This hiking trail holds traces of Vermont’s most notorious black market trade route

Vermont Farmers’ Defiant Trade Through Smugglers’ Notch

Vermont farmers had a big problem in 1807. President Jefferson banned all trade with Canada, their best market.

But these tough folks had a plan. They turned to smuggling, moving cattle north through a narrow pass between Mount Mansfield and Sterling Peak.

At night, they’d sneak back with rum, silk, and other goods their families needed. The rugged path, now known as Smugglers’ Notch, had tall cliffs and deep caves where they hid from federal agents.

Despite armed patrols, up to 100 sleighs a day still crossed the border.

The historic Smugglers’ Notch State Park now stands as a monument to Vermonters who chose survival over federal law.

British Warship Sparks International Crisis in 1807

The HMS Leopard fired on the USS Chesapeake near Virginia on June 21, 1807. Three Americans died and 18 got hurt when the British attacked the unprepared American ship.

British sailors boarded and took four men they said were Royal Navy deserters, but three were actually American citizens. Americans across the country got angry.

President Thomas Jefferson had to decide: start a war, let Britain push America around, or find another way to fight back. This attack led Jefferson toward a solution that would turn Vermont farmers into outlaws.

Jefferson Gambles on an Economic Weapon

Thomas Jefferson signed the Embargo Act on December 22, 1807, after Congress rushed it through with almost no debate.

The law stopped American ships from going to foreign ports and blocked foreign ships from picking up cargo in America.

Jefferson hoped this trade pressure would make Britain and France respect American neutrality during their wars. News traveled slowly to Vermont back then.

Many northern Vermonters didn’t worry at first, thinking they could still trade with nearby Montreal as usual. They were wrong.

Vermont Farmers Watch Their Livelihoods Collapse

Montreal was the main market for Vermont farmers, so the embargo hit them very hard. Without Canadian buyers, their crops, lumber, and livestock became nearly worthless overnight.

The ban turned money-making farms into losing operations. Businesses that needed Canadian trade faced going broke.

Vermont farmers and merchants felt the embargo unfairly punished them for a fight between Britain and southern states. Many families who had built lives on the northern frontier now wondered how they would survive.

Congress Plugs the Border Loopholes

The first Embargo Act only talked about ships, accidentally leaving land trade unclear. Vermont customs officials at first let sleighs cross into Canada, thinking they followed the law.

Congress caught on and passed a new “Land Embargo” on March 12, 1808, that banned exports “in any manner whatever. ” Clever Vermonters had built docks right on the border to get around the first law.

Now with all trade clearly against the law, Vermonters who needed to feed their families had to break the rules or go hungry.

Mountain Pass Becomes Smuggler Highway

Farmers and merchants started using a narrow mountain path between Mount Mansfield and Sterling Peak to move their goods.

The spot later called “Smugglers’ Notch” gave perfect cover with its 1,000-foot cliffs, thick forests, and natural caves. Smugglers moved on foot, horseback, or with pack animals through the rough land.

When federal agents got close, they hid their goods in caves in the mountainside. The tough terrain gave local smugglers a big edge over government men who didn’t know the area.

Locals shared secret routes that customs officers couldn’t find.

Contraband Flows Despite Government Efforts

Cattle, lumber, and farm goods moved north through the notch while rum, silk, cloth, and other needs came south. During winter, about 100 loaded sleighs crossed the border daily at Swanton alone.

Federal customs collector Jabez Penniman couldn’t stop the flood with his small team. British goods came legally to Canada, then smugglers brought them through Vermont’s mountain passes.

The government tried to crack down, but some reports suggest smuggling actually grew during the embargo as more desperate people joined in.

Lake Champlain Becomes a Battleground

Jefferson got so mad about Vermont’s defiance that on April 19, 1808, he declared the Lake Champlain region in “insurrection. ” The government ordered two gunboats built to patrol the lake and stop water smuggling.

Vermont Governor Israel Smith sent state militia to help federal customs agents.

Penniman hired and armed more men to fight the smuggling networks that had spread through the region.

The mood turned tense as armed government men faced locals who felt they had no choice but to break the law to survive.

Deadly Clash Leaves Three Officers Dead

Violence broke out in August 1808 when the federal boat Fly confronted the smuggling boat Black Snake on the Winooski River near Burlington. The smugglers carried guns and a huge 9-foot punt gun.

They opened fire, killing three officers: militiamen Asa Marsh and Ellis Drake, plus Jonathan Ormsby, who had fought in the Revolutionary War. Marsh and Drake became the first U.S. customs agents ever killed on duty.

The shootings shocked Vermont communities and marked the worst fight between smugglers and the government.

Public Hanging Fails to Scare Smugglers

Cyrus Dean, one of the Black Snake smugglers, got convicted of murder while his friends got lesser charges. On November 11, 1808, Dean was hanged in public in Burlington with a huge crowd watching.

The government hoped the execution would scare others away from smuggling. It didn’t work.

Most smuggling kept going because the government simply couldn’t catch everyone. They lacked the men and resources to watch the entire border.

The Black Snake killings became one of the most talked-about events in early Vermont history.

America’s Economy Takes a Nosedive

American exports crashed from $108 million in 1807 to just $22 million in 1808, hurting the whole country. New England politicians fought hard against the embargo, calling it a disaster for American business.

People found so many ways around the law that it failed to pressure Britain or France to change their policies. The public blamed Jefferson and his Democratic-Republican party for their empty wallets and bare pantries.

Vermont voters turned against Jefferson’s party in later elections, still angry about the embargo’s effects on their lives.

Smugglers Win as Embargo Collapses

The Embargo Act died in March 1809 as Jefferson left office.

Congress replaced it with the Non-Intercourse Act, which only banned trade with Britain and France while allowing business with other countries.

Jefferson’s experiment in “peaceful pressure” failed completely and couldn’t prevent the War of 1812 that broke out three years later.

The mountain pass kept its name “Smugglers’ Notch” as a reminder of this time when ordinary Vermonters defied their government to survive.

The whole episode showed how hard it was for the young federal government to enforce laws that hurt local communities.

Visiting Smugglers’ Notch State Park

Smugglers’ Notch State Park at 7248 Mountain Road in Stowe brings the story of Vermont’s defiant smugglers to life.

These rebels used this narrow mountain pass to secretly trade cattle, rum, and goods with Canada, defying Jefferson’s 1807 Embargo Act during the Napoleonic Wars. You’ll pay $4 for adults and $2 for kids 4-12.

Visit Barnes Camp Visitor Center Friday-Sunday 8am-4pm from mid-May to mid-October for park interpreter programs about this bold economic resistance.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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