Your Stories
Laurie (Desorda) Darling's memories
My Dad, Francis J. Desorda entered the service April 9, 1942 with 2 months in Camp Lee, VA. and Fort Bragg, N.C. - He had a leave where he came home in June 1942 where this picture was taken....my dad is on the right with good friend Geary Hannon who I think went into the service same time and place with Dad. They are in front of "Annie's Restaurant"....Annie was my mom's mother. She was a Fitzpatrick who married Bert Rivers, they both passed away before I was born. Mom and Dad were (I think) dating in 1942 and were married after Dad came back from overseas in 1944 or 45. I know that Dad went overseas in Dec. 1942 along with Gary Hammond and others from our area.
The view behind Dad and Gary would be looking up Main St. I can see the Town Hall over Gary's right shoulder. I vaguely remember Mom and Dad talking about the Bowling Alley on the west end of the building where Annie's used to be.
From the left to right: My Uncle Hubbie Rivers, "Nub" Lawrence and Gene Lavoie. These 3 men were always a big part of our family even after Mom and Dad started our family!
I will always remember as Sam's. To the right of Sam's .....I vaguely remember Mom walking us kids from our house on East St. to this store for shoes which I think was called Tomasi's. This shoe store move further up on Main in later years. A very little man with a quiet voice used to always wait on us there, always a faint hint of cigars in this store. I am not sure if this was a store back in October of1942 when this picture was taken.
This is my Mom's (Barbara Rivers) 2nd grade class picture taken on the park. My mom is smack in the center near the young man in the Plaid jacket.
The back of this postcard reads: "Best Wishes from Miss Hunt, 2nd grade".
My mom was born in 1918 which would make this picture taking place...I would say in 1925.
I am not sure who Doris is but she appears in a lot of pictures with my mom, (Barbara) and her girlfriends. These two pics are of Bartlett Falls in 1931
"Church Street Gang"
My brothers and sisters all grew up at 29 North Street. This house was built in 1850. We lived there from 1966 to 1985. I believe that the house was recently remodeled to look like the original house (except the porch).
We had a great childhood living in Bristol. We belonged to the "Church Street Gang". Our neighbors and friends were the Dearborn, Hanson, Abbott, and Clodgo families (just to name a few) . All of us graduated from Mt Abraham.
Our Parents were Ted and Helen Davignon (both now deceased). As for the Davignon children, the oldest one on the right is me Patrick, now 50 and residing in Rhode Island. My brothers Mike and Roy still live in Bristol as do my three sisters, Starr, Libby and Judy (the youngest).
A Cornhusker/Vermonter
Jim Atkins
Lincoln, Nebraska
All of my family is from Vermont, except me. I lived there from 1945 to 1955 then we moved to Lincoln, Nebraska. All my family was born in Vermont even my younger sister. On the other hand I was born in Lincoln, Nebraska when my father was stationed at the air base during WWII. We stopped to see some friends in Lincoln in 1955 while on our way to California and have been here ever since. Over the years we have been back on many, many visits.
I can remember sliding down the hill behind the Wissel house in the Winter time, going on hikes up to the "Ledge" and the town reservoir. The old swimming holes were called "second" down by the Lords Prayer Rock and another called "Elliot's" by the old mill farther east. Band Concerts on Thursday nights and going to the movies on Saturday nights when all the stores were open to 10 PM. We lived over Brown's Funeral Pallor and on East street over the time we were there. The movie theater was next to Brown's and I used to help the ticket taker seat people on Saturday nights. I was between 8 and 11 years old at that time and the ticket taker would split his tips with me. Yes, they tipped to be seated then.
I went to the "old" school on the park square then when I was in the 4th grade when Mountain Hill was built. Places I used to hang out at were Jewel's 5 & 10 cent store, Sam's Mobil, George Lathrop's Sporting Good's, the Post Office, Park Street Texaco, Tudhope's Grocery, Snap's Restaurant, Tomassi's(?) Skating Rink, Brook's Clothing, the old mill behind Main Street, and several other spots that elude my memory at this moment.
I used to spend summers at my Grandfathers small farm and with my Aunt and Uncle in Monkton Ridge. It's hard to tell anyone what it's like to spend your early years in the 1950's growing up in a environment like this.
My Father worked for Sam Mckinnon from the early 40-s to 1955. We moved to Lincoln, NE and over the years my dad was a Mobil Dealer and had a chain of 5 stations for several years. He died in 1981.
I have been back several times over the years and enjoy the time spent there. Most of the time is spent seeing relatives. Unfortunately they are getting to be fewer and fewer. I get back every chance I get and I am way over due at this time.
I am attaching some photo's of Sam's station and a photo of my dad (Norm Atkins) and Sam. I don't know the years of the station pic's but the one of my dad and Sam was taken in the mid 60's to early 70's.
There is another photo I believe was taken in the early 40's are of the Lane Boys(?). (L-R) Robert - Roderick - Huldy.
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Dave Myers Charleston, South Carolina
A friend just sent me the address for the Bristol Rec. web site. I want to thank you for the effort. I am from Bristol and living in South Carolina. I miss Vermont more than you can imagine. I really enjoyed the pictures. My uncles were in one of them (the Wendell twins) and my grandfather's barber shop could be made out in some of them. He was the town barber. His shop was on the second floor on Main Street in the last building before the Bristol Inn. (I have never forgiven those responsible for its demise)
The last 3 pictures on your site are a postcard that may be from my grandmother. I was wondering what you could tell me about it. My grandmother was Hazel Elliott. The postcard was from what looked like Hazel E. to Elmer Elliott.
I have some old pics taken in the Bristol area, though I don't remember if any of them were in the downtown area. My grandmother, Hazel Elliott married Jack Wendell and they lived in the house that is on the left just before the first bridge over the river heading towards Lincoln.
It was pretty exciting going to your web site and discovering those pictures and that old post card.
My family moved from Bristol to New York when I was about 5 years old. We moved back when I was 14.
We lived in West Lincoln and went to the one room school house there. I spent a year in that school and then started at the old Bristol High School when we moved half way through the school year. We moved to Charleston, South Carolina. We were actually supposed to move to Florida, my father had been offered a good job there. He worked in construction and was looking for a milder climate to work in. My father went ahead to find a house and stopped in Charleston to see my Uncle Harold, Harland's twin who was in the Navy and stationed here and ended up getting a job here instead.
So I had all too few years living in Vermont, but I still think of it as my home and the most beautiful place in the world. And I spent 20 years in the Army and saw a lot of the world. But, my happiest memories from my childhood were from Vermont. My brother and I spent most of our summer vacations with our grandmother, Hazel Wendell. When we could get out of weeding our grandmother's garden we spent most of out time getting in trouble with our cousin George Wendell, and sometimes Scott Wendell. And we would spent many of the major holidays there as well. The family gatherings in her huge dining room for some of the best food in the world cooked on an old wood stove, if I had a time machine would love to go back to that time.
Dave Myers vrmonter@comcast.net
