BURKE AREA NEWS
What's Going On In the Burke Area
Happy 100th Birthday to the Burke Mountain Club!
announced April 10, 2019
Watch the video to learn more about the Burke Mountain Club History.
On June 22, 2019, the Burke Mountain Club held a Centennial Celebration.
“The Burke Mountain Club centennial is a landmark event for not only the community but for Vermont,” said Charlotte Downs, East Burke Community Librarian and Burke native. “The Club honors the legacy of Elmer Daring whose contributions changed the course of history for my home town and is very personal for me and my family because my father worked for Mr. Darling and we grew up on one of the Darling properties.”
Elmer A. Darling was raised in East Burke, received his college education at MIT and made his fortune as part owner of America’s famous Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City. He purchased a dairy farm in 1883 and gradually increased his holdings by buying all of the farms along the ridge south of his first purchase – now known as Darling Ridge. Milk from the purebred Jersey cows was processed at a central creamery and much of the dairy products (including 70 pounds of cheese per day) were shipped to the Fifth Avenue Hotel, serving dignitaries and socialites of the era staying at the prestigious hotel. Darling, who trained as an architect, personally oversaw the design of his 35-room mansion called Burklyn Hall because it straddled the Burke-Lyndon town line.
Construction was completed in 1908 and Darling split his time between New York City and Burke. He introduced the advancements of the day, including an electrical and a water system to rural East Burke, and in 1919, when he was 71, he built the Burke Mountain Club as a gift to the community. He also served the greater community as president of the Lyndonville Savings Bank and president of the Board of Trustees of the Lyndon Institute. Nationally, he was an early breeder of both Morgan horses and Jersey cows, and was president of both the Morgan Horse Society and the American Jersey Cattle Association.
The Burke Mountain Club was founded in 1919 by Elmer A. Darling and is a not-for-profit organization that relies on the generous contributions of its members and the public-at-large. Besides serving as the community’s library; events, lectures and entertainment are offered year-round in this historic building. To become a member or make a donation contact: The Burke Mountain Club, PO Box 309, East Burke VT, 05832
