If you throw a rock from Fred’s porch and you have a pretty good arm, you can almost hit Canada. He lives way up in Coventry, Vermont, and when I drove up to his place, I found him covered in paint, in one of his barns. He was just finishing building his fifth stage coach, parts of which he’d painted bright yellow and cherry red.
Most of his barns—and there are a lot of them—are filled with old farm equipment. He says he’s trying to show the evolution of farm machines in New England from as far back as he can go, up through the 1960s. He says he figures someone else can carry on after that.
To be honest, historical collections don’t interest me very much. But Fred’s collection does. We picked our way together through miles of plows and cultivators and buggies and logging sleighs, in barns that mostly Fred built or shored up himself. We didn’t talk very much. If there was hayseed still in the back of a sleigh by the time he hauled it home and up into the hay mow, it’s still there, and to Fred that’s part of the story. In other words, this is not a clean or polished collection. There’s still the feel of use on these objects. And my guess is, there are a lot of ghosts of old farmers in those barns at night, and they all know each other.
Fred and I talked for a couple days in the front parlor of his house, downstairs from the room he was born in ninety-four years ago. We talked about a lot of things. His father, his farm collection, the women in his life, his nine children, and some more ephemeral things. I guess we talked about the past, but to me these are not stories about the past at all. These stories come up out of a blood connection to a place.
Welcome.
Thank you to listener Lou Snyder for writing to me with stories about Fred. I love it when stories happen that way. See this
You can actually see Fred’s collection in this story from WCAX News.
To make a donation to Fred’s collection, send money to:
Fred Webster, 378 Webster Road, Coventry, Orleans, VT 05860
EPISODE MUSIC
| TRACK NAME | ARTIST |
| Music for Children | Carl Orff |
| Annum per annum_K | Arvo Partt |
This is a lovely story. Thanks so much for finding it and sharing it.
One of the richest experiences my husband and I had in the NEK was spending several hours with Fred Webster, riding in his stagecoach and snow roller and hearing his life story and harmonica playing; touring has collections, including a reconstruction of his own one-room schoolhouse, with copies of newspapers from every decade of his life.
A treasure trove of Vermont character and a unique human being!
In my few years living in the NEK, I’ve heard much about the ‘ole Saturday nights at the Dance Halls. The fiddles, the dancing, the fun. Dance halls offered a rich night life all over this area, and it was so fun to hear Fred share his family’s passion for dancing. What a rich complement to “the clock” of farm life. Erica, I felt like I was sitting in the front parlor with both of you, with Fred’s easy laugh and your penetrating voice. As Fred so clearly puts it, “The best gift you can offer someone in this world is a kind word.” Your conversation with Fred takes its precious time, like all the interviews you do, and is a real education and gift to all of us listening. Much thanks.
This is one interview I will listen to several times because there are so many gold nuggets in it. Fred’s description of what it takes to be good at manual labor; the understanding he voices of his first wife’s actions; the joy and responsibility of rearing a large family; the respect he feels for his father; and Fred’s ability to feel and to express love. I had just finished reading Wendell Berry’s book Nathan Coulter when I listened to this interview. If Fred ever gets a chance to read it, I think he will be deeply moved.
Hi Erica,
Great article about Fred. When I was out in Vermont last Fall I had the good fortune to meet him. I love the people who live in the Northeast Kingdom. Everybody I’ve met is so creative and so active and really enjoy their lives.
Thought you might be interested in my blog post about Fred.
http://littleusatrips.org/2014/09/19/fred-webster-a-man-with-a-vision/
I’ve posted about quite a few people and places in Vermont.
Again, great article and I’ll be following you.
Heidi
Fred was my 7th grade Shop teacher in Upstate New York. He was the kindest most gentle man I’ve ever known. He was a great teacher and being an American Pickers fan I was overjoyed to see him appear on the program. It took a few seconds to click that this guy who they only called Fred was Fred Webster. He was in the Gobi desert during WWII. He’s an amazing man. I am going to travel to Coventry and see him.
Mr. McGuigan, do you still wish to connect with Mr. Webster? If so, please contact me via email or 802-334-6266.