Kiln Camp originated as a cluster of charcoal kilns built by Silas Lapham Griffith at Danby Station during the 1870s-1880s. The four large brick kilns, each measuring 25-30 feet in diameter and rising approximately 12 feet high, were part of Griffith’s vast charcoal empire. Each kiln required approximately 40 cords of wood to reach full capacity, contributing to Griffith’s production of roughly one million bushels of charcoal annually for iron and steel furnaces in Connecticut. The kilns stood on a hill just east of the Rutland Railroad, with a private railroad siding constructed to facilitate efficient shipment of the charcoal product.
Abandonment and Adaptive Use
After Silas Griffith’s death in 1903 and the subsequent decline of Vermont’s charcoal industry, the kilns at Danby Station were gradually abandoned. By the early twentieth century, these industrial structures stood as weathered ruins in the Vermont forest, their original purpose forgotten by most.
However, as Long Trail hiking gained popularity in the 1920s and 1930s, the abandoned kilns found new purpose. One of the four charcoal kilns was converted into a shelter for Long Trail hikers. The interior of the kiln was outfitted with bunks, transforming the cavernous brick structure into an unusual but functional overnight shelter for trail travelers.
Long Trail Guide Documentation
The conversion was significant enough to be officially recognized in the Long Trail Guide Books. According to the Long Trail Guide Book, 6th Edition, the shelter was documented as follows:
"Just north of Black Branch Crossing is Kiln Camp. Bunks in an old charcoal kiln."
This entry indicates that by the time the 6th edition was published, Kiln Camp had become an established waypoint on the Long Trail, offering hikers an authentic—if unconventional—shelter experience in a repurposed industrial structure. The location, just north of Black Branch Crossing, placed it strategically along the northern section of the Long Trail corridor in the Mount Tabor area.
Final Closure
Despite its historical significance as both an industrial ruin and hiking shelter, Kiln Camp’s tenure as a Long Trail waypoint was limited. By the 1940s, the United States Forest Service demolished all four charcoal kilns at Danby Station, including the one that had been converted into shelter. The USFS action was taken because hikers were camping in the increasingly unstable structures, creating safety hazards. The agency determined that the deteriorating kilns, though historically interesting, posed too great a risk to public safety.
Sources
- Long Trail Guide Book. 6th ed. 1924.
- Long Trail Guide Book. 5th Edition ed. Green Mountain Club, 1924.
- Bradley J. Bender. Mount Tabor-Danby Historical Society, personal communication. 2007.
- Victor R. Rolando, "200 Years of Soot and Sweat: The History and Archeology of Vermont’s Iron, Charcoal, and Lime Industries,." Vermont Archaeological Society,, 1992.
