Burlington is the
most populous city
The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the city proper, cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or th ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
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 ...
and the
seat
A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense.
Types of seat
The following are examples of different kinds of seat:
* Armchair (furniture), ...
of
Chittenden County. It is located south of the
Canada–United States border
The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...
and south of
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. As of the
2020 U.S. census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, the population was 44,743. It
ranks as the least populous city in the United States to also be the most populous city in its state.
A regional
college town
A college town or university town is a community (often a separate town or city, but in some cases a town/city neighborhood or a district) that is dominated by its university population. The university may be large, or there may be several sma ...
, Burlington is home to
Champlain College and the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
(UVM). Vermont's largest hospital, the
UVM Medical Center, is within the city limits. The City of Burlington owns Vermont's largest airport, the
Burlington International Airport
Burlington International Airport is a joint-use civil-military airport serving Burlington, Vermont, the state of Vermont's largest municipality. It is owned by the City of Burlington and located in the neighboring city of South Burlington, thr ...
, located in neighboring
South Burlington. In 2015, Burlington became the first city in the U.S. to run entirely on
renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...
.
History
Early history to early 20th century
Two theories have been put forward regarding the origin of Burlington's name. The first is that it was named after
Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington
Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington and 4th Earl of Cork, (25 April 1694 – 4 December 1753) was a British architect and noble often called the "Apollo of the Arts" and the "Architect Earl". The son of the 2nd Earl of Burlington and 3rd Ea ...
, and the second is that the name honors the politically prominent and wealthy Burling family of New York. While no Burling family members are listed as grantees of the town, the family held large tracts of land in nearby towns, some of which were granted on the same day as Burlington.
One of the
New Hampshire grants
The New Hampshire Grants or Benning Wentworth Grants were land grants made between 1749 and 1764 by the colonial governor of the Province of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth. The land grants, totaling about 135 (including 131 towns), were made o ...
, the land that was developed as Burlington was awarded by New Hampshire colonial governor
Benning Wentworth
Benning Wentworth (July 24, 1696 – October 14, 1770) was an American merchant and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New Hampshire from 1741 to 1766. While serving as governor, Wentworth is best known for issuing several la ...
on June 7, 1763, to Samuel Willis and 63 others.
[Coolidge, A.J. and Mansfield, J.B]
''A History and Description of New England''
Boston, 1859 In the summer of 1775, settlers began clearing the land and built two or three log huts, but the outbreak of the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
delayed permanent settlement until after its conclusion. The town was organized in 1785.
In 1808 the world's first lake-going
steamboat
A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...
was built in Burlington.
The
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
was unpopular in Vermont and the rest of
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
, which had numerous trading ties with Canada. Neither Vermont nor other New England states provided militia units or financial support. Vermont voters supported the
Federalist Party
The Federalist Party was a Conservatism in the United States, conservative political party which was the first political party in the United States. As such, under Alexander Hamilton, it dominated the national government from 1789 to 1801.
De ...
, which opposed the war.
[Johnson, Tim. "1812: A look back at Burlington's 20-minute war". '']Burlington Free Press
Burlington may refer to:
Places Canada Geography
* Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Burlington, Nova Scotia
* Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington"
* Burlington, Prince Edward Island
* Burlington Bay, no ...
'' (July 29, 2007) p.4A
At one point during the war, the U.S. had 5,000 troops stationed in Burlington, outnumbering residents and putting a strain on resources. About 500 soldiers died of disease, which was always a problem due to poor sanitation in army camps. Some soldiers were quartered in the main building at the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
, where a memorial plaque commemorates them.
In a skirmish on August 2, 1813, British forces from Canada shelled Burlington. This is described as either a bold stroke by the British with an ineffectual response from the Americans or as a weak sally by the British, which was rightly ignored by the Americans. The cannonade lasted about 10 minutes and caused no casualties. The American troops involved were commanded by Naval Lieutenant
Thomas Macdonough
Thomas Macdonough, Jr. (December 31, 1783 – November 10, 1825) was an early-19th-century Irish-American naval officer noted for his roles in the first Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Macdonou ...
, later a hero of the
Battle of Lake Champlain
The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. An army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévost and a naval squadro ...
.
The town's position on
Lake Champlain
, native_name_lang =
, image = Champlainmap.svg
, caption = Lake Champlain-River Richelieu watershed
, image_bathymetry =
, caption_bathymetry =
, location = New York/Vermont in the United States; and Quebec in Canada
, coords =
, type =
, ...
helped it develop into a port of entry and center for trade, particularly after completion of the
Champlain Canal
The Champlain Canal is a canal in New York that connects the Hudson River to the south end of Lake Champlain. It was simultaneously constructed with the Erie Canal for use by commercial vessels, fully opening in 1823. Today, it is mostly used by ...
in 1823, the
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...
in 1825, and the
Chambly Canal
The Chambly Canal is a National Historic Site of Canada in the Province of Quebec, running along the Richelieu River past Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Carignan, and Chambly. Building commenced in 1831 and the canal opened in 1843. It served as a maj ...
in 1843. Wharves allowed steamboats to connect freight and passengers with the
Rutland & Burlington Railroad and the
Vermont Central Railroad
The Central Vermont Railway was a railroad that operated in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont, as well as the Canadian province of Quebec.
It connected Montreal, Quebec, with New London, Conne ...
. Burlington became a bustling lumbering and manufacturing center – for some time the third largest lumber market in the world – and was incorporated as a city in 1865. Its
Victorian-era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardi ...
prosperity left behind much fine architecture, including buildings by
Ammi B. Young
Ammi Burnham Young (June 19, 1798 – March 14, 1874) was a 19th-century American architect whose commissions transitioned from the Greek Revival to the Neo-Renaissance styles. His design of the second Vermont State House brought him fame and su ...
,
H.H. Richardson
Henry Hobson Richardson, FAIA (September 29, 1838 – April 27, 1886) was an American architect, best known for his work in a style that became known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one ...
, and
McKim, Mead & White
McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), Wil ...
.
In 1870, the waterfront was extended by construction of the Pine Street Barge Canal. This became polluted over the years and was a focus for cleanup in 2009 under the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency
A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...
's
Superfund
Superfund is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The program is administered by the United States Environmental Pro ...
program. When elected mayor, Bernie Sanders set in place an extensive waterfront beautification plan which included adding public parks, a nine-mile bike path, and a community boathouse.
On September 5, 1901, U.S. vice president
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
spoke to a Civil War fraternal group in Burlington. Nine days later, he became United States president when President McKinley died.
Late 20th century to present
In 1978, the ice cream enterprise
Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings Inc., trading and commonly known as Ben & Jerry's, is an American company that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, and sorbet. Founded in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont, the company went from a single ice cream p ...
was founded in Burlington in a renovated gas station. It became a national brand, with retail outlets in numerous cities.
In September 2021, during the Jewish High Holy Days, between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the city council scheduled an anti-Israel BDS boycott resolution with a vote during the Days of Awe 48 hours before Yom Kippur. This was widely criticized as
antisemitic and insensitive by national Jewish organizations, and prompted a counterboycott backlash effort. The resolution, which was denounced by several council members, was withdrawn at the last minute.
Geography
The city of Burlington is situated on the eastern shore of
Lake Champlain
, native_name_lang =
, image = Champlainmap.svg
, caption = Lake Champlain-River Richelieu watershed
, image_bathymetry =
, caption_bathymetry =
, location = New York/Vermont in the United States; and Quebec in Canada
, coords =
, type =
, ...
, north of Shelburne Bay. It was built on a strip of land extending about south from the mouth of the
Winooski River
The Winooski River (formerly the Onion River) is a tributary of Lake Champlain, approximately long, in the northern half of Vermont. Although not Vermont's longest river, it is one of the state's most significant, forming a major valley way from ...
along the lake shore, and rises from the water's edge to a height of .
A large ravine in what is now downtown was filled in with refuse and raw sewage in the 19th century to make way for further development.
Neighborhoods
Burlington's neighborhoods are generally recognized by residents but have no legal or political authority.
* Downtown: The city's commercial hub is north of Maple Street, west of South Willard Street, and mostly south of Pearl Street (as it includes all property along Pearl Street that is west of South Willard Street).
* Hill Section: Burlington's wealthiest neighborhood is east of South Union Street and Shelburne Street, and south of Main Street, but excludes UVM and University Terrace while including all of
Champlain College. The Hill Section is where the Burlington Country Club is situated.
* The Intervale: The Intervale cannot be considered a neighborhood but is a large area encompassing many locally owned organic farms and nature preserves along the
Winooski River
The Winooski River (formerly the Onion River) is a tributary of Lake Champlain, approximately long, in the northern half of Vermont. Although not Vermont's longest river, it is one of the state's most significant, forming a major valley way from ...
. Located to the north of the Old North End and east of the New North End, it is included on this list because its total area is larger than that of most neighborhoods in Burlington.
* New North End: Burlington's most populous neighborhood, a northwest suburban extension of the city, includes all points north of
Burlington High School, as well as Leddy Park, Ethan Allen Park, and North Beach, and is west of
Vermont Route 127 (the "Burlington Beltline").
* Old North End: Burlington's oldest and most densely populated neighborhood is north of all property along Pearl Street, west of Hyde Street and North Willard Street, and is inclusive of areas north of Downtown and west of the University District but south of the New North End and the Intervale. It is here that Burlington's largely Jewish neighborhood known as
Little Jerusalem flourished from the 1880s to the 1930s.
* South End: A once mostly industrial and now mostly artistic district south of Downtown and west of the Hill Section, it includes the waterfront Oakledge Park and is home to the headquarters of many of Burlington's nationally known companies like
Burton Snowboards
Burton Snowboards is a privately-owned snowboard manufacturing company that was founded by Jake Burton Carpenter in 1977. The company specializes in products aimed at snowboarders, such as snowboards, bindings, boots, outerwear, and accessorie ...
and
Dealer.com.
* University District: The University District is north of the Burlington Country Club, south of the Winooski River, east of Willard Street north of Main, and east of a large chunk of the Hill Section. It includes
UVM and many former single-family homes converted to student and
yuppie
Yuppie, short for "young urban professional" or "young upwardly-mobile professional", is a term coined in the early 1980s for a young professional person working in a city. The term is first attested in 1980, when it was used as a fairly neu ...
apartments (although these are everywhere throughout the city limits and metropolitan area).
Climate
Burlington has a
hot-summer humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''Dfa''), with cold winters and warm, humid summers. The monthly daily average temperatures range from in January to in July. The annual precipitation of is well-distributed throughout the year, but the summer months are the wettest. The city's location east of
Lake Champlain
, native_name_lang =
, image = Champlainmap.svg
, caption = Lake Champlain-River Richelieu watershed
, image_bathymetry =
, caption_bathymetry =
, location = New York/Vermont in the United States; and Quebec in Canada
, coords =
, type =
, ...
sometimes accounts for localized
snow squall
A snowsquall, or snow squall, is a sudden moderately heavy snowfall with blowing snow and strong, gusty surface winds. It is often referred to as a whiteout and is similar to a blizzard but is localized in time or in location and snow accumulat ...
s, producing up to in 12 hours on rare occasions. Annual snowfall averages , but this figure can fluctuate greatly from one year to another. Extremes have ranged from on January 15, 1957, and February 12, 1979, to on August 11, 1944.
The most recorded snowfall from a single storm is , which fell January 2–3, 2010.
For the Northeast United States, a
heat wave
A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...
is defined as having three consecutive days of or more. There were six such heat waves from 2000–2009.
Demographics
As of the 2020 census estimates, there were 42,899 people living in the city.
The racial makeup of the city was 85.7%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 4.9%
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
or
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.4%
Native American, 6.0%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
(1.3% Chinese, 1.1% Bhutanese, 0.9% Nepalese, 0.6% Vietnamese, 0.5% Indian, 0.4% Burmese, 0.3% Indonesian, 0.2% Korean, 0.1% Cambodian, 0.1% Laotian, 0.1% Filipino, 0.1% Japanese, 0.1% Thai), and 2.5% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 2.6% of the population (0.7% Puerto Rican, 0.4% Mexican, 0.3% Dominican, 0.2% Cuban, 0.2% Spanish, 0.2% Colombian, 0.1% Honduran, 0.1% Peruvian, 0.1% Argentine).
There were 16,851 households and the average number of persons per household was 2.13.
Personal income
According to the
American Community Survey
The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...
s for 2015–2019, averaged, the median income for a household in the city was $51,394,
and the median income for a family was $87,030.
Among workers with full-time, year-round work, males had a median income of $50,552 versus $38,418 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 city was $28,480.
About 10.6% of families and 26.4% 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 27.3% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.
The median value of owner-occupied housing units was $284,500.
Economy
Burlington's economy centers on education, health services, trade, transportation, and utilities, and some manufacturing. In 2011, the city had an unemployment rate of 4.8%, which was the 6th lowest of all metro areas. Real wages were $39,980 in 2006 constant dollars and remained there to 2010; the state was $33,385; the nation, $36,871.
In 2009,
Moody's
Moody's Investors Service, often referred to as Moody's, is the bond credit rating business of Moody's Corporation, representing the company's traditional line of business and its historical name. Moody's Investors Service provides international ...
confirmed the city's bond rating at AA3, "high" quality, the second best rank, but in 2010, the city-owned
Burlington Telecom
Burlington Telecom is a municipal telecommunications company providing residents of Burlington, Vermont with television, telephone and internet services. The company runs its communications offerings on a citywide fiber-optic network.
History
A ...
cable provider was unable to pay the city of Burlington $17 million it owed. As a result, Moody's downrated the debt for the city two notches to A2, "upper medium". Moody's also downrated the credit rating for
Burlington International Airport
Burlington International Airport is a joint-use civil-military airport serving Burlington, Vermont, the state of Vermont's largest municipality. It is owned by the City of Burlington and located in the neighboring city of South Burlington, thr ...
.
Business and industry
The largest employers in the city proper are the
University of Vermont Medical Center
The University of Vermont Medical Center (UVMMC) is a five-campus academic medical facility under the corporate umbrella of the University of Vermont Health Network that is anchored by a 562-bed hospital. UVMMC is located in Burlington, Vermo ...
(formerly Fletcher Allen Health Care) and the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
, employing 6,823 and 3,137 people, respectively. Other companies in Burlington include the G.S. Blodgett Company, one of the oldest and largest commercial oven companies in the country, which manufactures restaurant equipment. Its history dates back to the mid-19th century.
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...
develops software for the healthcare industry in
South Burlington at the former headquarters of
IDX Systems
IDX Systems Corporation (IDX) was a healthcare software technology company that formerly had headquarters in South Burlington, Vermont, United States. It was founded in 1969 by Robert Hoehl, Richard Tarrant, and Paul Egerman. IDX was acquired ...
, which it purchased in 2006.
General Dynamics
General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American publicly traded, aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Reston, Virginia. As of 2020, it was the fifth-largest defense contractor in the world by arms sales, and 5th largest in the Uni ...
Armament and Technical Products division employ 450 workers locally. A solely owned subsidiary, the division is based here. Dealer.com, a leading automotive internet marketing company, employed about 1000 employees as of 2017.
Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings Inc., trading and commonly known as Ben & Jerry's, is an American company that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, and sorbet. Founded in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont, the company went from a single ice cream p ...
began in 1978 when Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield opened their first ice cream scoop shop in an old gas station in Burlington.
Vermont Teddy Bear Company, whose founder started on a cart on a Burlington street, now ships custom teddy bears worldwide.
Corporate headquarters located in Burlington include
Burton Snowboards
Burton Snowboards is a privately-owned snowboard manufacturing company that was founded by Jake Burton Carpenter in 1977. The company specializes in products aimed at snowboarders, such as snowboards, bindings, boots, outerwear, and accessorie ...
,
Bruegger's
Bruegger's Enterprises, Inc. is a restaurant operator and subsidiary of the Luxembourg-based company JAB Holding Company. It and its wholly owned subsidiary Threecaf Brands Canada, Inc., are franchisers and operators of Bruegger's bakery-cafés ...
, Lake Champlain Chocolates,
Rhino Foods, and
Seventh Generation Inc.
Seventh Generation, Inc. is an American company selling environmentally friendly, eco-friendly cleaning, paper, and personal care products. Established in 1988, the Burlington, Vermont–based company distributes products to natural food store ...
Retailing and tourism
![Church Street Marketplace in autumn](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Church_Street_Marketplace_in_autumn.jpg)
One measure of economic activity is retail sales. Burlington was fifth in the state in 2007 with $242.2 million.
The
Church Street Marketplace
The Church Street Marketplace is an uncovered outdoor pedestrian shopping and dining mall in Burlington, Vermont, consisting of the four blocks of Church Street between Main and Pearl Streets. The mall was initially conceived in 1958 and was bui ...
, a four-block pedestrian mall in the heart of the city, is the site of festivals throughout the year. The
American Planning Association
The American Planning Association (APA) is a professional organization representing the field of urban planning in the United States. APA was formed in 1978, when two separate professional planning organizations, the American Institute of Pla ...
named the Marketplace one of America's "Great Public Spaces" for 2008. Events such as the "South End Art Hop" and public galleries such as
Pine Street Art Works, provide a forum for the visual arts in the South End.
A "Festival of Fools" had an estimated 25,000 attendees at the Marketplace in 2009.
The "Vermont Brewers Festival" had 9,600 attendees in 2009,
and the "Giant Pumpkin Regatta and Festival" had 5,000 attendees that same year; ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' satirized the event.
One of the largest year-round
farmers' market
A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or o ...
s in the state of Vermont is located in the city.
Arts and culture
Dragon boat
A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft originating from the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China, different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family of t ...
races to benefit charity have been held in Lake Champlain in August since 2006. In 2009, there were approximately 2,000 participants on 86 teams.
An annual
First Night
First Night is a North American artistic and cultural celebration on New Year's Eve, taking place from afternoon until midnight. Some cities have all their events during the celebration outside, but some cities have events that are hosted indoors ...
community celebration of the arts on New Year's Eve was founded in 1983 with funding from the National Endowment on the Arts and Vermont Council on the Arts. It ran for 35 years before shutting down in 2018.
Drag troupe, the
House of LeMay
The House of LeMay is a drag performance team founded in the early 1990s by Bob Bolyard (Amber LeMay) and Michael Hayes (Margaurite LeMay). The other regular member of the team is Johnnie McLaughlin (Lucy Belle LeMay). The House of LeMay is bas ...
, hosts the annual "Winter is a Drag Ball" which raises funds for HIV/AIDS-related organizations.
The Emily Post Institute
The Emily Post Institute (EPI) is an organization located in Burlington, Vermont, that provides etiquette advice and training to news outlets and corporations in the United States of America and worldwide. It was founded by etiquette author Em ...
, an etiquette organization, is headquartered here.
Local music
The city has, over the years, supported several local bands as various "scenes" waxed and waned, and has even launched a handful of national acts. The most famous of these is
Phish
Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon ...
, which originated at UVM in 1983.
Other acts with ties to the city include
Matisyahu
Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer
Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...
,
Kat Wright
Kat Wright is an American singer and songwriter based in Burlington, Vermont, U.S.
Biography
Wright was born in Rochester, New York, where she attended Our Lady of Mercy High School and later received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Alfred Univers ...
,
Strangefolk,
The Essex Green
The Essex Green is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn that has released four albums to date. The band is primarily composed of songwriters Jeff Baron, Sasha Bell and Chris Ziter, and specializes in a classic sound inspired by 1960s–1970s ...
,
RAQ,
James Kochalka
James Kochalka (born May 26, 1967, in Springfield, Vermont) is an American comic book artist, writer, animator, and rock musician. His comics are noted for their blending of the real and the surreal. Largely autobiographical, Kochalka's cartoo ...
,
The Jazz Mandolin Project,
Pork Tornado,
Anaïs Mitchell
Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown'' (2010), '' Young Man in America'' (2012), ,
Greg Davis,
Koushik Koushik Ghosh (known professionally simply as Koushik) is a Bengali-Canadian electronic musician from Dundas, Ontario.Brown, MarisaKoushik Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 2011-06-11 Koushik is signed to Stones Throw Records and has released a collect ...
,
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals are an American rock band from Vermont, formed in 2002 in Waitsfield by drummer Matt Burr, guitarist Scott Tournet, and singer Grace Potter. They began their career as an indie band, self-producing their albums an ...
,
Dispatch,
Prydein,
Eugene Hutz
Eugene may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Eugene (actress) (born 1981), Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean actress and former member of the sin ...
of
Gogol Bordello
Gogol Bordello is an American punk rock band from the Lower East Side of Manhattan, formed in 1999 by musicians from all over the world and known for theatrical stage shows and persistent touring. Much of the band's sound is inspired by Ro ...
,
Morgan Page
Morgan Wolf Page (born May 31, 1981) is an American DJ and music producer. His tracks include "The Longest Road", "Fight for You" and "In the Air". Page has received two Grammy Award nominations; a personal nomination for best remix with Nadia ...
,
KT Tunstall
Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained attention with a 2004 live solo performance of her song " Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on '' Later... with Jools Holland''.
Th ...
,
Rubblebucket
Rubblebucket is an American art-pop and indie-rock band from Brooklyn, New York. The primary members are musical couple (now separated) Annakalmia Traver and Alex Toth.
Formation
Alex Toth (trumpet, band leader) and Kalmia Traver (vocals, saxoph ...
,
The Vacant Lots
The Vacant Lots are an American post-punk electro band based in Brooklyn, New York.
History
The Vacant Lots are a two-piece post-punk electro band formed by Jared Artaud and Brian MacFadyen in Burlington, Vermont. The group is now based out ...
,
Drowningman
Drowningman is an American hardcore punk band from Burlington, Vermont, which was active from 1995 to 2005. Formed in the fall of 1995 by Simon Brody, Denny Donovan, Javin Leonard, Dave Barnett and Todd Tomlinson, the band was heavily influenced ...
,
99 Neighbors
99 Neighbors is an American music group formed in Burlington, Vermont. It consists of seven members: Connor "Swank" Stankevich, Hank "HANKNATIVE" Collins, Sam Paulino, Aidan Ostby, Julian "Juju" Segar-Reid, Caleb "Somba" Hoh, and Jared Fier. T ...
and
Twiddle.
Local art
The "South End Art Hop" is an annual event presented by the South End Arts and Business Association.
Artists join businesses, artist studios, and galleries, which in turn open their doors to the public throughout the post-industrial section of Burlington, known as the "South End". The first Art Hop in 1993 had a little more than thirty artists and a dozen sites participating. In 2008, over 600 artists showcased their works in over 100 sites throughout the South End of Burlington. The event takes place on the Friday and Saturday following Labor Day in September.
The city has an art department, Burlington City Arts, which serves many roles including cultural planning, education, showing contemporary art and hosting cultural events at
The BCA Center
Burlington City Arts (formerly The Firehouse Gallery, or The Center, or the Firehouse Center for the Visual Arts) is an art gallery, art education/studio centre and cultural events space in Burlington, Vermont. The building was originally built ...
. Burlington City Arts also runs a program in collaboration with UVM Medical Center, Art from the Heart, where patients have access to art supplies and devoted volunteer time.
Public library
![Fletcher Free Library Burlngton Vermont](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Fletcher_Free_Library_Burlngton_Vermont.jpg)
The
Fletcher Free Library
The Fletcher Free Library is the public library serving Burlington, Vermont. It is located at 235 College Street, in an architecturally distinguished Beaux-Arts building, constructed in 1902 with funding support from philanthropist Andrew Carneg ...
was established in 1873, endowed by Mary Martha Fletcher, the daughter of a local businessman, but outgrew its initial building on Church Street by 1901. A new building was constructed in 1901–04 with funds provided by industrialist and philanthropist
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...
, making it the first of the four
Carnegie libraries in the state. It was designed in the
Beaux-Arts style by Walter R. B. Willcox of Burlington, who won a competition to receive the commission.
The building had major settling problems in 1973 where it had been built over a former railroad ravine, which had been improperly filled in, and the library's collection was moved elsewhere. The possible razing of the building was stopped by a citizens' committee, which successfully had it added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
, and a grant allowed the stabilization and repair of the building. A new modern addition was completed in 1981.
["Fletcher Free Library Designation Report"]
The largest public library in Vermont, and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
, the Fletcher Free Library had a budget of over $1 million in 2002. It circulated more books, had more visitors, and had more computers, than any other library in Vermont. In addition to its primary services as Burlington's public library, it is also a community center, a cultural resource for newly arrived immigrants to the Burlington area, and the city's only free public access computer center.
Sites of interest
!['Battery Park in Burlington' by Tania Dey](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/%27Battery_Park_in_Burlington%27_by_Tania_Dey.jpg)
* Ethan Allen Homestead Museum
* Chittenden County Historical Society & Museum
*
World's Tallest Filing Cabinet
*
ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain
*
Robert Hull Fleming Museum
The Fleming Museum of Art is a museum of art and anthropology at the University of Vermont in Burlington. The museum's collection includes some 25,000 objects from a wide variety of eras and places. Until 2014, the museum was known as the Robert ...
at the University of Vermont
* Flynn Center for the Performing Arts
*Burlington Waterfront Park
*
The 1885 building of Ohavi Zedek, one of the
oldest synagogue buildings still standing in the United States
Landmarks and buildings
Historic buildings
Many of Burlington's historic buildings and sites have been recognized by their inclusion on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
(NRHP). In addition to 28 buildings, three shipwrecks and the Burlington Breakwater, the city encompasses 17 historic districts.
Churches and synagogues
Churches in Burlington include the North Avenue
Alliance
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
Church, First
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
Church, First
Congregational
Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...
Church, the
Episcopal Cathedral Church of St. Paul, the First
United Methodist
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
Church, Christ Church (
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
), the
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Cathedral of St. Joseph—the
episcopal see
An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...
for the
Diocese of Burlington
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington ( la, Dioecesis Burlingtonensis) is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States, comprising the entire state of Vermont. The Diocese of Burlington was canonically e ...
, the First
Unitarian Universalist
Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to:
Christian and Christian-derived theologies
A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism:
* Unitarianism (1565–present) ...
Society, Dormition of the Mother of God Orthodox Church (
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, headquartered in New York City, is an eparchy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Its current primate is Archbishop Elpidophoros of America.
Archbishop
On May 11, 2019, the church's Hol ...
), the College Street Congregational Church (
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximately 4 ...
), The Burlington Church of Christ, and the
non-denominational
A non-denominational person or organization is one that does not follow (or is not restricted to) any particular or specific religious denomination.
Overview
The term has been used in the context of various faiths including Jainism, Baháʼí Fait ...
Church at the Well. The
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
Ohavi Zedek synagogue is also located in the city, and there is an active Meeting of the
Religious Society of Friends
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...
(Quakers). Synagogues in Burlington include the Chabad of Vermont, Ohavi Zedek, Ahavath Gerim, Ruach HaMaqom, and Ohavi Zedek Chavurah.
The
Howard Mortuary Chapel
The Howard Mortuary Chapel is a historic chapel located at 455 North Avenue on the grounds of Lakeview Cemetery in Burlington, Vermont. Built in 1882, the chapel was designed in the High Victorian Gothic style by Alfred Benjamin Fisher, on c ...
in
Lakeview Cemetery
Lake View Cemetery is a Private property, privately owned, Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Rural cemetery, garden cemetery located in the cities of Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland, Ohio, East Cleveland ...
was built in 1882 as a gift to the City of Burlington from Hannah Louisa Howard, a local philanthropist. A native of the city, she was the daughter of John Howard, a successful Burlington hotelier. The chapel was designed in the Gothic revival architecture, High Victorian Gothic style by Alfred Benjamin Fisher, on cemetery grounds designed by E. C. Ryer in 1871.
The Ira Allen Chapel on the grounds of the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
campus, was completed in 1926, and was designed in the Georgian Revival style by
McKim, Mead & White
McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), Wil ...
. The chapel's flashing beacon provides a nighttime landmark for those approaching Burlington from Lake Champlain. The chapel is part of the University Green Historic District.
Two of the cathedrals in Burlington—the Episcopal Cathedral Church of St. Paul and the former Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Burlington, Vermont), Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception—are modern structures built after their predecessors were destroyed by arson fires in 1971–1972.
The Episcopal Cathedral was completed in 1973 and was designed by Burlington Associates (now TruexCollins) in the Brutalism, Brutalist style, while the Roman Catholic Cathedral was built in 1974–1977 and was designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes, with the park-like grounds designed by landscape architect Dan Kiley.
Immaculate Conception was closed in 2018 and replaced by the Cathedral of Saint Joseph (Neoclassical, 1887).
Sports
The Vermont Lake Monsters of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League, a collegiate summer baseball team, were formerly called the Vermont Expos. The team changed its name in 2007 after its parent Major League Baseball club, the Montreal Expos of the National League, moved from Montreal to Washington, D.C., and became the Washington Nationals. In 2010, the Lake Monsters ended its 17-year association with the Expos/Nationals and became the Class A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics of the American League. The Lake Monsters play on the campus of the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
at Centennial Field.
Burlington has a rich hockey history, and was the location of the first known international ice hockey match, held between the Montreal Crystals and employees of the Urban A. Woodbury#Postwar life, Van Ness House, a local hotel, during the Montreal Winter Carnival ice hockey tournaments#1886 Burlington Winter Carnival, 1886 Burlington Winter Carnival. The
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
's men's hockey team, the Catamounts, play their home games at the 4,007-seat Gutterson Field House on the UVM campus.
A professional basketball franchise, the Vermont Frost Heaves, played half of their season in the city until the team folded in 2011. The team, which originally was part of the American Basketball Association (2000–), American Basketball Association—not to be confused with the 1970s-era major basketball league of the same name that merged with the National Basketball Association—moved to the Premier Basketball League in 2008 and split their regular-season home games between Burlington and Barre (city), Vermont, Barre. The Frost Heaves, owned by ''Sports Illustrated'' writer Alexander Wolff, played their Burlington games at the Memorial Auditorium, on South Union Street, at the corner of Main. However, the franchise folded in early 2011.
The Vermont City Marathon has drawn thousands of competitors annually. A local Golden Gloves boxing tournament has been held annually since 1946.
Burlington was a venue site for the 2012 IIHF Women's World Championship, 2012 International Ice Hockey Federation Women's World Championship.
Government
![Burlington City Hall in autumn](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Burlington_City_Hall_in_autumn.jpg)
Burlington has had a Mayor–council government, mayor–council form of government since 1865 with its first mayor being Albert L. Catlin. Vermont Democratic Party, Democrats and Vermont Progressive Party, Progressives make up the majority of the council. Miro Weinberger, the current mayor, is a Democrat who was first elected in 2012. The City Council has twelve seats. Prior to 2020, they were occupied by five Progressives,
four Democrats, two Independent (politician), Independents, and one Vermont Republican Party, Republican. After the 2020 city elections, the Republican seat flipped to Democratic, and one Independent seat flipped to Progressive.
U.S. senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders served as the Mayoralty of Bernie Sanders, mayor of Burlington from 1981 to 1989. His election in 1981 unseated longstanding mayor Gordon Paquette and drastically altered the political landscape of the city. Mayor Sanders created a government that was run by young Progressives, including Peter Clavelle, who was elected mayor of the city when Sanders stepped down to run for higher office. Peter Clavelle, Burlington's longest-serving mayor, held the office from 1989 to 1993, and again from 1995 to 2006.
In the 1980s, the successive reelections of a self-proclaimed "socialist" drew attention from the national media. Sanders has dispelled the notion that his first victory, secured by a narrow margin, was "just a fluke".
The large transient student population votes in local, state, and national elections, resulting in a considerable impact on local elections.
The city signed up 2,527 new voters in the six weeks from September 1, 2008, the highest number for that time frame in over nine years.
As a non-profit institution, the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
pays no real estate taxes, though, like many other schools, it does make an annual payment in place of taxes. In 2007, the college agreed to raise this from $456,006 to $912,011 in 2010 plus a "public works" supplement rising from $180,040 to $191,004 over the same time frame.
The city maintains three parks on Lake Champlain. All three are free for public access, with two having parking fees.
City council members
In 2021, voters adopted a charter amendment to elect the council by Ranked-choice voting in the United States, ranked-choice voting. Before the amendment can go into effect, however, it must be passed by the Vermont State Legislature, state legislature and approved by the Governor of Vermont, governor. The Vermont House of Representatives, state house approved the amendment on February 23, 2022, sending it to the Vermont Senate, state senate.
Education
Public schools
Burlington School District operates the city's public schools.
Schools:
*
Burlington High School
* The Sustainability Academy (at Lawrence Barnes Elementary)
* Edmunds Elementary School, named after George F. Edmunds, a U.S. senator for 25 years, from 1866 to 1891
* Edmunds Middle School, (formerly Burlington High School)
* Lyman C. Hunt Middle School
* Flynn Elementary School
* Champlain Elementary School
* C. P. Smith Elementary
* The Integrated Arts Academy (at H.O. Wheeler Elementary)
Magnet schools
In Burlington, students have two choices of magnet schools: the Integrated Arts Academy at H.O. Wheeler (IAA) and the Sustainability Academy at Lawrence Barnes (SA).
Private schools
*Christ the King School
*Mater Christi School
*Rock Point School
Universities and colleges
The
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
(UVM) and
Champlain College are located in this college town. The UVM Medical Center is home to one of the ten most selective medical schools in the U.S., the The University of Vermont College of Medicine, UVM College of Medicine. The Community College of Vermont had a site located in Burlington until 2010 when a new building in the adjacent city of Winooski, Vermont, Winooski was constructed for the college. Saint Michael's College and a satellite campus of Southern New Hampshire University are in the neighboring town of Colchester. Vermont Technical College also has a satellite campus in nearby Williston, Vermont, Williston.
Media
Newspapers and other publications
Burlington is the media center of northern and central Vermont. It is served by:
* ''The Burlington Free Press'', a daily newspaper delivered throughout Vermont
* ''Seven Days (newspaper), Seven Days'', a free weekly newspaper delivered in bulk to pickup points throughout the Burlington metropolitan area and central Vermont, emphasizing arts and culture
* ''Vermont Business Magazine''
* ''Vermont Digger''
* ''The Natural Philosopher'', a monthly science news journal articulating primary literature in neuroscience, biochemistry, and genetics. ''The Natural Philosopher'' is a student-run publication based at the University of Vermont.
Radio
Major radio stations that are based in Burlington and serve the region:
* WBTZ (The Buzz) – 99.9 FM (modern rock)
* WCPV (101.3 ESPN) – 101.3 FM (sports)
* WCVT (101 The One) – 101.7 FM (classic album tracks)
* WEZF (Star 92.9) – 92.9 FM (hot adult contemporary)
* WIZN (The Wizard) – 106.7 FM (classic rock)
* WJOY – 1230 AM (adult standards)
* WKOL (KOOL 105) – 105.1 FM (classic hits)
* The Point (radio network), WNCS and W227AQ (The Point) – 104.7 and 93.3 FM, respectively (Triple-A)
* WOKO – 98.9 FM (Country music, country)
* WOXR (Vermont Public Radio) – 90.9 FM (classical)
* WRUV (University of Vermont) – 90.1 FM (variety)
* WTNN (Eagle Country) – 97.5 FM
* WVMT – 620 AM (news/talk)
* WVPS (Vermont Public Radio) – 107.9 FM (news & information), National Public Radio
* WWPV-LP, WWPV (Saint Michael's College) – 92.5 FM (variety)
* WXXX – 95.5 FM (Hit Music Station)
Television
Five network-affiliated television stations serve the greater Burlington area. They include WFFF-TV channel 44 (Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox), its sister station WVNY channel 22 (American Broadcasting Company, ABC), WPTZ channel 5 (NBC, with Me-TV on DT3), its sister station WNNE channel 31 (The CW, CW), and WCAX-TV channel 3 (CBS). All of the stations (including WVNY and WNNE which share news departments with WFFF-TV and WPTZ, respectively) operate news departments. Although licensed to Burlington, WCAX is based in neighboring
South Burlington, while WPTZ is based in Plattsburgh (city), New York, Plattsburgh, New York, with a news bureau in nearby Colchester, Vermont, Colchester. WFFF and WVNY are also based in Colchester, while WNNE is licensed to Montpelier, Vermont, Montpelier.
Comcast is the metro area's major cable television service provider, although residents within the Burlington city limits are also served by municipally-owned
Burlington Telecom
Burlington Telecom is a municipal telecommunications company providing residents of Burlington, Vermont with television, telephone and internet services. The company runs its communications offerings on a citywide fiber-optic network.
History
A ...
.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Bus
Burlington is the central focus of Green Mountain Transit (GMT), which provides bus service to and from surrounding municipalities.
On June 15, 2011, the Chittenden County Transportation Authority announced that it had changed its charter, effective July 1, 2011, to allow municipalities outside Chittenden County to join CCTA as member communities, thereby allowing CCTA to become Vermont's first regional transit authority. As part of its expansion, the CCTA merged with the Green Mountain Transit Authority (GMTA), which provided bus service in the Barre-Montpelier area and surrounding communities in central Vermont.
Greyhound Lines, Greyhound provides intercity bus service from the
Burlington International Airport
Burlington International Airport is a joint-use civil-military airport serving Burlington, Vermont, the state of Vermont's largest municipality. It is owned by the City of Burlington and located in the neighboring city of South Burlington, thr ...
and Downtown Transit Center bus station to other communities in Vermont, and to
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
's Gare d'autocars de Montreal and Boston's South Station and Logan International Airport. Premier Coach's Vermont Translines also provides intercity bus service between Burlington and Albany, New York, along the U.S. Route 7 in Vermont, U.S. Route 7 corridor in a partnership with Greyhound, also from the Burlington International Airport. Megabus (North America), Megabus provides service between Burlington and Boston with a stop in Montpelier, Vermont.
Rail
Burlington is connected to New York City via Amtrak's ''Ethan Allen Express'', which began serving the city in July 2022. Service is to Union Station (Burlington, Vermont), Union Station, built on the city's waterfront in 1916. The extension to Burlington was first proposed in 2013 by Vermont governor Peter Shumlin. Prior to this, the nearest Amtrak station was located about to the east in Essex Junction, Vermont, which is served by the ''Vermonter (train), Vermonter''.
Rail service began in Burlington in 1849. From the late nineteenth century to 1953, the Rutland Railroad provided passenger service on the ''Green Mountain Flyer'' and the ''Mount Royal'' from Burlington to Troy, New York, with connecting service to New York City via the New York Central Railroad. The last passenger train to run north via the Burlington Tunnel to Alburgh (town), Vermont, Alburgh, a town in the northwest extremity of Vermont, was in June 1938.
From 2000 to 2003, the ''Champlain Flyer'' was a commuter service from Burlington south to the town of Charlotte, Vermont.
Air
Air carriers at
Burlington International Airport
Burlington International Airport is a joint-use civil-military airport serving Burlington, Vermont, the state of Vermont's largest municipality. It is owned by the City of Burlington and located in the neighboring city of South Burlington, thr ...
(BTV) provide the area with commercial service to major regional hubs and international airports. While scheduled carriers have not traditionally offered scheduled commercial flights to destinations outside the United States, there is a Customs Port of Entry for unscheduled flights. From 2011 to 2018, the only available international commercial flights for BTV were via Porter Airlines' winter seasonal service to and from Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, Billy Bishop Airport in Toronto.
Major roads
Burlington is served by one major Interstate highway, along with its spur route into the southern part of the city, and is at the junction of two U.S. highways. Several Vermont state highways also provide routes into and through the Burlington area.
*
![I-89](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/I-89.svg)
Interstate 89 – Though it does not directly enter the Burlington city limits, I-89 has interchanges in neighboring South Burlington, Winooski, and Colchester that provide access to downtown.
*
![I-189](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/I-189.svg)
Interstate 189 – I-189 connects I-89 in South Burlington to U.S. 7 at the southern end of Burlington.
*
![US 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/US_2.svg)
U.S. Route 2 in Vermont, U.S. Route 2 is the main east–west route entering Burlington. After entering the city from the east, westbound U.S. 2 turns north to run concurrently with U.S. 7 towards Winooski and Colchester. The intersection with Interstate 89 is used by 42,000 cars daily.
*
![US 7](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/US_7.svg)
U.S. Route 7 in Vermont, U.S. Route 7 is the main north–south route through Burlington. Northbound U.S. 7 joins westbound U.S. 2 in downtown Burlington, and the two routes run concurrently north to Colchester before diverging.
*
Vermont Route 127 connects downtown and the Old North End with the New North End and the Colchester, Vermont, town of Colchester. Throughout the New North End, VT-127 is a limited-access highway officially named the Winooski Valley Parkway, though commonly known as the "Burlington Beltline".
Ferry service
Burlington is the headquarters of the Lake Champlain Transportation Company, a privately held company that offers ferry service for the North Country (New York), North Country of New York (state), New York state and the Champlain Valley region of Vermont. Summer seasonal service is available from Burlington's King Street Dock to Port Kent, New York. One line of year-round 24-hour service is provided from the nearby town of Grand Isle, Vermont, to Plattsburgh (town), New York, Plattsburgh, New York, with another line of daily service from Charlotte, Vermont, to Essex, New York.
Internet
The city has municipal broadband, municipal fiber broadband, which provides telephone, broadband internet, and television. In 2008, cable management tried to drop Al-Jazeera English from the lineup. This was successfully thwarted by protesters and the station was, in 2009, one of three "small cable operators" in the nation to carry this channel.
Electricity
Like many Vermont municipalities, Burlington owns its own power company, Burlington Electric Department. In 2009, the department announced that it would purchase 40% of the output of the 40 MW Sheffield, Vermont, wind-generated electricity when it became available.
Renewable energy
Burlington began operating on 100% renewable energy in 2014 after being a pioneer in the renewable energy sector for decades. The Burlington Electric Department, which began operating in 1903, originally used Coal-fired power station, coal as a primary source of energy. However, after experiencing the effects of fluctuating coal prices throughout the second World War, the department slowly began using wood as an energy source because of the price and overall energy efficiency of wood.
Since then, the city has experienced a sustainability boom, and today runs on 100% renewable energy. A succession of mayors in the city, along with corresponding public interest, are credited with this change. Gordon Paquette made the decision to completely transition from coal to wood at the McNeil Generating Station in 1977, and Bernie Sanders picked up this momentum of the environmental movement in the small city. This continued with Peter Clavelle, who mandated recycling in the city, and passed a number of bonds which funded energy improvements in infrastructure. In 1995, the city issued the Legacy Plan, which aimed to "go beyond the branding and rhetoric and create actual examples that will resonate and make a difference in people's lives."
Today, that plan has come to fruition in many ways. The city operates entirely on energy from the Winooski One Hydro Plant, a series of wind turbines and solar panels, as well as the sustainably-sourced wood burning plant at McNeil Generating Station.
This made Burlington the first city to run completely on sustainable energy sources: a landmark for green infrastructure. Along with keeping energy rates low for customers, sustainability in the city extends beyond energy infrastructure. A non-profit organization in the city started an incubator farm that produces 30,000 pounds of fresh, local food for those facing Food security, food insecurity. The city has also worked on drastic building restoration projects, installed bikeways for more efficient transportation, and prioritized energy saving in the downtown.
In September 2019, the current mayor Miro Weinberger announced plans to get the city to Carbon neutrality, net zero status by 2030. This would mean that the city would produce and consume equal amounts of energy. In October 2020, Burlington Electric proposed an ordinance that would require all buildings in the city to switch to electric energy sources. This would put the city closer to that net-zero goal, and continues its legacy as a trailblazer for sustainable infrastructure.
Health and social services
Burlington is home to The University of Vermont Medical Center, University of Vermont Medical Center, a tertiary referral hospital for Vermont and the North Country of New York, Level I Trauma Center, and teaching hospital.
In 2008, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that Burlington ranks high among U.S. metropolitan areas by having the largest proportion of people – 92 percent – who say they are in good or great health. The report went on to rate it best in exercise and lowest in obesity, diabetes, and other measures of ill health. In 2009, ''Children's Health Magazine'' rated Burlington the best city in the country to raise a family.
In 2010, the government banned smoking within of the city's parks and recreational areas.
Howard Center, headquartered in Burlington, provides social services to state residents, and runs Vermont's first and the area's only methadone maintenance program, the Chittenden Clinic.
Notable people
Sister and friendship cities
Burlington's Sister city, sister cities are:
* Arad, Israel, Arad, Israel
* Bethlehem, Palestine
* Honfleur, France
* Moss Point, Mississippi, United States
* Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua
* Yaroslavl, Russia
Burlington's friendship cities:
* Burlington, Ontario, Burlington, Canada
* Nishinomiya, Japan
Sister lakes
Burlington and other communities surrounding Lake Champlain has sister lake relationships with communities around these lakes:
* Lake Ohrid, straddling the border of Albania and North Macedonia
* Lake Toba, Indonesia
See also
*Five Sisters (Burlington, Vermont)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
City of Burlington official website
{{Authority control
Burlington, Vermont,
Burlington, Vermont metropolitan area
Cities in Chittenden County, Vermont
Cities in Vermont
County seats in Vermont
Populated places established in 1783
1783 establishments in Vermont