Family stories are a part of oral history. They are told to inform younger generations about events heretofore not recorded. Brattleboro Remembers is a collection of such stories accompanied by the rich assortment of historical photographs that stirred these memories of earlier days in the southeastern corner of Vermont.

Brattleboro Remembers emerged as a result of writing workshops sponsored by the Brattleboro Historical Society and made possible by a grant from the Council on Aging for Southeastern Vermont. The workshops, facilitated by poet and writer Verandah Porche, took place on winter Sunday afternoons. The walls of the room in which the group met were covered with copies of historical photographs that brought back strong recollections. After studying an image, they wrote autobiographical pieces based on what came to mind. For those shy about putting pen to paper, volunteer scribes were on hand to listen to the stories and help participants get their reminiscences down on paper.

The Brattleboro Historical Society has skillfully combined the chosen historical photographs with the stories they evoked. The society offers Brattleboro Remembers as a tribute to the entire community, especially to those individuals who were willing to share their stories from the past.

Brattleboro lies in the southeast corner of Vermont, just nine miles north of the Massachusetts border and directly across the Connecticut River from New Hampshire. The community developed in the 1760s, when European American settlers established homes in the river valley. Brattleboro was ideal for settlement because of its topography. The Whetstone Brook, which runs from the foothills of the Green Mountains through Brattleboro, provided a major source of waterpower, and the Connecticut River offered an ideal transportation route for sending finished products via flat-bottomed boat to market in southern New England and New York.

Images of America: Brattleboro presents the story of its people, who from the beginning have exhibited and benefited from a positive philosophy toward life. In 1849 railroad service came to the area and Brattleboro developed as a center for commerce, health spas, and literary activities. Factories manufacturing organs, toys, and furniture thrived. Printing and publishing industries, as well as literary societies flourished. Hotels opened, and visitors arrived to do business or just to avail themselves of the town's many advantages. To this day, the area continues to enjoy a stable economy.

The Brattleboro Historical Society has selected from its collection some two hundred splendid photographs, which follow the people and the community they nourished from the mid-nineteenth through the mid-twentieth century. The Society has enriched these images with carefully researched narrative, producing a book that is sure to inform and delight both residents and visitors.