Romaine Tenney
Romaine Tenney was an American farmer. His Vermont farm was seized by eminent domain in order to build Interstate 91. Instead of watching his home and farm buildings be torn down by bulldozers, Tenney decided to burn them down himself. Tenney nailed himself shut in his bedroom and died by suicide, his body burning with his house. He subsequently has become a folk hero to Vermonters.[1][2]
A sugar maple tree that was the last large tree from Tenney’s farm was cut down on March 17, 2021.[3]
Inspiration
Romaine Tenney's life has been the inspiration for songs, books, and poetry.
- "The Ballad of Romaine Tenney" by Sean Kelly Murray[4]
- "Spark" by Ben Fuller[5][6]
- "Romaine Tenney" by Dan Lindner[7]
- The fictional book "Just Compensation" by Richard Lechthaler[8]
- A poem by Neil Shepard[9].
References
- ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/27/us/vermont-farmer-tree.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage
- ^ https://www.vpr.org/post/interstates-burning-farms-eminent-domain-remembering-romaine-tenney
- ^ https://www.vpr.org/post/tree-falls-state-ponders-how-memorialize-romaine-tenneys-death-legacy-resistance#stream/0
- ^ eMinor. "The Ballad of Romaine Tenney | Sean Kelly Murray". ReverbNation. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
- ^ "Song commemorates Vermonter who lost farm to Interstate 91". Valley News. 2019-11-20. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
- ^ [email protected], Patrick Adrian. "Local country musician puts a 'spark' in old history". The Eagle Times. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
- ^ Lane, Mark Bushnell Life in the Past. "An ear for history Dan Lindner puts the past to music". Rutland Herald. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
- ^ "Just Compensation (Paperback) | Northshire Bookstore". www.northshire.com. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
- ^ "Promoting the Work of Poets and Writers from New England". Brilliant Light Publishing. Retrieved 2021-09-09.