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WEST WINDSOR HISTORICAL SOCIETY

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Membership and Events

Where to obtain genealogical information

Historical and Genealogical Information

BAKED BEAN SUPPERS

The Bean Supper will held July 1, 2006. Seatings will be at 3:30, 4:30, 5:30 and 6:30.

For reservations please call 484-9170.

The Harvest Supper will be on October 1, 2006.

 

 

Windsor Historical Society is currently one of the larger town historical societies in the state of Vermont. Members of the WWHS are drawn The West not only from full-time residents, second-home vacationers, and near-by citizens but also from persons searching their forebears. Our mailings go out to members in about 25 states.

Much of the success of the WWHS can be traced to its origins, to the interest and commitment shown by members of the West Windsor community in preserving artifacts and records of historical value for future generations and in providing for a written history of the town. Understanding the past is important in dealing with the present and in planning for the future. The WWHS invites you to learn more about its activities and to become involved in its vital tasks.

SOCIETY ORIGINS

In the early 1960s three dedicated women of West Windsor - Mildred Kittredge, Beatrice Cushman Dana, and Eleanor Sawin Pierce - had a common dream: to preserve the history of their town. Mildred Kittredge had spent years researching land records, gathering photographs, and collecting stories from long-time residents. Beatrice Dana had compiled genealogies of many local families. Eleanor Pierce, as librarian for over 40 years, had been preserving newspaper articles, artifacts, and town memorabilia. The interests of each complemented the concerns of the others, and together they had gathered an invaluable collection of West Windsor archival material.

Mildred Kittredge's plan to write the town history was cut short by her untimely death. Eleanor Pierce and Beatrice Dana determined that such a history should be written. Money was the first obstacle, and the famous Brownsville Baked Bean Suppers seemed to provide an answer. Brownsville, the post-village in West Windsor, had been famous for its Suppers since 1935. For two summers, its proceeds were saved to pay for publishing. The two women then decided to organize an historical society in West Windsor, feeling that it could take over the responsibility of writing and publishing the town's history.

On August 1, 1973, a small group from West Windsor, Reading, and Windsor gathered at the Grange Hall to organize their fledgling historical society. Eleanor Pierce acted as temporary chair. Directors were Leigh Banister, Erwin Crandall, Francis Fenn, Lee Goodman, and Winston Hammond. Francis Fenn was elected the first President of the West Windsor Historical Society.

The first responsibility of the WWHS was to find someone to write "The Book". Mary Fenn was approached for the task and accepted the challenge. With encouragement from the Board, her husband, and Dartmouth Professor Jere Daniell, she began her work. For three years she constantly asked questions of the town elders and did extensive research. In the summer of 1977, two hundred years after the birth of Vermont, Parish and Town, The History of West Windsor Vermont was published.

After this monumental first project the WWHS continued to flourish, providing for the publication of other books, finding a permanent home for the Society and its artifacts, and encouraging others in the community to become involved in learning about the town's rich history.

SOCIETY ACTIVITIES

In an effort to keep members informed of planned WWHS events and programs, and also to provide a bit of historical information from time to time, the Society publishes a NEWSLETTER. Usually issued four times a year, the NEWSLETTER includes notices of WWHS programs, lists of gifts to the Museum and the Historic Records Office, newsletter sponsors, summaries of decisions made by the Board of Directors at their regular meetings, and articles about the town, past and present. Each issue is paid for by the Society and contributions from members of the community.

The Program Committee of the WWHS plans several events throughout the year. Lectures, slide shows, and guest speakers usually highlight the Spring and Fall programs. From Vermont owls to authors and college professors, the programs are informative and interesting and are open to the public at no charge. The final event of the year is the Society's Annual Meeting and Pot Luck Supper, held the second Thursday in November to enthusiastic response. After events of the previous year are reviewed and officers and directors are elected, a program of historical interest is presented. These have included locally produced slide shows and other entertaining programs.

Throughout the years members of the WWHS have worked with teachers and students at West Windsor's Albert Bridge elementary school, giving the children a sense of West Windsor's history. The children have been taken on historic tours of the town, written essays and poems as well as mini-biographies about their own forebears and the town's senior citizens. For the celebration of Vermont's Bicentennial in 1976, the 7th and 8th graders wrote and produced a play about West Windsor's first (1849) Town Meeting.

1985 marked the 50th anniversary of the famous Brownsville Baked Bean Suppers. The suppers are sponsored yearly in the month of July by the WWHS and SCIP, (School and Community in Partnership). Over 200 volunteers are needed each year to put on these suppers. Profits realized are substantial and represent the major fund-raising effort of each organization. The air conditioned hall is nearly always filled to capacity with satisfied customers who praise the home-cooked meal of three kinds of baked beans, green salads, potato salads, dark breads and rolls, and heavenly pies.

SOCIETY MUSEUM

The goal of a permanent museum for the WWHS came within reach when the Gleaner Grange #282 generously deeded over its building to the Society. The second floor space was deemed to be appropriate for a Museum, and renovations to the building were begun. Completed in three phases and costing over $50,000, the remodeling was accomplished under the watchful eye of then President Tom Kenyon, with profits from ten years of Bean Suppers, and with generous Renovation Campaign contributions totaling $24,000. Boasting a new kitchen (in memory of Eliza B. Parker), refinished floors and walls, modernized heating and wiring, the building officially welcomed visitors on May 19, 1985.

The Museum Committee is now engaged in the task of assembling for display various artifacts given to the Society throughout the years. A Museum Endowment Fund was established by the Board early in 1985 to provide income for operating the WWHS Museum. Memorial contributions to the Fund are encouraged, and a Fund Book lists the names of those being honored.

The Historic Records office, located on the second floor of the Grange Hall, was formerly a cloak room. Renovation to the space in 1982 resulted in a research center and repository for the Society's collection of documents, photographs, manuscripts, diaries, account books etc. dating from 1770. The Records Office provides help to those seeking information on their West Windsor forebears.

SOCIETY ORGANIZATION

The West Windsor Historical society is organized around a Board of twelve Directors and four officers. In addition, the immediate Past President and the Assistant Treasurer sit on the Board. Directors may serve two consecutive three-year terms. Honorary Directors appointed by the Society attend Board meetings but do not vote. Committees of the Society include Executive, Audit, Nominating, House, Museum, Historical Records, Program, Publicity/ Newsletter, and Membership, with ad-hoc committees appointed as needed for special projects. The Board of Directors meets regularly throughout the calendar year to plan for and oversee the expenses of the Society, to operate the WWHS/Grange Hall building, to plan events and programs, to further develop the Museum and to transact any other necessary business.

Comments, Questions, or Suggestions

Please e-mail Mark Felone

Updated 6/13/2004