Speaking of Curiosities...

Meet the Photographer

I think, from time to time, I'll change the photo and the descriptions of what I come across in my wanderings that pique my curiosity, so come back occasionally to see what's up. I've recently heard of a couple New England vampire stories that I'm going to check out, etc.

I like old stuff, old buildings, barns, stores, etc. I like the stories they tell. Last summer I went to Norton, VT, to photograph the Nelson Country Store that straddled the border with Stanhope, Quebec, since the late 19th Century. There were two entrances, one American and one Canadian. It was post office, town clerk's office, community gathering place, and store. Canadian goods on the North side and American on the South. One cash register for American currency and another for Canadian. From the late 1800's until the store closed in 2003 there were only three Town Clerks and all were Nelsons. It has since been torn down and the lot grassed over with nothing to ever be built on it again. Prior to 2015, Canadians routinely crossed into the USA to attend church, visit friends, etc. Americans did the same. In 2015, the border was finally closed and concrete posts placed across the road that passed directly in front of the store and into Quebec. I actually chuckled to myself as I tiptoed through the barrier into Stanhope to take more photos. When I left I took a wrong turn and crossed into Canada for about 50' before realizing my mistake. After turning around I drove back to a uniformed Homeland Security agent waving his arms. I stopped and he told me I'd just been in Canada. After checking my driver's license and putting me through the computer he sent me on my way. While waiting for him I thought it might be funny to tell him that I'd just tippy-toed through the yellow posts to take a few more pics. of the store from that side. However, upon further reflection, I thought perhaps this wasn't the best idea I'd ever had. Why poke the bear don't you know?

In Crown Point, NY I walked through Wolcott Cemetery and stopped to read the headstone of Capt. Jehial Farr, killed in 1829, at age 28, on board ship on Lake Champlain. I did a little research and read his obituary called him "a man of respectability and a good sailor." I did a rubbing of the stone and it now hangs in a gallery at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. In Cuttingsville, VT, there is the mausoleum of John Bowman with a full-sized statue of him walking up the steps. In his will he left money and instructions that a fire was to be kept every night in his home and meals prepared for the entire family in the event they returned from the dead. In Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven, VT is the grave of Dr. Timothy Clark Smith so terrified of being buried alive he had a window installed over his remains. In Fort Edward, NY, is the grave of Jane McCrea, killed by Indians in 1777 while trying to reach her future husband serving with General Burgoyne and the British Army during the American Revolution.