Wilmington 250 committee welcomes historians, archaeologist, and author

The Vermont 250 Town of Wilmington Committee announces its June events.

On Sunday, June 14, at 2 pm, local historian James Dassatti will give a presentation at the Wilmington Town Hall, 2 East Main Street, on “Living the Colonial Life.” A graduate of Norwich University, Dassatti has been a longtime Revolutionary War reenactor and lecturer. The talk will provide details about colonial life in Wilmington and beyond.

On Thursday, June 18, at 7 pm, historian and author Kevin Graffagnino presents “Zadock Thompson and the Story of Vermont,” in the Old School Community Center, 1 School Street.

Zadock Thompson (1796-1856) was a historian, naturalist, professor, and minister who played a significant role in how 19th  century Vermonters viewed the state’s heritage and appreciated its natural resources. Thompson’s magisterial “History of the State of Vermont, Natural, Civil, and Statistical” (1842) remains one of the best sources ever published on the Green Mountain State. Graffagnino looks at Thompson’s life and career, with particular emphasis on how Thompson’s work shaped several generations of Vermont attitudes toward Vermont's 18th century beginnings.

On Saturday, June 20, at 3 pm, Lake Champlain Maritime Museum Staff Archaeologist Taylor Picard presents “The Battle of Valcour Island,” at the Old School Community Center, 1 School Street.

The remnants of a battle generally regarded as one of the first naval battles of the American Revolutionary War, and one of the first fought by the continental Navy, are a part of Vermont’s history.

Picard has been doing archaeology throughout the continental US for the last 10 years, ranging from prehistoric sites in the southwest, logging towns of the Pacific Northwest, and shipwrecks in the frigid waters of Lake Champlain. Driven by a need to share forgotten stories of history, Picard has a keen interest in the common lives of people that tend to fall through the cracks of time. This talk will detail the historic Battle of Valcour, from the buildup of both the British and Patriot fleets to its final moments in Arnold’s Bay, through the lens of archaeology.

One of Wilmington’s Vermont 250 displays will be open for viewing at each event.