VERMONT – Fifty years ago, Interstate 91 was still under construction, Bernie Sanders couldn’t win an election and Ben & Jerry had yet to split the $5 tuition for a correspondence course in ice cream making. Then everything changed. When 82-year-old George Aiken retired to his Putney home in 1975 after[Read More…]
Columns
She’s Doing the Best She Can
EAST MONTPELIER – Living alone, as I do, and being an extrovert, which I am, I get a little lonesome at times. Not the hand-wringing lament sort of thing, but rather the recognition that it’s been a day or two since I’ve experienced human interaction. Kiki’s great, and a constant[Read More…]
100 Years Ago This Week, January 22, 1925
The terrible cold snap of Sunday night and Monday morning caused another hot water front accident, in which the lady of the house had a miraculous escape from almost certain death. When Mrs. Norman Michaud started the fire in her kitchen stove Monday morning there was an extra nice bed[Read More…]
The Ku Klux Klan In and Near Hardwick
HARDWICK – Vermont and Hardwick were not entirely outside the sphere of influence of the Ku Klux Klan, but the organization appears not to have gained any significant foothold by its efforts. More than a dozen references appear to the Ku Klux Klan in The Hardwick Gazette in 1924 alone.[Read More…]
Lamoille Valley Creamery Ad, January 22, 1925
Bohemian Waxwings: Intrepid Winter Wanderers
FRANCONIA, N.H. – Walking along a dirt road last winter, I heard a collection of pleasant, sputtering trills coming from a stand of conifers and hardwoods nearby. I’m used to the winter conversation of chickadees around feeder and woods, the cawing of crows and blue jays in the yard, and[Read More…]
White-footed Mice Seeking Warm House
BROOKFIELD – During winter, I often hear gnawing and the scurrying of little feet inside the walls of our house. Mice have taken shelter in our old farmhouse again. Although I hate killing the cute creatures, after we had to hire a carpenter twice to remove sections of our walls[Read More…]
Using Seed and Plant Catalogs
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – It begins in December. By January, seed and plant catalogs arrive at your mailbox (or email) almost daily. Browsing through their pages provides a welcome escape from the garden-deprived days of winter. These catalogs contain a wealth of information to help grow a successful garden. The[Read More…]
Streptocarpus Propagation Yields Easy-to-grow Houseplants
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Streptocarpus (Streptocarpus) are commonly known as cape primrose, not to be confused with the common primrose (Primula vulgaris), a perennial plant that may be grown outdoors at home. While the two share some physical similarities, their care requirements are quite different. The common primrose in the[Read More…]
Brodericks Raise Feral Hops, Saxon Merino Sheep for Beer, Beanies
HARDWICK — On Center Road, peeking slightly through and above the trees, sits a field of atypical appearance: eighteen-foot tall poles arranged in rows are interconnected via wire and rope. Absent of vines and greenery in the winter months, stands the Whitefield Hop Yard. Kevin and Karen Broderick returned hops[Read More…]
How Saxon Merino Sheep Got to Tasmania
EAST HARDWICK – Eliza Forlong was a remarkable woman who in the 1820s walked 1,500 miles throughout Saxony (now part of the Federal Republic of Germany) selecting from the best flock of Saxon Merino sheep. This was an outstanding achievement. Eliza Jack was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1784, and[Read More…]
Brief Moderation, Then Cold Again by Weekend’s Conclusion
HARDWICK – That pesky low-pressure system that remained suspended over eastern Canada contributed to a dusting to two inches of snow every day through Saturday. We finally saw sustained periods of sunshine by Sunday and the brief ridging and approaching warm front brought high temperatures into the upper 20s and[Read More…]
