Clarence W. Fitch, born in 1885 in East Montpelier, was a leader of the cooperative movement of the mid-20th century, when rural families banded together to create social and cultural organizations for the benefit of their communities. He founded one of the first credit unions in Vermont on this site in 1936 and served as its treasurer from 1941 to 1965. Fitch served as president of the Granite City Cooperative Creamery, the Washington Electric Cooperative, the Vermont Credit Union, the Vermont Credit Union League, and the Adamant Cooperative Store. A scientific farmer, postmaster, legislator, and educator, he deeply touched and enhanced the lives of his local and regional community. He died in 1968 in Calais.