MANCHESTER, VERMONT: Treat Williams died in a motorcycle accident at the age of 71 on Monday, June 12, at Route 30 in Dorset, Vermont. Before he died, he lived in a 200-year-old farmhouse in the one place he loved the most: Vermont. Despite being very famous in Hollywood, he chose a quiet life in the Vermont town of Machester, away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. He would often share photos of the amazing landscape while posting updates on his life on social media.
In his last post, Williams gave his fans a glimpse into the simple life in the countryside on Instagram. The video, titled "Hay day," included miles of breathtaking greenery and the rural scenery. The caption read, "There is no better smell than new mown hay." The actor died just hours after he posted the video.
'I've always had an enormous love for Vermont'
In a 2022 Deadline interview, Williams expressed his gratitude for living in such a beautiful location, saying, "I’ve always had an enormous love for Vermont, both in winter and summer. There was something incredibly special about it to me, and the people here are incredibly honest, real, and good-humored," adding, "There’s also always something new to discover somewhere on a dirt road that you’ve never traveled on before. Every day I wake up so grateful to see the view that I see out of my window and to be living up here."
Williams also mentioned how polite the people there were and there was always more to discover about the place. He recalled how, in response to a Twitter user's announcement that the actor had joined the microblogging site, a fellow user remarked, "No, that's a farmer in Vermont who takes pictures of old buildings and stuff."
'I love where I live'
The 'Everwood' actor shared his love of Vermont with Vermont Magazine in 2021 and explained how he ended up living in his small community. "I’ve been a skier all my life. We would come and ski in Vermont as a family when I was growing up, and we would stay at a place in [the town of] Peru when I was five years old called the Russell Inn. It’s across the street from a wonderfully renovated general store up there. I have extraordinarily happy memories of Christmas vacations up here in Vermont."
Later, Williams' father would purchase a home in the town of Weston, which the 'Hair' actor would often utilize as a getaway from his busy schedule. He continued, "I just fell in love with Vermont, and I fell equally in love with Weston. My wife Pam and I used my parents’ house in Weston while we were courting. We started skiing together up here."
After achieving professional success, Williams decided to purchase property in the area. He chose a home in Manchester on a farm and would remain there for the next 30 years until his death. Even throughout Vermont's infamously long and harsh winters, the Broadway star claimed to have always had "an enormous love" for the state.
"Every day I wake up so grateful to see the view that I see out of my window and to be living up here. I think very few people are lucky as I am to say, ‘I love where I live.' I don’t have any fantasies of being somewhere else," Williams once said.
"I have everything I want and need in Vermont," the 'Everwood' actor continued, adding, "I’ve been all over the world, and I’ve never seen a place as beautiful as Vermont."
