The first settlement in the town of Wolcott, Lamoille Co., VT was made in 1789, by Thomas TAYLOR and Seth HUBBELL. Both families were subjected to great hardships, but Mr. Taylor having more means escaped many of the privations that fell to the lot of Mr. Hubbell and his family. Mr. Hubbell set out from the town of Norwalk, in Connecticut, on his journey to his new home in Vermont. I have just uploaded to the Vermont-L Web Site, a fascinating narrative written by Mr. Hubbell relating his trials and triumphs in those early days. The narrative was originally published in 1829. Mr. Hubbell begins his story with the following: "This narrative was written for the private use and gratification of the sufferer, with no intention of its ever appearing before the public but certain reasons connected with his present circumstances have induced him (by the advice of his friends) to commit it to the press. It is a simple narration of real facts, the most of which many, living witnesses can now attest to. The learned reader will excuse the many imperfections in this little work: the writer not being bred to literary knowledge, is sensible of his inability to entertain the curious; but if his plain and simple dress can reach the sympathy of the feeling heart, it may be gratifying to some. It may also serve to still the murmurings of those who are commencing settlements in the neighborhood of plenty, and teach them to be reconciled to their better fate, and duly appreciate the privileges they enjoy, resulting from the toils of the suffering few who broke the way into the wilderness.” We are indebted to Tom Dunn for providing us with this glimpse into what our forefathers had to endure in those early days of settlement in the wilds of Vermont. Thank you Tom! I am sorry it took me so long to get it on line. :-) Because of its length, this narrative has been broken up into two sections. The first section can be accessed from the main gateway page, by clicking on the "Latest Additions" button (located in the middle of the page). The second section follows the first. http://www.rootsweb.com/~vermont/VERMONTGATEWAY.html If you have photos, articles, etc. [pertaining to the history and/or genealogy of Vermont], and you would like to share this information with the list, I would be delighted to include them on the Web Site. Please contact me to let me know if you want to participate. Also, if you have personal web sites which relate to your research in Vermont, please let me know and we can add links to them from the Vermont Web Site. Best wishes and good luck with your search, Karima List Administrator VERMONT Mailing List (VERMONT-L)