This year we thought we’d give ourselves — and you, our dear, tired readers — a holiday break and fill a few pages of the paper with photos recapping the past 12 months.
We soon found that playing curator was a tall task. Compiling a visual retrospective first required diving deep into the memory hole of what the heck happened in 2024 — arguably too much. As we painstakingly reviewed 51 weeks of fabulous photography, one thing became clear: It wasn’t all good memories. There were elections and floods and sad downturns in our downtowns, not to mention so much roadwork. Then we remembered how depressed we are.
But we refused to wallow. And so a theme finally emerged for our first (and maybe last) year-end photo essay. The snapshots presented here take us back to cultural occasions, big and small, that collectively moved us and filled us with wonder. From a rare total solar eclipse to the playful dance of the northern lights — the heavens were frisky this year — to Vermonters heading off to the Paris Olympics, these photos are a reminder of bright moments, even in a dark time. We actually found ourselves feeling a little nostalgic. There’s a lesson in there somewhere, right?
Many thanks to our talented photographer friends for capturing the scenes.
Good Heavens
Photo by Adam Silverman
The northern lights dancing over the Lake Champlain Bridge between Addison and Crown Point, N.Y., a little after 3:30 a.m. on October 11. 2024 saw multiple outstanding appearances of aurora borealis in Vermont; this particularly potent geomagnetic storm sent the photographer on a five-hour odyssey to find a break in the clouds.
After Glow
Photo by Jeb Wallace-Brodeur
For the first time, Montpelier illuminated seven of its historic bridges with thousands of bulbs. Hundreds paraded with lanterns over the Winooski River and its North Branch for a November 16 lighting ceremony, a sparkling sign of community spirit and strength after the heartbreaking floods of 2023.
Death Reborn
Photo by Luke Awtry
Death headlining the Waking Windows music festival in Winooski on May 4. The pioneering punk band, founded in 1970s Detroit and now rooted in Vermont, last performed in 2019. Urian and Julian Hackney joined their father and uncle, Bobby Sr. and Dannis Hackney, onstage as the newest members of the group. For the first time in 47 years, the Hackney family and Death were once again one and the same.
A Progressive Party
Photo by Daria Bishop
The crowd cheering at Zero Gravity beer hall on March 5 as Progressive Emma Mulvaney-Stanak was elected mayor of Burlington. It was a historic win: As well as Burlington’s first-ever woman mayor, she became the first openly queer person to hold the seat.
Rocking the Boat
Photo by Josh Kuckens
Jacob Plihal training at Craftsbury Outdoor Center in late June, ahead of the Paris Olympics. Vermont sent seven world-class rowers to the Games — one native and six who spent years training in the state — along with track-and-field star Elle Purrier St. Pierre of Montgomery and social media sensation Ilona Maher of Burlington, whose rugby team won a historic bronze medal.
Come What LeMay
Photo by James Buck
Bob Bolyard (third from right) as Amber LeMay, surrounded by Amber alter egos, at the Winter Is a Drag Ball: Apocalypstick, held on February 17 at Higher Ground in South Burlington. It was the House of LeMay drag troupe’s final year hosting the winter party, which it had been producing since 2003.
All Fired Up
Photo by Eva Sollberger
Fire spinner Kayla “Maple” Steen performing with the c at Battery Park on July 17. The collective has been lighting up the night and sparking a scene since 2019 with outdoor burns at the band shell. Members share props and fuel and aim to inspire newcomers.
Grand Total
Photo by James Buck
A time-lapse composite of a once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse, taken from Oakledge Park in Burlington on April 8. The eclipse shrouded northern Vermont in several minutes of otherworldly midafternoon darkness as locals and visitors from around the globe looked skyward in wonder.
View From the Top
Photo by Luke Awtry
Eclipse viewers on the Moran FRAME in Burlington on April 8, a rare bluebird spring day. The city hosted viewing parties at many of its lakefront public parks, which amounted to a sprawling outdoor festival. Across the state, Vermont saw an influx of some 175,000 visitors who made an estimated total economic impact of $54 million.
Dancing in the Street
Photo by Luke Awtry
Young attendees of the South End Art Hop playing with bubbles on Burlington’s Pine Street on September 6. The art festival, which annually encompasses more than 100 venues and 30 events, celebrated its 32nd year with a theme of surrealism.
Lips Service
Photo by Luke Awtry
At the end of the Flaming Lips concert at the Grand Point North festival in Burlington’s Waterfront Park on July 26, the band passed a giant inflatable to the sold-out crowd while Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” played. From the 20-foot-tall robots to the stage-wide rainbow, this was a major show of the year.
Feeling the Bern
Photo by Luke Awtry
Austin Grant, one of eight U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders look-alikes who gathered in Burlington’s City Hall Park for a contest on December 14. Grant snagged second place with his white wig, bushy eyebrows, blue medical mask, mittens and “Tax the billionaires” sign — a nod to Sanders’ iconic, meme-worthy outfit at the 2021 presidential inauguration.
The original print version of this article was headlined “Starry Eyed | A surprisingly sentimental photographic review of 2024”
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This article appears in Dec 25, 2024 – Jan 7, 2025.
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