Luke Knowlton
From 1897's The History and Genealogy of the Knowltons of England and America
Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office
1786-1786
Preceded byNone (position created)
Succeeded byNone (position eliminated)
Member of the Vermont Governor's Council
In office
October 17, 1789 – October 21, 1800
Preceded bySamuel Fletcher
Succeeded byBenjamin Burt
Chief Judge of the Windham County Court
In office
1787–1793
Preceded bySamuel Knight
Succeeded bySamuel Knight
In office
1802–1803
Preceded bySamuel Knight
Succeeded bySamuel Porter
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives
In office
1784-1785
Preceded byWilliam Ward
Succeeded byWilliam Ward
In office
1788-1789
Preceded byWilliam Ward
Succeeded byCalvin Knowlton
In office
1792
Preceded byCalvin Knowlton
Succeeded byMoses Kenny
In office
1805-1806
Preceded byEbenezer Allen
Succeeded byElijah Elmer
Town Clerk of Newfane, Vermont
In office
1774-1783
Preceded byNone (position created)
Succeeded byHezekiah Boyden
In office
1784-1789
Preceded byHezekiah Boyden
Succeeded byCalvin Knowlton
Personal details
Born(1738-11-04)November 4, 1738
Shrewsbury, Massachusetts
DiedDecember 10, 1810(1810-12-10) (aged 72)
Newfane, Vermont
Spouse(s)Sarah Holland (1740–1797), m. 1760
RelationsJohn Holbrook (son in law)
Frederick Holbrook (grandson)
Paul Holland Knowlton (grandson)
Willard Warner (great-grandson)
Children7
ProfessionPolitician, farmer, land speculator

Luke Knowlton (November 4, 1738 – December 12, 1810) was a political leader of colonial Vermont, the Vermont Republic, and the state of Vermont. He served as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, a member of the Governor's Council, and a member of the Vermont House of Representatives.

Early life

Knowlton was born in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts on November 4, 1738, the son of Deacon Ezekiel Knowlton (1707–1774) and Susannah Morgan Knowlton (1708–1794).[1] He was educated locally and became a farmer. Knowlton served in the French and Indian War as a private in a Massachusetts militia regiment, and performed duty at Fort Crown Point and Fort Ticonderoga in New York, and Fort Number 4 in New Hampshire.[2]

Move to Vermont

In 1772 his family relocated to Newfane, Vermont, a new settlement which at the time contained fewer than 20 families, and he was soon appointed a justice of the peace.[3] He was chosen as Newfane's first town clerk when the town was organized in 1774, and he served from 1774 to 1783, and again from 1784 to 1789.[4]

American Revolution

Knowlton had been a Loyalist in the years leading up to the American Revolution, and had received from the British government a land grant in Sherbrooke, Quebec, but upon moving to Vermont he aligned himself with the Patriot cause.[5] In 1782, the Continental Congress authorized the arrest of Knowlton and Samuel Wells of Brattleboro after they came under suspicion of communicating with the British government in Canada and New York City.[6] Knowlton fled to Canada,[7] but he returned to Newfane a year later.[8]

During Vermont's early years, the colonial governments of New Hampshire and New York disputed jurisdiction over Vermont, including the right to sell land grants.[9] Vermont formed its own government, which recognized land titles previously purchased from New Hampshire.[10] After the Revolution, Vermont's independent government worked to obtain statehood, while New York attempted to exert control over Vermont.[10] Knowlton was sent to the Congress of the Confederation as an emissary of Vermont residents (including Knowlton) who held New York land grants, but became a convert to the cause of Vermont statehood.[10]

Post-Revolution

In 1784, Knowlton was again accused of being sympathetic to the British in Canada, and southeastern Vermonters loyal to New York, led by Francis Prouty, took him from his home by force in the middle of the night, and released him in Massachusetts.[11] He returned to Newfane just as a detachment of militia led by Stephen R. Bradley was preparing to pursue his abductors and free him.[11] Prouty evaded capture for several months, and was eventually apprehended at his home.[12] He was indicted for burglary, forcibly carrying Knowlton away from his home, and resisting arrest.[13] He was acquitted of the first two charges, and received a fine and a 40-day jail sentence on the charge of resisting arrest.[13]

As a condition of Vermont's entry into the Union in 1791, Vermont paid New York $30,000 (about $760,000 in 2018) to settle claims by holders of land grants purchased from New York, and Knowlton received approximately $250 (about $6,400 in 2018) as compensation for the New York title to his Newfane land.[14]

Knowlton served in the Vermont House of Representatives in 1784, 1785, 1788, 1789, 1792, 1805, and 1806,[4] and was a member of Vermont's Governor's Council from 1789 to 1800.[15]

In 1786 Knowlton was appointed a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, but his position was eliminated later that year when the size of the court was reduced.[16] He served as Chief Judge of the Windham County Court from 1787 to 1793, and again from 1802 to 1803.[17]

In 1786 Knowlton was one of the recipients of land grants and the charter for the town of Danville.[18] In 1791 Knowlton received from Vermont's government a 10,000 acre land grant (Knowlton's Gore) in Franklin County as payment for his government service.[19] He later sold this grant to Joseph Baker, who used it to found the town of Bakersfield.[20]

Death and burial

Knowlton continued to reside in Newfane until his death on December 12, 1810.[3] He was buried at Newfane Hill Cemetery in Newfane.[21]

Family

In 1760 he married Sarah Holland (1740–1797), also of Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. They were the parents of three sons and four daughters.[22]

Calvin Knowlton (1761–1800) graduated from Dartmouth College in 1783, studied law, was admitted to the bar, and practiced in Newfane.[23]

Patty Knowlton (1762–1814) married Daniel Warner, and was the mother of Willard Warner (1797–1847), and the grandmother of Willard Warner, an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and a United States senator from Alabama after the war.[24]

Silas Knowlton (1764–1844) married Lucinda Holbrook in Newfane on November 30, 1786, and died in Canada. Silas and Lucinda Knowlton were the parents of Paul Holland Knowlton, a prominent Canadian businessman and political figure.[24]

Sarah (or Sara) Knowlton was born on May 2, 1767. She married John Holbrook in Newfane on November 30, 1786. She died on March 22, 1851. They were the parents of Frederick Holbrook, who served as Governor of Vermont during the American Civil War.[25]

Alice (born July 22, 1769) married Dr. Nathan Stone on April 24, 1788. She died in Newfane on November 14, 1865.[26]

Lucinda was born on August 8, 1771, and married Samuel Willard. They lived in Sheldon, Vermont before moving to Canada. She died on May 4, 1800, and was buried at Sheldon Cemetery in Sheldon.[27]

Luke Knowlton, Jr., was born in Newfane on March 24, 1775. He was a graduate of Dartmouth College who became an attorney and served as a member of the Vermont House of Representatives and Assistant Judge of Windham County. He later moved to Canada, where he died on September 17, 1855.[28]

Legacy

Knowlton Pond in the Brighton community of Island Pond was named for Luke Knowlton, who helped survey and lay out Brighton in the 1780s.[29] Residents later renamed Knowlton Pond to Island Pond, the name by which it continues to be known.[29]

References

  1. ↑ Green, Joseph J.; Burnham, Charles; Merrifield, John H. (1877). Centennial Proceedings and Other Historical Facts and Incidents Relating to Newfane, the County Seat of Windham County, Vermont. Brattleboro, VT: D. Leonard, Steam Job Printer. p. 158.
  2. ↑ Hemenway, Abby Maria (1891). The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: The Towns of Windham County. Vol. V. Brandon, VT: Carrie Elizabeth Hemenway Page. pp. 463–464. ISBN 9780415216319.
  3. 1 2 Spofford, Ainsworth Rand; et al. (1898). The National Cyclopedia of American Biography. Vol. VIII. New York, NY: James T. White & Company. p. 477.
  4. 1 2 Centennial Proceedings, p. 29.
  5. ↑ Hemenway, Abby Maria (1891). The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: The Towns of Windham County. Vol. V. Brandon, VT: Carrie Elizabeth Hemenway Page. pp. 463–464. ISBN 9780415216319.
  6. ↑ Hall, Benjamin (2018). History of Eastern Vermont, from Its Earliest Settlement to the Close of the Eighteenth Century. Brattleboro, VT: Sagwan Press. p. 503.
  7. ↑ Centennial Proceedings, p. 96.
  8. ↑ History of Eastern Vermont, p. 503.
  9. ↑ Dodge, Prentiss Cutler (1912). Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography. Burlington, VT: Ullery Publishing Company. p. 81.
  10. 1 2 3 Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography, p. 19.
  11. 1 2 Centennial Proceedings, pp. 95–97.
  12. ↑ Cabot, Mary Rogers (1921). Annals of Brattleboro, 1681-1895. Vol. 1. Brattleboro, VT: E. L. Hildreth & Co. p. 129.
  13. 1 2 Annals of Brattleboro, 1681-1895, p. 129.
  14. ↑ Morgan, Christopher, New York Secretary of State (1851). Documentary History of the State of New York. Vol. 4. Albany, NY: Charles Van Benthuysen, Public Printer. p. 1024.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ Taft, Russell S. (1894). "The Supreme Court of Vermont: Part II". The Green Bag. Boston, MA: Boston Book Company. VI.
  16. ↑ Chipman, Daniel (1824). Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Vermont. Vol. 1. Middlebury, VT: J. W. Copeland, printer. p. vi.
  17. ↑ Hall, Benjamin Homer (1865). History of Eastern Vermont. Albany, NY: J. Munsell. p. 675.
  18. ↑ Hemenway, Abby Maria (1867). The Vermont Historical Gazetteer. Vol. 1. Burlington, VT: A. M. Hemenway. p. 313.
  19. ↑ Denio, Herbert Williams (April 1, 1920). The New England Historical and Genealogical Register: Inscriptions in the Town Cemetery at the Village of Bakersfield, Vermont. Boston, MA: New England Historical and Genealogical Society. p. 150.
  20. ↑ Inscriptions in the Town Cemetery at the Village of Bakersfield, Vermont, p. 150.
  21. ↑ Newfane (VT) Town Clerk (July 6, 1920). "Vermont Vital Records, 1720-1908, Death Record for Luke Knowlton". Ancestry.com. Lehi, UT: Ancestry.com LLC. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  22. ↑ Centennial Proceedings, pp. 158–159.
  23. ↑ Chapman, George T. (1867). Sketches of the Alumni of Dartmouth College. Cambridge, MA: Riverside Press. p. 32.
  24. 1 2 "More About Hon. Luke Knowlton, Sr". Granby Leader-Mail. Granby, PQ. November 19, 1942. p. 7.
  25. ↑ Carleton, Hiram (1903). Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont. Vol. 1. New York, NY: Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 4–6.
  26. ↑ Anderson, George Baker (1897). Landmarks of Rensselaer County, New York. Syracuse, NY: D. Mason & Company, publisher. p. 751.
  27. ↑ Martyn, Charles (1925). The William Ward Genealogy. New York, NY: Artemas Ward. p. 154.
  28. ↑ Merrifield, John H. (July 4, 1874). Vermont Historical Magazine: Historical Address of the Hon. Charles K. Field, Delivered at the Centenniel Anniversary of the Organization of the Church and Town of Newfane. Burlington, VT: Abby Maria Hemenway. pp. 472–473.
  29. 1 2 "Brighton Natural Resources Capital". Center for Rural Studies. Burlington, VT: University of Vermont. Retrieved 6 May 2013.

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