James Otis Follett

Who is James Otis Follett?

James Otis Follett was a farmer, stonemason, and builder of bridges from Townshend, Vermont. He has been described as "an intuitive engineer, a farmer and mason."

He was born in May 1842 in Jamaica, Vermont. He was educated at Yale University, and served in Company D of the 16th Vermont Volunteers during the American Civil War, reaching the rank of corporal.

During the 1890s and 1900s, Follett built as many as 40 bridges and culverts; 11 are known to survive. An account of Follett's work in the Bennington Banner in 1977 called his bridges "engineering marvels and parts of the scenic landscape of the region" and noted:

"Follett excelled in hand-crafted stone masonry – now practically a lost art. The bridges have no arch supports and contain little or no mortar. They are held together by the critical placement of a 'keystone', plus the force of the weight of the materials above the arch."

Follett was married to Clara E. Kimball in 1864 and died in February 1911 in Townshend, Vermont, as the result of acute dilation of the heart.

A number of his works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.