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Historically Speaking
on Channel 15 in Rutland

The Society produces "Historically Speaking" on cable Channel 15. A new program is produced each month. The series includes interviews and historical pictorial material in a rather flexible TV magazine format. The programs can be seen every Wednesday at 4:00 P.M., Thursday at 1:30 P.M. and Friday at 7:30 P.M. DVDs of the following episodes can be obtained from Channel 15, Rutland Regional Community Television, 1 Scale Avenue, Suite 108, Rutland VT 05701-4460. They are $10 for each episode. Make checks payable to RRCTV.  Include $2.50 for shipping and handling. Channel 15 provides the DVD. Personal pickup is available. Call (802) 747-0151 for further information.  A complete listing appears at below.

Watch the current episode of Historically Speaking at Rutland Community Access PEGTV’s On Demand. In the search box at the top of the video player, type in Historically Speaking, then press the "magnify glass" button next to it and the episode should come up. (Note it may tell you that you need to install Quicktime player for it to work.)

Episode # 1 - Elaine Purdy, President of the Society, and Jake Sherman, Chairman of the Board of Directors, discuss the range of Society activities. The program includes some pictorial material of Society activities.

Episode # 2 - James Cassarino, leader of the First Republic Brass discusses the history of the organization. The program includes a number of video clips from First Republic Brass concerts. There is a discussion of Rutland's musical history and some pictures and commentary on the Society's summer dance program.

Episode # 3 - This program, entitled "A Climb To the Star," features still photos of the interior of the Congregational Church tower from the entrance of the church to the top of the tower. The program ends with a series of beautiful panoramic views of Rutland from the tower. Architectural features of the church, in and out, and some historic photos are included.

Episode # 4 - Pat McCormack, Program Chairperson, and Jim Davidson discuss the 30th Anniversary Celebration of the Society. The program includes a brief biography of Julia Dorr and a reading of two of her poems with illustrations by Zulma DeLacy Steele, Julia's daughter.

Episode # 5 - Jim Davidson narrates a video that was created from a single glass plate panorama of Rutland that was taken from the tower of the Congregational Church in 1890. The first half of the program prepares the viewer for the tour by a study of the 1890 maps of the Rutland stores and businesses.

Episode # 6 - Morris Tucker narrates a series of still photos that sample the items and activities that can be found at the Farm Museum at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland.

Episode # 7 - Jim Davidson hosts this program that features photos from the photo album of David H. Sawyer of Rutland who took most the photos around 1898. The photos show buildings and streetscapes of 100 years ago in Rutland. Clothing and everyday and seasonal activities are also illustrated. Jim provides a narration of identification where possible and a narrative commentary on life of that time.

Episode # 8 - This program features videotape excerpts from a program on Revolutionary War musicians that was presented at the Rutland Historical Society by George Behnke and two young reenactors. The program explains the uniforms and equipment worn and the use of music for signalling troop actions. A number of musical selections by fifes and drum are presented. On location camera work was by Tom Donahue.

Episode # 9 - Tom Carpenter presents an illustrated program on Banks, Banking and Money that is a video adaptation of a program that he presented at the 1999 Annual Meeting of the Society. The program provides a copiously illustrated discussion of early Vermont coinage and paper money. It also traces the history of Rutland banks, including photos of most of them.

Episode # 10 - Jim Davidson hosts this program that features Dorothy Whitford, Society Research Committee Chairperson, in an interesting conversation about how Dorothy got involved in genealogical research. Dot tells a number of research stories both humorous and intriguing.

Episode # 11 - Jim Davidson hosts a video program developed and narrated by Angela Hinchey of the Society on the art and life of the Sioux Indians of the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota at the end of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Century. The Society's Ella Bean Livingston Collection of Native American materials provided most of the elements for this program. Angela has been working on an educational kit on the Livingston Collection for loan to the schools and this video will be one part of that kit.

Episode # 12 - Dot Whitford hosts Carole Curry in a fascinating program on "The Restoration of Antique Wedding Gowns" and the reuse of other antique fabrics. Mrs. Curry is a professional restorer of antique clothing and offers numerous ideas on the reuse of pieces of antique fabric. Young and old, men and women, will be delighted with the great ideas shared by Mrs. Curry.

Episode # 13 - Tom Carpenter hosts George Bates of the Loyalty Day Parade Commit-tee in a discussion of the history of the Loyalty Day Parade. The program includes still photos of Rutland parades from the Civil War era into the 20th Century. Rutland has always loved a parade and has always been a great parade city. The program also includes a series of wonderful video clips from Loyalty Day parades of the 1990's.

Episode # 14 - Jim Davidson hosts a program with Marissa Johnson, a senior history major from Castleton State College, as his guest. Marissa volunteered at the Society during the Spring Term to gain some hands-on experience in a local historical society. The Society provided experiences with archives, library materials, artifacts, exhibits, publications and hosting. Marissa shares her experiences that are illustrated by a series of still photos. The program provides an interesting overview of the multitude of volunteer activities that take place at the Society.

Episode # 15 - Tom Carpenter hosts Jim Proctor, State Commander of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, in a far-ranging discussion of the Sons of Union Veterans and their activities. The discussion includes a focus on the Ripley Camp (or post) that is based in Rutland and its activities. Jim Proctor was the leader of the Rutland Camp for the last few years prior to becoming state commander. Other camps are in Montpelier and Chelsea, Vermont.

Episode # 16 - Tom Carpenter hosts Dennis Charles, Civil War presenter, in a program in which Dennis models and describes the clothing, shoes and equipment used by the Civil War soldier. The program notes the changes and variations in these items throughout the Civil War.

Episode #17 - Jim Davidson presents a program on the tour of the Mediterranean and the Near East taken by Egbert C. Tuttle and Dr. John A. Mead, both of Rutland, in the spring of 1903. The program features selected items from E. C. Tuttle's three scrapbooks of the tour. The two-month trip included stops at the Madeira Islands, Gibraltar and Spain, Algiers, Malta, Athens, Constantinople, Smyrna, Beirut, Palestine and the Holy Land, Egypt, Naples, Rome, Monte Carlo, and Nice and Paris, France.

Episode # 18 - Tom Carpenter presents an overview of the types of coins, stamps, and paper money that were used by the North and South prior to, during, and just after the Civil War. The coins shown include the half cent, various one, two, three, five, ten, twenty, twenty-five, and fifty cent pieces as well as dollar coins and various gold pieces. The Confederate one cent and fifty cent pieces complete the coins section. Various stamps, both United States and Confederate, are covered as well as various Internal Revenue stamps. Paper money of obsolete banks, United States currency and Confederate currency are depicted. The program includes some Canadian coins and paper money of the period.

Episode # 19 - The Ad Hoc TV Committee edited and shortened an 1994 videotape which documented the selecting, cutting and transporting of the 1994 National Christmas Tree from Vermont to Washington, D.C. The Green Mountain Bulldawg Chapter of the Antique Truck Club of America was prominently involved in the moving of the tree. The program is introduced by Tom Carpenter. Thanks to the original video, the program is replete with seasonal music and makes a very timely piece. The program concludes with seasonal best wishes from the Rutland Historical Society.

Episode # 20 - Dorothy Whitford, Chairperson of the Society's Ad Hoc Glass Plate Committee, is the guest on a program about glass plate negatives. The program briefly discusses the proper care of glass plates and then highlights a number of samples from a collection of glass plates recently acquired by the Society. The samples include both Rutland and Rutland County items. Many are identified by Dorothy but there are some for which we do not know the location or subject. The program is hosted by Jim Davidson.

Episode #21 - Michael Dwyer, Chairman of the Board of Directors, is the guest on a program about genealogy and family history research. Michael, a high school history teacher and a genealogist, uses a nearly 20 year search that he made for the roots of Nora Higgins Tree as a case study of the problems and difficulties to be found in family history research. He makes particular note of the technological advances in the computer world that greatly reduce the time involved in research and greatly increase the efficiency of the search. The program is hosted by Jim Davidson.

Episode # 22 - Patricia Wiley, Museum Educator and Coordinator of the Annual Meeting of the League of Local Historical Societies, was the guest of "Historically Speaking" in April. The program discusses the program of the League meeting on 5 May 2001 that was held in Rutland and hosted by the Rutland Historical Society. Jim Davidson of the Society and local arrangements coordinator was host. The program highlighted the various offerings of the program that was held at the Grace Congregational United Church of Christ and the Rutland Historical Society.

Episode # 23 - Jim Davidson of the Society prepared a sampling from eight of the Society first 22 programs to represent the variety of topics and types of programs offered during the first two years of the Society's "Historically Speaking" series. This program is a celebration of the Second Anniversary of "Historically Speaking".

Episode # 24 - Tom Carpenter hosts this program in which Jim Davidson offers a brief history of the big bands that are to provide the music for this summer's big band dance program offered by the Society in cooperation with the Rutland Recreation Department. The program includes pictures of the bands and their leaders as well as short samples of their music. This summer the music of these 18 bands will be available for dancing and listening on Saturday nights at the Godnick Center.

Episode # 25 - Jim Davidson hosts Society President Helen Davidson and Vice-President Dorothy Whitford in a discussion of the volunteer needs and opportunities at the Rutland Historical Society. Success in Society operations is generating more interaction with the public. This increase in activities requires more volunteers to meet present and future needs. This program, which appeals for additional volunteer help, details the needs of specific Society activities.

Episode # 26 - Jim Davidson hosts Dorothy Whitford of the Society and her guest, Sherwin Williams of Rutland Town. Sherwin provides an overview of growing up on a Rutland Town farm. In addition he shares locations of neighboring farms and discusses the changes in farming during the 20th Century. This program provides a wonderful, though brief, story of life at the Williams Farmstead on Route # 7 in Rutland Town.

Episode # 27 - Tom Carpenter hosts Michael F. Dwyer who offers a program on Franco-Canadian immigrants to the Rutland area. After a brief discussion of the change from French names to English names, Michael relates the periods and causes for Franco-Canadian immigration to Rutland. Anyone doing family research in French-Canadian families will find this program of immense aid.

Episode # 28 - Jim Davidson hosts a conversation about history in Vermont with Gainor Davis, Director of the Vermont Historical Society. The conversation ranges from the nature of history to its proper role in the schools. The importance of state and local history and the societies that preserve, interpret and disseminate that history is discussed.

Episode # 29 - Dorothy Whitford hosts Donald Wickman who presents an illustrated history of the American Revolutionary activities at Mt. Independence during 1776-1777. The program includes colored views of the site’s features today and a number of historic colored images of the officers, men and places involved in the events of 1776-1777.

Episode # 30 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael Seward, local antique appraiser, and Dorothy Whitford, who loaned a number of pre-WWII toys to the Society, in a program devoted to a discussion of some samples from the December-January exhibit at the Society entitled "Traces of Holidays Past". Michael provides an in-depth historical view of the objects selected while Dorothy adds a number of personal notes regarding the toys.

Episode # 31 - Jim Davidson hosts a program about Rutland's early aviation history with Robert Laird, author of Wings Over Vermont, as his guest. The program discusses some of Rutland's early aviators and airfields and the risks of early airflight. Bob shares some of his youthful memories of association with some of these early flyers.

Episode # 32 - Luther Brown of the Multiracial Alliance of the Rutland Area (MARA) talks about the history and purpose of MARA. Jim Davidson of the Rutland Historical Society describes the "Black Presence In Rutland in the Late 18th and Early 19th Century Up To the End of the Civil War". Rutland had a number of black persons of significant achievement. Persons of color also comprised over one percent of the Rutland population by 1860. Rutland contributed 20 black members to the Massachusetts 54th Regiment (black).

Episode # 33 - Michael F. Dwyer makes a presentation on "Polish Immigration To the Rutland Area". The program includes an historical and geographical background to the late 19th Century Polish immigration to Rutland. A significant portion of the program is devoted to what happened to Polish names. It also presents an extended discussion of how to use the Ellis Island web site to search for family members of Polish ancestry. The program offers an alternate access to the Ellis Island records that offers more search flexibility. This access portal is: "home.pacbell.net/spmorse/ellis/ellis.html" .

Episode # 34 - Jim Davidson hosts Helen Davidson, President of the Rutland Historical Society, in a program reviewing Society activities and describing opportunities for volunteers to become active in the Society. The Society's image as an important participant in community activities has grown and with this growth has come a need for additional volunteers.

Episode # 35 - Jim Davidson hosts Gainor Davis, Director of the Vermont Historical Society, in a discussion of the Vermont Historical Society's new center in Barre in the old Spaulding Graded School. The program also discusses the 2002 Vermont History Expo at Tunbridge, Vermont, on Saturday and Sunday, 22 and 23 June.

Episode # 36 - Tom Carpenter hosts a program on the 225th Anniversary of the Battle of Hubbardton. His guests include: Grace Calvin, President of the Hubbardton Historical Society, George Davis. Chairperson of the Hubbardton Selectboard and Jim Dassatti, Executive Director of the Living History Association. The program reviews the plans for activities on Saturday and Sunday, 6 and 7 July at Hubbardton Battlefield.

Episode # 37 - Tom Carpenter hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a presentation on the Italian Immigration to Rutland in the early 20th Century. Michael discusses the problems in finding ancestors names in the Ellis Island records, which are now accessible online, and offers solutions to the problems. He also talks about the two major locations in Italy and Sicily from whence most of Rutland's Italian immigrants came. This program has been very popular.

Episode # 38 - Jim Davidson hosts a program entitled "The Changing Ways That History Is Conveyed". The program offers brief vignettes from Rutland's beginning to the 1920's. There is a sampling of visual material from sketches, paintings, photographs and even early movie film from 1914. Textual material is delivered through poetic verse, narration, and documents. There are even a couple of artifacts used to illustrate the point that Rutland's history can be, and has been, conveyed in many ways during the community's past.

Episode # 39 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael Dwyer in a program on the Irish immigration to Rutland. This program is the fourth in a series on Rutland immigrant groups and the challenge to find their ancestors. Name variations can cause serious problems for the novice family history searcher. Another problem is the all too common use of the same names in multiple generations. Michael brings a great deal of light to the problems of Irish immigrant searches. Many Irish in Rutland came through Canada. Sources for tracking this problem are offered.

Episode # 40 - Jim Davidson hosts Anna Whooley for a discussion for her research on the Irish immigration experience in Ireland and America. A highlight of the program is Anna's ten-minute monologue presentation in costume of "The Plight of the Irish Mill Girl". Anna writes her own script and designs and makes her own costumes.

Episode # 41 - Jim Davidson of the Society presents a video program on the Flood of 1927 which is devoted to pictures of the flood's destruction in the Rutland and Proctor areas. Jim provides a narration which identifies the various pictures and ties them into the story of the flood in the Rutland area. This was the 75 th Anniversary of one of Vermont's greatest natural disasters.

Episode # 42 - Jim Davidson hosts a program on the Physical Activity Coalition of the Rutland County Area. A far ranging discussion between his guest, Dr. Ben Thompson, a leader in the local Physical Activity Coalition, and host Jim Davidson of the Society, traces the history of the Physical Activity Coalition and the involvement of the Society in the Coalition.

Episode # 43 - Tom Carpenter hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program on "Jewish Immigration To Rutland". The program describes the background of Jewish immigration to the Rutland area from Eastern Europe. It includes some brief commentary on individual families that came to West Rutland and Rutland in the early 20th Century. Mr. Dwyer again directs the viewer on how to find such ancestors on the Ellis Island web site. He notes some of the problems that may be encountered with names. This is the fifth program on genealogy and ethnic groups in the "Historically Speaking" series.

Episode # 44 - Jim Davidson hosts Tim Grover, Associate Professor of Geology at Castleton State College. Professor Grover describes the geologic history of the Rutland County area from 500 million years ago to a more recent time of two million years. He explains what happened during these early geologic times and the causes of the changes that took place. His presentation includes a discussion of the formation of the many minerals under the surface of the earth in Vermont. The mining potential in Vermont is stunning. The present historic era of about 2,000 years pales in comparison to the over four billion years of the earth's life.

Episode # 45 - Tom Carpenter hosts Jim Davidson in a program regarding the purported horse race from Galveston, Texas, to Rutland, Vermont, in the fall of 1886. Frank Hopkins claims to have won this race but there was absolutely not one piece of evidence that the race ever happened. But the hoax didn't stop there. Frank claimed to have been hired by Buffalo Bill for his wild west show which also seems to be totally untrue. (See News From Nickwackett, Vol. 10 No.1 p. 3 for a brief summary of this hoax.)

Episode # 46 - Jim Davidson hosts Kevin Graffagnino, new director of the Vermont Historical Society. The interview ranges from Mr. Graffagnino's views of history to his views on the future of history in Vermont. The interview also discusses the upcoming Vermont History Expo of 2003.

Episode # 47 - Tom Carpenter hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program discussing health in Rutland one hundred years ago in 1903. The program covers the prevalent diseases and illnesses of the day and the treatments of that period. Death accompanied many conditions that would be considered minor today. Public health was just beginning to be overseen by a public health officer. Much of the material for the program came from the city records for deaths in Rutland in 1903 and the city report of the public health officer.

Episode # 48 - "The Health of the City" continues with a second program that focuses on the impact of the influenza epidemic of 1918-1919 on the City of Rutland. In October of 1918, perhaps the single most deadly month in America's history, there were over 700 cases of influenza in Rutland. This program highlights the stories of families who were impacted by this health crisis.

Episode # 49 - Jim Davidson hosts Dylan Duncan, one of the producers of Ghosts of Vermont, a video production which focuses on four Vermont ghost tales. The program includes the Whipple Hollow ghost story of Frank Kurant. Jim Davidson provides a short historical segment on the history of Whipple Hollow. The program discusses the genesis of the idea for the production and some of the difficulties that had to be overcome.

Episode # 50 - Michael Dwyer hosts WorId War II and Korean War veteran Frank Fressie in "Remembering Korea". Fifty years after the armistice which ended the Korean War, Mr. Fressie shares his reflections about serving in this conflict and how it impacted his life. He also shares his thoughts on this war's larger place in history between World War II and Vietnam. Viewers will find Fressie's testimony moving.

Episode # 51 - Tom Carpenter hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program on "Greek Immigration To Rutland". The program examines the conditions that brought Greek families to Rutland at the close of the 19th Century. The program also profiles some of the early Greek families in Rutland including their names and occupations. There is also a brief history of the founding of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Rutland.

Episode # 52 - Jim Davidson presents a program on George Schmitt, Rutland pioneer aviator. This program is filled with old photos of Schmitt's very short career. It also includes some items from Schmitt's diary, extracts of which his brother Charles published in the "Oread", the Rutland High School magazine of the time. These diary entries were only recently discovered purely by chance. George Schmitt began flying or attempting to fly in 1910. By 1912 and 1913 he began to set records for flights. During the winter of 1912-1913 he flew numerous sucessful flights in the Caribbean and Central America. In September he returned to fly at the Rutland Fair where he suffered a fatal crash on 2 September 1913.

Episode # 53 - Michael F. Dwyer interviews Cynthia Bittinger, Executive Director of the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation. Although the political background of Calvin Coolidge was in Massachusetts, the values developed in his youth in Plymouth, Vermont, always influenced his life. The interview highlights some of the myths of Coolidge's life. He was not so silent as his speeches attest. He also had a good sense of humor. Ms. Bittinger also talks about Grace Goodhue Coolidge, Calvin's wife and Vermont's only first lady. Ms. Bittinger is currently writing a biography of Mrs. Coolidge.

Episode # 54 - Jim Davidson interviews Roger Bailey, coordinator of Vermont History Expo 2004's co-operative Mining and Quarrying Exhibit. Over 20 local societies have agreed to focus their exhibits this year on the extractive industry in their town or city. This aspect of Vermont's history as a mining state certainly challenges the stereotypical view of Vermont. The program also includes a five minute video clip from the 2003 Vermont History Expo and a brief overview of other events to be seen at the 2004 Vermont History Expo. There is a brief note about the exhibit of the Rutland Historical Society.

Episode # 55 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael F. Dwyer in the seventh of the series of episodes on the genealogy of ethnic groups in Rutland. This episode discusses the immigration of Swedes to the Rutland area. The program exposes the myth that most Swedes were farmers. The important role of the Lutheran Church in preserving the records of Swedish families is highlighted. The program also explains the confusing elements of Swedish names which can be daunting to the uninitiated.

Episode # 56 - Jim Davidson hosts Jessamyn West, Outreach Librarian at the Rutland Free Library, in a program on how to begin using "Heritage Quest", a web site that is available free to library card holders. This genealogical resource can be used from the comfort of your home if you hold a library card. This is one of many free services offered by the Rutland Free Library and will be of great interest to those pursuing family history research. Access to the manuscript U. S. Census records is one of the great benefits of "Heritage Quest". Check the Rutland Free Library's home page for further information.

Episode # 57 - Jim Davidson hosts Dave Knipes, local circus and carnival historian, in a program on the Rutland Fair from the 1930s to the 1960s. The program centers on the "World of Mirth Shows" at the Rutland Fair and includes numerous photos of miniatures of the complete "World of Mirth Shows" as they appeared at the Rutland Fair. These miniatures are the work of Dave Knipes.

Episode # 58 - Michael Dwyer hosts Dr. Kevin Thornton, teacher of history at the University of Vermont, in a program on "Political Messages in Ordinary Objects". Dr. Thornton explains the subtle messages contained in a number of 19th century objects from the collections of the Shelburne Museum and how they fit into the political climate of the early 19th Century.

Episode # 59 - Dorothy Whitford hosts Jim Davidson in a discussion of the history of the Rutland Courts and their court records. Jim and Dorothy have been involved in the organization of the recently acquired Rutland Munipal Court Records and have a number of stories to share from their perusal of these records. The program includes pictures of the various Rutland court buildings.

Episode #60 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael Dwyer in a program exploring the information that can be gleaned from a photo of the late 19th or the early 20th Century. Photos, both posed and unposed, can offer great amounts of information about ordinary life at the turn of the 19th to the 20th Century if one knows how to go about. This program helps to fill this gap in our knowledge.

Episode # 61 – Tom Carpenter hosts a program that discusses the new web site of the Rutland Historical Society. Committee members Jim Davidson and Patty Pickett join Tom, who is also a committee member, in a fast paced overview of the numerous sections of the site which is now available to the public. The site can be reached at: http//www.rutlandhistory.com.

Episode # 62 – Jim Davidson hosts Tony Romeo, Sons of Union Veterans, Ripley Camp # 4, and Mary Ann Goulette, executive director of the Downtown Rutland Partnership in a program about Rutland History Days, 30 April and 1 May 2005. History Days is an attempt to develop an activity on Saturday to accompany the annual Loyalty Day Parade on Sunday. It focuses on Living History military encampments and programs. It is a free program sponsored by the Rutland Parks and Recreation Department, the Sons of Union Veterans, the Rutland Historical Society and the Downtown Rutland Partnership.

Episode # 63 – Jim Davidson hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program on “The Family Photo Album As Social History”. The program focuses on the period from pre-World War I through the 1920s. It shows the viewer how to extract social history from a variety of photographs that are typically found in the family scrapbook or photograph album.

Episode # 64 – Jim Davidson hosts Anna Whooley in a discussion about her new dramatic show, “The North and South: A Woman’s Perspective” which will have its first presentation at the 2005 Vermont History Expo. The program shows Anna in the costume of one of the two characters that she will portray. The discussion revolves around her choice of subject, research problems and a behind the scenes look at how the script and program are put together. There is also a brief notice of the Society’s exhibit at the Expo.

Episode # 65 – Jim Davison hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program commemorating the men and women who served the country in World War II. The program also covers life on the home front in a war that was a total war for survival. Michael lists the names of those serving from Rutland . Now, 60 years removed from the end of World War II, it would be so easy to dismiss this generation that many have called “The Finest Generation” as just another piece of history. This program is devoted to an effort to see that we never forget what this generation contributed. There was not a household that was not in some way directly touched by the war.

Episode # 66 – Jim Davidson hosts Monty Butterfield of the Rutland Railway Association and Linda Doty, Chairperson of the Proctor Fall Festival in a presentation on Rutland Railroad Day 2005 and the Proctor Fall Festival which were held on 24 September 2005. The program discusses briefly the history of the Rutland Railway Association and the Proctor “Our Yard” project. Details of the events of the day are thoroughly discussed. The day included a train trip from Center Rutland to Proctor and back to Center Rutland. The program emphasizes the partnership aspects of the day’s events. The Rutland Railway Association has a web site at www.rutlandrailway.org .

Episode # 67 – Jim Davidson hosts Larry Kelley, Family Researcher, in a discussion about the Kelley Family that in the early 19 th Century settled on and owned most of what is today the Creek Road. For years the road from the Dorr Bridge south to the Town Line was called Kelley Road because the land was donated for the road by the Kelley Family. The long gone Park Street covered bridge was also originally called the Kelley Bridge. Larry offers many stories of the area that have been found in his research of the Kelley Family.

Episode # 68 – Jim Davidson hosts Michael F. Dwyer in a program devoted to ten tips for family researchers when they get stuck in their research. In a lively interchange, Michael shares some key strategies for getting past the “stone wall,” that researchers run into sooner or later. These tips are the practical “down to earth” advice from a long experienced genealogist.

Episode # 69 – Michael F. Dwyer hosts a program entitled “Young Eyes Look At Long Ago Proctor”. Michael interviews his guests, Proctor Elementary School teacher Maureen Dobart and her students, now in the 3 rd grade, about their local history projects from last year. Students include Christopher Clain, Noelle Flanders, Jazmin Goetz and Cody Landon, who present their actual models and stories about Proctor one hundred years ago.

Episode # 70 – Michael F. Dwyer introduces John Peterson who plays the role of “Sam Slick”, a fictional itinerant peddler of the 1830s. John’s wife, Laura, plays the role of Mrs. Folger, a typical housewife of the time. Mr. Peterson presents the pitch and barter of the country salesman in a wonderful and humorous manner. He also reports about a visit to a woolen mill.

Episode # 71 - Tom Carpenter hosts Jim Davidson of the Society in a program on "The Black Presence in Rutland".  Jim discusses the role of blacks in early Rutland and emphasizes the number who lived in Rutland before the Civil War.  He also notes that most were born in Vermont.  He makes particular note of the Reverend Lemuel Haynes and the Freeman family, including Martin Freeman. The large contingent of black men from Rutland who joined the Massachusetts 54th Regiment (Colored) in the Civil War is also discussed.  The program concludes with discussion about the late 19th and early 20th Century black presence  in Rutland.

Episode # 72 - Jim Davidson hosts a program on "Rutland's Spring Heritage Activities".  Representatives from the Downtown Partnership, the Sons of Union Veterans and the Loyalty Day Parade briefly cover the "All Aboard, Rutland" railroad project, the History Days living history activities and the Loyalty Day Parade.

Episode # 73 - Michael F. Dwyer hosts Mary Fregosi of Proctor in a program entitled "Practicing History".  Mary recently retired from a long career in education but has kept busy researching and writing articles and books on local history.  Michael converses with Mary about her historical projects which have engaged and enriched her retirement hours.

Episode # 74 - Jim Davidson hosts a program entitled "West Rutland in the 1920's As Seen Through the Camera Lens of Frank Hinchey".  The program is filled with individual and group photos of West Rutland in the 1920's.  All the photos are from the family archives of Frank Hinchey who was involved in West Rutland education for over 40 years as teacher, coach and administrator.  Few people know that Frank took hundreds of photos of what went on around him.  Fortunately, many of his negatives survive. His daughter, Angela Hinchey, and "Red" Sutkoski of West Rutland are guests on the program andhelp to identify many of the people and places in the photos.  However, numerous photos still be identification.

Episode # 75 - "Vermont's Forgotten President:  Chester Alan Arthur".  One hundred years after his death, Vermonth's first president deserves a new appraisal of his life and times.  Mary Fregosi interview Michael Dwyer on the subject of the 21st president.

Episode #76 - Jim Davidson hosts Paula Baker, Director of the Rutland Free Library and Jake Sherman Library historian, on the occasion of the library's 120th birthday.  The program blends an historical overview of the library with how libraries are rapidly changing in the technological age.

Episode # 77 - Jim Davidson hosts Chuck Piotrowski who presents a power point program entitled "Turning Your Junk Into the Stuff of History".  This is Part One of a two part offering.

Episode # 78 - Jim Davidson hosts Chuck Piotrowski who presents part two of his power point program entitled “Turning Your Junk Into the Stuff of History”. Part two emphasizes the treatment of photographs and other illustrative material.

Episode # 79 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael F. Dwyer who presents a power point program on his favorite images from the 1978 pictorial history of Rutland entitled “Rutland In Retrospect”. In the program Michael addresses the rationale for his choices. This program offers an opportunity for viewers to see a high quality sampling from a long out-of-print work.

Episode # 80 - Jim Davidson hosts Michael F. Dwyer, President of the Rutland Historical Society, in a program entitled “Multi-Ethnic Rutland”. By focusing on the 1910 Census and its ethnic information, the program demonstrates that Rutland has had a rather large and diverse number of ethnic groups. The first individual considered is Eliza Johnson, wife of Charles Johnson, a barber, who was part of the Rutland black community. His program also discusses George Haddad who was born in the Lebanon district of Syria and Sam Lung, a Chinese laundryman who came to Rutland .

Episode # 81 - Jim Davidson hosts Tom Giffin, President of the Vermont Old Cemetery Association, in a program on “The Restoration of Old Cemeteries”. Tom is joined by Chris Book, Chairman of the new Cemetery Committee of the Rutland Historical Society. Both guests are commissioners of the Rutland City Cemetery Commission.

Episode # 82 - Sam Gorruso, Master of Ceremonies for the Loyalty Day Parade and Jim Davidson, program host and a member of the History Days Committee discuss the Living History encampments of Saturday 5 May, 2007 and the Loyalty Day Parade of Sunday 6 May 2007.  Sam Gorruso talks about the history of the Loyalty Day Parade, now in it's 44th Year.  Jim Davidson concludes the program with a mystery object to be identified in the next episode.

Episode # 83 - Tess Taylor, Manager of the Vermont History Expo 2007, and Helen Davidson, Chairperson of the Rutland Historical Society Exhibit Committee, discuss the 8th Annual Vermont History Expo 2007, which is to be held on 23 and 24 June 2007 at the Tunbridge Fairgrounds.  Tess Taylor gives a pictorial overview of the activities and exhibits that were seen at the 2006 Expo.  Helen Davidson describes the local Society exhibit, which, in keeping with this year's transportation theme, is the Rutland Railroad.  The answer to last episode's mystery object is a gambrel stick, used in the butchering progress.

Episode # 84 - Michael F. Dwyer presents a program entitled "Remembering the Flood of 1947".  June of 1947 is the 60th anniversary of one of Rutland's most disastrous floods.  Michael offers a pictorial review of the causes, the damage and the recovery efforts that highlighted life in Rutland in June 1947.  Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 85 - Chuck Piotrowski, past archivist of the Society for American Baseball Research and currently Vice-president of the Rutland Historical Society, provides an illustrated history of the Rutland Royals of 1938 - 1941.  Scrapbooks of the pre-war Rutland Royals given to the Society by the Martin Family provide material for a detailed history of the Royals and the Northern League.  Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 86 - David Wright, of the Middletown and Rutland Historical Societies  presents still pictures of the Long Trail Lodge.  David and his family were intimately involved with the lodge for many years and David is able to relate many stories connected with the history of the Long Trail Lodge.  The Lodge not only had a close connection with the Long Trail but was also a major meeting place for many Rutland groups. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 87- Michael Dwyer presents an excellent view of Vermont rural life on the eve of U.S. entry into World War II.  In 1941 the Farm Security Administration sent photographer Jack Delano to Rutland to photograph the Rutland Fair.  This assignment was intended to photographically document  rural life in Vermont.  Additional photos by Delano can be found on the web site of the Library of Congress. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 88 - Dr. Richard Brown of the Rutland Herald presents the photographs of Aldo Merusi.   Aldo Merusi was the chief Rutland Herald photographer for thirty years.  His widow left a large collection of the negatives of his photos to the Rutland Herald.  Dr. Brown has been placed in charge of the project to scan the negatives to provide viewable prints and to attempt identification of the people, places and events in the photos.  The Rutland Historical Society has agreed to help in the identification process.  This episode is the first attempt to bring some of the photos to the attention of the public through the medium of television.  It is hoped that the public may help in the identification process.  This program includes a brief biographical notice about Aldo Merusi and his work. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 89 - Bill Reardon, a long-time employee of the Rutland Recreation and Parks Department and host Jim Davidson discuss Rutland's Halloween Parade.  A chronology of the Parade's nearly 50 year history, created by Betty Mumford, aids the discussion.  Bill shares his many memories of the participants, the weather, changes in the parade and problems during its history.

Episode # 90 - Chuck Piotrowski presents"The Treasures of the Society: Part 1" which offers excerpts and comments from his program at the 2007 Annual Meeting of the Society.  Part 1 focuses mostly on the artifacts in the Society's collections.  Chuck makes the point that the term "treasures" is not to be taken in a monetary sense but for the valuable insight they offer about Rutland's history. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 91- Chuck Piotrowski presents "Treasures of the Society: Part 2" which continues his program from the 2007 Annual Meeting of the Society.  Part 2 focuses on the papers, books and photos of the collections. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 92 - Dr. Richard Brown of the Rutland Herald offers a new selection of photographs taken by Aldo Merusi.  Also Merusi was the chief Rutland Herald photographer for thirty years.  His widow left a large collection of the negatives of his photos to the Rutland Herald.  Dr. Brown has been placed in charge of the project to scan the negatives to provide viewable prints and to attempt identification of the people, places and events in the photos.  The Rutland Historical Society has agreed to help the identification process.   This is a second episode bringing additional photos to the attention of the public through the medium of television.  It is hoped that the public may help in the identification process. Dr. Brown includes a short biographical sketch of Aldo Merusi and his work.  Jim Davidson hosts the program .

Episode # 93 - Chuck Piotrowski presents "The Pico Raceway, 1951-1952" which is a visual story of a short-lived stock car race track in Rutland, Vermont, that on occasion drew over 4,000 people at an event.  Although a product of Rutland's recent history, there is still much to be learned about the Pico Raceway from those with memories of the track.  Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 94 - Chuck Piotrowski presents some pieces from the collections of the Society that illustrate the wide range of material that the Society holds. These materials range from the 1880s until today and include many eras of Rutland baseball from paid professional and semiprofessional leagues to organizational and industrial leagues to high school and American Legion baseball. Rutland's rich baseball history begs development of a more complete history. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 95 - Deborah Clifford, an independent scholar who has done a great deal of research on Julia Dorr's life and work, shares an illustrated overview of Julia's life. Deborah as been active with the Vermont Women's History movement and Julia Dorr has been a great example of a 19th Century Rutland woman who let her talents shine in Rutland and throughout the American literary scene. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 96 - Megan Smith, executive director of "Dimensions of Marble", is the guest in this episode. The development of a marble trail along the marble valley of western Vermont is a prominent activity of this organization but not the sole activity. Other projects of the organization are discussed and the wide reach of the organization's goals and activities merit viewing by the general public. Jim Davidson hosts this presentation.

Episode # 97 - Susan Schreibman of the Rutland Regional Planning Commission is the guest for this episode. Susan briefly relates the history of the development of this pathway from Giorgetti Park to the College of St. Joseph. She also reports on the rapid progress of the project to the engineering of the first two segments of the path. Jim Davidson of the Society and host for the episode shares images of 16 identified historical sites along the pathway which provide a wonderful glimpse of Rutland's economic, recreational, religious, and cultural history.

Episode # 98 - President Chuck Piotrowski and Curator Jim Davidson present a video tour of the Rutland Historical Society web site. Various sections are explored and Chuck and Jim explain some of the material to be found in each section and some of the uses of the sections. There is also some note of future improvements to the site. Notice is given that the site will receive its one millionth visitor this fall.

Episode  # 99 - Chuck Piotrowski is the guest presenter of a program on the history of electricity in Rutland called   "Electric Rutland".  The program includes some of the technical progress in generating and distributing electricity, the issue of mergers and advertising and creating a publiic awareness of electricity.  The program closes with a brief  recruitment  of participants for the Society's presentation "Chasing Ghosts of the Past" in the Halloween parade.

Episode # 100 - The production of 100 episodes of" Historically Speaking" seemed worthy of a special acknowledgement. "The Talegatorz", a 1920s old time jazz  band, accepted our invitation to be part of our celebration. The members of this group bring the viewer back to the 1920s and the era of vaudeville.

Episode # 101 - The year 2009 is the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Rutland Historical Society. It seemed timely to look at where the Society has been and where it might be going in the future. Curator Jim Davidson has been a member since the beginning of the Society and shares his reflections on the history of the Society and its tomorrow.

Episode # 102 - "Rutland's Greatest Fire: The Bates House Fire 1906"

On 18 February 1906 this fire consumed all the buildings on the northeast corner of Merchants Row and Center Street and halfway up the north side of Center Street. Although there were no deaths in the fire, the amount of destruction h n & .been rivaled in Rutland's history. Chuck Piotrowski narrates a pictorial tour of the fire and its results.

Episode # 103 - "Resources for Rutland History: 1850 - 1890"

Jim Davidson, Society Curator, reviews a wide range of resources available to understand Rutland's history in the era 1850 - 1890. He also makes some suggestions on how to work through the maze of material in a most effective manner.

Episode # 104 - New York Giants vs. Rutland All-Stars - 1916

Dick Leyden, Vermont baseball historian, discusses the baseball game at the Rutland Fairgrounds on 22 October 1916. This game was played during the "deadball era" when pitchers were able to "doctor" the ball in many ways and only one ball was used for the whole game. Thus home runs were few and far between. Dick's presentation provides a

wealth of information on the participants and background on baseball in this era. The Rutland game was arranged by the New York Giants as part of a post-season "barnstorming" tour despite baseball's official disapproval of "barnstorming." Betting was a large part of such challenge games that were quite popular, as the attendance of 3,500

people attests.

Episode # 105 - History of Vermont Weather. Jim Davidson interviews Dr. Lesley-Ann L. Dupigny-Giroux, Vermont State Climatologist, in a fast-paced discussion of the history of Vermont weather. Lesley-Ann talks about the various weather professions and their roles. Farmers were the ultimate non-professional climatologists. The discussion mentions a number of Rutland weather observers and the connectedness and impact of weather and climate in Vermont history. Dr. Dupigny-Giroux carries on a continual search for Vermont weather history and invites historical weather information.

Episode # 106 - "The History of Rutland High School". Paul Crossman, author of the recent quarterly on the history of the Rutland High School is the guest on this episode. He and host Chuck Piotrowski discuss the changes in the high school and its various locations over time. They touch on a number of points to which the public may say "I didn't know that".

Episode # 107 - "Around Pittsford". Peggy Armitage of the Pittsford Historical Society is the guest for this episode. "Around Pittsford" is a picture history that includes numerous views from Pittsford, Proctor and Chittenden. Peggy, who edited the book, shows a number of selected photos from the book, especially Proctor, and tells a tale about most. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode #108 - The Rutland 1884-Map [NOTE: In the last Newsletter # 108 was identified as the Rutland Cemeteries program. The Program Chairperson apologizes for the error.] Clifford Giffin, Jim Davidson, and Chuck Piotrowski were members of a team that put together the scanned CD version of an 1884 Map of Rutland that is approximately five feet by five feet. The program illustrates some of the equipment used and the steps taken to bring this fascinating map to a CD. Some samples of the CD are shown.

Episode # 109 - The Cemeteries of the Old Town of Rutland Chris Book and Tom Giffin, Rutland City Cemetery Commissioners, are guests for this program. The program includes images of most of the cemeteries, old and new, of the old Town of Rutland. The program also discusses some of the issues and problems in the proper preservation of cemeteries. The programs for the preservation and care of the graves of military veterans are also discussed. Jim Davidson hosted the program.

Episode # 110 - History of the Rutland Free Library Jake Sherman provides an overview of the history of libraries in Rutland culminating in the history of the Rutland Free Library. Jim Davidson who hosts the program, shares some insight into life in the library in 1920 as gained from a group of five letters from a former employee.

Episode # 111 - "Traces of the Past 1". Jake Sherman relates biographies of several characters of early Rutland history that appeared in the Rutland Historical Society calendar for 2010. The program also shares the 14 images of these people who were born in the 1700s.  The availability of these early images is truly amazing. Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 112 - "The Long Trail".  The Rutland Historical Society has nearly 100 glass slides of views along the Long Trail from about 1913-1930.  These are integrated in to a story of the Long Trail prepared by quest Bob Perkins,  Jim Davidson hosts the program.

Episode # 113 -  "History of Agriculture in Rutland".  The Rutland Historical Society developed a multimedia presentation for its exhibit at the Vermont Historical Society Expo in keeping with the Expo theme of agriculture.  This program is an adaptation of that presentation for "Historically Speaking".  The presenter is Chuck Piotrowski and the host is Jim Davidson.