Beebe Plain is an unincorporated community in the town of Derby in Orleans County, Vermont, United States, which extends into the municipality of

Stanstead, Quebec Stanstead is a town in the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, located on the Canada–United States border across from Derby Line, Vermont. The Town of Stanstead was created in 1995 by the merger of the ...

, Canada. The village is divided by 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 ...

between Canada and the United States; the Canadian portion of

Beebe Plain Beebe Plain is an unincorporated geographically-contiguous settlement, split politically between Canada and the United States. An unincorporated village partially in Stanstead and partially in Derby Line, it is divided by the Quebec-Vermont bor ...

had the status of an incorporated municipality in its own right until 1995.

Geography

Border Patrol at Canadian border in Beebe Plain, Vermont

The international border runs up the middle of Canusa Street ( Quebec Route 247). Local legend claims that a group of rather drunken

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

s, when given the task of determining the United States-Canada border line in the region (nominally at 45.00°N), decided to place the border right through the center of the village along what is now Canusa Street. Beebe Plain is part of a group of nearby border villages which includes Derby Line, Vermont and

. Beebe Plain is located near Lake Memphremagog between

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

and Magog.

Industry

Beebe granite or "Stanstead Grey Granite" is famous for its use in architectural design. The production of granite from the region may well be the largest industry, with much of the stone being used in the construction of tombstones and memorials.

History

The village was founded circa 1798 by Thomas B. Beebe b. 1776 in Windsor, Vermont.

Features

The former Massawippi Valley Railway line once joined Lennoxville, Quebec through a border crossing at Beebe Plain to Newport, Vermont. That line was abandoned and removed by the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

in 1989–1991. Portions of the former right-of-way remain open for recreational use:Log Cabin Chronicles Dr. Keith Mahoney's biking from Vermont to Quebec story
/ref> * Beebe Plain, Vermont to Waterfront Park (Main St, US 5) Newport as the Newport Bike Path. * Beebe Plain, Québec to Ayer's Cliff, a bicycle and pedestrian trail, le sentier nature Tomifobia. * Beebe Junction, Québec to Stanstead village (a former spur), as the Piste Cyclable de Stanstead * a segment from North Hatley to Lennoxville, Quebec The section between Beebe's rue Principale (Québec Route 247) and North Derby Road (US) is no longer open, forcing cyclists onto Beebe's main street. A section between Ayer's Cliff and North Hatley is also no longer open.

References

External links

Boston magazine—Danger at our door
* Beebe Plain, Quebec (in French) {{Coord, 45, 0.3202, N, 72, 8.4661, W, type:city, display=title Unincorporated communities in Vermont Derby, Vermont Unincorporated communities in Orleans County, Vermont