Brattleboro (population 12,396) is in southeast Vermont at the intersection of the Connecticut and West Rivers, via US-5. It began as a frontier outpost in the 1700s, as did many other towns in the area. These outposts were used as trading centers and then gradually became towns.

It became a resort town in the 1800s and, simultaneously, manufacturing industries began to grow. It is still the main business center for southeastern Vermont, but manufacturing has declined since the 1950s.

This has become an area for people living alternative lifestyles and those taking part in political activism. More recently, the state approved recognition of gay and lesbian relationships through a ceremony of civil union.

The Brattleboro Museum and Art Center is housed in an old railway station. Visitors can view exhibits of local historical and artistic interest. One curious item is an Estey organ, from the time when Brattleboro was the headquarters of what was then the world’s largest organ company.

Ice sculptures are now a part of winter carnivals, but that was not always so. Larkin G. Mead, a local resident in the 1800s, created an 8-foot-high snow angel at the junction of Routes 30 and 5. Using such a transient material as ice for sculpture was new. You can see a replica of the snow angel in the Brooks Memorial Library along with other artworks by Vermonters.

Near Brattleboro is Naulakha, meaning “jewel beyond price,” a house built by Rudyard Kipling. He moved here in 1892 and bought 11 acres of meadow in a long strip and built his house so that there were views from each room. It was here that he finished writing \”The Jungle Book.\” He sold the house in 1902 and, today, it is restored and can be rented from Britain’s Landmark Trust. Eight people can sleep here in comfort.

Just outside Brattleboro, in the Connecticut River Valley at the foothills of the Green Mountains, is the Fort Dummer State Park. It is 217 acres of forest. There are camping sites available.

Trains and buses service the Brattleboro area.