Vermont remembers farmer who refused to sell for interstate
ASCUTNEY, Vt. – The Vermont Agency of Transportation is asking the public for ideas for a permanent memorial to an Ascutney farmer who took his life after his farm was seized to make way for the construction of Interstate 91.
A maple tree that has stood on what was once Romaine Tenney’s farm is dying and will be removed.
Officials say the tree is a reminder of the impact the construction of the interstate system had on Vermont.
Tenney refused to sell his farm as the interstate was being built. It was taken through eminent domain. After his farm was seized in 1964, he barricaded himself inside his farmhouse and burned it, and his barns, to the ground with him inside.
A meeting is scheduled for Oct. 29 at the Ascutney fire station.
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