Eldon Sherwin Woodwright New Haven, VT
Eldon Sherwin grew up in Toronto, Ontario. Perhaps it was the Fresh Air Fund summers on an Ontario farm that spurred his eventual move 35 years ago to rural New Haven, VT, where he and his wife purchased an early 19^th century farmhouse. The two took to hobby farming and raising a family of four while Eldon commuted to IBM in Essex, VT, until 1987. Eldon’s fast respect for the agricultural Northeast is evident in his use of antique tools and techniques in the traditional craft of woodworking. The wood’s surface is labored over on a shaving horse for an ultra-smooth finish, where grain lines and natural idiosyncrasies become integral to the piece. The same care is taken with all of Eldon’s replica artifacts, utilitarian and decorative wares, and personal accessories. He also builds miniature replicas of Vermont structures such as barns and sugarhouses, including a full set of the 16 farms that used to line New Haven’s North Street, painted by his wife Jeanette. The New Haven barns were featured at the 2004 Addison County Fair and Field Days as well as in an Addison County Independent article.
Eldon’s retirement is busy with demonstrations at museums, schools, and fairs of the early New England settlers’ techniques using his own antique tools. “To encourage an interest in Vermont’s history in our youngsters. That is my mission!” He also volunteers at the local elementary school, plays in a weekly ice hockey game over the winter (a hobby featured in a Burlington Free Press article!), and tackles the sales computer at Art on Main once a month.	photo: Jeff Schneiderman