Glover History Winter 2008 1

Providing for the Future, Remembering the Past1783-2008

Vol. 17, No. 2 Glover Historical Society, Inc. Summer 2008

GL VER HISTORY

From thePresident…

Time keeps marching on—today will be his-tory tomorrow. I say this because June 6, 2010 israpidly approaching. This is the date we will becelebrating the bicentennial of the letting out ofLong Pond, which is now known as Runaway Pond.There was a great celebration on June 6, 1910 atthe site, with 2,000 people, more or less, attend-ing the century mark of the event.

We are now making plans along with the Or-leans County Historical Society, which sponsoredthe 1910 event, to make it an even larger gather-ing. As previously mentioned in the Winter 2007newsletter, the Runaway Pond Park road has nowbeen paved and some landscaping is being plannedthis fall around the site with perennial flowers, etc.Much more work will be done next summer onimproving the look of the park.

We are open to suggestions and comments and,as always, everyone is welcome to come visit thesociety rooms anytime by contacting me at 525-8855, or in the winter months, 525-6212.

–Bob Clark

WarningThe 2008 Annual Meeting of the Glover Histori-

cal Society, Inc. will take place on Wednesday, Au-gust 13, at 7 p.m., at the Glover Municipal Buildingin the Library.

The principal agenda item at the meeting will beelection of four Directors. The terms of office of fourmembers of the Society’s “staggered” 12-memberBoard of Directors will expire as of the 2008 meet-ing: Martha Alexander (who resigned due to a moveto NH), Eleanor Bailey, Betsy Day and the term ofBetty Putney (which has been filled since her deathby Judy Borrell). Eleanor, Betsy and Judy are willingto serve again, if elected, and the board’s nominatingcommittee will be offering a name to fill the fourthslot. Nominations will also be accepted from the floorat the time of the meeting. The four “new” boardmembers will serve until the 2011 Annual Meeting.

Members are urged to attend the meeting in per-son, but should this not be possible, votes may becast by proxy by designating another Society mem-ber to act on your behalf. Written proxies should bemailed to the Glover Historical Society, Inc, P.O. Box208, Glover, VT 05839, to arrive by August 13.

The meeting agenda will also include reports onSociety activities during the preceding year, and areview of plans for future events.

–Joan Alexander, Secretary

Inside: Walcott’s Store and Currier’s Market. Plus GHS newsbits, Pioneer Day Camp and the Town Meeting quilt show.

Glover History Winter 2008 2

GHS news bits…The GHS was pleased to be one of six small- and

medium-sized museums chosen to be a part of TheVermont Alliance of Museums and Galleries Build-ing Accomplished Museums (BAM) program. Ben-efits will include training workshops on museum col-lections stewardship (planning, preservation, fund-ing) over the next year, and an intern next summerfor three weeks to help with museum projects. TheGHS contribution was $300, and we will receive$3,000 worth of services. The BAM program comesat a perfect time, just as we are completing our mu-seum inventory.

Speaking of the museum inventory, we are near-ing the end! We are working in the last of our threerooms and now getting to the more recent donations.It continues to be just amazing discovering the gemswe have in our museum. Recent “finds” have beenthe 164 letters from a West Glover soldier, GeorgeCenterbar, written home during World War I, and atiny pocket letter book filled with original poemswritten by a Glover boy, Varnum Abbot, while hewas in California during 1854–55, digging for gold.More about those works in the winter newsletter.

Vermont Life featured Vermont food and farmersin their summer 2008 issue, and we are proud to re-port that both (all) of Glover’s restaurants madethe cut. Parker Pie at the Lake Parker Country Storewas listed in the round-up of “26 New Restaurantsto Discover,” with praise for their artisan pizza,

“killer” dessert pies and clientele that could be “au-ditioning for a remake of Hair.” The Busy Bee madethe list of “Old Faves” with a note that it is nowunder new management.

The GHS helped foster a new generation of his-tory enthusiasts by donating $50 to be used as a sav-ings bond prize for the History Day Fair sponsoredby the Orleans County Historical Society in March.Glover was well represented, with the all of GloverCommunity School’s junior high students participat-ing with some wonderful exhibits. Several GHS mem-bers and other Gloverites (past and present) volun-teered as judges: Ann Creaven, Liz Nelson, HarrietKing, Rachel Lafont, and Joan Alexander.

The Glover Room exhibit at the Old Stone Housecurrently has the Queen of Hearts exhibit on thewall, but just before August 10, Old Stone HouseDay, we will take down the Queens and put up thephotos from the Sliding Stories exhibit. Sliding Sto-ries will remain on display until Old Stone HouseDay in 2009.

In 2002, the GHS purchased the U.S. Flags thatyou see hanging from the street light posts in Gloverand West Glover villages. Thanks go to the GloverFire Department for hanging them up each spring intime for Memorial Day, and then taking them downagain in the fall. Each year a few need replacing; thisyear we replaced four.

Corrections: Please note that the sprucing up ofthe Glover Room at the Old Stone House that wasdone last summer was not the first time it had beendone since Daisy Dopp and others tackled it in the1950s, as we stated in the last newsletter. In 1991, aGlover crew—Carole Borland, Jim Currier, RuthEvans, Betty Putney, Marion Woodard, and BevYoung—restored the plaster and ceiling and reorga-nized the exhibit. Thanks to Jim Currier for remem-bering this! Another correction to be made to thelast issue is that Ellsworth Matthew’s middle namewas Douglas, not Donald as was written.

The GHS will have booths at both Glover Day(June 26) and Old Stone House Day (August 10).See you there!

–Joan Alexander

Glover HistoryA semiannual publication of theGlover Historical Society, Inc.

P.O. Box 208, Glover, VT 05839gloverhistoricalsociety.org

Additional Board Members:Martha Alexander, Eleanor Bailey, Jean Borland,

Judy Borrell, Gisele Clark, Harriet King, John UrieRandy Williams

President ..................... Bob ClarkVice President ................. Betsy DaySecretary ................. Joan AlexanderTreasurer .................. Michael Ladd

Thanks to Lucy Smith for compiling our mailing listand keeping it up to date.

Glover History Winter 2008 3

3rd in our seriesGlover place names:

Wolcott’s Store/Currier’sThis issue’s close-up look at a place name of

Glover strays from our usual fare of picking a road,hill or lake to explore. This time we are featuring atown landmark that quite possibly is better knownthan any of Glover’s natural sites: Currier’s Mar-ket. Most directions any-one gives for how to getfrom one spot to anotherin Glover begin with,“Well, if you start fromCurrier’s Store….” Ageneral store sellinggroceries, meats, gas,hardware, clothing,housewares, huntingand fishing supplies andserving as a post office,Currier’s is the hub ofthe town, and has beenfor a long time.

Several years ago, GHS board member John Urieinitiated a project of making signs for the businessand cultural buildings in Glover. On his wooden signs

was the date the building was built. You will see hishandiwork on churches, the Busy Bee, the Town Hall,even the vault at Westlook. Every day coming intowork, Julie Currier McKay passes John’s sign onCurrier’s Market, which reads “1908,” and she re-

minded the HistoricalSociety that this yearmarked the centennial ofthe store. “Somebodyshould write an articleabout it,” she suggested.We decided to do justthat, and enlisted the helpof Julie, who grew upabove and in Currier’sMarket. We were thrilledwhen Alden Wolcott alsoagreed to share his richmemories (and somewonderful photos) of the

store when it was known as Wolcott’s Store, or theBrown Egg Store.

“Roy E, Davis, The Brown Egg Store” float, c. 1900, in frontof the brick house (by the Bean Hill Road turn to West Glover),now the Red Sky Trading Co. and home of the Saffords.

Main Street, Glover, before the 1908 fire, showing the Roy E. Davis Store on the far right, and just southof it, the King Store. After the fire, both stores were rebuilt, but exchanged locations.

Glover History Winter 2008 4

Marilyn and Alden Walcott at their summer camp on ShadowLake, June 2008. The Walcotts celebrated their 50thwedding anniversary this spring. Marilyn is the author ofShadow Lake Reflections, a history of the all the camps onShadow Lake. She was Alden’s typist and editor for his“Brown Egg Store” memories. Alden is a retired high schoolphysics teacher. He and Marilyn live in Essex Junction,Vermont and spend their summers at Shadow Lake.

Roy Davis began storekeeping in this building inGlover circa 1908. Prior to that time, his businesswas conducted just north of the current location. Afire in 1908 destroyed two store buildings in the cen-

ter of Glover village, one run by J.G. King, the otherby Roy Davis. When the stores were rebuilt, Mr. Davisand Mr. King traded locations.

My father, Dale Walcott, started to work for Mr.Davis at an early age, possibly in 1911 when he was13 years old. When Roy Davis was ready to retire,Dale Walcott and Carroll Lyon (both former storeclerks) joined in partnership to purchase the store and

The Brown Egg Store by Alden Walcott

the building in 1919. Dale and Marjorie (Bean)Walcott and Carroll and Dora (Phillips) Lyon andher mother, “Grandma” Phillips, occupied the sec-ond floor living space, each having their own sec-

tion as there were two complete apartments.Unfortunately, Mr. Lyon became mortally ill

with cancer, was hospitalized in Boston and suc-cumbed to the disease in 1934. At that time myparents bought the Lyon’s share and conducted thebusiness themselves. To attract customers to thestore, there was a wooden advertising sign in front,perhaps three feet tall and fifteen feet long and vis-ible from both sides. The lettering was “Dale B.Walcott, General Merchandise, Glover, VT.” Thesign was suspended in the air at a height of nearlyfifteen feet and attached perpendicularly betweenthe building and a tall light pole. Eventually a strongwind demolished the sign, and it fell to the ground.

It was replaced by a commercial sign provided byCoca-Cola Co. serving as advertising for the busi-ness and the product.

Four iron railings in front of the building wereused for hitching posts for customers’ horses whenthey came to town. On either side of the front en-trance there were large display windows, perhaps

Davis Store

Glover History Winter 2008 5

20 feet wide by seven feet tall with diagonal side win-dows slanted toward the entrance. Between these andthe inner access windows, there were display shelvesfour to six feet deep. The displays were often changedweekly in the northern window featuring current gro-cery specials. The south window was used for dis-plays honoring special holidays such as Christmas,Easter, or the Fourth of July, or merchandise appro-priate to the season such as sleds and winter boots,gardening tools, or summer camping supplies, etc.Three large striped awnings protected the merchan-dise from the sun’s rays. They were raised and low-ered independently by rope pulley, eventually beingreplaced by one continuous awning which wascranked by hand.

To keep the hitchingposts and the store en-trance clear in winter itwas necessary to handshovel in front of thestore. We hired a localresident to draw awaythe snow with his horseand sled. It was ulti-mately dumped into theriver. When the State ofVermont began to plowthe roads, they pushedthe snow to the side ofthe building making piles as much as eight feet tall.

The building had a steam heating system fueledfirst by wood, then coal, finally oil. The wood wasdelivered to the large woodshed to the rear of the

building, stored for a year to dry, then put into thebasement via a 10- to 12- foot chute and piled againstthe front wall ready to stoke the wood furnace. Oftenthe wood was bartered for outstanding storeaccounts, making a convenient transaction for bothparties.

From Dean Bailey Collection at GHS Museum. Dated inpencil: Oct. 1908.

Local people were hired to help run the business.Among them were Alonzo Phillips, Robert Clark, PaulParker, Owen Bickford, Ruth Brooks, Nat Hubbard,and Ethel Bean. Marjorie Walcott assisted as needed.Customers often congregated around the front of thestore sitting on boxes of merchandise, swappingstories which sometimes were of doubtful origin.Perhaps the largest group would appear just beforemail delivery time or as post-dinner entertainment.

They always re-ceived warm greet-ings upon enteringand friendly good-byes when theyleft.

Both my sisterCharlotte and Iwere born upstairsin the northwestcorner bedroom,attended by Dr.Percy Buck. Mrs.Lola Clark gaveassistance to my

mother at both births.Charlotte was born in 1926 and I was born in

1929. During my youth I assisted in the store, andduring my college years I also assisted in the post

Glover History Winter 2008 6

office when my parents might be away. My mother,Marjorie Walcott, served as Assistant Post Masterwhen her children were in their more independentyears. I lived here with my parents until my marriagein 1958 although I was away through my collegeyears at UVM and my early teaching job, returningto Glover for the summer months.

To keep the dust down, the hardwood floors hadto be oiled periodically, usually on Saturday eveningso that it would be dry by Monday morning. Thefloor in back of the grocery counter shelves sufferedsuch constant traffic that it wore out to the sub-floor.However, the floor was an inviting place for me toroller skate on weekends. Frequent stops at the candycase were “needed” for energy. Many games ofmarbles were played on thefront steps as there was acrevice between the ce-ment steps and the wall ofthe building making a con-venient target for thosecontesting a game.

Access to the secondfloor was on the south sideof the building. There wasa 21-step set of stairs withan iron railing on the rightside. Although I fell downits length a few times, I of-ten used the railing as a“slide” when I wished tomake a quick exit. At thetop of the stairs was a large central foyer lighted bytwo large skylights. Between the ceiling and the roofthere was an attic which was reached through a trapdoor in one of the closets in the southern end of thebuilding. Access to the roof of the building was madethrough one of the skylight windows, which washinged for easy entry to the roof by ladder. Eventhough the building appeared to have a flat roof fromthe ground, all four sides were built up by as muchas four feet in some places and by as little as onefoot in others. The roof was slanted toward the cen-ter, allowing for run-off of rain and melting snow.To reduce excess weight on the roof, the water es-caped through a central drainage pipe and into thesewer. Periodically the roof had to be re-tarred to

prevent leakage. The large containers of hot tar wereraised to the roof by pulley, spread by large levelingtools, taking several days to almost a week to finishthe task.

The large screened porch on the northern sidewas enjoyed as summer sleeping quarters for my fa-ther. Since the ice refrigerator was kept on the porch,there was a hole for drainage which dripped to theground outside. The porch was also a summer playarea, large enough to race toy cars or perhaps serveas a small bowling alley.

Along with a comprehensive offering of grocer-ies, various dry goods were sold. Clothing such asboots, overalls, jackets, shoes and stockings for bothmen and women, hats, fabric, thread, sewing notions,

women’s apparel, schoolsupplies, costume jewelry,gardening tools and seeds(both packaged and bulk)were in stock. A varied of-fering of hardware, paints,etc, patent medicines suchas Bag Balm which wasmanufactured in Lyndon-ville, Kow Kure, made inNewport, and Dr. Naylor’sveterinary supplies. Inspring time, maple sugaringnecessities such as felt fil-ters, spouts, bits, metal con-tainers, and the like weredisplayed. Horse collars,

bridles, bits, rasps, and horse shoes, and other acces-sories were available as well.

Wooden containers of bulk chocolates wereplaced near the counter, and they often disappearedone-by-one when customers went by. A variety ofsoda drinks were sold including Barr, which wasmanufactured in Hardwick. Salt salmon, salt pork,potatoes, sugar, lard, peanut butter, dried dates,“penny” candy and cookies came in bulk. Ice creamcame in 2-½ and five gallon tubs and was scooped toorder, either in cones or individual pint or quart con-tainers. Large 30-pound wheels of cheddar cheesefrom Cabot came in wooden boxes. It was then placedon a cutting board covered by a large transparentplastic dome and cut to order with a sizeable knife.

Dale Walcott, proprietor of Walcott Store

Glover History Winter 2008 7

Plug tobacco was dispensed via a tobacco cutter inthe amount ordered. Customers would give their liststo the clerk who retrieved the goods from bins, cases,or shelves, some quite high, and reached by ladderor long-handled “grabbers.” Should an item not bein stock, it was common to order it from anothersource. Store goods were often ordered from “run-ners” or salesmen who came in periodically, some

weekly, some as infrequently as once a year. Mer-chandise was shipped to the store by freight.

In the “back store” which started to the rear ofthe central chimney, there were paints and paintingsupplies, horse collars, scythes, sickles, hoes, lightbulbs, garden seeds. Excess stock was stored thereas well until it was needed on the shelf. Cabbage,carrots, onions, and other vegetables were stored inthe cool section of the basement. We kept a cat inthe store which was very clever, opening unlockeddoors with its paws, so it was always in the “backstore” at night lest it help itself to groceries on dis-play. Sometimes the cat when foraging on the out-side would present us with squirrels, birds, field mice,and other choice morsels.

On Saturday morning it was my job to bag upsugar in five- or ten-pound bags, and potatoes inpecks and half-pecks. The potatoes were deliveredin 100-pound bags to the rear of the store and oftenspread out to dry before bagging in smaller lots. Vin-egar and molasses were purchased by the barrel andcustomers’ containers would be filled from spigots.These barrels were stored in the basement of the storeso it was necessary to climb the stairs, sometimesleaving the store unattended. Alcohol was not forsale even when the Town of Glover voted “Wet,”nor was the store open on Sunday. Some customers

satisfied their desire for alcohol by purchasing fla-voring extracts whichcontained an amountof it. From Mondaythrough Saturday,business hours werefrom 6:00 a.m. until9:00 p.m. Occasion-ally, when there wasa movie showing inBarton, customersmight leave a grocerylist with us. It wasfilled while they weregone, and sometimespicked up as late as11:00 p.m. As shop-ping habits changed, store hours were adjusted.

Gulf gasoline was pumped from tanks outside,but kerosene was pumped by hand crank to the firstfloor from drums in the basement. An air compressorin the basement provided free air for pumping up tires.Gulf gas and oil products were delivered for 40 yearsby Hugh Fairbrother of Newport. During the 1940sgasoline was five gallons for $1.00.

Customers who lacked transportation or wereshut-ins were served by personal delivery of goods atno charge. People would either call in their orders orperhaps send postcards listing their orders. In the sum-mer months during World War II, it was customaryfor store personnel to drive to Shadow Lake to so-licit, then deliver, grocery orders to those withouttransportation. Many charge accounts were carried,some quite sizeable, and a number remained on thebooks when the store changed hands. Sometimes myfather went to the places of employment when it was

Glover History Winter 2008 8

pay day, hoping to settle somecharges, and he was aware when gov-ernment checks arrived, so it was con-venient to suggest payment of out-standing accounts.

Among other businesses con-ducted at the store was a comprehen-sive insurance agency, maple syrupwholesaling, cedar oil sales, and freshbrown eggs regularly shipped to Bos-ton in cases holding 24 dozen with asmany as ten cases sent at a time. Theeggs were first “candled” to assurefreshness. This was done by holdingthe eggs up to holes in an enclosedlighted box which made the shellstransparent. Occasionally we wouldfind one containing an embryo, the eggs perhaps hav-ing been gathered from a hidden nest, so these hadto be discarded. Brown eggs were laid by a certainbreed of hen such as Rhode Island Reds and Ply-mouth Rock. Although we are unsure of why browneggs were the desired commodity, they brought apremium price as they do even today. Maple syrupwas purchased from individual farmers in the sur-rounding area, checked for density by hydrometerto insure its viscosity. Much of it was shipped toCary Maple Sugar Co (now Maple Grove Co.) inSt. Johnsbury or similar markets.

Since Vermont was the largest producer of ce-dar oil in the United States, it was a big business forus in the 1940s. Providers would make the oil by adistillation process in stills. The cedar brush was cutin late spring to early fall, placed in cylindrical tubsadjacent to a fireplace. Steam pipes from the top ofthe tub resulted in vapors which were converted intoliquid by condensation in cold water. The oil wasthen drawn off into 50-gallon drums for shipment.In 1941, $12,000 worth of oil was purchased by myfather for shipment to New York. The oil was usedin the munitions industry in the manufacture of shells,poison gases, and in the cleaning of guns. Peace timeuse for the amber-colored fluid was in furniture pol-ish and drugs. When World War II ended, the de-mand diminished so this practice was greatly reducedin volume. Freight was transported by Railway Ex-press from the store to the freight yard in Barton,

then shipped to wholesalers in NewYork and Boston by train.

The store also served as a stopfor the Greenwood Bus Line whichran from Newport to Montpelier.During World War II the store servedas a collection station for used news-paper, tin cans, etc. for recycling tosupport the war effort. It was thestore owner’s job to deal with ration-ing coupons on certain foods andgasoline which were then in shortsupply.

The “Office” was located in thenorthwest corner of the store wherethe telephone was located and thevintage Underwood typewriter sat

on a rolltop desk. A large metal safe was placed onthe back wall. The telephone was serviced by GreenMt. Telephone Co. operated by the Buckley Broth-ers of Barton and the New England Telephone Co.Since this was a party line, the Green Mt. Servicewas known as the “clothesline” as it is said that manyitems of gossip were “hung out to dry” on this line.There was no telephone connection to the upstairsapartments so they were signaled by a tap on a heatpipe should there be a private call.

An item of interest to customers was the mountedlake trout on the wall. It was caught by my father inShadow Lake in the mid-thirties, measured 36 inchesand weighed 16-½ pounds.Since fish were oftenweighed on the store scales,eleven fish which weigheda total of 99 lbs. were re-corded the same year.

The insurance agencywas conducted not only forincome, but also to reducethe cost of personalinsurance including liabilityand fire protection. Anagency representativeinspected the building,rating it up because of thedistance to the nearest fire

“V” for Victory WWII storewindow display.

Glover History Winter 2008 9

department, located in Barton at that time. In orderto reduce the cost of the insurance, two large five-foot water tanks sitting on an iron cart were kept inthe large barn to the rear of the store. The cart hadlarge wheels, perhaps four to five feet in diameter,and a long shaft which extended from the cart. It tookseveral men to pull this “fire wagon.”

Each tank contained water, baking soda, and itsown vial of sulfuric acid. The acid was emptied intothe main tanks when needed to build up pressure,forcing the water out. The sulfuric acid was purchasedin five-gallon containers and caution needed to betaken in handling the acid lest it burn one’s skin orclothing. These tanks were there not only for the storebuilding, but also were often used to put out chimneyfires in houses in the village. Because the occasion ofa fire would be so devastating, the insurance agentencouraged us to make a small stone dam in theBarton River behind the store so that a pool of watermight be ready in an emergency. As the river wasalso used for sewage disposal, this task was some-times unpleasant.

In the large barn to the rear of the store therewere stalls for both a horse and a cow. A turkey waskept there in the fall and eventually moved to thefront of the store to be raffled off for someone’s holi-day dinner. It also housed the car. In February whenthere was street racing, sometimes race horses com-ing from neighboring towns were housed in the barn.In one section, there was a large Fairbanks Morse

platform scale used to weigh heavy objects such asdeer, recyclables, maple syrup, or cedar oil. This sec-tion was higher than the road level with a separatedoor which made it more convenient to load materi-als into freight trucks. During the great flood of 1927,the lower level of the barn was under water. Watercame into the cellar of the store as well.

Water for the building was piped down from aspring on Dexter Hill, also serving several otherresidences in the village. The water flowed into areservoir, was piped underneath the road, and intothe buildings. On the rear lower level of the barn,there was an overflow water pipe which ran into abarrel. The water flowed the year around, ultimately

emptying into the river. Sometimes we storedminnows in the barrel so that we would have bait forfishing on the weekend.

The United States Post Office generatedadditional activity. The U.S. Government rentedspace in southwest corner of the store where a servicewindow and approximately 100 lock boxes werelocated. Mr. Walcott was the Postmaster and Mrs.Walcott was the Assistant. Until the late 1930s thiswas a political appointment, so job security variedas each election took place. There was a work counterfor the RFD agent who delivered mail to thecountryside. George Drew and Leslie Clark wereamong those who served as agents, first deliveringwith horse and wagon, then automobiles. The agentshad perhaps 45 regular patrons swelling to about 125in the summer. During vacations and summers whenin college, I was the Assistant Postmaster fordispersing the mail, selling postage, writing moneyorders, collecting for C.O.D. deliveries, etc., enabling

Glover History Winter 2008 10

me to earn money for college expenses.My mother took great pride in her large display

of tulip and daffodil bulbs, which provided a splen-did display along the south-ern fence line. My fathermaintained a vegetable gar-den to the rear of the storeas well as a sizable raspberrypatch behind the barn. Topick from the thorny rasp-berry vines, it was necessaryto wear nylon stockingsover the arm to avoid seri-ous scratches. The vinesproduced perhaps 50 or 60quarts during the season.The excess beyond personaluse was shared with friendsor offered in the store.

A single proprietorshipbusiness is a continuing taskboth from the point of what goes on in full view andthose duties that are necessary behind the scenes.But it is rewarding to know that you have made manyfriends, provided a service to those who lived here,

“Everyone was family, much as it is now” by Julie Currier McKay

and have become a life force in the community.Dale Walcott served the community well, not only

as storekeeper, but also as an important citizen ofGlover. He continued to runthe store until 1964 when illhealth suggested retirement,and the business was sold toVercil and Mabel Warnerfrom Craftsbury. In 1967,Maynard and Jessie Currierand James and Gloria Cur-rier purchased the buildingand business. Although manychanges have been institutedto blend with the changingneeds, the “Brown EggStore” continues to thrive asit did in the early 1900s.

And then, just a coupleof decades after Alden, Julie

Currier was growing up in the same building, nowknown as Currier’s Market. “I could go on and on,”Julie said…

I was six when we moved here, Shari was five,and Jeff was two.

We lived up over the store in one apartment, andGramp and Gram were on the other side in theirs.The store was quieter then so we could have mealstogether, go on vacations and close on Sundays for afamily day.

Gramp and Gram had a dog named Shag whoused to stay in the store all day and sometimes hewould sneak out with a Tootsie Roll or a Snickersbar in his mouth.

It was so quiet in town and we could play in theriver and in people’s backyards. No one minded, andthey would wave to us from their windows.

The section where the laundry soap is now used

to be a barn, separatefrom the store. JohnBarnum lived in the barnand worked on cars. Heslept in a cubby holewith a mattress in it. Wethought that was prettycool.

Once we were oldenough to work, wewere taught everything:cash register, meat cut-ting, postal work, and eventually bookkeeping. Oncea week we were given money in a savings account.That was our paycheck.

Margorie Walcott with raspberry baskets.

Main Street, 2008.Currier’s Market on theleft. The former store on theright (most recentlyHebard’s) is now anapartment house.

Glover History Winter 2008 11

Growing up in a small town was wonderful. Itwas slower paced, friends young and old would stopand share stories, everyone was family; much as it isnow.

And a favorite story Jimmy Currier recalls:Jimmy remembers that Ada Urie used to ring the

store if she was in the middle of a baking project and

In Memoriam

Carolyn King PerronRuth Anderson Lawrence

Glover place names: What’s next?

suddenly realized she was out of a certain ingredient.She would ask Jimmy to send the butter or lard, orwhatever she was lacking, up with the mailman, whichJimmy did. Currier’s still makes deliveries sometimesto those who can’t get out, though not with the mailcarrier!

Currier family in front of the Post Office in Currier’s Market,July, 2008. Left to right: Jim Currier with his children Julie,Jeff and Shari.

Where should we head to next? The BlackHills? Daniels Pond? Mud Island? Bear CallRoad? We would LOVE to have one of you writethe next Glover Place Names feature! Just let Joanknow at 525-6212.

Glover History Winter 2008 12

Glover’s Pioneer Day Camp by Randy and Betsy Day Williams

Quilt show by Randy and Betsy Day Williams

The 11th annual Pioneer Day Camp was held June23–27 at the old Parker settlement, owned by BetsyDay and Randy Williams, dating back to 1798 and

the beginnings of the town of Glover. The themewas “The Lake,” its ecology and history, both con-tact and pre-contact. High points of the week werevisits from Eric Hanson, state loon specialist; Oliveand Ray Griffin, birdwatchers extraordinaire; BobRichards, water quality monitor for Lake ParkerAssociation; and some Abenaki friends who blessedthe sacred stone circle at the settlement, told sto-ries, drummed and sang Abenaki songs.

On Friday we took our annual hike to the top ofLone Tree Hill, where we met John Urie, and Harrietand Donald King, and had lunch. John takes thisopportunity every year to check on and fertilize hiselm tree—the one he planted 18 years ago to re-place the “lone” elm tree that was struck by light-ning. She’s a beauty, over 20 feet tall now. This yearwe had John’s two little granddaughters with us,one of whom is in the foreground.

The quilt show at this year’s town meeting wassponsored by Glover Historical Society and consistedof some wonderful historical quilts in the society’scollection, as well as quilts and coverlets from theprivate collections of residents of the town of Glover.

To begin with, the quilt behind the historicalsociety’s table was a postage-stamp quilt made byMrs. Christine Welch Gilman, then given to ChristyWright, Mark’s grandmother, who gave it to MarjoryBailey, Dean’s mother, who then gave it to EleanorBailey, who donated it to the society.

Also on display were some quilts made by OliveGriffin’s grandmother, Emma Drew, one of whichwas finished by Olive’s mother, Ada Urie. There wereseveral new quilts made by Collette Boutin and LoisBarrows, and one that Lois restored.

The coverlet on the back wall was made for theGlover Fire Department. Two of the hand wovencoverlets were woven by Kate Butler, the other onewas woven during the Depression by a woman fromthe mountains of North Carolina and is in the collec-tion of Betsy Day, who also contributed the star quilton the back wall and the beautiful Loraine Libertyquilt above the stage.

Finally, the quilt on the stage was our belovedBicentennial quilt from 1983, handmade by LoisBarrows, Barbara Wright, Marie Waring, TrudyCohen, Harriet King, and 19 other Glover women.

We would like to turn this into an annual event,and have already procured quite a few quilts for nextyear’s town meeting. Everybody at town meetingloved the display and it made for a much more per-sonalized and intimate atmosphere.

Randy Williams and Betsy Day Williams hang a quilt forthe Glover Town Meeting quilt display.

Harriet King, Donald King, John Urie and the Uriegranddaughters.