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Difficulty:
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Size: 
(small)
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This is one of Ma’s favorite type of caches and we hope you also enjoy it. You will be looking for a medium size L-n-L container. It contains the usual stuff including a golf ball. If for some reason you cannot make out the information asked for, e-mail or call me and I will provide you with the information. The hide is not meant to be difficult and is only a short distance off an ill defined trail.
First a little history of the nations smallest state capital and the only one without a Mickey D’s.
Although there was a trapper known as Joel Frizzell who had a dwelling near the present day sheriff’s’s office, generally the credit for being first European permanent settler was a one Col Jacob Davis who arrived from Brookfield in 1787 having served in the Revolutionary War, with one of his sons and a nephew. They carved out an area and proceeded to build a log cabin. It was said Col. Davis was a brute of a man and could clear an acre of land a day. Quite a feat as this was before the invention of the “misery whip” (two handed crosscut saw) so the tool used was probably an axe. Upon completion of the cabin, Col. Davis and the boys returned to Brookfield. He then sent 4 of his children, Jacob jr, Rebecca, Thomas and Polly to Montpelier to begin to occupy the log dwelling. Jacob jr returned to Brookfield expecting to return with the rest of the family and their belongings. While in Brookfield, heavy winter set in and they were unable to return to the cabin thus leaving Becky, Tommy and Polly, ages 18,15 and 10 respectively, to survive the winter alone without adult supervision. Teenagers being teenagers throughout time, one can imagine some of the conversations that occurred. “Hey, it’s your turn to gut the deer.” “No it ain’t.” “Who’s cooking?” “When’s the last time you did the dishes?” “You clean those fish on the kitchen table one more time and I’m telling.” “ Quit being such a dork.” ”I don’t care if it’s 20 below, it’s your turn to go out and get the firewood.” And probably many times, “You just wait until dad gets home.” But survive they did and were well when Col Davis returned in the spring of 1788. The town then developed along State St. and Elm St., the latter which is along the banks of the North Branch. A “new” cemetery was officially established in 1815 and was known as “The Elm Street Cemetery” after the land owner, a man by the name of Jeduthun Loomis, agreed to a lease that stated that he “will not at any time put onto said premises to pasture any neat (an animal of the ox-kind, an ox or bullock, a cow or heifer) cattle kind except calves and sheep, nor any horse kind nor any swine and my heirs are not holden to pay for repairs, nor to pay taxes” on the land. Even then taxes, taxes, taxes. The cemetery was in use until approximately 1886. If there was a “new” then there must have been an “old”. It is usually referred to as “the lost cemetery” Although the general area of its location is known, somewhere near Pearl and School St., its exact location has yet to discovered. Rebecca died in Williamstown, VT. in either 1840 or 1854. I was unable to determine when Thomas died but he was still in the area and was interviewed for a historical book at age 90. Polly died in Paynsville, Wi. in 1858. Maybe you can conjure up what life must have been like and how the area looked along two major highways of the time, the Winooski and the North Branch, while you are gathering the required information.
An interesting footnote to more recent history, while I was searching around the cemetery, the gentleman who owns the home on the North side of the cemetery came over and we had a conversation concerning the cemetery and area. It seems he had a mud line 4' high in his house that exists on the interior of the walls from the 1927 flood. His dog is harmless.
You will have to drive to the final.
N 44 16.ABC
W 72 34.DEF
A. N44 15.861 W72 34.276. The man with the axe himself. Col. Jacob Davis. Combined # of letters in the first and third words of his inscription
B. N44 15.843 W72 34.267. # of “S’s” in the two words after the name Mehitable
C. N44 15.837 W72 34.275. Last digit in the year of death of Francis Sherburne, minus 4.
D. N44 15.863 W72 34.257. # of letters in the word that describes the special relationship Deborah had with the person buried next to her.
E. N44 15.863 W72 34.274. Hanna Wing, a daughter of Jacob Davis. # of “T’s” in the second and third words of the inscription
F. N44 15.843 W72 34.288. # of letters in the month of death of Julia She died at age 4. Not known if she was a decedent of Joel, the trapper but her father, Ebenezer, was born in Northfield. (far right edge when looking at the river, small light stone near front of the house)
ABSOLUTELY NO TRACINGS ARE ALLOWED. DO NOT TOUCH THE STONES. THEY ARE VERY FRAGILE. NO NIGHT CACHING. THERE IS NOTHING HIDDEN IN OR NEAR THE CEMETERY.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
lbhe urnqrq sbe Uhooneq Cnex