The Zombie Next Door

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     The Victory Mill went up in smoke on May 31, 2025. It was an 100+ year old former cotton and paper mill that fell victim to arson  by a couple of teenagers. It wasn't the first and probably won't be the last such structure to suffer this fate. John D'Alessandro, secretary of The Firefighters Association of the State of New York was quoted as saying, "We have a lot of those old vacant structures. This is going to be a problem fire departments are going to have to contend with for the near future." 

Screen shot from video walk thru of Stevens and Thompson plant in Middle Falls

posted on Youtube

     He makes a valid point. We build to meet a need and hopefully make a profit. But what happens when what we build is no longer needed? Abandoned and derelict structures are all too common in our area. Bio Tech, Skybel and Stevens and Thompson, all on the Battenkill River, come to mind. Then there is the Thompson Mill in Valley Falls. An effort to raze that building and create a park on the Hoosic River is projected to cost four million dollars. Dealing with asbestos is expensive. Almost all of these former mills are considered 'brown fields' with various toxic chemicals polluting the sites. The EPA, at taxpayer expense, did some clean-up at both Bio Tech and Skybel. Given the current administration's priorities it's hard to know if there will even be an EPA in the future.

Thompson Mill in Valley Falls

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     Waterpower was highly valued by early settlers. They built small dams and lumber and grist mills at many sites in Washington County. Historians have documented these places and you can sometimes still find traces of former activity. The Rexleigh Marble Mill is a familiar example. 

Rexleigh Mill

(Battenkill Conservancy photo)

     As agriculture developed, barns and silos were constructed. Evolving economics have made many of these obsolete and left them in various states of decay. For some this has resulted in second careers as subjects for area artists! ASA's Landscapes for Landsakes showcases these old farm buildings not as eyesores but as part of the charm of rural Washington County. 

Harry Orlyk painting

This prolific Salem artist has many more landscapes for sale on his website 

     Unfortunately, the paper mills that developed in the late 1800's and early 1900's lack the 'scenic' factor and are more likely to be contaminated with chemical residues.  Most are located near rivers and streams which causes additional concern. Time and technology have left these buildings behind. After years of failing to find an adaptive reuse for the Victory Mills plant it was slated to be demolished even before the fire hastened its demise. 

     Occasionally there are better endings, as a family story reveals. For years my grandfather managed a textile factory on Elm Street in Glens Falls. When the company that owned it looked south for labor savings Grandpa Butler went to North Carolina to oversee construction and manage the new factory staffed by low payed black women. Unjustly, they were the cheapest labor available. Eventually, even that plant closed and all production moved overseas where wages were lower yet. The good news is that the Glens Falls building where he had worked for many years was refurbished as upscale condominiums and continues in that function to the present day. A rare success story in reusing an old industrial structure. 

 

The former Clark Brothers textile mill in Glens Falls converted to condominiums

Jon and Deana Ketchum refurbished this Salem garment factory

It is now their home and furniture shop

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     For every site put to new use there are many others that are derelict. The GE and Ciba-Geigy plants in Fort Edward/Hudson Falls/Glens Falls have been demolished with their former locations empty and creating no jobs or economic activity. The same can be said for the Thompson Pulp and Paper Mill lot on the Hudson near Schuylerville. Other properties are tax delinquent, contributing nothing to the community while actually costing us in blight and remediation. They are dangerous 'attractive nuisances' that kids are drawn to explore. Local government officials seem at a loss in dealing with these situations. They are sometimes called 'Zombie Properties' but who wants to live with zombies in their midst? 

Thompson Pulp and Paper in better days

Old photo from top of Starks Knob?

Buildings have since been razed

     * Back in November of last year I was fortunate to hear a presentation by Skidmore College student Nicholas Sisto on "The Company and its Town: Textile Production in Victory Mills and the Community Built Around it." Sisto did a great job and his research has relevance to other 'company towns' in our area. The talk was filmed and you can watch it here.

Nicholas Sisko presenting on Victory Mills

Puppets x 2

     The Bread and Puppet Theater has announced a spring tour that includes several appearances in and around Washington County. They will be in Manchester Vermont on Saturday March 28, in Bennington on Monday March 30 and in Cambridge New York on Friday and Saturday. April 3 and 4. Click here for more info.  

     For those unfamiliar with Bread and Puppet, they are the creation of Peter and Elka Schumann and have been staging original theater pieces for 63 years. The troupe is based in rural Glover, Vermont. According to Shumann:

          "We have two types of puppet shows: good ones and

          bad ones, but all of them are for good and against evil."

Peter Schumann

Elka Schumann

1935 - 2021

     The shows are often politically radical and definitely not MAGA endorsed. The 'Bread' in their name comes from the practice of sharing sourdough rye with the audience after each show and the 'Puppet' refers to their large cardboard and paper mache creations.

          "We give you a piece of bread with the puppet show

          because our bread and theater belong together. For a

          long time the theater arts have been separated from the stomach."

- Peter Schumann        

           

          

 

     I first saw them many years ago at Skidmore College in Saratoga and most recently last summer at one of their Circus's in Glover. (Unfortunately, an earlier in the day hike up nearby Wheeler Mountain left me in need of a nap and I slept thru most of the Circus!) The performances in Glover remind you of mini-Woodstocks with lot's of hippie vib, plenty of tie dye and the occasional VW microbus.

 

     Definitely check out the local shows this spring but for the full Bread and Puppet experience I would recommend a trip to the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont later this summer. If you've got a few days there is plenty of hiking and biking nearby and a paddle or beach day on Lake Willoughby is a must. The New Yorker's restaurant critic visited the area and raved about the local food scene in a recent issue. There is also the quirky Museum of Everyday Life as well as  Bread and Puppets own museum of art work from past performances. 

 

     Don't confuse Bread and Puppet with the Mettawee Theater. Both companies are known for their masks, costumes and puppets. Sadly, the Mettawee's much loved summer evening shows came to an end with founder Ralph Lee's death in 2023. They have been doing a one night potpourii of past shows at the Georgi in Shushan since then and they also take part in Salem's Fourth of July parade. Good things don't necessarily last forever. All the more reason to see a Bread and Puppet show while you can.

Ralph Lee

Go/Read/Write/Repeat

     "This is how you do it."

     'It' can be anything you can think of (and some things you probably shouldn't think about). From birth to grave we are all inundated with advice on every aspect of how to live. In a positive sense this is what makes us human: the ability to pass knowledge (and dare I say wisdom) on from one generation to the next. It's the reason we have schools, go to church, are awash in Youtube videos and Facebook pop philosophy.

     But a book I've just read reminds me of the writers dictum: 'show, don't tell'. The book is John Elder's Reading the Mountains of Home. It's a blueprint showing (not telling) how to have a relationship with a place. Elder is a retired English and Environmental Studies professor from Vermont's Middlebury College. He lives in Bristol, a small village that snugs up against the front range of the Green Mountains. Here the New Haven River has cut an impressive gap thru the Hogback Anticline with the Bristol Cliffs Wilderness Area to the south of town and rugged ledges and a high ridge extending to the north.   

 

Google Earth view of Bristol, Vermont looking north

Wilderness area at bottom, New Haven River gap and 

Hogback Ridge extending to top

     Reading the Mountains of Home begins with a poem by Robert Frost. 'Directive' tells of a walk up to the site of a long abandoned settlement. Frost knows this landscape intimately having lived just a few miles south of Bristol in Ripton. John Elder uses Frost's poem as inspiration and guidance for a number of hikes into the mountains. As you might guess, Frost's poem and Elder's book are about much more that a simple walk in the woods. Both men are looking for a deeper connection to where they call home.

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     The 'This is how you do it' lesson I take away is to first immerse yourself in a place. Walk in all seasons and all weather. Wander while seeing, listening, absorbing the world thru your senses. Let your natural curiosity guide you as your relationship with place develops. Let books, maps and knowledgable people give perspective to your experience. Let study of the natural and cultural history of your home enrich your rambles. And finally, interpret what you have experienced in words or sketches. Keeping a journal organizes and records your thoughts. Go/read/write/repeat. 

     Few of us will bring the talents of a college English professor to our writing but we can all learn from one. After receiving his Yale Ph.D, John Elder came to Middlebury in 1973 and taught there until his retirement in 2010. In 2008 he was named Vermont professor of the year. He also has a long history of teaching at the Bread Loaf School of English and is the author of a number of books. For an interesting YouTube video of Elder's thoughts about living in Bristol  click here. 

Bristol...

     I haven't been to Bristol in a few years but after reading Elder's book I'm itching to head up that way. I'll share a few thoughts here in case you also want to visit 'The Gateway to the Green Mountains'.

* A good overview of the towns attractions is available here.

* Whenever I climb Camels Hump (my fav mountain!) I usually stop at the Bobcat Cafe for burgers and beer on the way home. Other Bristol options are the Minifactory for breakfast/coffee and The Tillerman (a few miles outside of town) for wood fired pizza.

* One of my earliest memories of Bristol is parking by the green and then biking up towards Monkton before looping back along Rt. 116. Classic Vermont scenery.

* Paddlers might consider exploring Bristol Pond and its adjacent wetlands located just outside of town.

Topo maps of the Bristol area

* There is a lot of vertical rock around here and it can get confusing. Bristol Cliffs is the name of the wilderness area just south of the village. Its dominant feature is a striking west facing scarp. There are no trails and the only obvious access point is on the opposite (east) side. From 116 in Rocky Dale turn onto Lincoln Road then right again onto York Hill Road. At a sharp left bend look for a small parking area. Bring a map, compass and sense of adventure.

     Bristol Ledges is on the north side of the village. These seen to be an extension of the same scarp that forms the aformentioned cliffs but on the other side of the New Haven River gap. 

     Deers Leap is the obvious cliff rising above the river gap visible from the village. There are trails to the ledges and Leap. Check the previously mentioned Bristol attractions website for directions. Also note that while they are scenic and offer great views none of these sites have rock that appeals to climbers.

Deer's Leap

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* Two spots just east of town are the Lords Prayer Rock and Bartlett Falls swimming hole. Spiritual inspiration and spirited fun. What more could you ask for?

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* Finally, while you're in the area you might want to visit the Robert Frost Farm in nearby Ripton. I'm guessing this is where the poet wrote 'Directive'.

Frost's Vermont writing cabin 

Heros

     Allow me to indulge in some hero worship. Of course, there are the real life historical hero's from our area. People like Robert Rogers and Israel Putnam who fought in the early Colonial wars. Their exploits in the Lake George area are legendary. Then there is Susan B. Anthony who grew up in Battenville and went on to a life of tirelessly campaigning for women's rights.

The Rogers Memorial

     Other American icons from the past include George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, whose integrity and iron will forever shaped the country. And think of what the world would be like if Churchill, Roosevelt and Eisenhower didn't meet the threat of Hitler and the Nazis with unbreakable courage. Or if John Kennedy had been afraid to go toe to toe with the Soviets? 

     Still another kind of hero is found in the pages of novels or on the silver screen. Tough guys like John Wayne and Clint Eastwood. The unmatched physicality of Bruce Lee. Supermans, Batmans  and Wonder Womans. Rambos and Reachers, Terminators and "Bond, James Bond".

     Joesph Campbell explored the mythic allure of the journey the good and the brave must take in his landmark The Hero with a Thousand Faces. My thought is that when you have people whose values, whose very existence is threatened, you've created the need for a hero to defend them. There's a song by Tina Turner called We don't need another Hero. I think it's from one of those Mad Max movies. But I beg to disagree. Another hero is exactly what we need in these times of assault on our most cherished principles, on our basic safety and security.

     When one party has become nothing but a bunch of boot-licking cowards and the other incapable of anything but ineffective outrage, who is left to fight? A few brave citizens who are shot for just bearing witness? Is it any wonder I have a fantasy about the Terminator terrorizing ICE agents into a chaotic mad dash over the border into Mexico (where I'm sure the locals would give them a 'warm' welcome). Or how I can imagine Bruce Lee silently slipping into a White House cabinet meeting with nothing but his steely gaze and bare fists, a one man Department of Justice come to deliver.

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     And, in a rift on one of my favorite movie scenes, I picture Air Force One on another tax payer funded million dollar run to Mar-a- Lago. Time for a round of golf. But 007 has stealthily snuck on board. When he bursts thru the door of the 'Presidential Suite' he finds a couple of under aged girls cowering before a Goldfinger look-a-like. The girls squeal with delight at being saved and just barely make it out the door before their assailant lets forth such a violent eruption that the window of the plane blows out. Everything is sucked into the void: the tanning cream, the check signed "with appreciation,V. Putin", all the Epstein Files. The last thing Bond sees is a bloated orange face muttering something about a "stolen election" and then 'poof' that is gone as well.  

      

Bond and Goldfinger

in a scene from the movie

           Of course, it's only in the movies and in our dreams that evil simply vanishes out a window. In the real world there are still many good people trying to make government work. And there are others, like the folks in Salem and Greenwich who have been out protesting in the bitter cold every weekend. There's Heather Cox Richardson who calmly puts the days events into historical perspective. And we are lucky to have a professional military made up of the best of us. Men and women who are committed to defending traditional American values of justice and equality for all, even while serving under a Commander-in-Chief who has no values beyond selfishness, greed and vindictiveness.

Greenwich protestors

     Maybe that's where this vision came from: A team of Navy Seals arrive in the wasteland that used to be the east wing of the White House. Despite being threatened with a golf club they quickly overcome the enemy with the command "We're here to give orders, not take them. You are charged with treason against the United States of America." With those words the nations nightmare comes to an end. At least that's the way of the hero's in my dreams.