The woods around me were once the cleared fields and pastures of small homesteads, the evidence of their presence remaining amid the trees. It's almost heartbreaking to think of all the work those early farmers did to clear the land, now grown over, using only their own strength and that of animals. I come across several cellar holes on my walks, with foundations built of stones fit together, similar to the one in my house which was built in 1821.
These remnants of structures are hidden among trees that have grown up around and in them, but they remain, in some cases still straight and true. I try to imagine the houses rising above the foundations, but it is difficult as they are so small. A couple of them show a clear shape of one rectangle moving into another on a 90 degree different axis. If anyone knows how this translated into a building, please let us know.
This foundation wall has much larger stones, and they've begun to collapse. It is the closest homestead to my house, a mere 1/2 mile or so; they had been neighbors to my house's residents. As in the first image, a later owner built on the land, but higher up, so as to have a better view, while the original dwellers wanted to be close to the road.
And the old road still exists as a snowmobile trail, lined with a wall built of stones likely dug while clearing the fields. I love the way the huge piece of granite is piled with smaller rocks, which are topped with green moss; there's something very portrait-like about the arrangement, as though the rocks were living beings.
Other old walls wend their way among trees throughout the woods, with no remnant of road or building. They are the traces of the edges of fields, and where they are, we know that there was once a farm. In this part of Vermont, hilly, bony (meaning lots of rocks), and with thin soil, farming turned out not to be a very easy pursuit. So now others––artists and teachers and computer programmers––live on these hills, and are reminded of those who came before by the stones in the woods.
poetic, I thought, reading this post about the land and it's visible history. this is the kind of thing poets see. then I thought of wikileaks - and how nothing is erased/ nothing stays hidden - all things come to the surface eventually.
ReplyDeletethank you, rappel for your lovely comment. There is something almost archeological in these forest remnants, and they do stir up deep feelings.
ReplyDeleteIs it good for everything to come to the surface, or are some past secrets better kept?
neither good nor bad, just the way it is.
ReplyDeleteAh Altoon, beautiful walls about you, treasures from another time, secreted away from many but shared with you because you are listening and really looking. Lovely photos. I love the old stone walls. The one along the road, large stone with small grouped over it, moss topping, leaves as a layer....such a great photo.
ReplyDeletethanks, Maggie, I'm pleased you enjoyed these images.
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful pictures. We had our snow here in the UK before Christmas, and now the weather is mild. I'd like some more snow though, it looks so pretty when it is freshly fallen.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ellee. We now have over two feet of snow on the ground in Vermont and walls and foundations are covered in white.
ReplyDelete