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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Sherburne Memorial Library

Killington, Vermont

Explore this community history collection to discover the people, places, organizations, and events of Killington.

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14Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1761 to 1990Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

5,734Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Killington, Vermont.

Get to know Killington, Vermont in earlier years through journals and diaries as well as local history resources shared in the Sherburne Memorial Library's digital archive. Its fourteen titles include material from 1761 to 1990. Further starting points include military records and history; annual reports; and personal writings.

You can open the archive using the link below.
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  • Selected titles

    In the collection shared by Sherburne Memorial Library, you will find “Annual Town Report” and “White Church Scrapbooks”.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • Different views of the past

    Annual reports tell how an organization described its work and priorities, placing a year of activity in its own words. A journal or diary preserves a writer’s own perspective. Read a passage in its surrounding account rather than treating one person’s experience as everyone’s story.

One source rarely tells an entire story. A name, place or event can lead into another part of the collection, offering a different perspective on the question that brought you here. Start with a passage, name, or date that stands out. Keep the speaker's or writer's own words distinct from what you infer about a family or community. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Browse fourteen titles and 5,734 digitized pages, with material from 1761 to 1990. A partnership between Sherburne Memorial Library and Advantage Archives makes this collection available. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

If you are tracing a family connection or exploring local history, the titles below offer a place to begin and a thread to follow.

Annual Town Report

612 pages from 1900 to 1912

Elbridge Prior Civil War

384 pages in 1864

History

66 pages in 1901

Informal History

590 pages in 1761

Joining Hands

240 pages in 1901

Madeline Fleming Scrapbooks

136 pages from 1976 to 1980

Nathan Chauncy Adams Diary 1864

472 pages in 1864

Nathan Chauncy Adams Diary 1865

358 pages in 1865

Nathan Chauncy Adams Diary 1866

76 pages in 1866

Sherburne Historians Scrapbooks

1,018 pages from 1957 to 1980

Sherburne Library Scrapbooks

296 pages from 1979 to 1990

SK Historians Trips, Hikes, Meetings

188 pages from 1971 to 1986

The Mountain Times

1,080 pages from 1972 to 1982

White Church Scrapbooks

218 pages from 1979 to 1987

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About the Library

About The Sherburne Memorial Library

The Sherburne Memorial Library is the living room of the Killington community, providing a welcoming space for all residents. The library is dedicated to offering a wide range of resources and services to meet the cultural, intellectual, informational, and personal needs of individuals. Established in 1913 following a community vote, the library has grown significantly over the years. Notably, it is the only library in Vermont, and one of just 30 public libraries nationwide, to have received a five-star rating for five consecutive years in Library Journal’s index of public libraries.

Sherburne Memorial Library photo 1

About the Community

About Killington, Vermont and Surrounding Areas

Killington, originally named Sherburne, was chartered in 1761 by Governor Benning Wentworth of New Hampshire. Nestled in the Green Mountains, Killington has a rich history that reflects its evolution from a rugged frontier town to a popular ski resort destination. The town was renamed Killington in 1999 to reflect the area's famous Killington Peak, a popular year-round recreation destination.

In the 19th century, the local economy was primarily based on agriculture and logging. The construction of the Killington Stage Road facilitated travel and trade, contributing to the town’s growth. The early 20th century saw a decline in population as industrialization drew people to urban areas. However, the development of the Killington Ski Resort in the 1950s sparked a revival, transforming the town into a premier ski destination.

The surrounding areas of Killington also have historical significance. The nearby town of Woodstock, founded in 1761, is known for its well-preserved 19th-century architecture and vibrant arts community. Rutland, another neighboring town, has a rich history as a marble quarrying center and boasts a downtown district listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In the early days, Sherburne was home to several notable hostelries, including Josiah Wood's Tavern Stand at the Mission Church, the Coffee House on Elbow Road in North Sherburne, and Ruftis Richardson's hotel near the Harley Gifford house. The most recent and well-known was a hotel built in 1840, later expanded for use as a tavern in 1863, and run by Benjamin Maxham for 18 years. By 1889, Augusta Bates Taylor owned the hotel, and it was managed by Horace and Ida Wilson from 1891 to 1898. After the Wilsons' departure, the hotel ceased operations and eventually became a dwelling house before collapsing.

Killington and its surrounding areas offer a blend of historic charm and modern recreational opportunities, making it a unique and attractive destination for residents and visitors alike.

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Local History

Did You Know?

The Sherburne Memorial Library is the only library in Vermont to have received a five-star rating in the Library Journal's index of public libraries for five consecutive years. This prestigious recognition underscores the library's exceptional service and dedication to the community.

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More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Look at a question from different perspectives

Explore a connection with Killington through complementary sources in the collection shared by Sherburne Memorial Library. When reading a local history, note its author, date, and cited sources so a later account remains distinct from evidence recorded at the time.

An annual report records how its issuing organization described a particular year. Keep that date and viewpoint with a quotation or figure. Let one finding suggest a second path through the collection. Match dates, places, and identifying details carefully before treating two records as connected.

Capture the title, date, and page or item location for a detail you may want to revisit. Label your interpretation as your reading, not the source's own words. Keep enough context with the note that another reader can retrace it.

Review collection titles

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Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Sherburne Memorial Library, its community, and Advantage Archives. Together, these partnerships preserve local sources and give people a way to explore, learn from, and share the history around them.

Advantage Archives covers ongoing archive hosting, storage, development, and maintenance. The institution and its community do not pay a subscription, seat license, annual support contract, or other recurring archive-service charge. Local history remains a community resource, not a subscription to maintain.

Would you like to see more of your community's history preserved and accessible? Start a conversation with your library, newspaper publisher, historical or genealogical society, museum, or school about the materials they would like to share and a possible partnership with Advantage Archives.

Learn about partnerships
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Read All About It

Stories, research tips, and archive news

Read All About It connects archive research with the people and institutions preserving local history. Explore partner and community stories, project updates, research ideas, and perspectives on digitization, education, and working with primary sources. Use the articles as a starting point for your next question or a new way to share a discovery.

Newest published articles

March 18, 2025

It’s Your Community’s History, So Why Rent Something You Own?

We believe that history belongs to the communities where it was made - not locked behind paywalls or inaccessible due to budget restrictions. Subscription-based services and large content aggregators are generally more concerned with "content" and less concerned with the history that content contains. Their models typically involve a reoccurring charge for a plan that renews annually or licensing agreements with the library based on population served or circulation numbers. You are essentially Renting Access To YOUR History.
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