Thomas Chittenden

Thomas Chittenden (January 6, 1730August 25, 1797) was an American politician from Vermont, who was a leader of the territory for nearly two decades. He was the state's first and third governor, serving from 1778 to 1789—when it was a largely unrecognized independent state called the Vermont Republic—and again from 1790 until his death. Vermont was admitted to the Union in 1791 as its 14th state. Early and personal life Thomas Chittenden was born in East Guilford in the Connecticut Colony on January 6, 1730. He lost one of his eyes and was referred to as "one eye Tom" by his opponents. He married Elizabeth Meigs on October 4, 1749, in Salisbury, Connecticut. They had four sons and six daughters while they were living in Connecticut, all of whom survived to adulthood. Career Chittenden served as a justice of the peace and in the Connecticut Colonial Assembly from 1765 to 1769. He served in Connecticut's 14th Regiment of Militia from 1767 to 1773, rising to the rank of colonel. Chittenden was one of the residents of Salisbury, Connecticut, who purchased land from the Onion River Land Company ran by Ethan Allen, Ira Allen, Heman Allen, and Remember Baker. Chittenden moved to the New Hampshire Grants, now Vermont, in 1774, where he was the first settler in the town of Williston.