Sunday June 23, 2019
2:00 pm
Free and open to the public

On Sunday, June 23 at 2:00 pm, Bennington Historical Society presents David Redding, Hanged in Bennington. This talk is given by historian Phil Holland and held in the Ada Paresky Education Center of the Bennington Museum. It is free and open to the public.

Background

On June 11, 1778, Loyalist David Redding was hanged on the Bennington town green for “inimical conduct.” Ethan Allen, having been recently released from a British prison, served as State’s prosecutor. It became Vermont’s first hanging. Holland tells the story of Redding’s trial and execution which was only the beginning of his odyssey through history. Denied burial in 1778, Redding’s bones were not interred until 1981. In the meantime, his case had caught the attention of the founding Director of the Bennington Museum, John Spargo. Spargo published a small book on the subject in which he accused the Vermont authorities of a miscarriage of justice. With the help of unpublished material prepared by Bennington historian Joe Parks, this talk sorts through the evidence and reflects on the passions aroused by the case.

Phil Holland has written about the Battle of Bennington, Robert Frost, and other subjects of historical and literary interest. He is currently touring the state lecturing about “The Black Presence at the Battle of Bennington” through the Vermont Council on the Humanities Speakers Bureau.