Wedding Bells in Waterford, Vermont

The Waterford Historical Society presents "Waterford Weddings and Fashions" with historian Nola Forbes on Wednesday May 22 at 6:30 pm at the Lower Waterford Congregational Church. In planning this presentation, Nola Forbes reflected, "[Wedding gowns] brought to the meeting can be draped over sheets placed over pews, and perhaps held up when discussed.  At the moment we have samples from different time periods; of these, most were not worn in this church. Connie Quimby hopes to bring the 1873 dress worn by Geneva Powers Wright's grandmother Sarah Gilbert Powers to display. Photo of Geneva modeling it in 2012.  Beth [Kanell] has her mother's dress that she also wore (1950; 1971; 1980).  I have my grandmother's 1915 dress that I also wore in 1972.  I have my daughter's 1997 dress she & I made. Roberta hopes to make a wedding cake as part of refreshments. I have a story of Carpenter-Kinne 1909 "daisy" wedding, but unclear if it actually took place in the church or perhaps at Nathan Kinne's home in Waterford."

Of course, Waterford is a noted wedding destination today because of the Rabbit Hill Inn (see romantic photos at the inn's website: https://www.rabbithillinn.com). But there are many notes of marriages in the past in this Connecticut River town -- and some, like the "daisy" wedding just mentioned, must have embraced traditions different from today's. In 1877, Cosbi Bowman (Parker) Carpenter wrote to her son that "All is quiet here now, there was to be a China wedding up to Mr Wells the first of May." I wonder what a China wedding was?

Surprises also emerge in sifting through Waterford history -- as when yours truly (Beth) discovered a cousin of hers, Jennett Cutler Batcheller of Bethlehem, New Hampshire, who in 1856 married one of Waterford's Bugbees:

 It's especially exciting that Nola Forbes is making the May 22 presentation, since her team of Daughters of the American Revolution recently reviewed all the local church records -- who knows what other wedding stories maybe rediscovered!

Thousands and Thousands of Sheep ... in Vermont in the 1800s

And there are still sheep in Vermont today. Farmer Elizabeth Everts of Barnet shared details of the many years when Vermont had more sheep than people -- and of her sheep-raising life today, complete with vibrant skeins of yarn. What a great speaker for the first regularly scheduled meeting of 2016 for the Waterford Historical Society! (In the photo, Elizabeth is on the left, with WHS president Donna Heath.)

Next adventure, a history hike on April 2, weather permitting, to some excavations for copper ore. Then, as the April 27 meeting, ace genealogist Nola Forbes brings us skills and techniques for hunting down family connections, present and past.