| Notes |
- Another Account has Jonathans DOB as 3 September 1742.
Johnathan Burt, s. of Miriam4[18] Elmer & Aaron Burt, gr-s.ofHezekiah3[10] Elmer, Impressions, 1810
Jonathan Burt, one of the elder sons of Aaron, and great grandsonofDavid Burt was born at Northfield, Mass, on September 3, 1742.Hemarried Thankful Deane at Windsor, Vermont on Aug 31, 1767. She wasbornJune 1 1742 at Plainfield, CT and died December 22, 1794. They hadsevensons and three daughters, and Jonathan died December 24, 1825 atthe ageof 83. He had remarried a second wife, a Mrs. Phelps.
This reprint of a letter was found in the late 1800's among the papersofone of his grandsons, and records the recollections of a tragedyhewitnessed as a child.
Windsor Vt. April 23, 1810
"I Johnathan Burt am this day 67 years, seven months and nine daysold.I have an impression on my mind since the reclamation began inWindsor towrite some brief account of my life experience here. I wasborn in thetown of Northfield, Mass. in the year 1742, Sept. 3, oldstyle. Myfather's name was AARON BURT, son of JOSEPH BURT, one of thefirstsettlers in Northfield, and my mother's name was MIRIAM ELMER,daughterof HEZEKIAH ELMER, one of the first settlers in Northfield,and as Godhas given me and retained a strong memory I can wellremember events thattook place whin I was but very young. The firstthing I will menshion myUncle Asahel Burt and Nathaniel Dickerson whowas killed by the Indiansin 1747, April 15th, old style.
I then being 4 years 7 months and 12 days old, well remember thealarm.My mother and aunt with their children ran up to fort toward theenemy. Asolger came running with all his mite and sayeth, "Don't gothis way, forGod's sake," however when they broat in my uncle andDickerson I ran outof doors to see them and did see them lying on myuncle's mare, which wasnot hurt. They were killed like two ded sheepwith their heads hangingdown on side and feet on the other side of themare, with their scalpstaken of their heads. It was almost dark then. They carried them intoMr. Averill's room within the picket, laid themon the floor side by sideand the blood ran from each of their bodyes,almost across the floor.The next thing to menshon is 1748 in June.Aaron Belding, at sunrise whowas returning from work, thear lay'dindians behind the board fence andone and a half rods from the path.Seven indians all fired at once andmade a rideal of his Body. He ranfour rods! , fell down dead. They were upon him in a minute within thirty orfortyrods of his brother's house where he lived. His brother andothers seethe indians taking of his scalp, fired at the indians, butthey see themrun off into the woods. These three men have I seen withtheir garmentssoaked in blood."
In the book "FINDING YOUR FOREFATHERS IN AMERICA", the author,ArchibaldF. Bennett, in his chapter on " The Forefather Quest In NewHampshire",tells of this family, and incident. "A Fatherless Family. Asahel Burt and his wife, Martha Severance,andtheir five young children, were living in Northfield, Mass., inthespring of 1747. There were four little boys and a girl: the oldestsonwas just over eight and the youngest child, Enos was only a yearand ahalf old. One evening, on the 15th of April, the father and acompanionwere driving some cattle home from the field, when Indiansfired uponthem and they were both killed.
The widowed mother sought bravely to care for her fatherless childrenandrear them as stalwart and worthy members of that frontiercommunity.Seven years passed and the only daughter, Susanna, died. Twoyears laterone of the boys followed her in death. Of the survivingthree, JosephBurt lived to be 95, Benjamin 83, and Enos 91. Amongthem they were theparents of 23 children, and their posterity isnumbered today over ahundred thousand.
As these three sons grew to manhood they joined the westwardmigration.Joseph moved northward and made his home in Westmoreland,CheshireCounty, New Hampshire. He apparently married his cousin MaryBurt,daughter of AARON and MIRIAM ELMER BURT. Benjamin was inWestminster,Vermont, just over the border to the west, by 1760; hebecame a judge.Later Joseph moved to the northwest and died atSheldon, Franklin County,Vermont. Enos lived for some years also inWestmoreland; then moved farto the west and died in Herkimer, NewYork.
Enos married Sarah Sawyer of Westmoreland. Her father and mother,Caleband Lydia Sawyer, had moved to Westmoreland shortly beforefromLeominster, Worcester County, Mass. Enos and Sarah had severalsmallchildren when the Revolutionary War came, and he entered theservice ofhis country. He was one of the signers of ARTICLES ofASSOCIATION, 12June 1776. Enos Burt was on the Pay Roll of CaptainDaniel Carlisle'sCompany, in Col. Bedel's Regiment, and in February1776 was paid 1months wages, 40s, bounty 15s , blanket money and a 1 dper milebilleting. He is mentioned as relinquishing a pew in church,Oct. 27,1779. Two of his brothers-in-law, who, with Enos, arementioned often inthe History of Cheshire and Sullivan Counties, wereManasseh and EphraimSawyer. He and Sarah had eight children, all bornin Keene, NewHampshire.
(The story by Johnathan Burt was published by Henry M. Burt, butmanyfamily members, including my great grandmother, Minerva Burt, hadhandwritten copies of it before it was published. The story waspublished inthe History of Northfield, where it says that onlyDickinson was scalped;that the bodies were carried off by the townsmenbefore the Indians hadtime to scalp Burt.
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1742 - 1825 (83 years)
