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THE GRANBY DRUMMER
DECEMBER 2013
Men’s breakfast attendees entertained with legend of Daniel Hayes By George Lynch
on his back; they stretched him out on the ground, extended his arms forward, and The Indian slowly emerged from the tied his wrists to a sapling. They extended recesses of the senior center. Chief White his feet in the other direction and tied Eagle aka “Chiefee” was dressed in war them to another sapling. They took long apparel: feathers stuck into his Nike branches and laid them crosswise on his headband, braids, and a nose that would body. One Indian slept on one end of the have made Jimmy Durante jealous. An branches, another slept on the other end. ominous war spear hinted of savagery. The third stood guard. They apparently Here was the direct descendant of a didn’t want him to get away. He passed former dental office in Granby, come most of the next 30 nights bound in this to speak to the Granby senior men. He manner during the trek to Canada. came to give them an account of a local They eventually arrived at an Indian historical event that has intrigued him encampment on the Canadian border. since he gave up counting coup. Daniel was handed over to the Council of It was hard living in Salmon Brook the Nation, the tribe’s governing body, to in the early 18th century. Subsistence be disposed of as it saw fit. No mention of the French rewards. The council didn’t know what to do with this “paleface” that had appeared out of the blue, but they thought a gauntlet might be fun and it would break up the monotony. So they formed their best hatchet guys and stone throwers and club swingers into two lines. The idea being that Daniel was to run between them and, if he could reach a decorated pole at the end of the run, he would stay alive. He started running but, about ten feet in, it became evident that Dr. Richard Martindale entertained the Senior Men’s he wasn’t going to make it. Breakfast as Daniel Hayes an early settler of Salmon So, he took an abrupt left Brook. photo by Lou Urban turn between a couple of club-wielding braves. They swung, giving it everything they had. wasn’t easy and healthcare was iffy, They hit nothing but thin air. That put all especially with the Indians wanting to of them in a really bad mood. impact your health insurance. He was running, literally, for his life, In the fall of 1708, Daniel Hayes was 22 and finally gave out in front of a wigyears old, living in Salmon Brook (now wam. He couldn’t have picked a better Stony Hill Village). He had left his horse wigwam. This wigwam was not just in the woods overnight to forage while any wigwam; it belonged to the tribe’s he enjoyed the festivities of a corn huskmatriarch, an infirm old woman. Her ing celebration. Next morning, he went husband and son had been chiefs of the to retrieve his horse. Now, three Indians tribe, which gave her clout. had been watching the horse for a while She stuck her head out to see what the and were thinking, “Hey, we could get a commotion was all about, and there, lycouple of bucks from the French if we ing on her doorstep is this guy; a young could get the white guy to a French settleguy who is all bloodied up. She called off ment in Canada in one piece.” the posse, praised her medicine man, and At the time, the English and French adopted Daniel on the spot, telling him were mad at each other (it all carried and the others, “You are my son.” Daniel over from Europe) and were causing a the “son” chose to be her caregiver; his lot of consternation in the valleys of New other option being bludgeoned to death. England. The Indians were partial to the He kept her comfortable, brought her French, because the French promised food and firewood, and took her to lodge rewards for delivering English settlers (or meetings to everyone’s relief—they English scalps) to their settlements. didn’t have to do it. Along came Daniel, whistling up the So it came to pass that the tribe built path, looking for his horse. Bam! They her a sled to get around on in winter. snatched him, and he was on his way out It was a fairly heavy vehicle. One day, of town. The first night, the three Indians while pulling her up a steep and slippery and Daniel camped in the vicinity of slope, Daniel lost his footing. Down the Sodom Mountain in Southwick. The Inhill the sled went with its passenger as dians were scared. They had outrun their he stood there looking at the end of his pursuers, but were a bit nervous about care-giving responsibilities. He was in a safeguarding Daniel. They put him flat
Granby Insurance Agency, Inc. Since 1948
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bit of a bind, having killed the matriarch. Prudently he didn’t run away. Instead he smooth talked his way through his accusers and was found not guilty of intentional wrongdoing. Next on the scene was a “black shirt”— a Roman Catholic priest who periodically stopped by to convert the Indians. He had been fairly successful in bringing them to Christ, but he didn’t show up often enough to make it stick. He bought Daniel for seven pounds, and took him to Montreal where he sold him for 40 pounds to a Frenchman. The Frenchman was a nice guy who, after discovering that Daniel was skilled as a weaver, rented him out. He allowed Daniel to keep most of his wages and, over the
course of about two years, Daniel accrued enough to buy his freedom. The Frenchman found an Indian guide to return him to Salmon Brook. Daniel Hayes settled on a farm and married. He became prominent in civil affairs as well as the church at Salmon Brook. He died in 1756 at the age of 71. His redstone tombstone is stored in the Granby Cemetery chapel. Thanks to Dr. Richard Martindale, DDS, who entertained the Senior Men’s Breakfast with this true tale (with some writer embellishment) of the capture of Daniel Hayes. The full text of the story can be found at: archive.org/ stream/historyofsimsbur00phel/ historyofsimsbur00phel_djvu.txt
Granby’s U12 girls travel soccer finishes the season 21–2
Front Row - Left to Right: Annamarie Groskritz, Emelia Provencher, Alana King, Felicia Fauteux, Tess McMillan, Sarah Cramer, Sophie Sessions, Jaira Paine. Back Row - Left to Right: Jordyn Demyon, Annabelle Jerman, Elsie Phillips, Samantha St. Pierre, Maria Nolan, Rachel Hennessy, Emily Miller. photo by Lindsay Sessions
by Todd McMillan The Granby Rovers Girls U12 Soccer Team recently finished its season by winning the Colchester Soccer Fest hosted by the Colchester Soccer Club on November 2 and 3. The team beat East Longmeadow (MA) 4–0 in the final, after going undefeated over four matches of tournament play without giving up a goal over Columbus Day weekend. The team also won the 28th Annual Paul R. Cody Soccer Tournament hosted by the Windsor Soccer Club. In that tournament, the team went undefeated over five matches of tournament play and beat the Manchester Soccer Club 1–0
in the final. In addition to league play where the team finished second with a record of 5–1, the team competed in the Connecticut Junior Soccer Association’s 2013 State Soccer Tournament for its age bracket. It beat teams from Weston, Newtown and Tolland before losing 3–1 in the semi-final match against the eventual champion, the Farmington Soccer Club. The girls finished the season 21–2 with the only other loss coming against Farmington in league play. Earlier in the season, they beat Farmington 2–0 to win the 33rd Annual Meg Berte Memorial Nutmeg Classic Soccer Tournament hosted by the Manchester Soccer Club.
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Sarah Fortin received a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology from Roger Williams University during the University’s Commencement ceremony last spring. The following local students merited a spot on Goodwin College’s summer dean’s list: Rebecca Camp, Janet Caruso, Kayla Kaplan and Morgan Keenan. Gina Garlasco received a Bachelor of Science in International Business from Roger Williams University as a member of the Class of 2013.
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