Clarendon Shelter

Clarendon Camp (1st)

  • An open shelter built in 1921.
  • Situated in a hillside pasture near a brook with accommodations for 20 persons.

“Keep porch gate closed on account of cattle.” (GMC Guide book 1928)

  • Replaced in 1952 due to disrepair.

Clarendon Shelter (2nd)

  • Framed building with bunks for 12.
  • Constructed in 1952 by the Killington Section under the direction of Carl A. Newhall, chairman of the shelters committee for the section.
  • Construction was funded by the Killington Section and by a gift from W. O. Wiley of the GMC New York Section. (Rutland Herald, October, 1952)

“The beautiful setting is the same, the clear brook is the same. Only the open shelter is closed, and the date is 1952, not 1921.” (LTN November 1952)

  • Due to misuse, was converted to an open-faced shelter in 1971.

“The fence around the shelter is to keep out the cows in summer.” (LTN August 1971)

  • Roof was repaired in 2012 by the Killington Section. (GMC Guide book 2017)

Source: Paul Woodward, Long Trail System Shelter History, 1999

Rutland Railroad and the East Clarendon Railroad Station

The Rutland & Burlington Railroad, later renamed in 1867 as the Rutland Railroad, was chartered in 1843 by the state of Vermont to build a rail line between Rutland and Burlington. The section of railroad passing through East Clarendon and crossed by the LT/AT, was built in 1849.

The first East Clarendon Railroad Station was built in the 1850s and was located approximately 400 feet from the current location on Route 103. The building had two-stories with living quarters for an agent on the second floor. The station agent at that time handled the many tasks required to manage services for passengers, freight, and mail.

The first station was later replaced in 1916 with a one-story building. This second station provided more space for passenger services while eliminating the living quarters for the agent. The agent’s office, on the first floor, included a bay widow which allowed for visibility along the track in both directions.

The East Clarendon Railroad Station has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1999. Elsa Gilbertson from the Vermont State Historic Preservation Office wrote the following about the Rutland Railroad in the station’s 1999 Historic Places registration form:

“The railroad depended largely on through traffic between Boston or southern New England and northern Vermont or Montreal for its survival. The emergence of motor vehicle competition during the second quarter of the 20th century caused severe decline in both passenger and freight traffic, and passenger service was discontinued in 1953. The railroad itself was abandoned in 1963, but the State of Vermont then acquired it in order to restore freight service by lessees. Subsequently, trains of the Green Mountain Railway have continued to pass East Clarendon, although without stopping.”

According to the Rutland Railway Time Table No. 122 the last trains stopped at the East Clarendon Station on April 29, 1951. Two months later, a local veteran train conductor named Solon. A. Todriff purchased the building for $310. The purchase agreement stated that the building would be removed from railroad property which it was in 1953. The new site is about 400 feet to the north and across East Road on land that was already owned by the Todriffs. The building was used at one time as an antiques shop, and was later converted in 1996 to the Whistle Stop restaurant, a hiker friendly, popular stop for LT/AT hikers. The restaurant unfortunately closed in 2016, but the station itself remains on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources:

Historical Society of Clarendon Vermont clarendonhistory.org; East Clarendon Rail Station National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, ia802908.us.archive. org
Wikipedia
Rutland Railroad Association rutlandrr.org