Courtesy of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation

Courtesy of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation

This traverse – a sled made for multiple passengers – originally belonged to Charles Adams, a descendent of Luther Adams who built the first floating bridge in Brookfield. Painted red and more than eight feet long, the traverse was used at the Normal School in Randolph in the 1880s. Cornelia Goss Birkett described such sleds at the school in 1892: “Now for an afternoon of coasting. What fun! Groups of students gather around…with all sorts of sleds, some homemade. A few have a new type, a traverse, holding four or more and having a steering device. This required a level-headed person to steer or a serious accident might occur. We did sometimes hit a snag and tip over, but usually it only added some fun and laughter while brushing snow off each others’ clothes.”