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Vermonters did WHAT? Sharing Stories of Traditions Past

photo provided Miss Fuller and the very first Social Security check in the nation.

photo provided Turkey stampede, no kidding!

Tuesday October 11, 2011

By Cookie Steponaitis

    Americans are no stranger to round ups. The history of the nation is filled with the spectacle and sheer scope of cattle drives that moved thousands of head to market along such famed names as the Chisholm Trail. Almost equal in number but escaping the annals of history is the famed nineteenth century Vermont tradition of turkey drives. Yes, adjust your reading classes and come at that last sentence one more time, turkey drives. Before railroads made getting the flock to market transportable, several thousand turkeys were driven overland to Boston in time for the predictable and non-turkey appreciated holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. And before you check your mileage meters for best estimates, turkeys can be driven at a rate of approximately ten miles a day, making this annual migration of man and beast a process that took several weeks. Instead of flash floods and rattlers, turkey drivers faced wild predators, deep waterways and if they were really good, lost less than 10% of the flock on the way to market. While records show that three counties in Vermont were the centerpieces of the turkey industry, it also seems that turkey farms of the day were huge and included thirty-forty Vermont farms. Once railroads came to stay, the drives ended at the closest railhead but the process continued for many more decades until major changes in health codes stopped the annual migration of the turkey.

         While New Englanders all have their loyalties to their favorite teams and swear that the Yankees or the Red Sox are the pride of the region, most don’t look back to another uniquely Vermont tradition that brought high caliber baseball to Vermont at the turn of the twentieth century.  A league developed that gave rise to over 100 future pro players and provided Vermonters from Barre to Malone, New York and all the way to Ottawa, weekly games from July 4th to Labor Day. It was simply known as the Northern League or sometimes called an “outlaw league” since the teams called no one town home and played to sold out crowds around the state. With only a small dip in attendance in the war years, this organization also spawned a collegiate league pitting teams from different towns against each other. While the summer season was short, the action was not and teams sprung up in Burlington, Barre, Rutland, Glens Falls, New York, and other locations.  Ending in 1952, the Northern League’s former stars now include a couple of Hall of Famers. Starting as a love for America’s game, the league took off and became yet another little remembered, but powerful Vermont tradition.

          The past century has seen remarkable changes in all phases of life. One area that forever changed the world was the introduction of a variety of new weapons of war. From the tank, airplane, submarine, chemical warfare and more, Vermonters have seen and fought in campaigns using all types of new weapons of war. Not a state to be left out, or one to make light of Yankee ingenuity the years of 1942-1944 saw Vermonters once again rising to the challenge of defending a nation. Five one hundred ten feet sub chasers were made at the Shelburne Shipyard and were commissioned by the U.S. Navy for use in chasing rogue subs. The Shelburne Shipyard has provided boats and ships since 1820 and was no stranger to building specialty boats. While many do not think of made in Vermont being on the hulls of ships, the tradition of boat making in Vermont is indeed very old and remarkable.

        While many have heard the expression “don’t count your chickens before they hatch,” few Vermonters are even aware that counting birds in a scientific and purposeful way is also a Vermont tradition. The first professional survey of all breeding birds completed and published in North America was done by a Vermont group. Using a map based survey approach of nesting sites of rare and endangered birds as well as more common types of birds, the Vermont Breeding Bird Atlas Project ushered in the process of identification over most of North America establishing the location and numbers of thousands of distinct species. The project was directed by Sarah B. Laughlin and led by the Vermont Institute of Natural Science.

        Long known for dancing to our own tune, it should not come as too much of a surprise to many that Vermont may well also hold the tradition of seeing the birth of one of the country’s oldest and still functioning dance bands. Weed’s Imperial Orchestra began in St. Albans and has been wowing crowds since the early 1920’s. While the styles of music in the nation have changed several times through the decades, the Weed’s Imperial Orchestra is still known for playing a wide range of tunes including jazz, big band, swing and even traditional folk music. While the original members are long deceased, the band still has some of the third generation family members still making music! Band leader Sterling Weed continued to make music until over the age of 100.

    Finally, just for the hay of it, if it seems Vermonters are concerned about the future of the Social Security program in Washington, D.C. tradition shows we may have just cause. Created in part based on the recommendation of Vermonters of the time, the first Social Security check issued in the nation came to Ida May Fuller of Ludlow, Vermont. Born in the late 1870’s, Miss Fuller received her first check in 1940 for a monthly total of $22.54. While she didn’t seem to draw much, Miss Fuller was fully invested in the program and drew until her death at the age of one hundred!

      Just touching the surface of what makes Vermont unique and special, the Valley Voice encourages all Vermonters to get in touch with traditions of the past and see how they link us to a heritage defined by intensely proud and charismatic individuals who carved out a homestead and a state we enjoy today.

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