Garner Rix was 13 years old at the time of the Royalton Raid. He was captured by the Indians in the last raid of the American Revolution. He was taken to Montreal, sold to a French Woman who kept him safe for a year until it was safe for him to walk home, by himself at age 14. When he got back home the town gave him the land that I live on. Garner Rix was my great, great, great, great-grandfather...
Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid - 1780
by evelynsaenz
1780 - Garner Rix, The story of a real boy who lived in Colonial Times, captured by Indians and British, sold in Montreal and walked home to Royalton, Vt...
Garner Rix Pioneer Boy
Moving to Vermont
Garner Rix was about 12 years old 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, Mohawks, and Abenakis during the Royalton Raid. Mohawks or Abenakis 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.
Colonial Boy
Young boy at the time of the Royalton Raid
Clearing the Land
Life of the Pioneers
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.
Turning the Woodlands into a Farm
The First Year in Vermont
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.
Everyday Life in Early America
by David Freeman Hawke
 | Everyday Life in Early America "In this clearly written volume, Hawke provides enlightening and colorful descriptions of early Colonial Americans and debunks many widely held assumptions about 17th century se... |
The Rix Family came from Connecticut before the Royalton Raid
Goodbye to Grandparents
Garner was born on July 31, 1767 in Preston, New London, Connecticut. Garner Rix 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.
Garner Rix's Family
Preparing to Move
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?
The Rix children 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.
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 photograph of Garner Rix was taken in 1848. What can you learn about the history of Vermont from looking at Garner Rix's photograph?
Garner Rix
Garner Rix in 1848
 Garner Rix Family Photo |
A Peaceful Morning
Cultivating the Garden
In 1780, Garner Rix was out in the field peacefully harvesting crops totally unsuspecting the imminent threat of British and Native American Raiders.
To understand the history of Vermont and the way that political events effected Royalton, Vermont we ask the question: What were the political divisions of the world in 1780?
The World in 1780
Major Events Leading up to the Royalton Raid
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 of the world beyond the borders of Royalton that will lead you to understand 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 history and world events outside the town at a time when most people traveled by foot.
- Historic World Map - 1780
Available laminated.
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
The World Garner Rix Knew
Garner Rix cleared 130 acres in Royalton, Vt
Photo Credit: A drawing by Rowland Robinson of Ferrisburgh, Vt.
Used by Permission
This image depicts hard-working settlers clearing the forest,
dragging the logs to market and burning the remaining wood in pits.
from the Rokeby Museum
- 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. - Colonial unrest and the American Revolution
U.S. History Notecards in chronological order, and in an easily printed format. 1771-1779
NH, NY or Vermont - Vermont was not yet a state in 1780 at the time of the Royalton Raid
What would this area claimed by both New York and New Hampshire be called?
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.
Originally known as the New Hampshire Grants the land that would one day be called Vermont went through several name changes. First it was shortened to The Grants. Since many of the new settlers were from Connecticut, when Vermont became a separate country it was named New Connecticut. Then when Vermont was applying for statehood, a conscious decision was made to invent a name to be proud of. By taking the french words for the mountain range, Green Mountains or Verdmont and eliminating the awkward d the name became Vermont.
- 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 ...
Vermont in 1780 - A Brief History of Early Royalton before, during and after the Royalton Raid
Chartered by the 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 when Robert Havens and his family came to clear the land and build a log cabin.
Daniel and Rebecca Rix brought their family up from Connecticut 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, Royalton was attacked by the British and a mixture of hired Abdnakis 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 their land under New York. All of these petitioners listed were men and boys who had settled in Royalton. Garner was included in this list despite 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 Its History
The Villages of Royalton, North Royalton and South Royalton, Vermont - Vermont 1771 Census
By studying the Vermont census you can see the speed at which 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.
Cultural Mix
Farm Boy in Colonial Times
Family Life 1780-1820 - Lives of people Garner Rix encountered in Vermont and Quebec in the 1780's
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?
Photo Credit: Colonial Boy Costume
Public Domain Image WPClipart
- 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
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, in - 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 elde
Whom might Garner Rix have Met? - Understanding Family Life of Various Cultures in 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 immediate 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 Abenakis and 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.
Family Life and Sociability in Upper and Lower Canada
 | Family Life and Sociability in Upper and Lower Canada, 1780-1870: A View from Diaries and Family ... |
Family Life
Going to Church on a Sunday Morning
Sunday Morning in Sleepy Hollow Art PrintBrownscombe,...Sunday Morning in Sleepy Hollow
Available on Allposters
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 in 1910.
- 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 l
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 party of Mohawks and Abenakis in a raid on Royalton. Zaddock 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 from an island prison in Montreal.
Garner Rix, however, was much luckier. He 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
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?
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 Abenakis and Mohawks in 1780.
In the fifth year of the War of Independence, while the Americans focused on the British thrust against the Carolinas, the Canadian Department waged a decisive campaign against the northern frontier of New York. Their primary target was the Mohawk River region, known to be the "grainbowl" that fed Washington's armies. The Burning of the Valleys details the actions of both sides in this exciting and incredibly effective British campaign. General Frederick Haldimand of Canada possessed a potent force, formed by the deadly alliance of toughened, embittered Tories, who had abandoned their families and farms in New York and Pennsylvania to join the King's Provincial regiments in Canada, and the enraged Six Nations Iroquois, whose towns and farmlands had been utterly devastated by Continentals in 1779. The Governor augmented this highly motivated force with British and German regulars and Canadian Iroquois. In October, without benefit of modern transportation, communications or navigational aids, four coordinated raids, each thoroughly examined in this book, penetrated deeply into American territory. The raiders fought skirmishes and battles, took hundreds of prisoners, burned forts, farms, and mills and destroyed one of the finest grain harvests in living memory.
Clothing was Homespun
Loom for Making Cloth
Clothing at the Time of the Royalton Raid
What did Garner Rix and his Family Wear?
Learn how to make the clothing that Garner Rix and his family would have worn on their farm in the late 1700's Getting Dressed in the 18th Century
18th Century Homespun Clothing
What did Garner and Betsy Rix and their family wear for clothing in the late 1700's? How did they make their clothing and what technology was available for c...
Classroom Activities about Colonial Life in 1780
Hands-on Activities to understand Garner Rix and his family.
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.
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.
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.
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
Garner Rix built Fences
Fences were built to separate the pasture from the fields.
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. The first fences were split rail fences.
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.
As the land was cleared, stones were removed and placed along the boundary lines to form the stone walls that can still be seen today.
I have learned a tremendous amount from walking around my farm. One day I walked with my dad, my neighbors and a forester around the property lines. I was amazed to find that the stone walls were so straight that you would think that the lines had been drawn from above. At one point the stone wall goes steeply uphill and meets a ledge and then continues on at the top of the ledge.
Garner Rix built Fences
Fences were built to separate the pasture from the fields.
In the 18th Century built fences to keep livestock and other animals out of their fields, not to contain animals in a certain area. The first fences were split rail fences.
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.
As the land was cleared, stones were removed and placed along the boundary lines to form the stone walls that can still be seen today.
I have learned a tremendous amount from walking around my farm. One day I walked with my dad, my neighbors and a forester around the property lines. I was amazed to find that the stone walls were so straight that you would think that the lines had been drawn from above. At one point the stone wall goes steeply uphill and meets a ledge and then continues on at the top of the ledge.
Stonewalls and Cellarholes: A Guide for Landowners on Historic Features and Landscapes in Vermont's Forests is a wonderful resource for opening your eyes to the features that may be visible on your farm today.
Photo Credit: Farmer with Bee Hives
on WPClipart
In the 18th century, Garner Rix used Oxen and horses for power. He probably carved he own plow from trees he felled on his land. Garner would have sewn all of the seeds by hand, cultivated with a hoe and cut hay and grain with a sickle and threshed with a flail.
- 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 establ - 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 threshing... - The Barn on Grandpa's Farm
Have you ever wanted to have a barn full of cows and horses? Have you ever helped to fill the barn with hay, used a pitch fork to toss hay down to the animals and poured grain into their feed troughs?The barn smells of hay and manure. Listen to the h - From Woods to Farm Pasture
Trees were cut to create a pasture. A couple of summers ago 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... - History of American Agriculture - Farm Machinery and Technology
A History of American Agriculture 1776-1990: mccormick reaper charles newbold wooden plows chemical fertilizers grain elevator
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. so says Eric Slone in this delightful and informative book describing life in rural America and giving us hints as to what life was like for Garner Rix.
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 sugaring off
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 may have been 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.
Garner Rix drilled 1/2 inch holes in the trees and pounded in a tap. As the temperature began to rise above freezing and the nights dropped below, the sap began to run and fill the buckets that Garner placed under those taps. He boiled down about 40 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup but it would have been difficult for Garner and Betsy to store syrup so they boiled it down further to make cakes of pure maple sugar. You can do that as well. Just gently boil down your syrup until when stirred it becomes grainy. Now you have maple sugar.
Photo Credit: Native American technique of making maple sugar
on Wikimedia
To learn about making Maple Syrup see my Flip the Pancakes and Sing about Waffles lens.
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
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.
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.
by James Ward
Garner Rix raised Mariano Sheep on the farm for wool as well as for meat. He sheared them in the spring and Betsy used the wool to make the family's clothing. A few horse blankets made from these sheep are still in the barn.
- 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 f - 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 purpos - Family life in 17th- and 18th-century America - James M. Volo, Dorothy Denneen Volo - Google Books
Colonial America comes alive in this depiction of the daily lives of families--mothers, fathers, children, and grandparents. The Volo's examine the role of the family in society and typical family life in 17th- and 18th-century America. Through narra
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.
by James Ward
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. 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 poun - 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 purpos
Art Print">Farm of Old Macdonald
Art Print
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 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 Activities Build 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.
Daniel Rix's cabin, built before the raid probably looked simular to these cabins which were built around 1780 in Vermont.
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.
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.
Miniature Walnut Spinning Wheel made of walnut stained wood - Dollhouse Miniature for the 1:12 miniature setting. Measures: 1 1/2 in W X 3 1/8 in H X 2 3/8 in D
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 son, Daniel Rix also built this type of house where their descendants live to this day.
Notice the low windows, the woodwork covering the corner beams, and the wide wood floors. The floors might have been covered with woven materials or may have had floorcloths laid down to stop drafts. To get a better understanding about floors and floor coverings, try laying a wooden floor, sanding and varnishing it. You could do this for your own home or possibly a dollhouse. Then try weaving a floor mat or how about creating a floorcloth. What type of flooring do you think Betsy Rix would have most likely used in her home?
Rebecca Rix's Kitchen
- 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 impossibl - 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 - Hands On History: Colonial Cooking
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 Steame - 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.
Making Soap
Making Soap on Garner Rix's Farm
Betsy 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.
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.
Ash Hopper Used to Collect Lye from Rain Water and Ash
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.
- Lye Soap Making
SHEPHERD'S HILL Home | Who We Are | Servants of Christ | A Separated Life | HomeChurch | Paul's Workshop | Blacksmithing | Lye Soap Making | Candle Making | Links | Haley and Sam's Wedding Lye Soap Making This page will show you how to make lye soap
Rebecca Rix made Quilts to Keep the Family Warm - Quilts from 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 Betsy Rix taught their daughters.
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 - Betsy Telford's Rocky Mountain Quilts
18th & 19th Century Antique Quilts - Betsy Telford's Rocky Mountain Quilts, features 400+ antique quilts of the finest quality.
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
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
Rebecca Rix's Toys
Rebecca and Garner made toys from things they found in nature. Acorns make cups and pots, caps are the saucers and bowls.
They may have played Jack Be Nimble on cold winter days.
Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick,
Jack jump over the candlestick.
Jumping over the candlestick would be a great game to play with your younger children when your older children are learning about Garner Rix and life in the 1780's.
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 anot - 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
Games and Activities from the 1700's
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
Lesson Page in the New England Primer, Edition of About 1811
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 l
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
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 c
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 its 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 ...
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 - Currency 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
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 deva - Vermont Currency: February 1781
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 th - 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
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.
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?
Schoolyard Games
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.
Burnt Toast Hanging on Clothesline
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 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.
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
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.
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.
Learn more about the British here.
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.
A 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.
October 16, 1780 was supposed 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.
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 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
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
Traveling with the Mohawks to Montreal
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.
These 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.
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.
Iroquois Indian dishes included cornbread, soups, and stews cooked on stone hearths.
These are all foods that Garner must have been familiar with.
Garner Rix arrived home in Moccasins! - 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 and told tales of being well taken care of by the French woman who he said treated him like a son.
Why was he wearing moccasins? Did his own shoes fall apart on the long journey? Did someone take his shoes from him? Didn't the woman in Montreal have the money to buy him decent shoes?
These were all questions I asked myself when I heard that he had come home in moccasins. What I discovered, however, might be surprising to us today.
Most pioneers actually wore moccasins whenever it was too cold to go barefoot.
They did not have cobblers to make their shoes yet. They did not have money to pay cobblers if they had been there. There was nothing left over for bartering for fine shoes.
It was more economical for the pioneers to barter with the people who had been living here right along in order to obtain footwear so they bartered with the Abenakis and Mohawks for moccasins and found them to be comfortable.
That is why Garner Rix arrived home wearing moccasins.
Note: One of Garner Rix's moccasins is now owned by members of the Historical Society in Royalton. It is not known what happened to the other moccasin.
- Susanna Johnson's Captivity: New Hampshire Indian Raid During the French and Indian War, Fort-4. | S
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. - NativeTech: Overview of Native American Footwear ~ Moccasins
Native American Technology & Art: a topically organized educational web site emphasizing the Eastern Woodlands region, organized into categories of Beadwork, Birds & Feathers, Clay & Pottery, Leather & Clothes, Metalwork, Plants &
Mohawk Village in Central New York State, About 1780
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.
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.
Giclee Print">Iroquois Longhouse
Giclee Print
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.
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.
Giclee Print
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.
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 - Garner Rix Encounters the Abenaki
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 Ameri - 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.
...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...
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
- 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 rui - 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 Montr
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
- 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 w - 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 Superin - 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. Vermo
News from 1780 - What was happening at the time of the Royalton Raid?
- 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 for - 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.
Garner was 56 years old when his parents died.
Obituary of Deacon Daniel Rix
published in Spooner's Vermont Journal 12 May 1823
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 Savior they so long and ardently worshiped here. (noticed 12 May, 1823).
Note: This article comes from Spooner's Vermont Journal noticed 12 May, 1823 and archived at the Dartmouth Library in Hanover, NH
- 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 earlies - 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 Betsy (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 Betsy 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.
Betsy (Lyman) Rix
This is Garner Rix's wife Betsy. 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.
Betsy (Lyman) Rix died on the 18th of November in 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:
We Go as Captives and Neil Goodwin's Research on the Royalton Raid
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.
New Book & 225th Celebration
"What interests me are the stories that history has to tell - and this is a very good story," said Neil Goodwin as preparations were being made to commemorate the 225th anniversary of the Royalton Raid. Neil Goodwin is a South Royalton architect, filmmaker, and author who has been working for years to write a book about the raid. He was interviewed by Sandy Cooch of the Rutland Herald in 2007.
In a 2007 interview, with Sandy Cooch of the Rutland Herald, 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.
After reading the "captive narrative" by Zadock Steele, one of 27 men and boys, including Garner Rix, taken captive by the raiding party, Goodwin knew it was a story he needed to write.
Zaddock Steele was a young man living alone in his cabin in what Goodwin describes as 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 and Abenakis, as they headed back north after pillaging Royalton.
Zaddock Steele was held prisoner in Canada, first by the Mohawks, and then by British, for two years, often under horrific conditions, before escaping.
Years afterward, Zaddock 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."
Using this and other pieces of source material, Goodwin has spent the past few 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.
Neil Goodwin uses the Zaddock Steele narrative as the framework to explore the events before, during and after the Royalton Raid that give us the context to understand just what happened in October of 1780, why it happened and how that effected the lives of the people living at the time.
Though many people were taken captive at the time, no first account record as lengthy or as detailed has come to light as the one written by Zaddock Steele.
The following overview of the Royalton Raid, and Steele's captivity is drawn, primarily, from the interview Sandy Cooch's interview with Goodwin and a book draft he provided.
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 (Newspaper Clipping)
Please note that the book mentioned in the article above, We Go as Captives by Neil Goodwin, has recently been published and is available from the Vermont Historical Society.
If you were in Royalton during the Raid, who would you rather have been?
- Garner Rix; captured at age 13; returned 1 year later.
- Mrs. Hannah Hendee; rescued the younger children by pleading with the Indians.
- A Mohawk Warrior; paid by the British
- Lieutenant Houghton of the British Army; who led the attac
Photo Credit: 1780
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?
Past
MarcellaCarlton 3 years ago
The past. I have always pictured myself as living there.
BowWowBear 3 years ago
I have always thought I was born a bit late in time. I like the past.
anonymous 3 years ago
past!
SaintFrantic 4 years ago
Past is much more challenging and exciting
Lori Lee-Ray 6 years ago
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
JesPiddlin 4 years ago
This is hard. I like the simplicity of the past, but the ability to keep in touch at a moment's notice is wonderful in today's time. Also, having the information highway at our fingertips has become very comfortable for most of us. Because of modern medicine, more people understand their ailments and are able to be cured of many more than in the past. I would love to have the option to live in the present and run away to the past, once in a while. (This would not have been my answer before I had heart attacks.)
RobinForlongePa 4 years ago
I like living in the present when it's becoming easier to study the past (and ideally to learn from it). As some readers know, my main links with the past get written about on the free genealogy wiki, Familypedia. Evelyn added some details of Garner and his family to pages there, and I've added some more detail from various sources and some clever templates. Here, for example, is a link to a table showing some descendants of Daniel Rix:
http://familypedia.wikia.com/wiki/Daniel_Rix_%2817...
It would look better if Familypedia contained more information about Garner's ten siblings and their children.
jptanabe 5 years ago from Red Hook, NY
Living in the present allows us to have all the advantages that greater knowledge offers plus we can also learn from the past and enjoy the good things they had too.
OhMe 5 years ago from Pendleton, SC
I enjoy the here and now
Colonial Militia Crossing the Mountains during the French and Indian War
The Royalton Raid affected 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.
- 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 - 230th Anniversary of the Royalton Raid Marked By a New, Definitive Book
The newly released book, We Go As Captives: The Royalton Raid and the Shadow War on the Revolutionary Frontier, is a fast-paced, action-packed history that situates the raid in the broader context of Vermont's role in the Revolutionary War and the co - Vermont Historical Society - Expo Home
Vermont History Expo is held every other year. The next Expo will be in June 2012 — plan now to join the fun!
What happened to your family in 1780? - Bed and Breakfast on Garner Rix's Farm 110 comments
gods_grace_notes 8 years ago
You've created another fabulous unit study, Evelyn! The time you spend in research is evident, and I appreciate your commitment to quality! Nice to have you in Lori
groovyoldlady 8 years ago
This is WONDERFUL! We're studying New England now, so I'll just jump in and use this info next week. Thanks for all your hard work!
KCStargazer 8 years ago
Fascinating information, excellent delivery all well organized into a beautiful lens. Absolutely superb! We are so pleased to have you join us at the Kaleidoscope Group!
Barkely 8 years ago
Another awesome lens. I'm going to sit down with my son over winter break and check out all your lenses with him.
evelynsaenz1 8 years ago from Royalton Author
Thank you all so much for your notes. If you have any questions feel free to leave comments here or email me.
If you are new to Squidoo, feel free to join as I have never received spam from this site.
anonymous 8 years ago
WOW! This is so interesting! Thank you for your comments on our site!
We have many weblenses to help with REAL LIFE learning.
anonymous 8 years ago
The tree puzzles and river rocks are a wonderful idea. My son and I are making a stone wall for the barnyard. Thank you for the great ideas!
sherileigh75 8 years ago
Very impressive. This is the best genealogy lens I've seen so far. Great job.
Nathanville 7 years ago from England
Fantastic lens and very informative, 5* and lens roll.
You may also be interested in viewing the The Famous and Not So Famous and other related lenses by Nathanville.
thomasz 7 years ago
Wow really great lens. Come visit my lenses.
clouda9 lm 7 years ago
Especially love the Building Bridges info and pic! Excellent blend of facts with pictures...now all you need is audio to titillate all senses!
anonymous 7 years ago
Thank you for presenting this piece of history in such a fascinating format.
kellywissink lm 7 years ago
Hi Evelyn!
Could you send Garner a big thank you for the virtual maple syrup? It was fabulous.I know times are tough in the colonies. 5 Stars!
chefkeem 7 years ago from Austin, Texas
I've learned that Garner likes to pour maple syrup over his waffles, early in the morning, right before he goes out yodeling.
akrause2112 7 years ago
Thank you for being a valuable member of the Vintage Clothing Group
Tiddledeewinks LM 7 years ago
Great lens. Deserves more than the 5 stars I gave it! Lots of interesting facts here. I love the colonial illustrations, too! We went to Royalton 2 years ago when we went to see the Joseph Smith Monument.
evelynsaenz1 7 years ago from Royalton Author
I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed your time in Royalton.
Garner Rix's grandson used to tell about the day they moved the monument by oxcart from the RR Depot up the very steep hill on the dirt/mud road.
GramaBarb 7 years ago from Vancouver
My granddaughter would have enjoyed Garner and Susanna's company as she prefers to make up her own games - instead of the regular board games. :)
Super lens!
heatherblakey 7 years ago
This really is an amazing lens Evelyn. I think what you are doing is sensational.
Becca Sanz 7 years ago
Your lens is very informative. Staying healthy is very important. I hope you will support movement to promote Healthy Food on college campuses.
anonymous 7 years ago
What an excellent overview of colonial times, through the eyes of Garner Rix and the Royalton Raid. Excellent research and complelling presentation for young and old alike. Clap! Clap!
BFunivcom 7 years ago from Wherever Human Rights Reign
I had family in the Green Mountain Boys, but hadn't read anything this detailed about the Royalton Raid. Thank you.
blue22d 7 years ago
I love this lens. Makes me want to go back to my early years in grade school. Wonderful information to share with both kids and adults. Thanks for sharing.
homeschoolentre 7 years ago
This is truly an amazing lens, the time it must have taken is a gift to us all. Somehow must find a way to let all homeschoolers find their way here!
RuthCoffee 7 years ago
Outstanding lens, so much information and the visuals really make it attractive.
OhMe 7 years ago from Pendleton, SC
I really enjoyed reading the stories and seeing the pictures. 5*
Bradshaw LM 7 years ago
Wow Evelyn, a most excellent lens! I love this sort of information and it is beautifully laid out. Easily one of the best I've seen and definitely a 5 star rating.
boutiqueshops 7 years ago
I loved these types of books as a child and still do today; Excellent work on this lens! This is my favorite lens of yours yet! I'm a big fan!
seedplanter 7 years ago
Evelyn, I inherited my parents' love for history, and this lens tells a great story about someone I had never heard of until today. Thank you! (I followed a Twitter link to it...) Five *****'s!
anonymous 7 years ago
What can I say another outstanding lens from the so many you have produced. I particularly like this one.
naturegirl7s 7 years ago from Covington, LA
Great lens. Do I need to make a new plexo, like Naturally Native during olden times? Welcome to the Naturally Native Squids group. Don't forget to add your lens links to the appropriate plexos and vote for them.
CoachBrown LM 7 years ago
WOW Great lens! Thanks for your contribution to the community, and for joining our "block party" within the community - Need to Know, Yearn to Learn - You're featured!
SusanDeppner 7 years ago from Arkansas USALevel 4 Commenter
If I ever have to go back to school, I want you to be my teacher. SquidAngel blessings to you in the meantime!
nightbear lm 7 years ago
Amazing amount of information. This is a time of history that I am particularly interesting. Very much enjoyed the details. Really quite remarkable
TonyPayne 7 years ago from Southampton, UK
I agree, another outstanding lens. 5***** for a wonderful insight into life in the New World in the late 1700's. Great job Evelyn.
jimmielanley 7 years ago from Memphis, TN, USA
Wow-za! What an amazing unit study revolving around a fascinating story.
You're officially blessed!
pmalynn 7 years ago
I grew up in Colchester, Vermont and the information in this lens fascinates me. Thank you for giving me some time back in my home state! And thank you for all the many hours you must have put into this lens. 5*
anonymous 7 years ago
Wonderfully informative lens, with an amazing number of accompanying pictures for something from 1780.
anonymous 7 years ago
Great job - a very enjoyable read. Am currently writing a biography of a man who came to Montreal as a soldier in 1756. He fought in the French Indian/Seven Years War, stayed in Montreal after the capitulation of the city to the British in 1760 and by 1780 he was a highly respected fur trader licensed to trade out of Grand Portage. So much history to learn... so little time...
anthropos lm 7 years ago from Florida
Thanks for joining ”Everything Genealogy and Family History” Group. You did an excellent job on this lens.
elliespark 7 years ago
What an extraordinary life Garner Rix lived!! Thank you for telling us all about him and putting up so many historical pictures here; this is a very refreshing way to teach history, and super lens to boot!
kellywissink lm 6 years ago
Great Lens Evelyn!
I added you as a featured lensmaster on The Homeschooling Support Group.
Kelly
K Linda 6 years ago
I love when history is brought to life like you did in this lens! I studied Vermont history so long ago (elementary school) that I have forgotten most of it. Thanks for the reminder that as a descendant of the earliest Vermont settlers, I really should know more about it. And, thanks for lensrolling my Historic Vermont Barns lens. I am happy to lensroll yours. And, 5*'s
anonymous 6 years ago
Well done Evelyn, good posts. I wonder if you could advise. I am looking for early 18th century diaries or quotes for foot tavel in the eastern forests. How settlers managed the trip, how woodsman travelled on foot and what equipment and foods they carried. Information online please, because I live in a forest in Australia.
Best wishes and regards, Keith.
ecogranny 6 years ago from San FranciscoLevel 2 Commenter
I don't know about 1780, but my ancestor, Lydia Gilbert, was hanged as a witch in neighboring Connecticut in 1655. Information is sketchy, but apparently someone wanted the land she and her husband owned and accused her of witchcraft to get it. Curiously, long before we knew of Lydia and her fate, women in my family could not bear close-fitting collars, choker necklaces or scarves about our necks.
evelynsaenz1 6 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
[in reply to Graceonline] Poor Lydia! One would have thought that there would have been enough land in the 1600's that there would have been no need to kill for it. I wonder what they would think of the population in that area now.
marsha32 6 years ago
I love reading and studying and learning about colonial and pioneer times. I must put this in to favorites to come back to when I have more time to spend watching the videos and such.
tandemonimom lm 6 years ago
Excellent, as usual! 5* and this lens is now a Featured Lens on the newly revamped Homeschooling Group (under new management)!
dahlia369 6 years ago
Wow, that's probably the longest lens I've ever seen - and it's beautiful!!
10* from me... :)
Janusz LM 6 years ago
I always seem to leave your Lens with my mouth wide open!! Of course your Blessed :) Fantastic.
GumboWriters123 6 years ago
Excellent Lens..Thanks to Lensmaker
papawu 6 years ago
What an extraordinary lens on an extraordinary family. Being both an history and food buff, I found this one to be utterly fascinating. Beaitifully done.
donnetted 6 years ago from South Africa
Awesome lens... I see we are both members of Rocket Moms as well.. 5* and a new fan club member :o) xx
K Linda 6 years ago
This lens just gets better and better, Evelyn. When I was growing up in Vermont, we gathered fiddle head ferns every spring. They are delicious. We called them break greens. My mother would cook them and serve them with lemon juice...yum!
DarylRobidoux 6 years ago
Excellent Lens..Thanks to Lensmaker
anonymous 6 years ago
What an extraordinary lens on an extraordinary family.
oliviabrooks123 6 years ago
This lens just gets better and better
Lizblueberry 6 years ago
Wow!! I am amazed. I always enjoy your lenses but the detailed information that you share with us is very appreciated and enjoyed. I am exhausted tonight and could not stop going through your lens!! I should be sleeping!
Lori Lee-Ray 6 years ago
I love this lens! I've submitted an "old west" themed lense to introduce my candles and this one ties right in with it! I think I was born in the wrong era sometimes! Love it! Thank you for submitting it!
ElizabethJeanAl 6 years ago
Hi,
My name is Elizabeth Jean Allen and I am the new group leader for the Nature and the Outdoors Group.
Lizzy
FamilyTreeFellow 6 years ago
Great story on the family. This is a wonderful part of why genealogy is fun and addictive!
anonymous 6 years ago
Such a fantastic full lens! Amazing research and amazing to read about a boy from so long ago. Thank you!
anonymous 6 years ago
I love reading about my family I am related to the Rix family Sophronia Rix born 1812 and Patrick Lilly born 1810 Ireland thier son Adelbert Willington Lilly born 1849 Quebec, Canada is my grategrandfather
palaceofglass 6 years ago
Great lens, very informative. 5 stars from me.
evelynsaenz1 6 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@oliviabrooks123: Thank you for visiting Garner Rix and his family often. Whenever I discover something new about his life and times I add it here. So glad you noticed.
evelynsaenz1 6 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@Lizblueberry: Thank you for visiting Garner Rix and his family. I hope you found some interesting activities to do with the children in your life.
anonymous 6 years ago
Nice information, keep it coming some good things learned here
ElizabethJeanAl 6 years ago
You know how to engage your readers.
Fascinating read.
Thanks for sharing
Lizzy
norma-holt 6 years ago
Wow, you have certainly done your history proud. Great research and nice lens.
Norma
evelynsaenz1 6 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@norma-holt: Thank you. I have been researching my family history for many, many years and finally decided to use that information to create a unit study. Thank you for visiting Garner Rix.
Winter52 LM 6 years ago
Definitely going to check if I had any ancestors anywhere in North America at the time. I just might have gotten a peek at their life or what it might have been. :) Found you by way of Twitter btw :)
evelynsaenz1 6 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@Winter52 LM: Be sure to let me know if you find any. Thanks for stopping by.
rubyandmahoney 5 years ago
Interesting story. I had never heard about the Royalton raid before. I am glad that Rix made it back home safely. I can't imagine living back in those days.
evelynsaenz1 5 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@rubyandmahoney: Thank you for spending a few moments with Garner Rix and his family.
Virginia Allain 5 years ago from Central FloridaLevel 2 Commenter
This is an amazing compilation of your family history/Vermont colonial history. I want to write a teacher's guide to my mother's book, so I'll be revisiting this for ideas. Many thanks for all the work you did on this.
evelynsaenz1 5 years ago from RoyaltonHub Author
@Virginia Allain: Thank you so much. Please let me know if there is anything that I can do to help.
eclecticeducati1 5 years ago
Cool unit study, Evelyn!!! I'll have to refer back to this one for sure. :) Lensrolling to my Colonial Day Unit Study lens.
RobininColorado 5 years ago
While it is difficult for me to say what happened to my family at that time, I am certain that they arrived in this country in the late 17th century.
This is a brilliant lens, and a comprehensive unit study!
Well done.
anonymous 5 years ago
As a family historian, I have been recently working on Charles Rix (1809 - May 1851), son of Elisha Lee Rix (1777- Dec.1851). Elisha was a younger brother of Garner Rix. Charles Rix went south to Maryland (Carroll Co.) in the early 1840s. He married Henrietta Motter in Feb. 1843. They had a daughter, Jeanette M. Rix and then Charles, wife and daughter joined some of Charles' brothers in Sumterville, Sumter Co., Alabama. The brothers worked as merchants. Charles Rix died in May 1851 in Sumter Co. - don't know what of -- maybe disease. He was buried in Bethel Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Sumter Co. The young Henrietta Rix returned to Manchester, MD with her daughter. Many family members, direct and extended members have the given name "Rix". Charles has not been forgotten.
Excellent family case study done using Garner and his family.
junecampbell 5 years ago from North Vancouver, BC, Canada
What a wonderfully comprehensive lens this is.
outsource123 5 years ago
Great lense guys!
jptanabe 5 years ago from Red Hook, NY
Great job in telling the story of Garner Rix and Royalton, and including so much fascinating information on Vermont and the life and times of people in those days. Blessed.
angara lm 4 years ago
Good to know so many things and facts about history. Nice work done by you. Keep writing for us.
Terrie_Schultz 3 years ago
Fantastic lens!
Diane Cass 3 years ago from New York
I haven't gotten back that far yet. My husband's side of the family fought in the Revolutionary War. The family split. Some were Loyalists, some were Patriots. All the Loyalists went to Canada after the war. We actually met my husband's cousin from the Loyalist side...at a Revolutionary War reenactment at Fort Ticonderoga. It was pretty neat
Brandi Bush 3 years ago from Maryland
Wow...this is an incredible lens...so much amazing stuff here! I could do an entire months unit study just from this page. Excellent job! :)
BowWowBear 3 years ago
Fabulous! A truly spectacular lens. What a great tool for learning across all disciplines. Thanks so much for putting it together!
MarcellaCarlton 3 years ago
This is an exceptional lens! Thanks so much for sharing it with us and al your hard work.
JoshK47 3 years ago
I learned something today! Thanks for sharing!
Updated: 03/13/2018, evelynsaenz
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Comments
Very concise and stick to the main idea of the article. It doesn’t dilute your imagination.