by Guy Page
One of the 15 roadside historical markers erected this year by the State of Vermont commemorates one of America’s earliest same-sex couples.
The marker for Sylvia Drake and Charity Bryant was dedicated Saturday, June 21.
“Sylvia Drake and Charity Bryant lived together in Weybridge from 1807 until Charity’s death in 1851 as one of the most well-documented same-sex couples in early America,” according to a Middlebury College website.
“The two ran a successful tailoring business in Weybridge, and openly behaved as a married couple. Charity grew up in Massachusetts, and met Sylvia—a Weybridge native—while traveling to Vermont to visit friends. They became close, and Charity decided to permanently remain in Weybridge to be with Sylvia in 1807. Over their 44-year relationship, records of diaries, letters, and business papers show that the women came to be recognized as a married couple, or something like it. Charity took the role of husband, and Sylvia of wife, within the marriage.”
For 2025, 14 other new markers (listed below) recognize Vermont’s contributions to rebellions and wars, outdoors recreation, economic identity, and education.
- Revolutionary War hero Col. Seth Warner in Bennington
- Lt. Col. Udney Hay of Underhill, Revolutionary War hero and State Legislator
- Grand Army of the Republic in Cambridge, recognizing the 1937 designation of VT Route 15 to honor those who fought in the Civil War
- Leonard Lord of Swanton, the first Vermonter killed in action during World War I
- Prosper Ski Lodge in Woodstock, started in 1936 by farmer Rupert Lewis
- Long Trail Lodge in Killington, the 1923 lodge through which the Long Trail once traveled
- Burlington Country Club, the only Vermont club by designer Donald J. Ross, and its predecessor, Waubanakee Golf Club
- Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, New England’s fastest dirt track
- Bag Balm, manufactured in Lyndonville since c. 1908
- The Vermont Country Store in Weston, founded by Vrest and Mildred Orton in 1945
- Village of Pittsford Mills and covered bridge builder Nichols M. Powers, Pittsford
- Newton Academy, Vermont first private boarding academy that became Shoreham High School
- The Old Mill of Shaftsbury where the carpenter’s square was produced in 1823
- Ralph Waldo Ellison, author of Invisible Man, which was penned while he was visiting Fayston
The Vermont Roadside Historic Site Marker program was established in 1947 by the Vermont Legislature. The first markers were installed in 1949, the initial being for Joseph Smith, Mount Independence, and Hubbardton Battlefield. These 3-foot signs of cast aluminum are crammed with 765 characters that outline the stories of Vermont’s heritage, commemorating her people and important events.
Today, 335 markers are in production or have been placed throughout Vermont. There is one Roadside Historic Site Marker located outside Vermont, gracing a roadside in Middletown, Virginia, to honor Vermonters’ efforts at the Battle of Cedar Creek during the Civil War.