By Mary Lou Nahas
For Capital Region Independent Media
A reader recently suggested I write about Vernon Haskins.
Vernon died in 1985, so I never knew him personally, but many who live in Oak Hill and Vicinity did, although those here now were children at the time he was alive. The people I asked for their memories of him all knew about the Durham Center Museum and his newspaper articles.
I imagine that many of the people who have come to this area in the last 20 years may not know even that much, so based on published material, I can tell some of his story. If you have information I left out, please share it with us.
Vernon was born in Durham Center in 1904, the youngest of five children. His parents were Elwin M. Haskins (1858-1913) and Alice Anna Utter Haskins (1862-1954). His siblings were Dora M. Haskins Traver (1885-1979), Utter Haskins (1888-1930), Paul Haskins (1895-1935), and Gladys Haskins Ingalls (1900-1967).
Vernon married Mary Helen Francis Haskins (1910-1987), whose family was from Greenville. They had one daughter, Vernona Mary Haskins Fleurent (1935-1997). Vernona’s first husband was Chet Calwell Jr. and her second husband was Harvey Fleurent. Find a Grave tells that Vernona’s ashes were buried next to the grave of Harvey Fleurent although her name is not on the tombstone. Vernon died in 1985 and he was buried in the Oak Hill Cemetery with his family.
Vernon attended the #8 schoolhouse in the town of Durham. He also, as he writes, served as the custodian there at some time in his life.
From boyhood Vernon was an avid collector of varied natural specimens, artifacts and ephemera, and gathered quite a collection. When he had outgrown the space at his home, he wanted to buy the early school building across the road from the Haskins Homestead to house his collections. The school had closed in the 1940s and was put up for auction.
It took him a bit of time because a newcomer outbid him. However, when the buyer realized he had purchased only the building and not the property it was sitting on, he sold it to Vernon at a price he could afford.
Friends and neighbors stopped in to view what he had, and soon were donating and adding to the inventory and the Durham Center Museum was born.
The collections grew and by 1960 the Durham Center Museum, Inc., had been formally organized. The board of trustees first met July 9, 1960, and elected: President Vernon Haskins; First Vice President Walter Spindler; Second VP Brooks Atkinson; Secretary Vernona Caldwell; and Treasurer Ivan Moore.
The 1975 board officers were President Helen Haskins, First Vice President Carl Ratsch; Second Vice President Burtis Woodruff; Third Vice President Ivan Moore; Secretary Delyght Woodruff; Treasurer Vernona Fleurent; and chairman of the board was Vernon Haskin.
Next organized was the Catskill Valley Historical Society, Inc. Following several preliminary meetings held in the library of the Durham Center Museum (the first such held Oct. 20, 1969) sufficient interest and progress had been made to warrant a larger meeting, which was held Dec. 1, 1969, at the Durham Central School with 32 persons present. Helen Woodruff, chairman of a previously selected by-laws committee, presented a set of by laws for consideration.
The first slate of officers to be elected were: the Rev. Sion Lyman, Freehold, chairman; Claudia Andersen, Greenville, vice chairman; Marie G. Grammel, Purling, recording secretary; George Hamm, Oak Hill, corresponding secretary.
The organization was to be called the Catskill Valley Historical Society. It received its provision charter as an educational, nonprofit organization, from the New York State Board of Regents May 23, 1971, and its absolute charter on Jan. 22, 1975. By then it was recorded that “present membership is well over 300.” Dues were $2 per year for adults and $1 for students.
The Society financed the construction of a large exhibition building at the Durham Center Museum, financed much of the rebinding of books, contributed toward the operation and maintenance of the museum and established a trust fund, the interest of which was to be used to maintain the recently restored Meeting House Hill Cemetery.
Officers were Porter Wright, Medusa, president; Vernona Fleurent, first vice president; Gerald Ingalls, Greenville, second vice president; Helen Hilzinger, Oak Hill, recording secretary; Olga Richard, Medusa, correspondence secretary; and Dorothy Howard Freehold, treasurer.
“The Durham Center Museum is dependent upon The Catskill Valley Historical Society Inc. for its support, maintenance and growth. Among its needs is the enlargement of the present structure in order house and property display its collection of historic memorability, antiques and library.”
While Vernon was busy with the museum and historical society, he and his daughter Verona were also writing regular columns for the local newspapers. Vernon wrote as the Woodland Reporter:
August, 1976: “We have observed as many as 50 robins gathered at the lawns of the Durham Center Museum. Mrs. Edgar Jennings comments on the sizable number of red winged blackbirds on the lawns adjacent to the Jennings home. It is rather early for birds to be gathering for their annual migration. While the number of bluebirds remains low, it would seem as if there had been a steady increase in their number during the past couple of years.
“According to reports of the Department of Environmental Conservation, the deer population is down. There appears to be a bumper crop of rabbits though, and we have seen many dead opossums along the highways.
“The hay crop is apparently a bumper one but due to unfavorable weather, thousands of acres remain uncut.
“A number of folks have observed the two snowy egrets that often visit a small pond on the Deans Mills country road that connects Route 145 with Route 81. While these birds are not rare, they are not often seen this close to a highway or on or near so small a pond.
“The other day when John Hull of the Oak Hill-Durham Road was coming up Route 145 between Cairo and East Durham, he saw a beaver walking along the highway. This is the first live wild Beaver that John had ever seen.”
And in July 1976: “The other day it was my very great pleasure to guide some folks from Scarsdale, NY, on a field trip to the top of High Peak. I have climbed that great old peak at all seasons of the year, even on snowshoes in the dead of winter. Even up there the prolific rains of this year have produced lush growth of trees and shrubs and flowers. And the boys who are employed by the Department of Environmental Conservation continue to do an excellent job of keeping the trail in top condition. And believe it or not, there were no discarded tin cans to mar the forest trail.
“Sunday afternoon, May 16th, it was my honor and pleasure to guide a group of some 20 young folks from the Oak Hill-Durham United Methodist Churches on a field trip to Mt. Pisgah.
“Usually, following fall rains and just before “frost time” there is an abundance of toadstool and mushroom growth. They are already fast developing and their so-called fairy rings of fungi are to be seen in many places.
“An area farmer discloses that a ‘sweets-loving’ bear visited a colony of honey bees and just about totally destroyed everything in his quest for honey.
“In a little forest glade, some 25 or more pink Lady’s Slippers or Moccasin Flowers were in full bloom. They are in a rather dense hemlock cover with practically no hardwood.
“As we mow the lawns and the cemeteries, we see many little warty toads, cute little ones, and we have to be very careful lest we kill or injure them, They are worth their weight in gold as potential bug catchers.”
Museum Notes: August, 1976: “More than 600 folks came to the exhibition-demonstration of gas and steam engines.
“The new pavilion at the Durham Center Museum was completed ahead of schedule. Its cost was financed by the Catskill Valley Historical Society.
“That interesting little book prepared by the students of the Greenville School, under supervision of Kenneth Mabee, is now available at the Durham Center Museum. It is well written and well-illustrated. The edition is very limited.
“Among recent groups visiting the Durham Center Museum were a contingent of ladies from the Rensselaerville Historical Society, a group of researchers from the Kingston area, a troop of cub scouts from Greenville and individuals from far and wide, including a couple from Germany.”
Vernona Fleurent, his daughter, wrote the Durham CenterColumn in the local papers. Her style was a bit different from her father’s.
August 1976: “We attended the circus at Brandow Park on July 31 sponsored by the Fire Co. Aux. There were a couple of good acts but the man with the chimps and poodles would benefit from a bit of TLC; I would like to twist his ears a few times, to see how he likes it.
“I understand that the post office in East Durham will be closed for an hour and a half each morning by order of the government. When are we supposed to go there anymore? The post office department gets worse and worse.
“Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Haskins, Mrs. Harvey Fleurent and son Paul attended the Greenville v Cairo-Durham basketball game. It was very exciting, even if the wrong team won. It was weird to see husbands and wives sitting on opposing sides, and very common to see brothers and sisters against each other. Many families in the area have children in both schools. Gerald Beechert is good as new a potential star for Cairo-Durham. Too bad he had to go there instead of Greenville where both his parents and his older sister and brother attended. There is a lot of discussion going around about the fact that most news reports call Cairo-Durham School simply Cairo. Most agree that a new name would be much better.
“The Haskins spent New Year’s Day at the home of the Harvey Fleurent’s watching all the lovely parades on TV.”
Vernon also worked for the Town of Durham Highway Department (although he had no driver’s license and had to walk to work). Brooks Atkinson, the Drama Critic for the New York Times, wrote a story headlined: “Vernon Haskins Combines Road Gang Chores with Love of Catskill Lore” [p. 44, Sept 20, 1960, New York Times].
Vernon was also a poet, publishing a small book called “Fireside Recollections: A Collection of Poems Written During a Period of Over a Half Century.” His poems tell us much about him:
“Tonight, as I sit in my humble home,
As the sun sinks down in the west,
I sort of get to thinking
Of the things with which I am blest.
I have a dear wife and a daughter
Whom I adore with all my might;
To-night the mercury is below zero
And the winds wail over the hill;
But four strong walls protect me
And a fire keeps away the chill.
There is seasoned wood in the shed,
Plenty of preserves in the cellar too;
Two porkers to be butchered on the morrow,
And a beef in a week or two.
My pocket-book is sort of empty
And Christmas only a few days away;
But that tinseled tree in the corner
To-night seems to be most gay.
With all the anguish in the world,
There is little for me to say;
But I give my thanks to Thee, O Lord,
For Thou hast been good to me this day.”
Written Dec. 16, 1946
My View of Life:
“Some people are saying I’m lazy
That I am lonely and blue;
Others keep telling me I’m crazy,
I wonder if all this is true?
For I tramp in the woodland byways
Instead of city streets;
I listen to the wild birds singing
Way down there in the forest dell.
I climb to the top of mountains
To gaze on the vistas below;
I find joys far beyond measure
On mountain, in field and in wood:
So why should I seek worldly pleasure
When God to me is so good?” June 29, 1928
There are poems about his family, his co-workers. On of my favorites is “To the Snow Removal Boys” when he names his friends in the highway department.
There are political poems: “If you should meet your neighbor/and he stops to pass the time of day, /When for many months before, /He sort of looked the other way. /When you go to church next Sunday, ‘don’t’ faint as you look down the pew/When you see your stranger neighbor. /And he smiles, and nods his head to you. /If you will pause for just a moment/In a bit of careful reflection, /You will find that their neighbor/Is a candidate for election.”
There are poems about war both past and present, religion, parties, friends and family, nature, all the things that impacted Vernon.
Vernon also wrote several small books about local history: “The Canajoharie-Catskill Railroad,” “James Barker the Patroon,” “Lyman Tremain, Lawyer-Stateman.” These were published by the Durham Center Museum and printed by Big Acorn Press in Oak Hill and sold at the museum.
Who was Vernon Haskins? It seems to me he was a man who lived life on his own terms and made a significant impact on Oak Hill and Vicinity. He was not rich in material things, but knew what he wanted and was willing to work for it.
He loved his family and friends. He had a sense of humor. He was religious. He was a member of the Oak Hill Methodist Church and stepped in as chairman of the trustees when Alfred Tripp Burnett died suddenly. He was well educated but not in formal ways. He worked hard to get what he wanted. People liked him, admired him and worked with him.
Those are some of the things Vernon Haskins was.
