When driving through Bristol, it’s hard to miss the Lord’s Prayer rock — and that’s a problem, according to one local. Aside from grabbing attention, the word-covered glacial erratic poses a hazard to users of Route 116, just one reason the massive boulder should be demolished and remove d, Santo Santoriello wrote in a letter to the selectboard. He also questioned the legality of having religious writing on town property; whether the message-on-a-rock is an illegal billboard under Vermont law; and whether the creator, in 1891, had obtained proper permits. “Appealing to history, or sentiment does not solve the serious issues listed,” Santoriello wrote, noting that the rock could leave the town susceptible to a lawsuit. There’s no imminent plan to take action based on Santoriello’s missive, according to Bristol Selectboard chair Ian Albinson, but the suggestion has created an uproar in the Addison County burg. “We’re just a quiet, peaceful little town,” resident Jackie Aube told Seven Days. “What brought him to do this is beyond me … He wants it demolished, as in nothing left.” The rock, which juts out just to the edge of the roadway, is part of a one-acre town park that includes access to the New Haven River. Local legend has it that a boy who helped haul timber to a Bristol mill in the 1800s would say a silent prayer each time he passed the boulder for having safely made the treacherous journey. As an adult in 1891, Joseph C. Greene commissioned the inscription, which was signed with his name and new hometown of Buffalo, N.Y. “Our father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,” it begins, carved in all capital letters. Back then, most vehicles were horse-drawn carts. Nowadays, cars and trucks zoom by, sharing the roadway with cyclists, pedestrians or photographers who come by to snap a pic of the tourist attraction. Since 2017, the town police chief has found no records of crashes in the immediate vicinity of the rock, according to Albinson. “There is no proposal before the Selectboard to alter, move, or remove Lord’s Prayer Rock, and nothing on the subject is scheduled for an upcoming meeting,” Albinson wrote in an email. That’s a relief to residents such as Aube. “It’s just such an important part of our history, part of Bristol’s history, part of just being a wonderful, welcoming thing when you’re coming into our town,” she said. The original print version of this article was headlined “ROAD BLOCK?” The post Bristol Residents Defend Lord’s Prayer Rock After Letter Calling for Its Removal appeared first on Seven Days. ...read more read less