The Morgan family and the Griswold family had ties in Massachusetts. Isaac Morgan, the father of Justin Morgan, lived in West Springfield Massachusetts and Joseph Griswold, lived across the Connecticut River in Chicopee Massachusetts.
     Joseph Griswold, while swimming in the river with a friend drowned and was pulled to shore. Griswold was nursed back to health by an Indian medicine man and his daughter, Marjorie who was also a medicine woman.
      They fell in love and married, but white mans medicine became popular making the Indians medicine no longer in demand so Joseph Griswold and Marjorie made the difficult trip to Vermont. They acquired one hundred acres of free land in the original settlement of Randolph, Vermont agreeing to clear at least five acres of land.

     Joseph and Marjorie Griswold had five children, one of whom was named Frederick. He later became a judge and purchased land just below his parents in Brookfield Vermont.
      Griswold was not only Morgan's closest neighbor, but also a great friend who leased horses to Morgan for his travels as a singing school teacher and it was the judge who Morgan asked to come see his colt when he first arrived home from Massachusetts with Figure in 1792.
      In looking for the Morgan home site the location of Judge Fredrick Griswold's home would be a critical factor in my search for the spot Morgan and his family had settled.
      After years of speculating sites that past historians determined were where Justin Morgan had settle, we did in fact prove that Justin Morgan and The Morgan Horse were "Living On The Town Line".

    The Morgan Home Site
    And The
    Home Of The Morgan Horse.


  • Justin Morgan and Judge Fredrick Griswold have Massachusetts connections.

  • An article in the January 23rd 1885 issue of The Middlebury Register news paper there is an article written by Alan Thompson that states that he is standing at the edge of the cellar hole foundation of where the Morgan home once stood. It is about forty rods from the home of Judge Fredrick Griswold.

  • An article by Alan Thompson in the Brattleboro New England Farmer dated November 7th 1908 on page four it states that Mr. Morgan's place in Randolph was near the line between Randolph and Brookfield. Judge Griswold lived in Brookfield just across the line from Mr. Morgan's place.

  • In mapping it out on Google Earth, taking the shortest route from Judge Fredrick Griswold's home toward Randolph forty three rods and just over Neighbor Road puts the Morgan Home in Randolph on land that was owned by Henry Walbridge. Like Joseph Griswold, Walbridge was given land if he settled it. Neighbor Road follows the Randolph Brookfield town line at this spot.

  • There is no direct connection between Walbridge and Morgan however Judge Fredrick Griswold who was a very good friend of Morgan married Martha Walbridge who was the daughter of Henry Walbridge who owned the land that had the cabin Morgan and his family settled in.

  • In short, Alan Thompson said that Morgan's home was about forty rods from Judge Griswold's home. This location I have found is forty three rods. Many articles say that the Morgan home was close to or just over the line in Randolph. This location I have found is just over the line in Randolph,


  • Update 7/12/2020

  • The Vermont Historical Marker for the Justin Morgan Homesite was installed today July 12th 2020 and was completed at 3:15 PM
    Come To the 8/30/2020 Unveiling Of The Historical Marker


  • The date for the unveiling of this historic marker is set for August 30th 2020.
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