Our Story
Here at American Legion Northland Unit #47 Canaan, VT, we’re committed to investing our expertise and resources in order to further achieve our cause. Since 2000, we’ve been supporting our community members in a variety of ways and measuring our success not by monetary size, but by more qualitative measurements such as the scale and effectiveness of our efforts. Just imagine what we can achieve together!
Our Leadership
Legion Post 47 - Commander - Scott Leigh
Adjutant - Doug Ahlstrom
Auxiliary - President - Nancy Marchand
Secretary - Mary Noyes
SAL - Commander - Frank Sawicki
Adjutant - Robert Rice
IN THE BEGINNING
Department of Vermont
American Legion Northland Post 47
On Tuesday evening on April 2, 1946 approximately 100 service men from surrounding communities met at the Northland Hotel in Canaan, VT. It was decided that a local veterans organization should be formed in the area through the Department of Vermont American Legion. A delegation from Island Pond was present to assist in the proceedings and help organize the new post. A temporary chairman Edward Gatchell was appointed to head a committee to name the post. After a long debate, the name was selected was Northland Post 47 and the number was assigned by the American Legion Headquarters,
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The election of the post officers were completed with the following results:
Commander Marshall Ames, Vice Commander Albert Locke, 2nd Vice Commander Robert Bryant, Adjutant Jack La Pearle, Sergeant at Arms Leonard Lanctot and Finance Officer Harold Locklin.
The next meeting was April 10, 1946 to draw up a new charter and ex service members that signed up by then would be charter members.
THE NEXT STEP
Meetings were held at the Northland Hotel for a couple years and then it was decided it was time for a new meeting hall. In the early 1950s, the post moved to a building in Beecher Falls, VT that was owned and donated for them to use by Ethan Allen, Inc. At this time the building was used for the post meetings and for meetings of the local Army Reserve unit.
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In June of 1984 at the Department of Vermont Convention, Thomas Coutts Finance Officer for Northland Post 47 and his wife Lois were nominated and installed as Department of Vermont Stat Commander, and American Legion Auxiliary State President.
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August 1984 Clint Walker, President of Ethan Allen, Inc., presented the deed to Northland Post 47 for the post meeting hall. Over the next couple of years it became evident that the small parking area and an old building was just not going to work much longer.
WHERE WE ARE TODAY
A building committee was assembled in early 1986 to look at building a new post home. On October 6, 1986 a ground breaking was held in Canaan, VT by the building committee, (George Gates, Walter Noyes, Post Commander Ernie Bohan, Romeo Duranleau, Leonard Perham, and Chairman Tom Coutts) and work began on a new post home and it is still our home today. A lot has changed for Northland Post 47 over the past 65 years, but one thing remains the same, we have always been here to support our veterans and community needs and will continue to do so in the years to come.
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Roy (Buzz) McKinnon
Post Historian