The Obscure Story Of Vermont’s Frozen Hill People Will Give You Goosebumps

Two weeks ago, the United States was buzzing with news of the Polar Vortex. On the tail of such frigid temperatures, we’ve pulled this story out of the frosty archives of the Green Mountain State’s folklore. Settle yourself in for a chilling winter tale, the story of Vermont’s frozen hill people will send shivers down your spine.

This account was originally published on the front page of the Montpelier Argus and Patriot, on December 21, 1887. Reported to be true, the reporter found entries in his Uncle William’s diary detailing one family’s ritual of freezing their elderly and weak members and putting them into cold storage for the winter.

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Flickr/Nicholas Erwin An extremely poor family of hill farmers isolated in a mountain town just 20 minutes from Montpelier were faced each year with the cold hard winter of Vermont. Their meager food supply was not enough to get them through. Farmers are a tough breed and are problem solvers, though their horrific solution to this dilemma is not for the faint of heart. Flickr/Michael Bouman The family developed a process to freeze some of the members alive and then thaw them out in time to help out with the spring planting. They picked the older and infirm to literally hibernate. In this particular account, Uncle William witnessed the farmers drug six family members (four men and two women). As the drugs took effect inside the warm cabin, the family went about their business. Once the six were unconscious, they were stripped down to one garment and carried outside. Flickr/Bob Familiar Vermont's weather then worked its winter magic and slowly the bodies began to freeze. Fingers, noses, and ears began to turn white under the glowing full moon. In a few hours, the frozen bodies were then packed into a box with straw to guard against predators for their months of cold storage. Flickr/Professor Bop Falling snow and drifts kept the box cold and buried from January until May. It was then time to liberate the six bodies from their icy grave for spring. Men dug away at the snow and pried open the lid of the box. Stiff, cold bodies were lifted out and placed on the cold terrain. Flickr/Jennifer Morrow The bodies were placed into steaming baths of a hemlock potion. After about an hour, color began to return and fingers began to twitch. Family members would rub the bodies continuously and slowly the frozen hill people began to awaken. They were brought inside and seated next to a roaring fire and given a hearty meal, the first in months. After just a few hours, those that were frozen appeared to be completely revived and all the more healthy for their four-month sleep. Flickr/redbird When the accounts of this story first ran detailing one farming family's bizarre solution to a food shortage, the legend of the frozen hill people was spread worldwide. There are some old-timers who still swear it is true.

Have you ever heard the story of these frozen hill people? Do you believe it could have happened? Share your thoughts in the comments section below, we’d love to hear what you have to say. Vermont is full of local folklore and legends. The tale of this haunted bridge is downright spooky.