Located adjacent to the former IOOF Hall of Derby Line, Vermont, the Derby Universalist Church stands as an well-preserved example of a New England village church in the Greek Revival style. The church was erected in 1840 as the Derby Line Free Church for local Episcopalians. In 1871, Universalist Unitarians were able to acquire the church and they have remained here ever since. The building has a boxed belfry with projecting pilastered facade and smooth siding, all hallmarks for Classically designed churches of the 1840s.
This small wood-frame structure sits in the middle of Derby Line Village and is a good example of a local meeting hall embellished with Classical details. This structure was originally built as an Odd Fellows Hall in 1887, where local and regional members could hold events and meetings. In 1940 the IOOF Hall was moved back on its lot so that It had a similar set back to other buildings on the street, and it was renovated to a village hall for all residents, a use that remains to this day.
How many buildings do you know of that straddle two countries?! Well, here is one of the most iconic buildings in Vermont, the Haskell Free Library and Opera House of Derby. The building was gifted to the villages of Derby Line, Vermont and Rock Island, Quebec, by Martha Stewart Haskell and her son, Horace Stewart Haskell, who wanted to leave their mark on the town. The building was designed by James Ball of Rock Island, Quebec and is a high-style structure comprised of both a library and opera house for residents. Designed in a eclectic mix of Romanesque Revival and Classical Revival, there is a lot to look at from both countries! Some of the outstanding features of the building include the structural and ornamental use of granite, stained glass windows imported from Scotland, ornate fireplaces and rich woodworking on the library interior, and one of the most elaborate opera house interiors in a completely preserved condition in Vermont.
Samuel Read Hall (1795–1877) was an American educator, who in 1823, started the first normal school, or school for training of teachers and educators, in the United States. He helped found the American Institute of Instruction in 1829, the oldest educational association in the U.S. He served as pastor in Brownington and Granby, Vermont from v 1846 to 1875 and would also become the principal and teacher at the Orleans County Grammar School in Brownington. He lived in this Federal style house in the village until his death. The Hall House is now a part of the Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village. Fun Fact: Samuel Read Hall is said to have been the earliest person to introduce the blackboard to the American classroom!
Built in 1834 by Cyrus Eaton, a businessman who emigrated to Orleans County from Canada, this cape house blends Federal and Greek Revival styles under a charming roof. Mr. Eaton was a trustee of the Orleans County Grammar School in Brownington, Vermont and helped African American Alexander Lucius Twilight build the Old Stone House. Two of Eaton’s sons and one daughter enrolled at the school, located just nextdoor from their home. In 1971, the property was purchased from a private owner, and has since been part of the Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village’s gorgeous campus.
Across from the Alexander Twilight House (last post) in Brownington, Vermont this massive stone structure which is possibly the first granite public building constructed in the state. Alexander Twilight (1795-1857) is reputed to be the first African American in the United States to graduate from college, where he was likely inspired by the large granite dormitories there (a private institution). Twilight served as headmaster of the Orleans County Grammar School, which due to its rural location, required many students to travel long distances for their education. As a result, they boarded with families in town, including with Twilight. Athenian Hall was built to accommodate the larger number of students attending the Grammar School. The building closed in 1859, two years after the death of Alexander. The building sat vacant for much of the late 19th and early 20th centuries until 1918, when the Stone House was put up for auction. A representative of the railroad in the state of Vermont bid on the structure with the hopes of using the granite stones for bridge abutments. Luckily for us, The Orleans County Historical Society outbid the railroad and won the auction. The building was opened as a museum in 1925 and is today part of the Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village.
The highlight of the town of Brownington, Vermont is the Old Stone House Museum & Historic Village, a collection of amazing 19th century architecture set amongst the rolling hills of the Northeast Kingdom. One of the buildings in the village is this structure, the Alexander Twilight House. Alexander Twilight (1795–1857) was born in Corinth, Vermont, on September 23, 1795. He was raised by a fair-skinned mother, Mary Twilight, and a mixed-race father, Ichabod Twilight. Twilight entered Middlebury College in 1821 and graduated in 1823, possibly making him as the first person of color to graduate from an American college. Alexander Twilight accepted the call and moved to Brownington to serve as the town’s reverend. He also served as headmaster of the Orleans County Grammar School. To meet growing enrollment needs, he designed, raised funds for, and built the first granite public building in Vermont, Athenian Hall, which contained classrooms and a dormitory. He had this Federal style house built in the village, large enough to house some students in his home. Before building his Federal style home, he lived in a much smaller, vernacular home, which was added onto the rear of this home as an ell (later separated by the museum). Elected to the Vermont General Assembly in 1836, Twilight became the first African American to serve in a state legislature in the United States. In 1847, after conflicts with the Orleans County school administrators, Twilight moved to Quebec, Canada for five years, but then returned to serve as headmaster in Brownington. He died on June 19, 1857 and is buried in the Brownington churchyard.
Welcome to Brownington, Vermont! This small, rural town sits in the Northeast Kingdom region of the state and was granted to Daniel and Timothy Brown in 1790, and named after their family. One of the first roads in Orleans County went through Brownington, connecting Greensboro to Derby. Brownington Village was once a stopping point for stagecoaches traveling between Boston and Canada. This Greek Revival style house was built in 1843 along the stagecoach route to Canada and was built for Thomas C. Stewart. Thomas Carlisle Stewart (1804-1865), an attorney and prominent member of town who was the son of Amherst Stewart, one of the town’s founders. The Stewart home has its gable end extending over the recessed front porch, reading like a temple-front home.
Originally built in the Carpenter Gothic style in 1863, the Sawyer-Gillett Mansion in Whitingham, Vermont, is the highest-style house in town today. Indistinguishable from its Civil War-era original construction, the house was greatly expanded and altered into an elaborate take on Queen Anne / Shingle styles in 1914. The house was originally constructed by John W. Sawyer, but it was his son, Lincoln H. Sawyer who renovated the house and etched his name “L.H. Sawyer” on the glass of the new front door. The updated house style reflects a nostalgic Victorian preference by the owner, who sawed all the trim and materials on site at the family sawmill. It was recently sold and is now a B&B!
One of the cutest old houses in Whitingham Village in Vermont is the Abraham F. Chase House, just a stone’s throw from the country store and post office. Abraham Chase was a dealer in dry goods, groceries, boots, shoes, and hardware in this village, possibly from half of this building. The vernacular one-story clapboarded frame house has some Gothic details like the rear steep double gable wall dormer. I am actually a huge fan of the green doors and newer stone porch wall, they really make this cottage pop!
To me, Vermont is synonymous with Vernacular architecture. The state obviously has high-style and architect-designed buildings all over, but the character of the state (to me) is based around local builders, local materials, and local traditions. The patchwork of towns and villages in Vermont all have one thing in common, at least one general store. These buildings serve as an informal meeting place or community center where residents and visitors alike can hear the local gossip and events taking place. The general store in Whitingham, Vermont is located in the middle of the village, perfect for stopping in. The building was constructed in the first decade of the 20th century, replacing a former hotel/tavern on the site. The late-folk Victorian style store exhibits some decorative columns and storefronts, likely produced at one of the working lumber mills in town at the time. The store was originally built by Arthur and Carl Wheeler as the “Wheeler Brothers Store” but after 15 years changed hands and became the “F.W. Jillson & Son Store”. Since then, the Jillson’s opened up an antique store in the building which serves as a multi-use facility (collectively as a country store). Keep it local Vermont!
Tucked away on a dirt road in rural Whitingham, Vermont, the Amos Brown House sits among fields of tall grass, bounded by historic stone walls and rows of apple trees planted centuries ago. I was lucky enough to be able to stay at the Amos Brown House this past weekend and it was everything I could have imagined…and more! The property is owned and managed by the Landmark Trust USA, a nonprofit organization based in southern Vermont that preserves and restores historic properties through creative and sustainable uses for public enjoyment, education and inspiration. In the past, I stayed at the Kipling Carriage House, another charming property. The Amos Brown House is thought to be the oldest house in Whitingham, Vermont, and is a well-preserved example of a Federal style brick farmhouse in this part of the state. The telescoping ells of a summer kitchen, barn, chicken house, and shed showcase how farms would grow over time to serve the needs of these families in the undeveloped wilderness of New England. By the time of The Landmark Trust USA’s acquisition of this property in 2000, the house had seriously deteriorated. Inappropriate repairs and alterations in the 1960s and 1970s had weakened the brick walls, leading to severe cracking and small areas of collapse. They underwent a massive restoration of the property inside and out, and it remains an absolute treasure in the state to this day.
The Green Mountain Seminary building in Waterbury Center, Vermont was built in 1869 as a co-educational Free Will Baptist school. The building is one of the largest and grand examples of Italianate architecture in this part of the state. As originally laid out, the lower two floors were used for educational purposes and included a chapel, while the third floor and attic level were used for men’s housing. Here, men would be trained to be Baptist priests. Upon opening, a catalogue expressed the building’s rural location in the town as a benefit, stating “It is removed from the bustle and distraction of large commercial villages; is free from the haunts of vice and dissipation or temptation to idleness; and is surrounded by natural scenery unsurpassed in its magnificence and grandeur.” The building went through a variety of educational and boarding uses until 1895, when it was deeded to the town for use as a public school building. The building is nearly unchanged as when it was built in 1869, besides the removal of the rooftop belvedere and walkway in the 1940s.
Historic train stations are among some of my favorite types of buildings as they transport you to a different time (no pun intended). The Waterbury Railroad Depot was built in 1875 by the Central Vermont Railroad, connecting Montreal, Quebec with New London, CT and to other lines to Boston and Albany on the way. Waterbury service began in 1849, but this updated station was built later as the railway prospered and expanded. The station suffered from some deferred maintenance for decades in the mid-20th century and its fate (like many such stations) was unknown. Beginning in the late 1990s into the 2000s, Revitalizing Waterbury worked with the Great American Station Foundation, the Vermont Agency of Transportation, and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Foundation, establishing a capital fundraising campaign meeting the goal of $1,200,000 through donations from the private sector and community members. These funds helped restore the building in phases, beginning when Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. agreed to lease the station from Revitalizing Waterbury, and created a visitor center and cafe (now Black Cap Coffee and Bakery) that has become a first-class attraction and provided an economic boost to the downtown.
Located just steps from the former State Hospital of Vermont in Waterbury, the Charles C. Warren House on Main Street stands as an important Victorian-era residence in the town. The late Italianate style residence features a detached carriage house at the rear which was later converted to a auto garage and most recently to office space. Mr. Warren was a businessman in town who owned a tannery and creamery. He built a water system in the town in 1879, making a substantial amount of money in the process. Mr. Warren was a serious auto enthusiast who in addition to purchasing the first automobile in Vermont (a 1899 Haynes Apperson), he held Vermont registrations #1 and #2. He had his carriage house converted to an auto garage equipped with a turntable that obviated forever the tedium of backing down the driveway. The building is now home to a law office.
