User talk:69.237.198.102

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[edit] Vermont republic

Hello unregistered user at IP address 69.237.198.102. Thank you for your comments. Your points are well taken. I am not sure that the period of Vermont's independance has been written about by many beyond what you will describe as local historians. The subject is chiefly of concern to the continuingly small number of people who live or have lived at some point in the state or region. A fairly substantial number of twentieth century and contemporary writers, including Bill Doyle, John Duffy, Jan Albers, and a handful of contributors to the Vermont Historical Society's publications, most of them professors at the University of Vermont or the Vermont State Colleges, can be added to Orton and Van DeWater, as examples of writers using the term "Vermont Republic." None of these are misty-eyed mythologists or jokesters. No, they are not ivy leaguers, not all are primarily historians, but their common usage of the term Vermont Republic, to describe the state of Vermont between 1777 and 1791 seems to have emerged as a convention, and I do not see an attempt by any of them to suggest Vermont was ever more than an independant republic by default. In 1777, the United States as a federal union was a good dozen of years away. And, the Continental Congress included representatives of the two states Vermont had torn itself out of. Add to that, the preoccupation with American independance, and it seems easy to understand why Vermont was not hastily ushered in as a new member state. Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government was concerned with issues of debt, interstate tarrifs, national security, and the question of federalism, seemingly preoccupied, and constitutionally unclear what Vermont would be.

I mentioned before, that I had on the main Vermont page's discussion page raised the possibility of renaming the article Vermont (independant state), but feared I might be adding to the confusion, particularly with the Second Vermont Republic folks, and creating on Wikipedia something akin to new research. You question "why Wikipedia is calling this the Vermont Republic..." and I feel compelled to point out your participation might be what turn the article in another direction. I observe your issues are first nomenclature, and then citation, v. new research, mythology, or conjecture. I am curious whether, and how, Bailyn and Wood describe Vermont's status in those years.

I became interested in this article when I felt that it was being preened by editors with an agenda supporting the Second Vermont Republic as a sort of mythological nation with no intention of joining the Union. Vermont is my home state, my family has farmed there since the late 18th century. While Vermonter's might pride themselves on being contrarians, and my older relatives might identify themselves as Vermonters first, they are not in any way seperatists. Most can't imagine a United States without Vermont, and many fancy their state as an important part of their country's history and a common sense check on its behavior. CApitol3 (talk) 17:55, 6 February 2008 (UTC)