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The Bannister Family Home PageUpdated October 6, 2000 | Welcome to The Bannister Family Home Page. My name is Ken Bannister and I live in Bridport, Vermont. I am researching the Banister/Bannister name as well as other surnames in my extended family as follows:LeBeau, Yattaw, Brown, Smith, Lovern, Barton, Blanchard, January, Bullock, Church, Sargent, Witherbee, Palmer, Johnson, Needham, Hemenway, Coffran, Doolittle, Peabody, Willard, Winch, Campbell, Chapman, Bigelow, Desmontins. Some of the more well known members of our extended family include the writer Ernest Hemingway, and former PresidentsRichard Nixon and Calvin Coolidge. Some of the first settlers in Vermont and several Revolutionary War soldiers are also found in our family tree, including Daniel and Asa Hemenway, Col. Ephraim Doolittle, and Timothy and Jason Banister. Several of the Banisters were drummers or fifers in the Continental Army. Col. Doolittle was primarily responsible for obtaining the charter for Shoreham, Vermont in 1762 from New Hampshire Gov. Wentworth. He was also an original proprietor of Bridport, Vt along with Daniel Hemenway, and issued the first deed of land in Bridport. Col Doolittle was at the capture of Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point with General Jefferey Amherst during the French and Indian War. He also commanded a regiment of minute men during the American Revolution. Several of our relatives also fought in the Union Army during the Civil War; many in the Lee family, as well as Lt. Henry B. Needham of Middlebury, Vermont, who was wounded in battle and died a few days later in Washington D.C. Early settlers in Vergennes, Vermont include ancestors Joseph Yattaw, Prosper LeBeau and Joseph January. There are many decendents of these individuals living in Vergennes and surrounding areas. These families originated in Quebec. We have traced the Brown line of our tree back to the 1300s in England, and the Smith line to the 1500's in England. We have the Banister and Hemenway lines traced to the 1600's, to Massachussetts and England. Our line of Lee's is traced to the late 1700's in the Pittsford and Castelton, Vermont areas. This family was headed by Ashbel Lee and his father who we think is William or Daniel Lee. Ashbel is buried in West Rutland Vermont with a flag on his grave. He was also likely a Revolutionary War Veteren. He died in 1836. The Needhams were in the Shrewsbury, Vermont area in the late 1700's and Levi Needhan then moved to East Middlebury to become one of the first store owners in that town. The Chapmans were also in Middlebury in the early 1800's with William Chapman as the head of my family line. Joseph LeBeau moved to Vergennes in the late 1700's or early 1800's (before 1810) and his son Prosper has many decendents. This family was from the East Berkshire, Vermont area, and likely from Quebec before that. The Yattaw name is most often cited as French Canadian withpossibly some Native American influence. Paul and William Yattaw were brothers living in the Vergennes ares in the early 1800's and had many children. William later moved to the Saratoga, NY area. They have many decendents in the Vergennes, Vermont area. Our Smith family comes from Worecester, Ma. where John Smith married Sarah Doolittle, daughter of Col. Ehpraim Doolittle. These families moved to Shoreham, Vermont and settled on the Doolittle farm, located along the Crown Point Military Road This was the first settlement in Shoreham, Vermont. The Smiths, Doolittles and other families such as the Hemenways, lived in a communal setting on the Doolittle farm, sharing all food and chores, and owning everything in common. These families then proceeded to charter both the town of Shoreham and the town of Bridport in 1762, along with other families that had subsequently moved to the area. These were amoung the first towns chartered in the State of Vermont. We would be interested in any information on any of these families. |
| Kenneth Ernest Bannister 1897 Middle Road
Bridport,Vt 05734 A-United States 8027589227
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