On the Road to Burlington Vermont!

Well, the time had come to leave the Maine coast behind and to begin our very gradual return trip back to our own little paradise in East Tennessee. 

From Rockland Maine we turned west on ME Hwy. 17 toward New Hampshire and Vermont.  We made a few stops along the way!

Our first stop was in Augusta Maine where I took this photo of the State Capitol Building.  This impressive Maine State House was completed in 1832, one year after Augusta was named as the state’s capital.  Maine had been part of Massachusetts, but it became a separate state in 1820.  

Maine’s first state capital was Portland but it was moved to Augusta because it was more geographically central.  Charles Bulfinch designed the structure and this is his only known work where a complete set of architectural drawings have survived.  (He also designed the first US Capitol’s rotunda and dome)

This gilt copper statue of Minerva, the female figure of Wisdom, is mounted on the top of the dome.  Minerva was the Roman virgin goddess of music, poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce and the crafts.  

As we were driving along ME Hwy. 17 in Jay Maine, we suddenly and unexpectedly spotted this little old railroad depot.   This depot was built for Maine Central Railroad in Milton Maine in 1873. 

Good news!  This cute and well maintained depot is on the real estate market.  Located at 190 Maine Street in Jay, it’s listed by Kenny Jacques with the BeanGroup.  The asking price is $50,000.  For the listing, go to https://www.beangroup.com/homes/190_Main_St_Jay/ME/04239/AGT-2261319465-940360/index.html.

So many classy looking inns, bed and breakfast establishments and old hotels…and so little time!  This is the Grand Victorian Inn in Bethel Maine.  This Queen Anne Style inn was built in 1895 and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The town of Bethel is on ME Hwy. 26 near the junction with ME Hwy. 2, in the scenic mountainous area of western Maine.  To learn more about this historic bed and breakfast at 32 Main Street in Bethel, just go to https://grandvictorianinn.me/.

Whoa!  What is that?  Laurie being a horse lover and having seen painted roosters, cows, trees, tigers, pigs, etc. along many streets in towns and cities across the country, we had to take this photo.  This horse is on the porch of a commercial building in Bethel…

The Chapman Inn is also located in Bethel Maine.  This building was constructed by a former sea captain in 1865.  William Rogers Chapman, a well-known composer from the 1800s, was also a conductor, the founder of the Rubenstein Club, the Metropolitan Musical Society and the Maine Music Festival.  The home remained in the Chapman family into the 1950s.  

The Inn features 10 guest rooms, all with ensuite bathrooms.  Even better for some, the Chapman Inn is the only “Certified Haunted” inn in western Maine.  A certified paranormal investigator did an in depth study and he found many unexplained events, noises, voices and cold drafts.  There have also been sightings of a black cat exiting a room quickly when the room was entered…through a solid wall. 

To learn more about the Chapman Inn and to possibly book a room, just go to http://www.chapmaninn.com/index.php.

This area of Maine, close to New Hampshire’s state line, is home to miles and miles of forest set off by low mountains.  Alpine skiing is available at either Sunday River or Mt. Abrams, only a 10 minute drive from Bethel.

From Gilead Maine Historical Society’s website, I learned that the Gilead school was built in 1903.  Further checking revealed that in 1850, there were 3 one-room schools on the south side of the Androscoggin River and 3 more on the north side.  In time they were consolidated and by 1910 only 3 were in use.  By 1940, this school only had 17 students in attendance.  It was closed in the early 1960s.  Today the population of Gilead is around 200.

The old Gilead Railroad Station, built in 1851, is the oldest known railroad depot in the state of Maine as well as the oldest surviving depot from the former Grand Trunk Railway.  It’s maintained by the Gilead Historical Society.  For photos of the depot and the school and to learn more about the historical society, just go to http://gileadhistoricalsociety.blogspot.com/.

The Grand Trunk Railway was founded in 1845 as a project to connect Portland Maine and Montreal Quebec by rail.  This provided a means to ship goods to Montreal during the winters via an ice-free port.  The railway operated this route until the 1920s. 

…and then we were in New Hampshire!  We followed US Hwy. 2 across the narrow northern part of the state.  It’s a very scenic area with the White Mountains visible on both sides of the highway.  Most of this area falls within the White Mountains National Forest.  This National Forest includes a small area in Maine but is centered in New Hampshire.  It was established in 1918 and today is covers 750,852 acres. 

Mount Washington, (Agiocochook per some Native Americans) is located in the National Forest and at 6,288 feet, it is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States.  FYI, there is a toll road that you can drive up to the summit of Mount Washington.  If I could have added more days to our trip we would have made the drive!  The rate for the 2 of us would have been $40.00.  To learn more, go to https://mtwashingtonautoroad.com/.

Well, it was time for lunch!  This is Mr. Pizza – Sports and Spirits on US Hwy. 2 in Gorham New Hampshire.  One area of the parking lot had been taken over by a bunch of off road vehicles…

Gorham, a town of about 2,600 people, is definitely a tourist center.  It is crossed by the Appalachian Trail.  The town was first settled in 1802, but for years it consisted of some rocky farms, small logging operations plus a few stores and stables.  When it was first incorporated in 1836, there were only 150 people living here. 

The interior of Mr. Pizza was bright and cheery.  There is lots of wood accented by faux art glass lamp shades, miscellaneous painting and other objects on the walls…and of course, big screen TV’s.

While lunch wasn’t anything to write home about, it was satisfying and the cost was right.   I had the Corned Beef Reuben ($6.99) and Laurie had the Ultimate Chicken Sandwich with bacon and Swiss. ($7.49)

When lunch was over, we headed for our car to continue our trek across New Hampshire and Vermont.  But I just had to take this photo of all the bobble heads and other items on display in the back window of another car in the parking lot.

Mr. Pizza is located on one channel of the Androscoggin River…providing some nice views from the parking lot and from the outside dining deck area.  Mr. Pizza – Sports and Spirits is located at 160 Main Street (US Hwy 2) in Gorham New Hampshire.  Website: https://mrpizzanh.com/.

The Androscoggin River, a popular fishing stream, is quite long.  It stretches from northern New Hampshire for 178 miles, finally joining the Kennebec River at Merrymeeting Bay on the Atlantic Ocean. 

Just before crossing the Connecticut River and entering Vermont, we came to the town of Lancaster New Hampshire.  We hadn’t had dessert with lunch and we saw a bakery, so we stopped for a couple of sweet rolls.  While Laurie bought our tasty treats at The Polish Princess Bakery down the street, (http://polishprincessbakery.com/), I took a few photos of some old buildings in the center of town. 

This appears to be an old hotel at 1 Middle Street in Lancaster.  Love the detail at the roof line… The primary occupant appears to be the Wm. Rugh Gallery, offering everything from fine are to handcrafted furniture.  Website: http://www.rughgalleries.com/.

Here’s a handsome looking well maintained building at 55 Main Street in Lancaster.  It’s occupied by one of a pair of stores named “Simon the Tanner”.  They are apparently a well respected trendy family outfitters that are operated by The Twelve Tribes.  Check the store out on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/simonthetanner.lancaster/.

Notes:

·         The Twelve Tribes, (aka the Vine Christian Community Church, Northeast Kingdom Community Church and others), is an international confederation of religious communities founded by Gene Spriggs (aka ‘Yoneg’) in 1972 in Chattanooga Tennessee.  It was very controversial in past years.  You can learn more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Tribes_communities.

·         Simon the Tanner appears in the Acts of the Apostles book in the New Testament.  Saint Peter stayed at Simon’s home during his early missionary efforts on behalf of the Christian faith.  As tanners were as distained by Israelites because they dealt with dead animals and urine, Peter set an example showing that Christians should embrace people of all professions as well as Jews and Gentiles. 

The Rialto Theatre at 80 Main Street in Lancaster first opened in January of 1931 with actor Ed Wynn in “Follow the Leader”.  It operated successfully until the owner’s death in 1999.  Since then it has changed hands a couple of times and it features live shows and it has 2 movie screens/theaters, one of them seating about 40 patrons.  When I wrote this post, “Bumblebee” was showing twice, while “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” and “The Mule” were each being screened once.  Website: http://www.lancasterrialto.com/.

This is St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 113 Main Street in Lancaster New Hampshire.  While the first known Episcopal services were held in Lancaster in the mid-1850s, this much photographed church was built in 1876.  It was modeled after a small English country church.  

I checked out the photographs of the churche's interior and it is striking.  Little has changed in all these years and the original furniture is still in use today.  Take a look by going to http://www.stpaulslancaster.org/.

As we drove through Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, we saw a lot of these signs…but we never saw a moose.  Bummer!  The only moose we’ve ever seen were in Nova Scotia Canada, Yellowstone National Park and in Montana’s Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge.

I’d researched our route in advance and we were looking for this old Maine Central Railway combination freight and passenger depot in Concord Vermont.  I couldn’t find out when it was built but I was glad to see that it was in decent condition and in use as a private residence….

Loved this old barn along US Hwy. 2 as we neared St. Johnsbury Vermont.  Judging by the date on that great barn, Echo Ledge Farm has been around for a while!  I found a reference on-line that indicates that the farm is or was a bed and breakfast operation but the link to their website was not functioning when I checked. 

Here’s a classic retail sign we encountered along the road!  Makes you look twice but I’m not sure that it melds with the “Me too” movement very well.

This is the Farmer’s Daughter Gift Barn and Ice Cream Shop.  They are open seasonally 7 days a week from May to October.  We felt that the store was OK but nothing really special.  It is located at 2285 Portland Street on the outskirts of St. Johnsbury Vermont.  Phone: 802-274-1219.  Farmer’s Daughter is on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Farmers-Daughter-370443859742497/.

Laurie was quite happy with our stop at Farmer’s Daughter though… Loved the miniature horse and alpacas next to the parking lot!

Then, as we drove through Saint Johnsbury Vermont we came across this big beautiful railway depot!  The town was transformed when it became a junction for east-west and north-south rail lines in the mid-1800s. 

Saint Johnsbury’s large French Chateau-style Union Station was built in 1883 to serve as the ‘union’ station for the Connecticut and Passumpsic Rivers Railroad (north-south line) and the St. Johnsbury and Lake Champlain Railroad (east-west line).  The principal Boston Massachusetts to Montreal Quebec Canada passenger train of the time (Air Line Express) passed through the town.  This attractive former depot is at 51 Depot Square and it now serves as Saint Johnsbury’s Visitors Welcome Center. 

If only I’d researched Saint Johnsbury before we came through town.  Part of the town’s historic district was the old Montgomery Ward Store at 68 – 70 Eastern Avenue.  It was built ca. 1860 in the Greek revival style.  At various times it also served as a car dealership and a fire station… Dang!  Missed it!

Our next stop was in Montpelier Vermont, the State's Capital!  The Greek revival structure is the third building on the same site to be used as the State House.  It was completed in 1859.  As you can see, restoration of the dome was underway when we came through town.  When completed the dome will once again be topped by a statue name “Agriculture”, a representation of Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture.

Did you know that Montpelier is the smallest state capital in the United States?  The city only has a population of about 8,000.  That number is a little misleading though… Government is rarely small and during the day when all the government offices are open, the population swells to about 21,000! 

The Pavilion, at 109 State Street, is the principal workplace of Vermont’s Governors.  This French Second Empire style structure really looks old but in reality, it is a 1971 reconstruction of an 1876 hotel which was also named the Pavilion.  The Governor, the State Attorney General, the State Treasurer, the Agency of Administration and the Vermont Historical Society with its museum all make this building their home.

When the previous structure was in place here as a hotel, it was frequently referred to at Vermont’s ‘third house’, right after the Senate and House of Representatives, because it was so intertwined with the State’s political history and because it basically served as a home away from home for so many of Vermont’s legislators.  With better roads and vehicles, fewer legislator’s stayed in the hotel and that helped lead to its closing in 1966.

This striking but starkly Romanesque style building at 116 State Street, located right across from the State Capitol, houses the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets.  It was built in 1891 and it originally served as the National Life Insurance Company’s fifth home office. 

At least the Agricultural Building dates back to the late 1800s.  I was ‘faked out’ by the ‘look’ of this building, which is located at 43 State Street in Montpelier.  It certainly looks old and it’s quite attractive, but it was actually built in 1960. 

At the time we came through town, the lower level was occupied by the Asiana Restaurant, serving pan-Asian cuisine.  This restaurant actually closed within a week or so after I took this photo.  The restaurant owner’s lease ran out at the end of August 2018, he couldn’t find a manager and he already operates another restaurant in Burlington Vermont.

Next stop…Burlington Vermont!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave