Ron Patch has joined his ancestors. Ron was a true Vermonter and Chester native, who dressed in casual attire, such as a flannel shirt and worn-in jeans, and in the more recent years, long hair. He preferred to be barefoot, and has been caught at festivals or mowing his lawn without shoes on. He spoke and wrote with Vermont phrases and idioms, which no one will quite be able to replace.
He enjoyed fishing, and always kept a “fish pole” in his car in the summertime. Ron would happily attend the Chester Rod & Gun Club fishing derby each year. He would help George Wilson with attendance and handing out trophies, and watch the families catch their fish and enjoy the outdoors. Ron would also go out “shrooming,” picking mushrooms that would “make your toes curl” they were so good. His picking locations were just as sacred and secret as a good fishing spot.
He liked “cemeterying” as he called it, walking through local cemeteries and thinking up the history of the loved ones buried there. Ron and his son Shawn worked on a mapping project of the Brookside Cemetery, one of the earliest cemeteries in Chester, which has a lot of unique markings and gravestones. Shawn said, though the project is not done, they used his company’s GPS machine and mapped the locations of the grave markers. “Dad was very excited about that,” Shawn said.
Ron was an antiques collector, historian, and so much more. If you wanted to learn the history of Chester, he was the one to ask. He was the president of the Chester Historical Society (CHS) for 16 years, until he retired in 2021. Current president Jon Clark said, “The historical society wouldn’t be what it is today without Ron,” adding, “there wasn’t much going on” at CHS until Ron took over.
Ron was the “driving force” for the Merritt Edson monument in Chester. Edson was the most prestigious resident in town, a Medal of Honor recipient, who also started the Vermont Highway Patrol, which later became the Vermont State Police. Ron was responsible for all of the research and fundraising for the monument that was erected on the Green, as well as the planning for Merritt Edson Day, Aug. 15, 2015, featuring a small parade and unveiling ceremony.
Another notable CHS achievement was the planning of the Civil War expo, a re-enactment of Civil War battles, which was held in 2007, in Chester. There were displays along Main Street, with the central point of the event at the historical society. There were speakers and actors portraying President Abraham Lincoln and his wife. Jon recalled that they had Lincoln come in on the train, and onto the Green on a horse and buggy. They had cannons fire. “You would have thought it was Abe Lincoln,” Jon said.
Carla Westine, of the CHS, wrote, “Ron spent countless hours over many decades working to preserve Chester’s past. His extensive knowledge of Vermont history, and Chester in particular, was impressive. He worked tirelessly to bring the past into the present so that we could all learn about the people, places, and events that shaped our community. He was a wonderful storyteller, an author, an antiques dealer, and a solid friend to many.”
Though Ron helped preserve a wealth of knowledge and artifacts for the CHS, he also had his own large collection of photos and postcards, antiques, and other memorabilia. He recently was gifted collections from Danny Clemmons and Ted Spaulding, which I hope will all find good homes with those who will truly appreciate their value.
Ron published at least five books in his time, including “Pictorial History of Chester, Andover, Weston & Londonderry;” “Local History” volumes 1, 2, and 3; and “Stories of Us,” which were stories written by many of his friends and acquaintances. I had the honor of helping him design ads, book covers, and layouts for many of them, and the privilege of pulling signed copies off my shelf today. Ron was a great historian, and I was happy to be a part of his publications. He always thanked me for making him look good, but really, he did all of the work.
Ron began writing for The Vermont Journal in 2007, offering a local history column for almost two decades. He also heavily provided photos for our annual Yesterday & Today section, which is my favorite feature to put together with him. I never really enjoyed history in school – I just couldn’t relate or remember the details. Ron had a way of helping me appreciate the history of where I grew up, offering photos and stories of what our community used to be. That I found interesting. I’m sure he has many stories, both personal and historical, left untold. Let’s remember Ron for all the fun he had, and hell he raised in his day.
My favorite story of Ron is when he ran the old toll bridge. He wrote this story for our Yesterday & Today section. I’ll let him do the talking.
“It was about 1937, my father was out late one night with two of his buddies…‘As I approached the bridge I gained speed. I pushed the headlight control in as I neared the tollbooth and gunned it! There was a dim light in the booth with a man to take tolls. We flew by the booth, burst out laughing, and opened another beer.’ He made it sound so exciting.
“It was 1970. I was driving my 1966 Chevelle. I had a case of beer on the back seat (the drinking age was 21; I was 18), and two girls in the front seat. It was late at night, when the bridge appeared. I increased speed, turned the headlights off, and flew across the bridge, past the tollbooth. This was exciting until I made it to the center of Charlestown, and was pulled over by the Charlestown Police.”
“I called Arnold for a brief conversation…‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I’m at the police station in Charlestown,’ I said. ‘What did you do?’ was his next question. I proudly told him, ‘I ran the toll bridge like you did.’ ‘You damn fool,’ he said. ‘I went from New Hampshire to Vermont. You can stay where you are.’ The next morning my mother came and bailed me out.”
Lifelong friend Bob Miller, retired owner and publisher of The Vermont Journal, recalls growing up with Ron. Bob went to Bellows Falls High School, and Ron attended Chester High School. On Good Fridays, Bob didn’t have school, so he would go to Chester, and that’s how he got to know Ron. Bob remembered being in Mrs. Stocker’s class; she would not tolerate any nonsense from them.
Bob, Ron, and others would street race in their younger years. Bob remembered someone’s dad was in the National Guard, and they got their hands on a few left-over walkie talkies. “These things were like a foot long,” Bob laughed, “and that’s how we knew where the cops were.” They later got a battery-operated traffic light. One night they would be in Bellows Falls, Saxtons River, and another in Chester.
Ron wrote “Muscle cars and racing” back in 2022. “On the flat [on Route 11] near Fay Scott’s was my first real race. It was 1970 and I had just bought a 1970 Camaro SS at a dealership in Rutland…We lined up side by side, in the dark of night, headed toward Springfield. I was in the right lane and Carl [Albanese] in the left lane. [Carl was an excellent driver with a very fast Z.] There was a kid our age that stood on the yellow line 10 feet in front of us with his arms raised. The noise from the roaring engines was incredible. We watched the kid with his arms raised in our headlights. When he dropped his arms, off we went, tires squealing, and engines roaring…I don’t remember now how fast I was going when I went into the curve by Stan Flint’s, but it must have been 90 or better. I left Carl behind, handily winning the race…
“I raced near the Weston Priory a couple times. Another place we raced was out Route 121 from Bellows Falls. There was a long, flat, straight section where we raced. I remember Marty Rush. I think he had a GTO. Bob Miller was never far away with his Corvette.”
“We had fun,” Bob reminisced. After they were done racing, they’d go bar hopping. The friends would visit the Pioneer House, or “P House” as they called it, which is where Salon 2000 is today. That was the main watering hole for Chester and surrounding towns, Bob recalled. “On a Friday or Saturday night you might slide across the floor, it was so wet.” They’d go to the Legion, the Hindquarter, and the Stone Hearth Inn. Wednesday nights they would all go to the Duck Inn in Springfield.
Over the years, Bob said they transitioned from their partying days, to “mature” men who “didn’t really want to grow up.” Though the friends went separate ways, they came back together when Bob returned to Vermont and opened The Vermont Journal. Soon after, Ron began writing his history column for Bob.
“We lost one of our best friends,” Bob said.
Good friend John DeBenedetti, owner of The Framery of Vermont and Williams River Gallery, dearly misses Ron. The men would enjoy frequent conversation at John’s store. Ron, John, and Bob would often find themselves sharing a laugh and reminiscing at the store together. Ron would honk his horn any time he drove by the shop as if to say hello.
“Sundays are different now,” John said. He would normally read Ron’s articles every week before they were sent to the paper. John said he’d find himself laughing at what Ron wrote, and would help edit them. “I’d catch little things,” John said, that Ron might change in the article.
John enjoyed Ron’s wit and sense of humor that you would often find in his weekly column and old sayings. One of Ron’s old sayings that John enjoyed could be used when you saw someone you had not seen in a while: “Glad to see you found the 40 pounds I lost.”
Ron will be dearly missed by many, including all of us at the office. I’m sure many of you also have memories to share. If you’d like to share a few words, a short story, or a memory, please email publisher@vermontjournal.com by Monday, July 28.
If you’d like to read some of Ron’s articles, including those I referenced above, visit www.vermontjournal.com/category/ron-patch.
Ron always ended his articles with an old saying. I offer two old sayings in his memory. One, very fitting for Ron’s wit and personality: “I’d rather be historically accurate than politically correct.” And the second, anytime he said goodbye on the phone or in person, he’d say, “Carry on.”