Please contribute articles to the newsletter! Summer 2011 Volume 14, Issue 55 Gardner Newsletter
Sarah Dumas Achieves Recognition as an Author
unt Nita’s granddaughter, Sarah Dumas, has achieved consider‐ able recogni on as a preserva onist historian by researching Inside this issue and wri ng a book about the history of Orleans County, Ver‐ Sarah Dumas, Author ...... 1 Amont, an area of the United States that has special significance to all the Gard‐
ner family and friends. In this issue of the newsle er we have included pictures The Great Round Barn of New England ...... 2 of the cover of the book and some other wonderful photos which directly touch upon the family. Sarah, along with Arcadia Publishing Can You Match Grandpa Gardner’s Figures? ...... 3 (www.arcadiapublishing.com ), has produced a significant work which will pre‐ serve the history of Orleans County for genera ons to come. We hope you will Old Stone House Museum ...... 4 purchase the book as a welcome addi on to your library. Special points of interest (The following is from the back cover of “Images of America: Order a copy of Sarah Dumas’ ORLEANS COUNTY”) book “Images of America: Orleans County” Orleans County, Vermont Solve the Gardner Newsle er Orleans County is a quiet, rural county in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. In Puzzle: Match the Figures in th th Grandpa Gardner’s School the late 18 and early 19 century, southern New England se lers moved north Budget to the hills and valleys where the Na ve American Abenaki had long resided. Read all about Round Barns Life in Orleans County was hard and isolated, with travel o en curtailed by in‐ tense winter weather and deep spring mud. But instead of leaving the beau ful
(Con nued on page 4) MORE … about Round Barns (Reprinted from Vermont Magazine, Summer 1949)
he old se lers say, “They built them round so the devil couldn’t corner you.” Believers in old supers ons find the round barn a fer le hiding place for old witches’ tales. Actually, there were no hiding places, ‐ because in round Tbuildings there are no corners to hide in, and therein lies the real reason for the existence of what few round barns are le today.
Like the old covered bridge, the remaining barrel barns are eventually headed for oblivion. As the march of progress has overtaken all ancient structures, so has it crept up on old bridges and barns, and outmoded all such landmarks according to our present‐ day standards. Today no farmer would consider building a circular barn, even though the present owners hear ly endorse the many conveniences not found in the conven onal barn.
Easier to clean (no corners to sweep); easier feeding from the center silo; easier loading of hay into the barn, are a few of the many advantages of the round barn. The hay is carted to the second floor, where it is unloaded to the center silo and then pulled out below as needed.
The founda on is built en rely different from the regular barn, and no framework of the usual type is used. Most of the structures are painted, the usual country red, and one owner at East Calais, seventy‐six years young, said that his barn should be painted every five years, ‐ but with all the cows, horses and chickens to care for, he just doesn’t find the extra me to do much pain ng.
Most of these structures were built around the turn of the century, and prac cally all of them are in the northern part of Vermont, near the border of Canada. These peculiar The Great Round Barn of round barns, unique, in a way to Vermont, have been found in oddly separated New England townships. East Calais has two, both painted red. Jay and Fairlee also have red barns, while Irasburg has two close together and, like the one in Weathersfield, unpainted, with “Bert Lang of East Charleston built the wood le to weather like the old covered bridges. Other round barns have been this round barn in 1908 on his farm found at Newport, North Troy, and on the road between Albany and Cra sbury Common. on Ten Mile Square Road. He sold it to another farmer, and in 1919 the Vermont farmers are conserva ve in all details, and that also applies to their property. barn burned to the ground. A post‐ card published before 1919 called it The writer observed a round barn in The ord Mines, P. Q. last summer that not only had the “largest round barn in New Eng‐ two flying horses painted on the outside wall, but had large signs telling the world that land.”” the owner sold horses and cows. No such markings have been observed on any of these Vermont landmarks. (Vermont farmers seem to prefer to keep their property unspoiled by adver sing); and these barns certainly add another bit of quaint Americana to the The photo of the barn under con‐ Vermont scene. struc on is furnished courtesy of the Charleston Historical Society and the Occasionally people have digressed from round barns to build themselves a circular photo of the fully constructed barn is house, but most of these have been octagonal, rather than completely round. However, furnished courtesy of Raymond in the town of Brookline an old schoolmaster who, before he entered the teaching Gardner. profession was known as the highway brigand “Thunderbolt Wilson,” erected a round brick schoolhouse purportedly to make himself less easily apprehended or, as legend has it, less easily “cornered.”
Whatever the reason for making these structures circular, the fact remains that they are fast disappearing, and no new ones are being built. Face ous remarks notwithstanding, there were and s ll are definite advantages to these round structures, and their owners 2 to this day not only are great boosters for them, but advocate unsuccessfully that more be built. The Old Lyndol and Nita Ames Homestead
“In the southwest corner of Holland, this house was built on the stage‐ coach road prior to 1878. George Hinman, a lecturer at the Orleans County Grammar School in 1841 and the Natural and Ciivil History Socie‐ ty’s secretary for five years beginning in 1853, resided in the house in 1878. In this picture is the Bradford family, who lived in the house in the early 1900s. (Holland Historical Society)”
Of course, the Gardner cousins recog‐ Were Grandpa Gardner’s Figures Correct? Try nize this house as Aunt Nita’s and Uncle Lyndol’s home for many years. to Match His School Budget! We all played on its expansive front lawn and enjoyed romps in the hay barn which was also located on the ou think Congress had it rough during the recent budget cut property. Aunt Nita held many of her debates!? Try figuring out Grandpa Gardner’s budget in favor legenday family gatherings here. of discon nuing the high school in East Charleston, Vermont as Ypublished in the Essex County Herald in Island Pond on March 10, 1931. This In later years Aunt Nita built a new le er has everything that the recent debacle in Congress has: conflic ng is‐ house across from this property and sues, wrangling over money, acrimony, and media coverage. See if you can her son , David, and his family arrive at the same conclusion Grandpa Gardner did in 1931 by running his (including David’s daughter, Sarah ‐ numbers against those published in the Town Report. Do you arrive at the our newly minted author‐) lived same conclusion? here.
Input the numbers into Excel or a calculator and see if you can match the same totals that Grandpa Gardner arrived at by showing the actual cost of This historic loca on does indeed running the high school (and jus fica on for closing it down). Publish your have many great memories for all the findings by surfing over to Greta Gardner’s page at www.gardnernews.org Gardner famiily! and then submit your figures in the text box set up for sending the newsle er a message. If we receive YOUR calcula ons, we’ll publish them in a future issue of the newsle er and compare them with others. This could be a lot of fun! Good luck with this puzzle!
CHARLESTON VOTER DISCUSSES SCHOOL MATTER
East Charleston, VT, March 10, 1931 Publisher – Essex County Herald, Island Pond, VT By: W. H. Gardner
(Con nued on page 4)
3 Images of America: ORLEANS COUNTY Old Stone House Museum (Con nued from page 1) ans County Historical Society in land, the people made their own Brownington, Vermont. The histori‐ civiliza on and se led into country cal society’s mission is to s mulate he Old Stone life. Images of America: Orleans interest and foster public under‐ House Museum, County highlights the men and wom‐ standing regarding the history of a student dor‐ en who farmed the land and took Orleans County and 19th‐century life Tmitory once known as Athe‐ part in the growth of industry. His‐ in a hill village of Vermont. nian Hall, is a museum run toric photographs portray the coun‐ by the Orleans County His‐ ty’s evolu on as the number of The Images of America series cele‐ torical Society in Browning‐ farms decreased and factory work brates the history of neighborhoods, ton, Vermont. The building increased, transporta on progressed towns, and ci es across the country. is a part of the Brownington from wagon and sleigh to the auto‐ Using archival photographs, each Village Historic District, a mobile and railroad, and agriculture tle presents the dis nc ve stories district of ten historic build‐ moved from horse‐powered equip‐ from the past that shape the charac‐ ings added to the Na onal ment to gas‐powered tractors. ter of the community today. Arcadia Register of Historic Places in is proud to play a part in the preser‐ Author Sarah A. Dumas is the re‐ va on of local heritage, making his‐ 1973. search librarian at the Old Stone tory available to all. The Old Stone House, or House Museum, a part of the Orle‐ Athenian Hall, was built in 1836 by Alexander Twilight, the na on's first African‐ American college graduate. Twilight was the minister of the Brownington Congrega‐ Solve Grandpa Gardner’s Puzzle (continued) onal Church and the prin‐ cipal of the Orleans County (Con nued from page 3)
Grammar School.
The Orleans County Gram‐ wo days a er our town mee ng, March 31, 1931, at West mar School was the only Charleston, VT., I received a card from a party who lacked the high school in the county courage to sign his name. The card was printed and read as fol‐ Tlows: which required many stu‐ dents to travel long distanc‐ es for their educa on. They “Did you learn to figure at Island Pond High School? Your boarded with families in wife done the example on the paper. If you had taken her, town, including Twilight's. she could have copied it without mistakes.”
Athenian Hall was built to In order that the voters, who were not present, may know what this coura‐ accommodate the larger geous printer had reference to, I am having this example, as he calls it, pub‐ number of students a end‐ lished. ing the Grammar School.
In our Town Report you will find the following figures: (Con nued on page 6) (Con nued on page 5) 4 (Con nued from page 4)
High School Total Cost $4,959.81
State Rebate: $1,024.76 School Discon nued: $1,200.00 Total; $2,224.76
‐ ‐ 2,224.76 Net Cost: $2,735.05 Number of Pupils: 27 Cost per pupil: $101.30 ABOVE: The East School in Holland in 1925. The desks in ($2,735.05($2,735.05 ÷ 27) this picture are just like the ones Jean and Paul Gardner used when they a ended Buck School in East Charleston, VT during the early 1950s.
Now it looks to me that our officers, who put these figures in the town report, BELOW: The Old Stone House Museum would have the voters in the Town of Charleston believe it only cost the town $2,735.05 to run the school, including the 7th and 8th grades, and the cost per high school pupil only $101.30.
This looks to me like a fixed up report to make the voters of our town, who only took these figures as they appeared without studying them, to vote in favor of con nuing the high school. I used these same figures on the school blackboard at the town mee ng to show how the actual cost of the high school was covered up by this $1,200 as “School Discon nued.” This school consists of 13 high school scholars and 14 7th and 8th graders. Thirteen high school scholars at $101.30 would equal $1,316.93. Subtract this amount from $3,935.05 (which is total cost of school a er taking out re‐ bate) and you have $2,618.12 Divide this by 14 (7th and 8th grade pupils) equals $187.01; which, if $101.30 were the correct cost per pupil for the high school, it must have cost the Town $187.01 per pupil for the 7th and 8th grad‐ ers. Add $1,316.93 and $2,618.12 and you will have $3,935.05 which proves this is right.
This I have done to show the unreasonableness of taking out $1,200 as “School Discon nued” when determining the cost of running the present high school. This $1,200 is the school district’s es mate of what it would cost to teach the 7th and 8th graders should we discon nue the high school. To find what our high school did actually cost us this year, subtract the $1,200 which is our school director’s own es mate for teaching the 7th and 8th grades should we discon nue the high school. This leaves $2,735.05. Divide this by
(Con nued on page 6) 5 P (continued) ! Solve Grandpa Gardner’s Puzzle
(Con nued from page 5)
Order “Images of America: Orleans 13, the number of high school scholars, gives a $210.39 cost per high school County” by surfing over to pupil. This is a er taking out our state rebate. www.arcadiapublishing.com.
If we had put this same number out in any good high school, the tui on
Post your version of Grandpa Gard‐ wouldn’t have been over $75 each. The Town would receive a rebate from ner’s school budget to: the state of about $20 each, leaving the town only $55 each to pay. Mul ply this by the 13 high school scholars and you have the actual cost of high school h p://www.gardnernews.org/ at $2,735.05 and it would save the Town $2,020.05. greta's_newInterac ve_page.htm
I wish every voter in the Town of Charleston would go over these figures and see if I have not figured it right. SEE YOU IN THE FALL!
Just a word in regard to the person who printed the post card I received. I am having it printed exactly as I received it. Pease look it over and see where you think he went to high school. Perhaps if he had had his wife print it for him, she would have used a different word than “done.”
Please don’t misunderstand me, as my only reason for having these figures published is to call the a en on of all the voters to what our high school ac‐ tually costs and what we might save by discon nuing it.
(Con nued from page 4) Merrill Twilight con nued to live there with a few Twilight pressed his board of trustees for a larger boarders. She then con nued alone un l she moved to building but failed to receive support from the majori‐ Derby in 1865. When she died in 1878 she was buried ty. He alienated many of the trustees by his adamancy, next to her husband in Brownington. and the building was le completely to Twilight. In 1834, he laid out a founda on plan for land donated The building stayed vacant un l in 1918 when the by Cyrus Eaton across the road from his house. It Stone House was put up for auc on. A representa ve called for a four story granite building measuring 26 by of the railroad in the state of Vermont bid on the 66 feet (7.9 by 20 m). Over the following two years the structure with the hopes of using the granite stones present stone house was erected following the lines for bridge abutments. The Orleans County Historical and general appearance of a similar building, quite Society bid at the price of $500 (the equivalent of possibly Painter Hall at Middlebury College; however, $7293 today) and won the auc on. The building was detailed informa on is not available on how the gran‐ opened as a museum in 1925. The a ached barn was ite structure was built. torn down in the 1920s.
Twilight began building in 1834 and finished two years The building has four floors with twenty‐two rooms of later. From 1836 to 1859, the building was used as a exhibits. It is dedicated to the history of the last two dormitory for school children, boys and girls. Due to centuries in Orleans County, Vermont, and to the life diminishing school enrollment Athenian Hall was of Alexander Twilight, the first African‐American col‐ closed for good in 1859. For a brief me Mercy Ladd lege graduate in the U.S. and state legislator.