Coming February 5, 2020. In this Farmers Night program commemorating the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage, Marlboro College professor Meg Mott leads a dialogue on the history and meaning of the 19th Amendment. Meg will be accompanied by Wesleyan University scholar and composer, Neely Bruce, conducting the State House Singers in his original choral arrangement of the Bill of Rights, along with the premiere of his 19th Amendment composition.
A Record Breaking Year and a Hearty Thanks
Friends of Friends,
As we are getting underway with our agenda and projects for 2020, we thought we’d take a step back and give a hearty “thank you” to everyone who supported Friends of the Vermont State House with their time, engagement, gifts, and appreciation of our treasured State House. We are happy to say that our Annual Appeal drive was very successful, resulting in record gifts.
We have an exciting year ahead of us, starting with the new “Women in the State House” exhibit installed on February 7 and the Friends’ sponsored Farmers Night that followed. We had a good turnout for “The 19th Amendment through Word and Song” and have great appreciation for everyone who lent their voice and music to the performance.
Our curatorial committee is working to bring attention to diversity in the State House art collection, as well as highlighting and displaying important artifacts. Our education outreach committee are working on new ways to engage young Vermonters in the legislative process and let them develop an appreciation for our institution.
We are affiliated with the Vermont Suffrage Centennial Alliance, which will be holding many events to celebrate 100 years since the 19th Amendment was enacted, including a city-wide parade in Montpelier and a festival on the State House lawn.
We look forward to seeing you at Friends’ events and at the State House throughout 2020.
Jack Carter, John Dumville and the Friends of the State House Trustees
A Time to Be Thankful.
The Friends have been busy in 2019. The new Curatorial Task Force is working to help shape the building’s collection of art and artifacts to more broadly represent Vermont’s diverse community. This means imagining and supporting ways to display both new additions to the collection as well as past acquisitions that need to be reinterpreted in light of evolving historical perspective. One of the most important examples of this is the Abenaki exhibition now in the lobby that showcases Native American contributions to Vermont’s heritage in the most important public building in the state. The education committee is developing a graphic booklet to introduce a new generation to the ideas of how a democracy works and every citizen’s civic responsibility. An ad hoc committee is considering adding descriptive labels to some of the State House art collection to provide a new level of context for the state’s history.
The Friends of the Vermont State House have kicked off their Annual Appeal for donations. The work of the Friends of the Vermont State House is entirely funded by donations from Vermonters such as you who care about the state’s heritage. Please help us continue our work. Your generosity is greatly appreciated by every Vermonter.