Trip 22 - Isle La Motte

Long time since our last trip, and this was our first with Sits In Utero weighing Baby Momma down.

Haha, we're going for arideinthecar and you're not!

Hanging out as we drive through Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge.

Aquatic people on Lake Champlain between VT and NY.

Aquatic fowl in the same general area.

Those bloody Mohawks!

I have always enjoyed The Islands, but have never been to Isle La Motte, so as we meandered in a general direction we decided to head on over to Saint Anne's Shrine (history, demographics):

One of four towns comprising Vermont's "Lake Champlain Islands."

Originally called Isle of Mott in its charter, but very early the original French form of the name was adopted, and usage has given it authority. Some historians have said that Isle La Motte was chartered in conjunction with the Two Heroes (see North Hero, South Hero or Grand Isle), but the records of the Legislature and those of the Governor and Council show that there were two separate groups of petitioners, two grants and two charters for the two different tracts of land. The charter for Isle La Motte lists 96 names, headed by Benjamin Wait, who later settled Waitsfield. The Two Heroes went to 365 men, with Ethan Allen and Samuel Herrick at the head of that list. Some names appear in both charters, but fewer than might be expected in view of the fact that both were chartered exclusively to Vermont veterans of the Revolutionary War.

The island takes its name from the first white settlement within what is now Vermont. In 1666 the French built Fort Ste. Anne on the island as protection against the Indians. The fort was constructed under the supervision of Pierre de St. Paul, Sieur de la Motte and garrisoned by 300 troops of the Carignan Regiment, with la Motte in command. As the name indicates, a shrine dedicated to Saint Anne was on the site, and there the troops worshipped under the Jesuit priests who accompanied the regiment. After four years the troops were pulled back to Canada, the fort was destroyed by the French, and la Motte was made commander at Montreal; but historically his name has always been associated with the island. The Indians never forgot the shrine, and the Mohawk called the place Tgawistaniyonteh, meaning "there a bell is suspended." Just before the turn of the 20th Century the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington acquired the site and constructed a new shrine to Saint Anne, which today is the single most popular reason to visit the island. .

...

The town's first post office was established in 1829 as Vineyard and, in a quirk of history (but consistent with postal behavior), the name stuck until 1853, when finally it, too, was changed to Isle La Motte, 23 years after the official reversion of the town name.

The town's only other post office was Fisk, which took its name from one of the oldest families on the island. Ichabod Fisk came to Isle La Motte in 1788 and settled in the southwestern part of town, where he developed the first marble quarry in the state...

During the decades around the turn of the 19th Century, Nelson Fisk was one of the county's most prominent men. In addition to running quarries that supplied stone for many famous buildings throughout the eastern United States, he was the town's representative to the Legislature. Later he served as a county senator, and was a delegate to the national Republican convention. In 1896 he was elected Lieutenant Governor of Vermont. It is said that he kept all the accounts of the quarries, the store and the post office in his head. Naturally, postal authorities took a dim view of Fisk's accounting procedures. It was his practice to say "the post office is allowed to have $100 worth of stamps at any time, so here is a $100 bill in the drawer. Any time you want it you can take it, and the stamps are mine." With the friends Fisk had in high places, postal authorities were helpless to change his ways. In fact, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was staying at Nelson Fisk's Isle La Motte home when word reached him that President McKinley had been shot.

Across the street from the shrine, near where Champlain is said to have first set foot in Vermont 400 years ago.

This is a composite of 3 attempted shots with the dogs.  We took 5.  Gave up.

Neppy bounds back after wandering off when we finished Take 5.

Back in the car.

The Methodist Church previously advertised.

Hell with the recalcitrant canines.

Sorry, chumps, but you stay in the car this time.

Cool stained glass.

Such a cute little library.  Wonder if they're on NTodd's Pa's Koha server.

Okay, we had fun and now it's time to go home.

Been four centuries since Champlain upset the order of things here in Abenaki territory.  Oddly enough, we passed by their annual Pow Wow in Swanton, but the dogz made it a dicey proposition to stop and enjoy--another time.

ntodd

Comments

[Buckeye ...]

I like the ghost dogs pic.

[Nancy In Detroit]

That Mexico sure is a handsome boy.