Charlotte Historian Frank Thornton Will Be Missed
by Nancy Wood,
September 11, 2011, page 1.....

Francis J. Thornton, Sr., Charlotte historian and multi-term member of the Selectboard, died Wednesday, September 14, in Porter Hospital in Middlebury following a brief illness. He was 80 years old.

Frank devoted much of his time over the last 40 years to civic service in Charlotte. He served several separate, lengthy terms on the Selectboard from the 1970s to 2010, resigning for the last time in 2010 due to declining health. He also served in various offices for the Charlotte Historical Society, including as president for many years. Charlotters remember with fondness the many articles he wrote for his column, Looking Back, in The Charlotte News.

During the period Vermont was switching to a 911 emergency system, Frank spent months researching the road system in Charlotte, scouring hand-written town records back to the 1780s, documenting early surveys and finding rights-of-way that may never have been officially abandoned. A copy of his research, which led to some controversy during the debate three and four years ago over Ancient Roads and town trails, can be found in the vault at the Town Clerk’s office.

Ellie Russell and Jenny Cole both served on the Selectboard with Frank. Ellie said, “When I think about Frank I think of him as a gentleman, a scholar and an exemplary citizen. His contributions to the Town of Charlotte have been many and varied, perhaps most notably, his detailed and accurate identification of all of the roads in our town, both ancient and contemporary. This work and his many other contributions have been and will continue to be of lasting value to Charlotte.” Jenny added, “While looking through paperwork this morning, I stumbled across Frank’s book about Charlotte roads, and a Charlotte News article about the poor in Charlotte (The Charlotte News, February 9, 2006).  Frank has been one of the town historians to go to, whether it comes to questions about a Selectboard issue, or for information on just about any aspect of town history – Thompson’s Point, the town’s historic houses, past legal issues, et cetera.”

Ed Stone, who also served with Frank on the Selectboard, said that people may not have known how generous he was. “Frank told me once that he gave away 20% of his income every year to people who were less fortunate. He meant a lot to a lot of people. He was that kind of guy, and never let on.”

Ed also said that Frank taught him a lot politically. “He didn’t make decisions about issues based on the people involved – he always asked how was it going to affect the Town.”

Kay Gault, who interacts with the Selectboard often as a lister and assistant to Charlotte Volunteer Fire and Rescue Services, commented, “Charlotte lost a treasure in Frank. I think he was a remarkable man, and the loss to our community is immeasurable.”
 
According to his obituary, Frank was “a physicist, electrical engineer, patent attorney, civic leader, amateur historian, voracious reader and writer.” He graduated from Boston College in 1955 with a major in physics, and that same year he married “the love of my life,” Mary Ellen Pierce. While working as an electrical engineer at Raytheon, he became a Registered U.S. Patent Agent. A few years later, in 1963, he graduated from Suffolk University Law School with a law degree and became a patent attorney in downtown Boston.

In 1970, Frank and Mary moved to Charlotte after he accepted a job offer from IBM in Essex Junction. He joined their Intellectual Properties office, and worked with electrical engineers and physicists designing integrated circuits and patenting their innovations. He also was named a co-inventor on several patents issued by IBM. Vermont stands out as having the largest number of patents per capita of the United States, thanks to IBM and the inventiveness of employees like Frank.

After his retirement, Frank continued to work as a freelance consultant for IBM for many years, and did occasional pro bono legal work for Vermont Legal Aid. He also took up woodworking as a hobby.

Stone told another story about Frank. Around 1995, Frank began saying, “Don’t worry about it; I won’t be here much longer.” According to Ed, “He said it all the time. It became the joke of the day.” Frank had various health issues, and left the board several times, only to run for election again. “The last time he retired,” Ed added, “he said, ‘I really feel this time I won’t be around.’” Ed was afraid that was the case, which is why he organized the reception given by the Selectboard to honor Frank on February 23.

A crowd of well-wishers filled the great room of the Senior Center to express their appreciation for Frank’s years of service. He was presented with a special recognition award, and Mary, his wife of 55 years, was given flowers for her contributions as well. Frank and Mary shared memories of their experiences over the last 40 + years in Charlotte. Jenny Cole, who retired from the Selectboard that month, said, “There is the wonderful sense of humor that he and Mary shared. I enjoyed seeing them at the annual Charlotte Historical Society Christmas parties. I have always gotten such a kick out of their way of poking fun at each other about their lives since they moved to Charlotte.” 

Jenny created the recognition award that was given to Frank. It included a drawing by Jenny of the Charlotte Memorial Museum, which was built to serve as the Town Hall in 1850. The inscription read, “Presented to Frank Thornton, Community Servant and Town Historian, from a grateful town, February 2011, Charlotte, Vermont.”

Many of the same people who attended the February reception celebrated Frank’s life at a Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, September 17, at St. Jude Church in Hinesburg.