RIPTON — The Ripton Historical Society (RHS) will be one of the presenters at Vermont History Expo 2016 in Tunbridge on June 18 and 19. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. that Saturday and Sunday, RHS officers and members will describe some significant aspects of Ripton’s history.
The Expo’s theme this year is “The Power of Water in Vermont’s History.” Between videos, physical archives, photographs, posters and narratives, RHS representatives will explain how Ripton, a town anchored on a river, used water as a powerful force for businesses from milling to tanning to cheese making. Ripton’s experience of harrowing floods, such as those of 1927, 1938 and 2008, as well as Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, will also be illustrated.
Ripton is a small town on top of the Green Mountains. Chartered in 1781 and organized in 1828, the community has been transformed over the past two centuries, but like much of Vermont it has retained its rural identity. Notable residents include early-day environmentalist Joseph Battell, United States Poet Laureate Robert Frost, and today’s leading global warming activist Bill McKibben.
After years of dormancy, Ripton Historical Society reorganized and was reborn in 2014. Since then RHS has built a website, established a materials collection, worked with community institutions, presented talks at Ripton Community Church, made excursions to discover Vermont history, conducted a walking tour of Ripton’s ghost 1936 Civilian Conservation Corps camp, produced an evolving historical sites map, and exhibited at the 2014 Vermont History Expo.
More information about Ripton history and the RHS is at https://riptonhistoricalsociety.org/. Vermont Historical Society has more information at vermonthistory.org/community/vermont-history-expo.