Vermont Barn Census 2009 Preliminary Research

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Vermont Barn Census

Preliminary Research - 2009

Agricultural Census

Manchester, Vermont

98 Overlook Road

Photograph by Meghan Bezio, September 2009

Bank barn with wooden cuploa and weathervane located at 98 Overlook Road, Manchester, Vermont

For the past 160 years, the town of Manchester, Vermont has been a recreational hot-spot, catering to the hordes of tourists who travel to New England throughout the year. Nestled in a valley between the Green Mountains and the Taconic Range in Southwestern Vermont, Manchester was quickly recognized for its picturesque setting when first settled in the late eighteenth century. Since its incorporation as a township in 1760 the town has undergone many transformations, particularly within its base for economy. According to Edwin Bigelow and Nancy H. Otis, two chroniclers of the town’s history, “most of Manchester’s industries have been of a somewhat transient nature.” This website attempts to illustrate Manchester's agricultural past and its link to Vermont's rich history.

This preliminary research about barns and farm buildings in thirteen Vermont towns is offered as a public service to assist local volunteers with their efforts to learn more about the agricultural heritage of these communities. It is hoped that additional information on the history and features of these barns will be submitted by volunteers through the Vermont Barn Census project. The historical research and preliminary field documentation was conducted during the fall 2009 semester by Meghan Bezio, a graduate student enrolled in the Researching Historic Structures and Sites course at University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program with the assistance of local volunteers as part of the Vermont Barn Census, a statewide project of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, the University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program, Historic Windsor’s Preservation Education Institute, Save Vermont Barns, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, and the Preservation Trust of Vermont. Funding support provided in part by a Preserve America grant through the National Park Service to the State of Vermont Division for Historic Preservation.