Winter 2020 Newsletter

2020 VISION: SEEING  THE WORLD THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

The Vermont Curators Group has chosen the theme of “Seeing the World Through Technology” as their focus for 2020. The Vermont Historical Society has picked up on this theme as well. In keeping with both of these groups, the Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) has been inspired by the ways that technology has changed how we see our world, this timely theme allows us to juxtapose ideas of traditional Yankee ingenuity with exploration of innovation, visibility, and expression that are relevant to our present day.

One of Cavendish’s best examples is the ingenuity and creativity that went into the production of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s “The Red Wheel,” which he wrote while living in Cavendish. Due to their exile, Solzhenitsyn found himself without the benefits of a publishing house-secretaries, agents, copy editors, fact checkers, graphic designers etc. Consequently, the adults of the Solzhenitsyn household, with the support of the children, took on that responsibility and produced 20 volumes, with Vermont-Paris as the publishing credit.

The key piece of technology of the day, that was needed for the production of the books, was the IBM Selectric typewriter. As Ignat Solzhenitsyn describes it in his talk “Writing the Red Wheel in Vermont,” the most frequent visitor to their house was the IBM repairman.

As part of CHS’s Annual Meeting, March 29 (Sunday),  2pm, at the Cavendish Baptist Church, we will be showing the video of Ignat Solzhenitsyn’s talk “Writing the Red Wheel in Vermont.” 

UPCOMING EVENTS

May 24 (Sunday): The CHS Museum opens for the season. The museum is open 2-4 on Sundays, and other times by arrangement.

September 13 (Sunday): Annual Phineas Gage Walk & Talk, 2 pm at the Cavendish Historical Society Museum

October 11 (Sunday): Last day the Museum is open for the season.

CHS will be hosting a series of talks this summer on the theme of “Seeing the World Through Technology.” 

WAS CAVENDISH PART OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD?

If you ask whether the Underground Railroad (UGRR) went through Cavendish, you will hear stories of various houses on Tarbell Hill Rd. and Twenty Mile Stream, as well as the Golden Stage Inn, that had special hiding places for fugitive slaves. However, there is no documented proof of UGRR activities in this part of Vermont and in fact, according to “The Vermont Underground Railroad Survey Report,” by Ray Zirblis, because Vermont was the first state to outlaw slavery, 50% of the documented escaped slaves spent a great deal of time in VT. They could safely live openly and many were brought here to work on farms.

In fact, Peter Tumbo (Tumber), who was brought to America via slave ship, fought in the Revolutionary War, obtained his freedom and bought 50 acres of land in Cavendish from Lake Coffeen in 1805. Not only did he live as a free man, his daughter Charlotte Tumber was born free and lived in both Cavendish and Reading. In addition, his friend Prince Robinson, who was freed after fighting in the Revolutionary War, and his wife Anna Robinson, lived with the Tumbo family before relocating to Rutland.

There were other former slaves that lived in Cavendish. According to Linda Welch, CHS genealogist and author of “Families of Cavendish,” who has the letters and correspondence of both Captains French and Atherton. These men brought slaves back to Cavendish as a result of the Civil War. A probate guardianship paper dated at Cavendish, 19 July, 1864, signed by Gilbert A. Davis, Register gives George B. French guardianship of “Arthur Lewis, a colored boy, apparently about fifteen years of age now residing in said Cavendish.” Lewis was rescued by George French in Virginia during the early years of the Civil War, and stayed with him at different headquarter stations as George’s Regiment fought the war. Lewis lived with the French family for many years, where he was taught to read and write. Excelling in the raising of thoroughbreds, he was a valued member of the family, paid for his work with wages, board and room. He married in Woodstock and had at least two children. Lewis did not join the French family when they moved to Nebraska, instead he remained in Woodstock.

So what about those rooms, secret tunnels and odd spaces in chimneys?

 Interestingly, Vermont has a very long history of smuggling, as early as 1812. Whether it was sneaking food to Canada or “rum running,” Vermonters had a variety of reasons for secret rooms.

When Suzanne Beyer, author of “The Inventor’s Fortune Up for Grabs,” and granddaughter of Una and Leon Gay visited Cavendish in 2011, she related that her great Uncle Art Hadley was engaged in rum running during prohibition at her grandparent’s home-Glimmerstone. According to Beyer, My Great Uncle Art Hadley was known as someone who loved beautiful women, loved his drink and also loved to drive his Auburn Boattail Speedster sportscar during the Great Depression.

Were other people in town involved in rum-running? Probably.

Other spaces, such as the hidden chambers within hearths, had a specific purpose-smoking meats. A tunnel from a stream to a cellar, was very possible for operating a still, since VT had prohibition long before the rest of the country.

Cavendish has a very strong history of being anti-slavery. While maybe not part of the UGRR, Cavendish and Vermont were definitely part of the “above ground” railroad. Many prominent Cavendish citizens, including Governor Ryland Fletcher, were staunch abolitionists. In fact the support was so strong for the abolitionist movement that the leading abolitionist of the day, John Brown, stayed in Cavendish as he tried to raise money for his efforts in Kansas. (See article below)

JOHN BROWN’S STAY IN CAVENDISH

In 1882,  Henry Bridge Atherton, a lawyer from Cavendish, sent a letter to John Redparth, a biographer of John Brown, the famous abolitionist. Below is a copy of the letter, which adds to the knowledge that Cavendish played an interesting role in the Civil War era. Not only was Governor Ryland Fletcher, from Cavendish, but he was a staunch abolitionist.

The letter indicates that Brown was not only seeking guns and money to help with his cause, but he had begun to lay out the plans for the eventual insurrections in Kansas, which led to the death of five people that were pro slavery. .
Unfortunately, the last page of the what was most likely a five page letter, is missing. 

Proctorsville, VT Mary 9th, 1882

James Redparth Esq

I have sometimes thought the day would come where your publishers would issue another edition of your “Public Life of John Brown,” which was 1st published at Boston in 1860 by Thayer and Eldridge 11 St and 116 Washington St. I have been recently reading that book, and it occurs to me that, in view of the events following the execution of the old hero-the man-the freedom of the slave, the political results of the execution-and the history of our country in the past quarter of a century-you might perhaps to write that book and, if so, I would want a copy to side by side with the copy I now have in my library. John Brown and his son, Owen, I think it was, came here in the last days of Dec. 1856 or in the early part of January 1857- and spent some time on those days at my office-boarding at the Village Hotel. At that time I held the office of Secretary of the VT Senate- and our Governor-Hon. Ryland Fletcher, a brother of the late Hon. Richard Fletcher, of Boston, and Judge of Mass. Sup. Court- now my new neighbor. Our Legislature at the previous Oct. Session at Montpelier had passed an act authorizing Gov. Fletcher, in his discretion to furnish funds to an amount not exceeding twenty thousand dollars -$20,000-for the relief of the suffering citizens of Kansas-as you will find by reference to the session laws of 1856 in the Library-Our state casual care of __ General Gundry of Vergennes, VT had on hand quite an amount of guns-out of date & useless to our State. Gundry was authorized to sell or dispose of them. In some way John Brown had learned of these facts—and came here to examine the laws-and to confer with Gov. Fletcher. The Old man told us that the generosity of the people had so supplied the citizens of Kansas with food and clothing as none of this __ appropriation would be thus needed, least be thought possibly the Gov. might be authorized to let him have some of the old guns from the state Arsenal-He became satisfied on looking at the law, that Gov. Fletcher could not appropriate guns for the Defense of Freedom in the direction indicated. The Old man told us his objectives to enlist young men-pious and patriotic determined young men-not wild and -- profane ones in his service and that he proposed to rendezvous at Tabor in Iowa-just over the boarders from Kansas and await events. He showed me the enlistment papers as drawn up by him and most neatly executed. He said he expected on the return of Spring in 1857- the Missourians-becoming supplied themselves with a new stock of whiskey, would again invade Kansas-and he wishes to be ready to repel them. He said that courage of those invaders depended very much on the amount of whiskey they had. He was very conscientious-writing at my office table many letters in the time he was here. I offered him paper, envelopes—postage stamps-and he always left the dimes in the box to pay for them. The son was a light complexioned and sandy haired youth as compared with the father-they had the chains with them-that the borders…

CARMINE GUICA YOUNG HISTORIANS

The fall and winter has been a whirlwind of activities with our Young Historians at Cavendish Town Elementary School (CTES). Our newest program, “Preserve & Serve” took on a very special challenge in February. With an understanding of acting locally to help globally, the students made bracelets, place mats, donation jars and coasters for an Australia Fire Relief fundraising dinner held at Murdock’s on the Green in Proctorsville.

Working in conjunction with the Ludlow Rotary’s Australia Fire Relief effort, the students’ project has already raised more than $1,300 and there are more checks to be counted. The money will be divided between people and animal welfare programs.

Special thanks to 3^rd grader Owen Marks who spent the entire evening selling bracelets and greeting people at the door. He’d even select bracelets for people telling them which ones he thought looked the best on them.