Vermont Humanities

Vermont’s Remarkable Sharpshooters

Cambridge Historical Society 49 School St, Jeffersonville, VT, United States

Vermont sent far more sharpshooters to the Union armies than any other state, on a per capita basis. Sharpshooters from this state played a little-known but major role at Gettysburg. Historian Howard Coffin will discuss his recent research into this little-recognized group and consider the reasons why Vermont may have been so well-represented in this elite group of marksmen.

Red Scare in the Green Mountains: Vermont in the McCarthy Era

Dorset Historical Society VT Route 30, Dorset, VT, United States

What happened in Vermont when the anti-Communist fear known as the “Red Scare” swept the country? Quite a bit, as it turns out. Rick Winston, author of the recently published "Red Scare in the Green Mountains: Vermont in the McCarthy Era," explores some forgotten history as we see how a small, rural “rock-ribbed Republican” state with a historically libertarian streak handled the hysteria of the time.

From Homebrew to the House of Fermentology

Greensboro Free Library 53 Wilson St, Greensboro, VT, United States

Bill Mares began making his own beer 45 years ago, when home brewing was illegal and there were no microbreweries in America. In this presentation, he offers a short history of beer itself and discusses Vermont’s small but significant contribution to the American beer revolution.