This article is the second in a 30-part series on the historic quilt sewed by the Congregational Women’s Association (CWA) in 1978. Each article will cover one of the 30 squares, the woman who sewed it, and how the square fits into Brandon’s history.

In the first article, the creation of the historic village quilt by the CWA was covered, and the history of the first of the 30 squares, the Ayrshire cow by Maridon Gibson, was reviewed.

The quilt was recently hung in the Fellowship Hall of the Congregational Church by the church deacons and Reverend Sara Rossigg. The Hall is open every Sunday from
9-11 a.m., or you can call the church office at 802-247-6121 to arrange for someone
to let you in. 

Square Two

This week’s history is on Square Two, which is second from the left in the upper row of the quilt.

Marion Leonard

The needle artist was Marion Leonard, who lived on the old Leonard Farm on Mount Pleasant (32 Old Farm Road today). At 75, she was the second oldest of the 39 quilters, whose ages ranged from 22 to 77. She was also the group’s most prolific contributor, completing three squares. Her other two squares will be featured in future articles. 

Marion Kidder married Ralph Leonard in 1927, when she was 24. They built a new house that year just beyond the original Leonard farmhouse where Ralph had grown up. The farmhouse, built by John Conant in the early 1800s, at its peak was surrounded by the more than 200-acre Leonard Farm that stretched across Mount Pleasant.

Although Marion and Ralph were busy running the farm, Marion was also active in the Congregational Church and a student of Brandon history. In 1961, she was heavily involved in a group of citizens who researched and wrote a much-needed history of the town, aptly titled “Brandon, Vermont — A History of the Town: 1761-1961.” She was the main contributor to six of the 23 chapters.

Given her deep knowledge of Brandon history, Marion was likely a valuable resource for her fellow quilters as they selected historical subjects for the quilt in 1978.

The Farr Observatory

Marion’s choice for square two was an iconic building that actually looked down on her home (at what is now 33 Old Farm Road), only 200 yards away up the hill (40 Old Farm Road today). 

On the description key attached to the back of the quilt, she called it “The Farr Observatory on Seminary Hill used for plane spotting in WWII - 1911.” Somehow, despite her historic prowess, the date was off by a couple of years.

In fact, the observatory building was built in 1909 and it was originally built as a tea house. Here’s the story:

Albert G. Farr was born in Brandon in 1851 at his grandfather Salmon’s house at 31 Franklin Street (most recently Rosebelle’s Inn). He was the son of Flavius “Fiddler” Farr. After attending Brandon schools, Albert moved with his family to Columbus, Ohio, at age 16. He later settled in Chicago, where he quickly rose to become a wealthy banker and businessman, but he never lost his love for Brandon

After summering in Brandon for a number of years at the Hall residence at 53 Park Street, Albert Farr decided to buy the 7-acre property, tear down the existing residence, and build a state-of-the-art mansion. Sparing no cost, he hired renowned architect Frederick W. Perkins of Chicago to design “The Arches,” which was built to his precise specifications by contractor Burt W. Howland, mason Roscoe Sanders, and a crew of workmen from Brandon. 

In early 1909, Albert Farr also bought another piece of land with the best views in  Brandon — a 27-acre lot on Mount Pleasant or Sunset Hill, which was at the highest point in the village at 663 feet. The land he bought had all been part of the large Leonard Farm.

Observatory of Nature

The Brandon Union mentioned the new Farr property in its Aug. 5, 1909, coverage of the opening of The Arches:

“Directly in front of the house [The Arches on Park Street], and half a mile to a mile away as the crow flies is Mount Pleasant, the highest point in Brandon, and from which an unobstructed view of the grand old mountains and beautiful valleys of this neighborhood can be had. Mr. Farr has purchased this property and while he owns it, it will forever be used as an observatory of the beautiful pictures which nature is continually constructing.”

Perkins designed the new observatory and Howland, Sanders, and crew built it with the same arches of the mansion below — a smaller reflection of The Arches on the hill. For many years, the observatory and mansion were visible to each other, as the trees had not yet grown up. 

Yes, it was an “observatory” of nature, but it was primarily used as a “tea house” — a place where Farr’s daughter Shirley could bring her friends and associates for tea or a picnic and a view to surpass all views. Albert Farr died just four years later in 1913, leaving the estate to Shirley. She continued to summer in Brandon until she moved there permanently around 1940. 

Burt Howland also built the road up to the observatory in 1909 so Shirley could motor up there with her friends.

World War II Observatory

Because the observatory provided the best views of the skies over the village, early in World War II it was chosen to house volunteer spotters on the lookout for enemy airplanes as part of an early air raid warning system in the area. Beginning in October 1941, with Miss Farr’s approval, the American Legion set up Station 55-A at the observatory. Volunteers, including Burt Howland Jr., the builder’s son, took shifts at the observatory watching for planes with binoculars. 

By January 1942, 23 volunteers were involved, as listed in the clipping below: (Conant Hill, North Hill, and Sunset Hill were all used for Mount Pleasant.)

Women and teenage observers were soon welcomed, and some contributed many hours to the effort.

In June 1944, the air warning system was discontinued, and the observatory went back to being a tea house and an observatory of nature.

Shirley Farr died in 1955 at age 74, but the observatory, along with The Arches and her other real estate holdings, remained in the family under the management of her nephew, Dean Vittum. 

Almost a Town Park

Then, in 1972, a group sought a town appropriation in the amount of $25,000 to buy the property for a park, leading to its inclusion on the 1973 town meeting warrant. Speaking in favor were Harmon Thurston and Thomas Hood:

However, voters rejected the proposal by a 96-62 margin.

The Kennas

Soon after the park proposal was defeated, Roger and Connie Kenna, newly arrived in town in 1970, decided to buy the property. In September 1973, they bought the observatory for $22,500.

Years later, Connie recalled their early days there:

“We spent the first year making the observatory livable. We needed to drill a well, redo plumbing and electricity, pump in insulation, put in a septic tank, a leach field, a furnace, and an oil tank. We built two sleeping lofts, a shower, and kitchen cabinets. 

On May 4, 1974, the family of four moved in as a “full moon shining in through the 14 huge [arched] windows made it seem almost like daytime.” 

Included with the property was the original landscape gardener’s map, prepared by a Chicago firm and dated February 3, 1909. 

On the map, the outline of the Mount Pleasant house is sketched in pencil on top of the highest ledge rock, 663 feet above sea level. Arrows point to distant views of “Baptist Church,” “School-House” (the Brandon Seminary where Albert Farr attended), “Episcopal Tower,” “Congregational Church,” “Harrison Place” (where Albert was born), and “Park Street Residence” (The Arches).

The two Kenna boys, Caleb and Roger, grew up in the hilltop home. In the late 1970s, the family expanded the upstairs into an attic bedroom with six dormers. 

In 1985, Marion Leonard sold her house and land down the hill to the Kennas. She died in 1996 at 90. 

Today, the Kennas still own the property on the hill, where Caleb Kenna, now a renowned photographer, maintains his studio.

The View

In the summer of 1885, Brandon photographers J. & G. L. Parker, then located on Union Street, took an “aerial” photograph of the village from the ledge where the observatory would later be built in 1909. That photograph is shown below, with 12 buildings notated.

The buildings were:

Today there are many more trees, but the view is just as spectacular.

The photo below was taken by Caleb Kenna with his drone camera. 

Thanks to Connie and Caleb Kenna for providing information for this article, to Caleb for the use of his drone photo, and to Claire Pate for her photos of the quilt.