Photographs of Vergennes (Vt.)

This collection contains 794 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.

Showing 21 - 30 of 794 Records

Vergennes Falls 1850

Image

Date Created: 1850
Description: 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.
Parent Collections: Photographs of Vergennes (Vt.)