Sharing Memories of Vermont Woods & Roads With Frances Warner
By Cookie Steponaitis
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At seventy –seven most people look outside at the weather and script their day’s activities inside, out of the elements. Not Frances Warner! Since his birth in New Haven, Vermont in 1931, he has been outdoors and working just about every day of his life. “I have always loved being outside,” Frances commented. “When I was little, I would walk to the Gage School, which was a one-room school house taught by Mrs. Russell. It was heated with a woodstove and later with coal. I always remember Mrs. Russell standing at the door. She was a small bit of a thing, but feisty. Everyone respected her and for good reason. If she needed, she could really make an impression with a ruler.”
After attending the old high school in Vergennes, Frances left for Massachusetts to work as a logger. “We were outside almost all day,” Frances shared. “I used a hand crossed saw and some timber really fell, I tell you. That was good, but hard work.” Like many of his generation, Frances enlisted in the military and served in the army from 1948-1954 in Germany. “We were on alert all the time,” he remembered. “You had to be ready and you pulled shifts at all hours of the day or night.” The late night hours served Frances well when he returned to his home in Vermont, took up driving a tractor trailer and working for a local dairy company driving the milk tanker. He would be out on all of the roads in Addison County in the early morning hours to get and deliver the milk. Little did he know those hours of driving foreshadowed the long career he would have and for which the residents of Waltham know him best.
During the past thirty plus years, Frances has had a “…reason to get up in the morning,” and has intimately learned the 13.5 miles of road as Waltham’s road foreman. Previously in the early 1970’s the town was losing their road man and selectman Roger Kayhart approached Frances about the position because he wanted someone local to fill the position. “While I maintain a lot of my own equipment and purchase second hand, it was a large investment on my part. I own all my own equipment and at that time had a bulldozer and a backhoe. I bought the truck, took the position and the rest is history.”
While today the town of Waltham boasts to having ten to eleven miles of blacktopped roads that was not always the case. During the winter months, Frances’ day begins as the snow flies and can begin anytime from 3:00 - 4:00 am, and continues for the duration of the storm. Frances was happy to talk about the improvements made to Vermont roads in the past thirty years and remembers some days driving milk loads to Massachusetts and looking at what was then route 103 with a serious eye and a bit of prayer. Frances’ other tasks include whatever repairs deemed necessary by the select board. While being interviewed, he recalled one winter in the late seventies when Crosby Heights was so snowed in that the residents went to town for three days on snow machines and Frances took three different pieces of equipment to get them out.
An avid hunter and outdoorsmen, Frances shared at length reflections about his years of hunting in Addison County and trips to the Northeast Kingdom as well as northern Canada. Always an early riser, Frances can recall every hunt he has been on, what season it was, and what groups of road work and repairs it was in between. When asked about the greatest changes that have happened in the valley since he started caring for and plowing the roads, Frances says that the speed with which people live their lives is one of the largest. “Well, everyone is in a real hurry. I’ll be out plowing, going slow due to the elements and they will come up right behind me, blink their lights and make a great commotion to get by. Then when they pass and realize the road conditions ahead of my plow are not quite what they expected, they slow down real quick.” Taking pride in his job and his equipment, Frances is always sure the roads are ready for the school bus and those going to work.
When asked if he was planning to hang it up anytime soon, Frances grinned and replied, “Hard work pays off, and besides, what do people expect me to do, sit in a rocking chair? I was not made for that. I love to work and I love to be outdoors.” Keeping Frances companion on the roads and in the fields is his five year old dog that rings a bell by the door when he wants out. He also opens the door to get back in and seems well equipped for most things. When asked if he could do windows and answer the phone, Frances simply said, “Not yet.”
While we all know Vermont is a special place to live and that the four seasons are each spectacular in their own right, we seldom pause to think of those Vermonters who day in and day out keep it safe for travel. Rising every morning at 4 am and checking the storm’s progression every couple of hours doesn’t give Frances and his counterparts much time for sleep, but the rest of us are at ease. Hearing the plow clear the roads signals the beginning of our day and hearing it again during the evening hours let’s us know all is under control. The staff of the Valley Voice salutes Frances Warner for thirty plus years of dedication to the town of Waltham he proudly calls home and for his commitment to the caring of the roads all season long.