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DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM AS INDUSTRY

Vermont has been seeking to entice people to the state for much of its history. It was in this century, though, that tourism became big business.

The official state push began in 1911 with creation of the state Bureau of Publicity. Most telling was the title of its first publication: "Vermont, Designed by the Creator for the Playground of the Continent."

In 1931, a special state commission studying the future zeroed in on "Vermont's development as a recreational region" as offering the most promising future for the state's economy. "If industrial growth is retarded, if agricultural problems are difficult of solution, the recreational field offers a wonderful opportunity," said the report.

At the time, though, the vision focused on summer tourists. No one then could imagine that skiing would become such a major attraction and industry. Or that millions would eventually flood the state in the fall to see the trees turn color.

The state magazine, "Vermont Life," which was started in 1946, was just one of the many magazines, books, and movies that promoted Vermont's beauty and its people, developing the image that attracted not just tourists but new residents as well.