Colchester Historical Society

Celebrating 50 years!

January 8,  1975 a group of our citizens met in the Ira Allen room of the Burnham Memorial Library and founded the Colchester Historical Society.   

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Announcements

  • The Historical Society selected for Shaw's Give Back Where It Counts Program
    In honor of its 50th anniversary, the Colchester Historical Society has been selected as a nonprofit partner in the Shaw's GIVE BACK WHERE IT COUNTS Reusable Bag Program for the entire month of August. The Colchester Historical Society will receive $1 for each $3.00 GIVE BACK WHERE IT COUNTS Reusable Bag sold during this month at Shaw's in Colchester. The bags are durable and reusable. Look for them when you shop at Shaw's in Colchester. If you don't see them, please be sure to ask your check-out clerk or a staff member at the store's office. Thanks for supporting the Colchester Historical Society!
  • Membership Reminder 
    Current and previous members should have already received a membership renewal form via "snail mail." This is a reminder that it's time to renew your membership with us. Even though you have been a member before, we are asking everyone to fill out the membership application form to ensure we have your current contact information and especially to provide your interests in helping out or if you have a program suggestion.
  • Not a Member?  
    If you are not already a member of the Historical Society, please think about joining. It is easy. Just click here or use the Member Application Link at the left and print the application.  Then send it along with your dues to the address listed.   Annual dues are  $15 per person or $25 for a family. 
  • Donation of Colchester historical artifacts, documents, or photos.  
    The mission of the society is to preserve and make available historical information about Colchester.  If you have historical items that represent the history of Colchester, please consider donating them to the Historical Society.  Contact one of the people in the Contact Us list.

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On June 9, 2025 the 50th anniversary of our founding was celebrated at our Meeting House on the Colchester Green. 

An Award of Merit was presented to the Society by the Vermont Historical Society to recognize the achievement.

Award Of Merit 50th Anniv From Vt Hist Soc June9_2025

Here is a history of the society that Carol and Clinton Reichard presented at the meeting.

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The Summer Newsletter is now available for your reading pleasure. Check out all the latest happenings at the society.

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Colchester Log Schoolhouse is open for the summer!

Until 1927 this building was the schoolhouse for the Bay area. Today, it functions as a visitor information center on the bike path and a museum that showcases some of our Town's wonderful history and heritage.  
Come visit this summer and take a lovely step back in time! The Colchester Log Schoolhouse is open to visitors June 6 through Labor Day, Fridays-Mondays, 
10 AM. - 2 PM. It's located within Airport Park at 500 Colchester Point Road.  


Volunteer hosts are needed, and hours are very flexible. To learn more, please reach out to Carol Reichard at winchris65@comcast.net.

 

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Local Historical Books for Sale
We are offering two local historical books for sale, as well as a lovely postcard of the former Nourse's Corner.  These can be purchased at the Town Clerk's Office and at Burnham Memorial Library. All proceeds benefit the Historical Society. 


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 Driving Tours.  

Have you checked out the Driving Tours of Colchester yet? There are still no lines and no charge and many interesting spots are just waiting for you to visit.  And by the way, we are proud to announce that the Vermont Historical Society recently presented us with a League of Local Historical Societies & Museums Award of Merit for our Self-Guided Historical Driving Tour.  So start touring around and find out more about your town!

You can find a link to several Driving Tours of Colchester on the left panel.  There are tours of Colchester Center, the Malletts Bay Area, the Airport Park Area, the Fort Ethan Allen Area and even the Town Cemeteries.  You can download the files for your navigator  (not the driver!) to use as you drive around to the locations described.  We hope you enjoy finding more about the historical locations of our great town.

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There is a lot of interesting historical information available online on this website and our Facebook page . Also checkout the Vermont Historical Society website which you can access here.

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Be sure to "Like" and "Follow" us on our Facebook page.


If you want to contact the Colchester Historical Society,  you can email one of the officers listed in the right column or you can mail us at:
                                              Colchester Historical Society
                                              c/o  Robert Furst
                                              245 Bluebird Dr
                                              Colchester, VT 05446


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Vintage Photo of the Historical Society House

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Recent Meetings

May 10, 2025: At 1PM at the Historical Society Parsonage on the Village Green there was standing room only for Michelle Penca's presentation of: Sweet Treats for Hard Times -- A Tea Party at the Historical Society.  Called Struggle Food or Crisis Food, the recipes of the 1920s to 1940s were fascinating. During a period of economic hardship, shortages of ingredients had ingenious cooks producing delicious, sweet treats that made life a little bit better. Michelle provided the background that produced Depression Cake, War Cake, and Water Pie. During a time when sugar, butter, eggs, and white flour were scarce, Americans were still able to occasionally indulge their sweet tooth and have a worthy dessert for a family celebration. Afterwards, Michele provided a sampling of some of the desserts.  

Electric Trolley at Fanny Allen Hospital

April 14, 2025: Local author James “Jim” Jones told us all about the History of Trolleys in our local area. The route that was most scary was down Colchester Ave into Winooski. Can you imagine travelling down that hill in winter on steel rails? The last active trolley was set ablaze in a ceremony at the corner of St Paul and Main St in Burlington in 1929.   Electric trolleys served users of Fanny Allen Hospital in the early 1900s.

Paul Goldman

February 8, 2025:  Paul Goldman, former owner of WVMT radio, treated us to his remembrances of running the radio station. In case you didn't know, WVMT is Vermont's oldest radio station and celebrated 100 years of operation in 2024.

Janary 2025: In case you missed the Third Annual Colchester History Trivia night this year the Questions can be found here and you can check your answers here .

November 11, 2024: Colchester Historical Society's meeting was a special Veterans Day presentation by Joe Smith, a UVM graduate and U.S. Army veteran. He served with the 101st Airborne Division and as a military police officer in Germany. Joe discussed the "History of Veterans Day and historical accuracy of military movies."

Cake for 125th Anniversary of Parsonage

June 10, 2024:  At our Annual BBQ and meeting we celebrated the 125th anniversary of the building of the Parsonage where we meet. A delicious ice cream cake was donated by The Village Scoop for the celebration.

Gardens May 2024

May 13, 2024: We spent a relaxing evening with Michelle Penca telling us "How Gardens Nurture Us" - contribute to our physical, mental, and social well-being. Using the grounds of the Parsonage as a starting point, she described heirloom plants that would likely have been in the garden and what those heirloom plants contribute to us. She showed some favorite plants of our founding citizens and why saving heirloom varieties is important for us and the creatures that also enjoy our gardens.

April 15, 2024:  Through photos and anecdotes from his latest book, "The Island Line Revisited", Jim Jones described the heydays of the Rutland Railway's Island Line that ran on the Colchester Causeway and north through the islands to Alburgh. A life-long railroad enthusiast, Jim displayed an amazing collection of railroad photos and shared some great stories to a packed house.

March 9, 2024:   In celebration of Women's History Month Jack Penca presented a "A Treatment of American Women by the Legal System."   Jack provided a timeline of the progress of women in the legal system from near invisibility to the current status.  This presentation, filled with interesting facts and anecdotes, was recorded and is available at the Historical Society.

February 10, 2024:  Clark Sweeney presented "The Evolution of the Colchester Fire Departments."  Before there was a Fire Department there were fires. What did Colchesterites do?  Clark described how fires were dealt with prior to 1951, the formation of Colchester's fire service, the evolution of fire equipment, the three departments, and recent department consolidations.  Clark was accompanied by Colby Delaire, Battalion Chief for the Colchester Center Fire Station.

January 2024:  In January we held the Second Annual Colchester Historical Society Trivia Game.  If you missed it click on this link to get the questions and on this link for the answers.  

How well did you do?  We hope you enjoyed this exploration of Colchester history!