Vermont Business Magazine The National Park Service awarded $10 million in the second round of funding from the Semiquincentennial Grant Program commemorating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. These grants include $409,960 for the preservation of the Old Constitution House in Windsor, Vermont. Created by Congress in 2020 and funded through the Historic Preservation Fund, these grants will support 20 cultural resource preservation projects across 14 states.
“The Semiquincentennial is an opportunity for the nation to recognize and reflect on the diverse cultures, events, and places that have helped shape our country,” said NPS Director Chuck Sams. “Through the Semiquincentennial Grant Program, the National Park Service is supporting projects that showcase the many places and stories that contributed to the evolution of the American experience.”
“This Semiquincentennial grant will aid in the preservation of a significant Vermont landmark as well as a site along the Vermont African American Heritage Trail,” said Governor Phil Scott. “The Old Constitution House has a lot of history under its roof that will continue to be enjoyed for years to come by Vermonters and visitors to the state alike. We are grateful to the NPS as well as former Senator Patrick Leahy for the advocacy in securing these funds.”
The Semiquincentennial grant will fund the environmental stabilization project at Old Constitution House, ensuring proper air quality and remediation of mildew and moisture that have plagued the building since its closing because of Covid-19.
This project will include contracted services to remediate the mildew and moisture, restore historic windows, abate the issues creating the mildew, improve air quality with the installation of a new mechanical system; and provide an amendment to 1972 National Register nomination that more fully outlines the history of the building and its preservation. Completion of the project will enable the Old Constitution House to reopen for the commemorative events of Vermont’s 250th Anniversary in 2026.
The Old Constitution House is the birthplace of Vermont, where on July 8, 1777, the first Constitution of the “Free and Independent State of Vermont” was adopted. The noteworthy constitution was the first in America to prohibit adult slavery and the first to establish universal suffrage for men without the requirements of property ownership or specific income for voting rights.
The Vermont Constitution was also the first to establish a system of public schools. The Old Constitution House, first saved from demolition in about 1870, features period rooms that reflect the building’s significant history as an early tavern, complete with the tap room where people gathered to drink, socialize, and discuss issues and events – it is said that more politics occurred in the tap room than at town meetings. It was opened to the public by the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation in 1961.
Source: 9.25.2023. Montpelier, VT - Vermont Division for Historic Preservation
