This Week in HIstory: February 12 - 18

10 years ago:
Unusually warm weather gave local maple syrup producers an early start. Roy Corse, whose family has been sugaring since 1868, said it was the earliest sap run recorded in the farm’s production records, which date back to 1918. Corse said the early freeze/thaw cycle allowed the farm to produce 40 gallons of syrup during the early season.
15 years ago:
Valley residents Tyne Pike-Sprenger and David Rothman won a $25,000 Valentine’s Day wedding package at Mount Snow. The couple, both teachers at Stratton Mountain School, got engaged in September and planned to get married in Greece at a later date, but entered Mount Snow’s drawing for the dream wedding giveaway on a lark. Mount Snow contacted the couple on January 14, giving them a month to make their new plans.
20 years ago:
The Student Network’s Civil War documentary, “The Road to Gettysburg,” was set to be released. The full-length film traced the experiences of members of the 2nd Vermont Brigade from their mustering in 1862 to their heroism at Gettysburg. The work took TSN Director Bob Edwards and 35 TSN students to several Civil War battle sites, the National Archives in Washington, DC, and to libraries throughout Vermont and the country.
25 years ago:
The Wilmington Education Fund announced they would donate at least $375,000, and as much as $680,000, to the school during the upcoming fiscal year. The higher figure included matching funds from the Freeman Foundation. The budget windfall would save property owners more than $1.3 million in taxes. Under Act 60’s school funding formula, Wilmington sent a dollar to the state for every dollar they spent above the state’s per-pupil block grant. Revenue, including revenue from donations such as the one the Wilmington Education Fund planned to make, was not subject to the so-called Act 60 “shark” pool.
30 years ago:
An Easthampton, MA, man was stripped of his $10,000 prize for catching a specially-tagged fish at the annual Harriman Reservoir Ice Fishing Derby. But other anglers smelled something fishy, and reported that the man had been seen using what appeared to be a sonar device. After some investigation, officials discovered that the man had been using a “Fishing Buddy,” a device that locates fish by sonar. The man said he planned to bring legal action against derby officials.
Mount Snow purchased the 143-acre Howe Farm on Route 100 in Wilmington from New England Plantation Inc. The resort planned to use the site to build a 10-acre snowmaking pond.
35 years ago:
The Southern Vermont Valley News officially became The Deerfield Valley News when editor and publisher Don Albano sold the publication to Randy Capitani and Robert Edwards, partners in Vermont Media Publishing Co. Ltd. During an earlier iteration, the paper was known as The Mount Snow Valley News. At the time, the newspaper was almost 25 years old. It was founded in 1966 by Mount Snow’s marketing department, and focused on local news as well as resort features.
40 years ago:
Dover Town Clerk Virginia “Cookie” Carruthers announced she wouldn’t seek reelection. Carruthers had worked for the town since 1950, including 15 years as clerk. Town treasurer Mary Lou Raymo announced that she would run for the position. Other transitions included Clyde Jones, who was stepping down as school board director after 30 years. Jones was the fourth generation of school directors in his family.
A riding tractor was stolen from a residence in Wilmington. The Murray brand garden tractor was described as “rusted,” but the perpetrators were determined enough to shovel a path to the snow-covered tractor and drag it out to the road.
45 years ago:
Readsboro’s tax rate was $5.43, including $3.55 to support the school system, and $1.88 for the town. The proposed town budget would add 9 cents to the figure, and taxpayers also expected an increase in the school tax. At the same time, Dover’s tax rate was at $1.03.
Mount Snow Academy was “off the ground and on its way,” according to school director Tom Montemagni. Principal Lynn Sullivan said the academy’s proximity to Mount Snow and its accommodations at the Handle House on Handle Road would attract even more students in the following years. Students during the academy’s first year included Josh Gillis, Noel Sagerman, Amanda Cohen, and Todd Swim.
55 years ago:
Bob Snowman and Harold Thompson were canning “fresh pure Vermont air.” The pair claimed they took each can to the summit of Mount Snow to get the freshest possible air, before clapping on the cover and returning to their Wilmington “factory” to seal the can. According to rumor, the air enterprise had sold between four and six cans. The owners urged customers to “fight pollution” by sending Vermont air to the rest of the world.
Molly Scott, a regular performer at Fat City in Wilmington and resident of Charlemont, MA, appeared on Sesame Street with her 5-year-old daughter Maya Gillingham. Her segments on the show included cider making, a colonial toy, and performances of her own compositions.