Photographs of Vergennes (Vt.)
Collection Overview
This collection contains 788 images comprising 122 years of history in Vergennes, Vermont’s oldest city. Featuring a wide range of topics, which date from the 1866 Civil War parade to the 1988 Bicentennial, the collection provides a comprehensive and unusual look at small town life in northern Vermont. These photographs document the full visual spectrum of history in Vergennes, from businesses, industries, and transportation to natural scenery, paintings, and portraits of people who once walked the city’s streets.
These images were scanned from 35mm slides located in the Bixby Memorial Free Library archives in Vergennes. The slides were made around 1987 from color photographs taken of the original images. The originals, mainly of the Vergennes area but including several from Ferrisburgh and Lake Champlain, had accumulated over the years in the library’s historical materials repository. Many of these photographs, along with the slides and accompanying inventory notebook, can be viewed with permission at the library.
The authors of these photographs remain undocumented and anonymous, except for a selection of photographs by local artist Harvey Custer Ingham (1863-1931), a personal friend of local businessman and library founder William Gove Bixby (1829-1907).
Mr. Bixby left funds from his estate for the founding of a public library in the city of Vergennes, including the construction of the imposing Greek revival library building on Main Street. The library opened on November 4, 1912, and in 2012 celebrates a century of continued service to Vergennes and the surrounding towns of Addison, Panton, Waltham, and Ferrisburgh.
Published: May 06, 2011, University of Vermont, Bailey/Howe Library, Special Collections
Rights: No part of the material may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, broadcasting or by any other information storage and retrieval system. Direct all inquiries and requests to the Bixby Memorial Free Library, Vergennes, Vt. 802-877-2211.
Browse Options
Place(s)
- Champlain, Lake [45]
- Vergennes (Vt.) [21]
- Otter Creek (Vt.) [20]
- Ferrisburgh (Vt.) [10]
- Panton (Vt.) [1]
Format(s)
- image [70]
Genre(s)
- color slides [70]
Topic(s)
- Boats and boating [70]
- Transportation [37]
- Steamboats [35]
- Ingham, Harvey C. [17]
- Industries [9]
- Champlain tercentenary celebrations [2]
- Dwellings [2]
- Factories [2]
- Rivers [2]
- Streets [2]
- Waterfalls [2]
- Historical reenactments [1]
- Parades [1]
- Portraits, Group [1]
- School buildings [1]
- Women [1]
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Topic: ("Boats and boating")
Title: Sail Ferry Arnold's Bay
Date: 1896
Resource type: color slides
This Ferry ran from Arnold's bay in Panton to Westport, New York. It was chartered in 1795 to Peter Ferris of Panton then to Friend Adams then to Loyal Spaulding then to Patric Simon who ran it till 1910. This picture was taken in 1896. It was a new boat bought by SImon.
Title: Schooner on Lake Champlain
Date: 1888
Resource type: color slides
Schooner-rigged canal boat off the mouth of Otter Creek. Boats of this type were numerous during the latter half of the 19th century and many a steamboatman got his early training on these schooners. Capt. George Rushlow, for many years general manager of the Champlain Transportation Co's fleet on Lake Champlain and Lake George, got his captain's title as master of the Canal schooner "Mike." This picture from guide book of 1888.
Title: Vergennes Falls 1850
Date: 1850
Resource type: color slides
Vergennes was incorporated a city in 1788. There was a sawmill at The Falls as early as 1765. In 1766, Donald MacIntosh, a soldier under Wolfe at Quebec, erected a cabin below the Falls and high up on the North bank. He became the first permanent settler, dying in Vergennes in 1803. The Falls, with a drop of about 35 feet has furnished power to many industries since the first sawmill of 1765 and those shown in the engraving of 1850 gave some idea of the business around them at the that time. The picture does not include all the mills as there were many on the North bank which are not shown. The name "Robinson Del" in the lower right hand corner of the engraving may refer to Rowland T. Robinson as he was a capable artist in addition to being a famous Vermont writer.
Title: Vermont
Date: 1893
Resource type: color slides
The old two-stacker "Vermont" going North on an afternoon in 1893. This beautiful shot was made by Harvey Ingham, an artist and an excellent photographer of Vergennes. It is taken looking West off Diamond Island, the "Vermont" skirting the base of Split Rock Mountain heading for Essex, her next stop. Leaving Westport about 3pm, she would reach this spot about 3:30.
Title: Water Lily 1867
Resource type: color slides
The Str. Water Lily, Capt. Louis Daniels, Master, on her way up Otter Creek. The Water Lily, a small steamer built about 1867, plied between Vergennes and Port Henry, later between Vergennes and Westpot. She left Vergennes in the morning around 8 A.M., making intermediate stops and landing at Westport around 10 A.M. in time to connect with the Str. Vermont going South. She left Westport after the return of the "Vermont" from Ticonderoga, with passengers for Vergennes.
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