Vermont Historical Society receives contribution from Merchants Bank

BARRE, VT: Merchants Bank Foundation, Inc. has made a contribution of $5,000 to the Vermont Historical Society’s Saving Vermont’s Treasures campaign.

The Foundation’s gift will help to create three new gallery spaces for rotating exhibits at the Vermont History Center in Barre, giving Vermonters access to the rich history stored in the treasured artifacts. Each rotating exhibit will be accompanied by related school and public programs to inform residents, schoolchildren and visitors about state and community heritage. The gift will also help to save the building’s bell tower, a significant downtown feature, which is in urgent need of repairs and stabilization.

“We are so grateful for this showing of support so early in the campaign,” stated Mark Hudson, the Executive Director of the Vermont Historical Society. “It is particularly fitting that Merchants Bank, a financial institution with a statewide presence, is supporting this campaign; our collections have a statewide reach, as will the exhibits and programs the new galleries will make possible.”

Merchant’s Bank Foundation, Inc. presented a check to the Vermont Historical Society Hudson at the Vermont History Center on Wednesday, September 22, 2010.

The Vermont Historical Society is a nonprofit organization that operates the Vermont History Museum in Montpelier, the Leahy Library in Barre, and programming throughout the state.  Established in 1838, its purpose is to reach a broad audience through outstanding collections and statewide outreach. The Vermont Historical Society believes that an understanding of the past changes lives and builds better communities. Visit the Society’s web site at www.vermonthistory.org.