Tag Archives: Towns
South Hero Stone Castles
Stone Castles in South Hero, Vermont
The Lake Champlain Islands are well-known for their water sports, fishing and spectacular sunsets but they have something a casual tourist (or local) might not expect… castles. In the town of South Hero stone castles are scattered throughout, but they are very small and are hard to find.
I remember driving along West Shore Road in South Hero about 25 years ago and seeing miniature castles, bird feeders, planters and fountains made of stone. I wondered why there were so many of these works of art in such a small area. Was this a local custom, or were they the work of one person?
Well, here’s the story:
A Change of Plan
Harry Barber was born in Switzerland and always had a strong fondness for the castles found throughout the country. After he was injured in a mining accident, and received a large settlement from the government in the 1920’s, he decided he wanted to travel to Chile in South America. On his way through France he was robbed, and decided he would work his way to the Americas aboard a freighter. The only one that he could find was bound for Montreal – a long way from his dream of Chile.
After arriving in Montreal, he began his journey to Chile on foot, and traveled south into Vermont. When he reached Grand Isle he met a young woman selling fruit. She saw that he was hungry, and offered him an orange.
Appreciative of her kindness, Harry decided to stay in the Islands for a while. With the woman’s help, he found work as a farm hand on nearby Providence Island, just off the coast of South Hero. He continued to see the girl, and fell in love with her. They eventually married and bought a home in South Hero.
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Harry Barber’s Passion
Harry worked at a variety of jobs, but his true passion was always the castles that he remembered from his homeland. He created miniature buildings from local Vermont field stone. He was a passionate gardener and groundskeeper, and often loved to enhance the look of his properties by constructing beautiful castles, fountains and stone walls made from local field stone. The South Hero stone castles, of course, were all modeled after the castles of his homeland. He put such craftsmanship and detail into them, that he soon developed a reputation. Soon, he worked for wealthy patrons – building his miniature castles on their lawns or near their gardens. He also built a few fountains.
Harry became truly inspired by his passion of constructing these castles, and tried unsuccessfully to persuade a local museum to display some of his work. But the museum turned him down, and told him they were not interested. Devastated, he committed suicide in 1966 at the age of 66. Though his motives were unclear, some say it was due to a broken heart. He deemed himself a failure after being rejected.
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The South Hero Stone Castles Today
But Harry’s passion lives on. There are still some of these fountains and planters displayed on the lawns of several homes in South Hero. You can see examples of his passionate craftsmanship by touring the south end of South Hero, especially along West Shore Road.
Many of his original stone castles in South Hero, along with his planters and water fountains can still be seen scattered around many lawns or properties. The exact number of structures he built, and the number of those that survive are unknown. Most are on private property, and trespassing is inappropriate; others are hidden behind obstructions like plants. They are beautiful and unique reminders of a man with a dream and a fascinating story.
“Five castles, three houses, and several garden structures remain in the Islands. They vary in complexity. Some castles feature glazed windows, interior fireplaces, or dungeons. Others are wired for electricity and have the capability of running water in the moat. … All his creations are privately owned, and public access is not permitted; however four out of the five castles can be seen from the road.” – From a brochure issued by the Lake Champlain Bikeways.
- Upper Fish Bladder Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Fish Bladder Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Cloak Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Four Brothers Islands – Lake Champlain Islands
- Gunboat Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Cole Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Cedar Island – Lake Champlain Islands
- Schuyler Island – Lake Champlain Islands
Alburgh, Vermont – an Exclave
Alburgh, Vermont
Although considered part of the Lake Champlain Islands, Alburgh, Vermont is not on an island. It is, in fact, a peninsula of land that extends southward from Quebec into Lake Champlain. The Alburgh Peninsula (also known as the Alburgh Tongue) has the distinction of being reachable by land only through Canada.
Alburgh shares this distinction with only two other places in the United States – Point Roberts, Washington, and the Northwest Angle in Minnesota. Unlike the other two cases, this isn’t really significant any more since there are bridges to provide access to the peninsula from within the United States. These bridges connect the town to Rouse’s Point, New York, West Swanton, Vermont and North Hero, Vermont.
There is a fourth bridge connecting Alburgh to Isle LaMotte, Vermont, but Isle LaMotte is an island without any other connection to land other than that bridge.
Province Point, Alburgh, Vermont
Just to the northeast of the east shore of Alburgh is the southernmost tip of a small promontory roughly 2 acres in size (45.013351°N 73.193257°W).The promontory is cut through by the US-Canadian border making the area an exclave of the United States contiguous with Canada.
An exclave is a territory legally or politically attached to a territory with which it is not physically contiguous. In this case Province Point is a part of the United States although it is not physically connected to the U.S.
More Articles About Alburgh, Vermont:
45th Parallel Towns: Alburgh, Vermont
Fort Montgomery: From Blunder to Ruin
45th Parallel Towns of the Lake Champlain Valley
Another Alburgh, Vt Sunset (photo)
New York Funding Shoreline Stabilization in Bulwagga Bay
Port Henry and Moriah, New York have been losing Lake Champlain shoreline to erosion. The Adirondack Park Agency estimates about 25 to 40 feet have been lost since 1995. The town-owned beach and campsite have been severely eroded and both could be completely lost without intervention. On December 19 Governor Andrew Cuomo announced grants from the state to fund stabilization projects.
This article by Fred Herbst on the Denpubs.com website gives the details.
Moriah, Port Henry get grants
By Fred Herbst from Denpubs.com website
Port Henry — The town of Moriah and village of Port Henry will receive $1.2 million in grant funding from the state’s Regional Economic Development Council initiative.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo made the announcement Dec. 19.
Moriah will get $249,815 for its Bulwagga Bay shoreline stabilization project and $200,000 for a Lake Champlain non-point source pollution subwatershed assessment and management plan.
The village of Port Henry will get $600,000 to replace 1,371 linear feet of water line and 1,686 feet of sewer line and install eight new fire hydrants.
The Housing Assistance Program of Essex County, Inc. will receive $150,000 to redevelop a building at 4316 Main St. in Port Henry as a mixed-use property with retail on the first floor and two senior citizen apartments on the second.
Statewide, a total of $738 million was awarded for 725 economic development projects in every region of New York State.
The Bulwagga Bay project is key for the town of Moriah and the entire North Country, Moriah Supervisor Tom Scozzafava said.
“This is great news for the community,” he said. “These grants are based on regional impact. Bulwagga Bay has an impact beyond the town of Moriah.”
The town-owned Bulwagga Bay beach and campsite on Lake Champlain is being damaged by erosion. Without action the public beach and 175-site campground will be lost.
“It has to be done,” Scozzafava said of the shoreline stablization project. “The town board can’t sit back and let that shoreline erode. It’s a black and white issue; there’s no gray area. It has to be done.
“We’re losing 6 to 10 feet of beach a year,” he said. “We’re losing the beach; we’re losing the campground.”
The shoreline has moved back 25 to 40 feet since 1995, according to the Adirondack Park Agency.
45th Parallel Towns: Alburgh, Vermont
Alburgh, Vermont – A 45th Parallel Town
Alburgh, Vermont is the only 45th Parallel Town located in Vermont’s Grand Isle County, and is the western-most of Vermont’s 45th parallel towns.
Alburgh offers the only land route (via bridges) between New York and Vermont north of Crown Point, New York and Addison, Vermont. Unlike the other four towns in the county (Isle La Motte, North Hero, Grand Isle and South Hero) which are on islands, Alburgh is a peninsula projecting southward from Canada into Lake Champlain. Like the other four towns, it has a considerably higher percentage of lakeshore property than other towns on the Lake, making it popular for summer homes and camps.
What’s in a Name?
Ira Allen and 64 associates are named on the charter, but it was Allen who paid the fees and it was always considered “his” town, so it is reasonable to accept that the name is a contraction of Allenburgh or Allensburgh.
The name was changed to Alburg in 1891 on recommendation of the United States Board on Geographic Names, which for the sake of standardization, determined that all municipal names ending in ”-burgh” were to be changed to ‘-burg”. Other Vermont towns affected were Enosburgh, Ferrisburgh and Irasburg. In 2006, a majority of Alburgh voters approved changing the spelling of the town’s name back to Alburgh.
Pronunciation?
Most residents pronounce the “Al” as in “Allen,” and this is the generally accepted pronunciation, although there are some who pronounce it as in “ball”.
History
In 1734, much of the land had been granted by the French in Canada. After the British victory in the French and Indian War, those titles were passed to Henry Caldwell and later to his son. This later led to disputes between the Republic of Vermont, the United States and Canada over the rights of various claimants. Ownership was eventually confirmed to the settlers who were actually in possession of the land.
Later in 1781, when it was chartered, Ira Allen was one of the commissioners appointed to negotiate the boundary between the Republic of Vermont and State of New York. It was agreed that Alburgh would be part of Vermont, but disputes continued.
Alburgh was an important rail hub until the early 1960’s providing connections between northern New York State, Vermont and the rest of New England, and Canada. With the ending of the railroad era, Alburgh has become primarily an agricultural and vacation home community.
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Alburgh Dunes State Park
This 625-acre property became a state park in 1996. It is named for the sand dunes near its’ natural sand beach. This beach is one of the longest beaches on Lake Champlain.
The beach and dunes make up a barrier island, geologically similar to formations commonly found along ocean shorelines. The sand here has come from a layer of glacial till, the soil that was left when the last glacier melted.This sand settles out in a pocket between the rocky “Point of Tongue” to the east and “Coon Point” to the west, forming the beach. Southerly winds blow the sand back from shore to form dunes. This forms a barrier between the lakeshore and the wetland behind, and an island because the beach and dunes, however slowly, continue to migrate into and over the wetland.
The wetland behind the beach includes the largest black spruce bog in Grand Isle County. Black spruce swamps and bogs are more typical of colder, northern climates than of the Champlain Valley, which is Vermont’s warmest area. Core samples from the bog reveal peat to depths of more than 26 feet.
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http://www.alburghvt.org Office Hours: Monday – Friday 9 AM-5 PM
(802) 796-3468 email: townofalburgh@fairpoint.net