A Visit to Wilmington

If you’re a preservationist in Vermont, you know Wilmington for the 2012 Historic Preservation and Downtown conference and the 2011 flooding of Tropical Storm Irene, among other reasons. If you’re an out-of-stater, you probably know Wilmington as a ski town; Mount Snow is just up the road. And maybe you’ve all heard about Dot’s Restaurant (The NY Times reported on its reopening last December). Wilmington is a beautiful small town in southern Vermont with a good stock of architecture, amenities for visitors and pleasant streets. Take a look (side note: click on the photographs to enlarge, and see them with better clarity). 

Wilmington is currently filled with giant chairs.

Ascending front gables on South Main Street.

The 1898 Crafts Inn.

Route 9 & Route 100. Check out those brackets!

This building is undergoing renovations (still, post flood). It is the 1930 Parmalee & Howe Drugstore.

The intersection of Route 9 and Route 100 features a beautiful pocket park.

Looking for more history? Read the entire National Register nomination here. It’s now available online thanks to the massive digitization effort by Vermont Division for Historic Preservation (our SHPO office). And it’s almost leaf peeping season, followed by ski season. Enjoy Vermont if you’re coming for a visit!

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Creative Entryways with Salvaged Doors

So often historic doors are replaced. You can find stacks of historic doors in architectural salvage shops. What do you do with salvaged doors? How about creating an entryway into a cafe, like this one in Wilmington.

What do you think?

Vermont Historic Preservation & Downtown Conference 2012

Friday June 8 was the much anticipated Vermont Historic Preservation & Downtown Conference, held in Wilmington, VT. Wilmington was one of the Vermont towns most damaged from the flooding of Tropical Storm Irene on August 28, 2011, and the theme of the conference “Resiliency” fit Wilmington perfectly. Wilmington is a beautiful Vermont village, filled with an array of historic architecture, concrete bridges, local retail, eateries and lodging among residential, civic and religious buildings.

Wilmington: Where Amazing Happens. Seen at morning registration.

Luckily, the day was graced with beautiful Vermont weather: blue skies, white clouds, warm sunshine and green mountains in the background. The morning began with registration followed by the welcome, keynote speaker and preservation awards in Memorial Hall. How wonderful it is to see so many preservation-loving people in one place and to hear inspiring stories. The keynote speaker, Stuart Comstock-Gay of the Vermont Community Foundation, gave an excellent speech, acknowledging the hard work that has defined Vermonters (particularly since Irene), but also the fact that we have to keep going and keep up our motivation and momentum. Before the afternoon sessions began, everyone broke for lunch and enjoyed the local places in town.

Preservation in Pink (Flamingos): How Historic Preservation Relates to You, was slotted in the first afternoon session, 1:30-2:30, and held in the St. Mary’s in the Mountains Episcopal Church. My attention throughout the conference was focused on this presentation and not taking photographs, which is my explanation for the lack of images. (Sorry!)

Preservation in Pink set up in the church!

Opening slide for Preservation in Pink (Flamingos)

To all who attended the PiP session, thank you! I had the best time presenting, sharing the Preservation in Pink story with you and talking about how historic preservation and our built environment relate to each other. How nice it was to meet readers and those new to Preservation in Pink. This was the debut of PiP outside of the blog and newsletter, and I couldn’t have hoped for a better experience. I hope the attendees enjoyed themselves as well. And thank you for laughing when I unknowingly said “preaching to the choir.” I did not plan it! Of course, thank you to the Preservation Trust of Vermont for inviting me to speak.

During the presentation. Photo sent by reader and Vermont author Beth Kanell. Thank you Beth!

The conference continued with a second round of afternoon sessions and then an afternoon barbecue held at North Star Bowl on Route 100. This locally owned business suffered greatly from the flood, but with a dedicated community behind it, recovered and rebuilt. Wilmington is full of inspiring people, from residents to business owners to second home-owners. They have come a long way since the August flooding, but still have a long way to go. If you are traveling on Route 9 or Route 100, stop in for a visit. Hope to see you next year!

Historic Preservation and Downtown Conference

Mark your calendars. Friday June 8, 2012 is the 18th Annual Historic Preservation & Downtown Conference in Wilmington, Vermont; the theme is Resiliency.

From the conference organizers: “A year later, the 18th annual Historic Preservation and Downtown Conference honors the spirit of resiliency in the people and places of Vermont. We recognize community organization and altruism and explore the ingenuity of historic adaptation to help downtowns survive. We also celebrate community and heroes as we pay tribute to this year’s Preservation Award winners in Wilmington’s Memorial Hall.”

Join historic preservationists, downtown managers, community members, historians, students, professionals, grassroots organizations, guests and more for a day of interesting sessions and an afternoon of bowling and miniature golf. See the full agenda here.

This is the perfect day of interdisciplinary conversation for anyone who is interested in his/her built environment, heritage, historic places and the health of a community.

And, I’m flattered to announce that Preservation in Pink has a session at the conference. Using the Preservation in Pink themes and mission, I will be presenting historic preservation in a fun, personal manner, showing the audience how the field relates to all aspects of life. In other words, Preservation in Pink leaves the internet for day to take the stage in Wilmington. Join me for preservation conversation, coffee, tangential tales and flamingos. I’m honored to present Preservation in Pink in an off-blog format (or newsletter) for the first time. If you’ll be in Wilmington, come say hello!

The conference is extremely affordable ($35 for non-Wilmington residents) and there is a variety of options for lodging and dining. Wilmington was one of the most devastated towns (in Vermont) by Tropical Storm Irene. The community has worked hard at recovery, and your support would be much appreciated.

Click here to register.

This is the Vermont statewide conference hosted and organized by the Preservation Trust of Vermont, The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, the Vermont Downtown Program and the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development.