Windsor Vermont Archives – One for the Money Two for the Road

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Featured Sunflower getting ready to unfurl her petals

If you follow our posts, you’re already familiar with Quick Stops. Quick Stops are designed to give a nod to locations to which we can’t devote an entire post. The destinations are completely random and totally fun.

Just get in the car and we will be on our way!

First stop: Windsor, Vermont

Windsor, Vermont lies along the banks of the Connecticut River on the eastern border of the state. The quaint town is about 68 miles south and east of Montpelier.

Steeple of the Old South Church in Windsor (Congregational – 1768) Old South Church Cemetery

Windsor is the birthplace of Vermont. In 1777, the Constitution of Vermont was adopted here, making the Vermont Republic a sovereign state. Vermont joined the United States in 1791. Windsor was also the capital of Vermont until 1805 when Montpelier became the capital.

We saw these wonderful old barns in Windsor and found ourselves wishing we knew their story.

Second stop: Carroll Homestead

Where in the world is it?

The Carroll Homestead is in Acadia National Park.

The 45 acre Carroll farm was settled by the John Carroll family in 1825. Here the family grew hay, maintained gardens, and also raised animals. The last members of the Carroll family vacated the house in 1917, but they continued to farm the land. The property was acquired for Acadia National Park in 1982. We wouldn’t call it a major attraction of the park, but the house itself is architecturally interesting. Besides, we wanted to see as much of the park as possible so we made a quick stop. Unfortunately, the house wasn’t open when we visited, but we’re sure that the seeing the inside would add a lot to a visit here.

It’s a fact, Jack!

Many of the New England churches with the tall white steeples are/were Congregational Christian churches. Although Congregational churches can be found in many countries around the world, the roots of American Congregationalism grew from the religious beliefs (and most likely the political beliefs) of the Puritans of colonial New England. Some view Congregationalism as a movement rather than a denomination. Congregational churches are governed independently by each church’s own congregation. Today, the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference, the United Church of Christ, and the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches carry on some of the traditional Congregational beliefs and practices. Harvard College and Yale College (originally, the Collegiate School) were established for the purpose of educating and training Congregational clergymen. And, now you know…

Until the next trip…

Travel safe, travel smart, and we will see you down the road.

Mike and Kellye

As always, we strive to be as accurate with our information as possible. If we made a mistake, it was unintentional. (Hey, we’re only human!) We aren’t paid for our recommendations, and we only recommend our own tried and true vendors and venues. Our suggestions are for places that we’ve heard good things about but haven’t visited personally, and our opinions are our own.

Featured

Website link: Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park
Where is it: Cornish, New Hampshire
What is it: the home and studios of sculptor, Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848-1907)
Hours: 9:00 – 4:30 from the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend to October 31
Much of the park is closed from November to May, however, the visitor center may be open. Check the website for additional information

Seen on approach to the visitor center, a replica of Saint-Gaudens Standing Lincoln (1887). The original sculpture is in Lincoln Park in Chicago, Illinois. A replica of the sculpture was also placed at Lincoln’s tomb.

Augustus Saint-Gaudens, who had shown an interest in art at an early age, was only thirteen-years-old when he landed an apprenticeship cutting cameos. During this time, the Saint-Gaudens family lived in New York City where Augustus attended school. When his six-year apprenticeship was complete, Augustus went to Europe to study art in Paris and then Rome.

Cameos. (We apologize for the glare on the glass.)

Saint-Gaudens arrived in Cornish, New Hampshire, near the bank of the Connecticut River, in 1885 where he rented an old inn from a friend. He quickly adapted the buildings to suit his needs and then purchased the property in 1892, naming it Aspet after his father’s hometown in France. The family used Aspet as their summer home until 1900 when Augustus was diagnosed with cancer and the estate became their year-round residence.

Aspet This is the back of the home and the cutting garden. It is said that Saint-Gaudens had a hand in planning and planting the gardens and other landscaped areas on the estate. The Little Studio, built in 1904. Saint Gaudens worked alone in this studio, while his assistants and students worked in other studios on the property.

We were able to tour the first floor of the house, where all of the original furnishings and decorative pieces can be seen. Unfortunately, the home contains no original Saint-Gaudens artworks. The studios and several other buildings on the grounds are also open for visitors to enjoy.

Civil War Admiral, David G. Faragut Monument (1881). Saint-Gaudens’ first commissioned work, which was won while Saint-Gaudens was still in Paris. The original of this monument is located in Madison Square in New York City.

After the Faragut piece was made public, Saint-Gaudens became a sought-after American sculptor. With business booming, so to speak, Saint-Gaudens hired assistants and began tutoring aspiring artists at Aspet.

The Shaw Memorial (1884-1897) . Another replica, which stands on the lawn bowling green of the estate. The original of this relief sculpture is in the Boston Common, Boston, Massachusetts. Interestingly, Saint-Gaudens worked on this piece for 14 years, and continued making subtle improvements to the cast even though the original had already been unveiled. Victory. She appears in Saint-Gauden’s General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument, which stands in Manhattan. She may look familiar because she also appears on the Saint-Gaudens designed Double Eagle Gold Coin (minted until 1933) as Liberty with a few minor changes. For example, the coin depicts Liberty holding an olive branch in her left hand and a torch in her right.

President Theodore Roosevelt, who was a friend of Saint-Gaudens, asked the US Treasury to engage the sculptor to redesign four gold coins and the one cent piece. This was the first time ever that a coin was designed by someone other than an employee of the US Mint.

Saint-Gaudens was married to Augusta Homer in 1877. Her father, who gave consent for the marriage only after Saint-Gaudens won the Faragut commission, had been worried that the young sculptor wouldn’t be able to take care of his daughter until he was an established artist. (We think that Augustus proved himself very well!) Augusta Homer was a distant cousin of the artist, Winslow Homer. Augustus and Augusta had one child, a son named Homer. Augustus’, Augusta’s, and Homer’s ashes are interred on the grounds of Aspet.

Thank you for visiting Saint-Gaudens National Historic Park with us. For more interesting information about Augustus Saint-Gaudens, click on the website link at the top of the page. We are going to end this post here, but come back to our site often for more great destinations, parks, campsites, and quick stops. We love having you along on our travels.

We are going to close this post with a shot of the Windsor-Cornish bridge. This bridge, which spans the Connecticut River and connects Windsor, Vermont with Cornish, New Hampshire, was constructed in 1866. It is the longest covered bridge in the US.

Okay, we can’t resist. Everyone should see the pretty Connecticut River, which creates the boundary between New Hampshire and Vermont, so below is our real parting shot. Quite beautiful, isn’t it? We think that any artist would be inspired by living here.

Until the next trip…

Travel safe, travel smart, and we will see you down the road!

Mike and Kellye

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