707 Kipling Road, Dummerston VT 05301
Established in 2010 by founders Zon Eastes, Jared Flynn, Michael Weitzner, and Dan Snow, the Stone Trust Center offers the largest display of dry stone walls in North America, with examples from all four levels of DSWA certification. The feature park includes many styles of wall from around the world built from at least six local types of stone (granite, slate, Black River, marble, glacial till, mica schist). The environs offer six additional public sites to visit, including short hikes to several land art installations, historic sites, and a granite quarry. The long tradition of local walling provides an apt context for the full range of training and certification testing offered here.
At The Stone Trust Center, located on Scott Farm, you will find an incredible density and variety of dry stone walls both indoors and outdoors. The Stone Trust Center is the only facility of its type in North America.
The indoor facility is located in Scott Farm’s historic 1862 cow barn. Numerous sections of walls and features are continually being rebuilt in workshops and tests. It is a breathtaking view to wall into the barn and see the multitude of dry stone walls and features. Inside the barn you will also find posters, pamphlets, and lots of information about how to build dry stone walls. The 3000 sq. ft. Stone Trust Center provides one of the only indoor dry stone walling education and training center in the world. The center contains over 1000 sq. ft. of wall built with hand-picked Vermont field stone.
The Center provides the perfect space to view dry stone walls built to correct structural standards, including access to the inside structure of a wall revealing the secrets of correct building techniques. The center is also a resource for the best educational reading materials.
The Center is now open daily 9am-5pm for self-guided tours. Park in the main lot at Scott Farm and walk on in. In addition to the 1000+ sq. ft. of wall in the center, there is a wealth of information posted in The Center on building dry stone walls. This is a must see for anyone interested in building with stone. When visting, be sure to read the polices and sign in.
The Center is a favored location stop for Road Scholar Educational Tours in Vermont.
Directions to The Stone Trust Center:
- From I-91, take exit 3 in Vermont.
- Very soon, you come to a roundabout. Take Route 5 south towards Brattleboro (Putney Road).
- At first stoplight, turn right onto Black Mountain Rd.
- At .6 mile (and after very sharp curves), Black Mountain Road turns directly left. GO STRAIGHT ahead, the road becomes Kipling Road.
- Scott Farm (and The Stone Trust Center) is 1.5 miles from this intersection, on the left.
- Take second driveway left (after the house). Park in the lot, against the wall near the road.
- The Stone Trust Center is in the 1862 barn, behind the main house.
Lodging
Comfort Inn & Suites Brattleboro I-91
The Black Mountain Inn
The Covered Bridge Inn
Travelodge by Wyndham Brattleboro, VT
Colonial Motel and Spa
Hampton Inn Brattleboro
Dining
99 Restaurant and Pub
Brattleboro Village Pizza
Taste of Thai Food Truck
Tito’s Taqueria
India Masala House
The Works Cafe- Downtown Brattleboro
In The Center:
Workshops:
• 8 workstations for beginner walling workshops (each station is a freestanding section of wall 5ft long by 5ft high)
• 4 workstations for advanced workshops (each station is a 5ft by 5ft section of free standing wall with a wall end
• 2 workstations for Galloway Dyke walling (each station is a 5 ft by 5 ft section, walling style that makes use of large stones)
Certification Tests:
• 7 Level I test stints
• 4 Level II test stints
• 1 Level III part A features wall
• 2 Level III part B Timed Test (outdoors)
Video of what is at The Center – Click to play
