Bellows Falls, Vermont, late 19th century
Aug 19th Thursday. Started with Mrs A L Ames
S Ames Fred Helen & Oakes A for Burlington
Left Boston at 12 Stopt for the night
at Bellows Falls much fatigued & covered
with dust. It is a very romantic place and […]
very good accommodations at the Island house
Walked out after tea to view the place & falls
Off they went! Half the family, it would seem, exited North Easton to accompany Oakes Angier on his trip to Burlington, Vermont. Obviously, the group traveled first from North Easton to Boston, where they boarded a train, most likely, and departed at noon. Six or so hours and about 100 miles later, “much fatigued and covered with dust,” they disembarked at Bellows Falls, Vermont, a small village on the state line between New Hampshire and Vermont.
The village may have been small, but its location on the Connecticut River and its powerful falls made it a fine industrial site. Two railroads already met there, and a mill industry thrived. The bridge across the water – a later version of which is featured in the postcard illustration above – added to the picturesque quality of the town. Evelina found it “very romantic.” Today the village is part of the larger town of Rockingham, whose population boasts a little over 5,300.
evelinaames 