This is the true story of how Gamaliel Painter transformed Middlebury, Vermont from a loose grouping of rough log huts into the beautiful village that it is today. Painter was a man of many trades and occupations. He was a captain in the Continental Army who was with Ethan Allen at the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, a sheriff, judge, legislator, industrialist, and philanthropist. This fascinating biography tells how Painter guided the town of Middlebury from pre-Revolutionary War days and started Middlebury College, which still celebrates his leadership today.