Author Archive: Reg

ADDRESSES by Mrs. Levi K. Fuller

The Brattleboro Historical Society has scanned a copy of ADDRESSES by Mrs. Levi K. Fuller, a collection of talks given before the Brattleboro Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, available at archive.org.

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McNeill’s Brewery

BHS believes the building that became McNeill’s was constructed in 1892 and originally served as one of the fire stations on Elliot Street. The 1892 structure was a replacement for the fire station that had been there previously. McNeill’s moved into the building in 1990 and began brewing beer in January 1991. Ray McNeill Ray McNeill was very proud of his daughter and shared stories with The Brattleboro Historical Society. Ray would tell of the trajectory of daughter Eve’s career. We reminded him of a meeting between Eve and a BUHS teacher when Eve was at Mount Snow Academy. Eve needed a history course. She came to BUHS to find out whether or not she would take a Western Civilization course. The course was described to her and she responded, “I’m not doing that s….” Ray would laugh, at times uncontrollably and say, “That’s Eve.” We would remind him – that was you, also, Ray. […]

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Competing Interests on the Connecticut River, a Talk with Joe Rivers

A talk by Joe River, Brattleboro Historical Society trustee. August 6, 2022. Latchis Theater, Brattleboro, Vermont covering over 350 years of Connecticut River history in 45 minutes. Some of the topics include commerce, recreation, food, government, transportation, energy, ecosystems, pollution, and culture. Most people have good intentions. And so they’re there often they’re doing things because they think it’s going to be good for themselves. And maybe for those they care about. What happens though, is that those interests bump into each other a cause conflict. And often there are unintended consequences as a result. And so, some of those things will come up during this presentation.

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Saturday, October 22 – Tour of the Old West River Railroad

Take a ride on the West River Railroad! Actually, along the route of the West River Railroad! Glenn Annis will lead this tour of the West River Railroad’s 36-mile route from Brattleboro to South Londonderry, sharing the Railroads history, while seeing first-hand the vestiges of the old railroad line along the way. Participants will board the bus by Newfane Common at 9:30 a.m. The group will head to Brattleboro and then up the West River Valley to South Londonderry, the terminus of the West River Railroad line. The bus will return to Newfane to the West River Railroad Museum where a bagged lunch will be served. Glenn Annis is an authority on the West River Railroad and will point out landmarks, historic buildings, structures and other features that still exist along the 36-mile route, as well the location of others that have disappeared over the years. Cost: $25.00 (Lunch included) Space is limited! (First come-First […]

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flatboat image

How Did Flatboats Work?

This week in Brattleboro history we are going to focus on early trade and transportation. Before interstate highways and train rails there was the Connecticut River. The Abenaki used the river to trade tools and goods throughout New England. When Europeans arrived in the 1700’s, they too, wanted to move goods along the Connecticut River. However, falls in Hadley and Turner’s Falls limited the amount of goods that could be moved along the river at one time. Most merchants looking to move goods into Vermont chose to use oxen and carts. This was slow and expensive. In 1795 a canal was built around the falls in Hadley, Mass. and in 1798 a canal was completed around Turner’s Falls. This opened up the ability to ship goods from Brattleboro to Hartford, Connecticut, and then to the Atlantic Ocean. Brattleboro’s John Holbrook was the first businessman in the area to take advantage of the canals and began […]

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