Travels in the 2nd half

  In the hills lining the shore of Lake Champlain, is a museum dedicated to a history not usually connected with Vermont. The Rokeby Museum presents a look into life on a farm during the 19th and 20th centuries. However its focus is on the role that the farm and its owners played in the Underground Railroad. Rokeby Farm was cleared in 1780’s and the farm was purchased in 1793 by Thomas Rowland Robinson, a Quaker from Newport, Rhode Island. The farm consisted of 90 acres. Its main house was built in 1814, and the outbuildings were constructed at various times over its history. The Robinson family originally made its money raising Marino Sheep for their wool. This was lucrative at the time, because Spain had an embargo on the sale of Marino sheep, whose wool was highly desired. Prices for the wool remained high until the King of Spain was forced to begin selling sheep on the international market. This caused the price to drop greatly. The Robinson family then switched to dairy farmi...

  There are “museum villages” across the country. They can be wonderful places to learn about local history, culture, and lifestyles. The Shelburne Museum , in Shelburne Vermont,  goes a step further than most of its contemporaries, it offers excellent artwork on view for its visitors.   The Shelburne Museum was founded by Electra Havemeyer Webb (1888-1960). Webb was the youngest child of Henry Havemeyer, president of the American Sugar Refining Company, and Louisine Elder Havemeyer. Her parents were collectors of impressionist art, filling their apartment in New York City with paintings from that era. As an adult, she began collecting New England furniture and craftwork, which she used to decorate a farmhouse belonging to her in-laws. Electra Havemeyer Webb by Shelburne Museum, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons In 1947, Electra Webb decided to form a museum to house her collection of horse-drawn carriages. She quickly realized her potential to create a “collection of ...