Thirty-five friends and neighbors gathered at the Chittenden Grange Hall on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 to congratulate Luke Valcour for his hard work to earn the Muzzy-Davenport Award for Excellence in Chittenden (VT) History which is presented each year to a deserving Barstow Memorial School eighth-grader. President Elaine Meyers called the session to order at 6:40 PM and called on all to join in The Pledge of Allegiance. Jim Harrison lead the assembly in a moment of silence to honor long-time firefighter Charley Parker who passed away on July 8, 2024 after responding to a fire call. Charley was Captain of the Chittenden Volunteer Fire Department and a beloved member of the Chittenden community.
Luke’s presentation was entitled Chittenden Economics in the 1800’s. He found that Chittenden is the second largest town in terms of area following closely behind Stowe. Stowe became larger when it absorbed the towns of Mansfield and Sterling.
He reported that farming was very difficult in the rocky soil of Chittenden so business leaders had to find alternative sources of income. He focused on three areas, logging, iron ore and lead mining and charcoal manufacturing.
Luke ended his talk by sharing items that he had found in his ramblings of old sites and answering questions. He had found a shovel head that had probably been used for charcoal. A saw blade was found in the woods near East Creek. Chittenden Historical Society member George Butts who everyone agrees is a walking encyclopedia identified the saw as a crosscut saw and that the teeth were designed to sweep sawdust away. Luke also found a lump of slag at the Forestdale Furnace. Slag develops during the smelting process of iron ore and usually is discarded.
President Meyers presented Luke with the Muzzy-Davenport Certificate and a $100 U.S. Savings Bond. Everyone then adjourned to enjoy the Ice Cream Social and fellowship.
