events

Zadock Thompson (1796-1856) a historian, naturalist, professor and minister, who played a significant role in how 19th century Vermonters viewed their state’s heritage and appreciated its natural resources. Zadock was born in Bridgewater....

Brig. Gen. Lewis Addison Grant, the longest serving commander of the 1st Vermont Brigade. Grant led the brigade in most of its great moments during the Civil War including the defense of Banks Ford in the Chancellorsville Campaign, the remarkable Wilderness stand and...

Land speculator, revolutionary, pamphleteer, politician, and empire-builder, Ira Allen was a key figure on the late eighteenth-century Green Mountain frontier.  Based on his new book Ira Allen: A Biography, J. Kevin Graffagnino’s lively talk evaluates Allen’s...

At the dawn of the 19th Century, Vermont was a patchwork of subsistence farms, slowly creeping along the valleys and climbing to the tops of the highest hills. There was development, but no specialty was bringing in big capital. That would change after 1811, when...

Historian Howard Coffin discusses the history-changing Burgoyne campaign, focusing on the dramatic battle of “Great Bennington,” which was a Vermont battle as well as a New York battle. He also reviews heroes John Stark and Seth Warner, and the Vermont Constitution,...

John Atwood discusses how pipe organs have developed in Vermont from 1814 to 1900, and working with them makes the nineteenth century real, often in unexpected ways. The presentation also includes the difference between the pipe organ and a reed organ. The program is...

Cyndy Bittinger, presents her book “Vermont Women, Native Americans & African Americans: Out of the Shadows of History”, will speak to this topic on August 25th. The book takes a fresh look at Vermont’s history, uncovering hidden stories, from the earliest...

Are the ancient stone structures and chambers in Vermont evidence that Europeans, Africans and Asians visited America at least 3,000 years prior to Columbus. That was the conclusion of Harvard University professor Barry Fell’s research. Mr. Fell wrote three popular...

Cyndy Bittinger is faculty, The Community College of Vermont where she teaches Vermont History. She has given lectures for OSHER, the Lifelong Learning Institute of the University of Vermont, over many years.  She is a member of the Center for Research on Vermont...

Howard Coffin will open the season with “Calvin Coolidge as I understood him, a complex and somewhat mysterious human being”. Howard knew and wrote about many people who remembered Coolidge. He has done considerable research over the years and was a member of the...

Elisha Lee discusses his research on where the mines were, who the miners were, and, most importantly, why they undertook such a difficult task? https://youtu.be/KLPuXJHK-oM?si=rmkRENPc-2_IA_uu

The story of Sir Ernest Shackleton and his ship, the EnduranceCharles Shackleton will present a talk on Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance. He will discuss not only the remarkable discovery of the wreck, but will also include stories of the entrepreneurial exploits of...

Vermont Civil War historian Howard Coffin was a reporter for the Rutland Herald for twelve years and the Christian Science Monitor for six years. Howard will cover interesting stories he reported on, including being the first reporter on the scene of the 1967 Mt...

“Vermont women enlisted for the duration.” So said a Vermont historian assessing the war years 1861-1865. Vermont’s remarkable Civil War battlefield record is well documented, but little is known of how Vermont women sustained the home front. Historian Howard Coffin...

Mr. Fullerton is a long time South Woodstock resident, tree farmer, historian, author, collector of tools will talk about farm life artifacts from a day long gone by and how our society has changed. https://youtu.be/i56wecXT8R0?si=84J6JRbqN-9qP3ZN

Meet Lucy E. a tough driven woman, born in the mountain town of Mount Holly, Vermont about 1826. This is the story, based on fact, of her survival through increasing hard times in Vermont and New Hampshire, beginning with the deaths of her father and husband, and her...

 A Vermont Humanities Council Speakers Bureau Sponsored Event.One hundred years ago, a full generation before Rosie the Riveter, women rolled up their sleeves and entered war industries where they had never been welcome before. They ran powerful machinery, learned new...

 This program will be held at the Bridgewater Grange located on Route 100A in Bridgewater Corners. Much of rural New England in the late 19th century was locked in a downward spiral of population decline, abandonment of farms, reversion of cleared land...

The Vermont in the Civil War Heritage Trail follows US Route 7, South to North. Each site is a link to the crucial contributions Vermont made to the preservation of these United States in the American “War Between the States.”...

The year 1816 was the coldest in Vermont's history, as a frost hit every month. Crops failed, food was scarce, people left the state by the thousands. That year of suffering, known in Vermont as "1800 and froze to death." was actually part of a worldwide disaster...

Gordon Tuthill, long time Woodstock resident, surveyor and historian, will give a presentation on Bridgewater’s Unique Land Division after the Charter of 1761. https://youtu.be/d9bH3j9WX_0?si=b1oC8VIGWn_lZNNq

John Atwood, a long time Bridgewater resident, will present a program on the North Bridgewater Cemetery. Started as a private burying ground, it was transferred in 1827 to the town of Bridgewater. John will discuss its development, tombstone and epitaph style changes,...

Leslie Askwith, author of "Thunder-Struck Fiddle, The Remarkable True Story of Charles Morris Cobb and His Hill Farm Community in 1850s Vermont." Learn about Charles Morris Cobb growing up on the road he called Rum Street....

Bill Mares, writer and beekeeper for 45 years, tells of The origins and evolution of beekeeping, with particular emphasis on his research in Vermont. “Bees Beseiged: A History of Beekeeping” is sponsored by the Vermont Humanities Council....

Stephen Butz, author of “Shays’ Settlement in Vermont a Story of Revolt and Archaeology”, will discuss his research into Shays” Rebellion and his surprising findings. There will be a book signing. Stephen is heading up the first formal archaeological excavations...

Thomas Giffin, President of Vermont Old Cemetery Association (VOCA) will talk about the services they offer to towns to assist with the maintenance of cemeteries. For more information the website is http://www.voca58.org....

Singer and researcher, Linda Radtke, dressed in period costume and joined by Arthur Zorn will share songs popular in Vermont during the Civil War as well as letters from Vermonters from the era. Video not available.

This focuses on Company E, the Second Regiment United States Sharpshooters and the Berdan rifle that they used. There were 12 soldiers credited to Bridgewater and others from nearby towns that were buried here that fought in this regiment....

BHS will be hosting a presentation on the 10th Mountain Division by Jeff Leich, Executive Director of the New England Ski Museum in Franconia, NH. He is the author of 2 books, Over the Headwall: The Ski History of Tuckerman Ravine and Tales of 10th: The Mountain...