Brighton is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in
Essex County,
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
, United States. The population was 1,157 at the
2020 census.
The town was named "Gilead" in its original grant in 1780. The town was sold to a group consisting primarily of soldiers commanded by Colonel Joseph Nightingale and subsequently named "Random". The town's name was finally changed by the legislature to "Brighton" in 1832. The Brighton village of
Island Pond gets its name from the
Abenaki
The Abenaki ( Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was pre ...
word ''Menanbawk'', which literally means island pond.
Brighton is part of the
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
,
NH–VT
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Geography
Brighton is in western Essex County, bordered to the north by
Warren's Gore and
Averys Gore, to the northeast by
Lewis
Lewis may refer to:
Names
* Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name
* Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname
Music
* Lewis (musician), Canadian singer
* "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...
, to the southeast by
Ferdinand
Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
, to the southwest by
Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
in
Caledonia County and
Westmore in
Orleans County, and to the northwest by
Charleston and
Morgan in Orleans County. The unincorporated community of
Island Pond, the main community in the town, is at the north end of the lake of the same name in the center of the town.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the town of Brighton has a total area of , of which is land and , or 2.76%, is water.
Island Pond, originally called "Knowlton Pond" in the 19th century to honor
Luke Knowlton, who surveyed and laid out the town, is Brighton's largest body of water. The
Clyde River flows out of the north end of Island Pond and proceeds in a northwesterly direction towards
Charleston. Spectacle Pond is a
kettle lake
A kettle (also known as a kettle lake, kettle hole, or pothole) is a depression/hole in an outwash plain formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters. The kettles are formed as a result of blocks of dead ice left behind by retreating g ...
just east (upstream) of Island Pond. It is only deep, with a thick bottom of muck.
Most of the town, including Island and Spectacle ponds and the Clyde River, is part of the
Lake Memphremagog
Lake Memphremagog (; french: Lac Memphrémagog) is a fresh water glacial lake located between Newport, Vermont, United States and Magog, Quebec, Canada. The lake spans both Quebec and Vermont, but is mostly in Quebec. Most of the watershed that ...
watershed, and thus part of the
Saint Lawrence River
The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...
basin, via the
Magog and
Saint-François rivers of
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
. The east side of the town drains to the
Connecticut River, mostly to the east via the
Nulhegan River
The Nulhegan River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data accessed April 7, 2016 tributary of the Connecticut River in Essex County, Vermont.
Course
The main stem of the river rises at the outl ...
, but a small portion to the south via the East Branch of the
Passumpsic River
The Passumpsic River () is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Connecticut River, in Vermont. Though primarily a Caledonia County river, it i ...
. The highest point in Brighton is the southern summit of Bluff Mountain, in the northern part of the town.
Vermont Routes
114 and
105 105 may refer to:
*105 (number), the number
*AD 105, a year in the 2nd century AD
*105 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC
* 105 (telephone number)
* 105 (MBTA bus)
* 105 (Northumberland) Construction Regiment, Royal Engineers, an English military unit ...
cross the town, joining as Derby Street through Island Pond. Route 114 leads north to the
Canada–United States border at
Norton, Vermont
Norton is a town in Essex County, Vermont, United States. The population was 153 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Berlin, NH–VT Micropolitan Statistical Area. It is located on the Canada–US border, immediately south of Stanhop ...
, and south to
Lyndonville. Route 105 leads east to
Bloomfield on the
Connecticut River and northwest through
Charleston to
Derby Center.
History
In 1957, a white spruce was chosen from the town for display as the
Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.
Demographics
The racial make up is 95.4% White, 1.2% Asian and 3.1% from two or more races.
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2000, there were 1,260 people, 529 households, and 356 families residing in the town. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was 24.1 people per square mile (9.3/km
2). There were 891 housing units at an average density of 17.1 per square mile (6.6/km
2).
There were 529 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.8% were couples living together and joined in either
marriage
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
or
civil union
A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.0% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.
Economy
Personal income
The median income for a household in the town was $26,932, and the median income for a family was $31,316. Males had a median income of $26,413 versus $23,125 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the town was $12,999. About 14.9% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 28.7% of those under age 18 and 15.3% of those age 65 or over.
Industry
Tourism
The Brighton Snowmobile Club maintains of trails during the winter.
Media
WVTI 106.9 broadcasts from Island Pond.
References
External links
Town of Brighton official websiteIsland Pond commercial website
{{authority control
Towns in Vermont
Berlin, New Hampshire micropolitan area
Towns in Essex County, Vermont