The William B. Douglas Shelter is a log lean-to set 0.5 miles west of the Long Trail on the Branch Pond Trail, in the Lye Brook Wilderness Area of Winhall, Vermont (Long Trail Division 3). It sleeps ten on wooden bunks, with a spring fifty feet to the south. Built by the Brattleboro Section of the Green Mountain Club between 1955 and 1956 — with material assistance from the Swezey family, whose land it stood on — the shelter was originally called Swezey Shelter. It was renamed the William B. Douglas Shelter in December 1973, when the Brattleboro Section relinquished its land claim upon the National Forest’s acquisition of the Swezey Tract, honoring the Section member who had planned and directed the structure’s construction. A thorough renovation in 2004–2005 replaced rotting sill logs and installed the shelter’s first wooden floor. A moldering privy was added in 2019, replacing a forty-year-old pit privy. The shelter is one of the more remote on the Long Trail, accessible only by a multi-mile walk through wilderness terrain, and has been continuously maintained by the Brattleboro Section since its completion.
Setting
The William B. Douglas Shelter occupies a forested bench in the Lye Brook Wilderness, at approximately 2,170 feet in elevation, in the town of Winhall in Windham County, Vermont. The shelter sits 0.5 miles south of the Long Trail on the Branch Pond Trail — an old logging road that once served the timber operations of the Swezey family’s mill. To the north, the Branch Pond Trail meets the Long Trail near the Winhall River. To the south, the trail continues toward Bourn Pond and connects, via the Lye Brook Trail, to Stratton Pond.
The Lye Brook Wilderness was designated in 1975 under the Eastern Wilderness Areas Act, though the shelter predates that designation by more than twenty years. The wilderness designation has had practical consequences for the shelter’s maintenance: no motorized equipment is permitted in the wilderness, meaning every log, board, and tool must be hand-carried more than a mile from the nearest road. Despite this constraint, the Brattleboro Section has sustained the structure for seven decades.
The forest in this part of Division 3 is largely maple and beech, gently rolling, with occasional highland bogs. As a 2014 Long Trail News account by a Stratton Pond caretaker described it, it is "the most accessible route through the wilderness, and provides the greatest reward for the least effort." Moose sign is frequently encountered. The shelter spring, fifty feet south on the trail, has been consistently reliable.
The Swezey Legacy
The land on which the shelter stands was part of the Ruth W. Swezey Tract, a privately held parcel in Winhall that encompassed portions of the Branch Pond Trail corridor. The Swezey family — notably Christopher Swezey, Sr. and his son Christopher Jr. — had a longstanding relationship with the Brattleboro Section and the Green Mountain Club more broadly. Their support took practical forms: access, timber, and active assistance with trail work.
The relationship had already been recognized in shelter names. Swezey Camp, a lean-to built by the Long Trail Patrol in 1935, stood about a mile north along the old logging road. When the Brattleboro Section completed a second structure on the same trail in 1956, it was named Swezey Shelter, in recognition of the family’s continuing help during construction.
The Swezey name’s eventual partial disappearance from the trail in 1973 was noted with regret. George Pearlstein, the GMC’s Trails and Shelters Chairman, observed in his 1977 annual report that the Swezey name had "lost its longstanding identification with the Long Trail" and recommended its restoration "to a rightful place of honor." Roger Davis, the Brattleboro Section’s representative on the GMC board, confirmed the Section remained aware of the situation: "We still appreciate very much what the Swezeys have done for us and the GMC. We’re looking for some way to carry on the name." Swezey Camp, built in 1935 and renamed Swezey Shelter’s near neighbor, retained the family name; Swezey Camp was removed in 1977 when the Long Trail was relocated in that area.
Construction: 1955–1956
The Brattleboro Section began planning the new shelter in March 1955. The structure they envisioned was a log lean-to — a 12-by-12-foot log cabin requiring approximately forty trees. Work commenced in April 1955, with an initial party cutting and peeling logs in May. Black flies interfered with construction through June. Progress on the site was further complicated by access: the old logging road leading to the building site was blocked by boulders, limiting how far vehicles could penetrate.
The involvement of the Swezey family proved decisive. In October 1955, Brandon Douglas and William Douglas visited the site and encountered Christopher Swezey Jr. operating a bulldozer to improve the access road. Swezey also donated logs and roofing boards from his mill for the project — a contribution that materially advanced the construction. The shelter was completed by the Brattleboro Section in 1956.
The finished structure was a log lean-to with bunks for ten campers and a spring fifty feet to the south on the trail. It was listed in the Long Trail Guide Book and LTN trail reports from that year forward as Swezey Shelter.
Early Years and Maintenance
Through the late 1950s, 1960s, and into the 1970s, the shelter served Long Trail hikers in Division 3, providing access to the Bourn Pond and Stratton Pond areas from the west. The Long Trail in this section was routed through the shelter’s vicinity, and trail distances from Swezey Shelter to neighboring structures appeared in successive editions of the Long Trail Guide.
The shelter’s location on the Ruth W. Swezey Tract meant its long-term status was tied to private land. When the United States Forest Service moved to acquire the Swezey Tract as part of its Green Mountain National Forest purchases (Purchase No. 5420), the Brattleboro Section was asked to relinquish any claim to the shelter. The transaction required a disclaimer from the Section, formalizing the transfer of the land — and with it, the structure standing on it — to federal ownership.
Renaming: The William B. Douglas Shelter (1973–1975)
The Section used the moment of the land transfer to honor one of its own. On December 17, 1973, a Special Meeting of the Brattleboro Section voted to change the name of Swezey Shelter to the William B. Douglas Shelter, recognizing the man who had planned and directed the building of the structure nearly two decades earlier.
The Long Trail News for May 1974 reported the renaming with the explanation that "William Douglas planned and directed the building of the shelter." The Long Trail News for February 1975 confirmed the official completion of the process: "Swezey Shelter is now officially called the William B. Douglas Shelter."
In August 1975, the Long Trail News carried a Brattleboro Section report by Louise Dunklee that offered further context. That May, eight or nine Section members had gone to the shelter for a weekend work party, clearing trail from Vermont Routes 11 and 30 to Bourn Pond — a task the group had been performing on a volunteer basis for over twenty years. Dunklee noted: "Almost all members of the section helped build Swezey Shelter in 1954–55. It has been renamed the William Douglas Shelter in honor of the man who directed its construction. The name change occurred when the Brattleboro Section was asked to relinquish any claim to the shelter at the time the U.S. Forest Service took over this area."
The 1977 Long Trail News amplified this further in a piece on the Swezey name, quoting Roger Davis: the Section had "voted to change the name of the latter to the William B. Douglas Shelter to honor the man who had contributed much time and effort to its planning and construction."
Long Trail Relocation and Ongoing Care: 1977–1983
In the late 1970s, the Long Trail in Division 3 was substantially rerouted in the vicinity of the shelter. The former route had followed logging roads between Stratton Pond and William B. Douglas Shelter through terrain that the Forest Service and GMC sought to improve. A new alignment was constructed, and by 1978 a Forest Service bridge had been built over the Winhall River at the new crossing. The relocation placed the shelter 0.3 to 0.5 miles off the Long Trail proper on the Branch Pond Trail — a distance that has remained consistent in successive guide editions.
In 1979, the Long Trail Patrol constructed a new outhouse at William B. Douglas Shelter for the Brattleboro Section. That same year, a Section work party tackled an interior improvement that had long been contemplated: replacing the shelter’s wire bunks with wooden boards. Joe Cook, Dorothy McDonald, and Trudy Teutsch had snowshoed and skied to the shelter in March on an overnight outing to assess the work, taking measurements for materials. The actual rebuilding began in May, with boards supplied by Cersosimo Lumber Company of Brattleboro. The work party — which included Brandon Douglas, Ann Davis, Roger Davis, Hans Weltz with Robert and Chris Weltz, Fred Noble and his son Neal, Dorothy McDonald, and others — drove Jeeps up the Old Rootville Road to within half a mile of the shelter, then hand-carried the materials the rest of the way. The lower bunks were completed that first weekend; the upper bunks were finished by Joe Cook, Dorothy McDonald, and friends the following weekend, May 19.
By the 1983 Long Trail Guide (Edition 22), the shelter was described as a "log leanto, completed by the Brattleboro Section in 1956, with bunks for 10," reaching it via the Branch Pond Trail 0.3 miles from the Long Trail junction.
The 2004–2005 Renovation
By 2004 the shelter had been standing for nearly half a century, and it was showing its age. The sill logs were rotting, the bunks were sagging, and it had what the Long Trail News called "the dubious distinction of being our last Long Trail shelter with a dirt floor."
The project was complicated from the outset by the shelter’s location in a designated wilderness area. No power tools were permitted, and every material had to be carried in by hand. Volunteers Joe Cook, Marge Fish, and George Roy, along with GMC Director of Field Programs Dave Hardy, worked with Green Mountain National Forest staff through the "Minimum Requirements Decision Guide" process — three evening meetings at the Manchester Ranger District — to determine how the renovation could proceed consistent with wilderness standards. The conclusion was that restoring the structure was appropriate, and that improving the Branch Pond Trail leading to it was also warranted.
George Roy, the Brattleboro Section’s president, coordinated the project. Three work weekends were scheduled for October and November 2004 — October 16–17, October 23–24, and November 6–7 — followed by a second phase in May 2005. Roy organized the permitting process with the Forest Service, arranged the acquisition and transport of materials, and led the work parties. All materials, including six spruce and hemlock logs, were hand-carried to the site by volunteers.
The shelter was lifted off its rotten sill logs. New logs were set in place, foundation rocks were rolled to provide better support, the old bunks were removed, and new floorboards were installed — the shelter’s first complete wooden floor. Puncheon (boardwalk over boggy sections) was built on the approach trail. The project also included a new roof and new stain. Over forty volunteers contributed seventy person-days to the effort. Special recognition went to the Rizio family, Allard Lumber, and the USFS Manchester office for their support.
The Long Trail News for Winter 2005 reported the progress: "The Brattleboro Section, coordinated by George Roy, renovated the William B. Douglas Shelter located in the Lye Brook Wilderness Area in Winhall." The final work was completed in May 2005, and the Summer 2006 Long Trail News carried a full account in the Brattleboro Section’s section directory report, noting the shelter was now "ready for another fifty years."
For his leadership of the project, George Roy received the GMC President’s Award at the Fall 2005 Annual Meeting. The award citation described the breadth of the effort — permitting, materials logistics, work party organization — and his twenty-five years of Brattleboro Section service, noting he had through-hiked the Appalachian Trail in his spare time. "Douglas Shelter is now ready for another fifty years!" the citation concluded.
The 2019 Privy
In the summer of 2019, Long Trail Patrol Field Crew Michael’s crew turned its attention to the shelter’s privy situation. The original pit privy, built by the Long Trail Patrol in 1979, had reached the end of its useful life after forty years; the Long Trail News for Summer 2019 had profiled the structure under the "Privy Portrait" feature, noting that a high water table and flat terrain caused the pit to flood, compromising both the structure and the watershed. The new moldering privy was to be built on higher ground.
The replacement privy was made possible by a donation from Martha Stitelman and Hubey Folsom, both Brattleboro and Bennington Section members. The Long Trail Patrol’s southern field assistant and Brattleboro Section members disassembled the old pit privy and worked with the LTP crew on the new moldering structure. The Long Trail News for Fall 2019 confirmed the installation: "Michael’s crew started its season carpentry-heavy, with the deconstruction of Beaver Dam Cabin, resetting the piers at Laura Woodward Shelter, and the construction of a moldering privy at William B. Douglas Shelter."
William B. Douglass: Builder and Section Leader
The shelter bears the name of William B. Douglass (the person’s name, unlike the shelter name, carries two s’s in the GMC database and photo records) — a Brattleboro Section member who planned and directed the construction of what was then called Swezey Shelter in 1955 and 1956. The Long Trail News accounts from 1974 through 1977 are consistent: he "planned and directed" (1974) and "directed" (1975) the construction, and "contributed much time and effort to its planning and construction" (1977). His role was that of project organizer and builder — the person who turned the Section’s decision to build a shelter into a physical structure.
Douglass remained connected to the shelter and the Brattleboro Section for decades after the construction. Brandon Douglas, almost certainly his son, was among the work party members who replaced the wire bunks in 1979 — joining Roger Davis, Hans Weltz, and other longtime Section volunteers on the old Rootville Road. Photographs of William B. Douglass in the GMC collection date to both 2002 and 2017, suggesting he remained associated with the club and its work well into his later years.
Sources
- Long Trail News (May 1974). Green Mountain Club. [Renaming reported: "William Douglas planned and directed the building of the shelter."]
- Long Trail News (February 1975). Green Mountain Club. ["Swezey Shelter is now officially called the William B. Douglas Shelter."]
- Louise Dunklee. Brattleboro Section report. Long Trail News (August 1975). Green Mountain Club. p. 11. ["the man who directed its construction"; Section history of building Swezey Shelter in 1954–55.]
- Long Trail News (August 1977). Green Mountain Club. [Roger Davis quoted: "the man who had contributed much time and effort to its planning and construction"; Swezey name history; Christopher Swezey Sr. and Jr.; George Pearlstein’s recommendation.]
- Long Trail News (August 1979). Green Mountain Club. p. 12. [Wire bunk replacement project; new outhouse; Brandon Douglas in work party; Cersosimo Lumber Company boards.]
- Long Trail News (Fall 2004). Green Mountain Club. p. 7. [Renovation planning; "Douglas Shelter to be Repaired"; Minimum Requirements Decision Guide process; three work weekends scheduled.]
- Long Trail News (Winter 2005). Green Mountain Club. p. 32. ["The Brattleboro Section, coordinated by George Roy, renovated the William B. Douglas Shelter located in the Lye Brook Wilderness Area in Winhall."]
- Long Trail News (Fall 2005). Green Mountain Club. p. 15. [George Roy’s President’s Award; renovation details: six spruce and hemlock logs hand-carried, shelter lifted, new sill logs, wooden floor, puncheon; "forty-seven-year-old log structure."]
- Long Trail News (Summer 2006). Green Mountain Club. p. 20. [Brattleboro Section directory entry: renovation complete; distinction from Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas ("The only difference is the middle initial."); forty volunteers, seventy person-days; "ready for another fifty years."]
- Long Trail News (Summer 2019). Green Mountain Club. p. 4. ["Privy Portrait" feature on William B. Douglas privy; 1979 construction; flooding from high water table; planned replacement; funded by Martha Stitelman and Hubey Folsom.]
- Long Trail News (Fall 2019). Green Mountain Club. p. 28. [LTP crew construction of moldering privy at William B. Douglas Shelter.]
- Long Trail News (Summer 2021). Green Mountain Club. p. 18. [Brattleboro Section formed 1947; 126 members; maintains nine miles including William B. Douglas Shelter and Spruce Peak Shelter.]
- Green Mountain Club. Long Trail Guide Book, Edition 21. Green Mountain Club, 1977. pp. 29, 32–33, 56, 87, 89, 105. [Shelter described at 9.9 miles; LT relocation completed; Swezey Camp removed 1977; bunks for 10; spring 50 ft. to south.]
- Green Mountain Club. Long Trail Guide Book, Edition 22. Green Mountain Club, 1983. pp. 30, 57, 89. [Shelter description; 0.3 miles from LT on Branch Pond Trail.]
- Green Mountain Club. Long Trail Guide Book, Edition 23. Green Mountain Club, 1985. pp. 32, 35, 57. [Shelter description; 0.5 miles from LT on Branch Pond Trail.]
GMC Photo Collection, Shelter ID 000260. [Three photographs: Hauling logs during 2004 renovation; William B. Douglass portrait 2002; William B. Douglass portrait 2017.]
