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

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
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 ...
. 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