Vernon historian visits English classes

VERNON — Vernon historian Ronald Dupont visited Sarah Ragone’s 10th grade English classes recently to speak about the many facets of Vernon's history as an extension of their study of the play "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder.

Students completed projects in which they researched an aspect of Vernon's history from 10,000 B.C. to the present. Many students were fascinated by the fact that a complete mastodon was unearthed in Highland Lakes in 1954, an entire iron mining village used to exist in the area that is now Canistear Reservoir, and one of the residents, Ross Winans, invented the railroad car "truck" which had pivoting wheels, an engineering breakthrough.

Dupont told one student about a railroad depot that used to exist right on that student's driveway. His visit was engaging and very informative and helped students understand that their town has roots that go very far back in history, shaping Vernon into what it is today.