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Stopping Stones project honors woman enslaved in Bennington

Bennington Museum
/
Bennington Museum
A commemorative stone in Bennington marks the place where Margaret "Peg" Bowen was enslaved.

People gathered in Old Bennington Saturday to honor a woman who was enslaved there in the late 1700s.

A marker engraved with the words "Margaret 'Peg' Bowen Enslaved Here 1772-1778" was placed at the site of the Catamount Tavern as part of the Stopping Stones project, which aims to bring attention to the history of slavery to advance racial equity.

A small group of staff from the Bennington Museum and volunteers have been collecting information about Bowen and other early Black Bennington residents to bring their stories to light. Deana Mallory, director of public programs at Bennington Museum, said the museum is working to do a better job of telling the story of Black Vermonters and close some gaps in its collection and exhibitions.

Bowen lived on a farm in Hadley, Mass., and was sold to Steven Fay of Bennington and enslaved at the Catamount Tavern, which was the headquarters for the Green Mountain Boys. She was eventually freed, in 1782.

Slavery has often been left out of the history of Vermont. "We take a lot of pride in that our first Constitution, in 1777, abolishes slavery, and to be fair, that is a pretty significant thing," Mallory said. "But it misses a big part of the story."

"It turns out that not everybody accepted that constitution, not everybody accepted the new government of Vermont, and there were no provisions for enforcing the rules of that constitution so slavery did continue in Vermont well into the 1800s. I think it's important for people to know that," Mallory said.

The Stopping Stone for Bowen is the fourth such marker in Vermont and one of dozens throughout New England.

Mikaela Lefrak is the host and senior producer of Vermont Edition. Her stories have aired nationally on Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Marketplace, The World and Here & Now. A seasoned local reporter, Mikaela has won two regional Edward R. Murrow awards and a Public Media Journalists Association award for her work.
Tedra joined Vermont Public as a producer for Vermont Edition in January 2022 and now serves as the Managing Editor and Senior Producer. Before moving to Vermont, she was a journalist in New York City for 20 years. She has a master’s degree in journalism from New York University.