READSBORO
THE COMMUNITIES OF THE SHIRES
A town of 743 people on the Deerfield River , Readsboro is situated in the southeasternmost corner of Bennington County .
Water power once powered industry , and a sizable immigrant population from northern Italy , from terrain not unlike Vermont ’ s , settled here a hundred years ago to work In Readsboro ’ s thriving furniture factories .
The Readsboro General Store still stocks the coarse-grained polenta favored by those hardy Italians .
In summer , kayakers , rafters , and tubers who begin their river adventures In Readsboro or further upstream in Readsboro Falls can end up ( by design ) in Charlemont , Mass .
A Fourth of July parade ends in an Impressive display of fireworks at the park , and summer ends in a burst of autumn colors .
RUPERT
It ’ s the northwestern most town in The Shires of southwestern Vermont .
PBS ’ s “ Cook ’ s Country ” was produced for many years in Rupert at the country home of celebrity chef Christopher Kimball . Want to stay in the house where the show was filmed ? You can : it ’ s listed on VRBO .
Rupert is also home to Merck Forest & Farmland Center , whose mission is to teach and demonstrate the benefits of innovative , sustainable management of forest and farmland . Its 3,100 acres , with 30 miles of trails , are open year-round at no charge .
Rupert was the site of the mint that struck Vermont ’ s copper coinage in the years when the independent Republic of Vermont was not yet a U . S . state .
Photo by Lorianna Weathers Photography
COME EXPLORETHESHIRES . COM 25 FOR INFO CALL 802.447.2456