►
Description
From Melinda Moulton:
Lindsay Houpt-Varner is the first full-time director of the Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburgh, Vermont. The Rokeby Museum is dedicated to preserving the story of the Underground Railroad and exploring modern-day issues of race and social justice.
For more information visit: http://www.rokeby.org
8/31/2023
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A
A
B
Yeah
I
grew
up
in
central
Pennsylvania
in
a
town
called
Carlisle
and
I
was
interested
in
history.
From
a
really
young
age.
Through
middle
school,
high
school
I
participated
in
history
day,
I
took
all
the
history
classes,
I
could,
and
so,
when
I
decided
to
go
to
college
I,
double
majored
in
government
and
history,
I
was
unsure.
If
I
was
going
to
be
a
lawyer
or
pursue
history
as
a
career
and
in
the
end
I
decided
to
pursue
history,
and
it's
been
a
love
of
mine
for
decades.
A
B
B
It's
not
just
dates
and
facts,
but
it's
really
a
way
to
engage
the
community
and
it's
a
way
for
people
to
find
love
in
the
place
that
they're
living
or
a
place
that
they're
visiting,
and
he
really
fostered
that
in
me
for
throughout
the
internship
and
I
took
that
with
me
throughout
my
grad
school
career
and
even
today.
This
idea
that
history
plays
a
much
bigger
role
in
our
communities.
B
I
am
yeah,
so
I
haven't
seen
Mrs
Hines
in
many
years,
but
I
ended
up
just
a
complete
coincidence.
When
I
ended,
grad
school
I
ended
up
back
at
the
Cumberland
County
Historical
Society
I
was
hired
to
administer
a
grant
and
they
were
the
fiscal
sponsors
and
Richard
was
still
there
he's
still
the
photo
archivist.
So
it
was
wonderful
to
connect
with
him
and
actually
work
with
him
again.
A
B
Yeah
so
I,
my
expertise
is
actually
in
British
history,
early,
modern
British,
history,
I,
love,
learning
about
the
reformation
and
my
PhD
really
focused
on
Quakers
and
how
they
developed
as
a
community
and
they
interacted
with
their
towns.
So
I've
always
had
this
interest
in
community
culture
and
religion
and
the
Reformation
so
living
in
England
for
six
years,
I
got
a
chance
to
really
experience
in
British
history,
and
so
that's
always
been
a
huge
interest
of
mine.
B
B
I
had
been
tomorrow,
I'd
driven
through
Vermont
to
get
to
Canada
before
and
the
year
that
I
actually
applied
for
the
job.
I
came
to
Vermont
for
a
training.
I
was
in
Burlington
in
February
of
2020
and
I
had
been
working
with
Community,
heart
and
soul,
which
is
part
of
the
Orton
family,
Foundation
based
out
of
Shelburne,
and
they
brought
me
to
Burlington
for
a
training
and
I
got
an
opportunity
to
experience.
B
A
I
I
wanted
to
let
you
know
that
I
served
on
the
board
of
the
Orton
family
foundation
and
I
was
the
whole
Community
heart
and
soul
event
that
was
sponsored
by
the
Vermont
Arts
Council
and
it
was,
and
it
was
such
an
extraordinary
event
and
the
foundation
does
a
lot
of
great
work.
So
that's
interesting
to
know
that
that
brought
you
into
that
training.
Talk
to
us
a
little
bit
about
your
work
at
the
Cumberland,
County,
Historical
Society,
and
what
and
what
you
did
when
you
were
there.
B
Yeah
I
was
hired
to
administer
Community
heart
and
soul
grants
the
Orton
family
Foundation
had
partnered
with
the
Pennsylvania
Humanities
Council
to
Pilot.
Three
communities
in
the
state
of
Pennsylvania,
with
the
heart
and
soul
model
and
I
was
hired
to
do
one
of
the
the
towns.
So
I
looked
at
the
greater
Carlisle
area
and
it
was
kind
of
this
mixture
of
my
love
of
the
humanities
and
community
redevelopment,
and
so
it
was
housed
in
the
Cumberland
County,
Historical
Society
and
then,
through
the
process
of
heart
and
soul.
A
B
Yeah,
the
big
thing
that
we
unveiled
was
in
a
small
town,
Mount
Holly
Springs,
just
out
of
Carlisle,
was
a
African-American
community
that
had
essentially
been
written
out
of
the
town's
history,
and
we
were
interviewing
families
about
what
they
loved
about
their
Community,
what
they
would
hate
till
you
lose
and
one
of
the
families
the
gumbies
had
said
to
us
that
they
would
hate
to
lose
the
African-American
history
after
they
had
passed.
They
were
all
in
their
80s
and
their
90s
and
they
wanted
to
make
sure
that
the
legacy
of
their
family
survived.
B
They
had
were
multi-generational
a
family
that
had
lived
in
this
town
since
just
after
the
Civil
War,
and
they
said
that
they
wanted
to
make
sure
that
the
church
that
their
family
had
been
a
part
of
was
preserved,
and
this
church
was
completely
overgrown
and
hidden
by
weeds
and
when
we
finally
had
a
chance
to
get
into
it.
It's
a
Circa,
late,
1870s,
Log,
Cabin
church
that
that
hadn't
been
used
since
the
1970s
and
the
the
story
that
they
told
led
to
this
whole
preservation
effort
to
uncover
the
history
of
the
families.
B
We
ended
up.
Finding
former
congregants,
who
worshiped
in
the
church
as
late
as
the
1960s
and
this
all
started
this
major
preservation
project
that
I'm
still
lucky
enough
to
be
a
part
of
today,
even
from
Vermont
I'm
on
the
board
of
the
non-profit.
That
was
created
to
preserve
this
site,
and
this
just
became
the
start
of
a
much
larger
effort
to
start
to
preserve
African-American
history
in
Cumberland,
County.
B
B
A
B
A
Fascinating
and
we
do
have
a
group
there's
a
a
church
in
Burlington
and
there's
quite
a
few
Quakers
in
in
Vermont,
so
now,
let's
segue
fascinating
upbringing
and
education
and
work
that
you've
done
in
in
your
life
Lindsay.
Now,
let's
focus
on
the
rugby
Museum,
because
you
are
the
first
full-time
director
tell
us
more
about
the
museum.
How
long
has
it
been?
There
give
us
a
little
bit
of
history
about
the
rugby.
B
Yeah,
the
museum
has
been
here
in
some
form
since
the
1960s,
the
last
Robinson
to
live
in
the
house.
Elizabeth
Robinson
willed
the
site
to
what
was
then
called
the
Ryland
Evans
Robinson
Memorial
Association,
which
had
been
in
existence
since
the
1930s
to
honor,
one
of
our
third
generation
residents
in
the
home
and
the
site
was
intended
to
tell
the
story
of
the
family.
When
Elizabeth
willed
the
property.
She
said
that
they
would
not
be
allowed
to
auction
off
any
of
the
items
inside
the
museum.
B
So
we
have
this
fabulous
collection
that
spans
four
generations
of
the
family.
They
lived
here
from
1793
till
1961,
so
you
can
imagine
just
all
of
the
types
of
things
that
we
have
in
our
collection
here
and
so
it,
the
the
museum,
has
always
told
the
story
of
the
family
and
then
they've
also
used
the
family's
lives
through
those
four
generations
to
tell
a
much
broader
story
of
of
American
history
as
well
as
Vermont
history.
So
we
initially
started
out
really
focused
on
Roland
Evans
Robinson.
B
He
was
the
son
of
our
abolitionists
at
rugby
and
he
was
a
nationally
known
author
and
the
original
Memorial
Association
had
members
from
all
across
the
country
who
just
loved
Rollins
books.
He
wrote
history
books,
he
wrote
books
from
about
fictional
towns
in
Vermont
that
are
written
in
the
Vermont
dialect.
He
wrote
about
conservation
and
the
environment
and
industrialization.
He
was
just
a
very
interesting
figure
who
cared
about
a
lot
of
different
topics
and
he
wrote
about
them
and
where
was
he
from
so?
He
was
born
and
raised
here
at
rugby.
B
First
generation,
so
Thomas
Robinson
arrives
in
the
1790s
in
Vermont
and
he
was
from
Newport
Rhode
Island
and
we
have
been
able
to
trace
the
Robinson
family
in
Newports
and
back
to
England.
We
believe
they
were
from
what's
today
Cumbria,
but
it
was
Cumberland
England
at
the
time
and
they
are
multi-generational
Bakers,
going
back
to
some
of
the
first
Quakers
in
the
17th
century
in
England,
and
they
moved
to
Newport,
Rhode,
Island
and
then
to
Vermont
and.
A
And
you
have
to
wonder,
because
this
was
out
this
was
after
Ethan
Allen,
you
have
to
wonder
what
would
bring
people
from
Rhode
Island
up
through
the
Wilderness
of
Vermont
and
the
cold
and
the
harshness
of
Vermont.
Do
you
have
any
idea?
What
inspired
them
to
come
up
here
and
build
this
beautiful
home.
B
Yeah,
that's
been
a
big
question
that
we've
been
looking
at
at
rugby
is
what
brought
that
first
generation
to
Vermont.
We
know
that
After,
the
Revolution
Newport
was
in
Decline.
It
was
pretty
much
decimated.
During
the
Revolution
Thomas
Robinson
and
his
brother
William
really
came
were
the
ones
who
came
to
Vermont.
They
were
younger
Sons,
it's
possible.
There
were
just
no
opportunities
in
Newports
and
Vermont
was
you
know,
a
new
state.
It
was
kind
of
like
this
wild
new
opportunity
to
establish
yourself,
so
we
find
them
purchasing
Mills
they're,
running
Mills.
B
A
B
Our
second
generation
were
the
abolitionists,
so
Rowland
his
wife
Rachel
and
their
good
friend,
Ann
King,
were
active
in
the
anti-slavery
movement.
They
utilized
Roque
me
as
a
stop
on
the
Underground
Railroad.
We're
not
sure
how
many
people
came
through
the
site.
We
probably
will
never
know
how
many
people
came
through
and
we
really
don't
know
what
the
people
we
do
know
about.
We
don't
know
what
happened
to
them
after
they
left
pierogi,
and
sometimes
they
would
stay
a
night.
B
Sometimes
they
would
stay
for
longer
and
work
on
the
farm
and
save
up
money,
but
what
happens
to
them
afterwards?
We're
not
entirely
sure,
but
the
family
were
active,
not
just
in
Vermont,
not
just
in
Ferrisburgh,
but
they
were
now
National
figures
in
the
Abolitionist
movements
throughout
the
1820s
to
the
1850s.
A
B
B
It
doesn't
seem
to
be
as
many
Freedom
Seekers
coming
through
Vermont
and
you
also
just
see
a
decline
in
work
on
the
Underground
Railroad,
because
it
becomes
even
more
dangerous
to
be
helping
Freedom
Seekers
on
the
Underground
Railroad,
and
so,
as
far
as
we
know,
there
are
very
few
documented
cases
of
individuals
being
captured
and
sent
back
to
the
South.
Well,.
B
Yes,
I
know
you
know
as
a
state
there's
gradual
emancipation
in
Vermont,
but
if
you
think
about
individual
people
and
communities
and
not
everybody
is
an
abolitionist
and
actively
supporting
the
end
of
enslavement
and
I.
Think
Vermont
fits
in
with
a
lot
of
other
northern
states
there's
still
racism.
There
are
still
people
who
are
not
actively
supporting
the
end
of
slavery
in
the
United
States,
so
it
it's
I,
don't
think
in
many
ways,
standing
out
from
the
rest
of
the
north
they're
very
much.
A
So
the
freedom
Seekers,
what
it,
what
a
journey
that
must
have
been
and
then
to
find
the
The
Refuge
in
the
in
the
Robinson
house,
I
mean
it
just-
must
have
been
harrowing
to
make
that
Journey
up
through
Vermont,
very
very
difficult.
So
since
you
have
been
in
Vermont
for
a
couple
of
years,
have
you
experienced
racism
and
have
you
experienced
racism,
I
mean
do
you,
it
is.
Do
you
have
you
seen
it?
Do
you
feel
its
ear.
B
But
you
also,
we
get
the
flip
side
of
that
as
well,
where
people
say
they
feel
very
welcome
and
that
they're
sometimes
surprised
at
how
open
people
are
to
welcome
them
into
their
communities
into
sharing
about
aspects
of
Vermont,
his
history
or
communities,
whether
it's
Trails
or
restaurants,
to
visit.
There's
also
almost
that
level
of
surprise
that
you
can
be
such
a
white,
State
and
so
welcoming.
A
A
The
Rogue
bees
approach
to
racism
is
to
discuss
it
and
bring
it
out
into
the
open
and
to
share
the
history
so
you're
you,
you
do
state
that
the
museum
does
not
shy
away
from
the
fact
that
Vermont
is
not
perfect
here,
because,
regardless
of
our
history
is
abolitionists
and
the
Underground
Railroad
there
still
are
racist
tendencies,
and
you
and
the
rugby
have
gotten
involved
in
supporting
and
sponsoring
social
justice
forums
around
the
state
talk
a
little
bit
about
that.
Lindsay.
B
B
But
we
also
want
to
make
sure
that
we
can
support
other
organizations
and
the
work
that
they
are
doing,
that
we
can
share
our
knowledge
and
what
we
know
about
the
past
and
find
a
way
for
that
to
have
an
impact
on
the
present.
I.
Think
one
of
the
most
important
things
that
we
can
do
as
historians
as
professionals
within
the
public
history
and
the
museum
field,
is
to
ensure
that
people
really
understand
that
the
past
has
an
impact
on
what
is
happening
around
us
currently.
B
And
you
can't
ignore
the
things
that
make
you
uncomfortable.
You
can't
ignore
conversations
that
might
make
your
ancestors
or
make
previous
community
members
look
in
a
bad
light.
It's
about
learning
and
discussing
and
really
understanding
how
we
can
move
forward
within
our
society
and
within
our
communities,
and
that's
one
of
the
most
important
roles
that
we
play
within
the
institution.
And
we
really
want
to
make
sure
that
we
continue
to
do
that.
A
B
All
the
way
starting
in
preschool
said
this
is
a
curriculum
that
we
developed
thanks
to
a
grant
from
the
Henderson
foundation,
and
it
is
really
allowing
us
to
go
into
preschools
and
start
conversations
at
a
very
young
age
about
what
makes
us
different
in
our
communities
and
that
that's
okay,
and
so
our
educator,
Tucker
fultz,
has
been
going
into
several
preschools.
We've
been
partnering
with
them
for
these
months-long
projects
that
are
Hands-On
education
with
the
students,
and
we
were
very
lucky
one
of
the
classes.
B
The
bridge
school
last
year
allowed
us
to
keep
some
of
the
students
artwork
that
they
produced
so
that
we
can
share
it
with
the
public.
What
they
learned,
we've
got
fabulous
self-portraits
that
they
did
just
really
starting
to
start
some
conversations
that
they're
going
to
have
when
they
come
to
the
museum
in
third,
fourth
or
fifth
grade,
but
starting
that
conversation
young,
because
that's
what
experts
in
the
field
are
saying,
we
should
be
doing
to
create
a
more
inclusive
community
is
having
these
conversations
with
young
people
as
soon
as
possible.
Well,.
A
Because
learning
is
one
to
six
years
of
age
is
when
your
language
is
created
and
a
lot
of
your
ideas
and
to
be
able
to
teach
about
racism
at
that
young
age.
It
has
a
huge
impact
share
with
us.
The
project
finding
hope
within
which
combines
art
made
by
incarcerated
artists
in
Vermont,
Massachusetts
and
Maine,
and
on
August
20th
John
Vincent,
a
guest
curator
hosted
a
gallery
talk,
tell
us
about.
B
B
I
said,
of
course,
it's
yours
do
what
you
want
with
the
space,
and
it
goes
back
to
a
lot
of
work
that
he
has
been
doing
with
re-entry
programs
with
connecting
artists
with
people
who
are
incarcerated
and
using
art
as
a
way
as
an
outlet,
and
so
he
is
basing
this
off
of
a
previous
exhibit.
That
was
done
in
Maine
with
people
who
are
incarcerated
in
Maine,
and
so
we
do
have
objects
in
the
exhibit
from
Maine
Massachusetts
as
well
as
Vermont,
and
they
range
from
individuals
who
are
currently
incarcerated.
B
Who
did
the
work
while
in
prison,
and
then
also
individuals
who
are
in
re-entry
programs
as
well?
So
it's
a
fantastic
exhibit
that
and
the
underlying
theme
throughout
it
is
that
idea
of
finding
hope
and
it
ranges
from
poems
to
knitting
to
collages.
It's
it's.
A
beautiful
exhibit
John
did
a
wonderful
job.
Curating
it
and.
A
B
Yeah,
we'll
do
private
tours
for
adults.
We
get
a
lot
of
businesses
who
want
to
come
to
do
different
types
of
outings
with
their
employees
and
we
welcome
anybody
who
wants
to
come
and
have
a
tour
of
the
museum
or
the
house,
and
we
love
showing
people
around
and
sharing
the
history
of
the
site.
Well,.
A
It
certainly
helps
if
you're
doing
diversity,
training
and
any
of
my
viewers
who
have
a
company.
If
you
want
to
do
diversity,
training
one
of
the
places
to
start
is
at
the
rugby
I
would
say
now
much
of
your
I
want
to
just
let
people
know
that
the
the
website
that
you
have
is
very,
very
good.
It's
excellent,
It's,
rokeby,
r-o-k-e-b-y-.org
and
I
suggest
you
visit
it.
Most
of
your
funding
comes
from
donations.
A
There
is
a
donation
button
on
the
site
and
we
encourage
our
viewers
to
to
donate
to
the
rugby
Museum
and
this
great
work
and
no
donation
is
too
small.
Also,
there
are
many
folks
who
volunteer
at
the
Rogue
B.
You
can
get
involved
with
tours
collections,
work,
Trail,
maintenance
and
there's
a
section
on
your
website
for
folks
to
sign
up
now
on
September
16th
at
8
30
PM
there
is
a
free,
exhibit
astronomy
at
the
rugby
with
the
Vermont
Astronomical
Society.
You
want
to
talk
a
little
bit
about
that
Lindsay
yeah.
B
That's
we're
going
to
be
at
rokeby,
we're
gonna,
find
a
spot
on
sites,
and
hopefully
we'll
have
clear
skies
and
we'll
have
telescopes
outs
and
the
Astronomical
Society
is
going
to
be
walking
people
through
using
the
telescopes
and
showing
what's
in
the
night
sky
that
evening,
how
fun
is
that
yeah
I'm
really
excited
it's
the
first
time
we've
done
this
program,
so
I'm
very
excited
to
be
able
to
host
it
at
the
Museum.
Well,.
A
I
encourage
my
viewers
to
to
go
and
I'm
sure
they
could
just
walk
in
and
on
September
16th.
It's
coming
up
at
8,
30
p.m.
That's
when
the
sun
will
be
going
down
around
that
time
and
it's
a
free
exhibit
astronomy
at
the
rugby
with
the
Vermont
Astronomical
Society,
so
go
on
and
check
that
out.
I
also
wanted
to
mention
and
give
a
big
shout
out
to
Bob
standard
and
Paul
asbell.
They
held
a
music
fundraiser
which
we
were
out
of
town.
A
B
We
raised
ten
thousand
dollars
that
evening.
It
was
a
phenomenal
night,
absolutely
amazing
and
everybody
who
came
out
to
support
the
museum
and
our
exhibitions.
It
was
just
wonderful.
We
were
raising
money
for
a
matching
Grant
and
to
help
us
with
our
revamp
of
our
main
exhibition.
Our
Underground
Railroad
exhibition
that'll
be
happening
this
winter.
So
thanks
to
them,
we
met
our
match
and
we'll
be
getting
underway
to
update
that
exhibit.
So
it
was
a
great
evening.
It's.
A
B
Oh
I
think
I'm
looking
for
words
of
wisdom
on
any
given
day,
but
for
what
I
tell
people
I
mean,
as
a
historian
can't
be
read,
just
constantly
be
reading?
What
is
out
there,
learn
about
the
past,
learn
about
your
community
and
also
be
thinking
about
what
stories
in
your
community
might
be
missing.
One
of
the
most
impactful
parts
of
not
just
my
career
but
I.
B
Think
in
my
life
was
that
aha
moment
where
I
realized
there
were
hidden
and
missing
voices
in
my
community
that
there
were
people
who
you
know,
society
and
culture
deemed
their
history,
not
to
be
important
enough
and
it
is
missing
and
at
rugby
we
can't
tell
certain
stories
because
of
that
so
look
around
your
community
and
think
about
who
is
missing
and
start
digging
into
that
history
and
bringing
it
to
light.
Because
it'll
tell
you
a
lot
about
your
community
and
it
could
start
helping
with
some
healing
that
might
need
to
happen.
It's.
A
B
A
Well,
Lindsay
hopped,
Varner
I
got
to
tell
you.
It
is
just
a
joy
to
have
you
in
Vermont
and
leading
this
extraordinary
Museum
and
I
want
to
thank
you
for
all
your
hard
work
and
the
board
and
the
work
of
your
staff
and
your
extraordinary
Board
of
Trustees
too,
that
are
doing
a
great
job.
I
look
forward
to
your
new,
exhibit
coming
up
in
May
and
I,
encourage
all
of
my
viewers
to
get
down
Route
7.
it's
in
Ferrisburgh
right
on
the
left.