ADDISON, Vt. – Step back thousands of years and try your hand at making and an atlatl, a spear-thrower used for hunting around the world before the advent of the bow and arrow.  On Friday, September 12, champion atlatlist Robert Berg of Thunderbird Atlatl will present his atlatl-making workshop at the Chimney Point State Historic Site in Addison from noon to 5:00 p.m.  The afternoon includes making your own atlatl, making and fletching three field darts, and coaching from Berg on the use of your new equipment.  Berg also will demonstrate modern construction techniques, flint-knapping, hafting stone points, and cordage making from natural materials.  A delightful and insightful teacher and story-teller, Berg has taught primitive skills and the atlatl for 16 years.  This is his thirteenth year at Chimney Point.  Berg was featured in Vermont Public Television’s program, Outdoor Journal, this March. 

The $65 fee covers all materials, instruction, and admission to the museum.   Pre-registration is required.  For a form or to ask questions, call 802-759-2412.  The registration form is also found at:  www.historicvermont.org/chimneypoint. 

The workshop is the first day of the three day Thirteenth Northeast Annual Open Atlatl Championship—September 12 to 14, a highlight of September’s Vermont Archaeology Month, and also is part of the annual Festival of Nations with the neighboring Crown Point, NY, State Historic Site.  

Chimney Point State Historic Site presents the story of three early Vermont cultures:  the Native American, French colonial, and American colonial.  It is open Wednesday through Sundays and Monday holidays, from 9:30 to 5:00, through October 13. The museum, housed in a historic tavern, is located at the foot of the Champlain Bridge in Addison, Vermont, at the junction of VT Routes 17 and 125.  For more information, call 802-759-2412.

For more information about the Vermont state-owned historic sites, visit:   www.HistoricVermont.org/sites or call John Dumville at (802) 828-3051.

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For Photo, contact:  elsa.gilbertson@state.vt.us  

John P. Dumville
Historic Sites Operations Chief
Vermont Division for Historic Preservation
National Life Building, 2nd Floor
Montpelier, Vermont 05620-1201
Telephone: (802) 828-3051
Fax: (802) 828-3206
Email: John.Dumville@state.vt.us

Web: www.HistoricVermont.org/sites

The Vermont State Historic Sites:  History Where It Happened