2,901 miles
Nov 21 – Colchester
is a comfortably prosperous suburb of the city of Burlington, Vermont's most
populous city. The town is directly to
Burlington's north on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. The westernmost part of the town touches the
New York state border in the middle of the lake. To the northwest across the eastern arm of the
lake lies the town of South Hero.
The
population of Colchester is about 17,000 people. At night, it is the second most populous town
in the state of Vermont, but the daytime weekday populations of Burlington and
Montpelier are greater when suburbanites commute into the working cities.
Vermont is
the second whitest state in the Union, second only to Maine. In a 2013 US Census estimate, 94% of the
population identified as white but not of Hispanic or Latino origin. The racial makeup of the town of Colchester
is 97% white and 2% Asian.
Along my route, in addition to predictable New England town place names like Mill Pond Road, Orchard Road, and Poor Farm Road, I see Indian Brook and Indian Brook Road. Other references to the natives who once lived here may also include the nearby Discovery Road and the poignant Lost Nation Road. I’ve encountered many Vermont brooks named for the otters or beavers that used to live there. Occasionally the native “Indians” are referenced. But for the most part, each town’s history begins in the 1760s when American land grants and town charters were given. Some mention may be made of the French and Indian Wars, especially here in the north, but then the natives disappear from the accounts. I surmise that many of the tribes were wiped out during the early contact plagues of European diseases. That must be how European-Americans were able to move into the wilderness here to establish towns without significant native resistance.
 |
| Indian Brook |
 |
| Malletts Bay |
During the times of uncertain sovereignty of this land, there were also French Canadians scattered through these woodlands. In Colchester, there was an old Frenchman known as "Captain Mallett" living in the area at the time of the town’s charter in 1763. He managed to survive during the international and inter-ethnic hostilities of the French and Indian Wars, and the remains of his house were still visible into the 1800s. Today his legacy is in the name of Malletts Bay, with its marinas, summer residences, and campgrounds.
The most
modern and luxurious homes are built around Malletts Bay now, but my
route takes me through the old center of the village, where the library and the
Colchester Historical Society are located.
 |
| Burnham Memorial Library |
 |
| Etta & Herbert Burnham |
 |
| cliff jumping in abandoned quarry |
Another
feature of many Vermont towns is an abandoned stone quarry. Colchester’s old quarry has filled with
water, and it has gained a reputation around the region for its deep water
under straight cliffs. Although access
to the quarry is forbidden, a hole has been cut in the fence and teenagers
enjoy jumping from the cliffs into the water hole for a thrill. Websites have been created and videos have
been posted. Even though it reminds me
of my cousin who was paralyzed in a diving accident, this secret diving does
look like a lot of fun. I imagine
generations of Colchester teenagers carrying on the tradition.
Still stuck in Colchester.... ;-(
ReplyDelete