In the fall of 1945 , Vrest and Ellen made their initial entry into the retail business with a mail-order catalog entitled , “ The Voice of The Mountains .” Vrest printed the catalog on an in-house press in his garage , drawing on the skill set that he had honed during his years in the fast-paced and high-demand world of New York City publishing . As a young child , Lyman Orton watched his father Vrest operate the printing press with awe and fascination . He also helped his mother , Ellen , with the bookkeeping . She taught him how to use an adding machine to crunch numbers for the incoming mail-order checks .
The original “ Voice of The Mountains ” catalog was 12 pages long and featured 36 items . Ellen sent the catalog out to a “ Christmas card list ” of close family members and friends , who were eager to support their fledgling business . As word continued to spread , the mail-order operation expanded to the point that it could no longer be housed in the Orton garage . Vrest and Mildred also began to receive an immense number of inquiries from tourists who were eager to visit the fabled “ Vermont Country Store .” Due to the fact that no such in-person store existed yet , Vrest and Ellen were unable to capitalize on the interests of potential visiting tourists . It was then that Vrest and Ellen made the decision to acquire a two-story building in Weston where they could open a store for people to come visit . Before it was purchased by the Ortons , the building served as a locally-owned country inn . When Vrest and Mildred opened The Vermont Country Store there in 1946 , young Lyman helped out behind the counter , adding up the cost of customers ’ purchases on a 19th century school slate board . Vrest ’ s father , Gardner Lyman Orton , moved down to Weston to be closer to his son and his family , and worked as a miller in the local gristmill . At the time , Southern Vermont was
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