South Mountain in Bristol stands at 2,325 feet. Visible from Main Street, the mountain is known for its rugged terrain and steep cliffs. It was once (and apparently still is) a challenging but desirable location for treasure seekers. Money digging was a popular craze in the...
Vermont historic markers are in every corner of the state—from Addison to Shaftsbury and Brookfield to Weybridge. Fifteen new signs are being installed this year in communities like Burlington, Killington, Bennington and Swanton. Over the past 76 years, 335 total markers have been placed around the state. -A...
Hotels once crowned some of Vermont’s most iconic peaks—Mount Mansfield, Camel’s Hump, Snake Mountain and Mount Equinox. Mary Skelton spent eight childhood summers atop Mount Mansfield, where her father, Clement Curtis, ran the Mount Mansfield Summit Hotel and served as the vacation getaway's postmaster. “It was magical,”...
Vermont has no shortage of offbeat place names. What is special about Vermont place names is that they come with a story—either a true one or a mix of myth, folklore and fact. Esther Monroe Swift wrote Vermont-Place Names: Footprints in History in 1977. She spent...
Imagine if Stratton lost its status as an official Vermont town. In the 1930s, the Vermont Legislature decided that towns with tiny populations, like Glastenbury and Somerset, would no longer be organized towns. Some wondered if Stratton would face the same fate. At the time, Stratton's...
If you've driven on dirt roads in the last week or so, it's clear that Vermont mud season has arrived. Mud season happens when temperatures rise above freezing and the snow starts to melt. The ground thaws on the surface but remains frozen deep underneath, preventing...
Vermont is home to about 185 libraries. Jessamyn West is on a quest to visit every single one. "Vermont is a very make-your-own-fun kind of place," says West, a library technologist from Randolph. She's visited about 68 Vermont libraries so far. "My rule is that you have...
Ski jumping, a wood sawing competition and a nine-mile sleigh ride were some highlights of the first Chester Winter Carnival in 1922. The sleigh ride to Rockingham and back brought locals to a supper and dance at the Rockingham Grange Hall. The night ran long that...
On any digital or paper Vermont map, you can easily find Vermont's 252 cities and towns. But what you won't find as easily are lost Vermont town names like Vineyard or Mansfield. Vineyard is now Isle La Motte and Mansfield is now Stowe. Dig a little...
What would Vermont be if not for Ethan Allen? Perhaps the Green Mountains would still be part of the Empire or Granite State. Allen, a Revolutionary War hero, is best known for leading the Green Mountain Boys during the capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775. In his adopted...
