We hope that you’ll be able to come in to one of our two remaining Open House events so you can see our new displays and renovations, as well as to enjoy the exhibit on Early School Houses of Ryegate! The dates of the next Open House events are: Saturday, September 21st and Saturday, October 19th. As always, we are there from 10-12:00.
COMING RIGHT UP !!
On Sunday, September 8th at 3:00 pm, we will hold our Annual Meeting, during which we will present brief reports and have the election of officers. For this meeting, we will finally return to our home, Whitelaw Hall, in East Ryegate. The meeting will be followed by an entertaining talk on:
THE SLEEPING SENTINEL:
Deborah Jurist, president of the Groton Historical Society, will present a program on William Scott, who, along with 7 others from Groton enlisted in the third Regiment on June 1st, 1861. These untrained soldiers were disciplined and subjected to stern punishments, one of which was that any soldier found asleep on duty would be shot to death. William Scott was found asleep on duty; he was court martialed in September and sentenced to a death warrant. What is his whole story? Deborah has done extensive research on the subject. Come and listen to her presentation!
Later in the Fall, we will have another program which will be a gathering to share memories of Early School Days in Ryegate. Check your memory boxes and nooks and crannies and bring things along to share!
COLLECTIONS:
We are fortunate to have received the donation of a beautiful “Signature Quilt”. This quilt was made by the Ladies Aid Society of East Ryegate in the 1940’s. It was won in a raffle by Iva Plamandon and donated to us by Kay P. Locke and Priscilla Locke.
Signature quilts were first recognized in the late 19th Century as a way to raise funds for social causes and special organizations. Women’s groups sewed signature quilts to garner money for the Red Cross during WWI and WWII. During WWII especially, businesses and citizens would contribute funds toward these Signature Quilts. Thereafter, the quilts became increasingly important as a method to raise cash for churches and other charitable endeavors. People would pay a donation to have their name inscribed on the quilts, which were then often raffled off, raising yet additional funds. Our quilt has 13 signature squares with 20 names on each square. Note that each name was embroidered in cursive; the quilter’s name was placed in the center. What a painstaking task! We want to thank not only the donors, but also Alice Fraser, who has volunteered many hours transcribing the names of each individual on the quilt. The quilt is on display during our Open House events
YEAR-END APPEAL
This has been a year when so many towns and individuals have required assistance because of the unprecedented flooding problems in our area. Ryegate was more fortunate than many surrounding towns, for which we are grateful; however, the fragility of our climate makes us increasingly concerned about our collections, records and artifacts. We recognize that several of you have been very generous with donations and that many are Lifetime Members, but very few remember to send in an Annual Dues contribution. We have spent a considerable amount on necessary renovations, and this has used up quite a bit of our reserve funding. We are still in need of many items, the most pressing of which are a dehumidifier and other climate control necessities, as well as storage shelving for our basement. With this in mind, in the Fall we are going to send out a year-end appeal letter for the historical society.
VOLUNTEER?
Do you have an interest in history or in volunteering? Do you have experience with computer data entry or cataloguing? We are looking for some help to begin setting up a digital cataloguing system and we are, admittingly, sorely lacking in the area of computer expertise. We would be so grateful for help in this area. If so, please contact Dover Ford. doverford@gmail.com or 592-3378.
MEMBERSHIP AND DUES:
Annual Membership:
Individual: $10/yr.
Family: $15/yr.
Lifetime Membership:
Individual: $100.
Family $125.
Dues are payable for a membership year of Jan. 1st-Dec. 31st. Please make checks payable to:
Ryegate Historical Society, c/o Tim Wilson, Treasurer/ 979 Boltonville Rd./
Wells River, VT. 05081
Board Members: Tom Dole (584-3932), Molly Fisher (584-4292), Dover Ford
(592-3378), Linda Libuda (584-3362), George Murphy (584-3893), Marsha
Nelson (584-3667), Melvin Nelson (584-3638), Ginny Ross (584-3675), Peter
Sinclair (584-3280), Tim Wilson (584-3333).
Ryegate Historical Society
c/o. 3158 North Bayley Hazen Rd.
East Ryegate, VT. 05042