From The Connecticut River Valley in Southern Vermont and New Hampshire: Historical Sketches by Lyman S. Hayes, Tuttle Co., Marble City Press, Rutland, VT., 1929, page 293:
BILL BLAKE–FIRST PAPER MAKER–FIRST PRINTER–FIRST NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER
It is probable that in the very early history of Bellows Falls and this vicinity no one man contributed more to the welfare, growth and business industry of all this section than did Bill Blake, the owner of the first paper mill in all this vicinity, the first paper mill in Vermont, the first printing office and bindery and the first newspaper in Bellows Falls.
Bill Blake was born in Dorchester, Mass., April 2, 1774, and died in Saxtons River Village December 4, 1856, of paralysis. He came to Alstead, N. H. (five miles from Bellows Falls) in 1799, the year of his marriage, and built there the same year the first paper mill ever erected in all this locality. He had a partner there named Kingsbury. In 1802 he removed to Bellows Falls and here built the first paper mill at any point in Vermont during that year. The firm name then, and for many years thereafter, was Bill Blake & Co. In 1812 this mill, as well as all the others which had been erected on the canal here, was destroyed by fire. Among the other manufacturies said to have been burned at this time were "a fine armory, shops and manufaccturies, entailing a loss of from $30,000 to $40,000."
This paper mill was at once rebuilt by Mr. Blake, and in 1814 he was interested in the firm of Andrew Henderson & Co., which built the first paper mill at Wells River, Vt. He owned the paper mill in Bellows Falls until 1824, when he sold it to Green & Fleming. Mr. Blake then went a mile out from this village on the Saxtons river in the locality known as "The Forest." [294] He there built another paper mill, five dwelling houses, a large saw mill, and had an extensive general store in one room of the paper mill. He owned a large tract of land between the Forest and Saxtons River village and used his saw mill in cutting the lumber therefrom. The mill erected in 1824 at the Forest was destroyed by high water Saturday, March 25, 1826. With an energetic perseverance, which yielded to no discouragement, he immediately erected another mill and built a heavy stone bulkhead above it to hold the water, conveying the same to the mill by a penstock, which was the first ever used in this locality. There were at that time three dams across the river in the Forest. His erection of the last mill at this point made six different paper mills which he had built.
In 1836 his three sons, William, Leonard and Schuyler, purchased the mill property at the Forest, and the father went to Saxtons River village and purchased the iron factory there, which he operated until he retired from active business in 1849. From this time until his death in 1856 he enjoyed the fruits of his industry and indomitable perseverance.
The three sons carried on the paper business at the Forest until 1849, when May 9, that mill also, together with the large barn standing near by, was destroyed by fire, caused by combustion in rags. The old saw mill standing a little farther up the stream was then rebuilt into a paper mill by William and Schuyler Blake and operated a number of years by them. Leonard Blake died in 1849. In 1859 the mill had stood vacant some years and was then leased to Durant & Adams of Wells River. It later passed into the hands of Elisha S. Sabin, [295] and after some years was again destroyed by fire. Mr. Sabin then moved an old woolen mill down from Grafton that was afterward burned while occupied as a shoddy mill by John E. Brown.
During the active business life at Bellows Falls of Capt. Bill Blake, between 1802 and 1824, in addition to his paper mill enterprises, which were on an extensive scale for that period, sending his paper to Boston by team as there were no railroads, he established the first printing office here and entered largely into the publishing of school books. The first edition of the Bible to be printed in Vermont was issued from his press in large quarto form. In 1817 he established and published the first newspaper here "The Vermont Intelligencer and Bellows Falls Advertiser, " employing Thomas Green Fessenden as the first editor. Mr. Blake established the first book bindery and book store in Bellows Falls and had, in addition, a dry goods and grocery store. The book store and book bindery was in the first story of a frame building that stood where the Corner Drug Store now does on the corner of Westminster Street and the Square, and the printing office was in the second story of the same building.
During these early years of Mr. Blake's activities he had teams out in all this section of Vermont and New Hampshire buying old rags of the householders. These he manufactured into fine grades of paper in his paper mill, on which books in large numbers were printed by him and bound in his bindery. These were kept for sale, in connection with his weekly newspaper, in his book store, which was a large one for those early times. This made a unique record of complete [296] production from the raw material to the finished product which is seldom equalled. October 1, 1821, the Bellows Falls business of Mr. Blake was merged into the firm of Blake, Cutler & Company, Mr. Blake taking as partners James I. Cutler and Alexander Fleming. After Mr. Blake's retirement from the firm and removal to the Forest in 1824 the :firm was James I. Cutler & Company.