What’s an appropriate gift for a nation’s 250th birthday? The Vermont Historical Society is marking America’s milestone with 50 objects from its collection. All are on view in “50 for 250,” an exhibition opening on Friday, July 3, at the Vermont History Museum in Montpelier. They also appear in a beautifully photographed book with essays written by a range of Vermonters, from a former governor to current high school students. Starting with the state’s founding documents and ending with its pandemic-era road signs, each object carries a unique story that speaks to an aspect of our history. We chose seven for you to unwrap.
The Dresden Press, c.1700
Legions of Vermont schoolchildren have walked past this giant wooden contraption, which has been part of the museum’s collection since 1888. For much of that time, it was reputed to be the oldest printing press in the country. Turns out it isn’t, but it was the first used in Vermont. Back in 1779, it produced pamphlets and broadsides by Ethan and Ira Allen that proclaimed Vermont’s independence from New York and New Hampshire, as well as a treatise by challengers advocating for a state centered on the Connecticut River.
The Last Catamount, 1881
The Barnard Catamount, as he is known, was the last member of his species (Puma concolor) shot in Vermont, in 1881. After that, he was taxidermied and schlepped around New England as an attraction — advertised as a “MONSTER PANTHER” — before being donated to the state in 1882. A catalog essay by historical society director of collections Amanda Kay Gustin outlines Vermont’s evolution from a sheep-rearing state where the predator’s death was roundly celebrated to a tourism-dependent one that prizes the idea of this mysterious “cat o’ the mountains”: a once-real creature made mythic.
Snowshoes, c.1925
While Vermont is now well established as a skiing state, Indigenous peoples used snowshoes to get around in winter for thousands of years. This pair probably was made by Simon Obomsawin, an Abenaki Vermonter whose family moved from the Odanak First Nations reserve in Québec to Thompson’s Point in Charlotte by about 1900. The shoes are racquet-shaped, made from a single steam-bent strip of ash, with carved cross-pieces for stiffness and rawhide webbing; tufts of red wool take the place of traditional decorative moose hair. Snowshoeing was a necessity for winter hunting and trapping, but after many of Vermont’s wildlife populations became depleted in the late 19th century, it became a recreational sport.
Doll, c.1927
Almost a century ago, Vermont suffered one of its worst natural disasters: the flood of 1927. Montpelier was badly hit, with floodwaters rising to 10 feet at State and Main streets. That’s where this “Mama” doll was rescued from the toy section in the basement of the McCuen Store — present-day Bear Pond Books. Gladys May Bliss, who worked at the store, kept the doll until she died in 1995. Essayist Ada Allen, a 10th grader at Craftsbury Academy, points out that while the flood — and others since — have caused millions of dollars in damage and provoked major changes to the state’s infrastructure, the disasters can also be seen through “thousands of human stories of aid, comfort, and healing.”
Nightstick, 1935
The 1935-36 Vermont Marble Company strike was one of the most bitter and violent labor disputes in the state’s history. To cut expenses, the company tried to reduce hours for quarrymen, most of whom were immigrants. West Rutland workers walked off the job and protested for months; the company brought in thuggish “deputies,” shadily financed by the state, to break the strike. One of them, Harry L. Hall, was not only proud of his role in the violence but also etched scenes of it into his billy club. Alongside caricatures of union leaders and depictions of deputies fighting women in the “Battles of Barrett Hill and West Rutland” — real events — he summarized the conflict thusly: “Windows Stoned, Property Damaged, Street Fights, Heads Cracked, A Good Time For All.”
Crown, 1962
Vermont had long been known as a Republican stronghold when Philip Hoff ran for governor in 1962 and became the first Democrat to hold that office since 1853. During his three terms, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anthony Marro writes, Hoff led Statehouse actions to reapportion the legislature, where each town previously had one vote regardless of population; quadruple school aid; and ban billboards in the state, among other changes. “Hoff basically created Vermont as we know it today,” Marro writes. But that wouldn’t have happened without the Onion City, whose 1,768-to-188 election night vote count unexpectedly put Hoff over the top. At a 1 a.m. impromptu victory parade, an unknown reveler crowned him “King of Winooski.”
Blazer, c.1995
In 1998, Beth Robinson and Susan Murray argued before the Vermont Supreme Court that same-sex couples should have the right to marry. Robinson wore this blazer at a press conference in 1999 when the court handed down its decision that directed the legislature to create Vermont’s civil unions law — the first such legislation passed in the United States. In her account of the movement’s history in the state, Margaret Tamulonis writes that “personal objects can carry the weight of collective change.” ➆
Other 250th Exhibitions
The original print version of this article was headlined “Seven for the Semiquincentennial | Seven Days’ faves from the Vermont History Museum’s “50 for 250” exhibition”
This article appears in July 1 • 2026.
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