Phineas Bailey 1783-1864 Corinth, VT

Phineas Bailey was the son of Jesse Bailey and Sarah Thurston. I would like to think that he dropped in on his aunt, Mercy Bailey Griffin, while they were both living in Vermont. Phineas was born in Newport, New Hampshire July 13, 1783. He died in Corinth, Vermont on November 24, 1864.---------- There is an entry in Vol-1 page 75 of the Washington, VT. town records. It is a list of the children of Phineas Bailey. It lists both their date and place of birth. The record provides clues to the life of Phineas. ---------- The record starts with Sarah S. Bailey born in Corinth Feb 17, 1811. Next is John Bailey born Salem N.H. Feb 17, 1813, Elizabeth Bailey, Salem, May 7, 1816. The forth child is Joel, born August 8th 1819 in Corinth, VT. The next three children were probably born in Washington, VT. Abial, April 3, 1822, Luther, March 17, 1825 and Calvin, March 26, 1828.---------- Phineas probably moved from Newport, N.H. to Corinth, VT with his father, Jesse, around 1800. As a young man it seems that he returned to New Hampshire. Even though the Washington record lists Corinth as the birthplace for Sarah evidence argues that the first three children were all born in Salem, New Hampshire. In the New Hampshire vital records index is the record of the marriage of Phineas Bailey and Dorcus Morrison in Salem, New Hampshire January 31, 1809. The 1810 census places the family in Salem. There are also military records from the War of 1812 that record his enlistment in New Hampshire in September of 1814. Without the entry in the Washington records this Salem connection would be easy to miss. It has also proved to be the cause of some confusion. Given the reference to a to “Salem” in the family history some historians have mistakenly listed the more well know Salem, Massachusetts as the birthplace of the children.---------- By the time Joel is born in 1819 Phineas is living Vermont. The census records place him in Washington and neighboring Corinth, Vermont. Phineas’s death is recorded in the Corinth town records. It shows Phineas Bailey age 81 years, 4 months and 11 days, born in Newport, N.H. ,the son of Jesse and Sally Bailey. A poorly written Sally has been misread as” Raley” in several subsequent transcriptions of the original record. We also find the death of Dorcus recorded in Corinth. Dated January 22, 1778 she is listed simply as Mrs. Dorcus Bailey age 89.