Irasburg is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Orleans County,

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Irasburg was established in 1781 when the land was granted to

Ira Allen Ira Allen (April 21, 1751 – January 7, 1814) was one of the founders of the U.S. state of Vermont and a leader of the Green Mountain Boys during the American colonial period. He was the younger brother of Ethan Allen. Biography Ira Allen was ...

Roger Enos Roger Enos (1729 – October 6, 1808) was a colonial Vermont political and military leader during the American Revolution. In 1775, he took part in Benedict Arnold's expedition to Quebec, and he later commanded the Vermont Militia as a major g ...

, Jerusha Enos (wife of Roger Enos), Jerusha Enos, Jr. (wife of Ira Allen), Roger Enos, Jr. and others by the

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly", but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

. Ira Allen later obtained the rights of the other proprietors, and he deeded the town to Jerusha Enos, Jr. as a wedding gift. The 2020 United States Census reported that there were 1,233 citizens living in Irasburg. Irasburg has a total land area of , being land and being water. The unincorporated village of Irasburg is in the center of the town. On average, it snows 9 out of the 12 months of the year.

History

The land now known as Irasburg was granted on February 23, 1781, to Ira Allen, by the General Assembly of

. The lands of Vermont were then claimed by both New Hampshire and New York. The

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

ordered that the land would not be distributed until the inhabitants of New York, New Hampshire, and the land known as "Vermont" had resolved the conflict of who truly owned the land. The General assembly of Vermont ignored this order, however, and Vermont was granted to 40–70 individuals. Ira Allen, the person known to have been granted the most land, was born in Colchester in 1790 and attended

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

and the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

. The Allens leased the land that they had received to settlers. Although Ira Allen was the first to be granted land, Irasburg's first settler was Caleb Leach in 1798. No land was conveyed by deed, however, until Ira H. Allen, son of Ira Allen, became town resident in 1814 and served as town clerk. Captain James Richardson settled Irasburg in 1803 and is believed to have opened the first tavern in town. The production of salts and pearl-ashes was the primary industry in Irasburg for the early 19th century. Although there was an

embargo Economic sanctions or embargoes are commercial and financial penalties applied by states or institutions against states, groups, or individuals. Economic sanctions are a form of coercion that attempts to get an actor to change its behavior throu ...

, those goods were transported to Canada. There was a large amount of smuggling of the salts and pearl-ashes by the town's residents. Mills emerged in Irasburg as early as 1810. By the 1820s, the town had begun to prosper as industrial sites began to emerge, which included a woolen mill, tannery, and factory production of stoves and plows. The Old Heerman Mill was located here. In 1812, the legislature voted to change the shire town of Orleans County to Irasburg. Supporting buildings were completed in 1816. In 1812, Irasburg became an Orleans County shire town, as it remained until 1886. In 1886, the legislature moved the shire town to Newport. The first courthouse and jail were built in 1815, by Irasburg residents at their own expense. The original courthouse was moved in 1847, however, and a new one was built on the same site. The original jail was built of timber and was replaced by one that was made of stone in 1838. It was eventually made of granite in 1862. In 1862, Company E of the

9th Vermont Infantry The 9th Vermont Infantry Regiment was a three years' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater, from July 1862 to December 1865. It served in the VII, XVII and XXIV Corps. History The ...

was recruited, in part, from Irasburg. In 1877, the town was still spelled "Irasburgh." The original county courthouse burned, with all of its records, in 1910 or 1911. A new

Irasburg Town Hall Irasburg Town Hall is the center of the town government of Irasburg, Vermont. Built in 1911, it is located facing Irasburg Square on the site of original county courthouse of Orleans County, of which Irasburg was the shire town of until 1884. T ...

was built in 1911 and remodeled in 1990. The town was in the national news in 2010 when it appeared that a moose was going to be destroyed for theoretically carrying disease but mostly because "tamed" wildlife is not allowed in Vermont. The

Vermont Legislature The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly", but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

crafted a law that spared the moose's life.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of 40.6 square miles (105.1 km²), of which 40.5 square miles (105.0 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.2 km²) (0.15%) is water. The Black River flows through the town in a northerly direction, receiving a number of small streams. It enters east of Potters Pond. It continues northeast, then east to the village of Irasburg. Just upstream of the village, Lords Creek enters. This creek is about long and drains a watershed that is . Downstream of Irasburg, the Black River continues north. It then flows into the town of Coventry.
The

Barton River The Barton River is a tributary of Lake Memphremagog, over long, in northern Vermont in the United States. It runs north from Glover through Barton, Brownington, Coventry and drains through Newport into Lake Memphremagog's South Bay. C ...

, after leaving Orleans, flows through eastern Irasburg, and enters Coventry.

Climate

Record temperatures have never exceeded . July, the hottest month, has averaged just over . The record low occurred in December where temperatures reached . On average it snows 9 out of the 12 months of the year. The majority of the snowfall occurs between the months of November and March. Each of these months average over . Irasburg averages about of snow annually.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 1,096 people, 452 households, and 318 families residing in Irasburg. There were 545 housing units. The racial makeup of the town was 96.6% White, 1059 people, .5% black, 5 people, .1% Native American, 1 person, 0.5% Asian, 5 people, 0.5% from other races, 6 people, and 1.8% from two or more races, 20 people.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino people of any race were 1.1% of the population, 12 people. There were 452 households, out of which 27.9%, 127 households, had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were married couples living together, 255 households, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 43 people, 4.4% were males with no family, 20 people, and 21.7% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals, 102, and 4.4%, 20 houses had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.81. The ages of people were found as follows. 54 people, or 4.9% of the population were from 5 to 9 years old. 74, or 6.8% were from 10 to 14 years. 70, or 6.4% were from 15 to 19 years old. 76, or 6.9% were from 20 to 24 years old. 49, or 4.5% were from 25 to 29 years old. 63 or 5.7% were from 30 to 34 years old. 62, or 5.7% were from 35 to 39 years old. 59, or 5.4% were from 40 to 44 years old. 71, or 6.5% were from 45 to 49 years old. 105, or 9.6% were from 50 to 54 years. 89, or 8.1% were from 55 to 59 years old. 86, or 7.8% were from 60 to 64 years old. 63, or 5.7%, were from 65 to 69 years old. 64, or 5.8% were from 70 to 74 years old. 45, or 4.1% were from 75 to 79 years old. 27, or 2.5%, were from 80 to 84 years old. 18, or 1.6% were 85 years and over. At the time of the 2010

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, there were 574 males and 522 females living in Irasburg. The median age for males was 42, and the median age for females was 44.4.

Government

Town

* Moderator – Robert Holland * Selectman – Randy Wells, Roger Gagnon (2010), Brian Fecher (2014) * Town Clerk – Danille Ingalls * Town Treasurer – Danille Ingalls * Tax Collector – Alan Butler * Auditor (2007–2010) – Carmen Lamarche * Auditor (2007–2009) – Angela Goodrich * Lister (2007–2010) – Mark Fontaine * Lister (2007–2009) – Alice Couture * Lister (2007–2008) – Todd Rivers * First Constable (2010) – Ronald Pray

School district

* Director – Amy Leroux * Director (2007–2010) – Kimico Perry * Member,

Orleans Central Supervisory Union The Orleans Central Supervisory Union is a school district responsible for the education of students in the Vermont towns of Albany, Barton, Brownington, Glover, Irasburg, Orleans, and Westmore. This requires maintaining one elementary sc ...

– Renee Fontaine (2007–2010) * Budget – $1,803,259 plus assessment for Lake Region Union High School * Number of students – 130 * Special Needs students – 20% * Per student – "over $16,000" There is only one elementary school (Irasburg Village School). The school consists of students in K through 8th grade, consisting of a total of 130 students. The school provides three seasons of

intramural sports Intramural sports are recreational sports organized within a particular institution, usually an educational institution, for the purpose of fun and exercise. The term, which is chiefly North American, derives from the Latin words ''intra muros'' m ...

. It is located Irasburg village. Irasburg Village School is part of the

. 9th through 12th grade students attend the Lake Region Union High School.

Cultural events

The Kingdom run annual foot race takes place each summer. The racecourse is a loop that starts and finishes in the Irasburg town commons. Runners may race , or . The annual Irasburg Church Fair started 1952. The fair includes an auction and the sale of baked goods.

Landmarks

There was a

round barn A round barn is a historic barn design that could be octagonal, polygonal, or circular in plan. Though round barns were not as popular as some other barn designs, their unique shape makes them noticeable. The years from 1880 to 1920 represent ...

Vermont Route 58 Vermont Route 58 (VT 58) is a east–west State highway#United states, state highway in Franklin County, Vermont, Franklin and Orleans County, Vermont, Orleans counties in northern Vermont, United States. The western terminus of the ...

about west of the village of Irasburg. On August 23, 2016, this historic barn was destroyed by a fire. The Lord's Creek Covered Bridge was built in 1881. It is located on Covered Bridge Road.

Notable people

* Elias P. Bailey (1832–1881), politician, member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

* Henry M. Bates (1808–1865), politician,

Vermont State Treasurer The State Treasurer's Office is responsible for several administrative and service duties, in accordance with Vermont Statutes. These include: investing state funds; issuing state bonds; serving as the central bank for state agencies; managing th ...

Elinor Langton-Boyle Elinor Alice Veilleux Langton–Boyle (née Elinor Alice Veilleux; June 13, 1865 – July 13, 1946), also known as Ma Boyle, was an American-born Hawaiian businesswoman and journalist, who operated the '' Paradise of the Pacific'' magazine from 19 ...

(1865–1946) businesswoman, and journalist in Hawaii *

Howard Frank Mosher Howard Frank Mosher (June 2, 1942 – January 29, 2017) was an American author of thirteen books: eleven fiction and two non-fiction. Much of his fiction takes place in the mid-20th century and all of it is set in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermon ...

(1942–2017), author *

Theodore Robinson Theodore Robinson (June 3, 1852April 2, 1896) was an American painter best known for his Impressionist landscapes. He was one of the first American artists to take up Impressionism in the late 1880s, visiting Giverny and developing a close frien ...

(1852–1896), impressionist landscape painter * Frank D. Thompson (1876–1940), judge, associate justice of the

Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The court ...

Laforrest H. Thompson Laforrest H. Thompson (January 6, 1848 – June 22, 1900) was a Vermont attorney and politician who served as President of the Vermont Senate and a Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. Biography Laforrest Holman Thompson was born in Bakers ...

(1848–1900), judge,

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

Vermont State Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator represents at least 20,300 citizens. ...

, Justice of the

Footnotes

{{authority control Towns in Vermont Towns in Orleans County, Vermont 1781 establishments in Vermont