History talk: Hear how 1816’s weather puts 2023’s lackluster summer to shame

September 21, 2023  |  By Waterbury Roundabout 

A Vermont scene from 1816. Photo courtesy of the Vermont Humanities Council

If you happen to think the summer of 2023 was less than ideal with its frequent rains and infrequent days of hot sunshine, you should hear about the summer of ’16.

1816, actually. 

That’s the topic for a free presentation coming up on Saturday, Sept. 30, in Moretown sponsored by the Vermont Humanities Council. 

Vermont historian Howard Coffin will give a talk titled, “Vermont, 1800 and Froze to Death: The Cold Year of 1816,” at 2 p.m. at the Moretown United Methodist Church. 

The backstory: 1816 has long been known as the year without summer in Vermont. That year there were frosts recorded every month along with “dark skies, and mysterious lights that caused a widespread belief that a higher power was displeased,” according to the presentation’s announcement. 

In this talk, Coffin will recount anecdotes on the dark year of failed crops, scarce food, and religious revival. Coffin, a seventh-generation Vermonter, is the author of several books on the Civil War and military history including “Something Abides: Discovering the Civil War in Today's Vermont” and “Full Duty: Vermonters in the Civil War,” and “Nine Months to Gettysburg.”

Parking is behind the church which is located at 962 Route 100 B in Moretown. Light refreshments will be served. The presentation is free of charge although donations are appreciated. Organized by the Moretown Historical Society and the Moretown Methodist United Women in Faith.