CORNWALL — Documentarian Rick Moulton visited Pine Street Friday, Oct. 24, to learn more about the early life of Ethan Allen.
Moulton is working on a film for Vermont PBS titled “Ethan Allen: The Man and the Myth” that will be part of the Public Broadcasting Service’s recognition of the United States’ 250th birthday in 2026.
He met with Suzie Fateh, curator of the Cornwall Historical Society, and First Selectman Gordon Ridgway. The group reviewed early maps of town showing where the Allens lived in the 1740s.
The family settled on a large plot near Cornwall Center on Town Street. “That was the center of town in the 1700s. There was a church there, the minister’s house and a two-story tavern,” said Fateh.
Allen’s father, Joseph, was on Cornwall’s first Board of Selectmen in 1740. “The fact he got elected right from the start of the town shows that he had to have some substance,” said Ridgway.
Filmmaker Rick Moulton, left, saw documents from Cornwall Historical Society’s Friday, Oct. 24, while meeting with curator Suzie Fateh.Riley Klein
Allen grew up in Cornwall. Moulton said in his research he found Allen credited the nearby Native Americans as his hunting teachers.
As an adult, Allen became rebellious and reportedly caused some commotion in Salisbury.
“He was an agitator,” said Moulton. “He not only broke the formal religious rule against smallpox inoculation, he did it on the front steps of the church.”
“He was arrested for blasphemy,” said Ridgway.
Allen’s defiance shaped his later leadership. He ultimately moved north to Vermont, met with the Green Mountain Boys and famously took Fort Ticonderoga in 1775.
“We’ve found out he really had very little authorization from anybody to take the Fort Ticonderoga,” said Ridgway. “It wasn’t until the following year that the Continental Congress actually declared independence from Britain. So they were sort of, I would say, freelancing a little bit.”
When war began he joined a failed campaign to capture Montreal and was captured, spending two years as a British prisoner.
After his release he helped establish the Vermont Republic, which operated independently until joining the Union in 1791. Allen has been called the “Founding Father of Vermont.”
But, as Moulton pointed out, his story began in Cornwall.
Moulton said he expects his 57-minute film to air on PBS in early fall of 2026. A 90-minute director’s cut will be released for “limited theater engagement” on July 4.
Gus Tripler prepares to jump from the new 36-meter jump.
Satre Hill and SWSA are celebrating their 100th Anniversary of ski jumping in northwest Connecticut this week. As part of this week’s festivities, Salisbury Central School was invited to watch a demonstration of jumping on the 20-meter and the newly installed 36-meter ski jumps.
The event began with Coach Seth Gardner welcoming Salisbury Central School to the jump complex and explaining the sport and training that goes into ski jumping.
Ski jumpers Oona Mascavage and Camden Hubbard assisted Coach Gardner by showing off equipment used in the sport from the oversized skis to the aerodynamic jump suits as well as the proper starting form known as the in-run position.
Salisbury Central School with SWSA jumpers.Dan Hubbard
Then, Willie Hallihan of the SWSA offered students a brief history of ski jumping in Salisbury, tracing the sport’s local roots back a century to when the Satre brothers first launched themselves off a barn before going on to construct the area’s first ski jumping hill. After the history lesson, younger jumpers showed how to begin the sport by skiing down the landing portion of the hill called the outrun.
Jumpers proceeded to show basic jumping from the 20-meter hill, where most beginners start. The event was capped with a demonstration of jumping from the bigger 36-meter hill, where the real flying begins led by one of SWSA's veterans, Gus Tripler.
Willie Halloran of SWSA, Coach Seth Gardner, and ski jumpers Oona Mascavage and Camden Hubbard giving a history of Salisbury ski jumping and equipment demonstration.C Tripler
The SWSA operates one of the oldest ski jumping facilities in the United States and is the home club of 1956 Olympic ski jumper Roy Sherwood and legendary ski jumping coach Larry Stone. The organization has hosted Olympic ski jumpers over the years, including many members of the current U.S. Olympic ski jumping team, now competing in Italy at the Winter Games.
The future of ski jumping at SWSA remains strong, with plans underway to install artificial grass that would allow for summer jumping and year-round training. Islay Sheil, a homegrown jumper, is currently competing on the Junior National Ski Jumping circuit, which includes Olympic-size 100-meter hills.
The 100th anniversary celebrations will continue Feb. 6–8 with Jumpfest, which will feature ski jumping events at Satre Hill in Salisbury.
The jumps at Satre Hill are groomed and ready for launch of the 100th annual Jumpfest Feb. 6 to 8.Photo by Lans Christensen
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PUBLISHER’S NOTICE: Equal Housing Opportunity. All real estate advertised in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1966 revised March 12, 1989 which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color religion, sex, handicap or familial status or national origin or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. All residential property advertised in the State of Connecticut General Statutes 46a-64c which prohibit the making, printing or publishing or causing to be made, printed or published any notice, statement or advertisement with respect to the sale or:rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, age, lawful source of income, familial status, physical or mental disability or an intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.
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Antonio Alcalá
As part of the Norfolk Economic Development Commission’s campaign to celebrate the Norfolk Post Office and the three women who run it — Postmaster Michelle Veronesi and mother-and-daughter postal clerks Kathy Bascetta and Jenna Brown — the EDC has invited USPS art director and stamp designer Antonio Alcalá for a visit.
Postage stamps designed by Antonio Alcalá.Provided
On Sunday, Feb. 8, at 3 p.m., the Virginia-based designer will give a talk at the Norfolk Library titled “The Art of the Postage Stamp.” The free talk is open to the public, with a reception following. Reservations are required: norfolklibrary.org.
On Saturday, Feb. 7, at 10:30 a.m., there will be a Children’s Valentine Stamp Workshop with Alcalá and children’s librarian Eileen Fitzgibbons. The workshop is open to children ages 6–14 (limit 14; registration required at norfolklibrary.org). The invitation: “Come create a stamp you love!”
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Ann Havemeyer, executive director of the Norfolk Library, said, “It’s always fun to see the new stamps issued by the USPS and learn more about the process of bringing a stamp to life. Antonio Alcalá will speak about the history of stampmaking, the design elements involved, and his own journey that brought him to this work.”
Alcalá is the founder and co-owner of Studio A, a design practice working with museums and arts institutions. He lectures at schools including the Corcoran College of Art + Design, the School of Visual Arts, Pratt Institute and the Maryland Institute College of Art. His work and contributions to the field of graphic design were recognized with his selection as an American Institute of Graphic Arts Fellow. He serves on Poster House museum’s CMYK Council and the Smithsonian National Postal Museum’s advisory council. His designs are represented in the AIGA Design Archives, the National Postal Museum and the Library of Congress Permanent Collection of Graphic Design. Alcalá earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University and an MFA in graphic design from the Yale School of Art. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with his wife and Studio A partner, Helen McNeill.
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The Brookings Institution recently stated that “two and a half centuries after its founding, the Postal Service’s universal service mission continues to support local economic life, particularly in rural areas where stable, place-based infrastructure remains central to small-business activity.” Members of the Norfolk Economic Development Commission agree: “The Norfolk Post Office plays a unique and essential role in town life. Beyond its core function, it serves as a daily point of connection for residents and businesses and is a critical piece of local infrastructure that supports commerce, communication and community.”
