The Bridge, December 1, 2016

The History of Langdon Meadow Pg.
13
December 1December 14, 2016
Judge Charles Orbison, a member of the Indianapolis Klan, address

Klansmen and women from Vermont and New Hampshire gathered
on the Towne Farm on Towne Hill Road in Montpelier on July 4, 1927.
(Courtesy of Vermont Historical Society)
A Look Back In Time
IN THIS ISSUE:
Pg. 6 Lester Greene's
Patent Medicine
Pg. 8 Railway Station to
Art Studio
Pg. 9 Friendliest People
in Montpelier
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Remembering A Local Ku Klux Klan

Resurgence
by Dot Helling
CENTRAL VERMONT There is a very

dark continuing chapter in American history,
the Ku Klux Klan. Many believe the KKK
was a phenomenon restricted to the South,
organized in 1866 by a group of Confederate
veterans to intimidate recently freed Southern
blacks. The KKK fought for white supremacy,
becoming heretics who discriminated against,
hated and sought to eliminate Blacks, Jews
and Roman Catholics. These secret terrorists
dressed in white robes with peaked hoods and
waved wooden sabre-like crosses. They set
fire to homes and businesses, and organized
numerous cross burnings, sheet walkings
and hateful gatherings. Many of their actions
resulted in hangings and killing minorities
they were indoctrinated to abhor.
Since Vermont historically has not had a
substantial minority population, it is surprising
and upsetting to discover that Vermont indeed
has had a KKK presence. To many this reality
is horrifying. Most fascinating to me is that
many Vermont members joined the KKK
as a social club they believed would be fun
and would contribute to the community.
Once they learned differently, memberships
disbanded and the once sizable Vermont KKK
became short-lived.
Vermont had its significant Klan presence in
the 1920s, estimated to be many thousands at
its peak. This was a time of resurgence in Klan
activity nationwide. A special commemorative
issue of The Bridge, published in October
2005, celebrated 200 years of Montpelier as
the Capital of Vermont. Therein The Bridge
recognized Maudean Neill, local genealogist
and author of Fiery Crosses in the Green
Mountains, a history of the Klan in Vermont.
In her book, Neill states that .....Montpelier
was the scene of several acts against the
Catholic population, attributed to the Klan.
On July 19, 1924, a cross was burned to embers

in the Catholic cemetery. It was considered
by Catholics as a wanton insult against the
emblem of their church and desecration of
their cemetery. The burning of the fiery cross
on the church steps of St. Augustine's Catholic
Church in the early morning of November 21,
1925, resulted in the arrest of two Montpelier
men (who were eventually) released without
penalty.
According to Neill and other historians, the
Klan's active force in Vermont peaked in
the mid 1920s. By then, more than 14,000
residents of Chittenden, Washington, Orange
and Caledonia counties had paid the $10
initiation fee. The Vermont Klan's prime
target was immigrant nationalities, many
of whom were Roman Catholics. Along the
Vermont-Quebec border the Klan targeted
the French Catholics. Author and poet Wes
Herwig states that the Vermont Klan sought
to educate Vermonters to the supposed
dangers that these new foreign-born elements
posed to the country's traditional patrimony.
Herwig worked at The Herald, and founded
the Randolph Historical Society.
According to Neill and Herwig, for half a
decade KKK chapters sprang up throughout
Vermont, and their burning crosses cast
shadows across Vermont's night skies. Its
white-robed members marched down city
streets and rallied in great throngs in fields
and on fairgrounds.
A number of Neill's relatives joined the KKK
as a social club, believing that the funds they
paid to the leaders supported community
programs such as purchasing books for the
local library. They discovered over time that
the leaders were diverting the funds to national
activities, and also learned the real purpose of
the KKK: to torment and eliminate racial and
religious minorities. At that time the KKK

focused on promoting white, non-Catholics.
In an attempt to rein in Klan activities, the
City of Burlington passed an ordinance
forbidding the wearing of masks in public. A
bill for a similar statewide statute was killed in
the Vermont Senate.
Vermont had sizable Klan chapters in Barre,
Montpelier and Northfield, including a
chapter of females who called themselves "The
Women of Northfield." A statewide meeting,
called a Klavern, was held on a Montpelier
farm in August 1925. Photographs show
groups gathering on the hillsides of Montpelier,
including a statewide Klan meeting on Towne
Hill on July 4, 1927, followed by a Grand
Parade of the Hooded Klansmen through the
streets of Montpelier. The meeting leader was
called the Klegal. The most fiery gathering
in the Montpelier area was reported to be
the burning of seven crosses in Hubbard
Park. This author wonders, but was unable to
confirm, if this burning took place in the area
of Hubbard Park now known as the Seven
Fireplaces. Throughout the five to eight years
of the KKK presence in Central Vermont,
many crosses were burned throughout the
region, often with Klan members singing
beneath the burning symbols.
Soon after the 1927 Grand Parade, the Vermont
Klan started to collapse. Like Neill's relatives,
many of its members had never been violent
but joined for benign reasons. Some joined
it as a fraternal and social organization that
offered some excitement and a diversion from
normal routines like attending church. Due to
dissension and financial problems statewide
and nationally, many disillusioned members
of the Vermont Klan chose to dissociate from
Continued on Page 12
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THE BRIDGE
T H E B R I D G E
HEARD ON
THE STREET
D E C E M B E R 1 D E C E M B E R 14 , 2 016 PAG E 3
Inventory Of Homes For Sale is Low
MONTPELIER Its a sellers market. The number of single-family homes for sale in
Montpelier in October was just 18, well below average and down from 43 one year earlier,
according to statistics from Vermont Realtors. That translates to a 3.2-month supply of homes
for sale. Nationally, anything below a 6-month supply is considered a sellers market.
The number of sales in Montpelier so far in 2016 is close to 2015 levels, which means the drop
in inventory has largely resulted from fewer homes coming on the market. There were 72 new
listings so far this year, down from 91 in the same time period a year ago, a 20.9 percent drop.
Inventory is down in other towns, though less so on average than Montpeliers 58.1 percent
inventory decline. Washington County single-family inventory in October was 13.9 percent
below October 2015, while statewide inventory fell 20.8 percent in the same time period.
Prices here have held fairly steady. The 2016 median price of a Montpelier single-family home
through October was $247,000, up 1.6 percent from a year earlier median price of $243,000.
The median condo price in Montpelier was down 1.2 percent to $163,000.
Antiques Market To Benefit

Vermont Center For Independent Living
BARRE An indoor Antiques Market held at the Socialist Labor Party Hall National
Historic Landmark, known as the The Old Labor Hall will benefit a good cause. Located at
46 Granite Street in Barre, the market, brought to you by Vermont Antique and Unique, will
benefit The Vermont Center for Independent Living. Catering is by Anne Adams Finnegan.
The following is a listing of all dates for the Antiques market: December 4, 11 and 18; January
1 and 15, February 5 and 19; March 5 and 19; April 2, 16 and 30.
The market will be organized as follows: Dealers can setup beginning at 7 a.m., doors will be
open to early buyers starting at 8 a.m. General admission will begin at 9 a.m. and the doors will
close to the public at 2 p.m. Vendors will be required to pack up and leave by 3 p.m.
All of the door/admittance fees will be going to the Vermont Center for Independent Living in
Montpelier. To learn more about this organization please visit their website at vcil.org or call
them directly at 1(800) 639-1522.
A representative from Vermont Center for Independent Living will be present at each event.
Early buyers will be charged a $5 admission.
General admission after 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. will be $2.00 per person, for children 12 years of
age and under there will be no charge.
Public Invited To Learn About 2017 Construction Projects

MONTPELIER The City of Montpelier invites all interested members of the community to
a public meeting to learn more and provide input on the 2017 city-wide construction projects.
For the city of Montpelier 2017 will be a busy construction year. The City will be:
Reconstructing Northfield Street including replacement of utilities
Paving Main Street and State Street
Paving Route 12 from Spring Street out Elm Street to the city line
Reconstructing Taylor Street
Starting construction on the Shared Use Path extension from Granite Street to the Civic
Center
Nature Watch
Ice Drives Us Inside, Tree Sparrows Arrive
The public meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 6, 6:30 to 8 p.m. in City Council
Chambers and Memorial Room at City Hall (39 Main Street).
Discussions will include
Current project plans
Timing of construction (day work vs. night work)
Detours planned to accommodate construction
Communications plan
Questions? Contact Public Works Director, Tom McArdle at tmcardle@montpelier-vt.org or
Assistant City Manager, Jessie Baker at jbaker@montpelier-vt.org.
Zutano Store Staying in Montpelier

MONTPELIER Zutano, the clothing company for infants and toddlers, will continue to
have a store at 79 Main Street in Montpelier after all.
In late summer the store announced it was closing and had a sale over several weekends to clear
out the stores inventory and warehouse leftovers. But Zutano co-owner Uli Belenky said that
the overwhelming support for the store from the community during the sale convinced the
company to keep the Montpelier store open as an outlet. As an outlet, all merchandise in the
Zutano store is now marked at 20 percent below retail.
Uli and Michael Belenky first began selling clothes in New York City. When they moved to
Cabot in 1991, they brought the business with them, and Zutano has blossomed since then.
Today Zutano products are sold in stores across the globe as well as on the companys website.
While Zutano is well known for its colorful and cozy baby clothes, Michael said the companys
biggest seller now is its line of baby booties.
Fundraiser For Adaptive Sports

Ethan Hubbards Photography Displayed On Langdon Street
MONTPELIER The Shoe Horn, located at 8 Langdon Street, announced the latest Art
Walk at The Shoe Horn features celebrated photographer Ethan Hubbard. The public is
invited to attend an event at the store on Friday, December 2 from 4 to 8 p.m. for extended
Art Walk hours to view photographs selected from Hubbard's book "Thirty Below Zero: In
Praise of Native Vermonters." This collection of portraits pays tribute to Vermonters in images
captured over a 40-year period from 1964 to 2004. A copy of the book will be available for
just $5 during the event (it's a beautiful stocking stuffer!), and all proceeds benefit Vermont
Adaptive Ski & Sports! So kick off the weekend with this not-to-be-missed exhibit!
by Nona Estrin
Photo by D. Gordon E. Robertson
ecently we've had a couple of

migration stragglers. A lone
fox sparrow is kicking around
in the brush at the edge of
the lawn with newly arrived American
tree sparrows, on time for their annual
winter stay. A single grackle too, and a
red-bellied woodpecker, not expected at
all, likely from further south. And us?
We spend more time indoors, more time
glancing out at the trees and feeders, our
connection to nature, rationed now, by
short icy days.
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THE BRIDGE
Silence Surrounds Managers

Contract Situation
by Carla Occaso
MONTPELIER City Council members agreed on at least one thing Monday, Nov.
21 following a behind-closed-doors meeting for continuation of discussion regarding
the City Managers contract: No talking to the press.
Following a call to order by Mayor John Hollar shortly after 4:35 p.m., the council met
privately in a conference room down the hall from the city managers office. Present in
person were Mayor John Hollar and council members Justin Turcotte, Dona Bate, Jean
Olson, Anne Watson and Tom Golonka. Participating by speakerphone were council
member Jessica Edgarly Walsh and city-hired attorney Amy McLoughlin.
Also in attendance were City Clerk John Odum, former Council member Steamer
Walke and The Bridge, but they (we) had to leave not long after the meeting convened.
Council unanimously agreed to enter executive session shortly after around 4:35 p.m.
They then conducted a nearly two-hour-long meeting until around 6:19 p.m., when they
voted to re-enter public session. At that time Hollar announced a mutually agreed upon
statement :
Weve expressed our position, the City Manager has responded, and the City Council
is moving forward with the goal of reaching a speedy resolution.
The Bridge asked for some clarification and was told by Hollar that the City Managers
lawyer had sent in a letter. When asked for a copy of the letter, Hollar, Olson and Watson
said it was confidential.
Further questions were not entertained.
While waiting in the hallway during the earlier part of the meeting, The Bridge learned
Walke had created and would be circulating a petition in support of City Manager
William Fraser. It states Shall the agreement between the City of Montpelier and
William J. Fraser, its City Manager, be renewed effective March 12, 2017? The purpose
of this petition is to show the number of residents who support Fraser, Walke said.
It is their (city councils) authority to hire and fire the city manager. This is to let them
know what people of the city think about it, Walke said.
Also in the hallway as a handful of people waited for the executive session to conclude,
College Street resident Barbara Taylor Blythe wondered aloud about the councils
conduct toward Fraser, Arent they embarrassed? Taylor Blythe said she has a lawn sign
in support of Fraser on her lawn.
When the hearing concluded, no further announcements were made about what specific
next steps would be taken. And then, as of Nov. 30, no steps toward resolving the city
managers contract renewal had been taken publicly, either.
The topic of the city managers contract is not on the Nov. 30 agenda to be discussed
at the city council meeting, nor is there any word on the attorney generals office
investigation.
Michael Dwayne (of the Vermont Attorney Generals office) has contacted my office
a couple of times for some supporting information, but I have no idea if he is planning
an actual investigation at this time, City Clerk John Odum told The Bridge. Calls and
emails to Dwayne were not immediately returned.
As for the cost to the city for instigating discussions on a contract nonrenewal process?
Unknown. The City Council voted on Nov. 9 to retain an attorney to review a letter
they received from William Frasers attorney. No purchase orders have been issued and
any legal fees incurred to date have not been invoiced, according to Montpelier Finance
Director Todd Provencher in an email to The Bridge.
From Mayor John Hollar regarding the matter, We have not yet received an invoice
from our attorney, and I don't have an estimate of what her costs will be.
HEARD ON THE STREET

Extra! Extra!
1 Taylor Street Update
MONTPELIER The City has obtained the easements needed from the Jacobs,
Basharas and Heneys property needed to move forward on the multi-modal
transportation project. The city also obtained agreement with the Heneys on a 49-year
lease for parking at the State Street lot. It is expected that Montpelier City Council will
authorize this longterm lease at their meeting Nov. 30. City officials have been in touch
with Jay White (a representative of the Mowatt Trust owner of Montpelier Discount
Beverage, formerly M&M Beverage) now that these easements are completed, and expect
to meet with him in the next week. Once this agreement is finalized, the Vermont
Agency of Transportation will need to review all right-of-way documents and clear us
to move forward with design and permitting. Work is underway on the retaining wall
reconstruction and associated soil mitigation. This retaining wall work will be completed
by the end of December.
From the city managers weekly report
Got a news tip? We want to know!

Send it to us at: editorial@montpelierbridge.com
T H E B R I D G E
A Look Back In Time
The History of Montpelier As Told by Others
veryone likes history. Oh, not the boring stuff, but the good stories.
Theyre worth reading and repeating. The history of the world is
overwhelming, taken as a whole. The history of the United States
is interesting, but it too is often beyond our scope. Even the history of
Vermont has elusive properties in its entanglements. But the history
of a place is embraceable, and the history of a home place even more
so, as it comes with a sense of love and appreciation.
The town of Montpelier has had four great histories written about
her. The earliest in 1860, when Daniel Pierce Thompsons History
of Montpelier was published. This is the motherlode, containing
essential information about the formation of the town and its
early leaders. Thompson, the author of "The Green Mountain
Boys," (1840) was raised at his fathers farm on what is now BarreMontpelier Road, originally part of Berlin, but annexed by Montpelier
in 1899. Thompson spent his life in Montpelier, where he acted as a
lawyer, served in various public offices, wrote novels, helped to found the
Vermont Historical Society and edited the Green Mountain Freeman, an
anti-slavery newspaper. He also made Ethan Allen world famous.
by Paul Gillies
Thompson remembers hearing someone ask in 1807 about those stakes in

the field along the river. Why they are to show where we are to have a
new handsome street from the new State House right across the Branch,
with a fine, new elegant bridge. This was State Street. Another boy
declared, A street! Well, I wonder where they expect to find houses
to put upon it? It appears to me you village folks are trying to grow
grand all at once. When you get the new State House up I expect
we shant be able to touch you with a rod pole.
Portrait of Daniel Pierce Thompson.

Courtesy of Vermont History Center
Then theres the history that E.P. Walton wrote for Volume IV of Abby Maria
Hemenways Vermont Historical Gazetteer (1882), which includes details not covered
by Thompson.
"Across the Onion: A History of East Montpelier, Vermont 1781-1981" was written by Ellen
C. Hill and Marilyn S. Blackwell and published in 1983. You may ask: Does East Montpelier
count when talking about Montpelier history? Well, yes; East Montpelier was part of the Town
of Montpelier until 1848.
Then theres Events of This Day, compiled by Michael R. Doyle and published in 2005. This is
a compilation of columns by Dorman Kent from the Montpelier Evening News, which ran from
June 1933 to June 1934.
These books are all wonderful sources of Vermont stories.
In the southwest corner of the town, there was a stand of about 19 acres of White Pine trees
tall, straight, and healthy. Each proprietor owned a share. There were 70 parcels, each a quarter
of an acre. Col. Jacob Davis bought them all up, then proceeded to cut down all by himself,
reportedly at a rate of one acre per day.
Thompsons History of Montpelier celebrated the natural site of this village, comprising a level
plain of nearly two hundred acres of the richest alluvial land to be found anywhere in Vermont,
and being everywhere sheltered from the winds, so as to make it comparatively warm and
comfortable ...
Rev. John Gridley delivered a Thanksgiving discourse on the

history of Montpelier in 1843. He described an 1808 attempt
to move the Capitol from Montpelier, the same year it first met
at the new State House. Frustrated, the leaders of the attempt
declared, That the ladies of Montpelier made their Plum
Puddings too good, to induce the members to withdraw their
patronage. Gridley also mentions the towns exemption from high
winds.
There is a letter attached to the discourse from Parley Davis, who

remembers the first trial held in the town. A young man had stolen
something. After the jury found the man guilty, Col. Davis, the first Justice of
the Peace, imposed a fine. But the man had no money, so an alternative was chosen.
He would have to run from the tavern house on what is now Elm Street to the Berlin bridge,
driven by another man with a whip snapping at his back. The thief was also told he could
never return to Montpelier again.
There isnt space enough to celebrate the various histories of Montpelier, but a special
mention should be given to the delights of Doyles "Events of the Day," which covers details
of life in Montpelier over decades, leading up to 1933. When lightning hit Berlin Pond at
the beginning of the twentieth century and caused a waterspout that killed scores of fish, one
citizen of Berlin Corners remarked, the Montpelier aldermen are not on to the job to allow
such a thing. We love to blame our leaders.
History is here, everywhere. Sitting on the porch at Sarduccis, you overlook the point where
popular sleigh races run from the Pioneer Street bridge in winter, came to the finish line.
In the layout of the streets, and the historic buildings that line them, you can feel the past.
Town history isnt just about the beginnings of a place. It should travel through the years
to the present, but alas, Montpelier has no modern history, but it deserves it. Towns
surrounding the Capital city have recent histories, but not here. This void should be filled.
Someday people will want to look back at the way we live today. They will call our times
history, and wonder, as much as we do, how people lived in that distant past.
HEARD ON THE STREET

Extra! Extra!
Net Zero and Public Works Ponder Fats, Oil & Grease
MONTPELIER During a recent municipal meeting, councilors heard a brief update
on an effort being explored by the Public Works and Montpelier Energy Advisory
Committee for a potential cogeneration project at the Water Resource Recovery Facility
with the use of fats, oils and grease to increase methane production. The idea is that this
power generation capability would enhance the citys anaerobic digestion capabilities,
reduce solids disposal costs and replace additional equipment that was not originally
included in the aging infrastructure project. This project would be a substantial
investment. Staff and Montpelier Energy Advisory Committee members are currently
reviewing the concept and financial models. The assessment of viability is at a very early
stage and includes the speculative involvement of a private business partner specializing
in cogeneration projects (Energy Systems Group), as well as Efficiency Vermont. Its
unknown at this time when a presentation and recommendation will be ready for city
council consideration and the purpose of this note is to briefly describe a potentially
significant energy initiative project. Look for more information in the near future,
possibly before the end of the calendar year.
From the Montpelier city managers weekly report
THE BRIDGE
A Look Back In Time
Greenes Syrup of Tar
e was an Alderman, an Episcopalian and a highly

regarded member of the Republican Party.
Lester Greene was, by all accounts, a pillar
of Montpelier society. He also sold dangerous
narcotics in an elixir he called Syrup of Tar,
manufactured in his patent medicine factory
on Berlin Street near downtown Montpelier.
In 1895 Greene lived in a modest home at
15 First Avenue. Later, at 15 Berlin Street,
Greene would build a 17,000 square-foot, multistory manufacturing facility to produce his patent
medicines, including his flagship product, Syrup of
Tar, a cough remedy that contained alcohol, chloroform
and heroin. With increasing frequency, many Vermonters
languished in the throes of alcohol and drug dependence,
while Greene became a successful businessman and an
unwitting purveyor of addiction through the products he
sold.
The patent medicines of the late 19th century were
remedies that may or may not have had therapeutic value.
These nostrums were often the brainchild of quacks and
medical impostors. Their great success was due not to their
scientific formulations, but instead, to their imaginative
packaging and exaggerated advertising campaigns. It also
didnt hurt sales-wise that powerful narcotic and sedative
ingredients were part of the formula.
Greene was born in Plattsburgh, New York in 1863. His
father piloted merchant ships on Lake Champlain. The
elder Greene later moved his family to Swanton, where
Lester graduated from high school and began working at
a pharmacy. After four years learning the druggists trade,
Greene worked for a year in St. Johnsbury, then returned
for a time to Swanton. He came to Montpelier in 1882
and found employment as a pharmacist for five years, after
which he purchased Bascombs Drug Store.
An entry in Carletons Genealogical and Family History
of the State of Vermont (1903) noted:
During his career as a pharmacist Mr. Greene obtained a
thorough knowledge of drugs and their uses, and utilized
this knowledge in preparing a remedy for coughs and
colds, placing it on the market under the name of Greene's
Warranted Syrup of Tar. This syrup became so favorably
known throughout the country, and the demand for the
remedy so great, that he separated it from
his drug business, and on September
10, 1898, a company was formed for its
manufacture and sale, being incorporated
under the state law, with L. H.
Greene as president. This company
has erected a three-story building,
seventy-four by seventy-four feet,
in which it employs a large force,
manufacturing this medicine for
the wholesale trade.
Greene hired E. S. Meigs to run
his State Street drug store while
he concentrated his efforts on his
new plant on Berlin Street. Meigs
had come from Boston where,
according to The Watchman in
1895, he had held a responsible
by Paul Heller
Greene's factory on Berlin Street
position in the largest retail drug store in New England.

This freed Greene to devote more time to the Syrup of Tar
facility, as the medicines made there were meeting with
such popularity that more help and increased facilities are
needed to help fill the orders.
The Watchman continued, A convenient laboratory has
been fitted up on the second and third floors of the
building now occupied by Mr. Greene, sufficient for
an output of 2,500 packages daily. The members of the
new firm, Lester H. Greene and J. Eli Goodenough, are
thorough businessmen; their remedies are put up on honor;
every package is sold on the no-cure no-pay plan, and if
last years sales are any criterion, the new firm will be a
success. The money-back guarantee was a focal point of
the companys advertising campaign, and was included in
all printed matter for the life of the firm.
In 10 years time, the patent medicine business was turned
on its head with The Great American Fraud, an industry
expos published in Colliers Magazine in 1905. The
reporter, Samuel Hopkins Adams, took on the patentmedicine lobby, an influential consortium of snake-oil
salesmen who sought to protect a $75 million a year
industry. Adams was horrified to learn that this amount
was spent almost entirely on products containing little
more than alcohol and opiates. In the article, Adams cited
a study which maintained that more alcohol is consumed
in this country in patent medicines than is dispensed in a
legal way by licensed liquor vendors.
Further discrediting the patent medicine makers was the
charge that the medicines often aggravated the conditions
they were intended to ameliorate. Adams had particular
scorn for the cough medicines containing opiates and
chloroform that were marketed to consumptives, those
suffering from tuberculosis. Adams had an analysis
performed on one such remedy a cough medicine
and found, like Syrup of Tar, it was an opiate and
chloroform mixture which he claimed was a diabolical
concoction to give to anyone, particularly a consumptive.
The chloroform was calculated to allay the cough, thereby
checking natures effort to throw off the dead matter from
the lungs; the opium drugged the patient into a deceptive
cheerfulness. The combination, Adams concluded, was
designed to shorten the life of any consumptive who took
it regularly.
So insidious was the addiction problem in Vermont during
this time that an industry sprung up to treat substance

abuse. In Montpelier, the Keeley Institute, a drug and
alcohol rehabilitation center, opened a franchise a
short walk from Greenes Syrup of Tar factory
and, in the few years of its existence, treated
over 500 patients in Montpelier for addiction
to alcohol or opiates. While many questioned
the effectiveness of the Keeley Cure it
was reported that many of their clients soon
resumed their old habits after leaving treatment
the fact that the therapy was so popular is
an indication of the degree of addiction in central
Vermont.
Hopkins Colliers article unleashed a fury of legislation and
regulation of patent medicines. Almost immediately the
Pure Food and Drug Act was enabled. It expressly forbade
the manufacture, sale, or transportation of poisonous
patent medicines, and required accurate labeling of all
ingredients used in the medicines. By 1916 an FDA inquiry
was directed against Greenes Syrup of Tar, charging the
company with mislabeling the ingredients included in the
nostrum. The heyday of patent medicine and Greenes Syrup
of Tar was over. Heroin and chloroform were removed from
the formula; only a modest amount of alcohol remained.
The brand was soon in decline, and moved to smaller
quarters on School Avenue. Greene continued to operate
the company from his scaled-down factory until the 1920s,
finally selling it to the Burlington Drug Company in 1928.
The original factory became home for a few years to the
U.S. Clothespin Company, until a fire in 1924 leveled the
building. After the fire, the clothespin company moved to
a location further down the Winooski River to avail itself
of the hydropower, generated at what became known as the
clothespin dam.
While muckraking journalists like Samuel Hopkins Adams
heralded the decline of the patent medicine industry, in the
early 20th century, it was an uphill battle. The manufacturers
of these questionable remedies were often the largest source
of advertising revenue for newspapers and magazines. The
press of the United States is at the beck and call of
the patent medicines, charged Adams. Not only do the
newspapers modify the news affecting these interests, but
they sometimes become active agents. In Vermont, papers
such as the Times Argus and Caledonian Record often
printed endorsements of patent medicines as if they were
news items rather than paid advertisements. Eventually,
through a long process of litigation and legislation, the most
dangerous ingredients in all of the patent medicines were
finally outlawed in the 1930s.
In Montpelier, Greene was well known as an advocate of
Masonic orders: a 32nd degree Mason and a potentate of
Mt. Sinai Temple of the Shrine. His 1932 obituary in the
Argus also noted: At the time of his death he was secretary
of the Automobile Club of Vermont, an office he had held
since the organization of that body. He had served as a
member of the City Council Montpelier from 19011903
and maintained a keen interest in public affairs.
Greenes commitment to commercial and business life in
Montpelier was never questioned, but the adverse effects of
his patent medicine held untold misery for his unsuspecting
customers.
T H E B R I D G E
Phil: Lost in War and

Book Finding
Silence by Paul Levy
Review F
by Nathan Grutchfield
inding Phil: Lost in War and Silence tells the story

of author Paul Levys late uncle who was killed in
action during World War II. Levy undertakes a
journey to discover the life story of the man he previously knew very little about, and where
this journey is headed, readers only gradually begin to understand.
To begin, it is one which involves a much-covered topic war that other books have delved
into deeply, including Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. This famous American
novel is examined by Levy, who applies an important theme of Slaughterhouse Five the
implications of war on its soldiers to his uncle's situation.
Such is a defining moment of the book, that embodies a beautifully universal question arising
from some of life's most unbearable pains, which helped lead me to a decision of deeming
Finding Phil a worthwhile read. However, the book is not spoiled by my mentioning the
section of Vonneguts tale, and the reason for that is that reading the story in its entirety, and
only this action, can lead one to truly understand war as it applies to Phil Levy.
Meanwhile, the story of the author Paul Levy is important to one's understanding of Finding
Phil as it shapes the viewpoint through which all the questions of the book are considered.
Levy, now retired, has been a poverty lawyer and community organizer in Vermont and
Indiana for much of his life. Additionally, for many years he served as the teacher of a
leadership master's degree program in Sweden.
As it is, the book is successful in showing a journey to discover the nature of a man and along
with this, an understanding of deeper, more meaningful points. This should be clear while
the book is able to show a journey to understand certain queries, that does not mean all queries
are answered.
Meanwhile, the book may at this point seem both somber or contemplative, and while it is in
fact about war, death and silence topics that don't exactly lend themselves to be very cheery
if you were to read about them, say, right before bed even to me, and Im not all that picky
most of the time. There is also a sort of candid tone that underlies the book, making it more
easygoing than what you might otherwise expect.
Another potential disclaimer is that the author slowly and thoughtfully brings the reader
through the plot. Certain affairs of the war are described in considerable detail, and that type
of description advises anyone that isn't extremely interested in military strategy to resort to
skimming and looking for hints of more personal anecdotes, which are certainly a pervasive
feature.
Finding Phil could also stimulate an interest in social considerations: for instance, the
thoughts of a Jewish person fighting a war in large part against anti-Semitism, or the feelings
of a young person away from the one they love because of other important motives to their life.
What is the meaning of death? Of war? Of a young persons strong sense of idealism? Finding
Phil: Lost in War and Silence offers one the chance to further explore these questions and to
apply their newfound discoveries to their own lives.
Finding Phil: Lost in War and Silence was published by Bauhan in July 2016.
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HEARD ON THE STREET

Extra! Extra!
Hopes Are High For A State House Lawn Skating Rink
MONTPELIER City staff continues to work with the Put a Rink on It Committee
of Montpelier Alive on the possibility of installing a temporary ice rink on the State
House lawn. Per past conversations with the council, those involved believe that this
would be a significant community asset, would give residents and visitors another
option for outdoor exercise in the winter, would add to the vibrancy of Montpelier and
would bring new visitors to Montpelier to patronize local shops and restaurants. This
week, staff and volunteers from the committee met again with the Capitol Complex
Commission. At this meeting, the commission voted to approve a 1-year pilot to locate
the rink on the State House lawn. This is a significant step for the project and we thank
the Commission for their support. The City and Committee are working out the last
details with the Department of Buildings and General Services. Our hope is to bring the
final Memorandum of Understanding to the City Council for approval at the Dec. 14
council meeting.
From the City Managers Weekly Report
Look for it Online!

Vermonters On The North Dakota Pipeline
Bridge writer Ivan Shadis wrote a story on Central Vermonters who have joined the
encampment of tribes and pipeline resisters gathered at the Sioux land in North
Dakota. We published it last issue, Nov. 1730. Shadis has since written an updated
version that can be viewed online at montpelierbridge.com.
Author Paul Levy will talk about his new book,

"Finding Phil" at the Monday, December 5
meeting and lunch of the Montpelier Rotary
Club. Members of the public are invited to
attend the December 5 (12 noon) Rotary Club
meeting and lunch at the Capitol Plaza Hotel,
100 State Street, downtown Montpelier.
Tell them you saw it in

The Bridge!
We want to hear
what's on your mind.
Email us at
editorial@montpelierbridge.com
THE BRIDGE
Discarded Railway Station to Become Artist Studio and

Storage Space (Maybe)
by Nat Frothingham
fter years and years of creating art

and storing his paintings, sculpture
and theater sets in some pretty funky
locations across Central Vermont in the
past few months artist Nicholas Hecht has
good reason to believe hes finally found a
near-perfect studio and storage location.
And that studio and storage location? An
abandoned railway building along Route 2
across the road from the Red Hen Bakery in
Middlesex Village.
Over the years, Hecht who has pursued his
art in a number of different locations across
Central Vermont was actively looking for
a new studio and storage space when he
discovered the abandoned railway station
building in Middlesex Village.
After weeks and weeks of carefully talking to
the right people including the Middlesex
Town Clerk, a couple of key people from
the Middlesex Historical Society and a
neighboring property owner, things looked
pretty squared away.
But suddenly during the past 30 days, Hecht
has found out that hes in danger of losing
the old railroad building he thought he had
secured.
Hecht has an artists and builders appreciation
for historic railroad buildings like the one
that survives in Middlesex Village one
of the hundreds of such buildings with their
easily recognizable overhanging, extended
eaves that shelter passengers from rain or
snow while they are waiting to board a train.
They built these stations pretty much
all over the world, Hecht said, in South
America, Russia, Asia, Africa little smalltown train stations.
Photos by Michael Jermyn

Then came the motor car and big oil, Hecht
said. They bought them up and closed them
down. They tore them out everywhere.
In a recent visit to The Bridge office a few
days ago, Hecht began by talking about his
love of music.
I play a lot of keyboard clarinet, he said
to begin with. I travelled all over Europe and
China, the Caribbean, playing the clarinet
on the Great, in Guadeloupe, at a jazz place
in Montreal.
Warming to this theme, he continued, I
have owned several pump organs, a piano.
He also plays the guitar and a chromatic
harmonica. But, right now, its the accordion
thats his current main squeeze. On the
accordion, overwhelmingly, I play my own
compositions. I compose with it, he said.
Music is just one of his Hechts many favored
art forms. Hes also a painter, a theater and
opera set designer and a sculptor.
Hechts also been a local arts organizer
and impresario. Back in the 1980s, Hecht
invented and was the primal source behind
The Pyralisk a laid-back, popular hangout and performing space on the first floor
of the historic French block building in
Montpelier behind City Hall and the Fire
Station.
But as anyone who follows the arts knows
all too well good things often flare up for
a time only to burn out. And after several
years when the Pyralisk closed, nothing like
it came along to take its place in Montpelier
nothing as casual, or as relaxed or as
welcoming.
But back to the abandoned railway building
in Middlesex Village. Im attracted to old

buildings, said Hecht as he ticked off a list
of some of the places he has used in the past
to make and store his art.
ominous from the local manager of a nearby

lumber outlet chain that bulldozers
would be demolishing the old railway
station in 30 days or less.
I had the Sculpture Building at Goddard. I

had a couple of big studios in Barre, one on
Keith Street at the old Mattheson School. I
had the whole Salt Shed (along what is now
Stonecutters Way in Montpelier) for several
years. The last place I had was a barn in East
Bethel, a beautiful location. But no heat,
no light, no water. I can do without these
things, he said. But the woman who was
letting him use the space wanted the barn
back. So that ended.
Hecht immediately contacted the Canadian

Railway officials in Montreal. He found
the Canadian Railway personnel he talked
with both accommodating and helpful
and they wanted to set up a three-way
meeting between themselves, Hecht and
a representative of the lumber outlet. The
aim, they said, was to resolve any problems
with Hechts use of the building.
Then Hecht discovered the old railway

building in Middlesex Village and
everything seemed to be coming together
quickly and solidly.
Hecht had seen the building. He had talked
with the Middlesex Town Clerk who was
someone he knew.
She liked the idea, said Hecht. She thought
it was better to have a building in active use
than just abandoned. She suggested that
Hecht check with the Middlesex Historical
Society and Patty Wiley of the Society said,
Great. And Sarah Seidman, also with the
Society, said, Great.
And they came to a decision and said,
Change the locks use it.
Thats exactly what Hecht did. He changed
the locks, swept out the place three times
and moved seven trucks full of his stage sets
into the old building. I use and re-use these
sets, he explained. I also moved in a vast
collection of my paintings and a big chunk
of my large paintings.
Just when Hecht was beginning to feel
a little solid ground under his feet, he
was told by a lumber company that owns
an adjoining property that they own the
railroad building, though not the land
under it. The lumber company pays a lease
to the railroad and the railroad owns the
land under it.
Then Hecht learned something pretty
According to Hecht, the officials were also

saying, We might be able to work something
out. But they had safety concerns because
the abandoned building is close to the
railway tracks. But when Hecht suggested
building a fence between the building and
the tracks, they liked that idea.
Thats how things stand at the moment.
Things are up in the air. Theres been talk
of demolition. Theres been no closure yet.
Summing up the current moment, Hecht
said, About a week and half ago, I sent
them photographs and a letter. The photos
showed me inside the building with my art
work giant sets and all. And I sent them
a letter telling them who I am and what I
do exactly. Theyre aware now that I have a
lot of support.
Talking personally, Hecht said, Ive got to
a point in my life, where I need a heated
studio and a place to build stuff. Im in
the midst of a serious moment of creative
activity. Im writing music. Im working on
a series of paintings. I really need this space.
I dont have the money for some expensive
commercial space.
As he talked about the railway building
in Middlesex Village Hecht was in the
middle, neither optimistic nor gloomy
about his prospects.
I think Im good here. Im fixing up the
place. Im protecting the place. People are
stopping by, right and left, wanting to save
the building, glad the building is in use and
in support of what Im doing.
T H E B R I D G E
More of Montpelier's Friendliest

People
by Dot Helling
Richard Young
n 2015 I wrote a well received piece about

some of Montpelier's friendliest people
including Gary Bergeron, Amy Cox,
Michelle Pitzner, Erich Rosenstreich, George
Estes and others. Here are some more. See
if you know them. Stop them and say hello.
Beat them to the punch.
Richard Young works at Yankee Wine and
Spirits and first became known to local
culinary folk as the smooth Southern
waiter at the new Thrush. Richard is from
Savannah, Georgia where he ran a seafood
restaurant with his wife for 27 years. After
his wife passed away he moved here to be
closer to his grandkids, but not too close.
They live in the Boston area and Richard was
not into being the every day goo goo gah
gah granddad. His family is nearby but not
under foot. Richard is a crooner. He is one
cool guy, one of the few men who can call
you sweetheart or dearie and not have a
woman take issue, because you understand it
is his way, and he means it endearingly and
with respect.
Berlin's Samara Schneider worked the
Birchgrove Baking Cookie Cart in front
of the Washington County Courthouse
on State Street all summer, rain or shine.
When I talked with her she was training
Hunter Upmal and heading back to college
in Florida. With the food cart in tow, Samara
biked to the cart location every morning
Wednesday through Saturday to sell cookies
and iced coffee to passersby. She told me she
felt blessed to talk to people and exchange
smiles, and that you never know what others
are going through. And smile she did, as
sugary as the fresh, sweet cookies she sold.
Samara Schneider
Preya Holland
Thirty three years ago Preya Holland was

adopted at the age of two months from
Calcutta, India. But with the exception of
a few early years in Waterbury, she has lived
and worked in Montpelier ever since. Preya
started working for Manghi's Bread at age 16
and continues to work there part-time as their
do all employee. She does bread slicing,
retailing, wrapping, delivery whatever is
needed all with a huge smile. Preya has
also worked at McGillicuddy's for 10 years
and, in my view, is the pub's friendliest
server. She's an extra treat on burger nights.
Preya has five siblings and is family-oriented.
Her sister Mona was adopted from Romania,
her brother Roger is a missionary in Bolivia,
her sister Robin lives in Colorado, her sister
Stephanie in Burlington and her brother
Seth in Montpelier. Preya likes metal rock,
an interesting twist in her personality as
described by one of her co-workers.
Steve Rib Ribolini was the first Montpelier
baby born in 1949, on January 1 at 8:30
a.m. He lived and worked in Montpelier
his entire life until moving to Middlesex
a few years ago, but just barely over the
town line. Steve is twice widowered and
covets his five children and seven, soon to be
eight, grandchildren. After high school, Steve
worked at the Maunsell Company behind
Coffee Corner repairing office equipment.
He started S/R Services in 1974, a professional
cleaning and restoration company now run
by family members. Steve is semi-retired.
He spends his days managing properties,
traveling, enjoying sporting events and time
with his family. Once a week he joins a
rousing breakfast club of friends at Capitol
Plaza. When I asked him why he's so happy,
Steve Ribolini
he answered: So much in the world gets you

down, why not be upbeat? Life's too short to
take it seriously.
Marie J. Jennings, Spanky as a kid and
now MJ, is one of Montpelier's favorite
school teachers. MJ grew up in Berlin, the
daughter of Bill and Cheryl Jennings. Bill
was the police chief in Berlin and joined
the Montpelier Police Department when
he retired. Cheryl was a beloved teacher at
Northfield Elementary School. She passed
away in 2007 after a heroic battle with
cancer. MJ graduated from Johnson State
and teaches Physical Education at Union
Elementary School which is more than a
job. Teaching intertwines with the energy
MJ gets from others, lessons learned from
Mom, the dream of being a teacher since
age 12 and the desire to do more and give
back in this world. MJ has worked at Onion
River Sports since age 16, a place that is like
MJ Jennings
a second family and where we first met. Our
friendship was solidified when we cycled a
100 mile Century Ride with Angie Scott
many years ago, crewed by MJ's parents in
their Mazda Miata convertible. MJ also has a
lucrative hobby business, Dapper Dino Bow
Ties. MJ handmakes bow and skinny ties for
kids and adults, recently experienced record
sales at the Montpelier Middle School Craft
Fair, and always makes a killing at the
Boston Crafts Show. But perhaps, as MJ puts
it, the greatest personal gift is the acceptance
of others of the person MJ has become and
continues to evolve as, and the ability to live
life honestly and fully with a great smile.
Each of these individuals is a gift to our
community, but only a sampling. Keep
smiling and saying hello. You may or may not
make this list the next time, but you're sure to
make someone happier if you do, especially at
this trying time of year.
Gift Certificates
Available
THE BRIDGE
Didgeridoo Artist Opens Sound Therapy

Studio
by Nat Frothingham
BERLIN Pitz Quattrone, a local musician and healer who has

done so much to popularize and explain the didgeridoo, a long
bamboo-like instrument from northern Australia with roots that
go back, some say, as far as 40,000 years of human history
Quattrone and others are discovering that the didge when played,
can have powerful healing properties.
During the past year, Quattrone has been making the trip from
Vermont to Taneytown, Maryland and back to work with sound
therapists at the Samara Healing Center. I go down four or five
times a year, said Quattrone. What Quattrone and others have
discovered is that the didge can be made part of what is called
Vibroacoustic Therapy.
During a recent tour of Quattrones new office location in Berlin,
not far from the branch office of the Vermont State Employees
Credit Union, he offered a demonstration of Vibroacoustic Therapy.
The participant enters a low-light room and lies on his back on a
mattress. Then Quattrone activates a musical sound which when
passed through traducers becomes a physical vibration. When these
vibrations are put through the mattress, healing effects can be
powerful.
When the didge was first introduced at the Samara Healing Center,
the centers acupuncturist Jim Thomas felt the full effects of the
didge for the first time. According to Quattrone Thomas reacted by
saying, Whoa! Ive never felt anything like that before.
Describing the effects of sound therapy employing the didge,
Quattrone said, It loosens things up. It helps with alignment and

flow. It unclogs you in basic terms.
Massage therapy has long had beneficial healing impacts. But, said
Quattrone, sound therapy can permeate the body at a deep cellular
level. It can penetrate every cell and organ of the body. Quattrone
has already invited interested people to take a look at his new studio
and experience some of what he is offering. On Sunday afternoon,
Nov. 13, some 20 interested people visited the new studio. Then
the next day on Monday, Nov. 14, 25 to 28 people showed up for a
second open house.
Now, Quattrone is offering two more open house events. The first
open house will be held on Sunday afternoon, Dec. 4 from 3 to
5 p.m. And the second open house will be held the next day on
Monday, Dec. 5 from 5 to 7 p.m.
Then Quattrone will be offering a three-week workshop series for
people wanting relief from obstructive sleep apnea. That workshop
begins on Tuesday, Dec. 6 with two additional Tuesday afternoon
workshops on Dec. 13 and 20.
As he signed off from a recent phone call, Quattrone said, Come
in out of this crazy world and take the stress out of your body. Give
your body a 60-minute break to relax and do what its supposed to
do.
For further information about Vibroacoustic Therapy or to contact
Pitz Quattrone, please go onlinepitzquattrone@gmail.com or phone
229-4952.
Pitz Quattrone in his studio.
Photo by Michael Jermyn
Accordiing to the Pitz Quattrone website

Vibroacoustic Therapy may offer relief for these conditions.
Stress
Pain
Depression, anxiety & fatigue
Insomnia
Headaches
Addiction recovery
Parkinsons Disease
Fibromyalgia
Poor blood circulation & high blood pressure
Range of motion
Hyperactivity
Shop
Local
T H E B R I D G E
Dave Mallett, Mike Burd and Others to Perform Benefit

Concert
by Nat Frothingham
GREENSBORO The Greensboro Arts Alliance will present a star-studded, one-nightonly holiday concert on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the United Church of Christ in
Greensboro.
Dave Mallett
The concerts headliner is singer and songwriting great Dave Mallett, whose 40-plus year
career has seen him perform in clubs, concert halls and festivals across the United States,
Canada and Europe, including the Newport Folk Festival and the public radio variety show
A Prairie Home Companion.
During that 40-year career, Mallett has recorded 17 albums, and his songs have been
covered by such notables as Pete Seeger, Alison Krauss, Emmy Lou Harris, Kathy Mattea,
John Denver, Arlo Guthrie and The Muppets.
Also performing at the holiday concert is actor and singer Marla Schaffle, who has starred
in numerous on- and off-Broadway productions including Les Miserables and Jane Eyre:
The Musical, for which she received a Tony nomination.
On the program as well and opening the concert are three widely praised classical violinists:
Alexander Romanul, Annie Rowell and Roy McNeill.
According to concert organizer David F. Kelley, all proceeds from the concert will benefit
the Greensboro Arts Alliance. The Alliance has two principal goals: first, to strengthen
locally based arts programming in Vermonts Northeast Kingdom, and second, to enlarge
the capacity of the Northeast Kingdoms secondary schools to provide training and
programs in music, theater, dance indeed, all the performing arts.
Looking ahead to the Dec. 10 holiday concert, Kelley said, I think it will be unforgettable.
Kelleys belief that the concert will have lasting impact is based on his admiration for
Mallett.
In a recent phone conversation, Kelley talked about how he first came to know Mallett
more than 20 years ago, when Kelley was still a practicing attorney in Montpelier and at
the time deeply involved in the Russian-American choral youth exchange program called
Project Harmony.
Said Kelley, I first heard Dave Mallett one afternoon on Radio Station WNCS. I was
driving back to my office after doing a title search and a song came on the radio about a
barn burning down. It was so vivid I had to pull off the road to listen to it. I had never
heard Dave Mallett before, but that one song convinced me I was listening to one of the
best songwriters of our time.
Kelley was so impressed by Mallett that he made an effort to meet him. Said Kelley, At
the time I was raising money for Project Harmony and I asked him to do a benefit concert
for us. He said he would do it next time he was in Vermont. Six months later he gave me
a date. He was about to move to Nashville and I followed his career. His writing only got
better. Since then his songs have been covered by hundreds of other musicians, from Emmy
Lou Harris to Alison Krauss.
Speaking about his friendship with Mallett, Kelley said: We stayed in touch. We skied
together.
Mallett took Thoreaus writings about the Maine woods and made a song out of them,
said Kelley. Mallett flew out west and performed at a fly-fishing festival in Montana. Before
the show, Kelley wondered how Mallett would go over in Montana. And with Thoreau. It
blew everyones socks off, said Kelley about the crowd reaction in Montana.
Tickets for David Mallett in concert are available at www.themirror.org at Galaxy
Bookshop in Hardwick, Willeys Store in Greensboro, or call 249-8262.
Did You Know?
The issue The Bridge publishes on the third Thursday

of each month is mailed to every 05602 residence.
Advertise in The Bridge:
249-8666 or rick@montpelierbridge.com
223-5112 ext. 11 or michael@montpelierbridge.com
THE BRIDGE
A Look Back In Time
Remembering A Local Ku Klux Klan Resurgence
national chapter violence. However, there remains a reported surviving underground presence.
The Southern Poverty Law Center of Alabama reported two active chapters surviving in Rutland
and Hardwick as of 2006. Klan fliers surfaced on the streets of Burlington in 2015. The
distributor appeared to target two women of color, including a Black Lives Matter activist. He was
arrested and charged with two misdemeanors of disorderly conduct. He defended himself on the
grounds of free speech. According to T.J. Donovan, Vermont's recently elected Attorney General,
"when you send a flier that contains the KKK and has a hooded Klansman to a person of color,
the message is one of intimidation, of hate and of violence." The ACLU argued in an amicus brief
to the court that the fliers were protected political speech and the charges were dismissed. Around
the same time period, KKK members were phone-banking in Central Vermont, including
downtown Montpelier. Also, it was rumored that a trailer was discovered in Calais filled with
KKK publications following the death of its resident.
New Book
Continued from Page 1
The KKK presence in Vermont is a topic many would rather not discuss, let alone acknowledge.
Vermont remains a predominantly white state. The continued existence of a Klan influence here
signifies a failure to integrate as equals in race, sex and religion. Given the current national climate
and recently elected leadership, there is a palatable fear that those who believe in KKK mandates
may be empowered by the current national supremacist tone. Our President-elect was endorsed by
the KKK. Let's pray no one acts on this tone to injure others. We must be vigilant and remember
the experiences, for instance, of Holocaust victims. As Martin Niemoller, a prominent Protestant
pastor and outspoken foe of Hitler once said, and became famous for: First they came for the
Socialists ... Then they came for the Trade Unionists ... Then they came for the Jews ... (in each
instance I did not speak out as I was not one of them but ... ) Then they came for me and there
was no one left to speak for me.
An Inside Look at the Tragic 1911 Triangle

Shirtwaist Factory Fire
MONTPELIER Delia Bell Robinson has published her first book,

"A Shirtwaist Story" an inside-looking-out artistic interpretation
of lives affected by a horrific inferno, which took place in one of
Manhattans many sweatshop garment factories in 1911. As the title
suggests, this is just one of many such firsthand stories that could
be told.
I never intended to do a story about this fire, Robinson recently
told The Bridge. Yet, after a chance meeting with a stranger roughly
15 years ago, she did. When the stranger, a man named Peter,
became a friend, she began to capture the story of his childhood, and
later his life, as she learned it.
We became friends accidentally, Robinson told The Bridge. I
met him at a First Night parade. They went to get hot cocoa, and
friendship blossomed. Because they both were artists, their paths
crossed when their artwork appeared in group shows. As they
conversed, Peter slowly revealed the story of his childhood. Then I
found out that he had this relationship to a past event that he doesnt
talk much about. His grandfather was one of the owners of the
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. They made ladies blouses.
She created pictures based on their conversations. Her pictures are
done in several styles. Robinson explains, The narrative pages
are drawn as cartoons, and the information pages (no words and
grouped by their topic: Russia, the voyage, the lower east side, the
garment district, labor, and so on) are painted as art. Describing her
process, Robinson said, I use excellent paper (it took me a lifetime
to learn that newsprint is not good enough) and work with graphite,
acrylic and sometimes top scribbles of ball point pen that the scanner
reads as purple ink.
The narrative cartoon pages were done the size of the books pages
since they were painted on the pages of a pre-existing book of the
same size, but the theme paintings were done in a smaller format.
They were then enlarged, so all the twists and turns of the pen or the
brush became intensified.
Robinson said it took 10 years before Peter mentioned his connection
to the famous tragedy. The event happened on March 25, 1911, when
a blaze swept through the eighth through tenth floors of the Triangle
Shirtwaist factory, killing 145 workers. According to historians,
the story is especially tragic considering the deaths were largely
preventable. Doors had been locked to prevent stealing. Because
they could not get out, some workers threw themselves down the
elevator shafts to their deaths, while others suffocated in the smoke,
were burned alive, or jumped to their deaths to the sidewalks below.
Some including the owners escaped by climbing to the roof
and jumping to other buildings. According to History.com, Within
18 minutes, it was all over. Forty-nine workers had burned to death
or had been suffocated by smoke, 36 were dead in the elevator shaft
and 58 died from jumping to the sidewalks. With two more dying
later from their injuries, a total of 145 people were killed by the fire.
The event led to the implementation of safety measures for others
working in deplorable conditions. The owners were indicted, but
ultimately not held legally accountable.
by Carla Occaso
Robinson did not set out one winters night to tell this story. It fell on
her lap. Events and people are presented, or interpreted, in drawings,
collage and a smattering of words.
"A Shirtwaist Story" isnt so much a historic retelling of an event, but
rather an intimate biographical portrait of Peter (who wasnt even
born in 1911), his ancestors and many others touched by the event.
On that day, Peters father was an infant who was rescued by his
mother when she carried him out of the burning building through a
door on the roof after having delivered a meal to her husband.
But the story begins before that. The world of Peters pre-immigration
ancestors unfolds wordlessly in grim black-and-white, and black,
white and sepia pictures of Peters grandfathers homeland a
Russian place known as The Pale. Robinson depicts the region and
its people with images of long empty streets and crowds of bearded
men huddled in a doorway of a synagogue against a backdrop of
Hebrew scripture. Other images include a young woman standing
next to a seated older woman, a water carrier shouldering a yoke with
buckets of water, villagers playing the violin and a woman in a dark
room with another woman holding a screaming baby. An old couple
is by their side.
Then words pick up again. Robinsons friend, Peter, was born in
New York City. As an infant he suffered from projectile vomiting.
His infant illness was an annoyance to his mother, who planned to
summer in Cape Cod. So she left him in the hospital while she left
for summer vacation, according to the story.
At the end of August, his family returned from vacation and picked
Peter up at the pediatric ward, Robinson writes.
The book progresses as Peter grows up in a privileged household
on Park Avenue surrounded by parties and clinking glasses, trips to
Europe, secret excursions to pay off survivors of the fire, loneliness
and life in a bubble of affluence. More hints of something
dark emerge as fellow students at the Art Students League make
comments. My great aunt saw it all. My grandfathers sister died.
He apparently could not escape this legacy. Robinson never spells
out how Peter finds out about what happened and copes with it,
except to say that he was coached by his father that there was no
problem. People lie. People exaggerate. In any case, this story is
one worth knowing, retelling and remembering.
The book came out on October 31, because, Robinson said, it was
the last day the book could be published this year and still be
entered into the Jewish Book Award contest ... and it was also my
birthday. The award is a long shot for me but it is nice to be in the
running." She also said "I think this book could be a great educators
tool for young people, though it is good for grown-ups as well, but I
composed it without a target audience in mind. Robinson said. It
pushes you into one way of thinking, and then the paintings reach
out to you in quite another way. I like the way it works.
A Shirtwaist Story is available through Fomite Press (http://
fomitepress.com/Home.html), Robinsons website (delia-robinson.
com), and other online websites and at Bear Pond Bookstore. For
more information go to delia-robinson.com.
T H E B R I D G E
A Look Back In Time
Langdon Meadow during the time that it was

used by the National Life Athletic Association
for recreational fields. A tennis court is in the
lower left corner of the photograph, while a
combined baseball diamond and football field is
on the upper side of the main access road to the
fields. (Courtesy of Vermont Historical Society)
The new Montpelier High School with the citys Public

Works Equipment displayed in the parking lot, ca. 1960.
(Courtesy of Vermont Historical Society)
Langdon Meadow and the Growth of Montpelier
angdon Meadow has played an

important role in Montpeliers growth
and development. Originally a wealthy
landowners field, it was once the site of
escapist pleasures and later, key to the regions
economic aspirations. Today, it is the site of
state offices, businesses, athletic fields and the
high school.
Langdon Meadow was a 50-acre piece of
land on the south side of the Winooski River,
opposite the large houses of Montpeliers
business leaders on lower State Street. Situated
in what was originally part of the town of
Berlin, it stretched from the location of
todays VSECU building along the river west
toward Montpelier Junction. Access was from
Winooski Avenue (now Memorial Drive), a
road that followed the river from the Main
Street bridge to Montpelier Junction.
The meadow was named for an early owner
of the property, Montpelier merchant and
banker Colonel James H. Langdon, who in
1820, moved his family into an imposing
brick house there. Upon Col. Langdons death
in 1831, the property passed to his children,
Caira and James R. Langdon. In 1848 Caira
married Anastasius Nicholas, a New York
City banker with Montpelier ties, and the
couple used the house part-time. Then
commenced the parties and banquets at the
Nicholas Manor, at which caterers often came
from New York to serve, and anyone who
had not been entertained there was hardly
considered quite socially correct, according
to Montpelier historian Dorman Kent.
The large house on Langdon Meadow
eventually passed to Cairas son, Lucas
Langdon Nicholas and his wife, a woman
from England (by way of New York City) who
fancied herself a countess. Shortly after their
marriage, Lucas decamped to Rutland, while
Lady Nicholas stayed on in Montpelier.
The grand family mansion deteriorated to
the point where it was only being used to
store hay. Lady Nicholas lived in the nearby
crumbling Nicholas Block on Winooski
Avenue. In April 1899 the mansion burned to
the ground. The fascinating story of Lady
Nicholas has been told by Paul Heller in an
article entitled The Countess of Montpelier,
published in the Times Argus on July 11, 2015
(available online).
Cairas brother, J.R. Langdon, a wealthy
Montpelier businessman, banker, railroad
magnate and real estate developer, maintained
an ownership interest in the meadow. The
1853 Presdee and Edwards map shows the
meadow divided into over 40 lots facing
streets named James Street and Langdon
Street. J.R. Langdons plans for the meadow
never materialized, but he had insightfully
recognized the economic potential of the
meadow.
J.R. Langdon represented Montpelier and

Berlin during different terms of the legislature
but without moving from his home on Main
Street (now the Inn at Montpelier). In 1880
he had a disagreement with Montpelier and
switched his legal residence to his property in
Berlin. According to his obituary, every year
he crossed the river on the last day of March,
and thus maintained his legal residence in
that town [Berlin], though living the greater
part of the year in Montpelier. Langdon
Meadow did not become part of Montpelier
until 1899, after J.R. Langdon had died.
Langdon Meadow was the site of visiting
circuses during J.R. Langdons life and beyond,
into the Great Depression. Circuses during
this period would tour the region and stop in
Montpelier for a day, providing its residents
with a window into an exotic world beyond
the meadow. It was a major event; schools,
granite sheds, and factories would close for
the day, and banks would close at noon, all so
that townsfolk could attend the show. Access
to the meadow was easy for the circuses,
because the Central Vermont Railroad tracks
ran right through the meadow (Langdon was
vice president of the railroad), but pedestrian
access was more difficult. There was no bridge
at Bailey Avenue and the railroad didnt want
people to walk across their bridge, so each
year the city constructed a temporary bridge
across the river.
While the citizenry of central Vermont was
enjoying entertainment courtesy of traveling
circuses, Langdon Meadow was changing
hands. In 1911 the Central Vermont Railroad
bought the land from the J.R. Langdon
estate. The railroad, an economic force at
the time, planned to use the land to expand
its operations in Montpelier, but that never
came to pass.
Ten years later the National Life Athletic
Association started leasing the meadow from
the railroad and in 1932, bought it outright.
The meadow started to be called National
Life Field. The association maintained
recreational fields on the meadow for its
members, and for the teams from Montpelier
and St. Michaels high schools. In return,
the city waived property taxes on the land.
The meadow featured a baseball diamond,
football gridiron, tennis courts and a ninehole golf course. By 1943, with World War II
underway, income from the fields use was too
low to cover operational costs. The National
Life company stepped in and eventually
took over ownership of the field. The stage
was set for Langdon Meadow to become the
education and economic growth center of
Montpelier.
In the late 1940s the city started eyeing the
meadow for a new high school to alleviate
issues of overcrowding. In March 1950 the
voters of Montpelier rejected a proposal to

build a new $500,000 high school on land to
be donated by National Life. Four years later
the company generously renewed its offer to
give the city 15 acres of land, and the city
residents voted overwhelmingly to issue a $1
million bond to build a new high school. The
new high school was dedicated on January
15, 1956, in a ceremony featuring the top
education official in the country, Samuel M.
Brownell.
The new high school, however, was in an
inconvenient location. To get to it, teachers,
students and visitors had to traverse Winooski
Avenue (now Memorial Drive), a narrow
road lined with substandard dwellings, from
Taylor Street toward Montpelier Junction.
Fortuitously, the state was planning a
bypass around downtown Montpelier that
would direct traffic from Route 2 across the
Winooski River at Bailey Avenue, past the
high school and towards the intersection of
Main and Northfield Streets. Two years after
the high school was constructed, the bypass
opened.
The bypass had a second, equally important
function to connect Montpelier to the
new interstate highway segment being
developed on the western edge of the city.
This connection was so important to the
citys economic health that Montpelier paid
for an access road from the high school across
Langdon Meadow to the highway. This made
Montpelier the only town in Vermont to carry
the full cost of constructing highway access.
In November 1960, the interstate between
Montpelier and Middlesex opened to the
public, and Langdon Meadow became a prime
area for development. National Life had already
opened their new $16 million headquarters on
a large, wooded piece of land overlooking
Langdon Meadow (most of which they still
owned) earlier that summer. The retention
of the insurance company headquarters in
by Paul Carnahan
Montpelier was a major economic coup for the

city, no doubt made possible by the promise of
access to the interstate.
Langdon Meadows full development was
facilitated by new road construction. In 1957
the Vermont Crossroads Store had constructed
a new building across the street from the
high school at the site of the old Langdon
mansion, now the location of Vermont State
Employees Credit Union. The high school
bought additional land for athletic fields, and
the state built a liquor warehouse next to the
interstate exchange. A new building for Green
Mountain Power quickly followed; another, for
the states Department of Employment Security
was completed in 1962.
Langdon Meadow seemed to offer an even
greater capacity for development in the
optimistic 1960s. In 1967, National Life
announced plans to build a 70-unit Howard
Johnson motel, complete with a 134-seat dining
room, lounge and swimming pool, at the foot
of National Life Drive. Special attention was
going to be made to the design, to adapt it
to its Green Mountain setting. The proposal
received strong support from mayor Willard
Strong and Governor Phillip Hoff, who noted
that the city and the state needed the facilities
because the Tavern Motor Inn was then the only
hotel with dining and auditorium facilities near
the State House, following the 1966 closure of
the Pavilion Hotel. But by October 1969 it was
clear that the development costs for the site were
too high, and the national chain pulled out.
Today few people rushing along Memorial
Drive pause to consider the historic use of the
land. Langdon Meadow, once a bucolic field,
provided the city with a much-needed path to
rail and transportation corridors. It also made
possible the creation of a 1950s modern high
school and the growth of three engines of
the local economy: National Life Insurance
Company, Green Mountain Power and the
State of Vermont.
Shop
Local
THE BRIDGE
T H E B R I D G E
Calendar of Events
Community Events
Events happening
December 1 17
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1
Talking about racism and building empathy

with young children. Open discussion for parents
and educators about how to address issues of racism
and oppression, and how to build empathy with
young children. Discuss concerns, swap ideas, share
resources, and listen openly to each other. Childcare
is available upon request. 6:30 p.m. The Greensboro
Free Library. Please RSVP to rosecheney@yahoo.
com if you plan to bring kids.
Center for Independent Living. 9 a.m.2 p.m. The

Old Labor Hall, 46 Granite St., Barre. $5 early buyers; $2 general admission. 622-0919.
Flag Retirement Ceremony sponsored by Barre
Elks. The ceremony is open to the public and all
are encouraged to bring their tattered/torn flags to
be properly retired. If you have a flag to be retired,
and cant attend the ceremony you may drop your
flag off at the Barre Lodge. 2 p.m. Barre Elks Lodge
1535, 10 Jefferson St., Barre.
Dance, Sing, and Jump Around! Family dance for

all ages. Circle and line dances and singing games,
all taught and called. Live traditional music by Kenric Kite and friends. 34:30 p.m. Plainfield Town
Hall Opera House, Rt. 2, Plainfield. Suggested donation: $5/$10 per family no one is turned away!
http://dancesingandjumparound.weebly.com
Film screening: VAXXED. Film explores whether

or not vaccinations from the mumps, measles and
rubella vaccine (MMR) is connected to the increasing incidence of autism in children. 7 p.m. Merrills
Roxy, 222 College St., Burlington. Tickets: http://
gathr.us/screening/18221. 864-4742.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 5
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 6
Vermont Author Willem Lange. Lange reads

from his childrens classic, Favor Johnson, a heart
warming holiday tale that has been a Vermont
Public Radio favorite for twenty five years. 4 p.m.
Stowe Free Library, Community Room, 90 Pond
St., Stowe.
Designing Perennial Polycultures. Learn guidelines for creating successful combinations of plants.
Animals in polycultures will be touched on. 67:30
p.m. Hunger Mountain Coop, Montpelier. Free.
Art and Author Night: Veins of Gold. Art Opening with artist Suki KaPinao White, 6 p.m. Author
Sandra Erickson will read her poems, 7 p.m. A
visual exploration of what connects us to our roots
and to each other. Jaquith Public Library, Schoolhouse Common, Marshfield.
Grief & Bereavement Support Group. Open to

anyone who has experienced the death of a loved
one. 67:30 p.m. CVHHH, 600 Granger Rd.,
Barre. Free. 223-1878.
Acupuncture Talk & Clinic. Free Acupressure for

Headaches lecture (10:3011 a.m.) followed by an
acupuncture clinic (11a.m.-12:30 p.m.) Treatment
takes place in a group setting. Treatments are $10
and are all auricular (outer ear) acupuncture and are
30 minutes each. Arrive by noon. No appointment
necessary. Open to everyone 50+. Montpelier Senior
Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518.
Happy, Healthy Holidays with Food as Medicine.
Learn about ingredient substitutions, cleansing
meals, and immune-boosting soups that support
healthy weight, immunity and digestion through
the holiday season. Leave with recipes and ingredient substitution lists. 56 p.m. Hunger Mountain
Coop, Montpelier. $3 members; $5 non-members.
Performing Arts
THEATER, STORYTELLING,
COMEDY
Dec. 1: Its A Wonderful Life A Live Radio Play. Montpelier City Hall Arts Center is again
transformed into a 1940s broadcast studio as five versatile actors and a busy sound effects wizard
bring Frank Capras classic to life in front of a live studio audience (thats you!). See the small ensemble
create hundreds of characters, and the sound of everything from crickets to cars, to door slams to
sirens in front of your very eyes. Great for the whole family! 7 p.m. Lost Nation Theater, 39 Main St.,
Montpelier. $10 advance; $15 at door. 229-0492. lostnationtheater.org
Dec. 23: Danceland. Johnson State Colleges Dance Club presents an evening of student dance
performances set to music. 710 p.m. Johnson State College, Dibden Center for the Arts, Johnson.
Free. 636-1476. jscBoxOffice@jsc.edu.
Dec. 2: Extempo. Locals tell short-format, first-person, true stories live on stage without any notes or
reading. 8 p.m. Espresso Bueno, 248 N. Main St., Barre. $5. 479-0896. events@espressobueno.com.
espressobueno.com.
Dec. 3: Kamikaze Comedy. Vermonts own Kamikaze Comedy troupe invites you to come and
laugh your darn face off! This improv troupe has been sending audiences into hysterics since 1995
with their improvisational performances. 7:30 p.m. Chandler Center for the Arts, 71-73 Main St.,
Randolph. Adults $15; students $10. 728-6464. Chandler-arts.org
Dec. 3: FEMCOM. All-female standup comedy. 8:30 p.m. Espresso Bueno, 248 N. Main St., Barre.
Free/by donation. 479-0896. events@espressobueno.com. espressobueno.com.
Dec. 4, 11: Bread and Puppet Theater: Insurrection Mass with Funeral March for a Rotten Idea.
Insurrection oratorios and masses have been part of the Bread & Puppet repertory since the early 80s
and have dealt with a great variety of cultural and political disasters. The Mass includes a communal
sharing of bread and aioli. 4 p.m. Bread and Puppet Theater, Rt. 122, Glover,
Dec. 910: Vermont Youth Theater presents A Christmas Carol. Young artists, ages 5-14, will
charm and disarm even the hardest heart with their singing, dancing, acting and utter excitement.
Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m.; Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Plainfield Town Hall Opera House, Rt. 2,
Plainfield. Adults $15; students $10.
Dec. 1718: Moving Light Dance Company presents Green Mountain Nutcracker. This years
cast of 60 talented dancers performs in fabulous hand-made costumes amidst glorious set pieces. The
original choreography by Christine Harris, Willow Wonder, Avi Waring and Natalie Wheeler will
inspire the spirit of the season. Dec. 17 at 7 p.m.; Dec. 18 at 2 p.m. Barre Opera House, 6 N. Main
St., Barre. $25/$15 advance; $30/$20 at door. 476-8188. Barreoperahouse.org.
Jaquith Public Library, Schoolhouse Commons,

Marshfield.
50 Vermont makers. Supports the Family Center

of Washington County. 9 a.m.4 p.m. Montpelier
City Hall, 39 Main St., Montpelier.
Illumination Night at Vermont College of Fine

Arts. Gather on the College Green, 5:30 p.m. A
welcome from VCFA President Tom Greene, followed by the tree lighting, 5:45 p.m. Holiday carols,
5:50 p.m. Holiday refreshments in College Hall, 6
p.m. 36 College St., Montpelier. Free. vcfa.edu.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8
Annual Holiday Fair Unitarian Church of

Montpelier. Holiday decor, treats, fresh decorated
wreaths. Quilt raffle, live music, fresh pecans, baked
goods, new & nearly new gift items, plants, jewelry,
childrens books and toys. 9 a.m.2 p.m.; Coffee &
sweets 9-11; lunch 11-2. 130 Main St., Montpelier.
Barbara: 225-6373
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10
Downsizing Meeting. Area residents interested in

moving into smaller housing units now or in the
next few years are invited to gather for presentations
and discussion. Realtors Tim Heney and Lori Pinard Holt will talk about the current market, while
other individuals will discuss possible new housing
developments in Montpelier. 10:30 a.m.noon,
Hayes Room, Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main
St., Montpelier.
Calais Holiday Craft Fair. This festive craft fair

offers our best local artisans crafts and art. Delicious food available for a most enjoyable shop. 9:30
a.m.3:30 p.m. Maple Corner Community Center,
County Rd., Calais.
Jaquith Library Classic Film Series. The Band

Wagon (1953). Rick Winston will introduce each
film, and afterwards will lead a discussion. 7 p.m.
Barre Open House. Holiday activities and

entertainment all day. See schedule on page 14.
Downtown Barre.
Peacham Corner Guild Bake Sale. Homebaked

items along with unique handcrafted gifts, small
antiques, specialty foods, ornaments. 10 a.m.5
p.m. 643 Bayley Hazen Road, Peacham.
Capital City Winter Market. Markets will be held
on the first and third Saturday each month, December through April. Featuring seasonal produce,
local meats and cheeses, hot food, and handmade
crafts from central Vermont. Live music by Patti
Casey. 10 a.m.2 p.m. Montpelier City Hall, 39
Main St., Montpelier. 793-8347. manager@montpelierfarmersmarket.com.
(Not your mother's) Christmas Bazaar. Local
crafts including Beth Mueller Studio pottery;
homemade pies; Silent Auction and much more! 10
a.m.4 p.m. 39 Washington St., Barre. 476-3929.
goodshep@sover.net
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 4
Barre Antiques Market. Benefits The Vermont
Films with Rick Winston. Winston films that

captured everyday life in Northern Ireland during
the violence-filled period known as The Troubles.
Dec. 7 film: Some Mothers Son. An Osher
Lifelong Learning Program. 12:302:30 p.m. Savoy
Theater, 26 Main St., Montpelier. By donation.
Climate Change and Tax Policy. State Representative Janet Ancel will speak about how tax policy can
address climate change, focusing on a change last
year in the fuel gross receipts tax and weatherization
funding. 7 p.m. Jaquith Public Library, Schoolhouse
Common, Marshfield.
Planting Hope's 23rd Solidarity Craft Fair.
2 venues, 35+ vendors. Crafts, silent auction,
homemade lunch and desserts, kids book sale.
Benefits Planting Hopes projects in Nicaragua and
Vermont. 9 a.m.4 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130
Main St., Montpelier; Bethany Church, 115 Main
St., Montpelier. 778-0344. plantinghope.org.
Touch of Vermont Holiday Gift Market. Shop for
Vermont made holiday gifts at the booths of nearly
Is that Sapling a Son of a Beech or a Son of a

Birch? Join Natural Marshfield for a winter tree
identification walk with local expert Ed Jalbert. 10
a.m.noon. Jaquith Public Library, Schoolhouse
Commons, Marshfield.
Santa Arrival & Cookie Decorating. 12:303 p.m.
City Center, 89 Main St., Montpelier. Organized by
Montpelier Alive. Montpelieralive.org.
For more event listings and event details visit montpelierbridge.com
Live Music
VENUES
Bagitos. 28 Main St., Montpelier. Open mic every
Wed. Other shows T.B.A. bagitos.com.
Dec. 1: Grammy award winning musician Jim
Rooney joins Colin McCaffrey, 68 p.m.
Dec. 2: Art Herttua & Ray Caroll Jazz Duo, 68
p.m.
Dec. 3: Irish Session with Sarah Blair, Hilari
Farrington, Benedict Koehler, Katrina VanTyne,
Bob Ryan and others, 25 p.m.
Dec. 4: Bleecker & MacDougal (folk ballads) 11
a.m.1 p.m.
Dec. 7: Nancy Reid Taube Student Music party,
68 p.m.
Dec, 8: Bronwyn Fryer CD Release Party, 68 p.m.
Dec. 9: Stefani Capizzi (folk/country/blues) 68
p.m.
Bob Ryan and others, 25 p.m.
Dec. 11: Southern Old Time Music Jam, 10 a.m.1
p.m.
Dec. 15: Alex Figura (jazz/folk/blues) 68 p.m.
Dec. 16: Dave & Rory Loughran (classic rock/folk)
68 p.m.
Bob Ryan and others, 25 p.m.; 1940s Holiday
Music Extravaganza, 6 p.m.close
Charlie Os World Famous. 70 Main St., Montpelier.
Free. 223-6820.
Every Mon.: Comedy Caf Open Mic, 8:30 p.m.
Every Tues.: Godfather Karaoke, 9:30 p.m.
Espresso Bueno. 248 N. Main St., Barre. 479-0896.
Free/by donation unless otherwise noted. events@
espressobueno.com. espressobueno.com.
Dec. 3: Taylor Rich (folk/alt/indie) 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 9: Full Moon Monkeys (alt rock) 8 p.m.
Dec. 10: Jazzyaoke (live-jazz karaoke) 7:30 p.m. $5.
Dec. 23: The AccaFella (crooner) 7:30 p.m.
Positive Pie. 10 p.m. 22 State St., Montpelier. $5.
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 11
Animal Allies FIRST LEGO League. Spectators welcome and encouraged to attend! Norwich
will again host a FIRST LEGO League sports
for the mind robotics competition for ages 914.
Events are scheduled throughout the day, including
campus visits. 8 a.m.5 p.m. Norwich University,
Shapiro Field House, Northfield. 485.2256. FLL@
norwich.edu
Barre Antiques Market. Benefits The Vermont
Center for Independent Living. 9 a.m.2 p.m. The
Old Labor Hall, 46 Granite St., Barre. $5 early
buyers; $2 general admission. 622-0919.
Sewing Sundays. Gather together to share new
skills and sewing projects. Bring pants to mend,
Calendar of Events
229-0453. positivepie.com.
Dec. 2: Armies (indie/electro/pop/rock)
Dec. 9: Soule Monde (funk)
Dec. 16: Rumblecat(funk)
Whammy Bar. 7 p.m.; Fri. and Sat., 7:30 p.m. 31

County Rd., Calais. Thurs., Free. whammybar1.com.
Every Wed.: Open Mic
Dec. 1: The Flatlanders
Dec. 2: Penny Arcade
Dec. 3: Sid Morse Blues Jam
Dec. 8: June Morse Christmas Carol Sing-A-Long
Dec. 9: Sky Blue Boys (Dan and Willy Lindner)
Dec. 10: Chris Killian
Dec. 16: Kelly Ravin
Dec. 17: 2 Cents in the Till
SPECIAL EVENTS
Dec. 1, 8, 15: Christ Church Lunchtime Concerts.

Coffee and tea will be provided; bring a bag lunch.
Christ Church Sanctuary, 64 State St., Montpelier.
The concerts are free; a donation is solicited
for the Food Bank to help neighbors in need.
Christchurchvt.org
Dec. 1: Lynnette Combs, organ
Dec. 8: Andrea Brightenback, oboe; Lynnette
Combs, organ
Dec.15: Elisabeth von Trapp
Dec. 2, 4: The Vermont Philharmonic presents
Handels Messiah. Performances will present
the entire first part of Messiah and concludes
with three numbers from Part II, including the
beloved Hallelujah chorus, and four numbers
from Part III. Adults $15; seniors $12; students $5.
vermontphilharmonic.org
Dec. 2: 7:30 p.m., St. Augustine Church, 16 Barre
St., Montpelier
Dec. 4: 2 p.m., Barre Opera House, 6 N. Main
St., Barre. 476-8188.
Dec. 34: The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra. Under
the direction of David Kaynor, the orchestra will
perform New England, Quebecois, Shetland Isles
and Appalachian tunes and more. vtfiddleorchestra.
org
Dec. 3: 7 p.m., Vermont College of Fine Arts,
College Hall Chapel, 36 College St., Montpelier.
Adults $15; seniors and students $12; kids under
12 free.
Dec. 4: 2 p.m., Hyde Park Opera House,
garments to alter, and sewing problems seeking
solutions. No instruction open sewing time.
Sewing machines and basic notions provided. 14
p.m. Free. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St.,
Stowe.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 12
Hike Snowshoe with Green Mountain Club.

Montpelier. Easy. Clear sky backup date: Monday,
December 12. Evening snowshoe hike exploration
of local trails by moonlight. Bring headlamp. Meet
at 7 p.m. Contact Jill, happy.jillaspinall@gmail.
com, for details and meeting place.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13
The Somatics of Digestion. Nourish yourself
Send your event listing to calendar@montpelierbridge.com

or visit montpelierbridge.com
THE BRIDGE
Hyde Park. All proceeds will benefit the 2nd

Congregational Church Save the Steeple Fund
Dec. 34: Montpelier Community Gospel Choir
Winter Concert. The ecumenical choir celebrates
20+ years of song with an uplifting and exuberant
program, combining soul, jazz, original and
traditional gospel music. John Harrison, artistic
director. Suggested donation $10; $25 for families.
778-0881. vtgospel.com
Dec. 3: 7 p.m. First Presbyterian Church, 19
South Seminary Street, Barre
Dec. 4: 4 p.m. Bethany Church, 115 Main St.,
Montpelier
Dec. 3: Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas. Scottish
fiddle master Fraser and cellist Haas play a rousing
Celtic music concert. 7 p.m. Spruce Peak Performing
Arts Center, 122 Hourglass Dr., Stowe. $2037. 7604634. sprucepeakarts.org
Dec. 6: Montpelier Chamber Orchestra.
Performing Ludwig Van Beethovens Symphony No.
8 in F major at a pop-up concert. Reception follows.
6 p.m. at the former One More Time storefront,
Main St., Montpelier.
Dec. 7: Johnson State College Ensembles. The
Johnson Jazz Ensemble and the JSC Funk/Fusion
Ensemble will perform a variety of selections for their
end-of-the-semester performance. 7 p.m. Johnson
State College, Dibden Center for the Arts, Johnson.
Free. 636-1476. jscBoxOffice@jsc.edu.
Dec. 9: Johnson State College Band: Stories,
Myths and Legends. The band, directed by JSC
adjunct music professor Steven Light, consists of JSC
students, faculty and staff, and community members.
7 p.m. Johnson State College, Dibden Center for the
Arts, Johnson. Free. 636-1476. jscBoxOffice@jsc.edu.
Dec. 9: Vienna Boys Choir. For six centuries,
Austrias young cultural ambassadors have been
adored the world over for their wide range of
repertoire, purity of tone, and generosity of musical
spirit. Featuring classical masterpieces, Christmas
hymns and holiday carols. 7 p.m. St. Johnsburys
Academy Fuller Hall. $1564. 748-2600.
Catamountarts.org
Dec. 9: Session Americana. Session Americana is
a rock band in a tea cup, or possibly a folk band in
a whiskey bottle. This band/collective of talented
musicians craft an musical experience unlike any
other. 8 p.m. Haybarn Theatre at Goddard College,
Pitkin Rd., Marshfield. $15. goddard.edu. meg.

hammond@goddard.edu
Dec. 10: Memories Like This Norwich
University Band Holiday Concert. 2 p.m. Norwich
University, Plumley Armory, Northfield. Free.
Dec. 10: The Sweetback Sisters Country
Christmas Singalong Spectacular. This popular
show requires a bit of audience participation and
a love for all genres of holiday music (Fear not!
Songbooks are provided). 7:30 p.m. Chander Music
Hall, 71-73 Main St., Randolph. $20 advance; $22
day of; $25 front two rows; $10 students; kids 5 and
under free. chandler-arts.org
Dec. 10: The Holiday Concert: David Mallett,
Mike Burd and special guests. Presented by the
Greensboro Arts Alliance and Residency. Also
featuring Tony nominee Marla Schaffel, Roy
MacNeil, Annie Rowell and Alexander Romanul.
7:30 p.m. United Church of Christ, Greensboro. $15.
themirror.org. 249-8262.
Dec. 11: Green Mountain Youth Symphony Fall
Concert. The Repertory, Concert, and Senior
Orchestras will each perform their own musical
offerings. 2 p.m. Barre Opera House, 6 N. Main St.,
Barre. Adults $15; seniors $12; students $5; children
under 5 free. gmys-vt.org. barreoperahouse.org.
Dec. 11: Holiday Gala at Johnson State College.
Performances by the JSC Chorale, Chamber Singers,
Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble and three a cappella
groups, in addition to an audience sing-a-long and
visit from Santa. 4 p.m. Johnson State College,
Dibden Center for the Arts, Johnson. Free. 636-1476.
jscBoxOffice@jsc.edu.
Dec. 12: The Capital Orchestra presents a Holiday
Concert. Leah Desroches conducts the Montpelierbased community orchestra in a one-hour concert.
Seasonal favorites plus some Bach, Beethoven and
more. 7:30 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130 Main St.,
Montpelier. Donations appreciated. 223-8610.
Dec. 16: Darlingside. The new and widely popular
Boston-based quartet features four distinct voices
clustered around a single microphone, their tightlyarranged tunes drawing from the unexpected,
including strains of bluegrass, classical and even
barbershop. 7:30 p.m. Chander Music Hall, 71-73
Main St., Randolph. $20 advance; $22 day of; $10
students; kids 5 and under free. chandler-arts.org
deeply. Bring your dinner to the classroom. We

will learn about the anatomy and physiology of the
digestion system, meditate on desire, hunger and
being full, and we will cultivate a meditative eating
practice. 6:307:30 p.m. Hunger Mountain Coop,
Montpelier. Free for members; $2 non-members.
Song Circle and Circle-songs with Heidi Wilson.

Start the evening with a sing-along Song Circle
using Rise Up Singing, the great collection of
folk songs. Then explore circle singing. All voices
and ages welcome. 6:458:15 p.m. Jaquith Public
Library, Schoolhouse Commons, Marshfield.
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15

Grief & Bereavement Support Group. Open to
anyone who has experienced the death of a loved
one. 1011:30 a.m. CVHHH, 600 Granger Rd.,
Barre. Free. 223-1878.
Films with Rick Winston. Winston films that

captured everyday life in Northern Ireland during
the violence-filled period known as The Troubles.
Dec. 14 film: Bloody Sunday. An Osher Lifelong
Learning Program. 12:302:30 p.m. Savoy Theater, 26 Main St., Montpelier. By donation.
Intro to Embodied Mindfulness. Phoenix Rising
Yoga Therapy includes guided somatic meditation
& basic yoga postures paired with self-inquiry &
simple body-based mindfulness practices that you
can easily integrate into your life. 5:307:30 p.m.
Hunger Mountain Coop, Montpelier. $8 members; $10 non-members.
Forget Your Troubles! Come On, Get Happy!
Bring your playfulness, a sense of fun, and a
willingness to try something new. Anne Ferguson
and Nancy Schulz will lead you through a series
of interactive games that are designed to generate laughter while stimulating creative thinking.
6:308:30 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center,
58 Barre St., Montpelier. Free; pre-registration
required to 223-2518.
Falling Away Moving beyond western constructs

of self and psychotherapy. An exploration of mindfulness practice, psychotherapy, and unfolding.
67:30 p.m. Hunger Mountain Coop, Montpelier.
Free.
56th Plainfield Christmas Bird Count. Spend the

day performing a census of our winter birds. The
count circle includes parts of Plainfield, Calais, East
Montpelier, Marshfield, Montpelier and Barre. The
day concludes with a potluck dinner. Call North
Branch Nature Center for more info.: 229-6206.
northbranchnaturecenter.org
Capital City Winter Market. Markets will be held
on the first and third Saturday each month, December through April. Featuring seasonal produce, local
meats and cheeses, hot food, and handmade crafts
from central Vermont. 10 a.m.2 p.m. Montpelier
City Hall, 39 Main St., Montpelier. 793-8347.
manager@montpelierfarmersmarket.com.
Soup-A-Thon. Many varieties of delicious Soupsall you can eat. Desserts and drinks included.
Benefits Worcesters Meals on Wheels. 5:307 p.m.
Worcester Church Annex, 35 Worcester Village
Rd., Worcester. Adults $10; children 5 and under
$5. 223-7961. ruthsicely@aol.com
For more event listings and event

details visit montpelierbridge.com
T H E B R I D G E
Visual Arts
Calendar of Events
EXHIBITS
Through Dec. 9: Johnson State College Student Artwork. Featuring

Kyle Selmers abstract expressionist paintings in various media and Cecil
Gerrys puppet theater and painting installation. Reception: Dec. 1, 35
p.m. Johnson State College, Julian Scott Memorial Gallery. jsc.edu/Dibden. 635-1469.
Through Dec. 9: Paletteers of Vermont Fall Art Show. Aldrich Public Library, Milne Room, 6
Washington St., Barre.
Through Dec. 28: Pamela Druhen, Seasons. An exhibit of 20 unusually intricate landscape and abstract
threadscapes by Northfield fiber artist. The gallery is located just inside Giffords main entrance at 44 S,
Main St. (Route 12) in Randolph. Call Gifford at (802) 728-7000 for more information.
Through Dec. 30: Shedding Light On The Working Forest. Paintings and poetry by visual artist Kathleen
Kolb and poet Verandah Porche. Vermont Supreme Court Gallery, Montpelier.
Through Dec. 30: Mary Admasian, Shadowlands. Paintings, assemblages and sculptures, mixed-media
paintings are created on birch panels. Her application technique of spray-paint, acrylic paint, graphite, cold
wax, colored pencil, and watercolor pencil materials creates a surface that layers the visual space and imagery
of each painting. Pavilion Building, 109 State St., Montpelier. http://MaryAdmasianART.com
Through Dec. 30: Studio Place Arts presents Celebrate! An annual local arts celebration since 2000 that
features a wide variety of art and crafts created by Studio Place Arts (SPA) member artists. The show involves
more than 75 local artists and artwork is imaginatively exhibited on all 3 floors of the historic SPA building in
downtown Barre. Shop local! Studio Place Arts, 201 N. Main St., Barre. 479-7069. studioplacearts.com.
Dec. 231: Fiber Art Extravaganza. Introducing a fiber art extravaganza featuring rug-hooked creations
by the Champlain Island Fiber Bees and upcycled sweater Christmas stockings from Nancy Gadue just in
time for the holidays! Reception: Dec. 2, 48 p.m. Cheshire Cat, 28 Elm St., Montpelier. 223-1981. www.
cheshirecatclothing.com
Dec. 231: Members Art Show & Sale and Festival of Trees & Light. Gallery walls are dedicated to
member art. Also celebrate the season with an eclectic group exhibition featuring the artwork of our
members amongst thirteen community decorated evergreen trees and a beautiful Hanukkah display of
menorahs, games, and dreidels. Opening reception & feast: Dec. 2, 58 p.m. Helen Day Art Center, 90
Pond St., Stowe. 253-8358. helenday.com
Through Jan. 7: Annual Holiday Group Exhibition. Illustration, mixed media, photography, pastel and oil
painting. Axels Gallery and Frame Shop, 5 Stowe St., Waterbury. axelsgallery.com
Through Jan. 13: Michael Strauss, Making Thought Visible. Strausss paintings are a form of visual
reasoning in brightly colored compositions, mainly in pastel and ink. Opening reception and talk: Dec.
2, 68 p.m. T.W. Wood Gallery, 46 Barre St., Montpelier. 262-6035. twwoodgallery@gmail.com. www.
twwoodgallery.org
Holiday Cookies from the

Waterbury Area Senior Center
Need some cookies to bring to your next holiday
gathering or party? You can place your
cookie orders between now and Dec.
20. Let us know how many dozen
you need and when you would like
to pick them up. Cookies are $6 a dozen
for an assorted mix and will be available for pick
up until Dec. 23. This year the Senior Center
will be making variety of holiday cookies as
well as homemade chocolates. Chocolates
are available at $10. a dozen with a choice
of Peanut Butter, Peppermint and Maple.
Call 244-1234.
Dec. 2Jan. 28: Show 14 at The Front. Drawings, paintings, sculptures, photographs and mixed media work
by local artists. Opening: Dec. 2, 48 p.m. during ArtWalk. Gallery hours: Fri., 58 p.m.; Sat., 11 a.m.8
p.m. The Front, 6 Barre St., Montpelier. www.thefrontvt.com. 272-0908
Through April 8: Pria Cambio, And Somewhere Else Theres a Beach. Eleven paintings by local artist
Cambio includes work over her lifetime that shares her connection to the seacoast. Morse Block Deli, 260 N.
Main St. in Barre. www.morseblockdeli.com or www.studioplacearts.com
SPECIAL EVENTS
Dec. 2: Holiday Art Walk Holiday Baked Goods & Luminaries. Enjoy local art and Vermont-made
baked goods at local downtown shops. Art Walk is a self-guided tour. 4 p.m. Downtown Montpelier.
montpelieralive.org.
Dec. 2: Art and Author Night: Veins of Gold. Art Opening with artist Suki KaPinao White, 6 p.m. Author
Sandra Erickson will read her poems, 7 p.m. A visual exploration of what connects us to our roots and to each
other. Jaquith Public Library, Schoolhouse Common, Marshfield.
Dec. 10: Family Day at Helen Day Art Center. An afternoon full of sweet treats and seasonal art activities in
conjunction with the Festival of Trees and Light exhibit. Create holiday decorations, play dreidel games and
decorate gingerbread houses with NECI students. 14 p.m. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St., Stowe. Free.
helenday.com.
THE BRIDGE
Calendar of Events
Weekly/Ongoing HEALTH & WELLNESS

suggested donation; under 60 $9. Reservations:
262-6288 or justbasicsinc@gmail.com.
ARTS & CRAFTS
Beaders Group. All levels of beading experience

welcome. Free instruction available. Come with
a project for creativity and community. Sat., 11
a.m.2 p.m. The Bead Hive, Plainfield. 454-1615.
Drop-in River Arts Elder Art Group. Work
on art, share techniques and get creative with
others. Bring your own art supplies. For elders
60+. Every Fri., 10 a.m.noon. River Arts Center,
74 Pleasant St., Morrisville. Free. 888-1261.
riverartsvt.org.
BICYCLING
Open Shop Nights. Volunteer-run community

bike shop: bike donations and repairs. Wed., 46
p.m.; other nights. Freeride Montpelier, 89 Barre
St., Montpelier. 552-3521. freeridemontpelier.org.
BOOKS & WORDS
Lunch in a Foreign Language. Bring lunch and

practice your language skills with neighbors.
Noon1 p.m. Mon., Hebrew; Tues., Italian;
Wed., Spanish; Thurs., French. Kellogg-Hubbard
Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338.
English Conversation Practice Group. For
students learning English for the first time. Tues.,
45 p.m. Central Vermont Adult Basic Education, Montpelier Learning Center, 100 State St.
223-3403.
Ongoing Reading Group. Improve your reading
and share some good books. Books chosen by
group. Thurs., 910 a.m. Central Vermont Adult
Basic Education, Montpelier Learning Center,
100 State St. 223-3403.
BUSINESS, FINANCE,
COMPUTERS, EDUCATION
One-on-One Technology Help Sessions. Free

assistance to patrons needing help with their
computers and other personal electronic devices.
30 min. one-on-one sessions every Tues., 10
a.m.noon. Waterbury Public Library, 28 N.
Main St., Waterbury. Free. Registration required:
244-7036.
Personal Financial Management Workshops.
Learn about credit/debit cards, credit building
and repair, budgeting and identity theft, insurance, investing, retirement. Tues., 68 p.m.
Central Vermont Medical Center, Conference
Room 3. Registration: 371-4191.
FOOD & DRINK
Community Meals in Montpelier. All welcome.

Free.
Mon.: Unitarian Church, 130 Main St.,
11 a.m.1 p.m.
Tues.: Bethany Church, 115 Main St.,
11:30 a.m.1 p.m.
Wed.: Christ Church, 64 State St.,
11 a.m.12:30 p.m.
Thurs.: Trinity Church, 137 Main St.,
11:30 a.m.1 p.m.
Fri.: St. Augustine Church, 18 Barre St.,
11 a.m.12:30 p.m.
Sun.: Last Sunday only, Bethany Church, 115
Main St. (hosted by Beth Jacob Synagogue),
4:305:30 p.m.
Lunches for Seniors. Mon., Wed., Fri., Noon.
Twin Valley Senior Center, 4583 U.S. Rt. 2, E.
Montpelier. $4 suggested donation. 223-3322.
twinvalleyseniors.org.
Feast Together or Feast To Go. All proceeds
benefit the Feast Senior Meal program. Tues. and
Fri., noon1 p.m. Live music every Tues., 10:30
11:30 a.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58
Barre St., Montpelier. Seniors 60+ free with $7
Turning Point Center. Safe, supportive place

for individuals and their families in or seeking
recovery. Daily, 10 a.m.5 p.m. 489 North Main
St., Barre. 479-7373.
Sun.: Alchoholics Anonymous, 8:30 a.m.
Tues.: Making Recovery Easier workshops,
67:30 p.m.
Wed.: Wits End Parent Support Group, 6 p.m.

Thurs.: Narcotics Anonymous, 6:30 p.m.
Bone Building Exercises. Open to all ages. Every
Mon. and Wed.. 7:30 a.m., 9:15 a.m. and 10:40
a.m. Every Fri.. 7:30 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. Twin
Valley Senior Center, 4583 U.S. Rte. 2, E. Montpelier. Free. 223-3322. twinvalleyseniors.org.
Tai Chi for Seniors. Led by trained volunteers.
Every Mon. and Fri., 12 p.m.; Tues. and Thurs.
1011 a.m. Twin Valley Senior Center, 4583
U.S. Rte. 2, E. Montpelier. Free. 223-3322.
Living Strong Group. Volunteer-led group.
Sing while exercising. Open to all seniors.
Every Mon., 2:303:30 p.m. and every Fri.,
23 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58
Barre St., Montpelier. Free. Register: 223-2518.
msac@montpelier-vt.org.
Sex Addicts Anonymous. Mon., 6:30 p.m. Bethany Church, 115 Main St., Montpelier. 552-3483.
Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management Program.
Education and support to help adults at high risk
of developing type 2 diabetes adopt healthier
eating and exercise habits that can lead to weight
loss and reduced risk. Every Tues., 10:3011:30
a.m. Kingwood Health Center Conference
Room (lower level), 1422 Rt. 66, Randolph. Free.
Register: 728-7714.
Overeaters Anonymous. Twelve-step program for physically, emotionally and spiritually
overcoming overeating. Two meeting days and
locations. Every Tues., 5:306:30 p.m. and Sat.,
8:309:30 a.m. at Episcopal Church of the Good
Shepherd, 39 Washington St., Barre. 249-3970.
Every Mon., 5:306:30 p.m. at Bethany Church,
115 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3079.
Tai Chi Classes for All Ages. Every Tues. and
Thurs., 1011 a.m. Twin Valley Senior Center,
Rte. 2, Blueberry Commons, E. Montpelier. Free.
223-3322. twinvalleyseniors@myfairpoint.net
The Rockinghorse Circle of Support. Opportunity for young women and children to meet
once a week for friendship, good conversation and
fun. Facilitated by a licensed alcohol and drug
counselor and another person with child and family background. Topics reflects on how substance
abuse, whether it's ours or someone else's, affects
our decisions and lives. Child care provided. Every
Wed. through June 8. 9:3011:30 a.m. Hedding
United Methodist Church, 40 Washington St.,
Barre. 479-1086 or 476-4328.
KIDS & TEENS
Robins Nest Nature Playgroup. Outdoor playgroup for parents, caregivers and children ages
05. Two hours of spontaneous play, exploration,
discovery, song, nature-inspired crafts and storytelling. Every Mon. through Dec. 9, 9:3011:30
a.m. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St.,
Montpelier. By donation. 229-6206. northbranchnaturecenter.org
The Basement Teen Center. Safe drop-in space
to hang out, make music, play pool, ping-pong
and board games and eat free food. All activities
are free. Mon.Thurs., 26 p.m., Fridays 3-10
p.m. Basement Teen Center, 39 Main St., Montpelier. BasementTeenCenter.org
Read to Clara. Sign up for a 20-minute slot and
choose your books beforehand to read to this
special canine pal. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135
Main St., Montpelier. Sign up ahead: 223-4665
or at the childrens desk. kellogghubbard.org.
Story Time and Playgroup. With Sylvia Smith
for story time and Cassie Bickford for playgroup.
For ages birth6 and their grown-ups. We follow
the Twinfield Union School calendar and do not
hold the program the days Twinfield is closed.
Wed., 1011:30 a.m. Jaquith Public Library,
122 School St., Marshfield. Free. 426-3581.
jaquithpubliclibrary.org.
Story Time for Kids. Meet your neighbors and
share quality time with the pre-schooler in your
life. Each week well read stories and spend time
together. A great way to introduce your preschooler to your local library. For ages 25. Every
Thurs., 10:30 a.m. Cutler Memorial Library, 151
High St., Plainfield. 454-8504. cutlerlibrary.org.
Lego Club. Use our large Lego collection to
create and play. All ages. Thurs., 34:30 p.m.
Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. Free. 223-3338. kellogghubbard.org.
Drop-in Kinder Arts Program. Innovative
exploratory arts program with artist/instructor
Kelly Holt. Age 35. Fri., 10:30 a.m.noon.
River Arts Center, 74 Pleasant St., Morrisville.
888-1261. RiverArtsVT.org.
Teen Fridays. Find out about the latest teen
books, use the gym, make art, play games and if
you need to, do your homework. Fri., 35 p.m.
Jaquith Public Library, 122 School St., Marshfield. 426-3581.
Musical Story Time. Join us for a melodious
good time. Ages birth6. Sat., 10:30 a.m. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier.
Free. 223-3338. kellogghubbard.org.
Lindel James coaching & consulting

Taking You from Frustration to Enthusiasm
802 778 0626
lindel@lindeljames.com
lindeljames.com
SOLIDARITY/
IDENTITY
Womens Group. Women explore important

issues and challenges in their lives in a warm and
supportive environment. Facilitated by psychotherapist Kathleen Zura. Two different group
meetings: every Mon., 5:307:30 p.m. and every
Wed., 34:30 p.m. 138 Main St., Montpelier.
324-4611. Insurances accepted.
Rainbow Umbrella of Central Vermont, an
adult LGBTQ group, meets every other Tuesday,
5:30 to 7:00 pm, at the Montpelier Senior
Center. For specifics, write toRUCVTAdmin@
PrideCenterVT.org
Bowling. Rainbow Umbrella of Central Vermont, an adult LGBTQ group, bowls at Twin
City Lanes on Sunday afternoons twice a month.
For dates and times, write to RUCVTAdmin@
PrideCenterVT.org
SPIRITUALITY
Christian Science Reading Room. You're invited

to visit the Reading Room and see what we
have for your spiritual growth. You can borrow,
purchase or simply enjoy material in a quiet study
room. Hours: Wed., 11 a.m.7:15 p.m.; Thurs.
Sat., 11 a.m.1 p.m. 145 State St., Montpelier.
223-2477.
A Course in Miracles. A study in spiritual transformation. Group meets each Tues., 78 p.m.
Christ Episcopal Church, 64 State St., Montpelier. 279-1495.
Christian Counseling. Tues. and Thurs. Daniel
Dr., Barre. Reasonable cost. By appt. only: 4790302.
MUSIC & DANCE
Barre-Tones Womens Chorus. Open rehearsal.

Find your voice with 50 other women. Mon., 7
p.m. Capital City Grange, Rt. 12, Berlin. BarretonesVT.com. 552-3489.
Monteverdi Young Singers Chorus Rehearsal.

New chorus members welcome. Wed., 45 p.m.
Montpelier. Call 229-9000 for location and more
information.
BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Onion River Exchange Tool Library. 80 tools

both power and manual. Wed., 46 p.m.; Sat.,
911 a.m. 46 Barre St., Montpelier. 661-8959.
info@orexchange.com.
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. For those

interested in learning about the Catholic faith, or
current Catholics who want to learn more. Wed.,
7 p.m. St. Monica Church, 79 Summer St.,
Barre. Register: 479-3253.
Wits End. Support group for parents, siblings,

children, spouses and/or relationship partners of
someone suffering with addiction whether it is
to alcohol, opiates, cocaine, heroin, marijuana or
something else. Every Wed., 68 p.m. Turning
Point Center, 489 N. Main St., Barre. Louise:
279-6378.
The Center for Leadership Skills
RESOURCES
Prayer Meeting. Ecumenical and charismatic

prayer meeting. Every 1st and 3rd Thurs., 6:308
p.m. 8 Daniels Dr., Barre. 479-0302
Dance or Play with the Swinging Over 60

Band. Danceable tunes from the 1930s to the
1960s. Recruiting musicians. Tues., 10:30 a.m.
noon. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58
Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518.
NAMI Vermont Connection Recovery Support Group. For ondividuals living with mental
illness. Every Fri., 34 p.m. Another Way, 125
Barre St., Montpelier. 876-7949. info@namivt.
org
Additional Recycling. The Additional Recyclables Collection Center accepts scores of hardto-recycle items. Mon., Wed., Fri., noon6 p.m.;
Third Sat., 9 a.m.1 p.m. ARCC, 540 North
Main St., Barre. $1 per carload. 229-9383 x106.
For list of accepted items, go to cvswmd.org/arcc.
Mad River Valley Youth Group. Sun., 79 p.m.

Meets at various area churches. Call 497-4516 for
location and information.
Weight Loss Support Group. Get help and support on your weight loss journey every Wed., 67
p.m. Giffords Conference Center, 44 S. Main St.,
Randolph. Free. No registration required. Open to
all regardless of where you are in your weight loss.
HIV Testing. Vermont CARES offers fast oral

testing. Wed., 25 p.m. 29 State St., Ste. 14
(above Rite Aid), Montpelier. Free and anonymous. 371-6224. vtcares.org.
RECYCLING
Piano Workshop. Informal time to play,

refresh your skills and get feedback if desired
with other supportive musicians. Singers and
listeners welcome. Thurs., 45:30 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.,
Montpelier. Free; open to the public. 223-2518.
msac@montpelier-vt.org.
Ukelele Group. All levels welcome. Thurs., 68
p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre
St. 223-2518.
Barre Rock City Chorus. We sing songs from
the 60s80s and beyond. All songs are taught by
rote using word sheets, so ability to read music is
not required. All ages welcome; children under
13 should come with a parent. Every Thurs.,
6:308:30 p.m. Church of the Good Shepherd,
39 Washington St., Barre.
Gamelan Rehearsals. Sun., 79 p.m. Pratt Center, Goddard College. Free. 426-3498. steven.
light@jsc.edu. light.kathy@gmail.com.
Send your event listing to

calendar@montpelierbridge.com.
Deadline for print in the next
issue is December 8.
Deepening Our Jewish Roots. Fun, engaging

text study and discussion on Jewish spirituality. Sun., 4:456:15 p.m. Yearning for Learning
Center, Montpelier. 223-0583. info@yearning4learning.org.
SPORTS & GAMES
Bingo. Every Tuesday. Doors open 5:30 p.m.;

games start 6 p.m.Twin Valley Senior Center,
4583 U.S. Rte. 2, E. Montpelier. Free. 223-3322.
Roller Derby Open Recruitment and Recreational Practice. Central Vermonts Wrecking
Doll Society invites quad skaters age 18 and up.
No experience necessary. Equipment provided:
first come, first served. Sat., 56:30 p.m. Montpelier Recreation Center, Barre St. First skate
free. centralvermontrollerderby.com.
YOGA & MEDITATION

Christian Meditation Group. People of all
faiths welcome. Mon., noon1 p.m. Christ
Church, Montpelier. 223-6043.
Zen Meditation. With Zen Affiliate of Vermont. Wed., 6:307:30 p.m. 174 River St.,
Montpelier. Free. Call for orientation: 2290164.
Shambhala Buddhist Meditation. Group meditation practice. Sun., 10 a.m.noon; Tues., 78
p.m.; Wed., 67 p.m. New location: Center for
Culture and Learning, 46 Barre Street, Montpelier. Free. 223-5137. montpeliershambala.org.
Sunday Sangha: Community Ashtanga Yoga.
Every Sun., 5:407 p.m. Grateful Yoga, 15 State
St., 3F, Montpelier. By donation.
T H E B R I D G E
Classifieds
OFFICE SPACE
EXCELLENT OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT
149 State Street, Montpelier, VT 700sq ft
$695/month
Perfect location-three minute walk to
Capitol. Beautiful Greek Revival building,
renovated in and out. Two offices, storage
room, waiting area and restroom.
Includes onsite parking, heat, hot water,
electricity, utilities, office cleaning, trash
and recycle, snow removal, landscaping
and full maintenance..
Phone: 508-259-7941. Ask for Joe.
Text-only class listings and

classifieds are 50 words for $25.
Call 249-8666 or
223-5112 ext. 11
Tell them
you saw it in
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PAG E 2 0 D E C E M B E R 1 D E C E M B E R 14 , 2 016
Opinion
THE BRIDGE
On and Off the Floor

by Roger Cranse
n June, 1963, I landed a job working the 4:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. shift at National Can
Corporation in Edison, New Jersey. The factory was enormous. When all the beer and soda
lines were working the sound on the floor was deafening. You had to shout in a persons ear to
be heard. I started out on the loading dock stacking cases of cans on skids; later I moved into the
oven. After a months probation I became a member of the United Steel Workers of America. As
I recall, I earned $2.52 an hour. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics thats the equivalent
in buying power today of $19.61.
In August, I asked the shift boss, also a union man, for two nights off to march for civil rights in
Washington, D.C. He said, sure. In fact, the union supported the March on Washington and
would pay my travel. Word got out on the floor and I started getting threats from other white
workers, things like, You watch out on that parking lot tonight, you f-ing n-lover.
In the end, I went on the March and nothing came of the threats. In mid-century New Jersey
that kind of casual derogatory language was common.
Looking back on this experience a couple things occur to me. First, what money! My starting
pay was the equivalent of 20 bucks an hour today and included benefits. The Teamsters who
hauled the cans from our factory to the breweries and then to the stores and supermarkets also
got union wages, as did the workers at the breweries and in the supermarkets. And yet a six-pack
of Schaefer or Carling Black Label was easily affordable. What happened to that system where
everyone seemed to benefit?
Second, I figured there had to be something behind the pervasive racism of the time. Something
more than just skin color. While the threats of the white workers were directed at me, the
perceived threat of the blacks, whod flooded north during the Great Migration, was to white
jobs. It wasnt skin color but money. Skin color, like ethnicity then and previously (No Irish
need apply), and also gender, provided a handy identifier to keep large numbers of people out
of the marketplace for good jobs.
In the years since, the economic threat of blacks and minorities has escalated from the factory
floor to the political arena in the fundamental struggle between capital and labor. Capital has
used the black and minority threat to win elections and pauperize labor. President Ronald
Reagans brilliant use of welfare queen sums it up quite perfectly. What image is conjured
here? A fat black woman sitting on the stoop smoking a cigarette with a passel of raggedy kids
running around her. Since the 1960s, with the right leaders elected, capital has won again and
again and again.
Both President-elect Donald Trump and Senator Bernie Sanders talk about the plight of the
white working class. Both have had the insight to link this plight not only to globalization,
but also to race and ethnicity. Sanders sees minorities equally as victims; Trump portrays them
as perpetrators. With Trump now the president-elect of the United States, and Sanders out of
the running, the question is, where would Secretary Hillary Clinton have come down on the
continuing struggle of capital versus labor?
Roger Cranse teaches at the Community College of Vermont. This letter came in before election results.
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T H E B R I D G E
Editorial
Friends of Local History

by Nat Frothingham
Those who do not remember the past are condemned

to repeat it. George Santayana
ver the years, The Bridge has often celebrated history

preeminently the local history of Montpelier but also at
times the history of our sister city Barre and from time to
time the local history of the nearby villages and towns in Washington
County.
In this issue of The Bridge and in the next issue of The Bridge that
will hit the street on Dec. 15, we are publishing a range of stories on
a theme of local history.
The idea for this concentration on local history goes back to a meeting
this past October with two Montpelier High School students
Nathan Grutchfield and Matt Koucky who are working with The
Bridge as part of a Community-Based Learning project. We meet
once a week for about an hour. And it was Nathan and Matt who
when given a list of possible writing themes chose to write about
local history.
Having hit on the local history theme, I began reaching out to local
historians and local writers to see if they would join Nathan and Matt
in contributing local history stories. People are busy. Thats a given.
But what surprised me was that every writer I contacted agreed to
contribute a story. Not a single writer declined our invitation.
In addition to Nathan and Matt from Montpelier High School we are
publishing stories in this paper and the Dec. 15 paper from not in
any special order the following writers: Dot Helling, Paul Gillies,
Paul Heller, Paul Carnahan and Michael Sherman.
I have also had good phone conversations on local history subjects
with Tom Davis who has written about Barre and we will draw from
his two local history books about Barre to celebrate its history in our
paper of Dec. 15.
Ive also talked by phone with Helen Corry (Ba) Riznik about what
it was like to be a Montpelier High School student during the 1940s.
And I have interviewed Erline Leonard who is a fount of information
about the history of East Calais.
But the acknowledgements dont stop with writers. Paul Carnahan
who is writing for us is also Librarian for the Vermont Historical
Society and works out of the Vermont History Center in Barre. Over
and over again Paul has helped The Bridge and helped us about a week
ago as we searched for good photographs in the archives of the History
Center. Also of great help was Marjorie Strong, Assistant Librarian at
the Vermont History Center.
As we assembled this issue of the paper, MHS student Nathan

Grutchfield offered to write a review of Paul Levys recently
published book Finding Phil.
The Phil in this story was Paul Levys uncle Phil who died in
combat in the closing days of World War II. When Phil died,
Paul was a one-year-old child. Growing up he heard the occasional
reference to his deceased uncle, but not much more than that.
Eventually Paul Levy wanted to know more and thus began his
very recent five-year journey to reconstruct his uncles life. So we
are publishing Grutchfields review of Paul Levys book in this issue
of The Bridge.
Also in this issue managing editor Carla Occaso writes about
Montpelier resident Delia Robinsons memorably illustrated new
take on the tragic (1911) Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in New York
City that took the lives of 145 workers, mostly women who were
suffocated or jumped from the eighth through 10th floors to their
deaths.
And in our December 15 issue, writer Robbie Harold will be
reviewing a recently published book written by Montpelier resident
Fay Webern. Her book entitled The Button Thief of East 14th
Street: Scenes from a Life on the Lower East Side tells the story of
Weberns early life in New York City from 1927 to 1957.
History is all around us, in our own lives, in the lives of our friends
and neighbors and from the lives of others in the deeper past. We
can rejoice in what we know, we can unlock the riddles of past
human behavior. We can also in the spirit of Spanish-American
philosopher, essayist, poet and novelist George Santayana measure
the present and future against the past. It was Santayana who seized
on the absolute importance of understanding history to avoid the
failures of the past. He also said about war, Only the dead have
seen the end of war.
Thanks then to the writers and other people in our Central
Vermont communities who have measurably and generously helped
The Bridge as we put out two issues of the paper with a local history
theme. Let me not forget to thank Matt McLane at Montpelier
High School who arranges the CBL (Community-Based Learning)
projects. And, as always, let me thank everyone who works at
The Bridge for your valued work and thanks as well to our board
members and very close friends with special thanks to Phil Dodd
all of whose whose creativity and hard work make this paper
possible.
P.O. Box 1143, Montpelier, VT 05601

Phone: 802-223-5112
Fax: 802-223-7852
Editor & Publisher: Nat Frothingham
Managing Editor: Carla Occaso
Design & Layout, Calendar Editor:
Marichel Vaught
Copy Editing Consultant:
Larry Floersch
Proofreaders: Garrett Heaney,
Brianna Stallings
Sales Representatives: Michael Jermyn,
Rick McMahan
Distribution: Tim Johnson, Kevin Fair,
Daniel Renfro
Editorial: 223-5112, ext. 14, or
editorial@montpelierbridge.com.
Location: The Bridge office is located at the
Vermont College of Fine Arts,
on the main level of Stone Science Hall.
Subscriptions: You can receive The Bridge
by mail for $50 a year. Make out your
check to The Bridge, and mail to The Bridge,
PO Box 1143, Montpelier VT 05601.
montpelierbridge.com
facebook.com/thebridgenewspapervt
Twitter: @montpbridge
Copyright 2016 by The Bridge
PAG E 2 2 D E C E M B E R 1 D E C E M B E R 14 , 2 016
Letters
Book Reading with Author

Fay Webern
Why Skip the Turkey?

Editor:
President Obama is taking a break from Trump transition to pardon two turkeys. Every one of
us can exercise that presidential pardon power on Thanksgiving by giving thanks for health and
happiness while skipping gratuitous violence.
The 235 million turkeys killed in the United States this year have nothing to be thankful for. They
are raised in crowded sheds filled with toxic fumes. At 16 weeks, slaughterhouse workers cut their
throats and dump them in boiling water to remove their feathers.
Consumers pay a heavy price too. Turkey flesh is laced with cholesterol and saturated fats that
elevate risk of chronic killer diseases. Package labels warn of food poisoning potential.
But, there is good news. Annual per capita consumption of turkeys is down by a whopping
35 percent from a 1996 high. A third of our population is reducing meat consumption. Food
manufacturers are developing a great variety of healthful, delicious plant-based meat products.
My Thanksgiving dinner will include a tofurky (soy-based roast), mashed potatoes, stuffed
squash, chestnut soup, candied yams, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and carrot cake. An internet
search on vegan Thanksgiving and a visit to my local grocery store will provide me heaps of recipes
and delightful plant-based turkey alternatives.
Moses Belinie, Montpelier
What Do You Think?

Read something that you would like to respond to? We welcome your letters and
opinion pieces. Letters must be fewer than 300 words. Opinion pieces should not
exceed 600 words. The Bridge reserves the right to edit and cut pieces. Send your
piece to: editorial@montpelierbridge.com.
Deadline for the next issue is December 9.
Do What You Do Best.
(black monday)
Postman
Bookkeeping Payroll Consulting
delivers
a harvest
802.262.6013 evenkeelvt.com
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your local paper

working for you!
Call 249-8666 or
223-5112 ext. 11
THE BRIDGE
of turtlenecks
just in time
for winter
and holiday madness.
The analog-era
brother
smiles.
Author Fay Webern, 89, will read from her

new book "The Button Thief of East 14th
Street" at two events, one in Burlington
on Monday evening, Dec. 12 at The Light
Club Lamp Shop from 7 to 8 p.m. She will
also read in Montpelier on Friday evening,
Dec. 16 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Reading
Room of Noble Hall on the campus of
Vermont College of Fine Arts.
Here is a brief excerpt from the beginning
of Weberns "The Button Thief of East
14th Street."
"I wasnt supposed to be born. When my
mother broke the news that she was in the
family way, she already had three children and was living in a one-bedroom railroad flat on
Avenue D and 8th Street with a bathtub in the kitchen, toilet in the hall, and a coal stove for
cooking and heating. Maxie was eight, Ruthie was six, Sidney was seven months. My father was
beside himself. Where was he going to get more money? Where would they find room for another
child? How did she expect to take care of the house with a baby in each hand? But she would not
agree to a scraping. She was afraid of infection."
But just as things looked very grim, something very good happened. Webern and her
husband saw a sign that advertised Lavanburg Homes, an apartment project made possible
by philanthropist Fred L. Lavanburg. The newly constructed, six-story apartment block
consisted of 112 apartments, specifically designed to be of help to low-income people.
Heres how Webern describes the apartments.
"There were to be a hundred-twelve apartments with steam heat, plenty of sunlight and air,
built-in closets, a tiled bathroom, a laboratory-style kitchen with a dumbwaiter for garbage
collection, and a rack by the window for drying clothes; no outside washlines."
"The Button Thief of East 14th Street" is available at local bookstores and online and is
published by Sagging Miniscus Press (Montclair, New Jersey).
P
o
e
t
r
y
Tales from the Stoop

there was a man
carried a lifetimes worth
on our street
of photos
who occasionally claimed
in the wrinkled suitcase
to have danced
he never
with Ailey.
one night
the tree in front of our house
informed me that
it stole his best
moves
he was rumored to have
abandoned
more than a
few friends
wished their fathers
had done
Likewise
by Reuben Jackson, host of Friday Night Jazz

on Vermont Public Radio
Bookmark www.montpelierbridge.com
D E C E M B E R 1 D E C E M B E R 14 , 2 016 PAG E 2 3
T H E B R I D G E
Bear Pond-Based Mystery

Book Club Continues To
Thrill Locals
A Christmas Carol at
Plainfield Opera House
by Bill Miles
MONTPELIER What do mystery bibliophiles like to do other than read mysteries?

Evidently they like to talk about mysteries. The Mystery Book Club is entering its tenth
year, led by George Spaulding and assisted by the Bear Pond Bookstore. Bear Pond stocks
paperback copies of the books to be read, if available, and lets the club use its upstairs
meeting space once a month (usually on the last Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m.) to
hold an hour-and-a-half to two-hour discussion of two books. Attendees number up into
the twenties.
In September, the club turned away from (a lot of ) blood, sweat and death to more
romantic mysteries with an examination of Sandra Browns Rainwater. Brown is
well-known in the mystery genre. Brown admitted on the book cover that this romance
mystery was a pet project for her, encouraged by about no one, but one she wanted to
see through. Brown told a tough tale of life in rural Texas in the 1930s dustbowl and
depression. The narrator told a sweet little story of an affair and marriage which was
linked both to a good plot and a mixed ending. The group liked the book and its format,
its readability and back story of the harsh environment on farms in the Depression.
Also in September, the group took Spaulding's meandering to venture into Vermonts own
Carla Neggers. Neggers evidently owns a vacation home in Quechee. She used winter-time
Maine, instead of Vermont, for much of the staging of this book, which sort of plodded
along in its development from the Cotswolds near Oxford, England back to Maine until
it got cracking in the last 50 pages or so. Some members of the group felt she spent a lot
of time developing character to the detriment of a plot. This book was one of six in the
Sharpe and Donovan series, though no one was jumping up to go out and get the back
issues. Like Dick Clark once famously added to the American lexicon describing a dance
tune on American Bandstand in the 1950s, good beat, can dance to it, give it a B.
On Oct. 11, the book club explored life in small towns (why, living in Montpelier?)
through books by Stephen Dobyns and Ellery Queen. Dobynss Church of Dead Girls is
set in Upstate New York, maybe not far from where he was teaching at Syracuse University
at the time. Lots of blood, gore, sex and crazy plotting here. Readers never really got a
good handle on where Dobyns was heading, not a lot of foreshadowing, but it was clear
he didnt think very much of the mores of this Upstate New York town. Dobyns writes a
very well received series about jockey/investigator Charlie Bradshaw set in Saratoga, and
many felt he should stick to the stables. With the Queen, who many of the mystery buffs
hadnt read, me included, the group was pleasantly surprised by the easy read, nice pace,
gentility. Some different setting assumptions challenged us with no cell phones, DNA,
etc., barely rotary telephones. Queen stayed, not really recognized as Ellery Queen the
writer, as a house guest for six months in a small town between New York and Chicago.
But he wrapped things up neatly with some good twists, and the readers thought he might
warrant another visit in the future.
ermont Youth Theater debuts its original version of the classic ghost story,
A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, performed by a cast of twenty-five
student actors, ages 5-14. Set entirely to music, the story features gravediggers,
spirits, poor children, Scrooge, the Cratchits and, of course, Tiny Tim. Singing,
dancing, acting...they will charm and disarm even the hardest heart.
Committed to new, inspiring and collaborative theater for young people, VYT in January
2017 will next begin development of an original musical of The Princess and the Goblin,
by George MacDonald. This groundbreaking classic inspired literary greats J.R.R. Tolkien
and C.S. Lewis. It is a tale of mortal combat between the twisted underground forces of the
Goblins and their enemies above ground -- particularly a lonely, imprisoned little Princess;
her friend, the miner's son; and her mysterious, long-lost Grandmother.
For more information, contact VYT at: fineartsbarn@gmail.com
Show dates: December 9, 7:30 pm; December 10, 2 pm matinee and 7:30p.m.
Tickets at the door: $15 adults, $10 students/children.
You can get the books at the library or through the bookstore, which gives a discount to
club readers, or anywhere, and all are welcome. In December, the Book Club takes a month
off, but roars back in January with Edgar Award and Pulitzer Prize winner (first time
double-win) The Sympathizer, a dense but rewarding narration of a double life set in
1970s Vietnam and California by Tran Nguyen, as well as Let Me Die in His Footsteps
by Lori Roy (Edgar Best Novel); A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis.
Thank You
for Reading
The Bridge
Cody Chevrolet Congratulates The Bridge
On Over 20 Years of Business!
FREE
Downtown
Montpelier
Parking!
Mon., Dec. 12
to Fri., Dec 23
Park for free
over the holidays!
Note: vehicles parked for more
than two hours may be ticketed.
THE BRIDGE
Advertise in the NEXT ISSUE:
More History,
More Holiday Sales
In Circulation Dec. 15Jan. 4

An extra week of circulation!*
ALL AD MATERIALS AND AD SPACE
RESERVATIONS DUE TUESDAY, DEC. 30.
*The Bridge publishes every 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month, except
in July when we only publish on the 3rd Thursday.
For more information about advertising deadlines,

rates and the design of your ad, contact one of our
representatives
Rick McMahan: 249-8666

rick@montpelierbridge.com
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The History of Langdon Meadow Pg.

December 1December 14, 2016

Judge Charles Orbison, a member of the Indianapolis Klan, address

A Look Back In Time

Remembering A Local Ku Klux Klan

CENTRAL VERMONT There is a very

On July 19, 1924, a cross was burned to embers

religious minorities. At that time the KKK

We're online! montpelierbridge.com or vtbridge.com

Inventory Of Homes For Sale is Low

Antiques Market To Benefit

Public Invited To Learn About 2017 Construction Projects

Ice Drives Us Inside, Tree Sparrows Arrive

Zutano Store Staying in Montpelier

Fundraiser For Adaptive Sports

Photo by D. Gordon E. Robertson

ecently we've had a couple of

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HEARD ON THE STREET

Got a news tip? We want to know!

A Look Back In Time

The History of Montpelier As Told by Others

Thompson remembers hearing someone ask in 1807 about those stakes in

Portrait of Daniel Pierce Thompson.

Rev. John Gridley delivered a Thanksgiving discourse on the

There is a letter attached to the discourse from Parley Davis, who

HEARD ON THE STREET

A Look Back In Time

Greenes Syrup of Tar

e was an Alderman, an Episcopalian and a highly

Greene's factory on Berlin Street

position in the largest retail drug store in New England.

this time that an industry sprung up to treat substance

Phil: Lost in War and

inding Phil: Lost in War and Silence tells the story

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Author Paul Levy will talk about his new book,

Tell them you saw it in

Discarded Railway Station to Become Artist Studio and

fter years and years of creating art

Photos by Michael Jermyn

in Middlesex Village. Im attracted to old

ominous from the local manager of a nearby

I had the Sculpture Building at Goddard. I

Hecht immediately contacted the Canadian

Then Hecht discovered the old railway

According to Hecht, the officials were also

More of Montpelier's Friendliest

n 2015 I wrote a well received piece about

Thirty three years ago Preya Holland was

he answered: So much in the world gets you

Didgeridoo Artist Opens Sound Therapy

BERLIN Pitz Quattrone, a local musician and healer who has

Quattrone said, It loosens things up. It helps with alignment and

Accordiing to the Pitz Quattrone website

Dave Mallett, Mike Burd and Others to Perform Benefit