Our very own Dave Cawley recently sat down with Preservation Burlington‘s Ron Wanamaker to share the unique history of the Old East End and hype our 3rd Annual Winterlude festival!
Learn about the boundaries of our neighborhood, the families who founded and defended the area, plus the homes, businesses, and taverns that supported this new settlement.
Here are some highlights: “Yorkers” are bad, the Green Mountain Boys are a force, and Ethan and Ira Allen kept us from being snatched up by New York.
Preservation Burlington is a non-profit 501c3 organization dedicated to preserving and protecting the historic architecture and live-ability of Burlington, Vermont through education and advocacy.
Hello neighbors! We’ve noticed sidewalk conditions are deteriorating along East Ave and Colchester Ave. Local businesses, Centennial Field, and UVM Medical Center drive a ton of pedestrian traffic in the area, and the hazards are especially challenging for seniors and neighbors with disabilities. The danger only increases during icy conditions, so we’re asking Burlington’s Department of Public Works (DPW) to prioritize their repair in 2022.
We believe neighbor comments sent to DPW supporting our request may help prioritize the repairs. Please call Chapin Spencer at DPW (802-865-5818), or email the addressees in our letter to express your support. Official plans for 2022 construction projects will be announced on April 18.
If you would like more information, please contact Cynthia Cook at ccook@adamantaccord.com
Burlington’s Department of Public Works (DPW) is proposing a traffic calming project for East Avenue in 2022. The city is asking the public for comments and feedback, and we are also hoping to schedule a public Zoom meeting with DPW within the next 2 weeks. Information about this meeting will be shared through Front Porch Forum and the Old East End mailing list and Facebook page.
If you would like to join the East Avenue Traffic Calming Project mailing list, or get more involved with the project, please contact Cynthia Cook at ccook@adamantaccord.com
Burlington’s Old East End Neighborhood Coalition is sponsoring the 2nd Annual Winterlude Festival to help you chase away those winter blues! Break the isolation of winter and visit Schmanska Park in a COVID-safe way.
Enjoy outdoor activities throughout February including snowshoeing, sledding, cross-country skiing, nature walks, and a kid’s Story Walk®. We encourage everyone to join us for this fun, free winter celebration.
Bundle up, bring a headlamp, and join your friends and neighbors for an evening at Schmanska Park in Burlington’s Old East End. Enjoy the magic of a warmly lit barn, 150 hand-crafted lanterns, and beautiful ice luminaries as we celebrate mid-winter. We’ll keep you nourished with free hot cider and baked goods, and toasty with our fire-pit warming area. Did someone say cider doughnuts? Yes, they certainly did!
Saturday andSunday, February 5-6 10 am – 2 pm
Take advantage of free loaner equipment for adults and kids! Pick out a pair of cross-county skis, snowshoes, or a sled to use in the park. Ramble through the nature trails from Schmanska Park to Greenmount Cemetery, shred the best sledding hill in Burlington, participate in our lantern scavenger hunt, and check our StoryWalk®* featuring Change Sings by poet Amanda Gorman. Afterwards, grab a free hot cider, cider doughnut, or fresh-baked cookie and relax in the warming area. Come join the fun!
On Saturday, enjoy live local music from Sambatucada!, Brass Balagan, and Lola Houston between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm (weather permitting – we don’t want lips freezing to instruments).
Want to help with festival planning or activities?
Need a little historic inspiration? Check out this story from VT Digger about Burlington’s 1886 Carnival of Winter Sports. These Victorians, without a shred of GORE-TEX in sight, threw open their doors in search of a snowy adventure to chase their blues away! Be like the Victorians.
Photo courtesy of Special Collections, UVM Library
* The Story Walk Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, Vermont and developed with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition and Kellogg Hubbard Library.
Winterlude 2022 is brought to you by the Old East End Neighborhood Coalition with generous support from Burlington Parks, Recreation and Waterfront, University of Vermont Office of Student and Community Relations, and AARP Vermont. We will observe all current COVID-19 protocols. If necessary, weather-related backup dates for the special events will be February 11-13.
Everybody loved last year’s lanterns so much that we are bringing back this beloved community craft project for Winterlude 2022! Help us light up Schmanska Park!
Free supplies at the barn
If you want to make a lantern or two, pick up free supplies right now at the Schmanska Park barn on Grove Street. Look for the red craft cooler next to the front door.
Here’s how it works
Grab a specially prepared vellum lantern template from the red craft cooler at the barn
Take it home and create a design using markers, crayons, paint, stickers, etc., leaving the vellum clear where you want the brightest light to shine through.
Once the design is finished, return it to the red craft cooler at the barn no later than Wednesday, February 2. We’ll turn it into a beautiful lantern! If you can’t make it back to the Schmanska barn in time, call us at 802-660-8501 to make arrangements.
If you want to build your own lantern, let us know and we’ll provide the dowel, light and wire. Here are the assembly instructions:
Overlap the side margins as indicated on the template and staple them together to form a cylinder
Use fishing line or floss to suspend the light from the center dowel hole
Insert the dowel into the holes along the top of the template, making sure the light hangs down inside the cylinder
Bend the wire to form a handle and insert the wire into the holes at each end of the dowel.
Once you’re happy with the handle, wrap the excess wire around the dowel.
Return your assembled lantern to the red craft cooler at the barn no later than Thursday, February 3. If you can’t make it back to the Schmanska barn in time, call us at 802-660-8501 to make arrangements.
Mark February 4 – 6 on your calendar as a reminder to visit Schmanska Park to enjoy the lantern exhibition and other special Winterlude events!
Join us on Sunday, October 24th for a memorable tour of one of Burlington’s oldest and most historically significant sites, Greenmount Cemetery. The tour begins at 10:00 am and will highlight the history of Burlington and the Old East End through the lives of the European settlers laid to rest in this burying ground.
Our friends at Preservation Burlington will entertain you with stories about the prominent men and women who established our city, state, and nation. Learn about the people behind the familiar names etched into the fabric of our community – Fletcher, Chase, Edgcumbe, Edmunds – just to name a few! Find the grave of a Buffalo Soldier and Vermont’s very first senator with presidential aspirations.
Jason Stuffle, Old East End resident and Greenmount expert, will share his knowledge of the diverse cast of characters buried in these plots, explain the symbolism found on their grave stones, and share his dedication to cleaning these stones and bringing long hidden stories to light. Make sure to ask him about the lost grave of a Civil War soldier he rediscovered on an expedition through the Schmanska Park woods!
As Covid restrictions are lifting and summer weather is setting in, we hope you’re all getting back to doing the things you love. If you’re looking for a fun community project, how about helping us build and decorate 5 more bench-tables for Schmanska Park! We’re planning a relaxed and flexible summer schedule with all activities happening at the Schmanska Park Barn. Here’s our tentative plan:
Lumber Delivery Monday, June 21, 8 – 10am
Help us move 50 2x4s from the delivery truck into the barn. Delivery is tentative, so call Dave at 802.373.4790 to confirm details.
Prep Lumber Wednesday, June 23, 4 – 7pm
We’ll set-up a work area outside the barn, move the 2x4s outside, cut the lumber to length, sand the edges, and then store the prepped lumber in the barn.
The OEENC will provide a miter saw, electrical cords, 2 sets of sawhorses, a palm sander, and sandpaper. We could use more sawhorse sets and power sanders, so bring those with you along with your own safety gloves and eye protection.
Prime Lumber June 24 – July 8 in the evening
We’ll set-up a work area outside the barn, move the prepped lumber outside, prime the lumber, and then store the primed lumber and tools in the barn.
The OEENC will provide paints, brushes, buckets, and clean up material, make sure to wear painting clothes and bring your own gloves.
Paint Designs TBD for a Saturday in the second half of July, 10am – 2pm
We’ll set-up a work area outside the barn, move the primed lumber outside, paint designs on the lumber, and then store the painted lumber and tools in the barn.
The OEENC will invite kids, artists, and community groups to design benches. We will also provide paints, brushes, buckets, and clean up material, make sure to wear painting clothes and bring your own gloves.
Assemble Benches TBD for a Saturday in late July or early August
We’ll set-up a work area outside the barn, move the painted lumber outside, assemble the benches, and distribute them throughout the park.
The OEENC will provide fasteners and power drivers. We could use more screw guns and power drivers so bring those with you along with your own safety gloves and eye protection.
While the origins of this somber remembrance are contested, we can all agree that honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving this country is a worthy national holiday. Memorial Day also marks the beginning of summer and gives us an opportunity to connect with friends and family, but let’s not forget those who are no longer with us.
Join the Old East End at Greenmount Cemetery on Sunday, May 30th from 10:00 am to 12:00 noon as we honor each veteran by placing an American flag next to their grave stone.
This event is organized by Jason Stuffle and supported by Burlington City Cemeteries. Volunteers will receive a map marking the headstones of veterans from the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I, World War II, and a Buffalo Soldier. After flag placement, Jason will demonstrate the proper technique for cleaning headstones. Check out this amazing transformation!
Slide the bar to see the stone before and after cleaning
In Flanders Fields, the poppies grow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.
Come join us to learn about local history, honor those who have passed, and enjoy the beauty of Greenmount Cemetery.
The Old East End is joining forces with Burlington Parks Recreation and Waterfront to host the 2021 Kid’s Week kickoff event at Schmanska Park. Check out this amazing list of activities and make a plan to join us for some fun family time in the park. New activities could be added, so check back for up-to-date information.
We are so stoked for this event, but please remember the pandemic isn’t over yet. We’ll be following the latest state COVID-19 guidelines, so bring your mask and maintain proper social distancing to keep your community safe.
We’ll provide paint, brushes, and tree slices. You bring an artistic vision and create a mini masterpiece for display in Schmanska Park!
Paint one for the park!
Meteorology
10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Meteorologist Haley Bouley of our Local 22 and Local 44 Skytracker Weather Team will blow in to drop some atmospheric experiments on the park. Be amazed by a tornado in a bottle and a cloud in a jar!
Stroll the park and enjoy a New York Times best seller, Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris. An inspiring story of sisters who come together to build a stronger community. Start the story at the Grove Street crosswalk.
The Story Walk Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier and developed with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition and Kellogg Hubbard Library.
Make Your Music
9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Create your own melody with fun instruments designed by local artist Michael Waters. They’re available May 15 – 23. Should these be a permanent installation in Schmanska Park? Give us your opinion in our survey 🙂
But wait, the fun’s not over yet!
This is only the beginning of BPRW’s Kids Week, so don’t miss out on any of the fun at these other great locations.
Old East End – Burlington Vermont 