its charter from the Province of New York. On November 13, 1769 Royalton was chartered to residents of New York. The first permanent settlement was made in town during the year 1771, by the coming of Robert Havens and his family.

Daniel and Rebecca Rix brought their family up 8 years later in 1779. Probably Daniel had come up earlier to pick out a plot of land and to build a log cabin for the family to move into.

The Attack On Royalton

The major event in Royalton's history occurred during the Revolution when on October 16, 1780 was attacked by the British and Mohawks. Daniel Rix's cabin and barn were burned to the ground. Joseph was captured and released but Garner was captured and taken to Montreal.

The attack on Royalton caused a tremendous amount of destruction and the Legislature extended the time of payment of the "grant in fees" for a period of five years, and designated by name the persons to whom the extension should be made including Daniel Rix, 42y, Garner Rix, 14y and Joseph John Rix, 11y.

Chartered by the Vermont Legislature

On December 20, 1781, by an act of the Vermont Legislature, the town was granted and chartered. The petition for the charter lists the 61 petitioners who were the actual settlers who had acquired there land under New York. All of these petitioners listed were men and boys who had settled in Royalton. Garner was included in this list dispite the fact that he was only 14 years old at the time. Family Tradition says that this is because he survived the Raid. Some believe that land was given to the young men to keep them from moving further west as they gained majority. In any case, Garner stayed, and this property is still in the family.
About Royalton and it's History
The Villages of Royalton, North Royalton and South Royalton, Vermont
Vermont 1771 Census
By studying the Vermont census you can see how quickly the population was growing. From 1770 to 1780 it is estimated that the population grew at about 16.9 percent whereas from 1780 to 1790 it only grew at about 5.5 percent.

Everyday life in 1780 

at the time of the Royalton Raid

Early Settlers of North America Clearing Land for Homes




Early Settlers of North America Clearing Land for Homes

Giclee Print


Buy at AllPosters.com


By working very hard the Rix family cleared the land, built a house and barn, raised crops, and turned the woodlands into a farm.

When we see land cleared today, large machinery is used to cut down the trees, dig up the roots, remove the rocks and plow the soil until it is smooth. Daniel Rix did not have any of that technology available. When the Rix family moved to Vermont, Daniel had oxen, an Ax and strong muscles. Garner, was probably working right beside him the whole time, developing his muscles and working like a man.

Rix Family Table Topics 

Topics of Discussion in the Late 18th Century

Happy Family

Happy Family
Torriglia
Buy at AllPosters.com



Subjects that might have been discussed by the Rix Family around the table, while working in the fields or in the kitchen while spinning.

Family Life 1780-1820 

Lives of people Garner Rix encountered in Vermont and Quebec in the 1780's

Dressing up as Garner Rix

Photo Credit: Dressing up as Garner Rix
on Bing Public Domain Images.



Garner Rix encountered many people. There were the farmers of Connecticut, pioneers moving to Vermont, Native Americans who had always used the forests of Vermont for hunting and gathering, and French fur traders. There were the people creating small towns in the wilderness and the people living in the developing city of Montreal.

What were their lives like? What did they do on a daily basis?
Family Life 1780-1820
The population of Britain's former North American colonies continued to expand in the years after the American Revolution.
Family Life and Sociability in Upper and Lower Canada 1780-1870
A look at family life in Canada drawing on diaries and letters exchanged between family members.
Native American Indians 1780-1820
William Apes, a Pequot, from his book

As white populations surged around them, Abenaki and many other Native American peoples -- lived what seemed to their white neighbors to be marginal existences developing into a myth of the disappearance of the native population.

Written records, including tribal records, government documents, and family papers reveal a persistent and continuous Native American presence in New England.

The life and writings of William Apes (1798-1839), a Pequot preacher, provide rare insights into Native life and community. Apes drew attention to racism and legal injustices, revealing the sophistication of Native peoples' understanding of their situation.
The vicissitudes of Mr. Seth Hubbell and his family 1789
" In the latter part of February, 1789, I set out from the town of Norwalk, in Connecticut, on my journey for Wolcott, to commence a settlement and make that my residence; family consisting of my wife and five children, they all being girls, the eldest nine or ten years old. My team was a yoke of oxen and..."

Who might Garner Rix have Met? 

Understanding Family Life of Various Cultures in 1780

Family Life 1780

One usually thinks of farmers in the late 18th century as living their whole lives in one spot. They would travel occasionally to town and probably know only the people living in the mediate vicinity.

That is not the case with Garner Rix. He grew up in Connecticut and moved to Vermont and then after being captured in the raid, he traveled with the Mohawks to Montreal and lived with French Canadians for a year.

The people that Garner Rix met were from various different cultures and spoke various different languages.

These books will help us to understand the cultures of some of the people that Garner Rix must have encountered.

What was life like for a Family in Royalton, Vt. in 1780? 

About the time of the Royalton Raid

Dressing in 1780's Style

These books are great read alouds for classrooms or homeschooling families who want to learn about what life was like for the early pioneers.

They describe everday chores, tools, recipes, harvesting and preserving foods.

Making your own soap, shucking corn or chopping down a tree with an axe you can make history come alive.

Though not all of these stories take place in 1780, the lives these people live depend on using only the materials they had at hand and their abilities to make everything from scratch.

The book The INDIAN CAPTIVE by Zadock Steele is a must read. It is an eyewitness account of the Royalton Raid and mentions Garner Rix in the narrative.

Garner Rix's Neighbors 

Building and Rebuilding Royalton, Vt. in 1780

Sunday Morning in Sleepy Hollow

Brownscombe,...Sunday Morning in Sleepy Hollow



The picture above reminds us of the way Garner Rix and his family might have looked as they walked down the dirt road and across the covered bridge to church on a Sunday Morning.

The two buildings in the picture below are still standing. The first building mentioned here as the meeting house is now the Episcopal Church. It has beautiful stained glass windows but is rarely used. There is another building to the east of this building which is the one actually known as the Meeting House. That building houses the Royalton Historical Society and is open by appointment.

The Academy Building is now used for town officer meetings, senior dinners and as a preschool. Many of Garner Rix's descendants went to that school. My grandfather was in the last class to graduate from there.
Zebulon Lyon helped build the town of Royalton, Vt
Zebulon Lyon often used his land holdings and generosity to attract businesses to Royalton. To attract a shoemaker, Zebulon offered Ebenezer Herrick a location for a rent of one dollar per year forever. Mr. Lyon also built the building for what was likely the first general store in Royalton (known as "The Red Store"), owned by the firm of Chandler and Mower.

Royalton Meeting House

The town meeting place (now church) at the left and the Royalton Academy, both built by Zebulon Lyon. The photo shows the second Academy building--the first building, also built by Zebulon, burned in the raid of 1780.

Read an Eyewitness Account of the 1780 Royalton Raid 

Zadock Steele was Garner Rix's Neighbor

Zadock Steele dramatically narrates the account of his imprisonment.

In 1780, a small group of British soldiers led a Mohawk raid on Royalton, Vermont, following which Steele and a number of others, including Garner Rix, were captured, taken to Canada, and held prisoner by the British.

Zadock Steele helped stage a daring escape - not knowing that the Revolutionary War was over.

Garner Rix, however, had been bought by a French Woman who mothered him until the war was over and then sent him home.

Books for Teachers 

More Ideas for Teaching about the 1780 Royalton Raid

Colonial Projects

What was it like to grow up in colonial America?

With Colonial Days: Discover the Past with Fun Projects, Games, Activities, and Recipes, today's students can experience colonial America through the lives -- and activities -- of yesterday's families!

Did you know, for example, that...

1. Potpourri means "the pot that rots"?

2. Colonists made black paint by roasting potatoes until they were black, grinding them into powder, and adding linseed oil?

3. Yeast is made up of microscopic fungi that feed off sugar and produce carbon dioxide, which is what causes bread to rise?

4. The game of lacrosse was invented by Native Americans?

5. Colonists needed more than a bushel of bayberries to make a single pair of candles?

6. Faraway objects look closer than usual when a storm is approaching?

In fact, Colonial Days: Discover the Past with Fun Projects, Games, Activities, and Recipes is so full of fascinating information and easily done authentic activities that home-school teachers can build an entire American history unit around it.

Classroom teachers of grades 3 and above will want to be sure to include this well-organized and well-written book in their library of resources!

Living in Vermont in 1780: Historical Fiction 

Raids previous to the Royalton Raid

Late 18th Century Working ManLate 18th Century Working Woman

Photo Credit: Late 18th Century Clothing
from The Costumer's Manifesto



Raids had been going on in New England for quite some time and the Rix Family must have been aware of the danger when they decided to move from Connecticut to Vermont. The following books tell of people captured by Native Americans in the years before the Royalton Raid. Reading these books can give an idea of what Garner Rix's experience might have been like as a captive of the Mohawks in 1780.

Clothing at the Time of the Royalton Raid 

What did Garner Rix and his Family Wear?

Colonial ClothingPhoto Credit: Late 18th Century Clothing
from The Costumer's Manifesto

In 1780 people made not only all their own clothing but the cloth as well. Rebecca, Susana and the younger children probably spent much of each day spinning and weaving. Daniel and Garner killed deer, bear or other animals, cured their hides and turned them into leather.

The actual practice of making homespun was uniquely suited to the day to day lives of colonial women. Although spinning was time consuming, it was easy to pick up and put down, allowing other chores to be completed. It was also easy and convenient for women to spin in their homes.

Diaries and journals of the eighteenth century tell us about weaving within the home, and the sharing of responsibilities for this arduous task. Fathers and sons felled trees and constructed looms, while mothers and daughters prepared the ground to plant flax seeds, which produced the fibers used in weaving.

Weaving: Ask parents to donate old cotton clothing, cut it into strips and weave it into floor mats. Look for more ideas at The Weaving Project

Clothing worn in 1780 

How to make the clothing worn at the tiime of the Royalton Raid

Clothing 1780

Notice the clothing worn in the upper photo. This is probably the style of clothing worn by Garner Rix and his family in the 1780's.

The shirt was one of the most basic of all
garments for the 18th century man, and, like the woman's shift, was worn as both the garment closest to the skin as well as to sleep in.

The shift is the basic undergarment for all women. It was a longer version of the man's shirt. Often aprons were made of wool as wool was more fireproof than any other fabric, and the working class woman was around fires most of the day.

They were almost always tied with woven tape ties, which were either sewn to the narrow band to which the apron was pleated, or were run as a drawstring through a casing at the waist. The tape was long enough to wrap around the back and towards the front again.

Then the tie was tied and usually tucked into the front of the apron, to prevent loose strings from catching fire or coming undone. Usually they were not made with self-fabric ties, which is how modern aprons are constructed..
96 District Storehouse
Fabrics and accessories for the Living Historian including patterns for Men's and women's 18th century clothing.
Reenactment Clothing from the 1780's
Have you ever gone to an art gallery, colonial village or Civil War re-enactment and wondered what it would be like to wear period clothing?

Most of the clothing you will see on this website, Laura Gibson produced using period
methods and materials available at the time, including cotton, wool, hemp, silk, linen, and combinations of linen/wool, wool/cotton and linen/cotton.

Laura Gibson makes incredible authentic period clothing for whenever you would like to step back in time.
Glossary of 18th Century Costume Terminology
Glossary of 18th Century Costume Terminology
Homespun Wools
Homespunlinsey woolsey

Wools

Wool was the most common fabric in New England in the 18th century and used to make all garments because of its durability. It was not only used for warmth but, worsteds, due to their absorbency and ability to breathe, are cool when used in the summer. It accepts dyes easily and is available in many colors.

Getting Dressed in the 18th Century 

powered by Youtube

Getting Dressed in 1805 

powered by Youtube

Classroom Activities about Colonial Life in 1780 

Hands-on Activities to understand Garner Rix and his family.

Colonial Classroom Activities

Classroom Activities K-3 1750-1800

Children learn best by experiencing what they are learning about. To make Garner Rix's life come alive for children they can try carding wool, turning it into yarn and knitting or weaving it into cloth just as Rebecca Rix must have done in the 1780's. They can try making bricks from clay, digging up small trees, or planting crops like Garner Rix and his father did.

Try taking a hike through the woods and imagine what it was like for Garner Rix as he traveled with the Mohawks on his way to Montreal.

Write a diary of these experiences as if you were Garner or Rebecca Rix.

Children will remember the lessons taught in a hands-on way.

Woodland Creatures 

Animals that lived on Garner Rix's Farm

Woodlands Bulletin Board

Photo Credit: Forest Poster



When the Rix family came to Vermont they found many Woodland Creatures living there.

Read about the animals that live in the northern woods or better yet, get outside, find a comfortable spot and settle down to observe. What animals do you see? What evidence or signs of animals do you see? Think about how the forest has changed since Garner Rix arrived in 1780. How has the diversity of wildlife in the forest changed because of the arrival of farmers.

Make a bulletin board of a woodland scene.

As you find out about the various animals that live there, draw a picture, cut it out and add it to the bulletin board.

Add labels to turn it into a Word Wall. (See Word Walls and Pointers for more Word Wall ideas.)

There were wolves and bears in the forest. River Otters living along the rivers and bluebirds were beginning to live in the clearings. frogs could be heard croaking in the pools in the summer and mice tried to eat their grain in the fall.

Red Tailed Hawk

Vermont's State Bird the Hermit Thrush is still abundant throughout Vermont in the summer and hawks soared overhead.

Woodchucks are abundant in Vermont.

Do you think that there were more or less woodchucks living on Garner Rix's farm after he clearing the land?

How did they affect life on Garner Rix's farm?

Learn more about Woodchucks.

Hermit Thrush - Audubon Plush Bird (Authentic Bird Sound)

State Bird: Vermont They are found north into Canada extending south into both eastern and western United States. Migration to southern states occurs in autumn. These tolerant birds may let humans approach as they forage on the forest floor for insects, worms and fruit. Wild Republic has partnered with Audubon to create this line of genuine plush birds. Each bird's lifelike design and detailing is the result of input from Audubon. In addition, the authentic sound in each bird has been provided by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and represents hours, months and even years of extensive fieldwork conducted by expert recordists. These Audubon Birds in this series vary in size but generally measure approximately 5 to 7 inches long.

Amazon Price: $5.95 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Plush GroundHog Puppet 12"

Groundhogs are better known in Vermont as woodchucks. Woodchucks live on the edge of clearings and fields. The population of woodchucks probably increased as Garner Rix and his family cleared land for farming.

Amazon Price: $20.07 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Plush Brutus Black Bear 50"

Papa Bear is big enough to snuggle up with when reading. Imagine that you are a black bear cub when the Rix family first arrives in Royalton. You are curious about the family. How do they appear to you? How will their presence effect your life?

Amazon Price: $149.99 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Wildlife around the Rix Farm 

Animals that Garner Rix encountered in 1780

Wildlife on the Farm

There were many wild creatures on the land when Garner Rix began to clear it. Many of their ancestors are living there still. The woodchucks still live under the chicken coop, the bluebirds nest on the edge of the fields that Garner Rix cleared. As farming disappears from Vermont and the fields turn back into woods the Wolves are now starting to return.

Vernal Pools on Garner Rix's Land 

When Garner Rix and his family arrived in Royalton there were frogs living in the wetlands. In the springtime they laid their eggs in the vernal pools. The descendants of those frogs are still laying their eggs on his farm today.

Wild Edible Foods for the Rix Family in 1780  

Gathering Edible Wild Foods before the Crops come in

When Daniel and Rebecca Rix packed to move to Vermont it would have been impossible for them to bring all the food necessary to feed their large family for the year or so it would take to grow enough food to feed them. What kinds of plants were available for them to forage?

Clearing the Forest 

How did the Garner Rix clear the forest?

Clearing the Forest

Photo Credit: French Canadian Axeman
painting titled "Near old Sly's, Rideau; August 1830" by J.P. Cockburn, Library and Archives Canada..



Clearing the ForestClearing the Forest

Garner and his father, Daniel, used an ax and crow bar to chop down trees and pull out the stumps. It was hard work but working together makes light work of any job.

According to Wikipedia, Prior to about 1880 crosscut saws were primarily used for bucking, with axes used to fell trees. Bucking means cutting logs into lengths for firewood for example.



1.Make axes from aluminum foil. Set out trees and logs to act out clearing the forest.

2.Go outside and use a toothpick to dig up small bushes or grass. Look at the roots. Dig up a patch of grass, take out all the roots and plant a garden. Look for insects and worms.

3. Do experiments with a plant's need for light and loose soil and think about how this effected Garner and Daniel's need to clear the forest.

4. Stack the wood for fall. How much wood would they have to cut and stack to make it through a year? Use pruning shears to cut small branches into 1 inch logs for Garner Rix's Doll House.

5. Find large leaves outside. Press them with wax paper. Use these for Math mats. Find maple keys or acorns for the math counters.

6. Add sawdust and wood shavings to the rice table.

7. Collect rocks or buy some river rocks and make stone walls.

Garner Rix Girded Trees 

Clearning the Forest in 1780

This summer I spent some time with my forester in the woods learning more about my my trees and how my farm has changed over the years. He told me that men used to girdle the trees rather than cut them all down in order to clear large tracks of land for fields.

This technique is also mentioned in the novel Look to the Mountain by LeGrand Cannon, Jr. Girdling the trees means to cut around the bark towards the bottom of the trunk and allow the tree to die. Then corn could be planted near the base of the tree to help the roots of the dead tree to pop out of the ground.

Look to the Mountain (Regional Interest)

This author excellently portrays a young couple's beginnings & life adventures as the first pioneers to their area in the wilds of New Hampshire (as well as early American Township/village life in the 1700's) - and does it with a realism that places you in their lives.
Reviewed by K. I. Floyd

Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Clearing the Forest and building a stone wall. 

Techniques of building a stone wall in 1780

Stone WallClearing the Forest

Building Stone Wall

A dry-stone wall is a wall that is constructed from stones without any mortar to bind them together. As with other dry stone structures, the wall is held up by the interlocking of the stones. Such walls are used both in building construction and as field boundaries.

The stone walls that Garner Rix built so long ago can still be seen on his farm to this day. It is about 1 1/2 feet high and surrounds the hay field and delineates the boundaries of his land.

1. Put out some river rocks or stones that you have collected and try building a stone wall.

One day I set up a stonewall center for the children. We first tried it on a table but found, like dominoes, it easily fell down. Then we moved it to the rug. Just like the ground, a rug with it's uneven surface was easier to build the stone wall on without it toppling over.

Now whenever we go on field trips we look for stones of different shapes that might make good stonewalls. We keep various collections separate and the children enjoy experimenting with different ways of building the stone wall.

This knowledge leads to understanding of physics and helps them to observe shapes and textures.

How to Building Stone Wall 

Stone Walls defined the Boundaries of Garner Rix's Farm

How to Building Stone Wall

The stone walls that Garner Rix built still define the boundaries of our farm. Some are on the edge of the field but some are deep in the woods.

Some understanding of stonewalls and the reason they are built can be understood when you read Robert Frost's poem, the Mending Wall. Robert Frost is helping his neighbor repair the stone wall that separates their properties. His neighbor might have been Garner Rix's grandson, Garner Rix Dewey who took over the farm and must have spent time each spring mending the stone walls that Garner Rix built.
Designing and Building Stone Walls
The first settlers found stone everywhere, pushed up by the ground as it froze and thawed. Fortunately, the same stones that stopped the plow, defined the boundaries of newly cleared fields.

Decades passed. The earth swallowed up the settlers and the forest reclaimed much of the farmland. But the stone walls endure, faithfully outlining the old homesteads, now deep in the woods.
The Mending Wall by Robert Frost
...There where it is we do not need the wall:
He is all pine and I am apple orchard.
My apple trees will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, Good fences make good neighbors'...

Poems of Life on a Farm 

Robert Frost Poems speak of Life on a Farm in Vermot or NH

Mending Wall

Photo Credit: Mending Wall on Flickr, Creative Commons.



Frost looks on while his neighbor carries two stones to set into the wall. - by Bill Ward's Brickpile




Reading the poems of Robert Frost can help evoke a feeling of life on a rural farm.

Read the Mending Wall by Robert Frost and try to imagine the conversation that Garner Rix might have had with his neighbor as they annually fixed the stone wall separating their properties.

You Come Too: Favorite Poems for Readers of All Ages

Review
The collection of 51 poems provides refreshing glimpses of nature through Frost's ageless craft and Nason's complementary wood engravings. --The Horn Book

Excerpt - page 59: ... MENDING WALL Something there is that doesn't love a wall, That sends ...

Amazon Price: $9.56 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Garner Rix built Fences 

Fences were built to seperate the pasture from the fields.

18th Century Fall Chores

Farmers in the 18th Century built fences to keep livestock and other animals out of their fields, not to contain animals in a certain area. Most all farmers would allow their hogs, cattle and other livestock to roam freely on their farms to find food. The fences they built were to keep them out of their crops.

18th Century Agriculture in Vermont 

What farming Techinques did Garner Rix use?

18th Century Farmer18th Century Farmer18th Century Farmer
Agriculture & Industry in Vermont
Agriculture in Vermont played a dominant role in the State's development. The region's first New England/European settlers were primarily farmers, cultivating only that which they and their immediate community required. Sparse settlements were established in the southern half of the state in the mid 1700s, but more permanent settlements and cultivation of the land for export were not measurable until after the Revolutionary War.
18th Century Threshing
Once Garner Rix had cleared enough of his land to plant wheat and oats, he needed to have a barn for storing his grains and for threshing the grains to separate the seeds from the straw.In the early 1800's the only tool for threshi

Garner Rix's Year  

All around the seasons in 1780.

In the country, May is the month of smells. To a city person, a "pleasant odor" is usually associated with flowers, but to the countryman it is more often the smell of the soil.

The Seasons of America Past

Amazon Price: $10.36 (as of 11/25/2009)Buy Now

Product Description
A charming book that takes readers through a full year's activities. Sloane's drawings depict cider mills and presses, sleds, pumps, stump-pulling equipment, plows, and other elements of America's rural heritage. A section of old recipes and household hints adds additional color and practical value to this delightful work. 75 black-and-white illustrations.

Making Maple Syrup in the 18th Century 

Garner Rix gathers the sap for sugering off

Making Maple Syrup

As Garner Rix cleared his land he made sure to keep the most valuable trees. There were Butternuts near the river, Oaks by the brook but the most valuable were the Sugar Maples.

He made wooden buckets on the farm and whittled taps by the fire in the winter. Early Spring was Sugaring Season when Garner and his family made all the sugar for the entire year.

Maple Sugaring

To learn about making Maple Syrup see my Flip the Pancakes and Sing about Waffles lens.

Planting the Apple Orchard 

Garner Rix planted Apple Seeds

Apples

Colonists like Daniel Rix brought many apple seeds with them to their new land and planted their apple orchards right away. The apple trees are still there. They are old but apple blossoms in the spring and apples in the Fall still grow on them.

With little care in many years the apples are wormy but by carefully cutting out the bad spots you can make some delicious apple sauce.

Read the poem The Planting of the Apple Tree by William Cullen Bryant.

Garner Rix probably built an English Barn 

Photo Credit: An English Barn
Montgomery County, IN
DRAWING BY AUDRA CIURAITE



No evidence has yet been found of Garner Rix's barn but it is safe to assume that he built an English Barn similar to the one shown above. English barns were built without a cellar and no cellar hole has been found for a barn near Garner Rix's house. The English Barn was the most common type of barn built in the early 1800's and was most likely the style of barn his father, Daniel Rix built in 1780.

English barns are typical of simple barns known in England. This barn type was brought to New England and the Chesapeake Bay colonies by English settlers. English barns adapted well to the North American climate, and are found across the United States.

The rectangular timber frame structure has a side gable roof with a central, large opening on the long side of the building. A central runway is flanked by bays and lofts on each side for storage of hay and grain. Stables or pens are sometimes provided in the bays for housing animals.

The above information is from Architectural Styles from the Historic Preservation Department, Fort Wayne, Ind.

Garner Rix's Barn 

The Barn that Garner Rix Built



Woodchucks that are the descendants of the ones Garner Rix found when he arrived in Royalton still live under the barn on his farm.

Learn more about Vermont Barns 

English Barn, Bank Barn or Yankee Barn

English Barns were built in the 1780's 

Garner Rix probably built an English Barn

We have no record of Garner Rix's barn other than that he had oxen. Certainly all farmers had barns so we can assume that he built a barn in the traditional style of the time. The following video shows an English Barn, typical of the time. Notice that is has no cellar. Though we know where the cellar hole is for Garner Rix's house, there is no sign of a cellar hole for the barn.
powered by Youtube

Farm Animals 

Animals on Garner Rix's Farm

Family Farm

Family Farm
Art Print

Herrero, Lowell
Buy at AllPosters.com

On Garner Rix's farm Merino sheep where raised for wool. A few horse blankets made from these sheep are still in the barn.

Cows were kept for milk as well as making cheese and butter. Garner made his own cheese forms which still hang in the workshop.

Garner Rix's Sheep 

Merino Sheep on Garner Rix's Farm

Math ManipulativesRoving Wool

Garner Rix raised Marino Sheep on the farm. He sheared them in the spring and Betsy used the wool to make the family's clothing.
Traditional Sheep Shearing
Learn all about historical sheep shearing practices. Includes historic photos and video and workshop.
So Where Does Wool Roving Come From?
We all know that our wool roving comes from an animal, but what processes does it go through before it gets to me?

'Greasy fleece' is the term for wool that has just been shorn from the sheep. The next process is called 'scouring' during which the fleece is washed to remove dirt and excess oils from the fibre. (Did you know that the oil from the fibre is called Lanolin and is used in some soaps and cosmetics?)

The fleece should now be almost ready, all that it needs to be brushed into a length of useable roving (wool tops). This process is called 'carding'. The wool is passed through a carding machine, which untwists and untangles the fibres into one long, smooth length of roving. This process can be performed by hand at home but does take a long time.

The finished roving is also known by the name 'carded sliver' and is perfect for dying, spinning and felting.
Vermont Heritage Network
Sheep farming in Vermont dates back to the 18th century when the state's earliest settlers brought sheep with them as part of their family agricultural operations.

The early sheep were of no particular breed, and they were raised for the dual purpose of mutton and wool for the family.

Beginning in the 1810s sheep farming began to develop from a largely subsistence operation into an industry that gave Vermont national prominence, first for the production of wool, and later for its superior sheep breeding.

During the second half of the 19th century, sheep farming began to decline and was gradually eclipsed by the dairy industry.

Make a Flock of Sheep for Garner Rix's Farm 

Make lots of Sheep for Garner Rix

Daniel and Rebecca did not bring sheep with them. Sheep need pastures and Vermont was still covered by Old Growth Forest. It wasn't until Garner had become an adult and cleared his land that he began raising sheep.

Make a Flock of Sheep for Garner Rix's Farm

Garner Rix would have had very little paper but birch trees were available. If you have white birches near you, look for bark that has fallen off the tree. Use this bark for making the sheep. As a child, Garner and his siblings may have made sheep from natural materials such as birch bark.

NOTE: Never remove bark from a live tree as it will kill the tree.
American Sheep Industry
Make Your Own Paper Sheep!
Merino Mania - 1837
Merino sheep are noted for their fine wool, hardiness and herding instincts.

Garner Rix raised Marino Sheep

In 1837 there were over one million sheep in Vermont. Changes in tariff laws created economic booms and busts for sheep owners. Wool prices dropped from 57 cents per pound in 1835 to 25 cents per pound in the late 1840s. Vermont sheep farmers were also suffering from competition from farmers out West. The average annual cost of keeping a sheep in New England was $1.00-2.00 a head, while farmers further west were spending 25 cents a head. Many Vermont sheep farmers suffered great financial loss during this period.

-Vermont Historical Society
Vermont Heritage Network
Sheep farming in Vermont dates back to the 18th century when the state's earliest settlers brought sheep with them as part of their family agricultural operations.

The early sheep were of no particular breed, and they were raised for the dual purpose of mutton and wool for the family.

Beginning in the 1810s sheep farming began to develop from a largely subsistence operation into an industry that gave Vermont national prominence, first for the production of wool, and later for its superior sheep breeding.

During the second half of the 19th century, sheep farming began to decline and was gradually eclipsed by the dairy industry.

Animals on Garner Rix's Farm 

Eventually there were pastures with tall maple trees along the road.

Vermont Farm

These lenses have activities related to the animals that Garner Rix had on his farm.

When they came from Connecticut they had oxen and most likely a cow for milking. Later on they had Marino Sheep, Morgan Horses, and chickens.

Which Animals Would Have Been on Garner Rix's Farm? 

Farm of Old Macdonald


Buy at AllPosters.com

In 1780 when the Rix family first moved to Vermont they would have had very few farm animals. There was as yet no pastures for horses or large numbers of cows. We do know that they had oxen and probably a milk cow. Chickens seem likely, possibly pigs and one or two horses.

Though not a farm animal, we do know for sure that there were black bears on the farm. The number of black bears declined as the farmers, like Garner Rix, shot them for meat and cleared the forests for pastures and fields.

At the time of the Royalton Raid, Daniel Rix had gone back to Connecticut to visit his parents.He may have taken a horse. In any case there was only one horse left on the farm when Rebecca tried to escape with all the children. Garner and Joseph had to run were easily captured.
A Child's Place
Program plans (crafts, songs, activities, printouts, etc) for a theme on the farm.
On the Farm Thematic Unit
free on the farm thematic unit complete with printable worksheets and book suggestions.
Down on the Farm
Songs, poems, and activities for use in the classroom when learning about Garner Rix and life in the 18th to 19th centuries.

Garner Rix's Forge 

Making Tools
.
Set up the Forge with a toaster oven, hot mitts, and fimo dough. Have books about making things from metal and shoeing horses. Give each child working at the forge a small piece of fimo dough to work with. After each piece has been baked they can paint it. Once dry these tools can be used with Garner Rix's Barn.

Super Sculpey Polymer Clay...They ultimate sculpting compound! Super Sculpey is used by movie animation studios and professionals worldwide for prototypes maquettes and all kinds of dolls. Its excellent tooling qualities make it the preferred choice for casting and all types of sculpture. Super Sculpey is a semi-transparent beige color and can be sanded drilled carved and painted with water based acrylics after it has been hardened in the oven. Non-toxic. Super Sculpey stays soft and pliable until it has been baked in the oven!

Garner Rix's Tool Shed 

Tool Shed

Garner Rix and his father probably would have made all their own tools. They would have been carved from wood or forged from metal. They made their own wooden buckets as well as many items for the kitchen.

In the rafters of the woodshed I have found wooden cheese forms that they may have made and many, many barrel staves.

Vermont Log Cabin built in about 1783 

Educational Toys Games ActivitiesBuild your own log cabin to represent Daniel and Rebecca Rix's cabin before the raid.

This log cabin kit is easy to assemble and comes with everything you need to construct your cabin, including illustrated step-by-step instructions. The parts used for this dollhouse are pre-cut by expert craftsmen using only high quality materials. Classic features of this dollhouse include:

* Pine roof and walls
* Pine window frames and shutters
* Solid pine construction with interlocking walls
* Stained and varnished hardwood floor

Pine and hardwood are the materials that Daniel and Garner Rix would have found in Royalton and used to build their cabin.

1780 Vermont Log Cabin Daniel Rix's cabin, built before the raid probably looked simular to these cabins which were built around 1780 in Vermont.

Hyde Cabin 1780
Grand Isle is the home of the Hyde Log Cabin, an original structure built circa 1783, by one of the islands pioneer settlers, Capt. Jedediah Hyde. A fascinating building to see, this cabin is one of the oldest in the United States. It consists of one large room- 20'x25', with an overhead loft and a huge fireplace at one end.

Garner Rix Doll House 

Vermont kitchen

Now you can pretend to be Rebecca Rix working in the Cabin built by Daniel Rix. Rebecca Rix would have had the girls and young boys in and around the house helping her. Garner was probably out in the fields or woods helping his father.

Handmade Wooden Toys 

Made in the USA

These toys are handmade by an Amish Co-op from sustainable hardwood. They are heirloom quality; created to last many generations that support both Montessori & Waldorf philosophies.

Cherry Wood Drying Stand, Made in the USA

Amazon Price: $29.99 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Vermont Farmhouse 

This Vermont 'Cape Cod Style' Farmhouse was designed along strict historic lines and built from mostly antique materials including two antique houses and an antique barn frame, lighting and hardware, doors, flooring, and wall paneling.
This is the type of house that Daniel and then Garner built after their log cabin was burned during the Royalton Raid. Garner's grandson, Garner Rix Dewey also built this type of house where their descendants live to this day.
Bedchamber, Dutton House, Cavendish, VT, 1782Vermont Bedchamber 1782 Notice the low windows, the woodwork covering the corner beams, and the wide wood floors.

Rebecca Rix's 17th Century Kitchen 

17th Century Kitchen 17th Century Cookware

Women had to be especially careful to not burn their skirts in the fire from the fireplace.

Cast Iron Dutch Oven

Amazon Price: $71.45 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Recipes from a 17th century kitchen

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Women's Work 

18th Century Sampler

Garner Rix's parents, Daniel and Rebecca Rix may have brought some things with them but it is likely that Daniel would have had to make a lot of the things that they could not bring with them. Though they may have brought a few essential items, Danial probably made wooden bowls and spoons for the kitchen when they arrived.

It was the woman's job to wash the dishes and prepare the meals. Young girls were usually responsible for spinning and weaving.

Rebecca Rix's Cloth 

Textile Production in 1780

The Common Method of Beetling, Scutching and Hackling the Flax


Buy at AllPosters.com

Garner Rix helped his father plant flax to be woven into linen that Rebecca and later Betsey would have turned into beautiful linens.

Linens and Lace

Buy at AllPosters.com

Cloth Doll Creations UK
In the 18th Century, the dominant figure in the textile industry in England was Richard Arkwright (1732-92) from Preston, who changed the cotton industry completely with the help of a brilliant inventor Thomas Highs (1718-1803), by introducing a machine for cotton spinning together with new mills and factories to replace the old cottage industry involving working at home by hand. Cloth would have been regarded as a cherished commodity due to the long hours invested in its manufacture. Even the smallest scraps or material were diligently saved and reused.

There had already been the invention of the Flying Shuttle in 1733 by John Kay (1704-c1780) from Bury, and the Spinning Jenny by James Hargreaves (c1720-1778). In 1765, Massachusetts, USA, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin to harvest the cotton crop, and tremendously increased cotton production in the Deep South, helping to revive a badly lagging economy. Suddenly cotton began to rival the tobacco industry's profits.
Hands On History: Spinning & Weaving Study Guides
Hands On History,ATA,The Association of Teaching Artists, Hands On History Inc.

Experiential education for elementary classrooms, eighteenth century living history programs, Colonial American Spinning & Weaving, Colonial American Fair
Was Death by fire Common in 18th Century Kitchens?
No, Says an Early American Domestic Arts Authority, Clarissa F. Dillon at the Camden County Historical Society.

The common belief that colonial women routinely died as a result of their clothes catching fire at the kitchen hearth is a myth.

18th Century Women's Clothing

Appearing before the Historical Society's Mary Cooper Gardeners, the historian from Haverford, PA, said 18th-century women were essentially protected from fire by the very nature of the era's homespun clothing.

18th Century CookingMs. Dillon, a founder of Past Masters in Early American Domestic Arts, explained that colonial cooks were most often dressed in natural fabrics, namely, linen or, in colder weather, wool -- neither of which were likely to flame up after contact with embers and sparks. Instead, they would smolder, giving off a distinct smell that would alert the cook to the danger and allow ample time to pat out or smother the fire before further harm could be done.

Cooking in 1780 

Rebecca Rix feeds the family

Cooking in the Young Republic

Anecdotes and recipes illustrate the beginnings of American-style cooking, simultaneous with the birth of American-style self-government.

Cooking in the Young Republic, 1780-1850

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Rebecca Rix's Kitchen 

Colonial Woman
18th Century Cuisine
The New England colonies were extremely similar in their dietary habits to those that many of them had brought from England. A striking difference for the colonists in New England compared to other regions was seasonality.

Wheat was almost impossible to grow so cornmeal was substituted.

Northern colonists depended upon their to hunt obtaining their protein from deer, bear, and wild turkey. The meat was roasted or turned into soups, stews, sausages, pies and pasties. Occasionally mutton was eaten.

Many homes had a sack made of deerskin filled with bear oil for cooking. Solidified bear fat resembled shortening.
Pumpkins in Colonial Cooking
BACKGROUND

Pilgrims and other early American settlers made the first pumpkin pies by burying pumpkin in the ashes of their fires.

After a pumpkin had cooked, they would cut off the top, scrape out the
pulp and add honey or maple syrup. The pulp was then made into
delicious pies and breads.

Pumpkins were used for many different things. Dried pumpkin shells served as bowls or containers for storing grains and seeds. Pumpkin seeds were dried and roasted
for a high-energy treat.
Hands On History: Colonial Cooking
Colonial Fireplace

Students and parents can select and prepare a dish from many eighteenth century recipes.

Recipe Index

Green Corn Pudding
Hasty Pudding
Indian Pudding
Indian Corn Sticks
Johnnycakes
Succotash
Boston Baked Beans
Pease Soup
Colonial Pumpkin Pie
Steamed Pumpkin Pudding
Baked Glazed Squash
Brown Bread
Sally Lunn
Apple Butter
Old World Recipes in a New Land
New England Clam Chowder
Snickerdoodles
Pine Tree Shillings
Hutspot
Cruller
Gingerbread Men
Pennsylvania Dutch Scalloped Potatoes&Ham
Shoofly Pie
Apple Pandowdy
Southern Colonies Hush Puppies
Hoppin' John
Cracklin' Bread
Deerskin Pouch for Storing Bear Fat
Deerskin Pouch for Storing Bear Fat

Spotted Pony Traders > Deerskin Pouches Products

Proprietors of leather goods, cusom leather, cloth clothing, and more!
Preparing and Rendering Bear Fat
Rendered bear fat or lard 'can't be beat' for pastry-making and is highly touted as a cooking oil for doughnuts and other fried foods.
cloth: 18th-century woolen cloth making --Britannica Online Encyclopedia
18th Century Clothing Manufacture

A drawing shows 18th-century American cloth makers carding, spinning, and weaving woolen cloth in a home workshop.,From the Stone Age to the 18th century, all fabrication of clothing was done by hand. Spinning and weaving machines that could be operated with the foot or with water power were develop

The Patriots Drink, 1773 

Coffee Pot

Though coffee was brought to "the New World" in the mid-1600s, tea was the favored drink there until 1773, when colonists revolted against a high tax on tea imposed by King George. The Boston Tea Party converted America to a coffee-loyal nation.

Making Soap 

Making Soap

Making Soap
Laundry equipment included iron kettles or metal tubs to heat water, a washboard and wooden or metal tubs for washing and rinsing clothes. The iron kettle was also used for making soap.

Susanna and Rebecca had to save up the fat from an entire year to make soap. Garner and Daniel would have leached out the lye from hardwood ashes but it was the woman's job to make the soap.

Betsey Rix Teaches her Daughters About Soap 



Betsey Rix probably understood how and why soap worked. She understood that water alone did not clean well. She knew that you could leach acid from wood ashes to make lye, mix it with animal fat and make soap. She passed that recipe down to my Great Aunts and a few bars of their soap still exist. I remember washing dishes with my grandmother using that handmade soap.

Experiments With Soap explains how and why soap works and then explains how to do various experiments in order to better understand the explanations.

Experiments With Soap (True Books)

Amazon Price: $6.95 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Rebecca Rix Washes, Irons and Makes the Soap 

EARLY DAYS - washing clothes , ironing and making soap

Rebecca Rix Washes, Irons and Makes the Soap

Learn how clothes were scrubbed on the washboard with homemade soap.

Ironing clothes was a hot steamy tiring job which took most of the day. The house got very hot in the summer. In the winter the clothes were taken off the line and ironed while still damp.

The Rix Women made their own soap using lard and lye. For lard they used animal fat or leftover cooking grease. Ashes were collected from the fireplace or from burning tree stumps.
EARLY DAYS - washing clothes, ironing, making soap
pioneers - washing clothes and making soap
How to Make Lye Soap
How to Make Lye Soap.

Making lye soap sounds a little scary. Using lye soap also sounds a little scary, but in truth if your measurements are precise, natural hand made lye soap is the best soap for your skin. I'll...

Homespun 

Spinning and Weaveing Cloth in Rebecca Rix's Kitshen

The Age of Homespun is a book to be read by adults or as a read aloud to older children. It would be wonderful to read while discussing the life of the Rix family over a period of time while you are doing activities related to this Unit Study on the life and times of Garner Rix. When we read the book, the older children were weaving and knitting, carding or dyeing wool. My youngest was rolling a ball of yarn or attempting needle felting.

The Age of Homespun: Objects and Stories in the Creation of an American Myth (Vintage)

Insights into the lives of early Americans, as she examines their material culture as well as their lives. This engaging combination of women's studies, history, and the study of museum artifacts will delight a wide variety of readers.

Chapter by chapter, Ulrich presents interesting early American objects and follows their description with the even more fascinating stories of the people who owned them and the world in which they lived.

Amazon Price: $11.53 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Homespun Sarah

Sarah rises early and prepares for her chores--hauling water, gathering firewood, weeding the garden, washing clothes, making candles, picking berries, spinning flax, and, finally, helping Mother to sew a new dress.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Charlie Needs a Cloak

A shepherd shears his sheep, cards and spins the wool, weaves and dyes the cloth, and sews a beautiful new red cloak.

Amazon Price: $5.99 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Weaving the Rainbow

A young woman raises sheep, shears them, cards and spins the wool, dyes the yarn, and weaves it at a loom.

Amazon Price: $13.49 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Learn how to use a Drop Spindle 

Learn About Women's lives in the 1780's

Drop Spindle

When you are up in Maine you have the perfect opportunity to learn all about using a drop spindle and turning wool into cloth.
Old York Historical Society - York, Maine
Spintastic

Learn to spin raw wool into yarn using cards and a drop spindle. Transform your white wool into beautiful colors using tarditional natural dye recipes.

Thursday, August 13th from 9:00 a.m. ~ 12:00 p.m. at the Remick Barn on the corner of York Street and Lindsay Road. Ages 8-12. $20 members; $23 non-members. Reservations and advanced payment required. Call (207) 363-4974 x12 or email education@oldyork.org.

Homespun Susannah 

Learning grammar with the Rix Family

The story of Homespun Sarah has beautifully detailed paintings that invite conversation about life in a time before electricity and store-bought clothing. When we read this story we naturally changed the name to Susannah to fit the theme of our unit study.

We liked this story so well that we read it over and over.

One day we noticed that it mentions lots of actions and so we started to look for the verbs that describe what Susahhah or Sarah does all day.

Children who are able to read the words can use highlighter tape to search for the verbs. More advanced learners can try making up their own verses to the story by changing verbs.

We also went through the book searching for verbs, wrote them on index cards and used them to put in ABC order, made a Word Wall out of them and made a set of playing cards with the verbs on one card and a picture illustrating them on the other. These cards give lots of practice for children learning to read and spell.

Homespun Sarah

Sarah rises early and prepares for her chores--hauling water, gathering firewood, weeding the garden, washing clothes, making candles, picking berries, spinning flax, and, finally, helping Mother to sew a new dress.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

The Rix Girls use a Drop Spindle 

Using a Drop Spindle

The girls in the Rix family learned at a young age to help around the house. Using a drop spindle was a fun chore for them and they probably sang songs as they helped their mother with this vital job.

A drop spindle twists wool into thread or yarn which then would have been woven into cloth on a loom.

Drop Spindle - Natural Wood

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Spinning in the Old Way: How (and Why) To Make Your Own Yarn With A High-Whorl Handspindle

Amazon Price: $10.17 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Susanna Rix learns how to use the Spinning Wheel 

Photo Credit:
Spinning Wheel

in the Public Domain.

The Spinning Wheel 

Rebecca Rix's Spinning Wheel

Rebecca Rix probably had at least one spinning wheel in her kitchen. Most likely she had two. One for wool and the other for flax. As they were just starting out in 1780 with no fields and little land cleared it might have taken them some time before enough wool and flax were produced to warrant a spinning wheel but surely they had them before 1800.

Loading Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by
eBay

Rebecca Rix made Quilts to Keep the Family Warm 

Quilts from 1780

Vermont Quilts Quilt from New England 1780

This quilt was originally made for a high four poster bed. Quilts like these have been handed down from generation to generation. Before my grandmother died she gave me a quilt similar to this one in that it has the corners cut out for the four poster bed. My quilt is white with exquisite hand stitching.

Rebecca Rix would have taught her daughters to make quilts like these. Read the story of the Keeping Quilt and try to imagine the stories that the Rix family might have recorded in their quilts. You might even make a quilt and write the story that is sewn into it..

The tradition of quilting has been passed down in my family from mother to daughter for generations. My daughter continues to make quilts using the same techniques as Rebecca Rix and Betsey Rix taught their daughters.

Northern Comfort: New England's Early Quilts 1780-1850

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

American Folk Art for Kids: With 21 Activities (For Kids series)

Amazon Price: $13.22 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

The Keeping Quilt

Amazon Price: $6.99 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Plain and Fancy: Vermont's People and Their Quilts as a Reflection of America

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Quilting and the Rix Family 

Quilts made around 1780

Math Manipulatives

The women in the Rix family learned how to make tiny stitches in order to create the lovely patterns seen in their quilting.

You might try quilting a pot holder. It is done in the same way as a quilt for a bed but being much smaller it will take less time and give you an idea whether or not you want to tackle making a whole quilt.
18th & 19th Century Antique Quilts - Betsey Telford's Rocky Mountain Quilts
18th & 19th Century Antique Quilts - Betsey Telford's Rocky Mountain Quilts, features 400+ antique quilts of the finest quality.

Board Games 

18th Century Games

Garner, Susanna and the other children would not have had any board games. They had to make up their own games. As you play these games remember that you can make up new rules as long as everyone agrees. Soon you will have made up totally new games just like Garner and Susanna must have done.

You can find lots more ideas for making games at Fun Educational Games.

Garner Rix's Childhood Toys 

Wooden HoopWooden Handled Jump RopeDoll

During the late 18th century and early 19th century, play in this period was very gender-specific.

Toys for boys tended to promote physical activity. Boys rolled hoops, walked on stilts, and played ball. Even jumping rope remained very much a boy's game until around 1830.

Girls' toys and games were less diverse and more sedentary. No toy was so popular or considered so useful in preparing a girl for her future role as a wife and mother as the doll.
American History and Art from New England
Explore artifacts from our museum and historic manuscripts from our library that reveal the history of New England.
Wooden Hoop
Large wooden hoop with hardwood stick. Hoop is made of layered hardwood. Can be used for many activities, even as a Hoola Hoop! If you are after an old fashioned 'activity toy', this is it.
Wooden Handled Jump Ropes
Jump Ropes are assembled in the UK from old bobbins, used in the textile industry.
History of Dolls
For centuries, rag dolls were made by mothers for their children. Rag dolls refer generically to dolls made of any fabric. Cloth dolls refer to a subset of rag dolls made of linen or cotton.
Toys and More
Noah's Arc

Only on Sundays were children allowed to play with toys, and then only if the toy taught a moral lesson.

These toys taught biblical history, such as the story of Noah's Ark. Many of these "Sunday" toys were quite elaborate, considering the austerity of the time period, such as this European set made in 1800.

A Noah's Ark toy could carry up to one hundred pairs of animals as well as Noah and his family. As a result of societal restrictions, children often created their own toys from left-over materials.

Sometimes Indian traditions were adopted, such as the making of dolls from corncobs.

Rebecca Rix's Toys 

Acorns and CapsCorn Cob Doll

Rebecca and Garner made toys from things they found in nature. Acorns make cups and pots, caps are the saucers and bowls.

Thy may have played Jack Be Nimble on cold winter days.

Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick,
Jack jump over the candlestick.

Rebecca Rix might have played Button on a string 

Button on a string

When I was very young my grandmother taught me how to play Button on a String. I remember her warm safe arms around me as she taught me the rhythm of pulling the string out and letting it go back in as it spun one way and then the other with a buzzing or humming sound.
Button on a String
While creating a simple noise maker, students talk about shapes, colors, and motion.

You will need: A variety of large, flat buttons, with two or four holes. Round, oval, or square buttons would work best.
For each student, a piece of cotton or another strong, smooth string, about 30" long.
18th Century Buttons
18th Century Buttons were made from pewter, brass, copper and bone.
Buttons
18th Century Buttons
Thread Buttons
Thread buttons were used on men's shirts and other undergarments from the late 17th into the early 19th century. Not only were thread buttons less expensive than bone, wood or metal but they would not break during the strenuous beating and scrubbing used by the l

Cooperative Games that Garner Rix would love to play 

Working on a farm and especially creating a farm from the wilderness required the cooperation of the whole family. You can practice cooperation with these fun games played by children for generations.

Loading Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by
eBay

Games and Activities from the 1700's 

Colonial Games

Children have always played running and chasing games. It's a great way to get exercise and lots of fun. Garner Rix and his siblings must have also enjoyed these games.
Online Games and Activities from Colonial Williamsburg
The Kids Zone offers games, activities, and resources about life in colonial America.
Noah Webster: Colonial Games & Toys
When children had time to play, they enjoyed the same games that their parents and grandparents had played when they were young. We still play many of these games today, like tag, hide-and-seek, and hopscotch.

Garner Rix's Schooling 

Schools and Textbooks in Royalton and New England

New England Primer
This image is in the public domain

Lesson Page in the New England Primer, Edition of About 1811

Lesson Page in the New England Primer, Edition of About 1811
Buy at AllPosters.com


Though there was no school for Garner Rix and his siblings when they first moved to Royalton, schooling was important to the people of New England.

We can learn more about what was taught from the textbooks that were available at the time. In rural communities such as those in Vermont, they often relied on older textbooks.

One of the most famous verses found in the New England Primer:

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray thee, Lord, my soul to keep;
If I should die before I wake,
I pray thee, Lord, my soul to take.

-1784 ed.
Lesson 12 - Schools and Schoolbooks, 1780-1820
In the period 1780-1820, Deerfield,Ma. residents had increased access to education and books. By the end of the period, people believed that good citizens and moral individuals could be created through education.

At the previous "turn," people had learned to read in order to read the Bible. In this "turn," stories in schoolbooks began to evolve from religious tales that were Bible-centered, to moral tales aimed at creating an educated and moral citizenry.

The devil, once portrayed as the evil tempter, is transformed into a symbol of ignorance with its negative outcomes. The angel, formerly a representative of religious goodness, also becomes a symbol of knowledge. Books began to teach about the wider world as well.

Write a Letter to Garner Rix 

Write a Letter to Garner Rix

Trains replaced stagecoaches for mail delivery in Vermont by the mid 1800s. Rail service made delivering the mail quicker and cheaper. Through mail or telegrams, Vermonters kept in touch with their relatives who had left to serve in the Civil War or make their way out west. We know of at least 10 post offices in Vermont that operated in the train depot. In these instances, the postmaster often did triple duty, serving also as the station agent and telegraph agent.
Write a Letter to Your Ancestors
Click on the link to explore some examples of Vermont letters. Then write a letter to your ancestors in the guestbook. How would you describe yourself? What news would you share with them? Where do you think they lived?
Learn how Letters can Make a Difference in Finding Your Ancestors | Family History Quick Start
Letters written by your ancestors are such a great way to find information about those who have paved the way for you. Learn how to make the most out of letters.
How to Read 18th Century British-American Writing
18th Century Handwriting

Historians soon learn not to assume that people in the past thought about and experienced life in the same ways that we do today.

Something as basic to us as writing was quite different in 18th Century British-America.

British-Americans in that century spoke English, yet they used words that we do not, and we use words that did not even exist then.

18th Century pronunciation differed from ours, and many of the rules of spoken and written usage differed as well.

Writing about the Past 

Writing of Life in the 18th Century

Handwriting from letters and journals of the late 18th and early 19th centuries can be difficult for us to read but we certainly wish that our ancestors had left more of them to us.

Letters Written in the 19th Century

Photo Credit: Handwriting from a nineteenth century letter.
on Flickr, Creative Commons.



Garner Rix did not leave a diary but he told stories by the fire to his children and grandchildren who have kept his story alive. As you learn more and more about this period in history and imagine the life and times of Garner Rix you will be ready to write your own story.

The Postal System in 1780 

Post-Riders

As late as 1780 the U.S. postal staff consisted only of a Postmaster General, a Secretary/Comptroller, three surveyors, one Inspector of Dead Letters, and 26 post riders for the 13 colonies.

Vermont provided it's own postal service until 1791 when it was admitted to the union. There were post-roads and post-riders including the road that crossed Garner Rix's land.
History of the United States Postal Service
History of the United States Postal Service in colonial times.
Vermont State History
On January 17, 1777, Vermont was declared an independent republic in a meeting held at Westminster minting its own coin and providing postal service, until 1791 when Vermont was admitted to the union.
History of Royalton, Vermont: With ... - Google Book Search
Post Offices and Post Roads p. 386
Hugh Finlay (1731-1801)
As Surveyor of the Post Offices and Post Roads on the Continent of North America, Hugh Finlay set out in September, 1773 on a journey through Canada and the 13 colonies in order to assess the overall state of the mail system in order to ...

Did Garner Rix send Valentine's Day Cards? 

1840's Valentine

In Great Britain, Valentine's Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged.

Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700's. In the 1840's Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.

One description of Valentine's Day during the 1700's tells how groups of friends met to draw names. For several days, each man wore his valentine's name on his sleeve. The saying wearing his heart on his sleeve probably came from this practice.

The custom of sending romantic messages gradually replaced that of giving gifts. In the 1700's and 1800's, many stores sold handbooks called valentine writers. These books included verses to copy and various suggestions about writing valentines.

We don't know if Garner Rix sent valentines or wore one on his sleeve but he may have.

Money in 1780 

Curency at the end of the 18th Century

This is a Vermont copper cent from 1785. At the time Vermont was an Independent Republic. It became the 14th state in 1791.

Garner Rix's family may have traded in Vermont coppers or they may have bartered for their needs.
The Continental Currency and State Coinage
Vermont copper cent from 1785

In 1775, the Continental Congress, in rebellion against the British monarchy, introduced paper currency in an attempt to meet military expenditures. However, bullion that had been promised by France never appeared and the paper money was rapidly devalued.

After the revolution, many states introduced their own copper coins. These often borrowed elements from the British half penny of King George III (1760-1820), the most commonly used coins in the United States, but entirely new designs were also used.
Vermont Currency: February 1781
Vermont Currency - Ten Shillings

An emission of £25,155 in legal tender bills of credit. The issue was authorized by an act of April 4, 1781 to pay for military expenses and to increase the supply of paper money in circulation.

An earlier act of February 22, 1781 had authorized the printing of L5,590 but was never carried out. Unfortunately when the bills were printed they carried the date of the wrong act!

This is the only emission issued by Vermont. The bills were redeemable by June 1, 1781 at the rate of 6s in bills for a Spanish milled dollar or its equivalent in gold.

After that date their legal tender status was revoked but they could still be used to pay taxes. Redeemed bills were burned.

The engraved seal on the face shows 13 linked circles with one unlinked circle at the top. This, of course, represents Vermont which was not included as one of the original 13 colonies.

Ten Shillings

The motto around the seal reads "VERMONT CALLS FOR JUSTICE." The front and back have engraved border cuts with typeset text.

The notes were printed in Westminster by Judah P. Spooner and Timothy Green III (Green is the son of Timothy Green II of New London, CT who also printed currency). Denominations printed were: 1s, 1s3d, 2s6d, 5s, 10s, 20s, 40s and £3.
A Common Currency: Early U.S. Monetary Policy and the Transition to the Dollar
Downloadable (with restrictions)! The transition of the U.S. money supply from the mixture of paper bills of credit, certificates, and foreign coins that circulated at various exchange rates with the British pound sterling during the colonial period to the unified dollar standard of the early national period was rapid and had far-reaching consequences

. This paper documents the transition and highlights the importance of this standardization in bringing order to the nation's finances and in facilitating the accumulation and intermediation of capital.

It describes how the struggle of the colonies to maintain viable substitutes for hard money set the stage for the financial leaders of the Federalist period, led by Alexander Hamilton, to settle upon the dollar, attach it to a convertible metallic base, and create a national Bank that issued notes denominated in the new monetary unit.

It also presents recently-constructed estimates of the U.S. money stock for 1790-1820 and relates them to measures of the nation's early modernization.

Bartering in the 1780's 

A newspaper illustration depicting a man engaging in barter, paying his yearly newspaper subscription to the "Podunk Weekly Bugle" with chickens.

F.S. Church, published in Harper's Weekly, January 17, 1874, p. 61.(This media file is in the public domain in the United States.)

Trading and Bartering in 1780 

Garner Rix and Trading Goods

Barter is a type of trade in which goods or services are directly exchanged for other goods and/or services, without the use of money.

Learn to Barter

Most people had little or no money in 1780.

Goods were exchanged by bartering. This game helps children understand how the bartering system works.

Imagine how a family like the Rix Family could pay taxes or help to build the roads at a time when money was practically unavailable.

What services could they provide to the town in exchange for paying taxes?

Talicor Made for Trade

Amazon Price: $20.47 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Math Manipulatives in Garner Rix's Time 

Tree Blocks Math

Garner Rix and his siblings probably used sticks, stones and acorns to begin to learn math concepts. Take A Walk in the Woods and look carefully for Natural Math Manipulatives. Can you find any seeds, twigs or river rocks?

How could you use these items to show the meaning of various math concepts?

The materials you find can depend on the season of the year. In autumn you can collect leaves, press them, and mount them over the windows in patterns. For example red, red, orange, green, is an AABC pattern and makes a beautiful decoration. I wonder how Garner Rix and his family decorated their home.

When Daniel Rix went to buy supplies they were measured in pecks, barrels and hogs heads. What do these measurements mean?

Tree Blocks Math Kit - 67 pieces

Made like the classic Tree Blocks with additional sizes, chosen to facilitate learning the metric system and math concepts. Lessons include measuring, comparing, the four basic operations (+-x/), fractions, decimals, and base 10 numbers. The wide variety of unlabeled blocks encourages children to compare blocks physically, not just visually. These simple materials allow children to grasp all mathematical principals up to the level of algebra. Children can play with them like ordinary blocks, and thus are engaged instead of threatened. Children stack the blocks next to other objects imitating Greek and Egyptian methods of measurement, and achieve a tactile understanding of the metric system. Arithmetic principles are firmly established by hands on work and observation. A valuable tool for children from 3 to 14 years old. Set includes a beautiful log ruler and stand and 66 Tree Blocks 24-1cm, 12-2cm, 8-3cm,6-4cm,5-5cm,4-6cm,3-8cm,2-10cm and 2-12cm. Lesson booklet. Cotton twill sack.

Amazon Price: $59.95 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Polished River Rock

Polished River Rocks can be used for counting, sorting and making patterns.

Amazon Price: $3.59 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

A Measure of Everything: An Illustrated Guide to the Science of Measurement

Short entries... organized into the fields of Earth and life sciences... include measurements both historic and current.

Amazon Price: $16.47 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Schoolyard Games 

Tiger in the Corner


Describes the outdoor games children in colonial times played throughout the year, including "tiger in the corner," hopscotch, and tobogganing, as well as games involving marbles, spinning tops, and hoops.This would be a great way to add physical exercise while keeping with the 1780's Theme.

Schoolyard Games (Historic Communities)

Amazon Price: $7.95 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Inventions: 1780-1870 

New Technology in Garner Rix's lifetime

Burnt Toast Hanging on Clothesline




Buy at AllPosters.com



As you learn about new inventions, write about it on an index card and clip it to a cord running across a corner of your room. Think about how that invention impacted the life of the Rix family.

Remember that most of these technologies did not come to Vermont immediately. Traditions and lack of money meant that Vermont farm families continued the old ways for many years after new inventions were being used in cities.
Inventions: 1780-1870 (Lesson Plan) - TeacherVision.com
Students learn about the proliferation of inventions from 1780-1870.

Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid 

Captive of Pittsford Ridge Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid October 16, 1780 was going to be a busy day for the pioneers of the Royalton, a small settlement in New Connecticut. (Later to be called Vermont). They were getting their fires going for making bread, stirring the stew pot and tending to small children. Older girls were weaving. Boys were already in the fields hoeing the weeds between the stumps or cutting more trees to expand the fields.

Royalton Raid

A group of Mohawks were eager to bravely attack the group in exchange for the goods offered by the British which would fill out the supplies they needed to make it through the winter. They wondered what exciting loot they could bring home to their families waiting at home in their lodges.

The British officers were putting their heads together, finalizing their plans in anticipation of subduing the rebellion of the colonists. They polished their boots, saddled their horses and mounted up to lead the raid.

The Vermont Historical Society tells us that the Royalton Raid

The Royalton Raid took place on October 16, 1780 when a British regiment and nearly 300 Mohawk Indians attack scattered Vermont homesteads on the White River. They terrorize settlers, killing four men, slaughtering livestock, and burning houses and barns. Twenty-seven people are captured and taken to Canada. This incident became known as the Royalton Raid because of the extensive damage done to that town."

Garner Rix was one of those 27.

The clash of Cultures 

Mohawk Clothing Mohawk or Kahniankehaka (Ganiengehaka) "people of the flint." Spoken of within the League as the "keepers of the eastern door."
Learn more about the Mohawk Nation here.

British Learn more about the British here.

Abenaki Learn more about the story of Molly Ockett, an Abenaki Indian here. The Abnenaki were the native people who traditionally lived in what would become Vermont. The Mohawks lived further west.

October 16, 1780: The Setting... 

Very early on the morning of October 16, 1780 soldiers in the British camp were stirring. They believed in King George and and British rule over the colonies.

The British officers were putting their heads together, finalizing their plans in anticipation of subduing the rebellion of the colonists. They polished their boots, saddled their horses and mounted up to lead the raid...










The British 3rd Foot Guards (from Tim Reese's CD Rom of 116 illustrations of British and American Regiments from the Revolutionary War. Click for details on how to buy the CD.

Colonial WomanA group of young Mohawk braves were eager to attack the group in exchange for the loot promised by the British. Whatever they found they would share with family members at home in their lodges and the raid would prove their bravery to the rest of their tribe.

Colonial Woman

October 16, 1780 was susposed to be a busy day for the pioneers of Royalton who had built their log cabins along the banks of the White River in what would some day be Vermont. They were getting their fires going for making bread, stirring the stew pot and tending to small children. Older girls were weaving. Boys were already in the fields hoeing the weeds between the stumps or helping their fathers cut trees to expand the fields.

Garner was captured 

The Cabin

When the Mohawks and British arrived at the Daniel Rix homestead, Daniel was in Connecticut.

Garner, age 13, and his younger brother, Joseph, were in the field. Their mother was at the house with the younger children including baby Jerusha who was just two months old.

Rebecca climbed on the horse with all the younger children and using her neck scarf as a bridle was able to escape.

Susana, 16, and young Rebecca hid in the woods with their neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Kent. With only one horse it was impossible for all the children to ride so Garner, 13, had to try to run but he was soon caught.

The settlers knew that it was the men and boys that would be captured. When Dan, 5, saw the old white horse led up to the house he thought they were going to meeting, so he clapped his hands and exclaimed,"Oh, Goody. Danny dot on his meetin' toat. Danny doin' to ride on old Whitey's back."

Mrs. Rix ordered Garner to hide and take the Bible with him.

He hid it in a hollow log and it was the only thing saved from the old house except the clothes on their backs.

Garner ran as fast as he could but was soon caught.

Garner had a small club and tried to fight them off.

The Royalton Raid

The Mohawks rounded up all of their captives and were about to head out when Mrs. Hendee crossed the river and pleaded for them to leave the younger children.

When she tried to rescue Garner the Mohawk say "No, no. There's a lot of fight in that boy. He'll make a brave warrior." Garner had to go with them.

Joseph, 10, was snatched from the arms of his agonized mother who was forced to ride on with only three of her seven children, not knowing what would become of the others.

In all likelihood they probably would have taken her horse from her had it been a young and valuable one.

That was how Joseph was released.

Raids 

The Royalton Raid was a British-led Indian raid in 1780 against various towns along the White River Valley, Vermont, and was part of the American Revolutionary War. It was the last major Indian raid in New England.

In the early morning hours of October 16, 1780, Lieutenant Houghton of the British Army's 53rd Regiment of Foot and a single Grenadier, along with 300 Mohawk warriors from the Kahnawake Reserve in Quebec, Canada, attacked and burned the towns of Royalton, Sharon and Tunbridge along the White River in eastern Vermont. This raid was launched in conjunction with other raids led by Major Christopher Carleton of the 29th Regiment of Foot along the shores of Lake Champlain and Lake George and Sir John Johnson of the King's Royal Regiment of New York in the Mohawk River valley, to attempt to drive the Americans out of the frontier areas and to burn anything of military value that might be used by the Continental Army if they decided to attack Montreal or Quebec City again. Four American settlers were killed and twenty six were taken prisoner to Canada.

By the time the local militia could assemble, Houghton and his command were already on their way back north to Canada. The militia caught up with the raiders near Randolph, Vermont, and a few volleys were fired back and forth, but when Houghton said that the remaining captives might be killed by the Mohawks if fighting continued, the local militia let the raiders slip away.

The Hannah Handy monument, on the South Royalton town green, is a granite arch honoring a young mother who lost her young son in the raid, crossed the river, and successfully begged for the return of several children.

References
The Burning of the Valleys, Gavin K. Watt, Dundurn Press 1997
The British Army in North America 1775-1783, Robin May and Gerry Embleton, Osprey Men-at-Arms Series # 39 1997

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Royalton Raid 

Royalton Raid
Story: The Royalton Raid by Sarah Rooker, Walt Garner
In October 1780, 300 Native Americans led by a British officer swept through Royalton,Tunbridge and Sharon, leaving devastation in their wake.This was not the first in the region. New England's frontier settlements had been under continuous threat of raids throughout the eighteenth-century as the Native populations became both caught up in Euro-American politics and struggled to adapt to encroaching settlements. In 1780 Barnard settlers built a small stockade fort after a party of Native Americans had captured
Thomas Wright, John Newton, and Prince Haskell and carried them to Canada. This change in fortification left Royalton without protection.

Before daybreak, on October 16, the raiding party moved toward the settled area of Tunbridge, capturing John Hutchinson and his brother Abijah. After raiding the house, they crossed the first branch of White River and took the home of Robert Havens of Royalton which they made a post of observation. From there they moved to the mouth of White river branch and dispatched small parties in different directions, killing some settlers and taking others prisoner, mainly young men. One group went down the east side of the river to Sharon, capturing Nathaniel Gilbert. On their return, they burned every building in sight, destroyed crops, and killed livestock. One hero of the day, Phineas Parkhurst rode while wounded sixteen miles to Lebanon, NH, to spread the alarm. In the end, 4 settlers were killed and 26 prisoners were marched to Canada where they were sold to the British as prisoners of war. Most of the prisoners were redeemed or exchange the following summer. One prisoner, Zadock Steele, remained in captivity for two years after which he escaped. Zadock Steele and fellow prisoner, Abijah Hutchinson, both wrote memoirs of the raid.

These accounts of the raid yield subtle differences as each author
remembered the event and yet they offer the same point of view. How would the story change if we could read an account written by the British or the Kahnawake?

The British Perspective 

Loyalists

There are three books in the trilogy, (I) A Time of Terror, (II)So It Was Written and (III) Brothers in Arms. My intention was to add some historical background to my genealogical research. I was not disappointed on this expectation. In fact, I have gained a wonderful set of storybooks that are filled with beautifully written recaps of historical events in the Central New York area from the early 1700's through to the mid 1800's.

The soldiers, the town folk, the English, immigration records and events, military recordings, individual tribulations and even a recap of important buildings and their role in history are amply covered in these three books. I am looking forward to visiting the Mohawk Valley and appreciating the trip so much more! I am thrilled with my three books and I cannot put them down! What a wonderful writer! -Susan D. Moran

Catchpenny

Catchpenny welcomes you to 1770s London! Come then, and gather your street "pedlars" and begin building your "mon-o-polies," in a delightful and very competitive game. Players collect street peddlers and other characters attempting to control the board and force others out of the game. The money of old England will come and go, the "Way of the World" is harsh, and there are pitfalls for the careless.

Amazon Price: $49.98 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Traveling with the Mohawks to Montreal 

Birch Bark Canoe

Garner traveled with the Mohawks across the Green Mountains and up to Montreal. He may have traveled in a birch bark canoe or he might have walked the whole way.

Though he was certainly scared, they did not harm him but fed him, clothed him and probably taught him a little about their culture.

Mohawk Family

moccasinsThese Iroquois moccasins were made for a child in the mid-19th century.

Before beads were available in North America, the Kanien'kehá:ka decorated their moccasins with porcupine quills dipped in vegetable dyes.

The soles of the moccasins were made from Woodchuck Hide.

When beads appeared with the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century, it did not take the Iroquois long to incorporate them into their spiritual and decorative traditions.

Garner was given moccasins and buckskins to wear and wore these when he returned.

One of his moccasins is now owned by the Eddy's of Royalton.

birch bark canoes

They may have traveled some of the way in birch bark canoes.

The Iroquois were farming people.

Iroquois women did most of the farming, planting crops of corn, beans, and squash and harvesting wild berries and herbs.

Iroquois men did most of the hunting, shooting deer and elk and fishing in the rivers.

CookingIroquois Indian dishes included cornbread, soups, and stews cooked on stone hearths.

These are all foods that Garner must have been familiar with.

Tales of Captivity 

What was Garner Rix's life as a captive like? He walked to Montreal and was sold to a French woman. He was allowed to return a year later. When he arrived home he was wearing moccasins but told tales of being well taken care of by the French woman who he said treated him like a son.
Susanna Johnson's Captivity: New Hampshire Indian Raid During the French and Indian War, Fort-4. | Suite101.com
Indian raids for the rural, northeastern areas of the 13 colonies, circa 1750, were common. Some captives survived them. Susanna Johnson was one such survivor.

Mohawks in Vermont 

Mohawk Village in Central New York State, About 1780


Mohawk Village in Central New York State, About 1780
Buy at AllPosters.com

At the left is an Iroquois council fire within a longhouse, in a 19th century rendition, displaying the rough interior, central fire, and tree supports for the roof. The Mohawks were members of the Iroquois Confederacy.
Mohawks in Vermont

Iroquois

Photo Credit: Drawing of the Inside of a Longhouse



The game that we know as Lacrosse began with the Iroquois nation. It is played with sticks that have a net on one end, and a small ball. The ball is never touched with the hands. French fur traders in the area named the game because the curved sticks were called "crosse" in the French language.

Large Crowd of Native Americans Play Lacrosse

Large Crowd of Native Americans Play Lacrosse
Catlin, George
Buy at AllPosters.com



Mohawk Indians

Native Americans 

Iroquois Longhouse


Iroquois Longhouse
Giclee Print

Buy at AllPosters.com


The native peoples of the North Eastern Woodlands did not live in tipees. They lived in longhouses. Each longhouse was home to an extended family and had a series of campfires with holes above them down the middle of the house. Nuclear families slept around their own campfires.

Abenaki

In 1780, neither the Abnaki nor the Mohawks had horses, but traveled by foot or canoe. To carry large amounts of goods, they used dogs with a travois.

Learning About Native American Life 

Books for Teachers

Hannah Duston and Two Other Captives Escaping from Abenaki Indians on the Merrimac River, 1697


Hannah Duston and Two Other Captives Escaping from Abenaki Indians on the Merrimac River, 1697
Giclee Print

Buy at AllPosters.com

To truly understand the events surrounding the Royalton Raid it is important to look at the situation from all viewpoints. Here are some resources for beginning to understand the viewpoint of the native peoples of the Vermont region. The Mohawk are members of the Iroquois Nation. The Abenaki are a separate nation. Though neighbors, their cultures and traditions are different. They speak different languages. Members of each of these nations still live in the area.

Iroquois Lapbook 

Lapbooks from Garner Rix's Time

Iroquois Lapbook

Photo Credit: Iroquois Lapbook by Jimmie
on Flickr, Creative Commons.



Lapbooks help you to organize the information that you have learned in a unit study. Jimmie makes some of my favorite lapbooks and this Iroquois Lapbook is an excellent accompaniment to our study of Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid.
If You Lived With the Iroquois Lapbook
If You Lived With the Iroquois Lapbook
Author: Ellen Levine
Illustrator: Shelly Hehenberger

Lapbook created by Jimmie
Free Courage of Sarah Noble Unit Study & Lapbook
Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh

Lapbook prepared by Jimmie and Ami

Abenakis of Vermont 

Abenakis

The Abnakis traditionally lived in land that is now in Vermont and Quebec. They were hunters and gatherers who moved from fishing villages to hunting grounds with the seasons. During the Revolutionary War some warriors were hired by the British and others joined Washington and his troops.

To learn more about the Abenakis and their role in the Royalton Raid I highly recommend reading The Western Abenakis of Vermont which is online below. Garner Rix may or may not have encountered Abenakis.
The Western Abenakis of Vermont
Indian raids in Vermont during the Revolution climaxed at the valley town of Royalton in October 1780.
Stories Of Forced Migrations To Vermont
Discusses both Abenaki and African American Slaves in Vermont.
Indians and African Americans 1780-1820
A lesson in how to read the 1790 census.

Native Americans are not obvious in Deerfield, Ma. town records, and their absence signifies their dispersion to Canada, to Schaghticoke (near Albany, NY), or to other parts of New England. Those Native Americans who remained integrated themselves into the general population and, in effect, became invisible in records.
Traditional Indian Games And Toys
Ne-Do-Ba is a nonprofit, established to explore and share the history and culture of the Abenaki Indian in Western Maine

Games and Stories of the Abenaki  

Traditional Indian Games And Toys

Games and Stories that Garner Rix might have encountered on his long trip from Royalton to Montreal. Native people generally treated children kindly and may have taught Garner how to play some of these games. In the evenings the elders probably told tales like these around the campfire.

Indian games, toys, and pastimes of Maine and the Maritimes (Bulletin - Robert Abbe Museum ; 10)

...With summer lasting only a few brief weeks, with the ever-present threat of starvation, these families still spent many hours in play. And perhaps this fleeting impression of a people's natural and essential gaiety triumphing over a demanding environment is most significant of all...

Amazon Price: (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Thirteen Moons on Turtle's Back

The book opens with an Abenaki storyteller explaining to his grandson that just as there are always 13 scales on ``Old Turtle's back,'' there are 13 moons in a year, each of which has a name and a story.

Amazon Price: $6.99 (as of 11/25/2009) Buy Now

Montreal 

A View of Montreal and It's Walls in 1760

VIEW OF MONTREAL AND ITS WALLS IN 1760

Click here to read about Montreal and the Revolutionary War and Ethan Allen.

The Montreal that Garner Rix Encountered in 1780 

Family Life in New France

Women in 1780 Oxen in 1780 Farmer in 1780
Family Life in New France
Family Life

Childbirth: Women giving birth were attended by the parish midwife, and often times her mother and close friends.Under the French regime, the midwife was often elected by the assembly of the women of the parish.

Agriculture

Drought ruined the crops of 1779, and the harvests of the 1780's were also poor, they were spoiled by the late springs and early autumn frosts. In the mid 1780's the situation improved, but not for long.

Foods

The main foods were bread,pork,vegetables and fish--game and fruit when in season. Buckwheat, a hardy cereal was used to make bread,pancakes and porridges. Maple syrup was the chief source of sweeteners. Women baked at least once a week. Cabbages if grown were kept under snow covered fields until needed. Turnips,apples and spruce sprouts were harvested and stored in the cellars. Some apples were used to make cider. Just about every farmer planted tobacco near his house, this was universally smoked by the common people and boys as young as 10 or 12 years old could be seen smoking a pipe. In the northern part of Canada they smoked it pure, but further south near Montreal they usually mixed it with the crushed inner bark of the red Cornelian cherry to make it weaker.
A long agricultural crisis preceded the rebellion of 1837, which forced the peasants to change their eating habits. There was not enough wheat to prepare their foods and tea and molasses were imported from the British and introduced to the Canadians.

Chores & Trades

Daily chores for women and children included looking after the livestock, the barn and the vegetable garden. Every autumn they preserved vegetables in ice pits or root cellars. Women also worked in the fields with their husbands especially at haying time.
In the springtime men fixed fences,plowed and planted. They harvested in August, September and October. In November and December they threshed the grains with flails.
18th-century Public Market - Montreal, Quebec
You have another opportunity to experience what life was like when Garner Rix lived in Montreal at the 18th-century Public Market in Montreal, Quebec. This annual event, held in May, is a chance to experience the lives of the everyday people of Montreal in 1780.

18th-century Public Market - Montreal, Quebec

Take a trip back in time among stalls, an inn, a military camp, a Native camp, musicians, craftspeople, and historic figures.

Map of Garner Rix's Land 

Map of Royalton

You can see that Garner Rix's land was on the White River, two lots to the left of the one shaded blue.

This is the land given to Garner by the town after he returned from Montreal. It was land that was being redistributed after the Tories lost the war.
Map of Royalton Settlers
Calvin Skinner was one of Garner Rix's neighbors.

News before 1780 

News leading up to the Royalton Raid before 1780

Math Manipulatives
Battle of Wyoming - July 3, 1778
The Battle of Wyoming was an encounter during the American Revolutionary War between American Patriots and Loyalists accompanied by Iroquois raiders that took place in Wyoming Valley, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 1778.

More than three hundred Patriots were killed in a battle followed by a massacre, in which the Iroquois raiders hunted and killed fleeing Patriots before torturing to death thirty to forty who had surrendered.

The Iroquois were primarily Seneca and Onondaga, and only a few Mohawk.

-Wikipedia
At the outbreak of the American Revolution
At the outbreak of the American Revolution, John Butler was a successful farmer on the Mohawk River opposite Fort Hunter (now Fonda, NY). He held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the colonial militia of New York and the appointment of Deputy Superintendent in the British Indian Department.

Butler moved into the Indian country in the spring of 1778.

The Rangers conducted a number of expeditions against the rebel frontier throughout the spring and summer of 1780.
METIS CULTURE 1779-1780
Ethan Allen (1739-1789), one of the Green Mountain Boys in the American Revolution, informed the Continental Congress that he was not fighting for the independence of the United States but of Vermont, that he wised to become a separate nation.

Vermont declared its independence but it was not accepted. Allen negotiated with the British in an effort to have Vermont made part of Canada.

Vermont was still in this turmoil at the time of the Royalton Raid.

News from 1780 

What was happening at the time of the Royalton Raid?

News from 1780

New England's Dark Day 1780
May 19, 1780: Darkness at Noon Enshrouds New England
1780: In the midst of the Revolutionary War, darkness descends on New England at midday. Many people think Judgment Day is at hand. It will be remembered as New England's Dark Day.
Historical Events for 1780
Browse our Historical Events archives for 1780. Archives are also fully searhable by date, day and keyword.
America's Best History - United States History Timeline 1780 to 1789
America's Best History, ... from sea to shining sea. United States History Timeline, the 1780's, the Nascent Democracy, includes the top events of each year of the decade of the war of independence and start of a new nation.
Historical Events for 1780
Oct 10th - Great Hurricane of 1780 kills 20,000 to 30,000 in Caribbean
Timeline for 1780
Horton's Historical Articles by Gerald Horton TIMELINE FOR 1780
Timeline 1780 to 1789
May 26, 1781 - The Bank of North America is incorporated in Philadelphia by an act of Congress to help stabilize the issuance of paper currency. It was capitalized in 1781 with $400,000.
Ed Howe's Genealogy - Timeline 1780 - 1799
The Rosetta Stone was discovered in Egypt in Aug 1799
Altoids - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1780 - Altoids a brand of breath mints were invented in England during the reign of King George III.
1780's Post Revolution Depression
During the mid-1780's, economic conditions grew worse. The scarcity of money, caused high interest rates. It became exceedingly difficult to pay taxes and private debts. By the end of 1784, the economic depression was severely felt.

Debtors were forced to sell their property at a fraction of its true value. Debts were a factor which motivated farmers to take an interest in politics. As a debtor, the farmer hoped that the judicial process might be made more favorable to him. He demanded the more convenient location of courts, lower court costs and lawyer fees, laws obliging creditors to accept property at a "fair" value, the abolition of imprisonment for debt, and laws delaying the recovery of debts.
George Washington: Following the Warrior's Trail
A Photographic Essay by W. Cary Eberley

Sample Chapter of the Battle of Brandywine; one of ten chapters covering the battles Washington fought during the 1775-1783 American Revolution.

Garner Rix's Time Line 

Time line Tool

Create the time line of what was happening in the world during Garner Rix's lifetime. He was born in 1767 and died in 1854. Just add his name and dates and this tool will create a time line for you.

Use this timeline to get a better perspective of what was happening in the world during Garner Rix's lifetime.
OurTimeLines.com - Home Page
Create a time line!

Death of Daniel and Rebecca Rix, 1823 

Garner Rix's parents died in the same year.

Spooner's Vermont Journal
Spooner's Vermont Journal

Garner was 56 years old when his parents died.

Deacon Daniel Rix of Royalton, Vt. died in Royalton on the 20th day of January 1823 aged 84 years. Mrs. Rebecca Rix, consort of Deacon Daniel Rix, died on the 31st of March, 1823.

They were among the earliest settlers in Royalton.

They lived in Royalton at the time of its invasion by the Indians and had one son carried into captivity.

They lived together in a married state more than 60 years, raised a numerous family in which there has never been a death before.

In a good old age they have gone together, we trust, to enjoy in Haven that Saviour they so long and ardently worshiped here. (noticed 12 May, 1823).
History and genealogy of the Rix Family
The compiler paid a visit to the old homestead of Daniel Rix, in Preston, Conn.
Spooner's Vermont Journal 1819-1825
Dix, Daniel, Deacon (Royalton). Died at Royalton on the 20th day of Jan. last [20 Jan., 1823], Mrs. Rebecca Rix, consort of Deacon Daniel Rix, and on the 31st of March, last , Deacon Daniel Rix of Royalton, abed 84 years.

They were among the earliest settlers in Royalton. They lived in Royalton at the time of its invasion by the Indians and had one son carried into captivity.

They lived together in a married state more than 60 years, raised a numerous family in which there has never been a death before.

In a good old age they have gone together, we trust, to enjoy in Haven that Saviour they so long and ardently worshipped here. (noticed 12 May, 1823).
Elisha Wild married Lucinda Rix
Elisha Wild, born January 10, 1794 in West Fairlee, VT; died March 10, 1885 in Royalton, VT; married Lucinda Rix March 23, 1823

Lucinda was the daughter or Garner Rix. She was married on the same day that her grandfather, Daniel Rix died.

Garner Rix 

This is a picture of Garner Rix. His wife Betsey (Lyman) Rix follows. They look stern in these pictures because at the time they had to hold their heads very still for several minutes. Cameras were a new invention and needed several minutes of exposure time. Also, smiling was not considered proper.

Garner Rix died on 28 Aug 1854 at his home in Royalton, Vt. He was 85 years old.

After their death, the home was left vacant for a time. Many people inquired about renting it so around the time of the civil war, according to the family, the house was torn down. The depression from the cellar hole is still evident in the field beside the stone wall and the old apple tree that grew just across the road fell down last year.

I was just given an album of photos including ones of Garner and Betsey Rix that I had never seen before. I am hoping to include them sometime this summer. Please check back soon or click the contact me button on the upper right if you are interested.

Betsey (Lyman) Rix 

This is Garner Rix's wife Betsey. It amazes me how similar they look.

These pictures come from the family photo album. There are no other pictures of them as pictures were quite rare at the time. Most people had only one picture taken in a lifetime.

Betsey (Lyman) Rix died on 1 Nov 1851 at her home in Royalton, Vt. She was 79 years old.

They had 11 children born between 1792 and 1815. Garner loved to gather the children and later the grandchildren around the fire and tell stories of when he was captured in the Royalton Raid.

Royalton Raid Revisited: 

This is the earliest known depiction of the Royalton Raid, in which the British commanded a troupe of Indians in a raid of Royalton and several other Central Vermont towns, killing some and taking some with them on an arduous trip to British Canada. The raid will be re-nacted next weekend.

New Book & 225th Celebration

"What interests me are the stories that history has to tell-and this is a very good story."

That's South Royalton architect, filmmaker, and author Neil Goodwin on the Royalton Raid of 1780. The 225th anniversary of the raid is being celebrated in fine style on October 22-23. (See details in side article.)

In a recent interview, Goodwin said he had been intrigued about this piece of Revolutionary War history since he bought a home in South Royalton 40 years ago, and stopped to read the commemorative plaque on the Royalton Green.

He was "hooked" about 10 years ago, Goodwin added, when he read the "captive narrative" of Zadock Steele, one of 27 men and boys taken captive by the raiding party.

Steele was a young man living alone in his cabin in the unfortified, "no-man's land" of northern Randolph, when he was taken captive by the band of six British soldiers and about 270 Mohawks, as they headed back north after pillaging Royalton.

He was held prisoner in Canada, first by the Indians, and then by British, for two years, in often horrific conditions, before escaping.

Years afterward, Steele published his account of his trials in "A Narrative of the Captivity and Suffering of Zadock Steele, Related by Himself, To Which is Prefixed an Account of the Burning of Royalton."

"Among the evils resulting from the destruction of Royalton," Steele wryly observed, "my own captivity was far from being the least."

Using this and other pieces of source material, Goodwin has spent the last four years researching and writing a book that goes far beyond the events of the Royalton Raid of October 16, 1780, to examine the rich history and personal stories of the time. His research took him to libraries and archives in Canada, Boston, and elsewhere, including, of course, South Royalton Library and Royalton Historical Society.

The "narrative spine" of his not-yet-published book is the story of Zadock Steele, Goodwin notes.

Steele's account, according to Goodwin, is one of the longest and most complete "captive narratives" of the time. So many people were being taken captive in these raids at the time, that the form became a popular literary genre.

The following overview of the Royalton Raid, and Steele's captivity is drawn, primarily, from the interview with Goodwin and a book draft he provided.

Royalton Raid

October 16, 1780

At dawn on October 16, 1780, a war party of 270 Canadian Mohawks and Abenakis, led by British officer Lt. Houghton quietly moved into Royalton, a settlement of 20 to 25 cabins spread along both sides of the White River and its First Branch.

Despite raids on neighboring communities earlier in the year, the settlement of Royalton is completely surprised by the massive attacks.

The raiders move quietly from cabin to cabin, traveling as far downstream as the mouth of Broad Brook in Sharon, and as far upstream to where the Second Branch meets the White, near the site of the present-day "Foxstand" brick building.

With the exception of two settlers who are killed, and a few who hide or who escape to spread the alarm, all others are taken captive.

As the war party withdraws, cabins are plundered and burned, and food stores and livestock are also destroyed.

The well-known heroine of the day is a young mother, Hannah Handy or Hendee, who has escaped capture but who crosses the White River to confront Lt. Houghton, to demand the return of her son. Hendee's spunk earns her the admiration of the Mohawks, who eventually agree to hand over her son and several other children.

The raiders head north, capturing two more men, including Zadock Steele, and then camp for the night, probably near the present site of East Randolph.

Meanwhile, a militia of some 300 armed settlers has been mustered and comes upon Lt. Houghton and his party at about 2 a.m.

There is a brisk exchange of fire, but the Vermont militia does not press the attack, and the war party fades north on foot, with captives forced to carry plundered goods.

Imprisonment, Escape

For Zadock Steele and other captives, these trials are only the beginning of two years of hardship. Held first at an Indian village in Canada, Steele and others are eventually sold to the British. For most of the next two years, he is held in a maximum-security prison on an island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River, under conditions of extreme privation.

In August of 1782, Steele and several other prisoners stage a daring escape, which involves digging a 20-foot tunnel, and then swimming through the dangerous rapids surrounding the island.

The escapees have no way of knowing the Revolutionary War is over, and all prisoners are about to be released.

Steele and three other prisoners walk through the wilderness for 22 days, close to starvation, before arriving at an American settlement in Pittsford.

As Neil Goodwin said: It's a very good story.

Wider Ripples

However, the Royalton Raid and Steele's subsequent captivity are more than riveting tales. According to Goodwin, they offer a superb window into a fascinating period in American history and details about a time when extraordinary hardship was a part of daily living.

Settlers lives were so hard, and so joyless, he noted, that those taken captive by Indians often preferred to remain with them.

"If we were plunked down in the 18th century, we wouldn't last very long," Goodwin said. "Those people were so tough."

The book he has written, Goodwin noted, also touches on contemporary themes, such as terrorism and prisoner abuse.

The Royalton Raid, he explained, was part of what was "essentially a terror campaign" being conducted by the British, with the assistance of Indian allies, against the northernmost American settlements in New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire.

The British hoped to force settlers back south, thereby increasing pressures on limited food and supplies in the colonies.

Goodwin's book also highlights the interconnectedness of all the players in the 1780 drama.

For example, some of the Mohawks in the raiding party were known to the Royalton settlers, and at least one was rebuked for attacking a place where he had once received food and shelter. Many of the Indians spoke English; at least one was a graduate of Dartmouth College.

Also, loyalist and revolutionary sympathies often divided communities, and even families. Zadock Steele suffered at the hands of a Loyaltist jailkeeper, but Loyalists were often treated horribly by the Revolutionaries, Goodwin noted.

All of his research, Goodwin admitted, has made him "more skeptical" of the typically "triumphalist" portrayals of the Revolutionary War.

"It's not 'the noble Revolutionary,''' Goodwin commented. "It is much more interesting than that."

By Sandy Cooch in the Rutland Herald 2007

If you were in Royalton during the Raid, who would you rather have been? 

British Soldiers Quartered in an American Colonial Home, c.1770


British Soldiers Quartered in an American Colonial Home, c.1770
Giclee Print

Buy at AllPosters.com

Loading poll. Please Wait...

Past or Present? 

Do you prefer to live in the present or the past?

Revolutionary Reenactment

Photo Credit: Revolutionary Portrait
on Flickr, Creative Commons.



Unit Studies give you the opportunity to travel back in time. The more we learn about the lives of people in th 1780's, the more we can understand what life was like for Garner Rix and his family.

We also can learn more about ourselves and the choices we make in our daily lives, whether to use modern methods or to at times go back to simpler methods that draw us together as a family.

Do you prefer to live in the present or the past?

Loading Fetching blurbs now... please stand by

Past

Lori_Lee-Ray says:

I like the modern technology, but I sure miss the laid back lifestyle of people just "dropping by". Seems now you have to make plans just to see your own family!

Present

 

More Perspectives on the Royalton Raid 

Information about the Royalton Raid of 1780

Colonial Militia Crossing the Mountains during the French and Indian War


Buy at AllPosters.com

The Royalton Raid effected more than just Royalton. Homes were raided in Tunbridge as well. soldiers were called to Royalton's assistance from Bethel, Woodstock and other surrounding areas.

A Walk in the Woods 

A Walk in the Woods

There is a new group being formed in Squidooville. It's called A Walk in the Woods. Whitefoot the Wood Mouse is inviting you to join him there. If you are a member of Squidoo and you may join the group. The exposure that your lens gets by joining will boost your lens rank and add to the number of web pages linking back to your lens. If you are not yet a member of Squidoo you can still come over and read about those who are. Come take A Walk in the Woods.

Lenses with many more Teaching Ideas 

Barn

Evelyn's Hands-on Learning Blog 

Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Vermont Historical Society Events 

Vermont Historical Society Calendar

Map of White River Jct., Vt.

Photo Credit: Map of White River Jct., Vt.
on Flickr, Creative Commons.

Vermont Historical Society
The Vermont Historical Society is the only institution in Vermont that collects artifacts, books, and documents that reflect the entire history of the state, every geographical area, and every chronological period. We preserve the history that makes Vermont a special place to live, work, and visit.
Vt History Expo - 2009
Vt History Expo cancelled for 2009

The Vermont Historical Society is canceling the 2009 Vermont History Expo because of financial woes caused by the current economic slowdown and other considerations.

Bed and Breakfast on Garner Rix's Farm 

Visit Garner Rix's Home

Driving in Vermont

Photo Credit: Vermont Dirt Road
on Flickr, Creative Commons.

Drive the scenic roads of Vermont where the trees still grow overhead forming a green canopy. And when you are done come back to Callenbeck B&B for the night, the home built by Garner Rix's grandson, Garner Rix Dewey.

What happened to your family in 1780? 

If you are interested in Vermont History, reenactment or would just like to Vist Vermont I invite you to come and stay at our Bed and Breakfast right here on Garner Rix's Farm.

Classes with hands-on learning activities for you and your children can be arranged to make your visit an educational experience you will never forget.

submit

Meet the Author of this Lens 



Evelyn's Hands-On Learning Blog.

Family Tree

free hit counter

Come check out what I'm up to when I'm not digging up the past:

The Isle of Squid 

The Best Squidoo Lenses

The Isle of Squid

Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid is now featured at the new Isle of Squid website. Isle Of Squid is a directory of the best lenses on Squidoo.com.

Check out Isle Of Squid and Review My Site

Connecting Garner Rix to History, Teaching and Learning 

Garner Rix's WebRing Memberships

 

by Evelyn_Saenz

My passion is teaching and finding ways to teach children in fun, hands-on, creative ways. The unit studies I make on Squidoo reflect my view that lea... (more)

Explore related pages

Evelyn_Saenz Recommends...

Create a Lens!