![\"meredithknightinharness\"](\"https:\/\/history.lippittclub.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/meredithknightinharness-300x200.jpg\")
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Happy Friday! In honor of maple sugaring season, here is a Friday Flashback that speaks of a Lippitt Morgan\u2019s participation:<\/p>\n
A Farm News piece from 1991.
\nStan & Sally Achey, Moonridge Farm, Middletown Springs, Vermont<\/p>\n
Spring is a busy time of year at Moonridge Farm – the process of making maple syrup requires hours of work. This year, the season started early. We were in the middle of gathering sap, and still tapping trees when it came time for the Governor\u2019s Tree Tapping Event. Each year, the governor taps a tree to \u201cofficially open\u201d the maple season. This is Vermont\u2019s bicentennial year and a special ceremony was planned. In addition to the current Governor, the tapping was to be done by a representative of the Vermont Maple Producers, who would be in costume as Thomas Chittenden, the state\u2019s first governor. Our assignment was to provide \u201cThomas Chittenden\u201d a ride to the official tree in a horse-drawn vehicle.<\/p>\n
March 11th turned out to be a rather typical early March day, cold wind and all. We arrived at the village green in Fair Haven to a scene of bygone days. Huge kettles of sap boiling over open fires. A team of oxen were pulling a gathering tank on a sled. People in colonial costumes milled about. Into the middle of this, Stan drove our mare, Covenant Knightngale (Meredith Knight x Covenant Kara Moro).<\/p>\n
Gale wasn\u2019t used to gather sap this year, since the incident of \u201cIndiana Achey\u201d and his break-away sap wagon last summer had left the gathering wagon in disrepair (but that\u2019s another story). She was clearly pleased to be out and on display. Stan had driven around the green, posed for pictures, and was waiting for the ceremony, when the school buses arrived.<\/p>\n
At least a hundred, (or so it seemed), elementary school children got out of the buses, formed into a swarm, and started for Gale. She stood like a statue, and let ever child that wanted to pet her and talk to her. \u201cWhat\u2019s her name?\u201d \u201cWhat kind of horse is she?\u201d \u201cIs she friendly?\u201d We answered the same questions over and over. One boy who had already spent much time with us remarked, \u201cI think you\u2019re getting more attention than the Governor!\u201d Gale did her part of the ceremony proudly, waited calmly, and was then driven off. It had taken time in the middle of our busy season, but it was a good opportunity to show off the Lippitt Morgan. In their thank you note to us, the Maple Producers said, \u201cthe appearance of your Morgan horse created a feeling of dignity and pleasure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Farm news from Stan & Sally Achey, Moonridge Farm. Published in the Lippitt Club News Vol. XVIII, No. 3; May\/June 1991, p. 10-11.<\/p>\n
(Page admin’s note: Photo of Covenant Knightngale\u2019s sire, Meredith Knight, from Dave Carr\u2019s collection. If anyone has a photo of Knightngale, we\u2019d love to see it!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Happy Friday! In honor of maple sugaring season, here is a Friday Flashback that speaks of a Lippitt Morgan\u2019s participation: A Farm News piece from 1991. Stan & Sally Achey, Moonridge Farm, Middletown Springs, Vermont Spring is a busy time of year at Moonridge Farm – the process of making maple syrup requires hours […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[322,323,145,321],"yoast_head":"\n