Hosea Doton was born in 1809 on his family’s homestead on Cloudland Road in Pomfret, VT. His father, John Edward Doten, was a farmer and surveyor who lived in the farm now known as Sleepy Hollow. Hosea attended Pomfret School No. 2, which still stands on Cloudland Road, and continued to study mathematics and science after leaving school. Hosea began teaching in Pomfret schools in 1830.
The Pomfret Historical Society has twenty-two volumes of Hosea Doton’s diaries in a small brick building next to the Pomfret Town Hall. The building was erected in 1904 by some of Hosea Doton’s former students, dedicated in his memory, and used to store Pomfret’s original charter from 1761. Hosea’s diary begins in 1840 and his last entry is December 8, 1885. His wife Elvira
recorded household expenses in the diary until Hosea died on January 10, 1886.
These transcripts include very minor revisions to spelling and punctuation while trying to retain the original character of the diaries. Language, spelling, and punctuation common to the mid-1800s have been preserved. A glossary and brief notes on people mentioned in the diaries appear at the end of each transcript.
Hartford Historical Society
1461 Maple St.
Hartford, VT 05047
(802) 296-3132
info@hartfordhistory.org