Vermont's Cartoonist Laureate Tells Untold Love Story

Vermont, the only state with a cartoonist laureate, celebrates Tillie Walden, its youngest and fifth laureate, who has created the first graphic novel about 19th-century couple Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake. Walden, appointed in 2023, was inspired to research the pair's letters and journals archived at the Henry Sheldon Museum.

Bryant and Drake lived together for 44 years in rural Vermont, a remarkable feat for a same-sex couple in the 1800s. Their relationship was not hidden; they were embraced by their community as mentors and Sunday school teachers, with poet William Cullen Bryant, Charity's nephew, calling their union sacred.

Walden, an award-winning cartoonist, meticulously researched original source materials for "Charity & Sylvia." She used epistolary novels of the period for dialogue inspiration and her own neighbors' faces for visual references, carefully depicting historical dress and societal sentiments.

The graphic novel emphasizes that Bryant and Drake were not just a queer love story but women deeply devoted to their faith and facing daily struggles for survival. Author Rachel Hope Cleves noted the historical importance of religion in their lives, a theme Walden handled with integrity for modern audiences.

The book also touches upon significant historical events, including the 1811 German Coast uprising and the War of 1812, as Charity Bryant aged alongside America. Walden reflects on the high mortality rates of the era, illustrating the profound impact of losing siblings on the couple.

A poignant scene depicts the couple burning Charity's journals, a reflection of her belief that her writing was not for public consumption, despite Walden's desire to know everything about her life.